of the several Courts of Judicature, are so inconsiderable that no Persons of Character or Reputation will care to accept of Employment therein, We humbly propose to your Excellencies; that the said Act may be repealed, and as a further Reason for the Disallowance thereof, We humbly take Leave to lay before your Excellencies the annexed Account of the Proceedings of the Assembly of His Majesty's said Colony upon this Occasion, taken from the Notes of that House, who ordered a Copy of this Act to be printed as a Rule for the People there to govern themselves by, notwithstanding it was passed with a Clause declaring that the same should not be in force till His Majesty's Royal Assent was had thereunto. Which is most humbly submitted Whitehall Aug 15. 1745. } MONSON R PLUMER JA BRUDENELL An Account of the Proceedings of the Assembly of His Majesty's Province of New Jersey, in relation to an Act passed there in 1743, for ascertaining the Fees to be taken by the sev! Offices in that Colony. On the 21. of October 1743, a Bill entituled, An Act for ascertaining the Fees to be taken by the several Officers in the Colony of New Jersey, was brought into the House of Representatives of the said Colony, where being unanimously agreed to, it was carried up to the Council for their Concurrence, who made several Amendments to the Bill, some of which the Assembly objected to, and Committees of both Houses, were appointed to confer upon, and settle the same, which being done, the Bill was passed by the Governor, Council & Assembly with a Clause suspending the Execution of it until His Majesty's Pleasure should be known, notwithstanding which, the House of Representatives, with a design to defeat the true Intent and Meaning of the said Clause, did on the 5th of December following come to this Resolution, "That as there is no gen"eral Law for establishing Fees in this Colony yet in "Force, it is the Opinion of this House that the Act "entituled an Act for ascertaining the Fees to be taken "by the several Officers in the Colony of New Jersey, "passed by the Governor, Council and general Assem"bly this Session, as it has the Approbation of the 'three Branches of the Legislature here, ought to "have a due Weight with the Judges and all others "concerned and that they ought to take the said Act "for their Rule to govern themselves by, until His "Majesty's Pleasure be known concerning the same." And to the End that the said Act might be made publick for the Service aforesaid, they ordered it to be printed. The Governor alarmed at this unprecedented Behaviour & Proceeding of the Assembly, proposed to them, amongst several others the following Queries, viz by what Authority they took "upon themselves to say that an Act expressly enacted not to be in Force "till the King's Pleasure is known concerning it, ought "to be a Rule to the Judges & others to govern them"selves by?" 66 And likewise, "By what Authority they order'd the "same to be printed as a Rule for the Government of "the People?" To which Queries the Governor desired a direct Answer; Whereupon the Assembly came to the following Resolution, "That as this House only gave their Opinion of an Act which had passed the three "Branches of the Legislature here, and have not "assumed to themselves any unaccountable Authority they think themselves not accountable for that Opin"ion, and that it is not consistent with the Honour "and Dignity of this House and the Trust reposed in "them, to give any other Answer." This Proceeding of the Assembly induced the Governor to take Notice (in a Speech he made to both Houses on the 10th of December 1743) of the Assembly of the Assembly's carrying that or any other Act into Execution, that had been Passed by the three Branches of the Legislature with a Clause providing that the same should not be in Force till His Majesty's Pleasure was known, and likewise told them that he hoped they would be more prudent than to make an order for printing the same; notwithstanding which at their next Session they carried their former Order into Execution, and a Copy of the Act was printed in the Votes of the House of Assembly of the 20th November 1744, for the purposes aforesaid. Population of New Jersey in 1737-38 and in 1745. [From P. R. O. B. T., New Jersey, Vol. V, F. 77.] Number of People in the Western and Eastern Divisions of New Jersey. Taken The Number of People in the Western Division of the Province of New Jersey taken by order of His Excellency Lewis Morris |