1827.] 



Scotland, and Ireland. 



223 



emulation evinced by almost all the occupiers of 

 cottages in the parish to surpass one another in 

 meriting the rewards, and the neatness and clean- 

 liness of the cottages, and the highly cultivated 

 state of the different gardens, combined with the 

 industry, contented dispositions, and good feelings 

 of the occupants could not be exceeded. 



An explosion of fire-damp lately took place in a 

 colliery at Llansamlet, Swansea, by which three 

 people lost their lives, through the obstinacy of 

 neglecting to use the Davy lamps. 



The ceremony of laying the first stone of the 

 tank for a glass manufactory at Newtown, Mont- 

 gomery, took place July 2. 



Mr. Crawshay, Cyfarth fa-castle, Glamorgan, cut 

 six pines at the latter end of June, from his own 

 garden, weighing 121b. 13oz. 121b. 8oz. lolb. 

 Soz. lOlb. and two of 91b. each. 



The new blast engines, lately erected at the 

 British Iron Company's Works at Abersychan, 

 near Pontypool, were started July 6, for the first 

 time. They consist of two 52-inch steam cylin- 

 ders, with corresponding blast cylinders, of 104 

 inches in diameter, and are connected by a fly- 

 wheel of a proportionate weight and substance. 

 United, they form a power adequate to about 200 

 horses. 



At the recent anniversary meeting of the Swan- 

 sea and Neath Peace Society, after some admirable 

 speeches on the occasion, several resolutions were 

 entered into, and it was agreed to distribute "the 

 Permanent Tracts of the Society throughout the 

 Principality/' in furtherance of the promotion of 

 permanent and universal peace. 



Married.'] At Llansaintffread - cwmtoyddwr, 

 Glamorgan, J. Davies, esq., to Miss E. Lewi?. 

 At Wrexham, T. Gonthwhite, esq., to Miss Ann 

 Hayes. 



Died,~\ 73, Rev. J. T. Nash, rector of St. 

 Thomas's, Haverfordwest and Herbrardston, Pem- 

 broke. At Mallwyd Rectory, Merioneth, Rev. 

 R. Davies. At Noyaddlwyd, Miss Phillips. At 

 Llwynrhydowen, 84, the Rev. D. Davis, for more 

 than half a century pastor of the dissenting con- 

 gregations at Llwynrhydowen, Penrhiw, Cilian, 

 and Alltyplacca : he was a feeling poet, witness 

 his translation of Gray's Elegy into Welsh. 



SCOTLAND. 



July 11, the inhabitants of Fochabers and its 

 neighbourhood were thrown into a state of the 

 utmost confusion and consternation, caused by 

 Gordon-castle beinar on fire. The first indications 

 appeared about half-past four in the morning, and 

 every exertion was instantly made to counteract 

 its further progress, but without effect. The con- 

 flagration increased with indescribable rapidity, 

 and in the course of a few hours, the whole eastern 

 wing was enveloped in one general blaze. The 

 Bcene at this moment was inconceivably grand. 

 At length a great portion of the roof fell in with 

 a tremendous crash; and the spectators, dreading 

 every moment lest the fiery element should com- 

 municate with the body of the castle, wore obliged 

 to cut down the colonnade which unites it with 

 the eastern wing. The fire was got under about 

 twelve o'clock at noon. The whole of the eastern 

 wing of this beautiful and magnificent super- 

 structure is now a scene of entire devastation. 

 There is something extremely striking and melan- 

 choly in the contrast which this part of Gordon- 

 castle presents to the rest of this imposing edifice, 

 and to the indescribable beauty of the surrounding 



scenery. The destruction of property occasioned 

 by this melancholy occurrence is immense. Per- 

 haps some idea of the extent of this mournful de- 

 vastation will be formed, when We state that the 

 eastern wing*is two stories in height, and about 

 one hundred and ninety feet in length, and seventy 

 in breadth. 



A curious phenomenon occurred here one night 

 last week, being nothing less than a large shower 

 of herring fry, which fell upon part of the nur- 

 sery ground at the north end of the town. The 

 surprise which filled the minds of the people in 

 that quarter, in the morning, on seeing nearly 

 about an acre of the fields, with the vegetables, &c. 

 covered with the scaly inhabitants of the deep may 

 be easily supposed. The only way of accounting 

 for this strange occurrence is, that the herrings 

 had been conveyed thither by a water-spout, from 

 the Atlantic. Montrose Revicv\ 



Died] At Sprinfield, 72, Mr. D. Laing, the far- 

 famed Gretna-green " priest;" he had officiated for 

 35 years, and caught cold on the outside of the 

 coach on his way to Wakefield's trial. At Bogend, 

 69, H. Walker, blacksmith, Symington; he was 

 the fourth of the same name, from father to son, 

 buried in the same grave ; and, for 300 years back, 

 he and his forefathers lie all within six feet of one 

 another, and were each, in succession from father 

 to son, blacksmiths in Symington. At Dalmahoy, 

 66, the Earl of Morton. At Milburne cottage, 

 Morningside, Georgina Christina Kerr, 3d daugh- 

 ter of Lord R. Kerr. At Edinburgh, Archibald 

 Constable, esq. 



IRELAND. 



At a recent meeting in Dublin, Mr. O'Connel 

 alluded to the principle laid down in the resolu- 

 tions of a late meeting of the Dissenters in Londoti, 

 Lord Milton in the chair. The Catholics, he said, 

 should take up that principle ; they should assert 

 the broad principles of civil and religious liberty, 

 and the right of every human being to worship 

 God according to the dictates of his conscience. 

 They ought to cast away the expression " Catho- 

 lic Emancipation," and adopt " Civil and Religious 

 Liberty to all." Mr. O'Connel concluded by pro- 

 posing a resolution, pledging the meeting com- 

 pletely to identify their cause with that of the 

 Protestant Dissenters; which was carried with 

 unanimity and applause. 



Sunday, June 24, in the afternoon, an immense 

 crowd of men, women, and children were observed 

 rushing down Marlborough-street, Dublin, shout- 

 ing and yelling, and tossing up something in the 

 air, which was sometimes caught by one, and 

 sometimes by another, and occasionally fell to the 

 earth, where there was a scramble for it, and it 

 was again tossed from one to another, amidst the 

 most diabolical yells, \vhich, on a nearer approach, 

 was distinguished to be a very decently dressed, 

 dwarfish, deformed female, whom these monsters 

 had suddenly fallen on ; and whenever she fell to 

 the earth, fiend-like women then rushed upon her 

 with horrid shrieks, tearing her clothes and cry/ing 

 out, "a witch! burn or drown the witch !" direct- 

 ing their course to the river. At length a young 

 gentleman rushed into the midst of these hell- 

 hounds, and courageously bore the helpless female 

 through the crowd, who then directed their ven- 

 geance against him; crying out, " The witch's 

 husband !" A few policemen luckily came up, and 

 were compelled to do ample justice with their 

 sticks on the savage crowd before they got the poor 

 creature safely into the police-office. 



