Act, 29 December 1692, Edinburgh

Edinburgh the Twentie thrid day of June J^aj vj^c nyntie two years

D1692/6/26

D1692/6/26¹

Decreet

Decreet absolvitor Mr William Black Against Shaw

Anent our soveraigne Lord and Ladies raised before the Lords of their privy Councill at the instance of Mr Adam Shaw Governor to Lauchlan Mcintosh eldest Lawfull sone to Lauchlane Mcintosh of Gurncastle² Lockhart Ther majesties solicitors for their highnes intrest in the matter underwritten³ Mentioning That wheras by the comon law, And lawes of all weell governed nationes and lawes and acts of Parliament of this kingdome, The assaulting and falling upon any persone, Beating bruizing and wounding them to the effusion of their blood, Especially under Cloud and sillence of night, are crymes of ane high natuyre and severely punishable. And it being of veritie That Mr William Black one of the regents of the Collodge of Aberdeen Mr William Smith governer to the Laird of Pittmeden younger, John Gordone of Kingudie younger, And Patrick Hay sone to […] Hay late provest of Pearth, But particularly the said Mr William Black without any Just cause Or occasion haveing coneaved a deadly prejudice and malice against the pursuar Did all he could to creat differences betwixt the Laird of Mcintosh younger and the pursuar his governer, and Young Mcintosh being the said Mr William Blacks Schollar he endeavored what he could to perswade him to disobey his governor and to doe severall injuries to him, That Differences once aryssing betwixt them, he might take Occasione to perswade Mcintosh elder to remove the pursuar from his service, And the said Mr William Black Finding that he could not prevaill to gett the pursuar removed from the service In Respect Mcintosh elder knew that all was bot gross Calumnies that was informed against the pursuar, And that he was a most fitt persone to be governor to his sone, The said Mr William black and the said John Gordon and Patrick Hay his Schollars, and the said Mr William Smith his Cousing german, Did many tymes threatten the pursuar to Doe him a mischeif some tyme or another And in prosecution of their most cruell, Wicked, and Barbarous designes to assassinat and murder the said pursuar Did upon the twentie seventh of January last or one or other of the dayes of the said moneth about six a Cloak at night, assault and fall upon the pursuar as he was goeing out of the said Collodge of Aberdien to a house near by, at least the said John Gordon and Patrick Hay by order and Directione of the said Mr William Black and Mr William Smith with severall others their accomplices Did assault and fall upon the said pursuar and haveing pulled him to the ground and endeavored to strangle him with his Cravat, And gave him many blac and bloody stroaks upon the head face and other parts of the body to the great effusione of his blood and hazard of his Lyfe and would certainly Murdered him upon the place if some persones near by hade not rescued him, And when the nighbours came to take him up, he was found almost dead, And when they held him up a litle he was not able to stand, Bot fell in a swarff, And was so Damished with the Stroaks and bruizes he hade gotten that he was not sencible for a Considerable tyme therafter, and his face was so disfigured by the stroaks he hade gotten, That the persones that found him and brought him into the house did not know him, Albeit they ware of his intimate accquantancie, untill after some tyme that he came to himself and told who he was, and how he hade been used, Wherby the forenamed persones are guilty of ane high and manifast Ryot committed upon the pursuars persones, And ought and should be severly punished in their persones and goods to the terror of others to committ and doe the Lyke in tyme comeing, And more Especially the said Mr William Black whose cryme tho of ane attrocious nature of it self, Is highly agravated in that he is a present regent to whose conduct some of the persones forsaids, ware committed for their good education whom upon the contrair he has debauched to the above pernicious practises, And that against a person who is governour to one of his oun Schollars, And Therfore Deserves a punishment of a higher degree then if he ware a persone of Ordinary Rank without any such publict trust, And Alse Anent the additionall Lybell or Complaint given in be his majesties said solicitor and the said Mr Adam Shaw Against the said Mr William Black mentioning That as farder evidences the said Mr William Black has committed the Crymes Lybelled He is guilty of many Immoralities and malversationes in his office, Such as first that in his publict Discourss when he was admitted regent, he did mantaine a prophane and ungodly principall of scepticisme and the uncertainty of knowledg of all things whatsomever not exepting matters of faith, And he being Challenged for it By Doctor Gordon Doctor of Divinity if it was truely his opinion The said Mr William Black Declared that it was his true sentiment and opinion to the great offence and Scandall of all the hearers. The said Mr William Black a litle after his admission did most contempteously violat the publict order and discipline of the Collodge in so farr as some of the schollars in the said Mr Williams Class Haveing Comitted severall gross Outrages both in the Collodge and toune of Aberdeen They haveing presumed to invade the principles oun house, and shoot pistolls and throw stones in at the windowes and Comitted severall other Insolencies in the toune upon which their being ane at made be the masters of the Collodge and publictly intimat that non that was guilty of these outrages and insolencies should have the benefit of the promotion within the Collodge or receive the degrees, yet notwithstanding the said Mr William Black in manifast contempt of the said act and privatly Laureat one of his schollars that had been notoreously guilty of the saids insolencies without makeing any publict satisfactione or so much as aquanting the principall or regents therof: He did manifastly violat the order of the Collodge, That in respect Mr Robert Forbes late cannonist was valitudinary that the rest of the masters and regents should supply his place of Hepdomadar dureing his Lyfe, And which act and ordinance was subscryved by all the regents and the said Mr William Black among the rest And yet notwithstanding he did most unjustly refuse to supply the said office when it came to his turne and gave no other reasone for it bot publictly said that albeit he was oblidged to doe it by his bond yet he thought no man should be bound by any obligatione which was prejudiciall to him, The said Mr William has Comitted severall insolencies and Outrages in the Collodge by Beatting and wounding of severall of the servants and particularly he did most Crually and barbarously Beatt Alexander Ross under Porter and beatt and wounded James Conquieguid garner to the great effusion of his blood for which he being Challanged by the principall before two of the Regents he was so farr from being sensible of his cryme that he said the only wrong was that he hade not given the said James four tymes more, And that perhaps he would doe so, And that he was not oblidged to give the principalls and masters any account of his actings. Albeit it be expressly provyded be the foundation of the Collodge and is indecent and unbecomeing that any member therof aither publictly or secretly wear a sword dager or other weapons, yet notwithstanding the said Mr William Black to the great scandle and offence of all people is frequently seen Carieing a ponyeard and some tymes a baganett and oft tymes makeing open show therof as if he ware Ready for fights and pleas upon all occasiones. The said Mr William Black is ane ordinar swearer, and he has been found to prevaricat in severall things and particularly in the J^aj vj^c Eightie Eight year Ther being one […] Stewart sone to […] Stewart of Calpney that had entered in the Marishal Collodge, and ther being ane act in the Collodges that no Colled Schollar that enters in the one Colledge should goe to the other, And the said Mr William Black haveing informed the principalls and masters of the kings Collodge that the said […] Stewart had been entred and matriculat in his class, And the masters of the Marishall Collodge being Challanged for receiveing one of the kings schollars students who hade been matriculat in their books, And the Marishall Colledge haveing cleared that the hade been first matriculat in their books, And Mr William Black being questioned how he came to Matriculate the boy as being entered his class for which he hade no warrand from the boyes father he confidently asserted that he hade a letter from the boyes father which was absolutely false, For the boyes father positively refused that he ever wrott any such letter to Mr William Black or that ever he Gave any such order. Albeit it be expressly provyded be the foundation of the Collodge that non of the members shall be gading abroad in the night tyme, yet notwithstanding the said Mr William Black Having privatly procured the key of the back gate he made for his oun use another which he keeped to himself without the knowledge of the principall or publict order of the Collodge he frequently goes abroad in the night tyme and stayes out of the Collodge all night which gives great scandall and is evill example to the students, And his being out of the Collodge at such untimely houres makes him neglect his Schollars So that he keepes not his due tyme in the morning, Albeit be the foundatione of the Collodge the masters are oblidged to be grave in their Converse, and expressly that non should be scoffers and Drollers, And yet notwithstanding the said Mr William Black in his ordinar conversatione, And even in most Serious matters and Collodge meettings Does frequently make use of Scotting and Drollry and Sometymes prophane Rallery, asserting that Whordom is almost as great a Sin is Drunkeness, And that he hade made ane oath never to keep ane oath with many such expressiones to the great offence and Scandall of the wholl Collodge, The said Mr William Black is a persone of very evill report and that he has hade unbeseeming and scandallous conversatione with severall women albeit such intrigs as these cannot be easily proven Which Scandelous reports of the said Mr William is of great prejudice to the Collodge And Anent the charge given to the said Mr William Black Mr William Smith John Gordon and Patrick Hay defenders To have Compeired personally before the Lords of our privy Councill this day to have answered to the points of the above Lybells or Complaints principall and additionall And to have heard and seen such order and Course taken theranent as apertained under the paine of Rebellion etc with Certificatione etc Which Principle Lybel at the instance of the said Mr Adam Shaw against the defenders with the Lybell of reconventione at the said Mr Williams instance against the said Mr Adam being both called in presence of the saids Lords, And the said Mr Adam Comparing Personally with Sir Patrick Home Mr Hew Dalrymple and James Stewart senior advocats And the said Mr William Black and remanent defenders in the principall Lybell The said Mr William Being also pursuar in the reconventione Comparing all personally with Sir James Ogilvie Sir Robert Colt, Sir David Thores, Mr David Dalrymple and Mr James Scougall and William ⁴ Gordone The saids Lords of their majesties privy Councill Haveing Considered the above principall Lybell with the answers made therto with the abovewritten additionall Lybell unsubscryved quherof a Coppie was delivered to the said Mr Black this day to quhich he declared he would give no answers In respect it was no Signed Lybell and the Clamerous points therin nowayes Competent for the Councill Togither with the reconventione and answeres given in therto They Find the said principall and additionall Lybells nowayes relevant before the Councill, And Therfore Refuses to sustaine Proces theron and have assoylzied and heirby Assoylzies the haill defenders therin from the haill points and articles of both the saids Lybells And Fynes the said Mr Adam Shaw in the soume of ane Hundred merks scots to be payed be him to the said Master William Black for his expences and Ordaines letters of horning to be direct at the instance of the said Mr William Against the said Mr Adam Shaw for payment of the same on fiftein dayes and others needfull in forme as effeirs.