80 Report of the Meetings for 1892. 



Duns has produced some notable men ; besides a host of minor poets, 

 notices of some of whom will be found in the Rev. W. S. Crockett's 

 recently published volume, The Minstrelsy of the Merse. Its claim to be 

 regarded as the birthplace of Duns Scotus may be open to question; but 

 no uncertainty exists with respect to the following -. — 



1. Thomas Boston, (1676-1732), author of the Fourfold State and 

 numerous other works in Divinity. An interesting sketch of his life is 

 given by Dr Hardy in Vol. viii. of the Proceedings of the Club. The 

 house in Newtown Street, in which he was born, has been recently rebuilt. 

 A memorial tablet, built into the wall, erroneously gives the date of his 

 ordination as minister of Simprin as 1705 instead of 1699. 



2. Abraham Robertson, LL.D., (1751-1826), Savilian Professor of 

 Astronomy at Oxford. 



3. Thomas M'Crie, D.D., (1773-1835), the distinguished biographer of 

 John Knox and Andrew Melville, and one of the ablest divines and con- 

 troversialists of his day. The house in which he was born stood within what 

 are now the policies of Duns Castle, on the S.W. slope of the Law. It has 

 long since disappeared, but three trees still mark the position of the garden. 



4. James Cleghorn, (1778-1838), actuary. 



5. John Black, (1783-1855), editor of the Morning Chronicle. 



6. Stephen Hislop, (1817-1863), a noted missionary of the Free Church 

 of Scotland in India, and an accomplished zoologist, botanist, and geologist. 



Duns is also the reputed birthplace of Cadwallader Colden, (1688- 

 1776?), Doctor of Medicine, Botanist, and Lieutenant Governor of New 

 York. He doubtless received his early education in the town; but as his 

 father, the Rev. Alexander Colden, did not become minister of the parish 

 until 1693, and his name does not occur in the Register of Baptisms, 

 he cannot with certainty be claimed as a native. 



The late Dr William Cunningham, Principal of the Free Church 

 College, Edinburgh, spent a considerable part of his boyhood at Cheek- 

 law, in the near neighbourhood of the town. 



Berwick Meeting. 

 The Annual Meeting was held at Berwick Museum on 

 Wednesday, Oct. 12th, when there were present: — Sir William 

 Grossman, R.E., K.C.M.G., Cheswick House; Major Browne, 

 OaUaly Castle; Captain G. D. A. Clark, Belford Hall; Mr W. 

 Askew-Eobertson, Ladykirk ; Provost Craig-Brown, Selkirk, 

 President of the Club ; Col. Milne-Home, Paxton House ; Sir 

 George Douglas, Bart., Springwood Park ; the Mayor and 

 Mayoress of Berwick ; Mr R. Douglas, Town -Clerk of Berwick ; 

 Aid. Captain Norman, R.N., Captain Forbes, R.N., Messrs W. 

 Wilson, W. Weatherhead. J. Dunlop (Sheriff of Berwick), E. G. 

 Bolam, E. Willoby, and R. Weddell, Berwick ; Rev. Evan 

 Rutter, Spittal ; Rev. B. S. Wilson, Duddo ; W. T. Hindmarsh, 

 F.L.S., James Heatley, and G. H. Thompson, Alnwick ; Dr Chas. 



