the Office of President, and shall & may nominate and Choose any one of the said Councell to be his Deputy to p❜side in his absence And the said Deputy so succeeding shall continue in the said Office of President vntill our further Will & pleasure bee knowne therein And if any of the members of the said Councell shall happen to dy Our Will & pleasure is and Wee do hereby direct & appoint the President of our Councell for the time being to elect some other person to be a member of the said Councell for that time, and to send over the name of such person soe chosen, and the names of two more Whom our said President shall judge fittly qualified for the said trust that We our heires & successors may nominate & appoint which of the three shall be the member in the place of the member so dying And lastly our will & pleasure is that the said President & Councell for the time being do p'pare and send vnto vs such rules & methods for their owne proceedings as may best suit with the constitucon of our Territory & Dominion aforesaid and for the better establishing our authority there and the government thereof that We may alter or approve the same as Wee shall think fitt. In Witnes &c. Witnes the King at Westm' the eighth of October per ipsum Regem. Public Record Office, Patent Roll, 1 James II, Part 8, No. 14. SIR EDMUND ANDROS'S FIRST COMMISSION AS GOVERNOR OF THE TERRITORY AND DOMINION OF NEW ENGLAND 3 JUNE, 1686 James the Second by the Grace of God king of England Scotland France and Ereland Defender of the Faith be To our Trusty and Welbeloved Sir EDMUND ANDROS Knight Greeting Whereas the Government of that part of our Territory and Dominion of New England hereafter menconed is now in our hands and being minded to give all protection De Concessione and encouragement to our good subjects therein and to provide in the most effectuall manner for their security and Welfare Wee therefore reposeing especiall trust and confidence in the prudence courage and loyalty of you the said Sir Edmund Andros out of our especiall grace [and] certaine knowledge and meere Mocon have thought fitt to constitute and appoint and by these p'sents doe constitute and appoint you the said S Edmund Andros to be our Captain Generall and Governor in Cheife in and over all that our Territory and Dominion of New England in America comonly called & knowne by the name of our Colony of the Massachusetts Bay our Colony of New Plymouth and our Provinces of New Hampshire and Maine the Narragansett Country otherwise called the Kings Province with all the Iselands rights and members to the said Colonies and Territories in any wise appertaining And for your better Guidance and direccon Wee doe hereby require and Comand you to doe and execute all things in due manner that shall belong vnto the said Office [and] the Trust Wee have reposed in you according to the severall powers Instruccons and Authorities menconed in these p'sents or such further powers Instruccons and Authorities as you shall herewith receive or which shall at any time hereafter be granted or appointed you under our signett and signe manuall or by [our] Order in our Privy Councell and according to such reasonable laws and Statutes as are now in force or such other[s] as shall hereafter be made and Established within that our Territory and Dominion [of New England] aforesaid And our Will and pleasure is that you the said Sir Ed、 mund Andros haveing (after your arrivall in New England and publication of these our letters Patents) first taken the oath of Allegiance together with the oath of duely Executeing the Office of our Captain Generall and Governor in Cheife of our said Territory and Dominion (which our Councell there or any three of them are hereby required authorized and impowred to give and Administer vnto you) you shall Administer unto each of the members of our Councell aswell the oath of Allegiance as the Oath [for] [of] the due Execcon of their [several] places and Trust. And Wee doe hereby give and grant vnto you full power and Authority to suspend any member of our Councill from sitting voteing and Assisting therein as you shall finde just cause for [your] soe doeing And if it shall [hereafter] at any time [hereafter] happen that by the death departure out of our said Territory or suspension of any of our Councellors or that otherwise there shall be a vacancy in Our said Councill (any five whereof Wee doe hereby appoint to be a Quorum) Our will and pleasure is that you signifie the same vnto vs by the first oppertunity that Wee may vnder our Signett and Signe Manuall consti tute and appoint others in their room but that our affaires At that distance may not suffer for want of a due Number of Councellors if ever it shall happen that there are lesse than seaven of them resideing vpon the place Wee doe hereby give and grant [vn]to you full power and Authority to choose as many psons [out] of the principall Inhabitants thereof as will make vp the full number of our Councill to be seaven and noe more which persons by vertue of such Choice shall be to all intents and purposes our Councellors within our said Territory vntill they be confirmed by vs or that by nominacon of others by vs vnder our Signe Manuall and Signett the said Councell shall have seaven psons in it And Wee doe hereby give and grant vnto you full power and authority by and with the advice and Consent of our said Councell or the major part of them to make constitute and ordaine Laws Statutes and Ordinances for the publique peace Welfare and good Governmt of our said Territory and Dominion and of the people and Inhabitants thereof and such others as shall resort thereto and for the benefitt of vs our heires & Successors Which said Laws Statutes and Ordinances are to be as neare as Conveniently may be agreeable to the Laws and Statutes of this our Kingdome of England Provided that all such Laws Statutes and Ordinances of what nature or duration soever be within three monthes or sooner after the makeing of the same transmitted vnto vs vnder our Seale of New England for our allowance or disapprobacon [of them] as allso Duplicates thereof by the next Conveyance And Wee doe by these p'sents give and grant vnto you full power and authority by and with the advice and consent of our said Councill or the major part of them to impose and assesse and raise and levy such rates and Taxes as you shall finde necessary for the support of the Governm within our Territory and Dominion of New England to be collected [and] levyed and to be employed to the vse[s] aforesaid in such manner as to you and our said Councill or the major part of them shall seem most equall and reasonable And for the better supporting the Charge of the Governm* of our said Territory and Dominion our Will and pleasure is and Wee doe by these p'sents authorise and require you the said Sir Edmund Andros and our said Councill to continue such Taxes and Imposicons as are now laid and imposed vpon the Inhabitants thereof and to levy and distribute or cause the same to be levyed and distributed to those ends in the best and most equall manner untill you shall by and with the advice and consent of our Councill agree on and seale1 such other taxes as shall be sufficient for the support of our Government there which are to be applyed to that vse and noe other And our further Will and pleasure is that all publick money raised or to be raised or appointed for the support of the Government within our said Territory and Dominion be issued out by Warrant or Order from you by and with the advice and Consent of our Councill as aforesaid And our Will and pleasure is that you shall and may keepe and vse our Seale appointed or to be appointed by us for our said Territory and Dominion and Wee doe further give and grant vnto you the said Sir Edmund Andros full power and Authority from time to time and at any time[s] hereafter by your selfe or by any other to be authorized by you in that behalfe to administer and give the oath of Allegiance now established within this our Realme of England to all and every such pson as you shall thinck fitt or shall at any time or times passe [v][i]nto our said Territory or shall be [resident] [Resideing] or abideing there And Wee doe by these p'sents Ordaine constitute and appoint our Governor and Councill of our said Territory and Dominion for the time being to be a constant and settled Court of Record for the Administracon of Justice to all our subjects inhabiting within our said Territory and Dominion in all Causes aswell Civill as Criminall with full power and Authority to hold pleas in all Ca[u]ses from time to time as well 1 Sic: settle. |