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21, of Mr. Hampton's having previously attended and tendered himself to take the oath; and as the order of the court on the joint petition refers to antecedent petitions of only the vestry of Coventry parish and of Mr. McNish, and not to any of Mr. Hampton, and those petitions are on the second page, it is unlikely, I think, that there is such a minute in the book. It may be then either that the expressions in the joint petition, that have been alluded to, are somewhat loose or that Mr. Hampton attended on the first occasion with Mr. McNish, and tendered himself orally only, and so informally, that it was not thought proper to make any minute of it; and that their cases being precisely the same in principle and circumstantially too, it was understood that one petition should try the matter. The latter surmise receives a colour of probability from the statement in the petition of the vestry of Coventry parish, that they had good ground to believe that Mr. Francis Makemie and others intended to address the court in relation to the act in favour of the dissenters. This probability is strengthened by the consideration that the petitioners would hardly allege to the court that there had been transactions of business before it, which nevertheless had never occurred. Perhaps this consideration strengthens probability into certainty that either on the occasion that has been adverted to, or on some other occasion subsequent to that and previous to the joint petition, the Rev. John Hampton tendered himself to the court

to take the prescribed oath, and make and subscribe the required declarations.

Or it may be after all, that there is a minute in some preceding book of Mr. Hampton's having tendered himself to take the oath, and that his petition was continued on other grounds than that assigned for continuing the petition of Mr. McNish, and the joint petition of Messrs. Hampton and McNish. I have not been able, however, as yet to find such a minute. The joint petition was preferred, no doubt, on account of delay in hearing from the governor and council, and for the purpose of urging the mat

ter on.

July 22, 1835.

RIDER HENRY WINDER.

N. B. It might be better, if the foregoing remarks were revised and written over; but at present time for the business cannot well be spared. The comments on some expressions in the joint petition having occurred to me, I have put them down. Perhaps, however, it may be thought that they are unnecessary and superfluous. R. H. W.

Mr. Winder, who is also assisting me in making an alphabet to the records belonging to the clerk's office, has made a full copy of the proceedings in relation to the license of the Rev. Messrs. McNish and Hampton. I have thought proper to enclose them to you, although they were intended for myself.

Mr. SPENCE.

G. HAND.

E.

Princess Anne, Somerset County, 1835.

MY DEAR SIR,

(1) In my researches, I find among the records of this county, a deed dated in 1723, to the Rev. William Stewart, the pastor, and others, the elders, "and their successors for ever, for the use, support, maintenance, and continuance of a meeting-house for the worship and service of Almighty God, according to the Presbyterian persuasion, and for no other use whatsoever," for "a part of a tract of land called in the original patent, Nutter's Purchase,' lying on the north side of the head of Menokin river, containing one quarter of an acre." This is the identical spot whereupon the Presbyterian church now stands at Princess Anne-and the remains of the said Rev. William Stewart now lie mouldering in the dust, in the spot of ground mentioned in said deed, and upon which our church now stands. This fact has been handed to the present generation by a lady named Hitch, a descendant and grand-daughter of the Rev. Mr. Stewart, who died a few years ago, at an advanced age. Mr. Stewart departed this life about the year 1742, and a short time previously to

his death, had the misfortune to lose his house and other property by fire, among which was the session book of our church; for which reason I am unable to give you any information in regard to the ministers of our church, from our present session book, anterior to the year 1747. It appears from the Monokin session book, that in the year 1747, the Rev. John Hambleton was the pastor of the Monokin and Rehoboth congregations, and that he had preached to the congregation at Snowhill. This session book imparts very little more information about Mr. Hambleton further than that he went to Philadelphia to meet Synod in 1750. The next pastor mentioned in our session book, is the Rev. Hugh Henry, who it appears assisted in the administration of the Lord's supper at Monokin in 1752, and in 1758 entered on the pastoral charge at Monokin and Rehoboth. The call was made in 1758, and Mr. Nehemiah King and Col. Robert Henry were appointed to present it to the Lewistown Presbytery to sit at Cold Spring, in Delaware. This gentleman was not of the family which then resided in Somerset. The name of the clergyman who had previously resided in this county, was John Henry, as I have heretofore informed you. In 1759, the Rev. John Harris assisted in the administration of the sacrament, and the Rev. Hugh Henry sat in session in 1762. No further notice is taken of the Rev. Hugh Henry by our session book, until 1763, when a receipt by his administratrix is mentioned. In 1764, the Monokin congregation agreed to call the Rev. Jacob Ker of the New Bruns

wick Presbytery, who had previously settled in this congregation, and in November of that year, was regularly installed. The Rev. Mr. Miller preached the sermon from Heb. xiii. 17, and the Rev. Mr. Harris gave the charge. It likewise appears from our session book, that the Rev. Jacob Ker departed this life on the 29th July, 1795.

In the year 1764, our session finding that the meeting-house was much decayed, and too small to hold the people who then attended, determined to build a new one of brick, which determination the session carried into effect, and accordingly erected the church which now stands at the head of Monokin, at Princess Anne, covering therewith the spot of ground where the old church stood. Many years however previously to the construction of the present church, the congregation had purchased about one acre more of land, which now belongs to it. In the year 1796, the Rev. John Collins was directed to supply every third Sabbath at Rocowalkin, Monokin and Rehoboth.

In June, in the year 1799, the Rev. John Brown Slemons was installed pastor of the congregations of Wicomico, and Monokin, and officiated as such until the year 1821. In the year 1824, the Rev. Robert McMordie Laird became the stated supply for these congregations until the year 1825. In 1826, the Rev. Joshua Moore became the pastor of the congregations of Wicomico and Monokin, and officiated for about two years, when he resigned the charge, and in the year 1829, the Rev. Robert McMordie

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