Unto his Grace his Majesties High Commissioner and the right honourable Estates of Parliament. The petition of Sir Robert Chiesly present Lord Provost of the burgh of Edinburgh, John Robertson, George Home, Archibald Rule, and Adam Brown, present bailies thereof, Hugh Blair Dean of Gild and Patrick Thomson theasaurer [sic]. For themselves and in name of the whole council and community of said burgh. Chiesly, Robert. 1695 Approx. 10 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 3 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2011-04 (EEBO-TCP Phase 2). B02141 Wing C3846B ESTC R175766 53298995 ocm 53298995 179772

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 Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 2, no. B02141) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 179772) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English Books, 1641-1700 ; 2802:16) Unto his Grace his Majesties High Commissioner and the right honourable Estates of Parliament. The petition of Sir Robert Chiesly present Lord Provost of the burgh of Edinburgh, John Robertson, George Home, Archibald Rule, and Adam Brown, present bailies thereof, Hugh Blair Dean of Gild and Patrick Thomson theasaurer [sic]. For themselves and in name of the whole council and community of said burgh. Chiesly, Robert. 3 p. s.n., [Edinburgh : 1695] Caption title. Place and date of publication suggested by Wing (2nd ed.). Reproduction of original in: National Library of Scotland.

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 eng Town clerks -- Scotland -- Edinburgh -- Early works to 1800. Edinburgh (Scotland) -- Politics and government -- 17th century -- Sources. 2020-09-21 Content of 'availability' element changed when EEBO Phase 2 texts came into the public domain 2009-04 Assigned for keying and markup 2009-05 Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2009-07 Sampled and proofread 2009-07 Text and markup reviewed and edited 2009-09 Batch review (QC) and XML conversion
UNTO HIS GRACE HIS MAJESTIES HIGH COMMISSIONER And the Right Honourable Eſtates of Parliament. The Petition of Sir Robert Chieſly preſent Lord Provoſt of the Burgh of Edinburgh, John Robertſon, George Home, Archibald Rule, and Adam Brown preſent Baillies thereof, Hugh Blair Dean of Gild and Patrick Thomſon Theſaurer. For themſelves and in name of the whole Council and Community of the ſaid Burgh. Humbly Sheweth

THAT where by the old Cuſtome and Conſtitution of the Brugh, and which is certainly moſt agreeable to the good Goverment and quiet of all Burghs, the Town Clerks of Edinburgh as being the Townes Servants were only durante beneplacito, untill at firſt the deceaſt Sir William Thomſon, obtained from the then Magiſtrates and Council by his extraordinary influence, a gift of the Clerkſhip ad vitam, and then upon his being deprived, and ſome other Contentious changes, that afterwards fell out to the Towns great Vexation and Expences. The deceaſt Sir James Rochead did impetrate and elicite from them, an Act dated the 30 of August 1678 years, whereby upon a ſpecious narrative of Right, and the ſecurity that Men ought to have for the ſame, he prevailed with the then Magiſtrates and Council to ſtatute and ordain in his favours, that no Clerk of Edinburgh for hereafter ſhould be challenged or removed from their office, whatever may be their demerit, but by a certain ſolemn form of proceſs of his devyſing, and wherein he was to have a ſubſcribing Anſwer, and all the proces to be carried on both Scripto and viva voce by Advocats if he thought fit, and by ſuch Intervals and periods, as that it was to laſt at leaſt four Weeks. By which Act, wherein there is no proviſion made for the ſaid Good Town, either for debarring Advocation, or excluding Suſpenſion, as might well have been expected after ſo Cautious a Contrivance for ſecuring of the Town Clerk: The Towns Power and Liberties were in effect ſtollen from them, and the Clerks who are and ought to be their Servants made more than half Maſters, And this when the ſaid Sir James with the ſaid Aeneas came to be admitted and inſtalled in the ſaid office, they were not only admitted Conjunctly, and with a ſurvivance to the longeſt liver, which is alſo Injurious to the Liberties of the Burgh, but in their Act of Admiſſion of the date the twenty one of January 1687 years, the ſame proviſion of a formal and ſolemn proces in the Terms foreſaid is repeated as a condition, whereby it is evident, that for the Magiſtrates and Town Council to offer to bring their Servant the Town Clerk to a Tryal before themſeves, were only to engage themſelves in contentious Pleas & Advocations, & Suſpenſions, to the great Charges, & diſorder and Conuſion of the Burgh, during ſo long a dependence: And therefore the Magiſtrates and Town Council of Edinburgh, having not only the foreſaid Incroachment to complain of. But alſo a charge of ſeverall Malverſations againſt the ſaid Aeneas Mcleod their preſent Clerk, do in all humility addreſs themſelves to this High and Honourable Court of Parliament, to whoſe care and Protection the good order and quiet of all his Majeſties Royall Burghs, doth moſt properly pertain. And as to the ſaid Aeneas they complain.

1mo. That he entered into the ſaid Office of Clerk as conjunct with Sir James Rochead, and now injoyes the ſame by the ſole benefice of an unwarantable ſurvivance, which was granted by the then Magiſtrates to the prejudice of the true liberties of the Brugh.

2ly During his being Clerk he has neglected the Regiſters & Records of the Brugh which are for the moſt part left be hind unfilled up & ſome of them for ſo long a time, that they are in hazard to fall in diſuſe: as firſt the Dean of Gilds Regiſter of the locked Book which was begun in the 1487 Years, and ever ſince continued untill the Twenty fourth of February 1669. hath ſince that time been altogether neglected, & tho' there be Scroll Books & Minus made by the under-Clerkes from the ſaid 24. of February 1669. to this day Yet the foreſaid Regiſter and locked Books are not filled up, but have been at a ſtand ſince the ſaid year 1669. And theſe ſcroll Books are altogether vitiat, and cannot make faith, being all interlined, and many things written upon the Margin.

3ly, There is no Regiſter at all keeped of Jedges and warrands for bounding of Lands within Burgh, albeit their are ſeveral Acts of the Town Council appointing an Regiſter to be exactly keeped of all the ſaids Jedges, and warrands granted by the Dean of Gild and his Council.

4ly, The Regiſter of Decreets, whereof the Records are extant, and in good order from the third of March 1569 to the 28 of August 1677, have ſince that time been altogether ſlighted, & no Decreet Regiſtrate & booked as it ought to be.

5ly, The Regiſter called, the Council Regiſter, and continued with great care from the 1557 to December 1691. is ſince that time now by the ſpace of three or four years unfilled up, and nelected.

6ly. The Regiſter of Diſpoſitiones and Bonds is carried on very exactly from the 1561 to the 1690, but ſince that time is likwiſe unfilled up, and there are alſo Books of Diſpoſitions from the firſt of January 1678. And to the year 1686. But all of them incompleat, & brought no farther forward than the ſaid year 1686

7ly. There are Acts of Town Council moſt confuſedly & indiſtinctly, & in appearance falſely recorded, as particularly, the Act of the Town Council the Day of July 1690 years anent a Bond of three Thouſand pound Sterling granted anent the Earle of Melvill, which is begun with one hand, and continued with another: And neither coherently, or at all agreeable to what was reſolved in the ſaid Town Council about that Bond. viz. That it ſhould be given for the impoſition which was not then obtained, and not for the pittiful Cauſes therein ſet down. And the ſaid Act is alſo vitiat, and hath words delete in the end, and other words viſibly added, and which overrun the Provoſts ſubſcription, all which is manifeſt to ocular Inſpection.

8ly, the ſaid Aeneas hath not obſerved but broken the Truſt the Town repoſed in him, in ſo far as Mr William Stirling Writer did upon the third of September, 1690 Years, give a note under his hand, wherein the ſaid Aeneas Mcleod and his Servant John Duncan are witneſſes, wherein he obliges himſelf to make payment to the Tackſmen of the Towns impoſition of the the two pennies of Exciſe owing by Widow Lawries Brewarie for the ſpace therein contained, and declare, that a Charter which he got from the Magiſtrates of Edinburgh ſhould lye conſigned in their Clerks hands till he ſatisfied the ſame. And yet the ſaid Charter is given up to Mr William Stirling upon the fourth of September thereafter as Mr Stirlings Receipt teſtifies. And the ſaid impoſition was not by him payed conforme to the foreſaid Note

9ly, And the ſaid Aeneas hath farther abuſed his Truſt, and tranſgreſſed the duty of his Office, in ſo far as he hath given out Decreets of the Town Council without any Subſcribed warrand, ſuch as a Decreet of the Town Council of the date the twenty firth day of January laſt by paſt at the inſtance of Maries Chapple againſt James Buchannan Wtight, for which there is no ſubſcribed Warrand.

And laſtly what has been lately done by the ſaid Aeneas as to Mr. Duncan. Robertſons affair, and how he neglected and deſpiſed the order of the Committee of Parliament, is beſt known to the Committee before whom that matter is depending. By all which it is manifeſt that not only the Towns Rights and Liberties are incroached upon and infringed by the foreſaid Aeneas his proviſion and Act of Admiſſion to the ſaid Office, and by the ſaid other Act to which the ſame Relates, but alſo that he has malverſed in his foreſaid office of truſt, for which he ought to be removed and deprived, as alſo the Towns Liberties ought to be reſtored, and the foreſaids Acts to their prejudice reduced and reſcinded, and all ſurvivances for hereafter perpetually Diſcharged.

May it therefor pleaſe your Grace, and the Right Honourable the Eſtates of Parliament, to grant warrand to cite the ſaid Aeneas upon forty eight hours warning, he being within the Town of Edinburgh, to compeat before your Grace and Lordſhips, to hear and ſee the premiſſes verified, and proven, and himſelf deprived and decerned to remove from the ſaid office & to deliver up the whole ſeals Regiſters and others that belong thereto, as alſo to reduce and reſcind the foreſaids Acts of Council, and to declare ſurvivancies and gifts of the ſaid Office, to be unlawfull, and to diſcharge the ſame in all time coming; according to Juſtice and Your Grace and Lordſhips Anſwer.