A PROCLAMATION, Obliging Heritors and Masters, for their Tennants and Servants.
Forasmuch, as notwithstanding of the many good Laws and Acts, made in Our Parliaments and Privy Councill, for securing the Protestant Religion, the Order and Unity of the Church, and the Tranquillity and Peace of the Kingdom, many do obstinately continue, through ignorant prejudice, or dissaffection, to withdraw from the publick Worship, and to frequent House and Field. Conventicles, which We have so often declared to be the Nurseries of Schisme, and Rendezvouses of Rebellion, tending to debauch Our Subjects from that Reverence due to Religion and that obedience they owe to Our Authority; And Considering, that these Offenders take encouragement from their supposing a Remisseness in the due and vigorous Execution of Our good and wholsome Laws and Acts provided against them: Therefore, We, with advice of the Lords of our Privy Council, in pursuance of Our late Proclamation, dated the eighteenth day of June, 1674. years, commanding all Heretors, Landlords, and Liferenters, to require their Rentallers and Tennents, to subscribe the Bond thereto subjoined; and of the seventh Act of the second Session of our second parliament, whereby all Our Subjects were discharged to separate or withdraw from the established Meetings for Divine Worship, Declaring, That every person who should absent themselves, without a reasonable Cause, to be allowed or disallowed by the Judges and Magistrates therein mentioned, should, if they had any Land in Heretage, Liferent, or proper Wod-set, pay the fifth part of his or her valued yearly Rent every Tennent six pounds, every Cottar or Servant, fourty shilling; As also, of the sixth Act of the same Parliament, all Our Subjects were prohibited to cause baptize their Children by any, save their own Paroch Minister, or such as are authorized by the established Government of the Church, &c. Declaring that the Parent offender, should pay the fourth part of his valued Rent, if an Heretor, Liferenter, or proper Wod-setter; fifty pound, if a Tennen twenty pound, if a Cottar; half a years fee, if a servant. As also, of the thirtie fourth Act of the first Session of our first Parliament, discharging a our Subjects to procure themselves to be married by Jesuites, Priests, deposed or suspended Ministers, or any others not authorized by Law: Each Nobleman, under he peralty of one thousand pounds; each Barron, one thousand merks; each Gentleman and Bargess, five hundred pounds; and each other person, of one hundred merks scots: And in pursuance of the other Laws and Acts thereanent provided, Do with advice foresaid hereby require and Command all Masters of Families, to cause the Chamberlains, Grieves, Domestick servants, and others entertained by them, give due and exact obedience to the foresaids Acts; and in case of their disobedience, to remove them out of their service, under the paines and penalties contained in the saids Acts: Like as, We strictly require and command all Heretors, Liferenters, Wed setters, and Landlords, to require their Rentallers and Tennents, to subscribe the Bond hereunto subjoined, authorizing them hereby to raise Letters to charge them for that effect, upon six dayes, and to denounce and registrate them to Our Horn; if they be Tennents who have Tacks; and if they be moveable Tennents, that they shall upon their disobedience, recover Decreets of Removeal and Ejection against them. Also We do hereby discharge the saids Heretors, Liferenters, Landlords, &c. to set their Lands hereafter to any person, by word or write, without inserting the foresaid Surety in their Tacks, and taking Bonds apart, in case there be no written Tacks, that their saids Tacksmen, Ren [...] ers, and others, their Hynds, Cottars and others, wo shall live under them in the saids Lands, shall give obedience in manner foresaid: And in case of their disobedience, that their Rights, Tacks, and Possessions, shall be void and null ipso facto, without any Declarator to passe thereupon. It is likewise hereby declared, that if any Cottars or Servants, for whom the Rentallers or Tennents stand bound, shall be found guilty, by transgressing the fore saids Laws and Acts, the respective Masters shall have their Relief off the saids Contraveeners. And it is further declared, that all Masters of Families, Landlords;and Heretors, who shall not give punctual obedience, they shall be lyable in the same pains and penalties due by the Contraveeners; but prejudice alwayes of proceeding against the Contraveeners, and inflicting upon them the pains contained in the saids Acts of Parliament; and seeing the single and Liferent Escheat, of such as live within Regalities, belong to the respective Lords thereof, We no wayes intending to prejudge the civil Rights of Our Subjects, do allow them to have the benefit thereof, according to Law: But with advice foresaid, do strictly charge and command them to use exact diligence against the Contraveeners of the foresaids Laws, within their respective Jurisdictions; with certification, that if they prosecute them not without collusion, within thirty dayes after their Delinquence, We will call them before Our Councill and punish them for the neglect of their duty. It is hereby declared, that this presents shall no wayes derogat to the former Proclamation, obliging Heretors and others for their Tennents, Cottars, and others, but that the same shall stand, and continue in full force, strength, and effect, to all intents and purposes. And that these presents may be notified to all concerned, OUR WILL is herefore, and We charge you strictly and command, that incontinent, these Our Letters seen, ye pass to the Mercat Cross of Edinburgh, and other places needful, and there, with all due Solemnity, in Our Name and Authority, by open Proclamation, make Publication thereof: And for the better Execution of these presents, We require the several Sheriffs, and their Deputes, with all possible diligence, to cause read and publish the same upon a Sabbath day, at the several Paroch Kirks, within the bounds of their Sheriffdomes, albeit some of these Paroches may belong to other Jurisdictions, intimating to the Heretors and others foresaids, that they cause their Tennents subscribe these Bonds, and report the same to the respective Sheriffs or their Deputes, who are ordered to return to Our Privy Council an account of the diligence within the Bounds reported to them by the Heretors and others foresaids, within the spaces following, viz. The Sheriffs of the Sheriffdomes of Edinburgh, Haddingtoun, Berwick, Roxburgh, Selkirk, Peebles, Lanerk, Linlithgow, Stirling, Dumbarton, Renfrew, Pearth, and Forfar, betwixt and the second Thursday of November next, and the Sheriffs of the remanent Sheriffdoms within this Kindom, betwixt and the second thursday of December thereafter. And ordains these presents to be printed and published, that none pretend ignorance. According to Justice, as ye will answer to Us thereupon. The which to do, We commit to you conjunctly and severally, Our full power by these our Letters, delivering them by you duely execute and indorsed again to the Bearer.
GOD Save the King.
Followes the Tenour of the Bond.
I do hereby bind and oblige me, that I, my Wife, Children in my family, Cottars, and servants, shall not withdraw from Publick Divine Worship, in our respective Paroch Churches, but shall attend the publick Ordinances there, at the ordinary Dyets thereof, under the pains and penalties contained in the seventh Act of the second Session of His Majestie's second Parliament; Which is sx pound scots for every Tennent, and fourty shilling scots for every Cottar or servant: As also, that neither I nor they shall contraveen the sixti Act of that same second Session of Parliament, in having any children of ours baptized with any save our own Paroch Ministers or others lawfully authorized, conform to the said Act, under the penalty of fiftie Pound scots, for every Tennent, and twenty pound for every Cottar, toties quoties. And that neither I nor they shall be married by Ministers not lawfully authorized, contrary to the thirtie fourth Act of the first Session of His Majestie's first Parliament, under the penalty of one hundred merks, toties quoties. And that I, my Wife, and my children in my Familie, Cottars, and servants, shall not be present at any Conventicles, either in houses or in the fields, under the penalties contained in the Acts of Parliament and former Proclamation of Councill. Consenting, for the more security. these presents be insert and registrate in the Books of Privy Council, that Letters and Executorials may be direct hereupon, in form as effeirs. And constitutes, My Procurators, &C.
EDINBURGH, Printed by the Heir of Andrew Anderson, Printer to His Most Sacred Majesty, 1677.