do pay unto Colls. Wm. Wilkerson sum of £35, s.19 cost aforesaid."2

We could not tell from this whether Lillington was a practicing attorney-at-law or merely an attorney-in-fact, but later records. show that he was a licensed practitioner.

From then on through the Records we find name after name listed as an attorney. From this we get the following list named in the order in which they first appear, together with a few gathered from other sources, namely:

Maj. Alexander Lillington, Capt. Henderson Walker, William Glover, Francis Tomes, John Hawkins, Edward Mayo, Richard Plater, Stephen Manwaring, Andrew Ros, Hanabell Haskins, John Porter, Francis Hendrick, John Durant, Barbary Middleton, Wm. Duckenfield, John North Cote, Dan Akehurst, Thomas Pollock, George Durant, Callom Flynn, Jacob Peterson, Gabriel Newby, Caleb Calloway, James Long, Richard Plato, Christopher Butler, James Thigpen, Robert Fendell, Archbill Homes, John Falconer, Thomas Norcum, John Stepney, John Anderson, Thomas Snoden, Richard Burthenshall, Capt. Cole, John Heckelfield, William Wilkeson, Thomas Boyd, Sam Swann, Peter Godfrey, Hugh Campbell, James Locke, Nath Chevin, Thomas Norkam, John Winbury, Dennis Macclendon, John Foster, Isaac Wilson, Wm. White, Arnold White, John Clarke, Ed. Berry, Richard Henderson, John Pettiver, Edward Moseley, Ed. Bonwicke, James Locke, Lewis Cannon Marcht, John Lorricke, John Palin, Thomas Boyd, Dan Guthrie, Dan Richardson, Joell Martin, Augustine Scarborough, Thomas Bray, Thomas Henneman, Will Little, Thomas Swann, Thomas Jones, John Baptists Ashe, John Culpepper, McGuire, David Osheat (Osheal), James Everard, Henry Pendleton, William Hooper, John Penn, Abner Nash, Marmaduke Jones, William Charlton, Stephen Dewey, Mr. Hodgson, Richard Neale, Edmund Fanning, John Williams, Mr. Lucas.3

Many of these men were little known-in the case of some of them the only mention being the one noting their acting

2Col. Record, Vol. I-392.

This list is not claimed to be complete. Probably names of many men who began to practise just before the Revolution should be included, but as they were not connected with colonial history proper, I have omitted their names.

as attorneys in certain cases. Many of them, on the other hand, we meet with again and again in colonial history. In the case of several we cannot be sure that they were regular practitioners, but it is clear that for the most part they were. The list is long enough to show that despite opposition to their profession there were many of them during the hundred years of the colonial period-especially is this so when we remember that the records are very limited.

Our object now, however, is to take up in a general chronological order the history of the profession in that period, and incidentally to study the careers of particular members of the profession.

As early as 1695 we find that certain members of the Bar were in trouble with the courts, as the following-borrowed from Hawk's History of North Carolina-shows:*

FROM COURT RECORDS

1695 "Ordered that the marshall take into custody Stephen Manwaring, and him safely keep until he shall find surety for his appearance the second day of the next general court, to answer for his contemptions and insolent behavior before the court, and to be of good abearance in the meantime."

"Whereas it appears unto this court that Stephen Manwaring hath been a juryman in the precinct court of Perquimans, in a cause wherein he was before retained as an attorney: ordered that the said Stephen Manwaring be not suffered to plead as an attorney in any court in this government.

"Upon the humble petition of Stephen Manwaring, praying that he may have until the fifth day of the next general court to make proof that he informed the court of his being of council in the above-mentioned cause before he was sworn of the jury; the above order is suspended until the fifth day of the next general court that the said Stephen Manwaring may make proof of his above-mentioned assertion."

1697-"Whereas, at a general court, holden the 26th day of February, 1695, Stephen Manwaring was, by order of the said court disabled from pleading as an attorney in any court of

"Vol. II, p. 111.

record in this government; which order was suspended upon the petition of said Manwaring, and day given him to the then next general court to clear himself from the information then brought against him; which he, the said Manwaring not having done, the said order passed against him is hereby revived and confirmed. And it is hereby ordered that the said Stephen Manwaring shall not be from henceforth permitted to plead as an attorney in any court of record in this government."

1695 "Whereas, Col. William Wilkeson and Capt. Henderson Walker have offered sundry affronts to the members of this court; ordered that neither the said Col. Wilkeson, nor the said Henderson Walker from henceforth be allowed to plead as attorneys in this court in any person's cause, except in the cause of such persons as have not their residence in this government.

"Col. William Wilkeson comes abruptly into the room where the Hon. Thos. Harvey, Esq., deputy-governor and council were, and there using some violent discourse was desired to give some of the council liberty to speak, and replied, 'I have given you all too much liberty, and especially to you,'-directing his speech to the Hon. Daniel Akehurst."

It would be interesting to know further details of these conflicts and of the men connected with them. We know indeed that all three of the men mentioned above as having been forbidden to practice were prominent men in the colony. Walker was afterward governor for a short period, and his rule was extremely beneficial to the colony. Wheeler tells us that "under the mild rule of Gov. Walker, the inhabitants of North Carolina increased in the enjoyment of the highest personal liberty." As he had been a judge of the Supreme Court, he was especially interested in the judiciary. As a result an important change took place in the judiciary. Whereas "the general court had been held by the chief magistrate, the deputies of the lords proprietors, and two assistants, a commission was now issued appointing five persons Justices of the Supreme Court.5

At this period, as all our historians agree, the most prominent men of the colony were attorneys, among them being Alexander

Wheeler.

Lillington (died 1697), Major Sam Swann, Thomas Pollock, Henderson Walker, Wm. Glover, and John Porter.

A letter of William Gale's-written about 1700-tends, however, to prove an above statement to the effect that lawyers as a class suffered under an unenviable reputation. He says in part: "Most who profess themselves doctors and attorneys are scandals to their profession." This attitude was probably due to the fact that professional men were now beginning to be exorbitant in their fees a thing which is shown by the fact that beginning now and going on up to the Revolution there was a continual stream of legislation, or attempted legislation, to regulate fees of attorneys.

In a court record for 1703 we find an entry which is interesting in that it gives us an idea of how the early settlers gave the power of attorney to their lawyers, namely:

"Know all men by these presents that I, Henry Becker, of Virginia, Nominated, Constituted, Authorized and Appoynted and in my stead and place do put my very good friend Sam Swann Esqr. in Carolina to be my true and lawful attorney irrevocably to sue for Levie Recover Receive Demand and take of Wm. Early of ye said Carolina ye sum of 24:17:42 Or any other person or persons Indebted to ye sd Baker within ye abovesd Country Giving and Granting into my said Attor. my full and whole power and Lawful Authority in ye execution of ye premisses to arrest attack Implead Imprisson and out of Prison againe to Deliver ye sd Wm. Early his heirs etc. until they or some of them shall have fully satisfied ye Debt abovesd And upon Reciete thereof or any part thereof acquittances or any other Lawful discharges in that behalf for me and in my name to Do Conclude and Finally in as full Large and ample a manner as I may Might or Could Do were I personally present Ratifying Allowing and Confirming all and whatsoever my said Attor. shall legally Do or Cause to Be Done herein given under my hand and seale ye 17th Day of April 1703.7

"Sele & Delivered in presence of

"RICHARD BARFIELD."

Col. Rec. Vol. I-587.

"HENRY BAKER.

"This was the form for granting power of attorney. As such was generally given only to attorneys-at-law, I quote it.

For a number of years after this we get no important records bearing on attorneys. The colony was apparently too busy fighting Indians to think of anything else.

In 1718, however, we get another glimpse of the governor's despotic influence over lawyers, and for many years thereafter the historical account of the colony is filled with chronicles of several members of the bar. One of the chief of these was Edward Moseley, possibly the most prominent of colonial lawyers.

Moseley came to the colony in 1704 and immediately began to play an important part in affairs of the province. He seems to have acquired a considerable practice and a still more considerable influence. He became surveyor-general, member of the council, Speaker of the Assembly, Chief Justice, and held other important offices at various times.

The incident of 1718, spoken of above, grew out of a quarrel between Moseley and Governor Eden. During Eden's administration (1714-1722) the colony was much troubled with pirates, the most daring of these being a man by the name of Teach— more familiarly known as "Blackbeard." The government seemed to be absolutely unable to do anything with Teach. Several expeditions were despatched against him, but they did not stop his depredations. As a result, many in the province. came to the conclusion that the government was secretly in league with the pirate. The following from Wheelers tells about this excellently:

"The character of Governor Eden suffered much by a supposed intimacy with Teach. Edward Moseley, who was a prominent man in the colony, declared that the governor could raise an armed posse to arrest honest men, though he could not raise a similiar force to apprehend Teach, a noted pirate; and on Teach's dead body was found a letter of his (the Governor's) secretary, Tobias Knight, intimating proof of Knight's friendship and Eden's respect.

"Moseley was subsequently arrested for a misdemeanor himself, and tried by the General Court, convicted, fined one hundred pounds, silenced as an attorney, and declared incapable of

Historical Sketches, page 39.