Procedure: minutes read

Minuts of the last sederunt read.

Procedure: article of commission for public accounts debated

The article of the report of the commission for publick accounts relateing to the Lord Belhaven's tack of excise from September, j^M vj^C and ninety five to March, j^M vj^C and ninety seven, read. [The] petition for the Lord Belhaven and his partners, read, [and the] petition for George Mackenzie, one of the Lord Belhaven's subtacksmen read. The parliament, haveing considered the petition given in by Belhaven and his partners, with the report of the commission, they find that the sum of seventeen thousand, one hundred and eighty one pounds, eleven shillings [and] seven pence sterling was never payed in by the countrey to the said tacksmen or subtacksmen, therefore, they discharge them and the country of the said sum in the terms of the deliverance of parliament upon their petition, which is as follows.

Moved that the principal tacksmen be discharged of the sum of five hundred and twenty six pounds, eleven shilling and ten pence sterling, uplifted by them and not yet counted for and, after debate, it was put to the vote discharge the tacksmen of the said sum or not and carried discharge, as is expressed in the act underwritten.