, as has already been stated, that a
hogshead of wine was therein. He himself, he said, had been 'in the
west,' at the time of the Gowrie tragedy, and first heard of it at
Falkirk.

On August 6, Sprot was interrogated again. Only lay lords were present:
there were no clergymen nor lawyers. He denied that he had received any
promise of life or reward. He asked to be confronted with Matthew Logan,
and reported a conversation between them, held when Lord Dunbar took
possession of Gunnisgreen. Matthew then hoped to ride with the Laird to
London (1605), but said, 'Alas, Geordie Sprot, what shall we all do now,
now nothing is left? I was aye feared for it, for I know the Laird has
done some evil turn, and he will not bide in the country, and woe's me
therefor.'

Sprot asked what the 'evil turn' was. Matthew answered, 'I know well
enough, but, as the proverb goes, "what lies not in my way breaks not my
shins."'

Sprot added that, after Bower's death (January 1606), Logan wrote to him
from London, not having heard the news of his decease. Lady Restalrig
opened the letter and wrote a postscript 'Give this to Laird Bower, for I
trow that he be ridden to Hell, as he ofttimes said to the Laird that he
would do.' In Letter IV. Logan tells Gowrie that he believes Bower
'would ride to Hell's gate to pleasure him.'

Sprot was now asked about two letters. One of these (Logan to Chirnside)
is endorsed, 'Production by Niniane Chirnesyde. XIII April 1608.'
Another is Letter V, endorsed 'produced by Ninian Chirnside,' a fact
first noted by Mr. Anderson. Yet another is the letter in twelve torn
pieces. Logan, in the first of these three letters, requests Chirnside
to find a letter which Bower lost in Dunglas. The letter imperils
Logan's life and lands. The date is September 23, and purports, falsely,
to be written before Logan goes to London (1605). Sprot explained that
he forged the letters, that Chirnside might blackmail Logan's executors,
and make them forgive him the debts which (as Logan's will proves) he
owed to the estate.

Here we cite the letter of the twelve fragments. It is, of course, a
forgery by Sprot, to enable Chirnside to terrorise his creditors, Logan's
executors. But, as it directly implicates Chirnside himself in the
Gowrie conspiracy, probably he disliked it, and tore it up. Yet the
artist could not part with his work; it still lies, now reconstructed, in
the old folio sheet of paper. The reader