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the great objeA of the farmer's attention. Accordingly, 

 green crops, fuch as turnips and hay, &c. are raifed on many 

 of the farms, from which very great advantages are derived, 

 being food to the fheep in Itorms. Little wheat is pro- 

 duced in the county. Both barley and bear or bigg are 

 fown. The return from barley is, at an average, from feven 

 to eleven-fold. The return from bear is nearly the fame, 

 but the weight and market price are greatly inferior. Arti- 

 ficial grades are very generally town. Peafe are lefs culti- 

 vated than formerly, the preference being given to turnips. 



JA-ve Stock. — Sheep are the Itaple animal of this county, 

 and their number is eftiniated at 1 18,200. There are two 

 forts, viz. the original breed, which are black. faced, and the 

 white-faced, which are generally of the Cheviot breed. The 

 former, being about one-third of the whole number, are to be 

 found in the upper or weftern part of the county, and the 

 latter moflly in the lower diltrifts of the (hire. The dif- 

 ferent qualities and value of thefe two breeds fliould feem 

 nearly balanced, for though, of late years, a preference has 

 been given to the Cheviot fheep, on account of their fuperior 

 fleece, and even the opinion of their being lefs hardy than the 

 black-faced fheep has been difputed, yet it is admitted that 

 the white-faced lambs, when very young, are much barer in 

 wool, and therefore lefs protected from the weather, than 

 the black-faced ; and in an inclement lambing fealon, nearly 

 four times more of them die than of the black-faced kind. 

 The mutton of the latter is likewife accounted more deli- 

 cate. The pradlice of making ewe-milk cheefe is nearly 

 abandoned, from an opinion that it weakens the ewe. The 

 few horfes requifite for cultivating the arable dillrift, are of 

 the Lanarkfhire and Northumberland breed. Swine are 

 reared only by a few gentlemen for their taHes, and by 

 millers for the market. Vaft quantities of poultry are raifed 

 by the farmers, who fend cart-loads of eggs to Berwick, 

 which are bought by " egglcrs," who fell them again for 

 the London market. 



Indofures. — Inclofures are not very generally ufed, unlels 

 round gentlemen's feats, and on the farms in their own pof- 

 feflion. The reader is referred to what is mentioned in the 

 account of Roxburghfhire, as to the kind of inclofures ufed. 



Toiuns, yUlaget, Roads, Fairs, and Manvfa3ures. — Sel- 

 kirk is the capital of the county. (See Selkirk.) Gala- 

 fhiels, fo called from its being fituated on the banks of the 

 water Gala, is a thriving village. It has been long kiiov\'n 

 for its manufaftures of woollen cloth, which was at iirll 

 coarfe, and of a grey colour, and was called " Galifhiel's 

 grey ;" but the cloths recently manufactured are ot various 

 kinds and colours. In confequeixe of an aft of parliament 

 obtained in 1764, a road of twelve miles was made from 

 Crofslee toll-bar, on the confioes of Mid-Lothian, through 

 Selkirk, to Haremofs toll-bar, with a branch of three miles 

 to Galafhiels. Part of the road from Kelfo to Peebles, of 

 about fix or feven miles long, alfo runs through this county 

 from Galafhxl's bridge to Gait-hope burn, beyond HoUilee 

 toll-bar. The expence of thefe roads, and of a fubilantial 

 bridge over the Tweed, was 6j6o/. There are two con- 

 fiderable fairs held at Selkirk ; four lefTer fairs are likewife 

 held there, and three at Galafhiels for various purpofes. 

 The chief manufaftures arc woollen cloth, flockings, tanned 

 leather, and different implements of hufbandrj', or wood 

 blocked out for making them. 



Antiquities. — There are but few remains in this fhire of 

 Britifh or Roman antiquities. There are the remains' of 

 fome Brititli ftrengths m the eaflern divifion of the fhire, 

 which were ereCled upon heights, and were conflrufted gene- 

 rally in a form between the circular and the oval. There is 

 alfo a Roman camp in the midll of feveral of thefe ftrengths. 



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in the parifh of Robertfon. But the mod remarkable re« 

 mains of the Britons in this fhire, is the "Catrail," or battle 

 fence, confifting of a large folic, with a rampart on either 

 fide. Its length is 28 miles. This vaft war-fence can only 

 be referred, for its conltruftion, to the romanized Britons, 

 who, after the abdication of the Roman government, had 

 this country to defend againft the intrufion of the Saxons on 

 the eall, during the fifth century, the darkeft period of our 

 hiftory. The modern antiquities of Selkirklhire confill 

 chiefly of ruined caftk-s and mofs-grown towers, erefted, fome 

 of them, in the twelfth century, but the greater number of 

 them in fubfequent ages of foreign hollilities or domeftic 

 feuds. 



Hijiorical Events. — Like other counties of Scotland, Sel- 

 kirkftiire has its fhare of family feuds, fanatical conflicts, 

 wars, »nd battles, which would occupy too large a portion of 

 our pages to recount. Selkirk became a royal burgh on an _ 

 occafion that reflects high honour on the loyalty and fpirit I 

 of this ancient town. When James IV. was marching for- ■ 

 ward to his fate at Floddon field, a hundred townfmen joined 

 him under the town clerk. They fought ftoutly ; they 

 almGpft all fell in the field rather than flee. On the 13th of 

 September 1645, was fought the decillve battle of Philip- 

 liaugh. This is one of the lalt civil conflicts which ftained 

 the forcfts of Selkirklhire with human gore. 



Eminent Natives. — This Ihire puts forth a fair claim to 

 rank in its annals many characters of celebrity. The 

 Douglaffes, the Scotts, the Murrays, and Patrick Ruth- 

 ven, who had learned the art of war under the great I 

 Guftavus, and was created lord Etterick, are names con- | 

 fpicuous in hiftory. Andrew Pringle, who was placed in 

 the fenate hoiife on the 14th of June 1759, by the title of 

 lord Alemoor, as a lawyer was diftinguilhed by his modefty 

 and eloquence, and as a judge for his dignity and knowledge. 

 It produced an eminent foldier in colonel William Ruffel, of 

 Afhyfted, who diftinguilhed himfelf amongft the warriors of 

 India. Mary Scott, the Jioiver of Tarroiu, is ftill remera- 

 bered by the " ccld-blooded minifters of Etterick forelt." 

 She is celebrated by Ramfay in amorous rant : 



" With fuccefs crown'd, I'll not envy 

 The folks, who dwell above the fky ; 

 When Mary Scott's become my marrow, 

 W^e'U make a paradife on Yarrow." 



Population. — This county has feven parilhes, and a por- 

 tion of two others, containing a population of 5889 perfons. 

 Selkirklhire, as a county, fends one reprefentative to the 

 united parliament. Beauties of Scotland, vol. ii. Svo. 1805. 

 Chalmers' Caledonia, vol. ii. 4to. 1810. 



SELL, in Building, is of two kinds, viz. ground-fell, 

 which denotes tlie loweft piece of timber in a timber 

 building, and that on which the whole fuperftrufture is 

 raifed. See Ground-P/j/cj. 



Sell, Window, called alfo tuindow-foil, is the bottom 

 piece in a window-frame. 



SELL-Bed, in Mining, a term ufed in fome parts of 

 England to exprefs fome particularly rich parts of the vein 

 of ore. 



In Cornwall they f imetimes find the tin-ore fo pure, that 

 it requires only bruifug to drefs it, without the wafhing 

 and feparation by grates, launders, and the hke means : 

 they call thefe coUeftions of ore the fell-beds of tin ; and 

 it is obferved, that thefe never have any firings ifluirg from 

 them, as the other lands have. Philof. Tranf. N° 60. 



SELLA, in Ancient Geography, a river ef Melfenia, N. 

 of the illc of Oenuiia. 



Sella, in Geography, a town of Africa, in Benguela. 



SsiLA> 



