University of Virginia Library

An extraordinary Court held for
Virginia on Tuisday in the forenoone
the 4th of ffEBRUARY i622

Present

My lo: of Southampton signified vnto the Companie that he ∥had∥
staid aboue an hower expectinge a fuller Court, and said the occasion
of this meetinge was, that whereas [156] the Quarter Court had

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A Declaration playnely shewing how the Contract may wth
less chardge bee menadged then now it is ordered

First the place of Director §and Deputy§[50] shall absolutely be laid downe and
the Salary giuen to them shalbe wholly saued, the two Companies may supplie
the place of Director in their extraordinary Court called for that purpose.

There shalbe one sufficient Marchaunt chosen Treasuror to whome the Com-
panie may be pleased to giue 100li Salary.

Vnder him there may be placed a sufficient Accountant that may be his Cashier
to whome may be allotted 50li or 40li Salary.

There may be Ten Com̃ittees whereof fower to be chosen by the Sumer Ilands
Company of the number of their Assistantℯ and six by the Virginia Companie
to each Comittee 20li Sallary may be allotted.

There may 6 gentlemen be chosen indifferently out of both Companies wch may
be in quality of Assistantℯ to the Treasuror to whome no Sallary shalbe allotted
but in case the buissines proues by their industrie and good carriage profittable
the Companie may with some smale gratuity testifie their good acceptance of
their endeauors and also comend them further to the Lord Treasuror of whome
it may be hoped that he wilbe pleased to consent to such a moderate guift.

To the Bookeeper there may be allotted 60li Salary p̱ Añu To the Beadle 15li p̱
Añu

To the Husband 15li p̱ Añu.

To the ∥a∥ Clarke ∥for∥ to waite wholly vpon that buissines 30li.

ffor a howse wherein no man that hath a family shall dwell but the howskeeper
60li p̱ Añu or at most 80li sufficient Warehowse roome comprized therein.

To the Soliciter accordinge to the Discrec̃on of the §Assistantℯ &§ Com̃ittees:
The whole charge of Officers howse and Com̃ittees will not amount to 600li at
the vttermost for Sallary and howserent so in this alone there is saued aboue
1200li p̱ Añu.

If the Companies wilbe pleased to allott other 600li to be raised for ye payment
of publique charges in case so much shall neede there wilbe saued to his most

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excellent Matie and the two Companies 1300li yearely and of that 600li the offi-
cers shall giue a iust Account and make restituc̃on of the Remaynder if any be.
And it is not to be doubted but that there wilbe found so many worthie mem-
bers of both Companies as will vpon these Termes for one yeare and more
rather then the buissines shall fall to the ground to beginn this Hillary Terme
to vndertake this buissines, for consideringe that many ∥diuers∥ for diuers
yeares past euen for conscience sake haue with great alacrity giuen their
assiduous attendance for the Dispatch of the most waightie buissines of the
Plantations, when it was onely the worke of Societies nowe that therevnto
there is adioyned the seruice of his most Excellent Matie who neuer leaues
vnrewarded those that labor for him, there wilbe I dare affirme a vertuous
strife and emulac̃on amoungst vs who shalbe honoured with this imployment:
These Officers should meete two Dayes in the weeke at least and oftner if
neede be.

To all these Officers I would haue an oath giuen for that the importac̃on of
Spanish Tobacco is the ∥a∥ mayne branch of the Contract, The Preamble
may be altered so in fauor of the Aduenturer, that many men may be encour-
aged to subscribe who nowe forbeare by reason of ye hard condic̃ons proposed
therein. [157]

To these may be added some Com̃ittees at large and those of eminent quality
and great aduenturers in one or both the Plantations to whome equall power
and vote may be giuen with the other.

And in case that part of the Contract be punctually obserued that all the
Tobacco to be sold in bancke it wilbe necessarie to drawe a preamble to a
second roll whereby the Brothers of the Companies may be admitted to sub-
scribe what Somes ∥they∥ shall thereby be lymitted for the buyinge of the
Tobacco wch poore Planters shall bringe into this Kingdome that they may
not suffer by expectinge the sale of their goodℯ and attendance for money.

In this proposic̃on of a certen Salary I rather giue waye to other mens opin-
ions then follow myne owne iudgemt for I determine not that this is the best
course but propose it as a better then that yt is already established for if it be
possible to manage the buissines so, I could wish these penc̃ons were changed
into gratuities according to the merrit of euery mans endeauors at ye end of
the yeare when the buissines is donn, and it plainely appeares yt the proiect
aunswers expectac̃on in point of proffitt: These two courses thus offered to
the iudgemt of the Court I humbly submitt to the censure of this Honoble
Companie and if they be pleased to embrace either of them my desire is they
will com̃end that course they best like to the Virginia Companie to be also
approued by them.

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Mr Binge presented a paper to his lp: as from mr Wrote sayinge, it
was the same that the other was onely it had some addic̃ons, Wch mr
Wrote thought vpon the last night wch he praid might be read.

But the title of it beinge Obiections against the Salaries, it was
resolued to goe on with the Proposition deliuered to the Sum̃er Ilands
Companie and desired to be recom̃ended to the Virginia Companie
and desired to be recom̃ended to the Virginia Company, and by
the Preparatiue Court, wherein it was read and ordered to be consid-
ered of at this daye wch was read all ouer together and afterward his
lp: read the first Article wch was this followinge (vizt) ffirst the
places of Director and Deputy shall absolutely be laid downe, and the
Salary giuen to them shalbe wholly saued: The two Companies may
supplie the place of Director in their extraordinary Courts called for
that purpose.

Touchinge wch it was first thought fitt to consider whither this newe
waye were a good waye or noe and whither it be better then the other
waye.

Sr Robert Killigrewe demaunded first, howe it was in other Compa-
nies it was generally acknowledged that all Iointe Stockℯ whatsoeuer
are managed by one cheife man and next vnder him some other in the
nature of a Deputy as the Companie had already ordered and that the
course propounded in the Article read was without all President:
And it was declared howe that the Companie ioyninge in a Magazine
together, wch did not exceed 7000li in the vnderwritinge it was yet
thought necessarie to choose a Director for the managinge of it, and
the like course was held in all manner of Iointe Stockℯ whither for
trade or Plantac̃on beinge all com̃itted to some one man as Director
or Gouernor, and therefore it was dangerous to followe a newe waye
neuer before trodden.

Secondly it was obiected that the two Companies haue more buissines
already then they can well p̱forme and therefore they would neuer be
drawne together vpon such occasions so frequently as were neces-
sarie. [158]

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Sr Edward Sackuill said that it was a verie great indignity to impose
it vpon the Lordℯ that were the Gouernors to attend continually such
buissinesses as the Director and Deputy were to p̱forme.

As for mr Deputy he protested that though he spent his whole time
in the Companies buissines yet he was not able to ouercome halfe that
was to be donne for want of helpe, and declared howe that men were
not able to be gotten together for the auditinge of the Companies
Accountℯ and that wth them many other of the most waightie buissi-
nesses of the Companie laye neglected: Wherefore it were to ouer-
throwe all to put more vpon the Officers and Companie.

Sr Edwin Sandys said that in a Bodie consistinge of many Members
wch must all concurr in one Acc̃on there must be by necessity of nature
& reason one head to containe and direct them vnto vnity that to make
this one head to be two Courtℯ assembled vpon euery needfull occasion,
was a thinge not onely repugnant to the[51] celerity of dispatch wch
this buissines would require but also of insupportable toyle both to
the Gouernor Counsell and Companie.

It was also declared howe impossible it was would be to make any
progresse in buissinesses in such a kinde of gouerment, where any one
might vpon pretence of requiringe to haue his vnderstandinge satisfied
in any pointe, call backe thingℯ concluded as was instanced to be donn
in the Sumer Ilandℯ Companie where there hauinge passed a matter
in two ordinary Courtℯ, and afterwardℯ much disputed in a Prepara-
tiue Court and lastly concluded in ye Quarter Court yet in an ordinary
Court afterward one man because he was not present at the passages
thereof he required to haue it all againe read and argued: And because
the Court might be better informed concerninge this pointe the Lord
Cauendish propounded that a writinge presented to the Counsell and
Com̃ittees before they resolued of this Course might be read concern-
inge the office of the Director specified in that writinge, all wch good
partℯ and sufficiencies although verie great the Court adiudged requi-
site in him that should haue the chiefe part in the managinge of this

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In the end after a longe disputac̃on of this pointe his lp: put this
Article to the question in this manner whither it were not impossible
that the Courtℯ should p̱forme the buissines accordinge as [159] was
propounded in that first Article, the whole Court by a generall erecc̃on
of handℯ not one dissentinge confirmed it to be impossible.

Concerninge the second Article wch was as followeth (vizt)

There shalbe one sufficient marchant chosen Treasuror to whome the
Companie may be pleased to giue 100li salary.

ffirst it was obiected that the Salary of 100li was so smale as there
might almost be as much lost in tellinge of so much money wch in
receauinge and payinge could not be lesse then 100000li and that to
giue a 100li to a man of such sufficiency as that place required and that
must vndergoe so great a charge as that was, and that must giue con-
tinuall attendance thereon, was an vnreasonable thinge nor would any
man vndertake it except some that ment by the imployinge of the
money or otherwise to make some extraordinary benifitt.

It was also alledged that the East India Companie when their Stocke
was but 100000li p̱ Anñm had giuen 300li and sometimes 4 or 500li to
their Treasuror.

It was also declared that of necessity the Treasuror must engage him-
selfe for takinge vp of moneyes for the buissines especially for the
payment of custome.

In the end after much debate and dispute of the matter, the Court
generally agreed, that the reward of 100li was nothinge proporc̃onable
and seemed so sensible of the smalenes of the Salary and the greatnes
of the charge and paines, as they generally declared themselues vnwill-
inge to accept of the seruice of any such as would for such a matter,
vndertake it: wherevpon his lp: vpon that Proposic̃on made these
two questions (vizt)

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Whither the Companie do thinke 100li p̱ Añu a sufficient reward for
a Treasuror that must vndertake this buissines it was by a generall
erecc̃on of handℯ (saue 4:) thought vnsufficient.

Secondly it was put to the question whither the Companie would will-
ingly com̃itt their Stocke to one that would accept of the office for
100li: It was therevpon by a generall erecc̃on of handℯ denied. [160]