[A1567/12/13]¹

Anent the fylthie vice of fornicatioun and punischement of the samin

Item, it is statute and ordanit be our soverane lord, with avise and consent of his derrest regent and thre estatis of this present parliament, that gif ony person or personis within this realme, to burgh or to land, sall commit the fylthie vice of fornicatioun and beis convict thairof, that the committeris thairof sall be puneist in maner following: that is to say, for the first fault, asweil the man as the woman, sall pay the sowme of fourtie pundis, or than baith he and scho salbe imprisonit for the space of aucht dayis, thair fude to be breid and small drink, and thairefter presentit to the mercat place of the towne or parochin bairheid, and thair stand fesnit, that thay may not remove for the space of twa houris as fra ten houris to twelf houris at none; for the secund fault, being convict, thay sall pay the sowme of ane hundreth merkis, or than the foirnamit dayis of thair imprisonment salbe doublit, thair fude to be breid and watter allanerlie, and in the end to be presentit to the said mercat place and baith the heidis of the man and the woman to be schavin; and for the thrid fault, being convict thairof, sall pay ane hundreth pundis, or ellis thair abone imprisonment to be triplit, thair fude to be breid and watter allanerly, and in the end to be taine to the deipest and foulest pule or watter of the towne or parochin, thair to be thryse dowkit, and thairefter baneist the said towne or parochin for ever; and fra thyne furth, quhow oft that ever thay be convict of the foirsaid vice of fornicatioun, that sa oft the said thrid penaltie be execute upon thame, and that the provest and bailleis of ilk burgh, the justice generall and his deputis, or sic utheris personis as it sall pleis our said soverane lord to gif commissioun unto, be jugeis to the persounis suspect and delatit of fornicatioune, and, being convict, that thay sall list and uptak the abone writtin pecuniall panis of the personis responsall and rather willing to pay the samin nor to be demanit in thair personis; and that the saidis corporall panis of imprisoning, banissing and utheris abone specifyit be execute upon all sic personis as outher refusis to pay the pecunial panis or that ar not responsall to pay the samin; and that the samin pecuniall panis quhilkis sall happin to be ressavit be surely keipit in ane clois box and be convertit ad pios usus in thay partis quhair the cryme is committit, as it sall pleis our said soverane and his derrest regent to command; and the ressaiferis of the said panis to be reddy to gif accompt thairof quhan ever thay salbe requyrit thairto.