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278 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Lord Prowsta
the city, Berwick, Roxburgh, and Stirling, met in
Holyrood Abbey.
After a gap of forty-eight years we find John
Wigmer aZdermm in 1344. Thirteen years subsequently
certain burgesses of Edinburgh and other
burghs are found negotiating for the ransom of
King David II., taken in battle by the English.
In 1362 WilliamGuppeld was alderman, 9th April,
and till 1369, in which year a council sat at Edinburgh,
when the king granted a charter to the
abbey of Melrose.
In 1373 the dderman was Sir Adam Forrester,
.said to be of Whitburn and Corstorphine, a man
possessed of immense estates, for which he obtained
no less than six charters under the great seal of
Robert II., and was several times employed in
-treaties and negotiations with the English, between
In 1377 John of Quhitness first appears as
Pmost, or Prepositus, on the 18th of May, and in
the following year Adam Forrester was again in
office. In 1381 John de Camera was provost,
and in 1387 Andrew Yutson (or Yichtson), between
whom, with ?Adam Forster, Lord of Nether
Libberton,? the Burgh of Edinburgh, and John of
-Stone, and John Skayer, masons, an indenture was
made, 29th November, for the erection of five new
-chapels in St. Giles?s, with pillars and vzulted roofs,
-covered with stone, and lighted with windows.
These additions were made subsequent to the
burning of the city by the invaders under Richard
of England two years before.
In 1392 John of Dalrymple was provost, and
*the names of several bailies alone appear in the
Burgh Records (Appendix) till the time of Provost
Alexander Napier, 3rd October, 1403, whom
Douglas calls first Laird of Merchiston. Under him
Symon de Schele was Dean of Guild and KeepeI
.of the Kirk Work, when the first head guild was
held after the feast of St Michael in the Tolbooth.
Man of Fairnielee was provost 1410-1, and
again in 1419, though George of Lauder was provost
So lately as 1423 John of Levyntoun was styled
alderman, with Richard Lamb and Robert of
Bonkyl bailies, when the lease of the Canonmills
was granted by Dean John of Leith, sometime
Abbot of Holyrood, to ? the aldermen, baylyes, and
dene of the gild,? 12th September, 1423. His
successor was Thomas of Cranstoun, Preporitus,
when the city granted an obligation to Henry VI.
of England, for 50,000 merks English money, on
account of the expenses of James I., while detained
in England by the treasonable intrigues of his
.uncle. William of Liberton, George of Lauder,
1 3 9 4 4 1404-
hl 1413.
and John of Levyntoun, appear as provosts successively
in 1425, 1427, and 1428.
In 1434 Sir Henry Preston of Craigmillar wag
appointed provost; but no such name occurs in
the Douglas peerage under that date. After John
of Levyntoun, Sir Alexander Napier appears as
provost after 1437, and the names of Adam Cant
and Robert Niddry are among those of the magistrates
and council. Then Thomas of Cranstoun
was provost from 1438 till 1445, when Stephen
Hunter succeeded him.
With the interval of one year, during which
Thomas Oliphant was provost, the office was held
from 1454 to 1462 by Sir Alexander Napier of
Merchiston, a man of considerable learning, whom
James 11. made Comptroller ofScotland. In 1451
he had a safe-conduct from the King of England
to visit Canterbury as a pilgrim, and by James 111.
he was constituted Vice-Admiral. He was also
ambassador to England in 1461 and 1462.
In succession to Robert Mure of Polkellie, he
was provost again in 1470, and until the election of
James Creichton of Rothven, or Rowen, in 1477,
when the important edict of James 111. concerning
the market-places and the time of holding markets
was issued.
In 1481 the provost was Rilliarn Bertraham,
who, in the following year, with ?the whole fellowship
of merchants, burgesses, and community ? of?
Edinburgh, bound themselves to repay to the King
of England the dowry of his daughter, the Lady
Cecil, in acknowledgment for which loyalty and
generosity, James 111. granted the city its Golden
Charter, with the banner of the Holy Ghost, locally
known still as the Blue Blanket. In 1481 the
provost was for the first time allowed an annual
fee of A z o out of the common purse ; but, some
such fee would seem to have been intended three
years before.
His successor was Sir John Murray of Touchadam,
in 1482; and in the same year we find Patrick
Baron of Spittlefield, under whose rt?gime the
Hammermen were incorporated, and in 1484 John
Napier of Merchiston, eldest son of Provost
Alexander Napier. He was John Napier of
Rusky, and third of Merchiston, whom James III.,
in a letter dated 1474, designates as OUY Zouift
fandiar sqwiar, and he was one of the lords
auditors in the Parliament of 1483. Two of his
lineal heirs fell successively in battle at Flodden
and Pinkie.
The fourth provost in succession after him was
Patrick Hepburn, Lord Hailes, 8th August. He
was the first designated ?? My h r d Provost,? pre
bably because he was a peer of the realm. He had

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Lord Prowsta the city, Berwick, Roxburgh, and Stirling, met in Holyrood Abbey. After ...

Book 4 p. 278
(Score 2.44)

290 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. me Old High Schaol?
display the dresses so used should be given to the
poor.?
For many years the history of the school is little
more than a biographical list of the various masters
and teachers. A fifth class was established in I 614 for
the rudiments of Greek during the rectorship of
John Ray (the friend of Zachary Boyd), who after
being Professor of Humanity in the university for
eight years, regarded it promotion to leave it to
take full charge of the High School ; and when he
died, in February, 1630, his office was again conferred
upon a Professor of Humanity, Thomas
Crawford, who figured prominently amid the
pageants with which Charles I. was welcomed to
the city in 1633, and with Hawthornden and others
composed and delivered some of the bombastic
speeches on that occasion.
In his time the number of pupils fluctuated
greatly ; he complained to the Council that though
they had led him to expect ? 400 bairns at the least,?
he had only 180 when he began office. But there
is no authentic record of attendance at that early
period ; and it is curious that the abstract of the
annual enrolment of scholars goes no farther back
than the Session of 1738-9, while a general matriculation
register was not commenced till 1827.
In December, 1640, Crawford returned to the
university, and was succeeded by William Spence,
schoolmaster of Prestonpans ; but to give all the
successive masters of the institution would far
exceed our space. The masters and scholars had
very indifferent accommodation during the invasion
of Cromwell after Dunbar. His troops made a
barrack of the school-house, and while there broke
and burned all the woodwork, leaving it in such a
state of ruin that the pupils had to meet in Lady
Yester?s Church till it was repaired by funds drawn
from the masters of the Trinity Hospital at the foot
of Leith Wynd.
A library for the benefit of the institution was
added to it in 1658, and it now consists of many
thousand volumes. Among the first donors of
books were John Muir the rector, all the
masters, Patrick Scott of Thirlstane, and John
Lord Swinton of that ilk. At present it is sup
ported by the appropriation of one half of the
n?iatriculation fund to its use, and every way it is
a valuable classical, historical, geographical, and
antiquarian collection. The rector and masters,
with the assistance of the janitor, discharge in
rotation the duties of librarian.
Ap old periodical source of income deserves to
be noticed. In 1660, on the 20th January, the
Town Council ordered ? the casualty called the
b(rir-iZve? to be withheld until the 1st of March.
This was a gratuity presented to the masters by
their pupils at Candlemas, and he who gave the
most was named the King. ? Bleis? being the
Scottish word for blaze, the origin of the gratuity
must have been a Candlemas offering for the lights
and candles anciently in use ; moreover, the day
was a holiday, when the boys appeared in their best
apparel accompanied by their parents.
The roll was then called over, and each boy
presented his offering. When the latter was less
than the quarterly fee no notice was taken of it, but
if it amounted to that sum the rector exclaimed
with a loud voice, Vivat; to twice the ordinary
fee, FZoreai bis; for a higher sum, Fioreaf ter; for
a guinea and upwards, Gloriat! The highest
donor was named the fictor, or King.
The Council repeatedly issued injunctions
against the levy of any ?&is-syZver, or BentsyZver,?
but apparently in vain. The latter referred
to the money for collecting bent, or rushes, to lay
down on the clay floor to keep the feet warm and
dry; and so latelyas the commencement of the
seventeenth century, during the summer season,
the pupils had leave to go forth with hooks to
cut bent by the margins of Duddingston and
the Burgh lochs, or elsewhere. ?Happily,? says
Steven, of a later date, ? all exactions are now unknown
; and at four regular periods in the course of
each session, the teachers receive from their pupils
a fixed fee, which is regarded as a fair remuneration
for their professional labour.?
In those days the pupils attended divine service,
accompanied by their masters, and were frequently
catechised before the congregation. A part of
Lady Yester?s Church, was set apart for their use,
and afterwards the eastern gallery of the Trinity
College church.
In 1680, the Privy Council issued a proclamation
prohibiting all private Latin schools to be opened
within the city or suburbs, and thus the High
School enjoyed an almost undisturbed monopoly ;
and sixteen years after, in the proceedings of the
Town Council, we find the following enactment :-
?Edinbuqh, S@. 11, 1696.-The Council considering
that the High School of this city being
situate in a corner at some distance, many of the
inhabitants, whose children are tender, being unwilling
to expose them to. the cold winter mornings,
and send them to the said school before the hour
of seven, as use is ; therefore, the Council ordain
the masters of the said school in all time coming,
to meet and convene at nine of the clock in the
morning during the winter season, viz., from the
1st of November to the 1st March yearly, and to
teach the scholars till twelve, that which they were

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. me Old High Schaol? display the dresses so used should be given to the poor.? For ...

Book 4 p. 290
(Score 2.44)

296 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. Uuhnsrone Terrace.
selection, without regard to the Government order of
merit. The programme of instruction is prescribed
by the Education Department ; but the Education
Committee of the Scottish Church are not limited
by it, and give religious instruction on the basis of
the Bible and Shorter Catechism, while promoting
the study of Latin and elementary science. The
All students pay annually A2 each, a contribution
to the book fund of the Training College, in
return for which all necessary books are given to
them by the committee ; and this payment must
be made by all, whether the books are taken or
not.
These colleges date from about the year 1840.
PLAN FOR OPENING A COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE NORTH AND SOUTH SIDES OF THE CITY BY MEANS OF
A BRIDGE, ENTERING THE LAWNMARKET NEARLY OPPOSITE BANK STREET.
(Fmnr an Eirgrawing in the ?Scotr? Magnsinc,? 1817.)
students do not enter un?.il they are eighteen years
of age at least, and thF, principles and practice of
teaching have a prorhent place among the subjects
of instruction.
Bursaries of the average value of LZI per
annum, in addition to free education, are given to
all the male students ; while a considerable number
of the average value of LIZ is given to the female
students, from whom alone a fee for education is
expected.
That in Johnstone Terrace was built to succeed an
older (and less suitably equipped) edifice, which
stood in what used to be called Market Street,
near the Waverley Station, and near the Bank of
Scotland.
Westward of the Training College, on the Castlebank,
and facing the Grassmarket, a barrack for
married soldiers stands, and there any soldier
passing through Edinburgh, on obtaining permission,
may pass the night.

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. Uuhnsrone Terrace. selection, without regard to the Government order of merit. The ...

Book 2 p. 296
(Score 1.88)

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. few particular points both of learning and of practice, but on the whole, his ...

Book 9 p. 589
(Score 1.77)

42 EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT.
historian,-% man too great to be faultless, too honest and peculiar to be
without enemies, but whose name ranks with those of Knox, and Burns, and
BUCIUNAN'S GRAVK.
Chalmers, and William Wallace, and Robert Bruce, and David Hume, and Sir
Walter Scott, as belonging to the very first file of eminent Scotchmen.
Among others who repose here are Principal Robertson and Dr. M'Crie,
two opposites paired off in the Parliament of Death ; Dr. Hugh Blair, the
. . . . . .-. .. .. .I . .. ...,
* .
1
. .- . ._-. . . .
CRAVEOFTHEREGERTHORTON.
accomplished critic and smooth sermon-writer ; Allan Ramsay, who must
live as long as Edinburgh herseIf in his Gent& Sh.@herd; the learned Patrick
Tytler j 'and Henry Mackenzie, who, in his Mas of Fedirq,JuZia de Roubi.e,

... EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT. historian,-% man too great to be faultless, too honest and peculiar to be without ...

Book 11 p. 66
(Score 1.68)

36 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Merchistom
captain named ScougaL
After a hard struggle, during which several were
killed and wounded, they stormed the outworks,
and set them on fire to smoke the defenders out of
the donjon keep ; but a body of the king's men
veyed to Leith, and hanged, while he had a narrow
escape, his horse being killed under him by a shot
from Holyrood Palace, Another conflict of a
more serious nature occurred before Merchiston
on the last day of the same month.
attack by firing forty guns from the Castle of Edinburgh.
The men of Scougal (who were mortally wounded)
fled over the Links and adjacent fields in all
directions, hotly pursued by the Laird of Blairquhan.
On the 10th of the subsequent June the
queen's troops, under George, Earl of Huntly, with
a small train of artillery, made another attack upon
Merchiston, while their cavalry scoured all the
fields between it and Blackford-fields now covered
with long lines of stately and beautiful villas-bringing
in forty head of cattle and sheep. By the time
the guns had played on Merchiston from two till
four o'clock p.m., two decided breaches were made
in the walls. The garrison was about to capitulate,
when the assemblage of a number of people, whom
the noise of the cannonade had attracted, was
mistaken for king's troops ; those of Huntly be,came
party of twenty-four men-at-arms rode forth to
forage. The well-stocked fields in the neighbourhood
of the fortalice were the constant scene of
enterprise, and on this occasion the foragers
collected many oxen, besides other spoil, which
they were driving triumphantly into town. They
were pursued, however, by Patrick Home of the
Heugh, who commanded the Regent's Light
Horsemen. The foraging party, whom hunger
had rendered desperate, contrived to keep their
pursuers, amounting to eighty spears, at bay till
they neared Merchiston, when the king's garrison
issued forth, and re-captured the cattle, the collectors
of which '' alighted from their horses, which they
suffered to go loose, and faught CreauZZ'iee," till succoured
from the town, when the fight turned in
their favour. In this conflict, Home of the Heugh,
Sir Patrick Home of Polwarth, four more gentle

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Merchistom captain named ScougaL After a hard struggle, during which several ...

Book 5 p. 36
(Score 1.62)

THE NISBET$ OF DEAN. 65 The Water of Leith.1
Embosomed among venerable trees, the old
house of a baronial family, the Nisbets of Dean,
stood here, one of the chief features in the locality,
and one of the finest houses in the neighbourhood of
From the Water of Leith village a steep path
that winds up the southern slope of the river?s
bank on its west side, leads to the high ground
where for ages there stood the old manor-house of
Dean, and on the east the older village of the
same name.
During the reign of James IV., on the r5th
June, 1513, the Dean is mentioned in the Burgh
Records? as one of the places where the pest
existed; and no man or woman dwelling therein was
regard that the farnily-of-Dean is the only family
of that name in Scotland that has right, by consent,
to represent the original family of the name
of Nisbet, since the only lineal male representative,?
and armorial bearings, it was literally a history in
stone of the proud but now extinct race to which
it belonged.
H e n j Nisbet, descended from- the Nisbets of
Dalzell (cadets of the Nisbets of that ilk), who for
many years was a Commissioner to the Parliament
for Edinburgh, died some time before 1608, leaving
three sons : James, who became Nisbet of Craigintinnie,
near Restalrig; Sir William of Dean,
whose grandson, Alexander,. exchanged the lands
THE DEAN HOUSE, 1832. (Aftv a Dravving ay Rolcrl Gibb.)
permitted to enter the city, under pain, if a woman,
of being branded on the cheek, and if a man, of such
punishment as might be deemed expedient.
In 1532 James Wilson and David Walter were
committed prisoners to the Castle of Edinburgh,
for hamesucken and oppression done to David
Kincaid in the village of Deanhaugh.
In 1545 the Poultry Lands near Dean were held
mm qfi& PuZtrie Regim, as Innes tells us in his
Scottish ? Legal Antiquities.?
of Dean with his cousin, Sir Patrick Nisbet, the
first baronet; and Sir Patrick of Eastbank, a Lord
of Session.
The Nisbets of Dean came to be the head of the
house, as Alexander Nisbet records in his System
of Heraldry,? published in I 7 2 z ; soon after which,
he died, by the failure of the Nisbets of that ilk in
his own person-a contingency which led him to?lay
aside the chevron, the mark of fidelity, a mark of
cadency, used formerly by the house of Dean, in

... NISBET$ OF DEAN. 65 The Water of Leith.1 Embosomed among venerable trees, the old house of a baronial family, ...

Book 5 p. 65
(Score 1.6)

Mary in March, 1566, a gift of all the patronages
and endowments in the city, which had belonged
to the Franciscan and Dominican priories, including
the ancient school, which, till then, had been
vested in the abbey of the Holy Cross, in January,
1567, they resolved to erect a suitable schoolhouse
on the land of the Blackfriars monastery ; and
this edifice, which was built for E250 Scots (about
A40 sterling) was ready for occupation in the
following year.
-
LADY YLSTER?S CHURCH, 1820. (AfitrStorw.)
ascertained, and they were obliged to teach gr.afi;
the sons of all freemen of the burgh.
For the ultimate completion of its buildings,
which included a tall square tower with a conical
spire, the school was indebted to James Lawson,
who succeeded John Knox as one of the city
clergy ; but it did not become what it was originally
intended to be-an elementary seminary for logic
and philosophy as well as classics ; but it led to the
foundation of the University in its vicinity, and
This edifice, which was three-storeyed with
crowstepped gables, stood east and west, having on
its front, which faced the Cowgate, two circular
towers, with conical roofs, and between them a
square projection surmounted by a gable and
thistle. The main entrance was on the east side
of this, and had over it the handsome stone panel,
which is still preserved in the last new school, and
which bears the city arms, the royal cypher, and
the motto.
MVSIS , RES PUBLICA . FLORET . 1578.
At that time, says Amot, there appears to have
been only two teachers belonging to this school,
with a small salary, the extent of which cannot be
hence, says Dr. Steven, ?? they may be viewed as
portions of one great institution.?
The encouragement received by the masters was
so small that they threatened to leave the school if
it were not bettered, on which they were ordered
to receive a quarterly fee from the sons of the freemen
; the masters of three, and the usher of two
shillings Scots (nearly 6s. and nearly 4s. sterling)
from each; and soon after four teachers were
appointed with fixed salaries and fees, which
were augmented from time to time as the value of
money changed, and the cost of living increased
(Arnot).
In 1584, a man of superior attainments and
considerable genius, named Hercules Rollock, a

... in March, 1566, a gift of all the patronages and endowments in the city, which had belonged to the ...

Book 4 p. 288
(Score 1.59)

156 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Leith Walk.
hall within thirty years of the time when Steele and
Addison were writing in the Specfatorf
The 10th of October, 1681, saw five unfortunate
victims of misrule, named Garnock, Foreman,
Russel, Ferrie, and Stewart, executed at the Gallow
Lee, where their bodies were buried, while their
heads were placed on the Cowgate Port. Some of
their friends came in the night, and reverently
lifting the remains, re-interred them in the West
Churchyard They had the courage also to take
half of the linen over them, and stufft the coffin
with shavings.? Many urged that the latter should
be borne through all the chief thoroughfares ; but
PatricK Walker adds that instead, we went out
by. the back of the [city] wall, in at the Bristo Port,
and turned up to the churchyard [Greyfrairs],
where they were interred close to the Martyrs?
tomb, with the greatest multitude of people, old
and young, men and women, ministers and others,
that I ever saw together.?
JOPPA PANS,
down the heads for the same purpose, but being
scared they were obliged to enclose them in a box,
which they buried in a garden at Lauriston. There
they lay till the 7th of October, 1726, a period of
forty-five years, when a Mr. Shaw, proprietor of the
garden, had them exhumed. The resurrection of
the ghastly relics of the Covenanting times made a
great excitement in Edinburgh. They were rolled
in four yards of fine linen and placed in a coffin.
?( Being young men, their teeth all remained,? says
Patrick Walker (the author of ?? Biographia Presbyteriana
?). ? All were witness to the holes in each
of their heads which the hangman broke with his
hammer ; and according to the bigness of their
skulls we laid their jaws to them, drew the other
On the 10th of January, 1752, there was taken
from the Tolbooth, hanged at the Gallow Lee, and
gibbeted there, a man named Norman ROSS, whose
remains were long a source of disgust and dismay
to all wayfarers on the Walk. His crime was the
assassination of Lady Baillie, a sister of Home the
Laud of Wedderburn. A relation of this murder
is given in a work entitled ?Memoirs of an Anstocrat,?
published in 1838, by the brother of a
claimant for the Earldom of Marchmont, a book
eventually suppressed The lady in question married
Ninian Home, a dominie, but by failure of
her brothers ultimately became heiress, and the
dominie died before her.
Norman Ross was her footman, and secreted

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Leith Walk. hall within thirty years of the time when Steele and Addison were writing ...

Book 5 p. 156
(Score 1.54)

98 OLD AKD NEW EDINBURGH. [The Mound
and ten elders, of whom five shall retire ?by
rotation from year to year, two only of whom may
be re-elected, and reserving the rights competent
to all parties under the laws of the Church ; with
authority to undertake the general administration
of college property and finances, to give advice in
cases of difficulty ; to originate and prosecute before
the Church Court processes asainst any of the
professors for heresy or immorality, and to make
necessary inquiries for that purpose ; to originate
also, and prepare for the decision of the General
Assembly, proposals for the retirement of professors
disabled by age or infirmity, and for fixing the
retiring allowance they are to receive.? The
convener is named by the Assembly, and his committees
meet as often as may be necessary. They
submit to the Assembly an annual report of their
proceedings, with a summary of the attendance
during the session.
The election of professors is vested in the
General Assembly ; but they are inducted into their
respective offices by the Presbytery. There is a
Senatus Acadet?~icus, composed of the Principal and
professors.
The library of this college originated with Dr.
Welsh, who in 1843 brought the subject before the
Assembly. He obtained large and valuable
donations in money and books from friends and
from Scottish publishers in this country and
America. Among the benefactors were the Earl
of Dalhousie, Lords Effingham and Rutherford,
General McDowall of Stranraer, Buchan of Kelloe,
and others. The endowment now? amounts
to about A139 per annum. The library is extensive
and valuable, numbering about 35,000 volumes. It
is peculiarly rich in patristic theology, ecclesiastical
history, systematic theology, and works belonging
to the epoch of the Reformation.
The museum was begun by Dr. Fletning, but was
mainly indebted to the efforts of the late Mrs.
Macfie of Longhouse, who, at its commencement;
enriched it with a large number of valuable
specimens, and led many of her friends to take an
interest in its development. The geological
department, which is on the same floor with the
class-room, contains a large number of fossils, many
of which are very curious. In the upper museum
is the varied and valuable collection of minerals,
given by the late Dr. Johnston of Durham. In the
same room are numerous specimens of comparative
anatomy, The herbarium is chiefly composed of
British plants.
The endowment fund now amounts to above
&+4,ooo, exclusive of LIO,OOO bequeathed for the
endowment of a chair for natural science.
The whole scheme of scholarships in the Free
Church College originated with Mr. James Hog
of Newliston, who, in 1845, by personal exertions,
raised about A700 for this object, and continued to
do so for eight years subsequently. Legacies and
donations at length accumulated such a fund as to
render subscriptions no longer necessary.
A dining hall, wherein the professors preside by
turn, is attached to the New College, to which all
matriculated students, i.e., those paying the common
fee, or securing as foreigners a free ticket,
are entitled to dine on payment of a moderate
sum.
The common hall of the college is converted
into a reading-room during the session. All
students may become members on the payment of
a trifling fee, and the arrangements are conducted
by a committee of themselves. Since 1867 a large
mnasium has been fitted up for the use of the
students, under the management of eight of their
number, the almost nominal subscription of sixpence
from each being found sufficient to defray
the current expenses.
Westward of the Earthen Mound, the once fetid
morass that formed the bed of the loch, and
which had been styled ?a pest-bed for all the
city,? is now a beautiful garden, so formed
under the powers of a special statute in 1816-20,
by which the ground there belonging originally to
the citizens became the private property of a few
proprietors of keys-the improvements being in
the first instance urged by Skene, the friend of
Sir Walter Scott
In his ?Journal,? under date of January, 1826, Sir
Walter says :-? Wrote till twelve a.ni., finishing half
of what I call a good day?s work, ten pages of print,
or rather twelve. Then walked in the Princes
Street pleasure grounds with the Good Samaritan
James Skene, the only one among my numerous
friends who can properly be termed amicus curarum .
mearem, others being too busy or too gay. The.
walks have been conducted on the whole with
much taste, though Skene has undergone much?
criticism, the usual reward of public exertions,
on account of his plans. It is singular to walk
close beneath the grim old castle and think what
scenes it must have seen, and how many generations
of threescore and ten have risen and passed
away. It is a place to cure one of too much
sensation over eanhly subjects of imitation.?
He refers here to James Skene of Rubislaw, a
cornet of the Light Horse Volunteers, the corps of
which he himself was quartermaster, and to whom
he dedicated the fourth canto of ? Marmion,? and
refers thus :-

... OLD AKD NEW EDINBURGH. [The Mound and ten elders, of whom five shall retire ?by rotation from year to year, ...

Book 3 p. 98
(Score 1.54)

BOnuington.1 GRIZEL HUME. 89
of the Mylnes of Powderhall. The house was
advertised to be let in the Coumnf of 1761, and the
public are informed that ? it will be very convenient
for any who wish to use the St. Leonard well (an
old and now disused mineral spring) being a short
distance from it.? In this house Sir John Gordon
of Earlston, Bart., Kirkcudbright, was married in
1775, to Anne Mylne, ?youngest daughter of the
deceased Thomas Mylne of Powderhall, Esq.?
( Tfiek&yjournaZ). Burke states that the latter was a
1846. It contains many very handsome tombs ; the
grounds are kept in excellent order; its floral embellishments
are carried to great perfection, and the
average number of annual interments exceeds 700.
George Lord Reay was resident in the house of
Rosebank in 1768.
Opposite the cemetery, on the opposite side of
the road, is the old manor-house of Redbraes,
with artificial ponds among its shrubberies and
pretty walks beside the river. In Rose?s ?? Obser-
TANFIELD HALL.
celebrated London engineer. In 1795 the place
passed into the possession of the family of Daniel
Seton, merchant, in Edinburgh (Scottish Register),
and afterwards was the residence and property of
Sir John Hunter Blair, Bart., of Robertland and
Dunskey, who died there in 1800.
On the east side of the road lies the pretty cemetery
of Rosebank, with its handsome Gothic entrance,
porch, and lodge, facing Pilrig Street. It
occupies a beautiful site, that seenis to gather every
ray of sunshine, and though equi-distant between
Edinburgh and Leith, it may be considered as
especially the cemetery of the latter. It was
originated by a company of shareholders, and was
first opened for interments on the 20th September,
108
vations on the Historical Works of Mr. Fox,? we
read that Sir Patrick Kume of Polwarth and Mr.
Robert Baillie were intimate friends, and that
about 1688, when the latter was first imprisoned,
?? Sir Patrick sent his daughter from Redbraes to
Edinburgh, with instructions to endeavour to obtain
admittance unsuspectedly into the prison, to deliver
a letter to Mr. Baillie, and to bring back from
him what intelligence she could. She succeeded
in this difficult enterprise, and having at this time
met with Mr. Baillie?s son, the intimacy and friendship
was formed which was afterwards completed
by their marriage.?
This was the famous Grizel Hume, so well known
in Scottish story.

... GRIZEL HUME. 89 of the Mylnes of Powderhall. The house was advertised to be let in the Coumnf of ...

Book 5 p. 89
(Score 1.53)

Lord Promsts.] THE DOUGLASES AND HAMILTONS. 279
?James of Creichtoun of Felde,? as a deputy provost
under him ; and the first entry in the Records
under that date is a statute that ? the commoun
pyperis of the towne ? shall be properly feed, for
the honour thereof, and that they get their food,
day about, from all honest persons of substance,
under a penalty of 9d. per day, ?? that is to ilk
pyper iijd at least.?
The fifth provost after this was Sir Thomas Tod,
zznd August, 1491, and again in 1498, with
Richard Lawson of the Highriggs, and Sir John
Murray in the interval during 1492.
From this date to 1513, with a little interval,
Richard Lawson was again provost ; the office was
held by Sir Alexander Lauder of Blythe, who -in
the last named year was also Justice Depute.
He fell in the battle.on the fatal 9th of September,
1513, and the apairs ofthe city, amid the consternation
and grief that ensued, were managed by George
of Tours, who with Robert Bruce, William Lockhart,
William Adamson, and William Clerk, all
bailies, had been, on the 19th of August, chosen
by the provost and community to rule the city
after his departure with the army for England.
The aged Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus
(better known as Archibald Bell-thecat)-whose
two sons, George Master of Angus, and Sir William
Douglas of Glenbervie, with more then zoo
knights and gentlemen of his surname, found their
tomb on Flodden Hill-was elected provost on the
30th of September, twenty-one days after the battle ;
and at the same time his son, Gawain the Poet,
provost of St. Giles?s, was ?( made burgess, gratis, for
the Common benefit of the town.? It was he of
whom Scott makes th?e grim old Earl say, with
reference to the English knight?s act of forgery,
? Thanks to St. Bothan, son of mine,
Save Gawain, ne?er could pen a line.?
He was succeeded on the 24th July, 1514, by
Alexander Lord Home, Great Chamberlain 01
Scotland in 1507, and baron of Dunglasand Greenlaw,
under whom preparations for the defence of
the city, in expectation of a counter-invasion, went
on. An Act was passed for the furnishing ?01
artailyerie for the resisting of our auld innemies of
Ingland;? a tax was laid upon all-even the
widows of the fallen, so far as their substance permitted
them to pay-and all persons having heidyaird
dykes, ?were to build them up within fifteen
days, under pain of six pounds to the Kirk-werk.?
In August of the same year David Melville was
provost, and the pestilence caused the division ol
the city into four quarters, each under a bailie and
quartermaster to attend to the health of the people.
Except the interval, during which Sir Patrick
Hamilton of Kincavil and Archibald Douglas were
Provosts, Melville was in office till 15 17, when James
Earl of Arran, Regent of Scotland, took it upon
him, and was designated Lord Provost. In consequence
of the influence it conferred, the office was at
this time an object of ambition among the nobility.
His enemies, the Douglases, taking advantage of
his temporary absence from the city, procured the
election of Archibald Douglas of Kilspindie, the
uncle of the EarLof Angus, in his place ; and when
Arran returned from the castle of Dalkeith, where
the court was then held, he found the gates of Edinburgh
shut against him. His followers attempted
to force an entrance sword in hand, but were repulsed,
and a number were killed and wounded on.
both sides. Similar scenes of violence and bloodshed
were of almost daily occurrence, and between
the rival factions of Hamilton and Douglas the Lowlands
were in a complete state of demoralisation ;
and on the z 1st of February, 15 I 9, in consequence
of the bitter feud and bloody broils between the
houses of Douglas and Hamilton, he was ordered
by the Regent, then absent, to vacate his office, as
it was ordained that no person of either of those
names was eligible as provost, till the ?Lord
Governor?s home coming, and for a year.?
Thus, in 1510, Robert Logan of Coitfield was.
provost, and in October he was granted by the
Council 100 merks of the common good, beside his
ordinary fee, for the sustentation of four armed
men, to carry halberds before him, ?because the
warld is brukle and troublous.?
The fourth provost after this was Robert Lord
Maxwell, 18th August, 1524, who was made so by
the Queen-mother, when she (? tuik the hail1 government
of the realm and ruele of the king (James
V.) upoun her.? This was evidently an invasion of
the rights of the citizens ; yet on the same day the
Lord Justice Clerk. appeared before the Council,
and declared ? that it was the mind and will ? of the
king, then in his minority, that Mr. Francis Bothwell,
provost, ?? cedit and left his office of provostier
in the town?s hand,? and the said provost protested
that the leaving of his office thus should not be
derogatory to the city, nor injurious to its privileges
Lord Maxwell was afterwards Governor of Lochmaben,
Captain of the Royal Guard, Warden of the
West Marches, and Ambassador to France to
negotiate the king?s marriage with Mary of Lorraine ;
but long ere all that he had been succeeded as
provost by Allan Stuart.
In 15.26 Archibald Douglas of Kilspindie, Lord
High Treasurer, was provost again. In this year
it was ordained that through the resort to Edin

... Promsts.] THE DOUGLASES AND HAMILTONS. 279 ?James of Creichtoun of Felde,? as a deputy provost under him ; ...

Book 4 p. 279
(Score 1.4)

444 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
The death of Mr. Hagart occurred on the 11th May 1816. He had been
on a visit to his estate in Strathardle, and, on his way returning, betwixt Rlairgowrie
and Ruffel, was seized with apoplexy, when he became insensible, and in
that state remained from the Tuesday till the Saturday evening following, when
he expired. Though for several years in bad odour with the Court, he was not
without friends, among whom he was prized as ‘‘ an active and strenuous supporter
of those political measures and opinions to which he was so zealously attached, ”
In the private circle, adds a notice of his demise, “his social qualities were
perhaps unrivalled. His cheerfulness, wit, and good humour, never failed to
enliven all around him. But he has yet left behind him a more valuable
memorial; he was a father to the poor, a friend to the friendless, and the
protector of the oppressed. His professional labours were often bestowed without
fee or reward ; and the man who had none to help him ever found in Mr.
Hagart a patron ready and willing to defend him, and even to afford him
pecuniary aid. In a very recent case, he obtained, at his own sole expense,
from the court of last resort, that justice for some poor client which could not,
be obtained elsewhere.”
IX.-THE HON. HENRY ERSKINE-described in the First Volume.
X.-ALEXANDER MACONOCHIE, LORDM EADOWBANKof, whom a
portrait and memoir have already been given.
XI.-DUNCAN NACFARLANE was the youngest of three sons, and born
in 1772. His father, Dougald Macfarlane, was a merchant in Glasgow, and
engaged in the North American trade at the time the disturbances between this
country and that colony broke out; in consequence of which, on his death in
1778, leaving a widow and four young children, the family realised but a small
part of the debts due to them there. Mr. Dougald Macfarlane was married to
a daughter of George Macfarlane of Glensalloch, who, if he had lived, would
have become the chief of the clan; but his fate was singular. He became a
lieutenant in the Argyleshire Fencibles, under the command of a Colonel
Campbell, who was particularly obnoxious to the adherents of the Stuart family.
When the regiment was at Inverness in 1745, the Colonel, wishing to walk out,
but desirous of not being recognised by the rebels, asked young Glensalloch, his
lieutenant, to change plaids with him, which the young man readily did ; and
they had not gone far, when being mistaken by his plaid for the Colonel, he
was shot from a thicket, and almost instantly expired, leaving no male issue.
hlr. Duncan Macfarlane, the subject of this article, was brought up to the
profession of the law in Glasgow ; and, under the auspices of John Orr, Esq..
of Barrowfield, advocate, Dean of the Faculty of Procurators in Glasgow, was
admitted a member of that body, though contrary to the regulations of the
faculty, when only about twenty, in place of twenty-one years of age. Mr.
Macfarlane practised there for several years, but entertaining the ambition of

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. The death of Mr. Hagart occurred on the 11th May 1816. He had been on a visit to his ...

Book 9 p. 593
(Score 1.38)

346 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
In Mr. Ronaldson’s callections are to be found many very amusing and
humorous articles, strongly indicative of his relish for the ludicrous. The
following may serve as a specimen :-
‘‘ [Taken from a Church-door in Ireland.]
“ RUN AWAY FROM PATRICK M‘DALLAGH.
--
“ Whereas my wife, Mrs. Bridget M‘Dallagh, is again walked away with herself, and left me
with four small children and her poor old blind mother, and no body to look after house or home, and I
hear has taken up with Tim Guigan, the lame fiddler, the same that was put in the stocks last Easter
for stealing Barney Doody’s game-cock, This is to give Notice, that I will not pay for hit or sup on
her or his account to mau or mortal, and that she had better never show the marks of her ten toes
near my house again. PATRICK M‘DALLAGB.
“ N.B.--Tim had better keep out of my sight.”
Mr. Ronaldson belonged to the right centre company of the Volunteers, but
was occasionally drafted to other companies ; in consequence of which he was
sometimes brought to cover Mr. Osborne. In this position little Francis, from
his convenient height, was of important service to his gigantic friend, by helping
him to his side-arms when ordered to fix bayonets-Osborne, owing to his
immense bulk, finding great difficulty in reaching the weapon.
The regimental firelocks being rather too heavy, Mr. Ronaldson had one
manufactured specially for himself. One day at a review, General Vyse, then
Commander-in-Chief, happening to observe the difference, remarked the circumstance-‘‘
Why,” said Ronaldson with great animation, “if my firelock is light,
I have weight enough here/” (pointing to his cartridge-box). The General
complimented little Francis on his spirit, observing-“ It would be well if every
one were animated with similar zeal.”
Although in the Print allusion is made to the “game-laws,” Mr. Ronaldson
was no sportsman ; that is to say, he was not partial to roaming through fields
with a dog and a gun ; but he affected to be a follower of Walton in the art of
angling. On one of his fishing excursions on the Tweed he was accompanied
by a gentleman, who was no angler, but who went to witness the scientific
skill of a friend. Francis commenced with great enthusiasm, and with high
hopes of success. Not a leap was observed for some time ; but by and by the
water seemed to live as it were with “the springing trout ;” yet, strange to say,
all the deherity of the angler could not beguile even a single par from its
element. After hours of fruitless labour, Francis was perfectly confounded at
his want of success. In vain he altered his flies-all colours and sizes were
equally ineffectual ; and at length the closing day compelled him to cease from
his labours. On his way home he was accosted by an acquaintance-“ Well,
what luck to-day, Mr. Ronaldson P” ‘‘ Very bad,” he replied ; “plenty raised,
but not a single take.” This apparent plenty, however, did not arise from the
abundance of fish, as Mr. Ronaldson supposed-his friend, who always kept a
little to the rear, having amused himself by throwing small pebbles into the
water, in such a way as led to the deception. The gentleman kept the secret,

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. In Mr. Ronaldson’s callections are to be found many very amusing and humorous ...

Book 8 p. 483
(Score 1.36)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 111
enthusiasm with which he entered into the spirit of such amusements, it is
reported that, in leading a dance, when upwards of seventy-six years of age, he
broke the tendo Achi1lis.l
Dr. Grant was a patron of the fine arts ; and a fondness for the drama was
another distinguishing feature in his character. While Mrs. Siddons remained
in Edinburgh, she was frequently a guest at his table ; and to all professors of
the histrionic art he manifested his particular favour, by professionally attending
them and their families, when called upon, without fee or reward.
The figure and characteristic appearance of Dr. Gregory Grant are well
delineated in the Print. He dressed with minute attention to neatness, but without
regard to prevailing fashions, strictly adhered to that of his younger years.
His coat was sometimes of a drab or black colour, but most frequently of a
dark purple, with corresponding under garments. In reference to his peculiar
style of dress, a ludicrous anecdote is told. A party of equestrians having
broken up their establishment, the pony, which had been in the habit of performing
in the farce of the “ Tailor’s Journey to Brentford,” was purchased by
a baker in Leith Walk for the purpose of carrying bread. One day in Princes
Street, as Dr. Grant was passing, the pony happened to be standing loose, and
no doubt fancying to recognise, in the dress and appearance of the Doctor, his
old friend the “ Tailor,” he immediately pricked up his ears, started off in pursuit,
and began throwing up his heels at him in the way he had been accustomed
in the circus, Confounded at such an alarming salutation, and it is
believed considerably injured, Dr. Grant was glad to seek safety in flight, by
darting into an entry until the offender was secured.
The Doctor seldom made use of his carriage. When he went to the country
he usually rode a cream-coloured horse, his servant following behind in the
Grant livery. He was a most active man, regular in all his habits, and punctual
to a moment in keeping his hours.
Although he might in some degree participate in the chivalrous feeling of his
brother for the unfortunate house of Stuart, Dr. Grant was a decided Presbyterian,
and regularly attended the Tolbooth Church, The love of country was
with him a predominant feeling. He was often heard to remark that there
was no dress in Europe to compare with the Highland garb, when worn by a
graceful native Highlander ; and that there was no language which could convey
the meaning with greater distinctness than the Gaelic. He was one of the
first promoters of the Highland Society, and an enthusiastic supporter of the
competitions of ancient music. He died at an advanced age, in 1803, leaving
considerable wealth.
There is probahly some mistake in this assertion. The dancing practised hy the Doctor Fas
not of a violent description, being the ancient minuet, which he performed with great elegance.

... SKETCHES. 111 enthusiasm with which he entered into the spirit of such amusements, it is reported ...

Book 9 p. 148
(Score 1.35)

24 BI 0 GRAPH I C AL SI< ETCHES,
Camp, and created (5th March 1783) an English Peer by the title of Baron
Rawdon of Rawdon. On the King’s illness, having formed ail intimacy with
his late Majesty George IV., then Prince of Wales, he became a zealous adherent
of his Royal Highness, and was the mover of the amendment in favour of the
Prince in the House of Lords. He was equally intimate with the Duke of York,
and acted as his second in the duel with Colonel Lennox.
In 1791 Lord Rawdon succeeded to the bulk of the property of his maternal
uncle, the Earl of Huntingdon, while his mother obtained the barony of
Hastings, and the other baronies in fee possessed by her brother.’
In 1793 he succeeded his father as second Earl of Moira. The same year
he obtained the rank of Major-General, and was appointed Commander-in-Chief
of an army intended to co-operate with the Royalists in Brittany; but before
any effective movement could be made the Republicans had triumphed.
The Earl was despatched in 1794 with ten thousand men to relieve the
Duke of York, then retreating through Holland, and nearly surrounded with
hostile forces. This difficult task he successfully accomplished. On returning
to England, he was appointed to a command at Southampton. Politics now
became his chief study. He was regular in his parliamentary duties; and,
being generally in the opposition, became very popular. One of his speeches,
delivered in the House of Ijords in 1797, on the threatening aspect of affairs
in Ireland, excited considerable interest, and was aftervards printed and circulated
throughout the country. The year following, several members of the
House of Commons having met to consider the practicability of forming a new
administration, on the principle of excluding all who had rendered themselves
obnoxious on either side, his lordship was proposed as the leader. The scheme,
however, was abandoned.
The Earl, having been appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in Scotland
in 1803, arrived at Dumbreck’s Hotel, St. Andrew Square, on the 24th
October of that year, accompanied by Sir William Keir, one of his Aides-de-
Camp, and afterwards took up his residence in Queen Street.
In 1804 his lordship was married by Dr. Porteous, the Bishop of London,
to Flora Muir Campbell (in her bwn right), Countess of Loudon. The ceremony
took place at the house of Lady Perth, Grosvenor Square, London. The Prince
of Wales gave the bride away.
The title of the Earl of Huntingdon remained dormant until claimed by and allowed to the
late Earl in 1819. An account of the proceedinp adopted towards recovering the dormant honours
was published by Mr. Nugent Bell, to whose extraordinary exertions the success of the noble
claimant wa8 almost entirely attributable. It is one of the most amusing works of the kind ever
written : and the interest is kept up to the last.

... BI 0 GRAPH I C AL SI< ETCHES, Camp, and created (5th March 1783) an English Peer by the title of ...

Book 9 p. 32
(Score 1.34)

West Bow.1 THE TEMPLE LANDS. 321
and diversion from other patients, and his lucrum
assans, he has lost more than &so sterling, and
craves that sum as his fee and the recompense of
his damage.?
But as it was represented for the Laird of Netherplace,
that he had done his work unskilfully, and
In the city the order possessed several flat-roofed
tenements, known as the Temple Lands, and one
archway, numbered as 145, on the south side of the
Grassmarket, led to what was called the Temple
Close, but they have all been removed. It was
a lofty pile, and is mentioned in a charter of
that the sum of seyenteen
guineas was sufficient
payment.
At the foot of the
Bow, and on the west
side chiefly, were a few
old tenements, that,
in consequence of
being built upon
ground which had
originally belonged to
the Knights of the
Temple, were styled
Templar Lands, and
were distinguished by
having iron crosses on
their fronts and gables.
In the ?Heart of
Midlothian,? Scott
describes them as being
of uncommon
height and antique
appearance ; but of
late years they have
all disappeared.
It was during the
Grand Mastership of
Everhard de Bar, and
while that brave warrior,
with only 130
knights of the order,
, was fighting under the
banner of Louis VII.
at Damascus, that the
Grand Priory of Scotland
was instituted,
~~
KOMIEU?S HOUSE.
( F Y o ~ a Measured Dnrwing by T. Hamilton, pzr6Zislud in 1830.)
and the knight who presided over it was then
styled Magziter Domus T?YZi in Sotid, when
lands were bestowed on the order,first by King
David I., and then by many others. To all the
property belonging to the Temple a great value
was attached, from the circumstance that it
afforded, until the extinction of heritable jurisdictions
in 1747, the benefit of sanctuary; thus
the Temple tenements in Fifeshire are still termed
houses of refuge.
Tempillands, lyand
next ye Gray Friers?
Yard;? and in 1598,
?a temple tenement
lyand near the Gray
Friars ? Yett ? was confirmed
to James Kent
(Torphichen Charters).
On these the
iron cross was visible
in 1824.
On the dissolution
of the order all this
property in Scotland
was bestowed upon
their rivals, the
Knights of St. John of
Jerusalem ; and the
houses referred to became
eventually a part
of the barony of Drem
(of old a Temple
Priory) in Haddingtonshire,
the baron of
which used to hold
courts in them occasionally,
and here, till
I 747, were harboured
persons not free of
the city corporations, I
to the great annoyance
of the adherents of
local monopoly ; but
so lately as 1731, on
the 24th of August,
the Temple vassals
were ordered by the Bailie of Lord Torphichen,
to erect the cross of St. John ?on the Templelands
within Burgh, amerciating [fining] such as
did not affix the said cross.?? This was a strange
enactment in a country where it is still doubtful
whether such an emblem can figure as an ornament
upon a tomb or church. CIearly there must have
been some disinclination to affix the crosses,
otherwise the regulation would scarcely have been
passed.
buildings
shops
templar
knights

... Bow.1 THE TEMPLE LANDS. 321 and diversion from other patients, and his lucrum assans, he has lost more than ...

Book 2 p. 321
(Score 1.34)

44 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. Holyrood
of it having perhaps been reduced to ruins before
the view was taken. During the levelling of the
ground around the palace, and digging a foundation
for the substantial rai!ing with which it was
recently enclosed, the workmen came upon the
the present rampart wall, when near the same site
two stone coffins of the twelfth century, now in
the nave, were found. Each is six feet four inches.
in length, inside measurement.
In the abbey was preserved, enshrined in silver,.
CROFT-AN-RIGH HOUSE.
zealous veneration in the great cathedral near the
The texture of this remarkable cross was
said to have been of such a nature that no mortal
artificer could tell whether it was of wood, horn, OG
, field.
of other early buildings [perhaps the abbey
house?], and from their being in the direct line
of the building it is not improbable that a Lady
chapel or other addition to the abbey church
may have stood to the east of the choir. . . .
A curious relic of the ancient tenants of the
monastery was found by the vorkmen, consisting
of a skull, which had no doubt formed the solitary
companion of one of the monks. It had a hole in
the top of the cranium, which served, most probably,
for securing a crucifix, and over the brow
? was traced in antique characters, Memento mori.
This solitary relic of the furniture of the abbey
was procured by the late Sir Patrick Walker, and
is still in possession of his family.?

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. Holyrood of it having perhaps been reduced to ruins before the view was taken. During ...

Book 3 p. 44
(Score 1.31)

B I0 GR AP HI CAL S ICE TCHES. 113
from bringing a cloud of witnesses against this gentleman, to prove practices-.
nay, crimes which-but I shall go no farther at present ; my most rancorous
enemy was aware of what would have followed ; and even he, it appears, would
have blushed to have brought forward this man’s testimony. But I trust that
you, gentlemen of the jury, will this night do justice to my innocency ; and if
by your verdict I am acquitted from this bar, I here solemnly pledge myself
that I shall in my turn become his prosecutor.”
His uncalled-for zeal speedily procured for Mr. Lapslie an unenviable distinction.
He was taunted as a ‘‘ pension-hunter,’’ and stigmatised for his ingratitude
and servility. He was caricatured in the print-shops, and the balladsingers
chacted his deeds in such strains as the following :-
“ My name is Jamie Lapslie,
I preach and I pray ;
Expect a good fee.”
And as an informer
During this period of excitement the pencil of Kay was not idle. He produced
portraitures of most of the individuals who had rendered themselves in
any way conspicuous, and, amongst others, the “ Pension Hunter” was prominently
set forward. The work displayed in Mr. Lapslie’s hand is an ‘‘Essay
on the Management of Bees,” published a short time before, and of which he
was the author.
The subsequent demeanour of the reverend gentleman unfortunately did not
tend to lessen the odium he had incurred in 1793. However sincere he might
be in his political sentiments, he entered too warmly into the spirit of party, and
forgot the duties of the pastor in his anxiety for the State. On the introduction
of the Militia Act in 179’7-so odious to the people of Scotland generally-Mr.
Lapslie vigorously exerted himself to give effect to the measure in his own
Parish.’ He was also distinguished for his active hostility to Sunday schools,
home and other missions, which, in common with many other, but more prudent
members of the Church, he believed to be tainted by democracy.
In discharging the duties of his pastoral office, Mr. Lapslie was not remarkable
for very strictly enforcing the discipline of the Church ;’ but was, nevertheless,
a man of considerable talent as a preacher, and his sermons were held
in much repute. He mixed familiarly with his parishioners, and being of a free,
social disposition, would assuredly, had it not been for his pension-hunting pro-
In this expectation he was not disappointed, a pension having been granted to him almost
immediately afterwards, which was continued to his widow and daughters. * On the 22d August, the offices belonging to the manse of Campsie, Stirliigshire, were wilfully
and malicionsly set on fire. It is conjectured that some of
the thoughtless people who had assembled at Cadder Kirk that day, in 8 tumultuous manner, to
oppose the Militia Act, may have been the cause of exciting some desperate persons to burn the
houses of those whom they considered obnoxious to them.”-Scots Haqmne, 1797.
In 1785, when
Lnnardi descended in his balloon at Campsie, he was received with great attention by the minister,
who accompanied him on his return to Glasgow, and appeared with the aeronaut in the bcxces of the
Theatre in the evening.
Mr. and Mrs. Lapdie were from home.
Prior to his political notoriety, Mr. Lapslie was well known to be no bigot.
VOL. Ir. Q

... I0 GR AP HI CAL S ICE TCHES. 113 from bringing a cloud of witnesses against this gentleman, to prove ...

Book 9 p. 151
(Score 1.3)

EIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 111
assiduous in paying them, and never failed, when the judges were sitting, to
exert his stentorian lungs under the windows of the Court-house. This he did
with such success, that at length both judges and practitioners, having lost all
patience, collected amongst themselves a sum of money, which they deemed
sufficient to purchase an exemption in future from these provoking visitations.
Lauchlan pocketed the fee, and promised faithfully not to let his voice come
within hearing of the Court in future. He no doubt intended to keep religiously
by the letter of his agreement, but at the same time mentally calculated upon the
eclat, if not the profit, of outwitting a whole court of lawyers. Accordingly,
next day he was seen at the usual spot with a huge bell, to which he gave full
effect by a scientific movement of &he a m that would have done credit to the
most experienced city bellman. Many wondered at the sudden change in
Lauchlan’s mode of announcing hie presence; but he explained this by
facetiously remarking, that “having sold his mun tongue to the judges, he was
under the necessity of using another.”-The ingenuity of Lauchlan was rewarded
by an additional douceur, coupled with the condition, which he scrupulously kept,
that in future there was to be an absolute cessation of his visits in that quarter.
In the course of his peregrinations, Lauchlan offended a well-known civic
dignitary, Bailie Creech, one of the chief booksellers in Edinburgh, whose shop
was in the centre of the Luckenbooths. The Bailie felt his dignity lessened
by the contemptuous manner in which the Veteran of Culloden treated his
instructions not to bawl so unharmoniously in front of his shop. At last resolving
to compel obedience, he summoned Lauchlan to compear before the magistrates.
On the day of trial the defender fearlessly entered the Council Chamber, where
Creech sat in judgment. After the complaint had been preferred, and a volley
of abuse discharged by the an,- bailie, old Lauchlan, with an air of wellassumed
independence, produced his discharge, and asserted the right which it
gave him to pursue his calling in any town or city in Great Britain, save Oxford
or Cambridge. The northern Dogberry was dreadfully vexed that in this way
his mighty preparation had come to nothing; and, after advising with the
ordinary assessor in the Bailie Court, the well-known Jams Laing, he found
himself compelled to dismiss the complaint. No fiooner had Lauchlan regained
the “crown 0’ the causey,” than a universal shout from the “callants” announced
the defeat of the Bailie ; while the victor, taking his station on the debateable
ground in front of the shop, commenced with renewed vigour, the obnoxious
cry of “R-r-r-roasting toasting jacks.” This was repeated so often that
even the penurious Mr. Creech was compelled to purchase a cessation of
hostilities.
Notwithstanding all his popularity, however, poor Lauchlan found himself,
at the long age of ninety-six, possessor of more fame than fortune. It is possible
that his own tippling propensities, and consequent want of economy, may have
had some share in producing this disastrous result. On one occasion the late
Mr. Smith, lamp-contractor for the city of Edinburgh, was the means of saving
’

... SKETCHES. 111 assiduous in paying them, and never failed, when the judges were sitting, to exert his ...

Book 8 p. 163
(Score 1.3)

116 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
Whether he had taken the giant’s altitude by his shadow, as geometricians were
wont to measure steeples,’ or had recourse to the less scientific assistance of
chairs and stools, we know not; but to this day the secret has never been disclosed.
From what the taciturn tailor inadvertently disclosed, it appeared that
the great man was much tickled by the process, as he jocularly said to his little
friend-“ You and I may yet grace the windows of the print-shops.” O’Brien
was not far wrong in his conjecture ; and he perhaps spoke from some knowledge
he had of the caricaturist. Kay endeavoured by every means to catch a
likeness of the foreman. He sent for him to various “houffs” to coax him
with strong drink, but the important little man had no notion of being handed
down to posterity j and, the more securely to conceal his precious person, he
constantly kept a screen on the shop window, that the artist might not espy
him at the board. Thus defeated in his endeavours to catch the real “Simon
Pure,” the artist conferred the honour on Convener Ranken, who, opportunely
enough, had rendered himself somewhat conspicuous in city matters.
AIR. PATRICK COTTER O’BRIEN-“ the wonder of the age,” and one
of the tallest men seen in Scotland since the days of Dunnnm, in the somewhat
fabulous reign of Eugene II., who measured eleven feet and a half-was born
at Kinsale in 1760. Of his history little more is known than that he travelled
the country for many years, exhibiting himself to all who chose to gratify their
curiosity at a trifling expense. He was eight feet one inch in height, and
weighed five hundredweight ; but, judging from the portraiture, he appears to
have been deficient in symmetry.’ “This man,” says a notice in an old
magazine, “when he first began to derive a subsistence from an exposure of his
person to the public, was deeply affected by a sense of humiliation ; and often
shed tears when, among the crowd whom curiosity attracted, any spectator
treated him with respect. In time, however, all these tender feelings were
entirely subdued ; and he was latterly as much distinguished for his pride as he
was before for modesty. Such transitions, however,” concludes the notice, ‘‘ are
not uncommon in great men.” As an instance of his capricious temper, it is said
that when the tailor went home with his greatcoat, the giant found innumerable
faults with it-“By St. Patrick it wasn’t a coat at all, at all, at all !” The
little foreman, much discomfited, was in the act of retiring with “ the greatcoat
under his arm,” when O’Brien’s servant, tapping him gently on the shoulder,
gave a word of consolation. “ Och, botheration, I see ye arn’t up to the great
man. Just keep the coat beside you till I let you know when he is in good
1 In that strange collection of advertisements preserved by Captain Grose, in his “Guide to
Health, Wealth, Riches, and Honour,” London, 8v0, a tailor announces the important fact that he
makes breeches by geometry I Perhaps O’Brien’s schemer may have studied under this scientific
artificer.
An eye-witness thus describes his appearance :-“ He was in fact a perfect excrescence. His
hand was precisely like a shoulder of mutton. He had double knuckles-prodigious lumps at his
hip bones-and when he rose off the table, on which he always sat, his bones were distinctly heard
as if crashing against one another. To support himself, he always placed the top of the door under
his oxtel. [arm-pit].”

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. Whether he had taken the giant’s altitude by his shadow, as geometricians were wont ...

Book 9 p. 155
(Score 1.29)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 225
the next wm married to a Mr. Stoddart, who had realised a fortune abroad ;
the third to James Marshall, Esq., Secretary to the Provincial Bank of Ireland
in London; and the youngest to the late Reverend Dr. Robertson of South
Leith. The rest mostly died when young. The only son who reached manhood
was the late William Jamieson, W.S., who died in 1626. This gentleman
attained a temporary celebrity by his attacks on the Judges of the Court of
Session ; for which, however, he smarted pretty severely-perhaps more so than
the case required.
The third figure is MR. ARCHIBALD M'DOWALL, clothier, North
Bridge, for many years a leading member of the Town Council. He is represented
as holding in his hand a plan of the improvement proposed by the
Magistrates.
His
father, James M'Dowall of Canonmills, was nearly related to the late Andrew
M'Dowall, Lord Bankton. In the entail of the estate of Bankton, in East
Lothian, and certain other property, executed in 1756, he is a nominatim
mbstitute, and is therein stated to be his lordship's cousin.' Mrs. Gilmour of
Craigmillar, the great-grandchild of this James M'Dowall, was consequently
grand-niece of Mr. Archibald M'Dowall. Being the descendant of his eldest
brother, she succeeded to the property of Canonmills, on the death of her
father, while in minority. It may not be out of place to mention that Mr.
Patrick M'Dowall, the father of James M'Dowall of Canonmills, was the first
private banker who discounted bills in Edinburgh. He carried on business
before the erection of the Bank of Scotland, under the Act of Parliament in 1695,
and for a considerable time afterwards.
Mr. M'Dowall was born in 1743, and married in early lie a near relation of
the late Dr. John Macfarlan, minister of the Canongate Church (who married
his sister), and father of John Macfarlan of Kirkton, Esq., advocate, and also
of the present Dr. Patrick Macfarlan of Greenock. He commenced the first
cloth manufactory in Scotland,' similar to those carried on so extensively at
Leeds, and brought a number of workmen from England for that purpose.
This establishment was at Paul's Work, at the south back of Canongate, now
called M'Dowall Street, from which he afterwards removed to Brunstane Mill,
Mr. M'Dowall was a cadet of the ancient family of M'Dowall of Logan,
The Countess of Dalhousie, who happened to be the nearest heir of entail to the Logan and
Bankton estates, was long engaged in a lawsuit with the possessor, so that, failing his brother, she
might be enabled to enter into possession. ' In order to encourage Mr. M'Dowall's manufactory, the Earl of Buchan proposed that such
gentlemen of the Antiquarian Society as intended to be present at the first anniversary meeting of
the Society on the 30th November 1781, should be dressed entirely in "home-made" articles.
Accordingly, they all appeared with clothes of M'Dowall's manufacture, worsted hose, etc. Lord
Buchan, being the last to make his appearance, on looking round, immediately exclaimed, " Gentlemen,
there is not one of you dressed according to agreement, myself excepted ; your buckles and
buttons are entirely English, whereas mine are made from jasper taken from Arthur's Seat." And
very beautiful they were. The bed of jasper is now exhausted.
2 6

... SKETCHES. 225 the next wm married to a Mr. Stoddart, who had realised a fortune abroad ; the third ...

Book 8 p. 317
(Score 1.29)

HISTORICAL INCIDENTS AFTER THE RESTORA TIOA? 103
visited at the Abbey. Balls, plays, and masquerades vere likewise attempted, but the
last proved too great an innovation on the rigid manners of that period to be tolerated.
The most profane and vicious purposes were believed, by the vulgar, to be couched under
such ‘a system of disguise ; and this unpopular mode of entertainment had to be speedily
abandoned. Plays, however, which were no less abhorrent to the people at that period,
afforded a constant gratification to the courtiers, and were persisted in, notwithstanding
the violent prejudices which they excited. The actors were regarded as part of the Duke of
York’s household ; and, if we may give any credit to the satirical account which Dryden
has furnished of them, they were not among the most eminent of their profession. Some
members of the company, it would seem, had gone to Oxford, according to annual custom,
to assist in performing the public acts there. Dryden, with great humour, makes them
apologise to the University for the thinness of the Company, by intimating that many
of its members have crossed the Tweed, and are now nightly appearing before Edinburgh
audiences, for the ambiguous fee of (‘ two and sixpence Scots.” He slyly insinuates, however,
that only the underlings of the company have gone north, leaving all its talent and
character at the service of the University:-
Our brethren have from Thames to Tweed departed,
To Edinborough gone, or coached or carted :
With bonny blue cap there they act all night,
For Scotch half-crowns, in English threepence hight.
One nymph, to whom fat Sir John Falstaffs lean,
There with her single person fills the scene.
Another, with long use and age decayed,
Died here old woman, and rose there a maid.
Our trusty door-keeper, of former time,
There struts and awaggers in heroic rhime.
Tack but a copper lace to drugget suit,
And there’s a hero made without dispute ;
And that which was a capon’s tale before,
Becomes a plume for Indian Emperor.
But .all his subjects to express the care
Of imitation, go, like Indian, bare I
The reader need hardly be reminded of the usual licence which the satiric poet
claims as his privilege, and which his Grace’s servants at Edinburgh may have
retorted in equal measure on his Majesty’s servants at Oxford, though no copy of
their prologue has been preserved. It is not improbable, however, that the early Scottish
theatre might merit Rome of the poet’s sarcasms. The courtly guests of the royal Duke
were probably too much taken up with the novelty of such amusements, and the
condescending urbanity of their entertainers, to be very critical on the equipments of the
stage.
These amusements were occasionally varied with the exhibition of masques at Court, in
which the Lady Anne, and other noble young ladies, assumed the characters of gods and
goddesses) and the like fanciful personages that usually figure in such entertainments. The
gentlemen varied these pastimes with the games of tennis and golf. The Tennis Court,
which also served as the fist theatre for the Court, stood immediately without the Water
Gate. It may be seen in Gordon’s map, a large oblong building, occupying a considerable
Dyden’a Niac., voL ii. -

... INCIDENTS AFTER THE RESTORA TIOA? 103 visited at the Abbey. Balls, plays, and masquerades vere likewise ...

Book 10 p. 112
(Score 1.25)

278 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
two flank companies being incorporated with the 42d, then preparing for the
West Indies.
The Fencibles continued embodied till 1799, and did duty in various parts
of Scotland. While stationed at Linlithgow, proposals were made for extending
the services of the regiment to England and Ireland ; but, from some misunderstanding
on the subject among the men, they would not agree. This attempt
on the part of the officers, who acted without duly consulting the soldiers in a
matter which concerned them so materially, gave rise to much discontent and
distrust in the ranks ; but confidence was soon restored by the presence of Sir
James, who hurried to join the regiment as soon as he was aware of the circumstances.
In 1795 the Strathspey Fencibles were quartered at Dumfries, where a
trifling affair happened, which, as it constitutes the only warlike affray that
occurred in Scotland during the whole volunteer and fencible era, is perhaps
worth recording. “ On the evening of the 9th June, the civil magistrates of
Dumfries applied to the commanding officer of the 1st Fencibles for a party
to aid in apprehending some Irish tinkers, who were in a house about a mile
and a half distant from the town. On the party’s approaching the house, and
requiring admittance, the tinkers fired on them, and wounded Sergeant Beaton
very severely in the head and groin ; John Grant, a grenadier, in both legs ;
and one Fraser, of the light company, in the arm : the two last were very much
hurt, the tinkers’ arms being loaded with rugged slugs and small bullets. The
party pushed on to the house ; and, though they suffered so severely, abstained
from bayoneting them when they called for mercy. One man, and two women
in men’s clothes, were brought in prisoners. Two men, in the darkness of the
night, made their escape ; but one of them was apprehended and brought in
next morning, and a party went out, upon information, to apprehend the other.
Fraser’s arm received the whole charge, which, it is believed, saved his heart.
Beaton, it is expected, will soon recover.” So says the chronicle of this event.
One of the soldiers, however, afterwards died of his wounds. The leader of the
tinkers, named John ONeill, was brought to Edinburgh for trial. He was a
Roman Catholic ; and at that time a number of genteel catholic families being
resident in Dumfries, they resolved to be at the expense of defending O’Neill,
on the ground that he was justifiable in resisting any attempt to enter his own
house. With this view, they prevailed on the late Mrs. Riddell of Woodley
Park’ to go to Edinburgh and procure counsel. She found no difficulty in
obtaining the services of Henry Erskine, without fee or reward ; but, notwithstanding,
O’Neill was found guilty and condemned to be hanged. The good
offices of Mrs. Riddell, however, did not terminate here. She applied to
Charles Fox ; and, through him, obtained a commutation of his sentence.
A still more unpleasant affiir occurred in the regiment while at Dumfries
only a few days after hhe encounter with the tinkers. One of the men being
Mn. Riddell was P great beauty, and a poetess of no inconsiderable note. She wrote a critique
on the poem of Bun~s, and materially assisted Dr. Currie in writing the life of the pet.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. two flank companies being incorporated with the 42d, then preparing for the West ...

Book 8 p. 390
(Score 1.24)

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