Old Virginia and her neighbours

36 OLD VIRGINIA AND HER NEIGHBOURS.of this the vestry, which exercised the chief authorityin the parish, was composed oftwelve chosenmen. This was not government by a primaryassembly, it was representative government. Atfirst the twelve vestrymen were elected by the peopleof the parish, and thus resembled the selectmenof New England ; but in 1662 " they obtainedthe power of filling vacancies inThe vestry, ^ „ ^ i ^a close their own number, so that they becamecorporation.i . ,n i ^what IS called a " close corporation,,and,,the people had nothing to do with choosing them.Strictly speaking, that was not representative government; it was a step on the road that leadstowards oligarchical or despotic government. Itwas, as we shall see, one of the steps ineffectuallyopposed in Bacon's rebellion.It was the vestry, thusconstituted, that apportionedthe parish taxes, appointed the churchwardens,presented the minister for induction intoPowers ofoffice, and acted as overseers of the poor.the vestry, (jij^gminister presided in all vestry meetings.His salary was paid in tobacco, and in 1696it was fixed by law at 16,000 pounds of tobacco'yearly.In many parishes the churchwardens werethe collectors of the parish taxes. The other officers,such as the sexton and the parish clerk, wereappointed either by the minister or by the vestry.With the local government thus administered,we see that the larger part of the people had littledirectly to do.Nevertheless, in those small neighbourhoodsgovernment could be kept in full sightof the people, and so long as Itsproceedings wenton in broad daylight and were sustained by public