The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707, K.M. Brown et al eds (St Andrews, 2007-2025), date accessed: 15 February 2025
[1661/1/445]1
Act in favours of John Gordoun and Alexander Strachan
The estates of parliament, haveing taken into their consideration a supplication presented be Johne Gordoun and Alexander Strachan mentioning that, by proclamation published at the mercate croce of Breichen it wes declared that whosoever should apprehend William Roy Menzies should have the sume of one hundreth pund[s] sterline payed them for thair paines, whervpon and for freeing of these parts of the cuntrie of the robries and outrages committed be the said William Roy Menzies, the petitioners wer encouradged to conduce some with themselffs and, after much paines in searching and great hazard of their lives, otherwayes did apprehend the said Menzies, and with a guard upon their oune expences keept him and therafter brought him along and delyvered him prissoner within the tolbuith of Edinburgh, wherby the petitioners wer put to fiftein pund[s] sterline and upwards of necesar depursements, besids thair attendance in Edinburgh these sex weeks bygone; humbly therfor, desyreing that some course might be taken for satisfieing of thair paines and expences in apprehending of the said William Roy Menzies, conducting and delyvering him into prisson within the tolbuith of Edinburgh. Therfor, the king's majestie, with advice and consent of his estates of parliament, doe modifie and ordaine the sume of one hundreth pund[s] sterline to be payed to the petitioners out of the tuo moneths' mantenance imposed for the king's majestie at Stirling in anno 1650, and recommends to his majesties' thesaurer, thesaurer deput and receavers of his majesties' rents, and others entrusted with the uplifting of the saids tuo moneths' mantenance, to mak payment to the petitioners of the said sume of one hundreth pund[s] sterline.
[1661/1/446]2
12 Jully 1661
Act and remit in favours of Robert McBrair
Extract
Anent the supplication given in to the lords commissioners for bills at the instance of Marion Maxwell, tutrix testamentrix to Robert Mcbrair of Netherwood, her sonne, against David Mc brair of Newwark, shewing that the deceast Robert Mc brair, her husband, being in peaceable possession of his lands of Netherwood and Rigsyde within the shirreffdome of Nithisdale, and of the lands of Dalbeatie, meikle and litle, Richorns and others within the stewartrie of Galloway, worth yeerly four thousand, fyve hundreth merks or therby, and that notwithstanding the said deceast Robert had finished all differences betuixt him and his uncle David Mcbrair of Newwark befor his decease, and had appointed the petitioner sex hundreth punds yeerly furth of the said estate, yet the said David Mcbrair, after the deceise of her said husband, did most violentlie eject the petitioner and her only son furth of the saids lands and estate, and hath uplifted the maills and dewties therof so that the petitioner and her son are lyk to starve and, therfor, craveing that his grace and estates of parliament wold ordaine the petitioner to be payed of the bygone maills and dewties therof since his intrusion and in tymecomeing dureing his possession, and to be repossest in the saids lands and estate, and that the said David Mc brair may be decerned to remove therfra. Whilk supplication being called befor them, and the said David Mcbrair compeiring be himselff and his procurators, it wes alledged be the defender that ther could be no processe at the instance of the said Marion Maxwell, as tutrix testamentrix, becaus ther wes no testament produced. Wherunto it wes replyed be the persewer's procurators that ther wes no necessity to produce ane testament becaus the persewer, haveing been in possession with her husband the tyme of his decease and being ejected be the defender furth of the saids lands of the which she, haveing appointed to her by her deceist husband sex hundreth pund[s] yeerly in liverent, is now craveing that she and her sone may be repossest. Secondlie, offered to produce ane nomination cum processu the defender's procurators alledged absolvitur becaus any possession the defender had is be vertew of ane infeftment and right standing in his persone. Whervnto the persewer's procurator opponed the lybell beareing that the persewer's husband wes in possession, and that she and her sone wes ejected therfra. It wes further alledged that the persewer's husband, haveing acquired the possession of these lands be vertew of ane contract past betuixt the defender and him and haveing, therafter, revocked the said contract, that the defender might verie well returne to his oune possession, [and] at least receave the rents from the tennents who willinglie made payment of the same. Secondlie, offered to renunce any possession the defender had provydeing the persewers would compt with and pay the defender what wes truely resting to him be the deceast Robert Mc brair, and is yet restand be his son and air, as the said alledgeance and ansuers bears. Whilk alledgeances and ansuers being, be the saids lords commissioners for bills, at lenth heard, read, seen and considered, they gave in their report thairof to his majestie and estates of parliament, beareing the saids commissioners in the first to have admitted the persewer's lybell to probation and haveing advised the lybell and deposition of the witnesses and considered the nomination produced, and that the said defender did acknowledge, in presence of these who examined the witnesses, that the deceast Robert Mcbrair wes in possession the tyme of his decease of all the lands lybelled in Galloway, and that the defender's possession of the saids lands and of the lands of Rigsyd, Netherwood [and] Almigill fishings and haill pertinents lyand in Nithisdale, wes fullie proven be the depositiones of the witnesses, it wes thair humble opinion that the defender should be decerned to repossesse the saids persewers in the saids lands, and to remove therfra and that action should be reserved to the defender for any thing he can clame from the persewers, and to the persewers for repetition of the maills and dueties lybelled, as the said report also bears. And the king's majestie, haveing considered the said supplication, minuts of processe and report of the lords of the bills theranent doth, with advice and consent of his estates of parliament, remit the same to the lords of councill and session, and in the mean tyme modifies the sume of fyve hundreth pund[s] Scots to be payed yeerly be the said David Mcbrair to the said Marion Maxwell for ane aliament to her and Robert Mcbrair, her son, ay and whill the discussing of the action, and the first fyve hundreth pund[s] to be payed presentlie upon the charge of fiftein dayes, and ordains letters of horning to be direct for that effect and siclyk yeerly therafter in maner forsaid.
- NAS. PA2/27, f.83v-84.
- NAS. PA2/27, f.84-84v.