604- Recollections of a Gardening Tour. 



"Lyndsay, in his Complaynt of the Passings* written in 1530, 

 thus also alludes to it : — 



■ Adieu fair Snawdoun with thy towris hie, 

 Thy Chapill Royal, Park, and Tabill round ; 

 May, June, and July would I dwell in thee, 

 Were I ane man to hear the birdis sound 

 Whilk doth against thy royal rocke resound.' 



" To give further countenance to this supposition, we have the 

 ascertained fact that James IV., with whom Stirling was a 

 favourite and frequent residence, was excessively fond of the 

 game of the Round Table, which probably appealed in a pecu- 

 liar manner to his courtly and chivalric imagination. 



" It is a circumstance not to be omitted, that a piece of ground 

 to the west, not so distinctly marked as this, but within the limits 

 of the gardens, is called the Queen's Knote." (Picture of Stirling 

 1830; the descriptive part by Robert Chambers.) 



" Besides the above, there are no other traditionary notices 

 that can be obtained. There can be little doubt but that a round 

 table did exist here prior to the formation of the gardens, or the 

 reign of the Jameses ; whether it may have been altered or re- 

 novated by any of these monarchs it is now impossible to 

 determine. 



" The circle called the Queen's Knote has been by some con- 

 sidered a miniature of the other; but, on a minute examination, 

 it indicates nothing at present but a plain surface with a few old 

 mole hills, of which it has a proportion along with the other 

 parts of the field, and of which various figures might easily be 

 constructed by a fertile fancy." — William Drummond and Sons. 

 Stirling, Oct. 1842. 



The plan and sections {Jig. 75.) require very little explanation. 

 There is a cross section, a b ; a diagonal section, e f, and a 

 longitudinal section, c d ; all to the same scale. The road to 

 Stirling is shown at h, and the old canal at g. The surface is , 

 in grass, and grazed by sheep and cattle. As this and great 

 part of the adjoining lands are the property of the crown, we 

 hope the " Knote " will be carefully preserved as a piece of 

 antiquity. 



An Arboretum at Stirling. — We were agreeably surprised by 

 Messrs. Drummond informing us that the Commission of Woods 

 and Forests had it in contemplation to devote a portion of the 

 crown lands surrounding the town to a public garden, and to 

 plant in it a collection of trees and shrubs. The idea is excellent, 

 and worthy of the present enlightened times. The Messrs. 

 M'Nab of Edinburgh have examined the ground and reported 

 on the subject, and we hope as little time as possible will be lost 

 in carrying the scheme into execution. The trees and shrubs, 

 we trust, will not be crowded, drawn up, and impoverished by 



