[In ca. 1726, while he was in England, Alexander Spotswood petitioned the King for a clear title to his lands in Virginia. The first part of this petition follows.]
To
The King's Most Excellent Majesty
In Council
The Case & Petition of Colo. Alex. Spotswood
late Lt. Governor of Virginia
Humbly Sheweth,
That your Petitioner, during his Administration of the said Government, being led by a publick Spirit & a dutiful Regard to your Majesty's Pleasure, did upon receiving Directions, from the Lords Commissioners for Trade & Plantations, for making Hemp & Tar; & also upon seeing your Majesty's Speech to the Parliament, for raising Naval Stores in the Plantations, judge it incumbent on him to promote the same within his Province. That thereupon He incouraged the forming of Companies, or Partnerships, for carrying on such undertakings, & deeply imbarked himself with some Adventurers; who entered so far into the Project, as to be at several Thousand pounds Charge in the Clearing & Seating large tracts of the Crown's Desart-lands, & in importing Materials & proper Workmen, for raising all manner of Naval Stores. That this grand undertaking proving to be attended with greater Difficulties, than his Partners had Courage or Ability longer to struggle with, your Petitioner, while he was Governor ventured to take the whole Concern upon himself, rather than such a laudable attempt should be given over, to the certain discouragement of other Adventurers; & so having reimbursed his Partners the utmost Penny of their Expences, He after an excessive deal of Pains, Risque, & Charge, brought the Undertaking such a length, as to ship home the first Pig-Iron, & the first Hemp of Virginia growth, that ever were known to be imported into Great Britain: Besides proving by Experience that, in these american Parts, neither the Tar can be made according to the directions of the act of Parliament, without the peculiar Skill of Finland Tar-Burners, nor the Hemp ever be raised to any perfection from the English, or the East Country Seed. That not only such Discoveries, made at your Petitioner's sole Cost, may be deemed a Publick Benefit, but also the early Fruits of his Labours are found to be valuable to the Nation: For his new Iron has continually grown in demand with all those Iron-Masters in England, who have hitherto made tryal thereof; & his new Hemp is proved to be considerably superiour to the best Russia, & equal in Strength with the best Riga Hemp: As may appear by the Report from the Officers of Woolwich yard to the Commissioners of your Majesty's Navy. But your Petitioner is now laid under the necessity of Representing that, according to the Plan laid by the aforesaid Partners, for carrying on so extensive a Design, there had been Taken up, Surveyed, & Patented considerable Tracts of some remote & ungranted Lands, to which no other subject, than your Petitioner, has at this time any pretence of Right; Yet for certain Formalities omitted in passing the Patents, He finds his Title to part of those Lands may hereafter be Controverted, without your Majesty's special Grace in now confirming them all to him.
[to be continued]
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.