Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-12-05
LAND TITLES.
VII.-The Caro|inas.
Bv Frederic T Hack;r

The territory between Virginia and the
former Spanish possessions in Florida
and which is now included within the
states Of North Carolina, South Caro-
lima, Tennessee. Alabama and Missis-
sippi was granted to the Earl of Claren-
don. the Duke Of Albemarle and six
others. high officials of his court, by
Charles II.
The grant was similar in form to that
which was given to Lord Baltimore for
Maryland, and 1t would appear that 1t
was the intention of the grantees to
establish in the new country a system
of government in which the ideas of
feudal control, of primogeniture and
of hereditary privilege should reach
their highest possible philosophical de-
velopment.
The actual course followed by titles
in the Carolinas was very similar to
the courses followed in Virginia and
Maryland, with the difference that the
proprietary land interest was less care
fully guarded than it was in Maryland.
and the official land organization was
less effective than it was in Virginia.
Several constitutions for the ideal ad-
ministration of the Carolinas prepared
with much labor by the proprietors,
were rejected by the people, and in the
absence of written law the people adj
ministered their affairs in accordance
with the needs of new country and
without extreme solicitude for the in
terests of the true and absolute lords
proprietors.
At an early date the line of cleavage
between the settlements in the north
east part of the grant adjacent to Vir-
ginia, afterward North Carolina, and
the settlements in the vicinity of
Charleston, afterward South Carolina,
became apparent Separate provision
was made for land disposition by al
lowing, on petition of the settlers,
the land laws and customs in operation
in Virginia to be followed with re-
spect to the northeastern portion of the
proprietary. Virginia had already made
grants in this section, and the action
taken seems to have been wise one
In the prevention of a confusion of
practice. Considera BILE grants were
made in the southern settlements on
the basis Of the system of John Locke,
the philosopher, hereafter to be de-
scribed, but the most active extension
of land holdings seems to have been
along the plan of the Virginia and
Maryland land offices, though with
considerable laxity of operation.
1t appears from the prohibitive leg
islation, which was passed early in
lie eighteenth
Simple Method Of century, that
Acquiring Land. p5asf tho to lib nra ot,d 1t
for settlers to seat themselves on
tracts of lands by simply calling on
the surveyors or their deputies to lay
down the boundaries of the property
intended to be held. The settlers be-
came liable in law to the payment Of
composition money and quit rents to
the proprietors, but these seem not to
have been collected-at least prior to
the date above mentioned. In 1715 sur
veyors were prohibited under penalty
from laying down any boundaries for
land unless they were first authorized
to such action by warrant issued by
the secretary of state, and persons
who had seated themselves on unwar-
ranted surveys were warned to come
in and pay the amounts which were
due the prOprietorS.
ton of quit rents by proprietors have
previously been reviewed, and the his
tory of titles in the Carolinas has it's
most interesting chapter in the I'M
successful attempt to establish a high
ly artificial system.
The development of the United States
and the genius of it's institutions re-
suit from the abolition of the funda-
mental idea of the feudal system. which
is the descent of title and property
rights to the eldest son. Equality in
rank and equal division of property
among heirs prevent the special priv
ileges which attach to a landed aris-
tocracy. The benefit of the latter to
human government is still strongly
argued in some countries, and in the
reign of Charles ii it appeared to many
to be a work of great usefulness to
controvert the contrary opinion. which
had. then recently been manifested in
Cromwell's government. John Locke,
a theoretical advocate of aristocracy,
was commissioned to prepare a scheme
of government for the Carolinas which
should exhibit all the benefits of gov
erenment by class of hereditary land
holders.
The apex of his system were the lords
proprietors. They were assumed to be
of equal rank in the government ex-
cept for seniority. The oldest was to
be the lord palatine. having the powers
of that Office. which have been de-
scribed in a prior letter The execu-
tive power was to be administered
under his direction by the other pro-
prietors. each having independent runc-
tions with reference to some aspect of
government work.
The land in the Carolinas was W be
divided into counties of 100000 acres
each. Twelve of these
4SO, 900 Acres in Counties were first to
Each County. ers as he sr s% ~ o o,na
were settled. Each county was to be
divided into eight seignories, esght
baronies and four precincts. the latter
to be divided each into six colonies
Each seignory and barony was to CON-
tain $4,000 acres. and each colony the
same amount, SO that two-f1fths of the
land was to be included in the holdings
of the proprietors and the no.
bility, and three-fifths divided among
middle class. The lowest class
we're to be called '1eetmen," and were
to cultivate the soil for the benefit Of
the landholders. They were to be per-
manently attached to the land, and
would not be allowed to change their
places of residence without permission