Br. Johnston's Journal of a visit to Jardine Hall. 409 



comes, are stone seats for guests. There has been no lack 

 of accommodation for small and retired parties to consult 

 together, even in the common hall. We were shown the 

 entrance to the dungeon, and had again the story of the 

 ghost and the bible. Ascending to the top I plucked a few 

 leaves of ivy, that was doing its best to ornament this de- 

 serted residence ; and deeply did I sympathise with the 

 owner of it, that it should have been left thus vacant, and 

 exposed to destruction ; when it might have been repaired 

 and restored and made habitable, for the sum that was ex- 

 pended in building the modern house, that stands on an 

 inferior site on the opposite side of the Annan. There must 

 have been some great defect of heart — some sad lack of love 

 of ancestral deeds, a no-love of fatherland ; that he who first 

 left this place of family pride, should have seen no virtue in 

 its restoration and preservation. I deem him to have wrong- 

 ed the present talented baronet and his descendants for ever. 

 And now we waded the Annan, and so home to dinner, all 

 mourning over the Spedlings. In the evening, we were 

 shown the famous ghost-laying bible, and a very beautiful 

 volume it is, kept in a box formed of a rafter of the Tower. 

 It is in its original binding repaired ; and is printed in a 

 beautiful old English letter. Looked over also some proofs 

 of a volume preparing for the Ray Society, and am not 

 pleased with the same. Mr. Macdonald, who translates a 

 considerable portion of the volume, is a country gentleman 

 of property, who lives about six miles from Jardine Hall, in 

 a house famous for the difficulty of access to it ; so that 

 visitors often leave their carriages at the base of the hill and 

 ascend on foot. It is not less dangerous to descend this av- 

 enue, as witnesses this true story. Mr. Macdonald is the 

 nephew of the late proprietor, and driving his uncle clown 

 the road in question, the gig was overturned, the uncle was 

 killed ; and Mr. Macdonald found himself the Laird of Ram- 

 merscales several years anterior to the laws and ordinations 

 of Nature ! 



Thursday, Sept. 12th. A long drive to-day. Starting 

 immediately after breakfast, we took the road to Dumfries ; 

 which for some miles was very uninteresting, and would 

 have been more so, had I not had Sir William to tell me the 

 names and history of the more prominent objects and hills 

 in our view. These I have now almost forgotten. The 

 first and better half of our road was very much of a contin- 



