Certain en CHAP. XII. An act to vest certain lands therein mentioned in John Syme, esquire, and others, in fee-simple, and for settling other lands and slaves in lieu thereof. I. WHEREAS Nicholas Meriwether the younger, tailed lands, formerly of the county of Hanover, gentleman, was in formerly of his lifetime seized in fee simple of a tract of land whereMeriwether, on he lived in the parish of Fredericksville, then in the vested in said county, but now in the county of Albemarle, conJohn Syme, taining one thousand six hundred and fifty acres, also Nicholas esq. of another tract of land lying in the same parish and county, containing four hundred acres, and also of a tract of land containing five hundred and thirty-four acres, lying in the parish of Truro, in the county of Fairfax; and being so seized, he the said Nicholas Meriwether, in and by his last will and testament, in writing, bearing date the fourth day of December, one thousand seven hundred and thirty eight, did give and devise to his wife Mildred one half of his estate during her life, and gave the residue to the child his wife was then ensient of, but directed that in case his wife should die before the said child, the whole estate, except the part which he had in marriage with his said wife, and which he left to her disposal, should fall to the said child, and if that died without issue the estate to be equally divided between his the testator's brothers and sisters, as by the said will, remaining of record in the court of the said county of Hanover, may more fully appear; and soon afterwards the said testator died so seized, and after his death his said wife was delivered of a daughter named Mildred, who, besides the estate so devised her by her said father, was seized in fee simple of and in a very valuable tract of land near Newcastle town, in the parish of St. Paul and county of Hanover, also fourteen unimproved lots of land in the said town, being denoted in the plan thereof by the numbers 1, 2, 7, 8, 34, 41, 42, 44, 45, 51, 52, and the letters F, H, and K, and two tracts of land in the parish of St. Anne, in the county of Albemarle, containing together three thousand five hundred acres; and be ing so seized and entitled the said Mildred the daughter intermarried with John Syme, esquire, who in her right became seized and possessed of the said lands, and having more valuable and convenient lands of his own did come to an agreement with Thomas Walker, gentleman, who intermarried with Mildred the widow of the said Nicholas Meriwether, to convey the said sixteen hundred and fifty acres of land in the parish of Fredericksville, in the said county of Albemarle, to the said Thomas Walker in fee simple, in consideration whereof the said Thomas was to release the estate for life of the said Mildred his wife in the other lands of the said Nicholas Meriwether, and to pay the said John Syme two hundred pounds current money; and the said John Syme had, moreover, agreed to sell the said four hundred acres of land in the last mentioned parish and county to William Crenshaw, for fifty pounds, the said lands in the county of Fairfax to John Carlyle, gentleman, for one hundred and eighty pounds current money, and the said two tracts in the parish of St. Anne and county of Albemarle to the honourable William Nelson, esquire, for eight hundred pounds, to which several sales the said Mildred, the wife of the said John Syme, was consenting; but before any conveyances were executed the said Mildred died, leaving issue, by the said John Syme, John Syme the younger, her eldest son and heir, an infant, and other children, whereby the said John Syme the elder is disabled from carrying the several agreements aforesaid into execution, and may be involved in sundry disputes on that ac count. II. And whereas the said John Syme is seized in fee simple of near four hundred acres of land by him purchased of Elizabeth Skelton, widow, and William Winston, adjoining to the said tract of land near Newcastle town, and it will be greatly to the advantage of the said John Syme, and his family, to vest the several tracts of land so by him sold in the purchasers in fee simple, and also to vest the said lots of land in the town of Newcastle in the said John Syme in fee simple, whereby he may be enabled to sell and dispose of the same, and to settle the said four hundred acres of land, of which the said John is seized, in fee simple, with several slaves, in lieu of the said lands so sold, and the said lots; and forasmuch as notice hath been published three Sundays successively, in the several church es of the said parishes of Fredericksville, Truro, St. Anne, and St. Paul, that application would be made to this present general assembly for an act to this purpose, pursuant to your Majesty's instructions: III. May it therefore please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said John Syme, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted, by the LieutenantGovernour, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the said sixteen hundred and fifty acres of land lying in the parish of Fredericksville, in the said county of Albemarle, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said Thomas Walker, his heirs and assigns, for ever; that the said four hundred acres of land lying in the same parish and county, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said William Crenshaw, his heirs and assigns, for ever; that the said five hundred and thirty-four acres of land lying in the county of Fairfax, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said John Carlyle, his heirs and assigns, for ever; that the said three thousand five hundred acres of land lying in the parish of St. Anne, in the county of Albemarle, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said William Nelson, his heirs and assigns for ever; and the said fourteen lots of lands in the town of Newcastle, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said John Syme, his heirs and assigns, for ever, to their own use respectively; and that the said four hundred acres of land near the said town of Newcastle, so purchased by the said John Syme of Elizabeth Skelton and William Winston, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said John Syme, to hold to him during his natural life, and after his decease to the heirs of the body of the said Mildred his late wife, for ever; and in default of issue of her, then to descend and pass and go to such person or persons, and in like manner, as the said sixteen hundred and fifty acres of land hereby vested in the said Thomas Walker would have remained, descended, and gone, by virtue of the limitations in the will of the said Nicholas Meriwether, if this act had never been made. IV. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That seventeen negro slaves, whereof the said John Syme is possessed in his own right, called and known by the names of Scipio, Dill, Nell, Bartlett, Peter, Will, Isaac, Tom, Jenny, Cuffy, Phil, Rose, Lucy, Tabb, Jesse, Judy, and Moses, with their future in crease, be, and the same are hereby vested in the said John Syme, IN TRUST, to and for the use of him the said John Syme during his natural life, and after his decease to the use of the said John Syme the younger, and his heirs for ever, on the part of the said Mildred his mother. V. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successours, and to all and every other person or persons, bodies politick and corporate, their respective heirs or successours, other than the persons claiming under the said Mildred Syme, or the will of the said Nicholas Meriwether, all such right, title, or interest, as they, every, or any of them, could or might claim, if this act had never been made. VI. Provided always, That the execution of this act shall be, and the same is hereby suspended, until his majesty's approbation thereof shall be obtained. CHAP. XIII. An act to dock the entail of certain lands whereof Richard Todd is seized, and for settling other lands and slaves in lieu thereof. Richard I. WHEREAS William Todd, formerly of the coun- Certain enty of King and Queen, gentleman, was in his lifetime tailed lands seized in fee simple of a large tract of land lying in the whereof parish of St. Thomas and county of Orange, and be- Todd is seiz ing so seized, in and by his last will and testament, in ed, docked, writing, bearing date the twelfth day of January, one thousand seven hundred and thirty six, did devise part of the said land to his daughters Dorothy and Betty, his grandson William Gordon, and Richard Barber, and all the residue thereof, being eighteen hundred and thirty five acres, he gave and devised to his son Richard Todd, and the heirs of his body lawfully begotten, and for want of such issue to his son Thomas Todd, and his heirs, for ever, as by the said will remaining of record in the court of the said county of King and Queen, may more fully appear; and the said William H-VOL. 8. Todd died soon afterwards so seized, whereupon the said Richard Todd entered into the lands so devised to him, and was and is seized thereof as tenant in fee taille. II. And whereas the said Richard Todd is seized in fee simple of and in a tract of land containing four hunt dred and sixty acres, lying in the county of King and Queen, and is possessed in his own right of the following negro slaves, to wit, one man named Humphrey, a woman named Violett, and a girl named Judith, and it is represented to this general assembly that it will be greatly to the benefit of the said Richard Todd, and his family, if he was allowed to dock the entail of twelve hundred and eighty-five acres of land, part of the said tract in the county of Orange, whereby he might be enabled to make a better provision for his younger children, and to settle the said tract of land in the county of King and Queen, with the slaves aforesaid, to be annexed thereto, to the same uses; and forasmuch as notice hath been published three Sundays successively, in the several churches in the said parish of St. Thomas, that application would be made to this present General Assembly for an act to this purpose, pursuant to your majesty's instructions: III. May it therefore please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said Richard Todd, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted, by the LieutenantGovernour, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That twelve hundred and eighty five acres of land, part of the said tract in the county of Orange, bounded as followeth, to wit: Beginning at three white oaks on the south east side of a branch called Mount Molly, running thence south forty five degrees west three hundred and fifty eight pole to two red oaks and a hickory, thence north sixty seven degrees west six hundred and sixty four pole, thence north twenty two and a half degrees east four hundred and forty pole, thence south sixty one degrees east four hundred and forty four pole to three white oaks, thence south fifty seven degrees west three hundred and twenty six pole to Hoome's rood, thence down the said road to Mount Molly aforesaid, thence up the said branch to the line of the whole tract, and from thence south sixty one degrees east two hundred and fifty six pole to the beginning, be, and the same is hereby vested in the said Richard Todd, his heirs and assigns, for ever, to his art |