[1661/1/438]¹

Act in favour of Sir John Wemyss of Bogie

Our sovereign lord and estates of parliament, considering that Sir John Wemyss of Bogie, being appointed commissary general and treasurer to the army that was raised in the year 1648 for relief of his majesty's royal father out of prison, and for his restitution to his royal government did, from his zeal and affection for promoting of that engagement, engage in several sums of money for which the kingdom was then debtor and gave bond to several persons for sums advanced in that service, whereof he was, by two several acts of parliament in April and May 1648, appointed to be relieved and repaid out of the monthly maintenance granted and imposed at that time, and that he was interrupted in the collecting thereof by the prevalency of a party who, contrary to all law, justice and the duty of good subjects, did rise in arms in opposition to that necessary and honourable engagement and, having usurped to themselves the public authority, did among their other unjust and unlawful practises thrust the said Sir John Wemyss from his employment aforesaid, and the means appointed for his relief of the sums so seasonably and dutifully advanced and engaged for, as said is; and his majesty, considering that in honour and justice the said Sir John Wemyss and others interested with him and eminently engaged at that time in advancements for his majesty's service should be redressed and, so far as is possible, restored to that relief which by the parliament was appointed for them, does therefore, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament, hereby give warrant, power and commission to Sir Alexander Durham, lord lyon, and the said Sir John Wemyss and their subcollectors, to uplift and collect what is resting in the hands of any person or persons of the monthly maintenance imposed and laid on in any meeting of parliament or committees during the time that the said Sir John Wemyss was general commissary, or which were uplifted and remains yet in collectors' hands, or which was remitted or allowed to any shire, burgh, person or persons by any act of any pretended committee after August 1648, or of any pretended parliament or committee in the year 1649, and more particularly with power to them to uplift these eight months' maintenance, from the last of February 1648 to 1 November thereafter, from the shires of Ayr, Renfrew, Lanark, Dunbarton, Wigtown and Kirkcudbright, and burghs therein, and from all other shires or burghs, person or persons that were exempted by any act of the said pretended parliaments or committees, under the name and notion of the well-affected, or for opposing of that engagement of 1648 or any other public service, in order thereunto or for any other cause whatsoever and which then was, and yet is unpaid by them or any of them, or which remains uncounted for in collectors' hands, or was remitted to them by any of the said pretended meetings or was applied by the collectors to the use of any private persons under the notion of being well-affected, by order of an act of a pretended parliament of 23 February 1649, or which was received back by any such person or persons from the collectors of the said eight months' maintenance upon the account foresaid; as also, with power to them and their subcollectors to receive and uplift any maintenance resting in the hands of collectors or subcollectors, or that stands resting by stated accounts upon any shire, burgh or person, or for which any person has given bond or subscribed account or any obligation by writ to any collectors or subcollectors, or where whole shires, burghs or parishes did not pay any maintenance at all and so are well-known to be due any maintenance during the time of [Sir Adam Hepburn], lord Humbie being general commissary. And his majesty, considering that there are diverse sums of money owing to John [Middleton], earl of Middleton, and which at several necessary occasions were advanced by him out of his private fortune for promoting his majesty's service, therefore his majesty, with advice foresaid, ordains the said Sir Alexander Durham and Sir John Wemyss, out of the first and readiest of the said collections, to make payment to John, earl of Middleton, his heirs or assignees, of the sum of £60,000 Scots, with the annualrent thereof from the date hereof until the repayment thereof, and that in satisfaction for as much of the sums resting to him as said is; and in the next place the said Sir John Wemyss is hereby empowered to retain in his own hand the sum of £29,926 Scots owed to him for money advanced by him to the army in his majesty's service in the year 1648, with the bygone interest thereof, and until he is paid of the same; and in the third place [John Lindsay], earl of Crawford Lindsay, lord treasurer, is to be paid of the sum of £14,133 Scots, with its interest, which was advanced by him and is due conforming to an act of [...] of the date the [...] day of [...] 16[...] years; and in the fourth place it is appointed that the said maintenance to be collected by virtue of this act shall be employed for payment to the heirs and executors of Sir Alexander Hamilton, general of the artillery, and Sir James Fraser of Brae the sum of £29,644 resting and due to them, conforming to the public acts made to them thereupon with the bygone interests thereof, and for which the said Sir John Wemyss, being commissary general for the time, did give his bond at the least each of the said persons in their respective orders to be paid of the said sums by the said Sir Alexander Durham and Sir John Wemyss according to their intromission, for which only they are to be answerable and no further, deducting collectors' fees and necessary charges to be disbursed in collecting thereof; and as to the surplus, if any shall be, that they make payment thereof according as orders shall be given by the lords of his majesty's privy council who are hereby empowered to call in for the accounts of what shall be received by virtue of this act, and to give their orders for the surplus and discharges thereupon. It is always declared that this act and anything therein-contained shall be without prejudice to William, lord Cochrane of his payment of the sum of £20,900 Scots by and out of the maintenance of the shires of Ayr, Renfrew, Wigtown and Kirkcudbright due for the months of August and September 1648, which sums were given out by him for advancing of the Engagement for his majesty's relief in the year 1648, and is due by acts passed at that time and according whereunto his majesty, with advice foresaid, does ordain the readiest of the said two months' maintenance for the foresaid shires of Ayr, Renfrew, Wigtown and Kirkcudbright to be applied for his payment of the sum above-written of £20,900 Scots and no otherwise. And forasmuch as James [Livingstone], earl of Callander, John [Hamilton], lord Bargany, Sir James Dundas [of Arniston], Sir Archibald Sydserf and Robert Fleming, for their affection and zeal in promoting the Engagement of 1648 and for their acting therein by public orders of those that carried on that engagement, were thereafter forced by those who usurped the power that year to lay out and pay £12,000 Scots, each of them their proportional part, for the hire of ships employed in the public service that year, and for which the maintenance of the month of October in that same year was designed, and his majesty finding it just that they should be repaid of the same does, therefore, assign the first and readiest of the maintenance due for the month of October 1648 to be applied for the payment to them of the said sum of £12,000 Scots, anything in this act to the contrary notwithstanding, and ordains present execution to be used for the same in the same manner as for the other sums and dues of other months above-written; and as to the annualrent of the said sum and the other to the Lord Cochrane, it is recommended to the lords of privy council to take such course therein as they shall think fit, the former sums contained in this act being always first paid. And to the end that the maintenance aforesaid and dues thereof may be more speedily collected and disposed of for the use aforesaid, his majesty, with consent foresaid, ordains letters of horning upon fifteen days, poinding and other means necessary, to be directed at the instance of the said Sir Alexander Durham, Sir John Wemyss and their subcollectors against the heritors, liferenters, wadsetters and others indebted in payment of the said dues and bygone maintenance for payment thereof, each one of them for their own parts of the same so far as they are due in manner foresaid, and that no suspension is granted but upon consignation. It is always provided that no singular successor who has bought lands since the time of these dues shall be liable in the payment of these dues for these lands so bought, except they be particularly obliged thereunto, and it is appointed that the quarterings which were by order and conforming to an act of 9 May 1648, and no other quarterings, are to be allowed out of the dues of the maintenance aforesaid, and the lords of session to be judges in case of variance upon the probation of payment, consignation being made, as said is, in case of any suspension. And further his majesty, considering that the said Sir John Wemyss had given bond for several sums contained in the superexpenses of his accounts and that it is unjust that he should be liable for the same while the means allotted for the payment of these superexpenses are taken from him, and that by acts in December 1648 and renewed in the year 1649 he was freed and exonerated of the said bonds at length mentioned in the said acts, therefore his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, does free and exonerate him, his heirs, executors and successors of the said bonds and declares the same and the sums therein-contained to be a public debt in time coming.