Legislation

Act anent these who are or shall be fund fugitives and runawayes from ther companies and culloures

The estates of parliament, presentlie conveined by vertew of the last act of the last parliament haldine be his matie and thrie estates in anno 1641, taking to ther consideratione the great prejudice and danger which may aryse to the armyes raised and to be raised for defence of religione, liberties and kingdome by reasoun of some who haveing gone or shall goe out with the saids armyes have run away, or may heireftir runaway from ther companyes and culloures; for remedie wherof, it is statute and ordeaned that all those, both of horse and foot, who shall runaway from ther companyes and culloures without a pass shall be apprehendit by the collonelles and committies of warre within ilke shyre and divisione, captanes of parochines or magistrates within burghe wher they duell, and otheres whom they shall appoynt for that effect, where evir they can be fund, and sent agane with all diligence to ther company and colloures upon the publict chairge, which is to be advancit by the collectores of the excise and allowed in ther comptes, there to be punished conforme to the articles of militarie discipline; or else that the committies of warr and collonelles within ilke shyre and magistrates within burghe (if they thinke it expedient for the good of the armies and terrifieing otheres from running away in lykemaner) decimate the saids fugitives, both horse and foote, being apprehendit, and cause hange the tenth man of them and escheat ther goodis for the use of the publict; and if there be bot one or more of them within ten, to cause hang one of them albeit there be bot one and cause send the rest of the saids fugitives, horse and foot, to the committie of the estates at Edinburghe upon the expenss of the publict as is aforesaid, to be sent bake to there culloures in maner as the committie shall thinke fitt. And because the resetting and interteaneing of the saids fugitives imbolds and encourages them to keepe themselves still lurkeing and encourages otheres by ther example to run away, therfor it is statute and ordeaned that whosoevir shall keepe, reset or intertene the saids fugitives, horse or foot, or shall have knowledge of ther being within ther bounds and shall not declaire and delyver them to the said committie, collonelles of shyres, captanes of parochines or magistrates within burghe withall possible diligence, then the saids reseteres and consealleres shall be reput and estimat as ill affected and enemyes to religioune, ther cuntrie and cause presently in hand, and shall be accordingly punished by the committie of estates or committies and collonelles of warr where they duell or magistrates within burghe and shall be lyable in the soume of fyve hundreth merkes for every horseman and ane hundreth punds for every footman they shall be fund to have reset in maner foirsaid, the one halfe wherof shall be imployed for the use of the publict, and the other halfe of the samene shall perteane to whatsoevir persones that shall delate the foirsaids persones, resetteres and interteaneres, and who shall qualifie the foirsaid reset and interteinment, to whom the saids estates promeiseth heirby to grant and dispone and by thir presentes grantes and dispones the present right of the same. And if the committies and collonelles of warr within each devisione or² persone being therwpoun, captanes of parochines or magistrates within burghe shall be negligent in taking order with the foirsaids fugitives and runawayes from ther culloures and with ther resetteres and interteaneres, or shall delay and be deficient in puting of this act to executione efter the forme and tennour therof, ilke persones of the saids committies of warr, collonelles and captanes of paroches [or] magistrates within burgh shall pay the soume of fyve hundreth merkes for ilke failzie toties quoties, the one halfe of which fyne shall perteine to the publict, and the other halfe therof to the persones dilateres. And also it is statute and ordenit that if it come to the knouledge of ony persone who have or shall happine heireftir to outreach souldieres one horse or foot, that these outreached by them are disbandit and fled from ther culloures, the saids outputteres of them shall be obleidged to search, seike and apprehend the saids fugitives throughe ther haill bounds and lands within whatsoevir paroch or burghe the saids outputteres duelles, and shall ather apprehend and present them to the committie and collonelles of the shyre, captanes of parochines or magistrates within burghe that order may be takine with them conforme to the tennour of this present act, or else, if they be without ther owne proper lands, to requyre the heritor, bailyie or officer who hath chairge of their effaires to produce the fugitives dilated by them to be within ther bounds before the committie of the shyre, or otherwayes to assist the saids outputteres in searching and apprehending the saids fugitives as they wilbe ansuerable within the bounds foirsaids. And if the saids outputteres and otheres shall be negligent to doe ther exact diligence therin, the saids outputeres shall be obleiged to make wp ther nomber by outputing of men in ther places sufficiently provydit in arme and otheres necessaries upon the saids outputteres owne expenss, and the fugitives themselves to be searched, apprehendit and punished as said is. And it is statute and ordeaned also that the captanes of parochines who shall apprehend the saids fugitives or magistrates within burghe shall produce the saids fugitives before the committy of warr within ther bounds at the nixt meiting of the said committy wnder the paines to be punished and censured as resetteres, and it is ordeained lykwayes that the magistrates of burghes within whose bounds the saids fugitives shall be apprehendit shall receive the saids fugitives from the said committy to be keeped by them in firmance wpoun the chairge of the publict to be advanced forth of the excise and withall diligence to be sent to the committy of estates at Edinburghe. Lykeas it is statute and ordeined that this present act shalbe extendit aganes all resetteres, fugitives, committies of warr, collonelles, captanes and magistrates of burghe and otheres foresaids for ony reset or neglect of there dewty respective abovewrittin in any tyme comeing eftir the publicatione of thir presentes, alsweill for runnawayes and fugitives who have run away in any tyme bygone from any of the armyes leveyed heirtofore within this kingdome for this commoune cause as for these who shall be leveyed and run away in tymecomeing. And ordeanes this present act to be prented and a copie therof to be sent to every paroche kirke and every committy of warr and every burghe within ilke devisione within this kingdome, and that it be red at every paroche kirke upon the first Sunday eftir the recept heirof and thereftir fixt one the kirke doore or wall to be red be every persone, that none pretend ignorance. And farder, leist the fugitives shall runaway as said is might be suffered to lurke and escaipe unpunished, it is statute and ordeaned that no stranger shall be received within any paroche or shyre who shall not have a pas from some collonell or a testimoniall from the minister and sessione from whence they came, and who shall reset any such persone without pass or testimoniall and shall not dilate them shall incurre the punishment of resetteres of fugitives, and ordeanes the committy to be appoynted be the estates to sie the whole heades and articles of the act foirsaid put to full executione.