Transactions. 121 



whose son, James, gave it to John Kellock in 1844, by whom it 

 was presented to the Museum ; a Psalm Book given by the Poet 

 to his second cousin, Sara Burness ; and two small silver tea- 

 spoons. There is also the fiddle of James Humphi'ey, the noisy 

 polemic commemorated by Burns. Framed and hung on the 

 walls of the Museum are the original working plans of the 

 Mausoleum in Dumfries, drawn by T. F. Hunt, architect, in 

 1815. Among the manuscripts preserved in the case are letters 

 of Gilbert Burns, Sir Walter Scott, Allan Cunningham, and 

 others connected with the erection of the Mausoleum ; and also 

 the minute book of the Dumfries Burns Mausoleum Committee, 

 with a copy of the first minute book of the Dumfries Burns Club 

 attached. The letters have already been printed in the Transac- 

 tions by Mr J. R. Wilson, of Sanquhar. 



Spinning. 

 The art of spinning with the distaff and spindle is of great 

 antiquity, and appears to have been practised thi'oughout almost 

 the whole world from the earliest times down almost to the 

 present day. Till the introduction of spinning-wheels the imple- 

 ments used were the distaff, spindle, and whorl, specimens of 

 which are in the Museum. The distaff or " rock " was a staff of 

 wood from eighteen inches to two feet and a half in length, one 

 end of which was squared to hold the prepared lint or tow from 

 which the spindle was fed as required. The latter was a stick 

 about 8 to 10 inches in length, circular in section, and about half 

 an inch thick at the middle, from which it tapered oflF towards 

 either end. The .spindle was weighted with a whorl of wood or 

 stone, generally the latter, to act as a fly-wheel to the spindle 

 when twirled, and by its weight to assist in drawing out and 

 twisting the lint on the distaff into thread. When spinning, the 

 distaff with the lint was stuck into the spinner's girdle and pro- 

 jected upwards under the left arm, thus leaving the two hands 

 free to work with the spindle. In a small work in rhyme called 

 7'he Piper of Peebles, published in 1794, we have an interesting 

 account of this manner of spinning, which may here be noted : — 

 " Twa huuder year, or mair sin syne - 

 Fan fashions werna near sae fine. 



* * * * -ii- 



Fan wives wi' rocks an' spindles span. 



* * * * * 



Fan lasses, wi' tJicir rocks set out 



IG 



