Gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 2

7B2
MONTROSE.
tin inn not many years ago. It was the only
town in Scotland, so late as the commence-
ment of the eighteenth century, where a per-
son could be found who understood the ma-
nagement of pumps in coal works, namely,
John Young, a citizen of Montrose, who had
been sent over to Holland, by the magistrates,
for the purpose of learning the most approved
modes of constructing and using windmills. It
was the first port made by the French fleet
in December 1715, with the Chevalier on
board ; and that prince embarked at the same
place, in February of the following year. One
of the principal events in the recent history of
Montrose, regards an alteration in its municipal
constitution. The set of the burgh formerly
consisted of nineteen members, [seventeen as
representatives of the guildry, and two as re-
presenting the incorporated trades. The old
council elected the new ; and the old and new
elected the office-bearers. But the magistrates
and council, upon the petition of the guild-
brethren and the incorporated trades, granted
to the former the election of their dean, who
became ex officio a member of council ; and
to the latter the election of their two repre-
sentatives in council ; and this alteration in the
set having been submitted to the convention
of royal burghs, for their approbation, was con-
firmed by them in July 1816. Inconsequence,
however, of an informality in the mode of
electing the magistracy at Michaelmas follow-
ing, the burgh was disfranchised by a sentence
of the Court of Session ; and, in answer to a
petition from the inhabitants, a new charter,
with an improved constitution, was granted*by
the crown, in the following terms : — " That
the town-council shall, as formerly, consist of
nineteen persons, including, in that number the
provost, three bailies, the dean of guild, trea-
surer, and the master of the hospital ; of which
nineteen, fifteen shall be resident guild-breth-
ren, and four shall be resident craftsmen, in-
cluding the deacon-convener for the time :
That, at the Michaelmas election, the six
oldest councillors for the time from the guild-
ry, who have not served in any of the offices
after mentioned for the year preceding, and the
whole four councillors from the craftsmen,
shall go out, but shall nevertheless be re-eligible
if their respective constituents shall think fit :
That, upon the Monday of the week immedi-
ately preceding Michaelmas in each year, the
magistrates and council shall meet and declare
the names of the six councillors who go out
in rotation, and also what vacancies have arisen
during the preceding years by death or other-
wise, in the number of guild councillors : That
on the following day, being Tuesday, the guild-
ry incorporation shall assemble at their ordi-
nary place of meeting, and shall first elect their
dean of guild, and six members of the guildry,
as his council for the ensuing year ; and the
person so chosen as dean of guild, shall, in vir-
tue of his office, be a magistrate and councillor
of the burgh ; and the said incorporation shall
then proceed to fill up the vacancies in the num-
ber of merchant councillors, occasioned by ro-
tation, non-acceptance, resignation, death, or
otherwise, during the preceding year : That
the seven incorporated trades shall also assemble
together in one place on the said Tuesday, and
shall first elect their deacon convener, who
shall, in virtue of his office, be a councillor to
represent the trades ; and they shall then pro-
ceed to elect other three in the room of those
who retire from office, and that two of the four
trades' councillors to be so elected may be
guild-brethren, being always operative crafts-
men, and the persons electing them shall have
no vote in the guild in the same election ; but
the other two trades councillors shall be opera-
tive craftsmen and burgesses only : That the
council shall meet on the Wednesday immedi-
ately preceding Michaelmas, unless Michael-
mas day shall happen to be upon Wednesday,
in which case they shall meet on Michaelmas
day, and conclude the annual election for the
ensuing year, by continuing the ex officiis mem
bers, electing the two members of council, who
do not go out by rotation, and receiving the
new member from the guildry and trades ; and
after such election, and receiving the new
councillors, the members both of the old and
new council shall, according to the former set
of the burgh, choose a provost, bailies, trea-
surer, and hospital master ; that the provost,
bailies, treasurer, and hospital master, shall
not be continued in their offices longer than
two years together ; but they, with the dean
of guild, shall remain ex officiis, members of
the council for the year immediately following
that in which they shall have served in the
offices respectively." It is gratifying to men-
tion, that the new constitution of the burgh,
thus organized, has given satisfaction to the
inhabitants, and has ensured an efficient and
liberal magistracy. We have already said., that