260 TRANSACTIONS. 
idols of wood out of the Castle or Palace, and burned all at the 
Cross of Dumfries on Yule day 1688. And the Magistrates 
having absconded, the principal heritors and old Magistrates 
advised the family to remove from the Castle and all Catholics 
from the town by tuck of drum, to prevent further trouble and 
damage, which they did accordingly ; and in May following famous 
Mr Campbell was repossessed in the Kirk to the universal joy of 
the inhabitants. 
Here is a characteristic extract which bears on the history of 
the Old Bridge : 
It is a memorable Remark on some families of Divine Justice that 
all may fear and beware of exemplary punishments on the enemies of 
the Church of God, even to the third and fourth Generation of their 
Fathers, who were guilty, which, says mine author, is discovered in the 
History of the Church of Scotland, viz., Saturday, the 4th of August, 
1621, the time of the proceedings of the Parliament of Scotland and the 
moment the Commissioner, the Marquis of Hamilton, his rising to 
sceptre the Act of Parliament ratifying the Assembly holden at Perth, 
25th August, 1618, now ratified. In which Parliament John Corsan was 
an affirming Voter for the Town of Drum [fries] and Amisfield and Lag 
for the shire of Dumfries, ratifying the five Articles of Perth—there fell 
out such Blackness and Darkness, three successive great Lightnings, 
three loud claps of Thunder, Hailstones and prodigious Rains, Fire in 
the houses of Edinburgh in the morning called the Black Saturday. This 
Prodigious, tremendous, terrifying, unseasonable weather continued all 
August, began again in October, And on the 4th of October Ten arches 
of the Bridge of Perth were broken down by the deluge of waters, and 
the Bridge of Tweed, almost finished, at Berwick was broken down, and 
one or two arches of the Bridge of Dumfries next to the town fell, all as 
tokens of God’s displeasure against the cowardly Commissioners, and 
the places who sent them, in concurring to destroy the Church of Scot- 
land. So that it may be apply’d, that for 120 years these places and 
families have not prospered. As to the falling or demolishing of the 
one or two arches of the Bridge of Dumfries nigh the town, I remember, 
says mine author, a Tradition from some old people in my hearing, half- 
a-century ago. That a worthy Presbyterian minister being lodged in the 
house on the East of the Friers’ Vennel, named Lag’s Lodging, did all 
that day to twelve o’clock at night, watch and enjoin the people to watch 
and pray, for that some strange occurence would fall out that night, 
and that He himself did watch and heedfully observe the swelling of the 
River Nith, with the great Tempest of Wind and Rain, and said that he 
perceived a moles or monstrous Bulk as of many Stones or Trusses of 
Hay together come down through the Bridge, which took away one or 
two arches between eleven and twelve at night about that time. 
