Carter’s donation
In 1726 Thomas Fletcher was chosen to act as one of the trustees of the said donation and the school affairs, in the place of his deceased father, Robert Fletcher.[460] Everard Bolton’s place (deceased) was filled by Nicholas Austen as trustee in 1727.[461] In 1742 Abington Friends took a deed of conveyance of Thomas Canby for the land and premises belonging to their school and meeting house.[462] Besides the bequest of Barnes already mentioned, there were several others which deserve mention. In 1749 a committee appointed to investigate the donation left to the meeting by William Carter in his last will and testament, reported they had attended to it, and produced to the meeting an extract from the will before mentioned.[463] Quoting from the Abington records the purpose of the will was given to be as follows:
... two certain yearly groundrents one of six, the other of four pounds, are invested in trustees, in order that the same may be conveyed, and ... as this meeting shall think fit to appoint to the intent and purpose that the same shall be annually laid on and expended in the pay for the schooling and teaching of such whose parents or overseers ... in the verge of this meeting are not able to pay for them, or the relief of the poor of this meeting, when and as such poor children are not to be found....[464]
Expenditure of funds in charge of committees
Funds requested for schooling children
The details of the expenditure of money left for such purposes were taken care of usually by the overseers of the poor and also by the school committee, whose duty it was to inquire in each of the preparative meetings concerning children who might be in need of help and whether they would be willing to accept assistance. Their investigations were reported to the monthly meeting to be considered before any expenditures were made.[465] If they were satisfactory to the meeting, disbursements were then ordered to the preparatives according to their needs as stated.[466] The preparative meeting was also free to make a voluntary request for a part of any fund for aid to poor children, if they desired to do so. In 1760,
Horsham Friends requested the sum of four pounds of Carter’s legacy towards the schooling of a poor child; this meeting orders that our treasurer do pay them that sum.[467] And again, the present treasurer, Joshua Morris, is ordered to pay to Thomas Lloyd a sum of eight pounds to defray the charges of dieting Joseph Kirk, a poor Friend’s child, belonging to Horsham Meeting, who is put to school at the charge of Horsham Meeting.[468]
How distributed
It was not always necessary to bring the cases to the monthly meeting to be decided whether aid should be given or withheld. It occurred often that the funds were apportioned to the various preparatives, monthly or quarterly meetings and their representatives allowed to apply it according to their judgment.[469] In 1766 those appointed to view the accounts of the treasurer of Abington Meeting made the following report as to the state of the funds which had accrued: