, . : , : . " .. IV. • ' ,. RECORE NOTETH N S O D E CIT ROOTH Y F MOSO 1 PERTH DAVIY B . D MARSHALL, F.S. A. SCOT. Having been recently employed by the Magistrates of Perth in arranging the contents of their Record Koom, it has occurred to me that some nptes on.it will'not be. without interest to the members of this Society, considerin importance gth Faie f "eo th r nationa r City,ou n i " l history Recore Th . d Roo ms ai . fire-propf apartment divisionso tw n i , , and exceptionally dry—many of. the papers had at one time, however, suffered from damp—built for the purpose of holding the Records, and is situated on the ground floor, below the Town Clerk's offices, in the municipal buildings. On entering the room one day in September 1894, a glance sufficed to show that it had been long neglected. The floor was littered with papers, and piles of books, boxes, and bags of papers stood all around, while shelves were filled up to the ceiling with a dust-begrimed mass of documents, of which no man knew the character. I was depressed with the extent of- the work to be done, and the slight probability that .it would be completed. As I could not guess how long it would take to reduce the ; papers to order, it was agreed that I should make trial for a month, and have the assistance of. Mr George Fell, city-officer, (who proved a most willing and interested coadjutor in the earlier .stages of the work. 'Our first object was to clear the floor.; and with a liberal .addition to the shelving, a commodious rack for the larger books, .a RECORE NOTETH N SDO CITE PERTHROOF TH 5 YO F 27 MO . "locket-box e curiosth s r thea fo " y were unearthe f whic(o d h seven were ultimately filled),' being speedily provide e Magistratesth y db , this was made possible. Public interes s excitewa t y e noticeb dth f o s progress of the work in the local newspapers, and many of the citizens and others visited the room,—Lord Provost Dewar, in particular, almost daily; and both he and Mr MacLeish, Town Clerk, were most obliging. e calamitouTh s fir f 23ro e d January 1895 whicy b , municipae th h l buildings were destroyed, happilt reac Recorno e hd th ydi d Boom thao ,s t s wa I o oy tw r da powes it a t n testedresisi o t r no flamee d s th tan , wa s permitte resumo t d e operations e winte Th s exceptionall. wa r y severe, but I continued to work on regularly till the end of June, and at intervals since, hot being disposed to leave until the papers which had passed through my hands were in shape; but there is still a remnant untouched, particularly in one of the attics, which it is to be hoped the Magistrate neae th s rmay n i future, , find mean overtakeo st . TOWN COUNCIL EECORDS. These are contained in upwards of thirty folio volumes. The oldest "Greae oth f t Counsell Books" extant larga s ,i e folio beginnin Aprin gi l 1507; but both it and a companion volume, beginning 14th April 1543, and ending 19th September 1684, have suffered irreparable injury from damp. According to an inventory of the Town's writings, which were hande th Johf n si o n Mercer, Town Cler Perthf ko , autho f "o r Mercer' s Chronicle," when he demitted his office in May 1670, they then formed one volume,, ending in October 1668, but on being rebound and interleaved n i mor, e recent timess dividedwa ,d indexean , s a d completel possibls ya e along wit othee hth r volume f Eecordso . e "An Great Counsell Book," included in the. above inventory, beginning in October 1464, and ending in May 1507, cannot now be traced, and, it s fearedi s utterlha ; y perished e ProtocoTh . l Books, Sasine Eecords, Services, &c. cover an-extensive period; they are in good order, and for a mvaluabl e e -featurroom th n earlA f . o . ye printed, copf o y Justinian's Digests of the Roman Laws was one of the " finds " in the . ^ .. ..."... Muniment Eoom. 276 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APRIL 13, 1896. There is a large collection of Royal Charters in favour of the town of Perth, the oldest of the series being one by King William the Lyon about 1210, the authenticity of which the Commissioners appointed to inquire int e Statoth f Municipao e l Corporation n Scotlandsi n theii , r Report published in 1835, found strong reasons to doubt, while, strange to say, they pronounce all the charters of subsequent Kings, several of whom confirm it, genuine ! Of these they give a list, from two Charters of King Rober e Braceth t 131n i ,1318 d Greae 0th an o t ,t Chartef o r James VI., in 1600, confirming all the rights and privileges of the burg f Perthho , includin e content th ge Charteth f so n questioni r y b , King William. The places assigned to the documents recently arranged are indicated printey b d tickets boxeaffixee shelveth d o san t d s thus :— First Boa;.—Writs of Lands in and about Perth, 1483-1803. Second Box.—Miscellaneous papers relative to the City of Perth from 1493, includin Obligation ga f Andrewno , Bisho f Caithnesso p , Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, 1511. Discharges of the Tocher of King James VI., 1589-1593, s daughtehi f o d r an Elizabeth, Quee f Bohemiao n , 1613-1614. Eevolution Settlement. Conventio f Koyano l Burghs. Establishmen e Posth f t o t Office, 1689. Letters of eminent persons during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Censu Perthf so , 1766. &c , Third Box.—Miscellaneous papers relative to the City of Perth :—" Compt Book," 166 o 1673t 0 f Bailio , e Alex. Jamieson, merchan d shipowneran t . Book of Accounts, 1705 to 1713, of Nathaniel Fyfe, merchant, Perth. Tacks of Lands, &c., 1682-1795. Fishing Trade, 1720. Linen Trade, 1723-28. Plans of Newro d Tolboothwan , &c., 1763-64. Lis f Tenantso t , &c. n Perthi , , 1773. Testimonials for Academy, 1779-1830. Labouring Poor, 1826-7, &c. Fourth Box.—Papers relativ Rebellione th o et 1715-1f so 1745-46d 6an . Fifth Box.—Papers of John Glas, 1650-1689, sometime Lord Provost of Pert f Joho h; n Mercer, 1670-1743, Sheriff-Cler Perthshiref o k , with Family Pedigree, 1590-1865 ; Threiplan Fingasf do k; Oliphant^ f Gas Williamsd kan - toun. Division of the estate of Mr James Kamsay, 1713-1736, Minister of the Gospe t Collacea l . &c , Sixth Box.—County Papers, Eoads, Estates, 1672-1788. Writs of the Lands of Pockmyln, Bonhard, SpoutweUs, &c., 1505-1741. Seventh Box.—Melville Trust:—Papers of the Melvilles of Easter Greenside, burgesses of Perth, 1642-1816 ; Gardiners of Easterhaugh of Huntingtower, 1695-1779 ; and Faichneys, burgesses of Perth, 1726-1782, with whom the Melvilles were intermarried, &c. EECOEE NOTETH N SDO CITE PEETHF BOOTH 7 YO F 27 MO . On the Shelves.—Treasurers' Accounts, 1577-1856. The earliest of these are in the Second Box. Bonds, &c., 1627-1710 ; Bonds, &c., 1695-1881; Decreets, &c., 1660-1700 ; Decreets, &c., 1700-1800 ; Sentences, Death Warrants, &c., 1682-1833 ; Claim f Serviceo s , Decreet f Cognitiono e , &c., 1690-1860; Miscellaneous papers, processes, &c., 1700-1800; Council mass (each year's papers) 1800-1890 current; Letters 1810-1866, including letters and papers relativ Queen'e th o et s visi Pertho t t Septemheh 6t , r 184 2; Boar f Healtdo h papers (relativ visitatioe th o et Asiatif no c Cholera) 1831-1835 (interesting). Among the Writs of Lands in and about Perth, 1483-1803, there is a " Back Band" (lette f obligationo r Elizabety b ) h Gray, Countesf o s Huntly, with consen f Alexandero t , Ear f Huntlyo l r spousee he , th o t , Magistrates and Community of Perth, in return for a special licence and tolerance grantes Lordshihi o t d n i connectiop n wit a lanhd an d tenement belonging to her, lying on the east side of the Spey gate, betwixt the lands of the Abbot and Convent of Cupar on the south, the r KoberlandSi f so t northe Vstn th e King' n th ,eo e wests th gat n ,eo and the water of Tay on the east; wherein she binds herself, her heirs, &c., that whe t shalni l happen thaMagistratee th t s buil dwala t thaa l t part of the town betwixt her tenement and the water of Tay, that saie th d wall shal walclosoue d r tenemenb lan he l o yardt d r an t , with licenc e sai th o hav det n i wall ea y "yet ,Ta d passag wite "an th h o et an iron " yet likewis"d upoan , nbuilit o e t d houses upo saie nth d wall, with windows " starklie branderet" (strongly grated) with iron thao s , t e neighbourth e y towhavth ma f neo s free passage upoe th n " battallinhavo t r e time passagwa saie th f th egdo n f r i "wallo efo d an , carts with artiller d otheyan r necessarie e defence townth th r f fo so ,e and the o havyt e libert breao yt e r builwallb khe o tt s contiguouo st the walls of the town, or make sufficient " yets" of largiouv (Fr.