CuNOEKN'iXG THE Mauket Cuusa. 87 



THE MAUKET (TiOSS. 



Returning- to the main subject, the Market Cross of the 

 burgh is alluded to generally, with those of other head burghs, in 

 the old Scots Acts of Parliament in connection with royal and 

 other proclamations. Frequently, also, it receives specific men- 

 tion as the Market Cross of Dumfries ; and locally, in the Town 

 Council minutes and other papers, it is often referred to in con- 

 nection wMth a variety of functions incidental to civic life in the 

 burgh ; but, although an outstanding and important institution in 

 this way, the situation of it and the form do not appear from such 

 references, but remain to be gathered elsewhere. 



In old rental books of the Tow^n (Jouucil are the following- 

 entries : 

 \\'^illiam Copland of Colleston — For his part of ye booths under 



ye Croce U - 13 - 4. For 2 foot of ground on the north end 



of the Croce allowed anno 1690 for enlarging the shops and 



for ane entry backward to the back of the shops, 0-2-0. 

 Alexander M'Crowan of Meildeknox — For his mid shop under the 



Cross, sometime his Mr John M'Gowan's, 0-13-4. 

 Alexander M'Gowan of Smithstown — For his part of the booth 



under the Cross 0-13-4. For 2 foot of ground on the south 



end of the Cross allowed anno 1690 for enlarging the shops 



and for an entry to the back shop, 0-2-0. 



These entries refer to the block of flat-roofed buildings in 

 the centre of High Street immediately north of the Midsteeple. 

 A vacant space about 8 feet in width remained between this block 

 and the Midsteeple, which was filled up some years ago by the 

 Town Council erecting a small shop there. 



The following- is the description of the Cross contained in 

 Edgar's MS. History of Dumfries, a copy of which is in tlie 

 Society's library. Edgar was a writer in Dumfries, and likely to 

 have seen the titles of the premises, and as he would be nearly 

 twenty years of age when their rebuilding took place, in IG'JO. it 

 may be presumed he had personal knowledge of the earlier form 

 of the subjects described : " As to the Cross," he says, " it was 

 before 16U0 or 1691 an house about thirty feet in length, having- 

 to the front tliree shops, the floors a foot or two sunk under the 

 street, and above the middle shop an arch of stone, and then on 

 the back part a shop wliich entered in upon this stone floor, and 



