Haddington - Hawick

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Haddington

HADDINGTON, a burgh, market-town, and parish, in the county of Haddington, of which it is the capital, 16 miles (E.) from Edinburgh, and 373 (N.) from London; containing 5452 inhabitants, of whom 1878 are in the town. This place, of which the name is of very uncertain derivation, is of unquestionable antiquity, though, from the repeated destruction of its ancient records, comparatively little of its remote history has been preserved. It appears to have been a royal residence at an early period, and in various documents is mentioned as having been a demesne town of the kings in the beginning of the twelfth century. Ada, Countess of Northumberland, and mother of Malcolm IV., in 1178 founded here a convent for sisters of the Cistercian order, which she richly endowed, and dedicated to the Virgin Mary; and Alexander II., King of Scotland, was born at this place in 1198. The town, which was wholly built of wood, was, in 1224, totally consumed by fire, supposed to have been the work of an incendiary, as, in the same night, the several towns of Stirling, Roxburgh, Lanark, Perth, Forfar, Montrose, and Aberdeen, experienced a similar calamity. It was repeatedly burnt and laid waste by the English, during the frequent wars between the two countries, but always speedily recovered from its desolation. The abbey of St. Mary continued to flourish till the Dissolution; and in 1548, the Scottish parliament assembled within its walls, to deliberate upon the marriage of Mary, afterwards Queen of Scots, with the Dauphin of France, and to give their assent to her education at the French court. In 1598, the greater part of the town was destroyed by an accidental fire originating in the carelessness of a servant. It suffered considerable damage, also, from inundations of the river Tyne, in the years 1358, 1421, and 1775.

The town is pleasantly situated on the Tyne, which separates it on the east from the suburb of Nungate, with which communication is afforded by a good stone bridge of four arches; and over the same river are three other bridges within the limits of the parish. It consists principally of two parallel streets of unequal length, of which the longer, forming the High-street, and being a continuation of the road from Edinburgh, is spacious and well built, comprising handsome houses, and is intersected at right angles by a street of considerable extent. It is well paved, and lighted with gas from works erected in 1835; and the inhabitants are amply supplied with water. The appearance of the place has been greatly improved by the erection of several elegant buildings; and for the accommodation of the town, a new and commodious market has been formed. The approaches from the east and west are pleasant, and ornamented with agreeable villas having fine gardens, and with extensive nursery-grounds; and the general aspect of the town, which is seated at the foot of the Garleton hills, is strikingly picturesque. A subscription library has been established, which contains more than 1000 volumes; a parochial library, also, is supported with funds left for that purpose by the late Andrew Begbie, Esq. There is a valuable library, bequeathed to the town by the Rev. John Gray, of Aberlady, who also gave fifty merks per annum for the purchase of additional volumes; and in Haddington is also a library for the use of the presbytery. A mechanics' institution was founded in 1823, and is supported by subscription, for the delivery of lectures on chemistry, the various branches of mechanics, and other subjects; attached to it are a good library, a museum, and the requisite apparatus. The Agricultural and the Horticultural Societies of East Lothian hold their meetings in the town; and there is a branch of the Bank of Scotland, and also of the British Linen Company. A considerable trade is carried on in wool, and in the preparation of bones for manure; the only manufactories are an iron forge and an establishment for carriage-building. The tanning and currying trades are pursued to a good extent; and there are two breweries and two distilleries, on an extensive scale. The market is on Friday, chiefly for grain of various kinds; it is well attended, and is one of the greatest marts in the country for wheat. The marketplace for butchers' meat is a neat and commodious structure, recently formed at an expense of more than £2000, defrayed from the public funds of the town.

Though Haddington has been a royal burgh from a very remote period, the earliest charter extant was granted by James VI., and is dated at Newmarket, the 30th of January, 1624. It confirmed all rights and privileges conferred by the charters which, in the repeated conflagrations of the town, had been destroyed, and vested the government in a provost, bailies, and council of merchants and tradesmen, by whom the other officers were chosen. The corporation at present consists of a provost, three bailies, a dean of guild, a treasurer, and nineteen councillors, appointed under the authority, and subject to the provisions, of the Municipal act of William IV.; a baron-bailie is appointed for the suburb of Nungate, and also for the lands in Gladsmuir belonging to the corporation. The provost and bailies are ex officio justices of the peace within the burgh and liberties, and they have also, by their charter, the jurisdiction of sheriffs within the royalty; but they do not exercise this function, and the sheriff of East Lothian has concurrent jurisdiction with the magistrates of the burgh, who are assisted by a town-clerk and other officers. The magistrates hold a court weekly for the adjudication of civil cases, aided by the advice of the town-clerk; and also for the trial of petty misdemeanours, and for the maintenance of the police. There are nine incorporations, which have the exclusive right of exercising trade within the burgh, viz., the hammermen, wrights and masons, weavers, fleshers, shoemakers, bakers, tailors, and skinners; each of these fraternities sends two members to a council consisting of a convener, nine deacon-conveners, and the members of the incorporations, for the regulation of the various trades. The burgh joins with those of Jedburgh, Dunbar, Lauder, and North Berwick, in the return of a member to serve in parliament; the right of election is vested in the resident freemen and £10 householders. Haddington being the county town, the courts for the shire are held in it at the appointed periods; and recently, some elegant county buildings have been erected at the west end of the town, in the old English style, at a cost of £5500, from a design by Mr. Burn. The foundation stone was laid, with masonic honours, in May, 1833, by Sir John Gordon Sinclair, Bart. The edifice contains the sheriff and justice-of-peace court-rooms, and other offices connected with the county; the front is of polished stone, and other parts of the building are of also a superior material. It occupies the site of some old ruins that consisted of a vault and part of an arched passage, the pillars of the Saxon order; but all traces of the history of these remains, thought to have been the most ancient in Haddington, are now lost. The town-house, for the transaction of the business of the burgh, has been improved at an expense of £2000, paid out of the corporation funds; it is a neat building, including an assembly-room, with a handsome spire. The prison contains the requisite apartments for the classification of prisoners.

The parish is about six miles and a half in length and six in breadth, and comprises 11,169 acres, of which 9312 are arable, 1250 woodland and plantations, and the remainder meadow, pasture, and waste. The surface is pleasingly undulated, and the scenery enriched with woods of ancient growth and with flourishing plantations; the soil is generally fertile, and well adapted for all kinds of grain. The rotation system of husbandry is practised; considerable improvement has been made in draining and inclosing the lands, and the recent introduction of bone-dust and rape for manure has much contributed to the fertility of the soil: the crops are, wheat, barley, oats, beans, peas, potatoes, and turnips. The farm-buildings are substantial and commodious; and every improvement in agricultural implements has been carefully adopted. The woods consist chiefly of oak, hazel, and birch; and the plantations of Scotch fir, larch, and spruce. The rateable annual value of the parish is £33,648. Amisfield, a seat of the Earl of Wemyss, is a stately mansion on the south bank of the river Tyne, surrounded by a well-planted demesne and extensive park, which, during the annual sports called the Tyneside games, celebrated there under the patronage of the neighbouring nobility and gentry, are much resorted to. Stevenson, a seat of Sir John Gordon Sinclair, is beautifully situated to the east of Amisfield, also in a richly-planted demense. Lennoxlove, anciently Lethington, a seat of Lord Blantyre, is a handsome mansion, part of which, of great antiquity, and built by the Gifford family, consists of a square tower of massive strength: the park is of considerable extent, and contains some fine old timber; it was first inclosed with walls by the Duke of Lauderdale, who was born here. Monkrigg is an elegant modern mansion, finely situated, and encompassed by some highly-enriched scenery; and Coalston, a little to the south, embraces an interesting view of the grounds of Lennoxlove, and of the surrounding country. The other seats in the parish are, Clerkington, Letham, Alderston, and Huntington.

Haddington is in the presbytery of Haddington and synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, and in the patronage of the Earl of Hopetoun. There are two ministers, the church being collegiate; the stipend of the first minister is £343, with a manse, and a glebe valued at £24 per annum, and the stipend of the second minister is £366, with a manse, and a glebe valued at £25 per annum. The church, supposed to have been built in the 14th century, is a venerable and elegant cruciform structure in the decorated English style, with a lofty square embattled tower; the choir and transepts are in a dilapidated condition, but the nave has been commodiously arranged for a congregation of 1240 persons. It contains, in the aisle belonging to the Lauderdale family, a splendid monument of varied marbles to Lord Chancellor Maitland and his lady, with recumbent figures in white marble. This fine church, which is 210 feet in length, was part of a magnificent monastery of Franciscans, where Lord Seton, one of its greatest benefactors, was buried in 1441; the buildings were partly destroyed by Edward I. A handsome chapel of ease was erected in 1838, to which a district was till lately assigned, containing a population of 1878. There are also an episcopal chapel, and places of worship for members of the Free Church, the Old Light Seceders, members of the United Secession, Independents, and Wesleyans. The grammar school is endowed by the corporation, who appoint two masters, and pay their salaries; it is open to all the sons of freemen. The parochial school, affording a useful education, is supported by the heritors; the master has a salary of £34, with £50 fees, and a house and garden. The parish poor have the interest of £300, the aggregate amount of several bequests. The late David Gourlay, Esq., bequeathed a field of four acres, with £450 in money, and £840 in the funds, in trust to the ministers of Haddington, for the relief of the industrious poor not on the parish list. A dispensary for administering medicines to the sick poor is supported by subscription; and a savings' bank has been established, in which the amount of deposits is above £1000. In the suburb of Nungate are the remains of St. Martin's chapel, formerly belonging to the abbey of Haddington. John Knox, the reformer, was born in this parish, at Giffordgait, adjoining the town, in 1505, and received the rudiments of his education in the grammar school. The distinguished family of Maitland resided for many years at Lethington, which they obtained by purchase. Sir Richard Maitland, who died in 1586, was lord privy seal, and author of some poems of merit; his eldest son, William, filled the office of secretary of state in the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots; and his next son, who was created Lord Maitland, of Thirlstane, in 1590, was lord high chancellor of Scotland till his death in 1595. Haddington confers the title of Earl on the family of Hamilton.

Haddingtonshire

HADDINGTONSHIRE, a maritime county, in the south-east of Scotland, bounded on the north and east by the Frith of Forth, on the south by the county of Berwick, and on the west by Edinburghshire. It lies between 55°; 46' 10" and 56°; 4' (N. Lat.) and 2°; 8' and 2°; 49' (W. Long.), and is about twenty-five miles in length and sixteen in extreme breadth, comprising an area of 224 square miles, or 144,510 acres; 8752 houses, of which 8010 are inhabited; and containing a population of 35,886, of whom 17,279 are males, and 18,607 females. This county, which is likewise called East Lothian, as being the eastern part of the extensive district of Lothian, including also the shires of Linlithgow and Edinburgh, was before the time of the Romans inhabited by the Gadeni, and subsequently formed a portion of the Saxon kingdom of Northumbria till the year 1020, when it was ceded to Malcolm II., and annexed to Scotland. From that period, for nearly two centuries, it appears to have remained in almost undisturbed tranquillity, and to have made considerable progress in agriculture; but during the wars to which the disputed succession to the Scottish throne gave rise, it suffered materially, and in 1296 became the scene of the battle of Dunbar, in which Baliol was defeated. In 1650, it again suffered from the English, under Cromwell, on the same field; and in 1745, the battle of Prestonpans occurred, between the forces of the Pretender and the English under Sir John Cope, since which time, however, it has enjoyed uninterrupted peace.

The county is in the synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, and comprises the presbyteries of Dunbar and Haddington, with twenty-four parishes. In civil matters; the district, for a very long period, was merely a constabulary subject to the jurisdiction of the sheriff of Edinburgh; but in the reign of James II. of England, it was erected into an independent county. It contains the three royal burghs of Haddington, the county town, Dunbar, and North Berwick; and the populous villages of Prestonpans, Tranent, Aberlady, Belhaven, Ormiston, Dirleton, Stenton, Tyninghame, Cockenzie, East Linton, Gifford, and Salton, with numerous smaller villages. Under the act of the 2nd and 3rd of William IV., the county returns one member to the imperial parliament. The surface is varied: towards the shores of the Frith of Forth it is nearly level, but it rises by gentle undulations towards the south, for some distance, into ridges of moderate elevation, which extend from east to west, and increase in height as they approach the southern boundary, where they form part of the Lammermoor hills. These hills, on the south-east subside for a considerable extent into a level plain, and on the west into the fruitful valley of the Tyne, between which and the Frith are some hills of inferior height. The principal heights on the ridges are the Gunlane and Garleton hills; and from the open plain rise two conical hills, at a distance of seven miles from each other, of which one, called North Berwick Law, has an elevation of 800, and the other, called Traprain Law, of 700 feet above the level of the sea. The chief rivers are the Tyne and the Peffer. The Tyne rises in Edinburghshire, and, flowing in an easterly direction, through the pleasant vale to which it gives name, and turning numerous mills in its course, falls into the Frith at Tyninghame. The Peffer, a much smaller stream, has its source in the northern part of the county, and, passing through a tract of level ground, falls into the Frith in the parish of Whitekirk, on the east, and into Aberlady bay, on the west. The Salton and Gifford waters are tributary to the Tyne; while Beltonford burn, which has its source among the Lammermoor hills, in the parish of Garvald, after a course of seven or eight miles to the north-east, flows into the Frith to the west of the harbour of Dunbar.

About two-thirds of the land are arable, and the remainder meadow and pasture, with some extensive woodlands and plantations. The soil, though various, is generally fertile, and the system of agriculture in the highest state of improvement; the crops are, wheat, oats, barley, peas, beans, potatoes, and turnips. Wheat is the staple crop; the turnips are of the choicest quality, and the county has long been distinguished for the excellence of its agricultural produce. The farms vary from sixty to 250 acres, and are under very skilful management; the lands are well drained and inclosed, and abundantly manured with lime; the buildings and offices, also, are substantial and commodious. On the several farms are threshing-mills, of which many are driven by steam. The Lammermoor hills afford good pasturage for sheep, which are mostly of the Cheviot, but partly of the black-faced, breed; the cattle are partly the short-horned, but chiefly of the Highland breed. The substrata of the Lammermoor district are of the transitional, and those of the lowlands of the secondary, formation; coal is found in the west, and limestone of the finest quality is abundant. Ironstone-clay, and clay of good quality for bricks, occur in various parts of the county; and sandstone of compact texture for building, and trapstone for the roads, are quarried to a great extent. About 6000 acres are in woods and plantations, which are in a very thriving state; and at Tyninghame are some remarkably fine hedges of holly, of which one is twenty-five feet in height, and thirteen feet in width. The first manufactory in Britain for the weaving of holland was established in this county, and the first mill erected in Scotland for the preparation of pot-barley was at Salton. The county is now, however, almost wholly agricultural, the manufactures carried on being few and unimportant. Draining-tiles are made; and there are some paper and flax mills, some starch-works, distilleries, and breweries. The making of salt was once carried on to a great extent at Prestonpans; but it is now very much diminished. The herring-fishery off the coast employs about 300 boats during the months of August and September, accommodation being found in the harbour of Dunbar. Facility of communication is afforded by good roads, constructed under various acts of parliament, and kept in repair by commissioners. The rateable annual value of the county is £258,743, of which £221,714 are returned for lands, £31,558 for houses, £490S for mines, and £563 for quarries. There are numerous remains of antiquity, consisting of mounds, encampments, and the ruins of ancient castles, abbeys, and other religious houses, all which are noticed in the articles on the several parishes in which they are situated.

Haggs

HAGGS, lately a quoad sacra parish, in the parish of Denny, county of Stirling, 2 miles (S. S. W.) from Denny; containing 1905 inhabitants, of whom 431 are in the village. This place occupies the southern portion of the parish of Denny, from which it was separated for ecclesiastical purposes by act of the General Assembly, in 1840. The village, which is situated on the road to Glasgow, consists of several houses of two stories, roofed with slate, some detached and pleasing cottages, and a neat row of small houses near the coal-works, at the eastern extremity of which is a large building appropriated as a storehouse. The inhabitants are chiefly employed in the collieries in this part of Denny, and in the various manufactories in the neighbourhood. Facility for the conveyance of the produce of the mines is afforded by the Forth and Clyde canal, and by the Edinburgh and Glasgow railway, on which is a station at Castle-Carie, near the village. The district is not remarkable in an agricultural point of view; the surface is destitute of timber, and the scenery consequently of dreary aspect; the soil is generally thin and cold, and the system of husbandry in a very imperfect state. The church, which was opened in 1840, was erected chiefly through the instrumentality and exertions of the Rev. John Dempster, minister of Denny, and the cooperation and assistance of William Forbes, Esq., of Callendar, M. P. for the county; it is a handsome and substantial structure, containing 700 sittings. The minister, who is chosen by the male communicants, derives his stipend from seat-rents and contributions of the congregation, no permanent endowment having been established. A school in the village is supported by the General Assembly.

Hailes-Quarry

HAILES-QUARRY, a village, in the parish of Colinton, county of Edinburgh, ¾ of a mile (N. W. by W.) from Colinton; containing: 158 inhabitants. It is situated in the south-east part of the parish, on the road from Edinburgh to Currie; and has its adjunct from a considerable stone-quarry, of which the material is of a slaty quality, and divides easily into thin portions, excellent for pavements, lobbies, and steps. The quarry is wrought to a great depth, and is very productive; and in one year, 1825, when building in Edinburgh was pushed to some extent, yielded its proprietor, Sir Thomas Gibson Carmichael, Bart., a rent of £9000. Hailes was anciently the name of the parish.

Halbeath

HALBEATH, a village, in the parish and district of Dunfermline; county of Fife, 3 miles (N. E.) from Dunfermline; containing 461 inhabitants. This village is inhabited chiefly by persons employed in the extensive colliery in the neighbourhood, of which the produce is conveyed by a railway to the port of Inverkeithing, where it is shipped.

Halfmorton

HALFMORTON, a parish, in the county of Dumfries, 6 miles (N. W.) from Longtown; containing 737 inhabitants. This place derives its name from its having formed part of the ancient parish of Morton, of which, on its suppression in the early part of the 17th century, one-half was merged in the parish of Canobie, and the other, named Halfmorton, though still remaining as a parish quoad civilia, was ecclesiastically united to the parish of Wauchope. On the subsequent erection of Wauchope and Staplegorton into the present parish of Langholm, in 1703, the minister of that parish officiated only every fourth Sabbath at Halfmorton, which, in 1839, was consequently disjoined from Langholm by a decree of the Court of Teinds, and erected into an independent parish. Halfmorton is situated in the south-eastern part of the county, and is bounded on the east by the river Sark, which separates it from Cumberland; it comprises an area of about 5700 acres, of which 125 are woodland and plantations, 400 moss, and the remainder chiefly arable, with a due proportion of meadow and pasture. The surface is agreeably diversified, and the scenery embellished with thriving plantations. The Sark is the principal river, and a small stream called the Logan flows through the parish; in both these are found trout, but not in great abundance.

The soil along the banks of the river is deep and rich, and the arable grounds produce valuable crops: there are considerable tracts of peat-moss. The system of agriculture is improved, and the lands have been drained and partly inclosed. The pastures are stocked with sheep of the Cheviot breed, and with black-cattle; a considerable number of horses are reared, mostly for agricultural uses, and on some of the farms great numbers of swine are fed. The substrata are chiefly red sandstone, clay, and gravel; and limestone is found in several places. The rateable annual value of the parish is £3176. The only approximation to a village is the small hamlet of Chapelknowe, in which the church is situated: a few persons are employed in hand-loom weaving for the manufacturers of Carlisle. There are a subscription library, and also one belonging to the church. Facility of communication is afforded by roads kept in good order by statute labour. The ecclesiastical affairs are under the superintendence of the presbytery of Langholm and synod of Dumfries. The minister's stipend is about £200; patrons, the Crown, and the Duke of Buccleuch, alternately. The church, a plain structure built in 1744, and containing 212 sittings, has been recently enlarged. There is a place of worship in connexion with the Free Church. The parochial school is well conducted; the master has a salary of £25. 13., with a house and garden, and the fees average £30 annually. There are no remains of the ancient church of Morton; but the churchyard is still used.

Halkirk

HALKIRK, a parish, in the county of Caithness, 7 miles (S. by E.) from Thurso; containing 2963 inhabitants, of whom 236 are in the village. This place, of which the name is of very uncertain origin, includes the ancient parishes of Halkirk and Skinnet, supposed to have been united soon after the Reformation. It is evidently of very remote antiquity, and was one of the seats of the Harolds and Sinclairs, earls of Caithness, of whose baronial castle there are still considerable remains on the north bank of the river Thurso. On the opposite bank of that river, also, was one of the residences of the bishops of Caithness and Sutherland, of which, however, not the slightest vestige can now be traced. The only event of historical importance connected with the place, is the assassination of one of the bishops by some ruffians said to have been employed for that purpose by the Earl of Caithness, in revenge for an additional assessment imposed by the bishop on his lands. The perpetrators of this inhuman murder were afterwards discovered, through the strenuous exertions of King Alexander II., by whose special order they were sentenced to exemplary punishment.

The parish, which is situated nearly in the centre of the county, is about twenty-four miles in length and from three to twelve in breadth, comprising an area of 74,000 acres, of which 6000 are arable, nearly an equal number meadow and pasture, and the remainder moorland, water, and waste. The surface is generally level; the only hill of any considerable elevation is that of Spittal, about three miles to the south-east of the church, and partly in the parish of Watten. There are not less than twenty lakes, of which the most extensive are, Loch Calder in the north, and Loch More in the south; the former is three miles and a half in length and nearly a mile in breadth, and the latter of about equal extent. The rivers are, the Thurso, which, issuing from Loch More, flows through this parish and that of Thurso, and falls into the sea at Thurso bay; and the Forss, which partly bounds this parish on the north-west, and joins the sea at Forss, in the parish of Thurso. Salmon and trout are found in both these rivers; and trout of various kinds are taken in the larger, and also in the smaller lakes, and in the various streams that issue from them into the river Thurso.

The soil is various, in many parts a clayey loam, and, though generally wet and cold, resting on a clayey subsoil, has been greatly improved by the use of lime and marl, which are found in various places. The chief crops are, oats, barley, and bear; the system of husbandry has been gradually advancing, and some considerable tracts of moor and moss have been drained, and brought into cultivation; the farm-houses and offices are in tolerable condition, and the lands have been partly inclosed. The pastures are luxuriantly rich; and considerable numbers of black-cattle and sheep are reared, the former of the Highland breed, and are sent to Thurso and Wick, whence many are forwarded by steam to the English markets. The rateable annual value of the parish is £6052. The moors abound with game, consisting chiefly of grouse, hares, snipes, and partridges; and certain portions are leased out by the proprietors, producing a rental of £500 per annum. There are but very scanty remains of ancient wood; and few plantations have been made, except around the houses of some of the proprietors; and these are not in a very thriving state, the soil and climate being unfavourable to their growth. The principal substrata are limestone and freestone; and coal and lead-ore have also been found, the latter of which was wrought by the late Sir John Sinclair, of Ulbster, Bart. There were once several quarries of limestone in operation, both for building purposes and for manure; and quarries of flagstone for paving are wrought at Spittal, the produce being annually sent to Leith and Aberdeen, for exportation. Several handsome and substantial houses have been erected in various parts, inhabited by some of the principal farmers, but no seat requiring particular description. The village is neatly built; it contains one good inn, and has a friendly society with funds amounting to £300. A cattle-market, called St. Magnus', is held in the village on the third Tuesday in December; and another, called Georgemass, takes place on the last Tuesday in the April and in July, on the hill of Ruggy, partly in the parish. Communication is maintained with Thurso by several good roads, recently formed, and by two bridges over the river Thurso, one near the village, and the other at Dale, which are both substantial structures; and by a bridge of wood at Dirlot. The turnpike-road to Thurso passes for nearly a mile through a part of the parish; and letters are brought from that town regularly every day in the week.

The ecclesiastical affairs are under the superintendence of the presbytery of Caithness and synod of Sutherland and Caithness. The minister's stipend is £205. 19., with a manse, and a glebe valued at £8 per annum; patron, Sir James Colquhoun, Bart. The church, erected in 1743, and enlarged in 1833, is situated in the village, and is a neat plain structure containing 858 sittings. There is a missionary chapel at Achrenny, with 403 sittings; the minister has a stipend of £50 from the Royal Bounty, with a house and garden, and pasture for a horse. In addition to this, he receives £45 from the inhabitants of Halsary, in the parish of Watten, and Halladale, in the parish of Reay, where, also, there are missionary stations at which he officiates. The parochial school is well conducted; the master has a salary of £34, with a house and garden, and the fees average about £5 per annum. There are several Pictish houses, and remains of ancient chapels in the parish, among which latter are those of St. Thomas at Skinnet, and St. Magnus at Spittal, whereof the walls are still tolerably entire. Some remains of a third also existed, at Banniskirk; but they have totally disappeared under the operation of the plough. of the remains of the castle of Braal, the seat of the earls of Caithness, the more ancient portion is a tower, of which the walls, of great thickness, are still remaining to the height of thirty-five feet; within the eastern wall is a staircase, leading to the summit. The more modern portion, which, from the difficulty of carrying the materials, was never completed, consists only of the ground-floor, 100 feet in length and fifty feet wide, divided into six vaults. There are also remains of castles at Dirlot and Loch More: the former, said to have been erected by the Sutherlands, is situated on the summit of a detached rock rising abruptly to the height of fifty feet, from the river Thurso, by which it was at one time surrounded. The latter was built by Ronald Cheyne, in the 14th century, in a district selected as abounding with deer. There are several springs supposed to possess mineral properties; but they have not been properly analysed.

Halvera

HALVERA, or Havera, an isle, forming part of the parishes of Bressy, Burra, and Quarff, in the county of Shetland; and containing 37 inhabitants. It lies about two miles southward of Burra island, and half a mile, in the same direction, from West Burra, and at the entrance to Cliff sound. The isle is of small extent, and has the appearance of a high rock, the access to it being by a romantic kind of creek; and the houses seem built in dangerous situations on the brink of a precipice. There is a smaller isle, called Little Halvera.

Hamilton

HAMILTON, a parish, burgh, and market-town, in the Middle ward of the county of Lanark, including the village of Fernigair, and containing 10,862 inhabitants, of whom 8876 are in the town, 11 miles (S. E. by E.) from Glasgow, and 38 (W. S. W.) from Edinburgh. This place appears to have been distinguished at a very early period, as a royal residence, under the appellation of Cadzow, of which name, however, the origin and signification are now unknown. In 1153, and also in 1289, the monarchs held their courts here; and it continued to be a royal manor till the battle of Bannockburn, immediately after which it was conferred by Bruce upon Walter Fitzgilbert de Hamilton, ancestor of the present dueal family of that name, in whose possession it has ever since remained. In 1445, James II., by charter dated the 3rd of July, created James, then proprietor of the estate, first Lord Hamilton; and erected the manor of Cadzow into a barony, which took its name from the family of its possessor. In 1474, Lord Hamilton married the Princess Mary, eldest daughter of the king, and widow of the Earl of Arran, by virtue of which alliance his descendants were, after the death of James V., recognised by parliament as heirs of the crown in the event of the death of Mary, Queen of Scots. On their accompanying that princess into France, they were created dukes of Chatelherault, in that kingdom; and they were subsequently made dukes of Hamilton by Charles I., and dukes of Brandon, in England, by Queen Anne. Few events of historical importance have occurred to distinguish the town. Of these the principal are conflicts which took place in 1650, between the army of the Covenanters, consisting of 1500 horse under the command of Colonel Kerr, and the forces of General Lambert sent against them by Cromwell, when, after an obstinate resistance, in which Kerr and 100 of his men were killed, the Covenanters were dispersed. In 1679, the army of the Covenanters, again assembling, to the number of 4000 men, encamped at Bothwell moor, between the river Clyde and the town, from which position they were dislodged by the royal army under the Duke of Monmouth, by whom they were defeated with the loss of 1200 of their number who were taken prisoners. In 1774, an accidental fire broke out in the town, which, raging for several days with unabated violence, reduced a considerable portion of it to ashes.

The town is situated on a tract of elevated ground, about a mile from the confluence of the Avon with the Clyde, and considerably to the westward of the ancient town, of which the only remains now existing are a small portion of an out-building belonging to the old hall in the pleasure-grounds of Hamilton Palace. It is intersected by the Cadaow burn, over which is a noble bridge of three arches, and by the roads leading to Glasgow and Edinburgh, on the line of the latter of which an elegant bridge of five arches was erected, over the Clyde, by act of parliament, in 1780: across the same river is also Bothwell bridge, a very ancient structure on the road to Glasgow, of which the date is unknown, and which was recently widened and repaired. A handsome bridge has lately been built over the Avon, on the London road; and across the same river is an ancient bridge of three arches, built by the monks of Lesmahago. The houses are in general well built, and some additional houses have been very recently erected. The streets are lighted with gas by a company of proprietary shareholders, who have erected works for the purpose upon a very elegant plan; and the inhabitants are amply supplied with water conveyed in pipes, from a distance of three miles, by a company whose formation was but recently completed. The public library, supported by subscription, was first opened in 1808, chiefly under the auspices of Dr. John Hume, and at present contains more than 3000 volumes; and a mechanics' institution has been established within the last few years, which is maintained with success. The cavalry barracks occupy a large area surrounded with a wall, and comprise a ridingroom, and an hospital, with stabling and the other usual accommodations. There are three masonic lodges, two gardeners' societies, and a friendly society. Considerable improvements have taken place in the town by the formation of new streets. The post is frequent; and great facility of intercourse is maintained with Glasgow and the adjacent towns by numerous coaches and other modes of conveyance. The market is on Friday; and several fairs are held in the year, which were formerly great marts for lint and wool, but at present are little more than large markets. The market for butchers' meat and the shambles are situated nearly in the middle of the town, on the bank of the Cadzow burn; and the buildings are neat, and well adapted to the purpose. A very considerable TRADE was formerly carried on here in malt, under the direction of the Society of Maltsters, which society is still kept up, though the trade has altogether declined: the linen trade, also, which formed at one time almost the staple business of the place, has been wholly discontinued. The cotton trade, on its first introduction, flourished here for some years, and the town became the principal seat of the district for the weaving of imitation or Scotch cambries; it has been on the decline since 1792, but is still considerable, and affords employment to many of the inhabitants. There are at present about 1300 looms in the town, and fifty in the rural districts of the parish; and many females are engaged in winding and in tambouring. The old lace manufacture, introduced by one of the duchesses of Hamilton, has for many years been decaying, and is now almost extinct; but a new manufacture of lace, introduced some years since by a firm from Nottingham, is at present the most flourishing trade of Hamilton, and gives occupation to nearly 3000 women in the town and neighbourhood. The principal productions are, tamboured bobbinets, and black silk veils of various patterns, with other articles, for which there is a very large and increasing demand, for the markets of England, America, and the British colonies. Many very respectable houses are engaged in this trade, which has, since its introduction by Mr. Galloch, been very much improved by others. Great quantities of check shirts are also made in the town, and exported to Australia; the weaving of stockings is carried on to a limited extent; and the tanning of leather is conducted, though on a very small scale.

The present town, though the greater part of it is comparatively modern, is of considerable antiquity, and, in the reign of James II., was erected into a burgh by charter of that monarch, granted in 1456. In 1548, it was created a royal burgh by Queen Mary; and it continued to enjoy its privileges as such till 1670, when the inhabitants forfeited their rights by disused, and accepted a new charter from Anne, Duchess of Hamilton, by which it became merely the chief burgh of the duchy of Hamilton. At the present time, the government is vested in a provost, three bailies, a treasurer, and a council of seven, assisted by a town-clerk and other officers. The provost and bailies are elected annually from the council, four of whom go out of office by rotation, every year, when four new ones are chosen by the inhabitants; the treasurer and the town-clerk are appointed by the corporation. The provost and bailies are justices of the peace, by virtue of their office, and are empowered by the charter to hold courts for the determination of all claims in actions of debt, and for the trial of all criminal cases not extending to life or limb, within the burgh. The magistrates used formerly to hold occasionally a court for the recovery of debts under forty shillings, which court, however, has, on account of a doubt entertained of its legality, fallen into disuse: they still hold weekly courts for the recovery of debts and for civil actions to an unlimited amount, in which the townclerk acts as assessor; and also courts of police for the trial of misdemeanours and other offences not capital. The elective franchise was granted by act of the 2nd and 3rd of William IV.; and the burgh has, from that time, in conjunction with Lanark, Falkirk, Linlithgow, and Airdrie, returned one member to the imperial parliament. The right of election is vested in the householders occupying tenements of the yearly value of £10 and upwards, of whom there are nearly 300. The former court-house and prison, erected at the cross in the reign of Charles I., were lately taken down; and the old town-hall is now disused. A new town-hall with public offices and a prison, of which the first stone was laid in 1834, has been built in lieu, and consists of a distinct range of building, two stories high, comprising, on the ground-floor, three apartments for the sheriff's clerk, with a record-room, and offices for the townclerk, &c., as well as a court-room thirty-seven feet long, and thirty-two feet broad: in the upper story is a large hall for county meetings, with other apartments. Behind is the prison, three stories high, containing fortyfive cells, with a spacious day-room for debtors, and day-rooms for criminals; the lower part is appropriated as a bridewell, and the upper part to debtors. Between the public offices and the prison is the house of the governor, with requisite apartments, and a bath for the use of the prison; the whole surrounded with a high wall, inclosing an area of about two roods. The trades' hall, in Church-street, erected in 1816, is a neat and appropriate building, comprising, in the upper part, a hall for the meetings of the trades, and, in the lower, a well-arranged tavern. There are also a tax, excise, and stamp office. The rateable annual value of the parish is £38,181.

The parish extends for nearly six miles in length, and is almost of the same breadth; it is bounded on the north and north-east by the river Clyde, on the south and south-west by the parish of Glassford, on the east by the parishes of Dalziel, Cambusnethan, Dalserf, and Stonehouse, and on the west by Blantyre. It comprises 14,240 acres of land, of which about 8000 are arable and of good quality, 2000 woodland, and 2040 unprofitable or waste. The surface is generally level, occasionally varied with sloping ridges, but not rising into hills of any considerable elevation. The most fertile lands are the extensive vales on the south-western bank of the Clyde, where the soil is a deep rich loam; and on the north-eastern side of that river are some hundreds of acres which, though belonging to this parish, seem to be more properly within that of Dalziel, which nearly surrounds them. The soil in the middle of the parish rests upon a yellow clay, and is less fertile than that of the valleys near the Clyde; the higher parts consist chiefly of gravel and sand, and are comparatively unproductive. The substrata are principally sandstone rock, appearing in great masses that are from under fifty to more than 300 feet in thickness; whinstone also prevails in some parts, and coal, lime, and ironstone are found. The several strata of coal vary from twenty to twenty-four feet in average thickness. The limestone is of various quality; that obtained in the south-west is excellent, and much used for building and also for manure. The ironstone is found in seams about eighteen inches thick, and also in masses varying from very minute balls to others of several inches in diameter, chiefly in the clay near the strata of coal. Among the crops are, wheat, which is grown on all the lands near the Clyde, and also on some few of the higher lands; and oats of various descriptions, of which the Polish, Essex, and Friesland are predominant. Peas and beans are chiefly raised on the lower grounds. Barley, formerly more largely cultivated, is now seldom sown, except for preparing lands for artificial grasses; but potatoes are produced in great quantities, and of good quality, and a little flax for domestic use. The system of agriculture, though varying greatly in different parts, is generally advanced; there are some considerable dairy-farms, and much attention is paid to the breeding of cattle, in which many improvements have taken place within the last few years. Great improvement has also been made in draining and inclosing the lands; the fences are chiefly hedges, and are mostly well kept up. The pastures, especially in the low lands bordering on the Clyde, are fertile; and attached to a few of the farms, and even to some of the houses in the town, are orchards which are cultivated with assiduous care, and abound with fruit of excellent quality. There are considerable tracts of woodland in the parish, of which the principal are, Bar-Michael wood near Bothwell bridge, Ross wood on the river Clyde, and Hamilton wood on the Avon and Barncluith burn. Forest trees of every kind thrive well, particularly on the lower lands. Oak is very prevalent, and many of the older trees have attained considerable size, several of them measuring thirty-six feet in girth; larch and Scotch fir also thrive; and the banks of the rivers, where they have any elevation, are crowned with luxuriant foliage. Silver and spruce fir are grown with success; and the cedar of Lebanon has attained a tolerable size where it has been planted. Freestone is found in several parts, of a good quality for building; and at present about fifty men are constantly employed in the various quarries.

The principal river is the Clyde, which rises in the heights of Crawford, and enters the parish below the falls at Lanark; it expands abruptly in its course, which is very rapid, into a breadth varying from eighty to 100 feet, and is subject after rains to frequent inundations, by which the lands have at different times been much injured. The Avon also intersects the parish, receiving in its course six tributary streams; and there are three other streamlets or burns, which fall into the Clyde. The Avon rises on the west, near the borders of the county of Ayr, and, after a picturesque course of several miles through the vale to which it gives name, enters the parish at Millheugh bridge, a little below which it flows through a defile bounded on each side by majestic rocks of romantic aspect, rising to the height of 200 or 300 feet, and richly clothed, in some parts almost to their summits, with stately and venerable oaks. Nearly in the centre of this defile are the remains of Cadzow Castle, seated on a rock ascending perpendicularly to the height of 200 feet above the level of the river; and on the opposite bank is the banquet-house of the Duke of Hamilton, built after the model of Chatelherault, from which it takes its name. Not far from the extremity of the chasm, and about three miles from the entrance, are the gardens of Barncluith, the property of Lord Ruthven, rising in terraces from the western bank of the river, which, after forcing its way through this rocky channel, flows along the fertile valleys of the parish, and falls into the Clyde near Hamilton bridge. Of the several tributary streams that intersect the parish the principal are, Cadzow burn, which rises in Glassford, and, after running through the town, falls into the Clyde at a short distance below Hamilton bridge; and Barncluith burn, which joins the Avon about half a mile from the town. The latter burn flows through Hamilton wood, forming in its way five or six falls, varying from five to six feet in height, and adding greatly to the beauty of the scenery. The Clyde and the Avon abound with fish, of which salmon, trout, pike, perch, lampreys, and silver-eels are the most common; and roach are occasionally found. Fish are found also in the streams tributary to those rivers.

Hamilton Palace, the seat of his grace the Duke of Hamilton, situated on the borders of the town, about half a mile to the west of the confluence of the Avon and Clyde, was originally a square tower of very small dimensions. The more ancient part of the present mansion was built in 1590, and nearly rebuilt about the year 1720; considerable additions have been made to the building since 1822, and at present it is one of the most splendid structures in the kingdom. The north front is 264 feet in length, and three stories in height, with a stately portico of duplicated Corinthian columns, each thirty feet high, and three feet in diameter, formed of one single block, and supporting a triangular pediment. To the west is a wing 100 feet in length, appropriated for offices and servants' apartments; and in the rear of the building is a corridor of recent addition, in which are baths and various appendages for the use of the family. The entrance hall is lofty and richly embellished; and all the state apartments, which are extremely spacious, are magnificently decorated, and richly ornamented with sculpture. The dining-room is seventy feet in length and thirty feet wide, and has numerous embellishments, among which is a tripod of exquisite beauty standing on a pedestal of African marble: the other apartments, also, abound with costly vases, cabinets, specimens, of mosaic, gems, and other rare and interesting curiosities. The gallery, which is 120 feet long, twenty feet wide, and twenty feet high, contains an extensive and very valuable collection of paintings by the most eminent masters of the Italian and Flemish schools, and many family portraits. At the upper end is the throne used by his grace when ambassador at the court of Petersburgh, and on one side of it is a bust of Augustus, and on the other one of Tiberius, both of oriental porphyry: at the opposite end of the gallery is a beautiful door of black marble, surmounted by a pediment supported on two pillars of green porphyry. The library contains a large collection of well-assorted volumes, and of prints, the latter alone being valued at £10,000. The stables, built between the palace and the town, are on a scale adapted to the style of the palace; and the grounds abound with stately timber, and with every variety and beauty of scenery. The banquetinghouse of Chatelherault was erected in 1732, by the then duke, after a model of the citadel of that name in France; it is built of red freestone, and decorated with four square towers, and, with its numerous pinnacles and other ornaments, forms a conspicuous object on the eastern side of the river Avon. It contains, among various interesting works of taste, a small but choice collection of paintings; and the grounds, in which is an extensive flower-garden, are tastefully embellished. Earnock House, a seat in the parish, is beautifully situated in its western part, on an elevated site surrounded with flourishing plantations; the house is of modern erection, well adapted for its purpose, and the gardens and pleasure-grounds are agreeably laid out. Ross is a spacious mansion, pleasantly situated in grounds comprehending much pleasing scenery: Nielsland is also a handsome residence, with an extensive demesne; and there are some good houses at Fair Hill, Grovemount, Edlewood, and Fairholme. Of Barncluith the principal feature is the gardens previously noticed; and many of the ancient seats of different branches of the Hamilton family have become farm-houses. The chief landed proprietor is the Duke of Hamilton, who owns more than one-half of the parish.

The parish formerly comprished the chapelry of Machan, now the parish of Dalserf; and the church was granted by David I., together with the lands belonging to it, to the abbey of Glasgow, and was afterwards appropriated to the deanery of that see. The Ecclesiastical affairs are now under the superintendence of the presbytery of Hamilton and synod of Glasgow and Ayr. There are two ministers, of whom the first has a stipend of £313. 13., whereof £2. 15. arise from a bequest for communion elements; and £107. 10. are allowed by the Duke of Hamilton in lieu of manse and glebe: the second minister has a stipend of less amount, with a manse, but no glebe. The old church, which was made collegiate under the influence of the first Lord Hamilton, in 1451, stood in the higher part of the parish, and was endowed for a provost and eight prebendaries, and contained a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, for which a chaplain was appointed. The building, which was of hewn stone, consisted of a nave, choir, and transepts, of elegant design, and continued till 1732, when it fell into decay, since which time it has been greatly dilapidated, nothing of it now remaining but one of the transepts, still used as a burying-place for the Hamilton family. The present parish church, situated nearly in the centre of the town, is a handsome structure of circular form, erected after a design by the elder Adam, architect; and is adapted to a congregation of 800. A second church in connexion with the Establishment, and capable of containing 1021 persons, has been lately erected; but this building is now in the hands of members of the Free Church, who appoint the minister. The Episcopalians in the neighbourhood have just formed themselves into a congregation. The Roman Catholics have purchased ground for the erection of a chapel; and there are two congregations of the Relief, one in Muir-street, and the other in Brandon-street; also places of worship for Antiburghers, New Light Burghers, Old Independents, and a tabernacle in connexion with the Congregational Union. The grammar school is of ancient origin, and in 1588 was endowed by Lord John Hamilton with £20 Scotch per annum; it affords a liberal education to about forty children, and is under the patronage of the corporation. The master's salary is £34, and the fees on the average amount to £60: the school-house is a venerable building, nearly in the centre of the town. The hospital founded and supported by the Duke of Hamilton, for twelve aged men, was originally built in the old town, but was removed to the present after the erection of the collegiate church; it is an ancient building with a campanile turret, situated near the cross, and was formerly inhabited by the pensioners, but has for some years been let out, and the receipts applied to their use. An hospital was built and endowed in 1775, by William Aikman, Esq., for four aged men, who have each a residence in the building, which is in Muir-street, with a suit of clothes every second year, and £4 per annum. Mr. John Rae bequeathed to the town council a sum of money which, together with some bequests of other benefactors, produces an annual interest of £9.2.4., which, according to the will of the testators, is distributed among poor housekeepers. Mr. Robertson, of this town, and sheriff-clerk of Lanark, in conjunction with Mr. Lyon, left £4 per annum for nine aged men; and Miss Christian Allan, in 1785, left to the Kirk Session £50, in trust for the benefit of the poor. Mr. William Torbet bequeathed to the same trustees an orchard that lets at £10 per annum; and they have also a legacy of £50, the interest of which is divided among five female housekeepers named by them; another legacy of £50, of which only £30 were paid, for clothing the indigent poor; and a donation of £100, of which the interest is applied to the instruction of twelve children.

Among the Antiquities in the parish, the most conspicuous are the remains of Cadzow Castle, previously noticed as crowning the summit of a precipitous rock rising from the river Avon, in Hamilton woods; it has been repaired at various times. The keep, surrounded by a fosse, over which is a narrow bridge leading to the entrance gateway, and a well within the walls, are still in good preservation; and several vaults, with part of the walls of the chapel, may yet be distinctly traced. Darngaber Castle, in the south-east of the parish, supposed to have been founded by Thomas, son of Sir John de Hamilton, lord of Cadzow, occupied an elevated site at the extremity of a point of land near the confluence of two rivulets: the only remains are, portions of the foundations, which appear to have consisted of flat unhewn and uncemented stones; and some vaults, that seem to have been constructed at a much earlier period. At Meikle Earnoch, two miles south of the town, is a tumulus about twelve feet in diameter, and eight feet high, which appears to have been originally of larger dimensions. On opening it several urns were found, containing human bones nearly reduced to ashes; they were all of baked earth, without inscription, but some of them were decorated with mouldings. To the north of Hamilton Palace is a mount supposed to have been in remoter ages a seat for the administration of justice; it is about thirty feet in diameter at the base, and fifteen feet high, and near it is a stone cross four feet high, without inscription. This is thought to have been the market cross of the old town, called Netherton, which, previously to the erection of the present town of Hamilton, occupied this part. In the south of the parish is a portion of a cromlech, consisting of one stone of about six feet, which, having declined greatly from its erect position, was recently replaced by the tenant of a neighbouring farm.

Handa

HANDA, an island, in the parish of Eddrachillis, county of Sutherland; containing 65 inhabitants. It is situated off the western coast of the county, and separated from the main land of the parish by a narrow sound; and is about a mile square. On the north, one vast perpendicular rock, or majestic cliff, 600 feet in height, presents its face to the sea, and is the habitation of innumerable sea-fowl during the season of incubation; on the south, the isle is much lower, and the ascent gentle and easy. It has some fertile spots, producing corn and hay, but is principally appropriated to sheep-walks. Fishing is the chief employment of the population, who also obtain by fowling, and frequently by daring exploits, great quantities of birds and eggs, as well for disposal to their main land neighbours, as for their own subsistence. This was once the residence of Little John Mac Dhoil Mhich Huishdan, one of the Macleods of Assynt, and the murderer of Judge Morison, of Lewis, in the reign of James VI.

Hanginshaw

HANGINSHAW, a village, in the parish of Cathcart, Upper ward of the county of Renfrew, 1 mile (N. N. E.) from Cathcart; containing 143 inhabitants. It is seated in the eastern part of the parish, and a short distance east of the road from Cathcart to Glasgow; the Cart water flows south of the village.

Hardgate

HARDGATE, a village, in that part of the parish of Old Kilpatrick which formed the quoad sacra parish of Duntocher, county of Dumbarton, 2 miles (E.) from Old Kilpatrick; containing 467 inhabitants. This is one of numerous thriving villages which have sprung up in this great manufacturing district within the present century. It arose in the erection of the mill here, in 1831, for spinning and weaving cotton, by Mr. Dunn, a large proprietor of land in this quarter, and the enterprising founder of several other mills and works in the vicinity. The villages of Hardgate, Duntocher, Faifley, and Milton, in which Mr. Dunn has considerable establishments, are all within less than a mile of each other, and border on the Frith of Clyde, which flows on the south of the parish.

Hardgate

HARDGATE, a hamlet, in the parish of Urr, stewartry of Kirkcudbright, 5½ miles (N. E.) from Castle-Douglas; containing 46 inhabitants. It lies in the centre of the parish, a short distance northward of the church.

Harray.

HARRAY.— See Birsay, county of Orkney.

Harris

HARRIS, a parish, comprising the southern division of the island of Lewis, in the county of Inverness, 44 miles (N. W.) from Portree; and containing, with the islands designated Bernera, Ensay, Hermitray, Killigray, Pabbay, Scalpay, Scarp, and Tarrinsay, 4429 inhabitants. The parish of Harris was till lately called Kilbride; its present name is corrupted from the Gaelic term na hardibh, signifying "the heights," this district of the Hebrides being the highest and most mountainous of any in the island of Lewis. It consists chiefly of the southern part of that island, separated from the northern portion by an isthmus about six miles across, formed by the approach to each other of the two great harbours, Loch Resort and Loch Seaforth. The Atlantic Ocean bounds it on the west; on the east is the Minch, which separates it from the island of Skye; and on the south is the channel generally called the Sound of Harris, but sometimes Caolas Uist, or the Sound of Uist, lying between Harris and the islands of Bernera and North Uist. The parish is fifty miles in length, varies in breadth from eight to twenty-four miles, and comprises 94,000 Scotch acres, of which 85,000 are moor and pasture, 800 subject to tillage by the plough, and 6000 by the spade, 300 under plantations, and the remainder sand and rock. The shore on the west is in some parts sandy, and in others strongly marked by precipitous rocks; the eastern coast is broken with many harbours, bays, and creeks. At a small distance on the west are the inhabited islands denominated Tarrinsay and Scarp; and in the Sound of Harris, a channel about nine miles across, affording a communication for vessels between the Minch and the Atlantic, are the inhabited islands of Bernera, Pabbay, Ensay, and Killigray, with many smaller ones, uninhabited, and entirely appropriated to pasturage. The coasts abound with oysters and lobsters, and several boats are engaged in taking the latter: the sun-fish, also, is sometimes taken in the summer months, with the harpoon; and in the island of Gaasker, seals are killed in large numbers with clubs.

The main land of the parish is divided into two distinct portions by an isthmus about a quarter of a miles in breadth, formed by an arm of the sea on each side, respectively called East and West Loch Tarbert. The northern district is prominently intersected by part of a range of mountains running longitudinally throughout the parish, and which attain an elevation of from 2000 to 3000 feet above the level of the sea, and are here at their greatest height. This portion is traversed by large herds of deer, which range among the hills and glens; and, though destitute of wood, is called the Forest, having, as is supposed, been once a royal forest. The surface of the southern portion of the parish is similar in appearance to the former, but marked by more moderate elevations: grouse, wild-geese, plover, and pigeons, are numerous on the moors and lower grounds; and the eagle is a visitant of some of the most lofty rocks. There are fresh-water lakes and rivulets in every direction; the waters of Lacksta, Scurt, and Obbe abound with salmon and trout. The district is chiefly pastoral, only a very small portion, on account of the intractable nature of the ground, being capable of the regular operations of husbandry. The soil of a large part of the land in cultivation is very poor; and several of the best farms, formerly possessed by small tenants, have been consolidated, and converted into sheep-walks. The crops consist principally of oats, barley, and potatoes; the live stock are mostly Cheviot sheep and black-cattle, to the breed of which particular attention is paid. The small tenants occupy cottages of unhewn stone, with clay cement, and covered with straw thatch, the one building often serving for the family and the cows and horses: on the larger farms are respectable steadings. The Earl of Dunmore is proprietor of the parish, and has a shooting-seat here. The rocks are partly of the primitive formation; but that which most prevails is gneiss. The rateable annual value of Harris is £4015.

About 250 families are engaged, during the summer months, in the manufacture of kelp, 600 tons of which are annually prepared: attempts were made by the late proprietor to establish fishing-stations in several parts of the parish, but they all proved unsuccessful. The harbour of Scalpay, on the eastern coast, is much frequented by foreign ships; and the numerous bays and creeks are convenient places of resort for small craft. Many boats belong to the parish, and are employed in conveying kelp to market: the lobsters taken here are regularly sent by smacks to London. A packet runs twice in each week in summer, and once in winter, between Tarbert, in Harris, and Uig, in the Isle of Skye. An annual fair is held in July, at Tarbert, for the sale of cattle and horses; the sheep graziers send their stock to the Falkirk tryst. The parish is in the presbytery of Uist and synod of Glenelg, and in the patronage of the Earl of Dunmore: the minister's stipend is £158, of which nearly two-thirds are received from the exchequer, with a manse, and a glebe valued at £45 per annum. A new church, with 400 sittings, has just been built, the old edifice, situated nearly in the centre of the parish, and accommodating only 250 persons, having become too ruinous for public worship. At Bernera is a government church, erected in 1829, to which is attached a district consisting of some islands belonging to the parish; and a missionary is supported at Tarbert by the Royal Bounty, a church and manse having been provided by A. N. Macleod, Esq., the late proprietor. The parochial school affords instruction in Latin, in addition to the ordinary branches; the master has a salary of £30, with a house, and about £6 fees. There are also three schools supported by the Gaelic School Society, Gaelic being the prevailing language of the place; but these will soon be superseded by English schools. The chief relic of antiquity is the ruin of a church at Rodil, once attached to the priory of St. Clement's, and used, until it became too much dilapidated, as the parochial place of worship.

Harthill

HARTHILL, a village, in the parish of Shotts, Middle ward of the county of Lanark; containing 176 inhabitants.

Hascussay

HASCUSSAY, an isle, in the parish of Mid and South Yell, county of Shetland; containing 42 inhabitants. It lies on the east side of Yell, in Colgrave sound, and west of the isle of Fetlar; it is one of the smaller of the Shetland group, and was formerly uninhabited.

Hassendean

HASSENDEAN, a hamlet, in the parish of Minto, district of Jedburgh, county of Roxburgh, 7 miles (W.) from Jedburgh; containing 21 inhabitants. This place, seated on a small stream of the same name, was anciently a parish, of which the lands were divided between the parishes of Minto, Wilton, and Roberton. After the Reformation the church and its pertinents were granted to Walter, Earl of Buccleuch. There was formerly a cell here, dependent on the abbey of Melrose; and a farm adjoining the church continues to bear the name of the Monks' croft. The church and greater part of the churchyard have been washed away by the river Teviot, which passes on the south of the parish of Minto, and of which the Hassendean burn is a tributary.

Haugh

HAUGH, a village, in the parish of Mauchline, district of Kyle, county of Ayr, 1½ mile (S.) from Mauchline; containing 79 inhabitants. It is seated on the north bank of the river Ayr, and has a woollen manufactory, chiefly for carpet yarn, employing about thirty persons.

Haugh

HAUGH, a village, in the parish of Urr, stewartry of Kirkcudbright, 4½ miles (N. E.) from CastleDouglas; containing 240 inhabitants. It is situated on the Urr water, about a mile westward from the church, and is one of the four most populous villages in the parish.

Haugh-Head

HAUGH-HEAD, a village, in the parish of Campsie, county of Stirling; containing 328 inhabitants. This place is situated in the western part of the parish, and is one of several villages of which the population is engaged in the coal-mines, print-works, and print-fields of the district.

Haugh-Mill

HAUGH-MILL, a village, in that part of the parish of Markinch which formed the quoad sacra parish of Milton of Balgonie, county of Fife; containing 170 inhabitants. This village has risen since the erection of some mills, in 1794, for the spinning of flax and tow into canvass yarn, for which purpose they continued to be employed till 1832, when the present proprietor introduced a complete set of new machinery, for the spinning of the finer yarns for home-made linens. In 1835, he greatly augmented the number of spindles, now amounting to 2000. The machinery is propelled by two water-wheels of forty-horse power; and from twenty-five to thirty tons of flax are consumed monthly, imported chiefly from Holland, Belgium, France, Archangel, Riga, and St. Petersburg. In 1836, a spacious bleachfield was established in connexion with the works; and both of these afford employment to about 185 persons, many of whom live in cottages built upon the premises.

Haven, East

HAVEN, EAST, a village, in the parish of Panbride, county of Forfar, 4½ miles (S. W.) from Arbroath; containing 145 inhabitants. This place derives its affix from its relative situation with respect to another village, about a mile distant, and also on the sea-coast. It is neatly built, and is inhabited chiefly by persons engaged in the fishery, and in the trades requisite for the supply of the immediate neighbourhood. The fish that are taken are, lobsters, cod, haddocks, and other kinds, which are found in abundance off this part of the coast, and are sent to Dundee and other places in the vicinity, and to the London market. Great quantities of lobsters are forwarded to London, being kept alive during the passage by the free admission of sea-water into wells constructed for that purpose. The cod and haddocks are sold fresh at Dundee, and markets in the vicinity; and alter the supply of the neighbourhood, many are salted, and exported to distant places. Three boats are employed in the fishery: the season for the lobster-fishing commences in the beginning of February, and usually terminates about the end of May. A considerable trade, also, is carried on here, during the summer, in the importation of coal and lime; and there are, belonging to this place and West Haven, four vessels, varying in burthen from about fifty to seventy tons. The village has no properly constructed harbour, but merely an open cove or landing place, accessible to vessels of eighty tons; so that, from the want of shelter, the trade is entirely discontinued during the winter. Facility of intercourse is afforded by the great turnpike-road from Dundee to Arbroath, and by the Dundee and Arbroath railway, which has an intermediate station here, a handsome structure in the Elizabethan style, furnished with every requisite accommodation.

Haven, West

HAVEN, WEST, a village, in the parish of Panbride, county of Forfar, 5½ miles (S. W.) from Arbroath; containing 301 inhabitants. This village is situated on the coast, at a distance of a mile only from East Haven, and, with the exception of a small hamlet adjoining it, to the landward, is in every respect so identified with that village in its fishery, trade, and other circumstances, as to require no separate description.

Havera

HAVERA, county of Shetland.—See Halvera.

Hawick

HAWICK, a burgh of barony and a parish, in the district of Hawick, county of Roxburgh, 10 miles (W. S. W.) from Jedburgh, and 50 (S. S. E.) from Edinburgh; containing 8000 inhabitants, of whom 7000 are in the burgh. This place, of which the name simply denotes "a village or town in the bend of a river," is of remote antiquity, and is generally supposed to have been originally of Saxon foundation; but very little of its history is known prior to the commencement of the fourteenth century. The first authentic notice of the burgh occurs in a charter granted by Robert. Bruce; and the barony, together with that of Sprouston, appears to have been conferred by David II. on Thomas de Murray, from whom it descended, during that king's reign, to Maurice, Earl of Strathearn. In the early part of the fifteenth century, it became the property of Sir William Douglas, who, for his gallant services in the wars of the border, obtained from James I. a charter confirming to him the lands, of Hawick, and bestowing also those of Selkirk and Drumlanrig. The barony remained for many generations in the possession of his descendants, of whom Sir William Douglas was, in 1639, created Earl of Queensberry, Viscount Drumlanrig, and Lord Hawick. It subsequently became the property of the Scott family, who continued to exercise lordly authority over their feudatories till the year 1747, when, on the final abolition of heritable jurisdictions, the Duke of Buccleuch received from parliament the sum of £400, as a compensation. During the border warfare, the town suffered repeated devastation; in 1418, it was burnt by the forces under Sir Robert Umfraville, governor of Berwick, and in 1544 was laid waste by the troops of Sir Ralph Evers and Sir Brian Latoun. In 1570, to prevent its occupation by the English under the Earl of Surrey, the inhabitants themselves set fire to the town, which, with the exception of the ancient castle, called the Black Tower, was wholly destroyed, In rebuilding the town after these calamities, the dangers to which it was exposed led to the adoption of a peculiar style of architecture; the houses were built of rough whinstone, with walls of massive thickness, and without any entrance except from a court-yard in the rear. Of these buildings, each of which was well calculated for defence, there are still some few specimens remaining. From its situation near the confluence of two rivers, the town is exposed to inundations; and in 1767, after a heavy fall of rain, the Slitrig, in the course of two hours, rose to a height of twenty feet above its ordinary level, and carried away the garden wall of the manse, the parish school-room, a corn-mill, and the whole of the houses in one of the streets.

The present Town is pleasantly seated on the south-east bank of the Teviot, and is divided into two parts by the river Slitrig, which flows through it into the former stream. It consists of one principal street, and of several smaller streets and lanes diverging from it on both sides; some new streets have been formed, and a handsome range of buildings called Slitrig-crescent, and another named Teviot-crescent. The streets are well paved, and lighted with gas; and the inhabitants are amply supplied with water, conveyed by pipes. Connecting the opposite sides of the town are two bridges over the Slitrig, one of which is of antique character; and towards the eastern extremity, an elegant bridge has been erected across the Teviot. The approach to the town, both from the east and west, derives great beauty from the nursery grounds and gardens in those directions; the surrounding scenery, also, is very pleasing. The public subscription library, established in 1762, is supported by a proprietary of shareholders, and has a collection of 3500 volumes; the trades' library, opened in 1802, has 1200 volumes; and there are several smaller libraries. The town also contains three public reading and news rooms, as well as subscription assembly-rooms, which are used occasionally for public meetings. A school of arts, founded in 1824, under the patronage of James Douglas, Esq., was formerly supported by subscription, for the delivery of courses of lectures on literary and scientific subjects.

The staple Trade is the woollen manufacture, which of late has been rapidly increasing, and is now carried on to a very considerable extent. The weaving of coarse woollen stockings was first introduced in 1771, by Mr. John Hardie, and, on his retiring from the concern in 1780, was continued on a much larger scale by Mr. John Nixon. Still, comparatively little was done previously to the adoption of machinery for the spinning of yarn, which took place about the commencement of the present century. Since that period the woollen manufacture has greatly increased in variety and extent; and there are now eleven factories belonging to the manufacturers of this place, some of them, however, situated within the limits of the adjoining parish of Wilton. In all of these, machinery on the most approved principles is employed; four are partly driven by steam, and the others by water only. The articles are, underclothing, flannels, plaidings, shawls, tartans, druggets and woollen cloths of every description, lambs'wool hosiery of the finest texture, and Scottish and English blankets. The production of these affords occupation, including women, to nearly 3000 persons. There are also many persons employed in the making of thongs, gloves, candles, and some other articles, and in the tanning of leather and dressing of sheep-skins; the manufacture of machinery of all kinds is considerable; and there are numerous masons, carpenters, smiths, millwrights, and others occupied in handicraft trades. The post-office has a good delivery; and previously to the alteration in the rates of postage the revenue amounted to £1000. There are three branch banks, and a savings' bank, in which latter the deposits are nearly £7000. The market is on Thursday, and is amply supplied with grain and with all kinds of provisions. Fairs are held on the 17th of May, for cattle and hiring servants; on the 20th and 21st of September, for sheep; on the third Tuesday in October, for cattle and horses; and the 8th of November, for cattle and hiring servants. Facility of communication is afforded by turnpike and statute roads, which have been greatly improved, and by bridges over the rivers, kept in excellent repair.

The more ancient records of the Burgh were lost in the destruction of the town during the border wars; and the oldest charter now extant is that granted by James Douglas, baron of Hawick, and dated in 1537. Under this charter, ratified and extended in 1545, by Mary, Queen of Scots, the inhabitants exercise all the privileges of a royal burgh, with the exception of sending a member to parliament. The government is vested in two bailies, elected annually, a treasurer, and a council of thirty-one members, of whom fifteen are appointed as vacancies occur, and hold their seats for life, and fourteen are chosen every year by the seven incorporated trades, each of which returns two. The fees for admission as a burgess are, for strangers £4, for the sons-in-law of burgesses £2, and for sons £1. The incorporated trades are, the weavers, tailors, hammermen, skinners, shoemakers, butchers, and bakers, the highest fee for admission into which is ten shillings. The magistrates hold courts when requisite, both for civil and criminal cases within the burgh, in which they are assisted by the town-clerk, who acts as assessor; in civil pleas their jurisdiction extends to sums of any amount, but in criminal cases is confined to petty misdemeanours. Annually, on the last Friday in May, O. S., a procession of the magistrates on horseback occurs, which is called the riding of the marches; and on this occasion, a standard taken in 1514, the year subsequent to that in which the battle of Flodden Field was fought, is carried before them. There is a townhall, in which the courts are held; and a gaol has been very recently erected for the use of the town and district.

The parish, which is situated in the western portion of the county, is about fifteen and a half miles in length, and rather more than a mile and a half in average breadth, comprising an area of 15,360 acres, of which 4100 are arable, 160 woodland and plantations, and 11,100 meadow and pasture. The surface is beautifully diversified. A sinuous valley, watered by the river Teviot, intersects the parish nearly through the whole length, and is bounded on either side by ranges of hills, clothed with verdure to their summits, and several of which have a considerable elevation. The vale of the Slitrig, intersecting the parish towards the east, forms also a rich pastoral district, though of more wild and secluded aspect. The scenery is greatly enlivened by the windings of the two rivers, which unite at the town; and the hills command a varied prospect over the adjacent country. The soil along the banks of the streams is generally gravelly, and on the other arable lands a light loam. The system of agriculture has greatly improved within the last few years; and a considerable quantity of waste has been drained, and rendered profitable, under the auspices of an agricultural society for the west of Teviotdale, formed in 1835, under the patronage of the Duke of Buccleuch. The usual crops are, grain of every kind, with potatoes and turnips. The farm-buildings are commodiously arranged; all the various improvements in agricultural implements have been adopted; and great attention is paid to the breeds of cattle and sheep, of which great numbers are reared in the pastoral districts. The plantations are well managed, and in a thriving state. The rocks are composed chiefly of greywacke; and there are some quarries of stone, of good quality for the roads. The rateable annual value of the parish is £12,923.

The ecclesiastical affairs are under the superintendence of the presbytery of Jedburgh and synod of Merse and Teviotdale. The minister's stipend is £278, with a manse, and a glebe valued at £56 per annum; patron, the Duke of Buccleuch. The old parish church, erected in 1764, on rising ground in the centre of the town, is a very plain structure containing 704 sittings, a number totally inadequate to the population. An elegant new church has been erected by the Duke. The members of the Free Church have also a place of worship; and there are places of worship for the United Associate Synod, Relief, Independent body, Roman Catholics, and Society of Friends. The parochial school is under the management of a rector and his assistant, who divide between them a salary of £33, paid by the heritors, £19, the proceeds of a bequest by the Rev. Alexander Orrock in 1711, and the fees, averaging £106, of all which the rector has three-fifths, with an allowance of £17 in lieu of a dwelling-house, and the assistant two-fifths. The school is attended by about 220 children, who are instructed in the Latin, Greek, and French languages, and the mathematics, &c. There is also a school in the hamlet of Newmill, endowed by the heritors with a salary of £12 to the master, in addition to his fees, which average £18 per annum. At the upper extremity of the town are the remains of a moat, supposed to have been a place for administering justice; and in various parts of the parish are vestiges of border fortresses, of which the most remarkable is that called the Black Tower, the baronial seat of the lords of Drumlanrig, subsequently the residence of Anne, Duchess of Buccleuch, and now forming part of the Tower inn. Another is attached to the castle of Branxholme, the ancient residence of the Buccleuch family, and celebrated by Sir Walter Scott in his Lay of the Last Minstrel. This castle was burnt by the Earl of Northumberland, in 1532, and blown up with gunpowder during the invasion of the Earl of Surrey, in 1570; but was partly rebuilt, according to an inscription on the walls, by "Sir W. Scott, of Branxheim, Knyte," in 1574, and completed by "Dame Margaret Douglas, his spous," in 1576. On the brow of a hill at Goldielands, about two miles distant, is a third border fortress, which retains much of its original character, and is said to have been the residence of the Goldie family. An ancient vessel of bronze, with a handle and spout, and standing on three feet, supposed to have been used by the Romans for sacrifice, was dug up a few years since, at Reasknow, and is now in the possession of James Grieve, Esq., of Branxholme Braes, who has also a coin of Alexander III., discovered in the moss at Hislop, and in a very perfect state. On the removal of a cairn near the town, about 1809, several large stones placed edgewise, and inclosing a human skull and bones of large size, were found; and some sepulchral urns of rude workmanship have been discovered at various times.