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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 15
At what other engagements our hero of the “Lawnmarket” was present,
during the continuance of hostilities prior to the peace of 1801, is uncertain;
but that he was actively employed may be inferred from the various sums of
prize-money which he remitted to his family.
?Vhen the treaty of Amiens was concluded, Yetts returned to Edinburgh ;
and with the money he had accumulated during his sea-adventures, made another
effort to settle down in respectable citizenship. With this view he opened a
small spirit shop at the head of Turk’s Close; but the speculation proved
unsuccessful. The narration of “ hk hair-breadth ’scapes ” no doubt brought
many loungers about his shop ; and it is possible that, with prudence, he might
have done pretty well. The reverse was the case; and the cLdevant barber
once more put to sea. In 1806 he was on board the Blanche frigate, which,
in company with other two-the Phabe and the Thames-were sent to the North
Seas, for the protection of the Greenland fisheries. On the 30th of July the
Blanche fell in with the Guewiere French frigate off Faro, when, after a smart
action of forty-five minutes, the latter surrendered. The Guerriere being one of
the largest class of frigates, was much superior to the Blanche. Yetts escaped
without a wound ; and a letter written by him to a friend-the substance of
which appeared in the Edinburgh Advertiser at the time-gave the first intelligence
of the capture.
We come now to the last scene in the chequered life of the hapless tonsor.
The following year, 180’7, the Blanche frigate having been despatched to the
coast of France with sealed instructions, she struck upon a rock on the night
of the 5th of March, within about thirty miles of Brest, and went to pieces in the
course of a few hours. Forty-five persons were lost,, among whom waa poor
Yetts. According to the information of one of his shipmates, who communicated
the intelligence of his death, he might easily have escaped from the
wreck; His companions repeatedly urged him to follow in their boat, but he
would not leave the ship, and doggedly sat down upon a stone in the galley to
await his fate, and went down with her. This strange indifference to life was
attributed to an attachment which he had formed for a Welsh lad on board,
whom he had taught to read, and who had been washed overboard when the
vessel struck.
The survivors were taken to Brest, where they were well treated ; and were
subsequently marched off to Verdun as prisoners of war.
The principal figures in the Coach are those of MRS. DTJNN, of the “ Hotel;”
MISS SIBBYH ~TON(f ormerly described); and MRS. PENNYwh, ose husband,
Mr. John Penny, was a writer in Forrester’s Wynd, and clerk to “ Johnnie
Bnchan,” Writer to the Signet. Mrs. Dunn occupies the centre position-Mra
Penny is seated above-and, to the left, will easily be distinguished the portly
figure of Sibby Hutton. The other ladies are intended for MRS. GRIEVE ( d e
of the Lord Provost), fih.9. WRIGm, etc.

... SKETCHES. 15 At what other engagements our hero of the “Lawnmarket” was present, during the ...

Book 9 p. 17
(Score 1.61)

371 Heriot?s Ho.pital.1 THE EDINBURGH VOLUNTEERS.
By the Act of Parliament referred to, the governors
were empowered to erect from this surplus
revenue their elementary schools withiin the city,
for educating, free of all expense : rst, the children
of all burgesses and freemen in poor circumstances
; znd, the children of burgesses and freemen
who were unable to provide for their sup
port; 3rd, the children of poor citizens of Eclinburgh,
resident within its boundaries. They were
also empowered by the same Act, ? to allow to any
boys, in the course of their education at such
schools, being sons of burgesses and freemen, such
uniform fixed sum of money, in lieu and place
of maintenance, and such uniform fixed sum for fee
as apprentices after their education at the said
schools is completed, as shall be determined.?
There are now sixteen of these free Heriot
schools, in different quarters of Edinburgh, all more
or less elegant and ornate in the details of their
architecture copied from the parent hospitaL . These
schools are attended by upwards of 4,400 boys and
girls.
There are also nine schools in various parts of
the city, open for free instruction in reading,
writing, arithmetic, grammar, French, German, and
drawing, attended by about 1,400 young men and
women.
There are five infant schools maintained from
the surplus funds of the same noble and gefierous
institution. ? On the report of the Bursary Committee
being given in,? at the meeting of governors
in Noveniber 1879, ?? Bailie Tawse stated that they
had at present eighteea of their young men at
college. For the month ending 20th October last,
therewere 4,907 pupils on the roll in George Heriot?s
schools, and r,075 in connectiori with the Hospital
evening classes.?
In the old volunteering times, about the last
years of the eighteenth century and the first years
of the present, the green before the hospital was
the favourite place for the musters, parades, and
other displays of the civic forces. Here theii
colours were presented, from here they were
trooped home to the Colonel?s house, when Edinburgh
possessed, per cent. of the population, a
much greater number of enrolled volunteers than
she has now.
But other exhibitions took place in Heriot?s
Bowling Green, such as when the famous aeronaut,
Vincent Lunardi, made his ascent therefiom, on
the 5th of October, 1785. On that occasion, we
are told, above 80,ooo spectators assembled, and
all business in the city was suspended for the
greatest portion pf the day. At noon a flag wa:
hoisted on the castle, and a cannon, brought from
Leith Fort, was discharged in Heriot?s Green, to
announce that the process of filling the balloon had
begun, and by half-past two it was fully inflated.
Lunardi-attired, strange to say, in a scarlet uniform
faced with blue, sword, epaulettes, powdered
wig, and three-cocked hat-entered the cage, with a
Union Jack in his hand, and amid a roaf of acclamation
from the startled people, who were but
little used to strange sights in that dull time, he
ascended at ten minutes to three P.M.
He passed over the lofty ridge of the old town,
at a vast height, waving his flag as the balloon
soared skyward. It took a north-easterly direction
near Inch Keith, and came down almost into the
Forth; but as he threw out the ballast, it rose
higher than ever. The wind bore him over North
Berwick, and from there to Leven and Largo, after
which a SSW. breeze brought him to where he
descended, a mile east from Ceres in Fifeshire,
Where the balloon. was at its greatest altitude
-three miles-the barometer stood at eighteen
inches five tenths, yet Lunardi experienced no difficulty
in respiration. He passed through several
clouds of snow, which hid from him alike the sea
and land.
Some reapers in a field near Ceres, when they
heard the sound of Lunardi?s trumpet, and saw his
balloon, the nature of which was utterly beyond
their comprehension, were . filled with dreadful
alarm, believing that the end of all things was at
hand; and the Rev. Mr. Arnot, the ministet of
Ceres, who had been previously aware of Lunardi?s
ascent, required some persuasion to convince them
that what they beheld was not supernatural.
A number of gentlemen who collected at Ceres,
set the church bell ringing, and conveyed the bold
aeronaut with all honour to the manse, where a
crowd awaited him. His next ascent was from
Kelso.
On the 26th of September, 1794, there mustered
on Heriot?s Green, to receive their colours, the
Royal Regiment of Edinburgh Volunteers, under
Lieutenant-Colonel Elder (the old provost) and
Colonel William Maxwell, afterwards a general.
The corps consisted of eight companies with thirtytwo
officers, fifteen of whom had belonged to the
regular army; but all ranks were clothed alike,
the sergeants being indicated by their pikes and
the officers by their swords. The corps numbered
about 785, all told
Their uniform was a blue coat, lapelled With
black velvet, cut away from below the breast, With
broad heavy square skirts, a row of buttons round
the cuff, gold epaulettes for all ranks, white cassi.
mere vest and breeches, with white cotton stockings,

... Heriot?s Ho.pital.1 THE EDINBURGH VOLUNTEERS. By the Act of Parliament referred to, the governors were ...

Book 4 p. 371
(Score 1.6)

344 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. .
shortly after, and recognising the shoes, brought one of them in his hand into
the hawing-room, and presenting it to another of the guests, Mr. John Bachan,
Writer to the Signet, who was of very diminutive stature, said to him-" Hae,
Johnny, there's a cradle for you to sleep in."
The personal history of Mr. Osborne affords few particulars either peculiar
or interesting. His father, Alexander Osborne, Esq., Comptroller of Customs at
Aberdeen, and who died there in 1785, was a gentleman of even greater dimensions
than his son.
After having filled an inferior appointment for some years at one of the outports,
Mr. Osborne obtained the office of Inspector-General and Solicitor of
Customs. He was subsequently appointed one of the Commissioners of the
Board ; and, latterly, on the reduction made in that establishment, retired upon
a superannuated allowance.
Mr. Osborne was never married ; and, being of frugal habits, he amassed a
considerable fortune, and made several landed purchases. Besides a pretty
extensive tract of land in Orkney, he was proprietor of a small estate in Ayrshire.
Gogar Bank, a few miles west of Edinburgh, belonged to him, where he
had a summer house, and a very extensive and excellent garden. Here he often
contemplated building a handsome villa, but the design was never carried into
execution.
Xlr. Osborne died about the year 1830, at the advanced age of seventy-four ;
and it is understood the bulk of his property was bequeathed to a gentleman of
the west country. He lived at one time in Richmond Street ; but latterly, and
for a considerable number of years, in York Place.
The small figure to the left represents the late MR. RONALDSON of the
Post Office. He was one of the least men of the regiment, but a very zealous
volunteer. He is placed in the same Print with Osborne, in order to record an
anecdote of Sergeant Gould. In forming a double from a single rank, at a
squad drill, Francis became Osborne's rear man. Poor Francis was never seen ;
and Gould, addressing the next man, continued to call out-" Move to the right,
sir ; why the devil don't you cover 1" Little Francis at length exclaimed, with
great na;ivet&'' I can't cover-I do all I can !"
Mr. Ronaldson was Surveyor of the General Post Office, which situation he
held for upwards of forty years. He was a most active, spirited little personage,
and remarkably correct in the management of his official department. He kept
a regular journal of his surveys, which, on his demise, was found to have been
brought up till within a few days of his death.
In private life, Ronaldson was exceedingly joyous, full of wit and anecdote,
and was withal a man of rare qualifications. He had also some claims to a
literary character. He was a votary of the muses, and a great collector of fugitive
pieces. He left upwards of two dozen volumes of Xcraps--culled principally
from newspapers-consisting of whatever seemed to him valuable or
curious. He was also deeply versed in divinity j and, strange as it may appear,

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. . shortly after, and recognising the shoes, brought one of them in his hand into the ...

Book 8 p. 481
(Score 1.59)

B I0 GR AP II I C AL S KETCH E S.
lost. In 1773 he was presented with the freedom of the burgh of Kirkcudbright,
for his active exertions in cmducting certain transactions for the interest of that
community. Finding himself unsuccessful at Borrowstounness, he proceeded to
Ireland; but after a stay of little more than two years there he returned
to Leith, where he was again doomed to misfortune through unlucky speculations.
Instead, however, of indulging in unavailing regrets, he quickly set about
repairing his broken fortune, by commencing the world anew as a broker and
merchant. In this line his exertions were crowned with such a measure of
success, that he was latterly enabled to retire altogether from business.
Mr. Grinly was short in stature, but active-always well dressed, and
particularly smart in his appearance. From a peculiar rotundity of body, and a
strange habit of throwing out his legs and arms in walking, he obtained the
soubriquet of the Spread Eagle.”’
Notwithstanding his somewhat grotesque rotundity of shape, it was a weakness
of Mr. Grinly to believe himself possessed of a handsome figure. His vanity
in this respect almost exceeds credulity. It is said that on a particular occasion
he was seen elevated on some logs of wood at the shore of Leith, surrounded by
a band of porters, whose adulation the broker’s patronage in the way of employment
was sufficient to insure. One of them, however, had independence enough
to declare his opinion, that ‘‘ the Doctor ”’ was at least nearly as handsome ’as
himself. “ If I thought there was a better made man in Leith,” said Grinly,
apparently highly offended, ‘‘ I would go hang myself ! ”
The consequential manner of Mr. Grinly, as well as his attempts at wit,
afforded much amusement to his friends. Having been cited to give evidence
in an action against the Hull Shipping Company, for non-delivery of goods, it is
said he took his place in the witnesses-box with, an air as if about to bring the
whole bench to the hammer ! After the customary forms, the usual questions
were put to him :-“Your name is William Grinly 1’’ “It is, my Lord.”
“You are a merchant in Leith?” “I am not, my Lord”-in a tone and
gesture that attracted all eyes. “YOU are here set down merchant in Leith.”
“My Lord,” said Grinly, archly smiling as he made use of the legal phrase,
“ that is quite a misnomer !” The involuntary peal of laughter which followed,
and in which the Court heartily joined, Grinly politely acknowledged by a low
obeisance, and complacently resumed his position,
The auctioneer was at no loss for invention when hard pressed by circumstances.
He had been summoned to serve as a juryman, but unfortunately on
a day fixed for a very extensive sale of sugars by the Messrs. Sibbald, at which he
was to be professionally engaged. Grinly felt awkwardly situated-to lose the
This name wai given him by a merchant in Leith, who had similar appellations for a great
many of his neighbours. The affairs of this person getting into disorder, the creditors, on examining
his books, were puzzled what to make of them, several entries appearing against “Spice-box,”
“ Clock-case,” “ Sow’s-tail ” and other ridiculous designations.
The title of “The Doctor,” we believe, WBS applied to this gentleman in consequence of his
having attended medical classes in his youth, and giving gratis advice to the poor, accompanied
frequently with money to purchase medicines.

... I0 GR AP II I C AL S KETCH E S. lost. In 1773 he was presented with the freedom of the burgh of ...

Book 9 p. 102
(Score 1.57)

ECCLESIASTICAL ANTIQUITIES. 395
hastily completed with crow-stepped gables and a slanting roof.
specimen of the decorated English style of archi-
The church is 8 beautiful
tecture. The east end of the choir more especially
has a very stately and imposing effect. It is
an Apsis, with a lofty window in each of its three
sides, originally iilled with fine tracery, and not
improbably with painted glass, though the only evidence of either that now remains is the
broken ends of mullions and transoms. The ornamental details with which the church
abounds exhibit great variety of design, though many of those on the exterior are greatly
injured by time. Various armorial bearings adorn different parts of the building, and
particularly the east end of the choir. One of the latter has angels for supporters, but
otherwise they are mostly too much decayed to be decipherable. One heraldic device,
which, from its sheltered position on the aide of a buttress at the west angle of the south
transept, has escaped the general decay, is described both by Maitland and Arnot as the
arms of the foundress. It proves, however, to be the arms of her brother-in-law, Alexander
Duke of Albany, who at the time of her decease was residing at the court of the Duke
of Guelders. From the royal supporters still traceable, attached to a coat of arms sculptured
on the north-east buttress of the vestry, the arms of the foundress would appear to
have been placed on that part of the church where she lies buried. In the foundation
charter it is specially appointed, that '' whenever any of the said Prebendaries shall read
Mass, he shall, after the same, in his sacredotal habiliments, repair to the tomb of the
foundress with a sprinkler, and there devoutly read over the De Profundis, together with
the Fidelium, and an exhortation to excite the people to devotion." Many of the details
of the church are singularly grotesque. The monkey is repeated in all variety of positions
in the gurgoils, and is occasionally introduced in the interior among other figures that
seem equally inappropriate as the decorations of an ecclesiastical edifice, though of common
occurrence in the works of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The varied corbels exhibit
here and there an angel, or other device of beautiful form; but more frequently they
consist of such crouching monsters, labouring under the burden they have to bear up, as
seem to realise Dante's Purgatory of Pride, where the unpurged souls dree their doom of
penance underneath a crushing load of stone :-
As, to support incumbent floor or roof,
For corbel, ia 8 figure sometime0 seen,
That crumple8 up ita knees unto its breast;
With the feigned posture, stirring ruth unfeigned
In the beholder's fancy.1
The centre aisle is lofty, and the groining exceedingly rich, abounding in the utmost
variety of detail. -A very fine doorway, underneath a beautiful porch with groined roof,
gives access to the south aisle of the choir, and a small but finely proportioned doorway
may be traced underneath the great window of the north transept, though now
built up. The admirable proportions and rich variety of details of thiq church, as well
as its perfect state externally, untouched, Nave by the hand of time-if we except the
tracery of ita windows-render it oqe of the most attractive objects of study to the
C q ' s Dante. Purgatory. Canto x.

... ANTIQUITIES. 395 hastily completed with crow-stepped gables and a slanting roof. specimen of the ...

Book 10 p. 433
(Score 1.57)

238 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
not subscribe to that opinion ; for even when in his more devoted hours at the
shrine of Bacchus, he preserved a modesty and gentleness of manners, exhibited
by few of his age, sprightly humour, and unpatronised situation."
Of the intimacy betwixt the poet and his biographer, the following anecdote
affords a characteristic instance. Mr. Sommers, alluding to his shop in the
Parliament Square, states that he was frequently visited by the poet, when
passing to or from the Comniissary Office :-" In one of those visits I happened
to be absent ; he found, however, my shopboy Robert Aikman (a great favourite
of Fergusson), then engaged in copying from a collection of manuscript hymns
one on the Creation, given to him by a friend of the author, in order to improve
his hand in writing. Fergusson looked at the hymn, and supposing that I had
given it to the boy, not merely to transcribe, but to learn its serious contents,
took the pen out of his hand, and upon a small slip of paper wrote the following
lines : -
' Tom Sommers is a gloomy man,
His mind is dark within ;
0 holy - ! glaze his soul,
That light may enter in.'
He then desired the boy to give his compliments to me, delivered to him the
slip of paper, and retired."
Another circumstance relative to the only portrait known to have been taken
of the poet, is too interesting to be omitted. Speaking of Ruiaciman, the painter,
Sommers says-" That artist was at this time painting, in his own house in the
Pleasance, a picture on a half-length cloth of the Prodigal Son, in which his
fancy and pencil had introduced every necessary object and circumstance suggested
by the sacred passage. I was
much pleased with the composition, colouring, and admirable effect of the piece,
at least what was done of it; but expressed my surprise at observing a large
space in the centre, exhibiting nothing but chalk outlines of a human figure.
He informed me that he had reserved that space for the Prodigal, but could
not find a young man whose personal form and expressive features were such
as he could approve of, and commit to the canvas. Robert Fergusson's face
and figure instantly occurred to me ; not from an idea that Fergusson's real
character was that of the Prodigal; by no means-but on account of his
sprightly humour, personal appearance, and striking features. I asked Mr.
Runciman if he knew the poet? He answered in the negative, but that he
had often read and admired the poems. That evening at five I appointed to
meet with him and the poet in a tavern, Parliament Close. We did so, and
I introduced him. The painter was much pleased, both with his figure and
conversation. I intimated to Ferpsson the nature of the business on which
we met. He agreed to sit next forenoon.. I accompanied him for that purpose;
and in a few days the picture strikingly exhibited the bard in the character of a
prodigal, sitting on a grassy bank, surrounded by swine, some of which were
sleeping, and others feeding ; his right leg over his left knee ; eyes uplifted ;
At his own desire I called to see it.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. not subscribe to that opinion ; for even when in his more devoted hours at the shrine ...

Book 9 p. 317
(Score 1.56)

366 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Moultray?s Hill.
-
dedicated to him,?) but by whom founded or when,
is quite unknown ; and from this edifice an adjacent
street was for ages named St. Ninian?s Row. ?The
under part of the building still remains,? to quote
Arnot; (?it is the nearest house to the RegisteI
Office on the south-east, except the row of houses
on the east side of the theatre. The lower storey
was vaulted, and the vaults still remain. On these
a mean house has been superstructed, and the
whole converted into a dwelling-house. The baptismal
font, which was in danger of being destroyec
was this year (1787) removed to the curious towel
built at Dean Haugh, by Mr. Falter ROSS, Write
to the Signet.? The ?? lower part ? of the building
was evidently the crypt, and the font referred to,
neatly-sculptured basin with a beautiful Gothi
canopy, is now among the many fragments built b:
Sir Walter Scott into the walls of Abbotsford. Thi
extinct chapel appears to have been a dependenc:
of Holyrood abbey, from the numerous notice
that appear in licences granted by the abbots o
that house to the Corporations of the Canongate
for founding and maintaining altars in the church
and in one of these, dated 1554, by Robert Stewart
abbot of Holyrood, with reference to St. Crispin?,
altar therein, he states, ?? it is our will yat ye Cor
dinars dwelland within our regalitie. . .
besyde our chapel1 of Sanct Ninian, out with Sanc
Andrews Port besyde Edinburcht, be in brether
heid and fellowschipe with ye said dekin anc
masters of ye cordinar craft.?
In 1775 one or two houses of St. James?s Squart
were built on the very crest of Moultray?s Hill
The first stone of the house at the south-eas
corner of the square was laid on the day that news
reached Edinburgh of the battle of Bunker?s Hill
which was fought on the 17th of June in that year.
? The news being of coul?se very interesting, wa:
the subject of popular discussion for the day, and
nothing but Bunker?s Hill was in everybody?s
mouth. It so happened that the two buildeE
founding this first tenement fell out between
themselves, and before the ceremony was concluded,
most indecorously fell to and fought out
the quarrel on the spot, in presence of an immense
assemblage of spectators, who forthwith conferred
the name of Bunker?s Hill upon the place, in
commemoration of the combat, which it retains to
this day. The tenement founded under these
curious circumstances was permitted to stand by
itself for some years upon the eminence of Bunker?s
Hill; and being remarkably tall and narrow, as
well as a solitary Zana?, it got the popular appellation
of ?Hugo Arnot? from the celebrated historian,
who lived in the neighbourhood, and whose
slim, skeleton-looking figure was well known to the
public eye at the period.?
So lately as 1804 the ground occupied by the
lower end of Katharine Street, at the north-eastem
side of Moultray?s Hill, was a green slope, where
people were wont to assemble, to watch the crowds
returning from the races on Leith sands.
In this new tenement on Bunker?s Hill dwelt
Margaret Watson of Muirhouse, widow of Robert?
Dundas, merchant, and mother of Sir David Dun- ?
das, the celebrated military tactician. ?We
used to go to her house on Bunker?s Hill,? says?
Lord Cockbum, when boys, on Sundays between
the morning and the afternoon sermons, when we
were cherished with Scottish broth and cakes, and
many a joke from the old lady. Age had made
her incapable of walking even across the room;
so, clad in a plain silk gown, and a pure muslin
cap, she sat half encircled by a high-backed blackleather
chair, reading, with silver spectacles stuck
on her thin nose, and interspersing her studies and
her days with much laughter and not a little
sarcasm. What a spirit! There was more fun
and sense round that chair than in the theatre or
the church.?
In 1809 No. 7 St. James?s Square was the residence
of Alexander Geddes, A.R.Y.A., a well-known
Scottish artist. He was born at 7 St. Patrick Street,
near the Cross-causeway, in 1783. In 1812 he removed
to 55 York Place, and finally to London,
where he died, in Berners Street, on the 5th of May,
1844. His etchings in folio were edited by David
Laing, in 1875, but only IOO copies were printed.
A flat on the west side of the square was long
the residence of Charles Mackay, whose unrivalled
impersonation of Eailie Nicol Jarvie was once the
most cherished recollection of the old theatre-going
public, and who died on the 2nd November, 1857.
In
1787 Robert Bums lived for several months in
No. z (a common stair now numbered as 30)
whither he had removed from Baxter?s Close
in the Lawnmarket, and from this place many
3f the letters printed in his correspondence are
dated. In one or two he adds, ?Direct to me
xt Mr, FV. Cruikshank?s, St. James?s Square, New
Town, Edinburgh.? This gentleman was one of
;he masters of the High School, with whom he
passed many a happy hour, and to whose daughter
ie inscribed the verses beginning-
This square was not completed till 1790,
? Beauteous rosebud, young and gay,
Blooming in thy early May,? &c.
It was while here that he joined most in that
irilliant circle in which the accomplished Duchess ?

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [Moultray?s Hill. - dedicated to him,?) but by whom founded or when, is quite unknown ...

Book 2 p. 366
(Score 1.55)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 163
Boswell of Auchinleck in these lines-part of an epitaph composed by him on
Mr. Wood:-
“ But cold the heart that feels M genial glow,
Pondering on him whose ashes sleep below :
Whose vivid mind, with grasping power, could reach
Truths that the plodding schools can never teach.
Who scorned, in honesty, the spacious wiles
Of dull importance, or of fawning smiles :
Who scouted feelings frittered and refined,
But had an ample heart for all mankind.”
The following anecdote is a proof of Mr. Wood‘s popularity with the lower
classes. During a riot in Edinburgh, some of the mob, mistaking him at
night (owing to a great resemblance in figure) for Sir James Stirling, then
the Lord Provost of the City, and at that time far from being a favourite,
seized Mr. Wood on the North Bridge, and were going to throw him over the
parapet, when he cried out, “I’m lang Sandy ?Vood-tak‘ me to a lamp and
ye’ll see.” Instead of executing their vengeance, he was cordially cheered and
protected from farther outrage.
Sir James and Mr. Wood, although thus in such different esteem with
the lower class of the inhabitants of Edinburgh, were intimate friends. It is
told of them, that on one occasion the Provost-with his cocked hat, and long
spare figure-meeting the Doctor in the High Street, he jocularly put L guinea
into his hand, and giving a piteous account of his sufferings from indigestion,
and the state of his stomach, asked his advice. The Doctor-with a figure
almost equally spare, and the same head-dress-retreated from the Provost,
who continued to follow him, reproaching him for pocketing the money without
giving him any opinion on his case, At last, after this scene had lasted for
some considerable space, Mr. Wood replied to Sir James’s remonstra,nces :-
“You’re quite wrong, Sir James; I have been giving you the best possible
advice all this while. If you’ll take hold of my coat-tail, and only follow me
for a week as you’ve been doing for the last ten minutes, you’ll have no more
trouble with your stomach.”
Although very confident in his own practice, and very decided, Mr. ?Vood
never failed to call in the aid of his professional brethren when there appeared
to be real danger. The celebrated Dr. Cullen and he were frequently in attendance
together, and on the most friendly and intimate footing. Upon one
occasion they were in the sick-room of a young nobleman of high promise who
was afflicted with a severe fever-the Doctor on one side of the bed, in his
usual formal and important manner, counting the patient’s pulse, with his large
stop-watch in his hand--Mr. Wood on the other, and the parents anxiously
waiting the result. The Doctor abruptly broke the silence-“ We are at the
crisis ; in order to save him, these pills must be taken instantly,” producing some
from his waistcoat pocket. Mr. Wood, who had a real affection for the young
Lord, shook his head significantly, and said with a smile, “ 0 Doctor, Doctor,
nature has already done her work, and he is saved. As to your pills-you
.

... SKETCHES. 163 Boswell of Auchinleck in these lines-part of an epitaph composed by him on Mr. ...

Book 8 p. 230
(Score 1.54)

Leith.] THE KING'S WARK. 237
~
Arnot adds. It was to keep one of the cellars in
the King's Wark in repair, for holding wines and
other provisions for the king's use.
This Bernard Lindsay it was whom Taylor
mentions in his '' Penniless Pilgrimage " as having
Moreover, the King's Wark was placed most
advantageously at the mouth of the harbour, to
serve as -a defence against any enemy who might
approach it from the seaward. It thus partook
somewhat of the character of a citadel; and this
BERNARD STREET.
given him so warm a welcome at Leith in
1618.
That some funds were derivable from the King's
Wark to the Crown is proved by the frequent
payments with which it was burdened by several
of our monarchs. Thus, in the year 1477 James
111. granted out of it a perpetual annuity of twelve
marks Scots, for support of a chaplain to officiate
at the altar of c'the upper chapel in the collegiate
church of the Blessed Virgin Mary at
Restalrig."
seems to have been implied by the infeftment
granted by Queen Mary in 1564 to John Chisho!ia,
Master or Comptroller of the Royal Artillery,
who would appear to have repaired the buildings
which, no doubt, shared in the general conflagrations
that signalised the English invasions of 1544
and 1547. and the queen, on the completion
of his work, thus confirms her grant to the
comptroller :-
U Efter Her Heinis lauchful age, and revocation
made in parIiament, hir majestie sett in feu farme

... THE KING'S WARK. 237 ~ Arnot adds. It was to keep one of the cellars in the King's Wark in ...

Book 6 p. 237
(Score 1.52)

St. Giles?s Churchyard.
INTERIOR OF THE HIGH CHURCH, ST. GILES?S.
CHAPTER XVI.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF ST. GILES?S.
St. Giles?s Churchyard-The IIaison Dieu-The Clam-shell Turnpike-The Grave of Knox-The City Cross--The Summons ot Pluto-
Executions : Kirkaidy, Gilderoy, and others-The Caddies--The Dyvours Stane-The Luckenbooths-The Auld Kirk S~yle-Eym?o
Lodging-Lard Coalstoun?s Wig-Allan Ramsay?s Library and ?Creech?s Land?-The Edinburgh Halfpenny.
DOWN the southern slope of the hill on which St.
Giles?s church stands, its burying-ground-covered
with trees, perchance anterior to the little parish
edifice we have described as existing in the time of
David 1.-sloped to the line of the Cowgate, where
it was terminated by a wall and chapel dedicated
to the holy rood, built, says Arnot, ?in memory of
?hrist crucified, and not demolished till the end of
the sixteenth century.? In July, 1800, a relic ot
this chapel was found near the head of Forrester?s
Wynd, in former days the western boundary of the
churchyard. This relic-a curiously sculptured
grouplike a design from Holbein?s ?Dance of
Death,? was defaced and broken by the workmen.
Amid the musicians, who brought up the rear,
was an angel, playing on the national bagpipe-a

... Giles?s Churchyard. INTERIOR OF THE HIGH CHURCH, ST. GILES?S. CHAPTER XVI. THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF ST. ...

Book 1 p. 148
(Score 1.52)

30 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
arbund him as formerly, to enjoy the sea breeze, and the choice things which
the hostess was careful to provide for them.
Mr. Clerk died in 1810, much regetted by his acquaintances, aged seventytwo,
and was interred in the Greyfriars’ Churchyard. He was a jolly, warmhearted
individual-amusing in conversation, and partial to the company of his
friends ; but, though fond of rational enjoyment, he was equally an enemy to
excess; and, in the words of one of his friends, now himself no more, there
never existed a “more honest and inoffensive man.”
The third figure, we need scarcely add, is no less a personage than GEORGE
PRATT, who has already been specially noticed in the preceding Volume.
No. CLXXXII.
TWO BOOKSELLERS.
MR. WILLIAM COKE AND MR. JOHN GUTHRIE.
THESEtw o bibliopolists have apparently been brought into juxtaposition, not so
much from any intimacy subsisting between them, as from a similar peculiarity
in their habits of transacting business. They were both ready-money dealers ;
and whatever they purchased was paid in cash, and carried away by them on
the instant.
MR. WILLIAM COKE, the figure on the left, carried on business in Leith
for upwards of fifty-five years in the shop now occupied by Messrs. Reid and
Son. He commenced bookseller in 1764; and his stock, consisting principally
of minor publications, and the common articles of stationery, was not very
extensive. By perseverance and economy, his trade gradually increased, though
it is somewhat doubtful if he ever attained to easy circumstances. He was
a most indefatigable person, however; for he has been known to travel to
Edinburgh three or four times in one day for the purpose of supplying the
orders of his customers ; and he would have performed the journey to obtain a
sixpenny pamphlet.’
Returning from Glasgow by
the coach on one occasion, he was seated inside with several other passengers.
The subject of conversation chancing to take a political turn, an English gentle-
A calculation was made from Mr. Coke’s own information respecting his journeys between
Leith and Edinburgh, when it was found that he had walked a distance more than twice equal to
the circumference of the globe. The late Mr. David Ramsay, publisher of the Cou~umt, used to
compare him to a squirrel in 8 cage, always endeavouring to get to the top.
Mr. Coke possessed a rather quick temper.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. arbund him as formerly, to enjoy the sea breeze, and the choice things which the ...

Book 9 p. 40
(Score 1.51)

46 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
excepting such as had become attached to him during his attendance at the
University.
The rapidity with which Mr, Bell rose in his profession was remarkable.
He was not less eminent as a consulting surgeon than as an operator ; and he
enjoyed to an extraordinary degree, the confidence of his professional brethren
and of the country. In addition to his natural and acquired abilities, two points
in E. Bell’s character seem to have contributed much to promote his successa
fixed determination that not an hour should be misapplied, and a never-failing
kindly attention to the interests and feelings of those who placed themselves
under his care. The extent to which the first of these considerations prevailed
is evinced by the variety of his publications. Besides several treatises on distinct
professional subjects, and an extended system of surgery, he is understood to
have been the author of not a few political and economical tracts, called forth
by the engrossing interest of the times, and of a series of essays on agriculture
-a pursuit which he cherished during the busiest years of his life, and which
afforded him employment when his health no longer su5ced for much professional
exertion.
hlr. Bell’s address was mild and engaging; his information varied and extensive
; and his powers of oonversation such that his society was much courted.
He was born in 1749. He married in 1774 the only daughter of Dr. Robert
Hamilton, Professor of Divinity, and died in 1806, leaving four sons.
No. CLXXXVII.
“THE FIVE ALLS.”
THE characters in this grotesque classification of portraitures have been previously
noticed, with the exception of two-Mr. Rocheid of Inverleith and his
Satanic Majesty, whose biography was, at the beginning of last century, penned
by the author of Robiiuon Crusoe.
The figure in the pulpit represents the REV. DR. ANDREW HUNTER,
of the Tron Church, whose benevolence might well be said to extend to all ;
and the uncombed head, in the desk beneath, is intended to indicate Mr. John
Campbell, precentor.
The gentleman in the long robe, said to “Plead for All,” is the HON.
HENRY ERSKINE ; and perhaps, in reference to his character as the poor
man’s lawyer, to no other member of the Scottish bar of his time could the
observation be more appropriately applied.
The centre figure is JAMES ROCHEID,’ Esq. of Inverleith, a gentleman
l Pronounced and sometimes spelt Roughead.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. excepting such as had become attached to him during his attendance at ...

Book 9 p. 61
(Score 1.51)

Leith Wynd.] PAUL?S WORK. 301
issued an edict, that among the bedesmen entertained
there should be ?na Papistes,? but men of
the ? trew religion.? The buildings having become
ruinous, were reconstructed under the name of
Paul?s Work in 1619, and five Dutchmen were
brought from Delft to teach certain boys and girls
lodged therein the manufacture of coarse woollen
stuffs. ? They furnished the poor children whom
The Town Council of Edinburgh became proprietors
of this charity, according to their Register,
in consequence of Queen Mary?s grant to them of
all such religious houses and colleges in Edinburgh;
and in 1582 they resolved to adapt the bishop?s
college for other purposes than he intended, and
? Edinburghers in 1621, as Calderwood records, on
the 1st of May, certain profane and shperstitious
? weavers in Paul?s Worke, Englishe and Dutche,
set up a highe May-pole, with garlants and bells,?
crqusing a great concourse of people to assemble ;
and it seemed eventually that the manufacture did
not succeed, or the Town Council grew weary of
, encouraging it j so they converted Paul?s Work
ding,? says Arnot, ?and paid the masters of the
work, thirteen pence and a third 01 a penny
weekly, during the first year of their apprenticeship.
This was considered as a very beneficial institution,
and accordingly, many well-disposed people enriched
it with donations :? but to the horror of the
COWGATE PORT. (Fvom a View by Ewbank, published in 1825.)

... Wynd.] PAUL?S WORK. 301 issued an edict, that among the bedesmen entertained there should be ?na Papistes,? ...

Book 2 p. 301
(Score 1.51)

The Cowgate.] - THE MAGDALENE CHAPEL 261
Michael Macqueen (or Macquhen), .a wealthy citi-
Zen, and afterwards by his widow, Janet Rhynd.
1725, accompanied by a servant, ?or tumbler,?
who robbed him, and against whom he warned the
people of certain country towns in the Courant of
December, I 7 25.
Arnot records that in early times there existed
in the Cowgate an ancient Maisoson Dieu which had
fallen into decay; but it was re-founded in the reign
with ancient painted glass-the only fragments in
all Scotland which have survived the Reformation,
the latter was used as a hall for their meetings.
The foundation was augmented in 1541 by two
donations from Hugh Lord Somerville, who was
taken prisoner by the English in the following
year, and had to ransom himself for I,OCO merks.
If the edifice suffered in the general sack of the
city during the invasion of 1544 it must have been
The hospital4esigned to accommodate a chap
lain and seven poor men-and the chzpel, the little
square spire of which (with its gargoyles formed like
cannon, each with a ball stuck in its mouth) is
nearly lost amid the towering modern edifices which
surround it-were dedicated to St Mary Magda-
1 and contain the royal arms of Scotland, encircled
by a wreath of thistles, and those of the Queen
Regent Mary of Guise, within a wreath of laurel,
with the shields of the founder and foundress within
ornamental borders. These probably date from
1556, in which year we find that ?The baillies and

... Cowgate.] - THE MAGDALENE CHAPEL 261 Michael Macqueen (or Macquhen), .a wealthy citi- Zen, and afterwards by ...

Book 4 p. 261
(Score 1.51)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 393
He was, in short, the very last specimen (Lord Balgay perhaps excepted)
of the old race of Scottish advocates. He was universally allowed to be a
“ capital lawyer ;” and, notwithstanding his hasty demeanour on the bench, and
the incautious sarcasms in which he occasionally indulged at the expense of the
advooates before him, he was a great favourite with the younger portion of the
bar, who loved him the more for the peculiarities of his manner. He was himself
enthusiastic in the recollection of bygone days, and scorned the cold and
stiff formality which the decorum of modern times has thrown over the legal
character. Of the warmth of his feelings in this respect, a very characteristic
instance is related in Peter’s Letters to his Kinsfolk ;-“ When Guy Mannering
came out, the Judge was so much delighted with the picture of the life of the
old Scottish lawyers in that most charming novel, that he could talk of nothing
else but Pleydell, Dandie, and the high-jinks for many weeks. He usually
carried one volume of the book about with him ; and one morning, on the bench,
his love for it so completely got the better of him, that he lugged in the subject
head and shoulders, into the midst of a speech about some most dry point of
law ; nay, getting warmer every moment he spoke of it, he at last fairly plucked
the volume from his pocket, and, in spite of all the remonstrances of all his
brethren, insisted upon reading aloud the whole passage for their edification.
He went through the task with his wonted vivacity, gave great effect to every
speech, and most appropriate expression to every joke. During the whole scene
Sir walter Scott was present, seated, indeed, in his official capacity, close under
the Judge,”
Latterly his lordship sometimes made strange mistakes. A somewhat amusing
instance of his forgetfulness occurred during one of the circuit trials. A point
of law having been started, the counsel on either side cited their authorities.
The prisoner’s counsel founded on the opinion expressed by Mr. Burnet in his
treatise on Criminal Law ; whilst the Crown counsel appealed to Mr. Baron
Hume’s authority, which happened to be the other way. Lord Hermand heard
the former very patiently ; but, when the name of Hume was mentioned, he
interrupted the barrister, saying, that during the course of a long life he had
heard many strange things, but certainly, this was the first time he had ever
heard a novel-writer quoted as a law authority. Accordingly, without farther
ceremony, to the amazement of all present, he decided the point against the
Crown. In the evening some one of the young men present at the circuit
dinner ventured to ask his lordship, who was in admirable humour, for an
explanation, when it turned out that the venerable Judge, being accustomed to
see Baron Hume and Sir Walter Scott sitting together for a series of years at
the Clerk’s table in the First Division of the Court, had, by some unaccountable,
mental process, confounded the one with the other; and the fictions of the
latter being always present in his mind, the valuable legal treatise of the former
had entirely escaped his memory.
The following assumed speech by Lord Hermand, in a supposed divorce case
3E

... SKETCHES. 393 He was, in short, the very last specimen (Lord Balgay perhaps excepted) of the old ...

Book 8 p. 548
(Score 1.49)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 41
NO. xv.
THE THREE CAPTAINS OF THE CITY GUARD.
GEORGE PITCAIRN.
GEORGE ROBERTSON.
ROBERT PILLANS.
THESE three persons were all, as announced in the title, Captains of the Old
Edinburgh City Guard. This appointment was not generally held by military
men, and it was frequently conferred upon decayed burgesses, whose character
recommended them tq the patronage of the Magistrates, and whose circumstances
rendered this tolerably lucrative situation (which was ad vitum aut
cukam) ah object of some moment.
CAPTAIN PITCAIRN had originally been a cloth-merchant in the city,
and had more than once served in the Magistracy. Having subsequently become
embarrassed in his circumstances, he was appointed, on a vacancy occurring, to
the Captaincy of the City Guard ; but, engaging some time afterwards in no
very creditable speculation,’ he lost both his situation and his character. He
was the author of a ‘I Treatise on the Fisheries,” Edin., 12m0, for which the
Trustees of the Society for the extending the Fisheries awarded him a gold
medal. He died at Edinburgh on the 17th September 1791.
ROBERTSON, the second figure in the Print, had been an officer in the Dutch
service previous to his appointment to a command in the City Guard, and was
selected for the latter office with the view of improving the discipline and
general military character of the corps. Of his private history nothing is known,
nor was his professional career as a civic soldier, which was very brief,
distinguished by any remarkable event. He died in Edinburgh in the year
1787, and was succeeded by another military veteran, Captain Gordon.
PILLANS, the third figure, was originally a brewer in the vicinity of the city,
and was for some time one of the resident bailies of the then suburban districts of
Potterrow and Portsburgh. It is alleged that the gallant Captain was fully as
dexterous at handling a bottle as a sword ; and a certain rotundity observable in
1 T ~wLas importing bad half-pence from England,-a species of traffic which was, about the
latter end of the last century, carried to a great extent in this country. Whole barrels, and these
in immense numbers, were brought down to Scotland, chiefly from Birmingham, and obtained for a considerable
time a ready circulation ; no one ever thinking of questioning either the weight or quality of
the copper coin tendered to them. The value, as subsequently sscertained by the Magistrates, was
Q

... SKETCHES. 41 NO. xv. THE THREE CAPTAINS OF THE CITY GUARD. GEORGE PITCAIRN. GEORGE ...

Book 8 p. 55
(Score 1.48)

24 EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT.
of such melodies as AzZd Robin Gray and the Rowers of fhe For&,-
Lady Anne Barnard (Lindsay), Jane Elliott, and Mrs. Cockburn, come into
delightful though momentary view. And the list at this point may be fitty
closed by the names of Adam Fergusson the Roman historian, and Lord
Monboddo, whose strange theories, after a century's sterility, seem now
showing some symptoms of vitality, shooting root downwards and bearing
fruit upwards.
DAVID HUMSS GRAVE.
About the close of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth
centuries, more if not brighter spirits appear in the Scottish Metropolis.
DugaId Stewart is still in the Moral Philosophy chair, and yet to be long
there. Professor Playfair is in the niiddle of his usefui career. Henry
Mackenzie has laid aside the pleasing and pathetic pen with which he wrote
his novels, but is stiIl alive and active. Sir John Leslie is preparing his
great work on Heat, and is soon to be appointed Playfair's successor in the
chair of Mathematics. Dr. Thomas M'Cne is preaching in Edinburgh, and
already collecting materids for his Xt;e of Knoz. (The grave of Knox,

... EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT. of such melodies as AzZd Robin Gray and the Rowers of fhe For&,- Lady Anne ...

Book 11 p. 40
(Score 1.47)

28 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
The Earl remained only a short time at Loudon Castle, having been appointed
Governor of Malta in 1824. This situation he filled for nearly two
years, much to the satisfaction of the Maltese, when, in consequence of a fall
from his horse, he was seized with a dangerous illness, and was, attended by his
family, conveyed in a weak state on board the Revenge ship-of-war. The Earl
grew rapidly worse, and died on the 28th November 1826. It was rumoured
at the time that, in a letter found after his death, his lordship had desired his right
hand to be cut off and preserved until the death of the Marchioness, then to be
interred in the same coffin with her ladyship. His remains were interred at
Malta.
As a cavalry officer
he looked uncommonly well. He
was well learned in the history and constitution of his country; and that his
talents were of the highest order is evinced by his successful government of
India. He was of a kindly and affectionate disposition-In munificence unbounded;
so much so that to his extreme liberality may be attributed the
embarrassments under which he is understood to have laboured throughout the
latter part of his life.
The Earl of Moira was tall, and rather of il spare figure.
His manners were digniiled, yet affable.
No. CLXXXI.
MR. JOHN WEMYSS, MR. ROBERT CLERK,
GEORGE PRATT.
JOHN WERIIYSS, the figure on the left, was, as the Print denotes, one of the
Town Criers, and colleague of the eccentric and consequential George Pratt. He
had formerly been a respectable dyer ; but, owing to some reverses in business,
he was reluctantly compelled to abandon the trade ; and, from necessity, had
recourse to the calling in which he is here represented. He was for many years
officer to the Incorporation of Bonnet-makers, for which he received the sum of
fifty shillings a year !
He was twice married;
and by his first wife had a son and daughter. His
son, Mr. Robert Wemyss, was more fortunate in the world. His death, which
occurred on the 25th of August 1812, is thus noticed :-“At Edinburgh, Mr.
Robert Wemyss, late Deacon of the Incorporation of Bonnet-makers, Council
and Dean of Guild Officer of that city. In public and private life he was
greatly respected as a worthy and honest man ; and his death is much regretted
Wemyss lived at the foot of Forrester’s Wynd.
He died in June 1788.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. The Earl remained only a short time at Loudon Castle, having been appointed Governor of ...

Book 9 p. 37
(Score 1.45)

BIOGRAPHICBL SKETCHES. 41 1
No. CLXII.
MR. WILLIAM SCOTT,
MR. JAMES SIBBALD, GEORGE FAIRHOLME, ESQ.,
AND
JAMES KERR, ESQ.
THE first figure in this group of amateurs is MR. WILLIAM SCOTT, plumber,
who is represented looking through his glass at a print of the “ Three Graces.”
Mr. Scott’s ancestors were considerable landed proprietors in the county of
Northumberland, in England. His father, who had been bred a plumber-a
business then little known in Scotland-settled in Edinburgh early in the eighteenth
century, where the subject of our sketch was born in 1739. He received
a regular academical education, and was intended for the army ; but, in consequence
of greatly extended business, and his father having fallen into a
delicate state of health, he was induced to abandon his views of a military life.
He retired
from business many years before his death. He was a man of domestic habits ;
and, having a taste for the arts, amused himself in collecting engravings, of
which he had an extensive and valuable collection, embracing many productions
of the ancient masters: Being a member
of hlary’s Chapel, he for some time held the office of Treasurer, and twice
represented that incorporation as Deacon in the Town Council of Edinburgh.
He was a member of the Kirk Session of Haddo’s Hole, now called the New
North Church, for nearly half a century. He was Commandant of the
Lieutenants of the Train Band, one of the Majors of the Edinburgh Defensive
Band, and a member of the First Regiment of Royal Edinburgh Volunteers.
He died in 1816.
Mr. Scott was twice married, and had a family by each marriage.
He had also a well-selected library.
The next figure in the group is MR. JAMES SIBBALD, bookseller, holding
in his hand the print of the “Three Graces,” which he is contemplating
apparently with much satisfaction.
It is said Mr. Scott’s propensity for collecting arose from his having learned that an immense
aum had been got at the sale of a nobleman’s paintings and engravings. It immediately occurred to
him that a large si1111 might be realised for his family in a similar manner. Some years prior to his
death, he disposed of his collection of engravings to Mr. Vernon, a well-known picture-dealer then
resident in Edinburgh, who, by extensive purchases, greatly increased it both as to extent and value,
until it surpassed anything of the kind that has been seen in this country. The collection, however,
NZIEsu bsequently taken to England, and disposed of by public suction.

... SKETCHES. 41 1 No. CLXII. MR. WILLIAM SCOTT, MR. JAMES SIBBALD, GEORGE FAIRHOLME, ESQ., AND JAMES ...

Book 8 p. 572
(Score 1.44)

184 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [The Royal Exchange.
rest upon the platform, support a pediment, on
which the arms of the city of Edinburgh are
carved. The drst floor of the main front is laid
aut in shops. The upper floors are occupied by
the Board of Customs, who have upwards of
twenty apartments, for this they pay to the city
a rent of A360 a year."
Arnot wrote in 1779.
The chief access to the edifice is by a very
The principal part forms the north side of the
square, and extends from east to west, 111 feet
over wall, by 51 feet broad. Pillars and arches,
supporting a platform, run along the south front,
which faces the square, and forms a piazza In
the centre, four Corinthian pillars, whose bases
costume, and having a curious and mysterious history.
It is said-for nothing is known with certainty
about it-to have been cast in France, and
was shipped from Dunkirk to Leith, where, during
the process of unloading, it fell into the harbour,
and remained long submerged. It is next heard of
as being concealed in a cellar in the city, and in
the Scots Magazifie it is referred to thus in 1810 :-
'' On Tuesday, the 16th October, a very singular
stately stair, of which the well is twenty feet square
and sixty deep. Off this open the City Chambers,
where the municipal affairs are transacted by the
magistrates and council.
The Council Chamber contains a fine tronze
statue of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, in Roman
CLERIHEUGH'S TAVERN.

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [The Royal Exchange. rest upon the platform, support a pediment, on which the arms of ...

Book 1 p. 184
(Score 1.43)

380 B I 0 GRAPH I C AL S RETCH E S.
Little Dickie was a gay sort of fellow, and spent a merry life while in Edinburgh.
He was a votary of Bacchus, and used, it is said, not unfrequently to
pay his devotions to that potent deity in the forenoon. He was, nevertheless,
much invited out, and might occasionally be met at private parties, and at balls;
from which, however, his tall wife was excluded. She was a lady of good
education and polished manners, and appeared to have philosophy enough to
care little for the exclusion. When her husband returned from his pleasures
she had always a smile for “ Dickie, my love.”
No. ccc.
THE LAST SITTING
OF
THE OLD COURT OF SESSION.
PREVIOUtoS t he Act 48th Geo. III., by which the Court was separated into
Two Divisions, the whole ‘‘ fifteen lords ” sat at one bench-the Lord President
of course presiding, and the Lord Justice-clerk taking his place beside him.
The close of the summer session, on the 11th July 1808, was the “last sitting”
under the old system. The Two Divisions assembled for the first time on the
12 th of November following.’
With the exception of Lords Woodhouselee and Robertson, the Senators
composing the “ last sitting ” have already been noticed in the course of this
Work. The first figure on the left is LORDH ERMAN;D the next, and continuing
round the circle, BALMUTOB,A NNATYNAER,M ADALEC,U LLENP, OLKENNET,
HOPE( Lord Justice-clerk), SIR ILAYCA MPBEL(LL ord President), DUNSINNAN,
CRAIG, GLENLEE, MEADOWBANKse nior, WOODHOUSELEREO,B ERTSONa,n d
NEWTON.
ALEXANDER FRASER TYTLER (LORDW OODHOUSELEEth)e, third
figure from the bottom on the right, was the eldest son of William Tytler,
Sir Ilay Campbell having retired, the new President, the Right Hon. Robert Blab of Aventonn,
took his seat at the head of the FIRST DIvrsIoN-the Lord Justice-clerk (the Hon. Charles Hope),
presiding in the SECOND. Throughout the various constitutional changes in the College of Justice,
siuce it was first instituted by James V. in 1532, the original number of Senators (fourteen and R
president) continued to be adhered to till 1830 (23d July), when, by the 11th Geo. IV., and 1st
Will. IV., cap. 69, sect. 20, they were reduced to twelve, exclusive of the President. An attempt on
the part of the legislature, in 1785, to effect a similar reduction, was opposed, and the-feelings of the
country successfully roused on the subject, by Boswell, the biographer of Johnson.

... B I 0 GRAPH I C AL S RETCH E S. Little Dickie was a gay sort of fellow, and spent a merry life while in ...

Book 9 p. 508
(Score 1.42)

156 MEMORIALS OF EDINBURGH,
which appears prominently in our view of the Castle Hill, with the inscription LAVS
DEO, and the date 1591, curiously wrought in antique iron letters on its front. The most
ancient portions of the interior that remain seem quite as early in character as those we
have been describing ; and indeed the back part of it, extending into the dose, has apparently
been built along with the mansion of the Queen Regent. The earliest titles of this
building now existing are two contracts of alienation, bearing date 1590, by which the upper
and under portions of the land are severally disposed of to Robert M‘Naught and James
Rynd, merchant burgesses. The building, in all probability, at that period was a timberfronted
land, similar to those adjoining it, which were taken down in 1845. Immediately
thereafter, as appears from the date of the building, the handsome polished ashlar front,
which still remains, had been erected at their joint expense. In confirmatiou of this there
is sculptured, under the lowest crow-step at the west side of the building, a shield bearing .
an open hand, in token of amity, as we presume, with the initials of both proprietors.’
In an apartment on the second floor of this house, an arched ceiling was accidentally
discovered some years since, decorated with a series of sacred paintings on wood, of a very
curious and interesting character, A large circular compartment in the centre contsins
the figure of our Saviour, with a radiauce round His head, and His left hand resting on
a royal orb. Within the encircling border are these words, in gilded Roman letters, on
a rich blue ground, Ego sum via, veritas, et vita, 14 Johne. The paintings in the larger
compartments represent Jacob’s Dream, Christ asleep in the storm, the Baptism of
Christ, and the Vision of Death from the Apocalypse, surmounted by the symbols of the
Evangelists. The distant landscape of the Lake of Galilee in the second picture presents
an amusing, though by no means unusual liberty, taken by the artist with his subject.
It consists of a view of Edinburgh from the north, terminating with Salisbury Crags on
the left and the old Castle on the right! This pictorial license affords a clue as to the
probable period of the work, which, as far as it can be trusted, indicates a later period than
the Regency of Mary of Guise. The steeples of the Nether Bow Port and the old Weighhouse
are introduced-the first of which was erected in the year 1606, and the latter
taken down in 1660. The fifth picture, and the most curious of all, exhibits an allegorical
representation, as we conceive, of the Christian life. A ship, of antique form, is seen
in full sail, and bearing on its pennon and stern the common symbol, IHS. A crowned
figure stands on the deck, looking towards a burning city in the distance, and above him
the word VB. On the mainsail is inscribed Curitus, and over the stern, which is in the
fashion of an ancient galley, [Salpiencia. Death appears as a skeleton, riding on a dark
horse, amid the waves immediately in front of the vessel, armed with a bow and arrow,
which he is pointing at the figure in the ship, while a figure, similarly armed, and mounted
on a huge dragon, follows in it.s wake, entitled Persecutio, and above it a winged demon,
over whom is the word Diaboolus. In the midst of these perils there is seen in the sky a
radiance surroundiig the Hebrew word i71iV, and from this symbol of the Deity a hand
issues, taking hold of a line attached to the stern of the vessel. The whole series is executed
with, great spirit, though now much injured by damp and decay. The broad borders between
them are richly decorated with every variety of flowers, fruit, harpies, birds, and fancy
1 This is oue undoubted example of the date on a building being put on at a considerably later period than its erection,
an Occurrence which we have fouud reason to auapect in various other instancea.

... MEMORIALS OF EDINBURGH, which appears prominently in our view of the Castle Hill, with the inscription ...

Book 10 p. 169
(Score 1.42)

352 MEMORIALS OF EDINBURGH.
sions, or swept away to make room for the formal streets and squares of the New Town;
but these are the offspring of another parentage, though claiming a part among the memorials
of the olden time. At the foot of Leith Wynd-and just without the ancient boundaries
of the capital, lies an ancient suburb, which though at no time dignified by the abodes of
the nobility, or even of citizens of note, was selected as the site of several early religious
foundations that still confer some interest on the locality. The foot of the Wynd (the only
portion which now remains) was remarkable as the scene of one of those strange acts of lawless
violence, which were of such frequent occurrence in early times. John Graham, parson of
Killearn, one of the supreme criminal Judges, having married the widow of Sandilands of
Calder, instituted a vexatious law-suit against her son. The partizans of the latter probably
considered it vain to compete with a lawyer at his own weapons, and his uncle, Sir James
Sandilands, accompanied by a body of his friends and followers, lay in wait for the Judge on
the 1st of February 1592, in the wynd, which then formed one of the principal avenues to
the town, and avenged their quarrel by murdering him in open day, without any of the perpetrators
being brought to trial or punishment.’ At the foot of the wynd stood the building
known as Paul’s Work, rebuilt in 1619, on the site of an ancient religibus foundation.
About the year 1479, Thomas Spence, Bishop of Aberdeen, founded an hospital there, for
the reception and entertainment of twelve poor men, and dedicated it to the Virgin Mary,
under the name of the Hospital of our Lady in Leith Wynd, and it subsequently received
considerable augmentations to its revenues from other benefactors. It is probable that
among these benefactions there had been a chapel or altar dedicated to St Paul, unless,
indeed, this was included in the original charter of foundation.’ All these documents,
however, are now lost, and we are mainly left to conjecture as to the source of the change
of name which early took place. In 1582 the Common Council adapted this charitable
foundation to the new order of things, and drew up statutes for the guidance. of the
Bedemen, wherein it is required that, “in Religion they be na Papistes, bot of the trew
Religi~n.”~S ubsequently the whole revenues were diverted to purposes never dreamt of
by the pious founders. The buildings having probably fallen intp decay, were reconstructed
as they now appear, and certain Dutch manufacturers were invited over from Delft,
and established there for the instruction of poor girls and boys in the manufacturing of
woollen stuffs. The influence of these strangers in their legitimate vocation failed of eEect,
but Calderwood records in 1621, ‘‘ Manie of the profainner sort of the toun were drawen
out upon the sixt of May, to May games in Gilmertoun and Rosseline; so profanitie
began to accompanie superstition and idolatrie, as it hath done in former times. Upon
the first of May, the weavers in St Paul’s Worke, Englishe and Dutche, set up a
highe May pole, with their garlants and bells hanging at them, wherat was great concurse
Arnot’s Criminal Trials, p. 174.
“Feb. 7, 1696.-Reduction pursued by the Town of Edinburgh against Sir Wm. Binny, and other partnera of the
Linen Manufactory in Paul’s Work, of the tack set to them of the same in 1683. Insisted lmo, that this house was
founded by Thos. Spence, Bishop of Aberdeen, in the reign of King James II., for discipline and training of idle vagabonds,
and dedicated to 9t Paul ; and by an Act of Council in 1626, was destinate aud mortified for educating boys in B
woollen manufactory; and this tack had inverted the origiual design, contrary to the 6th Act of Parliament, 1633,
discharging the sacrilegious inveraion of all pious donations.”-Fountainhall’s Decisions, vol. i. p. 709. “ There WM a
hospital and chapel, dedicated to St Paul, in Edinburgh ; aud there waa in the chapel an altar and chaplainry conaecrated
to the Virgin ; of which Sir William Knolls, the preceptor of Torphichen, claimed the patronage before the Privy Council,
in 1495.”-ParI. Rec. 472. Caledonia, vol. ii. p. 471. * Maitland, pp. 468-9.

... MEMORIALS OF EDINBURGH. sions, or swept away to make room for the formal streets and squares of the New ...

Book 10 p. 385
(Score 1.4)

I8 EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT.
~
building, strange projectings, receding, and windings, roofs, stairs, and
windows all luxuriating in the endless variety of carved work, kding and
mouldering coats of arms, helmets, crests, coronets, supporters, mantles, and
pavilions, all these testimonials of forgotten pride, mingled so profuseIy with
the placards of old-clothesmen and every ensign of plebeian wretchedness,-
most striking emblems of the decay of a once royal city and appropriate
avenue to a deserted palace.' Passing Queen Mary's Bath-house, and in
fine emerging on Holyrood Palace, which, sunk in a hollow overhung by
mountains, seems an apt emblem of Scotland and the Scottish kingdom, in its
combination of that outward meanness and aspiring majesty, humble position
and hot pride, courage and self-assertion, which mingled in the blaze of
' The add Scottish glory.'
STAIRCASH. HOLYROOD.
One of the engravings shows the narrowdark stair bywhich the assassins
reached Rizziot and the other shows the doorway at which the murder was
committed. If Holyrood in comparison with the Castle may seem something
of an inverted climax,-we question if, to a led and soothfast Caledonian,
it be not every whit as inspiring,--if the one be the apex, the other is the
foundation of the stately and structum1 whole.

... EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT. ~ building, strange projectings, receding, and windings, roofs, stairs, ...

Book 11 p. 28
(Score 1.4)

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