let, within the said island, the yearly produce whereof, (if all la-, boured,) converted at the usual prices of the country, extends to L.29, 18. 94d. Sterling: But, by the said inquisition and deposi tions, it is found that only 15 pennylands, two merklands, and one cowsworth at four merks per pennyland, and four pennylands, one merkland, and one cowsworth at three merks per pennyland, part of the aforesaid lands is at present possessed, the yearly value whereof computed as aforesaid is L.15, 1s. Sterling; and that the remainder now is, and for these 17 years past hath been unpossessed and unlaboured: And it appears further, by the said inquisition and depositions, that the said Captain Moodie has within the foresaid towns 27 pennylands and two cowsworths of lands lying promiscuous and runridge with the aforesaid lands belonging to her Majesty; out of which, and other lands belonging to the said Captain Moodie in the several towns of Melsetter, Northsetter, and Thuraway, within the said island, there is payable to her Majesty of feu-duties, converted as aforesaid, the sum of L,7, 5s. 44d. Sterling: And we beg leave, further to observe to your Lordship, that from the aforesaid depositions it is manifest that very great inconveniences do attend the tenants of her Majesty as well as the said Captain Moodie, by the said waste lands; and that in regard there are few or no houses thereon, and the same are so contiguous and intersected with the lands of the said Captain Moodie they are not capable of any improvement unless divided and enclosed, and houses built thereon, which will require a considerable time, as well as expence and encouragement to tenants to labour the same: And the said island of Walls, lying at a considerable distance from the rest of the Bishoprick of Orkney, the charges of her Majesty's receiver, in collecting the aforesaid payable rents within the said island, must necessarily diminish a great part thereof: And we do hereby humbly acquaint your Lordship, that the said Captain Moodie, to obviate all these inconveniences, and to improve her Majesty's waste lands, and free the Crown of all charge and trouble in collecting the present payable rents, and to secure the payment thereof in time coming, hath proposed to take a grant or lease of all the foresaid lands within the said island belonging to her Majesty, as likewise the feu-duties of his own lands, for the term of 3-19 years, paying to her Majesty's receiver at Edinburgh, yearly for the first 19 years, the full rent of the lands presently possessed, and the amount of his own feu duties as aforesaid; and for the 20th year, and there. after yearly during the remainder of the said term of 3-19 years, the full extent and yearly value of all the said lands belonging to her Majesty within the said island, and his own feu-duties, as proven by the aforesaid inquisition remaining on record in this Court, amounting to L.36, 7s. 1d. Sterling: Which said proposal, considering the circumstances of the case, we are humbly of opinion will be for the benefit and advantage of the Crown to accept, since thereby her Majesty will not only be secured of the rents of the lands presently possest free of all charge, but in time coming receive the rents of lands that have answered nothing to the Crown for these 17 years past; all which, with a grant or lease prepared for her Majesty's signature, according to this our humble advice, is with all humility submitted to your Lordship's great wisdom by J. SMITH. A. MAITLAND. Edinburgh, 18th February 1713. Note. In all the leases of Crow lands in Walls to the Moodies, they were taken bound to put up march stones, and to separate the properties; but this condition of the leases was never implemented. No. XVII. PETITION for ANDREW Ross to the BARONS of EXCHEQUER, and REPORT by the Sheriff-Substitute of ORKNEY thereupon,-Nov. 1672. Unto the Right Honourable the Lord CHIEF BARON, and other BARONS of His Majesty's Court of EXCHEQUER in Scotland, The Petition of ANDREW ROSS, Tackman of the Bishop's Rents of ORKNEY; 1 Humbly Sheweth, That in the year 1755, your petitioner having applied to your Lordships by petition for a nineteen year tack of certain lands, &c. in the parishes of Sandwick, Stromness, and St Ola, which formerly belonged in property to the Bishops of Orkney, and now to his Majesty, and which Iye run-rig and intermixed with the lands of other heritors; and for authorising him to set in tack by publick roup certain other lands in the island of Shapinsay and parish of Holm, which likeways belonged formerly to the Bishops; your Lordships, upon the 3d of March 1755, were pleased to order that the Stewart-depute or substitute of Orkney should see the said petition, and report to the Court with all convenient speed a state of the facts therein set forth, with his opinion what was fit to be done. That in consequence of that order the Sheriff-substitute did report a state of the facts, and give it as his humble opinion, that in order to have his Majesty's property-lands in Orkney improved, and the tenants enabled to pay their rents, the desire of the petition ought to be granted. And your Lordships having, upon the 23d of July 1755 considered the said reports, you appointed your petitioner to apply to the Stewart-depute of Orkney to have the respective lands mentioned in the petition, that lye run-rig, divided as the law directs, and to report their division to the Court without loss of time, taking care in the division that each tenant whose possession lay near the sea should have a just proportion of the sea-shore effeiring to his possession. That as your petitioner on examination found that the division thus appointed to be made could not be completed but at a very great expense, of which he had no certainty to be reimbursed, and as your Lordships were not pleased to signify that, in the event of such division, the tack prayed for by him would be granted, he delayed putting the order above mentioned in execution, and applied to your Lordships by a second petition, setting forth his reasons of delay, and praying a tack of the premises might be granted in his favours previous to the proposed division. On reading of which second petition on the 7th of February 1758, your Lordships declared it as your opinion that no lease should be granted of the lands in question until a division was first made; and that if the petitioner did not forthwith proceed therein, you would give such further orders for dividing the lands as to you should seem meet. And your petitioner having thereafter prayed your Lordships to review your said judgment, you still adhered so far as to declare that the lands ought to be divided before a tack was granted; but at the same time declared you would give orders for payment of the expence of the division. That notwithstanding of the petitioner being thus secured of the reimbursement of what expence he might be put to, yet upon considering that his advance of money must be very considerable in surveying and obtaining a proper and legal division of so very many, perhaps a hundred different parcels of land, scattered here and there in several parishes and islands; that such survey and division would not be fully completed for some years; and that nevertheless until completed the petitioner had no title, but rather was debarred from making the least improvement upon any part of the lands, he thought it most advisable for him not to proceed any farther in that matter. That nevertheless, if your Lordships shall now think fit to grant to your petitioner a nineteen years tack of a small part of the lands whereof he formerly prayed for a tack, lying in the parishes of Stromness and St Ola, he will at his own proper expence procure a legal division thereof from the lands of other heritors wherewith they are interspersed, and become bound to pay the yearly accustomed rent, which, by the rental of the bishoprick, whereof an abstract is herewith exhibited, amounts to 24 barrels, 12 merks butter, 17 meils of malt 12 meils, 4 setteens of oatmeal, L.158, 8 shillings Scots of money, 26 poultry, 7 loads of straw, and 1 fadom of peats. That your Lordships, in order to the better improvement of the King's property lands in Orkney, have, since the commencement of the petitioner's general tack of the Bishop's rents, granted tacks to others of the same nature and duration with that which is now prayed for, particularly to John Erskine, manufacturer in Orknay, Benjamin Moodie of Melseter, and Mr James Tyrie, minister of Sandwick and Stromness. That the said John Erskine, unable to bear the expence of improving the lands of Nether Scapa, with the parks and meadows thereto adjoining, set to him by your Lordships, has subset the whole to different tenants, of whom your petitioner is one; and be has at a considerable expense inclosed that part set to him, with some other small spots of his Majesty's property which are contiguous therewith, extending to about 50 acres ; and proposes, 'if he shall succeed in his present request, to inclose and bring to some account about 50 acres more, which hitherto have yielded little or nothing. May it therefore please your Lordships, to grant to your petitioner a nineteen year's lease or tack of the lands mentioned in the abtract herewith produced, for payment of the rent therein specified, accustomed to be paid therefor by the rental of the bishoprick of Orkney, without prejudice to the tack already granted to the said John Erskine of the lands of Nether Scapa, and parks and meadows, for six years which are yet to run of the said tack. And your petitioner shall ever pray, &c. REPORT by the SHERIFF-SUBSTITUTE of ORKNEY. In obedience to the order of the Right Honourable the Barons of his Majesty's Court of Exchequer in Scotland, of date the 26th day of November 1762, appointing the steuart-depute of Orkney, or his substitute, to inquire and certify what would be the expence of obtaining a proper and legal division of all the Bishop's property lands in the parishes of Sandwick, Stromness, and St Ola, and in the island of Shapinshay and Holm, as mentioned in a petition from Andrew Ross, leassee of the rents of the Bishoprick of Orkney, presented to their Lordships the 3d of March 1755, and what will be the best method of procuring a division of the whole : I, John Riddoch, Sheriff-substitute, do report and certify, That having in the month of May last employed Alexander Aberdeen, surveyor of land, now deceased, to view the several lands before mentioned, and thereafter to give his opinion upon the premisses. He, the said Alexander Aberdeen, after having viewed and inspected accordingly, did give out as his opinion, That the exactest and least expensive method of dividing would be, to survey the corn land and grass ground in each town, to cast up their contents, and to give each heritor his proportion of both, conform to the pennylands he possesses adjoining to the respective farm houses, or as nigh the farm as possible: And that, to the best of his knowledge, the expence that might arise from the surveying and dividing of the whole, and making plans, might amount to betwixt L.220, or L.240 Sterling, if an accurate survey and division is made. No. XVIII. PRICES of ORKNEY PRODUCE from 1801 to 1813. Fiar prices of malt on an average of 9 years, viz. Do. do. Sterling. L. 0 15 34 Do. do. do. 1805 and 1813 and intervening years per do. Do. do. for straw per load 1 4 1 7 73 73 |