Churchyards, Villages, -391 



face ; a walk, or walks, judiciously led round and through the 

 area, and neatly gravelled or paved ; and a few trees and 

 shrubs, by no means two of a sort in the same churchyard, 

 are all that is wanting. We are justified by the general cha- 

 racter of gardeners for liberality and patriotism, independently 

 of what they did in the case of Burns's monuments at Dum- 

 fries, and at Kirk Alloway, and in Kirk Alloway churchyard, 

 in concluding that these articles and labours would be readily 

 supplied by them ; and masons, we are certain, would not less 

 willingly assist in repairing the walls or tombs ; and I'oad- 

 makers in bringing in gravel, or in Macadamising or paving 

 the walks. 



The editor of the Scotsman observes (29th of June, 1831) 

 that the neglected state of the churchyards in Scotland is a 

 disgrace to the country ; and we agree with him in thinking 

 that this originates chiefly in the " deficiency of sentiment 

 which belongs to the national character." We would there- 

 fore strongly recommend the improvement of churchyards, 

 for the sake of cultivating a feeling, in which it is thus publicly 

 acknowledged by a Scotsman, that (we) his countrymen ai'e 

 deficient. 



The villages are proportionately defective with the towns; 

 but there are still evidences of improvement. That of Dal- 

 beattie, ornamented as it is with its chapel of St. Peter's, and 

 its fine garden, bears a slight resemblance to an English vil- 

 lage. Catrine is decidedly the most regular in all its arrange- 

 ments, and the cleanest. There are in this village four 

 libraries, a school, and two chapels, independently of the 

 parish church, supported entirely by the villagers. The ma- 

 nufactory of Mr. Buchanan, here, is a grand and admirably 

 regulated establishment ; and the overshot water-wheel, 40 ft. 

 in diameter, constructed of cast-iron buckets, with wrouo-ht- 

 iron rods as arms, and, like Jones's patent carriage-wheels 

 {Ency. ofAgr,^ 2d edit., § 2749. fig. 382.), acting on the suspen- 

 sion principle, is alone worth going many miles to see. 



The most prosperous villages are those on the Clyde, of 

 which Largs may be given as an example ; but, as the inhabit- 

 ants are chiefly men of property, who have retired from busi- 

 ness, it cannot be classed with Catrine, Dalbeattie, and other 

 agricultural or manufacturing places. The great deficiencies 

 in the Scotch villages, when compared with the English ones, 

 are, the want of general cleanliness in the streets and houses, 

 and the want of flowers and of flowering shrubs in the gardens. 

 To these points, and especially the first, all that have any 

 influence ought to direct their attention. 



{To be continued.) 

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