TRANSCRIPTS FROM THE ANCIENT COLONIAL RECORDS.

Otago Witness, Issue 1324, 14 April 1877, Page 21

TRANSCRIPTS FROM THE ANCIENT COLONIAL RECORDS.

The original records of the first Board of Magistrates in New England are preserved in the Boston State House, and furnish some very salutary examples for our present law-makers. From the following extracts it will be seen that our forefathers enforced a "Maine Liquor Law," in their own peculiar style, two and a half centuries ago : "September 7, 1630.— 1t is ordered that all Richard Cloug's strong water shall presently be seized upon, for his selling great quantities thereof to several man-servants, which was the occasion of much disorder, drunkenness, and misdemeanour.

"August 8, 1632.— 1t is ordered that the remainder of Mr Allen's strong water, being estimated at two gallons, shall be delivered into the hands of the poor Deacons of Dorchester, for the benefit of the poor there, for his selling of it, divers times, to such as were drunk with it, he knowing thereof." If any of our readers imagine that the Sunday laws are of recent origin, let them read the following, and be disabused of the error :—: —

"November 9, 1630.— 1t is ordered that John Baker shall be whipt for shooting a fowl on the Sabbath day." The laws against quacks and quackery were sufficiently stringent to excite the curiosity and provoke the ire of the most persistent vendor- of patent nostrums in the nineteenth century. Witness the following :—: —

" March 1, 1631.— Nicholas Kqapp is fined five pounds for taking upon him to cure the scurvy by a wash of no value nor worth, which he sold at a very dear rate; to be imprisoned till he pay his fine, or security for it, or else be whipt." The whipping-post was not confined to any particular localities in those days ; nor were assaults, slanders and malicious mischief dealt with as slight offences In the good old Colony times. " May 3, 1631.— 1t is ordered that John Legge, servant of Mr Humphrey, shall be severely whipt this day at Boston, and afterwards, 83 soon as conveniently may be, at Salem, for striking Richard Wright when he came to give him correction for idleness in his master's work "June 14, 1631.— 1t is ordered that Philip Ratliff shall be whipt, have his

ears cut off, fined forty pounds, and banished out of the limits of this jurisdiction, for uttering malicious and fraudulent speeches against the Government and the Church of Salem.

"November 7, 1632.— 1t is ordered that Sir Bichard Saltonstall shall give Sagamore John (Indian) a hogshead of corn for the hurt his cattle did him in his corn.

" Chichabut, Sachem of the Massachusetts Indians, is fined a skin of beaver for shooting a swine of Sir Richard Saltonstall's."