year have been examined and certified and it may be necessary
to raise more to enable the Militia to march in case their should be
occasion their so doing in this time of Danger Your Committee
(who have the security of his Maty and his Government (most
sincerely at heart) thought it became them to lay before you
what has occurr'd to them (imperfect as it is) rather than by any
delay of theirs to give on their part any the least occasion of comp

As to the first part of their instructions to enquire what Sums
have been raised Your Committee beg leave to observe that it
apprears to them that the Sum to be raised by Law upon the whole
County in one year is £168:15:2: That the Board of Lieutenants
do as they see convenient issue their warrants to certain persons
in each parish to assess upon the inhabitants in their several part
their ratable proportion of the said Sum according to the annext
rate Two Books of which assessment fairly written exactly cast up
and sign'd by the said Assessors together with the names of two or
more fit persons to be Collectors thereof they are to bring unto them
their Board. That upon receipt of these warrants the said Assessor
do arbitrarily assess great sums of money (in some parishes more
than double what the warrants do require) and do carry back two
books of such their unwarrantable Assessments to the Board of
Lieutenancy not cast up the better to deceive to one of which Book
the Board of Lieutenancy without directing the same to be cast
cause warrants under the hands and seals of three or more of
to be annexed by pinning only (whereby it is in the power of the
Collectors to annex them to any other books they shall think fit
and by such warrants do require and command the Collectors
speedily to collect and gather the several sums of money taxed
set upon every person within written thereby establishing the
inequity of the Assessors as it were by Law As by the annext blan
warrants may appear Your Committee upon this occasion though
it necessary to sumon before them the severall Assessors and
Collectors to examine them upon the premises. But in regard
their meetings were in time of Harvest and the summoning th
Assessors and Collectors from the distant parts of the County
be inconvenient to them upon that account Your Committee
confined themselves to Holborn and Finsbury Divisions and
Liberty of Westminster whereby reason of the great number of
houses and consequently the inconsiderableness of the Assessment
upon each house the aforementioned oppression was carried
in a manner least likely to be discovered and the rather beco