Rambles Round Kilmarnock
Chapter 3

Observing that the beautiful statue of Sir James Shaw, which adorns the centre of the Cross, appeared to be intently gazing down Cheapside Street, I took it as a hint and passed into that short thoroughfare. In front is the massive square tower of the Low Church. It bears the date 1410, and now stands prominently out since the old buildings that clustered about its base have been removed. At the Crown Hotel I pause and muse on other days, for, according to M’Kay, it was nearly opposite it where the Old Tolbooth stood. He says--"It was a gloomy-looking structure two storeys high, with a small ‘bell-house,’ and shops on the ground floor facing the street. The bell that belonged to it is still used in the present Council-house, and bears this inscription:-- ‘This bell was gifted by the Earl of Kilmarnock to the town of Kilmarnock for their Council-house. A.M., Edin., 1711.’ Down a lane at the west end of the building was the Thieves’ Hole, and above were two dungeon-like apartments called the Tolbooth, at the stair head of which hung the Juggs, or iron collar, in which petty delinquents were doomed to stand for a given time exposed to the gaze of the multitude. The part of the upper flat nearest the Cross formed the Hall, or Court-house, the entrance to which was by a broad outside stair faced with a parapet. From the head of this stair the whole of the market-place was seen; and here, on public occasions, such as Kings’ birthdays, the Bailies and Councillors, accompanied sometimes by the lord of the manor, would assemble to drink His Majesty’s health and give other loyal and patriotic toasts. The Old Tolbooth was taken down about the beginning of the present century."

From the above quotation we learn that Cheapside, as it is now called, has been a street of considerable importance. It still remains so, but contains nothing nowadays worthy of notice, therefore "swith to the Laigh Kirk" I now take my way. It stands at the end of Cheapside, and about a stone-throw from the Cross; but, oh, what a change has taken place in its vicinity since last year! Low Church Lane has all but disappeared, and only a portion of the Strand is now left, the hand of improvement having swept away the old buildings that lined these thoroughfares, and their site form a handsome new street which is named after our late provost. It runs from Bank Street to John Finnie Street, and doubtless in future years it will be the main way between the western portion of the town and the Cross. The present Low Church is a massive, plain building. It was erected in 1802 on the site of a less commodious edifice that has been rendered classical by the poet Burns as the scene of The Ordination--a poem brimful of that biting sarcasm that he so unerringly hurled at the hypocritical shams of his day. All that now remains of the former building-and very probably of one anterior to it-is the square tower already referred to, which has withstood the blast for centuries.

The Low Church of Burns’s day was the scene of a disgraceful riot at the introduction of a distasteful minister, and of a melancholy catastrophe that send a wail of grief and lamentation through the streets of Kilmarnock. The first-mentioned event took place in 1764, and the facts may be briefly related as follows: --Upon the death of the Rev. Robert Hall the second charge became vacant, and the Earl of Glencairn--the then patron--appointed the Rev. Mr. Lindsay of Cumbray to the office. This appointment the people of Kilmarnock did not approve of, and they determined to oppose it, for the following reasons:--In the first place, they did not consider Mr. Lindsay qualified to be their minister; and secondly, it was through the influence of his wife, Margaret Lauder, who had been a governess in the Earl’s family, that he had obtained the appointment, and not through any merit he possessed as a preacher. In spite of the opposition to the nomination of Mr. Lindsay, the Earl took his own way in the matter, and fixed the 12^th of July as the day on which his ordination was to take place. "Time brought the day, the hour, the man," but it also brought the town’s-people from workshop and dwelling, who, armed with every obnoxious missile they could lay hand on, thronged the approaches to the Low Church. The excitement was intense, and when the patron, the presentee, and other clergymen and gentlemen made their appearance, they were hooted, jostled, and pelted with mud and filth to such an extent that it was with the utmost difficulty they gained the interior of the church; but they were not safe even there, for, to quote from a metrical account of the tumult that was written at the period by a poet of some local fame:-- [Burns refers to it as "a scoffing ballad." It is preserved by M’Kay in his "History of Kilmarnock," and by James Paterson in "Songs and Ballads of Ayrshire."]

Ten ringleaders of the riot were apprehended, as the poet states, upon the information of Lang Tam. They were tried at Ayr. Three were found guilty and sentenced "to be imprisoned for one month, and whipt through the streets, and to find caution for keeping the peace and a good behaviour for a twelvemonth." The other seven were liberated. The Rev. Mr. Lindsay entered on his duties in the Low Church, but died ten years after, and was succeeded by the Rev. James Mackinlay. All three are mentioned by Burns in the "Ordination."

From the riot and its ludicrous incidents I will now turn to a more grave subject, and briefly refer to the melancholy catastrophe that occurred in the Low Church of former days. The building, which was incommodious and badly constructed, had long been unconsidered unsafe--so much so that a popular prophecy stated that it would one day fall and bury the congregation in its ruins. This foolish prediction seems to have had some little weight in the public mind, for upon Sabbath, the 18^th of October, 1801, when the church was unusually crowded a panic was occasioned, some say by a piece of plaster falling from the ceiling, others by the cracking of a seat in the gallery. Imagining that the prophecy was about to be fulfilled, and that the walls of the building were about to collapse, the bulk of the congregation rushed to the doors, and in their wild haste. Agonizing screams issued from the struggling mass of human beings in the corridors that rang through the building, and heightened the terror and dread that prevailed in the minds of the deluded throng. Unmindful of the fostering care of the Almighty Being whom they had assembled to worship, many for the moment discarded all their vaunted trust in Him, and allowed the brutal instinct of self-preservation to predominate, and sought to gratify it by throwing down and treading upon the weak and the helpless.

Many sought refuge by jumping through the windows into the graveyard, and others in their despair threw themselves from the gallery into the body of the church, and heightened the pandemonium by their cries and maniacal actions. Tidings of the occurrence spread. People flocked to the scene, and the greatest excitement prevailed among the excited, horror-stricken mob who thronged every approach to the church. Ladders were procured and the building was entered by the windows, for the doors, which opened inwardly, had become shut by the pressure of those who blindly struggled to escape from the interior. The scene presented was indescribable. Behind the doors and along the passages the dead, the dying, the maimed, and the mangled, lay piled together in a trodden mass, and it was with much difficulty they extricated and borne to the churchyard, where they were laid for recognition. This in some instances was most difficult, for many of the bodies were so disfigured that they were unrecognizable, and it was only by dress and other marks that they were identified. I need not dwell upon the scenes of anguish in the churchyard, or tell of the agonizing wails of grief that rent many a bosom that afternoon. Suffice it to say that when all were got out of the building it was found there were twenty-nine killed and upwards of eighty injured, many severely. Homes in Kilmarnock and its vicinity that had resounded in the morning with family glee were by the going down of the sun abodes of mourning. Parents bewailed children, children parents, sisters brothers, and brothers sisters, while relatives ad friends wept and lamented those who in the full vigor of life had been cut down and gathered into the garner of death. After the melancholy occurrence the church was taken down and the present one built. It is possessed of the opposite qualities of its predecessor, being spacious, comfortable, and well provided with means of egress.

The Low Churchyard contains several tombstones of peculiar interest, not the least of which are those to the memory of Tam Samson of elegiac fame, the Rev. John Robertson, and John Mackinlay, D. D., who, as the handsome new tombstone states, was "minister of this parish for fifty-four years." The tablet on Mr. Robertson’s grave is not in the best order, but that to the memory of the famous Tam, which is railed in, is in excellent condition. On it is inscribed the following epitaph from the pen of Robert Burns which is appended to the worthy sportsman’s elegy--

These three stones are situated at the north-west corner of the church. The two clergymen lie side by side, and the "weel-worn clay" of Mr Samson rests at the head of their graves, all three being buried in close proximity, which is a remarkable coincidence, seeing that they are all mentioned in the first verse of Tam’s elegy in the following order--

Want of space compels me to omit noticing this old church-yard at any great length, therefore I will briefly refer to stones commemorating local heroes who suffered for "Christ and the Covenanted Work of Reformation," and pass on my way. The first of these stands at the back of the church, near the gravel walk, and bears the following inscription:-- "Here lie the heads of John Ross and John Shields, who suffered at Edinburgh, Dec. 27^th, 1666, and had their heads set up in Kilmarnock.

These men were spies from the ranks of the Covenanters, and when apprehended they were found in the possession of arms, and to be in the town for the purpose of conveying intelligence of the movements of the King’s troops to their confederates. Either crime at the period was a capital offence. Ross was a native of Mauchline, and Shields was a cottar on the estate of Nether Pollock. The next stone stands about the centre of the churchyard and is elaborately carved. On the top is a pistol, cross swords, and flags, the stems of which pass behind a scroll on which is graven "Solemn League and Covenant." One flag bears the inscription "God and our Country," and the other the device of a crown. The inscription is as follows:--"Here lies John Nisbet, who was taken by Major Balfour’s party, and suffered at Kilmarnock, 14^th April, 1683, for adhering to the word of God and our Covenants.--Rev. xii and II. Renewed by public contribution A. D., 1823.

For the account of Nisbet’s accusation and execution I refer the reader back to the notice of the Cross.

The next and last stone to the memory of the martyrs is indented into the churchyard wall nearly opposite the old manse. On the top is an open book with the inscription, "Psalm XLIV., 17. Rev. ii., 10." Beneath is the following: --"Erected 1823. Repaired 1846. Sacred to the memory of Thomas Findlay, John Cuthberston, William Brown, Robert and James Anderson (natives of this parish), who were taken prisoners at Bothwell, June 22^nd, 1679, sentenced to transportation for life, and drowned on their passage near the Orkney Isles. Also, John Findlay, who suffered martyrdom 15^th Dec., 1682, in the Grassmarket, Edinburgh."

The first-first named five were, as the stones states, transported for life for their share in the battle of Bothwell Bridge. America was the country assigned them, and they, with 245 others who had been found guilty of the same offence, were--after undergoing much hardship and ill-usage--put on board of a vessel at Leith and confined under hatches. They received brutal usage at the hand of the captain and crew, but this had a sudden termination, for a storm arose and dashed the vessel against the rocks of Darness, near Orkney, and laid her a total wreck. Fifty escaped and 200 were drowned. The last named (John Findlay) who suffered martyrdom seems to have been the tenant of Muirside and to have been a man of sterling worth, and, according to the light he had, of great piety. The charges brought against him were, 1^st. Keeping company with the persecuted people of God. 2^nd. For refusing to call Bishop Sharp’s death murder, and the battle of Bothwell Bridge rebellion. 3^rd. For giving food and shelter to the Covenanters. His last speech and testimony is given at length in "The Cloud of Witnesses." He considered himself greatly honored by the laying down of his life for the cause he loved so well. The Laigh Kirkyard, as it is called, was at one time of much greater extent. Tradition states that it extended down to the brink of the river, and excavations that have from time to time been made in its neighbourhood prove that where streets are now formed and buildings erected has at one time been part of God’s Acre, but at what period history saith not. I was much interest in some excavations that were made during the formation of John Dickie Street. Human skulls and bones, and, in many instances, entire skeletons, were exhumed. These remains-which were carefully collected and buried in the graveyard--were no sheep shanks, but many bones were of surprising size and thickness. One thighbone that I lifted and examined would have served me for a walking stick, and a skull I had in my hand appeared to have belonged to some one with a head. It was unusually large, finely formed, and the region of the intelligent organs well developed. One sight I will not readily forget was that of a skeleton over six feet long imbedded in clay beneath the sure-face of what had been Low Church Lane. A labourer carefully removed the clay with his spade from about it, collected the bones, and had them removed to the graveyard. The sight impressed me very much, and even as I write I think I see the grinning skull-grinning as if the remnant of all that was mortal resented being disturbed. At one time these bones had formed the framework of some one’s idol, which possibly had been laid there by loving friends who long ago

"Have been ordained the same cold bed,
The same dark night, the same long sleep."

But a truce to this moralizing. To judge by the bones that I saw exhumed, men are degenerating--yes, degenerating in natural worth--and if they continue, doubtless they will arrive back at what some people would have us believe was the starting-point, viz., Darwin’s ape; for the brawny brose and porridge fed Scotchmen of yore, who seemingly were possessed of greater physical qualifications and greater power of endurance than is generally met with in the men of to-day, have passed away, and a generation who have fallen off in stature and bodily strength now occupy their places. But I am beginning to moralize again.

Leaving the churchyard, I pass up John Dickie Street, and stop to view the remnant of Low Church Lane. It is meagre indeed, and consists of a few old biggins facing the wall at the back of the churchyard. The first of these is a two-storeyed venerable building, with a mansion-like appearance, that has had a narrow escape of being pulled down, for the new street passes alongside its gable. This is called "the Manse." It is now occupied by tenants, but in the olden time it was a clerical residence of some note. The last clergyman who lived in it was the Rev. Robert Jaffray, first minister of Gallows-knowe Church. He died in 1814. At the north-west corner of the churchyard, facing College Wynd, stands a tumble-down-like old house that is said to have been at one time a college; if so, it must have been of small dimensions, but from the name of the wynd it is reasonable to infer that it is only a remnant of some education establishment whose history is swallowed up in the oblivious past.

Reaching the top of John Dickie Street, I cross John Finnie Street ad enter Dunlop Street. It is a short, narrow street. On my left is the office of the Parochial Board, and set on a hill on my right, with sloping gardens in front, are three handsome mansions that overlook the town. The centre one with the niche--which is doubtless waiting for a statue of Burns--is the residence of Mr. James M’Kie, the well-known publisher. Passing Grange Street, at the corner of which is the extensive carpet factory of Hugh Wilson & Son, I begin to climb Park Street--or "the Wee Gas Braw" as it is more commonly called--and arrive at Morton Place. Situated n a back court, and towering over the house-tops, is a square block of masonry seventy feet high. It is the Astronomical Observatory. It was built in 1818 by the late Thomas Morton, who was born at Mauchline in 1783, and died at Kilmarnock in 1862. Mr. Morton was a famed constructor of telescopes and other optical instruments, and was also an ingenious machinist. He conferred a great boon on carpet manufacturers by inventing the "barrel" machine for carpet manufacture, and by improving other pieces of mechanism in connection with the trade. The Observatory is now the property of Mr. Thomas Lee, F.R.A.S. Passing along Langlands Street, I pass, the Academy of Mr. Rose, and enter West Langlands Street. In it are situated the principal workshops of the town, viz., the extensive engineering establishment of Messrs. Barclay & Son, also that of Messrs. M’Culloch, and Allan Andrews & Co. Beyond these are the workshops of the South-Western Railway Co., in whose service over 600 men are employed. Near to the railway workshops is Bonnyton Square, which consists of a series of blocks of substantial dwelling-houses erected by the Company for the accommodation of their workmen. The buildings are finely situated, and command a view of a wide range of country. Besides a large saw mill, the gas work is situated in this street. It belonged to a joint-stock company that was formed in 1822, but it is now the property of the town, being lately purchased by the Corporation.

Turning down Langlands Brae, I have on my left the Railway Station. Vast improvements are going on at it; old buildings have been pulled down, and new premises erected. When the alterations are complete, a station worthy of the town will be the result.

At the top of West George Street I turn to the right and enter John Finnie Street. This street was opened up about ten years ago by the liberality of a native whose name it bears. It is fast assuming importance, and bids fair in an architectural point of view to be the finest thoroughfare in town. In runs from the foot of Langlands Brae to Saint Marnock Street, is broad and straight, and fully a quarter of a mile in length. A short distance along it on the left stands the New Theatre, a building that far surpasses anything of the kind in the West of Scotland. It is just completed, licensed, and opened under the management of Mr. William Glover, of the Theatre-Royal, Glasgow. The interior is commodious, beautifully fitted up, and seated for twelve hundred. Externally it is of large proportions. The front--which is Corinthian and elaborately ornamental-is gracefully chaste. It may not be inappropriate to refer to former theatres in Kilmarnock, for the drama has had several unsuccessful struggles to gain a footing in the town, not the least of which was the attempt in "Back Causeway" somewhere about thirty years ago. This theatre--or at least the stabling that was converted into such--was a rude affair of the kind; yet nevertheless the proprietors did their best to awaken a theatrical taste in the townspeople by engaging such actors as Edmund Kean, G. V. Brookes, Charles Vernon, and others; but they did not meet with the encouragement that their efforts merited, and after struggling for some years they had to give up for want of support. Shortly after its close a Mr. Scott erected a wooden theatre near to where the railway arch now crosses Portland Street. He also secured good talent but his exertions proved futile, and like his predecessors he had to relinquish the attempt. Its successor--a wooden one also--was opened by a Mr. Bostock at the top of Langlands Brae. For a time large audiences were attracted, but gradually, in spite of stars and puffs, the interest waned and it collapsed. Shortly it was followed by another of a higher class, which was conducted by Mr. Edmund Glover. It was a neat wooden erection, and occupied nearly the same spot as the last-mentioned. Success attended it for some considerable time, but gradually the audience thinned, and after struggling for two or three winters it was taken down. The next effort worthy of notice was made by the late John Simpson and Mr. Bostock in the theatre under the railway arch in Back Street, but the expense of the erection was so great that Mr. Bostock grew terrified, disappeared, and left Simpson to wrestle with the concern as best he might. For several years Simpson struggled with adverse circumstances, tried many attractions, not the least of which was his engagements of Sire William Don, Mr. Parry, Mr. Mortimer Murdoch, G. V. Brookes, Mr. Christdale, and others, but all would not do; the Puritan spirit was too strong in Kilmarnock, support was denied, and as a last effort, after a chequered career, he dropped the price to "the low charge of one penny," but even at that figure it would not do, and John gave up in despair, having reached a state beyond bankruptcy. Since then -between six and seven years ago--various theatrical companies have visited the town, but now it is possessed of a theatre more worthy of support, it remains to be seen whether the Puritan spirit of "Auld Killie" be sufficiently relaxed to give it the encouragement it deserves. Old John Simpson, the leading spirit in the theatre under the railway arch, was a well known character, and is still spoken of with respect. He was a shoemaker to trade, but discarded the last to tread the boards, "the profession" being more congenial to his nature. He was a fair actor, and as such a favourite with the people of Kilmarnock, and nothing gave the juveniles more pleasure than to see him killed in piece, he having a way of his own of dying that gave universal satisfaction. Once when playing "Burke and Hare," and when simulating death on the gallows, he would have done so in earnest had it not been noticed that the prop under his feet had given way, and that he was black in the face. He was of a congenial nature, and whether in prosperity or adversity had always a kind word for everybody. When the playgoing inhabitants denied him their support he traveled the country with a booth, and in it "played many parts;" but having met with an accident whereby he lost the sight of an eye, and age and infirmity beginning to tell on him, he came to Kilmarnock, and by the kindness of a few friends was admitted into the Infirmary, where after a short illness the curtain of death fell and closed the last scene of his eventful life on 21^st December, 1873.

Passing along John Finnie Street, the next building worthy of notice is that destined for the office of Archibald Finnie & Son, coalmasters. It is in the ornate Corinthian style of architecture, and for beauty of design and sculptured embellishment there is nothing, with the exception of the Corn Exchange, to equal it in town. It stands opposite the opening in front of the Union Bank, and attracts universal attention. The Union Bank, although situated in Bank Street, faces John Finnie Street. It is of recent erection, large, and very ornamental, and forms a fine background to the short street that connects both thoroughfares.

Arriving at the termination of John Finnie Street I pause and look around me. In front is Dundonald Road; to the right, Portland Road; and to the left Saint Marnock Street. The two last-named are parallel and form a splendid line of street that merges into Irvine Road. At the corner of Dun-Donald and Portland Roads is Trinity Episcopal Church and Parsonage. The present minister is the Rev. A. G. Creighton. The church was enlarged last year, and a square tower yet in an unfinished state was then added. Its style of architecture is early English, and altogether it is a very neat place of worship. It was erected in 1857. Opposite it in Portland Road stands what is termed Portland Road U.P. Church (the Rev. George F. James’s). It is an elegant structure, and is what may be termed Byzntine in style. It was erected in  1859 by the congregation of Gallows Knowe Church, who desired to have their place of worship more central. Besides these churches, Portland Road contains very many handsome villas and substantial houses of the first order. At it extremity is Springhill, the beautiful residence of Mr. Archibald Finnie. It stand on a slight eminence and present an imposing, appearance, with its green lawns and finely planted grounds. Behind Springhill, salubriously situated near Irving Roads, stands Grange Terrace. It also overlooks the town and consists of a row of substantial houses. Kilmarnock is stretching to the east and the west, and before many years pass away it will assume a degree of compactness that will remove the reproach so long cast upon it of being straggling and irregular.

But to return. At the corner of John Finnie and Saint Marnock Streets stand the Court House and Prison. The former is a massive building in the Grecian order of architecture. It was erected in 1852, and consists of a centre and two wings. The façade fronts Saint Marnock Street and is very imposing. By its side there is a neat flower plot inside an iron railing, in which stands a piece of ordnance in all the indolence of peace. In the hall of the Court House Sheriff Courts are held, and the offices of the Procurator Fiscal and Sheriff Clerk are situated within the building. The prison is behind, and connected with the Court House, and to it is attached the dwelling-house of Mr. Geddes, the governor, and an exercise court for the prisoners. Crime is not heavy in the burgh, but nevertheless this institution never lacks inmates, and never shall so long as the sale of intoxicating liquors is sanctioned by the Government. On the opposite side of Saint Marnock Street, and a little farther down than the Court House, stands Saint Marnock’s Church (the Rev. John Thomson’s). It was erected in 1836, and like the other churches in its neighbourhood is a very handsome building. From its front rises a massive square wing Gothically ornamented, symmetrical, and chaste in design. It became a Parish Church in 1862, and is well attended.

Opposite Saint Marnock’s Church, and next to the Court House, stand on old-fashioned manor house, with a small garden before it. Its doors, windows, and general construction speak of former times. It is called Kilmarnock House. After the destruction of Dean Castle by a fire in 1735, it was the residence of William, fourth Earl of Kilmarnock. It is supposed to have been built towards the close of the seventh century. Its policies were extensive and well wooded, and a portion of a shady avenue still remains a sad momento of the fallen house of Boyd. The unfortunate Earl--as the fourth Earl of Kilmarnock is generally called--left the threshold of this mansion in 1745 to join the standard of Prince Charlie, never more to enter its baronial shade. What induced him to allow himself to be drawn into the vortex of a hopeless civil war I know not, nor does any writer I have consulted throw any light upon the subject, although several have formed conjectures. The Kilmarnock people were opposed to the house of Stuart, and the Earl was never suspected of entertaining revolutionary principles, for he had been always friendly to the house of Hanover, and took a deep interest in the affairs and prosperity of the town, and up to the very hour of his departure retained his seat in the Council. The quiet, unostentatious life that he led in Kilmarnock formed a strange prelude to his brief career of adventure while following Prince Charlie and to his tragic and melancholy end. Space forbids me going to any  great length into the Earl’s history after he left Kilmarnock, but perhaps a brief account of what he passed through may not be uninteresting to the reader. Upon his arrival at the Prince’s quarters he met with a cordial reception from the young adventurer, and was at once "made Colonel of the  Guards and promoted to the degree of a General." At the battle of Falkirk, which was fought on the 17^th of January, 1746, he distinguished himself, and by his bravery materially assisted the arms of the Prince in winning that victory, and in every other engagement evinced great courage. But the end came--the melancholy end. It was on the 16^th April; the scene Culloden Moor, a few miles eastward of Inverness. There the Duke of Cumberland, accomplished by twelve thousand men, encountered the Prince’s army, which amounted to half that number, and was principally composed of starving, dispirited Highlanders. The battle commenced; The Prince’s little army fought bravely; but, to quote from Chambers’s History of the Rebellion, "Notwithstanding that the three files of the front line of the English poured forth their incessant fire of musketry--notwithstanding that the cannon, now loaded with grape-shot, swept the field as with a hailstorm--notwithstanding the flank fire of Wolfe’s regiment--onward, onward west the headlong Highlanders, flinging themselves into, rather than rushing upon, the lines of the enemy, which, indeed, they did not see for smoke till involved among the weapons…Almost every man in their front rank, chief and gentleman, fell before the deadly weapons which they had braved; and, although the enemy gave way, it was not till every bayonet was bent and bloody with the strife." At the close of the battle, when the army of the Prince had been defeated and the remnant were seeking safety in flight, the account states that "the Earl of Kilmarnock, being half-blinded with smoke and snow, mistook a party of Dragoons for the Pretender’s horse, and was accordingly taken. He was soon after led along the lines of the British Infantry, in which his son, then a young man, held the commission of ensign. The Earl had lost his hat in the strife, and his long hair was flying in disorder around his head and over his face. The soldiers stood mute in their lines, beholding the unfortunate nobleman. Among the rest stood Lord Kilmarnock, compelled by his situation to witness, without the power of alleviating, the humiliation of his father. When the Earl came past the place where his son stood, the youth, unable to bear any longer that his father’s head should be exposed to the storm, stepped out of the ranks, without regard to discipline, and taking off his hat, placed it over his father's disordered and wind-beaten locks. He then returned  to his place, without having uttered a word, while scarcely an eye that saw his filial affection but confession its merits by a tear." With the Earl the scene had now changed--the Stuarts’ star had set--the Prince was now a fugitive and he a prisoner. He was consigned to the tower of London, in due time was tried and convicted of high treason, and sentenced to be beheaded. He met his doom with resignation, and suffered on Tower Hill, London, on the 18^th of August, 1746. Kilmarnock House is now converted into an Industrial Ragged School, and in it many poor children who have lost their parents, and other who would otherwise become waifs of society, find a home.

No portion of Kilmarnock has undergone a greater transformation of late years than that in the vicinity of Kilmarnock House. Forty years ago the old building was surrounded by venerable trees, and stood in all its baronial dignity as if waiting for those who would nevermore return. Then the Kilmarnock Water flowed along its unconfined channel in greater placidity, and where Saint Marnock Street now crosses it, a rickety old wooden bridge connected both its banks. The place was strictly rural, trees waved their verdant boughs, and birds sported among the foliage in all the consciousness of security. But a change has taken place. The town has grown into proportions that has swallowed up the Baron’s pleasure grounds. The axe has been laid to the trees, and where Nature’s carpet was spread, handsome streets have been formed and buildings reared; and where once the melody of birds was heard comes the rattling sound of wheels, and the busy hum of domestic life.

I now enter Dundonald Road; but before proceeding farther, I may state that the portion of the highway from Saint Marnock Street to Pointhouse Toll is of recent construction. The old road to the spot indicated was tortuously crooked, buy by doing away with it and continuing the highway in a straight line through what was known as Ward’s Park [It was in Ward’s Park where Fastern’s E’en Races were held. These races were "discontinued by the Magistrates and Council about 1831, after having been observed annually for five centuries."], the present handsome thoroughfare was the result. A long range of graceful residences and beautiful villas are now erected on it, and altogether it has a handsome appearance.

Passing on my way, I pause before Winton Place Evangelical Union Church (the Rev. William Bathgate’s). It is a neat building in the early English Gothic style, and has a fine appearance from the road. It was erected in 1860 by the members of Clerk’s Lane Church, the majority of whom removed to it, and left those who adhered to the old building to form a new congregation. From Winton Place to the entrance of the Public Park every building is so chastely neat in design that the eye rest with delight upon the whole; and to avoid giving prominence to any one in particular, I add no more to what has been already stated regarding them.

Entering what is at present dignified with the name of a Public Park, I find it thronged with youths engaged in sports and pastimes. Here, a little band with bats and wickets are busy at cricket; there, another deeply engrossed in the game of rounders, and not a few are engaged in the more laborious game of football; while groups, not otherwise employed,

"Scour awa’ in lang excursion,
And worrie ither in diversion."

Stretch along the top of a bank, and overlooking the park, is a belt of tall trees. They consist of two rows, and seem at some period to have lined the sides of a drive. A solemnity pervades the spot; and no wonder, for there is a sorrowful table connected with it. The place is called "The Lady’s Walk." It at one time extended down to Kilmarnock House, and not the Lady of the unfortunate Earl of Kilmarnock, who is said to have died of a broken heart, wandered and mourned the sad fate of her lord. A little poem on "The Lady’s Walk," by one Aston Carle, an actor, that appeared in the Kilmarnock Standard some time ago, is so good, and describes the place and incident so faithfully, that I may be pardoned for presenting it to my readers.

Near to the close of the Lady’s Walk I come to a piece of ground between it and Dundonald Road, enclosed within a paling, and planted with shrubs and young trees. In this spot a number of people lie buried who fell victims to cholera during the prevalence of the epidemic in 1832. At the termination of the walk a couple of cannon are stationed, partly for ornament and partly to teach the Artillery Volunteers how to use such weapons. From their site a fine view of the town, of the village of Riccarton, and a wide expanse of country, is obtainable. I now cross the Public Park and arrive in the foot road that skirts the Kilmarnock Water. The stream here is both shallow and filthy in appearance, and abounding in sewage. Turning in the direction of the town, I pass the Cattle Market, enter Water-side Street--a row of old-fashioned houses--and after a short walk arrive in Saint Marnock Street. Turning to the right, I cross the bridge and enter Sandbed Street, which runs along the side of the river from Saint Marnock Street to Cheapside Street. It is narrow and not over-cleanly, and its appearance is anything but heightened by the sewer-like stream that flows below its level. Many of the houses that line it are tall, dingy, tenant-crowded blocks, but as its extremity is neared a few buildings still stand whose old walls and thatch-covered roofs speak of other days. Sandbed Street is a very old thoroughfare. It at one time formed  part of the main road to Ayr, and along it the stage-coaches and other vehicles used to rattle as they passed through the town; but, like every other place in its vicinity, it is much changed, so much so that scarce a vestige of its early appearance is now left. Arriving at the Old bridge, at the top of Sandbed, I pause to view the unsavory scene, and mentally compare the past with the present. At the north-east side of this bridge the "Thieves’ Hole" was situate. It was, as already stated, attached to the Tolbooth, and is associated with the name of "bloody Dalziel." When stationed in Kilmarnock, in 1667, it is recorded that he and his soldiery perpetrated many atrocities amongst the inhabitants, and that he consigned numbers of them to the "Thieves Hole," "where they could not move themselves night or day, but were obliged constantly to stand upright." An old building, once an inn, that stood close to the bridge and near to where Victoria Place now stands, tradition affirmed to have been that in which the tyrant resided, and from which he issued his colours.

Crossing the bridge, I enter Cheapside, turn to the right, and once more arrive in the Cross. After having traversed the principal streets and many of the byeways of "Killie" in the course of my three excursions, what is to be learned from them? Simply this, that Kilmarnock of to-day is almost entirely a modern town. Its principal streets, as we have seen, have been opened up and built on, and all that constitutes its superiority over what it was a former times has been accomplished within the recollection of people still living. Its remarkable extension of late years may be attributed to various caus Simply this, that Kilmarnock of to-day is almost entirely a modern town. Its principal streets, as we have seen, have been opened up and built on, and all that constitutes its superiority over what it was a former times has been accomplished within the recollection of people still living. Its remarkable extension of late years may be attributed to various causes, not the least of which has been the utilisation of the resources of a district teeming with mineral and agricultural wealth, and of its being blessed with a manufacturing and commercially enterprising people. But, reader, I will now ask you to accompany me in

and I will do what I can to entertain you by the way.