This description of the seal of William and Mary is given because it was that used in New York throughout their joint reign, the reign of William alone, and of Anne until the Gth of September 1705, on which day the new seal of that Queen was received, and this old one was defaced, and sent back to England to be broken, in accordance with the law. It authenticated every Manor-Grant and Patent in the Province from 1691 to 1705, and was appended to every Manor-Grant in the County of Westchester, except those of Fordham and Pelham, the former of which bore the seal of James as Duke of York, and the latter that of James as King, they being the two oldest Manors in the County. From the fact that this seal was so used, after the deaths of Mary and of William, upon patents and other instruments in New York issued in the early part of the reign of Anne,

attempts were once made to deny their validity in Court, but always in vain. A notable exampleof which, was that of the original charter of Trinity church in 1697. This seal was decided to be the lawful seal of the Province until superseded by the first seal of Queen Anne, as above stated in September 1705. The ancient and important instrument just described, now nearly two centuries old, at present the property of Mr. James Stevenson van Cortlandt of Croton, the only surviving son of the late Colonel Pierre van Cortlandt, is the foundation of the title to the whole Manor of Cortlandt as possessed by Stephanus van Cortlandt, and of all existing titles within its limits. It is therefore here given in full : --