An Account of Simprin, Berwickshire, by Jas. Hardy. 301 



Langtoun, were sore distressed by the quartering of soldiery upon 

 them, and other oppressions, which she set forth in a petition to 

 Parliament, and for which she obtained an act of recompense in 

 her favour, June 13th, 1649. Her supplication declared that 

 " shoe and hir tennents are redacted to great straits and extreame 

 povertie, what throw quarterings and uther burdings susteined be 

 them, these diverse zeires bygone, bot cheiflie since the last un- 

 lawfull Ingadgment against Ingland, by the plunderings of the 

 forcis that wer upon the said Ingadgment, quhilk not onlie 

 quartered themselffis upon the landis perteining to hir within the 

 said paroschis, bot took money also, horses, mears and uther 

 goods perteining to hir said tennents, to ther great loss and pre- 

 judice, as the particular acompt of the samyne quarterings and 

 lossis subscryvit be the minister and elders of the parosche will 

 testifie." The Estates recommended a payment of £34, 147 ) 2s 4d 

 in settlement of all claims.* The Engagement was the unfortu- 

 nate expedition into England, undertaken by the Duke of Hamil- 

 ton, in the cause of Charles I. It came to an ignominious ter- 

 mination in August, 1648. Concerted by a party, it displeased 

 the majority of the nation, and was effected with forced levies. 

 " They that did not give ready obedience to the act of levy were 

 quartered on, until by themselves or others, their proportions 

 were put out. Thus many honest men in Fife and Lothian did 

 sadly suffer."f Among others, Mr Patrick Gillespie, in Simp- 

 rein, who may have been a tenant of the Cockburns, had reason 

 for complaint. " Major William Sharpe being gone on in the 

 late unlawful Ingadgment sent his quarter mr. to his house, who 

 did plunder it, and tak away his horss," which " damnified and 

 skaithed," Gillespie to the worth of " Two hundreth markes." 

 On a petition to Parliament in 1659, Major Sharp was ordained 

 "to restor and delyuer Patrik Gillespie the samyne horse takin 

 away be the said Major Sharp his order or els to pay the soume 

 of fourscoir pundes as the pryce."| He thus prevailed in the 

 meantime, but in retaliation, when Charles II. was restored, 

 Gillespie was one of those singled out, as being an active favourer 

 of the usurping government, and therefore excepted from the 

 king's indemnity, and made liable to a fine. In Middleton's 



* Acts Pari. Scot, vi., Part ii., pp. 483, 484. 



t Life of Mr Eobert Blair, p. 202. 



% Acts Pari. Scot, vi., Part ii., p. 453. 



