liam, which was granted by the proprietor of the northern neck of Virginia to the said Lewis Burwell, the elder. And whereas the said Lewis Burwell, the father, in and by his last will and testament in writing, did devise considerable fortunes to his daughters, to be paid in money, and finally chargeable on his said lands in Prince William, great part of which yet remain to be paid by the said Lewis Burwell, the son, for the payment whereof it is necessary he should sell some part of his estate; and although the said intailed lands, from their convenient situation, will at present yield a better price than the other lands before mentioned, yet having been long in cultivation they will not produce such profitable crops, the said lands in the county of Prince William being fresh and rich: And it hath been represented to this general assembly, that it will be of advantage to the said Lewis Burwell and his family, if he is allowed to sell and dispose of the said intailed lands to enable him to pay his sisters fortunes, and to settle part of the fee simple lands, of equal value, in lieu thereof: And forasmuch as notice hath been published three Sundays successively in the several churches of the said parish of Petsworth, that application would be made to this present general assembly for an act to dock the intail of the said lands in the county of Gloucester, and for settling other lands to the same uses, pursuant to your majesty's instructions: May it therefore please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said Lewis Burwell, the younger, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted, by the Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That the said tract of land, in the county of Gloucester, called Old and New Pur-. ton, be and the same is hereby vested in the said Lewis Burwell, his heirs and assigns forever, to his and their own use, and that three thousand acres of land, part of the said tract in the county of Prince William, to be laid off by Robert Burwell, esquire, Henry Lee, Francis Peyton, Landon Carter, junior, and Matthew Whiting, esquires, or any three of them, in such manner as to them shall seem convenient and proper, and plainly marked and bounded, together with the said twenty negro slaves and their increase, or such of them as shall be now living, with their future increase annexed thereto, shall be and the same are hereby vested in the said Lewis Burwell, and the heirs of his body; and for want of such issue the same shall descend, pass, and go to such person or persons to whom the said lands, in the county of Gloucester, would have descended and come by virtue of the limitations in the will of the said John Smith, if this act had never been made. And the said trustees shall cause their survey of the said lands, hereby settled, to be recorded in the said county court of Prince William, the better to ascertain the bounds thereof. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successors, and to all and every person and persons, bodies politic and corporate, their respective heirs and successors, other than the persons claiming under the will of the said John Smith, all such right, title, and interest, as they, every, or any of them, could or might claim if this act had never been made. II. Provided always, That the execution of this act be, and the same is hereby suspended, until his majes ty's approbation thereof shall be obtained. CHAP. XIII. An act to dock the intail of part of a tract of land, whereof John Tazewell is sesied, and for settling slaves, of greater value, to the same uses. land where of John I. WHEREAS William Tazewell, late of the coun- Intail of part ty of Northampton, gentleman, deceased, was, in his of a tract of lifetime, seised in fee simple of and in five hundred acres of land in the parish of Hungars and county of North- Tazewell is ampton, and being so seised, did, by his last will and seized, docktestament, bearing date the twenty ninth day of Octo- ed. ber, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and fifty one, devised the said land to his son John Tazewell, and the heirs of his body, lawfully begotten; and Sophia Tazewell, widow and relict of the said William Tazewell, having a right under the will of her mother Gertrude Harmanson, deceased, to dispose of other five hundred acres of land adjoining the first mentioned tract, did, by her last will and testament, bearing date the twenty seventh day of October, one thouI 4 VOL. 8. sand seven hundred and fifty three, devise the same to the said John Tazewell, and the heirs of his body, lawfully begotten; as by the said wills remaining of record in the county court of Northampton may more fully appear: And whereas the said John Tazewell, after the death of the said William Tazewell, and Sophia his wife, entered into the tracts of land aforesaid, containing in the whole one thousand acres, and being thereof seised, hath represented to this present general assembly, that it will be of considerable advantage to him, his heir and family, and to the inhabitants and trade of the said county, if a few acres, part of the tract aforesaid, whereon the courthouse of the said county of Northampton now stands, and near the same, were vested in the said John Tazewell in fee simple, in order that the same may be laid off in lots towards the establishment of a town, and slaves, equal in value thereto, annexed to the remainder of the said tract, to descend, pass, and go in the same manner as the land, hereby intended to be docked, would have descended, passed, and gone: May it please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said John Tazewell, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted, by the Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That twenty acres of the aforesaid tract or parcel of land, adjoining to and including the courthouse of the said county of Northampton, be laid off by the surveyor of the said. county, in lots of half an acre each, which said twenty acres, so to be surveyed and laid off, shall be and are hereby declared to be vested in the said John Tazewell, his heirs and assigns forever; and that the following slaves, to wit, Jacob, Tom, Young Phillis, and Betty, with the future increase of the females, shall be annexed to, descend, pass and go with the residue of the tract of land aforesaid, agreeable to the wills of the said William Tazewell and Sophia his wife. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successors, and to all and every other person and persons, bodies politic and corporate, their respective heirs and successors, other than the persons claiming under the wills aforesaid, all such right, title, and interest, as they or any of them, could or might claim if this act had never been made. II. Provided always, That the execution of this act be, and the same is hereby suspended, until his majes ty's approbation thereof shall be obtained. CHAP. XIV. An act to vest certain intailed lands, whereof Bowles Armistead, gentleman, is seised, in trustees, to be sold for payment of the debts due from the estate of his late father William Armistead, esquire. Certain in whereof trustees, to the debts of his father 1. WHEREAS William Armistead: formerly of the county of Gloucester, esquire, was, in his lifetime, and tailed lands at the time of his death, seised in fee simple of and in Bowles Ara very valuable estate in lands, lying in the county of mistead, esq. Gloucester, and of two thousand seven hundred and is seized, forty acres, lying in the parish of Christ church, in the vested in county of Middlesex, and was also seised of a tract of be sold for land Couraming about six thousand acres, lying in the payment of parish of Hamilton, in the county of Prince William, and of a tract of land containing about five thousand William Ar acres, lying in the parish of Saint Mark, in the county mistead, esq. of Culpeper, by him purchased of John Spotswood, esquire; and being so seised, he the said William Armistead in and by his last will and testament in writing, bearing date the thirtieth day of December, in the year of our lord one thousand seven hundred and fifty five, did, among other things, give and devise as follows: Item, I give and bequeath unto my well beloved son William Armistead, all my lands in Gloucester and Middlesex counties, with seventy choice slaves, including my house servants, and likewise the stocks of all sorts, with all the houshold furniture in and upon the said estate, to him and the heirs of his body, lawfully begotten, forever. Item, I give and bequeath unto my well beloved son John Armistead, all that tract of land purchased from the trustees of Mr. George Carter, in the county of Prince William, with all the stocks and slaves thereupon, and likewise all the slaves and stocks in and upon my lands in the counties of Culpeper and Caroline, to him and the heirs of his body, lawfully begotten, forever. Item, I give and bequeath unto my well beloved son Bowles Armistead all that tract or parcel of land in Culpeper county, purchased of Mr. John Spotswood, with all the slaves that remain upon my Gloucester and Middlesex lands, after my son William's part is taken out, which is seventy, to him and the heirs of his body, lawfully begotten, forever; and after other devises to his son Henry Armistead, since deceased, did direct as follows: My will and desire is that my said sons shall not come to the possession of their estates till they have severally arrived at the age of twenty one years, that is to say, when my son William arrives to the age of twenty one years he shall be intitled to his estate, and in like manner shall all my other sons be intitled to their estates respectively; as by the said will, recorded in the general court, may more fully appear; and soon afterwards the said testator died so seised, considerably indebted to sundry persons in Great Britain and this colony, so that when the said sons, William and John, severally arrived to the age of twenty one years, they could not obtain the possession of their estates so devised to them, until they engaged to pay their respective proportions of the said debts then remaining due, which they severally undertook to pay, armounting to about the sum of one thousand seven hundred pounds sterling each, but had no means of discharging the same, by reason of their limited interest in the estates to them respectively devised, restrictive of such sale. And whereas by an act of assembly, passed in the tenth year of the reign of his present majesty, intituled An act to vest certain intailed lands, whereof William and John Armistead, gentlemen, are seised, in trustees, to be sold for payment of the debts due from the estate of their father, certain portions of the lands so as aforesaid devised to the said sons William and John respectively, were vested in trustees to be sold towards reimbursing them the money so by them engaged to be paid; and it being equally reasonable and necessary that the said Bowles Armistead, the son, who hath arrived to the age of twenty one years, since the passing of the said act, should be allowed to sell part of his said intailed lands for raising his proportion of the debts aforesaid, and thereby save his slaves to work the resi |