XoTKs nx AN Old Tuaditiox. 17 



foot and Xcwabboy Vow in tliis district, not to speak of the 

 P()wl)urn in PMinburgli. PoUogan, then, is the Logan Pow, 

 cleaily the Laggan Burn, up -whose valley the road from Auld- 

 girtli to Dunscore runs. The district, then, between the lands 

 of Holywood, which probably extended to the modern parochial 

 boundary, and the Laggan was included in this grant. And this 

 is confirmed by the fact that at a much later date we find Melrose 

 Abbey granting to members of the family of Kirkpatrick of 

 Ellisland certain rights over the properties of Laggan, Edgars- 

 toun, Milliganton, INI'Cheyneston, M'Cubbinton, Kilroy, and 

 Fartliingwell, all of which, I l)elieve, are within the limits thus 

 maiked out in Aftrica's charter. But when we come to the 

 second part of the charter v,e find greater difficulties. I cannot 

 find any perfectly satisfactory solution of the puzzle which it 

 presents, and would now with the greatest diffidence and full 

 sul)mission to the autliority of those who know the district 

 l)etter than I do, make the following suggestions. Besides the 

 country between Holywood and the Laggan, Affrica gives a 

 tract of land wliose boundaries are very minutely specified. 

 Beginning at the Laggan the boundary goes up to the moss along 

 the course of a small rivulet. This, I take it, must be the moss, 

 a part of which still exists in the higli land to the south-west of 

 ] )unscore viUage. From thence a rivulet leads down to " the 

 ford of the Cairn towards Glenessland." A very small stream is 

 marked on the map crossing the road between Craig Free Church 

 and Poundland and falling into the Cairn lower down. This 

 may be the rivulet referred to, which was evidently so small that 

 it did not possess a name. Then following the Cairn " to the 

 east " we come to the l)urn which passes Killyleoch. This may 

 lie the PoUocostertan of the charter, and this finds confirmation 

 in tlie fact that Killyleoch and Bessiewalla, both of which are on 

 or near its banks, belonged at a later date to Melrose Abbey. 

 Up this burn the boundary ascends to Crossengarriauch, " which 

 is the march between the land of the canons of Holywood and 

 Derengorran." In a later charter this is spoken of as " the cross 

 which is called Crossengarriauch." So evidently tliei'e was here 

 erected, perhaps on the wayside, a prominent and Avell-known 

 cross. Ls it possible that there is still a trace of tliis to be found 

 in the name of the farm of Corse or Corsetield, situated at the 

 top of the hill just where, from the words of the charter, we 

 should expect the ancient landmark to have stood i From thence 



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