Prices of Labor and Produce est. February 28, 1777 in Easton, Bristol County, Massachusetts

Taken from Easton Town Records, Vol. 1, (1725 - 1789) (pages 402 -405) Transcribed by Barbara Tourtillott on August 10, 2001 Words surrounded by brackets [ ] are the transcriber's interpretation of what the word is most likely trying to say. The information is typed letter for letter from the original document. Great care has been taken to leave the spellings of each word as they appeared in the original document.

At a meating [meeting] of the selectmen of the town of Easton together with the commety [Committee] of correspondance [correspondence], nispection [inspection?], ye of sd [said] town on the twenty eighth day of February, A.D. 1777, in cousequence [consequences] of a late act of the Great and General Court of the State of Masschusets [Massachusetts] Bay, intitteled [entitled] an act to prevent menopaly [monopoly] & oppression the sd [said]. Selectmen & commetey [community] came to a detirmination [determination] that the price of labour [labor] & the prices affixed to the several articles hereafter menshoned [mentioned] should not be exceeded [exceeded] in buying & selling within the limits of this town. (viz)

Farming labour [labor] from the first day of Apriel [April] to the first day of July not to excead [exceed] two shillings & six pence pr [per] day. From the first day of July to the first day of September not to excead [exceed] three shillings per day.

From the first day of September to the first day of November not to excead [exceed] two shillings & six pence pr [per] day.

From the first day of November to the first day of Apriel [April] not to excead [exceed] two shilling pr [per] day. The sd [said] labourers [laborers] to be found as usual, and the labour [labor] of mecannicks [mechanics] & tradsmen [tradesmen] in proportion thereunto according to usages & custom which have been heretofore been practiced in this town.

A days work of a pare [pair] of oxen at or near home, from the first day of November to the first day of Apriel [April] two shillings, and of a good draft hors [horse] one shilling, and eight pence; a days work of a pare [pair] of oxen from the first day of Apriel [April] to the first day of November two shillings and six pence, and of good draft hors [horse] two shillings.

Good wheat at seven shillings & six pence pr [per] bushel.

Good marchantabel [merchantable] rie [rye] at five shillings pr [per] bushel.

Good Indian corn foure [four] shillings pr [per] bushel.

Oats two shillings pr [per] bushel.

Good fresh pork four pence half penney pr [per] pound.

Good fresh gras [grass] fed beef three pence pr [per] pound.

Good Amarican [American] cheas [cheese] six pence pr [per] pound.

Good butter ten pence pr [per] pound.

Good Spanish potatoes in the faul [fall] of the year one shilling & four pence pr [per] bushel; in the Spring on [one] shilling
& eight pence.

Good turnips one shilling & six pence pr [per] bushel.

Best of beens [beans] six shilling pr [per] bushel

Mutten & lamb three pence half penney pr [per] pound.

Vele [Veal] three pence pr [per] pound.

Milk two pence pr [per] quart.

Soult [Salt] thirteen shillings & foure [four] pence pr [per] bushel

Raw hides three pence pr [per] pound.

Calve skins six pence pr [per] pound.

Taners' [Tanners] bark fifteen shillings pr [per] cord.

Taning [Tanning] one penney one farthin [farthing] pr [per] pound.

Good, marchantabel [merchantable] West India rum at seven shillings ten pence half penney pr [per] gallon and so in proportion according to useyel [usual] custom for any smaller quantity.

Good marchantabel [merchantable] New Ingland [England] rum at foure [four] shillings, eight pence, two farthins [farthings] pr [per] galon [gallon] & so in proportion for a smaller quantity.

Good molases [molasses] at foure [four] shillings two pence half penney per gallon.

Best brown shoger [sugar] at three pound one shilling and ten pence pr [per] hundred & eight pence one farthin [farthing] pr [per]. Pound; and shogers [sugar] of inferior quality in proportion.

Good flax at one shillings pr [per] pound.

Good cotton wooll [wool] three shilling & eight pence one farthin [farthing] pr [per] pound.

Good sheeps wool at two shillings pr [per] pound.

Men's yearn [yarn] stockings at six shillings pr [per] pare.

Good yeard [yard] wide too cloath [cloth] two shillings & three pence pr [per] yeard [yard] and other too cloath [cloth] in proportion to wedth [width] and quallity [quality].

Good yeard [yard] wide striped flaning [flannelling ?] at three shillings and six pence pr [per] yeard [yard] and other flanings [flannelling ?] in proportion according to width and qualtity [quality]. And also other wollin [woolen] cloaths [cloths] manufactured in Amarica [America] according to their width and quallity [quality].

Homespun cotton and lining cloath [cloth] yeard [yard] wide of common sort at three shillings and six pence pr [per] yeard [yard]. Other widths and qualtities [qualities] of cotton & lining in proportion.

Good tried latler [leather?] at seven pence half penney pr [per] pound.

Good refined bare iron at fifty shillings pr [per] hundred.

Good Bloomery barr [bar] iron at thirty shillings pr [per] hundred.

Shewing [Shoeing] a hors [horse] well stealed [steeled] heel & too [toe], five shillings & foure [four] pence.

Shewing [Shoeing] a pare [pair] of oxen, ten shillings.

A good ax eight shilling.

Good broad hoo [hoe] foure [four] shillings, and other smith work in proportion.

Good Inglish [English] hay three shillings pr [per] hundred.

Good meadow hay two shilling per hundred & hay & fodder of inferior qualtity [quality] in proportion according to its vallew [value].

Taned [Tanned] hids [hides] at one shilling & three pence pr pound and curried lather [leather] in proportion.

For making a pare [pair] of men's shoos [shoes] two shillings & six pence and smaller shoos [shoes] in proportion.

Good marchantabel [merchantable] men's shoos [shoes], made of neats [?] leather seven shilling & foure [four] pence pr [per] pare, and other shoos [shoes] in like proportion according to their size & quality,

Women's shoos [shoes] made of good leather six shillings pr [per] pare [pair].

Taning [Tanning] one penney farthin [farthing] pr [per] pound.

A days work of a man taller [tailor] one shilling eight pence. A days work of a woman taller [tailor] one shilling pr [per] day.

Women's work by the week three shillings & foure [four] pence.

Good clover sead [seed] one shilling pr [per] pound.

Good white pine bords [boards] fourty [forty] eight shillings pr [per] thousand and other lumber in proportion.

Sawing two inch & half plank twenty foure [four] shillings pr [per] thousand.

Sawing oack [oak] bords [boards] fourteen shillings & eight pence pr [per] thousand.

Sawing pine bords [boards] twelve shillings pr [per] thousand. Other sawing in proportion.

Edward Hayward Matthew Hayward Timothy Randell Jacob Leonard	Selectmen of Easton
Joseph Gilbart Seth Pratt Joshua Phillips Thomas Manley Jr. Lemuel Willis	Commity [Committee] of Safety Corrispondance [Correspondence], & c. for the Town of Easton
	Recorded by Matthew Hayward, Town Clerk

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