474 On Howebottom, by Rev. James Farquharson, M.A. 



It ranges in height from 600 feet to 1,000 feet above sea-level, 

 the upper and narrower portion being steep, the lower falling 

 with a more gentle slope towards the east into the valley of the 

 Ettrick. On the south side it embraces the pretty dell of Shiels- 

 haugh Burn ; and the surface rises in a low swell from the margin 

 of the dell to fall on the north side into the hollow, from which 

 the whole area has taken the name of Howebottom. A stone wall 

 running parallel to Shielshaugh Burn divides Howebotcom from 

 Eauldshope Hill, on which sheep pasture ; on the other sides it 

 is unenclosed, and bordered by the woods of Bowhill, which 

 consist of Scotch Fir, Spruce, and Larch, with a mixture of Oak, 

 Beech, and Ash. At one of the lower corners it touches on an 

 old wood. The general exposure is S.E., and considerable 

 variety of soil and shelter is found within the limits I have des- 

 cribed. For the most part the soil is the thin sharp loam charac- 

 teristic of our Silurian district ; but in the highest parts the 

 rock is almost at the surface, and in the lower and more level 

 portions a pretty deep clay soil presents itself. "While these 

 lower portions, and the margins bordered by the old wood are 

 well sheltered, the extreme height, where the ground runs out 

 to the apex of the irregular triangle, is much exposed, and 

 open to the fierce blasts of the S.W. wind. 



Since 1829, the whole of this ground has been "hained," i.e„ 

 preserved from the intrusion of sheep and cattle ; nor has any 

 part of it been under the plough, with the exception of a few 

 small patches near the lower boundary, where oats are sown as 

 food for game. In a letter with which the Duke of Buccleuch 

 has favoured me on the subject of this paper, His Grace says, 

 " I took sheep and cattle off that ground several years ago for 

 various reasons. One was to improve the picturesque effect by 

 getting rid of the harsh outline of the fence of the Bowhill 

 woods to the west; also to allow the growth of whatever 

 might prove to be the indigenous trees and plants of the Forest, 

 which had been kept down by the continued grazing of stock for 

 many years. I hoped to have seen young Oaks spring up, but in 

 that have been disappointed. * * The Oak of Ettrick Forest 

 exists now only in tradition, though a few specimens still re- 

 main." In another note the Duke adds, " One part of my inten- 

 tion was frustrated, viz., that of seeing what natural plants, as 

 well as trees, would grow and flourish there when ' hained' from 



