THE LA WNMARKET. 171
The son and namesake of the first William Little was Provost of Edinburgh in 1591,
and helped to complete the work which his generous relatives had so well begun. On the
election of a librarian, in the year 1647, we find the Magistrates showing a grateful sense
of their obligations to these noble benefactors of the town, by appointing a descendant of
theirs to the office. ‘4 Many favoured Mr Thomas Speir, son of an honest family, laureat
at the Lambas preceeding, especially in regard of his grandfather, William Little, Provost,
a most especial friend to the Colledge, and his great grand-uncle, Mr Clement Little,
commissary of Edinburgh, who gave the first being to the library.”’
The house, although occupied towards the close of last century as the Sheriff-clerk’s
chambers, remained an entailed property in the possession of Clement Little’s descendants,
until its demolition, and the principal carved stones are now preeerved in the garden at
Inch House. According to the traditions of last century, as Creech informs us in his ‘‘ Fugitive Pieces,’’ this interesting old mansion formed the residence of Cromwell during
part of the time he resided in Edinburgh,’ possibly while engaged in the siege of the
Castle. This close, which bears, in the earliest titles of property within it, the name of its
old residenter, Clement Little, appears in Edgar’s map of 1742, as Lord Cullen’n Close, so
that here also resided that eminent lawyer and judge, Sir Francis Grant of Cullen, who, in
1689, almost singly swayed the whole Scottish nation, when vacillating between the feudal
vassallage due to the old line of kings, and their sense of violated rights by its latest
representative; and to whose influence was mainly owing the happy consistency of the
Scottish Parliament in their declaration that King James had, by his own act, forfeited
his throne, and left it vacant. He was raised to the bench in 1709, yet, though thus acute
on other people’s matters, Lord Cullen was so utterly regardless about his own, that his
more shrewd and calculating spouse was accustomed to have all questions relating to his
own property represented to him in the form of a case; ” and having obtained his
opinion as a lawyer, she took the advice for her direction, without troubling him with
further information as to whom it concerned. His friend, Wodrow, has recorded in his
history the closing scene of his life,-a scene which we may associate with the ancient
alley that bore his name :-{‘ Brother,” said he to one who informed him of his mortal
illness, “you have brought me the best news ever I heard I ” And the historian adds, in
figurative depiction,
The transition is great from this single-minded and upright judge to the next
occupant who gave his name to the close, which it still retains, that of William, or, as he
was more generally called, Deacon Brodie. This notorious character, who was executed
at the Old Tolbooth on the 1st of October 1788, resided in the same elegant mansion
as had previously been the abode of such very different persons,-a suitable enough
dwelling for one who stood high in repute as a wealthy and substantial citizen, until the
daring robbery of the Excise Office in Chessel’s Court, Canongate, brought to light a longcontinued
system of housebreaking, scarcely ever surpassed in reckless audacity.’
The principal apartment in the house was lofty and elegant in its proportions. A
large arched window gave light to it from the west, and a painting on the panelling,
That day when he died was without a cloud I ”
l Craufurd‘s Hiat., p. 159.
a For a particular account of this worthy, see Kay’~P ortraits, vol. i. p. 256,
’ Edinburgh Fugitive Piecen, p. 64.
172 MEMORIALS OF EDINBURGH.
representing the Adoration of the Wise Men, was said to be the work of Alexander
Runciman.
We have endeavoured thus far to conduct the reader through this portion of the
ancient capital, pointing out the various associations calculated to excite sympathy or
interest in connection with its time-honoured scenes. But all other objects of attraction
to the local historian, within this district, must yield before those of the Old Bank Close,
the site of which was very nearly that of the present paving of Melbourne Place. The
antique mansion, that formed the chief building in this close, excited very great and
general attention from the time that it was exposed to view in opening up the approach
to George 1V.k Bridge, until its demolition in 1834, to make way for the central
buildings of Melbourne Place, that now occupy its site. It stood immediatel) to the east
of William Little’s Land, already described, in Brodie’s Close, from which it was only
partially separated by a very narrow gutter that ran between the two houses, leaving them
united by a mutual wall at the north end.
This ancient building was curiously connected with a succession of eminent and
influential men, and with important historical events
of various eras, from the date of its erection until a
comparatively recent period. ‘‘ Gourlay’s House, ”
for so it continued to be called nearly to the last,
was erected in 1569, as appeared from the date on it,
by Robert Gourlay, burgess, on the site, and, partly
at least, with the materials of an old religious house.
Little further is known of its builder than the fact
that he had been a wealthy and influential citizen,
who enjoyed the favour of royalty, and made the
most of it too, notwithstanding the pious averment sculptured over his door, 0 LORD
IN THE IS AL MY TRAIST.’ This appears no less from numerous grants of
privileges and protections of rights, among the writs and evidents of the property,
attested by King James’s own signature, than by the very obvius jealousy with which
his favour at Court was regarded by his fellow-citizens.
One of these royal mandates, granted by the Kiig at Dumfries, 21st June 1588, sets
forth, ‘‘ Lyke 8s ye said Robert Gourlay and Helen Cruik, his spouse,’haa raisit ane new
biggin and wark upon ye waste and ground of their lands and houses foresaid, wherein
they are quarelled and troubled for enlarging and outputing of ye east gavill and dyke of
their said new wark, on with ye bounds of ye auld bigging foundit and edified thereupon,
of design, and presumed to have diminished and narrowit ye passage of ye foresaid transe
callit Mauchains Close, &c.,’ We, therefor, . . . . . give and grant special liberty
On the demolition of the building, the words I‘ 0 Lord,” which extended beyond the lintel of the door, were found
to be carved on oak, and so ingeniously let into the wall that this had escaped observation. One could almost fancy that
the subservient courtier had found his abbreviated motto liable to a more personal construction than was quite agreeable. ’ In the earlier part of the same writ, the property is styled ‘I ye landa of umq’ Alexander Mauthane, and now of ye
said Robert Gourlay.” We learn from Maitland, that in the year 1511, “ the Town Council twoarda inlarging the said
Church of St Giles, bought of AEezander MaucAanes, four landa or tenementa, in the Booth-raw,” or Luckenbo0tha.-
Maitland‘a Hist., p. 180. This can acarcely be doubted to be the same individual.
VIoaEnE-carved Stone from Old Bank Close, in the posse&on of C. K. Sharpe, Esq.
