James Boyes Thomas McCleary John Anderson Sam" Allison William Gregg Samuel morison James Mac Murphy Josiah Duncan Daniel Runnels John Erving Andrew Mack George Duncan Jun' [An act was passed by the legislature, March 23, 1776, entitled "An act to promote the Increase of the Fish called Alewives in Great Cohass Brook in Derryfield," which contained the following provision: "And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, that each & every Person, owning or improving any Mill Dam on said Brook, shall from the first day of May to the fifteenth day of June in every year from & after the passing & during the continuance of this act keep a sluice open in each Dam, to the end that the said Alewives may pass & repass into & from the said Massabesec Pond, without interruption and in failure thereof every Person being owner or improver of such Dam or Dams as aforesaid, shall forfeit pay for every offence the Sum of Ten Pounds."* & *The fishing at Amoskeag soon became of so much importance as to be deemed worthy of legislative protection. As the inhabitants increased in the adjacent towns, the demand for fish increased, and in the fishing season there was a constant throng of fishermen at the falls, day and night, so that the people of the town fancied that such a continued draft upon the fish would soon destroy them. Accordingly, they applied to the legislature for the enactment of a bill for the protection of the fish by limiting the time of taking them and many other restrictions. The application was successful. In 1776, the legislature passed the first "fish act" for the protection of fish in the Merrimack.-C. E. POTTER. Relative to being classed for Representative, 1780. State of New Hampshire To the Honble the Council & Gent" of the Honble House of Representatives in Gen1 Assembly at Portsmouth convened 13th October 1780. The humble Petition of the several Persons whose names are hereto set, and subscribed, Inhabitants of Derrifield in the County of Hillsborough, and State aforesaid. Sheweth That pursuant to plan of Government, the said Town of Derrifield was annexed to Goffestown, for the purpose of chusing annually a person to represent them in General Assembly which Union has turned out to be a great Grievance and highly inconvenient to Derrifield. That Your Petrs conceive Goffestown to consist of 100 families, and therefore not needing the Aid of Derrifield, whilest the latter contains little more than 50 families, And consequently in every Choice as aforesaid must (if the Inhabitants cod possibly be present) be overpowered by numbers, and outvoted And therefore not fairly represented. But may it please Your Honors, so it is, that frequently the said Inhabitants of Derrifield cannot be present at such Choice as the same is by precept always at Goffestown & at a time of Year when many times they cannot pass the River Merrimack without peril of their Lives. That your Pets are sensible, that they cannot stand alone in representation, but as they are informed by their Neighbors, Inhabitants of Litchfield, that they also conceive themselves to be under Circumstances somewhat similar to the above, with respect to Nottingham West, and that they also are about to apply to Yo Honts for relief Your Petrs for the Causes aforesaid, pray leave to bring in a Bill, whereby they may be declared Seperate from said Goffestown and joined in future to said Litchfield for the purpose aforesaid. And shall ever pray &c Jonathan Russ Select men Samuel Moor John Goffe John Goffe Jun' John Brown John Griffin Benja Baker Abraham Merill John Parham William Parham Joseph farmer Ezekeel Stevens Charles Emerson Daniel Hall Theophles griffin David Merrell Joseph Sanders James Garman thomas Numan Joshua Pierce William Parham Ebenezeer Stevenes Asael Smith John Griffin Jr |