Antiquities of Girthon. 77 



The farmliouse of " Girthon Kirk," adjoining- the churchyard, 

 was formerly the luanse, and the residence of the Rev. John 

 M'Naug-ht, whose case was (according to Lockhart) far tlie most 

 important business in which Sir Walter was employed just after 

 he became an advocate. 



About three-quarters of a mile from Old Girthon Kirk, in front 

 of Enrick House, and not far from the Kirkcudbrig'ht and Gate- 

 house road, is Palace Yard. I do not know what to make of it. 

 M'Tag'gart, in his Gallo vidian Encyclopedia, describes it thus : — 

 " A deep ditch surrounds a level space, containing about two 

 acres. On this stands the ruined edifice. Over this ditch, which 

 is about 30 feet, and filled with water, a drawbridge yet remains 

 in perfection. This palace is thought to have belonged to our 

 olden Scotch kings." 



There is, indeed, a comparatively level space, about 100 

 yards long by 60 broad, surrounded by a ditch. But there is no 

 " ruined edifice," and no water in the ditch, and no drawbridge ; 

 and I have not been able to find any person who remembers them. 



The author of the " Statistical Account" of 1845 says : — "At 

 Enrig there was a house dependent on the A bbacy of Tongland, 

 and which, it is supposed, formed the occasional residence of its 

 abbots, and after the Reformation, of the Bishops of Galloway. 

 Its site is still known yet as the ' Palace Yard.' Some old plane 

 trees are growing, having a foliage different from those now pro- 

 pagated. The Palace had apparently been surrounded by a ditch 

 and a wall, one of the arched gates having been standing within 

 the memory of a person intimately known to the present writer." 



So, between M'Taggart (1824) and the Statistical Account 

 (1845), the " ruined edifice," the drawbridge, and the water have 

 disappeared. There remains the memory of an arched gate, which 

 in 1845 was apparently growing rather faint. That there were 

 some plane trees I know, for I remember them. They were cut 

 down within the last ten years. The tenant of Enrick tells me 

 that there are still some wild fruit trees in the neighbourhood 

 which look like the remains of an orchard. The statements about 

 the ownership of the " Palace" evidently rest on conjecture, and 

 are inconsistent. In M'Taggart " it is thought to have belonged 

 to our olden Scotch kings." In the Account " it is supposed" to 

 have been the residence of the Abbots of Tongland and Bishops of 

 Galloway. There may be some foundation for these conjectures, 



