Castle Kennedy, Broadstones. 253 



front of Culhorn House, which is worthy of being propagated 

 by nurserymen. It is doubtless a seedling, and planted there 

 without any knowledge of its being different from the normal 

 form of the species. 



Castle Kennedy, when we last saw it in 1804, was one of the 

 most singular places in Scotland, or perhaps in Europe. In 

 1841 we were called on professionally by Earl Stair to give a 

 design for restoring it, and as we have received the earl's per- 

 mission to publish this design, we intend to do so in an article 

 by itself, in which the details will be found accompanied by en- 

 gravings which would otherwise have been given here. 



Aug. 28. — Broadstones ;, 3 o\\n Murray, Esq. This is a 

 beautiful little spot on the Bay of Stranraer, the property of a 

 much respected literary and scientific gentleman, a native of the 

 town. The garden is rich in plants, more especially in all 

 those which are employed in the arts, whether hardy or exotic ; 

 the latter of course being kept under glass. A part of the 

 grounds consists of a steep wooded bank which Mr. Murray has 

 laid out in terraces with great taste. We were quite astonished 

 at the number of half-hardy shrubs which we found on this 

 bank, enduring the open air as well as, or better than, they do 

 in the neighbourhood of London. Mr. Lamb, who was with us 

 at Culhorn House, has designed a house in the Swiss style for 

 Mr. Murray, which is worthy of notice, both as a design, and 

 because it admits of being very economically executed (650Z.) : 

 the plan and elevation are given in our Supplement to the Ejic. 

 of Cott. Arch. p. 1195. 



Stranraer to Ayr. Before leaving Stranraer we went to 

 look at the burying-ground of the kirk, and found it a very 

 limited spot in a state of desecration, which will be noticed in 

 our article on cemeteries ; but, as soon as Lord Stair was aware 

 of its condition, with his accustomed liberality and public spirit, 

 he presented the town with an additional piece of ground. 

 Architecture in Stranraer is in a very low state, and the town 

 does not contain a single building, church, chapel, meeting-house, 

 or dwelling-house worth notice, unless it be a house and garden 

 belonging to Sir John Ross, which has a basin of salt water 

 communicating with the sea at high water, for the purpose of 

 retaining a stock of live sea fish. The same idea was realised 

 many years ago by Macdoual of Laggan in Wigtonshire, and 

 Sir Robert Preston at Culross. (See our Volume for 1842, 

 p. 591.) 



On the road to Ayr we i^assed Loch Ryan House, Sir Alex- 

 ander Wallace, made conspicuous by whitewashing, Avhich ren- 

 ders most of the villas in this part of the country spots in 

 the landscape. The taste is no doubt that of the mason em- 

 ployed, who ought to be told to mix some soot and yellow ochre 



3d Ser. — 1843. V. s 



