to his charge by the Treasurer then being, during the time of his office, that he shall notwithstanding expiration of his office, have power to levye by distress, all such rates and levyes; and if he bring them not in to the old treasurer, according to his warrants, the Treasurer shall distreine such constables goods for the same; and if the Treasurer shall not so distreine the constable, hee shall bee answerable to the country for the same; and if the constable bee not able to make payment, it shall bee lawfull for the Treasurer, old or new respectively, to distreine any man or men of that towne where the constables are unable for all arrearages of levyes, and that man or men, uppon petition to the Generall courte, shall have order to collect the same againe, equally of the towne, with his just dammages for the

same.

It is further ordered by this Courte, That all collectors and gatherers of rates, shall appoint a day and place, and give reasonable warning to the inhabitants to bring in theire proportions, uppon which, every man so warned, shall duely attend to bring in his rate, or

uppon neglect thereof, shall forfeitt two pence in the shilling for what hee falls shorte, and the said collector shall have authority hereby to distreine the delinquents, or bee accountable themselves for the rates and penalties so neglected by them.

RECORDS.

It is ordered by this courte, and authority thereof, That the towne clark or register in the severall townes of this jurissdiction shall record, all births and deaths of persons in theire towne, and that all parents, masters of servants, executors and administrators respectively, shall bring into the register of theire severall townes, the names of such persons belonging to them or any of them, as shall either bee borne or dye; and allso, that every new married man shall likewise bring in a certificate of his marriage, under the hand of the magistrate which married him, to the said register, and for each neglect, the person to whome it doth belong, shall forfeitt as followeth, viz. If any person shall neglect to bring in a noate or certificate as aforesaid, together with three pence a name,

to the said register, for all births and deaths, and six pence for each marriage to bee recorded, more then one month after such birth, death or marriage, shall forfeitt for every default, five shillings, and the penalty further increased, uppon longer neglect, according to the judgement of the courte; and the register of each towne shall yearely, convey to the Secretary of courte, a true transcript of the births, deaths and marriages given under theire hands, with a third parte of the aforementioned fees, under the penalty of forty shillings for every such neglect, all which forfeitures shall bee returned into the Treasury; allso, the grand-jurors may present all neglects of this order.

It is orderded by the authority aforesaid, That the severall townes within this jurisdiction, shall each of them provide a ledger booke, with an index or alphabett unto the same, allso shall chuse one whoe shall bee a towne clerke or register, whoe shall before the Generall courte in September next, record every man's howse and lands already graunted and measured out to him, with the bounds and quantity of the same; and whosoever shall

neglect three months after notice given, to bring into the said towne clerke or register, a noate of his howse and land, with the bounds and quantity of the same, by the nearest estimation, shall forfeitt ten shillings; and so ten shillings a month, for every month hee shall so neglect; the like to bee done for all lands hereafter graunted and measured to any; and if any such granter, being required by the grantee, his heirs or assigns, to make an acknowledg ment of any graunt, sale, bargaine or morgage by him made, shall refuse so to do, it shall bee in the power of any magistrate, to send for the partye so refusing, and commit him to prison without bayle or maineprise, untill he shall acknowledge the same: And the grantee is to enter his caution with the recorder, and this shall save his interest in the meane time; and all bargaines or morgages of lands whatsoever, shall bee accounted of no value untill they bee recorded: for which entry the register shall receive six pence for every parcell, delivering every owner a copy of the same under his hand; whereof, foure pence shall bee for himselfe, and two pence for the secretary of the

courte. And the said register shall, every Generall courte, in May and September, deliver unto the same, a transcript, fairely written, of all such graunts, bargaines or ingagements, recorded by him in the towne booke; and the secretary of the courte, shall record it in a booke fairely written, provided for that purpose, and shall preserve the coppy brought in under the hand of the towne clarke; Allso, the said towne clarke shall have for every search of a parcell, one penny, and for every copy of a parcell, two pence, and a copy of the same under the hand of the said register, or towne clarke, and two of the men chosen to governe the towne, shall bee a sufficient evidence to all that have the same.

Ffor the better keeping in minde those passages of God's providence, which have beene remarkable, since our first undertaking of these plantations; Mr. Deputy, Capt. Mason, Mr. Stone with Mr. Goodwyn, are desired to take the paines severally, in theire severall townes, and then jointly together, to gather up the same, and deliver them into the Generall courte in September next, and if it bee judged