Translation
On the petition of Lewis Morris[1], requesting that, for the benefit of the orphan child, he may have a grant of the plantation of his late brother, Richard Morris, with the cattle and other appurtenances thereof, together with the guardianship of said child, &c.It is ordered:That the Petitioner be allowed the requested Bouwery, buildings and materials thereon, for the benefit of the minor orphan child, on a valuation made by impartial arbitrators; in like manner the Petitioner shall be at liberty to appropriate, without any order, all the chattels which he can attach that have been removed from the Bouwery, on condition that they be brought to the Bouwery and inventory thereof delivered in; and whereas, since the surrender of the place, divers articles have been removed hence by Walter Webly, it is hereby ordered that said goods be returned to the plantation for the benefit of the child, when the Petitioner shall be granted letters of guardianship; the government will appropriate on account, the fat cattle, such as oxen, cows and hogs, on condition of being responsible for the payment of the orphan's share.
Done in Fort Willem Hendrick, this 17th October, 1673.
On petition of William Dervall, requesting in substance that he may be allowed to take possession of his property remaining in this city, inasmuch as the same is allowed to these subjects by the neighboring Colonies of New England,
It is is ordered:
That the Petitioner shall be considered and shall enjoy the same advantages as will be allowed and granted to all other inhabitants of the neighboring Colonies of New England, and he is hereby directed to deliver in by the first opportunity an inventory of his goods which remain within this government.
Burgomaster Luyck:
Please furnish Captain Cornelis Ewoutsen, or his order, such materials as he will from time to time require for the Fort, the ship Serinam and the snow Zeehont; also furnish the Commissary such provisions as he shall require weekly for the garrison; on condition of delivering in an account to me of the same every two months.
Dated Fort Willem Hendrick, this 18th October. 1673.
Translation Superscripts
[1]: Lewis Morris was a native of Monmouthshire, Wales, and commanded a troop of horse in the Parliament army against Charles I. He afterwards went to the West Indies; purchased "a lovely estate " on the Island of Barbadoes, and was member of the Council of that Island. In 1654, an expedition having been fitted out against the Spanish possessions in those parts, a commission of Colonel was sent to him by Protector Cromwell, but when the fleet arrived at Barbadoes, in 1655, "he prized himself at so high a rate" that he demanded a present of one hundred thousand weight of sugar to pay his debts, before he would consent to accompany the fleet. He finally, however, consented and was present at the reduction of Jamaica, after which he returned to Barbadoes and is said to have been interested in the purchase of St. Lucia in 1663.He now openly professed the principles of the Quakers, and as one of their prominent members entertained the celebrated George Fox, at his seat near Bridgetown, when he visited Barbadoes in 1671; signed the addresses to the Governor and Legislature complaining of the persecution to which the Friends were subjected, Mr. Morris, himself, having been mulcted, in fines, to the amount of 16,193 pounds of sugar for refusing to pay Church dues and Minister's money, and to furnish men and horses for the militia. On receiving intelligence of the death of his brother, Richard (Volume 23, document 51, note), he came to this country, whilst it was in the possession of the Dutch, in the year 1673, and not after the peace of 1674, as erroneously stated by Dunlap and others. After visiting Barbadoes for the purpose of winding up his affairs, he returned to New-York in 1675 and settled at Bronoksland, in Westchester county, for which he received a patent, 25th March, 1676. He was afterwards member of Governor Dongan's Council, from 1683 to 1686, and died in the year 1691, at his "plantation over against Harlem." This property is called "his Manor of Morrisania," by Mr. Whitehead, in the Introductory Memoir to the Papers of Governor Morris, p. 3; but erroneously. The Manor of Morrisania was not erected until the 6th of May, 1697, some six years after Colonel Morris' death. Granville Penn's Memorials of Admiral Penn, II., 41, 42, 46; Fox's Journal, folio, 433; Besse’s Sufferings of the Quakers, IL, 313, 314, 315; New-York Council Minutes, V., 43, 78, 86, 93, 166; VH., 109.— Ed.
