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At a General Assembly of the English Colony of Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations, in New-England, held at Providence on the sixth day of January, A. D. 1746.

Report of the commissioners appointed to mark out the boundary between this colony and the province of the Massachusetts Bay.

WHEREAS Messrs. James Honeyman, jun. Gideon Cornell, George Brown, George Wanton and Walter Chaloner, were by the General Assembly appointed commissioners to mark out the bounds of this colony towards the province of the Massachusetts Bay, agreeable to the late determination of the King in council; who having perfected the same, made report to this Assembly of their proceedings, as followeth:

"We the subscribers, appointed commissioners by the General Assembly of the colony aforesaid, to mark out the bounds of said colony eastward, towards the province of Massachusetts Bay, agreeable to his Majesty's royal determination in council, the 28th day of May, 1746, did, in pursuance thereof, on the second day of December last past, meet at Pawtucket falls, in expectation of meeting with commissioners that might be appointed by the province of the Massachusetts Bay, for the purpose aforesaid; and after having there tarried, till the afterpart of said day, and no commissioners in behalf of the said province appearing, we proceeded to run a due north line from Pawtucket falls to the south boundary of the aforesaid province of the Massachusetts Bay, in manner following, viz: from a certain point on the southern side of Pawtucket falls, where we erected a monument of stones, with a stake thereon, we run a meridian line, which directly passed through said falls, to a walnut tree on the northerly side of said falls, then to a pitch pine tree, then to a small white oak, then to a grey oak, then to a small bush, then to another small bush with stones about it, then to a heap of stones with a stake thereon, then to a black oak tree, then to another black oak, then to a small pitch pine, then to a black oak, then to a large white oak near the river called Abbot's run, then to a poplar tree, then to a heap of stones with a stake thereon, then to a large rock with stones thereon, then to a small black oak tree, then to a walnut tree, then to a black oak, then to divers other marked trees in the said course, to the extremity of the said line; and when we came near the ter

mination of the said line, made a monument of stones, there being no noted south boundary of the said province near the said line, and therefore for the discovery of the south boundary of the said province, upon the best information we could obtain, proceeded to Wrentham plain, at or near to a place where was formerly erected a stake, called Woodward's and Saffery's stake, as one remarkable south boundary of the said province, and from thence run a west line, making an allowance of eight degrees and an half, as the west variation of the magnetic needle from the true meridian, it being the course of the south line of the said province, according to their charter, (as we apprehended,) and then we extended the said north line from the aforesaid monument, till it intersected the said west line, and upon the point of its intersection erected a monument of stones with a stake thereon, as the northeast boundary of that tract of land commonly called the Gore.

"After which we proceeded to Bullock's neck, and on the southwest corner thereof erected a red cedar post, marked with the letters J. H. C. R. with a figure of an anchor thereon, and from thence running a line northeast, making the same allowance for the variation aforesaid, to a black oak tree marked with the letters G. C. C. R. then to a large white oak, marked with the letters G. B. C. R. then to a white oak post, set in the ground with a heap of stones round it, marked with the letters G. W. C. R. with the figure of an anchor thereon, being three miles distant from Bullock's neck aforesaid.

"After which we proceeded to the northeasternmost part of the bay on the west side of Rumstick neck, and from a point where a locust post was erected, run a line three miles northeast, with the same allowance for the variation, and at the extremity of the said line erected a monument of stones, from which we run a line to the northeast extremity of that line drawn from the southwest corner of Bullock's neck aforesaid, the course whereof being west thirty-eight degrees north, according to the magnetic needle, the distance of nine hundred and fifty-five rods; marking trees and making other boundaries in the course of said line.

"After which we proceeded to the northeast corner of Bristol harbor, and from high-water mark, which was some rods distant northeast from the bridge leading to Swanzey ferry, we ran a line three miles northeast, still

making the same allowance for the variation, and at the extremity of which line we erected a monument of stones; then we ran a line from the northeast extremity of the line drawn from Rumstick aforesaid, the course whereof being south twenty-five degrees east, till it met with the termination of the line drawn from Bristol harbor aforesaid; the distance whereof being nine hundred and twentyseven rods; and from thence to a straight line to the bay at Towoset neck; making proper boundaries in the course of said line.

"After which we proceeded to the eastern side of the Narragansett bay, and on the easternmost part of a cove in the said bay, which is southward of Nanequacket, ran a line three miles east, (still making the same allowance for variation,) at the extremity whereof we marked a grey oak tree with the letters C. R. with the figure of an anchor thereon.

"After which we proceeded to the mouth of Fall river, and from thence measured four hundred and forty rods southerly on the shore, as the said shore extendeth itself from the mouth of said Fall river, and from the point where the said four hundred and forty rods reached, being east thirty-five degrees south of the southernmost point of Shawomet neck, we ran a line three miles east, with the same allowance for the variation; in the course whereof we marked divers trees, and came to a large pond, on the west of which was a small oak between two large rocks, and from thence measured over the said pond to a bunch of maples, two whereof we marked with the letters I. and F. standing on a place called Ralph's neck, being the extremity of the said three miles; from thence we ran a line south twenty degrees west, two thousand one hundred and twenty three rods, (making proper boundaries in said line,) till we met the termination of the three mile line, ran from the cove southward of Nanequacket aforesaid.

"After which we proceeded to a place called Church's cove, in said bay, and ran a line three miles east, making the same allowance for the variation aforesaid, and at the extremity whereof, and near the sea, we erected a monument of stones, and from thence ran a line north two degrees and a quarter east, one thousand and nine hundred and forty-one rods, till it also met the termination of the said line, drawn from the first mentioned cove as

aforesaid; making proper boundaries in the course of said line.

"The aforegoing is a just account of our proceedings, and report the same accordingly.

J. HONEYMAN, jun.
GEORGE WANTON,

GIDEON CORNELL,

GEORGE BROWN.”

1663.

1798.

1822.

Seal of

And it is voted and resolved, That the said report be, and it is hereby, accepted by this Assembly.

An Act for making a common seal for this State.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly, and by the authority the State. thereof it is enacted, That there shall be one common seal for the public use of the State; and that the form of an anchor be engraven thereon, and that the motto be the word Hope.

1666, 1739, '47, '58, '98,

1813, '14, '16, '17,

'20, '22.

Laws how

ed.

An Act directing the method of passing the acts of the General
Assembly, and for recording and distributing the same.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, and by the to be pass- authority thereof it is enacted, That every act that shall be passed by the House of Representatives, shall, before the same is sent to the Senate for concurrence, be transcribed by the Clerk of said House, and such copy shall be read to the House of Representatives, and be by them approved; and if the Senate shall propose any alteration of such act, and the House of Representatives shall concur therewith, the same shall again be transcribed with such alteration, and read and approved as aforesaid: and in case any act shall originate in the Senate, the Secretary shall cause the same to be transcribed, and similar proceedings shall be had therein, mutatis mutandis, as if such act had originated in the House of Representatives; to the intent that a correct copy of every act passed by the General Assembly may be deposited in the office of the Secretary. And it shall be the duty of the Secretary for the time being, to keep the copies of all acts passed as aforesaid in his office, and also to record the same, together with all other proceedings of ceedings of the General Assembly, in a book to be kept the Assem- for that and the Secretary shall immediately afpurpose;

To be re

corded with all

other pro

bly.

:

LAWS TO BE RECORDED-FREEMEN-ELECTION.

89

how distri

ter the close of each session of the General Assembly, cause as many copies of all the proceedings thereof to be printed as he in his discretion may think necessary; and shall send one copy thereof to the Governor and one to Schedules the Lieutenant-Governor, for their own use; one to the buted. Attorney-General, one to the General-Treasurer, one to each member of the Senate and House of Representatives, one to the Clerk of the House of Representatives, one to the Clerk of each Court, one to each Sheriff and Town Clerk, one to the Adjutant-General, and reserve one for himself; which copies, except those of the Governor, and Lieutenant-Governor, shall be kept by the persons aforesaid, and be transmitted by them to their successors in office and the Secretary shall once in two years (or of tener if he see fit) cause to be published in pamphlets, all the public laws that may be hereafter passed, continuing the pages from the last page of this digest, and shall distribute the same in manner aforesaid, with the addition of four copies to the Secretary of State of the United States, Laws how and three copies to the Supreme Executive of each of the distribut United States, one copy to the Judge of the Circuit Court of the United States for the first Circuit, and one copy to the Judge of the District Court for the Rhode-Island District; and the residue shall retain in his office to be at the disposal of the General Assembly; and the printer who shall print the acts of the General Assembly, shall have a right to print and dispose of as many more copies thereof for his own benefit as he shall think fit.

ed.

United

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the copies of the Laws of laws of the United States which may be hereafter trans- States mitted for the use of this State, shall be distributed as fol- how distrilows, viz: one copy to the Secretary, one to the Attorney-buted. General, one to the General-Treasurer, one to each Clerk of the Supreme Judicial Court and Courts of Common Pleas, and one to each Town-Clerk; to be kept as appendages to their offices, and to be delivered over to their

successors.

1663, '66,

1734, '38.

'42, '43,

'46, '60,

'61, '62,

'98, 1808, '11, '14,

22.

An act regulating the manner of admitting freemen, and di- 70, 76, recting the method of electing officers in this State. SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, and by the authority thereof it is enacted, That the freemen of each town in this State, at any of their town-meetings, shall and they freemen.

may admit

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