[1641/8/199]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord and estates of parliament, taking to consideration the bounty and benevolence of his majesty's most noble progenitors King James II and King James IV in giving their vassals liberty to set their ward lands in feu, and herewith also remembering that, by the 16th act of his majesty's first parliament in the year 1633, his majesty and the prince, his highness, their vassals of ward lands are altogether secluded from that benefit of his majesty's bounty and benevolence foresaid, which prejudice is by the 37th act of that session of this present parliament held in June 1640 recommended to be considered at the next meeting thereafter of the said parliament, and during that interim the force and execution of that act foresaid of 1633 is suspended and suppressed. And now his majesty, being graciously pleased of his royal favour and bounty that the vassals of ward lands held of his sacred majesty and of the prince, his highness, may enjoy their former liberty with the benefit of his majesty and his most noble progenitors, their bounty and benevolence foresaid unprejudiced or impaired by the foresaid act of 1633, therefore our said sovereign lord and estates of parliament rescind and annul the foresaid 16th act of his majesty's first parliament in the year 1633, entitled 'Regarding vassals holding ward', and declares the same act to be null, of no value, force, strength nor effect in all time coming, in so far as the same act is or may be extended to the lands held ward of the king or prince as said is, and declare the vassals of the ward lands foresaid and others of his majesty's lieges or subjects to be in that same estate and condition and have the same liberty concerning ward lands which they had before the making of the said act, and as if the same had never been made, which our sovereign lord and estates of parliament declare to be extinct and of no value, force nor effect in all time hereafter.
[1641/8/200]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Whereas our sovereign lord and estates presently assembled, understanding that the plaiding of this kingdom is one of the most ancient and prime commodities thereof, which of late, through the inconstancy of the breadth, is likely to come of no estimation abroad, therefore our sovereign lord, with advice of the said estates, ordains the makers thereof to make the same of no less breadth than of three quarters of an ell under pain of confiscation of all that shall be found of a lesser breadth. And further, understanding that the lords of his majesty's council had, for eschewing the deceit in making thereof, ordained the same to be presented in folds and not in rolls to the market as it was used of before, therefore his majesty, with consent and advice foresaid, ratifies and approves the said act of council dated at Edinburgh, 24 March 1635, in all the heads, clauses and circumstances thereof and ordains the same to take full execution and to stand as a law in all time coming.
[1641/8/201]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, with the advice and consent of the estates of this present parliament, understanding many pitiful effects daily found and increasing regarding the misery and poverty of orphans and fatherless children to have been occasioned in this manner: that many ignorant people the time of the acquiring to them of bonds, contracts and other securities for payment of sums of money take the same to them, their heirs, executors and assignees with clause and condition of annualrent thereof during the non-payment of the said principal sum, meaning thereby that the same should in no way remain unprofitable during the non-payment thereof, and in no way that the said clause or condition should make the same sum pertain to the heir in prejudice of their bairns and other nearest of kin by the heir, whereas by the contrary, by the interpretation now observed, all such sums and securities bearing annualrent or profit are exposed to be heritable after the term of payment and to pertain to the heir, so that thereby the rest of the children, nearest of kin and others having interest are altogether therefrom secluded and left pitifully unprovided of any means to live on, as also the said bonds and contracts are very often fraudulently concealed and abstracted and never known to the true owners thereof, that in due time they might make use of the same, which is against both equity and conscience, and the intention of the party acquirer of the said securities, whereby great number of orphans, fatherless children and others that are so prejudiced of that is due to them, either by their natural portion or otherwise due, are brought to great poverty and misery and forced to become beggars, which is often found by pitiful experience. For remedy, our said sovereign lord, with advice of the said estates, statutes and ordains that all contracts or bonds for sums of money payable to parties with condition of payment of annualrent or profit made at any time hereafter shall be held and estimated to pertain to the bairns and nearest of kin to the deceased, unless sasine follow thereupon in the lifetime of the creditor acquirer thereof, or that by the tenor of the bond or contract the same be conceived to be payable to the heirs and assignees secluding the executors, or otherwise that the said bond or contract bear expressly obligation to infeft; in either of the which excepted cases, ordains the said sums to be heritable and pertain to the heir, and outwith the said excepted cases, ordains the said sums to be confirmed by the executor without payment of any quot for the same, and that to the end the nearest of kin and others having interest as said is be in no way frustrated of what may be due to them, nor yet the said bonds or contracts fraudulently concealed or abstracted from them, every one of them for their own parts, providing always that by virtue of this present act the bonds or contracts hereby ordained to pertain to the nearest of kin to the deceased and to be confirmed shall not fall under the compass of escheat, nor yet any part thereof pertain to the widow by right of the widow, but shall remain in the own nature quoad fiscum et relictam as they were before the making of this act.
[1641/8/202]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord and estates of parliament ratify and approve the act of parliament made by King James VI, his majesty's father of eternal memory, parliament 1, chapter 12, regarding provostries, prebendaries, altarages, chaplainries and collegiate kirks pertaining to lay patrons, together with the act of parliament 12, chapter 158, ratifying the same, and ordain the said acts to have full force and effect in all time coming, with this declaration always: that in respect the vassals which held lands of the said provosts, prebendaries and others foresaid are put to a great uncertainty of their superiors, it not being known to them who are provided to the said provostries, prebendaries, chaplainries, altarages and others foresaid, by reason there is no public register to the which they may have recourse for knowledge and notice thereof, and that the farthest that they can know by any registers is the infeftments and sasines made to those who are lay patrons holding of his majesty, therefore, for securing of the vassals who hold lands, mills, fishings, tenements, annualrents and others whatsoever of the said provostries, prebendaries of collegiate kirks or of chaplainries, altarages and others of that nature at any time of before, it is statute and ordained that the entry of the said vassals by retour, precept of clare constat, resignation, comprising or otherwise whatsoever shall pertain to the lay patrons and their successors who stand infeft in the said lay patronages, holding immediately of his majesty, and that the entry of the vassals by them shall be as valid and sufficient to the said vassal, receivers thereof, as if they were entered by the titulars of the said provostries, prebendaries, altarages, chaplainries and others foresaid; and that the said lay patrons shall be in all time coming in their place as superior to the said vassals and to have the same power to give infeftments to his majesty's subjects upon retour or by precept of clare constat or by resignation, comprising or any other manner of way, with gifts of novodamus, and that without consent of persons provided or to be provided to the said provostries and prebendaries of collegiate kirks, altarages, chaplainries or other titulars of collegiate kirks, and also without consent of the chapter or convent of the said prebendaries thereof or most part of the same which before was in use and custom, concerning which, and regarding all acts in the contrary, his majesty, with consent foresaid, dispenses for now and ever, reserving always to the titulars of the said provostries, prebendaries, altarages, chaplainries and others foresaid the fruits, rents and emoluments of the said provostries, prebendaries and others foresaid which are in no way prejudiced by this present act. It is hereby further statute and ordained where there are any prebendaries, chaplainries, altarages or other foundations of that nature above-mentioned founded and situated within any burgh royal of this kingdom, that the provost, bailies and council of the said burgh where the same are founded are, and shall be in all time coming, only indebted superiors by whom and by no others the vassals and tenants enter in manner above-specified, the provost and bailies being always patrons.
[1641/8/203]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, considering that the precise and rigorous exaction of the pain, arbitrary and pecuniary, added to penal statutes heretofore made would prove a burden to his majesty's lieges, heavy and insupportable if by his majesty's grace and favour they should not be eased and liberated of the same, in consideration whereof his majesty, being willing to give ease and relief to his subjects of the foresaid burden, has therefore been graciously pleased, with consent of the estates of parliament, to discharge freely, pardon and remit, and by this act discharges, freely pardons and remits all contraveners of the said penal statutes† in time bygone, except only the statutes concerning the unlawful taking of usury, transporting of money and gold, slaying of red and black fish, with the penalties incurred by the concealers of annualrents and wrongful submitters of the inventories of their money, which are in no way discharged by this present act, nor comprehended under the same.