[1584/5/28]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Forasmuch as in our sovereign lord's last parliament held and begun at Edinburgh on 24 October 1581, there was a special act made concerning provision of ministers and certain stipends appointed for them at all parish kirks and appointing of commissioners for ordering thereof, which act as yet has taken little execution by occasion of the troubles intervening since the making thereof, and now his majesty and three estates, finding by good proof and experience the hurt and inconvenience which both his highness and the most part of the ministry sustain thereby, they being yearly withdrawn from their kirks to attend a large space upon the getting of the assignations of their livings and stipends modified to them, and his highness being frustrated of the surplus of the thirds of benefices due to him for the supply of the necessary affairs of his estate; therefore, and for eschewing of the said abuse and inconvenience in time coming, our sovereign lord, with advice of his three estates in this present parliament, grants and gives full power and commission to the lords auditors of his highness's exchequer to convene how soon conveniently they may after the end of this present parliament, and to consider, appoint and order the estate of the kirks and stipends of ministers within this realm and to set and appoint certain indifferent and common prices as near as may be to the fiars of the countries, as well upon all victual to be assigned to the said ministers in their livings and stipends as upon that which shall fall and appertain properly to his highness as surplus, through which the great inequality now standing in the form of the modification of stipends through the diversity of prices may be avoided, and that the said surplus being certain, his highness may know his apparent commodity thereof in time coming; and that the said auditors of his highness's exchequer at their good discretion choose, consider, appoint and order the estates of the said kirks and stipends, and set and appoint the said prices of victual as the same shall stand of the only year and crop 1584, or for the same years and other years to come until further order be taken by his highness, with advice of his estates in parliament.