Judicial Proceeding, 10 December 1700, Edinburgh

Att Edinburgh The Twenty fifth day of June J^aj vii^c years

A1700/6/29

A1700/6/29¹

Decreet

Decreet His majesties Advocat Against Hugh Patersone and James Watson

Anent The Lyble or Letters of Complaint Raised and persued Before His Majesties high Commissioner and the Lords of his Majesties privy Councill at the Instance of Sir James Stewart His Majesties Advocat for his highness Interest in the matter underwritten, and by their Speciall order. Making mention That where by the Laws and acts of Parliament, And particularly by the act James the First, Parliament Second, Chapter Fourty Three, It is ordained That all Leiseing makers and tellers of them That may Engender discord Betwixt his Majesty and his people shall be therfore Challanged and tyme life and goods to his Majesty which by the ² act of Parliament, James the Fifth parliament Sixth, Caput Eighty Three Is Extended to those who make any Evill Information of his Majesty, To his Barrons and Leidges, That they be punished in Sick manner and be the same paines as they that make Leisings to his Majesty of his Lords Barrons and Leidges Likeas by the act of Parliament James the Sixth parliament Eight Cap: one Hundered and Thretty Four, It is Statute That none of his Majesties Subjects of whatsomever degree or quality presume or take upon hand To utter any false Slanderous or untrue Speeches, To the disdain Reproach and Contempt of his Majesty His Councill and proceedings, or to the dishonour, hurt or prejudice of his majesty, or to midle in the affairs of his Majesty, and his Estate under the paines Contained in the act of parliament, against Makers and Telles of Leiseings, Certifieing the Contraveeners therof or them that hears such Slanderous Speeches and Reports not the same with diligence the said paynes shall be Execute against them with all Rigor, And by the Act of Parliament, James the Sixth parliament Tenth, Cap: Tenth, It is Statute That all his majesty’s Subjects Content themselves in quiet and dutifull obedience to his Majesty and his authority, and That none of them presume, To take upon hand to Speak or write any purpose of Reproach or Slander of his Majestys person, Estate or Government or to Misconstruct his majesties proceedings, wherby any dislikeing may be moved, betwixt his Majesty and his nobility and loving Subjects in tyme comeing, under the pain of death, Certifieing them that does in the Contrair, They shall be repute as Seditious and wicked Instruments and Enemies to his Majesty and the Common well of this Realm, which acts are all Ratified by the Act James the Sixth, Parliament Fourteenth, Cap: Two Hundered and Five, with this addition That whoever hears the Saids Leisings and Slanderous Speeches or writes, and apprehends not the authors therof, If it be in his power, or Reveals not the Samen, The hearer, and not apprehender The Concealer and not Revealer of the Said Leising makers and authors of the Said Slanderous Speeches or writes shall Incurr the like payne as the principall offender, And Furder by the act of Parliament Queen Mary, Parliament Fifth Cap: Twenty Seven It is Statute That no printer presume to print any book, Ballads and others untill the same be seen and Examined, And a license hade from his Majesty for Imprinting therof under the payne of Confiscatione of all the printers Goods and Banishing him off the Realm for Ever, Which act of Parliament was by Two acts of his Majesties privy Councill, in the years J^aj vi^c nynty seven, and J^aj vi^c nynty nyne duely Revived, That all printers might for thereafter Take notice therof. Nevertheless It is of verity, That Hugh Patersone, Apothecary, and James Watson printer, Both Burgessess of Edinburgh, Shaking off all Regaird to the forsaids Laws and acts of parliament and to the honour of his Majesties authority and Government, and to the peace and quiet of this Realm, have lately upon ane or other of the days of Aprile or May last bypast or June Instant Contraveened and Transgressed the forsaids Laws and acts by making and uttering or least Concealing the author and dispersing False and Slanderous Speeches and writes to the Reproach of his Majesty and Misconstrueing his proceedings to the Engendering of Discord, Betwixt his Majesty and his people, and to the moving of Mislike betwixt him and his Subjects. In so farr as, The Said Hugh Patersone hath made or least Concealing as said is) disposed or Caused to be dispersed, Two most Scandalous Pamphlets, one Entituled. Scotlands Greiveances Relating To Darien etc humbly offered to the Consideration of the Parliament and the other a Short Speech prepared by a worthy member to be Spoken in Parliament, Concerning the present state of the nation, In the First wherof There are Severall Expressiones and Reflectiones to the Reproach and dishonour of his Majesty and his proceedings and to the Engendering of discord and moveing of dislike, betwixt his Majesty and his people which are here Referred To and held as Repeated out of the Said Pamphlet present in the Clerks of his Majesties privy Councill Their hands And in so far a pairt of this Lyble where also upon the pretence of ane alleadged delay of what the author Judges to be duty, There are These words page Nynth, If we Cannot have Such Injuries Redressed we hade as good Send our Coronation oath and Claim of Right to his Majesty of England in a present and Tell him That hence forward we will become his most obedient Slaves and vassalls and will hang our selves, when Ever he shall be Graciously pleased to send us a Letter. and a Bowstring for that End, And in the Second after Complaint of some alleadged Injuries said to be done by his Majesty and Evill Councellors, There are Likeways Severall Reproachfull Speeches And particularly page Eight, These horrible words, what shall I say of a man who without any other Character to protect him, Then such as to the outmost aggravates his Cryme, Is at the Root of all the mischeiff That hath or is like to Fall upon this nation, who Is it That haveing the Right To destroy such ane one, wherby not only Every one from the highest to the Lowest, appears to be Exposed to the outmost violence, But all Government Cast up, and the nation Reduced to a plain State of Anarchy and hostile Barbarity, And Farder The Said Pamphlet Containes most nottorious Lyes of Twenty Thousand pound Sterling, sent to be Imployed in direct Brybery and Fourty Thousand Pistolls on a Sham plot purposely made to disquiet and Confound in Such manner as can only best be understood from the print it self Both his Majesties Government and the peace of the Kingdom as the said Pamphlet also in the Clerk of Councills hands and herein So far held to be Repeated bears. Likeas The said James Watson Is also guilty of the Transgression of the forsaids Laws In so farr as he at or about the tyme forsaid did print or cause print and disperse another Small pamphlet Coppied out of the Said Pamphlet Called the Greivances and Intituled The People of Scotlands Groans and Lamentable Complaints poured out before the high Court of Parliament wherin besyde the Manifest Tenor and Tendency of the said paper, also in the Saids Clerks hands and here also had as Repeated, To the moving dislike and discord, Betwixt his Majesty and his people, The Author under the notion of Two Parents, To the Countrey, wherof he makes the parliament one Says Expressly, That its other Parent is dead, or under a morall Incapacity, And That the people of this Kingdom have been deprived of the Benign Influences of their King, these Hundered years and That our neighbours have hade the politicall fathers of our Countrey under their Command and made them Treat the Same like Enemies and most of all att present, wherby his Majesties authority is as plainly pointed to be that other Parent so heavily Reproached as if his Majesty hade been named, And Furder The Said James Watson being a printer hath printed the forsaid Pamphlet without license Contrair to the said act of Parliament and Acts of Councill abovementioned, By all which the saids Hugh Patersone and James Watson are guilty as actors airt and pairt of the Transgression of the forsaid Laws and acts of Parliament or ane or other of them, which being proven, They ought to be punished in their persones and Goods as the Lords of his Majesties privy Councill, shall Judge meet, To the Example and Terror of others, To Committ the like in tyme Comeing. And Anent The Charge given to the Saids Lords of privy Councill att ane certain day bygone, To have answered to the Grounds of the above Complaint, And to have heard and seen such order and Course taken theranent as appertaines under the pain of Rebellion with Certification etc as the said Lyble and Executiones therof, at more length bears. Which Lyble or Complaint being this day Called, In presence of his Majesties high Commissioner and Lords of privy Councill, And The Lord Advocat and Sir Patrick Home his Majesties Solicitor Compearing personally as persuers, and the saids Defenders Compearing also both personally with Mr James Forrester Advocat for the Said Hugh Patersone and Mr John Spotswood Advocat for the said James Watson, The Lyble Being Read, And The Said Lord Advocat Having declared That he Restricted his Lyble to ane arbitrary punishment, The Commissioner and Councill having Considered The Lyble with a Petition given in for the said Hugh Paterson and a memoriall given in for the said James Watson, And That both the saids Defenders Craved pardon and did Cast themselves upon his Majesties mercy, And having Considered the Judiciall acknowledgements and Confessiones of both pairties defenders Subscribed be them written upon the Back of the Lyble, His Majesties high Commissioner and the Lords of his majesties privy Councill Finds the points and articles of the Said Lyble Sufficiently proven against both the saids defenders, according to their saids acknowledgements and Confessiones (And it having gone to the vote, whither they should be fyned or banished or both, It was Carried only one of them, And It having ³ gone to the vote, whither That one should be fyneing or Banishment, It was Carried Banishment.) And Therfore His Majesties said High Commissioner and Lords of his majesties privy Councill Have Banished and heirby Banishes The Saids Hugh Paterson and James Watsone, Ten myles from the City of Edinburgh And declares their Banishment to Continue for the Space of year and day after they shall Enter therupon, And Appointes the macers of privy Councill To carry back the saids Defenders prisoners to the Tolbooth of Edinburgh from whence they were brought, And ordaines them to Continue prisoners therein untill the Fifteenth of July next to Come Betwixt and which day Decernes and ordaines them, to give Bond and Find Sufficient Caution acted in the books of his Majesties privy Councill which they accordingly have done That they shall Enter upon their forsaid Banishment at the Said Fifteenth day of July next, And That they shall depairt out of the said Town by the space of Ten Myles distance, And shall not come within Ten myles of the said Town for the Space of a full year and a day next after their Entry upon their forsaid Banishment and That under the penalties Following viz Two Hundered pound Sterling for the said Hugh Paterson and Fifty pounds Sterling for the said James Watson toties quoties in caice or how oft They Shall fail or Transgress any pairt of the forsaid Sentence.