were not at that time granted, and that the only thing which prevented the passing of that grant was, that those Gent" apprehended that the Grant would of itself appear so extravagant and would create so many enemies, that they would not be able to hold it.
During the Lord Cornbury's administration an act was likewise passed, repealing the act above mentioned for vacating the extravagant Grants of Land by Coll Fletcher. The vacating Act passed not long before King Williams Death, and lay in the offices in England without any notice taken of it, till after the Lord Cornbury was removed from his Government then the vacating Act was confirmed and the Act repealing it was ;
repeal'd by the Queen and at the same time new instructions
were given to the Gov r by which the ,
each hundred acres, and previous surveys were ordered to be made before the Grant should pass, which have effectually prevented the above mentioned Quitrent was directed not to be less than 2
s
6d
abuses. I shall now proceed to some more particular account of the great Grants of Lands, I mean of such
as contain fifty thousand Acres and
upwards to a Million of acres, for if I be not very much misinformed, there is more than one that contain that quantity.
No quantity of Land or number of Acres, for the most part, are mentioned in any of these Grants, nor is it possible to discover the Quantity, by inspection of the Patents, as it may be done in those Grants which are founded on a previous Survey and where any quantity is expressed, it seems to be