Transactions. 65 



assessment continued voluntary, much kindness was shown by the 

 farmers and wealtliier classes to the poor. By degrees the 

 assessment increased, until in 1845 it amounted to £83, which, 

 added to the church collections, brought it up to £104. Some 

 years after this, owing to the refusal of one or two individuals to 

 pay their voluntai-y proportions, recourse was had to the adoption 

 of the Act sanctioning the imposition of a legal assessment 

 divided equally between proprietors and tenants. What that 

 means we all know ; but bow great the difference between cost 

 and management of the old system and the modern few under- 

 stand. Tiie number of poor in the parish is diminished by a half, 

 but the expense is increased three or fourfold. It stands now 

 in 1894 at £300. Doubtless, the poor are better cared for, and 

 the management is more efficient. But the Kirk-Session, or the 

 heritors and Kirk-Session jointly, did the work kindly, impartially^ 

 and with no expense to the parisli. 



lOth January, 189.5. 

 Mr James Barbour in the Chair. 



A^eiv Members. — The Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry and 

 Lord Herries. 



Doiiation.—Mr Bridges, slater, presented through Mr J. 

 Barbour, a testoon of Queen Mary. 



Exhibits. — Mr Barbour exhibited documents signed by 

 James VI., by James, Lord Torthorwald, and others, and a 

 charter granted by Peter Kowatt, Abbot of Crossraguel, to 

 George Grahame, of tlie lands called the Hollow Close and Biig- 

 holme in Annan, 1621. 



Communications. 



1. Birrens and Birrenswark. 



By James Macdonald, LL.D., F.S.A. Scot. 



For more than a century and a half certain earthworks at 

 Birrens, together with others at Birrenswark of a somewhat 

 different character, have been regarded as tlie most remarkable 

 examples of Roman camp engineering to be now seen in North 

 Britain — Ardoch, in Perthshire, alone excepted. These Dumfries- 

 shire camps are generally looked upon as having had a close 



