Draught of an Act brought in from the Committee of Trade, prohibiting the Importation of Silk-Stuffs, etc.  
OUR SOVEREIGN LORD, with Advice and Consent of the Estates of Parliament, Doth strictly Prohibit and Forbidden the Importation of all Stuffs of any kind, made of Silk or Hair, and the importation of Caligoes or other Stuffs of any kind made of Cotton, or wherein there is any Cotton, Hair or Silk; as also of Capes, Stockings, Gloves, Buttons, or any other kind of manufactored Cottan, Hair or Silk, or wherein any Cottan, Hair or Silk shall be found; and all manner of White-Threed-Laces and Points of any kind, and that from and after the Promulgation of this Act, excepting Musline, and all plain Black-Silk-Stuffs and Velvets for women's Hoods and scarves only; as also, Velvets for Pales, Mort-cloaths, Footmantles, and the Robes of such public Officers who are in use to wear Velvets upon them: Excepting likewise from this Act, whatever of the foresaids prohibited Goods shall be imported by the Company of Scotland trading to Africa and the Indies, on their own Stock, and to their believe allenarly. And Ordains that all prohibited Goods imported contrair to this Act, shall be seized and brought before some of the next adjacent Magistrates, and the Magistrate shall immediately cognosce if the Goods be forbidden; and if they be, he shall within two days time call two of the next Commissioners of Supply, or Justices of Peace, who are hereby required to concur with him, and they shall carry the saids Goods to the Mercat cross, betwixt ten and twelve in the Forenoon, and there and then they shall burn and destroy all the said's Goods, having first Inventared them, and given a Declaration on the said Inventar, bearing that they were seized and cognosced, and thereafter burnt and destroyed: And if either the said Seizure or Magistrate to whom the said's seized Goods are brought, shall failyie, they shall be liable to the same Pains as Importers; which Declaration expressing both quantity and value, attested by the Magistrate, and two of the Commissioners of Supply, or Justices of Peace, shall be a full ground and title to the Seizer and others under-written, for acquiring of all his Proportions of the Fines and Penalties from the persons liable according to the tenor of this Act. And it is hereby Statute and Declared, That all Importers, Resetters, Collectors or Farmers of the Customs, Surveyors or Waiters, who shall assist, concur or connive at the importing of the said prohibited Manufacture, and Carriers who shall import the samen by Land, and Masters of Ships who shall import the same by Sea, and all who buy or sell or wear or use the same in Apparel, Household-furniture or otherways, and the Tailors and others employed in making Apparel or Household-furniture thereof, that they shall be fined separately, without relief, as follows, viz. The Importer, Resetter, Collector or Farmers of the Customs, Carrier, Master of the Ship, the Buyer or Seller (in way of Merchandise and not for proper use) Surveyors or Waiters transgressing in the value of the prohibited Goods imported, or five hundred Marks, at the option of the persons after mentioned, to whom the Fine is to belong, viz. two parts to the Discoverer and Pursuer, and a third to the Fiscal of the Court before whom the matter is cognosced. And if any Master of a Ship shall transgress, by importing in his Ship any of the said's forbidden Goods, than the pain shall be Confiscation of the Ship, the one half to the Discoverer, and the other half to his Majesty, and that the Ship be immediately sold by Roup, for making the said Division effectual, reserving relief to the Owner against the Master thereof. And if any of the Seamen import in any Ship any of the said prohibited Goods, he shall be liable to six months' Imprisonment, and Escheat of Movables to the Master for his relief: And the Carrier's Horse and Furniture to be immediately seized and belong to the Seizer, and himself to be imprisoned until he declare the Owner or Imployer upon Oath, and the Wearer, or User, or Tailor, or other employed in making up the said Apparel or Funiture, to be fined in the Sum of 500 Marks each separately, and all these Penalties by and attour burning of the Goods. And for the greater Encouragement of such as shall make the foresaid Seizure: It is hereby further Statute, that in case any person shall make the said Seizure of Goods, and shall make Faith, that he is not able to discover the Owner of the Goods seized; then and in that case he shall have the Reward of a 100 lib, or proportionally under if the Goods be not of that value, to be paid to him by the next Collector of his Majesty's Customs, under the pain of the double; which Sum or Reward shall be allowed to the Collector in his Accounts, and this Additional Reward to endure till the next Session of Parliament, and no longer; And if any Magistrate aforesaid shall be informed of any such Imported Goods, and shall be required to Assist to the Seizing thereof, he shall without delay give Councurrence, and make all diligent Search for the same, and make open Doors if need be: And further, the Magistrate who refuses or delays to do so, or who shall not judge and Execute the Laws against the Delinquents and Contraveeners of this Act, he or they shall be liable for the foresaid Penalties, and Action shall be given to the Informer and Pursuer against him before any Judge competent Summarily; and if it be pursued before the Lords of Session, it is to be discussed without abiding the course of the Roll. And in regard there are or may be some of the several kinds of the said Prohibited Goods in the Merchant's hands not yet Vended: Therefore His Majesty with consent foresaid, Statutes and Ordains, that all Merchants who have any Goods Prohibited by this Law, in their Shaped or Warehouses, shall betwixt and the Day of _____ Inventar all the said's Goods in their own Books, and extend an Double of the said Inventar; the which prohibited Goods being so Inventared, they shall apply themselves to the Keepers of the Halls of the Foreign Cloth, in whose Hands a Seal it to be lodged by the Magistrates of the Burgh where the said's Goods are, for Sealing all the said's prohibited Goods; which Seals are to have an Thistle on the one side, and the Name of the Town where the said Seal is kept on the other side: and the said Merchants are hereby Ordained to require the said Keeper, to come to their Shops and Warehouses, to compare the said Inventars' with the Goods in their Possession, which being found just, to require him to Seal the saids Goods, after the doing whereof, to deliver to the said Keeper the Double of the said Inventar; which Double and the Inventar contained in the Merchant's Books is to be Subscribed by the Merchant himself, and Appender of the Seal: and in case the Keeper of the said Seal, refuse to Append the same he being required thereto under form of Instrument, he shall be Fyned in the Sum of an 100 lib. besides the loss of his Office; and the Magistrates are hereby Ordained to name another in his place: And further, it is Statute and and Ordained, that the saids Goods shall be Sealed betwixt and the day of _____ next by the said Hall keeper, and immediately thereafter the said Seals are to be broken at the sight of the Magistrates of the place where the said Seals are kept, which Magistrates are hereby obliged to take sufficient security for the Keeper's faithful administrating his Office, and for which sealing the Sealer shall have one shilling Scots as his Reward for ilk piece to which he shall append the said Seal; And farther, it is hereby Statute and Ordained, that the said's Merchants shall give an Account of their Retail of the said's inventard Goods quarterly to the said Keeper of the Halls, bearing the Names of the persons to whom they were sold. that they be recorded, thereby to make known when all contained in the Inventars' are sold out, and the Merchant failing to give in the said quarterly Accounts, shall be liable in a 100 lib. toties quoties, & whatever of the saids Goods shall be found either in Edinburgh or elsewhere not so sealed, shall be repute as wrongously imported and burnt as herein appointed, and the counterfiting of the said Seal is, hereby discharged under the pain of Forgery: Declaring always▪ that this Act shall not extend to Furniture belonging to any Scots Man, bought for their own use before the date of this Act, nor to any wearing Clothes bought and used by any person at any time when they resided abroad, they giving their Oath that the saids Goods were bought for their proper use, and made and used before their coming into this Kingdom. As also, it is farther Statute, that the Merchants who have any such prohibited Goods in their Shop, shall give Bond not to import any Silk or other prohibited Goods, and that neither they nor any for their behoof, shall import any of the prohibited Goods, or retail any of them, under the Penalty of 6000 lib. and whatever Merchant or others against whom it shall be proven that they have imported any Silk, or other Manufacture whatsomever contrair to this Act, albeit the Goods be not found nor seized, yet if it be proven by his Oath or otherways as accords of the Law, before any ●udge competent, the person so guilty shall be liable in an 1000 Marks of Fine toties quoties, to be applied to the Pursuer and Phiscal tn manner foresaid, excepting nevertheless from this Act, all manner of Silk, Hair or Cotton Manufacture, made or to be made within Kingdom, with all the necessary Materials for making thereof allennarly; As also, excepting the importing, Selling, Buying and Wearing all manner of plain Ribbens until the next Session of Parliament, and the Selling, Buying and Wearing such of all the said's prohibited Goods, as are already imported before the date of this Act.