196 NIMROD'S NORTHERN TOUR. 



actual representative of, his illustrious namesake of Jerviswood*, in the 

 county of Lanark. His history is well known. He was the Sydney 

 of Scotland, and suffered death in the same cause with that great patriot, 

 during the infamous reisrn of the Second Charles. But, although his 

 death was an ignominious one — he was hanged like a dog — he died 

 nobly, and with a Roman spirit not often displayed in the last hour, 

 inasmuch as his life would have been saved had he peached. " Tell 

 them," said he, *' who make such a proposal, that they neither know me 

 nor my country !" Brutus did not much beat this. 



The present laird of Mellerstain first kept hounds which hunted 

 both hare and fox for several years after he came of age, but sold them 

 in 1791, and kept fox-hounds, without any intermission, from 1792 to 

 1826, being thirty- four years ! There is not a kennel in Scotland that has 

 not some of his blood. He hunted Berwickshire, Roxburghshire, Selkirk- 

 shire, and occasionally part of Northumberland, and his hounds were in 

 high repute when Nim North contributed his admirable letters to the old 

 Sporting Magazine. They have been given up about ten years, in conse- 

 quence, partly, of their owner's health being scarcely equal to the fatigue of 

 following fox-hounds, in a strongly enclosed country, and particularly 

 so as Mr. Baillie is at the head of the high weights. 1 have always 

 understood himself and his men were capitally mounted in the field, on 

 horses bred by himself for the turf, of which he was a great supporter. 

 The stud indeed that I saw at Mellerstain confirmed the character I heard 

 of them. They were full of high breeding, and a bay mare of Mr. 

 George Baillie's, (the eldest son) struck me as being the strongest tho- 



• The attainder of Jerviswood, together with that of Argyll, was reversed hy the 

 Conventional Parliament at the Revolution. 



