Account of the families of Birnie and Hamilton of Broomhill

OF HAMILTON OF BROOMHILL. 67
In the beginning of the year 1666, he was presented to the church of
Carlowk, with the consent of the most considerable heretors there; and
upon the 29th March thereafter, was ordained presbiter in the cathedral
church of Glasgow by the said archbishop, and upon the 9th of May was
instituted minister at Carlowk, in the presbitry of Lanark. When here,
upon the 4th day of February 1668, he married, as befor told, Jean,
second daughter to James Hamilton of Broomhill, Lord Bishop of Galloway,
then not sixteen years of age. Upon the 22d of March he was presented
to the church of Carlaverock, in the presbitry of Dunfries, by John Earle
of Nithsdale; and iipon the 20th Apryle thereafter, by William Earle of
Queensberrie, and upon these collated by Robert Leighton, Archbishop of
Glasgow, where he and his family resyded untill the Revolution ; and
then being obleidged to lay asyde his ministeriall function, he and his
family went to Edinburgh in the year 1690.
In summer 1686, Alexander Cairncrosse, Archbishop of Glasgow, was,
by the Earle of Melfort, then Secretary for Scotland to King James the
Seventh, desyred up to London, and to bring alongst with him the aboue
Mr John, (because of the great familiarity and intimacie betwixt them, it
seems that the King still continued his design of rescinding the penal
statuts, and of new to propose the same to them as was done a little before
in the parliament held by the Earle of Murray.) The archbishop in that
parliament, tho' but faintly, spoke against the act, by which the court
entertained yet some hopes, especially upon the promotion of the aboue
Mr John. That both might be brought off, the archbishop, with very
great difficultie, got his aboue freind alongst with him, for he was afraid,
as he hath told me, that the rash measures then used by the court could
not inisse in bringing the King's affairs into confusion. To court they
went, and the thrid day after were more than two hours closeted with
the aboue Earle.
All their discourse terminated chieffly upon their goeing into the re-
pealing of the acts, and if so, it was proposed that Mr John should haue
it in his option either to be Bishop of Dunkeld or Galloway as he pleased.
Mr John was stunn'd at the proposal, and absolutely refused, with a
wonder how his Lordship could think of the tourning out of such two