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Scottish Court of Session Decisions >>
Merchants and Guild-Brethren of the Town of Stirling, v The Deacon Conveener of the Trades. [1697] Mor 1916 (8 January 1697)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/scot/cases/ScotCS/1697/Mor0501916-057.html Cite as:
[1697] Mor 1916
The Privileges of Burghs and Burgesses. - Monopolies.
Merchants and Guild-Brethren of the Town of Stirling, v. The Deacon Conveener of the Trades
Date: 8 January 1697 Case No. No 57.
Tradesmen, although burgesses, are under prohibition by statute, to carry on merchandise, within burgh, unless they first renounce their craft.
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Philiphaugh reported the mutual declarators between the Merchants and Guild-brethren of the town of Stirling, on the one part, and the Deacon Conveener of the Trades on the other. The question arose upon one Cuthbert, a skinner, keeping a merchant shop, not for selling of skins, but for retailing of brandy, raisins, and other sorts of merchant wares; the Dean of Guild and his brethren having fined him, the trades raised a declarator, that any free craftsman might exercise any sort of merchandise within burghs; and the merchants repeated their counter declarator, that none within burghs royal could vend and retail staple commodities, such as wine, wax, silks, spiceries, wald, &c. but only merchants and guild-brethren. The tradesmen founded their declarator, first, On the old acts of Parliament, as act 84, Parliament 1503; act 107, 1540; by which all burgesses of royal burghs, without distinction, whether merchants or tradesmen, may exercise merchandise, by trading in native commodities, and may retail foreign goods, providing they buy them from merchants of royal burghs; and, by the late acts of Parliament in 1672, 1690, and 1693, trade is more enlarged, and its extent communicated to all inhabitants within baronies and regalities, they bearing a proportional burden, and relieving the royal burghs of a part of their taxation; ergo multo magis must that privilege pertain to tradesmen-burgesses and indwellers in royal burghs. The merchants declarator was libelled on the 12th act, Parliament 1466; and act 107, 1487, by which tradesmen are expressly prohibited to use merchandise, unless they first renounce their craft; and, by a charter in 1540, from King James V. the guildry of the burgh of Stirling is established with ample privileges.
The Lords having heard this case in presence, sustained the guildry's declarator, and rejected the declarator raised by the trades, who appealed to the Parliament, and protested for remeid of law. See Appendix.
Fol. Dic. v. 1. p. 118. Fountainhall, v. 1. p. 752.
