300 ANTIENT METAPHYSICS. Book VIL 



jeCt, IS, that, though the numbers in the parifh of Fordoun, where I 

 live, have increafed 368 fmce 1755, they are diminifhed fince our old- 

 eft minifter came to the parifli, which is 2^ years ago, 142 ; and, ac-- 

 cordingly, Sir John has fo ftated the information he got from the 

 minifter. 



But in order to have a general view of the population of the coun- 

 try of Scotland, as diftinguiftied from the towns, we muft divide 

 the inhabitants of the country, in the fame manner as have 

 divided the inhabitants of the country of England, into three or- 

 ders of men, the landholders, the farmers, and the cottagers. The 

 jfr/? of thefc are as much, or more, diminifhed in numbers than thofe 

 of England ; although it appears to mc that there were antiently m< 

 Scotland greater eftates than any we hear of in England. The Earl 

 of Murray, King Robert the Bruce's nephew, had an eftate in land" 

 which extended from the river Spey to the frith of Invernefs, and 

 from fea to fea on either fide. But though he held all thefe lands 

 of the crown, yet, I am perfuaded, that he did not poflefs, as pro- 

 prietor, much above a third of them. And, I think, I have good rea- 

 fon to fay fo, when it appears from our records, that the Marquis of 

 Huntly, a predeceflbr of the prefent Duke of Gordon, befides vari- 

 ous extenfive eftates in different counties, had, in 1638, an eftate in 

 the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, and Murray, called the Earldom of 

 Huntly, of which the olc^ extent^ (that is the rule by which the land- 

 lax in Scotland was formerly paid,) was altogether 1000 1. But the 

 record diftinguifhes betwixt what part of that Earldom the Mar- 

 quis pofTefTed In property^ which was valued at 375 1. and what 

 he pofTcftcd only 2.^ fuperior^ which was 625 1. Now, an eftate of 

 this value, in old extent, was a prodigious eftate, when we confi- 

 der that the whole old extent of Scotland was only 48,249 h ex- 

 clufive of the Bifhoprics, which were 15,000!. The record, as I 

 have faid, diftinguifhes betwixt the Marquis's property and luperio* 

 r'lty ; which lafl muft have been polTefTed by his vaifuls ; For the 



cuuom 



