J-PC/. /. THE COUNTY OF FIFE. 49 



casualties ; and, therefore, in the reign of James 

 III., they were fixed by the then value of the 

 lands. The former was called the old, and the 

 latter the new, extent. But though the relief 

 duties were henceforth regulated by the new ex- 

 tent, the public subsidies continued to be levied 

 by the old extent, till the time of Oliver Crom- 

 well, when, by several acts of Parliament, a tax 

 was laid upon the lands by new proportions. 

 These proportion were fixed by Parliament in 

 the year 1656 ; and the sums to which each 

 county was subjected, were subdivided among 

 the individual landholders, according to the va- 

 luations already settled, or that should be settled 

 by the commissioners appointed for that pur- 

 pose. The rent, fixed by these valuations, is 

 commonly called the rained rent, according to 

 which the land-tax, and most of the other pu- 

 blic burdens, have, ever since, been levied. 



The whole valuation of the county of Fife, 

 by the old extent, amounted to '347!. ios. 

 Scots. This appears from an inquest held at 

 Cupar, by* order of the king, in the year 15*7, 

 by Patrick Lord Lindsay of Byres, Sheriff, and 

 twenty-four jurors, who divided the county, and 

 afcertained the valuation of all the estates ac- 

 cording to the old extent. Without taking no- 

 tice of the valuation of each estate or portion of 

 land separately, as detailed in the fcheme, I shall 

 only mention the sums that fell to the share of 

 each of the, quarters into which the county was 

 divided : 



