r ' 



AYHSHlllK. 



AYRSHIRE. 



788 



to be mull grains of hornblende dispersed through the stone as from 

 a common centre ; and giving to it, according to their proportion t.. 

 the other ingredient*, a darker or lighter gray tint The rook ii 

 commonly amorphous, and breaks into irregular masses; but in several 

 puts and especially on the north-west side it has a columnar structure. 

 The columns vary in the number of their sides, but are mostly 

 pentagonal or hexagonal, and from 6 feet to 8 feet in diameter : 

 they are not jointed, but rise continuously to the height of 100 feet 

 Their fracture is at right angles to their axes, and hence their summits 

 are flat and afford a habitation for numbers of gannets. Their dimen- 

 sions far exceed those of the basaltic columns of Staffa ; and they 

 piisnmn a requisite which the latter want, the power from their lighter 

 colour of catching the most varied lights and reflections. There is 

 an old ruinous castle on the rock. (See an account of Ailsa by Dr. 

 Maccnlloch in the ' Transactions of the Geological Society,' vol. ii. 

 No. 18). 



Between two and three centuries ago there were considerable forests 

 in the county of Ayr. At the time of the Reformation a forest 

 extended ten miles eastward from the town of Ayr ; but this with 

 every other wood of any extent in the county, except Dalrymple 

 Wood on the river Doon, has been entirely destroyed ; and nearly 

 a century ago there was little wood in the county, except the 

 natural woods of oak and birch on the banks of the rivers Oirvan, 

 Stinchar, Doon, and Ayr. At present all the lower parts of the 

 county and the banks of its numerous rivers are thickly studded 

 with plantations around the mansions of the proprietors. Plantations 

 of willows for hoops and baskets have been made with considerable 

 l>enefit In some parts of the county there is n species of reed 

 funud near the lakes which is excellent for thatching. 



The climate of Ayrshire is moist but healthy. The westerly 

 winds blow severely on the coast ; and the part near the Isle, of 

 Arran is subject to frequent and heavy showers, the clouds being 

 attracted by the lofty mountains of that island. The air is milder 

 and more temperate than in the east of Scotland ; and towards the 

 western or coast side it is pure and free from fogs. Snows usually 

 melt as they fall on the coast 



Mix fraii. The mineral riches of Ayrshire are considerable. Coal 

 U abundant, especially in the middle and northern ports of the 

 county. Harbours and railroads have been formed to afford facilities 

 for the export trade. The coal is of different varieties, among which 

 is the blende coal, fouud in the earth charred or reduced to the 

 state of a cinder. It bums without smoke or much flame, and is 

 used for drying groin and malt. Considerable quantities are exported 

 to Ireland and to the Western Isles. Near Saltcoata eleven different 

 strata or seams of coal of various quality have been discovered. 

 The proprietor constructed the harbour of Saltcoata, and built salt- 

 pans in order to use profitably the otherwise useless part of the coal. 

 This coal-field is divided into three parts by two dykes or natural 

 walls of whinstone. 



The county affords abundance of limestone. Freestone is exten- 

 sively quarried ; and whinstone and puddingstone are found. Mill- 

 stones of coarse granite are quarried at Kilbride near the northern 

 part of the coast, and are in great request for their hardness and 

 durability. They are exported to the West Indies and to America. 

 Near Auchinleck is a quarry of black stone much used for building 

 ovens, on account of its power of resisting the action of fire. The 

 whetstone known by the name of Wator-of-Ayr stone is found at 

 Dalmore on the batiks of the river Ayr. Marl is procured in many 



Ironstone is abundant, and at Muirkirk near the eastern extremity 

 of the county, at Kilbimie and Dairy in the northern portion, and 

 near Kilwinnitiif u the Kglinton estates, extensive iron works are 

 carried <>n. < "~ lead, plumbago or black-lead, antimony, and copper, 

 mall quantities are found. , 



. <<<. The soil along the coast is light and sandy, interspersed 

 with a deep and fertile loam. On the eastern boundary the moor 

 lands, intersected with mosses, occur. Of these mosses, Ami's Moss 

 and MowMallock mav be noticed for their extent Moss-Mallock 

 i partly in the counties of Lanark and Renfrew. In the parishes 

 of Muirkirk and New Cummock, in the east part of Ayrshire, more 

 than half the land is moss. The clay soil which constitutes a large 

 portion of the land U in some parU strong and productive, while in 

 other* it is nponzy, wet, and cold ; producing grass unfit for fattening 

 cattle, and merely sufficient for keeping alive a breeding stock. 



Till about the middle of the last century the agriculture of Ayrshire 

 was in a very backward state. There was scarcely a practicable road ; 

 the farmers' house* were mere hovels ; the lands were overrun with 

 weeds and rashes. The arable farms were small, the tenants nut 

 having stock for larger occupations ; the tenure was bad, and the 

 tenant was harassed by a multitude of vexatious services to the 

 landlord. The land was neglected, or it was worn out by sucoessiv 

 crop* of oate, continued as long as they would pay for seed and 

 labour, or by an ill-managed rotation of two or three successive crops, 

 followed by a year of rest Butchers' meat was not much used by 

 the fanner*, except a portion salted at Martinmas for winter food 



., oatmeal cakes, and milk or cheese constitute' 1 

 their diet A great improvement has since been effected, not only in 

 the mode of cultivation but in the farm-buildings and impl. un-nls of 



lusbandry, the stock and breed of cattle, and in the style of living 

 of the agricultural classes. To this change for the better the improved 

 nterual communications and enlarged opportunities of instruction in 

 the science of farming have greatly contributed. 



Cattle. The cattle in the southern part of the county are chiefly 

 reared for the market, and are of the Galloway breed. Some are 

 white or dun, but in general the cattle in use are black or brindled ; 

 the best are without horns. They are very hardy, and grow fat 

 where the large heavy breed of some other counties would be starved. 

 Great numbers are yearly sent to England. The cattle in the 

 northern part of the county are of the Dunlop breed, which has 

 been established there for a century and a half. They are remarkable 

 Tor the quantity and quality of their milk. Besides these there is a 

 breed of brown and white mottled cattle introduced at a later period. 

 The cattle of this breed are also excellent milkers. The dairy is an 

 object of great attention in Ayrshire, and a considerable quantity of 

 cheese is mode. The Dunlop cheese is in great repute, and the making 

 of it forms almost the sole business of the farmers in the pariah of 1 >un- 

 lop and in the neighbourhood. Other breeds of cattle are to a pmall 

 extent cultivated ; as the Alderneys, which are occasionally introduced 

 to give richness and o.lour to the milk and butter; and a small High- 

 laud breed which having been bred on the hills improves rapidly in 

 the low country, and is esteemed superior to any in the flavour of the 

 meat Oxen are not used at plough. 



On the dry lands along the coast a small white-faced breed of sheep 

 has loug been maintained. They produce but little wool and that 

 of middling quality, and seem to have very little to reooiuim-ml 

 them. The native sheep arc bred in great number* on the moors. 

 These are among the nardiest, most active, and most restless of the 

 sheep tribe. They ore round, firm, and well-ha|>rd, with black faces 

 and horns. The wool is scanty in quantity and coarse in texture ; 

 but the flesh at five years old is excellent, and the tallow equal to 

 one-fourth of the weight of the carcass. 



The county of Ayr and the adjoining county of Lanark possess a 

 valuable breed of hardy and strong draught horses, superior perhaps 

 to any in the kingdom. They were supposed to have originated 

 from some Flanders and Holstein horses, brought over in the 17th 

 century by one of the dukes of Hamilton ; but it appears that at a 

 long anterior period great pains had been taken to improve the 

 Scottish horses by importations from Denmark, Flanders, and Ger- 

 many. A considerable number of swine are fed upon the refuse of 

 the dairy ; but the breeding of them has not been so systematically 

 conducted as in some counties of England. Habbits are more 

 numerous than in any other county in Scotland. They ore bred for 

 their fur ; and are killed from the beginning of December to the end 

 of February. 



Manufacture*. The manufactures of Ayrshire are important, for 

 the district possesses considerable advantages. Fuel is abundant ; 

 materials for building are at hand ; and channels of cnimnunicHtion 

 of all kinds are open in every direction. The vicinity of Glasgow 

 and Paisley seems to have given an impulse to improvement Carpets, 

 cloths, and stockings are manufactured; and the most improved 

 machinery is in use. The woollen manufacture has long been 

 extended to all parts of the county, and is carried on to a 

 extent by the aid of machinery. Dyers and fullers have established 

 them* l <'ction with it The lim-n in nnufarturo has never 



been carried to any great extent The silk manufacture w- 

 but did not become permanent. The cotton manufacture, estai 

 in Glasgow and Paisley, soon extended itself into Ayrshire. Great 

 cotton-works were erected at the village of Catrinc on the river Ayr; 

 ami the weaving of muslins has been established nearly all over the 

 county. Many of the females in the county are cmploytd in hand 

 rowing, tambouring, and embroidering for the manufacturers of 

 muslins in Glasgow and Paisley. Bleaching, as cnnno t, .] \vith the 

 cotton trade, has also been extensively carried on. \\'onll.-n Ixmnets 

 and serges are largely made. Leather is another manufactured article 

 of considerable importance. Tanneries have been greatly extended ; 

 the leather is employed in making shoes, boots, and saddlery. 

 Pottery for domestic purposes is made, but not to any great amount 

 or with much profit Kelp, soda, and salt have all been mode to 

 advantage along the shore. Neither brick nor tile is much used in 

 this county in the erection of houses, the numerous quarries supplying 

 plenty of stone for lun'Ming, and tiles being considered neither so 

 handsome as slate nor so warm as thatch. 



Cummunicnliun. At one time there were throughout the county 

 no other roads than the pathways which led to church or to market ; 

 but excellent roads have been made in almost . ':<m in 



which they were wanted ; while branch railways of the South-Western 

 railway and otln-r IIIK-S connect all the seats of industry and places 

 of export in the county. 



.' and Toieru. The county of Ayr was anciently divided 

 into the districts of Carrick, Kyle, and Cunningham. Carries includes 

 uitry to the south of the river Doon; Kyle, tin- country 

 between the Doon and the Irvine (which is again subdivided into 

 King's Kyle, south of thu Ayr, and Kyle Stewart, north of that 

 river); and Cunningham, thu district north oi ' \\\,< Ii 

 divisions are marked in many maps, and are used in speaking of tin; 

 county ; but they have no legal existence. A distich common in thu 



