Knaveship, lock, and bannock, may be demanded in an action for abstracted multures.
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In an action for abstracting of thirle multures, Adamson of Braco against the Tenants of Stralay, the Lords sustained the action for the knaveship, bannock, and lock, as well as for payment of abstracted multures of the bygone years libelled, albeit the defenders alleged, that they could not be compelled to pay the duties of the knaveship, bannock, and lock, seeing they alleged, that the pursuer was not specially infeft therein, and these being but duties to be paid for service to be done at the mill, to them who should grind their corns at the same, reason would crave, that they should not pay the duty which is only due for service, where they neither got, nor could get service; for albeit the pursuer's infeftment of thirlage might carry him to the multure of any corns thirled, which should be abstracted, yet the like reason was not for the foresaid duties, which were only payable for service, which service not being done, they alleged these should not be exacted. This was repelled, seeing the pursuer's right was of the thirle multures cum eorum sequelis usitatis et consuetis; and that the pursuer offered to prove, that they were in use to pay these duties before, and seeing he had right to the multures abstracted, he had as good right to those duties used to be paid, seeing he behoved to keep servants at the mill for labouring of the corns when they came there, and these were the fees due to them.—In this process the Lords sustained the summons, bearing, That the defenders abstracted their multures, which were specificè libelled to extend to a special quantity libelled, and found it not necessary that the summons should bear, that the growth of the corns growing upon the ground extended to any particular quantity, and that the summons needed not bear the quantity of the corns which grew yearly, but that it was sufficient, that the summons bear the special quantity of the multures abstracted.
Act. Mowat & Pitcairn.Alt. Nicolson and Hay.Clerk, Hay.
Durie, p. 368.*** Auchinleck reports this case:
The knaveship and bannock found due to be paid, and may be pursued for tanquam sequela multura, where the payment thereof has been usual.
Auchinleck MS. p. 569.
*** Formerly otherwise decided; see No. 6. p. 15962.—See No. 384. p. 12512.
