This manuscript contains two unsigned copies of separate petitions addressed to William Shirley, Royal Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, by the Swansea board of selectmen. The first, dated 28 May 1746, reports that Joseph Mason, constable for the western portion of Swansea, failed to collect a tax due to the general treasury of the province, Mason claiming that he never received a warrant authorizing him to do so. The petitioners seek the governor's permission to designate an individual to collect the tax in question. On the reverse, a second petition dated late 1748 (the sheet is torn so that "ber" is all that remains for the month), seeks relief from the "very grate hard ship" brought upon Swansea by a 1736 General Court directive requiring the town to fund reconstruction of the Myles Bridge, on the road to Barrington. A fragment of an unrelated third petition, citing difficulties in collecting a tax, also appears on the reverse.