[1661/1/485]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament, taking to consideration how much it may tend to his majesty's honour and profit of this his ancient kingdom that the mines (with which it so much abounds) be effectually prosecuted and, for that effect, that all encouragement be given to the undertakers and prosecutors thereof, and withal that his majesty's dearest grandfather, of blessed memory, King James VI, who well knew what would most conduce to so desirable ends, did in his royal wisdom and princely prudence, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament, in the year 1592, by their act anent the dissolution of the said mines from the crown, for the reasons foresaid and other considerations therein-specified, exempt all miners, metallers and others actually remaining at such works from all taxations, charges, proclamations and other charges whatsoever, both in peace and war, and therefore did take them, all their servants, families, goods, gear and heritages in his majesty's special protection, as at more length is contained in the said act, and that accordingly, Sir James Hope of Hopetoun, his authors and predecessors, prosecutors of his mines and works, have hitherto from time to time had large exemptions and privileges indulged and granted to them; therefore his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, not only ratifies and approves the said act and extends the same in favour of the said Sir James and his successors their said mines and works in Crawfordmure, erected or to be erected, their mines and works at the silver mines sometime called Binnie Mines, their mines and works of Airthrey, but also of new, by this ratification, exempts and now and in all time coming gives privilege to the said Sir James Hope and his foresaids their said whole works and mines (and all other mineral works or mines hereafter to be set up or undertaken by them) their workmen and others actually residing at the said works, their servants and families, from all watching, warring, proclamations, levies of horse and foot, taxations, cess, maintenance, poll-money, excise and other impositions whatsoever imposed or to be imposed, under, for or upon whatsoever name, denomination, cause or pretext whatsoever, in any time hereafter, and hereby discharges all judges, commissars or other powers or persons whatsoever authorised, or hereafter to be authorised in the said matters, of all valuing, stenting, imposing or casting of any proportion of the said burdens or impositions upon the said works or persons and all collectors, officers and soldiers of all exacting, quartering, distressing or otherwise molesting them for the same and of their said office, in so far provided always these privileges shall not be construed nor interpreted to exempt the said Sir James Hope, his heirs or successors from payment of such proportion of excise for the ale and beer brewed in his house, as shall be paid by other heritors for the ale and beer brewed in their houses, conforming to the constant rent of land or teinds in the respective shires where the said mines or works do lie, so that he and his foresaids shall pay their proportion of the said excise, conforming to such constant rent of lands or teinds only, as he has or shall happen to have within the said shire in the same manner as other heritors of lands or teinds shall do, conforming to their constant rent thereof. And further, ratifies and approves the said Sir James Hope's mending and repairing of the highways leading from the said mines and work to Edinburgh and Leith as good service to the public, and hereby statutes and ordains that it shall be lawful and rightful to the said Sir James and his successors to cause mend and repair any whatsoever his majesty's highways leading from any of the said mines and works, or from any other mines or works of the like nature, to be prosecuted by him or his successors to any head burgh or sea port within this kingdom, or from any one head burgh or sea port to another by breaking down of the highways, filling up of the hollow parts of the said ways, calsaying of the mires and mud therein, and making the same passable for carts, straight plane and of competent breadth of twelve feet at least, according as his majesty's highways should be by the laws and custom of this realm, or of further breadth as the said highways have been pathed and used by his majesty's lieges in any time past, and discharges all his majesty's lieges from molesting and impeding of the said Sir James Hope, or his foresaids or their servants' horses and carts in the doing thereof, or in the free and peaceable use of his majesty's said highways in time coming, and hereby grants the authority of parliament to the said Sir James and his foresaids to the effect foresaid. And likewise, his majesty and estates foresaid, taking to consideration the great abuse done and that may be done in seducing of the said workmen and miners from the said works, statute, enact and ordain that all acts of parliament and of other judicatories made, conceived and extended in favour of masters of coalheughs and salt pans be now and in all time coming extended. Likewise, his majesty, with consent foresaid, does hereby extend the same in favour of the said Sir James Hope and his foresaids, and especially without prejudice of the generality foresaid, in so far as the same may concern the not seducing, entertaining or receiving from them of any of their miners, workmen or others employed by them about their said mines or other of the like works, under the certification, pains and penalties contained in the said acts which are here held as expressed. And further, his majesty and estates foresaid, taking to consideration the great abuse heretofore committed in manner following by carriers, cadgers and others resorting to the said works and mines, statute, enact and ordain that whoever either passing by the said works or mines do, at their own hand without warrant, list and take away any of the said metals, ore, timber or other provisions lying about the said works or mines, or at the woods where the said timber is hewn and prepared, or being entrusted with the carriage thereof from or to the said works or mines, shall withdraw away, put or wrongfully dispose of any of the said metals, ore, timber or other provision, or whosoever shall intromit with, buy or reset any thereof from any of the said persons without seeing a sufficient power and warrant for their disposing thereof, under the hand of the said Sir James or his foresaids, or of such as are entrusted by them about the said works or mines, shall be convenable therefore before whatsoever judge ordinary, and sentenced and adjudged in payment to the said Sir James or his foresaids, or such as are entrusted by them, of the quadruple of the amount of the said metal, ore, timber and other provision so intromitted with, reset, away put or disposed by them, and be otherwise censured in their persons as thieves, vicious intromitters or receivers, according to the laws and practice of the kingdom in such cases; and at the arbitrament of the judge and for the better discovery of the said fraud and wrong, his majesty and estates foresaid command and require the waiters, searchers and all others entrusted in reference to his majesty's custom, excise or other public dues, to take special notice of the shipping of any such metals or ore, and to record the quantities thereof, with the names of the pretended owners thereof and vessels in which the same are shipped, and in default of such writing or certificates, as aforesaid, to make seizure thereof in name and for the use of the said Sir James and his foresaids, and to deliver the same to them. And further, do hereby require all magistrates, bailies, messengers and others, office bearers whatsoever to burgh or land, to assist the said Sir James and his foresaids in searching for and making seizure, as said is, upon any such metals or ore within their respective jurisdictions, whom his majesty and estates foresaid hereby empowers and authorises to that effect, and to make publication hereof at market crosses and other public places needful that none pretend ignorance. And his majesty and estates foresaid declare and enact that this present act shall take effect and be in force in the same manner as if the same had been made and passed in an act of parliament upon 26 March 1647, and shall never be understood to fall or be comprehended under any general act of revocation or rescission made or to be made at any time hereafter, unless the same be revoked and rescinded expressly and the said Sir James and his foresaids cited to that effect.
And likewise, his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, ratifies and approves the charter and infeftment under the great seal granted by his majesty's dearest father, of blessed memory, to Sir (therein master) James Hope of Waterhead, and Dame Anna Foulis, his spouse, in liferent and to Thomas Hope, their son, and their heirs and assignees therein-mentioned in fee heritably, of all and sundry the lands and barony of Waterhead and Leadhill, alias Overglengonar, with the manor place, houses, biggings, orchards, yards and whole pertinents thereof, lying within the sheriffdom of Lanark, and of the whole mines of metals and minerals of whatsoever quality within the said lands and barony or any part of the same, with the right and liberty of transportation of the metals and minerals to foreign nations, custom free and free of all other duties and impositions whatsoever, and with all the other privileges, liberties, immunities and jurisdictions thereto belonging, to be held of his majesty and his successors in feu ferm and heritage, for payment of the duties following, namely, for the said lands of Waterhead and manor place and pertinents thereof, the sum of 12 merks 6s 8d usual money of this realm, and doubling of the same at the entry of the heirs in name of feu ferm, and for the said mines, metals and minerals, the tenth part thereof, as the same shall happen to be mined furth of the ground, or the sum of 1,000 merks money yearly in the election of the said Sir James, his spouse, their said son and their foresaids, in name of feu ferm for all other burden, exaction, demand or other duty whatsoever, in the whole heads, articles, clauses and conditions contained in the said infeftment, which is of the date at Holyroodhouse, 8 September 1641, with the precept and sasine following thereupon. And also ratifies and approves the charters granted by his majesty's grandfather, of blessed memory, King James VI, to the deceased Thomas [Hamilton], earl of Haddington, therein designed Sir Thomas Hamilton of Monkland, one thereof dated 29 January and the other 4 April 1607, with the precepts and sasines following thereupon, of the mines, sometime called Binnie Mines, metals and minerals of whatsoever quality, within the whole lands and bounds specified in the said charters, with the liberty, privileges and immunities thereto belonging, in the whole heads, articles and clauses thereof, together with the sasine of the same granted to John [Hamilton], now earl of Haddington, as grandson and heir served and retoured to the said Thomas, earl of Haddington, together with the said service, retour and precept of sasine whereupon the same proceeded, in the whole heads, articles and clauses thereof, together also with the disposition of the mines granted by the said John, earl of Haddington to the said Sir James Hope, charters, precepts therein engrossed and sasines following thereupon, in the whole heads, articles and clauses thereof. And also ratifies and approves the charter granted by his late majesty to Sir John Graham of Braco, baronet, of the lands and barony of Airthrey, in the whole heads and articles thereof, which is of the date at [---] the [---] day of [---] 1636 years, together with the precept and sasine following thereupon; together also with the sasines of the said lands and barony granted upon 10 October 1647 to Sir William Graham, now of Braco, as son and heir served and retoured to the said Sir John, together with the service, retour and precept of sasine whereupon the same proceeded dated 9 October the said year, and disposition thereof granted by the said Sir William and James [Graham], marquis of Montrose, to the said Sir James Hope, his heirs and assignees whatsoever, dated 19 October 1659, in the whole heads, articles and clauses of the foresaid whole charters, precepts, sasines and others above ratified, and will and declare this present ratification to be as effectual as if the said whole charters, retours, dispositions, precepts and sasines were word for word inserted and at length engrossed herein; with the which his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, has dispensed and, by this ratification, dispenses forever. And for the said Sir James Hope, his said spouse, their said son and their foresaids further security anent these matters, his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, has dissolved and, by this ratification, dissolves the aforesaid whole lands, mines, metals and minerals and customs thereof, and others above-specified, from his majesty's crown and from all annexes to the same or any part thereof, to the effect the said Sir James Hope and his foresaids may bruik the same, to be held of his majesty and his successors in manner foresaid, and as if this present dissolution had been made before the passing of the said rights, then as now and now as then, dissolves and ratifies as above. Likewise, his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, of certain knowledge, dispenses with whatsoever general laws that may or can in any way make derogation herefrom, and specially without prejudice of the generality foresaid with the acts of parliament made in the year 1597 chapter 236 and [...] thereof; with the which, his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, expressly, by this ratification, dispenses forever.