wrought night cap, wth some mony to some of his acquaintance that stoode neere him: and then tooke his leave of the Lordes, knightes, and gentlemen. Hee desired the Erle of Arundell, y he woulde informe his Mais of that wh he spoke; and to intreat him, that there might bee no scandalous pamphletts or wrightings published to defame him after his deathe. And so puttinge of his gowne and dublet, he made a longe prayer upon his knees, the Deane of Westm! knelinge by him, and prayinge wth him all the while; wch beinge ended, he called to the Executioner to fetche the fatall instrument (as he called it) wh beinge denied him, he saide, I pray you let mee see it; thincke you, I am afraide of it? Whereupon it was shewed him; and he felte the edge wth his thumbe, and wth a smilinge countenance he saide [to] the Shr. This is a sharpe medicine, but a phisitian that will cure all diseases. Then goinge to eche side of the scaffolde, he intreated the people to praye for him, that God woulde assist him, and give him strengthe. Then being asked wh waie he woulde lie, towardes the windowe, where the Lordes stoode, or no, he went aboute the blocke, and laide his hed from the Lordes, and said, So bee it the harte bee stronge, it is no matter where the hed lieth; and then prayinge, havinge forgiven the Executioner, and givinge him a signe when he shoulde doe his office (as he laye prayinge and callinge upon God) at - twoe strookes he tooke of his head. The PRESIDENT observed, in conclusion, that the same MS. volume contained also a copy of the familiar lines said to have been found in Sir Walter's Bible after his death, with some variations from the commonly received version, as follows: Even so dooth tyme take up withe truste, QTH WA: RALEYGH. OCTOBER MEETING, 1873. A stated meeting was held at 11 o'clock A.M., on Thursday, the 9th instant; the President in the chair. The Recording Secretary read the record of the preceding meeting. The Librarian read the list of donors to the Library for the past month. The President announced a number of gifts to the Library and Cabinet from Miss D. L. Dix, which are duly recorded in the accessions book under this date. The President announced the death of a Corresponding Mem ber, Robert Bigsby, LL.D., F.R.S., an English writer of note elected in 1851, and recorded as of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, and read the following notice of him from a New York journal : "He was the son of Robert Bigsby, Registrar of Nottingham, in which city he was born in 1806. Originally intended for the legal profession, he was disappointed in the prospects of advancement in the law, and he devoted himself to the study of antiquities. In 1842 he commenced his career as an author by publishing a volume of Miscellaneous Poems and Essays,' followed in 1848 by the Visions of the Times of Old; or, The Antiquarian Enthusiast.' In these two works he treats of the early history and associations of the ancient town of Repton, the school of which he had attended in his youth. For many years he had been engaged in collecting materials for a history of Repton, which he finally published in 1854. Among his other works may be mentioned a dramatic romance, in twelve acts, called 'Ombo,' a historical sketch of the slave conspiracy in Malta, during the days of the Knights of St. John; Scraps from my Note-book,' Boldon Delaval,' My Cousin's Story,' 'The Delaval Correspondence,' &c., books all of which are little known in this country, but which brought their author reputation at home. Dr. Bigsby became the possessor of several articles which had belonged to Sir Francis Drake, the celebrated navigator of the time of Queen Elizabeth. Among these was the astrolabe which Sir Francis had used in his voyages. This Dr. Bigsby presented to King William IV., who placed it in Greenwich Hospital. Other relics of the old seaman were presented to the British Museum by Dr. Bigsby. The diploma of LL.D., 6 6 possessed by the subject of this sketch, was conferred because of his merits as a writer. His name was on the civil list for a literary annual pension of £100; and, in addition to being Secretary and Registrar of the English branch of the Order of St. John, he was an honorary and corresponding member of several literary societies of foreign countries." The President said he had received a note of inquiry from our assistant, Mr. Arnold, as to the portrait of our late associate and Vice-President, the Hon. David Sears, deposited in the Society's Cabinet two or three years ago. The President said that Mr. Sears had presented the portrait to him to make such disposition of as he might choose, and he now presented it to the Society. It was painted by Pratt in 1858. The President read the following letter from the Hon. C. J. Hoadly: Hon. ROBERT C. WINTHROP, HARTFORD, September 17th, 1873. President of the Massachusetts Historical Society. DEAR SIR,I take pleasure in sending you the decree of the King in Council in the case of Phillips vs. Savage, transcribed from a copy communicated to Governor Talcott in 1739, now among the papers of the Connecticut Historical Society. As the briefs of counsel were printed in the volume of Proceedings for 1860-62, the accompanying decree completes the report of this important case. The decree in Winthrop vs. Lechmere, on which Phillips relied, is printed in the seventh volume of the Colonial Records of Connecticut, p. 571. It is said that Mr. Lechmere failed in his defence for want of "a good sword formed of the royal oar," or its application; and that the counsel employed by him were not accustomed to business of this kind. After the decision in Winthrop vs. Lechmere, as the colony of Connecticut had not been heard in the matter, it seems that intestate estates continued to be settled in the accustomed manner, the sentence of nullity of the colonial law notwithstanding; and, if appeals were made from the Probate to the Superior Court, they were continued from term to term. Meantime, efforts were made, by petition to the home government, for the re-establishment of the law, or at least for a confirmation of what had been done by the probate courts before Winthrop's appeal. Finally, in the appeal of Clark rs. Tousey, from the courts of Connecticut, on the same point with the two cases above mentioned, the Lords Justices, on the 18th of July, 1745, ordered the appeal to be dismissed. Very truly yours, CHARLES J. HOADLY. At the Court at St. James's, the 15th day of February, 1737. Upon reading at the Board a report from the Rt. Hon'ble the Lords of the Committee of Council for hearing Appeals from the Plantations, dated the 16th of last month, in the words following, viz.: In obedience to an Order in Council of the 21st day of May, 1735, referring unto this committee the humble petition and appeal of Gillam Philips, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, brother to Henry Philips, Gent., deceas'd, setting forth, That the said Henry Philips, being seized of a considerable estate and also possest of a large personal estate in Boston aforesaid, died some time since intestate and without issue, leaving behind him his mother Hannah Philips, widow; the petitioner, his only brother; his sister Hannah Savage, wife of Habijah Savage, Esq.; Faith Savage, wife of Arthur, another sister; and the representatives of Mary Butler, deceas'd, who was a third sister of the said intestate: That upon the death of the said Henry Philips, that is to say, on the 17th of July, 1730, administration of his goods, chattels, rights, and credits, was granted to the petitioner, his only brother, who duly administered the personal estate: That the petitioner's said mother and sisters, and the representatives of the said third sister, upon the death of the said Henry Philips insisted that they were intituled to an equal distributory share of the intestate's real estate with the petitioner, under two several acts past in the said Province, the one in the fourth year of the reign of their late Majesties King William and Queen Mary, intituled an Act for the settlement and distribution of the estates of intestates; the other in the ninth year of Queen Anne, intituled an Act in addition to and for the explanation of the act for settlement and distribution of the estates of intestates; whereas the petitioner insisted that he was by the common law of the realm solely intituled thereto as heir-at-law to his brother, and that no act of that Province cou'd vary the common law of the realm, or change or alter the course of descents, and that the said two acts were void and null, for want of power in the Assembly of the said Province to enact the same; and the petitioner refused to distribute the said intestate's real estate: That thereupon, on the 6th of April, 1733, the judge of the probate of wills and granting administration made an order impowering 5 freeholders to make an equal division of the said intestate's real estate between his mother, brothers, and sisters, and their MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY. [Ост. representatives, in five equal parts; and upon the 7th of May, 1733, the said 5 freeholders made their return of division and partition of the said intestate's real estate, which was valued at 40007., and they divided the estate into 5 parts, and set off and allowed th for the petitioner, and th apiece for his mother and 2 sisters and the children of the 3d sister; which return being presented to the judge of probates and administrations, he was pleas'd, by his order of the 15th of May, 1733, to allow and approve thereof: That the petitioner, conceiving himself aggrieved by the said orders directing and approving the said division and distribution, and also by the said division and distribution itself, on the 10th of Oct., 1733, preferr'd his petition of appeal therefrom to the Governour and Council of the Massachusetts Bay, assigning the 3 following reasons, law of the said Henry Philips, and, as such, the whole real estate of First, that he was the only brother and heir-atthe said Henry Philips by the law of England descended to him; 2d, That the power given the Province of making laws was by their charter expressly restrained, so as the same be not repugnant or contrary to the law of the realm of England: but that the act of the 4th of King William and Queen Mary for distribution of intestates' real estates, and the proceedings of the judge of the probates and administrations grounded thereon, was repugnant or contrary to the laws of the realm of England, and consequently ipso facto void; and, 3d, That by the law no judge of probates had any thing to do with real estates, or the course of descents, the right and tryal thereof appertaining to the King's courts; and therefore in the form of the letters of administra tion no power was delegated to the administrator concerning the real estate; and therefore the petitioner by his said petition to the Governour and Council pray'd reversion and costs: That the petitioner's said appeal came on to be argued before your Ma'ties Governour and Council of the Province on the 2d of Nov., 1733, when the court affirmed the said order of the said judge of probates for dividing the real estates of the said Henry Philips among his mother, brother, and sisters: That the petitioner, conceiving himself greatly aggrieved by the order made by the Governour and Council, on the 6th of Nov., 1733, preferr'd his petition to the said Governour and Council, praying leave to appeal from the said order of the 2d of Nov., 1733, to your Ma'ty in Council, on entring into the usual security; upon reading which petition, the same was order'd to be dismist: That the petitioner, thereupon, apply'd by petition to your Ma'ty in Council, to be admitted to an appeal from the said three orders of the 6th of April, 15th of May, and 2d of Nov., 1733; and your Ma'ty by order in council of the 12th day of Feb., 1734, pursuant to a report of the Lords of the Committee for hearing Appeals from the Plantations, was pleas'd to order the petitioner to be admitted to appeal to your Ma'ty from the said three orders, on giving the usual security here: That the petitioner, having entered into such security accordingly, most humbly appealed from the said three orders of the 6th of April, 15th of May, and 2d of Nov., 1733, to your Ma'ty in Council, and therefore humbly pray'd your Ma'ty to appoint a day for hearing the said appeal, with |