CHAPTER III. MASSACHUSETTS COLONY AND STATE LAWS.-PLYMOUTH COLONY LAWS.-FURTHER ILLUSTRATIONS OF TOWN ACTION AS TO INHABITANCY, ALIENATION OF LAND, WARNING OUT, ETC. These proceedings of the Massachusetts and Plymouth towns with regard to inhabitancy of newcomers were not only regarded as within the power of towns, as such, independent of any colony statute or order, but were recognized and required by colony laws prior to 1692. May 17, 1637, the General Court of the Massachusetts Colony passed the following order:— It is ordered, that no towne or pson shall receive any stranger, resorting hither wth intent to reside in this iurisdiction, nor shall alow any lot or habitation to any, or intertaine any such above three weekes, except such pson shall have alowance vnder the hands of some one of the counsell, or of two other of the magistrates, vpon paine that ev'y towne that shall give or sell any lot or habitation to any such, not so alowed, shall forfet 100s for every offence, & ev'y pson receiving any such, for longer time than is heare expressed, (or then shalbe alowed in some speciall cases, as before, or in case of intertainement of freinds resorting from some other parts of this country for a convenient time,) shall forfet for ev'y offence 40s; and for ev'y month after such pson shall there continew 20s; provided, that if any inhabitant shall not consent to the intertainment of any such person, & shall give notice thereof to any of the magistrates wthin one month after, such inhabitant shall not bee lyable to any part of this penulty.* In 1638 it was provided by the General Court that the constables of the several towns should informe of newe comers, if any bee admited wthout license; & to that end warrant to bee sent out to the cunstable * Massachusetts Colony Records, Vol. I, pp. 196, 241. W of each towne, to informe the Court of Assistants, wch is to consider of the fines, whether to take them or to mitigate them. In June, 1650, another law to prevent strangers coming into the colony was passed as follows: Whereas wee are credibly informed that great mischeifes and outrages have binn wrought in other plantacons in America by comanders, and souldjers of seuerall qualitjes, and other straingers issuing out of other parts, vsurping power of goûnement ouer them, plundering of their estates, taking vp armes, and making great divisions amongst the inhabitants where they have come, to prevent the like mischeife in this jurisdiccon, this Court doth order, and it is heereby enacted, that henceforward all straingers, of what qualitje soeuer, above the age of sixteene yeeres, ariving heere in any portes or parts of this jurisdiccon in any shipp or vessell, shall imediately be brought before the Goûno', Dept Goûno', or two other magistrates, by the master or mate of the sajd shipps or vessells, vpon the poenalty of twenty pounds; for default thereof, there to give an accompt of their occasions and busines in this countrje, whereby satisfaccon may-be given to this comonwealth, and order taken wth such straingers as the sajd Goûn', Depu' Goûno', two Assistants, or the next Countje Court shall see meete; and that the lawe for intertajning of straingers be strictly putt in execution, and this order to be posted vp vpon the seuerall meetinghouses doores, or postes, or other publicke places in the port tounes of this jurisdiccon. And it is ordered, that the capt of the Castle shall make knoune this order to euery shippe or vessell as it passeth by, and the constables of euery port toune shall indeavor to doe the like to such shipps or vessells before they land their passengers; and that a true record be kept of all the names of such straingers, and their qualities, by the clarks of the writts, who shall have the names given them by the sajd Goûn' or Magistrates, to be retourned to the next jmediate sessions of the Generall Court. This to continew and be in force till the next session.* It is said that this order, although general in its terms, was passed specially with reference to the fact that it was known that many of the friends of Wheel * Records of Massachusetts Bay, 1650, 22 June (20), pp. 23, 24. wright and persons who entertained the Antinomian heresy were about to arrive upon a ship from England.* But in October, 1651, another order, continuing it in force without limit of time, was made, as follows: Whereas there was a law made in the yeere 1650, concerning straungers coming into this jurisdictjon, wherein all straungers ariving within any of our port tounes, above the age of sixteene yeres, were enjoyned to be accomptable before the Gouernor, Dept Gouernor, or two of the honnored magistrates of the occasion of their coming into these parts, as in that order more largely doth appeare, which sajd order is long since expired, itt is therefore heereby ordered, that the sajd lawe be againe revived, and declared by this Courte to stand in force till this Court shall see just cawse to repeale the same.† In 1655 complaint was made to the General Court that strangers came into town without the consent of the inhabitants, and caused charges to the town for their support, and an order was passed providing that persons who should be brought into the town. without the consent of the "prudential men"-that is, the selectmen-should not be chargeable for their support to the town, but to those who were the cause of their coming in, as follows:— All townes in this jurisdiction shall haue libertie to pvent the coming in of such as come from other parts or places of theise jurisdictions, & that all such psons as shalbe brought into any such towne without the consent & allowance of the prudentiall men, shall not be chargeable to the townes where they dwell, but, if necessitie require, shalbe releiued & mayntayned by those that were the cause of their coming in, of whom y towne or select men are hereby empowred to require securitie at their entrance, or else forbid them entertaynment.‡ *Winthrop, Vol. I, p. 267. tRecords of Massachusetts Bay, Vol. IV, Part I, p. 63. In May, 1659, the following order was passed:— For the avoyding of all future inconvenjencjes referring to the setling of poore people that may neede releife from the place where they dwell, itt is ordered by this Court and the authoritje thereof, that where any person, wth his family, or in case he hath no family, shall be resident in any toune or peculjar* of this jurisdiccon for more then three moneths wthout notice given tosuch person or persons by the constable, or one of the selectmen of the sajd place, or theire order, that the toune is not willing that they should remajne as an inhabitant amongst them, and in case, after such notice given, such person or persons shall, notwthstanding remajne in the sajd place, if the selectmen of the sajd place shall not, by way of complaint, petition the next County Court of that shiere for releife in the sajd case, & the same prosecuted to effect, euery such person or persons (as the case may require) shall be provided for & releived, in case of necessity, by the inhabitants of the sajd place where he or she is so found.† When the Massachusetts, Plymouth, and Connecticut Colonies confederated under Articles of Confederation for mutual defence in 1672, the right of towns to warn strangers to depart was expressly recognized by Article 13 of the Articles of Confederation, as follows: 13. It is alsoe agreed for settleing of vagabonds and wandering persons remoueing from one Collonie to another to the disatisfaction and burthen of the places where they come as dayly experience sheweth vs; for the future it is ordered, "that wher any person or persons shalbe found in any Jurisdiction to haue had theire abode for more than three monthes and not warned out by the authoritie of the place; and incase of the neglect of any person soe warned as abouesaid to depart; if hee be not by the first oppertunitie that the season will permitt sent away from Constable to Constable; to the end that hee may be returned to the place of his former aboad; euery such person or persons shalbe * A "peculiar" is a village or a new settlement within the territory of a town, as Muddy River (Brookline). In English law a parish which has jurisdiction of ecclesiastical matters. † Records of Massachusetts Bay, Vol. IV, Part I, p. 365. accoumpted an Inhabitant where they are soe found, and by them gouerned and provided for as theire condition may require and in all such cases the Charge of the Constables to be bourne by the Treasurer where the said Constables doe dwell.* This order, it will be observed, recognizes the right of the towns to notify persons coming into the place that they are not willing the persons should remain as inhabitants; that is, to warn them out of the town. In 1675 the Indian wars forced many people to leave their homes and go to other places, and, to prevent such persons from becoming chargeable to the towns into which they were obliged to go, the General Court passed an order providing that such persons should not, by virtue of their residence in the towns to which they went, become inhabitants thereof, or the towns become chargeable for their support, as follows: This court considering the inconvenience and damage which may arise to particular towns by such as, being forced from their habitations through the present calamity of the war, do repair unto them for succour: Do order and declare, that such persons, being inhabitants of this jurisdiction, who are so forced from their habitations and repair to other plantations for relief, shall not by virtue of their residence in said plantations they repair unto be accounted or reputed inhabitants thereof, or imposed upon them according to law, tit. Poor, but in such case, and where necessity requires, by reason of inability of relations &c. they shall be supplied out of the publick treasury; and that the selectmen of each town inspect this matter, and do likewise provide that such men or women may be so employed and children disposed of, that as much as may be publick charge may be avoided. (July, 1675.)† This order recognized colony poor to be supported at the general public charge. *"ARTICLES of Confederation between the Plantations under the Gouerment of the Massachusetts; The Plantations under the Gouernment of New Plymouth; and the Plantations under the Gouerment of Conecticott; Article 13. September the fift, 1672." Hazard, Vol. II, p. 525. † Massachusetts Colony Ancient Laws and Charters, Chap. LXXV. |