138 The Kirkcudbrightshire Coast. 



There are some slight remains of an old house or castle beside 

 the lighthouse-keeper's dwelling. After the fall of the Doug- 

 lasses, the island became the property of the monks of Dun- 

 drennan Abbey, who had on the shore what was known as " the 

 monks' pool " for keeping salmon. 



Palnackie, with its quay on the west bank of the Urr, is 

 one of those shipping villages which have fallen on quiet times 

 since the introduction of railways. The round tower of Orchard- 

 ton has been described already in the Society's "Transactions." 

 It is associated with a story which is believed to have provided 

 the groundwork of "Guy Mannering." There are several 

 remarkable caves on the Rascarrel and Barlocco shores, between 

 the village of Auchencairn and Dundrennan. The architecture 

 of Dundrennan Abbey belongs to the Transition period. Little 

 is known of its history. It was founded in 1142, in the reign 

 of David I., possibly by Fergus, Lord of Galloway. The monks, 

 like those of Sweetheart Abbey, were of the Cistercian order. 

 The most interesting historical statement about the Abbey is that 

 Mary, Queen of Scots, spent her last night on Scottish soil here. 

 The last abbot, Edward Maxwell, sold or gave away a large part 

 of the lands on the eve of the Reformation. When he died the 

 remainder went to increase the revenue of the Bishop of 

 Galloway. The revenues were annexed to the Chapel Royal at 

 Stirling by James VI. in 1621. After this the buildings fell into 

 disrepair. There are several well-preserved monuments of great 

 interest. These have been described fully by the Rev. George 

 M'Conachie. 



The older streets of Kirkcudbright, such as High Street, 

 are full of houses standing end to end with little closes here and 

 there giving glimpses of the gardens behind. The gardens near 

 the old boundary wall were held formerly under a " watch and 

 ward ' ' superiority duty ; that is, the due exacted from the 

 tenants was that they should watch and defend the wall in time 

 of danger; a due represented now by very small sums of money, 

 in one case by sixpence, the grand total of seven shillings and 

 sixpence being collected every fifteen years. 



The Tolbooth is entered by an outside stair, and is sur- 

 mounted by a tower with a little spire, said to have been made 

 of stones brought from Dundrennan Abbey. The tower has a 

 bell, rung still at the hour of curfew and at other times, and a 



