140 SCOTLAND ILLUSTRATED. 



among which was that of Prince Leopold of Saxe Coburg, now king of Belgium, 

 when on a visit to the earl of Hopetoun. 



On the right, " old Garvey's castled Cliif " — a small fortified rock, rising 

 abruptly from the waters of the Frith, forms a fine and picturesque object ; 

 while, on the opposite shore, as celebrated by Cririe — 



" Rosyth across the brine 

 Lifts high her towering head, in ruins now, 

 Of noble Stuarts once the fortress strong." 



In this castle, according to tradition, the mother of Cromwell, a lady of the 

 Stuart family, was born. The " Protector" is said to have visited the castle 

 during his operations in Scotland. Near the western extremity of this borough 

 is part of a church, the only remains of the Carmelite monastery, founded here 

 by the laird of Dundas early in the fourteenth century, and dedicated to the 

 Virgin Mary. But of the many religious houses that once flourished in this county 

 few vestiges remain. Dundas-hill is well deserving of the attention of geologists 

 for the remarkable range of basaltic columns which it presents. These are 

 between seven and eight hundred feet in length, two hundred in breadth, 

 and nearly perpendicular. Between five and six miles to the westward is the 

 royal and once important fortress of Blackness castle. It stands on a narrow 

 point of land running into the Frith, and was well adapted for the purposes 

 of a state prison, to which it was formerly applied. According to the articles 

 of the Union, it is one of the four garrisons ordered to be kept in repair. This 

 was the ancient harbour of Linlithgow — 



" Where Rome's strong galleys found a safe retreat, 

 ■^ And commerce moored her richly freighted fleet " — 



till Borrowstounness, which succeeded as a sea-port, became the most frequented. 

 At the commencement of the present century, however, the importance of the 

 latter being overlooked in its turn, the fluctuating spirit of commerce transferred 

 its favours to Grangemouth. The pier, basin, and docks cover about two 

 Scotch acres ; the access is easy, and with a depth of water in spring-tides of 

 seventeen feet or upwards. In 1792, the trading vessels belonging to this 



majesty have then their heads and faces covered with woollen caps, on which, as well as on every other 

 part of their dress, burs (the pods of the burdock) are stuck in profusion ; and in this grotesque guise — 

 relieved by farther decorations of flowers and feathers — they are paraded through the streets amidst the 

 boisterous cheers of the citizens. Port Edgar has lately been most substantially improved — the rock is, 

 covered by a commodious quay and breakwater, among the most perfect in the United Kingdom. — Statist. 



