Report of the Meeting* of the Berwickshire Naturalists' 

 Club, for the year 1887. By James Hardy. 



Edrom, Blanerne, Beoomiiouse, Duns Castle. 



The Club held its first meeting for the yeai* 1887 at Edrom on 

 the 2oth Ma}-, when 28 members were present. The day was 

 misty and unenlivened by a single glimpse of sunshine, and the 

 prospect was nearly shut out : but excepting the experience of a 

 few slight showers, the walk was without much discomfort. 



The church and nearly obsolete village lie on a sort of flat. 

 It has rather a dreary aspect till the trees are in foliage. Edrom 

 is a very extensive parish, and one thing a stranger is surprised 

 at, is the amount of stabling required for the accommodation of 

 the horses of those who attend the church from a distance. 

 "When the foundations of the stables were dug — for the erection 

 is recent — the soil was full of bones, having doubtless formed 

 part of the older burying ground. 



While the company was assembling, Edrom house, which lies 

 on the North, between the church and the river Whitadder, was 

 looked at — a small mansion of the 18th century type. A 

 Wistaria was in bloom on the front wall ; aud a Honeysuckle on 

 one of the cottages. There are three or four fine tall well-grown 

 silver firs here. The ground lias been much altered and cut up. 

 There has been on the west an avenue of lime trees, of which 

 only one side has been spared. The manse and cottage gardens 

 were bright with Violas, Daisies, and Primulas. The Black-cap, 

 Mavis, and Blackbird were in full song. 



Under the guidance of the Eev. Macduff Simpson, the renovated 

 church at Edrom was viewed, and every one was gratified with 

 the taste in which it was fitted up in the interior. It was a 

 pretty general opinion that the Norman arch in front of the 

 Edrom aisle, which stands apart from the church, had once 

 formed the western doorway of the nave of the original church ; 

 and that the pillars with ornamental capitals now disposed along- 

 side of it had been derived from the interior of that demolished 

 church ; and that the} 7 had been reconstructed in the form they 

 now present after the rebuilding of the church in 1732. These 

 are the oldest and most valuable remains of antiquity here. 



1 will not dwell upon the church and churchyard at present. 

 On two several occasions I examined both the external and 



