thereof; they have refolved to make the following regulations, viz. Ime, That when an action of ranking and fale comes to be called by the courfe of the regulation-roll, and when an act is pronounced for proving the rental and value of the bankrupt's estate, the Lord Ordinary fhall at the fame time appoint the Lord Ordinary in the ranking, according to the former regulations, and fhall aflign a term to the whole creditors of the bankrupt, to produce all their claims, rights, and diligences, competent to them, respectively, against the bankrupt, or his eftate, with certification, as in a reduction and improbation: And the Lord Ordinary fhall ordain the forefaid interlocutor, affigning the firft term for production, to be infert in the Edinburgh Evening Courant, once every week, for three weeks fucceffively, immediately after pronouncing the faid interlocutor, to the end that it may come to the knowledge of all parties concerned: And the Lord Ordinary in the ranking, during the running of the faid term, fhall grant first and fecond diligences against havers of writs, upon application made to him by any of the creditors. zdo, That, upon the lapfe of the term fo afigned for production, the action fhall be called before the Lord Ordinary in the ranking, and he fhall appoint a time and place for a meeting of the creditors who fhall have produced their rights, for chusing an agent or folicitor for carrying on the process of ranking and fale, and the divifion of the price among the creditors; and the perfon chofen by the majority of the creditors, who fhall have produced their rights as aforefaid, and whofe debts refpectively (that is, their principal fuins, not counting annualrents or penalties, unlefs they have been accumulate by an adjudication) extend to 30 1. Sterling or upwards, and who fhall be prefentat luch meeting, or fhall have lawfully authorifed one to vote for him at fuch election, being reported to the Lord Ordinary, his Lord hip thail approve of the fame, and authorife him accordingly: providing always, That where the yearly rent of the estate under fale thall extend to 300l. Sterling or upwards, fuch creditors only fhall have a vote in the election of the faid common agent, whofe principal fum, as aforefaid, fhall extend to 501. Sterling or upwards. 3tio, That the perfon elected and authorifed as aforefaid, fhall immediately thereafter apply to the Lord Ordinary; and his Lordship fhall, upon fuch application, affign a fecond terin to the whole creditors of the bankrupt to produce their claims against the bankrupt, or his eftate, and the whole vouchers thereof; with certification, That what writs fhall not be produced, fhall be held as falfe and forged, in as far as they may affect the bankrupt's eftate, and the intereft of the creditors therein, who have, or fhall produce their rights and diligences affecting the fame: And he shall direct notice to be given to all parties concerned, by inferting his faid interlocutor in the Edinburgh Evening Courant, weekly, for three fucceflive weeks, immediately following the date of the forefaid interlocutor, and the notification being reported to the Lord Ordinary, a minute fhall be made thereon, and which fhall be held as fufficient evidence of the faid notice againft all parties concerned. 4to, Upon elapfing of the fecond term fo affigned to the creditors for production, the action fhall be called before the Lord Ordinary, and his Lordship fhall grant certification contra non producta, as in an improbation; but with this condition, That every production made within ten days after the date of the faid interlocutor fhall be received. 5to, That after the lapfe of the forefaid ten days, the agent for carrying on the fale fhall caufe extract the forefaid decreet of certification; and it is hereby enacted and declared, That fuch decreet of certification fhall have the fame force and effect, in favours of the whole creditors whofe interefts fhall have been produced in the ranking and fale as aforefaid, as if they had feverally brought a procefs of reduction and improbation against the whole other creditors upon the bankrupt eflate, and had thereupon obtained and extracted`a decreet of certification; and that in fo far as ༄། ། as the creditors not producing as afore faid, may claim out of the faid bankrupt eftate, or the price thereof, in competition with the creditors producing as a forefaid; but prejudice nevertheless to the creditors neglecting to produce as a forefaid, their having right to claim against the bankrupt, and his intereft in the price, and to use diligence against his perfon, or his other eftate. 6to, That the Lord Ordinary in the ranking, at the fame time that he affigns the first and second term for production as aforefaid, fhall alfo affign a term for the creditors to depone upon the verity of their refpective debts, and fhall grant commiffion to the judge-ordinary, or to any of his Majefty's juftices of peace, for taking the refpective creditors oaths, to be reported at the feveral diets appointed for production, in manner above written; with certification, That no creditor fhall be ranked until he fhall have made oath on the verity of his debt. 7m0, The production in the ranking being clofed in manner forefaid, the Lord Ordinary in the ranking fhall affign a day to the common agent, to make up a ftate of the interefts produced, mentioning their rights and diligences, the fums claimed by the refpective creditors, the order of their respective preferences, with fuch objections as occur to him, either to the legality or to the juftice of the feveral claims, or to the extent of their debts, or to their preferences, notwithstanding of the apparent priority of their fecurity or diligence. 800, After the state of the claims is made up as aforefaid, and reported to the Lord Ordinary, his Lordship fhall aign a day to the common debtor, and to the creditors producing as aforefaid, to make fuch other objections to the interests produced as they fhall think proper, and to lodge them in writing with the clerk of the process against the day fo affigned; with certification, That all objections that fhall be omitted to be proponed, either by the common debtor, or by the common agent, or by the creditors, against the day fo affigned, thall be held to be paffed from by all parties concerned; and it fhall not be compe tent to them, or either of them, thereafter to propone the fame, in the course of the ranking, or in the divifion of the price of the bankrupt's eftate, unless fuch objections fhall arife from facts newly come to their knowledge. 920, The objections being given in to the procefs in the manner above directed, the Lord Ordinary fhall affign a time to the creditors to whofe claims the objections have been made, for giving in a full answer in writing to the objections made to their refpective claims, and to lodge the fame with the clerk; and upon their being fo lodged, his Lordship fhall appoint a further time to the objectors, refpectively, to reply also in writing, and to lodge the fame with the clerk. 10mo, After the objections, answers, and replies, have been given in as aforefaid, the Lord Ordinary fhall appoint a diet for hearing parties thereon; and fhall with all convenient diligence pronounce his interlocutor upon the faid objections, anfwers, and replies, except with refpect to fuch objections as his Lordship thall take to report. it is hereby enacted and declared, That with refpect to the objections determined by the Lord Ordinary, no reprefentation to his Lordfhip fhall be allowed; but prejudice to the party who shall not acquiefce in the Lord Ordinary's interlocutor, to apply by petition to the whole Lords. 11mo, After the whole objections determined by the Lord Ordinary shall either be acquiefced in by the parties, or ftated to the whole Lords by petition in manner aforefaid; and after the petitions are either refufed without anfwers, or ordained to be answered; then, and not till then, fhall the Lord Ordinary make his report of the objections taken to report to the Lords: And when the whole objections remaining undetermined shall be ftated to the Lords by petitions and anfwers, and by informations, the Lords fhall appoint a particular diet, or diets, for advifing the forefaid petitions, and anfwers, and informations, without abiding the courfe of the rolls, to the end that the ranking may be concluded with all poffible expedition. 12mo, In refpect it may happen that a bankrupt may be poffeffed of an heritable eftate, which either does not admit of an infeftment, or where the bankrupt is not actually infeft, and thereby fuch eftate may poffibly efcape the knowledge of the raifer of the procefs of ranking and fale; and this hath proved very inconvenient to the creditors: for remeid whereof, it is hereby enacted and ordained, 1 hat every fummons of ranking and fale fhall contain a gene ral claufe, mentioning all other lands and heritable eftate belonging to the bankrupt, or to which he may fucceed as heir to any of his predeceffors; and it fhall be competent to the raifer and carrier on of fuch procefs of ranking and fale, upon his difcovering any heritable eftate belonging to the bankrupt, during the courfe of the procefs of ranking and fale, to bring a proof of the rental and value of fuch lands, and other heritable eftate fo difcovered, notwithstanding they were not specially libelled: Providing always, That upon fuch difcovery, and before granting warrant for a proof of the rental and value of the newly-difcovered eftate, application fhall be made to the Lord Ordinary in the ranking, and he fhall give directions to give notice of the estate's being difcovered to belong to the bankrupt, and that the fame is to be fold as part of the bankrupt's eftate, by advertisement in the Edinburgh Evening Courant, weekly, for three weeks fucceffively; and upon fuch notification being reported to the Lord Ordinary in manner forefaid, he fhall grant warrant for proving the rental and the value of fuch new-difcovered eftate, in the fame manner as if it had been particularly libelled in the original fummons of ranking and fale. And ordain this act to be recorded in the books of federunt, and printed and published in the ufual form. EDINBURGH, January 17. 1756. Act of federunt, touching inflruments of feifin, and the keepers of the regifters of feifins. THE Lords of Council and Setia tion, that by the 15th act of the parlia Seffion ment of Scotland held in the year 1696, intitled, At allowing fecurities, &c. to be written book-ways, it is among other things enacted, That, in all fecarities written bookways, every page be marked by the number Firft, Second, &c. and that the end of the last page make mention how many pages are therein contained; and whereas by the 16th act of the parliament of Scotland held in the year 1617, intitled, Anent the registration of reverfions, feifins, and other writs, it is among other things enacted, That the keepers of the registers thereby appointed, fhall ingrofs the whole body of the writs prefented to them to be regiftrate, in the faid regifters, under the pain of deprivation of the clerk of his place and fervice: Notwithstanding whereof many notaries, in extending inftruments of feifin which have been written bookways fince the date of the forefaid act of parliament 1696, have neglected to mark every page by the number Firft, Second, &c. and have omitted at the end of the last page to make mention how many pages there are contained in the feifin; and which feifins the Lords have been in ufe to fuftain, in refpect of the practice aforesaid: But as they are refolved to put a stop to fuch erroneous practice in time coming, they hereby appoint the regulation contained in the forefaid act of parliament 1696 to be punctually obferved in all time coming, and that every inftrument of feifin written bookways from and after the 12th day of June next, 1756, fhall have every page marked by the number First, Second, Third, &c. and that the notary's doquet fubjoined to the feifin fhall mention the number of pages of which the feifin confifts; with certification, That all feifins to be taken after the faid 12th of June next, 1756, contrary to the directions of the forefaid act of parliament 1696, and of this act, fhall be void and null; and the notary to fuch feifin fhall be liable to the party for his damages, and fhall be deprived of his office of notary in all time coming. fer of feims that he ese pers of the regi grofs the whole feifin into the regifter, And whereas keepers but but to leave out a confiderable part of venty or eighty feet deep. It quarries the notary's doquet, and which is an very conveniently into large lamina or effential part of the feifin: and though ftreaks of ftone coal, making no wafte the Lords, in refpect of fuch erroneous or flack, of 1 or 200 weight; and when practice, have fuftained the registration firft taken out of the fhafts, has a fine of fuch feifins; yet being refolved to put glittering and fhining luftre, of a bluish an end to fuch abufe, they hereby fta- japan, beautifully enamelled with fultute, enact, and declare, That the full phur. The large proportion of fulphur feifin, and particularly, that the full which is every where diffufed through doquet of the feifin, fhall, from and the bowels of this valuable combustible, after the said 12th day of June next, has produced this fingular happiness to 1756, be ingroffed in the register; with the inhabitants of the county where these certification, That in cafe the keeper of mines are, and to the adjacent countries the register fhall omit to ingrofs the who make ufe of the coal, to have mewhole feifin in the register, after the faid liorated their climate, from a rainy, 12th day of June next, the faid Lords foggy, impure air, into a fine clear atwill find the faid registration to be void mosphere, having a constant blue azure and null, and will find the keeper of the canopy over their heads, whilst in all register liable to the damage of the par- the other parts of the kingdom they live ty, and will deprive fuch keeper of his in a perfect fog during the winter-feafon. office, and declare him incapable of fuch Having related to Dr Mead, fome time office in time coming. before he died, the account of this coal, he faid, he was perfuaded, were the ci ty of London to be prevailed on to use this coal, it would not fail to change LONDON MAGAZINE. SIR, Here is a coal at Caftle Comber, this climate into one full as eligible as fixty miles Naples, as it blin, which, from its first ignition to its going out, burns without making the leaft fmoke; and fires, though ever fo large, are known to burn without the leaft eruption of fmoke twenty-four hours fucceffively, only emitting a conftant blue ambient flame, ftrongly impregnated with fulphur, which conftantly hovers over it. So curious a phænomenon must strike with wonder the inquifitive philofopher, when he obferves, that all other fuels, whether coal, wood, peat, or turf, conftantly fend out the moft dirty and unwholfome fmoke, tainting the whole atmosphere for ten miles around: but I leave the inquiry of fo fingular a property to the lucubrations of others better experienced in philofophical refearches, and fhall proceed to lay before the public the many advantages which might accrue to this nation by the importing of this coal, particularly to the city of London, and to the royal navy, as well as to all feafaring people. This coal lies in a strata of black limeftone marble, and is dug out of pits about fe. VOL. XVIII. clearness of the Italian atmosphere, be more temperate, and have none of its exceffive heats; that the fmoke of the fea-coal was fo pernicious, that it killed every year thoufands of children, perfons when attacked with ordinary fevers, the chronic diforders, or epidemic difeafes; that he always found the animal economy fo clogged by the peftiferous atmosphere, wholly from the fea-coal, that he generally gave the patient over, the human machine not being able to perform its function in fo dreary a climate; the ufe of this Irish coal would, on the contrary, fave the lives of thousands. Add to this material confideration, what a new nursery for feamen? what a profitable advantage to corn-merchants? who would exchange their corn for this valuable coal; befides importing black marble, with which this country abounds, and which takes the fineft polish in Europe, and burns to the fineft limettone. In regard to the ufe of this coal on board of his Majefty's thips and merchantmen, I am fully convinced, were leafaring gentlemen F 1 gentlemen once to make trial of it on a long voyage, they would acknowledge their being made acquainted with the falutary properties of this coal amongst the fignal bleflings of good fortune. A ny one who has been at fea, cannot but reflect on the miferable moments they have paffed, and to which they are daily fubject on that element, from the clouds of peftiferous fmoke which at every blast of wind return into the fhip, which, mixing with the bulge-water, generates that noxious air fo fatal to mariners; whereas were they only to ufe this Irish coal, in a few hours fail on the Atlantic ocean, they would find themfelves in a climate meliorated by the fulphurous particles from their own fires, diffipating at once all naufeous, contaminated fmells and vapours, breathing at the fame time an antidote and cure of the fcurvy, fo deftructive to failors; in fhort, they would find themfelves, almoft on weighing anchor off the Englifh coaft, in a climate as pure and healthy as the fouth of France. That the coal is fufficiently impregnated with fulphur, to obtain thefe defirable ends, may be illuftrated by the experiment I made on a cat; which, on holding his nofe in the currency of the blue ambient flame iffuing out of the fire, in a few minutes began to ftruggle, and at laft dropped down his head as if dead. I took him from the fire immediately; and as I had forefcen what would happen, I immediately applied the pipes of a pneumatic engine I had provided ready; and pumping out of his lungs the rarefied, fulphurous air, and injecting alternately fresh air, in a few ftrokes of the pillons he got upon his legs again, and brifly getting from us, run into the yard, leaping and frifking about with joy he had got out of our hands. I inquired of the phyficians and apothecaries of the county-town, who in formed me, that children feldom or ever died of chronic diforders, and none but very old people of epidemic fevers when they happened, that fcurvies and cutaneous distempers were very rare; all which they imputed to the atmofphere of their country being fo tho roughly purged by the vast quantities of fulphurous fires: and I obferved in the people of all ranks a natural sprightli nefs and turn of humour fuperior to moft of the inhabitants of thefe northern iflands. This coal is brought for twopence the hundred weight, carriage paid, about ten miles from the pits, by the hawkers, who carry it about the country on fledges of a fingular make, which are univerfally ufed in that kingdom, and which make but a very mean appearance, in comparison to the waggons we make ufe of here in England. The whole fabric, timber and ironwork, does not coft two fhillings. However, one poor fingle horie fhall be able to crawl through the kingdom with 800 or 1000 weight; and with this advantage, he does not fpoil the roads. I could not but admire this piece of humble me chanifm for its fimplicity. It is compofed of two fhafts made of ash, with five or fix bars which are thrown loose on a fquare axis, fixed fo tight to the wheels, as to turn round with them, by means of a twifted goad, which is not an inch diameter, and fixed in two holes which are augred in the fhafts for that purpofe. When the horfe begins to draw, he drags the goad; which being intercepted by the axletree, he forces forward the axletree, which gives motion to the wheels, and turns round with them, being greafed, clouted, and rounded off. I could not but obferve, that there was lefs friction in this method than in the ordinary way, there being only one point of the curve affected by the friction, the whole weight refting on the crofs bars, which lie perpendicular over the axletree; fo that the wheels being very low, and not above fourteen inches diameter, occafions a great flope up to the horfe's withers, and takes off the whole weight of the burden; the fhafts being very fhort, the load refts very near him; and being so very near him, he draws the eafier. Sometimes the wheels flip from under the carriage, by means of the goads flipping out of the holes appointed in this cafe one would think the whole machine difloca ted; |