Hih Street.] THE CROCHALLAN CLUB. 235
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE HIGH STREET (rontinurd).
The Anchor Close-Dawney Douglas?s Tavern-The ?? Crown Room?-The Cmchallan Club-Members-Burns among the Crochallan Fencibles
-Smellie?s Printing Office-Dundas?s House, Fleshmarket Close-Mylne?s Square-Lord Alva?s House-The Conntes of Sutherland and
Lady Glenorchy-Birthplace of Fergusson-Halkerston?s Wynd Port-Kinloch?s Close-Carmbbeh Close-?fie Episcopal Chapel-Clam
Shell Land-Capt. Matthew Henderson-Allan Ramsay?s Theatre-Its later Tenants-The Tailor?s Hall-Bailie Fyfe?s Close-? Heave awa,?
lads, I?m no deid yet ?-Chalmers? Close-Hope?s House-Sandiknd?s Close-Bishop Kennedy?s House-Grant?s C l o s e - h n Grant?s H o e .
ONE of the most interesting of the many old alleys
of the High Street (continuing still on the north
side thereof) is the Anchor Close.
A few yards down this dark and narrow thoroughfare
bring us to the entrance of a scale-stair,
having the legend, The Lord is 0714~ my svjwt;
adjoining it is another and older door, inscribed
0. Lm?. in . tk . is. a(. my. traist; while an
architrave bears a line? from a psalm, Be mmczjX
to me, under which we enter what was of old the
famous festive and hospitable tavern of Daniel, or,
as he was familiarly named by the Hays, Erskines,
Pleydells, and Crosbies, who were his customers,
Dawney Douglas, an establishment second. to none
in its time for convivial meetings, and noted for
suppers of tripe, mince collops, rizzared haddocks,
and fragrant hashes, that never cost more than sixpence
a-head ; yet on charges so moderate Dawney
Douglas and hisgudewife contrived to grow extremely
rich before they died. Who caused the three holy
legends to be carved, as in many other instances,
no man knows, nor can one tell who resided here of
old, except that it was in the seventeenth century
the house of a senator entitled Lord Forglen.
? The frequenter of Douglas?s,?? we are told, ?? after
ascending a few steps, found himself in a pretty
large kitchen, through which numerous ineffable
ministers of flame were continually flying about,
while beside the door sat the landlady, a large, fat
woman, in a towering head-dress and large-flowered
silk gown, who bowed to every one passing. Most
likely, on emerging from this igneous region, the
party would fall into the hands of Dawney himself,
and be conducted to an apartment.?
He was a little, thin, weak, quiet, and submissive
man ; in all things a contrast to his wife.
Here met the famous club called the Crochallan
Fencibles, which Bums has celebrated both in
prose and verse, and to which he was introduced
in 1787 by William Smellie, when in the city
superintending the printing of his poems, and
when, according to custom, one of the club was
pitted against him in a contest of wit and humour.
Burns bore the assault with perfect equanimity, and
entered fully into the spirit of the meeting.
Dawney Douglas knew a sweet old Gaelic song,
called Cro Chalien,? or, Colin?s cattle, which he
was wont to sing to his customers, and this led to
.
the establishment of the club, which, with jocular
reference to the many Scottish corps then raising,
was named the Crochallan Fencibles, composed
entirely of men of original character and talent.
Each member took some military title or ludicrous
office. Amongst them was Smellie, the famous
printer, and author of the ? Philosophy of Natural
History.? Individuals committing an alleged fault
were subjected to mock trials, in which those
members who were advocates could display their
wit; and as one member was the depute hngman
cf the club, a little horse-play, with much mirth, at
times prevailed.
The song of ? Cro Chalien? had a legend connected
therewith. Colin?s wife died very young,
but some months after he had buried her she was
occasionally seen in the gloaming, when spirits are
supposed to appear, milking her cows as usual, and
singing the plaintive song to which Bums must often
have listened amid the orgies in the Anchor Close.
In Dawney?s tavern the chief room was rather
elegant and well-sized, having an access by the
second of the doors described, iind was reserved
for large companies or important guests. Pm
exceZZeme, it was named the ? Crown Room,? and
was thus distinguished to guests on their bill tops,
from some foolish and unwarrantable tradition that
Queen Mary had once been there, when the crown
was deposited in a niche in the wall. It was
handsomely panelled, with a decorated fireplace
and two lofty windows that opened to the dose ;
but all this has disappeared now, and new buildings
erected in 1869 have replaced the old.
Here, then, was Bums introduced to the jovial
Crochallans, among whom were such men as
Erskine, Lords Newton and Gillies, by Smellie the
philosopher and printer who contested with Dr.
Walker the chair of natural history in the University;
and of one member, William Dunbar, W.S.,
? Colonel of the club, a predominant wit, he has
left us a characteristic picture :-
Oh, he held to the fair,
And buy some other ware ;
The saut tear blin?t his ee ;
Ye?re welcome hame to me I
.
? Oh, rattlin? roarin? Willie,
An? for to sell his fiddle,
But parting wi? his fiddle,
And rattlin?, roarin? Willie,
