Home / Shonnard, Frederic, and W.W. Spooner. History of Westchester County, New York, from its Earliest Settlement to the Year 1900. New York: The New York History Company, 1900. / Passage

History of Westchester County, New York, from its Earliest Settlement to the Year 1900

Shonnard, Frederic, and W.W. Spooner. History of Westchester County, New York, from its Earliest Settlement to the Year 1900. New York: The New York History Company, 1900. 309 words

Upon the patroons was conferred the right to " forever possess and enjoy all the lands lying within the aforesaid limits, together with the fruits, rights, minerals, rivers, and fountains thereof; as also the chief command and lower jurisdiction, fishing, fowling, and grinding, to the exclusion of all others, to be holden from the company as a perpetual inheritance." In case " anyone should in time prosper so much as to found one or more cities," he was to " have power and authority to establish officers and magistrates there, and to make use of the title of his colonie according to his pleasure and the quality of the persons." The patroons were directed to furnish their settlers with " proper instructions, in order that they may be ruled and governed conformably to the rule of government made or to be made by the Assembly of the XIX., as well in the political as in the judicial government." Special privileges of traffic along the whole American coast from Florida to Newfoundland were bestowed upon the patroons, with the proviso that their returning ships should land at Manhattan Island, and that five per cent, of the value of the cargo should be paid to the company's officers there. It was even permitted to the patroons to traffic in New Netherland waters, although they were strictly forbidden to receive in exchange any article of peltry, "which trade the company reserve to themselves." Nevertheless they were free to engage in the coveted peltry trade at all places where the Company had no trading station, the peltry they can procure " on condition that they should " bring all either to Manhattan Island or direct to the Netherlands, and pay to the company kk one guilder for each merchantable beaver and otter skin." The company engaged to exempt the colonists of the patroons