320 Grevfriars' Convent of Dumfries. 



Home's pension of ;£^i6. It thus appears that Home paid no 

 pension during" these years to George Law. 



In April, 1569, the Crown issued a charter of the Friary 

 revenues to the burg-h of Dumfries that a hospital might be 

 erected for the poor. That was never done, the revenues 

 being quietly included among the other revenues from burgh 

 lands. '*^ The conjunction of Home's name with that of the 

 Provost, Archibald M'Brair, is indicative of collusion, and 

 evidence becomes positive within a month of the Crown gift 

 to Dumfries, when the Provost made an effort to forestall the 

 burgh in its rights. On the 23rd of May, 1569, Home en- 

 tered into a private contract with the Provost, by which he 

 agreed to accept ^£^43 12s lod annually for allowing the 

 Provost to " ressaif, craif, intromet, uplift, collect and gadder 

 all and sindre the proffettis, emolumentis and dewteis thairof 

 and the said Archebauld to apply all and sindre the 

 foresaid . . . annualis and utheris dewities perteining 

 thairto to his awin use. "^^ 



The revenues of the Friary had apparently risen in value, ^o 

 but no doubt M'Brair saw how to make a profit out of the 

 deal. There were still unfeued pieces of ground — some of 

 which the Council discovered James Rig, a bailie, to be sell- 

 ing on his own behalf^i — and the Friary Kirk and Quier was 

 a profitable quarry. The Town Council soon became aware 

 of M'Brair's deal, and Home, perhaps afraid that if the matter 

 went to the Courts he might lose all power to bargain by 

 having- his grant from Queen Mary annulled, concluded an 

 agreement with the Town Council, and gave them a " tack " 

 of a similar nature to the Provost's on the 22nd of November. 

 For this they agreed to pay him ;!^20 annuity, a sad fall from 

 ;^43, but still better than the pension of ;£i6 to which, as a 

 friar, he was entitled. The Council rescinded M'Brair's 

 agreement at its own risk.^^ 



'J 



Signature of "James Dig." 

 Born about 1528. Provost of Dumfries, 1567-8. 



