to him, that he might not be impoled upon by any body. That he did accordingly go and talk to Mr. Carnegie, who informed him that he had fold fome laudanum and arfenic to the prifoner, for which he received a hilling. That upon his reporting this to the prifoner, the prifoner feemed to be under fome concern, and defirous of fpeaking himself to Carnegie, without confeffing or denying that he had bought the arsenic. Peter Meik, furgeon of Alyth, depofed, that, being fent for to the deceased, he came, but found him dead; that Nairne was in tears, and defired that, whatever he might think was the caufe of her hufband's death, he would conceal it from the world. That, upon in fpecting the body four or five days afterwards, he found the nails and part of the breaft difcoloured, and the tongue fwelled beyond its natural fize, and cleaving to the roof of the mouth, which he had never obferved after a natural death. Gilbert Ramfay, furgeon, depofed to the fame appearances of the body, and that the fwelling of the tongue he had never feen after a natural death. He depofed alfo, that the effects of arfenic were death by violent vomitings and purgings, and great fwelling of the tongue after death. Such was the fubftance of the evidence for the profecution; in anfwer to which the prifoners exhibited the following declarations in their defence. Declaration of the prifoner Nairne. That Thomas Ogilvy, her de cealed husband, was rather advanced in years, of a tender.conftitution and of a very small fortune; that the married him when little more than nineteen, contrary to the opinion of all her friends, for love; and having been married to bia fcarcely fix months, when he died, her love to him could fcarcely be fuppofedto have been extinguithed, That her character, previous to her marriage, was irreproachable; and that, therefore, it is improbable in the highest degree, that the could at once plunge into the moft horrid crimes, fuch as bave always been the effect of gradual deviation, and habitual guilt. That her late huíband had violent and frequent a tacks of the cholic, and convulfions in his bowels; that he was fo bad with thefe diforders a thort time before his death, that he gave himself over for loft, and had returns of them fo violent the day and night before he died, that he thought himself dying, and refolved to have fent for a physician at many miles diftance. That the herfelf after her mar. riage, fell into a bad ftate of health, which frequently obliged her to take fmall dofes of falts and lau danum. That the prifoner Ogilvy, her husband's brother, having returned from India, much thattered in his conftitution, came to live at his houfe about the time of her marriage, and diftinguished the prifoner by a becoming friendship and intimacy, as being his near relation. That being short of falts and laudanum, and having occafionally mentioned it, the lieutenant told her he had ufed the fame medicines, and bad brought home fome of them of the belt quality, and would fend her part as foon as his cheft cheft came home. That the accepted the offer, and that he did fend her a fmall phial of laudanum and a paper of falts by Alexander Stewart. That her late husband's youngest brother, Alexander Ogilvy, having lately married a woman of the lowest rank, and greatly offended his two brothers, the had ftrongly expreffed her owu fenfe and feeling of the reproach he had brought upon the family; for which. joined with the difappoinment he had fuffered in his expectation of fucceeding to his brother's eftate, he entertained great refentment against the prifoner, and took every occafion to publish fcandalous falfehoods, contrived to create a mifunderfonding between her and her husband. That Alexander Ogilvy had, fome time before his marriage, cohabited with one Anne Clark, a cousin german of the family, a woman of the most infamous cha racter, who had several years lived as a common fervant in one of the moft notorious bawdy-houfes in Edinburgh. That Anne Clarke's relation to the family furnished Alexander Ogilvy with a pretence for fending her to his brother's at Eaft-Miln, to bring about a reconciliation be. tween them. That Clark attach ed herfelf firft to the prifoner, but finding her averie to any correfpondence with her, the quarrelled with the prifoner, and made her court to the deceased. That first, by dark infinuations, and afterwards more explicitly, the inftilJed into his mind fufpicions of the prifoner's virtue, and of a criminal intimacy between her and his brother the lieutenant, perfuading him farther, that they had formed a fcheme to deprive him of his life, and even communicated these fufpicions to his brother, with a view to produce a feparation between the deceafed and the prifoner, that, the deceased having no children, and not being likely to live, and the lieutenant's health being alfo injured by foreign fer. vice, he the faid Alexander might inherit the paternal eftate. That thefe machinations taking place, when the deceafed and the lieutenant had fome mifunderftanding about money matters,' produced high words between the brothers, and a difmiflion of the lieutenant from the house. That when the lieutenant was gone, the deceased foon cooled, and wrote to him to return, the prisoner, as far as decency would permit, joining in the request. That unluckily at this period, the de ceafed was feized with a dangerous return of the violent diforders in his ftomach and bowels, to which he was conftitutionally fubject. That he had been dying of them the day before his death, relapfed in the evening, continued ill the whole night, grew better in the morning, rofe and went out, but returned ill again, went again to bed, and took a bafon of warm tea; after which he made another effort, went out again, relapsed, returned, continued very ill all day, and died at night. That the prifoner's behaviour upon this occafion was decent and becoming, expreffive of the fincereft forrow. That the body remained unburied many days, without other appearance than is ufual in fuch cafes. safes. That a diffection of the bo dy would have put the queftion, whether the deceafed was poifoned, out of doubt; and it was the duty of Alexander, as informer, to have had it diffected, which was not done, he being conscious that the fufpicions he had raifed, and the project he had formed, would then have been totally removed and defeated. him to quit his duty in the Eaft Indies, and return home. That from these fituations of the deceased and himself, Alexander, their younger brother, had entertained the most fanguine hopes that he fhould fucceed to the eftate, which by the marriage of the deceafed, who might leave children, and the recovery of the prifoner's health upon his return, were likely to be disappointed. That, therefore, to bring about a feparation between the deceased and his wife, and to drive the prifoner back to the unwholefome climates that would destroy him, he contrived to give the deceafed the worst opinion of them both, which he accomplished by the means of Ann Clark. To this it was answered, that when the younger brother Alexander arrived on the 17th of June, he did infift on the body being opened and examined, as foon as a phyfician of eminence could be prefent, which the prifoners did not then oppofe. But when the phyfician came next day, he declared the body to be in fuch a putrid state, that no certain conclufions could be drawn from outward appearances, nor even from a diffection of the body, which befides could not be done with fafety to the furgeons and attendants, and he, therefore, thought it beft to decline. Declaration in defence of the prifoner Stewart. Ogilvy. That the deceafed, two years before his death, had been difcodered to have ulcers in his bowels, and had ever afterwards been fickly. That the relations of his wife, the prifoner Nairne, had fhewn apprehenfions that his death would be premature by the measures, which they had taken to fecure the provision that had been made in her favour. That he, the prifoner, had also fo bad a flate of health, as obliged VOL. VIII. That the prifoner, as foon as he discovered the jealoufy of the deceased, left his house, and never would return, though often and earneftly folicited. That for the reafons alledged in the defence of the prifoner Nairne, he fent for fome laudanum and falts by Alexander That, after the deceafed was dead, he urged and infifted that the body fhould be opened and fent for a furgeon to open it; but Alexander Ogilvy w uld not permit it, and privately fopped the furgeon whom the prifoner had fent for to open it. The evidence brought to sustain thefe defences, was in substance only as follows: George Spalding of Glenftilrie depofed, that he wrote a letter to lady Nairne foon after her daughter's marriage with the deceased, preffing her, that the enfeofinent [2] hould fhould be taken in favour of Mrs. Ogilvy, because her husband appeared to be in a bad ftate of health. That for fome years he had complained of a heart-cholic, attended with a fhort cough, and about fix years ago, had an ulcerous fever. That he had often been prefent when he complained of pain in his ftomach, which was relieved by a dram. That before his marriage he wore a plaid jacket, and a belt round his middle, much broader than the deponent ever faw worn by another, with lappets of leather hanging down his haunches. That before he got the belt, he ufed to wear a ftriped woollen night-cap upon his breaft, the lower end of which reached his breeches; that after his marriage he left off wearing his lappets of leather. James Millam, tackfman, of Eatt-Miln, deposed, that he carried a letter from the deceased to the prifoner lieut. Ogilvy, the day after he left Eaft-Miln, requesting him to return, which the lieutenant declined. That the deceafed complained to him, three or four days before he died, that he had the gravel and the cholic, and that if he got not the better of them he could not live. That he grew worfe gradually till he died. That two nights before he died he complained of being ill, refufing to eat, and faying he would have no fupper but the fire, though the weather was then warm. That the night before he died he faid he was no better. That the two pri. foners appeared to be greatly af fected at the death of the deceafed. That the deceafed complained to him that he could not get peaceable poffeffion of his own house, for Anne Clarke, that he wifhed her away. That he got from the deponent a ten fhilling note for the expences of her journey. That when the mourning came home, Anne Clark complained that the had no mourning apron, and told the deponent she would make it as dear to the prifoners as if it had been a gown. But all these objections to Clark's evidence, as well as those ftarted by the prifoner Nairne, were deftroyed by its being made to appear, that, upon the approach of the trial fhe had disguised and concealed herself; and was with difficulty found out, being unwilling to appear as an evidence in the affair. James Millam, being cross exa. mined, faid, that, in aufwer to the letter which he carried from the deceafed to the prifoner Ogilvy, he received a letter from him inclofing the letter he had received, directed not to the deceafed but to his wife. That he never heard the deceafed was fubject to vomitings or purgings. Jean Wallace, fervant to George Spalding of Glenkilrie, depofed, that the was fervant to the deceafed three years, and left him fix years ago. That, while the was in his fervice, he had an ulcer, and was attended by Dr. Ogilvy; that the fat up with him frequently, and that he was confined fix weeks. Thomas Jack depofed, that, about ten o'clock of the morning of of the day the deceased died, he told him he had been very bad the day before. Elizabeth Ferguson depofed, that the deceased, the day before he died, told her he was not well. John Paterfon depofed, that on the fame day the deceased complained to him that his bowels were all fore, that he had not been fo ill for fix years, and that he lay down and flept on the ground. Margaret Reid depofed to the fame effect, and that the deceafed told her he would apply to Dr. Ogilvy. Dr. James Scott depofed, that arfenic would not diffolve in warm water, but almoft inftantly fubfide to the bottom of the veffel; but acknowledged, that, if put into tea, with milk and fugar, and stir red, it would be fufpended long enough to kill those who fhould drink the potion. George Campbell of Crafgonie, under theriff, depofed, that, upon fearching the drawers in the deceafed's houfe, he found only fome brown powder, which, upon examination, proved to be faltpetre. Here the prisoners refted their defence, and declined the examination of other witneffes; and it is probable in the highest degree, that every reader of this account will be of the fame opinion with the jury that found them guilty. Many remarkable particulars, however, appeared during the courfe of the evidence, which, though they do not tend to invalidate it, fhew the aftonishing indifcretion of the prifoners, and the almoft unaccountable behaviour of fome other perfons. It is ftrange, that the prifoners should walk with their arms about each other's neck, and frequently kifs each other, when the deceased and others were prefent. It is ftrange, that they should embrace and kifs each other, the prifoner Ogilvy fometimes putting his hand down the prifoner Nairne's bofom at the fame time, before all the fervants in the house. It is ftrange, that Nairne should tacitly confefs the adultery and inceft to Clarke, and declare her refolution to poifon her husband. without the leaft apparent motive for fuch confidence. It is ftrange, that the prisoners fhould frequently retire together, from the rest of the family, to a bed in a room, where every thing that paffed could be heard by them; that they should fuffer the door of the room, into which they fo retired, not only to be unfaftened, but to ftand open. It is ftrange, that, when Mr. Stewart propofed to get the packet he had delivered to Nairne again from her, Anne Clark thould oppofe it, as fhe had the greatest reafon to think it would be used to a fatal purpose, the first opportunity. It is ftrange, that the mother of the deceafed fhould not more explicitly apprife him of his danger, when urged to do it by Stewart and Clark. And it is firange, that Stewart fhould urge the prifoner Ogilvy to efcape, when he fuppofed him to be guilty. This remarkable trial began on Monday the 12th of Auguft at feven in the morning, and the court continued fitting till about [2] 2 two |