[1] Since the proclamation of April 1, 1676 (see p. 129, with note)
the question of ship passes had been given frequent attention, but
seldom directly concerned the American trade. On February 9, 1677,
the Privy Council drew up a long set of regulations regarding the
form and issuing of passes, with direct reference to the Plantations
trade (printed in _Acts of the Privy Council_, i, 692-700) but the
proclamation then ordered to be issued to explain these regulations,
if published, has not been found. The treaty with Algiers of April
10, 1682, required that all English merchants should have a pass
under the seal of the Lord High Admiral or his commissioners and
a proclamation was issued April 13, 1683, to that effect. Further
proclamations, containing reference to the treaties of 1682 and April
5, 1686, were issued on March 17, 1692 and June 9, 1700, to reinforce
these provisions. On February 17, 1698, the Privy Council took action
allowing the granting of passes in the Plantations (_Acts of the Privy
Council_, ii, 318). Since certain passes for the trade with Algiers had
been clandestinely altered, a proclamation was published on January
17, 1714, canceling all passes held twelve months from that date and
requiring new ones to be issued (these proclamations are calendared in
Lord Crawford's _Tudor and Stuart Proclamations_). In connection with
the issuing of the above printed proclamation concerning passes for the
Plantations trade, the Privy Council proposed to send a certain number
of passes over to the governors of the colonies, there to be issued
by them, but to this the government of Algiers objected (_Acts of the
Privy Council_, ii, 682).
1714, November 22.
[Continuing Officers in the Colonies.]