270 REPORT OF MEETINGS FOR 1902 



the main front door there is embossed a cornucopia and the 

 figures 1672. Under this there is the Lauderdale Coat of 

 Arms. At each end and in the centre of the lintel are mono- 

 graphic letters of the Duke's titles separately and combined — 

 Earl of Lauderdale, Duke of Lauderdale, and Duke Earl of 

 Lauderdale. 



The stones used in the addition and restoration of the Castle 

 are red sandstone, and were got from a quarry at Bassendean. 

 An entry in the Lauderdale accounts of that date shows this : — 

 "To Archibald Watherstone, quarrier at Dean, and in full 

 of freestone digged by him from September 1st 1670 to 3rd 

 October 1672, £1811 16s. Id." The outside view of the old 

 portion of the Castle conveys at once the impression of an 

 ancient fortress. It occupies a commanding position, and has 

 rounded towers and parapets and numerous small loop holes. 

 In the lower parts its dutigeous and iustruments of torture 

 are still seen. The walls of this part are all of immense 

 thickness, and show the purpose for which it was originally 

 built. 



In front of the Castle, where the lawn now is, a very old 

 tree marks the site of the old parish Church, prior to 1673, 

 when the Duke built the present Church. It was in this old 

 church that the nobles of James III. met and formed a plot 

 to put the king's favourites to death. When the plot was 

 completed Douglas, Earl of Angus, afterwards called "Bell 

 the Cat," siezed Cochrane and the other favourites and in 

 the presence of the king hanged them over Lauder bridge. 

 This happened in 1482. The old bridge is now gone, but 

 it was in existence in 1684, when the Earl of Lauderdale 

 borrowed from the Kirk Session wood, to hang the bell in 

 the Church, which they had secured for the repairing of 

 "Egrypt" bridge. The bridge had this local name from 

 Egrypt Wood, which is on the east side of the Leader. The 

 site of the old bridge is pointed out a little to the south- 

 east of the castle. There is in the Burgh a road called the 

 Kirk Wynd. This road got its name from the old Kirk 

 to which it led when it stood near the fort, and the 

 continuation of this road leads across the Leader to Egrypt, 

 at the place where the foundations of the old bridge are 

 pointed out. 



