Scottish Court of Session Decisions

Subject_1 STIPEND.

M'Auley
v.
Representatives of Kidd

1751, Dec .3.
Case No. No. 7.

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In 1658 a skipper in Queensferry mortified a tenement of houses to the then Minister and his successors in office, which in 1710 was filled by five different poor low families, and all the rent it was proved to have yielded at a time was about L.15 Scots. During the late incumbent Mr Kidd's life it fell totally in disrepair; and the present incumbent Mr M'Auley sues the executors of Kidd to repair the houses, and for damages. But we thought that a common action did not lie even for repairing of manses, or the Popish Clergy would not have suffered their manses to go into disrepair, and the acts of Parliament for remedying the abuse, particularly 8 act 21 Parl. James VI. would have been useless: That this would not fall under the statutes anent conjunct feuars and wardatars, no more than manses, nor could it fall under the laws anent manses, because it was not declared sufficient at Kidd's entry. Therefore they found that no action lies against these executors. But Kilkerran thought that if the houses had been sufficient at Kidd's entry, though no manse for the Minister, he would have been bound to uphold them. Wood-hall only differed, and stated the case of the parish newly erected at Whitburn, where the heritors have bought lands, the rents whereof make up the Minister's stipend, and asked whether the Minister was not bound to uphold them.