P 24

EDINBURGH, OCTOBER 1, 1772.

PROPOSALS

FOR A

SCHEME OF ANNUITIES;

Eighty Shares of L. 25 each, making in all L. 2000, being paid in to the Propofer, that Sum shall be undoubtedly fecured on a Land-eftate, fo as to be a permanent Fund for Payment of Annuities to the Sharers, upon the following Conditions:

I. EACH sharer shall receive annually the legal intereſt of the ſum paid in by him, or her; and, upon the death of any of the ſharers, the intereſt of their ſhares ſhall fall into the ſurvivers, till, at laſt, the intereſt of the whole principal ſum is drawn by the laſt ſurviver; and, upon his or her death, the principal ſum ſhall belong to the propoſer, or his heirs, or affixees. The advantage of this ſcheme to each ſharer will be, that, by finking at firſt a ſmall ſum, one has a chance of increasing his annual income from a mere trifle to ſomething genteel. As for inſtance—at the preſent rate of intereſt, £. 25 yields only 25 ſhillings a-year: Whereas, a ſharer in this ſcheme may, in the course of time, draw 30, 40, 50 ſhillings, 3, 5, 10, 20 pounds, and fo on, till he draws ONE HUNDRED POUNDS A-YEAR: So that a ſharer may draw back the ſum originally advanced by him ſeveral times before he dies. And what is a moſt comfortable confideration is, that in proportion as a ſharer advances in years, the better will his or her income be.

II. THE annuities ſhall be payable in the city of Edinburgh, at the dwelling-houſe of the propoſer, or his heir, or at ſuch other place within the ſaid city as ſhall be duly notified to the annuitants. If the ſhares are paid in on or before Martinmas 1772, the firſt term's payment ſhall begin at Martinmas 1773. If they are paid in on or before Candlemas 1773, the firſt term's payment ſhall begin at Candlemas 1774, and they ſhall from that time be paid yearly. And for the conveniency of all concerned, attendance ſhall be given for the fix Mondays immediately following the term of payment, from ten in the morning till two in the afternoon.

III. THE annuities ſhall be payable upon the receipt of the perſons themſelves, or of any having their order; or in cafe of their being under age, of a father, tutor, or curator, provided always, that there ſhall be produced an atteſtation by a magiſtrate, juſtice of peace, or minifter of the eſtablished church of Scotland, that the claimant was alive at the term of payment. But whatever annuitants do not live till the term of payment ſhall not be entitled to any part of their annuity for that year, but the fame ſhall belong to the ſurvivers; declaring however, that if any ſharer ſhall die after the term of payment, and before he actually receives, or gives authority to receive that year's annuity, the fame ſhall be payable to the heir of ſuch perſon, upon the conditions above-mentioned.

IV. EACH year there ſhall be in readineſs, four weeks before the term of payment, a lift of the ſharers then in life, with a ſtate of the annuities to be drawn by them at the then next term of

payment. And in order to prevent conſuſion, no annuitant, whole death has not come to the propoſer's knowledge, or been certified to him, in the fame manner as a ſharer's being in life is to be certified, five weeks before the term of payment, ſhall be ſtruck off the lift; but his annuity ſhall be carried to the next year's dividend. The lift and ſtate, with the vouchers, ſhall be open, to the inſpection of all concerned, the four Mondays immediately preceding the term of payment, from ten in the morning till two in the afternoon. And, after the term of payment in any one year is paſt, no objection ſhall be competent to be made againſt the ſtate for that year upon any pretence whatever.

V. IF any ſharer ſhall not claim his annuity for ſeventy years, he ſhall be held as dead; and the annuities for the years due to him ſhall go to the next dividend. But, as the propoſer may, at any time before the expiry of the ſeventy years, have a call for the money, he ſhall not be liable for any intereſt upon it; nor ſhall he be liable for intereſt upon any annuities which may remain in his hands to be carried to a ſubſquent year's dividend.

VI. As, on the one hand, the annuities are to be paid without fee or reward, ſo, on the other, if any perſon ſhall tranſmit letters, certificates, receipts, or other intelligence, without paying the poſtage thereof, that expence ſhall be deduced from the ſhare of ſuch perſons for that year.

VII. In order to fecure the punſtual payment of the annuities, it is expreſſely covenanted, that in cafe the annuities are not paid within four weeks after a demand is made, according to the conditions before-mentioned, a ſum equal to one third of the annuities for that year, ſhall be payable over and above the ſaid annuities; and, in cafe the annuities ſhall not be paid within a ſull year after ſuch demand, it ſhall be competent to the annuitants to ſell the eſtate, and to retain out of the firſt and readieſt of the price, the original ſum given by all the annuitants, viz. £. 2000 ſterling, to be divided equally among the ſurvivers, the ſurplus, after deducing the expence of ſuch faſe to belong to the propoſer, or his heirs.

And as an heritable bond, narrating the above-mentioned conditions, with inſteftment thereupon, ſhall be put on record, the land eſtate will be fixed down in ſecurity till the annuities ceafe; ſo that there can be no doubt of the ſolidity of the ſcheme. Many ſchemes of this kind have been ſucceſſully carried on, with great ſatisfaction to all concerned, in France, and other kingdoms. This is the firſt that has been actually attempted in Scotland; and it is hoped that it will be agreeably received.

Such perſons as incline to be ſharers in the above ſcheme, may apply to Robert Bofwell, writer, Prince's ſtreet, with whom a ſubſcription-paper is lodged.—The money is not to be paid in till the ſubſcription is full, of which notice will be given to the ſubſcribers.