Inveraray Court records (1754)

This page is an extract from Inveraray Court records (1754).

Extract
At Inveraray the Seventeenth day of June (17 hundred) and fifty four years anent the Petition given and presented to Mr. Archibald Campbell, writer in Inveraray, Sherriff Substitute in the Sherriffdom of Argyll for Archibald Campbell of Jura, humbly shewing That where Neil Campbell, master and owner of the Ship called Mary of Glasgow having prevailed on and entered into certain articles with the persons afternamed who are tenants and possessors of the Petitioner’s land and estate here specified; to leave their native country and to transport themselves, wives and children to Williamstoun of Cape Fear in North Carolina ‘animo, remanendi’. That the said tenants being resolved to ship themselves on board the said Neil Campbell’s vessel being ready to receive them and lying in the Small Isles of Jura.

And that on or before the twenty-seventh of June current, notwithstanding they have not legally and timeously renounced and yielded up to the Petitioner their ?receive possessions after specified of Jura Estate, whereby they are not only liable in payment to him of the current year’s rent of their possessions and with the cess and tiends, Due by each of them in the manner after specified:-

Hugh McLean for 1/6 part of lands in Knockrome.
 * Viz

John Cargill 1/6th of land in Knockrome.

John McIlrioch 1/8th of land in Knockrome.

Archibald McCraine for 1/8th in Knockrome.

Alex nd. Mcdougald for another eighth part.

Item:
 * P 2.

Donald Lindsay ¼ part of Lergebreck. Donald Buie smith ¼ part of same Angus McIlrioch 1/8th part of Brosdale. Duncan McGheil 1/8th of Strones. Duncan McArthur 1/8th part of Cracaig. John McDuffie 1/8th part of same. Iver Mackay the Petitioner’s farmer, 1/8th of Cracaig. Dugald McDougald alias Macamoile, ¼ part of Cracaig.

Donald Clerk in Keill, ¼ part of Kilernadale. Gilbert Clerk, 1/8th of same. Arch d. Clerk, 1/8th of same. John McIlpheder for one shilling lands in Kilernadale. Donald Black, farmer in Felin for one half of cess there. Gilbert McIlrioch, 1/3rd part of land in Kaims. Archibald McIlrioch, a sixteenth part of Corynahera.
 * P 3.

Extending in whole to the sum of Seventy Three pounds one shilling and eight pence Sterling moneys, And moreover by the forenamed tenants their relinguishing and deserting their possessions at such an unseasonable time as this of the Year The Petitioner will be under the necessity of keeping up the neigh-

Neighbourhood with the other possessors of the said Lands to prevent the ?laniens becoming totally Waste Whereby he must necessarily deburse the sum of Sterling money And Seeing the Petitioner is willing to depone That the whole fore named Tennants are now ‘in Meditatione fugae’ by their being about to go to Cape Fair as afores d ‘animo remanendi’ Whereby the Petitioner will be utterly frustrated not only by the payment of the rents and others Justly due by each of them to him in manner before mentioned But will also suffer the foresaid Damages in keeping up neighbourhood unless his Lordship would grant Warrant in manner and to the effect underwritten Praying therefore it might please his Lordship in Consideration of the premises to receive the Petitioners Oath, That the forenamed persons are in ‘meditatione fugae’ and therefore to grant his Warrand and authority Not only for arreasting and sequestrating the forenamed Persons their Goods Gear Effects Crofts and Debts but also for Apprehending and Incarcerating their persons within The County Gaol, Ay and while they find in decreit Caution and Severly Enacted in the Sherriff Court books of Argyle for the due pay t. to the Petitioner of the Rents and others due to him as aforesaid And any sum or sums he shall happen to spend in keeping up Neighbourhood as aforesaid According to Justice and his Lordship’s Answer. As the said Petition signed by the said Archibald Campbell petitioner bears All Moving of the said petition in presence of the Sherriff Substitute foresaid upon the day and date of this presents Compeared the above Archibald Campbell the Petitioner who being solemnly sworn, Deponed that the whole persons complained upon have entered into a contract with the within Neil Campbell to transport them and their families to Cape fair in America And that they are actually preparing to ship themselves aboard the said –
 * P4.

-said Neil Campbell’s ship which is now lying to receive them at the small Isles of Jura, And this was the truth as he should answer to God, As his Oath and Deposition subscribed by him and the Sherriff Substitute foresaid bears. Which Petition above insert given in for the said Archibald Campbell Petitioner with his Oath and Deposition omitted thereon above insert being upon the day and date of thir presents, read in presence and Considered by the Sherriff Substitute fores d. He granted and hereby grants warrant to the Officers of Court and their assistants To apprehend the persons of the severall people complained upon in the said petition, And to incarcerate them within the Tolbooth of Inveraray, Therein to remain Ay and while they find sufficient caution as accords And in the mean time Granted and hereby grants Warrants for Arreasting and Sequestrating their Effects until such Caution is found as aforesaid. And Appointed and hereby Appoints the Petitioners to serve each of them with a copie of his article of the complaint. As a signature thereanent bears, Extracted upon this and the four preceding pages by James Smith Clk Dpty
 * P 5.


 * Notes

Animo remanendi    Settled will or minds made up – a legal term. Meditatione fugae   Another legal term for those with an intention to move outwith the jurisdiction of the courts. This provision in Scottish law still exists and permits the imposition of sequestration orders on bank accounts etc. when people are about to flee the country with outstanding legal or financial affairs unresolved. Cess: 	A tax on land payable to the Crown, collected annually by landlords from tenants in proportion to their landholding. Teinds: 	Originally a tenth part of the assessed annual income from a landholding payable to the Church. After the Reformation, these payments reverted to the Crown which in turn granted them to landowners. In addition, the tenancy agreements with the landowner included a physical contibution of produce or a sum of money in lieu (the feu duty). Thus ‘one hen and one dozen of eggs’ was assessed at 5d. A ‘kain wedder’ (rent in kind of a castrated ram) at 1/8d – a shilling and eightpence (Archibald McIlrioch). But inconsistently, Donald Black pays 3s/4d for one and Donald Clerk, 6s/8d for two. Four hens and four dozen eggs cost Dougald McDougald 1s/8d which is consistent, being @ 5d. per hen and eggs. Decrete	 Simply means a legal decision. Feu                           From where the word ‘feudal’ arises; a system introduced by the  Normans which originally comprised military service, but became an additional rental on leased land payable to the landlord in place of the obligatory military service at the landlord’s whim. On Jura, it replaced the traditional clan loyalty and clan common ownership of land which existed before the arrival of, and exploitation by, the Campbells. Feu duties were only abolished in Scotland in 2004.

Comments
This was quite a long document listing each individual’s alleged money/goods owed to Archibald Campbell of Jura, presented in Inverary before a different Archibald Campbell, writer (lawyer) acting as sheriff – (judge), in Inverary, and alleging that the named Jura residents were escaping to America in a ship captained by a third Campbell, Neil Campbell. The details of each individual’s accounts, alleged owing, are not transcribed, but each is alleged to owe rental, cess, teinds and some farm produce or money– the ‘feu’, in varying amounts. The ‘one shilling’ of land is an old way of designating land area and was related to the assessment of ‘feu’ payable. Scott Buie has recorded all these names in his book. James Smith, deputy clerk who wrote the document and signed each page separately, wrote very legibly.

Source

 * Lindsay D Neil, June 2004.