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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Commission to appoint John Hardison et al. as Justices of the Peace in Martin County
Caswell, Richard, 1729-1789
January 11, 1777
Volume 15, Pages 693-694

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Commission of Justices of the Peace,
For the County of Martin,
11 January, 1777.
State of North Carolina.

To John Hardison, Edward Smithwick, William Slade, William Sherrod, John Lewellin, John Everit, Whitmel Hill, Thomas Wiggins, Thomas Hunter, Kenneth McKenzie, Francis Ward, Samuel Smithwick, Samuel Williams, John Ross, John Kennedy, John Griffin, Nathan Mayo, Blake Baker Wiggins, Joshua Taylor, John Perry, James Moore, Thomas Beddick, Esqs., Greeting:

Know ye. That we have assigned you, and ev'ry of you, jointly and severally our Justices to keep our peace in the County of Martin and to keep or cause to be kept, all Laws and Ordinances made for the Good of the Peace, and for Conservation of the Same, and to cause to come before you or any of you all offenders against any such Laws and Ordinances, and against the peace and good government of our said State, to find Sureties for the Peace or otherwise; and in all things to proceed according to such Statute Laws, such parts of the Common Law and Acts of the Assembly heretofore in use here, not destructive or of repugnant to, or inconsistent with the Freedom and Independence of this State or the United States of America, not abrogated, repealed, expired, or become obsolete and such resolves of the Conventions and Congresses of this State which have not had their effect or been repealed; and also to execute or perform any such Power or Duty as any Ordinance of the State hath appointed or required. And we have assigned you or any three of you, our Justices to enquire by the oaths of good and lawful men of the County aforesaid, of all Petit Larcenies and other crimes of which our County Courts and sessions of the Peace within the State are empowered by Law, ordinance or Resolve to inquire into and to issue Process against persons indicted before you until they be apprehended and to hear, try and determine all and singular the offenses of which you are hereby authorized to inquire and to punish and chastise the persons offending and every of them for their offences by corporal punishment, fines, Amercements, Forfeitures, or otherwise as ought to be done according to the Laws, Statutes, Ordinances and Resolves in force in our said State; And

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for the better punishing the offences aforesaid; you, or any three of you, shall hold County Courts and Sessions of the Peace in the said County on the days appointed for holding County Courts by the Act of Assembly last in force in North Carolina and to enforce all Laws relative to Orphans, Guardians, Probate of Wills and granting letters Testamentary and of Administration; to take proof of Deeds and granting Commissions for taking the privy examination of Feme Coverts and Highways in such manner and under such restrictions as County Courts and Sessions of the Peace or Justices of the Peace may and can execute and enforce the same, pursuant to an Ordinance of the late Congress for this State intitled “An Ordinance to enforce the Statute Laws and such parts of the Common Law and Acts of Assembly heretofore in use here.” Witness: Richard Caswell, Esq., Governor, Captain General and Commander in Chief in and over the said State under his hand and seal at Arms at New Bern the eleventh day of January in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy seven, and in the first year of our Independence.

R. CASWELL.
By His Excellency's,
J. Glasgow,
Sec. of the State.