66 Rev. P. Mearns on Wark Castle. 



The east, west, and south, walls also can be traced. There 

 are two parallel walls on the west side thirty -four yards apart. 

 The inner is seen for about half its length, and in the excava- 

 tions made a few years ago, the rest of it was found only a 

 few feet beneath the surface, with a thickness of ten feet. 

 Buildings are discovered all over the enclosed area by dig- 

 ging a few feet down. The Ladies' Walk, along the top of 

 the escarpment on the Tweed, appears to have been enclosed ; 

 but the north wall has been removed by the gradual wasting 

 of the escarpment. In digging the foundation of the new 

 Boat-house (1863) a ditch was found nine feet wide, running 

 south-west from the north-west corner of Hhe wall close by 

 the Tweed, and passing beneath the door of the new house. 

 On the same occasion, a road made of broken stones was 

 found, 8 feet wide, passing from the village, on the north side 

 of the tower, towards the grave-yard at Gilly's Nick. Un- 

 doubtedly, excavations, judiciously executed, would lead to 

 other interesting discoveries. 



The following account of excavations recently made has 

 been kindly furnished to me by Richard Hodgson, Esq., 

 M.P. :— 



" My excavations a few years back resulted in the expo- 

 sure of a long flight of stone stairs leading from the Keep to 

 the outer court, with a portcullis about half way. This was 

 on the east side of the mound. On the south-west side I dis- 

 covered a square pit, lined with masonry, about five feet wide, 

 and descending nearly to the base of the mound. At the 

 bottom were a number of cannon balls, of various sizes, and 

 various materials, iron, lead, stone, and some of them lead 

 and flint mixed and cast together. To the north of the castle 

 I traced a wide sewer, which might easily be used for passage 

 of men or material, and opening in the steep river bank. I 

 was unable to find the old well of which tradition speaks." 



Wark is now the property of the Earl of Tankerville, as 

 representing here the ancient family of the Greys. 



