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HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


History  of  Channelkirk 


BY 

REV.    ARCHIBALD    ALLAN,   M.A.,   F.S.A.  Scot. 

Minister  of  the  Parish 


WITH    FULL-PAGE    ILLUSTRATIONS 


EDINBURGH 
JAMES   THIN,    54   and   55    SOUTH    BRIDGE 

1900 


«^ 


>; 


DeMcation 


THIS    BOOK    IS   DEDICATED   TO 

JAMES    A.    NASMYTH,    Esq. 

MIDDLEBANK,   DUNFERMLINE 
WITH    EVERY    EXPRESSION    OF    AFFECTIONATE    RESPECT 


57119? 


PREFACE 


The  following  chapters  had  their  origin  in  the  idea  of 
"Church  Defence."  In  1892,  an  agitation  became  general 
throughout  the  Church  with  reference  to  the  question  of 
its  Disestablishment ;  and  in  Lauderdale,  as  elsewhere,  its 
influence  became  paramount,  and  almost  simulated  a  phase 
of  panic.  The  writer  ventured  to  believe  that,  as  a  rule, 
more  harm  than  good  is  done  when  platform  and  political 
tactics  are  adopted  to  accomplish  moral  and  spiritual  ends ; 
but  far  from  waiving  responsibility  in  the  cause  of  national 
religion,  and  convinced  that  the  Church  can  only  be  safe 
when  her  principles,  her  work,  and  her  character  are 
respected,  it  seemed  to  him  a  duty  to  try,  in  his  own  parish, 
to  effect,  if  possible,  somewhat  of  this  desirable  result,  and 
by  methods  which  appeared  to  him  to  promise  as  enduring 
success  as  those  which  were  then  in  vogue.  The  book  is 
a  humble  contribution  towards  this  purpose.  True,  it  is 
an  indirect  and  slow  method :  in  the  nature  of  things  it 
must  be  so :  but  even  when  the  immediate  end  to  be 
compassed  is  chiefly  conditioned  by  political  action,  an 
increa.sed  public  interest  in  a  Church  and  Parish,  sustained 
by  the  records  of  their  ancient  traditions,  may  make  itself 
long  felt  through  many  channels.     It  is  also  a  method  to 


viii  PREFACE 

which  local  sympathies  are  peculiarly  susceptible,  for  men 
of  all  shades  of  opinion  and  faith  pay  homage  to  the 
past ;  and,  at  least,  it  is  always  above  those  irritable  and 
divisive  feelings  which  spring  so  disastrously  from  sectarian 
or  denominational  action  pressed  along  the  lines  of  party 
politics. 

The  writer  claims  no  merit  in  the  work  save  that  of 
trying  to  be  faithful  in  the  collection,  compilation,  and 
arrangement  of  his  materials.  The  narrative  has  grown 
from  a  single  lecture,  delivered  in  Oxton  Schoolroom,  to 
about  a  score  of  people.  Approximately,  one  half  of  the 
book  deals  with  the  Church,  and  the  other  half  with  the 
places  in  the  parish.  It  is  hoped  that  thereby  one  may 
be  able  to  gratify  a  particular  interest  without  requiring  to 
peruse  the  whole. 

The  warmest  gratitude  is  due  to  many  kind  friends  who 
have,  one  and  all,  given  ready  and  invaluable  aid.  It 
would  be  impossible,  of  course,  to  give  details,  but  impor- 
tant help  has  come  from  Principal  Story,  Glasgow ;  the 
late  Professor  Mitchell,  St  Andrews;  Professor  W.  W. 
Skeat,  Cambridge  ;  Professor  T.  York-Powell,  Oxford  ;  Pro- 
fessor Mackinnon,  Edinburgh ;  Professor  J.  Rhys,  Oxford ; 
Rev.  Dr  James  Gammack,  West  Hartford,  Connecticut, 
U.S.A.;  the  late  Dr  Hardy,  Old  Cambus ;  William  Aitken, 
Esq.,  retired  Classical  Master,  Strathkinness,  St  Andrews; 
John  Ferguson,  Esq.,  F.S.A.  Scot.,  Writer,  Duns ;  John  C. 
Brodie,  Esq.,  &  Sons,  W.S.,  Edinburgh,  etc.,  etc. 

A  special  meed  of  praise  is  due  the  librarians  and 
assistants  in  the  Advocates'  Library,  the  Signet  Library, 
the  Museum  of  Antiquities,  and  the  Public  Library,  Edin- 
burgh ;  also  to  those  of  the  University  Libraries  of  St 
Andrews,   Glasgow,   and   Aberdeen,   and   the   Free  Library, 


PREFACE  ix 

Dundee.  Their  disinterested  kindness  and  intelligent  help- 
fulness have  placed  the  writer  under  the  deepest  obliga- 
tions. The  same  falls  to  be  said  as  emphatically  with 
regard  to  the  officials  in  H.M.  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 
In  the  Historical,  Record,  and  Teind  Departments,  the 
able  and  necessary  aid,  freely  and  ungrudgingly  bestowed 
by  all,  can  only  be  mentioned  in  terms  of  the  heartiest 
gratitude.  Earlston  Presbytery,  the  Heritors  of  the  Parish, 
and  Lauder  Magistrates,  for  records  lent ;  local  authorities, 
local  working-men,  and  others  who  have  contributed  items 
of  interest  regarding  the  people  and  places  of  the  district, 
are  all  warmly  remembered  here. 

The    Illustrations   have   been   specially  prepared  for  the 
book  by  the  firm  of  Hislop  &  Day,  Swinton  Row,  Edinburgh. 

ARCHIBALD  ALLAN. 


Manse  of  Channelkirk, 
May  1900. 


CONTENTS 


INTRODUCTION 


Natural  Agencies — Geological  View  of  Lauderdale — Twice  a 
Valley — The  Leader— Prehistoric  Man — Stone  and  Bronze 
Ages — Population  of  the  Dale  in  the  Second  Century — 
Iberians  —  Goidels  —  Brythons  —  Picti  —  Scotti  —  Saxons  — 
Cuthbert  —  Kingdom  of  Bemicia  —  War  and  Religion — A 
Common  Faith — Lauderdale  in  Cuthbert's  Day — Coming  of 
Cuthbert  to  Channelkirk — Norse  Names  in  Upper  Lauderdale 
—Lauderdale  in  England— Parish  Boundaries  of  Channelkirk 
— The  Lords  of  Lauderdale,         ..... 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  NAME 

"  Channelkirk  "—Theories  regarding  the   Origin   and  D*erivation 

of  the  Name — Its  Form  at  Various  Dates — Chalmers'  View 

The  Irish  Life  of  St  Cuthbert— Cuthbert  in  Channelkirk— 

The  Church  Raised  in  Honour  of  the  "  Childe  "  Cuthbert 

Dryburgh  Abbey  Charters  and  the  Dedication— Bishop  De 
Bernham— The  Priest  Godfrey— Hugh  de  Morville  as  Patron 
—The  Name  and  the   Reformation— Its  Local  Forms,  36 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER     I  I 

THE   CHARTERS 

PAGE 

The  first  Charter  in  the  Liber  de  Drybiirgh — The  De  Morville 
Family — The  Patron  Saint  of  Channelkirk — Godfrey  the 
Priest  and  Hugo  de  Morville — Extent  of  De  Morville's  Estate 
in  Lauderdale— Kirk  Lands  near  Pilmuir — Lauderdale  in  the 
Thirteenth  Century — Its  Devout  Men  and  their  Gifts  to 
Channelkirk  Church — Gifts  "In  Perpetuam" — An  Era  of 
Bequests  to  Holy  Mother  Church — Supposed  Atonement  for 
National  Sin — Thomas  of  CoUielavv — Ancient  Agricultural 
Life— The  Domus  de  Soltre  and  Channelkirk  Church — 
Fulewithnes  —  Glengelt  Chapel  —  The  Veteriponts  —  Carfrae 
Chapel — The  Sinclairs— Premonstratensian  Order — Dedica- 
tion of  Channelkirk  Church,  a.d.  1241— Then  and  Now,  .         52 

CHAPTER  HI 

THE   PARISH    KIRK   OF    LAUDERDALE 

Ecclesiastical  Disputes  in  the  Thirteenth  Century— The  Lauder 
Case — Struggle  for  Teinds — Lord  Andrew  Moray — Eymeric, 
Lauder  Priest — Judicial  Proceedings — The  Pope's  Sentence 
and  Suspension  of  Eymeric— Resistance  of  Eymeric — Final 
Settlement  Concerning  the  Chapel  of  Lauder — Channelkirk 
Church,  the  Mother  and  Parish  Church  of  the  Whole  Valley 
—Triumph  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  — The  "Parish"  of  the 
Twelfth  Century  —  First  Mention  of  Lauder  Church  —  Its 
Patrons — Channelkirk  Priests  and  Lauder — Lauder  Church 
or  Chapel — Its  Status  before  the  Reformation,  .  .  .81 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE   MINISTERS   AND   THEIR   TIMES 

Before  the  Reformation. 

Godfrey,  the  Priest — Cuthbert  and  the  Holy  Water  Cleuch — The 
First  Minister  in  Channelkirk  and  Lauderdale — The  First 
Church — Cuthbert's  Fame — Five  Hundred  Years  of  Historical 
Darkness — Channelkirk  Priest  in  the  Twelfth  Century — Papal 
Taxation — King  Edward  I.  in  Lauderdale — The  Priests  Serv- 
ing Channelkirk  and  Lauder — Troublous  Times — Lauder  Brig 
— Moorhousland  and  Lauderdale — Social  Life  in  the  Fifteenth 
Century — Corruption  of  Church  and  Clergy — ^Reformation,      .       106 


CONTENTS  xiii 

CHAPTER  V 
THE   MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES— continued 

After  the  Reformation  ■  ^^^^ 

Seven  Years  after  the  Reformation  —  Ninian  Borthuik  —  John 
Gibsoun,  Reader — Alexander  Lauder — King  James  VI.  and 
I.,  and  Episcopacy  —  Famine  —  Allan  Lundie  —  Francis 
Collace — Henry  Cockburn — Report  on  Church  and  Parish 
in  1627 — The  Teinds  —  Knox's  Indictment  against  the 
Scottish  Nobility — Lord  Erskine — Suspension  and  Deposi- 
tion of  Cockburn  —  Suffers  "great  miserie "  — Preaches  at 
Earlston  —  His  Lawsuit  —  His  Restoration  to  Channelkirk 
— His  Death,        .......       135 

CHAPTER  VI 

THE   MINISTERS   AND   THEIR   TIMES — continued 

After  the  Reformation 

Professor  David  Liddell — Cromwell's  Soldiers  at  Channelkirk 
— At  Lauder  and  Bemersyde — First  Glimpse  of  Channelkirk 
People — The  Kirk  Records — Divine  Right  of  Kings,  Prelacy, 
and  Presbyterianism — Terror  and  Desolation — Divot  Renova- 
tion of  Kirks — Collections  and  Old  Customs — The  Lord's 
Supper — Liddell's  "  Laus  Deo"  and  Promotion  —  Walter 
Keith — Earlston  Presbytery  and  Prelatic  Presbyterianism 
—  Kirkton  on  Keith  —  WiLLlAM  Arrot  —  Received  into 
Presbyterian  Communion  from  Prelacy — His  High  Character 
— Called  to  Montrose,       .  .  .  .  .  '159 

CHAPTER    VH 

THE   VACANCY 

An  Ecclesiastical  Five  Years'  War — fune  \6gy-Sept.  1702 

Election  of  Ministers,  Past  and  Present — John  Story  -  Charles 
Lindsay,  Lord  Marchmont's  Nominee — The  Patron  or  The 
People  ? — The  Presbytery  and  the  Lord  High  Chancellor — 
John  Thorburn — Case  Referred  to  Synod — Referred  to  Com- 
mission of  Assembly  —  New  Elders  —  New  Candidates  — 
Presbytery  Distracted  — Foiled  Attempt  to  Elect — Presbytery 
Obsequious  to  Lord  Marchmont — William  Knox— A  Day  of 
Decision — Heritors  and  Elders  of  Channelkirk — Election  of 
Henry  Home— Deplorable  State  of  Religion — Presbytery  to 
be  Blamed — Culpability  of  Marchmont, .  .  .  .192 


xiv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  VIII 

THE   MINISTERS   AND   THEIR   TIMES — continued 

PAGE 

Henry  Home — The  Records— Lithuania— Home  as  a  Preacher 
— Public  and  Domestic  Troubles— Libelled  by  Presbytery — 
Death  Decides— The  Rebellion  of  1745 — Cope's  Halt  at 
Channelkirk— Prince  Charlie  at  Channelkirk — Church  Disci- 
pline— David  Scott — Church  Property — Scott's  Description 
of  the  Church— Stipend  Troubles — New  School — Declining 
Health  and  Death— Thomas  Murray— Heresy  Hunting- 
Recalcitrant  Parishioners  —  Sabbath-Breaking  —  Becomes  a 
Heritor — Stipend  Troubles — Farmers  in  Channelkirk  in  1800,       208 

CHAPTER  IX 

THE   MINISTERS   AND  THEIR   TIMES — continued 

Rev.  John  Brown — Characteristics — Stipend  Troubles — Odious 
to  Heritors — Litigation — Deficiencies  in  the  Manse — Parsi- 
mony and  Law-cases — Glebe  Worries — Church  Ruinous — 
Refuses  to  Preach — Church  Courts — New  Church — Muscular 
Christianity — Behaviour  in  Church — His  Death — Rev.  James 
Rutherford  —  Character— Ingenuous  and  Injudicial  —  Re- 
cords—Assistants—Portrait—Rev. James  Walker— Parish 
and  Presbytery  Complications — Testimony  of  the  Records- 
Resignation  and  Emigration— Rev.  JOSEPH  LowE— Student, 
Assistant,  and  Minister — Church  Declension— Resignation,     .       236 

CHAPTER  X 

THE  ELDERS,   BEADLES,  CHURCH,  AND  CHURCHYARD 

Elders  since  1650— Beadles  since  1654— The  Mortcloths— Salary 
—The  Church— Style  of  Architecture— Mode  of  Worship 
— Kirk  Bell — Rural  Religion — Attendances  at  Church — The 
Roll  —  Church  Patrons  —  The  Churchyard  —  Consecration  — 
Notable  Tombstones — Resurrectionists,  .  .  .       256 


CONTENTS  XV 

CHAPTER    XI 

THE   STIPEND  page 

Its  "Bad  Eminence"  in  Church  Histories— In  Twelfth  and 
Thirteenth  Centuries — Worth  and  Wealth  of  the  Monks — 
Drj'burgh  Abbey  and  the  Titulars  of  Channelkirk — Stipend 
during  the  Years  1620-1900 — Heritors  and  Agents — Cess 
Rolls,         ........       291 

CHAPTER  XH 

SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS 
Education,  Priests,  Protestants,  and  Acts  of  Parliament — Knox's 
Dream  —  First  Glimpse  of  Channelkirk  Schoolmaster  — 
Nether  Howden  School — Patrick  Anderson — Hugh  Wilson 
— Carfraemill  School — Andrew  Vetch — John  Lang — Cess  for 
Schoolmaster's  Salary  —  Lancelot  Whale  —  Robert  Neill — 
Channelkirk  School  and  its  Furnishings  in  1760 — John 
M'Dougall — Removal  of  School  to  Oxton — Nichol  Dodds — 
Alexander  Denholm — Alexander  Davidson — Henry  Marshall 
Liddell,      ........       319 

CHAPTER  XHI 

THE  BARONIES 
Oxton — The  Name,  Origin,  Meaning,  and  History — The  Proprietors 
— Oxton  "Territory" — Kelso  Abbey — The  Abernethies — The 
Setons  —  Home  of  Hemiecleuch  —  Ugston  and  Lyleston  — 
Heriots  of  Trabrown — The  Templar  Lands  of  Ugston — 
James  Cheyne — James  Achieson — Division  of  Ugston  Lands 
— Wideopen  Common — Inhabitants  of  Oxton — Trades  in  1794 
and  in  1900 — Gentry,  Tradesmen,  Merchants,  etc.,  in  1825 
and  in  1866 — Oxton  Church — Societies,  .  .  .      354 

CHAPTER  XIV 

THE  BARONIES — continued 
The  Name  "  Carfrae  "  —  Ancient  Boundaries  of  Carfrae  Lands — 
The  Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston  —  Serfdom  at  Carfrae  — 
Division  of  Lands — The  Homes — The  Maitlands — The  Haigs  • 
of  Bemersyde  and  Hazeldean — The  Tweeddales  and  Carfrae 
—  Tenants  —  Robert  Hogarth  —  The  Wights  —  Headshaw  — 
Hemiecleuch — Hazeldean — Friarsknovves — Fairnielees — Hill- 
house — Kelphope — ToUishill,       .....       402 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XV 
THE  BARONIES — continued 


PAGE 


Hartside,  the  Name  —  Early  Proprietors  —  Extent  of  Land- 
House  of  Seton — Nether  Hartside — Clints — Over  Hartside — 
Trinity  College  and  the  Superiority  of  Hartside  and  Clints — 
The  Riddells  of  Haining — Barony  of  Hartside — Hepburn  of 
Humbie  —  Hope  of  Hopetoun  —  Henryson  —  Dalziel — Borth- 
wick  of  Crookston  —  Lord  Tweeddale  —  The  Original 
Hartside — Barony  of  Glengelt — The  Name — The  Veteriponts 
and  Mundevilles— The  Lord  Borthwick— Raid  of  Glengelt 
—  Lawless  Lauderdale  —  Hepburn  of  Humbie  —  The  Ed- 
monstons  —  Sleigh  —  Cockburn  —  Robertson  —  Mathie  — 
Hunter — Borthwick  of  Crookston — Tenants — The  Den,  .       440 


CHAPTER  XVI 

COLLIELAW 

The  Name  —  Residence  in  1206  —  Sir  Vivian  de  Mulineys  — 
Thomas  the  Cleric  —  The  Borthwicks  —  The  Heriots  —  Re- 
duplication of  Place-Names  —  The  Kers  of  Morristoun  — 
House  of  Binning  and  Byres  —  Fairgrieve  —  Adinston  of 
Carcant — The  Scottish  Episcopal  Fund — Earl  of  Lauderdale 
— Tenants,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .481 


CHAPTER  XVn 

Air  HO  USE — Arowes,  Arwys,  Arus,  A  r rot's,  Arras,  Artits. 

The  Name— Adam  del  Airwis— Strife  at  Arrois  in  1476— The 
Hoppringles— The  Heriots  of  Arrois— The  Somervilles  of 
Airhouse,  1654— "Arras,  now  called  Airhouse,"  1773— Kirk- 
Session  Squabbles — Gloomy  Days  at  Airhouse — Lord  Lauder- 
dale—Situation  and  Area  of  Airhouse— Tenants — Parkfoot — 
Tenants,    ........       500 


CONTENTS  xvii 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

OVER  HOWDEN — KIRKTONHILL — JUSTICEHALL 

PACE 

Howden,  the  Name — In  Oxton  Territory — Kirk  Land — John 
Tennent — The  Heriots — The  Kers  of  Cesford — Sir  Adam 
Hepburn,  Lord  Humbie — John  Sleigh — The  Watherstones — 
The  Polwarth  Scotts  —  Justice  of  Justicehall  —  Dr  Peter 
Niddrie — Situation   and  Area    of   Over'  Howden — Tenants. 

Kirktonhill  —  The  Moubrays  and  Pringles  —  Murehous  —  The 
Lawsons  of  Humbie  —  The  Henrysons  —  Teind  Troubles — 
The  Watterstones — Captain  Torrance — Robert  Sheppard — 
His  Peculiarities — William  Patrick — Borthwick  of  Crookston 
—  Area  of  Kirktonhill  and  Mountmill  —  Tenants  —  Redwick 
and  Rauchy. 

Justicehall  —  Sir  James  Justice  of  Crichton  —  James  Justice  of 
Justicehall  —  Captain  Justice  —  Miss  Justice  —  Sir  John 
Calender — Sir  James  Spittal — The  "  Halves  "  of  Ugston — 
The  Parkers — Situation  and  Area,  ....       523 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THREEBURNFORD — NETHER   HOWDEN — BOWERHOUSE — 
HERIOTSHALL 

Threbumeforde  in  1569^  Anciently  called  Futhewethynis  or 
Fulewithnis  —  Trinity  College,  Edinburgh  —  Wedaleford — 
The  Three  Bums — The  Borthwicks'  Possession — The  Allans, 
Portioners — John  Cumming,  Minister  at  Humbie — Alexander 
Pierie,  Writer — The  Falconers  of  Woodcote  Park — The 
Taylors — Situation  and  Area — Tenants. 

Nether  Howden  —  Kirk  Lands  —  The  Kers  —  The  Mill  — 
William  Murray — The  Achesons — William  Hunter — Charles 
Binning — Rev.  Dr  Webster — Lord  Tweeddale — The  Tenants. 

Bowerhouse — The  name — Possessed  by  the  Borthwicks — Andro 
Law — Kers  of  Morriestoun — Charles  Binning — The  Thomsons 
— Fairholm — Lord  Marchmont — The  Earl  of  Lauderdale — 
The  Robertsons — Ten   Rigs — Situation  and  Area — Tenants. 

Heriotshall  from  1742 — The  Two  Husband  Lands  of  Ugston 
— The  Heriots — The  Forty-Shilling  Lands  of  Ugston — 
The  Murrays  of  Wooplaw — Rev.  Thomas  Murray — The 
Dobsons — The  Masons — Situation  and  Area — Tenants,  .       562 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE   MILLS 

PAGE 

The  Miller— Thirlage— The  Mills  of  the  Parish  and  their  Sucken 
— Mill  of  Oxton — Proprietary — Carfrae  Mill— Adam  the  Mill- 
knave — Carfrae  Mill  Inn — Tenants — Area  of  Farm — Wiselaw 
Mill — History  and  Name^Tenants,       ....       594 

CHAPTER  XXI 

SHIELFIELD— OXTON    MAINS — MIDBURN — BURNFOOT — 
PARKFOOT — BRAEFOOT — ANNFIELD— INCHKEITH. 

Shielfield  —  The  Erskines  —  Over  and  Nether  Shielfield — Kirk 
Land — Area  and  Situation  ;  Oxton  Mains — Proprietors- 
Area,  Situation  and  Tenants  ;  Midburn— Soil  and  Area  ; 
Burnfoot — Carsemyres — Ugston  Shotts — Tenants  ;  Parkfoot  ; 
Braefoot  ;  Annfield ;  Inchkeith,  .  .  .  .       614 

CHAPTER    XXn 

EXTINCT   PLACES 

Sumuindnight — Venneshende — Langsyde — Channelkirk  Village — 
Muirhouse  —  Peasmountford  —  Pickieston — Old  Collielaw — 
The  Dass  —  Bain's  Croft  —  Rigside  —  Midlie  —  Southfield — 
Butterdean  —  Longhope  —  Hillhouse  Dodfoot  —  Carfrae 
Common  —  Carfraegate  —  Upper  Carfraegate  —  Headshaw 
Hauch  —  Ugston  Shotts  —  Ten  Rigs  —  Walker's  Croft  — 
Oxton  Brig  End  —  Rednick  —  Alderhope  —  Rauchy  —  Long- 
cleuch — Herniecleuch — Hazeldean — The  King's  Inch — Malt- 
Barns,        ........       629 

CHAPTER  XXHI 

ANTIQUITIES 

The  Camps — at  Channelkirk — at  Kirktonhill— at  Hillhouse — at 
Carfrae  ;  Carfrae  Peel — Ancient  Burial — Bowerhouse — Over 
Howden  —  Nether  Howden  —  The  Roman  Road  —  The 
Girthgate  —  Resting  House  —  Holy  Water  Cleuch  —  Stone 
Cross  at  Midburn — Curious  Memorial  Stone  at  Threebumford 
— The  Kirk  Cross  and  Sundial — Old  Roads,      .  .  .       639 


CONTENTS  xix 

CHAPTER  XXIV 

CHANNELKIRK   TO-DAY 

PAGE 

The  Lammermoors — Skelton  and  Carlyle — Area  of  Channelkirk 
Parish — Population  from  1755 — Industry' — Soil  and  Sheep — 
Shepherding — The  Fanners  and  the  Land — The  Agricultural 
Labourer — Prices  of  Stock  in  1490  and  1656 — The  Game — 
The  Weather— Our  Public  Men— The  Railway,  .  .      674 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


CHANNELKIRK  CHURCH     ...  .        Frontispiece 

DISTRICT  AROUND  OXTON  VILLAGE  (from  THE  west)      Face  page        354 

DISTRICT  AROUND  OXTON  VILLAGE  (FROM  THE  NORTH)  „  400 

RUINS  OF  CARFRAE   PEEL 

NETHER   HARTSIDE 

GLENGELT 

SITE  OF  OLD  COLLIELAW 

AIRHOUSE 

OVER  HOWDEN      . 

KIRKTONHILL 

THREEBURNFORD 

BOWERHOUSE 

MOUNTMILL,   SITE  OF   THE 

CARFRAE  MILL      . 

CAMP  AT   KIRKTONHILL 

CAMP  AT  HILLHOUSE 

RESHILAW  OR   RESTING   HOUSE 

THE   HOLY  WATER  CLEUCH 

VIEW  OF  UPPER  LAUDERDALE  FRO?kI  ABOVE  MOUNTMILL 


"  MILL  OF  ULFKILSTON  " 


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HISTORY  OF   CHANNELKIRK 

INTRODUCTION 

Natural  Agencies — Geological  View  of  Lauderdale — Twice  a  Valley — 
The  Leader — Prehistoric  Man — Stone  and  Bronze  Ages — Population 
of  the  Dale  in  the  Second  Century — Iberians — Goidels — Brythons — 
Picti — Scotti — Saxons — Cuthbert — Kingdom  of  Bernicia — War  and 
Religion — A  Common  Faith — Lauderdale  in  Cuthbert's  Day — Coming 
of  Cuthbert  to  Channelkirk — Norse  Names  in  Upper  Lauderdale- 
Lauderdale  in  England — Parish  Boundaries  of  Channelkirk — The 
Lords  of  Lauderdale. 

The  history  of  a  parish,  in  the  most  extended  sense,  begins 
properly,  not  with  its  people,  though  the  study  of  man  is 
to  men  the  first  of  studies,  nor  with  its  Church  or  the  move- 
ments of  religion,  but  with  a  consideration,  however  brief, 
of  those  natural  forces  which  through  vast  ages  have  raised 
its  hills,  hollowed  out  its  plains,  sent  forth  and  directed 
its  streams,  given  to  it  soil  and  vegetation,  and  modelled 
its  varied  area  into  the  general  geographical  conformation  of 
landscape  which  is  presented  to  the  eye  of  the  interested 
spectator.  The  profound  researches  of  the  past  hundred 
and  thirty  years  have  happily  rendered  this  a  task  of  com- 
paratively easy  accomplishment.  The  earth  as  well  as  the 
heavens  has  sent  forth  a  revelation,  and  the  geological  re- 
cord has  now  proved  itself  no  mere  wild  speculation,  but  a 
veritable    apprehension    of    truth   and    fact,   which,   though 

A 


2  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

necessarily  characterised  by  stupendous  horizons  proportionate 
to  the  gigantic  changes  effected  within  them,  cannot  hence- 
forth be  deemed  unworthy  a  place  on  the  same  lofty  emin- 
ence occupied  by  our  most  sacred  beliefs.  The  Creator,  long 
before  Moses'  day,  wrote  upon  tables  of  stone. 

When,  however,  we  say  that  Channelkirk  stands  upon 
Lower  Silurian  rock,  which  composes  generally  the  higher 
crests  of  the  Lammermoor  range,  that  Lauderdale  is  for  the 
most  part  surrounded  by  hills  of  Upper  Silurian  composition, 
that  the  upper  surface  of  the  dale  is  of  Old  Red  Sandstone 
lying  upon  a  bed  of  Silurian,  we  are  aware  that  we  are 
touching  upon  spaces  so  vast  and  periods  of  time  so  remote 
as,  for  all  historical  purposes,  to  be  beyond  the  ken  of  the 
boldest  imagination.  "The  more  the  subject  is  pondered 
over,"  says  an  authority,*  "the  more  remote  does  the  first 
origin  of  the  present  topography  become — the  farther  back 
are  we  led  into  the  geological  past,  and  the  greater  are  the 
demands  on  our  imagination  in  picturing  to  ourselves  con- 
ditions of  geography  and  forms  of  surface  that  preceded 
those  which  now  prevail."  When  the  Silurian  rocks  which 
now  compose  the  hills  of  Lammermoor  were  being  moulded 
in  Nature's  kneading  trough,  Lauderdale,  like  all  Scotland, 
was  deep  under  sea,-f-  and  though  the  hills  on  either  side  of 
the  dale  are  only  differentiated  from  the  summits  of  Lammer- 
moor by  the  respective  terms  of  Lower  and  Upper  Silurian, 
the  periods  of  time  embraced  in  theij-  separate  formation 
must  be  reckoned  perhaps  by  millions  of  years.  We  should 
also  grasp  but  a  feeble  view  of  the  actual  facts  did  we 
imagine  that  Lauderdale,  with  its  graceful  outline  of  mountain 
steep  and  winding  glen,  rose  out  of  the  bosom  of  the  primitive 

*  Scenery  of  Scotland^  p.  ii.,  Sir  A.  Geikie.     London,  1887. 
+  Catalogue  of  Western  Scottish  Fossils^  p.  9.     Glasgow,  1876. 


INTRODUCTION  3 

ocean  wearing  the  same  contour  and  general  aspect  which 
we  behold  to-day.     There  is  clear  evidence  that  it  has  been 
twice  a  level  expanse  and  twice  a  valley.     Our  best  authority 
on  the  question  thus  discourses  concerning  it  * :     "  It  is  in- 
teresting to  note  that,  in  some  instances,  the  existing  valleys 
coincide  more  or  less  markedly  with  valleys  that  were  ex- 
cavated in  ancient  geological  times,  and  were  subsequently 
buried  under  piles  of  debris.     The  depression  that  now  forms 
the  vale  of  Lauderdale,  for  example,  is  at  least  as  old  as  the 
Upper  Old  Red  Sandstone  period.     Even  at  that  early  time 
it  had  been  worn  out  of  the  Silurian  tableland.     Masses  of 
gravel   and   sand,  washed   down  from  the   slopes  on  either 
hand,  gathered  on  its  floor.      A  little  volcano,  contempora- 
neous with  the  larger  outbursts  of  the  Eildon  Hills  and  the 
Merse  of  Berwickshire,  broke  out  at  its  upper  end,  but  was 
at   last   buried   under   the   accumulating   heaps   of   detritus, 
which  in  the  end   filled  up  the  valley  and  spread  over  the 
surrounding  hills.     In  the  course  of  later  geological  revolu- 
tions, this  region  has  once  more  been  upraised,  denudation 
has  been  resumed,  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  has  been  in  great 
measure  stripped  off  the  hills,  and  at  last  the  long  hollow, 
once  more  exposed  to  the  air,  has  again  become  a  valley 
that  gathers  the  drainage  of  the  surrounding  high  grounds." 
The  view  which,  it  seems,  we  must  try  to  comprehend,  is 
that,  millions  of  years  ago,  what  we  now  know  as  Lammer- 
moor,  Lauderdale,  and  Merse,  was  part  of  a  vast  plain  com- 
posed of  Lower  Silurian  deposit.     The  interior  forces  of  the 
earth  plicated  this  level  sea-bottom  so  as  to  tilt  and  crumple 
and  invert  it  in  every  conceivable  way.     Air,  rain,  springs, 
frost,  and  changes  of  temperature  attacked  these,  and  through 
many  ages  the  first  Lauderdale  valley  was  formed  by  such 

*  Scenery  of  Scotland^  p.  306. 


4  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

processes  of  disintegration,  or  were,  as  Professor  Geikie  puts 
it,  "  worn  out  of  the  Silurian  tableland."  Then  came  the  time 
when  over  all  this  the  conglomerates  and  Lower  Red  Sand- 
stone were  placed,  and  the  valley  of  Lauderdale  made  once 
more  a  level  plain,  to  be  raised  subsequently  to  a  height  much 
higher  than  our  present  Lammermoor  hills.  Again,  the 
frictional  agents  of  the  air,  and  the  powers  of  heat,  cold, 
and  gravitation  began  to  scoop  out  the  valley,  with  the 
glens,  the  ravines,  and  the  corries  which  we  see  to-day ;  and 
so  vast  has  been  the  denudation  that  nearly  the  entire  Red 
Sandstone  deposit  has  been  scoured  off  the  Lammermoors. 
The  vale  of  the  Leader  still  retains  a  remnant  of  the 
stupendous  deposit,  but  all  the  hills  surrounding  it  show 
once  more  the  Silurian  or  older  rocks.     ' 

This,  roughly,  is  the  general  conception  of  Lauderdale 
which  geology  gives  to  us.  It  is  evident  that  the  Leader 
water,  in  all  its  ramifications,  has  been  the  principal  architect 
in  laying  down  the  direction  of  the  dale,  rounding  the  sombre 
summits  of  the  hills,  curving  the  hollows,  planing  the  crests 
of  the  knolls,  and  slowly  grooving  through  a  bewildering 
period,  the  lovely  vale  to  which  it  has  given  both  name 
and  character.  The  present  river  is  as  old,  at  least,  as  the 
Old  Red  Sandstone  period.  From  what  has  been  said  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  Lauderdale  rocks  are  nearly  all  of  aqueous 
formation.  Notable  exceptions,  however,  are  found  in  Earl- 
ston  Black  Hill,  and  the  hill  north-east  of  Lauder  between 
Earnscleuch  and  Blythe  waters.  These  are  known  as  trap  hills 
of  the  species  of  felspar  porphyry.*  They  are  the  chief  excep- 
tions to  the  almost  unvarying  graywacke  and  Old  Red  Sand- 
stone rocks.     The  former  consists  generally  of  an  aluminous 

*  See  Bartholomew  &  Co.'s  Geological  Map  of  Scotland,  1892,  and  Milne's 
"Geology  of  Berwickshire"  in  Transactions  of  the  Highland  and  Agricultural 
Society,  vol.  xi.,  1837. 


INTRODUCTION  5 

or  argillaceous  sandstone,  sometimes  of  a  reddish-brown,  but 
for  most  part  of  a  light  greenish-blue  colour.  The  gray- 
vvacke  strata  are  almost  vertical  throughout,  running  about 
due  east  and  west.  Verification  of  this  can  be  proved  at 
Soutra,  Dodd's  Mill,  and  Earlston.  They  seem  to  be,  in 
this  district,  entirely  destitute  of  organic  fossil  remains  ;  but 
it  appears  *  "  a  few  specimens  of  graptolites  have  been  found 
near  Kelphope,"  and  it  is  possible  that  many  more  may  exist, 
as  neither  Lauderdale  nor  the  Lammermoors  have  been 
exhaustively  explored  in  this  respect. 

The  Old  Red  Sandstone  rocks  completely  fill  the  dale 
from  side  to  side,  running  up  into  the  various  glens  and  lap- 
ping the  sides  of  the  Silurian  hills  like  waves  that  had  dashed 
up  the  valley  and  been  fixed  ere  they  could  again  recede. 
The  village  of  Oxton,  for  example,  stands  on  Old  Red  Sand- 
stone, and  the  whole  of  Airhouse  estate  is,  generally  speak- 
ing, composed  of  this  kind  of  rock.  Wherever  there  is  a 
hollow  in  the  parish,  especially  on  the  edges  of  the  dale,  it 
is  almost  certain  to  be  filled  with  Old  Red  Sandstone,  while 
the  heights  surrounding  such  a  hollow  are  as  likely  to  be  of 
graywacke.  The  Old  Red  Sandstone  generally  rests  on  a  bed 
of  conglomerate  which  is  visible  nearly  all  through  Channel- 
kirk  parish  in  the  bed  of  the  Leader,  and  again  from  the 
neighbourhood  opposite  Trabrown,  southwards  almost  to 
Carolside.  Evidences  of  it  are  also  seen  in  the  Boon  water, 
and  that  of  Earnscleuch.  There  are  few  fossils  of  any  organic 
remains  in  the  Upper  Old  Red  Sandstone. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  at  this  period  to  which  reference 
has  been  made  man  had  not  come  upon  the  earth.  Countless 
ages  must  have  intervened  before  human  history  became 
possible  in  Lauderdale,  and   numberless   geological   changes 

*  James  Wilson,  Editor,  Galashiels. 


6  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

must  also  have  visited  the  scene  which  now  looks  so  peaceful 
and  habitable  and  familiar  to  Borderers,  In  process  of 
time,  however,  the  solitary  rule  of  natural  forces  became 
varied  by  human  life,  with  all  its  marvellous  latencies  of 
progressive  industry,  civilised  government,  and  exalted  con- 
sciousness of  immortality.  Slowly  the  human  brute  began 
to  apply  his  savage  ingenuity  to  the  capture  of  his  prey, 
the  destruction  of  his  enemy,  and  the  grinding  of  his  food, 
and  what  we  know  as  the  Stone  Age  dawned  upon  the  world. 
Early  man  discovered  that  instead  of  tracking  his  quarry  to 
the  earth  by  speed  of  foot,  the  well-directed  flint  arrow 
might  as  well  serve  his  purpose.  His  foe  abroad,  and  his 
family  at  home,  experienced  in  a  similar  way  this  battle  of 
the  brain  against  resisting  circumstances.  In  Lauderdale, 
this  phase  of  mortal  existence,  as  marked  by  both  the  Stone 
and  Bronze  Ages,  has  left  a  few  traces  of  its  presence.  Stone 
and  bronze  axes,  stone  hammers,  flint  knives,  flint  arrow- 
heads, flint  scrapers,  bronze  ingots,  bronze  bridle-bits,  and 
such  like  found  at  Hillhouse,  Over  Howden,  Bowerhouse, 
Longcroft,  Lauder,  Lauder  Moor,  and  Earlston,  attest  the 
presence  of  aboriginal  man  on  the  banks  of  the  Leader. 
From  the  fact  also  that  these  specimens  are  generally  in 
Channelkirk  parish  found  comparatively  high  up  on  the  slop- 
ing sides  of  the  dale,  it  seems  a  just  inference  that  these 
implements  were  used  at  a  remote  date  when  the  waters  of 
the  Leader  flowed  at  that  altitude,  and  had  not  eroded  them- 
selves down  to  their  present  level.  This  consideration,  of 
itself,  conveys  a  fair  conception  of  the  immense  lapse  of  time 
that  has  transpired  since  man  first  found  a  home  beneath 
the  shadow  of  the  Lammermoors. 

It  is  with  a  sense  of  relief  that  in  the  second  century  of 
the  Christian  era  we  find  ourselves  within  the  purview  of 


INTRODUCTION  7 

historical  human  life,  and  see  on  even  these  far  horizons  the 
Celtic  tribe  of  the  Otadini  populating  broad  territory,  what 
is  now  Berwickshire  and  East  Lothian,  and  consequently 
the  vale  of  the  Leader ;  and  bequeathing  to  us,  as  seems 
worthy  of  all  credence,  not  only  the  name  of  the  river  by 
which  Lauderdale  is  known,  but  many  a  place-name  and 
river-name  on  both  sides  of  the  Lammermoor  range. 

This  people  come  before  us  originally,  about  120  A.D.,  in 
the  great  work  of  the  Roman  geographer,  Ptolemy,  in  which 
he  curiously  delineates  the  coasts  of  Scotland,  marks  the 
position  of  towns,  describes  the  tribes  in  the  interior,  and 
denotes  them  by  their  names.  Dr  W.  F.  Skene  and  Professor 
Rhys  have  treated  -the  subject  so  fully  and  learnedly  that 
to  follow  them  is  to  obtain  the  clearest  light  possible  on 
these  "  dreary  wastes  of  the  past."  The  former  says  *  : 
"  A  line  drawn  from  the  Solway  Firth  across  the  island  to 
the  eastern  sea  exactly  separates  the  great  nation  of  the 
Brigantes  from  the  tribes  on  the  north ;  but  this  is  obviously 
an  artificial  line  of  separation,  as  it  closely  follows  the  course 
of  the  Roman  wall,  shortly  before  constructed  by  the  Emperor 
Hadrian,  otherwise  it  would  imply  that  the  southern  boundary 
of  three  barbarian  tribes  was  precisely  on  the  same  line 
where  nature  presents  no  physical  line  of  demarcation. 
There  is  on  other  grounds  reason  to  think  that  these  tribes, 
though  apparently  separated  from  the  Brigantes  by  this 
artificial  line,  in  reality  formed  part  of  that  great  nation. 
These  tribes  were  the  Otalini  or  Otadeni  and  Gadeni,  ex- 
tending along  the  east  coast  from  the  Roman  wall  to  the 
Firth  of  Forth."  The  Brigantes  nation  seem  to  have  been 
a  powerful  one,  and  their  name,  says  Rhys,-f-  "  would  seem  to 
have   meant  the  free  men  or  privileged  race,  as  contrasted 

*  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  71.  f  Celtic  Britain,  p.  283. 


8  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

with  the  Goidelic  inhabitants."  From  the  Brigantian  people, 
it  appears,  who  for  most  part  north  of  the  Cheviots  were 
Otadeni,  was  derived  the  name  Bernicii^  the  Latin  form  of 
the  name  known  to  Bede ;  which  became,  when  used  to  de- 
nominate their  country,  Bernicia,  the  northern  part  of  the 
kingdom  of  Northumbria  in  the  seventh  century  or,  roughly 
speaking,  Berwickshire  and  East  Lothian.  The  Otadeni  were 
Brythons,  or  those  who  spoke  the  language  of  the  people 
of  Wales  and  the  Bretons,*  as  distinguished  from  those  who 
spoke  the  Gaelic  of  Ireland  and  the  Scottish  Highlands.-f* 
"  They  disappeared  early,  their  country  having  been  seized 
in  part  by  the  Picts  from  the  other  side  of  the  Forth,  and 
in  part  by  the  Germanic  invaders  from  beyond  the  sea." 

Briefly,  the  peoples  who  are  reputed  to  have  inhabited 
Lauderdale  from  a  considerable  time  beyond  the  Christian 
era,  were,  first : — 

The  non-Celtic  race  that  preceded  the  Goidels  or  Gaels 
and  Brythons,  who  conquered  it  and  probably  enslaved  it.J 
This  race  is  by  some  called  "  Iberian "  or  "  Basque,"  but 
there  is  some  dubiety  concerning  this  view.  Professor  Rhys§ 
believes  that  "  Ivernian "  would  be  a  safer  designation,  and 
that  it  might  be  applied  ||  "to  the  non-Celtic  natives  of  Britain 
as  well  as  of  the  sister  island."  That  this  non-Celtic  race, 
by  whatever  name  known,^!  "  spread  over  the  whole  of  both 
of  the  British  Isles,"  there  appears  to  be  little  reason  to  doubt, 
as  well  from  the  expressed  convictions  of  several  ancient 
writers,  as  from  an  examination  of  prehistoric  sepulchral 
remains.  They  are  differentiated  from  succeeding  races  by 
their  long  cranial  development,  numerous  skulls  of  this  type 

*  Celtic  Britain,  p.  3.  f  Ibid.,  p.  222. 

X  Celtic  Scotland,  i.,  164.,  "Origin  of  the  Aryans,"  p.  92-101,  Dr  Isaac  Taylor. 

§  Celtic  Britain,  p.  265.         ||  Ibid.,  p.  266,         IT  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  169. 


INTRODUCTION  9 

being  found  in  long  barrows  and  chambered  gallery  graves 
in  our  country.  They  were  a  people  that  frequented  caves, 
and  buried  their  dead  in  them,  and  used  stone  implements. 

Second,  the  Celts,  who  may  have  come  at  two  distinct 
periods.*  "The  Goidels"  (Gaels)  "were  undoubtedly  the 
first  Celts  to  come  to  Britain."  "They  had  probably 
been  in  the  island  for  centuries  when  the  Brythons,  or  Gauls, 
came  and  drove  them  westward."  The  Iberians  were  dis- 
placed or  enslaved  by  the  Gaels,  and  the  Gaels  in  turn  were 
subdued  or  routed  by  a  branch  of  their  own  Celtic  race,  the 
Brythons.f  It  is  these  last  that  Caesar  is  supposed  to  have 
seen  and  described.  According  to  him,  and  writers  such  as 
Strabo,  Tacitus,  and  Pomponius  Mela,  they  were  expert 
fighters,  combining  celerity  with  weight  in  their  attacks,  and 
the  quick  movements  of  cavalry  with  the  compactness  of 
infantry.  They  were  adepts  in  the  management  of  the 
chariot  and  hurling  the  dart.  They  stained  themselves  blue 
with  woad,  and  were  horrible  in  appearance.  The  hair  was 
worn  flowing,  and  they  were  clean  shaven  except  the  upper 
lip  and  the  head.  Parties  of  ten  or  twelve  had  wives  in 
common.  The  tribes,  under  rule  of  kings,  or  say  patriarchal 
chiefs,  were  continually  at  war  one  with  the  other.  Their 
idea  of  a  town  or  fortress  was  an  enclosure  with  a  tangled 
wood  surrounding  it,  protected  by  a  rampart  and  ditch. 
They  built  their  huts  inside  this  defence,  and  collected  also 
their  cattle  there,  but  not  for  purposes  of  permanent,  but 
only  temporary,  residence. 

Third,  the  Brythons  were  in  turn  conquered  by  the  Picts, 
who  were  of  the  Celtic  branch  known  as  Gaels.  |  They 
superseded  the  Brythonic  Otadini,  and  formed  the  population 
of  the  Otadini  district  during  the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries. 

*  Celtic  Britain^  p.  4.         t  Und.,  p.  53.         %  Celtic  Scotland^  vol.  i.,  p.  2 18. 


10  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Doubtless  the  Otadini  would  be  partly  exterminated  and 
partly  enslaved,  according  to  the  usual  customs  of  barbaric 
war.  Speaking  of  the  Picti,  Picts,  or  painted  men,  as  applied 
to  the  nations  beyond  the  Northern  Wall,  and  of  the  people 
on  the  Solway  called  Atecotti  who  were  probably  included 
in  the  same  name,  Rhys  says,  "  Now,  all  these  Picts  were 
natives  of  Britain,*  and  the  word  Picti  is  found  applied  to 
them  for  the  first  time,  in  a  panegyric  by  Eumenius,  in  the 
year  296 ;  but  in  the  year  360  another  painted  people  ap- 
peared on  the  scene.  They  came  from  Ireland,  and  to  dis- 
tinguish these  two  sets  of  painted  foes  from  one  another,  Latin 
historians  left  the  painted  natives  to  be  called  Picti,  as  had 
been  the  custom  before,  and  for  the  painted  invaders  from 
Ireland  they  retained,  untranslated,  a  Celtic  word  of  the 
same  (or  nearly  the  same)  meaning,  namely,  Scotti.  Neither 
the  Picts  nor  the  Scotti  probably  owned  these  names,  the 
former  of  which  is  to  be  traced  to  Roman  authors,  while  the 
latter  was  probably  given  the  invaders  from  Ireland  by  the 
Brythons,  whose  country  they  crossed  the  sea  to  ravage." 

Gildas  writing,  it  is  assumed,  in  the  sixth  century,  gives 
us  a  sad  account  of  the  state  of  the  country  under  the 
attacks  of  Picts  and  Scots.*|-  He  says  the  Brythons  were 
forced  to  crave  help  from  the  Romans  to  expel  them.|  They 
were  oppressed  and  enslaved  under  nameless  tortures.  But 
when  the  Romans  had  left,  never  more  to  return,  the  Picts 
and  Scots  came  again  in  their  canoes,§  "  differing  one  from 
another  in  manners,  but  inspired  with  the  same  avidity  for 
blood,  and  all  the  more  eager  to  shroud  their  villainous  faces 
in  bushy  hair  than  to  cover  with  decent  clothing  those  parts 
of  their  body  which  required  it."     He  seems  to  point  directly 

*  Celtic  Britain,  p.  238. 

t  Six  Old  English  Chronicles,  Dr  Giles,  1896.        J  Sec.  15.        §  Sec.  19. 


INTRODUCTION  11 

to  the  district  of  which  Berwickshire  is  now  a  part,  when  he 
further  says,  "  Moreover,  having  heard  of  the  departure  of 
our  friends "  (viz.,  the  Romans),  "  and  their  resolution  never 
to  return,  they  seized  with  greater  boldness  than  before  on  all 
the  country  towards  the  extreme  north  as  far  as  the  Wall." 
Dr  Skene  says,*  "  this  probably  refers  to  the  districts  after- 
wards comprised  under  the  general  name  of  '  Lodonea,'  or 
Lothian,  in  its  extended  sense,  comprising  the  counties  of 
Berwick,  Roxburgh,  and  the  Lothians." 

Nothing,  according  to  Gildas,  could  equal  the  horrors  of 
the  time.  The  Brythons  he  despises,  yet  deeply  pities  as 
sheep  eaten  up  of  wolves.  They  took  to  the  heights  and 
garrisoned  them  with  men,  who,  he  says  sarcastically,  were 
slow  to  fight,  and  hardly  fit  to  run  away.  He  pictures  them 
(and  the  scenes  may  have  been  all  exampled  on  the  "  camp  " 
heights  of  Lauderdale),  as  sleeping  on  their  watch,  so  useless 
were  they,  and  the  wily  enemy  stealing  up  the  slopes  to  hook 
them  off  the  walls,  and  dash  them  to  death  on  the  ground. 
However,  he  consoles  himself,  it  saved  them  from  seeing  the 
horrors  that  overtook  their  brothers  and  sisters.  Unrelent- 
ing, remorseless  cruelty  reigned  over  all.  They  were 
butchered  like  sheep,  "  so  that  their  habitations  were  like 
those  of  savage  beasts."  The  whole  country  was  rent  also 
by  internal  feuds,  and  provisions  could  not  be  procured. 
They  sent  in  despair  to  the  Romans  for  assistance.  "The 
barbarians  drive  us  to  the  sea ;  the  sea  throws  us  back  on 
the  barbarians."  But  the  Romans  could  not  help  ;  and  so 
the  discomfited  people  wandered  among  mountains,  in  caves 
and  in  the  woods,  a  homeless  life,  with  persecution,  famine, 
and  torture  lurking  in  ambush  for  them.  But  the  cup  of 
their  anguish  was  not  yet  full.     When  they  were  unequal  to 

*  Celtic  Scotlatid,  vol.  i.,  p.  131. 


12  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

repelling  the  barbarian  Picts  and  Scots,  and  could  find  no 
hope  in  Roman  interference,  they  took  counsel  and  resolved 
to  invite  the  Saxons  to  their  aid.  This  policy  sealed  their 
doom. 

Fourth,  the  barbarian  Saxons  were  "a  race  hateful  both 
to  God  and  men,"*  impious  and  fierce.  From  being  pro- 
fessedly friends,  the  Saxons  soon  became  exacting  and 
aggressive  in  their  demands.  Open  rupture  followed,  and 
the  entire  realm,  which  now  we  name  Scotland,  became  an 
arena  of  contending  peoples.  The  Brythons,  the  Picts,  the 
Scots,  and  Angles  engaged  in  open  struggle  for  the  mastery. 
From  the  circumstance  of  the  Lothians  being  central  ground 
lying  between  Pictland  north  of  the  Forth,  and  the  land  of 
the  Brythons  south  of  it,  with  the  Scotti  breaking  in  from 
Ireland  on  the  east  coast,  and  the  Angles,  Saxons,  and  Jutes 
pressing  from  the  south,  we  may  reasonably  infer  that  the 
forces  of  war  raged  across  Berwickshire  interminably  during 
this  clashing  of  these  races  throughout  the  latter  half  of  the 
fifth  century.  It  is  at  this  period,  however,  that  the  great 
personality  of  Arthur  moves  across  the  historic  stage  as 
championing  the  cause  of  the  oppressed  Brythons  against 
the  Saxons,  and  that  tradition  sees  him  so  near  the  confines 
of  Upper  Lauderdale  as  the  vale  of  the  Gala,  victorious  over 
his  foes,  in  the  fastnesses  of  Guinnion,  and  working  such  ruin 
among  the  Anglic  forces  there  as  to  perpetuate  their  disaster 
in  the  name  of  Wedale. 

A  hundred  years  before  Cuthbert  is  said  to  have  been 
brought  to  Channelkirk,  Lowland  Scotland  was  thus  the 
stormy  theatre  of  those  illustrious  deeds  which  in  later  ages 
fascinated  the  highest  genius.  It  was  in  537,  at  the  battle  of 
Camlan,  that  the  Lothian  Medrand  slew  in  battle  the  heroic 

*  Gildas,  Sec.  23. 


INTRODUCTION  13 

Arthur,  and  so  to  all  appearance  neutralised  the  advantages 
which  ha!d  been  achieved  by  that  warrior's  victories  from  Loch 
Lomond  to  the  Lammermoors.  And  when  that  strong  arm 
could  no  longer  resist  the  aggressive  intruders,  and  the 
kingdom  was  not  yet  fated  to  be  consolidated  under  one 
crown,  his  triumphant  opponents  were  then  free  to  portion 
out  the  land  as  they  listed.  The  boundaries  of  the  kingdom 
of  Bernicia  came  into  existence  under  Ida,  its  first  king,  in 
the  year  547,  and  extended  from  the  Tees  to  the  Forth, 
thus  embracing  what  is  now  Berwickshire ;  and  as  a  conse- 
quence, Lauderdale  thus  early  was  put  under  the  domination 
of  the  Angles.  Twelve  years  later,  in  559,  this  kingdom 
seems  to  have  been  submerged  as  a  province  within  the 
greater  kingdom  of  Northumbria,  which  stretched  from  the 
Forth  to  the  H umber,  and  which  as  one  regal  organisation 
held  sway  over  all  that  district  with  substantial  appearance 
of  unified  power.  Such  changes  do  not  happen  without 
great  bloodshed  and  terrible  sufferings  among  the  common 
people.  Serfdom  in  its  fiercest  forms  must  have  prevailed 
throughout  all  the  conquered  districts,  if  the  wretched  people, 
indeed,  were  always  fortunate  to  escape  total  extermination. 
As  the  restraints  of  war  were  then  limited  only  by  the 
appetites  of  the  conquerors,  and  the  Saxon  nature  was  then 
but  in  its  semi-savage  development,  the  condition  of  life  of 
the  people  who  then  inhabited  Lauderdale  under  the  Anglic 
government  can  be  better  imagined  than  described.  But, 
as  might  be  expected,  the  Saxon  did  not  retain  his  spoils  un- 
challenged. The  Britons  of  Strathclyde,  the  boundaries  of 
which,  on  its  eastern  side,  ran  down  from  the  Lammermoor 
Hills  by  Gala  Water  to  the  Pennine  Range,  were  incessant 
in  their  attacks  upon  them,  as  were  also  the  Scots  of  Dal- 
riada,  and  it  was  not  till  the  great  battle  of  Degsastane,  in 


14  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

603,  that  the  mastery  was  decisively  declared  for  the  Angles. 
This  battle  decided  much  and  was  fateful  for  the  future. 
It  is  described  in  the  following  account  *:  "  Bede  tells  us 
that  Aidan  came  against  Aedilfrid  with  a  large  and  powerful 
army.  It  consisted,  no  doubt,  of  a  combined  force  of  Scots 
and  Britons,  at  whose  head  Aidan  was  placed  as  Guledic,  and 
he  appears  also  to  have  had  the  aid  of  Irish  Picts.  He 
advanced  against  the  Bernician  kingdom,  and  entered 
Aedilfrid's  territories  by  the  vale  of  the  Liddel,  from  the 
upper  end  of  which  a  pass  opens  to  the  vale  of  the  Teviot, 
and  another  to  that  of  North  Tyne.  The  great  rampart 
called  the  Catrail,  which  separated  the  Anglic  kingdom  from 
that  of  the  Strathclyde  Britons,  crosses  the  upper  part  of  the 
vale  of  the  Liddel.  Its  remains  appear  at  Dawstaneburn, 
whence  it  goes  on  to  Dawstanerig,  and  here,  before  he  could 
cross  the  mountain  range  which  separates  Liddesdale  from 
these  valleys,  Aidan  was  encountered  by  Aedilfrid  and  com- 
pletely defeated,  his  army  being  cut  to  pieces  at  a  place 
called  by  Bede  '  Degsastan,'  in  which  we  can  recognise  the 
name  of  Dawstane,  still  known  there.  Bede  adds  that  this 
battle  was  fought  in  the  year  603,  and  the  eleventh  year  of 
the  reign  of  Aedilfrid,  which  lasted  for  twenty-four  years,  and 
that  from  this  time  forth  till  his  own  day  (that  is,  till  731), 
none  of  the  kings  of  the  Scots  ventured  to  come  in  battle 
against  the  nation  of  the  Angles ;  and  thus  terminated  the 
contest  between  these  tribes  for  the  possession  of  the 
northern  province,  substantially  in  favour  of  the  latter 
people,  who,  under  Aedilfrid,  now  retained  possession  of 
the  eastern  districts  from  the  Humber  to  the  Firth  of  Forth, 
as  far  west  as  the  river  Esk." 

When  we  remember  that  religion  and  war,  beyond  all 

*  Celtic  Scotland^  vol.  i.,  p.  162, 


INTRODUCTION  15 

other  influences,  have,  in  all  ages,  swayed  the  destinies  of 
nations,  we  are  not  surprised  to  find  these  powerful  elements 
in  the  ascendant  at  this  early  stage  of  Scotland's  develop- 
ment. And  while  the  forces  of  battle  were  thus  forging 
into  shape  the  four  kingdoms  of  the  Picts,  the  Scots,  the 
Britons,  and  the  Angles,  the  moral  powers  were  not  less 
industrious  in  changing  the  wide  realms  of  superstition  and 
pagan  belief  into  those  of  spiritual  enlightenment  and 
Christian  faith.  As  of  old,  when  the  chaos  of  nature  obeyed 
the  divine  order  which  marshalled  all  into  use  and  beauty, 
so  while  armies  raged  around  boundaries  and  territorial 
sovereignty,  the  voices  of  the  Christian  missionaries  were 
heard  above  the  storm,  directing  the  path  of  kings  and 
peoples  towards  a  loftier  civilisation  and  a  nobler  humanity. 
It  is  true  that  both  political  and  moral  movements  expanded 
far  beyond  the  district  which  is  our  immediate  concern  in 
this  place,  but  as  the  motions  of  the  smallest  planet  are  only 
understood  when  their  relations  to  the  solar  system  are 
comprehended,  so  it  seems  to  us  that  the  condition  of 
Lauderdale  when  Cuthbert  first  crossed  its  boundaries  can 
only  be  grasped  when  we  have  sufHciently  realised  the  state 
of  the  country  at  large. 

Only  four  years  before  Northumbria  had  formed  itself 
into  the  kingdom  of  that  name  under  King  Ida,  and  Lauder- 
dale had  thus  become  not  only  a  part  of  Bernicia  but  of  the 
Northumbrian  dominion  which  included  it,  Columba,  of  re- 
nowned memory,  was  leaving  the  shores  of  Ireland  to  carry 
the  Christian  Evangel  to  the  benighted  regions  of  the 
Western  Isles  of  Scotland.  "  In  the  year  563,"  says 
Adamnan,  "and  in  the  forty-second  of  his  age,  Columba, 
resolving  to  seek  a  foreign  country  for  the  love  of  Christ, 
sailed  from  Scotia,  or  Ireland,  to  Britain."     With  his  presence 


16  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  influence,  the  whole  north  of  Pictland  soon  underwent  a 
speedy  transformation.  Only  two  years  elapsed  before  he 
had  converted  King  Brude,  the  monarch  of  the  northern 
Picts.  And  consonant  with  the  religious  modes  of  national 
conversion  of  those  days,  the  enlightenment  of  the  king  was 
the  sign  to  the  people  to  conform  to  the  same  belief 
Columba's  power  was  as  effective  as  it  was  comprehensive. 
The  north  and  west  soon  stood  subservient  to  his  will.  On 
the  river  Ness  he  directs  one  king  and  creates  another  at 
lona.  Brude  and  Aidan  .seem  to  have  been  deeply  devoted 
to  the  interests  which  Columba  had  at  heart,  and  while  the 
one  approves  and  assists  at  the  founding  of  monasteries  and 
the  spread  of  the  Gospel,  the  other  girds  on  his  armour,  as 
we  have  seen  at  Dawstane,  to  expel  the  pagan  and  infidel 
Angles  of  Northumbria,  And  although  the  latter  remained 
conquerors  in  arms  in  that  great  encounter,  the  power  of 
Christian  truth  was  greater  than  the  force  of  war,  for 
Northumbria  also,  as  well  as  the  north  and  the  west,  fell  to  the 
Christian  religion  not  long  afterwards.  This  notable  event 
occurred  in  627.  The  probable  birth-year  of  St  Cuthbert  has 
been  placed  by  one  of  the  best  authorities  in  the  year  626, 
so  that  the  future  Apostle  of  Southern  Scotland  and  Patron 
Saint  of  Channelkirk  would  be  just  a  twelvemonth  old  when, 
for  the  first  time,  the  whole  of  what  we  now  call  Scotland 
professedly  confessed  the  sway  of  the  Christian  religion. 
This  result  was  mainly  brought  to  pass  by  the  conversion  of 
King  Edwin  of  Northumbria,  whom  Paulinus,  ably  supported 
by  the  queen  and  the  urgent  counsels  of  Pope  Boniface, 
brought  to  a  knowledge  and  confession  of  the  faith.  "  King 
Edwin,*  therefore,  with  all  the  nobility  of  the  nation  and  a 
large  number  of  the  common  sort,  received  the  faith  and  the 

*  Bede's  Ecclesiastical  History,  chap.  xiv. 


INTRODUCTION  17 

washing  of  regeneration  in  the  eleventh  year  of  his  reign, 
which  is  the  year  of  the  incarnation  of  our  Lord  627,  and 
about  one  hundred  and  eighty  after  the  coming  of  the  English 
into  Britain."  Bede  further  says,  "  So  great  was  then  the 
fervour  of  the  faith,  as  is  reported,  and  the  desire  of  the 
washing  of  salvation  among  the  nation  of  the  Northumbrians, 
that  Paulinus,  at  a  certain  coming  with  the  king  and  queen 
to  the  royal  country-seat,  which  is  called  Adgefrin  (Yeverin 
in  Glendale,  near  Wooler,  Northumberland),  stayed  there 
with  them  thirty-six  days,  fully  occupied  in  catechising  and 
baptising  ;  during  which  days,  from  morning  till  night,  he 
did  nothing  else  but  instruct  the  people  resorting  from  all 
villages  and  places." 

So  that  Cuthbert  comes  into  a  most  crucial  and  exciting 
crisis  in  the  history  of  the  district,  when  the  crude  and  half 
barbarous  masses  of  population  on  both  sides  of  the  Cheviots 
were  being  disciplined  to  nationality  and  central  government, 
and  to  follow  with  docility  and  ardour  the  spiritual  instruction 
of  Christian  bishops  and  their  ecclesiastical  methods.  It 
indicates  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  for  the  country.  For,  not- 
withstanding the  relapse  into  paganism  which  shortly  after- 
wards took  place  under  the  powerful  Penda,  Christianity 
revived  once  more  in  Northumbria,  all  the  more  assured' 
perhaps,  from  its  being  buttressed  by  the  new  King  Oswald 
and  the  Columban  Church.  "  The  short-lived  Church  of 
Paulinus,"  says  Skene,*  "  could  not  have  had  much  permanent 
effect  in  leavening  these  Anglic  tribes  with  Christianity." 
Enlightenment  came  from  the  North  and  not  from  the 
South.  "  It  is  to  the  Columban  Church,  established  in 
Northumbria  by  King  Oswald  in  635,  that  we  must  look  for 
the  permanent  conversion  of  the  Angles  who  occupied  the 

•  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  igg. 

B 


18  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

eastern  districts  between  the  Tweed  and  the  Forth,"  that 
is,  the  districts  which  now  comprise  Berwickshire  and  East 
Lothian. 

The  changes  which  were  thus  being  effected  by  royal 
and  religious  influences  when  we  first  discern  the  presence 
of  Cuthbert  in  Lauderdale,  were,  as  clearly  appears,  of  the 
highest  importance  to  the  land,  and  proved  themselves  the 
foundation  structure  upon  which  the  nation  of  future  Scot- 
land was  to  be  firmly  built.  So  early  as  635,  the  four 
kingdoms  of  the  Picts,  Scots,  Britons,  and  Angles  were  as 
clearly  defined  as  are  the  four  provinces  of  Ireland  to-day, 
each  enjoying  and  obeying  its  central  authority,  and  obtain- 
ing within  that  central  government  protection  and  a  measure 
of  prosperity.  But  the  chief  bond  of  cohesion  seems  to 
have  lain  in  the  firm  basis  of  a  common  faith  which  the 
Christian  religion  now  afforded  them.  Gibbon  emphasises 
the  British  "  love  of  freedom  without  the  spirit  of  union " 
(vol.  i.,  p.  19),  but  it  surely  marked  a  great  advance  when 
the  whole  country  held  one  common  form  of  worship.  From 
the  Cheviots  to  the  Orkneys  Christianity  reigned  supreme. 
Pagan  darkness  might  linger  for  a  while  over  the  hearts  of 
men,  even  as  heavy  mists  linger  along  deep  valleys  till  the 
sun  has  risen  high  enough  to  dispel  them,  but  the  gospel 
had  brought  a  fuller  day,  and  everywhere  its  vitalising 
strength  increased  as  the  centuries  rolled  onwards.  But  as 
yet,  speaking  generally,  only  the  mountain  peaks  had  caught 
its  light.  The  kings  and  leaders  of  the  people  first  felt  its 
influences  and  yielded  to  its  attractions.  Many  decades 
indeed  were  to  pass  by  ere  the  lower  levels,  the  humbler 
masses  of  the  people,  were  to  own  with  the  same  full  intelli- 
gence the  new  principles  of  life  which  Columba  had  scattered 
over  the  land.     It  was  this  important  work  among  the  body 


INTRODUCTION  19 

of  the  people  which  fell  to  the  care  of  such  as  Cuthbert,  and 
in  this  labour  of  patience  and  love  history  shows  him  as 
eminently  successful,  as  well  as  a  conspicuous  example  of 
the  Christian  teacher  and  saint. 

It  were  perhaps  a  bootless  task  to  endeavour  to  realise 
the  aspect  of  Lauderdale  in  the  seventh  century  as  far  as 
concerns  its  topography  and  general  appearance  of  landscape. 
Still  the  district  as  Cuthbert  then  saw  it  must  have  been, 
in  its  main  features,  very  similar  to  what  it  is  to-day.  The 
permanency  of  the  hills  and  valleys,  glens,  ravines,  and 
correis,  climate  and  seasons,  may  pass  unquestioned,  and  the 
only  difference  in  the  aspect  of  scenery  must  be  found  in 
the  prevalence  of  open  field  or  forest  which  might  then 
obtain.  In  the  earlier  centuries  Roman  writers  depict 
the  Briton  as  living  by  very  primitive  methods.  "  Forests 
are  their  cities,"  says  one ;  "  for  having  enclosed  an  ample 
space  with  felled  trees,  here  they  make  themselves  huts 
and  lodge  their  cattle."  *  It  is  perhaps  safe  to  say  that 
forest  more  or  less  abounded  over  all  the  district  between 
the  Forth  and  the  Cheviots.  This  seems  to  have  been  the 
case,  at  least,  through  several  centuries  later.  The  birch 
tree,  the  ash,  the  rowan  seem  indigenous  to  the  soil,  and 
would  quickly  clothe  the  hill-sides  with  dense  wood  ;  while 
the  juniper,  the  whin,  the  willow,  and  the  broom  would  spread 
thickly  over  the  intervening  spaces.  But  woody  land  is 
invariably  moist  and  rains  are  frequent,  and  we  can  imagine 
that  such  a  valley  as  Lauderdale,  with  so  many  rivulets, 
brooks,  and  "  waters  "  pouring  into  the  Leader  from  the  sur- 
rounding hills,  would  in  those  days  often  present  a  wild 
watery  scene  of  tumbling  floods  the  whole  breadth  of  its 
planular  area.     The  fact  of  Cuthbert  having  been  engaged 

♦  Strabo,  Book  IV. 


20  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

under  a  master  as  shepherd  seems,  on  the  other  hand,  to 
point  to  cleared  ground  for  the  purposes  of  pasturage.  But 
where  the  mode  of  Hfe  was  perilous,  and  the  appeal  to  arms 
perpetual,  and  marauding  doubtless  common,  the  flocks 
perhaps  were  few  in  number,  and  would  have  more  need 
of  protection  from  the  wild  denizens  of  the  woods  than 
of  wide  spaces  over  which  to  range.  Cuthbert,  we  are  told, 
was  with  other  shepherds  when  he  saw  his  vision,  and  this 
combination,  together  with  the  circumstance  of  tending  his 
sheep  by  night,  seem  to  give  this  surmise  some  confirmation. 
The  peaceful  character  attached  to  pastoral  life,  which  in 
general  prevails  amongst  us  now,  cannot  help  us  in  forming 
a  conception  of  the  same  life  in  Northumbria  in  the  seventh 
century.  When  Cuthbert  goes  to  Mailros  Abbey  to  throw 
in  his  lot  with  its  pious  inmates  he  has  neither  the  aspect 
of  a  shepherd  nor  the  appearance  of  a  monk.  He  is  seated 
on  horseback  and  has  a  spear  in  his  hand,  as  if  all  who 
went  abroad  in  those  days  either  through  Lauderdale  or 
beyond  it  must  have  possessed  both  means  of  speed  to  fly 
from,  and  weapons  to  resist,  imminent  dangers.  The  over- 
ruling Saxon  and  the  newly  subdued  natives  were  not  likely 
to  possess  a  deep  affection  for  each  other  where  tyranny 
balanced  the  social  scale  on  one  side  and  serfdom  on  the 
other.  Private  feuds  would  be  common,  and  murder  and 
secret  revenge  and  plunder  the  daily  features  of  life  along 
the  district  of  the  Leader.  Sheep  and  cattle  would  be  pre- 
cariously maintained  to  no  greater  an  extent  perhaps  than 
to  serve  the  mere  necessities  of  diet  and  common  comfort. 
The  character  of  the  conquering  people  did  not  insure  a 
much  higher  state  of  civilisation.  The  Saxon  was  by  nature  a 
pirate  on  sea  and  a  robber  on  land.     "  They  left,"  says  one,* 

*  Taine's  English  Literature^  vol.  i.,  p.  42. 


INTRODUCTION  21 

"  the  care  of  the  land  and  flocks  to  the  women  and  slaves ; 
seafaring,  war,  and  pillage  was  their  whole  idea  of  a  free- 
man's work."  Even  in  the  seventh  century  he  must  have 
looked  upon  Britain  not  so  much  as  his  home  as  an  Ali 
Baba's  cave  of  plunder.  The  main  characteristics  of  the 
ruling  tribe  with  whom  Cuthbert  came  into  contact  were 
well  marked  and  unmistakable.  We  are  told  Jthat  their 
seizure  of  Britain  did  not  refine  them,  but  rather  the  reverse. 
They  are  found  there,  according  to  Taine  *  "  more  gluttonous, 
carving  their  hogs,  filling  themselves  with  flesh,  swallowing 
down  deep  draughts  of  mead,  ale,  spiced  wines,  all  the  strong, 
coarse  drinks  which  they  can  procure,  and  so  are  they 
cheered  9.nd  stimulated."  As  contrasted  with  Romans  who 
had  also  met  and  subjugated  the  Briton,  they  "are  large, 
gross  beasts,  clumsy  and  ridiculous  when  not  dangerous  and 
enraged."  These  features  were  not  effaced  by  a  thousand 
years  of  civilisation ;  then  "  imagine  what  he  must  have  been 
when,  landing  with  his  band  upon  a  wasted  or  desert  country, 
and  becoming  for  the  first  time  a  settler,  he  saw  extending  to 
the  horizon  the  common  pastures  of  the  border  country,  and 
the  great  primitive  forests  which  furnished  stags  for  the  chase 
and  acorns  for  his  pigs."  But  though  he  could  kill  himself 
in  order  that  he  might  die  as  he  had  lived,  in  blood,  he 
was  not  deficient  in  high  moral  conceptions.  Marriage  was 
pure  among  them.  A  woman  was  sacred.  No  society  has 
ever  been  built  up  on  a  better  basis  than  that  for  which  the 
Saxon  nature  provided  material.  Moral  beauty  he  acknow- 
ledged as  a  guide,  and  reverenced  it  even  when  wallowing 
in  physical  excess.  "This  kind  of  naked  brute,  who  lies 
all  day  by  his  fireside,  sluggish  and  dirty,  always  eating  and 
drinking,  whose  rusty  faculties  cannot  follow  the  clear  and 

*  English  Literature,  vol.  i.,  p.  44. 


22  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

fine  outlines  of  happily  created  poetic  forms,  catches  a 
glimpse  of  the  sublime  in  his  troubled  dreams."  This  mystic 
touch  in  his  constitution  predisposed  him  to  Christianity  and 
rendered  the  preaching  of  the  monks  an  easy  task.  Its 
love  and  terror,  pathos  and  sublimity,  its  lofty  disregard  of 
pain  and  death,  and  the  magnificence  of  its  hope  and  future 
inheritance,  were  sure  to  find  ready  acceptance  among  a 
race  whose  temperament  seemed  compounded  of  angel  and 
demon,  hero  and  beast,  and  to  whom  the  eternal  world  was 
as  awful  and  alluring  as  the  ocean  whose  storms  they  braved, 
or  the  land-spoils  they  captured  at  the  peril  of  their  lives. 
The  religion  of  the  cross  was  first  taught  them,  it  seems,  by 
the  Roman  Paulinus,  who  sallied  forth  among  them  from 
York.  But  the  Columban  Church,  more  aggressive  from  the 
north  and  west,  and  having  a  ready-made  disciple  in  King 
Oswald,  built  up  the  Christian  faith  on  a  more  lasting 
foundation,  and  ultimately  gave  the  death  blow  to  Saxon 
paganism. 

These  brief  notes  on  the  condition  of  the  sixth  century  and 
the  beginning  of  the  seventh  are,  of  course,  meant  chiefly  to 
illustrate  the  personality  and  character  of  Cuthbert  himself, 
and  to  help  us  to  realise  somewhat  his  position  in  Lauderdale 
and  at  Channelkirk  at  that  early  period.  Cuthbert's  life 
and  work  have  been  written  of  exhaustively,  but  the  points 
questioned  are  numerous.  This,  of  course,  does  not  wholly 
surprise  us.  No  spot  of  history,  sacred  or  profane,  is  abso- 
lutely free  from  suspicion,  but  it  would  seem  that  those  parts 
which  refer  to  Cuthbert's  early  days  are  destined  to  go 
down  to  all  time  under  the  menace  of  interrogations.  Writers 
on  the  subject  appear  to  divide  themselves  into  two  groups — 
the  ecclesiastical,  and  the  laic.  The  Bollandists,  Archbishop 
Eyre,  Bishop  Dowden,  to  take  a  few  from  the  one  side,  doubt 


INTRODUCTION  23 

the  account  which  the  Libellus  de  ortu  S.  Cuthberti,  or,  The 
Irish  Life,  gives  of  his  birth  and  boyhood  ;  and  Green,  Raine, 
and  Skene,  to  take  a  counter  number  from  the  other  side, 
lean  to  its  probabilities  as  far  as  it  is  possible  for  human 
credulity  to  go.  We  shall  not  attempt  to  give  any  decision 
where  so  many  learned  minds  disagree,  but  content  ourselves 
with  following  in  the  footsteps  of  those  who  are  universally 
accredited  as  being  the  best  authorities.  We  cull  the  following 
extracts  from  Skene's  great  work,  Celtic  Scotland*  the  better 
to  enable  the  reader  to  grasp  the  salient  features  in  the  history 
of  our  Patron  Saint,  as  well  as  to  give  in  his  own  words  an 
account  which  is  admitted  to  be  unbiassed. 

"  If  the  great  name  in  the  Cumbrian  Church  was  that  of 
Kentigern,  that  which  left  its  greatest  impress  in  Lothian,  and 
one  with  which  the  monastery  of  Mailros  was  peculiarly  con- 
nected, was  that  of  Cudberct,  popularly  called  Saint  Cuthbert. 
Several  lives  of  him  have  come  down  to  us  ;  but  undoubtedly 
the  one  which,  from  its  antiquity,  is  most  deserving  of  credit, 
is  that  by  the  venerable  Bede."  "  Bede,  too,  was  born  in  the 
lifetime  of  the  saint  whose  life  he  records,  and  must  have  been 
about  thirteen  years  old  when  he  died."  "  Bede  tells  us 
nothing  of  the  birth  and  parentage  of  Cudberct ;  and  though 
he  relates  an  incident  which  occurred  when  the  saint  was  in 
his  eighth  year,  and  which  he  says  Bishop  Trumuini,  of 
blessed  memory,  affirmed  that  Cudberct  had  himself  told  him, 
he  does  not  indicate  where  or  in  what  country  he  had  passed 
his  boyhood.  When  he  first  connects  Cudberct  with  any 
locality,  he  says  that  *  he  was  keeping  watch  over  the  flocks 
committed  to  his  charge  on  some  remote  mountains.'  These 
mountains,  however,  were  the  southern  slope  of  the  Lammer- 
moors,  which  surround  the  upper  part  of  the  vale  of  the 

*  Book  II.,  p.  201. 


24  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Leader,  in  Berwickshire  ;  for  the  anonymous  history  of  Saint 
Cuthbert,  which,  next  to  his  Life  by  Bede,  has  the  greatest 
value,  says  that  'he  was  watching  over  the  flocks  of  his 
master  in  the  mountains  near  the  river  Leder.'  There 'on 
a  certain  night,  when  he  was  extending  his  long  vigils  in 
prayers,  as  was  his  wont,'  which  shows  the  bent  of  his  mind 
towards  a  religious  life,  he  had  a  vision  in  which  he  saw  the 
soul  of  Bishop  Aidan  of  Lindisfarne  being  carried  to  heaven 
by  choirs  of  the  heavenly  host ;  and  resolved  in  consequence 
to  enter  a  monastery  and  put  himself  under  monastic  disci- 
pline." "  Thus  Cudberct  became  a  monk  of  the  Monastery  of 
Melrose.  As  Bishop  Aidan  died  in  the  year  651,  this  gives 
us  the  first  certain  date  in  his  life." 

"  The  only  Life  which  professes  to  give  his  earlier  history 
is  '  The  Book  of  the  Nativity  of  Saint  Cuthbert,  taken  and 
translated  from  the  Irish.'  According  to  this  Life,  Cuthbert 
was  born  in  Ireland,  of  royal  extraction.  His  mother, 
Sabina,  daughter  of  the  king  who  reigned  in  the  city  called 
Lainestri,  was  taken  captive  by  the  King  of  Connathe,  who 
slew  her  father  and  all  her  family.  He  afterwards  violated 
her,  and  then  sent  her  to  his  own  mother,  who  adopted  her, 
and,  together  with  her,  entered  a  monastery  of  virgins  which 
was  then  under  the  care  of  a  bishop.  There  Sabina  gave 
birth  to  the  boy  Cuthbert,  and  the  bishop  baptized  him, 
giving  him  the  Irish  name  of  Mullucc.  He  is  said  to  have 
been  born  in  '  Kenanus '  or  Kells,  a  monastery  said  to  have 
been  founded  by  Columba  on  the  death  of  the  bishop  who 
had  educated  him.  His  mother  goes  with  him  to  Britain  by 
the  usual  mode  of  transit  in  these  legends,  that  is,  by  a  stone, 
which  miraculously  performs  the  functions  of  a  curach,  and 
they,  land  in  '  Galweia,  in  that  region  called  Rennii,  in  the 
harbour  of  Rintsnoc,'  no  doubt  Portpatrick  in  the  Rinns  of 


INTRODUCTION  25 

Galloway."  "  They  then  go  to  the  island  which  is  called  Hy, 
or  lona,  where  they  remain  some  time  with  the  religious  men 
of  that  place.  Then  they  visit  two  brothers-german  of  the 
mother,  Meldanus  and  Eatanus,  who  were  bishops  in  the 
province  of  the  Scots,  in  which  each  had  an  episcopal  seat, 
and  these  take  the  boy  and  place  him  under  the  care  of  a 
certain  religious  man  in  Lothian,  while  the  mother  goes  on 
a  pilgrimage  to  Rome.  In  this  place  in  Lothian  a  church 
was  afterwards  erected  in  his  honour,  which  is  to  this  day 
called  Childeschirche,  and  here  the  book  of  the  nativity  of 
St  Cuthbert,  taken  from  the  Irish  histories,  terminates. 
Childeschirche  is  the  old  name  of  the  parish  now  called 
Channelkirk,  in  the  upper  part  of  the  vale  of  the  Leader ;  and 
the  Irish  Life  thus  lands  him  where  Bede  takes  him  up." 

"  It  is  certainly  remarkable  that  Bede  gives  no  indication 
of  Cudberct's  nationality.  He  must  surely  have  known 
whether  he  was  of  Irish  descent  or  not.  He  is  himself  far  too 
candid  and  honest  a  historian  not  to  have  stated  the  fact  if  it 
was  so,  and  it  is  difficult  to  avoid  the  suspicion  that  this  part 
of  his  narrative  was  one  of  those  portions  which  he  had  ex- 
punged at  the  instance  of  the  critics  to  whom  he  had  sub- 
mitted his  manuscript.  Unfortunately,  Bede  nowhere  gives 
us  Cudberct's  age.  He  elsewhere  calls  him  at  this  time  a 
young  man,  and  he  says  that  his  life  had  reached  to  old  age." 

"  Cudberct  resigned  his  bishopric  in  686,  and  died  in  687. 
He  could  hardly  have  been  under  sixty  at  that  time,  and 
it  was  probably  on  his  attaining  that  age  that  he  with- 
drew from  active  life.  This  would  place  his  birth  in  the  year 
626,  and  make  him  twenty-five  when  he  joined  the  monastery 
at  Mailr6s.  The  Irish  Life  appears  to  have  been  recognised 
by  the  monks  of  Durham  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  century, 
and  it  is  perfectly  possible  that  these  events  may  have  taken 


26  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

place  before  Bede  takes  up  his  history,  though  they  are 
characterised  by  the  usual  anachronisms."  "  The  truth  may 
possibly  be  that  he  was  the  son  of  an  Irish  kinglet  by  an 
Anglic  mother ;  and  this  would  account  for  her  coming  to 
Britain  with  the  boy,  and  his  being  placed  under  a  master  in 
the  vale  of  the  Leader." 

It  is  unnecessary  to  follow  further  the  great  work  of  the 
apostle  of  Southern  Scotland.  What  Columban  lona  was 
to  the  inhabitants  of  the  lands  north  of  Forth,  so  almost  was 
the  Lindisfarne  establishment  of  St  Cuthbert  to  the  Lothians 
and  the  north  of  England.*  All  the  churches  of  Bernicia  from 
Tyne  to  Tweed,  and  of  Deira  from  Tyne  to  the  Humber, 
had  their  origin  from  the  monastery  of  Lindisfarne,  or 
Holy  Island.*!*  We  know  from  the  "  Coaevus  Monachus,"  who 
wrote  a  life  of  Cuthbert,  and  Bede,  who  has  put  his  life  into 
both  prose  and  poetry,  that  during  his  stay  in  Mailros,|  "  he 
was  wont  chiefly  to  resort  to  those  places,  and  preach  in  such 
villages,  as  being  seated  high  up  amid  craggy,  uncouth 
mountains,  were  frightful  to  others  to  behold,  and  whose 
poverty  and  barbarity  rendered  them  inaccessible  to  other 
teachers."  There  is  in  all  probability  a  reference  here  to  the 
district  of  Upper  Lauderdale  with  which  he  was  so  well 
acquainted  as  boy  and  shepherd.  The  region  was  "  frightful 
to  others  ":  they  were  unacquainted  with  its  wild  and  barbarous 
inhabitants  ;  but  to  Cuthbert  place  and  people  were  familiar, 
and  there  he  had  often  passed  nights  of  prayer  ;  and  to  stay 
among  them  for  weeks  together,  as  Bede  tells  us  he  did,  was 
but  to  renew  former  experiences,  and  sustain  his  former 
character  for  piety  and  zealous  propagation  of  holy  religion. 
The  story  of  his  subsequent  life  and  death,  and  the  weird 

*  Burton,  vol.  i.,  p.  275.  fBede's  Ecclesiastical  History^  Bk.  III.,  ch.  iii. 

X  Ecclesiastical  History^  Bk.  IV.,  ch.  xxvii. 


INTRODUCTION  27 

wanderings  of  his  unburied  corpse  till  it  rested  at  last  in 
Durham  Cathedral,  do  not  come  within  the  scope  of  this 
work,  and  have  rather  reference  to  national  history  than  to 
the  humbler  fortunes  of  Channelkirk. 

The  centuries  immediately  following  St  Cuthbert's  date 
are  noted  for  the  historical  darkness  that  lies  over  them. 
The  three  great  powers  of  race,  religion,  and  regality,  with 
their  thousandfold  subordinate  influences,  are  seen  through 
the  dim  mist  of  traditions,  annals,  and  chronicles,  in  tragical 
struggle  for  supremacy  ;  but  except  as  involved  in  the  vicissi- 
tudes which  befell  wide  tracts  of  territory,  we  have  scarcely 
a  ray  of  light  to  show  us,  even  in  twilight  outlines,  the 
particular  character  and  trend  of  human  life  as  it  flowed 
then  through  Lauderdale.  Peace  could  scarcely  have 
reigned  there  when  so  many  passions  were  in  fury  and 
the  deepest  interests  were  in  peril.  The  foundations  of 
future  Scotland  were  then  being  laid,  and  the  blood  of 
Saxon,  Briton,  and  Dane  watered  them  copiously.  Lothian 
is  said  to  have  been  invaded  six  times  during  the  ninth 
century,  Melrose  and  Dunbar  reduced  to  ashes,  and  the 
whole  of  Bernicia  and  part  of  Anglia  to  have  been  subdued 
by  Aed,  son  of  Niel,  King  of  Ireland.  We  are  safe  to  assume 
that  Lauderdale  shared  in  the  horrors  of  these  invasions, 
though  the  silent  earth  has  received  all  record  of  them 
into  her  bosom  for  ever.  It  is  conjecturable,  however,  that 
the  Danish  incursions,  and  after  them  the  Norwegian,  may 
have  left  proof  of  their  existence  here  in  a  few  of  the 
place-names  which  have  been  exhumed.  "  Oxton  "  village 
was  originally  Ulfcytelstun,  or  the  "tun"  of  Ulfcytel  or 
Ulfkill,  a  name  which  is  purely  Norse.  The  "  Lileston "  of 
to-day  was  originally  "  Ilifston,"  Olafs-tun,  or  the  "  tun "  of 
Olave,  also  a  name  of  Norse  descent.     Hartside  lands  come 


28  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

before  us  in  the  early  charters  as  having  been  held  by  Heden 
and  Hemming,  the  former  of  which  may  possibly  be  a 
contracted  form  of  Haldane  or  Half  dene,  a  name  which  was 
terrible  enough  all  over  Bernicia  about  872.  Hemming  was 
the  name  of  a  Danish  leader  who  landed  with  Turkil  in 
1009,  and  ravaged  Kent,  Sussex,  and  Hampshire,*  and  this 
Hemming,  who  is  proprietor  in  Upper  Lauderdale  before 
the  twelfth  century,  clearly  belongs  to  the  same  sea-roving 
race.  It  is,  of  course,  optional  to  regard  these  Norse  names 
as  having  come  into  Upper  Lauderdale  with  some  plunder- 
ing raiders  of  the  east  coast  who  found  it  more  advantageous 
to  remain  here  than  return  across  the  seas  to  their  own 
country  ;  or,  on  the  other  hand,  to  suppose  that  later  they 
had  come  north  in  the  retinue  of  the  powerful  Norman  sept 
of  De  Morville,  and  through  him  had  obtained  landed  im- 
portance in  lieu  of  services  worthy  of  this  honour. 

Some  scintillations  of  reflected  light  on  the  mundane 
affairs  of  Lauderdale  are  thus  perhaps  possible  to  us  from 
these  sources,  but  when  we  endeavour  to  descry  there  the 
outlines  of  a  church  or  any  form  of  established  religion,  we 
must  reverse  the  usual  order  of  our  instincts  and  pass  from 
light  into  darkness.  The  period  between  700  and  iiooA.D. 
is  admittedly  a  benighted  one.  With  the  life  of  Cuthbert 
all  reference  to  Channelkirk  ceases  till  the  era  of  record  opens 
in  the  twelfth  century  under  David  the  First.  Yet  there  are 
inductive  processes  by  which  from  authentic  facts  we  may 
pass  to  reasonable  conclusions  regarding  what  must  have  taken 
place  during  that  interval,  and  arrive  inferentially  at  general 
truths.  Cuthbert  had  passed  away  from  Upper  Lauderdale 
to  a  wider  field  more  suitable  to  his  energies  and  genius,  but 
he  was  far  from  being  forgotten  there.     There  are  few  firmer 

*  Hoveden's  Chronicle,  vol.  i. 


INTRODUCTION  29 

bonds  on  earth  than  those  woven  out  of  the  religious  zeal 
and  affection  which  converts  have  for  their  spiritual  fathers. 
His  name  rang  over  all  the  south,  and  there  must  have  been 
many  who  preserved  the  memory  of  his  presence  and  work 
among  the  gloomy  mountains  of  his  early  experiences,  and 
especially  on  the  banks  of  the  Leader  his  name  would  be 
enshrined  in  the  hearts  of  those  upon  whose  heads  his  holy 
hands  had  been  laid  in  consecrating  baptism.  A  fitting 
memorial  of  worship  raised  to  commemorate  his  saintly 
presence  in  their  midst  seems  only  natural  when  considered 
as  a  possibility.  The  tradition  which  is  found  in  the  Irish 
Life,  and  which  is  enthusiastically  repeated  by  rhyming 
chroniclers,  cannot  have  been  the  outcome  of  pure  fancy.  If 
it  were  a  myth,  what  motive  existed  for  the  creation  of  such  ? 
The  statements  are  infectious  in  the  superlative  expression 
of  their  convictions.  "  The  place  itself  is  even  still  held  by  the 
inhabitants  as  of  the  greatest  note,  in  which  a  church  to  his 
honour  is  now  consecrated  to  God."  The  lapse  of  five  or  six 
hundred  years,  that  is,  had  not  obliterated  the  fame  of  St 
Cuthbert  among  these  early  people  of  Channelkirk.  They 
cannot  even  dream  that  any  one  in  Scotland  can  be  ignorant 
of  the  circumstances  : — 

"  That  place  is  knawen  in  all'  Scotland, 
For  nowe  a  kirk  thar  on  stand, 
Childe  kirk  is  called  commonly — " 

And  with  such  exuberant  faith  and  words  before  us,  it 
.seems  almost  obstinate  to  disbelieve  that  the  connection  of 
St  Cuthbert  with  Channelkirk  was  genuinely  accepted  by 
Scottish  people  in  general  in  the  way  they  have  handed 
it  down  to  us. 

When    we    reach   the    twelfth    century,   and   enter    the 
peaceful   haven   of  the   testimony  of  Chartularies,  it    is   to 


30  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

find  Channelkirk  Church  a  well-settled  institution  on 
the  land  which  was  then  the  property  of  Hugh  de 
Morville,  Lord  of  Lauderdale,  and  under  his  benign 
patronage.  But  though  he  bestowed  it,  towards  the  close 
of  his  life,  on  the  Abbot  and  brethren  of  Dryburgh  Abbey, 
there  is  not  the  least  trace  of  an  indication  that  it  had 
been  founded  or  built  by  him.  Lauder  Church,  moreover, 
was  in  existence  as  early  as  1170  A.D.,  but  Dryburgh 
monks  testify  that  Channelkirk  Church  had  been  the 
mother  and  parish  church  of  all  Lauderdale  before  Lauder 
Church  was  founded  there,  and  this  fact  of  itself  seems 
to  point  to  an  early  origin  of  the  former.  Cuthbert  died 
in  687,  an  event  which  was  certain  to  arouse  a  deeper 
and  more  hallowed  enthusiasm  for  his  name  throughout 
all  the  Lowlands,  and  our  inference  from  the  above 
considerations  may  not  be  far  from  the  truth,  when  we 
surmise  that  the  original  Church  of  Channelkirk,  which 
was  built  and  dedicated  to  him,  may  have  come  into 
existence  between  the  seventh  and  ninth  centuries,  during 
the  darkest  period,  that  is,  of  its  historical  record. 

Great  and  far-reaching  changes,  meanwhile,  had 
befallen  the  dale  since  Cuthbert  rode  down  through  it 
to  become  a  monk  in  Melrose,  or  had  wandered  over  its 
hills  and  glens  teaching  and  preaching  the  Gospel  to  the 
Angles  and  Brythonic  serfs  in  their  thrall.  Ecclesiastically 
a  religious  reformation,  or  rather  revolution,  had  taken 
place  in  the  overthrow  of  the  Columban  or  ancient  Scotch 
Church,  and  the  adoption  of  the  Roman  Catholic  in  its 
place,  as  fundamentally  important,  perhaps,  as  that  which 
transpired  in  the  sixteenth  century  under  Luther  and 
Knox,  though  not,  indeed,  so  sweeping  or  abrupt  in  the 
changes   it   effected   among   the   people   of  the  land.      The 


INTRODUCTION  31 

influence  of  the  Roman  Church  had  steadily  crept  across 
the  country,  and  the  power  of  its  hierarchy  was  soon 
paramount  from  shore  to  shore.  This  movement  was 
greatly  aided  by  the  advent  into  Scotland  of  Margaret, 
afterwards  Malcolm's  Queen,  and  those  who  followed  in 
her  train.  Under  the  date  1067,  the  year  following  the 
subjugation  of  England  by  William  the  Conqueror,  the 
Saxon  Chronicle  tells  us,  "  This  summer  the  child  Edgar, 
with  his  mother  Agatha,  his  sisters  Margaret  and 
Christina,  Merlesweyne  and  several  good  men,  went  to 
Scotland  under  the  protection  of  King  Malcolm,  who 
received  them  all.  Then  it  was  that  King  Malcolm 
desired  to  have  Margaret  to  wife ;  but  the  child  Edgar 
and  all  his  men  refused  for  a  long  time,  and  she  herself 
was  unwilling,  saying  that  she  would  have  neither  him 
nor  any  other  person,  if  God  would  allow  her  to  serve 
Him  with  her  carnal  heart,  in  strict  continence,  during 
this  short  life.  But  the  king  urged  her  brother  until  he 
said  yes,  and,  indeed,  he  did  not  dare  to  refuse,  for  they 
were  now  in  Malcolm's  kingdom."  Her  powerful  influence 
in  partly  persuading,  partly  coercing  through  her  royal 
husband  the  hesitating  priests  who  held  the  Ionic  mode 
of  tonsure  and  observance  of  Easter,  needs  but  an 
allusion   here. 

Geographically  we  are  to  bear  in  mind  that  at  this 
time  also  Lauderdale  was  still  in  England  and  not  in 
Scotland.  In  1091,*  "Whilst  King  William  was  out  of 
England,  Malcolm,  King  of  Scotland,  invaded  this  country." 
King  William  hastened  out  of  Normandy  to  repel  him, 
and  when  Malcolm  heard  that  he  and  his  brother  sought 
to  attack  him,  "  he  marched  with  his  array  out  of  Scotland 

*  Saxon  Chronicle. 


32  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

into  Lothian  in  England  and  remained  therer^'^  The 
boundaries  of  our  country  were  not  fixed  on  their  present 
lines  till  some  time  afterwards.  Curiosity  is  a  natural 
feeling  here,  in  the  face  of  such  facts,  to  know  whereabout 
in  Lothian  King  Malcolm  waited  for  the  redoubtable  con- 
queror ;  and  as  King  William  marched  through  Laodoniaf 
into  Scotia  we  naturally  ask  if  it  could  be  possible  that 
he  may  have  led  his  forces  by  way  of  the  great  road,  the 
"  Regiam  Stratam "  of  the  Charters,  through  Lauderdale  ? 
The  valley  was  always  in  ancient  times  the  main  eastern 
route  between  south  and  north.  In  1072  J  William  led 
both  an  army  and  fleet  against  Scotland,  and  while  his 
ships  were  sailing  all  round  the  coast,  he  himself  crossed 
the  Tweed  with  his  army.  Possibly  he  may  have  found 
it  necessary,  as  others  after  him,  to  divide  his  forces,  and  we 
are  perhaps  safe  to  conclude  that  part  went  up  Lauderdale 
and  part  round  by  Dunbar.  It  may,  indeed,  have  been  that 
within  five  years,  viz.  1067-72,  these  two  notable  royalties. 
Queen  Margaret,  strong  of  soul,  and  the  Conqueror,  strong 
of  hand,  representatives  of  much,  trod  the  Derestrete  along 
the  banks  of  the  Leader,  past  Channelkirk  Church,  and 
across  the  dreary  hill  of  Soutra,  one  to  remain  in  Dun- 
fermline leavening  her  adopted  country  with  her  faith 
and  pious  life,  the  other  to  return  to  pursue  in  England 
his  relentless,  merciless  policy,  and  at  last,  in  Normandy, 
find  none  at  his  death  who  loved  him  sufficiently  to  lift 
his  naked  and  despised  corpse  from  the  floor.  §  But, 
however  a  pleasant  fancy  may  speculate  on  such  possi- 
bilities, true  it  is  that  the  Anglo-Norman  influx  from 
England   exerted   a   considerable   sway   over   the   future   of 

*  Saxon  Chronicle  and  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  429.  f  Celtic  Scotland,vo\.  i.,  p.  429  n. 
■^  Saxon  Chronicle.  §  Green's  History  of  the  English  People. 


INTRODUCTION  33 

Channelkirk  Church  and  Parish.  For  in  the  floodtide  of 
that  exodus  came  Hugh  de  Morville,  who  was  found 
worthy  to  possess  most  of  Lauderdale,  and  also  the  high 
favour  and  confidence  of  King  David  the  First,  and  under 
him  to  control  the  great  office  of  Constable  of  Scotland. 
The  country  proper  of  the  Scotch  at  this  time  terminated 
with  the  Firth  of  the  Forth,  but  under  David,  who  was 
Earl  of  Lothian  as  well,  something  like  unity  of  policy 
both  in  Church  and  State  prevailed  over  nearly  all  the 
territory  which  we  now  call  Scotland,  though  consolidation 
and  permanence  were  not  given  to  its  frontiers  till  1266, 
when  the  various  provinces  comprising  the  realm  were 
finally  welded  into  one  compact  whole  by  the  cession  of 
the  Isles.  The  central  authority  of  the  kingdom  was 
therefore  shifted  in  King  David's  reign  from  beyond  the 
Forth  southwards  into  the  Lothians,  and  through  the 
premier  influence  of  the  Lord  of  Lauderdale,  the  power  of 
the  throne  over  all  the  nation  was  for  the  first  time 
directed  from  the  banks  of  the  Leader. 

There  was  more  than  mere  contingency  in  this. 
The  Lothian  men  seemed  to  have  preserved  a  consistent 
form  of  laws  and  customs  through  every  change,  religious 
or  racial,  and  "  Lothian  law  became  eventually  the  basis 
of  Scotch  law."*  "The  feudalism  introduced  by  David 
and  his  successors,  though  Anglo-Norman,  was  very 
much  based  upon  the  Anglo-Saxon,  or  what  was 
much  the  same,  the  Lothian  laws  and  customs."f  And 
thus  there  was  a  higher  reason  than  the  possession  of 
military  force  why  tested  and  settled  government  should 
emanate  from  Central  Lothian.  It  stood  in  the  foi^efront 
of  civilisation. 

*  Robertson's  Scotland  under  the  Early  Kings,  vol.  i.,  p.  96  n.    f  Ibid.,  vol.  i.,  p.  I02. 

c 


34  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  boundaries  of  Channelkirk  Parish  received  recognis- 
able definition  and  outHne  about  this  time.  It  is  well  known 
that  the  boundaries  of  a  great  lord's  estate,  as  a  rule,  came  to 
mark  out  the  limits  of  a  priest's  jurisdiction,  and  it  was  all 
the  more  natural  that  so  it  should  be  when  the  lord  of  the 
manor  had  himself  probably  built  the  church,  and  personally 
endowed  it  out  of  the  revenues  of  his  land.  As  Channelkirk 
Church  was  in  existence  before  De  Morville's  advent  into 
Lauderdale,  its  advowson  and  possessions  through  King 
David  passed  under  his  hand  and  patronage,  and  as  there 
is  no  sufficient  evidence  that  there  was  in  his  day  any  other 
church  in  Lauderdale  with  prior  rights  to  the  jurisdiction 
implied  in  his  being  patron,  there  is  every  likelihood  that 
nominally,  at  least,  if  not  practically,  the  boundaries  of  this 
parish  were  identical  with  De  Morville's  Lauderdale  posses- 
sions. This  condition  of  affairs  continued  in  all  likelihood 
till  the  death  of  the  magnanimous  Hugo  ;  but  another  tone 
and  temper  prevailed  throughout  the  dale,  and  far  beyond  it, 
when  his  son  Richard  de  Morville  wielded  the  power  of  his 
father's  office.  At  that  time  the  parish  marches  are  almost 
as  clearly  visible  as  they  are  to-day,  though  resistance  and 
fierce  protests  appear  latent  in  the  background.  But  with  the 
victories  of  Robert  the  Bruce  in  the  fourteenth  century,  and 
the  overthrow  of  what  may  be  called  the  De  Morville  dynasty 
in  Lauderdale,  all  further  disturbing  influences  ceased,  and 
with  its  departure  old  feuds  and  time-embittered  quarrels 
vanished  also. 

Having  thus  cursorily  sketched  the  outlines  of  the  valley 
in  pre-historic  times,  the  various  peoples  who  have  succes- 
sively followed  each  other  across  its  narrow  confines,  and 
the  establishment  of  the  Christian  Church  in  it  with  St 
Cuthbert's  coming  to  Upper  Lauderdale,  it   may  suffice  to 


INTRODUCTION  .'35  \ 

point  out  briefly  the  chief  territorial  influences  which  hvh 
swayed  its  destinies  since  the  days  of  the  pious  King  David. 

The  house  of  De  Morville  under  that  "  Sair  Sanct "  sus- 
tained an  authority  in  the  nation  which  was  almost  regal 
in  strength,  if  not  in  name,  during  the  early  decades  of  the 
twelfth  century.  The  battle  of  Bannockburn,  in  13 14,  placed 
the  House  of  Douglas  in  the  ascendant  under  King  Robert 
the  First ;  for  the  deposition  of  the  lords  of  Galloway,  who 
inherited  the  De  Morville  patrimony,  added  at  that  time 
to  the  Douglas  the  honour,  among  many  others,  of  being 
"  Lord  of  Lauderdale."  The  fifteenth  century,  however,  saw 
the  Douglas  House  fall  in  turn  from  royal  favour,  and  from 
that  time  the  Maitland  House  steadily  increased  till  with 
John,  Duke  of  Lauderdale,  the  name  of  Lauderdale  once 
more  stood  in  the  seventeenth  century  on  the  loftiest  national 
eminence  possible  to  either  locality  or  subject.  Thrice, 
therefore,  within  the  era  of  written  history,  has  the  trend  of 
the  national  destinies  received  bias  and  direction,  if  not 
positive  creation,  from  those  whom  Lauderdale  acknowledged 
as  her  manorial  kings.  These  three  names,  De  Morville, 
Douglas,  and  Maitland,  are  three  piers  in  a  bridge,  which 
carries  our  historical  wanderings  in  this  valley  across  a  vista 
of  years  that  stretches  from  the  close  of  the  eleventh  century 
down  to  the  present  day. 


CHAPTER  I 

THE   NAME 

"  Channelkirk " — Theories  Regarding  the  Origin  and  Derivation  of  the 
Name — Its  Form  at  Various  Dates — Chalmers'  View — The  Irish 
Zz/^  of  St  Cuthbert — Cuthbert  in  Channelkirk — The  Church  Raised 
in  Honour  of  the  "Childe"  Cuthbert — Dryburgh  Abbey  Charters 
and  the  Dedication — Bishop  De  Bernham — -The  Priest  Godfrey — 
Hugh  de  Morville  as  Patron — The  Name  and  the  Reformation — 
Its  Local  Forms. 

The  name  "  Channelkirk  "  appears  to  have  come  into  general 
use  in  the  district  about  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  We  first  find  it  in  the  Presbytery  Records  under 
the  year  17 16.  Glancing  at  it  briefly,  one  might  reasonably 
assume  that  its  meaning  should  offer  no  serious  difficulty  to 
any  person  who  possessed  an  ordinary  acquaintance  with 
customary  Scotch  terms.  Yet  there  have  been  so  many 
conflicting  opinions  set  forth  as  to  its  origin  and  derivation 
that  we  are  under  considerable  necessity  to  discuss  the 
matter  here  at  some  length. 

The  Rev.  Mr  Johnston  gives  the  following  account:* 
"  Channelkirk  (Lauder)  old,  Childeschirche,  sacred  to  St 
Cuthbert,  french.  O.K.,  cild,  a  child,  especially  of  gentle 
birth,  but  the  present  name  means  'church  of  the  river' 
Leader,  common  former  meaning  of  channel  —  O.Fr. 
chanel,  L.  canalis,  canal."     It  is  not  clear  what  is  meant  by 

*  Place-Names  of  Scotland.     D.  Douglas,  Edinburgh,  1892. 


THE  NAME  37 

"  french."  But  neither  channel  nor  canal  means  river. 
"  Artificially  cut  course  "  seems  to  answer  better.  The  Leader, 
however,  is  as  devious  and  unartificial  as  it  can  possibly  be. 

The  writers  of  the  Old  and  New  Statistical  Accounts  of 
the  Parish  preferred  the  "gravel"  meaning  of  the  word. 
The  Rev.  James  Rutherford,  minister  of  the  parish,  writing 
in  June  1834,  makes  the  following  statement:  "The  ancient 
name  of  the  parish  was  Childer-Kirk,  i.e.  Children's  Kirk, 
having  been  dedicated  to  the  Innocents.  More  recently  its 
name  was  Gingle-Kirk." 

"  It  is  so  written  in  our  old  parochial  records,  and  it  is 
still  commonly  so  pronounced.  Its  etymology  is  uncertain  ; 
probably  it  may  have  had  a  reference  to  the  nature  of  the 
soil,  which  is  chiefly  of  a  gravelly  sort."  * 

This  derivation,  set  forth  with  native  caution,  appears 
to  have  been  directly  inspired  by  the  Old  Statistical  Account, 
so  honourably  associated  with  the  name  of  Sir  John  Sinclair. 
The  Rev.  Thomas  Murray,  minister,  Channelkirk,  and  who 
wrote  the  account  of  this  parish  for  that  work  in  I794,t  says  : 
"  The  present  name  of  the  parish  is  evidently  modern,  and 
is  happily  descriptive  of  the  nature  of  the  soil  which  is,  in 
general,  a  light  thin  earth  on  a  deep  bed  of  sandy  gravel. 
In  our  records,  which  are  preserved  as  far  back  as  1650, 
the  name  of  the  parish  is  spelled  Chingelkirk.  Chingle,  I 
presume,  is  the  old  Scotch  word  synonymous  to  the  modern 
term  channel.'' 

So  far,  the  meaning  of  the  present  name  is  traced  to  the 
river  Leader,  which  takes  its  rise  in  the  parish,  and  to  the 
general  character  of  the  soil  within  its  bounds.  The  old 
name  "  Childeschirche,"  "  Childer-kirk,"  is   by  Mr   Johnston 

*  New  Statistical  Account  of  Scotlatid,  p.  88,  "  Berwickshire." 
t  Old  Statistical  Account  of  Scotland,  "  Channelkirk." 


38  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

referred  to  a  "  child "  of  some  unknown  name,  and  by  Mr 
Rutherford  to  the  Holy  Innocents  from  whom  it  derives  the 
force  of  Cliildren's  Kirk.  Mr  Johnston  is,  we  believe,  original 
in  his  view,  but  Mr  Rutherford  draws  his  arrow  from  the 
quiver  of  another  archer,  viz.,  the  Rev.  Dr  Ford,  minister  of 
Lauder.  He  acknowledges  this  indebtedness.  But  he  says, 
"  As  the  doctor  gives  no  authority  in  support  of  this  opinion, 
and  as  I  find  no  such  thing  mentioned  in  Spottiswoode's 
Appendix  to  Hope's  Minor  Prackticks,  I  am  disposed  to 
consider  it  a  mere  conjecture,  and  am  of  opinion  that  the 
obvious  etymology  first  mentioned  is  the  best."  Mr  Ruther- 
ford is  not  to  be  tempted  on  to  "  trap-doors."  Holy  Inno- 
cents, forsooth  !  He  finds  the  Scotch  "  sand  "  and  "  gravel " 
solid  enough.  Dr  Hew  Scott  in  his  Fasti Ecclesian(Z  Scoticance* 
was  less  timorous,  and  without  giving  any  authority,  boldly 
sustained  the  "  Innocent "  etymology.  Dr  James  Gammack 
in  his  Itinerary  of  Bishop  de  Bernham,  founded  upon  Scott, 
and  Canon  Wordsworth,  Glaston  (now  of  Tyneham),  followed 
in  his  Introduction  to  De  Bernham's  Pontifical.^  Dr  Gammack, 
however,  has  since  withdrawn  his  view  regarding  the  "  Inno- 
cents." Mr  Johnston,  quoted  above,  is  also  now  of  opinion 
that  "  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  forms  '  Childes-'  and 
'  Childer-Kirk  '  represent  two  distinct  traditions." 

The  legend  on  the  kirk  bell  runs :  "  For  Channonkirk, 
1702."  "  Ginglekirk  "  and  "  Jinglekirk,"  are,  it  is  true,  often 
met  with  throughout  the  kirk  records,  being  perhaps  the 
nearest  phonetic  spelling  of  the  name  which  has  been  most 
familiar  to  the  ears  of  the  people  in  the  district  for  several 
centuries.  "  Chinelkirk "  occurs  frequently  in  the  records  of 
Earlston  Presbytery  from  1696  onwards.  It  is  a  mistake  to  say, 
however,  that  in  the  earliest  kirk  record  of  1650,  the  name  is 

*  Vol.  I.,  part  ii.,  p.  521.  f  Edinburgh  Pitsligo  Press,  1885. 


THE  NAME  39 

"  Chingelkirk."  The  name  there  is  "  Chinghilkirk,"  or 
"  Chinghelkirk,"  for  the  second  "  i  "  is  not  dotted,  and  may  be 
meant  for  an  "e."  As  we  ascend  the  stream  of  historical 
narrative,  we  reach  the  form  "  Cheinilkirk  "  about  1634 :  about 
1630,  "  Chingelkirk  "  :  1620,  "  Chingilkirk  "  :  (Font's  map,  c. 
1608,  has  "  Gingle  Kirk").  In  1586-7,  it  is  distorted  once  to 
the  rather  curious  form  "  Chingclek."  In  1580,  it  is  "  Cheingill 
Kyrk."  In  1567,  seven  years  after  the  Reformation,  it  is 
"  Chynkilkirk,"  alongside  of  the  commoner  form  "  Chingilkirk." 
In  1560,  the  year  of  the  Reformation,  the  name  appears  for 
the  first  time,  in  our  backward  journey,  with  a  "^"  in  it.  It 
is  "  Cheindilkirk,"  or  "  Chenidilkirk,"  and  in  1535,  "  Chyndyl- 
kirk."  It  is  evident  that  in  the  forms  of  "  Chynkilkirk "  of 
1 567,  and  "  Cheindelkirk  "  of  1 560,  we  have  some  evidence 
of  the  changes  which  were  then  being  carried  forward 
throughout  the  whole  country.  When  names  are  so  tossed 
about,  there  must  be  storms  at  work.  We  find,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  that  the  former  was  the  name  familiar  to  the  people, 
and  the  latter  the  designation  which  was  known  to  the 
Church.  The  one  with  which  the  monks  were  intimate,  and 
which  is  found  in  the  charters  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  more  than 
forty  times,  is  that  of  Childinchirch,  Childenchirch,  Chyldin- 
chirch,  Childenechirche,  or  some  similarly  analogous  form 
of  the  same  construction.  These  charters  which  mention 
Channelkirk  Church,  range  between  1153-1318.  About  1268, 
till  1 3 18,  "  Childenkirk "  is  sometimes  put  as  an  "alias"  of 
"  Childinchirch,"  and  this  seems  to  point  to  the  conflict  which 
had  already  begun  between  the  ecclesiastical  and  popular 
forms. 

When  we  leave  these  charters  we  find  our  light  growing 
dimmer,  and  our  etymological  Bridge  of  Mirza  becomes 
shrouded  in  mist.     But  we  do  not  lose  heart  though  we  lose 


40  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

light.  Truth  is  greater  than  either,  and  her  very  home  is 
in  mystery.  Besides,  it  appears  that  there  are  footprints 
further  on.  That  bold  pioneer,  George  Chalmers,  has  passed 
this  way,  and  it  is  here,  perhaps,  that  we  may  most  fittingly 
introduce  his  singular  derivation.  If  it  turn  out  to  be  a  mere 
spectre  of  the  Brocken,  it  may  not  prove  satisfactory,  but  it  • 
cannot  fail  to  be  interesting  and  impressive,  and  it  is  just 
possible  that  Chalmers  did  not  aim  at  higher  results.  But 
he  evidently  felt  that  the  "  sand  "  and  "  gravel "  theory  was 
impossible.  And,  indeed,  from  the  present  day  back  to 
1 560,  it  is  perfectly  clear  that  there  is  no  rational  element  in 
the  whole  forest  of  "Gingles,"  "Jingles,"  and  "Shingles," 
distinctive  enough  to  warrant  any  sane  person  in  building 
an  intelligent  meaning  upon  it.  Chalmers  instinctively  per- 
ceived that  if  any  meaning  were  possible,  it  must  be  found 
not  on  this,  but  on  the  other  side  of  the  Reformation.  And 
having  once  resolved  to  traverse  the  centuries,  he  soon  ac- 
complishes the  task.  Like  the  prince  in  the  Arabian  Nights, 
he  but  mounts  his  steed,  turns  the  peg  at  its  ear,  and  soon 
the  periods  of  the  Crusades,  Norman  Invasions,  Danish  In- 
vasions, Saxon  Invasions,  in  short.  Middle  Ages,  Dark  Ages, 
and  similar  spaces,  are  all  left  behind  him  !  He  alights  in  the 
second  century,  we  may  say,  and  seeks  an  explanation  from 
the  people  called  Otadeni,  who  occupied  our  Berwickshire 
district  at  that  time,  believing  that  a  church  might  have 
existed  at  Channelkirk  "  before  the  epoch  of  record."  He 
states  his  view  in  the  following  way :  "  The  name  of  the 
parish  of  Channelkirk  is  obscure.  In  the  charters  of  the 
twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  the  word  is  written  Chyldin- 
chirche  and  Childincirch ;  which  evince  that  Channelkirk  is  a 
mere  modern  corruption.  The  affix  to  the  original  term  is 
obviously  the  Saxon  circ,  cyrc,  cyric,  the  Old  English  kirk,  the 


THE  NAME  41 

Anglo-Norman  church.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  the 
original  name  of  the  place,  which  is  significantly  marked  by 
the  site  of  the  Roman  camp,  was  Childin,  which  may  have 
been  left  here  by  the  Romanised  Ottadini,  with  other  names 
that  still  remain,  as  we  have  seen,  in  their  British  form.  And, 
of  course,  the  Cambro-British  word  is  plainly  cil-din,  signifying 
the  retreat,  or  chapel,  or  church,  at  the  fort." 

It  must  be  confessed  that  his  theory  is  ingenious,  and  we 
feel  at  once  the  angelic  strength  of  wing,  but  like  the  other 
derivations  given  above,  it  is  fatally  discredited  through  lack 
of  sufficient  authority.  "  It  is  more  than  probable,"  he  says, 
but  it  is  still  conjectural.  The  Anglo-Saxon  forms  are  not,  it 
appears,  circ^  cyrc^  cyric,  as  he  affirms,  but  cirice,  cyrice,  circe, 
cyrce^  the  final  "  e  "  being  necessary  to  get  the  "  ch."  We  are 
convinced  that  Chalmers  has  shown  us  a  spectre  among  the 
mists.  Still,  one  parts  reluctantly  from  him.  He  is  our  last 
hope. 

Hitherto,  the  solution  of  the  meaning  has  been  prosecuted 
in  the  regions  of  the  topographical,  the  etymological,  and  the 
military.  Why  should  we  not  try  the  ecclesiastical?  A 
place-name  so  churchy  as  Channelkirk  seems  traceable  to 
such  a  source.  Is  there  any  strongly  persistent  fact,  historical 
or  traditional,  or  both  combined,  set  down  in  the  centuries 
preceding  those  of  the  Dryburgh  Charters,  where  we  last 
leave  written  testimony,  which  might  justly  be  esteemed 
powerful  enough  to  create  a  place-name  of  the  "  Childen- 
Chirch "  complexion  ?  May  not  the  sufficiently  proved 
historical  connection  of  St  Cuthbert  with  the  Lammermoors, 
on  which  Channelkirk  is  built,  lie  at  the  foundation  of  the 
difficulty  ?  The  labyrinths,  however  puzzling,  had  a  veritable 
entrance  and  exit,  and  where  we  have  lost  ourselves  by  so 
many  paths,  we  can  but  attempt  another  in  search  of  liberty. 


42  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  merest   thread,  contemptible  for  strength  in  all  other 
circumstances,  may  save  us  in  this  one. 

We  turn,  then,  to  a  MS.,  which,  says  Dr  James  Raine,  is  in 
a  fourteenth  century  hand,*  and  may  have  been  first  written 
towards  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century.  In  his  Life  of  St 
Cuthbert,  Canon  Fowler  says  {Surtees  Society,  No.  87,  II., 
pref.  vi.,  New  Edition,  1889),  "It  is  possible  there  may  be 
some  germ  of  historic  truth  at  the  bottom  of  the  Irish  story." 
He  also  thinks  it  "  probable "  that  this  Irish  Life  was 
"written  towards  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century,"  though 
the  "  older  forms  "  of  the  name  "  Childenechirche,"  he  quotes 
as  only  "c.  1295"  (note  2,  5).  If  this  Irish  Life  is  reliable, 
it  certainly  puts  the  whole  matter  in  quite  a  different 
setting,  and  seems  to  yield  more  satisfactory  results,  on 
the  whole,  than  anything  which  has  been  propounded  by 
the  writers  already  noticed.  The  MS.  is,  of  course,  assailed 
by  many  critics  as  unworthy  of  belief  It  is  stuffed  with  the 
miraculous,  the  mystical,  and  the  anachronistic.  It  is  needless 
to  say  that  nearly  every  manuscript  of  a  similar  kind  is 
characterised  by  the  same  blemishes,  those  of  Bede  himself, 
who  is  more  than  a  Delphic  oracle  to  us,  not  being  exempted. 
The  MS.  is  entitled  Libelhis  de  Ortu  Sancti  Cuthberti,  and  is 
the  only  life  of  that  Saint  which  professes  to  give  a  narrative 
of  his  birth  and  early  boyhood.  We  can  but  take  what  it  has 
to  give  us,  and  accept  or  reject  it  as  we  choose,  adopting  with 
regard  to  it,  it  may  be,  the  ground  occupied  by  modern 
critics  of  the  Scriptures,  who  aver  that  although  all  of  the 
statements  in  them  are  not  true,  yet  that  truth  is  to  be  found 
in  these  statements  !  All  other  "  Lives  "  of  St  Cuthbert,  as  is 
well-known,  begin  with  the  period  of  his  youth.  The  most 
important  of  these  are  Bede's  and  the  one  written  by  the 
*  Surtees  Society,  1838. 


THE  NAME  43 

nameless  monk  of  probably  Lindisfarne  or  Melrose  *  whom, 

perhaps,  Bede  has  in  view  when  he  says,  "  What  I  have  written 

concerning  our  most  holy  father.  Bishop  Cuthbert,  either  in 

this  volume,  or  in  my  treatise  on  his  life  and  actions,  I  partly 

took,  and   faithfully  copied  from  what    I    found   written   of 

him  by  the  brethren  of  the  Church  of  Lindisfarne."  f     Both 

Bede  and  the  anonymous  monk  were  contemporaries  of  St 

Cuthbert.     The  latter  connects  him   with   our  locality.     He 

depicts  him-  as  a  young  shepherd  watching  over  his  master's 

flocks,  along  with  other  shepherds,  near  the  river  Leder,  in 

the  vicinity  of  the  hills  among  which  it  takes  its  rise  {quando 

in   viontanis  juxta  fluvmvi,   quoad  dicitur  Leder,   cum   aliis 

pastoribus  pecos  a  domini  sui  pascebat).     "  These  mountains," 

says   Dr   W.    F.    Skene,   "  were   the    southern   slope   of  the 

Lammermoors,  which  surround   the  upper  part  of  the  vale 

of  the  Leader,  in  Berwickshire,"  J  that  is  to  say,  the  parish 

of  Channelkirk.     This   fact  of  locality  seems  an  irreducible 

one,  and  it  is  all-important  to  us  in  the  present  pursuit.     It 

is  supported  by  Green,  Chalmers,  and  others.§     We   seem, 

then,  justified   in    standing    firmly   on    this    historical   fact, 

firmly  fixed  in  the  seventh  century,  viz.,  that  Cuthbert,  the 

future  apostle  of  the  South  of  Scotland,  herded  his  master's 

flocks  when  a  young  man,  on  the  banks  of  the  Leader  Water, 

near  the  Lammermoor  Hills.      Green,   indeed,  has  grasped 

this  local  connection  of  ours  with  St  Cuthbert,  so  tenaciously, 

that   he   afifirms   he   was   born   here !      But   this   is   a  more 

palpable  spectre  than  that  of  Chalmers.     There  is  indirect 

testimony    to    Cuthbert's    acquaintance    with    Channelkirk 

district  in  the  account  Bede  gives  of  him  after  he  became 

*  Vita  Anon.  St  Cuth. :  Acta  Sanctorum,  20th  March. 

t  Ecclesiastical  History,  pref.  trans,  by  Giles. 

%  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  ii.,  p.  201. 

§  Short  History  of  the  English  People.     Caledonia. 


44  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Prior  of  Melrose  Monastery.  Cuthbert,  he  informs  us,  sallied 
out  among  the  people  of  his  neighbourhood,  and  preached  to 
them,  not  returning  for  a  week,  or  sometimes  two  or  three, 
and  sometimes  a  whole  month,  "continuing  among  the 
mountains  to  allure  that  rustic  people  by  his  preaching  and 
example  to  heavenly  employments."  *  As  Melrose  is  near 
the  mouth  of  the  Leader,  and  as  the  "  villages  "  which  were 
"seated  high  up  among  craggy,  uncouth  mountains,"  and 
visited  by  him  in  his  missionary  journeys,  are  descriptive 
only  of  villages  such  as  Channelkirk  was  in  bygone  days,  it 
is  reasonably  certain  that  Bede  had  our  district  in  his  mind 
when  penning  his  narrative.  No  other  locality  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood ;of  Melrose  Monastery  will  fit  the  description. 

Having  now,  as  we  presume  to  think,  established  the 
presence  of  Cuthbert  in  or  near  Channelkirk  in  the  seventh 
century,  first  as  shepherd  and  then  as  preacher,  we  proceed 
to  other  essentials  which  are  called  for  in  creating  a  place- 
name,  evoked,  according  to  our  as  yet  latent  supposition,  by 
ecclesiastical  circumstances,  and  possibly,  by  the  presence 
there  of  the  saint  himself  One  of  these  appears  to  be  the 
high  renown  which  Cuthbert  everywhere  spread  regarding 
his  holy  life.  His  miracles,  his  virtuous  acts,  his  episcopal 
dignity,  his  apostolic  example,  his  austerity,  his  eloquence  as 
a  preacher,  his  diligence  in  doing  good,  his  humility,  his 
devout  prayers,  his  tears,  and  crucifixion  of  all  pleasures, 
roused  an  enthusiasm  for  him  that  none  but  the  greatest 
have  called  forth.  All  this  rendered  probable  what  we  now 
place  with  much  diffidence  before  the  reader. 

The  MS.  noticed  above,  "taken  and  translated  from  the 
Irish,"  *!*  has  the  following  passage  : — Hoc  primum  miraculum 
in  terra  ista  de  puero  illo  innotuit,  quo  Spiritus  Sanctus 
*  Ecclesiastical  History,  c.  27.  t  Cap.  23. 


THE  NAME  45 

ipsum  sibi  vas  futurum  gloriae  praesignavit.  Locus  ipse 
etiam  adhuc  incoHs  notissimus  habetur,  in  quo  nunc  ob 
illius  honorem  ecclesia  Domino  consecratur ;  quique  a 
puerorum  coUudentium  agmine,  usque  in  hodiernum  diem 
Childeschirche  vocatur  praeagnomine,  illi  dans  honoris  aeterni 
testimonium  qui  in  aeternitate  vivit  in  secula  seculorum. 

The  passage  refers  to  an  incident  in  Cuthbert's  boyhood. 
After  saying  that  he  had  been  brought  from  Ireland  by  his 
mother  to  his  uncles,  who  were  bishops  in  Lothian,  and  that 
they  had  placed  him  under  the  care  of  a  pious  man  there, 
the  Life  relates  a  miracle  which,  unconsciously,  the  boy 
Cuthbert  performed  among  his  playmates.  Then  follows  the 
above  statement,  which  may  be  translated  into  these  words : 
"  This  became  known  in  that  district  as  the  first  miracle  of 
the  remarkable  boy,  by  which  the  Holy  Spirit  marked  him 
beforehand  as  about  to  be  a  vessel  of  glory  to  Himself.  The 
place  itself  is  even  still  held  by  the  inhabitants  as  of  the 
greatest  note,  in  which  a  church  to  his  honour  is  now  conse- 
crated to  God  ;  and  which  even  at  this  day,  by  bands  of  boys 
at  play,  is  by  preference  called  by  the  name  Childeschirche, 
giving  the  testimony  of  eternal  honour  to  him  who  lives  in 
eternity,  for  ever  and  ever." 

An  old  chronicler  of  the  fifteenth  century,  who  ap- 
parently rhymes  on  the  lines  of  this  narrative,  says*: — 

"  This  was  the  first  meruayle  ane, 
Of  him  was  knawen  in  louthiane 
The  whilk  schewed  takenying  that  he 
Aftir  haly  man  suld  be. 
That  place  is  knawen  in  all  scottland. 
For  nowe  a  kirk  thar  on  stand, 
Childe  Kirk  is  called  commonly, 
Of  men  that  er  wonand  thar  by  ; 

*  Surtees  Society,  No.  38,  edited  by  Dr  Jas.  Raine.  Also  Surtees 
Society,  No.  87,  1889,  p.  27  ;  Canon  Fowler. 


46  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Of  cuthbert  childe  name  it  toke, 
In  goddis  wirschip,  thus  saies  the  boke, 
And  in  his  name  to  rede  and  syng  ; 
To  him  be  wirschip  and  louyng." 

Dr  James  Raine  has  a  note  against  the  name  "  Childe 
kirk,"  identifying  it  as  the  ancient  Church  of  Channelkirk, 
and  the  identity  appears  to  be  admitted  by  all  competent 
judges.  The  same  authority  says  that  the  two  anonymous 
compilations  just  quoted  are  those  "  in  which  genuine  history 
and  minute  intimations  of  early  customs  and  modes  of  living 
are  mixed  with  fabulous  details."  He  tells  us  that  the  Irish 
Life,  however  much  it  may  be  distrusted  as  reliable  history, 
yet  "  as  a  regular  piece  of  biography,  written  in  a  good  style, 
and  not  deficient  in  incidental  information  upon  subjects  con- 
nected with  the  period  in  which  it  was  written,"  "  it  comes 
within  the  plans  of  this  Surtees  Society,"  and  these  considera- 
tions have  led  to  its  publication."  He  also  shows  "  that  the 
monks  of  Durham  had  some  belief  in  the  Irish  descent  of 
Cuthbert,  and  in  other  circumstances  in  his  history  detailed  in 
this  piece  of  biography,"  and  proves  it  by  the  account  he 
quotes  of  windows  in  the  Durham  Cathedral  having  been 
glassed  with  scenes  drawn  from  it,  and  which  were  destroyed 
by  Dean  Horn  in  the  reign  of  Edward  VL,  "  for  he  could 
never  abide  any  ancient  monuments  that  gave  any  light  of 
or  to  godly  religion."  Canon  Fowler  points  out  that  "the 
St  Cuthbert  window  at  York  Minster  still  contains  many 
subjects  from  this  Life."* 

It  is,  of  course,  always  made  a  matter  of  surprise  that 
Bede  should  never  allude  to  Cuthbert's  birth.  We  know 
from  himself  that  on  submitting  his  manuscript  to  the 
priests  "  who  from  having  long  dwelt  with  the  man  of  God, 
were  thoroughly  acquainted  with  his  life,"  they  corrected  or 
*  Surtees  Society,  No.  87,  pref.  vi. 


THE  NAME  47 

expunged  "  what  they  judged  advisable!'  And  the  suggestions 
constantly  recurring  from  this  class  of  circumstances  inevi- 
tably bias  us  towards  the  suspicion  that  the  history  of  his 
birth  was  not  such  as  to  recommend  itself  to  those  who  knew 
the  illustrious  facts  of  his  maturer  years.  If  Cuthbert  was 
illegitimate  (as  is  asserted  by  Capgrave  *  and  others,  this  Irish 
Life  being  among  them),  this  may  account  for  much  that  has 
been  buried  in  silence  by  his  religious  contemporaries,  and 
may  also  explain  why  the  driblets  of  information  regarding 
his  young  days  and  birthplace,  have  percolated  down  to  us 
through  such  dubious  channels.  The  belief  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment flawlessness  of  God's  priests  was  a  power  in  those  days, 
and  this  may  lie  at  the  root  of  the  historical  shame  and  conceal- 
ment which  swept  the  pages,  to  all  appearance,  of  the  vener- 
able Monk  of  Jarrow.  "  The  truth  may  possibly  be,"  says 
Dr  Skene,  "  that  he  was  the  son  of  an  Irish  Kinglet  by  an 
Anglic  mother ;  and  this  would  account  for  her  coming  to 
Britain  with  the  boy,  and  his  being  placed  under  a  master  in 
the  vale  of  the  Leader."-|-  Nothing  is  more  astounding  to  us 
than  that  Bede  should  know  so  much  concerning  Cuthbert  as 
that  "  from  his  VERY  CHILDHOOD  he  had  always  been  inflamed 
with  the  desire  of  a  religious  life,"  \  and  yet  have  nothing 
more  to  say  of  that  period  of  Cuthbert's  existence,  we  may  be 
sure  that  every  incident  in  Cuthbert's  life  had  been  probed  and 
discussed  by  the  Monks  of  Bede's  time.  His  childhood  seems 
to  have  been  as  well  known  to  them  as  his  manhood,  and  its 
character  as  distinctly  defined.  Why  do  the  coceviis  monachus, 
and  Bede,  then,  hang  a  veil  over  that  time,  the  latter  not 
even  venturing  upon  one  fact  to  sustain  his  statement  ?  The 
reason  seems  patent,  though  it  need  not  be  restated.     They 

*  Annals  of  the  Four  Masters,  edited  by  Dr  Jo.  O'Donovan,  1856. 

t  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  ii.,  p.  206.        %  Ecclesiastical  History,  chap,  xxvii. 


48  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

loved  and  revered  Cuthbert ;  his  dust  was  holy  to  them  ;  an 
inviolable  sanctity  must  not  be  dimmed  or  sullied  by  shadows 
of  the  past.  And  thus  the  waves  of  oblivion  were  permitted 
to  lap  within  their  bosom  what  the  pen  of  the  chronicler  may 
have  written,  but  which  the  hand  of  the  churchman  had  no 
desire  to  rescue  from  forgetfulness.  This  accounts  also,  no 
doubt,  for  the  blurred  and  almost  wholly  obliterated  record 
which  points  to  Cuthbert's  connection  with  Channelkirk. 

That  the  church  at  Channelkirk  was  originally  founded  in 
honour  of  the  child,  or  youth,  who  afterwards  became  the 
Saint  called  Cuthbert,  as  asserted  by  the  Irish  Life  and  the 
fifteenth  century  chronicler  whose  lines  have  been  quoted, 
receives  certain  indirect  corroboration  from  other  sources. 
The  supposed  dedication  to  the  "  Holy  Innocents "  withers 
before  the  testimony  of  the  Dryburgh  Charters  which  declare 
Channelkirk  Church  to  have  been  dedicated  to  St  Cuthbert. 
In  Charter  No.  185  (c.  1327)  we  have  the  following*: — 

Universis  Sancte  Matris,  etc.  Thomas  Clericus  filius 
Willelmi  de  Collielaw  Salutem  in  Domino.  Noverit  univer- 
sitas  vestra  me  divine  caritatis  intuitu  et  pro  salute  anime 
mee  et  pro  salute  animarum  omnium  antecessorum  et  suc- 
cessorum  mearum  dedisse  concessisse  et  hac  mea  carta  con- 
fir  masse  Deo  et  ecclesie  Sancti  Cuthberti  de  ChildenchircJi  et 
canonicis  de  Dryburgh  octo  acras  terre.  .  . 

By  this  instrument,  Thomas,  son  of  William  of  Collielaw, 
in  this  parish,  devotes,  like  a  loyal  son  of  Holy  Mother 
Church,  eight  acres  of  land  to  the  Church  of  St  Cuthbert  at 
Channelkirk,  a  bounty  which  necessarily  was  received  by  the 
Dryburgh  Canons,  seeing  that  Channelkirk  had  been  under 
their  Abbey  since  the  days  of  Hugh  de  Morville,  Lord  of 
Lauderdale. 

*■  Liber  de  Dryburgh. 


THE  NAME  49 

Charter  No.  255,  dated  about  1161  A.D.,  contains  likewise 
a  papal  confirmation  of  the  Church  of  St  Cuthbert  at  Channel- 
kirk  (ecclesiam  Sancti  Cuthberti  de  Childinchirch)  to  the 
Canons  of  Dryburgh  Abbey. 

It  is  interesting,  too,  though  not  perhaps  evidentially,  to 
note  that  Bishop  de  Bernham  of  St  Andrews,*  when  in  1 240- 
1249  he  consecrated  so  many  churches  in  his  large  diocese, 
comes  straight  from  consecrating  St  Cuthbert's  Church, 
Edinburgh,  to  fulfil  the  same  function  at  Channelkirk.  St 
Cuthbert's,  Edinburgh,  is  consecrated  on  "XVII  Kal.  April 
1 24 1 -2,"  and  "  Childenechirch  "  on  "  X  Kal.  April "  of  the  same 
year,  or  on  the  i6th  and  23rd  of  March  respectively.  We 
also  observe  that  the  day  of  consecration  was  as  near  St 
Cuthbert's  day,  the  20th  of  March,  as  the  nature  of  the 
circumstances  might  reasonably  be  supposed  to  permit, 
considering  the  season  of  the  year,  and  the  formid- 
able nature  of  the  journey.  The  editor  of  De  Bernham's 
Pontifical  also  points  out  as  remarkable  that  not  even  one 
of  the  churches  was  dedicated  on  the  festival  of  the  saint 
whose  name  is  commemorated  in  its  title,  and  seventy  of 
the  one  hundred  and  forty  churches  which  the  bishop  then 
consecrated,  have  been  identified. 

Moreover,  there  is  every  indication  that  the  church  at 
Channelkirk  existed  before  the  time  that  rises  above  the 
horizon  with  historical  writings.  The  year  1153  A.D.  is,  no 
doubt,  the  earliest  possible  date  of  Dryburgh  Charters,  in  the 
first  of  which  our  church  is  specially  dealt  with.  But  it  is 
there  seen  to  be  at  that  time  a  settled  church  with  its  own 
lands  lying  around  it,  and  a  regular  priest,  Godfrey,  minister- 
ing at  its  altar.  Its  situation,  also,  is  matter  of  general  sur- 
prise, being  perched  945  feet  above  sea  level,  in  the  remotest 

*  Pontificalc  (supra). 

P 


50  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

corner  of  Lauderdale,  on  heights  so  steep  and  inaccessible 
as  to  daunt  the  most  zealous  worshippers.  Only  some  im- 
portant event  in  by-past  centuries  could  satisfy  the  interro- 
gations which  all  these  circumstances  arouse,  and,  when  it 
was,  moreover,  "  the  mother  and  parish  church  of  the  whole 
valley  "  *  while  a  more  wealthy  and  powerful  church  under  the 
De  Morville  family  existed  in  1 170  in  the  rich  and  populous 
centre  of  the  dale,  we  are  not  surprised  that  the  vision  of  St 
Cuthbert  which  led  him  to  become  a  monk  in  Mailros  should 
be  localised  on  the  spot  where  the  church  now  stands,  or  that 
both  tradition  and  chronicles  should  trace  its  existence  and 
name  to  the  life  of  that  seventh  century  apostle. 

From  a  consideration  of  all  these  facts  and  circumstances 
connected  with  it,  we  are  disposed  to  believe  that  the  Church 
of  Channelkirk  derives  its  designation  from  the  youth 
Cuthbert,  afterwards  St  Cuthbert,  and  probably  came  into 
existence  between  the  seventh  and  ninth  centuries.  Regard- 
ing the  investigation  into  the  etymology  of  the  name,  ety- 
mologists alone  have  a  right  to  speak.  We  wholly  disclaim 
any  ability  in  that  sphere.  We  only  venture  to  suggest  in  the 
interests  of  a  satisfactory  and  reasonable  solution  to  this 
inquiry  that  the  form  Childeschirche^  as  our  fifteenth  century 
rhyrher  and  the  Irish  Life  assert,  was  the  original  one. 
Through  forms  which  are  now  lost  to  us,  among  which 
Childer-chirche  was  probably  to  be  reckoned,  this  became  in 
the  charters  of  the  monks  Childenchirch.  This  form,  with 
variants  of  "  i "  and  "  e,"  "  chirch  "  and  "  kirk,"  would  persist 
in  writings  so  long  as  ecclesiastical  documents  afforded  a 
constant  model  to  copy  from.  But  as  soon  as  Reformation 
troubles  compelled  the  monks  to  fly,  these  documentary 
guides  fled  with  them,  and  our  Protestant  friends  were  driven 
*  Liber  de  Dry  burgh. 


THE  NAME  51 

to  adopt  the  phonetic  spelling  of  the  name  which  was  con- 
stantly on  the  lips  of  the  people  of  Lauderdale.  There  would 
be  many  local  variants  of  it,  as  there  are  yet  to  this  day. 
Our  present  name  seems  to  have  come  directly  from  the 
change  of  Childen  into  Cheindil,  which  appears  to  have  been 
simply  the  result  of  metathesis  or  the  common  transposition 
of  consonants  in  articulation.  But  when  Childench\rch.  had 
become  by  metathesis  Cheindtlch.\rc\\,  or  Cheindilkirk,  the 
hatred  of  the  tongue  for  the  dental  produced  still  further 
changes.  Cheindil  became  Cheinil,  as  handle  becomes  han'le, 
candle,  cawn'le,  kindle^  kin'le,  and  so  on  ;  after  which  Chinel 
and  Channel  are  easy  transitions.  A  corroborative  example 
of  the  same  process  seems  given  us  in  the  place-name  Annels- 
hope  in  Selkirkshire.  In  1455  it  is  Aldanhop ;  in  1644  it 
becomes  by  transposition  Andleshope.  The  obnoxious  "  d  "  is 
then  thrust  out,  and  it  is  now  Annelshope. 

Before  the  year  1560,  the  year  of  the  Reformation,  such 
forms  of  the  name  as  "  Chingilkirk,"  "  Schingilkirk,"  "  Gingle- 
kirk,"  etc.,  etc.,  are  never  found,  and  are  purely  the  spawn  of 
the  provincial  dialect. 


C  H  A  P 1^  E  R    I  I 

THE   CHARTERS 

The  first  Charter  in  the  Liber  de  Drybiirgh — The  De  Morville  Family — 
The  Patron  Saint  of  Channelkirk — Godfrey  the  Priest  and  Hugo  de 
Morville — Extent  of  De  Morville's  Estate  in  Lauderdale — Kirk  Lands 
near  Pilmuir — Lauderdale  in  the  Thirteenth  Century — Its  Devout 
Men  and  their  Gifts  to  Channelkirk  Church — Gifts  "  In  Perpetuam" 
— An  Era  of  Bequests  to  Holy  Mother  Church — Supposed  Atonement 
for  National  Sin — Thomas  of  Collielaw — Ancient  Agricultural  Life — 
The  Domus  de  Soltre  and  Channelkirk  Church  —  Fulewithnes  — 
Glengelt  Chapel — The  Veteriponts — Carfrae  Chapel — The  Sinclairs — 
Premonstratensian  Order — Dedication  of  Channelkirk  Church,  A.D. 
1241 — Then  and  Now. 

Viewing  history  through  the  agency  of  Charters  gives  one  an 
impression  similar  to  that  experienced  when  contemplating 
Nature  as  set  forth  in  a  picture  gallery.  Facts  and  forms, 
truth  and  beauty,  reveal  themselves  so  far  within  the  clear- 
cut  spaces  given  them  ;  but  all  around  these  margins  are 
wood  and  wall,  darkness  and  silence,  and  we  pass  from  space 
to  space  with  a  weird  sense  of  skimming  over  chasms,  or 
graves,  across  which  we  slip  some  tentative  speculation  or 
guess,  that  seems  to  supply  sufficiently  the  lack  of  actual 
historical  sequence  of  time  and  occurrence.  Vision  is  con- 
stantly under  arrestment,  and  all  the  voices  reach  our  ears 
through  legal  telephones.  Men  and  motions  appear  to  exist 
in  an  atmosphere  of  enamel,  each  attitude  struck  stiff  and  un- 
changeable as  if  by  enchantment,  leaving  us  often  perplexed 


THE  CHARTERS  53 

• 

to  know  what  motive,  what  principle  or  passion,  had  called  it 
into  being.  In  the  absence,  however,  of  steady  daylight  and 
open  landscapes,  these  charter-flashes  through  the  darkness 
upon  the  facts  and  faces  of  the  past  are  very  acceptable,  and 
we  are  grateful  to  the  good  monks  for  sending  them  forth 
over  the  dark  centuries  from  their  religious  lighthouses. 

The  Register  of  Dryburgh  Abbey,  or  Liber  S.  Marie  de 
DryburgJi,  opens  with  a  charter  dealing  with  the  church  of 
Channelkirk.  Although  marked  "  No.  6,"  it  is  the  earliest  one 
extant,  as  the  preceding  five  have  not  been  found.  The  title 
of  the  charter  runs  :  "  The  Confirmation  regarding  the  afore- 
said donations  of  Hugo  and  Robert  de  Morville  concerning 
the  churches  of  Childinchirch  and  Saltone."  The  writ  itself 
proceeds  : — 

"  Malcolm,  King  of  the  Scots,  to  the  bishops,  abbots,  earls, 
barons,  justiciaries,  sheriffs,  bailies,  servants,  and  all  true  men 
of  all  the  land,  whether  cleric  or  laic,  Franks  or  Angles,  health. 
Be  it  known  to  the  present  and  future  generations  that  I  have 
conceded,  and  by  this,  my  charter,  confirmed  to  God  and  the 
Church  of  St  Mary  at  Dryburgh,  and  the  canons  serving  God 
there,  the  bequests  of  Hugo  de  Morville  and  Robert  de 
Morville,  which  they,  in  free  and  perpetual  charity,  gave  to  the 
same  church,  and  confirmed  by  their  charters,  viz.,  the 
Church  of  Childenchirch,  with  the  land  adjacent,  and  all  that 
justly  pertains  to  it." 

In  this  quotation,  and  in  others  to  follow,  we  give  only 
those  items  in  the  documents  which  bear  upon  Channelkirk, 
This  one  is  from  the  hand  of  Malcolm  IV.,  grandson  to  David 
I.,  and  consequently  must  have  been  granted  between  1153- 
1 165  A.D.,  the  period  of  his  reign. 

Hugh  de  Morville  was  the  friend  and  favourite  of  King 
David  I.,  and  rose  to  the  highest  office  in  the  State.     Much  is 


54  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

dim  and  uncertain  in  his  career,  but  he  appears  to  have  come 
originally  from  the  north  of  England.  He  received,  besides 
his  possessions  in  England,  extensive  estates  in  Scotland. 
He  held  all  Lauderdale  down  to  near  Earlston,  where  the 
Earl  of  Dunbar's  land  came  between  the  northern  portion 
and  his  other  lands  in  Dryburgh,  Merton,  Bemersyde,  and 
Newton.  Between  1108-24,*  he  witnesses  the  gift  of  lands 
to  Roger,  the  Archdeacon,  and  his  heir;  in  11 16,  the 
Inquisition  of  David,  and  in  1 1 19-24,  the  charter  of  the 
foundation  of  Selkirk  Abbey.  He  is  called  in  Chronica  de 
Mailros,  the  founder  of  the  church  of  Dryburgh.-j*  He  was 
Constable  of  Scotland  before  1 140,+  and  died,  according  to 
the  Chronica  de  Mailros,  in  1162.  If  the  latter  statement  is 
correct,  it  must  have  been  another  Hugh  de  Morville§  who 
was  implicated  in  11 70  in  the  murder  of  Thomas  a  Becket, 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  was  afterwards  Justiciary  of 
Northumberland.il 

In  the  Calendar  of  Documents  we  ascertain  that  he 
accounts,  in  1194-95,  for  ;^I00  of  his  fine,  made  with  the 
king  for  holding  the  forestry  of  Carlisle.  Probably,  the 
"Hugh  de  Morville"  found  after  1162  was  a  younger  man, 
related  to  the  Hugh  of  Lauderdale,  and  less  pious,  perhaps, 
in  his  character. 

The  office  of  Constable  of  Scotland  became  hereditary 
in  the  De  Morville  family,*;  and  after  Hugo  it  was  held 
successively   by   his    son,    Richard ;    William    de    Morville ; 

*Vol.  i.  Calendar  of  Documents  relating  to  Scotland. 

t  See  also  Liber  de  Dryburgh,  No.  14.         +  Newbattle  Charters. 

§  Hoveden's  Chronicle,  vol.  ii.,  p.  14. 

II  See  Froude's  Short  Studies,  vol.  iv.  ;  also  The  Itinerary  of  Henry 
II.,  by  Rev.  R.  W.  Eyton,  who  includes  the  years  1158-70  in  Hugh  de 
Morville's  life. 

IT  Caledonia,  vol.  i.,  p.  707. 


THE  CHARTERS  55 

Roland,  Lord  Galloway  (d.  1200);  Allan,  his  son  (d.  1234); 
Roger  de  Quinsi  ;  Alexander  Cumyn,  and  John  Cumyn,  and 
others. 

Before  his  death  he  gifted  Channelkirk  Church  to  Dry- 
burgh  Abbey,  and  himself  donned  the  monk's  habit  at  the 
same  time.* 

The  name  "  Robert "  de  Morville  in  the  charter  just 
quoted,  is,  perhaps,  intended  for  "  Richard,"  who  succeeded 
his  father  Hugo.  Richard  was  a  man  of  more  warlike 
manner  than  his  father,  and  was  embroiled  in  many  disputes 
with  the  religious  houses.  He  commanded  part  of  the 
Scottish  army  at  the  battle  of  Falaise  in  ii74,"h  and  was  one 
of  the  hostages  given  to  the  King  of  England.  He  was 
excommunicated  by  John  Scott,  Bishop  of  St  Andrews,  as 
a  disturber  of  the  peace  between  the  king  and  him.self  l  He 
died  in  1189. 

The  charter  which  next  in  chronological  order  makes 
reference  to  Channelkirk  is  No,  255,  and  is  entitled  "Con- 
cerning the  Church  of  Childinchirch  and  the  tenths  of  the 
Mills  of  Lauder  and  Salton,  and  two  bovates  of  land  in 
Smailholm,"  It  is  dated  c.  1161,  and  is  granted  by  Pope 
Alexander  HI.,  who  occupied  the  papal  chair,  1 159-81.  It 
bears  that  Roger,  Abbot  of  Dryburgh,  and  his  brethren,  had 
petitioned  the  Pope  to  confirm  Hugh  de  Morville's  gift  of 
Channelkirk  Church  to  them,  the  consent  of  the  ecclesiastical 
king  being  as  necessary  as  that  of  the  King  of  Scotland. 

"  Alexander,  Bishop,  servant  of  the  servants  of  God,  to 
his  beloved  sons  Roger,  the  Abbot,  and  the  Brethren  of  the 
Church  of  St  Mary  at  Dryburgh,  health  and  Apostolic 
benediction.  It  is  right  that  we  give  a  ready  assent  to  the 
just  desires  of  your  petitions,  and  your  wishes,  which  are 
*  Lt'der  de  Dryburgh,  No.  8.         t  Hoveden's  Chronicle.         %  Ibid. 


56  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

agreeable  to  right  reason  are  to  be  complied  with  in  the 
following  way.  Wherefore,  beloved  sons  in  the  Lord,  com- 
plying with  your  just  demands  by  a  cordial  consent,  wc 
confirm  the  Church  of  St  Cuthbert  at  Channelkirk,  the  tenth 
of  the  mills  of  Lauder  and  Salton,  and  the  two  bovates  of 
land  in  Smailholm,  from  the  gift  of  David  Olifard,  for  your 
devotion,  and  through  you  to  your  church  by  Apostolic 
authority." 

This  charter  and  Charter  No.  185  are  valuable  in  that  they 
decide  who  was  the  patron  saint  of  Channelkirk  Church. 
Hew  Scott  in  his  Fasti  says  that  "  it  was  dedicated  to  the 
Holy  Innocents."  He  gives  no  authority,  and  it  may  be 
that  the  name  "  Childermas  "  seemed  to  him  to  be  connected 
with  "  Childinchirch,"  and  so  to  have  suggested  the  above. 
The  mistake  would  have  been  rectified  long  ago,  doubtless, 
if  Professor  Cosmo  Innes's  Origines  Parochiales  had  embraced 
the  Lauderdale  district  in  its  scope,  a  hint  of  which  is  given 
in  his  preface  (p.  xxiii),  when  he  says, "  Affectionate  memorials 
of  St  Cuthbert  are  still  found  at  Melrose,  Channelkirk,  and 
Maxton." 

Malcolm  the  Maiden,  died  1165,  and  was  succeeded  by 
his  brother  William,  the  Lyon  King,  who  was  crowned  at 
Scone  on  Christmas  eve  of  the  same  year.  In  such  troublous 
times,  when  kings  and  kingdoms  were  so  often  placed  in 
hazard,  it  seems  to  have  been  necessary,  in  order  to  preserve 
the  clear  right  of  possession,  that  each  succeeding  king 
should  grant  confirmation  of  Church  bequests  bestowed  in 
former  reigns.  We  find,  therefore,  that  Malcolm,  William, 
and  Alexander,  confirm  in  succession  the  church  of  Channel- 
kirk to  God  and  the  Church  of  Saint  Mary  at  Dryburgh. 
About  the  year  1165,  when  he  ascended  the  throne,  William, 
the  Lyon  gives  a  general  confirmatory  charter  to  Dryburgh 


THE  CHARTERS 

Abbey,  and  one  item  "from  the  gift  of  Hugo  de  Monnlle" 
is  the  "  Church  of  Childinchirch  "  (Xa  241). 

Richard  de  Mor\-ille  of  Lauderdale,  succeeding  his 
father  Hugo  in  the  office  of  Constable  of  Scotland  in,  it  is 
said,  1 165,  and  djnng  in  11 89,  gives,  in  some  year  bet^^-een 
these  dates,  the  following  confirmator>'  charter  (No.  8) : — 

"  Richard  de  Morville,  constable  of  the  King  of  Scots, 
to  all  his  adherents  and  true  men,  wishes  health.  Be  it 
known  to  the  present  and  future  generations  that  I  have 
given  and  by  this  my  charter  confirmed  to  God  and  the 
Church  of  the  Blessed  Mar}-  at  Drj-burgh,  and  to  the  Brethren 
ser\ing  God  in  that  place,  in  perpetual  charitj-,  the  Church 
of  Salton  with  full  carucates  of  land,  and  all  pertaining  to 
the  same  church  after  the  decease  of  Robert  the  Cleric 

"  Besides,  I  concede,  I  confirm  to  the  same  church  the 
gifts  of  my  father  which  with  himself  he  gave  to  the  same 
Brethren,  N-iz.,  the  church  of  Childinchirch,  with  all  pertaining 
to  it  with  which  Godfrid  the  priest  held  it  in  the  day  in 
which  my  father  assumed  the  canonical  dress." 

This  concession  and  confirmation  contains  interesting 
items.  I.  The  name  of  the  priest  who  officiated  in  Channel- 
kirk  at  the  time  Hugo  de  Morxille  bequeathed  the  church 
to  DrA'burgh  Abbey.  2.  The  earh-  s)-stem  of  tenure  on 
which  this  Godfrid  the  priest  held  it  "  Each  church*  as  it 
was  settled,  was  under  the  charge  of  its  own  priest  or  minister, 
and  he  was  amenable  only  to  the  lord  on  whose  domain 
he  had  been  settled,  and  b\-  whom,  in  most  cases,  he  had  been 
endowed.  3,  The  fact  of  H.  de  Mor\'ille  having  submitted  to 
a  monkish  rule  of  life  in  Dr}burgh  Abbey,  a  statement  we 
do  not  remember  to  have  seen  noticed  in  any  work  treating 
of  his  history.  The  priest's  name,  Godfrew  is  .Anglic,  and 
*  Ckyrck  of  Scoflatuty  \xA.  iv.,  p.  3. 


58  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

points  to  his  having  come  with  the  De  Morvilles  into 
Lauderdale,  though,  of  course,  this  is  merely  conjectural. 

The  church  of  Channelkirk,  being  under  Dryburgh  Abbey, 
was  thereby  in  the  diocese  of  St  Andrews.  Malcolm  II.  in 
1018  obtained  a  victory  over  Eadulf  at  the  battle  of  Carham, 
and  the  province  of  Lothian  was  ceded  to  him.  This  large 
province  was  then  added  to  the  diocese  of  St  Andrews,  which 
previously  did  not  extend  south  of  the  Forth,  and  consequently 
the  Bishop  of  St  Andrews  included  Channelkirk  among  his 
churches  and  possessions.  Richard,  the  bishop,  mentioned 
below,  was  chaplain  (1163-1177)  to  Malcolm  IV.,  and  was 
Primate  of  Scotland. 

Charter  235  (c.  1170),  "Confirmation  of  the  Bishop  of 
St  Andrews  concerning  churches,  lands,  and  possessions. 
Richard,  by  the  grace  of  God,  the  humble  bishop  of  the  Scots 
to  all  (children)  of  the  Holy  Mother  (Church),  eternal 
salvation  in  God  ....  we  confirm  the  Church  of  Childin- 
chirch,  with  the  land  adjacent,  and  all  pertaining  to  it." 

Charter  No.  249  concerns  general  privileges  granted  by 
the  Pope  in  11 84  to  Dryburgh  Abbey.  While  it  confirms  to 
it  the  Church  of  Channelkirk  in  the  usual  formula,  another 
matter  is  introduced  which  is  not  uninteresting.  Chalmers, 
in  Caledonia  (i.  505,  ii.  224),  asserts  that  the  De  Morvilles 
"  enjoyed  some  rich  lands  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Tweed, 
including  Bemersyde,  Dryburgh,  Mertoun,"  etc.  Russell  in 
his  Haigs  of  Bemersyde  rebuts  this,  and  says  with  reference 
to  this  statement  (p.  55),  "What  is  here  alleged  cannot  be 
substantiated"  ....  "there  is  nothing  in  the  Dryburgh 
Cartulary  to  support  his  statement."  "  There  is  not  the 
slightest  ground  for  believing  that  the  De  Morvilles  ever 
possessed  a  foot  of  land  in  the  Merse,  their  lands  in  Lauder- 
dale only  coming  down  to  within  a  few  miles  of  Earlston." 


THE  CHARTERS  59 

Yet  in  our  charter  above-noted,  we  find  Pope  Lucius  III. 
confirming  to  the  Abbot,  Gerard,  and  brethren  of  Dryburgh 
"  from  the  gift  of  Hugh  de  Morville,  the  place  itself  which  is 
called  Dryburgh"  and  again  in  Charter  2$\,''  the  place  itself  in 
ivJiich  the  aforesaid  monastery  is  situated!'  There  is  some 
confusion  of  dates  in  this  charter,  1283  being  given  in  the 
text,  and  11 84  put  within  brackets.  The  latter  is  clearly  the 
correct  date.  Pope  Martin  IV.  occupied  the  papal  throne 
from  1 281-1285,  and  Pope  Lucius  III.,  who  is  mentioned  in 
the  text,  from  1181-1185. 

Pope  Celestine  III.  in  11 96  also  confirms  the  Church  of 
Channelkirk  to  Allan,  the  abbot,  and  brethren  of  Dryburgh 
(Charter  250). 

The  charter  which  seems  to  follow  next  in  order  of  time 
is  very  interesting,  as  showing  one  of  the  sources  of  en- 
dowment which  was  enjoyed  by  Channelkirk.  It  is  as 
follows  :  "  (No.  176)  Concerning  a  toft  and  croft  and  land  and 
meadow  in  Samsonshiels.  To  all,  etc.,  Henry,  son  of  Samson 
of  Logie,  health.  Be  it  known  to  you  all  that  I,  with  the 
consent  and  assent  of  my  wife  and  my  heir,  with  the  view 
of  a  charter,  have  given  and  granted,  and  by  this  my  present 
charter  confirmed  to  God  and  the  Church  of  St  Mary  at 
Dryburgh,  and  to  the  canons  who  serve  God  there,  and  to 
my  Mother  Church  at  Channelkirk,  a  toft  and  croft  in  the 
village  of  Samsonshiels,  namely,  a  toft  of  one  rood  in  front 
of,  and  a  croft  with  land  contiguous  to,  the  same  croft  of 
three  full  acres,  close  to  my  house  from  the  west,  and  also 
that  land,  arable  as  well  as  meadow,  which  lies  on  the  west 
side  between  the  aforesaid  croft  at  the  top,  and  the  boundary 
of  the  burn  which  is  between  my  land  and  Pilmuir,  that  is 
to  say,  beginning  on  the  south  side  at  a  certain  stone  cross 
set  up  on  the  edge  of  the  same  stream,  and  extending  as  far 


60  ,    HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

as  Derestrete  in  length  northwards.  To  this,  likewise,  an 
acre  which  belonged  to  William,  Robert's  son,  with  the 
land  which  lies  between  the  same  acre  and  ditch  between 
Samsonshiels  and  Pilmuir  in  breadth,  and  from  the  aforesaid 
stone  cross  as  far  as  the  way  which  leads  to  Wenneshead  in 
length,  and  so  by  the  same  road  on  the  east  side  continually 
to  the  ditch  at  Pilmuir  as  far  as  Bradestrutherburn,  and 
thence  going  on  towards  the  north  exactly  as  that  stream 
formerly  ran  to  the  Leader,  in  free  and  perpetual  charity,  etc." 
About  the  same  year  (1220)  it  was  deemed  necessary  to 
confirm  this  gift  by  a  new  charter  (No.  177),  probably  owing 
to  the  existence  then  of  new  heirs  and  other  collateral  con- 
siderations. In  this  charter,  the  land  is  to  be  held  in  per- 
petuity without  any  custom  or  secular  exaction,  as  fully  and 
peaceably  as  it  is  possible  to  give  or  confirm  any  church,  land, 
or  charity.  The  reason  is  also  very  solemnly  stated,  and 
marks  the  depth  of  religious  fervour  in  those  days  when  a 
man's  faith  determined  his  works.  Henry,  son  of  Samson, 
gives  his  croft,  and  toft,  and  land,  and  meadow,  "  for  the 
salvation  of  my  lords  (the  De  Morvilles),  and  for  the  salvation 
of  my  soul  and  the  souls  of  my  wife  and  children,  and  of  all 
my  ancestors  and  successors,  but  specially  for  the  soul  of  my 
father  Samson  and  the  soul  of  my  mother."  There  is  a  beauti- 
ful simplicity  in  this  old-time  piety.  Its  faith  is  deep.  The 
family  is  in  heaven  and  on  earth  ;  and  death  divides  it  not, 
nor  can  the  grave  cleave  it  asunder.  Allan,  son  of  Rolland  of 
Galloway,  who  was  now  in  possession  of  the  extensive 
Lauderdale  estates  left  by  the  extinct  family  of  the  De 
Morvilles,  confirms  these  donations  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  and 
the  Mother  Church  of  Channelkirk,  and  notes  that  the  above 
"  Samson "  had  been  a  monk  in  Dryburgh.  (Charter  No. 
180.)      As   a    Charter   of    Kelso    Abbey,   c.    1206,   mentions 


THE  CHARTERS  61 

"  Samson's  Marches,"  he  had  evidently  been  ah've  before  this 
date.     (See  "  Oxton.") 

The  places  mentioned  in  these  three  charters  which  convey 
the  gifts  of  Henry,  are  for  most  part  now  obliterated.  Pilmuir 
is  still  flourishing  as  an  arable  farm,  two  miles  to  the  north- 
west of  Lauder,  but  Samsonshiels,  Wenneshead,  Witnesbusk, 
Derestrete,  and  the  "  certain  stone  cross  "  have  all  vanished, 
and  left  only  conjecture  to  point  out  their  locality.  The 
"  Bradestrotherburne  "  is  still  in  existence  and  running  towards 
the  Leader  as  of  yore,  we  believe,  under  the  name  of  "  Harry 
Burn."  Who  knows  but  the  name  of  this  ancient  Henricus 
may  have  had  some  connection  with  the  change.  We  may 
explain  that  a  Toft  meant  a  house-stance  with,  perhaps,  a 
small  vegetable  garden  ;  while  a  Croft  was  oftener  on  the 
outskirts  of  the  village  or  "  tun,"  and  was  the  source  of  meal 
to  the  priest  and  grazing  for  his  cow. 

It  is  curious  to  note  also,  that,  though  in  its  locality,  the 
gift  is  not  given  to  Lauder  Church,  but  to  Channelkirk.  The 
unpleasant  state  of  matters  noticed  below  perhaps  accounted 
for  this.  The  granter's  father,  having  been  a  monk  in 
Dryburgh,  might  bias  the  matter  also,  for  the  advantage  was 
more  certain  to  reach  that  Abbey  by  way  of  Channelkirk  than 
through  Lauder,  seeing  the  latter  was  .seeking  to  set  up  an 
independency  of  both. 

.  Charters  Nos.  185,  186,  191,  have  no  dates  assigned  to 
them,  but  this  in  no  wise  lessens  their  interest  for  us,  as  the 
Church  of  Channelkirk  gains  by  them  not  only  new  endow- 
ments but  also  a  new  ecclesiastical  responsibility.  Eight  acres 
of  land  are  settled  upon  her,  and  two  new  domestic  chapels 
are  erected  in  the  parish.  Collielaw,  Glengelt,  and  Carfrae, 
are  the  places  which  are  rendered  illustrious  by  these  proofs 
of  piety  and  self-sacrifice.     Perhaps  we  cannot  go  very  wide 


62  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  the  period,  which  saw  these  transactions,  if  we  place  them 
about  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century.  No.  185  is  about 
1327  or  a  little  earlier,  as  we  know  from  other  sources.*  In 
these  old  records  also,  at  this  period,  the  outlines  of  Lauder- 
dale, as  they  look  to  modern  eyes,  come  more  and  more 
clearly  into  our  field  of  vision.  Pilmuir  stands  before  us  un- 
mistakably :  Glengelt  at  the  extreme  north  of  the  valley,  with 
Carfrae  on  the  heights  to  the  east,  and  Collielaw  on  the 
sloping  middle  ground  to  the  west,  rise  upon  our  view,  and 
like  the  same  places  to-day,  lead  the  eye  round  the  boundaries 
of  the  upper  part  of  the  dale,  and  generally  define  its  length 
and  breadth.  Devout  men  then  dwelt  in  the  land.  The 
proof  they  give  us  of  the  high  esteem  in  which  Channelkirk 
Church  was  held  by  them,  are  comparable  to  the  smaller 
currents  in  that  tide  of  charity  and  full-hearted  benevolence 
which  swept  over  all  the  country.  The  noblest  believed 
themselves  nobler  in  laying  their  precious  gifts  upon  the  altars 
of  Holy  Mother  Church.  It  was  an  era  when  the  passion  of 
giving  for  pious  uses  was  strong  upon  men,  just  as  the  passion 
for  the  martyr's  crown  defined  in  earlier  days  a  devotional 
epoch  in  the  history  of  the  Church,  and  we  should  note  that 
when  they  gave,  they  meant  the  Church  to  keep  what  was 
given,  so  long  as  respect  anywhere  existed  for  the  dead,  for 
legal  instruments,  and  the  testimony  of  witnesses.  Their  will 
is  set  forth  with  the  utmost  care,  and  nothing  is  omitted  that 
in  future  might  cause  doubt  to  rise  or  suspicion  to  rest  upon 
the  right  of  the  Church  to  hold  their  bequests  in  her  patri- 
mony. The  strength  of  this  is  found  in  the  absolute  freedom 
of  the  gift  from  all  burdens,  and  in  its  being  bequeathed  as  a 
gift  for  all  time.  "  In  perpetuam  "  is  their  constant  phrase. 
Of  course,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  no  reason  to  regard  this 
*  Original  Charters  (i.,  98),  in  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 


THE  CHARTERS  63 

as  partaking  of  finality  in  Church  affairs,  as  is  sometimes  done. 
The  unalterable  laws  of  the  Medes  and  Persians  have  all  been 
altered,  and  the  gifts  given  "  forever "  have  also  undergone 
those  mutations  of  possession  which  overtake  all  earthly 
things.  Human  contingencies  spring  from  a  deeper  fountain 
than  even  human  piety.  Furthermore,  it  is  impossible  now, 
in  these  protestant  days,  to  fulfil  the  conditions  attached  to 
their  donations.  The  Roman  Catholic  priest  alone  can  con- 
scientiously claim  to  save  the  souls  of  masters,  fathers,  and 
mothers,  predecessors  and  successors,  in  return  for  carucates 
and  ploughgates  of  land,  crofts  and  tofts,  and  wax  candles. 
No  minister  without  that  pale  can  even  legally,  not  to  say 
conscientiously,  demand  these  possessions,  on  the  foundations 
of  the  original  bequest,  without  first  assuming  the  spiritual 
obligations  which  they  include  within  them.  This  is  some- 
times overlooked.  Nevertheless,  it  is  also  clear,  that  when 
once  a  gift  is  laid  upon  God's  altar,  and  is  afterwards  found 
in  the  pockets  of  persons  who  can  produce  neither  writ  nor 
relationship  to  justify  its  presence  there,  it  is  impossible  to 
deny  the  inference  that  morality,  the  worst,  and  sacrilege,  the 
vilest,  have  been  at  work  in  the  mysterious  transference. 

Surprise  is  sometimes  expressed  that  wealthy  and  opulent 
men,  and  men  not  so  wealthy,  should,  at  that  time,  have  been 
seized  with  such  an  unbounded  desire  to  pour  their  dearest 
treasures  into  the  coffers  of  the  Church.  So  lavish  were  they, 
and  so  vast  was  their  benevolence,  that,  to  account  for  it,  we 
naturally  seek  for  some  reason,  which  falls  somewhat  within 
the  category  of  those  motives  which  move  men  to  generous 
impulses,  apart  from  those  more  exalted  principles  of  high 
.sacrifice  which  can  alone  be  illu.strated  by  the  heroic  few. 
There  seem  to  have  been  few  men  of  consequence  in  those 
times  who  did  not  bestow  gifts  on  the  Church  and  its  priest- 


6i  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

hood.  What  prompted  them  to  such  unusual  benevolence? 
Love  of  salvation,  and  love  of  friends,  and  pious  desires  to 
escape  eternal  torment,  no  doubt  lie  upon  the  surface  of  it 
all,  and  are  the  reasons  which  obtain  assertion  and  place  in 
instruments.  But  perhaps  a  wider  and  more  inexpressible 
feeling  lay  at  its  base.  It  is  suggested  by  Dr  Spence,  Dean 
of  Gloucester,  in  treating  of  the  Conqueror's  success,  and  sin 
in  his  subjection  of  England.*  "  But  in  the  hour  of  his 
success,  men  in  whom  he  had  the  deepest  confidence  began 
to  see  the  awful  wrong  of  the  great  conquest.  The  Norman 
Prelates  .seem  to  have  been  specially  struck  with  the  terrible- 
ness  of  the  Conqueror's  work.  Some  few  among  his  chosen 
followers  refused  to  share  at  all  in  the  spoil,  and  probably  the 
enormous  number  of  religious  foundations  in  England  during 
the  years  immediately  following  the  conquest,  point  to  the 
same  conviction  on  the  part  of  many  of  his  Anglo-Norman 
nobles,  that  a  great  and  fearful  sin  had  been  committed,  and 
that  some  atonement  must  be  made."  We  can  .scarcely  imagine 
how  stupendous  was  the  calamity  that  crushed  the  Engli-sh 
people  then.  It  can  perhaps  only  be  matched  by  the  disaster 
which  the  English  themselves  inflicted  on  the  Britons  when 
they  fir.st  came  to  their  island.  At  that  invasion  we  are 
told :  -f-  "  The  barbarous  conquerors  plundered  all  the  neigh- 
bouring cities  and  country,  spread  the  conflagration  from  the 
eastern  to  the  western  sea  without  any  opposition,  and 
covered  almost  every  part  of  the  devoted  island.  Public  as 
well  as  private  structures  were  overturned  ;  the  priests  were 
everywhere  slain  before  the  altars ;  the  prelates  and  the 
people,  without  any  respect  of  persons,  were  destroyed  with 
fire  and  sword  ;   nor  was  there  any  to  bury  those  who  had 

*  Good  Words,  July  1890. 

f  Bede's  Ecclesiastical  History,  Book  I.,  c.  w. 


THE  CHARTERS  65 

been  thus  cruelly  slaughtered.  Some  of  the  miserable  re- 
mainder, being  taken  in  the  mountains,  were  butchered  in 
heaps.  Others,  spent  with  hunger,  came  forth  and  submitted 
themselves  to  the  enemy  for  food,  being  destined  to  undergo 
perpetual  servitude,  if  they  were  not  killed  even  upon  the 
spot.  Some  with  sorrowful  hearts  fled  beyond  the  seas, 
others,  continuing  in  their  own  country,  led  a  miserable  life 
among  the  woods,  rocks,  and  mountains,  with  scarcely  enough 
food  to  support  life,  and  expecting  every  moment  to  be  their 
last."  That  was  in  the  fifth  century.  The  great  battle  of 
Hastings  in  the  eleventh  deeply  avenged  it,  but  the  avenging 
seems  to  have  been  done  with  a  tenderer  conscience  lying 
behind  it,  and  pity  and  contrition  for  national  sin,  in  order  to 
appease  its  pangs,  hastened  to  erect  churches  and  endow 
priesthoods,  as  much,  perhaps,  to  bury  up  blood  as  to  advance 
Christianity,  The  conspicuous  examples  of  the  great  land- 
owners and  noblemen,  and  especially  in  Scotland  of  King 
David  I.,  would  doubtless  be  widely  emulated  by  their  vassals, 
and  thus  to  give  to  Holy  Mother  Church  would  become 
fashionable  and  honourable,  as  well  as  being  good  spiritual 
security  both  here  and  hereafter. 

Charter  No.  185  has  the  title  "Concerning  four  acres  of 
land  and  four  of  meadow  conceded  to  the  Church  of  Childin- 
chirch.  To  all  (the  children)  of  Holy  Mother  (Church), 
Thomas  the  Cleric,  son  of  William  of  Collielaw,  wishes  health 
in  the  Lord.  Be  it  known  to  you  all  that  I,  by  the  prompt- 
ing of  divine  charity,  and  for  the  salvation  of  my  soul,  and  for 
the  salvation  of  the  souls  of  all  my  ancestors  and  successors, 
have  given  and  conceded,  and  by  this  my  charter  confirmed 
to  God  and  to  the  Church  of  Saint  Cuthbert  at  Channelkirk, 
and  the  Canons  of  Dryburgh,  eight  acres  of  land,  to  wit,  four 
acres  of  arable  land  and  four  of  meadow,  viz.,  the  Haugh 

E 


66  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

under  Langsyde,  in  the  territory  of  Oxton,  in  free  and 
perpetual  charity,  to  be  held  and  possessed  by  them,  from 
me  and  my  heirs  for  ever,  as  freely,  quietly,  fully,  and  honour- 
ably as  any  charity  is  held  and  possessed  more  freely,  quietly, 
fully,  and  honourably,  by  any  religious  men  in  the  whole 
kingdom  of  Scotland.  Moreover,  I  and  my  forementioned 
heirs  will  guarantee  the  land  to  the  foresaid  canons  against 
all  men.  And  that  this  my  donation,  gift,  and  confirmation 
may  obtain  perpetual  force,  I  have  affixed  my  seal  to  the 
present  document.  In  the  presence  of  these  witnesses,  etc., 
etc."  Thomas  the  Cleric,  son  of  William  of  Collielaw,  was 
alive  about  1327,  but  the  charter  may  have  been  granted 
earlier. 

The  names  of  the  witnesses  are  unfortunately  not  given. 
The  "  Langsyde "  mentioned  in  this  charter  seems  to  have 
sunk  into  complete  oblivion,  but  there  is  reason  to  believe 
that  the  "  Haugh "  is  Mountmill  Haugh,  and  consequently 
"  Langsyde "  may  have  stood  somewhere  near  the  ruins  of 
Butterdean  on  the  Airhouse  Road.  Part  of  the  glebe  of  the 
church  was  for  long  in  Mountmill  Haugh,  and  was  excambed 
for  the  corresponding  acreage  which  now  lies  on  the  north 
side  of  the  manse,  so  late  as  November  1871. 

The  "  territory  of  Oxton  "  is  worthy  of  notice  as  pointing 
to  a  peculiarity  of  ancient  agricultural  life.  It  seems  that 
under  such  lawless  times  men  found  it  necessary  to  dwell  in 
communities  or  villas  rather  than  in  farms.  By  this  means 
they  derived  greater  security  and  immunity  from  assault. 
Attached  to  these  villas  was  a  district  or  territoria  which 
cottagers  and  husbandmen  tilled  in  their  several  proportions. 
According  to  Professor  Cosmo  Innes  the  workers  on  the  land 
were  of  three  classes :  *  i.  The  natives,  serf,  villein,  bond,  or 
*  Kelso  Register,  pref.  xxxii. 


THE  CHARTERS  67 

carle,  who  was  transferred  like  the  land,  and  might  be 
brought  back  if  he  attempted  to  escape  like  any  stray  ox  or 
sheep.  2.  The  Cottars,  who  held  in  rent  from  one  to  nine 
acres ;  and,  3.  The  Husbandmen,  who  held  land  of  such 
dimensions  as  would  approach  nearer  to  our  modern 
conception  of  a  farm.  The  lowest  of  these  classes,  viz. 
the  serf,  is  believed  to  have  been  the  class  of  natives  and 
their  descendants  whom  the  Angles  and  Saxons  found  in 
Scotland,  and  whom  they  subdued  into  slavery.  Is  the 
"  bondager  "  of  to-day  a  faint  survival  of  this  ancient  class  of 
people  ? 

The  "  territory  "  of  Oxton  seems  to  have  been  bounded  on 
the  south  by  Over  Howden  burn,  and  on  the  north  by  what 
is  now  Mountmill  Haugh.  The  Leader  on  the  east,  and  the 
Wide-open  Common  on  the  west,  would  naturally  be  the 
other  retaining  lines. 

"  William  of  Collielaw,"  mentioned  in  the  above  deed,  is 
spoken  of  in  a  Kelso  Charter  (see  "  Oxton  ")  as  having  crofts 
near  Over  Howden  about  1206.  He  must  therefore  have 
been  alive  about  that  date. 

The  House  of  Soltre,  which  is  referred  to  in  the  following 
charter,  stood  on  Soutrahill  immediately  outside  the  northern 
boundary  of  Channelkirk  parish.  It  is  assumed  to  have  been 
founded  by  Malcolm  IV.,  grandson  of  David  I.,  in  1164,  ^s  a 
hospital  of  the  Trinity  Friars.  It  was  annexed  to  Trinity 
College  by  Mary  of  Gueldres  in  1462,  Only  a  small  part 
now  remains,  commonly  called  "  Soutra  Isle,"  and  which  is 
observable  from  the  highway  on  the  west  when  crossing 
Soutra  Hill  by  the  Edinburgh  road.  It  underwent  some 
repairs  in  1898. 

Charter  No.  187,  c.  1220  A.D.  (in  Soltre  Charters  c. 
1 200)  — "  Concerning   a   pound   of  pepper   and    another   of 


68  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

cumin  to  be  rendered  to  us  annually  by  the  master  of  Soltre 
for  tithe  of  Fulewithnes,  in  the  parish  of  Channelkirk, 

"  This  is  the  agreement  made  between  the  Abbey  and 
Convent  of  Dryburgh,  on  the  one  side,  and  the  master  of 
Soltre  and  his  brethren  on  the  other,  viz.,  that  the  same 
Abbey  and  Convent,  being  charitably  disposed,  have  given 
up  and  have  freed  the  House  of  Soltre  from  all  tithes  and 
dues  which  the  same  ought,  by  ecclesiastical  law,  to  pay  to 
the  Mother  Church  of  Channelkirk  from  that  carucate  of 
land  which  he  held  in  the  parish  of  Channelkirk,  which 
is  called  Fulewithnes,  at  Wedelford,  viz.,  that  in  crop 
cultivated  for  their  own  use,  at  their  own  expense,  as  well  as 
that  in  other  movables  in  the  same  land,  themselves  giving  to 
the  house  of  Dryburgh  annually,  for  recognition  of  the 
Mother  Church  of  Channelkirk,  one  pound  of  pepper  and 
another  of  cumin  at  the  fair  of  Roxburgh.  And  it  must 
be  observed  that  this  has  been  charitably  given  up  to  the 
same  brethren  as  long  as  they  hold  the  foresaid  land  for 
their  own  uses,  under  their  own  cultivation.  But  their 
servants  on  the  same  land,  and  also  all  men  whom  they  may 
have  had  residing  under  them  on  the  same  land,  shall  fully 
and  wholly,  over  all  things,  pay  their  tithes  and  all  dues  to 
the  Mother  Church  of  Channelkirk,  both  in  life  and  in  death, 
whether  the  land  be  cultivated  by  the  House  of  Soltre  or  not. 

"  If,  moreover,  the  foresaid  brethren  of  the  House  of  Soltre 
shall  give  to  others  the  land  already  mentioned,  or  shall  sell, 
or  even  let  it  on  lease,  all  the  donations  and  ecclesiastical 
rights  of  that  whole  land,  both  that  in  growing  crop  as  well 
as  that  in  all  other  things,  shall  fully  and  wholly  be  paid  in 
all  things  to  the  Mother  Church, 

"  Besides,  it  was  so  agreed  between  them,  that  if  the  often- 
mentioned  brethren  of  the  House  of  Soltre  [blank],  viz.,  from 


THE  CHARTERS  6& 

the  year  of  our  Lord,  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  twenty, 
should  receive  any  land  or  lease  in  the  parish  of  Channelkirk, 
or  [blank],  if  they  should  have  obtained  the  foresaid  land  of 
any  one,  they  shall  pay  the  full  tithes  and  ecclesiastical  rights 
in  full,  in  all  things,  and  over  all  things,  to  the  Mother  Church 
of  that  land,  and  from  all  things  in  it  likewise,  and  wherever 
they  shall  have  had  (possessed)  anything  in  their  parishes  as 
well  themselves  as  their  servants,  and  the  men  holding  from 
them. 

"  In  evidence  of  which  contract,  the  seals  of  both  houses  are 
appended  on  this  side  and  on  that  to  the  writing  of  this  con- 
vention.    By  these  witnesses,  etc." 

As  usual,  the  names  of  witnesses  are  here  conspicuous 
by  their  absence.  But  a  few  are  given  in  the  Soltre 
Charter,  among  whom  is  William  Alb  of  Hartside.  (See 
"  Hartside.") 

In  perusing  these  charters  it  is  evident  that  the  literary 

forms  of  law  must  have  taken  their  rise  first  in  the  Church. 

"In  those  ancient  times  (tenth  and  eleventh  centuries)  we  had 

already  laws,  but  no  lawyers.  .  .  .  The  class  of  professional 

lawyers  grew  up  along  with  the  growth  of  a  more  complicated 

and  technical  jurisprudence."  *      The  monks  necessarily  were 

the  first  lawyers.     This,  however,  is  not  surprising  when  we 

remember  that  the  great  bulwark  of  our  liberties.  Trial  by 

Jury,  first  originated  in  Church  courts,  according  to  the  best 

authorities,  -j-      Hallam  X  notes,  however,  "  that  the  clergy,  by 

their  exclusive  knowledge  of  Latin,  had  it  in  their  power 

to  mould   the  language  of  public  documents  for  their  own 

purposes ! " 

*  Growth  of  English  Constitution  from  the  Earliest  Times  (Freeman), 
p.  126. 

t  Cosmo  Innes'  Legal  Antiquities,  p.  213. 
X  Europe  during  the  Middle  Ages,  chap-  vii. 


70  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

No  trace  is  now  found  of  the  site  of  this  carucate  of  land 
(104  acres),  called  "  Fulewithnis  at  Wedelford,"  *  unless  it  be 
the  place  now  called  Threeburnford,  The  frequent  expression 
"  the  Mother  Church  of  Channelkirk  "  seems  to  point  to  her 
well-known  ecclesiastical  status  in  the  valley.  It  may  refer 
either  to  the  fact  asserted  in  another  charter  that  she  was 
"  the  mother  and  parish  church  of  the  whole  valley,"  or  to  the 
two  chapels  of  Carfrae  and  Glengelt,  over  which  she  was 
superior.  The  two  charters  which  follow  here  deal  with  the 
latter  matter. 

"  Charter  186  (no  date).  Concerning  the  indemnification  of 
Channelkirk  Church  on  account  of  the  Chapel  of  Glengelt. 

"  To  all  this  document,  etc.,  Henry  de  Mundeville  wishes 
eternal  well-being  in  the  Lord.  To  you  all  I  make  known 
that  I  will  be  bound,  as  well  by  the  security  furnished  on  oath 
as  by  the  present  document,  to  the  chief  Abbey  and  Convent 
of  Dryburgh  for  myself  and  heirs  forever  ;  that  I  will  never 
injure  the  Mother  Church  at  Channelkirk  on  account  of  the 
chapel  erected  in  my  domain  of  Glengelt,  but  will  securely 
confirm  the  obventions  of  every  kind  belonging  to  the  said 
Church  of  Channelkirk,  according  to  the  tenor  of  the  charter 
designed  to  me,  by  the  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh,  con- 
cerning the  celebration  of  divine  ordinances  in  the  said 
chapel.  Moreover,  I  have  given  and  granted  to  the  same 
Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh,  three  acres  in  my  territory 
of  Glengelt,  adjoining  those  seven  acres  of  land,  which,  from 
the  gift  of  Lord  Ivon  de  Veteripont,  my  ancestor  in  the  same 
territory,  they  hold  and  possess  on  the  east  side  of  the  said 
Church  of  Channelkirk,  to  be  possessed  and  held  by  them  in 
pure  and  perpetual  charity,  according  to  the  bounds  and 
divisions  named  more  fully  in  my  charter  written  concerning 
*  See  "  Hartside"  and  "Threeburnford." 


THE  CHARTERS  71 

these  three  acres  of  land,  of  which  I  have  executed  a  fuller 
sasine  to  the  same.  In  witness  whereof,  forever,  I  have  af- 
fixed my  seal  to  the  present  writing," 

This*  Henry  de  Mundeville  was  invited  by  Edward  I., 
on  May  24,  1297,  along  with  the  Scotch  nobility,  to  go  an 
expedition  with  him  into  Flanders. 

The  Veteriponts  (often  called  Vipont)  come  into  notice 
during  David  the  First's  reign.  Rev.  Dr  John  Brown,  minister 
of  Langton,  writing  in  1834,  has  this  observation  regarding 
them.  "  During  •!•  the  reign  of  David  I.,  the  Manor  of 
Langton,  with  the  advowson  of  the  Church,  belonged  to  Roger 
de  Ow,  a  Northumbrian  follower  of  Prince  Henry.  Roger  de 
Ow  granted  to  the  monks  of  Kelso  the  Church  of  Langton, 
which  was  accordingly  held  by  Henry  the  Parson.  From  him 
the  estate  passed  to  William  de  Veteriponte  or  Vipont,  who 
continued  to  these  monks  the  Church  with  its  tithes  and  lands." 
"  The  first  Vipont  was  succeeded  by  his  eldest  son  by  his  first 
wife,  Emma  de  St  Hilary,  and  this  family  continued  Lords  of 
Langton  till  Sir  William  Vipont  was  killed  at  Bannockburn 
in  1 3 14.  Immediately  after  this  the  estate  passed  into  the 
family  of  Cockburn  by  marriage  with  the  heiress  of  Vipont." 
The  family  seems  to  have  extended  itself  to  a  considerable 
degree,  but  never  rose  to  any  great  eminence  in  Scotland. 
Scott  \  rather  ridicules  the  Vipont  character  in  Ivanhoe.  The 
Ivon  de  Veteripont  mentioned  above  must  have  lived  before 
1 1 89,  and  seems  to  have  been  alive  in  1230.  §  (See  also 
"  Glengelt "  below.) 

In  Charter  No.  191  (no  date)  John  de  Sinclair  promises  in 

*  Documents  Illustrative  of  the  History  of  Scotland.      (Rev.    Jos. 
Stevenson.)    Vol.  ii.,  p.  169. 

t  New  Statistical  Account^  "  Berwickshire,"  p.  237. 

X  Ivanhoe,  chap.  viii. 

§  Calendar  of  Documents,  vol.  i.,  p.  203. 


72  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

similar  terms  to  those  of  Henry  de  Mundeville,  that  the 
Mother  Churches  of  Channelkirk  and  Salton  shall  not  suJEfer 
injury  from  the  chapels  which  he  holds  in  Carfrae  and  Herd- 
manston,  and  certain  feast  days  of  the  church  are  specified 
when  neither  divine  service  is  to  be  heard  nor  mass  celebrated 
in  these  chapels.  And  in  recognition  of  the  right  of  both 
Mother  Churches  he  confirms  two  acres  of  land  to  Dryburgh 
Abbey  in  his  territory  of  Herdmanston. 

The  Sinclairs  of  Carfrae  seem  to  have  been  actively  en- 
gaged in  the  thirteenth  century  in  the  affairs  of  Upper  Lauder- 
dale. Concerning  the  origin  of  the  family,  it  appears,  that 
like  so  many  others,  the  Sinclairs  came  over  with  the  Con- 
queror. They  branch  out  into  distinct  divisions  during  the 
twelfth  century,  viz.,  the  Sinclairs  of  Roslin  and  the  Sinclairs 
of  Herdmanston. 

William  de  St  Clair  obtained  the  manor  of  Roslin  in 
Lothian,  where  he  settled  in  David  the  First's  reign.  He 
seems  to  be  the  first  of  the  Sinclairs  to  rise  into  historical 
notice.  This  branch  gave  the  Sinclairs  the  Earls  of  Orkney  ; 
the  Earl  Sinclairs  of  Caithness ;  Sinclair,  Lord  Sinclair ; 
Sinclair  of  Longformacus  ;  and  others.* 

The  second  branch  is  the  one  which  connects  itself  with 
Channelkirk. 

Henry  de  Sinclair,  Sheriff  to  Richard  de  Morville  of 
Lauderdale,  Constable  of  Scotland,  seems  to  have  been  a  son 
of  the  first  William  de  Sinclair  of  Roslin.  The  Sinclairs  of 
Herdmanston  and  Carfrae  derive  their  less  remote  origin  from 
him. 

Henry  de  Sinclair  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Allan,  who 
appears  with  his  father  in  the  Charters  of  the  De  Morvilles. 
It  is  this  Allan  who  obtained  from  William  de  Morville,  son 
*  Douglas's  Peerage^  p.  112. 


THE  CHARTERS  •  73 

of  Richard  de  Morville,  the  lands  of  Carfrae  in  the  parish  of 
Channelkirk,  in  marriage  with  Matilda  de  Windefore,  and 
this  is  confirmed  by  Roland  the  Constable,  who  died 
I2CX)  A.D.* 

John  de  Sinclair,  who  in  the  above-mentioned  charter 
grants  an  indemnity  to  the  Mother  Churches  of  Salton  and 
Channelkirk,  was  successor  to  Allan  de  Sinclair  in  his  estates. 
We  find  him  in  1296,  on  loth  July,  sending  in  his  sub- 
mission to  King  Edward  I.,  when  he  invaded  Scotland  to 
quell  Wallace's  rebellion.i* 

Charter  No.  237  (about  1200)  is  chiefly  interesting  here 
for  its  mention  of  Oxton,  the  mill  of  which  seems  to  have 
been  held,  along  with  several  others,  in  the  hands  of  Bishop 
William  Malvoisine,  St  Andrews  (1202-38),  and  regarding 
which  something  more  will  be  said  below  in  narrating  the 
history  of  the  village  of  Oxton. 

In  1 22 1  (Charter  234),  James,  brother  of  the  Lord  Pope, 
Penitentiary  and  Chaplain  of  the  Apostolic  See,  Legate  to 
the  beloved  brethren  in  Christ,  the  Abbot  and  Canons  of 
Dryburgh,  grants  confirmation  concerning  all  their  churches, 
lands,  and  possessions,  and  the  church  of  Channelkirk  appears 
in  the  list  in  the  usual  way. 

Charter  No.  251,  dated  1228,  contains  a  general  confirma- 
tion of  the  Abbey's  possessions,  and  mention  is  made  of  "  the 
place  itself  on  which  the  foresaid  monastery  stands."  As 
already  noticed,  it  is  disputed  whether  Hugh  de  Morville  had 
land  to  give  for  ecclesiastical  purposes  so  far  south  as  Dry- 
burgh Abbey,  and  therefore  if  he  had  not,  could  not  have 
been  its  founder.  This  charter  does  not  mention  the  giver  of 
the  site.  Channelkirk  is  catalogued  as  belonging  to  Dryburgh 
Abbey. 

*  Dip.  Scotia;,  pi.  81.       f  Palgravc's  Documents  and  Records,  p.  169. 


74  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Charters  257  and  262,  with  the  above,  are  from  Pope 
Gregory  IX.,  and  bear  the  same  import.  They  also  tell  us 
that  the  brethren  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  were  of  the  Premon- 
stratensian  Order.  This  Order  was  founded  in  the  first  half 
of  the  twelfth  century  by  Norbert,  and  derived  its  name  from 
Premontre,  where  its  first  monastery  was  founded  in  1 121.  It 
spread  through  all  countries,  and  wielded  great  influence. 
The  rules  were  those  of  Augustine  ;  religious  practices  were 
very  severe;  fasts  were  frequent,  and  scourgings  common. 
Flesh  was  altogether  forbidden.  Their  life  at  Dryburgh 
Abbey  was  therefore  no  path  of  roses.  They  were  usually 
called  white  canons  from  the  colour  of  their  dress.  To  call  up 
to  fancy  what  they  looked  like  as  they  went  in  and  out  on 
their  various  duties,  we  have  to  imagine  a  person  in  a  white 
cassock  with  a  rocket  and  cape  over  it,  a  long  white  cloak, 
and  a  square  hat  or  bonnet  of  white  felt.  They  wore  breeches 
and  shoes,  but  no  shirt.  The  abbot  wore  red  shoes,  and  a 
short  cloak,  and  carried  a  pastoral  staff  like  a  shepherd's 
crook.  They  were  poor  at  first  and  lived  by  their  labour, 
but  their  piety  soon  gained  them  benefactors.  Their  privi- 
leges were  many,  and  in  those  days,  invaluable.  They 
paid  no  tithes,  they  could  not  be  summoned  before 
any  secular  tribunal,  and  neither  were  they  under  the 
Bishop's  jurisdiction.  Their  work  meant  religious  exer- 
cises, copying  books,  and  reading,  attending  to  the 
household  offices,  and  working  in  the  fields.  They  held 
devotions  seven  times  a  day. 

In  1230  A,D.,  Alexander  II.  confirms  the  Church  of 
Channelkirk  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  (Charter  No.  242),  and  we 
leave  the  Register  of  Dryburgh  for  a  little  to  include  an 
important  event  which  transpired  in  the  history  of  this 
church  in  A.D.  [241,     This  was  its  dedication  by  David  de 


THE  CHARTERS  75 

Bernham,  Bishop  of  St  Andrews.*  A  notable  event.  Be- 
tween 1239  and  1253,  Bishop  de  Bernham  consecrated  no  less 
than  140  churches  in  his  large  diocese,  and  the  reason  of  his 
activity,  apart  from  his  own  laudable  zeal,  is  found  in  the 
interest  which  Cardinal  Otho  had  taken  in  the  question. 
We  cull  the  following  notes  from  the  Pontificale  as  quoted. 
"In  the  year  1239  Cardinal  Otho  held  a  Legislative  Council 
in  Edinburgh.  Unfortunately  the  records  of  this  Synod  are 
lost,  but  it  seems  highly  probable  that  the  Cardinal  should 
have  issued  among  others  a  constitution,  relating  to  the 
neglect  of  consecration  of  churches.  We  know  that  this  was 
a  subject  which  had  been  in  Otho's  mind,  and  that  only  a 
year  or  two  before  he  had  promulgated  an  order  dealing 
with  that  subject  at  the  head  of  his  constitutions  for  England 
in  1237.  The  following  extract  from  Johnson's  English 
Canons  f  will  give  an  idea  of  the  nature  of  the  document : 
'  Now,  because  we  have  ourselves  seen  and  heard  by  many 
that  so  wholesome  a  mystery  is  despised,  at  least  neglected 
by  some  (for  we  have  found  many  churches  and  some 
cathedrals  not  consecrated  with  holy  oil  though  built  of 
wood),  we,  therefore,  being  desirous  to  obviate  so  great  a 
neglect,  do  ordain  and  give  in  charge  that  all  cathedral, 
conventual  and  parochial  churches  which  are  ready  built,  and 
their  walls  perfected,  be  consecrated  by  the  diocesan  bishops 
to  whom  they  belong,  or  others  authorised  by  them  within 
two  years.'" 

On    3rd    June    1239   David    de    Bernham    was   elected 
Bishop    of    St    Andrews.       On   the    22nd   day   of  January 

*  De  Bernham's  Pontificale^  etc.  Edinburgh  Pitsligo  Press,  1885. 
Introduction  by  Chr.  Wordsworth,  Rector  of  Glaston.  Rev.  Dr  Jas. 
Gammack's  "  Itinerary  of  De  Bernham,"  in  The  Scottish  Guardian^  Feb. 
1883. 

\  An^lo-Catholic  Library,  Part  II.,  p.  151. 


76  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  1240,  he  himself  was  consecrated  by  the  bishops  of 
Glasgow,  Caithness,  and  Brechin.  Like  a  true  shepherd,  he 
at  once  zealously  set  about  visiting  his  large  diocese,  which 
extended  along  the  east  coast  of  all  Scotland  from  the 
Tweed  to  the  Dee.  The  service  book  which  he  used  was 
fortunately  preserved  in  Paris,  and  it  contains  the  roll  of  his 
church  dedications  up  till  1253.  The  dates  and  places  are 
only  recorded,  the  titles  of  the  churches,  that  is,  the  names 
of  the  saints  to  whom  dedicated,  being  omitted.  These  have 
to  be  sought  in  other  records.  Early  in  the  spring,  on  the 
14th  day  of  March  1241,  he  is  at  Mid-Calder  ;  on  the  i6th  he 
dedicates  St  Cuthbert's  Church,  Edinburgh.  He  then  passes 
up  the  valley  between  the  Pentlands  and  the  Lammermoors, 
and  descends  into  Berwickshire  by  Soutra  and  Lauderdale. 
If  the  March  of  that  year  was  as  tempestuous  as  that  month 
usually  is  now,  his  journey  would  truly  be  a  bitter  one,  and 
his  sense  of  duty  must  have  been  strong  to  brave  it.  It  is 
then,  notwithstanding,  that  on  the  23rd  of  March  he  arrives 
at  Channelkirk  and  dedicates  that  church,  passing  on  to 
Gordon  on  the  28th  and  Stitchill  on  the  30th.  Lauder  is  not 
mentioned  in  the  list  of  dedications,  for  a  reason  which 
becomes  apparent  in  the  chapter  following. 

With  regard  to  the  year,  it  is  as  well  to  note  that  the 
ecclesiastical  year  in  Europe  generally  commenced  on  25th 
March.  Strictly  speaking,  the  year  of  our  dedication  would 
thus  be  23rd  March  1242  according  to  our  reckoning.  But 
we  retain  De  Bernham's  mode  of  dating. 

In  stating  "  facts  and  figures "  in  this  way  we  naturally 
lose  something  of  the  solemnity  with  which  the  lapse  of  time 
should  impress  us.  When  Bishop  de  Bernham  stood  on  the 
hillside  intent  on  consecrating  Channelkirk  Church,  and 
when   the   ancient   inhabitants   of  the  parish  wended   their 


THE  CHARTERS  77 

toilsome  path  upwards  to  take  part  in  the  religious  mysteries 
of  that  day  of  March  1 241,  we  scarcely  pause  to  remember 
that  the  world  was  very  much  smaller  to  them  than  it  is  now 
to  us,  and  that  hardly  any  of  the  well-known  landmarks  to 
which  we  are  accustomed  in  history  were  then  visible. 
America  was  unknown.  No  one  had  heard  of  Australia. 
India  was  a  hearsay.  A  few  had  heard  of  China.  Sir 
William  Wallace  and  King  Robert  the  Bruce  were  not  born. 
The  Parliament  as  we  have  it  now,  in  its  two  great  branches, 
did  not  exist.  John  Knox  and  the  Reformation  did  not 
dawn  on  Scotland  till  319  years  afterwards,  and  if  the  people 
of  Channelkirk  had  been  gifted  then  with  a  glimpse  into  the 
future,  they  would  have  required  to  look  almost  as  far  forward 
to  the  memorable  days  of  Queen  Mary  and  Knox  as  we  now 
need  to  look  backward.  About  the  time  when  Channelkirk 
was  dedicated,  candles  came  into  vogue,  linen  was  introduced, 
a  licence  to  dig  coal  was  first  granted  to  Newcastle,  and  gold 
coinage  took  its  rise  some  time  later.  Roger  Bacon  was  busy 
with  his  chemicals  and  magnifying  glasses,  and,  as  some  think, 
inventing  gunpowder,  while  the  compass  began  to  be  first 
known.  But  if  physical  developments  were  then  but  in  an 
embryonic  condition,  the  growth  of  spiritual  power  was 
immense.  It  was  the  noontime  of  papal  glory.  Never 
before  or  since  has  Roman  Catholicism  gained  such  an 
ascendency  over  the  entire  world.  No  nation  was  exempt 
from  her  rule,  and  kings  and  peoples  alike  bowed  before  her 
imperious  authority.  The  slightest  whisper  of  the  Pope 
made  a  kingdom  shake.  His  deliverance  was  law,  and 
whether  it  ran  along  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  the 
Thames,  or  the  sequestered  stream  of  the  Leader,  his  power 
was  equally  invincible,  and  submission  to  it  inevitable.  An 
illustrative  case  of  this  occurs  in  our  dale  about  seven  or  eight 


78  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

years  after  Channelkirk  dedication,  and  must  have  been 
pending  as  an  ecclesiastical  dispute  when  De  Bernham  passed 
through  it,  as  is  shown  in  next  chapter. 

From  De  Bernham's  Pontificale  we  can  partly  call  up  to 
our  imagination  the  scene  that  was  enacted  at  the  consecra- 
tion of  the  church.  In  such  a  remote  place,  the  ceremony 
might  not  be  so  elaborate  or  complete  as  it  is  given  there, 
but  the  essentials  were  never  omitted  in  any  case.  The 
articles  required  in  the  service  were  crosses,  candelabra  and 
wax  candles,  vases  for  water,  keys,  holy  oil,  chrisma,  hyssop, 
sand  or  ashes,  wine,  salt,  incense,  bread.  After  robing 
and  psalm-chanting,  the  Bishop  and  procession  came 
singing  to  the  church  door,  "Zaccheus,  make  haste,"  etc. 
Twelve  wax  lights  were  lit  and  placed  outside  in  a 
circuit  around  the  Church  and  the  same  number  within. 
The  procession  then  went  round  the  Church  carrying  the 
relicts  of  the  saint  and  singing  the  litany.  A  deacon  then 
entered  the  Church  and  shut  the  door  to  ask  the  question, 
"  Who  is  the  King  of  Glory  ?  "  in  reply  to  the  Bishop's  knock, 
Lift  up  your  heads,"  etc.,  after  he  had  walked  round  the 
Church  three  times.  The  door  being  opened,  the  Bishop  and 
procession  entered  bearing  the  cross,  while  the  chest  with  the 
saint's  relics  was  held  before  the  door  by  priests.  A  sign  of 
the  cross  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  floor  was  then  made, 
and  the  cross  of  the  Bishop  fixed  in  the  centre  of  the  Church, 
and  formulas,  prayers,  genuflections,  chants,  litany,  etc., 
followed.  After  this  the  Greek  alphabet  was  written  across 
the  floor  from  the  left  corner  in  the  east  to  the  right 
corner  in  the  west,  and  a  cross  made  with  this  by  the 
Latin  alphabet  written  from  the  east  right  corner  to  the  west 
left.  Then  followed  the  consecration  of  salt,  the  ashes,  holy 
water,  the  wine,  and  the  altar.      Then  beginning  in  the  east 


THE  CHARTERS  79 

left-hand  corner,  as  with  the  Greek  alphabet,  the  Bishop  went 
once  round  the  church  sprinkHng  the  walls.  This  was  done 
other  twice,  each  time  a  higher  sprinkling  being  given,  till  the 
wall-tops  were  reached.  He  enacted  the  same  ceremony  out- 
side, chanting  and  defying,  in  the  language  of  Scripture,  the 
winds  and  waters  to  move  the  walls,  till  finally  he  sprinkled 
the  very  ridge,  singing :  "  Jacob  saw  a  ladder  which  touched 
the  highest  heavens,  and  angels  descended  upon  it."  The 
consecration  of  the  churchyard  (when  required  ;  Channelkirk 
churchyard  would  be  consecrated  long  before  this)  seems 
then  to  have  come  next  in  order,  with  candles  set  in  the  four 
corners,  and  much  ceremony  and  singing.  After  this  was 
done,  the  Bishop  again  entered  the  church.  Holy  water  was 
sprinkled  over  the  floor,  the  altar  was  consecrated  with  water, 
oil,  and  the  chrisma,  the  crosses  to  be  used  blessed,  and  the 
incense.  Here  followed,  perhaps,  the  most  important  part  of 
the  whole  service,  viz.,  the  exposing  of  the  relics.  They  were 
brought  out  from  the  altar,  a  veil  being  put  up  between  the 
priests  and  the  people  (this  being  the  first  time  that  the 
people  are  noticed  in  the  service),  a  place  was  dug  and 
anointed  at  its  four  corners  with  the  chrisma,  and  incense 
burned,  and  then  the  Bishop  received  into  his  own  hands  the 
sacred  relics,  and  deposited  them,  singing  meanwhile  an  anti- 
phonal,  "  The  saints  shall  exalt  in  glory,  in  their  graves  they 
.shall  rejoice."  A  table  having  been  placed  over  the  relics,  it 
was  daubed  with  lime  as  the  Bishop  sang  :  "  The  bodies  of  the 
saints  sleep  in  peace,  and  their  names  shall  live  thro'  eternity." 
The  actual  dedication  closed  with  the  demand  for  a  gift  to 
the  Church.  No  church  could  be  dedicated  without  it,  and  it 
was  usually  given  by  the  lord  who  owned  the  land.  He 
himself  placed  it  on  the  altar  with  a  small  knife  or  baton,  the 
clergy  following  the  act,  by  singing :  "  Confirm  this  which  has 


80  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

been  done,  O  God,  through  us  to  Thy  holy  temple  which  is  in 
Jerusalem.  Hallelujah."  The  Bishop  then  raised  his  right 
hand  and  blessed  the  church  with  the  usual  formal  benedic- 
tion. The  gospels  were  then  read  to  the  people,  and  the 
Bishop  preached.  He  explained  the  meaning  of  the  dedica- 
tion, exhorted  them  to  come  and  go  to  church  in  peace,  an 
injunction  which  was  not  altogether  unnecessary,  as  in 
Berwick  Church,  about  this  time,  there  had  been  bloodshed. 
He  enjoined  them  to  observe  the  anniversary  of  the  dedica- 
tion as  a  holy  day,  and  to  give  legitimate  gifts  to  the  church. 
Mass  was  then  celebrated  :  the  singers  sang  "  How  terrible 
is  this  place :  this  is  none  other  than  the  House  of  God,  the 
very  gate  of  heaven."  A  lesson  was  read  from  Revelation, 
the  Bishop  blessed  the  people,  and  the  whole  service  ter- 
minated. 

Channelkirk  witnessed  this  in  the  wild  March  month  of 
1 241.  Inexpressibly  beautiful  and  impressive  must  have  been 
the  sight.  Looking  out  on  the  church  to-day  in  this  last  year 
of  a  dying  century,  one  experiences  a  wistful  sense  of  some- 
thing awanting.  Whether  it  is  that  distance  lends  enchant- 
ment, or  that  the  wings  of  Time,  stretched  over  those  far-away 
days,  cast  a  more  mystic  shadow  over  them  than  we  can  see 
over  our  own,  certain  it  is  that  a  majesty  and  beauty  have 
faded  from  our  religious  services  which  one  would  not  wholly 
despise  if  they  were  to  be  restored.  But,  perhaps,  for  them, 
as  for  these  old  days  themselves,  there  is  now  no  returning. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE   PARISH   KIRK   OF   LAUDERDALE 

Ecclesiastical  Disputes  in  the  Thirteenth  Century — The  Lauder  Case — 
Struggle  for  Teinds — Lord  Andrew  Moray — Eymeric,  Lauder  Priest 
— Judicial  Proceedings — -The  Pope's  SeYitence  and  Suspension  of 
Eymeric — Resistance  of  Eymeric — Final  Settlement  Concerning  the 
Chapel  of  Lauder — Channelkirk  Church,  the  Mother  and  Parish 
Church  of  the  Whole  Valley — Triumph  of  Dryburgh  Abbey— The 
"  Parish  "  of  the  Twelfth  Century — First  Mention  of  Lauder  Church 
— Its  Patrons — Channelkirk  Priests  and  Lauder — Lauder  Church  or 
Chapel — Its  Status  before  the  Reformation. 

At  Jedburgh,  in  the  year  1230,  King  Alexander  II.  grants  a 
general  confirmation  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  *  of  all  her  churches 
and  other  possessions,  among  which,  as  a  matter  of  course,  is 
duly  mentioned  the  Church  of  Childinchurch.  This  Charter 
(No.  242)  does  not  afford  us  any  more  information  con- 
cerning ourselves,  but  in  a  deliverance  of  the  delegates  of  the 
Pope  regarding  the  dispute  about  Lauder  Church  (No.  279), 
Channelkirk  comes  into  rather  interesting  prominence.  As 
is  not  uncommon,  the  light  which  enables  us  to  discern 
Lauder  and  Channelkirk  Churches  so  clearly  at  that  dim 
distance,  shines  from  the  fires  of  an  ecclesiastical  quarrel. 
The  thirteenth  century,  indeed,  is  somewhat  notorious  for 
its  ecclesiastical  recriminations.  In  1220,  just  when  Lauder 
dispute  was  in  a  state  of  incubation,  the  Bishop  of  Glasgow 
and  the  Canons  of  Jedburgh  were  settling  an  embroilment 

*  IJhcr  de  Dryburgh, 

F 


82  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

before  arbitrators  in  the  Chapel  of  Nesbit.  The  Pope,  in 
1228,  comes  in  between  Roger,  rector  of  Ellesden,  and  Kelso 
Abbey,  lest  trouble  should  increase ;  and  in  1203,  Lord  William 
de  Veteriponte  and  the  monks  of  Kelso  have  warm  debatings 
over  certain  shealings  in  Lammermoor.  Earlier,  in  11 80,* 
the  Melrose  monks  have  a  first-class  combat  with  Richard 
de  Morville  of  Lauderdale,  concerning  rights  of  pasture  and 
forest  lying  between  Gala  Water  and  Leader.  Neither  did 
this  quarrel  soon  die.  As  late  as  1268,  the  Abbot  of  Melrose 
and  a  great  part  of  his  Convent  were  excommunicated  by  a 
Provincial  Council  held  at  Perth,*!"  fo''  violating  the  venerable 
sanctuary  of  Stow  in  Wedale,  by  breaking  into  the  house  of 
the  Bishop  of  St  Andrews,  and  slaying  a  clerk,  and  wounding 
many  others.  Friction  between  the  nobles  and  the  religious 
houses  seems  to  have  been  very  great  about  this  period  ;  but 
the  rapacity  which  characterised  the  former  in  the  later  days 
of  the  Reformation,  found  a  firmer  resistance  from  the  papist 
than  was  possible  to  the  Protestant.  Arbitration,  it  may  be 
noted,  seems  to  have  been  generally  recommended  and 
followed  in  these  contentions  as  the  best  method  of  establish- 
ing peace.  As  a  rule,  the  system  seems  to  have  worked  well, 
but  in  the  Lauder  case,  which  is  our  immediate  interest  here, 
it  utterly  failed.     The  antagonism  was  too  deep-rooted. 

The  parties  and  religious  houses  concerned  were  widely 
scattered,  a>d  included  Lauder  priest,  who  was  called 
Eymeric  ;  the  Abbeys  of  Kilwinning  and  Dryburgh  ;  the 
Bishop  of  St  Andrews  ;  the  Priory  of  May  ;  Lord  Andrew  de 
Moravia,  bishop  ;  and  the  great  De  Morville  family.  The 
cause  of  war  was  the  teinds  of  Lauder  Church.  Who  should 
uplift  and  possess  them  ? 

*  Liber  de  Melrose^  Chronica  de  Mailros. 
f  Concilia  Scoficattce,  p.  \\\\. 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  83 

In  1 220,  Kilwinning  Abbey,  founded  in  1140  by  Hugh  de 
Morville,  opens  a  triangular  fight  between  Dryburgh  Abbey 
and  certain  others  in  Glasgow  and  of  the  diocese  of  St 
Andrews,  concerning  the  tithes  of  Lauder  Church.  A  con- 
vention is  then  made  between  Kilwinning  and  Dryburgh,  and 
the  affair  is  harmonised  for  the  time.  When  ten  years  roll 
past,  the  smouldering  embers  burst  forth  in  fiercer  flame,  and 
give  light  strong  enough  to  define  the  situation  more  clearly. 
In  1230  the  Bishop  of  St  Andrews,  William  Malvoisine,  who 
was  also,  previous  to  A.D,  1200,  Bishop  of  Glasgow,  grants  to 
Dryburgh  Abbey  a  charter  confirming  the  right  of  teinds 
which  the  canons  of  that  house  held  in  Lauder  parish.  By  it 
all  are  given  to  understand,  "  that  we  (Bishop  William,  viz.), 
under  the  influence  of  divine  piety,  have  granted,  and  by 
episcopal  authority  have  confirmed,  to  our  beloved  sons  of 
the  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh  the  whole  half  share 
which  Lord  Andrew  de  Moravia  held  in  the  Parish  Church  of 
Lauder,  to  be  held  quietly  in  perpetual  possession,  with  reser- 
vation of  the  tenure  of  Symon  of  Nusiac,  who  holds  it  at 
present  by  gift  of  the  said  canons,  for  the  rest  of  his  life. 
But  in  the  case  of  his  yielding  it  up,  or  dying,  we  grant  the 
said  half  share  to  the  foresaid  canons,  and  confirm  it  for  their 
own  free  use,  and  with  the  full  completion  of  their  Title,  that 
it  be  directed  and  held  by  them  without  opposition,  as  it  is 
contained  in  the  declaration  of  the  judges,  in  the  instrument 
of  the  delegates  which  they  have  beside  them,  namely  :  the 
half  of  every  kind  of  teinds  from  Treburne,  from  Pilmuir,  from 
the  land  of  Walter  Hostarius  {i.e.,  the  Doorward),  from  the 
land  of  Martin,  viz.,  Withlaw  and  Langelt  (Whitelaw  and 
Langalt),  and  from  the  land  of  Utred  of  Langelt  and  from 
Ailinispeth,  and  from  the  land  of  Samson,  viz.,  Todlaw, 
Aldinstoun,   Welplaw,    Lyalstoun,   and    Burncastell,   and    if 


84  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

anything  new  should  arise  within  the  bounds  of  these  villages, 
the  other  revenues  of  the  Church  of  Lauder  are  to  be  re- 
served. Moreover,  we  decree  that  he  who  for  the  time  may 
hold  office  in  the  said  Church  of  Lauder  shall  in  no  way  in 
anything  give  any  trouble  or  annoyance  to  the  same  canons 
concerning  the  portion  belonging  to  them."  This  charter  of 
confirmation  receives  "  perpetual  validity  "  by  the  affixment 
of  the  seal  of  the  Bishop. 

There  is  no  doubt  here  as  to  the  .strained  state  of  matters. 
The  canons  of  Dryburgh  claim  a  "  whole  half  share  "  of  the 
teinds  derived  from  the  above  lands  which  seem  to  have 
belonged  formerly  to  Lord  Andrew  Moray.  But  the  Lauder 
priest  gives  trouble  and  annoyance  to  them  in  uplifting  them, 
and  the  canons  bring  pressure  to  bear  upon  Bishop  William 
of  St  Andrews,  whose  diocese  stretches  over  Lauderdale,  to 
make  it  clear  to  Eymeric  that  his  protest  against  their  actiqn 
is  hopeless,  and  that  he  is  utterly  in  the  wrong.  The  case 
had,  doubtless,  been  contested  at  an  earlier  date,  as  a  refer- 
ence to  "  the  instrument  of  the  delegates  "  in  the  hands  of  the 
judges  seems  to  warrant  us  in  assuming. 

The  *'  Lord  Andrew  de  Moravia  "  mentioned  is  the  well- 
known  Bishop  Andrew  Moray,  founder  of  Elgin  Cathedral, 
Dean  of  Moray,  1 221-1242,  and  the  seventh  bishop  in  that 
diocese.  He  was  very  wealthy  and  munificent  in  his  gifts  to 
the  Church,  helped  doubtless  by  his  close  connection  with  the 
house  of  Duffus.  His  possessions,  as  we  see,  embraced  a 
considerable  part  of  Lauder  parish,  mentioned  by  the  names 
of  the  separate  farms,  all  or  nearly  all  of  which  still  preserve 
the  same  nomenclature  with  but  little  alteration.*  It  is 
*"  Walter  de  Moray,  in  1278,  exempted  the  Dryburgh  canons  from 
multure  for  their  corn  grown  on  the  above  land  (the  land — a  ploughgate 
—and  pasture  for  300  sheep  given  by  David  Oliford  in  Smalham),  and  on 
their  ground  at  Smalham  MWn."— Monastic  Annals  of  Teviotdale,  p.  305. 


k 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  85 

accepted  that  Hugh  de  Morville  possessed  all  Lauderdale 
during  his  lifetime,  but  between  the  date  of  his  death  in  1162 
and  the  year  1230,  the  date  of  this  charter,  when  the  De 
Morville  name  had  sunk  into  that  of  the  Earl  of  Galway, 
the  area  of  Lauderdale  valley  seems  to  have  been,  through 
marriage,  broken  up  into  several  estates,  owned  by  proprietors 
who,  in  a  few  cases,  achieved  a  more  lustrous  historical  name 
than  even  that  of  the  high  official  and  friend  of  King 
David  I.  This  was  partly  due  to  the  generosity  of  the  De 
Morvilles  themselves,  and  partly,  no  doubt,  to  the  necessity 
of  the  times.  We  know  that  Carfrae,  for  example,  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  Sinclairs  before  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century, 
and  Hartside,  CoUielaw,  Glengelt,  and  Howden — to  instance 
those  with  which  we  are  most  acquainted — all  seem  to  have 
been  under  separate  owners  about  1206.  Bishop  Andrew 
Moray  may  have  become  proprietor  of  the  farms,  from  which 
the  teinds  were  said  to  be  drawn  about  the  end  of  the  same 
century  that  closed  the  record  of  the  De  Morvilles,  and  the 
original  endowment  of  Lauder  Church  having  become  com- 
plicated in  the  changes  of  landowners,  may  easily  have 
created  great  perplexity  to  all  concerned,  both  churchmen 
and  laymen.  With  every  division  of  ownership,  the  new 
question  of  proportion  of  teinds  lawfully  due  from  each 
separate  estate  would  arise,  and  this  of  itself  would  be  enough 
to  engender  friction  and  bitterness  between  the  mildest- 
minded  of  men.  But  the  monks  were  by  no  means  lacking 
in  their  devotion  to  their  secular  patrimony,  however  tenacious 
and  grasping  the  nobles  also  of  their  day  may  have  been  of 
the  burdens  laid  upon  the  land  under  their  sway.  The  priest 
of  Lauder,  at  least,  seems  to  have  had  a  special  gift  of  pug- 
nacity, and  the  teinds  which  the  canons  of  Dryburgh  were 
determined  to  upHft  from  Bishop  Moray's  lands,  he  was  as 


86  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

determined  should  never  be  fingered  by  them.  They  pro- 
tested :  he  snapped  his  fingers  at  them,  for  the  men  on  the 
land,  who  had  the  first  handling  of  the  sheaves,  were  evidently 
his  friends.  In  every  case  he  held  the  teinds,  as  we  shall  see. 
The  canons  complained  to  the  dignitaries  above  both,  and  the 
judges  sat,  as  it  appears,  and  decided  in  their  favour.  What 
cared  Eymeric?  Alas,  however,  for  priestly  courage,  if  a 
Pope's  favour  has  no  gracious  smile  for  it.  If  priests  will  not 
bow,  then,  in  such  dire  circumstances,  they  must  break,  and 
poor  Eymeric,  not  bowing  obsequiously  upon  this  stone  of 
power,  ultimately  falls  under  it,  and  straightway  is  ground  to 
powder. 

For  Eymeric  will  not  yield  the  teinds  from  Bishop 
Moray's  lands  to  the  canons  of  Dryburgh,  and  eighteen 
bitter  and  sullen  years  pass  by  from  the  date  of  Bishop 
William's  caution,  and  the  year  1248  dawns  on  the  same 
disagreeable  state  of  matters.  But  the  Pope  has  now  come 
upon  the  scene.  The  eighteen  years  seem  to  have  had  their 
share  of  discussion,  trial,  adjudication,  and  continued  defiance 
on  the  part  of  Eymeric.  The  patience  of  Dryburgh  canons, 
of  the  St  Andrews'  authorities,  and  last  of  all,  of  the  Pope, 
is  exhausted  (Bishop  William,  good  and  patient  with  this 
refractory  Lauder  priest,  no  doubt,  is  in  his  grave  ten 
years  ago),  and  the  bolt  falls  upon  pugnacious  Eymeric,  and 
he  is  extinguished  for  ever.  The  canons  of  Dryburgh  de- 
manded Eymeric's  removal,  and  the  whole  case  was  referred 
to  His  Holiness  Pope  Innocent  IV.  He  appointed  judges 
in  the  case,  which  went  to  trial.  Eymeric  stubbornly  refused 
to  appear  although  summoned,  and  bore  himself  aloof 
haughtily.  The  "sentence"  given  below  shows  how 
thoroughly  the  ancient  monks  reverenced  law,  and  how 
majestic    is     its     mien     through    all    forms    and    processes 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  87 

when  moving  under  the  dictates  of  the  ecclesiastical  judg- 
ment* 

"  Sentence  of  the  delegates  appointed  as  judges  in  the 
case  of  Lauder  Church. 

"  In  the  year  of  grace,  1248,  on  the  first  day  of  Jove  after 
the  discovery  of  the  Holy  Cross  in  the  Parish  Church  of  St 
Andrew,  we,  John  and  John,  priors  of  St  Andrew  and  of 
May,  and  Adam,  Archdeacon  of  St  Andrew,  agents,  ap- 
pointed judges  by  the  Pope  in  the  case  which  is  pending 
between  the  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh,  of  the 
Premonstratensian  Order,  on  the  one  side,  and  Master 
Eymeric,  the  accused,  rector  of  the  Church  of  Lauder,  on  the 
other. 

"  We  have  caused  the  Apostolic  Letters  addressed  to  us  to 
be  read  in  our  presence,  the  tenor  whereof  is  as  follows  : — 

"  Innocent,  Bishop,  Servant  of  the  servants  of  God,  to  our 
beloved  sons  of  St  Andrew,  health  and  apostolic  benediction. 
On  the  part  of  our  beloved  sons  of  the  Abbey  and  Convent 
of  Dryburgh  of  the  Premonstratensian  Order,  a  complaint  has 
been  laid  before  us,  that,  on  account  of  Eymeric,  of  the 
Church  of  Lauder,  in  the  diocese  of  St  Andrew,  which  justly 
belongs  to  their  monastery,  they  are  injured  in  these  same 
matters.  And  therefore  we  entrust  to  your  discretion  by 
apostolic  writing,  that,  having  called  the  parties,  to  hear  the 
case,  and  the  appeal  being  removed,  to  close  the  matter 
finally,  causing  their  decision  to  be  strictly  observed  on  pain 
of  ecclesiastical  censure.  Moreover,  to  compel  the  witnesses 
who  may  have  been  named,  if  through  favour,  hatred,  or  fear, 
they  shall  withdraw,  by  the  same  censure,  to  adhibit  their 
names  to  the  truth,  and  if  you  shall  not  all  have  been  able  to 
be  present  at  the  carrying  out  of  these  matters,  nevertheless, 
*  Dryburgh  Charter,  No.  280. 


88  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

that  two  of  you  can  accomplish  them.  Given  on  the  tenth 
of  the  Kalends  of  i\pril,  at  Lyons,  in  the  third  year  of  our 
pontificate." 

The  third  year  of  the  pontificate  of  Innocent  IV.  was 
1243,  five  years  before  this  deliverance  of  the  delegates. 
The  deliverance  proceeds  :  "  The  petition  of  the  said  Abbey 
and  Cbnvent  of  Dryburgh  against  the  said  Eymeric  having 
been  heard  concerning  the  Church  of  Lauder,  which  church 
the  said  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh  maintained  justly 
belonged  to  their  monastery.  With  the  Apostolic  Authority 
committed  to  us,  we  have  lawfully  summoned  parties  into 
our  presence,  after  a  day  had  been  given  to  those  on  trial 
before  the  delegates,  by  law  constituted  for  carefully  trying 
the  case  before  witnesses,  because  he  (Eymeric)  contumaciously 
absented  himself.  We,  the  divine  presence  making  up  for 
the  absent  one,  caused  witnesses,  whom  the  said  Abbey  and 
Convent  of  Dryburgh  brought  forward  on  their  behalf  to 
prove  their  own  contention,  to  be  examined  by  men  worthy 
of  credit,  and  the  depositions  of  the  same  on  trial  to  be 
published,  appointing  a  day  for  the  parties  to  discuss  their 
attestations. 

"  When  it  appeared  quite  obvious  to  us  that  the  conten- 
tion of  the  said  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh  had  been 
clearly  proved,  both  by  documents  and  witnesses  without  any 
exception,  the  more  learned  having  carefully  examined  the 
merits  of  the  case  with  the  solemnity  and  order  of  the  law  in 
all  things,  and  instructed  through  all  things  by  a  council  of 
lawyers  sitting  beside  us,  we,  having  God  before  our  eyes, 
in  the  name  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit,  adjudge 
the  Church  of  Lauder,  with  all  that  belongs  to  it,  to  the 
Monastery,  the  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh,  and  to  the 
canons  of  the  same  Monastery,  and  we  withdraw  the  same 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  89 

Church  from  the  said  Master  Eymeric,  and  decree  that  he  be 
removed  from  the  same,  imposing  perpetual  silence  on  him. 
Concerning  the  said  Church  and  the  said  Master  Eymeric,  we 
fine  to  the  extent  of  lOO  merks  of  silver,  and  make  account- 
able to  the  foresaid  Abbey  and  Convent  of  Dryburgh,  for 
expenses  incurred  in  the  lawsuit  on  oath  by  the  same  Abbey 
for  itself  and  Convent,  by  its  procurator  legally  appointed, 
and  for  security  made  by  us.  The  witnesses  and  sitting 
magistrates  being  Master  Vigellus,  Canon  of  Dunkeld,  Master 
William  of  Cunynham,  Master  Alexander  of  Edinburgh,  with 
many  others." 

One  should  naturally  suppose  that  Lauder  priest  would 
wither  from  off  the  earth  before  such  a  blast  from  Pope  and 
prior.  On  the  contrary,  there  are  signs  that  he  was  not 
greatly  disconcerted,  though  ultimately  compelled  to  yield. 
Who  knows  but  his  decease  alone  settled  the  question  ? 
There  is  some  uncertainty  as  to  what  really  occurred,  but 
we  are  assured,  on  the  authority  of  later  charters,  that  the 
noise  of  the  dispute  still  reverberated  between  St  Andrews 
and  Dryburgh  four  years  after  this  deliverance  of  the 
delegates,  that  is,  in  1252.  All  is  silent  once  more  till  we 
reach  the  year  1268,  when  Lauder  Church  is  discovered 
without  a  priest,  and  arrangements  made  whereby  the  priest 
of  Channelkirk  fulfils  the  double  duties  of  both. 

From  the  above  deliverance  we  learn  the  important  fact 
that  Dryburgh  Abbey  claimed  the  teinds  of  Lauder  Church, 
because  she  claimed  the  church  itself  The  claim  upon  the 
church  of  Lauder  as  belonging  to  her  is  therefore  the  crux  of 
the  whole  contention.  The  Lauder  priest  stoutly  renounces 
this  assumption.  He  is  under  no  superior.  He  stands  for 
himself,  and  will  not  accept  supervision.  In  the  charter  of 
1252  this  receives  a  keener  edge  in  the  narrative  of  debate 


90  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

set  forth  there.  It  is  a  long  document,  and  we  give  as  much 
of  it  only  as  seems  to  be  essential  to  the  elucidation  of  the 
final  issue.  The  chief  interest,  however,  which  we  have  in 
it  is  the  light  which  is  thrown  upon  Channelkirk  Church 
with  reference  to  its  age,  as  compared  with  Lauder  Church, 
and  the  ecclesiastical  position  which  it  occupied  at  that  date 
in  Lauderdale.     The  charter  is  entitled  : — 

"  The  Final  Settlement  concerning  the  Chapel  of  Lauder." 

After  the  usual  pious  salutations  and  courtesies  are  set 
forth,  Eymeric  is  mentioned,  with" a  sneer,  as  "calling  himself 
rector  of  Lauder  Church,  which  he  unjustly  occupies  and 
forcibly  keeps  possession  of  (contra  justiciam  occupat  et 
detinet),  to  the  no  small  injury  and  detriment  of  the  said 
Abbey  and  Convent "  (of  Dryburgh).  A  view  of  the  lawsuit 
is  then  given.  Bernard  of  Cardella  is  appointed  procurator 
for  Dryburgh  Abbey,  to  act  against  Eymeric,  who  has  on  his 
side  Theobald  of  Senon,  procurator's  clerk,  who  is  substituted 
for  the  late  procurator,  acting  on  behalf  of  Lauder  priest. 

The  procurator,  Bernard,  in  name  of  Dryburgh  canons, 
"  demands  that  the  said  Eymeric  be  removed  from  the  said 
church  (of  Lauder),  and  that  it  be  assigned  to  himself,  and, 
in  order  to  its  restitution,  with  the  revenues  derived  from 
thence,  valued  at  200  merks,  and  that  Eymeric  be  sentenced 
to  a  fine.     He  also  demands  expenses." 

Theobald,  procurator  for  Eymeric,  replies  by  taking  the 
evidence  of  witnesses.  "  I  deny,"  said  he,  "  the  things 
narrated  to  be  true,  as  they  are  narrated,  and  I  maintain  that 
the  demands  ought  not  to  be  granted."  He  loudly  declares 
against  Dryburgh  Abbey  and  its  procurator,  "  that  since  all 
the  teinds  situated  in  the  parish  of  the  said  Church  of  Lauder 
by  common  law  belong  to  Eymeric,  in  the  name  of  the  said 
Church,  the  foresaid  Abbey  and  Convent,  contrary  to  justice. 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  91 

gather  the  half  of  all  the  teinds,  greater  or  less,  in  certain 
villages  situated  in  the  said  parish  of  Lauder,  namely,  from 
Pilmuir,  from  Treburn,  from  Wittelaw,  from  the  land  which 
belonged  to  William  of  Blendi,  from  Langald  (Langat),  from 
Tolchus  (Tollis),  from  Welpelawe,  from  Aldeniston,  and  from 
Burncastel,  to  the  great  injury  and  detriment  of  the  said 
rector,  although  they  have  no  right  in  the  same.  Wherefore, 
the  said  rector  demands  that  the  said  teinds  be,  in  the  name 
of  the  said  Church,  returned  and  restored  to  him,  or  their 
worth,  which  he  values  at  200  merks.  He  also  demands 
that  the  said  pious  persons  be  prevented  in  future  from 
gathering  up  the  tithes  mentioned,  as  they  ought  not,  and 
that  perpetual  silence  be  imposed  on  the  same  persons 
regarding  the  foresaid  tithes.  He  demands  also  the  foresaid 
things  with  the  expenses  incurred  or  to  be  incurred,  which  in 
his  own  time  he  will  declare,  and  by  the  aid  of  the  law,  keep 
safe  for  himself  in  all  respects." 

Bernard,  the  Dryburgh  procurator,  rebuts  these  demands. 
Then  the  narrative  proceeds  :  "  The  person  accountable  said, 
*  I  give  on  oath  the  award  of  the  law.'  Petitions  having  been 
made,  and  the  replies  to  the  same,  witnesses  having  been 
brought  forward  on  this  side  and  on  that,  we  have  carefully 
listened  to  all  that  the  parties  wished  to  bring  forward,  and 
we  have  carefully  reported  these  to  the  Pope,  who  entrusted 
to  us,  as  the  organ  of  his  own  voice,  the  declaration  of  the 
sentence. 

"  We,  then,  by  the  special  Apostolic  Authority  which  we 
exercise  in  this  place,  deliberately  adjudge  the  Church  of 
Lauder  to  Master  William  of  Lothian  (who  had  deputed  the 
case  to  Bernard  of  Langardale  at  a  later  stage  of  procedure), 
present  procurator  to  the  Abbey  and  Convent  (of  Dryburgh) 
in  name  of  the  same,  and  to  the  Abbey  and  Convent  itself. 


95  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

on  the  ground  that,  as  the  Church  at  Channelkirk  which,  with 
perfect  right,  looked  to  the  same  (Abbey)  as  though  to  her 
Mother  Church,  and  on  this  account  had  been  subject  to  the 
same  (Abbey)  and  to  the  Convent,  the  same  (Channelkirk 
Church)  giving  us  (Dryburgh)  freedom  as  regards  the  teinds 
for  which  the  other  party  (Lauder)  sued,  when  to  us  it  was 
clear  that  the  foresaid  Church  of  Channelkirk  had  been  the 
Mother  and  Parish  Church  of  the  whole  foresaid  valley 
before  the  Church  of  Lauder  was  founded  in  that  place." 

The  case  is  then  finally  closed  :  Dryburgh  Abbey  enters 
into  full  and  undisturbed  possession  of  the  teinds  of  all 
Lauderdale;  Eymeric  is  cut  adrift  by  law  ;  and  in  1268,  as 
has  been  said,  Lauder  Church  is  served  by  the  Channelkirk 
priest. 

The  case  has  every  symptom  of  having  been  a  desperate 
one.  From  words  and  altercations,  process  of  law  had  been 
called  in  ;  and  when  Pope  and  prior  were  defied  by  Eymeric, 
and  Dryburgh  Abbey's  fulminations  rendered  nugatory, 
force  had  been  attempted,  and  counter-force  employed  to 
resist  it.  But  the  key  to  the  problem  seems  to  be  found  in 
the  short  sentence  about  Channelkirk  Church  having  been 
"  the  mother  and  parish  church  of  the  whole  valley  of  Lauder- 
dale" contained  in  the  final  sentence  of  the  judge  or  judges, 
as  quoted  ^bove.  In  order  to  have  a  clear  view  of  the 
reasons  upon  which  each  side  founded  its  claim  to  Lauder 
teinds,  it  is  necessary  to  view  the  circumstances  from  a 
broader  platform.  The  case  seems  to  have  taken  form  in 
the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century.  Parishes  were 
then  fairly  well  defined.  There  is  abundant  documentary 
evidence  that  there  were  parochial  divisions  in  the  preceding 
century,  but  during  this  inchoative  stage,  the  boundaries  of 
parishes  coincided,  as  a  rule,  with  the  boundaries  of  estates. 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  93 

In  the  twelfth  century  the  estate  of  Hugh  de  Morville 
embraced  almost  the  whole  of  Lauderdale,  as  he  is  said  to 
grant  the  site  of  Dryburgh  Abbey,  and  the  Lammermoors 
were  not  his  furthest  boundary  on  the  north.  This  state 
of  matters  seems  to  have  continued  during  his  lifetime.  It 
is  in  his  son  Richard's  day  that  we  read  of  divisions  of 
land  in  Lauderdale.  Consequently,  in  Hugh  de  Morville's 
time,  that  is,  before  A.D.  1162,  the  reputed  year  of  his 
death,*  there  would  be  but  one  estate  in  Lauderdale,  and 
this  estate  would  naturally  be,  as  was  usual,  the  bounding 
limits  of  the  parish. 

Perhaps,  also,  we  should  remember  that  a  "  parish " 
at  that  time  did  not  mean  what  we  understand  by  a 
"parochia,"  or  parish,  now.  It  had  more  reference  to  an 
ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  over  certain  territory.  It  was, 
to  all  appearance,  a  district  over  which  an  ecclesiastic 
was  expected  to  exercise  spiritual  supervision.  But  as 
the  priest  of  a  church  which  existed  within  an  estate  drew 
his  emoluments  from  the  general  reservoir  of  its  wealth,  he 
naturally  came  to  extend  his  supervision  over  the  whole 
estate,  that  is,  his  parish.  And  in  the  case  of  Channelkirk 
Church,  it  is  almost  certain  that  no  other  church  existed 
within  the  area  of  Hugh  de  Morville's  Lauderdale  estate 
when  he  entered  upon  its  possession,  nor,  indeed,  during  his 
entire  lifetime.  Channelkirk  Church  was,  therefore,  the 
acknowledged  parish  church  over  the  whole  valley,  that  is, 
over  all  De  Morville's  estate.  Our  reasons  for  believing  this 
rest  upon  the  historical  facts  that  when  Dryburgh  Abbey  was 
founded  in  1 1 50  by  David  I.,  or  by  Hugh  de  Morville,  or, 
probably,  conjointly  by  both,  the  king  grants  to  it  only  two 
chapels  in  Lauderdale,  viz.,  St  Leonard's  and  Caddesley,  but 
*  Chronica  de  Mailros. 


94  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

no  church.  Again,  when  Hugh  de  Morville  wearies  of  the 
world  and  seeks  to  clothe  himself  in  the  monk's  habit ;  when 
he  retires,  in  short,  to  the  Abbey  of  Dryburgh  to  end  his  days 
in  the  odour  of  sanctity,  on  the  same  day  in  which  he  enters, 
he  presents  Channelkirk  Church,  with  its  land  and  pertinents, 
to  the  abbot  and  monks  of  that  monastery.  There  is  no 
mention  of  Lauder  Church  being  in  existence  in  Hugh  de 
Morville's  time,  and  if  there  had  been  such  a  church  in 
existence,  the  natural  inference  would  be  that  he  or  King 
David  would  have  rather  given  it  to  the  monastery,  than  the 
more  parsimonious  gifts  of  chapels  and  a  church  of  less  worth. 
We  are  aware  that  Chalmers,  in  his  Caledonia,  has  said  (vol. 
ii.,  p.  221),  "From  him  (King  David  I.),  Hugh  Moreville 
obtained  Lauder,  with  its  territory,  on  the  Leader  water. 
Like  the  other  great  settlers,  Hugh  Moreville,  having  obtained 
a  district,  built  a  castle,  a  church,  a  miln,  and  a  brewhouse, 
for  the  convenience  of  his  followers."  *  This  would  make 
Hugh  de  Morville  the  founder  of  Lauder  Church,  and  its  date 
as  a  consequence  would  fall  between  cir.  1 130  and  1 162.  But 
Chalmers  gives  no  authority,  and,  so  far  as  we  know,  there  is 
no  mention  of  a  church  being  in  Lauder  earlier  than  cir.  1170 
or  1 1 80  A.D.  This  occurs  in  a  charter  given  by  Richard  de 
Morville,  son  and  successor  of  Hugh,  "  to  the  brethren  of  the 
hospital  of  Lauder,"  Richard  died  in  1189.  "William  de 
Morville,  my  son  :  Avicia,  my  wife  :  Herbert :  Dr  Thomas  : 
Clement,  my  chaplain :  Alan  de  Thirlestane :  Henry  de 
Sinclair  (Carfrae)  :  Peter  de  Haig  (Bemensyde)  :  Thomas,  the 
writer,  and  others,"  are  witnesses  to  this  charter,  although 
there  is  no  seal.    Russell,  in  his  Haigs  of  Beinersyde,  gives  the 

*  M'Gibbon  and  Ross,  in  their  Ecclesiastical  Architecture  of  Scotland, 
have  relied  on  Chalmers'  words,  in  their  short  notice  of  Lauder  in  the 
third  volume  of  that  work. 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  95 

date  of  this  charter  as  cir.  1180,  which  would  place  the  first 
mention  of  Lauder  Church  ten  years  later. 

Therefore,  when  Hugh  de  Morville  died,  it  can  be  easily 
understood  that  the  Dryburgh  monks,  having  received  from 
him  the  Church  of  Channelkirk,  would  also  claim  all  the 
tithes  within  its  spiritual  jurisdiction.  His  having  founded 
Kilwinning  Abbey  seems  to  have  raised  some  hopes  there 
also  of  obtaining  a  share  of  his  wealth,  and  St  Andrews, 
as  metropolis  of  the  diocese  which  included  Lauderdale  and 
Dryburgh  Abbey  within  its  pale,  had  equally  with  others  an 
interest  in  the  tithes  from  the  De  Morville  lands.  The 
Dryburgh  claim  is  clearly  based  on  the  fact  that  Channelkirk 
Church,  having  been  the  mother  and  parish  church  of  the 
whole  valley  before  Lauder  Church  was  founded  there,  and 
the  same  church  having  been  gifted  to  them,  they  had  ipso 
facto  the  prior  claim  to  all  it  carried  with  it.  "  The  grant  of 
"a  church"  was  often  very  valuable.  It  carried  with  it  all 
the  parochial  rights,  all  the  tithes  of  the  parish,  all  the  dues 
paid  at  the  altar  and  at  the  cemetery,  the  manse  and  the 
glebe,  and  all  lands  belonging  to  the  particular  church."  *  The 
Church  of  Lauder  had,  doubtless,  been  founded  by  Richard 
de  Morville,  perhaps  in  consideration  of  the  pious  memory  ol 
his  great  father.  And,  according  to  the  usual  custom,  he 
had  endowed  it  with  the  lands  which  later  on  came  into  the 
possession  of  Andrew  de  Moray,  and  which,  with  exception 
of  Pilmuir,  Trabroon,  and  Whitelaw,  all  lie  along  the  eastern 
slopes  of  Upper  Lauderdale,  having  centrality  somewhere 
about  Longcroft.  As  long  as  the  De  Morvilles  remained  in 
the  valley,  the  priest  of  Lauder  Church  would  have  little 
trouble  in  uplifting  his  tithes  from  these  lands.  Richard 
seems  to  have  had  strong  blood  in  him,  and  doubtless  would 
*  The  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv.,  p.  43,  1890. 


96  ,      HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

rule  his  gifts  as  he  wished,  independent  of  Pope  or  abbot. 
He  had  no  warm  affection,  either,  for  the  Bishop  of  St 
Andrews'  domination,  which  he  would  meet  constantly  in 
respect  of  Lauder  Church  being  under  that  diocese.  Prior 
John  of  that  see  excommunicated  him,  no  less,  as  a  dis- 
turber of  the  peace  between  himself  and  the  king,  and  it  may, 
indeed,  have  been  this  very  matter  of  Lauder  tithes  which 
was  the  chief  bone  of  contention  between  them.  The  monks 
of  Melrose  also  had  pulled  him  through  a  judicial  controversy 
on  account  of  the  woods  and  lands  between  Gala  and  Leader, 
and  the  proud  heart  of  the  turbulent  baron,  who  had  led  the 
Scots  in  many  a  battle,  and  had  been  liostage  for  the 
captured  King  William  at  Falaise  in  1 174,  would  doubtless 
have  little  love  for  monks  in  general,  and  rather  delight 
maybe  in  resenting  and  resisting  their  interference  in  a  dale 
where  he  was  paramount  in  all  other  concerns.  But  1189 
ended  all  his  contentions,  and  his  son,  William,  the  last  of  the 
De  Morvilles  in  Lauderdale,  passed  away  not  long  afterwards 
in  1 196,  and  with  other  proprietors  who  lived  far  from  the 
banks  of  the  Leader,  and  with  many  masters  to  question  his 
rights,  where  before  he  had  had  but  one  whose  hand  was 
ready  to  befriend  him,  the  Lauder  priest  would  find  his 
position  more  and  more  isolated,  the  complaint  of  Dryburgh 
monks  louder  and  more  pressing,  until,  as  we  have  seen,  his 
stipend  had  to  be  uplifted  by  force  and  retained  by  the  same 
ungentle  method.  His  brave  resistance  is  amply  attested, 
Eymeric  (or  Imrie,  as  we  perhaps  should  style  him  nowa- 
days), was  a  good  guarantee  that  the  Protestant  Reformation 
was  possible  !  And  so  far  as  they  went,  and  as  he  read  the 
law,  and  perhaps  as  we  should  judge  now,  his  rights  to  his 
tithes  were  undoubtedly  good.  He  was  somewhat  in  advance 
of  the  then  ecclesiastical  practice,  and  would  not  admit  that 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  97 

Hugh  de  Morville's  gift  of  Channelkirk  Church  carried  with 
it  also  that  superiority  over  the  teinds  which  in  area  was  con- 
terminous in  De  Morville's  day  with  its  spiritual  jurisdiction 
or  "  parish,"  including  thereby  all  Lauderdale.  But  it  is  just 
as  certain  that  the  monks  of  Dryburgh  had  good  legal 
foundation  and  sanction  for  the  same  reason  in  not  only 
claiming  Lauder  tithes  but  also  Lauder  Church,  as  being 
within  their  bounds,  and  the  Pope  and  his  subordinates 
stood  upon  this  ground,  and  enforced  respect  for  it.  It  was 
a  case  where  the  new  and  the  old  conflicted,  the  new  necessity 
rearing  its  head  against  the  old  prerogative.  A  church  was 
set  up  and  endowed  within  the  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction,  and 
fed  out  of  the  endowments  of  another  church,  and  the  new 
church  independently  disregarded  and  defied  the  rights  of  the 
old.  So  Lauder  burgh  seems  to  have  sprung  up  in  the 
midst  of  the  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  of  Channelkirk — at  that 
time  given  over  to  Dryburgh  Abbey — in  much  the  same  way 
that  Edinburgh  rose  within  that  of  St  Cuthbert's  parish,  and 
Aberdeen  within  that  of  Old  Machar.  There  were  many 
such  cases,  and  corresponding  disputes  usually  accompanied 
the  change  regarding  tithes,  fees,  and  privileges.  Perhaps 
the  fixing  of  the  parish  boundaries,  with  less  reference  than 
formerly  to  the  boundaries  of  an  estate,  had  something  to 
do  with  the  misunderstanding.  In  Eymeric's  day,  Lauder 
parish  seems  to  have  had  generally  the  same  conformation 
that  it  has  to-day.  The  places  mentioned  as  yielding  the 
disputed  teinds,  viz.,  Trabroon,  Pilmuir,  Whitelaw,  Tollis, 
Langat,  Whelplaw,  Addinston,  Burncastle,  give  a  very  in- 
telligible outline,  on  its  north  side  at  least,  of  the  present 
parish  of  Lauder.  If  the  parish  was  so  fixed  at  that  time, 
it  follows  that  the  parish  of  Channelkirk  was  correspondingly 
limited,  and  on  this  ground  Eymeric  may  have  felt  himself 


98  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

justified  in  uplifting  the  teinds  from  his  own  parish,  although, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  Dryburgh  monks  did  not  seem  to 
be  able  to  regard  the  new  changes  with  sufficient  esteem,  so 
as  to  relinquish  the  interest  which  Hugh  de  Morville's  gift 
of  Channelkirk  Church  had  given  them  in  all  the  ancient 
parochial  rights  and  dues  which  its  accepted  priority  of  age 
and  pious  connection  with  St  Cuthbert  had  given  it  in  all 
Lauderdale.  That  great  and  sweeping  changes  were  being 
effected  at  this  time  there  can  be  no  doubt.  All  property 
was  placed  on  a  new  basis  by  the  new  rulers  from  England 
and  Normandy,  and  church  government  was  entirely  re- 
volutionised, war  and  suppression  being  the  order  of  the 
day,  the  old  Celtic  church  illustrating  once  more  the  words 
of  the  ancient  bard,  "  His  race  came  forth  in  their  years ; 
they  came  forth  to  war,  but  they  always  fell."  But,  without 
hesitation,  we  lay  the  heaviest  burden  of  the  fifty  years' 
strife  on  the  shoulders  of  Sir  Richard  de  Morville.  All 
the  circumstances  point  to  him  as  the  original  instigator. 
Proud,  imperious,  and  quarrelsome,  a  favourite  with  the 
king,  and  occupying  the  highest  office  in  the  kingdom,  he 
would  ill  brook  the  sinister  influence  of  priests  in  his 
affairs.  On  every  side  he  was  at  daggers  drawn  with  them, 
though  in  his  closing  days  he  was  glad  to  find  grace  and  a 
home  in  Melrose  monastery  like  his  father  before  him.* 
Dryburgh  and  Melrose  on  the  south,  Glasgow  and  Kilwinning 
in  the  west,  and,  fiercest  of  all,  St  Andrews  on  the  north. 
The  chaplains  or  priests  of  Lauder  Church  would,  in  these 
circumstances  be  cradled  and  nursed  in  the  spirit  and  habits 
of  mutiny.  They  could  scarcely  resist  the  contaminating 
atmosphere  of  insurrection  created  by  him.  And  when, 
in  defiance  of  all  authority,   Eymeric  held   his  church  and 

*  Mon,  Annals^  p.  263. 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  99 

teinds  by  force,  he  was  only  emulating  the  irascible  lord  who 
seems  never  to  have  permitted  considerations  of  a  safe  neck 
to  baulk  the  regal  instincts  of  his  will.  Moreover,  the  lords 
of  Galloway  who  followed  the  De  Morvilles,  and  were,  doubt- 
less, contemporaries  of  Eymeric,  were  not  likely  to  be  less 
despotic. 

Thus,  with  the  powerful  help  of  Rome  and  St  Andrews, 
the  canons  of  Dryburgh  vindicated  their  rights  to  the  ad- 
vowson  of  Lauder  Church.  John  de  Balliol  had  asserted  at 
one  stage  of  the  law  case,  that  he  had  been  appointed  patron 
to  Lauder  Church,*  but,  of  course,  after  the  final  sentence 
which  removed  Eymeric,  any  such  pretension  on  his  part, 
either  to  interpose  in  his  behalf,  or  prefer  another  priest  in 
his  room,  was  useless.  Nevertheless,  we  find  him,  in  1268, 
gracefully  resigning  what  could  no  longer  be  retained,  and  in 
this  way  the  legal  features  of  the  case  compose  themselves 
quite  becomingly  to  the  inevitable  trend  of  the  circum- 
stances.-f-  "  The  whole  right  and  claim  which  we  (viz.,  John 
de  Balliol,  for  ourselves,  our  spouse  Devorgilla,  and  our 
heirs)  have,  or  can  have  in  the  right  of  the  patronage  of  the 
same  Church  "  (of  Lauder),  "  is  given  into  the  hands  of  the 
Venerable  in  Christ,  Lord  Gameline,  Bishop  of  St  Andrews," 
although  a  suggestive  clause  is  added  after  the  resignation  of 
"  the  whole  right  and  claims,"  viz.,  "  as  far  as  they  belonged  to 
us."  This  resignation  is  carefully  noted  and  carried  forward 
with  much  dignity  through  Charters  9,  10,  li,  in  the  year 
1268  ;  and  in  dr.  1269,  Charter  12  tells  us  that  Lauder  Church 
is  quit-claimed  "  for  six  chaplains."  In  that  year  Balliol  dies, 
and  in  ctr.  1270  (Charter  13),  Lady  Balliol,  "in  her  widowhood," 
confirms  her  late  husband's  deeds  of  resignation.  She  herself 
dies  in  1290. 

*  Charter  279.  f  Charters  9,  10,  11. 


100  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

It  is  in  the  same  year,  1268,  that  we  learn  that  provision 
had  been  made  whereby  Channelkirk  priest  should  "  make 
obedience  "  for  Lauder  Church  as  well  as  for  his  own  (Charters 
40,  41).  "But  the  vicar  who  shall  serve  in  the  Church  of 
Childinchirch,  otherwise  Childenkirk,  and  who,  moreover, 
shall  officiate  in  the  Church  of  Childenkirk  as  well  as  in  the 
Chapel  of  Lauder,  shall  receive  from  the  forenamed  Abbey  and 
Convent  ten  pounds  sterling  yearly,  at  the  two  forenamed  terms 
of  the  year  (Pentecost  and  Martinmas),  and  the  said  Abbey 
and  Convent  shall  endeavour  that  the  said  Chapel  be  carefully 
attended  to  by  two  honourable  chaplains.  And  it  is  to  be 
known  that  the  said  Abbey  and  Convent  will  bear  all  burdens, 
ordinary  and  extraordinary,  belonging  to  the  said  churches 
from  which  the  said  vicars  will  be  free,"  etc.  These  arrange- 
ments exist  onwards  into  the  year  13 18,  with  the  difference 
that  in  the  charter  of  that  date  (No.  293),  the  Abbey  and 
Convent  promise  that  "  the  said  Chapel  (of  Lauder)  shall  be 
carefully  attended  to  by  one  honourable  chaplain  "  instead  of 
two. 

Perhaps  a  few  words  on  this  relationship  which  existed  for 
so  many  years  between  Channelkirk  and  Lauder  may  not  be 
out  of  place  here,  seeing  that  it  has  been  the  cause  of  some 
little  disagreement  between  two  of  Lauder  ministers,  and  is 
variously  interpreted  by  the  people  of  the  two  parishes.  Dr 
James  Ford,  minister  at  Lauder,  when  writing  the  record  of 
his  parish  for  the  Old  Statistical  Account  in  1791,  makes  the 
following  remark  :  "  The  Church  of  Lauder  was  originally  a 
chapel  of  ease  to  Channelkirk  or  Childer's  kirk,  being  dedi- 
cated to  the  Holy  Innocents.  At  the  Reformation  Lauder 
was  made  a  parochial  charge."  This  evokes  a  sharp  re- 
joinder from  the  Rev.  Peter  Cosens,  who  in  1833  writes  the 
notice  of  Lauder  Church  and  parish  for  the  New  Statistical 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  101. 

Account.  He  retorts:  "There,  is  no  reason  whatev.er  tp 
suppose  that  the  Church  of  Lauder  was  originally  a  chapd  of 
ease  attached  to  Channelkirk,  and  that  it  was  not  raised  to 
the  dignity  of  a  church  till  the  era  of  the  Reformation  ;  for, 
in  the  oldest  records  it  is  represented  as  a  separate  church. 
In  the  ancient  taxation  it  was  valued  at  90  merks  and  that 
of  Channelkirk  only  at  40."  Neither  minister  gives  his 
authorities,  except  a  general  reference  to  "  old  records,"  and 
in  such  brief  space  as  the  Statistical  Accounts  could  afford, 
we  should,  perhaps,  hardly  expect  any  other.  There  are 
evidently  two  points  involved  here,  viz.,  Was  Lauder  Church 
originally  a  "  chapel  of  ease  "  icapelld)  to  Channelkirk  ?  and. 
Was  Lauder  Church  in  possession  of  the  dignity  of  a  church 
{ecclesia)  before  the  Reformation  ?  Perhaps  if  we  consider 
the  latter  question  first,  the  former  may  be  of  easier  solution. 
.  Referring  to  Mr  Cosen's  statement  that  "  in  the  oldest 
records  it  is  represented  as  a  separate  church,"  if  we  are 
permitted  to  strike  out  the  word  "separate,"  the  assertion 
must  be  admitted  to  be  correct.  In  the  charter  which  is 
given  by  Richard  de  Morville  to  the  brethren  of  the  hospital 
of  Lauder  about  the  years  11 70  or  11 80,  the  "ecclesie  de 
Louueder"  is  distinctly  mentioned.  But  the  charter  itself 
does  not  emanate  from  ecclesiastical  authorities  :  authorities, 
that  is,  sufficiently  competent  to  give  any  weight  to  such  a 
canonical  status.  It  comes  from  Richard  de  Morville,  who 
himself  was  excommunicated,  and  was  at  feud  with  all  the 
religious  houses  around  him.  Besides,  among  the  witnesses 
to  this  charter  is  "  Clement,  my  chaplain."  Now,  before  this 
same  time  we  have  in  connection  with  Legerwood,  "  John, 
the  priest"  and,  likewise,  "  Godfrey,  the  priest"  in  connection 
with  Channelkirk.  But  in  the  case  of  the  Lauder  official,  it  is 
a  chaplaincy  which  always  gives  its  title  to  that  personage. 


aQ2  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Tru&,  this  may  merely  point  to  the  family  chapel  of  the 
)  ••■..':  i)e'Morvilles.  If  so,  then  no  mention  is  made  of  a  priest 
being  in  Lauder  Church  till  the  name  of  Chapel  is  also 
attached  to  it.  When  Lauder  Church  comes  to  be  de- 
nominated by  proper  ecclesiastical  authorities,  it  is  some- 
times defined  as  an  ecclesia  (church),  or  capella  (chapel). 
One  charter,  for  example,  will  define  it  by  both  terms.  This 
is  in  the  first  half  of  the  thirteenth  century,  during  a  length 
of  seventy  years  after  Richard  de  Morville's  charter.  Again, 
fully  sixty  years  after  this  doubtful  state  of  matters,  we  have 
the  same  sinister  expression,  capella  de  Lawder.  In  the 
year  1318,  when  Channelkirk  and  Lauder  are  last  seen  in  the 
charters  side  by  side  under  one  minister,  the  use  and  wont 
phrase  is  repeated,  "  the  vicar  of  Channelkirk  shall  make 
obedience  as  well  for  the  Church  of  Childenkirk  as  for  the 
Chapel  of  Lauder "  {pro  ecclesia  de  Childenkirk  quam  pro 
capella  de  Lawder).  The  said  chapel  {dicte  capelle)  is  also  to 
be  served  by  "  one  honourable  chaplain  "  {per  unum  honestum 
capellanum).  The  minister  of  Lauder  (Mr  Cosens)  is  there- 
fore somewhat  justified  in  saying,  in  1833,  that  "in  the  oldest 
records  it  is  represented  as  a  separate  Church,"  but  he  has  not, 
it  seems  to  us,  weighed  sufficiently  the  circumstances  in  which 
the  oldest  records,  i.e.,  the  charter  of  Richard  de  Morville, 
was  given,  and  also  the  uncanonical  status  of  those  who  in  that 
charter  call  the  then  place  of  worship  in  Lauder  a  "  Church." 
That  it  was  "separate"  as  a  church  was,  of  course,  the 
matter  in  dispute  between  Eymeric  and  Dryburgh  monks. 
Eymeric  maintained  its  patronate  constitution  with  the  right 
to  call  himself  rector  and  uplift  the  whole  teinds  with  only 
regard  for  his  patron,  whereas  the  monks  of  Dryburgh  dis- 
avowed the  patronate  and  maintained  the  patrimonial  consti- 
tution of  Lauder  Church,  whereby  the  whole  teinds  belonged 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  103 

to  the  bishop,  and  the  Abbey  of  Dryburgh  within  his  diocese, 
as  well  as  the  right  to  appoint  any  one  to  serve  the  cure  at 
his  discretion.  In  discussing  this  question,  moreover,  it  is 
proper  that  we  should  bear  in  mind  the  distinction  which  is 
made  between  the  Protestant  and  Roman  Catholic  status  of 
a  "  Church."  No  place  of  worship  can  have  the  status  of  a 
church  under  the  Roman  Catholic  hierarchy,  unless  it  has 
been  dedicated,  or  consecrated,  by  a  bishop.  And  there  is 
nothing  to  show  that  the  Church  of  Lauder  was  ever  so  con- 
secrated. When  Bishop  de  Bernham  of  St  Andrews  conse- 
crates Channelkirk,  Stow,  Earlston,  Legerwood,  and  Gordon, 
he  passes  by  Lauder.  Between  1240  and  1250  he  wanders 
over  all  Scotland  dedicating  churches,  but  he  never  touches 
at  Lauder.  If  it  had  been  a  "  Church "  of  undoubted 
canonical  status  before  this  period  the  charters  would  not 
have  ventured  afterwards  to  characterise  it  as  a  "Chapel." 
So  far,  therefore,  as  the  weight  of  ecclesiastical  authority  is 
concerned  (and  regarding  the  status  of  a  church,  we  do  not 
think  any  other  authority  is  admissible  by  comparison),  the 
truth  of  facts  thus  far  supports  the  view  of  Dr  Ford  rather 
than  that  of  Mr  Cosens. 

Our  first  question,  which  we  now  treat  secondly,  viz., 
Was  Lauder  Church  originally  a  chapel  of  ease  to  Channel- 
kirk ?  seems  easier  to  answer.  Perhaps  the  term  "  chapel 
of  ease"  in  this  connection  is  not  quite  applicable.  We 
have  seen  that  the  place  of  worship  at  Lauder  in  the  twelfth, 
thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  centuries,  conforms  more  in  its 
canonical  status  to  a  "Chapel"  than  to  a  "Church."  It  appears 
to  be  evident,  also,  that  it  was  subordinate  to  the  Church  of 
Channelkirk  for  more  reasons  than  one.  There  is  no  evidence 
that  Lauder  Church  underwent  any  degradation  on  account 
of  its  priest's  conduct.     The  status  he  sought  to  claim  for  it 


104  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

was  simply  never  allowed.  He  claimed  to  be  under  a  patron, 
yiz.,  the  successors  of  Richard  de  Morville,  who,  until  his 
suspension,  must  have  been  William  de  Morville,  Roland  of 
Galloway,  Allan,  his  son,  and  John  de  Balliol.  This  claim 
was  not  sustained  for  the  reasons  that  by  priority  of  age  and 
on  account  of  the  parochial  jurisdiction  over  the  whole  valley 
possessed  by  Channelkirk  Church  previous  to  Hugh  de 
Morville's  time,  and  sustained  by  him  until  his  gift  of  it' and 
all  its  pertinents  to  Dryburgh  Abbey,  the  "  Church "  or 
"  Chapel "  of  Lauder  had  no  right  to  teinds  in  the  valley 
unless  it  had  first  received  them  from  Channelkirk  Church. 
If,  indeed,  Lauder  Church  had  possessed  teinds  of  its  own, 
and  these  not  forcibly  possessed,  it  must  have  been  an 
ecclesia  or  church,  for  no  mere  chapel  possessed  teinds. 
But  its  right  of  teinds  was  disallowed  by  the  highest 
authorities,  or  to  put  it  in  the  words  of  a  distinguished 
Professor  of  Church  History,  "  If  Channelkirk  was  the 
original  church  of  the  valley,  and  Lauder  is  found  at  a  later 
date  entitled  to  teinds,  these  must  have  been  gifted  to  it 
by  Channelkirk,  or  derived  from  lands  not  previously  teinded." 
Channelkirk  was  undoubtedly  the  original  church  of  the 
valley  of  Lauderdale,  and  Lauder  is  not  found  later  or 
earlier  entitled  to  teinds  of  any  kind,  except  those  which 
Eymeric  held  by  force,  but  which  Dryburgh  claimed.  And 
Dryburgh  Abbey  claimed  these  teinds  because,  having 
received  from  Hugh  de  Morville  the  Church  of  Channelkirk 
with  all  its  lands,  rights,  and  pertinents,  which  it  possessed 
"  before  the  Church  of  Lauder  was  founded  in  that  place "  ; 
and  Channelkirk  Church  having  made  the  Abbey  "free  as 
regards  the  teinds  which  Lauder  sued  for  {absolventes  eosdem 
super  decimis  quas  pars  altera  petebat) ;  therefore,  all  the  teinds 
and  rights  whatsoever  which  Lauder  might  claim  to  possess, 


THE  PARISH  KIRK  OF  LAUDERDALE  105 

together  with  that  "Church"  or  "Chapel"  itself,  belonged 
legally  to  the  Abbot  of  the  Abbey.  That  dignitary  was 
thus  able  to  make  good  his  position  in  all  the  courts  in 
virtue  of  Channelkirk  Church  having  satisfied  the  following 
necessary  conditions:  i.  Priority  of  foundation  ;  2.  primary 
possession  of  the  parochial  jurisdiction  of  the  whole  valley  ; 
3.  personally  and  permanently  bequeathed  to  Dryburgh 
Abbey  by  the  person  who  alone  could  confer  it ;  4.  final 
consent  of  the  Church  itself.  We  must  further  state  the  fact 
that  this  arrangement  was  maintained  as  far  as  we  have 
historical  accounts  to  assure  us,  viz.,  till  the  year  1318,  and 
there  is  no  evidence  to  show  that  it  was  altered  till  the 
period  of  the  Reformation.  Dryburgh  Abbey,  the  Bishop 
of  St  Andrews,  and  the  Popes  of  Rome,  on  these  ecclesiastical 
grounds,  wrenched  Lauder  "  Church  "  or  "  Chapel "  out  of  the 
hands  of  Lauder  landowners  and  Lauder  priest,  together  with 
all  it  held,  and  they  kept  it.  Two  hundred  and  forty-two 
years  elapse  between  13 18  and  1560,  and  it  is  quite  possible 
that  other  arrangements  may  have  been  made  for  Lauder 
Church.  But  we  can  only  conjecture.  There  is  no  record, 
and  we  cannot  place  much  stress  upon  the  mention  of 
ecdesia  in  connection  with  Lauder  Church  during  the 
years  between  13 18  and  the  Reformation,  as  the  language  of 
courtesy  as  well  as  of  use  and  wont  may  have  confirmed 
that  designation.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  there  would 
be  any  formal  erection  of  Lauder  into  a  parish  at  that  time, 
as  its  outgrowth  of  Channelkirk  long  before  in  population, 
wealth,  and  influence,  would  accomplish  that  result  in- 
dependently. The  start  which  Lauder  made  in  history 
as  a  burgh,  and  the  progress  it  showed,  seems  to  have 
been  far  more  fortunate  in  results  than  anything  its  church 
has  to  record,  prior  to  Protestant  times. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE   MINISTERS  AND  THEIR   TIMES 

Before  the  Reformation. 

Godfrey,  the  Priest — Cuthbert  and  the  Holy  Water  Cleuch — The  First 
Minister  in  Channelkirk  and  Lauderdale — The  First  Church — 
Cuthbert's  Fame — Five  Hundred  Years  of  Historical  Darkness — 
Channelkirk  Priest  in  the  Twelfth  Century — Papal  Taxation — King 
Edward  I.  in  Lauderdale — The  Priests  Serving  Channelkirk  and 
Lauder  —  Troublous  Times  —  Lauder  Brig  —  Moorhousland  and 
Lauderdale — Social  Life  in  the  Fifteenth  Century — Corruption  of 
Church  and  Clergy — Reformation. 

In  attempting  to  give  some  account  of  the  ministers  who 
through  so  many  centuries,  and  under  various  religious  forms, 
have  professed  to  raise  the  minds  of  the  people  of  Channel- 
kirk towards  eternal  things,  it  is,  perhaps,  needless  to  say 
that  the  greater  number  of  these  must  remain  unnamed  and 
unknown,  and  of  the  few  whose  names  have  come  down  to 
us,  only  the  most  meagre  sketch  can  be  given.  It  does  not 
appear  that  any  of  the  number,  with  perhaps  one  or  two 
exceptions,  ever  rose  to  such  prominence,  either  in  ecclesi- 
astical or  secular  affairs,  as  to  earn  high  historical  distinction. 
Few,  indeed,  are  the  occasions  in  the  parish's  history  which 
are  so  stirring,  or  so  fiery  as  to  light  up  the  twilight  gloom 
that  veils  from  our  sight  the  actors  who  from  generation 
to  generation    moved    across    its    boundaries.      Before    the 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  107 

Protestant  era  the  name  of  one  person  and  one  only  who  can 
be  officially  called  a  presbyter  or  priest  in  Channelkirk  Church 
has  filtered  down  to  us  through  the  hard  stratum  of  the 
charters.  And  even  he  seems  to  be  mentioned  by  a  kind  of 
accident.  Richard  de  Morville  (1165-89),  in  confirming  to 
Dryburgh  Abbey  his  gifts  of  Berwick  fishings  and  the 
tithes  of  Lauder  and  Salton  mills,*  casually  mentions  that 
Channelkirk  in  his  father's  time  was  held  by  Godfrey  the 
priest. 

But  before  the  time  of  this  "  Godefridus  presbyter,"  there 
must  have  been  several  priests  in  Channelkirk.  There  seems 
to  be  no  doubt  that  a  church  existed  there  long  before  the 
time  of  Hugo  de  Moreville.  We  have  seen  that  the  author 
of  Caledonia  deems  it  not  improbable  that  a  place  of  worship 
may  have  been  in  existence  there  during  the  Celtic  period, 
or  before  the  sixth  century.  With  Bede's  account  before  us, 
and  that  of  the  Cocevus  Monachus^  both  of  whom  relate 
Cuthbert's  religious  awakening  by  the  banks  of  the  Leader, 
and  his  subsequent  missionary  journeys  among  the  Lammer- 
moor  hills,  we  confidently  claim  Cuthbert  as  a  minister  to 
the  Channelkirk  people  as  early  at  least  as  the  middle  of  the 
seventh  century.  Whether  or  not  some  rude  form  of  a 
place  of  worship  might  then  exist  on  the  spot  where  now  a 
church  has  stood  for  so  long  it  were  rash  to  assert,  but  there 
are  certain  indications  that  some  particular  place,  specially 
marked  as  consecrated  to  religious  rites,  was  then  a  local 
possession.  It  is  well  known,  for  instance,  that,  even  in 
pagan  times,  fountains  and  wells  were  closely  associated  with 
the  worship  of  the  people.  This  form  of  veneration  lost 
nothing  by  the  introduction  of  Christianity.  On  the  contrary, 
if  the  sainted  propagators  of  the  gospel  faith  found  them 
*  Dryburgh  Charter,  No.  8. 


108  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

convenient  for  baptismal  purposes,  and,  not  unfrequently, 
they  did  so  find  them,  then,  as  a  consequence,  the  pious 
feelings  of  the  inhabitants  of  such  a  district  were  deepened 
with  an  increased  intensity.*  Everywhere  pagan  "  means  of 
grace "  were  utilised  by  Christians,  and  set  into  their  more 
enlightened  ceremonials.  Says  a  distinguished  Scottish 
historian "f* :  "It  may  be  gathered  from  other  sources  that  a 
considerable  portion  of  that  pagan  magic  influence,  which  it 
was  desirable  to  supersede,  resided  in  fountains  ;  but  at  the 
same  time,  the  first  ceremony  of  conversion  being  the  rite 
of  baptism,  is  sufficient  in  itself  to  account  for  the  extensive 
consecration  of  fountains."  We  believe  we  have  such  a 
consecrated  fountain  in  the  "  Holy  Water  Cleuch."  This 
place,  so  styled  yet  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  lies 
but  a  few  hundred  yards  directly  west  from  the  Church,  and 
its  cooling  waters  still  flow  fresh  and  pleasant,  and  are  grate- 
fully prized  by  both  man  and  beast.  The  first  mention  of  it 
which  we  have  been  able  to  discover  is,  indeed,  long  subse- 
quent to  the  days  of  St  Cuthbert.  It  is  given  in  1588  as  the 
western  boundary  of  the  "  Sucken "  of  the  Kirklands  of 
Channelkirk,  in  a  charter  granted  by  King  James  VI.  to 
James  Cranstoun,  son  to  Robert  Cranstoun  of  "  Faluod- 
scheill "  (Fowlshiels,  Selkirk).  If  it  was  so  well  known  in  the 
year  1588,  and  so  well  established  as  to  serve  as  a  boundary 
to  legal  rights  and  privileges,  we  may  draw  the  reasonable 
inference  that  its  origin  must  have  been  even  then  deeply 
buried  in  the  traditions  of  the  parish.  Nor  does  it  seem  that 
any  religious  or  ecclesiastical  event,  occurring  between  that 
period  and  the  days  of  St  Cuthbert's  ministrations,  can  be 
legitimately  regarded  as  prominent  or  important  enough  to 

*  Origines  Parochtales,  vol.  i.,  pref.  xxii. 

t  Hill  Burton — History  of  Scotlaiid^  vol.  i.,  p.  220, 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  109 

warrant  us  in  supposing  that  the  creation  and  consecration 
of  the  name  of  the  fountain,  and  its  preservation  by  the 
people,  have  later  or  weaker  associations  than  those  which 
gather  round  the  Church  itself.  The  tradition  current 
among  the  people  is,  perhaps,  the  correct  one,  viz.,  that 
Cuthbert  baptized  his  converts  there  when  he  was  wont 
to  visit  the  dwellers  "  in  the  mountains,  calling  back  to 
heavenly  concerns  these  rustic  people,  by  the  word  of  his 
preaching  as  well  as  by  his  example  of  virtue."  *  This  was  a 
common  practice  in  his  times.  Bede,  for  example,  tells  us 
that  further  south,  over  the  Cheviots,  among  the  Northum- 
brians, about  the  time  when  Cuthbert  would  be  born.  Bishop 
Paulinus  "  from  morning  till  night  did  nothing  else  but 
instruct  the  people  resorting  from  all  villages  and  places  in 
Christ's  saving  word  ;  and,  when  instructed,  he  washed  them 
with  the  water  of  absolution  in  the  River  Glen  (River  Bowent), 
which  is  close  by."  f 

But  was  Cuthbert  the  first  minister  of  the  gospel  in 
Channelkirk  ?  Was  there  not  an  earlier  than  he  ?  We  are 
led  to  ask  these  questions  by  the  following  considerations. 
Cuthbert  is  said  to  have  been  "always  inflamed  with  the 
desire  of  a  religious  Vife/rom  his  very  childhood"  \  This  dis- 
position may  have  been  one  of  the  causes  that  led  his 
guardians  to  commit  him,  when  a  boy,  to  the  care  of  a  certain 
religious  inan^  in  Lothian  [cuidam  Lodonico  religioso  coinmittunt 
viro) ;  and  as  we  are  told  that  the  place  in  Lothian  was 
afterwards  called  Childeschirche  in  honour  of  Cuthbert,  we 
infer  that  this  "  pious  man  "  lived  at  the  village  or  hamlet 

*  Bede's  Vita  S.  Cud.,  chap.  ix. 

t  Ecclesiastical  History,  Book  II.,  chap.  xiv. 

X  Bede's  Ecclesiastical  History,  Book  IV.,  chap,  xxvii. 

§  Libellus  de  Ortu  Sancti  Cuthberti,  chap,  xxiii. 


110  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

which  was  subsequently  called  Childeschirche,  on  account  of 
the  Church  dedicated  to  his  youthful  illustrious  protege. 
This  pious  guardian  of  the  boy  Cuthbert  must  surely  have 
had  a  religious  fame  strong  enough  to  point  him  out  as  a 
proper  instructor  for  such  a  boy,  and  it  is  permissible  to 
suppose  that  his  name  for  sanctity  was  not  gained  by  his 
private  devotions  alone.  With  the  bold  zeal  which  seems  to 
have  characterised  pilgrims  and  preachers  of  that  age,  this 
"  religious  man  in  Lothian  "  would,  doubtless,  in  some  public 
way,  seek  to  gain  his  fellowmen  to  the  new  faith,  and  either 
his  success,  or  perhaps  proximity  to  the  camp  or  fort,  or  the 
nearness  of  the  well  or  fountain  (which  may  have  had 
reverence  paid  it  before  Cuthbert's  time),  may  have  led  him 
to  make  the  original  village  of  Channelkirk  his  centre  of 
operations,  and  home.  If  these  probabilities  be  allowed  to 
add  any  weight  to  the  little  we  know  concerning  him,  then 
the  first  minister  of  Channelkirk,  for  all  historical  purposes, 
would  be  this  "  religious  man  in  Lothian,"  and  his  time  would 
naturally  fall  about  A.D.  625. 

But  at  such  a  distance  of  time  all  is  necessarily  dim  and 
shadowy  to  the  view.  We  have,  at  most,  vague  outlines 
of  even  national  movements,  and  the  condition  and  kind 
of  life  which  such  a  pious  teacher  of  the  people  would  lead 
in  the  retired  district  of  Upper  Lauderdale  must,  of  course, 
remain  totally  obscure.  Certain  historical  facts  are  never- 
theless somewhat  luminous  to  us  in  a  general  way.  The 
people  of  the  valley  were  a  mixture  of  Picts  and  Angles, 
the  conquered  and  the  conquerors,  and  generally,  Christians 
and  pagans.  The  Angles  would  be  in  a  minority  though 
the  most  powerful,  but  the  mass  of  the  population  would  be 
Celts  and  slaves.  In  the  time  of  this  "pious  man  of 
Lothian,"    the    southern    boundaries   of   Lothian   stretched 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  111 

to  the  Cheviots,  and  the  Province  of  the  Bernicians  *  in- 
cluded Haddingtonshire  and  Berwickshire  within  its  pale. 
Christianity  made  its  way  then  chiefly  by  the  conversion 
of  kings  whose  faith  all  who  were  under  their  dominion  were 
expected  to  adopt,  and,  consequently,  it  had  a  vacillating 
fortune  which  rose  and  fell  with  the  political  powers  which 
for  the  time  being  held  the  ascendant.  Under  King  ^Eduin 
and  Bishop  Paulinus,  e.g.,  the  Christian  faith  from  627 
.seemed  to  flourish  and  grow  vigorously,  but  this  enlightened 
period  was  suddenly  darkened  again  by  a  pagan  revolution 
under  the  Anglic  King  Penda  and  the  apostate  Welsh  King 
Ceadwalla.  Again  the  sun  shone  forth  in  the  reign  of 
King  Oswald,  who  established  the  Columban  Church  in 
Northumbria  in  635  ;  and  the  permanent  conversion  to 
Christianity  of  the  Angles  of  the  eastern  districts  between 
the  Tweed  and  F'orth,  that  is,  Berwickshire  and  East  Lothian, 
is  due  to  him.  But  if  permanency  in  the  work  was  due 
to  King  Oswald,  there  are  indications  that  shortly  before 
him  there  were  pioneers  in  the  same  field.  Skene  says,"f" 
"Tradition  seems  to  indicate  that  the  Cumbrian  Church 
did  play  a  part  in  the  conversion  of  their  Anglic  neighbours ; 
and  the  Angles  occupying  the  district  between  the  Tweed 
and  Forth,  being  more  immediately  within  their  reach  and 
coming  directly  in  contact  with  them,  may  have  owed  their 
conversion  to  one  who  was  of  the  satne  race  as  Kenligern.'' 
Channelkirk  lies  almost  midway  between  these  bounding 
waters,  and  Skene's  suggestion  gives  us  liberty  to  believe 
that  more  than  King  Oswald's  missionaries  were  at  work 
about  this  time  evangelising  the  south  of  Scotland,  and 
that   the  "  religious    man    in   Lothian "  who  took  charge  of 

♦  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  ii.,  p.  198. 
t  Ibid.,  p.  199, 


112  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  boy  Cuthbert  at  Childeschirche  may  have  played  a 
not  unworthy  part  in  disseminating  divine  truth  among  at 
least  the  denizens  of  the  Lammermoors.  Inferior  names 
naturally  fall  into  the  shade  before  the  more  brilliant  light 
of  those  who  are  superior,  and,  indeed,  are  sometimes  only 
preserved  to  sight  by  the  latter,  yet  while  it  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  this  is  the  case  as  regards  Cuthbert  and  his 
guardian,  the  latter,  both  by  character  and  the  confidence 
reposed  in  him  by  Cuthbert's  relatives,  proves  his  right  to 
deserve  respect  as  one  of  the  heralds  of  a  permanent 
Christian  religion  in  Lothian.  Whatever  view  be  held, 
it  seems  to  remain  certain  at  least  that  as  far  as  Channel- 
kirk  is  concerned,  the  person  of  this  "  religious  man,"  who 
appears  to  have  resided  there  about  the  second  decade  of 
the  seventh  century,  connects  in  the  earliest  historical  way 
the  existence  of  the  Christian  religion  with  the  valley  of  the 
Leader.  It  is  also  possible  that  his  work  and  influence 
there,  supplemented  and  overshadowed  as  it  afterwards  was 
by  his  more  saintly  and  illustrious  pupil,  may  have  laid  the 
foundation  of  the  claim  which  was  subsequently  sustained 
by  the  monks  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  about  1 248,  that  Childin- 
chirch  was  originally  "the  mother  and  parish  church  of  the 
whole  valley." 

Regarding  St  Cuthbert,  who  may  be  considered  justly 
as  the  second  person  in  the  historical  succession  of  Channel- 
kirk  ministers,  it  is  unnecessary  to  narrate  here  once  more 
the  story  of  his  illustrious  life,  seeing  that  it  has  been 
told  again  and  again  by  the  ablest  pens  from  the  days  of 
the  Venerable  Bede  downwards.  Some  account  of  him  is 
to  be  found  in  every  history  which  touches  the  early 
development  of  the  Christian  Church  in  Scotland.  When 
we   have    perused    the    Vita,   which    Bede   wrote    specially 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  113 

concerning  him,  together  with  his  more  disconnected  yet 
sympathetic  narrative  of  Cuthbert  in  his  Ecclesiastic  History^ 
and  Dr  Wm.  F.  Skene's  notice  in  his  Celtic  Scotland^  we 
have  exhausted  nearly  all  that  is  to  be  known  of  the  great 
Apostle  of  southern  Scotland,  and  both  comprehensively 
and  in  detail,  with  the  largest  faith  and  the  justest  criticism, 
have  seen  all  that  is  worthy  of  perusal  and  respect  in  his 
life  set  forth  with  the  highest  literary  ability.  All  that 
connects  him  with  Channelkirk  has  been  already  quoted 
in  other  parts  of  these  pages,  and  both  from  the  fact  that 
when  Bede  links  him  to  any  locality  whatever,  "he  was 
keeping  watch  over  the  flocks  committed  to  his  charge  on 
some  remote  mountains,"  which  historians,  such  as  Skene, 
Green,  and  Chalmers,  have  no  difficulty  in  identifying 
as  the  Lammermoors,  and  also  the  traditions  which  have 
come  down  to  us  in  prose,  poetry,  and  oral  forms,  we  believe 
that  his  place  among  the  ministers  of  Channelkirk  parish 
to  be  reasonably  sustained,  and  we  need  hardly  assert  further 
that  in  all  ways  he  is  also  the  greatest  of  them.  It  may, 
indeed,  be  a  unique  instance  in  Scotland  that  a  Church 
should  be  dedicated  to  a  boy  saint,  but  this  seems  only  to 
give  added  strength  to  the  chronicles  which  persistently 
associate  Cuthbert's  boyhood  with  us  as  the  principal  fact 
of  his  relation  to  this  parish.  Of  course  "  Childe "  may 
equally  well  refer  to  his  youth,  and  point  to  his  shepherding 
time. 

At  what  date  after  the  death  of  St  Cuthbert  a  church 
was  founded  at  Channelkirk  in  his  honour  it  must  now 
remain  a  matter  of  conjecture.  That  event  occurred  on  the 
20th  day  of  March  687,  and  throughout  the  country  his 
memory  was  preserved  with  the  utmost  fervour  of  devotion. 

*  Celtic  Scotland^  vol.  ii.,  pp.  201-225,  et  passim. 

H 


114  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

His  marvellous  asceticism  impressed  the  popular  mind  to 
a  powerful  extent,  and  as  in  his  life  he  was  famed  for  his  zeal 
and  eloquence,  so  after  his  death  his  bones  were  considered 
holy,  his  flesh  incorruptible,  and  "  the  very  garments  which 
had  been  on  his  body  were  not  exempt  from  the  virtue  of 
performing  cures."*  As  he  had  been  instrumental  in  diffusing 
the  knowledge  of  the  Gospel  throughout  both  Scottish  and 
English  territory,  when  his  death  took  place  enthusiasm  rose 
high  ;  many  churches  were  dedicated  to  him  ;  and  probably 
one  district  at  least,  Kirkcudbright,  named  after  him. 
Nothing  could  prove  more  conclusively  how  widely  his 
memory  was  venerated.  It  was  also  a  time  of  deep  religious 
conviction.  Bede,  casting  a  comprehensive  glance  over  his 
time  (731),  says:  "Such  being  the  peaceable  and  calm  dis- 
position of  the  times,  many  of  the  Northumbrians,  as  well 
of  nobility  as  private  persons,  laying  aside  their  weapons, 
rather  incline  to  dedicate  both  themselves  and  their  children 
to  the  tonsure  and  monastic  vows,  than  to  study  martial 
discipline."  •!•  In  such  a  time  of  pious  stirring,  it  is  not 
likely  that  Cuthbert's  memory  would  be  forgotten  in  Upper 
Lauderdale,  although  it  is  quite  impossible  to  venture  the 
least  surmise  as  to  the  precise  date  when  the  inhabitants 
of  that  district  resolved  to  found  a  church  and  call  it  the 
Child's  Church,  or  Childeschirche.  One  may  naturally 
suppose  that  it  would  be  done  when  the  enthusiasm  for  his 
name  was  running  high  shortly  after  his  decease,  but  nothing 
definite  can  be  asserted.  All  is  left  in  profound  darkness, 
and  the  gloom  does  not  merely  rest  over  the  ecclesiastical 
affairs  of  Channelkirk,  but  extends  over  the  whole  country. 
For  the  period  between  the  seventh  and  twelfth    centuries 

*  Bede's  Ecclesiastical  History ,  Book  IV.,  chap.  xxxi. 
t  Ibid.^  Book  V.,  chap,  xxiii.,  Giles'  Translation. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  115 

there  is  but  a  scintillation  of  light.  "  If  it  be  somewhat 
astounding,"  says  Hill  Burton,*  "to  reflect  on  so  enormous 
a  blank  in  the  annals  of  a  nation's  religion,  it  is  perhaps 
reassuring — it  is  certainly  a  matter  of  great  interest  in  itself — 
that  during  that  long  period  of  obscurity  Christianity  lived 
on.  Not  only  the  faith  itself  lived — though,  as  we  shall  see, 
not  always  in  great  purity— but  it  managed  to  engraft  itself 
with  substantial  temporal  institutions,  which  gave  it  solidity. 
In  fact,  when  the  church  comes  to  light  again,  it  is  with  a 
hierarchy  and  organisation  of  its  own,  the  origin  and  forma- 
tion of  which,  as  all  grew  quietly  in  the  dark,  have  put  at 
defiance  the  learning  and  acuteness  of  our  best  antiquaries 
to  account  for."  When  Channelkirk  Church  {ecdesid)  first 
emerges  into  historical  light  in  the  pages  of  the  charters, 
about  1 1 50,  it  is  not  as  one  newly  founded,  but  with  an  air  of 
long  settlement.  Its  own  lands  lie  around  it,  and  there  is  a 
regular  priest  serving  the  incumbency  who  has  a  competent 
maintenance  assured  to  him  from  its  endowments.  It 
possesses,  in  fact,  that  "  solidity "  which  was  acquired  from 
its  being  "  engrafted  with  substantial  temporal  institutions," 
and  is  clearly  under  the  "  hierarchy  and  organisation "  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  It  would  appear  also  that  at 
this  time  no  other  place  of  worship  with  the  status  of  an 
ecclesia  existed  in  Lauderdale  as  far  as  historical  documents 
seem  to  guide  us.  It  is  also  the  "  solidity  "  of  its  settlement 
which  leads  us  to  believe  that  its  origin  must  date  from  a 
period  long  anterior  to  the  time  when  it  becomes  visible 
in  the  charters,  and  perhaps  if  we  place  it  between  the 
seventh  and  ninth  centuries,  a  time  when,  it  is  deemed,  many 
churches  sprang  into  existence,  we  shall  not  be  accused  of 
rashly  outraging  the  probabilities  which  He  latent  in  the 
*  History  of  Scotland^  vol.  i.,  p.  390.     Second  Edition,  1873. 


116  THE  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

facts  of  its  history.  Knowing,  as  we  do,  the  popular 
enthusiasm  that  burned  around  the  memory  of  St  Cuthbert 
wherever  his  voice  had  been  heard  or  his  footsteps  had 
wandered,  kno\ying  also  that  in  these  dark  centuries  the  tribal 
community  held  all  the  land  in  common,  a  remnant  of  which 
system  still  retains  its  hold  in  our  valley,  it  is  not  too  much 
to  suppose  that  a  common  devotion  would  gladly  make  a 
common  sacrifice  of  labour  and  land  sufficient  to  rear  a 
church  in  his  honour,  and  maintain  a  qualified  preacher  of 
the  Word.  It  was  in  1 107  that  Earl  David,  afterwards 
David  I.,  came  into  possession  of  Lauderdale,  and  disposed 
it  to  the  Norman  Baron  Hugo  de  Morville,  who  thereby  came 
into  possession  of  the  advowson  of  Channelkirk  Church 
probably  about  11 30.  In  the  charters  which  define  the  gifts 
of  Hugo  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  and  Convent,  Channelkirk 
Church  is  often,  mentioned  as  his  gift  to  it,  but  there  is  no 
trace  whatever  of  his  having  gifted  land  to  Channelkirk 
Church  either  in  support  of  its  priest  or  for  any  other 
purpose.  Nor  is  it  said  that  any  of  the  family  of  the  De 
Morvilles  ever  gave  land  to  Channelkirk  Church  at  any 
time.  But  there  are  distinct  statements  made  of  the  church 
possessing  land  in  the  time  of  the  first  of  the  De  Morvilles, 
and  we  naturally  conclude  that  the  church  had  been  endowed 
with  land  before  the  De  Morvilles  received  it  from  David  I., 
and  that  they  had  found  the  church  settled  and  endowed 
on  their  coming  into  Lauderdale.  The  fact  also,  it  may 
be  pointed  out  in  passing,  that  the  church  was  fully  equipped 
and  endowed  at  such  a  time  when  the  affairs  of  the  country 
were  in  such  transition,  and  also  considering  that  such  a 
church  existed  in  such  a  hilly  and  inaccessible  situation,  and 
not  on  the  more  open  and  convenient  ground  further  down 
the  valley,  is  to  us  further  evidence  that  more  than  ordinary 


THE  MINISTP:RS  and  their  times  117 

causes  must  have  co-operated  to  fix  the  church  in  that  spot, 
and  give  it  such  consolidation  so  early.  Following  the  view 
of  Professor  Innes,  we  are  perhaps  safe  in  assuming  for 
Channelkirk  what  he  asserts  with  regard  to  the  possessions 
of  the  See  of  Glasgow,*  viz.,  that  its  endowments  must 
have  been  made  in  very  early  times,  seeing  that  during 
the  dark  periods  of  confusion  and  anarchy  which  immediately 
preceded  the  reign  of  David  I.  it  is  not  probable  that  the 
church  received  any  accession  of  property. 

It  is  nearly  a  century  and  a  half  after  these  political  and 
ecclesiastical  changes  have  passed  over  the  country  that  we 
meet  with  the  name  of  the  first  minister  of  Channelkirk, 
who  is  officially  designated  "  presbyter  "  or  priest.  It  occurs 
in  Charter  8  of  the  Regis  truin  de  Dry  burgh.  It  must  have 
been  a  short  time  after  the  year  1 162  when  Hugh  de  Morville 
died.  Richard,  his  son,  is  confirming  his  father's  gift  of 
Channelkirk  to  that  Abbey,  and,  as  we  have  noted  above, 
after  handing  over  the  fishings  of  Berwick  and  the  tithes  of 
Lauder  and  Salton  Mills  to  the  brethren  there,  he  says : 
"  Besides,  I  concede,  I  confirm  to  the  same  church  my 
father's  donations,  which,  with  himself,  he  gave  to  the  same 
brethren,  namely,  the  Church  of  Childenchirch  with  all  those 
pertinents  with  which  Godfrey,  the  priest,  held  it  on  the 
day  in  which  my  father  assumed  the  canonical  habit." 

It  is  curious  to  reflect  on  the  miscellaneous  racial  com- 
position of  a  parish's  foundations  upon  which  the  modern 
superstructure  rests.  Here  the  Danish-descended  Godfrey 
fills  the  office  of  spiritual  guide  to  a  composite  population  of 
Celts  and  Angles,  while  the  proud  Norman  lords  it  over  the 
territory  and  gives  gifts  from  it  at  his  will.  This  charter 
also  gives  outline  to  a  fact  which  does  not  seem  to  be 
*  Origines  Parochiales,  pref.  xxiv. 


118  THE  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

generally  known,  viz.,  that  Hugo  de  Morville,  after  leading  a 
chequered  career  in  royal  courts  and  battlefields,  quietly  laid 
aside  his  soldier's  armour  and  entered  Dryburgh  Abbey  to 
die  in  the  odour  of  sanctity.  On  the  day  when  he  dons  the 
dress  of  the  monks,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  he  bears 
in  his  hand  the  gift  of  Channelkirk  with  all  its  land  and 
pertinents.  This,  of  course,  was  not  an  unusual  occurrence. 
There  is  an  evident  reference  to  another  charter  which  is 
now  lost  concerning  the  gift  of  Channelkirk  Church.  In  the 
first  charter  with  which  Dryburgh  Register  opens,  viz.,  No. 
6,  the  title  runs,  "  A  Confirmation  concerning  the  fore- 
mentioned  donations,"  etc.  It  is  more  than  probable  that 
a  further  glimpse  into  the  earlier  history  of  the  church  would 
have  been  given  us  had  the  lost  charters  been  preserved.  But 
from  what  we  possess,  it  is  abundantly  clear  that  the  church 
was  well  settled  with  its  land  and  officiating  priest  when 
Hugh  de  Morville  gifted  it  to  Dryburgh  Abbey.  We  are 
told,  moreover,  in  this  first  given  charter,  which  is  from 
King  Malcolm  IV.,  and  must  date  1 1 53-1 165,  that  the  Kirk 
Land  lay  adjacent  to  it.  Presbyter  Godfrey  would  in  all 
likelihood  have  his  residence  upon  it,  though  he  would  not 
be  married,  owing  to  David's  reforms,  and  there  are  reasons 
for  assuming  that  the  west  part  of  the  present  glebe  may 
have  been  known  to  Godfrey  as  part  of  the  endowments  of 
the  church,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  it  stretched  as  far  as 
to  include  the  "  Holy  Water  Cleuch." 

It  must  have  been  about  this  time,  indeed,  and  certainly 
before  1 1 89,  that  the  Lord  of  Glengelt  gave  seven  acres  to 
the  church,  and  these  are  said  to  lie  to  the  east  of  it.  The 
fact  also  that  the  "Sucken"  of  the  Kirk  Lands  in  1588  is 
bounded  on  the  south  by  the  Haugh  and  "  Kirk  Watter  "  or 
Mountmill  Burn,  and   the  "  Halywattercleuch "  on  the  west. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  119 

points  to  the  early  possession  of  land  in  that  direction. 
The  church  must  have  been  early  entirely  surrounded  by 
its  own  lands,  and  from  its  name,  the  farm  of  Kirktonhill  or 
Kirklandhill  itself  may  have  been  situated  on  them. 

It  is  nearly  a  hundred  years  later,  viz.,  about  1248,  that 
any  further  glimpse  of  Channelkirk  ministers  is  discernible, 
and  while  very  much  in  the  foreground,  they  are  unfortunately 
mere  nameless  forms.  They  are  seen  doing  their  duty 
faithfully,  and  receiving  extra  compensation  for  extra  services, 
but  the  designations  by  which  they  are  known  in  the  body 
are  sunk  in  oblivion.  The  reason  why  they  are  visible 
in  the  charters  at  all  is  the  suspension  sine  die  of  Lauder 
priest  by  the  Pope,  and  the  necessity  for  supplying  the 
vacant  charge.  Charters  Nos,  40  and  41  are  of  the  year 
1268.  The  vicar  who  serves  in  Channelkirk  Church  is 
appointed  to  officiate  as  well  in  the  "  Chapel  of  Lauder,"  and 
for  his  extra  work  he  is  to  receive  from  Dryburgh  Abbey  and 
Convent  ten  pounds  annually  at  the  two  terms,  Pentecost 
and  Martinmas.  No  doubt  this  Channelkirk  vicar  did  his 
duty  loyally,  both  to  his  own  and  to  the  Lauder  flock  com- 
mitted to  his  care.  How  much  we  should  like  at  this  distant 
date  to  know  but  his  name,  and  how  he  relished  the  six 
miles'  journey  to  and  fro  in  the  winter  storms,  and  what  his 
private  opinion  was  about  the  obstinate  and  pugnacious 
Eymeric,  the  practically  deposed  priest.  He  must  also  have 
heard  of  the  stirring  doings  in  Stow  in  1268.  All  of  him  is 
spectral  enough  now,  and  our  interrogations  wander  vainly 
across  six  hundred  years. 

Gameline,  "  by  divine  compassion  the  humble  servant  of 
Saint  Andrew's  Church,"  and  who  writes  Charter  40,  does  not 
seem  to  have  been  familiar  with  his  name,  for  the  double 
duties  are  imposed,  generally,  on  him  "  who  shall  minister  at 


120  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Channelkirk."  Prior  John  follows  with  Charter  41  on  the 
same  dim  lines,  but  the  general  terms  were  perhaps  written 
with  a  purpose,  for  their  instructions  were  to  last,  not  for 
one  vicar's  lifetime,  but  for  many  years  after  this  one's  duties 
were  done.  The  Pope's  curse  withered  the  priests  out  of 
Lauder  from  1248  onwards. 

Later  in  the  century  two  events  transpired  above  the 
historical  horizon  which  must  have  affected  Channelkirk 
Church  to  a  certain  degree,  and  stirred  her  priests  with 
various  emotions.  The  first  was  the  inauguration  of  those 
encroachments  of  the  Pope  upon  Scotch  clerics  by  way  of 
extracting  money  out  of  them,  a  process  which  was  bitterly 
resented  for  nearly  three  hundred  years,  that  is,  from  1275 
till  1560.  "  In  1254  Innocent  IV.  gave  Henry  III.  of  England 
one-twentieth  of  the  ecclesiastical  revenues  of  Scotland  for 
three  years  to  help  in  crusade.*  But  Henry's  gain  was  even 
more  slender  than  the  Pope's  right  to  give.  In  1268 
Clement  IV.  increased  this  airy  gift  to  one-tenth  in  favour 
of  Henry's  son.  This  time  the  Scots  saved  their  cash  and 
evaded  both  England  and  Rome  by  offering  payment  in 
soldiers.  In  1275  a  legate  came  to  Scotland  to  collect  in 
person  this  one-tenth.  His  name  was  Benemundus  or 
Boiamund  de  Vicci,  but  he  is  best  known  as  Bagimond, 
possibly  as  a  joke  on  his  bagging  or  begging  mission.  The 
device  tried  on  him  was  a  dispute  and  appeal  whether  the 
one-tenth  was  to  be  on  the  old  or  the  present  valuation. 
The  poor  legate  had  to  trudge  back  to  Rome  for  the 
Pope's  decision,  which  was  in  favour  of  the  latter.  The  roll 
so  made  out  is  still  extant,  and  is  the  best  authority  for  old 
church  wealth.  Between  1275  and  1560  many  a  sore 
exaction    was    made   on    Scotch    clerics    accord  incr   to    this 


t> 


*  The  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  ii.,  p.  283,  1890. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  121 

fleecing  tariff,  especially  when  the  chief  benefices  fell  vacant. 
In  Dr  James  Raine's  Priory  of  Coldingham*  under  "  Papal 
Taxation  of  Churches  and  Monasteries  in  Scotland,"  we  have 
under  "Dryburge"  Childenechirche  valued  at  XXX'  (;^3o), 
and  Lauder  at  68'  14'  {£62>,  14s.).  Channelkirk  is  said  to 
be  a  "  Vicaria"  in  the  Decanatus  de  Merske,  verus  valor  =  X', 
decima  =  XX.  This  is  very  early  in  the  reign  of  Edward  I., 
who  ascended  the  throne  in  1272.  The  Ancient  Taxatio  is 
preserved  in  the  Registers  of  St  Andrew's  Priory,  Arbroath, 
and  Dunfermline,  and  in  these  we  find  Channelkirk  valued  at 
40  marks,  Stow  at  70,  Lauder  at  80,  7s.  lod.,  Legerwood  at  40, 
Smailholm  at  45,  and  Gordon  at  30.  The  "  mark  "  seems 
to  have  rated  in  Scotland  at  13s.  4d.  "In  1284  Scottish 
money  was  permitted  to  be  current  in  England  at  its 
full  value.-f  Channelkirk  tax  money  went,  of  course,  to 
Dryburgh  Abbey,  thence  to  Coldingham,  thence  to  Rome, 
according  to  the  following  % :  "  Taxation  of  the  Abbey  of 
Dryburgh  by  the  Abbot  of  Coldingham,  as  collector  under 
the  grant  made  by  the  Pope  to  Henry  III.  and  Edward  I.  of 
England,  of  the  tithes  of  Scotch  benefices  in  aid  of  the  Holy 
Land  "  (c.  1 290).  "  Childenechirche  "  is  set  down  for  "  XXX.'" 
The  other  event  was  of  a  more  exciting  kind,  and  must 
have  aroused  in  Lauderdale  an  immense  commotion.  This 
was  no  less  an  incident  than  the  invasion  of  Scotland  by 
Edward  I.  in  1296,  in  order  to  put  down  the  rebellious  Sir 
William  Wallace.  It  was  summer,  in  the  leafy  month  of 
June,  when  the  valley  smiles  its  sweetest,  that  the  angry 
tramp  of  warriors  everywhere  resounded  in  Berwickshire. 
Edward  subdued  Dunbar  Castle  on  28th  April,  on  Wednes- 

*  Surtees  Society,  1841. 

t  Cochran-Patrick's  Coinage  of  Scotland.     Introduction,  cix. 

}  Dryburgh  Register,  p.  329. 


122  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

day,  2nd  May,  he  was  at  Haddington,  and  on  the  6th  at 
Lauder,  having  crossed  the  Lammermoors  ;  thence  to  Rox- 
burgh next  day.  But  on  5th  June  he  was  at  Lauder  once  more, 
and  crossed  Soutra  to  Newbattle,  thence  to  Edinburgh. 
History  tells  his  story  afterwards.  In  the  year  of  1298,  he 
came  into  Scotland  again,  still  bent  on  its  subjugation,  and 
we  seem  to  see  his  royal  progress  with  clearer  eyes  in  the 
account  left  of  it.*  Mr  Gough  "f  has  traced  the  king's  progress 
up  through  Lauderdale.  "  On  the  3rd,  5th,  and  6th  July, 
King  Edward  was  at  Roxburgh.  Here  he  found  himself  at 
the  head  of  a  powerful  army,  which  is  stated  to  have  consisted 
of  8000  horse  and  80,000  foot,  chiefly  Irish  and  Welsh. 
From  Roxburgh  he  marched  towards  the  Forth."  It  is  not 
to  be  supposed  that  the  king  with  his  entire  army  confined 
themselves  to  Lauderdale.  A  portion  of  the  host  must  have 
gone  round  by  Dunbar.  On  the  7th  July  Edward  was  at 
Redpath,  a  village  south  from  Earlston  two  miles.  On  the 
9th  day  he  reached  Lauder,  and  at  this  place  he  makes  the 
following  sad  memorandum  : — 

"  Adam  de  Monte  Alto  vallettus  Regis,  qui,  etc.,  in  parti- 
bus  Scocie  Moratur,  etc. — 

Teste  Rege  apud  Loweder,  ix  die  Julii." 

"  Adam  de  Montalt  (Mowat),  valet  of  the  king,  who  died 
in  parts  of  Scotland.  The  king  witnesseth,  at  Lauder,  9th 
day  of  July." 

King  Edward  passes  up  through  the  dale  by  the  road 
which  then,  as  later,  was  the  main  highway  between  Scotland 
and  the  South,  and  it  is  probable  that  King  William  the 

*  Documents  Illustrative  of  the  History  of  Scotland  {K^v.  Jos.  Steven- 
son). 

t  Scotland  in  1 298.  By  Henry  Gough,  Barrister.  A.  Gardner,  Paisley, 
1888. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  123 

Conqueror,  two  centuries  earlier,  trod  the  same  way  when 
he  marched  through  Lothian  into  Scotia.  So  near  to  this 
highway  was  the  manse  of  Channelkirk  built  in  later  times, 
that  when  necessity  urged  a  new  wing  being  added,  in  1863, 
to  its  north  side,  the  road  had  to  be  diverted  to  allow  it  to  be 
done,  and  the  dining-room  now  stands  upon  the  highway 
over  which,  doubtless,  the  king  toilsomely  pursued  his 
hill  journey  across  the  Lammermoors.  Fala  and  Dalhousie 
were  next  overtaken,  and  on  the  nth  he  reached  Braid, 
in  the  immediate  south-west  vicinity  of  Edinburgh.  "His 
progress  was  interrupted  by  no  hostile  forces,  but  scarcity 
and  sickness  rendered  the  position  of  his  army  extremely 
critical." 

One  can  scarcely  imagine  the  consternation  into  which 
Channelkirk  population  would  be  thrown,  and  its  priest 
among  the  rest,  at  the  march  past  of  such  an  embattled 
host,  with  a  warrior  so  redoubtable  as  Edward  at  its  head. 
Knowing  how  bitterly  the  English  and  Scotch  hated  each 
other,  it  is  a  reasonable  surmise  that  the  defenceless  people 
fled  to  the  hills  and  glens  around  them,  and  hid  in  safety  till 
the  ravaging  Irish  and  Welsh  soldiers  had  vanished  over 
Soutra.  It  is  probable  that  his  men  were  no  more  merciful 
than  those  of  Cromwell  in  1650,  and  would  plunder  all  in 
their  track,  not  sparing  even  the  "poors'  box."  Every 
patriotic  Scotsman  must  lament  that  the  battle  of  Falkirk 
which  followed  did  not  support  the  policy  of  fire  and  starva- 
tion by  which  Wallace  sought  to  free  his  countrymen  from 
English  despotism.  This  was  not  to  be  accomplished  till  the 
new  century  brought  a  new  hero  to  the  rescue  of  Scottish 
liberty,  and  13 14  saw  Bruce  and  Bannockburn  redeem  the 
disaster  of  Falkirk,  and  the  barbarous  butchery  of  the  Knight 
of  Elderslie. 


124  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

In  the  year  1318,  four  after  Bannockburn,  and  the  same 
that  saw  the  siege  of  Berwick  go  fiercely  forward,  the  Dry- 
burgh  charters  permit  us  to  see  once  more  a  kind  of  adum- 
bration or  silhouette  of  Channelkirk  priest.  It  is  "  Willelmus 
de  Lamberton "  who  speaks,  the  bishop  of  St  Andrews, 
and  well-known  as  "  Wallace's  Bishop."  The  clergy  have 
always  been  warmer  patriots  than  the  aristocracy.  His  own 
cathedral  of  St  Andrews  was  consecrated  this  year,  but  he 
was  interested  also  in  the  remoter  churches  of  his  great 
diocese,  and  as  already  noticed,  he  continued  the  provisional 
arrangement  by  which  "  the  priest  who  shall  minister  in  the 
church  at  Childenkirk  shall  also  make  obedience  for  the 
church  at  Childenkirk  as  well  as  for  the  chapel  at  Lauder," 
and  for  which  he  is  to  receive  the  stipulated  remuneration  of 
ten  pounds  yearly.  Dryburgh  Abbey  is  to  see  that  Lauder 
Chapel  is  served  by  "  one  honourable  chaplain." 

How  long  this  condition  of  things  lasted,  and  Channel- 
kirk priest  faced  the  heat  of  summer  and  the  storms  of 
winter  between  Lauder  and  his  own  hill-dwelling  in  per- 
forming his  spiritual  duties,  we  cannot  venture  to  say.  Our 
view  of  the  case,  such  as  it  is,  has  been  stated  in  a  preceding 
chapter,  and  all  the  poor  light  which  we  have  been  able  to 
shed  there  on  the  melancholy  case  cannot  be  said  to  do  more 
than  make  the  darkness  visible.  From  13 18  till  1560  we 
calculate  242  years.  A  terribly  wide  space  of  impersonal 
history,  assuredly !  Not  a  whisper  comes  to  us  through  all 
these  years  of  a  priest  being  in  Channelkirk,  though,  without 
the  slightest  demur,  we  may  freely  assume  that  prayer  and 
praise  arose,  as  of  old,  upon  the  steep  hillside  to  Him  who 
has  been  the  dwelling-place  of  men  in  all  generations,  and 
that  the  voice  of  the  priest  ceased  not,  through  these  unre- 
corded times,  to  counsel  the  living  and  comfort  the  dying. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  125 

Nor  would  he  himself  fail  to  "  allure  to  better  worlds  and  lead 
the  way."  Only  the  general  features  of  the  parish  emerge 
now  and  then  through  the  heavy  mist  that  envelops  its 
history.  The  Oxton  Mill,  for  example,  is  seen  still  steadily 
grinding  out  meal  to  the  healthy  inhabitants  in  1380,  and 
one  fondly  hopes  there  was  corn  for  it  to  grind  eight  years 
later,  when  such  a  dreadful  famine  fell  upon  the  country.  In 
the  following  century,  Kirktonhill  is  seen  in  the  hands  of  the 
Moubrays ;  Glengelt,  Bowerhouse,  and  Collielaw  in  the 
possession  of  the  Borthwicks,  first  ennobled  in  1433  ;  * 
Crookston,  first  known  to  them  in  1446.  In  the  fifteenth' 
century  the  Setons  are  in  Hartside  and  Glints  ;  Headshaw  is 
clear  in  1494;  in  1539,  John  Tennant,  favourite  of  the  king, 
owns  the  Howdens,  Over  and  Nether  ;  while  it  is  certain 
Carfrae,  Bowerhouse,  Collielaw,  and  Over  Howden  were 
building  peels  for  their  defence  about  1535,  though  one  or 
two  of  these  places  may  have  had  such  "  strengths  "  before 
that  period.  But  while  the  chief  places  in  the  parish  are  all 
very  well  defined,  the  church  and  its  priest,  as  we  have  said, 
are  invisible.  In  the  year  1535,  the  year  of  "bigging"  of 
peels,  the  "  Kyrk  of  Chyndylkyrk  "  floats  upward  into  light 
of  day  through  the  power  and  buoyancy  of  the  teinds.  The 
monks  of  Dryburgh  note  in  their  "  Rentals,"  "  The  kyrkis 
that  payis  syluer "  to  them  ;  and  so  the  "  Item  be  Cudbart 
Cranstone  and  Maister  Robert  Formane,"  viz.,  ;^66,  13s.  4d., 
comes  into  their  hands  onward  from  the  above  date  till  1580, 
the  same  fact  being  noted  also  in  the  years  1540,  1545,  1555, 
and  1560-70. 

While  the  parish  and  its  church  are  thus  seen  in  dim 
eclipse  during  two  and  a  half  centuries,  the  events  of  the 
nation's  history  nevertheless  shed  a  twilight  reflection  upon 
*  Douglas's  Peerage. 


126  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

• 

it,  which  is  not  unwelcome.  All  Lauderdale  was  raided  and 
ravaged  by  the  English  in  1406-7,  for  example,  and  Channel- 
kirk,  with  the  rest  of  its  population,  would  be  called  upon  to 
defend  both  life  and  property.  These  were  the  days  when 
Scotland  had  but  one  object  before  her  in  all  her  policies, 
laws,  and  pleasures,  viz.,  "  Our  enemy  of  England,"  and  when 
England  as  heartily  considered  "  our  adversary  of  Scotland," 
and  the  Borderland  glowed  with  lurid  auroras  from  blazing 
fields  and  burning  villages  ;  spectacles  which,  though  fiery 
enough,  yet  only  feebly  embodied  the  fierce  passions  which 
•flamed  in  the  hearts  of  men.  Raidings  and  ravishings  were 
common,  and  retaliation  and  revenge  the  spur  of  all  actions, 
public  or  private.  And  as  the  Douglas  went  forth  from  his 
Castle  of  Dalkeith  to  wind  up  his  adventure  in  the  battle  of 
Otterburn,  1388,  it  is  hard  to  doubt  that  he  led  his  men  by 
any  other  road  than  over  Soutra  and  down  Lauderdale ; 
enlisting,  perhaps,  some  of  Channelkirk  warriors  on  his  way ! 
But  strife  and  bloodshed  were  not  only  common  between 
Englishmen  and  Scotsmen  —  Scotland  was  rent  by  the 
tumult  of  rival  houses  and  factions,  and  was  in  the  throes 
of  incipient  civil  war.  The  great  house  of  Douglas  almost 
overtopped  that  of  royalty  itself,  and  the  king's  very  crown 
stood  in  hazard.  Powerful  nobles  were  seditious  and  dis- 
contented. Rebellion  was  constantly  present  in  every  man's 
thoughts. 

This  state  of  matters  received  ample  illustration  in  1482, 
in  the  affair  of  Lauder  Brig,  and  no  small  commotion  and 
consternation  must  have  prevailed  in  the  dale  at  this  time  on 
account  of  this  daring  massacre.  King  James  the  Third  was 
indolent  and  feeble,  and  too  readily  shifted  the  cares  of 
government  on  to  other  shoulders  than  his  own.  If  he  had 
always  chosen  worthy  men  for  this  purpose  little  harm  might 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  127 

have  followed,  but  his  favourites  appear  to  have  been 
frivolous,  unworthy,  and  incapable.  The  hearts  of  his  slighted 
nobles  boiled  with  indignation  at  such  low  prostitution  of 
the  royal  prerogative,  and  they  nourished  revenge  against 
low-born  men  who,  they  considered,  could  have  few  principles 
or  instincts  in  common  with  the  king,  and  whose  training  and 
inclinations  scarcely  fitted  them  to  be  counsellors  to  the 
ruler  of  a  kingdom  which  contained  much  inflammable 
material.  The  mutinous  nobles  had  an  army  at  Lauder, 
where  the  king  was  staying  with  his  doomed  and  despised 
pets.  The  suggestion  of  death  needed  little  breath  to 
formulate  it.  The  nobles  discussed  the  project  in  private, 
and  Lord  Gray  pawkily  told  the  story  of  the  mice  and  the 
cat,  with  the  tacit  proposition  underlying  it,  of  course,  as  to 
which  of  the  discontented  noble  "  mice "  should  venture  to 
put  the  bell  round  the  king's  neck.  Archibald  Douglas, 
Lord  of  Angus,  gained  the  name  by  which  he  was  ever 
afterwards  known,  by  promptly  volunteering  to  Bell  the  Cat. 
The  royal  pets  were  seized,  summarily  tried,  and  swiftly 
hurried  to  Lauder  Bridge,  which  then  spanned  the  Leader 
somewhat  further  up  the  river  than  it  does  now,  and  nearer 
to  the  Castle,  and  were  there  ignominiously  hanged  like 
unwelcome  puppies  over  its  side.  But  this  was,  perhaps,  the 
more  trifling  part  of  the  conspiracy.  They  next  proceeded 
to  seize  the  king,  and  as  he  was  led  from  Lauder  Fort  a 
humbled  captive  onwards  and  up  through  the  dale,  destined 
for  Edinburgh  prison,  we  can  but  faintly  realise  how  deeply 
Channelkirk  would  be  moved  at  the  tidings  and  the  spectacle. 
It  was  the  crisis  in  a  tragedy  which  only  closed  in  the  king's 
murder  at  Sauchieburn,  and  with  all  the  results  before  us  of 
that  bitter  outburst  of  angry  and  neglected  nobles,  the  en- 
forced royal  progress  through  Channelkirk,  past  the  church, 


128  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  across  the  bleak  Soutra,  itself  emblematic  of  the  king's 
fortunes,  we  cannot  but  mingle  deep  sympathy  for  the 
hapless  James  with  our  interest  in  the  wretched  pageant. 
Our  people  are  more  clearly  seen  fifty  years  later  in  the  Earl 
of  Northumberland's  account  to  Bluff  King  Hal  of  an  inroad 
of  the  Scots  on  the  21st  of  November  1532.*  Deep  must  have 
been  the  hatred  of  the  foe  to  send  men  at  such  a  time  of  year 
to  the  raid  and  foray.  The  brunt  of  the  scrimmage  was 
about  the  Ale  Water  and  beneath  the  Cheviots.  Three 
thousand  men  were  on  the  Scottish  side,  "  and  thair  captains," 
says  the  Earl,  "  was  the  lard  of  Sesford,  warden  of  the  middle 
marche,  the  lard  of  Buckleugh,  John  Carre,  sone  and  heyr  to 
Dand  Ker  of  Farnyhirst,  with  all  the  hedesmen  of  the 
forrist,  with  all  Teviotdaill  on  horsbake  and  foot ;  cccc  tryed 
men  from  the  west  parte  of  the  marche,  and  all  th'  inhabitants 
of  the  forrest  of  Gedworth  ;  and  all  the  best  tryed  men  of 
Moorhowsland  and  Lauderdaill,  under  the  Lord  Buckleughe!' 
"  Moorhowsland  "  is  a  designation  of  Lammermoor,  and  one 
part  of  the  district,  at  least,  was  known  later  as  the  "  lands 
of  Kirktonhill  in  Channelkirk,"f  through  which,  on  the  old 
road,  Buccleuch  would  march  going  south.  They  were  too 
many  for  the  English,  and  "most  contemptuously  had  into 
Scotland  diverse  persons,  with  great  number  of  horse,  nolte, 
and  sheipe." 

It  may  gratify  the  curious  to  take  a  glimpse  at  the 
manner  of  life  to  which  our  Channelkirk  people  were 
accustomed  about  1450.  Turbulence  and  mutiny  among  the 
higher  classes  of  a  nation  seldom  mean  less  than  oppression 
and  straitened  means  of  living  among  the  lower.  In  the 
winter  of  1435,  i^neas  Silvius  Piccolomini,  afterwards  Pope 

*  Monastic  Annals  of  Teviotdale,  p.  n^  note. 
\  Sasines,  May  19,  1707. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  129 

in  Rome,  undertook  a  journey  to  Scotland  to  procure  the 
favour  of  the  king  for  a  certain  prelate.*  The  English  would 
grant  him  no  passport,  and  he  had  to  find  his  way  by  the 
Netherlands  to  Edinburgh,  The  storms  on  his  voyage  ex- 
torted a  vow  from  him  to  pay  a  pilgrimage  to  the  shrine  of 
Our  Lady  at  Whitekirk  in  East  Lothian.  The  general  view 
of  social  comfort  and  discomfort  which  he  saw  in  the  Lothians 
cannot  differ  very  widely  from  what  obtained  in  Lauderdale. 
He  was  amazed  to  see  coal  first  on  his  way  to  Edinburgh, 
most  likely  in  the  Dalkeith  district.  The  "stones"  were 
joyfully  received  as  alms  by  half-naked  beggars  who  stood 
shivering  at  the  church  doors.  He  says  Scotland  is  a 
cold,  bleak,  wild  country,  producing  little  corn,  yielding  coal, 
but  for  the  most  part  without  wood.  Cities  had  no  walls  ; 
the  houses  were  built  mostly  without  lime,  with  no  roofs 
except  turf  in  towns,  and  an  oxhide  doing  duty  as  door. 
The  common  people  were  poor  and  rude,  ate  plenty  of  flesh 
and  fish,  but  wheaten  bread  was  only  to  be  had  as  a  luxur}-. 
Scottish  people  at  this  time,  it  seems,  were  taunted  by 
Englishmen  with  eating  oatcakes,  a  preference  which  asserts 
itself  in  the  "  Land  o'  Cakes  "  yet.  The  men  were  small  in 
stature,  he  says,  but  bold :  the  women  of  fair  complexion, 
good-looking,  and  amorous  ;  kissing  in  Scotland  going  for 
less  than  handshaking  in  Italy.  It  seems  that  his  comparison 
might  have  included  Spain,  France,  Denmark,  and  the  Low 
Countries.  Scotch  people  had  no  wine  except  what  was 
imported.  Their  horse  possessions  were  nags,  mostly 
geldings,  uncurried,  uncombed,  and  used  without  bridles. 
Nothing,  he  remarks,  delights  the  Scots  more  than  abuse 
of  the  English !  Evidently  it  was  a  rough,  bellicose  time, 
when  both  life  and  property  were  not  highly  esteemed.     It 

*  Concilia  Scotice^  pref.,  p.  xci. 

\ 


130  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

does  not  improve  either  with  a  hundred  years,  and  a  similar 
condition  to  that  which  we  now  quote  may  have  actually 
existed  in  the  days  of  Piccolomini's  visit.  In  1570, 
Lauderdale  men  are  called  upon  to  unite  against  Queen 
Mary's  party,  from  the  age  of  16  to  60.*  "The  quhilk  day, 
my  Lord  Regent's  grace  and  Lords  of  Secreit  Counsell  under- 
standing how  the  peaceabile  and  guid  subjects,  inhabitants  of 
the  cuntries  of  Merse,  Lammermure,  Lowtheane,  Lawderdaill, 
etc.,  ar  hevilie  oppressit  throw  the  daylie  and  continwale 
stowthes,  reiffis,  heirschippis,  birningis,  slawchteris,  and 
depredationes  off  the  theves  and  tratouris  of  the  surnames 
of  Eliot,  Armestrang,  Nicksoune,  Croser,  etc.,  etc.,  sa  that 
the  peaceabill  and  guid  subjects  ar  maid  unhabill  for  the 
Kingis  service,  and  gryt  pairties  of  the  incuntrie  appeirand 
to  be  laid  waist,"  and,  in  short,  seeing  the  promise  these 
thieves  made  (the  business  is  of  long  standing  evidently)  of 
peaceableness  has  not  been  honoured,  and  they  "cease  not 
to  commit  maist  crewell  and  odious  crymes,"  they  are  to  be 
pursued  by  fire  and  sword,  and,  what  is  more,  now  is  the 
time  to  be  up  and  at  them,  seeing  that  "  thair  is  sufficient 
horse  meit  to  be  haid  on  the  feildis"  (it  is  the  month  of 
October  or  November),  "  and  the  cornis  and  hay  of  the  saidis 
thevis  standing  in  stakis  and  riggis."  They  are  then  pro- 
claimed as  thevis,  traitorous,  and  peace  brekkers,  etc., 
and  all  worthy  gentlemen,  Erles,  Lordes,  Barons,  etc., 
between  the  Borders  and  Aberdeen  are  to  prepare  them- 
selves in  the  maist  weirlyk  maner,  and  are  to  be  ready  with 
twenty  days'  provisions,  "  and  with  palzeonis  and  careage 
to  ly  on  the  fieldis "  in  order  to  put  down  the  spoiling 
vagabonds. 

There   is   small    doubt   that    much   of  the  disorder   pre- 
*  Privy  Council. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  131 

vailing  in  Lauderdale  and  elsewhere  at  this  time  and  for 
a  hundred  years  previous  was  due  to  the  relaxed  conditions 
of  moral  and  spiritual  example  which  obtained  in  the 
churches  throughout  the  land.  The  shepherds  were  idle, 
asleep,  or  worse,  and  the  sheep  strayed  afar.  If  our  informa- 
tion regarding  this  were  drawn  only  from  Protestant  sources, 
we  might  be  inclined  to  set  it  down  to  partisan  malignity. 
But  the  blackest  record  is  from  Romish  councils  of  that 
remarkable  age.  In  1549*  a  General  Convention  and  Pro- 
vincial Council  was  held  at  Edinburgh  on  27th  November, 
when  the  business  was  preceded  by  decided  and  astonishing 
confessions  that  the  root  and  cause  of  the  troubles  and 
heresies  in  the  Church  were  the  corruption,  profane  lewdness, 
and  the  gross  ignorance  of  churchmen  of  almost  all  ranks. 
The  clergy  in  the  canons  or  rules  drawn  out  then,  were 
enjoined  "  to  put  away  concubines  under  pain  of  deprivation 
of  benefices,  to  dismiss  from  their  houses  children  born  to 
them  in  concubinage,  not  to  promote  such  children  to 
benefices,  nor  to  enrich  them,  the  daughters  with  dowries, 
the  sons  with  baronies,  from  the  patrimony  of  the  Church. 
Prelates  were  not  to  keep  in  their  houses  manifest  drunkards, 
gamblers,  whoremongers,  brawlers,  nightwalkers,  buffoons, 
blasphemers,  swearers ;  were  to  amend  their  manners  and 
lives,  dress  modestly  and  gravely,  keep  their  faces  shaven, 
and  heads  tonsured,  live  soberly  and  frugally,  so  as  to  have 
more  to  spare  for  the  poor,  and  to  abstain  from  secular 
pursuits,  especially  trading."  The  "heresies"  that  were 
abroad  were  inveighed  against  at  the  same  council.  These 
were  :  speaking  against  Church  rites,  especially  mass,  baptism, 
confirmation,  extreme  unction,  penance,  contempt  of  Church 
censures,  scorn  of  saint-worship,  purgatory,  images,  fasts  and 
*  Concilia  Scoficp,  pref.,  p.  cxlix. 


132  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

festivals,  and  general  council's  authority.  Heretical  books 
were  to  be  burned,  especially  poems  and  ballads  against 
Church  or  Clergy.  Burns  was  not  the  first,  it  seems,  to 
scourge  with  satire  and  merciless  laughter  the  poor  failings 
of  the  Holy  Willies. 

So  did  this  Edinburgh  Provincial  Council  in  1 549  enjoin 
and  ordain.  They  might  have  saved  their  zeal.  The  pro- 
fligate clergy  and  people  went  on  their  accustomed  ways. 
In  1552,  three  years  afterwards,  the  General  Provincial 
Council  meets  once  more  in  Edinburgh,  bent  on  the  same 
reforming  work.  The  vices  and  villainous  manners  of  the 
times  are  still  further  dwelt  upon,  and  catalogued  with  closer 
attention  to  particulars.  It  is  owned  that  the  rules  laid 
down  at  the  last  council  have  been  of  no  effect.  Provision 
is  then  made  to  enforce  statutes  for  preaching  to  the 
people,  teaching  theology  and  canon  law  in  cathedrals  and 
monasteries,  examining  curates  and  vicars,  securing  the  faith- 
ful administration  of  deceased  persons'  goods,  and  for  visiting 
hospitals.  Other  provisions  are  made  to  prohibit  clandestine 
marriages,  careful  trial  of  divorce  cases,  greater  publicity  to 
excommunications,  and  for  preventing  the  alienation  of 
manses  and  glebes.  One  of  the  rules  set  forth  that  even 
in  the  most  populous  parishes  very  few  of  the  parishioners  came 
to  mass  or  sermon ;  that  jesting  and  irreverence  in  time  of 
service  went  on  within  the  church,  and  sports  and  secular 
business  in  the  porch  and  churchyard.  It  is,  therefore, 
enacted  that  the  name  of  every  person  wilfully  absenting 
himself  from  his  parish  church  shall  be  taken  down  by  the 
curate  and  reported  to  the  rural  dean,  and  that  all  traffic 
in  church  porches,  in  churchyards,  or  in  their  immediate 
neighbourhood,  be  forbidden  on  Sundays  and  other  holidays 
during  divine  worship.     This  council  also  established  parish 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  133 

registers  of  baptisms  and  marriages.  The  curate  was  to 
enter  every  proclamation  of  banns,  the  name  of  the  infant 
baptized,  the  names  of  the  parents,  godfathers,  godmothers, 
and  two  witnesses  to  the  baptism.  The  baptisms  do  not 
seem  to  have  been  celebrated  then  any  more  than  in  the 
present  day,  "  in  the  face  of  the  congregation."  Registrations 
of  deaths  appear  to  have  been  provided  for  by  other 
ordinances,  one  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  century.  (See 
Synodal  Statute  of  Diocese  of  St  Andrews,  Sir  J.  Balfour's 
Practicks) 

This  deplorable  lapse  into  semi-paganism  over  all  Scot- 
land somewhat  reconciles  us  to  our  lack  of  further  knowledge 
regarding  Channelkirk  Church  and  its  priest  before  the 
Reformation.  We  cannot  presume  that  he  and  it  kept 
their  heads  higher  than  the  rest  above  the  muddy  floods  of 
immorality  and  profligacy  which  prevailed  above  even  the 
mountain  tops  of  the  national  Zion.  Not  unlikely,  the  only 
information  that  could  have  come  down  to  us  would  have 
been  of  such  a  nature  as  to  raise  a  deeper  blush  for  the 
successors  of  St  Cuthbert  and  the  place  founded  in  his 
honour,  and  it  may  be  easier  for  us  in  our  present  ignorance 
to  give  them  a  higher  niche  of  sanctity  and  esteem  than  if 
we  had  all  their  history  told  us  in  all  its  ghastly  veracity,  and 
could  have  traced  with  sadness  "each  step  from  splendour 
to  disgrace." 

With  the  advent  of  the  Reformation  we  step  from  the 
tumbling  floes  of  treacherous  conjectures  and  surmises  on  to 
the  firm  soil  of  historical  record,  and  hail  with  delight  the  face 
of  another  minister  of  Channelkirk.  Ecclesiastical  fortune 
had  indeed  turned  her  wheel.  Whereas  we  left  Channel- 
kirk priests,  in  1318,  doing  double  duty  for  Channelkirk  and 
Lauder  ;  when  1 567  arrives,  and  seven  years  of  Protestantism 


134  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

have  passed  over  the  nation,  we  find  Lauder  minister 
supplying  Channelkirk,  as  well  as  his  own  church  at  Lauder. 
Population,  wealth,  and  the  new  energies  at  last  asserted 
themselves,  and  the  ghostly  power  of  Rome  withered  in 
the  dust. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE   MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES 
After  the  Reformation 

Seven  Years  after  the  Reformation — Ninian  Borthuik — John  Gibsoun, 
Reader — Alexander  Lauder — King  James  VI.  and  I.,  and  Episcopacy 
— Famine — Allan  Lundie  —  Francis  Collace  —  Henry  Cockbum — 
Report  on  Church  and  Parish  in  1627 — The  Teinds — Knox's  In- 
dictment against  the  Scottish  Nobility — Lord  Erskine — Suspension 
and  Deposition  of  Cockbum — Suffers  "great  miserie" — Preaches  at 
Earlston — His  Lawsuit  —  His  Restoration  to  Channelkirk  —  His 
Death. 

Ninian  Borthuik 

In  the  "  Register  of  Ministers,  Exhorters,  and  Readers,  with 
their  Stipends,"  of  date  1567,  there  is  this  statement  under 
"  Lauderdaill "  :— 

Lauder  Mr  Ninian  Borthuik,  Minister,  xl  lib.  with  the  thryd 

Chynkilkirk         of  his  prebendrye  extending  to  xj  lib.  2s.  2d.  lob. 

It  is  seven  years  after  the  Reformation,  and  the  desolation 
of  the  churches  is  still  evident.  When  the  priests  were  cut 
adrift,  many  churches  were  left  without  any  person  of 
sufficient  status  and  ordination  to  conduct  divine  services  for 
the  people.  The  consequence  was,  that  one  minister  had 
often  charge  of  two  and  three  parish  churches.  Here  Mr 
Ninian  Borthuik  not  only  officiates  in  his  own  parish  of 
Lauder,  but  has  also  Channelkirk  under  his  care.     It  does 


136  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

not  appear  that  any  further  light  can  be  shed  upon  his 
identity,  and  ecclesiastical  arrangements  remained  in  this 
condition  till  1574,  when  we  are  informed  that  Borthuik  was 
translated  from  Lauder  to  Bassendean,  near  Westruther, 
where  he  had  also  Legerwood  and  Earlston  under  his  super- 
intendence. 

John  Gibsoun 

In  1576,  two  years  afterwards,  John  Gibsoun  is  Reader 
in  the  church  of  Channelkirk,  and,  it  would  appear,  continued 
so  till  perhaps  1584,  when  Mr  Alexander  Lauder,  M.A., 
fourth  minister  at  Lauder  after  the  Reformation,  "  was  pre- 
sented to  the  Vicarage  of  Schingilkirk  by  James  VI.,  on  15th 
April  1586,  and  continued  till  20th  July  161 3." 

This  looks  as  if  Mr  Lauder  had  been  ordained  minister 
of  Channelkirk,  though  it  was  not  so,  and  was  merely  the 
result  of  the  sinister  circumstances  of  the  age.  In  1572,  the 
year  of  Knox's  death,  Episcopacy  took  shape  at  Leith  Con- 
cordat as  a  likely  national  form  of  Scottish  religion,  and 
perhaps,  if  Andrew  Melville  had  been  silenced,  and  fairer 
treatment  given  to  parish  ministers,  it  might  have  blossomed 
into  strength  and  favour,  and  continued  to  be  the  established 
form  of  Scottish  religion  till  this  day.  But  at  that  time  deep- 
rooted  bitterness  was  engendered  by  the  way  in  which 
noblemen  used  Episcopacy  to  snap  up  the  Church's  patri- 
mony more  easily,  and  with  greater  show  of  legal  right,  and 
also  by  the  nefarious  and  fraudulent  treatment  of  the  clergy 
by  Regent  Morton,  who  would  appear  to  have  favoured 
Episcopacy.  Ministers  who  fondly  thought  themselves 
secured  in  a  conipetence  were  sometimes  rudely  deceived 
in  realising  that  no  stipend  was  to  be  forthcoming.  The 
stipends,  in  short,  were  grossly 'mismanaged.     They  were  to 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  137 

be  drawn  from  the  "  Thirds  "  as  it  was  termed.  These  were 
collected  by  the  superintendents,  and  distributed  to  ministers 
and  readers.  Regent  Morton  undertook  to  collect  these 
himself,  with  the  result  that  stipends  were  often  refused  to 
ministers,  and  themselves  put  to  sore  straits.  The  Regent, 
where  he  found  cases  like  Lauder  and  Channelkirk,  with  a 
minister  in  one  and  a  reader  in  the  other,  put  both  parishes 
into  one  to  save  a  reader's  stipend,  and  pocketed  the  reader's 
salary.  When  Lauder  minister  is  "  presented  "  with  Schingil- 
kirk  vicarage,  he  was  not  thereby  minister  of  Channelkirk. 
The  king,  at  this  date,  was  a  mere  boyish  tool  in  the  hands 
of  his  nobles.  For,  in  the  year  1573,  it  is  said,*  "as  con- 
cerning the  appointing  of  sundrie  kirks  to  ane  minister.  .  , 
That  howbeit  sundrie  kirks  be  appointit  to  ane  man ;  yet  sail 
the  minister  make  his  residence  at  ane  kirk,  quhilk  sail  be 
properlie  appointit  to  his  charge,  and  he  sail  be  callit  princi- 
pallie  the  minister  of  that  kirk ;  and  as  concerning  the  rest  of 
the  kirks  to  the  quhilks  he  is  nominat,  he  sail  have  the  over- 
sight thereof  and  help  them  in  sick  sort  as  the  Bishop,  Super- 
intendent, and  Commissioner,  sail  think  expedient,  and  as 
occasion  sail  serve  from  his  awin  principall  charge,  the  quhilk 
he  in  no  wayes  may  neglect," 

Alexander  Lauder 

Mr  Lauder's  "  presentation,"  therefore,  to  the  "  vicarage  of 
Schingilkirk,"  was  merely  to  its  "  oversight,"  and  to  "  help  "  it 
as  his  superiors  deemed  best.  As  we  now  say,  he  "  supplied  " 
Channelkirk,  but  was  minister  of  Lauder  only.i* 

It  was  in  161 1  that  Channelkirk  first  received  a  minister 
to  be  exclusively  the  ordained  ecclesiastical  official  in  the 

*  Booke  of  the  Universall  Kirk,  p.  296. 
+  See  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  ii.,  p.  459. 


138  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

parish.  From  1560  to  161 1  counts  fifty-one  years  ;  so  slowly 
did  the  spiritual  machinery  of  the  nation  fall  into  working 
order.  Looking  to  the  actual  dislocation  of  almost  every 
institution  in  the  country,  this  state  of  affairs  might  have 
been  regarded  as  calamitous  if  the  ultimate  benefits  had  not 
far  outweighed  the  political,  social,  and  religious  disadvan- 
tages. From  1560  till  1610,  all  the  elements  of  good  and 
bad  in  the  nation  had  declared  themselves,  and  were,  indeed, 
in  full  contention  for  mastery.  And  as  every  rock  and  skerry 
in  the  most  inland  creek  feels  finally  the  force  of  the  tidal 
wave  that  courses  round  the  world,  so  remote  Channelkirk, 
in  intermittent  "  supplies,"  and  in  deprivation  of  a  minister 
through  that  half  century,  had  also  its  share  of  the  miseries 
of  the  national  changes. 

Regarding  the  reader,  it  is  perhaps  necessary  to  explain 
that  he  "was  an  interim  substitute  for  a  fully-trained 
clergyman,  so  long  as  the  clergy  were  scarce.  He  did  not 
baptize,  or  marry,  or  celebrate  the  communion,  but  in  certain 
cases  he  conducted  the  ordinary  service  of  the  Church — a 
matter  then  more  easy,  inasmuch  as  a  printed  prayer-book 
was  in  regular  use.  In  dealing  with  Scripture,  the  reader 
was  allowed  to  add  a  few  words  explanatory  or  hortative  ; 
but  he  was  cautioned  not  to  be  too  long,  nor  to  attempt 
preaching,  properly  so  called.  A  trace  of  this  early  office 
still  meets  us  in  the  popular  name  of  lectern  or  lettern  applied 
to  the  precentor's  desk.  The  office  itself  still  survives  in  the 
Swiss  Church,  and  partly  in  the  Church  of  England,  where 
the  lessons  are  often  read  by  laymen.  A  large  proportion  of 
our  country  churches,  for  some  time  after  the  Reformation, 
had  readers  only,  who  were  also  the  first  schoolmasters."  * 

During  the  years  that  Alex.  Lauder  bravely  faced  the 
*  Church  of  Scotland^  vol.  ii.,  p.  438. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  139 

long,  monotonous  road  from  Lauder  to  conduct  divine 
services  at  Channelkirl<,  the  bodily  wants  of  the  people  seem 
to  have  been  as  clamant  as  the  spiritual.  A  great  dearth, 
for  example,  fell  over  Scotland  in  1 596,  similar  to  the  one  in 
1563,*  and  many  perished  for  want. 

"  For  if  God,"  says  a  contemporary,!  "  hald  nocht  extra- 
ordinarlie  prouydit  for  Scotland  victualles  (coming  in  sic 
store  and  aboundance  out  of  all  uther  countries,  as  never  was 
sein  in  this  land  before,  sa  that,  be  the  aestimatioun  of  the 
customers  and  men  of  best  judgment,  for  euerie  mouthe  that 
was  in  Scotland  ther  cam  in  at  least  a  boll  of  victuall), 
thowsandes  haid  died  for  hounger :  for  nochtwithstanding  of 
the  infinite  number  of  bolls  of  victuall  that  cam  ham  from 
uther  partes  all  the  hervesst  quarter  that  yeir  the  meall  gaue 
aught,  nyne,  and  ten  pound  the  boll,  and  the  malt  alleavin 
and  twoU,  and  in  the  southe  and  wast  partes  manie  died." 

Allan  Lundie 

In  the  same  year  that  Alexander  Lauder  was  "  presented  " 
to  Channelkirk,  and  eight  months  after  that  event,  Allan 
Lundie,  who  was  to  follow  him  in  that  charge,  received  from 
St  Andrews  University  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts.  He 
had  studied  at  St  Salvator's  College  there,  afterwards  in 
1747  joined  with  St  Leonard's,  and  ten  years  subsequent  to 
being  laureated,  viz.,  in  1596,  received  from  King  James  VI. 
the  vicarage  of  Lesudden,  now  St  Boswells.  It  was  the  year 
of  the  famine  noted  above,  and  the  cold  winds  of  adversity 
were  -blowing  as  bleakly  through  the  kirk  as  through  the 
cottage.  He  appears,  however,  to  have  taken  his  lot  with 
charming  unconcern,  and  extracted  as  much  pleasure  out 
of  it  as  perhaps  was  possible.  He  had  been  barely  twelve 
*  Knox's  Works,  ii.,  p.  369.       t  Melville's  Diary,  1556-1601,  p.  243. 


140  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

years  in  his  charge  when  the  Presbytery  felt  compelled  to 
call  him  to  account.  They  charge  him,  on  the  20th  September 
1608,  "with  negligence  in  his  calling,  and  not  ministering  the 
communion."  He  had  gone  his  way  with  lofty  ease,  doubt- 
less, and  deemed  it  superfluous  either  to  preach  or  pray ! 
The  Presbytery  thought  him,  moreover,  "  overstrait  in  exact- 
ing the  vicarage,"  too  worldly-minded,- and  wishing  to  pay 
his  way,  scornful  of  the  pious  maxim  that  "  a  puir  minister 
is  a  pure  minister."  But  they  also  blame  him  for  playing 
"at  cairdis,"  an  evil  which  most  ministers,  not  to  speak 
of  Presbyteries,  wink  at  nowadays.  It  was  one  of  the 
reproaches  hurled  against  priests  that  they  kept  gamblers 
in  their  houses,  and  permitted  sports  even  in  the  church 
porches  and  churchyards.  Lundie  was  also  too  fond  of 
"companie,"  and,  worst  of  all,  was  "impatient  of  reproof 
and  admonition ! "  We,  the  Presbytery,  are  galled  to  see 
such  proud  indifference  to  our  pious  rebukes  and  exhorta- 
tions !  He  was  a  very  scandalous  Presbyterian  evidently,  if 
not  a  wicked  Episcopalian  at  heart.  For  two  years  more  pass, 
and  Lundie  stands  once  again  before  the  Presbytery.  It  is 
the  3rd  day  of  April  1610,  and  we  are  surprised  they 
missed  the  first  day.  They  advise  him  to  "attend  his 
ministrie  and  increase  in  diligence,  to  be  earnest  for  repairing 
his  kirk"  (the  usual  groan  of  Scotch  Kirk  "ruination")  "to 
teach  in  the  afternoon,  and  to  abstain  from  his  carding." 
An  easy,  indolent,  ecclesiastical  Tom  Jones  evidently.  But 
all  this  admonishing  "  he  took  verie  weel."  That  is,  it  went 
in  at  one  ear  and  out  at  the  other.  Perhaps  it  was  the  most 
suitable  route  for  it.  All  official  advice,  like  official  charity, 
is  somewhat  heartless,  and  creates  more  demons  in  a  man 
than  it  casts  forth.  Under  a  rational  system,  a  man  might 
listen  reverentially  enough  to  an  individual's  private  reproof, 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  141 

even  though  he  were  called  bishop,  but  no  one  expects  advice 
to  benefit  a  delinquent,  when  it  is  tantamount  to  a  deputy- 
damn  from  a  chair,  with  a  crowded  room  listening,  open- 
eared,  in  a  certain  mood  of  mind. 

Mr  Lundie,  in  1610,  this  year  of  his  reproving,  has  two 
churches  placed  at  his  acceptance.  Will  he  accept  Hassen- 
dean  or  Chinilkirk?  He  resolutely  answers  that  he  prefers 
Hassendean.  "  Being  burdened  for  his  full  answer,"  he  refers 
himself  to  the  Presbytery  for  more  advice,  and  they  kindly 
advised  him  to  accept  Channelkirk.  He  seems,  however, 
to  have  been  translated  first  to  Hassendean,  and  then  in 
161 1  to  Channelkirk,  where  he  stayed  till  1614,  when  he  was 
again  translated  to  the  parish  of  Hutton,  then  called  Hutton 
and  Fishwick. 

Francis  Collage 

Francis  Collace  comes  in  his  room,  having  been  "pre- 
sented to  the  vicarage"  by  James  VI,  on  the  loth  day  of 
December  161 4.  He  was  admitted  on  the  17th  September 
of  161 5.  When  he  received  his  degree  in  Edinburgh 
University  in  the  year  1610,  Episcopacy  was  triumphantly 
lifting  up  its  head  on  high  once  more.  King  James  VI.  and 
I.  came  to  the  English  throne  in  1603,  ^.nd  with  his  fixed 
ideas  about  the  divine  right  of  kings,  and  the  divine  right 
of  churches,  had  made  up  his  mind  that  his  mind  was  the 
divine  mind,  and  therefore  must  rule  the  people,  and  especi- 
ally the  people  of  Scotland,  not  only  from  the  river  unto 
the  ends  of  the  earth,  but  also  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave 
in  things  spiritual  and  ecclesiastical.  By  a  series  of  acts  he, 
through  several  years,  marched  steadily  towards  that  object, 
reasoning  with  the  refractory  clergy,  spiriting  the  impossible 
and  powerful,  such  as  Andrew  Melville,  into  prison  and  exile, 


142  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

muzzling  others,  intimidating,  violating,  and  wheedling  more 
until,  on  24th  June  16 10,  the  Parliament  in  Edinburgh  com- 
plied with  his  views.  An  Assembly  held  in  Glasgow  the 
same  month  saw  Archbishop  Spottiswoode  representing  the 
Church,  and  Earl  Dunbar  the  State,  and  lo !  the  king  had 
crowned  his  scheme  with  glory,  for  Scotland  was  Episcopal. 
There  was  one  sour,  gnarled,  dogged  Presbyterian  young 
soul  who  despised  these  proceedings,  and  it  was  that  of 
Francis  Collace.  Nor  did  three  years'  residence  among  the 
Lammermoor  hills  alter  his  reflections.  We  find  him  in 
Edinburgh  in  the  summer  of  161 7  protesting  with  many 
others  to  the  Scottish  Parliament  "for  the  liberties  of  the 
Kirk."  *  For  it  was  only  in  the  May  preceding  that  King 
James  had  proposed  "  that  whatsoever  his  majesty  should 
determine  touching  the  external  government  of  the  Church 
.  .  .  .should  have  the  strength  of  a  law."  Was  not  the  king's 
mind  the  divine  mind,  and  therefore  had  right  to  rule  ? 
Would  not  he  make  "  that  stubborn  kirk  stoop  more  to  the 
English  pattern  ?  "  Was  not  the  bishop  to  rule  the  ministers, 
and  the  king  to  rule  both?  Dr  Rankin,-|-  in  summing 
up  King  James's  character,  royally  declares  that  he  was  a 
"  royal  oddity "  ;  absent-mindedly  misspelling  a  word,  it 
seems,  for  Macaulay  notes  it  as  "drivelling  idiot,":!:  but  a 
man  whose  notions  of  royalty  equalled  his  views  of  divinity  had 
no  other  course  to  pursue,  if  he  were  to  be  true  to  himself. 
But  Calderwood  of  Crailing,  and  his  coadjutors  and  followers, 
were  of  a  different  opinion,  and  would  have  none  of  his 
majesty's  prelacy.  Collace  was  not  alone  either  in  Lauder- 
dale in  his  protestations.  All  the  ministers  in  the  valley, 
it    seems,  were  united   in  rebellion.      The  close   of  autumn 

*  Original  Letters  relating  to  Ecclesiastical  Affairs,  vol.  ii.,  p.  501. 
f  Church  of  Scotland,  vol  ii.,  p.  490.         %  Essays,  Lord  Bacon. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  143 

i6i8  saw  Scotland  in  great  trouble  over  an  attempt  to  foist 
upon  the  Church  the  Five  Articles  of  Perth.  Ministers 
openly  anathematised  them,  and  King  James  was  as  deter- 
mined to  depose  the  ministers  if  they  did  not  conform. 
Among  *  the  conspicuous  instances  of  that  time  is  the  fact  of 
the  general  revolt  against  these  by  the  Lauderdale  ministers, 
for  James  Deas  of  Earlston,  James  Burnet  of  Lauder,  and 
Francis  Collace  of  Channelkirk  were  in  rebellion.  They 
were  brought  up  with  several  others  before  the  Court  of 
High  Commission,  March  2,  1620,  as  clerical  non-conforming 
culprits.  Deposition  was  the  wholesale  method  recom- 
mended by  the  king  for  all  such,  but  Archbishop  Spottis- 
woode  was  exceptionally  lenient,  and  dismissed  them  with  a 
lecture  and  an  earnest  remonstrance.  The  Court  met  in 
the  archbishop's  house  in  Edinburgh.  His  temper  was 
tried,  it  seems,  at  the  sight  of  so  many  recalcitrants,  and  of 
Calderwood  especially.  Having  urged  them  to  conform, 
and  having  received  a  collective  refusal,  he  broke  out :  "  I 
will  divide  you  in  three  ranks.  Some  of  you  have  been 
ministers  before  I  was  bishop :  ye  look  for  favour ;  but  lean 
not  too  much  to  it,  lest  ye  be  deceived.  Some  of  you  I 
have  admitted,  and  ye  subscrived  to  things  already  con- 
cludit  and  to  be  concludit.  Some  of  you,  at  your  transporta- 
tion from  one  kirk  to  another  have  made  me  the  like  promise. 
I  will  continue  you  all  till  Easter ;  and  in  the  meantime, 
see  ye  give  not  the  Communion."  It  is  not  recorded  how 
Collace  took  this  word  from  the  heights,  nor  how  he  carried 
himself  in  Channelkirk  afterwards.  But  the  year  that  saw 
James  VI.  no  more,  viz.,  1625,  also  took  Collace  from  Channel- 
kirk to  be  minister  at  Gordon.  We  may  add  that  he  was 
married  to  Marion  Muirheid  and  had  a  daughter,  Agnes. 
*  Privy  Council^  1619-22,  Introduction,  Ixiii. 


144  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Henry  Cockburn 

One  of  the  early  acts  of  the  new  king,  Charles  I.,  was  to 
present  the  new  minister,  Henry  Cockburn,  to  Channelkirk, 
an  event  which  took  place  on  the  4th  day  of  July  1625.  He 
received  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  from  St  Andrews 
University,  26th  July  161 3.  From  a  description  he  has  left 
in  a  report,  "  made  to  His  Majesty's  Commissioners  for 
Plantation  of  Kirks,  etc.,  12th  April  1627,"  we  get  a  very 
vivid  view  of  the  parish  and  church,  and  the  miserable 
circumstances  into  which  the  minister  was  allowed  to  sink 
by  the  heritors  of  that  time.  The  document  is  so  graphic 
and  telling  that  we  insert  it  entire.  It  is  printed  in  "  Reports 
on  the  State  of  Certain  Parishes  in  Scotland." 

"  For  the  Churche  of  Chingilkirk  quhilk  holdis  of  Drybrughe, 

1.  The  stipend  is  fyve  hundreth  merk,*  to  be  payit  be  the  Right 
Hon.  Johne,  Earle  of  Marr,  to  Lord  Drybrughe,  etc. 

2.  Alexander  Cranstoune  of  Morestoune  is  proprietar  of  the  juste  half 
of  the  teindis  of  the  whole  parochine,  excepting  butter,  cheise,  hay,  etc., 
callet  the  small  viccarage,  for  the  quhilk  the  parochiners  payes  twa 
hundreth  merkis  to  my  Lord  Drybrughe. 

3.  Thair  hes  nott  beine  as  yett  a  manse  for  a  minister  by  reasone  of 
the  none  residence  of  my  predecessors,  so  that  I  am  very  ewill  usit. 

4.  As  for  my  glebe,  it  is  little  worth,  for  my  predecessors  sett  it  for 
ten  lib.f  be  yeir. 

5.  I  have  no  sowmes  grasse,  mosse,  nor  muir  to  cast  elding  (fuel)  and 
diffott  into,  to  my  great  hurt  and  skaith,  notwithstanding  thair  is  muche 
Kirkland  in  my  parochine  as  Over  Howden,  Nether  Howden,  twa 
husband  landis  in  Huxtoune,  and  my  Lady  Ormeistounes  Kirklandis 
beside  the  kirk,  and  the  Hillhouse  quhilk  perteines  to  the  Laird  of 
Herdmeistoune. 

6.  The  wholle  teindis  of  Chingilkirk  parishe  ar  worthe  fyve-and- 
twenty  hundreth  merk|  comnnuiibus  annis. 

*  £27,  15s.  6^d.  sterling.  f  i6s.  8d.  sterling- 

I  Taking  the  merk  equal  to  13s.  4d.  {Coinage  of  Scotland,  by  Cochran- 
Patrick),  this  sum  was  equal  to  ^1666,  13s.  4d.  Scots  =  ;!^  138,  17s.  9i%d. 
sterling. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  145 

7.  It  is  shame  to  sie  the  queir  (choir)  so  long  without  ane  roofe,  neither 
can  the  parochiners  get  halfe  rovvme  in  the  kirk. 

8,  It  wald  be  very  fitt  to  joyne  Quhelplay  (Whelplaw),  and  all  on  this 
syde  of  Adinstone  Water  to  Chingilkirk,  because  they  ar  but  twa  mylles 
from  it,  quhairas  they  ar  fyvc  mylles  from  Lawther  if  they  cannot 
commodiously  have  ane  kirk  of  their  awin. 

Lastly,  I  shalbe  ready  upon  adverteisment  to  attend  upon  my  Lordis 
Commissioneris  for  their  mor  particular  informatioun  in  every  thing  that 
concemis  my  churche  so  far  as  I  knaw. 

Mr  Henry  Cockburne, 
Minister  of  Chingilkirke." 

The  "  mor  particular  informatioun "  had  evidently  been 
requested  by  "  my  Lordis  Commissioneris,"  for  we  find  that 
a  fuller  account  is  given  below  the  above  report,  and  in  all 
likelihood  belongs  to  a  later  date.     It  is  as  follows : — 

"  Anent  Chingilkirk  quhilk  is  nott  ane  laik  patronage  but  ane  of  the 
kirkis  off  the  Abacie  of  Dryburghe, 

1.  Thair  ar  above  fowr  hundreth  communicantis  in  the  parishe. 

2.  The  remotest  rowme  in  the  parishe  is  two  mylles  distant  from  the 
kirk  and  some  of  Lawther  parishe  ar  neirer  quha  ar  my  daylie  auditouris, 
being  fyve  myllis  from  their  awin  parishe  kirk,  viz.,  Whelplay,  and  all 
above  Whelplay  Water. 

3.  The  quir  is  without  ane  roofe,  to  the  great  scandall  off  the  gospell 
and  prejudice  of  the  parishiners  that  cannot  get  rowme  in  the  kirk,  the 
quir  being  doune. 

4.  The  stipend  is  fyve  hundreth  merkis,  to  be  payit  be  the  Right 
Honble.  Johne,  Earle  of  Marre,  without  any  manse,  the  glebe  worth  ten 
merkis  yeirlie,  for  sowmes  grasse  I  have  nane,  nor  any  uther  casuality 
quhatsoever,  so  that  I  cannot  hold  house  in  such  ane  barren  pairt  of  the 
countrie,  being  eight  myllis  from  ane  merkat,  and  having  ten  personis 
every  day  to  susteine,  quhairas  I  wald  be  harberous  as  the  apostle 
commandis,  Timoth.  3  cap.,  2  verse. 

As  for  the  worth  and  rent  of  every  rowme  of  the  parishe  in  stok  and 
teind. 

1.  Bowrhouses  may  pay  in  rent  being  plenishit  300  merkis  personage 
ane  100  merkis  viccarage  xl  lib. 

2.  Coklaw  in  stok  500  merkes  personage  ane  100  merkis  viccarage 
fowrscoir  merkis. 

K 


146  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

3.  Over   Hawdan  holding  of  the   Abacie  of  Kelso   is   in  stok  600 
merkis  personage  ane  100  lib.  viccarage  ane  100  merkis. 

4.  Airhouse  is  in  stok  eightscoir  merkis  personage  20  lib.  viccarage 
20  lib. 

5.  Thriebumefuird  is  in  stok  8  scoir  lib.  personage  20  lib.  viccarage 
20  lib. 

6.  Neather   Hairtsyde   is   in   stok    600  merkis   personage   fowrscoir 
merkis  viccarage  100  merkis. 

7.  Glints   is   in   stok    500    merkis    personage   20  lib.   viccarage  ane 
100  merkis. 

8.  Over  Hairtsyde  in  stok  300  merkis  personage  20  merkes  viccarage 
xl  merkis. 

9.  Greingelt  is  in  stok  1000  merkis  personage  6  scoir  lib.  viccarage 
ane  100  merkis. 

10.  Haitshaw  and  the  Haughe   in  stok  400  merkis   personage  ane 
100  merkis  viccarage  xl  lib. 

11.  Midle  is  in  stok  ane  100  merkis  personage  20  merkis  viccarage 
20  lib. 

12.  Fairnielies   in   stok   200  merkis   personage  20  lib.   viccarage   xl 
merkis. 

13.  Kelfap  in  stok  300  merkis  personage  20  lib.  viccarage  xl  lib. 

14.  Frierneise  holding  of  Ecles  in  stok  fowrscoir  lib.  personage  6  lib. 
viccarage  ten  merkis. 

15.  Hisildene  in   stok   200  merkis   personage    20   merkis   viccarage 
40  merks. 

16.  Hairniecleughe  in  sick  fowrscoir  lib.  personage  10  lib.  viccarage 
20  merkis. 

17.  Hillhouse  ane  chaplanrie  of  Hermeistoune   in  stok  400  merkis 
personage  50  merkis  viccarage  50  merkis. 

18.  Carfrea  Maines  may  pay  in  stok  500  merkis  personage  ane  100 
lib.  viccarage  fowrscoir  lib. 

19.  Carfrea  Milne  in  stok  300  merkis  personage  xl  merkis  viccarage 
20  merkis. 

20.  Neather  Hawdan  holding  of  the  Abacie  of  Kelso   in  stok  600 
merkis  personage  ane  100  lib.  viccarage  20  lib. 

21.  Waisill    Milne   in    stok    ane    100   merkis    personage    10    merkis 
viccarage  4  lib. 

22.  Huxstoune   13   landis  with  two  landis  of  Kirkland  in    stok  900 
merkis  personage  ane  100  lib.  viccarage  xl  lib. 

23.  My  Lord  Cranstoune's  2  landis  in  Huxstoune  in  stok  4  scoir  lib. 
personage  50  merkis  (viccarage)  10  merkis. 

24.  Kirktounhill   200  merkis    in    stok    personage    fowrscoir    merkis 
viccarage  50  merkis.     This  is  fewd  land  holding  of  Drybrughe. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  147 

25.  The  Kirkland  of  Kirkhaugh  may  pay  xl  lib.  in  stock  and  teind. 

It  is  not  fewd  land,  but  being  viccar's  land  of  old,  and  now  withholden 
from  ministery  at  that  kirk,  hinders  thair  satling,  and  maid  all  my  pre- 
decessouris  non  residentis,  neither  can  I  get  grasse  to  two  kye,  to  my 
great  greiffe  and  skaith  quhilk  I  hope  shall  now  be  gratiouslie  amendit  to 
the  perpetuall  satling  of  a  ministery  at  that  kirk. 

If  it  shall  please  the  Lord  to  withhold  His  judgments  from  the  land, 
so  that  thir  forenamitt  rowmes  be  weill  plenishit,  they  may  yeild  the 
forsaid  stok  and  teind,  and  quhen  the  ground  is  punishit  the  heritour  and 
teinder  must  nott  be  frie. 

Thus  have  I  {bona  fide)  usit  all  diligence  to  informe  myself  anent  the 
premisses,  neither  might  I  opinlie  tak  the  help  of  my  parishiners,  because 
being  maillmen  and  in  wsse  to  pay  for  the  teindis  they  wald  have  sett  all 
things  at  naught,  quhilk  I  could  not  suffer,  and  thairfor  hes  taken  the 
wholle  burtheine  on  myself,  and  yit  hes  neither  prejudgit  maister  nor 
tennand. 

In  the  meane  tyme,  but  (only)  keiping  ane  puire  conscience  hes  in- 
deverrit  to  give  all  possible  satisfactioune  to  all  pairties  that  hes  any 
interest  in  this  bussines  and  that  indifferently  without  any  partiall  deilling. 

Mr  Henry  Cokburne, 
Minister  of  the  Evangell  off  our  Lord  aft  Chtngilkirke. 

This  is  the  just  Informatioun  delyverit  to  me  from  the  minister  of 
Chinghillkirk.  M.  JA.  Daes,  Moderator." 

The  reason  for  the  above  report  or  reports  is,  that  in 
1627  Charles  I.  appointed  Commissioners  of  Surrenders  and 
Teinds,  with  a  view,  among  other  things,  to  provide  churches 
with  ministers,  and  ministers  with  competent  stipends. 
Help  was  sought  from  the  ministers  themselves  in  giving 
just  information  with  reference  to  their  several  parishes  and 
particular  teinds.  There  seems  to  have  been  what  was  called 
a  sub-commission,  dealing  with  the  same  business,  but  princi- 
pally, although  not  always,  composed  of  the  ministers,  and  to 
all  intents  and  purposes,  the  presbytery.  The  second  report 
given  in  by  Cockburn  appears  to  have  been  laid  before  this 
sub-commission,  and  this  accounts  for  the  signature  of 
"James   Daes,  Moderator,"   who   was   minister  of  Earlston. 


148  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

This  ministerial  or  Presbyterial  valuation  of  the  teinds  does 
not  seem  to  have  been  accepted  as  sufficiently  authoritative.* 
The  sub-commission  for  this  district  sat  at  Lauder,  7th 
January  163 1,  and  was  "holden  within  the  Tolbuth"  there. 
There  is  extant  "  a  copy  of  valuation  of  the  lands  of  Glen- 
gelt  "  laid  before  this  meeting,  when  Thomas  Markell  in 
Headshaw,  and  James  Richardson  in  Kirktonhill  give  their 
testimony  on  oath,  that  these  lands,  with  pertinents  in 
constant  rent,  communibus  annibus,  "  may  pay,  and  will  be 
worth"  500  merks  (;^27,  15s.  6y\d.  sterling). 

What  a  lamentable  state  of  ecclesiastical  affairs  these 
reports  reveal !  No  manse  ;  the  church  half  in  ruins  ;  hardly 
any  glebe,  though  the  church  of  Channelkirk  had  abounded 
in  possession  of  acres ;  not  even  a  bit  of  the  wide  wild  moor 
of  Soutra  to  cast  peats  in,  or  lift  a  divot  out  of,  and  the 
stipend  £2^,  15s,  61^2^-,  on  which  to  support  ten  people.  No 
wonder  that  the  minister  could  not  entertain  any  one.  No 
wonder  that  all  the  previous  ministers  had  found  it  im- 
possible to  reside  there.  The  surprise  is,  indeed,  that  the 
church  survived  at  all.  "  The  heritor  and  teinder "  had  not 
only  taken  the  hide,  but  cleaned  the  bones  also,  and  left  "  the 
church  of  St  Cuthbert  at  Channelkirk  "  the  gift  of  wintry 
winds,  clean  teeth,  the  cry  of  the  peesweep,  and  the  prospect 
of  death  by  starvation.  But  valiant  Cockburn  seems  to  have 
swallowed  his  tears  and  his  "  ewill  usit "  as  deep  down  as  he 
was  capable,  and  bent  his  back  to  bear  the  burden  which  he 
found  impossible  to  lighten.  Not  for  the  first  time,  doubtless, 
and  certainly  not  for  the  last,  did  he  find  that  while  he  re- 
mained in  Channelkirk  he  must  nourish  his  righteous  soul  on 
very  thin  soup.  Scotland's  clergy,  like  their  Master,  having 
often  resorted  to  their  gardens,  Have  not  found  there  the 
•  *  Decreet  of  Locality^ '^.  2^2. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  149 

spices  and  the  pomegranates,  but  much  prayerful  agony,  and 
a  prowling  pack  of  traitors  and  thieves. 

Perhaps,  if  Cockburn  had  been  placed  in  any  other  parish 
in  Scotland,  his  "  report "  would  not  have  differed  in  essentials 
from  the  one  he  sent  from  this  place.  The  spirit  of  revenge 
and  avarice  swept  the  land,  and  what  should  have  fallen  on 
the  heads  of  the  priests,  bruised  the  hearts  of  their  Protestant 
successors.  The  Scottish  nobles  can  never  wash  the  smutch 
of  this  period  out  of  their  pedigree.  Unpatriotic,  unchristian, 
inhuman.  We  all  know  the  reason ;  but  Knox's  account  of 
the  case  is  enough.  The  First  Book  of  Discipline  had  been 
drawn  up,  and  "  presented  to  the  nobilitie,*  who  did  peruse  it 
many  dayis.  Some  approved  it,  and  willed  the  samyn  have 
bene  sett  furth  be  a  law.  Otheris,  perceaving  thair  carnall 
libertie  and  worldlie  commoditie  somewhat  to  be  impaired 
thairby,  grudged,  insomuche  that  the  name  of  the  Book  of 
Discipline  became  odious  unto  thame.  Everie  thing  that 
repugned  to  thair  corrupt  affectionis  was  termed  in  thair 
mockage  '  devote  imaginationis.'  The  caus  we  have  befoir 
declaired :  some  war  licentious ;  some  had  greadilie  gripped 
to  the  possessionis  of  the  kirk  ;  and  otheris  thought  that  thei 
wald  nott  lack  thair  parte  of  Christis  coat ;  yea,  and  that 
befoir  that  ever  he  was  hanged,  as  by  the  preachearis  thei  war 
oft  rebuked."  The  Roman  soldiers  parted  the  coat  after  He 
was  dead  ;  the  Roman  Catholic  priests  did  not  seek  the 
uppermost  claith  till  breath  was  out  of  the  body,  but  here  is 
the  poor  reforming  Scotch  minister  plundered  of  his  bodily 
comforts,  while  he  is  very  much  alive !  Thus  also  Knox 
transfixes  one  of  the  fleecers  in  whom  Channelkirk  should 
have  an  interest.  "  The  cheaf  great  man  that  had  professed 
Christ  Jesus,  and  refuissed  to  subscrive  the  Book  of  Discipline, 
*  Knox's  Works^\o\.  ii.,  p.  128. 


150  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

was  the  Lord  Erskine  ;  and  no  wonder,  for  besydis  that  he 
has  a  verray  Jesabell  to  his  wyfife,  yf  the  poore,  the  schooles, 
and  the  ministerie  of  the  kirk  had  thair  awin,  his  keching 
(kitchen)  wald  lack  two  parttis  and  more,  of  that  whiche  he 
injustlie  now  possesses.  Assuredlye  some  of  us  have 
woundered  how  men  that  professe  godlynes  could  of  so  long 
continewance  hear  the  threatnyngis  of  God  against  theavis 
and  against  thair  housses,  and  knowing  thame  selfis  guyltie 
in  suche  thingis,  as  war  openlie  rebucked,  and  that  thei  never 
had  remorse  of  conscience,  neather  yitt  intended  to  restore 
any  thingis  of  that,  whiche  long  thei  had  stollen  and  reft. 
Thair  was  none  within  the  realme  more  unmercyfull  to  the 
poore  ministeris  then  war  thei  whiche  had  greatest  rentis  of 
the  churches." 

This  is  Knox's  indictment  against  the  Scottish  nobles. 
The  particular  name  which  he  singles  out,  viz.,  Lord  Erskine, 
has  a  special  interest  for  us,  as  it  was  into  his  hands,  as  Earl 
Mar,  that  the  Abbey  of  Dryburgh  fell,  and,  consequently,  the 
Channelkirk  lands  belonging  to  its  church.  He  had  "pro- 
fessed" Christ  Jesus,  but  the  Book  of  Discipline  was  his 
aversion ;  nevertheless,  his  kitchen  was  stuffed  with  the 
inheritance  of "  the  poore,  the  schooles,  and  the  ministerie." 

Dryburgh,  with  other  religious  houses,  was  annexed  to 
the  Crown  after  the  Reformation.  A  liferent  was,  however, 
reserved  for  David  Erskine,  the  commendator.  "  The  king,* 
on  the  resignation  or  death  of  any  abbot  or  prior,  appointed 
lay  '  commendators '  for  life  to  the  vacant  benefice,"  and 
David  was  closely  involved  in  the  stormy  events  of  his  time. 
He  became  one  of  the  young  Earl  of  Mar's  assistants  in  the 
governorship  of  James  VI.  during  his  minority,  and  he  was 
more  or  less  implicated  in  Mar's  subsequent  escapades.  He 
*  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv.,  p.  51. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  151 

lost  his  position  as  commendator  in  Dryburgh  when  the 
Erskine  estates  were  confiscated  in  1584,  but  when  they 
were  restored  in  1585,  David  Erskine  again  resumed  his  old 
post  and  privileges.  In  1604,  the  first  year  after  the  king 
ascended  the  throne  of  Great  Britain,  he  included  Dryburgh 
Abbacy  in  the  Temporal  Lordship  and  Barony  of  Cardross 
in  favour  of  John,  Earl  of  Mar,  reserving,  however,  to  David, 
the  commendator,  the  rents,  profits,  and  emoluments  of  the 
lands  and  others.  He  enjoyed  the  benefice  from  first  to  last 
through  nearly  fifty  years,  the  abbacy  being  found  vacant  on 
31st  May  1608,  and  in  his  majesty's  hands  as  patron.  David 
had  demitted  office  that  it  might  be  provided  to  his  kinsman, 
Henry  Erskine,  a  legitimate  second  son  of  the  Earl  of  Mar. 
This  Henry  Erskine  dies  evidently  in  1637,  a  few  years  after 
the  reports  are  sent  in  by  Rev.  Henry  Cokburne,  for  we  find 
the  following:  "March  17,  1637.  David  Erskine,  heir  male 
of  Henry  Erskine  de  Cardross  (patris),  in  the  lands  and 
barony  and  others,  underwritten,  which  formerly  pertained  to 
the  Abbey  of  Dryburgh,  viz.,  Dryburgh  Abbey,  etc.  etc.  .  .  . 
Kirkland  of  Lauder,  lands  of  Over  and  Nether  Shielfield, 
lands  of  Ugstoun,  Kirklands  of  Chingilkirk,"  etc.,  etc.* 

It  was,  therefore,  through  the  influence  of  John,  Lord 
Erskine,  whose  hypocrisy  and  avarice,  and  "  verray  Jesabell 
his  wyffe,"  Knox  lamented  so  much,  that  Channelkirk  Kirk 
lands  were  "  stoUen  and  reft "  from  the  ancient  patrimony  of 
that  church,  by  means  of  the  youthful  "  royal  oddity "  and 
the  connivance  of  his  kinsman,  David  Erskine,  the  "  com- 
mendator." The  fault  of  the  ruined  church,  the  absence  of  a 
manse,  the  miserable  competence  on  which  Cockburn  had  to 
serve  the  cure  and  feed  ten  people  daily,  lay  directly  at  the 
door  of  this  Henry  Erskine,  the  Earl  of  Mar's  second  son. 

•  Re/ours. 


152  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Four  hundred  communicants  were  weekly  ("  daylie  ")  gather- 
ing in  a  church  with  half  its  roof  off,  on  the  storm-swept 
steeps  of  Soutra  Hill,  and  the  minister  stewing  with  his  "ten 
persons  "  in  a  "  but  and  ben,"  for  want  of  a  manse ;  while  the 
illustrious  descendant  of  "  a  verray  Jesabell,"  "  a  sweatt 
morsale  for  the  devillis  mouth,"  wallowed  in  the  unprincipled 
gains  of  sacrilege. 

The  conspicuous  ability  of  Henry  Cockburn  is  more  than 
hinted  at  in  the  following  recommendation  which  we  quote 
from  the  Proceedings  of  Commission  of  the  General  Assembly, 
1647.  "The  Commission  recommends  Mr  Henry  Cokburne 
to  the  Lord  Advocat  to  assist  him  before  the  Commissioners 
for  planting  of  kirks."  He  was  a  member  of  the  Assembly 
in  Glasgow,  21st  November  1638,  and  doubtless  he  was 
present  at  that  great  historical  scene  earlier  in  the  same 
year,  on  1st  March,  when  in  Greyfriars  Church,  Edinburgh, 
the  Scottish  nation,  in  its  representatives,  swore  with  uplifted 
hands,  and  subscribed  to  the  National  Covenant.  He  was 
essentially  a  man  of  strong  individuality  and  pronounced 
convictions,  and  unflinchingly  asserted  his  principles  in  open 
defiance  of  all  consequences.  Such  men  are  usually  broken 
when  they  have  no  capacity  for  bowing  down,  and  the 
General  Assembly,  which  met  in  July  1648,  found  it  necessary 
in  his  case  to  adopt  this  process.  He  was  suspended  on 
that  occasion,  and  referred  by  that  court  to  the  next  Assembly 
in  July  1649,  and  finally  deposed  from  his  charge  at  Channel- 
kirk  in  1650.  His  offence  was  the  monstrous  one  of  praying 
in  public  for  the  Army  in  England  under  the  Duke  of 
Hamilton.  As  the  duke's  army  was  in  England  in  1648, 
Cockburn's  process  of  deposition  had  taken  two  years  to 
accomplish.  No  better  proof  could  be  given  of  the  mad, 
fanatical,  and  furious  spirit  which  then  smote  the  four  corners 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  153 

of  the  Scottish  Zion.  "  Scotland  is  in  a  hopeful  way,"  says 
Carlyle,  writing  of  this  time  in  his  cynical  vein,"  *  "  The 
extreme  party  of  Malignants  in  the  North  is  not  yet  quite 
extinct ;  and  here  is  another  extreme  party  of  Remonstrants 
in  the  West — to  whom  all  the  conscientious  rash  men  of 
Scotland,  in  Kirkcaldy  and  elsewhere,  seem  as  if  they  would 
join  themselves !  Nothing  but  remonstrating,  protesting, 
treaty ing,  and  mistreatying  from  sea  to  sea."  War  was 
added  to  this  state  of  matters,  for  Cromwell  and  his  soldiers 
were  busy.  Scotland  was  in  the  dangerous  predicament  of 
the  Church  ruling  the  State,  and  when  the  Covenanters 
claimed  the  same  powers  which  the  Pope  now  claims  in 
vain  from  us.  The  ecclesiastical  world  was  broken  up  mainly 
into  two  parties  of  Engagers  and  Remonstrants,  later 
Resolutioners  and  Protesters,  and  it  appears  Henry  Cock- 
burn  must  have  been  an  Engager,  for  it  was  one  of  the 
tenets  of  the  Protesters  that  they  dared  not  pray  for  the 
success  of  the  Scottish  army  in  England,  not  having  any 
warrant  from  God,  as  they  said,  to  do  so.  The  valley  of 
the  Leader,  to  all  appearance,  held  by  the  royal  cause,  as  the 
Duke  of  Lauderdale  himself  was  taken  prisoner  and  lodged 
in  the  Tower  of  London  for  fighting  to  attain  the  same 
purpose  for  which  Cockburn,  somewhat  earlier,  prayed,  and 
was  deposed.  But  the  Protesters  ultimately  came  to  be 
the  dominant  party  in  Scotland,  and,  as  a  consequence, 
intolerably  treated  the  party  opposed  to  them.  They  de- 
prived them  of  their  livings,  and  Cockburn  lost  Channelkirk. 
He  might  also  have  lost  his  life  in  the  passionate  wrangle, 
for  the  two  parties  visited  upon  each  other  the  heaviest 
censures,  but  Cromwell's  army  kept  the  peace,  and  suppressed 
any  attempts  at  martyr-making.  It  is  before  the  month 
*  CromivelPs  Life  and  Letters,  vol.  iii.,  p,  85. 


154  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  May  of  1650,  that  he  begins  his  term  of  "great  miserie," 
for  his  successor,  David  Liddell,  is  admitted  and  ordained 
on  the  30th  May  of  that  year.  Just  thirteen  days  before 
this  latter  event  we  find  the  following  statement  in  Assembly 
Reports  :  "  The  Commission  of  Assembly,*  their  advyce  being 
desired  by  two  of  the  brethren  of  the  Presbyterie  of  Ersil- 
toune,  in  name  of  the  whole  Presbyterie,  in  the  particular 
concerning  Mr  Harie  Cockburn,  which  was  fully  represented 
by  the  said  brethren,  the  Act  of  Synod  and  Presbyterie 
thereanent  being  produced,  did  think  fitt  to  give  the  advyce 
following,  to  witt :  That  according  to  the  transaction  betwixt 
the  said  Mr  Harie  and  the  Commissioners  of  the  said 
Presbyterie  to  the  last  General  Assembly,  and  according  to 
the  Recommendation  of  the  said  General  Assembly  for  that 
effect,  and  according  to  the  Act  of  the  Presbyterie  following 
upon  both,  that  thrie  hundreth  merks  should  be  payed  yeirly 
by  the  next  intrant,  out  of  the  stipend  of  Ginglekirk,  to  the 
said  Mr  Harie  Cockburne,  as  long  as  he  lives,  and  the 
Commission  advyses  to  take  securitie  of  the  intrant  for  that 
effect  before  his  admission." 

It  is  clear  that  by  this  date  he  is  out  of  Channelkirk. 
But  negotiations  had  been  set  afoot  to  provide  a  competence 
for  him.  His  brethren  of  the  Presbytery  of  Earlston  had 
taken  counsel  together,  and  through  their  Commissioners 
to  the  Assembly  had  laid  his  case  on  the  Assembly  table 
for  consideration  and  advice.  An  "  Act  of  Presbytery  "  had 
been  formulated,  and  then  the  Commission  of  Assembly 
"advyses"  in  its  cautious  way  that  300  merks  (^16,  13s.  4d. 
sterling)  be  given  him  out  of  Channelkirk  stipend,  and  that 
the  new  ministers  should  be  taken  bound  for  that  purpose. 
As  Cockburn  tells  us  himself  that  he  "  suffered  great  miserie  " 
*  Commission  of  General  Assembly^  17th  May  1650. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  155 

during  the  period  of  his  deposition,  it  is  not  likely  that  this 
300-merk  "  advyse  "  had  the  slightest  effect  upon  his  fortunes. 
He  was  turned  adrift  to  sink  or  swim,  illustrating  once 
more  the  tender  mercies  of  the  ecclesiastical  divinity  which 
has  always  presided  over  the  creation  and  regulation  of 
Christians  in  Scotland.  He  had  ten  persons  to  provide  for, 
too !  Such,  however,  were  the  awful  penalties  of  prayer. 
One  speculates  here  as  to  how  the  knowledge  of  it  reached 
the  Assembly  from  such  a  remote  and  incommunicable 
parish.  There  must  have  been  pious  and  zealous  sneaks 
in  Channelkirk  Church  at  that  time,  who  did  God  service 
in  this  way. 

Cockburn  lived,  nevertheless,  to  see  a  new  day  arise  with 
less  sorrow  in  it  for  him.  After  nine  years  had  passed  "  he 
had  his  mouth  opened."  He  was  restored  to  the  ministry, 
but  not  yet  to  Channelkirk.  Still,  he  was  allowed  to  address 
his  perishing  fellow-creatures  on  the  solemn  concerns  of 
eternity.  A  great  privilege,  surely  ;  and,  meanwhile,  James 
Deas,  minister  of  Earlston,  having  been  suspended  from 
his  charge,  Cockburn  becomes  locum  tenens  there  for  fifteen 
months,  beginning  apparently  about  the  close  of  1659,  the 
year  of  his  restoration  to  the  ministry.  Mr  James  Deas, 
however,  believed  that  although  he  did  not  preach  to  Earlston 
people  he  should  keep  the  purse-strings  of  Earlston  stipend. 
He  refused  to  give  Cockburn  any  stipend,  notwithstanding 
that  the  Synod  had  ordained  a  part  to  be  paid  to  him,  and 
the  difficulty  becoming  a  deadlock,  the  case  went  to  law. 
Consequently  here  is  this  "  Report  by  the  Lords  Commis- 
sioners of  Bills  anent  Mr  James  Dais,  Minister  at  Ersle- 
toune. 

"There  being  ane  persuitt  depending  before  us  at  the  instance  of  Mr 
Henry   Cockburn,  sometime  minister  at  Ginglekirk,  against  Mr  James 


156  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Dais,  minister  at  Ersletoune,  whereby  the  persewer  craved  thrie  chader 
and  ana  half  of  victuall  halfe  oats  and  thrid  pairt  beer  and  sixscore  of 
pounds  Scotts  money  payable  furth  of  the  teinds  of  Mellerstanes  and 
Ffaunes  be  the  lairds  of  Gradone,  Torsonce,  and  Grinknow,  which  is  ane 
part  of  the  said  defendis  his  stipend  and  ordained  be  Act  of  Synod  to  be 
payed  to  the  persewer  for  his  service  in  preaching  at  the  said  Kirk  of 
Ersletoune  be  the  space  of  fifteen  months,  during  which  tyme  the  said 
defender  was  suspended. 

"  In  the  which  persewit  baith  parties  compearing,  and  they  being  both 
hard,  wee  have  of  consent  of  both  parties  condescended  that  the  said 
Mr  James  Daes,  defender,  should  have  right  to  the  same  stipend  in  swa 
far  as  is  not  already  uplifted  be  him,  and  that  the  said  Mr  Henry  Cock- 
burn,  persewer,  should  have  the  sowme  of  four  hundredth  merkis  out  of 
the  first  and  readiest  of  the  samyne  stipend.  And  in  regard  severall  of 
the  gentlemen  wha  are  lyable  in  payment  of  the  said  stipend  also  com- 
peared and  declared  they  were  willing  to  pay  to  any  of  the  said  parties 
who  should  be  found  to  have  best  right. 

"  It  is  therefor  our  humble  opinion  that  your  G.  &  Lo.  interpose  your 
decreet  and  authority  to  the  condescendence  above  written." 
"22  March  "[1661]. 


On  2nd  July  following,  we  have  it  that  "  Parliament  passed 
Acts  in  favour  of  Mr  John  Veitch  and  Mr  Henry  Cockburne." 
Mr  John  Veitch  was  the  well-known  minister  of  Westruther, 
and  Cockburn  would  thus  return  to  Channelkirk  with  his 
400  merks  in  his  pocket  (nearly  ;^"2i),  and  to  the  church  of 
his  first  love.  This  "  Act  in  his  favour  "  was  evidently  one 
removing  all  obstacles  out  of  the  way  of  his  return  to 
Channelkirk  Church  once  more,  and  may  be  regarded  as 
part  of  the  arrangement  by  which  Rev.  David  Liddell,  the 
officiating  minister  there  since  Cockburn's  deposition,  received 
from  Parliament  ;^ioo  sterling.  For  the  "  Act "  for  Cockburn 
is  dated  2nd  July,  and  that  for  Liddell,  4th  July,  both  1661. 
In  1662,  David  Liddell  was  called  from  Channelkirk,  and 
Henry  Cockburn  once  more  stood  in  his  old  pulpit  there. 
Twelve  years  of  bitter  experiences  on  account  of  patriotically 
and  piously  praying  for   success  to  his  soldier  countrymen 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  157 

fighting  in   England !     The   religion   of  Scotland   has   been 
truly  hammered  out  on  hard  anvils. 

The  last  entry  in  the  oldest  record  we  possess,  in  the 
handwriting  of  David  Liddell,  is  dated  25th  September 
1662.  Part  of  it  runs:  "Five  pounds  of  this  sum  delivered 
to  James  Somerville  to  be  given  to  Mr  Harry  Cockburne  for 
that  part  of  the  bursar  money  due  to  him  by  an  Act  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Erslingtoune  for  the  year  of  God  1662."  The 
"  bursar "  was  the  divinity  student  who  was  maintained  at 
college  by  Presbytery  help.  The  General  Assembly  in  1641 
enacted  that  Presbyteries  maintain  a  bursar  of  divinity.  If 
twelve  presbyters  in  number,  they  were  to  maintain  him 
alone,  but  if  fewer  than  twelve,  two  presbyteries  were  to 
combine.  In  1645,  it  was  provided  that  every  bursar  of 
theology  have  yearly  ;^ioo  Scots.  And  it  seems  that 
Earlston  Presbytery  had  by  their  act  diverted  part  of  this 
bursary  of  ^100  to  Cockburn  in  respect  of  certain  con- 
siderations. 

It  sometimes  happens  that  a  brave  ship  which  has 
battled  victoriously  through  stormy  seas  will  go  down  to  a 
watery  tomb  in  calm  weather,  within  sight  of  shore,  and  of 
those  who  have  gathered  on  the  harbourhead  to  welcome 
her  home.  Henry  Cockburn  returned  to  Channelkirk  in 
full  ministerial  status  and  honour,  only  to  lay  down  his  work 
where  he  first  took  it  up,  and  render  up  his  life  to  his  Master. 
It  must  have  been  late  in  the  year  of  1662  when  he  came 
back,  yet  in  November  1663  another  minister  is  ordained  in 
his  place.  Let  us  trust  that  though  his  day  had  been  full  of 
storm  and  darkness,  and,  as  he  puts  it,  of  "great  miserie," 
there  was  light  and  calm  for  him  at  eventide.  From  the  few 
scraps  of  his  life  and  work  which  we  have  been  able  to  glean, 
we  are  constantly  impressed  with  the  pious  earnestness  and 


158  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

manliness  of  the  one,  and  the  sustained  and  respected  worth 
of  the  other.  His  struggle  against  poverty  was  life-long, 
but  his  spirit  was  never  daunted,  and  he  spoke  his  mind 
before  both  God  and  man,  freely  and  courageously,  in  days 
when  harassment  and  death  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  pulpit 
stairs  to  throttle  the  minister  who  ventured  to  use  such  a 
freedom.  His  ability  was  known  and  claimed  far  beyond  the 
locality  of  the  parish  he  served,  and  he  seems  to  have  been 
esteemed  and  respected  as  much  in  the  higher  courts  of  the 
Church  as  among  his  brethren  of  the  Presbytery.  He  stood 
loyal  to  the  throne  and  to  the  sober-minded  party  in  the 
Church,  at  a  time  when  conspiracy  against  authority  and 
blind  fanaticism  in  religion  raged  wildly  throughout  the 
three  kingdoms.  This  augurs  strongly  for  his  sterling 
common  sense  and  sound  healthy  piety.  His  fervour  did 
not,  like  that  of  too  many  of  his  contemporaries,  rush  into 
ferocity,  nor  does  he  appear  to  have  left  the  safe  path  of 
moderation  and  wise  judgment  to  reach  reforms  by  the 
methods  of  passionate  bigotry. 

It  only  remains  to  add  that  his  wife  was  named  Isobell 
Hutoun,  and  that  he  had  a  son  called  Harrie.  The  name  of 
Cockburn  is  territorially  connected  with  Channelkirk  about 
thirty  years  after  our  minister's  time,  for  William  Cockburn, 
son  of  Henry  Cockburn,  Provost  of  Haddington,  becomes 
interested  in  Glengelt  and  Over  Howden  in  the  year  1695. 
But  whether  or  not  these  Haddington  Cockburns  were 
related  to  the  minister  of  Channelkirk,  it  seems  beyond  us 
now  to  ascertain. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE   MINISTERS   AND   THEIR   TIMES 

After  the  Reformation 

Professor  David  Liddell — Cromwell's  Soldiers  at  Channelkirk — At 
Lauder  and  Bemersyde — First  Glimpse  of  Channelkirk  People — The 
Kirk  Records— Divine  Right  of  Kings,  Prelacy,  and  Presbyterianism 
— Terror  and  Desolation — Divot  Renovation  of  Kirks — Collections 
and  Old  Customs— The  Lord's  Supper— Liddell's  "  Laus  Deo "  and 
Promotion  —  Walter  Keith  —  Earlston  Presbytery  and  Prelatic 
Presbyterianism— Kirkton  on  Keith— William  Arrot— Received 
into  Presbyterian  Communion  from  Prelacy — His  High  Character — 
Called  to  Montrose. 

David  Liddell — 1650- 1662 

If  Henry  Cockburn  has  a  strong  claim  to  be  considered 
our  martyr,  his  successor,  David  Liddell,  has  an  undoubted 
title  to  be  called  our  scholar.  The  proof  is  found  in  the 
professional  eminence  to  which  he  afterwards  attained  in 
Glasgow  University. 

After  careful  inquiry  we  regret  that  we  are  unable  to 
indicate  either  his  parentage  or  his  birthplace.  Aberdeen 
authorities  suggest  that  he  was  most  probably  related  to  the 
family  of  Liddells  who  were  benefactors  of  and  professors  in 
Marischal  College  in  the  seventeenth  century.  In  all  likeli- 
hood he  was  born  in  Aberdeen,  and  as  a  boy  would  receive 
his  education  there.     In  the  list  of  students  entered  in  the 


160  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

year  1634,  under  "preceptor  Robert  Ogilvie,"  the  name  of 
David  Liddell  occurs  in  the  tenth  place.*  In  the  year  1638, 
the  year  of  "  sturm  und  drang  "  in  the  Church  of  Scotland,  he 
obtained  there,  on  the  31st  July,  the  degree  of  Master  of 
Arts.     He  is  set  down  ninth  on  the  list  of  graduates.f 

His  first  appearance  at  Channelkirk  is  in  the  memorable 
year  of  1650,  the  year  which  saw,  among  many  other  notable 
events,  the  Psalms  first  put  into  metrical  form  by  Francis 
Rous,  and  the  Marquis  of  Montrose  executed  in  Edinburgh. 
Dr  Hew  Scott,  in  his  well-known  Fasti,  asserts  that  Liddell 
came  to  Channelkirk  in  1654.  This  is  a  mistake,  and  one 
that  proves  that  Scott  cannot  have  consulted  our  Kirk 
Records  for  his  statement,  Liddell  has  himself  written  it 
down  as  1650.  It  is  the  first  historical  sentence  inserted 
there.  "Collections  and  penalties  (gathered)  (and)  taken  up 
by  William  Wight,  elder  and  deacon  of  the  session  of 
Chinghilkirk,  and  depursements  efter  the  admission  and 
ordination  of  Mr  David  Liddell,  the  30th  day  of  May 
1650."  \ 

The  year  and  time  call  for  some  attention  on  our  part. 
It  was  the  year  of  war  and  rumours  of  war.  Cromwell  and 
his  soldiers  were  then  the  terror  of  Berwickshire  and  the 
south  of  Scotland.  The  fountains  of  the  great  national  deeps 
hs,d  broken  up,  and  over  the  three  kingdoms  the  masses  of 
the  people,  the  throne,  the  nobles,  and  the  professions  were 

*  Records  of  the  University  and  King's  College,  p.  462.      t  Ibid.,  p.  511. 

I  The  Kirk  Records  of  Channelkirk  begin  with  the  year  1650,  and 
those  of  Earlston  Presbytery,  in  which  Channelkirk  is  included,  with  the 
year  1691.  In  order  to  preserve  their  historical  connection,  and  give 
more  vitality  to  the  narrative,  it  is  proposed,  instead  of  giving  detached 
selections,  to  incorporate  what  of  them  appears  necessary  and  ap- 
propriate in  the  several  notices  of  the  persons  and  times  associated  and 
contemporaneous  with  them.  It  is  hoped  the  unity  of  interest  may,  on 
this  account,  be  better  maintained. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  161 

a  wide  sea  of  religious,  civil,  political,  and  social  commotion. 
Carlyle  has  expressed  his  conviction  that  Cromwell  was  the 
only  true  ark  of  safety  floating  on  these  troubled  waters. 
It  may  be  so,  and  it  may  be  also  that  there  have  been  rats  in 
every  ark,  not  excepting  Noah's,  and  the  Cromwellian  one  was 
certainly  not  innocent  of  them.  Here  is  evidence.  Among 
the  first  things  of  parochial  moment  which  the  Rev.  David 
Liddell  has  to  note  in  the  Kirk  Record  is  the  following  : — 

"The  rest  of  the  poor's  money  in  the  box  and  in  the 
keeping  of  Robert  Wight  and  Adam  Somervell,  the  one 
keeping  the  box,  the  other  the  key,  by  appointment  of  the 
Session,  was  taken  away  by  force  be  the  English  souldiers  as 
they  declared  befor  the  Sessione." 

Rats  and  ravagement  indeed  are  here,  and  not  dis- 
daining either  to  nibble  away  the  crust  of  the  poor.  Later, 
when  they  got  the  length  of  Dunfermline,  we  have  a  similar 
story,  for  on  the  12th  of  August  165 1,  the  session  records 
there  tell  how  the  English  soldiers  broke  the  "  kirk  boxe " 
and  "  plunderit "  it. 

After  the  Army  of  the  Engagement  of  1648  had  been 
scattered  by  Cromwell,  almost  every  county  in  Scotland  was 
put  under  military  surveillance  and  cessment.  In  Lauder- 
dale the  evidences  of  this  seem  to  have  been  too  manifest. 
The  Lord  of  Thirlestane  had  left  his  castle  by  the  banks  of 
the  Leader  to  fight  Cromwell  in  England,  only  to  be  taken 
prisoner  and  sent  to  the  Tower  after  the  battle  of  Worcester, 
3rd  September  165 1.  The  English  soldiers  had  taken  up 
their  quarters  in  his  palatial  residence,  about  July  1649,  and 
kept  the  country  for  miles  around  in  chronic  panic.  The 
raid  upon  the  poor's  box  at  Channelkirk,  six  miles  from  the 
base  of  their  roystering  escapades,  points  to  depredations 
throughout  the   whole   of  Upper    Lauderdale,  of  which  no 

L 


162  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

chronicle  is  now  left  to  us.  If  these  were  unattended  by  blood- 
shed and  loss  of  life,  it  is  more  than  can  be  said  for  their 
plunderings  in  other  parts  of  the  district,  notably  at  Bemer- 
syde,  where  murder  was  foully  done,  though,  in  justice  be  it 
said,  as  promptly  avenged  at  Lauder  by  those  of  Cromwell's 
own  army,  who  directed  their  judgments  by  the  lofty  if  stern 
ideals  of  their  master.* 

How  David  Liddell  carried  himself  in  presence  of  these 
zealot  invaders,  and  how  he  and  his  peasant  congregation 
viewed  the  sacrilegious  spoliation  of  the  Sunday  offerings 
must  be  matter  of  conjecture  only.  He  obtrudes  his  own 
personality  and  conduct  only  in  the  leanest  scraps  of  the 
Kirk  Record  which  he  has  left  us.  There  is  a  hand  merely, 
and  a  presence  moving  among  the  transactions  tabulated,  but 
he  himself  is  as  spectral  as  if  he  were  already  disembodied. 
It  is  a  matter  of  gratification,  however,  to  find  ourselves 
actually  in  the  area  of  interest  and  action  of  the  Channelkirk 
people.  Hitherto  our  humble  history  has  been,  for  most 
part,  a  concern  of  names  and  land,  proprietors  and  acres, 
and  the  necessary  correlatives  of  these  which  flood  the 
charters  of  the  religious  houses.  The  people  themselves  are 
never  seen  and  never  heard.  We  know  that  they  must  be 
there,  toiling  and  suffering,  endeavouring  and  enduring  as 
best  they  may,  but  for  the  purposes  of  history,  their  lot  as 
connected  with  the  Church  or  local  existence  is  sadly  re- 
flected in  the  words  : — 

"  They  have  no  share  in  all  that's  done 
Beneath  the  circuit  of  the  sun." 

It  is  the  privilege  of  David  Liddell,  through  his  record, 
to  introduce  us  to  the  inhabitants   of  Channelkirk   parish. 

*  Memorials  of  the  Haliburtons^  P-  4i- 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  163 

But  blurred  and  torn  church  records,  helpful  as  they  are, 
can  never  be  more  than  a  kind  of  broken  mirror  of  days  and 
generations  long  gone  past.  Yet  for  what  they  lack  in  spatial 
outline  and  detail,  they  usually  make  up  in  depth  of  character 
and  intensity.  The  names  we  meet  are  no  longer  affixed  to 
statues,  as  it  were,  but  breathe  in  human  shapes,  and  there 
is  soul  in  all  that  is  said.  The  legal  bars  and  doors  of  the 
charters,  with  their  castle-like  pomposity,  yield  here  to  home 
touches,  and  the  play  of  thought  and  feeling.  We  no  longer 
walk  upon  macadamised  paths  and  streets  of  asphalt,  but 
upon  fresh  grass,  and  with  nature  all  around  us.  The  actions 
of  the  people  are  visibly  reflected  in  more  than  shadowy 
outlines.  Their  likes  and  dislikes,  intentions  and  preferences, 
are  embodied  in  the  men  who  play  the  chief  parts  and  carry 
their  judgments  into  execution.  The  principal  solemnities 
of  existence,  their  births,  marriages,  and  deaths,  are  here 
set  out  in  all  their  glowing  light  or  livid  gloom.  Everything 
is  sharply  cut.  The  swift  glimpse  of  the  trembling  hand  of 
some  weary  traveller,  not  yet  called  a  "  tramp,"  or  poverty- 
stricken  parishioner,  held  out  to  receive  the  kirk  session's 
help,  is  followed,  it  may  be,  with  the  abrupt  rebuke  and 
ecclesiastical  castigation  of  some  fornicating  or  Sabbath - 
breaking  wight.  Broad  glades  of  humour  also  open  up 
now  and  then  through  the  prosaic  jungle  of  "  collections  and 
depursements,"  and  routine  "  sederunts  "  of  session.  A  dark 
fringe  of  sickness  and  sorrow  is  always,  of  course,  found 
flowing  from  the  web  woven  on  "  the  roaring  Loom  of  Time  " ; 
brief  chronicles,  like  sudden  shrieks,  declaring  to  us  the 
strenuous  struggle  of  life  and  death  which  is  going  on  behind 
them.  Little  sputters  of  dislike  and  grudging  also  break 
out  at  intervals,  and  expressions  of  bile  which  cannot  venture 
beyond  hints  and  mangled  words.     Passing  events  of  local 


164  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

significance  are  often  exact  silhouettes  of  the  more  massive 
and  national  ones  contemporaneously  being  developed  ;  just 
as  one  might,  by  aid  of  lenses,  throw  down  on  a  small  table 
the  aspect  of  a  distant  street  or  city.  The  widest  interests 
are  frequently  commingled, — a  bridge  over  the  nearest  burn 
dividing  the  "  collections "  with  one  over  the  Dee,  the  aid 
given  to  teaching  "  poor  scholars "  of  the  neighbourhood 
being  drawn  from  the  same  pockets  that  assist  a  church  in 
Konigsberg  or  North  America,  or  help  the  Bible  to  declare 
itself  in  Gaelic.  Struggles  at  the  elections  of  ministers  and 
elders  are,  of  course,  frequent,  and  not  always  of  a  heroic 
character.  The  ecclesiastical  cockpit  never  wants  combatants. 
But  the  Day  of  Communion  is  the  event  which  perhaps  is 
most  heavily  underscored  in  importance.  Ministers,  elders, 
teachers,  precentors,  beadles,  joiners,  tents,  ropes,  and  collec- 
tions, bulk  high  in  their  several  places,  and  attain  annually 
an  increased  greatness  and  profusion  of  record.  It  is  the 
religious  tidal  wave  which  yearly  elevates  every  common  and 
ecclesiastical  function  of  the  church  and  parish,  and  which, 
having  passed,  permits  all  to  sink  down  to  common  levels  of 
routine  once  more.  Conspicuous  over  all,  watchful,  fierce,  and 
despotic,  towers  the  kirk  session.  None  escapes  its  vigilance, 
as  few  are  able  to  elude  its  ban.  Peer  or  peasant,  farmer 
or  hind,  rich  or  poor,  all  must  bow  to  its  dictates  and  listen 
to  its  commands.  It  is  an  almonry,  it  is  true,  for  the  needy, 
but  it  is  also  an  arsenal  for  the  refractory.  And  it  is  not  only 
in  the  Church  where  its  power  is  felt.  Not  a  pailful  of  water 
can  be  carried  home  from  the  well,  but  cognisance  is  taken 
whether  it  be  done  on  Sabbath  or  Saturday.  So  with  carry- 
ing food,  or  yoking  a  cart.  Not  a  fiddle  may  twangle  at 
marriage  or  merrymaking  beyond  the  hours  and  bounds  fixed 
by  this  small  body.     Fathers  of  families  are   roundly   told 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  165 

in  what  ways  they  should  bear  themselves  at  home  or  afield. 
The  weakest  and  most  weather-winnowed  creature  in  the 
parish,  it  may  be,  when  once  seated  in  the  chair  of  the  elder, 
does  not  hesitate  to  fulminate  his  judgments  with  a  "  Thus 
saith  the  Lord." 

These  are  features  of  Scottish  life,  which,  of  course,  were 
perfectly  general  over  the  country.  The  minister  lived  and 
moved  and  had  his  being  in  an  atmosphere  as  terrible  as 
that  which  enveloped  Horeb.  None  disputed  his  authority ; 
all  except  the  most  profane  and  hardened  meekly  yielded 
place  to  him.  "  The  minister  of  God's  Evangel "  he  called 
himself,  but  he  approached  nearer  to  a  personification  of  law, 
and  he  would  shake  the  sleeve  of  the  king  as  fearlessly  as 
he  would  the  rheum-crusted  fustian  of  the  peasant.  There 
was  a  reason  for  all  this.  His  power  lay  in  his  conviction 
that  he  walked  with  God,  or  rather,  as  in  some  cases,  that 
God  walked  with  him,  and  that  all  the  "degrees  of  God's 
wrath  "  were  at  his  disposal  whensoever  he  should  be  moved 
by  the  spirit,  to  draw  upon  them  either  to  advance  the  cause 
of  righteousness  or  to  crush  a  blasphemous  enemy.  The 
parish  was  practically  his  regality,  short  of  the  power  of  life 
and  death,  and  no  king  or  kinglet  ever  swayed  a  sceptre  so 
supremely  over  his  subjects  as  did  the  Scotch  minister  over 
the  people  "within  the  bounds."  He  did  not  hesitate  to 
set  aside  laws  and  injunctions  coming  "  from  above,"  if  they 
were  unsuitable  to  his  "  views,"  or  ran  counter  to  those  passed 
within  his  own  sessional  parliament.  He  had  God's  word 
to  back  him  :  all  else  he  defied.  And  the  conviction  of  the 
minister  was  the  belief  of  the  people.  With  few  exceptions 
the  parish  upheld  him  in  his  decisions.  Docilely  they 
followed  him,  as  sheep,  whithersoever  he,  as  shepherd,  might 
lead  them.     And  if  there  had  been  no  opposing  belief  to  his 


166  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  the  Scotland  of  1650,  when  our  records  open,  parish  life 
and  parish  character  would  have  developed  and  flourished 
after  their  genus,  and  have  passed  away  peacefully  according 
to  the  course  of  nature. 

The  centre  of  this  ecclesiastical  system,  the  General 
Assembly,  never  had,  perhaps,  respect  adequate  or  power 
sufficient  given  to  it  to  cope  with  the  various  forces  nominally 
under  its  command.  And  where  there  is  no  central  authority 
of  sufficient  dignity  in  wisdom,  piety,  learning,  or  power, 
equal  to  commanding  the  respect  and  obedience  of  men, 
nothing  but  anarchy  and  misrule  can  prevail.  The  Reforma- 
tion of  1560  overwhelmed  the  central  ecclesiastical  authority 
of  the  land.  But  nothing  so  universally  binding  was  put 
in  its  place.  True,  there  was  a  purer  spiritual  life,  and  a 
more  reasonable  faith  asserted  once  more,  but  the  application 
of  this  to  externals  was  not  so  calmly  and  orderly  adjusted 
as  could  have  been  desired.  When  Knox  died  in  1572,  and 
Andrew  Melville  came  to  the  front  with  his  *'  Divine  right 
of  Presbytery,"  all  the  elements  of  Scottish  life  slowly  assumed 
the  condition  of  inflammability,  and  the  combustible  and 
explosive  stage  was  merely  a  question  of  time.  For  if  there 
exist  side  by  side  with  this  belief  in  the  "divine  right  of 
presbytery  "  a  not  insignificant  party  whose  conviction  holds 
all  for  the  "  divine  right  of  episcopacy,"  if  royalty,  for  example, 
should  also  be  convinced  of  its  own  "  divine  right "  to  uproot 
this  system  of  presbytery  from  the  land,  and  plant  "divine 
right  of  episcopacy  "  in  its  place,  is  it  not  clear  that  combus- 
tions must  ensue,  and  something  like  Civil  War  take  place  ? 
There  was  at  work  also  the  active  agency  of  the  spirit  of 
revenge.  We  do  not  need  to  say  that  this  was  actually  the 
state  of  matters  prevailing  in  Scotland  in  1650,  and  for  many 
years  previous  to  it.     King  James  VI.  and  I.  and   Charles 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  167 

his  son  after  him,  would  have  their  episcopacy  forced  upon 
Scotland  ;  Scotland  as  strenuously,  respecting  herself  and 
her  liberty,  declared  for  divine  right  of  presbytery,  and  this 
she  would  have,  and  nothing  else.  And  force  met  force  in 
the  field,  and  saint  met  saint  at  the  Throne  of  Grace  and 
spilt  blood,  and  counterpetitioned  and  counterlawed  each 
other  in  the  name  of  the  Most  High  through  most  of  the 
seventeenth  century. 

For  the  same  principle  and  conviction  is  found  at  the 
root  of  the  mad  doings  of  the  "  killing  time."  That  cultured 
and  civilised  men,  some  of  them  of  high  breeding,  should 
deliberately  and  coldly  imbrue  their  hands  in  the  blood  of 
a  helpless  peasantry  for  the  mere  pleasure  of  the  thing, 
is  what  no  sane  person  can  now  conceive.  But  when 
men  believe  that  one  form  of  religion  is  God-designed  and 
divinely  ordered,  and  that  another  system  of  worship  is 
superstitious  and  contrary  to  Scripture,  they  will  only 
think  that  they  do  God  service  when  they  put  down  the 
one  and  establish  the  other,  even  at  the  heavy  cost  of  much 
bloodshed. 

1650  is  the  year  that  saw  Cromwell  cross  the  Tweed  at 
Berwick,  march  round  by  the  east  coast,  Dunbar  and  Mussel- 
burgh, and  confront  the  forces  of  the  Scotch  in  Edinburgh. 
The  year  before  he  had  settled  the  question  of  the  "  divine 
right  of  kings "  by  executing  King  Charles  I.,  and  his  con- 
victions were  just  as  free  on  the  question  as  to  the  divine 
right  of  episcopacy  or  presbyterianism.  The  arms  to  the 
man  who  can  use  them,  was  his  belief;  the  throne  to  the 
man  who  can  rule ;  and  the  pulpit  to  the  man  who  can 
preach.  It  is  the  natural  truth  of  the  matter,  and  therefore 
carries  with  it  the  true  right  of  the  divine.  But  Scottish 
ministers  everywhere  held  this  as  blasphemy,  and  defied  him. 


168  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

They  stood  by  the  Covenant  and  compelled  Charles  II.  to 
come  under  its  obligations  before  they  would  permit  him  to 
reign.  He  was  secondary  in  their  estimation  to  the  Covenant 
which  declared  for  presbyterianism.  The  most  characteristic 
feature  of  this  Covenant  was  its  repudiation  of  prelacy.  Prelacy 
to  them  was  the  handmaid  of  popery,  and  both  were  black 
superstition  in  the  eyes  of  men  who  believed  in  the  divine 
right  of  presbyterianism.  Round  this  central  principle 
religious  fury  raged  throughout  the  land.  But  Cromwell 
principally  wished  to  prevent  the  Scots  from  setting  up 
Charles  II.  in  the  room  of  his  father,  who  had  but  lately 
expiated  his  crimes  on  the  block.  And  with  this  in  view, 
when  Charles  II.  landed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Spey  in  June 
of  1650,  he  hurried  from  Ireland  to  London,  from  London 
by  Berwick  to  Edinburgh,  to  frustrate  their  intentions. 
"  Cromwell's  host  caused  great  excitement.  At  the  ap- 
proaching of  this  English  army,  many  people  here  (Edin- 
burgh), in  the  East  parts  and  South,  were  overtaken  with 
great  fears."  "  22  July  1650  being  ane  Monday,  the  English 
Army,  under  the  Commandment  of  General  Oliver  Cromwell, 
crossed  the  water  of  Tweed  and  marched  into  our  Scottish 
Borders  to  and  about  Aytoun,  whereof  present  advertisement 
was  given  to  our  Committee  of  State,  and  thereupon  followed 
ane  strict  proclamation  that  all  betwixt  60  and  16  should 
be  in  readiness  the  morn  to  march  both  horse  and  foot." 
"During  the  lying  of  thir  twa  armies  in  the  fields  all  the 
cornes  betwixt  and  twa  or  three  miles  be  west  Edinburgh  on 
both  sides  were  destroyed  and  eaten  up.  Meat  and  drink 
could  hardly  be  had  for  money,  and  such  as  was  gotten  was 
fuisted  and  sauled  at  a  double  price,"  * 

This  picture  of  terror  and  desolation  over  all  the  east  and 
*  NicoU's  Diary. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  169 

south  finds  corroboration  in  our  records  in  the  quotation  we 
have  given  above.  Nothing  was  sacred,  not  even  kirk 
treasuries,  to  the  plundering  soldiers.  The  meagre  details 
we  have  of  their  visit  to  Channelkirk  are  touched  with  pathos 
as  well  as  sacrilege.  The  kirk  session  had  met,  and  on 
settling  the  year's  accounts  after  September  ist,  when  the 
hostile  armies  were  fronting  each  other  at  Dunbar,  and  two 
days  before  the  defeat  of  the  Scottish  host,  there  was  found 
the  sum  of  ;^42,  4s.  4d.  Thirty-six  shillings  had  been  paid 
"to  the  Presbytery  for  James  Murray,"  who  was  doubtless 
a  probationer  fighting  his  way  through  the  university  with 
such  assistance,  and  twenty-four  shillings  more  went  "  to  the 
poor  smith  of  Ugston,"  and  the  rest  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  marauders.  The  precise  date  of  their  robbery  is  not 
given,  but  there  is  an  inferential  hint  given  us  in  the  blank 
left  after  July  21st,  which  was  Sunday.  Cromwell  came 
across  the  Tweed  on  the  Monday  following,  viz.,  the  22nd, 
and  there  is  no  service  in  church  on  the  subsequent  Sunday, 
July  28th.  "Aug.  4"  is  the  next  entry.  This  might  lead 
us  to  imagine  that  the  soldiers  had  scoured  Lauderdale  and 
Channelkirk  poor's  box  about  that  date.  No  doubt,  the 
helpless  people  would  be  thrown  into  great  consternation, 
and  church  attendances  would  be  forgotten  in  the  desire  to 
escape  with  precious  life.  The  "  box "  which  was  broken 
open  so  ruthlessly  had  also  its  romance.  Six  years  after- 
wards, there  is  a  homely  consideration  given  to  the  old 
friend  who  was  not  to  be  discarded  though  desecrated, 
and  so — 

"  April  23.  After  the  sermon  the  clerk  brings  to  the  session 
the  old  box  that  was  broken.  The  session  sends  it  to  the 
smith  that  he  may  mend  it  and  make  a  key  for  it.  The 
smith  accordingly  mad  a  key  for  qk  (whilk)  he  gets  6  sh. 


170  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  session  by  vot  (deliver)  the  box  to  Alexander  Riddell 
and  the  key  to  Adam  Somervell,  elders."  It  resumes  its 
wonted  dignities  also,  for  "  qk  day  they  put  into  the  box  the 
four  dayes  collections,  April  6,  April  13,  April  20,  April  23  : 
qk  day  they  reckon  wt  Alexr.  Riddell,  and  finds  he  hes 
3  lib.  8  sh.  qk  is  not  yet  distribut,  qk  they  ordere  to  be  put 
into  the  box." 

We  can  only  express  the  regret  that  time  has  not  handed 
down  to  us  this  venerable  object  of  the  English  soldiers' 
regard,  and  can  only  surmise  that  the  care  over  the  church 
possessions  has  not  always  risen  to  the  level  of  the  kirk 
session  of  1656. 

While  the  battle  of  Dunbar  was  being  decided  on  national 
issues,  the  local  difficulties  of  Channelkirk  parishioners  were 
being  settled  by  similarly  rough  methods.  The  minister 
records  that  a  month  previous  to  Cromwell's  invasion  "  Patrick 
Haitly  payd  for  drinking  and  reproaching  Alexr.  Riddell  of 
Hartsyd  on  the  20th  of  Jun,  56  sh."  Pat's  brother  James 
"on  2  Aug.  1650"  pays  "for  himself  and  Margt.  Simson 
£7,  I  OS.  for  a  more  serious  fault,  although  to  reproach  an 
elder,  such  as  Riddell  was,  did  not  pass  in  those  days  as  a 
slight  misdemeanour. 

There  are  one  or  two  items  which  occur  in  1653  which 
may  be  interesting  to  the  curious.  A  lock  for  the  kirk  door 
cost  twenty-two  shillings,  for  instance,  Scots  money  ;  "  build- 
ing a  door  up  of  the  church,  28  sh.,"  "  2  soldiers'  wives  get 
1 2  sh.,"  "  lime  for  the  kirk  "  costs  18  sh.,  while  there  was  "  given 
for  casting  of  ten  thousand  divvets  for  the  kirk,  ^7,"  and 
there  was  "  given  to  craftsmen  to  lay  them  on  and  to  sparg 
the  lym,  ;^9,"  Mr  Liddell  was  evidently  busy  having  his 
church  put  in  good  repair.  Perhaps  this  was  the  first  attempt 
to  put  right  the  shameful  condition  of  this  place  of  worship 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  171 

complained  of  so  loudly  by  Liddell's  predecessor,  Cockburn. 
"  Divvet "  renovation  was  better  than  none.  Cockburn 
grieves  that  "the  parishioners  cannot  get  rowme  in  the 
kirk,  the  quir  (choir)  being  doune."  This  was  in  1627.  We 
are  persuaded  that  nothing  had  been  done  to  remedy  matters 
till  this  year  of  grace  1653.  The  great  lords  had  seized  the 
kirk  lands  and  kirk  advowsons,  and  were  indifferent  whether 
kirks  or  ministers  sank  or  swam.  Liddell  appears  to  have 
been  suaver  in  his  manners  than  Cockburn,  who  doubtless 
had  a  Celtic  preference  for  speaking  his  mind,  and  perhaps 
got  less  attention  from  the  heritors  on  this  account.  But  the 
fact  of  payments  of  £7  and  £(^  for  divots  and  labourers  puts 
them  entirely  aside.  The  work,  for  most  part,  must  have 
been  undertaken  by  the  parishioners  themselves,  and  paid 
for  out  of  the  kirk  collections.  Perhaps  it  was  the  more 
satisfactory  way  of  doing  it. 

There  are  not  many  other  items  in  Liddell's  record 
which  would  be  of  general  interest.  There  are  the  recurring 
"  poor  "  who  receive  help,  and  there  is  a  significant  entry  "  To 
a  cripl  and  to  a  prisoner,  4s.,"  which  shows  that  war  was  at 
the  doors.  We  have  also  ample  proof  of  the  curious  custom 
of  consigning  a  sum  of  money  into  the  session's  hands  when 
a  marriage  took  place.  This  last  item  is  fully  explained  by 
the  following : — 

"  Robert  Halliwell  being  to  be  proclaimed  for  marriage  with  Jeannie 
Halliwell,  consigned  two  dollars  that  the  marriage  should  be  consumat, 
and  that  there  should  be  no  promiscuous  dancing  and  lascivious  piping  ; 
which  two  dollars  was  delivered  to  Alexander  Riddell  in  Hartsyd,  July  8, 
1655,  to  be  kept  till  they  should  be  redelivered — 5  lib.  10  sh. 

"Sept.  30,  1655. — Whilk  day  Alexr.  Riddell  redelivered  to  Robert 
Halliwell  his  two  dollars  whilk  he  consigned,  and  his  bro.-in-law, 
Richard  Sclater,  becaime  caution  that  if  his  daughter  was  brought  to 
bed  before  the  ordinar  tyme,  he  should  pay  the  penalty  and  cause  her 
satisfie  the  church." 


172  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

It  is  unnecessary  to  say  that  this  was  a  condition  of  social 
affairs  which,  in  their  relationship  to  the  Church,  and  kirk 
sessions  in  especial,  was  prevalent  during  the  seventeenth 
century  over  all  Scotland.  The  kirk  records  of  churches, 
the  registers  and  minutes  of  presbyteries  and  synods, 
collections  of  sermons,  and  the  Acts  of  the  General  Assembly, 
bear  ample  testimony  to  this  statement.  Festivals,  penny 
bridals,  christening  assemblies,  or  merry-makings  in  any 
shape,  were  frowned  upon  by  the  officials  of  the  Church  as 
pertaining  to  sinfulness.*  The  John  Baptist  ideal  of  life, 
as  viewed  through  a  lurid  atmosphere  of  sin  and  all  its 
attendant  sacrifices  and  suppressions,  took  a  deep  hold  of 
the  Scottish  religious  nature,  and  the  loftier  one  of  Christ 
with  its  clearer  heaven  of  forgiveness,  and  the  happy  union 
of  the  human  and  divine  affections,  was  almost  wholly 
obscured.  Still,  the  natural  wells  of  human  feeling  had  not 
totally  dried  up,  for  nothing  is  more  persistently  prominent 
in  these  records  than  the  sympathetic  dole  of  money  or  goods 
given  to  the  poor.  Again  and  again  the  "poor  man  in 
Greengelt,"  whose  name  was  Andrew  Johnston,  the  "poor 
smith  in  Ugston,"  and  various  others  are  relieved  by  the 
kirk  session's  benevolence.  "James  Alin  and  his  motherless 
children "  are  never  left  out,  and  even  the  stranger  has  his 
share.  In  the  bleak  days  of  January  1657  "the  session  thinks 
fit  to  distribut  40  sh.  (illings)  to  the  3  poor  people  in  the 
parish,  because  the  wether  is  foul  and  they  cannot  travel." 
Here  is  also  an  illustration  of  how  the  Scotch  love  of  educa- 
tion was  fostered  and  fed,  "  Feby.  15  (1657)  collected  7  sh. 
whilk  was  fully  distribut  to  James  Alin's  two  sons,  to  pay 
their  quarterly  stipend  to  the  schoolmaster."  James  was  a 
widower,  and  needed,  for  some  reason,  considerable  assistance 
*  See  Buckle's  History  of  Civilisation^  vol.  iii. 


THE  MINISTP:RS  and  their  times  173 

from  the  session,  and,  as  we  see,  his  two  boys  were  obtaining 
their  education  out  of  the  "  collection  "  plate.  But  not  only 
scholars :  the  school,  also,  and  the  schoolmaster  seem  to  have 
been  sustained  out  of  the  same  intermittent  source,  as  far 
as  we  can  make  out  from  mangled  words,  blurs,  and  frayed 
leaves.  "  1659,  May  29th,  Adam  Somerville,  boxkeeper,  by 
warrant  of  the  sessione,  depursed  fyve  pounds  to  Will  Milcum 
(Malcolm?)  in  Netherhouden  to  (roof?)  a  house — for  the 
schollers  to  learn  in."  Some  years  afterwards  this  temporary 
building  would  seem  inadequate  for  its  purpose,  for  on  25th 
Nov.  1 66 1  "the  elders  met  and  unanimously  decided  to  pay 
the  builders  of  the  scole  for  that  work,  and  to  pay  for  the 
timber  out  of  kirk  money  which  Adam  Somervell  has  in 
keeping.  And  they  thought  a  schoolhouse  for  the  school- 
master   "     The  necessary  words  to  complete  the  sentence 

are  beyond  our  ability  to  decipher,  but  enough  is  given  to 
support  the  conclusion  that  the  session  had  raised  a  school 
for  the  parish  and  contemplated  a  schoolhouse  also.  They 
purpose,  however,  to  use  means  to  get  back  the  money  from 
the  heritors.     We  trust  they  succeeded. 

The  dead  are  never  far  from  the  kirk,  and  the  records 
make  frequent  reference  to  them  as  a  matter  of  course. 
"  Given  to  John  Burrek  (or  Burrell),  for  mending  the  hoa  and 
speid  and  shool  for  making  the  graves,  20  sh."  The  "  mort 
cloth,"  large  and  small,  is  also  a  source  of  revenue  to  the 
session,  ;^i,  6s.  46.,  and  13s.,  being  the  respective  sums  ex- 
acted. 

The  village,  and  south  of  the  parish,  being  cut  off  from 
the  church  by  Mountmill  Burn  and  Headshaw  Burn,  it  was 
necessary  to  have  a  bridge  across  them  for  accommodating 
the  people.  We  have  therefore  such  allusions  to  it  as  this  : 
"Sept.    30,    1655.     Appointed   to   be   a  day  for  a   voluntar 


174  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

contribution  for  building  a  bridge,  the  elders  at  the  kirk  door 
collected  8  lib.  3  sh."  "  Oct,  7.  Collected  half-croun  30  sh., 
from  those  that  were  absent  the  former  day  for  building  the 
bridge." 

This  bridge  would  seem  to  have  been  over  Mountmill 
Burn  (then  Airhouse  Water)  near  to  the  top  of  the  old  glebe 
in  the  Haugh,  where  the  old  road  from  Oxton,  crossing  from 
near  Parkfoot,  sloped  down  to  the  foot  of  the  Kirk-brae,  up 
which  the  present  road  to  the  church  still  lies.  There  was  no 
stone  bridge  then  at  Peasmountford — the  situation  of  the 
present  stone  bridge,  near  the  railway,  over  Mountmill  Burn 
— and  it  was  really  a  ford  through  the  water  at  that  place. 
The  mark  of  the  old  road  is  still  visible  across  the  slope 
opposite  the  Kirk-brae.  Collections  for  this  bridge  are  made 
at  different  times  up  till  November  of  1655. 

Reference  is  sometimes  made  to  sums  collected 
"  appointed  for  the  rest  of  the  house-meal,"  "  given  to  mak 
out  the  house  meale,"  which  may  have  accrued  to  the  minister 
when  the  stipend  fell  short  in  bad  harvests. 

The  money  in  use  has  the  names  of  pounds,  shillings,  and 
pence,  but  "  rix  dollars,"  and  "  dollars "  and  "  doits "  are 
common.  Bad  money  was  rife.  "May  30,  1658.  The  elders 
find  that  Adam  Somervell  has  in  the  box  counted  by  him 
52  sh,,  all  which  being  for  the  most  part  ill  copper,  the 
minister  and  (four)  elders  hav  gotten  it  put  off  their  hand, 
and  good  money  for  it,  which  they  delivered  into  Adam 
Somervell," 

Needless  to  say,  the  Lord's  Supper  was  an  affair  of  almost 
superstitious  regard.  All  its  simplicity  and  clearness  of 
brotherly  purpose  was  as  completely  buried  out  of  sight  by 
Presbyterians  as  it  ever  was  by  Romanists,  The  feeling  of 
"  Boo-man,"  with  which  children  are  horrified,  was  called  up 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  175 

whenever  the  season  of  its  observance  came  round.  The  awe 
and  trembling  with  which  savages  regard  eclipses  of  sun 
and  moon  had  its  counterpart  in  the  most  holy  yet  most 
natural  of  all  the  observances  of  the  Christian  religion. 
"March  15,  16,  and  17,  1662 — At  which  tyme  the  congrega- 
tion meet  for  hearing  sermons  to  prepare  them  for  the  Lord's 
Supr  and  to  stir  them  up  to  be  thankfull  for  that  ordinance." 
An  artificial  and  unwonted  excitement  of  mind  due  to 
rhetorical  whipping  and  frequent  services  was  considered 
the  correct  spirit  in  which  to  break  bread  in  commemoration 
of  Christ.  The  simple  majesty  of  the  act,  resting  upon  the 
natural  faith  and  feelings  of  the  sincere  heart,  was  over- 
whelmed by  whirlwinds  of  words  and  a  feverish  atmosphere. 
But  we  may  not  blame  them  who,  in  our  present-day  observ- 
ance of  the  same  holy  rite,  lull  our  souls  into  delectable  moods 
by  such  helps  as  low,  sweet  voicings,  low  lights,  tremulous 
murmurs,  mysterious  fingers,  smooth  faces,  half-shut  eyes, 
grave  gyrations,  and  all  the  varied  machinery  of  pious  cantrip 
and  devout  incantation. 

The  last  entry  made  by  Liddell  has  kindly  reference  to 
his  predecessor  which  has  been  noticed  in  its  place.  Liddell 
was  called  to  the  Barony  Church,  Glasgow,  in  1662,  and  by 
Act  of  Parliament,  4th  July  1661,  received  ^100.  He  had 
done  splendid  work  during  his  twelve  years  in  Channelkirk,  and 
was  well  worthy  of  his  promotion  to  so  honourable  a  position. 
The  building  or  repairing  of  the  church,  and  the  building  of 
school  and  schoolhouse  were  doubtless  done  under  his  direc- 
tion and  initiative,  and  where  these  two  necessaries  of  civilised 
life  were  provided,  little  else  was  required  in  a  district  so 
completely  rural,  and  moving  in  such  circumscribed  circum- 
stances. He  closes  his  record  with  "  Laus  Deo !  "  He  would 
be  nothing  loth  to  leave  the  silent  hills,  with  their  loneliness 


176  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  irresponsiveness,  for  the  excitement  and  honours  of  such 
a  city  as  Glasgow.  It  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  severest  trials 
the  human  spirit  can  pass  through,  to  be  trained  in  the  emula- 
tion and  vigour  of  student  life,  in  cities  and  where  societies 
thought  and  feeling  are  raised  to  their  best  levels,  and  in 
touch  with  the  noblest  sentiments  of  all  ages,  then  to  be  com- 
pelled to  slog  along  in  the  muddy  ways  of  country  life,  with 
its  torpid  thought,  inarticulations,  crude  manners,  raw  re- 
venges, and  frozen  faiths.  A  man  may  quite  realise  it  to  be 
his  duty  to  bend  his  nature  to  these  extremes,  for  he  usually 
has  first  gone  from  the  country  to  the  university,  but  the 
change  is  too  abrupt  in  either  case,  and,  if  it  were  possible, 
some  medium  between  the  feast  and  the  fast,  the  turkey  and 
the  turnip,  might  be  more  agreeable.  Liddell  had  doubtless 
been  in  Aberdeen  all  his  life,  previous  to  his  career  at 
Channelkirk,  and  twelve  years'  experience,  which  brings 
much  from  his  people's  affection  to  help  a  country  minister, 
had  not  quenched  his  joy  to  return  once  more  to  a  wider  field 
and  a  loftier  society.  The  records  of  the  Barony  Parish  yield 
nothing  concerning  him.  His  name  occurs  repeatedly  in  the 
"  Munimenta  "  *  of  the  University,  but  only  in  formal  entries, 
as  consenting  to  deeds  in  his  capacity  of  Dean  of  Faculties, 
and  such  like.  He  held  the  office  of  dean  from  1665 -1674. 
He  was  elected  in  October  of  1674,  "by  unanimous  consent 
and  common  vote  of  all  the  moderators,"  Professor  of 
Theology  in  Glasgow  University,  and  took  the  oath.  His 
successor,  Alexander  Rosse,  was  elected  in  1682,  so  that  he 
must  have  died  about  the  middle  of  that  year.  The  election 
is  on  the  27th  of  September,  and  the  chair  is  said  to  be  vacant 
by  the  death  of  Mr  David  Liddell,  "  lait  professor  thair."  He 
does  not  seem  to  have  published  any  work. 
*  Maitland  Club  Publications. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  177 

Walter  Keith — 1663-1682 

The  minister  who  succeeded  David  Liddell  in  Channel- 
kirk  was  named  Walter  Keyth.  He  comes  upon  the  scene 
under  different  auspices  from  those  attending  his  predecessor, 
and  leaves  it  with  a  totally  different  character.  Episcopacy 
began  to  grow  powerful  once  more,  and  Presbyterians 
trembled  for  their  sacred  ark.  The  Scottish  Parliament 
which  met  on  ist  January  1661,  truculently  forsook  all  the 
principles  which  had  modelled  the  laws  of  the  former  years, 
and  proceeded  to  not  only  pass  some  which  were  abhorrent 
to  Presbyterians,  but  abolished  those  which  had  hindered 
Episcopacy  from  gaining  the  ascendency.  The  famous 
Rescissory  Act  of  1661  fell  like  a  death-knell  on  the 
Presbyterian  polity,  and  Episcopacy  practically  then  came 
into  force.  The  Marquis  of  Argyle  was  executed  in  the 
same  year,  and  James  Guthrie,  minister  of  Stirling,  some- 
time of  Lauder,  perished  on  the  scaffold,  both  bowing  to 
influences  which  were  flowing  adversely  to  the  Presbyterians. 
Samuel  Rutherford  was  marked  for  the  same  doom  had  not 
death  snatched  him  from  that  fate.  King  Charles  II.  wanted 
Episcopacy,  and  took  measures  to  effect  his  purpose. 
Ministers  who  had  been  ordained  between  1649  and  1660 
had  been  chosen  by  the  kirk-session  alone,  the  congregation 
having  right  to  complain  to  the  Presbytery  if  they  were  dis- 
satisfied. All  these  ministers  were  now  proclaimed  as 
having  no  right  to  their  livings.  Here  was  change  with  a 
vengeance.  But  a  deeper  wrong  was  inflicted  because 
offered  under  an  insidious  and  immoral  temptation.  All 
of  these  ministers  who  should  consent  to  receive  institution 
at  the  hands  of  a  bishop,  and  obtain  presentation  from 
the  patron,  were  to  be  continued  in  their  parishes,  churches, 

M 


i 


178  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

manses,  and  emoluments  as  before.  Hundreds,  of  course, 
scouted  the  terms,  and  were  driven  forth  to  starve,  or  eat 
the  bread  of  charity.  But  the  vacant  pulpits  had  to  be 
filled,  and  from  the  north,  which  had  always  been  an 
Episcopalian  preserve,  "came  a  crowd  of  candidates,  as 
droves  of  black  cattle  are  now  brought  from  their  wilds 
to  be  fattened  on  the  richer  pastures  of  the  south.  The 
parishes  were  filled,  but  many  of  them  by  men  infamous 
for  their  immoral  lives,  almost  all  of  them  by  men  despicable 
for  their  talents  and  learning."  * 

Walter  Keith  seems  to  have  been  one  of  this  "crowd," 
or  related  to  it  in  some  way,  and  all  the  characterisation 
which  we  have  quoted  appears  to  fit  him  very  well. 

The  year  that  brought  Keith  to  Channelkirk  was  one 
of  much  division  throughout  Berwickshire.  The  Presbytery 
of  Earlston  consisted  of  nine  parishes,  but  six  of  these 
were  true  to  Presbyterianism  and  against  Episcopacy. 
These  were  : — 

Gordon — John  Hardie,  A.M. 

Legerwood — William  Calderwood,  A.M.,  who  along  with  his  wife  and 
servant  took  refuge  in  Channelkirk  parish  after  1663,  though  he 
continued  to  preach  to  his  people  in  Legerwood,  now  and  then, 
clandestinely. 

Merton — James  Kirkton,  A.M.,  author  of  The  Secret  History  of  the 
Kirk  of  Scotland^  quoted  below  concerning  Keith. 

Smailholm— Thomas  Donaldson,  A.M. 

Stow— John  Cleland,  A.M. 

Westruther — John  Veitch,  A.M.,  who,  like  his  brother  William, 
vigorously  preached  throughout  the  Merse  and  Lauderdale,  under 
the  very  nose  of  the  Duke  of  Lauderdale,  to  whom  he  was  related, 
and  which  relationship  perhaps  saved  him  some  trouble. 

An  Act  of  Parliament  of  1662  declared  that  all  ministers 
ordained   between    1649   and     1660    had    no   right   to   their 
*  Cunningham's  Church  History^  vol.  ii.,  p.  95. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  179 

livings.  Of  the  above  names,  only  the  ministers  of  Smail- 
holm  and  Stow,  who  were  ordained  in  1640,  escaped  this 
deprivation. 

Seeing  that  Earlston,  Lauder,  and  Channelkirk  Churches 
were  Episcopalian  during  this  covenanting  period,  Lauder- 
dale was  exempt  from  hazard  and  has  no  bloody  record 
to  show.  The  people,  as  a  rule,  followed  their  ministers 
faithfully  in  those  days,  and,  had  they  been  so  directed, 
would  have  died  as  hard  for  Episcopacy  as  they  did  for 
Presbyterianism.     It  was  in  general  a  minister's  affair. 

Keith  received  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  from  St 
Andrews  University  on  the  9th  July  1655,  and  was  presented 
to  Channelkirk  14th  October,  and  ordained  and  collated 
20th  November  1663.     The  records  of  his  time  begin  : — 

"  The  compt  of  the  monney  collected  for  the  poore  sine 
Mr  Walter  Keith's  admission  to  the  kirk  of  Chingilkirk 
November  i,  1663." 

The  winter  passes  and  spring  arrives,  and  in  March, 
on  the  1 3th  day,  there  is  "  no  sermon,  the  minister  being 
appointed  the  sd  day  to  preach  at  Gordun  to  give  admissione 
and  instilatione  to  Mr  James  Straiton  in  ordouris  his 
collation  to  be  minister  at  the  sd  kirk." 

"  Collation "  to  Scotch  ears  is  a  strange  term,  but  it 
simply  means  the  presentation  of  a  minister  to  a  benefice 
by  a  bishop.  The  bishop,  by-the-by,  comes  into  our 
records  for  the  first  and  only  time  on  30th  July  1665,  where 
Keith  has  set  down,  "  The  collection  given  to  Mistres  Marie 
Kein  (or  Kem)  by  the  Sessione,  she  having  a  testificat 
sub**  (subscribed)  by  the  bisshop." 

We  have  evidence  also  that  matters  were  not  too  tightly 
drawn  on  Episcopal  lines,  and  perhaps  as  hatred  to 
Episcopacy  was  not   so   fierce   in  the  east   as   in   the   west 


180  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  south-west  of  Scotland,  it  was  deemed  judicious  to 
temporise  with  the  people  till  they  were  accustomed  to  the 
name.  Church  government  might  be  called  Prelatic 
Presbyterian.  At  any  rate,  Keith  has  still  his  elders 
and  kirk-session,  who  meet  with  him  and  arrange  the 
affairs  of  the  church  and  parish  as  formerly.  We 
ascertain  that  on  2nd  October  1664  the  collections 
were  "  compted  by  the  minister  and  the  elders,  to  wiz, 
Alexr.  riddel  of  hartside,  Wm.  Knight  in  hairhouse,  and 
Wm.  Waddel  in  Ugstoun."  "  The  wlk  day  the  box  put 
in  ye  custodie  of  patrick  Andersone  ye  Schoole  Mr,  and 
the  key  delivered  to  thomas  thomson  in  Hiseldain  to  be 
keeped  by  him," 

It  was  in  the  following  month,  on  the  24th  day,  that  three 
troopers  of  His  Majesty's  Life  Guard  rode  to  Greenknowe, 
in  the  parish  of  Gordon,  and  apprehended  Walter  Pringle, 
the  laird  there,  for  holding  views  adverse  to  Episcopacy. 
They  travelled  with  him  by  Whitburn  and  Channelkirk, 
where  they  rested  a  night,  and  Keith's  interest  in  the 
case  could  not  be  slight,  as  in  most  instances  it  was  through 
the  curates  of  parishes  that  the  High  Commission  in 
Edinburgh  received  information  of  those  who  were  non- 
attenders  at  the  parish  church,  and  were  thus  enabled  to 
put  them  in  prison. 

September  24,  1665,  is  the  last  date  in  the  connected 
accounts  and  minutes  of  Keith's  time,  after  which  there 
elapse  sixteen  years  before  the  record  is  resumed — that 
is,  not  till  1 68 1.  It  was  the  bitterest  time  known  to  the 
Kirk  of  Scotland,  as  it  includes  the  interval  of  that  sad 
and  awful  period  when  the  blood  of  the  Covenanters  was 
shed  like  water.  Not  a  word  is  given  us  to  indicate  whether 
the    people   of    Channelkirk   were   Prelatic   or    Presbyterian 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  181 

by  preference.  Perhaps  it  was  prudent  to  be  neutral  and 
to  bend  to  the  storm.  The  castle  of  the  Duke  of  Lauder- 
dale was  but  a  few  miles  distant,  and  he  who  struck  such 
terror  into  Covenanting  hearts  and  homes  throughout  all 
Scotland  was  not  likely  to  tolerate  anything  like  vacillation 
so  near  his  own  seat.  The  Rev.  Walter  does  not  seem 
to  have  distressed  himself  much  at  a  throne  of  grace 
over  the  calamitous  condition  into  which  his  wretched 
country  had  now  fallen.  The  vindicators  of  spiritual 
freedom  might  starve,  or  bleed,  or  hang  for  aught  he 
cared ;  his  aim  was  to  enjoy  himself,  and,  if  necessary, 
purloin  nefariously  his  joys  from  other  people. 

Regarding  him  we  may  quote,  by  way  of  apology,  what 
Principal  John  Cunningham  has  said  regarding  the  Romanist 
priests.  "  We  cannot  conceal,  though  we  willingly  would, 
the  gross  licentiousness  of  all  ranks  of  the  clergy.  Denied  by 
the  stern  ordinance  of  their  Church  the  enjoyment  of  wedlock, 
and  unable  to  repress  the  instincts  of  their  nature,  they 
sought  relief  either  in  systematic  concubinage,  or  in  the 
seduction  of  the  wives  and  daughters  of  their  parishioners."  * 
Now,  if  it  was  just  to  expose  the  priest  Roman,  it  is  surely  as 
fair  to  pillory  his  brother  English,  remembering  also  that 
men's  lives  are  for  warnings  as  well  as  for  wise  examples. 
But  an  historian,  t  who  has  been  variously  rated,  shall  tell 
Keith's  ugly  story  : — 

"  I  will  give  you  ane  instance  of  the  justice  our  curats 
used  to  doe  in  such  a  case.  There  was  one  Mr  Walter 
Kieth,  curat  in  Chingle  Kirk,  who  was,  all  the  countrey  knew 
(and  many  stories  there  were  of  it),  a  common  adulterer  with 
his  neighbour  James  Wilson's  wife.     The  poor  man  resented 

*  Church  History,  vol.  i.,  p.  206,  1882. 
t  Kirkton's  Secret  History,  p.  185. 


182  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

it,  and  complained  to  his  neighbours  upon  it.  The  curat,  to 
be  first  in  play,  summonds  him  before  the  Presbyterie  of 
Erlistoun  (his  ordinary)  to  answer  there  a  slander  of  his 
godly  pastor.  The  man  could  not  deny  what  he  hade  spoken 
before  so  many  ;  but  because  he  could  not  by  two  eye- 
witnesses prove  that  they  saw  Kieth  commit  adultery  with 
his  wife,  he  is  condemned  to  confess  his  slander  in  sackecloath 
upon  all  the  pillories  in  the  presbyterie.  Yet  one  eye-witness 
there  was  ;  for  my  Lord  of  Jedburgh  his  lackey  lyeing  one  day 
in  James  Wilson's  barn,  saw  the  curat  and  the  wife  enter  the 
barn,  and  was  both  eye  and  ear-witness  to  what  I  need  not 
write.  The  lackey  resolved  to  make  advantage  of  it ;  so 
after  they  hade  left  the  barn,  he  went  boldly  to  the  curat's 
stable  and  took  away  his  horse,  which  the  curat  soon  mist, 
but  could  not  find  it.  The  next  day  the  lackey  comes  that 
way  rideing  upon  the  curat's  horse,  and  so  was  seased  by  the 
people  of  the  village,  and  brought  before  the  curat,  who 
threatened  him  very  sore ;  he  whispers  the  whole  story  into 
the  curat's  ear  in  so  convincing  a  manner,  the  curat  thought  it 
even  best  to  quite  his  horse  for  fear  of  a  worse.  Alwayes, 
poor  James  Wilson  hade  no  other  satisfaction  but  this  : 
Being  a  vintner,  he  made  a  painter  draw  a  pair  of  bull's  horns 
upon  his  sign-post,  with  a  scurrelous  epigrame  containing  the 
sume  of  the  shamefull  story ;  and  this  was  a  memorial  to  be 
contemplate  by  all  travelling  that  most  patent  road,  as  I  have 
seen  it  myself  many  times,  and  with  this  the  curats  durst  never 
meddle,  nor  Kieth  himself,  though  he  dwelt  within  a  few 
paces  of  it." 

This  farm  stood  at  one  time  opposite  the  manse,  on 
the  north  side  ;  the  highway  only  being  between  them. 
It  was  called  Channelkirk  farm,  and  New  Channelkirk 
farm,    near   Glengelt    was   so  called   to    distinguish   it  from 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  183 

the  former.  It  was  in  existence  in  the  early  years  of  this 
century. 

The  records  of  the  church  resume  Keith's  time  on  13th 
December  1681.  "The  sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper 
being  celebrated  yr  (there),  was  only  collect  for  the  three 
dayes  ^10"  (i6s,  8d.).  One  is  surprised  there  was  even  so 
much.  The  year  1682  follows,  and  it  seems  Keith  had  fallen 
ill  after  the  8th  January,  for  from  that  date  there  is  "  no 
sermon  till  the  12  of  March,  on  qlk  day  Mr  David  Forester, 
Minr,  at  Lauder,  preached.  There  was  collected  3s."  Keith 
died  this  month. 

After  1 2th  March,  "  no  sermon  till  the  2  of  April,  on  qch 
day  Mr  Anderson  Meldrum,  minr.  at  Martin,  preached." 

Then  the  year  goes  past  without  any  sermon,  and  the 
preaching  is  resumed  on  23rd  March  1683.  April  passes  with- 
out a  service,  in  May  there  is  one,  but  in  June  the  4th  there 
is  "sermon  by  Mr  William  Arat,  Expectant,"  who  became 
Keith's  successor  in  Channelkirk  Church.  Keith's  widow 
stayed  at  Channelkirk  till,  at  least,  July  1683,  for  there  is  a 
minute,  "  Given  out  to  the  minister's  relict  for  two  dales  that 
went  to  the  pulpit,  i6s. "  inserted  under  that  month.  His 
son,  William  Keith,  followed  his  father's  profession  and  was 
Presbytery  bursar,  and  his  career  as  a  probationer  may  be 
partly  traced  in  Earlston  Presbytery  Records  (1691-1704). 

When  Walter  Keith  died  in  March  1682,  he  was  forty- 
seven  years  of  age,  and  had  been  minister  of  Channelkirk 
for  nineteen  years. 

It  was  during  his  incumbency  that  the  "  Thirteen  Drifty 
Days"  transpired,  viz.,  in  1674,  when  snow  never  once  abated 
for  thirteen  days  and  nights,  when  sheep  died  in  thousands, 
and  farms  were  rendered  without  stock  and  without  tenant 
for  many  years  afterwards.      The   disaster  to   Channelkirk 


184  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

must  have  been  terrible,  but  no  record  is  left  to  particularise 
the  calamity. 

William  Arrot — 1683- 1696 

William  Arrot,  who  succeeded  Walter  Keith  in  this  parish, 
made  his  first  appearance,  as  we  have  seen,  as  an  "  Expec- 
tant." This  term  meant  the  same  thing  as  "  Probationer " 
now.  Although  it  was  the  time  of  Episcopalian  predomi- 
nance, the  system  of  training  students  for  the  ministry  was 
carried  on  in  the  old  way.  The  young  man  was  trained  at 
the  University,  then  passed  his  trials  by  the  Presbytery,  and 
was  admitted  as  an  "  Expectant."  Church  government  was 
a  curious  conglomerate  of  both  systems  in  Arrot's  time. 
The  Presbyteries  were  still  in  active  authority,  and  the  kirk- 
sessions  continued  to  fulfil  the  same  duties  as  formerly,  viz., 
overseeing  the  poor,  rebuking  offenders,  and  such  like ;  the 
"  bad"  cases  standing  in  sackcloth  in  Episcopal  congregations 
just  as  they  did  in  Presbyterian  churches.  But  the  bishop 
warranted  the  Presbyteries,  and  a  permanent  moderator 
presided  over  them,  who  was  appointed  not  by  the  Pres- 
bytery but  by  the  ordinary,  or  deputy  of  the  bishop. 

Our  first  glimpse  of  Arrot  is  in  St  Andrews.  He  studied 
there  in  St  Leonard's  College,  and  had  his  degree  from  the 
St  Andrews  University  on  the  25th  of  July  1676.  He  was 
taken  on  trials  by  the  Presbytery  of  Forfar,  and  was  recom- 
mended for  licence  on  ist  December  1680.  He  preached 
in  Channelkirk  Church  with  a  view  to  the  cure  on  June 
4th  and  30th,  and  on  August  20th  of  1682  (the  year  when 
the  Duke  of  Lauderdale  died),  after  which  he  seems  to  have 
been  permanently  appointed  to  the  charge.  He  was  about 
twenty-seven  years  of  age  at  his  ordination.  The  records 
of  the  church  have  nothing  special   to  say  regarding   him. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  185 

There  are  the  customary  notices  of  relief  to  the  poor,  mort- 
cloths  and  burials,  collections  and  disbursements.  But  he 
seems  to  have  been  as  careful  of  church  and  school  as  was 
his  distinguished  predecessor,  Professor  Liddell.  During  the 
incumbency  of  Keith,  matters  were  allowed  to  lie  as  they 
fell,  and  as  both  buildings  were  roofed  with  divots  and 
thatch,  and  their  high  elevation  subjected  them  to  the 
vehemence  of  every  Lammermoor  storm,  constant  care  was 
necessary  to  ensure  comfort  and  respectability.  The 
presence  of  Arrot  is  evident  in  such  notices  as  "  Dales  for 
the  pulpit,  1 6s."  "  Given  to  George  Kirkwood  for  covering 
the  kirk,  13s."  "Given  to  George  Kirkwood  for  work  to 
church  and  school,  ;^3,  6s.  46."  "  More  for  two  men  that 
served  at  covering  the  kirk."  "  10  Aug.  1684,  more  to 
James  Broun,  wright,  for  repairing  the  Comunion  tables " 
— amount  blank.  Incidentally  we  may  notice  that  James 
lived  in  "  Bourhouses,"  a  fact  which  we  learn  in  connection 
with  his  wife's  death  there  on  8th  December  1683,  and  also 
from  Lauder  Burgh  Records,  ist  July  1660,  when  "John 
Robertson,  mason,  is  ordained  to  pay  James  Broun,  wright,  in 
bourhouse,  £y,  8  scotes,"  as  part  payment  for  the  making  of 
a  mill.  On  January  loth,  1684,  there  was  a  big  storm,  and 
so — "  no  collection,  because  of  the  small  convention  "  !  The 
present  minister  remembers  a  similar  "  convention "  on  just 
such  a  stormy  day,  when  only  the  precentor,  the  beadle,  and 
himself  held  "  public  worship,"  but  there  was  a  collection  ! 
Mr  Arrot  notes  on  the  30th  July  of  the  same  year  "  a  fast 
for  the  harvest,"  which  seems  to  point  to  an  unfavourable 
seaison  then. 

But  while  the  common  duties  of  a  quiet  country  parish 
drummed  round  the  horse-mill  path  of  steady  routine,  the 
national  life  was  flowing  high,  and  the  very  throne  heaved 


186  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

under  the  earthquake  forces  below  it.  It  was  the  terrible 
time  of  Covenanting  horrors.  "  During  the  years  of  1682  and 
1683,  the  lawless  soldiery  continued  to  harass  the  country. 
They  carried  terror  amid  the  quiet  dwellers  in  the  villages, 
they  pillaged  farm-houses,  they  traversed  the  loneliest 
moors."  *  John  Grahame  of  Claverhouse  netted  or  shot  them 
like  vermin  in  the  field,  and  Sir  George  Mackenzie,  Lord 
Advocate,  took  care  that  the  meshes  of  law  should  well 
strangle  them  in  "  court  of  justice."  Crowds  were  fined 
ruinously,  many  hanged,  hundreds  were  sent  to  the  West 
Indies  as  slaves.  In  February  1685,  Charles  II.,  the  cause 
of  all  this  misery — tyrant,  dandy,  libertine,  butcher,  and  liar — 
passed  to  his  account.  A  few  more  years  saw  his  cruel 
successor,  James  VII.,  deposed  from  the  throne  of  Britain, 
and  the  Prince  of  Orange  seated  in  his  place.  It  was  like 
the  sun  rising  after  a  night  of  storm  and  darkness,  of  peril 
and  death,  and  men  once  more  returned  to  their  former 
trust  in  "the  authority  of  law,  the  security  of  property, 
peace  of  the  streets,  and  happiness  of  home." 

Presbyterianism  lifted  its  cowed  head  in  triumph,  and 
the  effect  of  the  changed  times  was  soon  felt  by  William 
Arrot,  curate  in  Channelkirk.  Episcopacy,  we  know,  was 
still  strong  enough  in  many  districts,  but  in  Lauder- 
dale Presbyterianism  appears  to  have  been  universal,  and 
Arrot,  leaning  to  that  form  of  Church  government,  sought 
to  be  recognised  by  Earlston  Presbytery,  and  received  into 
that  communion.  He  first  finds  record  there  on  the  20th 
August  1 69 1,  when  "the  whilk  day  he  producit  ane  Act 
of  the  Commission  of  the  Ge'rall  Assembly  recommending 
him  to  the  presb.  to  be  received  into  presbyterian  com- 
munion. The  presb.  taking  the  affair  to  c'nsideration,  referred 
*  Cunningham's  Church  History^  vol.  ii.,  p.  127. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  187 

it  to  the  next  dyet  for  a  fuller  meeting.*  At  Earlston,  on 
the  7th  September  of  the  same  year,  the  Presbytery  "judge 
fitt  that  they  take  tryall  of  his  gift  before  they  proceed  any 
farder,  and  therefore  appoint  him  to  preach  before  them  at 
their  nixt  meeting  on  Psalm  loi,  beginning  at  the  middle  of 
the  thrid  verse."  This  text  seems  to  have  been  specially 
aimed  at  his  Episcopacy,  and  meant  as  a  form  of  confession 
by  him  of  his  renunciation.  "  I  hate  the  work  of  them  that 
turn  aside ;  it  shall  not  cleave  to  me."  On  the  24th  of 
September  he  is  before  the  Presbytery  on  his  "  tryalls."  It 
is  said,  with  a  fine  blending  of  Scotch  enthusiasm  and  caution, 
that  "  with  whilk  sermon  the  presb.  were  extraordinarie  well- 
satisfied,  but  before  they  could  receive  him  into  presbyteriall 
communion  they  judge  it  fit  that  a  visitation  of  the  Church 
of  Ginglekirk  be  appointed  this  day  fortnight,  and  that 
narrow  inquiry  be  taken  that  day  annent  his  life  and  conver- 
sation." The  Presbytery  meets  again  at  Ginglekirk  on  the 
8th  of  October,  when  "the  heritors  and  heads  of  families, 
who  were  frequently  (numerously)  present  being  called  in, 
nothing  was  found  culpable  in  Mr  Wm.  Arrott,  his  life 
and  conversation,  but  on  the  contrair  a  good  character  was 
given  to  him  by  his  parishioners  both  as  to  his  painfull- 
ness in  preaching  and  catechising,  and  his  exemplariness  in 
his  life  and  conversation.  After  all  whilk,  Mr  Arrott  being 
called  in  and  inquired  annent  his  judgment  (who  had  served 
under  prelacie)  of  presb.  government,  his  answer  was  that 
he  judged  it  agreeable  to  the  Word  of  God,  and  that  he  was 
most  willing  to  join  in  supporting  thereof,  and  that  he  was 
willing  to  subscrive  to  the  doctrine  contained  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  drawn  out  in  the  confession  of  faith  and 
catechisms.  After  all  whilk,  he  being  again  removed,  the 
*  Records  of  Earlston  Presbytery  (See  Index  of,  1691-1704.) 


188  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

presb.  judged  convenient  that  before  he  should  be  received 
to  presbyteriall  communion  he  should  subscrive  a  declaration 
thereof  under  his  hand,  and  Mr  Jo.  Hardie  appointed  to 
draw  up  the  said  declaration  and  present  it  to  the  next 
meeting  whereat  Mr  Arrott  was  appointed  to  be  present." 
The  Presbytery  next  meets  at  Smailholm  12th  October, 
and  the  "  declaration "  is  duly  signed  by  him ;  and  the 
Presbytery  delivers  itself  of  the  following  "painfull"  docu- 
ment which,  because  it  bears  testimony  to  his  life  and 
character,  we  give  in  full : — 

"The  whilk  day  (viz.,  12th  Oct.),  the  presbyterie  of 
Earlston  taking  to  their  c'sideration  a  petition  formerly 
delivered  to  them  by  Mr  Wm.  Arrott,  Minr.  at  Ginglekirk, 
craveing  that  he  might  be  assumed  unto  ministerial! 
communion  and  received  unto  the  number  of  the  presby- 
terian  ministers  of  this  church,  the  whilk  desire  was  by 
this  presbyterie  referred  to  the  last  Ge'ral  Assembly, 
and  by  them  committed  to  their  Commission,  and  last 
of  all  remitted  by  the  said  Commission  to  the  said  presby- 
terie, recommending  unto  them  to  take  inspectione  into 
the  Doctrine,  Life,  and  ministeriall  qualifications  of  the 
said  Mr  Wm.  Arrott  and  unto  his  affection  to  the  Govern- 
ment, and  to  proceed  as  they  should  find  cause.  And 
the  presb.  having  accordingly  taken  tryall  and  made 
inquirie  by  visitation,  long  and  frequent  conferences,  and 
other  due  and  propper  ways,  and  finding  the  said  Mr 
Wm.  Arrott  to  be  a  person  of  a  blameless  behaviour, 
of  ane  edifying  gift,  of  orthodox  prin'lls  (principles),  of 
competent  diligence  in  the  pastoral  office,  and  he  having 
signed  the  Confession  of  Faith  and  declared  his  willing- 
nesse  to  submit  to  and  joyn  with  presb.  government, 
and  his  resolution  to  continue  faithfull  to  the  same — They 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  189 

do  judge  him  worthy  to  be  received,  and  accordingly  do 
receive  him,  into  ministerial!  communion  and  give  him 
the  right  hand  of  fellowship  as  one  of  the  presbyterian 
ministers  of  this  church  and  a  member  of  the  presb. 
of   Erst." 

He  was   therefore   continued   in    Channelkirk    pastorate 

until   called   to    Montrose.     During   his   official   life   in   this 

parish  he  seems  to  have  been  much  beloved  and  respected 

by  all  classes.     He  took  a  leading  part  in  the    Presbytery 

from  the   beginning,   and    was    entrusted    with    duties    by 

them  requiring  the   zeal   of  the  churchman  as  well  as  the 

polite  diplomacy  of  the  gentleman.     He  frequently  supplied 

Ormiston     Church,     and     was     deputed     by    the     General 

Assembly   to   preach    in   those   "  north "    country   churches 

where  as  yet  no  ministers  had  been  settled.     His  comfort 

in  relation  to  his  heritors  was,  in  the  usual  way,  disturbed 

about    such    things    as    "  divvets " — no    doubt    for    church 

and   school — and   he    takes    action    against    Lairds    Hume 

and    Auchenhay  to   procure   them.     He   was  by  no  means 

on  terms  of  fraternal  affection  with  his  neighbour,  William 

Abercrombie,   minister    at    Lauder,   who    had    also    severe 

words    for    the     minister     of    Arbuthnot.       But    with    the 

testimony   of   the    Presbytery   before    us    regarding   Arrot, 

it   was   not   to   be   expected   that   he   could  fraternise  with 

a    man   whose   conduct    was   so   totally   vicious   as    to    call 

ultimately   for    deposition    from    the   sacred    office.       In   a 

valley  where,  in   the   many  changes   attending   agricultural 

life,   the   churches   in    it    have    often    the    same   members, 

this   was    regrettable    in    the    interests   of    religion   and   a 

consistent    Christianity,   but    where     character,    office,    and 

principle   are   all    involved,   distinct    cleavage    is    the    only 

option   left. 


190  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

In  the  course  of  his  preaching  appointments  in  the 
"  north "  (Angus  and  Mearns),  he  visited  Montrose. 
The  church  there  gave  him,  on  26th  June  1696,  a  call  to 
be  their  minister,  which  he  accepted.  On  15th  July  1697, 
Mr  John  Hardie,  minister  at  Gordon,  reported  to  the 
Earlston  Presbytery  "  that  he  supplied  Chinelkirk  and 
declared  the  kirk  vacant.  Arrot  was  admitted  on  6th 
January  1697  as  follows : — 

"  Montrose,  Jany.  6,  1697. — Which  day  Mr  Jo.  Spalding 
preached  at  the  admission  of  our  Minn,  Mr  William  Arrott, 
upon  I  Tim.,  6  chap.,  20  ver. :  O  Timothy,  keep  y't  q'ch 
is  committed  to  thy  trust,  and  after  sermon,  first  minister 
of  the  said  burgh  in  room  of  the  late  Mr  Da.  Lyel  by 
the  Presby."* 

The  following  is  from  the  same  source : — 

"Jany.  8,  1697. — This  day  the  Minr.  did  report  that 
before  his  admission  to  be  Minr.  of  Montrose,  the  Presby., 
taking  to  consideration  the  season  of  the  year,  tender- 
ness of  his  family,  and  circumstances  of  his  affairs  at  South, 
upon  all  these  considerations  they  did  undertake  that 
notwithstanding  his  admission  they  should  allow  him  to 
go  south  and  continue  there  till  June  next,  against  which 
he  might  conveniently  transport  his  family  to  this  place." 
"August  the  I2th,  1697,  which  day  the  Minr.,  Mr  Arrot, 
being  now  come  from  South  with  his  family,  did  call  a 
Session." 

By  the  Montrose  Records,  Arrot  is  "  confined  to  a  sick- 
bed on  1st  December  1729."  On  12th  January  1730  he 
is  "still  valetudinary."  He  lingered  on  till  15th  August 
of  that  year,  when  he  died.  He  was  about  seventy-five 
years  old.  He  was  married  to  Magdalen  Oliphant,  who 
*  Kirk  Records  of  Montrose. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  191 

survived  him,  and  had  a  son,  Andrew,  who  became 
minister  of  the  historical  parish  of  Dunnichan.  There 
were  also  two  daughters :  Margaret,  who  married  John 
Willison,  one  of  the  ministers  of  Dundee,  and  Elizabeth, 
who  was  wife  to  James  Bell,  the  minister  of  Logie 
Pert. 


CHAPTER    VII 

THE  VACANCY 

An  Ecclesiastical  Five  Years'  Waj" — June  i6^y-Sept.  1702 

Election  of  Ministers,  Past  and  Present — John  Story — Charles  Lindsay, 
Lord  Marchmont's  Nominee — The  Patron  or  The  People  ?-  The 
Presbytery  and  the  Lord  High  Chancellor — John  Thorburn — Case 
-  referred  to  Synod — Referred  to  Commission  of  Assembly — New- 
Elders — New  Candidates— Presbytery  Distracted  — Foiled  Attempt 
to  Elect — Presbytery  obsequious  to  Lord  Marchmont — William 
Knox — A  Day  of  Decision — Heritors  and  Elders  of  Channelkirk — 
Election  of  Henry  Home — Deplorable  State  of  Religion — Presbytery 
to  be  Blamed — Culpability  of  Marchmont. 

The  "  transportation "  of  Mr  William  Arrot  to  Montrose 
created  a  vacancy  in  Channelkirk,  and  a  vacancy  in  a 
Presbyterian  church  means  a  tug-of-war.  The  few  ex- 
ceptions of  peaceful  settlement  merely  prove  the  rule. 
The  Channelkirk  vacancy  was,  moreover,  extraordinarily 
prolonged,  owing  to  the  contest  having  been  more  than 
commonly  virulent  and  complicated.  It  lasted  from  June 
1697  till  September  1702,  that  is,  for  more  than  five  years. 
Perhaps  the  case  was  unique.  It  has  a  certain  interest 
from  the  part  taken  in  it  by  the  redoubtable  Lord  High 
Chancellor  of  Scotland,  Patrick  Hume,  Earl  of  Marchmont, 
the  hero  of  Polwarth  Church  vault,  and  the  friend  and 
proteg6  of  the  Prince  of  Orange.  The  affair  is  somewhat 
notable,   too,   as   showing   that    an    unhappy   spirit   of  con- 


THE  VACANCY  193 

tention  was  no  less  potent  then  in  the  councils  of  landed 
men  and  men  of  leading  in  the  parish,  to  whom  the  election 
of  a  minister  was  confined,  than  it  is  to-day,  and  en- 
gendered throughout  the  sacred  proceedings  feelings  just 
as  fierce  and  as  foolish  as  those  which  prevail  in  our  own 
time  on  similar  occasions  among  the  people.  Religious 
controversy  has  ever  been  dear  to  Scotsmen,  but  since 
congregations  ceased  to  take  part  in  disputes  about 
doctrines,  the  ecclesiastical  prize  fight  has  afforded  a 
sufficient  alternative.  It  marks  the  lowest  point  yet 
reached  in  a  process  of  declension  which  has  had  move- 
ment and  a  varied  morality  through  several  hundred 
years.  Its  continuity  seems  assured,  but  it  gives  one 
heartaches  that  the  highest  consecrations  and  oftentimes 
the  purest  of  characters  should  be  so  bowled  about  in 
the  sawdusty  areas  of  official  appointments.  Whatever 
delights  may  be  reaped  by  "  parties "  and  contestants  in 
such  melees,  to  the  ministers  immediately  concerned  in 
them,  winners  or  losers,  there  is  no  question  that  the 
fires  of  the  conflict  are  as  the  fires  of  the  stake.  The 
degradation  to  morals,  not  to  mention  lofty  spiritual 
tone  of  mind,  is  immense.  That  such  things  must  be 
is  an  enduring  grief  to  many. 

As  illustrating  in  some  measure  the  character  of  a 
distinguished  historical  personage,  and  the  methods  of 
a  Scottish  ministerial  election  two  hundred  years  ago, 
we  treat  this  vacancy  in  Channelkirk  Church  in  some 
detail.  The  records  of  Earlston  Presbytery  are  our 
authority  and  guide  throughout. 

The  bugle  note  of  battle  was  first  sounded  on  the  7th 
October  1697.  ^^  Earlston  Presbytery,  "this  day  Adam 
Knox   and    another    of    the    elders   of    Chinelkirk,   having 

N 


194  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

commission  from  the  elders  of  Chinelkirk,  produced  a 
petition  to  the  Presbytery,  desiring  Mr  John  Story  might 
be  allowed  to  preach  again  to  them  to  satisfy  the  non- 
residing  heritors,  and  that  one  of  their  number  might  be 
sent  to  moderate  in  a  call  to  him,"  Candidates  had 
already  been  heard  in  a  calm,  decent  manner,  and  Story 
had  excited  some  enthusiasm  in  the  discriminating  bosoms 
of  the  wise  elders,  who  rather  thought  "  he  might  do." 
But  the  troublesome  "  non-residing  heritors,"  always  a 
blister  to  Channelkirk  susceptibilities,  would  have  none 
of  him  till  they  had  heard  him,  and  so  comes  this  petition 
that  he  might  be  allowed  to  preach  again.  "The  Presby- 
tery, taking  the  said  petition  to  their  consideration,  refuses 
the  desire  thereof  at  this  time,  in  regard  Mr  Charles 
Lindsay  has  not  as  yet  preached  to  them." 

It  is  at  this  point  that  the  match  is  applied  to  the  bon- 
fire. This  Charles  Lindsay,  as  it  turns  out  to  be  later, 
is  the  favourite  and  nominee  of  the  Earl  of  Marchmont. 
Now  the  Presbytery  look  with  great  respect  on  his  lord- 
ship, and  for  the  time  being  put  this  enthusiasm  on  the 
part  of  the  elders  for  John  Story  into  a  bath  of  cold  water. 
The  elders  had  come  thirteen  miles  with  their  petition, 
and  we  can  fancy  that  their  prejudices  were  not  formed 
in  favour  of  his  lordship's  protege  whose  interest  had  non- 
plussed their  scheme,  nor  would  they  spread  through  the 
parish  when  they  returned  home  a  very  favourable  view  of 
how  these  sacred  matters  were  judged  in  high  quarters. 
His  lordship  had  a  renowned  name,  of  course ;  he  was  a 
zealous  churchman,  a  white-hot  Presbyterian,  a  great  lawyer, 
a  power  at  the  king's  court,  and  a  leader  in  the  realm. 
Why  should  not  his  choice  obtain  sway  in  an  insignificant 
country  parish    like    Channelkirk  ?     He   had   set   his   heart 


THE  VACANCY  195 

on  Charles  Lindsay.  Let  the  Presbytery  take  note,  and 
be  good  enough  to  bend  their  acts  and  processes  accordingly. 
Should  not  all  elders  be  humble  and  wise,  and  take  light 
and  leading  from  Marchmont? 

The  high  and  wise  patron  is,  we  venture  to  think,  the 
best  solution  for  ministerial  elections ;  and  the  bishop  in 
the  church  to  guide  and  appoint  is,  perhaps,  as  genuine  a 
growth  of  human  nature  and  human  needs  as  is  the  king 
in  the  nation  or  the  parent  in  the  home.  But  the  people 
will  not  always  have  this  man  to  reign  over  them,  and 
by  the  old  rebellious  gate  Satan  enters  and  claims  his 
world.  He  had  evidently  glanced  in  upon  Channelkirk 
enthusiasts.  Strange  rumours  had  got  afloat.  The  people's 
choice  was  to  be  set  aside  for  that  of  the  Lord  High  Chan- 
cellor. The  Presbytery  also  seemed  to  be  colluding  with 
his  lordship.  They,  the  humble  farmers  and  jobbers  in 
an  unheard-of  parish,  were  to  be  eaten  up  without  grace 
or  blessing  by  the  powers  above  in  matters  ecclesiastic ! 
A  belief  gained  currency  that  Lord  Marchmont  had 
drenched  two  of  the  elders  with  his  "plan,"  and  had  ob- 
tained their  co-operation  and  that  of  some  of  the  heritors 
in  giving  a  call  to  Mr  Charles  Lindsay.  Here  was  a 
minister  to  be  thrust  upon  them  without  due  honour 
and  respect  given  to  ruffled  bosoms,  glowing  to  embrace 
John  Story !  Thereupon  the  parish  became  a  mass  of 
troubled  water ;  but  what  kind  of  an  angel  had  gone  down 
is  not  recorded,  neither  is  it  said  whether  healing  virtues 
were  found  in  the  midst.  The  people  were  helpless,  too, 
or  nearly  so,  for,  as  has  been  noted,  power  to  elect  a  minister 
lay  not  with  them  in  those  days,  but  with  the  heritors  of 
the  parish  and  the  elders  in  the  church.  Notwithstanding, 
the  force  of  public  opinion  is  a  strongly  determining  factor 


196  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  this  "planting  of  Chinelkirk."  It  is  apparent  at  every 
turn  of  the  process. 

But  what  was  to  be  done?  Marchmont  had  got  his 
"  call  "  made  out,  it  would  seem.  The  Presbytery  might  be 
smuggled  into  a  consent !  What  were  distracted  elders  to 
do  ?  After  due  deliberation,  they  agreed  to  petition  the 
Presbytery.  Thereupon  the  canvass  over  the  parish  began. 
Names  were  hurriedly  adhibited,  and  all  was  hustled  into 
due  form,  and  breathlessly  presented  to  the  Presbytery 
before  the  wily  chancellor's  trick  took  effect.  "  Presbytery 
(Nov.  7,  1697),  i'"^  the  sixth  month  of  the  vacancy,  finding  no 
such  call  tabled  before  them,  delays  the  consideration  of  the 
petition,  and  appoints  it  to  be  in  retentis"  All  the  same, 
the  call  was  in  existence.  The  reverend  conclave  seem  to 
have  known  the  fact,  but  while  willing  to  conciliate  his  lord- 
ship, they  could  not  ignore  weighty  considerations  on  the 
popular  side.  His  lordship's  methods  were  also,  to  their 
mind,  somewhat  dictatorial.  Was  the  great  chancellor  going 
to  overlook  the  Presbytery  as  well  as  the  elders,  and  give  his 
Charles  Lindsay  the  call  by  himself?  The  Presbytery  has 
its  suspicions. 

Meantime,  Adam  Scott,  John  Thorburn,  and  Thomas 
Tod,  are  also  eager  to  have  "  a  day  "  at  Chinelkirk  with  a 
view  to  the  vacant  pulpit.  This  being  granted,  Thorburn 
plays  his  part  there  so  well  as  to  shift  poor  Mr  Story  from 
his  pedestal  in  the  admiring  hearts  of  the  elders.  "  Put  not 
your  trust  in" — elders,  Story  might  well  have  said.  So  on 
24th  February  1698,  at  Earlston  Presbytery,  there  is  "a 
petition  fra  the  Kirk-Session  of  Chinelkirk,  presented  and 
read,  desiring  a  minister  may  be  sent  from  the  Presbytery  to 
moderate  in  a  call  to  Mr  John  Thorburn  to  be  their  minister." 
See,  saw  !     One  down,  the  other  up  ! 


THE  VACANCY  197 

The  Presbytery,  evidently  very  sick  of  the  tedious  busi- 
ness, appoints  three  ministers  to  meet  with  the  heritors  and 
elders,  and  gives  them  power  to  moderate  in  a  call.  One  of 
their  number  is  appointed  to  give  intimation  hereof  from 
Channelkirk  pulpit  to  all  concerned.  But  before  this  can  be 
done,  the  High  Chancellor  again  complicates  matters.  He 
desires  that  Charles  Lindsay  may  be  heard  at  Channelkirk 
yet  another  time.  Would  the  Presbytery  not  concede  this 
to  him  ?  The  Presbytery  concedes  ;  his  name  and  piety  being 
potent.  Intimation  of  a  call  is  therefore  delayed,  and  an 
angry  protest  comes  from  Channelkirk.  The  angry  breeze 
there  is  becoming  a  howling  storm.  But  between  Lord  High 
Chancellors,  heritors,  elders,  and  people,  all  at  variance,  what 
is  the  sedate  Presbytery  to  do?  On  6th  October  1698 — the 
terrible  year  of  harvest  failure,  of  wild  winds,  rains,  and 
snowstorms  ;  when  great  part  of  the  corn  could  not  be  cut, 
and  people  died  in  the  streets  and  highways,  some  parishes 
losing  more  than  half  their  inhabitants — "  the  Presbytery,"  in 
the  eighteenth  month  of  the  vacancy,  "  finding  great  difficulty 
in  planting  of  the  Church  of  Chinelkirk,  by  reason  of  the 
difference  betwixt  the  heritors  of  the  said  parochin,  and  the 
elders,  and  the  body  of  the  people,  refers  the  planting  of  the 
said  Church  to  the  Synod."  The  poor  distracted  Presbytery 
flings  up  its  impotent  hands  in  despair,  and  hustles  the  load 
on  to  the  back  of  the  court  above  it.  May  the  Synod  have 
joy  of  it !  This  might  be  politic,  but  it  was  not  furthersome. 
For  the  Synod  did  not  appear  to  have  clearer  light.  The 
Lord  Chancellor  was  the  terror.  All  might  go  well  if  his 
infatuation  for  Charles  Lindsay  would  cease  and  determine. 
For  be  it  known  that  Synods  and  Presbyteries  cannot  very 
well  stand  haughtily  up  against  a  Lord  High  Magnate  ;  such 
a  friend  of  the  Church,  too,  and  so  favoured  by  a  Protestant 


198  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Prince  of  Orange.  The  Synod  cautiously  would  like  to  know 
if  his  lordship's  love  for  Lindsay  cannot  be  dried  up  by  some 
desiccative  process,  and  warily  appoints  ways  and  means  to 
ascertain.  But  the  matter  on  trial  was  too  deterring  to 
awestruck  "  brethren "  who  undertook  this  function,  and 
therefore,  when  the  24th  of  November  comes,  report  is  heard 
in  Presbytery  that  the  Synod  has  done  nothing.  The 
appointments  have  twirled  off  on  gusts  of  official  wind,  and 
the  poor  Presbytery  is  plunged  again  in  anguish  dire. 

Well  ?  Refer  it  to  the  Commission  this  time.  Presbytery 
must  wash  its  hands  of  the  case  somehow.  In  the  Com- 
mission's keeping — Commission  being  a  kind  of  ecclesiastical 
Court  of  Chancery — it  is  snug  and  safe. 

Two  years  of  this  pious  embroilment  pass  away,  and  June 
1699  brings  an  additional  complication.  The  chancellor's 
call  to  Charles  Lindsay,  which  so  alarmed  petitioners  from 
Channelkirk,  and  which  the  Presbytery  found  nowhere  on 
their  table  in  November  1697,  ^ow  flutters  out  of  its  state 
of  hibernation,  and  alights  with  golden  wing  on  every  pro- 
minence the  Presbytery  possesses.  No  doubt  of  it  this  time  ; 
and  the  alarms  of  Channelkirk  elders  one  and  a  half  years 
ago  appear  not  to  have  been  out  of  place.  The  Lord  High 
Chancellor,  through  James  Deas,  advocate  of  Coldenknowes, 
presents  a  call  to  Mr  Charles  Lindsay,  "subscribed  by 
some  of  the  heritors  and  elders  "  of  Channelkirk,  "  which  call 
being  read,  the  presbyterie  found  themselves  difficulted  in 
regards  there  was  formerly  given  to  the  presbyterie  a  sup- 
plication subscribed  by  the  plurality  of  the  elders  and  body 
of  that  people  wherein  they  intimate  their  dissatisfaction 
with,  and  aversion  from  having  the  said  Mr  Charles  to  be 
their  minister."  But  even  if  Channelkirk  people  and  their 
petition  could  be  overlooked,  the  "  presbyterie  "  has  yet  more 


THE  VACANCY  199 

serious  objections.  "  The  said  call  was  not  moderate  at  the 
appointment  and  by  the  direction  of  the  presbyterie  ! "  The 
Chancellor  verily  then  did  purpose  to  override  their  reverend 
court !  But  the  worm  thus  turns  upon  the  wily  high-planning 
Ulysses  of  Marchmont,  and  will  show  him  that  it  has  pre- 
rogatives and  powers  !  A  proud  spirit  which  does  not  live  long. 
For  after  having  hissed  so  much  in  the  forensic  ears,  refuge 
is  again  taken  within  the  jungle  of  the  General  Assembly's 
Commission,  to  which  both  call  and  case  are  referred  with 
blessings. 

Almost  another  twelvemonth  goes  by,  during  which  time 
letters,  and  petitions,  and  arguments  fly  thick  between 
Marchmont,  Earlston,  and  Channelkirk  ;  the  "  case "  mean- 
while "depending."  At  last,  on  19th  September  1700,  in 
the  fourth  year  of  the  Armageddon,  devout  and  vociferous 
John  Veitch,  of  Westruther,  "  reports  that  the  Commissioners 
from  this  presbyterie  spake  to  the  members  of  the  Commis- 
sion of  the  General  Assembly  to  whom  the  Chinelkirk  affair 
was  committed,  and  that  they  gave  this  return — that  the 
Chancellor  had  got  up  his  call,  and  that  they  would  meddle 
no  further  in  that  affair." 

So :  the  Commission  was  as  timid  as  the  Synod  to  face  the 
pious  lion  of  Marchmont.  The  Presbytery  could  do  no  more. 
Stagnation  and  ineptitude  were  to  prevail.  All  the  Church 
courts  shuddered  to  thwart  Lord  Marchmont,  and  to  all 
appearance  the  people  of  Channelkirk  would  have  to  accept 
his  nominee  with  the  best  grace  possible.  Yet,  perhaps  not ! 
The  people  themselves,  while  Church  courts  were  laboriously 
doing  nothing,  took  the  matter  up  and  bethought  them  of  a 
counterplan  to  his  of  Marchmont.  Election,  be  it  re- 
membered, lay  with  heritors  and  elders  only.  Now,  if  new 
elders  could  be  got  to  any  considerable  number,  the  votes 


200  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

might  not  fall  out  so  conveniently  for  Charles  Lindsay ! 
Who  knew?  Another  petition,  then,  gets  rolled  down  its 
thirteen  miles  to  Earlston  Presbytery,  beseeching  for  new 
elders  for  Chinelkirk.  Eight  names  are  submitted  as  those 
of  quite  capable  men.  Nowadays,  the  necessary  two  can 
scarcely  be  got,  as  though  God  did  beseech  them  by  us  ;  but 
it  is  another  matter  when  there  is  guerilla  warfare  to  enforce, 
and  a  lofty  lord  to  humble.  Sweet  are  then  the  duties  and 
honours  of  an  elder.     Pious  is  he,  and  fit  beyond  words. 

But  the  wily  and  wary  Chancellor  gets  wind  of  the  plot, 
and  counterpetitions  against  these  elders,  and  again  menac- 
ingly urges  Charles  Lindsay.  Presbytery  tearfully  wrings  its 
hands  and  implores  delay,  and  sends  post-haste  one  of  its 
number  to  the  Commission  of  Assembly  for  their  advice. 
Presbytery  bethinks  itself,  however,  that  notwithstanding  its 
inability  to  "  plant "  a  minister,  the  "  making  of"  elders  need 
not  stretch  its  strength  so  much,  and  so  quietly,  yet  ventur- 
ously, shuffles  along  with  that  matter,  hearkening  with  its 
deaf  ear  to  the  roar  of  the  lion.  Elders  are  therefore 
diligently  ridden  steeplechase  over  the  stiles  that  obstruct 
their  path.  Attendances,  characters,  catechism,  family  be- 
haviour, doctrinal  soundness- — all  are  found  most  excellent. 
Bang,  then,  go  they  into  the  most  holy  place.  And  now, 
let  the  Lord  High  Chancellor  consider  his  ways  ! 

In  the  intervals  of  controversy,  and  through  rifts  in  the 
battle  smoke,  we  discern  that  three  probationers  among 
many  attain  a  certain  distinction  and  favour  in  Channel- 
kirk  quarters,  and  something  may  come  of  it :  James  Gray, 
Henry  Home,  and  William  Knox  are  their  names.  The 
elders  were  ordained  in  March  1701,  and  on  3rd  April 
Thomas  Brounlies,  one  of  them,  requests  the  Presbytery  to 
grant  "a  hearing  of  Mr  Wm.   Knox  and  Mr  Wm.  Keith." 


THE  VACANCY  201 

Keith  is  a  son  of  the  notorious  "curate  of  Chinelkirk,"  of 
whom  we  have  already  heard  somewhat.  Presbytery  sends 
Knox,  and  in  May,  two  heritors  and  two  elders  desire 
the  Presbytery  to  moderate  in  a  call  to  one  of  the  three — 
Home,  Gray,  and  Knox.  So  sick  are  they  of  the  whole 
tangled  matter,  that  they  will  thankfully  accept  any  one 
of  these,  the  more  cheerfully,  too,  because  Lindsay,  the 
hated  Chancellor's  nominee,  is  not  one  of  them.  But  ever 
sleepless  "  Patrick,  Earl  of  Marchmont,  Lord  High  Chan- 
cellor, one  of  the  heritors  of  the  parish  of  Chinelkirk," 
pounces  down  upon  the  cowering  Presbytery  once  more, 
and  frightens  it  into  another  fit  of  "  delay."  Still  later  in 
the  same  month,  a  more  urgent  appeal  comes  from  heritors 
and  elders  of  Chinelkirk  to  call  one  of  the  three,  and  still 
another  letter  from  the  menacing  Chancellor,  The  poor 
Presbytery  is  at  its  last  gasp  in  such  a  state  of  matters. 
But  as  the  ages  testify,  light  dawns  at  the  darkest  hour. 
The  Presbytery,  like  the  ox  driven  desperate,  lolling  out 
its  tongue  in  its  "  forfoughen "  and  prostrate  condition, 
with  the  goads  of  heritors,  elders,  people,  and  a  pious 
Chancellor  thrust  into  it,  recalls  some  virility  to  its  help, 
screws  itself  up  to  act,  if  possible,  and  fixes  a  day,  loth 
of  June,  for  a  meeting  of  all  concerned  at  Chinelkirk  "to 
try  if  they  can  be  brought  to  agree  unanimously  upon  one 
to  be  their  minister."  Unanimously !  The  Presbytery 
in  its  weak  state  sees  visions  and  dreams  dreams,  A 
minister  unanimously  agreed  upon  by  a  Presbyterian 
electorate ! 

However,  it  is  a  policy  with  a  glimmering  of  good 
in  it,  and  on  the  loth  of  June  1701,  this  meeting  does 
take  place  at  Chinelkirk.  Lord  Polwart  was  there,  son  of 
the   Chancellor,  and  the  lairds  of  Trabroun,  Johnstonburn 


•202  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  Kirklandhill,  the  inflexible  Chancellor  himself  being 
also  in  the  near  neighbourhood,  but  not  condescending  to 
mingle  among  the  others,  all  of  whom  seemed  favourable 
to  Mr  Henry  Home.  But  Sir  James  Hay,  Lady  Moriston, 
the  lairds  of  Cruixton,  Heartsyde,  Nether  Howden,  and 
all  the  elders,  save  one,  wished  to  have  William  Knox.  No 
unanimity  possible  here.  The  Lord  Chancellor  was  ap- 
proached and  informed  of  this,  and  "  my  Lord  Chancellor 
gave  a  commission  to  signifie  to  the  meeting  that  he  was 
sorry  there  was  not  ane  union  amongst  them,  and  that  there 
was  a  call  independent,  which  he  would  prosecute  as  far 
as  law  would  allow."  He  still  clung  to  Charles  Lindsay, 
and  dared  them  to  thwart  him.  The  old  bombardment 
of  Presbytery  took  place  as  a  consequence ;  petitions, 
letters,  vociferations,  tedious  to  every  one,  and  the  tedious 
Presbytery  found  itself  as  usual  "  difficulted,"  craved  delay, 
and  resolves  to  ask  advice  from  several  brethren  of  the  Synod  ! 
There  was  one  other  method  not  yet  tried  which  a 
Presbytery  driven  distracted  might  attempt,  viz.,  to  kneel 
at  the  most  High  Chancellor's  feet,  and  beseech  him  to 
have  mercy,  and  settle  this  dreadful  election  now  going 
into  its  five  years  of  unchristian  bitterness.  This  the 
Presbytery  contemplated  doing.  For  when  interminable 
petitions  to  "  moderate  in  a  call "  showered  down  from 
Channelkirk,  and  interminable  loquacious  letters  fluttered 
in  from  Marchmont,  the  Presbytery,  "  with  the  assistant 
brethren" — called  in  to  strengthen  the  feeble  knees  and 
uphold  the  weak  hands  — "  having  pondered  the  above 
desire  and  letter,"  on  17th  July  1701,  "came  to  this  re- 
solution, that  ane  letter  should  be  writtened  in  name  of 
the  Presbytery  to  my  Lord  Chancellor,  signifying  their 
deference  to  his  lordship,  and  how  willing   they  would  be 


THE  VACANCY  203 

to  comply  with  his  lordship's  desire  if  the  heritors,  elders, 
and  body  of  the  people  were  of  his  minde."  On  their  knees, 
then,  they  go  before  his  lordship,  very  deferring,  very 
willing,  very  compliant,  and  yet,  what  can  one  do  in  the 
teeth  of  heritors,  elders,  and  the  body  of  the  people  ? 

Presbytery  is  pressed  out  of  measure  by  such  weighty 
considerations,  and  falls  back  once  more  on  "delay,"  not- 
withstanding "  that  pressing  instances  were  made  daily 
by  the  parochin  for  a  minister  to  moderate  in  a  call." 
That  is  to  say,  "  It  was  further  resolved  to  delay  this  affair 
till  next  Presbytery  day,  when  the  Presbytery  shall  grant 
the  desire  of  the  said  parochin  unless  they  find  a  relevant 
ground  for  a  further  delay.  There  was  Scotch  caution, 
indeed !  But  it  was  clear  that  if  the  Lord  Chancellor,  the 
wordy,  inextricable  Patrick,  should  lower  his  brows  over 
the  Presbytery  before  next  "  day,"  the  parochin  might  find 
its  "  desire "  as  unattainable  as  ever.  This  the  wily  Patrick 
proceeds  to  do  by  the  usual  "letter."  The  "day"  was 
7th  August  1 70 1.  With  the  "letter"  appeared,  as  usual, 
the  faithful  petitioners  from  Channelkirk,  "  insisting  in  their 
former  desire."  It  is  William  Knox,  too,  probationer, 
whom  they  always  hold  aloft  on  their  shoulders  as  their 
"  Desire."  He,  to  all  appearance,  is  the  favourite  of  the 
people.     "  Let  this  man  reign  over  us,"  they  cry. 

We  know  not  whether  the  petitioners  had  been  more 
than  usually  urgent,  or  that  some  scintillations  of  gracious 
concession  had  been  made  in  his  "  letter "  by  my  Lord 
Patrick,  or  that,  goaded  beyond  all  suffering,  the  poor 
presbyterial  ox  had  pulled  ropes,  rings,  and  goads  out  of 
its  tormentors'  hands  and  made  off  with  them,  but  it  is 
clear  that  the  "day"  was  a  day  of  decision,  and  the  final 
summing  up  of  a  five  years'  battle  was  at  hand. 


204 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


"  The  Presbytery  considering  the  contents  of  foresaid 
letters  (the  Chancellor's),  and  the  instant  desire  of  the 
heritors  and  elders  above  mentioned,  did  appoint  Mr 
Robert  Lever  (Merton),  to  preach  at  Chinelkirk  next 
Lord's  day,  and  there  and  then  from  the  pulpit  to  make 
publick  intimation  to  the  heritors,  elders,  and  others  con- 
cerned in  the  calling  of  a  minister  to  that  parochin  to 
meet  upon  Thursday,  the  23rd  inst,  for  that  effect." 

The  meeting  at  Chinelkirk  took  place,  but  not  on  the 
23rd,  as  fixed,  but  on  the  21st  of  September.  The  winding 
up  of  the  "  last  scene  of  all "  cannot  be  better  told  than  in 
the  words  of  the  minute  of  Presbytery. 

"At  Channelkirk,  the  2ist  day  of  August,  1701  years,  the  which  day 
after  sermon  preached  by  Mr  Wm.  Calderwood,  Mr  George  Johnston, 
Modr.,  Jo.  Veitch,  and  Calderwood,  and  James  Douglas,  the  ministers 
appointed  by  the  presbytery  of  Earlston  to  meet  at  Chinelkirk,  to 
moderate  in  a  call  to  a  minister  for  that  parochin  did  meet  accordingly, 
and  with  them  the  Heritors  and  Elders  following,  viz. : — 

'Patrick,  Earl  of  Marchmont,  Lord  High  Chancellor 
of  Scotland. 

Lord  Polwarth. 

William  Borthwick,  Johnstonburn. 

John  Borthwick,  Cruixton. 

John  Spotswood,  Advocate. 

Alex.  Somervell. 

James  Aitchison. 

Gilbert  Aitchison. 

Simeon  Wedderston. 
1^ George  Somervaill. 

James  Waddell. 
Thomas  Brounlies. 
John  Lowdian. 
James  Taitt. 
James  Wedderston. 
George  Kemp. 

V 

"  Mr  George  Johnston,  Modr.,  did  constitute  the  meeting  with  prayer. 
Mr  James  Douglas  was  chosen  clerk. 


Heritors. 


Elders. 


THE  VACANCY  205 

"  A  motion  was  made  by  my  Lord  Chancellor,  that  all  who  were  'to 
vote  in  calling  a  minister  should  take  the  oath  of  Allegiance,  and  sign 
the  Assurance,  which  oaths  being  read,  the  Allegiance  was  tendered  by 
the  Lord  Chancellor  to  the  heritors  and  elders  present,  and  sworne  by 
them,  and  the  Assurance  signed. 

"  The  officer  being  appointed  to  call  at  the  church  door  if  there  were 
any  heritors  or  others  without  who  had  right  to  vote  in  calling  of  a 
minister  to  the  parochin  :  Compeared  Geo.  Douglas,  portioner  of  New- 
tonlies,  and  delivered  a  commission  to  himself  from  Sir  James  Hay  of 
Simprin,  and  others  mentioned  in  the  said  commission,  empowering  him  to 
vote  for  Mr  Wm.  Knox,  preacher  of  the  Gospell,  to  be  minister  at  Chinel- 
kirk.  As  also  Mr  Andrew  Cochran,  portioner  to  Andrew  Ker  of  Moriston, 
produced  a  commission  from  the  Tutors  of  Moriston,  and  another  com- 
mission from  Margaret  Swinton,  Lady  Moriston,  empowering  him  to  vote 
for  the  said  Mr  Wm.  Knox  ;  which  commissions  were  read,  and  it  being 
objected  by  the  Chancellor  against  the  said  George  Douglas  and  Mr 
Andrew  Cochran  that  they  had  no  right  to  vote  in  calling  of  a  minister  by 
virtue  of  their  said  commissions,  in  regard  all  heritors  and  others  con- 
cerned in  calling  of  a  minister  are  required  to  qualify  themselves  accord- 
ing to  law  at  the  tyme  of  signing  the  call." 

The  matter  of  commissions  having  been  adjusted,  the 
great  event  of  the  day  transpired. 

"The  Moderator  having  asked  the  heritors  and  elders  whom  they 
designed  to  call  for  their  minister.  Some  were  for  calling  Mr  Henry 
Home,  others  for  calling  Mr  William  Knox,  and  it  being  put  to  the  vote, 
which  of  the  said  two  should  be  elected,  the  roll  being  called,  the  votes 
split — seven  voters  being  for  the  one,  and  seven  for  the  other — and  two 
non  liquet.  Whereupon,  after  a  little  demurring,  the  Laird  of  Cruixton, 
being  one  of  the  non  Itquets,  arose  and  demanded  his  letter  directed  to  Mr 
James  Douglas  to  be  communicat  to  a  former  meeting  at  Chinelkirk 
signifying  his  assent  and  consent  to  the  calling  of  Mr  William  Knox  to 
be  minister  there  ;  and  upon  the  Moderator's  reply  that  they  had  not  the 
letter,  but  the  Presbytery  Clerk,  and  that  they  were  not  the  Presbytery — 
did  instantly  vote  for  Mr  Henry  Home,  and  a  call  being  produced  be 
my  Lord  Chancellor  to  the  said  Mr  Henry,  he  did  subscribe  the  same 
with  others,  which  being  done,  and  George  Douglas  and  Mr  Andrew 
Cochran  called  in,  the  meeting  was  closed  with  prayer." 

Twelve  months  afterwards,  five  of  the  six  elders  protested 

in   due   form  "against  the  ordaining  of  Mr  Henry   Home 

minister  of  Channelkirk,"  but  the  Presbytery  "  found  nothing 

of  moment  in  this  paper,"  and  proceeded  with  his  settlement, 


206  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

which  took  place  at  Channelkirk  on  23rd  September  1702,  a 
year  and  a  month  after  his  election  to  the  vacancy.  The 
elders  had  greater  reason  to  complain  to  the  Presbytery  con- 
cerning Mr  Home  in  the  years  following. 

So  ends  the  ecclesiastical  Waterloo  of  Channelkirk.  It  is 
impossible  to  review  the  deplorable  state  of  Church  matters 
here  laid  bare  in  the  hard  and  dry  statements  of  Earlston 
Presbytery  minutes,  without  feeling  that  whoever  was  to 
blame,  the  Church  of  Channelkirk  was  deeply  injured  in 
its  highest  interests  by  such  unseemly  procedure.  No  doubt 
it  was  a  remote  parish,  and  its  inhabitants  were  few,  but  its 
very  weakness  and  want  of  influence  should  have  commanded 
consideration  from  those  who  had  the  control  of  its  spiritual 
welfare.  Instead  of  this,  there  is  evident  in  every  step  of  the 
clerical  and  unclerical  processes,  a  wanton  and  selfish  dis- 
regard of  the  honour  of  religion,  and  the  spiritual  wants  of 
the  people.  Personal  whim  and  arrogance  cloud  every 
judgment  and  stamp  every  action  ;  and  in  order  to  obtain 
individual  triumphs  the  common  Christianity  of  the  district 
is  disgraced  and  besmirched  by  those  whose  names  were 
its  proudest  boast  throughout  the  nation.  The  people  stand 
out  spotless  in  the  affair  because  their  power  was  nil,  and 
they  only  "  desired "  a  speedy  settlement.  The  elders,  no 
doubt,  were  fluctuating  in  their  behaviour  and  "  choices,"  but 
their  endeavours  to  place  their  church  on  a  proper  and 
respectable  footing  were  praiseworthy  and  admirable.  The 
Presbytery  was,  we  think,  to  be  blamed  for  its  supineness 
and  want  of  courage  to  do  its  plain  duty.  The  fear  of 
man  was  more  to  it  than  the  fear  of  God.  The  same 
paralysis  of  will  before  courtly  influence  is  manifest  also 
in  the  Synod  and  in  the  General  Assembly's  Commission, 
But  the   chief    indictment    must    be    found    against    Lord 


THE  VACANCY  207 

Marchmont,  who,  by  sheer  splenetic  stubbornness  and 
self-will,  resisted  the  decent  settlement  of  the  church  for 
five  bitter  years,  out  of  regard  to  a  man  who  does  not  seem 
to  have  possessed  one  distinctive  virtue  or  gift  sufficiently 
attractive  to  create  for  him  a  single  supporter  in  the  entire 
parish.  We  are  perfectly  cognizant  of  the  Lord  High 
Chancellor's  claims  to  veneration  and  respect.  His  sacri- 
fices for  religion  cannot  be  dimmed,  nor  can  they  be 
eliminated  from  the  history  of  a  period  which  abounded  in 
noble  sacrifices.  But  we  must  sorrowfully  maintain  that 
the  Duke  of  Lauderdale's  epithet  "  factious,"  and  Lord 
Macaulay's*  estimate  of  him  as  a  man  "perverse,"  "in- 
capable alike  of  leading  and  of  following,  conceited,  captious, 
and  wrong-headed,"  are  amply  sustained  by  his  conduct 
in  this  case  of  Channelkirk  vacancy.  He  was  not  too 
high  to  stoop  to  despicable  dodging,  and  he  uses  his  great 
reputation  to  overawe  all  who  were  concerned  in  the  carry- 
ing out  of  plain  legal  processes.  He  systematically  dis- 
regarded throughout  the  loudly  expressed  wishes  of  heritors, 
elders,  and  the  people  of  Channelkirk,  and  treated  the 
Presbytery,  the  Synod,  and  the  Assembly's  Commission 
as  feudal  vassals  in  his  lordly  superiority.  He  did 
injustice  to  the  Church,  to  her  courts,  and  to  her  peasant 
worshippers,  and,  above  all,  to  the  Master  whom  he  so 
ostentatiously  professed  to  serve. 

He  was  the  representative  of  the  throne  in  the  General 
Assembly  of  1702.  We  do  not  doubt  for  a  moment  that 
he  would  sustain  that  honourable  office  to  the  satisfaction 
of  all  concerned,  but  how  could  he  face  the  Shepherd  of 
the  sheep  in  the  Assembly  when  he  had  been  busy  worrying 
one  of  His  flock  on  the  Lammermoor  Hills? 
*  History  of  England. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE   MINISTERS   AND   THEIR   TIMES 

Henry  Home — The  Records — Lithuania — Home  as  a  Preacher — 
Public  and  Domestic  Troubles — Libelled  by  Presbytery — Death 
decides — The  Rebellion  of  1745 — Cope's  Halt  at  Channelkirk— 
Prince  Charlie  at  Channelkirk — Church  Discipline — David  Scott — 
Church  Property  —  Scott's  Description  of  the  Church  —  Stipend 
Troubles — New  School— Declining  Health  and  Death — Thomas 
Murray — Heresy  Hunting — Recalcitrant  Parishioners — Sabbath 
Breaking — Becomes  a  Heritor — Stipend  Troubles  —  Farmers  in 
Channelkirk  in  1800. 

Henry  Home — 1702-175 1  a.d. 

Henry  Home  sat  down  in  a  parish  reeking  with  dislike 
of  him.  He  was  cleariy  "  the  heritors'  man."  Regarding 
his  early  life  we  know  nothing.  He  was  born  about  the 
year  1675,  and  it  appears  he  was  educated  at  Edinburgh 
University  and  graduated  Master  of  Arts  there,  13th  July 
1695.*  After  serving  a  probationary  period  in  Chirnside, 
Berwickshire,  and  "  supplying "  churches  here  and  there, 
he  was  elected  to  Channelkirk,  as  we  have  seen,  on  the 
2 1st  of  August  1 70 1,  and  ordained,  under  protest  from  all 
his  elders  save  one,  on  the  23rd  of  September  1702.  The 
Kirk  Records  of  his  time,  which  are  in  his  handwriting, 
are  sparse  in  items  of  local  interest,  as  Home,  for  certain 
reasons  which  appear  below,  was  particularly  chary  of 
*  Catalogue  of  Graduates.     Bannatyne  Club  Publications. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  209 

putting  his  statements  in  black  and  white.  Where  one 
page  would  be  given  by  others  to  "  Collections,"  and  another 
to  "  Depursements,"  he  crams  both  on  to  one  sheet,  and 
renders  it  impossible  to  state  anything  in  detail.  There 
are  many  blanks  also  which  have  sinister  tales  to  tell. 

The  records  of  his  regime  begin  with  May  28,  1704. 
The  Sacrament  we  learn  was  celebrated  once  a  year  in 
June,  July,  or  August,  the  month,  to  all  appearance,  being 
varied  according  to  the  local  requirements.  A  pair  of 
silver  cups  for  Communion  purposes  were  purchased  on 
13th  May  1706,  and  appear  to  have  continued  in  regular 
use  till  January  1885,  when  they  mysteriously  disappeared 
at  the  burning  of  the  manse.  One  item  under  2 1st  Sep- 
tember 17 1 8  arrests  our  attention.  "To  Protestants  in 
Lithuania,  ;^I5,  5s."  One  naturally  asks  what  earthly 
connection  had  Lithuanian  Protestants  to  do  with  Channel- 
kirk  ?  Perhaps  the  following  from  Carlyle  may  explain : 
"  Insterburg,  27th  July  1739.  (Crown  Prince  to  Vol- 
taire).— Prussian  Lithuania  is  a  country  a  hundred  and 
twenty  miles  long  by  from  sixty  to  forty  broad ;  it  was 
ravaged  by  pestilence  at  the  beginning  of  this  century, 
and  they  say  three  hundred  thousand  people  died  of 
disease  and  famine."*  "Since  that  time,  say  twenty  years 
ago,  there  is  no  expense  that  the  king  has  been  afraid 
of,  in  order  to  succeed  in  his  salutary  views."  "  Twenty 
years  ago"  would  mean  the  year  1719.  This  is  about  the 
time  when  Channelkirk  compassion  was  moved  to  charity, 
and  sent  its  mite  of  help  to  those  far-off  stricken  regions. 
Three  years  later — in  December  172 1 — "To  Protestants  in 
Saxony,  ^^13,  7s.,"  displays  a  similar  disposition.  The 
famous     Salzburger     persecution     may    likewise    have    had 

*  Frederick  the  Great,  vol.  iii.,  p.  27 1  ;  vol.  iii.,  c.  3. 

O 


210  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

something  to  do  with  it.  This  wide  interest  in  events  and 
places  lying  far  from  such  an  isolated  country  parish  is 
very  notable.  We  have,  for  further  example,  such  an  entry 
as  the  following :  "  To  St  Andrews  Harbour,  ^3,  4s." 
This  occurs  under  "August  3,  1729,"  when,  it  seems,  the 
good  people  of  that  ancient  city  were  exercising  them- 
selves in  building  a  harbour  out  of  the  stones  of  their 
ruined  cathedral. 

The  local  interests,  however,  are  not  forgotten.  Wintry 
storms  and  equinoctial  gales  seem  to  be  answerable 
for  the  following  :  "May  8,  1720. — To  thatching  the  kirk, 
^i,  4s."  This  thatch  does  duty  for  four  years,  when  the 
entire  church  undergoes  repairs  of  a  more  permanent  kind. 
On  25th  June  1724,  the  heritors  meet  with  Presbytery,  and 
Home  reports  on  kirk  and  manse  repairs.  He  says  he  is 
"  much  straitened  for  room  in  his  manse."  But  the  church 
alone  seems  to  have  been  touched,  and  on  the  above  date 
the  kirk  bade  farewell  to  a  thatched  roof,  and  for  the  first 
time  was  covered  with  slates  brought  all  the  way  from 
Dundee.  About  this  time  the  slating  of  churches  became 
general  in  the  district,  and  that  of  Channelkirk  seems  to 
have  been  among  the  first  to  be  treated  in  this  manner. 

At  the  present  day  we  should  surmise  that  Home  was 
popular  as  a  preacher,  as  he  was  in  much  request  at  sacra- 
ment seasons  with  neighbouring  ministers.  We  find  him 
often  at  Lauder,  Stow,  Fala,  Humbie,  Yarrow,  Edinburgh, 
and  once  in  1741,  September  27th,  at  Whittingehame.  At 
the  last-mentioned  place  he  was  "  assisting  his  nephew," 
George  Home. 

As  a  minister  it  was  his  painful  duty  to  take  up  an 
attitude  against  local  transgressors,  but  it  must  have  been  to 
him  "  sharper  than  a  serpent's  tooth,"  to  see  his  own  flesh  and 


i 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  211 

blood  stand  at  the  bar  of  the  Church  Court.  Nevertheless, 
the  legend  runs:  "24th  Feb.  1741 — William  Eckford  and 
Marion  Home  were  called  to  compear  before  the  Session  " 
(the  Reverend  David  Duncan  being  moderator  pro  tempore) 
"  for  their  Irregular  Marriage,  and  after  prayer  they  were 
interrogate  when  the}'  were  married  ;  declared  that  they  were 
married  upon  the  3rd  of  Sept.  last,  and  produced  their  testi- 
ficats  testifying  the  same  signed  by  David  Campbell,  minr. 
After  they  were  sharply  rebuked,  and  seriously  exhorted  to 
live  all  their  days  in  the  fear  of  God,  were  dismissed."  Mr 
Home  had  married  Jean  Henryson,  probably  one  of  the 
Henrysons  of  Kirktonhill,  on  23rd  September  1702,  and  this 
delinquent  of  his  flock,  Marion,  his  second  daughter,  had 
made  a  "  runaway  match."  "  Irregular  marriages,"  as  they 
were  called,  were  very  frequent  offences  in  those  days.  They 
were  always  sustained,  however,  after  confession,  and  the 
"  sinners "  admitted  once  more  to  "  all  the  privileges  of 
Church  membership."  Mr  Home's  eldest  daughter  was 
called  Jean,  and  the  youngest  Anne.  These  three  Graces 
seem  to  have  completed  his  family,  and  they  were  all  alive 
and  "above  sixteen  years"  on  3rd  December  1745. 

About  this  time,  troubles  of  the  direst  kind  began  to  fold 
around  poor  Mr  Home,  and  his  years  afterwards  must  have 
been  as  devoid  of  brightness  as  the  place  of  his  dwelling, 
when  the  mists  of  November  roll  like  milk  curd  through  all 
the  glens  of  the  Lammermoors.  His  parishioners  had  firmly 
made  up  their  minds  that  they  did  well  to  be  angry  with 
him.  His  very  domestic  servants  felt  justified  in  abusing 
him.  His  neighbour,  Henryson  of  Kirktonhill,  was  at  bitter 
variance  with  him,  the  heritors  eyed  him  unfavourably,  his 
manse  was  in  a  wretched  state,  and  he  declares  "  he  had  not 
a  dry  roof  for  years  past,"  and  to  crown  this  pyramid  of  pity, 


212  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

his  daughter  Marion  elopes,  and  the  Presbytery  of  Earlston 
Hbel  him  for  various  misdemeanours !  A  weltering  district 
of  purgatorial  pains  surrounded  him,  if  it  was  not  a  Persian 
trough  of  Skaphism.  In  other  respects  he  seemed  pros- 
perous, and  had  been  for  many  years  the  proprietor  of 
Kelphope,  and  a  heritor  in  his  parish.  What  malignant 
microbulous  influence  dogged  him  ?  We  shall  see.  But  we 
must  go  back  a  few  years. 

On  the  19th  of  October  1739,  he  complains  to  the  Pres- 
bytery, in  the  presence  of  Wm.  Henderson  of  Kirktonhill,  that 
Henderson  "  some  months  ago  "  "  had  come  into  his  yard,  and 
cut  a  growing  tree,  and  carried  off  a  part  of  it."  This  had 
become  a  matter  of  litigation  before  the  Bailiff  of  Lauderdale 
and  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  Henderson  maintaining  that 
Home  had  no  right  to  the  ground  where  the  tree  grew,  and 
that  he  had  merely  the  use  of  it  during  his  father's  pleasure. 
It  appears  to  have  been  "  arranged  "  amicably. 

Home  has  a  more  serious  business  in  hand  five  years 
afterwards.  He  came  to  the  Presbytery  on  the  6th 
September  1743,  with  a  document  of  indictment  called  a 
"  libel "  in  his  hand,  in  which  he  avers  that  Katherine  Waddel, 
his  servant,  had  "  grievously  reproached "  him  during  the 
months  of  June,  July,  August,  and  September  of  1742 — 
"  alleging  (as  he  said)  that  I  had  rudely  at  my  own  house 
attacked  her  chastity,"  etc.,  etc.  We  leave  out  all  the  other 
details  particularised  in  the  incriminating  sheet.  He  asserted 
his  innocence,  and  convinced  the  Presbytery  that  he  had  been 
wronged,  and  thereupon  the  Presbytery  find  this  scall  to  be 
"  a  scandalous  person,"  and  condemned  her  to  be  rebuked 
before  the  congregation  at  Lauder,  her  native  place — all  of 
which  was  duly  carried  out,  and  Mr  Home  absolved  from 
the  scandal. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  213 

But  another  matter,  which  came  up  before  the  same  Court 
in  1745,  proved  more  formidable  for  him,  and  we  are  doubt- 
ful if  it  has  not  left  an  indelible  stain  upon  his  character.  It 
emerges  in  May  of  that  year,  when  Alex.  Dalziel  of  Hartside, 
James  Somerville,  George  Somerville,  George  Wight,  and 
Archibald  Smith  appeared  at  Earlston  with  "a  note  of 
some  particulars  to  be  laid  before  the  Presbytery  extracted 
from  books,  relative  to  the  complaint "  at  the  instance  of  the 
heritors  and  elders  of  Channelkirk,  "  against  Mr  Hoom  his 
manasfement  of  the  Poors  Funds."  The  heritors  had  been 
urged  to  libel  him,  but  demurred  to  going  so  far.  The  Pres- 
bytery, however,  took  a  grave  view  of  the  state  of  affairs,  and 
met  at  Channelkirk,  and,  after  investigation,  a  committee 
was  appointed  to  search  into  the  truth  of  things.  This 
Committee  reported  to  Presbytery  on  loth  March  1746,  and, 
as  the  result,  the  Presbytery  libelled  him  on  the  17th.  In 
popular  slang  phrase  he  was  accused  of  having  "  cooked  the 
kirk  books  "  for  more  than  forty  years,  but  in  the  dignified 
terms  of  the  indictment  he  was  charged  with  having  laid 
aside  a  due  sense  of  his  character  and  the  duties  of  his  office 
in  perpetrating  "  crimes  and  offences "  intolerable  in  one  of 
his  calling.  Having  been  treasurer  of  the  kirk  "  collections," 
he  had  peculated  the  money  and  appropriated  it  to  his  own 
uses,  thus  robbing  the  poor  of  God,  deceiving  the  heritors  and 
elders,  and  deliberately  falsifying  the  accounts  to  conceal 
detection.  Meetings  of  session  were  set  down  which  never 
took  place,  the  elders  were  made  to  approve  proceedings 
which  never  happened,  mortcloths  were  bought  for  heavy 
prices  that  had  been  unknown  to  the  parish,  and  innumerable 
"  travelling  poor "  had  received  doles  of  cash  from  him  who 
were  never  born,  neither  had  travelled  that  way. 

Mr  Home  declared  his  innocence  once  more,  and  appealed 


2U  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

to  the  Synod.  Meanwhile,  a  very  unsatisfactory  ecclesiastical 
embroilment  took  place  in  the  parish.  The  church  had  been 
left  empty,  and,  apparently,  no  one  went  to  Communion. 
Therefore  the  elders  and  leading  churchmen  met  at  Glengelt 
on  27th  May  1747,  and  concocted  a  letter  to  the  Presbytery, 
"  bearing  that  there  is  a  great  number  in  the  said  parish  of 
Channelkirk  who  will  not  submit  to  Mr  Home's  ministry, 
and  desiring  the  Presbytery  to  allow  some  of  their  members 
to  administer  church  privileges  to  them."  He  had  also  been 
accused  of  refusing  "lines,"  i.e.,  disjunction  certificates,  to 
objecting  persons,  but  this  he  stoutly  denied.  The  letter 
was  signed  by  George  Wight,  William  Allan,  James  Somer- 
ville,  and  George  Somerville,  but  the  Presbytery  did  not 
comply  with  their  request.  The  two  first  named  had  indeed 
resigned  office  on  22nd  April  1747,  but  they  were  reasoned 
with  and  had  withdrawn  their  demission. 

The  decision  in  his  case  was  finally  settled,  not  by  the 
Synod  or  the  General  Assembly,  but  by  kindly  Death,  who 
deposed  Mr  Home  according  to  his  wonted  fashion,  on 
Wednesday,  the  19th  of  June  1751,  he  being  about  seventy- 
six  years  of  age  and  in  the  forty-ninth  of  his  ministry.  The 
heritors  and  elders  met  after  his  burial  and  examined  the 
books,  and  charged  his  heir  and  son-in-law,  William  Eckford, 
with  the  amount  of  the  defalcation,  and  he  having  reimbursed 
the  church  funds  to  the  full,  the  whole  sad  case  came  to  an 
end. 

The  rebellion  of  1745,  which  took  place  during  Mr 
Home's  incumbency,  did  not  pass  without  making  its  due 
impression  on  the  affairs  of  Channelkirk.  The  pathetic 
minutes  of  its  attendant  miseries  speak  for  themselves. 
"  3rd  Feb.  1745,  to  2  highlanders  travelling  home,  4s." 
"  22nd  Sept.,  to   several   wounded   soldiers   and   wifes   with 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  215 

children,  3s.  2d."  "  Soldiers  at  several  times  (6th  Oct.), 
3s.  9d."  The  road  had  been  well  filled  with  such  pitiable 
creatures.  Some  of  them  never  went  further  than  Channel- 
kirk  churchyard ;  Prince  Charlie  and  all  his  pretensions 
thenceforth  ceasing  to  trouble  them  more.  "  24th  Nov., 
to  rebel  highlanders'  graves,  ;^i,  is."  Again  in  "  1746, 
Jan.  and  Feb.,  to  wounded  soldiers  and  their  wifes  travelling 
on  the  road,  ^3,  4s."  "  To  soldiers,  etc.  "  (the  "  etc.  "  means 
wives  and  children,  doubtless),  "as  in  the  clerk's  account, 
£1, 4s."  "  3rd  August,  to  several  soldiers,  lame,  with  wifes,  etc." 
"  Sept.,  to  some  soldiers  and  yr.  wifes."  "  To  soldiers  going 
south."  And  as  late  as  in  1747  there  is  this  reminiscent 
item  :  "  To  a  soldier  wounded  and  wanting  the  hand,  4s."  ; 
and  even  in  1748  wounded  soldiers,  wives  and  children,  are 
too  painfully  present  in  the  records,  there  being  about  a 
dozen  references  that  year  alone.  But  this  was  to  be  ex- 
pected, Channelkirk  being  situated  on  the  main  road  into 
Lauderdale,  the  route  of  part  of  Prince  Charlie's  army. 

The  Rev.  Henry  Home  must  have  found  the  people  of 
Channelkirk  parish  too  excited  with  the  presence  of  the 
rebel  troops  on  the  3rd  November  (Sunday),  when  they 
quartered  at  the  village  on  their  way  south,  for  we  find  that 
there  was  "  no  sermon "  that  day.  But  the  incidents  of 
Cope's  ride,  and  Prince  Charlie's  march  through  our  district 
on  these  historical  occasions,  are  best  narrated  in  the  words 
of  those  who  have  highest  claims  to  speak  concerning 
them. 

After  the  battle  of  Preston,  21st  September  1745,*  "  He 

(Sir  John  Cope)  retired  with  his  panic-stricken  troops  up  a 

narrow    path    leading   from    Preston   towards   Birslie   Brae, 

which  the  country  people,  in  honour  of  him,  now  call  Johnnie 

*  History  of  the  Rebellion^  1745,  vol.  i.,  p.  161.     R.  Chambers,  1827. 


216  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Cope's  road,  and  striking  into  another  cross-road  to  the 
south,  he  made  with  all  his  speed  for  the  hills  above  Dalkeith. 
He  did  not  draw  bridle  till  he  had  reached  Channelkirk,  a 
small  village  at  the  head  of  Lauderdale,  twenty  miles  from 
the  fatal  field.  He  there  stopped  to  breakfast,  and  wrote  a 
note  to  one  of  the  Officers  of  State,  expressing  in  one 
emphatic  sentence  the  fate  of  the  day.  He  has  been  de- 
scribed by  a  person  who  saw  him  there,  as  exhibiting  in  his 
countenance  a  strange  and  almost  ludicrous  mixture  of 
dejection  and  perplexity.  That  he  was  still  under  the 
influence  of  panic  seems  to  be  proved  by  his  not  consider- 
ing himself  safe  with  twenty  miles  of  hilly  road  between 
himself  and  the  highlanders,  but  continuing  his  flight 
immediately  to  Coldstream  upon  Tweed,  a  place  fully 
double  that  distance  from  the  field  of  battle.  Even  here  he 
did  not  consider  himself  altogether  safe,  but,  rising  early 
next  morning,  rode  off  towards  Berwick." 

Prince  Charlie's  march  is  given  in  the  words  of  the  same 
author.*  "  On  the  evening  of  Friday,  the  ist  of  November, 
a  considerable  portion  of  the  army,  under  the  command  of 
the  Marquis  of  Tullibardine,  took  the  road  for  Peebles, 
intending  to  proceed  to  Carlisle  by  Moffat.  The  remainder 
left  Dalkeith  on  the  3rd,  headed  by  the  Prince  on  foot,  with 
his  target  over  his  shoulder.  He  had  previously  lodged  two 
nights  in  the  palace  of  the  Duke  of  Buccleuch.  This  party 
took  a  route  more  directly  south,  affecting  a  design  of  meet- 
ing and  fighting  Marshal  Wade  at  Newcastle.  Charles 
arrived,  with  the  head  of  his  division,  on  the  evening  of 
the  first  day's  march,  at  Lauder,  where  he  took  up  his 
quarters  at  Thirlestane  Castle,  the  seat  of  the  Earl  of  Lauder- 
dale. Next  day,  on  account  of  a  false  report  that  there  was 
*  History  of  the  Rebellion,  vol.  i.,  p.  209. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  217 

a  strong  body  of  dragoons  advancing  in  this  direction  to 
meet  him,  he  fell  back  upon  Channelkirk  in  order  to  bring  up 
the  rear  of  his  troops,  who  had  lingered  there  during  the 
night.     He  marched  that  day  (4th)  to  Kelso." 

A  similar  account  is  given  by  Murray  of  Broughton  in 
his  Memorials*  "  He  (Prince  Charlie)  moved  on  ye  3rd,  in 
the  morning,  at  the  head  of  the  first  column,  to  Lauder, 
and  took  up  his  quarters  that  night  at  Lauder  Castle."  "  A 
part  of  the  column  he  commanded  being  quartered  at  Gingle 
Kirk,  a  village  about  four  miles  short  of  Lauder,  he  returned 
there  early  in  the  morning  to  bring  them  up  to  the  main 
body,  and  then  began  his  march  for  Kelsoe." 

Another  writer  adds  a  few  particulars :  f  "  The  Prince 
lodged  in  Thirlestane  Castle,  and  occupied  the  north  room 
behind  the  billiard-room,  since  known  as  Prince  Charlie's 
room.  The  castle  was  not  occupied  at  the  time,  and  bed- 
ding, etc.,  had  to  be  brought  from  an  inn  in  the  town,  since 
demolished." 

There  is  a  tradition  that  Cope  slept  a  night  in  a  house  in 
Lauder,  now  demolished.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  accounts 
here  given  discountenance  this  view,  but  attach  the  "  inn " 
tradition  to  the  Prince. 

When  the  Prince  reached  Lauder  on  Sunday  night,  there 
was  doubtless  much  need  of  refreshment.  An  interesting 
account  is  given  of  one  of  these  "  orders." 

"  3  Nov.,  at  Lauder,  Sunday. 

To  15  pound  candels,  at  8d.,    ....  los.  od. 

„  Bread, 6s.  4d. 

„  AUe, I2S.  4d."t 

*  Pp.  236-7. 

\  ItiTierary,  by  Walter  Biggar  Blaikie,  1897.     Note. 

XLyon  in  Mournings  vol.  ii.,  p.  117. 


218  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  "drouth,"  it  would  seem,  as  in  FalstafTs  case,  was 
greater  than  the  hunger. 

The  road  by  which  both  Cope  and  the  Prince  arrived  at 
Channelkirk  is  now  disused.  It  was  then  the  main  road 
between  Edinburgh  and  Lauderdale,  and  was  long  used  by 
the  coaches.  The  dining-room  of  the  manse  is  built  immedi- 
ately over  it,  and  it  passed  between  the  manse  and  the  old 
inn  at  which  Cope  breakfasted,  and  in  which  the  soldiers  of 
the  rebellion  lingered  on  Sunday  night,  3rd  November. 
The  inn  on  the  north  side  of  the  manse  was  taken  down 
about  thirty  years  ago,  and  the  spot  is  now  partly  covered  by 
shrubs,  and  the  diverted  old  road  which  abruptly  bends  round 
the  north  side  of  the  manse  grounds. 

The  peculiar  discipline  of  the  Scottish  Church  of  the 
last  century  finds  its  reflection  in  one  or  two  entries  under 
Mr  Home's  handwriting.  The  following  is  a  sample  :  "  1736, 
2nd  May. — It  is  reported  to  the  Session  that  Mrs  Inglis 
had  gone  about  brandy  and  brought  it  home  on  the  Lord's 
Day  ;  appoints  the  Minr.  and  George  Wight  to  inquire  into 
that  affair  and  make  their  report."  The  2nd  May  was 
Sunday,  and  when  next  Sunday  returns  the  report  runs  : 
"9th  May. — The  Minr.  reports  that  he  had  spoke  with 
Mrs  Inglis  anent  her  bringing  home  brandy  on  the  Lord's 
Day,  that  she  expressed  her  sorrow  therefor,  and  that  he 
had  rebuked  her  and  cautioned  her  never  to  commit 
the  like  in  time  to  come."  Similar  also  is  another  case : 
"6th  June  1736. — There  was  a  complaint  made  by  one  of 
the  members  that  Mr  Boost  brought  home  on  the  Lord's  Day 
from  Lauder,  bread  and  some  flesh.  Appoints  the  Minr. 
and  James  Somervail  to  converse  with  him."  The  usual 
rebuke  and  exhortation  followed. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  219 


David  Scott — 1 751 -1792 

From  June  175 1,  when  Rev.  Henry  Home  died,  till 
October  of  the  same  year,  intermittent  services  were  held 
in  the  church  by  various  ministers.  But  on  the  27th  of  the 
latter  month  "  Mr  David  Scott,  probationer,  preached : 
Coll.  ;^i,  17s.  6d."  On  19th  January  1752,  intimation 
was  given  from  the  pulpit  to  heritors  and  elders  to  meet 
on  "  Thursday,  the  30th  instant,  to  call  Mr  David  Scott, 
preacher  of  the  Gospel  in  North  Leith,  to  be  minr.  in  this 
parish."  He  was  born  in  17 10,  and  consequently  was  now 
in  his  forty-first  year.  He  seems  to  have  been  educated  at 
St  Andrews  University,  and  was  licensed  by  that  Presby- 
tery on  2 1st  December  1737,  and  thus  was  a  probationer 
of  fourteen  years'  standing  when  he  came  to  Upper  Lauder- 
dale. He  was  presented  by  James  Peter  of  Chapel  in 
December  175 1,  and  ordained  on  the  7th  of  May  1752, 
and  "entered  to  his  ministry  and  preached"  on  the  loth 
of  the  same  month.  The  settlement  appears  to  have  been 
a  harmonious  one,  wonderful  to  say,  for  Scott  was  ordained 
at  a  time  when  turbulent  settlements  were  the  order  of 
the  day.  Fifty  such  cases  had  been  before  the  General 
Assembly  during  the  ten  years  preceding  1750.  The  reason 
is  to  be  found  in  the  want  of  uniformity  of  rule  in  the  Church 
as  to  ministerial  appointments.  "  The  law  of  patronage  was 
written  in  the  Statute  Book,  but  it  was  not  yet  fully  recog- 
nised in  the  courts  of  the  Church.  The  call  was  still  uni- 
versally acknowledged  as  necessary  to  the  pastoral  tie,  but 
there  was  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to  who  were  entitled 
to  give  it.  There  was  consequently  little  uniformity  in 
the   way   in   which   appointments   were    made.      Sometimes 


220  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the   patron   exercised   his   right,   and    sometimes   he   let    it 
drop."* 

The  method  in  Scott's  case  was  for  the  patron  to  present, 
and  heritors  and  elders  to  call  him.  Both  presentation  and 
call  falling  on  the  same  person,  the  appointment  was  bound 
to  be  pleasant  all  round.  Scott  thus  had  both  wind  and 
tide  in  his  favour,  and  opening  his  course  in  May,  he  had 
also  the  summer  sunshine  to  gladden  his  heart.  Few 
lovelier  sights  meet  the  eye  than  that  which  is  to  be  seen 
on  a  May  morning  on  stepping  from  the  manse  door  of 
Channelkirk.  We  are  sure  Mr  Scott  appreciated  his 
"  pleasant  places." 

Church  accounts  and  poor's  money  having  been  set  right, 
the  church  property  was  his  next  care.  On  2nd  November 
1752,  "there  was  produced  said  day,  in  presence  of  Mr 
David  Scott,  minister,  William  Eckford,  James  and  George 
Sommervaills,  elders,  Two  silver  Communion  Cups,  four 
mortcloths,  three  of  which  are  old  and  very  much  worn, 
a  large  Communion  Tablecloth,  measuring  twelve  yards, 
and  a  small  ditto,  with  '  Channelkirk '  sewed  and  marked 
into  them;  a  pewter  plate  marked  '1709';  a  cloth  for  the 
pulpit ;  a  poor's  box  with  keys,  all  which  were  committed 
to  the  Session's  charge." 

We  find  many  interesting  gleanings  in  the  records 
which  he  has  handed  down  to  us,  but  it  may  be  more 
convenient  to  continue  the  items  that  bear  particularly 
upon  the  church,  and  then  incorporate  other  matters  in 
groups  by  themselves  for  the  sake  of  order. 

The  sacred  building  needed  careful  attention  from  time 
to   time,   and   was   often    a    source    of    distraction    to    the 
ministers   on   this    account,   and    Scott    did    not    miss    his 
*  Church  History,  Cuningham,  vol.  ii.,  p.  334. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  221 

share.  Fifty-one  years  seem  to  have  elapsed  before  he  was 
called  upon  to  make  representations  regarding  its  need 
of  repairs  to  the  heritors.  The  last  repairs  were  done  in 
1724.  But  when  1775  saw  Zion's  walls  fast  becoming  a 
ruin  and  a  desolation,  he  spoke  in  no  uncertain  voice,  and 
as  his  description  of  the  church  as  it  appeared  at  this  time 
is  so  graphic,  and  so  full  of  the  character  and  spirit  of  the 
last  century,  we  readily  copy  out  his  deliverance,  as  follows  :* 
"  Mr  Scott,  minister,  represented,"  at  a  meeting  of  heritors 
17th  February  1775,  "that  the  external  situation  of  the 
church  is  so  unfavourable  that  it  will  prove  ever  hard  to 
resist  the  violence  of  all  storms  and  tempests  to  which  it 
stands  expos'd.  But  there's  no  remedy  for  this  but 
frequent  and  timely  repairs  of  the  fabrick  to  avoid  greater 
expenses.  And  as  to  the  internal  structure,  that  is  so  mean 
and  sorry  as  to  have  more  the  look  of  a  common  jail  than 
of  the  house  appropriated  to  the  worship  of  God."  He 
had  brooded  over  the  matter  long  and  bitterly,  it  is  evident, 
and  no  simile  is  base  enough  to  satisfy  his  scorn.  He  pro- 
ceeds :  "  The  walls  are  extreamly  dark  and  dismal "  (the 
present  minister  has  seen  them  as  sooty  as  soot  could  make 
them),  "having  never  received  a  trowel  of  plaister  since  it 
was  built.  The  roof  most  gloomy  and  admissive  of  air  and 
drift  at  all  quarters.  The  windows  are  so  little  and  confin'd 
that  they  can  scarce  admit  so  much  light  as  is  necessary 
to  read  the  Bible,  so  that  it  requires  no  small  degree  of 
resolution  and  patience  to  attend  divine  service  there  through 
all  the  rigours  of  winter.  Our  meetings  in  this  season 
being  so  thin  and  small  as  to  occasion  great  diminution 
of  publick  funds  ;  our  collections  are  dwindled  to  nothing. 
The  people  complain  that  it's  not  in  their  power  to  attend, 
*  Heritors'  Records. 


222  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  that  it's  fit  to  freeze  and  cramp  all  the  powers  of  body 
and  mind.  Now,  methinks,  it  argues  no  small  contempt  of 
God  and  religion  when  men  think  no  cost  or  finery  too 
much  to  bestow  upon  themselves,  and  yet  adopt  the 
meanest  accommodation  as  good  enough  for  the  service 
of  God.  The  pious  King  of  Israel  could  not  be  easy  in 
his  house  of  cedar,  while  the  Ark  of  God  dwelt  in  curtains, 
and  his  wise  son.  King  Solomon,  first  built  the  temple  of 
the  Lord  before  he  built  the  palace  for  himself  And  such  as 
are  well  disposed  will  not  think  much  to  honour  God  with 
a  small  part  of  the  substance  He,  as  the  Universal  Pro- 
prietor of  all,  has  conferred  on  them,  I  would  not  here 
be  understood  to  plead  for  decoration,  but  simple  decency 
in  the  house  of  God."  "  After  this  just  representation  of 
the  case,  the  heritors  present  or  by  their  proxies  to  the 
number  of  seven,  frankly  took  the  matter  under  their  con- 
sideration, and  narrowly  inspected  the  whole  fabrick,  and 
thought  necessary  to  plaister  the  whole  walls  and  roof  of 
the  church,  that  the  lights  should  be  enlarged,  the  floors 
of  the  two  galleries  mended,  viz.,  that  of  Carfrae  and  that 
of  Glengelt,  in  order  to  prevent  the  dirt  and  dust  from 
falling  down  on  those  below,  who  for  some  time  past  have 
suffered  considerable  abuse  that  way.  Thought  it  proper  that 
both  said  galleries  should  be  closely  plaistered  up  below." 
On  17th  March  1775,  all  this  was  carried  out.  His  joys 
in  this  direction  were  multiplied  in  1784,  when  a  new  manse 
was  given  to  him.  There  had  been  propositions  of  patching 
up  the  old  one.  It  measured  32^  ft.  long  by  14  ft.  broad, 
inside  the  walls.  The  Marquis  of  Tweeddale  advised  a  new 
one,  and  a  new  one  was  at  once  contracted  for.  The  new  one 
was  to  be  37  ft.  by  20  ft.  within  the  walls,  but  it  was  made 
39  ft.  long.     The  walls  were  up  by  September  of  1784,  and 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  223 

when  Whitsunday  of  1785  brought  the  summer  once  more  to 
the  hills,  the  minister  was  snug  within  his  braw  new  house. 

In  those  days  the  ministers  thought  it  no  disrespect  to  the 
dead  to  pasture  their  four-footed  property  on  the  graveyard. 
The  heritors  asked  Scott  to  "  give  up  all  right  of  pasturing 
the  churchyard  with  his  cattle  in  time  coming,  to  which  he 
consented."  But  he  had  no  rights  of  grazing  to  give  away, 
although  the  grass  was  his.  The  heritors  found  a  quid  pro 
quo,  however,  when  Scott  refused  to  let  them  "finish  the 
churchyard  coping  of  the  dyke  with  '  fail '  taken  from  the 
churchyard,"  and  they  had  to  find  it  in  Glengelt  lands  at  last, 
and,  of  course,  Borthwick  complained  !  They  were  plunder- 
ing his  land ! 

Mr  Scott  raised  a  process  in  1778  of  augmentation  of 
stipend,  and  on  the  27th  January  1779,  obtained  it  to  a  con- 
siderable degree,  though  in  consequence  of  the  different 
disputes  among  the  heritors  the  locality  was  not  adjusted 
until  the  21st  January  1789.  But  even  with  the  augmenta- 
tion, his  yearly  income  did  not  exceed  £^  i  sterling.  In  his 
petition  to  the  Lords  of  Council  and  Session  he  says  :  "  The 
parish  of  Channelkirk  is  situated  on  a  very  mountainous 
country,  and,  of  course,  exceedingly  cold,  the  manse  and 
kirk  itself  being  placed  near  the  top  of  Soutrahill,  so  that  the 
victual  raised  in  this  country  is  of  a  very  bad  quality,  very 
often  obliged  to  be  cut  green,  and  badly  winnowed."  As 
the  stipend  fell  to  be  paid  in  kind  till  1808,  unripe  victual 
would  be  a  great  source  of  misery  to  him.  It  would  not  sell, 
it  would  not  keep.  In  his  account  book,*  dating  from  175 1, 
he  notes  that  he  got  delivery  of  bear  from  certain  parties,  and 
notes  "  infield  corn  "  to  show  its  superiority  over  "  outfield  corn." 
He  grumbles  that  some  farmers  give  him  "  bad  oats,"  that  one 
*  Channelkirk  Stipend  Case,  Teind  Office,  Edinburgh. 


224  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

has  "  three  pennies  too  little,"  and  that  another  is  "  wanting 
a  bagfull  and  a  full  use  and  wont."  No  doubt  these  were 
"  contumacious  seceders,"  as  he  styles  them  irefully.  He 
wrestles  in  law  with  Borthwick  for  two  stones  of  cheese,  and 
to  the  present  day  the  stipend  is  usually  12s.  richer  because 
of  them.  John  Pringle,  Soutrahill,  was  accustomed  to  buy 
his  meal,  but  occasionally  he  had  to  take  it  to  Dalkeith 
market.  In  1778,  he  complains  that  "people  in  the  parish 
are  obliged  to  carry  everything  to  the  capital  in  order  to  get 
ready  sale  for  their  different  commodities,  being  the  only 
method  they  have  of  making  up  their  rents,  which  are  at 
present  come  to  a  great  height.  This  circumstance  drains 
the  country  of  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  obliges  the 
minister  and  others  standing  in  need  of  them  to  pay  double, 
and  sometimes  triple,  the  prices  which  he  could  have  had 
them  at  when  first  he  entered  the  parish."  Servants'  wages 
are  also  at  a  great  extent.  He  cannot  have  a  manservant 
under  £$  sterling  yearly,  at  least,  even  of  the  very  worst  sort, 
and  if  they  understand  their  business,  considerably  higher ; 
and  maidservants,  £^  or  £4  yearly.  He  also  complains  of 
increased  expenses  in  going  to  and  coming  from  Presbytery. 

Mr  Scott  mentions  a  few  local  matters  which  are  of 
interest.  A  new  school  was  built  in  1760.  On  the  23rd  of 
August  1 76 1,  Dr  Jamieson's  corpse  stood  all  night  in  the 
kirk,  for  which  ;^I2,  12s.  Scots  (£1,  is.  sterling)  were 
charged.  The  same  month  James  Wilson,  a  "  contumacious 
seceder,"  is  prosecuted  for  the  usual  sin,  and  fined  by  the 
Commissary  in  ;6^io  Scots  (i6s.  ojd.).  The  "  seceders"  gave 
him  considerable  trouble.  It  appears  that  although  they 
did  not  attend  the  parish  church  the  fines  accruing  from 
their  "  penalties "  were  due  the  church  for  the  poor,  and 
refusal  to  pay  resulted  in  compulsion. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  225 

*  Mason's  wages  were,  in  1764,  14s,  (Scots)  per  day  (is.  2d. 
sterling).  Labourers'  wages,  lod.  sterling  a  day.  Bad 
money  was  very  prevalent.  In  1757,  the  Church  sells  16  lbs. 
of  bad  copper  at  lod.  Scots  per  lb.  =  ;^8  Scots,  or  13s.  o|d. 
sterling.  A  coffin  costs  is.  Sfd. ;  a  stone  of  meal  is.  sterling  ; 
digging  a  grave  cost  3d. ;  a  new  spade  cost  3s.  2d.  The  bell 
was  rung  for  a  year  for  4s.  ;  for  an  irregular  marriage  the 
fine  was  5s.  A  new  tent  for  the  Sacrament  cost  £2^  6s.  4|d. 
(sterling). 

It  is  noted  that  on  the  4th  October  1772,  a  man  is 
buried  in  Channelkirk  who  had  been  murdered  at  Hunters- 
hall,  or  Lowrie's  Den,  an  event  which  must  have  caused 
some  consternation  in  the  district. 

There  is  a  rather  striking  sculptured  tombstone  with  a 
woman's  bust  roughly  chiselled  on  it,  and  a  dog  recumbent 
at  the  base,,  which  is  set  against  the  south-west  corner  of 
the  present  church.  "  Thomas  Watherstone,  Brewer  in 
Cranston,  gave  to  the  poor  5s.  (5d.)  fori  liberty  to  set  up " 
this  "monument"  in  memory  of  his  father  and  mother,  in 
the  year  1781. 

The  year  1774  seems  to  have  been  specially  hard  upon 
the  poor,  and  these  "  poor "  years  came  rather  frequent. 
The"  heritors  and  church  had  always  plenty  of  outlets  for  their 
charity.  When  a  person  was  taken  on  the  list  of  "  enrolled 
poor,"  an  inventory  of  their  possessions  was  taken  by  the 
heritors'  clerk,  and  when  said  person  died,  these  were  sold 
for  behoof  of  the  remaining  poor  of  the  parish.  The  hungry 
living  had  mouthfuls  in  turn  of  the  hungered  dead.  It  was 
also  necessary  that  the  "travelling  poor,"  yclept  "tramps" 
in  our  irreverent  days,  should  be  conveyed  from  parish  to 
parish  if  need  demanded,  and  there  are  many  items  of 
expense  to  "  carting  "  this,  that,  and  the  other  one  to  "  Fala." 

P 


226  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

In  1784,  "  Two  cartload  of  women  in  great  distress  going 
to  Fala  "  is  one  out  of  several. 

Mr  Scott,  in  the  course  of  his  long  ministry  in  Channel- 
kirk,  had  his  bits  of  trials  and  worries  also.  He  is  frequently 
"sick,"  and  on  21st  and  28th  of  June,  and  the  5th  of  July,  of 
the  year  1772,  three  Sundays  consecutively,  he  is  in  bed 
and  there  is  "  no  sermon,"  "  the  minister  being  bad  of  a  sore 
leg  he  gote  bruised  upon  Lauder  tent."  With  our  reminis- 
cences of  tents  as  peculiar  only  to  fairs  and  fetes,  with 
jocund  lads  and  lasses  crammed  along  the  rough  deal  tables, 
this  "  bruise  "  of  the  minister's  leg  might  have  had  profane 
suggestions.  But  the  "  tent "  of  those  days  was  strictly 
identified  with  "  Sacrament  day,"  and  some  accident  due 
to  imperfect  construction  or  strength  of  timber  had  been 
the  cause.  Perhaps  he  was  a  man  of  robust  build,  and  his 
weight  had  proved  too  much  for  the  erection.  Ten  years 
previous  to  his  death  there  are  signs  of  the  old  man 
growing  less  able  for  his  labours.  He  is  "  badly "  in  June 
and  July  of  1782.  "No  sermon"  occurs  many  times  in 
1784,  and  during  the  several  years  given  to  him  between 
that  and  1792,  when  he  died,  there  is  an  increasing  number 
of  times  when  the  church  is  vacant  on  Sunday.  In  1785, 
there  are  sixteen  Sundays  on  which  there  are  no  services ; 
in  1786,  twenty-two  Sundays,  and  so  on,  till  the  year  1791, 
when  there  are  thirty-one  Sundays  on  which  there  is  no 
service.  No  doubt,  both  people  and  Presbytery  were  kind 
and  sympathetic,  and  the  inquisitorial  "  schedule  "  had  not 
yet  been  invented,  and  ministers  were  still  supposed  to  have 
some  remnant  of  personal  interest  left  in  their  spiritual 
work.  So  good  and  godly  David  Scott  (for  not  even 
ministers  were  "  pious "  or  "  holy  "  in  those  days,  but  just 
"  gude  and  godlie ")  was  permitted  to  descend  to  the  grave 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  227 

in  peace,  not  even  "  visitations  of  presbytery "  breaking  in 
upon  his  calm,  nor  "  committees  of  inquiry "  harassing  with 
obtrusive  interrogations  his  solemn  walk  through  the  valley 
of  the  shadow. 

It  might  be  permitted  to  us  to  reflect  here  that  just  as 
nations  are  often  more  deeply  touched  by  the  lingering 
dying  of  its  great  ones,  than  by  all  the  renowned  deeds 
which  they  have  done  during  their  career,  so  parishes  may 
sometimes  reap  deeper  spiritual  fruit  from  the  passing  away 
before  their  eyes  of  their  minister,  through  clouded  days  and 
years,  than  from  all  the  services  he  has  ever  conducted  in 
church.  ■  The  old  man  is  nowadays  shunted  into  respectable 
invisibility,  in  order  that  the  clapper  and  happer  of  the 
mill  of  sermons  and  services  may  continue  under  the 
"  assistant  and  successor,"  the  "  powers  that  be "  being 
oblivious  to  the  fact,  that  the  pensive  setting  sun  may  have 
as  fruitful  an  effect  in  "deepening  the  spiritual  life  of  the 
people "  as  when  he  rises  in  his  strength,  and  that  the  old 
Samuels  may  prove  as  potent  influences  for  good  to  their 
people  as  the  valiant  and  youthful  Davids. 

When  our  minister  was  laid  to  rest  in  the  days  of  April 
1792 — he  having  died  on  the  i6th  of  that  month — he  was  in 
his  82nd  year,  and  the  40th  of  his  ministry.  He  married, 
4th  March  1772,  Elizabeth  Borthwick,  who  died  30th  August 
1803. 

Thomas  Murray — 1793- 1808 

Thomas  Murray,  successor  to  David  Scott,  was  the  son 
of  Adam  Murray,  minister  at  Eccles,  and  was  born  31st 
May  1759,  a  few  months  later  than  the  poet  Burns.  On 
the  4th  of  November  1783,  he  was  appointed  a  teacher  in 
George    Heriot's    Hospital,   Edinburgh ;    but    his   ambition 


228  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

carried  him  higher,  and  having  equipped  himself  for  the 
ministry,  he  was  duly  licensed  to  preach  the  gospel  on  the 
27th  of  May  1784,  by  the  Presbytery  of  Chirnside.  He  was 
ordained  by  the  same  court  on  the  2nd  of  September  follow- 
ing ("2nd  February  1785,"  say  the  Earlston  Records),  as 
minister  of  the  Presbyterian  dissenting  congregation  at 
Wooler.  After  labouring  there  for  five  years,  he  became 
assistant  to  James  Scott,  minister  in  Perth,  in  July  1789. 
From  there  he  came  to  Channelkirk,  having  been  presented 
by  Hugh,  Earl  of  Marchmont,  the  patron,  on  the  i8th  of 
August  1792.  On  26th  December  of  the  same  year,  "  Rev. 
Thomas  Murray's  call  moderate " ;  and  on  Tuesday,  26th 
February  1793,  he  was  "addmitted  minister  of  the  Gospel 
of  this  parish,"  *  He  was  thirty-four  years  of  age  when  he 
came  to  Channelkirk,  and  at  his  admission  he  had  alive  three 
children,  viz.,  Adam,  born  27th  June  1783,  and  two  daughters, 
twins,  Anne  and  Jean,  born  6th  May  1785.  Adam  became 
a  merchant  in  Greenock. 

After  looking  round  his  new  dwelling,  he  craves  the 
heritors  in  May  to  cure  the  manse  kitchen  of  smoke,  build 
a  porch  over  the  door  (which  then  looked  southwards 
towards  the  church),  putty  and  paint  all  the  manse  windows, 
shelve  closets  and  repair  locks,  beamfill  the  garret,  put  a 
surbase  round  the  rooms,  lay  the  barn  floor,  make  new  stalls 
in  the  stable  "  heck  and  manger,"  and  loft  part  of  the  same. 
He  also  wants  a  dyke  built  round  gardens  and  churchyard, 
five  feet  high,  stone  and  lime,  a  pine  dyke  and  gate  betwixt 
the  manse  and  the  stable,  and,  last  but  not  least,  a  new 
pulpit.  All  these  must  have  been  in  the  last  stage  of 
disgrace,  for  they  were  all  granted. 

Mr  Murray  is  yet  remembered  by  one  at  least  of  our 
*  Kirk  Records. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  229 

paf  ishioners  as  a  strong,  powerful  man,  with  whom  it  would 
have  been  dangerous  to  differ!  Our  good  old  informant, 
Thomas  Scott,  still  pulling  his  "  lirigels  "  at  eighty-four  years 
of  age  in  Oxton,  relates  that  one  day  in  the  churchyard,  a 
"  throwch "  *  was  being  laid  over  a  tomb.  This  species  of 
stone  is  laid  flat  and  foursquare  over  the  entire  grave.  The 
Rev.  Mr  Murray  stood  looking  on,  but  the  "hands"  being 
few,  he  assisted  in  lifting  the  heavy  stone  into  its  position. 
This  he  did,  balancing  the  others  in  lifting,  the  rest  of  the 
men  being  at  one  side,  and  he  alone  at  the  other.  This  deed 
of  strength  was  long  commented  on. 

He  had  occasion  to  show  his  strength  in  other. ways.  In 
the  year  1797,  on  the  7th  November,  at  a  Presbytery  meeting 
held  in  Lauder,  "  Mr  Murray  represented  to  the  Presbytery 
that.Dr  Foord  (minister  at  Lauder)  came  into  his  parish 
and  dispensed  the  sacrament  of  baptism  without  his  per- 
mission, and  this  being  expressly  contrary  to  the  established 
laws  of  this  Church,  the  Presbytery  appointed  the  moderator 
to  rebuke  Dr  Foord  for  said  conduct,  and  which  being  done 
accordingly,  it  was  enjoined  to  be  more  attentive  to  the  laws 
of  the  Church  in  all  time  coming."  An  offence  like  this  is 
committed  in  our  days  with  every  freedom,  the  boundaries 
of  a  parish  being  practically  imaginary,  but  in  these  days 
the  minister  tolerated  no  intrusion  upon  his  special  pastorate, 
and  Dr  Ford,  at  the  bar  of  his  Presbytery,  and  rebuked, 
as  it  were,  on  his  own  hearth-stone,  had  occasion  to  reflect 
upon  it ! 

Mr  Murray  seems  to  have  had  a  gifted  sense  of  detecting 
heresy  as  well  as  the  ability  to  administer  chastisement  to 
over-zealous  brethren.     Indeed,  he  held  the  reins  of  spiritual 

*  A  throwch  or  thruch  differs  from  a  table-stone  in  lying  flat  on  the 
ground  without  supporting  pedestals.  . 


230  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

supervision  more  strictly  than  perhaps  would  now  be  tolerated 
in   the   minister.     He  tells  an  offender   bluntly   that   he   is 
unguarded  in  his  speech,  "  especially  when  he  got  the  worse 
of  liquor "  ;  a  state  of  matters  which  might  easily  happen. 
Some   members    of    his    congregation    do    not    walk    with 
sufficient  propriety,   and  this  is   how  he  deals   with   them : 
"2 1st  January   1798,  the  which  day  the  session  being  met 
(in  the  church)  and  constituted,  Mr  Murray  represented  to 
the  members  of  the  session  that  several  individuals  of  the 
congregation   had    totally    absented    themselves    for    many 
months   past   from   public   worship   without    assigning    any 
reason   for  such   improper    conduct,    and    that    on    a    late 
occasion  the  following  persons,  Mr  Somerville  of  Airhouse, 
Mr  Bertram  of  Hartsyde,    Mr  Douglas  of  Kirktonhill,  and 
Mr  David  TurnbuU  in  Upton,  after  attending  a  funeral  to 
the  churchyard  of  Channelkirk,  at  the  very  hour  of  public 
worship,  instead  of  entering  the  church,  did,  in  the  face  of 
the    congregation,    turn   their  back   upon  it,   and   retire   to 
Airhouse.      The   session   are   unanimously  of  opinion   that 
such  conduct  was  highly  indecent  and  scandalous,  and  that 
the  individuals  above-mentioned  are  not  entitled  to  sealing 
ordinances  in  this  society  till  they  shall  have  satisfied  the 
session    for   such   improper   behaviour.      They   are    also    of 
opinion  that  no  person  is  entitled  to  sealing  ordinances  who 
shall  absent  themselves  from  public  worship  for  six  Sabbaths 
in  succession,  without  offering  some  reasonable  excuse." 

A  year  passes  away  and  matters  do  not  improve.  To 
the  above  recalcitrants  was  united  the  farmer  of  Carfrae, 
Robert  Hogarth,  notable  in  his  day.  He  and  Somerville, 
especially,  seem  to  have  carried  defiance  to  the  utmost. 
For  two  years  they  never  came  to  church.  Mr  Murray 
expostulates,   but   they    appear   obdurate,    and    the   case   is 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  231 

referred  to  a  committee  of  ministers.  They  advised  the 
Kirk-Session  "not  to  admit  them  to  the  Lord's  Supper 
unless  they  should  solemnly  promise  to  be  regular  in  their 
attendance  on  divine  worship."  Notice  of  this  decision 
was  served  upon  them,  but  "they  did  not  think  proper  to 
comply."  "  In  consequence  of  which  Mr  Robert  Hogarth 
was  refused  a  token  by  the  Session  on  his  personal  applica^ 
tion."     Somerville  did  not  ask  it ! 

Probably  these  ostentatious  stayaways  had  not  approved' 
of  Mr  Murray's  appointment  to  the  parish !  Nine  or  ten 
years  do  not  lessen,  but  rather,  under  certain  circumstances, 
increase  the  rabid  virulence  which  is  created  at  a  ministerial 
ordination.  Religious  rancour  is  never  less  deep  than  the 
place  it  springs  from.  But  we  are  inclined  to  believe  that 
Mr  Murray  acted  under  a  very  high  sense  of  a  minister's 
duties  in  such  cases,  and  perhaps  did  not  allow  for  the 
commonplace  in  others.  The  case  following  bears  corrobora- 
tive evidence  of  this,  it  appears.  It  happens  on.  the  21st 
of  April  1799.  Charles  Dickson,  a  "  bird "  in  Kelphope, 
is  of  a  religious  turn  of  mind,  and  like  most  enthusiasts 
of  the  kind,  spreads  his  "  views "  abroad  unsparingly. 
He  has  been  thinking  of  such  high  matters  as  the  divinity 
of  the  Trinity,  and  it  is  noised  over  the  parish  that  he  is 
a  sceptic  !  This  comes  to  the  ears  of  the  minister  and  his 
Session,  and  forthwith  Charles,  the  "bird,"  is  called  before 
them  to  answer  to  "  charges."  But  when  "  interrogate  con- 
cerning the  report  that  is  spread  abroad  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  his  erroneous  principles  relating  to  the  divinity  of 
the  Trinity,"  Charles  denies  the  rumour  and  declares  himself 
"  soond."  He  is  evidently  shaking  in  his  shoes,  and  is  eager 
to  testify  that  he  "  firmly  believed  the  Scriptures  to  be  the 
Word  of  God,  the  Eternity  of  the  Trinity,  and  every  other 


232  HISTORY  OF  CH ANNELKIRK       - 

part  of"  the  Christian  religion  as  coritaiined  in  the  Larger 
and  Shorter  Catechism  and  Confession  of  Faith,"  and  having 
bolted  such  a  bellyful  of  theological  indigestibles,  what  could 
the  careful  and  devout  Session  do  but  vouch  for  Charles' 
integrity  and  good  doctrine  with  all  due  solemnity  ?  He 
is  dismissed  with  an  ''Absolvo  te"  and  a  blessing,  and  no 
doubt  went  up  Kelphope  glen  that  d^y  with  some  thoughts 
in  his  head  which  he  did  not  want  every  one  to  know. 
"Learn"  him  to  be  a  sceptic  I 

Another  instance  of  Mr  Murray's  vigilance.  Over  in 
Glengelt,  in  1803,  Robert  Anderson,  honest  man,  carrier,^  and 
doing  some  business  that  waiy  across  Soutra  to  the  benefit 
of  the  parish  and  for  his  own  profit  doubtless,  encroaches 
on  Sunday  hours  to  a  perilous  degree,  and  must  be  hauled 
up  and  cautioned.  Therefore,  "  Robert  Anderson,  tennant 
in  New  Channelkirk,  compeared,  and  being  interrogate  by 
the  Modr.  (Mr  Murray),  whether  it  was  true  or  not  (as 
reported),  that  the  waggons  with  which  he  was  connected 
come  or  returned  from  his  place  on  the  Sabbath  mornings 
or  evenings,  he  answered  that  they  had  done  so  sometimes 
(although  not  intended)  by  the  driver's  mismanagement  or 
drunkenness  or  other  accidents,  but  in  time  coming  he 
should  take  better  care,"  etc.,  etc.  "The  Session  desired 
him,  and  the"  company  with  which  he  was  connected,  to  take 
better  Care  and  not  encroach  upon  the  Sabbath  in  time  to 
come,  or  then  they-  would  recommend  their  conduct  to  the 
civil  law,  and  also  deprive  him  of  church  privileges ! " 
Truly,  there  were  authorities  in  Channelkirk  in  those  days. 
Condemned  to  be  cut  off  by  Kirk  and  State  for  breaking  the 
stillness  of  the  Lammermoors  by  a  rumbling  of  waggons  on- 
a  Sunday  morning  ! 

Mr  Anderson  was  the  first  to  start  a  waggon  to  carry 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  233 

goods  over  Soutra  (it  was  four-wheeled  and  was  'drawn  by 
two  horses),  and  was  succeeded  by  James  Turnbull,  Carfrae 
milt,  who,  however,  ran  four  coaches  between  Edinburgh 
and  Kelso.  The  "  coach,"  which  was  bought  up  latterly  by 
the  North  British  Railway  influence,  was  a  great  advantage 
to"  the  district,  and  was  much  missed. 

In  1799,  Mr  Murray  acquired  a  landed  interest  in  the 
parish  as  well  as  a  spiritual  one,  Heriotshall  became  his 
property  on  the  13th  July  of  that  year.*  He  held  it  to  1807, 
when  it  was  put  under  trustees.  Another  year  saw  him 
numbered  with  the  dead.  He  died  in  Edinburgh  on  the 
26th  October  i8o8.t  He  was  for  fifteen  years  minister 
at  Channelkirk. 

Robust  in  body,  he  was  also  robust  and  aggressive  in 
mind.  During  the  whole  time  of  his  incumbency  he  may 
be  said  to  have  been  at  constant  legal  war  with  his  heritors. 
He  had  many  disputes  with  them  in  reference  to  his  stipend. 
In  1793,  he  raised  a  process  of  augmentation  and  locality  ; 
and  on  the  20th  May  1795  obtained  an  augmentation  of 
three  chalders  of  victual.  But  several  heritors  felt  aggrieved 
at  the  allocation  and  went  to  law  with  him.  It  seems  that 
there  was  a  deficiency  of  teinds  to  answer  the  augmentation 
which  caused  some  irritation,  and  to  better  the  case  foi* 
himself  he  raised,  in  1807,  a  process  of  reduction  of  valuations 
against  the  Titular  and  nearly  all  of  the  heritors.  He  died 
before  he  had  made  much  progress  with  the  caSe. 

While  careful  of  the  ministerial  interests  "of  Channelkirk, 
which  must  have  cost  him  more  than  he  ever  gained,  a:nd  for 
which  one,  at"  least,  of  his  successors  is  grateful,  he  kept'  an 
eye  upon  the  good  of  others.     He  called  for  more  help  to 

*  Heritors'  Records. 

t  Kirk  Records  (Presb.  Records  say,  39th  October  i 


234  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  poor  in  the  year  1795,  and  obtained  it,  and  he  gives  as 
his  reason  for  asking  an  increase  to  them,  that  it  was  a 
"time  of  scarcity"  when  provisions  were  very  high.  The 
state  of  the  poor  had  again  specially  to  be  considered  in 
1 800,  "  when  the  prices  of  meal  of  all  kinds  were  so  high." 
It  may  be  noted  that  in  1800,  the  farmers  of  the  parish 
were : — 

Robert  Hogarth,  Carfrae. 

Archibald  Somerville,  Hillhouse. 

Wm.  Bertram,  Hartside. 

Alexander  Iddington,  Over  Howden. 

Richard  Dickson,  Over  Bowerhouse. 

George  Lyall,  Mountmill. 

John  Moffat,  Threeburnford. 

William  Murray,  Ugston  Shotts. 

Edmund  Bertram,  Hazeldean. 

James  Mitchell,  Old  (?  New)  Channelkirk. 

Thomas  M'Dougal,  Grassmyres. 

Peter  Anderson,  Ugston. 

George  Thomson,  Old  Channelkirk, 

Walter  Chisholm,  Waislawmill. 

Andrew  Lees,  Incoming  Tenant,  Mountmill. 

Messer,  Nether  Howden. 

The  farms  of  Airhouse,  Kirktonhill,  Justicehall,  and  Collielaw 
were  farmed  by  their  owners,  or  a  steward.  Glengelt  was  no 
longer  styled  a  farm. 

Mr  Murray  also  wrote  the  Old  Statistical  Account  of  the 
parish  in  1794.  Among  his  papers,  some  of  which  are  still 
preserved  in  the  Teind  Office,  Edinburgh,  and  which  were 
used  in  the  stipend  cases,  there  is  a  letter  from  Sir  John 
Sinclair  regarding  the  Statistical  Account  of  Scotland  of 
which  he  was  the  originator,  which  may  be  interesting  to 
some : — 

"  Sir  John  Sinclair  presents  compliments  to  Mr  Murray. 
— Is  obliged  to  return  to  London  immediately  in  order  to 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  235 

set  the  proposed  Board  of  Agriculture  agoing,  but  cannot 
leave  Edinburgh  without  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  his 
obliging  Statistical  Account  of  the  Parish  of  Eccles,  which 
shall  be  immediately  printed."  There  is  no  date,  and  the 
letter  is  on  a  torn  leaf  which  had  been  sealed.  Probably 
this  note  was  sent  to  Mr  Murray's  father,  Adam,  who  wrote 
the  Eccles  parish  part  of  the  Old  Statistical  Account.  No 
doubt  it  was  highly  esteemed  and  had  been  entrusted  to  the 
keeping  of  the  minister  of  Channelkirk  by  his  father. 


.  CHAPTER  IX        : 

THE    MINISTERS    AND    THEIR    TIMES 

Rev.  John  Brown— Characteristics — Stipend  Troubles — Odious  to 
Heritors — Litigation — Deficiencies  in  the  Manse — Parsimony  and 
Law-cases — Glebe  Worries — Church  Ruinous — Refuses  to  Preach — 
Church  Courts — New  Church — Muscular  Christianity — Behaviour  in 
Church — His  Death— Rev.  James  Rutherford — Character— In- 
genious and  Injudicial  —  Records  —  Assistants  —  Portrait  —  Rev. 
James  Walker — Parish  and  Presbytery  Complications — Testimony 
of  the  Records— Resignation  and  Emigration — Rev.  Joseph  Lowe 
—  Student,  Assistant,  and  Minister  —  Church  Declension  —  Re- 
signation. 

John  Brown — 1809- 1828 

If  there  was  any  characteristic  of  the  warrior  about  Mr 
Murray,  the  predominant  feature  in  his  successor,  the  Rev. 
John  Brown,  seems  to  have  been  pugiHstic.  He  is  principally 
remembered  in  the  parish  as  a  muscular  Christian.  A  broad, 
dry  grin  always  precedes  any  reference  to  him  by  the 
"  originals."  And  all  his  taliant  heroics  are  neither  dimmed 
nor  diminished  in  their  narrations,  for  his  "specialities"  were 
j'ust  of  such  a  kind  as  could  attain  to  immortality  in  "  kirns," 
and  Saturday  night  confabs  at  small  "  pubs  "  and  rural  social 
gatherings.  The  minister  voluntarily  divesting  himself  of 
his  reverend  habits,  and  clad  in  the  garb  of  politician,  prize- 
fighter, or  purveyor  of  small  smut,  is  a  spectacle  peculiarly 
detectable  to  the  countryman,  and  his  reverence  never  fails 
to  achieve  distinction  of  a  certain  kind  when  he  chooses  to 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  237 

so  play  gladiator  to  the  mob.  But  we  should  give  a  False 
impression  of  the  local  estimate  of  Mr  Brown  were  we  to 
regard  him  solely  from  this  point  of  view.  The  people 
remember  many  of  his  kind  deeds  and  never  forget  them 
in  their  "  sequels,"  and  he  redeems  himself  amply  in  their 
respect  in  that  he  fought  a  victorious  battle  with  the  heritors. 
He  is  a  "character,"  in  short,  with  the  parishioners,  and 
although  not  regarded  as  by  any  means  the  chief  corner- 
stone in  the  Channelkirk  temple,  yet  neither  would  they 
judge  him  the  meanest,  and  perhaps  he  may  best  be  con- 
sidered as  an  ecclesiastical  conglomerate,  a  sort  of  pudding- 
stone-character  made  up  of  dirt  and  diamonds. 

It  is  recorded  that  John  Brown  was  ordained  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Edinburgh  on  the  9th  of  November,  following 
upon  the  death  of  Mr  Murray,  as  minister  of  the  Low  Meet- 
ing, Berwick-on-Tweed.  He  was  afterwards  presented  to 
Channelkirk  Church  by  John  Wauchope,  Esq.,  trustee  on 
the  Marchmont  estate,  in  April  of  1809.  The  Kirk  Records 
have  these  items  :  "  1809,  13  June,  Tues. — The  call  moderate 
for  the  Revd.  Jn.  Brown  "  ;  and,  "  26  July,  Wednesday — The 
Revd.  J n.  Brown  settled  minister." 

He  was  scarcely  two  years  minister  in  Channelkirk  when 
he  found  himself  up  to  the  ears  in  litigation.  Mr  Murray,  as 
we  have  seen,  had  many  disputes  with  the  heritors,  and  died 
while  one  was  in  course  of  process.  Mr  Brown,  on  the  3rd 
April  181 1,  brought  a  wakening  of  this  process  of  reduction, 
accompanied  with  a  transference  against  the  heirs  of  some  of 
the  defenders,  as  also  a  new  process  of,  augmentation  and 
locality ;  and  life  for  him,  while  life  lasted  (and  it  lasted  till 
1828),  was  henceforth  clouded  over  by  the  stern  atmosphere 
of  the  law  courts.  What  a  curious  record  is  the  life  of  some 
ministers !     Stress  and  battle  to  get  to  college  ;  struggle  and 


238  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

semi-starvation  while  there  ;  anxiety  and  desperation  to  get 
into  a  parish  ;  misery  and  misunderstanding  while  in  it ;  a 
scrimp  living,  and  forced  to  employ  all  the  power  of  law  to 
make  that  living  decent ;  and  then  death,  and,  of  course,  deifi- 
cation !  For  it  is  only  after  death  that  he  gets  all  his 
honours  and  all  the  praise.  Such  are  the  lurid  horizons  of 
many  an  incumbent's  career.  Mr  Brown  was  undoubtedly 
blessed  with  a  skin  fittingly  thick  enough  for  his  fate.  For  if 
God  tempers  the  wind  to  the  shorn  lamb.  He  also  gives 
leviathan  his  neck  of  strength  and  heart  of  stone. 

From  the  beginning,  he  was  naturally  regarded  as  an 
odious  person  by  the  heritors.  Why  he  should  not  continue 
to  starve  respectably,  as  did  the  other  ministers  before  him,  the 
heritors  could  not  understand  ;  even  though  it  was  an  era  of 
high  prices  for  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  the  provision 
he  claimed  was  only  his  own  which  had  been  unjustly 
ravished  from  the  church  patrimony  by  their  ancestors. 
They  accused  him,  in  the  course  of  the  law  processes,  of  low 
sneaking,  and  ungentlemanly  and  unchristian  conduct.  The 
most  noble  and  the  right  honourables,  as  well  as  the  notables 
and  respectables  among  them,  as  much  as  said  in  open  court 
that  he  had  cheated  them,  and  asked  my  Lords  to  undo  his 
doings  and  give  them  justice !  *  My  Lords  did  not  see  it, 
however,  and  gravely  "  adhered  to  their  former  interlocutor," 
etc.,  not  having  their  judgment  warped  by  £,  s.  d.,  which  warps 
the  very  noblest  of  minds  now  and  then.  But,  in  truth,  we 
cannot  think  that  such  despicable  work  comes  initially  from 
the  heritors  themselves.  If  ministers  could  always  find  it 
possible  to  deal  with  them  personally,  we  are  convinced  that 
there  would  be  fewer  law  cases,  and  more  pleasantness 
between  the  manor  and  the  manse. 

*  Decreet  of  Locality. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  239 

It  would  seem  that  Mr  Brown  had  some  cause  to  be 
displeased.  The  sources  of  his  sorrows  were  many.  He 
had  irritations  with  his  manse.  Smoke  and  damp  reigned 
there  supreme,  notwithstanding  that  in  1803  the  "kitchen 
vent  was  warranted  .  big  enough  to  allow  any  sweep  to  go 
up  and  clean  it."  The  Water  supply  at  the  manse  was  also 
wretched,  and  the  usual  unsatisfactory  "  well "  annoyed 
him,  and  when  a  supply  was  attempted  from  the  hill  above 
it,  the  operations  were  carried  on  in  the  cheeseparing  way 
that  means  penny,  wise  and  pound  foolish.  Worry  came 
to  him  also  from  his  glebe,  his  church,  as  well  as  from  his 
stipend  law  cases.  He  wished  the  manse  repaired  and 
enlarged.  It  was  "built  thirty  years  ago,"  he  said,  and 
thirty  years  at  Channelkirk  test  the  best  stone -and -lime 
structures.  By  that  time,  18 14,  Brown  declares  the  manse 
"  totally  uninhabitable." 

Meantime  larger  questions  loomed  up  in  connection 
with  the  church,  and  the  manse  and  offices  remained  on  a 
shaky  basis,  with  the  exception  of  some  temporary  patches 
to  tide  over  heavier  outlay.  There  is  a  reported  case  about 
the  manse,  i8th  June  1818  :  13  S.,  1018,  Shields  v.  Heritors 
of  Channelkirk,  in  which  the  Court  decided  against  authoris- 
ing additions  merely  on  account  of  deficiency  in  size.  The 
ground  was  that  the  manse  had  been  recently  erected  and 
in  good  repair,  or  only  required  repairs  to  a  trifling  extent.* 

When  1820  comes.  Brown's  continued  clashings  with  his 
heritors  have  rendered  him  stubborn  and  intractable.  They 
actually  wish  now  to  repair  the  manse.  They  send  trades- 
men to  the  manse  for  this  purpose,  but  he  refuses  to  let 
them  into  his  house.  Doubtless  he  expected  the  usual 
handful  of  lime,  and  a  door  handle  here  and  there,  and 
*  Reports  in  Signet  Library,  Edinburgh. 


240  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

nothing  adequate  to  the  clear  needs  of  the  case.  Then  the 
heHtors  become  injured  innocents!  It  is  said  Mr  Brown 
means  to  let  manse  and  offices  go  ruinous  to  further 
injure  them.  Brown  in  his  ire  cannot  resist  sending  an 
inconsiderate  "letter"  to  the  heritors.  They  shall  know 
his  mind !  In  it  he  expresses  the'  belief  that  they  have  no 
intention  of  consulting  his  good  at  all,  but  as  he  puts  it, 
"  have  in  view  only  their  own  interest  and  malicious  pleasure, 
and  are  resolved  to  carry  on  their  defamatory  and  murderous 
attempts  against  me  and  my  family  .  .  .  until  they  make 
an  end  of  us."  Defiantly  he  bids  them  go  on !  Evidently 
matters  had  reached  a  very  bitter  pass.  Worry  from  manse, 
glebe,  church,  c^nd  stipend  cases  had  truly  maddened  him. 
The  heritors,  with  lifted  eyebrows,  profess  astonishment. 
Language  so  very,  very !  They  do  wish  his  good :  want 
to  concur  with  him  :  want  to  repair  manse  and  offices,  truly. 
Won't  he,  then  ?  He  won't.  The  lion  growls  in  his  den, 
defiantly  showing  his  teeth,  all  of  which  was  extremely 
fooHsh  in  the  gladiatorial  John.  For  an  appeal  was  made 
to  the  Sheriff,  who  decided  against  him  ;  but  he,  despising 
small  limbs  of  law,  threatens  to  carry  it  to  the  Court  of 
Session,  the  foolish  gladiator.  The  heritors,  still  with 
uplifted  eyebrows,  "  express  surprise  that  he  should  persist 
in  such  an  absurd  line  of  conduct,"  but  with  crowning 
absurdity  on  their  own  part  recommend  him  to  get  more 
elders  for  the  church,  there  being  only  one !  H'm  !  Better 
confine  themselves  to  repairs  of  manses,  et  hoc  genus  omne. 
Brown  in  the  end  lost  £•]  on  the  business.  But  his  in- 
tentions seem  all  to  have  been  dictated  by  a  desire  to  have 
things  improved  and  made  more  respectable.  His  methods 
in  reaching  this  were,  perhaps,  not  justifiable.  For  instance, 
he  had  set  his  heart  on  having  the  ground  levelled  decently 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  241 

around  the  church.  He  had  asked  the  heritors  to  do  it. 
They  refused ;  whereupon  the  militant  minister  himself 
orders  it  to  be  done,  and  takes  £2,  8s.  4d.  out  of  the 
collections  to  pay  for  it.  The  heritors  declare  him  to  have 
"  appropriated  "  this  money,  and  treat  with  him  coldly,  afar 
off,  as  utterly  unworthy  of  their  association. 

He  derived  no  more  comfort  from  his  glebe  than  from 
his  manse.  It  lay  in  two  parts,  one  on  the  height  beside 
the  church,  the  other  in  the  hollow  or  haugh  through  which 
Mountmill  Burn  ("Arras  Water")  flows.  This  latter  part 
was  exposed  (as  yet  it  is)  to  the  floods  which  in  winter  swept 
over  the  Hauch.  Extensive  sand-siltings,  accumulations  of 
rubbish  on  the  good  pasture  ground,  and  broken,  drifting 
fences  were  common  occurrences.  In  1810,  "ring"  fences 
were  put  round  the  glebe  by  the  heritors,  they  agreeing  on 
14th  December  of  that  year  to  defray  the  "  inconsiderable 
expenses,"  while  the  minister  and  conterminous  proprietors 
agreed  to  uphold  the  fences.  The  fence  round  the  low  glebe 
was  to  be  made  up  of  a  ditch,  thorns,  and  two  railings. 
This  was  not  satisfactory,  evidently,  and  four  years  after- 
wards the  heritors  '■'order'"  the  Rev.  John  Brown  to  fence  the 
Hauch  glebe  himself  Brown  thinks  rightly  that  heritors 
cannot  "  order "  him  to  do  anything  under  the  sun,  and 
declares  them  ultra  vires,  using  his  shillelah  style  in  de- 
signating them  "  unhandsome  and  presumptuous "  for 
"ordering"  him.  But,  of  course,  neither  could  he  order 
them  to  fence  his  glebe,  there  being  no  decision  of  law 
on  the  matter,  and  his  plan  was  to  have  asked  it  as  a 
courtesy,  or  failing  any  agreeable  settlement,  to  have  asked 
the  Sheriff  to  decide  who  should  do  it.  But  the  wrangling 
and  malfeasance  went  on,  and  the  glebe  question  never 
got  settled  in  Brown's  time. 

Q 


242  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  church,  however,  the  gracious  symbol  of  salvation 
and  peace,  proved  to  be  the  richest  reservoir  of  acrid  waters 
to  both  representatives  of  Jerusalem  and  Babylon.  If  the 
heritors  would  not  drain  his  manse  and  improve  the  amenities 
of  the  place  ;  in  the  name  of  piety,  they  should  build  a  new 
church  !  This  is  the  Gladiator's  resolution.  It  was  on  the 
14th  November  18 14  that  he  publicly  intimated  from  the 
pulpit  the  necessity  for  rebuilding  the  church.  But  a  church 
is  not  a  gourd,  and  cannot  grow,  just  as  it  cannot  die,  in  a 
night.  The  heritors  for  two  years  took  up  the  attitude  of 
waiting,  and  so  the  impatient  and  fire-fetching  Elijah  inti- 
mated to  them  on  ist  November  18 16,  that  he  did  not 
"  intend  to  preach  any  more  at  Channelkirk,  after  Sabbath 
first,  until  the  heritors  have  provided  the  parish  with  a  new 
church."  The  disgusted  prophet  then  retires  to  his  desert, 
and  sits  down  under  his  juniper  tree.  After  preaching  on  3rd 
November,  he  did  not  resume  again  until  25th  April  follow- 
ing. That  is,  for  seven  months  he  "  struck  work,"  or  rather 
would  not  strike  it. 

But  this  was  imperious  conduct,  and  utterly  indefensible. 
The  Presbytery  "  felt  much  concerned  "  at  his  behaviour  and 
the  discontinuance  of  preaching.  They  recommend  him  to 
"  preach  from  a  tent  or  any  other  place  convenient."  Were  the 
sheep  to  starve  ?  But  the  heritors  found  him  too  good  game 
to  let  slip,  and  "  libelled  "  him  before  the  Synod  for  not  preach- 
ing, and  they  had  a  right  to  do  so.  Brown  then  appeals  to  the 
Synod,  and  the  Synod  refused  to  sustain  the  heritors'  appeal, 
but  thought  Brown  should  have  given  intimation  to  his 
Presbytery  before  taking  action.  The  heritors  next  take  the 
case  to  the  General  Assembly,  They  will  hunt  him  down ! 
But  "  corbies  dinna  pick  oot  corbies  een  ; "  besides,  his  cause 
had  clearly  strong  recommendations  within  itself.     And  the 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  243 

Assembly  sustained  both  Synod  and  Presbytery.  Brown  cer- 
tainly acted  rashly,  but  the  church  was  decidedly  a  "  ruin," 
and  he  believed  himself  in  danger  of  his  life  in  preaching 
in  it.  The  heritors  knew  this  perfectly,  yet  took  no  action. 
Nay,  they  sneered  at  the  matter  unbecomingly,  for  after 
examination  they  declare  "  the  church  in  as  good  a  state 
of  repair  and  comfort  as  it  has  been  for  several  years  past, 
and  can  see  no  reason  why  Mr  Brown  shouldn't  preach 
as  usual."  The  more  disgraceful  it  was  of  them  to  say  so, 
when,  according  to  the  testimony  of  two  authorities  called  in 
from  Edinburgh,  the  "state  of  repair  and  comfort"  was  as 
follows : — "  The  south  wall  is  considerably  rent  and  twisted, 
and  the  under  part  of  the  walls  all  round  is  very  much  decayed 
owing  to  the  damp  occasioned  by  the  floor  of  the  church 
being  so  much  sunk  below  the  general  surface  of  the  church- 
yard— an  evil  which  we  consider  cannot  be  remedied,  and 
renders  the  house  totally  unfit  for  a  place  of  worship.  The 
timbers  of  the  roof  appear  pretty  fresh,  but  the  slating, 
particularly  on  the  north  side,  is  very  much  decayed.  The 
seating  of  the  church,  with  the  exception  of  the  east  loft  and 
one  seat  at  the  west-end,  is  in  a  ruinous  and  uninhabitable 
state." 

The  opinion  of  the  parish  was  no  less  emphatic.  When 
the  agitation  grew  strong  for  a  new  church  the  entire  parish 
petitioned  to  have  it  built,  not  on  the  present  site,  but  nearer 
Oxton.  In  the  petition  to  the  Presbytery  they  say,  *' That 
the  Parish  Church  of  Channelkirk  has  been  these  many 
years  a  very  cold,  damp,  and  unpleasant  house  for  a  place 
of  worship,"  and,  moreover,  "  for  several  months  during  winter 
it  may  justly  be  said  to  be  altogether  inaccessible  even  to 
men  in  the  vigour  of  life." 

Mr  Brown's  demand,  therefore,   for   a   new   church,  was 


244  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

clearly  reasonable,  and  he  was  only  doing  his  duty  in  seeking 
the  welfare  of  his  parishioners.  But  while  his  motive  was 
good,  his  method  was  incommendable  and  extreme.  The 
heritors,  all  the  same,  have  our  deepest  gratitude  in  this 
place  for  not  removing  the  church  from  its  present  historical 
site.  For  they  did  build  a  new  church  (the  present  one),  and 
certainly  they  did  not  deal  shabbily  with  it.  In  size,  style, 
and  comfort  it  will  stand  comparison,  all  things  considered, 
with  most  country  churches  on  the  Borders.  In  the  Kirk 
Records  it  is  said: — "  1818,  February  15th,  Sabbath. — This 
day  the  new  church  was  opened  ;  collected  1 3  shill.  7  pennies, 
and  6  farthings."  Surely  peace  and  amity  would  then  reign 
between  manse  and  manor?  Nay,  verily.  The  old  virus, 
unhappily,  lived  on  in  their  veins,  and  one  notes  with  regret 
that  "  the  heritors  have  omitted  to  line  the  wall  forming  the 
back  of  the  pulpit  with  wood  like  the  rest  of  the  Churchy  nor 
lathed  it  under  the  plaster  to  defend  the  seat  from  wet  and 
damp,  and  so  it  is  rendered  uncomfortable  and  even  unsafe  for 
the  minister  to  occupy."  The  Presbytery  so  delivers  itself  on 
inspection.  The  exception  made  of  the  pulpit  is  suspicious. 
But  it  was  remedied,  and  there  it  ended.  The  heritors  never 
let  a  chance  pass  afterwards  of  sending  a  shot  the  parson's 
way.  Next  year  they  recommend  to  Mr  Brown  "  not  to  put 
horses,  cows,  or  asses  into  the  churchyard." 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  minister  was  rather 
an  ugly  customer  to  tackle  on  any  ground.  His  forte  was 
fighting,  and  as  there  is  a  kind  of  man  in  all  parishes  who 
is  incapable  of  understanding  any  reason  except  the  one 
impressed  by  the  closed  fist,  he  was  not  loath  to  grant  this 
advantage  to  any  one  who  required  it  when  occasion  suited. 
It  was  a  reversion  to  Jewish  or  Davidic  methods,  doubtless, 
and  Mr  Brown  may  have  blessed  God  with  the  Psalmist  that 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  245 

"  He  teacheth  my  hands  to  war  and  my  fingers  to  fight." 
Whether  he  advanced  the  high  spiritual  principles  of  his 
Master  in  his  parish  by  such  practices  is  another  matter. 
But  the  fact  itself  is  too  well  authenticated  to  be  "  ex- 
plained away."  The  consequence  followed,  however,  that  an 
aggressive  attitude  on  his  part  provoked  resistance  on  the 
part  of  others,  and  it  soon  became  a  talk  in  the  district, 
"  Whay  wis  yible  for  the  menister,  an'  whay  wisna ! "  There 
is  a  fearful  story  told  of  a  meeting  of  heritors  and  elders 
which  took  place  in  a  bibulous  locality  where  the  minister, 
or  rather  John  Brown,  was  one  of  the  company.  Like  those 
heavenly  bodies  which  travel  at  such  high  speed  that  they 
fire  up  to  explosion  point  on  entering  the  air,  and  scatter 
their  fragments  over  space,  so  this  heterogeneous  com- 
pany soon  found  the  atmosphere  too  intensely  frictional 
and  explosive,  and  found  itself  blasted  out  of  the  inn  on  to 
the  high-road,  each  constituent  member,  "  by  some  cantrip 
slicht,"  flourishing  a  table  or  chair  leg,  to  the  utter  ruin 
all  round  of  ribs,  hats,  and  heads.  When  the  air  cleared, 
the  landlady  was  discovered  weeping  over  her  broken 
furniture  and  shattered  crockery.  So  runs  the  tradition. 
It  is  pathetically  added  that  the  elder,  Thomas  Waddel, 
and  the  minister,  stood  "  shouther  to  shouther  "  in  the  battle. 

These  characteristics  sometimes  reflected  themselves  in 
the  minister's  pulpit  manner,  we  are  told,  if  we  care  to 
entertain  such  things.  One  day,  while  preaching,  the  gallery 
was  unusually  obstreperous,  and  he  had  frequently  to  pause 
and  cast  warning  glances  in  that  direction.  This  having  no 
effect,  he  singled  out  the  most  offensive  gentleman  and  told 
him  bluntly  that  if  he  came  up  to  him  he  "  wad  pu'  the  flipe 
ower  his  nose ! "  We  do  not  know  how  to  extenuate  such 
pulpit  eloquence,  except  by  supposing  that  Mr  Brown,  having 


246  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

long  studied  the  matter,  had  concluded  that  he  had  as  good 
a  right  to  "  flipe "  noses  as  Saint  Peter  had  to  not  only 
"flipe"  but  slice  off  ears  in  vindicating  the  Master's  cause. 
Ecclesiastical  views  are  apt  to  vary  widely. 

The  new  church  was  opened  barely  three  months  when 
the  windows  were  blown  in !  The  superstitious  saw  in  this 
the  cloven  hoof  of  him  who,  on  the  strong  wind  flying,  "  tirls 
the  kirks."  The  sagacious  merely  remarked  that  "  the 
putty  wasna  hard  yet." 

We  are  told  that  the  foundations  of  the  old  church  are 
still  to  be  seen  underneath  the  floor  of  the  present  church, 
which  is  the  same  that  was  built  in  Mr  Brown's  time.  The 
plan  was  cruciform.  The  sundial  in  the  south  wall,  and 
the  cross  on  the  top  of  the  east  gable,  are  remnants  of  the 
old  edifice.  The  cross  is  chipped  in  one  of  its  arms  as  the 
result  of  a  fall  which  occurred  in  recent  times,  owing  to 
having  been  fastened  by  wooden  instead  of,  as  now,  by  iron 
bolts.  The  old  gallery  was  so  low  that  once  at  a  baptism  in 
church,  a  father,  when  about  to  "tak'  the  vows,"  stepped 
over  the  front  and  slid  down  instead  of  going  round  by  the 
stair.  So  true  is  it,  that  when  the  shepherd  ventures  outside 
the  bounds  of  respect  and  decorum,  the  sheep  soon  learn  to 
follow. 

It  might  be  an  easy  task  to  multiply  instances  of  this  state 
of  matters  in  the  parish  in  the  "teens"  and  "twenties"  of 
this  century.  Our  object  is  gained  when  a  correct  conception 
of  the  minister  and  the  man  John  Brown  is  obtained, 
together  with  a  view  of  the  manners  of  his  time  and  people. 
It  must  not  be  supposed  that  he  was  lacking  in  kindness  and 
amiability.  Men  who  can  give  the  hardest  knocks  have  often 
the  tenderest  of  hearts.  One  noble  action  yet  stands  out 
distinctly  in    the    parish    memory.     The  seasons   had   been 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  247 

hard  ones  for  farmers,  and  they  fell  with  double  severity 
upon  the  weaker  men  of  that  time.  He  learned  that  they 
had  no  seed  to  sow  their  crops,  having  been  forced  to  sell 
out  everything  to  pay  their  debts.  The  minister  came  to 
the  rescue  with  the  grain  from  his  glebe,  and  for  three  years 
assisted  them  gratis  in  this  way  till  better  seasons  rewarded 
them.     It  gives  us  great  pleasure  to  record  this. 

He  was  not  always  in  good  health,  although  he  had  a 
character  for  robustness.  In  1822,  he  writes  from  "  Mrs 
Cowans,  12  Queen  Street,  Edinburgh,"  on  the  15th  April, 
to  the  chief  trustee  for  Kirktonhill,  who  was  resident  in 
Edinburgh,  enclosing  his  stipend  account  for  crop  1821. 
He  says  he  "  is  in  bad  health  and  needing  money  greatly." 
We  think  it  no  wonder.  His  lawsuits  must  have  been  a 
terrible  drain  on  his  small  exchequer.  Yet  he  seems  to 
have  preserved  fairly  good  health  till  the  year  1827,  when 
on  thirty  Sundays  there  was  no  service  in  church.  He  died 
on  Sunday,  15th  June  1828,  aged  59,  and  was  buried  in 
Channelkirk  Churchyard  on  the  20th  of  that  month.  A 
small  plain  headstone  memorialises  the  place  where  he  lies. 
He  was  born  in  1769,  and  was  thus  40  years  of  age  when 
he  was  presented  to  Channelkirk.  He  was  a  minister  for 
twenty-five  years,  and  nearly  twenty  of  these  he  spent  in 
this  parish.  He  was  married  to  Philis  Moscrop,  and  on 
5th  May  1 81 5,  mention  is  made  of  his  having  "a  wife  and 
child."  After  his  death  'Mrs  Brown  communicated  with  the 
Earlston  Presbytery  to  get  from  the  fund  of  the  Association 
of  Dissenting  Ministers  in  the  North  of  England,  of  which 
Association  her  husband  was  for  many  years  a  member, 
some  help  of  a  pecuniary  kind  by  paying  up  his  arrears. 
She  got,  through  the  Moderator,  a  "  decidedly  unfavourable  " 
answer.     This  "Association"  seems  to  have  been  purely  a 


248  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

voluntary  one,  and  was  not  in  connection  with  the  national 
churches  of  either  England  or  Scotland. 

In  consequence,  we  suppose,  of  the  lack  of  respect  for  the 
ordinances  of  religion  in  the  parish,  Mr  Brown  had  great 
difficulty  in  obtaining  elders.  For  many  years  one  only  stood 
with  him,and  in  the  four  years  immediately  preceding  his  death 
all  had  forsaken  him.  This  is  made  evident  by  the  minute 
which  introduces  us  to  his  successor,  James  Rutherford. 

James  Rutherford — 1828- 1862. 

"  Channelkirk,  27th  December  1829. — In  consequence  of 
the  want  of  elders  in  this  parish  for  a  number  of  years,  the 
duties  connected  with  that  office  have  not  been  regularly 
performed.  To  remedy  this  defect  the  Rev.  James  Ruther- 
ford, minister,  from  the  pulpit,  requested  the  congregation 
to  select  four  or  five  persons  whom  they  might  think  qualified 
for  that  office."  * 

Mr  Rutherford  found  the  ecclesiastical  machinery  some- 
what rusty,  and  quietly,  as  was  his  manner,  set  to  work 
to  improve  it.  He  was  translated  from  the  Presbyterian 
congregation  at  Whitby,  Yorkshire,  to  Channelkirk,  and 
preached  for  the  first  time  in  the  latter  place  on  the  26th 
of  October  1828.  He  had  been  duly  licensed  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Dunse  on  31st  May  1816,  and  ordained 
minister  at  Whitby  by  the  Presbytery  of  Kelso,  14th  March 
1820.  He  was  presented  to  Channelkirk  charge  by  the 
patron,  Sir  William  Purves  Hume  Campbell,  Bart,  of  March- 
mont,  and  was  admitted  i6th  December  1828.  He  was 
"  under  40  "  at  the  time,  and  had  married  Margaret  Clark  on 
the  20th  December  1 827,  that  is,  twelve  months  previous  to 
his  translation.     She  died  30th  June  1837,  just  ten  days  after 

*  Kirk  Records. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  249 

Her  Most  Gracious  Majesty  the  Queen  began  her  memorable 
reign. 

Mr  Rutherford's  incumbency  of  thirty-four  years  in 
Channelkirk  is  marked  by  a  quiet,  inoffensive  grace  of  Hfe, 
and  a  suave  disposition  towards  all  around  him.  He  is 
remembered  as  a  man  who  shrank  from  publicity  in  every 
form,  and  was  rather  shy  than  otherwise  in  the  social 
relationships  of  the  parish.  He  was  often  observed  to  turn 
in  his  walks  and  divert  his  route  if  a  person  or  cart  were 
seen  coming  towards  him.  He  was  accustomed  to  spend 
his  forenoons  in  the  church  alone ;  the  extreme  silence  of 
the  place  being  more  to  his  taste  than  the  domiciliary  bustle 
of  the  manse.  He  is  also  reported  to  have  been  in  possession 
of  some  wealth,  and  this  consideration,  joined  with  an  easy 
benevolent  temperament,  brought  him  frequently  under  the 
guileful  ways  of  the  wily  mendicant.  Certain  babies  in  the 
parish  took  sick  ;  an  aged  mother,  living  at  a  distance,  had 
just  died,  and  funds  were  required  to  bury  her ;  and  such  like 
stories  were  floated  over  him  with  the  usual  loquacious  in- 
cantations ;  and  they  were  never  known  to  disappoint  the 
needy  one,  although,  it  is  said,  Mr  Rutherford  subsequently 
found  out,  in  most  instances,  that  the  special  distress  had 
been  entirely  imaginary.  Doubtless  he  acted  on  the 
principle  that  to  be  charitable  to  all  is  the  only  true  method 
of  relieving  the  wants  of  the  few  genuine  poor.  This  is  the 
mode  which  is  stigmatised  as  "  indiscriminate,"  but  it  is  also 
the  lavish  way  of  nature,  which,  to  effect  her  end,  often 
showers  thousands  of  seeds  abroad  to  accomplish  one  good 
plant.  Mr  Rutherford  is  yet  remembered  as  gentlemanly  in 
all  his  ways,  and  a  man  of  wide  reading  and  scholarly 
habits. 

A  milder  friendship   between   minister  and  heritors  ob- 


250  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

tained  during  Mr  Rutherford's  day  than  was  wont  in  former 
years.  It  is  pleasing  to  note  the  change.  The  Nathaniel- 
like disposition  of  the  man  comes  out  sharply  in  a  proposi- 
tion which  he  laid  before  them  on  the  13th  March  1829, 
although  the  astuteness  of  the  lawyer  is  clearly  absent 
in  him.  He  had  apparently  ruminated  long  on  the  causes 
of  dispute  between  the  manor  and  the  manse,  and  to  put 
an  end  to  any  possibility  of  such  disagreeables  arising  in 
his  own  experience,  had  devised  a  plan  of  peace,  and  laid 
it  on  the  table  for  their  consideration.  He  proposed  that 
they,  the  heritors,  should  give  him  the  slump  sum  of  ^270, 
and  he,  in  turn,  would  execute  whatever  repairs  and 
additions  on  the  manse,  offices,  garden  and  glebe  might  be 
required,  and  take  upon  himself  all  further  expense  in  these 
matters  during  his  incumbency.  This  testified  a  magnani- 
mous spirit  truly,  but  it  was  not  "  business."  For  suppose 
the  heritors  had  closed  with  the  bargain  and  had  handed 
him  the  ;^270.  Suppose  that  in  the  following  week  Mr 
Rutherford  had  died !  The  money  was  then  lost  to  the 
heritors,  and  the  next  incumbent  would  have  demanded  his 
rights  from  them  also  in  due  process,  and  thus  double 
expense  would  have  fallen  upon  them.  They,  therefore, 
could  not  accept  his  scheme  of  peace.  But  he  had  proved 
himself  the  possessor  of  a  right  and  kindly  mind.  This 
comes  out  again  fifteen  years  later,  when,  in  1846,  he  pro- 
vided at  his  private  cost  the  materials  for  rough-casting 
the  manse,  while  the  heritors  had  only  the  expense  of  the 
labour  to  meet.  Only  a  minister  "  with  means," — a  rare 
thing  among  Scotch  ministers — could  cultivate  such  generous 
habits.  But  by  such  means  all  friction  ceased  between 
the  two  interests,  and  during  the  whole  of  his  ministry 
we   do   not   find   that   anything   except  harmony  prevailed. 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  251 

Would  that  the  same  record  had  existed  both  before  and 
after  his  period. 

A  few  items  are  chronicled  in  the  Kirk  Records  which 
wear  the  complexion  of  his  day.  It  is  noted,  for  example, 
that  a  national  fast  was  proclaimed  for  22nd  March  1832, 
on  account  of  the  fearful  visitation  of  cholera  during  that 
year.  The  same  thing  for  the  same  reason  takes  place 
on  the  8th  November  1849.  The  "Disruption  of  1843" 
cost  him  an  elder  and  the  parish  a  schoolmaster  with  the 
secession  of  Mr  Dodds.  A  national  fast  is  held  again  in 
1847,  24th  March,  on  account  of  the  "Famine  in  Ireland." 
Such  matters  as  an  eclipse  of  the  sun,  15th  May  1836,  and 
great  snowstorms  in  1852  and  1859,  are  faithfully  noted. 

Mr  Rutherford  was  not  a  robust  man,  and  on  the  3rd 
December  1844  we  find  him  obtaining  leave  from  the 
Presbytery  to  have  an  "assistant  and  successor."  His  son, 
Cornelius,  born  22nd  April  1830,  also  weighed  upon  his 
spirits,  as  on  5th  December  1843  he  requests  leave  of  absence 
from  his  charge  for  two  months  on  account  of  the  ill-health 
of  this  only  son,  then  residing  in  England.  In  1850  Mr 
Rutherford  "  is  still  in  poor  health  and  unable  for  all  the 
duties,"  and  again  obtains  leave  of  absence.  But  he  does 
not  seem  to  have  actually  had  an  assistant  till  1851,  when 
John  Archibald  Dow  is  found  in  that  position.  Mr  Dow's 
successor  as  assistant,  now  the  genial  and  lovable  minister 
of  Maxton,  the  Rev.  Manners  Hamilton  Nisbet  Grahame, 
came  to  Channelkirk  in  1854,  but  only  stayed  a  few  months, 
as  Archibald  Brown,  now  Minister  Emeritus  of  Legerwood, 
took  over  the  work  from  him  in  December  of  the  same 
year.  James  Forbes,  now  minister  of  Cults,  Fife,  succeeded 
Mr  Brown  in  1858.  Mr  Peter  Christie,  now  the  esteemed 
minister  of  Abbey    St    Bathans,   succeeded    Mr   Forbes   in 


252  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

1 86 1,  and  Mr  Rutherford  found  his  last  assistant  in  the  Good 
Shepherd  Himself,  who  led  His  servant  "  doon  the  dead- 
mirk-dale "  on  the  2nd  day  of  August   1862. 

A  portrait  in  oil  of  Mr  Rutherford  hangs  in  the  session- 
house  of  Stow  Parish  Church,  access  to  which  can  be  readily 
obtained  by  any  one  interested.  The  brief  notice  of  the 
parish  incorporated  in  the  New  Statistical  Account^  ii.,  is 
from  his  pen. 

James  Walker — 1862-1885. 

The  Rev.  James  Walker's  career  as  a  minister  in  Channel- 
kirk  appears  to  have  been  a  chequered  one.  At  the  death  of 
Mr  Rutherford  the  parish  seems  to  have  been  lapped  in 
profound  repose,  the  people,  the  heritors,  and  the  minister 
enjoying  a  common  peace,  each  pursuing  the  routine  of  daily 
duty  in  mutual  harmony  and  esteem.  Mr  Walker  was 
doomed  to  unhappier  experiences.  During  his  time  the 
little  parish  became  a  boiling  cauldron.  Presbytery,  minister, 
teacher,  heritors,  elders,  beadle,  precentor,  and  the  general 
populace  became  involved  in  melancholy  complications  ;  and 
heart-burnings  such  as  require  generations  to  neutralise  and 
eliminate  were  engendered.  Everywhere  there  is  evidence, 
during  the  period  between  1862  and  1885,  of  distraction  at 
the  heart  of  things.  The  Records  of  the  General  Assembly, 
Earlston  Presbytery,  and  the  parish  of  Channelkirk,  are 
dibbled  full  of  such  expressions  as  "  difference  of  opinion," 
"committee  appointed  to  inquire,"  "injunction,"  "explana- 
tions," "fama,"  "  famae,"  "scandalous  conduct,"  "libel," 
"  elders'  petition,"  "  beadle's  petition,"  "  intoxication,"  "  deep 
sorrow,"  "  no  Sacrament  held,"  "  cautioned  by  Synod,"  and 
such  like.  Even  after  the  lapse  of  a  decade  of  years  there 
appear  again,  like  the  haunting   underground  tones  of  the 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  253 

ghost  in  Hamlet,  the  expressions,  "  fama,"  "  Hbel,"  "  allega- 
tions of  insanity,"  and  much  more,  which  sufficiently  indicate 
the  kind  of  acid  element  in  which,  for  so  long,  the  ecclesi- 
astical affairs  of  Lauderdale  continued  to  float.  And  when 
such  terms  are  found  in  all  the  precise  legality  of  recorded 
statements,  it  would  be  surprising  if  more  ample  definitions 
and  stronger  flavours  were  proved  absent  in  the  sententious 
narratives  of  the  general  public.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  gossip 
on  this  topic  usually  grows  grey  with  the  travail  of  elucida- 
tion, and  the  extemporised  colloquial  stage  soon  becomes 
crowded  with  thrilling  incidents  and  exciting  situations,  and 
dramatis  personcs  too  bewilderingly  numerous  to  individu- 
alise. 

Mr  Walker  was  presented  to  the  charge  of  Channelkirk 
by  the  patron,  Sir  Hugh  H.  Campbell  of  Marchmont,  on  the 
22nd  September  1862.  He  had  been  previously  licensed  on 
the  loth  June  of  the  same  year  by  Dunse  Presbytery.  The 
call  was  signed  by  one  elder  and  twenty  others.  He  was 
ordained  by  Earlston  Presbytery  on  the  27th  November 
1862.  He  married  on  24th  April  1867,  and  had  issue.  He 
resigned  the  charge  on  nth  December  1884,  and  Channel- 
kirk was  declared  vacant  6th  January  1885.  He  and  his 
family  emigrated  to  Vancouver,  British  Columbia. 

The  occasion  of  the  departure  from  the  manse  was  made 
memorable  by  the  burning  of  that  building,  which  in  some 
mysterious  manner  caught  fire  and  was  wholly  destroyed. 
The  silver  Communion  Cups  were  lost  in  this  catastrophe, 
and  no  trace  of  even  the  melted  silver  was  ever  discovered. 
The  present  pewter  ones  took  their  place,  but  there  is  no 
reason  why  some  generous  lover  of  the  church  of  St  Cuthbert 
should  not  replace  them  with  others  worthy  of  the  services  of 
the  house  of  God.     The  donation  would  help  to  modify  in 


254  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

some  measure  the  terrible  details  of  a  sad  chapter  in  its 
history.  It  was  during  this  incumbency  that  cards  were 
substituted  for  the  tokens  dated  1822.  Older  tokens  were 
plentiful,  it  is  said,  but  were  relegated  to  the  strawhouse, 
where  they  got  lost. 

Joseph  Lowe— 1885-1891. 

We  understand  that  Mr  Lowe  was  born  in  1849  in  the 
parish  of  Lundie,  a  few  miles  north-west  of  Dundee,  where 
his  father  was  "  minister's  man."  The  family  removed  to 
Balmerino,  where  his  father,  a  most  respectable  and  in- 
telligent workman,  acted  in  the  same  capacity  for  fourteen 
years  under  the  Rev,  Dr  James  Campbell.  The  future 
minister  of  Channelkirk  learned  there  in  his  youth  the  trade 
of  a  joiner,  and  having  the  ministry  in  view,  must  have 
worked  hard  and  also  learned  to  "  scorn  delights  and  live 
laborious  days."  He  matriculated  as  a  "  bejant "  in  St 
Andrews  University  for  the  session  187 1-2,  taking  the  two 
classes,  English  and  First  Mathematics.  He  then  spelt  his 
name  "  Low."  He  entered  St  Mary's  Divinity  Hall  there  in 
the  winter  of  1875-6,  at  the  age  of  26,  and  passed  through 
the  usual  three  years'  curriculum.  He  was  licensed  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Dundee  on  the  3rd  July  1878,  as  a  preacher 
of  the  Gospel.  Principal  Tulloch,  of  St  Andrews,  was  instru- 
mental in  obtaining  for  him  an  assistantship  in  West  Church, 
Perth,  under  the  learned  and  distinguished  scholar,  the  Rev. 
Dr  Milne.  He  afterwards  began  a  mission  in  Loanhead 
under  the  Rev.  Mr  Burdon,  and  made  the  nucleus  of  the 
church  there  which  is  now  served  by  the  Rev.  Alexander 
Stewart.  He  left  Loanhead  to  be  assistant  to  the  Rev.  John 
Milne,  Greenside,  Edinburgh,  and  subsequently  acted  in   a 


THE  MINISTERS  AND  THEIR  TIMES  255 

similar  capacity  to  the  Very  Rev.  Dr  James  Macgregor,  of 
St  Cuthbert's. 

Mr  Lowe  was  one  of  four  candidates  who  preached  for 
the  vacant  charge  at  Channelkirk,  and  the  system  of 
patronage  having  been  abolished,  he  became  the  choice 
of  the  congregation  as  minister  on  6th  April  1885,  the 
call  being  signed  on  that  date  by  seventy-four  members 
of  the  church.  He  was  ordained  to  the  church  and  parish 
on  the  7th  of  May  of  the  same  year. 

The  Presbytery  Records  show  a  strange  declension 
in  the  church  membership  during  his  ministry.  In  1887 
there  were  181  names  on  the  Communion  Roll;  in  1889, 
162;  in  1890,  146;  in  1891,  when  he  resigned,  142.  The 
number  of  members  who  communicated  in  June  1885,  the 
first  year  of  his  ministry,  was  112.  In  May  1891,  his  last 
year,  43  only  communicated.  He  resigned  his  charge  on 
the  22nd  June  of  that  year  by  letter  sent  from  Edinburgh, 
where  he  resided,  to  the  Moderator  of  Earlston  Presbytery, 
in  which  he  says,  "  I  am  sorry  that  through  continued  in- 
disposition I  do  not  expect  to  be  at  the  meeting,  but  I 
hope  there  will  be  no  injustice  done  to  my  case  on  that 
account." 

His  resignation  was  in  due  time  accepted,  and  the  church 
declared  vacant  on  the  12th  July  1891. 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  AND  CHURCHYARD 

Elders  since  1650 — Beadles  since  1654 — The  Mortcloths — Salary — The 
Church — Style  of  Architecture — Mode  of  Worship — Kirk  Bell 
■ — Rural  Religion — Attendances  at  Church — The  Roll — Church 
Patrons — The  Churchyard — Consecration — Notable  Tombstones — 
Resurrectionists. 

The  following  is  as  complete  a  list  of  Channelkirk  elders 
as  we  have  been  able  to  make.  The  years  opposite  the 
names  are  those  in  which  they  are  first  mentioned  : — 

1650,  William  Wight,  "elder  and  deacon." 

„      Adam  Somerville,  Airhouse,  "  elder  and  deacon." 

„      Robert  Wight. 

„      Alexander  Riddell,  Hartside. 
1658.  "  The  minister  and  four  elders." 
1661.  James  Somervell  in  Headshaw. 
1664.  William  Knight,  Airhouse. 

„      William  Waddel,  Ugston. 

1697.  Adam  Knox. 

„      George  Somerville. 

1698.  William  Brunton. 

1 701.  Thomas  Brounlies. 
„      George  Kemp. 

„     James  Waddel. 

„      John  Lothian  or  Loudon. 

„      James  Wetherston,  Wederston,  or  Waterston. 

„     James  Waddington. 

1702.  James  Tait. 

1744.  James  Somervail,  Airhouse. 
„      George  Somervail,  Carfrae,  died  in  Kirktonhill,  1779. 


Not  ordained  till 
1833,  though  act- 
ing as  elders. 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  257 

1744.  George  Wight. 

„      William  Allan. 
1752.  William  Eckford,  Kelphope,  died  1764. 
1758.  John  Borthwick,  Crookston. 

„      Alexander  Dalziel,  Hartside. 

„      Robert  Clark,  Ougston. 

„      William  Renton,  Wiselawmiln,  died  1787. 

„      James  Thomson,  Nether  Bourhouse. 
1795.  Robert  Weddal. 

„      Thomas  Watson. 

„     John  Tait. 
1799.  Thomas  M'Dougal. 

„      Thomas  Waddel  (see  "  Rev.  John  Brown.") 
18x0.  James  Watherstone. 
1812.  William  Cessford,  Bowerhouse,  died  1824. 
1829.  Nichol  Dodds,  teacher,  Ugston. 

„      David  Scott,  Ugston. 

„      William  Cessford,  carpenter,  Ugston, 
went  to  America  in  1836. 

„      John  Gray,  tenant,  Midburn. 
1836.  William  Tait,  Parkfoot. 

„      Robert  Mason,  Justicehall  (left  the  parish  1844). 

„  William  Gray,  Midburn,  nephew  of  above  John  Gray. 
1845.  James  Wilson. 

„      Alexander  Davidson,  teacher,  Oxton. 

„      William  Forrest. 
1850.  Gideon  Renwick. 

„      Thomas  Darling. 

„     John  Renwick. 
1852.  James  Stevenson. 
1867.  David  Walkinshaw,  farmer,  Burnfoot. 

„      James  Bathgate,  farmer,  Bowerhouse. 
1888.  William  Bell,  joiner,  Oxton,  resigned  eldership  9th  September 
1896,  and  died  20th  December  1898. 

„  Rowaleyn  William  Matthewson,  merchant,  Oxton. 
1893.  William  Bald,  steward,  Hartside,  died  17th  July  1898. 
1898.  Thomas  Waddel,  tailor  and  clothier,  Oxton. 

There  are  thus  fifty-three  names  of  elders  who  have 
served  Channelkirk  since  1650.  The  writer  can  only  speak 
of  those  whom  he  has  known  personally  during  his  in- 
cumbency. 

R 


258  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

William  Bell,  joiner  in  Oxton,  was  a  man  of  warm 
religious  feelings,  specially  of  the  "  evangelical  "  or  "  revival  " 
type,  and  took  more  than  a  common  interest  in  the  services 
of  the  church.  The  writer  remembers,  with  gratitude,  the 
help  he  rendered  in  inaugurating  the  new  Sunday  School,  as 
he  was  the  only  person  who  volunteered  to  do  duty  in  that 
capacity.  He  was  genial  and  hearty  in  his  manner,  and  was 
much  respected  in  the  community.  His  attendance  at  church 
was  exemplary,  and  the  day  was  stormy  indeed  that  pre- 
vented him  from  occupying  his  wonted  seat.  For  some 
reason,  which  he  never  explained,  he  resigned  his  eldership 
on  9th  September  1896.  He  was  sensitive  and  retiring  in 
disposition,  and  deeply  resented  certain  actions  of  the  Kirk- 
session,  especially  in  abolishing  the  Fast  Day,  as  he  con- 
sidered it  unjust  to  the  ploughmen  in  depriving  them  of  a 
holiday.  He  latterly  "  lifted  his  lines  "  and  joined  Lauder 
parish  church,  in  which  membership  he  remained  till  his 
death  on  20th  December  1898.  He  died  suddenly  of  palsy. 
He  is  buried  in  Channelkirk  churchyard. 

William  Bald,  steward  on  Hartside  farm,  became  an  elder 
in  April  1893,  and  was  in  all  respects  a  faithful  and  worthy 
man.  He  was  married  and  had  several  of  a  family.  His 
frank  and  cheery  manner  made  him  welcome  in  every 
society.  The  sun  and  the  breeze  were  both  in  his  ways  and 
words,  and  his  attention  to  kirk  matters  strict  and  exemplary. 
He  became  an  elder  for  the  sake  of  the  Church  and  the 
advancement  of  its  work,  and  steadily  to  the  end  he  set  this 
purpose  before  him.  His  connection  with  the  eldership  was 
entirely  pleasant  to  all  concerned.  On  the  last  day  in  which 
he  attended  the  Lord's  Supper,  he  did  so  with  great  effort, 
as  the  disease  which  was  to  carry  him  away  then  lay  heavily 
upon  him.     Alone,  he  served  the  tables  that  May  day  when 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  259 

he  could  scarcely  stand,  and  cold  perspiration  stood  constantly 
on  his  brow.  He  did  it  out  of  a  strong  sense  of  duty  to  his 
Master  and  His  Church,  and  the  writer  has  ever  regarded  the 
act  as  a  deep  reproof  to  the  unhelping  spirit  which  pervaded 
the  Church  at  that  time,  and  as  a  proof  that  even  among 
the  humblest  there  are  to  be  found  examples  of  the  purest 
heroism.  He  was  very  straightforward  and  sincere.  But 
to  us  he  always  appeared  at  his  best  at  the  bedside  of  the 
sick.  His  cheery,  hearty  words  were  invigorating  and 
uplifting,  and  no  woman  could  nurse  another  in  her  dying 
hour  with  more  than  his  care  and  tenderness.  No  man 
was  more  welcome  at  the  manse,  and  we  hope  the  day  will 
be  distant  when  he  is  forgotten  there.  He  had  a  quiet 
fund  of  native  humour  which  gave  his  conversation  a  piquant 
flavour,  especially  when  he  recounted  the  reminiscences 
of  his  early  life,  or  his  experiences  at  Hartside  with  the 
"tramps."  His  kindness  to  all  such  was  proverbial,  and 
the  first  question  a  tramp  now  asks  on  coming  into  the 
parish  is,  "  Can  yez  tell  me  the  way  to  Hartside  ?  "  In  the 
barn,  in  the  stable,  somewhere  among  glorious  straw,  Mr 
Bald  could  bestow  them  for  the  night,  and  we  have 
heard  him  say  that  he  never  found  a  thing  astray,  or  dis- 
covered any  intention  to  do  any  injury  on  their  part.  He 
died  of  leucocythaemia,  and  was  buried  in  Channelkirk 
Churchyard.  The  grave  is  situated  on  the  south  side,  west 
from  the  "  Somerville  "  gravestone,  but  in  the  centre  of  the 
ground,  between  the  church  and  the  manse  garden  wall,  a 
memorial  stone  marks  his  resting-place,  and  few  deserved 
one  better. 

During  Mr  Bald's  last  weeks  of  life,  an  attempt  was 
put  forth  to  obtain  as  many  elders  as  make  at  least  a 
"quorum."       Three    are   required    in   any   Kirk-session   to 


260  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

accomplish  this,  and  in  our  case  a  Presbytery  assessor  was 
required  to  furnish  the  requisite  number.  The  Rev.  William 
Rankin,  minister  at  Legerwood,  had  always  been  sent  by 
the  Presbytery,  and  now  that  he  also  has  followed  Mr  Bald 
"  doon  the  dead-mirk-dale,"  we  mention  his  name  with 
mingled  feelings  of  sorrow  and  gratitude.  Always  obliging 
and  kind,  his  company  at  the  manse  on  these  occasions  was 
much  appreciated,  although,  without  doubt,  the  presence  of 
an  assessor  from  another  parish  to  do  work  which  belongs 
to  those  within  its  bounds  is  an  unworthy  stain  on  the 
honour  of  church  members  who,  while  professing  to  serve 
in  the  vineyard,  say,  "  I  go,"  but  go  not.  After  the  usual 
obstacles  had  been  met  and  subdued,  two  worthy  members, 
Messrs  Matthewson  and  Waddel,  both  from  Oxton,  con- 
sented to  act  as  elders,  and  Mr  Bald  was  delighted  at  the 
prospect.  All  the  legal  steps  were  fulfilled  with  a  view  to 
their  admission,  but  on  the  day  when  they  stood  before  the 
congregation  as  elders  of  the  parish  (19th  of  June  1898), 
Mr  Bald  was,  alas,  denied  the  pleasure  of  being  present  to 
give  them  the  right  hand  of  fellowship.  He  lay  in  Edin- 
burgh Infirmary  looking  shortly  to  be  himself  promoted  to 
the  glorious  company  of  elders  that  surround  the  throne 
on  high  ;  so  that  Messrs  Matthewson  and  Waddel  entered 
upon  office  to  take  up  the  work  which  Mr  Bald  had 
practically  laid  down,  and  which  Mr  Rankin,  in  his  youth 
and  in  the  midst  of  his  good  work  in  Legerwood,  was  so 
shortly  to  commit  to  other  hands  also.  But  the  men  were 
worthy  to  follow  in  their  footsteps,  and  we  trust  it  may 
be  long  ere  their  place  is  vacant  or  their  presence  missed 
in  the  church. 

Mr  Matthewson,  merchant   in   Oxton,  was,  perhaps,  the 
most   obstinate   opponent   the   writer   had  to  his  becoming 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  261 

minister  at  Channelkirk.  The  dicebox  of  kirk-electioneering 
is  often  presided  over  by  trick-loving  Pucks,  and  in  this  case, 
the  writer,  to  his  dismay,  found  himself  confronted  in  the 
contest — what  a  detestable  word  to  be  found  in  such  an 
affair ! — by  his  college  friend,  the  Rev.  R,  D.  Mackenzie,  now 
minister  at  Kilbarchan.  Mr  Matthewson  was  leader  of  the 
Mackenzie  voters.  But,  with  true  gentlemanliness,  when  the 
election  was  declared  against  his  wishes,  he  at  once  laid 
aside  all  party  feeling,  and  recognised  that  personal  matters 
must  yield  to  higher  considerations  if  the  ministry  is  to 
maintain  its  high  place  as  a  sacred  office  far  above  all  whims 
and  passions.  Accordingly,  he  was  chairman  at  the  writer's 
ordination  dinner  in  Carfraemill  Hotel  (23rd  Dec.  1891),  and 
no  one  could  have  received  greater  help,  or  more  attention 
in  the  parish  as  a  stranger,  than  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  minister 
on  entering  then  upon  his  duties  at  Channelkirk.  We  are 
happy  to  say  that  the  relationship  so  formed  has  never 
changed,  and  mutual  respect  has  only  deepened  into  mutual 
friendship  as  the  years  have  passed. 

He  has  done  much  good  work  in  the  district,  and  if  in 
several  ventures  he  has  not  achieved  all  he  wished,  he  has, 
at  least,  saved  the  parish  from  becoming  a  mere  place  of 
dreams,  and  has  decidedly  improved  the  pace.  For  example, 
after  meetings  and  motions  innumerable  had  transpired 
about  obtaining  a  telegraph  between  Lauder  and  Oxton, 
and  when  every  one  had  believed  the  matter  impossible,  Mr 
Matthewson  still  kept  it  alive,  negotiated  alone  with  the 
authorities,  put  the  necessary  time  and  expense  into  prose- 
cuting it,  and  the  present  extension  from  Lauder  to  his  place 
of  business  in  Oxton  is  the  result.  In  such  an  old-world 
district  as  ours,  this  progressiveness  meets,  of  course,  with 
much   solid,   though   silent,   resistance.      The   townman,   as 


262 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


Emerson  notes,  goes  with  the  town  clock,  but  the  country- 
man moves  only  with  the  law  of  gravitation,  and  where 
stobs  are  laid  down  opposite  hedge-slaps,  to  be  set  in  their 
place  three  years  afterwards,  and  subjects  of  consideration 
can  be  postponed  for  a  six  years'  interval,  it  is  not  to  be 
supposed  that  Mr  Matthewson  has  found  his  public  spirit 
always  a  pleasant  possession.  Too  much  energy  is  discom- 
forting to  many  good  folks,  and  it  has  been  a  matter  of 
interest  to  notice  how,  on  several  occasions,  almost  the  entire 
parish  has  been  combined  against  him.  No  doubt,  the  com- 
binations have  been  good-natured  ones,  as  a  whole,  and  we 
believe  no  one  is  more  highly  respected  in  our  district  than 
he  is.  He  is  characterised  by  fearless  outspokenness,  and 
states  his  opinion  of  men  and  things  with  a  vivacity  which  is 
sometimes  disconcerting.  This,  however,  is  only  his  public 
attitude  towards  all  that  affects  the  welfare  of  the  district,  for 
in  private  life  he  is  the  most  genial  of  men.  He  has  proved 
himself  a  true  friend  of  the  community.  The  Church  being 
by  far  the  foremost  institution  in  any  parish,  the  true  level 
of  public  spirit  of  the  best  kind  is  marked  by  men's  attitude 
towards  it,  and  their  ability  to  fill  its  offices.  A  district  is 
rich  or  poor  in  proportion  to  the  men  it  can  furnish  to 
minister  to  the  highest  wants  of  human  nature.  Mr 
Matthewson  was  a  parish  councillor  ;  he  was  for  many  years 
a  member  of  the  School  Board  ;  in  all  social  meetings  he 
was,  and  is,  a  leader.  The  Sunday  School  has  received 
yeoman  service  from  him  and  his  family.  In  these  his 
energy  is  tireless,  his  services  and  time  given  gratuitously 
and  cheerfully,  and  the  whole  parish  is  indebted  to  him  for 
his  interest  and  work  in  them,  and  the  high  example  he 
shows  in  all-round  helpfulness. 

Thomas   Waddel,   tailor    and    clothier    in    Oxton,    was 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  263 

ordained  an  elder  on  19th  June  1898.  He  bears  a  name 
which  has  been  associated  with  Channelkirk  eldership 
through  a  longer  period  than  any  other  name  in  the  parish. 
Perhaps,  also,  it  is  one  which  is  associated  most  with  that 
ability  which  in  our  district  has  risen  higher  than  mere 
commercial  pursuits,  and  the  ploughing  of  the  fields,  and 
getting  gain.  Some  of  the  Waddels  are  notable  artists  and 
musicians,  some  manufacturers,  some  parish  councillors  ;  all 
are  characterised  by '  in.tellect ;  all  have  prospered,  and  all 
are  respectable.  The  Waddels  can  be  known  anywhere  by 
their  massive  heads,  dome-like  foreheads,  and  large,  clear 
eyes.  The  name  is,  we  believe,  the  same  at  root  as  Wedale, 
the  ancient  name  of  an  extensive  district  of  the  Gala  Valley. 
Sometimes  spelt  Weddell,  it  is  a  name  often  met  throughout 
the  Borders. 

Mr  Waddel  is  a  fine  type  of  the  Scottish  elder.  Calm 
and  deliberative  in  all  his  ways,  cautious  in  speech  and  quiet 
in  manner,  his  robust  yet  erect  form  and  reverential  air 
blend  very  becomingly  with  the  duties  that  fall  to  his  share 
on  Sundays,  and  more  especially  on  Communion  days. 
He  is  retiring  and  reserved,  and  although  interested  in  all 
that  affects  the  parish,  politically  or  otherwise,  his  voice  is 
seldom  heard,  and  is  never  prominent  at  any  time.  He  is 
warm-hearted  and  sympathetic,  without  fads,  and  his  sunny 
nature  gives  a  touch  of  humour  to  his  conversation,  which  is 
very  pleasing.  Happy  the  minister  that  has  such  elders  ! 
We  at  least  think  ourselves  fortunate,  and  pray  God  we  may 
be  long  spared  to  do  His  work  together,  in  His  Church  and 
among  His  people. 


264  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  Beadles. 

The  beadles  of  a  parish  are  usually  men  of  some 
character,  if  not  men  of  mark,  and  in  their  sphere  have  to 
be  reckoned  with  both  inside  and  outside  of  the  church. 
They  possess  as  definite  and  as  privileged  a  place  in  the 
estimation  of  the  people  as  do  the  ministers  themselves, 
and,  as  a  rule,  they  deserve  it.  Working  much  alone  in 
empty  churches  and  empty  graves,  their  moods  take  the 
sombre  yet  thoughtful  tone  of  these  places,  while  familiarity 
with  them  imparts  also  a  freedom  in  regard  to  sacred  things, 
which  occasionally  broadens  out  into  humorous  traits  of  a 
grim,  taciturn  kind  not  easily  definable.  In  every  case  they 
are  men  apart.  Their  caste  is  unique,  and  the  beadle's 
place  is  sometimes  more  held  in  awe  than  that  of  the  elder 
or  the  parson.  The  Channelkirk  beadles  have,  in  days 
gone  by,  well  sustained  the  varied  reputation  of  their 
guild. 

It  is  in  the  year  1654  that  we  first  catch  a  glimpse  of 
David  Kool  digging  away  at  the  graves  in  Channelkirk 
churchyard,  and  receiving  a  small  sum  from  the  collections 
in  remuneration.  Between  his  name  and  that  of  William 
Brown,  who  appears  in  1754,  exactly  one  hundred  years 
afterwards,  the  beadle  is  but  a  shadow,  and  a  nameless  one. 
"  The  beadle "  is  mentioned  several  times  during  that 
long  period,  but  his  name  is  not  given.  William  Brown 
did  not  hold  the  office  many  years  after  1754,  as  in  1757 
Robert  Fairgrieve  takes  the  bell-ringing  in  hand.  David 
Henderson  succeeded  him  in  1767,  ten  years  later.  After 
David  came  James  Douglas  in  1772.  James  Henderson 
came  next  in  1793,  and  he  reigned  thirty-eight  years.  He 
was  the  "  King  of  the  beadles."      He   is   yet    remembered 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  265 

as  a  man  of  fine  build,  not  tall,  but  broad  and  stout,  as  a 
"seaman  bold,"  with  a  nose  hooked  like  the  eagle's  beak. 
He  was  a  great  snuffer.  Coming  under  the  notice  of  Lord 
Lauderdale,  his  lordship  put  him  into  livery,  and  thus,  "  not 
arrayed  like  one  of  these,"  James  strutted  about  the  dale 
till  an  advanced  old  age,  proud  of  the  "  Yirl's  "  uniform  and 
patronage.  Many  a  shilling  fell  to  him  in  this  way  in  order 
that  he  might  indulge  his  favourite  "sneeshin',"  The  old 
chestnut  is  related  of  him  that  when  asked  how  he  was 
"  gettin'  on,"  he  replied,  "  Hoot,  no  ava ;  I  haena  buried  a 
livin'  sowl  this  sax  weeks." 

This  connection  between  our  beadle  and  the  Earl  of 
Lauderdale  recalls  the  relationship  between  that  illustrious 
family  and  the  beadle  of  Lunan.  The  able  and  genial 
historian  of  Arbroath  thus  narrates  the  story  : — "  A  remark- 
able story,  a  romance  of  the  peerage,  is  connected  with  two 
of  the  successive  beadles  of  Lunan,  father  and  son.  The 
office  of  beadle  in  the  parish  was  for  a  long  time  virtually 
hereditary  in  a  family  of  the  name  of  Gavin.  It  was  held 
in  1720  by  James  Gavin,  who  showed  hospitality  to  the 
skipper  of  a  Dutch  vessel  which  was  in  that  year  wrecked 
in  Lunan  Bay.  The  skipper  married  the  beadle's  daughter, 
and  returned  with  his  wife  to  Holland.  Afterwards,  the 
beadle's  son,  Alexander,  succeeded  to  his  father's  office, 
and  his  son,  David  Gavin,  became  a  partner  in  a  commercial 
house  in  Holland,  where  he  married  his  cousin,  the  skipper's 
daughter.  She  died  soon  afterwards,  and  David  Gavin, 
having  amassed  a  fortune,  returned  to  Scotland,  where  he 
bought  the  estate  of  Langton  in  Berwickshire,  and  married, 
in  1770,  Lady  Betty,  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Lauderdale. 
By  this  marriage  he  had  three  daughters,  one  of  whom 
became   Marchioness   of    Breadalbane,   mother   of   the   late 


266  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Marquis  and  of  the  Duchess  of  Buckingham.  Alexander 
Gavin,  the  kirk  beadle  of  Lunan,  was  thus  the  father-in-law 
of  an  earl's  daughter,  the  grandfather  of  a  marchioness,  and 
the  great-grandfather  of  a  marchioness  and  a  duchess."* 

John  Gibson  succeeded  James  in  1831,  and  after  five 
years'  service  he  gave  place  to  Laughlan  M'Bean,  who 
became  beadle  in  1836.  "Lauchie"  was  twenty  years  in 
charge,  and  many  stories  are  told  of  him,  one  or  two  of 
which  seem  to  suggest  that  he  was  absent-minded  to  a 
degree.  David  Tait  came  in  his  place  in  1856.  He  is 
spoken  of  as  having  the  most  retentive  memory  for  local 
affairs  of  all  the  people  in  the  parish.  We  can  easily  believe 
it :  his  sons,  Robert  and  James,  our  present  roadmen,  having 
received  their  father's  mantle  in  that  respect.  David  Tait 
resigned  in  1862,  and  John  Lindsay  took  his  place.  He  was 
uncle  to  the  present  beadle,  Robert  Lindsay,  who  began 
his  duties  in  the  year  1874-5,  ^^^  still  discharges  them 
regularly  and  well.  Robert  is  a  man  of  strong  character 
and  resolution,  and  has  the  courage  of  his  convictions. 
He  is  perhaps  more  feared  than  loved,  but  he  has  sterling 
honest  qualities  which  compel  respect.  The  writer  has 
known  few  men  more  conscientious  in  the  fulfilment  of  duty. 
First  impressions  do  him  injustice.  He  is  credited  with 
a  nature  somewhat  unsympathetic,  and  with  speaking  his 
mind  vigorously.  He  is  nevertheless  genial  and  kind,  and 
has  many  humorous  stories  of  bygone  days.  Genuinely 
Scotch,  he  possesses  a  scornful  resentment  of  anything  like 
fine  palaver  in  the  pulpit,  and  has  scant  respect  for  "  grand 
English."  He  is  a  splendid  workman,  and  never  spares 
himself  in  what  he  does,  and  when  it  is  done  it  can  be 
trusted.  It  is  impossible  to  give  any  man  higher  praise. 
*  Aberbrothock  Illustrated^  P-  SS- 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  267 

In  most  country  parishes  the  beadle  also  acts  as  sexton 
and  gravedigger,  and  is  indispensable  at  funerals.  Mortuary 
notices  are  frequent  throughout  our  old  Parish  Records,  and 
cullings  from  these  may  have  a  certain  interest  to  many. 
The  mortdotk,  for  example,  discontinued  now  for  many 
years  past,  used  to  be  a  familiar  object  on  all  occasions 
of  burial.  In  1683  the  fee  for  its  hire  was  £i,6s.  8d.  Scots 
(2s.  2fd.  sterling),  and  in  1684,  £1,  is.  (is.  9d.) ;  13s.  4d.  for 
a  child.  A  new  one  in  1705  cost  ;^25,  9s.,  with  ^24,  12s. 
for  fringes  (which  "  fringes  "  is  said  to  be  a  false  entry,  how- 
ever), or  a  total  of  £^,  3s.  id.  sterling.  In  the  same  year 
a  "  mortcloth  of  sackcloth "  cost  for  making,  i  s.  Scots 
(id.  sterling).  In  1706,  a  "child's  mortcloth,"  that  is,  a 
pall  to  be  used  over  a  child's  coffin,  cost  ;^I3,  5s.  Scots 
(^i,  2s.  id.  sterling),  and  the  making  of  it,  7s.  (7d.)  A 
litter  cost  ;^i,  6s.  (2s.  2d).  In  1748,  a  new  mortcloth  cost 
the  Kirk-session  £62,  8s.  (;^5,  4s.),  replacing  one  made  in 
1732  at  a  cost  of  ^15,  12s.  For  its  use  in  1752  and  on- 
wards the  charge  was  £2,  2s.  Scots  (3s.  4d.  sterling), 
1 6s.  Scots  for  the  smaller  one,  and  6s.  for  a  child's.  These 
fees  seem  to  have  held  till  1775,  when  they  were  raised  to 
5s.  sterling,  and  2s.  gd.,  the  latter  charge  including  the  litter. 
In  1804,  "the  Session  this  day  (23rd  March)  took  under 
their  consideration  what  the  prices  of  the  different  mort- 
cloths  should  be  when  they  were  given  out,  and  they  agree 
that  the  best  mortcloth  shall  be  six  shillings  within  the 
parish  and  seven  when  it  goes  out  of  the  parish,  besides 
a  shilling  over  and  above  to  help  to  keep  the  churchyard 
dyke  in  repair.  The  second  mortcloth  to  be  both  within  and 
without  the  parish  three  shillings  and  twopence,  and  a 
sixpence  over  and  above  for  to  help  to  keep  the  churchyard 
dyke  in  repair.     The  small  mortcloth  to   be  sixteen   pence 


268  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

both  within  and  without  the  parish.  The  beadle  is  to  have 
one  shilling  off  the  best  mortcloth  money,  eightpence  off  the 
second,  and  tenpence  off  the  small  mortcloth,  for  taking  care 
of  them.  He  is  also  to  have  one  shilling  and  sixpence  for 
digging  big  graves,  and  ninepence  for  digging  small  graves." 

"  At  same  time  the  Session  examined  the  accounts 
respecting  the  buying  of  the  new  mortcloth,  etc.,  and  finds 
as  follows : — 

1 .  To  velvet,  etc.,  for  the  new  mortcloth,  with  expense  of 

buying,  amounts  to  .  .  .  -£375 

2.  To   the   tailor   for  making   the   new  mortcloth    and 

mending  two  old  ones,  with  silk  and  thread,        .        o  i8    6 


Added,  is     ^451 1* 

After  1834,  the  fee  varied.  We  note  5s.,  3s.  gd.,  2s.,  3s., 
and  in  1848-49,  is.  The  people  appear  to  have  latterly 
almost  wholly  discarded  the  use  of  the  mortcloth.  The 
preference  of  the  present  day  is  for  simplicity  in  burials. 
Funerals  are  devoid  of  the  garniture  of  woe  which  formerly 
obtained  on  such  occasions,  and  while  the  coffin  is  carried 
from  the  hearse  to  the  grave  without  any  drapings,  the 
mourners  follow  it  without  that  display  of  crape  and  white 
"  weepers  "  (bands  of  cambric  sewn  round  the  coat  sleeve  at 
the  wrist),  which  was  so  common  to  a  former  generation. 
Those  attending  nearly  all  come  on  foot  where  distances  are 
not  great,  but  it  was  customary  of  yore  for  a  large  proportion 
of  the  mourners  to  ride  on  horseback,  and  a  troop  of  boys 
were  wont  to  accompany  them  with  the  expectation  of 
receiving  a  penny  or  twopence  for  "  holding  the  horses  "  at 
the  entrance  to  the  churchyard  until  the  owners  should 
return  from  the  interment.     In  consequence,  a  funeral  then 

*  Kirk  Records. 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  269 

sometimes  meant  a  holiday  to  the  school.  In  1733,  a  coffin 
cost  ^3  Scots  (5s.  sterling);  in  1775,  5s.  sterling;  in  1776, 
6s.  ;  in  1783,  7s. ;  in  1796,  9s.  ;  in  1804,  12s.  ;  but  these  were 
cases  where  the  poor  were  buried  at  public  expense. 

Proclamation  of  marriage  in  church  cost,  in  1705,  14s. 
Scots  (is.  2d.  sterling) ;  and  this  seems  to  have  been  the  fee 
till  1843.  From  November  9  of  that  year  until  November 
27,  1885,  we  have  no  record  of  these  fees.  On  that  date 
the  proclamation  fee  is  set  down  at  2s.  66.  This  is  the 
charge  at  present. 

For  "ringing  the  bell"  a  year  the  beadle  received  in  1705 
the  sum  of  £2,  8s.  Scots  (4s.  sterling).  In  1721  there  is 
this  entry,  "  To  the  Schoolmaster  and  Bellman,  and  other  poor 
people,  ;^8,  4s.  This  fee  continued  till  1795,  when  it  was 
raised  to  12s.  sterling;  in  1807,  to  15s.  4d. ;  in  1808,  to  ;^i  ; 
and  from  181 1  till  1836  it  was  £^,  3s.  From  1833  till  1835  it 
was  £4,  4s.  In  1837  the  beadle's  salary  is  stated  at  £2,  2s. 
yearly;  in  1847  it  is  again  £2,  3s.  In  1855  it  was  £2. 
This  was  supplemented,  however,  by  the  heritors,  who  made 
the  beadle's  salary,  in  1873,  £6.  No  money  from  church 
funds  appears  to  have  been  given  to  the  beadle  after  17th 
May  1874,  when  £1  was  paid  to  John  Lindsay.  The 
heritors  bear  the  whole  expense  from  that  to  this  date,  and 
the  sum  paid  at  present  is  the  same  as  in  1873. 

The  Church. 

The  original  Church  of  Childeschirche,  if  we  may  assume 
it  to  have  come  into  existence  between  the  seventh  and 
ninth  centuries,  would  be  a  very  humble  structure  erected 
out  of  the  rough  materials  which  the  district  afforded. 
Rough  stones  chipped  with  a  hammer,  turf  and  fail,  would 


270  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

compose  the  walls,  with  a  roof  made  of  the  trees  growing 
plentifully  on  the  spot,  protected  by  thatch  made  of  grasses. 
In  the  thirteenth  century,  as  we  know  from  Bellesheim, 
churches  were  enjoined  to  be  built  of  stone — the  nave  by 
the  parishioners,  the  chancel  by  the  rector,  and  the  same  to 
be  duly  consecrated  and  furnished  with  proper  ornaments, 
books,  and  sacred  vessels.  In  1627,  Channelkirk  Church  is 
mentioned  as  being  in  the  usual  form  of  a  cross.  It  was  in 
size  incapable  of  accommodating  the  400  communicants  of 
the  parish,  and  the  choir  was  without  a  roof  In  1653,  ten 
thousand  divots  were  used  in  repairing  it.  It  was  first 
roofed  with  slates  in  1724.  The  slates  were  brought 
from  Dundee,  and  the  trouble  and  expense  must  have 
been  considerable.  But  on  a  church  with  such  a  lofty 
exposure  thatch  would  be  even  more  so. 

The  present  church  was  built  in  1817.  The  old  struc- 
ture was  much  smaller,  had  very  low  galleries,  and  a  common 
earthen  floor.  The  foundations  of  it,  it  is  said,  are  yet  to 
be  seen  below  the  present  church  flooring.  When  it  was 
building,  it  is  reported  that  many  bones  and  skulls  were 
exhumed  from  the  centre  of  the  old  structure  and  carelessly 
cast  out  on  to  the  field,  where  they  rolled  downhill.  They 
must  have  been  buried  before  1560,  for  no  burials  have  been 
made  within  churches  since  Protestant  reforms  were  in- 
augurated. The  entrance  seems  to  have  been  from  the 
west  instead  of  from  the  east  as  at  present.  In  1775  the 
then  minister  characterised  it  as  more  like  a  common  jail 
than  a  place  of  worship.  There  was  little  light,  the  snow  and 
rain  came  through  the  roof,  the  walls  were  dark  and  dismal, 
and  it  was  colder  that  the  people  could  endure.  The  heritors 
have  a  bad  record  in  connection  with  Channelkirk  Church. 
If  the  minister  of  1816  had  not  refused  to  preach  any  more 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  271 

in  the  structure  they  called  a  church,  the  old  building  would 
perhaps  have  been  allowed  to  do  duty  to  this  day  ;  that  is 
to  say,  all  that  the  owls,  and  rats  and  mice,  and  dry  rot  had 
left  of  it.  The  minister's  determined,  if  unwarrantable,  act 
brought  matters  to  a  crisis,  and  the  present  fairly  handsome 
building  was  the  result.     "  Out  of  evil  still  educing  good." 

At  that  time  there  was  an  eager  desire  on  the  part  of 
many  parishioners  to  remove  it  to  the  neighbourhood  of 
Oxton,  a  scheme  which  was  happily  frustrated.  Long  may 
it  stand  in  its  old  historical  place,  overlooking  the  beautiful 
dale  of  Leader,  to  which  it  first  became  the  visible  symbol 
of  the  Eternal  and  Unseen. 

The  style  of  architecture  of  the  church  is  perpendicular 
Gothic.  The  doors  are  finished  with  Tudor  arches,  the 
windows  with  divided  mullions  and  transomes  of  stone.  The 
belfry  on  the  west  gable,  with  its  acanthus  ornamentation, 
and  the  unpretentious  cross  on  the  east,  are  both  modest 
in  taste  and  character,  and  suitably  befitting  a  rural  place 
of  worship.  The  chief  eyesore  is  the  architectural  tumour 
on  the  north  side  of  the  building  which  the  inside  stair 
leading  to  the  gallery  has  swollen  outwards  for  its  own 
relief  Galleries  seem  fatal  additions  to  churches,  both  in 
principle  and  detail,  and  never  fail  to  mar  the  outside  and 
inside  of  the  building  which  is  afflicted  with  them.  A 
corresponding  protuberance  on  the  south  side  might  have 
given  to  the  eye  an  illusive  show  of  transepts,  but,  as  it  is, 
the  church  has  to  content  itself  with  a  warty  dignity,  a 
deformity,  however,  which  has  not  been  shown  in  the  photo- 
engraving given  as  frontispiece.  After  all,  its  grandest 
ornaments  are  doubtless  the  hills  and  glens  which  lie 
around  it,  and  the  sincere  company  of  honest  people  who 
fill  it  Sunday  after  Sunday. 


272  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

It  has  been  several  times  rewooded  for  dry  rot ;  damp 
and  lack  of  ventilation  being  the  principal  causes.  During 
the  late  minister's  time,  it  was  painted  inside  and  varnished, 
at  some  expense.  Since  coming  here,  we  have  seen  it  all 
black  with  soot,  owing  to  the  heating  apparatus  breaking 
out,  and  thereupon  repainted  and  cleaned.  Floors  have 
been  laid  for  the  first  time  with  matting,  the  doors  covered 
with  crimson  baize,  and  the  pulpit  refitted  with  silk  trim- 
mings. There  would  be  much  gratification  on  the  part  of 
all  concerned  if  our  absentee  landlords  or  our  absentee 
tenants  (for  their  past  sins !)  were  to  put  in  memorial 
windows,  or  gift  an  organ  to  the  church.  It  lacks  these 
to  give  a  sense  of  completion  to  an  otherwise  graceful  and 
commodious  place  of  worship.  At  the  same  time,  the 
writer  feels  the  claim  that  simplicity  of  externals  has  in  a 
Zion  so  thoroughly  rural.  A  distinguished  visitor  once  said 
when  the  subject  was  mooted,  "  Well !  one  longs  now  and 
then  to  have  the  old  style  of  worship  in  all  its  sincerity 
and  plainness,  and  if  one  cannot  shake  one's  self  free  here 
of  the  masterfulness  of  organs  and  choirs,  where  are  we  to 
do  it?"  We  acknowledge  the  force  of  Ruskin's  statement: 
"  The  Church  has  no  need  of  any  visible  splendours :  her 
power  is  independent  of  them,  her  purity  is  in  some  degree 
opposed  to  them.  The  simplicity  of  a  pastoral  sanctuary 
is  lovelier  than  the  majesty  of  an  urban  temple."  * 

Looking  round  on  the  simple  mounds  in  the  church- 
yard, the  calm  solemnity  of  the  hills,  the  quiet  truth  of 
field  and  correi  and  spreading  wood,  one  is  forced  to  admit 
that  in  sacred  things  one  may  have  far  too  many  artifici- 
alities, and  though  the  present  minister  would  rejoice  to 
hear  a  fully  equipped  orchestra  lead  the  praise  of  God 
*  Seven  Lamps,  chap  i. 


i 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  273 

among  surroundings  not  so  near  the  rebukes  of  larks  and 
mavises,  nor  so  foreign  and  far  away  from  the  stern,  rough- 
throated  praises  of  our  peasantry,  he  has  to  say  that  he 
has  heard  the  old  Scotch  psalms  lifted  up  by  an  open- 
air  assembly  in  Kelphope  Glen,  and  on  the  breezy  braes 
of  Clints  and  Collielaw,  in  such  a  way  that  put  every  "  help 
to  devotion,"  either  of  wind  or  windows,  completely  out  of 
comparison.  It  is  well,  indeed,  to  aim  at  realising  ideals 
and  "keeping  up  to  the  time,"  but  a  sense  of  the  fitness 
of  things  is  also  becoming.  The  passion  of  worship  should 
never  lack  the  enthusiasm  of  the  past,  however  it  may 
soar  on  the  aspirations  of  the  present,  and  when  the  soul  of 
old  times  is  cut  out  of  the  praises  of  ordinary  Sundays, 
and  the  spirits  of  our  fathers  are  no  longer  heard  in  the 
Communion  psalms,  then  national  worship  seems  to  have 
lost  part  of  its  grand  continuity  and  strength,  and  a  bar 
is  dropped  from  the  great  fugue  of  the  centuries.  No 
native  worshipper  has  ever  mentioned  in  our  hearing 
that  an  organ  would  "  improve "  the  "  services "  :  some  of 
our  townified  visitors  have  done  so :  but  we  have  heard 
several  times,  from  parishioners,  denunciations,  "  not  loud 
but  deep,"  upon  any  attempt  which  should  change  "  the  old 
order."  The  minister  believes  strongly  that  the  desire 
and  initiative  should  come  from  the  congregation  in  all 
that  concerns  changes  in  forms  of  worship,  and  consequently 
waits  for  the  moving  of  the  waters.  If,  then,  it  should  arrive 
in  the  full  tide  of  orchestral  grandeur,  the  deeper  will  be 
his  satisfaction. 

No  part  of  the  old  church  seems  to  have  been  pre- 
served in  the  structure  of  the  present  one,  except  the  sun- 
dial, and,  perhaps,  the  cross.  These  are  noticed  under 
"  Antiquities,"  chapter  xxiii. 

S 


274  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  church  is  in  length  of  outside  wall,  50  ft,  inside 
wall,  44  ft.,  in  breadth  of  gable  wall,  34  ft.  8  in.  outside 
and  inside,  28  ft.  9  in.  It  is  orientated,  though  its  position 
relative  to  the  north  is  between  the  magnetic  north  and 
true  geographical. 

Internally,  the  church  is  commodious  and  comfortable, 
and  is  of  the  usual  presbyterian  oblong  construction.  There 
is  no  difficulty  in  being  easily  heard  in  all  parts  of  it,  even 
when  articulation  and  delivery  are  defective  and  feeble.  The 
roof  is  ceiled  like  an  ordinary  dwelling-house,  and  is  pierced 
by  two  circular  ventilators.  Perhaps  the  inside  view  of  the 
church  gives  less  satisfaction  to  the  eye  than  does  the  outside. 
The  charm  of  perspective,  and  the  dignity  which  is  given 
by  elevation,  are  both  destroyed  by  the  surrounding  galleries. 
This  is  still  more  emphasized  by  the  arrangement  which  has 
placed  the  pulpit  on  the  side  wall.  But  we  do  not  need  to 
remind  ourselves  that  this  is  due  not  to  a  crude  artistic  taste 
on  the  part  of  those  who  build  churches,  but  purely  to  con- 
siderations of  expense.  It  saves  land  and  material,  and 
workmen's  wages.  To  perch  the  half  of  the  congregation 
above  the  other  half,  like  poultry  on  spars  in  a  henhouse, 
utilises  space  of  elevation,  makes  it  possible  to  contract  the 
walls,  which  saves  quarrying  and  hewing,  and  renders  the 
roof  narrower  to  cover  over,  and  so  curtails  the  cost  of  wood 
and  plastering.  Summer  and  other  visitors,  however,  always 
express  surprise  at  finding  all  so  neat  and  comfortable. 

The  ugly  erection  immediately  above  the  pulpit,  which 
is  called  a  "  sounding  board,"  is  also  a  painful  reminder  that 
a  right  intention  may  sometimes  have  the  worst  form  of 
expression. 

The  church  is  accommodated  with  a  Haden  stove  for 
heating  purposes,  but  it  cannot  be  said  to  warm  the  church. 


M 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  275 

as  the  portion  nearest  the  hot-air  outlet  becomes  too  hot 
while  the  remoter  seats  remain  in  a  Greenland  temperature. 
The  stove  was  generously  put  in  by  the  heritors  in  April 
1869.      We  may  add  that  the  church  is  insured  for  ^^500. 

The  kirk  bell,  which  has  a  very  pleasant   tone  on  Fjf,« 
bears    the    inscription :   "  For  Channonkirk,  1702."      There 
is  an  old  saying  quoted  by  Dr  Raine,*  and  which  the  late 
Dr    Hardy,   of  Old    Cambus,   informed   the   writer  he   had 
heard  when  a  boy,  which  runs  as  follows  : — 

"  Chinglekirk  bell 
Which  rings  now 
And  evermair  shall." 

The  rope  which  works  it  hangs  down  outside  the  western 
gable,  in  the  old-fashioned  way,  and  when  high  winds  rage 
out  of  the  west  it  has  a  trick  of  slipping  its  holdfast  and 
walloping  round  the  corners  of  the  church,  to  the  destruction 
of  window-glass.  It  would  naturally  be  supposed  that  after 
such  expense  once  incurred,  the  rope  would  be  let  down 
inside  the  church,  where  it  would  be  secure  from  playing 
pranks,  and  insure  the  beadle,  also,  some  comfort  in  a  wintry 
morning  in  ringing  the  bell.  We  do  things  differently  in 
the  country  ;  the  rope  is  mended,  fastened  anew,  put  up  in 
the  old  place  to  wait  till  the  next  storm  of  wind  visits  it,  and 
then  there  begins  the  old  wrestling  with  the  holdfast,  the  old 
breakloose,  and  the  usual  result.  The  beadle,  on  the 
following  Sunday,  finds  that  his  rope  has  flung  itself  in 
disgust  up  over  the  crow-steps  of  the  gable  in  such  a  way 
as  to  need  ladders  and  much  manipulation  to  coax  it  to 
return  to  its  proper  duties. 

There  is  only  one  service  in  church,  summer  and  winter, 

*Surtees  Society,  1838. 


276  ':         HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

at  noon  on  Sundays.  For  several  years  services  were  also 
held  in  the  village  schoolroom  on  Sunday  evenings,  but  the 
novelty  grew  common,  and  the  attendances  thinned  away  to 
a  handful.  Summer  services  are  yet  held  in  the  open  air  in 
•  the  outlying  parts  of  the  parish,  but  these,  also,  are  meagrely 
attended.  From  all  we  have  been  able  to  note  of  the 
character  of  the  people,  we  should  infer  that  their  religious 
instincts  are  not  of  the  enthusiastic  kind.  Religion  is  quite 
a  Sunday  affair,  and  does  not  seriously  interfere  with  the 
week  day  at  all.  There  is  a  dumb  sense  of  duty  which  seems 
to  send  them  forth  on  Sunday  morning,  and  which  seems  to 
draw  its  strength  largely  from  hereditary  sources  and  the 
sheer  force  of  custom.  The  church  stands  apart  from  their 
feelings  in  most  respects.  Especially  is  this  so  among  the 
farming  population.  No  amount  of  entreaty,  or  persuasion, 
will  move  a  man  or  woman  of  them  to  do  anything  for  the 
church  or  the  Sunday  School.  But  for  the  grateful  assistance 
which  comes  steadily  from  the  village,  in  the  matter  of  elders 
and  Sunday  School  teachers,  the  entire  religious  ministra- 
tions of  the  parish  would  fall  to  be  done  alone  by  the 
minister.  Nothing  has  grieved  the  minister  more  than 
this  dead,  dour,  inert  spirit  of  the  agricultural  population. 
Apart  from  the  Christianity  of  the  matter,  there  is  a  lack  of 
manly  virility,  a  want  of  animation  and  interest  in  the 
ordinary  things  of  life,  that  must  sadden  any  one  responsible 
for  their  moral  and  spiritual  well-being.  Some  say  the 
cause  is  found  in  their  holding  to  "disestablishment"  notions, 
and  of  their  being  encouraged  in  these  contrary  ways  by 
those  in  the  parish  who  exercise  an  authority  over  them. 
We  do  not  think  so.  There  would  be  evidence  of  stir  and 
motion  somewhere  if  such  were  the  case.  But  the  apathy  is 
too  deep.      The  minister  would  easily  feel  such  a  spirit  in 


lM.. 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  277 

their  manner,  for  the  country  has  no  conventional  ways  with 
it  to  cloak  its  resentments.  On  the  contrary,  the  minister  is 
welcomed  in  every  home  with  a  kindliness  and  warmth 
which  bespeak  true  hearts  and  no  hypocrisy.  It  appears  to 
arise  from  an  inability  to  take  any  action  upon  conviction. 
We  find  that  people  coming  into  the  parish  experience  the 
same  surprise  as  ourselves  in  this  respect.  Others  say  the 
reason  is  that  all  the  farmers,  being  mostly  dissenters,  their 
siervants,  who  are  nearly  to  a  man  churchmen,  hesitate  to 
seem  prominent,  in  any  way,  in  church  or  school,  lest  worse 
things  befall  them.  If  so,  we  apologise  for  all  the  blame 
which  we  have  laid  at  their  door.  There  is  one  way,  at  least, 
in  which  this  is  true.  Some  of  the  men  never  get  to  church. 
If  asked  why,  the  answer  is,  "  The  master  has  aye  some- 
thing to  dae  for  us  at  kirk-time."  Shepherds  and  orramen 
complain  most  about  this.  Perhaps  it  were  nearer  the 
truth  to  say  that  dull  times  have  to  do  with  such  a  state  of 
matters.  The  farmer,  finding  that  he  cannot  keep  sufficient 
men  to  do  all  the  work  on  the  farm,  must  pinch  in  some  way 
to  get  it  out  of  the  others  on  Sundays.  But  there  is  no 
denying  that  a  great  change  has  come  over  the  religious 
character  of  our  peasantry.  Here  and  there  one  may  meet 
with  evidences  of  the  old  piety  and  earnestness,  but  it  is 
rare.  Only  once  in  this  parish,  we  believe,  we  encountered 
it.  When  we  made  our  visitation  to  the  house,  the  "  bake- 
board"  was  on  the  table,  and  the  gudewife  was  up  to  the 
elbows  among  flour  dough.  The  gudeman  was  resting,  and 
his  dogs  were  at  full  length  under  the  table  where  baking 
operations  were  proceeding.  By-and-by,  during  the  con- 
versation, the  table  was  cleared  up,  and,  just  as  if  it  were  a 
matter  of  course,  the  big  Bible  was  laid  reverently  on  it  by 
the  wife,  with  a  "  Noo,  sir,"  as  much  as  to  say,  "  Lead  the 


278  HISTORY   OF  CHANNELKIRK 

worship,"  and  family  worship  proceeded.  It  was  a  generous 
experience,  but  we  considered  that  it  was  necessary  to  go 
back  a  hundred  years,  at  least,  for  the  tap-root  of  it.  So  far 
as  we  can  ascertain,  family  worship  is  very  rare  in  the  parish. 
The  kirk  is  killed  at  the  cradle.  We  confess  to  the  belief 
that  all  backsliding  in  church  and  public  life  is  directly  due 
to  the  decay  of  religion  at  the  fireside.  The  Church  is  partly 
to  blame  for  this.  The  peasant  has  been  encouraged  to 
believe  that  if  he  send  his  child  to  a  Sunday  School,  his 
duty  in  its  religious  training  is  at  an  end.  Ministers  loudly 
proclaim  the  need  of,  and  torture  their  wits  to  create, 
sufficient  "  bridges  "  between  the  Sunday  School,  the  Bible 
Class,  and  the  young  Communicants'  Class.  We  think  the 
Creator  has  made  some,  and  that  the  "  bridges "  should 
always  be  found  in  the  home  ;  but  by  the  direct  creation,  on 
the  part  of  the  pulpit,  of  a  false  view  of  parental  responsi- 
bility, fathers  and  mothers  have  let  the  "bridges"  go  with 
the  stream,  and  the  parent's  part  is  not  found  anywhere  in 
our  ecclesiastical  "  plans "  for  saving  the  souls  of  the  young. 
Then,  when  a  parish  obtains  a  character  for  blasphemy, 
drunkenness,  or  fornication,  and  church  attendance  is  low, 
the  blame  is  laid  upon  the  minister !  The  root  of  the  evil 
will  be  found  growing  up  at  the  fireside,  manured  by  the 
buried  corpse  of  family  worship.  No  father  now  desires  the 
sacred  associations  of  the  Church  for  his  family  when  there 
are  births,  marriages,  or  burials  in  it.  The  Church  has  no 
existence  in  the  honours  and  solemnities  of  our  peasant  life. 
It  must  be  said,  with  some  reflections,  that  where  the  newly 
converted  savage  in  the  wilds  of  Africa  has  the  services  of 
the  missionary,  he  stands  exactly  on  the  same  level  of 
ecclesiastical  advantage  as  we  do  here  on  the  Lammermuirs 
of  Scotland.       No   member's   child   has    been    baptised    in 


I 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  279 

Channelkirk  Church  ;  no  one  has  been  married  in  it ;  no 
dead  person  has  passed  forth  from  its  hallowed  precincts 
to  the  tomb,  within  the  memory  of  man.  Here  is  a 
gap  needing  a  bridge !  How  different  in  other  spheres. 
The  school  is  carried  through  life  in  the  memories  of  the 
boy  ;  the  pride  of  his  university  is  carried  over  land  and 
sea  in  the  bosom  of  the  student ;  the  House  of  Parliament 
never  fades  out  of  the  family  traditions  of  those  who  have 
sat  there  ;  but  the  Church  alone  is  cut  off  from  the  sacred- 
nesses  of  our  lives,  and  is  only  associated  with  "  weary  "  days 
and  "  disagreeable  "  services.  Then,  in  view  of  all  this,  our 
venerable  Assemblies  wring  their  hands  over  the  lapsed 
masses  !  More  glory  to  them,  and  much  success  to  them 
with  their  committees  on  "  Religious  Conditions  of  the 
People,"  "  Church  Extension,"  and  "  Heavenly  Unions." 
That  the  "  religious  condition  of  the  people "  under  such 
circumstances  should  be  other  than  pitiable,  that  "  Church 
extension "  should  be  laggard,  or  "  heavenly  unions "  im- 
possible, we  are  not  in  the  least  surprised.  Church  life 
in  the  heart  of  it  everywhere  rots.  No  one  attaches  much 
value  to  its  statements  of  principle  ;  no  one  seems  to  care 
a  straw  for  its  discipline.  In  faith  and  form  there  is 
deplorable  deficiency.  The  machinery  of  motives  is  all 
pivoted  upon  finance  and  statistics.  Get  money !  Get  up 
the  numbers  on  the  Kirk  Roll !  Furious  coercions  are 
directed  to  these  purposes,  and  the  "  successful "  minister  is 
he  who  shows  them  largest.  Meanwhile,  there  is  no  form 
of  religion  in  the  home  ;  there  is  no  connection  between  the 
sacrednesses  of  the  family  and  the  Church  ;  there  is  little  or 
no  faith  in  the  "Standards"  ;  scorn  rather  ;  and  the  minister's 
office  is  regarded  more  and  more  as  a  question  of  "  bags," 
"ladles,"  or  door  "plates." 


280 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


But  lest  any  one  should  imagine  that  Channelkirk  is  a 
parish  given  over  to  iniquity,  let  us  hasten  to  say  that  in  all 
outward  semblance  the  people  appear  respectable,  temperate, 
industrious,  and  honest.  Fornication  seems  to  be  the  pre- 
valent vice,  but  it  is  bad  enough.  They  are  pleasant  people 
to  deal  with,  apart  from  the  standard  of  piety.  They  are 
very  healthy  people.  They  send  their  children  to  the  schools, 
week-day  and  Sunday ;  the  Communions  are  fairly  well 
attended  ;  and  when  weather  is  favourable,  their  attendance 
at  church,  allowing  for  the  natural  disadvantages,  is  all  that 
could  be  desired.  But,  withal,  the  spiritual  life  is  low,  in 
most  cases  extinct,  and  it  is  this  phase  of  parish  life  that  the 
minister  must  regard  as  chief  among  all  else  ;  for  when  this 
is  dead,  the  rest  is  dying. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  members  on  the  Communion 
Roll  for  the  years  between  1892  and  1900. 

Number  of  Members  on  the  Roll,  31st  Dec.  1892—142 

1893—155 

„  1894— 171 

1895-186 

„  1896—198 

1897—197 

'    „  1898 — 206, 

„  1899—217 

The  average  attendance  at  Communion  (which  is  held 
twice  a  year)  during  the  last  eight  years  was  90,  the  lowest 
being  77,  the  highest  iii.  The  last  figure  was  reached  In 
the  November  Communion  of  1899,  being  the  nearest 
approach  to  the  number  112,  which  was  attained  fourteen 
years  before. 

Connected  with  the  church  there  is  a  Sunday  School, 
which  is  held  in  the  village  schoolroom.  It  was  first  opened 
as  the  Parish  Church  Sunday  School  on  17th  November  1895. 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  281 

There  were  38  scholars,  and  William  Bell,  elder,  now  gone 
to  his  rest,  was  the  only  teacher  besides  the  minister. 
Since  then  the  average  number  on  the  roll  is  66.  There  are 
at  present  three  male  and  three  female  teachers. 

A  Bible  Class  was  opened  for  the  first  time  in  the  winter 
1892-93.  An  average  of  20  has  attended  since  then.  It 
meets  at  1 1  A.M.  on  Sundays  in  the  church.  A  Zenana 
work-party  flourished  for  two  seasons,  but  gradually  lost 
interest  for  the  women  of  the  congregation.  The  great 
distances  which  have  to  be  faced  through  snow  and  rain 
prove  fatal  to  all  meetings  of  this  kind.  This  also  hinders 
the  attendance  of  the  women  of  the  parish  at  church ; 
it  prevents,  likewise,  a  second  service  on  Sundays ;  and, 
there  being  no  lamps,  all  evening  meetings  are  impossible. 

Church  Patrons.  —  The  right  to  appoint  a  person  to 
officiate  in  spiritual  things  in  a  place  set  apart  for  that 
purpose  is  one  that  has  always  been  exercised,  and  often 
fiercely  contended  for.  To-day  the  people  possess  this 
power.  It  was  not  always  in  the  hands  of  the  people.  This 
arrangement  is  modern  and  purely  protestant,  and  was, 
perhaps,  granted  more  to  allay  unseemly  procedure  than  to 
justify  an  inherent  principle.  Of  old  it  was  deemed  the  sacred 
prerogative  of  Heaven.  "  No  man  taketh  this  honour  unto 
himself  but  he  that  is  called  of  God."  The  Master  "  calleth 
unto  Him  whom  he  would."  This  prerogative  He  committed 
to  we  know  whom  ;  it  was  not  to  the  crowd  either  in  or  out 
of  church.  But  the  argument  of  force  and  finance  have  long 
overridden  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Highest,  and  it  is  even 
now  accepted  as  an  axiom  that  money  and  majorities  are 
the  supreme  founts  of  power  in  church  or  palace.  This 
system  may  be  convenient  for  a  time,  but  it  will  end.  It 
never  has  had  sanction  from  the  teaching  of  the  Master,  and 


282  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

when  the  Church  condescends  to  put  aside  the  authority  of 
her  Reformers,  her  Fathers,  her  Pauls  and  Johns,  to  follow- 
humbly  that  of  Christ  alone,  the  people  and  the  patrons  will 
also  lay  down  abashed  an  usurpation  which  their  experi- 
ence has  fully  declared  to  be  an  unholy  one. 

The  patronage  of  Channelkirk  Church  is  first  seen  in  the 
hands  of  Hugh  de  Morville  of  Lauderdale.  But  when  he 
took  upon  himself  the  monk's  robes  he  also  resigned  to  the 
Abbot  of  Dryburgh  the  advowson  of  the  church,  which  he 
gifted  to  him  and  his  brethren,  and  there  it  remained  till  the 
Reformation.  The  Bishop  of  St  Andrews  in  1242,  "in  con- 
sideration of  the  charity  of  the  canons,  and  the  debts  they 
had  incurred  in  building  their  monastery,  and  other  expenses, 
gave  them  permission  to  enjoy  the  revenues  of  the  churches 
under  their  patronage,  within  his  diocese,  one  of  their  number, 
approved  by  him^  performing  the  office  of  a  vicar  in  each 
parish^  *  The  canons,  therefore,  would  serve  the  cure  of 
Channelkirk  under  the  approval  of  the  Bishop  of  St  Andrews 
up  till  the  year  1 560.  The  advowson  then  passed  into  the 
hands  of  the  King,  who  conferred  it,  along  with  others,  upon 
John,  Earl  of  Mar,  Lord  Erskine  and  Garioch.  The  Act  of 
1606,  c.  91,  sets  forth  that  the  King  "wills  the  foresaidis 
personages  and  vicarages  sail  be  provydit  with  qualefeit 
godlie  and  learnit  persones  apt  and  hable  to  instruct  the 
parochineris  thairof  in  the.  knowin  veritie,"  and  that  to  Lord 
Mar  is  to  be  given,  "  The  advocatioun,  donatioun  and  full 
richt  and  titill  of  all  and  sindrie  the  forsaidis  kirkis,  parochinnes, 
alsweill  personages  as  vicarages  of  the  samen."t  There  was  no 
qualified  minister  in  Channelkirk  till  161 1.  The  Act  of  1592, 
c.   116,  provided  that  Presbyteries  were  bound  and  astricted 

*  Monastic  Annals  of  Teviotdale,  p.  311. 
t  Acts  of  the  Scottish  Padiament. 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  283 

to  receive  and  admit  whatsoever  qualified  minister  was  pre- 
sented by  His  Majesty  or  laic  patrons.  King  James  VL  and 
L  presented  Francis  Collace  in  1615,  and  King  Charles  L 
presented  Henry  Cockburn  in  1625.  Lord  Cardross  presents 
Walter  Keith  in  1663.  In  March  1682,  there  is  a  sasine  in 
favour  of  James  Peter  and  others  of  the  advocation  and 
donation  of  the  Parish  and  Parish  Kirk  of  Ginglekirk.*  As 
William  Arrot  came  in  the  following  year,  1683,  he  must 
have  been  presented  by  "  Peter  and  others."  But  the  Act  of 
1690,  c.  23,  put  the  patronage  of  churches  into  the  power  of 
the  heritors  and  elders,  who  elected  the  minister  that  fol- 
lowed Mr  Arrot.  In  171 1,  the  Act  which  was  then  passed 
(10  Anne,  c.  12)  wrenched  this  privilege  from  the  heritors  and 
elders,  and  restored  it  once  more  to  the  laic  patrons.  Conse- 
quently, James  Peter,  of  Chapel,  exercised  the  right  to 
present  Rev.  David  Scott  in  1752.  As  showing  how  the 
right  of  patronage  was  sometimes  bargained  about,  we  have 
on  26th  May  1763  a  sasine  granted  in  favour  of  James 
Pringle,  Esq.  of  Rowland,  who  receives  "  All  and  Haill  the 
advocation,  donation,  and  right  of  patronage  of  the  Parish 
Kirk  of  Channelkirk,  alias  Ginglekirk,  lying  within  the  said 
Bailiary  of  Lauderdale :  proceeding  upon  a  heritable  bond 
granted  by  George  Peter,f  elder  of  Chappell,  and  Captain 
James  Peter,  younger  of  Chappell,  with  consent  therein 
specified."  J 

From  James  Pringle  the  right  of  patronage  went  to  Hugh, 
Earl  of  Marchmont,  who  presented  Rev.  Thomas  Murray  in 
1792.     It  continued  in  the  hands  of  the  Marchmonts  till  the 

*  Sasines. 

t  Mr  George  Peter  seems  to  have  had  some  pious  repute,  as  we  find 
him  chosen  by  the  Burgh  of  Lauder  to  represent  them  in  the  General 
Assemblies  of  1747  and  1750. — Lauder  Burgh  Records.  %  Sasines. 


284  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

patronage  was  vested  in  the  congregation  by  the  statute  law 
of  1874. 

It  may  be  permissible  to  mention  here  that  the  writer, 
with  consent  of  the  heritors,  erected  in  1897  a  mural  brass, 
having  engraved  on  it  an  account  of  the  name  of  the  church, 
the  chief  facts  of  its  history,  and  the  names  of  its  ministers 
as  far  as  known.     It  is  placed  on  the  south  wall. 

The  Churchyard. 

"  Oh  come,  come  wi'  me 
To  the  auld  kirkyaird, 
Ye  weel  ken  the  path 
Through  the  soft  green  swaird  ; 
Friends  slumber  there 
Ye  were  wont  to  regard, 
And  their  bodies  lie  low  in  the  auld  kirkyaird. 

Weep  not  for  them. 
They  weep  no  more  ; 
Sorrow  not  for  them, 
For  their  sorrows  are  o'er  ; 
Sweet  is  their  sleep, 
Though  cold  and  hard, 
.  .  Their  pillows  lie  low  in  the  auld  kirkyaird." 

Channelkirk  Churchyard  is  in  all  likelihood  co-eval  with 
the  church  which  was  originally  raised  to  the  honour  and 
memory  of  St  Cuthbert.  And  although  we  have  no  early 
historical  reference  to  this,  there  are  not  lacking  some 
indications  that  it  must  have  been  a  place  of  very  early 
sepulture.  As  the  visitor  to  the  sacred  place  passes  round 
the  church  to  the  west  gable,  a  few  rude  stones  present 
themselves  lying  against  the  wall  or  "dyke,"  which  divides 
the  manse  grounds  from  the  cemetery.  These  have  a  history 
which  is  set  forth  in  the  newspaper  cutting  which  follows  : — 
"Curious  burial:  On  the  fifth  of  this  month  (March  1897)^ 
while  preparations  were   being   made   for   an   interment   in 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  285 

Channelkirk  Churchyard,  a  curious  instance  of  primitive 
burial  was  brought  to  Hght.  Instead  of  a  coffin,  rude  slabs 
of  stone  had  been  employed  to  surround  the  corpse.  Two 
small  pieces  were  found  on  the  inner  side  of  the  larger 
stones,  supporting  each  side  of  the  head,  and  evidently 
intended  to  keep  it  in  its  normal  position.  No  stone  was 
found  either  above  or  below,  with  the  exception  of  two 
or  three  small  bits  laid  above  the  head.  The  earth  im- 
mediately surrounding  the  remains  was  of  quite  a  different 
kind  from  the  natural  soil.  The  grave  was  about  six  feet 
deep.  A  very  peculiar  feature  was  the  slanting  way  in 
which  the  body  had  been  laid.  The  head  seemed  to  have 
rested  at  least  twenty  inches  above  the  level  of  the  feet. 
The  lair  was  due  east  and  west  in  the  usual  way,  and  this 
would  seem  to  point  to  Christian  sepulture,  but  this  mode 
of  burial,  it  appears,  is  usually  considered  to  be  prehistoric. 
The  mere  semblance  of  a  skull  was  visible,  and  sensibly 
indicated  a  person  of  full-grown  stature.  It  crumbled 
away  on  exposure  to  the  air.  The  tomb  was  found  two 
yards  due  south-west  from  that  corner  of  the  church.  The 
stones  exhumed  are  of  a  rude  unprepared  description,  and 
bear  the  appearance  of  having  been  chosen  simply  because 
they  lay  readiest  to  hand.  They  have  been  laid  aside  for 
inspection  by  the  curious.  The  churchyard,  it  is  needless 
to  say,  is  a  very  old  one,  and  may  have  had  Romans  as 
well  as  Britons  laid  within  its  hallowed  confines." 

We  may  supplement  this  account  by  a  few  remarks. 
The  grave,  though  "  about  six  feet  deep,"  would  not  be  more 
than  three  originally,  as  the  ground  has  been  levelled  up 
considerably  during  church  renovations  and  rebuildings. 
Perhaps  it  could  not  have  been  more  than  two  feet  under- 
ground  primarily.     The   head   was   to   all   appearance   that 


286  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  a  man.  Mr  Wight,  farmer,  Carfrae,  when  his  attention 
was  drawn  to  this  case,  was  of  opinion  that  a  similar  burial 
had  taken  place  there  at  one  time,  as  on  repairing  the 
road  in  front  of  his  stables,  a  tomb-like  hollow  was  exposed 
about  two  feet  below  the  surface,  but  only  half  the  length 
of  a  man  of  common  size.  It  was,  of  course,  customary 
in  ancient  burials  to  double  the  corpse's  legs  in  such  a  way 
as  to  make  the  tomb  much  smaller  than  those  of  the 
present.  The  Channelkirk  one  may  have  been  similar, 
but  owing  to  the  ground  around  it  having  been  disturbed, 
it  was  impossible  to  trace  the  likeness  with  any  certainty. 
There  is  no  mention  of  the  churchyard  having  been  con- 
secrated when  Bishop  de  Bernham  consecrated  the  church 
in  1 24 1.  The  reason  is  obvious.  The  churches  which  were 
rebuilt  on  the  sites  of  the  old  ones  required  renewed  con- 
secration, but  the  churchyard  would  be  consecrated  from 
the  beginning  once  for  all  time. 

There  are  few  graves  or  gravestones  in  the  churchyard 
which  call  for  special  remark.  No  one  of  known  celebrity 
seems  to  have  been  buried  in  it.  The  memorial  stones  are 
for  most  part  of  plain  workmanship,  and  commonplace  in 
record.  The  entrance  to  it  was  at  one  time  from  the  north- 
west quarter,  and  it  is  in  this  neighbourhood  that  tomb- 
stones of  some  degree  of  quaintness  are  to  be  found. 
There  are  none  that  seem  older  than  about  the  middle  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  The  graves,  according  to  the 
fashion  of  country  "  kirkyairds,"  are  all  raised  in  mounds 
above  the  usual  level,  a  circumstance  which  at  first  sight 
gives  a  painful  impression  to  the  beholder,  who  may 
perhaps  be  accustomed  to  the  smooth  green  sward  of 
town  cemeteries.  The  custom,  of  course,  comes  down  from 
remote  times,  when  no  tombstone  was  erected  to  any  one, 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  287 

and  the  mound  alone  served  to  direct  the  steps  of  sorrowing 
friends  to  where  the  dead  lay. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  interest  attaches  to  the  stone 
which  commemorates  the  Somerville  family.  This  stone 
is  oblong  and  raised  on  four  stone  pedestals,  one  foot  in 
height  from  the  ground.  It  stands  on  the  south  side  of 
the  church.  The  grave,  however,  is  not  underneath  the 
stone,  but  to  the  north  of  it  a  few  feet,  and  the  church  wall 
must  be  built  over  it.  The  proper  place  for  the  stone 
would  have  been  in  the  church  wall  if  exact  locality  had 
been  aimed  at  ;  and  also  because,  owing  to  space,  it  would 
have  been  an  obstruction  to  people  passing  round  the 
church,  it  was  placed  just  as  far  from  the  wall  as  permit 
a  footpath  between  them.  The  last  of  the  descendants 
of  the  Somervilles  of  Airhouse  resented  this  arrangement, 
but  it  was  too  late  then  to  alter  it,  and  so  it  remains. 
Being  convenient  for  the  purpose,  it  is  turned  into  the 
"  Kirkyaird  Convention  Stane,"  of  which  few  churchyards 
are  quite  devoid.  That  is  to  say,  it  is  the  place  where 
young  and  old  seat  themselves  of  a  Sunday  morning  in 
oblong  conclave,  back  to  back,  "  before  bell-time,"  and 
discuss  the  local  topics  of  interest.  The  Wight  tombstone, 
in  the  extreme  south-west  corner,  is  the  only  other  table- 
stone  in  the  churchyard.  Both  are  of  the  same  shape  and 
finish,  being  chamfered  on  one  side,  but  the  Wight  stone 
is  laid  with  the  chamfered  side  upmost,  whereas  the  Somer- 
ville stone  is  the  reverse  of  this.  In  the  latter,  the  space 
available  for  inscription  is,  consequently,  greater  and  con- 
tinuous from  top  to  bottom.  Some  smaller  upright  stones 
in  the  west  portion  of  the  churchyard  deserve  attention 
both  from  their  age  and  the  characteristic  emblems  and 
figures  sculptured  on  them.     A  large  one  at  the  south-west 


288  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

corner  of  the  west  gable  is  notable  in  this  respect.  Many 
new  tombstones  have  been  put  up  during  this  century,  and 
the  practice  is  becoming  more  general. 

The  remoteness  of  the  churchyard,  its  high  moorland 
surroundings,  and  its  situation  on  the  direct  route  to  Edin- 
burgh, made  it  a  tempting  lure  for  the  "  Resurrectionists  " 
at  the  beginning  of  this  century.  No  corpse  was  secure 
from  their  clutches,  and  several  exciting  chases  took  place. 
The  most  notable  is,  perhaps,  the  following  :— 

The  public  road  ascending  from  Lauderdale  to  Soutra 
Hill  is  cut  at  various  intervals  by  ravines,  more  or  less 
wide,  made  by  rivulets  of  water  rushing  down  to  Headshaw 
Water  during  spates,  and  at  these  points  the  road  has  small 
tunnels  or  conduits  underneath  to  pass  the  water  through 
in  its  headlong  course  down  the  slopes.  The  first  of  these 
which  the  traveller  meets  on  his  way  from  the  south  is 
called  "The  Bairnies'  Conduit."  Two  children  had  been 
buried  in  Channelkirk  Churchyard,  and  the  medical  corbies 
from  Edinburgh  prepared  to  descend  upon  the  prey.  All 
had  gone  successfully  with  them,  the  bodies  were  lifted,  the 
trap  or  "  deadcoach "  had  got  away  without  notice  from  the 
burial-place,  but  when  this  ravine  was  reached,  some  hitch 
had  occurred  which  placed  it  in  jeopardy,  and  the  bodies, 
which  had  been  put  in  a  sack,  were  quickly  concealed  under 
the  road  inside  the  conduit,  to  be  lifted  at  a  more  convenient 
season.  The  body-snatchers  were  evidently  scared  for  some 
reason  or  other.  Mr  Hogg,  the  farmer  (buried  January 
1834),  then  of  Channelkirk  Farm — the  old  farm  which 
stood  opposite  the  manse,  and  which  is  now  obliterated — 
had  had  occasion  next  day  to  be  in  the  ravine  in  which 
the  ghastly  deposit  was  concealed,  and  caught  sight  of  the 
sack  obtruding  from   the    conduit.     He   quickly   discovered 


THE  ELDERS,  BEADLES,  CHURCH,  ETC.  289 

what  it  all  meant,  and  raised  the  alarm  throughout  the 
parish.  The  wrath  and  excitenient  of  the  people  knew 
no  bounds,  and  men  with  guns  turned  out  to  lay  wait  for 
the  return  of  the  marauders.  The  bodies  were  put  back 
into  the  conduit,  and  a  numerous  watch  set  to  catch  the 
corbies.  By-and-by,  in  the  gloaming,  a  trap  drawn  by  one 
horse  passed  down  the  road,  and  went  on  to  Carfraemill  Inn, 
nearly  two  miles  further  down  the  dale.  All  was  eager 
expectancy  on  the  part  of  the  ambuscade,  but  whether  the 
two  men  who  were  in  the  trap  had  seen,  as  they  passed, 
signs  at  the  ravine  of  danger,  or  had  scented  suspicion  in 
the  looks  of  the  people  at  the  inn,  who,  of  course,  were  fully 
apprised  of  all  that  was  going  forward,  it  is  uncertain.  They 
had  deemed  it  safer,  however,  to  leave  the  parish  behind 
them  as  quickly  as  possible,  and  rode  furiously  past  the 
conduit  once  more  on  their  way  to  Edinburgh.  Some  aver 
that  but  for  the  eagerness  of  those  of  the  ambuscade  who 
showed  themselves  too  soon,  and  whose  guns  went  off 
through  excitement,  and  betrayed  the  plan,  the  trap  would 
have  stopped  at  the  conduit  and  lifted  the  bodies.  The 
"  resurrectionists  "  got  clear  away  at  all  events,  and  the  bodies 
of  the  poor  children  were  once  more  committed  to  the 
"auld  kirkyaird." 

After  this  occurrence  a  strong  iron  coffin-cage  was  made, 
into  which  the  newly-buried  were  placed,  coffin  and  all,  and 
the  whole  entombed  until  the  body  was  beyond  all  uses  of 
the  "  medicals,"  after  which  it  was  again  raised,  the  coffin 
taken  out  of  its  iron  encasement,  and  buried  finally  by 
itself,  the  "cage"  being  reserved  for  the  next  interment. 
This  "  cage "  is  still  preserved,  and  lies  on  the  north  side 
of  the  church  against  the  boundary  wall,  and  may  be  seen 
by  the  curious  at  any  time. 

T 


290 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


Many  cases  of  body-snatching  are  spoken  of,  but  the 
above  seems  to  have  impressed  itself  most  upon  the 
memories  of  the  inhabitants.  The  "  big  woman  at  the 
Dass  "  was  the  last  case  of  lifting.  She  was  buried  on  a 
Saturday,  and  when  the  worshippers  came  to  church  next 
day,  an  open  grave  and  scattered  earth  were  all  that  re- 
mained to  tell  where  she  had  been  laid. 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE  STIPEND 

Its  "Bad  Eminence"  in  Church  Histories — In  Twelfth  and  Thirteenth 
Centuries — Worth  and  Wealth  of  the  Monks — Dryburgh  Abbey  and 
the  Titulars  of  Channelkirk — Stipend  during  the  Years  1620-1900 — 
Heritors  and  Agents — Cess  Rolls. 

It  is  a  matter  of  some  regret  that  discussions  on  stipend 
have  been  so  prominent  in  histories  of  the  Church  of  Scotland. 
This  "  bad  eminence  "  has  been  given  to  them  by  necessity. 
The  humble  penny,  as  much  an  "  aid  to  devotion "  as  to 
honesty,  instead  of  being  regulated  in  ecclesiastical  affairs  by 
a  sympathetic  common  sense,  has  been  absurdly  exalted  to 
the  glittering  pedestals  of  moral  law.  It  has  been  held,  for 
example,  that  "  Blessed  be  ye  poor "  means  "  Blessed  is 
poverty,"  and  that  a  poor  church  is  essential  to  the  main- 
tenance of  a  pure  church.  It  is  thus  that  a  senseless  ethic 
has  starved  many  a  manse,  just  as  in  days  bypast  a  criminal 
text  burned  many  a  poor  old  woman  as  a  witch.  The  sorrow 
of  it  also  continues  in  the  fact  that  equally  under  national 
law  and  the  desires  of  the  dissenting  people,  the  starvation 
still  proceeds.  Perhaps  the  reason  is  to  be  found  in  the 
acquired  instincts  of  Scottish  theology,  which  has  construed 
the  path  of  the  minister  to  be  more  consonant  to  that  of  holi- 
ness when  shadowed  with  misery  and  stained  with  blood.  The 
"  old  clo' "  of  the  Jews  still  cling  to  us  in  this  as  in  much  else. 


292  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

It  is  between  the  years  1165-89  that  we  have  the  first 
historical  reference  to  the  maintenance  of  Channelkirk  priest. 
Richard  de  Morville  then  concedes  and  confirms  to  the 
brethren  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  "  the  gifts  of  my  father  (Hugh 
de  Morville)  which,  with  himself,  he  gave  to  them,  viz.,  the 
Church  of  Childenchirch  with  all  those  pertinents  with  which 
Godfrey  the  priest  held  it  on  the  day  in  which  my  father 
assumed  the  canonical  dress."* 

Although  the  "  pertinents "  are  not  specified,  it  is  not 
difficult  to  infer  from  other  sources  that  the  endowment  of 
the  church  was  in  land,  together  with  the  tenths  of  the 
produce  of  certain  land-districts.  The  Church  of  North- 
umbria  and  the  Lothians  was  an  offshoot  from  the  Columban 
Church  in  both' its  cHaracteristics  of  spiritual  jurisdiction  and 
monastic  practices,  and  assurning,  as  we  may  safely  do,  that 
.Channelkirk  Church  was  Columban  before  it  was  Roman 
Catholic,  the  condition'  of  life  of  its  ministers  before  Godfrey's 
day  is  riot  wholly  unknown  to  us.  Bede  has  shown  us  that 
many  Irishmen  (Scots)  came  daily  into  Britain,  preaching 
the  word  of  faith  with  great  devotion  to  those  provinces  of 
the  Angles  over  which  King  Oswald  reigned.  "  Churches 
were  built  in  several  places :  the  people  joyfully '  flocked 
together  to  hear  the  word  :  money  and  lands  were  given  of 
the  King^s  bounty  to  build  monasteries. \ 

The  example  set  by  the  King  was  generally  followed  by 
his  vassals,  and  wherever  a  church  existed,  the  owners  of 
land  endowed  it,  according  to  their  zeal  and  faith,  with 
portions  of  the  land  ;  and  ordained  that  the  tenths  (following 
the  Jewish  systerri)  should  be  forthcoming  from  certain  parts 
farmed  by  their  followers  and  henchmen. 

*  Liber  de  Driburgh,  Charter  No.  8. 

^  Ecclesiastical  History.,  Book  III.,  chap.  iii. 


THE  STIPEND  293 

When,  therefore,  we  read  that  King  Malcolm  (1153-65) 
confirmed  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  the  donations  of  Hugh  and 
Robert  (Richard)  de  Morville,  viz. :  "  Channelkirk  Church, 
with  land  adjacent  to  it,  and  everything  justly  pertaining  to 
it,"  we  are  not  to  suppose  that  the  De  Morvilles  had 
originally  endowed  Channelkirk  Church,  or  built  it,  but  that 
they  had  given  it  as  it  stood,  and  as  they  found  it  on  their 
Lauderdale  lands ;  while  the  priest  of  it  was  also  to  be 
preserved  in  the  rights,  privileges,  and  emoluments  with 
which  he  had  held  it  prior  to  the  time  of  their  coming  into 
Lauderdale. 

It  is  not  possible,  perhaps,  at  this  distant  date,  to  arrive 
at  any  clear  statement  as  to  the  exact  value  of  the  priest's 
"  living,"  though  we  may  venture  to  do  so  approximately. 
We  have  no  doubt  that  it  would  be  a  "  sufficient  "  living,  for 
in  those  days,  and  while  the  Church  was  Roman,  the  labourer 
in  God's  vineyard  was  never  grudged  and  denied,  as  he  is 
now,  a  comfortable  and  respectable  maintenance. 

To  the  modern  starvationist,  it  must  be  galling  to  read 
that  about  1220  quite  an  embarrassment  of  riches  befell 
Channelkirk  Church.  The  treasury  must  have  been  bursting 
with  wealth :  pious  people  were  so  mistaken !  Land  in 
abundance,  arable  as  well  as  meadow,  was  gifted  to  it  by 
a  foolish  person  called  Henry,  son  of  Samson.  He  measures 
it  from  Pilmuir  to  Wennesheued  (Fens-head  ?),  and  from 
Wennesheued  to  Bradestrotherburn,  and  from  there  to  the 
Leader.  He  also  flings  all  the  pertinents  after  the  land;  so 
reckless  was  he !  Channelkirk  held  an  interest  also  in  those 
days  in  the  lands  of  Threeburnford.  She  looked  upon'  ten 
acres  to  the  immediate  east  of  the  church  as  her  own 
patrimony,  with  the  addition  of  much  land  "  adjacent  to  "  the 
church,  an  endowment  of  which  there  is  no  definition  given. 


294 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


but  which  we  have  reason  to  believe  included  all  the  lands  of 
Kirklandhill  estate,  now  Kirktonhill.  To  all  these  we  must 
add  eight  acres  in  the  Haugh  opposite  what  is  now  Mount- 
mill  steading.  But  even  in  those  degenerate  times,  the  high 
officers  of  the  Church  heard  their  days  before  them,  and 
caught  a  glimmering  of  that  purifying  policy  which  rejoices 
at  present  the  latter-day  starvationist.  The  priest  in 
Channelkirk  parish  was  not  allowed  to  wallow  in  so  much 
wealth.  The  monks  of  Dryburgh  first  milked  the  cow, 
and  then  permitted  him  to  lick  the  outside  of  the  milk- 
pail.  This,  as  it  is  yet  believed,  taught  him  self-denial,  self- 
sacrifice,  and  more  and  more  to  die  daily  unto  sin  and  live 
unto  righteousness.  But  we  are  far  from  lamenting  his  case. 
Even  the  outside  of  the  pail  was  worth  licking  in  those 
days,  and,  as  we  shall  see,  was  flaked  with  a  greater 
richness  of  cream  than  is  to  be  found  inside  of  it  in  modern 
times. 

We  arrive  at  some  glimmering  conception  of  the  value 
of  the  stipend  of  Channelkirk  priest  in  the  thirteenth 
century  in  the  following  way  : — 

(i.)  He  received  ^lo  annually  for  serving  the  cure  at 
Channelkirk,  and  also  supplying  Lauder.* 

According  to  Adam  Smith,  ;^i  in  the  twelfth  century  was 
equal  to  ^3  in  his  time.f  In  proportional  or  exchangeable 
value,  this  sum  has  been  by  some  writers  calculated  much 
higher.  Therefore,  the  least  stipend  which  the  priest  of 
Channelkirk  could  have  was  of  ;^30  value.  This  looks  at 
first  sight  a  small  enough  amount  to  satisfy  even  our  modern 
starvationists.  But  in  1264  one  could  buy  for  ;^io,  20  chalders 
of  barley;  and  a  chalder  of  oatmeal  (14  bolls)  cost  exactly 


*  Liber  de  Driburgh^  passim. 

t  Wealth  of  Nations^  chap,  i.,  p.  2? 


London,  Third  Edition,  1784. 


THE  STIPEND  295 

^i.*  This  being  the  case,  his  stipend  was  worth  far  more  to 
him  in  purchasing  power  than  is  the  Channelkirk  stipend  at 
the  present  day,  which  is  equal  to  14  chalders  "  half  barley,  half 
oats."  At  that  date  he  might  have  bought  10  chalders  of 
oatmeal :  an  amount  which  should  have  kept  the  porridge- 
pot  eloquent  for  some  time.  For  it  meant  140  bolls  :  surely 
a  royal  girnel-full !     Yet  it  was  the  staple  food. 

But  this  was  not  all  his  "  living."  We  must  add  to  this 
amount  (2.)  his  Vicarage  Teinds.  These  were  by  no  means 
the  least  part  of  the  stipend.  They  were  often  superior  to 
the  rectorial  or  great  teinds,  and  were  drawn  from  hay,  stock 
produce,  lambs,  calves,  dairy  and  garden  produce,  and  such 
like.  And  there  was  yet  a  more  lucrative  source  of  revenue. 
Professor  Cosmo  Innes  says,  "The  large  part  of  clerical 
emoluments  came  from  offerings  at  Easter  and  other  feasts, 
dues  by  marriage,  baptisms,  and,  heaviest  of  all,  funeral 
dues."  t 

The  stipend  of  Channelkirk,  therefore,  in  the  middle  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  was  derived  from  the  following 
sources : — 

1.  Channelkirk  and  Lauder,  ^10. 

2.  Vicarage  teinds,  hay,  dairy  produce,  garden  do.,  stock  do. 

3.  Feast-offerings,  marriage  fees,  baptism  do.,  death  do. 

The    vicarage    teinds    and    feast-offerings    were    in    all 

likelihood     by   far    the    wealthier    reservoirs.       But    if    we 

reckon  each  of  these  only  at  the  value  of  the  stipend,  which, 

independently  of  Lauder,  he  would  have  had  as  the  vicar 

of    Channelkirk,   viz.,    10    merks — for   no   vicar   could   have 

less — and    rating    the    merk   at    13s.   4d.,   this    sum    would 

mean   ^6,   13s.  4d.,  or  the  value  of  nearly    14  chalders   of 

*  See  Tytler's  History  of  Scotland^  vol.  ii. 
^  Leg.  Ajitiq.,  Lect.  iv.,  p.  161. 


296  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

barley.  Doubling  this  amount  gives  us  28  chalders,  and 
adding  this  to  the  former  value  of  20  chalders,  we  seem 
justified  in  assuming  that  the  total  stipend  in  1268  would 
rise  to  something  like  48  chalders  of  barley.  The  present 
stipend,  as  we  have  stated,  is  of  the  value  of  14  chalders, 
half  oats,  half  barley.  Of  course  such  preposterous  affluence 
had  to  be  purged  from  the  priestly  office.  To  our  starva- 
tionist  friends  this  condition  of  matters  must  appear  to 
have  been  full  of  potential  carnalities.  The  clergy,  then, 
were  indeed  the  almoners  of  the  poor ;  they  were  the  only 
historians,  lawyers,  and  doctors ;  they  were  the  chief  legis- 
lators ;  they  were  the  best  landlords ;  they  introduced 
agriculture  and  the  arts.  As  a  matter  of  local  interest,  if  we 
are  not  mistaken,  they  were  the  founders  of  the  Border  wool 
trade.  But  their  influence  was  also  national.  When  the 
independence  of  Scotland  was  in  jeopardy,  it  was  they  who 
stood  side  by  side  with  Wallace  when  our  aristocracy  left 
him  to  his  fate.  They  hid  him ;  they  fed  him  ;  they 
prayed  for  him  ;  they  sent  his  foes  to  hell  for  him.  They 
were  zealous,  earnest  men  ;  eager  for  their  country's  welfare; 
open-handed,  wide-hearted,  with  a  religious  creed  far  closer 
in  touch  with  human  sympathies  than  anything  of  that 
kind  produced  in  Scotland  since.  And  we  believe  it  is 
astonishing  to  our  starvationists  that  all  these  ameliorating 
and  civilising  influences  should  not  have  been  amply  carried 
forward  and  sustained  on  something  equivalent  to  the 
modern  stipend  of  ;^2C)0  a  year. 

But  however  the  facts  of  history  may  now  be  balanced, 
and  whether  or  not  we  may  trace  to  the  affluence  of  the 
priests  that  immorality  and  debauchery  which,  for  fifty 
years  or  thereby  before  the  Reformation,  disgraced  their 
conduct,  we   may  be   allowed   to   believe   that   Channelkirk 


THE  STIPEND  297 

priest,  at  least,  continued  to  wallow  in  the  grossness  of  his 
48-chalder  values  until  there  came  the  ever-hallowed  year 
of  1560,  and  cleanness  of  teeth  for  the  ministers.  The 
nobles  were,  of  course,  the  chief  starvationists  of  that  time, 
and  it  must  be  admitted  that  they  carried  but  their  sancti- 
fying and  purifying  duties  nobly  and  well.  Our  minister, 
indeed,  was  so  purified  in  their  furnace  of  refining  that  he 
etherealized  away  into  space  and  became  "  a  blessed  ghost !  " 
The  gain  was  immense  ;  for  the  minister  of  Lauder,  besides 
officiating  in  his  own  church,  also  supplied  Channelkirk  and 
Bassendean  ;  and  thus,  instead  of  three  stipends,  one  fed 
the  three  parishes  with  spiritual  pemmican.  Even  for 
him,  a  little  tightening  of  the  belt  helped  to  meekness,  and 
when  entire  holiness  was  desired,  the  neck  was  stretched  ! 

About  1567,  Mr  Ninian  Borthuik  gets  his  stipend  from 
Lauder  and  Channelkirk  to  the  extent  of  ;^40,  "with  the 
thryd  of  his  prebendrye  extending  to  xj  lib,  2s.  2d.  lob." 
For  these  two  charges,  that  is,  he  was  paid  ;^5i,  2s.  2|d. 
Scots  money. 

The  same  "  Maister  Niniane  Borthuik,  minister,"  appears 
to  have  also  supplied  "  Bassenden "  in  the  Merse,  for 
which  he  received  £66,  13s.  4d.  Scots,  "with  the  kirkland 
of  Ersiltoun."  *  In  1576,  the  reader  at  Channelkirk  received 
",^16,  with  the  Kirkland,  to  be  pait  thairof  the  thrid  of  the 
vicarage,  £^,  lis,  od."i*  The  reader's  name  is  not  given. 
Scott's  Fasti  gives  his  name  as  John  Gibsoun,  From 
£\6  to  ;i^20,  with  or  without  Kirkland,  was  the  usual 
stipend  of  a  reader  about  this  time. 

From  1560  till  i6ii,  fifty-one  years,  there  was  no  minister 
in   Channelkirk,   and   a   brief  sketch   of   the    circumstances 

*  Register  of  Ministers,  Reiders^  etc. 

t  Buik  of  Assignations  of  the  Minis teris  and  Readars  Stipendis. 


298  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  of  the  men  who  directly  influenced  the  condition  of  its 
stipend  then,  and  until  this  day,  may  be  permitted  to  fill 
up  that  space  of  time. 

Dryburgh  Abbey,  with  other  religious  houses,  was  an- 
nexed to  the  Crown  after  the  Reformation,  and  all  the 
churches  under  it  went  with  it.  A  liferent  reservation  was 
made,  however,  in  favour  of  the  commendator,  David  Erskine, 
who  entered  that  office  1556.  This  reservation  included 
the  tithes,  which  kept  Channelkirk  emoluments  in  direct 
connection  with  the  Abbey.  As  "  modest  and  honest  and 
shamefast "  David  was  a  prominent  and  influential  political 
partisan  of  the  reform  party  of  his  day,  he  found  it  more 
convenient  to  lease  Channelkirk  teinds,  as  did  also  the 
commendators  immediately  preceding  him. 

Accordingly,  about  1535,  Cuthbert  Cranstoune  and  Sir 
Robert  Formane  pay  in  rental  to  Dryburgh  Abbey  for  the 
Kirk  of  Channelkirk  £66,  13s.  4d.  Scots  (100  merks),  and 
they  continue  to  do  so  till  the  year  1560.  Cuthbert 
Cranstoun  vvas  then  resident  in  Thirlestane  Mains,  and 
seems  to  have  been  a  quiet,  inoffensive  man,  although  his 
family  were  often  wild  and  lawless  in  their  behaviour.  He 
was  "prolocutor  for  pannale  in  the  case  of  slaughter  of 
Stevin  Bromfield,  laird  of  Grenelawdene,  1564."  His  son, 
John  Cranstoun,  in  1560,  committed  crimes  of  treason  and 
leze  majesty,  but  was  pardoned  in  1578  (Acts  of  Pari.,  iii.,  109). 
John's  sons,  Thomas  and  John,  were  also,  with  many  others, 
subject  to  a  process  of  treason  raised  in  1592  in  Parliament, 
and  their  posterity  was  disinherited.  But  in  1604  His  Majesty 
restores  to  "his  heines  lovit  Maister  Thomas  Cranstoun  of 
Morestoun,"  and  John  Cranstoun,  his  brother  germane,  their 
"  lyffes,  landis,  gudis,"  etc.,  and  rehabilitates  their  posterity 
in  their  said  rights. 


THE  STIPEND 


■299 


Alexander  Cranstoun,  mentioned  below,  is  served  heir 
to  his  father,  Thomas  Cranstoun  of  Morestoun,  in  Burn- 
castle,  in  Lauder,  September  4,  1607.  The  same  year  he  also 
holds  Ernescleuch  and  Egrop,  and  in  1609  gets  Birkensyde, 
as  heir  to  Cuthbert  Cranstoun.* 

Sir  Robert  Formane  was  doubtless  a  relative  of  Arch- 
bishop Andrew  Forman,  Superior  of  Dryburgh,  during  the 
reigns  of  James  IV.  and  James  V.  About  15 12  he  was 
Commendator  of  Dryburgh  Abbey,  resigned  in  1506,  and 
died  in  I522.-|-  The  Forman  family  was  of  Hatton,  Berwick- 
shire, and  Sir  John  Forman,  brother  of  Andrew,  married 
Helen  Rutherford,  one  of  the  heiresses  of  Rutherford  of 
Rutherford  in  Teviotdale, 

It  appears  that  Cuthbert  Cranstoun  and  Sir  Robert 
Forman  divided  Channelkirk  teinds  between  them  in  the 
lease.  In  subsequent  leases,  at  least,  the  Cranstoun  share 
was  always  a  half  of  the  teinds,  and  probably  no  more  was 
ever  held  by  that  house. 

When  the  Reformation  came,  great  changes  took  place 
in  the  payment  of  ministers,  but  as  Channelkirk  had  no 
minister  till  161 1,  it  is  a  clear  inference  that  nearly  all  its 
emoluments  went  into  the  secular  purse. 

In  1604,  John,  Earl  of  Mar,  received  from  King  James 
VI.  a  grant  of  Dryburgh  Abbey,  together  with  the  Abbey 
of  Cambuskenneth  and  the  Priory  of  Inchmahome.  The 
King  afterwards  erected  Dryburgh  into  a  temporal  lordship 
and  peerage,  and  on  loth  June  16 10  the  Earl  of  Mar  was 
created  Lord  Cardross.  In  161 5  Lord  Mar  obtains  another 
charter,  in  which  we  find  the  stipend  of  Chingilkirk  set 
down  at  300  libras  (^300  Scots),  or  £2$  sterling.  An 
augmentation  must  have  been  given  a  few  years  afterwards, 
*  Retours.  t  Walcot's  History. 


3G0  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

as  we  learn  from  what  follows.  In  1620  the  King  "concedes 
to  Alexander  Cranston  of  Morrestoun  "  (noticed  above)  "  and 
to  his  heirs  masculine  and  assigns  whomsoever  the  lands 
of  Burncastle,  with  holdings,  etc.,  half  the  great  tenths 
(garbales),  the  tenths  of  wool  and  lambs,  rectorial  and 
vicarage,  of  the  Church  and  Parish  of  Chingilkirk  (possessed 
by  the  said  Alexander)  in  the  bailiary  of  Lauderdale  and 
sheriffdom  of  Berwick,  which  lands  the  same  Alexander, 
and  which  tenths  (sometime  part  of  the  lordship  of  Cardross) 
John,  Earl  of  Marr,  with  consent  of  Henry  Erskine,  his 
second  son  .  .  .  resigned  ;  and  which  tenths  the  King  dis- 
solved from  the  said  lordship  and  united  to  the  said  lands 
inseparably — being  held  in  blench  firm  :  Returning  for  the 
lands  two  pounds  of  pepper ;  for  the  tenths,  40  shillings, 
as  part  of  the  blench  firm  due  from  the  said  lordship ; 
and  relieving  the  said  Earl  of  half  the  minister's  stipend 
at  the  Church  of  Chingilkirk,  extending  to  250  merks,  and 
from  other  burdens,"  etc.  .  .    * 

The  full  stipend  in  1620  must,  therefore,  have  been  500 
merks.  This  was  the  minimum  stipend  which  a  minister 
might  receive  by  the  Act  of  Parliament  of  1617,  the 
maximum  being  800  merks.  Channelkirk  stipend  was  thus, 
in  curling  phrase,  "  ower  the  hog,"  but  no  more.  The  "  hog 
score"  of  the  present  time  is  ^200;  and,  indeed,  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  laborious  "  soopin,"  in  bazaars  and 
other  pursey  places  is  necessary  to  effect  this  merciful  result. 
Principal  John  Cunningham  notes  that  in  161 7,  500  merks 
was  equal  to  5  chalders  of  victual.-f-  MacGeorge  says  :  "  At 
a  period  long  after  this  (1595)  the  stipend  of  the  first  charge 
in   Glasgow   was    500   merks,   equal,   at   that  time,  to  only 

■'^  Great  Seal. 

t  History  of  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  502.     Second  Edition. 


THE  STIPEND 


301 


£27,  15s.  6d."*  The  first  charge  of  Glasgow  and  Chanhel- 
kirk  were  thus,  as  far  as  stipend  is  concerned,  on  an  equal 
footing  at  one  time ! 

The  Kers  of  Morristoun  subsequently  succeeded  the 
Cranstouns  in  Channelkirk  teinds. 

Owing  to  the  miserable  condition  into  which  the  stipends 
of  the  ministers  had  fallen  up  till  1627,  the  King,  on  the  7th 
January  of  that  year,  issued  a  Commission  to  take  the  matter 
in  hand,  and  have  it  settled  once  and  for  ever.  Sub-Com- 
missions were  established  all  over  the  country  to  value  the 
teinds  and  otherwise  assist  the  High  Commission,  and 
between  1627  and  1633,  when  Parliament  sanctioned  these 
proceedings  and  made  them  law,  good  solid  work  was  done, 
which  was  intended  for  peace.  The  fifth  part  of  the  rental 
of  the  land  was  declared  to  be  the  value  of  the  teind,  and  so 
much  of  this  was  apportioned  to  the  minister  as  the  Com- 
missioners of  teinds  thought  sufficient. 

The  High  Commission  was  composed  of  prelates,  nobles, 
barons,  and  burgesses,  and  the  Sub-Commissions  of  the  leading 
men  in  their  districts.  The  Sub-Commission  to  the  Presbytery, 
for  Lauder  district,  and  which  adjudicated  in  Lauder  Tolbooth 
on  Channelkirk  teinds  and  stipend,  comprised,  for  example, 
such  names  as  Raulf  Ker,  who  was  Moderator,  Robert  Lauder 
of  that  Ilk,  William  Pringall  of  Cortelferrie,  William  Crans- 
toun  in  Morristoun,  Robert  Pringle,  and  Hugh  Bell,  with 
Gilbert  Murray,  officer,  and  Charles  Singileir  (Sinclair) 
Dempster.  The  Sub-Commissioners,  who  were  bound  to 
know  the  district  best,  were  inclined  to  rate  the  stipend 
lower  than  the  High  Commission,  who  seemed  to  view  the 
case  not  so  much  as  what  would  actually  "  keep  the  minister," 
as  what  was  due  to  his  profession  and  social  position.  That 
*  The  Church  of  Scotland^  vol.  iv.,  p.  55. 


302 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


both  were  as  scrimp  as  decency  could  permit  proves  that  not 
the  nobles  alone  were  infected  with  the  poverty-purity 
principle,  but  that  the  country  lairds  also  were  convinced 
of  the  salutary  influence  of  poor  stipends  upon  the  morals 
of  the  Church. 

In  1627  the  various  "  rowmes "  in  the  parish  (with  their 
names  modernized),  paid  as  under : — 


Teinds. 

Stock. 

» 

Parsonage. 

Vicarage. 

I.  Bowerhouses    . 

300  merks 

100  merks 

ii40 

2.  CoUielaw  .... 

500  merks 

TOO  merks 

80  merks 

3.  Over  Howden  . 

600  merks 

£100 

TOO  merks 

4.  Airhouse  .... 

160  merks 

£^0 

^20 

5.  Threeburnford . 

i        ^160 

£20 

£20 

6.  Nether  Hartside 

!    600  merks 

80  merks 

100  merks 

7.  Glints        .        .         .         . 

500  merks 

£20 

icx)  merks 

8,  Over  Hartside  . 

300  merks 

20  merks 

40  merks 

9.  Glengelt   .... 

'  1000  merks 

^120 

100  merks 

10.  Headshaw  and  Haugh     . 

400  merks 

100  merks 

.2^40 

II.  Midlie       .         .         .         . 

100  merks 

20  merks 

/20 

12.  Fairnielies 

.    200  merks 

i:2o 

40  merks 

13.  Kelphope .         .         .         . 

1    300  merks 

£20 

.£40 

14.  Friarsknowes    . 

'         £^0 

£(> 

10  merks 

15.  Hazeldean        .         . 

200  merks 

20  merks 

40  merks 

16.  Herniecleuch    . 

£^60 

^10 

20  merks 

17.  Hillhouse 

400  merks 

50  merks 

50  merks 

18.  Carfrae  Mains  . 

■     500  merks 

£^00 

^80 

19.  Carfrae  Mill 

300  merks 

40  merks 

20  merks 

20.  Nether  Howden 

1    600  merks 

i^ioo 

£20 

21.  Wiselaw  Mill    . 

,     100  merks 

10  merks 

£4 

22,  Oxton        .... 

900  merks 

.£100 

i^4o 

23.  Heriotshall 

£^0 

50  merks 

10  merks 

24.  Kirktonhill 

200  merks 

80  merks 

50  merks 

25.  Kirkland  of  Kirkhaugh     . 
Totals 

'    i:4o 

/8160  merks 
I  plus  ^520 

670  merks 

760  merks 

plus  ^636 

plus  ;^324 

f 


THE  STIPEND  303 

Taking  the  Scots  merk  equal  to  is.  i|d.  sterling,  and  the 
Scots  pound  equal  to  is.  8d.,  the  stock  of  the  whole  parish 
amounted  to  £\^2,  13s.  4d.  sterling. 

The  parsonage  teind  equalled  a  total  of  ;^90,  4s.  SxV^* 
sterling. 

The  vicarage  teind  amounted  to  ;^69,  4s.  S/jd.  sterling. 

The  whole  teind,  parsonage  and  vicarage,  of  the  parish, 
therefore,  in  1627  amounted  to  ;^I59,  8s.  iOx\d,  sterling, 
according  to  the  Rev.  Henry  Cockburn's  statement.  Of 
course,  if  he  had  pocketed  the  full  teinds,  as  was  his  right, 
he  would  have  been  rolling  in  wealth,  but  his  annual  share 
was  500  merks,  or  £2^,  15s.  6d.,  and  this  sum  deducted  from. 
;^I59,  8s.  lod.,  leaves  ;^i3i,  13s.  4d.,  which  went  annually  into 
the  purses  of  the  Titulars.  The  last-mentioned  sum  was,  of 
course,  the  unexhausted  or  free  teind,  from  which  subsequent 
augmentations  were  drawn  or  extorted. 

The  outcome  of  the  valuations  made  by  the  High  Com- 
mission about  1630-32  seem  to  have  raised  Channelkirk 
stipend  .somewhat,  and  also  fixed  a  rule  of  conversion.  It 
is  set  forth  in  these  words :  "  At  Halirud  house  the  25  March 
1632  years.  .  .  .  Att  which  tyme,  the  valuation  being 
perfectly  closed  and  the  kirk  provided  sufficiently,  the  saids 
Commissioners  in  presens  of  the  sds  parties  compearand 
decerned  the  pryces  of  buying  and  selling  of  the  parsonage 
teinds  victuall  within  the  said  paroch  (Ginglekirk)  as  follows, 
vizt.,  Price  of  ilk  boll  of  bear,  5  lib.  6s.  8d.  (;^5,  6s.  8d.),  pryce 
of  ilk  boll  of  oats,  3  lib.  money."  * 

In  1 69 1  an  augmentation  was  obtained,  and  we  ascertain 

from   the  copy  of  both  old  and  new  stipend  of  that  date, 

preserved  by  Rev.  David  Scott  in  his  Minute-Book,  of  date 

175 1,  that  the  old  stipend,  previous  to  1 691,  was  ;^5i4,  us.  6d. 

*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  139. 


304  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Scots,  or  say  ;^42,  17s.  6d.  sterling.  The  minister  had,  as  we 
have  seen,  ;^27,  15s.  6d.  in  1627.  About  1630-32  he  seems  to 
have  received  an  augmentation  equal  to  ;^I5  sterling,  or 
thereby,  raising  the  total  stipend  to  thie  above  sum.  An 
augmentation  was  again  given  in  1691,  to  the  extent  of 
;^93,  19s.  Scots,  or  nearly  £y,  i6s.  8d.  sterling.  This,  added 
to  the  sum  already  stated,  reached  ;^6o8,  los.  6d.  Scots,  or 
about  ;^50,  14s.  sterling.  To  this  money  payment  it  appears 
there  was  added  2  stones  of  cheese,  6  bolls  of  bear,  and  10 
bolls  of  oats.* 

The  Rev.  David  Scott  began  his  ministry  in  Channelkirk 
in  1752,  and  he  notes  that  his  first  year's  stipend,  in- 
dependent of  the  above  victual  stipend,  amounted  only  to 
;^543,  IS.  lod.  Scots,  instead  of  ;^6o8,  los.  6d.  The  defect 
is  alleged  to  have  been  due  to  non-payment  by  the  Titular, 
Ker  of  Morieston,t  of  100  merks  {£66,  13s.  4d.),  of  which 
emolument  Mr  Scott  either  seems  to  have  been  ignorant 
and  never  claimed,  or  that  his  predecessor  and  he  conjointly 
had  never  claimed,  until  forty  years  had  passed,  and  it  was 
lost  by  dereliction.  In  his  days  began  the  long  wars  of 
heritors  against  ministers,  and  heritors  against  heritors, 
over  the  poor  skinny  gorb  of  Channelkirk  stipend,  the  dust 
and  din  of  which  did  not  die  away  till  almost  our  own  time. 
Such  despicable  and  unseemly  efforts  on  the  part  of  our 
Scottish  nobility  and  landowners  over  the  meagre  pittance 
which  was  allotted  to  men  who  have  never  been  otherwise 
than  useful  and  helpful  to  their  country,  have  necessarily 
planted  a  deep  and  heartfelt  resentment  against  them  in 
thife  bosom  of  the  people,  who  naturally  sympathise  with 
the  weaker  side,  and  never  fail  to  respect  their  ministers. 
_  It  would  be  more  than  a  wearisome  task  to  narrate 
*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  234.  f  Ibid.,  p.  236. 


•f 


THE  STIPEND  305 

the  long  scandalous  story  of  lawsuits,  decernings,  recallings, 
and   processes  without  number,  which   embittered  the  lives 
of  three   ministers   of   Channelkirk   successively.     Necessity 
was   laid   upon   the   incumbents    to    procure   the   means   of 
existence,  owing  to  the  continued  rise  of  the  social  standards 
of  living.     The  middle  of  last  century  saw  great  changes  in 
Scotland,    changes    which    began    much    earlier    and    were 
chiefly  due  to  the  rise  of  the  industrial  .spirit  as  compared 
with  the  theological  spirit   of  the  two  preceding  centuries. 
The  Union  of  1707  acted  upon  Scotland  as  the  lifting  of  the 
sluice  which  levels  the  canal  waters  with  those  of  the  sea, 
and    the    disused,   misused,   and    pent-up    energies    of    the 
Scottish     people     rushed     into    new    and     ever-broadening 
channels  of  trading  and   manufacturing  speculations.     With 
England,   with    America,   and    the    West    Indies,   Scotland 
for  the   first   time   could   conduct   something   like   business. 
Glasgow   and   all   the  towns  of  the  West  began  to  grow.* 
With  such  immense  advances  the  manners  and  customs 
of  all    Scottish   life   underwent   a   complete   transformation. 
Land  cultivation,  housing,  dressing,  feeding,  everything  ro.se 
to  higher  levels.     The  morning  of  social  happiness  dawned 
upon  the  people.     But  while  all  this  was  taking  place,  and 
rents  rose,  and    prices   of  markets   grew  higher,  and  land- 
owners saw  their  exchequers  filling,  and  an  eager  class  of 
husbandmen  carving  new  farms  for  them  out  of  moors  and 
wastes,   making   two   farms   where   there   was  but   one,  the 
minister's    .stipend    remained    unchanged,   and    he    had    to 
contend  with  a  higher  and*  dearer  style  of  living  with  the 
old  dole  of  money.     He  had  no  less  nominally — his  .stipend 
as  fixed  was  the  same — but  actually  he  was  daily  a  poorer 
man,  owing  to  his  having  to  pay  more  for  the  neces.saries 

*  See  Buckle's  History  of  Civilisation^  vol.  iii.,  p.  179. 

U 


306  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  services  of  life.  The  rise  of  the  national  tide  of 
prosperity  rose  above  the  rock  he  stood  upon,  and  the  logic 
of  events  clearly  meant  that  unless  the  rock  could  also  be 
heightened,  he  as  minister  must  be  swept  into  bankruptcy. 
David  Scott  saw  this  too  plainly,  but  he  bore  it,  and  might 
have  gone  on  to  the  end  of  his  days  in  that  way,  if  the 
effort  to  push  him  off  his  rock  by  the  landowners  had  not 
fairly  braced  him  to  face  the  precincts  of  a  law  court  in  order 
to  protect  himself 

George  Adinston  came  into  Collielaw  estate  in  1757, 
hailing  from  Carcant  in  Heriot  parish.  He  narrowly  in- 
spected his  teinds,  and  discovered  that  a  few  shillings  more 
were  paid  out  of  his  land  than  seemed  right.  He  took  the 
minister,  and  the  titular,  and  the  patron  of  Channelkirk 
to  law.  He  gained  his  case,  and  the  few  shillings  were 
struck  off  the  minister's  dole.  This  cost  him  dear,  for  the 
minister  in  1778  raised  a  process  of  augmentation,  and  Mr 
Adinston  found  his  case  upset,  and  a  bitter  fight  in  the 
Court  of  Session  before  him  to  prove  even  his  heritable 
right  to  his  teinds.  In  1779  Mr  Scott  "obtained  a  con- 
siderable augmentation,  though  in  consequence  of  the 
different  disputes  amongst  the  heritors,  the  Locality  was 
not  adjusted  until  the  21st  January  1789,"  that  is,  ten  years 
afterwards. 

It  is  perhaps  necessary  to  explain  that  "  Locality "  here 
is  a  technical  term  meaning  the  allocation  to  each  property 
in  the  parish  of  that  exact  proportion  of  stipend  which  is 
due  from  it  to  the  minister.  As  property  changes  hands 
and  is  increased  or  diminished  in  area,  confusion  often  arises 
as  to  the  exact  sum  due  from  each  landowner,  and  this 
appears  to  have  been  the  cause  of  the  misunderstanding 
in  Collielaw  case.     It  was,  however,  only  typical  of  many 


THE  STIPEND  307 

other  "cases"  in  the  parish,  all  of  which  were  disputed  in 
the  Court  of  Teinds.     The   confusion  is  well  illustrated  by 
the  fact  that  the  Teind  Court  changed  its  mind  several  times 
on    ColHelaw   dispute,   and    Mr    Adinston    was    never  sure 
whether  his  case  was  finally   settled    or   not!     In   1779  he 
was  rated  at  £2^,  9s.  3d.  Scots,  plus  3  pecks,  3  lippies  of 
bear,   3   pecks   of  oats,   and   ;i^i,   is.    5d.  additional   money. 
But  a   Rectified   Locality,  made  up  on  6th  February  1788, 
made  his  share  £2^,  9s.  3d.,  plus   i   boll,  i  peck  of  bear,  3 
firlots,  2  pecks,   i  lippie  of  oats,  and  £^,  i8s.  8d.  additional. 
Never  was  there  a  better  instance  that  "  too  many  cooks 
spoil  the  broth."     As  already  noted,  when  the  King  in   1627 
appointed   a    High    Commission    to    look    into    the   whole 
question    of  teinds,   a   Sub-Commission    was    also    created. 
This    Sub-Commission    acted    independently   of    the    High 
Commission,  and  valued  the  teinds  of  a  parish  according  to 
its  own  judgment,  and  the  High  Commission  in  many  cases 
refused   to   accept    its    valuations.      In    ColHelaw   case,   the 
Sub-Commission  valued  the  teinds  at  one  amount,  and  the 
High  Commission  the  year  following  valued  them  at  another. 
Mr  Adinston  held  by  the  Sub-Commission's  valuation,  and 
this  was  taken  as  a  basis  of  settlement  until  the  record  of 
that   of  the    High   Commission   was  discovered.     Then  the 
Teind  Court  reversed  its  judgment,  and  decerned  that  the 
valuation   of  the    Sub-Commission   was   null  and   void  and 
wastepaper  by  the  subsequent  valuation  of  the  High  Com- 
mission, and  although    petition  upon  petition  was  brought 
before  the  Lords  long  after  Collielaw  had  passed  from   Mr 
Adinston's  hands  (for  the  case  was  disputed  from  1773  till 
1820,  more  than  fifty  years),  the  final  decree  of  the  Teind 
Court,  of  dates  8th   December    18 19  and   8th   March    1820, 
put  the  matter  at  rest  on  the  valuation  of  the  High  Com- 


308  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

mission  of  2nd  July  163 1.  This  valuation  was  higher  than 
that  of  the  Sub-Commission.  It  was  set  down  at  4  bolls 
of  bear,  8  bolls  of  oats,  and  12  lambs  with  wool,  and  at 
the  last  adjustment  of  the  stipend  in  1827  this  amount  is 
set  down  against  Collielaw  estate. 

As  remarked,  the  Collielaw  dispute  is  typical  of  many 
others  which  transpired  during  the  incumbencies  of  David 
Scott,  Thomas  Murray,  and  John  Brown.  The  heritors 
fought  with  each  other  and  with  the  ministers,  and  well  may 
the  ministers  who  have  followed  them  in  the  office  feel 
grateful  to  their  brethren  for  their  valiant  contest  with  these 
starvationists,  for  had  they  not  endured  the  miseries  of 
law  courts,  and  done  battle  for  the  bare  necessaries  of  life, 
the  heritors  to  all  appearance  would  have  calmly  seen  the 
Church  of  Channelkirk  rot  into  the  soil,  and  its  ministers 
along  with  it.  Bowels  of  mercy  in  these  grievous  lawsuits 
are  nowhere  evident  except  in  the  law  courts  where  one 
looks  least  to  find  them.  Perhaps  the  Bench  was  more 
concerned  to  realise  a  common-sense  estimate  of  what 
was  due  to  the  worldly  position  of  a  Christian  gentleman, 
than  to  perpetuate  a  lean  line  of  holy  officials  by  the 
sanctified  methods  of  diminished  aliment. 

The  same  reason  that  urged  pious  David  Scott  to 
entrench  himself  on  his  bit  of  rock,  and,  if  possible,  build 
a  kind  of  Stylites  pillar  on  it  to  keep  his  head  somewhat 
above  starvation  level,  induced  his  successor,  Mr  Murray, 
to  adopt  the  same  policy.  Lord  Lauderdale  had  brought 
a  process  of  reduction  of  Locality  in  1789,  and  was  success- 
ful in  getting  some  of  his  allocated  portion  of  stipend  shifted 
on  to  the  shoulders  of  some  one  else— Mr  Borthwick  we  learn 
— and  as  a  consequence  a  new  scheme  of  Locality  of  Stipend 
was  made  out  in   1793.      In  this  year  Mr  Murray  entered 


mt 


THE  STIPEND 


309 


upon  his  ministry  here,  and  thinking  his  feet  too  near  the 
starvation  water,  he  raised  a  new  process  of  Augmentation 
and  Locality,  and  on  20th  May  1795  obtained  his  request 
to  the  extent  of  three  chalders  of  victual,  half  meal,  half 
bear,  and  ^32,  6s.  8d.  Scots.*  But  various  heritors  hauled 
him  through  the  Teind  Court  again  and  again,  and  when 
1808  came  he  was  called  to  the  highest  Court  of  all,  and  left 
his  Stylites  pillar  to  be  added  to  by  his  successor,  Mr  John 
Brown.  All  his  days  at  Channelkirk  manse  must  have 
been  embittered  with  squabbles  about  his  stipend.  Burns 
laments  the  sad  fate  of  him  who  "  begs  a  brother  of  the 
earth  to  give  him  leave  to  toil ; "  but  surely  his  lot  is  harder 
who,  having  begged  long  for  leave  to  toil,  is  further  refused 
a  competent  wage  for  the  labour  he  performs. 

In  April  181 1  the  Rev.  John  Brown  took  up  the  common 
cause  which  Rev.  Thomas  Murray  had  let  fall  in  death. 
These  lawsuits  were  much  complicated  by  (i)  the  two 
separate  valuations  of  the  Sub-Commission  and  High  Com- 
mission of  1627-31,  use  and  wont  having  settled  upon  the 
one  in'^one  set  of  properties,  and  upon  the  other  in  the 
other  set,  and  thus  overpayments  and  underpayments  of 
stipend  were  alleged  ;  and  (2)  by  combinations  or  separations 
of  properties  since  the  time  of  such  valuations.  The  latter 
set  of  circumstances,  for  example,  produced  confusion  in  the 
allocation  of  the  teinds  of  Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse,  Kirkton- 
hill  and  Over  Hartside,  Glengelt  and  Mountmill,  Ugston 
as  two  halves  belong  to  separate  owners,  and  Ugston  as 
connected  with  Heriotshall.  The  teinds  of  Channelkirk 
parish  are  frankly  confessed  by  those  who  had  to  deal  with 
them  in  the  law  processes  of  this  and  last  centuries  as  about 
as  puzzling  a  question  of  teinds  as  could  well  be  imagined. 
*  Locality,  pp.  4  and  37, 


310  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

It  constituted  a  veritable  sword  dance,  where  laceration 
rewarded  the  performer's  lack  of  skill  and  agility.  The 
bowels  of  mercy  on  the  Bench  were  often,  happily,  a  place 
of  refuge  for  the  poor  incumbent.  Mr  Brown,  however,  was 
a  heaven-born  warrior,  and  while  watching  heritor  combat 
with  heritor,  was  not  slow  to  carry  his  cause  boldly  against 
their  united  forces.  In  1811  he  brought  a  new  process, 
the  fifth  of  such  since  1773,  of  Augmentation  and  Locality. 
But  a  feature  of  the  case  presented  itself  which  Mr  Murray 
had  to  face,  and  died  trying  to  remedy.  There  were  no 
funds  for  a  further  increase  of  stipend  !  The  bounty  and 
blessing  of  the  Stuart  Kings,  and  of  the  Erskines,  and  the 
Cranstons,  and  the  Commissioners,  had  fairly  dried  up !  The 
pillar  of  safety  could  no  further  be  raised  !  So,  the  first  step 
in  the  new  process  of  augmentation  was  to  sist  that  process 
till  the  issue  of  a  process  of  reduction  could  be  effected, 
begun  by  Murray,  and  now  to  be  carried  on  at  Mr  Brown's 
instance.  This  was  accomplished  on  17th  January  1812. 
The  reduction  was  favourable  to  the  minister,  and  then, 
in  1 8 14,  he  resumed  proceedings  in  the  augmentation.  Mr 
Murray's  augmentation  began  with  the  last  half  of  the  crop 
and  year  of  God  1793,  and  now  Mr  Brown's  drew  back  to 
the  crop  and  year  of  God  181 1.  This  Interlocutor  of 
Augmentation  was  pronounced  on  6th  July  1814.  Mr 
Brown's  stipend  was  to  be  henceforth,  "yearly,  since  syne 
and  in  time  coming,  fourteen  chalders  of  victual,  half  meal, 
half  barley,  payable  in  money,  according  to  the  highest 
fiars  prices  of  the  county  annually,  with  ten  pounds  sterling 
for  furnishing  the  Communion  elements."  This  judgment 
was  petitioned  against  by  heritors,  and  protests  made,  but  it 
ultimately  became  the  final  judgment  of  the  Court,  and  a 
final    Locality    was    made    out    apportioning    the    amount 


THE  STIPEND  311 

among    the    heritors,   and    it    remains    the    stipend   to   this 
day. 

We  are  now  able  to  glance  backwards  and  get  a  clearer 
view  of  the  course  of  this  Pactolus'  stream  of  stipend,  as  it 
winds  and  widens  in  its  golden  affluence  from  the  year  1567. 

Circa  1567.  Ninian  Borthuik  serves  Lauder  and  Channelkirk.    Stipend 

=  ;^5i,  28.  2id  =  ;^4,  5s.  3d.  stg.  approx.,  plus  his  Bassen- 

dean  stipend. 
1615.  Francis  Collage  (1615-1625)  (Channelkirk  only).    Stipend, 

^300  Scots  =  j^25  sterling. 
1620.  Francis  Collage.    Stipend  =  5oo  merks  =  ;^27,  15s.  6d.  stg. 
1627.  Henry    Cogkburn    (1625-50).       Stipend  =   500    merks  = 

;^27,  15s.  6d.  stg.     Augmentation  of  ^15  stg.  or  thereby, 

probably  about  1632.     Stipend  =  ^42,  17s.  6d. 
1632-1691.  (Henry  Cogkburn  :   David  Liddell  :  Walter  Keith  : 

Wm.  Arrot).        Stipend  =  ^514,    us.    6d.    Scots  = 

^42,  17s.  6d.  stg. 
1691.  William     Arrot    (received     into     Presbyterianism    from 
Prelacy).     Augmentation   of  ^93,    19s.  Scots  =  ^7,  i6s. 

stg.     Victual  was  also  added. 

|';^6o8,  IDS.  6d.  Scots  —  ^^50,  14s.  stg.  approx., 

T,,        .       J  ,.  2  stones  of  cheese, 

The  stipend  then  ={,,,,      , , 

^  '  6  bolls  of  bear, 


I 

1 10 


bolls  of  oats. 


The  victual  stipend  was  drawn  from  Nether  Howden, 
Justicehall,  Ogstoun,  Mountmill,  Kirktonhill,  Hartside  and 
Glengelt,  "  att  the  rate  of  9  half  fulls  per  boll,  and  all  of  infield 
corn."  One  stone  of  cheese  came  from  Glengelt,  and  one  from 
Headshaw. 

Lammermoor  bear,  per  boll,  in  1691  =8s. 

„  oats,       „  „  =5s.  I  id.* 

Therefore,  leaving  out  cheese,  the  total  stipend  was 
;^6i3,  17s.  8d.  Scots. 

*  Robert  Ker's  Report  of  the  Agriculture  of  Berwickshire  in  18 13. 


312 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


In  1699  the  stipends  of  some  of  the  parishes  in  and 
around  Lauderdale  stood  as  under  : — 

Westruther     .....         1000  merks. 
Earlston  .....         1440      ,, 

Gordon  .....         iioo      „ 

Legerwood      .....  850      ,, 

Smailholm       .....  800      ,, 

Nenthorn        .....  973      ,, 

Lauder  .  .     5  chalders  of  victual  and  400      ,, 

1752.  Through  loss  of  100  merks  by  dereliction  and  other  causes, 
the  stipend  of  Channelkirk,  in  1752,  was,  in  money  Scots, 
only  ^543,  is.  iod.  =  ^45,  5s.  iH-  stg. 
1779.  Rev.  David  Scott  (1752-1792)  obtained  an  augmentation  in 
1779  of  approximately  ^14,  is.  9d.  stg.  We  get  this 
result  by  deducting  the  augmentation  obtained  later  by 
Mr  Murray  from  the  old  stipend  he  held  from  Mr  Scott. 
Stipend,  therefore,  in  1779  =  .^59)  6s.  ii|d.  stg. 
1793.  Rev.  Thomas  Murray  (1793- 1808)  had  his  stipend  aug- 
mented in  the  year  of  his  ordination  to  the  sum  of 
^65,  4s.  lod.  stg.     It  consisted  of  : — 

„  ,  or,  6  chalders  victual,  counting  16  bolls 

48     „  bear  h  •         .    ,  , 

"  I  m  I  chalder. 

24     „  oats  j 

(2)  ^600  Scots  =  ;^5o  stg.  ;  and  (3)  ;{;6o  Scots  =  ^5  stg. 
for  Communion  elements.     The  total  was  —  6  chalders 
victual  plus  ^55  stg. 
In  1795,  meal  was  £1  Scots  per  boll  (average  taken  of  10  years). 
„      bear  (Lammermoor)  was  ;i^i,  9s.  4d.  Scots  per  boll. 
„      oats  „  „    ^i,  3s.  4d.      „  „  * 

The  actual  price  paid  was  probably  much  less,  but  on  this 
basis  Mr  Murray's  entire  stipend  now  stood  at  £6s,  4s.  lod.  ; 
with  the  glebe  value  he  might  realise  .^80,  or  thereby.  It 
will  be  observed  that  the  augmentations  are,  for  the  most 
part,  from  victual. 

1 8 14.  Rev.  John  Brown  (1809- 1828)  obtained,  in  18 14,  an  aug- 
mentation of  49  bolls,  2  pecks  of  meal,  and  53  bolls,  i 
peck,  3  lippies  Of  barley. 

His  augmentation  was  to  date  from  the  crop  and  year  of 
God    181 1,   when   he   raised   the   summons,   and   the  whole 
*  Ker's  Report,  181 3. 


THE  STIPEND  313 

stipend  was  declared  to  be  14  chalders  of  victual,  half  meal, 
half  barley,  payable  in  money,  according  to  the  highest  fiars 
prices  of  the  county  annually,  with  ^10  sterling  for  furnishing 
the  Communion  elements.  This  was  made  into  an  interim 
Locality,  and  after  petitions,  protests,  and  new  lawsuits  on 
particular  disputed  teinds,  the  rectified  Locality  was  finally 
made  up  on  20th  February  1827.  From  1776  "no  final 
Locality  had  been  in  the  parish."  "Various  interim  schemes" 
had  to  do  duty,  and  the  minister  dying  in  1828,  he  may  be 
said,  like  his  two  immediate  predecessors,  to  have  spent 
nearly  all  his  years  of  ministry  in  Channelkirk  bickering 
about  his  stipend. 

If  the  stipend  were  calculated  on  the  Merse  fiars  prices 
instead  of  the  Lammermoor,  as  we  have  done,  it  would 
amount  to  a  few  pounds  more,  as  the  Merse  prices  were 
invariably  higher  than  the  Lammermoor.  But  there  is 
reason  to  believe  that  the  option  of  the  Merse  fiars  prices 
was  not  made  legal  to  Channelkirk  minister  till  6th  July 
1 8 14.*  On  that  date  the  Court  of  Session  "decerned  and 
ordained  "  the  stipend  to  be  paid  "  according  to  the  highest 
fiars  prices  of  the  county."  The  Rev.  John  Brown  under- 
stood this  to  include  the  Merse  prices  in  its  scope,  but  Lord 
Tweeddale,  Lord  Lauderdale,  Mr  Borthwick,  and  Mr  Somer- 
ville,  petitioned  against  his  view,  and  urged  that  to  take 
Merse  prices,  which  at  that  time  were  higher  than  Lammer- 
moor by  seven  and  eight  shillings,  was  unjust,  and  "  contrary 
to  the  practice  of  all  the  parishes  in  Lauderdale?  ^  We  are 
happy  to  say  that  the  bowels  of  mercy  on  the  Bench  once 
more  sustained  the  minister's  reading  of  the  law. 

We  now  give  a  Table  of  Stipend  of  the  year  1862,  showing 
how  the  14  chalders  work  out : — 

*  Locality^  p.  28.  t  Ibid.^  p.  49. 


314 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


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THE  STIPEND 


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2  XI 


^3     2 

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316 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


The  monthly  Cess  of  Channelkirk  (Scots  money)  1750,  A.D. 
(From  Rev.  David  Scott's  note-book).  The  same  total  is 
given  in  the  Kirk  Records  as  the  monthly  Cess  in  1742: — 


From  the  Titular  Morriestoun 

£^ 

10 

4 

Carfrae  Barony  teind  . 

21 

10 

8 

Kelphope          .... 

2 

16 

8 

Hedshawe         .... 

2 

19 

10 

Nether  Hartside 

4 

4 

2 

Glints     ..... 

3 

3 

"> 

Kirklandhill  and  Overhartside 

4 

0 

8 

Mathie's  h  of  Ogstoune 

3 

2 

4 

Somervail's  ^  of  Ogstoune 

3 

2 

4 

Threabumfoord 

I 

14 

0 

Overhouden  and  Airhouse 

7 

7 

4 

Netherhowden  and  Glengelt  . 

12 

10 

8 

Heriotshall       .... 

0 

II 

4 

Collilaw 

3 

II 

7 

Overbourhouse             .            .            .            . 

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CHAPTER  XII 

SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS 

Education,  Priests,  Protestants,  and  Acts  of  Parliament — Knox's  Dream 
— First  Glimpse  of  Channelkirk  Schoolmaster — Nether  Howden 
School — Patrick  Anderson — Hugh  Wilson — Carfraemill  School — 
Andrew  Vetch — John  Lang — Cess  for  Schoolmaster's  Salary — 
Lancelot  Whale  —  Robert  Neill  —  Channelkirk  School  and  its 
Furnishings  in  1760 — John  M'Dougall — Removal  of  School  to 
Oxton — Nichol  Dodds — Alexander  Denholm — Alexander  Davidson 
— Henry  Marshall  Liddell. 

As  early  as  1496  the  barons  of  Scotland  were  instructed  to 
send  their  eldest  sons  to  grammar  schools  at  eight  or  nine 
years  of  age,  and  to  keep  them  there  until  they  had  "  perfect 
Latin."  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  Roman  Church 
previous  to  the  Reformation  kept  the  education  of  the  people 
strictly  in  her  own  hands,  just  as  her  polity  is  the  same 
to-day,  and  the  priest  was  the  medium  of  secular  as  well  as 
of  spiritual  instruction.  The  Protestant  Church  was  also  as 
fervent  in  sustaining  this  scheme  as  was  the  Church  of  Rome, 
and  has  not  relinquished  it  except  under  the  strongest  com- 
pulsion of  law. 

In  1567,  seven  years  after  the  Reformation,  a  law  was 
passed  placing  the  schools  of  the  country  on  a  reformed 
basis.  Teachers,  both  public  and  private,  had  to  be  approved 
by  the  superintendents  of  the  Church.  In  1633  an  Act  of 
Privy  Council  enacted  "  that  in  every  paroch  of  this  kingdom 


320  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

a  school  be  established,  and  a  fit  person  appointed  to  the  same, 
according  to  the  choice  of  the  bishop  of  the  diocese,"  which 
was  carried  out  by  Act  of  Parliament  in  the  same  year. 
From  which  it  is  clear  that  Episcopalians  were  no  less  zealous 
than  the  Presbyterians  in  the  matter  of  education.  The 
latter  came  into  power  as  a  political  force  again,  and  so  in 
1646  another  Act  insures  that  a  school  be  founded  "  in 
every  parish  "  by  advice  of  Presbytery.  The  heritors,  rsore- 
over,  are  to  provide  a  commodious  house  for  the  school,  and 
to  modify  a  stipend  to  the  schoolmaster,  not  less  than  100 
merks,  but  not  more  than  200,  or  ranging  roughly  between 
^5,  6s.  and  ;^io,  12s.  In  the  Act  of  1658  it  was  enacted 
that  the  schoolmaster  must  not  be  a  papist ;  in  that  of  1690, 
schoolmasters  were  taken  bound  to  sign  the  Confession  of 
Faith,  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  King  William  and 
Queen  Mary,  to  be  pious  and  "of  good  and  sufficient 
literature,"  and  to  submit  to  the  government  of  the  kirk. 
In  the  Act  of  1693  schoolmasters  were  declared  to  be  subject 
to  the  Presbytery  within  whose  bounds  they  were  resident. 
The  Act  of  1696  was  important.  It  provided  that  a  school 
should  be  in  every  parish,  and  a  salary  for  the  teacher,  as  in 
Act  1646,  paid  half-yearly,  in  addition  to  the  casualties  which 
belonged  to  the  readers  and  clerks  of  kirk-sessions.  Tenants 
were  to  relieve  the  heritors  to  the  extent  of  half  the  expense 
of  settling  and  maintaining  the  school  and  the  schoolmaster's 
salary. 

Again,  in  the  Act  of  1700,  we  find  the  religious  element 
emphasized,  for  papists  are  proclaimed  incapable  of  acting 
as  schoolmasters.  The  frequency  of  the  religious  clause 
shows  how  zealously  the  Kirk  guarded  the  education  of  the 
young,  and  especially  their  religious  education  in  school. 
The  Act  of  1803  provided  that  salary  should  not  be  under 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  321 

3CXD  merks  Scots  per  annum,  nor  above  400  merks.  The 
sum  was  to  be  fixed  by  the  minister  of  the  parish  and  the 
heritors,  and  at  the  termination  of  every  twenty-five  years 
the  Sheriff  had  it  in  his  power  to  determine  the  average 
price  of  a  chalder  of  oatmeal,  with  a  view  to  increasing,  if 
it  were  necessary,  the  yearly  allowance  granted  to  the 
schoolmaster. 

The  Act  of  1 86 1  comes  next  in  importance,  perhaps. 
The  trend  of  the  century  is  seen  in  the  twelfth  section,  which 
declares  it  unnecessary  for  any  schoolmaster  to  subscribe 
the  Confession  of  Faith,  or  to  profess  that  he  will  submit 
himself  to  the  government  and  discipline  of  the  Church  of 
Scotland.  His  tenure  of  office  is  virtually  admitted  to  be 
ad  vitam  aut  culpam. 

A  complete  revolution  arrived  with  the  Act  of  1872.  The 
parochial  system,  so  long  an  honourable  one  in  Scotland,  and 
which  many  yet  regret,  was  abolished,  and  the  system  of  School 
Boards  by  popular  election  set  up  in  its  place.  All  powers 
were  vested  in  them  ;  and  while  the  scholarship  of  the  nation 
has  not  risen  higher,  the  exasperation  and  friction  between 
boards,  teachers,  parents,  and  ratepayers  prove  that  neither 
has  the  sum  of  human  happiness  been  augmented  by  the 
change. 

We  turn  now  to  what  concerns  us  more  particularly  in 
the  fortunes  of  education,  and  those  responsible  for  the  same 
in  our  own  parish,  during  the  post-Reformation  period. 

It  was  long  the  proud  boast  of  the  parish  schoolmaster 
that  his  pupils,  when  they  passed  forth  from  the  village 
school,  needed  no  "  secondary "  training  in  high  schools  or 
"colleges"  to  enable  them  to  take  front  places  in  the 
universities.  In  the  turbulent  days  of  the  Reformation, 
Knox  and  his  coadjutors  gave  education  the  same  place  of 

X 


322  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

importance  which  is  almost  universally  assigned  to  religion 
and  the  poor,  God's  kirk  ;  God's  poor  ;  God's  bairns :  the 
"ministers,"  the  "  puir,"  and  the  "  schollis,"  are  the  prime 
objects  of  Knox's  dream  of  reform.  The  nation  was  sunk 
in  ignorance,  poverty,  and  immorality.  Sound  knowledge, 
sound  health,  and  sound  doctrine  alone  could  save  it.  And 
like  Pharaoh  and  Herod,  though  for  salvation  and  not 
destruction,  Knox  began  at  the  cradle.  It  must  always 
begin  there  to  be  a  permanency.  But  Knox,  like  a  true 
educator,  had  no  design  of  dividing  the  school  from  the 
Church.  The  one  prepared  for  the  other,  like  apprentice- 
.ship  for  journeymanhood.  Like  Guyau,  he  was  convinced 
that  "the  morality  of  the  race,  together  with  its  health 
and  vigour,  must  be  the  prirtcipal  object  of  education.  All 
else  is  secondary.  Intellectual  qualities,  for  example,  and 
especially  knowledge,  learning,  and  information,  are  much 
less  important  to  a  race  than  its  moral  and  physical  vigour."  * 
"  All  must  be  compelled,"  Knox  declared,  "  to  bring  up 
their  children  in  learnyng  and  virtue."  "  Off  necessitie 
thairfore  we  judge  it,  that  everie  severall  churche  have  a 
scholmaister  appointed,  suche  a  one  as  is  able,  at  least,  to 
teache  grammer  and  the  Latine  toung  y{  the  town  be  of 
any  reputatioun."  "  Yf  it  be  Upaland,"  (in  such  places 
as  remote  as  Channelkirk,  for  instance)  "  whaire  the  people 
convene  to  doctrine  bot  once  in  the  weeke,  then  must 
eathir  the  Reidar  or  the  Minister  thair  appointed  take  care 
over  the  children  and  youth  of  the  parische,  to  instruct 
them  in  thair  first  rudiments,  and  especiallie  in  the  cate- 
chisme,"  t  that  is,  the  Book  of  Common  Order,  the  Shorter 
Catechism    not   yet   having   seen   the  light    in   Knox's   day. 

*  Education  and  Heredity,  p.  96. 

f  Knox's  Works  {The  Biike  of  Discipline),  vol.  ii.,  pp.  209,  211. 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  323 

As  no  minister  existed  in  Channelkirk  for  many  a  year 
after  the  Reformation,  the  double  duties  of  "  Reidar "  in 
church  and  teacher  in  school  would  be  performed  by 'the 
same  person. 

The  earliest  notice  of  schoolmaster,  therefore,  which  we 
have  in  this  parish,  seems  to  be  given  under  the  year  1576, 
if  we  accept  Dr  Hew  Scott's  authority.  *  He  is  not 
mentioned,  of  course,  under  that  designation,  but  as  Reader, 
and  his  name  is  John  Gibsoun.  Nothing  more  is  known  of 
him,  and  we  can  only  conjecture  the  career  he  fulfilled  in 
that  capacity  from  our  general  knowledge  of  his  period. 
The  church  would  naturally  be  the  place  of  instruction  as 
well  as  worship,  and  the  course  of  education  based  for  the 
chief  part  on  religious  lines.  Readers  had  only  £16  or 
;^20  of  stipend,  with  kirklands.  The  greed  of  the  nobles 
made  sure  that  both  teachers  and  taught  should  learn 
first  by  the  things  which  they  suffered,  a  policy  which 
extended  well  into  this  present  century. 

Our  next  glimpse  of  a  veritable  schoolmaster,  whose 
occupation  was  apart  from  Church  services,  is  in  i654.'f- 
Whether  he  was  Channelkirk  schoolmaster,  however,  is 
problematical.  "July  20,  delivered  to  a  lame  schoolmaster 
recommended  by  the  Presbytery,  los.  66."  is  the  legend 
of  the  kirk  books.  Teachers  were  often  peripatetic,  and 
taught  here  and  there  without  continued  residence  or  fixed 
salary,  in  common  dwelling-houses,  after  working  hours, 
with  bed  and  board  from  some  kind  householder  as 
remuneration.  This  "  schoolmaster "  may  have  been  one  of 
this  description,  although  we  have  merely  conjecture  to  guide 
us.  We  are  on  firmer  ground  when  we  reach  1657,  three 
years  later.  There  is  no  mistake  ;  it  is  "  the  schoolmaster," 
*  Fas/i  Ecclesiana  ScoHcance.  f  Kirk  Records. 


324  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

but  his  name  is  not  given,  though  we  do  not  quite  despair, 
for  there  is  reason  to  believe  it  is  given  in  1662.  The  first 
appearance  of  a  system  of  instruction  existing  in  Channel- 
kirk  parish  is  as  follows  : — 

"  1657,  Feby.  15. — Coll.  17s.,  qhilk  was  fully  distribut  to 
James  Alan's  two  soons  to  pay  their  quarterly  stipend  to 
the  schoolmaster." 

"  1657,  April  19. — Collected  13s.  6d.  Distribut  fully  to 
Will.  Scott's  child  for  paying  the  schoolmaster's  quarterly 
payment." 

The  poor  schoolmaster  gets  what  he  can  quarterly,  and 
its  precarious  nature  is  evident. 

The  same  year,  in  June  22,  "  having  depursed  to  the 
schoolmaster  four  pounds." 

1658.  "Feb.  14. — The  week-days'  collections  kept  by 
....  in  Adam  Somervell's  hand  did  amount  to  three  merks, 
which  the  minister,  with  consent  of  the  elders,  ordered  to 
be  given  to  the  schoolmaster  for  3  quarts,  (payment).  .  .  .  Will. 
Scott's  daughter  and  Adam  (Swinton's)  2  children."  The 
same  year,  in  March  23,  "  13s.  given  to  the  schoolmaster 
for  Will.  Scott's  child's  quarterly  payment." 

The  following  defective  sentence  is  interesting  as 
seeming  to  point  to  the  original  Oxton  School. 

"  1659.  Adam  Simmervell,  boxkeeper,  by  warrant  of  the 
Sessione,  depursed  five  pounds  to  Will.  Milkum  (Malcolm  ?) 
in  Nether  hudoun  (Nether  Howden)  for  (hire  of)  a  house  .  .  . 
for  the  schollers  to  learn  in."  This  school  in  Nether 
Howden  seems  to  have  existed  at  least  till  1728.  They 
proceeded  to  build  a  new  school  shortly  afterwards,  pre- 
sumably at  Channelkirk  village.  On  25th  November  1661, 
"  The  elders  met  and  unanimously  decided  to  pay  the 
builder     of     the    scole    for     that    work."      They    seem    to 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  325 

have  had  in  view  a  schoolhouse  also  for  the  schoolmaster. 
The  whole  cost  appears  to  have  reached  ^^50,  but  "the 
Sessione  thinks  fit,  when  occasion  shall  offer,  to  use  means 
that  the  heritors  may  refund  the  formentioned  fiftie  pounds 
to  the  Sessione  again."  These  were  the  days  when  Kirk- 
Sessions  believed  in  miracles. 

1662,  March  15. — "^5  given  to  the  burser,  and  also. 
40s.  given  to  the  schoolmaster,  together  with  the  23rd  day's 
collection."  It  was  Communion  time,  and  the  collections 
of  the  15th,  i6th,  and  17th,  together  with  that  of  the  23rd, 
appear  to  have  been  devoted  to  the  Presbytery's  bursar 
at  the  university,  and  the  schoolmaster  of  the  parish.  The 
church,  the  university,  and  the  school  went  thus  hand  in 
hand — just  as  it  should  be. 

The  schoolmaster's  name  comes  to  light  in  1662.  After 
notice  of  certain  moneys  given  out  of  the  Kirk-Session 
treasury  or  "  box,"  we  have  "  the  rest  of  the  sum  distribut 
to  Patrick  Anderson,  schoolmaster,  James  Black,  Wm. 
Somerville  in  Glengelt,  and  James  Knight,  Ugstone." 

1664.  "The  second  of  October,  counted  with  Patrick 
Anderson,  schoolmaster,  that  had  the  box  and  moneys 
therein  committed  to  him  from  the  first  of  November 
1663  to  the  2nd  of  October  1664."  Doubtless  he  was 
Session-clerk,  but  was  not  an  elder.  "  The  box  is  put  in  the 
custodie"  of  him  once  more,  "and  the  key  delivered  to 
Thomas  Thomson  in  Hizeldean  to  be  keepit  by  him." 
The  teacher  had  the  box,  and  the  former,  not  an  elder, 
kept  the  key  ;  the  division  of  responsibility  in  this  way 
tending  to  the  preservation  of  kirk  property. 

Mr  Patrick  Anderson,  schoolmaster  of  Channelkirk, 
vanishes  out  of  the  records  "the  second  day  of  Julie"  1665, 
holding  the   same   honourable   post   of  kirk   treasurer.      A 


326  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

worthy  man,  doubtless.  All  that  we  know  of  him  is 
good. 

The  schoolmaster  who  follows  Patrick  Anderson  seems 
to  have  been  Hugh  Wilson.  Eighteen  years  elapse  after 
1665  before  he  comes  into  the  records,  and  even  then 
he  remains  a  very  shadowy  figure.  In  1683,  November  15, 
we  have  "given  to  schoolmaster  ^5,"  and  three  entries 
below,  "  More  to  Hugh  Wilson  in  Ugston  £2"  as  if  a 
reference  were  made  to  "the  schoolmaster."  Again,  under 
1684,  "  Given  to  Hugh  Wilson,  in  Ugston,  £2','  is 
immediately  followed  by  "More  to  the  schoolmaster,  £\r 
There  is,  however,  in  an  old  fragment  of  a  single  leaf,  lovingly 
preserved  among  the  records,  two  entries  which  appear  to 
set  our  minds  at  ease  on  the  matter.  Several  notices 
here  and  there  are  given  of  "  poor  scholars'  payments 
quarterly;"  then  under  1727,  "Poor  scholars  at  Hew  Wilson's 
school,  ^5 "  is  given,  which  cannot,  it  seems  to  us,  on 
reasonable  grounds,  refer  to  any  other  person  than  the 
"  Hugh  Wilson "  of  the  former  date,  1683.  This  implies 
that  he  had  been  schoolmaster  for  forty-four  years.  Another 
entry  given  in  the  same  year  of  1727  says:  "To  poor  scholars 
at  Netherhowden  School,  £6^'  which  takes  us  back  at  once 
to  the  year  1659,  when  the  Kirk-Session  gave  Will.  Milkum 
in  Netherhowden  £^  "  for  a  house  for  scholars  to  learn  in." 
Two  distinct  schools  must  have  existed,  therefore,  in  the  parish 
at  this  period,  viz.,  Hugh  Wilson's  "in  Ugston"  or  Channel- 
kirk,  the  latter  place  most  likely,  and  that  at  Nether  Howden. 

The  Scottish  Parliament,  in  1696,  passed  a  law  imposing 
upon  heritors  of  every  parish  the  duty  of  building  a  school 
and  maintaining  it,  and  also  providing  a  salary  for  the 
schoolmaster.  Needless  to  say,  this  law  was  frequently 
evaded.     The  schoolmaster  would  have  fared  but  sparely  if 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  327 

he  had  had   no  other  means  of  living  than  accrued  to  him 
from  his   teaching.     Kirk-Session   contributions   of  a  vary- 
ing  kind,   surveying   farmer's  fields,  putting  wills   together, 
Session  -  clerk's    remuneration,     precentorships — these,    and 
similar   perquisites     enabled    him     to    live    decently.     The 
heritors  seem  to   have  shamefully  traded  upon  his  necessi- 
ties  wherever   they   could   venture    it,   and    cut    down    his 
school  salary,  which  alone  they   had  any  right  to  consider, 
to   fit  into  these  perquisites.     The   law  compelled  them  to 
provide   a-  school   and   give    a    sufficient   competence   to   a 
schoolmaster  in  every  parish,  but  that  burden  was  for  most 
part   shovelled   into   the  laps   of  his   perquisites,   and   what 
should  have  been  to  him  comfortable  advantages  over  and 
above  his  fixed  salary,  became  sources  of  anxiety  and  worry, 
for  he    was   never   certain  when  his   perquisites    might  fall 
away,   and  himself  be   left    to    the   tender   feeding    of    the 
heritors'    poorhouse    dole.      The    Kirk  -  Session    seems    to 
have  looked  primarily  to  the  fact  of  education  being  carried 
on  in  the  parish,  and  contributed  to  a  school  or  the  schools 
in  it  with  equal  hand,  content  if  the  good  work  were  done. 
The  school,  therefore,  which  seems  to  have  begun  at  Nether 
Howden   about    1659,   received    its   help   from    the    church 
equally  with  the  parish  school  at  the  village  of  Channelkirk. 
It  is  almost  certain  that  as  we  find  both  schools  existing  in 
1728,  the  Nether  Howden  School  gradually  became  Oxton 
School,  and  through  varying  fortunes  and  changing  habita- 
tions,  continued   so   to  be  until  the  School  of  Channelkirk 
merged    into   it,  and  it  became  the  parish  school  in    1854. 
This    seems    evident,    for    after     1728    there    is    no    more 
mention   of  "Nether  Howden   School,"  but  from    1735    the 
new  designation   "  Oxtoun    School"   comes   frequently   into 
view.      There  is  also  a  natural  reason  why  a  school  should 


328  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

have  existed  near  or  in  Oxton  for  so  long  a  time,  apart 
from  the  parish  school  at  Channelkirk  village,  for  its 
centrality  of  population  and  easier  access  would  recom- 
mend this  course  in  the  children's  behalf.  The  same 
reasons  apply  to  "  Carfraemill  School,"  which  would  be  more 
convenient  for  the  children  of  Carfrae,  Hillhouse,  and  the 
places  to  the  south  of  it  than  either  Lauder  or  Oxton  schools. 
"  Carfrae  Mill  School "  was  a  "  Side-school  or  "  subscription 
school,"  and  Gordon  Stewart  was  its  schoolmaster  some 
time  before  1817.*  He  is  then  called  "  the  late  schoolmaster 
in  Carfraemill." 

Hugh  Wilson  was  succeeded  by  Andrew  Vetch,  but 
at  what  particular  date  we  are  unable  to  affirm.  He  is 
preserved  from  oblivion  by  a  single  reference  in  a  sasine 
dated  23rd  February  1725,  given  in  favour  of  the  Rev. 
Henry  Home  regarding  his  possession  of  Kelphope  teinds. 
Vetch  comes  into  the  sasine  as  witness.  "These  things 
were  done  upon  the  grounds  of  the  lands  of  Kelphope, 
betwixt  the  hours  of  three  and  four  afternoon,  day,  month, 
year  of  God,  and  of  His  Majesty's  reign  as  underwritten, 
before  and  in  presence  of  John  Henrysone  of  Kirklandhill, 
Andrew  Vetch,  schoolmaster  in  Channelkirk,  George  Hall, 
tennant  in  Kelphope,  and  James  Miller,  indweller,  these 
witnesses."  He  is  never  anywhere  again  mentioned  by 
name  as  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  discover.  In  the 
kirk  accounts  from*  May  1704  till  1741,  there  are  items 
such  as,  "  To  the  schoolmaster,"  "  To  the  schoolmaster  and 
beadle,"  but  no  name  is  given.  The  schoolmaster  who 
follows  Andrew  Vetch  is  John  Lang.  He  passes  his  trials 
before  the  Presbytery  in  1742,  and  receives  testimonials 
of  his  sufficiency,  and  in  the  same  year  the  heritors  meet 
to  fix  his  salary  at  Channelkirk. 

*  Heritors'  Records. 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS 


329 


As  the  following  extract  from  the  Kirk  Records  gives 
us  a  clear  view  of  this  process,  together  with  the  parish's 
property  divisions,  and  landowners  in  1742,  we  give  it  in 
full  :— 

"At  Channelkirk  this  fifteenth  day  of  October  1742  years,  We,  Mr 
Henry  Home,  Minr.,  Mr  James  Justice  of  Justicehall,  William  Henryson  of 
Kirktounhill,  being  appointed  to  Divide  and  Locall  a  Sallary  for  the 
Schoolmaster,  in  terms  of  Act  of  Parliament  1696,  unanimously  agreed 
upon  and  modified  by  a  full  meting  of  the  Heritors  of  this  parish  legally 
called  for  that  effect  upon  the  23rd  day  of  Sepr.  last,  and  our  School- 
master having  produced  an  Extract  of  his  being  tryed  and  approven  by 
the  Presby.  of  the  bounds,  and  finding  that  a  month  cess  of  the  parish 
amounts  to  Seventy  and  five  pound  thirteen  shilling  and  4  penies,  out  of 
which  Sixty  and  six  pound  thirteen  shilling  and  four  penies  being  de- 
duced there  is  of  overplus  nine  pound,  which  is  the  eight  part  of  the 
monthly  cess  of  this  parish  :  So  that  each  Heritor  is  assesed  and  hereby 
appointed  to  pay  seven  parts  of  eight  yearly  of  his  months  cess  to  the 
Schoolmaster  for  his  Sallary,  and  is  hereby  Divided  and  Localled  as 
follows : — 


1.  Barony  of  Carfrae,  belonging  to  the  Marquis  of  Tweed- 

dale  ...... 

2.  Headshaw,  belonging  to  Earl  of  Marchmont 

3.  Kelphope,  belonging  to  Mr  Henry  Home,  Minr. 

4.  Clints,   belonging   to  John    Borthwick    of  Crookstoun 

Advoc,     ...... 

5.  Justicehall,  belonging  to  James  Justice,  a  principal  Clerk 

of  Session  ..... 

6.  Over  Howden,  belonging  to  James  Justice  (Scots  money) 

7.  Airhouse  &  Oxton  Mains,  belonging  to  James  Somer 

vaill  ...... 

8.  Collela,  belonging  to  James  Fiergrive 

g,  Bourhouse,    belonging    to    Charles    Binning,   Pilmuir, 
Advoc.      ...... 

10.  Threeburnford,  belonging  to  John  Gumming,  Minr.  at 
Humbie   ...... 

Carry  forward, 


£^9  3  2 
2  II  6 
2  10    4 

2  15     6. 

2  14    4 
500 

468 
320 

2  16    6 

I  .  8  10 
^46    8  10 


1 1 

o 

2 

I 

lO 

O 

o 

lO 

'y 

4 

12 

O 

2 

12 

6 

lling 

and  four 

330  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Brought  forward,        .      ^46     8  10 

1 1.  Glengelt  and  Netherhouden,  belonging  to  Wm.  Hunter's 

(Merchant  in  Edinburgh,  deceased)  Heirs 

12.  Cardross  Teinds,  belonging  to  Ker  of  Morrieston 

13.  Heriotshall,  belonging  to  John  Murray     . 

14.  Nether  Hartsyde  and  Over  Hartsyde,  belonging  to  Alex. 

Dalziell   ...... 

15.  Kirktounhill,  belonging  to  Wm.  Henryson 

Amounting  in  all  to  Sixty  and  six  pound  thirteen  shil 
penies. 

Which  yearly  Sallary  is  to  be  payed  to  Mr  John  Lang,  present  school- 
master, at  two  terms  in  the  year  by  equal  proportions." 

The  total  is  actually  £66,  1 3s.  8d. 

The  terms  are  Martinmas  and  Whitsunday,  and  the 
same  arrangements  are  to  hold  good  "to  his  successors  in 
that  office,"  on  their  producing  sufficient  testimonials  from 
the  Presbytery  of  the  Bounds. 

Mr  Lang  is  found  Session-clerk  in  1744;  and  again  in 
I753>  at  a  joint  meeting  of  heritors  and  elders,  and  a  com- 
mittee of  Presbytery,  he  is  chosen  to  the  same  office.  The 
purpose  of  this  meeting  was  to  inquire  into  the  administra- 
tion of  the  kirk  funds,  which,  during  far  too  many  years 
of  the  Rev.  Henry  Home's  incumbency,  had  been  mis- 
appropriated to  a  considerable  extent. 

"The  Committee  proceeded  to  inquire  into  the  manage- 
ment of  the  poor's  money  since  the  death  of  Mr  Home, 
which  happened  June  i6th,  175 1,  find  that  Mr  John 
Lang,  Schoolmaster  of  Channelkirk,  had  received,"  from 
various  sources,  the  sum  of  ^95,  lis.  3d.  Lang  is  charged 
with  this  sum,  and  after  deducting  certain  moneys  they 
find  him  indebted  to  the  Kirk- Session  to  the  extent  of 
£4.1,  i6s.  3d.  Scots.  In  the  year  1754,  on  20th  May,  at  a 
meeting  of  Kirk-Session,  "  Mr  Lang's  bill  this  day  granted 
and     payable    against    Martinmas    next    for   £'^0,    los.    3d. 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  331 

Scots."  But  Martinmas  comes  and  Martinmas  goes  and 
the  bill  remains  unredeemed,  and  on  lo  March  1755  he 
dies,  and  his  successor  has  written  in  the  Records  the 
following  sibylline  legend.  (We  omit  the  copperplate  pen- 
manship and  all  the  embroidery) : — 

1755 
March  10.  Mr  JoHN  Lang 

Schoolm'    Deceased 

A  G 1  B— r  &  D r. 


We  humbly  interpret  the  last  part  to  mean  "A  Great 
Beggar  and  Debtor,"  with  reference,  perhaps,  to  his  having 
been  unable  to  pay  back  the  poor's  money  which  he  had 
used  out  of  the  kirk  treasury.  At  the  foot  of  this 
memorial,  his  successor  in  the  same  handwriting  puts  his 
name  as — 

Lancelot  Whale 

14 

T       '757 

Poor  Lang  had  been  hard  pressed  for  the  kirk  money 
it  seems.  "  George  Sommervaill  has  Thomas  Trotter's  bill " 
(another  delinquent !)  "  in  his  hand,  and  Mr  Lang's  bill 
was  given  to  Mr  Robert  Henderson,  writer  in  Lauder,  to 
procure  payment ! "  It  was  jail  for  debt  in  those  days,  as 
Burns's  father  dreaded  a  few  years  later.  But  Lang  was 
safe  from  all  manner  of  law  processes,  though  we  find  his 
bill  carried  on  through  the  books  till  May  7,  1760.  On 
that  day  we  have  it  minuted,  "  The  Session  think  it  quite 
needless   to   carry   on   Trotter's   and    Lang's   bills    in    their 


332  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

accounts,  as  it's  not  likely  they  will  ever  be  paid."  Not 
likely !  So  Lang's  debts  sink  into  the  tomb  with  his 
harassed  bones,  there  to  await  the  final  account  and 
reckoning  of  all.  There  are  touching  notes  here  and  there 
concerning  monthly  donations  given  from  the  poor's  box 
to  his  widow,  Mrs  Lang,  till  August  1757,  when  they,  too, 
cease.  As  late,  however,  as  17th  May  1759,  four  years 
after  Lang's  death,  there  is  this  suspicious  entry — "  Received 
from  Mr  Dalziel  of  Hartsyde  for  Mr  John  Lang,  a  year's 
salary."  Can  it  be  that  this  item,  £6,  had  been  held  back 
or  neglected  in  Lang's  lifetime?  Mrs  Lang  is  receiving 
aliment  in  1755,  and  it  is  only  surrendered  by  Mr  Dalziel 
in  1759,  two  years  after  she  seems  to  have  either  died 
or  left  the  district.  Mr  Dalziel  may  have  suspicioned  that 
Lang  was  keeping  up  the  poor's  money,  and  hesitated  to 
give  him  more  ! 

In  such  gloomy  circumstances  does  John  Lang,  .school- 
master in  Channelkirk,  disappear  from  time. 

Lancelot  Whale  seems  to  have  become  his  successor. 
His  name  is  written  very  pompously  on  the  Records,  but 
extremely  little  more  is  recognisable  of  him.  He  gives 
his  date  as  the  14th  day  of  March  1757.  There  is  no 
mention  of  his  entering  upon  his  duties,  but  the  kirk 
accounts  up  till  7th  x^ugust  1757  are  clearly  in  his  hand- 
writing, though  the  usual  notice  of  moneys  given  to  the 
teacher  for  "  Session-clerk  and  poor  scholars "  keeps  back 
his  name.  We  have,  however,  the  following  —  "  20th 
December  1758.  To  Lancelot  Whale  his  dues  preceding 
Martinmas  last,  £^"  But  on  5th  March  of  the  same  year 
there  is  in  different  handwriting  —  "  To  an  advertisement 
in  ye  news  papers  for  a  Schoolmaster,  £2,  2s."  This  may 
mean  a  belated   payment   for   the   advertisement   to  which 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  333 

he  himself  responded.  But  it  is  more  likely  that  he  had 
left  or  was  dead,  as  the  school  appears  to  be  vacant.  On 
4th  March  1759,  little  more  than  a  month  after  Poet 
Burns's  birth  be  it  observed,  this  remark  occurs  — "  To 
George  Henderson  for  presenting  while  we  had  no  School- 
master, £^"  Mr  Whale  had,  as  was  customary,  led  the 
psalmody  in  the  church.  He  thus  seems  to  vanish  alto- 
gether from  the  scene.     Robert  Niell  succeeded. 

On  the  28th  May  1759  Robert  Niell  is  Session-clerk, 
and  receives  of  kirk  money  for  the  "  poor  scholars ' "  educa- 
tion the  usual  sum  of  £4. 

Mr  Niell  is  also  precentor  in  the  church :  — "  To  the 
Schoolmaster  for  presenting,  £2"  is  set  down  under  20th 
August  1759.  He  is  married  in  June  1762,  having  had  a 
new  schoolhouse  built  previously,  and,  of  course,  a  school 
also,  which  was  usually  a  room  within  and  above  the  school- 
hou.se  premises.     The  following  tells  the  tale  : — 

"  Channelkirk,  Nov.  17th,  1760."  Session  meets  and 
arranges  poor's  money.  "  After  this  Mr  Scott "  (Rev. 
David)  "  represented  that  upon  his  application  to  a 
general  meeting  of  the  heritors  of  this  Parish  of  Channel- 
kirk held  here  on  the  17th  day  of  May  1759  years,  they 
did  then  grant  and  allot  ye  Hundred  merks  of  vacant 
salary  that  fell  due  at  Martinmas  1758,  for  building  a 
new  .schoolhouse,  and  empowered  Mr  Scott  to  uplift  said 
salary  and  find  out  a  proper  situation  for  the  house.  They 
al.so  recommended  it  to  Mr  Dalziell  of  Hartside  and  Mr 
Scott  to  meet  with  James  Watherstone  of  Kirktounhill 
anent  the  stance  of  said  house.  Which  accordingly  being 
done,  the  said  James  Watherstone  was  prevailed  on  to 
gift  to  the  Kirk-Session  and  Parish  of  Channelkirk  that 
spot  of  ground  for  the  stance  of  .said  house  lying  immedi- 


■fj-. 


334  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

ately  on  the  west  end  of  the  yard  presently  possessed  by 
the  schoolmaster,  and  frankly  consented  that  said  school- 
house  should  be  built,  and  stand  there  rent  free  in  all 
time  coming,  the  schoolmaster  being  only  obliged  to  pay 
yearly  one  shilling  sterling  for  said  kail  yard.  In  conse- 
quence of  which  the  Session  gratefully  acknowledge  their 
obligation  for  said  gift,  and  order  this  to  be  insert  in  this 
day's  Minute." 

Well  done  Kirktonhill  Heritor !  one  is  delighted  to  find 
a  green  spot  among  such  extensive  waste  land  of  Sahara 
Heritordom.  The  lOO  merks  lay  conveniently  to  hand 
because  no  schoolmaster  was  in  the  parish  to  receive  it. 
The  schoolhouse  and  school  had  been,  as  usual,  at  the 
lowest  condition  of  decay,  dirt,  and  inhabitableness,  but 
not  a  heritor  would  stir  to  mend  matters  till  the  parish 
suffered  in  its  children's  education  for  a  season,  and  the 
little  rill  of  grudged  and  compelled  money  from  the  heritor 
reservoirs  dammed  up  into  a  dub  big  enough  to  float  the 
village  school  and  schoolhouse  on.  How  pathetic  the 
passionate  gratitude  of  the  Kirk  -  Session,  too,  for  such 
unheard-of  beneficence!  But,  alas,  the  loo  merks,  super- 
latively abundant  as  they  were,  came  short  in  meeting  the 
extensive  wants  of  this  village  school.  "  The  Session  con- 
sidering that  another  table  and  two  seats  for  the  scholars 
would  be  wanting  to  furnish  said  schoolhouse ;  and  well 
knowing  that  the  forsaid  Hundred  merks  would  not  be 
sufficient  to  answer  all  these  purposes,  Did  therefore  resolve 
to  supply  what  might  be  further  necessary  out  of  the 
remainder  of  the  two  months'  cess  mentioned  as  given  in 
by  Mr  Scott  in  the  foregoing  minute ;  that  so  useful  a  work 
and  so  conducive  to  the  public  good  might  not  be  re- 
tarded." 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  335 

The  two  months'  cess  had  been  asked  by  the  Session  from 
the  heritors  to  relieve  the  poor  with  oats,  meal,  etc.,  "  during 
the  late  scarcity  "  (minute  of  date  7th  May  1760),  but  which 
fell  short  after  all,  and  one  heritor  in  Justicehall,  Cunningham, 
writer  to  the  Signet,  ashamed,  it  appears,  of  the  scrimp 
measure,  gave  a  half-guinea  out  of  his  own  pocket  rather 
than  see  poor  folk  starve !  If  we  are  not  mistaken  this 
"  Cunningham "  was  Alex.  Cunningham  of  Lathrisk,  Fife- 
shire,  third  son  of  Ninian  Cunningham,  writer  in  Edinburgh. 
He  died  17th  August  1780. 

Good  Rev.  David  Scott !  He  strives  hard  to  get  his 
people's  stomachs  filled,  and  also  pang  them  fu'  o'  knowledge. 
He  feels,  however,  another  strait  place.  "  Mr  Scott  further 
represented  that  he  had  collected  only  the  sum  of  sixty-five 
pds.  two  shillings  and  ten  pennies  Scots,  there  being  a 
deficiency  by  the  Titular's  refusing  to  pay  his  part  of  the 
salary  ever  since  its  first  erection  into  a  legal  salary." 
The  Titular  was  Ker  of  Morreston,  in  Legerwood.  But  the 
minister  continues  the  good  work.  "  Mr  Scott  by  ye  help  of 
the  parish  having  carried  on  ye  building  of  said  schoolhouse, 
and  it  being  now  finished,  did  therefore  lay  ye  whole 
charge  before  the  Session  amounting  to  the  sum  of  one 
hundred  and  four  pounds  twelve  shillings  and  six  pennies 
Scots,  including  the  price  of  ye  table  and  two  seats  for- 
said." 

Here  is  the  "  furnishing  "  of  a  school  in  the  middle  of  the 
last  century.  "  At  ye  above  date  ye  Session  likewise  thought 
proper  to  record  that  now  there  belong  to  ye  schoolhouse  two 
new  tables,  one  of  them  measuring  ten  foot,  and  ye  other 
eleven  foot  in  length,  as  also  two  old  seats  measuring  ten  feet 
per  piece,  and  two  new  seats  measuring  ten  feet  and  a  half  per 
piece.    Besides  a  good  new  lock  and  key  for  the  door,  and  a  pair 


336  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  new  tongs  for  ye  hearth — and  all  ye  glasses  in  the  four 
windows  are  whole."  Viewing  the  whole  in  table  form 
we  get : — 

2  tables,  new  combined  length,  2 1  feet. 
2  seats,    old,  „  20    „ 

2       „        new,  „  21     „ 

I  new  lock. 
I  „  key. 
I  pair  of  tongs. 

4  windows,  or  say  "boles,"  i  pane  each  !  and  "all  whole,"  thus 
bearing  testimony  to  the  boys'  good  behaviour  then. 

Reckoning  by  the  seat-room  (the  de.sk-room  is  about 
half),  and  allowing  i  foot,  or  thereby,  to  every  scholar,  we 
get  an  approximation  of  the  number  attending  the  school  to 
be  nearly  forty.  In  such  severe  circumstances,  and  with  such 
drawbacks  without  and  within  his  little  thatched  school, 
Robert  Niell  continued  to  develop  the  intellect  of  the  rising 
generation  around  him ;  the  Kirk  -  Session  adding  what 
driblet  of  help  it  could  from  kirk  offerings  for  poor  scholars 
to  the  cess  laid  on  the  heritors,  and  receiving  for  his  own 
behoof  a  mite  now  and  then  for  "  presenting  at  the  sacra- 
ment," he  being  a  bit  of  a  singer,  no  doubt.  In  December 
1770,  he  receives  his  last  mention  in  an  entry  giving  him  £4. 
from  the  kirk  treasury,  "  for  Session-clerk  and  poor  scholars," 
doubtless,  and  then  in  August  4,  1771,  the  minute:  "To 
Margaret  Niell  for  poor  scholars  and  Session-clerk  for  half  a 
year  preceding  Whitsunday  1771  years,"  tells  the  remainder 
of  his  history.  He  had  been  schoolmaster  in  Channelkirk  for 
twelve  years.  How  long  his  wife  Margaret  survived  him 
we  have  now  no  means  of  knowing. 

In  the  year  1771,  on  the  29th  day  of  March,  at  Channel- 
kirk :  "  The  school  in  this  place  being  just  now  vacant  by 
the  death  of  the  late  schoolmaster,  it  was  therefore  thought 
proper  to  take  the  usual  steps  for  the  election  of  another." 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  337 

Accordingly,  the  intimation  from  the  pulpit  "  on  the  17th 
day  of  this  currt."  calls  a  general  meeting  of  the  heritors — 
non-resident  heritors,  always  a  large  quantity,  being  informed 
by  letters.  On  the  29th  "  the  heritors  of  the  Parish  of 
Channelkirk,  and  all  others  concerned  being  call'd  at  the 
most  patent  door  of  the  kirk  at  one  o'clock  post  meridiem — 
there  compeared  "  three  heritors  and  the  minister  and  a  few 
proxies,  "  and  coming  to  the  business,"  and  "  to  a  vote, 
unanimously  made  choice  of  John  M'Dougal,  the  teacher 
of  Mr  Thomson's  children  and  others  in  l^urnhouse,"  near 
Fountainhall,  parish  of  Stow.  Mr  M'Dougal  was  well  known 
to  Mr  Borthwick,  Crookston,  who  could  not  attend  the  meet- 
ing for  the  distance,  but  who  writes  the  minister  to  say  that 
he  looks  upon  John  M'Dougal  "  to  be  a  very  discreet  young 
man,"  and  "  hopes  to  hear  of  their  fixing  upon "  him. 
Another  meeting  is  called  on  the  nth  June  1772,  to  consider 
the  repairing  of  school  and  schoolhouse.  Tweeddale  does  not 
appear,  nor  Lauderdale,  nor  the  lairds  of  Bowerhouse,  nor 
Nether  Howden,  nor  Marchmont,  nor  Threeburnford,  nor  "  the 
rest,"  but  "  although  the  rest  of  the  heritors  did  not  subscribe 
the  agreement,  yet  they  paid  their  respective  proportion  of 
the  three  months'  cess  for  the  above  reparations."  It  was  the 
customary  way.  One  or  two  did  the  "  appointments  "  and 
thatching  or  patching,  and  the  rest  being  comfortably  out  of 
the  parish  pocketing  its  rents,  paid  their  share  to  have  quit 
of  the  bother.  What  were  a  few  hundreds  of  people,  and  a 
schoolmaster  ? 

Worthy  and  "  very  discreet "  John  M'Dougal,  therefore, 
walks  on  to  the  treadmill,  and  dutifully  and  patiently  grinds 
out  his  scholars  creditably  to  himself  and  the  parish  that 
owned  them.  A  man  for  whom  we  have  the  highest  respect. 
He  has  always  the  good  of  the  children  in  view,  and  as  we 

Y 


338  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

learn  from  an  aged  living  authority,  whose  boyhood  was 
directed  by  him,  he  was  esteemed  and  loved  by  them.  Born 
in  1743,  he  was  a  young  man  of  twenty-eight  when  he 
became  Channelkirk  schoolmaster.  He  married  Margaret 
Smibert,  and  had  a  family,  and  the  routine  duties  of  school, 
Session-clerk,  heritor's  clerk,  etc.,  filled  in  an  uneventful  life 
till  he  reached  the  long  age  of  eighty-six.  His  tombstone, 
which  stands  a  few  yards  south-east  from  the  church  door, 
declares  that  he  faithfully  discharged  the  duties  of  his  office 
for  fifty-nine  years. 

During  such  a  prolonged  official  reign,  several  changes 
necessarily  transpired,  though  none,  perhaps,  were  of  more 
than  local  interest.  Both  on  account  of  the  hill  on  which  the 
school  was  built,  and  the  long  road  which  in  winter  could  not 
be  traversed  by  children,  he  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  removal  of  school  and,  of  course,  schoolhouse  was  im- 
perative for  the  good  of  the  parish.  Accordingly,  on  9th 
October  1789,  he  desires  the  heritors,  in  a  letter  to  them,  to 
have  these  "  removed  to  a  more  centrical  and  convenient 
place  "  (Oxton  was  in  his  mind,  no  doubt) "  for  accommodating 
the  parishioners  in  sending  their  children  to  school."  The 
heritors,  by  a  majority,  concur  in  the  view,  but  decide 
nothing.  Borthwick  objects.  The  proposal  naturally  fell 
asleep  for  another  six  years.  Mr  M'Dougal's  next  move 
was  both  educational  and  pious.  In  the  church,  14th  May 
1 79 1,  the  heritors  "  being  informed  that  said  John  M'Dougal 
has  for  some  time  past  examined  his  scholars  in  the  church 
publickly  every  Sabbath  when  there  was  sermon,  and  being 
willing  to  encourage  such  practice  in  stirring  up  emulation 
among  children  under  his  charge,  do  therefore  order  him  ten 
shillings  and  sixpence  sterling  yearly  after  this  date  for  his 
trouble,  during  his  giving  proper  attention  to  said  work  and 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  339 

satisfaction  to  the  residing  heritors."  A  pleasant  item 
this,  and  creditable  to  all  parties. 

I"  I795>  the  schoolmaster's  plan  to  have  the  school 
shifted  from  Channelkirk  down  hill  to  Oxton  village 
realised  itself  in  a  thoroughly  practicable  way.  The  9th 
day  of  June  of  that  year  the  heritors  at  a  meeting  "  Did 
and  hereby  do  resolve  to  change  the  situation  of  the  school 
and  schoolmaster's  house  from  Channelkirk  to  Ugston, 
and  resolved  to  take  in  plans  upon  that  idea."  Borthwick 
still  protested.  Six  years  of  meditation  had  not  staled 
his  purpose.  The  school  and  schoolhouse  were  to  be  one 
building,  the  school  on  the  basement  and  the  schoolhouse 
in  the  upper  storey,  and  the  whole  structure  28  ft,  long, 
18  ft.  wide,  and  17  ft.  high.  It  still  stands  in  the  village, 
and  is  now  the  schoolhouse,  a  new  school  having  been  built 
later  in  its  neighbourhood  and  not  in  the  best  situation. 

Early  in  1796  the  schoolmaster  must  have  removed  to 
Ugston,  He  is  in  the  old  schoolhouse  on  22nd  January, 
but  on  20th  May  declares  himself  satisfied  in  his  ac- 
commodation respecting  a  school  and  schoolhouse.  The 
schoolmaster's  house  at  Channelkirk  was  sold  to  Borthwick, 
19th  February  1796,  for  £\6  sterling.  We  presume  its 
"  stance,"  which  Mr  Watherstone,  Kirktonhill,  gifted  in  1760 
to  the  Kirk-Session  and  Parish  of  Channelkirk,  had  been 
quietly  swallowed  down  by  the  heritors  in  the  good  old  way 
that  most  of  Channelkirk  kirklands  were  wolfed  in  earlier 
times.  In  1803  an  Act  of  Parliament  stirs  up  heritors 
to  "  make  better  provision  for  the  parochial  schoolmasters," 
High  time,  too.  Few  important  and  national  institutions 
have  had  a  more  disgraceful  history.  But  until  the  national 
mind  awoke  and  its  voice  became  heard  in  Parliament,  the 
people  had  no  help  from  the  upper  powers,  and  so  had  to 


340  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

do  its  best  with  its  handful  of  oatmeal.  Mr  M'Dougal 
had  his  salary  fixed  under  this  Act  at  350  merks  Scots. 
He  must  have  been  too  happy.  Actually  ;^I9,  8s.  lOy^gd. 
sterling  annually !  Fancy  a  man  undergoing  the  drudgery 
of  school  life  with  the  weight  of  such  wealth  upon  him. 
But  this  was  not  all.  The  school  fees  fairly  flooded  his 
"  hugger." 

For  reading  .  .  .is.  6d.  per  quarter. 

„    reading  and  writing   .  .  .        2s.  6d.  „ 

„    reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic        .        3s.  „ 

Perhaps  he  had,  in  all,  ^50  sterling  a  year.  Another 
school  is  mentioned  in  181 8.  One  William  Stirling,  a  boy, 
is  on  the  Poor's  Roll,  and  on  ist  May  18 18  is  continued 
by  the  heritors  "  upon  the  understanding  that  he  should 
immediately  look  out  for  a  situation,  and  with  the  assurance 
that  he  would  not  on  any  account  be  continued  longer  upon 
the  roll  than  till  Martinmas  first.  The  meeting,  however, 
agreed  that  he  might  go  to  Mr  Paterson's  school,  and  get 
such  education  as  Mr  Paterson  should  be  willing  to  teach 
him."  Let  little  Willie  Stirling  take  that !  But  where  "  Mr 
Paterson's  school  might  be — in  Oxton,  Nether  Howden,  or 
Carfraemill — it  seems  now  impossible  to  say.  Mr  M'Dougal 
had  his  rivals,  evidently.  Perhaps  it  was  a  matter  of 
indifference  to  him.  The  world  was  now  becoming  grey 
around  him,  and  the  shadows  of  age  were  casting  their 
gloom  over  his  path.  The  sad  and  tragic  fate  of  his  brother 
in  Edinburgh  must  have  deepened  the  waters  of  life  for 
him,  he  having  undergone  the  lethal  extremity  of  the  law. 
At  anyrate,  on  the  30th  April  18 19,  he  applies  for  an  assist- 
ant, owing  to  age,  infirmity,  and  late  sickness.  His  letter  of 
application,   we   are   told,   was   "  heard   with    deep    regret." 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  341 

Heritors  accept  the  inevitable  and  appoint  an  assistant. 
Mr  M'Dougal  receives  the  salary,  house  and  garden,  and 
the  assistant  is  to  get  the  school  fees  and  the  perquisites 
usual  to  schoolmasters,  such  as  clerkships,  precentorship,  etc. 
Heritors  "thank  him  for  the  great  attention  he  has  paid 
to  all  his  duties  as  schoolmaster,  heritors'  and  Session  clerk, 
for  these  forty-eight  years  past."  The  school  fees  are  also 
raised — these  came  out  of  the  parishioners'  pockets — in 
order  to  make  "  the  situation,"  as  it  is  graciously  said,  "  as 
respectable  as  possible."  The  heritors  make  up  other  ten 
pounds  to  the  fixed  salary.  The  fees,  to  be  paid  in  advance, 
were  : — 

For  English      .....         2s.  per  quarter. 
„    writing       .  .  .  .  .         3s.  „ 

„    arithmetic  .  .  .  .4s.  „ 

„    Latin  and  French  .  .  .6s.  „ 

"  To  teache  Grammer  and  the  Latine  toung  yf  the  town 
be  of  any  reputatioun,"  said  Knox.  Here  we  are  to  have 
not  only  Latin  but  French,  and  we  are  not  a  town  but  an 
ordinary  village.  It  is  a  sure  sign  that  the  nation  is 
awakening.     It  is  18 19. 

Eight  candidates  sit  to  be  examined  by  the  ministers 
for  this  assistantship,  and  Nichol  Dodds  from  Edinburgh 
comes  out  victorious.  He  enters  upon  his  duties,  and  is 
so  successful  that  to  contain  the  increase  of  scholars  the 
schoolhouse  is  enlarged  by  the  cubic  area  of  an  adjoining 
coalhouse  which  is  then  included,  and  a  new  coalhouse 
added  on  Dodd's  suggestion. 

Years  roll  past,  and  Mr  M'Dougal  enjoys  his  otium  cum 
dignitate  till  the  iith  day  of  October  1829,  when  we  have 
in  the  Kirk  Records,  "  Mortcloth  for  Mr  M'Dougal,  school- 
master, 6s,"      He   died  on    Thursday,  1st   of  October,  and 


342  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

was  buried  on  Sunday  the  nth,  having,  as  we  have  noticed, 
attained  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-six.  His  wife  survived 
him  more  than  nine  years,  and  died  at  Pathhead  Ford,  ist 
January  1839,  having  reached  the  great  age  of  ninety-eight. 
A  sturdy,  thrifty,  patient  couple  we  can  imagine  them  to 
have  been,  entertaining  gods  unaware  Hke  Philemon  and 
Baucis,  though  denied  their  request  at  last.  A  contemporary 
informs  us  that  M'Dougal  was  a  notable  personage  in  the 
parish.  He  was  middle-sized,  hard-featured,  and  wore  his 
grey  hair  long  behind.  He  always  wore  knee-breeches 
and  rig-and-fur  stockings,  which  came  down  over  his  shoes. 
He  was  an  inveterate  snuffer,  and  was  often  treated  to 
an  ounce  by  his  scholars  when  they  wished  to  mollify  him. 
For  he  was  a  rather  sharp  disciplinarian,  but  a  good  teacher, 
though  he  had  not  "  the  langidges,"  and  was  warmly  beloved 
by  his  pupils,  old  and  young.  A  custom  prevailed  of 
"  locking  him  out "  of  school  on  the  "  shortest  day,"  which 
he  accepted  good-naturedly.  One  of  the  good  old  stock 
of  parochial  schoolmasters  evidently,  and  in  sympathetic 
touch  with  all  sections  of  the  community,  yet  neither  op- 
pressively the  dominie  nor  pompously  the  gentleman, 
carrying  himself  with  respect  in  his  school  and  esteem  in 
his  church,  and  making  himself  useful  and  necessary  in 
both  official  and  social  spheres. 

His  chair  and  ferula  fell  in  due  course  to  his  assistant 
and  successor,  Mr  Nichol  Dodds.  Mr  Dodds'  salary  stood 
now  at  ;^30  sterling,  and  the  school  fees  were  to  remain 
as  fixed  on  14th  May  18 19.  He  was,  it  would  appear,  a 
native  of  Smailholm  (born  in  1793,  and  was  twenty-six 
years  old  when  he  came  first  to  Channelkirk),  young,  tall, 
and  stoutly  built.  It  is  jokingly  told  that  when  he  entered 
on    his   school   duties,   the   then   parish   minister,   the   Rev. 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  343 

John  Brown,  commended  him  from  the  pulpit  to  the  warm 
sympathies  of  the  people.  He  was  young,  he  is  reported 
to  have  said,  he  was  clever,  and  had  all  the  gifts  of  a  good 
teacher,  but  he  was  not  sure  if  he  was  gifted  with  a  big 
purse,  and  advised  the  people  to  be  as  kind  to  him  as 
possible.  He  was  notable  as  a  capital  teacher  and  a  hard 
worker.  He  taught  "the  langidges,"  and  was  very  strict 
in  discipline.  From  a  boy,  like  Samuel,  he  had  been  set 
apart  by  his  mother  for  the  ministry.  The  woman  was 
worthy  to  have  such  a  noble  purpose.  Her  husband  was 
killed  by  the  fall  of  a  tree  just  at  the  time  when  her  son 
was  born,  and  with  a  lion's  heart  she  faced  the  struggle  that 
lay  before  her  in  bringing  up  her  family.  She  did  this, 
as  many  a  Scotch  mother  has  done  it  before  and  since,  by 
her  own  hard  work,  tending  her  garden  and  cow,  her  churn 
and  her  poultry,  and  driving  her  "  shelty "  herself  to  Kelso 
from  Smailholm  with  the  produce.  Alas !  at  the  end 
of  it  all  was  disappointment  too,  as  the  humble  exchequer 
did  not  prove  equal  to  a  minister's  curriculum,  and  so 
the  son  was  devoted  instead  to  the  teaching  profession. 
Perhaps  the  knowledge  of  this  had  something  to  do  with 
that  sternness  in  him  which  almost  reached  the  level  of 
harshness  on  occasions.  But  he  accepted  his  lot,  went 
through  the  usual  training,  settled  in  Channelkirk  parish, 
as  we  have  seen,  and  remembering  his  mother's  devotion, 
brought  her  to  his  house  in  Oxton  village  to  keep  his  home 
for  him, — no  wife,  it  appears,  having  ever  been  thought  of. 
There  the  stream  of  life  carried  them  forward,  through  deep 
and  shallow,  calm  and  storm,  till  all  ended,  and  the  shadows 
shut  them  in  for  ever. 

We  gather  from  a  Presbytery  examination  of  the  school 
on    2nd    September    1823,  that   "seventy-five  children  were 


344  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

present,  the  average  number  attending  the  school  being 
eighty-five ;  that  the  branches  taught  are  English,  Writing, 
Arithmetic,  Practical  Mathematics,  and  Latin." 

The  old  custom  of  "locking  out  the  maister  on  the 
shortest  day "  he  rather  resented,  and  a  "  scene "  between 
him  and  his  "big"  scholars  on  that  account  is  yet  re- 
membered with  mixed  feelings.  Saturday  "half-day"  was 
"  revisal  day,"  and  usually  the  hardest  of  the  week.  On 
one  occasion  one  of  the  scholars  was  "  kept  in "  for  not 
giving  satisfaction,  and  as  the  teacher  lived  above  the 
school  and  the  rest  of  the  scholars  played  in  its  immediate 
vicinity,  after  an  horur  or  two,  a  natural  desire  was  ex- 
pressed by  a  few  to  "  gang  roond  tae  the  back  "  to  see  how 
it  fared  with  the  prisoner.  On  going  round,  the  prisoner 
was  seen  suspended,  half  in,  half  out,  over  the  window-sill, 
he  having  attempted  to  escape,  liberty  being  sweet,  but  had 
found  himself  caught  by  the  down-coming  sash,  and  so  hung 
with  his  head  and  hands  within  and  his  body  without.  He 
would  certainly  have  soon  died,  and  was  only  rescued 
in  time.     He  left  the  school  for  good. 

Dodds  seems  to  have  been  a  "  religious  "  man,  and  an 
elder,  though  he  liked  a  glass  of  toddy  in  the  old-fashioned 
way.  He  was  never  married.  He  did  a  good  deal  of  the 
farmers'  business  after  school  hours,  and  was  much  in 
company  with  them.  His  portrait  gives  his  personal 
appearance  as  in  harmony  with  all  we  know  of  his  character. 
A  man  of  middle  height,  clad  in  immaculate  though  not 
uncreased  broadcloth,  with  clear,  piercing,  rather  small 
eyes,  lofty  forehead,  with  the  scant  locks  of  hair  curved 
forward  over  each  ear  ;  firm  shut  lips,  following,  nevertheless, 
Hogarth's  line  of  beauty ;  strong  cheekbones,  prominent 
enough    to     cast     shadows     beneath    them    and    over    the 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  345 

melancholy  droop  of  the  lips  below ;  a  rugged  Roman 
nose  indicative  of  much,  and  a  chin  like  the  peak  of  a 
Phrygian  cap  turned  upwards,  as  if  making  reconnaissance 
of  it.  Not  a  hair  is  anywhere  visible  on  the  face,  eyebrows 
and  eyelashes  excepted,  and  the  whole  head  is  poised  upon 
a  prim  stand-up  collar,  with  its  strength  of  starch  still  further 
strengthened  by  a  band  of  black  silk  neckerchief,  whose 
carefully-tied  knot  is  somewhat  awry.  His  whole  appear- 
ance is  formal  in  tone,  as  if  he  were  conscious  of  his  dignity, 
and  the  mouth  has  just  that  rigidity  of  aspect  which  is 
thoroughly  Scotch,  and  which,  it  is  said,  is  acquired  by  too 
much  inward  brooding  over  the  solemnities  of  life,  and 
especially  the  Sabbath  day,  and  repeating  too  often  the 
Shorter  Catechism. 

While  in  Oxton  his  peculiarities  did  not  escape  ob- 
servation. As  precentor  in  the  parish  church,  it  was  noted 
that  he  had  great  facility  of  musical  improvisation,  and  with 
"  Coleshill "  as  his  theme  or  "  motif,"  could  stretch  its  notes, 
prolonged  or  abbreviated,  over  every  kind  of  verse  in  psalm 
or  paraphrase.  To  a  precentor  with  limited  selection  of 
tunes  this  is  a  saving  gift,  and  dexterously  enables  him  to 
surmount  obstacles,  turn  corners,  or  bridge  gulfs,  which  to  a 
man  of  less  genius  prove  fatal.  Mr  Dodds'  gift  of  prayer 
was  also  much  admired.  His  foes  declared,  however,  that 
a  little  stimulus  of  aqua  vitcB  was  necessary  to  sustain 
or  rouse  the  full  unctuous  "flow."  He  always  upheld  the 
now  almost  obsolete  custom  of  family  worship  at  night. 
But  stern  in  principle,  he  was  also  stern  in  manner,  and 
it  became  awkward  when,  just  at  "  prayer-time,"  he  would 
drop  ofif  into  a  sound  snooze  by  the  fire.  There  sat  the 
"congregation,"  patiently  waiting  till  he  was  pleased  to 
awaken,  no  one  daring  to  disturb  his  repose,  though  all  the 


346  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

younger  members  were  nodding  to  be  in  bed.  For  we  must 
explain  that  besides  his  mother,  his  young  nephew,  after- 
wards Mr  Dodds,  teacher  in  Gordon,  and  others  stayed 
under  his  roof,  and  received  their  education  from  him. 

The  event  of  his  Oxton  career  was  when  the  year  of  1 843 
gave  the  Scottish  Kirk  a  "  shog,"  and  rent  a  large  portion  of 
its  membership  after  the  Free  Church.  He  became  a  strong 
Disruptionist,  and  gave  practical  illustration  of  it  by  severing 
himself  from  the  parish  church.  This,  of  course,  was  tanta- 
mount to  rending  himself  from  his  place  as  parish  school- 
master, and  from  the  various  perquisites  which  it  yielded.  He 
had  been  Session-clerk  since  1823,  and  had  acted  as  an  elder 
since  1829,  although  not  properly  ordained  till  1833.  He 
was  very  anxious,  in  1837,  that  the  parish  should  be  divided 
into  elders'  "  districts,"  so  that  each  elder  might  superintend 
his  portion  of  church  members  and  "  use  means  to  induce  the 
people  to  attend  the  church  more  regularly,"  but  got  no 
support.  But  on  5th  November  1843,  he  himself  is  declared 
to  have  stayed  away  from  church  "  for  some  months,"  and 
loses  thereby  the  post  of  Session-clerk.  A  more  serious  loss, 
however,  was  pending.  "  At  Lauder,  the  2nd  day  of  April 
1844  years,  which  day  and  place  the  Presbytery  of  Lauder 
being  met  and  constituted  with  prayer  —  inter  alia  —  Mr 
Dodds,  schoolmaster  of  the  parish  of  Channelkirk,  having 
been  summoned  apud  acta  at  the  meeting  of  5th  December 
last  to  attend  the  meeting  of  Presbytery  in  April ;  compeared 
personally,  and  also  by  Mr  Cunningham  as  his  agent  ;  being 
asked  if  he  was  a  member  of  the  Established  Church — 
made  answer  that  he  declined  to  answer  that  question  ; 
being  further  asked  if  he  was  a  member  of  any  other  church 
— declined  to  answer  that  question  ;  being  further  asked  if  he 
adhered  to  his  former  declaration  that   he  would  not  sign 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  347 

the  formula  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  without  explanation — 
declines  again  to  sign  the  formula,  seeing  there  was  no  law 
requiring  him  to  do  so.  The  Presbytery  having  considered 
this  painful  case,  find  that  Mr  Dodds,  by  his  refusal  to  sign 
the  formula  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  has  disqualified  himself 
from  holding  the  office  of  parochial  schoolmaster  of  the  parish 
of  Channelkirk,  and  hereby  declare  accordingly  that  the  said 
office  is  vacant  from  this  date,  and  appoint  the  minister  of 
the  parish  to  intimate  the  same  in  the  parish  kirk  next  Lord's 
Day." 

And  so  poor  Mr  Dodds  was  cut  adrift  from  his  means  of 
livelihood  and  his  status  as  schoolmaster.  To  fall  among 
the  wheels  of  the  ecclesiastical  Juggernaut  is  to  be  crushed 
to  death.  The  laws  of  churches  are  nearly  all  begotten  of 
bigotry,  nursed  in  intolerance,  and  administered  in  spite. 
Few  of  them  but  have  passed,  or  are  passing,  through  the 
cycle  of  pious  power,  sanctimonious  tyranny,  and  con- 
temptuous expulsion  and  disgrace.  It  will  never  be  other- 
wise until  a  legal  training  is  given  to  those  who  would 
usurp  a  legal  authority  over  others.  The  root  principle 
assumed  in  Church  law  is  "  compel  them,"  and  the  purpose 
is  not  that  they  may  "  come  in,"  but  that  they  may  go  out. 
The  ideal  wheels  round  with  Eden's  sword.  Dodds  was  only 
a  little  in  advance  of  the  age  which  saw  education  lifted 
above  the  sandy  bickerings  of  Presbyteries,  and  one  regrets 
that  he  and  so  many  others  should  have  had  to  suffer  so 
much  in  temporalities  to  satisfy  the  cruel  maw  of  so-called 
spirituals.  But  a  vast  deal  must  be  endured  to  reverence 
formulas,  God  wot! 

In  the  year  previous,  his  school  and  schoolhouse  had 
been  insured  against  fire  for  ^200.  It  is  a  pity  the  ecclesi- 
astical fires  cannot  be  insured  against  also.     Nevertheless, 


348  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

although  he  was  thrust  out,  he  did  not  lose  heart.  Calmly 
he  set  to  work  and  manfully  built  a  new  school  for  himself 
in  the  village — the  same  building  which  is  yet  used  as  a 
storeroom  by  the  principal  grocer — and  being  a  first-class 
teacher,  he  drew  away  almost  all  the  children,  and  left  the 
parish  school  rather  high  and  dry  for  many  a  day.  In 
1853  we  find  him  far  from  being  rooted  out  of  Channel- 
kirk  ;  rather  he  roots  himself  more  deeply  in  it,  for  in  August 
4th  of  that  year  we  find  him  (Sasines,  569)  seised  in  "  5000 
square  feet  of  the  lands  of  Heriotshall,  on  the  north  side  of 
the  road  from  Ugston  to  Wideopen  Common — on  feu-contract 
between  Rev.  T.  Murray  and  Andrew  Reid  Smith,  Ugston, 
March  24th,  1848,  and  Disp.  and  Assig.  by  him,  June  5th, 
1848."  A  man  who  compelled  his  circumstances,  evidently, 
and  was  not  driven  before  them.  A  brave,  enduring  man. 
All  honour  to  him.  The  sturdiness  and  self-reliance  of  the 
Scotch  nature  were  strong  in  him, — albeit,  also,  the  old  Celtic 
heat  and  impetuosity  ;  but  so  long  as  the  steam  drives  in  the 
right  direction  we  do  not  despise  the  steam.  He  continued 
to  thrive  till  the  end  of  his  days.  He  joined  the  Free  Kirk 
of  Lauder,  was  an  elder  and  Session-clerk  in  that  denomina- 
tion, and  died  2nd  May  1863.  The  Records  of  that  church 
say  : — "At  Lauder,  17th  May  1863  years. — The  Kirk-Session 
record  their  deep  regret  at  the  somewhat  sudden  and  unex- 
pected death  of  Mr  Nichol  Dodds,  on  the  second  day  of  this 
month.  They  record  the  high  estimation  in  which  he  was 
held,  for  the  simplicity  of  his  character  and  great  Christian 
worth.  He  was  the  last  of  the  Disruption  elders  who 
belonged  to  this  Session."  So  another  good  man  passed  to 
his  rest,  and  the  echo  of  his  worth  yet  sounds  in  Channel- 
kirk  parish.  A  man,  truly,  who  carried  his  head  and  heart 
above  the  level  of  bread  and  butter,  and  deemed  it  better  to 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  349 

suffer  in  his  social  and  official  comforts  than  bear  the  inward 
snubs  of  an  accusing  conscience.  As  to  the  lasting  wisdom 
of  the  movement  which  whirled  him  upwards — or  downwards 
— on  its  wings,  we  have  no  remark  to  make,  but  the  worth 
of  Nichol  Dodds  remains  all  the  same,  and  his  humble 
mission  in  Channelkirk  had  a  special  value  beyond  the 
area  of  his  schoolroom,  and  adds  new  lustre  to  the  character 
of  its  schoolmasters.  He  was  buried  in  Smailholm  church- 
yard, and  his  tombstone  notes  that  he  was  aged  70,  and  was 
forty-four  years  a  zealous  and  successful  teacher  in  Channel- 
kirk. 

The  school  which  was  begun  by  Nichol  Dodds,  and  which 
was  known  as  the  "  Free  Kirk  School,"  or  locally,  the  "  Side- 
School,"  was  carried  on  after  his  death  by  Alexander  Den- 
holm.  He  was  born  at  Tynemount,  in  the  parish  of 
Ormiston,  Haddingtonshire,  on  the  26th  September  1842. 
He  was  educated  at  the  Free  School,  Ormiston,  and  went 
from  there  to  the  Free  Church  Training  College,  Edinburgh, 
on  January  1863.  He  married  Margaret  Edgar  in  Tranent 
— born  at  Greendykes,  Gladsmuir,  September  1865 — and 
shortly  after  came  to  Oxton  Free  Church  School.  He  did 
not  teach  many  years  there,  and  left  Oxton  to  take  up  resi- 
dence in  Hillhouse  as  shepherd.  He  died  on  14th  December 
1895,  regretted  by  all  the  parish,  and  is  buried  in  Channel- 
kirk churchyard.  A  most  lovable  man,  genial  and  hearty 
in  all  his  ways,  a  fine  singer,  a  faithful  servant  and  a  staunch 
Christian,  and  interested  himself  in  all  that  concerned  the 
well-being  of  the  parish. 

When  Nichol  Dodds  was  deposed  in  1844,  he  was 
succeeded  in  the  parish  school  by  Alexander  Davidson. 
We  believe  he  was  a  native  of  Sprouston,  having  been  born 
there  in  181 2,  and  he  obtained  the  situation  in  Channelkirk 


I 


350  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  competition  with  other  three  candidates.  He  had  been  a 
teacher  for  some  time  in  Mowhaugh,  and  was  32  years  of 
age  when  he  came  to  us.  He  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
so  markedly  "  religious  "  in  his  ways  as  his  predecessor,  but 
was  a  good  man  notwithstanding.  He  was  never  married. 
He  was  a  keen  fisher,  and  every  opportunity  was  embraced 
in  summer  nights  to  ply  the  gentle  craft.  Not  being  very 
robust,  the  habit  was  not  always  in  his  favour,  as  he  was 
consumptively  disposed,  and  ultimately  succumbed  to  phthisis. 
He  is  remembered  as  a  strict  disciplinarian,  but  had  "  ways  " 
of  getting  the  scholars  into  proficiency.  A  new  school  was 
built  in  his  time. 

The  Presbytery,  in  1847,  respectfully  drew  the  attention 
of  heritors  to  the  necessity  for  a  "  suitable  building "  for 
educational  purposes.  In  the  usual  way  the  building  was 
allowed  to  lapse  into  a  wretched  condition,  and  heritors  were 
indifferent  till  cajoled  into  taking  cognisance  of  it.  But  six 
years  between  a  proposal  and  the  action  taken  upon  it  is 
not  an  uncommon  occurrence  in  Channelkirk.  So  it  was  not 
till  1853  that  the  heritors,  having  examined  the  building, 
naively  acknowledge  that  "the  schoolroom  is  at  present  in 
a  state  of  considerable  disrepair  ;  the  floor,  internal  fittings, 
and  windows  are  all  in  a  dilapidated  condition."  The  ceiling 
is  7  ft.  7  in.,  and  far  too  low.  The  schoolhouse  is  confessed 
to  be  damp  also.  Therefore,  with  some  grudgings  and 
protests,  it  is  agreed  to  build  a  new  school,  and  turn  the  old 
one  into  a  more  commodious  residence  for  the  schoolmaster. 
Consequently,  the  stance  on  the  Bowknowe — the  present 
site — was  procured,  and  a  school  begun.  It  was  unfinished 
in  the  last  days  of  December  of  1854,  to  the  heritors' 
regret. 

Considering,  also,  that  the  price  of  the  chalder  had  fallen 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  351 

for  some  time  back,  and  thereby  Mr  Davidson's  salary  had 
suffered,  it  was  decreed  that  he  receive  the  maximum  allow- 
ance of  two  chalders  of  meal,  with  a  small  compensation  of 
money  sufficient  to  level  it  up  to  the  ^^30  sterling.  But  this 
arrangement  was  then  upset  by  a  new  Act  of  Parliament  anent 
the  salaries  of  parochial  schoolmasters,  though  not  till  24th 
October  1859  was  it  known  that  the  schoolmaster  was  to 
receive  £^4,  4s.  4d. — the  odd  pounds  being  compensation  in 
respect  that  the  garden  ground  was  less  than  the  statutory 
extent.  A  great  deal  of  interest  in  schools  and  schoolmasters 
must  have  been  felt  at  this  time  in  Parliament,  and  another 
Act  moved  the  salaries  in  the  right  direction  in  1861.  On 
the  2nd  November  1861,  heritors  "after  due  deliberation 
resolve  to  fix  the  schoolmaster's  salary,  in  terms  of  the  above 
recited  Act  (24  and  25  Vict.  cap.  107),  at  the  sum  of  ;^40." 
This  may  have  pleased  the  heritors,  but  it  did  not  satisfy 
the  minister,  Mr  Rutherford.  On  12th  February  1863,  the 
heritors  meet  to  consider  among  other  things  "  the  following 
report  of  the  parish  school  made  by  the  late  minister  of  this 
parish  to  the  Lord  Advocate — *  The  school  is,  and  has  been 
ever  since  the  present  teacher  was  appointed,  very  well 
taught,  and  he  ought  to  have  the  encouragement  of  a 
higher  rate  of  salary  than  that  which  has  been  fixed  b}' 
the  heritors.'"  The  minister  died  in  1862,  and  this  must 
have  been  among  his  last  acts.  The  heritors,  however,  say 
not  a  word  of  all  they  considered. 

The  barometric  pressure  on  heritors  still  continued  in 
the  .schoolmaster's  interest  till,  in  1864,  ^^  Davidson's  salary 
was  raised  to  £^0.  With  a  new  school  to  enter  in  1855,  and 
a  new  schoolhouse  somewhat  later  (albeit  the  old  schoolhouse 
had  just  absorbed  the  school  below  it),  and  his  salary  at  ;^50, 
the  schoolmaster  must  be  looked  upon  as  then  a  prosperous 


352  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

man.  All  this  luxury  was  not  enjoyed  long,  for  in  1866,  on 
the  29th  April,  he  paid  the  debt  of  nature  in  his  fifty-fifth 
year,  and  passed  from  Channelkirk  school  for  ever.  He  was 
an  elder  in  the  parish  church  from  1845,  ^^^  seems  to  have 
been  highly  esteemed  by  the  minister  and  congregation.  He 
sleeps  in  Channelkirk  churchyard,  where  his  tombstone  still 
preserves  his  memorial. 

The  schoolmaster  who  came  in  his  room  is  the  present 
official,  Henry  Marshall  Liddell. 

Mr  Liddell  was  born  at  Strathloanhead,  in  the  parish  of 
Torphichen,  Linlithgowshire,  on  27th  January  1839,  and  was 
educated  at  the  parish  school  there ;  he  afterwards  studied  at 
the  Church  of  Scotland  Training  College,  and  at  Edinburgh 
University.  He  holds  a  first-class  certificate  from  the  Educa- 
tion Department.  The  degree  of  Fellow  of  the  Educational 
Institute  of  Scotland  was  conferred  on  him  in   1871. 

At  a  very  early  age  he  started  teaching,  and  was  suc- 
cessively in  charge  of  four  other  schools  previous  to  his 
appointment  to  Channelkirk,  which  took  place  on  2nd  July 
1 866.  He  has  been  teacher  here  for  thirty-three  years.  He 
has  always  taken  an  interest  in  educational  matters,  and  has 
been  secretary  of  the  Lauderdale  Local  Association  of  the 
Educational  Institute  since  its  formation  in  1877.  He  was 
elected  a  member  for  three  years  of  the  General  Committee 
of  Management  of  the  Institute  for  the  South-eastern 
Counties,  and  was  president  of  the  Burgh  and  Parochial 
Schoolmasters  Association  in  1898-99.  During  his  residence 
in  this  parish,  he  has  filled  the  various  offices  which  usually 
supplement  that  of  teaching,  viz., — poor  inspector,  rates 
collector,  registrar,  and  heritors'  clerk.  He  was  also  Session- 
clerk  from  1867  to  1875,  and  again  from  1885  to  1895. 
Since  1872,  when  the  School  Board  system  was  instituted. 


SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOLMASTERS  353 

he  has  been  clerk  and  treasurer  to  the  School  .Board  of 
Channelkirk.  He  is  secretary  and  treasurer  to  the  Oxton 
Bovial  Society,  and  held  the  presidentship  of  the  same  for 
sixteen  years.  From  this  Society,  and  from  his  pupils  and 
friends  in  the  parish  at  various  times,  he  has  been  the 
recipient  of  valuable  gifts.     He  is  married  and  has  family. 

Mr  Liddell  is  much  esteemed  in  the  parish,  is  kind  and 
obliging,  is  a  good  "  business  man,"  drills  his  scholars  well, 
and  is  most  exemplary  in  his  attendance  at  church. 

The  number  of  scholars  enrolled  in  1890  varied  between 
120  and  130  :  in  1898,  between  90  and  100.  The  children  in 
general  are  cleanly  and  well-dressed,  but  timid  in  manner, 
and  give  their  answers,  if  at  all,  in  monosyllables.  The 
external  evidences  of  politeness,  as  in  most  rural  districts, 
are  nil,  but  the  children  are  not  on  that  account  rude.  On 
the  contrar}-,  the  blate  smile  and  hanging  head  are  to  us  far 
more  eloquent  of  respect  than  the  straight  neck  and  the 
"  cap "  or  "  kirtsey,"  and  perhaps  more  sincere.  A  number 
of  children  go  from  Oxton  to  the  school  at  Lauder,  and  a  few 
are  taught  privately. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE   BARONIES 

OXTON 

The  Name,  Origin,  Meaning,  and  History — The  Proprietors — Oxton 
"Territory" — Kelso  Abbey — The  Abernethies — The  Setons — Home 
of  Herniecleuch — Ugston  and  Lyleston — Heriots  of  Trabrown — The 
Templar  Lands  of  Ugston  —  James  Cheyne  —  James  Achieson — 
Division  of  Ugston  Lands — Wideopen  Common— Inhabitants  of 
Oxton — Trades  in  1794  and  in  1900 — Gentry,  Tradesmen,  Merchants, 
etc.,  in  1825  and  in  1866 — Oxton  Church — Societies. 

Oxton  village  is  the  only  considerable  centre  of  population 
in  this  parish.  It  lies  in  the  form  of  a  cross  along  the  two 
roads  whose  intersection  at  its  heart  shows  that  they  must 
have  practically  directed  its  conformation.  It  is  a  pleasant, 
sequestered  little  place,  21  miles  from  Edinburgh  and  4I  from 
Lauder.  Situated  on  the  right  bank  of  one  of  the  tributaries 
of  the  Leader,  commonly  called  Mountmill  Burn,  but  formerly 
"  Arras  Water,"  it  contains  1 54  inhabitants.  It  never  can 
have  been  large,  though  its  prospects  in  this  respect  are 
now  brighter.  If  it  be  regarded  as  the  central  feature  in  the 
landscape,  and  taken  with  a  mile  radius,  it  is  seen  to  be 
picturesquely  environed  by  Airhouse  Hill  on  the  west,  Soutra 
and  Headshaw  Hills  on  the  north,  the  Fells  of  Carfrae  on  the 
east,  with  the  beautiful  expanding  valley  of  the  Leader 
stretching  away  towards  the  south.  When  the  springtime 
brings   the   opening   bud  and   the   sportive   lamb,   or  when 


OXTON  355 

autumn  brightens  the  natural  pensiveness  of  the  Lammer- 
moors  with  purple  heather  and  sweeping  uplands  of  waving 
corn,  it  were  difficult,  perhaps,  to  imagine  a  more  peaceful 
scene  than  that  in  which  it  reposes. 

It  would  appear  that  "  Oxton  "  as  a  place-name  came  into 
regular  use  about  the  middle  of  the  present  century.  Ugston 
is  the  name  which  is  commonly  found  in  the  Parish  and  other 
Records,  and  on  the  tombstones  in  the  churchyard  ;  and  it 
seems  to  have  been  the  general  form  of  it  for  several  hundred 
years.  It  must  be  kept  quite  distinct  from  the  "  Uxtoun  "  of 
Font's  map  and  the  Exchequer  Rolls,  near  the  Braid  Hills, 
Edinburgh,  and  which  now  appears  to  be  called  "  Buckstone  "  ; 
and  also  from  the  "  Oxtoun,"  or  Ugston,  in  Haddington  district. 
The  Rev.  James  Rutherford,  minister  of  the  parish,  writing  in 
1834  for  .the  New  Statistical  Account  of  Scotland,  .says  that 
Oxton  was  frequently  set  down  as  Agston.  We  have  never 
met  it  in  this  dress  save  in  his  own  pages.  But  it  points  to 
the  fact  of  change  being  at  work  in  its  spelling  at  that  time. 
In  the  "  Roll  of  the  Male  Heads  of  Families,"  the  parish 
schoolmaster,  who  was  also  Session-clerk,  puts  it  down  in 
1837  as  Ugston.  Uxton  as  a  variant  is  sometimes  met  with, 
but  in  the  Exchequer  Rolls,  the  Great  Seal,  the  Retours,  the 
Sasines,  and  similar  sources,  the  name  appears  as  Ugstoutt, 
Ugstone,  Uggistoune,  and  such  like  approximations. 

The  Rev.  Henry  Cockburne,  minister  of  the  parish  in 
1627,  declares  that  there  are  "twa  husband  landis  in 
Huxtoun "  which  are  kirk  lands.  He  also  writes  it 
Huxstoun.  But  the  "  Ugston "  model  is  most  general, 
although  we  find  it  as  Uxtoun  on  Font's  map  in  Blaeu's 
Atlas.  King  James  III.,  for  example,  at  Edinburgh,  as  far 
back  as  1464,  confirms  to  Sir  William  Abernethy  in 
Rothymay,  among  many  other  lands,  "  the  lands  of  Lilestoun 


356  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  Ugistoune."  It  appears  occasionally  in  such  deeds  as 
"  the  barony  of  Ugistoune,"  or  "  the  territory  of  Ugistoune." 

When  we  leave  secular  ground  and  enter  the  ecclesiastical 
domain,  we  find  that  the  name  undergoes  astonishing 
transformations. 

In  the  Liber  S.  Marie  de  Drybtirgh,  Charter  No.  292, 
which  refers  to  the  lands  held  in  the  interests  of  the  diocese 
of  St  Andrews,  the  following  passage  occurs : — "  And  the 
tenths  of  the  Mill  of  Newton  and  Nenthorn,  and  two  marks 
by  gift  of  Sir  William  Abernethy  from  the  Mill  of  Wlkeston." 
This  "  Wlkeston  "  is  our  Ugston,  or  Oxton.  The  charter  is 
dated  circa  A.D.  1300. 

We  get  from  the  monks  of  Dryburgh  the  forms  Wlkeston, 
Ulkeston,  and  Vlkylyston.  Their  brethren,  the  monks  of 
Kelso  Abbey,  seem  to  have  been  even  fonder  of  va|;ying  the 
spelling,  and,  singularly  enough,  came  closer  also  to  the 
original  form.  The  reason  why  Oxton  is  mentioned  in  their 
Register  is  because  Kelso  Abbey  for  long  drew  revenue  from 
the  lands  of  Oxton  territory,  a  connection  which  appears  to 
have  held  good  till  1647,  when  by  Act  of  Parliament  it  was 
separated  "  from  the  said  sometime  Abbacy  of  Kelso  and 
Priory  of  Eccles."* 

In  the  Kelso  Register,  we  find  the  name  set  down  as 
Vlfkelyston,  Vlfkeliston,  Vlfkiliston,  Hulfkeliston,  and  ulkil- 
leston ! 

Now,  at  first  glance,  it  does  not  seem  credible  that  this 
Gargantuan  "  Vlfkylyston  "  can  be  the  ancient  representative 
of  the  modern  "  Oxton."  But  thfere  is  no  doubt  of  it.  Both 
designate  the  same  place.  In  a  charter  from  Dryburgh 
Register,  No.  312,  about  1380,  the  "Mill  of  Ulkeston"  is 
said   to   be   in    the    "  Valley    of    Lauder."     This    connects 

■•'  Acts  vi. 


OXTON  357 

"  Ulkeston  "  with  Lauderdale,  and  is  so  far  satisfactory.  The 
charter  itself  was  originally  found  in  the  charter  chest  of 
Thirlestane  Castle.  This  connection  is  still  further  confirmed 
and  carried  up  into  the  Parish  of  Channelkirk  by  a  charter  in 
the  Liber  de  Calchou  (Kelso).  In  Charter  No.  245,  Alan,  son 
of  Roland  of  Galway,  Constable  of  Scotland,  gives  to  God 
and  the  Church  of  St  Mary  at  Kelso  five  carucates  of  land  in 
Vlfkelyston  in  Lauderdale,  with  easements,  as  a  composition 
for  revenues  which  Kelso  monks  held  in  Galway  in  the  time 
of  his  ancestors,  in  free  and  perpetual  charity.  The 
boundaries  of  these  five  carucates,  or  520  acres,  Lord  Alan 
says,  "  I  myself  have  walked  over."  This  method  of 
measuring  land  by  perambulation  was  then  a  common  one, 
and  they  are  defined  as  beginning  "  from  the  head  of  Holdene 
(Over  Howden) ;  descending  by  Holdene  Burn  to  Derestrete  ; 
then  northwards  from  Derestrete  by  Fuleforde  and  Samson's 
Marches  to  the  Leader ;  from  the  Leader  to  the  eastern 
head  of  the  same  village  of  Hulfkeliston  ;  from  the  eastern 
head  of  Ulfkiliston  by  a  straight  road  through  the  south 
village,  ascending  as  far  as  Derestrete  ;  thence  stretching  to 
the  tofts  and  crofts  of  William  of  Colilawe  and  of  Richard,  son 
of  Ganfred,  and  so  by  the  same  way  south  to  a  cross,  and 
thence  towards  the  west  as  the  crosses  are  placed,  and  so  to 
Holdene."  This  description  is  quite  conclusive.  For  those 
who  know  the  ground,  this  rugged  outline  has  considerable 
interest,  and  Lord  Alan  must  have  been  fairly  tired  when 
he  finished  his  walk  round  it,  "  reddin'  the  marches."  Five 
carucates  were  five  ploughgates,  or  five  times  a  hundred  and 
four  acres,  and  our  view  of  the  scene  is  sufficiently  clear  to 
show  us  that  this  ancient  Hulfkeliston  or  Ulfkiliston  must  have 
been  the  venerable  ancestor  of  the  present  Oxton.  All  this 
perambulation   took   place  about  the  year   1206,  and  as  we 


358  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

look  down  Oxton  Street  to-day  and  watch  in  fancy  that 
spectral  procession  of  nearly  seven  hundred  years  ago 
approaching  and  passing  on,  wending  its  way  towards  Over 
Howden,  many  feelings  crowd  upon  us.  The  past  never 
ceases  to  be  wonderful.  Over  Howden  and  Over  Howden 
Burn,  the  Leader,  and  the  village  are  still  with  us,  and  a 
part  of  our  common  life,  but  Fuleforde,  Derestrete,  and 
Sampson's  Marches  have  grown  dim  in  the  lapse  of  time. 
Fuleforde  may  have  been  a  ford  over  the  Leader  near 
Carfrae  Mill ;  Derestrete  is  Deirastrete,  the  road  to 
Deira,  once  a  province  of  Northumbria,  and  believed  to 
have  been  the  Roman  road  ;  but  Samson's  Marches  are 
obliterated  beyond  even  vague  conjecture.  They  may  have 
been  the  west  boundary  of  Addinston  property.  But  one 
thing  is  clear,  viz.,  that  the  present  Oxton  is  the  only  place 
that  can  fit  into  the  "  Ulfkiliston  "  of  the  boundary  which 
Lord  Alan  of  Galway  personally  walked  over. 

Again,  in  the  Liber  de  Dryburgh,  No.  185, — "Thomas, 
the  writer,  son  of  William  of  Colilawe,  prompted  by  divine 
charity,  and  for  the  salvation  of  his  soul  and  the  souls  of 
his  ancestors  and  successors,  gives  and  concedes  and  con- 
firms to  God  and  the  Church  of  Saint  Cuthbert  at  Channel- 
kirk,  eight  acres  of  land,  four  arable,  and  four  meadow, 
viz.,  the  haugh  under  Langsyde  in  the  territory  of  Ulkilston." 
This  again  connects  Ulkilston  with  Channelkirk,  and  it  is 
a  reasonable  conclusion  that  these  acres  were  identical  with 
those  that  formerly  made  a  part  of  the  glebe  in  Mount  Mill 
Haugh,  and  which  were  excambed  a  few  years  ago  for 
some  acres  nearer   the  manse. 

The  identity  of  Oxton  with  this  ancient  Hulfkeliston 
of  the  charters  is  admitted  by  the  Rev.  J.  Morton  in  his 
Monastic    Annals  of    Teviotdale,    and   by  Dr   J.    Anderson 


OXTON  359 

in  his  Diploniata  Scotice.  In  Kelso  Charters,  No.  246,  we 
are  told,  moreover,  that  William  of  Hartside  is  to  pay 
to  the  monks  an  annual  rent  of  8s.,  to  be  paid  out  of 
certain  land  in  Ulkiliston  which  belonged  formerly  to 
Gillefalyn  in  that  place,  and  the  contiguity  of  Hartside 
to  Oxton  is  another  though  indirect  proof  that  the 
present  Oxton  is  meant  by  the  Ulkeliston  of  the 
charters. 

Having  now  assured  ourselves  that  Oxton,  Ugston, 
Uxton,  Huxston,  Uggistoune,  Ulkiliston,  Ulfkylyston  and 
Hulfkeliston,  are  all  designations  of  dne  and  the  same 
place,  we  may  pass  on  to  show  that  they  all  spring  from 
one  source.  Dr  Anderson,  in  his  Diploniata  Scotics,  has  this 
comment  on  the  name  "  Ulkilstun  "  :  "  Town  of  Ulfkill,  now 
contracted  Uxton  in  Lauderdale  regality  in  the  Merse." 
"  Ulfkill"  is  undoubtedly  the  principal  part  of  the  name, 
and  the  "  tun  "  or  "  fence  "  the  other.  Who,  then,  was  this 
Ulfkill?  Can  we  reasonably  assume  that  there  was  a 
person  with  such  a  name  actually  located  so  many  hundred 
years  ago  in  the  village  now  called  Oxton,  who  laboriously 
lived,  fought,  sweat,  and  ploughed  by  the  meandering 
rivulet  of  Clora  ?  There  is  a  charter  which  Russell,  in 
Haigs  of  Bonersyde,  assures  us  with  reasons  (p.  30) 
must  belong  to  the  period  1 162-66  A.D.,  wherein  "  William 
of  Ulkillestun"  is  a  witness  to  the  sale  of  two  families  by 
Richard  de  Morville  to  Henry  de  Sinclair  (Carfrae),  serfdom 
being  prevalent  among  the  working  classes  of  those  days. 
Here  we  see  that,  so  early  as  this  time,  Ulkillestun  is  well 
established,  and  gives  territorial  dignity  and  status  to  its  pro- 
prietor. It  seems,  however,  that  there  need  be  no  timidity 
in  assuming  that  such  a  person  of  the  name  of  Ulfkill  must 
have  settled  in   Upper  Lauderdale  much  earlier  even  than 


360  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  twelfth  century.  Peculiar  as  it  looks  to  us  now,  the 
name  of  Ulfkill  was  not  at  all  rare  in  either  Scotland  or 
England  at  that  time.  For  instance,  our  saintly  King 
David  the  First  (ii 24-1 153)  grants  to  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Trinity  at  Dunfermline  his  three  thralls  or  serfs — 
Ragewein,  Gillepatric,  and  Ulchill.  Ulfchill,  son  of  Merewin, 
is  mentioned  in  a  charter  of  the  same  king,  giving  certain 
favours  to  the  Church  of  St  Mary  at  Haddington.  Also, 
in  one  of  his  charters  in  connection  with  Melrose  Abbey, 
concerning  the  Grange  lands  of  Eildon  and  Gattonside,  one 
Ulfchill,  son  of  Ethelstan,  is  mentioned  as  a  witness.  Still 
earlier,  in  one  of  the  charters  of  Edward,  King  of  Scots, 
one  Ulfkill  is  named  as  having  the  nickname  Swein.  At 
that  period,  indeed,  the  name  Ulfkill  seems  to  have  been 
quite  a  common  one.  From  its  association  in  the  last 
instance  with  Swein,  the  name  of  the  father  of  our  Danish 
King  Canute,  it  is  easy  to  surmise  that  Ulfkill  is  Norse 
in  origin.  In  fact,  the  name  is  Norse,  and  nothing  else. 
But  it  turns  out  to  be  a  contraction  of  the  full  name 
"  Ulfcytel."  This  name,  it  need  not  be  said,  brings  us 
at  once  into  the  full  light  of  history,  for  the  great  hero 
Ulfcytel  must  have  been  as  renowned  throughout  East 
Anglia  and  the  North,  at  the  commencement  of  the 
eleventh  century,  as  Sir  William  Wallace  was  at  the  close 
of  the  thirteenth.  Under  the  date  A.D.  1004,  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  Chronicle  tells  the  story  of  the  incursion  of  the  Danes 
upon  Norwich,  and  how  Ulfcytel,  though  of  Danish  origin 
himself,  gallantly  withstood  the  hordes  of  spoilers  that 
burst  over  East  Anglia,  joining  battle  with  them,  and 
putting  them  to  such  hazards  that  they  themselves  said, 
"  they  never  had  met  a  worse  hand-play  among  the  English 
nation   than    Ulfcytel    had   brought   to    them."      "  In    him,' 


OXTON  361 

says  Freeman  *  "  England  now  found  her  stoutest  champion 
in  her  hour  of  need."  And  analogous  to  the  "  Ulfkillston  " 
of  our  charters,  it  may  be  noted  here  that  East  Anglia  is 
at  that  time  sometimes  called  in  honour  of  him  *'  Ulfkels- 
land."  He  is  described,  indeed,  as  ruler  of  the  whole 
north  of  England  in  the  beginning  of  the  eleventh  century. 
His  name,  also,  was  contracted  even  then  to  the  form 
with  which  we  are  familiar,  for  the  Danes  in  their  sagas 
speak  of  him,  as  William  of  Malmesbury  does,  by  the 
term  Ulfkill  or  Ulfkell. 

This  would  seem  to  give  us  the  right  suggestion  as  to 
who  this  Ulfkill  of  Lauderdale  should  be,  and  how  he 
came  to  settle  in  Channelkirk  parish.  True,  we  have  not 
a  shred  of  further  historical  ground  which  is  firm  enough 
to  bear  us  beyond  the  valley  of  the  Leader  in  order  to 
satisfy  our  natural  curiosity  as  to  whether  he  was  British 
born,  though  of  Danish  descent,  or  had  come  red-handed 
as  a  plundering  sea-rover  to  the  coast  of  Northumbria, 
ultimately  finding  a  home  under  the  shadow  of  the  Lammer- 
moors.  But  the  turmoil  and  displacement  of  peoples  at 
that  period  render  his  appearance  at  the  place,  now  called 
Oxton,  perfectly  rational  and  probable.  This  conjecture 
is  further  strengthened  when  we  reflect  that  all  over 
Northumbria,  which  then  included  Berwickshire,  though 
not  by  that  name,  the  Norse  element  was  a  predominating 
one,  and  that  from  1017  to  1041,  the  very  throne  of  the 
nation  was  in  possession  of  the  Danes.  The  name  of 
Ulfcytel  was  in  this  country  as  early  as  the  ninth  century, 
and  those  who  are  interested  in  this  matter  have  the  time 
between  that  period  and  A.D.  iioo,  roughly,  in  which  to 
fix  the  original  settlement  of  Oxton.  Neither  is  it  im- 
*  Nonnan  Conquest,  vol.  i. 


362  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

probable  that  a  Dane  should  quietly  submit  to  the 
drudgeries  of  cultivating  the  land  which  he  had  entered 
upon  at  first  as  a  spoiler.  The  Saxon  Chronicle  tells  us 
that  in  the  year  876,  Halfdene,  who  with  his  Danes  had 
often  carried  fire  and  death  into  Northumbria,  apportioned 
its  lands  out  among  his  followers,  "  and  they  thenceforth 
continued  ploughing  and  tilling  them."  Turner  includes 
Berwickshire  in  this  statement  when  he  says,  "  Halfden 
having  completed  the  conquest  of  Bernicia,  divided  it  among 
his  followers,  and  tilled  and  cultivated  it."  *  Perhaps  this 
requires  qualification,  for  on  this  point  the  author  of 
Scotland  under  her  Early  Kings  has  received  praise  from 
Freeman  in  his  Norman  Conquest'^'  -j*  for  fully  establishing 
that  "  Deira  only  was  actually  divided  and  occupied  by 
the  Danes,"  If  Bernicia  had  been  included  in  this 
Danish  division  of  lands,  we  might  have  had  strong 
historical  grounds  for  assuming  that  Ulfkill  came  into 
Lauderdale  with  that  influx  of  Norsemen,  seeing  that 
Berwickshire  was  included  in  Bernicia,  which  then  stretched 
up  to  the  Forth.  Still,  it  is  not  denied  by  Freeman  that 
Bernicia  was  then  brought  under  some  degree  of  subjec- 
tion by  the  Danes,  although  he  is  convinced  that  it  yet 
remained  essentially  English  in  occupation  and  ruling. 
However  we  may  regard  it,  there  is  further  evidence  in 
another  place-name  just  outside  this  parish  in  Lauderdale 
which  shows  a  decidedly  Danish  settlement.  This  place 
is  called  Lileston.  Singularly  enough,  the  two  names  "  Liles- 
toun  and  Uggistoune"  are  often  conjoined  in  property 
deeds  at  a  very  early  date.  "  Lileston "  is  a  corruption  of 
"  Ilifstun,"  the  town  of  "  Ylif "   or   "  Olaf,"    a  famous   name 

*  History  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  vol.  ii.,  p.  164.     By  Sh.  Turner, 
t  Vol.  i.,  Note  kk.,  p.  659. 


OXTON  363 

in  Danish  victories  of  the  ninth  and  tenth  centuries.  It 
was  one  of  that  name  who  in  854  blighted  with  desolation 
East  Anglia,  and  carried  his  ravages  throughout  all  the 
region  bordering  on  the  Forth.  In  such  a  raid  it  is  not 
likely  that  Lauderdale  would  be  overlooked.  In  A.D.  941 
also,  an  Olaf  was  chosen  King  of  Northumbria.  He  died 
after  having  laid  waste  and  burnt  the  Church  of  St 
Balthere  at  Tyningham.*  About  the  end  of  the  twelfth 
century  we  know  that  one  "  Ilif  or  "Ailif"  held  property 
near  Oxton,  which  was  heired  by  his  son  Roger,  and  it  is 
not  improbable  that  this  Ylif  may  have  become  possessed 
of,  and  given  his  name  to,  the  place  now  called  Lileston. 

Both  Roger  and  his  father  Ailif  or  Olaf  seem  to  have 
planted  their  names  firmly  in  the  Lileston  district,  for  as 
late  as  1725  we  find  on  Mole's  Map  of  Lauderdale,  Roger- 
law  and  Eylston  neighbouring  each  other.  In  any  case, 
the  Danish  settlers  in  Upper  Lauderdale  have  place  and 
name  in  an  unmistakable  manner  at  a  very  early  date, 
whether  or  not  they  came  into  it  in  the  ninth,  tenth,  or 
eleventh  centuries.  Other  evidence  also  exists.  (See 
"  Hartside  "  account.) 

It  will  also  now,  perhaps,  be  admitted  that  we  are  some- 
what justified  in  believing  that  the  Norse  name  Ulfcytel 
is  the  root  of  all  the  other  designations  which  have  been 
given  to  our  village,  and  that,  to  the  discerning,  however 
the  consonantal  bones  of  it  may  be  crushed  and  contorted, 
it  is  yet  evident  throughout  the  representative  catalogue 
— Ulfcytelstun,  Ulfkillston,  Hulfkeliston,  Ulkilleston,  Uggis- 
toune,  Huxston,  Ugston,  and  Oxton. 

It  will  also  now  be  apparent  how  far  astray  the  name  has 
wandered.  How  melancholy  that  the  heroic  Norse  name 
*  Celtic  Scotland^  vol.  i.,  p.  360. 


364  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

"  Ulfkill  "  should  be  turned  into  an  "  Ox "  !  "  To  what 
base  uses  we  may  return,  Horatio  ! "  If  the  initial  "  U  " 
had  but  been  spared  ! 

We  shall  now  try  to  trace  the  changes  which  the  village 
has  seen  in  bygone  days  with  regard  to  its  proprietors. 
Perhaps  these  may  be  as  interesting  as  the  fortunes  or 
misfortunes  which  have  overtaken  its  name.  And  here 
preliminary  notice  may  be  taken  of  the  circumstance  that 
the  village  was  divided  in  its  earlier  periods  into  two  sections, 
a  hint  of  which  is  given  us  in  Lord  Allan  of  Galloway's  gift 
to  Kelso  Abbey  of  the  five  carucates  of  land  mentioned 
above.  The  boundary  is  spoken  of  there  as  passing  through 
the  "south  village."  This  is  about  1206  A. D.,  and  as  late  as 
about  1567,  or  seven  years  after  the  Reformation,  Kelso 
Abbey  is  said  to  draw  revenue  from  "  Ugstone,  Ewer  (Over) 
and  Nether,"  to  the  extent  of  £26,  13s.  4d.  * 

Coming  now  to  the  early  proprietors,  we  may  reasonably 
regard  the  Norseman  Ulfkill  or  Ulfcytel  to  have  been  its 
earliest  owner  within  the  historical  period,  although  it  is 
beyond  our  knowledge  to  fix  any  precise  date  when  first  he 
lived  in  the  body  there,  and  gave  to  it  his  name.  Oxton, 
however,  at  the  earliest  time  of  its  mention  in  Records,  was 
more  than  a  village  ;  it  was  an  estate  or  territory,  and  must 
have  embraced  a  considerable  area  of  ground  between  Over 
Howden  Burn  and  Mountmill,  that  is,  between  one  of  the 
marches  of  Allan  of  Galloway's  five  carucates  and  the  place 
which  was  called  Oxton  Mill  or  Mill  of  Ulfkilston.  Oxton 
"territory,"  indeed,  seems  {cir.  1200)  to  have  included  all 
the  land  which  at  present  lies  within  the  bounds  which 
follow  Mountmill  Haugh  and  Burn  down  to  the  meeting  of 
the  latter  with  Kelphope  Water  at  Carfraemill,  thence  across 
*  Kelso  Register. 


OXTON  365 

the  intervening  hills  to  where  Carsemyres  stood  at  the 
junction  of  Over  Howden  Burn  with  the  highway,  up 
Over  Howden  dean  to  Over  Howden,  on  and  over  the 
moorland  lying  behind  as  far  as  to  the  burn  which  passes 
Inchkeith  Farm  and  the  Farm  of  Threeburnford.  Thence 
from  Threeburnford,  following  the  Mountmill  Burn,  down 
to  Mountmill  makes  a  circle  which  girdled  Oxton 
"  territory "  ;  for  there  are  indications  that  Airhouse 
Lands  were  also  included  within  it.  It  had  also  rights, 
apparently,  in  a  wider  tract  of  land,  which  came  to  be  called 
Wideopen  Common  later. 

But  while  the  "  territory "  of  Oxton  retained  these 
dimensions,  during  the  reign  of  Allan  of  Galloway  over 
Lauderdale,  there  is  evidence  that  it  was  being  broken  up 
into  sectional  properties.  The  reason  for  this  is  evident. 
One  strong  hand  seizes  the  whole  land,  then  portions  it 
out  on  conditions  to  his  followers.  These  again  find  it 
convenient  to  do  the  .same  on  conditions  to  others  standing 
farther  away  than  themselves  from  the  fountain  of  authority. 
We  have  in  Lauderdale,  for  example,  David  1.,  then  from 
him  Hugh  de  Morville,  then  from  him  his  sons,  then  their 
favourites,  the  Church,  and  others,  aW  possessing  land. 
About  1213-14  A.D.  William  of  Hartside  is  drawn  upon 
by  Kelso  monks  to  the  extent  of  8s.,  which  he  pays  out  of 
the  land  which  Gillefalyn  of  Ulkilleston  held.  This  land  was 
by  certain  evidence  what  is  now  called  Heriotshall.  More- 
over, a  croft  and  toft  in  the  east  part  of  the  same  village  is 
given  to  them  by  Allan  of  Galloway,  and  we  are  also  told 
that  Roger,  son  of  Ailif,  had  right  to  these  moneys  formerly. 
The  lion's  share  of  Oxton  territory  had  already  gone  to 
Kelso  monks,  with  an  offer  also  of  Oxton  Mill  which 
Dryburgh  influence,  exerted  through  some   local   magnate. 


366  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

seems  to  have  been  strong  enough  to  prevent  their  obtain- 
ing, and  now  the  names  of  Aihf  or  Olaf,  Gillefalyn,  and 
Roger,  as  representing  landed  interest  in  and  around  Oxton, 
point  to  the  initial  divisions  which  ultimately  broadened  into 
Justicehall,  Heriotshall,  and  other  places,  such  as  Langsyde, 
which  have  passed  away. 

The  thirteenth  century  was  one  which  saw  great  changes 
in  Scotland,  especially  towards  its  close,  in  the  uprising  under 
Wallace,  and  the  struggle  for  the  Scottish  Crown.  Balliol,  as 
representing  the  Earls  of  Galloway,  received  the  superiority  of 
Lauderdale  when  Earl  Allan  died  in  1234,  but  little  change 
seems  to  have  taken  place  with  regard  to  Oxton  village  or  lands 
during  the  time  of  turmoil  ensuing  on  Edward's  invasions  of 
Scotland  in  1296  and  1298;  and  the  Kelso  monks  still  held 
their  lion's  .share  of  it  at  the  opening  of  the  Scottish  era  of  in- 
dependence. In  the  Kelso  Rent  Roll,  which,  it  is  shown,  must 
have  been  written  before  1309,  it  is  stated,  "  Habent  in  valle 
de  Lawedir  villa  diam  de  ulkillestun^  q^  sol  r'^  der  /  aii 
XX.  marc,"  or,  "  They  have  in  the  valley  of  Lauderdale  half 
the  village  of  Oxton,  which  is  wont  to  return  per  annum 
twenty  marks."  Regarding  the  proprietors  of  the  other 
half,  which  may  have  been  either  the  Over  or  the  Nether 
Ugston  noticed  above,  we  have  no  record.  The  Mill  of 
Oxton  comes  under  our  observation  in  1273,  when  Sir 
William  de  Abirnithy  gives  the  monks  of  Dryburgh  Abbe}' 
two  marks  out  of  its  revenues.  Regarding  the  origin  of  the 
Abernethy  interest  in  Oxton  territory,  we  are  left  in  much 
uncertainty.  They  were  anciently  connected  with  the 
Macduff's  of  Fife.  Lord  Salton  hazards  the  following 
explanation.  After  lamenting  the  meagre  information 
available,  he  says,  *  "  All  record  of  the  means  by  which 
*  Frazers  of  Philorth,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  28,  29. 


OXTON  367 

the  Abernethies  acquired  the  Estate  of  Salton  in  East 
Lothian,  or  of  the  date  at  which  it  came  into  their  possession, 
has  unfortunately  perished.  But  they  appear  to  have  held 
it  before  the  time  of  this  Sir  Wm.  Abernethy,  and  he 
probably  obtained,  as  well  as  Glencorse  (which  had  be- 
longed to  his  elder  brother  Hugh),  Ulkestone  or  Uggistone, 
in  Berwickshire,  as  his  appanage.  In  the  beginning  of  the 
twelfth  century  Salton  was  part  of  the  vast  estate  of  the 
powerful  family  of  de  Morville,  and  probably  the  Aber- 
nethies were  their  vassals  for  it,  but  in  process  of  time 
freed  themselves  from  the  superiority  of  that  family,  as  of 
their  successors." 

In  whatever  manner  the  Abernethies  came  into  Upper 
Lauderdale,  the  Mill  of  Oxton  was  in  1273  part  of  their 
estate,  and  perhaps  also  all  the  Oxton  territory  which  was 
not  held  by  Kelso  and  Dryburgh  Abbey.s,  Their  name 
comes  into  prominence  in  connection  with  this  mill  in  the 
years  1220,  1273,  and  about  1300  and  1380.*  During  the 
thirteenth  century  their  name  was  notorious  enough.  The 
Sir  William  Abernethy  who  gives  in  1273  two  marks  to 
Dryburgh  monks  out  of  Oxton  Mill  was  the  reputed  in- 
.stigator  of  the  murder  of  Duncan,  Earl  of  Fyfe,  one  of 
Scotland's  guardians  during  a  period  when  the  country 
was  in  crises  from  Norse  invasions,  disputed  succession, 
Papal  impositions,  Wallace  risings,  and  English  tyranny. 
But  Lord  Salton  is  convinced  that  Sir  Hugh  de  Abernethy, 
Sir  William's  elder  brother,  was  the  real  instigator,  he  being 
the  head  of  the  house  at  the  time.  Both  brothers  were 
probably  confined  in  Douglas  Castle,  he  thinks,  although 
Douglas  in  his  Peerage,  p.  467,  mentions  Sir  William  only. 
At  Potpollock  (Pitelloch),  in  September  1288,  Sir  Patrick 
*  Liber  de  Driburgh,  Charters  Nos.  237,  175,  291,  292,  312. 


368  HISTORY  OF  CHANNPLLKIRK 

Abernethy  and  Sir  Walter  Percy  murdered  the  Earl  of 
Fife,  while  the  astute  Sir  William,  the  mover  of  the  plot, 
lay  in  wait  to  intercept  him  if  he  had  gone  another  road. 
Sir  William  and  Sir  Walter  Percy  were  apprehended ;  Sir 
William  to  languish  in  Douglas  Castle  till  his  death,  while 
Sir  Walter  suffered  execution.  This  Sir  William  of  Ulkilston 
was  descended  from  Sir  Patrick,  who  was  the  son  of  Laurence 
de  Abirnithy,  whose  father  was  Orm.  Orm  is  said  to  have 
given  his  name  to  Orm-iston,  which  was  probably  included 
at  that  time  in  the  Salton  estate  of  the  Abernethies.  Orm 
was  descended  from  Hugh,  who  flourished  in  the  reign  of 
Malcolm   IV. 

There  are  glimmerings  here  and  there  that  Lauderdale 
magnates  were  somewhat  hopeless  of  Scotland's  resistance 
to  English  aggression,  and,  like  most  of  the  Scottish  barons, 
were  not  disinclined  to  submit.  Munderville  of  Glengelt 
and  Sinclair  of  Carfrae  seem  to  have  actually  submitted, 
and  Abernethy's  murder  of  Scotland's  principal  guardian 
in  the  north  may  have  had  other  aims  behind  it  than  mere 
private  revenge.  Lauderdale  as  a  district,  indeed,  has 
always  had  stronger  leanings  towards  kings  than  towards 
the  people,  whether  the  result  might  be  for  freedom  or 
oppression.  Sir  William  certainly  swore  fealty  to  Edward. 
But,  in  justice,  it  must  be  said  that  when  Wallace's  noble 
initiative  in  1296,  and  Bruce's  final  achievement  of  Inde- 
pendence in  1 3 14,  made  Scotland's  position  invulnerable, 
and  when  there  was  no  doubt  that  the  people  of  Scotland 
would  retain  their  kingdom  intact,  then  the  barons,  with 
Lauderdale  magnates  among  them,  moved  forward  in  1320 
with  their  solemn  address  to  the  Pope,  the  duplicate  of  which 
may  yet  be  seen  in  the  hall  of  the  Register  House,  Edin- 
burgh, declaring  that  "  so  long  as  there  shall  but  one  hundred 


OXTON  369 

of  us  remain  alive,  we  will  never  give  consent  to  subject 
ourselves  to  the  dominion  of  the  English."  Better  late  than 
never,  and  we  are  pleased  to  see  in  the  list  of  signatures 
those  of  James  Douglas,  Lord  of  Lauderdale,  Roger  de 
Mowbray,  who  may  be  the  progenitor  of  the  Mowbrays 
who  held  Kirktonhill  near  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
Henry  St  Clair,  Carfrae,  and  William  de  Abernethy. 

It  is  in  the  time  of  King  Robert  the  Bruce  that  we  first 
hear  of  the  House  of  Seton  being  connected  with  Channel- 
kirk  parish.  About  1327,  Allan  de  Hertesheued  (Hartside) 
grants  to  Sir  Alexander  Seton,  the  father,  Lord  of  that 
Ilk,  a  toft  and  croft  and  two  oxgates  of  land  (26  acres) 
in  the  territory  of  Ulkiston.  The  Setons  were  thus  among 
the  oldest  proprietors  of  land  in  Upper  Lauderdale,  and 
they  soon  deepened  their  worth  in  it,  as  a  reference  to 
the  account  of  Hartside  will  show. 

The  Setons  do  not  appear  to  have  retained  their  Oxton 
property  for  any  great  length  of  time,  and  relinquished 
it  in  favour  of  the  Abernethies.  Before  146 1,  Laurence, 
Lord  Abernethy,  was  possessed  "  as  of  fee "  in  the  lands  of 
Lyelstoun  and  Uxstoun,  with  their  pertinents.  On  the 
30th  day  of  April  of  that  year,  an  inquest  was  held  at 
Lauder  before  Sir  William  de  Cranstoun  of  Corsby,  Sheriff 
Depute  of  Berwick,  by  Allan  de  Lauder,  of  that  Ilk,  in 
which  it  is  shown  that  William  Abernethy  is  lawful  and 
nearest  heir  to  his  father  Laurence  in  the  lands  of  Lyelstoun 
and  Uxtoun.*  By  the  Exchequer  Rolls  of  146 1,  we  ascer- 
tain that  sasine  of  these  properties  was  granted  to  the 
said  William  Lyelstoun,  is  then  of  yearly  value  lOOs.,  and 
Uxtoun  lands  are  valued  at  the  same  yearly  price. 

"  The   said   lands  are  held  in  chief  of  the  King,  giving 

*  Original  Charters,  vol.  iii.,  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 

2  A 


370  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

annually  for  Lyelstoun  id.  of  silver  at  Whitsunday.  Uxtoun 
is  held  by  ward  and  relief,  giving  yearly  common  suit  at 
the  courts  of  the  said  constabulary  (Lauderdale),  and 
said  lands  are  now  in  the  hands  of  the  King,  by  the  death 
of  the  said  Laurence  and  the  failure  of  the  true  heir  to 
prosecute  his  right  to  the  same  by  the  space  of  twent}' 
weeks  or  thereby,  before  the  date  of  said  inquest."  Three 
years  afterwards,  in  1464,  King  James  III.  confirms  to 
him  the  lands  of  Rothymay,  Redy,  Dalgathy,  Dalders, 
Glencorse,  Saltoun,  all  in  different  counties,  and  Lielstoun, 
and  Ugistoune  in  Lauderdale.* 

At  Edinburgh,  loth  January  1483,  the  King  confirms 
all  the  above  lands  to  Lord  William,  "which  he  creates 
and  incorporates  into  one  free  barony  of  Abirnethy. 
James,  Lord  Abernethy,  is  served  heir  to  Lord  William, 
his  brother,  and  enters  upon  his  estates  loth  October  1488, 
when  we  note  among  his  possessions,  Lyelstoun  and 
Ugstoun."  Both  are  now  worth,  yearly,  20  merks,  and 
in  time  of  peace  ;^io.  In  1492,  on  the  9th  of  March, 
they  pass  to  Lord  James's  son  and.  heir-apparent, 
Alexander. 

In  the  same  year,  1492,  James  Abernethy,  son  of 
"  George  Abernethy  of  Uggistoune,"  witnesses  a  charter 
by  the  Earl  of  Huntly,  and  this  gives  us  the  individual 
owner  of  Oxton  at  this  date.  No  doubt  he  held  of  his 
lordly  relatives.  On  23rd  June  1482,  "George  of  Abirdnethy 
of  Ugstoune  ordains  John  Baty,  burgess  of  Edinburgh, 
and  his  heirs  and  assignees,  his  lawful  bailies  of  all 
and  sundry  his  lands  of  Ugstone,  with  pertinents,  lying  in 
the  bailiary  of  Lawdyr  for  twenty-two  years."  He  signs 
"  Gorg  of  Abyrnethy  vyt  myi  awn  hand."  •!• 

*  Great  Seal,  f  Original  Charters,  vol.  iii. 


OXTON  371 

On  the  same  day  of  the  same  year  he  acknowledges  to 
have  received  from  the  said  John  Baty  and  Isabel  his  spouse, 
the  sum  of  ;^40  Scots  (;^3,  6s.  8d.  sterling)  "  of  the  mail 
of  the  three  first  years  of  the  tack  of  his  lands  of  Ugstoun 
set  to  them  for  19  years."  In  four  years  more  John  Baty 
becomes  possessor  of  Heriotshall,  as  we  ascertain  from 
the  following  : — "  loth  Nov.  i486. — Charter  whereby  George 
Abernethy,  lord  of  certain  lands  of  Ugstoun,  sells  to  John 
Baty,  burgess  of  Edinburgh,  those  two  husband  lands  with 
the  pertinents,  lying  in  the  town  and  territory  of  Ugstoun 
and  sheriffdom  of  Berwick,  then  occupied  and  possessed 
at  rent  by  John  Wod  :  To  be  holden  de  me  for  payment 
of  id.  Scots  yearly  at  Pentecost  on  the  ground  of  the  said 
lands  in  name  of  blench-farm,  if  asked  only.  At  Edin- 
burgh, loth  Nov.  i486."  This  George  Abernethy  of 
Uggistoune  comes  into  prominence  in  another  way  in 
1 49 1,  the  year  probably  of  his  death.  On  the  9th  of 
February  of  that  year,  the  lords  decree  *  "  that  James 
Sinclare,  and  Christian  of  Cockburn  his  spouse,  sail  freith, 
releif,  and  keep  scathless  George  Abernethy  of  Oxtoune, 
at  the  hands  of  Gilbert  Fordice,  of  the  payment  of  fifteen 
pounds,  usual  money  of  Scots,  of  the  rest  of  a  mare  (more) 
soume  aucht  be  him  as  borgh  for  the  said  Christian,  to 
be  paid  Gilbert  for  the  marriage  completit  between  the 
said  Gilbert  and  Margaret  Abernethy,  the  dochter  of  the 
said  Christian,  becais  they  feilzeit  in  their  preif  the  time 
assignit  to  them,  and  ordains  that  lettres  be  written  to 
distress  the  saidis  James  and  Christian  their  landis  and 
gudes  for  the  said  soume  of  fifteen  pounds,  and  mak  the 
said  George  Abernethy  be   content,  and  pait   fred  thereof" 

There  is  documentary  evidence  that  the  Abernethy 
*  Acta  Doininontm  Auditorum, 


372  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

name  was  linked  with  the  lands  of  Oxton  through  the 
years  1527,  1528,  1531,  and  1557,  for  the  Sheriff  of  Banff 
accounts  on  these  dates  for  the  rents  of  the  Abernethy 
estates,  and  £2,  6s.  8d. — the  same  sum  John  Baty  pays  in 
1482 — had  been  received  from  the  "  firmis  terrarum  de 
Ugstoun  "  in   Lauderdale.* 

George,  Lord  Salton,  has  sasine  of  the  lands  of  Lielston 
and  Wgstoun  as  "  son  and  air  to  umquhile  Alexander, 
Lord  Salton,  his  father,  conforme  to  a  precept  of  the 
Chancelrie,  ist  June  i587."f  The  change  from  the  name 
Abernethy  to  that  of  Salton  is  explained  by  the  fact  that 
William,  second  son  of  Sir  Patrick  de  Abernethy,  became 
first  Lord  Salton.  Alexander,  ninth  Lord  Abernethy  of 
Salton,  sold  the  Salton  estates  to  Sir  Andrew  Fletcher  in 
1643.  He  died  without  issue,  1669,  and  his  title  devolved 
on  the  heir  of  line,  Sir  Alexander  Frazer  of  Philorth.J 

While  these  great  names  are  so  prominent  at  this 
period  in  the  history  of  Oxton,  we  are  not  to  suppose 
that  as  individuals  their  fortunes  reflected  much  of  the 
actual  life  of  the  sequestered  and  remote  village  by  the 
river  Leader.  But  the  village  life  was  very  real  all  the 
same,  and  a  short  peep  into  it  is  given  us  by  an  excerpt 
from  the  "  Privy  Council,"  which  we   quote  : — 

"1580. — Mr  Johnne  Knox,  minister  at  Lauder,  was 
assaultit  bet.  Cowdoun  and  Dalkeith  by  David  Douglas 
in  Oxton,  with  ane  drawn  quhingear,  for  refusing  baptism 
to  a  child  born  in  fornication."  § 

It  is  just  possible  that  this  "  Oxton "  may  be  the  place 
given  in  Pont's  map  as  being  near  the  Braid  Hills — Buck- 
stone,   now,    we    believe — but    the    "  minister    at    Lauder " 

*  Exchequer  Rolls,  Appendix.  f  Acts  of  Parliament,  vii.,  p.  154. 

I  Frazers  of  Philorih.  §  Privy  Council,  vol.  iii.,  p.  290. 


OXTON  373 

points  to  the  refusal  having  been  given  in  Lauderdale. 
The  village,  no  doubt,  had  its  scandals  in  those  days  as 
well  as  now.     Channelkirk  had  no  minister  at  this  time. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  we  have  hitherto  been 
dealing  with  that  part  of  Oxton  territory  which  was  separ- 
ated from  the  other  part  held  in  gift  by  the  Kelso  Abbey, 
who  held  of  Lord  Allan  of  Galway.  This  part  was  quite 
distinct  from  the  possessions  of  the  Abernethies,  Setons, 
and  William  of  Colilaw,  and  passed  under  the  title  of 
Kelso  Abbey  lands,  as  late,  it  seems,  as  1646.*  These 
Kelso  lands  were  Over  and  Nether  Howden,  which  embraced 
within  their  area  the  more  modern  farms  of  Burnfoot,  Carse- 
myres,  and  perhaps  Wiselawmill,  Oxton  Shotts,  and  prob- 
ably some  acres  nearer  Oxton  which  are  not  so  clearly 
distinguishable.  They  naturally  fall  to  be  treated  in  the 
notices  of  Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden. 

In  1610  the  town  and  territory  of  Ugston  once  more 
changed  owners.  Before  1605,  Lord  Salton,  for  reasons 
known  to  himself,  found  the  accumulation  of  his  misfortunes 
too  heavy  for  the  stability  of  his  estates,  and  instead  of 
judiciously  seeking  remedies,  he  rashly  contracted  more 
liabilities,  until  between  the  years  1609  ^^^  1612  he  was 
compelled  to  lighten  ship  in  order  to  weather  the  storm, 
by  parting  with  some  of  his  properties.  Of  all  the  lands 
he  sacrificed  we  are  interested  in  Ugston  and  Lialston 
only.  On  24th  July  i6io,t  the  king  confirms  the  charter 
of  John,  Lord  Salton,  in  which  he  sells  to  William 
Home  of  Harnycleuch,  servitor  to  Alexander,  Earl  of 
Home,  Lord  Jedburgh  and  Dunglass,  the  town  and  lands 
of  Ugstoun,  with  the  pendicle  called  Luckenhaugh,  with 
the  exception  of  rights,  should  there  be  any,  made  by 
*  Great  Seal.  t  /Hi/. 


374  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Lord  Salton's  predecessors  to  the  late  (Jas.  ?)  Heriot. 
William  Home  also  obtains  that  part  of  Ugstoune  "now- 
occupied  and  tenanted  by  William  Heard  and  John 
Caldcleuch,"  22nd  December  1609.  This  property  is 
known  always  as  the  Forty-shilling  lands  of  Ugstone. 
In  the  Appendix  to  Dryburgh  Register  it  is  mentioned  at 
various  periods  between  1535  and  1580  as  paying  forty 
shillings  to  Dryburgh  Abbey.  John  Caldcleuch  is  first 
mentioned  as  paying  forty  ,  shillings  for  the  "  fewe  lands 
of  Ugstoun"  about  1580.  But  about  1620  he  only  pays 
four  capones.  In  1630  we  find  John  before  the  sub- 
commissioners  of  Earlston  Presbytery  giving  evidence  re- 
garding the  teinds  of  Channelkirk  parish.  He  is  said  to 
be  then  sixty  years  of  age  or  thereby,  and  resides  in 
Braedistie.  This  may  have  been  the  old  name  of  the 
property  known  now  as  Ugston  Mains. 

It  is  with  a  certain  sentimental  regret  that  we  have 
to  record  here  the  separation  of  Ugston  from  Lyleston, 
twin  places  which  held  together  from  the  beginning,  at 
least,  of  the  twelfth  century.  They  are  linked  originally  in 
the  Norse  nationality  of  their  owners,  Ulfkill  and  Olaf; 
they  journey  together  as  possessions  for  five  hundred 
years,  and  are  then  sundered  in  the  rending  of  Lord 
Salton's  fortunes.  In  161 2  Lyalstone  is  found  in  the 
hands  of  Lord  Cranston ;  the  Countess  of  Glencairn  has 
it  in  1 6 14.*  She  gives  it  to  her  son,  James  Preston  of 
Craigmillar,  in  1624,  and  from  Robert  Preston  of  Preston 
and  Craigmillar,  John,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  obtains  it  in 
1630.  We  observe,  in  passing,  that  "  Rogerslaw "  is  said 
to  be  "in  Lyalstone"  in  1362,  and  it  will  be  remembered 
that    Roger    is    said    to   be   the  son   of  Ailif  or   Olaf,  from 

*  Great  Seal. 


OXTON  375 

whom  Lyalstone  obtained  its  name,  and  it  is  probable 
that  "  Rogerslaw "  was  named  after  the  son  who  would 
inherit  his  father's  estate  in  that  place.  Both  names  are 
Norse. 

It  must  have  been  some  time  prior  to  the  breaking  up 
of  Lord  Salton's  estates  that  the  Heriots  of  Trabroun 
found  possession  in  Channelkirk.  Their  connection  with 
Ugston  begins  about  1610.  They  appear  to  be  relatives 
of  the  same  family  which  gave  the  scholarly  George 
Buchanan  his  mother,  and  which  found  an  honourable 
homeland  in  Gladsmuir  parish,  *  and  gave  to  Edinburgh 
the  celebrated  George  Heriot,  who  founded  Heriot's 
Hospital  there.  Their  memory  is  yet  retained  in  Channel- 
kirk parish  by  the  farm  now  called  Hen'o/shaW.  In  the 
same  way  that  the  Abernethies  were  strengthened  in 
Lauderdale  through  their  marriage  connections  with  the 
more  powerful  House  of  Douglas  and  Angus,  so  the 
Heriot  family  seems  to  have  entrenched  itself  within  the 
walls  of  the  rising  House  of  Maitland.  The  relationship 
of  the  Heriots  with  the  Maitlands  appears  to  have  been 
consummated  in  a  contract  of  marriage  in  1560,  the 
memorable  year  of  the  Reformation.  James  Heriot  was 
proprietor  of  Airhouse  in  Channelkirk  sometime  before 
this  year,  and  perhaps  had  received  his  interest  in  it  in 
succession  to  David  Hoppringle  of  Smailholm.  And  ac- 
cordingly in  1586-7,  on  the  20th  January, -j-  the  King  con- 
firms the  charter  of  the  late  James  Heriot  of  Trabroun, 
Lauderdale,  whereby  he  sells  Airhouse,  in  liferent,  to 
Isabella  Maitland,  who  is  contracted  in  marriage  to  James 
Heriot,  jun.,  son  and  heir-apparent  of  the  above  James 
Heriot,  who  had,  as  we  learn  elsewhere,  in  1558  married 
*  Earls  of  Haddington^  vol.  i.,  p.  34,  note.  t  Great  Seal. 


376  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

his  daughter  Elizabeth  to  Thomas,  first  Earl  of  Haddington.* 
The  Heriots  seem  to  have  been  early  established  in  Lauder- 
dale, as  one  James  Heriot  is  mentioned  in  Lauder  deeds  in 
141 8,  and  no  doubt  was  a  progenitor  of  the  above  Jameses. 
There  is  a  John  Heriot,  vicar  of  Soutra,  in  1467.  By  the 
time  we  reach  the  year  16 10  it  is  a  Thomas  Heriot  who 
dies  then  possessed  of  Airhouse  estate,  and  leaves  it  to 
his  heiress  and  grand-daughter^  Janet  Heriot.  Sometime 
before  this  he  seems  to  have  acquired  property  in  Ugston, 
for  she  is  also  served  heiress  to  her  grandfather  in  "  the 
two  merk  lands  of  Ugston,  commonly  called  Pickilraw,  in 
the  village  and  territory  of  Ugstoun."  She  holds  Pickil- 
raw for  twelve  years,  when  William  Home,  who  in  1610 
obtained  the  *'  Forty-shilling  lands  of  Ugston,"  takes  into  his 
sole  right,  15th  February  1622,  from  the  King,  the  village  and 
the  lands  of  Ugston,  the  pendicle  of  these  called  Luikin- 
hauch,  the  two  merk  lands  of  Pikilraw,  "which  were  oc- 
cupied by  the  late  George  Fyfife."  He  also  obtains  the 
Templar  Lands  of  Ugston. 

As  Ugston  Templar  Lands  are  frequently  mentioned 
after  this  date,  perhaps  we  may  be  allowed  to  interpolate 
a  few  digressive  sentences  here,  explanatory  of  Templar 
lands  in  general.  "  The  Templar  Lands  of  Chingilkirk " 
are  mentioned  as  early  as  1588!  as  being  in  the  hands 
of  James  Cranstoun,  son  of  Robert  Cranstoun  of  Faluod- 
scheills,  but  further  light  upon  either  these  or  those 
Templar  lands  of  Oxton  does  not  appear  to  be  procurable, 
and  the  origin  and  previous  record  of  both  seem  to  be 
enshrouded  in  the  impenetrable  darkness  which  has  en- 
veloped so  much  else  that  refers  to  Templar  history.  We 
take    the    following    extracts    from    a    paper    read    before 

*  Earls  of  Haddington^  vol.  i.,  p.  18.  f  Great  Seal. 


OXTON  377 

Hawick  Archaeological  Society  in  1887  by  Mr  Nenion 
Elliot,  Teind  Office,  Edinburgh,  which  puts  the  matter  as 
clearly  and  as  satisfactorily  as  it  is  possible,  perhaps,  to 
have  it : — 

"  The  Templars  came  into  Scotland  in  the  reign  of  King  David  the 
First,  who  reigned  from  1124  to  11 53,  and  became  so  prosperous  that 
there  were  few  parishes  wherein  they  had  not  some  lands  or  houses.  It 
may  be  here  mentioned  that  the  principal  residence  of  the  Knights 
Templars  in  Scotland  was  at  Temple,  near  Gorebridge,  Edinburgh,  while 
that  of  the  Hospitallers  or  Knights  of  St  John,  who  also  came  into 
Scotland  in  David's  reign,  was  at  Torphichen,  near  Bathgate.  Temple 
was  founded  by  King  David  himself.  The  village  of  Temple  is  one  of 
the  oldest  in  Scotland,  and  still  retains  the  name  of  Temple,  as  does  also 
the  parish  in  which  the  village  is  situated.  This  establishment  was 
originally  called  Balantradock,  and  described  in  ancient  documents  as 
domus  teinpli  de  Balantradock  (now  Arniston). 

"In  the  year  1563  Queen  Mary  granted  to  James  Sandilands,  Lord 
St  John,  the  last  head  of  the  Order  of  the  Knights  of  St  John  or 
Hospitallers,  a  charter  of  certain  baronies  and  of  all  the  Temple  land 
which  had  belonged  to  the  Preceptors  of  Torphichen  as  the  head  of  the 
Kjnights  of  St  John.  This  grant  by  Queen  Mary  to  Lord  St  John  did 
not  include  all  the  lands  in  Scotland  which  had  at  any  time  previously 
belonged  to  the  Knights  Templars,  some  of  these  having  been  alienated 
to  other  parties  before  the  suppression  of  the  Order,  and  others  during 
the  time  they  were  held  by  the  Preceptors  of  Torphichen.  By  this 
charter  the  whole  of  the  subjects  conveyed  were  erected  into  one  great 
barony,  to  be  called  the  barony  of  Torphichen,  at  the  manor-place  of 
which,  according  to  the  old  practice,  Sasine  was  to  be  taken. 

"On  9th  July  1606  an  Act  of  Parliament  was  obtained  ratifying  a 
contract  made  betwixt  James  Sandilands  of  Calder,  Lord  Torphichen,  on 
the  one  part,  and  Mr  Robert  Williamson,  Writer,  and  James  Tennant  of 
Lynehouse,  on  the  other  part,  by  which  Lord  Torphichen  (in  1599)  sold  to 
them  All  and  Sundry  Temple  lands  and  tenements  pertaining  to  the  said 
Lord  Torphichen,  either  in  property  or  tenandry,  wherever  situated,  with 
certain  specified  exceptions. 

"On  4th  December  1607  Lord  Torphichen  granted  a  charter  in 
favour  of  Williamson,  in  terms  of  the  above  Act  of  Parliament,  but  ex- 
cepting from  it  certain  lands  in  the  counties  of  Edinburgh,  Linlithgow, 
Lanark,  and  others.  Sasine  followed  in  favour  of  Williamson,  and  this 
title  was  confirmed  by  the  Crown. 

"The  preceding  narrative  indicates  generally   what   became  of  the 


378  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Templar  property  situated  in  Scotland.  In  one  of  the  writs  mentioned 
in  the  lawsuit,  certain  Temple  lands  are  said  to  be  within  the  counties  of 
Fife,  Kinross,  Clackmannan,  Perth,  Forfar,  Kincardine,  Banfif,  Nairne, 
Inverness,  Elgin,  Ross,  Cromarty,  Sutherland,  Caithness,  and  Orkney. 
Another  writ  includes  lands  in  Roxburgh,  Selkirk,  Kirkcudbright,  Stirling, 
Dumbarton,  Lanark,  Aberdeen,  Edinburgh,  LinHthgow,  Peebles,  Wig- 
town, Renfrew,  Dumfries,  Berwick,  and  Ayr,  and  the  Stewartry  of 
Kirkcudbright.  These  serve  to  show  that  the  estates  were  scattered 
over  the  whole  country." 

? 
There  is  little  doubt  that  the  leading  men  in  Lauder- 
dale from  the  earliest  period  had  a  close  relationship  to 
the  interests  of  the  Templars.  In  June  25,  1213,  at 
Rutland,  "  Helen  de  Morville,  daughter  of  Richard  de 
Morville,  was  attached  to  show  why  she  kept  not  the  fine 
made  in  the  King's  Court  by  chirograph,  between  her 
said  father  and  the  master  of  the  soldiery  of  the  Temple, 
regarding  123  acres  of  land  in  Wissindene."  *  We  also 
learn  that  the  brethren  had  charters  from  Allan  de 
Morville  (Galloway),  son  and  heir  of  Helena,  to  the  same 
effect.  Reference  is  also  made  in  the  extracts  given 
above  to  James  Tennent  of  Lynehouse,  who  received  part 
of  the  Temple  lands  belonging  to  Lord  Torphichen  in 
^  599-  There  is  a  probability  that  this  Tennent  was  related 
to  the  John  Tennent,  who  in  1539  received  a  grant  of  Over 
and  Nether  Howden  from  King  James  V.  This  John 
Tennent  was  said  to  be  "of  Listonschiels."  And  in 
Torphichen  Chartulary  James  Tennent  is  mentioned  as 
"  receiving  a  gift  of  escheat  of  all  goods  belonging  to 
Robert  Adamson  of  Listonschieles.  Edinburgh,  i  ith  January 
1 597-"  That  is,  they  reverted  to  him.  He  was  probably 
John's  son,  and  enjoyed  once  more  the  paternal  heritage. 
The    rest   of    the   history   of    these   "  Tempellandis "    is 

*  Original  Charters  in  Register  House. 


OXTON  379 

soon  told.  James  Tennent  sold  his  moiety  of  them  to 
the  Robert  Williamson  above  mentioned,  and  Williamson 
obtained  a  charter  disjoining  his  purchase  from  the 
Barony  of  Torphichen,  and  erecting  it  into  the  "  Tenandry 
of  the  Temple  Lands."  Williamson  then  sold  the 
"  Tenandry "  to  Lord  Binning,  afterwards  Earl  of  Melrose 
and  Haddington,  who  got  these  Temple  lands  erected  into 
the  Barony  of  Drem. 

The  Barony  of  Drem  went  to  the  Hon.  John  Hamilton, 
Advocate,  who  left  no  son.  Robert  Hill,  Esq.,  acquired  it, 
and  the  greater  portion  of  it,  up  to  the  year  1845,  belonged 
to  John  Black  Gracie,  Esq.,  W.S.  * 

There  is  no  mention  of  the  Temple  lands  in  Channel- 
kirk,  either  those  of  "  Chingilkirk  "  or  of  "  Ugston,"  in  the 
Berwickshire  list  in  the  Register  House,  or  in  the  Tor- 
phichen Chartulary,  and  they  must  have  been  overlooked, 
for  their  existence  is  undoubted,  and  the  references  to 
them  in  the  Great  Seal  and  the  Sasines  are  very  frequent. 
They  must  have  been  long  in  the  hands  of  the  Saltons, 
and,  no  doubt,   in   those  of  the  Abernethies  before  them.i* 

The  Homes  were  at  one  time  so  powerful  in  other 
parts  of  Berwickshire,  and  so  numerous,  that  we  are  not 
surprised  to  find  their  progeny  flowing  over  into  Lauder- 
dale, and  even  into  such  remote  corners  of  it  as  Hernie- 
cleuch.  William  Home,  who  added  Oxton  in  1622  to  his 
other  lands  in  this  district,  was  married  to  Isobella  Frazer, 
who  may  also  have  been  a  member  of  the  Abernethy- 
Salton-Frazer  family  so  conspicuous  at  the  same  period.  J 
Contemporaneous  with  the   Homes  of  Ugston  there  was  a 

♦  See  Maidment's  Account  in  the  Spottiswoode  Miscellany ,  vol.  ii., 
pp.  20-32. 

t  Great  Seal,  5th  February  1644.  %  Ibid, 


380  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

John  Home  in  Over  Shielfield,  Lord  Home  of  Polwarth 
held  Headshaw,  and  half  a  century  later  a  Home  was 
ordained  to  the  church  and  parish  as  minister,  and  was 
proprietor  of  Kelphope.  For  nearly  two  centuries  the 
name  of  Home  was  a  prominent  one  in  this  parish. 

We  have  no  means  of  knowing  the  exact  date  of 
William  Home's  death.  On  2nd  August  1622  he  and 
his  son  John  produce  their  sasine  of  the  Forty-shilling 
lands  of  Ugston ;  on  7th  Jan.  1623,  he,  his  wife  Isabella 
Fraser,  and  son  John,  the  sasine  also  of  the  village  and 
pendicles  held  of  King  James.  John  (or  James,  by  one 
authority)  hands  them  over  to  Abraham  Home  *  of  Home 
and  Kennetsydheid,  and  to  his  wife  Anna  Home,  on  3rd 
February  1640 ;  who  both  in  turn  assign  them  to  James 
Cheyne,  W.S.,  Edinburgh,  on  ist  February  1643.  The  Forty- 
shilling  lands,  and  perhaps  all  Ugston,  had  meanwhile  been 
taken  over  about  1630  by  Walter  Riddel  of  the  Haining, 
Selkirkshire.  Dryburgh  Abbey  claims  from  him,  then,  on 
account  of  the  Forty-shilling  land,  35s.  5d.,  and  in  1634, 
43s.  4d.,  six  poultry,  and  .  .  .  .  "  capounis."  f  As  late  as 
1664,  Alex.  Home,  son  to  Wm.  Home,  draws  an  annual 
rent  furth  of  Oxton. 

But  in  1644  the  whole  lands  of  Ugstoun — village ; 
pendicles  ;  mill ;  Forty-shilling  land  "  sometime  pertaining 
to  the  Dryburgh  Monastery,  and  which  the  Earl  of  Mar 
and  Lord  Cardross,  his  son,  held  for  a  time " ;  and  the 
Temple  lands,  "  sometime  held  by  John,  Lord  Salton  " — all 
came  into  Cheyne's  possession  together.  |     He  pays  a  yearly 

*  Sasines  and  Great  Seal.  f  Liber  de  Dryburgh^  p.  378. 

\  In  the  Decreet  of  Locality  of  Channelkirk^  June  30th,  1827,  it  is  said, 
p.  241,  that  "James  Skeyne "  had  the  lands  of  Ugston  in  July  1632. 
This  is,  no  doubt,  the  same  person  designated  James  Cheyne,  but  it  is  not 
so  clear  that  he  held  Ugston  at  that  date. 


OXTON  381 

return  for  the  Temple  lands  of  3s.  46.,  and  2s.  of  aug- 
mentation ;  and  for  his  Forty-shilling  land,  the  same  as 
Walter  Riddell  in  1634,  and  for  the  other  lands  "customary 
rights  and  services." 

We  are  tempted  to  pause  a  little  here  on  the  character 
of  this  James  Cheyne,  and  append  a  few  notes  illustrative 
of  his  career  in  Edinburgh.  When  our  account  is  so  much 
engaged  with  mere  property  and  its  dues,  a  biographical 
variation  may  be,  perhaps,  all  the  more  welcome. 

His  father,  it  seems,  was  Walter  Cheyne  of  Tillibui,*  who 
apprenticed  his  promising  son  to  Robert  Pringle.  He  it  is 
who  writes,  about  1638,  a  charter  by  John,  Archbishop 
Spottiswoode,  St  Andrews,  confirming  the  lands  of  the  late 
Lord  Borthwick  to  Thomas  Dalmahoy.  He  appears  as 
"witne.ss"  in  1653,  and  as  "notary"  26th  June  i654.-f-  In 
due  time  James  blossomed  out  into  a  W.S.,  about  two  years 
previous  to  his  becoming  possessor  of  Oxton  lands  and 
village.  It  does  not  appear,  however,  that  he  always  kept 
the  law  which  he  professed  to  know  so  well,  and  had  sharp 
and  irascible  ways.  On  i6th  March  1659,  "Mr  James 
Cheyne  and  Mr  David  Watsoun  compeared  to  answer  to 
a  charge  of  '  minassing '  one  another,"  They  confessed  to 
"  discord  betwixt  them  in  William  Dounie's  chamber ! " 
"  Filling  up  a  blank  paper "  was  the  casus  belli.  The  case 
could  not  be  settled  at  once,  however,  as  the  Commissioners 
"  could  not  sitt  any  longer  by  reason  of  their  uther  urgent 
efifeirs."  But  the  scales  of  justice  weighed  out  in  a  few 
days,  "  for  the  discord  aforementioned,"  ;^20  each  of  a  fine 
to  "  the  box,"  and  suspension  till  it  should  be  paid.  James 
sniffs  at  the  whole  concern,  and  does  not  deign  to  compear. 
Next  month,  on  5th  April,  the  fine  is  modified  to.  20  merks 
*  History  of  Writers  to  the  Signet.        t  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters. 


382  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

to  be  paid  betwixt  them.  James  is  then  graciously  "  re-ad- 
mitted," to  all  appearance,  although  the  minute  of  it  is 
not  given.  We  hear  no  more  of  him  till  four  years  after- 
wards, when  he  is  found,  in  1663,  complaining  that  Robert 
Alexander  dares  to  act  as  a  W.S.,  notwithstanding  that  he 
was  "  at  the  horn  " — no  joke  in  those  days — "  and  unrelaxed 
'  for  this  many  years.' "  Robert  has  "  other  faults,"  too, 
which  have  not  escaped  the  sharp  eye  of  Mr  Cheyne.  But 
when  Robert  Alexander,  W.S.,  compears,  subsequently,  to 
answer  the  bill  of  complaint  given  in  by  Mr  James  Che}'ne, 
the  latter  does  not  attend,  and  again  proudly  sniffs  at  the 
whole  affair.  Mr  James,  by-and-by,  is  the  culprit  himself, 
"  for  writing  a  bill  and  letters  of  horning,"  etc.  James  denies 
subscribing  the  letters,  but  seems,  notwithstanding,  to  have 
written  them.  After  due  trial  the  letters  are  found  to  be 
"  unformall  "  ;  but  he  still  persists  that  he  never  subscribed 
them.  On  30th  January  1671  he  is  suspended  a  second 
time  "  for  subscribing  letters  to  unfreemen,"  and  James  Allan 
gets  a  warrant  to  subscribe  letters  for  him  during  the  time 
of  his  suspension.  The  professional  atmosphere  was  growing 
black  around  him,  and  out  in  remote  Oxton,  long  before 
this,  property  matters  were  no  brighter.  All  through  the 
year  1671  his  star  seems  to  have  shone  through  clouds,  even 
though  he  was  "  reponed  "  in  February,  for  on  1 8th  November 
1672  "  Mr  James  Cheyne  being  complained  upon  for  writing 
letters  to  the  Signet  for  agents  and  unfreemen,  his  letters 
are  ordered  to  be  stopped  until  he  "  make  his  appearance " 
to  answer  for  his  transgressions.  Ten  years  go  past,  but  he 
does  not  seem  to  have  improved.  On  6th  November  1682 
"  the  treasurer  is  ordained  to  '  settle  Mr  James  Cheyne  in 
some  honest  house  quhair  he  may  be  alimented,  and  this 
without  delay,'"     27th  April   1683 — "Approbation  is   given 


OXTON  383 

to  the  treasurer  for  the  sums  paid  to  him  to  .  .  .  Mr  James 
Cheyne.  ,  .  ."  The  Commissioners,  considering  that  Mr  James 
Cheyne  is  in  the  exercise  of  his  office  till  Whitsunday,  find 
that  till  that  time  he  ought  to  have  no  allowance  from  the 
box  as  pension,  yet  the  treasurer  is  allowed  "  to  give  him 
in  smalls  two  dollars  betwixt  and  Whitsunday."  7th  May 
1683 — Mr  James  Cheyne  is  allowed  ;^ioo  yearly,  in  quarterly 
payments,  "  in  case  he  goe  off  the  citty  and  forbear  the 
exercise  of  his  calling."  On  the  15th  June  of  same  year 
he  is  due  ;iC20  to  a  Mrs  Currie,  cook,  which  the  treasurer 
pays  "  off  the  first  end  of  his  pension."  The  treasurer  also 
is  appointed  to  speak  with  Mr  Duncan  Forbes,  the  under- 
clerk,  to  know  on  what  terms  Lamertoun's  bond  in  his  hand 
is  granted  to  Mr  James  Cheyne.  And  the  last  view  we 
have  of  him  before  he  sinks  beneath  the  waves  of  oblivion 
is  in  keeping  with  all  the  rest.  20th  October  1684 — "Mr 
James  Cheyne  having  drawn  a  bill  on  the  treasurer  for 
^6,  payable  to  John  Sandilands  on  order,  the  treasurer  is 
authorised  to  pay  it,  although  there  was  not  so  much  due 
of  his  allowance.  The  treasurer  is  recommended  to  advise 
him  to  draw  no  more  till  it  be  due ! "  A  man  of  furious 
life  evidently,  and  clearly  indebted  to  kind  friends,  whose 
names  are  not  revealed,  for  being  kept  from  utter  prodigality 
and  di.ssoluteness.  Thirty-one  years  before  this  last  sinister 
notice  of  him  in  1684,  viz.,  in  1653,  we  find  that  his  Oxton 
property  was  not  large  enough  to  supply  his  exchequer,  and 
had  to  be  bonded.  He  had  held  it  nine  years  at  that  date. 
He  then  wadsets  it  to  John  Home  of  Aitoun  and  Hutton, 
and  his  second  wife,  "  in  an  annual  rent  of  300  merks  Scots 
yearly,  to  be  uplifted  from  the  Ugston  lands,  mill,  and  mill 
lands."  Sasinc  of  the  same  is  granted  to  his  son  and  heir, 
Alexander  Home,  in  1664,  by  precept  of  clare  constat  from 


384  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

James  Achiesone  of  Howdoun,  hereditary  proprietor  of  the 
lands  of  Ugstoun,  mill,  and  mill  lands  thereof"  * 

James  Achiesone  was  not  a  newcomer  to  Channelkirk 
parish  when  he  got  the  lands  of  Ugston,  for  he  had  been 
established  in  Nether  Howden  "in  fee"  in  1647.  His  father, 
John  Achieson,  advocate,  held  the  same  property  in  liferent 
at  the  same  time,  although  the  Channelkirk  Locality  -j-  dates 
it  at  1632.  A  doubtful  statement.  The  Achieson  (or  Aitchi- 
son)  family,  who  may  have  descended  from  the  Achiesons  of 
Edinburgh,  so  long  connected  with  the  Mint,  kept  long  their 
connection  with  Nether  Howden,  although  in  January  1681 
we  find  that  John  Ker  gets  sasine  of  the  lands  of  Ugston 
and  Ugston  mill  (Mountmill).| 

The  Kers,  so  famous  in  Border  story,  long  held  most  of 
the  teinds  of  Channelkirk  parish.  In  163 1  the  Kers  of 
Morriston  are  said  to  own  the  "  two  husband  lands  of 
Ugston."  §  These  are  now  called  Heriotshall.  The  Kers 
held  them  throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  In  1687,  13th  January,  John  Ker  of 
Moristoun,  ||  heir  of  Andrew  Ker,  his  brother,  who  was  in 
1676  served  heir  to  Mark  Ker  of  Moristoun,  his  father, 
enters  into  possession  of  the  "two  husband  lands  of  Ugstoun" 
(Heriotshall).  He  also  held  at  this  time  Collielaw  and 
Bowerhouses,  as  also  half  of  the  teinds  of  almost  the  whole 
parish,  bequeathed  to  him  from  his  ancestors.  These,  we 
need  not  say,  were  only  part  of  great  possessions  which 
the  house  of  Moriston,  now  so  humble,  then  held  in  Lauder- 
dale and  throughout  Berwickshire. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  lands  of 
Oxton  appear  to  have  become  separated  into  several  distinct 

*  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters,  No.  2587.  t  Pp.  237-41. 

+  Sasines.  §  Locality,  p.  243.  ||  Retours. 


OXTON  385 

properties,  each  having  its  special  designation.  In  various 
deeds  and  charters  these  figure  as  Pickleraw  ;  LuckenJiaugh  ; 
Ugston  Mains ;  Temple  Lands ;  the  Two  Husband  Lands ; 
and  Forty-shilling  Lands.  Over  Howden  and  Nether 
Howden,  which  originally  were  included  in  the  "  barony " 
or  "  territory "  of  Ugston,  were  quite  distinct  from  all 
these. 

Pickleraw  has  a  descendant  surviving  among  us  to-day 
which  is  called  Pickieston,  an  abbreviation  of  Pickleston  or 
Picklestoun.  Pickleraw  was  originally  known  as  the  "  Two 
Merk  Land  of  Ugston."*  Luckenhaugh  (Look-in-Haugh)  has 
also  its  surviving  relative  to-day  in  the  "  Luckencrofts  "  field 
near  Oxton  Cross,  now  included  in  Nether  Howden  Farm. 
Ugston  Mains  is  yet  a  fine  flourishing  farm  of  lOO  acres,  and 
seems  to  have  been  the  "  Forty-shilling  Lands  of  Ugston." 
Forty-shilling  Land  was  Three  Merk  Land  in  the  East  of 
Scotland,"!"  and  it  appears  that  Oxton  Mains  answers  more 
to  the  size  of  the  "  Forty-shilling  Land "  of  the  past  than 
any  other  piece  of  ground  known  to  us  in  Oxton  vicinity. 
The  "  Temple  Land "  does  not  seem  to  have  been  defined 
at  any  time,  and  is  always  spoken  of  as  "  lying  among  the 
lands  of  Ugston."  Perhaps  Heriotshall  and  Ugston  Mains 
may  have  swallowed  it  between  them,  seeing  that  all  three 
appear  to  have  been  contiguous  to  each  other,  Heriotshall 
is  now  1 3  acres,  or  an  oxgang  (that  is,  half  a  husband  land), 
larger  than  its  original  size  of  two  husband  lands,  and 
Ugston  Mains  is  22  acres  larger  than  its  original  dimensions. 
From  both  we  get  35  acres,  or  in  old  measurement  nearly 
three  oxgangs  ;  and  these  three  oxgangs  may  probably  have 
been   the   original    Temple   Lands   of  Ugston.     The  "  Two 

*  Great  Seal,  1622  A.D.  ;  Sasines. 
t  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  iii.,  p.  226. 

2   B 


386  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Husband  Lands  of  Ugston"  were  Heriotshall,  which  obtained 
this  latter  designation  from  the  Heriots  of  Airhouse  about 
the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

When,  or  from  whom,  the  Somervilles  may  have  obtained 
Heriotshall  we  are  not  quite  clear,  but  it  was  no  doubt 
purchased  from  the  Kers  of  Morriston,  and  it  must  have 
been  at  some  considerable  time  prior  to  1727.  We  know 
that  John  Murray  of  Ouplaw  (Uplaw,  or  Wooplaw),  on 
the  2nd  September  of  that  year,  had  that  property  con- 
veyed to  him  from  Alexander  Somerville,  mariner  in 
Chatham,  the  son  of  Alexander  Somerville,  writer  in  Edin- 
burgh, then  deceased,  who  was  the  eldest  son  of  the 
deceased  George  Somerville  and  Alison  Bathgate  of  Heriots- 
hall* 

In  1742  Oxton  Mains  belongs  to  James  Somerville  of 
Airhouse,!  John  Murray  still  holds  Heriotshall,  and  Lucken- 
haugh,  or  Justicehall,  is  the  property  of  James  Justice, 
"one  of  the  Principal  Clerks  of  Session."  These  had  been 
disponed  to  Mr  Justice  by  Thomas  Mathie,  15th  June 
1 739-+  This  brings  Oxton  lands  clearly  under  one  view, 
although  they  have  now  got  divided  among  different 
owners. 

The  lands  of  Ugston  having  thus  distinct  bounds  and 
separate  appellations,  viz.,  Heriotshall,  Justicehall,  Ugston 
Mains,  not  to  mention  Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden, 
these  may  perhaps  be  more  conveniently  treated  under 
their  different  designations,  to  which  the  reader  is  there- 
fore now  referred. 

There  is,  however,  one  property  that  calls  for  mention 
here  and  which  was  closely  associated  from  time  immemorial 

*  Acis  and  Decreets^  vol.  597  ;  Mack, 
t  Kirk  Records,  %  Locality,  p.  168. 


OXTON  387 

with  the  existence  of  Oxton,  and  as  a  burning  interest  in 
it  was  evoked  twenty  years  after  the  time  (1742)  which 
we  have  last  recorded,  it  may  appropriately  be  discussed 
in  this  place.  We  refer  to  the  Common  called  "Wide- 
open." 

Before  the  days  of  modern  land-hunger,  "commons" 
were  prevalent  over  all  the  country.  But,  as  may  be  con- 
ceived where  every  one  had  rights,  and  where  all  could  claim 
liberty  to  pasture  cows  or  whatever  stock  they  chose,  the 
burden  upon  such  common  spaces  would  become  very  great, 
and,  in  individual  cases,  the  abuse  of  greedily  putting  so 
many  cattle  on  them  would  be  too  apparent  to  escape  the 
reprobation  of  the  general  community.  These  troubles, 
therefore,  rose  on  many  occasions,  and  the  common  benefit 
soon  became  a  common  nuisance,  and  lawsuits  were  frequent 
anent  the  quarrels  that  ensued.  The  thirty-eighth  Act  of 
the  Scottish  Parliament  of  the  year  1695*  dealt  with  these 
"  commons,"  and  power  was  given  whereby  such  commonties 
might  be  divided  at  the  instance  of  those  whose  properties 
and  rights  were  involved  in  them.  This  facility  was  taken 
advantage  of  in  the  case  of  "  Wideopen "  by  Robert  Scott, 
Esq.  of  Trabrown,  "  late  of  Madeira,  now  of  London,"  in 
a  process  at  his  instance  against  the  Earl  of  Lauderdale 
and  others  interested  in  it,  which,  begun  in  1762,  did  not 
quite  close  till  1769.  Difficulties  had  arisen  on  every  side, 
and  "  Wideopen "  being  contiguous  to  the  properties  of 
three  parishes,  many  jealousies  were  stirred,  and  evidently 
Mr  Scott  had  determined  to  bring  the  whole  matter  to 
something  like  a  clear  understanding  on  a  legal  basis,  and 
have  the  disputes  allayed  for  all  time  coming.  He  raised 
the  case  to  have  the  commonty  divided  and  parcelled  out 
*  Acts  and  Decreets^  vol.  597  ;  Mack.     Register  House. 


388  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

among  the  various  proprietors  who  had  the  right  to  pasture 
cattle  on  it.     These  were : — 

1.  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  for  Whitelaw, 

2.  Adam   Fairholm,  banker,  Edinburgh,  for   Pilmuir  barony,  which 

included  Upper  Sheilfield,  Pilmuir,  Blackchester,  Midburn, 
Haverlaw  or  Halkeslaw,  Wiselaw-mill,  etc. 

3.  Sir  John  Paterson  of  Eccles,  for  Kittyflat. 

4.  Miss  Christian  Hunter,  for  Nether  Howden. 

5.  Robert  Scott  of  Trabrown,  pursuer,  for  part  of  Trabrown  barony, 

with  the  New  Mill. 

6.  John  Christie  of  Baberton,  for  Meikle  Catpair. 

7.  James  Justice  of  Justicehall,  for  the  lands  of  Ugston,  Over  Howden, 

and  Upper  and  Nether  Carsemyres. 

8.  James  Murray  of  Uplaw,  for  Heriotshall  in  Ugston. 

9.  John  Thomson,  for  Nether  Bowerhouse. 

10.  James  Somervell,  for  Arras  (Airhouse)  and  Ugston  Mains. 

11.  James  Watherston,  for  the  lands  of  Haugh. 

12.  Alison  Watherston,  widow  of  Wm.   Cuthbertson,  portioner  of 

Trabrown,  and Cuthbertson  in  Trabrown,  for  their  re- 
spective interests  of  liferent  and  fee,  for  parts  of  the  lands  of 
Trabrown. 

13.  Janet,  Isabel,  and  Margaret  Watherstons,  children  of  James 

Watherston,  deceased,  portioner  in  Trabrown,  and  Janet 
Watherston,  his  widow,  for  part  of  Trabrown  lands. 

14.  John  Watherston,  for  acres  in  Trabrown  belonging  to  his  father, 

Simon  Watherston  of  Netherfield,  deceased. 

15.  James  Watherston,  for  Netherfield  or  House-in-the-Muir. 

16.  Thomas     Murray,    baxter    in    Edinburgh,    for     Mitchelson     and 

Gilmerton. 

17.  John  Cuming-Ramsay,  for  Threebumford. 

18.  George  Thomson,  Lasswade,  for  Bumhouse. 

19.  George  Addiston  of  Carcant,  for  Colielaw. 

20.  James  Hog,  for  Longmuir  lands. 

In  the  valuation  of  Wideopen  Common,  taken  in  June 
1762,  the  following  places  are  mentioned  as  lying  on  its 
boundary  line  : — Gilmerton,  Cokim,  Gilmerton  Moor,  How- 
bogs,  Kameknow,  Know-canny,  The  Burn,  How-slack, 
Rowantree-law,  Longmoor-burnfoot,  The  Fluther,  Gorieford, 


OXTON  389 

Threeburnford,  Arras-burn,  The  Slack,  Meikle  Dodhill, 
Turnercleuch,  Fairnedoup,  Howdenhill,  Hemphillhouse, 
The  Dod,  Hiseldean,  Birniehill,  The  Kairn,  Pate's  hag, 
Tathlaw-know,  Ugston,  Edinburgh  Road,  Hairlaw,  Broad- 
bog.  The  Dass,  Wardlaw  Moor,  Turnerford,  Graysbarns, 
Rashie-cleuch,  Kippit-hill,  Wideope-green,  North  Grain, 
Pilmuir  Road,  Litler  Kairn,  Willie-Struther-bog,  The 
Tongue,  Falside-road,  Sandvvell-syke,  Meikler  Kairn, 
Middle  Rig,  Long-slack,  Inchkeith,  Trabrown  Road,  Black- 
chester-lair,  Mitchelston  Road,  Weatherlaw,  Horse-bog, 
Frekles,  Deanburn-brae. 

These  give  a  general  idea  of  its  great  extent,  and  of  the 
importance  attached  to  it.  But  the  confusion  that  was  likely 
to  arise  becomes  evident  when  over  such  an  area  "each 
of  these  tenements  and  possessors  of  the  same  have  an 
universal  right  over  the  whole  common,"  "  which  right  they 
have  been  in  use  to  exercise  at  pleasure,  by  pasturing 
what  number  and  kinds  of  cattle  they  thought  proper," 
"  without  restr  ion  or  limitation,  or  being  any  way  con- 
fined as  to  place  of  pasturing,  or  the  number,  quantity,  or 
kinds  of  beasts  "  ;  "  they  also  cast  and  win  peats  in  the  moss, 
cast  turf,  feal,  and  divot  in  the  muirs  at  pleasure,  without 
the  least  restraint  or  restriction."  In  short,  the  common, 
from  originally  being  a  place  of  common  benefit,  became 
an  object  of  common  plunder,  and  great  heartburning 
as  usual  was  generated  throughout  the  three  parishes. 
Mr  Dalziell,  Hartside,  "quarrelled"  Mr  Cumming's  rights 
and  titles  with  reference  to  Threeburnford,  and  an  Archibald 
Smith,  who  once  lived  at  Collielaw,  "one  morning,  when 
he  came  in  from  the  common,  where  he  had  gone  about 
sun-rising,  told  that  William  Murray's  "herd"  had  his 
sheep  of  Easter-town    in   the   common,  and   he,  Archibald 


390  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Smith,  had  turned  the  sheep  off  the  common,  and  told 
the  herd  (shepherd)  if  ever  he  brought  them  there  again 
he,  Archibald  Smith,  would  put  them  into  the  house  ;  and 
further,  he  went  along  with  William  Murray's  sheep  till 
they  were  quite  off  the  common,  where  William  Murray 
met  him,  and  they  had  a  long  dispute  about  the  matter." 
These  were  the  days  when  the  hillsides  and  even  the  fields 
were  entirely  free  from  fences,  and  the  innocent  sheep 
might  stray  far  and  wide,  and  crop  any  spot  they  might 
deem  sweetest.  With  what  result  we  see,  in  growling 
Dalziels  and  threatening  Archibald  Smiths ! 

The  case  was  contested  sharply,  and  many  adjustments 
and  re-adjustments  were  proposed  and  pleaded.  Finally 
the  Commissioners  advised,  and  the  Lords  of  Council  and 
Session  approved,  that  the  common  be  divided  among  the 
.several  parties  having  interest  therein  "in  proportion  to 
their  respective  valued  rents,  quantity  and  quality  con- 
sidered." They  therefore  found  "  that  the  whole  surface 
of  the  said  common  is  exhausted,"  and  eighty  separate 
sections  on  a  plan  showed  the  various  plots  in  colours  into 
which  it  was  divided.  The  case  came  up  first  before 
Lord  Barjarg  on  25th  February  1762,  and  the  division 
was  to  take  effect  on  Whitsunday  1764.  But  there  were 
several  discontents  who  petitioned  against  the  arrangements, 
and  the  case  was  remitted  to  Lord  Barjarg  once  more  for 
the  purpose  of  calling  and  hearing  parties.  George  Somer- 
ville,  Airhouse,  and  James  Murray,  Heriotshall,  were 
defenders  among  others.  It  was  alleged  that  the  division 
as  allocated  would  not  meet  their  wants  with  regard  to 
other  properties.  Walker's  Croft  in  Oxton,  for  example, 
was  shown  to  be  isolated,  and  many  other  murmurs  were 
bruited,    but    the    Commissioners,   after    repairing     to     the 


OXTON  391 

common  personally,  and  examining  it  all  over  de  novo, 
found  it  impossible  to  make  any  alteration. 

There  was  one  important  provision  made,  viz.,  that 
"  the  loans,  highways,  and  roads  be  left  open  through  the 
common  for  common  passage  and  travelling  as  formerly T  * 

It  strikes  one  as  strange  that  the  common,  which  is 
called  by  the  name  of  Oxton  in  several  charters,  should  not 
have  had  retained  within  it  somewhere  some  privileges  for 
Oxton  villagers.  No  doubt,  at  a  very  early  date,  such 
advantages  would  exist.  It  seems  reasonable  to  think  so. 
But  indifference  to  their  own  rights,  perhaps,  and  possibly 
the  encroachments  of  surrounding  "  territories,"  "  baronies," 
and  "  estates "  of  various  denominations,  quietly,  in  course 
of  time  may  have  dispossessed  them  ;  and  when  the  land 
came  to  be  allotted,  Oxton  inhabitants  would  have  no 
claim  in  law.  Airhouse,  Justicehall,  and  Heriotshall 
properties  must  be  responsible  for  this,  or  perhaps  the 
"  lapsing "  took  place  at  an  earlier  time  than  when 
these  divisions  became  definitive. 

In  this  condensed  and  necessarily  formal  account  of  the 
village  we  regret  that  we  have  been  unable  to  say  more 
regarding  the  people  who  have  lived  and  died  in  it,  and 
given  it  continuity  of  existence  during  so  many  hundred 
years.  So  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  discern,  no  one 
of  any  remarkable  name  has  risen  from  that  ground. 
There  arc,  of  course,  many  references  to  Oxton  people  in 
the  Kirk  Records  and  other  sources,  but  these  are  chiefly 
in  connection  with  matters  peculiar  to  such  documents,  and 
do  not  flatter  any  one  in  particular.  The  poor,  the 
Sabbath-breaker,  the  misfortunate,  the  frail, — each  has  his 
or  her  special  niche  in  that  "  Temple  of  Fame  "  ;  but  this  is 
*  Acts  and  Decreets,  597,  p.  148. 


392  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

a  distinction  which  is  shared  by  the  same  classes  in  a 
similar  manner  in  almost  every  village  and  parish  in  the 
land.  Lower  down  than  the  Kirk  Records,  in  the  realm 
of  hearsay  and  tradition,  we  encounter  weird  and  harrow- 
ing accounts  of  men  and  things  which  it  may  be  charitable 
to  forget.  Beyond  these  sources  all  is  silent,  and  the 
notables  of  Oxton,  if  there  were  ever  any  such,  must 
remain  unchronicled  as  well  as  unsung.  We  are  not 
greatly  surprised  at  this  paucity  of  talent.  Rarely  have 
villages  situated  so  far  from  the  stimulating  influences  of 
life  as  Oxton  is,  produced  full-grown  greatness,  or  great- 
ness remarkable  in  any  sense.  There  is  a  necessary 
debility  and  enervation  in  village  environment  which  acts 
upon  human  nature  like  the  stone  above  the  blade  of 
grass.  The  seed  is  there  planted,  but  it  is  in  a  pot ; 
the  bird  is  nurtured  in  a  cage.  There  is  a  lack  of 
stimulus  and  expansion,  and  the  "noble  rage"  is  repressed 
and  the  "genial  currents  of  the  soul"  frozen.  If  the 
villager  rises  above  the  level  of  the  village,  he  must  seek 
his  leverage  outside  of  it.  For  it  is  not  true  that  a  man 
endowed  with  talents  or  genius  will  in  any  circumstances 
or  place  make  his  mark.  A  too  hard  shell  will  kill  the 
chick,  let  the  egg  be  of  the  noblest. 

So  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  estimate  village  character 
as  it  grows  in  Oxton,  we  do  not  think  it  differs  in  any 
respect  from  other  villages  of  a  like  size  and  with  similar 
disadvantages.  Human  life  flows  on  its  ordinary  course 
between  sunrises  and  sunsets,  with  but  little  variation  from 
year  to  year.  There  are  births,  joyful  or  sad  ;  there  are 
marriages,  happy  or  miserable ;  there  are  deaths,  lingering  or 
sudden.  The  three  piers,  Eat,  Sleep,  Work,  carry  the  span  of 
existence  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave.     In  the  interstices  and 


OXTON  393 

intervening  spaces  are  packed  the  ordinary  brick  and  rubble 
of  the  threescore  years  and  ten.  There  is  the  usual  quantum 
of  interest  in  each  other's  affairs  ;  the  usual  hopes  and  fears 
of  the  term  day  ;  now  and  then  a  dispute  must  be  quieted  in 
the  Sheriff's  court-room,  which  for  a  time  creates  vicious 
manners  between  the  litigants  and  the  rest  of  the  inhabitants, 
who  invariably  take  sides  in  the  contest ;  a  political  election, 
a  school  examination,  a  concert,  a  ball,  a  runaway  horse, 
or  such  like,  sends  thrills  more  or  less  shocking  through  the 
body  social  which  lies  between  the  two  "  toon  ends."  Work 
is  far  from  exacting,  and  as  each  is,  as  a  rule,  alone  in  his 
shop  or  workroom,  he  has  the  regulation  of  his  rate  of  labour 
in  his  own  hands.  But  although  the  work  may  be  done  with 
many  restings,  it  is  seldom  altogether  shirked  for  indulgences 
of  a  questionable  nature.  Few  if  any  of  the  villagers  throw 
down  their  work  in  a  fit  of  wantonness  to  take  up  tankards 
and  glasses  in  bibulous  bouts  during  the  day.  Oxton  is  a 
village  freer  from  cases  of  inebriation  than  any  the  writer  has 
ever  known.  Sobriety,  indeed,  is  characteristic  of  the  whole 
parish.  This  does  not  mean,  however,  that  it  is  totally  free 
from  vice.  It  has  a  bad  reputation  for  certain  forms  of  sin. 
We  cannot  place  its  moral  tone  very  high,  although  it  has 
its  due  share  of  true  Christian  worth.  There  are  "  wantons," 
and  lapsers  from  church  and  school  ;  and  too  many  "  cases  " 
which  have  to  stand  rebuke  in  the  Kirk-Session. 

Apart  from  these  defections  of  character,  the  people  in 
general  are  industrious,  frugal,  respectable,  and  self-respect- 
ing. Many  kind  hearts  are  in  the  village,  and,  without 
mentioning  piety,  there  are  noble  instances  of  a  self-denying, 
Christ-like  life.  Several  are  the  owners  of  their  shops  and 
dwellings,  and  can  boast  of  a  tocher  in  the  bank.  The  work- 
ing  men  —  and   the   village   knows    no    other    class  —  are 


394  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

remarkably  intelligent  and  level-headed.  They  all  read, 
and  they  reflect  upon  the  matter  they  read.  The  newspapers 
are  eagerly  perused,  some  taking  in  a  "  daily "  ;  but  many 
add  more  permanent  literary  treasures  to  their  mental  stores, 
and  the  Bible-class  "  essay,"  or  the  "  paper  "  and  "  speech  "  at 
the  Literary  Society,  amply  prove  that  with  favourable 
auspices  and  a  higher  ambition,  any  of  the  learned  pro- 
fessions might  be  attained  by  them  with  ease  and  distinction. 
Perhaps  their  lack  of  aspiration  to  higher  things  is  the  char- 
acteristic most  to  be  regretted.  This  is  fostered,  no  doubt, 
by  the  spirit  of  hopelessness  with  which  village  lads  usually 
regard  the  world  beyond  them.  Going  to  strange  homes, 
among  strange  people,  to  pursue  a  fortune  never  before 
attempted  by  his  forbears,  is  a  prospect  which  daunts  the 
young  heart,  be  it  ever  so  brave ;  and  when  his  village 
shyness,  and  modesty,  and  clumsiness  are  brought  alongside 
of  the  airs  and  appearance  of  some  townified  acquaintance, 
and  he  hears  also  the  repeated  fears  of  his  parents  dinned 
mournfully  in  his  ears,  together  with  the  knowledge  of  a 
limited  supply  of  money  at  his  command,  there  is  little 
wonder  that  any  latent  spark  of  ambition  in  him  should  be 
extinguished,  and  that  instead  of  walking  the  stately 
corridors  of  the  University,  he  is  found  whistling  all  his 
days  at  the  plough,  turning  out  wheel-barrows  and  cart- 
wheels, or  thrashing  tackets  on  a  stool. 

The  social  side  of  life  is  one  fairly  well  cultivated, 
although  this  is  largely  shared  with  the  farm  people  in  the 
surrounding  district.  Farm  "  hands "  have  no  "  harvest 
homes "  or  "  kirns  "  in  the  parish,  and  duller  farms,  socially 
or  convivially,  it  would  be  hard  to  find,  and  consequently  the 
lads  and  lasses  from  the  farms  are  always  included  in  invita- 
tions  to   "  social  "  meetings,   and  they  steadily  avail  them- 


OXTON  395 

selves  of  these.  No  cold  exclusiveness  exists  between  the 
"  metropolis  "  and  the  "  provinces " !  The  behaviour  at 
gatherings  of  this  kind  is  excellent.  By  mutual  arrange- 
ment, "  socials "  are  conducted  "  on  teetotal  principles,"  as 
it  is  termed,  and  thus  there  is  nothing  more  exhilarating 
than  dances  and  refreshments  of  a  substantial  nature  to 
arouse  latent  differences  into  flame,  even  if  these  actually 
existed.  There  is  no  distinctive  market  or  fair,  annual  or 
otherwise,  held  in  the  parish,  nor  can  any  trace  of  such  be 
found  in  the  past.  The  burgh  of  Lauder  has  always  been 
the  centre  of  attraction  in  matters  of  this  kind,  and  it  is  yet 
the  rendezvous  for  them  twice  a  year  at  least. 

What,  perhaps,  helps  to  keep  the  sociable  element 
specially  active  in  the  village,  is  the  return,  on  occasions 
of  such  meetings,  of  the  young  folk  who  have  had  to  seek 
employment  beyond  the  bounds  of  their  calf-ground.  The 
sight  of  home  and  home  faces  naturally  exalts  the  spirits 
of  the  "  exiles,"  and  their  gaiety  communicates  itself  to  the 
rest,  and  renders  these  "  socials  "  very  hilarious  indeed.  But 
this  evokes  once  more  the  regret  that  all  the  young  people 
should  require  to  seek  the  "  distant  scene  "  in  which  to  earn 
a  crust  of  bread.  The  young  people  are  the  life  of  a  parish 
and  district,  and  when  they  have  to  abandon  their  homes,  they 
leave  behind  them  faces  graver  because  of  their  absence,  and, 
for  many,  a  grey  seriousness  hangs  like  a  pall  over  hill  and 
holm  till  they  return.  Were  there  a  class  of  wealthy  people, 
this  condition  of  things  might  have  some  compensations. 
The  lack  of  some  class  to  respect  beyond  themselves  is 
always  hurtful  to  working  people.  They  see  no  one  to 
emulate  or  follow,  the  interest  in  their  similar  soon  loses 
edge,  and  scorn  of  pretension  and  low  pride  is,  of  course,  the 
reward  of  him  who  ventures  his  head  out  of  the  common 


396  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

ditch.  All  the  heritors  and  all  their  representatives  live  out 
of  the  parish,  and  take  small  interest  in  its  human  affairs 
beyond  drawing  the  rents.  Rents  of  farms,  rents  of  houses, 
and  such  like,  become  drained  away,  and  the  people  derive 
no  benefit  from  either  the  persons  or  the  purses  of  those 
who  partly  live  by  their  labours.  There  is  consequently  little 
circulation  of  money.  This  is  rendered  still  worse  by  the 
fact  that  the  wealthiest  farmers  follow  the  landlords'  example. 
The  poverty  of  the  parish,  in  this  way,  soon  stares  at  every 
one,  as  a  consequence,  in  neglected,  dreary  farm-steadings, 
unslated  and  unwashed  ;  and  when  workpeople  have  to  labour 
and  live  amid  such  dismal  surroundings,  under  the  commands 
of  an  inferior,  they  are  apt  to  lose  respect  both  for  themselves 
and  their  place. 

It  is  a  sunny  spot,  in  the  gloom  of  these  circumstances, 
to  see  the  strong  attachment  to  their  village  shown  by  the 
youths  who  have  been  shoved  out  of  their  valley  by  "  man's 
inhumanity  to  man."  They  return  at  "social"  times  as 
lively  as  swallows  in  summer,  and  renew  friendships  with 
deeper  zest.  They  seem  to  forget  all  the  causes  of  sundered 
homes  and  parted  hearts,  and  it  is  only  when  graver  episodes, 
such  as  sickness  and  funerals,  call  them  to  serious  reflections, 
that  the  "  absentee  landlords,"  "  led  farms,"  and  such  like 
"grievances"  come  up,  among  much  else,  for  disapproval 
and  reprobation. 

In  1794  the  Rev.  Thomas  Murray,  minister  of  the  parish 
of  Channelkirk,  wrote  an  account  of  it  for  the  Old  Statistical 
Account  of  Scotland,  which  was  set  agoing  by  Sir  John 
Sinclair,  but  he  mentions  nothing  specific  regarding  Oxton 
worth  quoting.  Neither  does  the  New  Statistical  Account 
give  more  particulars.  Nearly  all  the  trades  set  down 
there    may,   however,    be    reasonably    regarded   as   those  of 


OXTON  397 

people  living  in  Oxton.  In  1794  there  was  one  weaver 
and  six  tailors,  two  shoemakers,  two  smiths,  one  wright, 
three  masons,  and  one  gardener.  Two  of  these  occupations 
have  vanished — the  weaver  and  the  gardener.  There  are 
three  millers  mentioned  then,  whose  trade  has  also  become 
a  thing  of  the  past. 

The  trades  actively  represented  in  it  at  present  are : 
Grocers,  two  ;  blacksmiths,  two ;  tailors  and  clothiers,  two  ; 
shoemakers,  two  ;  drapers,  two  ;  joiners,  one  ;  confectioners, 
one ;  dressmakers,  one  ;  bakers,  one  ;  dykers,  one  ;  roadmen, 
two. 

There  are,  moreover,  several  tradesmen  who  have 
abandoned  their  regular  calling  for  labouring  work,  and 
several  journeymen  are  employed  in  the  shops  enumerated 
in  addition  to  those  given.  Several  ploughmen,  vanmen, 
mole-catchers,  lodgers,  etc.,  make  up  the  rest  of  the  village 
industries.  The  teacher  is  the  sole  representative  of  the 
professions,  and  the  constable  keeps  all  in  awe  of  the  majesty 
of  government. 

The  following  lists  may  interest  the  present  inhabitants  : 


Resident  Gentry  in  1825.* 

Capt.  James  Scott,  R.N.,  Channelkirk. 
George  Somerville,  Esq.,  J. P. 
Capt.  James  Somerville,  of  Airhouse. 

Merchants  and  Tradesmen^  etc. 

John  Bell,  shoemaker,  Ugston. 
Malcolm  McBean,  shoemaker,  Ugston. 
George  Mitchell,  shoemaker,  Ugston. 
David  Scott,  shoemaker,  Ugston. 
Andrew  Campbell,  draper,  Ugston. 

♦  Pigot  &  Co.'s  Directory. 


398  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

William  Dalgleish,  tailor,  Ugston. 

John  Murray,  tailor,  Ugston. 

Robert  Glendinning,  flesher,  Ugston. 

John  McDougal,  master  of  the  Parochial  School,  Ugston. 

NiCHOL  DODDS,  assistant  master.  Parochial  School,  Ugston. 

Thomas  Donaldson,  baker,  Ugston. 

James  Howden,  cartwright,  Ugston. 

George  Mitchell,  innkeeper  and  grocer,  Ugston. 

James  Lyall,  innkeeper  and  grocer,  Ugston. 

James  Turnbull,  innkeeper,  Carfraemill. 

James  Wood,  senr.,  grocer,  Ugston. 

James  Wood,  grocer,  Ugston. 

William  Lindsay,  grocer,  Ugston. 

Andrew  Reid,  blacksmith,  Ugston. 

In  1866,  the  trades,  etc.,  in  Oxton  were  as  under :  * 

Bootmakers        .        .    John  Bell. 

David  Scott. 

Thomas  Scott. 
Cartwrights       .        .    William  Bell. 

John  Campbell. 

Robert  Watson. 
Grocers      .        .        .    James  Mathewson. 

Robert  Macintosh. 

Andrew  Campbell. 

Robert  Walkinshaw  (also  a  spirit  dealer). 
Milliner    .        .        .    Mary  Ann  Forrest. 
Blacksmiths       .        .    John  Murray, 

Alexander  Reid. 

James  N.  Reid. 
Tailors  and  Clothiers     William  Waddell. 

Adam  Richardson. 

John  Waddell. 
Drapers      .        .        .     James  Swan. 

Adam  Watson. 
Baker        .        .        .    John  Scott. 

One  or  two  things  connected  with  the  village  might  be 
considered    worthy    of   perusal.     And    first,   as    to   religion. 
Dissent  once   flourished   in    Oxton,   and   had    its   "church," 
*  Rutherford's  Southern  Counties'  Register  and  Directory. 


OXTON  399 

and  passed  through  the  usual  period  of  struggle  and 
martyrdom.  Some  one  has  said  that  Presbyterianism  is 
never  happier  than  when  in  a  condition  of  distress  and 
wringing  of  its  hands.  There  was  in  175 1  a  zealous  band 
of  anti-burghers  in  Oxton  belonging  to  Stow  congregation. 
They  petitioned  the  Presbytery  of  Edinburgh  for  a 
separate  "supply  of  sermon,"  and  this  was  granted.  They 
then  worshipped  in  the  open  air,  and  in  barns  as  "pain- 
fully" as  possible,  for,  as  a  rule,  the  more  gruesome  the 
circumstances  of  worship,  the  deeper  the  conviction  obtains 
that  '*  this  is  none  other  than  the  house  of  God ! " 
Ultimately,  it  appears  they  became  decently  housed  in  the 
two-storey  building  adjoining  Mr  Alex.  Reid's  smithy,  to 
the  west,  at  the  top  of  the  village,  and  there  "  protested " 
to  their  heart's  content.  This  Shiloh  was  not  very  well 
supported  by  Oxton  inhabitants  by-and-by,  and  soon  the 
majority  was  observed  to  be  mostly  composed  of  people 
from  Lauder  and  its  vicinity,  who  on  reflection  thought 
they  might  sensibly  spare  both  their  zeal  and  their  legs 
if  they  built  a  "  meeting  house "  there.  This  was  done  in 
1758,  and  the  Oxton  congregation,  which  had  hitherto  been 
under  the  wing  of  Stow,  from  this  date  became  changed 
to  that  of  Lauder.  Oxton,  therefore,  can  boast  of  once 
possessing  a  "  mother  church  !  " 

"Oxton  Friendly  Society,"  established  in  1801,  for 
meeting  the  exigencies  of  sickness  and  death  among  the 
working  people,  and  "  Oxton  Total  Abstinence  Society," 
instituted  in  1840,  have  both  lapsed  for  many  years.  This 
must  also  be  said  of  the  "  Parochial  Library "  located  in 
Oxton,  and  more  recently  extinct. 

Another  institution  which  has  had  a  more  permanent 
life    than    the    above    is    Oxton    Friendly    Bovial    Society, 


400  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

which  held  its  first  meeting  on  the  nth  of  May  1839, 
and  still  continues  to  flourish.  It  was  formed  for  the 
laudable  purpose  of  mutual  assistance  in  case  of  loss  of 
cows  from  disease  or  accident.  But  it  has  often  served 
the  purpose  also  of  social  celebrations,  and  in  uniting 
classes  of  men  in  pleasant  reunions  whose  interests  and 
occupations  keep  them  apart,  and  pleasant  memories  and 
merry  associations  are  often  recalled  in  connection  with  it. 
So  much  for  the  past.  At  present  high  expectations 
are  being  fostered  that  a  new  era  is  at  hand  for  the 
ancient  village  with  the  advent  of  the  railway.  The  old 
order  must  change,  it  is  felt ;  and  few  will  regret  to  have 
it  .so.  The  locality  is  one  which  is  much  appreciated  by 
summer  visitors,  and  even  with  the  present  difficulties  to 
encounter,  is  taxed  to  find  accommodation  for  those  who 
come.  With  travelling  facilities  on  a  level  with  modern 
comforts,  and  with  a  new  water-supply  now  in  process  of 
construction,  there  is  little  doubt  that  building  will  increase, 
population  multiply,  and  trades  expand,  and  perhaps  the 
whole  face  of  the  valley  as  well  as  of  the  village  undergo 
a  complete  transformation  in  the  coming  generations.  We 
feel  confident  that  the  knowledge  of  its  early  history  will 
not  detract  from,  but  rather  enhance,  the  modern  amenities 
of  the  old  place,  for  although  it  has  given  no  great  name 
to  the  world,  and  written  no  bold  letters  on  the  page  of 
history,  it  is  yet  intimately  associated  with  the  interests 
and  fortunes  of  some  of  Scotland's  most  memorable  families. 
"  History  is  made  up  of  what  is  little  as  well  as  of  what  is 
great,  of  what  is  common  as  well  as  of  what  is  strange,  of 
what  is  counted  mean  as  well  as  of  what  is  counted 
noble."  *  One  has  sometimes  beheld  a  tiny  stream  wind 
*  Flint's  Philosophy  of  History,  p.  8. 


OXTON  401 

a  not  uninteresting  course  through  a  broad  plain,  whose 
noble  beauty  and  varied  expanse  almost  prevented  the 
eye  from  seeing  the  silvery  band  of  soft  meandering 
water ;  so  the  dim  annalistic  course  of  our  little  village 
has  flowed  onwards  through  the  wide  vista  of  national 
history,  unobtrusive  and  chequered,  yet  now  and  then 
throwing  up  its  bits  of  clear  light,  and  here  and  there 
casting  back  some  broken  reflection  of  the  images  of  men 
who  were  moulding  in  the  impassioned  spheres  of  human 
life  and  sorrow  the  stern  character  of  their  time  and 
country. 


2  C 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE  BARONIES — Continued. 
Carfrae 

The  name  "Carfrae"  —  Ancient  Boundaries  of  Carfrae  Lands — The 
Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston  —  Serfdom  at  Carfrae  —  Division  of 
Lands — The  Homes — The  Maitlands  —  The  Haigs  of  Bemersyde 
and  Hazeldean — The  Tweeddales  and  Carfrae  —  Tenants — Robert 
Hogarth — The  Wights  —  Headshaw — Herniecleuch  —  Hazeldean — 
Friarsknowes — Fairnielees — Hillhouse — Kelphope — Tollishill. 

Carfrae  is  in  some  respects  the  most  notable  place  in 
Upper  Lauderdale.  It  has  always  preserved  in  its  name 
and  situation  a  certain  distinction  both  with  respect  to 
its  strategic  importance  as  a  stronghold  in  ancient  times, 
and  its  territorial  connection  with  the  proudest  names  in 
Scottish  history.  All  other  landed  properties  in  Channel- 
kirk  parish  have,  with  the  passing  of  the  centuries,  slowly 
declined  from  the  gilded  levels  of  aristocratic  possession 
to  the  less  lustrous,  if  more  practical,  regions  of  the  com- 
moner ;  but  Carfrae,  undoubtedly  notable  when  the 
Brythonic  Ottadini  entrenched  themselves  on  its  woody 
heights,  before  Roman,  Saxon,  or  Dane  had  visited  the 
sources  of  the  Leader,  has  never,  since  the  era  of  record, 
brooked  a  humbler  name  on  its  charters  than  those  which 
belong  to  the  nation's  oldest  families  and  are  impressed 
on    many  a  page  of  its  political  annals 


CARFRAE  403 

When  its  position  is  considered  as  commanding  the 
only  two  reasonable  passes  from  Upper  Lauderdale  into 
Lothian  by  way  of  Glengelt  and  Kelphope  glens,  and  its 
height  on  the  promontory  of  land  at  their  junction,  it  is 
not  surprising  to  find  its  history,  long  before  it  is  chronicled 
in  records,  to  have  been  a  warlike  one,  or  to  discover  this 
belligerent  character  as  clearly  written  in  its  camp  or  camps, 
as  it  is  deeply  stamped  upon  its  name.  Two  ancient  camps 
stand  boldly  out  almost  within  arrow-flight  of  each  other, 
on  steep  heights  that  must  have  rendered  them  formidable 
places  of  defence  in  those  far-away  days  of  barbarous 
conflict ;  and  whatever  date  may  be  assigned  to  their  con- 
struction, there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  their  hostile  purpose, 
and  the  name  still  further  bears  witness  that  Carfrae  was 
originally  a  place  of  "  derring  doe,"  and  doubtless  the  scene 
of  many  a  bloody  encounter. 

The  earliest  form  of  the  name  is  Carfra.  It  is  Celtic. 
Carfrae  is  probably  Caer  and  some  name  which  cannot 
be  identified,  but  also,  probably,  Brythonic  (Welsh)  rather 
than  Goidelic  (Gaelic).  The  earliest  known  inhabitants  of 
our  district  were  Otadini,  a  Celtic  people  of  the  Brythonic  * 
or  Welsh  branch,  speaking  the  Welsh  dialect  in  contradis- 
tinction to  the  Gaelic ;  and  caer,  in  Welsh,  means  fort^ 
or,  according  to  Camden,  "  a  fortified  place  or  city."  As 
Carfrae  is  perhaps  the  only  place  in  Lauderdale  which  by 
its  name  is  distinguished  as  a  Brythonic  stronghold,  so 
we  may  likewise,  perhaps  on  that  ground,  assume  that  it  is 
also  the  oldest.  For  similar  ancient  "camps,"  "forts,"  or 
strongholds  scattered  throughout  the  dale  denominated 
"  Chester,"  are  not  by  that  name  considered  as  pointing 
to  a  Roman,  but  a  Saxon  origin,  and  therefore  several 
*  CelHc  Britain^  p.  221, 


/^ 


404  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

centuries  later  than  the  earHest  mention  of  the  Brythons 
in  the  Leader  district,  who  were  the  inhabitants  conquered 
by  both.  " '  Cester '  was  thoroughly  established  among  the 
Saxons  in  England  at  a  very  early  period,"  says  Dr 
Christison,  and  he  is  of  opinion  that  they,  and  not  the 
Romans,  introduced  it  into  Scotland.* 

Carfrae  comes  first  before  us  historically  in  a  charter 
granted  {cir.  1196)  by  William  de  Moreville,  Lord  of 
Lauderdale,  to  Henry  de  Saint  Clair,  of  the  lands  of  Carfra. 
The  boundaries  given  are  now  of  course  very  dim  on 
account  of  the  place-names  which  define  them,  being  all  but 
obliterated.     We  give  the  Latin  description  as  follows  : — 

"  Sicut  Langilde  se  jungit  ad  Mosburne  et  illinc  descendit 
usque  ad  Ledre  et  ex  superiori  parte  sicut  Mosburn  ascendit 
usque  ad  Venneshende  et  de  Venneshende  usque  ad  Sumu- 
indnight  illinc  per  descendum  usque  ad  viam  de  Glengelt 
et  illinc  usque  Ledre."  This  may  be  Englished — "  From 
where  Langilde  (now  Langat)  joins  itself  to  Mosburn  (now 
Kelphope  Water),  and  thence  descends  to  the  Leader. 
And  on  the  upper  part,  from  where  Mosburn  ascends  to 
Venneshende,  and  from  Venneshende  to  Sumuindnight, 
thence  by  descent  to  the  road  from  Glengelt,  and  so  to  the 
Leader."  The  starting-point  of  the  description  is  the  place 
nearest  Carfrae  which  had  a  distinct  locality  and  character. 
"  Langild "  turns  up  in  several  old  charters.  The  ruins  of 
it  still  stand,  or  recently  were  standing,  not  many  years 
ago,  and  the  mimulus  from  its  garden  yet  grow  luxuriantly 
by  the  stream  which  swept  them  out  on  its  way  to  join 
the  Kelphope  Water  (Mosburn).  From  Langat  the 
boundary  follows  Mosburn  (Kelphope  Water)  clear  down  to 
the  Leader,  that  is,  to  Carfraemill,  or  to  the  Leader's  banks. 
*  Early  Fortifications^  pp.  105-6. 


Vi 


CARFRAv 

>7  405 

Instead   of  continuing  round  by\ 

IT         .     ,  AGlengelt,  the   opposite 
course  is  now  pursued,     in  actual  laK         ^ 

that    the   boundaries   are  declared  by  T\  ,c 

4-     J-        4.  T  4.      ■4.U   w     cu    -a-  u     W    Morville   himself 

standing  at  Langat  with  his  bherin,  Henr^  .  . 

and    their  retinues,   and   pointing   first  one  ■\i. 
and  then  to  the  right.      All  marches  in  those  ^ 
perambulated  personally.      Consequently,  after  sh^ 
march   from    Langat   to   the    Leader   on    his   left  ha:     ^ 
begins   again   at   where   he   is  standing,  and   describes  \' 
"  higher   part "   (superiori  parte).     From  Langat  the  mara 
follows   Mosburn  as  it  goes  up  (ascendit)  to  Venneshende.    - 
Venneshende  may  have   been   a  place   near    Friarsknowes,        \ 
or   more   probably   towards    Lammer    Law,    for   in    a   later 
confirmation    of  this   charter    by    Roland,    Lord    Galloway, 
the  march  is   described   as  proceeding   "from    the  head  of 
Langat   to    the    boundaries   of  Lothian,   towards    Lamber- 
lawe "  (de  capite  de  Langild  usque  ad  divisas  de  Laodonia 
versus    Lamberlawe).      Venneshende,   therefore,   may    have 
been   a   place   much   further   "  towards    Lamberlawe "   than 
Friarsknowes.      Thence   the    march   of  Carfrae   lands   pro- 
ceeds  to   another  unknown   place  called,  strangely  enough, 
Sumuindnight.     It  is   distinguished    from    the   other   places 
mentioned  by  the  absence  of  " ascending "  or  "descending" 
joined   to  it,  phrases  which  suit  exactly  the  nature  of  the 
ground  in  the  other  cases.     We  therefore  surmise  it  must 
have  lain  to  the  west  of  the  Lammer  Law  in  the  direction 
of  Huntershall,  or    the    Den,  across   a   comparatively  level 
expanse   of  hilly    moorland.     From   this   place,   the   march 
now   "  descends "   to   the   road   from    Glengelt,   or   Glengelt 
Road,  and  so  following  Glengelt  Road  down  to  the  Leader 
or  Headshaw  Burn. 

The  outline,  although  somewhat  vague,  is  yet  clear  enough 


V 


y        y 


./ 


406 


HISTORY  dF  CHANNELKIRK 


to  define  the  lands  of  Carfrae,  which  to-day  do  not  differ 
far  in  essentials  from  the  description  given  in  De  Morville's 
charter.  This  was  t/D  be  expected  on  account  of  these  lands 
having  so  seldom  -changed  owners  during  700  years.  Head- 
shaw  was  thus  included  in  Carfrae  boundaries,  and  all  the 
land  on  the  v-east  of  Headshaw  water.  Glengelt  estate  never 
seems  to^'have  crossed  that  stream  at  any  time  within  the 

C  '' 

view  ov 'history,  though  it  gave  its  name  for  long  to  the  hills 
extprfiding  from  Carfraemill  to  Lammer  Law. 

Carfrae   estate   as   thus   bounded   was   given  about   and 
before   the  year  1196,  "to   be  held   from    me   (William   de 
Moreville)  and  my  heirs,  by  him  (Henry  de  Saintclair),  and 
j_  his  heirs,  in  fee  and  heritage,  in  land  and  water,  in  meadows 

r"  and  pastures,  and  wood  and  plain,  and  without  the  forest, 

/  freely  and  quietly,  for  the  service  of  one  knight." 

"  I  concede  likewise  to  him,  as  in  his  fee,  his  mill  (Carfrae 
Mill)  held  without  multure. 

"  I  concede  to  him  that  no  one  shall  use  his  land  or 
pasture  or  his  wood  unless  he  permit,  yet  at  the  same  time 
that  we  shall  mutually  use  the  common  pasture-land  of  our 
dominions." 

This  charter  was  afterwards  confirmed  by  Rolland,  Earl  of 
Galloway,  who  married  the  granter's  sister  Ellen,  and  got 
Lauderdale  lands  with  her,  to  Allan  de  Saintclair  of  Carfrae, 
who  was  married  to  Mathilda  of  Windesour  ;  and  in  1434  "  ane 
instrument "  of  it  is  taken  by  John  Saintclair  of  Hermiston. 

Herdmanston  came  into  the  hands  of  Henry  de  Sinclair 
in  1 162  by  charter  from  Richard  de  Morville,  Lord  of  Lauder- 
dale. The  Morevilles  had  acquired  vast  possessions  in 
Lothian,  Lauderdale,  and  Cunninghame,  and  Sir  Henry, 
Sheriff  to  Richard,  seems  to  have  been  a  favourite.  The 
Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston,  and   later  of  Carfrae,  "  are  thus 


CARFRAE  407 

entitled   to   be   considered   as  the   first   family   in   point   of 
antiquity  in  the  county  of  Haddington." 

The  fortunes  of  Carfrae  were  henceforth  bound  up  in 
those  of  the  honourable  family  of  Herdmanston,  and  its  lands 
do  not  seem  to  have  been  separated  in  any  way  until, 
perhaps,  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century. 

From  the  fact  that  John  de  Sauncler  received  liberty  to 
build  chapels  at  Hirdmanston  and  Carfrae,  and  to  have 
private  chaplains  at  each  for  behoof  of  his  own  people,  we 
surmise  that  Carfrae  must  have  long  been  a  residence  of  the 
Sinclairs.  That  Sinclair  of  Carfrae  was  also  the  Sheriff  of 
the  High  Constable  of  Scotland  would  give  the  place  both 
social  and  political  pre-eminence  over  the  other  residences  of 
Upper  Lauderdale.  But  it  would  be  difficult  to  say  at  what 
particular  time  this  John  de  Sauncler  lived,  and  consequently 
the  time  when  Carfrae  was  at  its  best.  There  is  a  John  de 
Sinclair  of  Herdmanston  in  the  Arbroath  charters,  of  date 
1 248,  who  succeeded  to  Allan  de  Sinclair  in  the  estates,  and 
who  may  be  identical  with  the  above,  but  there  is  a  John  of 
Herdmanston,  also  of  date  1296,  who  does  homage  to 
Edward  I.,  and  yet  another  of  1542  who  witnesses  in  the 
Roslyn  charters.  We  are  inclined  to  accept  1248  as  the 
period  when  Carfrae  rose  to  highest  importance  as  a 
residence,  although  this  seems  to  have  been  sustained  to  a 
much  later  time  when  it  received  the  status  of  a  barony. 

As  far  back  as  the  years  1162-66,  there  is  a  charter  which 
gives  a  pathetic  insight  into  the  conditions  of  peasant  life 
then  prevalent  in  Lauderdale.*  Richard  de  Moreville  sold 
to  Sir  Henry  St  Clair,  Edmund,  the  son  of  Bonda,  and 
Gillemichel,  his  brother,  their  sons  and  daughters,  and  all 
their  progeny,  for  the  sum  of  three  merks  (40s.),  and  it 
*  Dipiomata  Scotia^  P-  75- 


408  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

is  also  stipulated  that  if  St  Clair  ever  parts  with  them 
willingly,  they  are  to  return  to  the  overlordship  of  De 
Morville. 

Perhaps  this  serfdom  was  not  actually  so  debasing  in 
practice  as  it  seems  to  us  now,  viewing  it  from  our  nineteenth 
century  heights  of  freedom  and  rights  of  contract.  The 
advantages  of  defence  were  then  likely  to  be  more  valued 
than  freedom  to  wander  anywhere  and  work  to  any  master. 
By  being  thirled  to  the  land,  the  lord  of  the  barony  stood 
pledged  to  defend  his  nativi  with  all  his  power ;  and  the 
picture  of  the  strongly-defended  castle  surrounded  with  its 
wooden  huts  and  occupying  bondmen,  bound  to  common 
interests  and  mutual  protection,  has  a  certain  air  of  com- 
munal association  which  is  neither  harsh  nor  tyrannical. 
Guizot  declares,  regarding  the  feudalism  which  prevailed 
from  the  tenth  to  the  thirteenth  century  :  "  It  is  impossible  to 
mistake  the  great  and  salutary  influence  exerted  by  it  upon 
the  development  of  sentiments,  characters,  and  ideas.  We 
cannot  look  into  the  history  of  this  period  without  meeting 
with  a  crowd  of  noble  sentiments,  great  actions,  fine  displays 
of  humanity,  born  evidently  in  the  bosom  of  feudal  manners."* 

From  the  above  names,  Edmund  (Saxon),  and  Gillemichel 
(Gaelic),  we  might  be  led  to  infer  that  intermixture  of  the 
races  had  begun.  We  are  told  that  Simeon  of  Durham,  who 
died  in  1 1 30,  narrates  that  the  Scotch  made  inroads  upon 
the  English  and  made  slaves  of  them,  "  so  that  even  to  this 
day,  I  do  not  say  no  little  village,  but  even  no  cottage,  can 
be  found  without  one  of  them,  f  The  ancient  race,  native  to 
the  land,  was  also  enslaved  by  the  Saxons,  and  thus  the 

*  Guizot's  History  of  Civilisation^  vol.  i.,  p.  81.     Bogue's  European 
Library. 

f  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  422. 


CARFllAE  40d 

intermingling   of  Saxon  and  Gaelic  names  among  Carfrae 
bondmen  becomes  clear  to  us. 

Sir  William  Sinclair  of  Herdmanston  was  distinguished 
for  great  gallantry  on  the  field  of  Bannockburn.  He  then 
conducted  himself  so  bravely  as  to  earn  the  high  admiration 
of  King  Robert  the  Bruce.  The  King  presented  him  with  a 
sword  with  the  words  engraved  on  it :  "  La  Roi  me  donne, 
St  Clair  me  poste" — "The  King  gives  me,  St  Clair  carries 
me."  He  fell  fighting  the  Moors  in  Spain,  while  accompany- 
ing the  good  Lord  James,  Earl  of  Douglas,  who  bore  the 
heart  of  his  royal  master  to  the  Holy  Land. 

About  the  year  1380  Sir  William  de  Abernethy  be- 
queaths the  Mill  of  Ulkeston  (Oxton)  to  the  Abbey  of 
Dryburgh,  and  among  other  witnesses  to  this  charter  we 
have  the  name  of  "  Adam,  Milneknave  of  Carfrae."  *  The 
mill-knave  was  under-miller,  and  as  we  have  seen  the  Mill 
of  Carfrae  about  the  year  1196,  the  first  sight  of  one  of  its 
millers  nearly  two  hundred  years  afterwards  is  not  without 
interest.  We  conclude  that  Milneknave  is  not  a  surname, 
though  surnames  are  given  to  some  of  the  other  witnesses, 
because  he  is  styled  "  de  Carfrae,"  and  such  territorial 
designation  could  not  have  been  given  to  any  one  except 
a  Sinclair. 

A  change  seems  to  have  taken  place  about  the  middle  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  which  had  the  effect  of  narrowing  the 
lands  hitherto  denominated  "  of  Carfrae."  Sir  Patrick  Home 
of  Polwart,  second  son  of  David  Home,  younger  of  Wedder- 
burn,  had  an  elder  brother  George,  who  was  retoured  heir  of 
his  grandfather  in  that  barony  the  12th  of  May  1469.  These 
two  brothers,  George  of  Wedderburn  and  Sir  Patrick  of 
Polwart,  married  two  sisters,  Marion  and  Margaret  respec- 
*  Dryburgh  Register,  No.  312. 


410  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

tively,  who  were  daughters  of  Sir  John  Sinclair  of  Herd- 
manston  and  Carfrae,  and  who  Hkewise  were  the  co-heiresses 
of  their  father's  estates  in  at  least  Polwart  and  Kimmerg- 
hame.  When  Sir  John  died,  apparently  in  1468,  strife  broke 
out  between  (his  son)  William  Sinclair  and  the  two  sisters, 
wives  of  Wedderburn  and  Polwart,  and  the  case  in  1471 
went  to  law.  *  They  accused  him  of  wrongous  withholding 
of  certain  charters  and  evidents  of  the  lands  of  Hirdman- 
ston,  Carfra,  and  Pencaitland,  Templefield,  Polwarth,  and 
Kymmerghame,  and  a  reversion  of  Hateschaw  (Headshaw), 
and  Medil  (Midlie),  and  of  withholding  of  certain  goods  of 
heirship  pertaining  to  them.  Being  a  case  of  fee  and 
heritage,  it  was  referred  to  the  Lords  of  Parliament. 

In  1494  we  ascertain  from  another  lawsuit,  which 
concerns  Headshaw  more  particularly,  that  Headshaw  was 
in  the  superiority  of  the  above  George  Home  of  Wedder- 
burn, husband  of  Marion  Sinclair  of  Herdmanston,  and 
Headshaw  being  within  Carfrae  territory,  had  evidently 
gone  to  him  as  his  wife's  share  in  the  estate,  f 

At  Stirling,  27th  June  1545,  Queen  Mary  confirms  to 
John  Sinclair  of  Hirdmanstoun  and  Margaret  Sinclair  his 
wife,  the  home  lands  of  Hirdmanstoun,  two  parts  of  the 
Mains  of  Pencaitland  called  Coddikis,  etc.,  etc.,  and  two 
parts  of  the  lands  and  steading  of  Carfray  and  Mill  in 
Lauderdale,  and  by  annexation  within  the  barony  of 
Hirdmanstoun.  I  The  other  parts  of  Carfrae  are  evidently 
at  this  time  separated  from  the  Sinclair  interest,  and  pre- 
sumably these  were  Headshaw  and  others  which  were  in 
the  hands  of  the  Homes. 

*  Acta  Dominoruin  Auditorum. 
t  Acta  Dotninorum  Concilii. 
X  Great  Seal. 


CARFRAE  411 

In  1567  the  above  John  Sinclair  seems  to  be  dead,  and 
Sir  Wm.  Sinclair  enters  upon  possession,  but  Margaret 
Sinclair,  who  was  joined  in  the  feu  with  her  husband,  retains 
the  two  parts  of  Carfrae  and  Mill  as  above.  * 

Carfrae  in  1569  comes  under  the  influence  of  a  name 
which  was  destined  to  rise  high  in  the  political  offices  of 
the  nation.  In  that  year,  at  the  city  of  St  Andrews,  on  the 
1 6th  of  May,  the  young  King  James  confirms  the  charter  of 
Sir  William  Sinclair  of  Hirdmestoun,  in  which,  for  a  sum  of 
money  paid,  he  sold  to  Mary  Maitland,  daughter  of  Sir 
Richard  Maitland  of  Lethington  (now  Lennoxlove),  the 
annual  income  of  1 10  marks  {£7$,  6s.  8d.)  from  his  barony 
of  Hirdmestoun,  viz.,  from  the  lands  of  Hirdmestoun,  the 
home  lands,  the  mains  and  mills  of  the  same,  the  lands  of 
Wester  Pencaitland  with  woods  and  mill,  as  well  as  from 
the  lands  of  Carfray  with  mill,  in  the  bailiary  of  Lauderdale, 
but  within  the  sheriffdom  and  constabulary  of  Edinburgh  by 
annexation,  holding  from  the  King  by  the  said  Mary  and  her 
legitimate  heirs,  whom  failing,  by  the  said  Richard  and  his 
heirs,  -f* 

The  Maitland  family  have  slowly  crept  into  the  place  and 
power  in  Lauderdale  which  were  anciently  held  by  the  De 
Morvilles,  and  in  thus,  in  a  sense,  returning  to  them,  even 
though  as  bond,  Carfrae  was,  as  it  were,  coming  back  to 
the  original  status  which  it  enjoyed  before  the  Sinclairs  of 
Herdmanstoun  possessed  it.  This  also  appears  to  be  the 
first  time  that  any  Maitland  obtained  a  landed  interest  in 
Channelkirk  parish. 

The  above  Sir  Richard  Maitland,  father  of  Mary,  is  well 
known  for  his  honourable  connection  with  poetic  literature. 
He  is  the  "  Auld  Lettingtoun,"  "  the  old  Larde  of  Lething- 
*  Exchequer  Rolls.  t  Great  Seal. 


412  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

toun "  of  Knox's  History.  *  He  was  a  worthy  descendant 
of  the  "Auld  Maitland"  of  the  thirteenth  century,  who 
defended  his  castle  so  doughtily,  and  who  was  as  devout  as 
he  was  brave.  Robert  Maitland,  descended  from  the  "  grey- 
haired  knight,"  appears  to  have  acquired  the  lands  of 
Lethington  about  the  close  of  the  fourteenth  century  from 
the  Giffords  of  that  Ilk.  From  Robert,  in  successive  genera- 
tion, there  were  William,  and  from  William,  John,  and  from 
John  another  William  who  was  the  father  of  the  poet.  Sir 
Richard,   "the  old  larde,"   born  in   1496. 

Sir  Richard  was  married  about  1530  to  Mary  Cranston, 
daughter  of  Sir  Thomas  Cranston  of  Crosby,  a  younger 
branch  of  the  Cranston  House,  and  had  seven  sons  and 
four  daughters.  Mary,  who  obtains  from  Sir  William 
Sinclair  the  annual  return  of  no  merks  from  his  estate, 
as  above,  was  Sir  Richard's  third  daughter,  and  was  married 
to  Alexander  Lauder  of  Hatton. 

At  Hirdmanston,  on  the  20th  March  1580,  Sir  William 
Sinclair  grants  to  Lady  Sybil  Cockburn,  his  wife,  in  liferent, 
his  lands  of  Carfrae,  with  manor,  mansion,  homelands,  mill, 
and  Rigside,  with  privilege  of  Carfra  Common.  This  is 
confirmed  on  17th  February  1593,  with  some  other  favours. 
Carfrae,  with  mill  and  all  pertinents,  is  again,  on  the  death, 
evidently,  of  Sir  William,  conveyed  in  1629  to  Sir  John 
Sinclair  of  Hirdmanston,  and  Elizabeth  Sinclair,  his  future 
wife  (who  was  daughter  of  John  Sinclair  of  Stevinstoun, 
merchant  and  bailie  in  Edinburgh),  in  conjunct  fee,  and  to 
their  heirs  legitimate.  In  1590  Murray  of  Blackbarony  was 
security  in  50CXD  merks  that  the  Laird  of  Philiphaugh  would 
not  harm  Sir  William  Sinclair  of  Hirdmanston.     In  1641,  on 

*  Vol.  ii.,  p.  403  ;  vol.  i.,  p.  97.  See  also  Ballad  of  "Auld  Maitland," 
and  Scott's  Marmion,  notes. 


CARFRAE  413 

15th  November,  the  King  confirms  and  de  novo  gives  to 
Sir  John  Sinclair  (among  others)  Carfrae  lands,  with  manor 
place,  mill,  holdings,  etc.,  in  Lauderdale,  in  the  barony  of 
Herdmanston. 

Returning  for  a  little  to  the  year  1632,  we  learn  from  the 
Decreet  of  the  High  Commission  of  that  date  that  Sir  John 
Sinclair  of  Herdmanston  held,  in  this  parish,  Carfrae  and 
Midlie,  Fairnlees,  Hillhouse,  Hirniecleuch,  and  Carfrae  Mill, 
and  mill  lands.*  One  place,  Hizildans,  originally  in  Carfrae 
lands,  and  from  which  the  minister  at  that  time  drew  stipend, 
is  not  mentioned  as  being  Sir  John's.  The  reason  is  that 
Hizildans  was  then  in  the  possession  of  the  Haigs  of  Bemer- 
syde.  Thus  the  Homes  had  cut  Headshaw  out  of  the  estate 
on  the  west,  and  the  Haigs  had  sliced  off  Hizildans  on  the 
east.  In  1617,  on  17th  December,  James  Haig  of  Bemersyde 
is  retoured  heir  of  Robert  Haig,  his  father,  in  the  lands  of 
Hissildans,  in  the  barony  of  Hermestoune,  lordship  of 
Carfra.+  Sir  Henry  Sinclair  of  Carfra  had  a  daughter,  Ada, 
who  married  (about  1200)  Peter  de  Haig  of  Bemersyde,  the 
second  of  that  name.  It  is  curious  to  find  this  early  interest 
in  Carfrae  still  clinging  to  the  Haigs  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  four  hundred  years  later.  Hissildans  was  then 
"of  I  OS.  taxt  value,  auld  extent;  and  40s.  new  extent." 
This  James  Haig,  heir  of  Hissildans  in  1617,  is  notable  in  his 
way.  Fierce  and  headstrong  during  his  reign  in  Bemersyde, 
he  gave  ample  proof  that  a  man  may  maintain  his  rights 
without  help  from  any  laws  except  what  reside  within  his 
own  stout  heart  and  arm.  He  ran  away  with  the  Laird  of 
Stodrig's  daughter  to  begin  with,  for  which  he  just  escaped 
his  father's  dagger.  He  did  not,  however,  escape  the  old 
man's  curse,  "which  followed  him  to  his  grave."  Indeed, 
*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  239.  f  Retours. 


414  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  advent  of  James  on  the  historic  scene  was,  to  all  appear- 
ance,  the   beginning    of   the    declension   of   the    house    of 
Bemersyde.      Contracts  and   agreements   had   no   reverence 
for  James  when  they  thwarted  his  wishes,  and  having  braved 
all   public   respect,  and   deranged   the  peace  of  his  father's 
house,    to    quarrel   also   with    his    neighbours    was    almost 
inevitable.     Haliburton,  the  Laird  of  Mertoun,  and  he,  had 
their  properties  joining  in  the  vicinity  of  Bemersyde  Loch, 
and   the   watery   marshes,   instead   of  imparting   a   cooling 
atmosphere   to   the   two   boundaries,   became,   ultimately,   a 
veritable   calorific   geyser,   which   spouted    such    intolerable 
hot  waters  over  both  the  houses  of  Bemersyde  and  Mertoun 
as  literally  to  stew  them  alive.     We  shall  leave  it  to  Anthony 
Haig  to  tell  the  story.     The  little  touches  of  old  Adam  are 
peculiar  to  the  days.     He  was  the  grandson  of  James  Haig 
of  Hissildans.      After   describing   the   disputed   boundaries, 
and  showing  us  that  they  are  yet  "  visiabbly  merched  with 
ston,"  he  says : — "  It  will  not  be  amise  to  show  you  what 
one   pased   betwixt   my   guidser   and  the  Laird  of  Marton 
then  liveing.      Marton  wold  faine  have  stolne  a  prevelidge 
beyound  those  march  stons,  and  for  that  end  caused  on  of 
his  men  com  upe  and  cast  some  diffits  beyound  the  march. 
My  grandfather,  hearing  thereof,  cam  to  the  fellow,  brock  his 
head,  toke  from  him  his  spade  ;  at  which  Marton  was  greatly 
offended,   and   on    day    going    to    Coldenknowes    with    on 
Thomas    Helliburton   with   him,   he    bravadingly    crost  the 
rigges  befor  the  Laird  of  Bemersyde's  door,  which  he  seeing, 
told  him  he  would  be  in  his  comon  (would  be  so  obliged  to 
him ! )  if  he  would  com  that  way  backe   againe.      He  said 
he  would,  and  accordingly  did  so  ;    whom,  when  my  grand- 
father saw,  caled  to  his  son  James  to  bring  him  his  gune, 
which  the  boy  did — cam  out,  and    ther  pased  some  words 


CARFRAE  415 

betwixt  them,  upon  which  Martone  did  bid  my  guidsire  in 
derision  shott  at  his  a — e  with  drops,  and  held  it  upe.  He 
had  no  soner  spak  the  word  then  he  shott  him  with  the  wholl 
grath  in  his  a — e  ;  upon  which  he  fald  of  his  horse,  and  the 
uther  Helliburton  coming  upon  with  his  sword  to  him,  he 
tourned  about  the  but  end  of  his  peac,  and  struke  him  doune, 
so  that  he  was  forcsed  to  send  them  both  home  cared  (carried) 
in  blankets.  But  this  proved  noways  advantagious  to  the 
2  families,  for  ever  after  ther  remained  heart-burnings 
betwixt  the  two  houses,  so  that  the  countrie  people  observed 
it  layed  the  foundation  of  runeing  of  both  the  families."  * 
They  were  merry  in  those  days  ! 

Carfrae  lands  seem  to  have  passed  from  the  Sinclairs  of 
Herdmanston  to  the  Maitlands  of  Lauderdale  between  1641 
and  1650,  at  which  latter  date  they  again  passed  finally  into 
the  Tweeddale  family.  This  appears  from  a  Charter  of 
Resignation  and  Novodamus  under  the  Great  Seal,  in  favour 
of  John,  Lord  Hay  of  Yester,  and  his  heirs  male,  and  of 
tailzie,  specified  in  the  infeftments  of  the  lands  of  Yester, 
dated  24th  June,  and  sealed  2nd  July  1650.  This  charter 
bears  to  proceed,  partly  upon  a  Procuratory  of  Resignation 
contained  in  a  Disposition  by  John,  Earl  (afterwards,  in  1672, 
Duke)  of  Lauderdale,  eldest  son  and  heir  of  John,  Earl  of 
Lauderdale,  in  favour  of  Sir  Adam  Hepburn  of  Humbie, 
dated  27th  May  1650,  and  partly  upon  an  apprising,  dated 
26th  March  1650,  against  John,  first  Earl  of  Tweeddale, 
at  the  instance  of  Dr  Alexander  Ramsay,  physician  to 
Charles  I. 

Carfrae  lands  still  remain  in  the  possession  of  the  Tweed- 
dales.     We  find  them  denominated  in  1676,  "  the  lands  and 
barony  of  Carfrae,"  t  and  Carfrae  is  frequently  so  designated 
*  Haigs  of  Bemersyde,  p.  476.  f  Retours. 


416  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

after  that  date.     Before  that  time  it  is  spoken  of  as  "the 
lordship  of  Carfrae." 

The  earHest  mentioned  tenant  in  Carfrae  is  James  Somer- 
ville  in  17 14.  He  acquired  Airhouse  estate  at  this  time. 
There  seem  to  have  been  Somervilles  tenants  in  Carfrae 
onwards  till  1771.  George  Somerville  was  tenant  there  in 
1744,  and  perhaps  for  some  time  previous  to  that  year.  He 
assigned,  in  1758,  one-third  of  the  farm  to  his  son  Alexander, 
on  his  marriage  with  Janet  Stevenson.  The  son  of  this 
couple,  Simon  Somerville,  was  of  some  note  in  his  day.  He 
was  their  eldest  son,  and  was  born  at  Carfrae  in  1767. 
Taught  at  Channelkirk  parish  school,  and  then  at  Duns,  he 
studied  for  the  dissenting  ministry  in  Edinburgh,  and  was 
licensed  in  1790.  He  was  called  to  Barrie  in  1791,  and  to 
Elgin  in  1805,  where  he  originated  the  Elgin  and  Morayshire 
Bible  Society  about  1820.  He  died  in  1839.*  His  father, 
George  Somerville,  would  appear  to  have  removed  to 
Kirktonhill  Farm  about  1771,  as  in  this  year  we  find  Robert 
Hogarth  "  tenant  in  Carfrae."  Mr  Somerville  was  "  made  an 
elder"  in  Channelkirk  Church  in  1744,  and  was  for  long  the 
treasurer  of  the  Session's  funds.  He  died  in  Kirktonhill  in 
1779. 

Much  interest  attaches  to  the  tenancy  of  Carfrae  by  the 
above  Robert  Hogarth,  as  his  coming  to  the  parish  created 
something  like  a  revolution  in  the  methods  of  farming  in  the 
district.  Writing  in  1794  for  the  Old  Statistical  Account,  the 
Rev.  Thomas  Murray  says  regarding  him  : — "  Agriculture 
has  made  wonderful  progress  within  these  last  twenty  years 
in  this  parish.  This  has  been  chiefly  owing  to  the  skill  and 
attention  of  one  individual,  Mr  Robert  Hogarth,  tenant  in 
Carfrae.  He  came  twenty-five  years  ago  from  East  Berwick- 
*  United  Secession  Magazine,  April  1840. 


CARFRAE  417 

shire.  At  this  period  our  farmers  were  total  strangers  to  the 
turnip,  and  very  little  acquainted  with  the  lime  and  sown- 
grass  system.  He  introduced  turnip  and  clover,  and  suc- 
ceeded. It  is  now  very  general  to  grow  turnips,  and  in  no 
part  of  Berwickshire  is  it  in  greater  quantity,  or  of  better 
quality,  on  the  same  extent  of  land.  He  also  introduced  the 
white-faced,  long-wooled  sheep  from  Northumberland,  and 
they  promise  to  answer  well."  Mr  Hogarth  is  also  credited 
with  the  introduction  of  the  potato  into  the  district,  but  this 
was  later,  about  1780.  Bruce,  in  his  Appendix  to  Lowe's 
Agriculture  of  Berwickshire  (July  1794),  notes  that  Robert 
Hogarth,  in  Carfrae,  "  has  made  astonishing  changes  upon 
a  large  tract  of  very  high  wild  country." 

We  have  heard  it  said  that  he  was  of  the  family  of 
Hogarths  which  gave  Charles  Dickens  his  wife,  but  we  have 
been  unable  to  verify  the  assertion.  The  Parish  Records  of 
his  time  show  him  to  have  been  a  man  of  influence  and 
leading  among  his  class,  although  not  always  amenable  to 
counsel  from  the  kirk.  He  is  reputed  to  have  been  a  strict 
manager  on  his  farm,  but  not  quite  competent  to  combat 
the  ways  and  wit  of  some  of  his  ploughmen.  It  is  related 
that  one  of  his  "  hands,"  who  loved  his  "  miry  beasts "  as 
dearly  as  men  are  enjoined  to  love  their  neighbour,  believed 
that  the  allowance  of  corn  granted  by  Hogarth  was  in- 
sufficient to  meet  their  wants,  and  he  was  in  the  habit  of 
purloining  extra  quantities  when  an  opportunity  served, 
to  make  up  the  rather  scrimp  measure.  Hogarth  resented 
this  as  wanton  insubordination  and  waste,  and  repeatedly 
cautioned  the  ploughman  to  desist,  else  worse  would  befall 
him.  But  the  affection  of  the  hind  for  his  horses  was 
.stronger  than  his  dread  of  "  the  maister,"  and  he  continued 
pilfering  the   forbidden   "  heapit    stimpart."      Hogarth    was 

2  D 


418  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

just  as  determined  to  "  put  him  down."  One  day  while 
this  spirit  of  dog-watch-the-cat  prevailed,  the  farm  hands 
were  all  set  on  to  thresh  the  stacks  through  the  mill. 
Accordingly,  sack  after  sack  of  oats  was  filled  and  set  past, 
and  the  ploughman,  seeing  the  abundance,  remembered 
his  starved  horses,  as  he  believed,  and  resolved  to  abstract 
one  of  the  sacks  to  the  loft  above  the  stables  where  the 
hinds  of  those  days  were  wont  to  sleep  at  night.  He  com- 
municated his  design  to  the  two  women  workers  who  were 
assisting  in  storing  the  sacks,  and  implicated  them  so  far 
in  the  felonious  act  by  obtaining  their  help  to  shove  the 
sack  on  his  shoulders  from  behind,  as  he  carried  it  upstairs 
to  the  floor  above.  But  the  loft  door  was  narrow,  and  the 
ploughman  and  the  sack  rather  bulky,  and,  moreover,  the 
more  haste  produced  less  speed,  while  in  the  midst  of  the 
tugging  and  shoving  of  the  bag  by  the  man  above  and  the 
women  below,  who  should  come  into  the  barn  but  the 
farmer !  The  women  thus  caught  slunk  away  abashed, 
and  Mr  Hogarth,  rejoicing  in  his  opportunity,  stepped 
forward  .into  their  place  and  began  to  push  up  the  sack 
which  the  ploughman,  all  unaware  of  the  substitute,  was 
in  vain  struggling  above  to  extricate  from  its  tight  fittings. 
The  women  below  dared  not  reveal  to  him  the  altered 
condition  of  things,  and  he,  supposing  the  farmer  to  be 
far  afield,  exhorted  them  vociferously  "  Shove,  ye  deevils ; 
shove  up !  the  auld  skinflint  '11  be  in  an'  catch  us.  Lord's 
sake,  shove,  can  ye  no  ! "  The  extra  pressure  was  soon 
applied  by  the  farmer,  and  the  sack  was  victoriously  de- 
posited in  the  loft.  The  consternation  of  the  ploughman 
may  be  conceived  when  the  actual  circumstances  stood 
revealed  to  him.  "Ye're  in  for't  this  time,"  quoth  "the 
maister  "  ;    "  I'll  '  skinflint '  ye,  an'  no  mistake.      Ye'll  gang 


CARFRAE  419 

afore  the  Shirra  for  this,  sir."  And  Mr  Hogarth  kept  his 
word.  The  summons  was  served,  the  Court  day  at  Lauder 
arrived,  and  the  two  parties  prepared  to  "  gang  before  their 
betters."  But  unconcernedly  the  ploughman  was  seen  out 
in  the  field  ploughing  as  usual,  and  Hogarth,  thinking  his 
man  had  forgotten  the  exact  day,  went  across  the  rigs  to 
remind  him.  "  Oh,  I'm  mindin'  weel  aneuch,"  quoth  the 
ploughman,  "  I'll  be  doon  in  time,  nae  fears,"  It  was  six 
miles  to  Lauder  Burgh  Court-room,  where  the  trial  was 
to  be  held.  How  he  was  to  walk  there  in  time  was  a  puzzle 
to  the  farmer,  but  he  himself  deemed  it  his  duty  to  appear 
at  the  bar,  and  hurried  off  afoot.  When  about  half  distance 
he  heard  a  great  clattering  of  horses  behind  him,  and, 
turning  round,  beheld  his  man  riding  his  "  pair "  at  a  fast 
rate.  "  What's  this  o't  ? "  inquired  the  master.  "  What 
use  are  the  horses  in  the  case?  They  should  have  been 
resting  now  in  the  stable  instead  of  racing  in  this  daft 
manner.  What  do  you  mean  ? "  The  workman's  wit 
was  equal  to  the  occasion,  "  I  wad  consider,  sir,"  said  he, 
"  that  the  horses  are  resetters  in  this  thievin'  business,  and 
the  Shirra  may  need  to  examine  them  as  weel's  me.  The 
resetter's  as  bad's  the  thief,  ye  ken ! "  The  farmer,  who 
had  really  intended  to  give  John  but  a  "  scare,"  grasped  the 
humour  of  the  situation  and  bestrode  the  other  horse,  en- 
couraging John  to  keep  his  seat,  and  together  the  belligerents 
rode  on  to  Lauder.  But  they  did  not  enter  the  Court-room. 
They  were  seen  going  to  an  inn,  and  in  due  time  men 
and  horses  were  being  regaled  with  the  best  fare  it  afforded. 
On  coming  home  at  night  the  rumour  went  abroad  that  the 
case  had  been  "  a  hard  yin,"  and  the  sentence  "  heavy,"  and 
"  the  Shirra  jist  terrible,"  but  the  "  resetters "  knew  for 
certain  that  they  had  carried  home  to  Carfrae  the  "thief" 


420  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  "  the  maister "  as  merry  as  two  men  could  possibly 
be.  It  is  handed  down  that  Mr  Hogarth  often  afterwards 
related  this  incident  at  social  parties  with  great  delight. 

In  1816  he  heads  the  petition  to  the  Presbytery  by 
the  parishioners  to  have  the  church  removed  to  some  place 
near  Oxton.  Two  brothers,  named  Milne,  followed  him  in 
the  tenancy  and  held  Carfrae  till  1839.  In  this  year,  Mr 
William  Wight,  father  of  the  present  tenant,  obtained  the 
'lease  and  held  it  till  his  death  in  1868.  George  Wight,  his 
son,  began  his  tenancy  then,  and  still  farms  Carfrae,  We 
cannot  refrain  from  remarking  that  the  name  of  Wight 
is  one  of  the  oldest  in  Upper  Lauderdale,  and  it  is  also 
one  that  in  no  instance  is  found  with  a  shadow  upon  it.  In 
1650  William  Wight  was  "  elder  and  deacon "  in  Channel- 
kirk  Church.  So  also  at  the  same  time  was  Robert  Wight. 
The  former  was  probably  the  "tenant  in  Glengelt,"  who 
died  in  1682,  and  whose  tombstone  stands  in  the  south- 
west corner  of  Channelkirk  churchyard.  There  is  a  George 
Wight,  "elder,"  here  in  1744,  and  probably  the  same  person 
who  became  tenant  in  Stobshiel  Farm,  and  was  buried  from 
there  in  this  churchyard  in  1756.  The  name  has  continued 
in  Upper  Lauderdale  to  the  present  day,  and  has  always 
been  held  in  the  highest  respect.  (See  chapter  on  "  An- 
tiquities "  for  other  matters  relating  to  Carfrae). 

Headshaw 

Headshaw  was  originally  included  in  the  lands  of 
Carfrae,  but  along  with  Medil,  Midlie,  or  Middlemas,  is 
found  to  be  a  separate  property  in  the  fifteenth  century. 
The  Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston  must  have  been  possessors 
of  its  grounds  from  about  1 196,  although  it  may  not  have 
been  a  separate  farm  till  much  later.     Its  earliest  mention 


HE  ADS  HAW  421 

as  such  is  in  147 1.  About  that  time  it  would  appear  to 
have  passed  into  the  hands  of  Sir  George  Home  of  Wedder- 
burn,  and  Sir  Patrick  Home  of  Polwart,  as  part  dowry  of 
their  respective  wives,  Marion  and  Margaret  Sinclair, 
daughters  and  co-heiresses  of  Sir  John  Sinclair  of  Herd- 
manston,  each  of  whom  received  half  of  Headshaw,  Sir 
George  was  the  eldest  of  the  "  seven  spears  of  Wedder- 
burn,"  and  fell  with  his  father,  Sir  David,  at  the  battle  of 
Flodden,  15 13. 

"  And  when  the  sun  was  westering 
On  Flodden's  crested  height, 
The  Seven  Spears  of  Wedderburn 
Gave  first  shock  in  the  fight." 

On  the  30th  of  June  1494  James  Logan,  who  was  then 
tenant-laird  of  Headshaw,  takes  Sir  George  Home  to  law 
"  for  the  wrangwis  spoliation,  away-takeing,  and  withhalden 
fra  him  out  of  the  landis  of  Haitschaw  of  XIX  oxin, 
and  for  costis  and  scathis.  Baith  the  saidis  pairties  beeind 
personally  present,  it  wes  allegiit  be  the  said  George  and  the 
advocatis  of  our  souvraine  lord  that  the  saidis  landis  of 
Haitschaw  wer  in  our  sovrane  lordis  handis  be  the  non-entry 
of  John  Edmonston  of  that  Ilk  to  the  superiority  of  the 
samyn  landis  of  Haitschaw,  and  that  the  said  oxin  wer  taken 
for  a  parte  of  the  malez  and  proffitis  thereof  The  lordis 
of  Consale  therefore  ordinis  the  said  James  Logane  to 
summonde  the  said  Johnne  of  Edmonstone  to  the  VIII 
day  of  Oct.  nixt  to  come  with  quotacioun  of  dais  to  produce 
and  preif  his  entra  to  the  superiority  of  the  saidis  landis  : 
and  also  to  summonde  him  for  the  dampnage,  costis,  and 
scathis  that  the  said  James  sustenis  in  his  default."* 

*  Acta  Dominorum  Concilii. 


422  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  entire  dispute  was  about  non-entry  to  the 
superiority.  This  is  a  law-term  which  would  be  far  better 
explained  by  a  lawyer,  but  we  venture  to  offer  the  follow- 
ing. In  the  original  grant  of  Carfrae  Estate  by  William 
de  Morville  to  Henry  de  Saintclair,  his  Sheriff,  the  service 
of  one  knight  was  made  the  condition  of  holding  it.  Sir 
George  Home  of  Wedderburn  having  received  Headshaw, 
which  seems  to  have  been  then  the  half  of  a  property  of 
which  Midlie  may  have  been  the  other  half,  became 
superior  of  Headshaw  or  tenant-in-chief  under  "  ouf  sovrane 
lord"  the  King.  The  above  John  Edmonston  of  Edmon- 
ston  was  evidently  vassal  to  Sir  George,  or  heir  of  the 
vassal  who  held  Headshaw  under  Sir  George's  superiority, 
and  John  Logan  again  feued  under  John  of  Edmonston. 
To  have  a  legal  right  to  Headshaw  John  Edmonston 
should  have  acknowledged  the  superior,  Sir  George,  by 
entering  with  him,  that  is,  accepting  a  charter  which  sub- 
stituted him  as  vassal  in  room  of  his  ancestor,  or  the 
person  whose  heir  he  was.  This  he  had  failed  to  do,  and 
so,  by  law,  the  superior  was  entitled  to  take  possession 
of  the  lands  and  levy  the  rents  to  the  exclusion  of  John 
Edmonston  of  that  Ilk.  This  was  called  the  casualty  of 
non-entry.*  But  poor  John  Logan  was  between  two  fires 
Sir  George  and  Edmonston,  who  both  demanded  the  rents 
or  "malez."  He  seems  to  have  paid  to  Edmonston,  the 
mid-superior,  and  thus  felt  aggrieved  that  Sir  George 
should  pay  himself  with  his  nineteen  oxen  independently, 
and  so  went  to  law.  Edmonston  was  adjudged  in  the 
wrong,  and  ordered  to  make  good  the  value  of  the 
"dampnage,  costis,  and  scathis"  which  he  had  sustained, 
and  the  case  continued  Logan  is  back  in  Court  again 
*  Juridical  Styles,  pp.  7,  354.     Fifth  Edition. 


HEADSHAW  423 

in  July  of  1494  complaining,  but  seems  to  make  no  head- 
way. If  we  are  not  mistaken  this  John  Edmonston  of 
that  Ilk  is  the  same  person  who  marries  Margaret  Maitland, 
daughter  to  William  Maitland  of  Thirlestane  and  Lething- 
ton,  in  1496.*  On  the  i8th  July  of  that  year  he  resigns 
"half  the  lands  of  Hetschawe  in  Lauderdaile,"  which 
are  thus  thrown  on  the  hands  of  Hume  of  Polwarth.  f 
The  lawsuit  had  evidently  been  too  annoying  to  all  con- 
cerned in  it. 

Headshaw,  in  the  barony  of  Carfrae,  is  granted  to 
David  Home  in  1506,  and  in  1550  is  noticed  as  paying 
;^20  from  "  half  Headshaw  "  to  the  Sheriff  of  Berwick.  J 

On  the  1 8th  March  1594  (retoured  25th  Oct.  1599), 
Patrick  Home  of  Polwart  and  all  his  masculine  heirs 
whomsoever  bearing  the  name  and  arms  of  Home,  are  con- 
firmed by  charter  of  novodamus  in  Polwart,  Reidbrayis, 
Hardenis,  etc.,  and  half  the  lands  of  Hetschaw  in  Lauder- 
dale. §  Three  years  later,  at  Falkland,  1 2th  September 
1597,  the  King  confirms  the  other  half  of  Hetschaw  on  the 
common  of  Carfrae  to  Sir  George  Home  of  Wedderburn, 
and  while  he  does  so  he  recalls  Sir  George's  good  services 
to  himself  from  his  (the  King's)  childhood,  and  also  the 
weighty  services  rendered  by  his  ancestors,  ''who  were 
almost  all  slain  in  battling  for  the  King's  ancestors  and 
fighting  under  their  banner  for  their  crown  and  the  freedom 
of  the  kingdom."  ||  (The  property  was  retoured  under 
date  7th  April  1590.) 

This  charter  gives  half  Headshaw  to  Sir  George's  wife, 
Jean  Halden,  in  liferent,  and  the  same  to  his  son  David 
in  fee. 

*  Douglas's  Peerage^  vol.  ii.,  p.  6.  t  threat  Seal. 

X  Exchequer  Rolls.  §  Great  Seal.  ||  Ibid. 


424  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

In  1611  Sir  Patrick  Home  of  Polvvart  is  retoured  heir 
of  his  father  Sir  Patrick  in  (among  others)  half  the  lands 
of  Headshaw ;  and  in  1650,  on  17th  May,  the  famous  Sir 
Patrick  Hume,  his  son  and  entailed  heir,  is  retoured  in 
the  same  possession.  From  the  earliest  account  we  can 
find  of  Headshaw,  the  following  Homes  or  Humes,  down 
to  the  last-mentioned  date,  have  been  connected  with 
it:— 

Sir  Patrick  Home,  Polwart,  about  1450. 

Alexander  Home  (his  son),  about  1503. 

Patrick  Home  „  „      1532. 

Patrick  Home  „  „      1536. 

Sir  Patrick  Home  „  „      1587. 

Sir  Patrick  Home  „  „      1611. 

Sir  Patrick  Home  „  „      1641-1724. 

The  last  name  is  so  well  written  in  the  history  of  the 
country  that  it  is  unnecessary  to  give  here  more  than  a 
mere  outline  of  his  career.  The  eldest  son,  he  lost  his 
father  when  seven  years  old,  and  his  education  devolved 
upon  his  mother  Christian,  daughter  of  Alexander  Hamilton 
of  Innerwick.  He  represented  Berwick  in  Parliament  in 
1665  ;  soon  became  an  object  of  aversion  and  jealousy  to 
Lauderdale ;  was  several  times  imprisoned  ;  hid  himself  in 

1684  in  Polwart  Church  vault,  and  fled  to  the  Continent ; 
had  sentence  of  forfeiture  passed  upon  him  on  22nd  May 

1685  ;  returned  with  the  Prince  of  Orange,  5th  November 
1688,  under  whose  star  his  fortunes  brightened.  His 
forfeiture  was  rescinded  by  Parliament,  22nd  July  1690 ; 
he  was  made  a  member  of  the  Privy  Council,  also  Lord 
Polwarth  in  the  same  year ;  Extraordinary  Lord  of  Session 
in  1693,  Bailiff  of  Lauderdale  in  1694,  Lord  High  Chan- 
cellor of  Scotland    in    1696,   in   which   character   he   comes 


HEADSHAW  425 

before  the  Channelkirk  people  in  rather  dubious  light  in 
the  matter  which  is  treated  in  Chapter  VII  on  "The 
V^acancy."  He  was  created  Earl  of  Marchmont  by  King 
William,  23rd  April  1697,  though  he  would  have  preferred 
to  be  Earl  of  March,  as  being  a  lineal  descendant  of  the 
ancient  Earls  of  the  Merse.  He  died  in  1724  in  his  own 
house  at  Berwick,  and  was  buried  in  the  vault  of  Polwarth, 
where  he  once  hid  from  his  persecutors.* 

He  was  the  eighth  of  the  barons  of  Polwarth,  whose 
residence,  Redbraes,  was  afterwards  called  Marchmount,  a 
name  which  belonged  of  old  to  Roxburgh  Castle :  The 
Merse-Mount.  He  was  married  to  Grissell,  daughter  of 
Sir  Thomas  Ker  of  Cavers,  29th  January  1660,  lived  with 
her  forty-three  years,  and  had  seventeen  children.  Grissell, 
born  24th  December  1665,  was  his  famous  daughter,  Lady 
Grissell  Baillie,  who  as  a  maid  of  eighteen  in  1683  carried 
food  to  him  in  Polwart  vault.  He  was  first  Episcopalian, 
then  Presbyterian,  and  to  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  to 
the  Presbyterian  cause,  which  his  party  espoused,  he  owed 
his  successful  career  and  ennoblement.  Hence  the  crowned 
Orange  is  a  familiar  object  at  Marchmont.-f 

It  renders  our  account  of  Headshaw  agreeably  brief, 
when  we  can  say  that  it  has  continued  in  the  possession 
of  the  Marchmont  House  down  to  the  present  day.  Its 
name,  sometimes  spelled  Heathshaw,  lends  colouring  to 
the  view  that  Headshaw  Hill  and  surrounding  ground  was 
at  one  time  covered  with  wood,  or  natural  "  shaw."  Its 
elevation  gives  it  an  extensive  sweep  of  all  Lauderdale, 
which,  together  with  the  Eildons  in  the  distance,  is  beheld 
to  an  enjoyable  degree  from  this  point  of  vantage.     Planted 

*  Senators  of  the  College  of  Justice. 

+  Miss  Warrender's  Homes  of  Marchmount. 


426  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKlRK 

on  a  steep  hillside  which  from  the  level  of  770  feet 
climbs  abruptly  to  960,  it  has  many  disadvantages  both 
for  pedestrians  and  farm  traffic.  All  the  roads  reach  it 
after  many  windings.  The  area  of  land  farmed  comprises 
721  acres,  mostly  of  light  soil,  and  on  the  six-shift  rotation: 
300  acres  in  tillage,  389  moorland,  and  32  in  pasture. 
There  are  now  13  souls  on  the  place;  good  old  Mr  and 
Mrs  Blaikie,  so  long  farming  there,  having  but  recently 
been  laid  to  rest  in  Channelkirk  churchyard — a  worthy 
and  much  missed  couple.  The  present  owner  is  Sir  John 
Purves  Hume  Campbell,  Bart.,  of  Marchmont. 

It  speaks  volumes  for  good  settled  government,  the 
strength  of  the  law,  and  the  binding  influences  of  good 
family,  that  the  same  bounds  given  by  William  de  Mor- 
ville  to  Carfrae  lands,  on  the  west,  should  still  to-day  be 
the  same  march  of  Headshaw.  The  Leader  Water,  as 
Headshaw  Burn  seems  to  have  been  then  called,  still 
marks  the  boundaries  between  Glengelt  and  Headshaw 
as  distinctly  as  on  that  day,  somewhere  about  the  year 
1 196,  when  the  High  Constable  of  Scotland  described 
them  to  Sir  Henry  de  Sinclair,  Sheriff  of  Lauderdale. 
Well  may  the  poet  sing: — 

"It  is  the  land  that  freemen  till, 

That  sober-suited  Freedom  chose  ; 
The  land,  where  girt  with  friends  or  foes 
A  man  may  speak  the  thing  he  will ; 

A  land  of  settled  government, 
A  land  of  just  and  old  renown, 
Where  Freedom  slowly  broadens  down 

From  precedent  to  precedent. 

If  Headshaw  and  Midlie  were  ever  united  as  one  property, 
as  we  have  hinted,  they  were  again  separate  in  1632.     Sir 


HERNIECLEUCH  427 

John  Sinclair  of  Herdmanston's  lands  of  Carfrae  included 
those  of  Midlie  within  them  at  that  time,  and  they  remain  so 
still. 

We  have  seen  that  the  earliest  mentioned  tenant-laird 
was  James  Logan,  who  entered  Headshaw  in  1466.*  In 
163 1  "Thomas  Markell  in  Headschaw"  is  down  at  Lauder  on 
the  7th  day  of  January,  giving  his  evidence  before  the  Sub- 
Commissioners'  Court,  held  there  in  the  "  Tolbuth,"  as  to  the 
worth  and  rent  of  Glengelt  Farm  and  others.-j"  Old  James 
Richardson,  tenant  in  Kirktonhill,  who  had  seen  sixty  years, 
was  down  along  with  him.  James  Watherston  was  tenant 
till  1736.  James  Somervail  is  tenant  in  1752.  In  1764  we 
see  him  busy  "  calling  sand  "  to  the  manse,  for  which  he  is 
paid  £2.1  No  doubt  he  would  be  related  to  the  "James 
Somervail "  who  was  then  in  Airhouse.  A  Mr  Cockburn 
appears  to  have  been  farmer  in  1774.  In  the  early  years  of 
this  century,  Andrew  Shiels  was  tenant — he  had  farmed  also 
in  Glengelt — and  was  followed  in  Headshaw  by  his  son,  who 
did  not  succeed  well.  From  being  shepherd  on  Mr  Shiel's 
farm  the  late  Robert  Blaikie  became  tenant,  and  his  son- 
in-law,  Mr  Booth,  now  fills  the  vacant  place.  Headshaw 
people,  with  the  exception  of  the  workmen,  attend  the  U.P. 
Church  at  Blackshiels. 

HERNIECLEUCH 

Herniecleuch  may  have  derived  its  name  from  being  a 
haunt  of  the  heron,  or  may  be  a  transposed  spelling  of  Henry- 
cleuch  ;  but  it  is  more  likely  to  be  derived  from  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  hyrne,  a  corner  or  neuk.     Chaucer  speaks  of  "  lurking 

*  Acta  Dominorum  Concilii. 

t  Channelkirk  Teind  Case.     Teind  Office,  Edinburgh. 

X  Kirk  Records. 


428  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  hemes  and  in  lanes  blind,"  and  the  situation  of  the  place 
on  Kelphope  "  Burn  "  answers  such  a  description  admirably. 
In  Blaeu's  Atlas  of  1654  the  order  of  places  ascending  the 
Kelphope  Water  is  Hillhouse^  Herniecleuch,  Hasildene.    There 
are  many  trees  growing  near  the  spot  where  it  stood,  imme- 
diately at  the  foot  of  the  Dod  House  Hill.     In   1610  it  was 
owned  by  William   Home,  who   acquired    in  that  year  the 
village   and    lands    of    Oxton    from    John,    Lord    Saltoun. 
William  was   servitor   to   Alexander,   Earl  of  Home,    Lord 
Jedburgh,  and  Dunglass.     It  seems  never  to  have  been  large 
in  area,  and  in  1627  is  noted  as  being  "  in  stok  fourscoir  lib. ; 
personage,  10  lib.  ;  viccarage,  20  merkis."     In   1630,  Hernie- 
cleuch and  Hasildeane  are  said  to  be  each  in  worth  ;i^ioo  ; 
from  which  we  may  judge  that  both  places  were  alike  in 
extent,  as  well  as  neighbours.     Being  in  "  Carfrae  barony," 
it  was  in  the  superiority  of  the  Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston,  and 
in  1 69 1   the  "Locality"  of  that  date  includes  all  the  places 
on   Kelphope  Burn  under  that   appellation.     For  the  same 
reason  it  is  never  mentioned  except  when  documents  relating 
to  Carfrae   estate   give  the  inventory.     It  was  occupied  as 
late  as  181 3,  when  one  Trotter  died  there  in  March  of  that 
year.     He  is  a  friend  of  the  same  who  is  noticed  as  being 
buried  from  "  Harniecleugh  "  on  the  8th  September  18 16,  and 
whose  name  was  Alexander  Trotter.     From   this  date  the 
place  seems  gradually  to  have  fallen  into  decay,  and  finally 
became  obliterated.     The  desire  for  large  farms  has  operated 
in  the  same  way  throughout  the  parish. 

A  story  is  told  of  "  auld  Willie  Clark's  faither,"  who  was  a 
weaver  in  Herniecleuch,  and  who  heard  one  night  the 
fairies  play  a  tune  which  he  learned  and  fiddled  as  "  The 
Balance  o'  Straw."  The  fairies  are  said  to  have  had  their 
headquarters  near  Herniecleuch.     He  had  been  over  the  hill 


HAZELDEAN  429 

with  a  web,  and  was  returning  home  when  he  got  entangled 
in  the  fairy  enchantments  !  But  the  tune  has  died  away,  and 
it  seems  that  fairy  music  has  no  greater  immortality  than  that 
of  human  beings.  The  web  was  perhaps  a  "  drookit  ane." 
If  so,  the  music  is  easily  understood. 

HAZELDEAN 

The  association  of  the  name  of  this  place  with  the  shrub 
or  tree  called  the  fiazel  doubtless  supplies  us  with  a  deriva- 
tion which  is  sufficiently  satisfactory.  The  "  dean "  refers, 
we  believe,  to  the  long  deep  ravine  to  the  immediate  south 
of  Tollishill,  at  the  mouth  of  which  Haseldean,  or  Hazeldean, 
seems  to  have  been  situated.  It  is  now  extinct,  but  traces 
of  its  wall-foundations  are  yet  apparent.  It  has  no  connec- 
tion with  Scott's  famous  song,  "Jock  o'  Hazeldean."  It 
comes  into  view  first  in  1617.  On  the  17th  December  of 
that  year,  James  Haig,  Bemersyde,  is  served  heir  to  Robert 
Haig,  his  father,  in  the  "  lands  of  Hissildans,  in  the  barony  of 
Hermestoune,  lordship  of  Carfra."  This  owner  of  Haseldean 
is  interesting  in  several  ways.  He  led  a  violent  and  erratic 
life,  and  seems  to  have  been  reckless  in  his  behaviour  to  all 
who  crossed  his  path.  When  we  first  become  acquainted 
with  him  as  the  proprietor  of  Haseldean  he  had  but  few 
years  to  live,  as  he  is  said  to  have  died  about  1620,  whether 
travelling  in  Germany  or  at  home,  it  is  not  known.  An 
incident  in  which  he  was  chief  actor,  and  which  combined 
both  comic  and  tragic  elements,  has  already  been  referred  to 
under  "  Carfrae."  John  Knox  was  tenant  in  Hissildoune  in 
1631. 

In  1627  it  is  valued  "in  stok  200  merkis  ;  personage,  20 
merkis ;  viccarage,  40  merkis."  Thomas  Thomson  was 
tenant  in  "  Hizeldean"   in   1664,  and  the  key  of  the  poor's 


430  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

box  of  Channelkirk  Church  is  entrusted  to  his  care,  while 
the  teacher  keeps  the  box  itself.  There  are  few  references 
to  the  place  itself,  and  its  individuality  is  obscured  all  down 
the  centuries,  under  the  greater  name  of  Carfrae.  In  1800  it 
was  farmed  by  Edmund  Bertram.  His  memory  is  yet  green 
in  the  parish,  and  it  seems  he  was  much  esteemed.  His 
obliging  disposition,  and  unfailing  kindness  to  the  poor,  made 
him  a  prime  favourite,  and  it  is  remembered  that  when  his 
corn  needed  to  be  harvested,  the  villagers  used  to  flock  to  his 
place  to  render  him  the  necessary  assistance.  He  was  buried 
in  Channelkirk  on  the  31st  August  18 17.  He  died  on  the 
27th,  aged  seventy-two.  The  family  tombstone  says  of  him, 
"  late  tenant  of  Hazeldean."  His  father,  Peter  Bertram,  had 
farmed  Hazeldean  before  him.  His  wife,  Janet  Watson,  died 
when  she  was  but  thirty-six,  on  i6th  November  1758,  and  he 
himself  on  2nd  August  1782,  aged  seventy-six.  The  tomb- 
stone in  Channelkirk  churchyard  is  the  centre  one  of  three, 
the  eastmost,  which  stand  on  the  south  side  of  the  path  which 
leads  to  the  church  door  from  the  east  gate.  Edmund  was 
one  of  the  signatories  to  a  petition,  presented  by  Chaimelkirk 
parishioners  in  March  18 16,  to  have  the  church  removed  to 
Oxton. 

Our  last  sight  of  Hazeldean  is  in  1841,  when  Adam 
Armstrong,  labourer,  is  reported  on  the  "  Roll  of  the  Male 
Heads  of  Families"  belonging  to  Channelkirk  Church,  as 
dwelling  there.  One  Johnston  was  the  last  tenant.  We  pre- 
sume that  the  place  soon  afterwards  became  a  ruin,  and  dis- 
appeared. 

Friarsknowes  :  Freersnose  :  "  The  Noss." 

Under  the  shadow  of  Lammer  Law,  at  the  head  of 
Kelphope  Burn,  in   the  loneliest  spot  of  the  parish,  stands 


FRIARSKNOWES  431 

Friarsknowes.  The  name  proclaims  its  own  meaning  and 
has  the  sound  of  ancient  days  in  it.  But  "  The  Noss " 
seems  to  have  been  its  earliest  appellation.  In  the  will  of 
Alexander  Sutherland,  Dunbeath,  Caithness,  we  have 
among  those  in  his  debt — "  Item,  the  Lord  of  Hyrdmanston 
XX  lib.  the  quhilkis,  gif  he  payis  nocht  sal  ryn  apon  the 
landis  of  Noss."  This  was  in  1456.  {Bannatjne  Miscellany.) 
It  is  commonly  pronounced  locally  "  The  Nose  "  or  "  Freers- 
nose,"  and  we  have  here  unmistakably  the  Old  English 
"  Frere,"  Friar  ;  and,  the  "  nose  "  which  appears  in  so  many 
place-names  as  "  ness,"  meaning  promontory  or  headland. 
The  earliest  spelling  of  the  name  in  its  present  forms,  so 
far  as  we  know,  is  Frierneise  in  1627.  Friarness  is  about 
the  same  time,  and  although  "  knowes "  (knolls)  might 
seem  the  more  appropriate,  the  obvious  meaning  is  evidently 
"  nose,"  or  "  ness ;"  the  "  nese  "  of  Piers  Plowman.  Instances 
where  "  ness " ;  is  applied  to  inland  places  situated  on 
waters  similar  to  "  Friarness "  are  found  in  Crichness  on 
Bothwell  Water,  Haddington,  and  Coltness  on  South  Calder 
Water,  Lanark.  Of  course,  the  term  is  usually  found 
attached  to  points  of  land,  small  or  great,  running  into  the 
sea,  as  Fife  Ness  or  Caithness. 

Whatever  it  may  have  been  in  bygone  times,  Friars- 
knowes is  now  a  single  cottage,  usually  occupied  by  a 
shepherd,  and  is  necessary  as  a  centre  for  the  broad  tract 
of  sheep-walk  which  stretches  far  and  wide  along  the  sides 
of  Lammer  Law,  the  highest  of  the  Lammermuir  range 
of  hills.     At  present  it  is  untenanted. 

The  minister  of  Channelkirk  says  of  it  in  1627  :  "  Frier- 
neise, holding  of  Ecles,  in  stok  fowrscoir  lib.,  personag  6 
lib.,  viccarage  ten  merkis,"  or  in  stock  it  was  worth 
£^,  13s.  4d.,  in  parsonage  teind   los.,  and  in  vicarage  teind 


432  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

IIS.  ifd.  money  sterling.  "Of  Ecles"  means  in  all  likeli- 
hood, "of  the  Laird  of  Eccles."  As  late  as  1781  the  Earl 
of  Marchmont  gets  resignation  ad  remanentiam  on  pro- 
curatory  resignation  in  disposition  by  Sir  John  Patterson 
of  Eccles,  of  the  lands  of  Kelphope,  the  neighbouring 
lands  of  Friarsknowes,  and  in  the  same  barony  of  Carfrae.* 
The  Lairds  of  Eccles  seem  to  have  held  Friarsknowes  on 
the  same  footing  at  an  earlier  date.  It  has  long  been  the 
property  of  the  Most  Noble  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale.  It 
is  at  present  farmed  by  Mr  Dickinson,  Longcroft,  by  Lauder. 

Fairnielees 

We  do  not  doubt  that  the  name  of  this  place  is  primarily 
derived  from  the  fern  plant,  which  must  always  have  been 
abundant  in  its  neighbourhood,  and  is  yet  plentiful  enough 
to  the  present  day.  The  Anglo-Saxon  of  "  fern "  is  /earn, 
and  it  evinces  the  conservation  of  sounds  when  we  have 
this  place-name  pronounced  fairn  in  the  earliest  example 
which  we  have  been  able  to  find.  In  1627  the  minister  of 
the  parish  declares  "  Fairnielies "  to  be  worth  "  in  stok 
200  merkis,  personage  20  lib.,  viccarage  xl  merkis."  "  Lies," 
"  lees,"  or  "  lie,"  is,  of  course,  the  Old  English  lay,  sward-land, 
so  familiar  in  Burns's 

"  I'll  meet  thee  on  the  /ea-ng." 

and  in  Gray — 

"  The  lowing  herd  wind  slowly  o'er  the  /ea." 

Fairnielees   stands    1076   ft.    above  sea-level,  on  a   steep 
broad  upland  rising  away  from    Hillhouse  Burn,  and  com- 
mands  an    extensive   view   of    the   borderland.     The   lands 
*  G.  R.,  389,  189. 


HILLHOUSE  433 

are  almost  entirely  pasture-ground  for  sheep,  and  the 
dwelling  is  now,  as  it  seems  ever  to  have  been,  the 
shealing  of  the  shepherd  who  tends  them.  "  Phairnielees," 
in  1630,  is  noticed  as  worth  "ii'=  merkis."  In  1631  the 
teind  worth  was  put  at  one  half  bole  of  bear  and  four  teind 
lambs,  with  two  pounds  of  wool  to  each  lamb,  price  of  each 
lamb  with  the  wool  being  33s.  4d.  Scots,  or  2s.  9yVc1-  sterling. 
From  having  been,  from  the  beginning,  under  Carfrae 
barony,  its  individuality  is  never  very  conspicuous,  and  its 
name  does  not  occur  frequently  in  the  usual  channels  of 
information.  Its  history  is  practically  stated  in  that  of 
Carfrae.  In  1788,  and  in  18 16,  it  is  mentioned  among  the 
Marquis  of  Tweeddale's  properties  as  "Fairnielee."  As  yield- 
ing teind  money  to  the  Kers  of  Morriestoun  it  is  mentioned 
in  1676  as  "  Fairnielees,"  in  1687  as  "  Fairniliey,"  and  in 
1692  as  "  Fernielees."  It  is  now  included  in  the  farm  of 
Hillhouse. 

HiLLHOUSE 

"  Hillhouse  quhilk  perteines  to  the  Laird  of  Herdmies- 
stoune,"  "  ane  chaplanrie  of  Hermeisstoune  in  stok  400  merkis, 
personage  50  merkis,  viccarage  50  merkis."  This  is  the 
minister's  statement  regarding  it  in  1627.  He  describes 
it  as  one  of  the  kirk  lands  in  his  parish.  When  Sir  John 
Sinclair  of  Herdmanston  built  a  chapel  at  Carfrae,  these 
lands  of  Hillhouse  had,  to  all  appearance,  been  set  aside 
for  its  endowment.  But  at  what  time  it  came  into  exist- 
ence under  its  present  name  it  were  hard  to  affirm.  It 
has  always  been  under  Carfrae  barony,  and  was  included 
originally  in  Carfrae  lands,  and  has  constantly  had  the  same 
owners.  Its  teind  rent  was  before  both  Sub-Commissioners 
and  High  Commissioners  in  1630  and  i63i,and  was  valued 

2  E 


434  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

then.  Half  of  this  rent  was  drawn  by  the  Kers  of 
Morrieston,  and  at  various  periods,  such  as  in  1676,  1687, 
and  1692,  this  fact  is  retoured,  and  Hillhouse  is  named. 
It  is  called  "  a  very  considerable  farm"  in  1784.  In  i8cx) 
Archibald  Somerville  was  its  tenant,  who  also  farmed 
"  Elsinford "  on  the  other  side  of  Lammer  Law.  He  lived 
in  the  latter  place  for  most  part,  and  at  the  time  when 
the  country  was  roused  over  the  proposed  Napoleonic 
Invasion,  and  bands  of  yeomanry  were  called  out,  he 
courageously  took  the  field,  a  leading  spirit,  and  is  yet 
remembered  for  the  "  langitch "  he  applied  to  the  laggards 
and  less  patriotic !  He  died  in  December  of  1821.  Robert 
Kelly  was  his  steward  in  Hillhouse  for  a  long  time.  The 
next  tenant  was  Alexander  Taylor.  He  died  at  Pathhead 
Ford.  Mr  Dickinson,  Longcroft,  succeeded  in  the  tenancy, 
and  during  that  time,  as  mentioned  above,  it  has  been  a 
"  led "  farm.  The  farmhouse  stands  800  ft.  above  sea-level, 
but  the  Camp  Hill  close  to  the  northwards  of  it  shoots 
up  to  1000,  and  half-a-mile  still  further  north.  Ditcher  Law 
reaches  the  height  of  1202  ft.  It  is  pleasantly  situated 
between  Kelphope  and  Hillhouse  Burns,  which  meet  on 
the  lower  ground  a  little  to  the  south,  before  they  join  the 
Leader  at  Carfrae  Mill.  A  considerable  portion  of  the 
farm  is  ploughed.  There  are  twenty  souls  on  the  place. 
The  interesting  camp  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  is 
noticed  in  Chapter  XX HI  on  "Antiquities." 

Kelphope 

This  place  appears  to  derive  its  name  from  the  Gaelic 
cailpeach,  calpach,  colpacJi,  a  heifer,  steer,  colt ;  colpa,  a  cow 
or  horse.  In  Scotch  mythology  the  cailpeach  was  an 
imaginary   spirit     of    the   waters,   horselike    in    form,  which 


KELPHOPE  435 

was  believed  to  warn,  by  sounds  and  lights,  those  who  were 
to  be  drowned.  There  is  a  slight  tendency  also  to  alter 
any  name  to  "hope"  which  has  the  least  sound  similar  to 
it.  Langild^  Langat,  Langhope^  in  this  parish  is  one  instance. 
"  Hope,"  of  course,  js  common  through  all  the  Borders  in 
place-names.  It  was  part,  originally,  of  the  Carfrae  estate, 
and  was  probably  a  croft  or  farm  about  the  close  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  when  all  the  neighbouring  places  lying  on 
the  Mossburn  (now  Kelphope  Water)  came  into  existence. 
Patrick  Levingtoun  of  Saltcottis,  heir  of  Patrick  Levingtoun, 
his  father,  holds  Kelphope  lands  in  1613.*  In  1627  it  is 
noted  as  being  in  value  "  in  stok  300  merkis,  personage  20 
lib.,  viccarage  xl  lib."  Robert  Dodds  is  tenant  there  in 
1630,  and  makes  declaration  that  it  is  worth  only  250 
merks.  Alexander  Levingtoun  de  Saltcoats,  heir  of  Patrick 
Levingtoun  de  Saltcoats,  his  father,  is  retoured  in  the  lands 
of  Kelphope  in  the  lordship  of  Carfrae,  bailiary  of  Lauder- 
dale, on  the  14th  May  1640.^  George  Levingtoun,  his 
heir,  obtains  them  i6th  November  1657.J  In  1683  another 
Alexander  Livingtoune  de  Saltcoats  is  retoured  heir  of 
George  Levingtoune  de  Saltcoats,  his  father,  in  the  same 
lands.  They  are  in  Livingtoune's  pos.session  in  1691,  and 
seem  to  have  remained  with  that  family  until  purchased  by 
the  Rev.  Henry  Home,  minister  at  Channelkirk  about 
1725.  §  On  30th  April  1723  he  acquired  the  just  and  equal 
half  of  the  Kelphope  teinds  from  Andrew  Ker  of  Morieston, 
and  was  taken  bound  to  contribute  certain  "  money  pay- 
able furth  of  the  said  lands  to  the  Lords  of  Session,"  and 
a  "  proportional  payment  of  the  expense  for  repairing  and 

*  Retours.  f  Ibid. 

X  General  Register  of  Sasines,  fol.  316,  vol,  xiii. 
\  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  151. 


436  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

upholding  the  quire,  or  of  the  third  part  of  the  Kirk  of 
Channelkirk,  or  kirk  dykes,"  and  "  others  "  more  particularly 
mentioned  in  the  said  disposition.*  George  Hall  was  its 
tenant  then,  and  James  Miller  an  indweller.  When  Mr 
Home  died  in  175 1,  the  property  came  into  the  hands 
of  his  son-in-law,  William  Eckford,  and  he  is  assessed  for 
the  minister's  stipend  in  1752.  He  died  in  1764.  Hugh, 
Earl  of  Marchmont,  appears  to  have  acquired  Kelphope 
about  1780,  and  on  15th  September  1781  gets  Resignation 
ad  Rem.  on  Proc.  Resig.  in  Disp.  by  Sir  John  Patterson 
of  Eccles.  Kelphope  still  remains  with  the  House  of 
Marchmont.  Mr  Patterson  was  tenant  about  the  close 
of  this  century.  George  Brown,  Chesters,  followed.  After 
him  Mr  Lyal  came  in,  then  Mr  Taylor,  and  in  our  time 
Walter  Stobie,  whose  widow  now  farms  it. 

The  rent  of  the  farm  at  present  is  ^153  per  annum, 
and  that  of  the  farmhouse  £\2.  It  is  one  of  the  most 
remote  places  in  Channelkirk  parish,  lying  towards  Lammer 
Law,  on  the  Kelphope  Water,  and  is  rather  inaccessible 
during  winter,  owing  to  flooding  and  snowstorms.  In 
Blaeu's  Atlas  (1654)  "Kelfhoope"  is  placed  on  the  east 
side  of  Kelphope  Burn,  and  at  this  date  the  house  may 
have  been  so  situated.     It  is  now  on  the  west  side. 

Kelphope  lies  at  the  foot  of  Tollishill,  a  place  which, 
though  not  in  Channelkirk  parish,  should  not  be  left 
unnoticed.  The  same  tenant  has  sometimes  farmed  both 
places,  the  Kelphope  Water  being  the  dividing  line  between 
them.  Tollishill  at  the  end  of  last  century  came  into 
possession  of  George  BroVn,  Chesters,  who,  after  Mr 
Patterson's  death  (his  uncle),  obtained  the  leases  of  Tollis- 
hill and  Kelphope.      He  ploughed  up  and  sowed  with  crop 

*Sasines,  1725, 


KELPHOPE  437 

a  considerable  part  of  land  on  the  former  place,  and 
incurred  the  displeasure  of  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale  for 
so  doing.  He  was  taken  to  the  Court  of  Session,  and 
ultimately  to  the  House  of  Lords,  over  the  affair,  but 
gained  his  case  in  both  instances,  and  was  awarded 
expenses  also. 

Tullius'  Hill,  as  it  is  sometimes  called ;  "  Tullis,  Over 
and  Nether"  of  the  charters,  has  an  ancient  record  in  the 
camp  or  fort  of  the  "  British "  denomination  in  its  vicinity. 
But  it  is  best  known  in  the  story  which  comes  down  to 
us  from  the  days  of  John,  Duke  of  Lauderdale,  amplified 
and  added  to  in  Wilson's  Tales  of  the  Borders  and 
several  other  works,  and  which  from  its  combination  of 
history  and  romance,  wealth  and  poverty,  the  palace  and 
the  cottage,  national  events  and  farm  failures,  has  just 
that  touch  of  candle-light  homeliness  which  gives  to  every 
fireside  tale  of  "  lords  and  ladies  gay "  a  witching  fascina- 
tion and  a  halo  of  truth. 

In  the  stirring  days  of  John,  Duke  of  Lauderdale,  one 
of  his  tenants  was  Thomas  Hardie,  in  Tullos  Farm,  on 
Tullos  or  Tollis  Hill.  It  was  known  also  as  the  Midside 
Farm.  Mrs  Hardie's  maiden  name  was  Margaret  Lyleston, 
the  "  Midside  Maggie "  of  the  Tales  of  the  Borders.  A 
severe  snowy  season  destroyed  the  flock,  and  Hardie 
found  himself  at  rent-time  unable  to  "  meet  the  factor." 
Mrs  Hardie  courageously  took  the  circumstances  in  hand, 
and  went  personally  to  Thirlestane  Castle  to  lay  the 
matter  before  the  "  Yirl."  The  great  John,  who  had  more 
heart  in  him  than  he  has  been  credited  with,  did  not  fail 
to  acknowledge  the  sincerity  of  the  distress,  and  jocularly 
bargained  with  "  Maggie "  to  wipe  out  the  rent  score  if 
she  would   produce   to   him  a  snowball   in  June.     Tollishill 


438  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

cleuchs,  jammed  full  of  winter's  snow,  proved  equal  to  this 
condition,  and  with  legal  precision  Maggie  carried  the 
snowball  duly  tot  he  castle  and  obtained  relief  By-and-by, 
fortune  kicked  the  ball  the  other  way,  and  while  the 
Hardies  afterwards  prospered,  Lauderdale,  following  the 
Royalist  cause,  found  himself  a  prisoner  in  1651,  and 
lodged  in  the  Tower  of  London.  But  the  honest  hearts 
in  Tollishill  did  not  consider  themselves  free  from  their 
obligations,  though  the  "  Yirl's "  back  was  at  the  wa',  and 
steadily  every  year  laid  past  the  rent  due  to  him.  The 
heroic  wife,  out  of  gratitude  and  sympathy  over  her  fallen 
lord,  then  baked  the  rent  total  of  gold  pieces  in  a  bannock, 
carried  them  to  London,  and  conveyed  them  to  the  hands 
of  the  imprisoned  Earl.  Many  days  passed  away,  and 
Lord  Lauderdale  was  released,  and  in  course  of  time 
returned  to  his  castle  on  Leader  Water.  He,  it  is  said, 
soon  sought  out  the  leal  tenants  of  the  Midside  Farm,  and 
presented  the  noble  Maggie  with  a  silver  girdle,  and  at 
the  same  time  granted  to  her  and  her  children  to  hold 
the  farm  rent  free  for  their  lives,  remarking  that  "  every 
bannock  had  its  maik  but  the  bannock  of  Tollishill." 

The  girdle  and  chain,  after  passing  through  many 
hands,  found  a  permanent  resting  place  in  the  National 
Museum  of  Antiquities,  Edinburgh.  (See  Proceedings  of 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries^  1897-98,  p.   195.) 

Mr  Patterson  cultivated  a  considerable  deal  of  Tollis- 
hill land  at  one  time,  and  kept  two  or  three  pairs  of 
horses.  A  Mr  Usher  also  was  tenant  in  it.  His  son  John, 
who  also  had  it,  was  a  favourite  with  Sir  Walter  Scott,  as 
he  was  somewhat  of  a  poet,  and  the  Great  Wizard  made 
him  a  present  of  a  pony.  Usher  was  also  tenant  in 
Quarryford  Mill  in  Haddingtonshire. 


KELPHOPE  439 

There  are  four  rough  track  roads  across  the  Lammer- 
moors  to  Carfraemill  in  this  parish: — i.  By  Long  Yester, 
skirting  the  east  side  of  Lammer  Law,  and  passable  for 
gigs  and  carts  ;  2.  by  Cairnie  Haugh ;  3.  by  Longnewton 
and  Kidlaw  ;  and  4.  by  Stobshiels  and  Wanside.  The 
first  two  pass  TolHshill  steading. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  BARONIES — Continued 

Hartside.—  Glengelt 

Hartside,  the  Name — Early  Proprietors — Extent  of  Land — House  of 
Seton — Nether  Hartside — Clints — Over  Hartside — Trinity  College 
and  the  Superiority  of  Hartside  and  Clints — The  Riddells  of  Haining 
— Barony  of  Hartside^ — Hepburn  of  Humbie — Hope  of  Hopetoun — 
Henryson — Dalziel — Borthwick  of  Crookston — Lord  Tweeddale — 
The  Original  Hartside — Barony  of  Glengelt — The  Name — The 
Veteriponts  and  Mundevilles — The  Lord  Borthwick — Raid  of 
Glengelt — Lawless  Lauderdale — Hepburn  of  Humbie — The  Ed- 
monstons  —  Sleigh  —  Cockburn  —  Robertson  —  Mathie  —  Hunter  — 
Borthwick  of  Crookston — Tenants — The  Den. 

The  name  of  Hartside,  like  that  of  the  parish,  has  descended 
to  the  present  generation  somewhat  transformed  from  its 
origmal  shape.  The  earliest  spelling  is  "  Hertesheued." 
It  must  not  be  confounded  with  the  "  Hertesheued "  which, 
in  old  writings,  is  often  mentioned  with  Spott,  Haddington. 
It  means  Hart's  Head,  i.e.,  the  head  of  the  hart  (Lat.  cervus). 
The  Old  English  of  "  heart "  is  "  harte  "  or  "  herte,"  and  from 
the  latter  we  might  suppose  "  Hertes-heued  "  to  have  been 
derived.  But  in  the  twelfth  century  it  seems  the  genitive 
of  Heartshead  was  "  herten-heued,"  not  "  hertesheued,"  being 
feminine.  The  name  was  originally,  therefore,  "  Hartshead," 
and  "  Hart-side "  is  a  corruption.  The  latter,  indeed,  does 
not  come  into  use  until   two  or  three  hundred  years  after 


HARTSIDE  441 

the  time  when  "  Hertesheued "  is  found.  The  name  is 
first  noticed  about  1189A.D.  We  obtain  it  from  the  charter 
which  follows  : — "  Charter  whereby  William  de  Morvill, 
constable  of  the  King  of  Scotland,  grants  and  confirms  to 
William  de  Hertesheued  the  whole  land  which  Heden  and 
Hemming  held  in  Hertesheued,  viz.,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  road  from  Wedale  to  Derestre  (te),  to  be  holden  by  him 
and  his  heirs  of  the  hospital  of  the  Holy  Trinity  at  Soltre, 
and  the  brethren  thereof,  in  fee  and  heritage,  as  the  charter 
of  the  Procurator  of  Soletre  and  of  the  brethren  of  the  same 
place  bears  witness,  saving  always  the  service  due  to  the 
granter.  Witnesses — Christiana,  spouse  of  the  granter, 
Ketell  de  Letham,  William  Mansell,  Henry  de  Sainclair, 
Alan  de  Thirlestane,  Peter  de  la  Hage,  Albinus,  the  chap- 
lain, Richard  de  Nith,  Duncan,  son  of  Earl  Duncan,  Ingeram 
Haring,  Richard  Mansell,  Alan  de  Clephan."*  We  give 
the  writing  in  full,  because  it  is  necessary  for  a  clear  under- 
standing of  its  several  facts.  William  de  Morville  was  the 
last  of  the  De  Morville  house  who  was  Lord  of  Lauderdale. 
As  possessor  of  the  lands  of  Hertesheued,  as  of  nearly  all 
Lauderdale  for  that  matter,  he  was  "  Superior,"  and  the 
Hospital  of  Soutra  the  "  Mid-superior,"  and  William  of 
Hertesheued  was '  to  hold  his  lands  of  both,  paying  rent  or 
other  dues  to  the  Hospital,  while  the  "  service  due  to  the 
granter"  probably  meant  military  service.  It  is  clear  that 
De  Morville  had  granted  the  lands  to  the  Hospital,  so  that 
they  could  derive  benefit  from  them,  and  the  Hospital  had 
granted  a  charter  of  the  lands  to  William  of  Hartside,  to 
be  held  of  them  for  certain  dues,  and  their  charter  is  here 
confirmed  by  De  Morville  in  the  above  writ.  The  De 
Morville  interest  ceased  with  national  changes,  but  nothing 
♦Original  Charters,  No.  12,  vol.  i.      Register  House,  Edinburgh. 


442  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

leads  us  to  suppose  that  the  Hospital  ever  afterwards  re- 
linquished their  rights  in  Hartside. 

But  William  of  Hartside  was  preceded  in  the  proprietary 
by  Heden  and  Hemming,  and  the  names  at  once  point  to 
a  Norse  origin  ;  and  when  we  remember  that  the  village 
name  is  also  derived  from  a  Norse  source,  it  becomes  evident 
that  before  this  time  of  transference  of  the  Hartside  lands, 
Upper  Lauderdale  had  mostly  been  in  the  hands  of  men 
of  Scandinavian  descent.  It  is,  of  course,  quite  conceivable 
that  these  descendants  of  Norsemen  might  have  come  into 
Lauderdale  under  the  patronage  of  the  Saxon  De  Morvilles, 
but  it  is  more  feasible  to  suppose  that  as  Berwickshire 
was  often  raided  by  these  sea-rovers,  a-  few  of  them  had 
settled  down  in  the  quiet  uplands  of  the  dale  of  Leader 
during  the  immediately  preceding  centuries,  and  by-and-by 
had  yielded  in  their  turn  to  the  superior  forces  which  were 
swayed  by  the  Saxons. 

The  extent  of  property  which  is  here  set  forth  is  rather 
a  matter  of  difficulty  to  us.  "  The  whole  land  ...  on  the 
east  side  of  the  road  from  Wedale  to  Derestre "  is  vague 
enough.  "  Wedale "  is  traditionally  derived,  according  to 
competent  writers  like  Dr  Skene  and  Prof  Veitch,  from 
the  great  battle,  so  disastrous  to  the  Saxons,  which  was 
fought  between  them  and  King  Arthur's  army,  between 
Heriotwater  and  Lugate.  The  vale  of  "  wae  "  it  ever  after- 
wards meant  to  the  inhabitants  of  that  district,  and  seems 
to  have  been  applied  two  or  three  centuries  later  to  the 
whole  Gala  valley.  "  Derestre,"  which  we  conclude  can 
only  mean  "  Derestrete "  with  part  of  the  name  deleted 
in  the  charter,  was  the  well-known  road  or  street  which 
ran  to  Deira,  one  of  the  divisions  of  Northumbria.  This 
''  street "    has    been    considered     as    the    "  Roman     Road," 


HARTSIDE  443 

"  Malcolm's  Rode,"  and  the  "  Royal  Road,"  which  under 
the  second  and  third  of  these  appellations  is  frequently 
mentioned  in  connection  with  Lauderdale  and  Soutra  law 
documents  of  the  twelfth  century.  It  is  reputed  to  have 
passed  through  Old  Lauder,  thence  to  Blackchester,  thence 
to  Channelkirk  Church,  and  thence  across  Soutra  Hill. 
The  road  from  Wedale  to  this  Roman  Road,  therefore,  was 
one  connecting  the  valley  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Heriot 
and  Lugate  with  the  road  crossing  Soutra  Hill.  This  road 
seems  to  have  taken  the  course  of  the  Armet  Water  in  a 
general  outline  running  from  the  Gala  Water  to  the  place 
which  is  now  called  the  Soutra  Isle,  the  ancient  "  Hospital 
of  the  Holy  Trinity  of  Soltre."  The  "  whole  land "  to  the 
east  of  this  road  would  consequently  mean  what  is  generally 
considered  to  this  day  as  "  the  lands  of  Hartside  and  Glints." 
It  is  to  be  observed  that  the  eastern  limits  of  these  chartered 
lands  are  not  given,  probably  because  the  other  properties 
which  were  to  be  encountered  on  that  side  were  too  well 
defined  by  that  time  to  require  further  description.  Glengelt 
lands  and  Ghannelkirk  Ghurch  lands  were  the  only  possible 
boundaries  on  the  east  of  them,  and  these  seem  to  have 
been  distinctly  understood  even  before  1189  A.D.  These 
lands,  then,  if  we  are  correct  in  so  understanding  the  charter, 
were  to  be  "  holden  by  William  and  his  heirs,  of  the  Hospital " 
of  Soltre,  "  as  in  their  charter  to  the  said  William."  Charters 
appear  to  have  been  necessary  from  both  superiorities, 
the  secular  and  the  sacred,  in  order  to  security  of  tenure. 
William  of  Hartside  thus  held  of  De  Morville,  but  he  also 
held  by  charter  of  the  brethren  of  Soltre  Hospital.  In  like 
manner,  in  olden  times,  feu-duties  were  wont  to  be  collected 
separately  by  both  secular  and  sacred  superiorities.  This 
William  of  Hartside  is  styled  "  William  Albus  de  Herset," 


444  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

"  de  Hertished,"  "  de  Hertishevit,"  etc.,  in  the  charters  of 
the  "  Domus  de  Soltre,"  from  about  1189  till  about  125a* 
Richard  de  Hertesheued,  presumably  son  of  William, 
witnesses  to  charters  ranging  between  the  dates  1238- 1300, 
and  about  the  year  1327,  in  the  reign  of  King  Robert  the 
Bruce,  we  have  the  following : — 

"  Charter  whereby  Alan  de  Hertesheued,  son  and  heir 
of  the  late  Richard  de  Hertesheued,  grants  to  Sir  Alexander 
de  Seton,  the  father,  lord  of  that  ilk,  that  toft  and  croft  and 
these  two  oxgates  of  land  in  the  territory  of  Ulkistoun, 
which  the  granter  holds  of  Thomas,  the  son  of  William  de 
Colilau  :  To  be  holden,  de  vie,  for  payment  of  one  penny 
yearly,  if  asked  only,  and  delivering  or  paying  to  the  said 
Thomas  for  all  services,  one  pair  of  gloves  or  one  penny 
at  the  feast  of  St  James  the  Apostle."  i*  A  renunciation  of 
ane  arent  of  4  merkis  be  Allan  de  Hartishweid,  son  of 
Richard  de  Hartishweid,  in  favour  of  Mark  of  Clephane,  is 
also  noted  by  John,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  as  being  among 
his  papers.^:  Allan  de  Hertesheued  witnesses  in  many 
charters  in  the  Liber  de  Calchou  (Kelso). 

Until  the  days  of  King  Robert  the  Bruce,  therefore,  the 
proprietors  of  Hartside  were  : — 

1.  Heden  and  Hemming  (of  Norse  descent). 

2.  William  DE  Hertesheued  (aV.  1189— aV.  1250). 

3.  Richard  de  Hertesheued  {cir.  1238— «>.  1270). 

4.  Alan  de  Hertesheued,  son  of  Richard  {cir.  1327). 

The  dates  are  not  those  of  birth  or  death,  but  of  charters  in  which 
their  names  are  found. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  Hartside  lands,  in  the  days  of 
Heden  and  Hemming,  appear  to  have  marched  with  the 
Armet  Water  on  the  west.     It  is  a  probable  confirmation 

*  Domus  de  SoUre.  f  Original  Charters,  No.  gS,  vol.  i. 

X  Scotch  Acts,  vii.,  p.  153. 


HARTSIDE  445 

of  this  that  the  moss  on  the  tableland  of  Soutra  from  which 
the  Armet  rises  is  called  Hens  Moss.  For  just  as  words 
like  Wednesday  become,  in  pronunciation,  Wensday,  so 
Hedens  Moss,  in  colloquialism,  becomes  Hens  Moss.  Hedeti, 
again,  is  likely  to  have  been  short  for  Healf-dene ;  in 
Northumbrian,  Halfdene,  meaning  Half-Dane,  i.e.,  of  Saxon 
and  Danish  parentage. 

Our  next  view  of  the  lands  of  Hartside  shows  them  to 
be  possessed  by  the  House  of  Seton.  The  reign  of  King 
Robert  the  Bruce  brought  great  changes  to  the  landowners 
of  Scotland.  All,  or  nearly  all,  who  had  supported  the 
claims  of  the  kings  of  England  to  the  Scottish  throne  were 
forfeited,  and  at  this  time  the  family  who  so  long  had  held 
Hartside  from  the  De  Morvilles  seem  to  have  shared  a  like 
fate.  The  Setons  espoused  Bruce's  cause,  and  were  richly 
rewarded. 

The  Setons,  as  the  last  quoted  charter  sets  forth,  were 
first  proprietors  in  Channelkirk  parish  by  possession  of 
houses  and  land  in  Oxton  territory  (probably  Heriotshall 
now),  granted  by  Alan  of  Hartside,  who  held  again  from 
Thomas  of  Collielaw.  It  is  now  impossible,  perhaps,  to  say 
whether  Hartside  had  been  purchased  by  Sir  Alexander 
Seton,  or  that  the  lands  came  to  him  through  forfeiture  of 
Alan  de  Hartside.  Sir  Alexander  was  the  son  of  King 
Robert  the  Bruce's  sister,  and  he  had,  therefore,  the  King 
himself  for  his  uncle,  and  it  is  conceivable  that  where  so 
many  favours  were  being  dispensed  to  King  Robert's 
followers,  the  near  connections  of  the  throne  would  not  be 
overlooked.  We  know  that  in  1342  all  Lauderdale  was 
in  the  hands  of  William,  Lord  Douglas,*  who  obtained  it 
through  Lord  Hugh,  who,  again,  was  brother  and  heir  to 
*  Robertson's  Index  of  Charters, 


446 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


the  "  Good  Lord  James."  Through  the  Douglasses  Hart- 
side  may  have  been  negotiated  to  the  Setons,  who  received 
the  lands  of  Tranent,  Fawside,  and  Niddrie,  which  Alan 
de  la  Suche  had  forfeited.  Seton,  Winton  (Latinised  form 
of  Winchester),  and  Winchburgh  had,  of  course,  been  in 
their  hands  for,  perhaps,  a  hundred  and  fifty  years   before. 

Sir  William  Seton,  who  was  killed  in  the  battle  of 
Verneuil,  in  Normandy,  1424,  was  directly  descended  from 
two,  perhaps  three,  generations  of  Sir  Alexander  Setons,  of 
whom  Alexander  Seton,  "  the  father  "  in  the  above  charter, 
was  the  first*  Sir  William  had  an  only  son,  George,  who  is 
the  first  Seton  said  to  hold  Hartside  and  Glints.  Sir 
William  was  created  a  peer,  and  was  the  first  Lord  Seton. 
His  son  George,  Lord  Seton,  is  confirmed  by  the  King  in 
the  lands  of  "  Hertished  and  Clentis "  on  8th  January 
i458-59.-|*  We  note  that  this  is  the  first  time  we  meet 
with  Glints. 

"  This  Lord  George,  first  of  that  name,  efter  the  deid  of 
his  first  wyf,  dochter  of  the  erle  of  Buchan,  mareit  the  secund 
wyf,  callit  Dame  Christiane  Murray,  dochter  to  the  lard  of 
Telibardin,  qha  had  na  successioun."  "  And  efter  that  he 
had  levit  lang  time  ane  honorable  lyf  he  deyit,  of  gud  age, 
in  the  place  of  the  Blak  freiris  of  Edinburgh,  quhair  he 
lyis,  in  the  queir  of  the  samin.  To  quhom  he  foundit 
XX  markis  of  annuell,  to  be  tane  of  Hartsyd  and  the 
Clyntis."  + 

His  death  took  place  on  the  15th  day  of  July  1478.     It 
is  said  of  him  that  "  he  was  all  given  to  nobleness."     This 

*  Douglas's  Peerage.  See  also  Dalrymple's  Annals^  vol.  iii.  Creech, 
Edinburgh,  1797. 

f  Great  Seal. 

XHistorie  of  the  Hous  of  Seytoun,  by  Sir  Richard  Maitland,  p.  33, 
See  also  Knox's  Works,  vol.  i.,  p.  238,  note. 


HARTSIDE  447 

gift  of  20  merks  of  annual  rent  from  "  the  lands  of  Hertis- 
hede  and  of  Clyntis,  with  the  pertinents  lying  within  our 
sheriffdom  of  Berwick,"  is  again  confirmed  by  King  James 
III.  on  14th  May  1473.* 

The  year  of  Lord  George's  death  brings  also  into  view 
the  Nether  Hartside,  which  has  continued  down  to  our 
time  ;  implying,  of  course,  the  existence  of  Over  or  Upper 
Hartside  in  1478.  By  his  second  wife,  Christian  Murray,  he 
had  a  daughter  named  Christian,  who  married  Hugh  Douglas 
of  Corehead,  and  her  father  settled  on  her  Clints  and  a  part 
of  Nether  Hartside.  Under  date  26th  January  1478-9,  the 
King  confirms  the  charter  of  George,  Lord  Setoun,  "  and  of 
the  feu-lands  of  Hertside,"  in  which  he  conceded  to  Hugh 
Douglas  of  Borg,  and  Christian,  his  spouse — the  lands  of 
Clentis,  extending  to  12  merks,  and  three-fourths  of  the 
lands  of  Nether  Hartside,  extending  to  18  merks  of  land,  in 
Lauderdale,  to  be  held  in  conjoint  fee  by  them  and  their 
heirs.f 

It  is  also  at  this  time  that  the  name  "  HarVs-Ziead"  begins 
to  lose  that  form,  and  merge  into  "  Hartside,"  and  it  must 
have  been  some  time  before  this  marriage  that  the  original 
"  Hartshead "  lands  were  broken  up  into  Over  and  Nether 
Hartside,  and  Clints,  an  arrangement  which  holds  down  to 
the  present  time.  Possibly,  at  this  time.  Over  Hartside  was 
in  other  hands  than  those  of  the  Setons  ;  or  the  other  quarter 
of  Nether  Hartside  may  have  been  retained  for  certain 
reasons,  and  thus  have  begun  the  division  of  Hartside  into 
Nether  and  Over  as  separate  places.  They  were  for  long 
afterwards  separate  properties  in  separate  hands.  In  1607, 
for  example,  this  quarter  of  Nether  Hartside  is  owned  by 
James  Lawson  of  Humbie.     He  pays  15  marks  feu-duty.J 

*  City  Records  of  Edinburgh.  f  Great  Seal.  X  Retours. 


448  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  superiority  of  Hartside  seems  to  have  passed 
through  an  important  change  about  this  period.  It  has 
been  shown  that  William  de  Hertisheued,  about  1 1 89,  held 
of  Soutra  Hospital  by  charter  from  the  Master  and  Brethren 
there.  In  1462  Trinity  College  was  founded  near  Edin- 
burgh, and  was  endowed  with  all  the  belongings  of  Soutra 
Hospital.  The  superiority  of  Hartside  and  Glints  seems  to 
have  been  transferred  with  the  rest,  for  these  properties  are 
in  the  superiority  of  the  city  of  Edinburgh  to  this  day,  and 
we  are  at  a  loss  to  know  how  otherwise  they  could  have 
come  to  be  so,  unless  through  this  channel.  For  the  Trinity 
College  ultimately  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Edinburgh 
magistrates,  with  all  it  held.  Our  view  of  the  matter  is,  that 
the  superiority  was  in  the  possession  of  Soutra  Brethren,  and 
from  them,  with  all  Soutra  Hospital  endowments,  it  passed 
to  Trinity  College,  and  so  with  Trinity  College  it  finally 
rested  with  Edinburgh  city. 

Hartside  and  Clints  were  further  fated  to  fall  from  the 
possession  of  the  Setons.  The  accession  of  Queen  Mary 
to  the  Scottish  throne,  together  with  the  troubles  of  the 
Reformation,  brought  many  calamities  to  the  high  homes  of 
the  realm.  It  is  needless  to  say  here  that  the  Setons 
espoused  her  cause,  and  suffered  in  her  downfall.  History, 
novel  and  ballad,  have  said  or  sung  the  deeds  and  disasters 
of  those  of  the  name  of  Seton.  They  were  always  true  to 
persons,  but  not  so  true  to  principles.  After  the  battle  of 
Langside,  it  was  the  slaughter  of  so  many  of  these  and  their 
co-patriots,  according  to  Scott,  which  induced  in  her  final 
despair  and  abandonment  of  all  her  hopes  of  queenly 
honours.  "  I  would  not  again  undergo  what  I  felt,  when  I 
saw  from  yonder  mount  the  swords  of  the  fell  horsemen  of 
Morton  raging  among  the  faithful  Seytons  and  Hamiltons, 


HARTSIDE  449 

for  their  loyalty  to  their  Queen — not  to  be  Empress  of  all 
that  Britain's  seas  enclose."  *  It  was  at  Seton  Palace  that 
she  and  Bothwell  "  passed  their  tyme  meryly,"  two  days  after 
the  murder  of  her  husband,  Darnley  ;  it  was  Lord  Seton  who, 
along  with  her  lover,  George  Douglas,  and  a  few  others 
received  her  as  she  touched  shore  on  escaping  from  Loch- 
leven  Castle,  and  it  was  to  Castle  Niddry,  near  Linlithgow, 
belonging  to  Seton,  where  she  first  fled  for  safety ;  and  it 
was  from  that  haven  of  refuge  she  sent  a  messenger  to  the 
English  Court  for  help.  The  Setons  of  Queen  Mary's  time 
do  not,  however,  stand  so  high  morally  as  they  did  as 
patriots.  Knox  says,  under  the  year  I559,i"  "The  Lord 
Seytoun,  a  man  without  God,  without  honestie,  and  often^ 
times  without  reasone,"  "  maist  unworthy  of  ony  regiment 
{^government.  Lord  Seton  was  Provost  of  Edinburgh)  in  ane 
Weill  rewlit  commun-wealth." 

George,  the  eldest  son  of  George,  fifth  Lord  Seton, 
obtained  charters  of  the  lands  of  West  Niddrie,  Hartisheid, 
and  Clintis  on  6th  August  1554.}  Hartside  and  Clints  were 
incorporated  in  the  barony  of  West  Niddrie,  as  the  following 
shows  : — 

"12  May  1607. — The  King  concedes  to  George,  Master 
of  Winton — the  Earl  of  Wintoun,  with  state  and  title  of  the 
same,  the  lands,  lordship,  and  barony  of  Seton  and  Wintoun 
.  .  .  the  lands  of  Hartisheid  and  Clintis  .  .  .  and  which,  for 
service,  etc.,  the  King  de  novo  gives  to  the  said  George,  ex- 
tending to  ;^83,  old  extend,  viz.,  Seton  and  Winton  to  ;^I5, 
Tranent  to  ;^20  .  .  .  West  Niddrie  to  ;^38,  Hartisheid  and 
Clintis  to  ;^5  ...  and  incorporates  the  lands  of  Seton, 
Winton,  etc.,  in  the  constabulary  of  Haddington,  into  the 

•  The  Abbot,  chap,  xxxviii.      t  Knox's  Works,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  326,  431. 
%  Douglas's  Peerage. 

2  F 


450  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

free  barony  and  lordship  of  Seton  .  .  .  and  the  other  lands 
he  incorporates  into  the  free  barony  of  West  Niddrie."  * 

The  Setons  have  again  charters  of  these  lands  in  1619,  "f* 
but  after  this  time  we  find  Nether  Hartside  and  Glints  in 
the  possession  of  the  Riddells  of  Haining,  Selkirk.  Over 
Hartside  is  retoured  in  1607  as  belonging  to  James  Lawson 
of  Humbie,  A  sasine,  of  date  20th  March  1641,  bears  that 
Glints  of  Niddrie,  and  Hartside,  were  given  and  conceded  to 
John  Riddell,  The  Haining,  and  formerly  to  Andrew  Riddell, 
his  father.  In  an  old  document  belonging  to  the  Kers  of 
Morriston,  which  was  produced  in  the  teind  cases  before 
the  Court  of  Session  at  the  beginning  of  this  century,  and 
copied  partly  into  the  Decreet  of  Locality  still  possessed  by 
the  ministers  of  Ghannelkirk,  it  is  declared  that  the  "  Laird 
of  Haining"  pays  teind  for  "his  lands  of  Nether  Hartside 
and  Glints"  in  1632.]:  The  Riddells  of  that  Ilk,  according 
to  the  following,  seem  to  have  possessed  Hartside  before  they 
were  Riddells  of  Haining.  "  By  decreet  of  the  High  Gom- 
mission  of  this  date,  22nd  July  163 1,  recorded  in  the  new 
Record  (vol.  v.,  p.  — )  of  this  date,  19th  December  1787,  pro- 
ceeding a  summons  at  the  instance  of  John,  Earl  of  Mar,  and 
Alexander  Granston  of  Morieston,  equal  heritable  proprietors 
of  the  teinds  of  the  parish  of  Ghinglekirk,  against  Andrew 
Riddell  of  that  Ilk,  heritable  proprietor  of  the  lands  of  Nether 
Hartsyde  and  Clintis,  it  is  found  and  declared  'that  the 
saidis  landis  of  Nether  Hartsyde,'  '  may  be  worthe  in  yeirlie 
constant  rent  of  teynd  in  tyme  coming,  six  bollis,  twa  firlottis 
victual,  twa  pairt  aittis,  and  third  pairt  beir.  Lambs  with 
the  wool  thereof,  estimate  to  33s.  4d.  by  and  attour  the 
vicarage  and  small  teind  drawn  by  the  minister  allenarlie.' " 

*  Great  Seal.  f  Ibid. 

X  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  141. 


HARTSIDE  451 

The  mention  of  teinds  leads  us  to  note  here  that  the  tenant 
of  Hartside,  Robert  Pringle,  in  1630  was  one  of  the  Sub- 
Commissioners  who  sat  in  Lauder  Tolbooth  on  the  "  tent  of 
December"  of  that  year  to  adjust  the  teinds  of  the  district. 

The  proprietors  of  The  Haining,  Selkirk,  had  long  a 
considerable  stake  in  Channelkirk  parish  through  the  farms 
above  noted,  and  those  of  Collielaw  and  Airhouse.  The 
Riddells  of  Riddell  first  acquired  The  Haining  in  1625  from 
Laurence  Scott,  a  scion  of  the  family  of  Scotts.  Andrew 
Riddell,  first  of  Haining,  for  whom  it  was  bought  by  his 
father,  sat  as  M.P.  for  Selkirkshire  1639-40.*  This  is  the 
"Laird  of  Haining"  of  the  Decreet  of  Locality.  But  his 
father,  "Andrew  Riddell  of  that  Ilk,"  was  the  purchaser 
also  of  Hartside  and  Glints,  and  these  lands  must  have  been 
in  his  right  in  1631,  at  least,  if  not  sometime  before  that 
date.  Walter  Riddell,  kinsman  evidently  of  the  Riddells  of 
Riddell  and  Haining,  possesses  at  the  same  time  (1631)  the 
whole  lands  of  Oxton.  f  It  may  have  been  through  him  that 
the  "two  husband  lands  of  Ugston"  (Heriotshall)  afterwards 
came  to  be  in  the  "barony  of  Hartside." :{: 

In  1627  the  minister  notes  that  "  Neather  Hairtsyde  is 
in  stok  600  merkes,  personage  80  merkis,  viccarage  100 
merkis.  Glints  is  in  stok  500  merkis,  personage  ^20, 
viccarage  ane  100  merkis.  Over  Hairtsyde  is  in  stok  300 
merkis,  personage  20  merkis,  viccarage  40  merkis.  § 

The  successor  of  the  above  Andrew  Riddell  of  Haining, 
in  Hartside  and  Glints,  was  John  Riddell,  The  Haining,  who 
is  retoured  heir  in  1643,  ^ri^  died  in  1696.  ||  He  was  well 
hated   as   a   persecutor   of  the   Covenanters.      He    married 

*  Acts  v.,  p.  96.  t  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  183. 

X  Sasines,  1728.  §  Reports  on  Parishes. 

II  Retours.     See  also  History  of  Selkirkshire^  by  Craig-Brown. 


452  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Sophia,  third  daughter  of  James,  the  fifth  Pringle  of 
Torwoodlee,  who  again  was  brother  to  Walter  Pringle  of 
Greenknowe,  who  lodged  one  night  in  Channelkirk  when  on 
his  way  to  Edinburgh  prison  for  his  zeal  in  the  Covenanting 
cause.  He  owned  considerable  property  on  Gala  Water, 
Bowland,  Bowshank,  and  half  of  Windydoors,  then  belonging 
to  the  Riddells.  He  was  M.P.  for  Selkirkshire  in  1655  and 
in  1674.  He  does  not  seem  to  have  increased  the  prosperity 
of  his  estates.  Perhaps  the  advent  of  the  Prince  of  Orange 
in  1688  may  have  shed  an  adverse  influence  over  his 
fortunes.  When  he  was  succeeded  by  Andrew  Riddell,  his 
third  son,  the  last  of  the  Riddells  of  Haining,  he  found  it 
necessary  to  part  with  Haining  in  1701  to  Andrew  Pringle 
of  Clifton,  who  bought  it  for  his  second  son  John,  the  Lord 
Haining  of  the  Court  of  Session  of  1720.  The  last  of  these 
Pringles  parted  with  Haining  by  bequest  to  Professor 
Andrew  Seth  Pringle  Pattison  in  1898.  He  now  holds  it. 
In  the  year  1650  our  own  Kirk  Records  shed  light  on 
the  Riddells  of  Hartside.  Among  the  first  entries  of  that 
year  is  the  following : — "  Patrick  Haitly  paid  for  drinking 
and  reproaching  of  Mr  Riddell  of  Hartsyd  on  the  20th  of 
June,  56s."*  Five  years  later  there  is  "Robert  Halliwell 
being  to  be  proclaimed  for  marrying  Jennie  Halliwell,  con- 
signed two  dollars  that  the  marriage  should  be  consumat, 
and  that  there  should  be  no  promiscuous  dancing  and 
licentious  piping,  whilk  two  dollars  were  delivered  to  Alex. 
Riddell  in  Hartsyde,  July  8,  1655,  to  be  kept  till  they  should 
be  redelivered."  He  is  noted  as  keeping  the  "  collections " 
all  July  and  part  of  August  of  the  same  year,  and  in  1663 
we  find  him  named  as  an  elder  in  Channelkirk.  Hartside, 
indeed,  is  one  of  the  places  in  the  parish  which  upheld,  before 

*  Kirk  Records. 


HARTSIDE  453 

this  century,  a  praiseworthy  reputation  for  resident  tenants, 
who  were  also  esteemed  in  the  church,  and  took  a  leading 
place  in  it.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  this  Alexander  Riddell 
was  some  near  relative  of  the  Riddells  of  Haining.  He 
and  his  wife  are  seised  in  the  lands  of  Nether  Hartside,  5th 
December  1657.  * 

But  Clints  and  Nether  Hartside  are  found  in  the  posses- 
sion of  John  Borthwick,  advocate,  on  12th  April  1659; 
afterwards  John  Riddell  of  Hayning  is  seised  in  the  lands 
of  Clints  upon  a  precept  of  C.C.  "be  John  Borthwick  of 
Hartsyde,"  12th  August  1661,  and  the  latter  is  again  seised 
in  "  Hartsyde  and  Clints"  in  March  1665. 

Over  Hartside  is  always  quite  distinct  as  a  property  from 
these. 

On  the  2 1  St  November  1636  the  King  confirms  the 
charter  of  John  Lawson  of  Humbie,  in  which  he  sells  to 
Master  Adam  Hepburne,  servitor  to  Thomas,  Earl  of 
Haddington  (Lord  Binning  and  Byres),  the  lands  of  Over 
Hartsyde  in  the  bailiary  of  Lauderdale.  From  Sir  Adam 
Hepburn  of  Humbie,  Over  Hartside  was  acquired  in  1642 
(13th  September  date  of  disposition)  f  by  Mr  Henryson, 
Kirktonhill,  whose  family  held  it  until  1754,  when  it  was 
sold  to  Simon  Watterston. 

The  Seatons  still  held  superiority  over  Hartside  and 
Clints,  and  on  12th  May  1653  George,  Earl  of  Wintoun, 
Lord  Seaton,  heir  male  of  George,  Earl  of  Wintoun,  Lord 
Seaton,  is  retoured  "  in  the  lands  of  Hartisheid  and  Clints," 
in  the  barony  of  West  Niddrie.  J  They  were  again  ratified 
to  him  in  1670.  This  Lord  Seton  had  the  energetic  spirit 
of  some  of  his  forefathers  ;  he  led  a  stirring  life.     Succeeding 

*  General  Register  of  Sasines,  fol.  43,  vol.  xiv.  f  Locality^  P-  215. 

X  Retours. 


454  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

his  grandfather  in  1650,  he  was  served  heir  to  his  Berwick- 
shire property  in  1653  ^s  above,  and  also  that  of  Edinburgh, 
Haddington,  and  LinHthgow,  and  of  that  in  Banff  and  Elgin 
in  1655.  In  1654  he  was  fined  i^200  by  Cromwell;  went  to 
France,  and  was  at  the  siege  of  Bizaulson  ;  was  made  Privy 
Councillor  by  King  Charles  II.  ;  commanded  the  East 
Lothianers  against  the  Covenanters  in  1666  at  Pentland  ; 
and  again  at  Bothwell  Brig  in  1679,  and  afterwards  enter- 
tained the  Duke  of  Monmouth  and  his  officers  at  Seton.  He 
died  in  1704.  He  had  parted  with  Hartside  and  Clints  in 
1676,  selling  them  to  John  Hope  of  Hopetoun,  who  received 
a  charter  of  them  in  his  favour,  2nd  February  1677,  the  whole 
property  having  been  resigned  by  Lord  Seaton,  24th 
November  1676.*  Again,  on  "7th  February  1683,  Charles 
Hope  of  Hopetoune  is  retoured  heir  male  and  of  line  of 
John  Hope  of  Hopetoune,  his  father,  in  the  lands  of  Hart- 
syde  and  Clints,  united  with  other  lands  in  Linlithgow  in  the 
barony  aforesaid." 

All  hope  of  the  Seatons  ever  recovering  their  wonted 
grandeur  perished  in  17 15  when  George,  the  fifth  Earl  of 
Wintoun,  having  joined  the  rebels  under  the  Pretender,  was 
taken  prisoner,  tried  for  high  treason  15th  March  17 16,  found 
guilty,  and  sentenced  to  death.  He  escaped,  and  his  estates 
were  forfeited  to  the  Crown.  With  him  sank  this  noble  house, 
after  proudly  maintaining  its  greatness  for  upwards  of  600 
years.  The  accounts  of  the  sale  of  the  forfeited  estates  of 
Seytoun  and  Wintoun  in  17 16  contain  no  mention  of  Hart- 
side  and  Clints. 

Prior  to  the  sale  of  Over  Hartside  to  Simon  Watterston 
in  1754,  t  Mr  Henryson,  Kirktonhill,  had  granted  the  feu 
right  of  one  half  of  the  lands  of  Over  Hartside  in  favour 
*  Great  Seal,  No.  39,  fol.  44a.     Retours.        t  Locality,  p.  216. 


HARTSIDE  455 

of  Alexander  Dalziel,  so  that  when  we  reach  1742  we 
find  "  Netherhartsyde  and  Overhartsyde,  belonging  to 
Alexander  Dalziell,"  pays  "  four  pound  twelve  shilling " 
to  the  schoolmaster's  salary.*  In  the  same  year,  "  dints, 
belonging  to  Mr  John  Borthwick  of  Crookston,  advocate," 
pays  "two  pound  fifteen  shilling  and  six  penies."  Clints 
has  ever  since  remained  in  the  same  honourable  connec- 
tion. These  two  heritors  of  Channelkirk  were  also  elders 
in  the  church  there  on  i6th  July  1758.  Mr  Dalziell 
resided  at  Hartside,  and  about  1762  was  at  variance 
with  his  neighbouring  farmer  of  Threeburnford  about  the 
latter's  rights  to  a  share  of  Wideopen  Common.*f-  The  last 
notice  of  him  as  associated  with  the  Kirk-Session  is  dated 
the  25th  April  1773.  He  is  still  in  Hartside  at  that 
time.  He  seems  to  have  been  a  warm  supporter  of  the 
church,  and  seldom  missed  a  meeting  of  the  Kirk 
Court.  He  appears  to  have  left  Hartside  about  this  year  ; 
and  that  property,  after  his  term,  came  into  the  posses- 
sion of  the  Most  Noble  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale,  the 
descendants  of  whom  have  ever  since  retained  it.  Mr 
Dalziell  dispones  it  to  the  Marquis  on  the  29th  April  1773  • 
viz.,  "  Netherhartside  and  the  pendicles  thereof,  called  Long- 
cleugh  ;  parts  of  Overhartside  and  Teinds."|  In  the  year 
1787,  Lord  Tweeddale  owned  in  this  parish,  Carfrae,  Midlie, 
Fernielees,  Hillhouse,  Herniecleuch,  Hizeldean,  Friarsknowes, 
Carfrae  Mill,  and  Mill  Lands,  Nether  Hartside,  and  Nether 
Howden.  Half  the  lands  of  Over  Hartside  was  acquired 
later.  Such  an  amount  of  property  in  the  parish  necessarily 
constituted    Lord  Tweeddale   its  chief  heritor,   and   such  a 

*  Kirk  Records. 

f  "  Wideopen  "  case  in  Mackenzie's  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597. 
X  Sasines. 


456  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

circumstance  cannot  by  any  means  be  considered  unfortunate 
for  all  concerned.  The  greater  part  of  the  Tweeddale  lands 
in  the  parish  came  into  the  possession  of  the  family  through 
the  marriage  of  John,  second  Marquis,  with  Lady  Anne 
Maitland,  only  child  and  heiress  of  John,  first  and  only  Duke 
of  Lauderdale,  who  died  in  1682.  This  John,  second  Marquis 
of  Tweeddale,  was  Lord  High  Chancellor  of  Scotland,  and 
took  a  leading  part  in  carrying  through  the  Treaty  of  Union 
between  England  and  Scotland  in  1 707.  By  so  doing,  he  must 
have  rendered  himself  very  unpopular  among  his  Lauderdale 
tenants  and  workmen,  who  then  petitioned  against  the  Union, 
but  time  has  shown  his  superior  wisdom.*  He  died  in  17 13. 
His  grandson.  Lord  Charles  Hay,  rendered  himself  famous 
in  1745,  in  the  battle  of  Fontenoy,  as  the  curious  may  learn 
from  Carlyle's  account  of  that  struggle  in  his  Frederick  the 
Great.\  The  Hays,  indeed,  have  ever  been  characterised  by 
high  principles  and  magnanimous  deeds.  In  Church  and  in 
State,  in  war  and  in  peace,  at  home  or  abroad,  in  palace  or 
in  cottage,  their  lives  and  characters  have  amply  maintained 
the  noble  status  of  their  title.  The  father  of  the  present 
Marquis  was  a  grand  example  of  a  patriotic  aristocrat,  using 
the  word  in  its  legitimate  sense.  Born  in  1787,  he  joined  the 
army  as  an  ensign  in  the  52nd  Foot,  and  was  trained  under 
the  famous  Sir  John  Moore.  He  acted  for  several  years  as 
Quarter-master  General  of  the  British  Army,  in  the  Peninsular 
War,  under  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  and  was  one  of  his  most 
trusted  officers.  He  was  present  at  many  of  the  battles  of 
that  fierce  struggle,  and  was  wounded  at  Busaco.  This 
necessitated  his  being  invalided  home,  but  he  was  too  good 
a  servant  to  the  nation  to  be  permitted  to  luxuriate  among 
the  pleasant  surroundings  of  Yester,  and  before  he  was  quite 
*  Acts  xi.,  359a.  t  Vols.  vi.  and  vii.    By  Index. 


HARTSIDE  457 

convalescent  he  was  called  upon  to  go  out  to  Canada  in  1814 
to  command  the  British  Army  there,  during  the  war  with  the 
United  States  anent  the  right  of  Britain  to  search  American 
ships  for  seamen  to  serve  in  the  Royal  Navy.  He  was  again 
wounded  there.  Returning  home  shortly  after  Waterloo,  he 
married,  and  retired  from  active  service  till  he  was  appointed 
Governor  and  Commander-in-chief  in  Madras  in  1842.  He 
was  there  till  1848,  when  he  returned  to  East  Lothian  and 
gave  his  countrymen  the  benefit  of  his  energy  in  improving 
the  methods  of  agriculture.  This  bore  fruit  in  his  being  the 
first  to  make  drain  tiles  by  machinery,  and  in  inventing  a 
steam-plough  for  deep  cultivation.  He  died  in  1876,  having  a 
few  years  before  been  appointed  a  Field- Marshal,  an  honour 
which  he  was  well  worthy  to  wear. 

The  present  Marquis  is  so  well  known,  so  widely  in- 
fluential, and  so  conspicuous  a  figure  in  almost  every  sphere 
of  public  life,  that  any  notice  of  him  here  might  seem 
superfluous.  While  he  is  a  power  in  the  great  commercial 
undertakings  of  the  country,  and  is  the  avowed  friend  of  the 
National  Church,  and  is  held  in  the  highest  esteem  by  all  its 
members,  it  is  his  connection  and  influence  within  the  parish 
of  Channelkirk  that  naturally  engages  our  regard.  He  is 
esteemed  an  excellent  landlord,  being  considerate  to  his 
tenants,  and,  through  his  able  Commissioner,  assiduous  in 
his  care  of  all  the  interests  of  the  parish.  Being  an  expert 
in  business,  the  genuine  respect  given  to  him  by  our 
parishioners  does  not  spring  from  popular  doles  and  gifts 
of  a  sentimental  and  patronising  description,  but  rests  on 
permanent  advantages  which  are  calculated  to  increase  in 
worth  and  comfort  as  time  goes  on.  This  has  been  especially 
emphasised  during  the  past  two  years,  in  his  support  of  the 
extension  of  the  telegraph  to  Oxton,  and  his  indispensable 


458  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  necessary  influence  in  floating  the  railway  scheme  at 
present  being  carried  forward.  We  could  mention  many 
other  favours,  entirely  due  to  his  kindness  and  consideration, 
which  never  fail  to  bring  brightness  and  help  in  their  train, 
but  which  he  would  certainly  demur  to  have  proclaimed  from 
the  house-tops.  Like  all  the  rest  of  the  parish  proprietors, 
however,  he  is  contented  to  be  respected  and  honoured  only 
through  his  good  deeds,  and  from  afar. 

Simon  Watterston  bought  Over  Hartside  from  the  Kirk- 
tonhill  Henrysons  in  1754,  and  it  passed  to  Mrs  Henry 
Torrance  (Elizabeth  Watterston,  wife  of  Henry  Torrance, 
Seggie,  Fife)  in  1781,  and  she  and  her  husband  were  seised 
in  fee  and  liferent  of  it  respectively  on  15th  August  1792.* 
Their  sasine  of  liferent  only  is  recorded  as  of  date  5th 
August  1785.  Mr  Torrance  was  then  tenant  in  Seggie,  Fife. 
The  property  was  long  under  security  bonds  to  various 
individuals,  and  ultimately  in  1 807  was'  purchased  by  Robert 
Sheppard,  merchant,  Edinburgh,  owner  of  Kirktonhill. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  from  the  days  of  Mr 
Dalziel,  Over  Hartside  was  divided.  The  feu  right  and 
infeftment  of  one  half  of  it  which  he  possessed,  became 
the  possession  of  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale  when  the  latter 
acquired  Nether  Hartside.-f-  So  that  the  above  account, 
from  sometime  before  the  days  of  Simon  Watterston,  deals 
only  with  half  the  lands  of  Over  Hartside.  This  halving 
caused  great  confusion  in  allocating  the  teinds.  One  half 
went  with  the  Nether  Hartside  estate  and  the  other  with 
Kirktonhill,  So  that  Robert  Sheppard  acquired  half  Over 
Hartside  only.  In  1821  William  Patrick,  Esq.,  W.S., 
bought  all  Sheppard's  property,  and  half  Over  Hartside 
went  to  him.  From  him  it  was  acquired  by  John  Borth- 
*  Sasines.  f  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  215. 


HARTSIDE  459 

wick,  Esq.  of  Crookston,  in  1840,  whose  son,  the  present 
John  Borthwick,  Esq.  of  Crookston,  received  sasine  of 
it  in  1 85 1.  This  portion  of  Over  Hartside,  which  was 
separated  from  the  original  Over  Hartside,  has  now  been 
completely  merged  into  the  lands  known  of  Kirktonhill,  and 
what  is  locally  known  and  named  Over  Hartside  is  half 
the  lands  of  the  original  Over  Hartside  now  held  by  Lord 
Tweeddale,  and  with  Nether  Hartside  worked  as  one 
farm. 

We  find  Hartside  first  referred  to  as  a  "barony"  in 
1728,  when  Heriotshall  is  .said  to  be  included  in  it  with  its 
pertinents.*  It  is  needless  to  say  that  by  that  time,  the 
designation  of  "  barony "  had  more  signification  as  one  of 
courtesy  than  of  real  baronial  status.  In  1724  James 
Fairgrieve  was  tenant  of  Hartside, 

Nether  Hartside  and  Over  Hartside  together  have  an 
area  of  2251  Imperial  acres.  The  whole  is  leased  by  John 
Bertram,  Esq.,  Addinston,  at  a  rent  of  £$02  per  annum, 
or  about  5s.  per  acre.  The  farmhouse  is  included  in  this 
rental.  Mr  Bertram,  who  is  well  known  in  agricultural 
circles  as  a  successful  farmer  and  as  a  specialist  in  half- 
bred  sheep,  holds  the  lease  which  his  fathers  before  him 
have  held  since   1780. 

The  land  is  mostly  pasturage,  but  ploughing  is  done 
to  an  extent  which  necessitates  three  or  four  pair  of  horses 
being  kept.  Above  70  score  of  sheep  are  under  the  care 
of  two  shepherds,  who  alone  occupy  Over  Hartside.  The 
land  is  deeply  cut  into  by  several  ravines,  and  varies  in 
elevation  from  800  ft.  to  1533  ft,  above  sea-level.  Nether 
Hartside  farmhouse  is  untenanted,  and  the  farm  is  what 
is  termed  "  a  led-farm."      Over  Hartside  bears  many  signs 

*  Sasines, 


460  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  having  been  a  place  of  considerable  size  at  one  time. 
Traces  of  building  extend  all  round  the  present  cottages, 
and  huge  decaying  tree-trunks  give  an  air  of  past  dignity 
long  ago  faded.  As  it  was  a  separate  property,  it  seems 
to  have  had  also  its  own  proper  approaches.  There  is  the 
remnant  of  an  old  road  which,  following  the  course  of 
the  present  one  which  passes  above  "  The  Beeches "  from 
Threeburnford  Road,  appears  to  have  crossed  the  head- 
land there,  pursuing  its  way  up  Rauchy  Burn,  and  reaching 
Over  Hartside  by  a  bridge,  and  a  gradually  rising  ascent 
across  the  ravine  which  divides  it  from  Nether  Hartside. 

It  is  impossible  now  to  say  which  of  the  two  places 
may  have  been  the  original  Hartside.  "  Nether  Hartside  " 
comes  into  notice  first  in  order  to  distinguish  it  from 
another  Hartside,  without  a  doubt  ;  just  as  Nether 
Howden  is  called  so  to  mark  it  out  from  the  original 
Howden,  which  is  now  Over  Howden.  But  while  there 
is  no  dubiety  about  the  "  Howdens,"  the  case  of  the 
"  Hartsides "  is  more  perplexing.  In  modern  times,  im- 
portance certainly  weighs  to  the  side  of  Nether  Hartside, 
but  in  the  centuries  before  the  Reformation  it  might 
have  been  quite  the  contrary.  Both  dwellings  have  fallen 
from  their  ancient  glory,  and  though  very  pleasant  and 
desirable  places  of  abode,  are  now  slowly  hastening  to 
decay.  A  fortalice  is  said  to  have  stood  near  the  farm- 
house of  Nether  Hartside,  and  the  adjoining  field  in  which 
it  stood  is  still  called  the  "Castle"  field,  but  it  has  been 
erased,  we  presume,  by  the  usual  process  of  dyke-building, 
like  those  of  Collielaw  and  Howden. 

Glints  as  a  farm  is  entirely  devoted  to  pasturing  sheep, 
there  being  40  score  or  thereby  tended  by  the  shepherd 
Mr  Riddell,  whose  family,  six  souls  in  all,  alone  reside  at 


GLENGELT  461 

the  place.  The  tenants  are  Walter  Elliot,  estate  manager, 
Ardtornish,  Morven,  and  John  Elliot,  Meigle,  Galashiels. 
It  is  rented  at  ^215  per  annum.  It  stands  about  iioo  ft. 
above  sea-level,  on  a  hilly  ridge  which  rises  steep  and 
bold  from  the  bed  of  the  Armet  Water,  which  runs  here  at 
about  800  ft.  elevation,  and  also  outlines  in  its  course  both 
the  County  and  Clints  boundary.  It  is  perhaps  more  than 
two  miles  from  Channelkirk  Church,  to  which,  across  the 
moors,  a  hill  path  brings  the  shepherd  and  his  family. 
A  similar  distance  lies  between  it  and  Fountainhall  Station. 

Glengelt 

Originally  this  place  must  have  been  of  considerable 
importance,  and  it  is  probable  that  from  its  situation  it  may 
have  dominated  as  a  stronghold  the  main  pass  through 
Lauderdale  to  the  Lothians,  which  was  a  part  of  the 
principal  route  in  ancient  times  from  England  into  Scotland. 
It  is  now  a  shepherd's  dwelling,  and,  as  a  building,  is  a 
mere  heap  of  stones  which  gives  little  honour  to  its 
proprietor,  and  less  comfort  to  its  tenant,  rats  and  smoke 
holding  revelry  in  it  by  night  and  day.  But  in  the  centuries 
that  lie  immediately  beyond  the  Reformation,  it  was  proudly 
associated  with  the  lordly  status  of  the  Borthwicks,  and,  still 
further  back,  with  the  feudally  famous  Mundevilles  and 
Veteripontes. 

It  seems  clear  that  the  name  has  a  reference  to  the 
times  of  the  early  British  settlers.  Like  Soltre,  Carfrae, 
and  Leader,  Glengelt,  says  Chalmers,  is  Cambro-British* 
There  is  no  shadow  of  doubt  about  Glen  being  Gaelic. 
Gelt  appears  to  be  more  dubious.  It  has  been  suggested 
that  it  may  have  been  originally  Glen-ne-geilt,  the  glen  of 

*  Caledonia. 


462  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

terror,  but  as  "  geilt"  is  Irish,  the  case  is  doubtful.  GeeW^  — 
terror  fear ;  from  the  Gaelic,  seems  possible,  as  a  few  Gaelic 
names  were  to  be  found  in  the  neighbourhood  at  an  early 
date.  The  Glen,  when  clothed  with  woods  and  haunted  by 
barbarous  people,  would  be  well  named  as  a  place  of 
terror. 

Apart  from  any  light  which  the  name  may  throw  on  the 
existence  of  Glengelt  as  a  "  local  habitation,"  our  information 
from  historical  sources  defines  it  in  clear  relief  as  far  back 
as  the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century.  The  earliest  names 
associated  with  its  proprietary  are  the  Veteriponts  and 
Mundevilles. 

We  learn  from  Dryburgh  Charters  that  Sir  Henry  de 
Mundevilla  indemnified  the  Church  of  Channelkirk  from 
the  Chapel  which  he  had  built  at  Glengelt,  promising  that 
no  injury  should  be  done  to  the  Mother  Church  on  account 
of  it.f  There  was  need  of  this  protection.  His  territorial 
weight  and  consequence  were  of  sufficient  status  to  justify 
him  in  assuming  such  dignity  as  a  private  chapel  implied  in 
a  country  gentleman's  residence,  but  such  procedure  drew 
away  from  the  priest  of  Channelkirk  all  the  revenue  which 
fell  to  him  from  feast  days,  masses,  and  other  specialities  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  religion,  and  Sir  Henry  was  to  be 
careful  that  while  he  enjoyed  private  worship  in  his  chapel 
at  home  on  ordinary  days,  the  revenues  of  these  other 
lucrative  offices  and  seasons  were  to  come  as  usual  to 
Channelkirk.  This  was  indemnifying  the  Mother  Church 
from  injury  by  private  chapels.  This  Chapel  of  Glengelt 
was  still  in  existence,  as  we  shall  see,  in   1490. 

The  charter  above  referred  to  is  not  dated,  but  it  gives  us 
light  on  Glengelt  at  an  earlier  period  than  that  in  which  it 
*  MacBean's  Gaelic  Dictionary.  t  No.  186. 


GLENGELT  463 

was  written.  Sir  Henry  tells  us  that  a  predecessor  in 
Glengelt  territory  was  his  ancestor,  Lord  Ivon  de  Veteri- 
pont,  who  gave  to  Channelkirk  Church  seven  acres  of  land 
to  the  east  of  the  church,  and  the  charter  is  specially  framed 
in  order  that  he  may  supplement  his  ancestor's  gift  by  other 
three  acres. 

The  name  Veteripont,  Veteri-ponte,  was  originally,  it 
appears,  Vieux-pont,  and  became  latterly  Vipont.  A  family 
of  this  name  anciently  possessed  the  lands  of  Aberdour,  in 
Fife.  Similar  to  the  case  of  Lauderdale,  which  passed  by 
marriage  to  the  Earls  of  Galway,  the  Aberdour  estate  passed 
with  the  heiress,  in  1 1 26,  to  Allan  Mortimer,  and  became  the 
property  of  the  Douglases  two  centuries  later,  and  so  were 
inherited  by  their  descendants,  the  Earls  of  Morton.  Sir 
Allan  Vipont,  who  is  said  to  be  of  Fifeshire  extraction, 
held  Lochleven  against  the  English  about  1332.  He  had 
previously  defended  Stirling  Castle,  and  was  made  prisoner 
by  Edward  I.  in  1 304,  when  it  surrendered  after  an  arduous 
siege. 

From  other  sources  we  ascertain  that  Ivon  de  Veteripont 
signed  a  charter  by  William  de  Morville  of  Lauderdale, 
along  with  Alan  de  Sinclair,  Carfrae,  and  Richard  de 
Morville.  As  Richard  died  in  1189,  the  signing  of  the 
charter  must  have  been  accomplished  before  that  date,  and 
it  follows  that  Ivon  de  Veteripont,  the  benevolent  friend  of 
Channelkirk  Church,  and  proprietor  of  Glengelt,  must  have 
been  alive  about  that  period.  At  what  time  Sir  Henry 
himself  lived  in  Glengelt  is  more  doubtful,  but  we  find  a 
Henry  de  Mundevilla,  who  seems,  like  the  rest  of  the  Scotch 
gentry,  to  have  submitted  to  Edward  I.,  "  invited  "  by  that 
monarch  to  accompany  the  Scottish  nobles  on  an  expedition 
which  he  was  about  to  undertake  into  Flanders.     This  was 


464  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  1297,  and  it  is  more  than  probable  that  this  approximates 
the  date  of  the  charter  under  view,  and  also  the  period  in 
which  Sir  Henry  flourished.  Like  most  of  Lauderdale  lairds, 
he  had,  doubtless,  rendered  homage  to  Edward  I.  the 
previous  year. 

How  long  Glengelt  remained  the  property  of  the  Munde- 
villes  we  can  only  now  conjecture.  The  times  were  volcanic, 
and  when  13 14  arrived,  with  Bannockburn  as  an  altering 
factor  in  Scottish  history,  lands  and  men  were,  for  all 
practical  purposes,  thrown  into  the  King's  treasury,  and  he 
dispensed  and  disposed  them  according  to  his  authority  and 
wisdom.  The  representatives  of  the  De  Morvilles  were 
ousted  from  Lauderdale,  and  with  them,  doubtless,  also  all 
their  favourites,  and  the  new  days  brought  new  men,  with 
other  names  and  fresher  traditions.  We  find  another  Henry 
de  Mundeville  signing  a  charter  cir.  1400,  but  whether  he  was 
"  of  Glengelt "  it  is  hard  to  say. 

In  the  year  1458,  at  Edinburgh,  on  the  14th  day  of 
January,  the  King  gave  to  Lord  William  Borthwick  and  his 
heirs  the  lands  of  Glengelt,  in  Berwickshire,  which  Mary 
Pringle  in  her  pure  widowhood  had  resigned.  Lord  William 
married  her  the  same  year,  and  the  "  resignation  "  on  her 
part  of  Glengelt  lands  was  made,  doubtless,  in  order  that  new 
infeftment  might  be  given  to  her  husband.  Inferentially, 
therefore,  we  ascertain  that  the  Pringles  or  Hoppringles, 
an  influential  family  in  the  Borders,  had  owned  Glengelt 
between  the  times  of  the  Mundevilles  and  the  Borthwicks, 
although  it  seems  now  impossible  to  say  definitely  whether 
they  had  been  the  only  proprietors  during  that  period. 

The  Borthwicks  had  risen  into  honourable  prominence 
during  the  previous  generation.  Sir  William  Borthwick, 
father  of  this  Lord  William  of  Glengelt,  was  sent  Ambassador 


GLENGELT  465 

to  Rome  in  1425,  and  was  created  first  Lord  Borthwick  in 
1433,  and  died  before  1458.*  It  appears  that  Lord  William, 
owner  of  Glengelt  in  1458,  had  a  brother  called  John  de 
Borthwick,  who  acquired  the  estate  of  Crookston  in  1446, 
the  residence  of  the  present  John  Borthwick.  The  latter 
gentleman,  also  owner  of  Glengelt,  is  in  direct  male  line, 
through  ten  generations,  descended  from  him.  If  the 
Calendar  of  Laing  Charters  is  right,  the  Borthwick  title  of 
nobility,  so  long  in  dispute,  seems  to  incline  to  the  owner 
of  Crookston  House. 

At  Edinburgh,  once  more,  in  1467,  the  charter  of  Lord 
William  Borthwick  is  confirmed,  in  which  he  gives  to  his 
son,  James  de  Borthwick,  the  lands  of  Glengelt  "  for  the 
filial  affection  which  the  said  father  has  towards  him,  and 
for  his  services."  Perhaps  this  James  may  have  been  the 
first  Borthwick  resident  at  Glengelt,  as  there  is  every 
probability  that  just  as  Cineray,  Fenton,  Gordonshall, 
Crookston,  Bowerhouse,  Collielaw,  and  Soutra  became 
residences  of  the  Borthwicks,  .so  Glengelt  would  be  also 
required  to  accommodate  the  increasing  scions  of  the 
noble  house.  Lord  William  died  in  1483.  His  son  James 
had  his  troubles,  as  the  following  lurid  excerpt  testifies. 
Moreover,  as  it  sheds  considerable  light  on  the  people  and 
their  life  in  Upper  Lauderdale  in  the  fifteenth  century,  we 
give  the  story  in  full. 

We  are  in  the  Court  of  the  Lords  Auditors  in  Edinburgh, 
and  the  time  is  the  23rd  October  I490.*f"  "  The  Lords  of 
Council  decreed  that  William  of  Douglas  of  Cavers  and 
William  Douglas,  his  eme  (eame  =  uncle)  .sail  content  and 
pay  to  James  Borthwik  of  Glengelt  and  his  tenents  of 
the    samyn,   that    is   to   say : — John    Smyth,   John    Somer- 

*  Douglas's  Peerage.  t  Acta  Doviinoriim  Auditoruin. 

2  G 


466  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

ville,  Gilbert  Somerville,  Thomas  Somerville,  Cok  Hunt 
(Jok  Hunt?),  John  Grief,  and  Sire  Thomas  Hunter, 
Chapellane,  threescore  of  ky  and  oxin,  price  of  the 
pece  (each)  owrehed,  2  merkis ;  twelfscore  of  yowis,  price 
of  the  pece,  5  s. ;  40  wedders,  price  of  the  pece,  5  s. ;  80 
hoggs,  price  of  the  pece,  3s.  ;  and  ane  horse  and  certane 
other  gudes  utisele  and  domicill  to  be  avale  of  10  merks. 
Quhilk  gudes  wer  spuilzeit  and  takin  out  of  the  saidis 
landis  of  Glengelt  be  William  Dowglas,  in  the  Denbra, 
George  Dowglas,  Archibald  Dowglas,  William  Dowglas  in 
Cauilling,  and  Johne  Stewart. 

"  For  the  quhilk  they  tuk  them  to  our  souveraine  Lord's 
remissioune  in  the  Justice  Are  of  Jedworth,  and  the  said 
William  Dowglas  of  Cavers  and  William  Dowglas  becom 
pledges  for  the  satissfaccioune  of  pairties  as  wes  pressit 
be  the  copy  of  the  adjurnale  extract  be  Maister  Richard 
Lawsoun,  Justice  Clerk,  schewin  and  producit  before  the 
Lords. 

"  And  ordains  our  souveraine  Lords'  lettres  be  direct  to 
distreze  thaim,  thair  landis  and  gudes  thairfore,  and  the 
saidis  William  and  William  wer  sumond  to  this  Accioun 
oft  tymes  callit,  and  nother  comperit." 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  seditious  nobles,  of 
whom  the  House  of  Douglas  was  chief,  brought  an  army 
to  Lauder  in  1482,  and  there  hanged  the  King's  favourites 
over  its  bridge,  and  took  the  King  himself  prisoner  to 
Edinburgh.  This  unhappy  state  of  lawlessness  never 
abated  till  the  King  fell  at  Sauchieburn '  in  1488,  two  years 
before  this  raid  of  Glengelt.  The  loyalty  of  James 
Borthwik  seems  to  have  drawn  the  wrath  of  the  Douglases 
down  upon  him,  and  the  cleaning  out  of  the  live-stock 
on  his  lands  was  the  result. 


GLENGELT  467 

We  note  that  Glengelt  Chapel  still  flourished  at  this 
date,  and  Sir  Thomas  Hunter  (a  Pope's  knight*)  was 
priest.  The  three  Somervilles,  tenants  in  Glengelt,  were 
probably  the  progenitors  of  the  Somervilles  who  occupied 
so  many  of  Upper  Lauderdale  farms  in  the  i6th  and  17th 
centuries.  There  were  Somervilles  tenants  in  Glengelt 
in   1699,  as  we  shall  learn  by-and-by. 

As  late  as  1503  the  third  Lord  William  of  Borthwick 
obtained  sasine  of  Glengelt,  and  also  many  other  lands 
which  do  not  fall  to  be  noted  here.  In  the  same  year 
Collylaw  and  Bourhouses  were  held  by  Allan  Borthwick. 

In  the  memorable  year  of  the  battle  of  Flodden  Field, 
viz.,  1 5 13,  we  find  another  William  Borthwick  receiving 
sasine  of  Nenthorne,  Glengelt,  Colylaw,  and  Bourhousis. 
There  is  a  sad  yet  heroic  reason  for  this,  as  the  previous 
proprietor,  the  third  Lord  of  Borthwick,  had  just  laid  down 
his  life  on  that  fatal  field. 

James  Borthwick  of  Glengelt,  probably  he  whose  lands 
the  Douglases  raided  in  1490,  married  in  1528  Elizabeth, 
first  daughter  of  William  Murray  of  Clermont  and  Newton, 
fourth  son  of  Andrew  Murray  of  Blackbarony.  f  In  1543 
James  seems  to  have  gone  the  way  of  all  the  earth,  for 
in  that  year  John,  Lord  Borthwick  of  Borthwick  Castle, 
has  charter  of  Glengelt  lands,  and  in  1544-5  sasine  is 
granted,  and  Queen  Mary  confirms  his  charter.  (Exchequer 
Rolls,  G.  S.) 

It  is  ten  years  afterwards,  viz.,  in  1554,  that  we  hear  of 
Michael  Borthwick  of  Glengelt.  He  is  one  of  the  "noble 
and  eminent  men "  {nobiles  et  egregios  vivos)  in  the 
presence  of  whom  the  Retour  of  Sir  William  Saintcler  of 
Roslyn  is  sworn  to  on  the  4th  of  July  1554,  before 
*  See  Knox's  Works,  vol.  i.,  App.,  p.  555.  t  Douglas's  Barony. 


468  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Patrick  Irland,  Sheriff  Depute  of  Edinburgh.*  In  1556 
Glengelt  is  included  in  Borthwick  barony  along  with  Colle- 
law  and  Bourhous.  f  Michael  Borthwick  of  Glengelt  figures 
again  in  the  Privy  Council  Records  of  1570  along  with  his 
kindred  in  a  way  that  more  than  suggests  the  lawlessness 
of  the  times,  and  the  part  the  Borthwicks  played  in  them. 
William,  Lord  Borthwick,  Michael  Borthwick  of  Glengelt 
(Glenhilt),  and  John  Borthwick,  sign,  in  that  year,  the 
conditions  on  which  men  were  received  to  the  King's 
obedience,  who — I.  Underlay  the  law  for  murther  ;  II.  Were 
in  arms  against  his  Majesty;  and  III.  Who  must  keep 
the  peace  between  England  and  Scotland.  J  The  Borth- 
wicks evidently  needed  restraint  imposed  upon  them,  and 
do  not  appear  to  have  been  famous  during  this  period 
for  possessing  the  qualities  of  the  dove.  But  they  lived  in 
times  when  a  man's  own  arm  was  often  the  best  guarantee 
of  his  retaining  life  and  property.  In  this  same  year,  for 
example,  special  measures  had  to  be  taken  against  "  the 
daylie  and  continwale  stowthes,  reiffis,  heirschippis,  birn- 
ingis,  slawchteris,  and  depredationes  of  thieves  and  tra- 
towris"  throughout  Lauderdale,  Merse,  Lammermuir  and 
the  Lothians,§  and  where  blows  were  so  common,  and 
battle  the  order  of  the  day,  the  Borthwicks  were  not 
likely  to  be  found  fast  asleep  in  bed.  But  some  of  them 
could  fight  with  other  weapons  than  swords.  Sir  John 
Borthwick  of  Cinery,  younger  son  of  the  third  Lord 
William,  who  perished  at  Flodden,  was  put  into  Cardinal 
Beaton's  black  books  as  a  heretic,  and  had  the  honour 
to  be  cited  before  him  at  St  Andrews  to  answer  the 
charge.       But   he   knew  better   than   to   walk   into   such   a 

*  Father  Haye's  Genealogie  of  the  Sinclairs.        t  Exchequer  Rolls. 
X  Privy  Council.  §  Ibid. 


GLENGELT  469 

trap,  and  escaped  to  England,  but  was  condemned  and 
excommunicated  in  absence,  and  had  his  effigy  burnt  at 
St  Andrews  market  cross.  He  survived,  however,  to  end 
<'his  aige  with  fulnesse  of  daies  at  St  Andrewes,"  before 
1570,  leaving  his  son  William  as  his  heir.*  So  in  1571, 
on  the  23rd  October,  the  King  confirms  the  charter  of 
William,  Lord  Borthwick,  in  which  he  concedes  to  his 
eldest  son,  Wm.  Borthwick,  all  his  estate,  including  Glen- 
gelt,  f  "  Michael  Borthwick  of  Glengelt "  is  mentioned  in 
it  as  one  of  several  of  the  Borthwicks  in  the  reversion. 
James  Borthwick,  heir  of  William,  Master  of  Borthwick, 
his  full  brother,  is  returned  in  1573  in  the  lands  of 
Nenthorn,  Legerwood,  Glengelt,  Collielaw,  and  Burnhous 
(probably  Bourhouse),  with  right  of  patronage  of  churches 
and  chapels  on  these  lands  and  others. }  In  August  of 
1 571  we  are  told  that  among  "the  names  of  theis  that 
were  fifoirfalted"  was  James  Borthwick,  "sone  to  Michael 
Borthuike  (Glengelt)."  §  This  means  that  for  some 
crime  he  had  "  forfalted "  or  forfeited  all  his  rights  in 
law. 

Some  indication  is  given  in  1588  which  shows  the  extent 
of  Glengelt  lands.  They  are  mentioned  as  one  of  the 
boundaries — the  east — of  the  "  sucken "  of  Oxton  Mill 
(Mountmill).  The  Kirkhaugh,  which  lay  near  Mountmill, 
and  which  was  excambed  for  the  present  north  part  of  the 
glebe  in  1 871,  is  said  to  be  bounded  by  Glengelt  "on  the 
north  and  east,"  and  consequently  all  the  ground  at  present 
north  of  Mountmill  and  round  by  Annfield  Inn  appears 
to  have  been  included  in  Glengelt  at  that  period.il 

John  Borthwick  of  Glengelt  is  witness  on   1 3th  February 

*  Knox's  Works,  vol.  i,,  p.  533.  t  Great  Seal. 

J  Retours.        %  Richard  Banna/yne's  Memoirs,  ^p.  i%$.     ||  Great  Seal. 


470  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

1592-3  to  a  charter  by  James,  Lord  Borthwick,  in  which  he 
alienates  certain  lands  to  Lady  Grissill  Scott.* 

When  we  arrive  at  the  period  of  1631,  Glengelt  is  clean 
gone  from  the  Borthwicks  and  possessed  by  Sir  Adam 
Hepburn  of  Humbie,  who  also  held  about  this  time  several 
properties  in  Channelkirk  parish.f  The  Titulars  of  the 
teinds  obtained  decreet  of  valuation  against  him  in  that 
year,  "as  heritor  of  the  said  lands."  The  valuation  and 
those  concerned  in  it  may  be  interesting  to  some. 

Before  the  sub-Commissioners,  "the  said  Thos.  Markell 
in  Headshaw,  of  the  said  age,  sworne  and  admittit,  deponit 
that  the  lands  of  Glengelt  with  pertinents  within  the  said 
parochin  may  pay  and  will  be  worth  in  constant  rent 
communibiis  annis  v<=  merks"  (^25,  15s.  6d.  J  approx.) 
"  James  Richardson  in  Kirktonhill  of  the  age  of  Ix  yeires 
or  thereby,  married,  sworn,"  etc.,  witnesses  as  above.  With 
the  above  rent  Glengelt  was  in  163 1  teinded  at  the  rate  of 
£(i6,  13s.  4d.  Scots.  But  the  sub-Commissioners'  valuation 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  allowed  in  law.  At  the  begin- 
ning of  this  century  the  rental  was  £2%^  and  the  teind 
A7,  I2s.§ 

The  following  document  sheds  a  very  clear  light  on 
Glengelt,  and  doubtless  gives  us  the  connecting  proprietors 
between  the   Borthwicks  and  Sir  Adam   Hepburn. 

"  1638,  Jan.  16. — At  Dalkeith,  the  King  .  .  .  concedes 
to  Mr  Adam  Hepburne  of  Humbie  .  .  .  the  lands  of  Glen- 
gelt, with  manor  place,  mill,  fishings,  within  the  bailiary 
of  Lauderdale  .  .  .  which  formerly  pertained  to  Andrew 
Edmonstoun,  now  of  Ednem  ;  Sir  David  Chrichtoun  of 
Lugton,  Knight ;  Lady  Janet  Edmonstoun,  his  wife  ;  Robert 

*  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters.  t  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  154. 

+  Teind  Papers.  §  Decreet  of  Locality. 


GLENGELT  471 

Dicksoun  of  Buchtrig  (parish  of  Hownam,  Roxburghshire); 
Agnes  Edmonstoun,  his  wife  ;  James  Cockburn  of  Ryslaw  ; 
Mary  Edmonstoun,  his  wife ;  Alexander  Home,  paternal 
uncle  to  James,  Earl  of  Home  and  Lord  of  Dunglas ; 
Margaret  Edmonstoun,  his  wife ;  John,  Lord  Borthwick  ; 
Hugh  Wilson  in  Ginglekirk  (whose  son  James  is  referred  to 
in  the  account  of  Rev.  Walter  Keith,  Channelkirk  minister) ; 
John  Rae,  at  Glengelt  Mill ;  John  Steill,  in  Glengelt ;  Staig 
and  William  Markill,  residents  there ;  John  Wricht,  in 
Ormistoun ;  and  William  Somervell,  resident  there ;  and  on 
20th  December  1637  were  appraised  for  past-due  duties 
(in  terms  of  Declarator  of  Non-entry  *  by  the  said  Mr  Adam, 
obtained  28th  July  1637),  extending  to  7877^  merks,  and 
393  merks  seven  shillings  and  fourpence  for  the  Sheriff's 
fee.t 

The  Mill  of  Glengelt  (Mountmill)  is  here  included  in 
these  lands.  In  163 1  it  is  said  to  have  been  the  property  of 
Robert  Lawson  of  Humbie,  with  the  mill  lands,  and  its 
severance  from  Glengelt  produced  no  little  annoyance  sub- 
sequently in  the  teind  cases  relating  to  Channelkirk.  J 

The  Edmonstons  of  Edmonston  held  much  land  in 
the  parishes  of  Liberton,  Cranstoun,  Fala,  Crichton,  Newton, 
and  Ednam  about  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century. 

*  As  a  Superior  was  entitled  to  have  some  one  bound  to  perfomi  the 
services  stipulated  for  in  the  orginal  grant,  the  heir  of  the  vassal  was  not 
entitled  on  the  death  of  his  ancestor  to  enter  into  possession  of  the  lands 
until  he  had  acknowledged  the  Superior  by  entering  with  him,  i.e.^  ac- 
cepting a  charter  which  substituted  him  as  vassal  in  room  of  his  ancestor. 
Till  this  was  done,  the  Superior  was  entitled  to  take  possession  of  the 
lands  and  levy  the  rents,  to  the  exclusion  to  the  vassal's  heirs  or  dis- 
ponees  ;  and  this  right  was  called  the  casualty  of  non-entry.— Juridical 
Styles^  vol.  i.,  p.  7,  fifth  edition. 

t  Great  Seal. 

X  Decreet  of  Locality^  pp.  268,  271. 


472  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

We  also  learn  that  at  this  date,  1637,  the  Glengelt 
lands  were  in  debt  to  Thomas,  Earl  of  Haddington,  "ane 
yeirly  annual  rent  of  ane  hundreth  pundis,*  viz.,  from 
Martimes  1619  inclusive  to  Witsonday  last  bypast,  1637, 
inclusive,  extending  to  the  sowme  of  ane  thousand  sevine 
hundreth  fiftie  pundis"  (^1750),  and  Mr  Adam  Hepburne  of 
Humbie  becomes  caution  that  the  goods  and  gear  above 
specified  (viz.,  the  debts)  shall  be  forthcoming.-f-  He  was 
one  of  the  Earl's  curators  in  1640.J  It  is  in  this  year  that 
Glengelt  with  mill  is  conceded  to  him  in  liferent,§  and  to 
Thomas,  his  eldest  son  (in  fee),  he  giving  for  blench-farm  II 
a  red  rose,  as  the   Borth wicks  had  done  before  him. 

We  ascertain  that  about  this  time  William  Wight  was 
tenant  in  Glengelt,  and  died  on  i6th  April  1682.  His 
brother,  Alexander  Wight,  was  tenant  in  it  at  a  later  date, 
and  died   i8th  September  1736. 

Mr  John  Sleich  or  Sligh  is  returned  on  March  27, 
1695,  as  holding  Glengelt  and  bequeathing  it  on  that  date 
to  the  "heir  portioner"  William  Cockburn,  son  of  Henry 
Cockburn,  Provost  of  Haddington,  one  of  the  Cockburns 
probably     of     Clerkington,  II       Mr    John    Sleich    was     also 

*  Memorials  of  the  Earls  of  Haddington,  1889,  vol  ii.,  p.  306. 

t  Ibid.,  p.  312. 

%  Ibid.,  vol.  i.,  p.  201.  §  Great  Seal. 

II  It  not  unfrequently  happened  that  a  Superior  in  need  of  ready 
money  agreed  to  accept  a  capital  sum  in  lieu  of  future  services  or  pay- 
ments, or  that  the  Superior  wished  to  confer  on  his  vassal  a  free  gift  for 
distinguished  services,  and  in  such  circumstances  a  purely  nominal 
annual  payment  was  stipulated,  merely  as  an  acknowledgment  of  the 
Superior's  paramount  right,  such  as  a  penny  Scots,  a  rose,  a  pair  of 
spurs,  or  a  pair  of  gloves,  these  being  generally  exigible  only  in  the 
event  of  their  being  demanded  by  the  Superior  within  the  year.  The 
tenure  thus  created  was  called  blench  or  blenchfarm. — Juridical  Styles^ 
vol.  i.,  p.  5.,  fifth  edition. 

^  Retours. 


GLENGELT  473 

Provost  of  Haddington.  SHgh  is,  however,  owner  of  and 
teinded  for  Glengelt  lands  in  1691,  four  years  prior  to  the 
above  date.*  The  year  in  which  WilHam  Cockburn  is 
returned  as  heir  portioner  of  Glengelt,  viz.,  1695,  is  also  the 
one  in  which  John  Robertson  is  said  to  possess  it,  so  that 
it  must  have  passed  quickly  out  of  Cockburn's  hands.  "  It 
appeared  that  in  1695  an  heritable  bond  had  been  granted 
by  John  Robertson,  then  proprietor  of  Glengelt,  and  also 
of  the  mill  and  mill  lands  and  of  the  lands  about  Gingle- 
kirk  in  which  the  mill  was  called  the  mill  of  Glengelt,  and  the 
lands  of  Ginglekirk  were  called  Glengelt  lands.^f-  Four 
years  pass  away,  and  again  Glengelt  undergoes  changes 
which,  however,  are  somewhat  unpleasant.  On  the  i6th  of 
November  1699,  "John  Mathie,  skipper," J  obtains  decreet 
of  poinding  the  ground  against  the  tenants  of  Glengelt, 
Janet  Somerville  in  "Glengelt  Town-head,"  and  Janet 
Somerville  in  "  Glengelt  Town-foot,"  John  Henderson  in 
Glengelt  Milne,  and  Master  Andrew  Mein  in  "Ginglekirk, 
called  Glengelt  lands."  These  lands  ultimately  come  into 
the  possession  of  Thomas  Mathie,  a  merchant  in  Cockenzie, 
son  and  heir  of  John  Mathie,  his  father,  merchant  in 
Prestonpans,  who  died  15th  March  1726.  Thomas  Mathie 
sells  them  in  173 1  to  William  Hunter,  merchant  in  Edin- 
burgh and  Dalkeith.  The  latter  holds  Nether  Howden 
also  at  this  time,  and  having  died  about  1742,  Glengelt  is 
found  in  the  hands  of  his  daughter,  Agnes  Hunter,  in  I745.§ 
She  appears  to  have  built  the  present  house  of  Glengelt, 
as  her  full  name  is  carved  on  the  lintel  of  the  door  with 
the  date  1743.  In  1748  she  is  married  to  John  Borthwick, 
Esq.    of  Crookston,   as    we   find   him'   obtaining    sasine    of 

*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  163.  f  Ibid.^  p.  273. 

X  Ibid.,  p.  160.  §  Ibid.,  p.  161, 


474  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Glengelt  and  Mountmfll  in  that  year  as  her  husband.  For 
nearly  i8o  years  Glengelt  had  been  out  of  the  hands 
of  the  Borthwicks,  and  here  it  returned  to  them,  to  all 
appearance,  as  it  probably  came  at  first,  in  the  shape  of  a 
marriage  dowry.  In  178 1  John  Borthwick  of  Crookston 
and  William  his  son  are  seised  in  liferent  and  fee  respect- 
ively in  Glengelt*  John  Borthwick,  heir  to  his  brother 
William,  is  seised  in  Glengelt,  15th  April  i8o2.-f-  Mention 
is  often  made,  about  this  time,  of  part  of  "  the  Moss  of 
Glengelt,"  as  being  included  in  Justicehall  property.  Towards 
the  end  of  last  century,  from  about  1780,  the  property  of 
Glengelt  was  bonded  to  a  considerable  extent,  chiefly  to 
Sir  John  Dalrymple  Hamilton  MacGill  of  Cousland  and 
his  heirs.  We  believe  it  is  the  last  mentioned  John  Borth- 
wick of  Crookston  who  is  mentioned  in  a  corrective  note 
in  Scott's  Monastery.  X  He  died  about  1846,  and  Glengelt 
is  under  trustees  then,  the  present  John  Borthwick  being 
seised  in  it  and  all  his  other  properties  in  this  parish  on 
1 0th  November   i85i.§ 

It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  Glengelt  is  said  to  include,  at 
the  end  of  the  seventeeth  century,  the  lands  of  Ginglekirk. 
Perhaps  this  understanding  came  down  from  the  time  when 
Sir  Ivon  de  Veteriponte  [cir.  1 1 89)  gave  7  acres  of  Glengelt 
lands  to  Channelkirk  Church,  supplemented  as  we  have  seen 
by  other  three  from  Sir  Henry  de  Mundeville,  his  descendant. 
These  10  acres  lay  immediately  to  the  east  of  the  church,  all 
of  which  are  now  included  in  New  Channelkirk  Farm,  that  is, 
Mr  Borthwick's  lands.  It  is  clear  that  anciently  Glengelt 
lands  must  have  enclosed  all  the  land  east  of  the  church, 

*  Sasines.  t  Lindsay's  Index  to  Retours. 

I  "Centenary  Edition,"  1871.  §  Sasines. 


GLENGELT  475 

taking  in  all  the  space  bounded  at  present  by  Mountmill 
steading  and  Annfield  Inn. 

If  we  are  to  rely  upon  the  geographers,  it  is  quite  a 
modern  designation  which  applies  the  name  of  "  Lammer- 
moor  "  to  the  hills  around  Upper  Lauderdale.  According  to 
Font's  map  in  Blaeu's  Atlas,  the  entire  sweep  of  hill  area 
which  embraces  Soutra  Hill,  Headshaw  Hill,  and  the  hills 
surrounding  Kelphope  Water  is  called  "  Glengelt  Felles."  H. 
Moll's  map  of  1725  includes  in  this  designation  the  whole 
circle  of  hills  surrounding  Upper  Lauderdale,  beginning 
from  Whitelaw  on  the  west,  and  enclosing  Over  Howden, 
Airhouse,  Channelkirk,  Glengelt,  Headshaw,  and  Kelphope. 
That  both  geographers  should  have  treated  the  "  Lammer- 
moors  "  and  "  Glengelt  Felles  "  as  distinct  and  separate  hill- 
districts  is  not  without  a  certain  significance.  At  what  time 
in  the  remote  past  Glengelt  may  have  given  its  name  to  the 
hills  around  Upper  Lauderdale  we  have  no  means  now  of 
ascertaining,  but  the  fact  seems  indisputable,  as  far,  at  least, 
as  these  maps  can  guide  us  ;  and  a  reasonable  inference 
seems  to  follow,  viz.,  that  Glengelt  at  that  period  must  have 
had  weight  and  importance  sufficient  to  impress  its  name 
widely  beyond  what  its  modern  status  and  environment 
would  appear  to  indicate.  The  sanction  must  have  been  a 
traditionary  one,  and  bestowed,  no  doubt,  far  back  in  the 
earlier  centuries  of  the  historical  epoch. 

The  minister  of  Channelkirk  remarks  of  it  in  1627  : — 
"  Greingelt  is  in  stok  1000  merks,  personage  6  scoir  lib., 
viccarage  ane  100  merkis,"  by  far  the  largest  farm  in  the 
parish  at  that  time.  The  beginning  of  this  century  saw  it 
tenanted  by  Mr  Shiels,  who  was  followed  by  the  brothers 
George  and  Walter  Peacock.  Then  the  late  John  Archibald, 
Overshiels,   so   well    known    throughout   the    Borders   as    a 


476  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

breeder  of  sheep,  became  tenant  in  1846.  At  that  time 
New  Channelkirk  was  farmed  by  James  Anderson.  Mr 
Archibald  became  tenant  of  that  farm  also  in  1854,  when 
Glengelt  and  it  were  put  under  the  same  lease.  New 
Channelkirk  became  after  this  the  chief  steading  for  the 
Glengelt  lands,  and  Glengelt  decreased  to  its  present  dimen- 
sions. 

A  place  worthy  of  mention  on  Glengelt  lands  is  The  Den, 
sometimes  called  Lourie's  Den.  The  following  regarding  it 
gives  the  principal  particulars  : —  * 

"  The  old  hostelry  or  roadside  public-house  of  Hunter's 
Hall  or  Lourie's  Den  was  on  the  south  side  of  Soutra  Hill. 
Although  in  Berwickshire,  it  was  just  on  the  border  of  East 
Lothian,  on  the  road  to  Carfraemill  and  Lauder.  It  is  now 
unoccupied  as  an  inn,  but  was  long  ago  a  well-known  house, 
where  travellers  could  get  good  cheer  and  a  night's  up-put- 
ting. It  is  said  that  Prince  Charlie's  highlanders,  on  the 
march  to  England,  stopped  and  got  refreshments  there.  On 
its  signboard  there  was  the  representation  of  a  huntsman 
blowing  his  bugle-horn  with  the  foxhounds  around  him,  and 
the  following  doggerel  lines  of  poetry  : — 

'  Humpty,  dumpty,  herrie,  perrie, 
.    Step  in  here  and  ye'll  be  cherrie  ; 
Try  our  speerits  and  our  porter, 
They'll  make  the  road  the  shorter  ; 
And  if  ye  hae  a  mind  to  stay, 
Your  horse  can  get  guid  corn  and  hay.' 

'  Good  entertainment  for  man  and  horse.'  " 

Instead  of  "  Humpty,  dumpty,"  the  above  is  sometimes 
varied  by  "  Riftem,  Tiftem,"  which  was  said  to  be  the  inn- 
keeper's nickname. 

*  Reminiscences  of  the  Comity  of  Haddington,  1890,  p.  223. 


GLENGELT  477 

"  A  person  of  the  name  of  Lourie  was  said  to  have  been 
the  innkeeper  in  old  times,  and  hence  its  name  of  Lourie's 
Den.  It  was  once  the  great  stopping  place  for  drovers'  carts 
and  carriers  from  Lauderdale  and  the  south,  going  to  and 
from  Dalkeith  market,  etc.  A  bloody  fight  betwixt  two 
gipsies  of  the  Faa  and  Shaw  tribes  long  ago  took  place  in  the 
field  opposite  the  inn,  when  one  of  them  was  killed.  The 
survivor  was  tried  and  hanged." 

It  appears  to  be  in  reference  to  the  above-mentioned  fight 
that  we  have  in  our  Kirk  Records  the  item  which  says : — 
"  Sept.  4,  1772 — To  Thomas  Wilson  for  a  coffin  to  the  man 
that  was  murdered  at  Huntershall — 6s."  This  seems  to  imply 
that  Huntershall  and  Lourie's  Den  were  identical,  and  not 
separate  places  as  has  been  said. 

We  cull  the  following  account  of  the  affair  from  another 
source  *  : — "  There  used  to  be,  and  perhaps  still  is,  a  small 
public-house  on  the  roadside,  between  Lauder  and  Dalkeith, 
called  Lourie's  Den.  It  stood  in  a  very  lonely  situation, 
near  the  steep  mountain  pass  of  Soutra  Hill,  the  terror  of 
the  South  country  carters  in  pre-railway  times.  It  was 
seldom  one  could  get  past  it  without  witnessing  a  drunken 
fight,  if  not  getting  implicated  in  it — in  fact,  the  place  was 
infamous.  The  neighbourhood  was  a  harbourage  for  the 
gipsies,  who  could  make  their  way  thence  across  the  hills, 
without  let  or  hindrance,  either  to  Gala  Water,  Leithen 
and  Eddleston  Waters,  the  Blackadder,  which  runs  down 
into  the  Merse,  the  Haddingtonshire  Tyne,  the  South  Esk 
in  Midlothian,  or  right  down  Lauderdale  into  Teviotdale, 
and  thence  into  England. 

"  Many  a  gipsy  fight   as   well   as   carter's   squabble   has 
taken    place   at    Lourie's  Den.     Little  more  than  a  century 
*  Gypsies  of  Yetholm,  p.  64  (Wm.  Brockie,  Kelso,  1884). 


478  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

ago  it  was  the  scene  of  a  terrible  conflict.  Two  gipsy 
chiefs,  named  respectively  Robert  Keith  and  Charles 
Anderson,  who  had  somehow  fallen  out,  and  followed  each 
other  for  some  time  for  the  purpose  of  fighting  out  their 
quarrel,  met  at  last  at  Lourie's  Den.  The  two  antagonists 
were  brothers-in-law,  Anderson  being  married  to  Keith's 
sister.  Anderson  proved  an  overmatch  for  Keith ;  and 
William  Keith,  to  save  his  brother,  laid  hold  of  Anderson. 
Whereupon  Madge  Greig,  Robert's  wife,  handed  her  husband 
a  knife,  and  called  on  him  to  despatch  the  villain  while 
unable  to  defend  himself,  owing  to  his  hands  being  held. 
Robert  repeatedly  struck  with  the  knife,  but  it  rebounded 
from  the  unhappy  man's  ribs  without  much  effect.  Impatient 
at  the  delay,  Madge  called  out  to  the  assassin,  '  Strike 
laigh !  strike  laigh ! '  and,  following  her  directions,  he 
stabbed  him  to  the  heart.  The  only  remark  made  by  any 
of  the  gang  was  this  exclamation  from  one  of  them : — 
'  Gude  faith,  Rob,  ye've  dune  for  'im  noo  1 '  William  Keith 
was  astonished  when  he  found  that  Anderson  had  been 
stabbed  in  his  arms,  as  his  interference  was  only  to  save 
his  brother  from  being  overpowered  by  him.  Robert 
Keith  instantly  fled,  but  was  pursued  by  the  country 
folks,  armed  with  pitchforks  and  muskets.  He  was  caught 
in  a  bracken  bush,  in  which  he  had  concealed  himself,  and 
was  executed  at  Jedburgh  on  the  24th  November  1772. 
One  of  the  individuals  who  assisted  at  Keith's  capture 
was  the  father  of  Sir  Walter  Scott.  Long  afterwards 
William  Keith  was  apprehended  in  a  ruinous  house  in 
Peeblesshire  for  his  share  in  the  murder,  but  not  till  he 
had  made,  though  half-naked,  a  desperate  resistance  to 
the  officers  .sent  to  capture  him.  He  was  tried,  condemned, 
and  banished  to  the  plantations."     "  Even  before  this,  how- 


GLENGELT  479 

ever,"  says  another  authority,*  "the  place  had  a  sinister 
reputation.  Several  packmen  or  pedlars  had  mysteriously 
disappeared.  No  clue  to  their  fate  was  got  until  one  warm 
summer,  many  years  after,  the  goose-dub  or  small  pond 
opposite  the  door  became  completely  dry  and  exposed  a 
number  of  human  bones,  revealing  the  gruesome  secret." 

Lourie's  Den  is  now  the  shieling  of  Glengelt  "  ootby 
shepherd,"  and  after  such  a  terrible  past  enjoys  a  peace- 
ful respectability  ;  and  the  very  sight  of  the  lonely  cottage 
on  the  wide  moor  is  like  the  face  of  a  friend  to  many  a 
tired  traveller.  Mr  Dodds,  the  schoolmaster  of  Channel- 
kirk,  once  took  Tam  Spence  to  the  Den  to  "cast"  his 
peats.  Tam  was  a  wag  with  a  wit  that  was  well  known  in 
Oxton.  After  a  spell  of  the  spade,  both  rested  to  refresh 
themselves.  The  schoolmaster  had  provided  a  "  pistol " 
which  he  proceeded  alone  to  despatch.  "  That's  fine  whusky, 
Mr  Dodds,"  quoth  Tam,  with  sticky  lips.  "  How  do  you 
know,  Tam,  when  you  haven't  tasted  it  ?  "  replied  the  dominie. 
"  Becus  ye' re  keepin'  't  a'  tae  yersel,"  was  Tam's  reply. 

The  "  Redbraes "  lies  almost  half-way  between  the  Den 
and  Glengelt.  It  has  a  painful  notoriety  as  having  been 
the  spot  where  the  dead  body  of  Dr  Gibson  of  Lauder 
was  found  some  years  ago.  Death  had  been  compassed 
by  cutting  the  throat.  The  body  was  found  lying  on  the 
north  side  of  the  road,  as  it  crosses  the  deep  ravine  at 
that   place. 

As  a  hill  farm,  Glengelt,  the  steading  of  which  is 
now  named  New  Channelkirk,  has  many  points  in  its 
favour.  Its  fields  are  all  easy  of  access,  and  there  must 
be  few  spots  which  the  reaper-and-binder  machine  cannot 

*  Chambers's  Journal^  28th  April  1888,  "Across  the  Lammermoors,"  by 
Mr  Mowat. 


480  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

reach,  although  there  is  a  considerable  slope  on  every  one 
of  them.  It  has  abundance  of  water  in  the  Leader,  which 
flows  past  the  farmhouse,  and  first-class  springs  are  in  the 
neighbourhood.  Its  soil  is  variable,  however, — some  fields 
being  light  and  gravelly,  and  others  of  a  heavy  clay. 
Attention  to  the  drains  would  improve  the  latter  consider- 
ably, especially  on  the  hill  pasture-land.  It  affords  good 
shooting  to  sportsmen,  as  a  large  part  of  Soutra  Moor  lies 
within  its  marches.  In  Mr  Archibald's  hands  the  farm 
was  famous  for  its  sheep.  In  area  it  comprises  nearly 
1650  acres  or  thereby,  of  which  about  276  are  arable, 
258  permanent  grass,  and  the  rest  good  hill  pasture. 
It  rents,  at  present,  at  £S7^>  ^os.  The  steading,  to  be 
regularly  resided  in,  might  require  improvements.  As  its 
locality  is  lower  almost  than  most  of  the  fields,  the  home 
journeys  are  always  easy  tasks  for  horses.  Two  shepherds 
are  employed.  The  stock  is  a  mixed  one  and  rather 
numerous,  there  being,  perhaps,  70  score  of  sheep  and 
a  considerable  number  of  cattle.  The  present  tenant,  who  is 
outgoing  Whitsunday  1900,  is  Thomas  Milne  Skirving, 
Niddrie  Mains,  Liberton,     Mr  Forrest  succeeds. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

COLLIELAW 

The  Name — Residence  in  1206 — Sir  Vivian  de  Mulineys — Thomas  the 
Cleric — The  Borthwicks — The  Heriots — Reduplication  of  Place- 
Names — The  Kers  of  Morristoun — House  of  Binning  and  Byres — 
Fairgrieve — Adinston  of  Carcant — The  Scottish  Episcopal  Fund — 
Earl  of  Lauderdale — Tenants. 

As  Oxton,  Carfrae,  Hartside,  and  Glengelt  are  designated 
Baronies  in  law  instruments,  so  Collielaw,  Airhouse,  Over 
Howden,  and  Kirktonhill  may  be  styled  Residences^  as 
distinguished  from  ordinary  farm's,  both  on  account  of  their 
ancient  importance  in  Upper  Lauderdale,  and  the  re- 
sidentiary status  which  their  proprietors  long  conferred 
upon  them. 

The  name  Collielaw,  CoUelaw,  or  Colela,  seems  to  be  derived 
from  two  sources.  "  Law  "  is  the  English  "  Low,"  but  on 
the  Scottish  Borders  it  means  a  mound,  a  rising  ground, 
after  the  Anglo-Saxon  hlaw.  A  Law  rises  behind  Collielaw 
to  the  west,  reaching  1286  ft.  above  sea-level,  and  doubtless 
accounts  sufficiently  for  the  latter  part  of  the  name.  Colle 
may  come  from  the  Gaelic  coille^  "  wood,"  and  perhaps  it  is 
just  possible  that  Lauderdale  may  have  possessed  as  many 
Gaelic  people  as  impose  names  upon  some  of  its  places. 
But  this  can  scarcely  be  insisted  upon  with  much  seriousness. 
There  is  an  alternative  view.     It  may  be  derived  from  the 

2  H 


482  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Anglo-Saxon  Col,  Colly,  meaning  sooty,  begrimed,  black.  If 
it  were  so,  and  the  probabilities  lean  that  way,  then  the 
complete  word  would  look  like  Colly-hlaw,  and  mean  The 
Black  Hill.  At  a  time  when  dense  woods  clothed  all 
the  hills  surrounding  the  Leader,  this  designation  would 
admirably  suit  the  locality. 

The  present  Collielaw  is  not  the  ancient  one.  The  old 
manor  place  and  fortalice  stood  a  little  to  the  south-west 
of  the  present  farmhouse  and  steading,  and  at  a  correspond- 
ing elevation  to  that  of  Bowerhouse  and  Over  Howden. 
A  few  trees  and  traces  of  old  wall  foundations  still  serve  to 
fix  the  original  locality  of  Old  Collielaw.  The  remaining 
vestiges  of  stone  buildings  were  still  in  good  evidence  about 
seventeen  years  ago,  as  vouched  by  the  present  steward, 
who  used  them  as  shelter  for  stock  in  stormy  weather, 
but  these  have  also  vanished,  and  now  form  part  of  the 
field  fences. 

The  earliest  historical  reference  to  it  is  about  1206  A.D. 
In  the  Charters  of  Kelso  Abbey  there  is  a  conveyance  made 
of  five  carucates  of  land  by  Alan,  Lord  Galloway,  from  his 
estate  in  Upper  Lauderdale  to  the  Kelso  monks.*  In  the 
description  of  the  boundaries  of  these  carucates,  "the  tofts 
and  crofts  of  William  of  Colilawe  "  are  given  as  landmarks 
lying  on  the  line  of  division.  It  is  clear  that  at  this  early 
time  Collielaw  was  a  fixed  residence,  with  its  lands  cultivated, 
and  the  houses  of  dependents  adjoining  it,  similar  to  what 
they  are  now,  although,  perhaps,  not  to  the  same  extent. 
In  Soltre  Charters  there  is  a  certain  pious  Sir  Vivian  de 
Mulineys  (Molineaux),  who,  being  moved  by  divine  piety 
and  desire  of  the  salvation  of  the  souls  of  "  my  lords,  viz., 
Roland  and  Alan  of  Galway,"  the  souls  of  his  ancestors 
*  Liber  dc  Calchon,  Charter  No.  245. 


I 


i 


COLLIELAW  483 

and  successors,  as  well  as  the  salvation  of  his  own  soul, 
gives  and  concedes,  and  by  this  his  charter  confirms,  to  God 
and  the  House  of  Soltre  and  the  brethren  for  ever,  "  my 
land  of  Salton  by  its  just  boundaries  as  measured  by  Sir 
Walter  Olifard,  Justiciar  of  Lothian  {cir.  12 14- 1249),  by  order 
of  the  sovereign  the  King  (Alex.  II.),  the  same,  that  is, 
which  was  given  to  me  in  excambion  (exchange)  for  my 
land  of  Collilaw,  which  Alan  of  Galway,  of  good  memory 
for  homage  and  service,  gave  to  me  with  all  pertinents  and 
easements."* 

The  date  of  this  document  is  given  as  A.D.  1236- 1238, 
and  both  Earls  of  Galway  are  evidently  referred  to  as  being 
dead.  As  Lord  Alan  died  in  1234,  and  Sir  Vivian  received 
Collielaw  from  him,  it  is  patent  that  the  gift  of  it  by  the 
former  must  have  been  made  between  that  date  and  the 
beginning  of  the  century  when  Lord  Alan  succeeded  his 
father  Rolland  in  the  estate  of  Lauderdale.  Short  references 
here  and  there  regarding  Sir  Vivian  de  Mulineys  seem  to 
indicate  that  he  was  on  terms  of  close  friendship  with  the 
leading  men  of  his  age,  but  especially  with  the  Lords  of 
Lauderdale  and  Galway.  He  is  a  witness  to  one  of  Wm. 
de  Morville's  charters,  which  (1189-96)  confirms  his  mother's 
gifts  of  lands  and  privileges  to  the  monks  of  St  Mary  of 
Furneis,  Neubi.^f  He  is  found  in  a  similar  capacity  {cir.  1 206) 
in  Charter  246  of  Kelso  Abbey,  and  also  somewhat  later 
in  No.  70  of  Holyrood  Charters,  and  again  in  Charter  No,  12 
of  the  Domus  de  Soltre. 

It  may  have  been  about  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth 
century,  or  perhaps  earlier,  that  Thomas  the  Cleric,  son  of 
the  "  William  of  Collilaw  "  mentioned  above,  gave,  conceded, 

*  Domus  de  Soltre,  No.  32. 

I  Calendar  of  Documents  relating  to  Scotland,  vol.  i. 


484  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  confirmed  to  God  and  the  Church  of  St  Cuthbert  at 
Childenchirch,  and  the  canons  of  Dryburgh,  eight  acres  of 
land,  four  arable  and  four  pasture,  viz.,  the  Haugh  under 
Langside  in  the  territory  of  Ulkilstoun  (Oxton)."*  This  is 
doubtless  the  part  of  the  glebe  which  was  the  cause  of  much 
disputation  in  the  Court  of  Session  intermittently  from  the 
middle  of  the  last  till  the  close  of  the  third  decade  of  this 
century,  and  which  was  excambed  for  the  present  north  part 
of  the  glebe  in  1871.  Thomas  the  Cleric  did  not  give  away 
a  great  deal  when  he  bestowed  these  acres,  for  their  ex- 
posure to  the  floods  of  Airhouse  Water  render  them  a 
precarious  good,  owing  to  sand  silting  and  the  changing  bed 
of  the  stream.  He  asserts  that  he  will  warrant  these  lands 
against  all  men,  and  affixes  his  seal  to  the  document  in 
order  that  his  donation  may  have  perpetual  force  {perpetuum 
robur).  He  sincerely  desired,  no  doubt,  that  Channelkirk 
Church  should  possess  his  acres  for  ever,  but  alas  for  the 
"  force  "  !  Thomas  was  alive  in  the  days  of  Allan  of  Hertis- 
heued  (Hartside),  and  was  Superior  over  some  of  Allan's 
houses  and  lands  in  Oxton  territory,  and  we  know  that 
Allan  lived  about  1327,  in  the  reign  of  King  Robert  the 
Bruce.-f* 

More  than  a  hundred  years  pass  away  before  we  catch 
a  glimpse  once  more  of  Collielaw.  In  1473  the  King  con- 
firms Lord  William  Borthwick's  charter,  in  which  he  concedes 
to  his  son  Thomas,  for  good  and  faithful  service,  and  for 
filial  love,  the  lands  of  Collilaw.  The  Borthwicks  first  came 
into  Channelkirk  parish  a  generation  earlier  through  the 
possession  of  Glengelt.J      In  1490  this  Thomas   Borthwick 

*  Liber  de  Dryburgh^  No.  185. 
t  Original  Charters,  vol  i.,  p  98. 
X  Great  Seal  and  Exchequer  Rolls. 


COLLIELAW  485 

is  at  law  with  William  Cranstoun  for  ;^8  Scots  due  from 
Michelston  lands,  "  lik  as  the  said  William  wes  bundin  be 
his  obligation  under  his  sele  schewin  and  producit  befor 
the  lords,"  and  "  the  lords  "  "  ordains  that  lettres  be  writtin 
to  distreze  said  William  his  lands  and  guds  for  the  said  soume 
to  the  releving  of  the  said  Thomas."*  In  1503  matters  have 
to  be  readjusted  regarding  Collielaw.  A  new  Lord  William, 
who  fell  at  Flodden  ten  years  later,  has  another  charter 
confirmed  by  the  King,  wherein  he  concedes  to  Allan  Borth- 
wick,  son  to  Lord  William's  paternal  uncle,  Sir  Thomas 
Borthwick  of  Colylaw,  the  lands  of  Colylaw,  personally 
resigned  by  the  said  Thomas  and  his  wife,  Helen  Rutherford. 
There  is  reserved  free  tenement  to  Sir  Thomas,  and  a 
reasonable  third  to  his  wife,  with  other  privileges  which  are 
noticed  under  "  Bowerhouse."  -j-  Hoppringle  of  Smailholm 
receives  in  15 10  certain  sums  from  several  places  in  Lauder- 
dale, and  among  them  CoUilaw  yields  him  6s.  8d.  yearly. 

In  1 513,  the  fatal  year  of  Flodden,  William,  Lord  Borth- 
wick, receives  sasine  of  Colylaw,  and  in  1538,  on  21st 
August,  the  King  confirms  the  grant  of  the  same  lands  with 
all  Borthwick  estates,  "  now  incorporated  into  the  free  barony 
of  Borthwick,  on  account  of  the  said  Lord  William's  good 
service  to  the  King  in  his  youth."  I 

Collielaw  is  in  the  hands  of  John,  Lord  Borthwick,  in 
1543,  his  charter  being  confirmed  on  15th  January  of  that 
year  by  Queen  Mary.§ 

When  the  Reformation  passes  in  1566,  and  our  some- 
what intermittent  chronicle  brings  us  to  the  year  1 571,  the 
House  of  Borthwick  stands  out  before  us  in  great  territoria 
dignity,  and  because  mention  is  made  of  advowsons  of  churches 

*  Ac/a  Dominorum  Concilii.  t  Great  Seal. 

X  Ibid.  §  Ibid,  and  Exchequer  Rolls. 


486  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  chapels  being  in  their  hands,  we  presume  that  some  portion 
of  the  wealth  of  the  suppressed  Romanists  had  found  its  way 
into  their  exchequer.  In  that  year  the  King  confirms  the 
charter  of  William,  Lord  Borthwick,  in  which  he  concedes  to 
William,  his  eldest  son,  "  all  the  lands,  barony,  and  dominion 
of  Borthwick,  viz.,  the  lands  of  the  Moat  of  Lochquharrat  and 
its  castle,  now  called  the  Castle  of  Borthwick,  likewise  half 
the  lands  of  Middleton,  the  lands  and  town  of  Buitland,  the 
land  of  Heriot  and  Heriotsmoor,  in  Midlothian  ;  the  lands  of 
Borthwick  in  Selkirkshire  ;  lands  of  Little  Ormiston,  Heath- 
pule,  and  Whitefield  in  Peebleshire  ;  lands  of  Hyndeford  in 
Lanarkshire  ;  lands  and  barony  of  Aberdour  in  Aberdeen- 
shire ;  lands  of  Nenthorn,  Legerwood,  Glengelt,  Collelaw, 
and  Bowerhouse,  in  Berwickshire ;  with  towers,  fortalices, 
houses,  buildings,  mills,  multures,  and  sequels  annexed  to 
these  ;  with  the  patronage  of  churches  and  chapels,  holdings, 
etc.,  all  of  which  were  incorporated  by  King  James  V.  into 
one  barony  of  Borthwick  :  Holding  of  the  said  William 
Borthwick  and  the  masculine  heirs  of  his  body  legitimately 
begotten  ;  whom  failing,  of  James  Borthwick,  his  second  son, 
and  the  heirs  of  him  ;  whom  failing,  of  William  Borthwick, 
son  and  heir  of  the  late  Sir  John  Borthwick  of  Cinery,  knight, 
and  the  heirs  of  him  ;  whom  failing,  of  Michael  Borthwick  of 
Glengelt,  and  his  heirs  ;  whom  failing,  of  John  Borthwick 
of  Gordonshall  ;  whom  failing,  of  John  Borthwick  of  Crook- 
ston  ;  whom  failing,  of  William  Borthwick  of  Soutray," 
etc.,  etc. 

It  is  evident  that  both  in  family  influence  and  in  wealth 
and  weight  of  property,  the  Borthwicks  had,  at  this  time, 
their  full  share  in  the  changing  history  of  their  country. 
Sir  John  of  Cinery,  above  mentioned,  has  been  alluded  to 
in  our  notice  of  Glengelt,  and  he  seems  to  have  been  quite 


COLLIELAW  487 

the  "  worthie  knight "  which  Caldervvood,  in  his  history, 
designates  him,  fighting  a  good  fight  for  the  Protestant  faith, 
and  only  escaping  the  martyr's  doom  by  fire  through  a 
judicious  exercise  of  Borthwick  wit  and  Scotch  caution.  He 
died  somewhat  before  1570,  happy  in  seeing  at  St  Andrews, 
to  which  he  was  invited  by  Cardinal  Beaton,  doubtless  to  be 
burned,  the  unchallenged  reign  of  that  religion  he  loved  so 
well. 

As  an  example  of  the  other  type  of  Borthwick  we  give 
the  following  account  in  which  James  Borthwick  of  Collie- 
law  figures  somewhat  prominently  : — 

"30th  April  1585. — John  Livingstone  of  Belstane  *  (in  the 
parish  of  Carluke,  Lanarkshire)  complained  to  the  Council 
of  an  assault  which  had  been  made  upon  him  on  the  3rd 
of  the  preceding  February  by  sundry  persons,  whose  motive 
in  so  assailing  him  does  not  appear.  The  affair  is  most 
characteristic — indeed,  a  type  of  numberless  other  lawless 
proceedings  of  the  time.  John  quietly  leaves  his  house 
before  sunrise,  meaning  no  harm  to  any  one,  and  expect- 
ing none  to  himself  He  walks  out,  as  he  says,  under 
God's  peace  and  the  King's,  when  suddenly  he  is  beset  by 
about  forty  people  who  had  him  at  feud,  'all  bodin  in  feir 
of  weir,'  namely,  armed  with  jacks,  stell-bonnets,  spears, 
lance-staffs,  bows,  hagbuts,  pistolets,  and  other  invasive 
weapons  forbidden  by  the  laws.  At  the  head  of  them  was 
William,  Master  of  Yester — a  denounced  rebel  on  account 
of  his  slaughter  of  the  Laird  of  Westerhall's  servant — etc., 
etc.,  James  Borthwick  of  Colela,  etc.,  were  among  the 
company,  evidently  all  of  them  men  of  some  figure  and 
importance.  Having  come  for  the  purpose  of  attacking 
Livingstone,  they  no  sooner  saw  him  than  they  set  upon 
*  Reign  of  James  V/.,  vol  i.,  pp.  299-300. 


488  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

him,  with  discharge  of  their  firearms,  to  deprive  him  of 
his  Hfe.  He  narrowly  escaped  and  ran  back  to  his  house, 
which  they  immediately  environed  in  the  most  furious 
manner,  firing  in  at  the  windows,  and  through  every 
other  aperture,  for  a  space  of  three  hours.  A  bullet  pierced 
his  hat.  As  they  departed,  they  met  his  wife  and  daughter, 
whom  they  abused  shamefully.  In  short,  it  seems  altogether 
to  have  been  an  affair  of  the  most  barbarous  and  violent 
kind.  The  offenders  were  all  denounced  rebels."  This 
was  not  the  beginning  of  James's  "life  of  sturt  and  strife." 
From  Richard  Bannatyne's  Memoirs''^  we  learn  that  in 
August  1 57 1,  among  "the  names  of  theis  that  were 
foirfalted,"  were  James  Borthuike,  Glengelt,  and  "James 
Borthuike  of  Colila."  Another  "  foirfalted "  or  forfeited 
name,  notable  in  this  parish  from  the  teind  interest  which 
the  family  has  through  centuries  held  in  it,  was  that  of 
"Johne  Cranstoun  of  Morstoun"  (Moray's  town)  (Morriston, 
Legerwood).  The  Borthwicks,  indeed,  seem  never  to  have 
lacked  plenty  of  vigour,  and  they  lived  their  lives  at  all 
times  with  great  spirit  and  evident  enjoyment.  Perhaps 
it  was  about  this  time,  however,  that  the  family  cup,  long 
running  over  with  the  wine  of  wealth  and  influence,  began 
perceptibly  to  ebb.  When  the  moral  foundations  which 
are  ever  the  deepest  are  undermined,  family  honours, 
names,  and  properties  soon  sink  out  of  sight  in  their 
country's  affairs  as  the  wrecked  ship  on  the  silting  sea- 
beach  slowly  disappears  beneath  the  sand.  Even  the  cloud- 
capped  tower,  be  it  Eiffel  or  otherwise,  is  only  guaranteed 
stability  when  it  preserves  its  true  relations  to  the  old 
earth  and  the  laws  of  gravitation.  Many  Scottish  houses 
of    proud    pedigree,   to-day   lie   mouldering    half-in-half-out 

*  Page  185. 


COLLIELAW  489 

of  their  burial  vaults,  not  because  of  lack  of  heirs,  influence, 
intellect,  or  wealth,  but  purely  because  they  despised  the 
"  righteousness  that  alone  exalteth  a  nation." 

James  Borthwick,  Lord  William's  heir  and  full  brother,  is 
returned  in  October  1573  as  possessor  of  Collelawe,  and 
much  else. 

After  this  date  the  Borthwicks  make  their  exit  from 
Collielaw,  and  the  Heriots  step  into  their  place.  On  the 
15th  of  May  1601,  we  read  of  George  Herriott  of  CoUelaw, 
who  is  heir  to  Peter  Herriott  in  Leyth,  his  brother,  receiving 
"an  annual  return  of  20  merks  (;^I3,  6s.  8d.)  from  the  croft 
of  land  called  Channonis  Croft,  near  to  the  church  of  Lawder, 
within  the  burgage  of  the  said  burgh  and  bailiary  of  Lauder- 
daill."*  And  on  nth  August  1602  he  is  returned  as  also 
receiving  24  merks  from  the  ecclesiastical  lands  of  Legert- 
wode. 

These  Heriots  of  Leith,  who  had  interest  at  this  time  in 
Airhouse,  Collielaw,  Legerwood,  and  Trabroun,  may  have 
been  related  to  the  John  Heriot  of  Gladsmuir,  who  acquired 
Trabroun  in  that  parish  from  Archibald,  Earl  of  Douglas, 
for  military  service  about  1622,  and  was  grandfather  to 
George  Heriot,  founder  of  Heriot's  Hospital,  Edinburgh."!" 
George,  father  to  the  celebrated  philanthropist,  died  in  16 10. 
The  personal  history  of  the  founder  himself  is  rather  meagre, 
but  the  dates  at  which  we  find  the  Heriots  in  Trabroun, 
Collielaw,  and  other  places  in  Lauderdale,  are  contempor- 
aneous with  his  life,  he  having  been  born  about  1563,  and 
died  in  I^ondon,  1624.I 

*  Retours. 

t  Dr  Stevens'  Memoir  of  Heriot. 

X  See  also  Scott's  Fortunes  of  Nigel ^  notes.  If  Leith  Burgh  Records 
had  gone  back  to  1600,  we  might,  perhaps,  have  learned  something  more 
concerning  the  Heriots  of  Collielaw. 


490  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

In  163 1  an  action  was  raised  by  "John,  Earl  of  Mar,  and 
Alex.  Cranstoun  of  Morriestoun,  equall  heritable  proprietors 
of  teinds  in  Channelkirk,  against  Andro  Law  of  Bourhouses, 
heritor  of  the  lands  of  Bourhouses  and  CoUielaw."  These 
two  places  are  afterwards  combined  in  designation  as  in  the 
"  barony  of  Pilmuir."  Andro  Law,  it  appears,  possessed  but 
two-thirds  of  Collielaw,  the  remaining  third  being  still  held 
by  the  Heriots  of  Trabroun. 

In  October  1633,  Anna  Heriot,  daughter  of  the  late  Robert 
Heriot  of  Trabroune,  heir  to  James  Heriot  of  Trabroune, 
great-grandfather,  is  returned  in  the  third  part  of  the  lands 
of  Collielaw,  in  the  .bailiary  of  Lauderdale  *  We  have  no 
doubt  that  the  "  Trabroune  "  mentioned  here  is  the  Lauder- 
dale Trabroun,  the  ancient  "  Treuerburn  "  icir.  11 70)  of  the 
Dryburgh  Charters.  And  in  reference  to  this,  it  has  been 
to  us  a  matter  of  astonishment  to  find  how  many  of  the 
places  in  Lauderdale  have  their  twin-name  in  Haddington- 
shire and  Midlothian — Carfrae,  Oxton,  Trabroun,  Howden, 
Bowerhouse,  Mountmill,  and  Hartside  being  among  the 
examples  from  this  parish.  Which  was  the  earlier  in  history 
it  might  be  hard  to  say.  Perhaps  the  fact  of  the  same 
proprietor  holding  lands  in  both  districts  might  account 
for  the  similarity  of  names,  though  the  real  meaning  for 
some  of  the  places  may  lie  deeper,  viz.,  in  the  occupation 
of  the  territory  by  people  speaking  the  same  language,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Ottadini,  who  were  Brythonic  Celts,  or 
Welsh,  and  were  spread  over  all  our  eastern  seaboard  in 
the  second  century.  The  Celtic  names,  at  least,  might  be 
accounted  for  on  this  hypothesis.  We  lean  to  the  view  that 
the  Lauderdale  names  are  the  older. 

The  subsequent  notices  of  Collielaw  in  the  seventeenth 
*  Retours. 


COLLIELAW  491 

century  are  in  connection  with  the  Kers  of  Morriston,  who 
held  some  of  the  farms  and  a  large  share  of  the  teinds  of 
this  parish.  There  is  a  sasine  in  favour  of  Mark  Ker  of 
Morriston,  about  1670,  of  his  lands  of  Ginglekirk.*  These 
lands  seem  to  have  been  Collilaw  and  Bourhouse,  as  in 
1676,  after  his  decease,  his  son,  Andrew  Ker  of  Morriston, 
is  seised  in  these  properties,  with  the  parish  teinds,  as  heir 
of  his  father,  "  Master  Marc  Ker."  f  John  Ker  of  Morriston, 
heir  of  his  brother  Andrew,  has  the  same  lands  and  teinds 
secured  to  him  in  1687.I  The  Ker  proprietary  in  the  above 
is  carried  still  further  with  Andrew  Ker  of  Morriston,  who 
is  served  on  30th  August  1692  as  lineal  and  male  heir  of 
John  Ker  of  Morriston,  his  father,  in  the  lands  of  *'  Colzielaw 
and  Bouchhous,  in  the  parish  of  Channelkirk,  with  tithes 
and  annuities,"  etc.  Regarding  the  last-mentioned  date, 
perhaps  the  whole  of  Collielaw  did  not  become  the  property 
of  Andrew  Ker,  for  in  the  minister's  note-book  (Rev.  D. 
Scott's)  there  is  a  locality  of  stipend  for  1691,  which  has 
the  following  : — "  The  3rd  part  of  Collielaw,  belonging  to 
Broun  of  Coalstoun "  (near  Haddington),  and  so  much 
seems  to  have  been  severed  from  the  Morrieston  posses- 
sions. The  Brouns  of  Coalston  were  a  very  old  family  in 
East  Lothian,  many  members  of  which  attained  to  distinc- 
tion in  law. 

From  the  Kers  of  Morriston,  Collielaw  passed  next  into 
the  possession  of  Charles  Binning,  Solicitor,  of  Pilmuir.§ 
On  27th  February  1722,  Pilmuir  lands  are  erected  by 
charter  of  novodainus  into  the  barony  of  Pilmuir.  On  the 
same  date  Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse  become  part  of  this 
barony,  and  sasine  of  the  same  is  given  to  Binning,  28th 

*  Sasines.  t  Retours. 

+  Ibid.  §  Acts  and  Decreets^  vol.  597. 


492  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

August  1723.*  The  lands  and  teinds  of  Collielaw  were 
disponed  to  him  by  Ker  of  Morrieston. 

The  name  of  Binning  brings  us  into  contact  with  the 
house  of  Binning  and  Byres,  and  the  creation  of  the 
Earldom  of  Haddington.  The  Gowrie  conspiracy,  in  1600, 
gave  John  Ramsay  the  favour  of  King  James  VI.  for  saving 
his  life  on  that  occasion.  He  was  created  Viscount  Had- 
dington, and  on  28th  August  1609,  he  received  all  the 
lands  and  baronies  which  belonged  to  Melrose  Abbey,  with 
certain  exceptions.  He  was  created  Lord  Ramsay  of 
Melrose,  25th  August  161 5,  but  afterwards  resigned  it  to 
his  brother.  Sir  George  of  Dalhousie,  who  with  the  King's 
permission  changed  it  for  the  title  of  Lord  Ramsay  of 
Dalhousie.  Lord  John  was  afterwards  created  Earl  of 
Holderness,  in  England,  and  seems  to  have  disposed  of 
the  possessions  attached  to  the  Melrose  title  at  the  same 
time  that  he  abandoned  the  title  itself  to  Lord  Dalhousie. 
At  any  rate,  all  the  lands  and  baronies  belonging  to  Melrose 
Abbey  were  granted,  in  16 18,  to  Sir  Thomas  Hamilton  of 
Priestfield,  who,  in  161 3,  had  been  already  created  Lord 
Binning  and  Byres,  and  was  in  1619  created  Earl  of  Melrose. 
When  Lord  John,  Earl  of  Holderness,  died  in  1625,  without 
issue.  Lord  Melrose  secured  the  suppression  of  his  own 
title,  and  of  his  being  created  Earl  of  Haddington  instead, 
on  27th  August  1627.  He  was  King's  Advocate,  Lord  Clerk 
Register,  Secretary  of  State,  Lord  President  of  the  Court 
of  Session,  and  Keeper  of  the  Privy  Seal,  prior  to  his 
death  in  1637. 

The  family  of  Binning  do  not  appear  to  have  enjoyed 
Collielaw  for  any  length  of  time,  as  we  find  that  on  28th 
May  1724,  Charles  grants  a  feu-charter  in  favour  of  James 
*  Sasines,  28th  August  1723. 


COLLIELAW  493 

Fairgrieve,  in  which  he  conveys  to  him,  "  All  and  Haill  these 
parts  and  portions  of  the  barony  of  Pilmuir  called  the  lands 
of  Collielaw,  with  tower,  fortalice,  manor  place,  and  haill 
pertinents  thereff,  lying  within  the  barony  of  Pilmuir  parish 
of  Channelkirk,  bailiary  of  Lauderdale,  and  sheriffdom  of 
Berwick,  with  All  and  Haill  the  teinds  of  the  lands  of 
Collielaw."  * 

James  Fairgrieve  was  one  of  that  hardy  class  of  plough- 
men-farmers who  from  small  beginnings  rise,  by  diligence  and 
Scotch  "  hainin',"  to  possess,  as  lords  and  masters,  the  broad 
acres  over  which  in  their  youth  they  may  have  wandered  as 
herd-boys.  His  father  was  tenant  in  Threeburnford,  in  those 
days,  for  thirty  years,  and  James,  after  he  had  guddled  his 
trout  as  a  boy  in  "  Airhouse  Water,"  and  in  his  youth  had 
laid  the  old  man's  head  in  Channelkirk  churchyard,  was  tenant 
in  his  father's  room  for  forty  years  more.  He  then  resided 
in  "  Nether  Heartside,"  where  he  farmed  a  short  time  till  he 
went  to  live  in  Collielaw,  which  he  had  purchased,  and  where 
he  spent  twenty  years,  finally  ending  his  days  as  a  residenter 
in  Lauder. 

The  description  given  of  Collielaw  in  his  title  deeds  show 
it  as  quite  a  lordly  dwelling,  with  a  certain  mediaeval  dignity 
surrounding  it,  suggestive  of  stirring  days  when  fire  and 
force  had  to  be  calculated  in  the  architecture  of  a  habitation. 
The  modern  indifference  to  the  venerable  relics  of  bygone 
days  in  Lauderdale  was  yet  in  its  inceptive  stage,  and 
Collielaw  stood  clothed  in  its  ancient  distinction  and 
strength — proud,  doubtless,  of  its  past  associations,  but  not 
without  forebodings  surely  of  its  coming  dissolution.  For 
with  the  entrance  of  a  peasant  proprietary,  there  unfortun- 

*  Decreet  of  Locality^  98-99;  and  Teind  Court  Papers,  November  18, 
1819  ;  and  "  Wideopen  Common  Case,"  in  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597. 


494  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

ately  also  came  with  it  a  lack  of  sympathy  for  traditions 
to  which  it  was  alien ;  and  the  industrial  awakening  of 
that  age  began  to  clamour  for  reform  in  cultivating  and 
clearing  of  land,  as  loudly  as  ever  sounded  in  former  days 
the  call  for  reform  in  morality.  The  same  results  ensued 
in  both  cases.  Much  was  swept  away  which  was  worth 
more  to  any  countryside  than  an  extension  of  acres,  and 
which  never  can  be  replaced,  though  it  may  be  lamented. 
It  humbly  appears  that  the  ties  that  bind  us  to  the  past 
should  never  be  broken,  even  though  the  past  be  a  bad  one, 
for  we  require  to  be  warned  as  well  as  encouraged,  and  if  it 
be  permitted  to  men  to  build  their  dykes  and  cowsheds  out 
of  old  castle  walls  and  habitations,  hoary  with  venerable 
eild,  it  is  also  conceivable  that  the  time  might  come  when 
the  same  race  would  find  it  profitable  to  clear  out  the 
gravestones  of  their  forefathers,  in  order  to  have  more 
ground  in  which  to  plant  their  turnips.  This  unthinking 
commercial  spirit  was  largely  responsible  for  the  rude 
ecclesiastical  structures  which  were  called  churches  in  the 
last  century. 

About  1729  there  was  a  tenant  in  Collielaw  called 
Archibald  Smith,  who  seems  to  have  had  independent  views 
regarding  his  rights  on  Wideopen  Common.  William  Murray 
held  both  farms  of  Eastertown  and  Threeburnford — the  bad 
system  of  "  led  "  farms  not  being  quite  new  in  Lauderdale, 
evidently— and  sent  his  sheep  of  both  farms  to  browse  on 
the  common  at  will.  Markets  were  dull,  and  there  was  no 
demand  for  sheep,  and  William  wished  to  keep  them  there 
till  matters  mended.  But  Smith  thought  he  was  scourging 
the  Common  at  the  general  expense,  and  turned  Murray's 
sheep  off  with  much  heat  and  determination.  Murray  suc- 
cumbed so  far  as  to  beg  Smith  to  permit  them  to  go  on  the 


COLLIELAW  495 

Common  for  a  few  weeks,  as  a  favour,  but  Smith  was  in- 
exorable and  would  not  grant  it.  Murray  thought  that  he 
was  treated  "  very  unneighbourly,"  and  an  ardent  tailor  in 
Pilmuir,  aged  seventy-five,  in  speaking  of  the  occurrence, 
characterised  it  as  a  "  squabble,"  and  declared  that  "  the 
voice  of  the  country  "  considered  Smith's  conduct  "  robbery." 
Smith  was  James  Fairgrieve's  brother-in-law,  and  lived 
"  under  the  same  roof  with  him  at  Collielaw."  The  Common 
was  the  cause  of  much  hot  blood,  and  ultimately  had  to  be 
taken  in  hand  by  the  courts  of  law.* 

On  the  29th  of  July  1757  James  Fairgrieve  "  of  Collielaw, 
now  indweller  in  Lauder,"  conveyed  by  disposition  the  lands 
of  Collielaw  to  George  Adinston  of  Carcant,  sasine  of  which 
was  granted  on  the  4th  November  of  the  same  year.f  Mrs 
Elizabeth  Catherine  and  Isobell  Binning  are  granted  sasine 
of  Collielaw  on  26th  October  1761.  On  27th  September  1770, 
William  Riddell,  W.S.,  receives  the  same  in  liferent,  and 
Lord  Marchmont  in  fee.  But  on  the  nth  of  May  1765, 
Elizabeth  Binning,  relict  of  Andrew  Buchanan  of  Drumpellier, 
Katherine  Binning,  and  David  Inglis,  merchant  in  Edin- 
burgh, and  treasurer  to  the  Bank  of  Scotland,  her  husband, 
and  Isobell  Binning,  daughters  of  Charles  Binning  of  Pilmuir, 
advocate,  dispone  finally  all  their  rights  in  Collielaw  to 
George  Adinston  of  Carcant,  who  conveys  these  lands  once 
more  to  Thomas,  his  son,  on  the  2nd  July  1783,  by  dis- 
position and  assignation.  The  said  Thomas  Adinston,  of 
Carcant,  passes  them  by  the  same  process,  17th  December 
1 8 10,  to  the  trustees  of  the  Scottish  Episcopal  Fund, 
and  on  Charter  of  Resignation  by  the  trustee  upon  the 
lordship   and    estate    of    Marchmont,    8th    February    181 1. 

*  "  Wideopen  Common  Case,"  Acfs  and  Decreets, 
t  Sasines. 


496  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  Binnings  are  still  said  to  be  Superiors  of  Collielaw  in 
1818.* 

These  trustees  of  the  Scottish  Episcopal  Fund  were  the 
Hon.  James  Clerk  Rattray,  one  of  the  Barons  of  Exchequer 
in  Scotland  ;  Sir  William  Forbes  of  Pitsligo,  Bart.  ;  Sir  John 
Hope  of  Craighall,  Bart. ;  Colin  M'Kenzie,  John  Hay  Forbes, 
and  Adam  Duff,  Esquires  ;  and  Dr  Thomas  Spens, 

In  the  Decreet  of  Locality  f  of  Channelkirk  stipend,  it  is 
said  that  the  Episcopal  congregation  of  St  John's,  Edinburgh, 
are  possessed  of  Collielaw  in  18 14.  This  church  was  built 
by  subscriptions  from  many  prominent  Episcopalians  in  the 
year  1817,  and  as  most  of  the  gentlemen  named  above  were 
original  contributors  to  the  Building  Fund,  the  "Trustees 'of 
the  Scottish  Episcopal  Fund  "  may  have  been  confused  in 
the  Decreet  with  the  "  Episcopal  Congregation  of  St  John's." 
On  the  31st  December  18 19  these  trustees  were  before  the 
Court  of  Teinds  with  a  petition  anent  Collielaw  Teinds, 
which  had  been  troublesome  since  the  days  of  Charles 
Binning,  and  it  is  therein  stated  that  "  the  petitioners,  who 
now  hold  the  lands  of  Collielaw  as  trustees  for  a  charitable 
purpose  (having  recently  purchased  them  for  behoof  of  that 
charity)."  This  "  charitable  purpose "  may  hint  at  the 
"  Episcopal  Fund  "  or  the  "  Episcopal  Congregation."  It  is 
not  quite  clear.  As  these  trustees  died,  however,  we  find 
that  the  succeeding  trustees  were  also  seised  in  the  same 
lands  and  teinds  of  Collielaw,  on  disposition  by  the  surviving 
trustees,  as  late  as  21st  March  and  24th  December  of  the 
year  1839.  In  1852  Collielaw  is  in  the  hands  of  the  Earl  of 
Lauderdale,  and  he  still  retains  it. 

As  it  stands  at  the  present  day,  Collielaw  is  a  farm  of 
530  acres,  of  varied  soil  from  stiff  clay  to  loamy,  becoming 
*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  100.  t  Page  354. 


COLLIELAW  497 

more  stony  and  coarse  as  it  rises  towards  the  law.  At  its 
lowest  levels  it  is  slightly  moorish  in  nature.  The  approaches 
to  it  are  all  good,  as  are  also  the  field  roads,  which  are  kept 
up  by  the  tenant.  Its  yearly  rent  or  valuation  is  £'^6i,  i  is.  6d., 
with  id.  of  feu-duty  and  ground-annual.  The  rotation  of 
crops  is  generally  the  "five-shift,"  but  there  is  no  hard 
and  fast  rule.  Usually  there  are  about  212  acres  in  grass, 
rather  more  than  less,  106  in  turnips,  and  about  the  same  in 
crop  as  in  grass.  The  buildings  of  the  steading  cannot  be 
called  satisfactory  as  the  present  standard  of  farming  is  calcu- 
lated. They  would  be  greatly  improved  by  being  covered 
over  for  cattle  feeding.  The  water-supply  is  abundant  for  all 
purposes,  and  drainage  fairly  good.  There  are  somewhat 
over  400  ewes  on  the  farm.  The  markets  are  those  attended 
by  nearly  all  Lauderdale  farmers,  and  are  satisfactory  in  their 
methods.  The  new  binders  which  are  general  in  the  dale 
are  in  use  here,  and  other  new  cultivators,  such  as  grubbers, 
have  been  introduced  within  recent  years.  The  wages  are 
those  prevalent  in  the  district,  and  are  not  so  high  as  those 
further  down  country,  as,  for  example,  in  Roxburghshire. 
The  smith  work  on  the  farm,  and  over  all  the  parish, 
is  charged  at  lod.  a  shoe,  or  ^3,  15s.  a  year  for  keeping  up 
the  requirements  of  a  pair  of  horses.  Joiners  are  on  "  penny 
pay,"  that  is,  they  are  paid  as  work  is  done.  The  souls  on 
the  farm  number  twenty-three  in  all. 

Collielaw  was  farmed  at  the  opening  of  this  century  by  a 
Mr  Dobson.  He  was  succeeded  by  Robert  Hedderwick,  of 
whom  a  good  story  is  told.  The  Road  Trustees  asked  him  to 
take  charge  of  the  money  allotted  for  the  expenses  of  the 
upkeep  of  the  roads  in  the  parish,  and  were  disgusted  to  find 
that  he  had  spent  it  all  on  the  road  that  leads  from  the 
Lauder  Road  to  Collielaw.     The  Trustees  declared  that  as 

2  I 


498  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

not  an  honest  man  could  be  found  in  the  parish  to  deal  fairly 
with  this  matter,  they  would  give  the  money  next  to  Rev. 
John  Brown,  the  minister.  He  would  surely  deal  justly  with 
all  the  parish  roads.  But  Mr  Brown  expended  the  year's 
allowance  allotted  to  him  on  the  road  leading  from  Braefoot 
to  the  Manse !  Perhaps  it  is  the  least  used  road  for  carts  in 
the  whole  parish.     It  was  once  ill,  twice  worse. 

Mr  Stewart  succeeded  Mr  Hedderwick,  then  his  son 
Charles  Stewart. 

The  present  tenant  is  Andrew  Thomson,  Esq.  of  Main- 
hill,  St  Boswell's.  He  entered  on  Whitsunday  1881,  for  a 
lease  of  nineteen  years.  His  son,  George  J.  Thomson,  Esq., 
resides  on  the  farm  all  the  year,  and  he  himself  and  family 
during  the  autumn  months.  He  is  a  staunch  friend  to  the 
Church  of  Scotland,  a  characteristic  which  is  traditional  in 
the  family,  and  far  from  being  unknown  in  Channelkirk 
Church. 

For  general  advantage  and  beauty  of  situation,  Collielaw 
is  perhaps  inferior  to  no  place  in  the  valley.  Lauderdale 
is  here  at  its  broadest,  and  its  undulating  and  spacious 
holms  along  the  Leader  and  Whelplaw  Waters,  with  the 
hills  beyond  Adinston  and  Longcroft  rising  in  the  distance, 
form  a  pastoral  scene  of  surpassing  grace  and  loveliness.  No 
barren  scar  in  glen  or  hillside  breaks  the  soft  impressiveness 
of  extended  meadows  and  sunny  correis  ;  and  the  wandering 
sheep,  browsing  more  than  a  thousand  feet  above  sea-level, 
or  the  fisher  slowly  following  the  windings  of  the  stream, 
together  with  the  solitary  form  of  some  shepherd,  or  toiling 
plough,  blend  pleasantly  with  the  Arcadian  aspect  and  quiet 
serenity  of  the  dale.  Nor  are  the  industrial  amenities  of 
Collielaw  to  remain  behind  the  picturesque ;  for  a  few 
months  will  probably  see  the  locomotive  rushing   past   its 


COLLIELAW  499 

approaches,  lending  the  blessings  of  travelling  and  trading 
convenience  to  the  charms  of  bountiful  nature.  One  regret 
will  nevertheless  remain  with  us,  amid  all  that  is  here 
changeless  and  changing,  viz.,  that  the  "  Auld  House  o' 
Collielaw  is  awa'." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

AlRHOUSE — Aroives,  Arwys,  Arus,  Arrois,  Arras,  Aruts. 

The  Name— Adam  del  Airwis — Strife  at  Arrois  in  1476 — The  Hop- 
pringles — The  Heriots  of  Arrois — The  Somervilles  of  Airhouse,  1654 
— "Arras,  now  called  Airhouse,"  1773 — Kirk-Session  Squabbles — 
Gloomy  Days  at  Airhouse — Lord  Lauderdale — Situation  and  Area  of 
Airhouse — Tenants — Parkfoot — Tenants. 

No  place  in  this  parish  has  perplexed  the  writer  more 
than  Airhouse,  both  as  regards  its  name  and  its  early 
history.  From  its  superior  station  and  surroundings,  its 
general  air  of  reserve  and  respectability,  its  advantages 
for  ancient  methods  of  defence  and  modern  cultivation, 
one  would  expect  its  annals  to  be  full  and  clear,  and  the 
difficulty  of  tracing  its  genesis  a  minimum  task.  The 
contrary  of  this  is  the  case.  Its  name  is  puzzling,  and  it 
has  not  been  possible  for  us  to  get  light  upon  its  early 
days  further  than   the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century. 

The  name  "  Airhouse  "  is  a  grandiosity  of  modern  times, 
and  is  a  vulgar  expansion  of  an  ancient  appellation  which 
is  both  more  eye-sweet  and  etymologically  interesting.  It 
seems  to  have  come  into  general  use  about  the  beginning 
of  the  seventeenth  century. 

In  1328  it  comes  under  our  notice  first  as  "Airwis" 
and  "  Aroves  "  ;  in  1329,  as  "  Arowes  "  ;  in  1330  as  "  Arwys  " 


AIRHOUSE  501 

and  "Arovves";  in  1331  and  1332-3  it  is  "  Arus."  In  15 10 
we  have  "Arous;"  in  1627  it  is  first  styled  "  Airhouse." 
On  Font's  map,  1608,  it  is  called  "  Arrowes,"  and  on  Moll's 
map  of   1725,  it  is  still  spelt  in  the  same  way. 

From  the  contiguity  of  the  three  places,  Airhouse, 
Collielaw,  and  Bowerhouse,  and  the  fact  that  they  all  lie 
on  the  west  side  of  the  Leader,  and  might  in  very  ancient 
times  have  been  possessed  by  one  tribe,  we  were  tempted 
to  seek  a  solution  of  the  name  in  suggestions  evoked  by 
reading  Dr  Skene's  description  of  the  Irish  Tuath*  or 
tribe,  where  "  Aire  tuise  "  is  a  grade  of  rank  in  the  tribe  ; 
"  Boaire "  being  another,  and  "  Ceile "  another.  It  does 
not  appear,  however,  that  the  Irish  ever  settled  in 
Berwickshire  to  an  extent  such  as  might  justify  us  in 
seeking  for  an  explanation  along  that  path.  There  are 
several  suggestions,  indeed,  of  an  Irish  connection  with 
Lauderdale  in  early  times.  Lauder  system  of  agriculture, 
for  example,  known  as  "co-aration  of  the  waste,"  was  the 
same  as  that  in  existence  at  Kells,-f-  where  St  Cuthbert 
is  said  to  have  been  born.  The  Irish  story  of  St  Cuthbert 
brings  him  to  the  Lothians  to  his  kinsfolk.  In  the  days 
of  King  Oswald,  ruler  of  Northumbria,  of  which  Lauder- 
dale was  a  district,  Bede  tells  us  "  From  that  time  (635  A.D.) 
many  of  the  Scots  (Irish)  came  daily  into  Britain,  and, 
with  great  devotion,  preached  the  word  to  those  provinces 
of  the  English  over  which  King  Oswald  reigned.  J  The 
Irish  chiefs,  and  Irish  led  by  Norsemen,  repeatedly  raided 
Berwickshire.  Aed,  son  of  Neil,  King  of  Ireland,  about 
879   A.D.,   brought   the   whole    of    Bernicia    (and    therefore 

*  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  iii.,  pp.  142-148. 
+  Gomme's  Village  Coinniunity,  p.  153. 
+  Ecclesiastical  History,  vol.  iii.,  p.  3. 


502  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Berwickshire)  under  subjection  to  himself.  *  Notwith- 
standing these  historical  facts,  it  is  just  possible  that  the 
name  of  Airhouse  may  possess  an  etymological  lineage 
not  dissimilar  to  the  derivation  of  the  name  of  Lauder- 
dale. As  a  name,  Lauderdale  is  admittedly  derived  from 
the  Water  of  Leader,  and  so  also  may  Airhouse  be  de- 
rived from  Arras  Water.  This  water  is  now  called  Mount- 
mill  Burn,  but  originally,  and  down  to  1762  at  least, 
it  was  named  "  Arras  Water."  In  its  course  it  encircles 
Airhouse  braes  and  woods  in  the  form  of  a  reaper's  hook, 
if  we  take  the  point  to  lie  at  Threeburnford,  and  the 
handle  to  extend  from  the  bridge  at  old  Peasmountford 
down  to  Nether  Howden.  Yet  it  seems  quite  possible 
also  that  instead  of  the  water  giving  its  name  to  the 
house,  the  house  may  have  given  its  name  to  the  water. 
The  two  views  seem  to  be  supported  by  the  following 
authorities : — 

"The  widely  diffused  root  Ar  causes  much  perplexity. 
The  Avar,  as  Caesar  says,  flows  incredibili  lenitate,  while,  as 
Coleridge  tells  us,  'the  Arve  and  Arveiron  rave  cease- 
lessly.' We  find,  however,  on  the  one  hand  a  Welsh 
word  Araf,  gentle,  and  an  obsolete  Gaelic  ward  Ar,  slow, 
and  on  the  other  we  have  a  Celtic  word,  Arw,  violent,  and 
a   Sanskrit  root  Arb,  to  ravage,  or  destroy. 

"  From  one  or  other  of  these  roots,  according  to  the 
character  of  the  river,  we  may  derive  the  names  of  Arw 
in  Monmouth,  the  Are  and  Aire  in  Yorkshire,  the  Ayr 
in  Cardigan  and  Ayrshire,  the  Arre  in  Cornwall,  the  Arro 
in  Warwick,  the  Arrow  in  Hereford  and  Sligo,  the  Aray, 
in  Argyll,  the  Ara-glin  and  the  Aragadeen  in  Cork,  etc."  f 

*  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  i.,  p.  331. 

t  Rev.  Isaac  Taylor's  Words  and  Places. 


AIRHOUSE  503 

Both  significations  of  gentle  and  violent  can  be  applied 
to  "  Arras "  Water,  according  to  the  season  of  the  year ; 
and  in  ancient  days,  when  it  first  received  its  name,  its 
character  of  violence,  from  the  present-day  evidence  of 
its  inroads  on  the  hillsides,  must  have  been  amply 
maintained. 

The  other  choice  we  have  is  from  Macbain's  Gaelic 
Dictionary — "  Welsh  spelling  of  Aros  is  Arazus,  connect- 
ing it  with  rest."  There  is  an  Aros  in  Mull,  and  we  are 
informed  by  Gaelic-speaking  scholars  that  Aruys,  which 
Airhouse  is  sometimes  called,  is  a  very  likely  spelling  for 
Aros,  which  means  a  dwelling,  a  mansion.  Arisaig,  for 
example,  may  mean  Aros-eig,  the  house,  or  port,  of  Eig. 

That  it  may  be  either  Welsh  or  Gaelic  in  spelling, 
either  Araws  or  Aros,  is  quite  possible  from  the  close 
connection  which  Lauderdale  maintained  for  generations 
with  Galloway,  a  Welsh-speaking  district.  Also,  as  the 
Irish  or  Scots  frequently  invaded  the  south  of  Scotland 
by  way  of  Galloway,  there  were  many  opportunities  for 
Gaelic  names  to  find  a  home  in  Lauderdale.  Gille/alyn, 
for  example,  is  an  inhabitant  of  Oxton  in  the  I2th  century, 
and  his  name  is  Gaelic ;  KelpJiope  is  from  the  Gaelic 
Cailpeach ;  Carfrae  may  be  either  Welsh  or  Gaelic  ;  and 
Glengelt  may  not  possibly  be  wholly  Gaelic,  although  the 
Glen  in  it  seems  correctly  denominated  so.  But  as  the 
Ottadini,  the  oldest  historical  inhabitants  of  Berwick- 
shire, were  claimed  as  Brythons,  or  kinsmen  of  the  Welsh, 
the  name  of  Airhouse  in  its  Welsh  spelling  may  easily 
find  a  home  in  that  language,  and,  at  least,  date  as  far 
back  as  the  second  century. 

It  is  in  1328  A.D.  that  we  stumble  on  the  first  reference 
to  Airhouse.     Great  changes  had  been  effected,  not  only  in 


504  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  country  in  general,  but  in  Lauderdale  in  particular. 
The  De  Morvilles  had  passed  away,  the  Earls  of  Galloway 
had  lost  their  hold  on  the  dale  through  John  de  Balliol, 
whose  high  royal  hopes  had  been  dashed  before  the  all- 
conquering  arm  of  Robert  the  Bruce.  About  the  time 
when  the  mists  lift  from  Airhouse,  Bruce  was  bestowing 
upon  his  faithful  followers  all  the  lands  and  emoluments 
which  had  fallen  to  him  as  King  of  Scotland.  The 
Douglases  received  Lauderdale,  and  long  were  Lords  of 
that  Regality.  It  will  be  observed  that  "  Adam  of  Airwis," 
in  the  following,  is  in  receipt  of  an  annual  ten  pound  grant 
from  the  King,  no  doubt  for  noble  service,  and  draws  it 
direct  from  the  customs  of  Berwick.  He  is  also  mentioned 
in  the  high  company  of  "  Robert  of  Lauderdale,  Guardian 
of  the  Merse  and  the  Camp  of  Berwick,  and  Sheriff  of 
the  same,"  and  we  are  warranted  in  supposing  that  he  was 
a  man  of  considerable  name  and  influence,  and  that  the 
King  had  honoured  and  rewarded  him  in  this  way. 

The  following  are  the  several  references*: — "1328  A.D., 
and  to  Adam  of  Airwis,  for  his  fee,  at  the  said  term 
(Pentecost),  100  shillings." 

"  And  to  Adam  of  Aroves,  at  the  term  of  Martinmas, 
after  the  time  of  the  account,  100  shillings;  and  to  the 
same  in  supplement  of  the  payment  made  to  him  at  the 
term  of  Pentecost  of  this  account,  xx  shillings." 

"A.D.  1329. — The  accounts  of  the  bailiffs  and  tax  col- 
lectors of  Berwick  .  .  .  and  from  the  Chamberlain  by  receipt 
from  Adam  of  Arowes,  at  his  order,  20  shillings,  for  which 
the  Chamberlain  will  answer." 

"  And  to  Adam  of  Arowes,  receiving  annually  ten  pounds 
{decern  libras)  from  the  grant  of  the   King,  by  charter  out 

*  Exchequer  Rolls. 


AIRHOUSE  505 

of  the  forementioned  custom,  and  as  far  as  shall  have 
been  provided  for  him  from  another  source  at  the  last 
term  of  this  account,  and  not  more  than  this  at  the  said 
term,  because  twenty  shillings  {viginti  solidi)  of  a  re- 
mainder will  be  divided  in  the  account  of  the  Lord 
Chamberlain.  The  sum  of  this  expense  is  viii'^  xlij  li.  iij  s. 
iij  d.  q.  (;^842,  3s.  3id.)." 

"  And  to  Adam  of  Arwys,  receiving  annually  ten  pounds, 
according  to  the  grant  of  the  King,  by  charter,  at  the 
first  term  of  this  account,  lOO  shillings  ;  and  to  Dominus 
Robert  of  Lauderdale,  as  part  of  his  fee,  one  hundred  merks 
for  his  guardianship  of  the  Merse,  and  of  the  Castle  of 
Berwick,  and  of  the  Sheriffdom  of  the  same  at  the  first 
term  of  this  account." 

"A.D.  1331. — And  to  Adam  of  Arus,  for  his  fee,  at  the 
two  terms  of  this  account,  ten  pounds  ;  and  to  the  Chamber- 
lain acknowledging  receipt,  an  account  besides  of  xiiij  li. 
xixs.  ixd.  q.  (;£"i4,  19s.  9id.)." 

"  I  Feb.  1334. — Robert  de  la  Tang  acknowledges  having 
received  by  the  hands  of  the  Abbot  and  Convent  of  Scone, 
;^20  sterling,  in  which  they  were  indebted  to  Adam  de  la 
Arus  by  a  certain  obligation,  of  which  ;^20,  as  attorney  of 
the  said  Adam  and  his  spouse,  he  holds  himself  well  satis- 
fied, and  discharges  the  said  Abbot  and  Convent.  Attested 
by  the  seals  of  John  Gye,  burgess  of  Perth,  and  of  the 
granter  [both  wanting],  given  at  Perth  on  Monday  next 
preceding  the  Feast  of  the  Purification  of  the  Blessed  Virgin 
Mary  [Feb.  i].     In  the  year  of  grace  1333  [34]."* 

This  last  charter  sustains  the  view  that  the  proprietor 
of  Airhouse  was  a  person  of  some  dignity  and  importance. 

♦  Original  Charters,  Register  House,  Edinburgh  ;  also,  Liber  de  Scona, 
No.  164. 


506     ,  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIIIK 

We  are  not  to  be  surprised  that  we  find  him  connected 
with  people  so  far  removed  from  Lauderdale  as  Scone. 
There  is  just  the  bare  possibility  that  the  "  Arus  "  here  might 
be  the  "  Aros  "  of  Mull.  But  it  is  highly  improbable.  More- 
over, so  far  as  communication  is  concerned,  when  we  con- 
sider the  wealth  and  Court  influence  of  the  man,  his  favour 
with  King  Robert,  and  the  metropolitan  and  court  status 
of  Perth  during  that  period,  it  will  be  conceded  that  for 
Adam  of  Airhouse  to  have  made  his  services  obligatory 
to  the  Abbot  of  Scone  by  a  loan  of  money  or  otherwise,  is 
not  a  very  remote  contingency,  considering  the  unsettled 
nature  of  the  times.  We  learn  here  that  Adam  was 
married.  In  the  Exchequer  Rolls  there  is  a  notice  which 
seems  to  confirm  this  :  "  A.D.  1332. — Et  gardropario,  Katerine 
del  Fawsid  et  Alicie  del  Aruys,  pro  feodo  suo,  de  mandato 
custodis,  per  literam,  xxx  s," — "  And  to  the  keeper  of  the 
wardrobe,  Katherine  of  Fawsid,  and  to  Alice  of  Aruys,  for 
fee,  by  order  of  the  Warden,  by  letter,  30s." 

Alice  may  have  been  his  wife  or  daughter.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  she  must  have  been  officially  engaged  in  honour- 
able service  at  Court.  A  curious  thing  is  observable  in  the 
language  of  these  last  two  notices.  The  French  turn  is  quite 
apparent,  "  Adam  de  la  Arus,"  "  Alicie  del  Aruys."  The 
French  influence  at  this  time  was  prevalent  in  Scotland. 
For  just  a  few  years  before  the  above  date,  the  Scotch  and 
French  had  concluded  a  treaty  in  which  one  of  the  clauses 
made  good  that,  "  Any  peace  between  France  and  England 
ceases  if  there  is  war  between  England  and  Scotland,  and  so 
of  any  peace  between  England  and  Scotland  should  there  be 
war  between  France  and  England."*  England  was  the 
common  enemy  to  the  French  and  the  Scotch,  and  before 
*  History  of  Scotland^  J.  H.  Burton,  vol  ii.,  p.  297. 


AIRHOUSE  507 

Bruce's  time  of  royal  successes,  Wallace  is  reputed  to  have 
gone  to  France  to  seek  help  from  that  quarter  after  the 
disaster  of  Falkirk.  The  French  de  la  Arus  also  clears  up 
another  point  with  regard  to  the  meaning  of  "  Airhouse," 
which  the  Latin,  with  its  lack  of  the  article,  fails  to  do.  The 
proprietor  is  "Adam  of  The  Arus"  a  phrase  which  in  the 
popular  speech  of  the  district  one  sometimes  hears  to-day. 
This  would  point  to  the  meaning  given  in  the  Gaelic  "  Aros," 
"  The  House  "  as  the  original  one. 

With  reference  to  "  Katerine  of  Fawsid  "  being  associated 
with  "  Alice  of  Aruys "  in  the  King's  service,  we  take  this 
to  confirm  the  evident  identity  of  our  Airhouse  with  the 
"  Arus  "  of  the  Exchequer  Rolls,  for  "  Fawside,"  as  we  surmise, 
is  the  "  Fallside  "  of  the  parish  of  Tranent.  Moreover,  that 
they  were  both  paid  out  of  the  customs  of  Berwick  seems  to 
prove  that  the  place  was  in  Berwickshire  ;  moreover,  "  Robert 
de  Fausid  "  is  a  witness  in  a  charter  given  by  Allan  of  Hart-' 
side  to  Sir  Alexander  de  Seton  of  land  in  Oxton  territory  in 
1327,  exactly  about  the  same  time  as  these  references  ;  show- 
ing that  the  landed  proprietors  of  "  Fausid,"  "  Arus,"  and 
"  Hertesheued  "  were  in  the  habit  of  companying  with  each 
other,  and  aiding  each  other  in  their  business  affairs.* 

Perhaps  "  Ade  de  la  Arus "  was  of  French  extraction 
himself.  The  name  "Ade"  does  not  help  us,  however,  as 
it  appears  to  be  merely  the  diminutive  of  Adam,  and  the 
French  expressions  in  the  charters  may  have  resulted  from 
some  French  monk's  method  of  writing  them. 

We  have  been  unable  to  find  any  trace  of  Airhouse  in 
the  charters  of  the  religious  houses  ;  that  is,  of  Dryburgh, 
Melrose,  Kelso,  St  Andrews,  Dunfermline,  Holyrood,  etc., 
with  the  exception  of  the  above  reference  in  the  Book  of 
Scone.  All  remains,  therefore,  in  profound  darkness,  re- 
*  Original  Charters. 


510  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

said  to  be  bounded  on  the  south  by  Wgstoun,  and  on  the 
west  by  "  lie  Arrous."  *  Here  once  more  we  meet  with  the 
French  form  (Scotticised)  of  "  TJie  Arrous,"  "  the  House." 
"  Joneta  Heriot  of  Aras  "  is  heir  of  Thomas  Heriot  of  Aras, 
her  grandfather,  in  1610. -f-  Jonet  or  Janet  Hereot  was 
daughter  to  "the  late  James  Hereot  of  Trabroun,"  as  we 
learn  from  a  sasine  of  date  nth  July  1583,  and  was  married 
to  John  Borthwick,  eldest  son  of  Francis  Borthwick  and 
Margaret  Congleton  of  Ballincrief  :|:  In  1627  we  have  the 
first  mention  of  the  form  "  Airhouse  "  from  the  Rev.  Henry 
Cockburn,  minister  at  Channelkirk.  In  his  report  of  his 
church  he  says  : — "  Airhouse  is  in  stok  eight  scoir  merkis  ; 
personage,  20  lib. ;  viccarage,  20  lib."  Perhaps  he  was  the 
inventor  of  the  expanded  form  of  the  name.  Hillhouse  and 
Bourhouse  in  the  parish  might  suggest  "  Airhouse "  as  the 
correct  spelling — these  names  being  always  pronounced 
"Hillus"  "  Boorus,"  in  a  manner  similar  to  "Arus,  In 
1631-32  we  find  this  note  in  the  Decreet  of  Locality:  "The 
Lord  Humbie — his  lands  of  Airhouse  possessed  by  the  Lady 
(Trabroun)."  She  is  said  to  "  possess "  the  lands  of  Over 
Howden  in  winter,  although  Lord  Humbie  owns  them.  In 
1676,  "Andreas  Ker  de  Moriestoune,"  heir  of  Mark  Ker,  his 
father,  draws  half  the  teinds  of  "  Aruts"  in  this  parish.§  As 
if  to  make  sure  of  the  place,  it  is  twice  mentioned,  first  as 
"  Aruts,"  then  as  "  Arids."  Of  course  this  right  of  teinds 
descended  from  Lord  Cardross,  though  in  1692  we  find  that 
it  had  passed  out  of  the  Kers'  hands.  It  was  then  in  pos- 
session of  James  Nicolson  of  Trabroun,  who  in  1693  "bound 
and  obliged  himself,  his  heirs  and  successors,  to  warrant, 
free,  relieve,  and  skaithless  keep  the  said  George  Somerville 

*  Great  Seal.  t  Retours. 

:|:  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters.  §  Retours. 


AIRHOUSE  511 

(of  Airhouse)  and  Marion  Wadderston  his  spouse,  and  their 
foresaids,  from  all  payment  of  any  teinds  payable  out  of  the 
said  lands"  of  Airhouse.* 

This  reference  to  the  "  Somervilles  of  Airhouse,"  the 
designation  by  which  they  are  always  quoted  in  the  parish 
to  this  day,  leads  to  a  brief  account  of  that  family  in 
this  place.  In  1490  we  find  John  Somerville,  Gilbert  Somer- 
ville,  and  Thomas  Somerville,  "  tenants  "  in  Glengelt.i*  These 
probably  were  the  ancestors  of  the  Somervilles,  who,  in 
later  times,  were  tenants  in,  or  proprietors  of,  so  many 
farms  in  Upper  Lauderdale. 

The  first  historical  notice  which  we  find  of  the  modern 
Somervilles  is  of  George  Somerville,  tenant  in  Carfrae, 
who,  together  with  his  wife  M.  (or  B.)  Watterstone,  received 
from  James  Nicolson,  of  Trabroun,  certain  rights  to  Wideopen 
Common  on  19th  May  1629.  Nothing  more  appears  to  be 
known  of  George  except  that  he  died  in  1642,  still  tenant 
in  Carfrae,  and  was  buried  in  Channelkirk  churchyard. 

There  is  mention  of  Adam  Somerville  in  the  Kirk 
Records  as  "  deacon "  in  Channelkirk  Church.  He  keeps 
the  poor's  money  in  1650,  he  is  called  an  elder  in  1656, 
and  on  November  25,  1661,  he  "desired  the  Session 
might  choose  another  deacon  to  keep  the  box.  The  Session 
made  choice  for  a  year  of  James  Somerville  in  Hetcha 
(Headshaw)  to  keep  the  box."  This  arrangement  seems 
to  derive  from  the  following  council — "  The  electioun  of 
Elderis  and  Deaconis  aught  to  be  used  everie  yeare  once, 
least  that  by  long  continuance  of  suche  officiaris,  men 
presume  upoun  the  libertie  of  the  Churche."^  This  is 
the  earliest  direct  evidence  of  that  respect  and  trust  which 

*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  186.  t  Acta  Doininorum  Concilii. 

X  The  Biike  of  Discipline  (Knox's  Works\  vol.  ii. 


512  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  people  in  the  parish  have  accorded  unstintedly  to  the 
Somerville  name  for  three  hundred  years.  At  this  early 
time  George  Somerville  is  in  Carfrae,  James  Somerville  in 
Headshaw,  and  "  William  Somerville  in  Glengelt."  *  When 
Airhouse  comes  into  their  hands  about  1693,  they  completely 
hold  the  most  northern  district  of  the  whole  valley  of 
the  Leader.  A  family  fit  to  "  possess  the  land "  evidently, 
and  loyally  accepting  all  the  burdens  and  responsibilities  of 
their  position,  both  in  church  and  farm.  Would  that  their 
honourable  example  had  been  more  generally  followed ! 

James  Somerville,  son  of  the  above  George,  became 
tenant  in  Carfrae  after  his  father's  death.  He  was  born 
in  161 1,  and  died  in  1698,  aged  87  years.  About  1693, 
successful  negotiations  regarding  the  purchasing  of  Airhouse 
were  effected  between  the  Somervilles  and  James  Nicolson 
of  Trabroun,  and  we  find  James's  son,  George  Somerville, 
installed  then  as  resident  proprietor  there.  Airhouse  was 
at  that  time  part  of  the  Barony  of  Trabroun. 

This  George  Somerville,  apparently  the  first  "  Somerville 
of  Airhouse,"  was  born  1654,  and  died  1741,  on  the  3rd 
of  April,  aged  87.  His  wife,  Marion  Watterstone,  pre- 
deceased him  on  November  1737,  aged  6^.  It  was  during 
his  time  that  the  five  years'  dispute  took  place  regarding 
the  election  of  a  minister  to  the  parish  church,  and  he 
seems  to  have  taken  a  keen  interest  in  the  matter.  He 
was  an  elder,  and  appeared  at  Earlston  Presbytery  on 
July  15,  1697,  along  with  another,  "desiring  a  hearing  of 
some  young  men  in  order  to  a  call."-f-  On  22nd  August, 
1700,  three  years  later,  we  find  him  petitioning  the  Presbytery 
for  more  elders  to  Channelkirk.  He  is  again  at  Presbytery 
"  reporting "  on  26th  December  1700,  and  on  September 
*  Kirk  Records.  f  Presbytery  Records. 


AIRHOUSE  513 

25,  1 70 1,  he  is  mentioned  along  with  "Alex.  Somerville " 
as  a  heritor  entitled  to  vote  for  a  minister,  the  elections 
then  being  limited  to  heritors  and  elders.  He  is  evidently 
disagreeably  shocked  at  not  having  "carried  his  man,"  for 
on  September  3,  1702,  he  appears  with  many  others 
to  offer  objections  to  the  minister's  appointment,  and 
solemnly  tables  a  paper  "  intituled  The  Reasons  of  a 
Protestation  against  the  ordaining  of  Mr  Henry  Home 
Minister  at  Channelkirk  ;  "  which,  as  usual,  the  Presbytery 
considered  as  containing  "  nothing  of  moment,"  and  pro- 
ceeded to  ordain. 

There  appears  to  have  been  another  George  Somerville 
at  this  time  in  Heriotshall,  for  John  Murray,  Ouplaw 
(Wooplaw),  gets  Heriotshall,  2nd  September  1727,  from 
Alexander  Somerville,  mariner  in  Chatham,  son  of  Alexander 
Somerville,  writer  in  Edinburgh,  deceased,  who  was  eldest 
son  of  the  deceased  George  Somerville  of  Heriotshall,  and 
Alison  Bathgate.* 

On  30th  October  17 14  the  George  Somerville  mentioned 
above  as  elder  and  "  protester "  "  grants  disposition  of  the 
said  lands  of  Airhouse  and  Commonty  Rights  to  James 
Somerville,  then  eldest  son,"t  and  the  said  James  is  found 
also  in  1739  to  have  purchased  "those  parts  of  Ugston 
Lands  on  the  west  side  of  the  highway  from  Peasemountford 
to  Lauder  Burgh,  formerly  sold  by  Thomas  Mathie  to 
James  Somerville,  younger  of  Airhouse,  with  part  of 
Glengelt  Moss  belonging  to  Ugston,  and  divided  between 
Thomas  Mathie  and  James  Somerville."  At  the  date  17 14, 
when  he  receives  Airhouse,  he  is  said  to  be  "tenant  in 
Carthrae."  :|:       He    was    bereaved     of    his    wife,    Margaret 

*  Ac/s  and  Decreets,  vol.  597.     Mack.  f  Ibid. 

X  Sasines. 

2  K 


514 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


Adinstone,  in  the  spring  of  1738,  and  his  young  son  George 
in  the  spring  of  1741,  aged  22.  He  himself  survived  till 
1 6th  May  1758,  when  his  bones  were  also  laid  in  Channelkirk 
graveyard,  at  the  age  of  72.  His  daughter  Agnes  followed 
him  in  1761,  aged  45,  after  having  afflicted  his  heart 
and  family  honour  by  standing  twice  on  the  repentant 
stool  for  a  woman's  weakness*  The  "  rebukes "  which 
she  received  must  have  been  cruel  to  her  nearest  relatives, 
who  were  in  authority,  for  "  the  minister  ordered  the  officer 
to  call  James  and  George  Somervail,  elders,  to  meet  at 
the  manse  upon  the  4th  instant."  They  had  been  staying 
away,  doubtless,  out  of  shame,  poor  men.  The  best  loved 
child  often  deals  the  keenest  blows  to  a  parent's  heart.  The 
family  tombstone  says  she  died  November  26,  1761,  but 
the  notice  of  her  burial  is  given  in  the  Kirk  Records  under 
31st  January  1762. 

It  was  in  1733  that  this  James  Somerville  bought  from  the 
Thomas  Mathie  mentioned  above,  and  who  was  a  "  merchant 
in  Cockenzie,"  "  those  parts  and  portions  of  the  lands  of 
Ugston  called  Pickleraw,  the  Forty-shilling  Lands,  and 
Temple  Lands  with  commonty  rights,  which  seem  to  have 
been  sold  again  to  Mr  Justice  of  Justicehall  in  i739.t  In 
1742  we  find  "James  Somervail  of  Airhouse  and  Oxton 
Mains "  attending  a  heritors'  meeting  to  assist  in  appor- 
tioning among  themselves  the  burden  of  the  schoolmaster's 
salary.j  He  took  a  warm  interest  in  all  that  concerned 
the  well-being  of  the  parish,  and  was  always  at  his  post 
whether  in  kirk  or  market.  He  is  regular  at  all  the  Kirk- 
Session  meetings  till  the  time  of  his  death,  old  man 
though    he    was,   and    had    the    most    trying    road    in    the 

*  Kirk  Records.  f  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597. 

t  Kirk  Records. 


AIRHOUSE  515 

parish,  perhaps,  to  be  encountered  every  time  he  attended. 
He  is  sent  to  represent  the  church  at  the  Synod  of  Dunse, 
April  1753,  and  seems  to  have  been  competent  for  all  his 
duties  up  till  a  very  short  time  before  his  death.  Just 
before  the  entry  under  4th  June  1758,  there  is  the 
customary  notice  in  such  cases,  "  Mortcloth  money  for 
James  Somervail  of  Airhouse,  £^,  12s,"  He  was  sur- 
vived by  his  second  wife,  Elizabeth  Allan,  forty-three 
years,  she  having  lived  till  19th  July  1801,  dying  at  the 
age  of  eighty. 

The  Somervilles  in  evidence  after  this  date  are  "  George 
Somerville  in  Carfrae,"  elder  and  treasurer  in  the  church  ; 
George  Somerville,  tenant  in  Hartsyde^  who  in  1754  is 
painfully  prominent  in  the  Records  as  having  been  re- 
buked from  his  seat,  and  "  paying  his  penalty "  for  the 
well-known  sin  ;  and  James  Somerville  of  Headshaw. 

James  Somerville's  son,  George,  was  in  his  ninth  year 
when  his  father  died,  he  having  first  seen  the  world  in 
1749,  and  by-and-by,  about  1764,  when  he  is  a  stripling 
of  fifteen,  we  find  him  designated  "  George  Somerville  of 
Airhouse."  He  appears  to  have  married  in  September 
1773.  It  is  on  27th  September  of  1773  that  sasine  was 
granted  to  John  Pringle  of  Haining  in  liferent,  and 
Robert  Scott  of  Trabroun  in  fee,  "  of  All  and  Haill  the  lands 
of  Arras,  now  called  Airhouse,"  etc.  This  does  not  imply, 
of  course,  that  the  Somervilles  were  out  of  Airhouse. 
The  same  estate  may  be  the  subject  of  separate  fees ; 
the  property  or  dominium  utile  being  vested  in  one  person, 
and  the  superiority  or  dominimn  directum  in  another. 
These  may  also  pass  from  one  person  to  another  as 
separate  estates.  Scott  held  in  fee  simple,  and  was 
Superior ;    Pringle   had   a  lifetime  interest,  and    Somerville 


516  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

was,  it  seems,  in  the  place  of  vassal  in  Airhouse,*  The 
steady  support  which  was  given  to  the  church  by  his 
forbears  does  not  stand  out  so  clearly  in  his  character. 
We  surmise  that  he  had  been  a  staunch  churchman  till 
a  new  minister  came  into  the  parish,  and  the  reverend 
gentleman  not  being  his  choice,  his  love  for  the  kirk  had 
cooled  and  even  hardened  into  something  like  freezing 
contempt.  The  system  of  electing  a  minister  in  Presby- 
terian churches  is  admirably  fitted  to  create  such  icy 
temperatures  in  a  parish,  and  there  are  few  parishes  in 
Scotland  at  present  but  are  either  undergoing,  or  not  long 
past,  or  just  about  to  enter  their  Glacial  Period  on  this 
account.  The  facts  of  Somerville's  experience  are  as 
follows: — The  Rev.  David  Scott  died  i6th  April  1792. 
"  There  was  neither  minister  nor  elder  in  the  parish,"  and 
the  heritors  met  to  dispense  the  poor's  money  and  clear 
up  the  Kirk-Session  accounts.  George  Somerville  of  Air- 
house  signs  the  minute  as  chairman.  On  26th  December 
of  the  same  year  the  Rev.  Thomas  Murray  receives  a 
"  call "  to  Channelkirk.  Presumably  he  was  objectionable 
to  many,  who  stayed  away  from  church  out  of  a  feeling 
of  discontent.  Or,  perhaps,  the  new  minister's  fiery  zeal 
may  not  have  suited  the  placid  Christianity  of  such  quiet 
people.  He  seems  to  have  smitten  the  "  erring  ones " 
hip  and  thigh  ;  and  he  made  bare  his  arm  even  upon  the 
minister  of  Lauder  also.  Murray  appears  to  have  been 
what  Upper  Lauderdale  people  call  "an  awfu'  yin."  The 
drunkards  and  fornicators  and  church  despisers  heard 
him  and  trembled!  On  21st  January  1798,  Mr  Murray 
represented  to  the  members  of  the  Session  that  several 
individuals  of  the  congregation  had  totally  absented  them- 
*  ?>ee  /urtdt'cal  Styles,  p.  125. 


AIRHOUSE  517 

selves  for  many  months  past  from  public  worship  without 
assigning  any  reason  for  such  improper  conduct,  and  that 
on  a  late  occasion  the  following  persons,  Mr  Somervail  of 
Airhouse,  Mr  Bertram  (tenant)  of  Hartsyde,  Mr  Douglas 
(tenant)  of  Kirktounhill,  and  Mr  David  Turnbull  in  Ugston, 
after  attending  a  funeral  to  the  churchyard  of  Channel- 
kirk  at  the  very  hour  of  public  worship,  instead  of  enter- 
ing the  church,  did,  in  the  face  of  the  congregation,  turn 
their  back  upon  it,  and  retire  to  Airhouse.  Was  the  like 
ever  heard  of  in  any  parish  ?  The  Session  are  unanimously 
of  opinion  that  such  conduct  was  highly  indecent  and 
scandalous. 

It  does  not  appear  that  "Somervail  of  Airhouse"  or 
his  rebellious  following  grew  more  Christian  in  their  demean- 
our as  the  years  passed  by.  They  seem  to  have  made 
converts  rather,  and,  as  usual,  the  convert  outstripped  the 
master  in  zeal  and  pious  obstinacy.  On  24th  July  1799  "the 
Session  took  into  consideration  the  cases  of  George  Somer- 
ville,  Esq.  of  Airhouse,  and  Robert  Hogarth,  tenant  in 
Carfrae  (once  famous  in  this  district  for  his  agricultural 
enterprise),  and  after  reasoning  on  the  subject,  were  unani- 
mously of  opinion  that  as  the  gentlemen  had  expressed  no 
regret  for  their  past  indecent  conduct,  in  deserting  for  almost 
two  years  the  ordinances  of  publick  worship  in  this  parish 
church,  having  refused  any  resolution  of  more  decent  and 
Christian  conduct  in  time  coming ;  and  as  Mr  Robert 
Hogarth  in  particular,  in  conversation  with  Mr  Murray  on 
the  subject,  seemed  totally  insensible  of  the  impropriety  of 
such  conduct,  and  absolutely  refused  to  give  any  promise  of 
more  orderly  behaviour  in  future,  the  Session  are  unani- 
mously of  opinion  that  the  gentlemen  ought  not  to  be 
admitted   to   the  sealing  ordinances  of  the  Christian  religion 


518  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

till   they   express  their  sorrow  for  their  past  conduct,  and " 
etc.,  etc.     A  great  storm  consequently  raged  round  the  hills, 
and  reverberated  among  the  farms,  and  surged  up  and  down 
the   valley   for   a  while.     So   serious   was   the   matter,  that 
Channelkirk  Session  were  afraid  to  decide  in  the  case,  lest 
their  judgment  might  confound  their  mercifulness,  and  Dr 
Ford  of  Lauder  and  the  minister  of  Gordon  were  appealed  to 
for  a  gracious  and  unbiassed  decision.     After  this  there  were 
meetings  and  consultations,  and  soothing  counsels,  and  much 
Christian  pity  and  hair-strokings.     But  all  to  no  purpose.     It 
was  a  day  of  hardening  of  hearts,  and  the  prince  and  power 
of  the  air  brooded  triumphantly  over  Airhouse  and  Carfrae. 
Then  fulminations  from   the  Session  descended  upon  them. 
They  were  to  be  cut  off!     Sniffs  and  snorts  from  Airhouse  and 
Carfrae  were  returned  as  answer.      Nourishing  their  hearts  as 
in  a  day  of  slaughter  !     But  the  day — not  the  Judgment  Day, 
but  the  Sacrament  day — at  length  arrived.     No  "  token  "  was 
to    be    given    to    the    stiff-necked    and    rebellious    scoffers. 
Hogarth,  however,  boldly  entered  the  church  and  demanded 
his  "  token,"  but  was  promptly  refused,  and  debarred  admit- 
tance  through    that   pearly   gate.      Somerville   of  Airhouse 
haughtily  remained  at  home,  and  moved  on  his  chosen  way, 
as  listed  him. 

After  this  unfortunate  squabble  the  Laird  of  Airhouse 
took  little  interest  in  Church  matters.  There  is  evidence, 
too,  that  he  was  not  so  prosperous  in  his  farm — a  "jidgmint" 
on  him,  of  course — yet  he  was  ever  kind  to  and  mindful  of 
the  poor.  Such  items  as  "  Given  in  by  Mr  Somerville  to 
the  poor,"  so  much,  attest  this.  That  Airhouse  was  not 
a  gold  mine  to  him  seems  indicated  by  the  circumstance 
that  he  found  it  necessary,  in  1776,  conjunct  with  his 
brother    William,    merchant    in    Glasgow,   to   grant    a   bond 


AIRHOUSE  519 

in  security  for  ;^iooo  to  George  Miller,  brewer  at  the 
Abbey  of  Holyrood  House,  over  Airhouse,  Airhouse  teinds, 
and  all  his  other  property — a  burden  of  which  he  did  not 
fully  get  clear  till   the  year    1811.* 

About  18 18  George  and  his  son  James,  "younger 
of  Airhouse,"  are  found  together  at  heritors'  meetings, 
but  on  5th  May  1826  James  appears  alone,  and  we  then 
know  that  the  old  father  is  no  more.f  The  notice  in  the 
Kirk  Records  runs,  "April  17,  1825. — Mr  Somerville,  best 
mortcloth  from  Airhouse  ; "  but  the  tombstone  in  the  church- 
yard says,  "  Here  lies  George  Somerville  of  Airhouse,  who 
died  7th  March  1825,  aged  76!'  His  wife,  Robina  Adair, 
died  twenty-four  years  before  him,  on  6th  January  1801. 
Three  children  predeceased  him  also,  so  that  the  shadows 
of  debt  and  death  had  made  the  pathway  of  life  somewhat 
gloomy  for  him. 

He  is  remembered  in  the  district  as  being  a  man  not 
tall  in  stature,  but  hardy  made,  wiry,  well-wearing,  and 
by  no  means  infirm  of  will  or  purpose.  His  dislike  of 
poachers,  for  example,  was  strong  to  notoriety.  He  scorned 
all  aid  from  the  "  limbs  of  the  law,"  and  engaged  the  depre- 
dators single-handed.  It  is  said  that  he  chased  one 
from  Airhouse  woods  to  Blackshiels,  and  as  was  his 
custom,  on  running  him  down,  he  took  his  gun  from  him 
and  considered  he  had  been  punished  enough.  "  Going  to 
law"  had  no  attractions  for  him.  He  was  also  proud  of 
his  woods  and  lands,  and  was  tireless  in  his  care  of  them. 
Even  in  their  present  dilapidated  condition  the  guiding 
hand  and  eye  of  the  man  of  taste  is  everywhere  apparent 
in  wood  and  field.  He  used  to  carry  a  small  saw  under 
his  arm,  wherever  he  went  on  his  grounds,  to  repair  or  prune 
*  Sasines.  t  Heritors'  Records. 


520 


HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 


as    might    be   necessary,    and   the  parishioners  got  many  a 
"job"  from  him  for  the  same  laudable  purpose. 

After  his  death  his  son  James,  afterwards  Captain  James 
Somerville,  became  heir  to  the  estate.  His  commission  was 
purchased  in  the  army,  but  it  does  not  seem  that  he  had 
remained  long  in  the  service.  He  was  a  quiet  living  man, 
about  5  ft.  9  in.  in  stature,  and  would  appear  not  to  have 
survived  his  father  many  years.  He  married  and  had  three 
children — a  son,  George  Adair  Somerville,  and  two  daughters. 
It  was  his  misfortune  to  fall  accidentally  from  a  stair-head, 
while  on  a  visit  to  Oxton,  and  he  never  wholly  recovered 
from  that  mishap,  and  perhaps  it  hastened  his  end.  His 
young  son  and  heir,  George,  was  for  a  considerable  time 
a  minor,  and  during  these  years  his  mother,  whose  tastes 
were  expensive,  did  not,  it  was  believed,  live  within  the 
resources  of  the  estate.  He  was  a  lithe,  cheerful  lad,  agile 
and  bright,  but  that  most  terrible  of  all  calamities,  insanity, 
soon  clouded  over  his  young  life  with  darkness.  The  race 
of  Somervilles,  alas !  was  doomed  in  Airhouse.  It  is  in 
1856  that  we  learn  that  Mrs  William  Ramsay  of  Barnton, 
and  residing  at  Barnton  House,  obtains  a  bond  over  all 
Airhouse  estate,  which  was  then  the  property  of  George 
Adair  Somerville,  then  also  an  inmate  of  Morningside 
Asylum.  The  Somerville  family  had  left  Airhouse  some 
time  prior  to  this  date,  and  the  house  was  only  occupied  in 
summer  by  visitors.  In  1841,  for  example,  we  find  a  Mr 
Patrick  Rigg  living  there  with  his  family.  When  we  reach 
the  year  1858,  the  name  and  possessions  of  the  Somervilles 
vanish  from  Airhouse.  The  curator  bonis  to  George  Adair 
Somerville,  with  consent  of  James  Roland,  W.S.,  dispones 
the  lands  of  Airhouse  and  all  the  Somerville  properties, 
with   teinds,   to   James,    Earl   of  Lauderdale,   in  the  month 


AIRHOUSE  521 

of  May  of  that  year,  and  Lord  Lauderdale  still  possesses 
them. 

Owing,  no  doubt,  to  absence  of  tenants  in  the  past,  and 
agricultural  depression,  and  the  indifference  of  the  landlord 
— the  last  a  grievance  shared  by  all  the  lands  of  Channel- 
kirk  parish — Airhouse  to-day  offers  a  somewhat  neglected 
appearance  to  the  casual  visitor,  albeit  it  is  genteel  in  its 
decay,  showing  everywhere  proofs  of  its  palmy  days,  not- 
withstanding its  faded  surroundings,  and  may  boast  even 
yet  of  being  the  stateliest  residence  in  Upper  Lauderdale. 
From  its  lofty  situation,  it  overlooks  a  magnificent  landscape, 
and  we  should  imagine  that  few  districts  in  Berwickshire 
can  show  a  more  beautiful  bank  of  birch  and  juniper  than 
that  which  extends  along  its  northern  boundary,  and  whose 
steep  sides  are  laved  by  the  winding  "  Arras  Water."  The 
delicate  oak-fern  grows  there  in  profusion,  and  there,  on 
almost  any  day,  the  fox's  too  familiar  form  may  be  seen 
stealing  among  the  underwood,  and  in  the  silent  gloaming 
the  startled  heron  will  lift  its  gaunt  sail-like  wings  upon 
the  breeze,  the  very  embodiment  of  solitude.  Needless  to 
say,  it  is  the  favoured  haunt  of  the  owl.  It  is  notable  that 
although  every  similar  height  in  the  parish  can  boast  of 
its  "  camp,"  no  such  remnant  of  antiquity  has  been  found 
on  Airhouse  lands.  Perhaps  its  careful  cultivation  in  the 
past  has  wiped  away  all  traces  of  such  memorials. 

The  size  of  the  farm  extends  to  769  acres,  with  a  rental 
of  £l2g,  5s.  8d.  Its  soil  is  varied,  and  is  cropped  on  the 
"fifth  "  rotation.  160  acres  are  in  tillage,  and  the  remainder 
in  pasture,  woods,  or  moor.  The  roads  to  it  seem  to  be 
all  private,  and  are  kept  up  by  the  tenant,  which  must  be 
a  considerable  burden  considering  the  distance  of  the 
steading  from  the  county  roads.     The  farm  is  well  stocked 


522  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  healthy,  although  the  water-supply  is  indifferent.  Twenty- 
two  souls  in  all  live  within  its  boundaries.  John  Hogg,  Esq., 
the  present  tenant,  entered  it  in  the  year  1893.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  parish  church,  and  sets  a  fine  example  in 
faithful  attendance.  Following  the  course  of  the  water,  the 
new  railway  runs  round  quite  one  half,  perhaps,  of  Airhouse 
marches.  It  will  doubtless  enhance  the  value  of  the  lands, 
and  it  cannot  fail  to  increase  the  amenities  of  the  ancient 
"  House." 

We  understand  that  Mr  Pringle  became  tenant  after 
the  Somervilles  left.  Airhouse  was  then  a  "  led  farm  "  till  the 
time  of  the  present  tenant. 

Parkfoot,  on  Airhouse  Farm,  is  one  instance  out  of  many 
where  the  high  tree  has  overshadowed  and  killed  the  young 
sapling.  It  seems  to  have  come  into  existence  as  a  small 
farm  with  a  steading  of  its  own  about  the  middle  of  last 
century.  The  Kirk  Records  note  that  on  4th  March  1787 
William  Renton  was  buried  from  Parkfoot.  It  is  now 
the  shepherd's  house  for  Airhouse  Farm.  In  1816  it  was 
farmed  by  Mr  Andrew  Lees ;  then  by  Mr  Gibson  (one 
year  or  so)  ;  Mr  Tait  followed  him  ;  then  Mr  Walkinshaw 
farmed  it,  and  left  it  to  occupy  Burnfoot  and  Ugston 
Shotts. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

OVER  HOWDEN — KIRKTONHILL — JUSTICEHALL 

Howden,  the  Name — In  Oxton  Territory — Kirk  Land — John  Tennent — 
The  Heriots — The  Kers  of  Cesford — Sir  Adam  Hepburn,  Lord 
Humbie — John  Sleigh — The  Watherstones — The  Pohvarth  Scotts — 
Justice  of  Justicehall — Dr  Peter  Niddrie — Situation  and  Area  of 
Over  Howden — Tenants. 

Kirktonhill — The  Moubrays  and  Pringles — Murehous — The  Lawsons  of 
Humbie — The  Henrysons — Teind  Troubles — The  Watterstones — 
Captain  Torrance — Robert  Sheppard — His  Peculiarities — William 
Patrick — Borthwick  of  Crookston — Area  of  Kirktonhill  and  Mount- 
mill — Tenants — Redwick  and  Rauchy. 

Justicehall — Sir  James  Justice  of  Crichton — James  Justice  of  Justicehall 
— Captain  Justice — Miss  Justice — Sir  John  Calender — Sir  James 
Spittal— The  "  Halves "  of  Ugston— The  Parkers— Situation  and 
Area. 

Over  Howden 

Over  Howden,  or,  as  it  is  anciently  called,  Howden  or 
Holdene,  has  to  be  kept  carefully  distinct  from  several 
"  Howdens "  and  "  Hawdens "  in  the  process  of  research. 
There  is  a  "  Holden,"  for  example,  "  in  the  barony  of 
VVestir  Caldor,"  and  an  Easter  and  Wester  Howden  in 
Haddingtonshire.  There  is  a  "  Haddentowne "  anciently 
in  connection  with  Sprouston  Kirk,  a  "  Howden  "  in  con- 
nection with  Maxwell  Kirk,  and  again,  a  "  Houdene " 
mentioned  as  under  Selkirk  Kirk,  in  the  old  charters  of  the 
religious  houses — all  of  which  must  be  kept  clear  of  Holdene 


524  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

in  Lauderdale,  now  usually  called  Over  Howden,  to  dis- 
tinguish it  from  the  farm  of  Nether  Howden  in  the  same 
dale  and  in  the  same  parish.  Holdene  is  Anglo-Saxon, 
and  means  "  the  little  dene,"  or  dean,  which  very  well 
describes  the  configuration  of  the  place. 

Its  earliest  appearance  is  about  A.D.  1206,  in  connection 
with  a  gift  of  land  by  Alan,  son  of  Roland,  Earl  of  Galway, 
to  the  Church  of  St  Mary  at  Kelso.*  He  gives  to  it  "  five 
carucates  of  land  (520  acres)  in  Ulfkelyston  (Oxton),  in 
Lauderdale,"  in  free  and  perpetual  charity,  and  the  definition 
of  their  boundaries  begins  "  from  the  head  of  Holdene  down 
by  the  Holdene  stream  as  far  as  Derestrete,  north  from 
Derestrete  by  Fuleforde,  by  Samson's  Marches,  to  the 
Leader,"  etc. 

From  the  course  the  boundary  takes,  it  seems  certain  to 
have  passed  the  present  Nether  Howden,  but  the  silence 
in  the  charter  regarding  it  probably  points  to  the  non- 
existence of  this  farm  at  that  early  time.  Indeed,  the 
certainty  of  this  is  the  more  positive  when  Over  Howden  is 
called  simply  Holdene,  there  being  no  other  Holdene,  to  all 
appearance,  by  which  to  contrast  it.  The  proximity  of 
Over  Howden,  also,  to  two  camps,  and  the  commanding 
position  it  occupies  on  the  ridge  overlooking  the  "  dene " 
or  ravine,  which  in  ancient  times  would  be  wild  enough, 
mark  it  out  as  having  been  a  place  of  considerable  strength 
and  importance.  From  the  circumstance  that  it  lay  within 
the  territory  of  Ulfkilston,  or  Oxton,  its  history  has  been 
largely  submerged  within  the  fortunes  of  the  village,  and 
on  this  account  it  does  not  obtrude  itself  into  charters  with 
the  same  frequency  as  do  a  few  other  farms  of  like  standing 
in  the  parish. 

*  Liber  de  Calc/ioii,  Charter  No.  245, 


OVER  HOWDEN  525 

Overhowden  lands  continued  in  the  teind  interest  and 
possession  of  Kelso  Abbey  till  1646,  when  along  with  Nether 
Howden,  Humbie,  and  Wansyde,  they  were  separated  from 
it,  and  Over  Howden  was  given  to  Sir  Adam  Hepburn  of 
Humbie — that  is  to  say,  "  All  and  Haill  the  landis  of  Over 
Howden,  with  the  manor  place,  house,  biggings,  yairds, 
orchard,  and  all  their  pertinents,  lyand  within  the  bailliarie 
of  Lauderdaill  and  sheriffdom  of  Berwick."* 

There  is  an  interesting  reference  regarding  the  Howdens 
of  Lauderdale,  which  goes  back  as  far  as  1539  A.D.,  more 
than  a  hundred  years  prior  to  their  disjunction  from  Kelso 
Abbey.  Professor  Cosmo  Innes  gives  the  following  account 
of  it  in  Liber  de  Calchou  : — "  After  the  whole  matter  of  these 
volumes  was  printed,  and  they  had  been  for  some  time  in  the 
hands  of  the  binder,  a  charter  was  purchased  at  a  public  sale 
in  Edinburgh  which,  though  not  ancient,  nor  in  itself  of 
much  importance,  has  some  peculiarities,  and  some  points 
of  interest  as  connected  with  the  Abbey  of  Kelso,  which 
seemed  to  make  it  proper  to  delay  the  circulation  of  the 
book  to  admit  of  its  insertion.  The  charter  is  granted 
by  the  youthful  commendator,  James  Stuart,  son  of  James 
V.  ;  the  Administrator  of  his  Abbacy  and  the  Convent  of 
Kelso,  and  with  the  consent  and  authority  of  King  James 
V.  himself,  the  patron  of  the  Abbey,  and  it  is  subscribed  by 
the  hands  of  the  King,  the  Commendator,  the  Administrator, 
and  twenty-one  monks  of  the  convent.  The  person  in 
whose  favour  it  is  granted,  John  Tennent,  is  well  known 
as  the  confidential  servant  of  the  King.  In  one  charter  he 
is  styled  '  balistae  gestor  Regi,'  *  the  King's  cross-bow  man.' " 
In  another  he  has  a  grant  of  the  keepership  of  Holyrood- 
house  and  the  King's  park.  " '  Johnie  Tennent,  verlote  of 
*  Great  .Seal ;  and  Acts  of  Parliament,  vi.,  p.  853. 


526  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

our  chalmer,'  is  sent  by  James  V.,  24th  Feb.    1536-7,  from 
Compiegne  to  his  uncle,  Henry  VIII."* 

To  this  foresaid  John  Tennent,  therefore,  "  and  to  Mary 
Atkinson,  his  spouse "  .  .  .  "  our  lands  of  Ovirhowdane  and 
Netherhowdane  are  granted  in  fee-farm,  lying  within  the 
regality  of  Lauderdaill  and  sheriffdom  of  Berwick."  They 
are  said  to  return  to  the  Abbey,  annually,  the  sum  of  ^30. 
Twenty-eight  years  afterwards  they  yield  somewhat  less  to 
the  Abbey,  it  would  seem. 

"  Over  Howdane "  continued  but  a  short  time  in  the 
hands  of  "  the  verlote  of  our  chalmer,"  for  in  February  1 542 
he  sells  it,  with  his  wife's  consent,  to  James  Heriot  of 
Trabroun  in  Lauderdale,  a  transaction  confirmed  by  the 
King  in  1554.^  He  is  called  John  Tennent  of  Listoun- 
Schiels.     He  seems  to  have  retained  Nether  Howden. 

But  before  1567  the  Reformation  had  swept  over  the 
land,  and  even  the  imperturbability  of  Upper  Lauderdale 
must  have  been  upset.  In  the  "  Rental  of  the  Abbacie  off 
Kelso"  [a'r.  1567],  we  have  the  sums  stated  which  are 
drawn  from  "  the  landis  within  Twedell,  the  Merse, 
Louthiene,  and  uther  pertis,"  and  No.  25  of  these  runs: — 
"  Item,  howdene  and  ugstone,  ewer  (owre)  and  nether, 
£26,  13s.  4d." 

In  the  chapter  on  "  Oxton,"  we  have  pointed  out  that 
the  Kelso  Abbey  lands  of  Over  and  Nether  Howden,  though 
included  within  Oxton  territory,  stood  distinctly  by  them- 
selves as  Church  lands.  Naturally  their  fortunes  rose  and 
fell  with  those  of  the  Abbey  itself.  When  the  Reformation 
pulled  the  keystone  out  of  the  Scottish  ecclesiastical  structure 
Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden  tumbled  into  the  wide  laps 
that  were  spread  ready  to  receive  them.  The  King,  when  an 
*  Hamilton  Papers^  vol.  i.,  p.  41.  f  Great  Seal. 


OVER  HOWDEN  527 

Abbot  died  or  resigned,  provided  a  layman  for  the  post,  and 
called  him  a  commendator.  This  took  place  with  Kelso 
Abbey.  "  James  Stuart,  son  of  James  V.,"  was  "  com- 
mendator"  in  1539.  Upon  his  death,  in  1588,  the  office 
fell  to  Cardinal  Guise,  brother  of  Mary  of  Lorraine,  Dowager 
Queen-Regent.  One  of  the  Kers  of  Cesford,  a  little  after 
the  Reformation,  was  even  called  "  Abbot "  of  Kelso,  in  order 
to  sustain,  evidently,  some  show  of  right  and  authority  over 
the  Church's  property,  and  was  slain  in  a  brawl  by  a  kinsman 
in  August  1566.  But  the  Abbey's  wealth,  about  1566,  for 
most  part,  seems  to  have  been  under  the  hand  of  Sir  John 
Maitland,  afterwards  Lord  Thirlestane,  the  second  son  of  Sir 
Richard  Maitland  of  Lethington.  The  Earl  of  Bothwell, 
who  had  got  Coldingham — through  his  father's  influence,  no 
doubt,  he  being  a  bastard  son  of  James  V. — seems  to  have 
thought  that  Kelso  Abbey  would  suit  him  better,  and  so  he 
and  Sir  John  "  nififered  "  Kelso  and  Coldingham.  Bothwell 
was  commendator  in  1584.  But  the  Acts  of  Parliament  (vol. 
iii.,  p.  454)  show  that  Sir  John  was  again  commendator  of 
Kelso  three  years  later.  The  game  went  merrily  on,  and  Sir 
John  was  made  Lord  High  Chancellor  that  same  year,  that 
is  in  1587,  and  Bothwell  then  grabbed  both  Kelso  and 
Coldingham !  Bothwell's  treasonable  conduct,  however, 
deprived  him  of  both  possessions,  and  they  fell  to  the  Crown. 
The  lands  and  possessions  of  Kelso  Abbey,  including,  of 
course.  Over  and  Nether  Howden,  were  finally  bestowed 
upon  Sir  Robert' Ker  of  Cesford,  afterwards,  in  1599,  Lord 
Roxburgh. 

From  Whitehall,  on  20th  December  1607,  the  King 
grants  a  long  charter  to  Robert,  Lord  Roxburgh,  and 
among  many  other  favours  there  are  given  to  him  *'  the 
lands   of    Ovir    and    Nethir    Howdens,   in    the    bailiary   of 


528  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Lauderdaill,  sheriffdom  of  Berwick,"  a  charter  interesting 
also  to  clergymen,  in  respect  that  it  contains  a  detailed 
account  of  various  stipends  paid  to  ministers  from  the 
Roxburgh  estates.  In  connection  with  this  latter  item,  it 
is  worthy  of  notice  that  although  the  lands  change  hands, 
the  original  teind  patrimony  of  the  Church,  Roman  or 
Protestant,  remains  the  same,  is  always  recognised,  always 
accepted,  and  always  provided  for.  The  land  carries  this 
with  it,  whoever  receives  it. 

Again,  on  12th  June  16 14,  the  King  concedes,  and  de 
novo  gives  to  William  Ker,  eldest  born  son  and  heir- 
apparent  of  Robert,  Lord  Roxburgh  and  Halydene,  etc., 
"the  lands  of  Over  and  Nether  Howdens"  in  Lauderdale. 
It  was  on  the  3rd  August  1602  that  Lord  Robert  obtained 
the  lands  of  Haliden,  and  on  the  5th  of  the  same  month  a 
grant  of  the  town  of  Kelso  itself  In  1634  we  have  another 
glimpse  of  the  Howdens  still  in  Lord  Roxburgh's  hands, 
"  Ovir  and  Nather  Howdens"  returning  £26,  13s.  4d.  But 
in  1646  they  are  separated,  and  after  so  many  centuries 
together,  are  never  apparently  conjoined  again  in  one 
proprietary.  On  loth  August  of  that  year  the  King  gives 
Over  Howden  lands  in  liferent,  with  manor  place,  house, 
biggings,  yairds,  orchard,  and  all  their  pertinents,  to  Sir 
Adam  Hepburn,  Lord  Humble ;  dissolves  them  from  the 
priory  of  Eccles  and  Abbey  of  Kelso,  and  incorporates 
them  with  other  lands  into  the  free  barony  of  Humbie. 

Again,  in  1647,  Sir  Adam  extends  his  possessions  in 
Lauderdale,  and  obtains  "the  lands  of  Trabroun  and  Over 
Howden,  in  conjunct  right  with  his  son  and  his  son's  wife, 
Agnes  Foullis,"  which  lands  of  Trabroun  Sir  James  Foullis 
of  Colintoun,  Bart,  eldest  son  of  the  deceased  Sir  David 
Foullis,   and    which    lands    of    Over    Howden,    Sir    Adam 


OVER  HOWDEN  529 

Hepburn    and    his    son,    for    themselves    had    respectively 
resigned. 

Perhaps  a  short  account  of  Sir  Adam  Hepburn's  career 
may  be  interesting  in  this  connection.  There  was  an  Earl 
Adam  Hepburn,  second  Earl  of  Bothwell,  who  fell  on 
Flodden  field  in  15 13,  where  his  valour  was  conspicuous- 
He  was  grandfather  to  James,  Earl  of  Bothwell,  who  is 
notorious  in  connection  with  Queen  Mary's  history,  and  our 
Sir  Adam  Hepburn  was  no  doubt  closely  related  to  the  same 
Hepburns.  He  was  married  to  Margaret,  daughter  of  the 
Hon.  Sir  James  Dalrymple  of  Borthwick,  and  was  appointed 
clerk  to  the  Committee  of  Estates,  elected  in  June  1640  to 
oppose  Charles  I.,  and  accompanied  the  Scottish  Army  to 
England  that  year.  He  was  knighted  15th  November  1641, 
and  received  the  appointment  of  a  Lord  Ordinary  at  the 
same  time.  In  1643,  he  represented  Haddington  County, 
and  continued  to  do  so  during  the  lifetime  of  King  Charles 
I.  He  was  appointed  Collector-General  and  Treasurer  to  the 
Army  in  the  last-mentioned  year.  When  York  capitulated 
in  July  1644,  he  was  dispatched  to  the  Parliament  of 
England,  to  urge  the  necessities  of  the  Army,  and  to  press 
the  settlement  of  religion.  He  appears  to  have  been  of 
great  service  to  his  party,  and  through  all  the  various 
committees,  of  war  and  otherwise,  his  name  appears  as 
one  of  the  most  active  and  zealous  of  their  members.  We 
find  him  at  Perth  in  1650  attending  Charles  H.,  and  making 
arrangements  for  his  coronation.  He  was  unluckier,  however, 
further  south  of  the  Tay,  and  came  into  unpleasant  acquaint- 
ance with  imprisonment  in  Broughty  Ferry  Castle.  It 
seems  that  along  with  many  more  notables  and  500  horse, 
he  was  surprised  and  captured  at  Alyth,  and  lodged  in  that 
stronghold.     Stripped  of  all  he  had,  he   was  soon  shipped 

2  L 


530  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

south  into  England,  by  way  of  Tynemouth  Castle,  and  thence 
to  London. 

It  is  said  by  one  authority  that  he  died  in  June  1656, 
It  is  believed,  however,  that  his  death  actually  occurred  in 
December  of  the  year  1658.  He  left  his  lands  to  his  little 
daughter,  who  was  then  about  two  years  old,  and  so  "  broke 
the  taylie."  *  He  was  one  of  the  Senators  of  the  College  of 
Justice,  and  was  one  of  the  Earl  of  Haddington's  (Thomas, 
third  earl,  1640-45)  curators  in  1640.  About  1630,  Thomas, 
Lord  Binning,  writes  to  "  my  loving  friend,  Mr  Adame  Hep- 
burne,"  about  his  brother  Patrick's  debt,  from  "  St  Martin's 
Lane,"  and  in  many  ways  he  seems  to  have  been  of  much 
consequence  in  connection  with  the  Haddington  estates.! 

It  is  needless  to  remark  that  the  name  of  Hepburn  was 
one  of  no  small  consequence  in  Scotland  a  few  centuries  ago, 
and  the  district  of  Fife  and  the  Lothians,  where  their 
influence  was  greatest,  was  the  "  political  heart  of  Scotland." 
The  Maitlands  of  Lauderdale  boasted  of  no  inconsiderable 
share  in  directing  the  affairs  of  the  nation,  but  Skelton  is 
perhaps  correct  when  he  asserts  that  "  the  Lauderdale 
Maitlands  were  not  on  a  level  with  the  great  governing 
houses  of  Hepburn,  Hamilton,  and  Hume."|  It  is  certainly 
beyond  doubt  that  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  Sir  Adam  Hepburn  of  Humbie  had  a  far  larger 
grasp  of  Upper  Lauderdale  than  had  the  Lauderdales 
themselves,  the  barony  of  Trabroun,  Howden,  Airhouse, 
Over  Hartside,  and  Glengelt  all  being  held  in  his  interest. 
It  is  within  comparatively  recent  times,  indeed,  that  the 
Maitlands  have  crept  up  into  Channelkirk  parish. 

*  "  Senators  of  the  College  of  Justice,"  and  Lament's  Diary. 
f  Memorials  of  the  Earls  of  Haddington. 
%  Maitlands  of  Lethington.,  vol.  i.,  p.  2. 


OVER  HOWDEN  531 

It  also  appears  that,  notwithstanding  the  King's  con- 
firmation of  Over  Howden  on  loth  August  1646  to  Sir 
Adam,  these  lands  had  been  in  his  hands  several  years 
before  that  date.  One  authority  says,  "  Sir  Adam  Hepburn 
of  Humbie,  Knight,  one  of  the  Senators  of  the  College  of 
Justice,  then  (1631)  heritor  of  the  said  lands,"  viz.,  Glengelt, 
Over  Howden,  Airhouse,  etc.  *  In  1630,  a  year  previous, 
we  have  from  Kelso  Abbey  "Taxt  Roll"  the  following: 
"  Over  Howden,  pertaining  to  Sir  John  Hamilton  of 
Strabrock,  payes  ;^ii,  13s.  4d.,  worth  600  merks."  The 
year  1631  would  seem,  therefore,  to  be  the  year  of  Sir 
Adam  Hepburn's  entry  to  Over  Howden.  Incidentally  we 
learn,  al.so,  that  James  Wadderstone  was  "  in  Howden," — 
tenant,  that  is — in  March  163 1.  Lord  Roxburgh  was  of 
course  still  Superior  of  these  lands  at  this  time.  Four  years 
before,  viz.,  in  1627,  Rev.  Henry  Cockburn,  minister  of 
Channelkirk,  says  that  Over  Howden  is  one  of  the  Kirk 
lands  in  his  parish,  and  that  it  is  "  in  stok  600  merkis ; 
personage,  ane  100  lib.  ;  vicarrage,  ane  100  merkis." 

It  is  in  1636  that  we  find  the  King  confirming  the 
charter  of  John  Lawson  of  Humbie,  wherein  he  sold  to  Sir 
Adam  Hepburn,  servitor  to  Thomas,  Earl  of  Haddington 
(Lord  Binning  and  Byres),  and  clerk  of  the  taxes,  and  to 
his  heirs,  etc.,  under  reversion,  the  lands  of  Humbie,  Hielie, 
Birkinsyde  and  Rownetreehauch,  etc.,  likewise  the  lands  of 
Gilchrystoun  in  Salton,  likewise  Over  Hartside  in  Lauder- 
dale. All  which  amply  vindicates  Sir  Adam's  landed 
importance  in  our  dale  at  this  period. 

Note  is  taken  in  the  Acts  of  Parliament,  f  that  in  1633 
"the    lands    of    Howden    and     Commontie,    and    common 
pasturage,  within  the  mure  of  Lammermoor,  usit  and  wont 
*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  154.  t  Acts  v.,  129, 


532  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

are  given  to  the  Laird  of  Ruchlaw,  William  Sydserff,"  and  in 
1647   they   are    said   to   be   in    Sir   Adam's   hands.*      But 
probably  this  is  the  Howden  near  Haddington.     In  1676  the 
Kers  of  Morriston  claim  half  the  teinds  of  Over  Howden.  f 
John  Sleich  or  Sleigh  seems  to  have  taken  up  Sir  Adam's 
interest  in  Over  Howden  after  his  death,  and  when  we  reach 
1695,  Wm.  Cockburn,  heir  portioner  of  John  Sleigh,  provost 
of  Haddington  burgh,  his  grandfather,  is   returned   heir  to 
Glengelt  Mill,  tenths,  and  acres  of  Over  Howden.  |     There 
is  a  sasine,  dated  28th  November  171 1,  in  favour  of  Janet 
Fairgrieve,  wife  of  John  Watherstone  of  Over  Howden,  of  a 
liferent  of  ;^  100  Scots  furth  of  the  lands  of  the  said  John, 
his  lands   of  Over    Howden.     The   following   tells   its   own 
story:     "  I2th    Dec.     1723. — Precept    of    Clare    Constat    by 
Janet   Gourlay,    relict    of    James    Nicolsoun    of    Trabroun, 
Superior  of  the   lands,  narrating   that    the    deceased   John 
Wadderstoun,  only  son  to  the  deceased  Simeon  Wadderstoun 
of  Over  Howden,  father  to  James  Wadderstoun,  died  last 
vest  in  those  parts  of  pendicles  of  the  barony  of  Trabroun 
called  Over  Howden,   Upper  and   Nether  Carse  Mures,  as 
lately  possessed   by    Adam    Somerville,  tenant   there,   and 
afterwards  by  the  said  Simon  and  John,  with  pasturage  in 
the    Commonty   called   Wideopen,   lying   in   the   barony   of 
Trabroun,   bailiary   of    Lauderdale,    and    shire   of   Berwick, 
and   that   the   said   James   is   nearest    and    lawful    heir    to 
the   said    John ;    therefore    directing    that    he    be   infeft   in 
the  said  lands.      To   be   held   in    feu-farm   for   ^215    Scots 
yearly." 

In    1739   Over    Howden   is  possessed  by  James  Justice 
of   Justicehall.      The   superiority   is   still   held    in    175 1,  by 
Nicolson    of    Trabroun,   but   in    1758,   on    25th   September, 
*  Acts  vi.,  853.  t  Retours.  %  Ibid. 


OVER  HOWDEN  533 

Walter  and  Robert  Scott*  are  seised  in  fee,  from  Robert 
Scott  their  father,  in  those  parts  of  the  Barony  of  Trabroun 
called  Upper  and  Nether  Carsemyres,  and  Over  Howden.f 
The  Scotts  made  the  dale  ring  with  their  lawsuit  about 
"Wideopen  Common"  for  several  years  after  1762.J  The 
barony  of  Trabroun  long  antedates  the  barony  of  Pilmuir, 
but  the  latter  having  been  erected  by  charter  of  novo- 
damiis  27th  February  1722,  seems  to  have  absorbed  into 
itself  many  of  the  lands  of  the  former  about  the  middle  of 
the  eighteenth  century.  When  Robert  Scott  raises  his 
"Wideopen  Common"  lawsuit  in  1762,  his  interest  in  the 
matter  is  said  to  derive  from  Pilmuir  Estate,  which  com- 
prised, among  others,  "the  lands  of  Upper  and  Nether 
Carsemyres,  with  the  corn  and  waulk  mills  of  the  same, 
and  also  the  lands  of  Over  Howden."  §  In  1722,  the 
barony  of  Pilmuir  included  Collielaw,  Bowerhouse,  Pilmuir, 
Wiselawmill,  Overshielfield  (4  merks  lands  of  Lauder  Kirk- 
lands),  and  the  arable  lands  of  Nether  Howden. 

Over  Howden  continued  in  the  possession  of  the  Justices 
of  Justicehall  till  the  early  years  of  this  century.  On 
March  22,  1800,  James  Justice  of  Justicehall,  as  heir  to 
Alex.  Justice  of  Justicehall,  his  brother,  was  seised  in  those 
parts  of  the  barony  of  Trabroun  called  Over  Howden,  etc., 
on  Charter  of  Confirmation  and  Precept  of  Clare  Constat 
by  the  Commissioner  of  Robert  Scott  of  Trabroun,  Sep- 
tember 24,  1785.11  The  reader  is  referred  to  the  account 
of  Justicehall  for  a  narrative  regarding  the  family  of  Justice. 
In  1 8 16  Over  Howden,  with  all  the  Justicehall  estate,  was 
in  the  hands  of  trustees  for  behoof  of  its  creditors.lF 

•  Polwarth  branch  of  the  Scott  family.         t  Sasines. 

X  See  "  Oxton."  §  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597.     Mack. 

11  Sasines.  '^  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters. 


534  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Miss  Maria  Campbell  Rae  Justice,  daughter  of  the 
bankrupt  Captain  Justice,  became  proprietrix  of  Over 
Howden  in  1823,  as  the  heir  of  entail.  In  1834,  and  again 
in  1838,  "Robert  Thomson,  Esq.,  Over  Howden,"  appears 
at  a  heritors'  meeting  for  his  own  interest.  He  was  a 
merchant  in  Edinburgh,  and  on  January  25  and  30, 
1850,  his  trustees  dispone  Over  Howden  and  Upper  and 
Nether  Carsemyres  to  Peter  Niddrie,  "  late  Surgeon  in  the 
Royal  Navy,"  and  his  wife,  Grace  Thomson,  residing 
(February  13,  185 1)  at  Leamington,  Warwickshire,  Mrs 
Niddrie,  Dr  Niddrie's  widow,  Comphall,  Dromore,  West 
Sligo,  still  draws  the  rents  for  these  properties. 

Henry  Francis  Hepburn  Scott,  Baron  Polwarth,  as  heir 
of  line  to  his  father,  Hugh,  Lord  Polwarth,  is  seised  in  the 
superiority  of  Over  Howden,  etc.,  December  20,  1842,  on 
Precept  from  Chancery,  December  8,  1842.*  Lord  Pol- 
warth's  interest  in  the  same  was  subsequently  disponed  to 
James,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  May  10,  1844. 

Over  Howden  as  a  property  and  residence  seems  a  very 
desirable  one.  The  general  position  of  the  farm-steading 
on  the  western  side  of  the  Leader,  with  lands  that  are 
neither  too  hilly  nor  too  flat,  together  with  its  fine  com- 
manding view  of  the  surrounding  landscape,  render  it 
healthy  and  cheerful,  comfortably  workable,  and  a  charm- 
ing dwelling-place.  A  few  trees  planted  around  it  would 
also  add  to  its  beauty. 

The  size  of  the  farm  extends  to  400  acres.  The  soil 
is  generally  good,  but  too  much  of  it  is  a  thin  moorland, 
especially  that  part  to  the  west  of  the  steading  and  lying 
towards  Wideopen  Common.  The  rotation  is  three  years 
pasture,  one   oats,  one   turnips,  then  oats    or   barley.     The 

*  Sasines. 


OVER  HOWDEN  535 

tillage   comprises    50   acres    in    turnips    and     100    acres    in 
grain.     The   buildings   are   satisfactory,  and   some   remarks 
on   what   is  believed  to  be   the  remains  of  an   old   border 
peel,  which  was  here  in  former  days,  will  be  found  in  the 
23rd  chapter,  which  treats  of  the  parish  "antiquities."     The 
water-supply  is  quite    insufficient,  unfortunately,  and  for  a 
farm   stocking   8   horses,   40  cattle,   and    300   sheep,   better 
provision  in  this  respect   is   imperative.      The   yearly   rent 
is  £160,  and  the  shootings  ;^I5.     Shepherds'  wages  are  £1 
per  week,  and  hinds'  i8s.;  they  work  10  hours  in  summer, 
8    in    winter,    and    have    four    holidays    yearly.      Andrew 
Sharp,    Esq.,    is    the    present    tenant.       He    entered    the 
farm    in    1865,   is   married,    and    has   family.      He   attends 
the   parish   church,  and   is   a   highly   respected    member   of 
both  Parish  Council  and  School  Board.     There  are  seven- 
teen  souls   in   all   upon   the   farm.      The   farm   lies   to   the 
west  of  Oxton  village,  in  distance  about  a  mile. 

In  1753  the  tenant  was  William  Rutherford;  in  1800 
Alexander  Iddington  ;  and  during  this  century  it  has  been 
successively  farmed  by  Messrs  Bertram,  Binnie  (who  was 
in  CarfraemiU),  James  Sharp,  father  of  the  present  farmer, 
and  who  immediately  preceded  him  in  the  tenancy. 

KiRKTONHILL. 

From  its  position  and  neighbourhood,  we  may  reason- 
ably surmise  that  Kirktonhill  has  derived  its  designation 
from  its  proximity  to  the  Church  of  Channelkirk.  Its 
prominent  situation,  well-wooded  surroundings,  and  broad 
avenue  give  it  an  air  of  respect  which  few  other  residences 
in  the  parish  can  claim. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  church,  in  its  early 
periods,  owned  the  land  which  is  now  embraced  in  Kirkton- 


536  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

hill  Farm.  It  is  "  Kirklandhill "  as  well  as  Kirktonhill  : 
the  hill  of  the  kirk  lands.  As  the  hill  on  which  the 
steading  is  placed  rises  immediately  to  the  west  of  the 
church  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  or  thereby,  it  would  from 
the  remotest  time  be  identified  with  the  name  of  the 
kirk.  The  place  itself,  however,  does  not  come  into 
historical  view  till  towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
and  then,  and  until  recent  times,  it  is  joined  with  a  place 
called  Murehous,  whose  situation  cannot  be  determined. 

The  light  breaks  upon  them  first  in  Court  of  Law.  It 
is  the  3rd  day  of  August  1473.  Robin  Hoppringill  pursues 
John  Mowbray  and  his  wife,  Marion  Hoppringill,  anent 
the  lands  of  Kirktounehill  and  Murehous,  which  the  latter 
held.  It  had  been  a  long  law  case,  evidently,  and  both 
parties  were  present  that  day  in  Edinburgh,  we  are  told, 
with  all  their  "  Charters,  Evidents,  Sasines,  Richts,  Resons, 
and  Allegatiouns,  and  Preiffis,  and  witnes  at  length  sene, 
herd,  and  understanding  :  The  lords  decreets  and  delivers 
that  the  said  lands  salbe  lattin  to  borgh  to  the  saide 
Johne  Mowbra  and  Marion  hoppringill,  as  possessoures 
of  the  samyn,  and  the  said  Recognitioune  to  be  lousit."  * 
This  did  not  mean  a  final  settlement  of  the  case.  The  lands 
were  "  lattin  to  borgh  "  only,  that  is,  possession  was  granted 
upon  security  during  dependence  of  a  question  as  to  right. 

In  the  year  1476,  on  the  6th  of  April,  "the  King  concedes 
to  William  Moubray.  son  and  heir-apparent  to  Mary  or 
Marion  Pringill,  Lady  of  Kirktounhill  and  Murehous,  and 
to  his  heirs,  the  lands  of  Kirktounhill  and  Murehous,  county 
of  Berwick,  which  the  said  Marion  personally  resigned — 
with  the  reservation  of  free  tenement  to  the  said  Marion."  f 

The  name  of  Hoppringle  or  Pringill  is  a  prominent  one 

*  Ada  Doininorum  Auditorum.        f  Regis frmn  Magni  Sigilli. 


i 


KIRKTONHILL  537 

in  Lauderdale  in  the  fifteenth  century,  and  has  always  been 
influential  throughout  the  Border  counties.  There  is  good 
reason  for  believing  that  Hoppringle  on  the  Toddle  Water, 
which  takes  its  rise  in  this  parish  near  Glints,  is  the  cradle  of 
the  family.  The  expression  "  Hoppringles  of  that  Ilk  "  sustains 
this  view,  as  surnames  were  commonly  derived  from  lands. 
For  centuries  the  name  was  a  considerable  one  in  Lauderdale. 
Thomas  de  Hoppringle  is  mentioned  in  a  deed  conveying 
lands  near  Lauder  to  Thomas  Borth wick  ( 1 249-86).  In  1468, 
David  Pringill  or  Hop-pringel  owns  Pilmuir  estate.  In 
1463  he  is  styled  also  "of  Smailhame,"  and  has  revenues 
from  many  places  in  Lauderdale.  The  Pringles  of  Smailholm 
were  adherents  of  the  House  of  Douglas,  and  may  have 
got  their  Lauderdale  lands  in  this  interest.  In  1473  there 
was  parliamentary  action  between  Oliver  of  Lauder  and 
David  Pringill  or  Hoppringill,  touching  the  thirling  of  the 
lands  of  Pilmuir  to  the  Miln  of  Lauder.  There  is  a  Mary 
Hoppringill,  wife  to  Robert  Lauder  of  Lauder,  in  1505, 
but  this  is  not  the  "  Mary,  Dame  of  Kirktonhill."  The 
latter  may  have  been  the  same  Mary  Hoppringle  who 
married  William,  second  Lord  Borthwick,  in  1458,  and 
died  in  1483.  Lord  William  seems  to  have  obtained  Glengelt 
with  her  also.  She  was  a  widow  when  he  married  her, 
and  was  one  of  the  King's  wards.  John  Moubray  was 
the  name  of  her  former  husband,  and  father  of  the  William 
Mowbray  mentioned  in  the  above  deed. 

In  i486,  ten  years  afterwards,  the  King  confirms  William's 
charter,  by  which  he  sells  and  alienates  the  lands  of  Kirk- 
tounehill  to  Andrew  Moubray,  a  burgess  of  Edinburgh, 
on  the  17th  July  of  that  year.  In  this  deed  it  is  said  that 
William  Moubray  sells,  "  with  consent  of  his  mother  Mary," 
and  this  might  seem  to  imply  that  she  was  then  still  alive 


538  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

We  know,  however,  that  she  may  well  have  died  in  1483, 
and  the  sale  have  taken  place  in  her  lifetime  also,  as  years 
often  elapsed  between  the  actual  purchase  of  property  and 
the  ratification  of  the  same  by  the  King.  There  were  no 
superiors,  however,  between  William  and  the  King,  and  he 
held  immediately  from  the  Crown.  The  name  of  Moubray, 
we  do  not  need  to  say,  was  an  illustrious  one  long  before 
this  period,  and  is  broadly  written  on  the  front  of  Scotland's 
roll  of  notables,  though,  doubtless,  we  are  dealing  here  with 
some  humble  branch  of  the  Moubray  race. 

The  place  mentioned  as  "  Murehous "  seems  to  have 
been  contiguous  to  Kirktonhill,  although  another  Murehous 
is  indicated  in  the  charters  as  being  nearer  to  Lauder 
burgh.  Not  even  a  tradition  of  the  former  has  been  left 
us  to  indicate  whereabouts  it  may  have  stood.  Considering 
that  all  the  land  of  Soutra  Hill  to  the  north  of  Kirktonhill 
is  moorland,  it  is  probable  that  its  situation  lay  still  further 
north  in  the  parish,  and  in  all  likelihood  on  the  old 
"  Edinburgh  Road."  The  whole  district  of  Soutra  was  at 
one  time  called  "  Moorehousland,"  and  was  so  distinguished 
from  "Lauderdale."*  As  late  as  1851  "Kirktonhill  and 
Murehous"  are  twinned  in  law  documents,  though  only 
the  name  of  the  latter  survives  the  vicissitudes  of  time. 
The  Exchequer  Rolls  give  us  dim  information  regarding 
the  "fermes"  of  Kirktonhill  as  they  pass  through  the 
accounts  of  Lauder  Burgh,  and  the  receipts  of  the  Sheriff 
for  the  County  of  Berwick,  in  the  years  1502- 1527,  where 
Andrew  Mowbray's  name  occasionally  appears  as  holding 
that  property.  Had  Lauder  Burgh  Records  extended  as 
far  back,  our  information  might  have  been  fuller  on  this 
point,  but  there  is  sufficient  evidence  extant  to  lead  us  to 
*  Monastic  Annals  of  Teviotdale,  p.  33. 


KIRKTONHILL  539 

believe  that  Kirktonhill  about  that  period  was  somehow 
under  the  superiority  of  Lauder  Burgh.  There  are  dues 
called  "aque  dues,"  which  are  paid  by  the  proprietors  of 
Kirktonhill  to  Lauder  Burgh  as  late  as  1759.  We  take 
"  aque "  to  mean  "  antique "  or  "  ancient,"  and  they  seem 
to  have  had  origin  in  the  days  of  the  Moubrays. 

Our  next  glimpse  of  Kirktonhill  is  during  the  momentous 
and  distracted  years  that  followed  upon  the  Reformation. 
The  hapless  Queen  Mary  is  then  connected  with  it,  and 
on  15th  April  1567  she  conceded,  and  quitclaimed  to  Robert 
Mowbray,  son  and  heir  to  the  late  Andrew  Mowbray, 
burgess  of  Edinburgh,  and  Janet  Cant,  his  wife,  the  lands 
of  Kirktonhill  and  Murehous.  It  is  interesting  to  remember 
that  it  was  only  three  days  before  this  charter  was  granted 
that  Bothwell  was  tried  by  an  Assize  in  Edinburgh  for  the 
murder  of  Darnley.  There  is  no  doubt  that  this  "  Robert 
Moubray"  is  the  same  person  from  whom  Knox,  the 
Reformer,  held  his  house  in  Edinburgh  in  1560-61.  On 
February  14,  1560-61,  the  treasurer  was  ordered  to  pay 
"  Robert  Moubray,  heretour  of  the  hous  occupyit  be  Johne 
Knox  .  ,  .  the  sum  of  x  merkis."  Knox  had  it  at  the 
rate  of  "  fiftie  merkis  in  the  yeir."  *  This  Robert  Moubray 
had  two  sons,  Robert  and  Walter.  On  the  father's  death 
Robert  alienated  the  lands  of  Kirktonhill  to  Sir  George 
Douglas  of  Saint  German,  and  when  Robert  also  dies, 
Walter  and  his  wife,  Margaret  Leirmonth,  sell  Kirktonhill 
and  Murehous  to  the  same  George  "without  reversion," 
about  July  1592.  The  charter  is  confirmed  by  the  King 
on  14th  July  1607.  Robert  Moubray,  the  father,  is  de- 
scribed as  a  merchant  burgess  in  Edinburgh.! 

*  "  John  Knox's  Houses." — Scotsman^  4th  Oct.  1898.    Also,  Proceedings 
of  tlie  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland^  1898-99,  pp.  83-85.    f  Great  Seal. 


540  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Seven  years  later,  viz.,  in  1614,*  on  the  15th  of  March, 
Lady  Elizabeth  Bellenden,  relict  of  James  Lawson  of 
Humbie,  now  Lady  Ormiston,  receives  from  the  King  a 
charter  of  novodantus  of  the  estate  of  Kirktonhill  and  Muir- 
house,  which  Walter  Bellenden,  her  full  brother,  to  whom 
they  pertained,  and  which  he  had  resigned,  had  obtained  by 
declaration  of  recognition.-f*  She  again,  in  1622,  with  special 
consent  of  her  husband,  John  Cockburn  of  Ormiston,  Lord 
Justice-Clerk,  hands  them  over  to  her  son  Robert  Lawson. 
We  find  five  generations  of  Humbie  Lawsons  having  landed 
interest  in  Channelkirk  : — Richard,  cir.  1 546  ;  then  his  son 
James  (Retours,  1607),  mentioned  above  ;  then  James's  son 
James ;  then  James's  son  Robert,  now  proprietor  of  Kirkton- 
hill, in  1622 ;  and  John,  who  was  in  Over  Hartside  till  1636, 
and  may  have  owned  Kirktonhill  also  for  some  time. 

By  charter,  dated  30th  July  i622,|  in  favour  of  Robert 
Lawson,  he  receives  "  All  and  Whole  the  lands  of  Kirktonhill 
and  Muirhouse,  with  houses,  biggings,  yards,  tofts,  crofts, 
parts,  pendicles,  and  pertinents  whatsoever.  Likewise  All 
and  Whole  the  Kirklands  of  Ginglekirk  with  the  pertinents, 
along  with  the  Mill  of  Ugston  (now  Mountmill),  with  the 
multures,  sucken,  and  commodities  thereof  lying  between  the 
Kirkhaugh  on  the  south,  the  Hailly  Water  Cleuch  on  the 
west.  Bain's  Croft  on  the  north,  and  the  lands  of  Glengelt  on 
the  east  parts,  along  with  the  Little  Meadow,  commonly  called 

*  Great  Seal. 

t  This  points  to  the  peculiar  relations  which  existed  at  one  time 
between  "  superior  "  and  "  vassal."  "  The  casualty  of  recognition  was 
the  forfeiture  of  the  vassal's  whole  lands  to  the  superior,  in  the  event  of 
his  alienating,  without  the  superior's  consent,  more  than  half  of  his  lands 
to  a  stranger,  i.e.,  any  person  other  than  the  vassal's  heir." — Juridical 
Styles,  vol.  i.,  fifth  edition,  p.  6. 

X  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  267,     Great  Seal. 


KIRKTONHILL  541 

the  Little  Haugh  of  land  belonging  thereto,  called  the  Kirk- 
haugh." 

The  Rev.  Henry  Cockburn  says,  in  1627,  with  regard  to 
the  teinds  of  Kirktonhill,  (24)  "  Kirktounhill,  200  merkis  in 
stok ;  personage,  four  scoir  merkis ;  viccarage,  50  merkis. 
This  is  fewd  land  holding  of  Dryburgh.  (25)  The  Kirk- 
land  of  Kirkhaugh  may  pay  xl  lib.  in  stok  and  teind.  It  is 
not  fewd  land,  but  being  viccar's  land  of  old,  and  now  with- 
holden  from  ministery  at  that  kirk,  hinders  thair  satling,  and 
maid  all  my  predecessouris  non-residentis,  neither  can  I  get 
grasse  to  two  kye,  to  my  great  greifife  and  skaith." 

The  expression  "  fewd  land  holding  of  Dryburgh  "  points 
to  the  ancient  possession  by  the  Church  of  Channelkirk  of  all 
Kirktonhill  lands.  Dryburgh  Abbey  received  all  Channel- 
kirk lands  when  Hugh  de  Morville  gave  the  Church  itself  to 
that  House.  In  the  "Taxt  Roll"  of  that  Abbey  there  is  this 
entry:  "  13  Oct.  1630  ,  .  .  Lawson  of  Humbie  for  his  Kirk- 
land'  in  Chengilkirk  estimat  in  his  absens  to  be  worth  of  frie 
rent  yearlie  ane  hundreth  threttie  thrie  punds,  vj  s.  viij  d. 
Taxt  to  iij.  lib.  x  s.  x  d. "  This  Lawson  is  "  Robert,"  it 
appears,  as  he  is  mentioned  in  the  roll  of  date  1634. 
James  Ritcheson  was  farmer  in  Kirktonhill  in  1630.  He  was 
60  years  old  then. 

Kirktonhill  lands  were  soon  after  this  date  "adjudged 
from  Lawson  at  the  instance  of  John  Henryson,  who  obtained 
a  precept  from  Chancery  for  infefting  him  therein,  dated  20th 
December  1643,  and  was  thereupon  infeft  conform  to  his 
sasine  dated  15th  August,  and  recorded  15th  Sept.  1644."* 
Another  authority  avers  that  "  the  lands  of  Kirktonhill  were 
acquired  by  the  above  John  Henryson  from  Janet  Lawson 
and  John  Cockburn  in  1643."  f  Still  another  authority 
*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  268.  t  Great  Seal. 


542  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

asserts  that  the  lands  of  Kirktonhill  and  those  of  Over  Hart- 
side  were  owned  by  John  Henderson  in  1632.*  This  may 
be  true  of  the  former,  but  it  is  not  so  dear  with  regard  to 
Over  Hartside.     ( Vide  "  Hartside.") 

John  Henderson  had  a  sad  time  of  it  with  his  teinds, 
and  they  cost  him  much  trouble  and  anxiety.  He  figures 
occasionally  in  the  Presbytery  Records  in  the  dispute  that 
arose.  The  Rev.  David  Liddell,  minister  of  the  parish,  who 
came  in  1650  to  Channelkirk,  had  evidently  been  on  terms 
of  friendship  with  Mr  Henderson  (or  Henryson),  as,  being 
near  neighbours,  was  but  seemly  and  mutually  advan- 
tageous. The  total  teind  from  Kirktonhill  to  the  Church 
was  ten  bolls  of  victual  and  twenty  pounds  Scots.  The 
minister  was  desirous  of  having  a  bit  of  ground — no  doubt 
for  pasturage  purposes — and  Henryson  and  he  in  1660 
made  a  bargain  anent  the  Kirkhaugh.+  It  will  be  remem- 
bered that  the  minister,  Cockburn,  in  1627,  complained 
that  the  Kirkhaugh,  the  "viccar's  land  of  old,"  was  "with- 
holden  from  ministery  at  that  kirk,"  and  hindered  the 
settling  of  a  minister  in  Channelkirk.  For  a  reduction, 
therefore,  of  a  boll  of  victual  off  the  teind,  the  Rev.  David 
Liddell  was  to  have  the  Kirkhaugh.  Henryson  was  required, 
that  is,  to  pay  nine  bolls  instead  of  ten  as  his  teind.  All 
went  smoothly  as  long  as  Liddell  was  minister.  His 
successor,  Wm.  Arrot,  in  1697  ^^^^o  fell  in  with  the  arrange- 
ment, and  no  difficulty  presented  itself  till  Arrot  was  called 
to  Montrose.  The  church  remained  vacant  for  nearly  six 
years,  and  the  Presbytery,  of  course,  then  took  Channelkirk 
under  their  wing.  They  discovered  the  private  arrangement 
between  the  ministers  and  the  farmer,  and,  as  it  had  had 
no  ratification  from  them  or  from  any  church  court,  and 
*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  242.  f  If>itl.,  p.  208. 


KIRKTONHILL  543 

being  quite  a  private  transaction,  it  was  regarded  as  invalid 
and  only  holding  during  the  incumbent's  term  of  office  who 
had    made    it.      Moreover,   they    seemed    to    consider    that, 
being   church   land,   the    Kirkhaugh   belonged   to   them    by 
ancient    right,  and  was  no   part  of  Kirktonhill   estate,  and 
that    it    had    been    wrongously    included    in    it,    and    that 
Henryson    could  not   claim   reduction  of  his  teind  on  that 
account.     Consequently,  when  John  had  to  pay  full  teind — 
ten  bolls  instead  of  nine, — he  seized  upon  the  Kirkhaugh 
once  more,  and  the  church  seat  which  seems  to  have  gone 
with    it,   and    considerable    heat    was    generated    over    the 
matter.      The    case    appears    to    have    caused    enough    stir 
during   the  whole   time  of  the   kirk  vacancy,  viz.,  between 
1697  and  1702,  and  both  Kirktonhill  and  Earlston  Presbytery 
endured    some    heart-burning    ere   it   subsided.      It   caused 
some  trouble  even  at  the  beginning  of  this  century.     The 
family   of    Henderson   continued    in    the    proprietorship    of 
Kirktonhill  for  more  than  a  hundred  years,  as  we  shall  note 
presently.     We  observe  in  passing  that  the  Retours  of  1676, 
1687,  and    1692  make   mention  of  the  Kers   of  Morriston, 
viz.,  Mark,  Andrew,  John,  and  Andrew,  four  generations,  as 
holding  half  the  teinds  of  Kirktonhill  at  these  dates,  even 
as  their  forbears  and  descendants  did  before  and  after  them. 

The  Hendersons  bear  to  have  come  into  this  parish 
from  Todrig,  which  was  the  residence  of  John  of  Kirktonhill's 
father,  William.  John  appears  to  have  been  married  to 
Catherine  Congleton  about  1682.  She  was  the  daughter  of 
Joseph  James  Congleton,  Skedsbuss,  in  Haddington.  There 
are  several  sasines  in  connection  with  the  Hendersons' 
holdings  of  Kirktonhill,  as  the  property,  in  the  course  of 
years,  passed  from  one  relative  to  another.  But  it  would 
be  tedious  to  quote  these.     William  Henryson,  John's  son, 


544  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

had  Kirktonhill  disposed  to  him  in  17 14,  and  was  infefted 
1741.*  In  1744  mention  is  made  in  Lauder  Burgh  Records 
of  "  aque  dues "  from  Wm.  Henryson  of  Kirktonhill,  and 
this  continues  till  1777.  All  goes  on  smoothly  till  about 
1750,  when  John,  his  son,  obtains  it.  We  learn  that  he  was 
a  medical  doctor  in  Manchester,  and  that  he  was  married 
to  Isobel  Borthwick.  Muirhouse  was  at  this  time  tenanted 
by  one  James  Watherston,  who  seemed  to  have  been  more 
prosperous  than  his  landlord.  Dr  Henderson  borrowed 
£460  sterling  from  him,  and  gave  him  a  heritable  bond 
over  the  ground  rights  and  property  of  Kirktonhill  lands 
in  security.  He  failed  to  redeem  this,  it  appears,  and  so 
James  Watherston  was  duly  infeft  in  Kirktonhill.  In  1753 
James  sold  his  rights  to  Mrs  Jane  Renton  in  Over 
Bowerhouse.  In  1754  Mrs  Renton  sold  them  to  Simon 
Watherston  of  Netherfield ;  f  and  in  the  same  year  Dr 
Henderson  completely  cleared  out  of  the  parish  by  selling 
his  full  rights  of  Over  Hartside,  Redwick,  Kirktonhill,  Muir- 
house, Channelkirk  lands  and  the  Kirkhaugh,  to  Simon 
Watherston  aforesaid,  in  liferent,  and  to  James  Watherston, 
his  eldest  son,  in  fee,  "  heritably  and  irredeemably,  without 
any  manner  of  reversion."  Dynasties  succeed  dynasties  in 
dominions,  and  families  succeed  families  in  properties.  Life 
and  living  obey  the  same  laws,  whether  they  move  on 
narrow  farms  or  wide  continents,  just  as  waters  do,  whether 
they  run  in  the  village  burn  or  across  the  high  seas.  The 
Hendersons  go  after  more  than  a  hundred  years  of  posses- 
sion, and  the  Waterstons  take  the  vacant  place. 

Of  James  Waterston,  laird  of  Kirktonhill,  one   pleasant 
circumstance,  noticed  in  Chapter   XII.,  is  notable.     It  was 

*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  205. 

t  See  Lauder  Records,  1781,  2nd  May,  p.  log. 


KIRKTONHILL  545 

in  November  1760,  and  the  parish  needed  a  school.  Con- 
sequently, on  the  bleak  17th  November  of  that  year,  the 
Kirk-Session  meets  and  the  minister  reports  that  Mr 
Dalziel  of  Hartside  and  he  "  had  treated  with  James 
Watherstone  of  Kirktonhill  anent  the  stance  of  said  house." 
Heritors  and  Kirk-Session  *  had  empowered  them  to  do  so. 
"  Which,  accordingly,  being  done,  the  said  James  Wather- 
stone was  prevailed  on  to  gift  to  the  Kirk-Session  and 
Parish  of  Channelkirk  that  spot  of  ground  for  the  stance 
of  said  house  lying  immediately  on  the  west  end  of  the 
yard  presently  possessed  by  the  schoolmaster,  and  frankly 
consented  that  said  schoolhouse  should  be  built  and  stand 
there  rent  free  in  all  time  coming,  the  schoolmaster  being 
only  obliged  to  pay,  yearly,  one  shilling  sterling  for  said 
kaile  yard."  It  is  now  the  spot  of  ground  used  for  the 
manse  green.  "The  Session  gratefully  acknowledge  their 
obligation  for  said  gift,  and  order  this  to  be  insert  in  this 
day's  minute."  Alas !  the  kail-yard,  the  school,  the  school- 
house,  the  village  itself  have  all  vanished  away,  leaving 
James  Watherstone's  kindness  and  the  Kirk-Session's 
gratitude  alone  surviving  the  cannibal  tooth  of  time. 

On  29th  February  1777,  "James  Watherston  pays 
*aque  dues'  for  Kirktonhill  equal  to  £62,  8s.  Scots  to 
Lauder  Burgh."  f  James  continued  in  Kirktonhill  till  1781. 
In  November  of  that  year  he  dispones  it  to  Elizabeth 
Waterston,  his  sister,  evidently  in  fee,  and  to  Captain 
Henry  Torrance,  her  husband,  tenant  in  Seggie,  Fifeshire, 
in  liferent.^  All  the  rest  of  his  property  in  Channelkirk 
is  disponed  on  like  conditions.  Consequently,  on  loth 
February    1786,   the    Captain    has    a    proxy    at    a    heritors' 

*  Kirk  Records.  f  Lauder  Burgh  Records. 

X  Sasines. 

2  M 


546  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

meeting,  and  on  7th  May  1790  he  himself  is  present,  his 
first  and  last  appearance  in  that  place.  By-and-by  diffi- 
culties of  various  kinds  seem  to  have  beset  the  property. 
The  teinds  were  a  dour  matter  to  adjust,  and  law-cases 
ensued  which  must  have  curtailed  Captain  Torrance's 
profits.  The  Kirkhaugh,  commonplace  and  placid  as  it 
looks  to-day,  was  a  hot  subject  every  time  it  was  handled, 
and  barrow-loads  of  law-language  were  used  up  in  the 
controversies  over  it.  That  old  agreement  between  John 
Henryson  and  Professer  Liddell  in  1660  seemed  so  reason- 
able from  the  proprietors'  view :  and  yet  was  so  desperately 
unsatisfactory  in  the  estimation  of  every  one  else.  But 
other  running  sores  in  the  property  are  evident,  and  so,  in 
1792,  it  is  bonded  for  ^1500  to  Adam  Rolland  of  Gask,  a 
bond  which  passes  to  William  Sibbald,  Edinburgh,  in  1802. 
It  is  cleared  off,  however,  in  1807,  but  we  read  that 
"  Captain  Torrance  ceased  to  be  proprietor  after  crop 
1806." 

Robert  Sheppard,  merchant,  Edinburgh,  in  1807  comes 
into  Over  Hartside,  Redwick,  Kirktonhill,  Muirhouse,  and 
Kirklands  of  Ginglekirk— under  a  burden  of  ^5000 — on 
disposition  by  Elizabeth  or  Betty  Watterston,  with  consent 
of  Henry  Torrance,  late  Captain  in  the  Edinburgh  Regi- 
ment of  Militia,  her  husband,  and  James  Watherston 
Torrance,  his  son.* 

Mr  Sheppard  appears  at  a  heritors'  meeting  as  pro- 
prietor of  Kirktonhill  on  28th  August  1807.  His  fortunes 
do  not  seem  to  have  brightened  on  leaving  Edinburgh 
and  merchandise,  for  rural  life  and  farming.  Burden  upon 
burden  is  laid  upon  his  possessions  for  security,  and  he 
continues  to  stagger  on  in  a  semi-insolvent   state  till   18 17, 

*  Sasines. 


KIRKTONHILL  547 

when  "the  trustees  for  the  creditors  of  Robert  Sheppard 
are  seised  in  April  26  of  that  year  in  the  lands  of  Kirk- 
tonhill,  etc.,  on  disposition  by  the  said  Robert  Sheppard, 
April  16,  1817." 

It  seems  that  he  had  been  a  somewhat  successful  tea- 
merchant,  but  tradition  does  not  hand  down  an  eloquent 
story  regarding  his  abilities  as  a  farmer.  He  took  it  into 
his  head  that  gold  was  to  be  found  on  Racho  or  Rauchy 
Brae,  where  a  dwelling-house  used  to  stand,  north-west  of 
Kirktonhill  steading  half-^a-mile,  across  the  Rauchy  Burn, 
and  which  has  now  disappeared.  The  venture  was  not 
crowned  with  anything  except  the  fool's  cap,  but  it  proved 
the  peculiar  enthusiasm  of  the  man.  He  afterwards  planted 
the  broken  ground  with  strawberries.  Another  of  his  idiosyn- 
cracies  was  to  pour  oil  on  the  heather  in  order  to  make  it 
burn  !  His  generosity  and  hospitality,  too,  were  proverbial, 
but  peculiar.  He  ftept  always  a  barrel  of  sugar,  for  instance, 
just  inside  his  door,  in  order  that  all  who  preferred  it  might 
help  themselves  to  a  handful.  These  are  "  bits  "  still  retailed 
in  the  district  regarding  him.  The  Kirk  Records  help  to 
sustain  his  character  for  peculiarities  in  a  more  authentic 
manner.  John  M'Dougal,  schoolmaster  and  Session-clerk, 
testijfies  that,  on  the  14th  day  of  March  1817,  "  the  following 
children,  viz.,  Helen,  Jean  Stewart,  Elizabeth  Forbes,  Susan 
Haggart,  and  James  Stewart,  belonging  to  Robert  Sheppard, 
Esq.  of  Kirktonhill,  were  baptised  in  Kirktonhill  to  Chalmers 
Izett,  Esq.,  in  my  presence,  and  in  presence  of  Mr  Peter 
Forbes,  merchant  in  Edinburgh,  by  the  Rev.  John  Brown, 
minister  of  Channelkirk."  Mr  Peter  Forbes  was  one  of 
Mr  Sheppard's  creditors.  He  and  Thomas  Martin,  W.S., 
Edinburgh,  another  creditor,  had  Kirktonhill  disponed  to 
them  by  Sheppard  in  1817,  and  they  held  it  till  1 821,  when 


548  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

it  was  sold  to  William  Patrick,  Esq.,  W.S.,  also  of  Edinburgh. 
Sheppard  is  dead  in  1821. 

William  Patrick,  Esq.  of  Roughwood,  was  third  son  of 
John  Patrick,  Esq.  of  Freehorn,  Ayrshire.  He  was  W.S. 
on  28th  June  1793.  He  was  born  in  1770,  and  conse- 
quently was  full-fledged  at  the  age  of  23.  He  never 
married,  and  died  on  28th  February  1861,  aged  91.  He 
was  51  when  he  came  to  Kirktonhill  estate.  He  seems  to 
have  retained  it  till  1840,  when  it  was  finally  made  over 
to  John  Borthwick,  Esq.,  Crookston.  Mr  Borthwick  appears 
to  have  had  disponed  to  him,  in  1836,  a  large  share  of  the 
bond  under  which  it  lay,  but  final  disposition  and  settle- 
ment only  took  place  in  1840.  His  trustees  were  seised  in 
the  property  in  1846.  The  present  John  Borthwick,  Esq, 
of  Crookston,  is  proprietor  in  this  year  1900,  who  also 
owns,  in  Channelkirk  parish,  Annfield,  Glengelt  estate, 
Mountmill,  Clints,  and  Braefoot. 

The  farm  of  Mountmill  is  at  present  farmed  along  with 
Kirktonhill  by  Mr  James  Dykes,  farmer,  resident  in  the 
latter  place ;  his  son,  Mr  Thomas  Dykes,  resident  in  Mount- 
mill,  being  managing  farmer  there.  Kirktonhill  and  Mount- 
mill  count  together  900  acres,  and  the  rent  is  ;^325.  The 
soil  is  poor  generally,  being  for  the  most  part  on  steep  hilly 
ground,  a  circumstance  which  also  renders  ploughing,  cartage, 
and  all  transit  of  goods  a  laborious  business.  Several  of  the 
fields  cannot  be  ploughed  except  one  way,  the  return  journey 
being  empty.  Its  rotation  is  on  the  sixth  shift  ;  400  acres 
are  tilled,  500  acres  are  in  moor,  wood,  or  moorish  pasture. 
The  farm  buildings  are  all  old,  and  not  in  very  good  order, 
the  house  itself  standing  in  much  need  of  a  thorough  over- 
hauling, and  of  being  put  into  harmony  with  its  beautiful 
natural   surroundings  and    imposing  situation.     The  water- 


KIRKTONHILL  549 

supply  was  for  some  time  exceedingly  bad,  but  is  now  in 
capital  order,  and  the  supply  is  ample.  The  general  stock 
kept  comprises  : — 8  horses,  40  cattle,  and  from  25  to  30 
scores  of  sheep.  There  are  about  twenty  souls  on  the 
farm.  Ploughmen  are  paid  in  money,  i6s.  6d.  per  week, 
women  9s.  per  week  —  ten  hours  in  summer,  nine  in 
winter. 

Mr  Dykes  entered  the  farm  in  1881.  He  also  farms 
the  minister's  glebe,  at  a  rent  of  £g,  los.  yearly,  and  the 
relations  between  the  manse  and  Kirktonhill  are  most 
amicable  and  sociable. 

The  places  on  the  estate  which  are  of  antiquarian  interest 
are  the  Camp  and  the  Holy  Water  Cleuch,  which  are  noticed 
in  their  place. 

There  were  anciently  two  pendicles  called  Redwick  and 
Raughy  or  Racho.  The  former  is  now  known  as  Rednick, 
and  the  latter  was  occupied  by  Mr  Blaikie  of  Headshaw, 
lately  deceased,  when  he  shepherded  there  in  his  youth. 
The  old  house  is  now  gone.  It  is  usually  mentioned  along 
with  Over  Hartside,  and  Rednick  with  Kirktonhill.  Rauchy 
(pronounced  Rashy)  is  evidently  a  corruption  of  Raeshaw, 
or  Roeshaw  :  the  shaw  or  wood  where  the  roe  was  anciently 
to  be  found.  In  the  North  of  Scotland  the  name  of  Rath,  or 
Rathe,  was  given  to  a  small  portion  of  land  or  homestead.* 
If  the  name  ever  crept  so  far  south  as  Lauderdale,  it  is  just 
possible  that  "  Rauchy "  might  be  a  colloquialism  for  that 
term.  But  we  lean  to  the  former  meaning,  and  the  place- 
name,  Hartside  (originally  Hart's  Head),  in  the  near 
neighbourhood,  appears  to  give  some  encouragement  to 
the  view. 

*  Celtic  Scotland^  Book  III.,  p.  243. 


550  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

JUSTICEHALL 

We  continue  the  account  of  this  place  from  1742,  to 
which  year  the  chapter  on  "  Oxton "  brings  it.  It  is  then 
in  the  proprietorship  of  James  Justice,  "one  of  the  Principal 
Clerks  of  Session,"  who  gave  it  this  designation  ;  and  the 
following  notice  of  him  and  his  family  explains  the  history  of 
the  name,  and  also  reveals  the  place  itself  in  its  palmiest  days. 

Sir  James  Justice,  descended  from  a  family  of  that  name 
in  England,  came  to  Scotland  about  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  and  became  Clerk  to  the  Scottish  Parliament. 
In  Thomson's  Ac^s  of  Parliament,  Sir  James  is  styled 
Principal  Clerk  of  Session,  and  is  Commissioner  of  Supply 
for  Edinburgh  in  1690.  He  takes  the  oath  of  allegiance 
as  a  Clerk  of  Parliament,  22nd  April  1693,  and  is  noticed 
in  a  minute  of  29th  May  1693.  i^200  was  granted  to  him 
for  attendance  in  Parliament,  1707,  no  doubt  for  his  services 
as  clerk.  He  was  Commissioner  of  Supply  for  Edinburgh 
in  1690.  He  purchased  the  estate  of  Crichton,  it  seems, 
with  its  celebrated  castle,  in  Midlothian.  There  is  a  notice 
of  him  in  Earlston  Presbytery  Records  to  the  following 
effect: — "4  Sept.  1701. — As  also  received  and  read  a  letter 
from  Sir  James  Justice  of  Crichton,  the  consideration  of 
all  which  is  delayed  till  a  fuller  meeting."  Crichton  Church 
bell  has  also  a  story  to  tell  concerning  him.  It  bears  the 
following, — "Crichton  Bel,  founded  ano  1619  V.  M.  P. 
augmented,  refounded.     Ex  dono  be  Sir   James  Justice  of 

M 

East  Crichton  1702,  M  5  M.I.R.  P.  Kilgour  fecit."  This 
estate  of  Crichton  he  left  to  his  son  James,  one  of  the 
Principal  Clerks  to  the  Court  of  Session.  The  son  was 
an  enthusiast  in  horticulture,  and  wrote  a  book  in  1755) 
entitled     The    Scots    Gardener's    Director,    which    was    held 


JUSTICEHALL  551 

in  much  respect  formerly  owing  to  its  treatment  of  gardening 
with  reference  to  the  Scottish  soil  and  climate.  His  eager- 
ness in  this  study  carried  him  far,  even  to  spending  of 
large  sums  in  importing  foreign  seeds,  roots,  and  trees. 
But  buying  rare  tulips  was  his  special  mania, — ;^SO  and 
sometimes  more  for  a  single  one,  not  being  considered 
too  much  money  to  give, — and  this  extravagance,  combined 
with  other  causes,  floated  him  out  of  his  Crichton  property, 
it  seems,  and  he  was  compelled  to  sell  it  about  the  year 
1735-  With  the  remnant  of  his  means  he  came,  about 
1739,  across  Soutra  Hill,  nine  miles  from  the  scene  of  his 
splendour,  and  settled  in  the  vicinity  of  Oxton.  He  built 
a  mansion-house  there,  and  called  it  Justicehall,  which  still 
retains  the  name.  On  22nd  October  1739,  sasine  is  granted 
to  James  Justice  and  Margaret  Murray,  and  Alexander 
Justice,  their  son,  of  all  the  lands  of  Ugston,  which  proceeds 
upon  a  charter  under  the  Great  Seal,  21st  June,  and  nth 
and  1 2th  July  of  the  same  year,  whereby  the  said  lands 
and  others  are  called  then  and  henceforth,  the  lands  of 
Justicehall  instead  of  Ugston.  We  hear  no  more  of  his 
tulip  craze,  and  doubtless  he  passed  his  humdrum  days 
by  the  Clora's  babbling  stream,  recalling  the  former  dreams 
of  his  pride,  and  gossiping  with  the  villagers.  He  seems 
to  have  taken  no  share  in  the  work  of  the  Church,  though 
he  must  have  been  mildly  cognisant  of  the  power  she 
then  exerted  over  his  neighbours,  as  is  vouched  by  the 
following: — "1744,  April  nth.  —  After  prayer.  Sederunt, 
Minister,  and  Elders,  ut  supra,  James  Clerk  being  called, 
compeared,  interrogate  if  he  carried  Creills  from  Justice- 
hall on  the  Lord's  Day  to  any  other  place.  He  answered 
that  he  did,  and  exprest  his  sorrow  for  the  same.  After 
he   was   rebuked,   and    admonished    never    to    commit    the 


552  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

like  in  time  coming,  was  dismissed."  *  James  Clerk  appears 
to  have  been  a  weaver  in  Rednick,  and  was  pulled  up  rather 
sharply  for  his  offence,  according  to  the  strict  discipline 
of  the  times.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed,  however,  that 
Mr  Justice  quite  forsook  horticulture.  His  enthusiasm  was 
still  high  enough  to  enable  him  to  bring  a  shipload  of 
Holland  earth  all  the  way  from  that  country  to  Justice- 
hall,  believing  that  in  their  native  soil  the  tulips  would 
flourish  more  wondrously !  Justicehall  was  laid  out  with 
much  taste,  trees  planted,  and  roads  made,  all  which  have 
disappeared  as  if  they  had  not  been.  Other  days,  other 
manners.     About  1798  he  is  styled  Sir  ]ames  Justice.*!- 

"  By  his  second  marriage,  Mr  Justice  left  an  only  son, 
who  was  born  about  the  year  1755,  but  at  what  period  he 
succeeded  his  father  is  not  exactly  known."  His  first  wife 
was,  it  appears,  a  daughter  of  Alexander  of  Cringalty,  but 
died  without  issue.  At  a  meeting  of  the  heritors  of  the 
parish,  17th  February  1775,  Mr  Pierie  of  Threeburnford  acts 
as  "Factor"  for  Justice  Hall.  Mr  Justice  was  evidently 
either  dead,  or  had  left  the  district.  His  son  James  entered 
the  army  as  an  officer  in  the  Marine  Service,  and  endured 
the  hazards  of  war  when  the  Americans  asserted  their 
independence,  and  was  honoured  with  the  rank  of  Captain. 
In  1784  he  meets  with  the  heritors  of  Channelkirk  on 
the  third  day  of  December,  as  James  Justice  of  Justicehall, 
but  on  loth  February  1786  he  is  there  once  more  as 
"  Capt."  Justice. 

The    Captain's   ambitions,    by   his   wider   experiences   of 

stirring  public  life,  rose  far  beyond  watching  tulips   unfold 

their   beauty    in   the   early   summer.       Literature   seems   to 

have  attracted  him  more  strongly,  and  especially  the  drama. 

*  Kirk  Records.  t  Douglas  Baronage. 


JUSTICEHALL  553 

*'  He  was  well  known  as  an  amateur  performer,"  though 
his  genius  seems  to  have  been  more  imitative  than  original, 
copying  Cook,  Kemble,  and  the  eminent  histrionic  exponents 
of  his  day.  So  successful,  however,  was  he  in  his  per- 
formances, that  it  is  believed  if  he  had  been  thoroughly 
trained  in  the  dramatic  art,  he  might,  with  his  handsome 
personal  appearance  and  commanding  figure,  have  lifted 
the  family  ship  from  its  sandy,  stranded  situation,  upon  the 
golden  waves  of  a  flowing  fortune.  He  had  other  difficulties, 
it  seems, — not  with  mutinous  Yankees  abroad,  but  with  an 
imperious  wife  at  home  in  Justicehall.  From  being  serious, 
this  became  to  the  Captain  a  standing  comicality,  and  after 
entertaining  his  friends  with  declamations  from  Shakespeare 
and  the  popular  poets,  he  would  treat  them  to  "  bits "  from 
plays  of  his  own  composition, — a  special  one,  "  Hell  upon 
Earth,  or  the  Miseries  of  Matrimony,"  containing  many  scenes 
which  too  faithfully  reflected  the  Captain's  own  experiences. 
We  can  fancy  how  the  douce  Presbyterians  of  Oxton  would 
animadvert  on  the  eccentric  and  unhappy  Captain's  strange 
vagaries  in  Justicehall,  when,  as  sometimes  happened,  a 
company  of  strolling  players  would  be  found  "  birlin'  at 
the  wine "  of  a  forenoon  there  ;  and  under  the  enthusiastic 
guidance  of  this  "  King  o'  gudefallows,"  displaying  to  their  own 
delight  the  favourite  pieces  of  their  repertoire.  "  Revelries 
by  night  "  are  more  or  less  condoned  ;  but  "  playactorin' " 
in  the  soberest  hours  of  the  day  could  not  but  shock  the 
nerves  of  every  decent  Oxtonian  who  had  piously  pondered 
his  Catechism. 

Perhaps  something  of  this  gives  the  key  to  the  Captain's 
domestic  wretchedness.  No  self-respecting  wife,  bred  and 
born  outside  the  peculiar  atmosphere  of  the  stage,  could 
cheerfully  consent   to   see   her   rooms   filled   at   such   hours 


554  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  in  such  scenes,  with  Thespian  "  seedy "  ones ;  and 
especially  with  those  who  under  stress  of  fortune  had  been 
blown  across  the  barren  heath  of  the  Lammermoors  to 
find  an  audience  among  the  sparsely  populated  farms  of 
Lauderdale.  There  was  also  the  further  reason  that  Mrs 
Justice  (formerly  Miss  Campbell)  had  presented  him  with 
a  little  daughter,  the  sole  fruit  of  their  union,  and  a 
mother's  feelings  may  have  been  roused  to  resent  the  in- 
trusion of  such  displays  before  the  gaze  of  her  offspring, 
and  have  infused  into  her  the  courage  of  her  cause  to  defy 
her  husband's  questionable  taste.  He,  it  appears,  was  as 
amiable  as  he  was  handsome,  and  as  kind-hearted  as  he 
was  clever,  but  his  passion  for  the  drama  seems  to  have 
required  other  surroundings  and  other  company  to  gratify 
it  than  the  secluded  fields  of  Ulfkill  and  the  matrimonial 
quiet  of  Justicehall.  The  result  of  it  all  was  separation, 
and  the  Captain  was  left  alone  in  "  Bachelor  Hall,"  as  he 
jokingly  described  his  home,  to  wander  through  the  fields, 
like  Isaac,  meditating  in  dishabille,  and  to  brave  out  his 
misery  in  the  company  of  any  boon  or  bosom  friend  who 
might  chance  to  call.  Something  of  blame  seems  to  have 
lain  at  Mrs  Justice's  door  also.  She  had  her  share  of 
spirit  as  well  as  he.  She  expressed  it  in  action,  too,  more 
real  and  effective,  it  seems,  than  the  art  of  imitation  and 
similitude  professes  to  do.  "  She  was  a  good  sort  of  person," 
the  Captain  has  been  pleased  to  say,  "  but  a  little  hot- 
tempered."  It  seems  that  they  had  only  been  married 
three  days  when  in  some  volcanic  moment  she  sent  a  leg 
of  mutton  flying  at  his  head !  A  prime  leg  of  Lammer. 
moor  mutton,  if  it  be  hostile,  may  be  a  weapon  well  worth 
a  vigilant  defence,  but  as  we  have  only  the  Captain's  own 
account,  unbalanced   by  Mrs  Justice's,  we  may  set  some  of 


JUSTICEHALL  555 

it  down  to  a  dramatic  imagination,  and  perhaps  to  the 
semi-delirious  antics  and  aberrations  of  the  honeymoon. 

It  appears  that  this  Captain  Justice  did  not  hold  the 
whole  property  at  Justicehall  in  his  own  right  till  the  last 
year  of  last  century.  His  brother,  "Alexander  Justice  of 
Justicehall,"  seems  to  have  died  then;  and.  on  22nd  March, 
1800,  "James  Justice  of  Justicehall,  as  heir  to  Alexander 
Justice  of  Justicehall,  his  brother,  is  seised  in  Ugston  and 
parts  thereof  called  Luckenhaugh  and  Pickelra,  with  the  Mill 
of  Ugston  (Mountmill),  the  Forty-shilling  lands  of  Ugston, 
and  Temple  lands  in  the  town  and  territory  of  Ugston,  with 
a  share  of  the  moss  of  Glengelt — on  Precept  of  Chancery, 
February  24,  1800."*  The  lands  of  Over  Howden,  with 
Upper  and  Nether  Carsemyres  {i.e.,  Oxton  Shotts,  and 
Nether  Carsemyres),  had  also  been  in  the  hands  of  the 
Justices  since  24th  September  1785,  from  Robert  Scott  of 
Trabroun,  and  on  the  same  day  that  the  Captain  is  seised 
heir  of  his  brother,  there  is  this  also  to  be  noted : — 
"  Elizabeth  Sarah  Campbell,  spouse  of  James  Justice  of 
Justicehall,  seised  in  liferent,  March  22,  1800, — in  half  the 
estate  of  Justicehall " — which  comprehended,  in  the  lofty 
aims  of  the  Captain,  all  the  above-mentioned  lands.f  In 
such  affluent  circumstances  his  wife  could  afford  to  caress 
her  husband  with  legs  of  mutton  and  carry  her  head  as 
proudly  as  he  dared  to  do.  In  181 2  he  is  called  upon  at 
the  minister's  request  to  grant  warrant  as  Justice  of  the 
Peace  against  an  offender  in  the  parish. 

But  the  star  of  Captain  Justice  had  passed  the  zenith, 

and  was  doomed  to  set  in  gloom  and  disaster   ere  many 

years  passed  away.     The  story  goes  back  to  the  day  when 

Sir   James   Justice   sold   his   estate    of    Crichton    to    Mark 

*  Sasines.  f  Ibid. 


556  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Pringle.  This  is  the  same  Pringle  who  killed,  in  1707, 
in  a  duel  in  Raeburn  Meadow,  Selkirk,  William  Scott  of 
Raeburn,  the  great-granduncle  of  Sir  Walter  Scott,  and  had 
to  flee  to  Spain.  He  had  realised  money  enough  to  effect 
the  above  purchase.  A  clause  had  been  inserted  in  the  deed 
pf  conveyance  by  which  Sir  James  warranted,  or  guaranteed, 
the  purchaser  and  his  successors  against  all  augmentations 
of  stipend  which  the  minister  of  Crichton  parish  might  obtain 
subsequent  to  the  date  of  sale.  In  the  course  of  years, 
Crichton  minister  obtained  augmentations  of  stipend  which 
the  proprietors  of  Crichton  called  upon  Captain  Justice  to 
make  good,  as  the  representative  of  the  granter  of  the  deed 
of  conveyance,  so  as  to  relieve  them  from  the  share  of  in- 
creased stipend  thus  allocated  upon  them.  Captain  Justice 
refused  to  do  so,  asserting  that  the  guarantee  or  "  warrandice  " 
which  his  father  had  given  had  expired,  that  it  was  limited 
to  the  endurance  of  certain  leases  of  teinds  originally 
granted  by  Mr  Hepburn  of  Humbie.*  The  Court  of  Session 
decided  the  case  in  favour  of  Captain  Justice,  but  the  House 
of  Lords  reversed  the  decision,  and  he  was  left  with  a  lost 
cause,  and  a  liability  reaching  to  i^QCXX)  against  him  and 
his  estate.  The  estate  was  sold  to  different  purchasers  to 
liquidate  this  obligation  by  decree  of  the  House  of  Lords, 
and  the  poor  play-acting  Captain  was  compelled  practically 
to  leave  Justicehall  without  a  penny.  The  story  is  told  sadly 
enough  in  the  following  extract  from  the  Calendar  of  Laing 
Charters,  No.  3304: — "4th  April  18 16. — Deed  of  Trust  by 
the  creditors  of  James  Justice  of  Justicehall,  granting  to 
certain  trustees  the  Forty-shilling  lands  of  Ugston,  and  the 
Temple  lands  lying  in  the  town  and  territory  of  Ugston, 

*  See  Pamphlets  relating  to  Edinburgh,  among  which  is  Old  Edin- 
burgh Beaux  and  Belles,  1 886. 


JUSTICEHALL  557 

and  those  parts  of  the  lands  and  barony  of  Trabroun  called 
Over  Howden  and  Upper  and  Nether  Carsemyres  (excluding 
the  household  furniture  of  said  James),  to  be  held  in  trust 
and  disposed  of  for  behoof  of  the  creditors.  Edinburgh,  4th 
April  1 816."  But  it  appears  the  real  blow  fell  four  or  five 
years  earlier  than  this  date. 

It  is  impossible  not  to  feel  the  deepest  sympathy  with 
Captain  Justice.  He  was  easy  in  his  nature  and  morals, 
was  a  gay  Lothario  among  the  beau  monde  of  Princes  Street, 
and  loved  a  kindred  spirit  to  reciprocate  the  flow  of  soul  over 
the  wine  and  the  impassioned  declamations  of  his  favourite 
dramatists.  His  wife  could  not  live  with  him,  and  his 
brilliant  course  in  life  had  been  more  than  once  bedimmed 
by  incidents  which  do  not  rank  high  in  correctness  or  pro- 
priety, but  he  was  kind-hearted,  gentlemanly,  and  true,  with 
no  duplicity,  or  weakness  for  the  worship  of  the  crowd  before 
his  aristocratic  greatness.  The  oldest  persons  in  the  village 
recall  yet  his  princely  form  and  bearing,  for  he  was  over  six 
feet  in  stature,  and  had  the  features  of  George  the  Fourth  ; 
and  they  delight  to  expatiate  on  his  ways  with  much  tender 
affection.  But  here  he  is  in  the  grip  of  creditors,  and  a 
blasted  fortune,  his  household  furniture  alone  reserved  to 
him,  and  the  heavy  weight  of  over  sixty  years  resting  on 
his  head.  His  wife  "gone,  his  child  .gone,  and  now  the 
pleasant  sequestered  home  that  held  them !  "  Age  and 
want,  oh !  ill-matched  pair,"  says  the  poet.  But  the  Captain 
seems  to  have  borne  his  disasters  bravely.  Bitter  grief,  and 
the  heart  that  bows  down,  must  have  been  his  experience 
in  these  wretched  spring  days  of  18 16.  Yet  he  nobly  braces 
himself  to  endure.  He  will  neither  hang  nor  bury  himself 
in  an  unknown  locality  where  at  least  his  miseries  should 
not  be   sharpened    b}'  familiar   associations.     Waterloo  was 


558  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

not  a  year  old  by  two  months,  and  the  captain  knew  that 
many  of  his  gallant  countrymen  had  there  found  a  fate  far 
more  severe.  He  decided  to  spend  the  remainder  of  his  days 
in  the  village  of  Oxton  near  by,  and,  perhaps,  when  we  con- 
sider it,  it  may  be  as  terrible  to  die  slowly  amid  poverty, 
and  surrounded  by  scenes  of  brighter  days,  than  among 
the  storm  of  bullets  on  the  far-away  battlefield.  "  Sorrow's 
crown  of  sorrow  is  remembering  happier  things."  Unless  we 
could  appeal  to  the  ghost  of  Hercules  who  tried  both,  we 
shall  perhaps  never  know  whether  or  not  it  is  an  easier  task 
to  club  down  lions  abroad  than  to  wrestle  with  snakes  at 
home. 

He  lingered  on  for  several  years  after  the  fall  of  his 
fortune,  going  out  and  in  among  the  villagers.  We  find 
him  at  heritors'  meetings  in  1816,  181 8,  and  18 19,  making 
his  last  appearance  on  31st  October  1822.  His  death  must 
have  taken  place  in  the  early  days  of  August  1823,  as  we 
find  under  loth  August. — "  Captain  Justice,  best  mortcloth, 
from  Ugston,"  *  signifying  the  day  of  his  burial.  He  died 
in  the  house  adjoining,  and  immediately  to  the  west  of,  the 
smithy  of  Mr  Alex.  Reid,  in  the  south-east  room  of  the 
second  storey,  now  used  as  a  small  grocery,  and  was  buried 
in  Channelkirk  churchyard. 

From  a  collection  of  papers  bearing  on  the  Channelkirk 
teind  question  before  the  Court  of  Session,  1811-1827,  we 
glean  that  Miss  Maria  Campbell  Rae  Justice,  the  only  child 
of  the  unfortunate  Captain,  became  proprietor  of  Over 
Howden  in  1823,  and  was  the  entailed  heir  of  that  property. 
She  claimed  freedom  from  all  liability  to  stipend  under- 
payments, which  was  one  of  the  disputed  points  before 
the    Lords   in   the   lawsuit,   because,    as    was    averred,    she 

*  Kirk  Records. 


JUSTICEHALL  559 

did   not    represent   her    father  either   in    Over    Howden    or 
Oxton. 

On  the  30th  of  March  and  1st  of  April  181 3,  the  trustees 
of  Sir  John  Callander  of  Westertoun  were  seised  in  all  the 
property  called  Justicehall,  "  in  warrandice  of  the  teinds  of 
the  barony  of  Crichton."  *  At  this  date  "  they  were  in 
possession  of  the  said  lands,  and  drew  the  rents  thereof," 
on  Charter  of  Resignation,  Great  Seal,  February  3,  1813.-}- 
The  "  trustees "  are  again  seised  in  the  same  lands — the 
town  and  lands  of  Ugston — Justicehall — "  Redeemable  on 
payment  of  £1642,  los.,  on  Charter  of  Adjudication,  Great 
Seal,  July  5,  18 17.  The  story  is  further  developed  in 
the  teind  case  as  follows: — "In  the  year  18 17,  the  trustees 
of  the  late  Sir  John  Callander,  the  authors  of  the  other 
objector,  Mr  Burn  Callander,  obtained  a  decree  of  Adjudica- 
tion (to  which  Mr  B.  Callander  has  now  acquired  right) 
against  the  late  Mr  Justice  of  the  lands  of  Ugston  or 
Justicehall,  for  payment  of  a  debt  which  affected  that 
property  prior  to  the  execution  of  the  entail  under  which 
Mr  Justice  held  the  same.  And  in  virtue  of  this  Adjudica- 
tion the  objector,  Mr  Callander,  and  his  authors,  the  trustees 
of  Sir  John  Callander,  entered  into  possession  of  these  lands 
of  Ugston  in  181 8,  and  have  drawn  the  rents  of  the  same 
ever  since."  This  was  said  in  the  year  1829,  and  the  Mr 
Burn  Callander  referred  to  was  William  Burn  Callander, 
Esq.  of  Prestonhall,  who,  in  November  1833,  disponed 
Justicehall  to  Sir  James  Spittal,  merchant,  Edinburgh,  viz. : 
Ugston  ;  Two-merk  lands  of  Ugston  (Pickelraw) ;  Oxton 
Mill  and  Mill  lands  ;  Forty-shilling  lands  of  Ugston  and 
Temple  lands  of  Ugston — "all  which  are  now  called 
Justicehall."  These  properties  fell  to  his  son,  James 
•Sasines.  \  Decreed  o/Locah'/y,  p.  247. 


560  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Spittal,  on  29th  March  1 844  ;  and  we  find  them  in  the  hands 
of  his  trustees  in  July   1855. 

We  observe  that  when  any  of  the  proprietors  of  Justice- 
hall  obtain  possession,  for  the  first  time,  the  sasine  is  given 
"  with  exceptions."  This  seems  to  point  to  the  "  part  "  or 
"  parts "  which  the  Somervells  of  Airhouse  held  in  these 
lands  of  Justicehall  from  sometime  before  1776,  when  the 
"  part "  is  found  included  in  the  security  of  a  bond  for 
;^iooo,  given  by  George  Somervail  of  Airhouse,  and 
William  Somervail,  merchant,  Glasgow,  his  brother,  to 
George  Miller,  brewer.  Abbey  of  Holyroodhouse.  When 
Lord  Lauderdale  buys  Airhouse  in  May  1858,  this  "part" 
is  carefully  noted. 

This  dubiety  about  what  share  of  Ugston  lands  each 
proprietor  owned  became  troublesome.  Mr  Justice  went 
to  law  with  Mr  Somerville  of  Airhouse,  and  the  minister, 
Mr  Murray,  in  1800,  to  decide  the  part  of  teind  which 
should  be  localled  on  the  property  of  each.  Each — Somer- 
ville and  Justice — was  then  declared  to  be  owner  of  "  one 
half  of  the  said  lands  of  Ugston,"  and  teinded  each  to  the 
extent  of  £26,  13s.  6d.*  This  was  set  aside  subsequently, 
and  it  was  declared  not  to  be  proven  that  exactly  a  half 
of  Ugston  lands  belonged  to  Mr  Somerville  and  Mr  Justice 
respectively.  The  difficulty  seems  to  have  grown  out  of 
the  separation  of  Ugston  lands,  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
into  small  proprietorships.-^ 

In  1856  John  James  Parker,  W.S.,  gets  a  liferent  of  all 
Justicehall  lands,  with  the  house  and  the  piece  of  ground 
it  stands  on,  and  his  wife,  Hannah  Spittal,  is  "  seised  in 
fee,"  on  disposition  by  the  trustees  of  James  Spittal, 
merchant,  Edinburgh.  In  1857  the  Governors  of  Cauvin's 
*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  179.  \  Ibid.,  p.  185. 


JUSTICEHALL  561 

Hospital  have  a  bond  of  ^looo  over  these  lands,  Mr 
Parker  appears  at  his  first  heritors'  meeting,  3rd  June  1856. 
He  was  the  fourth  son  of  John  Parker,  Principal  Extractor 
in  the  Court  of  Session,  and  was  born  ist  October  1829. 
He  married  Hannah,  only  child  of  the  above-mentioned 
James  Spittal,  Edinburgh,  on  31st  July  1855. 

The  farm  consists  of  a  little  more  thaii  60  acres,  and  is 
rented  at  ^71,  2s.  3d.  yearly.  The  stock  is  necessarily  not 
large.  The  soil  is  very  good  Those  principally  interested 
in  it  are  : — Miss  Caroline  Hannah  Parker,  Miss  Isabella 
Shield  Parker,  and  Anthony  Scott  Parker,  The  Orchards, 
Cheltenham.  There  is  a  forlorn  look  about  the  house,  as 
if  it  had  seen  better  days,  and  many  of  the  fine  trees  planted 
around  it  by  Mr  Justice  have  been  cleared  away.  The  fine 
entrance  from  the  bridge,  which  he  also  laid  down,  has  been 
rooted  out,  and  nothing  left  of  it  but  "  a  corn-enclosed  baulk." 
Of  course,  the  proprietor  or  proprietors  are  all  "  absentees." 
The  present  tenant  is  Mr  Simon  Bathgate. 


2  N 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THREEBURNFORD — NETHER   HOWDEN — BOWERHOUSE — 
HERIOTSHALL. 

Threburneforde  in  1569 — Anciently  called  Futhewethynis  or  Fule- 
withnis — Trinity  College,  Edinburgh — Wedaleford — The  Three 
Burns — The  Borthwicks'  Possession — The  Allans,  Portioners — John 
Gumming,  Minister  at  Humbie — Alexander  Pierie,  Writer — The 
Falconers  of  Woodcote  Park — The  Taylors — Situation  and  Area — 
Tenants. 

Nether  Howden  —  Kirk  Lands — The  Kers — The  Mill — William 
Murray — The  Achesons — William  Hunter — Charles  Binning — Rev. 
Dr  Webster — Lord  Tweeddale — The  Tenants. 

Bowerhouse — The  name — Possessed  by  the  Borthwicks — Andro  Law 
— Kers  of  Morriestoun — Charles  Binning — The  Thomsons — Fairholm 
— Lord  Marchmont — The  Earl  of  Lauderdale — The  Robertsons — 
Ten  Rigs — Situation  and  Area — Tenants. 

Heriotshall  from  1742 — The  Two  Husband  Lands  of  Ugston — The 
Heriots — The  Forty-Shilling  Lands  of  Ugston — The  Murrays  of 
Wooplaw — Rev.  Thomas  Murray — The  Dobsons — The  Masons — 
.Situation  and  Area — Tenants. 

THREEBURNFORD 

This  farm  is  alway.s  credited  with  possessing  a  more 
than  ordinary  share  of  that  remoteness  and  isolation  which 
are  believed  to  be  characteristics  of  the  whole  parish.  What- 
ever it  may  have  been  in  the  past,  its  isolation  is  doomed 
to  vanish  before  the  encroachments  of  the  railway  which  is 
being  laid  in  its  immediate  vicinity.  But  we  are  not  in- 
clined to  think  that  it  was  a  solitary  place  in  bygone  days. 


THRREBURNFORD  563 

On  the  contrary,  it  must  have  been  a  place  of  frequent 
visitation,  seeing  that  the  Girthgate  runs  past  it,  where 
many  a  weary  wayfarer,  and  doubtless  many  a  hunted 
criminal,  pressed  on  their  way  to  the  "  Girths "  at  Wedale 
on  the  south,  or  Soltre  Aisle  on  the  north.  This  view  may 
receive  fuller  confirmation  from  the  following  gleanings. 

On  the  24th  November  1569  the  King  confirmed  the 
charter  of  Lord  William  Youngar,  Prebendary  of  the 
Collegiate  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  near  Edinburgh, 
styled  Threburneforde — in  which,  with  consent  of  the  Provost 
and  Prebendaries  of  the  same,  for  a  large  sum  of  money 
paid,  and  for  other  gratuities,  he  demitted  to  Robert 
Borthwick,  son  of  the  deceased  William  Borthwick,  senior  of 
Soltray,  the  lands  of  Threburneforde,  with  house  and  build- 
ing, in  the  bailiary  of  Lauderdale,  who  must  return  to  the 
said  Prebendary  five  pounds  as  ancient  fee-farm,  with  some 
other  obligations.* 

Here  we  find  Threeburnford  in  the  hands  of  Trinity 
College,  Edinburgh,  one  of  whose  Prebendaries  takes  his 
landed  appellation  from  it,  demitting  it  to  Robert  Borthwick 
of  Soltray.  How  did  it  come  into  the  possession  of  the 
Provost  and  Prebendaries  of  Trinity  College  ? 

The  answer  to  this  question  seems  to  be  found  in  the 
Charters  of  Dryburgh  Abbey  and  those  of  Kelso  and  the 
Domus  de  Soltre,  Nos.  187,  98,  and  13  respectively.  The 
gist  of  them  is  the  same.  There  were  104  acres  in  Channel- 
kirk  Parish  which  brought  revenue  to  the  Dryburgh  Abbot 
as  head  of  the  Abbey.  These  acres  were  called  Fulewithnis, 
and  they  were  situated  at  Wedaleford.  The  Hospital  of 
Soltre  farmed  them  and  paid  tithes  and  dues  to  Channelkirk 
Church,  as  the  Mother  Church  through  which  Dryburgh 
*  Registrum  Magni  Sigilli. 


564  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Abbey  originally  received  them,  but  which  now,  in  1220 
A.D.  (1200  A.D.  say  Soltre  Charters),  Dryburgh  Abbey 
graciously,  "being  charitably  disposed,  gives  and  frees  the 
House  of  Soltre,  and  the  Brethren  there,  from  all  these 
tithes  and  dues."  Only  the  Soltray  Brethren,  according  to 
the  convention  between  the  two  houses,  must  pay  to 
Dryburgh  Abbey  as  an  acknowledgment  of  superiority  over 
these  acres,  one  pound  of  pepper  and  another  of  cumin, 
yearly,  at  Roxburgh  Fair. 

Allan  of  Galloway  is  said  to  have  given  Kelso  monks 
8s.  annually  in  consideration  that  they  should  give  up  all 
claim  to  the  land  called  Fulwidnes  which  he  had  given  in 
alms  to  the  Hospital  of  Soltre.  Dryburgh  Abbey  appears 
to  have  held  a  superiority  over  it,  notwithstanding,  and 
hence  the  "  Convention."  We  think  we  are  justified  in 
believing  these  104  acres — called  a  carucate  of  land  — to 
have  been  the  ancient  Threeburnford.  We  have  arrived  at 
this  conclusion  from  the  following  considerations  : — 

I.  This  place  called  Fulewithnis,  or,  as  Soltray  Charters 
spell  it,  Futhewethynis,  was  at  this  date  (about  1 200  A.D.)  in 
the  hands  of  Soltre  Brethren  as  their  property,  with  a  merely 
nominal  rent  over  it.  2.  There  is  no  trace  that  they  relin- 
quished this  grant  to  any  one  down  till  the  year  1462.  3.  In 
that  year  King  James  the  Second's  widow  founded  Trinity 
College,  Edinburgh,  and  all  the  endowments  of  Soutra 
Hospital  were  bestowed  upon  it.  Fulewithnis  would  go  with 
these  to  the  Provost  and  Prebendaries  of  it,  and  may  account 
for  a  Prebendary  of  that  College  holding  land  in  Channelkirk 
parish  in  1569.  4.  This  was  the  only  case  where  the  Soutray 
Brethren  held  land  in  this  parish  at  any  time  (with  the 
exception  of  Hartside  and  Clints),  and  the  likelihood  seems 
all  the  greater  that  when  Borthwick  of  Soltray  took  a  lease 


THREP:BURNF0RD  565 

of  Threeburnford  from  the  Prebendary  of  Trinity  College, 
he  was  actually  treating  for  the  same  acres  which  the 
Master  of  Soltray  and  the  Abbot  of  Dryburgh  negotiated 
in  the  year  1200.  If  we  are  correct  in  this  assumption, 
Threeburnford  was  originally  called  Fulewithnis,  and  it 
was  situated  at  Wedaleford.  Wedale,  as  treated  by  one 
authority,  was  part  of  the  forest  of  Selkirk  and  Traquair, 
and  was  specially  given  by  David  I.  to  Melrose  Abbey 
about  1 1 36,  and  it  is  defined  as  "bounded  on  the  south- 
west by  the  River  Gala,  on  the  east  by  the  Leder,  and 
on  the  north  by  the  lands  of  the  Morvilles  in  Lauder- 
dale. "  *  Skene  and  Veitch,  however,  have  another  view 
of  it  at  an  earlier  stage  in  its  existence,  and  place  it 
originally  near  Heriot  Water.  Commemorative  of  a  woful 
scene  of  bloodshed  and  battle,  the  name  in  course  of  time 
would  doubtless  widen  in  area,  and  from  a  small  locality, 
gradually  embrace  the  entire  territory  of  the  Gala  valley, 
and  in  these  early  times  a  road  must  have  existed  between 
"  the  Stow  of  Weddale  "  f  and  the  one  which  comes  up  from 
it  by  way  of  Michelstown,  Inchkeith,  Threeburnford,  and 
Hartside.  It  is  clearly  the  route  which  travellers  would 
prefer  to  take  in  communicating  between  Stow  dale  and 
Upper  Lauderdale.  But  when  "  Stow "  as  a  name  super- 
.seded  "  Wedale,"  and  the  valley,  moreover,  became  "  Gala " 
Valley,  the  name  Wedaleford  would  become  less  and  less 
distinctive  as  a  directive  name,  and  as  the  Three  Burns 
which  exist  here  had  to  be  forded  by  all  travellers  coming 
up  the  valley  to  Hartside  or  Soutra  Isle,  the  "  Three  Burns' 
Ford"  would  give  clearer  outline  to  the  locality,  and  use 
and  wont  would  then  fix  it  as  its  designation. 

*  Monastic  Annals  of  Teviotdale,  p.  262. 

t  Called  so  by  John  Harding,  time  of  James  I.  of  Scotland. 


566  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  fact  that  "  the  Stow  of  Weddale  "  possessed  special 
privileges  of  sanctuary,  and  that  the  same  privileges  were 
offered  by  Soltray  Hospital,  would  create  a  direct  interest 
in  these  two  localities  strong  enough  to  ensure  a  road 
between  them.  It  is  undoubtedly  clear,  from  the  Dryburgh 
Charters,  that  this  "  Wedaleford''  was  in  Channelkirk  parish^ 
as  well  as  that  Soltre  Hospital  held  acres  at  that  place, 
and  unless  we  assume  it  also  to  have  been  at  Threeburn- 
ford,  there  does  not  seem  any  solution  possible  to  the 
problem  as  to  how  a  Prebendary  of  Trinity  College,  Edin- 
burgh, holding  property  direct  from  Soltre  Hospital,  held 
Threeburnford  in  1569.     There  is  further  confirmation  of  this. 

The  Lord  Provost  and  Town  Council  of  Edinburgh 
got  possession  of  Trinity  College  shortly  after  the  Reforma- 
tion, and  King  James  confirmed  the  charter  in  1587,  and 
consequently  we  find  them  exercising  their  superiority  over 
Threeburnford  in  the  following  deed— "23rd  Nov.  1631, 
Charter  by  Alex.  Clark,  of  Stentoun,  Provost  of  the  Burgh 
of  Edinburgh,  William  Dick,  Thos.  Charteris,  Robert 
Achesoun,  and  of  John  Smith,  bailies  of  said  burgh,  as 
Superiors  of  the  lands,  granting  to  William  Borthwick  of 
Cruikston  the  lands  of  Soultray,  Soultray  Hill,  Reidhall, 
and  Hauginschaw,  in  the  Sheriffdom  of  Edinburgh ;  also 
Threeburnford,  lying  in  the  same  shire  and  bailiary  of 
Lauderdale,  apprised  by  William  Borthwick  from  the  Ladies 
Anna  and  Jean  Ker,  heiresses  of  the  late  Robert,  Earl  of 
Lothian  :  To  be  held  for  a  yearly  rental  of  ....  ^8  for 
Threeburnford."  *  Here  we  have  further  proof  that  Three- 
burnford was  in  possession  of  Edinburgh  Magistrates,  and  it  is 
rational  to  assume  that  //  was  there  by  reason  of  being  a  part 
of  Trinity  College  endowments  taken  over  by  them. 
*  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters,  No.  2096. 


THREEBURNFORD  567 

If  this  be  granted,  Threeburnford  has  a  clear  historical 
record  from  a  date  considerably  before  the  year  1200  A.D. 
Originally  owned  by  Channelkirk  Church,  it  passed  into 
the  possession  of  Dr}^burgh  Abbey  by  the  gift  of  Channel- 
kirk to  Dryburgh.  Its  name  then  was  Fulewithnis  or 
Futhewithynis,  and  it  was  situated  at  Wedaleford.  It  is 
then  worked  and  leased  from  Dryburgh  Abbey  by  the  Brethren 
of  Soutra  Hospital,  the  advantage  of  this  being  apparent 
when  it  is  remembered  that  the  Hospital  owned  Gilston 
and  Brotherstanes  (The  Brother's  "  Tuns ")  two  or  three 
miles  further  north,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Girthgate,  and 
had  also  a  superiority  over  Hartside  and  Clints.  About 
1200  or  1220  Soltre  Hospital  practically  obtained  entire 
possession  of  it  from  Dryburgh  monks.  It  is  retained  by 
the  Brethren  of  Soutra  Hospital  till  1462,  when,  along  with 
all  their  possessions,  it  became,  as  we  have  already  suggested, 
part  of  the  endowments  of  Trinity  College,  Edinburgh. 
Shortly  after  the  Reformation,  the  Trinity  College  itself 
was  owned  by  Edinburgh  City,  whose  magistrates  are  its 
Superiors.     It  stood  thus  in  163 1. 

In  1627  the  then  minister  of  Channelkirk  says :  "  Thrie- 
burnefuird  is  in  stok  8  scoir  lib. ;  personage,  20  lib.;  viccarage, 
20  lib."  In  a  paper  purporting  to  be  a  copy  of  the  Locality 
of  Channelkirk  Teinds,  it  is  given: — "  Johnstoneburn  (Borth- 
wick) — His  lands  of  Threeburnfoot,  of  teynd  rent  one  boll 
bear,  two  bolls  oats,  twelve  teynd  lamb  with  the  wool, 
pryce  33s.  46."  *  But  Edinburgh  magistrates  were  still 
Superiors  over  it. 

There  is  a  family  of  Allans  who  are   called  portioners 
in    Threeburnford    from    1599   to    i626.t      William    is   first, 
who   dies    in    1625,    Thomas,    his    heir,   coming    in    for   half 
*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  242.  f  Retours.. 


568  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

the  lands  of  Threeburnford,  with  pasture  in  the  Common 
of  Ugston.  Then  Thomas  Allan  is  served  heir  of  Hugh 
Allan,  "  portioner  in  Threeburnford,"  on  19th  January  1626. 
William  Borthwick  is  seised  in  the  lands  of  Threeburnford 
in  April  1663.*  A  family  of  Fairgrieves,  father  and  son, 
were  tenants  in  it  from  1693  till  about  1763,  William  Murray 
following  them.  The  father,  George  Fairgrieve,  seems  to 
have  been  prosperous  in  it,  for  on  ist  February  1702,  he  could 
afford  to  lend  the  proprietor,  Major  William  Borthwick," 
Johnstoneburn,  500  merks.f 

■  In  1724  the  lands  change  hands.  "William  Ramsay  of 
Templehall,  for  John  Gumming  Ramsay,  his  second  son, 
condescended  that  the  lands  of  Threeburnford  were  purchased 
by  Mr  John  Gumming,  his  wife's  father,  from  Borthwick  of 
Fallahill,  7th  February  1724,  and  that  the  lands  hold  of  the 
town  of  Edinburgh."  I  "  Mr  John  Gumming  "  was  the  minister 
of  Humbie,  and  Mr  Dalzell,  who  was  then  in  Hartside, 
was  on  no  good  terms  with  the  "said  John."  On  ist  October 
1728  Mr  Gumming  has  a  disposition  granted  to  him  by 
Andrew  Ker  of  Moriestoun,§  of  the  half  of  the  free  teinds 
of  Threeburnford,  and  he  is  seised  in  these  8th  October 
1729.11  In  1742  he  is  taxed  ;^i,  8s.  lod.  for  the  Ghannelkirk 
schoolmaster's  salary,  in  virtue  of  his  owning  Threeburnford.^ 
Ultimately  he  wills  these  lands  to  his  grandson,  John 
Gumming  Ramsay,  second  son  of  William  Ramsay  of 
Templehall.  The  date  is  not  quite  evident,  but  it  must  have 
been  before  1762. 

Before  1772  sometime,  Alexander  Pierie,  writer  Edinburgh, 
becomes  possessed  of  Threeburnford.     In  1786  it  passes  into 

*  General  Register,  fol.  309.  t  Sasines. 

%  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597.    Mack.        §  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  220. 

II  Sasines.  ^  Kirk  Records. 


THREEBURNFORD  569 

the  hands  of  his  trustees,  and  in  1792  it  is  disponed  to 
Alexander  Falconer  of  Woodcote  Park,  Haddingtonshire.  A 
year  before  this  date,  Mr  Falconer,  succeeding  his  father 
Thomas,  who  owned  Reidhall  and  Soutra,  laid  out  that 
estate  to  such  an  extent  in  woods,  beech  hedges,  and  haw- 
thorn, as  to  justify  his  changing  its  name  to  that  of 
Woodcote  Park.  In  1795  he  died,  and  was  buried  in  Fala 
churchyard.  George  Home  Falconer,  his  son,  is  "  seised " 
in  Threeburnford  on  3rd  February  1803,  and  again  on 
2nd  January  1804,  "as  heir  to  Alex.  Falconer  of  Woodcote 
Park,  his  father,  on  Charter  of  Confirmation,  and  Pr.  CI. 
Con.  by  the  tutors  dative  of  the  said  Geo.  H.  Falconer, 
19  Dec.  1803."  He  was  a  soldier,  and  served  his  country 
in  the  battle  ot  Waterloo,  and  was  promoted  to  a  cap- 
taincy. He  died  prematurely  in  1820,  and  is  buried  beside 
his  father. 

George  Home  Falconer  had  three  sisters,  one  of  whom 
was  married  to  Lieut.-Col.  T.  E.  Napier — later.  Sir  Thomas 
E.  Napier,  of  Thirlstane — brother  to  Admiral  Napier,  and 
Woodcote  Park  was  her  dowry.  Mr  Ogilvie  of  Chesters, 
Ancrum,  married  another  sister.  Soutra  Mains  belonged 
to  her. 

At  a  heritors'  meeting  on  ist  May  1821,  the  presence 
of  "Col.  Napier  of  Threeburnford"  is  noted.  On  15th  July 
1823,  the  gallant  colonel  appears  "for  Wm.  Ogilvie  of 
Threeburnford."  Mrs  Murray  is  said  to  be  teinded  for 
Threeburnford  in  1827.  On  nth  and  15th  May  1841 
the  following  sasine  introduces  a  new  proprietor  to  Three- 
burnford. 

"John  Taylor,  tenant  in  Kirktonhill,  seised  May  21, 
1 841,  in  the  lands  of  Threeburnford,  with  pasturage  in  the 
Common  of  Ugston,  on   disposition   by   Alexina    Falconer, 


570  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

with  consent  of  William  Ogilvie  of  Chesters,  her  husband, 
and  of  Margaret  Falconer  and  Col.  Thomas  Erskine  Napier, 
her  husband,  May  i  ith  and  15th,  1841." 

Therefore,  at  a  heritors'  meeting  on  15th  November  1841, 
"John  Taylor,  Esq.  of  Threeburnford,"  duly  appears.* 
Alexander  Taylor,  Esq.,  appears  for  him  on  26th  August 
1848;  on  22nd  November  1852  it  is  "James  Taylor,  Esq. 
of  Threeburnford " ;  on  8th  May  1 876,  "  Thomas  Taylor, 
Esq.,"  appears  "for  the  trustees  of  the  late  John  Taylor, 
Esq.  of  Threeburnford."  The  present  proprietor  is  Joseph 
Taylor,  who  is  reputed  to  be  a  liberal  landlord.  He  has 
the  "  Diel's  Buist "  on  him,  however,  as  an  "  Absentee."  In 
the  opinion  of  the  people  of  the  parish,  it  takes  a  thick 
coating  of  good  wool  to  overgrow  that  smudge. 

The  farm-steading  stands  on  a  steep  bank  rising  towards 
the  west,  from  a  stream  which  at  this  point  gives  to  the 
Leader  River  the  source  of  one  of  its  tributaries.  It  is  old, 
but  in  good  condition  and  comfortable.  The  water-supply 
is  fairly  good,  and  drainage  satisfactory.  The  farm  is  in  area 
379  acres,  and  is  rented  for  ^^146  yearly.  The  land  is 
composed  of  a  light  soil,  and  is  worked  on  the  fifth  shift 
rotation.  It  supports  30  cattle,  200  ewes,  and  5  horses, 
with  the  usual  farmyard  accessories.  250  acres  are  in 
tillage,  127  in  pasture,  and  2  acres  woods.  The  want  of 
shelter  in  winter  for  stock  is  a  drawback.  A  narrow  strip 
of  wood  planted  conveniently  would  help  the  ewes  to  cherish 
in  stormy  seasons,  and  save  the  lambs.  Exposed  to  the 
east  blasts,  the  open  slope  of  land  ascending  without  a 
break  from  the  "  three  burns  "  to  the  height  of  the  "  Rishilaw 
House,"  receives  the  full  severity  of  our  bitterest  February 
and  March  winds,  and  at  such  a  time  no  little  damage  is 
*  Heritors'  Records. 


THREEBURNFORD  571 

done  to  the  farmer's  profits.  A  few  trees  would  be  a  great 
improvement. 

It  is  approached  from  the  Edinburgh  Road  which  passes 
over  Soutra  Hill  by  way  of  the  "  Oxton  Road  "  and  Mount- 
mill  Farm,  proceeding  past  Hartside  through  as  pretty 
a  little  glen  as  one  could  wish  to  behold  ;  the  steep  sloping 
braes  on  either  side  being  clothed  with  the  "gay  green 
birk,"  the  broom,  and  the  bracken,  the  hawthorn  and  the 
evergreen  juniper,  in  abundance ;  the  brawling  Airhouse 
Water,  dear  to  trout  fishers,  keeping  the  pedestrian  merry 
company  all  the  way.  Another  approach  to  it,  not  so  dear 
to  pedestrians  who  have  to  catch  trains,  lies  across  the 
moors  to  the  west,  by  way  of  Middletown  and  Cortleferry  to 
Fountainhall  station.  It  is  a  good  hour's  walk  to  it  either 
from  Edinburgh  Road  or  Fountainhall. 

The  present  farmer  is  Thomas  Bell,  son  of  James  Bell, 
deceased  in  February  of  this  year,  1900,  and  who  entered 
the  farm  in  1897.  There  are  nine  souls  on  the  place.  Mr 
Bell  had  farmed  in  the  parish  altogether  for  thirty-three 
years  on  Heriotshall,  Oxton  Mains,  and  Threeburnford.  He 
was  a  native  of  the  parish,  and  his  father  was  for  many 
years  a  farm  servant  in  Channelkirk.  He  was  a  Parish 
Councillor,  and  was  much  respected. 

The  Girthgate  which  runs  past  this  farm,  and  the  legend 
connected  with  one  of  its  early  tenants,  are  noticed  in  the 
chapter  on  "  Antiquities." 

This  notice  of  Threeburnford  would  be  incomplete  without 
some  observations  regarding  Mr  Walter  Brodie,  Mr  Bell's 
predecessor  in  the  tenancy,  and  his  brother-in-law.  His 
death  in  Lauder,  whither  he  had  retired,  on  the  3rd 
of  October  1898,  cast  quite  a  gloom  over  Lauderdale.  Both 
in  Lauder  parish  and  in  Channelkirk  there  were  few  public 


572  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

functions  with  which  he  was  not  honourably  connected.  He 
was  born  in  Blainslie  in  1825.  He  left  there  in  1857,  with 
wife  and  family,  to  farm  Heriotshall.  He  was  many  years  in 
Lauder  in  the  service  of  the  Earls  of  Lauderdale  till  1881, 
when  he  took  a  lease  of  Threeburnford  Farm.  Sociable, 
sincere,  and  amiable,  he  was  not  only  esteemed,  but  beloved. 
He  was  for  many  years  a  leading  mind  in  Lauder  U.P. 
Church,  but  did  not  hesitate  to  take  the  chair  at  an  Estab- 
lished Church  meeting  in  Oxton,  held  to  protest  against  Dis- 
establishment at  last  Parliament  elections.  He  had  strong 
sympathies  with  the  Church  of  Scotland,  and  was  a  Unionist 
in  politics,  but  over  both  politics  and  religion  he  threw  the 
tact  and  kindness  of  a  Christian  gentleman.  He  was  buried 
in  Lauder  Old  Churchyard,  universally  mourned. 

At  the  beginning  of  this  century  John  Mofifat  farmed 
Threeburnford ;  Walter  Renwick  followed  him.  He  was 
there  a  long  time,  and  was  noted  as  a  keen  fisher ;  his  son 
was  an  elder  in  Channelkirk  Church.  A  friend  of  Renwick's 
carried  on  the  farm  after  him ;  then  Mr  Taylor,  farmer, 
Kirktonhill,  having  bought  Threeburnford,  farmed  it  for  a 
short  time,  a  duty  which  devolved  upon  his  nephew  by-and- 
by.     Mr  Brodie  then  succeeded  to  it. 

Nether  Howden. 

The  original  and  ancient  "  Holdene  "  having  been  treated 
in  our  account  of  its  modern  representative.  Over  Howden, 
much  of  what  we  have  narrated  concerning  that  place 
necessarily  includes  the  earlier  fortunes  of  Nether  Howden 
also,  seeing  that  the  latter  was  embraced  in  the  area  of  the 
former. 

So  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  discover,  Nether  Howden 
has   no  historical   reference   prior    to    1539  A.D.,  when  John 


NETHER  HOWDEN  573 

Tennent  receives  it  from  the  King,  to  whom  he  was  "  verlote." 
It  is  a  safe  conjecture,  however,  that  gives  it  status  as  a 
place  of  considerable  importance  before  that  date.  The 
original  "  Holdene  "  territory  seems  to  have  been  divided  for 
agricultural  purposes  about  the  beginning  of  the  i6th  century, 
and  the  two  place-names.  Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden, 
would  then  come  naturally  into  vogue  for  purposes  of  dis- 
tinction. Along  with  Over  Howden  it  belonged  to  Kelso 
Abbey,  and  fell  to  the  Kers  of  Cessford  in  the  spoliation  of 
the  Church  Lands.     An  authority  thus  states  it : — 

"  As  regards  the  temporalities,  there  were  also  excepted 
from  the  annexation  to  the  Crown  all  the  lands  of  temporal 
lordships  which  had  been  previously  alienated,  and  thus  a 
vast  amount  of  property  which  rightfully  belonged  to  the 
Church  was  left  in  the  possession  of  nobles  and  others  who 
had  acquired  it  against  every  principle  of  law  and  justice. 
In  this  way  the  greater  portion  of  what  formed  part  of  the 
Abbey  Lands  of  Kelso  is  now  owned  by  the  Duke  of 
Roxburgh,  inherited  from  his  ancestor,  Ker  of  Cessford,  who 
had,  in  the  manner  indicated,  obtained  a  grant  of  the  lands."  * 

The  following  document  explains  itself: — 

"At  Holyrood  House,  31  May  1603,  the  King — for  the 
good  service  of  Thomas  Ker  of  Cavers,  of  Master  George 
Ker,  his  father,  before  him,  and  of  Rudolph  Ker,  his  grand- 
father, before  him,  and  according  to  an  agreement  made 
good  —  with  consent,  etc.,  ratified  all  the  charters  and 
assedations  made  by  the  commendators  and  Convent  of 
Kelso,  by  Francis,  formerly  Earl  of  Bothwell,  by  the  King 
or  the  King's  predecessors,  or  by  any  Pope  whatsoever,  to 
the  said  Thomas  Ker,  his  father,  and  grandfather,  or  to 
other   predecessors  of  his,  or  to  John  Tennent  of  Listoun- 

*  Church  of  Scotland^  vol.  iv.,  p.  54. 


574  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

shiels,  or  his  predecessors,  or  made  by  the  said  John  to 
the  said  George,  of  the  lands,  etc.,  written  below  :  notwith- 
standing the  absence  of  the  said  Earl.  Moreover,  although 
the  lands  underwritten  had  of  old,  for  many  generations, 
and  beyond  recollection,  been  possessed  by  the  said  Thomas 
and  his  predecessors,  he  (the  King)  anew,  in  fee-farm,  hands 
them  over  to  the  said  Thomas,  to  his  heirs  and  assignees 
whomsoever — the  lands  of  Nether  Howden  and  Hairlaw,  the 
Mill  of  Nether  Howden,  and  the  multures  of  it,  with  common 
pasture  and  privilege  to  cast  and  win  fewall,  faill,  and  dufifettis, 
and  pull  hedder  in  the  Common  of  Ugistoun,  in  the  bailiary 
of  Lawderdaill,  Sheriffdom  of  Berwick.  .  .  .  Returning  for 
Nether  Howden,  with  pertinents,  ;^i5."  ...  * 

As  this  ratification  is  made  in  1603,  and  we  have  it  said 
then  that  Nether  Howden  had  been  for  many  generations, 
and  beyond  memory,  in  the  hands  of  the  Kers,  we  may  .safely 
assign  it  a  separate  existence  a  hundred  years  earlier,  and 
be  well  within  reasonable  bounds.  The  Mill  here  called 
the  "  Mill|Of  Nether  Howden  "  is  now  the  place  called  Wi.se- 
law  Mill,  and  falls  to  be  treated  in  Chapter  XX.,  on  "  The 
Mills." 

There  is  a  long  charter,  dated  20th  December  1607,  which 
gives  Robert,  Lord  Roxburgh,  among  many  other  "  lands," 
the  lands  of  "  Ovir  and  Nethir  Howdennis  "  ;  and  we  learn 
from  the  minister's  account,  of  date  1627,  that  "  Neather 
Hawden  holding  of  the  Abacie  of  Kelso "  yields  "  in 
stok  600  merkis ;  personage,  ane  100  lib.  ;  viccarage,  20 
lib."  t 

Lord  Roxburgh's  eldest  son,  William  Ker,  receives  Nether 
Howden   on   June    12,    1614,    by    a    charter   of  novodamus 
from  the  King,  along  with  many  other  lands  and  churches, 
*  Registrum  Magni  Sigilli.  t  Great  Seal. 


NETHER  HOWDEN  575 

and  it  continues  in  the  possession  of  the  Kers  till  the  year 

1647- 

In  1647,  on  the  26th  January,  the  King's  chamberlain, 
William  Murray,  has  not  only  Nether  Howden  given  to 
him,  but  the  town  and  lands  of  Kelso,  the  lands  of  Humbie, 
and  much  else.  But  in  June  of  that  year,  T.ord  Roxburgh 
and  William  Murray  having  resigned  these,  the  former  has 
Nether  Howden  sealed  anew  to  him.  This  arrangement 
was  again  altered  at  the  close  of  the  same  year.  On  the 
17th  December  1647  John  Achesoun  or  Aitchison,  advocate, 
obtains  Nether  Howden  in  liferent,  and  his  eldest  son,  James 
Achesoun,  in  fee.  with  the  mill,  and  all  privileges  held  formerly 
by  the  Convent  of  KeLso,  Earl  Bothwell,  the  Ker  family,  and 
John  Tennent,  the  "verlote  of  our  chalmer."  In  1664  the 
father  seems  to  be  dead,  and  his  son  James  "  of  Houdoun  " 
is  by  right  of  holding  in  fee  styled  "  hereditary  proprietor  of 
the  lands  of  Ugstoun,  mill,  and  mill  lands  thereof."  *  The 
Presbytery  Records  bear  that  James  took  a  warm  interest 
in  the  parish  church,  and  during  the  long  contention  anent 
electing  a  minister  for  the  vacancy  which  lasted  from  June 
1697  till  September  1702,  he  was  a  staunch  supporter  of 
William  Knox,  who  lost  the  church  by  one  vote. 

In  1665  Agnes  and  John  Edgar  are  seised  in  "  the  just 
and  equal  half  of  the  lands  of  Nether  Howden,  houses,"  etc., 
which  half  seems  again  to  have  been  halved  equally  between 
them.t  Jean  Edgar  was  wife  to  John  Aitchison, — that  is  to 
say,  she  was  James  Aitchison's  mother,  and  her  daughter 
Jean  married  John  Spotiswood,  advocate,  who,  with  consent 
of  these  parties,  obtained  in  1701  the  "just  and  equal  half  of 
Nether  Howden," :|:  etc.,  "possessed  by  Mr  James  Aitchi.son. 
James,  who  resided  in  Edinburgh,  got  this  half  in  1692,  with 
*  Calendar  of  Laing  Charters,  No.  2587.         f  Sasines.         X  Ibid. 


576  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

privileges  of  Wideopen  Common,  etc.,  fee-farm  £']^  los.,  with 
mill,  "  now  called  Vyslaw,  or  Ryslaw  Mill "  (Wiselaw  Mill).* 

Adam  Gordon,  burgess  in  Edinburgh,  is  styled  "  heritable 
proprietor  of  Nether  Howden  lands "  at  this  time,  and 
Spotiswood  receives  from  him  a  contract  of  alienation. 
Andrew  Ker  of  Morriston  draws  the  teinds  of  Nether 
Howden  in  1676,  but  in  1700  we  find  him  seised  in  an 
annual  rent  of  ;^20  Scots,  furth  of  Wiselaw  Mill,  and  in 
the  same  year,  in  the  mill  itself  and  mill  lands,  and  half 
the  lands  of  Nether  Howden.  William  Watherstone  in 
Dunse,  and  wife,  draw  an  annual  rent  of  £60  Scots  furth  of 
these  lands  in  1698.  The  Aitchisons  had  been  "  hard  up " 
in  their  money  matters  evidently.  In  1650  and  1684,  Lord 
Roxburgh  is  still  declared  the  Superior  of  these  lands, 
which  were  included  in  the  entail  of  his  estates.f  In  con- 
nection with  the  above  transaction  regarding  Wiselaw 
Mill,  we  learn  that  James  Aitchison's  second  son,  Gilbert, 
held  a  heritor's  rights  in  the  property ,|  a  fact  which  is 
supported  by  the  Presbytery  Records  of  Earlston. 

Charles  Binning,  solicitor,  enters  upon  the  "  arable  lands 
of  Nether  Howden"  in  1722.^  They  are  said  to  have 
been  "disponed  to  him  by  William  Hunter  of  Nether 
Howden."  II  The  heritors  of  Channelkirk  meet  in  1742  to 
allocate  the  schoolmaster's  salary,  and  this  note  is  given  : 
"  Glengelt  and  Nether  Howden,  belonging  to  the  heirs  of 
the  deceased  William  Hunter,  merchant  in  Edinburgh,  eleven 
pounds  and  two  pennies."  ^  He  is  also  described  as  a 
"  merchant  in  Dalkeith."  We  find  him  figuring  in  trans- 
actions, dated    1731    and    1739,**  connected  with   Glengelt, 

*  Retours.  f  Ibid.  X  Sasines. 

§  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597.  II  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  225. 

H  Kirk  Records.  **  Locality,  p.  161. 


NETHER  HOWDEN  577 

which  was  also  his  property,  and  as  he  is  dead  in  1742,  that 
event  must  have  taken  place  between  the  two  last-mentioned 
years.  He  bequeathed,  it  appears,  Glengelt  to  his  daughter 
Agnes,  or  "Ann,"  and  Nether  Howden  to  his  daughter 
Christian,*  the  latter,  to  all  appearance,  only  coming  into  full 
possession  of  her  property  on  3rd  February  i/Sp.f  She  had 
reasons,  no  doubt,  for  willing  away  Nether  Howden  and  all 
its  pertinents  to  the  Rev.  Dr  Alexander  Webster,  one  of  the 
ministers  of  Edinburgh,  on  26th  July  1760.  This  clergy- 
man was  somewhat  famous  in  his  day.  Principal  John 
Cunningham  thus  discourses  of  him :  J  "To  Dr  Alex. 
Webster,  one  of  the  ministers  of  Edinburgh,  the  Church 
is  chiefly  indebted  for  having  originated  and  brought  to 
maturity  the  Widows'  Fund.  All  his  contemporaries 
describe  Dr  Webster  as  a  remarkable  man — possessed  of 
a  native  dignity  of  manner,  readiness  of  wit,  and  fluency 
of  speech."  "  In  too  many  jolly  companies  the  minister 
of  the  Tolbooth  Church  was  the  jolliest  of  all.  No  one 
in  the  city  could  joke  with  him  ;  no  one  could  drink  with 
him  ;  when  all  others  were  drunk,  Dr  Webster  was  still 
perfectly  sober."  Dr  Carlyle,  Inveresk,  calls  Dr  Webster 
"  a  five-bottle  man,"  and  says  this  quality  brought  him 
"  the  nickname  of  Dr  Bonum  Magnum."  §  "  But  Dr  Webster 
was  much  more  than  a  mere  toper  and  jester — he  was  a 
benevolent  man.  He  was  a  profound  statistician  at  a  time 
when  statistics  were  very  little  known."  "  He  was  a  dis- 
tinguished political  economist,  an  elegant  preacher,  an 
accomplished  man."]:     Miss  Hunter  of  Nether  Howden  had, 

*  Locality,  p.  157.  \  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  567. 

X  Church  History,  vol.  ii.,  p.  319.     See  also  Kerr's  Report  on  Berwick- 
shire, 181 3,  p.  470. 

%  Autobiography,  p.  239. 

2  O 


578  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

no  doubt,  shared  the  general  admiration  and  respect  in 
which  he-  was  held,  and  proved  the  fact  in  a  very  substantial 
manner.  The  Reverend  Doctor  appears  to  have  held 
Nether  Howden  till  1778.  Sasine  was  granted  by  him 
on  the  29th  May  of  that  year,  "  wherein  the  lands  of  Nether 
Howden  are  conveyed  to  George,  Marquis  of  Tweeddale, 
with  all  its  parts  and  pendicles,  crofts,  tofts,  etc.,  and  share 
in  Wideopen  Common.*  With  the  property,  Dr  Webster 
also  gave  up  "  all  right  to  his  seat,  room,  and  desk  in 
Channelkirk  Church,  as  proprietor  of  these  lands."  Lord 
Lauderdale  held,  in  1788  and  in  1790,  a  "half  of  Nether 
Howden  in  warrandice,"  along  with  Wiselaw  Mill.  The 
Marquis  of  Tweeddale  still  possesses  the  property  of 
Nether  Howden. 

John  Brunton  was  tenant  in  1752,  William  Yule  in 
1755,  and  Walter  Iddinston  in  1779,  the  last  of  whom 
the  then  minister  of  the  parish  reflected  upon  as  some- 
what of  a  niggard.  Before  1800,  and  some  time  after 
that  date.  Nether  Howden  was  farmed  by  Mr  Mercer. 
Mr  Robert  Thomson  followed  him  in  the  tenancy  for 
upwards  of  fifty  years.  The  latter  gentleman  is  remembered 
as  a  first-class  farmer,  as  "  most  particular,"  and  one  who 
diligently  looked  after  the  pennies  in  order  to  secure  the 
pounds. 

The  present  tenant  is  Mr  David  Tweedie,  who  entered 
the  farm  in  1865.  Its  rental  is  ;^2 18,  4s.  Qd.  Mr  Tweedie 
is  a  member  of  the  School  Board,  and  chairman  of  the 
Parish  Council,  and  attends  the  U.P.  Church  in  Lauder. 
The  farm  land  is  reported  to  be  of  a  light  loamy  nature, 
and  cropped  on  the  six  years'  rotation  system  ;  460  acres 
are  in  tillage.     Buildings  are  satisfactory,  and  water-supply 

*  Sasines. 


bowp:rhouse  579 

fair.  The  amount  of  stock  varies  according  to  the  time 
of  year,  and  in  1891  Mr  Tvveedie  suffered  severe  loss  in 
the  drowning  of  eighty-two  lambs  in  the  haugh  near 
Wiselaw  Mill,  when  the  Leader  overflowed  its  banks,  and 
did  great  damage  throughout  the  length  of  the  valley.  The 
"  hands "  on  the  farm  are  expected  to  work  ten  hours  in 
summer,  and  in  winter  from  daylight  till  dark.  The  Rev. 
Henry  Home,  who  was  minister  in  the  parish  during  the 
first  half  of  last  century,  was  an  ancestor  of  Mr  Tvveedie, 
but  no  other  of  his  "  forebears "  has  ever  lived  in  this 
parish,  with  the  exception  of  William  Eckford,  Mr  Home's 
son-in-law.  There  are  thirty-two  souls  resident  on  the 
farm.  There  is  a  park  on  it  called  "The  Heart  of  Lauder- 
dale," but  for  what  reason  it  seems  impossible  to  say.  The 
old  Derestrete  runs  through  several  of  the  fields  from  the 
east  end  of  the  village  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Midburn,  as 
it  goes  towards  Blackchester  Camp,  and  is  quite  evident 
during  ploughing  time.     (See  chapter  on  "  Antiquities.") 

BOWERHOUSE 

Bowerhouse,  with  Midburn  and  Shielfield,  rests  on  the 
southern  boundary  of  the  parish.  The  steading  stands  on 
one  of  a  series  of  land- waves  which,  north  of  Trabrown  and 
Pilmuir,  is  succeeded  by  that  of  Collielaw,  Over  Howden,  and 
Airhouse,  each  steading  situated  on  the  ridge  of  each  wave, 
and  each  wave  having  a  deeper  hollow  between,  as  they  roll 
northwards,  till  they  finally  terminate  in  the  huge  roller  of 
Soutra  itself  The  importance  of  Bowerhouse  as  a  residence 
would  seem  to  be  more  modern  in  date  than  the  others  just 
mentioned.  It  is  not  brought  into  historical  view  till  towards 
the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century.     Its  name  partly  explains 


580  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

this.  Bower  is  from  the  old  English  hour  or  bur,  a  room,  a 
dwelling;  the  Anglo-Saxon  bur ;  and  is  akin  to  the 
German  bauer,  a  peasant.  Its  root  is  the  same  as  that  of 
boor  and  byre.  It  may  originally  have  been  the  outdwellings, 
or  houses  of  the  serfs  or  workers  in  the  olden  times  on  the 
Collielaw  estate.  Under  the  rule  of  the  De  Morvilles,  the 
Galloways,  and  the  Balliols,  the  larger  estates  of  Lauderdale 
remained  intact,  but  when  the  Douglases  came  in  under  the 
banner  of  Robert  the  Bruce,  and  more  followers  required 
particular  rewards  for  services  rendered,  the  land  .seems  to 
have  been  subdivided  to  a  larger  extent  than  formerly  in 
order  to  meet  this  political  necessity.  It  was  about  this 
time  that  Bowerhouse  to  all  appearance  arose  to  the  in- 
dividuality which  it  has  since  possessed  along  with  the  other 
residences  in  its  neighbourhood.  It  seems  to  have  been 
purely  Saxon  in  origin  and  settlement^  whereas  the  names  on 
either  side  of  it,  such  as  Pilmuir,  Trabrown,  and  Airhouse, 
on  the  strength  of  their  names,  at  least,  point  to  a  Celtic, 
and,  consequently,  a  much  earlier  origin. 

When  it  first  looms  above  the  horizon  of  the  past,  the 
princely  House  of  Stuart  had  given  its  third  James  to  the 
throne  of  Scotland.  Where  the  deed  was  drawn  we  are  not 
informed,  but  it  is  in  the  year  1473  that  the  King  confirms 
the  charter  of  William,  Lord  Borthwick,  in  which  he  gives  to 
his  son  Thomas,  the  lands  of  Collielaw  and  Bourhouse.*  Here 
we  may  observe  that  the  fact  that  the  names  of  these  two 
places  came  together  so  early,  and  so  often  afterwards  in 
law  instruments,  seems  to  sustain  our  surmise  that  they  may 
have  been  originally  one  estate.  The  same  fact  leads  us  in 
our  narrative  to  traverse  the  same  ground,  and  frequently  the 
same  path  which  has  been  already  overtaken  in  our  account 
*  Regis fnan  Magni  Sigilli. 


BOWERHOUSE  581 

of  Collielaw.  It  will  become  us,  therefore,  to  be  as  brief  as 
possible. 

Fifteen  years  before  the  above-mentioned  date,  viz.,  in 
1458,  James  II.  (just  two  years  before  he  was  accidentally 
killed  at  Roxburgh)  conceded  Glengelt  to  the  same  Lord 
Borthwick.  The  latter  settled  his  son  James  Borthwick  there 
in  1467,  and  now  in  1473  Sir  Thomas  receives  a  landed  down- 
sitting  in  Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse.  The  Borthwicks  were 
lordly  and  powerful  then.  Before  the  year  1503,  however, 
Bourhouse  is  given  to  Allan  Borthwick,  cousin  to  the  above 
Sir  Thomas,  along  with  Collielaw,  but  the  latter  and  his  wife, 
Helen  Rutherford,  have  free  tenement  in  it  reserved  to  them, 
and  to  the  survivor  of  the  two.* 

In  1 5 10  David  Hoppringle  of  Smailholm  receives  annual 
revenues  from  certain  lands  in  Lauderdale,  and  among  them  is 
Bowerhouse,  which  yields  him  6s.  Sd.f  In  15 13  Lord  William 
Borthwick  obtains  sasine  of  "  Bourhousis,"  and  the  name 
denotes  for  the  first  time  that  there  were  two  places  of  this 
name — the  same  which  have  continued  almost  down  to 
our  own  time  as  Over  and  Nether  Bowerhouse.:J:  But  the 
name  "  Bourhous "  is  often  used  to  indicate  both  in  the 
old  records.  The  death  of  Lord  Borthwick  on  Flodden  Field 
in  the  above  year  accounts,  doubtless,  for  the  renewal  of 
rights. 

Hoppringle  of  Smailholm's  annual  revenue  of  6s.  8d. 
comes  once  more  into  view  in  1535  ;  §  and  in  1538  the  Great 
Seal  .shows  the  wide  extent  of  Lord  Borthwick's  territory, 
which  included  in  this  parish  at  that  time  "  Glengelt,  Collie- 
law, and  Bourhouse."  The  same  formula  of  landed  rights  is 
given  by  the  same  authority  in  1543,  and  again  in  1571-     We 

*  Exchequer  Rolls,  and  Registrum  Magni  Sigilli. 
t  Ibid.  %  Sasines.  §  Exchequer  Rolls. 


582  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

learn  from  another  source  that  in  October  1573,  the  year 
following  Knox's  death,  James  Borthwick,  heir  of  William, 
master  of  Borthwick,  and  his  full  brother,  still  held  the  above 
places.*  "  Bourhousis "  is  changed  to  "  Burnhous,"  and 
though  there  is  a  place  of  this  name  in  the  Borthwick 
estates  to-day,  we  conclude,  from  the  constant  association  of 
'*  Glengelt,  Collielaw,  and  Bowerhouse "  in  the  charters, 
that  "  Burnhous "  is  a  mispelling  for  "  Bourhous "  in  this 
instance. 

When  we  reach  the  year  1601,  Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse 
are  separated.  The  Heriots  of  Trabrown  possess  the  former, 
and  it  does  not  appear  who  holds  the  latter.  The  years  that 
lie  between  1567  and  1578  embrace  a  period  of  wide  political 
and  religious  turbulence  in  Scotland,  and  were  the  days  when 
the  nation's  king  was  a  child  ;  and  Moray,  Lennox,  Mar,  and 
Morton,  as  Regents,  endeavoured  to  direct  its  affairs.  Moray 
was  assassinated  at  Linlithgow,  and  Lennox  shot  in  Stirling ; 
Mar  died  suddenly,  oppressed,  perhaps,  by  the  too  great 
burdens  of  State  ;  and  Morton  only  resigned  his  perilous 
position  to  die  a  bloody  death  three  years  afterwards.  Of 
this  time  it  has  been  said,  "  There  had  taken  place  a  series  of 
events  of  blood  and  treason,  and  lust  and  revenge,  that  have 
made  this  decennium  as  fertile  of  tragedy,  and  controversy, 
and  mystery,  as  the  decennium  of  the  siege  of  Troy."  The 
landowners  were  sure  to  feel  the  concussions  of  the  various 
powerful  factions,  and  in  many  cases  be  shaken  out  of  their 
possessions  altogether.  The  Borth wicks  became  forfeit  in 
law  at  this  time,  and  Lauderdale  knew  them  no  more  till 
about  the  middle  of  the  last  century. 

In  1627  the  minister  of  the  parish  says,  "  Bowrhouses 
may    pay   in   rent,  being    plenishit,    300  merkis ;   personage, 

*  Retours. 


BOWERHOUSE  583 

ane  lOO  merkis  ;  viccarage,  xl  lib."  There  is  a  hint  in  the 
words  "  being  plenishit "  that  it  was  not  a  residence  at  that 
time.  He  mentions  all  the  other  farms  in  the  parish,  but 
makes  this  reservation  only  in  the  case  of  Bowerhouse.  In 
163 1  Andro  Law  is  designated  "  Heretor  of  the  lands  of 
Bourhouses,"  and  is  then  at  law  with  the  Earl  of  Mar  and 
Alex.  Cranstoun  of  Morieston  concerning  his  teinds.  The 
case  may  have  ruined  Andro,  for  in  1632  Bowerhouse  is  in 
the  hands  of  the  Kers  of  Morrieston  along  with  Collielaw.* 

It  is  "  returned "  as  being  in  the  possession  of  the  Kers 
in  the  years  1676,  1687,  and  1692.  f  From  that  notable 
family  Bowerhouse  passed  into  the  hands  of  Charles 
Binning,  solicitor,  of  Pilmuir,  on  27th  February  1722,  and 
becomes  part  of  that  barony.  Sasine  is  given  to  Binning 
on  28th  August  1723. 1  In  1742  the  Kirk  Records  note  that 
"  Bourhouse,  belonging  to  Charles  Binning  of  Pilmure, 
advocate,"  have  allocated  to  them  £2,  i6s.  6d.  as  their  pro- 
portion of  the  schoolmaster's  salary  in  Channelkirk.  But  in 
1743  Mr  Binning  alienates  and  dispones  to  John  Thomson 
and  his  heirs  "  All  and  Whole  the  said  Mr  Charles  Binning, 
his  roum  and  land  of  Nether  Bourhouse,  with  teinds,  and 
annuity  of  said  teinds,  to  be  holden  in  feu-farm  for  the 
yearly  payment  to  the  said  Mr  C.  Binning  of  ;^io,  5s.  6d. 
of  feu-duty,"  John  Thomson  disposes  the  half  of  Nether 
Bowerhouse  to  his  son  James  in  1771,  and  the  latter  receives, 
on  2nd  October,  sasine  in  his  favour  as  "  feuar  in  Nether 
Bourhouse,"  "  All  and  Haill  the  just  and  equal  half  of  the 
lands  of  N.  Bowerhouse,  and  allotment  in  the  Common  of 
Wideopen,  etc."  § 

The  Binnings,  while  retaining   superiority   over   Nether 

*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  24 1 .  t  Retours. 

X  Acts  and  Decreets.  §  Sasines. 


584  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Bowerhouse,  also  appear  to  have  kept  Over  Bowerhouse  in 
their  own  hand.  Elizabeth,  Catherine,  and  Isobell  Binning 
are  seised  26th  October  1761,  in  "All  and  Haill  the  lands  of 
Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse "  ;  and  the  latter  may  refer  more 
particularly  to  Over  Bowerhouse.  When  Charles  Binning 
died,  the  barony  of  Pilmuir,  with  Over  Bowerhouse,  went 
to  Adam  Fairholm,  Esq.,  banker,  Edinburgh. 

In  1770  a  sasine  is  given  in  favour  of  Wm.  Riddell,  W.S., 
in  liferent,  and  Lord  Marchmont  in  fee,  of  Collielaw  and 
Nether  Bowerhouse,  but  in  1777  Mrs  Elizabeth  Binning, 
widow  of  the  deceased  Andrew  Buchanan,  and  Mrs  Isobel 
Binning,  youngest  daughter  of  the  deceased  Charles  Binning 
of  Pilmuir,  advocate,  make  and  grant  to  James,  Earl  of 
Lauderdale,  a  disposition  and  assignation  in  his  favour  of 
"  All  and  Whole  the  lands  and  barony  of  Pilmuir,"  which 
included  the  Five-pound  land  of  Pilmuir,  Blackchester, 
Muirhouse  of  Halkerland,  Little  Laurence  Lands,  Scots 
Croft,  Collielaw,  Bowerhouse,  Wiselaw  Mill,  with  sucken  and 
sequels,  multure  and  thirlage  of  the  lands  of  Nether  Howden 
and  Over  Shielfield.  This  refers  to  Over  Bowerhouse, 
evidently,  as  John  and  James  Thomson,  father  and  son 
respectively,  owned  Nether  Bowerhouse.  The  Binnings  still 
held  the  superiority  over  both  properties,  it  would  appear, 
but  Lord  Lauderdale  had  the  dominium  utile  of  Over 
Bowerhouse,  and  the  Thomsons  the  same  rights  in  Nether 
Bowerhouse. 

Nether  Bowerhouse  remained  in  the  Thomson  family, 
viz.,  John,  grandfather,  James,  son,  and  James,  junr.,  grand- 
son, till  1793.  The  last  mentioned  still  kept  Ten  Rigs,  how- 
ever, till  1 8 16.  In  1793  Nether  Bowerhouse  was  purchased 
by  John  Robertson,  farmer,  Plewlands,  and  George  Robert- 
son,   farmer,    Granton.     The    Thomsons    had    it   bonded    to 


BOWERHOUSE  585 

James  Somerville,  Ivilaw,  to  the  extent  of  i^3CK),  and  would 
seem  to  have  found  it  an  unprofitable  concern. 

James,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  on  the  death  of  James,  "  the 
late  Earl,"  is  seised  in  all  Lauderdale  Estates  in  1790,  and 
among  the  possessions.  Over  Bowerhouse  is  noted. 

With  regard  to  Nether  Bowerhouse,  the  co-proprietor, 
George  Robertson,  is,  later  in  the  year  of  1793,  put  aside 
for  some  reason,  and  Margaret  Hepburn,  his  wife,  and  the 
trustees  for  their  children  have  his  rights  in  the  half  of  that 
property  in  liferent  and  fee  respectively.  Before  March  1799 
he  is  married  again  to  Helen  Noble,  who  gets  the  liferent  as 
his  wife.  '  He  preferred  to  have  it  settled  that  way,  no  doubt, 
on  account  of  pressure  in  other  quarters.  In  1806  the  Earl 
of  Lauderdale  receives  the  full  superiority  and  property  of 
"  Bourhouses,"  which  still  seems  to  mean  Over  Bowerhouse, 
seeing  that  in  1810  the  Robertsons  of  Plewlands  and  Granton 
still  hold  the  room  and  lands  of  Nether  Bowerhouse, 

Matters  continued  in  this  relation  till  about  1853,  when 
we  find  the  Robertsons  gone  from  Bowerhouse,  and  Lord 
Lauderdale  in  possession  of  both  properties.  They  still 
remain  with  him. 

The  tenement  and  portion  of  ground  called  "  Ten  Rigs," 
"  which  used  to  be  "  part  of  the  lands  of  Nether  Bowerhouse, 
was  sold  by  "  James  Thomson,  late  of  Bowerhouse,  now 
Tenant,  Dalhousie,"  on  i8th  December  18 16,  to  William 
Eckford,  Pilmuir,  and  Janet  Aitchison,  his  wife,  and  they 
were  seised  in  fee  and  liferent  respectively  on  the  17th 
January  18 17.  Many  such  "crofts"  would  seem  to  have 
existed  in  Channelkirk  Parish,  but  when  the  large  pro- 
prietors bought  them,  the  big  farms  swamped  the  little  ones, 
and  because  also  that  it  meant  extra  expense  to  keep  up 
farmhouses  and   the  usual  attendant  housing   and  comforts 


586  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

for  live  stock,  these  were  allowed  to  fall  into  decay  and 
disappear.  This  means,  of  course,  decrease  of  population, 
and  another  door  closed  to  the  industrious  peasant  who 
aspires  to  farm  for  himself,  for  he  finds  it  impossible  with  his 
small  savings  to  undertake  a  large  farm,  though  his  way 
might  be  quite  easy  with  such  stepping-stones  as  crofts  like 
"  Ten  Rigs "  afforded.  Moreover,  it  takes  away  tenants, 
who,  if  they  are  not  wealthy,  yet  still  remain  in  the  parish 
and  share  the  duties  of  the  land,  while  the  large  farmer 
simply  puts  in  a  steward  and  takes  a  house  elsewhere,  more 
convenient  for  his  own  comfort,  and  draws  the  profits.  The 
system  has  been  long  a  drawback  to  Channelkirk. 

The  entire  farm  of  Bowerhouse,  now  embracing  in  its 
scope  Over  and  Nether  Bowerhouses,  does  not  wholly  fall 
within  the  boundaries  of  this  parish.  About  three-fourths  of 
it  are  in  Channelkirk  Parish,  and  the  other  quarter  in  that 
of  Lauder.  It  comprises  750  acres  as  a  whole,  and  has  a 
present  rental  of  ^^400.  The  soil  is  very  varied,  and,  in 
general,  270  acres  are  in  crop  ea'ch  year,  460  in  pasture  and 
20  are  in  wood.  The  turnpike  approaches  are  all  uphill, 
the  steading  being  situated  on  a  considerable  eminence, 
but  the  county  keeps  the  road  good  only  to  Nether  Bower- 
house.  The  usual  rotation  is  oats,  turnips,  oats  sown  with 
grass  seeds,  barley  or  tares,  then  grass  for  two  years. 
The  buildings  afford  plenty  of  room  for  improvements. 
The  water-supply  is,  however,  plentiful,  and  much  has  been 
done  for  drainage,  although  still  more  is  require'd.  The 
amount  of  stock  at  present  is  400  half-bred  ewes,  150  half- 
bred  ewe  hoggs,  5  cows,  6  or  8  horses,  and  some  feeding 
cattle  and  sheep.  Markets  attended  are  Earlston  and  St 
Boswells.  Shepherds'  wages  are  those  obtaining  in  the 
valley,  but  as  they  have  usually  sheep  and  other  perquisites, 


HERIOTSHALL  587 

their  wages  vary  with  prices  of  stock.  Hinds  have  mostly 
a  money  wage  now,  ;^42  per  year,  with  a  quarter  of  an  acre 
of  potatoes,  free  house  and  garden,  coals  carted  free,  no 
taxes,  free  housing  and  bedding  for  pig  or  pigs.  The  hours 
are  ten  hours  a  day,  and  nearer  seven  when  the  day  is  short 
in  winter.  The  tenants  are  John  Fleming,  Esq.,  Craigsford 
Mains,  Earlston,  and  his  son  John;  the  latter  since  1883. 
The  latter  gentleman  is  a  member  of  both  School  Board 
and  Parish  Council.  His  father  took  the  farm  in  1870. 
There  are  thirty-six  souls  on  the  farm.  The  view  from  the 
farmhouse  is  very  fine,  and  in  summer  very  beautiful,  though 
the  winter  has  also  its  grandeur,  and  is  nowhere  seen  to 
better  advantage  than  from  this  situation,  the  dale  over- 
looked being  here  at  its  broadest,  probably  five  miles  from 
crest  to  crest  of  the  hills,  and  the  scenery  the  most  varied  in 
hill  and  glen  and  winding  waters, 

"  Deep  waving  fields  and  pastures  green, 
With  gentle  slopes  and  groves  between." 

For  other  references  to  Bowerhouse  the  reader  is  directed 
to  the  chapter  on  "  Antiquities."  At  the  beginning  of  this 
century  a  family  of  the  name  of  Peacock  farmed  Upper 
Bowerhouse.  Mr  Thorburn  succeeded,  then  the  two 
brother  Mercers,  one  of  whom  died  lately  in  Selkirk.  Mr 
Bathgate  followed,  and  the  Flemings  succeeded  Mr  Bath- 
gate. 

HERIOTSHALL 

The  genesis  of  Heriotshall  is  attempted  in  the  Oxton 
chapter,  and  its  history  there  brought  down  to  1742.  We 
find  it  then  in  the  hands  of  John  Murray  of  Wooplaw.  Its 
old  designation  was  "  The  Two  Husband  Lands  of  Ugston," 


S88  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  was  included  within  the  barony  lands  of  that  territory. 
It  preserves  a  rigid  individual  existence,  however,  from  about 
the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  when  it  appears 
to  have  come  under  the  name  of  Heriotshall  from  its 
connection  with  the  Heriots  of  Airhouse,  but  was  not 
generally  so  called  until  later.  The  minister  of  the  parish 
in  1627,  for  example,  simply  styles  it  "the  Two  Husband 
Lands  of  Ugston."  It  is  also  so  called  when  Walter  Riddell, 
The  Haining,  about  163 1,  holds  Ugston  lands  ("except  the 
Two  Husband  Lands  belonging  to  Lord  Cranstoun  "),  and  in 
the  many  notices  of  the  possession  of  the  lands  of  Ugston  by 
the  Somervilles  of  Airhouse  on  the  one  hand,  and  Justice 
of  Justicehall  on  the  other,  "the  Two  Husband  Lands"  are 
never  included  in  their  properties  by  that  designation. 

There  seems  to  be  considerable  confusion  regarding  it 
in  this  respect,  and  when  the  teinds  were  localled  early  in 
this  century,  it  was  found  difficult  to  determine  whether  it 
should  be  included  in  Ugston  (Oxton),  or  treated  separately. 
In  1627  the  minister  mentions  all  the  kirk  lands  within 
the  parish,  and  among  them  are  "  the  Two  Husband 
Lands."  He  says  they  are  "  My  Lord  Cranstoune's "  lands 
in  Huxstone.  Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden  are  the 
only  other  kirk  lands  in  Ugston  territory.  But  when  James 
Cheyne,  W.S.,  in  1644  is  seised  in  the  "village  and  lands 
of  Ugston,"  the  "Two  Husband  Lands"  are  not  included. 
Yet  the  "  Forty-shilling  Lands  of  Ugston,  sometime  pertain- 
ing to  the  Monastery  of  Dryburgh,"  are  reckoned  among 
them.  These  are  ostensibly  "  kirk  lands."  And  the  question 
arises  whether  the  "  Forty-shilling  Lands  of  Ugston  "  may  not 
be  identical  with  the  "  Two  Husband  Lands,"  seeing  they  are 
kirk  lands,  and  only  one  species  of  such  is  mentioned  by  the 
minister   in   1627?     Another   confusing  element   is  the  fact 


HERIOTSHALL  589 

that  these  "Two  Husband  Lands"  are,  in  1728,  said  to  be 
"  lying  in  the  barony  of  Hartside."  What  seems  most  fatal 
to  their  identity  with  the  "  Forty-shilling  Lands  of  Ugston"  is 
the  fact  that  Forty-shilling  Land  was  equal  to  a  ploughgate,* 
which  is  equal  to  104  acres,  whereas  "Two  Husband  Lands" 
were  only  equal  to  52  acres,  or  exactly  half  a  ploughgate.  It 
does  not  appear,  therefore,  that  the  "  Two  Husband  Lands  of 
Ugston "  can  be  made  identical  with  the  Ugston  Forty- 
shilling  Lands. 

That  these  "  Two  Husband  Lands  "  were  part  of  Ugston 
territory  from  time  immemorial,  and  that  they  came 
ultimately  to  be  called  Heriotshall,  are  facts  well  ascertained  ; 
and  their  long  sustained  separation  from  the  rest  of  Ugston 
lands  is  due,  perhaps,  to  Heriotshall  having  been  in  Lord 
Cranstoun's  hands  when  all  the  other  land  of  Ugston  was 
possessed  by  Walter  Riddell  of  The  Haining,  in  Selkirkshire. 
And  while  the  Somervilles  are  said  to  hold  half  Ugston 
lands,  and  Justice  of  Justicehall  the  other  half,  we  mu.st 
remember  that  what  is  really  meant  is  that  each  held  half 
of  the  Ugston  land  which  Riddell  owned  in  163 1.  This 
does  not  appear  to  have  embraced  Heriotshall.  Moreover, 
because  that  Heriotshall  is  always  outside  the  catalogue  of 
the  "  Halves "  of  Ugston  lands  so  frequently  mentioned  as 
belonging  to  the  Justices  on  the  one  hand  and  the 
Somervilles  on  the  other,  it  cannot  be  "  Pickelraw,"  "  Lucken- 
haugh,"  the  "  Two-merk  Land,"  the  "  Forty-shilling  Land," 
the  "  Temple  Land,"  etc.,  which  are  repeatedly  enumerated 
in  these  "  Halves  "  as  "  of  Oxton." 

The  Murrays  of  Wooplaw  held  it  from  the  beginning 
till  the  end  of  last  century.  John  Murray,  as  we  have 
said,  possesses  it  in  1742,  when  we  find  the  heritors  assessing 
*  Skene's  Celtic  Scotland,  vol.  iii.,  p.  226. 


590  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

themselves  for  the  schoolmaster's  salary.*  His  son  "James 
Murray  of  Heriotshall,  farmer,  Corsbie,  appears  first  as 
heritor  for  that  place  in  1773.  He  bonded  it  for  £1000 
to  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale.  He  died  in  1795,  and  left 
it  to  his  only  son  and  heir,  John  Murray,  who  held 
Heriotshall  till  1799.  He  sold  it  then  to  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Murray,  minister  of  the  parish,  who  gets  sasine  of  it  on 
29th  November  1802.  He  was  doubtless  related  to  the 
Wooplaw  Murrays.  He  held  it  till  1807,  when  it  went 
into  the  hands  of  trustees,  one  of  whom  was  Rev.  Archi- 
bald Singers,  minister  of  Fala  (1790- 1830).  Several  feus 
on  Heriotshall  lands  were  granted  in  1791,  one  to  Robert 
Inglis,  overseer  of  Roads,  Ugston,  another  to  John  Lambert, 
mason,  Ugston,  and  yet  another  to  Andrew  Mercer,  Ugston, 
and  still  one  more  to  Andrew  Thomson,  mason,  Ugston. 
A  few  years  earlier  the  same  growth  is  visible  in  feuing. 
We  wish  to  point  out  these  as  an  evidence  of  increasing 
prosperity  at  that  time  among  the  working  classes  of  our 
district.  Indeed,  from  the  beginning  of  last  century  down- 
wards, there  are  abundant  instances  among  farmers  and 
tradesmen,  that  the  labourer,  the  shepherd,  and  the  plough- 
man, by  patient  industry,  raised  themselves  from  an  inferior 
to  a  superior  condition  of  life.  It  is  a  very  strong  character- 
istic of  the  workmen  of  Upper  Lauderdale  to  this  day. 

Here  is  another  proof  of  this:  "March  8,  1809. — Robert 
Dobson,  in  Ugston,  seised,  2nd  March  1809,  in  the  two 
husband  lands  of  Ugston  called  Heriotshall — on  Disposition 
by  Rev.  Thomas  Murray  to  the  said  Robert  Dobson  and 
John  Dobson,  then  tenants  in  Collielaw,  May  16,  1808, 
and  Disposition  and  Assignation  by  the  said  John  Dobson, 
November  14,  1808. 

*  Kirk  Records. 


HERIOTSHALL  591 

On  17th  April  1809  Robert  Dobson  disposes  of  Heriots- 
hall  to  Alexander  Dobson,  son  of  James  Dobson,  mason^ 
Selkirk,  and  Robert  Dobson,  builder,  Edinburgh,  under 
burdens  to  various  relatives.  Various  persons  are  concerned 
in  small  properties  and  grounds  in  Ugston  and  Heriotshall 
about  the  years  181 5- 181 7.  "John  Mason  of  Heriotshall, 
seised  2nd  April  1819,  in  the  two  husband  lands  of  Ugston 
(called  Heriotshall),  and  teinds,  in  the  barony  of  Hartside — 
on  Disposition  by  Alexander  Dobson  at  Wigan,  Lancashire, 
and    Robert    Dobson,    builder,   Edinburgh,   December  9.    15. 

1813. 

The  Masons  are  sometimes  said  to  be  of  "  Justicehall"  * 
also,  but  were  only  tenants,  it  seems.  After  Captain  Justice 
left  Justicehall,  one  of  the  Masons  was  tenant  in  that  place, 
and  naturally  Captain  Justice,  living  in  his  cramped  room 
in  Oxton,  hated  to  see  a  "  fremit  man  "  making  himself  free 
in  the  home  which  his  forebears  had  raised  and  called  their 
own.  One  day  Captain  Justice  was  coming  slowly  up  the 
vennel  to  his  room,-  and  emerged  from  it  in  time  to  see 
the  tall  form  of  tenant  Mason  turning  away  from  the 
smithy  adjoining.  Instantly  his  proud  spirit  burst  through 
all  dictates  of  prudence,  and  hurling  his  heavy  stick  at 
the  back  of  Mason,  shouted,  "  Whalebone ! "  This  was  the 
Captain's  way  of  expressing  his  contempt  for  the  plebeian 
who  had  made  his  money  in  the  whaling  trade,  and  who 
dared  to  occupy  a  professional  family's  estate  under  a 
descendant's  very  eye !  We  trust  his  dinner  sat  better 
on  his  stomach  after  such  relief  The  irate  Captain  :  with 
whom  we  deeply  sympathise. 

John  Mason  was  in  possession  of  Heriotshall  before 
29th  April  1 81 8,  as  we  find  him  attending  a  heritors' 
*  Heritors'  Records. 


592  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

meeting  on  that  date.  Robert  Mason  holds  it  on  nth 
November  1825,  by  the  same  evidence.  It  has  continued 
in  the  hands  of  the  Masons  all  through  this  century,  we 
believe,  and  the  two  most  interested  in  it  at  this  date 
(June  1900)  are  Mrs  Whiteford,  wife  of  Dr  James  White- 
ford,  Greenock,  and  Mr  William  Gilmour  Mason,  farmer, 
Westfortune,  Drem. 

The  situation  of  the  farm  and  farmhouse,  the  latter  of 
which  has  been  but  recently  built,  is  pleasantly  seen  from 
the  village  of  Ugston,  a  few  hundred  yards  to  the  west. 
Its  area  comprises  65  acres,  with  a  rental  of  £y^.  The 
soil  is  good,  and  all  the  roads  about  it  are  in  good  order.  It 
is  worked  on  the  "  four-shift "  rotation  ;  57  acres  are  in  tillage, 
6  in  pasture,  and  2  in  wood.  The  buildings  are  very  good 
since  recent  repairs.  The  water-supply  is  about  to  be 
improved,  and  drainage  is  all  that  can  be  desired.  The 
usual  stock  are  kept  to  the  amount  of  107  head.  The 
markets  attended  are  St  Boswells  and  Edinburgh,  and 
the  systems  of  sale  are  found  satisfactory.  The  present 
tenant  is  Mr  Robert  Hunter.  Neither  he  nor  his  father 
was  born  in  the  parish,  and  Heriotshall  is  the  only  place 
he  has  occupied  in  it.  He  attends  the  parish  church,  is 
married,  and  has  family.  There  are  nine  souls  resident 
on  Heriotshall  at  the  present  time.  We  .regret  to  add  that 
the  proprietors  are  non-resident  and  take  no  personal  interest 
in  the  parish  or  the  people. 

As  we  saw  in  the  account  of  Oxton,  the  first  tenant 
of  the  "Two  Husband  Lands"  was  John  Baty,  23rd  June 
1482,  and  then  John  Wod,  loth  November  i486.  George 
Lauder  farms  it  from  1723  till  1761,  and  was  thus  tenant 
for  thirty-eight  years. 

This   century   has    seen   as   its   tenants   (i)    Mr   Mason, 


HERIOTSHALL  593 

Elder  in  Channelkirk,  1842  ;  (2)  David  Lees  ;  (3)  Walter 
Brodie,  who  left  it  to  be  ground  officer  on  Lauderdale 
Estates,  and  latterly  was  farmer  in  Threeburnford  ;  (4)  James 
Bell,  Threeburnford,  recently  deceased ;  and  (5)  Robert 
Hunter,  the  present  tenant. 


2  P 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE   MILLS 

The  Miller— Thirlage— The  Mills  of  the  Parish  and  their  Sucken— Mill 
of  Oxton — Proprietary — Carfrae  Mill — Adam  the  Mill-knave — Carfrae 
Mill  Inn — Tenants — Area  of  Farm — Wiselaw  Mill — History  and 
Name — Tenants. 

The  Mill  of  Oxton — Carfrae  Mill— Wiselaw 

Mill. 

The  ancient  mills  were,  in  their  way,  as  essential  to  the 
well-being  of  the  parish  as  the  ancient  kirks,  and  no 
barony  or  territory  was  without  one.  They  flourished  in 
the  days  when  it  was  as  common  to  break  heads  as  to 
bruise  corn,  and  the  mill  and  the  miller  were  as  often, 
perhaps,  associated  with  the  one  as  with  the  other.  Un- 
fortunately the  mill  was  not  always  held  in  the  highest 
respect,  owing  to  the  tyrannous  system  which  it  exerted 
over  the  farms  and  people  in  its  neighbourhood,  and  deep 
were  the  curses  breathed  out  upon  the  miller  who  happened 
to  abuse  his  power,  and  fleece  the  helpless  peasants  to  a 
larger  extent  than  his  multures  justified.  This  was  the 
worst  feature  of  them,  no  doubt,  but  many  pleasanter  ones 
might  be  set  against  it,  though  so  fiercely  was  the  thraldom 
or  thirlage  of  the  -mills  resented  on  many  an  occasion,  that 
the  more  genial  incidents  connected  with  the  grinding  of  the 


THE  MILLS  595 

corn  were  overshadowed  by  it.  The  system  of  thirh'ng 
or  thralHnf^  was  slow  to  yield  before  the  solvent  influences 
of  the  social  life  of  the  people,  which  taught  them  inde- 
pendence, and  the  right  to  buy  and  sell  in  whatever  market 
they  deemed  most  proper  and  advantageous  to  themselves. 
No  doubt  it  lived  because  it  was  part  of  that  feudalism 
which  made  monopoly  one  of  its  first  principles,  and  ex- 
clusiveness  a  second  nature.  Tax  by  king,  tithe  by  pope, 
tallage  and  tollage  by  inferior  lord  and  bishop,  baron  or 
burgess  in  country  or  town,  were  but  broader  applications 
of  the  same  economic  rule  which  converted  the  population 
of  a  district  into  suckeners,  and  identified  multures  with 
the  meal  mill.  It  would  be  unwise,  however,  to  suppose 
that  because  such  a  system  is  out  of  touch  with  modern 
thought  and  feeling  that  it  must  have  been  a  hardship  in 
all  times.  There  is  room  to  suppose  that  perhaps  the 
feudalism  of  the  Middle  Ages  was  as  salutary  in  the  circum- 
stances of  that  period  as  any  other  .system  is  found  to  be 
in  other  social  and  political  surroundings.  So  long  as  the 
parental  hand  suffices  for  dispensing  the  feudal  rule,  and 
the  judicial  rod  is  kept  in  happy  disuse, — so  long,  that  is, 
as  the  most  powerful  are  also  wisely  and  affectionately 
protective  of  a  contented  people's  interests,  and  there  is 
no  need  of  law  and  force  to  exact  dues  and  obedience,  the 
feudal  system  will  be  found  to  be  as  true  to  the  natural 
laws  of  a  country  as  the  father's  impositions  are  to  the 
family  in  the  home,  or  the  universal  Rule,  reflected  in 
the  government  of  the  Highest.  But  a  country  grows  out 
of  its  leading-strings  as  certainly  as  do  young  people,  and 
in  such  a  case  every  wise  restraint  which  becomes  a 
galling  fetter  will  become  hateful,  and  under  the  impulse 
of  liberty,  a  long-suffering  people  may  take  the  government 


596  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

into  their  own  hands  if  more  lenient  and  discriminating 
counsels  do  not  prevail.  Want  of  power  to  do  this,  and 
not  want  of  will,  seems  to  have  alone  reconciled  the  Scotch 
suckeners  to  the  methods  of  extortion  which  were  constantly 
practised  at  their  meal  mills.  The  mills  were  usually  the 
property  of  some  abbey  or  religious  house,  or  in  the 
possession  of  a  powerful  "  baron  bold."  The  miller  tenanted 
the  mill,  and  ground  the  corn  of  all  the  farms  within  a 
certain  district  for  multure.  Multure  was  a  regular  payment 
for  grinding  the  meal.  This  might  have  been  perfectly 
legitimate  if  thirlage  had  not  been  behind  it  like  the  hammer 
behind  the  wedge.  It  was  this  that  made  the  "  multures " 
to  mean  "  extortions."  For  every  farm  was  thirled  or 
thralled  to  its  mill,  and  the  farmer  and  all  on  the  land 
had  to  carry  their  corn  to  that  mill  and  no  other,  to 
have  it  threshed  and  ground.  Hence  there  was  compulsion 
in  the  case.  Any  attempt  to  carry  the  corn  to  any  other 
mill  where  it  might  be  threshed  for  a  more  reasonable 
multure  was  visited  by  fine  and  force  of  law.  The  area 
of  land  so  thralled  to  such  a  mill,  and  which  might  embrace 
several  farms,  was  called,  with  reference  to  its  obligation, 
"  the  Sucken,"  and  all  the  people  on  it  "  the  Suckeners." 
It  sometimes  happened  that  the  miller  demanded  additional 
perquisites  to  his  "  multure,"  such  as  "  the  lock,"  which  was 
a  small  quantity,  and  the  "  gowpen,"  which  was  a  full  handful, 
and  these  "  sequels,"  as  they  were  termed,  were  a  prolific 
source  of  fierce  contentions.  The  following  extract  explains 
the  system  : — 

The  servitude  of  thirlage  to  a  mill  involved  the  payment  of  certain 
multures  and  the  performance  of  a  variety  of  mill  services.  The  thirlage 
might  be — 

I.  Of  all  growing  corn. 


THE  MILLS  597 

2.  Of  all  grindable  corn. 

3.  Of  com  brought  within  the  thirl. 

4.  Of  corns  that  should  thole  fire  and  water  ;  and 

5.  Of  corns  necessary  for  family  use. 

When  thirlage  was  constituted,  the  proprietor  of  the  ground  which 
was  thirled  or  astricted  to  a  mill  could  not  build  a  mill  within  the  astricted 
ground,  that  there  might  be  no  temptation  to  defeat  the  thirlage.  In 
numerous  instances  the  Court  of  Session  have  ordered  the  removal 
of  such  mills.  The  nature  of  the  dues  demanded  will  be  best  understood 
from  a  short  statement  of  terms  used  in  connection  with  thirlage  : — 

(i.)  Multures  were  the  chief  produce  of  the  mills,  consisting  sometimes 
of  grain  (see  Drymulture  below)  and  sometimes  of  a  proportion  of 
the  meal  ground  at  the  mill,  varying  according  to  one  authority  from 
a  thirtieth  to  about  one-twelfth  of  the  grain  or  meal.  There  was  no 
limit  to  the  amount  that  might  be  imposed. 

(2.)  Sequels  included  the  smaller  duties  of  Knaveship,  bannock,  lock 
and  goupen,  which  fell  to  the  servants  of  the  mill. 

(3.)  Thirl  of  Sucken,  the  lands  astricted. 

(4.)  Suckeners,  the  possessors  of  the  astricted  lands. 

(5.)  Insucken  Multures  were  those  paid  by  parties  under  astriction. 

(6.)  Outsucken  Multures  were  those  paid  by  voluntary  employers 
from  beyond  the  district  or  thirl.  These  were  not  so  heavy  as  the 
insucken  multures,  and  were  more  nearly  of  the  value  of  the  service 
rendered. 

(7.)  Drymulture  was  a  quantum  laid  upon  a  person's  corn  whether  he 
had  it  grinded  or  not.* 

As  the  miller  stood  between  the  monks,  or  barons,  and 
the  people,  he  had  to  bear  the  fire  of  the  dealers  as  well 
as  the  frown  of  his  superiors,  and  it  needed  a  tough  heart 
in  a  tough  body  to  resist  such  opposing  pressures.  But 
the  very  solitariness  of  his  position  naturally  bred  in  him 

*  Hawick  News,  i8th  February  1882.     Paper  by  Nenion  Elliot,  Esq., 
S.S.C,  Teind  Office,  Edinburgh. 


598  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

a  certain  reckless  courage  and  wanton  gay  defiance  ;  and 
thus  in  the  ballads  he  is  often  represented  as  jolly  and  bold, 
fond  of  the  malt,  and  a  hearty  set-to  with  those  who  might 
think  their  head  was  harder  to  break  than  his  ;  and  some- 
times, be  it  breathed,  a  little  lecherous : — 

"  The  miller  was  a  stout  carl  for  the  nones, 
Full  big  he  was  of  brawn ,  and  eke  of  bones."  * 

"  But  then  a  miller,"  says  Scott,  "  should  always  be  of 
manly  make,  and  has  been  described  so  since  the  days  of 
Chaucer  and  James  I."-|* 

The  parish  of  Channelkirk  seems  to  have  been  able  to 
boast  of  three  mills  of  barony  from  a  very  early  period. 
These  were : — Oxton  Mill,  Carfrae  Mill,  and  Wiselaw 
Mill. 

The  parish  generally  divided  itself,  territorially,  into 
three  divisions,  and  each  division  seems  to  have  had  its 
own  mill.  First,  the  barony  of  Carfrae,  including  all  the 
land  lying  on  the  banks  of  the  Kelphope  Water,  was  served 
by  the  Mill  of  Carfrae,  now  Carfraemill ;  second,  the  barony 
or  territory  of  Oxton,  including,  apparently,  Over  Howden, 
Nether  Howden,  and  the  lands  around  these,  was  served 
by  Wiselaw  Mill  ;  and  third,  the  barony  of  Glengelt,  which 
was  supplied  by  Mount  Mill.  To  what  extent  the  farms 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  each  mill  was  thirled  to  it,  we 
cannot  now  say,  but  it  seems  clear,  at  least,  that  all  the 
lands  of  Carfrae,  Headshaw,  Midlie,  Fernielees,  Kelphope, 
Hillhouse,  Herniecleuch,  Hasleden,  Carfraemill,  and  Friars- 
knowes,  were  originally  thirled  to  the  Mill  of  Carfrae.  We 
shall  see  presently  that  Wiselaw  Mill  had  also  its  rights  of 
thirlage,  and  indisputably  the  same  system  would  prevail 
*  Canterbury  Tales.  t  Monastery.^  chap.  xiii. 


THE  MILLS  599 

with  regard  to  the  Mill  of  Ulfkilston  (Oxton),  or  Mount  Mill. 
It  may  also  be  safely  assumed  that  the  three  mills  in 
question  must  have  existed  contemporaneously  with  the 
territories  or  "  lands  "  on  which  they  were  localised.  From 
the  nature  and  need  of  things  this  seems  evident.  With 
regard  to  Carfrae  Mill  and  the  Mill  of  Oxton,  there  appears 
to  be  no  reasonable  doubt  of  this,  and  as  Collilaw,  as  an 
estate,  seems  to  have  been  as  early  in  existence  as  any  in 
the  parish,  the  mill  which  would  fall  naturally  to  serve  its 
population  and  that  of  the  lands  adjacent  to  it  would  be 
Wiselaw  Mill.  There  is  just  a  suspicion  that  Oxton 
territory,  which  seems  to  have  included  at  one  time  all 
Over  Howden  and  Nether  Howden,  and  perhaps  more, 
may  have  been  thirled  to  Mount  Mill  (Oxton  Mill),  but 
Wiselaw  Mill  may  have  had  Bowerhouses  and  Collielaw 
and  the  lands  south  of  it,  thirled  to  it,  although  it  does  not 
fall  to  be  mentioned  so  early  in  legal  documents  as  the 
other  two.  With  such  abundance  of  water-power  flowing 
through  the  valley,  there  could  be  little  difficulty  in  working 
mills;  but  while  Mount  Mill  and  Wiselaw  Mill  keep  the 
same  stations  they  have  held  for  several  hundred  years, 
the  present  site  of  Carfrae  Mill  does  not,  perhaps,  quite 
correspond  to  the  exact  situation  of  the  original  Mill  of 
Carfrae,  which  from  Font's  map,  and  from  other  considera- 
tions, seems  to  have  been  somewhat  further  up  the  Kelphope 
Water,  and  nearer  to  Carfrae  House. 

The  Mill  of  Oxton  Barony 

The  Mill  of  UlfkiLston  (now  Mount  Mill)  is  mentioned 
as  early  as  cir.  1206  A.U.,  in  the  charter  by  which  Alan, 
Earl  of  Gal  way,  conveys    520   acres  of  Oxton   territory  to 


600  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Kelso  Abbey.  He  says  the  monks  may  also  possess  the 
mill  if  they  wish  it.  Perhaps  there  may  have  been  reasons 
for  their  not  accepting  the  mill  though  the  land  was 
welcomed,  for  we  find  the  Mill  of  Ulfkilston's  tithes  con- 
firmed, cir.  1 220,  under  the  Bishop  of  St  Andrews,  William 
Malvoisine,  in  whose  bishopric  Kelso  Abbey  and  its 
properties  were  not  enrolled.  The  monks  of  that  Abbey 
had  therefore  not  thought  good  to  take  the  mill  with  the 
five  carucates  of  Lord  Alan  of  Galway's  gift.  In  the  year 
1273,  Lord  William  Abernethy  owns  it,  and  gives  from  it 
to  Dryburgh  Abbey,  two  marks  annually,  to  sustain  light, 
that  is,  candles,  before  the  Virgin's  Image  there.*  About 
1300  A.D.-j-  these  two  marks  are  confirmed  as  being  "from 
the  gift  of  Lord  Wm.  of  Abernethy  in  the  Mill  of  Ulkeston," 
to  the  possessions  under  the  superiority  of  St  Andrews 
diocese,  and  about  1380,^  Lord  William's  son  and  heir, 
also  Lord  William  Abernethy,  gifts  to  Dryburgh  Abbey 
the  whole  "  Mill  of  Ulkeston  in  the  valley  of  Lauder,  with 
multure,  and  each  yearly  revenue  derived  from  it,  or  the 
value  of  what  is  derived  from  it,  in  free  and  perpetual  charity, 
without  any  reserve,  to  be  held  and  possessed  with  all  its 
belongings  by  them  and  their  successors,  without  demanding 
any  secular  service  or  exaction."  §  The  interest  of  the 
Lords  of  Abernethy  in  Lauderdale  had  a  wider  significance 
when  we  remember  that  they  were  united,  according  to 
Wyntoun,  with  the  Black  Priest  of  Wedale  (Stow),  and 
Macduff  (reputed  Thane)  of  Fife,  in  the  privileges  known 
as  "  the  law  of  the  Clan  Macduff,"  which  were  to  place  the 
King  in  his  chair  on  coronation  day,  to  lead  the  vanguard 
in  every  battle  fought  under  the  Royal    Standard,   and  to 

♦Dryburgh  Charters,  No.  175.       \ Ibid.^  No.  292.      Xlbid.^  No.  312. 
\Ibid.,  Nos.  292  and  312. 


tHTv 


THE  MILLS  601 

have  liberty  of  "  girth  "  to  their  manslayers  within  the  ninth 
degree  of  kinship.     Skene  quotes  it  thus  : — 

"  Off  this  lawch  are  thre  capytale, 
That  is  the  Blak  Prest  off  Weddale, 
The  Thayne  off  Fyffe,  and  the  thryd  syne 
Quha  ewyre  be  Lord  of  Abbyrnethyne."  * 

Thus  from  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  to  nearly  the 
close  of  the  fourteenth  century,  the  Mill  of  Ulfkilston  has 
a  clear  historical  record,  and  seeing  that  it  is  well  established 
at  that  date,  it  may  reasonably  be  assumed  to  have  been  a 
contemporary  of  Oxton  itself 

When  this  mill  emerges  into  light  again  after  the  troubles 
of  the  Reformation,  we  find  in  1588  that  the  King  hands  it 
over  in  fee-farm  to  James  Cranstoun,  legitimate  son  of  Robert 
Cranstoun  de  Faluodscheill  i^'vic.  Selkirk"),  along  with  the 
Templar  larids  of  Chingilkirk.  He  receives  "  the  Mill  of 
Ugstoun  with  multures,  sequels,  and  the  sucken,  with  the 
small  meadow,  the  little  haugh  of  land  called  the  Kirkhaugh."f 
The  "  Sucken  "  is  defined  in  this  charter  to  be  "  between  the 
Kirk  Water  on  the  south,  the  Holy  Water  cleuch  on  the 
west,  the  Bains  Croft  on  the  north,  and  the  lands  of  Glengelt 
on  the  east."  These  "  multures "  extended  chiefly  to  the 
lands  of  Oxton  and  the  houses  and  lands  in  Channelkirk.  \ 
Originally,  and  very  probably,  the  "  Sucken "  of  the  mill 
would  embrace  a  much  wider  area  than  this,  but  when  the 
Sinclairs  of  Carfrae  and  the  Mundevilles  of  Glengelt  were 
so  influential  and  numerous  as  to  build  chapels  within  their 
own  walls  for  their  private  use,  the  possession  of  a  mill  also 

*  Celtic  Scotland^  vol.  ill.,  p.  304. 
t  Regis trum  Magni  Sigilli. 
X  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  272. 


602  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

for  the  service  of  the  people  on  their  estates  may  be  taken 
for  granted.  There  is  some  trace  remaining  of  a  mill-lead 
still  visible  at  Glengelt,  though,  for  reasons  that  will  appear, 
no  mill  can  have  existed  there  since  1748,  by  which  time  it 
had  evidently  passed  away.  *  The  charter  just  quoted  above 
is  similar  to  one  dated  13th  August  1622,  upon  which  Robert 
Lawson  was  infeft  "  All  and  Whole  the  lands  of  Kirktonhill 
and  Muirhouse,  with  homes,  biggings,  etc.,  etc.,  along  with 
the  Mill  of  Ugston,  with  the  multures,"  etc.  f 

From  Lawson's  hands  the  mill  passes  to  those  of  John 
Henryson,  also  Laird  of  Kirktonhill,  who  is  infeft  therein 
20th  December  1643.  The  lands  are  described  in  the  same 
way  as  in  the  case  of  Cranstoun  and  Lawson. 

James  Achiesone  of  Houdon,  in  1664,  is  hereditary 
proprietor  of  Ugston,  mill  and  mill  lands  thereof,  and  is 
Superior  of  said  lands  wadset  by  Mr  James  Cheyne,  W.S., 
to  the  late  John  Home  and  his  second  wife,  heirs  under 
reversion.  I 

The  mill  comes  into  the  possession  of  the  Borthwicks  of 
Crookston  between  the  dates  1664  and  1682,  and  perhaps 
not  long  after  the  former  year.  § 

John  Robertson,  proprietor  of  Glengelt  in  1695,  holds 
also,  we  learn,  the  mill  and  mill  lands,  and  the  lands  of 
Ginglekirk.  The  mill  comes  first  into  notice  at  this  date, 
it  would  appear,  as  "  Glengelt  Mill."  From  the  fact  that 
the  same  proprietor  held  Glengelt  and  the  Mill  of  Ugston, 
this  change  of  name  was  quite  natural.  It  caused  some 
confusion  about  the  teinds,  however,  and  especially  with 
reference  to  the  exact  area  of  valuation. 

It  would  seem  that  the   Mill  of  Ugston  next,  becomes 

*  Decreet  of  Locality^  p.  272.  f  Ibid.,  p.  267. 

%  Calendar  of  Laiiig  Charters.        ■   %  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  271. 


THE  MILLS  603 

the  property  of  Mrs  Agnes  Hunter,  wife  of  John  Borthvvick, 
Crookston,  in  1748,  and  has  been  retained  in  that  family  up 
to  this  day.  It  is  now  quite  a  ruin,  though  the  machinery 
of  the  mill  still  rusts  within  its  walls,  and  has  ground  meal, 
we  believe,  not  so  many  years  ago.  For  just  as  it  may  have 
been  the  earliest  of  Channelkirk  mills  to  perform  that  kindly 
and  necessary  office  for  the  early  settlers  in  Upper  Lauder- 
dale, so  its  millstones  were  the  last  to  cease  from  labour, 
when,  with  the  others,  it  found  its  occupation  gone.  All 
honour  to  the  venerable  place !  If  old  time  could  but  give 
back  the  varied  blythe  and  bitter  scenes  which  have  been 
transacted  within  the  sound  of  its  cogs  and  happers,  there 
would  be  for  us,  undoubtedly,  many  a  record  of  deep  social 
interest,  as  fit,  perhaps,  to  provoke  the  hearty  roar  of  laughter 
as  to  draw  the  plaintive  tear.  The  quiet  peacefulness  of 
the  Kirkhaugh  now  falls  around  it,  both  mill  and  haugh 
being  overshadowed  from  the  heights  above  them  by  the 
deeper  associations  of  the  church  and  churchyard,  and 
while  Mountmill  Burn,  which  was  wont  to  dash  against  its 
"trows,"  sweeps  past  it,  unheeding,  on  its  winding  way  to 
the  Leader,  the  sparrow,  the  starling,  and  the  swallow  find 
a  fitting  nest  among  the  decaying  beams  of  its  roofs  and 
floors,  and  the  cowering  sheep  and  cattle  gladly  shelter 
beneath  its  walls  from  winter's  bitter  storms  and  the  keen 
driving  rain-blasts  of  spring.  It  is  now  called  Mountmill, 
and  has  been  known  by  that  name  since  from  about  1695, 
or  perhaps  earlier,  when  the  name  of  "  Glengelt  Mill " 
struggled  with  it  for  pre-eminence.  The  name  seems  to  be 
a  corruption  of  Monk  Mill,  for  the  place  has  from  time 
immemorial  been  associated  with  the  "  monks,"  and  there  is 
no  "  mount "  of  any  special  significance  near  it ;  and  standing 
as  it  does  in  a  haugh,  the  name  of  MotintmWX  seems  meaning 


604  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

less,  and,  like  other  names  in  the  parish,  is  doubtless  due  to 
local  peculiarities  of  pronunciation.  The  last  miller  who 
ground  meal  in  it  was  James  Hope  of  Kirktonhill, 

Carfrae  Mill 

The  Mill  of  Carfrae  first  finds  mention  about  1196 
A.D.  But,  like  Carfrae  itself,  it  must  have  been  in  exist- 
ence some  considerable  time  before  that  year,  as  when 
it  is  then  spoken  of,  it  is  as  a  mill  in  full  working  order, 
a  distinct  part  of  the  Carfrae  estate,  and  yielding  both 
rent  and  meal  to  those  connected  with  it.  William  de 
Morville,  Lord  of  Lauderdale,  when  he  gifted  the  Carfrae 
lands  to  Henry  de  Sinclair,  who  was  his  Sheriff  and  the 
progenitor  of  the  Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston  in  Haddington- 
shire, drafts  a  special  section  of  his  charter  in  which  the 
mill  has  separate  concession  and  confirmation.  "  Concessi 
etiam  illi  ut  in  feodo  suo,  Molendinum  suum  habeat  sine 
multura," — "I  have  likewise  conceded  to  him,  as  in  his 
feu,  the  Mill  he  possesses  without  multure."  *  As  De 
Morville  died  in  1196,  the  grant  must  have  been  made 
before  that  time.  Carfrae  Mill  is  thus,  historically,  the 
oldest  of  Channelkirk  Mills  ;  but  actually  it  may  not  have 
been  so,  the  Mill  of  Oxton  (Mountmill)  being  also  very 
old,  although  it  is  not  mentioned  so  early. 

In  a  charter  already  noticed  with  reference  to  the  Mill 
of  Ulkeston  (Oxton),  there  is  a  witness  who  signs  himself 
"Adam  Milneknave  de  Carfrae."  t  This  is  in  1380  A.D.,  and 
the  presence  of  the  apprentice  miller  of  Carfrae  Mill  is 
not  without  interest  for   us.     He  signs   last  in  the  list,  and 

*  Diplomata  Scotice ,  No.  81;  and  Father  Hay's  Genealogie  of  the 
Sinclairs. 

t  Liber  de  Dry  burgh.  No.  312. 


.    THE  MILLS  605 

perhaps  was  the  humblest  of  all  those  who  testified.  He 
was  so,  if  we  are  right  in  assuming  that  "Milneknave"  is 
not  his  surname,  but  his  trade  designation.  It  is  true  that 
surnames  were  becoming  more  frequent  by  that  time,  and 
in  this  same  charter  we  find,  for  example,  John  Mautalent, 
Master  of  Thyrlystane,  and  Hugh  Hayde  of  Merton  ;  but 
as  only  the  Sinclairs  of  Herdmanston,  the  proprietors, 
could  be  territorially  designated  "  de  Carfrae,"  there  appears 
to  be  no  error  in  our  viewing  Adam  as  the  veritable 
knabe  or  knave,  that  is,  apprentice  of  the  Mill  of  Carfrae. 
Doubtless  Adam  had  his  own  battle  to  fight  in  those 
days ;  as  his  chief  and  he  would  find  the  entire  population 
arrayed  against  them  as  legalised  oppressors.  Doubtless, 
also,  Adam  was  as  sturdy  as  was  the  miller  to  withstand 
all  interference,  and  was  just  as  likely  to  give  scathe  as 
get  it.  The  mill  was  life  and  joy,  work  and  worship,  to 
such  men,  dwelling  as  they  did  in  daily  resistance  to 
pressure  from  every  circumstance  around  them.  "  The 
poor  old  slut,"  Hob  Miller  would  say,  "  I  am  beholden  to 
her  for  my  living,  and  bound  to  stand  by  her,  as  I  say 
to  my  mill  knaves,  in  right  and  in  wrong."  * 

The  House  of  Herdmanston  having  so  long  retained 
possession  of  Carfrae,  it  was  to  be  expected  that  its  mill 
would  seldom  be  noticed  in  written  documents,  as  it  is,  for 
most  part,  when  estates  change  hands  that  an  enumeration 
is  rendered  of  its  various  belongings.  Not  till  the  year 
1545,  therefore,  is  Carfrae  Mill  again  discernible  to  us.  f 
Queen  Mary  was  then  reigning,  and  she  confirms  certain 
properties  to  Sir  John  Sinclair  of  Herdmanston  and  his 
spouse  Margaret,  and  amongst  these  are  two  parts  of  the 
lands  and  the  steading  of  Carfrae,  and  of  the  mill,  in  the 
*  Scott's  Monastery^  chap.  xiii.  t  Great  Seal. 


606  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

bailiary  of  Lauderdale.  Further  notices  of  it,  which  it  is 
not  necessary  to  quote  to  any  extent,  are  to  be  found  in 
the  Great  Seal,  of  dates  1569,  1581,  1629,  and  1641. 
These  give  us  nothing  materially  novel  regarding  the 
fortunes  of  the  mill  beyond  what  we  know. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Sub-Commissioners  held  in  Lauder 
Tolbooth  "the  tent  day  of  December  1630,"  James  Dodds  in 
Tulleshill,  50  years  of  age,  deponit  that  the  "personadge 
teinds  "  of  Carphra  Mylne  will  and  may  be  worthe  in  constant 
rent,  com.  ann.  w"  mks.  (iicx)  merks).  In  1627  Carfrae 
Mill  is  described  as  being  "  in  stok  300  merkis,"  and  yielding 
parsonage  teinds  equal  to  40  merks,  and  vicarage  teinds 
to  the  value  of  20  merkis.  In  163 1  we  ascertain  from  the 
valuation  of  the  High  Commission  that  the  barony  of 
Carfrae  comprehended  within  its  territory  "  Carfrae  Mill, 
and  mill  lands  thereof" 

The  subsequent  history  of  the  mill  is  practically  the 
same  as  that  of  Carfrae  itself,  until  about  the  middle  of 
last  century,  when  the  farm  and  inn  appear  to  have  taken 
that  more  pronounced  individuality  which  has  been  pre- 
served down  till  our  own  days.  The  prosperity  of  the  dale 
was  greatly  advanced  then  by  the  new  road  which  was 
made  from  Lauder  to  the  foot  of  the  Leader  by  Drygrange, 
and  thence  over  the  new  bridge  across  the  Tweed  at  that 
place,  to  Jedburgh.  In  1771  Lauder  had  six  annual  fairs, 
and  two  market  days  every  week,  and  we  are  told  that 
"  on  account  of  the  road  from  Edinburgh  to  England  by 
Kelso  and  Jedburgh  being  brought  through  Lauder,  it  is 
becomed  one  of  the  greatest  throwfairs  betwixt  the  Capitall 
of  the  United  Kingdoms."  *  Coaches  began  to  run  regularly 
through  the  dale,  and  wayside  inns  became  plentiful. 
"   Lauder  Burgh  Records. 


THE  MILLS  ep7 

Carfrae  Mill  assumed  this  character,  and  has  long  been 
noted  far  and  wide  for  its  hospitable  comforts  and  substantial 
travelling  advantages.  Few  country  halting  places  have  so 
many  pleasing  suggestions  of  geniality  to  offer ;  and  the 
rural  surroundings  of  wood  and  water,  haugh  and  hill,  give 
a  sense  of  rest  and  repose  to  the  eye,  which  is  gratefully 
supplemented  by  the  repast  to  be  enjoyed  within. 

About  the  beginning  of  this  century,  James  Turnbull, 
Carfraemill,  first  began  to  run  four  coaches  between  Kelso 
and  Edinburgh,  at  the  same  time  that  Robert  Anderson, 
New  Channelkirk  Inn,  inaugurated  a  four-wheeled  goods 
waggon  drawn  by  two  horses.  John  Penrith,  Pendrich,  or 
Pittendreich,  occupied  Carfraemill  before  Turnbull,  and  was 
the  last  to  grind  meal  at  the  old  mill,  which  gave  the  place 
its  name.  The  mill-lead  ran  from  near  Rigside,  opposite 
Nether  Howden,  and  was  thus  worked  by  the  waters  of 
the  Leader  and  not  by  Kelphope  Water  or  the  ancient 
"  Mosburne."  John  Wilson  appears  to  have  preceded 
Pendrich,  and  was  buried  from  Carfraemill  on  the  13th  of 
June  1779.  Thomas  Burnlies  was  in  it  about  1768.  From 
about  this  time  the  farm  and  the  inn  seem  to  have  been 
combined  ;  an  arrangement  which  still  continues. 

After  James  Turnbull,  William  Binnie  had  a  lease  of  it 
before  he  went  to  farm  Over  Howden.  Mr  Jamieson 
succeeded  Binnie.  A  step-son  of  his  named  Torrie  finished 
his  lease,  and  George  Henderson,  recently  deceased,  followed 
him  in  the  tenancy.  It  was  for  a  few  years  held  by  Mr 
Henderson's  two  sons,  Peter  and  George,  who  conjointly 
farmed  and  conducted  the  hotel  business,  but  we  believe  it 
is  now  solely  in  the  hands  of  the  former,  the  latter  gentleman 
having  gone  to  England. 

The  farm  of  Carfrae  Mill  extends  to  a  little  more  than 


608  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

1 20  acres.     Nearly  all  of  it  is  capable  of  cultivation.     The 
present  rental  is  ;^I50  per  annum.     The  soil  generally  is  of 
a  gravelly  nature,  but  rather  clayish  on  the  fields  opposite 
the   neighbouring   farm   of  Nether   Howden,  and   peaty  for 
about  two  acres  above  the  hotel  near  the  Edinburgh  road. 
The   rotation   of  crops   is  what   is   called   the   "  fifth   shift." 
About  three-fourths  of  the  ground  is  arable,  the  rest  being 
kept  in  permanent  pasture.     Narrow  strips  of  fir  plantations 
are  conveniently  planted  on   the  marshes  which  give  both 
means  of  shelter  and  beauty  to  the  place.     The  farm  build- 
ings are  not  now,  as  a  whole,  satisfactory.     They  are  old- 
fashioned,  having  been  built  originally  to  suit  the  stabling 
of  horses   in   the   old   coaching   days.     In   those   times   the 
entire  range  of  buildings,  which  form  a  square,  was  taken 
up   in  this  way,  and  was  capable  of  putting  up  40  or   50 
horses  at  one  time  ;  some  improvements  on  them  were  made 
a  few  years  ago,  but  the  greater  portion  is  in  a  downfalling 
condition.     There  is  a  plentiful  supply  of  water  both  in  the 
inn  and  in  the  steading,  but  it  has  to  be  pumped  by  hand 
labour  in  both  places.     The  quality  is  very  good.     Drainage 
is  now  satisfactory,  some  recent  attention  to  the  hotel  having 
been     much   required    in    this    respect,   and   well    bestowed. 
The  land  is  well  adapted  for  sheep,  of  which  an  average  of 
200  is  kept  all  the   year  round.     Two  pairs  of  horses,  and 
about  a  score  of  cattle  of  all  kinds,  with  poultry  in  abundance, 
complete    the    stock.      The    markets   attended   are    Newton 
St    Boswells,    Dalkeith,   and    occasionally    Edinburgh.      The 
only   somewhat    notable    place    on    the    farm    is    "  Binnie's 
Sepulchre,"  called  so  after  the  farmer  mentioned  above.     It 
is  in  the  fir  plantation,  on  the  right  side  of  the  road  leading 
from   Carfraemill  to  Gifford.     Here,  in  the  coaching  times, 
were  buried  somewhere  about  30  horses  which  had  died  of 


THE  MILLS  609 

glanders.  This  fatal  disease,  affecting  the  throat  and  glands 
of  the  lower  jaw,  had  broken  out,  and  carried  off  his 
stock  to  that  amount  in  a  few  days.  There  was  no 
Contagious  Disea.ses  (Animals)  Act  in  those  times  to 
remedy  matters. 

The  late  farmer,  George  Henderson — "  Old  George  "  as 
he  was  familiarl}-  called — was  a  fine  type  of  "mine  host"  of 
a  country  inn.  He  could  tell  a  story  of  bygone  times  at 
any  hour  of  the  day,  and  still  leave  a  good  hundred  more 
in  the  wallet  for  another  turn.  No  person  relished  them 
more  than  the  Marquess  of  Tweeddale,  when  he  would  drive 
that  way ;  and  George  never  ceased  to  regard  him  as  a  very 
kind  and  agreeable  landlord.  Nothing  could  be  more  pleasing 
or  appropriate  to  the  view  than  to  see  him  standing  out  in 
the  sunny  forenoon  near  the  inn  door,  bent  with  eild,  with 
an  old-fashioned  kerchief  round  his  neck  and  another  hang- 
ing half  out  of  his  pocket,  leaning  on  his  staff,  while  turkeys 
and  ducks  and  dogs,  pigeons,  and  poultry  of  all  kinds, 
waddled  and  strutted  and  fluttered  about  him.  And  the 
traveller,  drawing  near,  could  not  fail  to  observe  the  rural 
picture  enlarge  and  emphasise  itself,  in  the  converging 
streams  before  the  house,  their  sparkle  carrying  the  eye  up 
Kelphope  and  Leader  glens  ;  in  the  robust  bridge  that  spans 
the  water  on  his  right,  the  modest  hamlet  of  Thimbleha' 
sending  up  its  smoke,  the  picturesque  smithy  and  joinery  of 
Roghall  a  little  apart  to  the  south-east,  and  the  fir-speckled 
hills  rising  all  round  in  the  background,  green  to  the  top, 
and  flecked  with  straying  sheep.  And  if  the  deep  bass  of 
the  threshing  mill,  with  its  horses  soberly  pacing  round, 
and  the  gentler  tones  of  wind  and  stream  commingled  with 
George's  vivacious  voice  as  he  earnestly  and  humorously 
related  a  "  tale  of  the  days  of  old,"  our  traveller  would  be 

2  Q 


610  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

bound  to  admit  that  on  one  day  of  his  journey,  at  least,  he 
had  found  pleasant  entertainment.  Never,  either,  was  it 
known  to  eclipse  the  good  cheer  proffered  by  the  landlady. 
Mr  Henderson  went  the  way  of  all  the  earth  on  27th  March 

1897. 

Servants'  hours  in  summer  and  winter,  their  wages  and 
holidays,  etc.,  are  the  same  which  generally  prevail  in  the 
valley.  Carfraemill  people,  of  whom  there  may  be  a  total  of 
ten  or  twelve  souls,  usually  attend  Lauder  Parish  Church. 
Mr  George  Henderson,  who  had  the  lease  with  his  brother 
Peter,  was  for  six  years  precentor  in  Channelkirk  Church;  and 
was  greatly  esteemed  by  all. 

WiSELAW  Mill 

There  seems  to  have  been,  very  early,  if  not  perhaps  con- 
temporary with  Oxton  Mill,  sufficient  need  of  a  mill  near 
the  south  end  of  the  parish.  Perhaps  this  justifies  our 
supposition  that  Wiselaw  Mill,  the  Mill  of  Nether  Howden 
in  later  times,  has  existed  from  a  very  remote  date.  Sir 
Vivian  de  Molineaux,  with  his  lands  of  Collielaw  in  the 
thirteenth  century,  and  the  Barony  of  Pilmuir  later  on, 
which  included  the  Bowerhouses,  may  have  sent  their  sheaves 
to  Lauder  Mill  on  the  one  hand,  or  Carfrae  Mill  on  the  other, 
but  it  is  not  likely.  The  distance  seems  to  forbid  the  idea, 
and  we  know  of  no  evidence  of  thirlage  in  connection  with 
either. 

The  year  when  Queen  Elizabeth  died,  and  the  Scottish 
James  VI.  became  of  England  James  L  and  VI.,  the  year, 
viz.,  1603,  is  the  date  which  gives  us  the  earliest  glimpse  of 
Wiselaw  Mill.  Quiet  enough  it  is  in  these  nineteenth 
century  days,  no  doubt,  but  it  must  have  been  a  stirring  spot 


THE  MILLS  611 

in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  when  the  mill 
wheels  went  merrily  round  grinding  the  grain  brought  to 
it  by  its  suckeners,  and  the  stalwart  millers,  as  we  fancy 
them,  alwa}'S  as  ready  to  joke  on  friendly  terms  with  the 
submissive  as  they  were  to  exact  their  multures  from  the 
refractory.  It  is  known  then  as  "the  Mill  of  Nether 
Howden,"  and  it  must  have  been  so  for  at  least  a  hundred 
years  earlier.  In  the  same  charter  of  the  King  which  tells 
us  that  it  belonged  at  that  date  to  the  Kers  of  Cavers,  it  is 
also  said  that  they  "  had  held  it  for  many  generations  and 
beyond  recollection."  *  Nether  Howden  Mill,  or  Wiselaw 
Mill  as  we  now  know  it,  may  be  said,  therefore,  to  begin  its 
historical  life  about  15CX)  A.D.,  though,  doubtless,  its  actual 
life  must  have  commenced  much  earlier. 

In  1603  it  belonged  to  the  Kers  of  Cavers,  as  has  been 
said,  and  it  is  merely  noticed  then  as  "the  Mill  of  Nether 
Howden  and  the  multures  of  it."  Perhaps  we  may  safely 
assume  that  the  fortunes  of  the  mill  were  ever  afterwards 
linked  with  those  of  Nether  Howden  itself,  until  Charles 
Binning's  time,  when  Wiselaw  Mill  and  Bowerhouse  became 
connected ;  and  as  the  owners  of  that  farm  have  already 
been  traced,  we  need  but  mention  the  names  of  them  here 
for  the  sake  of  clearness.  Robert,  Lord  Roxburgh,  acquires 
both  "Ovir  and  Nethir  Howdennis"  in  1607,  and  doubtless 
the  mill  would  go  with  them.  The  ownership  of  the  teinds, 
however,  did  not  always  go  with  ownership  of  the  land. 
The  Abbey  of  Kelso  still  held  these.  In  1627  the  minister 
of  the  parish  sets  down  the  following  item  after  mentioning 
Nether  Howden.  "  Waisill  Milne  in  stok  ane  100  merkis  ; 
personage,  10  merkis  ;  viccarage,  4  lib."  About  1632,  James 
Aitcheson,  owner  of  Nether  Howden,  may  be  supposed  to 
*  Registrum  Magni  Sigilli, 


612  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

have  held  Wiselaw  Mill  also.  The  following  shows  it  to  be 
in  the  same  family  later  in  the  century  :— "  At  Court,  holden 
at  Lauder,  2nd  December  1685, — The  same  day  compeired 
Agnes  Edgar  outwith  the  presence  of  John  Atcheson  of 
Houdoun,  her  spouse,  and  she  outwith  his  presence  acknow- 
ledged that  she  had  subscribed  ane  disposition  and  renuncia- 
tion of  the  mill  lands  of  Waislawmill,  and  ane  heritable  bond 
for  five  hundred  merks  :  The  annual  rent  of  which  is  to  be 
uplifted  and  taken  out  of  the  lands  in  Nether  Houdoun, 
which  disposition  and  heritable  bond  is  granted  to  John 
Atcheson,  elder  of  Nether  Houdoun,  and  Jean  .  .  .  his 
spouse."  *  From  the  Aitchesons  it  would  go  into  the  hands 
of  William  Hunter,  merchant  in  Edinburgh,  between  1731 
and  1742,  and  about  'the  latter  date  into  those  of  Charles 
Binning,  Esq.,  advocate,  of  Pilmuir.  Andrew  Ker  of 
Morriston  seems  to  have  become  possessed  of  the  mill  after 
this,  as  we  are  told  that  James,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  about 
1792-3,  raised  a  Process  of  Reduction  of  the  Locality,  and 
traced  his  right  to  his  lands  and  teinds  from  Ker,  and  that 
he  was  infeft  "  All  and  Whole  the  Mill  of  Nether  Howden, 
called  Wiselaw  Mill,  with  the  kilns  and  shealing  hills  thereto 
belonging,  with  the  lead  and  both  leadsteals  of  the  said  mill, 
millhead,  milldam,  and  whole  liberties,  privileges,  and 
pertinents  whereof  upon  the  Water  of  Leader,  multure, 
sucken,  and  knaveships  of  the  said  miln,  and  particularly 
the  multure,  sucken,  sequel,  knaveship,  and  thirlage  of  the 
town  and  teinds  of  Nether  Howden,  which  are  all  astricted 
to  the  said  mill ;  together  with  that  piece  of  ground  of  the 
said  lands  of  Nether  Howden  lying  above  and  below  the 
said  mill,  called  Wiselaw  Mill,  upon  both  sides  of  the  Water 
of  Leader,  bounded  in  manner  mentioned  in  the  disposition 
*  Lauder  Burgh  Records,  vol.  iii. 


THE  MILLS  613 

of  the  said  ground  by  William  Hunter  of  Nether  Howden 
to  Mr  Charles  Binning  of  Pilmuir,  advocate."  * 

The  above-mentioned  James,  Earl  of  Lauderdale,  was 
seised  in  the  "  Mill  of  Nether  Howden,  called  Waislymill," 
3rd  February  lygo.f  It  is  still  in  the  hands  of  Lord 
Lauderdale. 

The  name  Wiselaw  is  first  written  "Waisill"  in  1627, 
There  is  no  "  law "  or  "  hill "  near  it,  and  this  part  must 
be  considered  as  corrupt.  The  place  is  situated  on  flat 
fen  ground  through  which  the  Leader  flows,  and  it  is 
perhaps  impossible'  to  say  what  the  original  name  meant, 
except  it  were  the  common  word  "weasel."  The  Old 
English  of  "weasel"  is  "wesele,"  and  the  Anglo-Saxon  is 
"wesle,"  forms  which  might  easily  fall  into  "Waisill,"  and 
"Wisely,"  or  "Wiselaw." 

In  1770  Wiselaw  Mill  was  tenanted  by  William  Renton, 
who  had  formerly  farmed  Over  Bowerhouse.  Mr  Brown 
tenanted  it  about  the  beginning  of  this  century.  William 
Armstrong  farmed  there  in  1837,  and  a  considerable  time 
afterwards  Mr  Wilson  followed  him,  and  it  is  now  a  "  led " 
farm  by  Mr  Fortune  of  Midburn.  It  rents  at  ;^5i,  5s.  id., 
and  the  house  at  ^^"5.  It  is  a  pleasant  residence,  lying  in 
the  centre  of  the  dale,  with  the  Leader  Water  flowing  past, 
and  flat  fields  of  loamy,  arable  soil  stretching  around  it. 
The  main  road  through  Lauderdale  adjoins  it  at  a  distance 
of  a  few  hundred  yards.  The  mill  has  long  ceased  to 
grind  meal  and  has  passed  away,  but  evidence  of  its 
existence  in  the  "lead"  and  "weir"  are  still  visible. 

*  Decreet  of  Locality,  p.  224  ;  and  Registriiin  Magiii  Sii^illt. 
t  Sasines. 


-^^^"^^      ^  —\^^' 


CHAPTER  XXI 

SHIELFIELD— OXTON    MAINS  — MIDBURN— BURNFOOT — 
PARKFOOT — ANNFIELD — INCHKEITH. 

Shielfield — The  Erskines — Over  and  Nether  Shielfield — Kirk  Land — 
Area  and  Situation  ;  Oxton  Mains — Proprietors — Area,  Situation 
and  Tenants;  Midburn  —  Soil  and  Area;  Burnfoot- — Carsemyres 
— Ugston  Shotts  —  Tenants  ;  Parkfoot  —  Braefoot  ;  Annfield  ; 
Inchkeith. 

Shielfield,  Shieldfield,  Shielfauld,  Schielfald. 

It  is  perhaps  not  possible  to  assert  positively  about  what 
time  the  place  known  as  Shielfield,  part  of  which  lies  within 
Channelkirk  Parish,  came  to  receive  such  designation.  From 
the  pastoral  character  of  the  district,  we  surmise  it  derives 
the  name  originally  from  the  sheeling-fold  of  the  sheep, 
a  derivation  which  colours  so  many  Border  place-names. 
As  kirk  land,  and  probably  Lauder  kirk  lands,  it  was, 
before  the  Reformation,  in  the  hands  of  the  Abbot  of 
Dryburgh  Abbey  ;  and,  consequently,  was  directly  at  the 
disposal  of  the  Erskine  family,  who  saw  the  last  of  the 
Commendatorship  of  that  religious  house.  Robert  Erskine 
was  commendator  in  1531,  for  example;  Thomas  Erskine 
filled  the  office  in  1541,  and  was  succeeded  by  David  Erskine, 
the  last  commendator.  After  the  Reformation,  John  Erskine, 
Earl    of  Mar,    received    Dryburgh    Abbey    as    part    of    his 


SHIELFIELD  615 

temporal  lordship  of  Cardross ;  and  Shielfield,  of  course, 
became  his  property.  The  Erskines  of  Shielfield  are  a 
branch  of  the  same  family. 

The  Shielfield  of  to-day  is,  as  of  yore,  held  by  an 
Erskine.  It  has  never,  we  believe,  been  other  than  a 
farmhouse. 

The  Erskines  of  Shielfield  had  quite  a  romantic  origin. 
The  Abbot  of  Dryburgh,  James  Stewart,  about  1523,  dis- 
puted with  the  Haliburtons  of  Mertoun  regarding  some  of 
the  Abbey  lands  which  the  latter  claimed.  The  feud  was 
somewhat  bitter,  and  was  only  settled  by  the  King's  arbitra- 
tion, in  1535,  in  favour  of  the  Haliburtons.  But  the  vendetta 
did  not  quite  pass  away  until  1536,  when  the  eldest  son 
of  David  Haliburton  married  the  Abbot's  daughter,  Eliza- 
beth Stewart.  They  had  for  offspring  an  only  daughter 
named  Elizabeth  Haliburton,  who,  being  her  father's  heir, 
was  destined  by  them  to  marry  one  of  her  cousins  to 
preserve  the  possessions  in  the  family.  But  the  Abbot  was 
determined  that  the  King's  arbitration  would  not  be  called 
into  the  case  this  time,  and  that  he  would  have  his  own 
way  in  settling  the  match.  He  carried  off  the  bride  by 
force,  therefore,  and  married  her  to  Alexander  Erskine, 
a  relative  of  his  own,  and  from  this  marriage  sprang  the 
Erskines  of  Shielfield.  About  1540  there  is  mention  of 
two  Shielfields :  Upper  or  Over  Shielfield,  which  was  called 
"  the  Four-merk  kirk  lands  of  Lauder "  ;  and  Nether  Shiel- 
field. Over  Shielfield  appears  to  have  lain  near  to  Halkers- 
land,  somewhat  to  the  south-west  of  Bowerhouse. 

In  1606  we  ascertain  that  Ralph  Erskine  of  Shielfield 
was  "  cautioner "  for  James  Haig  of  Bermerside,  who  is 
noticed  under  "  Carfrae."  This  Erskine  was  father  to  the 
Rev.    Henry  Erskine,    who   was,   again,  father  of  Ebenezer 


616  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Erskine,  founder  of  the  Secession  Church,  and  Ralph  Erskine, 
minister  of  Dunfermline,  author  of  the  once  famous  "  Gospel 
Sonnets."  They  were  "  two  of  a  family  of  fifteen  children 
whom  the  proud  House  of  Mar  need  not  be  ashamed  to 
acknowledge  as  scions."  * 

Over  and  Nether  Shielfield  are  among  the  lands  given, 
or  leased,  to  Andrew  and  Margaret  Home,  in  1560,  by 
David  Erskine,  Commendator  of  Dryburgh  Abbey.  Alex- 
ander Home  of  Manderston  is  infeft  by  the  same  person 
in  1562,  24th  February,  in  the  "kirk  lands  of  Lauder."  A 
Precept  of  Clare  Constat  infefts  Ralph  Erskine  as  heir  to 
Alexander  Erskine,  his  father,  in  1580,  in  "  Nethir  Scheil- 
feild,"  within  the  regality  of  Lauderdale.  Nether  Shielfield 
is  also  in  Ralph  Erskine's  hands,  along  with  Carsmyre, 
(Grassmyres),  now  extinct,  about  1620.  In  1606  the  "kirk 
lands  of  Lauder,"  Over  and  Nether  Shielfield,  are  mentioned 
in  an  Act  of  Parliament  f  as  "  now  annexed  to  his  hienes 
crowne,"  and  were  given  by  the  King  to  the  Earl  of  Mar, 
though  the  Commendator  was  to  have  from  them  the  "  Rentis, 
proventis,  and  emoluments  whatsomever."  Lord  Mar,  in 
1610,  has  conceded  to  him  "the  kirk  lands  of  Lauder,  the 
lands  of  Ovir  and  Nethir  Scheilfald  (or  Scheilfeildis),  Wgtoun 
(or  Wgstoun),  Banglaw,  Barnis,"  etc.,  etc.,  the  kirk  lands  of 
Mertoun,  Maxtoun,  Lesudden,  Chingilkirk,  Lanark,  etc.,  etc.J 

The  Sub-Commissioners  who  undertook  in  1630  to  assist 
the  High  Commissioners  on  Teinds  met  at  Lauder,  and 
John  Erskine  compears  and  witnesses  regarding  his  property 
of  Nether  Shieldfield  in  March  163 1.  This  is  probably  the 
same  John  Erskine  who,  with  his  son,  was  wounded  by 
Cromwell's    soldiers    in     165 1.       They,    the    soldiers,    were 

*  Cunningham's  Church  History,  vol.  ii.,  p.  287. 
t  IV.,  c.  91,  343.         -  X  Great  Seal. 


SHIELFIELD  617 

quartered  at  Thirlstane  Castle  then,  and  went  plundering 
all  around  the  neighbouring  district,  and  encountered  Erskine 
and  his  sons  near  Dryburgh. 

Over  and  Nether  Shielfield  are  returned  in  1637  as 
being  heired  by  David  Erskine,  son  of  Henry  Erskine  of 
Cardross,  but  in  1638  John  Home,  merchant  in  Edinburgh, 
is  heir  to  his  father,  John  Home,  merchant  burgess  in 
Edinburgh,  in  the  Four-merk  lands  of  Lauder,  called  Over 
Shielfield,  near  the  burgh  of  Lauder.  The  Erskines  seem 
to  have  retained  the  superiority  of  Over  Schielfield.  James 
Erskine  of  Scheilfield  is  designated  a  "  worthie  and  discreet " 
gentleman  in  1658.  Over  Shielfield  is  in  the  hands  of  the 
Kers  of  Morriestoun  by  1687,  passes  to  the  Binnings  of 
Pilmuir,  and  from  them,  in  1777,  becomes  the  property  of 
James,  Earl  of  Lauderdale. 

About  1779  we  find  Nether  Shielfield  in  the  hands  of 
Sir  John  Scott  of  Ancrum.  The  Rev.  James  Erskine  of 
St  Boswells,  who  was  married  to  Henrietta  Scott,  held  it 
before  1788,  and  he  dispones  it  in  that  year.  His  trustees 
are  seised  in  the  same  property,  6th  January  1790.  They 
are  joined  in  the  interest  of  it  by  his  children,  Charles 
Patrick,  Christian,  and  William  Erskine  ;  Mr  Ogilvie  of 
Chesters  ;  The  Bank  of  Scotland,  Kelso  ;  his  widow  ;  and 
Mr  Cunningham,  tenant,  Dryburgh  ;  all  of  whom  are  seised 
in  it  and  other  properties,  in  January  1793,  in  security  of 
sums  of  money,  on  bond  and  disposition  by  Henry  Erskine, 
22nd  May  1792,  whose  interest  in  it  still  holds  in  1795, 
when  he  is  Captain  Henry  Erskine  of  the  Edinburgh 
Battalion,  and  in  1802,  when  he  is  Major  Henry  Erskine 
of  Shielfield.  The  gallant  Major  died  in  18 19,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  brother,  Charles  Erskine,  who  died  in 
1825.     James  Erskine,  son  of  Charles,  became  posses.sor  of 


618  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Shielfield,  and  held  it  till  1875,  and  was  succeeded  by  the 
present  owner,  Charles  Erskine,  Esq.,  The  Priory,  Melrose. 

It  must  have  been  about  the  year  1862  that  Shielfield 
entered  the  parish  of  Channelkirk  to  the  extent  of  £11 
rental,  as  Mr  Erskine  pays  stipend  in  that  year  to  Channel- 
kirk minister.  In  the  Cess  and  Valuation  Roll  of  the  parish 
for  1853  Shielfield  is  not  included.  In  1863  "Mr  James 
Erskine,  Melrose,"  is  assessed  as  a  heritor  in  this  parish, 
and  as  he  also  pays  stipend  in  1862,  it  must  have  been 
furth  of  the  lands  of  Shielfield. 

The  whole  size  of  the  farm  is  159  acres.  It  is  of  a 
light,  sandy  soil,  and  occupies  a  pleasing  situation  in  the 
heart  of  the  valley.  It  has  a  good  water-supply,  and  the 
county  highways  touch  its  fields  at  several  points.  There 
are  eleven  souls  on  the  farm  at  present.  It  is  farmed  by 
Alexander  Young,  and  George,  his  son,  both  Lauderdale 
men,  as  the  father  of  Alexander  was  before  him.  They 
entered  the  farm  on  the  26th  of  November  1888.  Both 
are  members  of  Channelkirk  Church.  Descendants  of  the 
Hogarth  family,  who  were  in  Oxton  Mains,  were  tenants 
before  the  Youngs. 

OxTON  Mains 

Ugston,  or  Oxton  Mains  (Mains,  abbreviated  from 
Domains),  is  noticed  in  the  account  of  Oxton  down  to  the 
year  1742.  It  is  then  in  the  possession  of  the  Somervilles 
of  Airhouse.  It  seems  to  be  designated  in  law  instruments 
as  "the  Forty-shilling  Lands  of  Ugston,"  but  we  give  that 
opinion  as  only  the  clearest  which  we  have  been  able  to  form 
on  the  matter.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  Oxton  lands,  or 
"  territory,"  from  being  originally  very  wide  in  extent,  have 
in  the  course  of  the  last  three  hundred  years  been  absorbed 


OXTON  MAINS  619 

by  other  surrounding  properties,  and  chiefly  by  those  of 
Airhouse  and  Justicehall.  The  town  and  lands  of  Ugston, 
with  its  pendicles  of  Luckenhaugh  and  Pickleraw,  the  Forty- 
shilling  lands  of  Ugston,  tfie  Temple  lands  of  Ugston,  etc., 
etc.,  are  all,  therefore,  in  the  phrases  of  the  sasines,  charters, 
dispositions,  and  such  like  documents,  said  to  be  "  parts  "  of 
both  Airhouse  and  Justicehall  estates.  But  as  far  as  Oxton 
Mains  is  concerned,  and  actually  as  a  farm,  it  does  not 
seem  to  have  ever  left  the  Somervilles  of  Airhouse,  from 
the  time  of  their  acquiring  it  till  it  came  into  the  owner- 
ship of  the  Earl  of  Lauderdale.  The  difficulty  of  defining 
these  various  properties,  and  the  "  parts "  which  Airhouse 
and  Justicehall  severally  held  of  them,  is  apparent  in  the 
law  cases  which  were  brought  before  the  Court  of  Session 
in  the  early  years  of  this  century,  regarding  the  proportion 
of  teinds  which  each  property  in  the  parish  should  contribute 
to  the  augmentations  of  stipend.  For  purposes  of  teinding, 
Airhouse  and  Justicehall  were  held  to  have  each  a  half  of 
Oxton  town  and  lands,  including  the  pertinents  and  proper- 
ties above  noticed,*  and  in  Sir  John  Callander's  sasine  of 
Justicehall  estate,  it  is  observed  that  the  "  Forty-shilling 
Lands  of  Ugston,  with  the  pertinents  sometime  belonging  to 
the  Monastery  of  Dryburgh,  lie  among  the  said  lands  of 
Ugston."  i*  This  is  equivalent  to  a  confession  that  any 
definition  of  them  was  now  impossible,  all  boundaries 
having  become  obliterated  in  the  lapse  of  time. 

The  Somervilles  of  Airhouse,  in  1792-93,  grant  a  feu 
from  the  lands  of  Ugston  Mains  to  George  Mitchell  in 
Ugston,  "of  5200  square  feet  of  Ugston  Mains,  with  houses 
on  it  on  the  west  side  of  the  road  leading  through  Oxton 
towards  Lauder,"  and  sasine  is  granted  again  in  18 18,  when 
*  Locality^  p.  248.  t  Sasines. 


620  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

George's  wife,  Margaret  Lambert,  obtains  a  liferent  of  the 
same*  In  1858,  along  with  all  Airhouse  lands,  it  became 
the  property  of  James,  Lord  Lauderdale,  and  it  is  still  in 
the  hands  of  the  Lauderdale  family. 

The  farm  steading  occupies  a  quiet,  sequestered  situation 
on  the  north  side  of  the  Clora  Burn,  a  few  hundred  yards 
west-south-west  from  Oxton  village,  on  slightly  rising  ground, 
and  has  a  pleasant  air  of  rural  felicity  in  all  its  surroundings. 
The  farm  is  by  no  means  a  large  one,  extending  only  to 
100  acres  of  lightish  soil,  cultivated  on  the  fifth  rotation, 
and  carrying  100  sheep  and  about  a  score  of  cattle.  The 
approaches  to  it  are  good,  the  buildings  are  in  comfortable 
repair,  the  water-supply  is  all  that  can  be  desired,  and 
drainage  fairly  satisfactory.  The  farmhouse,  with  its  Swiss- 
like roof  overhanging  the  gables,  strikes  the  eye  as  picturesque 
and  inviting,  and  affords  a  restful  contrast  to  the  rigidly  stiff 
wall  outlines  of  the  usual  "  farm-toon."  There  are  nine  souls 
on  the  farm  at  present,  and  it  is  tenanted  by  Mr  William 
Elliot.  He  entered  on  Whitsunday  1897,  and  pays  a  rental 
of  ;^iio  yearly.  Hinds'  wages  are  15s.  6d.  weekly,  with  free 
house,  800  yards  of  potatoes,  and  coals  driven  free.  Their 
hours  are  ten  in  summer,  and  in  winter  from  daylight  till 
dark  as  a  rule,  with  one  hour  and  a  half  to  dinner.  Mr 
Elliot  was  born  in  Edinburgh,  and  came  into  Lauderdale  for 
the  first  time  when  he  obtained  the  lease  of  "  The  Mains," 
though  his  forbears  are  Borderers,  his  father  having  been 
born  near  Selkirk.  He  is  a  member  of  Channelkirk  Church. 
In  the  early  years  of  this  century  it  was  tenanted  by  Mr 
Hogarth.  Alexander  Black  followed  him,  and  is  now  a 
prosperous  man  in  Canada.  He  occupied  it  about  the  year 
1835.     Mr  Wilson,  long  in  Southfield,  followed  him,  but  his 

*  Sasines. 


MIDBURN  621 

mother  and  sisters  alone  resided  in  it.  Thomas  Wilson 
farmed  it  after  him,  and  was  father-in  law  to  the  farmer 
who  followed  in  the  lease,  viz.,  James  Bell,  of  Threeburnford, 
recently  deceased. 

MiDBURN 

Midburn  Farm  lies  on  the  southern  boundary  of  the  parish, 
the  major  part  of  it  being  in  the  parish  of  Lauder.  The 
Mid  Burn  runs  through  its  lands  and  gives  the  place  its  fiame. 
It  is  bounded  by  the  lands  of  Bowerhouse,  Collielaw,  Shiel- 
field,  Blackburn,  and  the  camp  lands  of  Blackchester.  Its 
land  was  anciently  included  within  the  larger  properties  lying 
around  it,  and  embraced  in  the  barony  of  Pilmuir.  In  1627 
the  minister  mentions  "  every  rowme  "  in  Channelkirk  parish 
which  contributed  stipend,  and  "  Midburn  "  is  not  among  the 
number.  It  probably  came  into  existence  about  the  end  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  When  the  Kers  of  Morrieston 
relinquished  Collielaw  and  Bowerhouse  in  1722  to  Charles 
Binning  (Benin),  Midburn  lands  seem  to  have  been  part  of 
these.  It  is  not  mentioned  as  a  farm  in  Channelkirk  in  1742, 
but  in  1762  it  is  noted  along  with  Over  Shielfield,  Pilmuir, 
Blackchester,  Halkerlaw,  and  Wiselaw  Mill,  as  comprising  the 
barony  of  Pilmuir.*  It  is  then  in  the  possession  of  Adam 
Fairholm,  banker,  Edinburgh.  In  1777  James,  Earl  of 
Lauderdale,  has  disposition  and  assignation  made  in  his 
favour  of  "  All  and  Whole  the  Lands  and  Barony  of  Pilmuir," 
which  included  : — 

1.  The  Five-Pound  Land  of  Pilmuir. 

2.  Blackchester. 

3.  Muirhouse  of  Halkerland. 

*  Acts  and  Decreets,  vol.  597. 


I 


622  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

4.  Little  Laurence  Lands. 

5.  Scots  Croft. 

6.  Collielaw. 

7.  Bowerhouse  (Over  Bowerhouse). 

8.  Wiselaw  Mill. 

9.  Sucken  and  Sequels,  Multure  and  Thirlage  of  Nether  Howden  and 
Over  Shielfield. 

We  may  observe  here  that  most  of  these  places  were  in- 
cluded in  Galashiels  Burgh  of  Barony  in  1599.* 

From  its  nearness  to  Blackchester,  Collielaw,  and  Bower- 
house, we  may  reasonably  assume  that  Midburn  was  included, 
as  the  less  within  the  greater,  in  the  above  list,  under  one  or 
other  of  these  properties.  For  the  same  reason  it  is  not 
mentioned  for  itself  in  the  "  Ce.ss  and  Valuation  Roll "  for  1853, 
nor  is  it  said  to  give  teind  to  Channelkirk  stipend  under 
"Midburn."  In  the  Valuation  Roll  for  1898-99  the  rent  of 
the  farmhouse  and  that  portion  of  the  farm  which  lies  in  this 
parish — about  47  acres — is  set  down  at  £$3^  ^9^-  The  whole 
extent  of  the  farm  amounts  to  1 54  acres.  The  soil  is  variable, 
some  of  it  being  heavy  and  not  easily  workable,  and  other 
parts  of  a  light,  shallow  nature.  The  roads  to  it  are  county 
roads,  and  adjoin  the  steading.  It  is  worked  on  the  fifth 
rotation,  and  is  all  arable.  There  is  need  of  plantation 
shelter,  if  it  were  possible,  as  there  is  no  growing  wood  on 
the  farm.  The  buildings,  farmhouse,  and  steading  are  not 
very  presentable,  being  old  and  in  need  of  improvements. 
The  water-supply  is  not  very  convenient,  and  has  to  be  hand- 
carried  from  a  distance.  Drainage  is  fairly  good,  but  the 
drains  being  3-^  ft.  deep,  do  little  good,  comparatively,  where 
the  soil  is  heavy.  The  market  of  Earlston  is  occasionally 
attended  by  the  farmer,  but  in  general,  all  fat  cattle  and 
sheep  are  sent  to  Newcastle,  and  the  grain  sold  privately. 
*  History  of  Selkirkshire,  vol.  ii.,  p.  484. 


BURN  FOOT  623 

The  hours  of  labour  in  summer  are  from  six  o'clock  morning 
till  eleven  forenoon ;  then  from  one  o'clock  till  six  evening. 
In  winter,  from  morning  light  till  darkness  sets  in,  with  an 
hour  and  a  half  for  dinner. 

Robert  Fortune,  the  present  tenant,  entered  at  Whit- 
sunday 1880  on  a  nineteen  years'  lease.  There  are  nine 
souls  on  the  farm.  Mr  Fortune  also  farms  Wiselaw  Mill.  He 
is  married  and  has  a  family  of  six  sons  and  one  daughter. 
He  is  a  member  of  Channelkirk  Church. 

There  is  a  camp  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Midburn  called 
Blackchester  ;  and  a  stone  cross,  without  any  inscription,  lies 
near  the  steading,  both  of  which  are  noticed  in  the  chapter 
on  "  Antiquities." 

The  steading  stands  649  ft.  above  sea-level,  and  the 
"  Burn,"  from  which  it  derives  its  name,  is  also  a  part  of  the 
southern  boundary  of  Channelkirk  parish  which  divides  it 
from  Lauder.  It  is  situated  2i  miles  from  Lauder  Burgh  and 
3^  miles  from  Channelkirk  Church. 

Burn  FOOT  {Carsemyres) 

This  farm  steading  is  perhaps  the  most  modern  of  all  the 
places  of  the  parish.  It  seems  to  have  come  into  existence 
about  thirty  years  ago,  and  is  the  descendant  of  Old  Burnfoot, 
which  stood  nearer  the  "  Burn  "  side.  Old  Burnfoot  itself 
was  modern,  and  like  New  Channelkirk  and  others,  sprang 
up  about  the  end  of  last  century.  Mr  Thomson,  Mr  Bertram, 
Mrs  Lees,  whose  husband  was  killed  by  a  fall  from  his  gig, 
Mr  Davidson  (originally  hailing  from  Melrose),  farmed  it 
successively  during  this  century.  Mr  VValkinshaw,  who  was  in 
Parkfoot,  followed  Mr  Davidson,  and  in  his  time  Ugston 
Shotts  (the  ruins  of  which  are  yet  to  be  seen,  and  which 
was  then  farmed  by  Mr  Andrew  Sharp,  farmer  of  Ju.sticehall, 


624  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

and  after  him  by  his  son),  was  joined  in  the  lease  with  Burn- 
foot.  Since  then,  Burnfoot  has  been  the  principal  steading, 
and  Ugston  Shotts  has  decayed.  The  farmer  of  the  latter 
place  in  1800  was  William  Murray.  John  Gilchrist  is  the 
present  tenant,  and  one  of  the  parish  councillors. 

The  ancient  predecessor  of  Burnfoot  was  Carsemyres. 
It  has  been  long  extinct,  only  one  tree,  at  the  junction  of  the 
turnpike  road  with  Howden  Burn,  now^  marking  its  site. 

Carsemyres,  like  Shielfield,  was  for  long  under  Dryburgh 
Abbey.  David  Erskine,  the  last  Commendator,  grants 
Ralph  Erskine,  son  of  Alexander  Erskine,  the  founder  of  the 
Shielfield  Erskines,  a  considerable  amount  of  property  in 
1580,  and  among  the  rest,  "that  part  of  the  lands  called 
the  Kersmyre  with  Nethir  Scheelfeild." 

In  1535  we  ascertain  from  the  rental  of  Dryburgh  that 
"  Carsmyr  "  was  one  of  the  "  annualis,"  and  paid  to  the  Abbot 
6s.  8d.,  a  statement  which  is  renewed  in  the  years  1 540  and 

1545- 

In  1634  Nether  Shielfield  and  Kersmyre  are  "  fewit  to 
Raff  Erskine."  This  "  Raff"  was  the  ancestor  of  the  well- 
known  Ralph  and  Ebenezer  Erskine,  who  were  so  much 
heard  of  in  dissenting  literature  during  last  century. 

From  this  time  downwards,  Carsemyres,  or  "  Grassmyres," 
as  it  was  colloquially  termed,  remained  with  the  Erskines. 
In  1788  it  is  in  the  hands  of  James  Erskine  of  Shielfield, 
minister  of  St  Boswells.  There  is  at  this  date  also  an  "  Upper 
Carsemyres  "  ;  which  was  "  Ugston  Shotts  "  latterly,  but  which 
never  seems  to  have  been  owned  by  the  Erskines. 

When  Mr  Justic.e  of  Justicehall  was  infeft  in  Over 
Howden  in  1800,  he  also  obtains  "Upper  and  Nether 
Carsemyres  "  ;  all  three  are  said  to  be  "  parts  of  the  barony  of 
Trabrown,"  and  the  Charter  of  Confirmation  and  Precept  of 


BURNFOOT  625 

Clare  Constat  is  by  "the  Commissioners  of  Robert  Scot  of 
Trabrown,"  and  dated  24th  September  1785.  The  last  date 
denotes  when  Alexander  Justice  of  Justicehall,  brother  to  the 
above,  received  the  two  "  Carsemyres  "  and  Over  Howden. 
This  century's  changes  for  them  may  be  summed  up  briefly 
as  follows : — 

In  1842  we  find  Lord  Polwarth  (Henry  Francis  Hepburn 
Scott)  infeft  in  these  lands  as  heir  to  his  father,  Lord  Hugh 
Hepburn  Scott  of  Polwarth;  in  1844  they  pass  to  James, 
Earl  of  Lauderdale;  and  in  1850  they  came  into  Mrs 
Niddrie's  possession,  where  they  now  rest.  "  Grassmyres " 
was  still  visible  to  the  Ordnance  Surveyors  in  1857,  but  it  has 
now  gone  the  way  of  all  things,  the  old  tree  alone  left  stand- 
ing as  a  memorial  of  days  long  ago.  Burnfoot  is  its  modern 
representative,  and  is  a  comfortable  and  prosperous  farm. 
As  the  ancient  name  implies,  the  lands  are  mostly  carse 
lands  (the  Welsh  cors,  bog,  fen ;  and  Anglo-Saxon  myre, 
swampy  ground),  originally,  no  doubt,  given  over  to  marshy 
reedy  growths,  but  now,  although  always  flat,  yet  fertile  and 
profitable.  Farm  and  farn>house  rent  at  ^^150  per  annum, 
the  shootings  of  Over  Howden  and  Burnfoot  letting  at  ;^  15. 
The  farm  is  all  arable  ground,  and  the  fields  are  easily 
approachable  for  cart  traffic.  It  is  well  supplied  with  water, 
is  well  drained  and  fenced,  and  the  steading  is  in  good  repair. 
The  latter  stands  on  the  side  of  the  road  which  leads  south- 
wards from  Oxton  to  Lauder,  almost  midway  between  Oxton 
and  Collielaw,  and  was  built,  as  has  been  suggested  above, 
and  according  to  our  authority,  about  thirty  years  ago.  There 
are  no  notable  places  or  incidents,  .so  far  as  we  are  aware,  in 
connection  with  it. 

Ugston  Shotts,  to  which  reference  has  been  made  above 
as  originally  "  Upper  Carsemyres,"  was,  as  we  have  seen,  a 

2  K 


626  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

"  led "  farm  for  some  time,  and  was  united  with  Burnfoot 
during  the  time  when  Mr  Walkinshaw  farmed  there.  Before 
his  time,  about  the  beginning  of  this  century,  it  was  farmed 
by  Mr  Wright.  Mr  Pringle  followed  him  in  the  lease,  then 
the  Sharps,  father  and  son,  grandfather  and  father  of  the 
present  tenant  of  Over  Howden.  Pringle  seems  to  have 
been  the  last  tenant  who  actually  resided  in  Ugston 
Shotts. 

Parkfoot 

This  place  is  noticed  in  Chapter  XVII,  under  "Air- 
house." 

Braefoot 

Braefoot  is  at  present  situated  at  the  junction  of  the 
Manse  road  and  the  road  leading  to  Mountmill,  and 
consists  of  one  dwelling-house  occupied  by  the  gamekeeper 
for  the  Kirktonhill  district.  It  was  built  in  1843.  Origin- 
ally, Braefoot  was  a  hamlet  of  four  or  five  dwelling-houses, 
standing  almost  due  east  from  the  present  site,  on  the 
rising  ground  to  the  east  side  of  the  Manse  road.  During 
last  century,  it  accommodated  a  smith-shop  and  joiner- 
shop  with  several  families.  This  is  supported  by  the 
variety  of  names  noted  as  having  been  borne  by  those 
who  were  buried  from  it,  viz.,  Mary  Alexander  in  1763, 
and  John  Thomson  in  1765,  while  James  Scott  was  smith 
there  in  1766,  and  did  the  work  connected  with  the  kirk 
and  manse.  James  Pringle  was  "  wright  "  or  joiner  there 
in  1770,  and  fitted  up  a  new  tent  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  people  and  ministers  at  sacrament  time,  for  which 
he  was  paid  £yo,  4s.  Scots,  or  ^^"5,  17s.  in  our  present 
money.      Mr    Reid,  grandfather   to   the   blacksmith   now  in 


ANNFIELD— INCHKEITH  G27 

Oxton  of  that  name,  was,  when  a  young  man,  blacksmith 
in  Braefoot.  It  was  a  custom,  nearl)'  seventy  years  ago, 
for  the  young  men  to  play  a  game  which  consisted 
principally  of  rolling  a  heavy  leaden  ball,  like  a  cannon 
ballj  along  the  ground  with  their  hands,  and  Braefoot  was 
one  goal,  and  Peasmountford  the  other.  Two  parties 
contended,  as  in  the  games  of  "  shinty "  or  football.  The 
present  yearly  rental  or  value  of  Braefoot  is  ;^io,  los.,  and 
James  Thomas  Pringle,  Torwoodlea,  is  liferenter.  It  stands 
on  Mountmill  lands. 

ANNFIELt) 

Annfield,  a  quiet,  solitary,  licensed  house  at  an  inter- 
.  mediate  distance  between  Glengelt  and  Carfrac  Mill  on 
Edinburgh  road,  has  no  claim  to  that  antiquity  which  is 
a  characteristic  of  so  many  places  in  the  parish.  It  is  of 
the  same  age  as  the  public  road  which  passes  it,  and 
which  was  opened  in  the  year  1832.  The  name  is  said 
to  have  been  given  to  it  by  the  proprietor,  out  of  regard 
to  a  much  respected  sister.  It  has  always  been  a  licensed 
inn,  and  since  it  had  existence,  three  tenants  have  held  it 
up  to  the  present  day,  viz.,  Thomas  Crooks,  William 
Chalmers,  and  the  present  tenant,  James  Robertson.  It  is 
rented  at  £\2  per  annum,  and  is  the  property  of  John 
Borthwick,  Esq.  of  Crookston. 

INCHKEITH 

This  farm,  a  very  small  part  of  which  lies  in  .  this 
parish,  is  situated  on  its  extreme  south  boundary  behind 
Collielaw  Hill,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Longmuir  Moss,  It 
is    mentioned    about    1762   in   connection   with   the   Wide- 


628  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

open  Common  Case,  but  nothing  notable  relating  to 
Channelkirk  seems  to  be  connected  with  it.  It  is  the 
property  of  Lord  Lauderdale,  and  is  farmed  by  George 
and  William  Anderson.  The  rent  of  the  part  in  this 
parish  amounts  to  £2,  5s. 


CHAPTER    XXII 

EXTINCT   PLACES 

Sumuindnight — Venneshende — Langsyde — Channelkirk  Village  —  Muir- 
house— Peasmountford — Pickieston — Old  Collielaw  —  The  Dass  — 
Bain's  Croft — Rigside — Midlie — Southfield — Butterdean — Longhope 
—  Hillhouse  Dodfoot  —  Carfrae  Common  —  Carfraegate  —  Upper 
Carfraegate  —  Headshaw  Hauch  —  Ugston  Shotts — Ten  Rigs  — 
Walker's  Croft — Oxton  Brig  End — Rednick — Alderhope  —  Rauchy 
— Longcleuch — Herniecleuch — Hazeldean — The  King's  Inch — Malt- 
Barns. 

I.  Sumuindnight,  about  1196  A.D.,  lay  west  from  Kelphope 
neighbourhood,  on  the  broad  moor  of  Soutra  Hill.  From 
certain  indications  it  appears  to  have  been  near  the  house 
now  called  "The  Den."  It  was  a  boundary  mark  of  Carfrae 
lands.  The  name  is  a  singular  one,  and  is  clearly  a 
corruption  of  some  expression  like  St  Moinenn's  Height, 
regarding  which  we  can  now  only  conjecture.* 

2.  Venneshende  is  of  the  same  date,  and  is  also  mentioned 
in  a  similar  connection.  It  appears  to  have  been  located 
about  Friarsknowes,  or  perhaps  nearer  Lammer  Law.  If  the 
spelling  be  southern,  it  might  mean  Fen's  End,  or  End  of 
the  Fen.  In  Kent  ''fen"  would  be  '' ven"  and  hende  for 
ende  was  good  Anglo-French.  It  may  have  been  so 
pronounced  by  the  southern  followers  of  De  Morville,  and 
who  came  north  under  his  aegis.  "  Fen-land  "  is  moorland, 
*  Father  H  aye's  Genealogie  of  the  Sinclairs. 


630  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

bogland,  or  marshland,  but  is  usually  applied  to  low,  level 
ground.  The  wide  heathery  plateau  of  the  Lammer  Law 
may  have  suggested  the  connection.* 

3.  Langsyde,  about  1327,  referred  to  as  "above"  the 
Kirk  Haugh  at  Mountmill.  We  are  inclined  to  believe 
that  its  situation  must  have  been  that  of  Butterdean,  near 
Airhouse.-f- 

4.  Channelkirk    Village,   which  is   yet  represented   by  a 

shepherd's  house,  is    the    spot   to   which    the   Irish   Life  of 

St  Cuthbert  points  as  being  the  abode  of  the  "pious  man 

in   Lothian,"  in  whose  care  the  boy-saint  was  placed  about 

630-35.     No  trace  of  its  ancient  name  is  now  discoverable. 

A  naked  remnant  of  old  wails  which  still  lines  the  road  on 

either  side,  with  here  and  there  a  door  jamb  still  visible  in 

the  dykes,  reminds  us  that  the  place  was  a  flourishing  one, 

and  inhabited   not  many  years  ago.      Opposite  the  manse, 

to  the  north-west,  in  the  middle  of  the  glebe,  stood  a  row 

of  cottages   which   have   all   disappeared   since   the   middle 

of  this  century.     On   the  north  side  of  the  road  adjoining 

the  manse  stood  the  inn  where  Sir  John  Cope  breakfasted 

on  the  morning  of  his  defeat   at    Prestonpans,   and   where 

Prince  Charlie's  soldiers  refreshed  themselves  and  bivouacked 

on  their  way  south.     The  village  school  occupied  the    site 

of  ground  on   the  west  side  of  the   present    manse   green. 

A    farmhouse    stood    near    the    above    inn,   and    was   called 

"  Old    Channelkirk "   when    "  New    Channelkirk "   came    into 

existence  at   the  end  of  last  century.      James   Wilson   was 

farmer  in  it  about   1670.     George  Thomson  was  tenant   in 

it    in    1 8 16;    and    the    Rev.   John    Brown   and    he   used   to 

have  "  rippetts."     Thomson  left  for  Langat,  and  was  followed 

in  Old  Channelkirk  Farm  by  Robert  Hogg.     Mr  Hogg  was 

*  H  aye's  Genealogy  of  the  Situ  lairs. 
t  Liber  de  Dryburgh,  Charter  No.  185. 


EXTINCT  PLACES  631 

the  last  tenant.  He  discovered  the  children's  bodies  in 
the  Conduit  (now  Bairnie's  Conduit),  where  the  corpse- 
lifters  had  placed  them.  His  death  was  unfortunate  and 
mysterious.  Coming  from  Blackshiels  one  night  over 
Soutra  Hill,  he  wandered  off  his  road  into  Lindean  ravine. 
He  was  found  in  the  water  next  day,  dead.  There  was  no 
sign  of  violence.  Old  Channelkirk  Farm  is  mentioned  in 
Rev.  Walter  Keith's  time.  It  was  then  a  combination  of 
farm  and  hotel,  or  "  public-house." 

5.  Muirhouse  stood  somewhere  near  Kirktonhill,  but,  like 
Langside,  has  left  little  trace  of  its  whereabouts.  The  region 
of  Soutra  was  called  in  general  MuirJiouseland  in  1532,  and 
perhaps  the  house,  or  farm,  may  have  been  located  further 
north  on  Soutra  Hill  on  the  old  road  which  crossed  Soutra  ; 
and  from  its  solitary  situation  would  naturally  give  its 
designation  to  that  district  in  the  language  of  travellers 
and  the  people  of  Upper  Lauderdale.  It  was  long  incor- 
porated with  Kirktonhill  estate,  but  except  in  law  instru- 
ments it  seems  to  have  become  extinct  before  the  beginning 
of  last  century.  There  is  a  Muirhouse  and  the  site  of 
Muirhouse  Castle,  near  Stow,  but  it  cannot  be  either  of 
these.* 

6.  Peasmountford. — This  place,  which  lives  as  a  memory, 
but  not  as  a  dwelling,  in  the  recollection  of  our  oldest 
inhabitant,  stood  on  the  side  of  the  present  Oxton  road, 
near  the  bridge  which  spans  Mountmill  Burn.  The  railway 
track  crosses  the  highway  near  to  its  site.  When  there 
was  no  bridge  at  this  place,  a  ford  was  necessary,  but  why 
it  was  called  Peasemount  Ford  does  not  appear.  No  trace 
of  it  now  exists.-|- 

7.  Pickieston,  from,  probably.  Pixie's  stone,  as  such  stones, 

*  See  "  Kirktonhill."  t  Decreet  of  Locality. 


632  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

so-called  locally,  have  been  found  near  it,  appears  to  have 
been  a  croft,  or  a  row  of  cottar's  houses  near  to  Heriots- 
hall.  It  is  now  more  a  locality  than  a  site,  and  is  in  the 
district  west  from  Heriotshall  steading,  on  the  Oxton  road. 
It  is  long  ago  obliterated.* 

8.  Old  Collielaiv. — See  "  CoUielaw." 

9.  The  Dass. — This  place  was  long  used  as  the  "  ootby 
shepherd's  house"  for  Nether  Howden  Farm.  It  was  in- 
habited as  late,  at  least,  as  1861,  when  Andrew  Lindsay 
inhabited  it.  The  name  is  derived  from  deas^  dess,  or  deis, 
which  denotes  any  raised  or  terrace-like  ground.  It  stood 
half-a-mile  north  from  Inchkeith  Farm,  and  a  mile  south- 
west from  Over  Bowerhouse.  The  last  corpse  "  snatched " 
from  Channelkirk  Churchyard  was  that  of  a  stout  woman 
who  lived  and  died  at  the  Dass.-f*  The  last  occupant  was 
William  Lindsay,  shepherd,  who  left  for  Carse  o'  Gowrie 
about  1865,  to  farm. 

10.  Bain's  O'^/,  about  1588,  was  the  northern  boundary 
of  the  "  Sucken  "  of  Oxton  Mill,  now  Mountmill.  | 

11.  Rigside,  about  1581,  was  included  in  Carfrae  lands, 
and  was  in  existence  and  inhabited  about  the  beginning  of 
this  century.  It  stood  on  the  west  side  of  the  Edinburgh 
road,  above  Carfrae  Mill,  almost  opposite  to  Nether 
Howden.  § 

12.  i^/^/z>,  about  147 1  '' Medil"  was  included  in  Carfrae 
lands  originally,  and  was  afterwards  associated  with  Head- 
shaw  property.  It  stood  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  north 
from  Headshaw  steading  on  the  old  road  in  that  locality. 
In    1627  "  Midle  is  in   stok  ane  100  merkis  ;  personage,  20 

*  Great  Seal.  f  Kirk  Records. 

X  Great  Seal.  §  Ibid. 


EXTINCT  PLACES  633 

merkis  ;  vicarage,  20  lib.     It  is  sometimes  called  "  Midlem  " 
and  "Middlemass."* 

13.  SoutJifield  is  a  decayed  farm  on  Airhouse  lands, 
overlooking  Threeburnford.  Its  walls  are  still  standing,  and 
are  partly  in  use  for  farm  purposes,  but  it  is  no  longer 
tenanted.  It  is  one  of  the  small  holdings  which  came  into 
existence  during  the  last  century,  but  has  sunk  under  the 
tendency  of  the  times  to  have  all  farms  large.  James 
Wilson  was  farmer  in  it  in  1 816,  and  was  still  there  in  1842. 
He  is  remembered  as  being  fond  of  a  joke.  He  would  enter 
the  field  and  converse  with  his  workpeople,  then  go  down 
to  the  foot  of  it,  hang  his  hat  up  so  that  it  could  be  seen, 
and  steal  round  by  the  dyke  to  meet  them  at  the  top 
unawares,  and  would  find  them  all  idle  and  talking  probably, 
under  the  belief  that  he  with  his  hat  were  both  at  the  other 
end  of  the  field. 

14.  Butterdean  may  have  been  the  ancient  Langsyde. 
It  is  occasionally  called  Airhouse  Mains.  It  is  now  a 
roofless  ruin,  but  seems  to  have  held  a  few  families  in 
olden  times.  George  Lyall  was  farmer  in  it  in  18 16.  He 
left  it  to  keep  a  public-house  in  Oxton,  in  the  house  at 
present  occupied  and  owned  by  James  N.  Reid,  where  he 
died.  Robert  Tait,  grandfather  of  the  present  Taits  of 
Oxton,  was  its  next  tenant,  and  after  him,  George  Waldie, 
who  died  recently  at  Addinston.     It  fell  ruinous  afterwards. 

15.  Longhope. — In  the  lapse  of  years  some  names,  like 
"  Oxton,"  are  contracted  :  but  names  like  Airhouse  and  Long- 
hope  prove  that  a  lengthening  process  is  also  at  work.  Long- 
hope  in  the  1 2th  century  was  Langilde  or  Langald,  afterwards 
shortened  into  Langat.  The  original  Langilde  is  probably 
from  the  Norse  gill  (Lang-gill),  meaning   a   narrow   valley 

*  Great  Seal ;  Ada  Dotninorum  Atiditorunt. 


634  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

containing  a  stream.  In  all  likelihood  it  was  the  name 
first  given  to  the  Kelphope  Glen,  which  is  properly  a  long 
narrow  valley  with  the  Burn — the  ancient  Mosburne — 
running  through  it.  The  house  built  at  the  correi  or  ravine 
to  which  the  name  "  Langat "  is  now  restricted  was  to  all 
appearance  the  only  one  in  the  glen  in  1196,  and  the  glen 
would  naturally  be  called  Langild  just  as  it  is  now  for  the 
same  reason  called  Kelphope.  George  Thomson,  who  was 
tenant  in  Old  Channelkirk  in  18 16,  came  to  Langat  after- 
wards. One  of  his  sons,  named  John,  was  a  minister,  and 
sometimes  preached  in  Channelkirk,  but  he  never  got  a 
kirk  in  the  patronage  days.  He  is  remembered  as  "  nae 
great  haund,  though  guid  eneuch ! "  The  father  died  in 
1 83 1.  After  his  tenancy,  the  croft  or  farm  was  made  into 
a  "  led  "  farm  along  with  Addinston. 

16.  Hillhouse  Dodfoot  stood  between  the  two  waters  of 
Kelphope  and  Hillhouse  nearly  a  half  mile  from  Carfraemill. 
John  Somerville  lived  in  it  between  the  years  1776  and 
1796.  It  was  a  noted  place  in  the  district  for  shebeening, 
and  a  rendezvous  of  gaiety  for  the  mirth-makers. 

17.  Carfrae  Common. — Passing  over  Soutra  Hill  by  the 
Redbraes,  the  old  ruin  of  this  place  is  still  visible  from  the 
road,  lying  on  the  north  side  of  Headshaw  Water — the 
Leader  proper.  The  loneliness  of  such  a  residence,  especially 
in  winter,  is  apparent  to  the  view.  In  1837  it  was  occupied 
by  Robert  Lindsay,  shepherd,  grandfather  of  the  present 
Lindsays  in  Carfrae,  who  were  all  born  there,  and  after 
his  time  his  son  occupied  it.     He  was  its  last  occupant. 

18.  Carfraegate  was  originally  two  dwelling-houses  on 
the  old  Edinburgh  road  opposite  Annfield  Inn,  The  garden 
enclosure  and  five  or  six  elm  trees  still  mark  the  place.  It 
was    for    some    time    in    use    as    a    public-house.      Joseph 


EXTINCT  PLACES  635 

Glendinning  was  in  it  in  1839,  John  Robertson,  forrester, 
was  the  last  occupant.  It  stood  a  considerable  time  after 
the  new  road  was  made  through  Lauderdale  in  1832,  which 
shifted  the  traffic  away  from  it,  and  it  has  been  occupied  by 
people  still  living  in  Oxton. 

Upper  Carfraegate  is  not  one  of  the  extinct  places  in  the 
parish,  being  yet  occupied  as  a  dwelling-house,  and  stands 
midway  between  Carfrae  and  Headshaw  steadings. 

19.  Headshaw  Haiich  stood  on  Headshaw  Burn,  near  to 
the  reservoir  or  source  of  Oxton  new  water-supply,  a  little 
above  New  Channelkirk  Farm-steading,  where  the  ruin  of 
it  may  yet  be  seen.  It  was  occupied  in  1842,  and  perhaps 
a  few  years  later. 

20.  Ugston  Shotts  was  formerly  Upper  Carsemyres,  and 
the  remains  of  its  walls  still  stand  in  the  corner  of  one  of 
Burnfoot  fields,  a  little  to  the  north-west  of  Burnfoot 
steading.  Burnfoot  took  its  place,  and  was  built  nearer 
the  turnpike. 

21.  Ten  Rigs  was  taken  down  twenty  years  ago,  and 
the  stones  used  for  dykes.  It  was  a  small  croft  which 
stood  near  Midburn,  on  the  farm  road  which  connects  the 
roads  of  Midburn  and  Bowerhouse.  Some  of  the  present 
generation  had  their  first  "  fee "  in  it  as  lads. 

22.  Walker's  Croft  was  in  existence  in  1764,  but  seems 
to  have  speedily  vanished  as  a  name  after  that  date.  It 
was  somewhere  near  to  Oxton  village,  but  its  exact 
locality  cannot  be  determined.  Perhaps  it  was  a  variant 
name  for  "  Luckencroft,"  the  south-west  field  bounding 
Oxton. 

23.  Oxlon  Brig  End  was  a  small  crofting  farm,  situated 
on  the  Clora  Burn  at  the  west  side  of  Oxton  Bridge. 
Some  old  walls  yet  show  its  place.     It  was  also  known  as 


636  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Airhoiise  Burnside.     It  was  farmed   as   late   in  the  century 
as  1842  by  Alexander  More. 

24.  Rednick  or  Redwick,  mentioned  so  frequently  with 
Kirktonhill  estate,  was  situated,  perhaps,  a  mile  direct 
north  from  that  steading.  William  Cranston,  a  weaver, 
was,  we  believe,  the  last  occupant,  about  1783.  His  family 
were  in  poor  circumstances  for  some  reasons,  and  he  him- 
self never  seems  to  have  been  in  good  health.  * 

25.  Alderhope  was  a  hamlet  which  stood  on  the  Armit 
Water  in  the  Longcleuch.  It  has  only  disappeared  within 
recent  years.  David  Davidson,  belonging  to  Haddington, 
kept  school  there  for  several  years.  He  published  a 
volume  of  poems  in  1834,  and  thus  sings  the  praises  of 
the  parish's  west  boundary  : — 

"  O  Armit  is  a  burnie  clear, 
And  unto  me  shall  still  be  dear  ; 
While  I  through  life  my  course  shall  steer 
I'll  aye  mind  Armit  Water. 

It  is  shut  up  in  a  deep  glen, 
An'  few  its  beauties  even  ken  ; 
Yet  I  my  feeble  voice  will  len' 
In  praising  Armit  Water. 

But  O  !    it's  sweet,  it's  sweet  to  see, 
The  peaceful  shepherd  on  the  lea, 
Conversin'  with  the  Ane  in  Three 
On  the  banks  o'  Armit  Water."  f 

The  Armit  rises  in  Hen's  Moss,  near  Lowrie's  Den, 
flows  past  Cross  Chain  Hill,  King's  Inch,  Makimrich, 
Gilston,  onwards  by  Crookston  to  the  Gala  Water.  It  is 
reputed  a  good  trouting  stream. 

*  Kirk  Records. 

f  Reminiscences  of  Haddington  Cotuity. 


EXTINCT  PLACES  637 

26.  RaucJiy  stood  north  from  Kirktonhill  steading,  on 
Hartside  land,  on  the  upland  rising  from  Rauchy  Burn. 
The  name,  which  was  "  Rashie  "  in  1762,  is  a  corruption  of 
Rae-shaw,  or  Roe-shaw,  the  haunt  of  the  roe,  and 
corroborates  the  character  of  the  district  expressed  in  the 
adjoining  farm  of  Hart's  Head  (Hartside).  It  was  occupied 
by  shepherds  within  living  memory. 

27.  Longcleuch  was  the  "  ootby  shepherd's "  place  for 
Hartside.  It  is  often  mentioned  with  Nether  Hartside 
property.  It  is  situated  on  the  Armit  Water,  half  a  mile 
north-west  from  the  top  of  Hartside  Hill. 

28.  Herniecleuch. — See  under  "  Carfrae." 

29.  Hazeldean. — See  under  "  Carfrae." 

30.  Kin^s  Inch. — This  place  is  practically  extinct  in 
regard  to  the  uses  to  which  it  was  put  in  bygone  da}'s. 
It  is  a  small  bit  of  ground  situated  on  the  Girthgate  at  a 
distance  of  about  half-a-mile  south  of  Soutra  Isle,  and  has 
an  appearance  quite  distinct  from  the  surrounding  moor. 
It  was  No  Man's  Land,  and  was  the  resting-place  from 
time  immemorial  of  drovers  when  taking  their  cattle  to 
and  from  market.  Tinkers,  gipsies,  muggers,  and  tramps 
of  every  name  claimed  the  same  right  to  it,  and  within 
living  memory,  it  is  vouched  to  us,  as  many  as  thirty 
tents  have  been  seen  pitched  on  it  at  one  time.  Perhaps, 
at  certain  seasons,  as  many  as  one  hundred  people  would 
temporarily  colonise  the  "  Inch."  Many  a  tinker's  child 
has  first  seen  the  light  there.  When,  however,  it  was  no 
longer  used  by  drovers  and  respectable  traders,  and  fell  to 
the  sole  occupation  of  the  "  mugger "  multitude,  it  was 
found  to  be  a  mere  centre  for  mischief  and  plunder,  and 
as  speedily  as  possible  the  "Inch"  was  annexed  to 
civilisation    by   being    incorporated  within  the  neighbouring 


638  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

estate.  The  name  seems  to  be  derived  from  insula,  an 
island,  or  what  is  encompassed  or  surrounded  :  an  isle ;  as 
the  North  Inch  of  Perth;  Inchkeith.  "  North-Insulam  de 
Perth "  is  a  phrase  used  in  Fordun  for  North  Inch.  And 
belonging  to  no  one,  it  would  naturally  fall  to  be  considered 
the  Kin^s  Insulam,  or  abbreviated  King's  Ins  or  Inch. 

31.  Malt-Barns. — There  is  a  place  of  this  name  still  in 
existence,  and  situated  opposite  Boghall,  but  the  original 
Malt-Barns  stood  farther  down  Leader  Water,  at  the 
junction  of  Nether  Howden  and  Carfraemill  lands. 

Other  places,  no  longer  inhabited,  if  not  noticed  here, 
will  be  found  under  the  account  of  the  lands  on  which 
they  stood. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

ANTIQUITIES 

The  Camps :  At  Channelkirk — At  Kirktonhill — At  Hillhouse — At  Caifrae  ; 
Carfrae  Peel  —  Ancient  Burial  —  Bowerhouse  —  Over  Howden  — 
Nether  Howden — The  Roman  Road — TheGirthgate — Resting  House 
— Holy  Water  Cleuch — Stone  Cross  at  Midburn — Curious  Memorial 
Stone  at  Threeburnford — The  Kirk  Cross  and  Sundial — Old  Roads. 

The  few  objects  of  antiquarian  interest  in  this  parish  which 
naturally  obtrude  themselves  first  on  the  attention  of  the 
curious,  are,  from  their  bulk  and  prominence,  the  ancient 
camps  or  forts.  We  are  told  by  Dr  Christison  that 
"nearly  iioo  can  still  be  traced  in  Scotland,  testifying  to 
the  significant  part  they  must  have  played  in  the  early 
history  of  our  country."*  It  appears  there  are  twenty- 
three,  and  perhaps  one  or  two  more,  in  Lauderdale  alone, 
and  ten  or  twelve  of  the.se  are  either  within  Channelkirk 
parish,  or  closely  adjoining  its  boundaries.  In  provincial 
language  they  are  called  "  Rings,"  and  are  variously 
traced  to  a  "  Roman "  or  "  British "  origin.  There  are 
few  who  give  to  them  any  attention  at  all  but  feel  confident 
also  in  pronouncing  a  definite  opinion  regarding  their 
genesis  and  purpo.se.  The  profounder  students  are  more 
cautious.  "  There  is  no  class  of  ancient  remains  within 
our  countr}',"  says  Dr  Joseph  Anderson,  "  of  which  we 
*  Early  Fortifications^  p.  in. 


640  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

have  less  precise  knowledge  than  the  hill  forts.     The  reason 
of  this  is  not  their  rarity,  because  they  form,  perhaps,  the 
most   numerous    and   widely    distributed    class    of    ancient 
structures   now   existing.       But    the   ordinary    methods    of 
obtaining  precise   knowledge   of  their  form,   structure,   and 
contents  have  not  been  applied  to  them,  and  the  ordinary 
agencies   of  destruction    incident    to    a    high    condition    of 
social    and    agricultural    progress    have    long     been     busy 
amongst    them.       They    differ    essentially   from    all    other 
constructions,   because    they    are    adaptations    of    naturally 
elevated  sites  for  defensive   purposes.     The  natural  site    is 
the  defensive  position,  and  the  fort   itself  derives  its  form, 
and   in  many  cases  also  its  character  of  construction,  from 
the   form    and    nature   of  the  eminence  or   promontory  on 
which  it   is  built."  *     This  puts  the  case  clearly    and    con- 
cisely,   and    explains   the    purpose,    the   position    and   why 
chosen,    and    the    reason    for    the    variation    in    shape    of 
these  forts.     Perhaps  there  was  one  on  every  considerable 
hill  in  this  parish.     Airhouse  Hill  and  Headshaw  Hill  are 
the  only  exceptions,  and  it  is  probable  that  cultivation  may 
have  obliterated  those  which  existed  there,  although  oblitera- 
tion is  not  such  an  easy  matter  as  it  is  sometimes  said  to 
be.       For    even   when    the   ground   is    ploughed   level,   the 
growths  above  it  betray  the  buried  contour,  and  pencil  out 
the  features  of  ditch  and   mound  as  clearly  as  if  the  fort 
had    remained    untouched.      This   is   distinctly  seen  in   the 
cases   of  Carfrae   and    Over    Howden,   where    the    "  rings " 
on   the   braird    or   young   grass   puzzle   the   ploughman    as 
he  takes   his   evening   stroll    in    their    neighbourhood.     But 
no  one  rambling  through   Upper  Lauderdale  need  fear  to 
be  presented  only  with   pencil-marking   on   the   surface   of 
*  Scotland  in  Pagan  Times ^  p.  260. 


ANTIQUITIES  641 

the  ground,  as  his  reward  for  fort-hunting.  Most  of  the 
existing  forts  there  would  yet  give  noble  account  of  them- 
selves were  the  times  and  circumstances  so  direful  and 
pressing  as  to  call-in  their  help  for  defence  purposes  in  a 
hand-to-hand  struggle.  Many  hundreds  of  men  could 
easily  ambush  in  Addinston  Fort,  or  in  that  of  Kirktonhill, 
or  of  Bowerhouse,  or  of  Hillhouse.  And  nearly  all  the 
others  have  their  wall-mounds  sufficiently  well  raised  to 
afford  grateful  shelter  to  shivering  sheep  and  lambs  during 
the  trying  spring  months.  Lauderdale,  indeed,  is  specially 
fortunate  in  several  specimens  which  afford  every  advantage 
for  investigation. 

It  were  needless  to  recapitulate  here  all  the  arguments 
which  have  been  put  forth  by  able  and  discriminating 
theorists  in  support  of  their  particular  views  of  the  origin 
and  use  of  these  structures.  All  this  has  been  better  done 
in  books  and  treatises  too  numerous  to  mention,  and 
bearing  directly  on  this  subject.  We  simply  state  our  con- 
viction that  these  forts  primarily  served  defensive  purposes. 
Enclosures  for  cattle,  or  places  of  worship  they  may  also 
have  been,  but  it  seems  impossible  to  set  aside  the  strongest 
interrogation  in  the  inquiry  unless  that  one  providing  for 
self-preservation  is  first  answered.  All  else  is  secondary  to 
this.  Human  life  is  the  most  valuable  thing  on  the  earth, 
and  man  loves  it  most,  and  makes  it  his  foremost  considera- 
tion. Worship,  wealth,  comfort,  cows,  and  the  rest,  share 
his  fortunes  subsequently,  but  life  is  a  per-essential  fact  as 
much  for  the  aboriginal  savage  as  the  most  civilised  ;  and 
no  question  in  parliament  or  pow-wow  takes  precedence 
of  it.  Hence  it  is  reasonable  to  assume  that  these  camps 
or  forts  were  originally  reared  in  self-defence.  Their 
positions  on  naturally  defended  sites,  where  the  steep  slope 

2  S 


642  -  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

of  ground  below  would  afford  a  strong  advantage  to  the 
besieged,  sustain  this  view  also,  although  the  absence  of 
a  water-supply,  at  least  in  the  case  of  those  in  Channelkirk, 
appears  to  point  to  the  use  of  these  forts  as  strongholds 
of  retreat  (like  the  Blockhouses  of  the  American  settlers), 
when  the  struggle  was  like  to  be  of  a  short  and  decisive 
character,  rather  than  to  continuous  residences.  The  dupli- 
cation and  triplication  of  circles,  or  mound  "  rings,"  and 
ditches,  together  with  other  similar  formations  of  a  straight 
or  curvilinear  shape,  also  corroborate  the  theory  of  defence 
as  their  creating  cause.  But  which  people  created  them, 
and  at  what  period  they  were  called  into  existence,  are 
questions  that  perhaps  are  better  to  be  deprived  of  their 
usual  tantalising  echo. 

We  proceed  to  notice   each  of  these    places  of  defence 
which  lie  within  the  parish. 

Channelkirk. — Major-General   Roy,  in  his  Military  Anti- 
quities, published  in   1793,  affirms  the  Camp  at  Channelkirk 
to  be  a  Roman  one,  of  the  class  which  he  styles  temporary. 
That  is  to  say,  it  was  a  camp  thrown  up  while  the  army 
was  on   the  march,  and  was  not  meant  to  be   permanewit. 
He  supposes  that  some   part  of  Agricola's  army,  either  in 
entering  or  returning  from  Scotland,  had  taken  the  eastern 
route,  and  passed  by  Channelkirk,  building  a  temporary  camp 
while  they  halted  there  for  a  short  time.     He  says  four  of 
this  species  of  camp  exist,  "  the  one  at  Channelkirk  on  the 
eastern  communication  leading  towards  the  Forth,  and  three 
on  the  western  communication,  viz.,  one  at   Lockerby,  and 
another    at    Tassiesholm    in    Annandale,    and    the   third    at 
Cleghorn  in  Clydesdale. 

"  That   on    the   east   communication    is   situated  a   little 
way   to  the    northward    of  Channelkirk,  on    the   road   from 


ANTIQUITIES  643 

thence  to  Edinburgh,  which  leads  through  the  camp.  One 
gate,  with  the  traverse  covering  it,  exists  on  the  west 
side ;  from  which  circumstance  it  seems  to  be  one  of 
Agricola's  camps,  though  less  perfect  than  the  greater 
part  of  those  we  shall  after  this  have  occasion  to  describe. 
Its  dimensions  cannot  now  be  accurately  determined,  but 
it  appears  to  have  been  of  the  same  kind  as  those  more 
entire  ones  on  the  west  road,  particularly  that  at  Cleghorn, 
which  is  600  yards  in  length  by  420  in  breadth."*  He 
assumes  Channelkirk  Camp  to  have  been  of  similar  size, 
and  calculates  that  it  would  contain  "  upwards  of  two.  Roman 
legions  on  the  Polybian  establishment — that  is  to  say,  10,500 
men." 

"  Near  the  south-west  angle  of  this  camp  there  is  a 
small  post,  or  redoubt,  that  seems  either  to  have  been 
joined  to  the  camp  itself,  or  to  have  been  connected  with 
it  by  means  of  a  line."  This  "  redoubt "  refers  to  what  in 
all  probability  was  a  separate  camp  of  another  kind,  and 
constructed  by  the  people  who  built  the  curvilinear  form 
of  forts,  in  contrast  to  the  Roman  rectangular  shape,  of 
which  Channelkirk  Camp  is  here  said  to  be  a  specimen. 

We  must  bear  in  mind  that  during  the  final  decades 
of  the  last  century,  and  somewhat  earlier,  there  was  an 
inclination  to  see  traces  of  the  Roman  occupation  every- 
where ;  and  every  "  fort "  or  "  camp,"  or  anything  which 
would  assume  that  shape  under  a  pressure  of  fancy,  was 
set  down  under  that  designation.  The  enthusiasm  of  the 
Oldbucks  did  the  rest. — "  Is  not  here  the  Decuman  gate  } 
and  there,  but  for  the  ravage  of  the  horrid  plough,  as  a 
learned  friend  calls  it,  would  be  the  Pretorian  gate.  On 
the  left  hand,  you  may  see  some  slight  vestiges  of  the 
*  Military  Antiquities,  pp.  60-61,  and  plate  vi. 


644  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

porta  sinistra,  and  on  the  right,  one  side  of  the  po7'ta  dextra 
well-nigh  entire."  To  which  Blue  Gown  sceptics  enough 
have  replied,  "  Pretorian  here,  Praetorian  there,  I  mind 
the  bigging  o't !  "  * 

On  the  other  hand,  General  Roy  was  a  man  of  great 
military  experience,  and  had  no  interest  in  inventing  camps 
where  there  were  none,  and  much  of  the  contour  of  the 
camp  which  he  describes  still  remains  out  of  the  destruction 
of  the  "  horrid  "  ploughs,  to  justify  his  belief  that  he  actually 
beheld  here  a  veritable  Roman  camp  of  the  kind  called 
"  occasional,"  or  "  temporary." 

Chalmers,  writing  about  1810,  says  of  camps  in  Lauder- 
dale :  "  But  the  Roman  station  of  greatest  consequence  in 
this  district  is  the  camp  at  Channelkirk  in  Upper  Lauderdale. 
This  station  appears  to  have  been  of  considerable  extent, 
though  cultivation  has  obscured  its  magnitude.  The  church, 
churchyard,  and  the  minister's  glebe  of  Channelkirk,  con- 
taining nearly  five  acres,  are  comprehended  in  the  area 
of  this  singular  camp."t  He  says  Mr  Kinghorn's  MS. 
survey  of  it,  in  1803,  was  one  of  his  authorities.  The 
destruction  which  has  overtaken  the  camp  since  Roy's 
day  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that,  whereas  his  sketch  of  it 
works  out  to  make  his  north  side  1377  ft.  in  length 
approximately,  there  are  only  500  ft.  or  thereby  visible 
now,  or  nearly  170  yards.  The  "traverse"  has  completely 
disappeared,  and  the  other  part  of  the  camp  which  he 
describes,  viz.,  the  west  side,  is  hardly  discernible,  and  but 
for  a  field  dyke  having  been  built  along  its  top  in  recent 
years,  it  also  would  have  been  annihilated  by  the  "  horrid " 
ploughs.      The    entrance    before  which   the   "  traverse "    was 

*  Scott's  Antiquary,  chap.  iv. 

t  Caledonia,     Sec  under  Channelkirk  in  Index. 


ANTIQUITIES  645 

placed  is,  however,  recognisable  ;  and  at  this  spot,  and  at 
others  in  its  proximity,  the  outline  of  the  wall-mound's 
foundations  are  observable.  The  gateway,  or  entrance, 
measures  23  ft.  in  width.  From  the  gate  towards  the 
south,  the  slope  of  the  rampart,  or  wall-mound,  is  measur- 
able for  10  ft.  at  an  angle  of  30°.  The  west  wall  is  not 
quite  straight,  as  Roy's  sketch  seems  to  indicate,  but  from 
the  "traverse,"  going  southerly,  is  slightly  curvilinear,  and 
concave  to  the  inside  of  the  camp.  This  has  been  caused 
by  the  nature  of  the  ground,  to  all  appearance,  as  the 
entire  west  wall  is  in  the  close  vicinity  of  a  ravine  through 
which  the  Rauchy  Burn  flows,  and  the  wall  follows  its 
outlines. 

On  July  8th,  1897,  and  succeeding  days,  we  had  a  section 
cut  into  the  north  side  of  the  camp  where  the  ditch  is 
deepest  and  the  wall-mound  highest.  The  cutting  revealed 
nothing  beyond  the  usual  soil  of  the  place,  and  the 
"temporary"  nature  of  the  camp  was  clearly  evident.  No 
built  wall  or  stone  packing  of  any  kind  ;  no  attempt  at 
strong  defence  or  residential  comfort  was  suggested  by 
anything  shown.  A  similar  operation  on  the  "  redoubt,"  so- 
called,  gave  somewhat  different  results,  and  convinced  us 
that  the  two  works  had  no  apparent  connection,  and  were 
clearly  constructions  of  a  different  period,  and  by  a  different 
people.  It  is  just  possible,  of  course,  that  such  an  advan- 
tageous post  as  Roy's  "  redoubt "  would  be  utilised  by  the 
Romans,  especially  when  it  lay  so  close  to  their  camp. 
This  was  almost  necessary  to  insure  protection  from  the 
west ;  and  various  straight  wall-mounds  connected  with  it 
give  indications  of  tampering  with  the  original  design. 

The  traditions  of  the  district  have  always  associated  the 
Channelkirk    "  Camp "   with    the    site    of   the    church    and 


646  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

glebe.  It  seems  inevitable  that  a  position  once  having 
been  chosen  for  the  camp  on  the  heights  above  these,  its 
boundaries  would  naturally  embrace  the  tops  of  the  steep 
ridge  on  the  south,  on  which  they  are  situated.  This  also 
seemed  essential  to  securing  the  springs  of  the  Holy  Water 
Cleuch  for  a  water-supply,  just  as  Roy's  "west"  wall  rests 
on  a  water  spring  on  the  camp's  upper  side,  with  a  probable 
purpose  of  the  same  kind.  Roy  has  not  included  in  his 
sketch  (Plate  VI.)  any  part  of  the  camp  near  the  church 
and  glebe,  but  the  wall  -  mound  on  which  the  lower 
boundaries  of  the  manse  garden  and  glebe  are  set  give 
even  better  suggestions  of  the  camp  than  do  those  on  which 
Roy  has  founded  his  opinion.  This  was  the  view  of  Mr 
Francis  Lynn,  Galashiels,  who  examined  the  whole  ground 
with  us  on  17th  September  1897.  On  the  other  hand, 
Mr  James  Wilson,  Editor,  Galashiels,  on  8th  June  1897, 
while  at  first  satisfied,  expressed  later  some  doubts  about 
the  southern  part  of  the  camp,  but  accepted  the  northern, 
that  is,  Roy's  "  north  "  and  "  west "  wall  fragments.  As  both 
gentlemen  are  thoroughly  conversant  with  "  camp  "  evidences, 
the  question,  so  far  as  our  present  proofs  carry  us,  hovers 
in  suspense.  Undoubtedly  the  proofs  would  be  more  patent 
to  General  Roy,  Mr  Chalmers,  and  Mr  Kinghorn,  before  the 
"  horrid  "  ploughs  had  done  their  work  ;  and  our  judgment, 
it  appears  to  us,  must  now  rest  chiefly  on  (i)  what  they 
saw  and  described,  (2)  on  the  unshaken  local  tradition,  and 
(3)  on  what  may  after  this  date  be  discovered  in  the  soil. 

One  thing  remains  invulnerable  amid  the  conflict  of 
opinion,  viz.,  the  character  of  the  camp.  All  admit  its 
rectilinear  construction,  a  fact  yet  clear  by  what  is  left  to 
us,  and  its  consequent  similarity  to  other  camps  of  received 
Roman   origin.     In    this    respect   it   is   unique,   perhaps,   in 


ANTIQUITIES  647 

Lauderdale,  as  the  other  camps  are  built  on  the  curvilinear 
principle.  It  is  certainly  the  only  one  of  its  kind  in  the 
parish. 

Kirktonhill. — This  is  the  camp  which  General  Roy  has 
called  a  "  redoubt,"  or  "  small  post,"  either  joined  to  the 
Channelkirk  Camp  itself,  "  or  to  have  been  connected  with 
it  by  a  line."  A  Photo-engraving  of  it  is  here  given. 
Chalmers  thinks  the  "  redoubt "  "  remarkable  "  and  "  pro- 
digious," and  accepts  Roy's  theory.  Undoubtedly  it  should 
have  afforded  as  defensive  a  bulwark  as  any  camp  in 
Lauderdale.  Its  natural  position  must  have  been,  in  bar- 
baric days,  nearly  invulnerable  as  well  as  inaccessible.  But 
the  character  of  its  construction  does  not  strengthen  the 
view  that  it  was  ever  any  part  of  the  Channelkirk  Camp, 
except  as  a  temporary  advantage,  pressed  for  the  nonce 
into  service.  It  is  not  rectilinear  but  curvilinear  throughout, 
and  the  few  straight  wall-mounds  warped  into  its  formation 
do  not  seem  sufficient  to  sustain  the  idea  of  even  a  Roman 
tampering,  as  they  are  built  in  the  same  way  as  the  curved 
walls,  and  with  similar  materials.  Mr  Wilson  was  firmly  of 
this  opinion.  In  going  over  Roy's  own  ground  no  trace  of 
a  wall  connecting  the  camp  of  Channelkirk  with  this 
"  redoubt "  was  anywhere  apparent.  Mr  Wilson,  moreover, 
had  measured  the  "  redoubt "  before  he  knew  of  Roy's 
plan,  and  was  decidedly  of  opinion  that  it  was  a  medium- 
sized  "  British  "  fort. 

The  fort  is  situated  on  a  crest  of  hill  three-fourths  of  a 
mile  west  by  south  of  Channelkirk  Church.  It  is  looo  ft. 
above  sea-level,  and  rises  almost  sheer  on  the  west  side  from 
the  level  of  the  Rauchy  Burn  2CK)  ft.  lower.  There  are  three 
concentric  ramparts  on  the  south-west,  and  two  on  the  north- 
east, the  two  systems  giving  the  end  curves  of  the  oval  forma- 


648  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

tion  of  the  camp's  original  shape.  As  we  advance  from  the 
outside  of  the  north-east  portion,  and  come  immediately 
within  the  two  ramparts,  we  meet  with  three  other  wall- 
mounds,  not  curved  but  straight,  and  which  seem  to  have 
crossed  the  "  oval "  contour  at  this  point  as  the  strings  of  a 
guitar  cross  the  sounding  hole  in  the  centre  of  the  instru- 
ment. Going  still  further  within  the  camp,  we  reach  a  small 
complete  circle,  of  70  ft.  diameter,  abutting  upon  these 
straight  lines.  In  all,  we  have  thus  at  the  north-east  end 
of  the  camp  two  curved  ramparts,  three  straight  ramparts 
cutting  into  the  curved  ones,  and,  in  most  of  all,  the  circle 
of  70  ft  diameter.  The  whole  camp  in  its  entire  ovality 
comprises  4  acres,  i  rood,  12  poles.  When  we  measure  the 
two  curved  ramparts,  the  ditch  between  them  is  found  to  be 
7  ft.  in  depth.  Laying  the  line  over  the  outer  rampart  gives 
from  base  to  base  a  surface  measurement  of  30  ft.  From  the 
top  of  the  outside  surface  to  the  top  of  the  first  rampart,  and 
spanning  the  ditch,  we  get  35  ft.  The  ditch  is  7  ft.  deep, 
but  when  cut  open  down  to  the  rock,  as  it  would  be  origin- 
ally, it  is  io|  ft.  deep.  From  the  top  of  the  inner  curved 
rampart  to  the  top  of  the  outmost  straight  rampart  measures 
45  ft.  The  entire  length  of  the  longest  diameter  of  the  oval 
is  525  ft.  The  sides  of  the  oval  are  gone.  We  have  but  the 
two  ends  of  the  camp  left. 

The  inside  circle,  of  70  ft.  diameter,  is  too  regularly  con- 
structed to  have  been  made  by  chance  quarrying,  of  which 
there  is  also  evidence  inside.  We  discovered  on  digging 
signs  of  an  opening,  or  narrow  gateway,  or  passage.  The 
wall-mounds  are  all  built  with  small  stones  mixed  with  earth, 
and  the  wall  of  the  small  circle  is  composed  of  the  same 
materials.  But  at  the  opening  referred  to,  the  stones  were 
much  larger  than  those  composing  the  body  of  the  wall,  and 


650  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

this  side  there  are  low,  straight,  wall-mounds  apparent,  but 
these  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  camp,  and  are  marks  of 
modern  structures  made  for  agricultural  purposes. 

To  the  south  of  the  camp  there  is  a  smaller  hill  of  similar 
shape.  Some  years  ago,  it  is  reported  that  on  digging  near 
it,  a  grave,  or  graves  were  found,  and  these  were  supposed 
to  have  been  early  Christian  burials.  Bones  were  found  in 
them. 

Hillhouse. — Between  Kelphope  Water  and  Hillhouse  Burn 
lies  Ditcher  Law,  a  hill  which  rises  to  a  height  of  1202  ft. 
above  sea-level,  being  400  ft.  higher  than  their  channels. 
The  highest  point  of  the  Law  may  be  a  mile  and  a  quarter 
from  the  meeting-place  of  these  waters,  and  the  camp  is 
situated  on  the  haunch  of  the  Law,  nearer  by  a  half-mile 
from  the  same  place,  at  an  elevation  of  1000  ft.  north  north- 
west of  the  junction.  The  camp  is  immediately  behind 
Hillhouse  Farm  to  the  north,  and  commands  a  fine  view  of 
Lauderdale  and  the  Borders.  As  Kirktonhill  Camp  is  at  the 
one  extremity  of  the  semi-circuit  of  Upper  Lauderdale,  so 
Hillhouse  Camp  stands  at  the  other,  moving  from  west  to 
east,  and  it  is  clear  that  the  four  waters,  viz.,  Rauchy  Burn, 
Headshaw  Water,  Hillhouse  Burn,  and  Kelphope  Water, 
with  the  hills  between  these  in  respective  alternation,  have 
been  the  chief  determinants  in  the  choice  of  the  sites  of  the 
four  camps,  viz.,  Kirktonhill,  Channelkirk,  Carfrae,  and 
Hillhouse.  They  constitute  a  complete  system  of  defence, 
if  we  assume  that  the  people  who  held  them  were  bound 
by  a  common  interest  and  object ;  and  the  pass  through 
Lauderdale  to  the  Lothians  was  thus  rendered  impossible 
by  any  of  the  narrow  valleys  which  conduct  these  waters 
from  the  table-land  of  the  Lammermoors  down  to  the 
Leader. 


ANTIQUITIES  651 

The  camp  is  egg-shaped  ;  like  an  egg  also  it  rises  to  a 
rounded  height  in  the  centre.  The  larger  end  points  north- 
wards towards  Ditcher  Law,  and  between  the  camp  and  this 
hill  there  is  a  wide  stretching  hollow  or  neck  of  land.  Two 
water-cleft  small  ravines  run  up  into  this  neck  ;  one  falling 
down  to  the  Kelphope  Water  on  the  east,  the  other  much 
larger,  to  Hillhouse  Burn  on  the  west.  On  this  north  side, 
therefore,  the  camp  was  well  defended  naturally.  But  there 
were  also  three  ramparts,  one  within  the  other,  which  are 
also  here  apparent  enough,  although  the  second  or  middle 
one  is  very  much  defaced.  It  is  distinct  and  clear,  however, 
right  round  the  whole  of  the  north  side.  The  outside 
wall,  at  the  north-east  corner,  measures  from  the  top  to  the 
base  24  ft,  sloping  at  an  angle  of  40°.  Inside  this  wall  the 
ground  seems  to  have  been  levelled  up  by  the  materials  of 
the  middle  wall  having  been  scattered  into  the  ditches  on 
either  side  of  it,  thus  almost  erasing  the  middle  wall  alto- 
gether. The  third  or  inmost  wall  is  still  intact,  and  well 
preserved,  considering  the  lapse  of  time.  The  south  side  of 
the  camp,  that  is,  the  smaller  end  of  the  oval,  circles  round 
a  steep  part  of  the  hill  overlooking  the  farm,  and  the  three 
walls  which  may  have  run  round  the  entire  camp  are  here 
not  so  much  "  wall  and  ditch  "  as  "  bank  and  terrace."  From 
the  bottom  of  the  outmost  bank  up  to  the  top  of  the  first 
landing  or  terrace,  measures  18  ft.,  at  an  angle  of  40°:  the 
second  bank  measures  20  ft.,  the  third  25  ft.  The  flat  land- 
ings between  these  measure  12  ft.  each  in  breadth,  that  is, 
from  the  top  of  the  one  bank  to  the  base  of  the  other,  at  an 
angle  of  35°  to  40°  throughout. 

A  remarkable  feature  of  this  camp  is,  that  a  deep  hollow 
has  been  made  clear  through  the  topmost  part  of  it,  so  that 
the  hill  has  an  appearance  of  having  had  a  big  square  ditch 


652  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

cut  across  it  from  east  to  west.  This  trench  is  410  ft.  long, 
measuring  from  side  to  side  of  the  camp.     It  is  75  ft.  broad. 

When  we  consider  how  this  trench  has  been  formed,  it  is 
evident  at  once  that  the  camp  existed  before  it,  for  the  side- 
walls  of  the  camp  have  been  cut  clean  through  by  it,  and 
their  torn  edges  are  apparent  at  either  side.  The  hollow  has 
the  look  of  having  been  made  by  water,  for  the  broad  groove 
is  not  only  carried  across  the  top  of  the  camp,  but  is  evident 
all  down  the  hillside  to  the  bottom  of  the  glen  where  Hill- 
house  Water  runs.  The  same  appearance  is  presented  on  the 
other  side,  though  not  quite  so  pronounced.  Our  opinion  is 
that,  originally,  there  was  a  deep,  cup-like  hollow  on  the 
hill-top,  which  may  have  been  converted  into  a  site  of  earth 
houses,  signs  of  which  are  said  by  some  to  have  been  dis- 
cerned there,  and  that  through  course  of  time  it  got  filled  with 
water,  which,  soaking  through  the  soil,  produced  something 
like  a  landslide,  scooping  both  sides  of  the  camp  completely 
down  into  the  low  lands  beneath.  The  steep  nature  of  the 
ground  on  either  side  of  the  camp  renders  this  occurrence 
probable. 

The  whole  area  of  the  camp  may  be  considered  as  5 
acres,  i  rood,  and  25  poles.  The  photo-engraving  is  taken 
from  the  south-west  corner.  The  camp  has  been  quarried 
into  here  and  there,  and  in  doing  so,  about  seven  years 
ago,  a  lead  ball  the  size  of  a  walnut  was  found.  The  walls  of 
the  camp  appear  to  be  composed  of  thrown-up  earth,  with 
stones  dumped  in  at  intervals  to  keep  the  earth  from  sliding 
down.  The  stones  are  nearly  all  laid  on  their  edge,  with  their 
flat  sides  leaning  against  the  mound.  In  1893  there  was  found 
at  Hillhouse  an  ingot  of  dark-coloured  bronze  in  the  form  of 
a  rude  flat  axe,  2^  in.  long  by  i|  across  the  broadest  end. 

Carfrae  Camp. — This   camp  is   situated    upon   and  com- 


ANTIQUITIES  653 

mands,  like  Hillhouse,  a  promontory  between  two  waters, 
Hillhouse  Burn  and  Headshaw  Water,  or  the  Leader  proper. 
All  three  camps,  viz.,  Kirktonhill,  Hillhouse,  and  Carfrae, 
have  the  same  feature  in  common,  that  they  are  placed  nearer 
to  the  waters  or  burns  on  their  west  sides  than  to  those  on 
their  east.  By  the  nature  of  the  sites  this  was  necessary,  as 
the  ground  is  more  steep  and  rugged  on  the  west  sides,  and 
the  several  burns  have  there  cut  closer  into  the  hillsides  than 
the  burns  have  done  on  the  east,  and  rendered  the  ascent  to 
the  camps  more  abrupt  and  precipitous.  Attacks  from  the 
west  would  be  very  difficult  indeed. 

Carfrae  Camp,  oval  in  shape,  to  all  appearance,  has  only 
well-ploughed-down  surface  "rings"  or  part-rings  to  show 
its  site.  These,  three  in  number,  are  found  on  the  south- 
east of  the  fort,  and  are  very  distinct.  The  hill  on  which  it 
is  placed  is  conical,  abrupt  in  ascent,  and  rises  in  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  about  700  ft.  to  987  ft.  above  sea-level.  The 
camp  must  have  been  of  considerable  size,  and  very  strong. 
It  would  be  well  supplied  with  water  from  springs  near  it  on 
the  east  side,  and  quite  easy  of  access.  The  camp  is  distant 
from  Carfrae  a  quarter  mile  south-west,  and  three-quarters 
north  from  Oxton  village.  It  is  almost  surrounded  by  woods, 
which  hide  the  sharp  contour  of  the  hill  on  which  it  is 
placed.  It  was,  doubtless,  this  camp  which  was  the  "  Caer  " 
or  fort  from  which  Carfrae  derives  its  name  ;  and  from  its 
central  position  at  the  head  of  Lauderdale  and  its  superior 
strength,  would  be  the  most  noted  citadel  of  warfare  on  the 
upper  watershed  of  the  Leader. 

Judging  from  the  nature  of  the  ground  on  the  top  of  the 
hill,  which  in  all  likelihood  would  be  embraced  within  its 
scope  in  order  to  complete  the  defence  of  the  place,  it  may 
have  been  from  three  to  four  acres  in  area. 


654  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Close  to  the  present  farmhouse,  Carfrae  boasts  a  Border 
peel.  It  is  the  sole  representative  of  many  which  were 
scattered  round  the  parish  in  the  da}'s  of  the  Stuart  Kings. 
In  1535  the  command  went  forth  that  every  considerable  place 
on  the  Borders  should  erect  a  fortalice  or  peel.  The  unsettled 
nature  of  the  times  seemed  to  warrant  it.  The  law  set  forth 
that  "  every  landit  ma(n)  dwelland  in  the  inland  or  upon  the 
bordouris  havand  thare  ane  hundreth  pund  land  of  new 
extent,  sail  big  ane  sufficient  barmkyfi  apoun  his  heretage 
and  landis,  in  place  maist  c"venient,  of  stane  and  lyme  c"tenand 
three  score  futis  of  the  square,  ane  eln  thick  and  vi.  elnys 
heicht,  for  the  ressett  and  defence  of  him,  his  tennets,  and 
their  gudes  in  trublous  tyme  wt  ane  toure  in  the  sami(n)  for 
himself  gif  he  thinks  it  expedient,  and  that  all  uther  landit 
me(n)  of  smaller  rent  and  revenew  big  pelis  and  gret 
strenthis  as  thai  please  for  saising  of  thare  selfis,  me(n), 
tennets,  and  gudis,  and  that  all  the  saidis  strenthis,  barm- 
kynis  and  pelis  be  biggit  and  completit  w'in  twa  yeres  under 
the  pane."  * 

This  could  not  have  been  a  pleasant  law  to  landed  men, 
and  the  expense  must  have  been  a  grievance,  for  each  owner 
had  to  bear  it  himself,  a  burden  which  would  in  time  be 
felt  also  by  the  tenants.  This  accounts,  probably,  for  the 
careless,  inartistic  manner  in  which  they  were  built.  Archi- 
tectural beauty  about  them  is  nowhere  discoverable,  and 
they  are  not  massive  enough  to  command  respect,  nor  old 
enough  to  be  venerable ;  neither  are  they  identified  with 
any  general  display  of  heroic  spirit  during  that  period  to 
clothe  them  with  romance.  They  are  simply  interesting. 
They  are  relics  of  a  past  time  in  our  countr}''s  history, 
which,  a  few  years  after  the  Peel  Law,  had  as  its  chief 
*  Scotch  Acts,  ii.,  p.  346. 


ANTIQUITIES  655 

features  a  queen  twelve  months  old ;  the  Earl  of  Arran  as 
Regent,  easy  and  fickle,  with  a  policy  invertebrate  ;  Henr)- 
VIII.  struggling  to  marry  the  infant  sovereign  to  his  son 
Edward  ;  and  the  nobility  and  clergy  plotting  and  counter 
plotting  to  accomplish  their  particular  schemes.  The  peels 
were  certainly  required,  for  it  was  during  the  year  1544 
that  an  English  fleet  landed  an  army  on  the  Forth  coasts, 
which  burned  Edinburgh  for  three  days  and  ravaged  the 
Fife  coasts  ;  which  marched  through  the  Borders  pillaging 
and  destroying,  being  checked  only  at  Ancrum  Moor,  but 
which  returned  in  1545  to  destroy  "  192  towns,  towers,  stedes 
barnekins,  parish  churches,  bastel  houses  ;  243  villages,  and 
seven  monasteries  and  friar-houses,"  among  which  were 
Jedburgh,  Kelso,  Melrose,  and  Dryburgh  Abbeys. 

Lauderdale  was  perhaps  spared  at  that  time,  though  it 
had  been  harried  in  1406-7.  But  a  few  years  later,  viz.,  in 
the  reign  of  Edward  VI.,  to  marry  w^hom  to  Mary,  Queen 
of  Scots,  was  the  chief  cause  of  the  conflict  from  the 
beginning,  we  find  Sir  Robert  Bowes  in  possession  of 
Lauder  and  fortifying  it  for  the  English,  and  we  ascertain 
that  he  left  it  "  in  his  opinion  of  such  strength  that  all 
Scotland,  with  aid  of  any  foreign  prince,  is  not  able  to  recover 
it."  *  Mary  was  in  France  for  security,  and  help  might  be 
brought  from  there !  "  The  Borthwicks,"  moreover,  "  and 
Pringles  are  to  furnish  beefs  and  muttons  weekly,  and  three 
months  beforehand  if  they  list."  But  what  a  tale  is  told 
for  the  plundered  dale !  "  There  is  nigh  no  wheat  there," 
it  is  added,  "  and  they  dowbt  bringing  it  from  Berwick 
with  their  weak  cattle "  (none  nearer  than  Berwick ! )  "  but 
if  they  can  they  will  serve  them  (soldiers)  in  bread  from 
Lothian." 

*  Calendar  of  Scottish  Papers. 


656  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Carfrae  Peel  has  stood  wear  and  tear  in  a  worthy  manner, 
and  its  chief  foe,  the  dyke  builder,  has  not  found  it  necessary 
as  a  quarry.  We  hope  it  may  long  be  spared  such  degrada- 
tion.    It  is  in  safe  hands  with  the  present  tenant. 

There  is  said  to  have  been  a  discovery  of  an  ancient 
burial  at  Carfrae  similar  to  that  at  Nether  Howden  and 
the  one  found  at  Channelkirk  Church  (see  p.  284).  But  no 
sufficient  data  of  its  dimensions  have  been  preserved  to  us 
to  render  the  matter  a  subject  of  any  certainty. 

A  dollar  valued  about  4s.  was  found  in  one  of  Carfrae 
fields  some  years  ago,  Spanish,  and  of  the  reign  of  Philip 
IV.,  King  of  Spain  and  the  Indies,  Archduke  of  Austria, 
and  Duke  of  Burgundy  and  Artois ;  date  about  1640. 
Different  kinds  of  Spanish  coins  have  been  found  in  the 
district  at  various  times. 

Bowerhousc. — Somewhat  further  than  a  mile  and  a  half 
straight  west  from  Blackburn  Farm,  on  the  highway  to 
Lauder,  lies  Bowerhouse  Camp.  It  rises  to  a  height  of 
1000  ft.  above  sea-level,  and  is  very  w^ell  preserved  through- 
out, though  it  appears  to  be  the  smallest  in  area  of  all 
the  "  British "  camps  in  this  parish.  It  measures  all  over, 
I  acre,  2  roods,  17  poles.  It  is  a  quarter  mile  due  w^est 
from  Nether  Bowerhouse  Farm,  from  which  place  the  ascent 
to  it  is  most  convenient.  It  is  entirely  covered  with  wood. 
Like  the  other  camps  it  is  oval  in  shape,  and  measures  350 
ft.  long  by  200  ft.  broad.  At  the  extreme  west  side  the 
walls  have  been  quarried  across,  but  these  show  only  loose 
stones  and  earth  composing  them.  The  ground  is  high  in 
the  centre.  There  are  two  concentric  walls,  and  the  ditch 
between  measures  26  ft.  from  top  to  top,  being  7  to  9  ft. 
deep  in  some  parts,  especially  on  the  south  side. 

Bowerhouse   is    specially   noted    for   the   number   of  flint 


ANTIQUITIES  657 

arrow  heads,  knives,  etc.,  which  have  been  found  in  the  fields 
adjacent  to  the  steading.  The  present  tenant,  Mr  John 
Fleming,  jun.,  has  found  several  fine  specimens  which  can  be 
examined.  The  following  have  been  described  in  the  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  (Scotland)  for  1887-8  : — 
(i)  A  scraper  of  black  flint,  2  in.  long,  curved  longitudinally 
round  at  the  scraping  end  and  acutely  pointed  at  the  other, 
worked  all  round  the  sides  ;  (2)  A  flint  knife,  noticed  in  the 
Proceedings,  1893-4,  p.  323  ;  (3)  Two  stemmed  arrow-heads, 
and  part  of  a  specimen  of  leaf  shape  ;  (4)  A  bronze  cheek- 
ring  of  bridle  bit,  of  early  Iron  Age  date,  2|  in.  in  diameter. 
With  this  ring  were  found  other  objects,  but  all  were 
unfortunately  destroyed. 

Over  Howden. — A  few  hundred  yards  south-west,  and  due 
west  from  the  steading,  are  found  the  marks  of  two  oval 
camps  of  the  usual  kind  called  "  British."  They  were  over- 
looked in  the  Survey  of  1856-7,  and  we'  had  the  good  fortune 
to  call  the  attention  of  the  Surveyors  to  them  two  years  ago. 
The  farmer  at  present  in  Over  Howden,  Mr  Andrew  Sharp, 
was  the  first  to  awaken  interest  in  them.  They  have  been 
for  many  years  regularly  cultivated  and  ploughed  over,  but 
the  "  rings "  are  unmistakable.  The  one  in  the  north  field, 
due  west  from  the  steading,  is  a  complete  circle,  being 
300  ft.  in  diameter.  Mr  Sharp  affirms  that  a  vast  difference 
exists  between  the  soil  outside  and  that  inside  the  "  ring." 
It  is  "thin"  inside,  as  if  the  top  earth  had  been  lifted  and 
laid  on  the  wall  tops.  The  camp  in  the  south  field  overhangs 
the  "  dene "  or  den,  from  which  "  Holdene "  derives  its 
name.  It  is  oval  in  shape,  being  400  ft.  long  and  300  ft. 
broad,  and  has  an  area  of  2  acres,  3  roods.  Both  camps 
are  more  than  900  ft.  above  .sea-level.  The  .south-field  camp 
has  distinct  traces  of  two  concentric  walls  at  each  of  the 

2  T 


658  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

oval  ends.  Roughly  measured,  being  in  turnips  at  the 
time,'  the  space  between  the  tops  of  the  walls  measured 
75  ft,  and  we  were  assured  that  in  the  "ditches"  the  soil 
was  very  deep,  though  not  nearly  so  deep  everywhere  else 
around  the  field. 

Some  interesting  specimens  of  the  Stone  Age  in  Scotland 
have  been  found  at  Over  Howden.  In  the  Museum  of 
Antiquities,  Edinburgh  (first  floor,  east  end  of  north  side, 
case  marked  A  F,  No.  298),  can  be  seen  an  axe  of  fel- 
stone,  measuring  4yV  in.  by  2-/5  in.,  found  on  this  farm.  It 
has  its  cutting  edge  chipped,  and  it  is  polished.  It  was 
purchased  by  the  Museum  in  1888.  Again,  on  first  floor, 
south  side,  in  window  cases,  marked  A  O,  No.  58,  there  is 
an  Over  Howden  pebble  of  sandstone,  2yV  in-  in  diameter, 
with  perforation  picked  from  each  side,  purchased  as  above, 
same  year.  Again,  in  floor  case,  north  side  of  same  floor, 
case  B  E,  Nos.  170,  171,  are  to  be  seen  two  whorls,  one  of 
claystone,  i^  in.  in  diameter,  with  circle  round  spindle-hole 
on  one  side;  and  another  of  sandstone,  if  in.  in  diameter, 
both  purchased  as  above,  same  year.  These  whorls  are  said 
to  have  been  made  and  fitted  on  to  the  wooden  spindle  so 
as  to  increase  and  maintain  the  rotary  motion  given  to  it 
by  the  twirl  of  the  finger  and  thumb  in  spinning  from 
the  distaff.  They  are  of  all  periods,  from  the  first  appear- 
ance of  the  art  of  spinning  in  the  Stone  Age  down  to  recent 
times.  They  are  usually  discovered  casually  in  the  soil, 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  brochs,  crannogs,  and  other 
occupied  sites  of  the  Iron  Age  and  mediaeval  or  recent 
dates. 

A  peel  or  fortalice  stood  long  at  Over  Howden,  which, 
both  in  ancient  and  modern  times,  appears  to  have  been  a 
fortified  place.     The  southern  part  of  the  present  farmhouse 


ANTIQUITIES  659 

seems  to  be  part  of  the  old  peel,  as  the  walls  bear  evidence 
of  age  and  strength  far  beyond  modern  requirements.  The 
walls,  for  example,  are  3  ft.  9  in.  in  thickness,  and  no  doubt 
were  reckoned  to  be  fit  to  stand  a  siege  in  time  of  danger. 
The  peel  would  in  all  probability  be  built  in  1535-37,  under 
the  general  Border  law  issued  for  that  purpose  by  King 
James  V. 

Nether  Howden. — At  a  di.stance  of  nearly  half  a  mile 
south-east  from  Nether  Howden  steading,  on  the  brow  of 
the  height  which  overlooks  Carfraemill  from  the  south,  lie 
"  Nether  Howden  Rings,"  as  they  are  locally  termed.  This 
means,  of  course,  the  usual  "  British  "  fort  of  the  kind  which 
is  so  numerous  in  the  parish.  It  seems  to  have  been  similar 
in  construction  to  the  one  at  Bowerhouse,  viz.,  having  one 
broad  deep  ditch  with  walls  on  either  side.  The  ground 
has  been  long  under  cultivation,  and  this  accounts  for  its 
being  almost  as  indistinct  as  the  fort  at  Carfrae.  Most  of 
it  is  within  an  ordinary  field,  the  rest  of  it  to  the  south 
side  being  underwood.  It  is  oval  in  shape,  stands  784  ft. 
above  sea-level,  and  may  have  been  in  area  from  if  to 
2  acres. 

In  one  of  Nether  Howden  fields  called  "  Little  Broom ie- 
side,"  one  of  the  farm-servants,  while  ploughing  there  several 
years  ago,  stumbled  upon  an  old  grave  similar  to  those 
found  near  Addinston  in  1873.  He  informed  us  that  it  was 
five  or  six  feet  long,  ordinary  breadth,  and  from  two  to 
two  and  a  half  feet  deep.  Round  water-worn  .stones  between 
the  size  of  a  "  nieve "  and  a  head  were  found  in  it,  and 
"  burnt  sticks "  or  charcoal.  No  bones  were  noticed.  He 
put  back  the  stones  over  it  again  and  covered  it  up,  and 
it  may  yet  be  opened  by  the  curious. 

Roman  Road. — In    1888,   the   late    Mr  Mowat,  for   .some 


660  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

time  editorially  connected  with  Chambers's  Journal,  journe)ed 
from  Edinburgh  to  Earlston  by  way  of  Soutra  Hill,  and 
in  his  account  of  the  "lions"  he  passed,  he  says,  "As  we 
are  descending  from  the  tableland  of  the  Lammermoors 
(towards  Lauderdale),  the  hills  on  each  side  apparently 
become  higher,  although  it  is  really  the  valley  that  is 
getting  deeper.  This  part  of  the  road  is  said  by  tradition 
to  be  the  work  of  the  Romans — it  seems  with  some 
truth,  for  in  course  of  making  the  improvements  sixty 
years  ago,  portions  of  the  original  Roman  pavement  were 
come  upon."  * 

In  Caledoniaf  we  have  the  following: — "From  Eldon 
the  Roman  Road  went  past  Melrose,  Galtonside,  Chesterlee, 
Waas  or  Walls,  near  to  New  Rlainslie.  ...  In  proceeding 
up  Lauderdale,  the  Roman  Road  appears  to  have  passed 
on  the  west  side  of  Lauder  town,  and  between  it  and 
Old  Lauder,  where  there  are  the  remains  of  a  military 
station.  About  a  mile  and  a  half  above  Lauder,  the 
remains  of  the  Roman  Road  again  become  visible,  and  is 
here  named  the  Ox  Road,  as  it  leads  up  to  a  strong  station 
called  Blackchester.  From  this  station  the  Roman  Road 
passes  on  northwards  by  the  west  of  Oxton,  and  in  course 
of  half  a  mile  again  becomes  distinct,  and  continues  obvious 
to  every  eye  as  it  crosses  the  western  stream  of  the  Leader 
in  its  course  to  the  Roman  station  at  Channelkirk.  From 
this  commanding  post  the  Roman  Road  proceeded  forward 
to  Soutra  Hill,  whence,  turning  to  the  left,  it  traversed  the 
declivity  of  the  country  to  Currie.  .  .  ." 

We  give  as  much  of  his  description  as  brings  the  subject 
into   and    leads    it   out   of  this   parish.      General    Roy   also 

*  Chamberis  Journal^  28th  April  1888. 
t  Vol.  i.,  Book  I.,  p.  141. 


ANTIQUITIES  661 

describes  the  Roman  Road  at  an  earlier  date  than  Chalmers. 
The  latter  comments  on  the  former's  view,  and  says  : — 

"  From  Eldon  northward,  General  Roy,  in  tracing  its 
(Roman  Road's)  course,  has  completely  mistaken  its  track 
towards  Soutra  Hill.  Without  looking  for  the  intimation 
of  others,  he  was  misled  by  the  appearance  of  the  Girth- 
gate,  which  passes  from  the  bridge-end  of  Tweed  up  the 
valley  of  Allan  Water,  across  the  Moors  to  Soutra  Hospital 
on  Soutra  Hill.  This  footway,  without  any  examination 
of  its  formation  or  materials,  he  mistook  for  the  only 
remains  of  this  Roman  Road,  He  forgot  that  Warburton, 
the  Surveyor  and  Antiquary,  had  rode  upon  the  true  road 
in  1722,  from  the  River  Reed  in  Northumberland,  by  Jed" 
burgh,  Melrose,  Lauder,  Ginglekirk,  now  Channelkirk,  to 
Dalkeith,  and  to  Graham's  Dyke."*  Chalmers  says  he  caused 
the  road  to  be  surveyed  by  Mr  Kinghorn,  who  was,  we 
believe,  teacher  in  Blainslie. 

References  to  the  "Royal  Road"  across  Soutra  Hill 
are  frequent  in  the  old  charters,  as,  for  example,  in  the 
Book  of  Dryburgk,  about  11 70, — also  in  No.  28  of  those 
of  the  Domus  de  Soltre,  we  have  boundaries  of  land 
belonging  to  the  Hospital  at  Soutra,  given  in  such  ex- 
pressions as — "  Et  usque  ad  rivulum  orientalem  in  Lynnesden, 
et  ab  ipso  rivulo  orientali  per  viam  que  ducit  ad  regiam 
viam  tendentem  versus  Roxburgh," — "  And  as  far  as  to 
the  east  burn  in  Lindean,  and  from  the  said  east  burn 
by  the  way  which  leads  to  the  Royal  Road  going  towards 
Roxburgh."  So,  too,  in  No,  50  of  these  charters,  we  find 
the  "  Regiam  Stratam  "  existing  in  the  same  locality.  We 
have  seen  also  in  our  account  of  Hartside,  that  these 
lands  were  bounded  by  "  Derestrete,"  somewhere  on  Soutra 
*  Caledonia^  vol.  i.,  Book  I.,  p.  141.     Note  ^. 


662  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Hill.  Derestrete  is  also  found  near  Oxton  in  connection 
with  Over  Hovvden.*  This  Derestrete,  the  street  or  road 
to  Deira,  the  southern  district  of  Northumbria,  is  used  in 
the  same  way  as  a  land-boundary  for  property  in  Lauderdale 
near  Pilmuir,  cir.  1220  A.D.f  It  is  assumed  to  have  been 
the  Roman  Road,  or  identical  with  Watling  Street.  It 
certainly  ran  through  Lauderdale. 

Reference  is  sometimes  made  in  old  documents  to 
"  Malcolm's  Road,"  as  passing  through  Lauderdale.  Chalmers 
asserts  that  "  Malcolm's  Road "  was  also  identical  with 
the  Roman  Road.  "  Malcolm's  Road,"  he  says,  "  was  the 
public  street  through  Lauderdale,  and  was  also  the  Roman 
Road."  \  He  thinks  it  may  have  been  so  named  from  King 
Malcolm  IV.,  "  who  lived  a  good  deal  at  Jedburgh,  and 
died  there,  and  may  have  used  it  going  to  Edinburgh, 
Stirling,  and  Perth."  Watling  Street,  Derestrete,  Roman 
Road,  Royal  Road,  Malcolm's  Road,  appear,  therefore,  to 
have  been  various  appellations  for  the  same  road  at  different 
times  and  in  different  localities — the  several  names,  indeed, 
wandering  sometimes  over  the  same  district. 

Few,  if  any,  genuine  remnants  of  this  old  road  of  many 
names  appear  to  have  survived  in  Lauderdale.  There  are, 
of  course,  distinct  traces  of  old  roads  leading  through  this 
parish  from  the  dale  to  Lothian,  but  it  might  be  difficult 
to  affirm  with  any  basis  of  certainty  that  these  gave  proof 
of  Roman  origin.  The  general  route  frorrt  Edinburgh 
district  to  England  was,  for  centuries,  undoubtedly  by  Soutra 
Hill  and  Lauderdale.  The  other  available  pass  by  way  of 
what  is  now  known  as  the  Waverley  railway  route,  a  few 
miles  to  the  west,  was  shunned  owing  to  its  marshy  ground, 

*  Liber  de  Driburgh.  ^  Jbid.,  No.  176. 

+  Caledonia,  vol.  ii.,  p.  207.     Note  d,  et passim. 


ANTIQUITIES  '  663 

the  heavy  ravines,  and  the  marauding  character  of  the 
neighbourhood.  The  greater  traffic  over  Soutra,  therefore, 
necessitated  some  kind  of  road  building,  and  the  particular 
track  in  use  seems  to  have  been  often  altered.  There  is 
thus  a  risk  that  what  is  merely  a  fragment  of  one  of  these 
"  old  "  roads,  may  be  hastily  assumed  to  be  the  "  Roman  " 
Road.  On  Soutra  Hill,  and  at  Airhouse,  for  example,  near 
Channelkirk,  there  are  fragments  of  road  which  at  first 
sight  have  been  accepted  by  experienced  observers  as 
genuine  "  bits  "  of  Roman  Road,  but  which  on  further  ex- 
amination and  comparison  were  considered  very  doubtful.  • 

But  there  are  ample  proofs  of  an  old  road  running  north- 
wards from  the  vicinity  of  Blackchester  in  Lauder  parish, 
passing  through  Channelkirk  Parish  via  Oxton  to  Channel- 
kirk Church,  and  thence  over  Soutra  Hill,  which  suggests 
possibilities.  Its  course  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Black- 
chester was  near  Shielfield,  thence  straight  up  the  low 
level  ground  which  lies  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Grassmyres, 
near  to  Burnfoot,  a  park  breadth  to  the  east  of  the  steading, 
continuing  straight  to  Oxton,  through  which  it  may  have 
passed  over  the  same  course  as  the  present  road.  From 
Oxton  it  passed  north-westwards  to  Channelkirk  Church, 
and  the  track  of  its  descent  to  Mountmill  Burn,  where 
it  created  a  ford,  is  still  visible.  The  fields  of  Nether 
Howden,  through  which  it  passes,  give  clear  proof  of  its 
existence  in  ploughing  seasons,  when  the  stony  stream 
through  the  rest  of  the  dark  land  betrays  its  former  course. 
We  are  inclined  to  think  that  whether  or  not  this  was  a 
Roman  Road,  it  may  safely  be  called  the  old  "  Derestrete." 
Our  first  hint  is  from  the  Kelso  Chartulary.*  About  1206 
A.D.,  Alan,  Lord  Galway,  gifted  five  carucates  of  Oxton 
*  Liber  de  Calchou^  No.  245,  vol.  i.,  p.  201. 


664  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

territory  to  Kelso  Abbey.  These  carucates  subsequently 
became  the  farms  of  Over  Howden  (Holdene),  and  probably 
most  of  Nether  Howden.  The  boundary  thus  begins : 
"  From  the  head  of  Holdene,  down  by  Holdene  Burn  to 
Derestrete  "...  Now  the  "  burn  "  runs  straight  east-north- 
east from  Over  Howden,  down  past  Grassmyres  (Kersmyres) 
steading,  now  obliterated,  to  the  lowest  dip  of  the  dale  at 
this  part,  a  field-breadth  east  from  the  old  "  Grassmyres," 
and  thence  turns  at  right  angles  south-south-east.  ■  This 
turn  of  the  water  is  close  to  the  old  road,  still  so  evident. 
But  the  boundary  required  to  go  «i?r//zwards,  and  not  as 
the  burn  went,  .f^^^^wards ;  so  the  description  continues, 
"  From  Derestrete  towards  the  north  to  Fuleforde  by  Samson's 
Marches  to  the  Ledre."  That  is,  from  the  "  corner "  of  the 
Holdene  Burn  at  Derestrete,  the  march  went  on  to  a  place 
near  the  junction  of  the  Mountmill  Burn  with  the  Kelphope 
Water  below  Nether  Howden,  where  was  a  ford,  Foul-Ford 
or  Fuleford.  From  there  the  march  continues  to  the  village 
of  Oxton,  where  it  again  crosses  *'  Derestrete,"  and  so  to 
Holdene  (Over  Howden),  thus  completing  the  marches. 

What  is  here  absolutely  certain  is  that  Derestrete  lay 
between  Over  Howden  and  the  Leader.  Next,  it  is  absolutely 
certain  that  Over  Hoivden  Burn  touched  Derestrete  at  some 
point  in  its  course.  This  point  may  have  been  between 
Over  Howden  and  "  Grassmyres,"  or  at  "  Grassmyres  "  where 
the  present  road  passes  over  the  burn.  But  no  trace  of 
a  road  answering  the  description  is  found  between  Over 
Howden  and  Grassmyres,  and  the  present  road  at  Grass- 
myres is  modern,  and  the  conclusion  to  which  we  are  confined 
is  that  the  burn  met  Derestrete  where  it  turns  south-south- 
east, and  it  is  there  the  evidences  of  the  old  road  through 
the  ploughed  fields  are  yet  so  apparent.     If  our  conclusion 


ANTIQUITIES  665 

is  correct,  and  Derestrete  was  the  Roman  Road,  then  it  did 
not  pass  to  the  west  of  Oxton  Village,  as  asserted  by 
Chalmers,  but  through  the  centre  or  immediate  west  end  of 
it,  as  the  charters  hint,  and  so  continued  its  way  near 
to  Parkfoot  across  the  braes  to  Channelkirk  Camp  at  the 
Church,  and  thence  over  Soutra  Hill. 

Part  of  this  road  to  the  north  of  Airhouse  Road  was 
used  by  Oxton  people  as  a  right-of-way  to  church  from 
the  village  as  late  as  the  end  of  last  century.  This,  doubt- 
less, was  the  part  which  Chalmers  meant  when  he  says, 
"  And  in  the  course  of  half  a  mile  "  (northwards  from  Oxton) 
"  again  becomes  distinct,  and  continues  obvious  to  every  eye 
as  it  crosses  the  western  stream  of  the  Leader  in  its  course 
to  the  Roman  Station  at  Channelkirk."  Of  course,  the 
enormous  industrial  activity  of  this  century  in  Upper  Lauder- 
dale renders  it  a  matter  of  surprise  that  any  glimpse  of 
such  a  road  should  have  been  left  at  all.  But  the  evidences 
of  the  road  through  Nether  Howden  fields  are  yet  so  glaring 
in  ploughing  time  that,  to  a  man,  farmers,  shepherds,  and 
ploughmen  attest  the  certainty  of  it.  The  "  horrid  "  ploughs 
know  it  too  well,  and  when  the  shepherd  has  to  use  the 
"  borer  "  for  the  purpose  of  putting  in  a  "  stuckin  "  (stob),  he 
has  a  harder  job  before  him  at  that  place  than  at  any  other 
over  all  the  field.  We  have  no  doubt  that  it  was  the 
old  "  Derestrete "  mentioned  in  the  Kelso  Chartulary,  but 
whether  "  Derestrete  "  was  Rotnan  in  construction  is  a  point 
we  leave  to  others  to  decide.  Derestrete,  however,  as  can 
be  clearly  attested  by  the  charters  noticed  above,  is  his- 
torically distinct  on  Soutra  Hill,  then  near  Oxton,  then 
at  Over  Howden  Burn,  and  again  at  Pilmuir,  a  distance 
of  perhaps  six  miles,  and  thus  is  visible  as  going  clear 
through  Channelkirk  Parish,  about  1 170-1220. 


666  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

The  writer  went  over  this  ground  carefully  with  Mr 
Robert  Tait,  one  of  our  most  intelligent  working  men,  who 
had  no  difficulty  in  showing  the  track  of  the  old  road 
through  the  fields  by  the  stream  of  stones  which  line  its 
entire  distance.  But  its  existence  has  never  been  doubted, 
parts  of  it  having  been  visible  within  the  memory  of  the 
present  generation.  Going  south  from  Oxton  Village,  the 
road  almost  imperceptibly  tapers  away  from  the  present 
one,  near  the  top  of  a  knoll,  a  field-breadth  from  the  last 
houses.  Here  the  old  boulder  stones  are  quite  visible  beside 
the  modern  macadamising  ones.  Mr  Tait  says  he  "  ribbed," 
or  cut  it  up  at  this  part  in  mending  the  present  road,  and 
the  surface  of  the  old  road  was  all  of  fairly  large  boulder 
stones.  From  here  it  diverges  to  the  left  into  Nether 
Howden  fields,  and  runs  straight  as  an  arrow,  south,  towards 
Shielfield.  This,  by  tradition  among  the  inhabitants,  has 
always  been  considered  as  the  undoubted  "  Roman "  Road. 
It  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  it  was  Derestrete. 

Gtrthgate,  or  Sanctuary  Road. — The  peculiar  pathway 
which  runs  through  the  western  portion  of  the  parish  called 
Gtrthgate  is  yet,  in  several  parts  of  it,  in  excellent  preserva- 
tion, and  where  the  land  has  not  been  ploughed  up  frequently, 
is  easily  traceable.  In  some  places  it  is  broad  enough  to 
admit  a  cart,  at  others  it  is  a  mere  footpath.  Tradition  of 
long  standing  freely  asserts  it  to  have  been  made  by  the 
monks  of  old  Melrose  to  facilitate  their  intercourse  between 
that  chapel  (capellam  Sancti  Cuthberti  de  Aldmelros)  and 
Soutra  Hospital*  The  need  of  some  intercommunication 
towards  the  north  was  no  doubt  required  by  the  possessions 
held  by  these  monks  all  through  Lauderdale,  Channelkirk, 
and  the  Lothians.  But  the  chief  reason,  and  the  one  from 
*  Monastic  Anna/s,  p.  193.    Edinburgh,  1832.     Rev.  James  Morton,  B.D. 


ANTIQUITIES  667 

which  the  road  takes  its  name,  is  said  to  have  been  that  of 
Sanctuary  or  Girth.  Stow  and  Soutra  Hospital  had  this 
privilege  in  olden  times,  where  those  who  were  compelled  to 
flee  from  vengeance  found  refuge  and  security  under  the 
shield  of  the  Church. 

"  Gif  menslaers  and  robbours 
Haue  here  gyrth  and  socours 
They  will  drj'ue  vs  to  scorne."  * 

Its  general  route  seems  to  have  been  up  the  watershed 
of  the  Allan  Water,  passing  Stow  on  the  top  of  the  heights, 
two  miles  to  the  east  of  that  place,  and  running  very  near 
the  boundary  of  Lauder  Parish  on  to  Inchkeith  Hill.  It 
comes  into  Channelkirk  Parish  at  its  south-west  march, 
near  the  head  of  the  Wimple  Burn,  about  iioo  ft.  above  sea- 
level.  It  touches  CoUielaw  Hill  on  its  west  side,  lOO  ft.  below 
its  highest  point,  and  then  descends  north-west  to  Threeburn- 
ford.  From  this  place  it  runs  west  along  the  parish  boundary, 
up  Threeburnford  Hill  until  it  reaches  the  "  Resting  House," 
so-called,  three-fourths  of  a  mile  from  Clints  steading.  Its 
course  then  lies  northwards  to  Soutra  Isle,  crossing  by  the 
east  side  of  Hartside  Hill. 

Threeburnford  we  believe  to  have  received  its  name 
from  the  need  of  travellers  by  the  Girthgate  to  cross  the 
three  burns  which  meet  at  this  place.  The  fact  of  three 
burns  meeting  might,  indeed,  have  been  sufficient  to  create 
the  name  Threeburns,  but  the  Girthgate  fords  them,  and 
thus  "  ford  "  is  added.  In  our  account  of  Threeburnford,  it 
will  be  seen  that,  prior  to  this  place-name,  we  consider  it  to 
have  been  the  Fulewidness  or  Futhewidenes  of  the  charters. 
The  Girthgate  is  quite  clearly  marked  at  the  cottar  houses 

*  Life  of  St  Cuthbert :  Surtees  Society,  1889,  p.  149. 


668  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

at  this  place,  running  up  the  hill  on  the  west  side  of  the 
bounding  dyke  or  wall  to  the  old  ruin  called  Resting  House, 
or  Rushlaw  House. 

Resting  House. — In  1794  this  curious  building,  1243  ft. 
above  sea-level,  was  called  Reshlaw  or  Restlaw  Ha'  or  House. 
It  is  conjecturable  that  the  hill  or  law  was  originally  called 
by  a  name  approaching  in  sound  to  rush^  ruch,  or  resh,  and 
when  the  present  structure  was  built  on  it,  the  addition  of 
Ha'  or  House  was  then  added.  The  Ordnance  Survey  Maps 
call  it  Resting  House.  This  name  has  been  ostensibly 
derived  from  the  popular  belief  that  there  the  Melrose  monks 
rested  on  their  way  to  and  from  their  abbey.  It  is  now  a 
ruin.  Portions  of  the  walls,  arched  roof,  and  foundations  of 
other  walls  overgrown  with  grass  are  still  intact.  From  their 
prominence  on  the  landscape  they  are  visible  from  a  great 
distance.     Nothing  notable  has  been  found  at  the  place. 

Holy  Water  Clench. — In  1588  "the  Halywattercleuch " 
is  mentioned  as  the  western  boundary  of  the  "  Sucken  "  of 
the  mill  of  Ugston.*  It  is  situated  south-west  of  the  church 
at  a  distance  of  a  quarter  mile.  It  is  a  long  cleft  in  the  face 
of  the  hill-ridge  on  which  the  church  is  placed,  and  must  have 
been  made  by  the  spring  of  water  which  still  runs  through 
it.  At  the  top  of  the  cleuch,  its  depth  and  breadth  are 
respectively  30  and  60  ft.  As  it  descends  to  Mountmill  Burn, 
("  Arras  Water ")  it  gradually  becomes  shallower,  until  it 
loses  itself  in  the  level  of  the  haugh.  Its  length  is  approxi- 
mately 600  yards  running  south-east.  There  can  be  no 
doubt  that  the  water  of  the  cleuch  was  in  ancient  times 
associated  with  religious  rites,  and  it  may  possibly  have 
been  used  by  St  Cuthbert  himself  in  baptizing  his  converts. 
As  it  is  the  nearest  natural  water  spring  to  the  church,  the 

*  Great  Seal. 


^^1 

f'iM     1 

Mi  i 

^\ 

ANTIQUITIES  669 

"holy"  water  used  in  its  ancient  Roman  Catholic  services 
would  no  doubt  be  found  there.  There  is  no  tradition  that 
it  was  ever  used  as  a  place  of  cures.  It  is  locally  known  as 
"  the  well  of  the  Holy  Water  Cleuch." 

Stone  Cross  at  Midbum. — This  farm  is  near  to  the  "  Black- 
chester  "  camp  which  lies  in  Lauder  Parish,  to  the  south  of  it 
a  quarter  mile,  on  a  prominent  height.  The  camp  is  well 
preserved,  covered  with  wood,  and  is  of  the  usual  construction 
and  dimensions  of  oval  or  "  British  '  camps.  It  is  said  to 
have  been  "  used  "  by  the  Romans  as  a  defensive  post. 

Near  the  steading  of  Midburn  is  to  be  seen  a  heavy 
cross  of  sandstone  which  has  evoked  much  speculation 
among  the  natives.  It  is  in  the  ordinary  Latin  form,  but 
tapering  to  the  top  and  towards  the  ends  of  the  arms.  There 
is  no  inscription.  It  is  4  ft.  2  in.  in  length,  and  i  ft. 
4  in,  across  the  arms.  It  is  8  in.  thick.  Part  of  the  right 
arm  is  broken  off.  It  is  said  to  have  originally  stood  in  one 
of  Shielfield  fields,  but  was  brought  to  Midburn  by  one  of 
the  tenants  there.  It  seems  to  have  no  special  signifi- 
cance, except  that  it  may  have  been  used  as  one  of 
the  march  or  boundary-crosses  to  which  there  are  frequent 
allusions  in  the  charters  of  the  religious  chroniclers. 
Both  Shielfield  and  Midburn  Farms  are  on  the  boundary  of 
the  two  parishes  of  Lauder  and  Channelkirk,  and,  moreover, 
Shielfield  land  was  at  one  time  in  the  hands  of  the  Dryburgh 
Abbots,  and  a  cross  to  mark  a  boundary  in  that  locality  is 
not  a  matter  of  surprise.  Such  crosses  are  noticed  in  the 
Dryburgh  Chartulary  as  having  stood  near  Pilmuir,  and  in 
Kelso  Chartulary  as  standing  near  Oxton  and  Over  Howden. 
These  are  referred  to  as  landmarks  or  boundary  guides. 
Presumably,  in  the  absence  of  clearer  knowledge,  this  stone 


670  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

cross  of  Midburn  is  one  of  the  same  kind.     It  may  be,  in  that 
case,  as  old  as  the  thirteenth  or  fourteenth  centuries. 

Memorial   Stone    at    Threeburnford. — A    stone    of    some 
interest  is  built  into  the  front  wall  of  the  stables  at  this 
place    which,    though    it    may    not    be    an    "antiquity,"    is 
venerable  enough  to   be    inserted    among  the   relics  of  the 
parish  which  convey  "  a  tale  of  the  days  of  old."     It  is  in 
the  .shape  of  a  horse-shoe,  with  the  arch  at  the  top  and  the 
open   part  resting  on  a  flat  band  at  the  foot.     Part  of  the 
top  of  the  stone  is  worn  or  broken  off,  as  the  block  has  been 
removed  to  different  parts  of  the  farm  during  its  existence, 
and  has  had  adventures.     On  the  legs  of  the  "shoe"  are 
two  inscriptions.     When  facing  the  stone,  that  on  the  left 
hand  reads,  "Behold  a  sower  went  forth  to  sow,  Matt.    13 
and  3.     One  soweth  and  another  reapeth  ; "  and  that  on  the 
right    reads,  "  Sow  to   yourselves    in    righteousness,  reap  in 
mercy,    Hosea    10   and    12."      In   the   central   space    is   the 
worn  figure  of  a  man  with  a  sowing  sheet.     On  the  right- 
hand  corner  of  the  flat-band  or  plinth,  at   the  foot,  there 
has  been  a  date,  but  it  is  now  too  much  obliterated  to  be 
discernable.     Some  have  affirmed  it  to  be  1734,  but  others, 
with  more  likelihood,  believe  it  to  be  far  older.     The  legend 
connected  with  it  is  religious,  of  course,  and  characteristically 
Scotch,  in  that   it  sets  forth   the    profanity  of  working  on 
Sabbath.     The   farmer   of  Threeburnford,   at    some    remote 
date  (days  and   names  all  being  rubbed  out  for  ever),  was 
anxious  to   sow  his  pease,  and   taking  advantage  of  a  fine 
Sabbath  morning  suitable  for  his  purpose,  "went  forth  to 
sow,"  sorely  against   the  will   and  warnings  of  his  "better 
half"      He  persisted,  however,  and  sowed  his  field,  though 
not  "  in  righteousnes.s."    And,  as  a  consequence,  the  judgment 


ANTIQUITIES  671 

fell  in  the  usual  fier)-  form.  A  thunderstorm  swept  across 
the  moors  in  wrath,  "  cramming  all  the  blast  before  it ;  in 
its  breast  the  thunderbolt,"  which  slew  at  one  fell  blow  the 
poor  over-busy  farmer.  And  so,  what  he  sowed  another 
reaped. 

There  is  no  reason  to  doubt  the  tradition.  It  is  enamelled 
into  the  local  folklore,  and  it  is  here  verified  in  stone.  The 
stone  is  evidently  a  memorial  one,  similar  to  many  which 
were  set  up  in  all  the  "  kirkyairds "  of  the  country  at  one 
time.  But  the  stone,  homely  in  its  sculpture,  and  carefully 
hewn,  we  may  be  sure,  on  the  steading,  during  many  earnest 
hours,  could  not  be  set  up  in  the  churchyard,  for  obvious 
reasons.  The  farmer  could  not  be  buried  there.  It  would 
have  been  sacrilege;  and  more  so,  if  the  stone  points  to  a 
period  before  the  Reformation,  which  it  reasonably  enough 
may.  He  was  accursed  of  God.  No  consecrated  ground 
could  tolerate  his  corpse.  He  would  consequently  be  buried 
where  they  found  him,  or  about  the  steading  somewhere. 
The  stone  would  originally  be  set  up  over  his  remains,  and 
during  the  changes  of  building  on  the  farm  it  would  also 
change  its  locality  with  them.  The  "  preaching "  of  the 
stone  bears  strong  confirmation  of  the  truth  of  the  legend. 
The  texts,  or  part  texts,  have  been  carefully  .selected  to 
emphasise  the  di.saster.  "  Behold  a  sower  went  forth  to 
sow"  is  the  latter  part  of  Matthew  xiii.  3;  while  "one 
soweth  and  another  reapeth "  is  the  latter  part  of  John  iv. 
37.  The  legend  could  not  possibly  have  a  more  weighty 
comment,  while  the  words  "  Sow  to  yourselves  in  righteous- 
ness, reap  in  mercy,"  from  Hosea  x.  12,  first  clause,  prove 
the  long  search  that  had  been  undertaken  to  find  words 
appropriate  enough  to  clinch  the  terrible  facts.  For  the 
farmer  had  not  sown  in  righteousness,  and  reaped  far  other 


678  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Berwickshire,  and  the  boundaries  of  parish  and  county  are 

for  a  considerable  distance  identical. 

The  population  in  1755  numbered  531 
„  1794         „         600 

„  1 80 1         „         640 

„  181 1         „         707 

„  1821         „         730 

„  1831         „         841 

1841  „  780 
„  1861         „         641 

„  1881         „         607 

1891  „  545 
A  steady  decrease  has  taken  place,  it  will  be  seen,  since  1831. 

With  the  advent  of  the  railway  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
drain  upon  the  population  will  cease,  seeing  that  there  will 
be  more  employment,  and  farmers  may  be  induced,  perhaps, 
to  occupy  all  the  farms  instead  of  putting  them  under 
stewards  and  staying  themselves  elsewhere. 

The  chief  industry  of  the  parish  is  sheep-breeding. 
Some  farms  keep  from  70  to  80  score,  while  others  may 
have  but  ICXD  to  200  sheep.  The  species  called  "Cheviot," 
"  Leicester,"  "  Half-breds  "  are  most  common,  but  those  farms 
with  extensive  hill  pasture,  such  as  Hillhouse,  Glengelt,  and 
Kirktonhill,  stock  a  considerable  number  of  blackfaces  or 
"  Lammermuirs."  Sheep  of  the  black-faced  type  have  grazed 
Channelkirk  fields  and  fells,  to  all  appearance,  from  time 
immemorial.  Naismith  of  Hamilton,  in  1796,  states  that 
there  is  no  tradition  that  the  sheep  of  the  Lammermoors 
were  ever  other  than  blackfaces.  In  the  raid  of  Glengelt,  about 
1490  A.D.,  240  *'yowis,"  40  wedders,  and  80  hoggs  were  forcibly 
taken  away.  The  species,  however,  is  not  given,  although 
there  is  little  doubt  that  it  would  be  "  black-faced,"  as  accord- 
ing to  the  best  authorities  it  is  the  oldest  variety  known 
in  Great  Britain,  and  there  was  no  other  kind  in  this  parish 


CHANNELKIUK  TO-DAY  679 

till  last  century.  The  "Cheviot"  species  were  introduced 
into  this  parish  by  Robert  Hogarth,  tenant  in  Carfrae. 
Coming  from  East  Berwickshire  about  1770,  he  instituted 
many  improvements  which  have  been  highly  beneficial. 
The  turnip,  which  is  now  the  staple  food  of  sheep,  was 
unknown  till  he  brought  it  here;  and  he  also  initiated  the 
use  of  lime,  and  the  sown  grass  system.  The  turnip  was 
in  1794  of  wider  benefit  than  it  is  now,  for  it  is  recorded 
that  it  then  "constituted  fully  half  of  the  food  of  our 
cottagers."  About  i860,  which  was  a  severe  season  on 
hill  flocks,  "  Cheviots "  again  declined  in  favour.  Great 
improvements  have  recently  been  accomplished  in  the 
quality  of  blackfaces,  and  this  has  been  due  mainly  to 
such  breeders  as  Archibald,  Overshiels,  late  of  Glengelt ; 
Howatson,  Glenbuck ;  Foyer,  sometime  of  Knowhead ; 
Welsh,  Earlshaugh ;  and  other  less  well-known  names. 

It  is  well  said  that  it  is  the  soil  that  makes  the  sheep,  the 
plant  being  the  link  between  the  living  animal  and  the  dead 
earth.  Upper  Lauderdale  is,  in  general,  very  fertile,  and 
seldom  later  than  other  districts  which  have  a  less  elevated 
exposure.  This  is  chiefly  due  to  the  red  sandstone  soil  which 
fills  its  main  basin,  and  the  branching  glens  running  up  into 
the  hills.  Sheep,  it  is  found,  thrive  well  on  almost  every  kind 
of  soil,  but  on  some  they  decline  in  quality  quicker  than 
on  others.  Clay  soil  is  detrimental  to  the  blackfaces,  though 
good  for  Cheviots,  and  a  comparatively  small  area  of  this 
kind  of  ground  is  to  be  found  in  the  parish.  The  generally 
dry,  chisley,  porous  .soil  which  prevails  is  more  favourable, 
and  on  hill  pasturage,  where  bracken  and  gorse  abound,  black- 
faced  sheep  are  found  to  do  very  well.  Peat  or  moss  soil 
ranges  along  the  moor  band  of  the  parish,  and  suits  for 
wintering,  and  especially  where  the  ground  is  well  drained. 


680  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Sheep  thrive  on  moss  heather,  too,  if  it  be  young,  and 
some  feeders  think  that  this  species  of  nutriment  is  as 
fattening  as  the  best  of  clover.  If,  however,  it  be  old 
and  woody,  it  becomes  of  no  value,  and  burning  is  resorted 
to  for  the  sake  of  a  young  sprout,  a  process  which,  it  is 
maintained,  should  be  carried  out  once  in  every  ten  years  at 
least.  The  heather  district  of  this  parish  extends  along  the 
northern  portion  of  it — that  is,  the  part  devoted  generally  to 
black-faced  stock. 

Lying  for  most  part  on  very  high  ground,  it  may  be  sur- 
mised that  the  flocks  suffer  considerably  in  winter.  Yet 
even  the  severest  seasons  (and  the  winter  of  1899- 1900  was  a 
record  one)  do  less  damage  than  might  be  supposed.  This 
is  due  to  careful  shepherding,  provident  husbanding  of 
resources,  and  keeping  the  sheep  in  fairly  good  condition  by 
a  judicious  supply  of  hay  and  turnip.  Farming  in  general 
is  prosperous,  and  wages  for  workmen  never  were  better. 
Complaints  are  sometimes  heard  regarding  buildings, 
drainage,  and  kindred  subjects,  but,  as  a  rule,  the  farmers 
are  a  contented,  industrious  class,  and  frugal  to  a  fault. 
They,  view  the  increasing  foreign  competition  in  agricultural 
produce  with  much  apprehension,  and  foresee  that  a  change 
must  come  in  the  system  of  land-holding  if  they  are  not  to 
be  driven  off  the  soil.  The  Duke  of  Fife's  sentiments, 
expressed  last  summer  (July  1899)  at  the  Centenary  Show 
of  Morayshire  Farmer's  Club,  were  highly  applauded  in  this 
district.  He  said  during  these  twenty  years  he  had  sold 
land  to  360  persons — that  was  to  say,  he  had  added  360  names 
to  the  roll  of  landed  proprietors  in  those  north-eastern  counties 
of  Scotland.  In  his  opinion,  it  was  far  better  for  the 
district  and  for  all  concerned  that  the  land  should  be  largely 
in  the  hands  of  farmers  and  of  small  proprietors  rather  than 


CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  681 

in  the  hands  of  one  individual,  who  could  only  pay  them 
occasional  visits.  The  trend  of  the  times  is,  however, 
towards  large  farms.  It  is  said  that  much  profit  accrues 
from  fewer  buildings,  no  need  for  upkeep  of  cottars'  houses, 
machinery,  and  fences,  on  the  big  farm  system  ;  and  thus  the 
landowner  can  afford  to  lower  the  rent  to  the  tenant  and 
have  his  income  kept  at  its  wonted  level  owing  to  less  out- 
lay ;  while  the  tenant  can  have  larger  flocks  with  the  same 
shepherding,  more  cattle  with  the  same  attendance, 
and  two  farms  worked  with  almost  the  same  number  of 
hands  which  are  required  for  a  single  farm.  The  stress  of 
the  foreign  competition  is  lightened  in  this  way,  but  its 
results  are  depopulation  and  roofless  cottages ;  the  families  of 
the  workers  have  all  to  leave  home  ;  the  young  are  too  early 
thrown  into  surroundings  where  parental  guidance  is  denied 
them.  This  system  benefits  the  classes  and  ruins  the  masses. 
This  topic  forms  the  bitter  subject  of  many  a  growling  con- 
versation among  our  hinds.  A  few  who  have  saved  a  little 
money  and  have  added  it  to  the  sum  left  them  by  careful 
parents,  would  venture  on  farming,  and  thereby  realise  an 
honest  ambition,  but  for  the  severe  obstacle  to  begin  with, 
that  there  are  no  farms  small  enough  to  permit  their  capital 
to  cope  with  them.  Hence  a  natural  desire  is  thwarted  ; 
there  seems  no  possibility  of  rising  in  life,  and  discontent 
settles  in  the  heart,  and  another  source  of  unrest  is  added  to 
society.  Perhaps  this  state  of  matters  is  deeper  seated  than 
is  generally  realised,  and  as  it  is  believed  by  workpeople  that 
the  interests  of  landowners  and  tenants  are,  as  a  rule,  thrown 
into  the  scale  against  that  of  the  workmen,  it  cannot  sur- 
prise any  one  if  the  strain  between  mass  and  class,  workmen 
and  master,  increases  rather  than  diminishes  in  intensity. 
The  home   life  of  the  agricultural  labourer  is,  without  a 


682  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

doubt,  vastly  improved.  He  is  well-housed ;  constantly 
employed ;  he  receives  pay  whether  well  or  sick ;  gets  a 
holiday  when  it  is  asked  reasonably,  without  losing  that 
day's  wage  ;  his  hours  are  shorter  and  his  work  is  lighter. 
He  is  perhaps  better  in  circumstances  than  any  labouring 
man  in  the  land,  and  an  authority  says,  "  His  position,  in  my 
opinion,  is  far  superior  to  that  of  the  ordinary  artisan,  and  to 
that  of  many  a  city  clerk."  *  This  advancement  is  supposed 
to  have  the  result  of  reducing  discontent  in  the  breasts  of 
aspiring  workmen.  It  often  seems  to  have  the  opposite 
effect.  Fine  clothes,  fine  furniture,  spare  parlours,  and  money 
in  the  bank  suggest  still  higher  possibilities  to  the  plough- 
man, and  interrogations  and  comparisons  grow  apace,  till 
"  Jack's  as  good's  his  master  "  becomes  a  fixed  article  in  his 
belief ;  and  when  he  finds  it  impossible  to  become  "  master," 
"Jack,"  for  all  his  prosperity,  fosters  rebellious  feelings 
against  his  fate. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  note  a  few  of  the  prices  of  farm 
stock  in  Lauderdale  at  different  periods.  The  earliest 
mention  of  such  in  this  parish  is  in  the  year  1490  A.D.  At 
that  date  prices  were  (in  Glengelt)  : — 

An  ox,  2  merks  =  ^i,  6s.  8d.  Scots. 
A  wedder,  5s.  Scots. 
A  bogg,  3s. 
A  ewe,  5s.  „ 

A  horse  (and  certain  other  "gudes,"  probably  its  "graith"))  10  merks  = 
^6,  13s.  4d.  Scots. 

In  1630-2  (Carfrae  and  the  parish  generally) — 

I  boll  of  bear,  £^,  6s.  8d.  Scots  =  9s.  o|d.  sterling. 
I  boll  of  oats,  ^3,  5s.  „     =    5s.  „ 

I  lamb   (2  lbs.  of  wool  allowed  with  each  lamb),  £1,   13s.  4d.   Scots  = 
2s.  9^d.  sterling. 

*  Wilkinson's  Report  on  Berwick  and  Roxburgh,  to  Royal  Commission, 
1892-3. 


2 

o 

0          „ 

I 

13 

4 

2 

0 

0          „ 

O 

16 

8 

I 

13 

4 

O 

7 

81%       . 

o 

-7 

5t^      „ 

2 

2 

5A      » 

2 

2 

5A      „ 

O 

8 

4 

o 

6 

8 

o 

9 

II           )) 

o 

4 

5 

o 

10 

P         " 

6 

13 

4  Scots. 

CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  683 

In  1656  (valued  at  the  '*  mercat  crose  of  Lauder  ") — * 

I  ox,  50  merks  Scots  =  £2  16  ii^^  sterling. 

I  kye,  /22  Scots  =      i   16     8  „ 

I  ox,  ;^24  Scots 

I  quey,  ;^20  Scots 

I  kye,  ^24  Scots 

I  stot,  ^10  Scots 

1  merkall  stot,  ^20  Scots 

I  mare,  £4,  12s.  6d.  Scots 

I  naig,  40  merks  Scots 

I  staig,  40  merks  Scots 

I  old  mare  and  staig,  40  merks  Scots 

I  sheep  (field),  ^5  Scots 

I  ewe  and  lamb,  £4  Scots 

I  ewe  and  lamb,  7  merks  Scots 

I  hogg,  £2,  13s.  Scots 

I  udder  sheep,  ^6 

,.    „     r  ,      ,.  J  =      &   13     4  i5C0tS. 

I  boll  of  oats,  10  merks  Scots  \^     o  1 1   ifW  sterling. 

It  may  interest  the  farmers  in  the  dale  to  see  an  old- 
fashioned  receipt  of  two  hundred  years  ago,  on  the  sale  of  a 
"naig."t      The  year  is   1695,  the  day  the  24th  of  January. 

"  The  same  day  I,  Robert  Walker,  acknowledge  and  confess 
that  I  have  sold  to  Thomas  Simson  in  CHckhimin,  ane  dun 
gray  naig  of  the  aige  of  four  years  or  thereby,  cut-tailed. 
The  vvhilk  naig  I  bought  at  Ferniebridge  about  15  days 
since  or  thereb)-,  and  has  sold  him  to  the  said  Thomas  this 
day  at  CHckhimin  before  and  in  presence  of  Alex.  Simsson, 
tenant  in  Dods  ;  Wm.  Waterstoun,  tenant  in  Aldingstone  ; 
Robert  Tumble,  in  Thirlestane  Mylne  ;  and  which  naig 
is  treulie  his,  having  fullie  payed  me  fiftie  merks  Scots 
for   him.      As   witness    my   hand,  day   and   dait    aforesaid. 

"  R.  W." 

As  the  prices  of  farm  stock  in  the  past,  though  exceed- 
ingly interesting,  are  very  variable,  and  might  easily  stretch 
*  Lauder  Burgh  Records.  ^  Ibid. 


684  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

into  great  proportions,  it  may  suffice  to  point  out  to  those 
who  are  curious  in  the  matter,  that  the  fiars  prices  of  Berwick- 
shire wheat,  bear,  oats,  peas,  and  oatmeal  for  120  years, 
viz.,  from  1689  till  1808,  may  be  consulted  in  "Berwickshire 
Agricultural  Report"  by  Robert  Kerr,  181 3,  Appendix; 
and  the  prices  of  Cheviot  sheep,  black-faced  sheep,  and  wool 
per  stone,  from  1818  till  1893,  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Highland  and  Agricultural  Society  for  1894.  Black-faced 
Sheep,  by  Messrs  John  and  Charles  Scott  (Edinburgh,  1888), 
gives  their  history,  distribution,  and  improvement,  methods  of 
management  and  treatment  of  their  diseases,  together  with 
many  interesting  hints  to  farmers,  shepherds,  and  all 
interested  in  the  breed. 

One  complaint  appears  to  be  universal  among  the  farmers 
of  the  parish,  viz.,  the  game.  There  is  a  feeling  that  every 
farmer  should  have  the  game  on  his  farm  whether  it  be 
winged  or  ground.  One  will  say,  "  The  less  vermin,  rabbits, 
game,  and  hunting,  the  better  ; "  and  another,  "  Landlord  and 
tenant  should  have  equal  rights,  with  no  power  on  either  side 
to  sublet ;  "  while  another,  "  Tenants  should  shoot  game  ; 
rabbits  ought  to  be  exterminated  ;  hares  are  too  few  to  count 
in  the  matter,  but  pigeons  and  partridges  do  much  harm." 
Fox-hunting  is  held  by  some  as  a  "  relic  of  barbarism."  All 
agree  that  it  does  harm.  It  disturbs  stock,  and  in  the  spring 
of  the  year,  when  lambing  is  going  forward,  the  ewes  suffer, 
and  fences  are  in  many  places  ruined. 

Pheasants  are  hand-reared  in  hundreds  every  season,  as 
many  as  6cx)  being  turned  out  from  one  place.  This  form 
of  sport  seems  expensive,  as  each  bird  is  said  to  cost  from 
first  to  last  about  7s.  6d.,  while  a  price  like  3s.  or  3s.  6d.  may 
be  found  for  them  when  killed. 

Any    sharp    feeling   of  rancour    on    the  game   question 


CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  685 

is,  notwithstanding,  quite  absent.  As  the  tenants  put  it, 
"  We  can't  get  everything,"  or,  "  There's  aye  something 
hooever ; "  and  the  complaint  dies  away  in  some  good- 
humoured  remark.  The  kindness  and  courtesy  of  sportsmen, 
also,  mitigate  any  acerbity  that  might  be  entertained,  for 
during  the  "  season  "  there  must  be  few  who  are  not  substanti- 
ally reminded  that  the  "  potting "  of  the  guns  on  moor  and 
field  means  now  and  then  a  very  good  and  savoury  dinner. 
And  so  long  as  good  feeling  is  fostered  in  this  way,  the 
sportsman  may  get  all  the  pleasure  he  wants,  and  the  farmer 
all  the  grumbling  he  likes,  and  both  be  found  in  the  end  both 
fat  and  well-favoured  by  the  exercise !  Perhaps,  if  there 
was  more  genial  interchange  of  human  kindness  of  this 
description  between  all  parties  in  all  the  relationships  of  our 
busy  days,  and  less  heard  about  the  "  rights "  and  the 
"  should  he's,"  the  million  mills  of  industry  might  grind  more 
merrily,  and  never  have  a  handful  the  less  in  the  girnel  in  the 
end. 

Perhaps  the  most  noticeable  feature  of  the  weather  in 
this  upland  parish  is  its  sudden  changes.  A  sunny  after- 
noon, with  red  light  glowing  on  the  hills,  will  quickly  change 
into  rain  and  wind  such  as  horses  blench  from  facing. 
There  are  few  days  when  the  atmosphere  may  be  said  to  be 
calm.  The  normal  state  is  windy,  and  wind  chiefly  from  the 
west.  The  big  snowstorms  usually  come  from  the  north- 
east and  south-east.  The  north-west  wind  is  almost  always 
dry  and  cold,  and  the  north-east  misty  and  rainy.  The 
south-west  is  strongest,  and  does  most  injury  to  the  church 
and  manse.  Owing  to  the  sharp  variableness  from  heat  to 
cold,  and  vice  versa,  rheumatism  is  perhaps  the  most  pre- 
valent ailment,  and  also,  unfortunately,  the  one  for  which 
least  can  be  done.     Few  farms  but  have  a  martyr  to   "  the 


686  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

pains."  .The  warmest  days  of  summer  are  as  insufferable  to 
its  victims  as  are  the  frostiest  days  of  winter.  Few  winters 
pass  without  claiming  a  victim  from  among  the  aged,  just  as 
few  springs  go  without  prostrating  the  young,  and  leaving 
homes  bereft  of  some  of  their  little  ones. 

The  severity  of  the  winter  is,  from  the  elevated  character 
of  the  parish,  very  severely  felt.     Storms  which  mean  only 
rain  to  the  lower  parts  of  the  dale,  are  to  us  fraught  with 
deep  snow,  which  frequently  lies  long  in  correi  and  dingle 
when  it  has  disappeared  elsewhere.    Outdoor  work  then  ceases, 
except  the  necessary  carting  of  hay  to  the  sheep,  and  picking 
turnips  out  of  the  hard  ground.     The  greatest  storms  during 
this   generation,  judging    from    the    Kirk    Records,  were   in 
the   years    1878-79,    1882,   and    1895.     The    last    mentioned 
was  exceptionally  severe,  not  only  from    the   heavy   fall  of 
snow,  but   on    account,  of  the  .  long-continued    frost,  which 
made  walking  over  a  depth  of  six  to  nine  feet  of  snow  as 
easy   as   over   a    macadamised    road.       Dykes    and    hedges 
offered    no   obstacle,  as   they   were   all   buried    up,   and   the 
landscape  pre.sented  quite  a  level  expanse  to  the  eye.     From 
the  middle  of  January  till  the  beginning  of  April,  scarcely 
any  one  could  venture  to  chuf ch — three,  five,  eight,  and  eleven 
being  the  usual  congregation.     But  even  under  such  adverse 
circumstances,   all   our    public    .servants,    such    as    postman, 
grocer,  butcher,  and  roadmen,  stuck  to  their  daily  tasks  with 
a   courage   truly   praiseworthy.      No   road   was    possible   on 
many   occasions,   and   detours   by    "  banks,  and    braes,   and 
streams  around,"  frequented  ordinarily  by  .sheep  and  game, 
had  to  be   ventured.      Vans   were   overturned,   extra   hours 
were   consumed   in   the   attempts,   and   letters   belated,   but 
the  task  was  done,  and  the  duty  met  in  every  case,  and  in 
such  an  isolated  country  district,  service  so  loyally  rendered 


CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  687 

by  those  who  receive  no  extra  reward  in  return,  is  surel)' 
matter  of  great  gratitude,  and  worthy  of  honourable  mention. 
There  is  another  class  of  public  servants  which  calls 
for  encomiums  here.  Small  parishes  in  the  country  need 
direction  and  administration  as  well  as  the  most  important 
city  district,  and  considering  the  rough  freedom  of  criticism, 
and  the  floating  population  of  rural  areas  who  have  little 
knowledge  and  less  gratitude  for  work  done  for  them  by 
men  who  remain  faithful  to  their  duty  through  many  years, 
the  working  of  a  country  parish  presents  fewer  attractions, 
perhaps,  to  men  of  influence  and  ability,  and  more  deterrents 
than  many  a  city  parish,  where,  despite  the  drawbacks, 
public  spirit  and  diligent  service  are  sure  to  be  applauded 
in  councils  and  newspapers.  The  controllers  of  the  affairs 
of  this  parish  are  expected  to  fulfil  their  duties  as  strictly 
as  if  these  equalled  in  magnitude  the  fiscal  functions  of 
the  nation,  and  yet  praise  is  neither  expected  nor  given, 
although  it  is  richly  deserved  by  those  who  voluntarily 
undertake  such  labours.  Two  names  have  always  stood 
conspicuously  before  the  public  in  this  connection  in  Channel- 
kirk  Parish,  viz.,  that  of  Robert  Romanes,  Esq.,  Writer,  of 
Harryburn,  Lauder,  and  P.  B.  Swinton,  Esq.,  Holynbank, 
Gifford.  The  former  has  passed  from  all  earthly  toil  to 
a  well-earned  rest,  but  his  name  will  long  be  remembered 
in  Upper  Lauderdale  for  the  kind  and  painstaking  interest 
he  manifested  in  its  people's  welfare  during  almost  half  a 
century.  This  embraced,  of  course,  but  a  meagre  portion 
of  his  work,  which  had  ramifications  far  and  wide,  and  was 
highly  esteemed  throughout  the  county.  We  heartily  seize 
this  opportunity  to  testify  our  gratitude  for  his  inestimable 
services  to  this  parish,  and  record  its  sense  of  his  worth 
both  as  a  man  and  an  administrator  of  its  parochial  concerns. 


688  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

Mr  Swinton  is  still  going  in  and  out  among  us,  and  we 
but  echo  the  universal  wish  that  he  may  be  long  spared 
to  carry  on  the  work  with  which  he  has  been  familiar  for 
more  than  forty  years.  Heritors'  meetings  are  practically 
left  in  his  hands.  The  Parochial  Board,  so  long  as  it  lasted, 
found  in  him  a  steady  and  considerate  member,  and  the 
School  Board  has  had  its  chief  ornament  in  him  from  its 
inauguration.  The  parish  is  greatly  indebted  to  him.  With 
his  splendid  business  capacity,  it  may  be  said  such  duties 
sit  lightly  on  him,  and  call  for  little  exertion.  All  this  is 
true ;  and  this  mastery  over  work  is  the  best  guarantee 
that  it  will  be  well  done,  and  perhaps  is  one  of  the  reasons 
why  he  is  so  admired,  and  esteemed,  and  trusted  in  this 
district.  As  factor  to  the  Marquis  of  Tweeddale,  who  is 
the  largest  landowner  in  Channelkirk,  and  therefore  the  chief 
heritor,  Mr  Swinton  has  a  varied  sphere  of  influence  which 
covers  both  sacred  and  secular  interests.  Farms  and  farmers> 
land  and  landowners,  kirks  and  kirkyards,  manses  and  glebes, 
represent  a  wide  range  of  responsibility,  and  the  man  who 
has  to  receive  as  well  as  assert  an  authority  with  each, 
may  easily  find  the  task  an  onerous  one,  and  fraught  with 
much  friction  of  a  disagreeable  nature.  Mr  Swinton  bears 
the  balance  of  just  and  equable  dealing  to  the  entire  satis- 
faction of  all,  we  believe,  and  does  not  find  it  militate  against 
the  warm  friendship  and  high  respect  accorded  to  him  by 
both  peer  and  peasant. 

William  Dickinson,  Esq.  of  Longcroft,  long  County 
Councillor  for  this  district,  was  also,  during  his  lifetime, 
highly  esteemed  throughout  Upper  Lauderdale.  He  was  an 
especial  favourite  among  the  labouring  people,  to  whom  his 
kindness  was  proverbial.  Nothing  that  seemed  to  promise 
profit  or  advantage  to  the  district  but  obtained  his  warmest 


CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  689 

support,  and  his  last  days  were  spent  in  a  consuming  interest 
to  further  the  railway  scheme  which  is  now  approaching 
completion. 

Had  we  been  dealing  with  the  lives  of  these  gentlemen 
in  a  comprehensive  way,  we  should  have  had  much  to 
record  concerning  the  many  excellent  gifts  which  have  made 
them  notable  men  in  the  valley.  Their  public  lives,  and" 
only  that  portion  which  falls  within  the  area  of  this  parish, 
can  alone  be  referred  to  here. 

Every  country  district  possesses  a  phase  of  public  life 
which  may  be  termed,  for  want  of  a  better  name,  domestic. 
In  this  domestic  life  of  a  parish  move  such  functionaries  as 
the  doctor,  the  provost,  the  retired  captain,  the  old  dominie, 
the  "  man  of  means,"  and  such  like,  all  of  whom  are  held  in 
highest  respect,  and  give  distinct  colouring  to  its  character, 
and  keep  fresh  its  vitality.  With  us  the  chief  of  these  is  un- 
doubtedly the  doctor.  His  practice  extends  over  and  beyond 
Lauderdale,  but  with  our  parishioners  he  is  specially  our 
doctor.  His  duties  are  also  of  such  a  nature  that  it  would  be 
difficult  to  say  where  his  public  life  ended  and  his  private  life 
began,  for  all  alike  claim  and  receive  his  services,  and  what 
privacy  he  ever  knows  is  shared  with  every  family  in  the  valley. 
From  Fifeshire,  of  which  county  he  is  a  native,  Dr  Skinner 
came  to  reside  in  Lauder  in  1873,  the  practice  having  been 
vacated  by  Dr  Robertson,  who  went  to  London,  and  since 
that  year  his  professional  career  has  been  unwearied  and 
wholly  successful.  It  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  better 
specimen  of  a  country  doctor,  and  one  more  beloved  by 
the  people.  On  horseback  in  winter,  on  cycle  in  summer, 
he  may  be  seen  at  all  hours  of  day  and  night  exploiting 
the  "  lang  Scots  miles  "  through  hill  and  glen,  on  errands  of  . 
healing  and  mercy.     Tough  and  "  stug "  in  constitution,  he 

2  X 


690  HISTORY  OF  CHANNELKIRK 

never  seems  to  think  it  necessary  to  spare  himself,  and 
apart  from  his  medical  skill,  which  is  absolutely  relied  upon 
by  all,  his  cheery  manner  carries  sunshine  wherever  he  goes, 
and  to  despairing  patients  is  often  a  sure  prophecy  of 
returning  health.  He  has  had  many  proofs,  monetary  and 
otherwise,  of  the  high  place  he  occupies  in  the  esteem  of 
the  people  of  Lauderdale. 

The  School  Board  includes  the  rest  of  our  public  officials, 
most  of  whom  have  already  been  mentioned.  Their  names 
are  P.  B.  Swinton,  Chairman  ;  Andrew  Sharp,  farmer,  Over 
Howden  ;  John  Fleming,  farmer,  Bowerhouse  ;  Andrew 
Waddell,  clothier,  Oxton ;  David  Tweedie,  farmer,  Nether 
Howden. 

The  Parish  Council  consists  of  David  Tweedie,  farmer, 
Chairman  ;  Andrew  Sharp,  farmer ;  John  Fleming,  farmer ; 
John  Gilchrist,  farmer,  Burnfoot;  Andrew  H.  Waddell,  clothier; 
John  Hogg,  farmer,  Airhouse ;  and  Robert  Tait,  roadman, 
Oxton. 

Nothing  has  transpired  in  the  valley  for  centuries  to 
equal  in  importance,  perhaps,  the  advent  of  the  railway. 
The  situation  of  Lauderdale  cuts  it  off  from  all  communica- 
tion with  the  outside  world,  except  what  is  afforded  across 
Soutra  Hill  on  the  north,  and  Stow  Hills  on  the  west.  In 
winter  this  means,  in  too  many  instances,  no  communication 
at  all,  owing  to  the  roads  being  blocked  with  snow.  This 
season  proved  the  express  need  of  a  change  in  the  distress- 
ing inconveniences  which  the  long-continued  storm  produced. 
On  9th  December  of  last  year,  1899,  ^  south-east  wind, 
accompanied  with  frost,  set  in,  which  increased  in  severity 
till  on  the  nth  and  12th  snow  was  obstructively  lying 
everywhere.  Scarcely  any  change  took  place  till  the  latter 
days  of  March,  February  having  been  the  wildest  month  of 


CHANNELKIRK  TO-DAY  691 

snowstorms  within  living  memory.  As  a  consequence,  for 
several  weeks,  no  traffic  was  possible  across  Soutra,  and  the 
parish  suffered  in  many  ways,  as  the  trade  in  that  direc- 
tion is  important.  The  railway  will  minimise  our  winter 
severities,  and  make  the  valley  no  longer  a  land  of  the 
weary.  It  is  universally  welcomed  as  a  boon  of  the  highest 
magnitude,  for  the  commercial  and  social  advantages  which 
are  expected  to  follow  its  completion  are  certain  to  be  both 
many  and  great. 

Nevertheless,  while  such  enfranchisement  of  trade  and 
travelling  awakens  many  pleasurable  anticipations,  the 
departure  of  the  spirit  of  the  olden  times  also  evokes  certain 
pensive  reflections.  The  shriek  of  the  whistle,  the  grating 
thunder  of  rolling  wheels,  and  the  fever-cough  of  steam 
engines  refuse  to  blend  with  the  melodious  if  common 
voices  of  hill  and  glen,  and  one  can  fancy  the  ancient  Genius 
of  the  Dale,  long  dreaming  on  his  rural  throne,  starting  up 
from  his  trance  of  centuries  at  the 'first  insolent  snort  of  the 
intrusive  locomotive,  wrapping  his  hoary  head  in  his  mantle 
of  mists,  and  vanishing  from  the  scene  for  ever.  But  so  "  the 
old  order  changeth,  giving  place  to  new." 


PRINTED   BY    OLIVEK   AND   liOYD,    EDINBURGH 


m^^mrmmm 


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