248 Report of the Meetings for 1893. 



slope from the cottages to the road shows a succession of parallel 

 earthen dikes a few feet in height, but still distinctly visible. 

 Various opinions on the origin of these walls are hazarded — the 

 most probable in our view being that the original Trinly Knowes 

 was a crofters' settlement, and that these walls mark the lots of 

 cultivated ground held by each crofter. Pretty views up and 

 down Tweed valley are seen from this high ground, but the 

 gloom of grey cloud and haze on Wednesday was so pronounced 

 as to dispel all thoughts of the beautiful. 



The party drove on to Walkerburn, and during a brief pause 

 there some biscuits were obtained at a grocer's shop ; but the 

 town has not reached that stage in civilisation at which it is 

 judged necessary to have a hotel. It is getting on, however. 

 In 1854 not a stone of the place was laid. In 1856 Henry 

 Ballantyne and Eobert Frier of Galashiels built the first mill — 

 one for sjuniiing woollen yarns. Now the original mill is 

 expanded into one of the largest tweed factories in the south 

 of Scotland, employing over 120 weavers, and probably over 

 300 hands altogether. The other mill may employ from a 

 half to two-thirds of that number, and the population should 

 be somewhere near 2000. A public school was built in 1861, 

 a church in 1875, which was doubled in size in 1891, and is 

 now a parish church with all the privileges and rights of 

 such. It has long had a Post Office and a railway station, 

 we think one constable, a great co-operative store, a Templar's 

 Lodge, and its latest addition is a Congregational dissenting 

 church. It is surely about time that the well-known declaration 

 in Hudibras, about the sinister action of a certain important 

 personage in this world's affairs, were realised. 



Crossing the Tweed here, the party drove down the right 

 bank of the river to visit Elibank Tower. On getting through 

 a portion of the pretty natural wood, which beautifies the slope 

 on the left to Tweedside, it was agreed not to ascend the 

 haunch of the hill on which the ruin is perched, but to hold 

 onward for Ashiestiel. Not a bad view was, however, got 

 of the ruin looking grimly through the faint drizzle. Pretty 

 views up over the Tweed and Innerleithen are obtainable from 

 the height after getting out of Elibank wood, but they must 

 be seen under the glow of sunset to bring out their beauty, 

 when the slanting beams gild slopes and points, contrasting 

 with the deep gloom of the valleys. 



