Procedure: petition, 31 December 1696, Edinburgh

Att Edinburgh the threttein day of Augwst J^aj vi^c nyntie six antemeridiem

D1696/8/7

D1696/8/7¹

Decreet

Decreit Lady Kininmowth against the Laird therof

Anent the lybell or Letters of complaint raised and perswed at the instance of Mistress Grizell Wallace Lady Kininmowth Mrs Elizabeth Wallace Lady Hallyeards John Skeen younger of Hallyeards her husband for his interest and Margaret Hog servitrix to Kininmouth with concurse of Sir James Stewart his majesties advocat for his hignes interest in the mater wnderwritten Makeing Mentione That wher by the Laws of God nature and nationes And particularly of this realme everie man is bownd to Live bountifullie and civilly with his wife and to aliment and entertaine her in food and cloathing and in all wther necessaries suteable to ther degrie and qwalitie Lykeas in the case of the husbands male treateing and abwseing of his wife by intollerable neglects and injuries wherby She can nether Live qwietly with him nor have any thing for her reasoneable Subsistance The Lords of our privie Counsell have bein allwayes in wse according to the Lawes forsaid to appoint and ordaine to the poor afflicted wife a Just and necessarie aliment Nevertheless It is of veritie that Patrick Kininmouth of that ilk Shakeing of all fear of God and regaird to the comoune Lawes and Dweties of humanitie hath ever Since he maried the Complainer which was in the yeir […] behaved to her most wndwetifully and wnnaturallie not only by withdrawing from the Complainer his affectione as a husband and denying her that intertainment at bed and board which She might have expected from him But by withholding from the complainer her most necessarie Supports of life towitt food and rayment and menaceing threatning and beating the Complainer to the very hazard of her life and keeping and detaining the Complainer in his house as a prisoner Least She might complaine to our Saids Lords or any other as first within a twelve moneth of her said mariadge She was so ill treated by the said Patrick Kininmowth by beatting of her and otherwayes that She was forced to flie from him to her brother the Laird of Craigie for protectione wherupon a Counsell proces haveing bein intented Kininmouwth conscious of his own folly and madnes did apply to Craigie for ane accomodatione with all the protestationes of a more duetfiull mariadge Wherupon a Submissione was Drawen up to indifferent freinds to determine ane yeirly aliment for the Complainer Since ther was no probabilitie of ther peaceable cohabitatione But Kininmounth to eleid this Submissione as he had therby evaded the Councell process prevaills by many Solemne oathes and Secrete emissaries upon the complainer to returne home Wherby both proces and Submission deserted But Kininmounth Judgeing himself no more Secure then formerlie regairds no promise but rageing at a greater rate then ever when the Complainer was brought to bed within Some weeks therefter his abstract from her all things necessarie for her conditione and to be churched he refwised her money so much as for the poor calling her by many approbriows names not to be repeated and beatting and brwiseing her to the effwsione of her blood Sweareing and cuseing that She Should never bed with him which oath is the only oath and promise he hath keeped to the complainer for the Space of Seven or eight yeirs And furder within a fewd others therefter did in a most tempestwows night Shutt her owt of Doors and forced her to take Lodgeing and Shelter at night in a coatt house and Shutt her up in a Locked rowme of designe to Starve the comapliner non of his tenents Darring So much as harboure her and keeped a watch upon her Least She Should make her escape and the next day dragged her back by force to his house and Shutt her up in a Locked rowme of designe to Starve the complainer And yet all this pairtly throw fear and pairtly throw force She was constrained to endure not without some hope that even his own barbaritie might reprove him But on the contrarie he continued Still more wnnaturall and crwell denyeing the complainer all Supports of life or so much as a servant so that the comapliner was constrained to flie a second tyme to her freinds and apply again to the saids Lords which was in the yeir J^aj vi^c and nyntie two But he persewing his former artifice turned Supplicant to the complainers Sister the Lady Hallyeards Solliciteing her to cause the complainer returne And for that end binds himself yeirly to give the complainer a certaine Sowme for cloathes and to mentaine her and a Servant to waite upon her But the complainer being returned upon this assureance mett with no better performance then formerly and was treated with Swch inhumane Severities that She was often destitute of necessarie food And for the most pairt had nether Shoes nor Stockings nor coatt nor Shirt to change another wher by in winter J^aj vi^c nyntie thrie The Complainer contracted a rwmatick feaver which keeped her Serven or eight weeks But he was Still so crwell that he nether allowed the complainer phisition or Servant nor any remedie nor comfort And when he fand the Complainer was recovered and was told by Some persons that regrated the Complainers bad wseage to amend his way he in ansuer Dam him if he would not blow up the Lady meaneing his own wife in mockrie and in his fwrie and madnes ran presently to the window of the house below the rowme wher he thought She was and Shott a pistoll charged with a pairt of Ball throw the Loaft and thws he continwed to treat her most barbarowselie till march Last that She finding away to make a new escape he did most barbarowsely fall upon Margaret Hoge a Servant in the house whom he alleadged to be accessorie to her escape and crwellie beatt her to the effwsione of ther blood Likeas Since the complainers escape foirsaid alswell as befor the complainer hes bein Supplied incloaths and wther necessaries by her sister the Lady Hallyeards to the valwe of Ane Thowsand pund Scotts money which being all profiteable advanced et in rem mariti vesum for Supplieing and releeveing the said Kininmounth of what he himself was obleidged to Doe for his wife ought to be refounded by him with the interest By all which it is evident that the foirsaid Kininmounth is gwiltie airt and pairt of the foirsaid most gross misdemaners towards his own wife As also that he is lyable to the said Lady Hallyeards in the Soume foirsaid And therfor ought not only to be condemned to refound the foirsaid Sowme but also to pay to the complainer yeirly and qwarterly per advance the Soume of […] for her necessarie aliment and Sustinance the Same being but reasoneable his estate her contract of mariadge and most barbarows wseage being all dwely considered And also that he owght to be furder pwnished in his persone and goods to the example and terror of others to commit the Like in tyme comeing And anent the charge given to the said defender to have compeared personally befor the saids Lords of privie Counsell at ane certaine day now bypast to have answered to the grownds of the foirsaid complaint And to have heard and Sein Such order and course² taken them as the saids Lords Should think fitt wnder the paine of rebellione etc As in principall lybell or Letters of Complaint and executiones therof at more lenth is contained Which lybell being upon the twentie third day of Jully Last bypast called in presence of the Saids Lords of privie Counsell And the Said Lady Kininmounth Lady Hallyeards and Margaret Hog thrie of the persewers Compeareing personallie with Sir James Stewart his majesties advocat and Mr Robert Frazer Advocat Advocats for the haill persewers And the said Patrick Kininmounth being Laufullie cited oft tymes called And not Compeareing But Mr Robert Dowglas and Mr George Alexander haveing compeared as advocats for him The Lybell was red and both pairties Lawiers being heard The Saids Lords continwed this affair till the twentie eight of the said moneth of Jully Last Against which day the defenders³ Advocats did undertake to endeavor to prodwce him Wpon the which twentie eight day of Jully Last This actione being againe called, in presence of the saids Lords of privie Counsell and all pairties haveing compeared or continweing absent as above Sett Downe upon the said twentie third of Jully Last The lybell and ansuers therto being read The Lords of privie Counsell admitted the lybell to probatione And the wittnesses present haveing made faith at the barr The Saids Lords appointed a comittie of ther own number to examine them Reserveing all objectiones which could be made against the Saids wittnesses to be proponed and discwst befor the Committie And granted furder dilligence against the absent wittnesses which Comittie haveing accordinglie mett and taken the oathes of diverse and sundrie famous wittnesses who being Solemnly Sworne and interrogat deponed and declaired as ther oaths extant in process bears And the said process being this day advysed be the saids Lords of privie Counsell and ther Lordships haveing considered the depositiones of the wittnesses addwced by the persewer The Lady Kininmounth For proveing her pairt of the lybell with her Ladyships contract of marriage and the Laird of Kininmounth hes informatione being read in presence of the Counsell The Saids Lords of privie Counsell have modified and heirby modifies the Soume of Twelve Hundereth merks to the said Lady Kininmounth as ane yeirly aliment And decerns and ordains the said Patrick Kininmounth of that ilk to make payment to the said Mrs Grizell Wallace his Lady of the said aliment of Twelve Hundereth merks per annwm at two termes in the yeir be eqwall portiones Beginning the first termes payment of Six Hundereth merks instantly as for the terme frae whittsonday Last to Mertimes next And the lyke Soume at that terme and So furth yeirlie and termly in tyme comeing per advance the termes of payment being first come and ygone And ordains the tennents tacksemen and possessors of the said Patrick Kininmounth his estate to make payment of the said aliment at the termes and by the proportions forsaids And Leaves the Lady Hallyeards to perswe for what is dwe to her befor the Judge ordinary as accords in Law And ordains Letters of horning on fiftein dayes and wther executorialls needfull under the Signet of Counsell to be direct heiron in forme as effeirs