Transactions. 63 



cairn, where he resided one year ; and thereafter he went to 

 Penfillan, in the parish of Keir, where he now resides. 

 That he is now about to be removed from the parish of Keir, 

 and is much difficulted about a place of residence, as he is 

 denied admittance into the parish of Penpont, because he 

 has been three years out of that parish. Which representa- 

 tion being considered by the Justices, they find, providing 

 what is above represented be true, that the said John Dar- 

 gavel hath just title to reside in the parish of Penpont. 



The authoritie.s had in these days another system in 

 operation which was intended to benefit the poor : it was 

 also one of repression, a restriction upon the internal trade 

 of the county : its working will be seen from the following 

 passage, of date 7th December, 1756 : — The Sheriff-Deputy 

 and Justices of the Peace, taking into their serious consider- 

 ation that notwithstanding this county in general was 

 remarkably favoured in the last harvest by being blessed 

 with good crops and good weather for cutting down and 

 ingathering the same, so that by the mercy of God the 

 harvest was in many places happily finished before the great 

 storm of wind and the bad weather that followed it came 

 on, so that we had no reason to fear a dearth of victual : 

 yet that sundry wicked and evil-disposed persons have, with 

 a view to their own profit and private gain, and to the great 

 oppression of the poor, gone through the country and bought 

 up at extravagant prices all the victual they could purchase, 

 and thereby prevented the same from coming to public 

 mercat, in manifest contempt and violation of sundry Acts 

 of Parliament : and that if a stop is not immediately put to 

 such practices there is great reason to fear that the poor may 

 be reduced to hard-shiji and the peace of the country endan- 

 gered : All which being considered by the Sheriff-Deputy 

 and the meeting, they declare that they will put the laws 

 against Forestallers and Ingrossers of Victual into execution 

 with the utmost rigour : and they strictly prohibit and 

 discharge all persons within this county from buying or 

 selling meal or any other kind of victual in any other place 



