it may be imagined to proceed from the Injury and Loss he himself has sustained, while on the other hand, a Complyance with their Request in suffering so henious a Crime to pass unpunished, cannot but be attended with many ill consequences, more especially as the insolent Behaviour of the Negroes in and about the city, which has of late been so much taken notice of, requires a strict hand to be kept over them, & shows the Necessity of some further Regulations than our laws have yet provided. The Board, on considering the Matter, are of Opinion that so daring a Crime ought not to pass unpunished, yet being willing to pay some Regard to the Application that has been made, It is Ordered, that the Execution of the Negroe awarded for this day be respited for three Months, that is to say, to the third of December next ensuing, and the President is desired to sign a warrant for staying the said Execution accordingly. At a Council held at Philadia., September 12th, 1737. PRESENT: The Honble JAMES LOGAN, Esqr., President. Clement Plumsted, Thomas Laurence, Ralph Assheton, Samuel Hasell, The Minutes of the two preceeding Councils were read and approved. Upon the President representing to the Board that a venire had been issued by Jeremiah Langhorne and Thomas Grame, Esq Justices of the Supreme Court, returnable to-morrow, for the Tryal of Sundry Persons now in Goal in the County of Bucks for Capital Offences, but that the last-named Gentleman is at this time so greatly indisposed as not to be able to attend the Service, a special Commission of Oyer & Terminer, which had been prepared by the Secretary, was now filled up, associating unto the said Supreme Justices William Biles, Joseph Kirkbride, Jun' and Mathew Hughes, Justices of the Peace for the said County, and assigning any three of them, Mr. Langhorne or Mr. Graeme being one, Justices for the Tryal and Goal Delivery aforesaid, Which Commission being signed by the President & Members present, is ordered to be forthwith sealed & sent into the said County of Bueks by the Clerk of the Supreme Court, who is setting out thither. At a Council held at Philadia., September 27th, 1737. PRESENT: The Honble JAMES LOGAN, Esqr., President. Samuel Preston, Clement Plumsted, Thomas Laurance, Samuel Hasell, Thomas Griffitts, Esqrs. The Minute of the preceeding Council being read and approved, The President laid before the Board a Letter he had received from the Governor of Virginia, bearing date the third instant, by John Mundell, a special Messenger, sent Express to receive from Lancaster Goal two Persons who had committed a Murther in Orange County, in that Colony, and to bring them to Williamsburg in order to their Tryal, which Letter further gives an Account, that the Messenger sent to the Cherikees and Catawba Indians had, in a Letter just then received, informed the said Governor that at the very time the Messenger was treating with them, the Northern Indians or Six Nations had killed three of the Catawba Nation, and five of their Horses, as they were returning from Hunting, and having had eight more of their Men killed since April last, they are so exasperated that they will hearken to no terms of Accomodation, at least till they have their Revenge; but the Cherikees having fortunately found Means to fall into a friendly Conversation with a party of the Six Nations, had sent with them Deputies to conclude a Peace for themselves, and it being probable that in their way they may pay a visit here, the Governor of Virginia having made them sensible how much they owe to the friendship of this Government, he therefore reccommends them to its further Favour, in procuring for them a good Correspondence with the Indians of this Province, as the likeliest Method to facilitate a Peace with the Six Nations, and as it may prove a good Step to induce the Catawba Indians to pacifick Measures. The Board hereupon thinking it necessary that a Message should be sent to the Six Nations to acquaint them with what had past, and to advise them to establish a firm Peace between them and those Cherikees & Catawbas, the following Message drawn up by the President, was by him laid before the Board, and being read & approved, is Ordered to be forwarded by Conrad Weyser, now in town. "The Proprietor, Thomas Penn, and the Council of Pennsylvania send their Salutations to their Brethren of the Six Nations, and say thus: "As soon as our trusty Friend and Interpreter, Conrad Weyser, returned last Spring to Philadelphia, and brought us an Answer from our Brethren to the Message he carried to them, with a Belt, in Confirmation of their agreeing to a Cessation of Arms with their Enemies to the Southward, the Cherikees and Catawbas, for one year, We immediately sent a Letter to the Governor of Virginia to acquaint him with it, and to desire him forthwith to send a Message to those Southern Indians, to require of them that they should for the same time forbear all Hostilities against the Six Nations and all their People, until they should mutually treat with each other in order to settle a Peace between all these Nations; accordingly the Governor of Virginia sent his Messenger to the Cherikees and Catawbas, & many days after received an Answer from them, which Answer he has sent to us, and it is this: "That while his Messenger was treating with the Catawbas some of the Six Nations killed three of their Nation, the Catawbas, and five of their Horses, as they were returning from Hunting, and had, also, before killed eight of their Men since April last (that is since their Corn was planted), and therefore they could not hearken to any treaty of Peace at least till they were revenged for this Action. But the Governor of Virginia further said in his Letter that the Cherikees, having fallen into a friendly Conversation with a Party of the Six Nations, had sent with them Deputies to conclude a Peace for themselves. "This is the Answer we received a few days since, and we thought it proper immediately to send Notice of it, by Messenger on purpose, to our Brethren of the Six Nations, that they may know of this Refusal and the Catawba's intention to seek Revenge, that they may not be surprized, for we think ourselves concerned to acquaint our Brethren of every thing that may relate to their Safety, or expose them to any Hazard or Danger, for so it becomes friends to act by each other. "But we further most earnestly desire our Brethren the Six Nations to use their utmost Endeavours to settle a Peace with those Southern Indians, for they may clearly see that by their Wars they only lessen their Numbers and weaken themselves, and render themselves less able to defend their Country, their Women and Children, against Enemies who may hereafter attack them; They know, and we grieve to see that their Numbers are much lessened within these twenty years, and if they proceed to send out their young Men against People that live at so great a Distance from them, they will still continue to lose more and more, for the hazards they run are great, and yet the destruction of a hundred Enemies at a distance adds not one Man to themselves; this we earnestly desire our Brethren to consider. We advise them as their true friends, and if they take our Advice they will themselves find the advantage of it. "Signed in behalf of the Propr & Council, At a Council held at Philadia., October 4th, 1737. PRESENT: The Honble JAMES LOGAN, Esqr., President. Samuel Preston, Ralph Assheton, Thomas Griffitts, Esqrs. Returns of the Elections of Sherifs and Coroners throughout the Province for the year ensuing, being made, the following Persons were appointed to those Offices: For Philadelphia City & County, Joseph Brientuall & Isaac Leech being returned for Sherifs, & Owen Owen & David Evans for Coroners, Joseph Brientuall is appointed Sherif, & Owen Owen Coroner. For the County of Bucks, John Hart & Charles Biles being : returned for Sherifs, and William Atkinson and Jonathan Wollston for Coroner, John Hart is appointed Sherif, and William Atkinson Coroner. For the County of Chester, John Owen & John Wharton being returned for Sherif, and Stephen Hoskins and Evans Ellis for Coroner, John Owen is appointed Sherif, and Stephen Hoskins Coroner. For the County of Lancaster, Samuel Smith & James Mitchell being returned for Sherifs, and Michael McClare & William Caldwell for Coroners, Samuel Smith is appointed Sherif, and Michael McClare Coroner. And Commissions are ordered to them accordingly, the Sherifs giving Security as the Law directs. At a Council held at Philadia., October 7th, 1737. PRESENT: The Honble JAMES LOGAN, Esqr., President. Thomas Laurence, Samuel Hasell, Thomas Grifits,} Esqrs. Whereas, a Petition of sundry Inhabitants of the County of Lancaster was presented and read at this Board the 25th day of January last, setting forth the Want of a high Road from the town of Lancaster to Coventry Iron Works on French Creek, in Chester County, & praying that proper Persons of each County may be appointed for laying out the same from Lancaster town aforesaid to the said Iron Works, forking the said Road near to the Plantation of Widow Roberts, to lead to a new Furnace on the said Creek called Redding's Furnace, and from thence into a Road lately laid out from the yellow Spring to German's Mill, & from thence into the Conestogoe Road; which Petition having been referred for further Consideration, the same was this day resumed, and a Draught of that part of the Country thro' which the Road petitioned for is to pass having been laid before the Board, they are of Opinion that it may prove greatly to the Conveniency & Accomodation of the Inhabitants in those parts, who are now entirely destitute of a Publick Road, to grant the Prayer of the said Petition with some necessary Alterations. It is, therefore, Ordered, that Thomas Edwards, Jacob Bear, Emanuel Carpenter, Hans Graaf, Simon King, & John Mendenhall, of the County of Lancaster, or any four of them, do view and lay out a high Road from the most convenient place of the Road leading from Lancaster town to Philadelphia, as streight and commodious, and with as little Damage to any private persons as may be, to the Division Line between the Counties of Lancaster & Chester. That William Moore, John Parry, jun' Humphrey Lloyd, Evan Davis, Thomas Green, & William Pim, of the County of Chester, or any four of them, do then and there joyn the beforenamed Persons of Lancaster County, and a Majority of all the said Persons, or of eight of them, agreeing on the most con- . venient Passage over the said Division Line, do continue the said Road to the Iron Works on french Creek aforesaid, forking_the said Road at the most commodious Place between the Division Line aforesaid & the said Iron Works, to lead to the new Furnace called Redding's Furnace, & from thence into the most convenient established Road leading to Philadelphia. And that of the said Road, to be laid out by Course & Distance, they the aforenamed twelve Persons, or eight of them, with a Draught thereof, make Return to this Board in order to a Confirmation. At a Council held at Philadia., October 14th, 1737. PRESENT: The Honble JAMES LOGAN, Esqr., President. Samuel Preston, Clement Plumsted, Thomas Laurence, Ralph Assheton, The Minutes of the three preceeding Councils being read & approved, The President taking Notice that this being the Day for the meeting of the Representatives of this Province in Assembly, desired the Board to consider whether any thing occurred proper to be laid before the House. Whereupon, it was judged necessary that they should be made acquainted with the two Papers lately transmitted by the Agent, which had already been communicated |