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THE NEW PLANTATION LAID OUT ANEW

It had been shown, that in 1663, the town adopted such measures, and made such arrangements for laying out, and disposing of, the land at the New Plantation, in the western part of the township, no further action on the subject seemed to be needed. But from offers afterward made by the town to those who would settle there, and from the repetition of those offers, or rather from still more favorable offers of a later date, it seemed to have been difficult to induce people to settle so far back in the woods. From whatever cause this may have happened, the result appears to have been, that the whole tract remained unsettled, and the shares drawn by individuals, probably reverted to the town; for now, after an interval of about six years, the town undertook to lay out this land anew.

It was determined that it should be laid out in four Divisions, the first abutting upon Salisbury, and the last upon Exeter, the numbering of the lots to begin at the former town. It was further ordered, that the lots should be 160 rods--that is half a mile--in length, and proportioned to the several grants, in width--regard being had in laying them out, both to the quantity and the quality of the land. As there would be the length of two lots--one mile,--in each Division, and the number of Divisions was limited to four, the extent of all of them would be only four miles--a distance considerably less than the breadth of the town between Salisbury and Exeter. It was therefore agreed that all the land not included in the four Divisions, should be left in ranges of common between them. The extent of the tract from the western boundary towards the town was not limited to a certain number of rods, or miles; but it was not to come "nearer the towne than y^e little pond y^t is att y^e Head of y^e falls on y^e southwest of o^r Pastor's farme"--that is, the pond from which the Falls river flows.

This action was taken by the same town-meeting that created the First North Division.

In May, 1670, the town again petitioned the General Court, in relation to the causeway between the Town and the Falls, representing that for twenty-six years they had been at great expense in making and maintaining this road, passing for more than a hundred rods across a washy marsh; that it had proved to be a constant as well as heavy burden, and withal exceedingly discouraging, since the fruits of much labor and expense had in some instances been suddenly destroyed--once, soon after they had laid out £20 upon it. They stated that they had never received "any support from the Country, but only £5 the first year that the said causeway was made." They now asked for relief from the public treasury, which, however, was not granted; but it was left to the court of the county of Norfolk, to determine whether "to lay it on the county, or leave it to the town," as might be judged most equitable.

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