294 Notes on the Summer Excursions of 1896. [Sess. 



the Regent Murray, Jan. 20, 1570, and which is said to have been the 

 property of Hamilton, Archbishop of St Andrews, stood in the High Street, 

 but was demolished some years ago. 



The Palace, of which only the ruins now remain, must have been one of 

 the finest in Scotland. It stands to the south of the loch, and the present 

 building has been erected at various periods, mostly from the reign of 

 James IV. to that of James VI. It remained habitable till 1746, when it 

 was destroyed by fire. It has recently been to some extent restored. The 

 room in which Queen Mary was born, Dec. 7, 1542, is in the western wing. 

 In the quadrangle are the somewhat dilapidated remains of an elaborately 

 carved fountain, from which that in front of Holyrood is said to have been 

 copied. 



The Parish Church of St Michael stands to the south-east of the Palace. 

 It was founded by David I., and is still used for public worship. It was 

 in an aisle on the south side of this church that James IV. saw the supposed 

 apparition which warned him, in vain, against the war with England. A 

 fine stained glass window has recently been erected in this church to the 

 memory of the late Sir C. Wyville Thomson by the officers of the Chal- 

 lenger Expedition. 



II. Geanton. 



An evening excursion to Granton took place on Wednesday, 

 May 6, under the leadership of Mr J. A. Johnston. Amongst 

 the plants gathered were — Sagina maritima, Plantago mari- 

 tinia, Myrrhis odorata, and Veronica serpyllifolia. A very 

 pronounced variety of Taraxacum officinale was also found. 

 The chief object of the excursion, however, was to examine the 

 geology of the district, and this was fully and clearly explained 

 by the leader. 



III. — Inverkeithing and St Davids. 



A joint excursion of our Society and the Kirkcaldy Natur- 

 alists' Society took place on Saturday, May 16, to Inver- 

 keithing and St Davids. At Inverkeithing are still found the 

 vestiges of the Dominican and Franciscan monasteries which 

 once existed in the town ; and in their immediate vicinity is 

 a building now known as " The Inns," which is said to have 

 once been the residence of Annabella Drummond, Queen of 

 Eobert III., who certainly died at Inverkeithing in 1403. To 

 see this ancient building was one reason for our visiting Inver- 

 keithing. The parish church, where is a curious old font, was 

 also visited. The party then proceeded by the coast to St 



