Pierre Jay is presumed to have been of the house of Le Jay, of Poitou. There was also an ancient French family in Paris of the name of Le Jay, which formerly distinguished itself in the civil department of the state, many of whom bore the same christian name, as many of the Jays have since done, amongst whom is found, a John le Jay in the early part of the sixteenth century; a Nicolas le Jay, Baron de Tilley de la Maison Rouge, et de St. Fargeau, Seigneur de Villiers, was first President to the Parliament of Paris, in 1636. This individual was the son of Nicolas le Jay, styled "correcteur des Comptes a Paris."''

Of Pierre Jay, IMr. Renwick in his life of John Jay, remarks :

» In the town records of Westchester, occurs the following^ entry : " Baptised by Mr. John Bartow, rector of Westchester parish, in the parish church in the town aforesaid, the eighth of August, 1703, Sarah Budd, the wife of Joseph Budd of Rye, in the county of Westchester, and their son Joseph Budd, aged eleven months, also.

b Hist. Geuealogique et Chronologique par le P. Anselme, 1731, vol. ix. 304. The arms borne by Nicolas le Jay, were " D'azur au chevron d'or, accompagne en chef de deux etoiles de memo en point, d'un mouton passant d'argent. The arms of Pierre le Jay the Huguenot, closely resemble the former, viz. : '< d'azur au chevron d'or, en chef demi soleil splendant, entre deux etoiles de meme en point, a roc propre surmonte par oiseaux. Crest, deux coeurs unis.