ance. They
obeyed, and fired; but wishing to do as little harm as possible, many of
them elevated their pieces, the effect of which was that some people
were wounded in the windows; and one unfortunate lad, whom we had
displaced, was killed in the stair window by a slug entering his head.
His name was Henry Black, a journey man tailor, whose bride was the
daughter of the house we were in. She fainted away when he was brought
into the house speechless, where he only lived till nine or ten o'clock.
We had seen many people, women and men, fall in the street, and at first
thought it was only through fear, and by their crowding on one another
to escape. But when the crowd dispersed, we saw them lying dead or
wounded, and had no longer any doubt of what had happened. The numbers
were said to be eight or nine killed, and double the number wounded; but
this was never exactly known.

This unprovoked slaughter irritated the common people to the last; and
the state of grief and rage into which their minds were thrown, was
visible in the high commotion that appeared in the multitude.... The
sequel of this affair was, that Porteous was tried and condemned to be
hanged; but by the intercession of some of the Judges themselves, who
thought his case hard, he was reprieved by the Queen-Regent. The
Magistrates, who on this occasion, as on the former, acted weakly,
designed to have him removed to the Castle for greater security. But a
plot was laid and conducted by some persons unknown with the greatest
secrecy, policy, and vigour, to prevent that design, by forcing the
prison the night before, and executing the sentence upon him themselves,
which to effectuate cost them from eight at night till two in the
morning; and yet this plot was managed so dexterously that they met with
no interruption, though there were five companies of a marching regiment
lying in the Canongate.

This happened on the 7th of September, 1736; and so prepossessed were
the minds of every person that something extraordinary would take place
that day, that I, at Prestonpans, nine miles from Edinburgh, dreamt that
I saw Captain Porteous hanged in the Grassmarket. I got up betwixt six
and seven, and went to my father's servant, who was thrashing in the
barn which lay on the roadside leading to Aberlady and North Berwick,
who said that several men on horseback had passed about five in the
morning, whom having asked for news, they replied there was none, but
that Capta