Wedderburn book; a history of the Wedderburns in ... - waughfamily.ca

178 THE WEDDERBURN BOOK.
Part II
"y quartered the Scrymgeour with the Weddurburii anns.i He also, if ho
Cbap.
had not already
• done so on his fatiier's death, ceased to practice at the bar, and settled down at Birkhill,
where he managed his own estates, as well as one adjoining Birkhill and belonging to Sir
Laurence Dundas (first Earl of Zetland). He also kept a pack of fox hounds at Birkhill, being
"the first person to keep hounds in the East or North of Fife" {Records of the Fife Fox
Hounds, by Lieut.-Col. Babington, p. 13., Edin., Blackwood, 1 883). This pack was kept by
him from at least as early as 1766 down to ISOO, when the hounds went to Mountquhannie
.
where his relative Mr. Gillespie kept them till \SQ1. "Mr. Wedderbuni did not hunt
more than about three days a fortnight, and seldom more than ten miles from home. Ho
did not send out cards, but told the field where the next meet was, and at least upon one
occasion the precentor in the parish church of Balmerino announced a meet of the fo.x
hounds after the service. Having quarrelled with his huntsman and whip, Mr. Wedderbum
once took out the hounds to exercise by himself, they got away from him and he was
occupied till midnight in getting them together again. On nou-hunting days he often
used to work with his own hands in a quarry, or plant trees, and he kept the workmen's
hours" {ibid.).
There are several references to his acquisition of and dealing with his own and other
properties. Thus 13 Nov. 1779, he got sasine of an annual rent of £1,000 stg. out of the
lands of Milnhill, which he almost at once renounced in favour of the Crichtousof Milnhill
(G R.S. S4-S5); 1786 Nov 29, Dec. 19, he got a disposition and sasine of a South Nothergait
tenement in Dundee (D.P.B. 599 ; D D. 136) and in the following year, in 1787-88, sold
a house in the Old Assembly Close, Edinburgh which he had owned up to that time
(Orig. letters at Birkhill). The South Nethergait property was still his 5 Aug. 1797
when he granted a license to Captain Laird to build against the wall of his house
(D.P.B. 603).-!
He was much respected by his family, and was thus constantly nominated
as a curator and trustee, e.q, 6 Oct. 1792, to the children of James (Jrahain of Meathie
(D.D. 144) ; and 1 800-1 803, to those of Sir John Wedderburn of Balindean (Bl. 82, 83)
upon whose death he was often consulted both by their mother and their brother, Sir
David (S.W. 688-89, 694-96). There are also various lettera to him from mcnabers of his
family, e.ij., from Sir John Wedderburn of Balindean, 1773—1803 (S.W. 649, 655, 681,
686); Charles Wedderburn of Pearsie. 17S7— 1807-11 (ib. 673, 092, 697} ;
young James
Graham of Meathie, 1794 (ih. 679), and Sir John Wedderburn-Halkett, 1787 [ih. 674-75).
Alexander Wedderburn, Lord Chancellor Loughborough, also often corresponded with him
in regard to the Fife elections in 1779, 1795, and 1802 [ib. 6.i4, 080, G85), and some
letters passed between them also in regard to the family history in which the Chancellor
had always taken a deep interest and which he desired to see clearly proved and accurately
recorded (S.W. 665-68).
He at one time contemplated making out his claim to the peerages of Dundefl and
Dudhopc, and began to put his papers in order with that view, but seems never to have
had them completely inventoried, and thus attempted to construct a sufficient pedigree
on insufficient materials. A bond which, 20 Dec. 1789, he gave to John Brown of Coalston
in connection, apparently, with the proposed prosecution of his claim, inaccurately
narrates his descent. (R.D. 445).^
In May 1803 he executed a deed of entail of his properties of Wedderburn and
Birkhill. etc., which he petitioned to have recorded in the Register of Tailzies 7 March
1807 (S.W. 690). I have not searched this register, but it was registered in the Register
of Deeds 5 July 1811 (S.W. 690), and follows the old entails of 1766 and 1785 except that
certain persons named in the earlier documents who had since died unmarried or without
issue are now omitted, and Charles Wedderburn of Pearsie, and John Wedderburn of
Sprin" Garden and their issue are now called nominatim to the succession (R.D. 458).
At the same time, 10 May 1803, he executed a bond of provision in favour of the six
' He obtained a charter of Kingennie from Archibald Douglas of Douglas in favour of himself, and lus
issue, and his two surviving brothers, .John and Henry, 6 May 1785 (S.W. 670-71), on which sasine
did not follow till 3 Sept. ISOG (S.W. 693).
* See also 7 July 17S9 disposition by him of some lands in Balmerino to Charles Morri.son of Naughtoii
'K.D. 449), 10 June 179i: letter to liim from Tliomas Davidson auent the late David Brisbane (S.W.
676) ; 4 Feb. 1793 memorandum as to the teinds of his lands (S.W. 677) ; and 10, 12 May 1807 a
tack by him to Peter Simpson of the lands of Wester Gourdie for nineteen years at £.594. 13. 4. a
year (RD. 456).
' See as to tliis claim, post, pp. 185 seqq.