Scottish Court of Session Decisions

Subject_1 PUBLIC POLICE.

Inhabitants of Kincardineshire

1754, Feb. 12.
Case No. No. 12.

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The Commissioners of Supply, in order to repair the roads in their county, had divided them into four great roads, and finding by experience that taking only the inhabitants in the neighbourhood to make or repair such roads was altogether ineffectual, resolved to repair these roads one after another, so as one should be finished and made sufficient before beginning to another, and to take the work of the whole county to such. But being sensible of the inconveniency and hardship of bringing tenants to a very great distance, at the same time that for a very little money people might be hired that would do the work more effectually, they put it in their power to redeem their own service at a low rate, 1d. per diem for every man, and as much for every horse, except the inhabitants in the neighbourhood of the road to be repaired, and accordingly made an act for enforcing these purposes; which Lord Arbuthnot and other heritors and tenants endeavoured to suspend, chiefly on two grounds; first that it was not made on the third Tuesday of May, in terms of the act 5th Geo. I.; 2dly, that they could not oblige tenants to repair roads at a distance. Answered to the first; By the act 1669, the first Tuesday of May is the day appointed, which is not repealed but ratified by the act 5th Geo. I., and is the usual day when the roads are ordered, being commonly the day of chusing the collector. To the second, That it would be oppressive to oblige tenants to repair roads at a distance, while there were others repairing that lay nearer; but none of the acts limited them not to call the tenants, but what lay near them, or that lay at any certain distance; and such a limitation would be unjust and unreasonable, and in many counties render the repairing the roads impracticable. The different bills of suspension were refused by two different Ordinaries, and one by three Ordinaries; and this day a reclaiming bill was unanimously (as I am told) refused. I was in the Outer-House.