Ormidale Memorial
Below we bring you, bit by bit, a memorial that Ormidale wrote in 1798 laying out his grievances against his brother (“the late Otter”) in an attempt to have his will overturned. We have done our best to decipher Ormidale’s scrawl but please feel free to offer corrections of any word you think we have misread. We are quite sure that there will be a few.
Excerpt 28
Here Otter is sending mutual friends to Ormidale as peacemakers, but with a list of demands that Ormidale finds unacceptable. It would be interesting to see what these were but, as far as we can tell, the list has not survived.
this also is
Also referred to in the Memorial as said 1795 years
3 In harvest nixt thereafter Mr John Campbell Smithy Green
Came to Otter from thence came to the Memorialist house in great
Concern he believing Otters Storys but to his Joy Otter wanted above
All things to be in friendship with his brother and pressed
the Memorialist to go along with him to Otter House which he
could not go by reason being harvest time besides he doubted
Much Otters veracity Next Day said Mr Campbell came back
with Mr Campbell Ardmarnock in company and still Assert
=ted that Otter wanted to be in friendship with his Said Brother
at sametime presented a long paper and a Double of it
rather shorter which as he Mr Campbell said settled all Differe
=ces but it was found said paper was only a Compleat
Upon the Imposition which is also related in the said Memoriall
Memorialist Wrote in 1795
Excerpt 29
The brothers remained estranged for a number of years, until Otter again asked a friend to act as mediator.
That in much of 1787 the Memorialist sent a Reprisation
Which Of his Grievances to Otter under cover of a letter but had
Return was no satisfactory return but to go to law as far as the Memorial
Wrote by [?] was pleased which is also Inserted in Memoriall 1795 Years
Date But Matters rested here upon both sides without any Communication
5 till about two years thereafter when Mr Allen McDugall
Is not sub of Hayfield wrote a letter from Otter Expressing his Anxiety
=scribed by for a reconciliation with Otter and proposed a Generall
Any person Reference the Memoriallist made a reply that he had
No objection to a particular Submission Viz that each should
first inform the Other of the different points to be Settled
Which letter is still Extant with a copy of the reply as
said
Excerpt 30
Again, we have the sort of family history information that you wouldn’t ordinarily expect to find in the standard sources. Ormidale was involved in an accident that left him seriously injured. In many cases, this could explain later financial difficulties, or even strange behaviour that might have been caused by ongoing pain.
We weren’t sure at first about the word “nodes”, down towards the end of the extract, then realised that Ormidale must have meant “notes”.
6 Matters still rested till the 15th day of August 1790 Years —
Page 12th Note 6th Years when the Memoriallist fell And
Not only broke his Thigh but was Otherwise much
Crushed and when laying Under the aforesaid Doctor
Jamie Campbell in October or November following The aforesaid
Allan McDougall Esq of Hayfield sends a Letter to
the Memorialist (by the aforesaid Mr Duncan Campbell
Writer at Inveraray) Intimating that the Memorialist
(though laying upon his back) would draw a new Bill
to Otter regarding the payment of the aforesaid Farm purchased
from Ochiltree of Linsaig for the sum of £412 nodes
Sterling money which the Memorialist objected to
for reasons also inserted in the Memoriall wrot
as said in 1795 Years