Preface. xix

for the support of government, 16 to 26; to continue the 2 shillings for rents and
alienation fees, 26 to 20; and to pass the Revenue Bill for one year only, 33 to 13.
On July 27, the House voted, 25 to 22, for the Government Bill and, on July 31,
for the same bill. 24 to 22. On August i, the House decided, 31 to 14, to
allow the 3 half-pence duty to the Governor for one year, instead of three: and,
on August 7, the 3 pence duty raised for arms was allowed, by a vote of 22 to
18, to be disposed of as the Governor and Assembly might see fit. Here we have
distinctly political questions and may expect to find parties, if anywhere. An
examination of the votes discloses something like the English division into
Court and Country parties and we note that some of the delegations from
the counties appear to be divided. A conjectural division of the members upon
this basis is as follows: Court Party: St. Mary's, Hopewell; Kent, Black-
istone, Willson, Howard, Hall; Calvert, Mackall; Dorchester, Hooper, Wool-
ford, Taylor, Brannock; Baltimore, Scott; Annapolis, Gordon; Anne Arundel,
Dulany; Talbot, Goldsborough, Hooper, Edmundson, Needles; Cecil, Ward;
Queen Anne's, Wright, Hemsley, Clayton, Elliott (22). Country Party:
St. Mary's, Waughop, Read, Jordan; Anne Arundel, Beale, Hammond, War-
field; Charles, Courts, Middleton, Hanson, Hawkins; Cecil, Herman, Wood,
George; Prince George's, Magruder, Crabb, Belt, Sprigg; Calvert, Smith,
Skinner; Somerset, Gale, Allen, Dashiell, Caldwell; Baltimore, Mathews,
Hamilton, Sheredine; Annapolis, Cumming (27). The Speaker, of course, is
of no party. The strength of the Proprietary party on the Eastern Shore is
notable. 5. On July 31, the House voted, 25 to 20, to allow payment of
fees at 10 shillings for 100 pounds, rather than at a penny a pound of
tobacco. The alignment of the voters is puzzling and I have no clue to it.
6. On August 4, the House voted, 20 to 21, not to agree to the Upper House
amendments to the Paper Currency Bill and, on August 7, the vote was
repeated, 15 to 19. On August 5, the House voted, 28 to 15, to enforce
this bill. On August 5. it also voted, 16 to 26, not to defer the law going into
effect until the Proprietary could be heard from; but, on August 7, it reversed
this vote, 20 to 17. A vote had been lost from the negative in Prince George's,
Dorchester, Calvert, Somerset and Annapolis, two from St. Mary's and from
Charles; while the affirmative had gained one from Somerset, Dorchester,
Annapolis, and Queen Anne's. On August 8, by the close vote of 18 to 19, the
House voted not to allow the Governor to name the Commissioners to be
appointed under the Paper Money Act. In general, the votes on the Paper
Money Bill seem to follow the lines of those in the revenue acts.

As this was a new Assembly, new committees were appointed. It is interest-
ing to observe that no attempt was made to place all members on committees
and that Messrs. Dulany, Beale, and Magruder were each upon two committees.