72 Fawside or Falside Castle. [Sess. 



larvae are in some districts called " leather-jackets " ; and as an 

 illustration of their destructive habits, Kirby and Spence state 

 that "in the year 1813 hundreds of acres of pasture were entirely 

 destroyed by them, being rendered as completely brown as if 

 they had suffered a three months' drought, and destitute of all 

 vegetation except a few thistles, and when a' square foot of dead 

 turf was dug up, 210 grubs were counted on it." Curtis also 

 mentions a case at Southall where two crops of mangel-wurzel 

 plants were utterly destroyed by them. 



Pheasants are known to be great devourers of these larvae. 

 Mr Melton of Great Marlborough Street states that he once took 

 from the crop of a cock pheasant the almost incredible number 

 of 852 of these destructive grubs. A female crane-fly lays 

 about 300 eggs. 



I may mention that almost all the swallows I saw were 

 Hirundo rustica, but there were also among them a few of the 

 species H. urbica. 



At this meeting Mr Hugh Fraser, of Leith Walk Nursery, 

 made a few remarks on the " Oaks of the World," illustrated by 

 a large collection of herbarium specimens of oak leaves, divided 

 into four main groups — viz., British, Continental, American, and 

 Chinese (including Japanese). 



XY.— FAWSIDE OR FALSIDE CASTLE. 



By T. a. DOUGLAS WOOD, F. S.A.Scot. 



{Read May S5, 1887.) 



Since I last had the honour of submitting a paper before your 

 meeting, I have frequently intended to take up and study the 

 history of the ancient royal burgh of Musselburgh, and become 

 acquainted with its many relics — for, be it remembered, though 

 now it lies in a semi-dormant condition as if removed far from 

 the stir of a busy metropolis, the time was when its streets 

 were thronged with the soldiers of the Eoman occupation, and 

 in later times with those who fought for the beautiful Mary and 



