THE LIBRARY

OF

THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

LOS ANGELES

J • SECOND EDITION.

T H E

HISTORY OF SANQUHAR

BY

JAMES BROWN

BURGH ASSESSOR

AUTHOR OF THE HISTORY OF THE SANQUHAR CURLING SOCIETY

TO WHICH 7.S ADDED

THE FLORA AND FAUNA OF THE DISTRICT'

BY DR ANSTRUTHER DAVIDSON

DUMFRIES: J. ANDERSON & SON EDINBURGH AND GLASGOW : JOHN MENZIES & CO.

1891

PRINTED AT THE

COURIER AND HERALD OFFICES,

DUMFRIES.

"8. «nl. lr

» 0 if ( i ti i v i It;

8-90

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TO THE MOST NOBLE

gut*,

THE LINEAL DESCENDANT

OF THE FAMILY

WHO SO LONG RULED FROM SANQUHAR CASTLE,

THIS VOLUME IS,

permission,

RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED.

593365

ENGLISH LOCAL

PREFACE.

THE feeling has frequently been expressed of late years that a history of Sanquhar would prove of no ordinary interest, considering the ancient origin of the town, its standing as one of the old Scottish burghs, its intimate connection through its old Castle and the doughty Crichtons, who ruled there with the most stirring period of our national history, and, at a later period, with the struggles of the Covenanters, and likewise, the antiquarian and topographical features of the district of which it is the centre.

It is true that a small history of the place was published in 1865 by the late Rev. Dr Simpson, but it was defective in various respects, particularly in that no attempt was made to treat of municipal affairs, or of social manners and customs. I waited, however, in the hope that the duty would be under- taken by some one more experienced in literary work, but there being no appearance of that, and as much valuable information to be derived from oral sources was in danger of being lost, I felt constrained to assume the task.

The first difficulty that presented itself was the plan of the book, having to deal as I had with a great mass of heterogeneous materials. No one plan was free from objec- tions, and the present was adopted as involving the least confusion. Another difficulty was the extraordinary fatality that seems to have attached to the ancient records of the town and parish. The Minutes of the Town Council for the first 120 years have all disappeared, and those of the Kirk- Session and other public bodies are likewise defective ; in this way, much information that would have been invaluable in the compilation of such a history, has been altogether lost. I have further to regret that I was denied access

viii. Preface.

to certain ancient charters of the Crichtons, recently dis- covered at Drumlanrig Castle, but now in the hands of a literary gentleman in Edinburgh, which would probably have thrown some light on the history of that family, and been the means of verifying much that may have been published on doubtful authority.

It is, however, my duty to acknowledge, which I now gratefully do, the obligations under which I rest for valuable assistance rendered in the performance of my task — to the family of the late Dr Simpson, for the liberty of making extracts from the history of Sanquhar published by him ; to the representatives of the late Dr Watson, Wanlockhead, and Mr Edmond, schoolmaster, there, for the description of the Wanlockhead Mines ; to Mr Thomas M'Naught, S.S.C., Edinburgh, for searches made in the State Records in Edin- burgh ; to Mr Galloway, Inspector of Schools, for the list of derivations of place-names ; to Dr Anstruther Davidson, for the chapter contributed by him on the Flora and Fauna of the district, written during his residence in Sanquhar, thereby supplying an element of interest not often found in a local history ; to Mr J. R. Wilson, Royal Bank, for information on antiquarian matters, and for access to his valuable collection ; and to friends who have proved exceedingly helpful in other departments.

In face, therefore, of the serious drawbacks mentioned, but with the compensation of these valuable aids, I launch the book in the hope that, notwithstanding its many inherent imperfections, it may be received as a not un- worthy history of a town and district, interesting from many points of view.

SAXQCHAR, Auyust, 1891.

C O 1ST T K N T

CHAPTER I.-To POOKA PHY.

Boundaries and extent of Parish, 1— Euchan, 2— Polvaird Loch, 2— Pamphy Linns, 8— Eliock Estate and Woods, 12— Old Kirk- bride, 14— Enterkin Pass, 14— Crawick, 20— Mennock, 24— Glendyne, 25— Wanlockhead,25— Sanquhar Moor, 26— Height of principal eminences, 27— Euchan Well, analysis, 27.

CHAPTER II. -ANTIQUARIAN. 29

Saen-Caer, 29— St. Bride's Well, 29— Ryehill Moat, 30— Kemp's Castle, 31— Black Loch and Lake Dwelling, 32— Remains of Ancient Strongholds, 33— Cairns, 34 -The Deil's or Picts' Dyke, 34— Chapel-yard of Dalpeddar, 35— Domestic Archi- tecture, 35— Sanquhar Old Cross, 36— List of Antiquarian Relics, 36.

CHAPTER III.— EARLY HISTORY. 39

Early Settlers: Ancient British, Roman, Irish, &c., 39 — The Edgars, 41 — The Norman Colonisation, 42 — The Rosses of Ryehill, 43 — The Refugee Flemings, 45.

Origin of name of Sanquhar, 47 — Capture of Sanquhar Castle, 49 —The Black Douglas, 50— The Castle deer, 51 -The Feudal System, 52— Sanquhar Hospital, 53— Sanquhar Castle, descrip- tion of, 54.

CHAPTER IV.— THE CRICHTONS. 63

Sir Robert Crichton, Lord of Sanquhar, made Coroner of Nithsdale, 64 — Sheriff of Dumfries, 65 -Battle between the Crichtons and the Maxwells, 69 — Raid by the Johnstones of Annandale, 72 — Appeal of the Sanquhar Widows to the King. 74 — The Hamiltons of Sanquhar, 75— Patrick M'Crerick, 76— Feud between Crichton and Sir Robert Dalziel of Eliock, 77— Lord Sanquhar's Crime, 79 — His Execution at Westminster, 80 —

b

x. Contents,

Pagt

Visit of King James to Sanquhar Castle, 83 — Sale of the Barony to Lord Queensberry, 85 — Summoning of the Clans, Old Ballad, 87— Relics of the Crichtons, 92.

CHAPTER V.— THE ELLIOCK FAMILY. 96

Robert Crichton, Lord Elliock, 96 - The Admirable Crichton, 97— The Dalyells of Elliock, 99— The Veitches, 100-Origin of the Veitch Family, 101— Feud between the Veitches and the Tweedies, 102— James Veitch, Lord Elliock, 104 -The estate entailed, 105— Sheriff Veitch, 105- Elliock House, 106.

CHAPTER VI. -THE COVENANTERS. 108

The National Covenant, 108— The Solemn League and Covenant, 109 -The " Canterbury " of the Covenanters, ] 14 -The First Sanquhar Declaration by Cameron, 115— Reuwick's Declara- tion, 117 — James Hyslop, poet, brief sketch of his life, 118 — The Cameronian's Dream, 119 — Selections from the Traditions of the Covenanters, 121 — James Kirkwood, curate, 136 — Cameron Demonstration at Sanquhar, 142— Cameron Monu- ment, 147.

CHAPTER VII. -MUNICIPAL. 149

Conditions essential to the creation of a free Burgh Royal : The Storn- awayCase, 149— The First Convention of Scottish Burghs, 151— Functions of the Convention, 1 53— Sanquhar Charter, 155 —Original Sett or Constitution of the Burgh, 159 -Admission to the Convention, 160— Privileges and Obligations of Burghs, 161— Rights of Burgesses, 163— Condition of the Burgh in the 17th century, 165— Qualification of Commissioners to the Convention, 167— George Irving, Commissioner for Sanquhar, 168.

First Council Minute Book, 169 -Boundaries of the Burgh, 170.

The Common Lands : Pasturage of, 171— Cultivation of, 172— "The Joggs," 173— Revenue from lands, 175.

Coal : Lease of Coal on Larsbraes, 17-")— Working of Coal on the Muir, 176— Revenues therefrom, 177— Division of the Muir Lands, 178.

Parliamentary Representation, 180.

Town Council, Election of, 183— Qualification of Members, 186— Non-resident Members, 187— Commissioner to the General Assembly, 188— Dean of Guild, 190— Pitt or Boundary Stones,

Contents. xi.

Page

191— Birleymen, 191— Revenues : Table of Customs, 191— Market Dues, 192— Stent and Teind, 193— Burgess' Fees, 193 — Stallangers, 193— The Custom Question, 193— The Circus- horse case, 194 — Abolition of Customs, 196.

Powers of Magistrates : Licences, 197— Public Morals, 198 — Burgh Fiscal, 1 99— The Jailor, 199— Constables, 199— Poach- ing, 200 — Smuggling, 200 — Brieves of Chancery, 201— Appointment of Schoolmaster, 203 — Paving of the Streets, 203 — Management of Roads, 204 — Sanquhar Lamb and Wool Market, 207— Pork Market, 208— Education, 208.

The Town Clerk : John Crichton, his struggle with the Council, 210 — His resignation, 211.

The Burgh Officer : His Duties and Salary, 213 — Notable holders of the office : William Kellock, 214— Robert Dargavel, 215— Sergeant Thomson, 215— James Black, 216.

Celebrations : King's Birthday, quaint proclamation, 218 — Trades Election, 220 — The Riding of the Marches ; Captain Scott, 221— Town Council Annual Election, 222.

Dean of Guild (formerly Provost) Robert Whigham, 224 — His Rivalry with Provost Otto, 225.

Lighting of the Streets, 226 — William Broom and Thomas Rae and their Contentions, 227 — J. W. Macqueen, Town Clerk, 227 — Freedom of Burgh presented to the Duke of Buccleuch, 231 — Honorary Burgesses, 232 — New Clock and Bell for Town Hall, 232— Loss of the Burgh Charter, 233— Search for, 234 — A New Charter obtained from Court of Session, 235 — Liti- gation with Duke of Buccleuch, 236.

Sanitary Measures, 237 — Boring for Coal on the Muir, 237 — Draining of Green Loch, 238.

New Public Hall, 240 -Fire-Hose, 241 -Adoption of the Police Act, 242.

Building Facilities : Deputation to the Duke of Buccleuch, 242 — Building Society, 243.

The Council House, Provost Abraham Crichton, 245 — The Jail, 246— Escapades of Prisoners, 246— Fire in the Jail : Henry Wright, 248— The Old Smithy : " The Convener," 249.

Sanquhar Bridge : Act of Scottish Parliament for Maintenance, 250— Flight of Queen Mary, 251— Footbridge, 252— New Bridge, 252.

CHAPTER VIII.— SOCIAL HISTORY. 253

Powers of the Feudal Barons, 253— Fight at the Moss of Knockonie, 254— The Barons, 255— Condition of Dumfriesshire in 1704, 256-The Rebellions of 1715 and 1745, 256— The Sanquhar

xii. Contents.

Page

Men under Provost Abraham Crichton, 258 — Prince Charlie's Retreat, 258— Prince Charlie's Drum, 260.

Abolition of Heritable Jurisdictions and its effects, 261 — The effects of the Union, 263 — Development of Manufactures, 263 — Condition of the People : their diet, times of scarcity, 264.

Connection of the Poet Burns with the Town, 266— With John- ston of Clackleith, Rigg of Crawick Forge, and Provost Edward Whigham, 266.

The Continental War : French Prisoners, 269.

The Dry Year of 1826 and the great Snowstorm of 1827, 270— Stage-Coaches, 271 — William Cunningham's Walking Feat, 272— The Resurrectionist Scare, 272.

The Reform Bill Demonstration, 273.

Folk-lore : Benjamin Robison (Ben) and other Characters, 273.

Threatened Visitation of Cholera : Measures to ward off, 280 — The Long Frost, 281.

The Making of the Railway : Disturbances by the navvies and collision with the populace, 282 — Introduction of Gas, 283 — Reading Room, 284 — Dalkeith Terrace constructed, 284 — The Pump Well, 284— Gravitation Water Supply, 285— The Volunteer Movement, 285 — Mr Ewart, M.P., and his opponent, Mr Haunay, 286— Earl of Dalkeith's majority, Celebration of, 286 — Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales, 286— Coming of age of Lord Eskdaill, 287— The Queen's Jubilee, 288.

Effects of the Railway on the social habits and customs of the people, 289 — Emigration, 289— Former Modes of Travelling, 290 —Fairs and their Accompaniments, 292 — Obsolete Trades, 296 — Dissemination of News, 298.

Travelling Circuses : Reminiscences of Mr Ord, 301 — Amateur Theatricals: Charlie M'lver and " The Button," 308— Failure of Trade, 311 — Practices of Trading, 311 — Depopulation of the District, 313— Dress of the People, 317— Social Effects of the Railway, 319.

CHAPTER IX.— CURLING. 320

Institution of the Curling Society, 320— The Curlers' Word and Grip, 321 — Extracts from Society's Minutes and Curling Stories, 323.

CHAPTER X.— INDUSTRIES. 329

Agriculture : Condition of, in last century, 329 — Highland Society Established, 330— Public Spirit of Duke Charles, 331— The "Breaking of the Tacks," 333— Turnip Cultivation introduced,

Contents. xiii.

Page

334— Lint Cultivation and Manufacture, 334 —Introduction of Tile-Draining and Liming, 335— Great Rise in Prices of Agri- cultural Produce, 336— Improvement of Cattle : Introduction of Ayrshires and of Clydesdale Horses, 337 — The " good Duke " and Mr J. Gilchrist-Clark, 33S.

Mining : Early Mining, Coal in Lime of old Castle Walls, 339— Old Workings near town, 340— Lease of the Duke's Minerals to Mr Barker, 341— Coal-pits formerly worked, 342— Coal Traffic by Road, and its effect on the trade of the town, 343 — Recent Boring Operations and present prospects, 346— Description of the Coal-field, 348.

Weaving : Early Methods, 351— The Spinning WTheel, 353— The Tailor " whipping the cat " and the Pedlar on his rounds, 354 — Introduction of Cotton, 356— Condition of the Weavers, 357 — Their Characteristics, 357 — The Fabrics worked, 359 — Introduction of the Power-Loom and consequent decay of Hand-Loom Weaving, 360— Carpet Weaving at Crawick Mill —The Carpet Company, 363— Woollen Mills, 365.

Miscellaneous: Brickmaking, 367 — Forging, 368 — Engineer- ing, 370.

CHAPTER XL— ECCLESIASTICAL. 371

Observance of the Sabbath in early times, 371 — Church Regula- tions, 372 — System of Catechising, 374 — Public Morals and Religious Observances, 375.

The Sacrament : Manner of Celebration, 375 — The abuses that arose in connection therewith — -Burns and the Ecclesiastical Authorities, 379— The Tent Preachings, 381—" Haudin' " the Sanquhar Sacrament, 382.

List of Parish Ministers, 383— The Manse, 386— The Parish Church, 387— South U.P. Church, 388— North U.P. Church, 390— The Free Church, 391— The E.U. Church, 392— Baptists —Mission Hall, 393.

CHAPTER XII.— PAROCHIAL ECONOMY. 394

Registers: The Old Parochial Register, 394— Population of the

Parish, 395— Vital Statistics, 396.

Education : Provisions for, 396— Educational Endowments Com- missioners' Scheme for Administration of the Crichton Trust, 398— Re-organisation of the School, 398- -Schools at Wanlock- head and Mennock, 400— Notable Teachers : James Orr, 400 — James Laurie, 406.

xiv. Contents.

Page

The Poor : Statutory Provision for, 408— The M'Aclam Bequest, 408.

CHAPTER XIII.— WANLOCKHEAD. 413

Origin of Village, 413 — Social Customs, 413— Social Economy, 414 — Steam Navigation, 415— Recreations of Miners, 419 — Local Institutions, 420 -The Established Church, 421— The Free Church, 422. The Mines : Account of, 424

THE FLORA AND FAUNA OF THE DISTRICT 451

APPENDICES .. 35

r. f.r« in/

. i r> n n M {•< i •, j i f ( r

CHAPTER I. TOPOGRAPHY.

^ANQUHAR is situated on the left bank of the Nith, twenty-six miles north-west of Dumfries. The Parish is eighteen miles in length, by five miles in breadth, and embraces an area of above sixty-one square miles. The Nith, which takes its rise in Ayrshire, a few miles above New Cumnock, passes into Dumfriesshire at a point eight miles north-west of Sauquhar, by an opening in the chain of hills which skirts the northern boundary of the county, and terminates in Corsancone, the hills on the west side of the valley being linked with the great Galloway range. Having traversed the parish of Kirkconnel for a distance of seven miles, the river enters the parish of Sanquhar at the point where it is joined by Crawick. This stream forms the boundary between the two parishes on the east side of the valley, while on the west they are divided by Kello, which flows into Nith two miles higher. On the right bank the ground rises gradually to a range of hills which runs parallel to the course of the river. These hills are very uniform in height, and are smooth and green to their summits. They contain two prin- cipal eminences, the Black Lorg, 2890, and Cairnkinnow, 1813 feet in height. At the back of the range, and overlooking Scaur, is the tremendous precipice of Glenwhargen, rising almost perpendicularly to the height of about 1000 feet. The Black Lorg stands at the north-west corner of the county. Forming, as it does, the water-shed of this region,

2 History of Sanquhar.

the sources of several streams are to be found here, giving rise to the rhyme —

" Euchan, Scaur, Kello, and Ken A' rise oot o' ae wee hill-en'. "

Kello, as has been said, forms the boundary between Sanquhar and Kirkconnel, while Euchan, taking a more southerly course, drains the west side of Sanquhar parish, and falls into Nith just opposite the town. Near the head of Euchan there is on the summit of the hill above Glenglass, Polvaird Loch, a sheet of water a little over three acres in extent, and unique both in its situation and appearance. It is situated on the top of a hill 1800 feet above sea-level. It is in shape a parallelogram, not quite rectangular, two of the opposite corners being drawn out on the line of the diagonal. Its sides are so regular as to give the impression of its having been the work of man, but it is one of the mountain-tarns, which are so common a feature of Scottish scenery. This loch has no surface feeder except the rainfall which may find its way into the little basin in which it lies. It is, however, undoubtedly fed by springs, as is evidenced by the fact that, notwithstanding its great elevation, it is never quite frozen over even in the severest winter. Nor had it any natural overflow except what trickled through some marshy ground on the north-west side into the head of Polvaird Burn, which flows down to Euchan, till some years ago a ditch was dug connecting it with the burn, whereby its depth was reduced and its area somewhat restricted. This was done by the then tenant of the farm of Barr, on which the loch lies, on account of his having suffered the loss of a sheep by drowning in its waters. Polvaird contains very few fish. Efforts have been made from time to time to stock it with trout, a number having been transferred from the neighbouring Euchan, but they do not appear to thrive ; at all events, the angler's art is plied with scant success. There are several rude curling-stones, with primi-

Hitsto'ry of Sattqukwr. 3

tive handles, lying on its banks; and to prevent the credulous antiquary of a future time from constructing some wonderful theory on the existence of these stones, it may be explained that they were carried up by the family of one of the shep- herds on Euchan water, in order that they might have the opportunity of enjoying Scotland's " roaring game " in the only possible place in this region.

Towards the end of last century, this country-side was robbed of much of its natural beauty by the despicable policy of the last Duke of Queensberry. He had no issue, and, it is supposed, to spite the collateral branch of the family who were to succeed him, doomed to destruction the woods on the estate. It does seem that the Duke had been animated by some such malicious, spiteful motive, for had the raising of money merely been his object, he would have confined the fell work of destruction to the enclosed woods and plantations, which were of some commercial value, whereas we find that not even the bonnie glens were spared, but that they were robbed of their adornment of natural wood. It was at this time that one of the sides of the Euchan was cleared, but, fortunately, the other had not been overtaken when the old Duke's death occurred, and then the work was promptly put an end to. The following verses were found written on a window-shutter of a small inn on the banks of the Nith soon after this district, one of the finest in the south of Scotland, had been thus disfigured to gratify an unworthy passion. It is not unlikely that they were written, as has been supposed, by Burns, as he was given to scribbling down his effusions in such places : —

" As on the banks of wandering Nith

Ae smiling morn I strayed, And traced its bonnie howes and haughs,

Where Unties sang and lambkins played, I sat me down upon a craig,

And drank my fill o' fancy's dream, When, from the eddying pool below,

Up rose the genius of the stream.

4 History of Sanquhar.

Dark, like the frowning rock, his brow,

And troubled, like his wintry wave, And deep, as sighs the boding wind

Among his caves, the sighs he gave : ' And cam' ye here, my son,' he cried, ' To wander in my birken shade ? To muse some favourite Scottish theme, Or sing some favourite Scottish maid ?

There was a time, it's nae lang syne,

Ye might hae seen me in my pride ; When a' my weel-clad banks could see

Their woody pictures in my tide ; When hanging beech and spreading elms

Shaded my streams sae clear and cool, And stately oaks their twisted arms

Threw broad and dark across the pool.

When, glittering through the trees, appeared

The wee white cot aboon the mill, And peaceful rose its ingle reek

That slowly curling clamb the hill. But now the cot is bare and cauld,

It's branchy shelter's lost and gane, And scarce a stinted birch is left

To shiver in the blast its lane. '

' Alas,' said I, ' what wofu' chance

Has tyned ye o' your stately trees ? Has laid your rocky bosom bare 1

Has stripped the cleading aff your braes ? Was it the bitter eastern blast

That scatters blight in early spring ? Or was't the wil' fire scorched their boughs,

Or canker-worm wi' secret sting ?'

' Nae eastern blast,' the sprite replied ; It blaws nae here sae fierce and fell ; And on my dry and halesome banks

Nae canker-worms get leave to dwell. Man ! cruel Man !' the genius sighed,

As through the cliffs he sank him down, • The worm that gnawed my bonnie trees — That reptile wears a Ducal Crown. ' "

In spite, however, of the extent to which Euchan was thus disrobed of much of its beauty, it is a bounie glen. A good

History of Sanquhar. 5

road runs along almost its entire length, and no pleasanter walk on a summer day could be desired. It is necessary to offer a word of caution to visitors by informing them that this glen is infested with adders. These snakes are frequently to be seen basking themselves on the sunny brae which forms the left bank of the stream. They measure about 18 inches and even more in length. The careless walker might readily step on one of them, for in pails the ground is covered with deep heather, but this would be a case of " caught napping," for the adder at the sound of human footstep glides rapidly out of sight. He will not stand his ground, far less offer attack, unless he be come upon unexpectedly and find his retreat cut off. But the danger is more imaginary than real, for there is no record of any accident through adder-bite there. There is excellent trout fishing in the tributaries of the Nith, and particularly in Euchan. During last year, up to the month of June, one angler alone caught over one hundred dozen of fair size, all the smaller being returned to the water. There is nothing particularly noteworthy about the hills in the upper part of Euchan glen, unless it be what is known as the Banyan Crag, a little above the Bank dyke. This Crag presents a bold, precipitous front several hundred feet in height. While the water of Crawick and Mennock is remarkably clear and limpid, Euchan, particularly when it is in flood, pours down a volume of water embrowned with peat, which forms dark, mysterious pools, and shews a fine rich colour where it tosses impetuously over its rocky bed. For two miles above its outlet the course of this stream is most picturesque. Ceasing at the farm-house of Old Ban- to flow, as it has done from its source, in the open, it enters between walls of rock, through which it has, in the course of ages, worn a deep channel, washing the whinstone perfectly smooth, and into the most fantastic shapes. One cascade after another, with dark, deep narrow pools between, forms a most striking and charming picture. When in flood the Euchan here roars and thunders like a miniature Niagara,

6 History o

and a peep of the " Deil's Dungeon " — for so this part is named — can only be obtained from one point or another of the overhanging crag ; but on a summer day, when the volume of water is small in comparison, a splendid view of the " Dungeon " can be obtained by descending to the bed of the stream by a steep narrow path at the point where that dark gruesome gullet ceases. Here the stream parts into two, leaving a spacious level rock in the centre quite dry. This rock can be easily enough reached from either side by- creeping along the bank till where the parted stream is at the narrowest, and a short step lands one safely. It is well worth the trouble of the descent. The rocks rise up in huge masses on either side, and are crowned with trees, which swing their arms over the overhanging ledge. Looking up, one sees the water sweep round a bend, which forms the limit of the view, turning the whole into a sort of chamber. It tumbles over a large rock, which still obstructs its progress, and then sweeps down as if it would carry one away, but presently, being no longer fretted by any barrier, it finds ample room for itself in a dark pool, and then parting, it glides swiftly and silently past in two black narrow channels. But for the difficulty of access this would form an admirable place for a pic-nic.

A little distance below the " Deil's Dungeon " the stream again passes through a long channel of rock not more than three or four feet wide, which bears the name of " The Lover's Loup." The name is probably associated with a long- forgotten tradition ; as it is, the leap across, though not a great one, tries the nerve of him who performs it, for the water, dark as Erebus and of profound depth, fascinates the eye, and is apt to render the head giddy. Immediately under " The Lover's Loup " we come to what are known as the " Drappin' Linns," where the freestone first makes its appearance. These Linns are on the east side of the stream, where the soft rock towers up to a height of forty feet or so, and overhangs the river bed in a picturesque manner ; the

History of SanquJiar. 7

name which it has received being derived from the water which continually drips from the roof of this cave-like recess. The footpath up the bank of the stream runs over the top of the linns on a narrow ledge, and the trepidation, caused as one passes along this dangerous path at the sight of the overhanging precipice, would be increased were it known, as it is not to every one, that the whole mass has such an apparently slender hold. The course of the water now reveals the change that has taken place in the rock strata. It runs over beds of freestone, and traces of the coal measures become discernible. The rock on the edge of the field is very soft in texture, yielding readily to the influence of the waters, by which it is worked into the most curious forms, as, for example, at the " Drappin' Linns " above mentioned, and the " Pamphy Linns," a short distance across the moor. The Falls of Euchan, a little farther down, present a face of freestone, fifteen or twenty feet thick ; while a short distance down stream, the rock is found very hard and compact. The colour being a very light grey, it has been quarried on an extensive scale for building purposes. From it the material for the new bridge over the Nith, built in 1855, was obtained. Just opposite Euchan Falls, on the west side, tradition says there was once a waulk-mill. There are certainly traces of what appears to have been a mill-race, whereby the water had been diverted for some industrial purpose. Near the same place, and on the same bank, are the remains of a cottage or cottages, probably in connection with the mill. In the glen of Euchan there are the ruins of quite a number of houses, but this is an example only of what is to be seen in all directions, and affords proof of the extent to which depopulation has been carried on in our country districts. Between the Falls and the quarry stands an object of anti- quarian interest. In the angle formed by the junction of the Barr Burn with Euchan is a ridge, pretty steep on the Barr Burn side, and perfectly inaccessible from the Euchan, the rocks rising there like a wall. A position like this, with

8 History of Sanquhar.

exceptional means of defence of a natural kind, could not escape the eye of the dwellers of that early time, and so we find that it was once a stronghold bearing the name of Kemp's Castle. A more detailed description of this spot will be found in the chapter on the antiquities of the district. On the Barr Burn are the " Pamphy Linns " — curious and interesting, but not so imposing as the name by which they have been dignified would lead one to expect. They are, however, well worth a visit. There being no road up the barn, the visitor must proceed by the Barr and Barr Moor house. Passing round behind the latter one must strike straight across the field towards the wood in front, where a gate in the dyke gives him entrance to the wood, through which the burn here pursues its course. The Linns are formed by the action, on the soft freestone, of the two small burns, which at the foot join to form the Barr Burn, by which it has been carved into the most grotesque forms. The rock lies near the surface, and the burn having washed away its slight covering of soil has worn a channel narrow and ever deepening. Curiously enough, the lower stratum of rock is much softer than the portion overlying it. Thus it is, that so soon as the water had worn its way through the upper stratum, the lower was scooped out on all sides when the burn was in flood, leaving the harder upper rock over- hanging these subterranean chambers in the most wonderful manner. The rock had originally stretched across the course of both burns, and each had cut its way through, leaving the centre part towering up intact between them. When the wood was enclosed about forty years ago, there was perpe- trated what some will regard as a piece of vandalism, for, with no regard to the romantic beauty of this secluded spot, the rocks were torn down and carted away for the construc- tion of the dyke. It was a wanton act, too, for the same rock lies all round in the fields quite near to the surface, and it stripped the "Pamphy Linns" of much of their former glory. We have been thus particular in giving the approach to

History of Sanqukar. 9

these linns because, like many of the natural beauties to be met with in moorland districts, they migh't, being all under the level of the ground, be passed unobserved by any one riot acquainted with their locality. The same natural operation is to be seen on a larger scale at Oichope Linns, near Thornhill, where the rock, being of the same description, like results have been produced by the water's influence.

Not a hundred yards from the foot of the road which leads to Euchan quarry, and which thereafter continues up the side of the stream as a footpath, there issues from the face of the rocky bank a spring known as Euchan Well, or Baird's Well — Baird, who resided in the little cottage at the opening of the road, being a " character " in his way. That the spring has a deep source is evident from the fact that the quantity of water issuing from it is not affected by the rainfall, nor is its temperature by the season, the latter quality giving rise to the popular notion, which applies to many deep springs, that it is coldest in summer and warmest in winter — that being so only in imagination, and caused by the contrast which its equable temperature presents to the prevailing temperature of other objects. Some years ago attention was drawn to the character of this well, which is of the chalybeate class. The analysis will be found at the end of this chapter. Numbers of people professed to having found its water to be valuable in its tonic and other properties. It was opened out, a pipe inserted, by which the water is now discharged, a drinking cup attached to the rock, and a gravelled footpath constructed alongside the road leading past it. Dreams were cherished of the possible revival of the prosperity of Sanquhar, which was in a sadly reduced state, owing, first, to the closing of the carpet works at Crawick Mill, and next, to the decay of the handloom weaving, which was driven to the wall by the introduction of machinery. It was hoped that, with this medicinal spring and all the attractions of pure air and charming scenery, Sanquhar

2

10 History of&anquhar.

might become a popular health resort, but that hope has not been realised as yet to any great extent.

There are few districts in Scotland which can be compared with that of Upper Nithsdale, of which Sanquhar is the centre, for all that goes to make a desirable summer resort. The description which is here given of its topographical features will give the reader an idea, however imperfect, of its wealth of natural beauty — a beauty which embraces every element of mountain and plain, hill and dale, forest glade and dark ravine, lonely moor and cultivated holm- lands, roaring cataract and placid pool, breezy upland and bosky glen — the whole invested with an historical interest of no common order. What besides increases the attractions of the district to the visitor is the almost absolute and unre- strained freedom to be enjoyed. Notices of " Trespassers will be prosecuted," " Keep to the road," and others of a like nature, by which a selfish and exclusive landlordism would seek to deprive the general public of enjoyments which are the heritage of humanity, are nowhere to be seen. In this respect the Duke of Buccleuch, and, following his example, the other landed proprietors of the district, have allowed to all the liberty to roam wheresoever they list. In this and other respects the family of Buccleuch have, constantly in their-relations with the public, set an example of unselfishness and kindly feeling, which were it more widely imitated would go far to soften the antagonism that has oftentimes been created between class and class by those petty and irritating restrictions upon the exercise of privi- leges which are the source of the purest delight to the people, and which neither invade the natural rights nor injure the interests of the possessors of the soil in any conceivable way.

It is evident that considerable changes have occurred in the course of the River Nith and some of its tributary streams. Gradual changes are common enough in most river courses, and are usually caused by the detrition of the

History of Sanqufiar. 1 1

banks from the action of the waters. Within recent times Nith has made serious inroads, for example, on its right hank just below the Bridge, and opposite the Washing Green, the river now running much farther south, and in a deeper channel, than it did within the memory of the present generation ; but we refer to what must have been a sudden and complete change of course, the result, probably, of a more than ordinarily heavy flood. Judging from the con- figuration and the constitution of the soil, which is very gravelly, Crawick, when it had reached the open valley, instead of pursuing a straight westerly course till it was received into the bosom of the larger stream, must at one time have swept round in a more southerly direction, skirting the base of the plateau which is here formed, and on which the Manse stands, and have joined Nith about the farmhouse of Blackaddie, if not farther down. Then, with regard to Nith itself, we conclude on similar grounds that its course opposite Sanquhar has undergone a material alteration. On the left bank, from where the Old Bridge crossed the river at the foot of the Washing Green to the King's Scaur, a distance of a mile, the ground rises quite precipitously to a height of 100 feet. This line of cliffs is known as the Brae- heads, and there can be little doubt that at one time Nith flowed close to their base all the way. The line takes a somewhat sharp bend at a certain point, and here it is that the river, swollen to an unusual height, had burst its southern bank, and pursued its headlong career through the alluvial plain. It was speedily checked, however, in its wayward course, for the cliff at the Mains Pool stood in its way. There it was compelled to turn again towards the east, and after a graceful curve and sweep round the Mains Holm, it regained its ancient course at the King's Scaur. It is on the edge of the cliffs above mentioned that the Castle of Sanquhar stands. The ancient strongholds which are scattered all over the country are generally found built on positions of natural strength, presenting as great

1 2 History of Sanquhar.

difficulty of attack as possible. The position of Sanquhar Castle on this, the south-west side was thus well protected, and with the river running at the base of the cliff it would be practically unassailable. Proceeding southwards, the valley contracts, the hills rising abruptly on both sides from the river, which now loses its general character of a broad, smooth-flowing stream, and is confined within a narrow rocky channel, its course for several miles being marked by a succession of rushing rapids and long, deep, dark pools. Its banks are here in many parts densely wooded, and with- out doubt this is the most picturesque part, of the whole of Nithsdale. Indeed, the road from Sanquhar to Thornhill, which runs close to the river the greater part of the way, is one of the most charming walks or drives in the whole South of Scotland. A grand and most commanding view of this part of the valley can be obtained from the railway, which is cut out of the hill-side high above the bed of the river, and travellers whose attention may be drawn to it at the proper moment are enthusiastic in their praise of the charming combination of woodland and stream. In leafy June the trees overhanging its banks — oak, birch, and hazel, with many a bush and shrub between — spread a mantle of green so thick as almost to entirely screen the river from view, as it tosses and foams down its rocky channel or glides slowly along smooth deep reaches; but in October the scene has a fresh charm, for the trees put on their autumn tints, and the eye is delighted with the glory of the woods with all their endless variety of brown and red. Nowhere is this aspect of nature to be witnessed in greater perfection than on the finely-wooded estate of Eliock, which, in addition to its plantations of larch and spruce, possesses a fair stock of natural woods. The first notable specimens are a pair of Scotch firs growing at the road-side close to the Lodge, which measure nine feet round the base. These are typical specimens of the Scotch fir, being straight and clean for fifty feet from the ground, and surmounted by a shaggy

History of Sanquhar. 13

head of dark green branches. Close to them stands a fine example of spruce, of the same girth, and 100 feet in height. A still better grown specimen, of the same height, but measuring twelve feet, stands majestically in front of Eliock House, while another, even more stoutly built, tapes 172 inches round the butt. A splendid ash adorns the avenue, whose wide-spreading branches cover a circle seventy feet in diameter, while a beech is not far distant under whose umbrageous shade a very large party might find shelter from a noon-day sun, the area embraced being 240 feet in circumference. The outlook from the house, of noble trees of this description, has a singular grace lent to it by the magnificent specimens of weeping birch which are scattered over the policies. Individual trees of this variety are to be seen nine feet in girth and 80 feet in height. They are built in elegant and symmetrical fashion, and form a beau- tiful feature of the landscape. These birches with their spreading branches, from which hang pendant long lace- like tendrils, are an engaging sight at any season, but when covered with hoar-frost glistening in the sunlight of a winter morning like a thousand diamond points they form a brilliant spectacle. Perhaps the most notable of all in the whole woods, however, is a magnificent row of silver firs, seventeen in number, which stand in line on the top of a slightly raised bank not far from the house, and flanking the main park. They are, without exception, grand examples of their kind, averaging 100 feet in height, and, standing shoulder to shoulder, show an unbroken mass of foliage from one end to the other. The one which stands at the eastern flank of the line slightly over-tops its neighbours, and measures eighteen feet at the ground. What a pity, one feels, that they had not been planted along the avenue, where a double row would have given to the approach to the house a dignity and character which it lacks. Standing where they .do, however, they look stately and imposing when viewed from a little distance. A little way up

14 History of Sanquhar.

the hill brings us into a part of the wood where oaks grow unusually straight and clean. One shoots up like an arrow for twenty feet from the ground, and is fourteen feet ill girth. Strange to say, a large proportion of the finer trees on this estate are planted in out-of-the-way situations, but a lover of forestry will find himself delighted with a ramble through the woods.

On the left bank of the river farther down lies dark Auchensell, the terror of all travellers by road in the olden time, with which is associated many a story of highway robbery and of uncanny sights to be there seen in the dark winter nights. These traditions and superstitions (for the most part they were nothing more) have given way before the advance of education and enlightenment ; still his is a stout heart which does not beat faster as he finds himself plunged in its gloomy depths. On the slope of the hill near Auchensell stands the ancient Church of Kirkbride, belonging to the pre-Reformation period. Kirkbride was long a separate parish. It lay mainly on the east side of the Nith, between the parishes of Sanquhar and Durisdeer, but there were also included within its bounds the lands of Craigdar- roch, Twenty-shilling, Hawcleughside, Rowantreeflat, and Little Mark, all on the estate of Eliock, on the opposite side of the water. The old Church is beautifully situated on the western side of the glen of Enterkin, opposite the farm- house of Cosh ogle. From the shoulder of the ridge imme- diately below the Church, just where the Nith takes a sharp bend in its course, the most extensive view possible of the valley is to be obtained. This is the only point, unless one climbs to a great height, whence Corsancone, at the head of the valley, on the borders of Ayrshire, and Criffel overlooking the Solway at the mouth of the river, a stretch of forty miles can be taken in by the eye. Crossing to the opposite side of the Nith, and looking to the north-east from the crest of Drumlanrig Ridge, another grand and most striking view of the ^district is to be had. So abruptly does the Ridge rise

History of Sanquhar. 15

from the water's edge, and so narrow is the valley, that one feels as if he might toss a stone across to the other side of the glen. The lower reaches of the ground are spread out beneath the feet ; the comfortable farm-houses and cottages with which the country-side is dotted can be easily picked out, and every little ravine and bosky dell lies plainly revealed to the eye. Immediately opposite, the old Kirk- bride Kirk stands, as has been said, pleasantly situated on the green hill-side, its hoary ruins carrying us back in memory to the Reformation period and the times of the Covenant. The yawning mouth of Enterkin Pass is dark and gloomy, and draws the eye upwards to where the mighty Lowthers lift their broad shoulders to the sky. Eastward, the Durisdeer hills — on the one side of the Carron soft and green, and on the other black and frowning — show us in the back-ground the opening of the famous Dalveen Pass and the Wall path, while to the south the valley of the Nith is spread out in panoramic beauty, forming a picture that the eye delights to rest upon. Nowhere in the southern highlands can a scene be viewed of such an extensive range, and embrac- ing such contrasts of rugged mountain and gloomy pass, rolling upland and fruitful field, trickling rivulet and burn, fringed with birch and hazel, moss and fern, and broad-bosomed river sweeping through rich woodland and meadow.

On the translation in 1727 of Peter Rae, its last minister, and a famous man of his time, to Kirkconnel, Kirkbride was merged by the Lords Commissioners of Teinds in the neighbouring parishes of Sanquhar and Durisdeer. The Water of Mennock having been the boundary between Kirk- bride and Sauquhar, it was at this time that Dalpeddar, Glenim, and a small portion of Coshogle were added to the latter parish. The Auld Kirk of St. Bride had long been regarded by the country folks as a particularly holy spot : the disjunction of the parish, therefore, caused a considerable feeling of resentment, and burials were continued in the Kirkyard long after religious service in the Church had

16 History of Sanquhar.

ceased — indeed, burials still occur, at rare intervals, of people who have long been connected with the district, and whose ancestors lie in this " bonnie Kirkyard." The ruins of the Kirk continued to be held in great veneration, and according to the superstitious notions of the age no good could come to anyone who interfered with the sacred fabric. As an example of this, it was firmly believed that the untimely death of the redoubtable Abraham Crichton, Provost of Sanquhar, who fell from his horse at Dalpeddar and broke his neck, was to be attributed to the fact that he had impiously threatened to destroy the ancient edifice, declaring " I'll sime ding doon the Whigs' sanctuary." For some time after his burial in Sanquhar Churchyard his troubled spirit moved abroad, and was a terror to the young girls, at whom it grinned over the Kirkyard dyke as they passed to the milking of their cows. At last these cantrips could be no longer endured, and, after a chain had been fixed over his grave to keep him down, but without effect, more spiritual means were adopted, and the services of an eminently godly man, the Rev. Mr Hunter of Penpont, were invoked. This worthy minister had "personal dealings " with the ghost. Whether the restless spirit found peace by a full confession of sins committed while in the body, or whether it was rebuked with authority and power by this man of God, and commanded to forsake for ever the realms of the living, and confine itself to its own native shades, can never be known. No mortal ear listened to the solemn interview, but the palpitating hearts of the maidens were composed, and Abraham's ghost ceased from troubling. For the last twenty years or so, from time to time, an open-air sermon has been preached at Kirkbride on the first Sabbath of July, in commemoration of the Cove- nanters' struggle, and with the object of raising funds for'the repair of the Churchyard wall, which was fast becoming dilapidated. An occasional sermon was preached prior to that period, for Dr (then Mr) Simpson, of Sanquhar, the historian of the Covenanters, did preach at the Auld Kirk

History of Sanquhar. 17

about sixty years ago. The choice of a suitable text caused the preacher much concern, and during a walk with Dr Purdie, with whom, being still unmarried, he then lodged, he said that he had searched diligently, but could not fix upon one that satisfied him. •' Aye, man, Robert," answered the Doctor, " there's surely no mickle in yer heid. What do you think of this for your text, " Our fathers worshipped in this mountain ? " " Oh, man," replied the minister, " that's the very thing, Doctor ; " and upon these suggestive words he, when the day came, preached what was then described as a grand sermon, and which was held in remembrance in the countryside for many a day.

The Pass of Enterkin, which here runs into the Nith valley, with its wildness and solitude, was visited by Dr John Brown, of Edinburgh, the author of " Rab and His Friends," who wrote the following description of it. It will be well, however, to explain that Dr Brown descended the glen — contrary to the usual practice, which is to ascend — lest any visitor should, after reading the description, experience the same perplexity that befel a traveller, who ascended, in identifying its features as therein given. He was about to conclude that the paper more correctly represented the fertile imagination of the writer than the actual facts, when the thought flashed upon him that he might be traversing the scene in the opposite direction to that followed by the learned doctor. Having reached the top, he retraced his steps, and then all was plain and intelligible : —

" We are now nearing the famous Enterkin Pass ; a few steps and you are on its edge, looking down giddy and amazed into its sudden and immense depths. We have seen many of our most remarkable glens and mountain gorges — Glencroe and Glencoe — Glen Nevis, the noblest of them all — the Sma' Glen, Wordsworth's Glen Almain (Gleualmond), where Ossian sleeps, the lower part of Glen Lyon, and many others of all kinds of sublimity and beauty — but we know nothing more noticeable, more unlike any other place, more impressive than this short, deep, narrow, and sudden glen. There is only room for its own stream at its bottom, and the sides rise in one smooth and all but perpendicular ascent to the height, on the left, of 1895, Thirstane Hill, and on the right of 1875, the

3

18 History of Sanguhar.

exquisitely moulded Stey Gail or Steep Gable — so steep that it is no easy matter keeping your feet, and if you slip you might just as well go over a bona-fide mural precipice. This sense of personal fear has a fairly ideal- istic effect upon the mind, makes it impressionable and soft, and greatly promotes the after enjoyment of the visit. The aforesaid Stey Gail makes one dizzy to look at it — such an expanse of sheer descent. If a sheep dies when on its side, it never lies still, but tumbles down into the biirn ; and when we were told that Grierson of Lag once rode at full gallop along its slope after a fox, one feels it necessary to believe that either he or his horse were of Satanic lineage. No canny man or horse could do this and live.

"After our first surprise, we were greatly struck with the likeness of the place to a picture of it by Mr Harvey, exhibited in our Academy in 1846, and now in Mr Campbell of Blythswood's collection. This was one of this great painter's first landscapes, and gives the spirit, the idea of the place with wonderful truth and beauty — its solemnity and loneliness, its still power, its gentle gloom, its depth and height, its unity, its sacred peace. ' It is not quiet, is not ease,

But something deeper far than these ;

The separation that is here

Is of the grave ; and of austere

Yet happy feeling of the dead.'

We have heard that the artist, who sat alone for hours sketching, got so eerie, so overpowered with the loneliness and silence that he relieved himself from time to time by loud shouts, and was glad to hear his own voice or anything. It must be a wonderful place to be alone in on a mid- summer's midnight, or at its not less bewitching noon. ' In such a glen as this, on such a day, A poet might in solitude recline ; And, while the hours unheeded stole away, Gather rich fancies in the art divine : Great thoughts that float through Nature's silent air, And fill the soul with hope, and love, and prayer.' "

This Entevkin Pass is cut deep into the great range of mountains which, encircling the northern border of the County of Dumfries, culminate overhead in the Lowthers, a great and imposing mass. From the summit of the Lowthers, at a height of 2400 feet; a view is to be obtained unsurpassed in its range and its diversity of feature. It comprehends the greater part of the southern counties of Scotland. The valleys of the Nith arid the Annan lie under the fe£t, spread out in all their expanse of cultivated beauty ; the head

History of Sa nqukar. \ y

waters of the Tweed and Clyde are seen starting as little trickling rills on their journey to the sea ; the dark brow of Skiddaw is visible as he stands head and shoulders above the mighty group by which he is surrounded, and which do him reverence ; while to the west the hills of Galloway stretch away like a billowy sea as far as the eye can reach. . The extensive panorama also includes the Firth of Clyde and Goatfell, and the mighty Ben Lomond. The view, whether for extent or magnificence, undoubtedly rivals that to be obtained from any of the loftiest eminences in the whole kingdom.

In the superstitious times, reaching down to a compara- tively recent period, the right of Christian burial was denied to suicides, and the corpse was dragged with every circum- stance of ignominy and disgrace to some lonely spot, as if the poor creature were an outcast from both heaven and earth. For this purpose the summit of the Lowthers, which, being on the boundaries of two counties, and also of the lands of three lairds, was regarded as a sort of " No man's land," was a place chosen for the burial of suicides. The scene is depicted with graphic power by Dr John Brown in his interesting paper on " Euterkin " thus : —

"The bodies were brought from great distances all round, and, in accordance with the dark superstitions of the time, the unblest corpse was treated with curious indignity — no dressing with grave-clothes, no atrie.kmy of the pitiful limbs — the body was thrust with the clothes it was found in into a rude box, not even shaped like a coffin, and hurried away on some old shattered cart or sledge with ropes for harness. One can imagine the miserable procession as it slunk, often during night, through the villages, and past the farmsteads, every one turning from it as abhorred. Then, arrived at this high and desolate region, the horse was taken out, and the weary burden dragged with pain up to its resting place, carried head- foremost as in despite ; then a shallow hole dug, and the long uncouth box pushed in — the cart and harness left to rot as accursed. The white human bones may sometimes be seen among the thick, short grass ; and one that was there more than fifty years ago remembers, with a shudder still, coming — when crossing that hill-top — upon a small outstretched hand, as of one crying from the ground ; this one little hand, with its thin fingers held up to heaven, as if in agony of supplication or despair. What a sight seen against the spotless sky, or crossing the disc of the waning moon !"

20 History of Sanqukar.

And what a commentary upon that harsh, stern time. A very striking example of how, actuated by a supposed religious feeling, men will be guilty of acts which we now hold to be an outrage upon natural feeling and a denial of all Christian charity ; for there is little doubt that a false religious sentiment underlay the harsh and contemptuous treatment to which the corpse of the poor unfortunate who> bereft of reason, took his life into his own hands, was sub- jected. Trained in a hard Calvinistic creed, the men of that age regarded the taking of one's own life as an interference with God's decree, and, therefore, as one of the most impious acts before high heaven of which a human being could be guilty. But they must not be judged too quickly when we consider how short is the time since an enlightened medical science, with a better understanding of the philosophy of the human mind, first taught us that these poor creatures were proper objects, not of hatred and scorn, but of loving and tender consideration, and to turn our lunatic asylums from what they had hitherto been, penal settlements, whose miserable inmates were subjected to cruelties of a fearful kind, into institutions where they should be regarded with Christian pity and sympathy, and no effort spared to irradiate their dark and disordered intellects with light and cheerful- ness.

From the summit of the Braeheads, to which reference has been made, the ground stretches back for the distance of half a mile, and on this plateau the town of Sanquhar stands. Immediately behind the town, the ground Takes a sudden rise till it reaches a height of between 700 and 800 feet, .whence it stretches right away to the base of the mountain range which runs along the northern boundary of the county.

The tributaries of the Nith on the east side are Crawick ' and Mennock. Mr Glenuie, in his " Arthuriana," which treats of matters connected with the half-mythical, half -real character, King Arthur, thinks that there are traces of his presence in this district. In the " Book of Taliessin "

History of Sanqukar. 21

meation is made of Caer Ry we, probably referring to Crawick, a name formed from Caer Rawick. Crawick, as has already been said, forms the boundary between the parishes of Sanquhar and Kirkconnel. It rises among the hills, eight miles or thereby to the north-east. At first a tiny rivulet, it runs only a short distance till it assumes the dimensions of /'&, considerable stream, by the accession at the same point of two tributaries — Spango, from the west, and Wanlock from the east. The rocks in the district watered by Crawick and Mennock are blue whinstoue, and as scarcely any of the surrounding lands are cultivated, but are chiefly pastoral hills, the water of both is particularly clear, and where broken and fretted by obstructing rock is lashed into foam of snowy whiteness. While Crawick itself, in its upper part, presents no features of any particular interest, the fall in its course being very gentle and gradual, the glen deserves more than a passing notice, both for its physical features and on histori- cal grounds. In descending the glen, the eye is first arrested by the bold face of Craignorth, a precipitous hill rising from the bed of the stream to a great height. There is a story connected with this hill, which, like many another from that period, makes considerable demands upon one's credulity. It is alleged that, on one occasion, when a Covenanter was being hotly pursued by Claverhouse, " the bloody Clavers," as he was accustomed to be called by the " persecuted flock," and could find no place of retreat where he could secrete him- self, turned his footsteps towards Craiguorth, and sought to put a stop to the pursuit by picking his way around the hill face. Claverhouse, who was pressing him hard, never hesi- tated for a moment, so the story goes, but rode his horse round the perilous slope. A dare-devil ride certainly, and requiring more than human courage, but it is incredible ; only it is just the sort of performance which is likely to be attributed by the Covenanting party to one whom they regarded as in league with the Evil One.

The Crawick glen is deep and narrow, as are all the glens

22 History of Sanquhan

of this district, there being space at the bottom for nothing but the road and the stream. The hills on either side are of considerable height, and at various points present to the eye combinations at once striking and picturesque. A compre- hensive view of the beauties of the glen is to be obtained from the eastern side of Knockenhair, which is itself one of the most remarkable features of the locality. It is a conical- shaped hill, the sloping edge of both sides being of great regularity and terminating in a sharp peak, which is sur- mounted by a cairn. It stands alone, too, being quite detached from any of the hills by which it is surrounded, its appearance giving the suggestion of volcanic origin. The top of Knockenhair has always been a favourite site for a bonfire on the occasion of public rejoicings. The last instance of the kind was on the'comiug of age of Lord Eskdaill, son and heir of the then Earl of Dalkeith and present Duke of Buccleuch, who lost his life not long after by the accidental discharge of his gun while out deer-stalking in the Lochiel country. This hill is so situated in the valley that from its summit a view can be obtained of the entire course of the Nith through Dumfriesshire, and also, on a favourable day, of the Cumberland hills on the far side of the Solway, with the waters of the Firth gleaming in the sunshine between.

On the opposite side of the glen from Knockenhair stands Carco Hill, one of the loftiest eminences, and of almost equal height with the Bale Hill, a little farther west. Along the base of Carco Hill runs the Orchard Burn, where is to be seen an unique specimen of boulder. It is of enormous size, many tons in weight, and is a rare specimen of the boulders or rolling-stones, which are supposed by geologists to have been transported on the ice during the glacial period, and deposited in out-of-the-way places. To use a popular Sanquhar phrase, this is an " in-comer," not belonging originally to the locality, but, if its size and situation be taken into account, it is likely bo remain where it is, undisturbed. From the foot of the Orchard Burn the interest and beautv

History of Sanfjuhar. 23

of the glen increase, as the stream flows onward and enters Nithsdale proper. It falls more rapidly as it nears the termination of its course, the channel becomes exceedingly strait and rocky, and the banks are adorned with a profusion of natural wood. The natural beauties of this section have been enhanced, too, by the hand of man. Here the Duke of Buccleuch has rendered a valuable service to the public by filling up with plantations the portions which were bare, thus giving a completeness to the picture. Further, he has constructed footpaths along both banks of the stream ; and bridges at the top and bottom give the freest access to visitors to view a scene, romantic and beautiful. For there is no restriction to these charming walks, known as the '• Holm walks," so called from being in proximity to the Holm house, which, with its grounds, was originally a separate estate from the surrounding lands of His Grace, and was purchased by the Duke from its owner, a Mr Macnab. The lands on the southern bank, mentioned as having been planted, were held in lease by Mr Macnab from the Burgh of Sanqnhar, and this lease was acquired at the same time by the Duke.

These Holm walks are justly esteemed the most charming retreat in a district singularly well-favoured in this respect. They wind up and down and in and out on the ledge of the rocky channel, and advantage has been taken of crowning knoll and shady nook to plant seats, where visitors can rest, and, sheltered at once from the scorching sun and from every wind that blows, have eye and ear refreshed with a display of nature's choicest works. In this quiet hiding place, it is said, Lord Douglas lay after his rapid march, with the view of surprising and capturing the Castle of Sanquhar, which was then in the hands of the English. Here he left his gallant band of followers till a little reconnoitring work was done, and a plan of attack was resolved upon. A. fuller treatment of this incident is reserved for its proper place. Descending, the stream makes a sweep round to the left

24 History of Sanquhar.

behind the Holm house, which is pleasantly situated at the head of a pretty little stretch of holm land, whence probably it derives its name. The house is shut in from view on all sides by the rising ground, except in the front, where the outlook is through a narrow vista away to the sources of Kello and Euchan, on the other side of the valley of the Nith. Crawick then glides smoothly past the Lawers Braes, and passing on the left the village of Crawick, with its woollen factory, corn-mill, and forge, for which it supplies the motive power, it heads straight for Nith, into which it falls a little farther down.

Mennock, the other tributary of Nith, on the left bank, runs almost parallel with Crawick, three miles farther south. It has a course of about six miles, rising near to Wanlock- head, a mining village on the very borders of the parish and the county. The narrow glen through which it finds its way to Nithsdale presents features of a distinctly different type to those of Crawick. While the other glens in the district are soft and pleasing to the eye, the hills being covered with a rich verdure from base to summit, the mountains, for so they must be called, which tower up on either side the narrow goi'ge of Mennock are dark, stern, and rugged, and the scenery is truly of an impressive grandeur.

About two miles south of Sanquhar, a country road, leaving the Nithsdale main highway, ascends the Mennock, and crossing the watershed of the two counties of Dumfries and Lanark, proceeds by way of Leadhills, whence falling towards the upper valley of the Clyde, it joins the great road between Carlisle and Edinburgh and Glasgow at Abington. For some distance the road pursues a general level, winding round the base of hill after hill, which slope down to the very bed of the stream, and offer at many points an apparently insuper- able barrier to all further progress. At one place the atten- tion is arrested by a view probably unequalled in its unique peculiarity. Four hills, two on each side of the glen, slope down alternately one behind the other, the outlines of the

History of Sanquhar. 25

pair on each side being almost exactly parallel. When the foot of Glenclauch Brae is reached, the toilsome ascent begins, and after the Lang-muir-side — a long level track high above the bed of the stream — -has been traversed, the rise is rapid and continuous, and, just before Wanlockhead is reached, the road passes through the " Hass," which frequently in winter is blocked up with snow. In truth, so high and wild is this Mennock road that in winter it is no uncommon occurrence for vehicular traffic to be entirely suspended, leaving the tele- graph as the only mode of communication with the outer world available to the inhabitants of Wanlockhead. In the summer season, however, its alpine scenery makes it one of the finest drives in the district, presenting, as it does, features of wild grandeur and peculiar configuration of hill not surpassed even in the western highlands. Some years ago it was visited by one who had travelled much, and his attention was arrested by the wonderful resemblance of this road to that leading up to Jerusalem. The same impression has been made since on the minds of others who had made the toilsome ascent from Joppa to the Holy City. Wanlock- head comes into sight quite suddenly and unexpectedly. For miles no human dwelling has been visible, nor sound heard save the murmur of the stream, the bleating of the sheep, and the whirr of the grouse or blackcock as, on strong wing, he sweeps across the glen and drops out of sight among the deep heather which covers the mountain sides. The existence of a village in such an out-of- the- world region is due entirely to the mineral wealth of the surrounding hills, which, though black and barren on the surface, and sustain- ing only a few sheep, contain within their bowels rich deposits of lead.

From behind the Black Hill, which overlooks Wanlock- head, another glen, " Gleudyne," runs down to the upland which lies along the north-east side of the valley of the Nith. This glen also well deserves a visit : indeed, it has often been said that had Dr Brown, instead of descending Enterkin,

4

26 History of Sanquhar.

taken Glendyne, he would have been no less impressed with the solemn grandeur of the scene. The only road is a narrow footpath worn along the face of the hill side. So steep is the descent that the utmost care is necessary to prevent serious mishap. If a stone from the path be loosened by the foot it rolls swiftly down, and then, with a succession of mighty bounds, dashes itself into the burn which winds along the bottom like a silver thread. As the traveller descends, the face of the hills on the two sides continues to be quite precipitous, the wonder being that even the sheep can main- tain their foothold ; but suddenly the opening is reached, and with a fine sweep the beautiful glen loses itself in the broad expanse of brown moorland. This moorland is a high table-land stretching along the north-east of the town of Sanquhar, four miles in length and two miles in breadth, and as it is traversed by road and path in various directions, the invigorating breezes which play over its surface draw thither those who are in quest of health. It is pierced by the pretty little glen of Lochburn, a tributary of Mennock, the clear water of which, diverted at a point three miles from the town provide, after it has been filtered, an excellent domestic supply. The portion of the moorland which over- looks Sanquhar is the property of the Corporation, and is reached by a steep ascent called Matthew's Folly, where numerous seats have been provided for the convenience of visitors. These seats, and others placed here and there by the waysides, were erected out of the balance of the fund which was raised for the celebration of the Queen's Jubilee in 1887. From the top of Matthew's Folly a splendid view of the valley for a length of over twenty miles is obtained, and being so close at hand it is much frequented with this object. The Moor farm, belonging to the town, is let on lease. At one time it brought a rent of £190, but like all other land it has fallen of recent years in value, and now the rent is only £112. That, however, forms an important — in fact, the only important — part of the town's revenue since the

History of Sauquhar. 27

abolition of " Customs " in 1889. Any further reference to this and other allied topics is reserved for the chapter deal- ing with the municipal history of the place.

The chief eminences in the neighbourhood are — Dalpeddar, 1291 ; Brownhill, 1544 ; Lowther, 2377 ; Auchenlone, 2068 ; Oaignorth, 1386 ; Auchinsow, 1378 ; Black Lorg, 2231 feet.

EUCHAN WELL.

, »

A sample of the water of this well was sent several years ago to Professor Penney, of the Andersonian Uni- versity, Glasgow, who reported on it as follows : — " This water is specially characterised by the notable quantity of iron which it contains. All the substances in- cluded in the analyses exist in the water in a state of perfect solution ; the water is clear, bright, and nearly colourless, shewing that the ferruginous ingredient is per- fectly dissolved. It has a styptic and astringent taste, and affords abundance of evidence of the presence of iron on the application of appropriate tests. The iron exists in the water in the form of the compound called the carbonate of iron, which consists of carbonic acid in combination with the protoxide of the metal. The tonic astringent, and other medical qualities of chalybeate waters, are too well recognised and appreciated by medical men to require notice in a chemical report. These waters are by no means uncommon. In regard to therapeutic strength, or medicinal power, as estimated from the amount of iron it contains, the Sanquhar chalybeate is about one-half the strength of Harrogate, Tunbridge, and Hartfell Spa waters, which, with the excep- tion of Cheltenham water, are the strongest of those above mentioned. This, therefore, is not a strong chalybeate, but from the perfect solution in which the iron exists, and from the purity of the water, it is, in my opinion, well worth the

28 History of Sanquhar.

attention of medical men." Professor Christison thus ex- presses his view : — " The water is calculated to be service- able in all diseases for which simple chalybeate springs are at present resorted to with success." The following is Professor Penney 's analysis in detail : —

An imperial gallon of this water contains 14'710 grains of solid matter,

consisting of the following ingredients : —

Grains per Gallon. Carbonate of Iron 2-335

Carbonate of Lime ... ... . . ... ... 5 '650

Carbonate of Magnesia ... .. ... ... 0*650

Sulphate of Lime 0'600

Chlorides of Potassium and Sodium ... ... 1-025

Chloride of Magnesium ... ... ... ... Traces.

Phosphates ... ... ... ... ... ... ,,

Organic Matter 3'550

Silica... 0-900

14-710

Specific Gravity 1-00044

Degree of Hardness ... ... ... .. 10°

Gases Dissolved in the Water —

Cubic Inches per Gallon. Per Cent Carbonic Acid 10 '020 60 '253

Oxygen T795 10'793

Nitrogen 4-815 28'954

16-630 100

CHAPTER II.

ANTIQUITIES.

)N setting before the reader the antiquities that have been discovered in the neighbourhood by the industry of persons of antiquarian tastes, chief among whom is Mr J. R. Wilson, of the Royal Bank, it has been thought fitting to put these in the form of a descrip- tive catalogue, as being probably the most convenient.

1. Saen Gaer : The old fort. — Perhaps the one object which connects with the very earliest history of the place is this ancient British fort, from which the name of the town, as elsewhere stated, is derived. It is situated on the farm of Broomfield, overlooking Welltrees Meadow and the rail- way embankment, under which lies the old well of St. Bride. The trench on the north side of the fort is distinctly visible, being a small natural ravine, and the circumference can easily be traced, more especially when the land is in crop, for then the circle of luxuriant fertility is distinctly marked.

2. St. Bride's Well. — Although this ancient well is no longer visible, it merits a passing notice. Simpson regards the name St. Bride as another form of St. Bridget, an Irish saint, who had for attendants nine virgins. " She was held in veneration by Scots, Picts, Britons, English, and Irish," says Leslie, " and more churches were erected to God in memory of her among all those nations than to any other saint," and if Bride and Bridget are different forms of the same name, as Simpson argues, Kirkbride in Durisdeer was one of them. It is at least a curious coincidence that,

30 History of Sanquhar.

according to the testimony of the old people, it was customary for the maidens of Sanquhar to resort on May-day to St. Bride's Well, where each presented nine smooth white stones as an offering to the Saint, which correspond in number with St. Bride's nine virgin attendants.

3. Ryehill Moat. — Immediately below the farmhouse of Ryehill there is a remnant of antiquity in the form of a Moat. " There was," says Chalmers, " a moat hill in every district of North Britain, during an age when justice was administered to a coarse people in the open air." These moats belong to the Saxon age, and were of two kinds — the folkmote and the wittenagemote — the place of assembly for the people and the judgment seat. Grose, in his " Antiquities," says of this moat — " Not far from the (Sanquhar) Castle down the river remains the moat, or ancient court hill, of the former Barons of this Castle, where, by their bayliffs and doomsters, they were wont to give decisions upon civil and criminal cases agreeable to the feudal system, the bayliffs determining upon the former, the doomsters upon the latter. The Creightons, Lords of Sanquhar, were heritable Sheriffs of Nithsdale." Whether Ryehill Moat was the place where these courts were first held by the Crichtons is doubtful. The Ryehill portion of the barony of Sanquhar was possessed by the Ross family until the failure of the male line, when, by the marriage of Isabel Ross, the heiress of Ryehill, to William, son of Thomas, Lord Crichton, who flourished in the reign of Robert Brus, the whole of the barony came into the possession of the Crichtons, and it was then, in all likelihood, that Ryehill Moat became their place of judgment- It was close by the moat that the gravestones of the Rosses, elsewhere mentioned, were found. The Gallows Knowe, or place of execution, was situated not far off on the upper side of the road between the Castle and the Moat, but it is now cut through by the railway. In these rude "times they proceeded with their business in an expeditious and uncere- monious manner, and the unlucky wight upon whom doom

History of Sanqukar. 31

had been pronounced at the moat would be found in a short space of time dangling at the end of a rope on the top of the knowe. The gallows for male, and the pit for female offenders, were the forms in which capital punishment was then administered. The pit was filled with water, and the woman was put into a sack tied closely at the mouth, and plunged overhead, where she was left till death put an end to her struggles. This was the power of " pit and gallows " possessed by the barons, and conferred by charter upon the civic authorities, and, though clung to tenaciously by the holders, was wrested from them by the abolition of heritable jurisdictions in 1748. In connection with the Deemster or Doomster, attention may be directed to the list of lands, enumerated in the appendix, as belonging to the barony of Sanquhar, on its transfer from the Crichtons to the Douglases in 1630, which contains the Glenmucklochs. Now, one of these was, and still is, termed Deemstertown of Glenmuck- loch ; in all likelihood it was at one time occupied by the Deemster or Doomster as a pendicle of his office.

4. Druidical Circle on Knockerihair hill, of the common type, having no particular history.

5. Kemp's Castle. — This is a natural promontory formed at the junction of the Barr Burn with the river Euchan. It is about two acres in extent, and rises to an altitude of thirty or forty feet above the level of the surrounding ground. On three sides it was practically unassailable, and on the fourth — the west side — it had been well protected by at least three entrenchments. There must have been at this end at some remote period a building, which probably gave its name to the place. The surface here is more elevated, and about thirty years ago a cutting was made through part of the debris, which revealed the fact that the site had been occu- pied by either a vitrified fort or a stronghold which had been destroyed and its walls calcined by fire. Vitreous masses, containing stones of various descriptions fused together, can be picked up on the southern bank at the roots of trees, by

32 History of Sanquhar .

which they have been thrown to the surface. The chief attraction to the visitor is the magnificent view down the esplanade, through the vista of trees beyond, which looks direct across the Nith to Sanquhar Castle. No antiquities have been found on its site except a quern of the pot type, which is in Dr Grierson's Museum at Thornhill.

6. Lake Dwelling in Sanquhar Loch. — This lacustrine or stockaded island is situated in the centre of the Black Loch on Sanquhar Muir. The loch itself is about three acres in extent, and is very deep, besides being surrounded by fissures in the moss, likewise of great depth. The island attracted no particular attention till about thirty years ago, when a man was drowned in the loch. He had been seen wandering in the vicinity before his disappearance, and it was supposed that he was under the water. It was resolved, therefore, to drain the loch, and on the level of the water being reduced, not only was the object of the search disclosed to view, but also an ancient canoe, dug out in rude fashion from the solid oak. It was removed to a garden in Sanquhar, where, by natural decay, it has shrunk to very small dimensions. The attention of antiquaries was drawn to the place, and the Dumfries Antiquarian Society visited and reported upon it in the year 1865. The following is taken from the report: —

" The extent of the surface of the island available above the water was forty-nine feet from east to west by forty feet from north to south. It would stand from six to eight feet above the exposed bottom of the loch, and the sides being sloped, the base was considerably wider than the dimensions above given. When first seen, after the bottom was laid dry, a few upright piles were observed, and the curving narrow passage from the mainland appeared somewhat raised, and was hard below the immediate mud deposit, as if a sort of rough causeway had been formed ; and when the water was at its height, or nearly level with the surface of the island, persons acquainted with the turn or winding of the passage could wade to it. The base of the slope of the island was laid or strengthened with stones, some of considerable size, so placed as to protect the wooden structure. Round the island could be seen driven piles, to which were attached strong transverse beams, and upon making a cut six or seven feet wide into the side of the island to ascertain its structure, we found a platform of about four feet in depth raised by transverse beams alternately across each other,

Histoi^y of Sanqukar. 33

and kept in position by driven piles. These last were generally self oak trees, but dressed and sharpened by a metal tool, some of them morticed at the heads, where a transverse rail or beam could be fixed. The trans- verse beams, of various sizes, were chiefly of birch wood. It is, therefore, very similar to that of some of the smaller Irish Crannogs, only that in the latter the platform was frequently formed of stones. The wooden platform rested upon a hard foundation, either the natural subsoil in the loch or quarry refuse. The mud prevented this being ascertained correctly, but it was most probably the former, as the hard subsoil was soon struck when deepening the outfall. On the top of the wooden platform was a layer, of from twelve to eighteen inches thick, of, apparently, chips or debris from some neighbouring quarry of white or grey sandstone, upon which the vegetable mould now supporting the rank vegetation had accumulated. On the surface of the island there were some indications of building, but on examination these were found to be only the erection of curlers for fire, or the protection of their channel-stones when not in use. No remains of any kind were found on the island nor around it, but, except on the passage from the mainland, the mud was so deep and soft as to prevent effectual search. Neither have we any record of any other remains being found in or near the loch except the canoe already alluded to. It is formed out of a single oak tree, sixteen feet in length by three feet broad at the widest part, at the prow only one foot ten inches. It is at present lying exposed to weather, and for protection a coating of pitch was lately given to it. It will thus ere long decay and be lost. The burgh of Sauquhar should endeavour to protect their curious and valuable relic. It would easily sling from the roof of one of the public rooms."

During the work undertaken by the Town Council a few years ago, with the view of constructing a curling pond there, the passage from the mainland to the island, referred to in the above report, was more thoroughly inspected, and the gangway was found to be supported by piles. There was at the same time laid bare a massive stockade of large trunks of trees, set perpendicularly and secured together at the bottom by mortices, through which were driven smaller trees, which bound the whole together and kept it in position. There is in Grierson's Museum, at Thornhill, a stone celt of rude type which was found on the margin of the Loch.

7. Remains of Ancient Strongholds. — These belong to a later than the Roman period, and their sites and their names are — Clenrae Castle, near the March with Lanarkshire ;

-7

34 History of Sanquhar.

Castle Gilmour, Dear to the present farmhouse of Auchen- gruith ; Goosehill Castle, on the march between that farm and South Mains, above the road, where some time ago a number of old gold coins were found ; the remains of the ancient stronghold of Ryehill, in the wood adjoining the farmhouse there ; at Drambuie, in the west of the parish, where traces of ancient buildings exist north of the present house, and a stone bearing the date 1513, and also a coat of arms of ancient design were found.

8. Cairns. — There are no cairns of great dimensions in the parish. In the upper reaches of Euchan there is a small cairn near the river which has been cut through, but revealed nothing of interest. About a mile from Corsebank, in a little holm between the road and the stream, the atten- tion of the passer-by is attracted by a stone set up in the form of a pillar or monument. It is about three feet in height, and tradition says it marks the place where a battle was fought between the men of Crawford and Nithsdale. Be that as it may, the notable fact is that this is a boulder of Hornblende, and, with the exception of a large flat speci- men of the same kind on Corsebank-burn, is the only one of the kind that has been observed in Nithsdale. In all proba- bility it, like the Orchard Burn stone mentioned in the Topography, is a glacial stone, whose parent rock lies in the Grampians.

9. The Deil's or Picts' Dyke. — This interesting relic of antiquity traverses the whole of the south-west of Scotland from the head of Lochryan, and is supposed to connect with the Catrail, which means the dividing fence, in the border counties. There is little doubt that it is the remains of a great territorial division between the different tribes that inhabited this region. In this parish it enters at Drumbuie farm, on the south side of the Nith, proceeds south-eastward till it leaves the parish at the farm of Burnmouth, in the parish of Durisdeer. There are vestiges of entrenchments or fortifications to be seen at various points along its route,

History of Sa/nquhar, 35

particularly at South Mains, and at Kelloside, in Kirkconnel. The former is of a square form, and may have been a Roman encampment at a later period.

10. Mention may here be made of the Chapel Yard of Dalpeddar, which indicates the existence there at one time of a chapel ; and the name of a streamlet in the vicinity, " The Brewster's Burn," is further proof, for the constitution of a Saxon hold was a castle, a kirk or chapel, a mill, a smithy, and a brew-house. The familiar pronunciation of the name " Dapether " points to its ancient origin, carrying us back to the Peithwyr, who were the Picts of Galloway.

11. At the foot of Glenclauch Brae 011 Mennock Road, near the roadside, on a flat piece of land at the base of the hill, there is a relic of antiquity in the shape of a large cross formed on the ground of stones and earth. On the same place is erected a stell or fold for sheep in winter. This is called the Cross Kirk of Mennock, and is believed to mark the site of an ancient chapel. This is only conjecture. Certainly no better site could have been chosen by the monks for practising their holy rites, for in that age there was no road up the pass, and the situation would be one of perfect seclusion — of unbroken peace.

12. Domestic Architecture. — Some of the houses in Sanquhar are of considerable antiquity. One in the vicinity of the Town Hall bears at the eaves on the west the date 1626 in raised figures, and at the end the initials ^ Another on the Corseknowe shews good examples of bottle moulding of an ancient type ; the walls are about four feet thick, the mortar used having been clay. This house, it is said, at one time served as the jail, and if that be so, it points to a date anterior to the erection of the old Town Hall and Tolbooth. There are other houses in the town shewing mouldings of a later but still ancient date, and the walls of several, when cleared of whitewash and plaster, give indications of the entrance having been obtained to the upper storey by an outside stair. Many houses in Sanquhar

36 History of Sanquhar.

are described in their titles as " high and laigh," according to their elevation. One opposite the Royal Bank was called " The Gairland Great House," while the Bank itself stands on the site of what was once the town-house of the Crichtons, and where, as is elsewhere stated, Queen Mary was enter- tained when she was on her flight from the field of Langside. In former days there were many small lairdships in the neighbourhood — The Holm, Knockenstob, Carcomains, Carco- side, Orchard, Carco, Castle Robert, and Gairland, among others, having all been separately owned, and some at least of their proprietors possessed town residences. At the demoli- tion of old houses there are frequently seen specimens of ancient masonry, a notable example being the house at Lochanfoot.

13. Sanquhar Cross. — The ancient Cross of the burgh, to which the famous declarations were affixed, was situated at the Crossknow, now called the Corseknowe. It was a slender pillar, not more than nine inches in diameter, and was sur- mounted by a plain capital, which now adorns the apex of the porch of the Free Church in St. Mary Street. The stone in front of the Cross, upon which Cameron stood when he read his declaration, was subsequently removed to a slaughter-house in the Back Road, where it was sunk in the floor, and a ring attached for securing the animals. What a profanation ! It has now disappeared — probably when the place was converted into a weaving shop, and the floors were sunk to allow room for the play of the "treddles."

The following is a catalogue of the principal relics of bye- gone ages which have been picked up in this locality : —

Stone Axe. — Found on Ulziesitle in 1884, with five incised lines on edge, and one ornamental course on face. Length, 10 inches ; weight, 6^ Ibs.

Stone Hammer, of diamond shape. — Found on South Mains in 1850, beautifully perforated, and believed to be unique in shape. Measures 4 by 3 inches.

Stone Hammer, perforated. — Found in Crawick in 1875. Measures 3£ by 2£ inches.

History of Sanquhar. 37

Stone Hammer, half perforated. — Found in Kello in 1886. Measures 4 by 3 inches.

Stone, slightly perforated. — Found at Birkburn in 1888. Measures 34 by 3 inches.

Celt. — Found at Greenhead in 1882. 5 inches long, of Crawick grey stone, beautifully polished.

Celt, adze-shaped, of claystone. — Found at Eliock Grange in 1881. 5 inches long, with polished, sharp edge.

Celt, also of claystone. —Found at Wellstrand in 1889. 11 inches long.

Stone Maul. — Found at Sanquhar Bowling Green in 1889. 8 inches long.

Charm King of Shale. — Found at Eliock Grange in 1881. 4 inches in diameter.

Cannon Ball of Malleable Iron. -Found in Deer Park, Sanquhar, in 1830. 2 Ibs. hi weight.

Part of Runic Stone. — Found in dyke at New Road, Sanquhar.

Groin Stone of Arch in old Parish Church, and several well-preserved pieces of the Mullions of the windows of the old Church.

[The above are all in the collection belonging to Mr J. R. Wilson, Royal Bank, Sanquhar.]

Stone Celt. — Found at Black Loch. In Grierson's Museum, Thornhill.

Cannon Ball, same as above. —Found also in Deer Park. In the posses- sion of Miss Bramwell, St. Helens.

Arrow Head, with barb awanting. — Found at Ryehill. In the possession of Mr T. B. Steuart, Auchentaggart.

Large Putting-stone, known as "Strong Glenmanna's putting-stone," he having used it at sheep handlings at Glenwhern, whence it was removed to Craigdarroch, and is now in the possession of Mr Paterson.

Part of Runic Stone. — Found in the district by the late Rev. Dr Simpson. Now in the possession of the Rev. James Hay Scott.

Pre- Reformation Tombstone, embellished with cross-and-scissors device ; built into the east wall of the Churchyard.

Support of Thruch-stone from Abraham Crichton's burying-place ; also built into the same wall.

Carved Head. — Built into wall of house known as " The Ark," near the Townfoot ; believed to have been removed from the ancient hospital of Sanquhar.

Several Carved Stones in roadside dyke on Castle Farm ; also believed to be from said hospital, together with one at courtyard at Castle Mains.

38 History of Sdnquhar.

QUERNS. — 1. Portable Type. — Specimens are in possession of Mr Wilson, Rev. Mr Scott, and Mr Lewis.

2. Hand Qwrns. — Some of these are of considerable size, and

are slightly ornamented. The finest specimens are in Mr Wilson's possession, and are yet fit for use. The upper stones of such querns are quite common, but only two of the lower have ever been recovered in the parish.

3. Pot Querm or Kneading Troughs. — These were formerly

used for detaching the awns from barley and other grains, and Mr Wilson states that in this parish alone he has seen no less than 75 examples.

Stone Weights. — These were formerly hung on weavers' beams to keep the web on the stretch. There are many to be seen in and around Sanquhar, and are not to be confounded with the round stones with iron rings attached, formerly and still used as weights at farmhouses. These latter still exist, ranging in weight from 7 Ibs. to 70 Ibs., but they are fast disappearing.

CHAPTER III EARLY HISTORY.

the Roman period, the western clan of the Selgova? inhabited Annandale, Nithsdale, and Eskdale in Dumfriesshire ; the east part of Galloway, as far as the river Dee, which was their western boundary ; and they had the Solway Firth for their southern limit. The British name of the Selgovce is supposed to be descriptive of their country, which lay on a dividing water, and which, by the new settlers who were introduced during the middle ages, was denominated the Solway. The Nid or Nith, like the Nidus or Nith in Wales, derives its appropriate name from the British Nedd, which is pronounced Neth, and which signifies, in the Cambro-British speech, circling or revolving.

After the Romans had withdrawn from their occupation of North Britain, as of the remainder of the island, the Danish Vikinger, sallying out from Northumberland in 875 A.D., wasted Galloway, which of old included Dumfriesshire. The Saxon plantation had always been inconsiderable, and the Saxon authority became extinct at the end of the eighth century. This incited the settlement of a new colony from Ireland, and the settlers of this period were followed by fresh swarms from the Irish hive during the ninth and tenth centuries. These Cruithne, as they were called, were joined by the kindred Scots of Kintire, and it was these Irish colonists which, Chalmers is of opinion, assumed the name of Picts, as seen in the chronicles of the eleventh and twelfth

40 History of Sanquhar.

centuries, Picts signifying painted, and being the well-known name of the genuine Picts of Scotland.

It is curious to remark how much the names of places within the peninsula bounded by the Irish Sea and the Firths of Solway arid the Clyde correspond with the history of the people who successively colonized within its limits. The paucity of Anglo-Saxon names in Dumfriesshire, exclusive of the pure English appellations of modern times, proves that the Saxons never settled within Galloway in any numerous bodies for any length of years. The Irish settlers completely occupied the whole extent of the peninsula, and mingling in every place with the enfeebled Britons, whose speech they understood, and amalgamating with the still fewer Saxons, whose language they rejected as unintelligible, the Scoto- Irish imposed their names on many places which still remain on the county maps.

It is perhaps more difficult to settle, with equal precision, the several epochs at which tlie Saxon settlers sat down in Dumfriesshire among the Scoto-Irish. A few Saxons did settle in this district among the British Selgova? during the seventh and eighth centuries, but the most extensive and permanent colonisation in Dumfriesshire took place in a subsequent age. The occupation by the Scoto-Irish must have extended pver several centuries, for we find that in the reign of David I. (1124-1153) Nithsdale still remained in the hands of Dunegal of Stranith, a Scoto-Irish chief, and was then inhabited by a Scoto-Irish people, who long enjoyed their own laws. This Dunegal ruled from the Castle of Morton, the ruins of which still remain, the whole of the strath from Corsancone to Criffel. On his death, his posses- sions were divived among his four sons, of whom only two, Randolph (or Rodolph) and Duvenal, are known to history. Randolph, the eldest, inherited the largest share of the patrimonial estates, and, like his father, had his residence at Morton Castle. He had three sons, the youngest of whom, Dovenald, received from his father Sanchar (so it was

History of Sanquhar. 41

then spelt), Ellioc, and other lands, and was slain, while quite a youth, at the ''Battle of the Standard." One of Dovenald's sons was Edgar, who lived in the reigns of William the Lion and Alexander II. The children of this chief adopted the surname of Edgar for the family — one of the earliest recorded instances of the adoption of a surname in Nithsdale. One of his sons, Richard, owned the Castle and half of the barony of Sanquhar, together with the lands of Eliock, by charter from Robert Brus, the other half being owned by William de Crichton through marriage with Isobel, daughter of Robert de Ross (who was related to the Lord of the Isles) ; and, to his grandson Donald, David II., who began to reign on the death of his father Robert the Bruce in 1329, granted the captainship of the MacGowans, a numerous clan of the Scoto-Irish then located in the district. The posses- sions of the Edgars in Nithsdale were very extensive, for we find that AfFrica, the daughter of Edgar, in the reign of Alexander II. owned the lands of Dunscore, a place there still bearing the name of Edgarstown. Edgar is still a common name in Dumfriesshire, and from this ancient stock some families in the neighbourhood of Sanquhar can still trace their descent, the common progenitor of all the Edgars having been the son of Dovenald, the Scoto-Irish chief. — Chalmers' Caledonia.

Prior to the twelfth century, a good deal of obscurity surrounds the history and condition of the country. Except- ing a few leading facts, much of the so-called history is merely the collected opinions of various historians. These opinions rest frequently on very slender foundation, being at the best nothing more than shrewd conjecture, and, to a con- siderable extent, contradictory of each other. The law of the land, too, was an unwritten law, and consisted simply of the established usages and customs of the people. From the date mentioned, "the laws of England and Scotland," Lord Kaimes says, " were originally the same, almost in every particular." The beginning of the twelfth century marks a new era in the

6

42 History of Sanquhar.

history of the country. Then it was that the feudal system, which in a modified form still prevails among us, was first established ; the land, which previously had been the subject merely of grants, was now secured to its possessors by charters, and the administration of justice, however rude and imperfect in form, was provided for by the appointment of Sheriffs, whose duties, if not at first, at least afterwards, were military as well as judicial, as we shall see in the Chapter on the Crichton family. " These Sheriffs," we have it on the authority of Caledonia, " the Celtic people, both in Ireland and Scotland, concurred in hating." This is not surprising, however, as human nature at all times is apt to rebel against unaccustomed restraints. The jurisdiction of these Sheriffs was not confined to shires, but extended over certain defined territories, ten in number. The idea of shire, belonging to the Saxons, was unknown to the races that then inhabited Scotland.

The Norman colonisation which, beginning in the reign of Edgar, was carried out so extensively in the propitious reign of David I. (1124), exerted a wonderful influence on the settlement of the country. Society now began to assume definite shape and form. The colonists were English barons, who brought with them a host of vassals. These barons were attracted across the border in the year 1124, when David came to the throne. He had been educated at the Court of Henry I., and had married an English countess. The wonder which one would naturally feel at persons of rank and influence migrating from a richer to a poorer — from a comparatively civilised to a semi-barbarous country (for the pressure of over population was not then felt) — disappears when we consider the connection which the reigning monarch had had with their own Court. David, who was a wise monarch, probably held out such promises and inducements as were sufficiently enticing to lead these settlers to surrender certain social advantages for others of a material kind — to make the same kind of sacrifice which

History of Sanquhar. 43

colonists in these days have to undertake. The king was most liberal in his treatment of the colonists in the distribution of lands to them and their followers. The most conspicuous of these settlers was Hugh Moreville, who came from Burg, in Cumberland. He acquired vast possessions in both the east and the west country, and was a great favourite with David, who created him Constable of Scotland, which office was hereditary in his family for generations. He was the founder of the monastery of Dryburgh, and died in 1162. His grandson, William, having died without issue, the vast family estates passed into other hands through the marriage of his sister Elena to Roland, the Lord of Galloway. Their son, Alan, was one of the most powerful barons in Britain. He had no son, and his three daughters were married to English nobles — Elena to the Earl of Winchester, Christian to the son of the Earl of Albemarle, and Devorgil to John Baliol, the lord of Barnard Castle. By these marriages there was introduced into Galloway a great number of English settlers, much to the discontent of the natives, but greatly to the ultimate advantage of the country. Several persons who were surnamed Ros, from the north of England, settled under the Morevilles in the district of Cunningham. Godfrey de Ros acquired from Richard Moreville the lands of Stewarton, in the possession of which he was succeeded by his son, James de Ros, and these are the progenitors of the Rosses of Halk- head, Ros Lord Ros, Ros of Tarbet in Cunningham, and Ros of Sanquhar in Nithsdale. Here then we have the root of the second of the four great families — the Edgars, the Rosses, the Crichtons, and the Douglases — who for centuries bore sway in Upper Nithsdale. The Rosses were a family of high distinction. Robert de Ros, who was sent to Scotland by King John, married Isabel, the natural daughter of King William, in 1191, with whom he obtained a manor in Scotland. A descendant of his was one of the unsuccessful competitors for the Scottish crown in 1291.

These Rosses owned the lands of Ryehill, about a mile

44 History o/ Sanquhar.

to the south-east of Sanquhar, and built a stronghold on their estate, of which traces still remain. In proof of the worthy character of this family, and the esteem in which they were held by their neighbours, Simpson quotes the inscription on one of the gravestones in their ancient burying ground, which ran thus —

HIR LYS

THE GUDE SIR, JOHN Ross OF RYEHILL

Hiu LYS

THE GUDE, GUDE SlR JOHN ROSS OF RYEHILL

HIR LYS

THE GUDE, GUDE, GUDE SlK JOHN ROSS OF RYKHILL

— and further assumes that it refers to three different persons of the same name. Now with regard to the character of Sir John Ross, whether one or three of the name, too much stress need not be laid upon evidence of this kind. In all likelihood the people of that, just as of this, generation had a regard to the adage "De mortuis nil nisi bonum." Besides, this inscription would likely be composed by a member of the family, and its testimony cannot therefore be accepted as quite unbiassed. Neither to our mind is the assumption that it refers to three different persons justified. We incline rather to the belief that it refers to one and the same person, and that the writer of the inscription adopted the well-known figure of a climax to emphasize the gudeness of this Sir John Ross " Their place of interment," Simpson says, " appears to have been exactly to the east side of the moat of Ryehill, and close to the foot of the bank, as it was here the gravestones were found."

The Edgars and Rosses were thus contemporaries. The former, the more important of the two families, possessed the Castle and the larger portion of the barony of Sanquhar, the latter having their headquarters at Ryehill, a place of altogether minor importance. By the failure, however, of

History of Sanquhar. 45

the male line of the Rosses, and the marriage of Isabel de Ross, the heiress of Ryehil], to William de Crichton, there was introduced into Nithsdale a family which was destined to play an important part in the history of Sanquhar and the surrounding district. So bound up, indeed, was the name of Crichton with Sanquhar during a period of over 300 years, and so distinguished a part did the Crichtous play, that it has been deemed fitting to devote a separate chapter to their career.

Inglistown, a corruption, according to Chalmers, of English - town, marked the place where these English colonists at first settled. Now, as there is an Inglestown in Durisdeer, in Moniaive, in Irongray, and elsewhere, it is evident that the vale of Nith enjoyed its full share of the benefits which flowed from the introduction of these settlers. There were thus imported into Scotland the elements of a civilisation to which she had been a stranger — the order of society was of a distinctly higher kind than had hitherto obtained, and the native races were taught improved methods of agriculture and other manual arts. Great benefit was likewise received by the settlement throughout the lowlands of Scotland, about the same period, of a large number of Flemings. These Flemings, driven from their own country by force of circumstances, repaired in great numbers to England in the reigns of William Rufus and Henry I. In 1154, however, Henry II. banished the Flemings and other foreigners who had come to England in the previous reign, and th'e banished Flemings fled across the border and settled in the southern parts of Scotland. The skill of this people in weaving and textile industries of all kinds was known all over the Con- tinent, and the trade of the Low countries in manufactured goods of this description was enormous. In this way the foundation was laid of that industrial skill and activity which, in these later times, afford employment to a large proportion of the population, and have developed a large trade in staple goods in the manufacturing towns along the Imiks of the

46 History of Sanquhar.

Tweed, Nith, and other rivers in the South of Scotland. But the immigrants from the Low countries embraced not merely handicraftsmen, but also persons of rank — soldiers of fortune who had distinguished themselves in the wars, and whose services were rewarded with grants of lands which they well knew how to cultivate. The influence of these settlers must have strengthened that of the Anglo-Normans, who came across the border at an earlier period, in imbuing the minds of the native population with improved ideas of agricultural processes, and thus of advancing the material and social progress of the country.

Some of the principal towns of Scotland, as Edinburgh, Berwick, Roxburgh, &c., had their rise prior to this period, but to the Anglo-Norman settlers and their characteristic habits is due the existence of quite a number of smaller towns or villages, which now began to spring up all over the country. Being of a military race they, on settling in any locality, first busied themselves with the erection of a strong- hold, around which their followers gathered, thus forming a hamlet and sometimes a town.

Another important factor in the settlement of the country, and the civilisation of its inhabitants, is to be found in the erection of so many religious houses. The monks were drawn chiefly from England. Then were built those magnificent abbeys and ecclesiastical edifices, the ruins of which bear witness to this day of the architectural skill and taste of their founders, and the patient labour bestowed by the monks on the beautification of God's house. The Crown was generous in the gift of lands and revenues for the main- tenance of the religious houses. The common notion of Protestants that the monk was a fat, lazy priest who filled up the measure of an easy-going life between religious duties and observances, performed in a spiritless and perfunctory manner, and the gratification of his fleshly appetites, in what- ever degree it may have correctly described the monk of a later period, is certainly misapplied to those of this early

History of Sanquhar. 47

age. It is well known that, besides having a monopoly of the learning of that time, these priests thought it no degrada- tion of their office to learn to become skilled in all the then known arts and industries, and that, into whatever country they penetrated and obtained a footing, they, besides using all diligence in the propagation of the faith of which they were the professed teachers, were equally diligent in spread- ing abroad among the people a knowledge of those arts through which alone they could be raised from the wretched state of semi-barbarism in which they were too often sunk. Such were the influences which co-operated at this early age in introducing into Scotland some measure of civilisation. Still, they have not succeeded in obliterating the proof of the Celtic origin of the early inhabitants, and of the fact that Celtic blood runs in the veins of the Scottish people to this day. As Chalmers remarks — " Many children of the Celtic people have been, no doubt, converted from their maternal Celticism to the artificial Gothicism of the Saxon settlers ; they have been induced, by interest, to imitate the Saxon manners ; they may have been obliged, by discipline, to speak the Teutonic language. Yet at the end of seven centuries the Saxon colonists and their descendants have not been able, with the aid of religious prejudice and the influence of predominating policy, to annihilate the Celtic people, to silence the Gaelic tongue within Scotland, nor to obliterate the Celtic topography, which all remain the in- dubitable vouchers of the genuine history of North Britain."

The name Sanquhar, or Sanchar as it was formerly spelt, is generally allowed to be a compound of two Celtic words — Saen, Caer — signifying "old fort," pointing un- doubtedly to the existence of an ancient British stronghold at the time of the Scoto-Irish invasion in the ninth and tenth centuries. The site of this old fort is believed to have been the knoll immediately behind the present farm-house of Broomfield: a few hundred yards north of the town. The town

48 History of Sanquhar.

of Sanquhar doubtless owed its origin to the existence of this fort. This was, indeed, the origin of many of the small country towns, both then and during the subsequent Anglo-Norman colonisation in the twelfth century, the people during those rude arid unsettled times gathering for protection under the friendly shadow of a stronghold. In charters and other documents the name receives various forms of spelling — Sanchair, Sandier, Sanchar, &c., but in the early part of the seventeenth century the " ch " is changed into " quh," with the same sound, and that form the name has ever since retained. We confess to a wish that this change had never taken place, the older form being simpler, and having the advantage of a closer resemblance to the original. '\ here are other two places, but not towns — one in Morayshire and the other in Ayrshire — of the same name with the same deri- vation. The town consisted simply of mud hovels and huts of wood, with a covering of thatch. There are old houses still standing which, if not built wholly of such materials, have had in their construction clay used as mortar, and the thatching with straw was up to the present generation a common enough method of covering the roof. To this style of covering succeeded for a time the use of thin layers of freestone called " flags," but, though these were rain-proof and did not, like the thatch, require frequent renewing, they were of great weight, and put a severe strain upon the frame- work of the roof. Both have now given way to slates. The thatched roof was undoubtedly troublesome to keep in order, and was liable in a severe storm of wind to " tirling," but it had the advantage over slates — straw being a bad conductor of heat — of rendering the houses cool in summer and warm in winter. The thatch, too, gave an air of pictur- esqueness to the cottage, which is lacking in the bare slate, while the sparrow chirped and the swallow twittered beneath its eaves.

In the reign of Robert the Bruce, the Castle and half of the barony of Sanquhar were held by the Edgars ; but, as is

History of Sanquhar. 49

stated in the chapter on the Crichtons, they were purchased from them by Crichton, and the Castle became the residence of the Crichtons, and continued so during the long period down to 1630, when it was in turn sold to the Douglases of Drurnlanrig. After the battle of Bannockburn, and the establishment of Scotland's independence, the Edgars of Sanquhar, Elliock, &c., were confirmed in their possessions. We infer from this that they had remained true to their country's cause, for many barons who had proved traitors, at this time had their estates forfeited to the Crown. During the war of independence, Sanquhar Castle was captured by the English, who placed a garrison within its walls. The aid of the gallant Douglas was besought, who, in response to the appeal, made a secret and rapid march with his followers down Crawick, where he placed them in ambush in tl}e dark recesses of that glen not far from the Castle until a plan had been devised for its capture. This proved a clever piece of strategy, and was completely successful. The following is the account of the affair as it appears in Godscroft's history of the Douglases, published in 1644 : —

Of William the Hardie (or Long legge), the fourth William and seventh Lord of Dour/fa*.

" To Hugh did succeed his son William, who for his valour and courage is distinguished by the addition of William the hardie ; he is named also William long legge by reason of his tall and goodly stature, having been

a very personable man. He was twice married Concerning

himself we find in the English Chronicle that when King Edward the first took the town of Berwick (in the year 1295) he was Captain of the Castle there, and not being able to resist and hold out, the Towne being in the enemies' hands, he rendred the place with himself also a prisoner, where he remained until the warres were ended by the yeelding of John Baliol to King Edward. During the time of his captivitie he was moved to marry this English Lady, that so he might be drawn to favour the King's pre- tensions in conquering of Scotland. But his matching did not alter his affection towards his native countrey, nor brake his constancie in per- forming his dutie to it.

"Wherefore when he heard that William Wallace was risen up, and had taken open banner against the English, he joyned with him, by which accession of forces Wallace army was much increased and strengthened ;

7

50 History of Sanquhar.

yet they were not always together, but according to the occasion and as opportunity did offer they did divide their companies, and went to several places, where they hoped to get best advantage of the enemie, and where they needed no great Annie, but some few companies at once. In these adventures Lord William recovered from the English the Castles of Disdiere and Samvheire. The manner of his taking the Castle of Sanwheire is said to have been thus : — There was one Anderson that served the Castle, and furnished them with wood and fewell, who had daily access to it upon that occasion. The Lord Douglas directs one of his trustiest and stoutest servants to him to deale with him, to find some means to betray the Castle to him, and to bring him within the gates onely. Anderson, either perswaded by entreatie or corrupted for money, gave my Lord's servant (called Thomas Dickson) his apparell and carriages, who, comming to the Castle, was let in by the porter for Anderson. Dickson presently stabbed the porter, and giving the signall to his Lord, who lay neere by with his Companies, set open the gates, and received them into the Court. They being entered, killed the Captaine, and the whole English garrison, and so remained master of the place. The Captain's name was Beuford, a kinsman to his own Ladie, who had oppressed the country that lay near to him very insolently. One of the English that had been in the Castle escaping, went to other garrisons that were in other Castles and Townes adjacent, and told them what had befallen his fellowes, and withall informed them how the Castle might be recovered. Whereupon joyning their forces together, they came and besieged it. The Lord Douglas, finding himself straightened and unprovided of necessaries for his defence, did secretly convey his man Dickson out at a postern or some hidden passage, and sent him to William Wallace for aid. Wallace was then in the Lennox, and hearing of the danger Douglas was in made all the haste he could to come to his relief. The English, having notice of Wallace approach, left the siege and retired toward England, yet not so quickly but that Wallace, accompanied with Sir John Grahame, did overtake them, and killed 500 of their number ere they could pass Dalswynton. By these and such like means Wallace, with his assistance, having beaten out the English from most part of their strengths in Scotland, did commit the care and custody of the whole countrey, from Drumlenrigge to Aire, to the charge of the Lord Douglas."

The founder of that branch of the Douglases which bore sway in this district and gave rise to the house of Drumlanrig was William, the natural son of Archibald the Grim. He was the first Lord of Nithsdale, and in spite of the taint of illegitimacy, he, by his virtues and bravery, so commended himself to the favour of his Sovereign, Robert II., that he preferred him for a son-in-law over all the other young

History of Sanquhar. 51

noblemen of the kingdom, bestowing upon him the hand of his daughter Egidia or Giles, esteemed the most beautiful woman of that age. The King conferred upon Douglas the Lordship of Nithsdale and the Sheriffship of Dumfries, the office of Warden of the Western Border, and those of Justice and Chamberlain, besides an annual pension of three hundred pounds sterling, to be paid out of the great customs of certain burghs. There were minor branches of the Douglas family at Coshogle, Pinyrie, Dalveen, and other places in Nithsdale. This first Lord of Nithsdale was the renowned Black Douglas of Scottish history. " Tall and of commanding presence, he was also unusually bony and muscular, being, however, graceful and well proportioned."* He was a gallant soldier, stout-hearted and resolute in action, and many of the exploits with which he is credited by tradition are so extra- ordinary as to bear an air of romance. He had an arm and hand, a blow from which was like that of a sledge-hammer ; and instances are given of his freeing himself from the custody of his guards by suddenly striking out right and left with his clenched fists. His dark and swarthy complexion gave to his countenance an air of martial sternness, and pro- cured for him the appellation by which he is distinguished from the rest of his illustrious race. In the many encounters which in his time took place between the English and Scots along the Border, the Black Douglas played a conspicuous part. His tall dark figure was to be seen in the forefront of the fight, and so great was his prowess in the field that in time he became a perfect terror to the enemies of his country. The stories of his doughty deeds were told at many a fireside, and so impressed the imaginations of the simple-minded country people that English mothers along the Border were accustomed to frighten their disobedient children into submission by threatening them with the apparition of the Black Douglas.

The whole of this district was at this time densely wooded, * Dumfries Magazine.

52 History of Sanquhar.

the inhabitants maintaining themselves more by fishing and the chase than by agricultural husbandry. The style of living was of the most primitive kind, and their wants were few. The remains of the forest which filled the valley are to be seen in the mosses in all directions, but there is reason to believe that in the immediate neighbourhood of the town, and in the vicinity of the Castle, there was an opening which, at a later date, after the Castle had been built, a large portion of it was turned into a " deer park " well stocked with deer. The three large fields on the south of the town are still called the Deer Parks. This deer park, many acres in extent, was surrounded by a beautifully built stone dyke or wall seven feet high, which was surmounted by a loop-holed coping. A large part of this dyke still remains, and, till quite recently, some of the coping had not been removed. The last reference we can find to the deer is contained in a letter from the Earl of Queensberry, addressed to his cousin of Dornock, and dated from Edinburgh, 31st August, 1688, in which directions are given for the killing of two bucks, the one white and the other brown. (See end of Chapter.) In further proof of the existence of the wood and of its termina- tion here may be adduced the name given to houses at the west end of the town, which were only recently demolished. These houses were called the " warld's end " — a corruption of the " wold's end " — wold in the ancient tongue meaning " wood."

The state of society at this period was of a rude and semi- barbarous character. There were, first, the barons, the descendants of individuals who, chiefly by their military services, had commended themselves to the Crown, by whom, in reward for such services, they had had bestowed on them the gift of lands, on condition that they, with their retainers, should render services of a like kind whenever occasion demanded. The possession of the land carried with it an authority absolute and uncontrolled. The barons dispensed what they were pleased to call justice, which, in too many

History of Sanquhar. 53

cases, meant only the expression of their own will or caprice. In truth, the common people were simply slaves — bondsmen, or " villeyns," as they were called. At the mercy, therefore, of lords, ignorant and intolerant, and of a brutal and savage nature, they were in a most miserable condition. There was, however, a middle class consisting of those who held the land under the barons; some of whom, it appears, paid rent and corresponded to the modern farmer, whilst the bulk were liable to military service with their over-lord. The laws of the Burrows were more favourable. According to them any bondsman, except the King's, who resided for a year and a day within a "burrow" was entitled to his freedom. The chartularies of the period afford numerous proofs of the existence of this condition of servitude, wherein the number of villeyns is given as. belonging to the lands transferred, and they contain notice of cases where some of these villeyns were released from their servitude. The practice was even more general in England than in Scotland. " Some of the greater Abbeys," Walsingham says, " had as many as 2000 villeyus." The system was there happily abolished in Crom- well's time, but it survived in Scotland till a later period under the name of man-rent, and that notwithstanding Acts of Parliament directed against it.

In the middle ages, there were erected throughout the country hospitals, generally for the reception and relief of lepers. There were also hospitals established for the care of the sick poor. We know also of establishments for the assist- ance and shelter of travellers such as those maintained by the monks on some of the Alpine passes at the present day. The hospitals in our own country, which may possibly have been made to fulfil not merely one, but all of these various pur- poses, were served by charitable brotherhoods. The members of the brotherhood took upon themselves certain vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, in common with the other brotherhoods of the Roman Catholic Church. One of those hospitals existed in the parish of Sanquhar, being situated

54 History of Sanquhar.

near to Kingsburn, about half way between the Castle and Ilyehill. This must have been one of the most ancient of such establishments, for, though the date of its erection is not known, it was in existence so early as 1296, in which year Bartholomew de Eglisham, its chaplain and superintendent, swore fealty to Edward I. (Pryenne iii. 659). Simpson men- tions several relics of the place as having been observed. Hewn stones of Gothic masonry were found on the site ; a variety of human bones had been turned up at various times ; a large key was found near the same spot ; and what was believed to have been the font-stone of the chapel long stood in the open field. It is a fact that several stones, not apparently belonging to the Castle, but to some other build- ing of importance, are to be found built into the dykes in the vicinity.

The exact date of the building of Sanquhar Castle cannot be fixed, but there is no reason to doubt that it was the work of the Edgars or their predecessors in the twelfth century. In connection with the Saxon colonisation in the reign of David I., to which reference has been made, the first thing done by these colonists for the defence of the possessions granted them by the Crown was the erection of some place of strength. It does not appear that they obtained a very extensive footing in Nithsdale, the Scoto-Jrish, of whom were the Edgars, keeping their ground. But no doubt their improved methods in the building of fortifications, as in everything else, would be noted by the native tribes, and, anxious like their neighbours to keep their own, the Edgars set about building a stronghold becoming their rank and station, and of greater security than anything of the kind erected at any previous time in the district. At all events, the Castle is mentioned as being held by Richard Edgar during the reign of Robert Bruce. The site of the Castle was a well chosen one. It was built on the verge of the plateau which runs along the valley of the Nith, overlooking what has once been the course of the river. It commanded the passage of Niths-

History of Sanquhar. 55

dale, one of the lines of march from England into Scotland, and was, both from its position and construction, a place of great strength. The possession of it was, therefore, of great importance during the long-continued war between the two countries, and frequently it changed hands. Though now in ruins, sufficient remains to enable us to gather a general idea of its size and style of architecture. An examination of the ruins leads to the conclusion that, originally one of those square baronial keeps which were common in the country about the twelfth century, it was enlarged from time to time, till latterly it must have been a fortress of considerable size, capable of accommodating a large garrison. It stands facing the north-west. The original keep, containing the principal gateway, has been, strange to say, the best and most substantially built part of the whole structure. The outer walls are composed of blocks of stone all of the same size, squared and dressed, and laid regularly in courses nine to eighteen inches in height, but they are now bleached and weather worn with the storms of centuries. The heart of the wall has been packed with whinstone and other hard material, into which hot lime has been run, welding the whole into one solid mass. A. close inspection of the lime in the walls reveals the fact that it had been burnt in open fires by the agency of coal, as numerous particles of unburnt coal are to be discerned mixed up with it. The interesting question arises — Whence was the coal derived ? It is true that thin seams crop out at the edge of a cleuch on Ryehill near the Castle and elsewhere in the vicinity, and probably the early inhabitants had discovered its applicability for the purpose of fuel. The amount obtain- able, however, by mere open digging could not be great, and other methods would be required to secure the large quantity that would be necessary to burn so great a mass of lime as was evidently poured into the massive Castle walls. The natural and inevitable conclusion, therefore, appears to be that it must have been by mining, probably by driving in a

56 History of Sanquhar.

level, that the coal was procured ; if this be so. Sanquhar may claim to shew the earliest example in Scotland of coal- mining. The oldest authentic notice of the use of coals is recorded by the Monks of Newbattle, about 1210, but Sanquhar Castle was built in the twelfth century.

This, the ancient Peel, does not appear to have been of any great size, being fit to afford protection to little more than the baron and his household. It would appear to have consisted of probably only one room on the ground floor, access being had to the upper storey or storeys by a spiral stair, traces of which are still visible. There were no offices attached, nor indeed was there the same necessity for accommodation of this kind. The wealth of the baron con- sisted of cattle and horses, which roamed in the woods that grew all around. Probably the first addition that was made in the vicinity of the Peel, for it does not appear at first to have been connected with it, is the square Tower at the south corner of the pile of ruins, and which, for what reason does not appear, was called Wallace's Tower. It measures twenty-three feet over the wall and ten to eleven feet inside. It consisted of three storeys at least, with a dungeon beneath, which, however, is now filled up to the level of the ground with the fallen debris. The chambers in this part have been very small, and the windows little better than loopholes. The stones used in the construction of this Tower are not so massive as those in the Peel. The ground floor was vaulted, as was probably also one of the upper floors. The original Keep and this southern Tower have been subsequently connected by a range of buildings on the southern and western sides. That this is so is plain from the fact that at the junction with the south Tower there is a straight joint from top to bottom of the wall. Next to the Tower is the bakery, with the oven outside the wall. This oven seems to have been an insertion. The kitchen is in the south-west corner. It has had a fire-place about ten feet by nine feet, with a stone drain

History o/ Sanquhar. 57

tlirough the wall to the outside. These additions were continued along the north-west or front side till the ancient Peel had been reached. They embraced a large round tower, which would be a prominent feature, and enhance greatly the appearance of the Castle. It likewise played an important part in the internal economy of the place, for it afforded access by a fine spiral stone stair, with steps four feet wide, to the upper floors of the Castle, while it enfolded within its sweep the well of the Castle, which was forty-two feet in depth, and beautifully built. The basement floor, which was vaulted, is at a lower level than the courtyard. The other two sides appear to have been completed at a later period, and when that had been done, Sanquhar Castle would be a fortress of great size and strength. Together, the court- yard and castle form an oblong, measuring about 167 feet from east to west, and 128 from north to south. From the outer courtyard in front, entrance to the Castle was obtained by an arched doorway about seven feet six inches wide, which was protected by the round tower. Through this door the inner courtyard was reached by a vaulted passage. The Castle was approached from the town along an avenue of trees, of which a few still remain, and the burn which runs round the base is carried under the roadway by an arched tunnel regularly built, one of the oldest specimens of work of the kind to be seen in Scotland. At the end of the avenue was the gateway leading into the outer courtyard at the north- west corner. This gateway, of which little remains, is seventeenth century work, and formed the entrance to a handsome quadrangle. It was surrounded on the unpro- tected sides by a double fosse, the common form of defence adopted in our ancient strongholds. An iron gate closed the entrance to the court, and when the ponderous portcullis was lowered, the garrison had little to fear, provided the place was well provisioned, for their supply of water was secured by the well within the round tower. On the death, in 1695, of William, first Duke of Queensberry, when the family

8

58 History of Sanquhar.

residence was tranferred to Drumlanrig, the Castle was stripped of its leaden roof and allowed to fall into ruins.

Grose, in his " Antiquities," published in the end of last century, says : — " Upon the bottom that lies beneath the west side of the castle were formerly the gardens, where the remains of a fish pond, with a square island in the middle, is still visible. On the south side of the castle was the Bowling Green, pretty near entire. The principal entrance was from the north-east, where a bridge was thrown over the fosse."

The building has fallen into such a ruinous state that little can be known of the internal arrangements. The prin- cipal rooms, however, including the great hall, were situated in the vicinity of the gateway, on the front side. Much, however, that had long remained in obscurity was cleared up during a course of excavations, undertaken a few years ago, with consent of the Duke of Buccleuch, by the Marquis of Bute, the lineal descendant of the Crichtons, the ancient lords of the manor, whose most ancient title is Baron Crichton of Sanquhar. These excavations revealed the bakery, kitchen, and well, and parts of the internal dividing walls. No trace could be found, however, of the outer wall about the east corner, but it is quite supposable that this part of the wall, even to the foundations, was taken for the building of Sanquhar Town Hall, of which more anon. The bricks were manufactured here, pointing to the fact that brick-making is one of the oldest established industries of the district. It will be noticed that in the Earl of Queens- berry's letter, at the end of this chapter, reference is made to the same effect, the term " tiles " being there used. The mortar was very coarse, but strong, and the arch of the gate- way was pinned with oyster-shells. Teeth of the horse, cow, sheep, and pig were found, together with skulls of various breeds of dogs, and bones of all kinds of fowls, shewing that, in its later days at least, the diet of its inhabitants was of a liberal and varied kind. Two boar tusks were found in the sewer. The collection of curiosities unearthed also included

History of Sanqukar. 5!)

a massive old key, an antique chisel, an ancient reaping-hook toothed like a common saw, many pieces of glass and earthenware, the heel and sole of a lady's boot, differing but little in size and shape of the heel from the prevailing fashion of the present day. Five tobacco pipes of different patterns were turned up, one of them 'adorned with a rose on the bowl. These pipes were very small in the head — so small that the consumption of tobacco by the smoker could not have been great. Another interesting relic was a child's toy in the form of a small boat found in one of the sewers. The greatest and most important discovery of all was the well in the round tower. The well, it was declared by the older people, was in the court ; but the architect argued that if there was a well within the walls, it would be found in the circular tower. This supposition, founded no doubt on the position of the well in other similar fortresses, proved, therefore, to be correct, and it was shown how unreliable an authority mere tradition is in matters of this kind. The well was forty-two feet in depth, lined with beautiful masonr}', which, however, had been removed for several feet at the top. About eighteen inches at the bottom was square, and constructed of wooden piles, upon which the masonry rested. A scabbard of an old sword, several gargoyles or water-spouts, a number of stone window-mullions, the legs of sundry chairs and tables, and the old bucket for drawing the water were found in the well. The bucket lay mouth downwards, and almost entire. There had been a traditional story current in the district that a huge pot of gold was hidden somewhere about the Castle, and this story was known to the workmen. The moment therefore the bucket was disclosed to view in such a condition that it was impos- sible to determine on a mere glance what it was, the story was recalled to the labourer's mind, and instantly his imagination pictured a glorious " find." He shouted in an excited manner — " Here's the big pot o' gold. Pull me up, and I'll gie ye the half o't." Up came the man and the

60 History of Sanquhar.

bucket, but instead of gold it contained only a mass of broken stones. So much again for tradition.

The entrance to the deer park from the avenue approach- ing the Castle, though now built up, is still discernible. The park skirted the gardens of the good burghers on the south side of the town, into which the deer, it is said, were accus- tomed to make plundering raids in winter, when the pasture was bare, and the kitchen vegetables on the other side were altogether too tempting. A curious accident occurred to an old buck in one of these raids. The gardens contained not only vegetables, but fruit trees, and, in jumping, this old reiver, who, from the height of the wall, could not see what was on the other side, drove one of his horns deep into the trunk of a tree in coming down, the horn snapping and leaving a considerable portion imbedded in the wood. The tree was cut and converted into a table, and it is said that the table, containing a section of the horn, is still to be seen in the town. The upper portion of the deer park was on a level with the town and the Castle, the lower lying along the banks of the river. The garden, about two acres in extent, lies at the back of the Castle facing the south. It is ter- raced at the upper end, and is still enclosed within a substan- tial wall, remains of the old fruit trees being visible until quite recently.

It is but right to state that in " Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland," M'Gibbon and Ross take a different view of the relative age of several parts of the structure, holding, for example, that the south Tower is the original Keep,, and therefore the most ancient portion, but we have adopted the view, which not only is supported by other anti- quarian authorities of eminence, but accords with the popular opinion founded upon natural conclusions drawn from the appearance of the ruins.

Thus stood the Castle in its palmiest days — a magnificent pile, towering up in massive strength and grandeur, the watchful guardian of the vale. The scene presented to the

History of Sanquhar. 61

noble dames, as they sat in the window of the great hall, would form a charming picture. At their feet lay the fish pond, whose calm and placid bosom was undisturbed save by the splashing of the trout or the white swans as they swam slowly and majestically round the island. The timid deer bounded over the surface of the wide and undulating park, their forms at one moment clearly outlined on the crest of a ridge and anon disappearing in a hollow, their tall antlers, like the masts of a ship at sea, being the last to dip out of sight. Further away, the valley, with its rich adorn- ment of woods, and herds of cattle browsing in the open spaces, stretched back for miles, and was encircled by a long range of hills deeply pierced on either hand by the bosky glens of Crawick and Euchan, and the wild Kello, while the western sun, as he sank behind the brow of distant Corsan- cone, flooded the whole with a rosy light.

" The air a solemn stillness holds,"

unbroken save by the lowing of cattle as they are driven home to milking, the distant bleating of sheep, and the cawing of the rooks, as in great flocks they pursue their weary flight homeward to the woods of Eliock, while jovial shouts and laughter float up from the Bowling-Green where gallant knights for the moment forget the cares of state and bury their mutual jealousies and animosities.

Copy Letter from the Earl of Queeusberry to his Cousin, Douglas of Domock.

ED., 31 Autjt., 1688. " CUSIN,

" Soe soon as possible wreat to David Reid (to whom ther's uoe occasion going from this) that imediatly he meit with Wm. Lukup, and cause him send some of his men to Sanquhar to take in the Chimneyes of my Chamber, the Drawing Roume, and hall, which ar by a great deall too large, and by taking them in as they ought, will both make the Rouines warmer and prevent smoaking. This is to be done with the tile there, and cannot take up much tyme or charges, and I'll not be pleased if I find it not done when I come. Lykewise tell David to take exact notice to the ovens, both in the kitchen and bakehouse, and if they be any way faultie

62 History of Sanquhar.

that they be presently helped and made sufficient, for it will not be proper those things be doing when I'm ther. Tell him Lykewise that he and Win. Johnstone consider what useless Broken pouter (pewter) is there and uufitt to be made use off, and that he send it in by the first occasion heir with the weight of it. And new pouther (pewter) shall be sent out in place of it, and that he may do this more exactly, tell him goe throw the wholle Roumes and Wardrobes, and see if they have the keyes of the Wardrob at Drumlangrig, that the old wash-basins and what useless peader (pewter) he finds ther, send it out, and if there be any usefull pewter ther, send it to Sanquhar and keep it ther. James Weir tells me there is ane old Brewing Lead at Sanquhar quyt useless, and that it is not possible to mend it, order David and Wm. Johnstonne to con- sider it, and if it be soe, lett the said Lead be sent heir with one of the Retourued Carts from Drumlanrig, that it may be disposed off. But if it can be usefull at Drumlanrig or Sanquhar, it's still to be keept. Tell David and Wm. Johnstone to cause clear the Bartizans of Sanquhar, and that the doors be made sufficient and locks putt upon them. Tell Wm. Johnstone that I have lost the state of provisions to be sent to Sanquhar that he gave me when he was heir, soe order him by the first occasion to send me ane exact note of everything to be provided and sent from this, and that they have ther thoughts how all things shall be provided to the best advantage in the country, and that they remember former directions and have every thing in order. Tell David that he kill presently both the old Bucks, and send them heir cased up, as James Weir used to doe. I would not putt them to this, bot that David in his letter assured me that they can do it as weill as James Weir, bot tell them I'll take it verrie ill if they kill the wrong deer, soe if they have the least distrust of themselves, tell them not to Medle with it, but send me word and I'll wreat to James Weir to go ther. James Weir tells me one of the bucks to be killed is whyte and the other brown."

CHAPTER IV.

THE CRICHTONS.

the person of the William de Crichton, already mentioned, there came upon the scene a family of power and influence which, though they, at first, played a part subordinate to the older family of the Edgars, kept their ground, and acquired by purchase the remaining part of the barony of Sanquhar which belonged to that family. On his marriage to the heiress of Ryehill, the baronial residence was transferred to the much more important stronghold of Sanquhar Castle, where his family was established for well nigh three hundred years, and continued the leading family in Upper Nithsdale, their history being largely the history of Sanquhar during that long period of time. That being the case, it seems proper to give here a record in a summary form of

THE FAMILY OF CRICHTON.

According to Holingshed, the first Crichton came over from Hungary with Agatha, widow of the Saxon Prince Edward, when her daughter married Malcolm III., in 1067. Thurstanus de Crichton was a witness to the foundation charter of the Abbey of Holyrood House in 1128, and Thomas de Crichton swore fealty to Edward 1. for lands in Midlothian in 1296. His two sons founded the families of Sanquhar (now represented in the female line by the Marquis of Bute, who is also Earl of Dumfries) and of Frendraught.

64 History of Sanquhar.

The elder son became possessed of half the barony of Sanquhar through his wife, Isabelle de Ros, and subsequently purchased the remainder.

Sir Robert, afterwards Lord Crichton of Sanquhar, was made Coroner of Nithsdale in 1468, and he received from James III. a grant of the confiscated Douglas lands. His cousin, Sir William Crichton, the Chancellor, was also created Lord Crichton. The Crichtons possessed lands in Dryfesdale, Kirkpatrick, in the barony of Kirkmichael, and in the barony of Crawfordstown, now known as the parish of Crawford in Lanarkshire, which bounds with the parish of Sanquhar. Before the Reformation, the Rectory of Kirkconnel was leased from the Abbey of Holyrood for £20 a year by the Crichtons. In 1494, Ninian Crichton, a layman, was parson of Sanquhar. By the marriage of James, the eldest son of Sir Robert, with Lady Janet Dunbar, the family succeeded to the barony of Frendraught-Gawin. The second son of Lord Crichton and Lady Janet seems to have married a daughter of Johnstone of Elphinstone, as he received with his wife in 1479 the lands of Drumgrey, viz., Moling, Monyge, Rahills, &c., in the barony of Kirkmichael, which had been conferred by David II. on a former Adam Johnstone, and were afterwards confirmed to Sir Gilbert Johnstone of Elphinstone by Crown Charter in 1471. Margaret, the daughter of the second Lord Crichton of Sanquhar and his wife Elizabeth Murray, married William Johnstone of Grait- ney, and was the ancestress of the Johnstones of Galabank and Fulford Hall. Estates, however, were increased or diminished with every generation at that period, from the custom of portioning off daughters and younger sons with land, for entails were not restricted to the senior male heir, but to heirs male generally, or to both heirs male and female, and this led to frequent exchanges between different families. Land that was brought by an heiress to a younger son is sometimes found a few years later in the hands of an elder brother's children, though he may himself have left heirs,

History of Sanquhar. 65

An arrangement of this nature was made by the two families of Crichton.

The Ninian Crichton, the parson of Sanquhar, above re- ferred to, was tutor or guardian to his nephews and niece, the children of the second Baron Crichton, as appears by various decrees of the Lords in Council, in which a young Robert, Lord Crichton, is mentioned in 1525, who does not appear in any of the published pedigrees of the Crichton family, the presumption being that he died before he came of age. His brother William, who succeeded him, married a daughter of Malcolm, Lord Fleming. He was killed at Edinburgh, about 1556, by Lord Sernple in the house of the Duke of Chatel- herault, who was then Governor of Scotland. Not only was the house of Crichton connected by marriage with other leading families in the country, but they would appear to have been favourites at Court, and were entrusted by the Crown with the discharge of important public offices. Chief among these was the Sheriffship of Dumfries. The duties of this appointment, in those days, were of a somewhat different character to what they have practically become in these times of established order. Whereas now the work of a Sheriff is almost exclusively of a judicial nature, and the military side of the office is only brought into view during the occurrence, happily now very rare, of a riot, in those early times the maintenance of the peace required that the Sheriff of this border county should be a man of some military capacity, and of firmness and resolution of temper.

During the long-continued, though intermittent war that took place between England and Scotland through the determined efforts made by the former to bring Scotland into subjection, measures were taken by the lighting of what were termed " bails " — that is bonfires — on the principal hill tops along the border, and northward towards the heart of the country, to give warning to the barons of any English invasion. These outbreaks often took place without any previous warning. The diplomatic courtesy, which is now

66 History of Sanquhar.

observed among civilised nations before a declaration of war is made, was then totally unknown. The outbreak was frequently unpreceded by any apparent cause of quarrel, but was simply a case of unwarrantable, unprovoked aggression. It was gone about, therefore, without ceremony, and prepara- tions were made with as great secrecy as possible. The time chosen for attack was that which best suited the con- venience of the aggressor, and so it commonly happened that the first intimation given that there was mischief in the wind was the sudden appearance of an armed force on the border. Without telegraphs or railways, or even a decent road, the message of warning had to be conveyed in some other way than by telegram, letter, or courier. The means adopted were effectual for the purpose, and very appropriate. Stevenson, who is quoted by Sir Walter Scott, describes the beacon as being constructed of "a long and strong tree, set up with a long iron pole across the head of it, and an iron warder fixed on a stalk in the middle of it for holding a tar barrel." This was raised on the principal eminences, and signalmen were appointed to apply the torch when the light was observed on the next station. In this way the news spread with lightning-like rapidity, and warning was given not only to the barons, but to the whole of their vassals and retainers liable to military service. Fire is a very appropriate symbol of war, and of the " red ruin " which it brings in its train, and we can well imagine when the first ray of fiery light shot up from the mountain peak, kindling the blazing beacon, which shed its ruddy glare across the face of the midnight sky, how picturesque and striking the scene would be. But it struck no terror into the hearts of the people ; it only served to quicken the pulse, and stir the patriotic ardour, of our stout-hearted forefathers.

" Theirs the stern joy which warriors feel In foemen worthy of their steel. "

In addition to the judicial, it was part of the military duties of the Sheriff of Dumfries — the office which Crichton

History o/ Sanquhar. 67

held — to see that these Bail-fires were lit when occasion demanded. Corsancone was the farthest inland of these beacon peaks. From its top the signal from the far south could be seen, and thence transmitted northwards along the western coast.

The office of Sheriff was of ancient origin, but there is no certainty that, prior to 1296, a Sheriffdom had been created in Dumfries. It is true that William the Lion, who died in 1212, in a charter enforcing the payment of tithes to Jocelyn, Bishop of Glasgow, in whose diocese the churches in Nithsdale were long included, addressed it to his "justiciaries, Sheriff, and all other his ministers and bailiffs." But these may have been mere words of form used in such documents, just as we find a set form of words employed in the charters of Royal Burghs at a later time, and can hardly be adduced as proof of the actual existence of such offices in every case where they were used. There is, at all events, no doubt on the point from 1305, in which year Edward I. recognised Dumfries as a Sheriffdom, and appointed Richard Syward to be his Sheriff of Dumfriesshire. The bounds of this officer's jurisdiction, however, were not then what they subsequently became. A different polity prevailed in Annan- dale, where the jus gladii, the law of the sword, was granted by David I. to Robert de Brus. In process of time the Sheriffship of Dumfries became hereditary. Sir William Douglas, natural son of Archibald, lord of Galloway, acquired by his marriage with the Lady Giles, daughter of Robert II., the lordship of Nithsdale, with the Sheriffship of Dumfries, and so strenuously was the hereditary principle upheld, even in the case of an office of this description, that it was vested in a female, Giles, called the Fair Maid of Nithsdale, the only daughter and heiress of the Lord of Nithsdale, who was killed at Dantzic in 1390. This lady sheriff married Henry Sinclair, Karl of Orkney, and left a son, William, who inherited Nithsdale and the Sheriffship of Dumfries, both of which he, in 1455, resigned to James II. for the Earldom of Caithness.

68 History of Sanquhar.

In July, 1484, the traitors — the Earl of Douglas and the Duke of Albany — who had deserted their country's cause and gone over to her English enemies, invaded Dumfriesshire at the head of an English force. The country gentlemen promptly summoned their followers, attacked the base intruders, and defeated them. Douglas was taken prisoner, and Albany fled back to England. Crichton of Sanquhar, who rendered a part in this important service, was rewarded by an addition to his lands. His loyalty, besides being thus recognised in a substantial manner, would appear to have brought him into permanent favour with the King, who, in 1487, created him a peer of Parliament under the title of Lord Sauquhar. He had previously obtained a confirmation of the office of Sheriff in 1464, and in 1468 he acquired a grant of the office of Coroner of Nithsdale. These two offices continued hereditary in the Crichton family for 200 years, till they were disposed of, along with the barony of Sanquhar, to the Earl of Queensberry. The Sheriffdom of Dumfries included Annandale and Nithsdale, with the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, but the local jurisdictions restrained the authority of the Sheriff almost entirely to Nithsdale, and even there it was still further curtailed, in 1497, through Douglas of Drumlanrig obtaining from the King an exemp- tion of himself, his household, and tenants from the jurisdic- tion of the Sheriff of Dumfries, there being a deadly enmity between the two lords.

The turbulent barons did not regard the King's authority with any great reverence, and the office of Sheriff was there- fore no sinecure. As an instance of the Jawless and violent habits of these barons, and the disturbed social conditions of that age, we read that at the time when Lord Crichton was holding an assize in the year 1508 a great battle was fought outside the court-house between Maxwell aided by John- stone, and others. M'Dowall, in his history of Dumfries, gives the following account of the affray : — " The Crichtons and Maxwells had grown greatly in favour since the fall of the

History of Sanquhar. 69

Douglasses. There had long been a deadly feud between the two houses, which was intensified by the circumstance that Lord Sanquhar seemed to be extending his influence over Lower Nithsdale at the expense of Lord Maxwell, who, though Steward of Annandale, did not like to see the neigh- bouring Sheriffdom possessed by his rival. The idea that a district occupied by many of his own adherents should be legally presided over by any other than a Maxwell was the reverse of pleasant to Lord John ; that it should be placed under the sway of a Crichton was deemed by him intolerable. ' We must teach this aspiring chief a lesson — let him see who is master of Dumfries,' muttered the wrathful Steward. Lord Sanquhar held a court in the shire town towards the close of July, 1508. On the 30th of that month no trials were proceeded with — the ' dittays ' having been deserted — the hall of justice abandoned for the Lower Sandbeds, where the warlike vassals of the noble Sheriff stood drawn up in battle array, prepared in some degree for the threatened onset, of which he had received timely notice. Lord Max- well, at the head of a considerable force, and accompanied by William Douglas of Drumlanrig, entered the town by the Annandale road from the south, and attacked the Crichton party with a fury that was irresistible. How long the engagement continued is not known. Sir James Balfour speaks of it as ' a grate feight ' — that it was a sanguinary one is beyond any doubt. The same annalist records that ' Lord Sanquhar was overthrown, and many of his frindes killed.' Bishop Lesley, describing it, says — ' Lord Creychton was chaissit with his company frae Drumfries, and the Laird of Dalyell and the young laird of Cranchlay slain, with divers uthers, quhairof thair appeared greit deidly feid and bludshed.' " Thoroughly routed, Lord Sanquhar was chased from the town, over which he professed to hold rule in the King's name — driven for refuge to his castle among the hills, leaving his exulting rival, if not Sheriff of Nithsdale, undis- puted chief of its principal burgh. Maxwell, however strange it may appear, was allowed to go unpunished."

70 History of Sanquhar.

This incident not only illustrates the fierce and violent temper of Maxwell, of which there is other abundant proof, and the jealousy which bred much of the perpetual strife between rival families and afflicted the country for generations, but also the feebleness of James's government, which allowed to go unpunished this flagrant outrage on his own authority in the person of his legal representative, unless we are to believe that he looked on the outcome of the encounter with cynical indifference, if not with secret satisfaction, as it appears that at this time the loyalty of the Crichtons was not free from suspicion. There are some grounds for this belief, for, though Maxwell was not called to account, others who had taken part in the affray, such as Douglas of Drum- lanrig, Ferguson of Craigdarroch, and his son Thomas, had to undergo a form of trial on 30th September, 1512, at Edinburgh, for the murder of Robert Crichton, a nephew of the Sheriff's, and were acquitted, on the ground that the deceased Robert Crichton was " our soverane lordis rebell and at his home " when the conflict occurred.

His son Robert was the fourth Lord of Sanquhar, and was married to Margaret Cunningham. He died without issue, and was succeeded by his brother Edward, who married Margaret, daughter of Sir James Douglas of Drumlanrig.

In 1547, after the disastrous defeat of Pinkie, the shire of Dumfries was reduced to a state of complete submission to the power of the English, and the whole of the border chiefs, with the exception of Douglas of Drumlanricke, swore fealty to England. A record of the transaction has been preserved, and, in the list of lairds and their adherents who thus sub- mitted, is found the name of Edward Crichton, with ten followers.

In 1565, when Murray and his partisans broke out into rebellion on account of Queen Mary's marriage with Lord Darnley, they were driven by the Queen's forces into Dum- friesshire, where they received a cool reception. Lord Crichton warmly espoused the Queen's cause, and was honoured with

History of Sanquhar. 71

a command in the advanced guard of her army, under the Earl of Lennox. However, he faltered for a time in his loyalty, for we find that in June, 1567, he was one of the only two Dumfriesshire chiefs who drew their treasonous swords against the unhappy Queen, the other being Douglas of Drumlanrig. Nevertheless he returned to his allegiance, for, when Murray, only a few months later, assumed the regency, Lord Sanquhar deserted him, and when the imprisoned Queen escaped from Lochleven Castle, joined her at Hamilton, and fought on her behalf at Langside. On the flight of Mary, after the disastrous defeat of her army, the Regent collected a large force and proceeded south to chastise the Queen's adherents in Dumfriesshire. The first place of strength which he attacked was Sanquhar Castle, which he speedily reduced to submission.

While the office of Sheriff of the County was held by Lord Sanquhar, another public office of trust was at this period filled by a member of the family. A Privy Council Minute of 23rd February, 1567, bears that " Maister Robert Creich- toun of Sanquhar, Collector of Wigtoun, Kirkcudbright, Dumfries, and Annanderdaill, is ordered to compeer befoir the Lords Auditouris of Chekker and thair make compt of his intromissions that the ministeris and thair collectouris may understand quhat is taken up and quhat is restand to be taken up by them."

It is well known to all who have the slightest know- ledge of Scottish history that, while the more powerful nobles were almost constantly engaged in State intrigues — in the struggle for place and power, the minor barons were incessantly employed in mutual plunder and harass- ment. The Borders were, from their geographical situation on the line of march between England and Scotland, in an almost continual state of disturbance. Whatever parts of the rival kingdoms might escape the ravages of the long-continued struggle between the two countries, the Borders were sure to suffer. The description that applies to

72 History of Sanquhar.

the Scottish barons in general applies in an especial degree to the Border chiefs. And little wonder that this should have been the case. The necessity which called them from time to time to stand up in defence of their possessions naturally bred a stout-hearted race. None other in such an age, and so situated, could have long kept their ground. Those members of the Maxwell, Johnstone, Douglas, and Scot families of an unwarlike disposition had no resource, it is significantly said, but to leave Dumfriesshire. Many of them repaired to Edinburgh, where they became merchants, and attained to great wealth. In no part of the country was the old rule in more effectual operation —

•' That they should take who have the power, And they should keep who can."

The intervals that occurred between the frequent incursions of the English into Scotland, or the Scottish into England, were usually too brief to allow the borders to fall into a settled state, and so it was that, during these intervals, the border chiefs either, tempted by their proximity to the English lauds, attempted on their own account, singly or in combination, to make reprisals for the losses and injuries they had sustained, or practised the game of plunder upon each other. There was continual strife and jealousy between the barons of the two sides of the county — Annan- dale and Nithsdale — and many a fierce and bitter encounter was the result. A notable case of the kind occurred in 1593. " The notorious Johnstone of Annandale, who had joined the Earl of Bothwell in an attempt to seize the King's person, had been shut up in prison in Edinburgh Castle for his treasonable act. Succeeding eventually in making his escape, he made his way to Lochwood. He had been only one of several of the redoubtable border chiefs who had been concerned in the plot, and the King, with his accustomed weakness, in place of repressing them with a firm hand, visited Dumfriesshire, and offered by proclamation a pardon to all who would renounce Bothwell and promise loyal behaviour

History of Sanquhar. 73

for the future. These merciful conditions were accepted by many, though not by Johnstoue." — M'Dowall's History of Dumfries. The latter, with his clan, marched into Niths- dale and ravaged the lands of Lord Sanquhar and of Douglas of Drumlanrig. He was a gay and dissipated character, and was therefore called " The Galliard." He was caught by Crichton's men while in the act of seizing one of their horses, and was unceremoniously hanged in the presence of his nephew, William Johnstone of Kirkhill, notwithstanding the entreaties of the latter. His followers, pursued by the Crichtons with the object of recovering the cattle which had been stolen from them, stood at bay, and, stung doubtless by the humiliating fate of their chief, they fought with despera- tion, so that many of their enemies fell in the skirmish.

" This bloody battle is referred to in an old ballad. The appeal of the ' Galliard ' for mercy is thus expressed — ' O ! Simmy, Simmy ! ' — so he pleaded with his captor, Sirnon of the side —

' 0 ! Simmy, Simmy, now let me gang, And I'll ne'er mair a Crichton wrang ; O ! Simmy, Simmy, now let me be, And a peck o' gowd I'll gie to thee.'

The appeal was, as we have said, in vain, and the sequel is thus described : —

' Back tae Nithsdale they hae gane, And awa the Crichtons' nowt hae taen ; And when they cam to the Wellpath-head, The Crichtons bade them ' Light and lead. '

' Light and lead,' that is dismount and give battle.

' Then out spoke Willie of Kirkhill, Of fighting, lads, ye'se hae your fill ; And from his horse Willie he lap, And a burnished brand in his hand he gat.

' Out through the Crichtons Willie he ran, And dang them down, baith horse and man, O, but the Johnstones were wondrous rude, When the Biddes Burn ran three days blude. '

10

74 History of Sanquhar.

The Biddes Burn is a brook running between Nithsdale and Annandale, near the head of the Evan." — M'DowaWs History.

The Crichtons appealed for redress to Lord Maxwell, Warden of the Marches, but more effectual means were taken to bring to the notice of the authorities the dire results of this raid. A remarkable scene was subsequently presented in Edinburgh. " Fifteen poor widows from Sanquhar came to complain to the King that their husbands, sons, and servants were cruelly murdered by the Laird of Johnstone, themselves ' spoiled,' and nothing left them. Finding that they could obtain no satisfaction, the poor women, who had carried with them the bloody shirts of their dead husbands, roused the popular feeling of the city by marching through the streets, carrying the blood-stained clothing. This took place on Monday, the 23rd July. The people were much moved, and cried out for vengeance upon the King and Council."* Ultimately, however, Lord Maxwell, as Warden, was enjoined to execute justice on this turbulent clan. The injured chiefs and others joined to assist Maxwell. Thereupon Johnstone secured the adhesion of the Scotts, Elliots, and Grahams, and a contest ensued which involved the whole of the principal Border clans. A preliminary battle took place at Lochmaben, in which Johnstone was victorious, but the decisive engagement was fought in December at Dryfesands, where Maxwell assembled a body of 2000 men, displaying the King's banner as the royal lieutenant. The Johnstones and their allies, though over- powered in numbers, fought with such desperate valour as to rout the King's lieutenant and the royal army, Maxwell himself being slain.*f

The character and habits of the Crichtons, of both the head of the family who ruled from Sanquhar Castle, and the minor branches who possessed little lairdships in the neigh- bourhood, differed in no respect from those of their order

* Dumfries Magazine, t M'Dowall's History.

History of Sanquhar. 75

throughout the whole south country. They quarrelled fiercely with their neighbours, readily resorting to violence in the gratification of their revenge or in the pursuit of their schemes of plunder and spoliation ; while towards their inferiors they behaved in an insolent and over-bearing manner. Indeed, they were a bold, masterful race, not hesitating to act in defiance of the orders of even the King in Council. Their name frequently appears in the records of the Privy Council, charged with deeds of turbulent law- lessness ; they were bound over in heavy sureties to keep the peace, and, on one occasion, a Crichton was doomed to confinement in Edinburgh Castle during the King's pleasure. The family of Hamilton was contemporary with that of Crichton, and possessed considerable power and influence, as is evidenced by a complaint made in 1579 by Williame D unbar as follows : —

" William Hammiltoun of Sanquhar, having consavitane deidlie hettreut and malice causles aganis the said Williame Dunbar, upon the xiii. day of Aprile last bipast, come to his place at Enterkin quhairin he dwellis and remains presentlie accumpanyit with tuentie horsmen or hairby, bodin in weirlyke maner, with lang gunnis'and pistolettis prohibit to be worne be oure actis of Parliament and Secreit Couusale, jakis, steilbonnatis, swirdis, and uther wappynins invasive and thair be way of hamesuckin, serchit and socht the said Willieme Dunbar for his slauchter and destruc- tiouri and the said Williame Hammiltoun finding himself be his non appre- hensioun disappointit of his weikit purpois, brak doun his dykis and yettis of his fenssis and hainingis not litill to his hurt and scaith. Farther, the said Williame Hammiltoun for execution of his ewill will aganis the said William Dunbar, dalie be plane force and way of deid oppressis and com- mittis reiffis, spulzeis of horssis, cornis, cattell and utheris guidis upoun his puir tennentis of the landis of Sornis, Mosgavill, Dykesdaill, the mains Grenok and Eistir-Sanquhar, swa that be frequent reiffis and oppressionis foirsaidis the saidis puir tennentis ar allutterlie wrakit. "

Hamilton failed to appear on pain of horning, and the penalty was ordered to take effect. Poor Dunbar's plaint describes in quaint and graphic language the manner and circumstance of the regular reiving raids which were being perpetrated daily at this period among the petty chiefs and barons all along the debateable land.

76 History of Sanquhar.

The minor branches of the Crichtou family did not fail to imitate the manners of their feudal head. They held petty lairdships in the neighbourhood — Ryehill. Ardoch, Gareland Carne, and others, and, possibly emboldened by the fact that the Lord of Sanquhar, the King's Justiciary of the district, was their friend, they carried things with a high hand.

In 1566, complaint is made by one William Flemyng, a burgess of Edinburgh—

" That Ninian Creichtoun in Carne, Robert Creichtoun, Andro Creich- toun, brether german and Robert Creichtoun their bruther naturall invaidit the said William and mutilat him in his rycht arme quhairthrow he is impotent and unabill to work for his leving ; that they on na wayis wald find souertie and thairefter was put to the horne ; that they were reparand dailie in company with Edward Lord Creichtoun, Sheref of Dumfreis ; that the said Sheref had been chargeit sundry tymes to haif usit justice upon thaime, but refusing, he was chargeit to haif compeirit befoir the Lords of Secreit Counsall to answer for his eontemptiouu. Lord Creichton failed to appear, and is commandit and chargeid to present himself before the Soverain and thair Lordships under all hieast pane and offence. "

William Creichtoun, in 1579, is bound over not to harm Patrick M'Crerik, burgess of Sanquhar, and, by a separate caution, the said William Creichtoun, in his capacity as Sheriff of Dumfries, is bound over that he will enter M'Crerik peaceably into certain specified " leggis of land with houses lying in the burgh of Sanquhar, and will not molest him in the possession of the same afterwards." Some time before, in 1576, a complaint had been made to the Council against William Creichtoun, Tutor of Sanquhar, by Robert Dalyell of that Ilk, Cristiane Dalyell, Lady Covingtoun, and James Lindesay in Auchintagairt, " tuiching the unbesetting of thair gait within the town of Sanquhar, in the month of October last bipast, and stopping theme to cum to the kirk of Sanquhair besydis the invasiouu of the said James Linde- say for his slauchter." Then in 1579 Creichtoun, described by the same title, " was ordained to find caution of 500 merks, which he did by the hands of Johnne Gordon of Lochinvar, that he shall not impede or trouble Elizabeth and

History of Sanquhar. 77

Margaret Stewart, daughters of the late James, Earl of Murray, in the uptaking of the maills of the lordship of Sanquhar belonging to them as donators during the time of the ward and nonentres of the said lordschip."

It would be interesting to know if this William Creichloun was the same as he who was included in a list of persons ordered to be banished furth the realm by the Act of Parlia- ment passed in 1587. This measure was for the purpose of purging the land of popery, and charges all Jesuits and seminary priests to leave the country within one month, 'under pain of death. Certain Commissioners are appointed, who are enjoined —

"To apprehend and either present for trial before the justice in the Tollbuith of Edinburgh or themselves try and administer justice upon the following classes of offenders : ( 1 ) Jesuits and seminary priests, including Mr James Gordon, uncle of the Earl of Huntley, Mr Edmund Hay, brother of the goodman of Meginche, Mr William Creichtoun, etc. , in cais they sal not depairt furth of this realm and enter themselffis to the Provost of Edinburgh to be lingut quhile the occasioun serve to transporte thame according to the proclamatioun publist to that effect. (2) Rebels reman- ing at the horn for slauchteris or sic utheris odious crymes. (3) Sinners, brigands, and masterful vagabonds. "

The Lords of Sanquhar and Elliock would seem to have eyed each other across the river, from their respective strong- holds, with jealousy and hatred. The Privy Council Records shew that, in 1610, Robert, Lord Creichtoun, on the one part, and Sir Robert Dalyell of that Ilk and Sir Robert Dalyell, his son and apparent heir (the Dalyells were then the lairds of Elliock), were called to answer " for certain mutual challangeis of provocation and defyance." The younger Dalyell is " committit to ward in Edinburgh Castle " for having " utterit some uncomlie and undiscrete speeches im- porting a provocation and brag aganis the Lord Sanquhair;" while Lord Sanquhair and the elder Sir Robert Dalyell are " bound over to find caution to keep the peace, the former 5000 rnerks, the latter 3000 merks." This Lord Robert Creichtoun, though he would appear to have been the

78 History of Saviquhar.

aggrieved party in the above instance, was himself a fre- quent offender against public order, and was often cited before the Privy Council on the complaint of his neighbours of his tyrannical conduct, and bound over by heavy sureties to keep the peace. Considering that he held the King's commission as Sheriff and Justiciary of Nithsdale, his con- duct was all the more reprehensible, and constituted a bad example to those who were under his jurisdiction.

In 1597, Thomas Kirkpatrick of Closeburn complained to the Council that " Robert, Lord Creichtoun of Sanquhar, Sheriff Principal of Dumfries, intends now under the pretext and cullour of justice and be the authoritie of his office of sheriffship or commissioun of justiciare to utter his haitreut and malice aganis the said Thomas Kirkpatrick, his kin> freindis, tennantis, and servandis," and in particular that he had " putt violent hands on Johnne Wilsoun his tennant and servand quhome be direckit to the said Lord with a missive letter and detanis him in strait firmance." Lord Sanquhar does not appear to have had any reason of quarrel with Kirkpatrick personally, but, having entered into a bond of friendship with Sir James" Douglas of Drumlanrig (they are described in the complaint as " brethir and suster's bairns "), who was Kirkpatrick's mortal enemy, Lord San- quhar conceived that he, too, must quarrel with the latter. The probability is that he was instigated by Sir James, and that he was thus led to prostitute his high judicial office to gratify the revenge of a friend. Lord Sauquhar is also charged in the complaint by Kirkpatrick with " the schame- full and cruel wounding of Johnne Williamson n of Castle Robert, the said Thomas' servand and depeudair," and Kirk- patrick concludes by requesting that redress be given him, and that he and his friends, tenants, servants, &c., should be exempted from the jurisdiction of Lord Creichtoun as Sheriff. The Lords of the Privy Council granted the prayer of the petition in both particulars, but, notwithstanding, Lord Creichtoun, in defiance of both King and Council, " causit

History of Sanquhar. 79

execute the said tennant to the deid, quhaw wes a trew man, nevir spotted nor suspect of any sic crymes as he falslie objectit against him, whereby he usurped upon him his Majesties princely power in executiouu of his Majesties subjectis without warrand or power." Both parties were of course called, when Lord Creichtoun's defence was that —

" He had put the said Johnne to the knowledge of an assize for certain crimes of theft committed by him and that the said Johnne having been found guilty, he had caused him to be executed by virtue of the commis- sion given to him to that effect — being then ignorant that the said commission had been before discharged. " The King, with advice of the Council, in respect of the said Lord's " wrongous proceeding aganis the said Johnne AVilsoun eftir he was discharged in manner foirsaid and con- tempt thairthrouch done to his Hieness " ordains him to enter in ward in the Castle of Edinburgh within twenty-four hours hereafter, and remain there till he be freed by his Majesty, and in the meantime suspends and discharges the said commission, of which intimation is ordered to be made by open proclamation at the Market Cross of Dumfries.

It must not be concluded from these and other similar incidents in his career that this lord was ignorant and untutored — a man of ungovernable passions, belonging to the class of petty barons who had only partially emerged from a state of barbarism. He certainly was not superior to the vices of his age, and was apt to be self-willed and obstinate in maintaining the privileges of his order, but he was a man withal of high natural endowments, and also of cultivation and refinement of manners, the latter the result of residence at Court and of foreign travel. " He was," says the historian, Aikman, " a man of rare courage and wit, and endowed with many excellent gifts as well natural as acquired;" and therefore it was that he took a prominent place in the state, being a favourite with his Sovereign. His name is found in the Convention of Estates in 1596 and 1597, during which years he also sat at many meetings of the Privy Council.

When James succeeded to the English throne in 1603, there followed in his train, across the border, a number of Scottish nobles, among them Lord Sanquhar. Creichtoun

80 History of Sanquhar.

counted among his many accomplishments that of being a skilful fencer. In a spirit of bravado he sought to give an exhibition of his skill at the expense of a fencing-master named Turner, in his own school, and in the presence of his pupils. Sanquhar pressed the fencing-master so hard that he lost an eye by an unlucky thrust of his opponent's foil. When Creichtoun visited the French Court some time after, the King inquired how he came by the accident, and, on being informed, sarcastically asked — " And does the fellow yet live ? " Stung to the quick by the taunt of the King, which implied an imputation on the courage of this high-spirited lord, he, on his return, took counsel with two of his servants, who were brothers, named Robert and William Carlyle. The result was that the fencing-master was assassinated by Robert, just as he was entering his lodging. The murder created a great sensation, more particularly in the state of feeling among the English towards the Scottish nobles, which was one of great jealousy and antipathy. That Lord Sanquhar and the assassin's brother William were accessory to the crime was plain from the fact that all three immediately fled into hiding, in the hope, apparently, that the matter might in time blow over ; but, " hearing that £1000 were offered for his head, Sanquhar," says Crawford in his Peerage of Scot- land, " resigned himself to the King's mercy, and acknow- ledged the murder. But no intercession could prevail. His life satisfied the law, for he was executed before the gates of Westminster, the 29th June, 1612." Aikman remarks — " His death excited universal regret. The eloquence of his discourse at his trial, and the civility and discretion of his behaviour there made the people bewail his fall with great grief."

Thus perished one of the greatest and most accomplished of all the Crichtons. The crime of which he was guilty could in no case be justified, still there is to be said for him that he had harboured no feeling of malice or revenge. The words of the French King, sounding in his ears as the voice

History of Sanquhar. 81

of the tempter, had goaded him on to the perpetration of the dark deed, out of a false sense of what was due to his honour. His was no end of sordid selfishness or private aggrandisement, which, in this comparatively rude age, prompted to many a foul deed. In all likelihood this had been the case with some who now, with a fine affectation of virtue, expressed their horror at his crime and loudly clamoured for his punishment. The code of morality was not in those times so very high ' but that deeds of quite as black a character as Creichtoun's were readily enough con- doned where the offender could, like him, command powerful influence at Court, but he had the misfortune to be convicted at a time when national jealousy between the English and Scots ran high. The English nobility were not reconciled to the accession to their throne of James, the King of Scotland, a small kingdom for which they had a lofty contempt, and whose high-spirited and warlike people had long and success- fully resisted all attempts at subjugation to English rule. They could not, it was true, dispute James's right to the English throne, but all the same they regarded him as an intruder, an idea which, it must be confessed, James's character and manners were not calculated to modify or overcome. Further, the influx of Scots who followed their King across the border, and their bearing, which, in the eyes of these haughty English nobles, savoured of presumption, created a feeling of antipathy which, in process of time, affected the minds of the common people as well. At such a time and in such a condition of feeling, then, it was that Creichtoun's trial took place. We need not be surprised, therefore, that he was sentenced to suffer the extreme penalty of the law, and that all the powerful influence which was put forth at Court on his behalf was unavailing. At the .same time, it is alleged, in Osborne's Secret History of State Trials, vol. I. p. 231, that James bore Lord Sanquhar a grudge "for his love to the King of France, and his not making any reply when he (the French King) said in his presence, to one that

11

82 History of Sanqukar.

called our James a second Solomon, that he hoped he was not the son of David the fiddler." Creichtoun may, at all events, be regarded as partly a scapegoat, delivered over to pacify, if that were possible, the feelings of jealousy and resentment entertained by the English nobility towards the Scots in general, and in particular towards those Scottish nobles who were becoming powerful rivals to them at Court. Confirmation of this view is derived from Calderwood, who, writing of the affair, says : —

" To content the Englishe, the King consented that Sanquhar should be hangit. For the greater contempt of our nobilitie he was hangit among a number of theevs." Crawford also remarks — "To understand the reason of the King's exemplary severity in this case, one must remember the extreme antipathy to the Scots that had for some years been prevalent among the English, and especially among the Londoners, and one of the chief causes of which was the insolence and swaggering behaviour of the young Scottish lords and knights about the Court. Under peril of a popular insurrection in London against the Scottish favourites, James did not dare to pardon Lord Sanquhar, whose execution, indeed, did some- what appease the vehemence of the Anti-Scottish clamour."

William, the seventh Lord Crichtou, was, it is said, served heir to the preceding Lord Crichton in 1619, and yet there is no doubt that King James was entertained by Crichton at Sanquhar Castle in 1617. It would appear, therefore, that, if the statement be correct that he was not served heir till 1619, he had, on the execution of his predecessor, entered quietly into possession without venturing to make application for the legal instruments connected with his formal entry. He would no doubt be aware that the perpetration of such a crime, and the execution of the guilty noble, frequently resulted in the forfeiture of his title and the confiscation of his estates, and so, with characteristic Scotch caution, he may have resolved to "let sleeping dogs lie" — to say nothing so long as he was left undisturbed. If that be the correct explanation of what appears somewhat puzzling, then we can understand how the visit of King James to Scotland would present itself to Crichton's mind as a favourable opportunity for obtaining recognition as the legal as well as the virtual

History of Sanquhar. 83

owner of the family patrimony. Besides, the claim which Crichton might seek to establish on the King's favour by his hospitable entertainment of him would be materially strengthened by the fact that he held the King's bond for a large sum of money lent him. This loan may have been raised by the King as a sort of " hush-money," Crichton being, in the circumstances, entirely in his sovereign's power, so far as his title and lands were concerned. Be that as it may, there had been a transaction of borrowing and lending between them. The King's visit to Scotland took place in 1617, fourteen years after he had ascended the English throne. He was accompanied by a splendid train of courtiers, headed by the brilliant and handsome Duke of Buckingham — " the glass of fashion and the mould of form." He pro- ceeded by the east coast to Edinburgh, which he reached on the 18th of May (?) and, returning by the west, he passed down Nithsdale, reaching Sanquhar Castle on the 31st July, where he was right royally entertained. Simpson, without disclosing his authority, gives the following traditional account of the festivities, which, notwithstanding the mani- fest touches of exaggeration here and there, has on the whole such an air of probability that it may be quoted : —

" The King, and Crichton, the lord of the manor, and at the time the occupant of the castle commonly called ' Crichton Peel,' had been very intimate companions, and James, on a tour through Scotland after he had ascended the English throne, came through Ayrshire and down Nithsdale to Sanquhar to visit Crichton in his peel. The occasion was one of great excitement and hilarity, and the rude populace of the strath poured forth in crowds to testify their fealty, and to witness the trappings of royalty. This visit being anticipated, Crichtou had prepared a sumptuous entertain- ment, so that when the King came, the stately avenue which led to the castle gate (and which in the last generation only was hewed down), the lofty trees arching overhead like a fretted gothic dome, was not only lined with people, but it is said with the goodly casks of the " bluid-red wine," which flowed copiously, and so copiously that the hoofs of the horses of the royal cavalcade were bathed in the ruddy stream. Within the peel the festivities were splendid, and such ' dancing and deray ' were never seen in old Sanquhar before nor since. The hall was lighted up with brilliancy, and the large castle lamp, placed in the centre of the festive board, was

84 History of Sanqukar.

graced with a wick well-pleasing to the King, but rather costly to his host : for Crichton, stepping forward with a lordly port, in presence of his sovereign and all the guests, extracting the blazing wick from the lamp, inserted another of a cylindrical form, made of parchment, containing a large account of a sum of borrowed money against the King, which the noble-minded baron, in the excess of his loyalty, committed to the flames, and thus extinguished the debt for ever."

Another version of the story of the burning of the bond is that Crichton crowned the evening's entertainment by rolling it into the form of a torch and lighting the King to bed with it. Whatever form it took, it was a dramatic display of reck- less loyalty, which could not but be highly gratifying to the King. One naturally wonders, however, what Crichton himself thought of it and of the whole matter of the King's visit, when he had time to reflect and to count up the cost. Then, as well as now, a royal visit to a noble was esteemed a high honour, but there was a reverse side to the shield in the enormous expense to which the host was necessarily put in providing entertainment worthy of a visitor of such high distinction, so that, unless he were possessed of princely resources, the depletion of his coffers effectually prevented him for many a day from forgetting the visit of his sovereign lord. This was emphatically so in Lord Crichton's case. The family was one that had held its ground all through the vicissitudes of a stormy period of our nation's history, during which many a noble house had suffered dire eclipse, if not total extinction. They had proved themselves men of capacity, and, by deeds of heroic and honourable service to the state, had claimed a place among the nobility of the land, and earned the gratitude and favours of sovereigns. They had obtained the marks of the royal confidence in having entrusted to them responsible office, and, having achieved high social rank, they sued, and sued not in vain, for the hand in marriage of ladies of noble houses. On this 31st day of July, 1617, the sun of the house of Crichton may be said to have reached its zenith, but it hasted rapidly to its setting. The very glory of the house led to its extinction.

History of Sanquhar. 85

We read that the expense of the royal visit, and the magna- nimous though ostentatious destruction of the King's bond, reduced Lord Sanquhar to such a condition of poverty that he was compelled some dozen years after to sell his estates. " Sic transit gloria mundi."

Shortly after this time Lord Sanquhar forsook his baronial residence at Sanquhar Castle, and removed into Ayrshire, to the vicinity of Cunmock. His reason for so doing is not, so far as is known, recorded. It is possible that, finding his resources seriously crippled by the entertainment of the King, and being compelled to adopt a modest style of living and expenditure, this proud-spirited lord could not brook that those about him should contrast his poverty-stricken condi- tion with the former greatness of his estate, and moved into a new locality where this contrast could not be drawn. la- the curtailment of his power of outward display, however, he was not without consolation, for in 1622 he was created Viscount of Ayr, and in 1633 Earl of Dumfries and Lord Kumnock. These marks of his sovereign's favour could not but be exceedingly gratifying, affording proof, as they did, that the King was not forgetful of his ancient and honour- able lineage, and of the services he had himself rendered to his country. Absence seems, however, to have loosened his attachment to his patrimonial estates, or sheer necessity to have compelled their relinquishment. At all events, in 1639, he sold the whole barony of Sanquhar to the Earl of Queensberry. (See Appendix.) Thus terminated the con- nection of the Crichton family with Sanquhar and Upper Nithsdale, an event which, even now, one cannot but regret. It can easily be imagined what a difference it would have made to Sauquhar had the Crichtons remained in possession of their patrimonial estate, and in occupation of their noble seat.

Though the Crichtons from this time had no connection with Sanquhar, it seems proper to trace their genealogy down to the present day. In succession to the first Earl of

86 History of Sanquhar.

Dumfries, William, second Earl, his son, had one son, Charles, who died before him, leaving a son, William, afterwards third Earl, and four daughters, Penelope, Margaret, Mary, and Elizabeth. William, second Earl, surrendered all his honours, and obtained a new patent for them, with precedency accord- ing to the former patents, and with limitation to each of the children of Charles, Lord Crichton, and the heirs of their bodies respectively, failing which, to the nearest heirs what- soever of the said Charles, Lord Crichton. The second Earl died in 1691, and William, third Earl, died unmarried in 1694, when he was succeeded by his eldest sister, Penelope. She married the Hon. William Dalrymple, second son of John, first Earl of Stair, by whom she had William, fifth Earl, and also Earl of Stair, who died without surviving issue in 1763, and a daughter, Lady Elizabeth, who married John Macdowall, Esq., and had issue — Patrick, who succeeded his uncle as sixth Earl, and assumed the name of Crichton ; he was born 1726 and died in 1803, having married, 1771, Margaret, daughter of ftonald Crawford, of Restalrig, Co. Edinburgh, by whom he had only one surviving child, Lady Elizabeth-Penelope, who was married to John, Viscount Mountstuart, eldest son of John, first Marquis of Bute, by whom she was mother of John, the seventh Earl of Dumfries, and second Marquis of Bute.

The present Marquis of Bute is therefore the lineal descendant, by the female line, of the ancient Crichton family of Sanquhar, whose titles are the oldest held by the Marquis, being — 1488, Baron Crichton of Sanquhar ; 1622, Viscount of Ayr ; 1633, Earl of Dumfries and Baron Crichton of Cumnock.

The following ancient ballad is given by Simpson in his history, but whence derived he does not say, describing one or other of the many thieving raids committed by the famous

History of Sanquhar. 87

Annandale reivers, and setting forth in an interesting manner the summoning of the clans and their methods of warfare : —

0 heard ye o' that dire affray

Befel at Crichton Peel, man ; How the reeving bands o' Annandale, Of a' the border thieves the wale,

In heaps fell on the field, man ?

A pale light flickered in the copse,

Beneath the castle wa', man ; It gleamed a moment like a star, The boding wraith o' coming war,

And glintit through the ha', man.

The foemen in the wald are hid,

They came at dusk o' e'en, man ; And far, far distant is our lord, And no assistance can afford —

He hunts round dark Lochskeen, man.

For Megget's lord and Bodsbeck's chiefs

Wi' him wha ne'er had feud, man, Longed to return him friendly cheer, And feast upon the fallow deer

Within their castles guid, man.

And he has gane wi' horsemen too,

All henchmen true and brave, man, And few are left within the hold, Of clansmen leal and warriors bold,

To handle lance or glaive, man.

The warder blaws his bugle loud,

It sounds far o'er the wild, man, Tell Clenrie's clan and Carco's men Their flocks within their folds to pen,

And arm and tak' the field, man.

The lady in the Peel sits wae,

Her heart shakes like the leaf, man, To think her lord is far away, With hounds he keeps the stag at bay,

But brings her no relief, man.

Rouse up the men o' Yochan fair,

The dwellers on the Scar, man, The bravest sons o' Mennick's rills, Frae a' the woods the songster fills,

The bowmen frae the Snar, man.

88 History of Sanquhar.

Ye doughty sons o' Crawick's sweet vale,

Frae where Powcraigy roars, man, In a' yer glens and fairy neuks, In a' yer dells and winding cruicks, Come forth in warlike corps, man.

Haste wi' the news to Enoch's lord, . Shout at Drumlanrig's tower, man ; Tell a' the forts in " auld Disdeer," And a' the holds in wooded Keir, Their stalwart force to pour, man.

Bleeze up the bales, let the beacons flare

On the peak o' ilka cairn, man ; Let the fiery cross the tidings flash, And rouse each chieftain from his marsh, Afar through wild Carsphairn, man.

Let all the clans frae Corsaiicone To Kello's bosky stream, man, All from Kirkconnel.s sunny braes, Wha in the sweetest woodland strays, For war resign the team, man.

The page, like arrow from the bow,

Out by the postern fled, man, And hasting o'er the moorland wastes, Charged with his lady's high behests, To noble Douglas sped, man.

He chased his way up winding Crawk,

He plunged through Spango's stream, man, And crossed Duneaton's sable flood, And o'er the grassy plain did scud, And through the flowering green, man.

At Glespin's peel his horn he blew, The warder heard the toot, man, The page's welcome voice he knew, The iron bolt he quickly drew, And echoed back the shout, man !

Gae, tell Moss-castle's swarthy lord

The plight of Sanquhar's dame, man ; For I'm in haste to gude Lord James, Whose aid is prompt in doleful times — That knight of fairest fame, man.

History of Saiiqukar. 89

Next to the laird of Gilker's-cleuch,

Let it not be unknown, man, Rouse every hold of warriors bold, In every fen and every wold

In mossy Crawfordjohn, man.

Syne pass the haunted auld kirkyard,

By lone Glengonar's stream, man, And the dreary glen where the wild winds rave, And the heath-screened mouth of the weird man's cave, And the wheeling linn where the kelpies lave

Their limbs by the pale moonbeam, man.

The nimble page his way now sped,

Through rough Glentaigart's moors, man,

Where'many a bewildered wight,

Losing his way on misty night,

Or lured to follow will-wisp light, Deep in the moss- hag lairs, man.

But lair'd not thus the faithful page,

For light of foot was he, man ; And on and on his willing road, With ceaseless feet, the heath he trode,

As mew skims o'er the sea, man.

Ho! stop thee, page, a shepherd cried,

What makes thee run-for dread, man ? Hush ! tell your master, Carmacoup, Wha ne'er wi' foe refused to cope, .

To haste and join the raid, man.

And up the lea of Anershaw,

And past the dead man's grave, man, And eerie trode the dread black gait Where erst lone stranger met his fate,

And left Earnsalloch cave, man.

And now the towers of famed St. Bride

Loomed in the vale beneath, man, Where dangled traitor high in air, As shown by lightning's vivid glare, His visage marked by deep despair —

A sight full grim to see, man.

And now he sprang the bastion o'er,

As fleet as roe might be, man, The owl was still, the hour was late, He stood before the castle gate,

And raised his voice^on high, man.

12

90 History of Sanquhar.

0 ! haste thee for our lady fair ;

Brave Douglas, 'fend the right, man, Rouse up your warriors feat and leal, March, march wi' speed to Crichton Peel,

Wi' jaque and mail bedight, man.

The noble Douglas heard the call,

And out his forces drew, man, And all in glee for warlike raid, In armour bright full well arrayed,

Through moss and wold they flew, man.

Ere dawn of day old Sanquhar heard

The Douglas slogan shrill, man, Which soon bade every fear depart, And quick made every drooping heart Wi' martial ardour thrill, man.

The clans on every side pour in, Like ravens to the wood, man, And all the gallant band wi' speed, In the dool hour of Crichton's need, The reevers fierce withstood, man.

Of all the brave and soothfast friends, The Douglas gained the meed, man ; For none in feats with him might share, Though many a belted knight was there, And wight of noble deed, man.

For he, where pressed the thickest foes,

The fiercest onslaught made, man, And ne'er retired one foot-breadth back, But forward urged with eager shock, And on the sward them laid, man.

Most valiant was that hero's heart,

When plunged in densest throng, man, And keen his glaive and from his arm The which with lusty blows did harm On all who sought his wrong, man.

But generous was that chieftain brave,

When victory to him fell, man ; He ne'er was known his conquered foe To triumph o'er when once laid low, Or him in wrath revile, man,

Histoi'y of Saiujuhar. 91

The clansmen all their valour proved,

On that eventful morn, man, And many deeds of high renown, The whilk were worthy to hand down

From sire to child unborn) man.

But Enoch's lord and Carco's chief,

'Mang foremost there were seen, man, And, urging on against the foe, Dealt many a vengeful, deadly blow, And trode the slain their feet below,

Upon that blood-stained green, man.

The valiant knight of Morton's Tower,

A courtly dress he wore, man, With golden belt, his monarch's gift, All glittering round his princely waist — But reivers' hands with greedy haste

The gorgeous cincture tore, man.

But fell reprisals soon were ta'en,

When the baron's wrath arose, man, For wildly on the foe he pressed, And yarely he the wrong redressed,

And man on man o'erthrows, man.

The reivers bold in their assault

Most desperate deeds performed man, And fought like lions in the fray, For well they knew a luckless day Would send but few of them away

From that proud peel they stormed, man.

The warder from the castle high,

Wha eager watched the strife, man, Saw in the distance horsemen ride ; Fight on ! our valiant friends, he cried, Fresh succours now I have espied, Brave Thristane's aid is ne'er denied —

He kens the thieves frae Dryfe, man.

'Twas Crichton's lord who on, with speed,

With his brave henchmen came, man, In time, before the clans dispart, To thank each warrior from the heart,

Of gude and trusty name, man.

92 History of Sanquhar.

And now the wassail in the hall,

And revelry began, man ; The minstrel tuned his harp wi' skill, The loud notes soon the hold did fill, While he their warlike deeds did tell,

And praised each valorous clan, man.

The reivers fierce frae Annandale

Were worsted in the fray, man, And few returned to that sweet vale, To tell their friends the waeful tale, Who deeply did their fate bewail, And never sought they to assail Old Crichton Peel for their avail

E'en from that dismal day, man.

In concluding the chapter on the Crichtons, notice may be taken 'of a curious and interesting relic, the handiwork of one of the ladies of the Castle, Lady Isabel Penelope Crichton. The relic consists of an ancient specimen of what is called a Sampler, or specimen of needlework, not differing greatly in style from those still worked by school girls in country parts, which may frequently be seen framed and hung up in their homes. It bears date 1501, and is quite fresh after the lapse of 390 years. It is sewn on linen canvas, the colours employed being crimson, purple, brown, green, pink, and straw. It contains all the letters of the alphabet, the nine digits, and some ornamental figures. It bears on the one side the pious rnotto — " Giv God the first and last of the des thoght ;" and on the reverse side the following verse of Scripture : " Mathov vii. 10 — WhatsoiAer I would that men should do to yov, do I eAen so to them ; for this is the la and the profets," together with the initials " I.P." on its face. The figure 5 in the date is not well formed, through the stitching being carried a trifle too high at the one end, but it corresponds in its main outlines with the form of the figure given in printed lists of pattern letters and figures for the guidance of the workers of samplers. If it is not a good 5, it certainly bears no resemblance to a 6 or a 7, and that it could be an 8 is impossible, for its existence

History of Sanquhar. 93

prior to 1801 is certain. " The first English translation of the Bible known is supposed to bear the date 1290 ; the next was by Wyckliffe, about 1380. These were in manu- script, and consequently the price was enormous. In the year 1429, a copy of Wyckliffe's New Testament cost about £40. It was probably a manuscript copy of this translation from which Lady Isabel Crichton copied into her sampler the verse from ' Mathov.' It. was the tenth verse in Wyckliffe's copy, and the twelfth in ours. The peculiarity lies in the ancient spelling, and in using the ' v ' in the inverted form." Till the year 1886, the sampler was put together in the form of a bag, the mouth of which was drawn by a silk string. It is in the possession of Miss Bramwell of St. Helen's, Sanquhar, having come into the hands of her grandfather, Mr John Bramwel], in a rather peculiar way. Mr Bramwell was manager of the lead-mines of Waulock- head for the Marquis of Bute, who had them under lease from the Duke of Buccleuch, and the gold from Dumfries House, for the payment of the miners' wages, was, on one occasion, sent to him in this bag. Its present possessor, finding the work giving way under the handling of the curious, unpicked the side seams, fastened it down on a fresh foundation, and had it framed under glass. An open space is left at the back to show the piece of red silk riband inside of the bag, on which is worked " Isabel Pen. s- Y-" corresponding to the initials " I.P." on the face of the sampler. The small letters " S.Y." have been supposed to be the initial letters of Sanquhar and Yochan. That the " S " signifies Sanquhar is probable enough, but we know of no good reason for connecting the " Y " with Yochan. The lands there were never spoken of as a separate or distinct portion of the barony of Sanquhar, nor were the Crichton family identified with it any more than with other parts of the lands which they held. The sampler has been in the possession of Miss Bramwell's family for a hundred years. Miss Bramwell is likewise possessed of a silk handkerchief,

94 History of Sanqukar.

the story of which is given by Dr Simpson in the following form. It relates to the period when the Castle was owned by the Queensberry family, that is, subsequent to 1630. " One of the young ladies was, it is said, of a rather delicate constitution, and her medical advisers prescribed the use of the milk of a jet-black cow, as having in it more than ordinary virtue. Accordingly, it was found that a man of the name of Dripps, who lived at the Townhead of Sanquhar, possessed a cow of this description, and immediate application was made to him for the necessary supply of the medicinal article. A little daughter of his was sent one morning to the Castle with the milk for the lady. She came arrayed in a little scarlet cloak, the bright colour of which attracted the attention of a flock of geese and turkeys that were strolling on the green before the Castle, exactly on her way to the gate. On her near approach the congregated fowls set up a loud screaming, spread abroad their wings, and opening wide their bills,