610 



SCOTLAND. 



Statistics. That we may condense a few of the important mat- 



V^Y^*^ ters ^'hich may be considered as appertaining to, or 



(ieography, connected in some way with the political geography 



political. of Scotland, we shall here throw them into the brief 



and convenient form of tables. 



With respect to the principal towns, Edinburgh, 

 Perth, Glasgow, &c. we may refer to our articles on 

 those particular subjects, as we may to several of coun- 

 ty and other articles for information so fully given that 

 we need not repeat even a sketch here. 



Thus also on the subject of our coal mines, apper- 

 taining to the department of commerce and manufac- 

 tures, we may refer to our article MINES, as we may 

 also for our canals to our article on inland NAVIGA- 

 TION. 



In conformity with the system adopted regarding 

 the representation of the Scottish peerage, the 16 peers 

 are elected for every new parliament, by the whole 

 body of the peerage duly qualified to vote at the period 

 when the election takes place, and are not, when once 

 elected, continued for life, as is the case in regard to 

 Irish peers by the recent union with Ireland. 



The following table represents the diminution that 

 has taken place in the numbers of the Scottish peer- 

 age since the union, and their amount at present. 



Table of the Scottish Peerage. 



1. Number of Scottish peers at the union, 154 



2. The duke of Ilothesay when entitled to vote, 1 



3. Added by suosequent orders of the House 

 of Lords, . . > 4 



159 

 Of whom, 



1. Extinct or dormant, including the title of Sol- 

 way, . . . 41 



2. Merged in, or united to other titles, 10 



3. Forfeited, 2fr 



Table of 

 the Scot- 

 tish peers. 



But four lately restored, 



Remain, 



4 

 82 



86 



Parliamen- 

 tary repre- 

 eentation of 

 the coun- 

 ties or land- 

 ed property. 



Of these 23 (including the duke of Rothesay) are 

 British peers, but who still retain the privilege of vot- 

 ing at elections, and even continue eligible. 



At the election on the 13th November 1812, there 

 were three minors, three peeresses, and two Roman 

 Catholics, consequently eight disqualified from vot- 

 ing. The peers who actually voted were 52, and 22 

 were out of the kingdom or did not vote. 



2. Parliamentary Representation of the Counties or 

 Landed Property. 



Scotland is divided into 33 counties, which are re- 

 presented in parliament by 30 commissioners, or knights 

 of the shire. The following table contains the amount 

 of the valued rent in Scottish money, as it stood in 

 16'74, and the number of freeholders or voters in each 

 county. The number of freeholders must alter from 

 year to year, according to the state of property, and 

 various other incidental circumstances, as deaths, mi- 

 norities, &c. The list here given is the latest, vizi the 

 one drawn up for the year 1825. In 1811, the num- 

 ber was 2429, giving an increase of 637 in fourteen 

 years. 



It is to be remarked, that six of these counties are 

 represented in parliament by only three members; two 

 of them united for that purpose, electing a representa- 

 tive alternately ; and that the Shetland' isles, owing to 

 some defect regarding their valuation, though entitled 

 to share in the representation of Orkney, have as yet 

 no freeholders on the roll. Lands holding of the crown 

 to the extent of 400 Scotch of valued rent, or, in par- 

 ticular cases, what is called a forty shilling land of old 

 extent, entitle the proprietor to a vote, and those free- 

 holders only are included in the above Table. There 

 are in every county more persons who possess freehold 

 property below, than such as have land either equal to, 

 or above that valuation ; and besides, the nobility are 

 never put on the rolls of freeholders, whatever extent 

 of property they may possess. This in some measure 

 accounts for the number of freeholders beinj; so low as 

 2429. Were there to be a voter for every 400 of va- 

 luation, the total number would be 951 1. Lands hold- 

 ing of a subject-superior give no vote, whatever may 

 be the amount of their valued rent. 



3. Representation of the Boroughs. 



The representatives of royal boroughs are limited to Representa- 

 15 in number, and are sent from the following towns : tionof the 

 1 From Edinburgh.includingNorth and South Leith, boroughs. 



and the West Kirk, or St. Cuthbert's parish, tha 



population of the whole in 1821 was 138,235 

 1 From Jedburgh, Lauder, Haddington, 



Dunbar, and North Berwick, about 19,317 



1 From Selkirk, Peebles, Lanark, and Lin- ' 



lithgow, . ... 17,206 



164,758 



