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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Act of the South Carolina General Assembly concerning settlement
South Carolina. General Assembly
1696
Volume 02, Page 838

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[Reprinted from S. C. Statutes at Large. 1696. Vol. 2. P. 124.]
AN ACT FOR THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE BETTER SETTLEMENT OF SOUTH CAROLINA.

Whereas several honest and well meaning persons by misfortunes in the warrs between the Crowne of England and France and other similar accidents have been brought in debt more than in due time they were able to pay to avoid the urgency and severity of their creditors and to gaine time to enable themselves to pay their debts have been forced to remove themselves and families out of Europe into his Majesties plantations in the West Indias and out of one plantation in the said West Indias into another: To encourage such persons to transport themselves and families into this Collony, the most fertile in the West Indias and to enable them and such others already here by their industry and diligence imployed on a fruitfull soil to pay their debts,

1 Be it enacted by his Excellency William, Earl of Craven Palatine and the rest of the true and absolute Lords and Proprietors of this Province by and with the advice and consent of the rest of the members of the General Assembly now met at Charlestowne for the southwest part of this Province And it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That no person now inhabitting in South Carolina shall be arraigned sued or impleaded in any court or imprisoned for any debt whether the same be by bill bond or any other specialty, reckoning or account whatsoever, contracted before his arrival into South Carolina till after five years after the ratification of this act and that no persons whatsoever who shall hereafter transport themselves into South Carolina there to plant and inhabit shall be arrested sued or impleaded in any court or be imprisoned for any debt whether the same be by bill bond or any other specialty accompt or reckoning whatsoever contracted before his arrivall here till and after five years after his arrival here.

2. Provided always and it is hereby further enacted that no factor agent merchant or other person whatsoever who hath or shall contract any debts for goods wares or merchandizes or for money or credit to buy goods wares or merchandizes to be brought into South Carolina shall have any benefit or privilege by this act anything therein to the contrary notwithstanding.