The last act of parliament relating to this navigation was passed in 1810, and is entitled, 'An Act for amending an Act of the Twenty-second Year. of his late Majesty King Charles the Second, so far as the same relates to the River Brandon, otherwise the Lesser Ouse, from the White House, near Brandon Ferry, to Thetford, in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, and for improving the Navigation of the said River.' It states that the act passed in the reign of Charles II. authorized the mayor, burgesses and commonalty of Thetford to make navigable this river, and for so doing to receive and take such tolls and rates thereon as should be fixed by commissioners named in the act, and that if the mayor, &c. declined the undertaking, the commissioners should appoint some other person who would accept the same; that the mayor, &c. not being in a situation to make this navigation, the commissioners appointed the Earl of Arlington to carry the purposes of the act into effect, and authorized him, for so doing, to take the following
TOLLS.
| For every Last of Corn or Grain; every Chaldron of Coal, (Forty Bushels;) every Load of broad Plank and Timber, and every Ton of all other Goods, Wares and Commodities | 6d. |
And the commissioners named under the act, and the mayor, burgesses and commonalty of Thetford, granted and assigned the above tolls to the Earl of Arlington, by a deed dated 20th January, 1677, which tolls were, by an indorsement on this deed dated 10th March, 1796, demised and released by the Duchess Dowager of Grafton (sole executrix of the will of the late Duke of Grafton, who was sole executor of the Earl of Arlington) to the mayor, &c. of Thetford; and they have made considerable improvements in the navigation.
The act then appoints certain commissioners, in addition to those appointed by the last act, repeals the tonnage rates before fixed, and empowers them to collect the following
TONNAGE RATES.
The Column marked thus (*) are the Rates to he paid between Whitehouse and the Sluice called the Cross Gravel Haunch.
The Column marked thus (+) between the Cross Gravel Haunch and Brandon Perry.
The Column marked thus (±) between Brandon Ferry and Thetford.
