SCOTS MAGAZINE, AND Edinburgh Literary Miscellany, FOR FEBRUARY 1809: With a View of FERNIHIRST CASTLE. Memoirs of the Life of the late Sir 83 Chalmers's Caledonia; or an Account, 85 Scottish Literary Intelligence,.. ...119 New Works published in Edinburgh, 124 • 125 Literary Intelligence, English and 136 POETRY. Account of a Char Charity School estab. lished in Leith, with a Sketch of Verses inscribed to L. Macintosh, Lancaster's System of Education, ... 89 94 Description of Edinburgh: with an Account of the present State of its Medical School, from the Ger man,.. -The Medical Society,. -Royal College of Physicians, . of Surgeons,. Infirmary, Letter from Professor Ker to the A Journey through the Highlands and 98 99 .....102 Description of Bagdad, ...... 110 114 -Progressive account of the Glas- ... Proceedings of the Wernerian Natu- .. Board of Inquiry, SCOTTISH CHRONICLE. Marriages and Births, .. ib. Stocks and Markets, .. .. 156. ..157 158 ........ 160 State Papers, ..... 146 ... ...149 ..... ib. State THE Scots Magazine, AND EDINBURGH LITERARY MISCELLANY, FOR FEBRUARY 1809. CASTLE. Historical Account of FERNIHIRST of Fernihirst, which thenceforth gave name to that powerful branch of the Kerr family. This castle, situated near the border, the scene then of almost perpetual war, was subject to all the vicissitudes of such a situation. The disasters sustained by Scotland in the battle of Flodden, laid the border open to the incursions of the English. In 1523, the Earl of Surry, with Dorset and Dacres, entered Scotland, and marched to Jedburgh, which he took after an obstinate resistance. He then detached the Lord Dacres to FERNIHIRST CASTLE was founded about 1490, by Thomas Ker, a branch of the family of Ker, which made long a conspicuous figure in border history, as well as in the gene ral history of Scotland. The Homes, Scotts, and Kerrs, took the lead in all the transactions of that part of the kingdom. The Kerrs were an Anglo-Norman family *, which, there appears reason to suppose, was of great antiquity, both in England and Scotland. It is only from about the year 1330, however, that we receive a distinct genealogical account of them. At that period, Ralph Kerr settled in Scotland, and obtained possession of the lands lying between the water of Jed and the lands of Straserburgh. He called these by the name of Kershaugh, which continued for some time the chief title of his family. It split in time, however, into two branches; the Kerrs of Cessford, who afterwards rose to the title of Dukes of Rox burgh; and the Kerrs of Fernihirst, who rose to those of Jedburgh, Lothian, and Ancrum. It was about 1490, as we already noticed, that Thomas, eighth in descent from Ralph, founded the castle * Chalmers's Caledonia, Vol. I. p. 530. Fernihirst, who reduced that castle, and made prisoners of Sir Andrew Kerr, and the laird of Gradon. After the arrival, however, of French auxiliaries, the Scots acquired the ascen dency, and took cruel revenge for English depredation. Of this, the castle of Fernihirst afforded a striking example. The laird, with his retainers, assisted by a band of Frenchmen, assaulted this fortress, The English archers (we copy the account of Mr Scott, Border Minstrelsy, I. xxx.) showered their arrows down the steep ascent leading to the castle, and from the outer wall, by which it was surrounded. A vigorous escalade, however, gained the base court, and the sharp fire of the French arquebusiers drove the bowmen into the square, keep, or dungeon, of the fortress. Here the English defended themselves, till a breach in the wall was made by mining. mining. Through this hole the commandant crept forth; and surrendering himself to De la Mothe Rouge, implored protection from the vengeance of the borderers. But a Scottish marchman, eyeing in the captive the ravisher of his wife, approached him ere the French officer could guess his intention, and, at one blow, carried his head four paces from the trunk.Above a hundred Scots rushed to wash their hands in the blood of their oppressor, bandied about the severed head, and expressed their joy in such shouts as if they had stormed the city of London. The prisoners who fell into their merciless hands were put to death, after their eyes had been torn out; the victors contending who should display the greatest address in severing their legs and arms before inflicting a mortal wound. When their own prisoners were slain, the Scottish, with an inextinguishable thirst for blood, purchased those of the French; parting willingly with their very arms, in exchange for an English captive.' The laird of Fernihirst was one of the leaders in the engagement at Halidon, in 1526, between the Scotts, headed by Scott of Buccleugh on one side, and the Homes and Kerrs on the other; the latter being headed by Lord Home, and the Barons of Cessford and Fernihirst. It was in the cause of Angus, who then held King James V. in a state of pupilage, and to whom the Homes and Kerrs strongly attached themselves. Buccleugh was routed; but Kerr of Cessford being slain in the pursuit, a deadly feud thence arose between the Scotts and Kerrs. Afterwards, in 1528, when James emancipated himself from the power of Angus, the Homes and Kerrs still adhered to that nobleman, and prevented his enemies from penetrating into Berwickshire, by defending the pass of Pease *. * Border Minstrelsy, I. 16-20. This feud, however, did not prevent them from uniting their forces in making plundering incursions into England. Buccleugh, Cessford, and Ferniherst, were jointly complained of on this ground by the English Court. In 1533, they revenged an inroad of the English by another most destructive one into Northumberland. In 1544, the English made new incursions. The Tyndale and Ridsdale men burnt Bedrûle. On their return, they met the laird of Fernihirst and his son John, whom they defeated, and made prisoners. It would appear that, probably on condition of receiving their liberty, they had gone over to the side of the English, for a little after, we find, that "Robert Carr, Fernihirst's son, and other Scotsmen, who are in assurance, to the number of 600 horsemen, took Eyldon and Newbrough, and brought away 600 nolt, besides shepe and naggst." Another dispatch, regarding a similar exploit, is said to be from the laird of Fernihirst. After the flight of Mary into England, many border chieftains, with a romantic gallantry, espoused her cause. Buccleugh, and Sir Andrew Kerr of Fernihirst, were at their head; but, notwithstanding the power of these chieftains, the address of the Earl of Morton prevailed in establishing the authority of the King, even in their own district. Fernihirst, however, continued an intrepid defender of her cause, and thus incurred the utmost resentment of Elizabeth, who found means to accomplish her revenge.Some outrages having been committed by the Scots at a border meeting, Elizabeth accused Arran and Ternihirst and demanded that they should be delivered up to her. No proof was adduced of the charge; and James therefore refused to comply with the full demand of Elizabeth: yet intimi. dated † Haynes's State Papers, p. 50. dated by her power, he put them both into confinement. Fernihirst was sent to Aberdeen, where this gallant and loyal chief died unworthily in prison *. The fidelity of Sir Andrew seems to have recommended his son to James VI., who made him one of the gentlemen of the bed-chamber, and created him a peer, by the title of Lord Jedburgh. Robert, third Lord Jedburgh, dying without issue, left his estate an honours to William Lord Newbottle, son to Robert, then Earl, afterwards Marquis of Lothian, to whom he was related by marriage.This title afterwards came to William Ker, son to Sir Kobert Ker of Ancrum, a descendant of a younger branch of the Fernihirst family †. Fernihirst still continues to be a principal seat of the family of Lothian. Monthly Memoranda in Natural History. Jan. 26. 1809. THE intensity of the cold (some particulars of which were given in last month's Memoranda) began this day to abate. Snow fell copiously, drifting in some places to the depth of many feet. The ice on the lakes in this neighbourhood has been observed to be from 18 to 22 inches thick. - 27. In the morning the mercury rose 15 degrees above the freezing point: and a breeze springing up from the S. W., the snow began to disappear rapidly. - 29. Squalls from S. W. accompanied with heavy showers of rain, have produced so rapid a solution of the immense quantity of snow which covered the high grounds, that all the meadows are flooded, and the level parts of the country around Edinburgh appear as if spotted with numerous small lakes. (By accounts from London it ap * Riupath's Border History. + Douglas's Peerage. pears that the sudden thaw at this time produced great devastation about Deptford, and other places on the Thames. Windsor was completely insulated: the Duke of York had to sail through the streets of Eton in a boat to visit the King at Windsor Castle. In the West of England, about Bath especially, the inundation was complete, and attended with some disastrous consequences. In Scotland the damage has not been considerable. The new bridge over the Yarrow near Selkirk was swept away.) Feb. 3. In our last we mentioned, that shocks of an earthquake had been felt all along the baze of the Ochils on the 18th January. We have now to add, that on the last day of January and the first of February, similar shocks were experienced in the West Highlands, and were particularly evident at Arisaig and Moidart. P. S.-The gentleman at St. Andrews who lately favoured the writer of this article (by post) with the description of a marine animal found in the belly of a cod, is respectfully informed, that, owing chiefly, no doubt, to the half-dissolved state of the specimen, the account was too imperfect to enable him to ascertain with accuracy even the genus to which the creature should be referred. He is inclined to suspect that some mutilated fragments had assumed the indistinct appearance of fins and tail, and had thus produced ambiguity. In this case, the animal might be nothing else than the Aphrodita aculeata, which is remarkable for being ornamented with several fasciculi of iridescent spines. This animal is known to many of the fishermen on our coasts by the name of Sea Mouse, and it has several times been found in the stomach of the cod-fish. He shall be happy to hear again from his correspondent at St Andrew's: And he takes this opportunity of mentioning, that where the specimen is not of large size, and where gentlemen have no |