As the Province grew the amount of quit-rents increased and came to be an important part of the public revenue. Several acts of the Legislature from time to time regulated the times and manner of their payment, when they had fallen into arrears, which was a common occurrence, the last of which was in 1762, which also carefully provided for the partition of large estates where they had come into the possession of numerous heirs. But space will not permit of more than this allusion to this legislation.

After the Revolution when the State succeeded to the rights of the Crown, and in 1786, an act was passed providing for the payment of the quit-rents to the State, and permitting the owners of lands subject to them, to commute by paying a sum in gross, upon the receipt of which, the lands were declared free and discharged from then forever. The sum fixed was fourteen shillings in cash for every one shilling of annual quit-rent payable any time before the 1st of May, 1787, in the same State securities receivable in payment for forfeited estates. In the case of those payable in kind they were to be settled for in the method in the book of the Receiver- General of the former Colony, if this could be found, and if not found, then upon principles of equity and good conscience by the State Treasurer. This law was extended from time to time by various special acts. In 1791 one of these acts also changed the payments from the securities mentioned above to gold and silver, at the lower rate of twelve shillings for