Tour St Andrews Fife Scotland

Tour St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. St Andrews in 1846. St Andrews, a city, the seat of a university, and anciently the metropolitan see of Scotland, in the district of St. Andrew's, county of Fife, 39 miles (N. N. E.) from Edinburgh; containing, with the villages of Boarhills, Grange, Kincaple, and Strathkinness, 6017 inhabitants, of whom 3959 are in the city. This place, which is of very remote antiquity, formed part of the territories of the Pictish kings, of whom Hergustus, whose capital was at Abernethy, had a palace or hunting-seat near the site of the present town, at that time a forest frequented by wild boars, and thence, as well as from its situation on a promontory overlooking the bay, called Mucross, a name still retained in that of the present village of Boarhills. The origin of the town is, by tradition, ascribed to St. Regulus, abbot of the monastery of Patrae, in the Grecian province of Achaia, who, about the year 370, attended by a company of his brethren, sailed from Patrae, bearing with him a portion of the relics of the apostle St. Andrew, which had been deposited there, and was driven by a storm into the bay of this place, where with difficulty, after the loss of their ship, the crew escaped to land, with the sacred relics they had preserved. Hergustus, the Pictish monarch, informed of the arrival of these strangers, came to visit them in person, and, pleased with the simplicity and sanctity of their manners, became a convert to Christianity, granted them his palace, with the adjoining lands, for a settlement, and, after the subsequent erection of a church, changed the name Mucross into Kilrymont, or "the church of the King's Mount." St. Regulus lived for thirty years afterwards at this place, under the patronage of Hergustus, disseminating the doctrines of the Christian faith throughout this part of the country, and was buried in the church over which he had so long presided. After the subjugation of the Pictish dominion, and the establishment of the Scottish monarchy, by Kenneth McAlpine, that king transferred the seat of government from Abernethy to this place, to which, in honour of the Apostle, he gave the name of St. Andrew's, by which it has ever since been designated; and on the division of the country into dioceses, in the reign of Malcolm III., St. Andrew's became the metropolitan see of the kingdom. In 1120, an Augustine priory was founded here, by Robert, Bishop of St. Andrew's, who also, in 1140, obtained from David I. a charter erecting the town into a royal burgh. To this important priory, the nomination of the bishop was subsequently transferred, from the Culdees. In 1159, Bishop Arnold commenced the erection of the cathedral, which was continued under his successors, for more than a century and a half, and ultimately completed by Bishop Lamberton, a zealous adherent of Bruce. In 1200, Bishop Roger built the castle of St. Andrew's, which was, for many years, the residence of the prelates of the see; and in 1274, Bishop Wishart founded a Dominican priory.

After the battle of Falkirk, in 1298, Edward I. of England summoned the Scottish parliament to meet at St. Andrew's, and compelled every member, with the exception only of Sir William Wallace, to swear fealty to his government; and a few years subsequently, the same parliament assembled here to take the oath of allegiance to Robert Bruce. Edward III. of England, in 1336, placed a garrison in the castle, which, in the year following, was reduced by the earls of March and Fife; and in 1401, David, Duke of Rothesay, and brother of James I., on a false charge of treason, was imprisoned in the castle, by his uncle, the Duke of Albany, and afterwards removed to Falkland, where he was starved to death. The university of St. Andrew's was founded in 1410, by Bishop Wardlaw, and, in the following year, was incorporated by charter, conferring all the powers and privileges enjoyed by foreign universities; James I., after regaining his liberty, visited the establishment, bestowing on its members many marks of his favour, and, in 1431, granted them a charter of exemption from all taxes, tolls, or services, in every part of the kingdom. Bishop Kennedy, nephew of James I., in 1455, founded the college of St. Salvator, chiefly for theological studies and the liberal arts; the foundation charter was confirmed by Pope Nicholas V., and the institution was subsequently endowed with numerous royal grants. In 1471, the bishops of St. Andrew's were dignified with the title of archbishops, and the metropolitan see was elevated to the primacy of the kingdom; in 1512, John Hephurn, prior of the Augustinian monastery, founded the college of St. Leonard, and endowed it from the revenues of the hospital which had been built for the reception of pilgrims visiting the shrine of St. Andrew, and out of his own private property, chiefly for the education of the brethren of the convent. During the numerous religious persecutions which preceded the Reformation, George Buchanan, afterwards preceptor of James VI., was imprisoned in the castle of St. Andrew's, for writing against the Francisan friars, but contrived to make his escape through one of the windows, and fled into England. In 1538, Archbishop Beaton, uncle and predecessor of Cardinal Beaton, began to repair and enlarge the pedagogium, or ancient seat of the university, which, on his decease, was continued by the cardinal, who added largely to its endowment, and converted it into the college of St. Mary, or the New College. This establishment, which was subsequently improved by Archbishop Hamilton, was remodelled in 1579, by Archbishop Adamson and Buchanan, and since that time has been confined to the study of theology. In 1559, after a sermon preached by John Knox, the reformer, the populace immediately commenced the destruction of the venerable cathedral of St. Andrew's, which, in a few hours, they reduced to a heap of ruins; and they afterwards plundered and destroyed most of the other religious establishments of the city.

In 1583, James VI., escaping from the thraldom in which he was held by Gowrie, Glencairn, and others, shut himself up in the castle, by connivance of the governor, where he was joined by a number of his loyal subjects; and after his accession to the English throne, he assembled here a meeting of the prelates and principal clergy, to deliberate on the future interests of the church. In 1645, the Scottish parliament met in the city, and passed sentence of death upon Sir Robert Spottiswood, son of the late archbishop, and three other royalists, who had been taken prisoners at the battle of Philiphaugh, and who were publicly executed in the principal street of the city. In 1679, Archbishop Sharpe was murdered at Magnus Muir, within four miles of the city, by a party of the Covenanters, of whom five, that were afterwards taken prisoners at the battle of Bothwell Bridge, were executed on the spot where the murder was committed, and their bodies hung in chains. Previously to the Reformation, the city was a place of considerable commercial importance, and the resort of numerous merchants from France, Holland, and other trading ports; and nearly 300 vessels had been known to arrive in the harbour; but, after the Reformation, and the consequent suppression of its ecclesiastical supremacy, its trade and shipping fell into rapid decay. In 1655, it was so reduced that a petition was addressed by the magistrates and council to General Monk, praying to be relieved from an assessment, on the ground of "the total decay of shipping and sea trade, and the removal of the most eminent inhabitants;" and in 1656, there was only one vessel, of 20 tons burthen, belonging to the port. The chief support of the inhabitants has since been derived from its university; and although its trade has, in some degree, revived, yet the city has never regained its original commercial importance.

The town is beautifully situated on the bay of St. Andrew's in the German Sea, and mainly consists of three spacious and nearly parallel streets, of which the principal is South-street, at the western extremity of which is Argyle Port, the only remains of the ancient fortifications of the city; it is still in good preservation, and over the arched gateway are the city arms, nearly obliterated by time. Beyond South-street, is Marketstreet, to the north of which is North-street; and still further to the north, and bordering upon the bay, was Swallow-street, formerly the principal residence of the merchants, but which has long since disappeared, and the site been converted into a public walk called the Scores. These streets are intersected, at right angles, by several smaller streets; and a new street called Bell-street, has recently been formed, connecting North with Market street, and which it is proposed to extend to South-street. The houses are generally well built, and of handsome appearance, and many of them are spacious; the streets are paved, and lighted with gas, and the inhabitants are amply supplied with excellent water. A public subscription library was established about 1821, and has now a collection of more than 1200 volumes; a literary and philosophical society was instituted in 1839, and a mechanics' library was formed a few years since, but shortly after became extinct. The sea-beach is well adapted for bathing; and near the castle, on an eminence overlooking the sea, a building has been erected, containing every requisite accommodation of hot and cold baths. On the extensive links to the west of the town, the ancient game of golf is pursued by the inhabitants, as their principal recreation; a club for that purpose, consisting of several noblemen and gentlemen, was established in 1754, and to such an extent is this amusement followed, that not less than 5000 balls are annually used by the players. The environs of the town possess much beauty and variety of scenery, and the numerous remains of its ancient ecclesiastical structures, and its colleges and public buildings, give to it a venerable and interesting appearance.

The University, which consists of St. Mary's, or the New, College, and the united colleges of St. Salvator and St. Leonard, is under the controul of a chancellor, chosen by the senatus academicus; two principals, appointed by the crown, one for St. Mary's, with a stipend of £238, and one for St. Salvator's, with an income of £307; and a rector, annually elected by the professors and students, from the professors of divinity and ecclesiastical history in St. Mary's, and the principal of St. Salvator's. The professorships of divinity, Hebrew, and ecclesiastical history, in St. Mary's, and the professorship of mathematics in the United College, are in the patronage of the Crown, and are valued respectively at £232, £211, £286, and £440, per annum. The professorships in the United College in its own gift, are, the Greek, valued at £444; logic, £310; moral philosophy, £372; and natural philosophy, £278: that of medicine, £227, is in the patronage of the university. The professorship of humanity, valued at £458, is in the gift of the Duke of Portland; the professorship of civil history, valued at £199, is in the patronage of the Marquess of Ailsa; and that of chemistry, founded from a bequest by Dr. Gray, and to which the first appointment was made in 1840, is valued at £70, and is in the patronage of the Earl of Leven. The senatus academicus consists of the principals and professors of both colleges, and the rector of the university presides at its meetings; by this body alone, degrees are conferred, the several faculties recommending the candidates. The College of St. Mary is confined to the study of theology; the students neither wear gowns, nor pay any fees, but, previously to their admission, must have passed through the ordinary routine of classical and philosophical studies in some of the Scottish colleges; the session commences on the 1st of December, and closes on the 31st of March. In the gift of this college are twenty bursaries, among which are, one of £18, two of £15 each, ten between £15 and £10, three of £10, and one of £7; the college has also the patronage of several incumbencies. The buildings, which have been restored, and partly rebuilt, occupy a quadrangle, on the north side of which is the university library, containing more than 45,000 volumes, open to the use of both colleges; on the west side, are the divinity hall and principal's lodge. The front towards the street has been made to harmonize with the new buildings, and ornamented with a series of shields, containing the armorial bearings of the several chancellors of the university, from its foundation to the present time.

The Colleges of St. Salvator and St. Leonard were united by act of parliament, in 1747, and placed under the superintendence of one principal; the students wear gowns of scarlet frieze, and pay a fee of £3. 3. to each of the professors whose lectures they attend; the session commences on the first Tuesday in October, and closes on the last Friday in April. In the gift of the college, are sixty-four bursaries, of the aggregate value of £900; of these, there are several of £20 each, four of £15, two of £14, forty of £10, ten between £10 and £5 each, and one of £5. Eight are in the patronage of the Madras school; seven in that of the university and united college; three, of £100 each, in the patronage of Sir Alexander Ramsay, Bart., for candidates of the names of Ramsay, Durham, Carnegie, and Lindsay; and the remainder are open to general competition. The college has also the patronage of the livings of Dunino, Kemback, Kilmany, Cults, and Forteviot. The buildings form a spacious quadrangle, containing the apartments in which the professors deliver their lectures; a hall; a venerable chapel, in which is the tomb of the founder of St. Salvator's, Bishop Kennedy, with an inscription partly obliterated; and a museum connected with the literary and philosophical society of St. Andrew's. The chapel, which was formerly much larger, and had an exquisitely groined roof, since removed, from an unfounded apprehension of insecurity, is now used as the parish church of St. Leonard. In the tomb of Bishop Kennedy were found, an exquisitely wrought silver mace, now appropriated to the use of the college, and five others, of which two are preserved in the college of St. Mary, and one each were presented to the universities of Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. The college also possesses two silver arrows which were annually awarded as prizes to a company of archers, from the year 1618 to 1751, and, after being held by the winners for one year, were returned with silver medals attached to them; to one, are appended 39 medals, weighing together 166 ounces, and to the other, 30, weighing 55 ounces. Of the college of St. Leonard, now in ruins, all that remains, are, the roofless chapel, the hall, and some other buildings which have been converted into dwellings; in the chapel are the monuments of the founder, Prior Hepburn; of Robert Stewart, Earl of March, Bishop of Caithness, and commendator of the priory of St. Andrew's; and a mural monument to Robert Wilkie, for twenty-one years principal of the college. The hall contained the refectory and dormitories of the students; and on one of the walls, is the inscription "Erexit Gul. Guild. S.S.T.D.," with the date "1650."

The Madras College, situated in South-street, was founded by the Rev. Dr. Andrew Bell, one of the prebendaries of Westminster, who, in 1831, conveyed, for that and other purposes, to the provost of St. Andrew's, the two ministers of the parish, and the professor of Greek in the university, £60,000 three per cent reduced annuities, and £60,000 three per cent consols. Of these funds, five-twelfths were to be transferred by them to the provost, magistrates, and town council of Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leith, Aberdeen, and Inverness, for the foundation of schools on the Madras system; onetwelfth to the trustees of the Royal Naval School, for a similar purpose; and one-twelfth to the provost and council of St. Andrew's, for the formation of a permanent fund for the moral and religious improvement of the city. The remaining five shares were to be vested in the same trustees, substituting only the sheriff depute of Fife for the professor of Greek, after the death of the present professor, for the erection and endowment of a college, to be called the Madras College of St. Andrew's, and to the establishment of eight bursaries in the United College, tenable by such as have been three years in the Madras College. Buildings were soon after erected, in the Elizabethan style, from a design by Mr. Burn, architect, of Edinburgh, inclosing a spacious quadrangular area, and containing the requisite classrooms for the school, and two handsome residences for the English and classical masters. The college, which is under the visitation of the lord-lieutenant of the county, the lord justice clerk of Scotland, and the bishop of Edinburgh, is conducted on the Madras system, by a classical master and an assistant, and an English master, who has also an assistant, the former having a salary of £50, and the latter of £25, from the funds of the college, in addition to their fees; by masters of arithmetic, writing, and the modern languages, each of whom has a salary of £50, in addition to their fees; and by masters of the mathematics, geography, drawing, and church music. The total number of the pupils is about 800, including those of the English and grammar schools of the city, which have been incorporated with this institution; and about 150 children of the poorest citizens, also, receive a gratuitous education in the establishment.

The only manufactures in the town are, that of golf balls, of which about 10,000 are annually made; and the weaving of linen, for the manufacturers of Dundee. The Trade of the port is very inconsiderable; some vessels occasionally bring cargoes of timber from Norway and the Baltic, but when drawing more than fourteen feet of water, they are obliged to discharge part of their lading before they can enter the harbour. The number of vessels belonging to the port, is fourteen, of the aggregate burthen of 680 tons: the harbour is formed chiefly by the Kinness rivulet, and is difficult of access; it was deepened in 1836, and, at spring tides, can receive vessels of 300 tons. The river Eden, on the northern confines of the parish, is navigable for about two miles from its mouth; and on its banks is a distillery, to which small vessels convey supplies of coal and grain, and take back cargoes of spirits. On this river is a salmon fishery belonging to the city, to which it pays a rental of about £7; there are also several boats employed in the fisheries off the coast. The fish usually taken are, haddock, cod, ling, skate, halibut, and flounders, of which the produce, after supplying the home markets, is sent to Cupar; and during the season, the greater part of the boats are employed in the herring-fishery off the coast of Caithness. The city received its first charter of incorporation from David I., in 1140, erecting it into a royal burgh; and under this charter, confirmed by Malcolm IV., in 1153, the government is vested in a provost, four bailies, a dean of guild, a treasurer, and twenty-two councillors. There are seven incorporated guilds, viz., the smiths, wrights, bakers, shoemakers, tailors, weavers, and butchers, into one of which an individual must be admitted, previously to his becoming a burgess qualified to carry on trade; the fees vary from £45 to £15 for strangers, from £20 to £12 for apprentices, and from £2. 10. to £1 for sons of freemen. The magistrates exercise civil and criminal jurisdiction within the burgh, the former to any amount, but the latter confined chiefly to petty offences, for which purpose they hold a bailie-court twice in the week, and courts for the recovery of small debts on the first Monday in every month; in the latter, the number of cases has greatly diminished since the establishment of the sheriff's smalldebt court. A dean-of-guild court is also held, occasionally. The city, with the burghs of Anstruther Easter and Wester, Crail, Cupar, Kilrenny, and Pittenweem, returns a member to the imperial parliament; the number of qualified voters is about 280. The townhall, an ancient building, situated in Market-street, has been recently enlarged and repaired; and the gaol, which is chiefly for the temporary confinement of petty delinquents, is under good regulations. The market is held weekly on Monday, and is well supplied with grain; and markets for poultry, butter, eggs, and provisions of all kinds, are held on Wednesday and Saturday. There are fairs on the second Thursday in April, the 1st of August, and the 30th of November (all O. S.); the first, anciently called the Senzie Fair, was formerly of 15 days' continuance, and was resorted to by merchants from various foreign ports. The post-office has a daily delivery; and communication is maintained with Dundee and Edinburgh, by good roads, of which those from Dundee and Cupar meet in the north of the parish.

The parish is bounded on the east by the German Sea, and is about ten miles in length, and two miles in extreme breadth, comprising 10,300 acres, of which 9840 are arable, 345 woodland and plantations, and the remainder meadow, pasture, and waste. The surface is generally level, except towards the east, where the hills of Balrymont have an elevation of 370 feet, and the hill of Clatto, to the west, which rises to the height of 548 feet above the sea; the coast is about six miles in extent, and is bounded, in some parts, with rocks, of which the Maiden rock, and those of Kinkell and Buddo are the most conspicuous. About a mile from the town is the cave of Kinkell, about 80 feet in length, and 25 feet wide; the roof, apparently of one entire stone, is about 11 feet in height, but inclining so much towards the east as to form an angle with the floor, which, on the west side, about 40 feet from the entrance, is covered with plants whose growth is promoted by water constantly trickling from the roof. The principal river is the Eden, over which is an ancient bridge of six arches, called the Gair or Guard bridge, built by Bishop Wardlaw, and wide enough only for one carriage to pass; there are also two small rivulets, of which the larger, after a course of nearly five miles, having turned several corn-mills, flows into the harbour, on the south-east; and the other falls into the sea at the north-west of the city. The soil is mostly fertile, and the lands are generally better adapted for tillage than for pasture, producing abundant crops of grain of all kinds; the system of agriculture is improved, and many acres of land near the mouth of the Eden have been protected from inundation by embankment. The cattle, which were previously all of the Fifeshire breed, have, within the last few years, been mixed with various others of recent introduction; and the sheep, of which the number has been for some time gradually increasing, are principally of the Highland and Cheviot breeds. The chief substrata are, sandstone, in which are found thin seams of coal, slate clay, and clay ironstone; the sandstone is of a grey colour, very durable, and of good quality for building. The plantations, which are mainly around the houses of the landed proprietors, and in a thriving state, are mostly ash, oak, elm, beech, plane, and larch, with some Scotch firs, which are chiefly on the poorer soils.

The ecclesiastical affairs are under the superintendence of the presbytery of St. Andrew's and synod of Fife; the living is collegiate, consisting of two charges, of which the first is in the patronage of the Crown, and the second in that of the Magistrates and Council of the city. The minister of the first charge has a stipend of £439. 9. 4., with a glebe valued at £23 per annum; and the minister of the second charge has £171. 18. 2., with a manse, and a glebe valued at £16. 15. per annum. The parish church, originally erected by Bishop Turgot, about the commencement of the 12th century, is a spacious structure with a tower and spire, and anciently contained numerous chapels, which were suppressed at the Reformation; after the destruction of the cathedral, it was substituted as the cathedral of the archbishops of St. Andrew's. It was rebuilt in 1798, and contains about 2200 sittings; in the aisle is a splendid monument of white marble, erected to the memory of Archbishop Sharpe, by his son, in 1679. A chapel in connexion with the Established Church has been recently erected at Strathkinness, in the parish, at a cost of £400, raised by subscription; it contains 124 fixed sittings, and moveable benches for about 230 persons; the minister has a stipend of £54. 12., of which one-half is paid by the minister of the first charge of the parish, and the remainder by the heritors. An episcopal chapel was built in 1825, at a cost of £1400; there are also places of worship for members of the Free Church and United Secession, Baptists, and Independents. Among the monuments of antiquity with which the city and its environs abound, are the remains of the church of St. Regulus, which, with every appearance of probability, is supposed to be the original structure erected by Hirgustus, King of the Picts, on his conversion to Christianity. They consist chiefly of the tower, 108 feet high and 20 feet square at the base, formerly surmounted by a spire; and the eastern portion of the church, 31 feet in length, and 25 feet wide, having two windows on the north, and two on the south side. Since the decay of the spire, the tower has been roofed with a platform of lead, to which there is an ascent by a spiral staircase within. On the east and west faces of the tower, are traces of several roofs of different heights, with which the church has been covered at various times; and from the summit is obtained an extensive prospect over the bay and the adjacent country.

The ancient Cathedral, completed in 1318, was a magnificent cruciform structure, 375 feet in length, 180 feet across the transepts, and 72 feet in mean breadth, with a lofty central tower, of which nothing now remains but the bases of the columns whereon it was supported; it had also two turrets at the western, two at the eastern, extremity, and one at the end of the south transept, each 100 feet in height. Of this splendid structure, which was destroyed at the commencement of the Reformation, only the eastern gable, with its turrets, one of the turrets at the west, and a portion of the walls, are now remaining; the style of its architecture is partly Norman, and partly of the early and later English, which latter is more prominent in the western portion of the building, from the greater richness of its details. The interior has been cleared, by order of Her Majesty's exchequer, from the accumulated heaps of rubbish with which it had been, for years, obscured; and such repairs have been made as were requisite for the preservation of the remains. Within the area of the cathedral precincts, which occupy a space of about 18 acres, are some portions of the Priory, or Augustine monastery, founded by Robert, Bishop of St. Andrew's, and other monastic buildings, in a state of irretrievable decay; the whole is inclosed by a wall erected by Prior Hepburn, originally almost a mile in circuit, 20 feet in height, and four feet thick, defended by 16 turrets, at irregular distances, and having three handsome gateways, above one of which, still remaining, is a mutilated statue of the Virgin Mary. To the north-west of the cathedral, on an eminence overlooking the sea, are the remains of the Castle, rebuilt by Bishop Trail, about the close of the 14th century; after the murder of Cardinal Beaton, in 1546, it was besieged and destroyed, but was subsequently rebuilt by Archbishop Hamilton, and continued to be the residence of the prelates till 1591, since which period it has been suffered to fall into decay. The only remains are, part of the south side of the quadrangle, with a handsome square tower, and a few other fragments. The ancient convent of Franciscan friars was demolished at the Reformation, and the site is now occupied by a part of Bell-street; and the Dominican convent founded in 1274, shared the same fate, with the exception of its chapel, a beautiful specimen of the early English style, within the grounds of the Madras College, and for the preservation of which Dr. Bell, the founder, made due provision. On an eminence to the west of the harbour, are the ruins of the Kirkheuch, a Culdee establishment, for a provost and ten prebendaries, said to have been erected by Constantine II., in the ninth century, and of which Constantine III., after resigning his crown, became abbot.
Andrew's, St.

ANDREW'S, ST., a parish, in the county of Orkney; containing, exclusively of the late quoad sacra parish of Deerness, 926 inhabitants. This parish is situated on the eastern coast of the mainland, and is bounded on the north by the Frith of Shapinshay; on the east by Deer Sound, which separates it from Deerness; and on the west by the bay of Inganess. It is about six miles in extreme length, and two in average breadth, and is connected with the peninsula of Deerness by a narrow isthmus less than a quarter of a mile in length; the coast is so singularly indented with bays and inlets from the sea, that its form cannot be well defined, or its extent accurately ascertained, though it is generally estimated at 13 square miles, and the line of coast at about 18 miles. The surface, though generally low, is intersected by three nearly parallel and equidistant ridges of inconsiderable height, and diversified with hills of gentle acclivity, of which the highest has an elevation of 350 feet above the sea, and, towards the north-east, terminates in precipitous rocks, of strikingly romantic appearance; in one of these is a remarkable cavern, 60 feet in length, and about 30 feet wide, communicating with the sea by a passage, through which a boat may pass at certain times of the tide. Deer Sound forms an excellent roadstead for vessels in boisterous weather; it is about four miles long, and two miles broad, and has a depth of six or seven fathoms at the entrance, with a sandy bottom, and affords good anchorage for vessels of any size. Inganess bay, on the north-west coast, about two miles and a half in length, and more than a mile in breadth, varies in depth from three to twelve fathoms, and affords good anchorage and shelter from all winds. Neither of these bays, however, is at present much frequented.

The soil is extremely various in different parts of the parish, consisting of sand, loam, clay, and moss, alternating, and frequently found in combination; the number of acres under tillage is about 2200; the chief crops are oats and bear, with a small proportion of potatoes and turnips. The farming is in a very unimproved state; some attempts have been made to drain the lands, but very little progress has hitherto been effected in the general system of agriculture. Little attention has been paid to the improvement of the breeds of live stock; the horses most in use are those of the Norwegian kind called the Garron, strong and hardy, but seldom exceeding 14 hands in height; the black cattle are small, thin, and ill-conditioned, from the scantiness of the pastures; and the sheep are inferior to those of the Zetland breed, and not so remarkable for fineness of wool. The farm-buildings are generally of stones and clay, roofed with thatch; and the few inclosures that have taken place, are made by mounds of turf. The rocks are argillaceous sandstone and flag, apparently of the old red sandstone formation, alternated with trap, and traces of calc-spar and pyrites of iron are found occasionally; slates of inferior quality, and also freestone, are obtained in some parts.

The manufacture of kelp, formerly carried on here to a great extent, has of late been greatly diminished; and that of straw-plat, which was also extensive, has been almost discontinued. Fairs for cattle are held at Candlemas, Midsummer, and Martinmas. The fish generally found off the coast are, cod, haddocks, flounders, skate, thornbacks, and coal-fish; and crabs, lobsters, cockles, and other shell-fish, are found on the shores; but no regular fishery of these has been established. The herring-fishery was commenced in 1833, and is carried on to a very considerable extent; curing-houses have been erected, and there is every prospect of the formation of an extensive and lucrative herring station at this place. Communication with Kirkwall, and with other parts of the mainland, is maintained by good roads, of which that to Kirkwall is one of the best in the county. The ecclesiastical affairs of the parish are under the superintendence of the presbytery of Kirkwall and synod of Orkney; the minister's stipend is £200, exclusive of £8. 6. 8. for communion elements, with a manse, and a glebe valued at £14 per annum; patron, the Earl of Zetland. The church, built in 1801, and enlarged in 1827, is a neat structure, conveniently situated, and containing 400 sittings. A Free Church place of worship has been erected here. The parochial school affords the general course of study; the master has a salary of £27, with a house and garden, and the fees average £9. There are some slight vestiges of ancient chapels; and on the point of Inganess are traces of an old circular fort of stones and earth, commanding the entrance of Deer Sound. Several tumuli also remain, one of which, on the glebe land, is about 140 yards in circumference at the base, and 12 feet high; another, nearly in the centre of the parish, is 90 yards in circumference, and 16 feet high, and a third, of much larger dimensions, is situated on the isthmus at the southern extremity of the parish.