374 Obituary, Aug. 



OBITUARY. 



Died at Edinburgh, upon tlie 2d April, Sir J^Lxtp^ JlIoNTGOMF.Rr of 

 Stanhope, Baronet, late Lord Cliltf Baron of the Court of Exchequer, 

 much regretted by his numerous friends. 



Sir James Montgomery was born in the year 1721, being fecond Ton 

 of William Montgomery, Efq. of Magbie.hill, to v\hom the county of 

 Tweeddale was indebted for the introducflion of an early fpecies of peas, 

 and of the red oats, the mod valuable variety that can be cultivated in 

 an upland diftritl:. Sir James was the lafl furvivor of the county iheriffs 

 appointed by the Crown after the heritable jurifditElIons were aboliihed, 

 and he was the firft Scotfman preferred to the dignity of Lord Chief 

 Baron of Exchequer in Scotland, that oflice having always, before his 

 time, been held by Englifhmen. 



Before the middle of laft century, the main diftinftlon aimed at by 

 country gentlemen, above the charafter of mere Nimrods, was that of 

 clafTic learning ; and the veneration, paid to ancient languages, waa car- 

 ried to fuch a height, that the Inveltigation of the nature of words was 

 in danger of occupying excluhvely that of the nature of things. For- 

 tunately, at the period alluded to, a fpirit of enterprife in farming arofe 

 among the Gentry in Scotland ; and England and the Continent were 

 reforted to fpr rural infoimation, inllcad of the antiquated works of Ca- 

 to, Virgil, Varo, and Columella. The Gentry, thus informed, took the 

 lead in the verification of principles by experiment ; and the tenantry, by 

 various modes of m.oral excitement and encouragement, were Induced to 

 follow the example fet to them. Sir James Montgomery was among 

 the firll to encourage this fpir/t of improvement in the various capacities 

 of country gentleman, judge, and legiflator. To him, In a great mea- 

 fure, Scotland is indebted for the aft of Parliament, relaxing the reftric- 

 tlons of entails ; that it was not more extenfively ufeful, proceeded from 

 no fault of his, but from the formidable oppofition that enfued. 



Sir James, at an early period, introduced the culture of turnips Into 

 Tweeddale. We ftate, upon the authority of Adam Kennedy, Efq. of 

 Romano, a furvivlng contemporary, and fellow- labourer in the Introduc- 

 tion of Improved farming, that he himfelf raifed turnips in drills fo early 

 as 1757, ^"^^ ^^^^^ S''' f<i"Jes hod the Itart of him by two or three ^ears 

 in this fpecies of culture. Tin's is cojifirmed by the information of 

 William Graham, a cpnhdenlial fervant or grieve of the family, from 

 M'hich it appears that Sir James raifed turnip upon his farm of Deans- 

 houfes, pariih of Newlanjs, both in broad-^'iil and drills, fo early as fea- 

 fon 17S4> the latter drelTed by a regular proccls of horfe-hoelng. He 

 alio, introduced the ufe of two-horfe plon;^hs without a driver, and for 

 that purpofe was probably the firft in Tweeddale who improved the 

 breed of horfes by the importation of ftalliuns. It is a coiroboratlve 



faa. 



