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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Letter from Edmund Porter to George Burrington
Porter, Edmund, ca. 1685-1737
March 30, 1733
Volume 03, Pages 524-525

Mr Porter's Letter to Governor Burrington acquainting him he has received a packet from the Secretary of the Board of Trade containing accusations against him.

To His Excellency George Burrington Esqre Governor Captain General &c:

Sir,

I think myself obliged to inform your Excellency that I have received a packet from the Secretary of the Board of Trade, containing charges or accusations against me extracted from letters of your Excellency's together with a letter from Mr Secretary Popple, by order of the Lords Commissioners of Trade and Plantation wherein he acquaints me he is directed to transmit to your Excellency likewise Copies of a Representation and other papers containing complaints which I have made against your Excellency and that their Lordships may be enabled to make a judgment of the true state of the affair, he has by their commands acquainted your Excellency that their Lordships expect you should return to them such depositions and proofs in your own behalfe, as you should think convenient, giving me at the same time full liberty or any other person concerned to make affidavits before any Judge or other Magistrate of what they know concerning the subject matter of the said complaints, and that such Judge or Magistrate be likewise injoined to summon such persons as the complainants respectively shall name, in order

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to give their Testimony in this affair, and your Excellency he informs me, is further directed to interchainge with me true copies of the proofs and affidavits, so soon as they shall be made, directing me to observe the like on my part; Twenty days being allowed us to make our replys respectively, by affidavits or otherwise to be in like manner interchangeably communicated to each other and afterwards transmitted to their Lordships without loss of time; pursuant to the aforesaid directions of their Lordships, I presume to acquaint your Excellency thereof, and that I am ready and intend immediately to proceed in the affair.

I am your Excellency most obedient servant
E. PORTER.

Edenton March 30th 1732. delivered at the Council Board

Mr Edmund Porter maketh Oath on the Holy Evangelists that the foregoing paper is a true Copy of what he delivered when the Governor was present at the Council Board on the day of the date thereof since which time the Deponent Sayeth he has had no answer thereto from the Governor as he did expect: and doth believe that his Excellency hath no design or desire to proceed in the form and manner prescribed by the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations; Wherefore he is constrained to transmit to the Board of Trade the Several Deponents Depositions and Papers relating to his complaints against Governor Burrington.

E. PORTER.

Jurat coram me


19o Die Julii 1733.
Nath: Rice.

I hereby certify that in Obedience to an Order from the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations touching Governor Burrington and Edmund Porter Esqres their complaints against each other, at the Instance of the said Edmund Porter I summoned Mr John Conner Attorney at Law to give his Testimony in relation to the said complaints; who accordingly appeared before me, but refused to answer to any Interrogatories, saying he would neither swear for nor against the Governor.

NATH: RICE Sec.

7th April. 1733.



Additional Notes for Electronic Version: Supporting certifications suggest that the actual date of this letter is March 30, 1733, not 1732 as written on the letter.