All burgesses should be taxed and stented by their magistrates according to the rents within burgh

Our sovereign lord and three estates of this present parliament, understanding that at such times as taxations and stents occurs within this land that the provost and bailies of burghs and such as they appoint stewarts within the same without all good order and discretion stents sundry of the burgesses, inhabitants of the burghs, who have their special rents and livings to landward outwith burgh according to their ability, as well as to landward as to burgh, albeit reason and equity would crave that they should be only stented according to their rents and holding within burgh because their rents and living lying to landward are stented with the barons, gentlemen and freeholders within the shires where they lie. It is therefore statute and ordained that in all time coming it shall not be permissible to the provost and bailies of burghs nor no stenters within the same to stent any persons therein according to their livings and rents lying outwith burgh† as they do with other persons of their rank and substance that have no rent nor living outwith burgh, and in no other way.

  1. NAS, PA2/15, f.71r-71v. Back
  2. APS reads 'lying outwith burgh but only according to their rents and holding within burgh', which interpolation is taken from the contemporary printed collection of acts, Sir John Skene, Lawes and Actes of Parliament, maid be King James the First and his successors Kings of Scotland - The XV Parliament of King James the Sext, halden at Edinburgh, the nineteenth day of December, the yeir of God, ane thousand, five hundreth, ninetie seven yeirs (Edinburgh, 1597), p.173. Back