[1704/7/124]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Petition of James Bain craving payment of a sum due to him, read, the parliament declared they would take this petition and the petitioner's case to their consideration when they can conveniently and, in the meantime, recommend to the lords of treasury to pay the petitioner yearly for his aliment £100 sterling to be paid quarterly until his case be taken into consideration, which recommendation etc. is as follows.
Her majesty's high commissioner and the estates of parliament, having heard the petition of James Bain, her majesty's master wright, humbly showing to them that King Charles II, having considered the ruinous condition of his palace of Holyroodhouse and of the castles of Edinburgh, Stirling and the Bass and that, for the safety of the kingdom, these castles ought to be repaired and a palace built for the better reception of his majesty and his successors whenever they should visit their ancient kingdom, and also for the accommodating of their high commissioners and chancellor and other officers of state to parliaments for doing the necessary affairs of the kingdom at any time, the petitioner being employed as master wright to the foresaid works, when the funds appointed for defraying the expenses thereof were exhausted and there was no money in the public treasury for perfecting the same, the petitioner, having a stock of timber of his own in the mouth of Leith at the time to the value of £50,000 Scots as can yet be instructed, he not only furnished the greatest part thereof to the said work, but also for paying the workmen he raised £33,000 out of the hands of the earls of Tweeddale, Panmure and Strathmore and other persons who were his debtors and, when all this came short of finishing the work, he engaged his credit and borrowed to the value of £27,500 money foresaid, from several persons, for perfecting the said palace and castles. These four last sessions of parliament the petitioner applied himself to his majesty's high commissioner and right honourable estates of parliament, and in the first session he obtained an act recommending him to his majesty for taking some course for his payment and to the lords of treasury for subsistence; and in the second session, there being a committee appointed for considering the petitioner's accounts and instructions thereof, they reported that they had seen his accounts and instructions by which the public was resting to the petitioner the sum of £81,769 Scots. After this report was made, his majesty's commissioner and estates of parliament were considering to determine a fund for the petitioner's effectual payment, but the parliament rising sooner than was expected, there was nothing done for him but only an act passed in his favour again recommending him to his majesty for payment and the lords of treasury for subsistence. In the third session of parliament the petitioner's case was again recommended to a committee for finding out a fund for his payment, but through the multiplicity of affairs and shortness of time nothing was done, but again the petitioner was recommended to his majesty for payment and to the lords of treasury for subsistence, and if payment were not made the committee assured the petitioner that a fund should be determined for his effectual payment at the next session of parliament. But in the last session of parliament, though the petitioner applied by way of petition, yet nothing was done for him. The petitioner humbly represents that he is utterly ruined unless his grace and honourable estates prevent it, for his creditors have been these twenty years in possession of all that he has and that for these very debts which he contracted for the public, besides he is obliged to pay these twenty-four years bypast interest of £27,500 principal which he borrowed for carrying on the said work and the annualrent in the said time extends to £39,050 from Whitsunday [May] 1678 to Whitsunday [15 May] 1702, being twenty-four years' principal and interest, extends to £66,550 that the petitioner is indebted and which he contracted for the public, besides the expenses of adjudication and other legal diligence which he must also pay. And when the petitioner is paid the sum of £81,769 owed by the public to him, and that he has paid the neat sums borrowed and interest thereof there will be nothing remaining to him for all his great stock above-written but only £15,219, and which completes his misery, having given out his own stock of £50,000 and raised the sum of £33,000 for furnishing the said works and paying the workmen, he is thereby incapacitated from selling timber as he was wont and also from following his employment as wright and has been under this inability of doing anything for himself these eighteen years bygone. The honourable estates have thought it worth their consideration, and becoming the honour of the kingdom, to determine and appoint funds for paying what was resting to the soldiers and the petitioner humbly conceives that the building of his majesty's palace and repairing the castles and forts are no less necessary for the honour and safety of the kingdom, and seeing the petitioner, out of a generous disposition, love to his country and confidence to the public, did expend his own fortune and contract debts for accomplishing and perfecting the said works, its hoped his grace and honourable estates will prevent the petitioner's ruin. The public may yet stand in need of the assistance of private persons, but if they suffer the petitioner to perish, his ruin will discourage others and none hereafter will adventure to give money to the public except when they see effectual funds for their reimbursements, which may too often be of pernicious consequence to the nation. Therefore, craving his grace and the right honourable estates of parliament to take the petitioner's case to their serious consideration, and in regard of the public, the credit of the nation and justice to the petitioner to give an act finding the said £81,769 Scots due to the petitioner, and appoint a fund out of which he may be paid the same with interest thereof since [John Murray], earl of Tullibardine's session of parliament, at which time it was found due and yearly and proportionally during the non-payment that the honour of the kingdom may be preserved, the petitioner's ruin prevented and all persons may be encouraged to carry on public works, and advance money to the completing of them when they shall hear and see what justice the right honourable court of parliament has done to the petitioner, as the said petition bears. And her majesty's said commissioner and the estates of parliament foresaid, having this day considered the said petition, they declared and hereby declare they will take the said petition and the petitioner's case to their consideration when they can conveniently and, in the meantime, they recommended and hereby recommend to the lords of her majesty's treasury to pay to the petitioner yearly for his aliment by quarterly payments the sum of £1,200 Scots money until his case be taken to consideration.