Report of Meetings for 1879, by James Hardy. 41 



W. B. Boyd, Ormiston House ; A. Brotherston, Kelso ; A. Currie, 

 Darnick ; Thomas Henderson, Middle Third; W. A. Hunter, 

 Dunse ; W. H. Johnson, Tweedbank, Kelso ; J. B. Kerr, Com- 

 mercial Bank, Kelso ; E. D. Ker, Edinburgh ; Peter Loney, 

 Marchmont ; Hume Nisbet, Edinburgh ; Eobert Eenton, Fans ; 

 James Wood, Galashiels ; John Eussell, Galashiels ; Andrew E. 

 Scougal, Melrose ; William Stevenson, Dunse ; Charles Watson, 

 Dunse. 



Till about half -past one there was a continuous rain, in conse- 

 quence of which the movements of the company were very much 

 restricted, and many points of interest were left unvisited. But 

 Sir Hugh H. Campbell having courteously opened the treasures 

 of art and literature contained in Marchmont House, most of the 

 time was profitably and comfortably spent under cover. March- 

 mont is distinguished for its well grown-timber trees, many of 

 them of large dimensions, tall and handsome in their appearance, 

 and superabundant in their wealth of foliage. There are some 

 clean, straight, noble oaks on the bank above the Eailway ; and 

 the beeches, which are the predominant trees, Spanish chestnuts, 

 and silver firs throughout the grounds, shew by their vigorous 

 strength that the soil although of a stiff tenacious red clay and 

 full of moisture below, is adapted to their growth. The roots do 

 not penetrate deeply, but spread horizontally over a wide area, 

 wherever the ground is dry. 



The first point of interest visited was near the summit of the 

 high banks to the north of the railway, and immediately adjoin- 

 ing the station, as being the site of a remarkable landslip which 

 occurred there on the 21st December, 1876. The banks are com- 

 posed of a red sandy earth, very porous and retentive of moisture. 

 On the occasion of the landslip, the weather was very wet, 3.38 

 inches of rain having fallen on the 20th and 21st of the month. 

 On the second day of this rainfall, about 9 o'clock at night, a 

 pedestrian crossing the braes at this place, discovered that a great 

 portion of the bank had slipped forward, leaving a great trench 

 or gap about ten feet in width. So steady and deep had been 

 the movement of the soil as it slipped, that several large trees 

 were carried forward, just as they stood, a number of feet from 

 their original position. One of these, a fine oak tree, still as 

 erect and flourishing as ever, and measuring above fourteen feet 

 round the trunk, had been moved ten feet from the spot where 



