158 A Journey to London in 1840. 



able man in the parish of which he was the clergyman.'' He 

 seems to have hated his daughter with a perfect hatred. The 

 wonder is that he submitted to take her under his roof when she . 

 became a widow. He did so, however, from whatever motive, 

 but as before said her residence with him was anything but com- 

 fortable. He even inflicted corporal punishment on her, at least 

 so far as rugging her hair and enclosing her in a lockfast room 

 go. The remembrance of the unnatural treatment she received at 

 his hands makes her even at this moment hate his memory. She 

 says, " If there be a deeper place in hell than another he is in that 

 place." His grandson entertains similar horror as to his name 

 and memory, and altogether old Laing seems to have been one of 

 the least amiable men from every point of view that ever belonged 

 to the clerical profession. Had he been a layman, and thus with- 

 out restraint, he would have been a monster. Mrs M'Culloch 

 necessarily felt miserable under his roof, and was glad of any 

 opportunity of getting free from him. She had a cousin, Mr 

 David Dempster, surgeon, who had, I think, been abroad in his 

 professional capacity, but who never, so far as I know, practised 

 medicine in this country. He offered her marriage. The offer 

 was accepted, and Mrs M'Culloch, now Mrs Dempster, was 

 henceforth to be far removed from her unnatural father, for her 

 husband had a small property in the neighbourhood of Kinross, 

 where she now went to reside. The two boys, however, still con- 

 tinued to live with their grandfather, who was not kind or dutiful 

 to them, but yet wished to retain them at the manse. Their edu- 

 cation was very irregularly conducted. They were occasionally 

 sent to the burgh school of Whithorn, a place two miles distant 



7. James Laing, A.M., a native of Abernethy, got his degree 

 from the University of St Andrews in 1753, was licensed by the 

 Presbytery ot Edinburgh, 5th December, 1759, and was recom- 

 mended to the parish of Glasserton by Principal Robertson on a^jpli- 

 cation of the heritors. He was ordained 16th July, 1761. He had 

 the degree of D.D. conferred upon him, and died 27th January, 

 1814, in his 82nd year and the 53rd of his ministry. He married 

 (1) 17th June, 1763, Sarah, daughter of Andrew Ramsay, Provost of 

 Glasgow. She died 30th December, 1803, aged 81, leaving a 

 daughter, Sarah, who married W. M'Culloch, yr. of Auchengool, 

 father of John Ramsay M'Culloch, the Economist. Dr Laing 

 married (2) April, 1805, Elizabeth Gairden, who died 19th May, 

 1813; (3) 2nd August, 1813. Helen Conning, who died 1867.— Scott's 

 Fasti. 



