Edinburgh Roperie and Sail-Cloth Co. v. Magistrates and town Council of Edinburgh

This was an action of declarator, &c., at the instance of the Edinburgh Roperie and SailCloth Company, and James Hay, their manager, against the Lord Provost, Magistrates, and Town Council of Edinburgh, in the following circumstances:—

The defenders answered that they were not bound to accept a casualty incident to less than the whole of the subjects included in the writ of confirmation of 21st August 1862, nor to accept a partial commutation of their rights to the casualty. They declined to entertain an application for the redemption of the casualties unless the subjects belonging to the Leith Police Commissioners were included.

There was no difference between the parties as to what was payable in respect of the subjects tertio , where the entry was taxed. There was no dispute that if the pursuers' view of their rights was correct, the redemption value should be held to be £214, 13s. 3d.

It was further arranged between them, in order to avoid questions which might arise through the death of the existing entered vassal, and to stop the currency of interest at 5 per cent., that the date of the redemption should be the date of intimation, and that interest should run on the sum that might be found to be the price of redemption at 5 per cent. to 7th April 1876, and thereafter at 4 per cent.

Authorities— Wemyss v. Thomson , Jan. 19,1836, 14 S. 233 ; Qilmour v. Balfour , Jan. 22, 1839, 1 D. 403 ; Bell's Lectures on Conveyancing, i. 598.