Broadside showing a letter from Lady Boghall to Nicol Mushet

Transcription

A true Copy of a Letter Tent by the Lady Boghall to her Son Nicol Mushet, Prisoner within
the Tolbooth of Edinburgh, for the Murder of his own Wife.

NICOL,                                                    At Boghall, 21. NOVEMBER 1720.

I CANNOT now in writing give you such Expressions of Affection, as I formerly
used, for you have by your Wicked and Abominable Crimes, made me ashamed an for-
ry to own the Relation of a Mother to you. Woe is me that ever I should have Born
and Nursed up such a Rebellious Son, that has not only been Unnatural many ways to me,
and set Light by all my Admonitions and Reprooss ; but has now added tins Grievous and
Horrid Sin to all former Debaucheries, to put Hand, in so Unnatural and Barbarous a Manner,
in your own Flesh, and Murder the Wife of your Bosom. You are now in GOD'S Righte-
ous Judgment for all your Sins, which are Naked and Open in his Sight, brought into a Prison,
and expecting the Deserved Punishment of your Unparalled Barbarity: It is not Time to Flatter
your self with Thought s of Escaping the Stroke of Deserved Justice, by placing Advocats to
Psead in your Behalf, and Denying the Fact before the Judges. Let Josuah's Words to Achan
be duly pondered by you, and give Glory to GOD by a Full, Free and Ingenious Coefession ;
and instead of Contriving Ways to Save your Natural Life, see that you Spend, what a [ ]
Inch of your Time now Remains, in a Solemn, Serious, Preparation tor Death. Consider I
Beseech thee, Oh ! poor Misfortunate Wretch, thy lost Estate by Nature, the Unmortified
Wickedness that is in thy Heart, to which thou has given such loose Reins, how fearfully thou
has provoked the Holy and Righteous GOD to Wrath against thy poor Soul, by, Trampling
on his Holy Law, and Despising all his Holy and Righteous Admonitions, Warnings and Re-
proofs, sinning against so much Light, Means and Mercies, and that to Enormously shewing
that thy only Pleasure and Delight was in Doing the Works of the Devil, and Reproaching thy
Maker, by Sinning presumptoutly against him. Surely if ever the LORD give thee a Right
Sight of thy Self in Mercy, thou wilt see thy self to be the Chief of Sinners. But, Oh ! I fear
thou art far from such a Sight of thy Miserable and Dangerous Condition ; thou hast indeed
brought me low by many Sad Courses of Wickedness, but that which Troubles me most goes
nearest my Heart, now Sunk into a Benummedness with many Multiplied Sorrows, is that when
I was with you, I saw so small Signs of your being any Way Sensible of the greatness of your
Wickedness, and no Evidence of Godly Sorrow and True Repentance. Oh ! Nicol think of
it in good Earnest, how near you are to the Pit of Distruction, how few Days will Land your
poor Soul in that Burning Lake of Fire and Brimston, if an Ocean of Infinite Mercy and Grace
prevent it not, if the Precious. Blood of CHRIST, the LAMB of GOD that takes away the
Sins of the World, be not applyed to your poor Guilty Soul, to Wash away the Dreadful Slime
of all your Hainous Sins, and particularly that of Blood Guiltiness ; and does thou think,
thou, O Deluded Wretch, to get this Mercy without being heartily concerned for it, without
Deep and Inseigned Repentance. It may be, Nicol, ye are Concerned for the outward Misery
and Misfortune ye have Involved your Self into, and that Ignominious Death that ye must Sur-
fer as the Condign Punishment of this your Crime; but alas what is all that to the Wrath of an
Incensed GOD,which ye must bear through all Eternity, if GOD whose Rich in Mercy, upon your
Repentance, and Flieing to CHRIST prevent it not, all that you have to Suffer from the Hard
of Man, is just Nothing in Comparison of that Wrath. O let the Consideration of this
throughly Affect your Heart, and be Earnest in Supplication to the LORD for Grace to Repent
and Believe in the LORD CHRIST for Pardon; what a Comfort would it be to me to Hear
that you had got a Right Sight of your Sins in Mercy, I would bear the Indignation of the
LORD, in this astonishing Calamity that has befallen me in my old Age, and is like to bring my
Gray Heirs to the Grave with Sorrow, I would bear it, I say, with Patience, yea, with Joy,
if Joy could enter such a Disconsolate Heart as mine, if I had any just Ground of Hope of
your poor Souls Well-being. I dare not have one With that you should Escape the Hand or
justice from Man as to your Body, for I fear it would be no Mercy to you, tho' such a Thing
were possible to be obtained. But my Heart's Desire and Prayer to GOD for you, is That
you might get a Saving cast of tree Grace to Work in you, Real, Godly Sorrow for all your.
Bloody and Hainous Crimes, that your Spirit might be Saved in the Day of the LORD, tho'
your Flesh be justly Destroyed,and that as you have been Eminent for Disnorouring the LORD
by your Sin, you might be a Wonder of the Riches of Free Grace and Mercy in being plucked
as a Brand out of the Fire, and as a poor loft Sheep plucked by the Shepherd out of the Jaws
of that Devouring Lyon the Devil, but tho' I and all the Christians that ever heard of you
should Pray for this, if you be not hearty in seeking it your self, and get CHRIST placed as
your ADVOCAT and Interceslor at the Fathers Right Hand, you need never look to obtain
it, or then be Earnest with the LORD about this Matter, and fee that ye make this your one
Thing, arid give Glory to GOD by an Upright Confession of all your Sins, take Shame to
your Self that he may have Glory, and cast your self at the Feet of his Glorious MAJESTY,
begging Mercy through our LORD JESUS CHRIST, whose Blood only washeth the Penitent
and "Broken-hearted Believer from all Sin. The LORD himself give you Grace to Concider
what I say, that I be not a Witness against you in that Day, when you stand before the Tri-
bunal of the Righteous Judge of all the Earth; it may be this may be the last Advice you shall
over have from your Afflicted, Sorrowful and Disconsolate Mother.

JEAN   MUSHET.

EDINBURGH, Printed by Mm Btown in Forrester's-Wynd:   1720.

previous