Early records of an old Glasgow family

64 THE EARLY RECORDS OF
Division of the " Deads Part."
Ninian Hill's Will bears that he disposed of the "Deides pairt,"
i.e. the one-third of his free goods and gear, which is stated in the
Inventory of his Estate to be ,£1614 18s. 2d. Scots, as follows : —
" To Margrat Hill, his eldest dochter, fyve
hundrith merkis " = - - - - - ^333 6 8 Scots.
" Item to Elizabeth Hill, his secund dochter,"
500 merks= 33368,,
" Item to ye bairne unborne, quhairwith the
said Helein, his spous, is presentlie with chyld,"
500 merks= 33368,,
" And in cais of ye said bairne's deceise, quhilk is not borne,"
the said 500 merks are directed to " pertein to ye said Elisabeth Hill,
his secund dochter, and levis all the rest of his pairt of his frie guidis
and geir, gif ony be, to the said Margrat and Elisabeth and ye bairne
quhilk the said Helein, his spous, is presentlie with, equallie amangis
thame thrie."
Nothing is said in the Will as to the division of the remainder
of his personalty, nor as to his heritable estate, although various
items for "maills" (i.e., rents), without specifying for what subjects,
are included in the Inventory. The residue, therefore, after
deducting the " Quot " or "Quota," 1 legally a twentieth of the
moveable estate, but which in the Inventory is stated to have been
fixed " be compositioune at ^40," would fall to be divided, viz. : to
Helen Hutcheson, his widow, one-half of the residue (i.e., one-third
of the whole of his moveable property), and the other half among
his children excluding Ninian, his heir-at-law, of whom, besides
Margaret, Elizabeth and Ninian, there would, I think, be other
two surviving him, viz., Marion and Helen, thus effecting a
not unreasonable apportionment of his estate among the whole
of his children.
1 Erskine's Institutes, Book II., Title 9 ; sec. 28.