Samuel Stevens, esq. was appointed governor of Albemarle in October, 1667, and was commanded to act agreeable to the advice of a council of twelve, the one half of which he was to appoint, the other was to be chosen by the assembly. The assembly was to be composed of the governor, the council, and twelve delegates chosen annually by the freeholders. Various regulations provided for the security of property: and no taxes were to be imposed without the consent of the assembly. The proprietaries might mean no more, than that neither they, nor the governor and council, shall impose taxes without the consent of the assembly: but the mode of expression tended to confirm the people at large in the opinion of their being exempted from all taxes which had not the consent of their own assembly. The settlers had their land confirmed, and granted to be now held by the free tenure of soccage, expressing a certain rent and independence. All men were declared entitled to equal privileges on taking the oath of allegiance to the king, and of fidelity to the proprietaries. It was not till 1669 that an assembly constituted as abovementioned was convened: when it was enacted—“none shall be sued, during five years, for any cause of action arising out of the country—and none shall accept a power of attorney, to receive debts contracted abroad.” Hence this colony was long considered as the refuge of the criminal, and the asylum of the fugitive debtor. The proprietaries, at length dissatisfied with every system which they had hitherto divised for the government of their province, signed in July, a body of _fundamental constitutions_ compiled by the celebrated _Locke_, giving as a reason, “That we may establish a government agreeable to the monarchy of which Carolina is a part, and may avoid making too numerous a democracy.” By this edict a palatine was to be chosen from among the proprietaries for life; who was to act as president of the palatine court, composed of the whole; which was intrusted with the exection of the powers of the charter. A body of hereditary nobility was created, and denominated landgraves and caciques; the former were to be invested with four baronies, each consisting of 12,000 acres; the latter to have two, containing one half of that quantity: and those estates were to descend with the dignities inseparably. There were to be as many landgraves as counties; and twice as many caciques, but no more. Two fifths of the counties, stiled signiories and baronies, were to be possessed by the nobility; the other three fifths, called The colonies, were to be left among the people.