I YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ^\t Pati^ cSiTtutg, E8TABLISHE.D IN THE YEAR MDCCCLVIIL VOL. VI. DOUGLAS, ISLE OF MAN : PRINTED FOR THE MANX SOCIETY. MDCCCLXI. Ptegtttent. His EXOELLENCT the LlEUTENASfl-QoVEENOE. The Hon. and Right Rev. Hoeace, Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man. The Honourable Chaei.es Hope. C. R. OaDEN, H.M.'s Attorney-General of tlie Isle of Man. Maek H. Qva'Tib, Clerk of the Rolls. W. W. Cheistian, Water-Bailifif and Coroner-General. The Venerable Jos. C. Moobe, Archdeacon. T. A. Coelett, Vicar-General. RiOHAKD QiriEK, H.M.'s Receiver-General. Edw. M. Ga'Wne, Speaker of the House of Keys. L. Adamson, H.M.'s SSneschal. Alfbed W. Adams, Advocate and Crown Solicitor. L. W. Adamson, Advocate, Douglas. Eev. Eobeet Aebet, St. Luke's, Baldwin. James Buemait, Ballasalla, P.R.A.S. Wm. Caxlistee, Thornhill, H.K. Rev. James Cietland, of the Scotch Church, Douglas. Rev. E. Dixon, D.D., Principal of King William's CoUege. G. W. DVMBELL, Esq., Belmont. William Faebant, H.K., Ballamoar, Jurby. Thomas Gaeeett, Douglas. James Gell, High Bailiff of Castletown. WiLLLiM Gell, Douglas. Wm. Haeeison, Eockmount, H.K. John M. Jeeecoit, Castletown, H.K. Eev. W. Keemode, Incumbent of St. Paul's, Eamsey. Eev. Wm. Mackenzie, Strathallan Park. Eobeet J. Mooee, High Bailiff of Peel, H.K. Lieut.-Col. MVBBAT, E.A., Thornton, H.K. H. E. Os'WALD, F.S.A., Douglas, Rev. S. Simpson, M.A., of St. Thomas's, Douglas. H. B. Watts, Douglas. Senhouse Wilson, High Bailiff of Douglas. SCteasuret. Jos. Jepeeeson, Bemsihague. ?^on. Secretartea. Pavl BElDSOif, Douglas. J. E. Olivee, M.D., Douglas. N.B.— Memhers at a distance are (as heretofore) requested to acknowledge their Copies to either of the Honorary Secretaries, Mr. Paul Bsidson, 29, Atholl Street, or Dr. Olitbs, 24, Atholl Street, to whom also their Snhscrip- tions may be remitted. FELTHAM'S TOUR THBOUaB ^\t I^U ot Platt, In 1797 AND 1798, oouFBisraa SKETCHES OF ITS ANCIENT AND MODERN HISTORY, CONSTITUTION, LAWS, COMMERCE, AGRICULTURE, FISHERY, ETC., nfoiitrDnfo WHATEVER IS REMARKABLE IN EACH PARISH, ITS POPULATION, INSCRIPTION^, REGISTERS, &0. BDIIXD, WITH N'OIES, BY THE REV. ROBERT AIREY, OtrailE 07 BBASBAK ^OB BT. SVEl'S, BALDWIN, ANS 0BONKBOT7BNB. DOUGLAS, ISLE OF MAN:' PRINTED FOR THE MANX SOCIETY. MDCCCLXI. Printed by H. Ctjephet, 13, King-street, l)oagla9. INTRODUCTION IjlROM a truthful record of any past portion of a people's -"- history, an estimate may be formed of that people's course during the intervening period of time to the present, whether it has been retrograde or progressive. Those, then, who "naturaUy feel a partiality for the best interests of the Island of Mann," and who wiU peruse "Feltham's Tour'^ with this object in view, must needs rejoice. For when the present condition of the Island is compared with our Tourist's description of it sixty years since, it must be confessed that, in most things which make for a country's welfare, there has been a steady and healthy progress. Special proofs of this general statement are, I take it, uncalled for in the Introduction to the Manx Society's present publica tion, my office (as accepted from the Council of the Society) being to superintend a re-print of Feltham's Tour, and a Fac simile reproduction of his Illustrations. A few notes have been appended, they are merely statistical or explanatory, in no case the vehicle of personal opinion or impression. vm ADVERTISEMENT. I regret that the task of superintending this issue was not undertaken by some member of the Society's Council, with more leisure at command, and more Insular information in store. The subscribers would then have been in earlier possession of the Volume, and the Volume itself mpre worthy of their attention. 7 ROBERT AIREY. Tromode, September, 1861. Fac SimiU. of Map Erj^ra^edy Ar FeUfuun/6 Tour 17^8. A TOUR THBOVaH THE ISLAND OF MANN, In 1797 AND 1798; COMPEISINa SKETCHES OP ITS ANCIENT AND MODERN HISTORY. CONSTITU TION, LAWS, COMMERCE, AGRICULTURE, FISHERY, &o., INCltTDUfa WHATEVER IS REMARKABLE IN" EACH PARISH, ITS POPULATION, INSCRIPTIONS, REGISTERS, &o. BY JOHN F E L T H A M EMBELHSHED WITH A MAP OP THE ISLAND AND OTHBB PLATES. 17 98. TO HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF ATHOL. My Lobd Duke, /CONCEIVING the partiality you must naturally feel for the ^^ best interests of the Island of Mann, even if I had not heard you express it very warmly, I should from thence have been induced to conclude that you would not deem me intrusive, or as acting improperly, in thus presuming to dedicate this Tour to your Grace; It appears before you in the state ia which it was addressed to Dr. Hawes; no fact is designedly mistated, nor, I trust, any reflection urged that can wound the feelings of a single individual. Should, therefore, your Grace find any amusement in this volume, or deem it not unworthy your protection and patronage, I shall be much gratified. I am, my Lord Dulce, Very respectfuUy, Your Grace's obedient servant, THE AUTHOR. Bath, Aug. 1798. CONTENTS. LETTER I. Observations on walking — Rout to and from Liverpool — Situation of the Island of Man — Kings — Lords — Bishops — Establishments — Governors ... Page 1 to 21 LETTER II. Commissioners' Report — Allegations — ^Revenue — Customs — Dutiea — Illicit prac tices 22 to 29 LETTER III. Constitution — Courts of Civil Jurisdiction — Spiritual Courts — Juries — Inferior Officers f... 30 to 40 LETTER IV. On Agriculture — Quarterlands — Soil — Climate — Tenures — Mowing — Farms — Roads — Ploughs — Manures — Cattle — Sheep — Pigs — Crops 41 to 52 LETTER V. On Literature—- Language — ^Printers — Scriptures— Hymns — English and Manks Publications on the Island , ... 53 to 65 LETTER VI. Forts Pairs — Registers — Population — ^Vicars — Post Office — Revenue — Duties — Imports— Exports — Bounties— Reflections 66 to 74 LETTER VIL On the Fishery — Salmon, &c. — Of Herrings — Boats — Price — Mode of Curing — Exported— Sorts used in Italy— A Poem on the Herring Fishery ... 75 to 87 XIV CONTENTS. LETTER VIII. Abbeys — Clergy — Law Suits respecting their rights, and the Establishment at Castletown — Benefactors 88 to 9? LETTER IX. Bishop Wilson's Life Abridged— Anecdotes— Letter to Lord Derby — Bishop Hi!- desley — Bishop Wilson's Works, editions of — Anecdotes of the Rev. Dr. Wilson and Mrs. Macaulay, and of Mr. and Mrs. Northcote 94 to 103 LETTER X. Miscellaneous — Early History — Its Accession to England in 1765 — Passage Vessels of the Island, &c.— Pass Coins— Mills 104 to 111 LETTER XI. Cattle — Birds — Plants — Roads — Inns — Taxes — Rivers — Calf — Mountains — Springs — Domestic Economy — Ladies — Gallantry — Qh^''^''*'^'^ °^ ^^^ Lower Classes — Language — Meeting of their Parliament 112 to 122 LETTER XII. Of the House of Keys — Singular Laws — Ceremony on their Promulgation — Ordinances — Attornies' Pees-^Loyalty — List of Principal Land Proprietors — Postscript 123 to 136 PAROCHIAL TOUR. ri.aB. Number of Parishes 139 140 143 Lezayre 146 Bride 152 Verses 154 Andreas 156 Archdeacons 157 Quarterlands 159 Jurby 159 Schools 160 Curragh 160 Weather 161 Cottages, &c 163 On Peat Bogs 164 Ballangh 166 Glens 167 Story of Mrs. B 170 Kirk Michael 172 Bishop's Palace 172 Thurot's Action 173 Registry 175 Runic Inscriptions 177 Turnip. Tillage 179 Learned Men 180 Kirk German 181 Gigantic Bones 181 A particular Census of Peel, &c. 182 Peel 183 Harbour 184 PAftB. Bay and Castle 184-5 Singular Inscription 187-8 Tynwald and St. John's Chapel 188 Keys 189 Kirk Patrick 190 Mines 190 Longevity 191 Kirk Marown 192 Division into Sheadings 193 Lay Baptism 194 Braddan 195 Bay : 196 Inscriptions 197 St. Matthew's Chapel 198 Strangers' Tombs 199 Douglas 199 Friendly Societies 200 Fishery 201 Former Naval Strength 201 Light-houses and New Pier ... 202 Seats 204 Nunnery 204 KlrkOnchan 206 Prices of Provision and Labour 206 Views 209-10 Lady Busk's Tomb 210 Inns 211 Of the Methodists 211-12 Their present State 212 KirkLonan 213 xvi PAEOCHIAL TOUR. fAEta. Laxey 218 Mines 213 Treasure Trove 215 Old Church 217 Kirk Christ Rushen 217 Mines 218 Calf 218 Port Iron 218 A new Discovery on Fish 221 Kirk Arbory 222 Singular Epitaph 225 On R. Cottier's Wife 226 Kirk Santon 226 Bridges 226 Antiquities 227 Grazing Terms 227-8 Rot in Sheep .. 228 7AaB. Longevity 229 Remarks on this Work 230 Kirk Malew 230 Turnip Tillage 231 Inscriptions 232 Castletown 235 Castle Rushen 235 New Chapel 236 Free School 238 Bt. Michael's Island 239 Ballasalla 239 Rushen Abbey 239 Mount Strange 241 Criminal Law 241 Sketches of History 242 Appendix — Act of Settlement 244 POSTBCEIPI 256 DIRECTIONS FOR PLACING THE PLATES. The.Map to front Title-page FAas Genealogical Table of the Derby and Athol Families 11 Maughold Pillar 1 Danish Monuments, &o. / ^^^^^ ^- """^ "• 111 Cloven Stones "] Plan of Castle Rushen > Plate III. 236 New Light House J A TOUR THBOUOH THE ISLE OF MAN. LETTER I. To 'Wm. H s, Esq. M.B. Spital ¦ Square. Salisbury, 1798. Dear Sir, AT length I gratify my wishes, by sending you, in a collected form, the observations I made last summer during my itour through the Island of Man. Mr. H — ^k — s, who resided in Ramsay, induced me to accompany him thither ; and joining him at Bristol, we proceeded on foot to Liverpool. Moritz, a German, whose excursion in England is translated^ .observes, " That a traveller on foot in England is considered as a sort of wild man, or an out-of-the-way being, who is stared at, .pitied, suspected, and shunned, by everybody that meets liim." I have felt the truth of these remarks. On his asking why ^Englishmen, so fond of acting up to their own notions and ideaSj did not now an,d then, merely to see life in every point -of view, travel on foot? the answer made was, "We are too rich, too lazy, and too proud." Since this, we have done something to retrieve our characters. I have the happiness of knowing several gentlemen, who take 2 A TOUK THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. considerable pleasure in walking ; and others, whose excursions are before the public. • Mr. Hucks, in his Tour through Wales, 1794, says, "We are so -completely metamorphosed, that I much doubt if you would recognize us through our disguise : we carry our clothes, &c. in a wallet or knapsack, from which we have not hitherto experienced the slightest inconvenience: as for aU. ideas of appearance and gentility, they are entirely out of the question — our object is to see, not to be seen ; and if I thought I had one acquaintance, who would be ashamed of me and my knapsack, seated by the fire-side of an honest Welsh peasant- ia a country village, I should not only make myself easy on my «wn account, but should be induced to pity and to despise him for his weakness." I shall now notice other modes adopted by pedestrian^, ia long excursions. — The Rev. Mr. Warner (" Walk through Wailes," 1798, Svo.) had a spencer fitted up with a large sports man's pocket to carry his linen, &c. ; and Mr. C, who accom panied him, had side-pockets annexed to his coat ; but neither answered perfectly their_ wishes. A party whom they met had taken another way : a handsome leather bag covered with net-work was suspended from the shoulder, and hung under the left arm like a shooting bag, and proved no inelegant addition to the person. Another party had their portmanteau on a little pony which they kept before them ; but this was, it seems, " more plague than profit ; " and they soon entered into a treaty for its sale. It is requisite that a walker should have about him aU his real necessaries ; these are but few, a siagle change of linen, a pocket map, compass, &c. which take but little space, and may be provided for thus: — A small n,eat bag made with oil-case and lined, about 15 laches every way, made to button deep to prevent rain penetrating, and four buttons to fasten two shoulder-belts, will form a knapsack of small weight and attended with no inconvenience^ except the false A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 3 shame which may arise from its pedlar-like appearance, but which good sense will soon overcome ; but to secure you a polite reception and a better bed, you may carry it in your handker chief through a town. This size is large enough for two persons, although it must not be less for one ; a light small VmbreUa would be a desirable addition. The counties we . passed through were, Wilts, Somerset, Gloucester, Monmouth, Hereford, Salop, Chester, Lancaster, and, on returning, Worcestershire. The following were the stages at which only refreshments were taken, going to and from Liverpool, from wheuce the passage was by sea. Soute to Liverpool, April 1797. MILES. From Salisbury to Deptford-Inn 11 Warminster 9 Philips-Norton 9| Bath (first day) 64 Bristol 12 Aust-passage (second day) 12 Chepstow 3 Tintern (through Piercefield) 5 Pursue the BaUkS of the Wye to Monmouth (third day) ... 11 St. Weonard's 7 Callo* 7 Hope, through Hereford (fourth day) Hi Leominster 5 Maidenhead 5 Ludlow. . S^ Newton 8 Church-Stretton (fifth day) 8 Dorrington 6| Shrewsbury 6| Cockshutt (sixth day) 12 EUesmere 4 Overton, on the Dee 5 Wrexham ' Russet-Green 5 Chester (seventh day) ^i By canal boat to the Mersey, thence to Liverpool, suppose about 20 Total 2084 b2 4 A. TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Route from Liverpool to Salisbii/ry, Augmt 1797. MILES. From Liverpool, cross to Woodside-f erry, from thence to Eastham 7 Chester BarnhUl (first day) Whitchurch ^^ Wem ^ Harmer-HiU .'.... ^ Shrewsbury (second day) Leighton-Inn Coalbrooke-Dale ..... Bridgnorth (third day) ^i Allembridge ' Kidderminster ' Wendesley-Green . . . . • * Ombersley ^ Worcester (fourth day) " Sevemstoke ... 7 Tewkesbury -. ° Gloucester (fifth day) H Painswick (sixth day) ... 6 Minehinhampton ' Tetbury 6 Malmsbury 5 * Chippenham (seventh da,y) . .... 10 Devizes . . 10 BeU-Inn, Lydeway -4 Druid's-Head, on Salisbury -plain . . 13 Salisbury (eighth day) 6 Total 198 Expenses to Liverpool . . . ... . £2 8 lOf Expenses on return 2 14 SJ The principal rivers crossed were, the Severn at the Old Passage, where there is an excellent inn ; the Wye at Chepstow, and the Mersey at Liverpool, where we soon found a vessel ready to- sail ; the accommodations were plain ; yet agreeable* company made the voyage, of two days and two nights,! pleasant. ' \ « At Chippenham there was an intermission of a day, which was spent very agreeably, with an old friend, whose musical abUities do him the greatest credit. - A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 0 Another vessel accompanied us, in which was the Lieutenant- Governor's Lady ; and on a signal being given, the Governor attended on Douglas Quay to conduct her to the castle. TKe ruins, churches, . houses, gardens,' manufactories, and every attractive object -in the immediate line of our route, were attentively inspected ; but as they were not our principal objects, and are generally weU known, I shall not describe them.* The country appeared everywhere rich and beautiful ; the face of nature was in its most blooming state, and the golden harvest solicited a smile of gratitude towards the benevo lent Author. .But to proceed : — " Mona, I sing, the favourite of Heaven ; That happy spot that was of old ordain'd Td be the seat of modem bliss : — where peace For ever dwells, and fair prosperity Enthron'd sits smUing on her golden shores." A Manks Bard. THE ISLAND OF MAN Is centricaUy situated between Great Britain and Ireland ; the middle is 54 deg 46 min. north latitude ; it is about 30 miles long, and 10 broad in the widest part. Its extreme points running narrow, we may state it to be about 70 miles in circum ference, and its contents 220 square mUes. Pive tweKths are heathy mountaia and moorish ground; the remainder, arable, .pasture, and meadow land. It is divided into six manors ; his Grace the Duke of Athol is lord of two of these. Its bearing and distance from particular points is as follows : — Prom the Calf to the hiQ of Howth, S.W. i W. 64 miles. To the Skerries Hght, S. by E. 35 miles. To Carlingford, W. ^ S, 45 miles. To Strangford, KW. by W. I, 27 mijes. Prom Peele • These objects formed a few letters to some friends, particularly to John Hayne Bovet, Esq. Taunton, and W. BuUer, Esq. WUton. 6 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. to the Copeland Kghts, N.W. i N. 35 nules. To the MuU* of GaHoway, K by W. I W. 25 nules. From the point of Ayre to .the MuU of GaUoway, N.W. by W. 22 miles. From ditto to St. Bees' lighthouse, E. by N. 29 miles. From Maughold Head to St. Bees' light-house, E.N.E. i N. 30 miles. Prom Douglas to the N.W. buoy at Liverpool, S.E. i S. 60 miles. The courses taken by Mr. Panning from the true meridian, and the distances nautical miles ; the variation of the compass upon a mean 2^ points. The oldest map of the Island is by Thomas Durham, in 1595, from which Speed copied his ; the map by Mr. Fanning is the last that has been made, and this is esteemed, particularly for its nautical correctness. The name of Man is supposed to refer to its situation as to the surrounding kingdoms, from the Saxon word Mang, signifying among ; others suppose the word to originate from Maune, the name of St. Patrick, the apostle of the island, before he assumed that of Patricius. By Caesar it is called ifonay-f- by the in habitants Manning ; and by people in general Man. Its ancient bearing was a ship ; but the arms are now, and have been for centuries, Gules, three armed legs proper, or rather argent, conjoined iu fess, at the upper part of the thigh, fleshed in triangle, garnished and spurred topaz. So long as the King * The MuU of Galloway is a promontory, weU known to mariners who navigate the Irish Channel. It is the most southern point of Scotiand on the west side, , and lies in lat. 54° 44"- Mull, or as it is called by the Highlanders Moil, seems to be the GaeUc term for cape, and hath been adopted by the Lowlanders in two instances only, the Mull of Cantke and of Galloway. — Perhaps the word might come from Mole, a mound or heap. • t AU late writers agree that Mona Ocesans is Man ; but Moria Taciti belongs to Anglesey. Early authors call it Mortada, Menama Secunda (to distinguish it from Anglesey), Eubonia, &c. The Manks derive it traditionaUy from Manna Man Maolea, an early king, who first conquered the island. In the Frith of Forth there is an island caUed Amona or 7mona ; that is, the island of Mona. Por ainong the ancient Scots Y, or /, signified an island, in the same way as ai, among the Hebrews.— Introd. to the Hist, and Antiq. of Scotland, London, 8vo. Noteman, 1769. [The word, perhaps, is more properly spelt with a double nn, but this I shall only adopt iu the title-page.] A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN: 7 of Man wrote Bex Mavmioe et Insularwm, they bore the ship ; but when the Scots had possession, with the Western islands,, the legs were substituted. It is said of the three legs, that with the toe of the one they spurn at Ireland,, with the spur of the other they kick at Scotland, and with the third they bow to England. It is supposed that the first inhabitants were British ; and that they were succeeded by the Druids until the fourth century, when Christianity was introduced into this island. In the tenthi century. King Orry subdued the Orcades and Hebrides, and seated himself on the throne. And he was suc ceeded ia the foUowiag order : — CATALOGUE OF KINGS OP MAN. OF THE DANISH LINE. . Orry, tenth century : the first king. Guttred, his son. He erected Castle-Rushen, and is buried there- Reginald, a bad priuce. He died by assassination. Olave, executed as an usurper by the King of Denmark. Olain, his brother, who died ia Ireland. AUen, a bad character — poisoned by the governor. Macon, a gaUant prince, deprived, but restored again with honour by the British Monarch. OF THE NORWEGIAN LINE. Crodred, the reigning prince in the eleventh century. Fingal, his son, sMn iu battle neap Ramsay. Godred Crovan, the Norwegian conqueror. Lagman, 1082, his son ; who, haying murdered his brother, resigned the crown for a cross, and died in his pUgrimage at Jerusalem. Mac Marus, or Mac Manis, 1089, during Olave's minority, third son of the conqueror : He founded Rushen Abbey. Magnus, King of Norway, six years. 8 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Olave, 1102, a good prince, slain with a battle-axe by Reginald his nephew, near Ramsay, previous to a general battle, Godred, 1143, Olave's son, who revenged his father's fate by the death of Reginald. Elected King of Leinster also for his virtues. Summerled, 1158, Thane of Argyle, and brother-in-law to Godred, -conquered and usurped the crown. Reginald also after hini ; but Godred subdued, and died kiag in 1187. Olave, son of Godred, dethroned and banished by Reginald his Ulegitimate elder brother; but after various hardships was restored. Reginald invaded the kingdom, and was slaia in battle near the Tynwald. Olave died at Peele Castle ia 1237. Henry III. of England granted him, in 1236, 40 marks, 100 quarters of com, and five tons of wine, annuaUy, to defend the sea-coast. Harold, who perished by sea, on the coast of Redland, ia returning from Norway. Reginald, 1249, his brother, assassinated ; like John of Png- land, he submitted to the Pope. This surrender was done at London, at the house of the Knights Templars. John and Henry III. both espoused Reginald. Magnus, his brother, last of the Norwegian line, who died 1265, and was buried in the Abbey-church of Rushen. N.B. The monks of Rushen Abbey wrote the histoiy of Man as far as the Scottish conquest. {See Gough's new edit, of Camden.) OF THE SCOTTISH LINE. Alexander III. conquered the island, and governed it by his Thanes. Then Maurice Okerfair, and others. OP THE ENGLISH LINE. Sir WiUiam Montacute, crowned 1344 by order of Edward III. v7ho had enabled him to conquer it. His .pretensions were, having married a descendant of Godred Crovan. "This Earl A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 9 WUliam was descended from Drogo, a branch of the royal house of Man, and his father marrying the widow of Olanus, King of Man, the royalty devolved to Mm, but it was then in the hands of the Scots; however, the earl bravely drove them out, and Recovered the seigniory and crown of it from Edward III, and by his approbation was called King of Man." Antiq. Saris- bujiensis, Svo. Easton, 1771. Antony Beck, Bishop of Durham; a short time, when it retumed to Montacute, now Earl of Salisbury, who sold it to Sir WUUam Scroope, who was beheaded. Percy, Earl of Northumberland ; granted by Henry PV., who deprived him again. , Sir John Stanley ; 6th Henry IV. ; and his heirs and suc cessors. Sir John Stanley, his son, in 1414. 1441. Thomas, his son, created Baron Stanley by Henry VI. 1460. i?homas. Earl of Derby, (created by Henry VII.) his son. 1504. Thomas, his grandson, second Earl of Derby ; who resigned the regal title.* * His reasons are explained in the foUowing extract of a letter from Lord Derby to his son : — "The isle was sometime governed by kings, natives of its own, who were converted to Christianity by St. Patrick, the apostle of Ireland ; and Sir John Stanley, the first possessor of it of that famUy, was by his patent styled King of Man; as were his successors after him, to the time of Thomas second Earl of Derby ; who for great and wise reasons thought fit to forbear that title. Some might think it a mark of grandeur, that the lords of this isle have beeu called kings ; and I might be of that opinion, if I knew how this country coidd maintain itself independent of other nations; and that I had no interest in another place ; but herein I agree with your great and wise' ancestor, Thomas second Earl of Derby, and with bim conceive,' that to be a great lord ia more honourable than a petty king. "Besides, it is not fit for a king to be subject to any other king, but the King of Kings; nor does it 'hardly please a king, that, any of his subjects should affect that title, were it but to act it in a play; witness the scruples raised, and objections inade by my enemies in his Majesties oounoU, of my being too nearly alUed-to the royalty, to be trusted with too great power (as before herein mentioned) ; whose jealousies and vUe suggestions have proved of very iU consequence to his Majesties 10 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. From hence then we must denomiaate them princes, as the regal title was never resumed by any of his successors, though their power and dignity remained undiminished. LORDS OP MAN AND THE ISLES. 1521. Edward, son of Thomas, second Earl of Derby; in whose time the bishopric was, by an act of the British ParUa ment, rendered subject to the see of York, though formerly united to Canterbury. 1592. Henry, his son. Ferdinand, his son ; poisoned by a servant iu 1594. WiUiam, a younger brother, who being abroad. Sir Thomas Gerrard was appoiated govemor by Queen Elizabeth. — James I. gave WUUam a new grant of the island, equaUy Uberal with that of Henry IV.; which was confirmed by an Act of ParUament. 1642. James, seventh Earl of Derby, his son. He lost his head by supportiag Charles I. ; for which Charles II. proved afterwards highly ungrateful. The island was besieged by the parUamentary forces, under Colonels Birch and Duckenfield,^ and surrendered. Lord Fairfax, in 1652, to whom it was granted by ParUament ; but on the Restoration, the Derby famUy were reiastated in all their rights. Charles, son of the nobleman who suffered at Bolton, was the first lord after the Restoration ; he died in 1672. WUUam, his eldest son ; died in 1702. James, the younger son, now succeeded — the tenth Earl of Derby. He ascertained, and confirmed to the Manks, their tenures, which were before very iajurious to themselves and interest, and my service of him.— Take it for granted, that it is your honour to give honour to your sovereign, it ia safe and comfortable ; therefore in aU your actions, let it visibly appear in this isle." ¦^ A TABLE SHOWING THE CONNEXION OF THE DEEBY AND ATHOL FAMILIES. JAMES LORD STRANGE, Summoned to Parliament 3 Car. I. aftei-wards Eai'l of Derby ; beheaded at Bolton in Lancashire, fur hiw loyalty. Anno 1651. Had Issue by Charlotta, Daughter of Claxjde Duke de la TretnouUU, CHAKLES, who succeeded him. ED WAED, Died without Issue. WILLIAM, Died without Issue. MARY, Married the Earl of Strafford, and left no Issue. KATHERINE, Married the Marquis of Dor chester, and left no Issue. MARY SOPHIA, MaiTied John Earl of Athol. Had Issue by Helena Rupa, a German Lady, WILLIAM, who succeeded Charles. EGBERT, Died without Issue. JAMES, the last Earl of Derby. Had Issue by Eliz. Daughter of Thomas Earl of Ossory, Had Issue by and sole Heir Morley CHARLES, Died without Issue. CHARLOTTE, Mniried Thomas Lord Colchester, wlio died avithout lesue. And other Children, who died young. JOHN", First Duke of Athol. Mary, Daughter to Sie William of Halnaccar, By Katherine, Wm. ahd Ann Duchess of Daughter of Duke and Hamilton. One Son, who died without HENRIETTA. ELIZABETH, who died without Issue. One Son, who died without Issue. Had Issue by John Earl of Anglesea, JAMES, Second Duke of Athol, Fh-st Lord of Man. By John Lord Ashburnham, her second Husband, I- One Daughter, only, who died without Issue. One Daughter, only, wlio died without Issufi. JOHN", his Nephew, Third Duke of Athol, Second Lord of Man, who sold bis right therein. JOHN, present Duke, his eldest Son. JOHN, Marquis of Tullibardin, his eldest Son aud Heir, boni 177S. A TOUE THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 11 involved in intricacy ; this was termed the Act of Settlement, passed in 1703, and considerably augmented the happiness and prosperity of the island. He died without issue in 1735. THE HOUSE OF ATHOL. The last lord having no issue, the Kingdom of Man devolved on James, second Duke of Athol, who was descended from Lady Mary Sophia, youngest daughter of the seventh Earl of Derby, and wife of his grandfather John Marquis of Athol. During his reign illicit commerce gained a great footing in his dominions. Govemment, alarmed at the diminution of its revenue, made attempts to purchase the island, but they were evaded. James died in 1764. John his nephew, third Duke of Athol, succeeded ; he married in 1753 Lady Charlotte, second daughter of James second Duke of Athol, the present Duchess Dowager. His grace died in 1774. Government still renewing overtures of purchase, he agreed to resign his kingdom in 1765 for seventy thousand pounds, which has been thought a sum by no means adequate for the advantages gained by the British Government, or for the injury done to his posterity by its alienation from the family. The act annexing it to the British crown is termed the "Ee-vesting Act." Since which Parliament has granted an annuity of 2,000Z. per annum on the lives of the duke and duchess, by way of additional compensation. The Kings of England always claimed sovereignty as lords paramount, but they interfered not with its govemment. The prince's power was ample ; he coined money, punished or par doned delinquents, &c. &c. John, the present Duke of Athol, his eldest son, was born in 1755 ; and in 1774 married Jane, daughter of Charles Schaw Cathcart, Lord Cathcart ; by whom he has four sons — 1. John Marquis of Tullibardia, bom June 1778 ; 2. Lord James; 3. LordsEdward ; 4. Lord Eobert. Daughters — 1. Lady Charlotte ; 12 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MANi Lady Mary Louisa, who died an infant; 3. Lady Mary Sophia.* — In 1785 his grace was created an English Peer, by the title of Baron Murray, of Stanley in Gloucestershire, and Earl Strange to his heirs male.f He is one of His- Majest/s Privy Council, and governor of the island. ' SUCCESSION OF BISHOPS. By an Act of 33rd Henry VIII. the bishopric is declared in the province of York ; during , the Norwegian conquest it was under the metropolitan of Drontheim. The bishoprics of Sodor and Man were united, and continued until conquered by the English, since which the Bishop of Man keeps his title, and the Scotch bishop styles himself, " Bishop of the Isles," anciently Episcopus Insularum Sodorensium. The bishopric, formerly annexed to the see of the Isles, has been separated about 400 years. The prelates of the Western Isles had three places of residence; IcolumkiU, Man, and Bute ; and in ancient writs are promiscuously styled Episcopi Mannim et Insularum, Episcopi Abudarum, and Episcopi Soderensis. "Which last title the bishops of the Isles retain, as well as the present bishops of Man. The cathedral of lona, or IcolumkUl, was dedicated to our Saviour, in Greek Soter ; hence Soterensis, a name frequently given by Danish writers to the Western Isles, and now corrupted to Soderensis. The civU wars in Scotland enabled the Danes and Norwegians to seize the Isle of Man and the Western islands in 1097 ; and it is probable they trans planted the seat of the see to Man. When annexed by Edward • His grace married secondly in 1794, Lady Macleod, widow of tlie late Lord Macleod, by whom he had a daughter, who died in June 1796. t His titles are, The most noble John Duke of Athol, Marquis aud Earl of Athol, Marquis of Tullibardin, Earl of Strathsay and Strathardel, Viscount Glen- almond and Glenlyon, Lord Murray, Balveny, and Gask, Lord of the Isle of Man, Constable of the Castle of Kincleven, aud hereditary keeper of the palace of Falkland. His English titles are. Earl Strange and Baron Murray. His chief seats are at Blair in Athol, Dunkeld, TulHbardin, and Hnntingtower, all in Perth shire ; and at Port-a-shee in the Isle of Man. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 13 III. to England, the Lords of Man set up bishops of their own, and the Scottish monarchs contiaued their bishops of the Isles, of which the records are but imperfect. — Beatson's Pol. Index. Buchanan says, that the word Sodor was before his time the name of a town in the Isle of Man. In Gough's edit, of Camden, it is said, this title was given to the small island of Peel, which the Norwegians call Holm, within musket-shot of Man, and on which the rains of Peel castle, cathedral, &c, now stand. Admitting the truth of these statements, it does not account for the word always preceding , that of Man : as, if it were only a small island adjoining, it would be putting the inferior before the superior. But the following is the most rational account of it: — The Western islands were divided into two clusters, in the Norwegian language termed Suder and Norder, signifying southem and northern, and ey or ay, an island; divided by ArdenamurchSjU, a point or promontory in Argyleshire. Man was included in the Sudereys, or Suder, which anglicised became Soder ; and all the isles being, included in one diocese, under the Norwegian princes, the bishop was termed the Bishop of Man and the Isles, or the Bishop of Sodor and Man. Since Man was annexed by Edward III. to England, and separated from the isles, the bishop has exercised no jurisdiction over them. But the title is retained, in the same way as the King of England assumes the title of King of France. He was formerly reckoned a baron, but never sat in the House of Peers, because he held of a subject, and /not a king ; yet hath the highest seat in the Lower House of Convocation, and is equally a bishop as to jurisdiction and ordination. Speaking on this subject to a person of rank in the island, in conversation, 1797 ; he expressed himself, as well as can be recollected, as follows : — The bishops, said he, though they have nothing to do with the British House of Peers, have in the Manks house, and with you? bishops are members of the con vocation, as the see is in the province of York. The bishop here ranks next after' the govemor. He is the first person of 14 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. his Majesty's privy council in the island, is a judge in its courts of chancery, and a temporal peer and baron in the island.- His see is totaUy distinct from the other lands of the Lord, and he has power over all those lands which compose his see ; they, unconnected with other dues, amount to a little more than 1,200?. per annum, altogether the bishopric being estimated at 1,500?. per annum. ORDER OP SUCCESSION. After St. Patrick left the island, followed St. Germanus, Conindrius, Eomulus, St. Maughold, and Conatus ;* then soon we come to Wymundus, Eeymundus, or Hamundus, first bishop of Sodor and Man, consecrated by Turston, archbishop of York; died about 1151. John, a monk of Sais in Normandy. Gamaliel, an Englishman, consecrated by Eoger, archbishop of York, 1154 ; buried at Peterborough. Eeginald, a Norwegian, to whom the thirds of the livings were first granted by the clergy. Christian, buried in the monastery of Bangor, Ireland. Michael, a Manksman, who died about 1203. Nicholas de Melsa, abbot of Fumess, resigned. Eeginald, consecrated 1216 ; and John, succeeded by Simon, a man of great piety and learning ; he held a synod of the clergy in 1239, in which thirteen canons were enacted. He died in a good old age, at the palace of Kirk-Michael, in 1249. * St. Patrick,, in 444, with thirty learned and religious persons, landed in the island, where he found the people given to magic, the greater part of whom he con verted, but such as refused, he banished the island; after three years he went for Ireland, and left Germanus, who settled the Christian religion in the island, from which it never after relapsed : he died before St. Patrick, who then sent Conin drius and Eomulus. Maughold was chosen by universal suflSrage. Conatus waa tutor to the King of Scotland's (Eugenius') sons. Hamundus is said to have had his eyes put out for his cruelty. A TOUE THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 15 Lawrence, the archdeacon, 1249, who was unfortunately drowned with Harold, king of Man, his queen, and numbers of the nobility. See vacant six years. Eichard, an Englishman, who died in 1274. He dedicated St. Mary's church of Eushen or Castletown, in 1260. In his time the Scots conquered the island. Marcus Galvadiensis, 1275, banished, but recalled. He held a synod, in which thirty-five canons were enacted. Mauritius, imprisoned in London byEdward I., superseded by AUen or Onachus. GUbert, a Scot, two years and a half. Bernard, a Scot, three years. Thomas, a Scot, fourteen years, died 1348. WiUiam Eussel, abbot of Eushen, elected by the whole clergy of Man in ^t. German's. He added five more canons ; was bishop twenty-six years ; died 1374. John Duncan, instaUed 1376. A Manksman. Eobert Waldby, 1381, twenty-two years. Translated to Dublin. See vacant many years. . Eichard PuUy, 1429. John Grene, or Sprotton, vicar of Dunchurch in Warwick shire, 1448. Thomas Burton, dipd 1458. Thomas, abbot of Vale-Eoyal, Cheshire, 1480. Eichard Oldham, abbot of Chester. Evan, or Huan, elected by Sir Thomas Stanley, 1487. Thomas Stanley, 1510, rector of Wigan, deprived. Hugh Hesketh, if not Huan above mentioned. Eobert Ferrier [Soderensis], 1545, translated to St. David's. Henry Man, 1546, dean of Chester, after whom Stanley was restored, and died in 1558. John SaUsbury, dean of Norwich, 1559. James Stanley, 1573, Ulegitimate son of Sir Edward Stanley, first Lord Monteagle. 16 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. John Merrick, 1577, vicar of Homchurch, Essex; he wrote the account of the island, published by Camden. George Lloyd, 1599, translated to Chester 1604> ¦ Dr. John Philips, 1605, archdeacon of Cleveland and Man; translated the Common-prayer into Manks, died in 1633; a pious, hospita'ble man. WUUam Foster, 1634, prebend of Chester. Dr. Eichard Parr, 1635, rector of Eccleston, Lancashire ; the last before the civil war ; died 1 643. [The see void seventeen years.] Samuel Eutter, 1661 ; he had been archdeacon ; was the friend and companion of the. great Earl of Derby when in prison; he wrote some poetry for his amusement, which in Bishop WUson's time, was esteemed in the island. Dr. Isaac Barrow, fellow of Eton coUege, to whom the clergy are obliged for the royal bounty, for the impropriations and various charities, which rendered his translation, after two years' enjoyment of this see, to St. Asaph, a great loss. Dr. Henry Bridgeman, dean of Chester, 1671. Dr. John Lake, 1682, archdeacon of Cleveland; translated to Bristol in 1684 ; the next year to Chichester. He was one of the seven bishops committed to the Tower for a Ubel against James II., or rather for subscribing a petition to his Majesty, wherein he, and they, express great averseness to the distri buting and publishing in aU their churches, the King's declar ration for Uberty of conscience, &c. After WUUam came to the crown, he refused taking the oaths of allegiance, &c. and was therefore deprived. Dr. Baptist Levinz, 1684, prebend of Winchester, who died 1693. See vacant five yeai'S. Dr. Thomas WUson, of Trinity College, DubUn, 1697-8 ; died in 1755. Dr. Mark HUdesley, vicar of Hitching, Herts ; died 1772. Dr. Eichmond, vicar of Walton, Lancashire ; died 1780. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN.' 17 Dr. G. Mason, who died in 1784, and to whom has succeeded the present bishop Dr. Claudius Ceigan. OF ESTABLISHMENTS. governors. ' The Govemor, the CouncU, the Deemsters, the Keys, form the legislature of the island ; they are four separate estates, and the concurrence of the whole is necessary to make a law. The Ecclesiastical establishment consists of the Lord Bishop, the Archdeacon, his Of&cial, two Vicars-General, and the Parochial Clergy, The CivU estabUshment is as foUows :* — The Govemor, 400Z. per annum. Lieut.-Governor, 2001. Attorney-General, 2001. Two Deemsters, besides fees, 200?. each. Clerk of the EoUs, 50?. Clerk of the CouncU, 50?. Water-BaUiff, 80?. Surgeon, 50?. Governor's Chaplain, 25?. High-BaUiffs at Castle- .town, Douglas, Eamsay, and Peel, 25? each ; these were formerly captains of towns, at 16?. per aun. but were altered by an act of Tynwald in 1777. They have power to hear and determine causes under 40s. Four constables were then aboUshed, whose salaries were 5? each. Chief Constable and Gaoler, 12?. per. aun. Fifteen constables at 51. Tum-key, Servant, and Messenger 3?. each. Coroners six, at 3?. per ann. A regulator of weights and measures at Castletown. MILITAEY ESTABLISHMENT This consists of two regiments of Eoyal Manx Fencibles. The flrst, raised Feb. 20, 1793, consisting of 300 Ta:nk and file. The second, of ten companies, raised in 1796: uniforms, red with blue facings. This regiment is considered as Uable to duty * The revenue officers are noticed in their respective districts. C 18 A tour THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. in any part of the three kingdoms. Besides these there are volunteer corps, and mUitia, commanded, under the Govemor, by three Majors, and seventeen captains of parishes. These are not embodied but in case of common danger. EoYAL Manks Batallion. In the Island. Lieut-Col. Com mander, John Duke of Athol, Feb. 20, 1793. Major, Lieut- Governor Shaw. Second Major, WUliam Cunningham, May 17, 1796. Capt. C. Heywood. Capt-Lieut. and Captain, Thomas Christian, Esq. Lieutenants, Mark Quayle, Thomas Moore, A. Murray, James WUkes, A. Sutherland. Ensigns, Harman, John Quirk, Eich. GeUing. Adjutant, Thomas Moore. Surgeon, Patrick Scott, Esq. Second Eotal Manks.* Colonel, Lord Henry Murray, AprU 7, 1795. Lieut-Colonel, Charles SmaU. Major, Wm. Peachey. Captains, Eobert Stewart, Caesar Tobin, Hon. Andrew Forbes, WiUiam Bacon, Eichard Harrison, E. W. F. Lathropp, J. Dunn, J. Christian. Capt-Lieutenant and Captain, John Homer. Lieutenants, M. Summers, P. T. Moore, -(Eneas Anderson, J. N. Scott J- EuggUs, E. Clague, W. Kewley, J. Dunn, W. MIntoch, Col CampbeU, E. M. CarUe. Ensigns, Messrs. Carlos, J. Lamothe, Blosset G. Montgomery, J. CaldweU, M. Moreton, A. FuUarton. Chaplain, Evan Christian. Adjutant, John Homer. Quarter-Master, John Christian. Surgeon, J. N. Scott Govemors since Sir John Stanley's time. 1417 John Letherland, lieutenant 1418 John Fasakerley, Ueutenant 1422 John Walton, lieutenant 1428 Henry Byron, Ueutenant No record untU 1492. 1496 Peter Dutton, lieutenant 1497 Henry Eadcliffe, Abbot of Eushen, deputy 1505 Eandolph Eushton, captain. • Report speaks very highly of the conduct of this corps, now serving in Ireland, during its present unhappy state. Soldiers should never forget that they are men. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 19 1508 Sir John Ireland, knight, Ueutenant 1516 John Ireland, Ueutenant 1517 Eandolph Eushton, captain. 1519 Thomas Danisport, captain. 1526 Eichard HoU, lieutenant 1529 John Fleming, captain. 1530 Thomas Sherburn, Ueutenant. 1532 Henry Bradley, deputy lieutenant 1533 Henry Stanley, captain. 1535 George Stanley, captain. 1537 Thomas Stanley, knight, lieutenant 1539 George Stanley, captain. 1540 Thomas Tyldsley, deputy. 1544 WiUiam Stanley, deputy. 1552 Henry Stanley, captain. 1561 Sir Eichard Sherburne. 1562 Thomas Stanley, knight, lieutenant 1566 Eichard Aston, captain. 1567 Thomas Stanley, knight Ueutenant 1569 Edward Tarbock, captain. 1575 John Hanmer, captain. 1580 Eichard Sherburn, captain. 1591 Eichard Aderton was admitted and swom lieutenant under the captain, by my Lord's directions, for all martial affairs. 1592 Cuth. Gerrard, captain. Thomas Martinier, deputy. 1593 Hon. WUUam Stanley, captain, afterwards Earl of Derby. 1594 Eandolph Stanley, captain. 1596 Sir Thomas Gerrard, knight captain. Cuth. Gerrard, deputy. 1597 Thomas Gerrard, knigM, captain. Eobert Molyneux, deputy. 1599 Cuth. Gerrard, captain. Eobert Molyneux, deputy. c 2 20 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAll'. 1600 Eobert Molyneux, captain. 1609 John Ireland and John BkchaU, governors jointly, by patent from the King. Thomas Gerrard. 1610 John Ireland, Ueutenant and captain. 1612 Eobert Molyneux^ captain. 1621 Edward Fletcher, deputy. 1622 Edward Fletcher, governor. 1623 Sir Ferdinand Leige, knight captain 1625 Edward Fletcher, deputy. 1626 Edward Holmewood, captain. 1627 Edward Fletcher, deputy. 1628 Edward Christian, lieutenant and captain. 1629 John Ireland. 1634 Evan Christian, deputy. 1635 Sir Charles Gerrard, knigM, captain. 1636 John Sharpeless, deputy. 1639 EadcUife Gerrard, captain 1640 John Greenhalgh, governor. 1651 Sir PhU. Musgrave, knight and bart., govemor. 1652 Samuel Smith, deputy govemor. Lord Fairfax made commissioners for governing this year, viz., James Chaloner, Eobt Dinely, Esq.; and Jonathan Witton, clerk. 1653 Matthew CadweU, governor. 1656 WiUiam Christian, governor. 1658 James ChaUoner, govemor. 1660 Eoger NoweU, govemor. Eichard Stephenson, deputy. 1663 Henry NoweU for one part of the year, and Tho. Stanley for the other part, deputies. 1664 Bishop Barrow, governor. H. NoweU, deputy. 1669 Henry NoweU. 1677 Henry Stanley. 1678 Eobert Heywood A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 21 1691 Eoger Kenyon. WiUiam SachevereU. 1696 Colonel Sankey. Hon. Capt Cranston. 1703 Eobert Maudesley. 1713 John Parr, C. Stanley. Alexander Home. Major Floyde. 1726 Thomas Horton. 1734 James Horton. 1739 Hon. James Murray. 1747 P. Lindesay. 1757 Basil Cochrane, John Taubman. 1763 John Wood. J. Hope. l776 Edward Smith, Eichard Dawson. 1798 Duke of Athol, and Alexander Shaw, Esq. 22 LETTEE II. To the same. Dear Sir, XN this letter I propose to give you an abridged statement of the Commissioners' report, who were appointed, in 1792, to make various enquiries relative to the additional compensation, urged in ParUament by his Grace the Duke of Athol, for the benefits derived to this country from the possession of the Isle of Man ; and to examine into those rights, of which his Grace complained he was unintentionaUy deprived, and in which, therefore, he requested to be reinstated. A fair and equitable compensation was required for that, which his Grace considered the re-vesting act had in its operation divested him of ; and in his last biU, finaUy to adjust the business between his famUy and the crown, he prayed that leave might be given for a bUl ap pointing commissioners to enquire what rights and species of property were necessary or expedient to remain vested in the crown, for the protection and security of the pubUc revenues, and what was the value thereof ; and also how far, and to what extent and value, his remaining rights and interests in the said island had been or would, by the dismemberment thereof, be impared or diminished, and to afford him reUef.* * In a case respecting the validity of this sale, laid before council in 1788, it is stated that the sum of 70,0002. was paid only for such regalities, and other branches of this royal fief, as appeared to be convenient for the public ; that what was reserved to the Duke did not comprize one-fourth of the yearly revenue from the island ; and that his family have by it lost, at the rate of 4 or 5,0002. a-year, for twenty-three years successively ; suoh being nearly the difierence between the net revenue from the island for ten years preceding the sale, and the net revenue of the purchafie-money and the reserved parts of the island put together. It A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 23 The commissioners appointed in consequence were, Mr. Spranger, master in chancery ; Mr. Grant an English lawyer, and M.P. ; Mr. Osgoode, an English la-wyer, and chief justice of Quebec ; Mr. Eoe, commissioner of the customs at London ; and Mr. Eeed, commissioner of the customs at Edinburgh. As soon as they arrived in the island, a committee of the Keys was appointed to attend and assist them. The result of their labours forms a very thick foUo ; and as it was only printed for private use, I mean to give you the substance abbreviated. The first attention was to the allegations of his Grace the Duke; and then they proceeded, 2ndly, to the revenue; 3rdly, to the constitution ; 4thly, beneficial suggestions, not included under the other heads, with appendices. 1st ALLEGATIONS. The Duke of Athol's aUegations were, 1. That the revenues arising to his Grace's famUy were not fairly coUected, even prior to the re- vestment 2. That his famUy had the power of in creasing the duties with the consent of the legislature ; and that such consent, to any reasonable degree, would not have been wanting. 3 That some rights, unnecessary to be vested in the crown, have been so vested ; while others, meant to be retained, have, by the operation of the act of 1765, been rendered nugatory by being left in a mutUated and unprotected condition ; the protections which they enjoyed under the former govemment of the island, having been destroyed, and no new or adequate protection substituted in their room. becomes a question how far Duke James, the present Duke's grandfather, was competent to dispose of the island at his pleasure, and overturn the order of succession guarded by act of James I., under which he himself derived ; and whether it is not incumbent on the legislature, either by restoration of the property, or a liberal compensation for every possible damage from retaining the island against those entitled under the right of succession, to redress the injury of which, through the precipitation of a bargain, they have been the unintentional authors. See the printed opinion of Mr. Hargrave on this case. — Gough's Camden, vol. iii. 700. 24 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. After examining the witnesses in support of the first aUegation the commissioners were of opinion, as well from the positive testimony adduced, as from the necessary consequence of that defective system, which appeared in evidence to have been estabUshed for collecting the duties, that, although the amount of the loss sustained cannot be estimated, the lord's revenues were not fairly coUected or paid, prior to the re-vestment The 2nd aUegation was divided into two parts ; the first was self-evident but as to the latter part, the commissioners thought that it was not probable (after they had examined the subject) that a consent to any increase of duties would have been given without an equivalent. Eespecting the 3rd allegation, that was Ukewise divided into two branches ; and his Grace deUvered in a paper, stating what rights had unnecessarily been vested in the crown, and wishing to be reinstated in all his lawful rights ; viz. the Herring Custom of 10s. on each boat, Salmon Fisheries, Isle and Castle of Peele, Treasure Trove, &c. The commissioners conceived, indeed, these as not necessarUy vested in the crown for the purpose of preventing UUcit practices. On applying to the Attorney-General for his opinion on these subjects, the result was, "that he could not take upon himseK to say, that the " rights specified are absolutely necessaiy to be possessed by his "Majesty, in order to the suppression of smuggling, but, as far " as he could judge, he does conceive that the possession of " each of them by the crown, excepting perhaps treasure trove, " as a real, and beneficial check upon such practices. The trifling "privilege of treasure trove might he beUeves, be resigned "without mischief; but aU the rest would, if belonging to any " other than the sovereign, be Uable to be made, in a greater or "less degree, the means of defrauding the revenue." The com missioners continued in their original opinion. In support of the last branch of the Srd aUegation, the Duke deUvered in papers on the subjects of wrecks, boons and services, game, unappropriated lands, &c. But in general, the commissioners thought that these rights were not left in that unprotected and A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 25 mutUated condition stated by his Grace. After discussing these several points, the causes of a misunderstanding between the Duke and House of Keys was proposed to be investigated. , It respected laws being made in the island, materially affecting his Grace's property, -without his knowledge, on which ground he had entered caveats against his Majesty's assent ; and the Keys complained of the delays occasioned thereby. But the House of Keys entering into a resolution to inform his Grace* of any new laws a proper time before they should pass, -with copies of any new biUs, &c., the parties being satisfied, farther discussion was waved : and the resolutions then adopted, were acknowledged a remedy for some other insular grievances complained of by the people. The 2nd general head of the Commissioners Eeport is on THE REVENUE; Containing, 1. The receipt and expenditure. 2. The estabUsh ment of the customs. 3. The system of duties. 4. UUcit practices. 5. Proposals for the reUef or benefit of the in habitants. By the return of the deputy Eeceiver-General, it appears that the Receipts and Payments from Jan. 1790 to Jan. 1791, amounted to 3,016?. 8s. lid. raised by coUections at the dif ferent ports. The total disbursements on this account is 3,272?. 2s. 2d. The payments contained in this account are either to officers in the civU or revenue departments, incidental on the head of customs, or bounties on herrings. Two other funds exist in the island, coining within the province of the Eeceiver-General, distinct from the customs in their origin, col lection, mode of account and application, namely, the Harbour duties, and the Herring custom, and Bay fisheries. The harbour fund is levied under the Act of 2 Geo. IIL cap. 52. The her ring custom is ancient and was originaUy a payment in kind ; a maze, or 500 herrings, being due from every Manks boat for 26 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. the supply of the garrisons of the island.; hence caUed a castle maze. But it is now commuted for a money payment of 10*. for ten maze, or in proportion to the quantity caught Irish boats pay double the custom, in the same proportion which is paid at sea, or in the harbours, as occasion offers. The Manks boats pay after the season is over, on the proprietors' oath as to the number of boats employed, or quantity caught In the year 1790 the number of boats paying herring custom in the island was 233. Sometimes above 340 have paid, and in that year four British boats paid. The revenue yielded by the Salmon fisheries, arises from rents paid to the crown, for the Uberty of fishing in the bays of the island. The commissioners of the treasury let them on lease by auction for seven years, at 22? per annum. The harbour duties for one year, ending in July 1791, were 319?. 5«. l^c?. nett And the herring custom and bay fisheries net were 95?. 19s. ^d. from which 327?. was disbursed in repairs ; which, together with some deductions for salaries, left only 47?. 7s. lOfrf. balance in favour of the fund that year. The joint produce of these funds were, by 2 Geo. IIL appro priated to the benefit of the harbours. The execution of this duty is principaUy in the management of revenue ofiBcers, which the commissioners justly conceived to be taking them off from their direct and especial duty ; and that as the ports and harbours were objects of great nnportance, and that com petent knowledge and incessant attention were essential requisites in those to whom the management of them was intrusted, they therefore recommended a re-consideration ' of the act in question. 2nd. Establishments of the Customs. In the Ust of ports are named four, Douglas, Derby-haven, Peel, and Eamsay, with twenty creeks ; but in the commissions one creek, Castletown, is only named. The essence of a creek, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 27 in the language and sense of the custom department is, the having officers stationed to perform certain branches of the business, and as that is wanting, they hardly appear hitherto to have merited the appeUation. Douglas, also, is styled a head port, and the other ports members thereof, " a distinction "(say the commissioners of 1792) in our opinion useless and "unwarranted; as the sole ground we know of for that dis- " tinction, a right exercised by patent officers, appointed to " head ports to extend their jurisdiction in respect of thei " offices to members thereunto belonging, no ways obtains in "the Isle of Man." The officers in the customs are thirty: their salaries amount to 932?. 6s. 6d. Many are paid at White haven. The whole expenditure in 1790 for the island, incurred by the crown, was 3,765? 8s. 7^d. Fees are received by many of the officers. No deductions of any kind for taxes on the emoluments of office, are made in the island. The commis sioners also conceived the abolishing of aU fees a measure of a very salutary tendency ; and they stated the whole management of the customs to be Ul-digested, incomplete, and unfit They proceed to point out the most striking defects, and the subject is laid down and reasoned on with precision and knowledge ; and the result was, that the revenue was not nearly so pro ductive as it ought to be. They thought nothing short of a radical change could reach the errors and defects of the system, and communicate order, regularity, and energy ; for which they advised its being put under the management of the commissioners of the customs for England and Scotland, and that this should be done without any detriment to the island. Srd. System of Duties. The duties of customs now payable in the island, are by 7 Geo. IIL cap. 45, and 20 Geo. Ill, cap. 42. The duties are laid on either by a specific rate, according to quantity^ measurement or weight; or ad valorem. Spirits, tea, coffee, 28 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. tobacco, wine, and coal, are classed under the former; aU other articles subject to duty, under the latter. A laxity pre vails in enforcing the oath, as to valuation, and general mode of coUection. The Usts annexed in letter 6th, show the articles which may be imported, or exported, or prohibited in the island, &c. What improvements are wanting, are stated at length in the Eeport; ^thly. Illicit Practices. The testimony of the officers, and the weak system of pre vention, concurred to estabUsh the truth that iUicit practices do stUl prevail in the island : 1st, by a fraudulent evasion of insular duties ; and 2ndly, by importing into Great Britain or Ireland, articles Uable to duty without payment thereof ; of articles which have received bounty or drawback on exportation ; or of articles prohibited. The island is made part of a circuitous smuggUng to England, Scotland, or Ireland ; here the contraband traders stop and dispose of part of their UUcit burdens. The principal subjects of clandestine importation are, brandy, geneva, and tea. Of outward smuggling, salt is the most considerable. The com missioners offer a variety of remarks on these heads, and on the plans necessary for their prevention, convinced, as they observe, that, in proportion as this Ulegal traffic is rooted out a reUsh for honest industry and enterprize -wUl gain strength ; and the growth of trade and manufactures, the improvement of agriculture, the extension of the fisheries, and with them the advancement of the Isle of Man to a more flourishing state, wUl be ensured, hthly. The proposals for the reUef and benefit of the in habitants in regard to trade, respect Ucensed articles ; foreign brandy and geneva ; tonnage of vessels ; corn and grain ; hops ; heiring fishery; cotton manufactory; hemp, iron, deal-boards, 0,nd timber ; tar, salt, oil, and fruits of aU kinds ; showing how certain inconveriiences with regard to these exist and stating A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 29 the means to obviate them, with remarks thereon ; also a proposition for erecting a warehouse at Douglas for foreign European goods, which is, however, deemed a plan big with innovation, and to which strong objections occur. After remarks on these heads, they proceed to part the Third, on the Constitution, &c, "which shaU be pursued in my next letter. 30 LETTEE III. To the same. Dear Sir, IN endeavouring to give you a sUght idea of what are the subjects which occupy the ponderous volume of the Com missioners' Eeport, I come now to their third general head, namely. The Constitution ; and here we find some interesting letters annexed, from Mr. Deemster Moore ; the then Attorney- General, Sir Wades worth Busk ; and the present Lieut -Govemor, Alexander Shaw, Esq. ; the Clerk of the EoUs ; and the Speaker of the house of Keys. Previous to the grant of this island to the Stanley famUy, in 1406, it had been subject to different govemments, though usuaUy subsisting as a petty kingdom, to which the dominion of some of the Hebrides was once annexed ; and it was suc cessively tributary to, or united with Denmark, Norway, Scot land, and England. Its most ancient records are the laws and ordinances enacted there, commencing in 1417. The first of these is an act passed by the authority of commissioners, ap pointed by the Lord, and the twenty-four Keys, to prevent abuses of the places of refuge, at that time afforded to criminals by some ecclesiastics in the island. The Manks statute-book commences in 1422, and contains "a coUection of divers ordi nances, statutes, and customs, presented, reputed, and used fbr laws in the island." Henry IV. granted to Sir John de Stanley, his heirs and assigns, the island, Castle-Pell, and Lordship of Man, and all the islands and lordships, royalties, regalities, and appurtenances. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 31 with the patronage of the bishoprick, and aU ecclesiastical bene fices, in as fuU and ample a manner as they had been possessed by any of the former lords or kings of Man, to be holden by homage, and the service of rendering to his Majesty, and to his successors at their coronations, two falcons.* By these, and other letters patent in 7th James I. this island has been held by the famUy, as a fief separately from the kingdom, but depen dent on the crown, from 1406 to the revestment in 1765, with some little interruption at the latter end of the reign of EUza beth, on the faUure of issue male of Ferdinando, then Earl of Derby. From the grant of Henry IV. it has been governed by its own laws ; its constitution we shaU now notice, as to its legis lative, executive, and judicial branches. The laws enacted in the 15th and 16th centuries, appear to have been prescribed by such different powers, or combinations of power, that, as prece dents of the exercise of legislative authority, they can have little weight Subsequent to this was estabUshed the more regular mode of legislation, which subsisted in 1764 ; and from the last century, with few exceptions, the legislative authority has been vested in the Governor, CouncU, Deemsters, and Keys.f These four estates are, when assembled, named a Tynwald court, and by joint concurrence they enacted laws. The lord's proprietors had for a considerable time the title of royalty, and had the sovereign control of government in every instance, under certain restrictions. With respect to the persons who had a seat'and * In the establishment of the British court, we see the head of the falconers ranked among the great officers of state. (Howel Dha. 1. i. c. I. and Florence of Worcester, p. 623, Frankfort edition.) And at this day the Dukes of St. Alban's and Ancaster, are hereditary chamberlain and falconer to the King of England. Hawking remained the favourite recreation of our gentlemen for many ages. It exists at present only in the Highlands. The Gauls knew nothing of it : nor was it a sport of the European nations. The Asiatics, however, were universally fond of it. — Polwhele's Hist. Views, vol. i. p. 206. + In this statement of the branches of the Legislature, I have differed from the commissioners, who state it to be vested in the Lord Proprietor, Govemor and Council, and twenty-four Keys. 32 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. voice in the CouncU, various opinions are held, and it is at present a matter of controversy. The deemster (Moore) considers it to have consisted of the treasurer, or receiver-general; the comptroUer ; clerk of the rolls ; water-bailiff; attorney -general ; two deemsters, archdeacon, and his official ; bishop, and his two vicars-general ; — and the clerk of the roUs adds to these the collectors, and considers the bishop, and other ecclesiastical officers, as only entitled to attend this councU when summoned. The attorney-general differs from each : he considers some spiritual officers to have had a fixed seat, but does not aUow aU above mentioned He further confines the right to such lay- officers as composed the lord's household, and acted in his ministerial departments. He doubts the propriety of the deem sters, (though he admits they have never been absent) and excludes the coUectors. So that according to him, the CouncU were, the receiver-general or treasurer; cOmptroUer; clerk of the roUs ; water-baUiff or coUector ; the attorney-general ; and probably the bishop and archdeacon, and the 'vicars-general and official, as occasional members. By the Manks statute-book, some of the spiritual officers appear to have enjoyed the privUege for a series of years ; an enumeration of the acts with their signatures is -annexed to the memorial of the present bishop and vicar-general, in support of their claims ; for in 1776 and 1777, the then govemment eas- cluded them from the councU, and from having any share in the legislature. This is a delicate question, and it would be highly improper in me to offer, as a stranger, any opinion.* The acts * It is contended for, by some, that, however the Governor's Council might have been formerly composed, it can now consist only of those who are appointed to the offices of govemment by his Majesty. They allege that the holders of particular employments had a right to sit in council, only because they were nomi nated to such employments by the then sovereign of the island : that on this principle, none ought now to be considered as legal members of that body, but those who derived their appointments immediately from his Majesty ; tWt the bishop and other spiritual officers, being nominated by the Duke of Athol, must therefore be excluded, inasmuch as (whatever gi-ound their pretensions may have formerly had) a right to a seat in the council of the sovereign, cannot flow from an A TOUE THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 33 stated as signed by the ecclesiastical department are acts of general concern, not confined to, or connected with ecclesiastical affairs. The duty of this coimcU was to assemble when called on by the lord proprietor, or his governor, and give their assent or dissent to the laws proposed. The twenty-four Keys, or principal commoners, were anciently styled Taxiaxe, and the worthiest men in the land. In King Orrie's days, six of these were chosen from the out-isles ; when aU were chosen in the island first is uncertain, but in 1417, the records state twenty-four Keys as concurring in pubUc acts, and they continue the same number. On a vacancy, the house presents two names to the govemor, who choses one, and then he takes the oaths and his seat,' which is for Ufe, unless he resigns, is expeUed, or accepts an office that entitles him to a seat in the councU. The quaUfications are, to be of age, and to possess freehold property ; non-residence is no disqualification. They debate upon, approve, or reject any law proposed to them. During the session they adjourn at pleasure, and they can appoint committees for business ; but their abiUty to continue the session, and the governor's authority to prorogue them before they choose to separate, are points not agreed on. Their pri-vUeges are to elect a speaker, who is to be approved of by the governor, and he holds the office for life without appointment made by a subject; that the receiver-general, the comptroller, and water-bailifi', must likewise be excluded, because they are created either by sign manual or treasury constitution, and not by patent under any of the royal seals. In point of fact, from the time of the revestment down to a recent period, this councU has been attended only by the deemsters, the attorney-general, and the clerk of the roUs. The spiritual officers have lately claimed to be admitted, and their claim, though protested against by the then attorney-general, has been allowed by the lieutenant- governor. They contend, that if ever they had the right, they must stiU continue to enjoy it ; for that it has not been altered by any express words, and cannot be taken away by mere imphcation, especially an implication which is by no means necessary or direct. A statement has been sent to England for his Majesty's deterinination. 34 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. emolument; he has, however, a right to kUl game, and an exemption from services to the lord. A grand court is held once a year at the Tynwald-hiU, where aU acts are read publicly, and henceforth become binding on the people. The acts of the legislature thus constituted, are binding in all cases. The statute-book presents laws and enactments, respect ing every object of legislation pubUc and private, sanctioned by a long course of years. Having thus considered the legislative parts of government we proceed to the executive and judicial parts, consisting of a councU in the nature of a privy or executive councU, and fre quently styled the Lord's Council ; the courts of judicature ; and the magistrates, and ministerial officers. The last councU is mentioned in early Manks statutes, and when on emergency summoned by the governor, acted in a summary way, without the concurrence of the House of Keys or lord proprietor. From their proceedings not being conducted with regularity, or minutes kept of them, doubts are entertained respecting the persons who were to be considered as members of this council. The Courts of Judicature are next the objects of enquiry. It may be necessary here to notice that the island is divided into the north and south districts; six sheadings; seventeen parishes; each sheading has three parishes, except Glansaba, which has only two. And there are four inferior baronies, viz. Bishop's Barony ; Abbey-Eushen ; Bangor and Sabal, and St Trinian's. Many of the courts are not so much distinct courts, as the same court or persons acting in different situations and on different subjects.* The governor, as representing the lord, was, by an ancient rule of law, authorized to hold cog nizance of aU pleas, civU and criminal, and with the other » Several regulations in this respect are wanting; the offices o£ governor and chancellor are very improperly joined in the same person. The office of deemster seems a proper step to the latter; and the deemsters should be rendered inde pendent of fees for many reasons. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAS. 35 chief officers seems to have formed, originally, a kind of supreme court, which assumed an universal jurisdiction. The courts of judicature are, civil, ecclesiastical, and criminal. COURTS OF CIVIL JURISDICTION. 1. The Court of Chancery, where the govemor is chanceUor, assisted by the deemsters, and such of his councU as he shaU summon. This court has a mixed jurisdiction in matters of law and equity, and is more frequently resorted to in the latter than the former capacity. It is said to have its origin in the power of granting arrests of the person and effects, which in civU cases belonged to the governor alone. Causes commenced this way were termed common actions, which brought the suitors into the Court of Chancery, and the causes so brought were, as the parties chose, or the governor ordered, either retained to be determined, or transmitted to some other jurisdiction. Suits were likewise instituted before the governor as chanceUor, where fuU redress could not be obtained by the other courts. 2. The Court of Exchequer comes next ; in this the governor presides, -with such of the councU as he chooses to summon. This court takes cognizance of aU disputes or offences relating to the lord's revenue, rights, or prerogatives ; and prosecutions are here carried on for the recovery of penalties incurred by frauds upon the customs. It also exercises a criminal judisdic- tion over misdemeanors, and aU species of -wrongs, which have incurred a fine to the lord : Uke the Court of Chancery, it pro ceeds without a jury, unless the govemor thinks fit to summon one, and their proceedings are registered in the Liber Scaccarii. From these courts lay an appeal to the lord proprietor. 3. The Common-Law Courts, the style of which is termed, " before the governor, and all the chief officers and deemsters," were held at different places for different sheadings. These may be considered as courts of common pleas; here are tried all actions, personal or real, by a jury of six of the sheading in D 2 36 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. which the lands Ue, in case of real actions ; and of four of the defendant's parish, in actions personal The verdicts of these are Uable to be ttraversed, and a new trial obtained by another jury of twelve in real, and six in personal actions. Another traverse is aUowed to the House of Keys, and both these may condemn the prior juries to be amerced. The courts of common law also entertained cognizance of those denominated in their statutes Uoodwipes, where the trial was by a jury of six, and the penalty sixpence with costs. When the common law courts are -finished, the govemor and those who composed it sit as a Manerial Court, commonly caUed a Sheading Court, attended by a jury termed a Setting Quest, who present any change of tenants of the lord.* The baronies before-mentioned, have Ukewise their courts -within themselves, and try felonies committed in their districts by a jury of twelve. ^ Besides these, are the two Deemsters Courts, one in the northern, the other in the southern district. These sit more frequently, and are more generaUy resorted to, than any of the others. In each of these one deemster alone presides, and has a power to decide aU causes in a summary way without the inter vention of a jury, according to the traditional and un-written laws of the land, here termed breast laws. These courts are held once a week, or oftener if required. In aU civil and criminal matters, their power is great ; in civU cases, an appeal Ues to the governor and councU. The deemsters were always officers of great dignity; they were not only the chief judges of the Isle, but were also the lord's pri-vy counsellors ; and their influence over the people, in some degree, resembled the civU authority of the ancient Druids. They were esteemed the venerable oracles of justice, and in their bosoms resided the laws, which only on important occa sions were divulged to the people. "* Tenants had the occupancy given them by the delivery of a straw, which was the .custom of aU bargains in England in early times, from whence the lawyers use the word stipulate, becauae the contract was ratified, per traditimiem atipida. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 37 The court of the Water Bailiff, who is also styled Admiral, takes cognizance of all causes of action or misdemeanors below fuU sea-mark, and of all maritime affairs, by a special jury of merchants or seafaring men; but appeal lies to the governor and council. The Spiritual Courts are consistory courts, held alternately by the bishop and archdeacon, or their deputies. These courts have more extensive powers than the EngUsh spiritual courts . They not only determine the yaUdity of wiUs, &c. but sustain all causes respecting them, and aU suits against executors, &c. Besides inflicting church censures, they can detain the party in the ecclesiastical prison, a subterraneous prison in Peele Castle ; and that as a definitive sentence ; and the appeal was to the Archbishop of York. But their powers are now exercised in the mUdest manner. The superior court of criminal judicature is the Court of general Gaol Delivery, and in this the governor, councU, and deemsters, with the addition of the Keys, preside ; and here are tried aU capital offences. The prosecutions in this court are carried on by presentments or indictments, and for frauds upon the customs by a verbal information from the seizing officer. For making these presentments there are a variety of inquests. No culprit can be tried in this court, but by a jury of twelve. The attorney-general conducts the prosecution ; and when the defence is heard, and the jury agreed, the deemsters demand of the foreman in Manks, if such of the councU as are ecclesiastics may remain in court ; if he answer, they may not, they with draw ; and the verdict is deUvered. Upon conviction the deemster pronounces sentence, and the governor respites execu tion, untu the sentiments of the lord are kno-wn, if he be not present This court is held twice a year at Castle Eushen, and its proceedings, since 1680, have been enrolled in the Liber Placitorum. There are several juries in the island, viz. — 1. The Great Inquest, which consists of twelve in each shead- 38 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. ing, retumed by the coroner, to make presentments particularly enumerated in the Manks statute-book. This has lately been aboUshed. 2. The Setting Quests, of four of the lord's tenants: their office was, when any lands fell to the lord, to discover a proper person to whom they might be set and compel him to become a tenant thereof; serving as a homage jury in the sheading, or manerial courts, where the same business was transacted as in the courts of copyholders in England, and in a somewhat simUar way. Besides these. Trespass Juries, and Juries of Enquiry; con sisting each of four men, occasionally summoned by the deem sters, on any trespass or damage committed ; in order to discover the offenders if possible. The statute-book also contains pro visions for some other juries, for placing servants to work, and for the protection of the lord's game. The advantages resulting from these juries is considerably lessened, by the irregularity to which they are Uable. The forms of proceeding in the courts are mentioned as not more orderly or exact than the constitution of those courts. The process of appearance was formerly a summons from the magis- strate, by the initials of his name inscribed on a hit of slate or a stone ; but now it is in -writing. Decrees and judgments at one time were given oraUy, at another put into -writing : the execu tion of them was by the moar in the court of common law ; by the coroners, for the other superior courts ; by the Serjeants, in the inferior manor courts ; and executed by the sumner, for the ecclesiastical courts. I shaU here explain the duties of those inferior officers just mentioned. In every sheading was a coroner, who served sum monses and other processes, returned juries, levied fines and executions ; coUected certain of the lower dues arising on casual ties; and for these and other purposes, was to take inquests, and attend most of the juries and inquests impannelled by the deemsters or superior courts, and might convene and swear A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 39 others, some permanent some occasional He also takes inquests as in England, in case of sudden or violent deaths. The Serjeants in the several baronies were civU officers, in the nature of moars and coroners. In each parish is a deputy or assistant to the coroner, termed a lockman. The high sumner is an officer of very ancient appointment, invested with other very considerable powers, and is a kind of general executor to all aUens dying in the island. He can take an inventory and valuation of their effects to pay burial ex penses, and to distribute the residue amongst the creditors. In each parish are also persons caUed moars, who collect the lord's rents and fines, and act as servants to some of the courts ; each has a deputy, termed a summer. If any of these ministerial officers want aid, the miUtary or trained bands are immediately ordered to their assistance. The superintendance of the principal towns is committed to officers styled Captains of the Towns, who are conservators of the peace, and have a power of removing aU nuisances or obstructions in the streets. The mUitary force of the island consists of the garrisons of Eushen and Peele, and the miUtia, in which every man from sixteen to sixty is Uable to serve, except the keys and a few others. The command of the mUitia is committed to a major- general, captains, and subaltern officers ; the major-general has the superintendance of the whole military force of the island. The captains, &c. are appointed by the govemor ; and the miUtia are commanded by their own officers, liable to be embodied and caUed out when the captains choose. They are not entitled to pay, and are armed mostly at their own expense. Thus the constitution stood at the revestment, and the altera tions since are few— that act only transferred the sovereignty from the Lord Proprietor to the King. It made no other change in the constitution, but what that transfer necessarUy occasioned. Eegulations are made in the courts as required, and the common 40 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. law-court is held four times a year instead of twice, and is stationary at Castle Eushen.* ^ The suggestions for the benefit of the island, form the foui-th part of the commissioners' report and this is accompanied with plans of harbours, &c. It respects the legislature, the laws, and administration of justice ; salaries of some of the officers, pubUc buUdings, harbours, and Ughts. Mr. Eeid subjoins also his own observations on the various topics of enquiry, and which are of some length. Thus I flatter myself I have given a satisfactory, though but a brief idea of the " Eeport," from which I shall present you with a few tables in a future letter. * See further regulations by act of Tynwald, 1796, in statute laws, Svo. 41 LETTEE IV. To the same. " The care of farms we sing — attend the strain, -What skill, what toU, shall best procure you g£un ; How difl'erent culture, different grounds reqmres. While wealth rewards, whom industry inspires." ' Dear Sir, "V'^OU wiU not be surprised, that so able and vigUant a com- •*- mittee as the Board of Agriculture have extended their researches even to this remote appendage to the British crown. When aU their surveys shaU assume a more condensed form, and appear before the pubUc eye in a more finished state, it will exhibit a gratifying and pleasing -view of the improving style of agricultural arts, and of the capabilities of our country of stUl adding, beyond conception, to the luxuries of the rich, and to the comforts of the poor. A plan for stich a repubUcation (by the President of the Board) is prefixed to the new edition of Mr. BUUngsley's " Survey of the Agriculture of Somersetshire," 8vo. Mr. B. Quayle, whose brother had a medal voted by the Society of Arts for the invention of a Pentrough* for equaUzing water faUing on water-wheels, was the person who sent to the Board the agricultural state of the Isle of Man. This account I shaU now abridge, adding such additional information as occurred to me. Di-visions of land prevaU here, termed Quarterlands. It is * For a description and plates of which, see Repertory of Arts, No. 17, for October, 1795. 42 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. uncertain how they obtained the name, or why they were first di-vided into such parcels. It is not supposed to have been by reason of their original value, as the rent payable to the lord for some quarters of land is nearly double to that of others. Nor could it be by ad measurement as they vary in dimensions ; they are considered to be one liundred acres more or less. In WiUiam the First's time we read of hides of land in England, these quarterlands seem to be analogous to them, in point of size and variety of dimension. Quarterlands are in the Isle of Man considered to be property of the highest nature. They are (although subject to the pay ment of a smaU rent to the lord of the island) absolute estates of inheritance, descendible from ancestor to heir : they cannot be disposed by wiU, nor are they Uable to the payment of debts. Lands under the appeUation of intacks and cottages, "were formerly considered of a nature far inferior, and to aU intents and purposes, chattels real, were de-visable by -wiU, or in case of intestacy feU to administrators ; and were always the objects of creditors, when the goods moveable or personal chattels were deficient. In the act of settlement they are recognised as chattels, how far they are stUl so remains a matter of doubt ; by an act passed in 1777, it is enacted that they shaU no longer be considered assets in the hands of executors or administrators, but shall descend to the heir-at-law. Whether by this statute the name chattel and the incidents are totally taken from intacks and cottages, or merely so far as regards their being assets m the hands of executors and administrators, is a nice question ; la-wyers are not agreed, although some decisions since favour the former opinion. This much is however clear, that if they are not dis posed of by wUl or other instrument in writing,- they descend to the heir-at-law, in the same manner as quarterlands. Though these quarterlands are not subject generaUy speaking, to the payment of debts, or devisable by -wUl ; yet this is not the case with such as are newly purchased, for in the island. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 43 purchased lands, though quarterlands, are on an exact footing ¦with intacks and cottages. Nor in the laws of the island is the 'woxdi purchase equivalent to the Latin word perquisitio, as under stood by the laws of England ;¦ but signifies a thing acquired for a consideration paid or to be paid. I annex a rate to show the proportion paid by quarterlands, to those lands, &c. which do not come under that title. A RATE ON QUARTERLANDS, &c. Ki/rh Patrich 41 quarters, £ s. d. 35 quarters at Sa. \d. per quarter 3 12 11 Bangor and Sabel 6 q. at 2s. 1(^ 0 12 6 Intacks, cottages, aud milns 152 Kirh Qerman, 52 i . . \ 13 abbey land, 39Jlord'sland ¦ ¦ \ ^-^^ 5 9 lOS ¦ 1, at . j MUnB, cottages, and intacks 1 11 9 Kirk Michael. 45 quarters at 2s. Ic? 4 13 9 Milns, cottages, and intacks 0 14 0 Zii quarters at 2s. lii 3 11 lOJ Milns, cottages, and intacks 3 10 Ij Jurly. 18| quarters, at 2s. Id. . • 1 19 Oi Milns, cottages, and intacks 2 5 9^ Kirh Andreas. 58 quarters, at 2s. lei 6 0 10 Milns, cottages, and intacks 375 Kirh Bride. 42 quarters, at 2s. lei 4 7 6 Intacks ¦ • 44 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 10 abbey lands, at j Kirk Olurist Lez-ayre, 43J. £ s. d. 33^ quarters lord's land 10 abbey lands, at Milns, cottages, and intacks ' 7 17 2 Ki/rh Maughold, 40. 38 lord's land • ) gg j^; 4 3 4 2 staff land, at . J Milns, cottages, and intacks ..114 Milntown ^Barony, 2 quarters 042 Kirk Lona/a, 57J. 62^ lord's land •Igij 6 abbey land, at . J MUns, cottages, and intacks . . . ^ 0 17 10 Kirk Mwrovm, 34J. 30i quarters ..,„,, „,,,„, 4 St. Trinian's,- ^ ^s. W 8 11 lOJ I, at j Milns, cottages, and intacks 0 13 7J Kirh Santom. 34i lord's land, at 2s. Id 3 11 lOJ Milns and intacks 0 12 0 Malew, 66J. 261 lord's land ..)„„,„,, 40 abbey ditto . . } 66| at 2s. Id 6 19 Of Milns, cottages, &c 3 11 6 Arbori/. 31J quarters at 2s. It? 3 5 7J Milns, cottages, &c. . . . 0 6 7J Kirk Christ Rushen. 40 lord's land . , ) liabbeyditto. . j ''^^'¦'^^- * 6 6J MUns, &o. &c 0 12 0 Bidiops. 19f quarters at 2s. lei. 2 1 1 Cottages • 0 10 0 Kirk Braddon, 56. 38 lord's land 18 abbey ditto Milns, &c 0 17 10 ¦ ¦ j at2s. JA 5 16 8 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 45 £ s. d. 40 quarters at 2s. l(i 4 3 4 Milns, &c 0 17 10 Number of Quarter-lauds 759i. A chain of hiUs and mountains rans nearly the length of the island, and occupies a considerable part of the centre; they afford pasture for sheep, &c. and also fuel from the peat-mosses. The two extremities of the island may be termed lowlands, and consist of good arable and pasture. The South end has different soils, the greater part is loam ; stiff clays, which are difficult to tUl, prevaU in some places, and sand in others. A lime-stone bottom Ues under a very considerable tract ; but the expense of raising it prevents its general use as a manure.* Sea--wrack, or alga marina, is driven in quantities ashore by winter storms, and proves an exceUent dressing for barley ; it has been, tried for potatoes, and answers as to quantity, but it is inferior in quality to what is raised on farm-yard dung. The north side has forty-eight square mUes of improvable land, mostly a sandy loam, on a bottom of clay or marl ; it also contains an extensive moss, which has, -within these fourteen years, been improved by a large open drain. A tract of 500 acres of flat clay is dedicated to hay. The cUmate is rather milder than in the neighbouring parts of Great Britain and Ireland, particularly in winter, the frost and snow being sUght and of short continuance ; but the summers * The substrata of all soils about to be improved, should be investigated; a manure congenial may probably thus be found. Under clay we frequently find sand, and sand under clay; under flint, chalk; under white lias, or stone-brash, marie ; under red-earth, lime-stone ; under peat-bogs, sea-mud or clay. Dimg should not be applied for the wheat crop, as it makes the land foul ; and though there is a great burthen of straw, there is but little corn. It is most beneficial to apply dung to potatoes, turnips, &c. and to the artificial grasses, making Wheat the last crop in the course. — BlLLlNGSLB-y ut supra. 46 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. want that heat which is friendly to vegetation ; this causes late harvests, checks the grain as to its size, and impairs the straw. Frost and snow seldom appear before Christinas; but gales of -wind and rain are frequent and of long continuance ; the easterly -winds in spring check the progress of husbandry. Many estates are tithe free, paying an annual modus or prescription, which can never be altered. Leases, tUl the year 1777, dropped at the death of the inheritor and lessor ; but since that time, leases are granted for a certain period, on the same terms as in England, as to treating the lands agreeable to the rules of good husbandry. The value of land varies from 10s. to 40s. per acre; andin the uplands, from 5s. to 12s. The right of pasture on the commons belongs to the pubUc. Most farms keep six cows, some twelve, but rarely exceed twenty. The foUowing is the distribution of a crop on a farm near a to-wn, in 1794: number of acres 270; rent 210? Wheat 26 acres. Barley and oats, 30 each. Potatoes, 24. Hay, from sown grass, 40. Meadow, 10. Flax, 5. FaUow, 13. Pasture, 92. Plough-horses, 6. Colts, 4. Saddle-horse, pony, and stal- Uon. MUch-cows, 15. Fatting cows and heifers, 10. BuU, 1. Grassing to six cows. Horses, 4. Sheep, 20. House-servant two men, and three boys, with six labourers, and 25 additional hands in harvest FamiUes, 7. Souls, 40. This farm was divided among six tenants, who kept 16 horses, and maintained 30 souls. As the fishery engages upwards of 5,000 men during the most important summer months, the weeding and getting in of the harvest &c. faUs to the women, and the few men who prefer being on shore. The women are expert reapers, and do many other parts of husbandry. Threshing is mostly performed by them on the upland farms ; and in digging up of potatoes they are Uttle inferior to men. Mowers cut only three-quarters of an acre a day. Five reapers, and one to bind, cut an acre of middling corn a day. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 47 A common plan here is to have the barn over the cow-houses, but the cattle are never kept so clean ; and, if fatting stock, do not thrive so weU. It is also inconvenient and expensive to drag in 'the crops. ' . The farms are badly accommodated with offices ; and the dairy-maid, in milking, is not accommodated -with a seat as in England. The feet of the cattle are tied with straw ropes, to prevent their straying ; this they caU Lanketting : there appears something cruel in this mode, but the hedges are not sufficient to keep them, being only earth thro-wn up in the usual way, without any fencing or underwood at the top. The cottages are buUt of earth, and covered with straw, fastened with a netting of straw ropes, which lasts about two years. The inclosures are from four to ten acres. The fences are only banks of earth, not secure by any means ; gorse or furze is seldom seen on the top. Dry stone -waUs are adopted where they can be had cheap ; they cost from 12c?. to 20c?. per yard in length, five feet high, and two thick. The roads are -wide, and kept in good order, by parochial labour, (including three days' labour from every house in the to-wns, the composition for which amounts to about 750?) by a proportion of the revenue from public-house Ucenses, of about 180?, and a tax on dogs of 70? amounting tn the whole to about a thousand per annum. The ploughs used by the smaU farmers are nearly Uke those formerly in general use in Scotland and Ireland, but not so large or heavy; on lays or strong lands, they are inferior to no plough, but the draught is greater than those -with curved mould-boards. Mr. SmaU's, of Ford in Scotland, are in esteem ; the draught being less, though the plough is hea-vier. These cost in the whole about 50s. Good harrows are used, but drilling and hoeing machines are few. Carts are in general use with handy raUs attached occasionaUy; but I do not recoUect having seen any waggons. Com is dressed by fanners. One threshing machine cost a, farmer 50?. These, when brought to perfection. 48 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. wUl be one of the most valuable inventions : about twenty-five bushels can be thus threshed in an hour. The oat and barley- straw is eaten by the oxen, steers, &c. so that they' have but Uttle to form dung with, which is very scarce. Sea-weed sup pUes the shore around, on the so'ith side, -with manure. lime-stone is plenty in quarries, and on the coast of the south side ; it costs 18c?. per barrel of six bushels, and 50 barrels are reckoned enough for an acre. Sheep, &c. are folded in many farms. Clay marl abounds on the north side. They lay 300 to 400 loads, of ten cwt each, on an acre. This -wUl serve for twelve crops. The cleansing of the washing-tubs used in curing herrings, -with the sweepings, is a fine manure. Fairs for cattle and the manufactures of the island are frequent, which renders many of them insignificant ; there are six at which much busi ness is done. I was at one of these which was fuU of people, and stored "with cattle ; whUe at another, not 100 persons were present Many hundred head of cattle are bought up and sent to England annuaUy; jobbers come from Cumberland, and -without waiting for the fairs, get about the farms and pick up whatever cattle suits them : a great deal of business is done this way, and by a settled correspondence. The fairs, therefore, do not give a stranger an adequate idea of the stock of cattle in the island. Horses are frequently brought from Ireland to this place ; they are larger than the native ones. Every year produces a greater attention to the breed and rearing of the Uve stock. Formerly the ponies were remarkable for thefr beauty, and were much in request in England and Ireland to run in carriages ; but now their numbers are much diminished, as larger horses are found more useful. The farmers breed for their own use, and the island has some fine stalUons. The old country stock of cows are now seldom to be found ; they were short-legged and thick- bodied, and more remarkable for fatting than for milk ; sixteen quarts per day, for three months after calving, being considered as a very good produce ; twelve quarts wiU be near the average A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN; 49 Tetui-n. Barrel churns are used; but plunge chums are most common. Butter varies -with the season, from 5c?. to 8c?. per pound of sixteen ounces; and when salted in crocks, at 6c?. and 7c?. About 1,000 crocks of 30 lbs. each, are annually sent to England* The cattle soon fatten in choice pasture, or when exported. When fatted, their average weight is 80 lbs. a quarter, and in proportion to that weight have 40 lbs., of tallow, and 60 lbs. of hide. . Cal-nng cows and heifers feU in May from four to six guineas. Dry cows and heifers for fatting, from 3? 15s. to 5?. Oxen from th^ plough, from five to six guineas, and usually leave -with the grazier, from 2?. 10s. to 3?. 10s. . Beef varies with the season, from 2|c?. to 4c?; per pound. The native stock of sheep is small and hardy; when fatted, they weigh from five to eight pounds a quarter. They. endure the severest weather with Uttle loss : the meat is fine. This is stUl the mountain breed. In other parts a larger sort, a mixture from Scotland and Ireland, prevaUs ; weighing when, fatted from twelve to eighteen pounds per quarter. The rot is scarcely known ; but a disorder prevails which is occasioned by eating a particiUar weed, which the Manks caU X)uw. Its leaf destroys the Uver, and in about twelve months causes the animal's death. On opeiung the sheep, this leaf is found attached to its Uver, and transformed into an animal having apparent life and motion, and retaining its shape as an herb.* -* This plant is the marsh penny-wort (hydroeotyle vulgaris), or white rot. A plate of it may be fouud in Parkinson's Theat. Botan. folio, 1640, p. 1214. It ocorn^ frequently in marshy grounds, and the inhabitants on this side the water believe it to be the occasion of the disease in sheep, called the ^ot. But Dr. ¦Withering observes, in a note, " that it may be made a question, whether the rot iri sheep is so much owing to the vegetables in marshy ground, as to a flat insect called a fluke (fasdola hepatica), which is- found in these wet situations, adhering to the stones Mid plants, and likewise in the livers and biliary ducts of sheep that are affected with the Rot." I am obliged to my friend Mr. Wray, jun. of Salisbury, for the communication of this note, to whom I showed tlie plant in question.— f C. Baijhine calls it JlamMncuhiS aguaticus coiyledanis folio; others. Cotyledon, palmire, and Hydroeotyk. Vid HUl's Brit. Herbal, 419. The Ramimculm ¦arvensis, or corn row-foot, is said also to injure sheep. E 50 A TOUE THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Two pounds and a half is the average weight of the smaUer sized fleeces, and the larger rarely exceed 71bs. It is not of the finest or longest Staple, but the inhabitants make a strong cloth of it Few wash their sheep previous to shearing ; the wool thus uncleansed is sold from 6c^. to 8d. per pound. Almost every farmer reserves as much wool and flax as employs the female part of his famUy. There is a pecuUar breed of sheep, caUed Laughton, of the colour of Spanish snuff; these are not hardy, and are more difficult to fatten. The natives Uke the cloth, and stockings inade of this wool Pigs abound, and of good size. The price for fresh pork is 2Jc?. per pound ; hams and bacon, 5d. Poultry is also very plenty : chicken, 6c?. per couple ; fowls, 12c?. Geese are nume rous ; the price from Is. to Is. 6c?. weighing from six to eight pounds. Turkeys and ducks are also cheap ; quantities are sent to England. Dogs of a mixed sort are veiy common, almost a nuisance, notwithstanding they are taxed. A tract of 2,000 acres has received immense and valuable benefit from a drain cut through the lowest places, ten feet ¦wide, and six deep ; its length nearly sixmUes ; the soU peat moss, and clay, -with abundance of marl On good land the most approved rotation of crops is, 1st Potatoes, or Turnips, well dunged. 2d. Barley. 3d. Clover. 4th. Wheat 5th. Oats, or Pease. On the marled land of the north side, twelve crops of pease,- and barley alternately, are often taken, and sometimes fifteen, without any other, assistance than the dressing of marl, or even throwing in grass seeds. Barley is chiefly sown. Wheat, be sides its requiring a difference in the condition of the soU, is subject to smut, and its straw is not fit for fodder ; this operates against it 5,000?1 is in consequence annuaUy paid for flour imported — Barley is found best adapted, except oats, to the soU and climate. There are two sorts sown ; the four-rowed, which is only fit for malt and the two-rowed, which is used for bread. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 51 and is the general food of the lower classes, with whom oats is also a considerable part of diet Horse-beans are Uttle cultivated as yet ; these are productive, but are difficult to save, as moist weather attends the latter end of harvest. Pease, on the north side light lands, are cultivated. Eye is Uttle sown at present ; before marling was so much used, rye occupied the land now sown with wheat Potatoes are gro-wn in quantities. Turnips* are suited to the climate ; success has attended thefr cultivation ; and they b^gin to be adopted. Tur nip-rooted cabbage, and scarcity root tave not been found to answer. Carrots have been grown for cattle, but the expense of weeding has prevented their cultivation. Different kinds of ¦winter cabbage have been raised for feeding of mUking stock, and were found very convenient. The gro-wth and manufacture of flax is very general through the island ; almost every farmer and cottager growing a Uttle, both for the use of thefr families and for exportation. The Unen cloth is particularly weU manufactured, and finds a ready sale in England, where .5,000?. worth is annuaUy exported ; the price from Is. to 2s. per yard. Hemp is sown in gardens, or -very rich spots of land, but very rarely seen ctUtivated in fields. Grass seeds are generally sown -with their spring crops. In short, there is no doubt, if a society for the improvement of the land were instituted, and information and advice cfrculated, by means of small cheap tracts on the subject but that the happiest effects would flow; and from the very great and beneficial changes that are observable within these last twenty years, we * An acre of good turnips ¦will (between November and March) maintain one hundred sheep six weeks ; and an acre of cabbages two months. An acre of good turnip-rooted cabbages -will maintain one hundred sheep through the trying month of March. It is supposed that a little hay will be given with the roots. Devote at least one quarter of your turnip land to the Ruta-Baga, or the Swedish turnip, which wUl bear the utmost severity of weather, and wiU remain sound when the other turnips are all rotten. Sow early in May, and treat it, in other respects, like the common turnip. The root does not attain the size, but is weightier, and consequently more nutritious. — Billingsley. E 2 52 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. may predict "that the island wUl rise to that degree of cbnse* quence it deserves, at no very distant period. Even the most barren parts of the mountains, when planted,, may be productive in time ; and that elegant poet Scott, informs. us to what they may be adapted : — " On barren mountains, bleak with chilly air, Forbidding past'rage, or the ploughman's care j Laburnum's boughs a beauteous bloom disclose. Or spiry pines a gloomy grove compose." The Scotch fir (says Mr. BUlingsley) wUl endure almost any severity of cUmate, and the beech wUl resist the destructive infiuence of the sea-breeze ; next to these in point of hardiness are the larch, sycamore,* ash, and bfrch. We find also that the whitty, or mountain-ash, grows in the highest and coldest situations, and is the last tree -vfre meet in going up the Welsh hUls ; where the lower class of people make a thin beverage with its red berries fermented. " And whitty glitters up the mountain's side — ¦ The hardy whitty, that o'er Cambrian snows Beams its red glare, and in bleak winter glows." Knight's Landscape, a poem. Hazels, yews, and hoUies also, as they grow in all soUs, we may hope, at a future day, to see adorning the barren sides of Mona's mountains. — ^Adieu. * This is more properly the great maple ; iu Scotland it is oaUed the plane-tree. Mr. Evelyn recommends it for cart and plough timber, being light and tough ; but ash ia certainly better. See Aoek, in the new edition of MiUer's Gardener's Dictionary, 2 vols, folio, 1796, Rivingtons. 53 LETTEE V. To the same. " Content of spirit must from science flow. For 'tis a godlike attribute to know. " Dear Sir, rriHE enlightened Manksman, if he is fond of his native -*- language, must lament the barrenness of its Uterary field, and the almost daUy disuse of his mother tongue. The EngUsh language is preferred in general. In the Church and in the Courts of Law, it is indispensably necessary : in general the lower class understand EngUsh, and few are whoUy ignorant of it ; yet they are more ready at and attached to, thefr Manks. , Douglas has two printing-offices, from whence issue a Manks almanac, and a weekly paper, at the price of 2Jc?. entitled the " Manks Mercury," both printed in EngUsh. , They have neither grammar iior dictionary, and few except the clergy know Manks weU enough to compose in it* In a letter to the Eev. Mr. Corlett of Lez-ayre, in 1774, from Mr. John KeUy, of Douglas, he inquires for aU the proper names of places, &c. and adds, " My intention is to annex these proper names, which wiU prove as useful as curious, by way of an appendix to a dictionary of the Manks language, which is almost compiled." What has retarded this design I know not The foUowing curious observations on the Manks language and customs, is from the pen of the late leamed Eev. PhUip Moore : — " One great cause of their security in the Isle of Man, arises from an ancient law, stiU in force, that makes it felony to enter * The Irish language, also, though spoken by the inferior classes, is used but by few of the superior sort ; and the books printed in it consist chiefly of devotional tracts. — Towr,in Irelamd. 54 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. any man's house, without first calling thrice, Vel Peccagh s'thie ? Anybody within ? UteraUy, Is there any sinner -within ? For, anciently, few houses had any other door than a bundle of briars or bmsh--wood, tied up close, and bound aU round with a straw rope, to keep out the weather by night ; and in the day, when they left thefr cabins to go to work abroad, they set up two sticks across the door, or a couple of flaUs, or anything of that kind, which the law made it capital to remove, without per mission from within, after calUng as above. And this furnishes another strong presumptive proof of the originality, antiquity, and very expressive sigmficance for our language ; that the whole himian species is distinguished by the term or appeUation oi peccagh, that is, sinner. For instance, we say, peccagh mie, for a good man or person, UteraUy, a good sinner. For a good Chris tian, peccagh creestee, i. e. a Christian sinner : peccagh ny gha, many a sinner, for many a one : cloan ny peccee, the chUdren of sinners, for aU mankind. Would not this proof, taken from the very natural and moral state of man, incline one to conclude, that the Manks language is coseval, if not -with the faU, at least -with the dispersion at Babel, in both which incidents the whole human race were involved; and universal guUt became the characteristic of man ? The term peccagh, a man, or person, but UteraUy and originaUy, sinner, showing how reUgiously we have preserved the memorial of these most ancient, wonderful, and interesting catastrophes. "I am weU aware of what some would insinuate, that the word peccagh is derived from peccatum of the Latins ; not re flecting, that the Manks, the Welsh, the Irish, the ancient Comavian, and the Erse, are aU different dialects of one and the same original language, and each ofthem e-vidently deducible from the primaeval Celtic; which all antiquarians affirm to have been the language of aU Asia Minor and Europe, for many ages, and long before either Greece or Eome had any existence or any pecuUar language as distinct nations." This language has many compound words, by which the ideas A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 65 they are meant to excite are more forcibly impressed : for in stance, laa, signifies half, and hee, signifies meat; when these are conjoined they form laahee, the Manks for a bed, which is vulgarly said to be half-meat Again, laa, half, and noo, a saint, when joined as laanoo, mean a child ; very expressive of the innocence of that state. Mr. Sacheverel remarks, that the Manks language differs no more from Irish than the Scotch from EngUsh, and that both are different idioms of the Erse, or Highland. Bishop PhUips, a native of North Wales, who translated the Prayer-book into Manks, observes, that most of the radixes were Welsh, and that, but for his native language, he could not have perfected the work. Mr. S. found in some words an analogy to the Latin ; as qui fer a tye, for qui vir tecti, with an abbre-viation common to the Irish. He remarked that the utensUs and terms of art were frequently EngUsh, -with a Manks termination, as dorus for door ; thus they say jough a dorus, for drinh at the door. In the northem side, they speak a deeper Manks than in the south, being less corrapted -with EngUsh. Professor ThorkeUn visited the island in 1790, sent by the express order of his Danish Majesty, to investigate the remains of Damsh power and dominion formerly in the island. Mr. To-wnley informs us, that a gentleman of Castletown presented bim with some Danish medals found in the neighbourhood, and amongst them one of Canute. Mr. Pennant made some parochial inquiries in the island a few years since ; but the Uberal arts find few votaries here : science is disregarded, and poUte Uterature Uttle cultivated. A stranger -will not leam a language so limited in its extent. And such is the state of the lower order of the Manks, that " Each with contracting fits him to the soil. His hard condition, with severe constraint. Binds all his faculties ; forbids all growth Of wisdom ; proves a school in which he learns Sly circumvention, imrelenting hate. Mean self-attachment, and scarce ought beside." .56 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Of th^ pubUcation of the Scriptures, the following sentiments (pubUshed in 1769, in an address to the pubUc) give us the .progress, &c. " On the accession of Bishop HUdesley, he found us -in a condition of the most unfortunate singularity, destitute of the Scriptures in our native language. And though a design had been formed by Bishop WUson, for having the New Testament in the Manks tongue, and the Gospels and the Acts had been translated, yet they were not printed,* except a few copies of St Matthew's Gospel. Bishop HUdesley, by his exertions and appUcation to persons of eminence, and to the Society for Pro moting Christian Knowledge, who generously approved the plan, was enabled to gratify the people with the New Testament entfre ; the Common Prayer ; the Christian Monitor ; Lewis's Catechism, and a Form of Prayer for the Hen'ing Fishery, aU in, Manks." " It is impossible to describe the avidity (observes the same writer) with which these books are sought ; -with what joy and gratitude they are received : as masters of famiUes, and others, can now read to the ignorant and UUterate the sacred oracles in their o-wn language ; whereas, before, they never did, nor could hear, or know more of them than what they could learn from crude and often extempore translations. To the younger clergy |;his was a task difficiilt and discouraging ; as it requfred the practice and experience of some years, to make them tolerably expert at such expositions. And after aU, every man had his own different manner, and different explanation, to the subversion * Dr. -Watter, of BaUaugh, had a principal share' in this translation. Bishop phiUps's translation of the Common Prayer, in 1605, was obsolete. The Common Prayer in Manks was printed by Oliver, London 1765 The Gospel and the Acts the same year. The Epistles and Revelations were printed m Mapks at Ramsay, .in 1767, by Sheppard of -Whitehaven, ih Svo and the Common Prayer, in 12mo. Manks, at Ramsay, 1768; Lewis's Catechism, and Prayer for the Fishery, in Manks, the same year at Ramsay. Mr Ware of Whitehaven, printed in the language, between the years 1772 and 1776 the Bible m 4to., and in three vols. Svo. ; also the Common Prayer in 4to. and 12mo • and Bishop Wilson on the Sacrament, in Manks and English. ' A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAST. 57 of all Order and uniformity in our public Liturgy; but from this incon-veniency and disorder we are now totaUy deUvered, as the public worship of God is everywhere performed with all the decency and good order of the best regulated congregations ; 'thanks to the indefatigable zeal, of our good diocesan, supported as he has been by the contributions of several munificent -laenefactors. " Animated with these successes, and his own zealous heart, the bishop is encouraged to promote and set on foot a translation of the whole Old Testament into the Manks language ; that his -diocese, in common with other Christian churches, may enjoy .the fuU blessing and benefit of the whole sacred canon complete ; a work in which his clergy are now engaged, -with a -view that his lordship may be' farther enabled, by future benefactions, to carry on and execute so laudable and necessary an undertaking, and to perpetuate the same to future generations ; that the Ught and benefit of Divine knowledge, enjoyed by all other Protestant com munities, and reformed churches, maybe extended to this diocese also. A diocese which, though so happily situated in the very centre of his Majesty^s British dominions, and a suffragan see to the metropoUticgl jurisdiction of York, has yet been, through a Series of ages, deprived of a benefit so essential to the very existence of gemune Christianity. ' " We justly blame, and even reproach the Church of Eome for locking up the Scriptures from her people in an unknown tongue : but how little different and no less to be lamented, is our own case, where the bulk of the common people understand very Uttle, and many thousands nothing at aU, of the EngUsh language : though we have never been without the English Scriptures, since the Eeformation took place in these nations ; yet our people, in general, Uke thefr neighbours, the ancien|; Britons, still retain their veteran, aboriginal language." The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, in 1763, gave out proposals for printing Bibles, Common Prayers, and other religious books, in the vulgar tongue of the Isle of Man ; and by 58 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. the encouragement they met ¦with, th^ were enabled to print and disperse gratis, among the inhabitants, 2,000 Church Cate chisms; 1,200 Christian Monitors; 2,000 Lewis's Exposition; 1,000 copies of the New Testament in Svo. ; • 1,550 Common Prayers, Svo. and 1,000 in 12mo. Likewise 2,000 copies of the Old Testament in Svo. and the same number of the New, the former impression being inadequate ; and they intend to proceed in this charitable work, and to supply the Island -with good books and tracts, or new editions of those afready pubUshed. By the Society's books, for 1777, 1 also find 3,500 copies of Bishop WUson's Treatise on the Sacrament, with the original in the opposite columns ; and 3,000 Common Prayer-Books, were printed. Of the monies raised by fhe pubUc, the Society have a fund, unexpended, of 1,100?. New South-Sea annuities, 500?. of which was left by Lady Gower, as a perpetual fund for the supply of the Manks Scriptures, &c. As the interest has been accruing for some time, and as some years have elapsed since the last distribution, it may not be deemed amiss to soUcit the attention of the Society to this subject as I am credibly informed that a new edition of the Bible, &c. is much wanted at present I was surprised to see MUton's Paradise Lost in Manks dress, and a clergyman assured me that it possessed merit. I subjoin, as a specimen of the language, the Morning and Evening Hymns of Bishop Keim,* translated by the Eev. Mr. Corlett, of Lez-ayre^ whose correct knowledge of the language is generaUy aUowed ; he attended the Eev. Mr. Moore, in correcting the press in London when the Scriptures were printing, and I am under many obUgations to him for a variety of information. • The Hymns are those weU known ones, beginning, " Awake, my soul, and with the sun," &c. ; and " Qloiy to thee, my God, this night," &c. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 59 HYMN SON Y VOGHREY. 0 Annym, dooisht, as lesh y Ghreean Eoie kiart dty chourse gys y vea veayn ; Crie jeed meerioose, as irree traa, Dy eeck da Jee dty wooise dagh laa. Diy hraa deyr caUt, dy-leah eie thie ; Lhig da dagh laa ve ceaut dy-mie ; Dty churrym freUl gys rere dty phooar ; Jean oo hene cooie son y laa mooar. Bee ynrick ayns dty ghlaare dagh traa ; Dty chree freUI glen myr Greean 'vunlaa Slane traa dy vea toig kys ta Jee Sheer fakin smooinaghtf dowin dty chree. 0 Annjon, dooisht, trogg seose dty chree. As marish Ainlyn moyll uss Jee, Ta fud ny hole sheer goaUl arrane, Coyrt gloyr as booise da Chjam dagh chiara Gloyr hoods t'er -vreayU mee saucht 'syn oie. As ren lesh cadley gooragh' mee ; GiaU, Hiam, tra ghooisht-ym seose veih baase, Dy voym gys niau m^rts Yee ny ghrayse. My vreearey, Hiarn, neem's yannoo noa ; My pheccaghyn skeayl myr Ueh-rio ; My smooinaght' freiU uss imlee, meen. As Ihieen mee lesh dty Spyrryd hene. Coyrlee, as leeid mee yn laa jiu, Ayns dagh nhee yns-ym veih dty ghoo ; Lesh bree my niart, as mooads my phooar, Dy vodd-ymns gloryragh' df Ennym mooar. Gys Jee, fer-toyrt dagh gioot ard ghloyr ! MoyU-jee eh, dagh cretoor jeh' phooar ! MoyU-jee yn Ayr, shiuish Ainlyn smoo ! MoyU-jee yn Mac, 's yn Spyrryd Noo ! 60 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN;. HYMN SON YN A8TYR. Gloyr hoods, my Yee, nish as dagh traa. Son bannaghtyn dty hoUshey bri ; FreUl uss, 0 freiU mee, Eee dagh ree, Fo scaa dty skeean dy saucht ayns shee. Leih dou dagh peccah, jiu, Hiarn vie, Er graih dty Vac, eer Mac dty graih ; Ehym pene, yn seihU, as rhyts, 0 Yee, My gadljon noght dy vod v'aym shee. Leeid mee 'sy raad sheer Uusin 'reih, Nagh Ihiass dou aggie 'ghoaU jeh'n oaie ; Kiare mee son baase, dy vod v'aym pooar Dy heet gys gloyr ec y laa mooar. My varrant slane ta oris, my Yee, Lesh cadley meen jean 'ooragh' mee, Lheid as nee yannoo mee breeoU, Dy hfrveish oo ayns aght gerjoil. Tra ta mee dooisht my Ihie 'syn oie. My annym Ihieen lesh smooinaght' mie ; -Dagh Dreamal oik freUl voish my chree, Pooar'yn y Noid nagh bofr ad mee. Dty Ainlyn noo cur hym, Hiam deyr, Dy reayll mee saucht veih dagh dangear ; Lesh graih as booise, 0 Ihieen my chree, Dagh smooinaght' broghe freUl voym, 0 Yee. 0 euin yioym rea rish cadle/n theihU, Ayns rdau dy vodd-ym mSrts ve reUl, As marish Ainlyn sheer goaiU ayrn, Coyrt gloyr as booise da Chiarn dagh chiarn ? Gys Jee, fer-toyrt dagh gioot ard ghloyr ! MoyU-jee eh, dagh cretoor jeh' phooar ! MoyU-jee yn Ajrr, shiuish Ainlyn smoo ! MoyU-jee yn Mac, 's yn Spyrryd Noo ! A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 61 To these I add a few questions with the English. How do you do, friend ? I am very weU. I have lost my way. Which is the road to Eamsay? I cannot talk Manks. I want a bed to-mght I want some meat, or eggs, and ale. What is your parson caUed ? Where does he live ? I want a Tjoat Yes, sfr — no, sfr. Can you speak EngUsh ? Where does Mr. H. Uve ? Can you read ? I thank you. Kys ta shiu ckarrey ? Ta mish fleer vie. Ta mee er choayl my raad. Crevel yn raad gys Bvmsaa ? Cha noddym loayrt Gailch. Ta mish laccal Ihidbhee noght. To mish laccal hee ennagh, ny oohyn, as iough-lhioon. Cie ta ennym yn saggyrt euish ? Ore'n raad ieh cummal ? Ta mish laccal haatey. She vainshtyr — cha ne vain- shtyr. Vodd uss loayrt Boarl ? Cre'n rand ta Mr. H. cummal ? Vodd shiuish Ihaih ? Gy row mie eu; or, Ta mee hainlt booise diu. A Mariks Proverb. Tra ta yn derrey vought eooney lesh bought eUey ta see hene garaghtee : — ^When one poor man reUeves another, God himself rejoices at it ; or, as it is in the original, laughs outright The Lord's Prayer in Manks. . Ayr ain t'ayns niau, casheric dy row df ennym, dy jig dty reerjaght, dty aigney dy row jeant er y thaUoo myr f yh ayns niau ; cur dooin nyn arran jiu as gagh-laa, as leih dooin nyn loghtyn, myr ta shin leih daueayn ta jannoo loghtyn nyn 'oi. As ny leeid shin ayns miolagh, agh U-vrey shin veih oIk. Son Ihiaf s jTi reeriaght as yn phooar, as yn ghloyr, son dy bragh as; dy bragh. Amen. 62 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Of -writers on the subject of the Island may be mentioned Govemor ChaUoner ; Mr. Blundel, of Crosby, during the ci-vU wars, in MS. Another MS. written in 164S, when, says the author, wearied with being so often awakened at midnight by the King's and ParUamenf s troops, both equaUy feared because equaUy plundering, I resolved to banish myself for a time to the Island of Man, where divers nobiUty had been banished by our Kings, &c. Mr. Moore, of Douglas, poUtely favoured me with a -view of this MS. To these may be added. Lord Coke, Drs. Heylin, Camden, Sacheverel, WUson, and Grose.* A MS. by Mr. Alexander Eoss, who died in 1753, a copy of which is in the hands of G. ToUet, Esq. Betley-HaU, in Staffordshfre. See also notices of the Isle of Man, in Waldron's Works ; WUUs's Cathedrals ; Ductor Historicus, vol ii. Formulare AngUcanum, form 211. 1. Peere WUUams's Eeports, 1329. Kelway, 202. King's Vale-Eoyal. Prynne on the 4!th inst Seldea Tit Hon. 24. Mich. 21, 22 Edw. L rot 21, Turr. Lond. CampbeU's PoUt Surv. and probably in Gough's British Topography, 4to., but this I have not seen. Other works of a later date, either in Manks or relating to the Island, that have come -within my knowledge, are as foUows : — 1. A short -view of the present State of the Isle of Man, humbly submitted to the consideration of the Lords of the Treasury. By an impartial hand. London : Johnson, 1767. 6c?.-I- 2. Aght Ghiare dy heet gys tushtey jeh'n Chredjue Chreestree ; Ny as toiggal jeh catechism ny KUlagh kiarit son ymmyd sleih • In Grose's Antiq. vol. iv. royal 4to. are, a view and plan of St. German's Cathedral; a view of the ruins of St. Patrick's Church; Peele Castle; two views of Castle-Rushen; and one of Rushen Abbey, taken in 1774, with short descriptions. t A pamphlet was published in 1751, entitled, "Liberty invaded," &c. oc casioned by one Mrs. Hiugstone being imprisoned in the Island for a debt of her husband's : the subject was again resumed in 1756, in another pamphlet, by J. Baldwin, Esq. Svo. with this singular title, "British Liberty in Chains, and England's Ruin on the AnvU, in the Isle of Man, now commonly called Little France," &c. The author represents the Manks as enemies to the .interests of Great Britain, and inveighs against them for their treatment of this lady. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 63 aegey eUan vannia. 24mo. 1778. This pubUcation may be very proper for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge to adopt in thefr next distribution ; as it is a short summary of the Christian reUgion, or an explanation of the Church Catechism ; and was translated into Manks by Daniel Cowley, of Kfrk- Michael, who was educated by Bishop HUdesley, and by him apprenticed to a printer. He pubUshed also Mr. Wesley's Hymns in Manks, for the use of the Methodists in the Island. 3. Eolfs History ofthe Island, 12mo. 17S2. 4. Sharmaneyn Uorish, Thomase WUson, D.D. Chiarn aspick Sodor as Vannin; dy Kiaralagh chyndait veih Bayrl gys GaUck. Bath, prentit Uorish E. CrattweU, Svo. 1783. — This work, comprising one volume of Bishop WUson's Sermons,* translated by the Eev. Mr. Corlet, was printed at the expense of the Eev. Dr. WUson, his son. 5. Memofrs of the House of Stanley, from the conquest to the death of James, late Earl of Derby, in 1735 ; also a fuU descrip tion of the Isle of Man, &c. 4to. pp. 238. Harrop, Manchester, 1783. (By Mr. Seacombe.) 6. Antiquitates Celto-Normanicae, containing the Chronicle of Man and the Isles ; abridged by Camden, and now first pub Ushed complete from the original MS. in the British Museum ; -with an English translation and notes. To which are added. Extracts from the Annals of Ulster, i&c. &c. By Eev. James Johnstone, MA, rector of Maghera-Cross ; and MS. Edin. and Copenhagen, 4to. Copenhagen, Aug. Fred. Stein, 1786.. Mr. Gough, in his edition of Camden, 3 vols. foUo, 1789, prefers Mr. Camden's copy of the Chronicle of the Kings of Man, to that pubUshed in 1787 by Mr. Johnson, from a fine old MS. on vellum in the Cottonian Library, marked Julius A. VII. 3, because in the former the dates are aU right in the original, whereas in the latter they are made so by the editor in his margin. Mr. Camden's MS. begins -with the death of the ¦* Bishop -WUson, in 1699, and 1707, published some small works in Manks and English. m .A 'TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAJST. Confessor, rightly putting it A.D. 1065. Mr. Johnstone's begins forty-seven years sooner, or, as he has corrected it m his margin, fifty-one years. Mr. C's begins at A.D. 1065, and ends at a.d. 1266 ; but has been continued in a later hand, to 1316. Mr. J.'s copy begins at a.d. 1000, or 1015, and ends 1376, and con^ tains some additional matter foreign to the history of the Island —A sUght comparison of the two pubUcations wUl show them to have been printed from different MSS.* 7. Literary Lovers ; an origfrial Manks novel, by J. Briscoe. S. Various Poems by Mr. John StoweU ; -dz. The SaUad, a Batfre, 4to. 20 pp. 1790. The Eetrospect Svo. pp. 55, 1790 ; a poUtical local satfre. Beauties of Townley, versified, 4to. 16 pp. 9. BelvUle and JuUa, a Manks novel, by Mr. T. Ashe. ' 10. A Journal kept in the Isle of Man, giving an account of the -wind and weather, &c. &c. &c. 2 vols. Svo. by Eichard Townley, Esq. Whitehaven, Ware, 1791. , 11. A general View of the Agriculture of the Isle of Man, with observations on the means of its improvement By Mr. BasU Quayle, farmer at the Creiggans, near Castleto-wn ; dra-wn up for the consideration of the Board of Agriculture and Internal' Improvement 4to. pp. 40, 1794. 12. The Eeport of his Majesty's Commissioners for the Isle of Man, 1792, large foUo. N.B. Neither of these last two works were pubUshed for ' sale. 13. A Tour through the Isle of Man ; to which is subjoined, a review of Manks History. By David Eobertson, Esq. Large Svo. plates, 1794. 14. The Statutes and Ordinances of the Isle of Man now in force, alphabetically arranged. By Thomas StoweU, advocate; inscribed to the Hon. Alexander Shaw, Esq. Lieutenant-Governor and ChanceUor. Svo. Douglas ; Briscoe, pp. 170 : 1792. • Gough, vol. in. 705. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 65 15. Paradise Lost, by MUton ; translated into Manks by the Eev. Thomas Christian, of BaUakUley, K. Marown. Douglas, Briscoe, 12mo. no date (probably 1796). 16. Clara Lenox, or the Distressed Widow ; a novel founded on facts. Interspersed ^ith an Historical Description of the Isle of Man. By Mrs. Lee. Dedicated to the Duchess of York, 2 vols. 12mo. Parsons, 1797. 17. In the Poems ^by Gentlemen of Devon and ComwaU, 2 vols, crown Svo. are two short Odes on the Isle of Man, from the classical pen of the Eev. Mr. Polwhele. 18. The Statute Laws of the Isle of Man, from the original records. By C. Briscoe, Svo. 1797, pp. 240. Douglas. 06 LETTEE VI. To the same. Dear Sir, A NNEXED is an account of the ports in the Island, the ¦^^ fafrs, state of the registers of each parish, vicars, num ber of inhabitants, post-office, &c. also the revenues, duties, exports, imports, prohibitions, &c. &c. The following are the ports, with thefr creeks, appointed by commission. Sept 15, 1776. PORTS. Douglas. — Creeks, Port-Moore, Cornay, Laxey, Garwick, Groudel, Port-Concan, Port-Sodric, Greenwick. Derhy-haven. — Creeks, Castle-town-harbour, Poolevash, Port le Marie, Port-Iron, Fleshwick, Noorble. Peek. — Cre6ks, Glenmay, GlenwUUam, BaUaugh. Ramsay. — Creeks, Lanemoore, Port-CranstaU, Port-League. PAIRS. February. — Marown, Bride, Cross-four-ways, Poolevash. March. — Boldin, Patrick, Peel April — Jurby, BaUa-saUa. May.—8t. John's 2, Douglas 2, Bride, Castletown, St. Mark's, BaUaugh, Conchan. June. — SiUby 2, Arbory, St Anne, or Santon. July. — St John's, Peele, Four cross-ways. August — Laxey, Maughold, BaUa-saUa, BaUaugh. September. — BaUa-saUa. October. — K. Michael 2, K. Arbory. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 67 November. — St John's 2, Eamsay 2, Douglas, Jurby. Decemiber.—'K.. Arbory, Andreas 2, Eamsay. N.B. Some of these fafrs are weU attended, but others are quite neglected. A Retrospect of the Parish Registers. MAUGHOLD. ANDREAS. BAP. MAB. BUH. BAP. MAK. BUR. 1647 6 0 2 1666 31 6 17 1648 17 2 14 1667 30 9 18 1649 9 1 21 1668 35 7 30 1650 12 1 7 1669 25 12 59 1651 7 1 6 1670 38 19 21 1792 30 17 8 1792 47 16 18 1793 29 14 25 1793 49 8 16 1794 32 18 45 1794 52 9 26 1795 34 9 38 1795 47 14 34 1796 42 3 20 1796 58 10 36 RAMSAY CHAPE L. JURBY. 1792 32 0 7 17931794 33 25 00 47 1792 26 6 6 1795 35 0 6 1793 24 2 13 1796 30 0 3 1794 22 4 10 1797 31 0 0 17951796 2128 56 58 LEZ-AYRE. J BALLAUGH. 1787 1788 46 55 1010 2220 1789 1790 3954 11 6 2524 1792 32 5 12 1791 39 14 22 1793 40 8 10 1792 66 14 16 1794 33 6 22 1793 37 11 15 1795 32 7 8 1794 ' 1795 53 45 9 10 17 14 1796 40 8 23 1796 40 13 19 MICHAEL. BRIDE. 1792 15 7 9 1792 37 10 23 1793 27 6 6 1793 36 9 17 1794 17 5 11 1794 43 13 24 1795 21 6 12 1795 38 12 12 1796 19 6 16 1 1796 33 10 21 f2 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. GERMAN. CONCHAN. BAP. MAB. BUB. BAP. MAE. BUB. 1790 72 15 32 1698 6 1 3 1791 64 21 36 1699 4 0 8 1792 88 13 30 170:) 8 4 3 1793 67 19 34 1701 5 2 5 1794 68 15 49 1702 7 5 8 1795 76 13 35 1792 30 3 10 1796 77- 14 42 1793 20 3 16 1794 22 3 15 1795 31 0 19 PATRICK. 1796 27 5 17 1681 26 6 11 1682 15 8 10 LONAN. 1683 19 3 4 1684 31 6 11 See parochial account. | 16851792 18 46 3 20 43 20 1793 43 19 5 RUSHEN. 17941795 47 12 18 52 24 22 1792 61 8 25 1796 52 26 31 17931794 6764 6 12 3737 MAROWN. 1795 70 11 21 1796 40 9 19 IVl arriages omitfed. ARBORY. 1792 24 0 11 1796 29 0 12 1794 26 0 34 1792 53 10 29 1795 33 0 24 1793 38 9 16 1796 26 0 17 17941795 44 55 7 12 3016 BRADDAN. 1796 47 1 19 SANTON. 1792 56 34 58 1793 59 40 92 1794 45 56 145 1792 19 2 13 1795 63 • 34 108 1793 11 S 15 1796 69 44 87 17941795 21 13 89 15 14 ST. GE ORGE'S CHA] PEL. 1796 24 3 11 MALEW. 17921793 60' 69 01 1719 1794 71 1 39 Seet larochial accoui It. 1795 80 1 17 1796 69 0 24 1 N.B. The registers in the most early state, I found so incorrect as not to justify a dependance on them. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 69 Inhabitants at different periods ; Vicars, Rectors, <&c. in 1798. PARISHES. VICARS, 1798. INHABITANTS IN 1726 Kirh-Michael Andreas . Bride . . Lez-ayre . Maughold Lonan . Conchan Douglas MarownSoMtoa Castletoum ) BaUa-saUa f Arbory . . K. O. Rushen Pdtrich . . Qerman . | Peeletown, ) Rev. John Crellin, epjs. regist. . . . ' Daniel Gelling William Crebbiu Daniel Mylrea, rector, 0. Arohd. Wm. Cluoas, rector, V. G. . . Thomas Corlett Thomas Cubbon Henry Maddrell • Mr. Gell Thomas Quale* Robert Quale Mr. StoweU and Mr. Christian . Mr. Christian and Johu Bridson, O.M Charles Crebbiu Mr. Harrison, Mr. Clague . . . Thomas Castley, M.A John Christian ...... John Clegg ........ Evan Christian, V. G Henry Corlett 643806 483 967612 1309 529 460 547370780 810 376890 785 360 661813745510 475 1757 826 773 467 1067 629 1481 7.59882869 434 1121 1814 668507 1466 915 785 1007 954 925806 1792 10031015 713 1555 678 17212007 1408 690 I 5045 842 ' 512 3333114316902163 ¦ 2505 N.B. Lieut-Governor Shaw is .of opinion that the Island contauis from 30,000 to 33,000 inhabitants, 1797. The Isle of Wight which measures 22^ mUes from east to west and 13 mUes from north to south, contains thirty parishes, and about 18,700 inhabitants, f POST-OFFICE. A packet arrives from Whitehaven weeklyj with letters and passengers ; it sails Monday evenings from thence, (wind and * Mr. Quayle died March, 1798. t Warner's History of the Me of Wight, Svo. 1795. t See the act of parliament, anno septimo Geo. III. cap. 60. As no department is more respectable than the post-of6oe, the salaries should therefore be adequate to its utility and various inconveniences : it is here too small ; a man and horse ought insta/nily to be dispatched to each town on the arrival of the packet. 70 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. weather permitting) stays three days in the island, and then retums. The post-office brought in, previous to 1791, on an average 346?. 13s. 7c?. per annum; this has been increasing since. The foUo-wing is the produce from January 5, 1797, to January 5, 1798. £ s. d. Letters from and through London . . . 195 18 7 Bye and cross-roads 262 3 3 458 1 10 From this is to be deducted the hfre of the packet-boat, 150?. ; post-master's salary 20?. per annum ; and the hfre of the foot- post to Castletown, about 9?. per annum. 'Revenue from January 1790 to 1791. £ s. d. CoUected at Douglas port 2,793 0 10^ Derby-Haven 104 9 5f Peel 31 19 2i Eamsay 86 19 4J Payments, salaries, bounties on her- i „ „,_„ „ rmgs, &c 3,016 8 11 "} 3,S N.B. I understand that for several late years the revenue of the island has been greater than the expendituie. Duties on Articles imported. British spirits, 40,000 gaUons, at Is. per gallon. Eum ditto, at 2s. per gallon. Bohea tea, 20,000 lb. at 6c?. per pound. Green tea, 5,000 lb. at Is. per pound. Coffee, 5,000 lb. at 4c?. per pound. Tobacco, 40,000 lb. at 3c?. per pound. Coals, 3c?. per chaldron. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 71 French wine, 8?. per ton. All other wines, 4?. per ton. Other goods so much per cent ad valorem. Quantity of Wine imported. In 1790, from Whitehaven, 19 tons 61 gallons of white From SicUy, 22 tons 93 gaUons of ditto. From Oporto, 16 tons 240 gaUons, and 17 tons 76 gallons of port; and of white 34 gaUons. In 1791, from Opoito, 19 tons 249 gaUons; 26 tons 85 gaUons, and 1 ton 4 gaUons of port. From Whitehaven, 247 gaUons of white wine ; and from ditto, 1 ton 68 gaUons. Quantity of Salt imported. For ten years, ending January 1791, were imported into the Island of Man, 518,141 bushels of salt from Great Britaiin, duty free. From foreign parts, during the same period, 8,880 bushels. Quantity ofl Goals imported. From 1781 to 1790, inclusive, 33,932 chaldrons. Articles imported dutyfree. 1st. Flax, or flax-seed ; raw, or brown linen yam ; flesh, corn, or grain of aU sorts ; wood and weed ashes ; coming from any place except Great-Britain. ^ 2d. White, or brown linen cloth ; hemp, or hemp seed ; the produce or manufacture of Great-Britain or Ireland. 3d. UtensUs and instruments to be employed in manufactures, fisheries, or agriculture ; bricks, tUes, young trees, sea-sheUs, lime, soapers' waste, packthread, and smaU cordage for nets, 4th. Salt, boards, timber, and hoops ; the produce and manu facture of Great-Britain. 5tb. Iron-rods, or bars ; cotton, indigo, naval stores, lumber ; 72 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. the growth, &c. of the British plantations in America ; and all other goods of the growth, &c. of the said plantations, for which any bounty is aUowed on impod;atibn into Great-Britkin. Imported free into Great-Britain from ihe Island. 1st. Bestials, goods, wares, and merchandizes, of the growth, produce, or manufacture of the island, except such as are pro hibited, and except wqoUen manufactures, beer, and ale. 2d. Linens, made of hemp or flax, not being the produce of the island. But no other goods of a foreign nation manufactured either whoUy, or in part, in the island. Prohibited to he imported. Wrought silks, Bengals, stuffs mixed with sUk or herba, of the manufacture of Persia, China, or East-India; caUcoes painted, dyed, printed, or stained there ; cambrics and French la-wnSi Brandy ; British spirits, exceeding 40,000 gallons ; rum, ditto ; and all other spirits. Bohea tea, exceeding '20,000 lbs. ; green tea and coffee, ex ceeding 5,000 lbs. each ; tobacco, exceeding 40,000 lbs. British refined sugar, exceeding 400 cwt. fuUy refined; bastard refined, exceeding 10 cwt. Prohibited to he exported. Brandy, rum, strong waters, and spirits of aU kinds ; to Great- Britain or Ireland. ? Tea, brandy, strong waters, and spfrits of aU kinds; coffee, chocolate, tobacco, glass, coals, British or other -wrought silks, salt and wine; to any place whatsoever. Wool, wooUen or bay yarn, live sheep ; to any place except Great-Britain. British refined Sugar — to any place whatsoever. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 73 EXPORTS. To give an idea of the growth, produce, and manufactures of this island, I quote the amount of exports under that denomi nation, exclusive of grain, Unen, bestials, and herrings, which took place in 1790. To Great-Britain in 1790; 1743 bushels of potatoes ; 1313 crocks of butter ; 201 boxes and baskets of eggs; 7 barrels of pork; 1^ barrel of beef; 195 cow and ox hides, in .hair ; 56 dozen and 10 caU skins ; tanned leather, 3 cwt. 3-quarters 13 lb. ; cow and ox horns, 1400 ; cow and ox hair, 26 cwt 1 quarter 16 lb. ; honey, 3 cwt. 1 quarter 24 lb. ; kelp, 1335 cwt ; beeswax, 1 cwt. 3-quarters 21 lb. ; wool, and wooUen yam, 17 cwt. 15 lb. ; Unen yam, 158 cwt. 3-quarters 15 lb. ; lead ore, 69 tons odd ; rabbit skins, 257 dozen and 10. To Ireland, of rabbit-skins, 103 dozen; feathers, 10 c-wt. 3-quarters 18 lb. ; bacon, 49 c-wt. 2-quarters 16 lb. ; Cotton twist 40 cwt odd ; Ume-stone, 143 tons ; reams of paper, 1807 ; pa-ving- stones, 282 tons ; cheese, 11 c-wt. odd ; slate, 102 tons ;, sycamore and ash timber, 80 feet ; fern ashes, 17 cwt odd ; hair powder, 1 cwt ; 130 hanks of candlewicks ; 1 tomb or hearth stone ; and dried beef, 2-quarters 24 lb. Articles entitled to Bounty. lineup made in the island exported to Great-Britain, and re-exported from thence-^the Uke bounty as on Irish Unens by 29th Geo. II. sect 13. Herrings cured, white. Is. per barrel Ditto ditto, exported from the island to foreign parts, 2s. 8c?. per barrel. Ditto ditto, exported to Great-Britain, , and re-exported to foreign parts, 2s. Sc?. per barrel. Herrings cured red, exported from the island to foreign parts. Is. 9c?. per barr,eL Ditto dittoy exported to Great Britain, and re-exported from thence to foreign parts, Is, 9c?. per barrel. 74 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Linen exported in ten years, from 1781 to 1790, inclusive. To Great-Britain, 506,365^ yards. To Ireland, 1564 yards. Cattle exported in ten years, from 1781 to 1790, inclusive. To Great-Britain, 727 horses; 4019 black cattle; 238 sheep; 248 pigs; 1 mule; 4 goats. To Ireland, 113 horses; 4 black cattle ; 12 mules. In consequence of that contraband trade, which is so generaUy known to have prevaUed in the island, govemment, as soon as it became possessed of it, determined to lose no time in putting a final stop to so injurious a traffic, and therefore appointed com missioners from London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, to enquire into its nature and effects, and report thereon ; with the remedies necessary to be adopted. Among other matters, they state, the prejudices to the King's revenue to have been nearly 350,000?. per annum ; and the value of seizures on the coast of Ireland, from the island, to have been nearly 10,000? per annum. In consequence, the act of 5 Geo. III. passed, and some subsequent ones, which have nearly stopped this UUcit trade, by enacting prohibitions and regulations, some of which are stated in this letter. But the revesting act, with these, greatly abridged thefr insular rights, and the Manks were deprived of some of thefr ancient privUeges. They felt themselves oppressed, and sent agents to England to assert thefr rights before parUament ; and prevaUed so far as to procure, in 1766, an act for encouraging and regulating their trade, &c. and for raising a revenue to effect the purposes therein mentioned. These acts now appear to have had a beneficial operation, and the inhabitants are perfectly happy under the British govemment 75 LETTEE VIL To the same. Dear Sir, r I iHE subject of this letter is the staple commodity of the -^ island, Herrings; and I have the pleasure of accompanying it with a Poem on the Fishery, which was given me by a Manks lady. The coasts of the Isle of Man abound with a variety of fine fish. The salmon frequents the bays from July to September. I was -witness to a hawl of 120, near Eamsay; while, a few evenings after, his Grace of Athol, with a party from the Deemsters, were not lucky enough to take more than a soUtary individual. The preference is rather given to the salmon of Kircudbright; a smaU vessel came into Eamsay harbour -with a quantity from thence, which was sold for 3c?. Manks per pound. Thefr rock cod is esteemed superior to the grey, or common sort ; when first taken it is of a fine red colour, and of a superior flavour to the others. A marine animal, called the Battlecock, is found sometimes sticking to the rocks ; it has almost aU the desirable quaUties of the turtle, abounding with a substance that is esteemed a sub stitute for the delicious green fat A fish termed a Blockin, somewhat between a herring and a whiting, and eels, are caught by Une and worms. The sands abound with small eels, caUed here Gibbons, or Sand-Eels.* * Named also, Ammodytes, Launce, Sand-Sprat : used as food, and as a bait. 76 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Cod, ling, gurnet and most flat-fish are plenty, and extremely good But it is herrings which are thefr grand support; it is these only can rouse the dormant energy of the Manksman's mind, stimulate him to industry, and enliven the whole island. From an eminent -writer we learn that " Herrings, about the beginning of the year, issue from the remote recesses of the North, in a body surpassing description, and almost exceeding the power of imagination. The first column detached moves towards the West, by the coasts of Newfoundland, towards North-America. The Eastem column, proceeding leisurely by the coasts of Ireland, sends off one division along the coasts of Norway, which soon di-vides into two, and passes by the Straits of the Sound into the Baltic ; the other towards Holstein, Bremen, &c. The larger and deeper column faUs directly upon the Isles of Shetland and Orkney, and passing these, divides into two ; the Eastern 'column moves by the side of Britain, detach ing graduaUy smaUer shoals to the coasts of Friezeland, HoUand, Zealand, Flanders, and France ; while the Western column passes on the other side of Britain and Ireland. The remains of this body reassemble in the Channel, and proceeding thence to the ocean, retire to thefr asylum in the North, where in peace and safety they repafr the losses they have sustained. When gro-wn large, they set out again the next season, and make the same tour." Another writer* gives us this account; "The herrings are found in the greatest abundance in the highest Northem lati tudes -within the arctic cfrcle. In those inaccessible seas, that are covered with ice during a great part of the year, the herrings find a quiet and sure retreat from thefr numerous enemies; there neither man, nor the fin fish, nor cachalet, dares pursue them. The great colony sets out about the middle of -winter ; their numbers exceed imagination, and their enemies also are in numerable, especiaUy the sea-fowl, near the pole, who, watching * Knox's Views of the British Empire, 2 vole. 8vc. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 77 their emigration, spread ruin among them-. In this exigence the defenceless emigrants have no alternative, but to crowd close together. The main body separates in two divisions ; one moves to the West along the coasts of America, as far South as Caro Una, and -are so numerous in Chesapeak-Bay as to become a nuisance. The other division takes a more Easterly direction, towards Europe, arriving at Iceland about March, where, not- -withstanding thefr loss, they form a body of amazing extent depth, and closeness, occupying a surface equal in dimensions to Great-Britain and Ireland ; subdivided into columns of five mUes in length, and four in breadth, swimming near the surface, but sinking sometimes for some minutes. The forerunners appear off Shetland, in AprU or May, and the grind body in June. Thefr approach is known by a smaU rippUng of the water, the refiection of thefr brilUancy, and the bfrds who attend them. " One division proceeds along the East side of Britain, the Orkneys, Murray Firth, coasts of Aberdeen, -Angus, and Fife ; the great river Forth, Scarborough, and Yarmouth, the ancient and once only mart in England for herrings. The other division from the Shetland islands proceeds along the West side of Britain, and are larger and fatter than those of the East side ; crowding the coasts of Sutherland, Eoss, and Inverness, which, -with the Hebride isles, especiaUy Long Island, compose the greatest stationary herring fishery in Britain, that upon the coast of Shetland excepted. Having visited most of the Westem shores, the shoal proceeds towards the North of Ireland, where, meeting -with a second interruption, they are again di-vided into two brigades ; one passes down the Irish channel, and visits the Isle of Man, and affords an occasional supply to the East coast of Ireland, and the West coa;st of England as far as the Bristol channel. The other shoal skirts along the West coast of Ireland, visits the Lakes of Donegal, and then disappears in the immen sity of the Atlantic." That pecuUar shape which nature has given to most fishes, we endeavour to imitate in such vessels as are designed to saU with 78 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. the greatest swiftness ; but the progress of a machine is nothing to the rapidity of an animal designed by nature to reside in water : any of the large fish overtake a ship in fuU saU -with great ease, play around it and outstrip it -with pleasure. The boat-buUders are uncommonly clever, constracting entfrely by the eye, making no use of Une or rule, unless in laying the keel The Manks boats are in size from 23 to 33 feet in keel, and 13 feet beam, with 6 feet hold; they are cutter-rigged, saU remarkably fast and withstand a heavy sea. But the Vfrginian pUot-boats, I have heard mentioned as exceeding them in s-wift- ness of saUing. The fishing busses * from the Western coast of Scotland are precluded, by the restrictions of the revenue officers; from taking fish on the coasts of the Isle of Man, or Ireland. Manks boats seldom exceed eight tons, and cost including the nets, about 70 guineas. The produce is divided into nine shares ; two for the o-wner of the boat ; one for the proprietor of the nets ; the other six to the fishermen. The nets are buoyed up by inflated bags of dog-skin dried in the sun, and smeared over with tar. Upwards of 400 boats compose the Manks fleet An admiral and -vice-admfral are annually elected; the one is aUowed 5?. by government, the other 2?. for the season. These conduct the fleet to the herring ground. On leaving the harbour • the fishermen, with uncovered heads, invoke the blessing of Pro-vidence ; — and Bishop WUson's Form of Prayer for the Herring Fishery, is used during the season t Herrings in thefr prime are remarkably fat ; one that weighs 5 oz. 10 drs. wiU have 480 grains of spawn, containing 36,960 eggs. (PhU. Trans, vol 57.) The spawning time is the latter end of October. Herrings are capricious, deserting, either partially or whoUy, * The Dutch busses are the best constructed for the herring fishery in the open sea. They are long round vessels, which run from 50 to 70 tons, and cost, in cluding every requisite, near 10002.; have 60 nets to a buss, each about 60 fathoms long, and 7 J deep. f See this Form in Bp. Wilson's Works, vol. iv. Svo. edit. A TOUK THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 79 particular bays and coasts. This island, as weU as England and Wales, can -witness to many remarkable instances of this kind. To the Dutch the credit is given of having been the first to discover the season of their passage; and their first regular fishing is dated back to the twelfth century. The Dutch consider it in its true Ught ; for in a placart of 1624, the fishery is caUed, "The Golden Mines" of the United Pro-nnces ; and in another, in 1651, the herring fishery is termed the principal mine and chief support of HoUand. May England ever cherish and encourage every attempt to increase and estabUsh it ! The fresh herrings of the island are peculiarly good, and larger than those of Yarmouth. When the season arrives, the fish are looked for, and thefr appearance is indicated by the quantity of gulls that hover around them, no less eager than the Manksman to feast on the deUcious fare. At this period, therefore, the guU is considered as sacred. The first maize that are caught are entitled to a bounty.* The fishermen sometimes exorcise, or burn the witches out of their boats with dry Ung, or heath ; and' to effect this they contrive the flame so as to reach every part of the boat The first boat that discovers the herring, sounds a horn as a signal to apprise the other boats. They sometimes take 70 maize, at 500 per maize, in one boat. The oath of the deemster, or judge, from the singular aUusion to the herring, I take this opportunity to introduce. " By this book, and by the holy contents thereof, and by the wonderful works that God hath mfraculously wrought in • An act of Tynwald passed in 1794, to regulate the mode of shooting the nets; and by an act of 1797, nets are forbidden to 'be tarred, such >practioe having been found injurious. Mr. Sacheverel, who wrote in 1702, says, that the herring fishery was then lost, and had been for some years. Herrings are a delicate fish, and are killed with a very smaU degree of violence. -When taken out of the water it gives a smaU squeak and instantly expires ; and though immediately thrown back it never recovers. Hence the proverb. As dead as a herring.' — See Dr. Anderson on the Hebrides, Fishery, &c. Svo. ] 795. 80 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. heaven above, and in the earth beneath, in six days and seven , nights : I, John F. C , do swear, that I -wUl, without respect of favour or friendship, love or gain, consanguinity or affinity, en-vy or maUce, execute the laws of this islfe justly, betwixt Our Sovereign Lord the King, and his subjects within this isle, and betwixt party and party, as indifferently as the herring's back-bone doth Ue in the midst of the fish." Gottenburg herring (says Lieut.-Governor Shaw) made once an article of commerce in the island, of which it is now deprived, and the importation prohibited, except 1000 barrels in case of faUure for home consumption. Herrings caught for the most part of the season, on the coasts of the island, are, from thefr superior rich quaUty, unfit for the West-India marketsi or for any length of voyage in a warm cUmate ; therefore great advantages resulted from deaUng in Swedish herrings. Ha-ving in a former letter mentioned the herring custom, I now annex the annual amount of this duty, paid to the lords of the isle, which was in 1760, 121?. 19s. ; in 1761, 92?. 4s.; m 1762, 90?. 19s. ; in 1763, 81?. Is. ; in 1764, 60?. 9s. odd In 1765, none paid to his Grace's famUy. This the Duke of Athol considers in its origin as a manorial right The boats employed (says his Grace) at first paid a proportion of fish, afterwards a commutation of so much money on each boat ; and they had the pri-vUege in consequence of drawing up their boats, and drying their nets on any part of the territorial property. It is asserted, that they were originaUy paid to the garrisons, and deUvered only there. On the other hand, it is stated that they were deUvered at Douglas, where there was no garrison. The price of herrings varies from 3s. to Is. per hundred; they are cured when cheap by the merchants. Gfrls from nine to thirteen years old carry the herrings in baskets from the boats to the houses prepared on purpose, where women thoroughly rub them with salt. Left a few hours to purify, they are then barrelled with a layer of salt between each layer : a barrel A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 81 is about 600, which cannot cost the curer more than 12s. but in England it seUs for 25s. — ^these are termed white herrings ; but there is a great risk and expense of preparation, which a bad season incurs. Those designed for red herrings are first regularly pUed up, -with a layer of salt' between each row, and remain to purify some days. They are then washed, and wheh drained sufficiently, are fixed by the mouth on smaU rods (somewhat Uke yam wicks for making candles), and hung up in large houses for the purpose, in length about 90 feet and about 60 broad. Here the herring rods are hung as close as admissible, and reach from the roof till within eight feet of the floor. Thefr regularity and lustre make a very beautiful appearance : fires are kept under them continuaUy smoking for four or five weeks, made of the dried roots of oak ; when being sufficiently reddened, they are shipped for the Mediter ranean ports, from whence the vessels retum with a cargo to Liverpool and to the island. The fishery commences in July, and ends in the autumnal equinox. Bounty on Herrings, cured white, at Is. per barrel. 1787 1788 17891790 BARRELS. . 1,935 861 2,616 1,878 £ s. d. 96 15 0 43 1 0 30 16 0 93 18 0 Barrels, cured red, exported fOr the bounty ofl 1 s. 9c?. per barrel. 1787, to Italy, &c. 2,636^ barrels. 1788, to ditto and Dublin, 5,462i 1789, to ditto and ditto, 12,559i. 1790, 6,866J. To Gr^at-Britain, 1787, 2,074 barrels. 1788, 4,435J. 1789, 3,015 J. 1,790, 2,747i. Herrings, cured white, exported flor the bounty of 2s. 8c?. per barrel. 1789, to Leghorn, 10 barrels. Cork, 315 barrels. DubUn, in 1790, 125 barrels. G 82 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. In conversation with an eminent EngUsh merchant of Leghorn, in June 1798, he informed me, that the only herrings used in Italy were the smoked, commonly caUed red herrings, of which they used to receive about three moderate cargoes in a year from the Isle of Man. That they preferred the Yarmouth and Lowestoff ones, but the island herrings were much esteemed, and might with very Uttle additional care in curing, be equal to the others. Eespecting salmon, he observed, that they received in Italy (chiefly imported into'Leghom) from the Isle of Man, before the war, from 2,000 to 3,000 barrels per annum, from 100 lb. to 200 lb. weight each ; and that it was an in creasing trade, untU checked by the war. That three sorts of salmon were consumed in Italy ; that from Newfoundland, the Isle of Man, and Scotland, of which the Scotch was the best Salmon exported from the island is spUt and wet salted, and after the barrels are closed, pickle enough to keep them moist is conveyed into the bung-hole. The smaUest sort is the most marketable in Italy, as they are ambitious of serving a whole fish up ; and these sell for 8s. per barrel extra. In 1791 the price to the consumer was on an average 9c?. per poimd in Leghorn. A society under the title of the British Society for extending the Fisheries, and improving the sea-coasts of Great-Britain, was instituted in 1786. This was owing to the patriotic exer tions of Mr. John Knox, above quoted, who traversed and explored the Highlands of Scotland no less than sixteen times, and expended several thousand pounds in forwarding his beneficial designs. I am happy to ,leam that government, aware of this advan tageous branch of commerce, have stUl the improvement and extension of the fisheries under their immediate consideration. 83 THE HEREING EISHERY, A POEM, BY A MANKS LADY, The promptitude with which the following lines were produced, to a casual request over a cup of tea, added to the difficulty of the subject for a lady's pen, must conspire to enhance its merit : and though I am not at liberty to attach the name to whom I am obUged, yet such politeness and condescension will not soon be forgotten. TTAIL ! mystic myriads ! Mona's pride and boast -¦— *- From Arctic regions pour'd upon her coast ; "Whose annual visits since the world began. Have cherish'd and enrich'd the sons of Man ; Your praise I sing : — Ye Guardians of our Isle,* Deign on my native patriot muse to smile ; Welcome, with me, the kind aquatic band. And greet this blessing to a grateful land. From hence emerg'd : with other fiends I see Leviathan, in pastime, hunting thee ; The gUtt'ring miUions of thy wond'rous train Attract yet awe, the monsters of the main ; For thy firm phalanx strength and art defies, And each rash foe ine-vitably dies. Yet stiU distress'd, ah ! luckless finny breed Detach'd — cut off, and straggUng, lo ! ye bleed. Onward impell'd, for Southern cUmes you steer, Haply to find some station free from fear : * Their Graces the Duke and Duchess of Athol. g2 84 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Shetland and Orkney meet your searching eyes. And proffer shelter to your suppUant cries. The enormous mass, now parting, seek repose In SwUly's bosom, dreading there no foes : Loch Bro-wn, Loch Maddy, Isla, Jura, Clyde, (Within whose fond encircling arms you gUde) And Arran's isle, and Mona's craggy shore. You seek for food and peace, denied before. Here reader pause : — admfre, revere, and love. The great Ffrst Cause, whence all these wonders move ; Who, thus beneficent most kindly pours Profuse his bounty to such distant shores. But say — does local change secure thy -wish ? New foes pursue thee stUl, deUcious fish : Here porpoise, grampus, tear thee into shreds, WhUe dog-fish rouse thee from thy coral beds ; Then upward chas'd — ^the surface aid denies. Thy splendid form attracts the gannet's* eyes ; That hov'ring o'er soon rapid plunges down. And countless numbers feel the fatal wound. When sportive you, in wonted gambols play. And frisking rise and ruffie aU the sea ; E'en eagles dart, Ught skimming o'er the flood. Imprinting talons in your guUtless blood : Triumphant then they soar on pinions strong. And bear you -victims to their unfledg'd young. Of your approach, if fishers want a test They scale the rocks to seek the eagle's nest ; There if your fins, or scales, or bones appear. The signal's certain, all pronounce you near. , In various ways, such Providence's plan. Birds become telegraphs to favour'd man ; • Solan goose. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 85 The finny nations, and the feather'd elves, Conspfre to serve us, whUe they serve themselves.' Spread on the moss-crown'd rock, prepared and dried. The nets made ready for the next kind tide ; The expectant fleet, five hundred strong and more. With saUs expanded quit Eubonia's * shore. Then cheerful scud, the curUng biUows rend — Tho' first a fervent pray'r to Heav'n they send, Uncover'd each — not more intent to guide The bark, than Heav'n invoking on thefr side. The historic muse instructs that priests of old Consulted birds thefr mysteries to unfold ; So HERE, the crews, that would by fishing thrive. Steer to the spot where guUs and gannets dive ; With truth concluding that the ground to fish on And leave to pagans — pagan superstition. This station gain'd — when sable night has sprea Her gloomy curtain o'er the Manksman's head', The signal made — each to his business gets. Some gently ply the oar, some drop the nets : This task perform'd — perhaps those seized with sleep Are roused by bursts of thunder o'er the deep ; " Now the white bUlows tumble mountains high. And forked lightning shoots along the sky." Myriads of fish that lay in calm profound. Now s-wift as Ught'ning from the bottom bound : See, see ! the mighty masses upward urge. And form a dreadful animated surge ! The blaze, the crash, the preternat'ral sweU, Threatens the skiff that floats — a cockle-sheU. Amazement horror, each man's feelings hold. Sense is suspended, and the blood grows cold. * Mona and Eubonia; difi'erent names for the islaud. 86 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. At home aU anxious — to the pier quick fly. To crowd up lights, and invocate the sky — But Muse, forbear, and hasten to express Their song of joy, not themes of deep distress. The master now incUnes his nets to try. Attention's fix'd — hope sparkles in each eye ; They haul — ^What luck ? the spangled net is seen Glo-wing with gUtt'ring fish in guUlotine ! * AU hands are eager, kept in friU employ. Successive heaps now multiply thefr joy ; Wet tho' the work, no Umb nor heart is cold. The draught is greater than the bark can hold ! This soon proclaim' d, less lucky friends draw near. And ease them of their surplus and their fear. Now morn appears — ^the crews as each have sped, Find schemes of interest fioating in thefr head : Some steer their cargoes for Hibernia's shore. To British markets some convey thefr store ; But eager homeward bend the major part Joy in thefr looks, and pleasure in thefr heart. The coast is lined with many an anxious eye To greet the -victors, and thefr load descry : Nearer advancing, looming wond'rous low. Their depth announces what aU -wish to know. On shore — now smoke in spfres ascend the sky, -And 'BELLAf cheerful waits to boU and fry ; Home saUs each fisher spangled to the waist And loads of fish announce a rich repast. Vapours now, incense like, (if not as sweet) Invade the senses as you pass the street The table spread — Mamma, Tom, Judy, Kate, With fingers greasy ply the smoking plate : * The herrings are caught by the gills. t Arabella, a damsel celebrated for her cooking of fish. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 87 The father joins— rbut dropping in a snore. Dreams he's some inches higher than before. Nor is it partial pleasure revels here. The joy is general with a lucky year. Herring's the toast through all the happy isle, -And, when you meet a face, you meet a smile. 'Tis true, my friend, fresh herring on the dish Would leave no Eoman epicure * a wish : When drest with aU our garnishes of art Proud might an alderman play on his part : Nor yet woidd words convey his just applause, SUent you'd seek it in his busy jaws ; But cloth removed — o'er port I hear him sing. Of viands deUcate — Herring's the King. "Now Phoebus ushers in the cheerful day : Now commerce bustles on the busy quay : The cooper's adze, the cart's discordant tones, And herring barrels roUing on the stones." Now busy factors cure, and smoke, and dry — To distant climes export the scaly fry ; WhUe foreign marts the welcome bounty o-wn, -Ajid send back treasures of the torrid zone. May commerce, then, stUl flourish round our coast. And England's glory be our heart-felt toast July, 1798. -" The modem herring was unknown to the ancients ; the Haleo of the Romans was only a kind of sauce made of any salt fish. 88 LETTEE VIII. To the same. Dear Sir, X PEOPOSE in this letter to notice some particulars respect- -*- ing the Abbeys, Clergy, and the establishment fee of the Free School at Castletown. During the prevalence of popish superstition, and long before the grant to the Stanley famUy, several detachments- of the monastic orders found their way into the island, and erected an abbey, and some smaller religious houses and ceUs there ; each of which had a tract of land annexed to it, forming a manor or barony distinct from the lord, but held of him as paramount by homage and fealty. In like manner the demesne, and other customary estates of inheritance, appropriated to the bishopric, appear to have been always a separate barony. In aU these the ecclesiastical proprietors had the same manorial rights as the lord. Formerly there were places of refuge from the lord's authority ; an abuse that was prohibited in 1417. On thefr dissolution, the King of England possessed them ; they were afterwards held by private subjects, on grants or leases from the crown, who were stUed harons, and they stUl remain distinct baronies. In the beginning of the statute-book is briefly mentioned, how successively the noble famUy of Derby have exercised a jus regale in the island, and that certain barons held respective baronies of them, viz. the Lord Bishop of Man ; the Abbot of Eushen ; the Priors of Douglas and Whitehorn in Galway ; the Abbots of Fumess, Bangor, and Sabal ; and A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 89 the Prior of St Bede in Copeland ; aU which were, in respect to their holdings, to do faith and fealty unto the loM of the said island, at the general assembly of the whole island, called the Tynwald court in their proper persons, under the penalty of having their temporaUties seized for non appearance and homage. But to proceed to a more modem era. The clergy of the island are a respectable body, they are natives, and have a good classical education. There are only two rectories, worth about 100?. per annum ; the vicarages are under 50?. and the vicarage-houses in general are but small, inconvenient buUdings ; tn some parishes much out of repair, and in others there are none ; for instance, in Malew and Bride. It is singular that the former is so destitute, as in this parish is situated Castletown, the seat of government. They perform the service of the Church of England, in Manks wholly, or alternately in Manks and EngUsh, as the situation and the cfrcumstances demand ; and in some churches EngUsh is always read. In 1696 an act was made against "non-residence," which obUges the clergy to reside in thefr respective parishes, under certain penalties. In the year 1739 the clergy were thrown into great trouble and perplexity by the death of the Earl of Derby, who dying without issue, the lordship of Man (as a barony in fee) became the property of the Duke of Athol, who had married the heiress of the late Earl of Derby. This had nearly deprived the clergy of thefr subsistence ; for the Uvings of the Isle of Man consist of a thfrd of the impropriations, which had been originaUy purchased of a former Earl of Derby, by a coUection made in the episcopate of Dr. Barrow,* in the reign of Charles IT. An estate of the Earl's in England was bound for payment • Bishop. Barrow obtained a grant from Charles II. of one hundred pounds a year, payable out of the excise for ever, for the better maintenance of the vicars and schoolmasters of the island ; and he collected 6002, for the same purpose 90 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, On the alienation of the island from the Derby famUy, the Duke of Athol claimed the impropriations as an inseparable appendage of his state and royalty, of which it could not be divested by any right that had or could be shown. The deeda were not to be found, and the clergy, in danger of losing aU their property, and unable to contest woiUd have taken a trifle in consideration for their claim. Bishop WUson, in a letter to his son, says, " What we can do with regard to the impropria tions,. I cannot possibly teU ; we would be content to take any reasonable consideration, rather than lose aU."* Lord Derby offered 1000?, a sum very inadequate. The iU effects this had, may be learned from another letter of the bishop's, wherein he observes, " We are sadly put to it for proper persons to serve the churches. The fear of losing the impropriations for ever, discouraging parents from educating their chUdren for the nmiistry."t The duke, however, allowed the clergy to take the impropria tions, giving bonds of indemnification, but this was no per manent security ; the happiness of several famiUes was involved in the recovery of thefr rights. The duke's claim was incon testible — the deeds were lost ; nor could Bishop Barro-w's -wiU, or hefrs, be found. The assiduity of Bishop WUson and his son was at length cro-wned -with success, the deeds having been found in the EoUs chapel. This ended the dispute^ — the deeds were exemplified under the great seal of England, and every precaution was taken for the future payment of the money ; and a good understanding was estabUshed between the Earl of Derby and the clergy. In 1774 the clergy were made happy by the payment of the royal bounty, which had been withheld for some years. among the nobility ; and, by his own private charity, he also purchased two estates in land, worth twenty pounds a year in Bishop Wilson's time, for the sup port of such young persons as should be designed for the ministry. — Wilson's History of Man. * See the. Bishop's Lifei t Ibid.- . .: . A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 91 The foUowing statement wUl give you an idea of the ground of the law-suit that took place in consequence of these claims of the clergy. Bishop Barrow and Archdeacon Fletcher, in 1666, purchased, of Charles Earl of Derby, the impropriations, rectories^ and tithes, for the sum of one thousand pounds, for the use of the ministers of the Isle of Man, the erection of a free-school, and the maintenance of a schoolmaster. And the earl granted, by way of collateral security, his manor and lands of Bisphem tn Lancashire, and Methop farm, in trust for the performance of the indentures. In 1735, a claim to the rectories and tithes was started by James; Duke of Athol, as right heir of James Lord Stanley, under the limitations of 7 James I. ; and, in 1736, he took pos session of the island, and of the rectories, &c. the subject of the indenture in 1666. The then bishop and archdeacon, after in vain endeavouring to get possession, or to obtain indemnity on the foot of the col lateral security, filed a bUl in Chancery in 1736, in behaK of the poor clergy and masters of the free-schools, against Edward Earl of Derby, the said James Duke of Athol, and Isaac Clapton, Esq. ; the personal representatives of the said deed of security, praying to take possession of the lands in Lancashire, and aUot a sufficient part to recompense for past losses, and indemnify them for the future, to be annuaUy paid. The several defendants put in thefr answers ; the Earl filed his cross bUl against the Duke, &c, ; the scope of which was, that the Duke might be decreed to deUver up possession of the Isle, &c. In 1751, the Chancellor decreed in favour of the Clergy; and the average value annuaUy of 219?. 17s. 10c?. was ordered to be paid out of the lands in Lancashfre, andj^?? com pensation made during the years they had been deprived. The tmstees of this impropriate fund are, the Govemor, Eeceiver- General, Bishop, and Archdeacon, ex-officio ; the former is ap pointed by the Duke of Athol. 92 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAlT. In the year 1730, Dr. WUson, son of the Bishop, proposed to establish a fund for the support of clergymen's widows and chUdren in the Isle of Man, which was the more necessary, as from the smallness of the livings, few were able to make a pro vision for their families. To this the bishop readUy agreed ; and by the assistance of Mrs. Crow, Mrs. Levintz (the late bishop's widow). Lady Elizabeth Hastings, and others, a sum of money was raised and placed in the English funds; the interest of which, amounting to 12?. per annum, was appropriated to that purpose. Some years after. Dr. WUson, assisted by some of his friends, very considerably eiUarged it by purchasing of the late Duke of Athol the thirds of the Uving of Kirk-Michael, which he made over to tmstees for the use of that charity for ever. Among the benefactors the foUowing ought to be noticed : Madam Levintz, 50?. Sir J. PhiUips, 30?. Bishop Crow's widow, 100?. Lady Betty Hastings, (besides 20?. per annum to the schools for ever) 25 guineas. Bishop WUson, 100?. Sfr John Cheshire, 20?. Mrs. WiUiams, 16?. Lady Harold, 100?. Mr. Toilet 5?. Speaking of benefactors to the Isle of Man, may be mentioned Mrs. G. Butler, who, in the time of Bishop WUson, sent large quantities of Bibles and pious books for general use. I shall now advert to the law-suit respecting the free school at Castletown. Among the objects which were to be effected by the purchase of the tithes, &c. of the Derby famUy, in 1666, were the estabUsh ment of a free-school, and provision for the masters. The tithes of Kfrk C. Eushen were part of the tithes conveyed by the indenture. Dr. Barrow then assured the tithes to eight persons during his life, on their undertaking to pay 30? per annum, in Ueu of the tithes, to the schoolmaster appointed by him and his successors ; in case of the death of either of these eight persons, the sur vivors to elect another in his place. This disposition of the bishop was quietly acquiesced in, and A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 93 paid, untu 1736, except in case of unUcensed masters, who were paid only 15? per annum. In 1695, it appears there was ari annual order, by one of the trust Govemor Sacheverel, on the proctors of the rectory of Kfrk C. Eushen, to pay this 30? quarterly to the master of the free- school at Castletown, and so to continue tiU further order. On the present schoolmaster, tn 1757, arriving from the com mencement of the regular year, he received 60?. per annum until 1779, when the trust reduced his salary to 30? and also for the ensuing year, when he filed a bUl in Chancery to be paid the usual salary ; alleging that the tithes of Kirk C. Eushen had been settled upon the master, and which were estimated at 60?. per annum, and that was his condition ofl agreement with the trust on his acceptance. The then trust put in their answer, that Bishop Barrow had, in the fir,st instance, no power to endow the school -with the per petuity of the said tithes, &c. ; and that the trust had a power to proportion them among the several objects of distribution, as they might yearly think proper. The cause was heard in the Chanceiy Court of the island, in 1782, when Governor Dawson decreed in flavour of the master's having 60?. a year, in Ueu of the tithes of Kfrk C. Eushen. On this the trust appealed to the King and CouncU to reverse this decree, which was aUowed, upon their entering into a bond to prosecute the appeal with effect, and pay the. costs if the decree was affirmed, which was the case ; and the present master has the stipiUated salary of 60? per annum. The Eev. Mr. Castley, the present master, was educated in Jesus CoUege, Cambridge, and took his degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1755, and M.A. in 1758, and was Fellow of the coUege.* * The Rev. Mr. Ross was academical professor in 1772, but to whom the present succeeded, I know not. 94 LETTEE IX. To the same. Dear Sir,- IHAVE no doubt but you wiU receive much pleasrire from the following brief epitome of the life of the late exceUent Bishop WUson, whose memory is held in great veneration by the people of the island to this day. Bishop WUson was born at Burton in Cheshfre, Dec. 20, 1663, and entered at Trinity CoUege, DubUn ; from whence he was ordained in 1 686. He was noticed by WilUam Earl of Derby, who made him his domestic chaplain, and preceptor to his son, James Lord Strange, in 1692. In 1697, the Earl offered him the bishopric of the Isle of Man, which had been vacant ever since the death of Dr. Le-vintz, in 1693; but he declined so great a charge. At length the Archbishop of York complained to King WiUiam, that a bishop was wanting to fiU the See of Ma^i — that the nomination was with the lord of the isle, but that the approbation was -with his majesty. The King sent for the Earl, and insisted on an immediate nomination, and that if delayed, the King would fiU the vacancy himseK In conse quence of this admonition. Lord Derby insisted on his chaplain accepting the preferment, and accordingly Mr. WUson was, to use his own expression, " forced into the bishopric." He took possession of his dignity in 1698, and was enthroned in the cathedral, in Peel Castle, April llth. In 1698 he married Mary, daughter of Thomas Patten, Esq. of Warrington : by this excel lent woman he had four children, Mary, Thoraas, and Alice, who died young; and Thomas, born August 1703, who was chaplain A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 95 to George II., a prebendary of Westminster, and rector of St. Stephen's, Walbrook. He died 15th of April, 1784. Bishop Wilson, with the assistance of Dr. Thomas Bray, founded parochial libraries throughout his diocese ; and in 1703, he obtained the Act of Settlement, of so much consequence to the peace of the island ; and also the Ecclesiastical Constitutions svere confirmed in full convocation, and ratified at a Tynwald court* Lord ChanceUor King was so much pleased with these constitutions, that he said, "If the ancient discipline of the Church were lost, it might be found in all its purity in the Isle of Man." '• In 1705 Mrs. WUson died. In 1707 he had the catechism translated, and printed in Manks and EngUsh. In 1711 he went to London to settle some business relative to the Isle, and was taken great notice of by Queen Anne, before whom he preached :-f- she offered him an EngUsh bishopric, which he waived, saying, that, -with the blessing of God, he could do some good in the little spot that he then resided on ; whereas, if he were removed into a larger sphere, he might be lost and forget his duty to his flock and to his God. He could not be induced to sit in the House of Lords, though there is a detached seat for bim within the bar — saying, "That the Church should have nothing to do with the State ; Christ's kingdom is not of this world." The bishop has at present no vote ; but if the island, as in case of treason, should become forfeited to the crown, the bishop, as holding his barony from the king, would then have a vote as weU as a seat, de suo jure. Bishop Levintz sat there tn his. episcopal robes. It is remarkable that this worthy prelate was seized by Governor Horn, and imprisoned, with his two -vicars-general, for two months, in Castle-Eushen, for censuring and refusing to take * These Constitutions are printed in the Bishop's Life. + On Holy Thursday : the sermon is the seventy-third in the^ octavo edition Bishop Wilson's Sermons, vol. iii. 96 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN- off the censure of certain persons ; they were fined 90?., and on non-payment these -violent steps were taken ; but the King and CouncU reversed aU the proceedings of the officers of the island, declaring them oppressive, arbitrary, and unjust. In 1739, tn a letter to his son, he says, "I have been as weU as ever I can expect to be at this age, 76 ; I was obliged the last Sunday to preach at Peele, ride thither and back again on a stormy day; and yet, I thank God, I am not the worse for it." Peel is about eight mUes from Bishop's-Court. In 1740 there was a great scarcity of corn in the Isle 'of Man, and but for the very great exertions of the Bishop and his son, in getting a supply, and charitably distributing large quantities, thousands would probably have perished. In 1741 the Bishop printed his " Instruction for the Indians." In 1743 he -wrote a letter of thanks to George II. on the pro motion of his son to a prebend of Westminster. In 1744 -was another scarce year of corn — the Bishop bought and sold to the poor at a cheap rate. When Dr. Walker and himself were prisoners in the castle, they concerted a plan to translate the Testament into Manks, but the Bishop lived to see only the printing of St. Matthew ; it was completed by Bishop HUdesley and the clergy, assisted by the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge. The Bishop rode on horseback untU 1749. In 1751 he wrote a letter of congratulation to the new governor on his arrival. In 1753 he consecrated a new chapel at Eamsay ; his son preaching the sermon. He died in 1755. In summing up the character of this truly good man, every part of his life affords a display of the most genuine charity and benevolence. He kept an open table, and his kitchen waS crowded with the poor and needy, who were always kindly re ceived. He never interfered in temporal or poUtical concems, unless particularly caUed on by the inhabitants to serve them. Queen Caroline was very desirous of keeping him in England, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 97 but he refused. One day as he was coming to pay his duty to the queen, when she had several prelates with her — she turned round to her levee, and said, " See here, my lords, is a bishop who does not come for a translation." " No, indeed, and please your majesty," said our good Bishop, " I wUl not leave my wife in my old age because she is poor." He was buried in Kirk-Michael church-yard ; over him is a square marble tomb, -with this modest inscription, raUed in with fron : " Sleeping in Jesus, here Ueth the body of Thomas WUson, D.D., Lord Bishop of this Isle, who died March 7, 1755, aged 93, and in the 58th year of his consecration." At the ends — " This monument was erected by his son Thomas WUson, D.D., native of this parish, who, in obedience to the eoopress commands of his father, declines gi-ving him the character he so justly deserved, "Let this island speak the rest !" During the confinement of the Bishop in the dungeon of the castle, he lost the use of his fingers from the severities he endured. " But oh ! the sad reverse of fate. That neither spares the good nor great. Not e'en can cherubs paint ! Lo ! Envy brooding o'er the scene, Dash'd with a cloud the bright serene. And bore to Rushen's walls the persecuted saint. "There, as immured, the good man lay, Awhile to tyranny a prey. Sat Patience with cahn eye ! And there too Faith who gives to flow. Oh ! Innocence, thy robe of snow, Op'd, through the vale of tears, a vista to the sky.'' Cardinal Fleury wanted much to see him, and sent over on purpose to enqufre after his health, his age, and the date of his consecration ; as they were the two oldest bishops, and, he be Ueved, the poorest in Europe ; at the same time inviting him to France. The Bishop sent the Cardinal an answer, which gave H 98 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. him SO high an opinion of him, that he obtained an order that no French privateer should ravage the Isle of Man. .And that the French stUl respect a Manksman, some recent instances confirm. The Bishop one day gave a poor man, in rags, money to buy a coat at the ensuing fair ; the man expended the cash tn strong Uquors, and continued in rags as before ; when by accident the Bishop seeing him, expressed his surprise, and asked how it came he was stUl in that condition — " Why, my Lord," answered he, " I have bought with the money a very warm lining ; but I am in want of an outside yet." The following answer of the Bishop, to a request from Lord Derby, wiU tend to show that his lordship regulated his actions by principle, and does honour to his character. I copy it from his o-wn -writing, -with which I was favoured by the deemster 'of the northern district An action relating to Hanco-hUl estate (Mr. Lace, plaintiff, and the Trustees of the Academic School, defendants) having passed the course of the court of common law, Mr. Lace appealed from the judgment unto the lord, on which the lord sends cer tain queries to the Governor and CouncU to be resolved. The Govemor, Bishop, and CouncU, however, were trustees ; and the Bishop, on being requfred by the Govemor to assist in councU, {according to cUstom) upon these queries, he gave his answer in writing, as foUows : — " Mr. Deputy— I am of opinion that we of my lord's councU, cannot regularly take upon us to answer these queries, for these reasons: — 1st Because we are aU tmstees, and consequently parties in this cause. 2nd. Because our most ancient and re ceived laws do expressly provide, that when a doubt or question shaU arise touching the sense of any statute or custom, the two Deemsters and twenty-four Keys shaU expound the same, which, as I am informed, has been already done, and in a judicial way, -with respect to the two statutes mentioned in the first of these queries. 3rd. For that a precedent of this kind may be of evU A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 99 consequences, because a majority of the couricU being generaUy strangers, and for some time at least unacquainted with the laws and customs of this isle ; if the lord should ground a judgment upon the answer of such a majority, he might unavoidably be led Ulto an error in point of law or justice. Lastly ; Because that in this as weU as in most governments, such as are appointed to expound the laws, or to administer justice, are under an oath to do this faithfuUy. Now I do not understand that we are under any such oath or charge ; therefore it is neither proper nor safe for us to undertake it. " I pray that these reasons may be accepted, at least for my particular decUning this affair ; they are such as obUge me in point of conscience, and I hope -wUl justify me to our honourable lord ; who, I do presume, would not have put this cause upon this issue, had his honour been thoroughly acquainted -with the constitution and laws of this government "(Signed) T S. M. "Aug. 25, 1709." Bishop WUson was succeeded by Dr. Mark HUdesley, ¦whose various good quaUties are spoken of with esteem ; the foUowing are his sentiments on his succeeding to the See of Man : " Although I know it is sometimes said, that a person succeeds with disadvantage to an office which has been iiUed by a prede cessor of remarkably eminent quaUties, I must take leave to think the reverse, as nearer the truth ; at least -with respect to the instance I am about to refer to, viz. my coming after the great and good Dr. WUson to this See of Man; forasmuch as I find many excellent things done and estabUshed to my hands, tn regard to the government of the Church, besides the example, which by the traces he has left, his lordship stUl Uves to show, and which I endeavour, as far as I am able, to foUow, though I am sensible it is, and must be, nonpassibus cequis" H-2 100 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN Wlien Bishop HUdesley was at Scarborough in 1764, the fol lowing lines were stuck up tn the Spa room, and were taken down by him ; and after his death, found (in 1773) by his sister among his Scarborough bUls, with this memorandum ; that he preserved it only on surmise that it was done by way of banter. " If to paint FoUy, till her friends despise, And Fw'iMe, till her foes would fain be wise ; If angel-sweetness — if a godlike mind That melts with Jesus over aU mankind ; If this can form a bishop — and it can, Tho' Lawn was wanting — Hildeslei/s the man.'' Under which was written by the Bishop — From vain-glory in human applause, Deus me liberet et conservet.* * Some notices of him may be Seen in the Life of Bishop Wilson, by the Rev. Mr Cruttwell. Bishop Wilson's Life was translated into French, by the Rev. Mr. BourdUlon, but was not published. His works were first published in 2 vols. 4to. Then in 2 vols. foUo, in numbers. Then in 8 vols. 8vo. The Sermons have had six editions. His complete works four editions ; out of every edition of the works complete, twenty pounds are paid by direction of the late Rev. Dr. Wilson, to the fund for supporting the widows of the clergy. These works may be had in the following forms : — In eight volumes Svo. his works complete, with his Life, compiled from his own MSS. and other authentic papers, by the Rev. C. Cruttwell. Price 21. 8s. in boards. The four volumes of Sermons, each containing 25 Discourses, may be had, price 11. is. in boards. The Bishop's Life aud Tracts may also be had in four volumes. • Vol. I. The Bishop's Life, and History of the Isle of Man. Vol. II. Instruction for the better understanding of the Lord's Supper, and Sacra Privata. Vol. III. The Knowledge and Practice of Christianity made easy to the meanest Capacities ; Observations for reading the Historical Books of the Old Testament, &c. &o. Vol. IV. Parochialia; or Instructions for the Clergy; Maxims of Piety and Christianity, &c. In two volumes 12mo. Thirty-three Sermons of Bishop Wilson, selected by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. Also, in three vols, royal 4to. A most elegant edition of The Holy Bible, with the notes of Bishop Wilson ; and the variations of all the English translations, collected by the Rev. C. Cruttwell. In separate Tracts. 1. Sacra Privata; — The Private Meditations and Prayers of Bishop Wilson, accommodated to general use. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 101 It was usual to approach the bishops on the knee, but this I was told, was abolished by the present diocesan, for the same reason that Frederick the Great of Prussia assigned, when, in 1783, he pubUshed a rescript signifying that kneeling in future should not be practised in honour of his person, declaring that this act of humUiation was not due but to the Divinity. To conclude :— As the particulars of Bishop WUson's life and character may be seen at length in the Eev. C. Cmttwell's edition of his works, to whose poUteness I am much indebted, I shaU refer you to it where you wUl find the concurring testimony of many leamed and pious minds exhibiting, in the most energetic language, thefr exalted opuiion of this venerable and worthy man. His son,, the Eev. Dr. WUson, who was the great patron of Mrs. Macaulay, the historian, died at Bath, and was conveyed to London in great pomp, and interred in St. Stephen's church, Walbrook, of which he was the rector, as weU as the prebendary of Westminster.* As the connexion that subsisted beween Dr. WUson and Mrs. Macaulay, was a topic of much conversation at that time ; a connexion that, however, did them both much honour ; I am happy to have it in my power to iUustrate the grounds of that 2. Parochialia ; or. Instructions fnr the Clergy in the Discharge of their Duty. 3. Maxims of Piety and of Christianity, alphabetically arranged. Also reprinted for the Use of Sunday Schools. 4. The Principles and Duties of Christianity; being a further Instruction for such as have leamed the Church Catechism, &c. * Inscriptions in St. Stephen's Chv/rch, Walbrooh : — Sacred to the memory of Mrs. Mary Wilson, the beloved and much-lamented wife of Thomas Wilson, D.D. She. died Nov. 4, 1772, aged 79 years, in the 40th year of their happy marriage. To the memory of Thomas Wilson, D.D., citizen of London, and rector of this parish upwards of 46 years. He died April 15th, 1784, aged 80 years; only sou of Thomas Wilson, late Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man. 102 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. attachment, by the foUowing letters from both, to my much- valued and lamented friends, Mr. and Mrs. Northcote, of Honiton in Devonshire ; whose affectionate attentions I ex perienced for many years, and whose names I can never think of but with the most poignant grief From Dr. 'Wilson to Mr. Northcote. . " CUfton,, July 16, 1775. "Dear Sir, "I received the favour of yours, and soon after wrote to Mr. DUly, that Mrs. Macaulay would be very glad if you would take us in your way home, but I find you had left London. I know it -wiU give Mrs. N and you great pleasure to have it under both our hands, that from a high esteem and regard I have for that dear and amiable lady, I have made her perfectly easy,, not only while I live, but after my death, by adopting her as my daughter ; and consistent -with former engagements to my relations, she wUl have such a share of my fortune, as, with her own, -wUl set her above the world ; and I can assure you that no words can express the joy I feel in having it in my power to remove aU anxieties from a breast which ought never to have been ruffled. This ought to have been done long ago by persons of opulent fortune, who in words expressed thefr high venera tion for her exalted character as an historian ; but Pro-vidence reserved that honour for me. Besides, I have the happiness of knowing that she has all those great qualities of mind, necessary to complete the character of a faithful, disinterested and affec tionate yrienc?. " She has been pleased for some time past to favour me with her company at this place, and I am happy to tell you that she has received great benefit by exercise on horseback, and the fine air and waters of this place ; and my charming granddaughter improves every day in health, and every other accompUshment of mind and body. T. W." A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 103 On the same paper from Mrs, M. "My Dear Friends, "Dr. W. has been so fuU on the subject of my present situation, that he has left me little to teU you, but that my happiness is at present complete in the benevolent protection of the most affectionate, the most indulgent, and the most generous oi friends, &c." Trusting that I have hitherto attached myseK to my subject with aU possible precision, and have waived extraneous remarks, or the adoption of a luminous and poUshed diction, to the ex clusion of a plain recital of facts ; I venture to soUcit indulgence in obeying the impulse I here feel, of introducing some sentiments expressive of the high regard those distinguished characters above mentioned held for my friends Mr. and Mrs. Northcote, whom Mrs. M. -visited at Honiton, and to whom she presented her whole-length portrait, sitting tn her Ubrary, by Falconet ; which is since in possession of Joseph Haskins, Esq. In a letter to them, dated Bath, 1776, she observes, " A variety of grievous feeUngs, from the strange inclemency of the weather, have hitherto prevented my acknowledging dear Mr. and Mrs. Northcote's congratulatory letter; I do not know whether Dr. WUson, who has not yet finished his joumey, has had time to write to you, but he was charmed with your sentiments on the occasion, and -vvrote to me on the subject as foUows : — " ' I can hardly express the pleasure good Mr. N's letter gave me. I beg, at your leisure, you wiU answer it and tell them both how much I am obUged to them for the regard they show to you: they speak from the heart: such friends are worth ha-ving.' "These, my dear friends, were the sentiments of good Dr. WUson, on your expressions in my favour. Hearts who air capable of exulting at the good fortune of others, are formed of the best materials,— Adieu." 104 LETTEE X. To the same. Dear Sir, A GENTLEMAN asked Mr. Burke what motto would be -^^ proper to prefix to a pubUcation on the Isle of Man ? to whom Mr. Burke jocosely repUed from Pope, " The proper study of Mamhind is Mam,:' I shaU, therefore, without farther introduction, resume my subject. An old tradition traces this island up to one Mananan Mac- Lfr, a necromancer ; who is charged -with enveloping it in mists, so that no stranger could find it, untU St. Patrick broke his charms. This person, however, is supposed to have been the son of an Irish prince, AUadius, and was a great merchant, who, by enjoying an exclusive trade -with this place and Ireland, might in that sense be said to have covered it with mists from the rest of the world. The Norwegians, -with the Western Islands, conquered this also ; and the kings sent to govern generally chose the Isle of Man for their residence. In 1266 there was a solemn agreement between Magnus IV. of Norway, and Alexander III. of Scot land ; by which this island, among the rest, was surrendered to the Scots for 4,000 marks, to be paid in four years, 1,000 marks yearly. Pursuant to which Alexander drove out the King of Man, 1270, and united it to Scotland. Mary, Queen of Man, the last of the Norwegian race, of Orries, was driven out by the Scots in 1292 ; she put herself A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 105 under the protection of Edward I, of England, who had at that time conquered the greatest part of Scotland for Eobert Bmce, who was then in the English camp, and came with the king into England, Three years after this period, John Waldebasty, the husband of Mary, preferred his claim to the island in the parUament at Westminster. But all the satisfaction he could obtain was to be referred to Eobert Bruce, who lived in Eng land, and had the island in his possession. In 1312, and in 1426, sundry agreements were made respecting it. In 1405 Henry TV. had given it to John Lord Stanley ; but Scotland claiming, under the agreements mentioned, their title to the island, obUged the lords of Man to keep a constant standing army and garrisons untU the reign of James I. Lord Coke observes, that though this island be no parcel of the realm of England, yet it is part of the dominions of its king, and therefore aUegiance is reserved in pubUc oaths. The lords had the poVer of gi-ving the final assent to aU new laws ; the power of pardoning offenders, of changing the sentence of death into banishment, of appointing and displacing the ci-vU, ecclesiastical, and miUtary officers, with a right to aU forfeitures for treason, felony, &c. From the time the Scots first conquered the island, to the accession of the Stanley family, was 150 years, during which period it was five times conquered by the Scots and EngUsh. By these revolutions the ancient regal govemment was sometimes laid aside, and a miUtary and arbitrary govern ment substituted, as frequently is the case with conquered nations. But the last great change that took place was its union by sale to the British crown in 1765, and which, Uke the union of Scotland in 1706, gave a temporary alarm to the people; but its effects may be seen from the foUowing sentiments of a respect able native : — " Since the Isle of Man is become an appendage of Great- Britain, and its regalities vested in the Imperial Crown of these 106 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. realms, iifc may possibly afford some satisfaction to the pubUc, to be informed what effect this great and interesting revolution may have had on the minds, the manners, and disposition of the people. "The local trade so long carried on here, to the detriment of the crown, being now totaUy suppressed by the care and attention of his Majesty's civU government in the Isle, aided by the vigUance and acti'vity of the revenue officers and cutters, they have turned thefr hands with uncommon spirit and dUigence to cultivate the more innocent and laudable, though less lucra tive, arts of agriculture and the Unen manufactory. "They have lost it is true, a certain species of commerce of no advantage to the place tn general, as but few in com parison were enriched thereby, whUe it was secretly undermining them, as it introduced a spirit of idleness and dissipation, and from the easy acquisition of spfrituous Uquors, and other foreign luxuries, was tending fast to debauch the minds, cor rupt the morals, and enervate the constitutions of the common people ; the gains so Ughtly acquired being for the most part as Ughtly liquidated. " Instead of this, a more pleasing and more agreeable pros pect has opened. Sublatd causd, tollitur effectus. Industry and sobriety have taken place, and diffuse their influence, which we have reason to hope wiU daUy increase." This " Navel of the Sea " possesses many privUeges. The unfortunate may find it an asylum ; the economist a place ex empted of aU taxes ; the epicure may enjoy fish, port -wine, hams, and poultry cheap ; and the phUosopher a place of rest from bustle and faction. The native goodness of the Manks has been too often imposed on by strangers, and justly engendered a prudent reserve; and some slight introduction is rather ex pected before a comfortable connexion with them can take place. As emigrations frequently take place from the opposite shores, the mode of access may be useful to visitors : you may embark from Liverpool or AVlutehaven ; at the former port vessels are A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 107 frequently to be found. The "Duke of Athol" is the best of these, the others have but plain accommodations ; but aU of them are safe, and saU weU. The price is 7s. 6c?. and 5s. You take you own pro-vision.* From Liverpool to the Isle is twenty-five leagues, on an average performed in two tides, or twenty-four hours. From Whitehaven (from whence a packet saUs with letters every Monday night if possible) is fifteen leagues, this usuaUy runs over in twelve hours. This packet stays about three days in the island, when it returns with the mail to Whitehaven ; it has good accom- inodations for passengers. To DubUn from the Isle is fifteen leagues, done on an average in sixteen or eighteen hours. From the Isle to Kircudbright in Scotland, is generaUy run in about eight hours from Eamsay. On landing you pay a fee to the searcher of Is. 6c?. who then does not open your tmnks, provided they are no way suspicious. From London to the Isle of Man, the voyage varies from eight to fourteen days. The master of a vessel carrying a debtor off the island without the governor's pass, is subject to a penalty of 10? besides his debts ; and the vessel may be seized untU satisfaction be given. No person can leave the island without a pass, which costs only 9c?, Manks, * At Liverpool are generally some of the following vessels trading to and from the island. To Douglas, the Dukq of Athol, professedly for passengers, a handsome vessel, sloop rigged, about 50 feet keel, 11 feet hold, 17 feet beam, makes up 18 beds, Capt, Brew. The Lapwing, Cullon, has seven beds, besides a .large state-room; this once belonged to T, -Whalley, Esq, M,P, Then follow traders, the NeDy aud Betty, Qaayle; Surrey, Clegg ; Maria, Norris ; John and Judy, Quay; Elizabeth, W. Quayle; John and Edward, Qidne; Prince of Wales, Lcwen; Marquis of Tullibardin, Pargher ; Four Sisters, Eiimtley ; Margaretta, C. Quiney; Brothers, Christian; Amy, Currin; Peterin, Moore; Whale, Oroom; Dart, Slater; Fancy, Hampton ; Packet, Carren ; Margaretta, Bacon ; Anne, Corlett ; Ranter, Biley. To Ramsay, Peggy, Ince ; Anne and Mary, Crowe ; Success, Neale ; BeUe Anne, Vondy; Marquis of Buckingham, Kermod; Martin, 'W. Kermod; Eliza, Ince. P. RadcHfTe, at the Legs of Man, Liverpool, and the Douglas packet-house, has always accurate information of these vessels. The packet from Whitehaven has 15 beds, two in the state-room; name. Earl of Lonsdale, Greenlaio. 108 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, The form of the Pass. * Insula "» PEEMIT the bearer hereof, Mr. John Feltham, to MoN.iE. jpass for England upon his lawful occasions, without let, stop, or hindrance, he beha-ving himself as behoves aU Uege people, and departing this isle within one month from the date hereof Given at Castle-Eushen, this 6th day of March, 1798. Alex. Shaw. I shall now give some account of the coinage pecuUar to the island, and of its relative value to EngUsh and Irish. At the Tynwald Court, of 1679, it was enacted that no copper or brass money, caUed Butcher's halfpennies, and copper farthings, and Patric haKpennies, or any other of that nature, shaU pass in the island, under a penalty of three pounds, and further punish ment at the governor's discretion ; but this act does not hinder the passage of the king's farthings, and the halfpennies set fprth by authority, or of the brass money caUed John Murray's pence. On some false money being coined termed Ducketoons, an act of Tynwald passed in 1646, adjudging it to be high treason In 1710 Lord Derby sent over, at the request of the people, a supply of copper pence and halfpence. In 1733, three hundred pounds in pence, and two hundred in haKpence, were put in cfrculation ; and in 1757, two hundred and fifty pounds in pence, and one hundred and fifty pounds in halfpence. To prevent counterfeits aU persons are ordered once a year to bring to the respective captains of thefr parishes, such copper money to be examined and counted, and the account thereof is to be returned by them to the governor or receiver. * By an order, dated Castle-Rushen, Jan. 1798, no passes are to be valid, unless actually signed by the Governor or Lieut.-Governor, nor are to have more than one name, unless a woman with a child in her arms. Passes ai'e granted by Mr. Gotten, of Castletown ; Mr. Corlett, of Douglas ; Mr. Clucas, of Peel ; and Mr. Hendry, of Kamsay, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 109 In 1733 the impression was the arms of Man, three legs with J. D. between the bend, and the motto Quocunque jeceris stabit ; on the reverse, the eagle and chUd .on a chapeau, motto San changer ; beneath the chapeau, the date. In 1758, the Ducal coronet with a cypher A.D. with the date under : the reverse as before, without the initials J. D. In 1786, the King's head with the date under, motto found it Georgius III. Dei gratia: the reverse as before. These are not coined in the island.* — [See plate 11,] Some inquiries have lately been directed to be made relative to the coinage, but it has gone no farther. By an act of Tynwald, in 1691, legal interest is fixed at 6 per cent Manks. 100?. EngUsh, is 116?. 13s. 4c?. Manks. 100? Manks, is 85? 14s. 3c?. EngUsh. 100?. Irish, is 107?. 13s. 10c?. Manks. 100? Manks, is 92?. I7s. Ic?. Irish. 1?. English, is 1? 3s. 4c?. Manks. 1? Manks, is 17s. \\d. English. 1?. Irish, is 1? Is. 6c?. Manks. 1?. Manks, is ISs. 7c?. Irish. Is. English, is 14c?. Manks. Is. Manks,'is lOJc?. EngUsh. Is. Irish, is 13c?. Manks. Is. Manks, is Y\.\d. Irish. I shaU conclude with some remarks on the horizontal water- wheels used in the island. They are now getting into disuse, probably from the late erection of large mUls on the great streams. I heard only of two on this plan, which were said to be, one near Snugborough ; the other in Baldon, near Cronk Eule. * Mr. Twisse, speaking of the country about Drogheda, says, " The brass coins of the Isle of Man are current all along this coast," It is said, that the metal for .this last coinage was delivered at the mint for less than three hundi-ed pounds, and issued from thence at the enormous value of six hundred pounds sterling ! — This I speak on the authority of a public print. 110 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, From Bishop WUson we learn, "that in his time many of the rivers, or rather ri-vulets, not ha-ving sufficient to drive a mtU the greatest part of the year, necessity has put them upon the inven tion of a cheap sort of a miU, which, as it costs very Uttle, is no great loss, though it stands six months in the year. The water- wheel, about six feet in diameter, Ues horizontal, consisting of a great many hoUow ladles, against which the water, brought down in a trough, strikes forcibly, and gives motion to the upper stone, which, by a beam and iron, is joined to the centre of the water-wheel Not but they have other nulls, both for corn and fuUing of cloth, where they have water tn summer more plentiful," Mr, D, M, Keele, of Salisbury, constructed a model of a wheel on this plan, and sent it to Mr, S. More, secretary to the Society of Arts, last year. Mr. More was of opinion that the power of the stream wUl be exerted in a very inefficacious manner; as the density ofthe stiU water in the pool -wiU in a great degree obstruct the motion of the wheel, and render it far less effectual, than K that part which is not immersed had only the air to act against, which would be the case, if the wheel were placed verticaUy instead of horizontaUy, But Mr. Keele has ob-viated the difficulty aUuded to, by making the valves moveable on an axis placed outwards, which enables them to receive the fuU effect of the current ; but in passing through the sttU water, to open tn such a way as not to impede its progress, but rather facUitate itseK In a letter, I received from Mr. Southey,* AprU 14, 1798, he says, " Horizontal water-wheels are common in Spain ; I have seen many of them ; they attracted my notice by thefr singu larity and simpUcity." In the Eev. Mr. Townsend's " Journey through Spain," (three vols. Svo. DiUy, 1791) he informs us, that he observed that " aU miUs had horizontal water-wheels. These grind the corU very • Author of Joan of Arc, and other Poems; Letters written in Spain and Portugal, &c. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Ill slowly, being fed by single grains ; but then to compensate for this defect, they place many near together, and the same Uttle stream having communicated motion to one wheel, passes in succession to the rest These are weU suited to a country abounding with stone for building, where water runs -vnth rapidity down a steep descent and where despatch is not re quired." Sfr George Staunton noticed them in China.* I have said thus much concerning them, as I conceive that wheels on this plan might be adopted in this country to advantage in a variety of situations. * Account of China, one vol. Svo, edit, Stockdale, p. 88, 1797. For a wheel of this plan, worked with steam, with moveable valves, see Repertory of Arts, vol. iii. p. 403 ; and Robert Beatson, Esq. has just published a treatise on the advantages of horizontal wind and water mills, with a plan of one of the latter, which moves the same way, let the current run up or down. See Beaston's Essay on Mills, Svo, 1798, Taylor, Holborn. Mr. B. offers further information, on application (post paid) to him, at No. 1 5, Great Windmill-street, London ; or at Bumt Island, Fifeshire. 112 LETTEE XI. To the same. " Avaunt then, cities, courts, where friends betray, -Where malice wounds, and slavery drops the knee ; To him how hateful who can steal away. To freedom, love, simplicity, and thee." P. PiNDAB. Dear Sir, IN emigrating from England many advantages must be given up. Money, here, loses much of its omnipotency ; the pleasures of a luxurious table cannot be had without difficulty : markets are thin, and but Ul-pro-vided, and there are not any butchers' shops. The pigs are larger in proportion than their other cattle, and extremely good and plenty. Fat meat is scarce, and the veal in general indifferent ; the mutton is sweet and deUcate. But a very pecuUar breed of sheep is found here, the wool of which is of a red sandy colour, or the fawn-coloured Turkey wool used by hatters tn this country. It would be difficult to account for this pecuUarity ; they are caUed Laughton sheep, and are now but few ; the natives use the wool undyed for stockings, &c. and formerly one of the Earls of Derby had a whole suit of it Fleeces, as weU as I could observe, yielded from 2 lbs. to 4 lb. And the price of lambs varied from 2s. Gd. to 6s. and sometimes were worth ] Os. Eespecting the price of pro-visions, mentioned page 50, I would beg to remark, that in the to-wns most frequented, it is higher considerably than in remoter spots ; but in all parts there is an e-vident rise of late. Poultry of all kinds are numerous and cheap ; fish and eggs A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 113 are plenty and reasonable. The better kind of fruits are not to be had ; Major Taubman's was the only walled garden I observed, and that would grace any place. Apples are not grown in any quantity. They have no pheasants or nightingales ; grouse, golden plovers,* corn-crakes, and night larks abound ; hares are com paratively scarce, for the want of cover; cranes, or herons, frequent the rocks. An Irish crow of a grey or lead colour is found, though the true English crow is scarce. Mr. Townley mentions a pied crow, which preys on smaU crabs and marine deUcacies. The Calf has plenty of the usual rock birds ; the razor-bUl {alca tarda) and the puffin {alca artica). The noises of sear-bfrds often indicate a change of weather. The cuckoo and its attendant announce the genial seasons of spring and summer ; and most of the smaU bfrds are found here. Furze and heath are used as fuel, but the peat bogs are valuable ; these run deep both in the low lands and the sum mit of the highest mountains. The cottagers have the pri-vilege of digging it on the common, for the payment of a halfpenny per year. It is sold for fourpence a square yard, and the best sort at sixpence, to be cut and carried away by the purchaser. Where the shelter admitted the growth of a hedge, I observed it luxuriant and covered with honeysuckles. " To scent with sweeter breath the summer gales — With careless grace and native ease she charms. And bears the horn of plenty in her arms," — Darwin, I noticed the fox-glove {digitalis purpurea) adorning the sides of the roads. Also the eriophorum alpinum, a species of cotton grass. I had often conceived some use might be made of this plant and find by Mr. Pennant that in the Isle of Skye it * Charadrius Pluvialis, Le Pluvier dore. Buff. See a description of this and the grey plover in the History of British Birds, with cuts by Bewick, vol, i. pp. 329, Newcastle, 1797, They have no moles in the island, nor any noxious animal or reptile. Frogs and magpies have been introduced of late years, Mr, Edward Christian shot a white sparrow in June, 1797, near Balicalignan, I 114 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. supports the cattle in the earlier part of spring, before the other grasses are sufficiently grown; and that the poor stuff their piUows with the down, and make wicks of candles with it ; but it becomes brittle when quite dry. The scilla verna, or vernal squUl, is a maritime plant found in the rocks : for plates of these two last I refer you to that elegant work, Sowerby's EngUsh Botany Having mentione4 the plant termed by the natives ouw, in my fourth letter, I have now no farther remarks to make on this subject. The want of trees and hedges gives a barren aspect to the island ; but it is not unpleasing from the undulation of its surface, and the sublimity of its mountains, of varied shape, distances, and termination ; whose sides afford a frequent speci men of that adventitious beauty occasioned by floating clouds intercepting the sunbeams, and gi-ving to the fields glo-wing and varied tints. But it could not have always been without trees, for by a statute of 1570 a forester is allowed to range the forest for unshorn sheep, &c.* Thus, though its rocks are not, like those in Devonshire, " fringed with ornamental plants and shrubs ;" nor its gardens " surrounded with myrtle hedges covered with most deUcious bloom ;" yet its rugged rocks, and bold mountains, whose outlines are abruptly varied, adorned -with the heath, gorse, and fern, that spread over its surface, form somewhat of a picturesque scene ; but a general want of trees, &c. for a foreground, and a requisite variety of weU-disposed objects, render it not adapted for the composition of a landscape painter. " Yet stUl, e'en here, content can spread a charm, Redress the cUme, and its vxiAe winds disarm." Eain is frequent in smaU portions, and the winds boisterous ; but neither the heat in summer, nor the cold in winter, is in extremes.! * The Druids found this island well planted with firs ; quantities have been dug up some depth under the surface of the earth ; and some oaks, which, it is supposed, being their favourite tree, was introduced by them. f See also on this head the parochial account of Jurby. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 115 Post-chaises may be had at Douglas and Castletown, at 9c?. per mUe.* The roads are good and exempt from toUs, but destitute of mile-stones, except from Douglas to Castletown ; a duty of 10s. 6c?. on pubUc-houses ; 5s. 2c?. on greyhounds and pointers, and 6c?. on other dogs, with moderate statute duty, repafr fte roads. These, with 9c?. on passes, are the only taxes levied. Salt is exempted from duty ; 141b. costs about sixpence English ; this tax has always been odious tn aU countries. In France, it was a forerunner of the revolution. In Italy, it caused great commotions ; years elapsed before the States could bring it to three farthings per pound, their present duty. And in England it was first imposed under the idea of its being only temporary! An additional duty of 8? per ton on port wine is said to be in contemplation, and that the island is to form a receptacle for French prisoners and emigrants. Five rivers have harbours, -viz. Eamsay, Laxey, Douglas, Castletown, and Peel; on the norlih side three rivulets meet the sea at BaUure, MiUtown, and BaUaugh ; besides which are twenty-four others of a diminutive kind in the island. These places, -with the mines and mountains, should be visited. A voyage round the island is seldom thought of as an amuse ment for strangers ; but a saU round the CaK is strongly en joined, though the weather even for this should be very select to render it adequate to expectation : I was content with a ramble through it. Aquatic excursions of any length defeat their purpose from the uncertainty of time and weather, and prove disagreeable from the con-vulsive operations of sea-sickness : so * The principal inns are the George, Downes; Mr. Duggan's, and Redfearn's, at Castletown. At Douglas is the hotel, Clague ; George Wilson's Liverpool coffee house; Messrs. Ray's, Atkinson's, and Coultry Cannels, At Peel, Black's, the White Horse; and at Ramsay, Mr. Hendry's, and Mr. Cornelius Hinde's, the King's Head. Besides these there are one or two respectable inns in villages, particularly at Kirk-Michael, where the beautiful hostess cannot fail to attract and please evfery visitant. By an act in 1739, the number of public-houses in the island is limited to 300, at five score to the hundred, i2 116 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. that as Mr. Wyndham observes,* parties generally express more pleasure at their return, than either at the actual commencement or in any part of its continuation. The excursion to the CaK is generaUy made from Port Iron, from which it is about three miles {vide Kirk-Christ Eushen parish). Its surface is rather barren, so that I cannot descant on its picturesque scenery; everything bearing the character of the subUme tending to raise the bolder emotions of the mind, rather than amuse it with gentle sensations. The eye is regaled from its heights -with the azure vault of heaven ; and beneath, the briny surface is covered -with swelling saUs, either impeUed with the cheerful breeze, or agitated by bleak -winds or scowUng storms ; while the surrounding surface of the ground presents a verdure, wUd and innoc'ent — "Just where the distant coast extends a curve, A lengthen'd train of sea-fowl urge their flight. Observe their files ! in what exact array .,, The dark battalion floats, distinctly seen Before yon silver cliff ! now, now they reach That lonely beacon ; now are lost again In yon dark cloud. How pleasing is the sight." — GltPHf. Eound the Calf you see innumerable quantities of sea-bfrds, wUd pigeons, &c. The quantity of herruigs, &c. they annuaUy destroy, are supposed to be some hundred thousand barrels. Mr. To-wnley says, " The wUd or rock pigeons, found in the cliffs from Peel to the CaK, are smaUer than the dove-cote pigeons, and of a much darker colour, being almost black. The legs and feet are a beautUul red, beaks yeUow ; they are sweet and high-flavoured." The mountain of Snafield, and perhaps the Barrales, should be visited, Sneeaylle, or Snafield, is 580 yards above the level of the sea, and affords, of a clear day, a remarkable and exten sive prospect of the coasts of England, Ireland, Scotland, and * A picture of the Isle of Wight, delineated upon the spot. By H. P. Wyndham, Esq, of Sahsbury, Egerton, 1794, Svo, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 117 Wales ; as, from AUonby in Cumberland, to Pile of Foudre in Lancashire, 45 mUes, From Arklow mountains in Ireland, to the northward of Belfast, is 105 mUes, From Bamamore hUl in Scotland, to the Criffit mountains, near Dumfries, 54 mUes. And the coast of Wales, from Holyhead to Eudland, 45 miles. Did this mountain only present a complete view of the island, and its various mountains, it "would be a pecuUarly deUghtful and novel spectacle. Between Douglas and Kfrk-Michael, you pass a very romantic soUtary deU of considerable length. The ruins of Peele castle, &c. wiU not faU to repay every expectation formed of them ; but " frowning turrets, massy walls, and gloomy dungeons, make the imagination of a con templative man whoUy at variance -with the beauty and serenity of the spot ; and he wUl think only of sieges, chains, torture, and death."* I shall notice everything worthy again, under thefr parochial heads. In going from Glenmoij to Castleto-vvn, I lost my way ; the prospect was dreary, the road swampy, and no track appeared. " Lo ! aU around a most alarming gloom ! A fog of monstrous size, and sooty crest. Sat like a nightmare, squat on Mona's breast,"— Stowbl, What to do it was •difficult to teU, At length the cottage of a mountaineer presented, but the owner being unable to speak English, my appUcation was unheard, but by signs I prevaUed on bim (pointing to my purse) to be my guide ; he put me, with some trouble, in the dfrect road ; I pressed a reward on him, but he refused to accept anything, lea-ving me to wonder at such unexpected civiUty tn the rudest confines of a remote mountain, ¦* Mr, Maton's Westem Tour, 2 vols, Svo, Salisbury, 1797, plates, Peele Cagtle, for its situation, antiquity, strength, and beauty, might justly be styled one of the wonders of the world, art and nature having appeared to vie with each other in its formation. It is buUt on a huge rock, which rears itself a stu pendous height above the sea, by which it is surrounded, and is fortified by several of less magiitiude,— Claea Lennox, See page 65. 118 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, To cross these mountains is but uncomfortable at best, and if fogs should come on, a stranger must lose his way in evitably. The mountains abound in springs, but the water, though good, is not of a superior kind. Of spirits, rum is generaUy drunk, and whisky* is not so scarce as gin and brandy. Port wine is extremely good, and is sold from 12s. to 15s. per dozen : a single bottle at the inns is charged 2s. ; but if bought in quantities, may be had for less than these prices. Economy prevaUs in household management, and the female branches spin, at leisure, flax ; and thus produce exceUent diaper, check, linen, &c. for famUy use. The fairs, which are not infested with sharpers, showmen, &c. as in England, serve to enliven the friendship of different parts ; and the assemblies, races, &c. that originate from them, afibrd an opportunity of a mutual association of the northem beaux and belles with the southern. ¦ ¦ " As KuhorUa's sons Excel in every virtue, manly, brave, Amidst th' alarms of fate ; gen'rous, sincere. By glory kindled : may her virgins too. Supremely fair, midst beauty's brightest blaze In soft perfections shine ! May Hymen wave His purple wings, and o'er the sacred couch His azure mantle spread, as down ye Sink In wedlock's chaste embrace, and oft renew The haUow'd rapture : thus may peaceful life Flow undisturb'd, nor jarring feuds invade Your happy hours."-)- The ladies are sensible, polite, and accompUshed; pleasing and elegant in their address, and of a more domestic turn than the ladies of England of the same rank or fortune. They are * The word whisky signifies -water, and is applied by way of eminence to strong water, or distiUed liquor. It is drawn from bariey, aud is preferable to Enghsh malt brandy.— (Johnson's Journey to the Western Islands, Svo. 1775.) + Beauty,!), poem; published with "The Sugar Cane," 12mo. 1766, by Dr. Grainger. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 119 also fond of music and dancing, and excel in each. Fashion soon fitnds her way hither from the three kingdoms. " The packet's come, I'U lay my life upon it : I know by pretty Betsy's helmet bonnet !" The native charms of the belles, assisted by mUliners and mantua-makers of judgment and taste, diguKy an assembly, and enUven society, with as great a degree of spirit as any in England ; nor do they recur to foreign artifices to soUcit love and admfration. As a specimen of Manks gaUantry, I give you the foUowing complimentary acrostic, which was sent to a lady of Liverpool, with whom I saUed to the island. To the Lady whose Name it bears. C harms such as thine, the Cyprian goddess wore, (H eav'n-born and Qourish'd by di-vine ambrosia) A nd -wreath'd -with smiles the angry brow of Jove. E ose-lipt and pout-mouth'd as the blooming Hebe, L ove feeds the luring anguish of thine eye — 0 h ! how Elysium beameth from that smUe ! T hee. Flora strews the vernal plains to please ; T hee. Nature smUes to court, — her beauties thine. E nravish'd I behold, enraptur'd I adore ! E ob'd in the grace of innocence and truth, O 'er thy sweet brow -virtue benignly shed, B eauty, pure mental beauty, mUdness soft I mpressing aU with reverence and love. N ot Paphos e'er could boast a fairer form — S uch grace ! No, Phidias, thy sktU could ne'er 0 n marble carve such symmetry divine ; N or Jove a nobler mind did e'er inspfre. June 13, 1797. Pit a pat pitto cette miavo. But independent of the effusions of "youthful poets when they love," it is acknowledged that Charlotte and Julia E. both 120 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. possess quaUties that must gratify the warmest wishes of parental affection. The natives of the lower classes are of a swarthy complexion, stout, -with an air of melancholy pervading thefr countenances ; the men are indolent, but the women are active and Uvely ; they wear no stockings nor shoes, except on particular occasions ; the men wear shoes or sandals, which they caU kerranes, made of untanned leather ; their cottages are low turf buUdings, thatched in an humble style, and the thatch is bound down with a net work of straw ropes intersecting each other. At the principal places are gentlemen in the various branches of the medical profession, and women are now sensible of the danger of ha-ving ignorant female attendants tn mid-wifery ; who, possessing no knowledge of the animal economy, nor of the anatomical structure of the human frame, must therefore be iU- qualified for a proper discharge of this important and tender office. What Dr. Johnson says of the Erse language may apply to the Manks — " It is the speech of a people who have few thougl).ts to express ; it is not a written language, and whoever -writes it, speUs according to his own perception of the sound." I have mentioned its origin in page 54. The primeval Celtic branched into three grand divisions : 1. Ancient Gaulish, from which no language is fuUy derived. 2. Ancient British, from whence is descended Welsh, Armorican, and Cornish. 3. Ancient Irish, from whence comes the modern Irish, the Erse, or Highland Scots, and the Manks language.* From poUtical baUads we may catch the sentiments that pre vaU. Sitting around the blazing hearth one hening -with a number of Manksmen, and rocking the cradle of an infant beside me, the toast and song went round, in one of which I recoUect the foUo-wing Unes, aUuding to the transfer of the island — * Mallet's Northern Antiq, 2 vols. Svo, 1770, Caruan, pp, 24, 25. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 121 " For the babes unborn wUl rue the day. That the Isle of Man was sold away; For there's ne'er an old wife that loves a dram. But what wiU lament for the Isle of Man !" When what they here denominate the trade, that is, smuggUng, was carried on, the access to ardent spirits was so easy, that drankenness was a common vice, and the morals of the lower orders were in a most depraved state. " It is impossible to refiect without great satisfaction on the actual gain that results to the nation from the preservation of the morals and health of persons, whose Uves are shortened by the immoderate use of ardent spfrits."* As this letter is misceUaneous, I shaU conclude it with telling you I was at the opening of the Manks parUament at Castle town. His Grace the Duke of Athol, as governor-in-chief, &c. sat in state in one of the court-rooms in Castle Eushen. On one side was the Lord Bishop of Man ; on the other the Lieutenant- Governor ; beneath, the two deemsters in their robes, with other state officers (see Letter XIL). The Keys being desired to attend, sat round the table ; and without the bar were the spectators. His Grace prefaced the business by expressing the interest he always felt in eveiything that concerned the happiness of the island, and that it was with much pleasure he now met them to announce his Majesty's goodness, in having granted him (-with full power to use as he best thought fit) a sum large enough to answer aU the great pubUc purposes necessary to the safety and dignity of thefr government ; such as the erection of public courts of judicature, forming harbours, &c. That he had ever the -will and disposition to serve them, and now he had also the power; doubting not that by their mutual co-operation and • In London, previous to the late stoppage of the distiUeries, it was calculated that the consumption of gin and compounds was on an average annually about three mUlions of gallons. The high price of gin rendering it inaccessible, the lower classes applied their money in the purchase of provisions, perhaps to the extent of some hundred thousands a year, in London alone, — (Treatise on the Police, Svo,) 122 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE" OF MAN. exertions for the common weal, the island would be raised to that degree of consequence it was capable of and merited. He then laid before them some acts of Tynwald which had previously passed, but which, on being sent for the royal signa ture to England, the Crown lawyers had objected to and retumed, on account of some informaUty in the wording ; these, therefore, he now re-submitted, altered, to the Keys. After various heads of public business were spoken on by his Grace, the members of the Keys retired to their own house, and after some debates rejected, I understood, one act so amended in toto. I could not gain admission into the House of Keys, so that I was not grati fied with any specimen of Manks oratory, but the principal and most famed speaker was not present— Adieu ! 123 LETTEE xn. To the same. Dear Sir, XN addition to what is said of the House of Keys in the third -*- letter, page 33, I now send some farther remarks, with thefr names, date of election, and residence ; some observations on their laws, and the ceremony adopted in their promulgation; together with an account of the principal estates in each parish. In 1450 a House of Keys was elected by the people, but soon after they elected themselves, and they continue so to do. From the decrees and judgments of the Govemor, and the determtnar tion of the Keys, an appeal lies to his Majesty in councU. Appeals may be had in causes of so low a value as five pounds. They were anciently called Taxiaxe ; and Mr. C. VaUancey, in a letter to Mr. More, of Douglas (whose politeness I here acknowledge), remarks, that " in the Gaedhlic, taisce is a pledge or hostage ; and aisce, a trespass. Query, therefore, were they not obliged to offer themselves as hostages to the lord, for the trespasses committed by thefr clans, tn the same manner as the Duinne tagu of the ancient Irish ?" The House of Keys appear to have been always jealous of their rights. They have unKormly opposed any thing that they conceived militated against them in parliament The people look up to them as the guardians of their property and rights ; and it does not appear that they have ever forfeited thefr confidence. One remarkable instance I shaU beg leave to state to their honour. . So uncertain was the state of property, that in 1643, from the i 124 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. fraud of a deemster, the people were prevaUed on to surrender their estates, under the idea that they held merely as tenants at wiU. The deemster and lord's officers led the way, gave up their estates, and accepted leases for lives of their estates of inherit ance ; the people followed their example. The deemster, how ever, obtained a restoration of his estate by an act of Tynwald, and the people found themselves deceived. The Keys stepped forward, acted with firmness, and in 1703 obtained the Act of Settlement which did away with these pro ceedings and restored the -violated tenures. A List ofl ihe House ofl Keys, 1798. 1752. John Taubman, Esq. ; Speaker, Castleto-wn. 1767. WiUiam CaUow, Esq. ; Cloughbane. 1773. Samuel Wattleworth, Esq, ; Knock-Eushen, 1774, John Stevenson, Esq, ; Largadoo. 1774. PhiUp Moore, Esq. ; Poolvash. 1775. WilUam Cubbon, Esq.; BaUa-CalUn. 1775. WiUiam Christian, Esq. ; BaUa-Younage. 1777. John C. Curwen, M.P. Worktngton-HaU, Cumberland. 1779. George Quayle, merchant, Castleto-wn. 1779. John Cosnaghan, attorney, Douglas. 1781. Thomas AUen, Esq.; BaUa-Varrey. 1785. John Taubman, major. Nunnery. 1788. Eichard Symonds, merchant, Douglas. 1790. James Brew, farmer, KeUa. 1791, Thomas Kirwan, Esq.; Castleto-wn. 1791. John Harrison, Esq. ; CooUbane. 1793. Thomas Gawne, attorney, Douglas. 1793. Daniel TUlet captain, BaUenemona. 1793. John Corlett Esq, ; Eamsay, 1794. Norris Moore, attorney, Castletown. 1794. James Kelly, attorney, Castletown, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 125 1795." James Quirk, Esq.; Knockaloe. 1795. Thomas Christian, captain, Eayrioldsway. 1795. WUUam QuUUn, M.D. ParvUle. In all twenty-four. The above act of settlement passed February 4th, 1703, which, with an act explanatory thereof, promulged the 6th of June, 1704, wiU be found at length in Mr. Stowell's new edition of the Statutes of the Isle, 1797, Svo. The inhabitants esteem these acts as their Magna Charta, as they form the basis of the tenure of the lands and heredita ments, and the true security of the real estates and premises within the isle. -Among the laws of the island we find the foUowing, some of which are singular : — " No action of arrest shaU be granted against a landed man, or native -within this isle, to imprison or hold him to baU, unless he has obtained the governor's pass, or that there is some other just cause to beUeve he designs to go off the island ; and that any person prosecuted for a foreign debt by an action of arrest ' shaU be held to baU only for his personal appearance to such action, and for the forthcoming of what effects he hath within this island." " If any man die, the widow to have one half of aU his goods, and haK the tenement in which she Uves during her widowhood, if his first wKe ; and one quarter, if the second or thfrd wKe. The eldest daughter inherits, K there be no son, though there be other chUdren." " If a man get a maid with child, and then within a year or two after doth marry her, such chUd is judged to be legiti mate by our laws." " Persons beating another violently, beside punishment and charges of cure, are fined 10s. But K the person so beat used upbraiding and provoking language so as to cause such beating, they are to be fined 13s. 4c^. and to be imprisoned." 126 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. An ancient ordinance says, "There ought to be Oorhs per taining to a man, as if his father have a pan, the son to have it ; or else his best jack and saUet ; bow and arrows (commuted by stat of 1748 * for the modern weapons of war), his best board, and best stool; his coulter and rackentree; his best cup, K it be wood and bound with sUver and gilt ; his best chest For a woman, the best wheel and cards, racken tree ; a sack, or else a Manks spade ; the best bead of jet or amber ; the best broach ; the best cross ; the best pot or pan," " If any man take a woman (Temporal custom, laws, 1577) by constraint or force her against her wUl ; K she be a wKe he must suffer the law for her ; if she be a maid or single woman, the Deemster shall give her a rope, a sword, and a ring, and she shaU have her choice, either to hang with the rope, cut off his head with the sword, or marry htm with the ring." Eeport says that every complainant has been lenient except one, who presented the rope; but relented on the prisoner being tucked up, and desired he might be let down. She then presented the ring, but the man repUed, " That one punishment was enough for one crime ; therefore he should keep the ring for some future occasion." Wives have a power to make thefr wiUs (though thefr husbands be living) of one haK of aU the goods ; except in the six Northem parishes, where the wKe, if she has had chUdren, can only dispose of a third part of the li-ving goods. Tradition says, the South-side ladies obtained this superior pri-vUege, by assisting their husbands in a day of battle. , Executors of spiritual men have a right to the year's profits, if they Uve tUl after twelve o'clock on Easter-day. They retain the usage (observed by the Saxoijs before the Conquest) that the Bishop, or some priest appointed by him, do always sit in their great court along with the governor, tUl * By the said statute, Protestants are aUowed to keep fire-arms, which " are to descend to their heirs and assigns, in place of the ancient weapons of war caUed corba, and be a full satisfaction for the same." A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 127 sentence of death (K any) is to be pronounced ; the Deemster asking the jury, instead of guUty or not guUty — Vod fir charree soie? which is, "May the man of the chancel, or he that ministers at the altar, continue to sit ? " Mortgages must be recorded within six months ; and by the laws of the island, aU mortgagees are empowered, at the expiration of five years from the date of their mortgage, to take possession of the lands granted in mortgage, and retain the same untU the mortgage is paid off, setting the lands yearly by pubUc auction, and crediting the mortgager with the rent. Notwithstanding which the mortgager has a right at any time to pay off the mortgage within twenty-one years. In 1594, among other articles to be inqufred of at the then next consistory court, were the foUowing : — "That the Queen's Majesty's injunctions are to be read in their churches. " That they inqufre of and present if there be any in this isle that do use -witchcraft or sorcery. "Also, all such as carry bells or banners before the dead, or pray upon the graves of the dead." Thefr criminal code of laws do not provide against many offences committed in the present times ; but I doubt not but the House of Keys wUl soon " extend to the pubHc, those blessings which shaU arise from improved laws, administered with purity, under a correct and energetic system of poUce, and appUcable to the present state of society." The annual mode of promulgating the laws is at the Tynwald HUl. This mount is supposed to be a Danish barrow. Ting signifies a court of justice ; and wald, fenced. The spot where the parUament met in Ireland bore the same name.* * The Western islands had a sheriff of the isles, under the Norwegian dynasty ; but when the lands were parcelled out afterwards by the lords of the isles, the descendants of Somerlade, among barons of difi'erent ranks and sizes, each of these barons, assisted by the chief men in the community, held his court on the top of a hill, caUed Cnoc an eric, that is, the Hill of Pleas, where pubUc business was transacted.— (Macqueen's Diss, on the Gov, of the West, Isles, 1774.) 128 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. And at Castletown, the Governor, CouncU, Deemsters, and Keys, when assembled, constitute a Tynwald Court The foUowing is a recent account of the forms observed at the Tynwald HUl Agreeable to ancient custom, every parish sent four horse men, properly accoutred ; g.nd the captain of every parish presided over those of his own district About eleven o'clock the cavalcade arrived at St John's, where the Duke of Athol was received by the clergy and keys, and saluted by the fencibles ; he then went in state to the chapel, where an exceUent sermon was preached by the Eev. Mr. Corlett the worthy and learned -vicar of Kfrk-German. After service followed the procession of state. The fen cibles were drawn up in two lines, from the chapel-door to the Tynwald HUl; and the procession passed bet-wixt the two lines, in the foUowing order : 1. The clergy, two and two, the juniors first. 2. The Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man. 3. The Vicars General. 4. The two Deemsters. 5. Major Taubman, sword-bearer. 6. His Grace the Duke of Athol, 7. The Lieutenant-Governor. S. The Clerk of the EoUs. 9. The twenty-four Keys, two and two. 10. The Captains of the different parishes. As soon as his Grace had ascended the hiU, he was seated, under the canopy, in his chafr of state. The Deemsters then proceed in the customary business of the day : — but for this, and the order of the court we present the foUowing extract from the ancient statute relating to this business : — " This is the constitution of old time how the Lord should be governed on the Tynwald day : first he is to come thither in his royal array, as the King ought to do, by the prerogatives and royalties of the land of Man, and upon the Tynwald HiU sit A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 129 in a chair covered with a royal cloth and cushions, and his visage to the east and sword before him, holden with the point upwards, his barons tn the third degree sitting beside him, and his beneficed men and deemsters before him, and his clerks, knights, esqufres, and yeomen about him, and the worthiest of the land to be caUed in before the deemsters, if the lord wUl ask anything of them, and to hear the government of the land and the lord's wtU, and the commons to stand without the circle of the hUl -with three clerks in their surpUces, and the deemsters shall caU in the coroner of Glanfaba, and he shaU caU in all the coroners of Man, and thefr rods in their hands, and thefr weapons upon them, either sword or axe, and the moars of every sheading ; then the chief coroner, that is, the coroner of Glanfaba, shaU make a fence upon pain of Ufe and Umb, that no man shaU make any disturbance, or stfr, in the time of Tynwald, or any murmur or rising in the King's presence, upon pain of hanging and drawing : and aU the barons, worthiest men and commons, to make faith and fealty to the lord; and then to proceed in whatsoever matters are there to do in felony and treason, or other matters that touch the governance of the land." The new laws were read in EngUsh, and afterwards in Manks ; and, after aU the business on the hUl was gone through, three cheers were given, to the lord lieutenant and governor IN CHIEF. His Grace then descended from the hUl, and the procession moved back again to the chapel, tn the same regular order. After the necessary business was finished in the chapel, such as signing the laws, &c. his Grace was con ducted to his coach, and retumed to his seat The several estates above mentioned, of governor, council, deemsters, and keys, have power of making ordinances, which have the effect of laws without the royal assent and this is a privi lege pecuUar to this island ; a circumstance most probably arising from situation, as many sudden emergencies might require a dis patch which could not await the obtaining the royal assent. K 130 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. These ordinances are certain orders and resolutions, which have from time to time been made by separate branches of the legislature, and which have been received and used as laws, and are retained in use and force; at this day. They are, properly speaking, a part of the common law, and are in force no further than they have been sanctioned by and retained in use." * It is doubted if English acts of parUament wUl bind this island in any cases but in matters of revenue, and that such ought to be first promulgated on the Tynwald hiU. Attorneys are natives, thefr fees are regulated by the statute law, and as a specimen I subjoin a few. At the Rolls office (by stat. of 1734) for entering an action and a copy thereof, containing one side of haK a sheet of paper, 6c?. If it exceeds the common length of action, for every twenty-four words, an halfpenny. Copy of an action and decree in Chancery, Is. &c. Spiritual Court Fees. For writing probate of a wUl (by stat of 1748), Is. 2c?. For a poor person, 4c?. Granting administea tion, 3s. 4c?. &c. Attorneys' Fees. Eetainer (by stat of 1777), 2s. lie?. Attend ance to receive instmctions, 3s. 4c?. Draft of bUl-in Chancery, sheet written on aU sides, 3s. 6c?. Filing and ordering an office copy. Is. 2c?. ; attendance at the office to receive the said copy, 7c?. Taking out a common action, 7c?. Arguing on a frial before the deemster, 2s. 1 Ic?. &c. SmaU as these fees are, . yet I am informed a principal attorney gets about 300?. per annum. The spirit of litigation is too prevailing, fostered by this circumstance and by the promptitude of decision. The present attorney-general is Mr. FrankUn. By an act of Tynwald, passed in 1796, persons cfrculating seditious books, or speaking seditiously, are subjected to a penalty • Preface to Statutes and Ordinances of the Isle of Man, by T. Stowel, Svo, 1792, Douglas, Briscoe, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 131 not exceeding 100? and one year's imprisonment To be tried by a jury of six men before the deemster ; subject to imprison ment on the deemster's warrant untU bond be given for the sum, and for appearance to stand trial. This island has ever been very loyal; in the time of the Lord Protector Cromwell, the island under Lord Derby sub scribed two sums of 500? each towards the royal cause ; this sum must at that period have amounted to nearly half the specie in circulation. And in the recent subscriptions they have sho-wn their attachment to the British government by doing as much as thefr abiUties would permit. The House of Keys subscribed 175?. as a voluntary gKt on the late occasion, with the foUo-wing observations : — " House ofl Keys, March 13, 1798. " The Keys of the Isle of Man, the constitutional represen tatives of the people, warmly attached to their Sovereign, and the constitution of Great Britain, offer this their mite in aid of their cause : and they feeUngly regret that, tn tendering so smaU a sum, there is so great a disproportion between their wishes and their abiUties, having no public funds at their dis posal, and being prevented from raising any, in consequence of an influence equaUy unjust and impoUtic, which unfortunately for thefr country they are unable to remove." Of this influence, though well known in the island, from deUcacy as a stranger, I forbear to state or comment on. A VIEW OP THE PRINCIPAL ESTATES, ETC. WITH THEIR PROPRIETORS, 1798. In Maughold. BaUakUly,* belonging to Mrs. D. CaUow. Cloughbane, Mr. WUUam CaUow. BaUaglass, Mr. G. Callow. BaUafaU, * The word Balla is thus explained in Owen's Welsh Diet. Svo. Bala, a. m,-^ pi, t, on. (bai) a shooting out, or discharge, eruption ; BaUacoed, the budding or blossom of trees ; BalaUyn, the outlet or efflux of a lake ; hence it is prefixed to the name of many places in Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, K 2 132 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Mr. Thomas Fargher. Belure, Mr, John Christian. BaUastole, Mr. John Frissel, The Geary, a pleasant house, tenanted at present by Simon Purdon, Esq. N.B. Lewaigue was formerly the chief estate, but it is now divided into various portions. Lezayre. BallakUUghan, Dr. Curphy. MUlto-wn, J. C. Curwen, jun. Esq. ; tenanted at present by Mr. Cuiphy, jun. Glentraman, Mr. John Corlett, H.K. (from glen and traman, an elder). Loughan-nyeigh, Capt J. Corlett Glenduff, Mr. Crow, &c. EUanbane, Mr. Standish Christian. The Nappin, Mr. D. TUlet. The Grange, Mr. Dela Prime. BaUabrooie, Mr. W. Garratt CooUbane, Mr. Harrison. The KeUa, Mr. James Brew. The Great KeUa, Mr. J. Corlett BaUadroma, Mr. W. Curphy. BaUadoole, Mr. Goldsmith. Aust Mr. Clarke, &c. Bride. Ballacowle, Mr. Wm. Moore. Ballyonage, Mr. Christian. BaUamoar, Mr. Corlett BaUakUley, Mrs. Copeland. Andrea,s. BaUavodan, his Grace the Duke of Athol. GUghagh, Mr. James Brew. BaUavary, Mr. Thomas AUen. BaUachurry, Mr. Thomas Christian. BaUaradcUffe, Mr. J. T. Eadcliffe. BaUawhane, Mr. John Tear. N.B. This gentleman's family have been long in possession of some valuable medicinal preparations, which they liberaUy distribute to the reUef of the poor. Jurby. Ballamoar, Mr. Christian. Clerks, or West Napping, which is a quarterland and a half (see page 41), Mr. Clerk. Sartfield, Deemster Lace. BaUaugh. The estates in tlus parish run rather smaU, in general not A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 133 exceeding 100?. per annum. The principal proprietors are the families of Gelling, Corlett, Crane, and Tear. Major Taubman has also some property tn it Kirk-Michael. The Bishop's Domain. Whitehouse, Major Taubman's, the residence of Mr. WUks. The two Crenanes and Bark, Mr. Can- neUs. Orrisdale, the property and seat of John Frissel CreUin, Esq. deemster. Gennan. Lhargodoo, Mr. Stevenson, captain of the parish. Ballaquane, Mr. CoweU (brewery). Mr. Csesar Wattleworth's, near Peel. Glenfaba, ^r. Cooper, resident in Peel ; and Kinner, Mr. John GeU. Kirk-Patrick. The estates in this parish here mentioned vary in value, from 100?. to 300? per annum, and upwards. BaUamoar, most plea singly embosomed in trees, belonging to PhUip Moore, Esq. Knockaloe, James Quirk, Esq. captain of the parish. BaUa- cosnaghan, James Thomas, Esq. surgeon, E.N. Gourdon, Mr. T. Eatcliffe. BaUacaUin, Mr. Moore ; and Knockaloe-Zie^r (signKying little), Mr. Corrin. Maroum. BaUakUly, Eev. Mr. Christian. The Gharth, Mr. T. Clucas, a minor.' BaUahutchin, Mr. Kewley. BaUaquiney-wioar (sig nifying large). Miss Christian. BaUaquiney-6e^, Colonel Holwell. BaUa-mcholas, Mr. John Clucas. CorvaUa, Mr. Clucas. Balla- calUn (which is a romantic and pleasing situation), WiUiam Cubbin, Esq. Braddan. Port a Shee, his Grace the Duke of Athol. The Nunnery (see parochial notices). Major Taubman. Pulrose — Ballafton, 134 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, late Mr. Southcote's, now Mr. Brideson's. Snugborough — Farm- hUl, Mr. Wilson. OathUl, Captain Forbes. Strangford, the residence of Colonel Dawson. Fort-Ann, Mr. Whalley; BaUa brooie, &c. Onchan. Howstrake, Mr. James Bancks. Bibaloe, Mr. Symonds. Beemagh, Mr. Heywood. BaUafoghague, or the Hague, Cap tain Cook. Ballacreetch, Captain StoweU. 1 Sulby, J. F. Crel lin, Esq. deemster. 2 Sulby, Mr. SkUlecom. Langehan, Mr. Cowin. Slegeby, Mr. Christian, Balla-cottier, Mr, Quirk ; and Clepes, Mr, Christian. Lonan. The BaUadruma's, belonging to Mr. Christian and Captain Moore. BaUameanagh, Mr. Mylchreest BaUamoore, Mr. Looney. BaUdrine, Mr. KeUy. BaUaga-wn, Mr. Gale. BaUaskirro, Mr. Scarf BaUjean, Mr. Kelly. Kirk-Christ Rushen. The principal estates in this pleasant parish are, BaUa- kentraugh, Mr. Qualtrough., BaUa^gawn, Thomas Gawn, Esq. H.K. Balla^churry, ditto. Port St Mary, Mr. Clucas. BaUa- hough, Mr. Watterson. The Eounaneys, ,Mr. CotchiU, Mr. Knightson, Mr. Gawn. Arbory. BaUadoole, Captain Stephenson. BaUakeigin, Mr. Kerwin. The Friary, Mr. Tyldesley. BaUanorris, Major Taubman. Balla- kindry, Mr. Harrison.. Ballaclague, Mrs. Harrison. Mr. QuUUn's handsome seat is the residence of the Eev. Mr. Spence. Santon. Mount-Murray, Lord Henry Murray (late Sir Wadsworth Busk's). Oatland, Mr. Gates. Ballahough, Mr. J. Moore. Maery-voir, Ballacrega, &c. Mr, John Clucas, captain of the parish. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 135 Malew. Eenoldsway, or Eeginaldsway, Thomas Christian, Esq. captain of the E,M. battalion. The Creiggan's, a weU-cultivated estate, Mr. Quayle, late Clerk of the EoUs. BaUahot, Eushen-Abbey, -with the adjoining lands, &c. belong to the late Deemster Moore's famUy. N.B. In this enumeration of estates I have been as accurate as my information would permit The omission of any name or estate, the proprietors may rest assured, is not intentional To a card that I circulated to solicit information on various topics connected with the island, it is rather singular, not a single reply was retumed ; this I trust wUl sufficiently apologize for any omission on my part POSTSCRIPT. I perceive by the statement of the Humane Society for 1798 (an institution for the recovery of persons drowned, or by any other means apparently dead), that the prize question for the next year, is " on the means of preserving mariners from shipAvreck, pointing out the most probable means of keeping the vessel afloat, and also of conveying assistance from shore to vessels in distress within a moderate distance from land, and when boats dare not venture out to thefr aid." This information wiU be particularly acceptable to all insular situations, and very much so to the Isle of Man. When the Manks are informed that this society, in which you, sfr, have borne so active and distinguished a part, have by thefr continued efforts saved between two and three thousand Uves from premature death, they wUl no doubt be happy to diffuse a knowledge of its plan and process over thefr country. Permit me, therefore, to express a wish that this spot may in turn be an object of your notice. 136 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, Any of your small portable communications or cards, if con signed to Messrs. Leece and Drinkwater, respectable merchants in Liverpool, wiU be by them readily diffused through the prin cipal towns of Man. I was much gratified with Mr. Shairp's * letter to you, dated St Petersburgh, Sept 25, 1797, wherein he incloses, as a present to the society, one hundred pounds from the British factory there, for the services you have 'rendered them in esta blishing a simUar society in that city. " Recording spirits round Ufe's altar stand — Restored they come to haU the gen'rous hand That raised suoh blessings in his native land." t I was pleased with the dialogue of WUUam and Henry written for your anniversary of 1798, particularly with the above deserved compUment to yourseK for your philanthropic exertions in the godUke cause of resuscitation. I now proceed to give you the best account I can of my walk through the island, which I trust wiU be the more acceptable as the pubUc are in possession of no parochial sketches of it I was accompanied by J. E. Wright, of America, who is since gone on the coast of Guinea, as a surgeon ; and whose atten tion, skUl, and humanity, to his unfortunate brethren, I have no doubt wUl do him great credit — ^Adieu ! -* His Majesty's Consul-General in Russia, + Dr, Hawes, to whom these letters are addi-essed. PAROCHIAL TOUR J HE ISLE OF MAN. 139 PAEOCHIAL TOUE. rriHE Isle of Man is di-vided into seventeen parishes, viz. : — 1. Kirk Maughold. 10. Kirk Marown. 2. Kirk Christ Lezayre. 11. Kirk Braddan. 3. Kirk Bride. 12. Kirk Onchan. 4. Kirk Andreas. 13. KirkLonan. 5. Jurby. H. Kh-k Christ Rushen 6. BaUaugh. 15. Kirk Arbory. 7. Kirk Michael. 16. Santon. 8. Kirk German. AND 9. Kirk Patrick. 17. Kirk Malew. It is generaUy aUowed that local history has many beneficial tendencies. By bringing us acquainted with our country and its inhabitants, it enhances our love for them. Our attachments are proportionaUy increased with our knowledge ; and " the view, or even the description, of the aged mansions or the venerable effigies of our iUustrious ancestors, may kindle sparks in our breasts equally favourable to -virtue and patriotism, with those said to have been excited by the waxen memorials of the Eoman nobiUty. " Sepulchral tombs and monuments seem to have a pecuUar effect in this way, and the preservation and recording of them is in some measure worthy of public regard with us, as it was among the nations of antiquity. " Such memorials often ascertain a famUy descent when other 140 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. remembrances have perished, and may be appealed to as decisive in point of genealogy." * These considerations, it is trusted, 'fviU account for the atten tion paid to this department " May he survive his relatives and friends ! " was the impre cation of a Eoman on the person who should destroy the monuments of his ancestors. A tour on foot of a fortnight brought me acquainted -with the parishes in the above order ; I shall therefore begin -with — 1. KIRK MAUGHOLD, Which is on the north side, bounded mostly by the sea, by Lonan, and Lezayre. The town of Eamsey is in this parish ; the land being hiUy and dry, is awkward for tiUage, and not weU adapted for pasture. It makes less butter and cheese than any other parish, considering its extent, which I suppose is sixteen mUes round. In 1791, the inhabitants petitioned for a new pier and quay &c. at Cornah Bay in this parish. Thefr petition states, that " agriculture and the herring fishery being the only support of the parish, a safe harbour is therefore a most desfrable object, the want of which prevents them from attending the fishery, and carrying lime-stones from Castletown (this parish being most distant from lime-stones, thefr only manure, of any in the island), with that advantage they might ; that the natural harbour of Cornah has eighteen feet water at spring-tides, &c. but is at present so choked up, that it is extremely hazardous io the farmers or fishermen to land, who are therefore frequently obUged, at great danger and loss, to run for Eamsey. They therefore pray an attention to this harbour,-f- and that it may be made a safe and commodious retreat against the violence of the weather, &c, as there are several boats that pay lis. per annum in the parish." * See Introd. to CoUinson's Hist, of Somerset, 4to. 1791, 3 vols. t A plan of this harbour is jinnexed to the Report of the Commissioners in 1792. Plate . 1 . Plate. 11. A TOUR THROUGH THE -ISLE OF MAN. , 141 The road from Eamsey to the church, about three miles, is extremely pleasant commanding a fine sea-view, valley, and mountains. The celebrated earth-bathing Doctor Graham once retumed hither, and on the top of an adjacent hUl exercised on himself monkish austerity. In 1791 the German empirics, Goergslenner and Schedet visited the island, but thefr stay was short The reUgious society of St Bees was possessed of some . valuable property in this parish, and a smaU sum is now paid annuaUy to St Bees' school, on which account the parish claims a right of sending two boys thither, gratis. There is a small portion of land in this parish the property of John Christian Curwen, Esq., said to be a barony, consisting of a smaU tenement called Ball-Ellen, or Ball-Allin, computed to be haK a quarterland, which, with the remainder thereof, consisting of a parcel of heathy land, and hough or strand, is rated in the parish accounts to one quarterland. The quit-rent is said to have been raised some years ago from 20s, Manks to 20s. British, and is payable to Mr. C. Curwen, but he holds no court there. Of the smaU district called Staff-Land, the quit-rents or dues go to his Grace the Duke of Athols impropriator, or lessee of .the impropriate tithes of Kfrk Maughold.- This, in common with other parishes, has a parochial EngUsh school, generally situated near the church. On the road side from Eamsey, near Port le VoUlen, is a stone of considerable antiquity, six feet high, three wide, and five inches thick, -with five raised baUs on it (see plate u.). Other stones (probably Danish) in the churchyard are represented in the same plate. A similar one to that in Kirk Michael parish Ues without the churchyard; and opposite is the beautKul piUar represented in plate 1. Maughold head is a bold promontory, with tiers of moss- crowned rocks on its summit, Under these rocks is a fine 142 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. spring, caUed St Maughold's Well, which formerly was, and even at this day is, much resorted to on account of its supposed medicinal -vfrtues. An old legend relates that it has so prolific a quaUty, that if a barren woman be placed in the saint's chair, and take a glass thereof, it imparts fecundity ; but it probably lost its virtue with the loss of the priests in whose custody it used to be. The church dedicated to St Maughold is seventy-two feet long, and only seventeen broad ; this inequality of dimensions is found to prevaU in general The chancel appears to be ancient The font is very large, evidently made for a total immersion of the infant. The churchyard occupies a large space. " Here, not to sympathy unknown, F>ill oft the sad muse wand'ring near, Bends silent o'er the mossy tomb. And wets it with a willing tear." — Gbkbard. During the government of Conindrius and Eomulus, we learn that St. Maughold was cast in here, in a Uttle leathern boat, his hands manacled and bolts on his feet ; the bishop received him with admfration and pity, especiaUy when he informed him that he had been a captain of robbers tn Ireland, and that he volun tarily underwent this penance for his former course of Ufe. He retired into this parish, where once a city is said to have been built but of which there are no remains -visible at present. In this retirement it was that St. Bridget one of the tutelary saints of Ireland, came to receive the veil of -vfrginity from his hand, as her nephew Cogitosus, who -wrote her IKe, informs us. He was elected Bishop of the Island. A rivulet faUs into the sea at Balure, and another at Cornah : the former has a bridge over it on entering Eamsey, the latter on the great road to Laxey ; both picturesque objects. Maughold fair was much resorted to before the estabUshment of one at Laxey ; it is now but thinly attended. Vicars. The Eev. Thomas Allen, in 1642, died at Ormskirk, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 143 Eobert Allen, 1662. Thomas AUen, 60 years, 1726. W. Eoss, curate one year. H. AUen. T. AUen, his son. T. W. J. Woods, translated to Braddan. In 1769, Thomas Cubbon, who is the present vicar. The register begins in 1647. ' Among the notices of burials is that of " Edmund Christian, who was sometime captain at sea, and afterwards, for a time, Govemor of the Isle of Man ; he departed this IKe in Peele Castle, being a prisoner there for some words spoken concerning the King, ,when the great difference was betwixt the King and Parliament He was committed by James Earl of Derby, being then in this isle, and John Greenhaugh, governor. He was buried, Jan. 22, 1660, in Kfrk Maughold church, where he was baptized." The words "perished at sea" often occur in the tegisters. Six couple were married tn 1732, after which is this memo randum by Bishop WUson : — " I desfre that the -vicar for the future sets down by what authority the persons are joined to gether in matrimony ; whether by Ucence, and by whose Ucence, or upon banns in the church." RAMSEY Is a small neat town, containing about 300 houses, situated sixteen mUes from Douglas, by the Laxey road, and twenty-six mUes by way of Kirk Michael, sixteen from Peele, nine from Kfrk Michael, eight from BaUaugh, eight from Jurby, five from Kfrk Bride, and four from Kfrk Andreas. It has a spacious bay with good anchorage, but the sand has injured its harbour : the pier protects the town ; but at a com paratively smaU expense, a new quay, new basin, &c. might be completed. (Vide the plans in the Commissioners' Eeport, 1792, foUo.) An exceUent harbour could be made at Port Lewaigue, on 144 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Eamsey Bay. A quay to run from the land to the Carrick, or rock, in the corner of the bay, would be the means of affording a safe anchorage for vessels of great burden ; and doubtless the o-wners of vessels in both channels would subscribe to such a work, if Govemment would take the lead. The present harbour is very bad, and affords no shelter but for very smaU vessels. The expense would be about 5,0001 to do it completely. The contentions of the early Princes of Man rendered Eam sey often the seat of war. It is protected from foreign enemies by a fort and several pieces of cannon. The old fort was buUt about 1648, on account of a Scotch ship having entered and plundered the place. The Earl of Derby obtained, however, reparation from the Scotch parUament. Eamsey Bay affords plenty of herrings, salmon, and flat fish ; crabs, periwinkles, sand eels, &c. The town has a pubUc brewery ; and is also the residence of the Deemster for the northem district who here holds his courts ; and has besides a high-bailiff, coroner, lock-man, and sumner. In the custom-house department here are a coUector, acting coUector, searcher and deputy, a ridiiig officer, boatmen, &c. It has a light-house, the lower part of which is now used as a temporary prison, and the pubUc school-house is used as a court of justice ; but by the Duke of Athol's exertions, every necessary pubUc buUding, it is said, is about to be erected ; and the northern belles are to be gratified with an assembly-room. It has a snuff manufactory, a brewery, a ropery, a tanyard, and a pubUc Ume-kUn ; assemblies are held during the -winter ; and a friendly society was estabUshed here in 1796. The land lets high near the town ; the butter is good, but the cheese is very bad, and is so in general The chapel, a short distance from the town, was buUt on the ruins of an old Eomish one, about 1706, to which Bishop Wilson gave 51. It is sixty-one feet long, and nineteen feet broad, neatly seated and flagged. The roof is (as the roofs are A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 145 generally) unceUed. Service is performed in English, and as there are no poor-rates in the island, collections are generaUy made once a month, or oftener, in tfiis and aU the other places of worship ; for which purpose handsome copper pans are provided.* The church books are in a disgraceful state. The new version with the modern tunes are used, which tends to render that part of the ser-vice rational and agreeable. Eamsey school-house (which goes -with the chaplaincy) is forty feet long, and seventeen feet wide. It was built by sub scription about thirty years since ; Dr. WUson was a principal contributor; and an annual donation of 101. is paid in salt, from a benefactor in England. Marriages are performed at the parish church, unless by special Ucense, of which only two instances have occurred since its register commenced, in 1761. A cup and paten of sUver were the gifts of Bishop and Dr. WUson ; and a pewter flagon and plates, the gKt of Mrs. Margaret Taubman, 1746. Chaplains. The Eev. Mr. Woods, Mr. GeUing, Mr. Nelson, Mr. CreUin, Mr. Bridson, Mr. Christian,; and in 1790, the Eev. Henry MaddreU, the present chaplain. In Ramsey Chapel-yard. On an elevated monument " Here repose the remains of Marg. -wKe of Eev. John CrelUn, daughter of John Prissel and granddaughter of Deemster Christian, to whom this monument is erected by her disconsolate husband ; not as an addition to her fame — ^vain were that thought ! but as a testimony, smaU as it is, of the constant and unfeigned love he bears to the memory of the best of women, and of wives. "Puerpera ob. Aug. 18-°°- 1770, ffitat 31" 1 mo.'> * So devoutly did the warming-pan attend divine service twice every Sundaiy, that as Farmer Bull humorously observed, "The warming-pan was the best church-going Christian in the parish." — Hist. Church and W. P. 1793. L 146 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, In Maughold Churchyard. " Mary Christian, aUas Keruish, wife of David Christian, of Eamsey, buried AprU 17, 1756, aged 20. Leavuig behind her an only son, then an infant by whom this monument is now erected, not from an unpulse of vanity, but that of affection which he bears to the memory of a parent to whom he was prevented sho-wing any other mark of duty. " -WhUe letter'd marble would in vain impart The warm emotions of a feeling heart ; Fond contemplation oft approaches here. To pay the tribute of a silent tear." In Maughold churchyard are interred 14 persons between 71 and 80 years old ; 12 between 80 and 90 ; and one person of 100: some country lad, by ingeniously cutting an o, made this 180, untu the -vicar rectified it The name of Christian is very common in the island ; in Eamsey, and in this parish, are near 200 persons of that name, reckoning females and chUdren, KIRK CHRIST LEZAYRE. The church of Lezayre is situated two mUes from Eamsey, on the road from thence to Kfrk Michael It is a compound word of Lez (French), and Ayre, being one of the three parishes tn the Ayre sheading— taking its name from the point of AjTe, that being the extremest point of it towai'ds the north. This parish is so extensive, that it is embraced by Kfrk Michael, BaUaugh, Jurby, Andreas, Bride, Maughold, Lonan, Onchan, and Braddan ; it is therefore almost an inland parish, the east end only joining the sea, about two miles north of Eamsey : the shore being flat and sandy, affords nothing remarkable. In appearance this parish varies greatly; some part being quite fiat other hUly ; some rocky, and a great part mountainous. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 147 Trees thrive, especiaUy under that extensive range of hiUs that run east and west through the parish; they consist mostly of ash, some fir, asp, &c. The soU varies, like-wise, > from sand and gravel to clay and turfy strata, and many parts are not without a fine loam. The proportion of arable is greatet than meadow land. The mountains afford heath ; and as weU as the low fenny land, termed here the Curragh, have plenty of peat bogs of an exceUent sort. There are three hamlets : Church-town, near the church ; BaUy- mannagh, in a vale between Primrose-hUl and the Carrac-hUl, to the south of the main road from Eamsey to Kfrk Michael ; and Sulby, on the borders of the same. Two rivers take thefr rise in and run through the parish, -viz. Sulby river, which rises from Snafield, winding down GUon- mooar, and meeting the sea at Eamsey. And MUnto-wn river, which runs through GUon-auldin, and joins Sulby river haK-a- mUe above Eamsey. Some parts lying to the north of the main river, arg subject to inundations by the risings of floods, espe ciaUy at spring tides, which flow upwards of two mUes above Eamsey. The gUons, gUls, or vaUeys, afford fine echoes ; on the north side of Skie-hiU there is a remarkable one. There are three bridges, Sulby, MUtown, and Eamsey, which are supported by the public ; an act having passed in 1739, to levy a poU4ax of Id. for buUding them. The latter has three arches, each 29^ feet wide ; it is 180 feet long, and 12 broad, and leads to the parishes of Bride and Andreas. The others are on the great road to Kfrk Michael. They are built of stone from the adjacent quarries. There are six corn, four tucking, and two flax mUls in this parish ; several stone quarries, and some yielding slate. A lead mine at GUon-auldin produced ore some years since, but is now neglected. There is no particular pubUc manufacture, but most famiUes make linen for domestic uses ; GUon-auldin was famous for its snuff, which the inhabitants manufacture themselves with stone hand-mUls. This retfred viUage makes a pretty appearance l2 148 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. from the rocks around it ; if a little more regular, you might fancy it an Indian -vUlage. Sycamores thrive in it " Where the wide heath in purple pride extends. And soatter'd gorse its golden lustre lends. Closed in a green recess, unenvied lot. The blue smoke rises from the turf-built cot." This, and the -vUlages before noticed, wiU be worthy the atten tion of a contemplative stranger; here he wiU perceive that happiness may reside clothed in a retfred garb, and far distant from the refined luxuries of modern dissipation. There are some remarkable springs, particularly John Caley's weU, and Chibber-launch. The manures are Ume, marl, and shell-sand, which is brought from Scotland, and sold, at about 6s. British per ton, out of the vessels. The names of the mountains are, Snafield, the highest in the island, Penny-Pot SUeu-coar, and North-Barule ; these are the principal Baare-ool, in Manks, signifies the top of an apple, from whence this mountain, rising to a head like it, takes its name ; from accurate observations, I have been informed that it is only five feet below Snafield, which is 580 yards above the level of the sea. " When I go to the mount caUed Barrool " (says the Earl of Derby, who was beheaded in the time of the civil war), " and tuming me round, see England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, I think shame, so fruitlessly, to see so many kingdoms at once (which no place, I think, in any nation that we know of under heaven, can afford such a prospect of), and to have such Uttle profit by them." Some silver coins, urns, skeletons, &c. have been dug up in various parts of the parish. Tradition speaks of there having been a burying-ground and chapel on Skie-hUl, under which battles were fought in the early periods of history. This parish is divided into the east and west districts, which supply each a captain to the miUtia. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 149 It has two fafrs, both held at Sulby Claddaugh ; the one on Tuesday after Trinity Sunday, the other on the 24th of June, for Unen and wooUen cloths, stuffs, hats, wooden vessels, fishing- nets, cattle, &c. These fairs used to be held near the church, but (at the instance of the Eev. Mr. Curghey) have for these fifty years past been held as above, which is about four mUes from Eamsey, under Primrose-hill ; or, as it is called in Manks, Cronk Shammark; from the top of which you have a most beautiful view of the sea, from Maughold-head nearly to Peel, and of a fine extensive champaign country. The -vUlage under it looks pecuUarly beautiful. The quarterlands, caUed the Grange, formerly belonged to the abbot and are subject to pay several customs, boon days,* &c. The church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity ; is eighty-six feet long and twenty broad. The chancel is flagged, floored, and carpeted within the raUs. An ancient stone figure is placed over the chancel window on the outside. The roof is covered and plastered. Vicars. — Eev. Eichard Fox. Samuel Eobinson. Eobert Parr > vicar-general 1718. Henry AUen, 1728. WUUam Bridson, 1730. Matthias Curghey, vicar-general 1761. John Gill, 1773. Eev. Thomas Corlett the present vicar. The church and chancel were rebuUt and enlarged in 1704 ; Bishop WUson gave 51. to it and 3Z. towards the school-house ; and in 1722, with Dr. Crow, Bishop of Cloyne, added a small estate of his to the glebe, to which it is joined. In 1715 he gave 51. to the school-house at Sulby. The old register, mutUated and imperfect begins 1636. From 1696 to 1715 inclusive, the baptisms were 754; 164 couples were married; and 436 persons were buried. From 1755 to 1774 inclusive, another period of twenty years, 851 were bap tized; 222 couples were married; and 554 persons buried. In • Boon days were formerly due for the repair of the garrisons, for the honour and .safety of the island. 150 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. the old register is this curious memorandum ; " That one Eobert Cottier's wiie was deUvered of a chUd, which was baptized upon the Monday, and she came to the church to be churched upon the Wednesday next after ; and after retuming home she feU in labour, and was deUvered of another chUd, and came to be churched upon the Saturday next after, in the same week: churched t-wice in one week. This I testKy to be the trath. Edward Crow, minister." "In 1667, Samuel Carret son to Donald a VaUan, helowe the Burne, buried 25th of May; my godson (and a stout blade), yet died. Samuel Eobinson being then minister," Inscribed on Brass in the Chancel. " Here lyeth interred the body of Mrs. Margaret daughter to Peter Heywood, of Heywood tn the countie of Lancaster, Esq. ; by his wife AUce, daughter of John Greenhalgh, of Brannelsom, in the same countie, Esq. and governor of this Isle of Man many yeares ; she was wKe to Captain John Garrett of Sulby, and left issue by him one sonne and three daughters, -viz. John, Mary, AUce, and EUzabeth, and died Jan. 16, and buried the 19th, A,D. 1669." On aflat Brass Plate, annexed. "The above John Garrett Captain of Sulby, died 1692, aged 29 years ; also his granddaughter-in-law, EUzabeth, daughter of WUUam SutcUffe, of Stausfield-haU within HaUfax vicarage, by his wife Grace Gibson, of Briggroyd, -wife of John Garrett, the fifth of Balabroy, died 13th of March, 1745, aged 40 years ; with four of her chUdren, who died in their minority, and left issue, EUzabeth, Ann, Margaret PhUip, WiUiam, Evan and AUce." 1. Arms; (colours not marked) a bend between bendlets, charged with three roses ; impaUng, a bend engraUed, charged A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 151 with three bugle-horns. 2. A field, cross saltfre, charged with a helmet ; sinister, as dexter above. "John Curghey, of Colbane, buried Feb. Sth, 1699 ; also Jane his wKe, buried May 15, 1713." In the churchyard are, among others, flat tombs to the memory of John Hodshon, of Witton in Durham, who died Feb. 18, 1729, aged 34. James Christian, of London, who died July 5th, 1778, aged 74. Joseph Bacon, of Staward in Northumberland, Esq. ; who died May 14, 1728, aged 34. And on a tomb in closed within iron raUs, " Jean Kirkpatrick, wKe of John Kirk patrick, merchant in Eamsay, who died Oct 26, 1766, aged 24 ; to whose memory this stone, as a proof of the sincerest regard, and a sacred tribute to worth and innocence, is erected by her disconsolate husband. " Quam veniente die, quam decedente requiro Et meam morions reminiscer uxorem." In Lezayre churchyard are buried 32 persons between 71 and 80 years old ; 7 between 81 and 88 ; and one of 96. A poor woman is now Uving in the parish who has entered her 100th year. Godred, the son of Olave, endowed a small plantation of the Cistercian order of Monks at Mirescoge, which is conjectured to be BaUamona in this parish ; they were afterwards incorporated -with those of Eushen. The chain of mountains that nfii through this parish appear like cliffs, which formerly the sea approached. Mr. Wansey, of SaUsbury, in his Tour through America,* mentions a very simUar range at Newhaven, that indicate the Uke appearance, though now about three mUes from the shore. ' In this blest isle, Or chance, or industry, in after-times May great improvements make ; but short, as yet. Of due perfection.'' ,* Journal of an Excursion to the United States of North America in 1794, Svo. and 12mo, Easton, Salisbiuy, 1797- 152 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. KIRK BRIDE. Kirk Bride is about five mUes from Eamsey, the most northern parish tn the island; it is a smaU parish bounded by the sea on the north and east, by Andreas on the west, and Lezayre on the south. The point of Ayre* is in this parish, being an extensive bed of sand, at the end of which the currents meeting form a large vortex. Near the road is a high mount surrounded with stones, caUed CroncyeboUen, probably a sepulchral tumulus, where ¦ " In his narrow house Some warrior sleeps below : his gallant deeds Haply at many a solemn festival The bard has harp'd ; but perish'd is the song Of praise, as o'er these bleak and barren downs The wind that passes, and is heard no more," — Southey. These, with the white stone on the hUl near the shore, on the estate of Shelag, and the ruins of a chapel, are worthy of notice. The monuments of the Danes are distinguishable from the tumuli of the Eomans by having a broader basis in proportion to their height ; but it does not appear that the Eomans were ever in this island. There are no poor, properly speaking, tn the parish ; but the poor's fund, which is about 201. principal money, was mostly caUed on by wandering paupers ; though within these two years some regulations have been*made to confine the poor to thefr own limits. The parochial Ubrary is large, and a catalogue of it is deUvered to every minister as they succeed in aU the parishes. These, and parochial or petty schools, are established throughout the island. The Ubraries were introduced by Bishop WUson and Dr. Bray, by whose advice and assistance this exceUent insti tution was undertaken. Dr. Bray died in 1729,— he continued as long as he Uved to supply books. Law's " Christian Perfection" • Ahre, Irish, signifying thin or shallow, as applied to water. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 153 was suppUed by Mrs. S. Hales, of Teddington, near Hampton- court, who gave 501. worth of books for general distribution among the poor. The schools were established by Bishop WUson; and in 1740 Lady Elizabeth Hastings left to them 201. per annum for ever. The creek called Port Cranstail is in this parish. " By creek is not to be understood, what is its essence in the language and sense of the Custom-house department, viz. having officers stationed to perform certain branches of business." It has two fafrs, one in February, the other in May ; but as most fairs depend on moveable feasts, they may not always faU in the same months precisely. The church is fifty-four feet by sixteen, having a few small windows on one side only, -vrath an unceUed roof, and a smaU beU, rung on the outside ; it is badly seated. Indeed many churches on the north side are, as to seats, &c., much in want of renovation ; on the south side they are in a better general state. The present copper pans, for collections in the church, appear by the inscription to have been the rector's gKt in 1786. The school-house adjoins the churchyard, the master's salary- is about 4Z. British per annum. Opposite the church gate is an ancient cross. The gaUery has a handsome painted front, with Bishop HUdesley's arms on it and inscribed, "This gaUery erected A. D. 1772, by favour of the Et. Eev. M. S. M." Over the chancel door are figures of our first parents in stone. On an upright stone in the chancel- is an inscription to Dorothea Curghey, -wKe to Matthias Curghey, rector of this parish, buried AprU 20, 1749, aged 79. M. C. rector, buried Jan. 31, 1754, aged 85. There is no house belonging to the rectory, and only about an acre of glebe for a garden. ' The present rector, who is also vicar- general, farms BaUakUly estate. Former rectors. — The Eev. John Eoberts, and Parr> were succeeded by the Eev. John Curghey, Eev. Mr. Millrea, 154 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Eev. PhUip Moore, and the Eev. WiUiam ¦ Clucas, the present rector, and -vicar-general. The register begins in 1693. In 1791 the Duke of Athol gave 51. British to the poor of this parish, in memory of the Duchess deceased. In Bride church yard are the' ages of 73, 74, 77, 79, and 84. The cheapness and readiness of access to stone, induce the natives to honour the ashes of the dead. As my friend, John Edward Wright, of America, sat on an uninscribed stone, he wrote extempore with his pencU the following stanzas, which, from the circumstance and spot, claim an introduction in this place : — Lines on seeing a plain uninscribed Stone in Kirk Bride Churchyard. Here lies, whom no superb inscriptions grace. No splendid pile, no mausoleum near. To speak these ashes born of noble race : Th' unletter'd stone shows humble nature here. Sleep on, departed manes, quiet rest — Heav'n's gates receive aUke the poor and great ! WhUe here on earth, if virtue sway'd thy breast Where'er thou art tlie blest rewards await Perhaps thou wert some faithful honest soul. Though poverty and pain had sorely press'd — Perhaps no sordid views could e'er control. Or keep thy Uttle from a friend distress'd. If so, though here thy dust unnoticed Ues, Thy soul in heav'nly splendour sits enthroned ; The fost'rmg choirs shaU greet thee in the skies. Nor ask thee once what riches thou hast own'd. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 155 Perhaps thou wert some genius unreveal'd. Some Newton, or some fav'rite of the muse : Alas ! that cruel penury concealed. And meanly conquer'd, nature's noble views. Perhaps thou wert an unkno-wn wanderer here. Whom better lot had mark'd in earUer years ; But adverse fortune gave a stroke severe. And left thee to depart in beggar's tears. Too oft 'tis merit's fate to be distress'd ! But stUl thou would'st not unlamented die ; The tender heart would pity as it pass'd. The feeling muse would tum and heave a sigh ! In remote parishes like Bride, the service is generaUy in the Manks language ; in some, EngUsh once a month ; in others alternately. Banns are seldom pubUshed in this island, the Bishop having the power to grant special Ucenses, which in England is confined to the see of Canterbury. A special Ucense does not cost 40s., and the common Ucense is only five shiUings. By the returns of inhabitants, it wUl be seen that the increase here is less than in any other parish, at the several respective periods. The population of the island in general is excessive : it is no uncommon thing for fourteen to be gro-wn up tn one famUy. But in general, except the eldest son and daughter, the whole are obliged to quit the island to gain their bread, and seldom return. This accounts, partly, for the disproportions between the baptisms and burials. The churches, in general, are in a remote corner of the parish. Bride being a smaU parish feels this inconvenience as Uttle as any. This church overlooks the point of Ayre, and commands a fuU -view of the noble extensive bay of Eamsey, and of the fine bold shore from that to-wn and harbour to the promontory of 156 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Maughold. The porpoise is often seen playing in this bay. The monster from which we "now turn with loathing,, was eaten with avidity by the old EngUsh epicure.* Ancient cookery exhausted all its art in mixing sauces for this delectable niorceau ; aiid there was no entertainment of any magnificence untu tlie sixteenth century, at which the porpoise, either bodily or in junks, did not find a respectable place." KIRK ANDREAS Is a rectory and archdeaconry; bounded by the sea on the north, Lezayre on the south. Bride on the east and Jurby on the west , This parish is flat and devoid of mountains, as are most of th§ northern parishes beyond the range of proitiontoties described as running through Lezayre. This fiat tract affords much and exceUent peat, and is termed the Curragh ; but by drains, and the fine marl found in this parish, the crops are rendered firm and good. Of curiosities in this parish, may be mentioned the ancient fort behind Mr. Christian's, at BaUachurry ;t which, though modern compared with the various Druidical and Danish remains, may yet be esteemed a great curiosity. Besides this, » See Warner's "AntiquitS,tes Culinarise; or curious tracts relating to ancient ¦cookery,'' 4to. Blemaire, 1791. t This noble old camp Mr. Townley thinks is not older than Charles I. This conjecture he grounds on having seen several similar to this formed during the ravil war ; he therefore thinks it was formed when the troops of the Lord Protector Crorawell were in the island. It is the most complete of any of that time, and the situation is a most eligible one, upon a small natural eminence, in a very level district. There are four noble bastions at the four corners, and it is surrounded >with a wet foss^ of very ample dimensions. The internal square for the troops to encamp upon, is a fine level piece of ground, sunk so much below the bastions and cui^tains as effectually to secure the troops within from any outward attack by fire-arms. There is not the least breach in the works. BaUachurry is a very pretty situation, rendered pleasant by some channing plantations made by Mr. Christian, within memoiy, and whieh thrive well. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 157 there are, the Cabal Druaig, the remains of ah old chapel, and several tumuli. The church is dedicated to St Andrew, and is one of the oldest in the island; fifty-three feet in length, and eighteen in width. The inside is too primitive for modern comfort, and the whole too ruinous for its liberal endowments. We trust the Archdeacon, Lord George, and his Grace the Duke, -wUl gratKy the parishioners in the very necessary erection of a new temple of worship. The parochial school is supported out of Queen Anne's Bounties, and the impropriate fund. Lanemore and Eue Point creeks are in this parish. There are two poor funds, amounting both to about 201 per annum. One for distressed farmers ; the other for the parish poor. The register begins 1666. A N.B. at the beginning of it says, "The old church registry is much defaced, torn, and abused, which was m — by Sir John Huddlestone, curate of Kirk Andreas, under the Eev. Jonathan Fletcher, archdeacon of this isle, and chaplain to the Earl of Derby ; which is transcribed and writ in this new registry, as far as the names could be read and under stood (beginning in 1666, after the restoration of the royal famUy, si^^ years) by me, Charles Wattleworth.'' In Andreas churchyard are interred 6 persons between 72 and 75 ; and 4 between 82 and 88. Here is a handsome tomb to the memory of the Eev. WUUam Mylrea, archdeacon of this isle, and rector of this parish 27 years. He died Sept 14, 1787, aged 65. Also Mrs. Elinor Mylrea, aUas Gell, his wife, who- died Feb. 6, 1795, aged 66. Another to Esther Lace, daughter of D. Lace, Esq., deemster. "Floruit amabilis et amata, et deflecta, evanuit June 22, 1778, aged 24. GuU. Cubbon, posuit" A List ofl Archdeacons since the Restoration. 1640. Eev. Samuel Eutter, chaplain to the Earl of Derby 158 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. whUst in the Isle of Man ; and at the Eestoration was conse crated Bishop of this Isle, who died 1662, and was buried in the cathedral of Peele Castle, -with his epitaph on a brass plate.* Eev. Jonathan Fletcher from 1660 to 1669, chaplain to the Earl of Derby, died at Knowlesly. He buUt the old brick house in Kfrk Andreas, 1663. Eev. Dr. WiUiam Urquart from 1669 to 1690, also the Earl's chaplain, and vicar of a parish in Kent ; who laid -violent hands on himseK by cutting his throat. Eev. John Lomax, from 1691 to 1695, ha-ving the curacy of Buzzy in Lancashire : he buUt the new house adjoining to the old one in Kirk Andreas. Eev. Archippus Kippax, from 1695 to 1699, then rector of Kirk Bride, being -vicar also of Ormskfrk; who resigned the archdeaconry and rectorship in 1699. Eev. Christ Marsden, from 1669 to 1701; he perished on the sandy banks near Liverpool, Oct 4, 1701, in a -violent storm. Eev. Samuel Wattleworth, from 1703 to 1718 ; who died the 20th of December, and was buried tn the cathedral in Peele Castle, the 23rd. He was first -vicar of Kfrk Michael, from 1672 to 1676 ; thence removed to Kfrk Patrick and German, tUl 1704. He died aged 72 — ^was registrar from 1684 to 1694, and vicar-general from that time to 1703, when he was sworn archdeacon, and inducted the thfrd of June. Eev. Eobert Horrobin, curate of Warrington, inducted Oct. 13, 1719. He resigned the archdeaconry by an instrument under his own hand, to Thomas Lord Bishop of this Isle, about the 16th of May, 1727, and removed to a U-ving in Dorsetshire, near the Island of Portland, -viz. to Winfrith, and died 1729. See further particulars of him in the Eev. C. CruttweU's LKe of Bishop WUson. Eev. John Kippax succeeded, who was chaplain to James, Eari of Derby. * See p, 16, and Kirk German. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 159 1760. Eev. WilUam Mylrea, who died in 1787. 1787. Eight Hon. and Eev. Lord George Murray. The duty done by the Eev. Daniel Myfrea, son of the above WiUiam Myfrea. Kfrk Andreas has 58 quarterlands,* most other parishes run from 30 to 45 ; Jurby indeed has but 18f . A quarterland is a weU-kno-wn division of land in the island of indeterminate value and extent, worth from 10?. to 125?. per annum. The number of what are termed intacks is estimated, including 79 null rents, at .2,700. A quarterland pays 2s. and intacks 6d. in lieu of carriage services, which were ancient services required by the lord for building or repairing forts, houses, &c. But they have fallen into disuse since 1773, when people began to refuse pay ment ; and since the death of Governor Wood, about 1777, it does not appear to have been demanded. There is an ancient monument in the churchyard, with this description ; deciphered and translated by Mr. Beauford, " Sona UK sui Svaudti raisti crus dono Aftirarin finiue Cunna sina. " The son of UK of the Swedti (or Swedes) erected this cross to the warrior Afterarin the son of Cunnu." Many barrows are seen round this parish, Mr. Chaloner, who opened one, found fourteen rotten urns or earthen pots, with thefr mouths do-wnward, with one neater than the others, in a bed of white sand, containing a few brittle bones, (as having passed the fire) but no ashes left discernible. Some of these are envfroned with great stones placed end-ways in the earth ; and some of the urns are found inclosed in stone coffins, one coffin containing many of them. JURBY. As I have now mentioned those parishes that coUectively form the coast from Maughold-head to Jurby-point it may be * See Letter IV. page 41, on this head. 160 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. requisite to state the shoals and dangers upon this coast which I shaU do from the observations of the accurate Peter Fannin. " Courses taken from the trae meridian and distance, nautical nules. Bahama banks. The north end lies S. E. one mUe from the point of Ayre, a narrow sand ; and it Ues S. E. six mUeS long ; the south end of it is N. E. six nules from Maughold- head, it has only six feet at low-water spring. King WUUam's sand ; the southmost end is N. E. and \ E. fourteen mUes from Maughold-head, a narrow sand that runs W. N. W. i N. ; the northmost end S. E. and J E. seven mUes from the point of Ayre, it has ten feet at low-water spring : about two mUes right off Jurhy is a smaU shoal ten feet low water ; close to the point of Ayre the tide runs seven mUes an hour on the spring ; except the above there is gradual sounding close to the shore aU the way from Peele to Maughold-head." Jurby is about eight miles from Eamsey, and two from BaUaugh. It is bounded by the sea, Lezayre, and BaUaugh. Its extreme part is termed Jurby-point, which, with the point of Ayre and Kirk Michael, have no revenue establishments. The point is a quarter of a mUe from the church. The Curragh drain intersects this parish, and passes through BaUaugh ; the peat or turf is fine, the immense trunks of oak and fir dug up with it (some lying deep) afford matter of surprise and astonishment, as the island is so bare of trees now, and those so smaU in size ; hazel nuts also have been found ; they are supposed to be by some antedUuvian, but are observed to lie in one particular dfreetion. These turf bogs, from thefr depth, goodness, and facility of working, are very valuable, and in a course of years regenerate themselves again ; the continual wetness inducing a continual vegetation of moss, and as the top is gro-wing the roots are putrefying and rotting ; it then runs into a mixed mass, in the round of time one layer presses another, and forms a sort of cake, which, when cut and weU dried, is fit for use. Deep bogs also appear on the summits of some of the A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 161 mountains, and the inhabitants around partly subsist by bringing it down on Manks ponies, from three to five mUes, in straw open-worked panniers caUed creels ; they sell it about ^d. per horse-load, making several journeys in a day. See Letter XI, Jurby forms part of that flat track mentioned in page 45. The low lands I noticed were often free from rain, whUe the mountains were enveloped in storms,, or hid in mizzUng fogs. The weather, as in similar insular situations, is variable and windy. The late Colonel Townley scolds the island, as one of the most humid spots on the globe. Short rains are frequent. By an analysis of* Colonel Townley's Journal,* I find that of 332 days, 1 74 were fine, though often -windy, and with frequent wet nights ; 64 days were completely wet ; and 94 days between both, beginning fine, and ending rainy, or the reverse. " From the nature of the soU barley is the grain best suited for profit to the farmer. The generality of the lands are light loams, sandy, or sharp and graveUy. To the south there are some tracts consisting of stiff clays, and cold spouty flats ; but it may be generaUy allowed, that there are few quarterlands in the island that have pot ten, twenty, or more acres of soU capable of the culture of barley. As a preparation for this, the turnip tUlage is a crop so wonderfuUy profitable as to exceed by far in profit any other crop whatever, wheat not excepted."-f- The present -vicar, the Eev. WUUam Crebbin, was ordained for this parish in 1743 ; and now, though eighty years of age, does the duty regularly. Of former vicars I could only leam the names of John and Eobert Christian ; the latter copied the old register, which began in 1606. The church and vicarage- house are both in a style of primitive simpUcity. The former is sixty feet long and fourteen broad. The sUver chalice is pecu liarly antique, and might have been used for the purpose prior to the Eeformation. It has a figure of Jesus engraved on it * Two vols. 8vp, 1791, Ware, Whitehaven, + From the Manks Newspaper, M 162 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. and several smaU heads project from its ornamental stem, which is silver and gUt alternately. The church is dedicated to the guardian genius of Mona, St, Patrick ; and the people point out the spot where he landed. Two fairs are held annually at Jurby; that at Lady-day is for the hfring of female servants. From the church is a peculiarly fine view of the three king doms, and of the north side of the island, termmated by a bold range of mountains. The poor's fund is 28?. principal Old Mrs. Christian left a spot of meadow land which bruigs in about 20s. per annum. When the present vicar succeeded to the church (upwards of. fifty years ago!) there were no donations, and the first was 12s. from a poor man. A methodist meeting, and the parochial school, are opposite each other, below the church. This parish had only one common pauper in 1797, and he it seems had only one leg. In 1744 Bishop WUson purchased some land and added it to the li-ving of Jurby. For the number of inhabitants of this parish, see the Ust P- 69. .From Jurby you proceed along a dry lofty beach to the oppo site point of the island, having the northern or Whitehaven channel on the left, and a cultivated arable country to the right. Barrows are observable, in a perfect state, as you pass the lofty beach to Laneipoor. History informs us that the inhabitants of the North-side conspired against the government of Macmarus, and were headed by Earl Outher ; a battle ensued, which was fought at a place caUed Stantway, in St Patrick's Isle (Jurby), the generals were slaih, but the North-side people gained the victory, untU the females of the South-side came with great ardour to the assistance of their husbands, and turned the fate of the battle ; for which, to this day, they enjoy half their husbands' estates during their widowhood, while the North-side ladies have only a third. .A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 163 In Jurby churchyard are buried seven persons between seventy-three and seventy-eight years of age, and one of eighty- four, and one of eighty-eight On a flat Tomb is this Inscription. "Exu. dom. Gul. Tear Ludimagist de Peel. Sepul Jul 5, 1756, an. set 74. Epit. loco Gul Tear, author, scripso. Mors heu ! psena quidem tamen est certissima -vita Janua feUcis denique Iseta pits Me licet hie retinent pro tempera vincula mortis. Spes tamen in Christo non moritura manet In Christi meritis patrisque dementis amore Est humUis mea spes hac moriorque fide. Tu Deus ipse meum cor seis secretaque cordis Obscur^ cut non abdita quaque patent Hie nihU optari dignum est heu ! omnia vana Ergo beata veni, vanaque, vita vade." This churchyard, from its elevated situation, affords a most delightful prospect of land and sea ; but this pleasure is consider ably damped by the contemplation of the mouldering heaps around. In spite of our best hopes, we are often weak enough to be mortified at this temporary suspension of consciousness. this requisite annihUation of mortaUty, " Oh ! what ia death ! 'tis life's last shore, ¦Where vanities are vain no more, -Where all pursuits their goal obtain And life is all retouch'd again : -Where in their bright result shall rise Thoughts, virtues, friendships, griefs, and joys. Notwithstanding this island is so populous, you would not think so from viewing the country from an elevation. Thick as the cottages are, they do not strUvC the eye ; the walls of the huts are seldom above seven feet high, composed generaUy of sods ofl earth, and the M 2 164 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. roofs thatched -with straw, which soon becomes of a murky hue. This straw is bound do-wn -with straw-ropes drawn over net-Uke, and fastened to pegs m the waUs ; this mode of thatching reqmres often to be renewed. "The lower class of inhabitants live on meal of oats and barley, and fish and potatoes, with a small portion of flesh meat. Thefr breakfast is of meal pottage and milk ; their dinner is of potatoes ahd flsh ; their supper pottage, or potatoes and mUk."* Their bread is made of barley and oatmeal, and is formed into very thin round cakes Uke pancakes. Among the most necessary improvements wanting with us, and particularly in the island, is the improvement of cottage buUding, and the buUding of proper and convenient houses and offices for smaU farmers; these objects are eloquently enforced in the eighth volume of the Bath Society's Papers, by the worthy and sensible secretaiy. "^Tiat can be expected to issue from the present miserable huts, but "indolence, dejection, disease, and indelicacy, which are their inseparable attendants." I cannot prevaU on myseK to mention circumstances, which here and in England have faUen under my notice, on the latter head parti cularly. Having mentioned the quantity of peat in this parish, the foUowing sentiments on peat bogs, and on the causes which produce trees &e. under them, may be acceptable. Mr. WiUiams -f- says, " all the bogs are post-dUuvian ; many of them are of recent formation, and countless numbers are now growing and forming more expeditiously than is generaUy imagined. Decayed and putrified vegetables are the origin and matter of which peat bogs are produced ; and these may and do * Agricultural Report by Mr. B. Quayle, 4to. See Sir F. Morton Eden's work on the " State of the Poor," for a curious account of the various kiads of bread used by the labouring classes, vol. i, 4to. p, 510, &o, 1797. t See WUhama on Minerals, 2 vols Svo. Dr. Anderson's Treatise on Peat Moss, and his letter to Mr. Matthews, in the Bath Society's Papers, vol, viii. 1796. White- hurst onthe "Formation of Earth," 4to. 1792. And Maton's Western Tour, 2 vols. Svo, 1797, vol, ii, p. \\5. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 165 increase and accumulate in several situations, and from sundry causes." Dr. Anderson puts a query, whether peat-moss is not a living plant, and not a congeries of decayed plants in a particular state of preservation. Mr Whitehurst supposes trees fpund in peat bogs, to have been thrown down from the higher grounds by some violent deluge, and the remains of animals, &c. to have been -victims to the same cause ; since no other cause known could have separated trees from the earth -with all thefr fibrous roots, and have assembled them thus together. Mr. Maton thinks " that they owe thefr interment to a com mon cause, which cause must have been a sudden subsidence of ground. He thinks it can scarcely admit a doubt, that the fat clayey soU is the effect of a continued decomposition of vegetable matter (this decomposition being occasioned mostly .by the frequent floods which submerge vegetation in low grounds, often for a considerable time),' and that it is increased besides by the muddy deposit left by streams that issue from the sides of the neighbouring hills." In conversation with Mr. Smith, of Monckton-Combe near JBath, in 1798, on this subject be observed, that though those fossil trees might not grow on the spot which they now oc cupy, yet recourse need not be had to any extraordinary deluge or revolution of nature, to have placed them thus ; for from a recent account of a bog in Ireland, we may justly conclude that they were brought thither by the bog itself, which, by the causes specified by Mr Whitehurst originaUy accumulated on higher ground to an insupportable mass, and by its own gravity broke down and swept away such trees, buUdings, and other things as stood in the way, covering the ploughed lands, which Mr W. describes ; the watery part having run off, the bog subsided, and formed the peat ground which now surrounds them. After all, there is stUl something mysterious about these bogs and their contents, considering all circumstances and every 166 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. combination under which they appear, and there seems room for stUl farther conjectures, and perhaps more satisfactory conclu sions on the subject BALLAUGH Is bounded by the sea, Jurby, Lezayre, and Kfrk-Michael, and a smaU portion of Braddan. There are two principal streams in this parish, one of which is crossed by a bridge of one arch at the -vUlage of BaUaugh. It has a pubUc brewery, and several hat manufactories, but these are not made of any degree of fineness. It furnishes from fifteen to twenty herring boats, and has a creek caUed Ballakeage. Marie being scarce, Ume for manure is made from the pebbles on the shore. It has two corn mUls. Flax is gro-wn in smaU quantities ; and I observe here and in Jurby, rye, and that sort of barley called Beare.* Its popidation has increased above 200 in number, from the return made in 1726 to the last in 1792, which then was 1,015 souls. These accounts are made up with regularity and exactness';, in general, though Governor Shaw conceives that, from some super stitious motive, the people do not like to give in the whole amount of their famUies. The returns run tn this style: "To his ExceUency Governor in Chief, Capt-General, ChanceUor and Guardian of the SpfrituaUties of and -within the said Isle, &c." BaUaugh is a rectory, and there is only one other, -viz. Bride. The glebe is extensive. Nearly 500?. has been laid out in the purchase of land for the poor. The mountauis of SUeu-voUey, part of SUeu-curn, Crongan, and SUeudoo, are in this parish. -* This is a variety of barley with square heads, and four rows of grain, called by old Gerard, Beare barley, or barley big, and ffordeum polystichvm vemum, to dis tinguish it from the common kind, which he styles hordeum dysOchon. It suits barren lands, and ripens early, which recommends its use in rainy climates*— Pennant's Tour in Scotland, 4to, 1776. ' A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 167 For a rural retired scene, the Gill,* and Carmiddle estate, may be explored ; the Uttle spot of Carlene mUl, with its winding rivulet and circular recess, was shewn me by the agreeable Mrs. L — 11 — n, and the Uvely Miss G . Thus accompanied, "meditation here might thinli down hours to moments." The church dedicated to St. Mary is seventy-nine feet long, and nineteen broad, covered, as most are, -with slate, of which there is plenty on the island. A stone piUar in the shape of a cross, -with a cross cut thereon in reUef, is without the church yard on a mount. In 1717 Bishop WUson laid the foundation of an additional twenty-one feet to the church. Dr. Walker, the then rector, and the Bishop, engaging to finish it; the parish subscribed 12?. towards it The steeple, which is the most ornamental of any, they were at the sole expense of The Bishop gave 5?. towards the petty school and house for the master. The inscription on Dr; Walker's tomb in the chancel is worn out The desk and pulpit were the gift of the Eev. Mr. WUks and the Bishop, in 1772. The side gaUeries were the benefaction of Mrs. Esther Hyldesley, the bishop's sister. The register begins in 1598 ; the former rectors were the Eev. Mr. Logic, Dr. Walker, and Mr Brideson, who was twenty^ one years rector, died in 1750, aged 78, and was buried in the chancel ; Eev. P. Moore, inducted July 1751. M, Curghey, 1771. Eev. James WUks, who was succeeded in 1777 by the present rector, the Eev. D. GelUng. The rectory is pleasantly situated near the church, and was » A gill, comb, glen, or dingle (for it is the same thing) is a gradually increasing, or gently declining hollow upon the surface of the earth, the sides gradually sloping down towards the middle part. They vary in size from a few hundred yards in length, and one in breadth, to three or four miles in length, one in breadth, and 400 or 500 yards in depth. They are probably formed by currents of water descending from the upper lands. Vide Calcott on the Deluge, Svo, 1768, second edition, p, 263. 168 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. built in Dr Walker's time, as appears by an inscription over the door. In the churchyard are tombs to the memory of the Eev. James WUks, rector of this parish, who was buried June 1, 1777, aged 58. To the Eev. Matthias Curghey; vicar-general, and rector of this parish, " An humble, meek, pacific man ; a sound divine, learned and exemplary ; with the Eev. P. Moore, associate re-viser of the Manks scriptures, translated by the clergy of this isle, a great, arduous, and original work." Daniel Myfrea, Esq., deemster, Feb. 25, 1775, aged 58. There is also a flat stone to the memory of Thomas Corlett, mariner, son of Wm. Corlett, and Ellin Cry, who died in Jamaica, and left the interest of 300?. to the poor of this parish for ever. Other inscriptions denote the burial of nine persons between 72 and 80 ; and three perspns between 82 and 89 years of age. Whilst contemplating in the churchyard, the foUowing senti ments of the pious Harvey occupied my mind. " Among these confused relics of humanity, there- are, without doubt persons of contrary interests and contradictory sentiments. But death has laid his hand on the contending parties, and brought all their differences to an amicable conclusion. Here enemies, sworn enemies, dwell together in unity. They drop every embittered thought and forget that they once were foes. Perhaps those who, whUe they Uved, stood in irreconcUeable variance, here faU into mutual embraces, and even incorporate with each other in the grave. 0 ! that we may learn from these friendly ashes, not to perpetuate the memory of injuries ; not to foment the fever of resentment ; nor cherish the turbulence of passion. That there may be as Uttle animosity in the land of the Uving, as there is in the congregation of the dead ! " I was aroused from these reflections by the appearance of the worthy rector and his amiable daughter, who kindly invited me to partake of an elegant repast prepared to celebrate the nuptials of Miss K B. and Mr. P. of Whitehaven, whose happiness I A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 169 have since witnessed in England — to employ the language of a friend — " 0 ever blest and happy pair ! Amidst an infant beauteous race ; Long may yoil live devoid of care. And every virtue in them trace," Here I met with my earliest Manks friend, Mr. J. GeUing, with whom, and Mr Haskins, I had made, in 1796, a tour on foot from London to Eichmond, Windsor, Oxford, Blenheim, and Stowe. The parochial school has upwards of one hundred scholars. There is a respectable inn in this parish, on the great I'oad between Kfrk-Michael and Eamsey : BaUaugh is eight mUes from Eamsey, two from Jurby, and two from Bishop's-court Hats are made here, the wool being admirably adapted for that purpose. Some thousands of rabbit-skins used to be ex ported annuaUy. I have stated the population of this parish in page 69 ; at a general muster of the whole island in 1667, there appeared to be only 2,531 men. In so smaU a district as this island, di-vided into so many parishes, it can hardly be expected that each division should take a different or a very pecuUar cast, as to soU and general produce ; wherefore observation once made, need not be par ticularly repeated. On the south side of the island there is some good pasture land, but not to be compared -with the quantity and quaUty of that to be met with in the very extensive range of grass grounds in BaUaugh, Jurby, Kirk-Bride, Andreas, and Lezayre, on the north side. In strolUng over the fields I found the common Uquorice root of some flavour. Pensively wandering on its sandy beach, my eyes were dfrected towards Ireland, by the sinking of the golden sun in the westem waves ; the horizon was most deUghtfuUy iUuminated — its splendid rays rather soUcited than repeUed the tender organs of vision, and harmonized -with aU nature around me. 170 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. " If, however (says Mr Gilpin), the admfrer of nature can turn his amusements to a higher purpose ; K its great scenes can inspire him -with reUgious awe ; or its tranquil scenes with that complacency of mind.which is so nearly aUied to benevolence, it is so much the better." Mrs. B., my feUow-traveUer, had just sailed hence for that country : as her history is melancholy, but interesting, I wUl here introduce it briefly. In the vessel which conveyed me to the island was a modest, pleasing lady ; handsome ; rather young, but something wUd in her aspect ; sorrow, it was plain, had made its inroads deep in her mind ; though the plumpness of a beautKuUy cinctured skin had not sympathized with it The winds put us back ; poUteness naturally induced me to accompany her to the inn, and then a short stay brought us to converse on personal topics. Alone, unattended, -without anything but an extra chemise and a pair of stockings — my companion was induced to press an expla nation for so hazardous and unpleasant a situation. I was then informed that she had wandered from London, some hundred miles to the distant port we then were at; that she had no other object but to seek a more hospitable shore, and unknown, wander amongst its rocks ; that the artifices of her relations had secluded her from the world, for the sake of her property, and had brought her to a lunatic asylum tn to-wn, from whence she just then had escaped, and wandering over fields and roads, had at length foUowed the one, which had brought her to that place. Her conduct was modest and decent and commanded respect ; her mind was much hurt, but her person lovely, even in grief — " The hues of bliss more brightly glow. Chastised by sabler tints of woe ; Aud, blended, form with artful strife. The strength and harmony of life." — Grat. She gave her address ere I parted with her, and in return I wrote mine in her pocket-book. In the course of the voyage, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 171 which we resumed, we each (for several ladies were on board) produced our mental food, and alternately read, told riddles, sung or chatted. Her stock, I recollect, was but scanty, " The Economy of Human LKe," and, on a card, some curious ideas, neatly printed, "on the Dignity of the Soul, arising from its Immortality," which from their singularity I here transcribe. " The eternal salvation of one soul is of greater importance, and big with greater events, than the temporal salvation of a whole kingdom, though it were for the space of ten thousand ages ; because there wiU come up a point, an instant in eternity, when that one soul shall have existed as many ages as aU the individuals of a whole kingdom, ranged in close succession, wiU, in the whole, have existed in the space of ten thousand ages ; therefore one soul is capable of a larger share of hap piness or misery, throughout an endless eternity (for that -wiU stUl be before it), more than a whole kingdom is capable of in ten thousand ages. E. P. 1797." I blush to say I was risibly incUned, on hearing these positions, but I checked myseK, and discovered more force in them • than the apparently confused style seemed to indi cate. When landed, unintroduced, and alone, she wandered for some weeks, unimpeachable in her conduct, exciting in some alter nate compassion, and suspicion — tiU, tfred with impertinent jealousies, she embarked for Ireland, since which, I have learnt nothing more of this unfortunate soUtary being, -with whose fate I sympathize, and send to heaven a fervent wish for her future protection and happiness. I could only weep over her distresses, for, alas ! my circum stances are not so often in union with my feeUngs as I could ¦wish : — But, " God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb ;" and some kind angel wiU, I hope, protect her* ¦* This formed part of an essay. No. 2S, in a periodical work, entitled the " Scribbler," printed in the " Salisbury Newspaper," 1797, under the signature of Eugenius, which also distinguished my other papers in that classical series. 172 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. KIRK-MICHAEL. This parish has one vUlage of its • name, through which the great road passes from Peel to Eamsey, which has an exceUent inn ; but it is most distinguished for its being the residence of the bishop. Bishop's-court is on the road side, about one mUe from the viUage. His lordship's domain is extensive, between 300 and 400 acres. The house has been modernized by the present bishop, who has expended much money to render it comfortable. Though not very striking in appearance, it pos sesses every desirable appendage ; the garden and walks are pleasing, and the detatched offices convenient ; a com-mUl serves the famUy, and the tenants around. There is a smaU chapel annexed to the house,* which has a large sUver flagon, value about 20?. given in the last century by Dr. Thurscross,, prebendary of York, for the use of the bishop's chapel suc cessively, untu Peel cathedral should be in a condition to receive it In a spot not particularly distinguished either for good soU (being mostly a light sand) or for luxuriancy of verdure, the umbrageous shades and pleasant walks around the palace receive a double effect, which is farther enhanced by the hospitaUty of its owners. * A convocation of the bishop and clergy of the diocese is, by the statute of 1704, ordered to be held yearly at the bishop's chapel, ou Thursday in "WhitBun. week, if his lordship be in the island, or as soon ae convenient after his retum. — - See Stat. Laws, p. 121, Svo, 1797. In a late novel we have this description of the bishop's house, which, how ever, is too highly coloured : " At length we reach a row of venerable trees leading to the bishop's palace, which is a stately edifice, and commands from one pEtrt a picturesque view of great extent and beauty. Its lofty walls are richly clothed - with the choicest fruit trees, in their most luxuriant state ; with a grotto, cascade, and beautiful flower garden, surrounded by an extensive moat, which, while it renders the breezes cool and refreshing, adds to the beauty of the enchanting scene; there is likewise a beautiful pavilion, with a small lawn fringed with plantations. Here we spent a most delightful hour, in aU the sweets of rural innocence which such a delightful situation could inspire, and departed -with tha utmost regret," — Clara Lenox, vol, ii, p, 86, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 173 Under the bishop are an archdeacon, two vicars-general and an episcopal registrar ; who with the prelate compose the Con sistory Court. The arms of the bishopric are, on three ascents the Virgin Mary, her arms extended between two piUars ; on the dexter, a church ; in base, the ancient arms of Man. In the grounds are two posts, erected in 1760 by the then bishop, to commemorate the action of Thurot off this coast ; the bishop having thence seen the contest, placed these to shew in what direction off shore it took place. Two prints, 24 by 15, of this celebrated action, were painted by E. Wright, and engraved by MUlar and Goldar, representing the action, and the ships in Eamsey bay afterwards. The one dedicated to Capt. EUiot, the other to the merchants of Liver pool Capt. EUiot gained a complete -victory ; and Thurot the French admiral, was kUled in the action : his ship, of 32 guns and 220 men, taking Thurot's, of 50 guns and 600 men ; this ship was 176 feet in length. Capt. Clements, in the PaUas, of 36 guns, took the La Terpsichore, Capt Defravendois, of 26 guns. And Capt Loggie, in the BriUiant, of 36 guns, took La Blonde, Capt. Kayce, of 36 guns and 400 men. Thurot's body was thrown overboard, probably by his own order, and sometime afterwards was supposed to have floated ashore on the coast of Scotland, and was privately interred there. The sea bounds this parish on the west ; BaUaugh on the north-east ; Braddan on the east ; and German on the south-west. Kirk-Michael is six mUes from Peel the coast road, but near eleven the best ro&,d. The pleasant viUage of Glen-wiUian is only a few minutes' walk from the inn. In this, as in almost every parish, the vestiges of the Druids, the Danes, &c., are observable. It has slate and stone quarries. The GUI of Lunnon is pleasing ; and a cascade on the old Castletown road may attract notice as you pass it It is about one mile and a half from Kirk-Michael. 174 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. The coast suppUes laver, which they term sluggane; and another sea weed in use is called dullish, somewhat of the Uke Mud ; samphire is also plentiful, but whether of the rock or the golden sort, I had no means of informing myself Within these last two years, the sand bank has suffered con siderably from the encroachments of the high tides. It has three creeks ; Glentrunk, GlenwiUian, and Glen- belegawn. There are no records to prove when the church was buUt. It is 60 feet by 16, with a side-aisle 22 feet long ; neat -within, and having only one inscription in the chancel, to M. Christian Norris and her five chUdren, 6th of July, 1695. The school- house is 28 feet by 12. The register begins in 1611 ; but is a copy of the original, which, it says, "being abused ui the parUament's time, was forced to be transcribed by Mr Henry Norris, -vicar, 1712." Donations to the poor are about 80?. principal. The chalice was given by the late Eev. Dr. Wilson, to the place of his nativity, 1755. The -vicarage-house is pleasantly situated, -with improved gardens, and a glebe of about eighteen acres. In the churchyard on a plain tomb, railed in -with iron, is the foUowing inscription : — " Sleeping in Jesus : here Ueth the body of Thomas WUson, D, D. Lord Bishop, of this Isle, who died March 7th, 1755, aged 93, in the 58th year of his con secration. This monument was erected by his son Thomas WUson, D.D. a native of this parish, who, in obedience to the express command of his worthy father, decUnes giving him the character he so justly deserved. Let this island speak the rest." On the sides the same repeated. Also, the following inscriptions on plain tomb-stones : "Elizabeth Hyldesley, alias Stoker, wife of Bp. Hyldesley, died Feb. 27th, 1763. Mark H. Lord Bishop, died Dec. 2d, 1772, in the 17th year of his consecration, aged 74." A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 175 " PhUip Moore, Norway merchant and citizen of London, died at Bishop's-court, Dec. 20, 1728, aged 78." "Hie jacet Eev. Cleve Quayle, eccles. hujus diaconus primordio -vitse sperabtUmus pietatis primitias promittens, Juvenis insigniter modestus et docUis integer vitse scelerisque purus omnibus cams nobis, cUius Deo aUter visum sibi fselicius Xto. quiescit curia espiscopi ob. Jan. 19, 1751. An 21 nat Pater 'mserens posuit veniet iterum qui me tn lucem repouet dies." Also, a head-stone erected by bishop Wilson, for John Eidd- yard, who died at Bishop's-court AprU 21st 1738, aged 47 ; whose master hath here given this testimony of his integrity, that in twenty years' service he never found cause to charge him with eye-service, fraud, or injustice. There are also many tombs to the name of CanneU, which is an ancient one in the island. In this churchyard, are also buried nineteen persons between 71 and 80 ; and eleven between 80 and 90. Former Vicars. 1670, Sfr Hugh CanneU, buried Febmary 25th. Sir Edward Nelson, buried October 26th, 1685. Eev. Henry Norris, -vicar thirty-one years, buried January 25th, 1717. Eev. John AUen, buried July 12th, 1735. Eev. John Woods, vicar-general, removed to German, and buried at Peel, 1739. Eev. Edward Moore, -vicar-general, buried 1749. Eev. James WiUss, -vicar- general, promoted to BaUaugh in 1772, when the present -vicar, the Eev. John CrelUn, succeeded, who is also episcopal registrar. An Extract flrom the Registry. " The Eight Eev. Father in God, Dr Thomas, WUson, Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, buried near the east gable of the church, March llth, 1755. His Lordship's grave, agreeably to dfrections left previous to his death, was made nine feet deep, and waUed round with brick. 176 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. " This great judge and eminent pattem of primitive Chris tianity, was born December 20th, 1663, at Burton, near Chester, in which city hd'had his school education, and from thence was sent to the University at DubUn, where he took the degree of B.A.; and in 1686, was ordained deacon by the Bishop of KUdare. He contmued in Ireland to serve the Church, tUl the disturbance in King James's reign drove him into England, where he became curate to his Uncle, the Eev. Dr Sherlock, rector of Win-wick* After some years he was tutor to Lord Strange, son of the Earl of Derby ; and afterwards was promoted by the said Earl to the bishopric of Sodor and Man. " He was consecrated by Doctcr Sharp, archbishop of York, assisted by the Bishops of Chester and Norwich, in the Savoy Church, London, on the 16th of January, 1697, and on the 3d of March foUowing was created D.D. in a fuU congregation at Oxford. He immediately passed over to the Isle of Man, where he resided mostly ever since, in great reputation and honour for his piety, exemplary life, hospitaUty, and extensive charity. "He sat in this see upwards of half a century, and died universaUy lamented, in the 58th year of his consecration, and 92d of his age." In addition to what has been noticed in page 101, see also Dr Knox's " Winter Evenings," vol. i for an Essay on Bishop WUson and his writings. Dr. Knox condemns the Bishop's zeal for ecclesiastical discipline as intemperate, and of a severity rather wonderful in a man of his exemplary benevolence. Offenders of aU conditions in his time, who did not submit to Church censures, were imprisoned or excommunicated, &c. I have already mentioned that at present spiritual authority is exercised with lenity and judgment ; though the obliging offenders to con-vict or acquit themselves on their own oath, where there is no other evidence, is stUl practised. Mr Townley tells us that he found " outside the churchyard Winwick, near Warrington in Lancashire, is the richest rectory in England, being worth near 3000Z, per annum ! ! ! in the gift of the Earl of Derby, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 177 a venerable stone, displaying, in the rude chisel work, the figure of some mighty Danish chief in complete steel, I instantly (says he) rescued the warrior from his ignominious Concealment, bringing him to a safe place, where I could easily on my return take him into my carriage, and convey him to more respectable quarters. It had received some Uttle injury. The figure is in complete armour, with a helmet on, and a tremendous broad sword, suspended by straps from a studded belt, to make him invulnerable at aU points ; his arms uplifted, with the fingers griped in a solemn, supplicating posture." A stone cross in the churchyard has this inscription — Uleifan fiintre gudean nom Uean Eeinti crund ; son sfstr mel mum funtre mus toUrluf cetlan cone in e. Which Mr. Beauford, of Ireland, translates : " We hope to live through ihe holy name of God, and by means ofl the mysterious tree on which his son suffered an evil death our sorrows shall he washed away" The other Eunick* monument before the churchyard has the foUowing inscription on its edges. (See next page) : — * In the 10th and llth centuries, the Runick gave way to the Roman character; but it is said to be still retained among the mountaineers of one province of Sweden. It is a term generaUy applied to the language and letters of the ancient Goths, Danes, and other northem nations, See new edition of Chambers's Dictionary, which has a column on this word. 178 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Monument in Kirk Michael. 13 \4 1 O pil < < - H ^. Q ^ ffi ill ^ K rt 'O rl 8 E? ni 11 o «.> u a 1 o Q .*•> a >i2 « M 'c3 ¦^a" ¦fi C B o 3 P 12 'o IU d3 ^ •n- OT s •rt •f;! bi OT t* o > ¦Q .iv ^ •rl « OT Tl ¦^ (1) ^ Tl .« i? <^ 3 •^ nl (U pq .^ This cross is ornamented with various devices ; the inscrip tions are in a mixture of the Teutonic and Celtic languages. It was evidently erected by the Danes during their residence here. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 179 ¦ after their conversion to Christianity, sometime in the 10th or llth century. At the top of a simUar stone in Braddon, there were some characters which Mr Beauford did not under stand.* " Thus o'er some antique ruin, time defaced. The sons of science oft delight to stray. To trace the inscription on the desert waste. And pierce time's dark veil by its lucid ray. " But 'vain the labours of the inquiring sage, If thenoe the mind no moral truth sublimes j Nor learns from heroes of a distant age,' To love their virtues, and to shun their crimes." — LovELL.t This parish has some ancient barrows; the Karn Viael is composed of smaU stones heaped together. Its mountains are principally, Slieau Dhoo ; i.e. The Black Mountain, from its gloomy or dark appearance. Slieau ny Fraghane ; i. e. The Black-Berry Mountain, from the abundance of them that grow there. Yn Vaaiyll; the EngUsh of it uncertain. Sartall; in EngUsh, Sartfield, which is the name of the worshipful Deemster Lace's estate in Jurby, or St Patrick's Isle. I beUeve I may also add SUeumenagh, and Slieucurn. Cronk-Urley; i. e. Mount-Eagle, is a hUl in this parish, where the Legislature used to meet In 1422, a court was held on it ; in the records it is termed the HUl of EeneurUng, Eye is grown by the -vicar ; the turnip tUlage has been found to answer. " In the north side of the island, there have been Attempts made in this cultivation. At Bishop's-Court the steward has raised large crops of turnips for some years past, where near forty head of black cattle, and above a hundred sheep, have been fed for near five months,' viz. from' October to March, prin cipaUy upon turnips; but even upon a smaUer scale, several * Vide Gough's edit. Camden, vol, iii, p, 704. + Poems by Lovell and Southey, Svo. 1796. DiUey. n2 180 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. individuals have raised very good crops. Mr GelUng, Eector of BaUaugh, Mr Eegistrar. CreUin, and Deemster CrelUn, at Orris- dale, have tried the turnips with great success."* Yew trees, which are so generally found in our churchyards, are not to be found in those' of Man. This tree is thus prettUy addressed by a late pedestrian traveller through Wales :t " Et toi, triste cypres, FidMe ami des morts protecteur de leur cendres Ta tige chere au coeur m^ancholique et tendre, Laisse la joie au mirthe et la gloire au laurier : Tu n^s point I'arbre heureux de I'amant, du guerrier, Je le sais, mais ton deuil compatit h, nos peines." I am not certain whether the extensive and deep glen, that lies between Kirk Michael and St. John's, is in this parish or not ; it is a curious sequestered spot, and if adorned with trees and cottages, would have a picturesque effect • In the presbytery of Lochmaben, in Scotland, is a parish of a similar name, for ^n ingenious account of which, by the Eev. Dr. Burgess, the minister, see Sinclair's " Statistical Account of Scotland," vol. i. Svo. 1791. That this island was once the seat of learning, we know from the circumstance of the early princes of Scotland sending luther their sons for education ; and the concurrent testimony of the Saxon, Scots, and Irish writers, show that it was at that period famous for wise and vfrtuous prelates. Its monks were learned, and in the early Ust of bishops we notice natives ; but in the biographical annals, I recoUect no particular eminent Manksmeij that have fiourished, nor has traditionary reports left any such on my memory; but to the honour of this parish, it may be mentioned, that it gave birth to Dr. Thomas Wilson. James Earl of Derby mentions, in a discourse to his son, a grand design he intended to have executed here, that of estabUsh ing a University, but it has not been effected. " Manks Mercury, signature Mannan, 1793. t A Tour through part of South Wales, by a Pedestrian; with views designed and etched by the author, 4to. London, Baylis, 1797. No author's name ; but I understand they are by Mons. Penhouet, an ingenious emigrant. 181 The Ruins of Peel Cathedral, 1798. KiRK German, This parish includes many important objects, as Peel Town .and the Castle, St, John's Chapel, the ancient Mount of Tyn wald, the ruins of St German's Cathedral, &c. It is bounded by Patrick, Marown, Kirk Michael, and the sea, Beary is a low mountain, under Greba, in this parish. Oppo site Peel is a slate quarry under the hUl, called the Horse. It has quarries of grit and rag stone, a fiax-miU, five' corn-miUs, a tuck-miU, a bleaching ground, and a beating engine, for calender ing, &c. erected about seven years since by Mr. Crane, of BaUa- hawin, and is the only one in the island. It is contiguous to St John's. A river, after a course of nine miles, and receiving another stream about St. John's, falls into the sea at Peel, A pecuUar white marl is dug here, in which the skeletons of elks or seghs, have been occasionally discovered. * The horns measure nine feet from tip to tip ; and from the other bones, conjecture is warranted to suppose the original animal must have . * The Segh is now lost in Britain, and in Em-ope, but it Ib subsisting in the Moose of America; it was often himted iu the forests of Devon, Branching horns of a most enormous size have been found in Devonshire (and in other parts of England and in Ireland) the relics of this enormous race of deer, — (Polwhele, Hist, Views, p, 204,) 182 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. been seventeen feet high. One of these horns was politely shown me by the Eev. Mr Corlett It is remarkable these bones have been found both in Ireland and here, and respectively in a bed of white marl. By an account taken a few years ago, the number of inhabited houses in the parish were 253, but they are increased since. A Cens'm taken in February, 1784, ofl the Inhabitants ofl this Parish, Peel-town included, hy order of Governor Smith. Married couples in Peel .... 210 "j ,^ .. Ditto in the parish 1 69 j Widowers tn Peel 17 Ditto in the parish 13 Widows in Peel • • 76 Ditto in the parish 42 Adult single men in Peel 104 Ditto in the parish 108 ¦ Adult single women in Peel 132 Ditto in the parish 145 Males under sixteen in Peel 192 Males ditto in the parish 313 Females under sixteen in the parish . . 364 Ditto ditto in Peel 207 2,471 souls. By a Census taken in 1792. Adults in town and parish 1,659 Non-adults in town and parish . . . 846 Total 2,505 Former Vicars. 1741. The Eev. Mr Curghey. Eev. Mr Woods, -vicar-general, Eev. Mr Crane. Eev. Mr WUks. Eev. Mr Christian. Eev. Mr Brew. 1761. Eev. Henry Corlett the present vicar Donations to the poor about \0l. per annum. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 183 The vicarage-house is inconveniently situated two miles from the town. The register begins 1667. The present register is kept pecuUarly regular and neat. ' In Kirk German church-yard, are interred eight persons between 72 and 80 ; six between 80 and 87 ; and two of 97 years of age. The church, in which the service is alternately performed in Manks and English, is dedicated to St Peter ; it is in the form of a cross, with side gaUeries for the pubUc scholars, and a deep one over the west -wing. Its length is 27 yards, the cross 19 yards two feet ; before 1766, or thereabouts, EngUsh service was performed only once a month. It is situated in Peel-town, and is neatly pewed, with 'carpeting within the communion raUs. One of the ancient low arches in the church was removed for the present gallery. There are two inscriptions in the chanCel, one to Capt Syl EadcUffe, of Knockaloe, buried Dec. 30, 1731, aged 78 ; and the other to EUzabeth Parr, aUas Qualtraugh, wife to Capt Csesar Parr, buried Feb. 20, 1766, aged 29.— A smaU ancient font. Inscription in the church : John Leece, of BaUaleece, died at Knockaloe in Kirk Patrick, July 5th, 1784, aged 27. The plate belonging to the communion service is six hand some pieces'. 1. A flagon, with St. Peter handsomely engraved thereon. 2. A very large chalice, plated, given by Lady Moore. 3. A tail chaUce inscribed, " Ecclesise CathedraUs Sti Germani Peelse, in insula Monse sacro usui D.D.D. Suus humUis minister Henricus Bridgeman, 1670." N.B. This belonged to the cathe dral. 4. A sUver cup, inscribed, " The gift of John Crane, re newed by Captain PhUip CoweU." 5, Another cup, sUver, pro bably from the old cathedral. 6. A patten, inscribed, "Ex dono Henrici Bridgeman, Episc. Monensis Eccles. St Germani ;" with the bishop's arms, ten balls lion passant in chief The custom-house estabUshment at Peel consists of two riding officers, one of whom coUects the duties ; boatmen, tidemen, &c. Peel has two public breweries, a free grammar-school a mathe- 184 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. matical school, an English charity-school, and one capital red- herring house. It has five fairs, May 1st and 18th, July 5th, Nov. 1st and 18th ; at St. John's one March 28tli, and July 26tli, held at Peel-cross in the town. Peel is a pleasant smaU town (formerly called Holm), with a safe quay. The ruins of the castle are extensive, and are sepa rated from the town by a narrow channel, which you cross iu a boat in a few minutes; but the way across the isthmus, or causeway, round by the mUl, is long and disagreeable. On the top of the Horse hiU is a noble and subUme view. Its surface, when I visited it (in July) just previous to the herring fishery, was for acres covered with the wide-spread nets of the fisher men, in order to prepare them for the ensuing season. The Harbour Is in a very neglected state; ft pier, wluch was built before 1765, is entirely carried away, and none but very small vessels can now come in. From its situation, K this harbour were repaired, it might be of infinite service to the island and the British trade. Boats termed daggans, which sail swift, attend the fishing- vessels to buy flsh, and then go immediately to the best markets in England, Scotland, or Ireland. I saw seven off Peel in July. A plan of Peel Castle, with the harbour and depth of water at spring-tides, surveyed by E, WUson in 1791, is annexed to the Commissioners' Eeport. The river Neb falls into the sea here. The rocks on the shore are romantic, and from their irregular shapes, may supply the imagination with resemblances of ani mated nature. To the northward is a black towering rock called the Stack, The Bay Is spacious, abounding with flsh, of which the red cod is au exquisite delicacy. At the north boundary of Vw\ Bay are sovonil grotesque aiul romaulic ciworiis. The southern t'.vtivniity A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAn'; 185 of the bay is formed by Peel Isle, an extensive and lofty rock, encircled by the sea, on which is the fine ruin of Peel Castle, and the cathedral of St German. This spot is stUl fenced round with a waU, &c., besides which are scattered about the ruins of St. Patrick's church, the armoury, the lord's mansion, and the episcopal palace. I shaU proceed to speak on these from the best information I can procure. Peel Castle Is situated on a smaU island, containing about four or five acres, Beparated from the main land and town by a narrow channel of the sea. It was one of the lord's garrisons. It is expressly named in the original grant of Henry IV. to the Stanley family, and is frequently mentioned in the acts of Tynwald. The cathedral church of the diocese, faUen into dUapidation, stands on this island. It was dedicated to St. German. Since the revestment, more than one bishop has been instaUed in the chofr, which was the last part of the edifice preserved from decay. The inhabitants of the town claim a right of interment and many have been buried within the waUs. The ecclesiastical prison is a subterraneous vault under the cathedral, but has not been used for many years. Since 1765, the officers of the crown have taken possession of this island, which has been held as a perqui site by the governor. It was occupied by the high-bailiff of Peel, who used it as a sheep-walk, and annually paid a lamb, or some small consideration, to the governor by way of acknow ledgment The castle was a common prison for the island, and sundry Uoble persons have been here perpetuaUy imprisoned : EUnor Cobham, Duchess of Gloucester, was perpetuaUy banished in 19 Henry VI. anno 1440. Before this, Thomas Earl of Warwick was imprisoned here by Eichard II. In the Exchequer book for 1583, the Court is mentioned to have been held at Holene town, near Peel. 186 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. In 1648, a fort was begun to be buUt near the town of Peel, opposite the castle, by the ad-vice of Sir Arth. Ashton, to stop any reUef that might be brought by boats, in case the castle should either rebel or be besieged. " Peel castle (says Grose, Antiq. Fkg. vol. iv.) stands on a small rocky island about 100 yards north of the town. The channel, which di-vides it from the main land, at high water is very deep ; but when the tide .is out is scarcely midleg deep, being only separated by a Uttle ri-vulet which runs from Kfrk German mountains. The entrance into this island is on the south-side, where a flight of stone steps, now nearly demoUshed, though strongly cramped -with fron, come over the rocks to the water's edge ; and, tuming to the left, others lead through a gate-way in the side of a square tower into the castle. Adjoining to this tower is a sfrong vaulted guard-room. " The waUs enclose an frregular polygon, whose area contains about two acres. They are flanked -with towers, and are re markably rough, being buUt with a coarse grey stone, but coigned and faced in many parts with a red grit found in the neighbour hood. It is highly probable this island has been fortified in some manner ever since the churches were buUt ; but the present works are ^aid, by Bishop WUson, to have been constracted by Thomas Earl of Derby, who first encompassed it with a waU, probably about the year 1500. " Here are the remains of two churches, one dedicated to St. Patrick, the era of its erection unknown ; the other caUed St. German's, or the cathedral, constructed about the year 1245. It is buUt in the form of a cross, with a coarse grey stone ; but the angles, window cases, and arches, are coigned and formed with a stone found hereabouts, almost as red as brick. This mixture of colours has a pleasing effect, and gives a richness and variety to the buUding. The cathedral is now extremely ruinous, much of it unroofed, and the remainder so much out of repafr, that it would not be safe for a congregation to assemble in it. The eastern part of it was (when Mr Grose saw it) covered and shut A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 187 up, in which were then seats and a pulpit ; this was the episcopal cemetery, and the inhabitants . stUl bury within and about tho waUs. [See Vignette.] " Beneath the easternmost part of it is the ecclesiastical prison. The descent into this vault is by eighteen steps ; and the roof is vaulted by thfrteen ribs, forming pointed arches, and supported by as mahy short semi-hexagonal pilasters, only twenty-one inches above ground. The bottom of this place is extremely rough ; and tn the north-west comer is a weU, or spring, which must have added greatly to the natural dampness of the place, to which there is no other air or light l^ut what is admitted through a smaU -window at the east end. " About the middle of the area, a Uttle to the north of the churches of St. Patrick and German, is a square pyramidical mount of earth terminating obtusely. Each of its sides faces one of the cardinal points of the compass, and measures about seventy yards. Time and weather have rounded off its angles ; but on a careful observation it wUl be found to have been originaUy of the figure here described. For what use this mount was intended it may not be easy to determine. Perhaps from this eminence the commanding officer harangued his garrison, and distributed his orders ; or else it may have been the burial-place of some great personage in very early times ; tumuli of this kind not being uncommon in the island." On a head-stone in the cathedral is an inscription to the memory of Capt. Anderson, of the Lark, of Whitehaven, aged 43, who was wrecked near this place with his son WiUiam, and four men, Feb. 1, 1791. Also others to Capt. Murray, Mrs. Jane Wattleworth, Charles Wattleworth, and Mrs. MaddreU. Among the inscriptions in the cathedral, was the foUo-wing singular one, on a brass plate, over the tomp of Bishop Eutter, -written by himself ; the plate was a few years since stolen and carried away — it is supposed by some casual visitors ; such a daring and criminal act ought to meet with a very severe punishment 188 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN,' " In hac domo, quam a vermiculis Mutuo accepi confratribus meis ; Sub spe resurrectionis ad Vitam, Jaceo Saml, permissione divina Episcopua hujus Insulse : Siste, lector. Vide ac ride, palatium Episcopi ! Ob, 30mo. die Mensis Maii, 1663, " The cathedral is about one hundred and ten feet long, and seventy feet the cross. The Tynwald* mount has a pretty appearance from the road, on the side of which it is situated, about three miles from Peel in the way from Douglas, It is here that aU the new laws are promulgated annually in great state. It was formerly waUed round, with two gates. [See page 128.] It forms a pyramid of three circles, regularly advanced three feet above each other to the top, where there is room enough for the principal officers to stand under a canopy. A wide grass walk joins it to St, John's chapel. The lowest cfrcle is about eighty yards round ; the smaUest about twenty-one feet round, [See the next pag6,] St John's chapel has been lately rebuUt it is a smaU neat building in the form of a cross. It has no pews, being only used occasionaUy, when the Eev. Mr Corlett does the duty. Henry Byron, a man of great prudence and severity, who was Lieut.-Govemor tn 1428, regulated many public abuses in the state, and convened the people at the Tjmwald in 1429, when the law for ending controversies by prowess was, among other matters, aboUshed by universal consent. AAliether he had observed discontents in the manner of electing their represen tatives, or thought it for the honour and interest of his lord to have the ancient legislative power restored, we know not ; but it appears that he called another assembly the next year, and ordered six men to be chosen out of every sheading, by the ¦* A parish in Dumfries bears this name; for an account of which see Sir John Sinclair's Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. i. Svo, A TOUR THROtlGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 189 whole body of the people, out of whom he elected four : the six sheadings are therefore represented by twenty-four persons denominated Keys.* The annexed drawing represents the Tynwald Mount, with a horse lanketted,t The view of the Cathedral at the head of this chapter, and of the Fort in the title page,, were drawn by Mr, Haughton, jun, of Liverpool, who was in the island when I was there : they are engraved on wood by Anderson, of London, It was in this parish that I met with Mr W, E, Holden, of Birmingham, who had been making a tour of the island, and ¦with whom I afterwards spent many social moments ; as also with Mr, Carruthers, of Liverpool, with whom I enjoyed some pleasant excursions, and by whom I was obUged with the several drawings from whence the engravings are taken. During- my transient visit, the vicar obUgingly pointed out every object worthy of notice, and from him, as weU as from the clergy in general, I received more poUteness than, perhaps, as an absolute stranger, I had any right to expect THE TYNWALD MOUNT. * See Letter xii. and Sacheverell's Acco-Mt o Man, 12mo, 1702, t See page 47, 190 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. KIRK PATRICK. The origin of the name is evidently from St Patrick, who, though a native of Scotland, was adored here, and whose memory the piety and reverence of his countrymen honoured with the consecration of several of thefr churches.* This parish, in the -vicinity of Peel, is bounded by German on the N. ; by Maro-wn on the N.E. ; Malew on the S.W. ; and by the Irish sea on the W. It was united to German untU 1714 ; when the separation took place, the present church of St Patrick was buUt on the ruins of an old Eoman-cathoUc chapel, and has a very neat appearance. The ri-vulet that empties itseK into Peel harbour rises by dKferent branches in this parish; and Glenmoai ri-vulet falls into the sea, four mUes below Peel, at a creek of that name. Marble is a creek or inlet in this parish. The mountains are Dauby, ShlewhaUan, part of South Barrule, Kion-slue, and part of Archalogon. In this parish are a bleaching-house and flax-mUl belonging to Mr Thomas Shimmin, and two corn mUls. The roads from Peel to the end of Dauby, and from MuUin-achley to Peel, pass through this parish. The lead mines at Fox-Dale afford rich and abundant ore ; they are near South-Barrule, and belong to the Duke of Athol ; near them is a beautKul cascade. Trials have been made for coal, but hitherto without success. There is a bridge of one bold arch over the river, between Peel and Kfrk Patrick. The soU is a graveUy loam, and pretty fertUe ; it yields good crops when manured with Ume or marl. Eed clay marl abounds, but , the Ume-stone and lime are procured from the south-side, near Castletown. The best slate quarries in the island are in this parish ; and a good flshery on its coast for herrmgs and grey fish. The lead mmes afford the * Vide Statistical Account of Scotland, by Sir John Sinclair, vol. xiii. p, 249, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 191 richest lead ore of any in England, but have not lately been -wrought Timber thrives here, of which Ballamoar, and the neighbourhood of the -vicarage, afford pleasing specimens. The parish is about two nules broad, and near ten miles in length. As instances of longevity in this parish, the present -vicar buried in one day, a man and his -wife, who had been three years married, one was 99 and the other 97 years of age. Here, in one year, also were buried five persons, the youngest of whom whom was 85 years of age. The barony of Bangor and Sabal, situated in this parish, consists of six computed, and seven real quarterlands. His Grace the Duke of Athol has a grant of this barony for a term of years from the crown, fourteen of which (1797) are unexpired. The former -vicars, as far as I can ascertain, were, the Eev. Matthias Curghey ; the Eev. Eobt EadcUffe, coUated in 1729, -vicar-general ; and the present Eev. Evan Christian, who is vicar-general, coUated Oct 18, 1769.* The -vicarage-house is pleasantly embosomed in trees, three quarters of a mUe from the church, near BaUamoar, which is the grove of the island. In Kirk Patrick church-yard, are interred several persons of the ages of 71, 73, 76, 78, 80, 87, and 90 years. The church is a neat-modern buUding, 25 yards long and 19 feet broad, ha-ving a wing -with a pewed gallery over it 28 feet deep ; the ceUing coved and two handsome seats in the chancel, in which the interment of the dead was forbidden by Bishop WUson. This building was erected by the exertions of Bishop WUson in 1710,t when Capt SUvester Eadcliffe, and his son Charles Eadcliffe, with the consent of their respective -wives, gave part of their estate of Knock-aly-Moor, to build the church, church- ¦" The office of -Vicar-general is analogous to that of Chancellor to a Bishop in England. t See the particulars in the act of Tynwald, in Stat. Laws, Svo. 1797, page 140. 192 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. yard, vicariage-house, and garden on ; and the parishioiiers each agreed to give every personal assistance. , " The church," says Bishop WUson, "I consecrated on St Peter's day 1715, built new from the foundation. And besides my charge, I added 50^ towards bettering the endowment. "1716, I built" (says Bp. W.) "a new school-house at St Patrick's, and recovered the glebe, which had been leased out by Governor Ireland. "1739, I gave 201. for a glebe to Kirk Patrick and German.'' Towards the buUding and endo-wing of St, Patrick's new church, the bishop expended 73Z, being arrears of the bishop's revenue during the vacancy. He also gave out of his o-wn private purse, a pulpit, reading-desk, clerk's-seat, and a pew for the vicar's famUy ; and also the communion-table, carpet, and rails. And on the day of consecration 501., the interest for the vicar's per petual use, which, with 72?, given by his Lordship afterwards, was laid out on an estate in Kfrk-Patrick called BaUymore, for the perpetual use of the vicars of Kirk-Patrick and German, &c. KIRK-MARO-WN. This is the only inland parish in the island. It forms a sort of bason, being surrounded by hiUs, and bounded by Braddon, St, Ann, Malew, Patrick, and German ; it is six miles from Peel, and flve from Douglas. Glen-daragha stream, which rises in Gharth farm, after a short course faUs into the Dark river A stratum of marl is observable on its banks, but little is dug. On tbe north-side another small stream rises, and runs into the same. The former affords trout in plenty. The barony of St. Trinian's, situated in the parishes of German and Marown, consists of five quarterlands. This was purchased by Mr Quayle, together with the impropriate tithes of Kirk^ Marown, in 1763, from the present Duke of Athol's father, in A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 193 virtue of a certain indenture sexpartite of feoffment and in conjunction with Duke James, for 500?, Manks ; and Mr Quayle holds a court for this barony, St. Trinian's, a mere ruin, is about 1^ mUe from the present church, to which was annexed a glebe and churchyard. It is on the road-side from Douglas to Peel. A lead mine, probably a rich one, was once attempted in a vaUey near Dremelang, but was abandoned. This parish is in the middle sheading. It may here be necessary to state, that with respect tp its civil concerns the island is di-vided into six sheadings, each of which has its coroner, who, in the nature of a sheriff, is intrusted with the peace of the district secures criminals, brings them to justice, &c. This coroner has a deputy in each parish, termed a lockman. The Rushen sheading contauis Elrk-Christ Eushen, Arbory, and Malew. Middle sheading, St Ann, Marown, and Braddan. Garff sheading, Maughold, Lonan, and Conchan. The north division comprises Glenflaba sheading, containing Patrick and German. Michael sheading, Michael Balaff, and Jurby. Ayre sheading, Lezayre, Andreas, and Bride.* Here are two corn mUls and a flax , mUl Hazel nuts are found in the bogs ; this is singular, as very few traces of the hazel are now to be found' growing in the island. * But by an act of Tynwald in 1796, the common law-court, held at one particular time and place, being found inconvenient, the island was divided into two districts, for a court to be held in each ; and from thence the sheadings are thus altered. Patrick, German, and Marown, form Glenfaba sheading. Maughold and Lonan, form the Garff sheading. Conchan, Braddan, and Santon, the middle sheading. The northern district comprises Michael, Ayre, and Garff sheadings, the court for which is held at Ramsey. The southem district comprises Glenfaba, middle, and Rushen sheadings, the court held at Castletown, O 194 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. The mountains are ArchoUagan, Greba, Slieuschiarn, part of Argole on Lord H. Murray's estate, Dremelang, and Lhiaght y Kinry, ie. Kinry's Grave, he having perished there, through his rash and imprudent attempt on a very snowy day, to run from Douglas to Bishop's-court and back again to Douglas, stark naked, for a trifling sum of money. — N.B. It was on his retum from Bishop's-court that he perished, and according to tradition was buried on the spot where he died. Extract from the register, 1703. Baptized Jane the daughter of John Quillian, and Jane Brew his wife, who was 48 years of age ; and twenty years and a haK married, when she bare this her first chUd, who was baptized Jan. I7th, 1703. 1667. A child of John Lace was baptized by Edward Brew, clerk, in the absence of the minister, and upon necessity. — 1662. Several buried by the clerk. Lay baptisms we find to have been permitted in England by the prayer-books of Edward and EUzabeth, in cases of danger, on the supposed impossibUity of salvation without baptism-; but when they had clearer notions of the sacraments, it was resolved, in convocation 1575, that even private baptism, in case of necessity, was only to be administered by a lawful minister Encyc. Brit, In 1667, on the 13th of July, herruigs were so plentKul, that they sold for 6tZ, a maze of 500, The vicarage-house is in ruins near the church. The glebe about three acres ; but little wheat is grown. The donations to the poor are about \00l principal. Former vicars. In 1679, the Eev. Eobert Fletcher WilUam Bridson. Eobert Eadcliffe, curate. Matthias Curghey. PhiUp Moore, curate, Tho, Christian. John Christian, his son, Eev. Thomas Christian, his son, the present vicar ; the duty done by the Eev, John Bridson, In the Church Is a paten of sUver, inscribed " Ecclesise, St Eunii Manensis A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 195 sacrum, 1759. The gift of the Eev. John Christian, vicar Cup dated 1705." The font is very large, evidently intended to immerse chUdren in, of a stone not found in the island. Part of the porch was brought from St Trinian's ruins. A handsome pulpit with the Legs of Man over it A stone to the memory of Henry, son of John Clucas, of BaUa Nicholas, "a virtuous and notable youth, academick student" died June 23, 1732, aged 23 years. The church measures 60 feet by 18, In the Churchyard. A tomb in memory of the Eev, John Christian, of Ball- nekUley, vicar of this parish 26 years, buried Sept, 29th, 1779, aged 51, The Eev, John Christian, vicar, who died Nov, 19, 1777, aged 47. Francis Blackmore, of Ireland, buried Sept 25, 1734, aged 65. His son Simon directed these lines to be added : " Stop, traveller, I pray ; but then take heed. You judge not hard of him, when this you read. No debts, no laws, obliged him to fly From the dear land of his nativity ; But wom with cares, he chose this place to end His days in peace, and make his God his friend," The ages of 75, 76, 79, 80, and 88, occur Kfrk-Patrick abounds in fine sheep pasturage, and Marown has a long extended swampy vale, which, if drained, might form the best land in the island. KIRK-BRADDAN, This parish contains the town of Douglas,* the chief port ; and besides the parish church, contains two chapels, one dedi cated to St George, the other to St. Matthew. * There is a village in Lanarkshire in Scotland, of the name of Douglas, which has about 700 inhabitants, and some small manufactures of cotton. Heron's Scot, described, 12mo,, 1797, O 2 196 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, There are five principal bridges, and one or two smaUer ones in the parish. The two principal streams join before they reach Douglas, one called Awin-Glass, the other Awindooh, or the black river ; from hence Douglas, The name of Braddan was probably from Brandinus, the bishop; some have supposed it from braddon, a salmon, from their being caught in the river The bay, in the form of a crescent extends for three nules from Clayhead to Douglas promontory. It is an asylum from the tempests of the north-west and south, but to the storms of the east it is greatly exposed. Both points present a dangerous and rocky shore, A variety of fish is here caught in great abundance. The cod are fine, the salmon small but good, and plentKul in July, Aug,, and Sept A plan of Douglas harbour, taken in 1791, is annexed to the Commissioners' Eeport. Gobbockj or dog-fish, is plentiful and eaten by the lower classes. A spa was discovered at BaUabrooi, but because of the incon venience arising from the resort of company, it was blocked up. The parish church is most pleasantly surrounded by trees, about two mUes from the town, by the road-side leading to Peel, which, as weU as Castletown, is about ten mUes from Douglas. The roads, are good; on the latter mUestones are placed, the only road so adorned. The vicarage-house was originaUy close by the church ; but on account of some disputes, an act of Tynwald passed, about 1742, which exchanged it for the ground on which the present house is erected, about three-quarters of a mUe from the church. It has two small fields, glebe land, near it ; but several acres were purchased and annexed by Bishop Wilson, which pay a quit-rent and other services to the lord. The church was rebuilt in 1773 ; it has a square tower and two small beUs ; they baptize and bury in St, George's chapel, and also marry by special Ucence, Braddan church is neatly pewed, twenty-seven yards long, by seven broad, " Eendered, (says Bishop WUson) flagged, and put a new east A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 197 window to the chancel, 1704, 1705, 1 gave six pounds to Kirk- Braddan vicarage-house. 1741, I gave 151 towards buUding a new house for the vicarage. 1739, I gave 20Z. towards buying a glebe to Kirk-Braddan, with 35t of Mr, Thompson's," In Braddan churchyard are buried several persons between 80 and 96 years old. On the Edge ofl a Stone-cross at Kirk-Braddan. Durlifr nsaci risti crus dono Aftfiac sunfin frudur sun Safrsag, For Admiral Durlif, this cross was erected by the son of his brother, the son of Safrsag, In the Church — Inscriptions. 1788, John GeUing, of Camlock, died Jan, 3, aged 86. 1785, Catharine, his wKe, died Nov, 28th, aged 81. In the Chancel. . 1733, Johannes Curphey, died Oct. 6, vicar, and vicar-general aged 76. 1700, Thomas Lowcay, died June 24th, aged 72. 1770, Lieut. Halley Berwick, commander of the cutter Chol mondeley, died April 23d, aged 56. 1741, John Corris, of Douglas, 17th of May (under the chancel door), aged 69. In the Churchyard. 1 had no opportunity of taking the inscriptions tn Braddan churchyard, but a particular friend favoured me with these. "John Tiesin, of Great Clifton in Cumberland, Insigni pietate puer, genio feUci, et pro setat. ling. Lat Graec. doctus filio pri-vigno posuit P. Moore." "H. S. E, Edward Arthur, at 13. ob, 1754, Eeader! art thou a parent ? Let thy heart sympathize with parents, and feel with them for the loss of an onky child— but wouldst thou know thy 198 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. duty, and revere the ways of Providence in such dispensations, read and consider the sacred page of Wisdom (chap. iv. 7—14). Go thy ways, be sUent learn submission, and adore thy Maker Parentes mcEsti posuere." "Here lies interred, the Eev. P. Moore, 48 years chaplain and schooUnaster in this parish ; ob. 1783, £et 77. Sis tu semper felix, &c. (obliterated.) " For ever may that man be blest -Who never wOl these bones' molest, But here for ever let them rest : Till fire consume this earthly ball. And Christ shall come to judge us all ! I !' ' 1 jlest, V b: ) Vicars. In 173-3, the Eev. John Curghey, vicar-general. John Cosnaghan, -vicar-general Joseph Cosnaghan, his son. Thomas W. J. Woods. Julius Cosnaghan. John Moore. 1792, the Eev. Eobert Quayle, the present vicar Donations about 80Z. principal to the poor For the returns of the number of inhabitants in Kfrk-Braddan and Douglas, see page 69. St Matthew's chapel which is in the to-wn, has a clock. In 1708, Bishop WUson consecrated this chapel at Douglas, to which he was a considerable benefactor, "Sep. 21, 1708, I contributed (says Bishop Wilson) 10?. and begged 60Z. more towards the buUding of it." It is smaU ; has one monument on a marble in the chancel " Sacred to the memory of the Eev. PhUip Moore, rector of Kirk-Bride, and officiating minister of the chapel of Douglas. His education was completed under the auspices of the good Bishop WUson, and he made a grateful return for this singular advantage, by contributing to the virtuous instruction of youth, being above 40 years master of Douglas school. He was likewise principaUy concemed in re-vising the memorable translation of the Sacred Scriptures into the Manks language, for which, by his leaming, he was eminently qualified. He was born at Douglas, Sept. 5, 1705, and died there Jan. 22, 17n;^. Tliis monument was erected, as a testimony of friendly A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 199 esteem, at the expense of the Eev, Thomas WUson, D,D, son of the Bishop, &c." Former Chaplains. The Eev. Mr. Moore, and the Eev. Mr. Quayle. The Eev. Mr StoweU is the present chaplain, and master of the grammar-school, the donations to which are a house, and about 251. per annum. On an eminence, west of Douglas, is St George's chapel, a large elegant modern building, erected a few years since by subscription ; * it has spacious pews and galleries, and a hand some organ. The Eev. Mr. Christian is the officiating minister for the Eev. Mr Quayle, late vicar of Kirk Oncan. AU the tomb-stones here are of a recent date ; among those to strangers, I observed Duncan Eobertson, Esq., town-major of Hull, who died March 30, 1793, aged 50. Wm, Powel Buck, of Norwich, AprU 18, 1793, aged 28, John Nichols, of Car marthen, Aug. 16, 1795, aged 26, James Drake, of Loughin Isle, Ireland, Dec, 2, 1795, aged 54, Joseph Shaw, of Hudders- field, Yorkshire, May 29, 1796, aged 47. Alexander Stuart, son of Daniel and Mary Stuart, of Perthshire, aged 10, Oct 28, 1796. Douglas contains about 900 houses, and is a neat pleasant town, the buUdings lofty, but the streets narrow and close. The following is its custom-house establishment A receiver and deputy-receiver general, coUector and clerk, comptroller, searcher, warehouse-keeper, comptroller of ditto, riding-officer, port-gauger, tidesmen, boatmen, &c. Coarse paper is manufactured in the parish ; and Douglas has snuff and tobacco factories, and a linen manufactory by Messrs. Moore, on an extensive scale, from the heckling to the piece ; but it is bleached in England, The quaUty of these goods, which I examined, is particularly stout and strong, as weU as fine. On some rocks near the mouth of the harbour is an ancient fort now used as a temporary prison. . The funds were lodged with Bishop Mason, who dying insolvent, the persons employed in the building have never been paid. 200 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, It has public breweries, tan-yards, &c,, and, as instances of its progress in refinement a circulating Ubrary, a theatre, several bUUard-tables, assembUes, and races. Well might Mona's bard exclaim, — " 0 Luxury ! whom Eastern Kings revere. Dost thou maintain a little empire here ? Could not whole kingdoms thy desifes aUay, ,; j But must poor simple Douglas be thy prey ? Ah ! see what desolation thou hast spread. Young industry is sick, and virtue dead ; -WhUe pride and pomp so absolute are grown. That friendless modesty's kicked out of town.'' In pursuing these parochial sketches, the reader wiU doubtless have observed that he has met with no public asylums for dis tress of any kind ; the poor have no house to shelter them in age ; the sick have no hospitals ; the poor married women no tender nurses and doctors, gratis, to reUeve the pains of nature's trying moments ; nor has the unfortunate single woman the cup of salvation and comfort held out to her when lost or betrayed by unguarded conduct: yet I am happy to observe that at Douglas and at Eamsey, there are clubs for mutual benefit,* The former, which was established in 1790, had, in 1798, a clear capital of more than 2201. The females have no society of this kind, Douglas sands afford a fine ride, extending near two miles, terminated by romantic rocks, do-wn which, in the winter, run two beautiful cascades ; the sea water is peculiarly clear, and the shore adapted for bathing maclunes : the view of the bay is delightful, and the swelluig saUs that so often soUcit attention, break the fatigue which the eye would otherwise feel from the vast expanse of water * " Friendly societies establish this great truth, of infinite national impoi-tance, that the people in general are competent to their own maintenance ; the nation no doubt has saved millions by these beneficial institutions. And it is the opinion of Sir F, M, Eden, that they ought to be encouraged so as to render them universal throughottt the kingdom," See Sir P, M, Eden, on the stiite of the poor, 3 vols. 4to. lux-face, and p, 590 of vol. i. 1797, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 201 Here are five herring-houses ; one of these I was informed cost 1,200Z. "The herring fishery (says Mr Ashe) is a fountain from whence flows great public benefit and private good ; in its season its novelty inspires sensations of astonishment and deUght: the boundless ocean, on which is displayed the beauteous fieet composed of 500 saU, some steering north, others south, east, and west all in search of the finny tribe, the sea heaving gently its majestic bosom, as if proud of its burthen, and wUling to exhibit Mona's industrious sons to her view, and to catch the radiance of the setting sun, which gUds each saU with varied colours ; such is the evening progress of the fleet which the gentle breeze imperceptibly steals from the sight and nothing is heard but the soft murmurs of mirth, the furUng of the saUs, or movement of the oars. To those who are in the boats, the sea appears a liquid flre, caused from darkness, or the effect of night upon the brUliant particles which compose the scales on the fish that float in immense bodies for miles around. As the nets are drawn full, each heart increases ih happiness, and the rising sun from the east Ulumines the way into Douglas harbour, which is soon fllled by the native boats and vessels that come to purchase from aU quarters, displaying their country's colours, and partaking of the general joy which a good flshing diffuses throughout the land. The natives, upon laying up a sufficient stock for themselves, dispose of the remainder, and rich Italy and proud Spain become indebted to the industry of Manks men for the means of existence for a particular period of the year. ' The naval power of this island was formerly greater than it is at present; for history informs us, that the Manks, under Godred Crownan, made great conquests in Ireland ; aud were too hard for the Scots at sea, and forced them to submit to a peace on dishonourable terms. In 1205, Eeginald, King of Man, saUed to Ireland with John de Courcy, who married his sister, with a fleet of 100 saU. And when they submitted to 202 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Alexander IIL of Scotland, tliey undertook to assist him, when required, with ten vessels armed with 500 men, which were stout ships at that period. A very handsome new pier and lighthouse are buUding, by Mr. Stuart, the architect of the new and elegant church at Shrewsbury, &c. In 1787, eighty-four yards of the lowest end of the old pier, with a Ught-house thereon, was destroyed by a violent gale of •wind. At low watei- this harbour is eiitivoly dry, and reckoned the best dry harbour in St. Ceorge's channel. It is a hai'bour of refuge in hai-d gales of wind for vessels of 500 tons do-wn ward. Mr. Nicholas Christian is of opuiion, that if a new pier were carried twenty yards farther into the sea than the old, it would afford refuge for small vessels of flfty or sixty tons burthen in baUast, and vessels of twenty tons laded, at low water ; and at half-tide for vessels in ballast of 'sixty or seventy tons, and for laden vessels of fifty tons burthen, if m neap-tides. The former light-house was a brick building, between thirty and forty feet high, lighted each night by seven or eight half-pound candles, with a tin circular reflector between them of about eight feet diameter, and could be seen at four or five leagues distance. The sketch of the new one in plate 3d, was drawn from memory by Mr. Carrathers, whose abilities in portrait and general paint ing do him great credit, Mr Vass, in 1790, by order of the treasury board, surveyed the harbour of Douglas, and gave in two plans; one for' re pairing the old pier, the estimate 2,600Z, but which, if it had been done, could not have been depended on ; the other, to make a good and complete new pier, the estimate of which was 1 5,200Z. Government made a grant for this purpose, but the sum being inadequate, in 1797 a further sum of 7,000Z. was granted, by government, to the Ouko of Athol, for the t'ompletion of the A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 203 pier, repairing the harbour, &c. And the sum of 3,500Z. to be expended on the other pubUc buildings.* The first stone of the new pier of Douglas, was laid on the 24th of July, 1793, by the Most Noble John Duke of Athol. This new pier is nearly finished, and wUl be a deUghtful promenade and look-out and with its pleasant quay, the rising grounds opposite, the -view of Mr. Whalley's house, battery, &c. and the walk to the Nunnery and places adjacent wUl aU con spfre to please the stranger ; and the continual influx of company -wUl always render it Uvely and interesting. Happiness is, however, not even here unquaUfled, for, as we highly estimate the Churchill of Mona,"!- we are constrained to credit his muse, though it informs us that, alas ! " Douglas, the seat of scandal — nurse of pride — To ignorance by lasting ties allied ; With self-tormenting spleen, and envious strife. Sours her own cup, and blasts the joys of life. Let not the peaceful stranger hope to find An Eden here, and saints of human kind ; No sooner is he lauded on the quay, Than vigilant detraction grasps her prey ; And though his kinder fates protect his Ufe, His fortunes suffer— or his faithful wife." ««**¦»* " Oh ! learn to live, let pride and scandal die. Let envy make her exit with a sigh — -Why does detraction through the country roam 2 -Why do you still forget you're all at home ?" Douglas market is weU suppUed, but provisions are compara tively dear It has two fairs in May, and one in November, and is the chief place of trade in the island. The packet with the maU from England, is due from White haven after Monday evenings, and on its arrival at Douglas, stays there three days and then returns. * Voted by the Committee of Supply for 1798. + See the Retrospect, the Sallad, &c.,-poems in 4to.and 12mo. by this gentle man, no less distinguished by his poetical genius, than his modest worth and amiable deportment in private life. 204 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. The Eev. Mr StoweU, of Douglas, has a curious antique smaU paintmg of our Saviour, with this inscription : " THIS PRESENT FIGURE IS A SIMILITUDE OF OUR LORD AND SA-VIOUR JESUS CHRIST, IMPRINTED IN AMERALD BY THE PREDECESSORS OP THE CREATE TURKE, AND SENT TO THE POPE INOCENTB THE EIGH POR THIS CAUSE FOR A TOKEN TO REDEME HIS BROTHER YT. WAS TAKEN PRISNOR." Painted on board. Mr Moore has a variety of curiosities, which he very readUy and. politely shows to strangers. At Braddan church I was witness to the funeral of a mother, borne by her sons; the service was performed in the Manks language, and the corps ushered in by a psalm ; when in the church the four sons knelt in the attitude of prayer over the coffin, the sight of which was veiy affecting. " Another race the following age supplies. They fall successive, and successive rise." The Duke of Athol's seat* is in the vicinity of Douglas, and Mr, WliaUey's beautKul house and grounds, which are stiU in a progressive state of improvement embeUish Douglas very much ; it is part of the Nunnery estate. — Of the Nunnery, Major Taubman's, I shaU leave Clara Lennox -f- to speak. " The saloon and other apartments are flne, and elegantly flnished ; at the front of the house, towards the town, is a spacious square planted round with evergreens, sUver furze, and the most beau tiful flowering shrubs ; the gardens are laid out with great taste, and adjoining is an exceUent hot-house or nursery, shrubbery or -wilderness, the whole being connected with surprising con venience. The Nunnery is universaUy admired for its beautiful * His Grace's seats in Scotland are thus described by a recent tovu-ist. " They are among the finest ornaments of Perthshire. The houses are sumptuous and magnificent : the surrounding pleasure-grounds are naturally so picturesque and romantic, and are adorned iu a taste so suitable to their natural character, that to wander over them is still more interesting to tho stranger, that to survey the ducal apartments." Heron's Scot, described, 12mo. 1797. t A late novel, 2 vols, 12mo, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, 205 prospect ; from the windows, up-stairs, are picturesque -views of great beauty : near the front of the house runs a beautiful river, wandering serpentine through the vale, till it meets the harbour ; over it is a very handsome bridge, and near it is a newly-erected mUl, fertUe meadows, beautiful cottages, and a ruinous Gothic bridge, aU at such a distance as to be pleasing objects," The prioress of Douglas was anciently a baroness of the isle, held courts in her o-\;9n name, and possessed great temporal as well as spiritual authority. The ruins of her convent remain. The old Fort or Eound Tower at Douglas * is the only place of confinement for common offences. The inhabitant in turn are summoned to keep watch and ward to prevent escapes. A proper place of confinement should be among the first objects of the new improvements for public safety. The mountain of Karraghan, in this parish, is separated from that of Penny-pot by a pleasant valley, which is reckoned an exceUent sheep-walk. The spring-tides flow 300 yards above Douglas bridge, and in Nov. 1785, 246 feet of the quay was washed away, with the Ught-h'ouse, by an easterly wind. A bridge in ruins crosses the river at Douglas, having been carried away by a high sea, acting on some floating timber, in Oct 1796. It was singular that a man who was on it though swept away, was yet saved by the exertions of the astonished spectators. The town is suppUed with water, drawn in casks through the streets. In taking a specimen, I found myseK unable to stop the current the man (at the length of two horses), did not per ceive the mischief, and trembling lest his long whip and I should be better acquainted, I sUpped down the flrst avenue, laughing at my foUy — Misce stultitiam, consUiis brevem. * See Vignette in the title-page. 206 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. I shall conclude with a sentence from Goldsmith, though not altogether apropos : "Inuocently to amuse the imagination tn this dream of Ufe is wisdom ; and nothing is useless that by furnishing us with mental employment queUs for a whUe those stronger appetites which lead to evU," KIRK ONCHAN. Since the great decrease tn the value of money, a retrospective view of any remote period, relative to the prices of provision and labour, becomes not only an object of curiosity, but a specu lation of importance, as it at aU times materially affects the happiness of the majority of the people. Before, then, I speak of the parish immediately under review, I shall digress a moment to wander through the old Manks statutes, to learn, as far as I can, how these were estimated in the infancy of society. I find by an act of Tynwald, 1430, it is enacted that the lord be -victualled when he is in the island, at the foUowing prices : " a cow, or beef, price 4s, at two head courts in the year, of every sheading, two martes (buUocks), the price of every marte 3s. 4J. ; and when the lieutenant is here, a marte every week, with other victual ; i. e. the price of a marte 4s,, a mutton, Qd., a pork, 4«^,, a lamb. Id., a kid, ^d., a pig. Id., a goose, ^d, from Easter to Midsummer, and this by use and custom." By a statute of 1758, the loss of sheep by dogs incurs a pay ment of 5s. for a mutton ; 4s. for a sheep ; and a yearling, and a lamb, at 3s. severaUy; and the dogs to be hung. By an act of Tynwald, in 1609, the wages of a ploughman per year, were fixed at 13s. 4d ; every driver, 10s, ; every horse man, 8s, ; and every woman-servant as she shaU be thought to deserve by the deemsters and jury. Every head taUor, per day, with meat and drink, 4d and not above ; and every apprentice taUor, with meat and drink, 2d. and not above. And K any A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 207 refuse to work at these rates, they are to be "put to be a servant.'-'* " Weavers for every yard of wooUen cloth for blanket suffi ciently wrought, id. ; for every four great hundred breadth of keare, f its once having abounded in trees. On this subject, a friend remarked, smiUng, that the natives could have either no idea of the beauty of the Psalmists simUe of a good man, compared to a tree planted by rivers of water, bringing forth flruits, &c, as they were strangers to trees, rivers, and fruits ; or that it might be to them probably a subUme image, as aUusions of too remote objects of a superior nature are often more striking than those we are famiUar with. About 300Z. is the principal of donations to the poor. The -vicarage-house being in ruins, Bishop WUson subscribed and coUected enough to buUd a new one. " I supplied," said the bishop, " the vacant vicarage for one year, and appUed the income towards buUding a new vicarage-house ; with this and what I begged, and 21. 10s. I gave myseK, and the assistance of the parish, -we have erected one of the best houses in the (diocese." il In the act 1757, for the removal and rebuUding this church, the old one is stated to be in a rainous condition, and too smaU for the congregation, who were, for these reasons, and also to avoid the indecency and nuisance of having funerals and inter ments in the body of the church, desirous of leave for taking it down, and removing it to the north side of the former, -within the precincts of the churchyard. This was granted, and no .person aUo-wed in future to be buried in the body of the church ; it is 72 feet long and 21 feet broad, and is dedicated to St Columbus. In the chancel is a handsome marble monument to Eich. 224 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. Ambrose Stevenson, of BaUadoole, who died Feb. 27, 1773, aged 30, erected by his wife Margery Stevenson. On the chancel waUs are some old gUt letters, and a stone tablet on which are engraved the donations given towards re buUding the church in 1758. On the tunber of the old church, that parted it from the chancel, was the name of Thomas Ead- cliff, abbot of Eushen. The register commences in 1670. Sir* John Crellin, vicar. Eev. Thomas Parr. .... Eev. Mr Moore. Eev. Mr Quayle. Eev. John Moore, whom the present vicar, the Eev. John Christian, succeeded in 1792. This parish is a pleasant distance from Castletown, with a variety of agreeable objects on the south side. The spirit of conviviaUty which is occasionaUy kept up by strangers, and the friendship of the neighbouring famiUes, show that something tn the shape of sociabiUty and happiness dwells in Kfrk Arbory. Dancing is a favourite pursuit and particiUarly at fafr times. " I ne'er such festivity saw As there, while th? damsels were hopping ; For dancing is somewhat like law, ¦When once you begin there's no stopping," Near BaUadoole is a saltish spring, which runs very rapidly ; it is a little to the south-west, near the shore, and probably issues from a salt rock, • " The soU of the three southern parishes of Eushen, Arbory, and Malew, partakes very strongly of the same warm, generous quaUty ascribed to the northern part ; it is worked and culti vated with equal faciUty, and abounds in the same productions, but is not capable of equaUy substantial improvements, though grateful to the tiUer's hand and care,"t Parochial bounds, by a circular letter from the Bishop, in * The title of Sir used to be formerly added to the names of the vicars, while the rectors were styled parsons. t Townley's Journal, A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 225 1790, are enjoined to be perambulated on Holy Thursday, accord ing to ancient custom. In Arbory churchyard are buried eighteen persons between 71 and 79 (of whieh four are 78), and seven above 80 years of age. A monument to Eichard Ambrose Stevenson, Esq., son to Eichard Stevenson, Esq., cornet of horse in the Eoyal Volunteers in Ireland; and aide-de-camp to Lord Shannon ; grandson to John Stevenson, Esq. M.P., erected by his mother. He died Feb. 17, 1773. Adieu ! blest shade, oh ! cease to moum. Nor strive to wake the silent um ; Rather each care, each thought employ, Td meet thee in the realms of joyi ' Arms ; per pale gules and ermine ; a cross saltire counter changed. Mrs. AUce Stevenson, widow of Eichard Stevenson, Esq.; died Feb. 26, 1785, aged 69. Eichai'd Ambrose Stevenson, of BaUadoole, died March 12, 1795, aged 33. A stone to the memory of George Evans, of the London, his two sons, and nine mariners, who perished by sea near StranhaU, Jan, 28, 1781. Erected by Mr Eobert Marow, merchant Liverpool. Cather^e, daughter of Heniy and Jony Corrin, buried June 9, 1794, aged three years. "Asleep in bed I laid, -Where none I did offend ; From thence against my will convey'd. To a plaguey pox by men. Dear parents, cease to weep, I innocently forgive ; Rather temember me to meet, -Where love doth ever live." N.B. This appears to be an original speciUien of mountain poetry. It may be necessary to say, that what gave rise to it was the inoculating the child (who was averse to it) when she was asleep. Q 22G A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. I wish to remark here, that in going to the respective parishes, I took do-wn every inscription in every churchyard, except one ; but they occupy such a space, that I am deterred from printing them in this volume, yet hope to present them at a future period, as a treasure to the inhabitants, in some detached and cheap form. Those inserted here are selected from the general mass. In endeavouring to explain the singular circumstance that happened to Eobert Cottier's wKe, mentioned in page 150, it was suggested to me by Dr FothergiU, of Bath, in conversation, whether it might not be accounted for, on the supposition of a double uterus, a remarkable case of which occurred in Ireland a few years since, under that eminent accoucheur Dr Piircell of Dublin, and, which was recorded in the PhU. Trans, with plates. KIRK ST. ANN, OR SANTON, This small parish is bounded by Malew, Braddan, Maro-wn, and the sea. It has one corn-mUl, a fuUing-miU, and a hat manufactory. It is four mUes from Castleto-wn, and six from Douglas. At Newtown is a piUar erected by Sir Wadsworth Busk, late attorney-general of the island, in honour of the king's recovery in 1789. It likewise serves for a sea-mark. It has a bridge or two over small streams, which, with several others, are kept in repafr by virtue of an act passed in 1739, imposing a poll-tax of one penny per head yearly, for a certain period, for repairing all old ruinous bridges, and also St John's chapel ; and then to build a new bridge over the river Sulby, in Kirk Christ Lezayre parish ; another over the great river tn the parish of Kirk German, between St, Jolin's and Peel ; a third between Kirk Malew and Kirk St, Ann, on the road between Castletown and Douglas ; a fourth between Eamsay and Kirk Bride and Kirk Andrews ; and a fifth over that river near Peel-town, between Kirk German and Kirk Patrick. These are the principal bridge& in the island. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 227 The ci*eek of Greenock is very pretty, and there is another caUed Saltrick, which is a pleasant waUi from the church ; the tocks here are grand. Some Druidical remains are noticeable here, particularly a cfrcular range of stones on a mount with others at a short distance ; below these is an aperture, which I shaU denominate the Fairies' weU, at the bottom of which you may perceive the waves dashing, at a great depth : "Fairies, by moonlight, oft ai'e seen Tripliing round the smooth sward green; Her beams reflected from the wave, Afford the light their revels crave." The remUants of antiquity found in the island are, 1. Mounds of earth, which are thought to have beeh thrown Up for judicial purposes ; the present Tynwald is one of these so. used at this day. 2. Cairns, or cfrcular heaps of stones, supposed to be burying-places ; I saw nqjie of these; but heard of one in Kfrk Michael. 3. Long stones, set end-ways ; of these many occur, they are thought to be of Danish origin, and that they were meant to perpetuate the memory of some warriors, or some warlike events. 4. Stones placed circularly ; these are conjectured to be places of worship, though Professor Thorlekin conceives them to have been used as eivU courts of justice. The cloven stones at Laxey, ha-ving had bones dug up within them, seem to have been intended as a sepulchral monument unless it may be conjectured that the ancients used their places of worship, as we do ours, for places of interment Ukewise.* The soil is mostly of a light nature, but in one district is a hea-vy loam. The foUowing lists of grazing prices, wUl show the EngUsh farmer how land is estimated here. Cattle taken in at Newtown^ 1797, on the following terms: £ s. d. BuUocks from 3 years old and upwards, at . Ill 6 ¦* See observations in "The Bee," by Dr. Anderson, vol. 7. Edin. 1791. And note in Letter Sii. Q 2, 228 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. £ s. d. steers and heKers from 1 to 3 years old .. 1 7 0 Young cattle from 1 to 2 years old. ... 1 • 5 0 Mares with foals 220 Young horses, 3 years old 1116 •¦ Young colts and fiUies, from 1 to 3 years old 15 6 The cattle wiU be taken in to graze on the 12th of May, and - must be taken away on the 12th of November Ha-ving mentioned the rot in sheep in page 49, I beg here to remark, that though particular places attribute this disorder to different pfewfa, yet others deny that sheep eat those plants ; and that these plants are innocent I think is probable, from the disorder appearing at intervals of eight or ten years, and on some farms never. This induces me rather to attribute it, with some sensible farmers, to a pecuUar wet season co-operating -with particular soUs ; the change thus produced in the vegetation and in the atmosphere, iSiducing that morbid state of the system which lUtimately ends in the animal's death. In Encyc. Brit. vol X. p. 708, is stated a case where the rot is attributed to the wa,tering of a meadow. Among other ingenious calculations in Eobertson's General Eeport on Farms, drawn up for the Board of Agriculture (4to. 1796), the Island of Man is rated to contain 200,000 acres of land, of which 55,000 are stated to be in tUlage, and 65,000 acres employed in grass ; but this appears far too high an esti mate. [See page 5.] BaUa--viUa and Glentraih are pleasant spots, the latter leading down to the shore by Greenock. Mount -Murray, Lord H. Murray's estate, is on the road side from Douglas to Castletown, at the fourth mUe-stone ; notwithstanding the pains talcen, vege tation appears chUled here. A well in this parish used formerly to be much resorted to from all parts, for its sanative quaUties. A fair is held annuaUy in this parish in June. ¦ The church, which is dedicated to St Ann, the mother of the A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 229 Vfrgin Mary, is situated haK a mile from the shore. It is neat and was new-seated last year In Santon churchyard, which has but few inscriptions, are the foUowing instances of longevity ; which may serve as a good testimonial of the salubrity of the air, and the temperance of its mhabitants : ages 75, 76, 77, and four of 79; also 80, 81, 82, 88, 90, 110. The vicarage-house was biiUt in 1722, to which Bishop WUson gave 51; and in 1725, the church steeple was buUt, to which he also contributed. The donations to the poor are about 20?. principal Former Vicars. Sir John Cosnaghan, 38 years, who was buried under the great stone in the churchyard, June 24, 1656. Sfr Hugh Cosnaghan, 23 years, died in 1690. Eev, John, his son, -vicar 34 years ; whose son succeeded as curate in 1724, Eev. Paul Crebbin, ui 1732. In 1764, Eev. Mr Cubbon. In 1769, the present -vicar, Eev. Charles Crebbin. An old stone, -with some characters simUar to Eoman capitals thereon, was dug up in the churchyard, at a very great depth, and is preserved by the vicar. In the churchyard is a stone to the memory of Daniel Tear, who died Dec. 9, 1787, aged 110. " Here, friend, is little Daniel's tomb. To Joseph's years he did arrive ; Sloth killing thousands in their bloom, -While labour kept poor Dan aUve. How strange, yet true, full seventy years. Was his wife happy — in her Tears." N.B. This person was a native of Kfrk Andreas, and was /latterly a vagrant ; Sfr W. Busk erected the stone, and 'wrote the verses ; it is generally thought he was reaUy older than 110. KIRK MALEW. This is the seventeenth, and last Parish which I have to notice. 230 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN, A Spirit for topographical inquiries has lately been prevalent, and every year produces new accessions to this department of Uterature; these researches have been sanctioned -with a con siderable share of public approbation, which evince, in some degree, their utility. Diffident as I feel in thia attempt to soUoit the pubUc eye (for the reader wUl not recollect my name to any previous publication), 1 vejiture to anticipate a candour, which wUl not totally sUence the jejune and obtruding muse. In justice to myseK, I beg to remark, that I set out in 1797 -without the smaUest preparation for, or intention of, producing the present volume. Yet as I constantly kept a diary of each day's observation, it occurred to me that an arrangement of it for the press might be considered as not altogether an useless addition to the stock of local knowledge ; and I do not consider it as an unfortuitous cfrcumstance, that the spot under discussion is among those hitherto least known. It has been my endeavour to inforin the reader by a statement of facts, without aiming at embelUshment of style ; and it wUl be my pride and pleasure, K • the task should be so performed as to prove a source for rational amusement and interesting information : — ^With this favourable impression, I therefore proceed to speak of Kirk Malew. It Is bounded by Arbory on the west Patrick on the north west Marown on the north-east and on the east by Santon and the sea. It comprehends Castletown, the metropolis of the island; the viUage of BaUasaUa, Derby-haven, Longness- point, &c. In this parish are several pubUo breweries, five corn and three flax mUls. One river runs through BallasaUa, and another on the boundary of St Ann. The mountain of South-Barrule-moar is principaUy in this parish. The average of baptisms for ten years past are, yearly, about A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 231 100 ; of marriages about 30 ; and burials 40. The church is about a mUe from the town, is 90 feet long, with a wing 24 feet long and 18 broad. Former Vicars. Eev. Mr Woods, Mr Quale, Mr GUI, Mr GeUmg, Mr Clucas, and in 1783, the Eev. Mr Harrison, the present vicar. The donations to the poor are about 151. per annum, besides frequent coUections. Its Ume-stone forms a large article of trade to other parts of the island. It has a very extensive turf-bog termed Eouanaa. The soU is various ; namely, gravel, loam, and clay, but no marl A respectable writer on the spot lately gave, in the Manks Mercury, the foUowing account of the recent progress of agii- oulture : — " How averse soever the landholders of this island may be, in general, to make any efforts of improvement in agriculture, there stUl are some few, who have departed from the common course. Mr Bacon first exhibited, on his estate of Newtown, the verdure of May in the depths of winter, by exceUent crops of turnips. Sir George Moore, of BaUamoore, also, for many years, foUowed the same course of tUlage for winter food. Mr. Gates, of Oatland, raises considerable crops of turnips for fatten ing cattle. sMr. Senhouse WUson;>'on his late purchase, has also made considerable advances in the turnip tiUage. Mr. Quayle, of the Creggains, affords the best example of a complete farm carried on upon the system of the besl^cultivated counties in England, especially in turnips and other winter green food : and his Grace the Duke of Athol, in his late purchase, has begun with great success that cultivation, as may be seen from the wonderful degree of fatness to which his cattle,, fed on turnips, have arrived ; the crops most suitable to foUow that of turnips, are, 1st year, — Barley, with 12 lb. red clover seed, and 2 boU of white hay seed per acre. 2d year, — Hay, which should produce between two and three tons. 232 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 3d year, — ^Barley, K the soil be Ught ; or wheat, if strong. 4th year, — Pease, which are both a cleansing and improving crop. 5th year, — Barley. " After this crop, plough the land and dress for turnips and potatoes again. The same mode of preparation of the soU which is laid down for turnips, wUl equaUy answer for potatoes in the driU, with this exception, that if the land be foul, it cannot be expected to be made equaUy clean of weeds and as fine in the month of AprU, when the potatoes should be planted, as it might in the middle of June, when the turnips are to be sown." For the information of the Manks reader, it may not be im proper to mention, that the Bath Society, in their list of premiums of 1798, recommended the use of the double furrow-plough, in its improved state, as the best for expediting and saving of labour and expense, and for performing the work better than any yet constracted. It turns two acres in a day, with three horses or four oxen, without a driver In the road from Malew to Kfrk Christ Eushen, are two high pUlars of stone, called the Giant's quoit stones. This parish includes two chapels, besides the parish church, one in the to-wn, the other at Black-hiU quarter, caUed St Mark's, about five mUes from Castletown, which was buUt. in 1712. Chaplains to this. within memory, have been the Eev. Mr Har rison, Mr Moore, Mr Gale, and the present Eev. Mr Clague. Mr Thomas Farrer, one of the first trustees, has a monument in the chapel-yard. In Malew church are some few reUcs of popery in the chest &c. There is one inscription in the chancel wall, on a small stone, to " Elin. Corwyn, daughter of Eobt CorwjTi, of Cumber land, who was wife to Henry Staffarton, receiver of the Castle, who departed m great mikeness, and that patience Christ did^ 1578." This is the oldest date of any tomb in the island Ensigns ofthe Stanley famUy are cut in wood, underneath the gaUery, with the arms of the island. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 233 In the Church, ¦Joshua Lewis, ensign in the 58th regiment of foot died Sept 7, 1784, aged 17, eldest son of Lieut-Colonel George Lewis, who commanded the royal artiUery at Gibraltar, in 1782, distin guished for his many amiable qualities. On white marble : " Dorothy, the beloved wKe of Capt Taub man, of the Nunnery, and daughter of the late John Christian, Esq. of Unerigg-haU, in Cumberland, who died at Bristol HotweUs, January 5, 1784, aged 27." Then foUows an epitaph, the same as that written by the Eev. Mr Mason, for his wKe in Bristol cathedral — " Take, holy earth, all my soul holds dear, &c," The line— " Speak, dead Maria ! breathe a strain divine,'' is altered, on account of the deceased's name not being Maria, and runs very lame, — " Speak, my dead love, breathe a strain divine," Arms : Argent, a bend between six mascles gules, impaling azure, a che-vron between three covered cups or. Besides which are tombs ^o the memories of Charles BaUard, late of Lincoln's-inn ; Mrs, Elizabeth Woods, and many others ; the particulars of which are preserved by me. The Churchyard " With nettles skirted,* and with moss o'ergrown," Has two handsome railed tombs, but without inscriptions : one is meant for Deemster Moore, " To the dead, Each chaste memorial rears its head With unaffected grace," * The Welch are peculiarly nice in this respect ; their churchyards being like flower-gardens. See a pleasing description of them in " A Tour of Observation and Sentiment through Wales," vol, i, of a very interesting and moral work, Mat thew's " Miscellaneous Companions," in 3 vols. 12mo. Dilly, 1786. 234 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. Thirty persons are buried between 71 and 80 years of age ; twenty persons between 80 and 90 ; and one of 93. Susanna Taubman, aUas Quay, died July 2, 1784, aged 71. " She was born on a Midsummer-day, married on a Midsummer- day, and buried on a Midsummer-day." — Good lack-a-day ! " Margaret Christian, wife of John Christian, Esq. of Unerigg, in Cumberland, and daughter of John Taubman, Esq. of the BowUng-green, and Esther his wife, died Feb. 1, 1778, aged 29. "Though caUed away in the prime of Ufe, from the fafrest prospect of human feUcity ; from the delighted hopes of most indulgent parents ; from the tender affection of a loving husband ; from the early promise of an only son ; and from an affluent fortune ; yet did she not repine. Innocence, virtue, unaffected sanctity, enabled her to meet the awful summons with devout resignation. The esteem and admiration of the wise and good — ^the dearest love of those that knew her best ; the agonizing sorrows of disconsolate friends ; pleaded in vain for her longer stay ; yet was not her death untimely. Blessed with wisdom above her sex, and vfrtue beyond her years, her task she soon finished ; a specimen was aU that was requfred ; and now with the dead that ' die in the Lord, she resteth from her labours, and her works do foUow her' " Learn hence, ye rich, unthinking, young, and gay. Duly to prize the moming of your day ; Dark clouds may intercept your noontide sun, Or night o'ertake you, ere your work is done." WUUam Sedden, gent died June 4, 1758, aged 81. "Knowest thou, 0 man ! who passest by this spot. That rest from labour is the just man's lot ; His body buried here lies mixed with earth. His soul, set free, enjoys a second birth, And disencumbered from its clay flies light. Springs through the air beyond the realms of night. Wrapt up in pleasing hope, it moimts on high To meet its Lord. Let sinners fear to die." I found an old memorandum in a register, that " in the A ¦ TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 235 year 1654, Kewish and CaUow, of Kirk Maughold, who were executed at Hango-hiU, near Castletown, were buried in Kirk Malew, down in the way from the porch ;" and " That Mr WiUiam Christian, of Eonoldsway, receiver-general, was shot to death at Hango-hUl, Jan. 2, 1662, for surrendering the keys of the garrison to Oliver CromweU's army. He died most penitently and most courageously, prayed earnestly, made an exceUent speech, and next day was buried in the chancel of Kfrk Malew," CASTLETO-WN Is an airy pleasant town, ten miles from Douglas, sixteen from Peel, and twenty-six from Eamsey; it is smaUer than Douglas, containing about 500 houses, but more spacious and regular. The town is divided by a smaU creek, which opens into a rocky and dangerous bay. The difficulty of entering its harbour, in some degree injures its commerce. A considerable quantity of grain is annuaUy exported hence, and a variety of Ifierchandize imported ; but rum, wine, sugar, tobacco, &c. are admissible only into the port of Douglas, from whence other towns are supplied. In the centre is Castle-Eushen, which overlooks the country for many mUes ; it was buUt in 960 by Guttred, a prince of the Danish line, who is buried in it. It stands on a rock, and before the introduction of artUlery, must have been impregnable. Its figure is frregular, said to resemble Elsinore ; a stone glacis surrounds it. It stUl braves the injuries of time, and is a majestic and formidable object The early kings used to reside here, tn barbarous pomp. The lady of James, the seventh Earl of Derby, (after his decoUation for his attachment to royalty in the ci-vil wars,) sought, in Castle-Eushen, an asylum with her children ; but when the repubhcan army, under Colonels Birch and Duckenfield, with ten armed vessels, invaded this island, this fortress was surrendered at their first summons. Her gaUant defence of Latham-house was remem bered ; and though her pride Was hurt her captivity was softened 236 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. by the generosity and respect of the officers. Apartments in it are now occupied by the Lieut-Governor It is not exactly kno-wn when the castle was buUt, as the Countess of Derby, who was confined here, carried, afterwards, away the records of the isle therein deposited, some suppose to Copenhagen, where they were consumed by the late fire, others to some part of Norway, &c. A ground plan of this formidable castle is engraved in plate III. It appeared in evidence, in 1791, that Castle-Eushen was in a dUapidated state, and " that the meetings of the legislature are held in places Ul-suited to the dignity of their functions ; the Keys assemble in a mean smaU buUding ; the courts of chancery and common-law are held in an indifferent apartment in Castle- Eushen. The place in the castle used as a gaol has but one apartment to receive aU persons committed for debt, or any offence less than capital ; this is smaU, dark, -without any di-vi sions, and altogether unfit for its purpose. The dungeons in the interior ward of the castle, appropriated for the reception of persons convicted of or charged with capital crimes, are stUl more wretched, and improper for the reception of any offender. The gaoler has a salary of 12Z. per annum, certainly too little." The House of Keys has a pubUc Ubrary over it but it is blocked up, and the books of most value selected for the use of the academy. A draw-bridge, and stone-bridge, cross the river at Castletown. Formerly there was a handsome piazza in the market-place, with a cross * in the middle ; at the old chapel, at the upper end, was buried Eaynold, son of Olave, King of Man in 1249, with lus brother Magnus, and some others. On the IGth of July, 1698, Bishop WUson laid the foundation of a new chapel at Castletown, which was built and paid for out * The original intention of erecting crosses, whether in churchyards or in public roads, was to remind people of the meritorious cross and passion of our blessed Saviour Jesus Christ; and of the duty incumbent on them to pray for the souls of their departed brethren.— Hist, of Somerset, vol. i. p. 224, 4to. Plate lu. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 237 of the ecclesiastical revenues. " The Lord grant (says he), that it may. When it is finished, continue a house of prayer to all ages," In 1710 the library of Castletown was finished, the greater ¦part of the expense of which, amounting to 83Z. 5s. 6d., was subscribed by the Bishop. Subscription 14?. 6s. M. "AprU 11, 1701 (says Bishop WUson), I consecrated the chapel at Castletown, the lord of the isle being present who desired me to give orders touching the seats^ &c." , When Bishop Wilson, in 1'722, suspended Archdeacon Horro bin, he authorized the Eev. Mr. Eoss, academical professor, to officiate in his stead untU further orders ; in consequence of the 'Oovemor's conduct a few weeks after, the following letter was addressed to him from the Bishop : " To the Hon. the Governor ofl this Isle, " Having just now had an account from the EeV. Mr. Eoss, whom I appointed to officiate in Castletown chapel during the ¦ archdeacon's suspension, that the doors of the said chapel are shut up, and that you have refused to deliver him the keys, whereby the people are deprived of the pubUc worship of God, and the chapel of that town, which has ever been subjected to me and my predecessors, is endeavoured to be made.independent ; I do therefore again complain against your said act as a fresh ¦instance of your intrenching on the episcopal authority, and which (K not speedUy remedied) may open a gap for a much greater and more pernicious innovation. At a Tinwald court, 22d of June, 1722," This neat and elegant chapel terminates a wide parade ; the pulpit has a satin damask cloth of crimson colour. The chapel is 81 feet by 24, The windows, notwithstanding an apparent uniformity, wtU be perceived, on a closer inspection, to be deeper on one side than on the other The monuments are to the •memory of Governor Horton, Governor Wood, Mr Tyldesley, . Mr Quayle, and Mr Callow, the latter of which is inscribed as under, on a neat marble : 238 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. " Daniel Callow, Esq. H.K. who, in discouraging circumstances, cheerfuUy accepted a commission to attend the business of his country in the south of England, where he died, zealously en gaged in the duty of that appointment June 18, 1790, aged 39. As a grateful testimony of their respect for his vfrtues, pubUc spirit and services, the House of Keys, with -others his countrymen and friends, have caused this monument to be erected." Castleto-wn is the residence of John Lace, Esq. the deemster forthe southern district [See pages 36, 144.] John F. CrelUn, Esq. deemster for the northem district resides at Orrisdale. The former I had not the honour of knowing ; but of the hospi tality and poUteness of both Mr and Mrs. CreUin, every stranger, who -visits that part of the island, must bear the most grateful and pleasing testimony. Its general clean appearance, its society, the miUtary, the- vicinity, the pleasant walks to Eeynoldsway, Scarlet Stack,* &c. ; together with its contiguity to Douglas, Port-le-Mary, Port-fron, &c. all conspire to render Castletown a very agreeable place. It has a market on Saturdays, and a fair in July, but has no regular butcher's shops. The harbour of Derby-haven is a natural one of great capabilities. It has a coUector, comp troUer, riding-officer, searcher, &c. The free-school comprises two objects, the academic institution^ and the grammar-school free for classical education. The Eev. T. Castley who succeeded Dr. Kippax as chaplain, is the present master. [See pages 92, 93.] The Eev. Joseph StoweU has also an academy for classical learning at the BowUng--green, near Castletown, in a pleasant situation. The free-school was forraerly a chapel dedicated to St. Mary, which was consecrated in 1250. This institution was estabUshed by Bishop Barrow, to supply the church. They receive instruct ¦* stack, in the Gaelic langnage, signifies a pyramidical rock which rises out of the sea, and is detached from everything else A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OF MAN. 239 tions under an academic professor, who must be M.A. from one of the Universities, for whom a decent salary is aUowed, and provision for three or four students of the estabUshment* At Douglas, also, there is a benefaction for the education of two candidates for the ministry ; so that the island affords a sufficient share of schools for teaching the classics, theology, and the arts and sciences. Longness-point is at the extremity of a peninsula, which is some mUes round, and contains some good herbage. To this peninsula St Michael's island is joined by a high breast-work of about 100 yards in length. The spot contains the remains of a circular fort buUt by one of the Earls of Derby, the date 1667 over the door ; it has a walk round on the top, barracks, &c. ; the waUs are eight feet thick. It is a pleasant walk of about t\?o nules from the town, at the enfrance of Derby-haven, which is strongly protected by cannon, and by a courageous and weU- discipUned set of troops, as weU as the inhabitants. On this island is also the remains of an old chapel in which is a soUtary head-stone, in memory of Henry Pearson, a mariner, of Whitehaven, who died AprU 24, 1782, aged 55 ; and his son Thomas, aged 15. Some herring-houses are adjacent Ballasalla is a vUlage two mUes from Castletown, on the road which leads to Douglas ; here Eushen abbey rears " its- ivy-vested waUs."" Fallen fabric ! pondering o'er thy time-traced walls. Thy mouldering, mighty, melancholy state ; Each object to the musing mind recalls The sad vicissitudes of varying fate." — SonTHBT- A Umestone quarry is close to the -vUlage. Its cotton manu factory is at present unemployed, but some experiments are making in order to spin t'wine for the fishing nets ; and from the progress already made, I hope it may soon be set at work again. * students 1798, Mr. J. AUen, Mr. T. Stephens, Mr. Harrison, Mr. Nelson j assistant preachers, the Rev, Mr. StoweU, and Rev. Mr, Gelling. 240 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. This viUage is weU wooded, and a spirit of planting prevails in the upper end of it about Deemster Moore's, and Mr De la Prime's, which are handsome houses. The abbey of St Mary, of Eushen, was founded in 1098, by Mac-manis ; this estabUshment consisted of an abbot and twelve monks of the Cistertian order From rigid austerity, they degenerated at length to pride and luxury ; a third of the tithes of Man were added to thefr revenue, ahd their temporal dignity increased ; an abbot became a baron, held courts, could shelter a' criminal from the sentence of the lord's court, and try him by his own vassals. It was subject to the abbey at Fumess. In 1192, the monks removed to Duff-glass, or Douglas, where they continued four years, and then returned to Eushen, and flourished some time after they were suppressed in England. In 1257, Eichard, bishop of the Isles, consecrated the abbey church of St Mary Eushen, though it was begun 150 years before, and in that time had been the repository of many of their kings. It was liberaUy endowed and richly decorated. In 1316, it was plundered by Eichard de Mande-ville, who, -with a numerous train of Irish, landed at Eaynoldsway, de feated the Manks under Warfield, or Barrule, and ravaged the country. Near the monastery is the tomb of an abbot, with the insignia of temporal and spiritual authority. Abbey bridge is in a romantic spot and is much noticed on account of its antiquity. The monks of Eushen abbey wrote the three first sheets of the account of Man, published by Mr Camden ; but aU other of their works have proved as mortal as their monasteries. The number of computed quarterlands, formerly belonging to the monastery of Eushen, were 99J, besides 66 mUls, and 77 abbey cottages. By the last returns the number of inhabitants were 3333 in Malew and Castletown. The church is dedicated to St. Lupus ; it has no vicarage-house. A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN, 241 A short distance to the east of BallatroUage, about three mUes from Castletown, is a famous well, visited for medical aid. Near " Castletown, some traces of an earthquake, and of a volcanic eraption, have been observed. According to an old historian, in the reign of Ivar, the thfrd Prince of Wales, there happened a remarkable earthquake in the island, which much disturbed and annoyed the inhabitants.* In the road from Castletown to Derbyhaven, you pass the ruins of Mount Strange, a kind of summer-house, in former times the scene of sociable festivity; the large room was about 36 feet by 24. " No more its arches echo to the noise Of joy and festive mirth ; no more the glance Of blazing taper through ita windows beams. And quivers o'er the undulating wave j But naked stand the melancholy waUs, Lashed by the wintry tempests, cold and bleak. That whistle moumful through the empty halls. And piecemeal crumble down the whole to dust." — MiOHABL Bbcoe. The rocky shore about Castleto-wn consists of a bastard marble of a dark colour, but much intersected -with lines of white spar. It yields good Ume, but requfres much fuel. A place of execution, which is adjoining the town, is, happUy, seldom or never wanted ; the spfrit of the criminal laws is mUd, and the foUo-wing are the only persons who I could learn had been executed. In 1735, WUliam and James Clucas, and WUUam KeUy, for burglary and robbeiy ; and in 1745, John Bridson, of BaUasaUa, for the murder of a young woman, who was pregnant by him. What a confrast to the number which, in the metropoUs of England, have suffered death from that period ! In one year, from 1793 to 1794, sixty-eight persons were executed in London only ; and from 2,500 to 3,000 persons are annuaUy committed for trial ! In retuming from the Eound Fort, and in the fields in the * See Pratt's Gleanings, vol, i, p, 116, R 242 A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. vicinity of Castletown, the castle and place appear to great advantage, particularly the former, which looks formidable and sublime. "Nor is there (says Mr GUpin), in travelUng, a greater pleasure than when a scene of grandeur bursts unex pectedly on the eye, accompanied -with some accidental cfr cumstance of the atmosphere, which harmonizes with it, and gives it double value." I have already stated, that this parish has been exposed to the incursions of the enemy ; and that it did not always enjoy that sweet tranquUlity it possesses at present we may further learn from the historical documents. When Alexander, King of Scotland, on the death of Magnus (see page 8), began to seize the isles, Ivar, who had married his widow, resolved to defend Man, and met, with great resolu tion, a numerous army under Alexander of Peasely, and John Comyne, who landed at Eannesway, in 1270. Ivar, though inferior in number, met them with a resolution natural to the Manks, but feU with 537 of the fiower of the people. And in 1313, King Eobert Bruce sat down before the Castle of Eushen, which, for six months, was obstinately defended by one Dingay Do-wyU, though in whose name we do not find. Of the Crownan line were nine princes, who were all feuda tories to the Kings of England, and often resorted to the EngUsh court, where they were kindly received, and had pensions given them. Alexander III. as we have seen, with the other islands con quered this (see page 8), which, as parcel of that kingdom, came into the hands of Edward I,, who dfrected his warden, Huntercombe, to restore it to John Baliol, who had done homage to him for the kingdom of Scotland. In 35th Edward I. is a record extant in Mr Prynn, of our King's right and seizure of the Isle of Man for his use. It was granted, after dispossessing Henry de BeUo Monte, to GUbert de MakaskaU during pleasure, who having expended A TOUR THROUGH THE ISLE OP MAN. 243 1,215^. 3s. M. in defence of it against the Scots, and Ukewise laid out 380Z. 17s. 6d. in victuals, which he deUvered to the overnor of the castle of CarUsle, to victual it against the Scots, had both these sums aUowed him, upon his petition, and was ordered to be paid. For the succession of govemors from Sfr John Stanley's time see page 18. r2 APPENDIX. Pank papa €^nxiu. HAVING noticed this act in pages 124, 125, and recoUectmg that it has not appeared in any work printed in England, I am induced to present it to the reader in this place, together -with ita explanatory act. An ACT, for the perfect Settling and Confirmation of tlie Estates, Tenures, Fines, RenU, Suits, and Services of the Tenants of the Right Hon. James, Harl of Derby, viithin the Isle of Man, passed at Tyn- wald-Court, holden at St. Johri s Chapel, within the said Isle, tlie ith day of Feb. 1703, hy the said Jambs, Earl of Derby, Lord ofthe said Isle; Eobebt Mawdkslby, Esq., Govemor ; and tlie rest of his said Lordship's Officers; and twenty-four Keys, the Representatives of the said Isle, Whebbas several disputes, questions, and differences have hereto fore arisen and been contested between the lords of the said isle and thefr tenants, touching their estates, tenures, fines, rents, suits and ser vices, to the great prejudice of the lords, and impoverishment of the tenants and people there, who, by that means, have been discouraged from making such improvements as their estates were and are capable of : for the absolute and perpetual ascertaining whereof, and the avoid ing of all aUibiguities, doubts, and questions that may or migM,. at any time hereafter, arise, or grow, touching or concerning the same, proposals were made unto the said James, Earl of Derby, now Lord of the said isle, at Lathome, the Sth day of Sept last past by Ewan Christian, of Unerigg, in the county of Cumberland, Esq.; John Stephenson, of BaUadoole ; and Ewan Christian, of Lewage, within APPENDIX. 245 the said isle, gentlemen ; who, by an instrument under the hands of the twenty-four Keys, now remaining upon record, were empo-wered to treat conceming the same, as weU for and on behalf of themselves, as aU and every the tenants within the said isle, in manner foUo-wing : 1st That in case his lordship would be pleased to declare Tenm-es and confirm imto his tenants their ancient and customary confirmed. estates of inheritance in thefr respective tenements descendible from ancestor to hefr, according to the laws and customs of the said isle, that then the said tenants shonld, in consideration thereof, advance and pay unto his said lordship the same fines which they severally and respec tively paid for their several and respective tenements, at the general fining, which was in or about the year of our Lord 1643 : except where any tenant or tenants have or hath one or more life or Hves in being ; and that then, and in such case, he or they should severaUy and respec tively pay two-thfrds only, of the said general fine, for thefr respective tenements. Sdly. That upon the change of any tenant, by death or Alienation. alienation, the next succeeding hefr, or alliance, should pay unto the lord of the said isle for the time being, the thfrd part of the said entfre sum which was paid for a fine at the said general fining, in Fines. manner foUowing : that is to say, in case of the change of a tenant by death, then the said fine should be paid -within twelve months after the death of such tenant ; and in case of the change or removal of a tenant by alienation, then the same should be paid immediately after such alienation made, proportionably to the lands and tenements which should descend, or be aliened ; and this to continue forever hereafter, as a fixed and a certain fine, upon every descent and alienation. Pro- -vided, nevertheless, that aU intacks, cottages, and milns, Intacks. which, by the laws and customs of the said isle, were and are reputed chattels, might be chargeable -with debts, and de-visable by gift, grant -wiU, or assignment, as formely accustomed, paying such fines respec tively as were paid at the general fining aforesaid ; to -wit, the whole fine where there were no Hves in being, and two parts thereof only where there were, and stUl are, one or two Hves in being ; and a third part of the said general fine, forever hereafter, upon every descent or alienation, as aforesaid. Sdly. That the tenants of the abbey lands, as well as the lord's tenants, should be included in the said proposals, they and every of them paying the same fines that were agreed for, upon their late com positions, or leases, made in or about the year of our Lord 1666 (except 246 APPENDIX. such as have one or more life or lives yet in being, to pay two parts only of the said fine now), and a third part thereof always afterwards, upon the admittance of a new tenant either upon death, or alienation, as aforesaid : and also yielding, paying, performuig, and doing the annual rents, customs, suits, and services, as formerly and anciently accustomed ; and that the tithes arising out- of the abbey demesnes, and reserved by James, late Earl of Derby, upon the composition by him made in the year 1643 ; and afterwards by Charles, late Earl of Derby, granted to Bishop Barrow (since deceased), and his successors, for the use of the clergy of the said isle, should be reserved, and for ever hereafter payable to them. 4thly. That the double rents of the quarterlands, as they were then Chief rents, payable, together -with aU other rents, suits, and services payable out of those, or any other estates -within the said isle, should be reserved and payable, forever hereafter, as formerly, to the said James, Eail of Derby, his hefrs and assigns, or to such other person, or persons, as for the time being should be lord of the said isle ; and that Boons and the ancient boons and carriages, payable by the respective carriages, tenants, should be considered at a Tynwald-court. 5thly. That if any tenant should then after pass away any part of his estate, either to any of his chUdren, or other person whatsoever, by gift, grant, assignment, or any other deed or contract whatsoever, whereby to divest himself of the premises, that the same should be esteemed and accounted as an aHenation -within the intendment of the Alienation, said proposals : or if any tenant who then had mortgaged, or Mortgage, should thenceafter mortgage aU, or any part of his messuages, lands, tenements, mUls, cottages, intacks, or other hereditaments, unto any person, and should not actuaUy redeem the same, to his o-wn proper use, within the space of five years next after the commencement of the said mortgage, that then such mortgage should be Hke-wise looked upon and reputed as an aUenation ; and the mortgagee should be admitted tenant and his name entered into the court-roUs, and should pay the tMrd part of the general fine, charged and chargeable upon the said messuages, lands, tenements, mUns, cottages, intacks, and hereditaments so mortgaged, or to be mortgaged, as aforesaid : provided, nevertheless, that the mortgager shaU have the power and Hberty of redemption stUl remaining in Mm, and is to be restored to the possession of the premises, by law, or order of the Court of Chancery, as the matter -will appear in equity ; so that the same may be done within the space of one and twenty years from the date of the said mortgage, and not other- APPENDIX. 247 wise. And that aU bUls of mortgage afready made, or hereafter to be made, shaU be entered into the records -witMn six months after the passing of the said proposals into a law, or -within six months next after such biUs of mortgage were executed; otherwise such bills to be of no effect in the law. 6tMy. That aU new intacks, or inclosures, taken out of the Intacks. commons, and all mills erected since the year 1643, that had not paid any fines, shoidd have a reasonable fine set upon them by the governor, tMee of the lord's officers, and three of the twenty-four keys, to be appointed for that purpose ; and that the fines so set by them should be paid within six months next after the setting thereof ; and that the thfrd part of the said fine so to be set as aforesaid, should forever hereafter be paid upon the change of every tenant, by death, aliena tion, or mortgage as aforesaid. 7tMy. That aU intacks, or mills, wMch should then after be inclosed or erected, should pay such fine and fines as should be agreed on by the govemor, and lord's officers; and that to be like-wise a fixed and certain fine ; to be forever hereafter paid by the tenants of the same, upon every descent, or aHenation, in manner aforesaid. 8tMy. And that aU such intacks and cottages as had been taken out of the Mghways adjoining the quarterlands, or other estates, but not belonging to the same, should not, nor were not intended to be in cluded in the said proposals ; but that such intacks and cottages (being complained of as great nuisances) should be referred to the consideration of a Tynwald-court to determine where the rents and fines, of and for such intacks and cottages, might most conveniently be fixed. 9tMy. That whereas the fine lately paid out of the estate caUed Lough MaUow and Dry Closes was not comprised in the general fining in the year 1643, the same being since that Mallow time leased by Eight Hon. Charles, late Earl of Derby; it amd Dry was therefore (upon special consideration had) proposed that the said estate should only pay 120?. for the present fine : but if any of the Hves nominated in the said lease, made thereof by the said late Earl Charles, should be found to be stiU in being, then only two-thfrd parts of the said 120?. should be paid as a present fine; and a thfrd part of the said 1201. should forever hereafter be paid as a fixed and certain fine, upon the change of any tenant by death, aliena tion, or mortgage as aforesaid. lOtMy. That the present fines should be accepted and received according to the currency of money then -within the said isle ; and 248 APPENDIX. that one-thfrd part thereof shonld be paid within six months next after the passing of this act ; another thfrd part should be paid at the end of twelve months now next ensuing ; and the last payment to be made within six months then next foUowing : so that the whole should be paid within eighteen months next after the passing of this act lltMy. That the ancient rents (except only on such lands as were then in the lord's hands) should, for the fature, be preserved by the Kniries by Setting Quest; and that the tenants' names shouldbe entered Setting Quest, j^ tj^g court roUs, as formerly ; and that when any tenant should come to any estate, by death, alienation, or mortgage, suoh tenant should be obHged to give notice thereof to the Setting Quest of the parish where such estate lay, some time before the next sheading court that should be holden after he became tenant to the said estate, to the intent that the said inquest might present the said tenant's name to the court (wMch they should, upon oath, be obHged to do, at every sheading court, as oft as any such should .happen), to the end that such tenant's name might be entered upon record, either by himself or some other person fri Ms behaU, whereby the lord's fines might be had and' received, at such time and in such manner as are hereinbefore, for that purpose, limited and appointed, without fraud or concealment ; and if the said tenant should refuse, or fail to have his name entered accordingly, at the said court that then such tenant so refusing, or neglecting, should be fined in 31. to the lord for the time being ; and that, upon the change of any tenant, by death, aHenation, or mortgage, one single person, and no more, should be admitted, unless he became tenant in the right of Ms wife, and not otherwise. And lastly, That aU the before-mentioned proposals, and every matter and thing therein contained, should forth-with be passed into a law, and confirmed by the authority of a Tynwald-court, saving always to the lord aU such royalties and regalties, in and concerning the premises, as were invested in Ms lordsMp by vfrtue of Ms prerogatives within the said isle. And the said James, Earl of Derby, out of Ms great zeal and care for the welfare and quiet of Ms people, and to the end that such establishment might be treated and agreed upon, as might complete and forever confirm a constant mutual love and friend ship between the lords of the said isle and their people, did nominate and appoint the forenamed Eobert Mawdesley, Thomas, Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, and Nicholas Starkie, Esq., commissioners, to treat and consult with the said Ewan Christian, John Stephenson, and Ewan CMistian, of Lewaige, concerning the said proposals, wMch were con- APPENDIX. 249 sented and agreed unto by aU parties commissionated for that purpose ; (as in and by the said proposals, enroUed and remaioing upon record, in the comptroller's office, -within the said isle, more at large doth and may appear ;) and the said Eight Hon. James, Earl of Derby, and aU and singular the tenants and inhabitants -within the said isle, and members of the same, are contented and -weU pleased that the said proposals, and aU things therein contained, shaU be ratified and con firmed by an act of Tynwald-court May it therefore please your lordsMp, that it may be enacted, and be it enacted, by the said James, Earl of Derby, now lord of the said isle, by and -with the advice and consent of the said govemor, and the rest of his lordsMp's officers, and by the twenty-four keys in tMs present Tynwald-court assembled, and by the authority of the same, that the said proposals, and every clause, article, sentence, matter, and thing in the same contained, shaU stand and be ratified, aUowed, approved of, and confirmed, by the authority of this present Tynwald-court ; and that the said proposals shaU stand and be of force to bind and conclude, as weU the said James, Earl of Derby, his hefrs and assigns, and all persons claiming, or to claim from, by, or under him or them, or to Ms use, or in trust for Mm, as the said Ewan Christian, John Stephenson, and Ewan CMistian, of Lewage, and all and singular other the tenants, and inhabitants -within the said isle, thefr and every of thefr heirs and assigns, and all persons claiming, or to claim from, by, or under them, or any of them, or to or for their use, or in trust for them or any of them, in aU things, according to the purport, effect, and true meaning of the said proposals ; and that every clause, article, sentence, matter, and thing in the said proposals contained, shaU, forever hereafter, stand, be, and remain, andhe adjudged and taken to be of such and the same force and effect, to all intents and purposes, as if the said proposals, and every clause, article, sentence, matter, and thing therein contained, were especiaUy and particularly herein again expressed and repeated and by the authority of tMs present court enacted. And, be it further enacted, ordained, and declared, by the authority aforesaid, that all estates made, or to be made, of any messuages, lands, tenements, and hereditaments, within the said isle, or members of the same, to any person oi persons, and his and thefr hefrs, shaU be, and shall be adjudged, esteemed, and taken from the making or granting of such estates, to be good and perfect customary estates of inheritance descendible from ancestor to heir, according to the laws and customs of the said isle; (except such as are reputed chattels, as is before -men- 250 APPENDIX. tioned ;) and that aU and every such person and persons, to whom any such customary lands, tenements, or hereditaments are, or shall be granted to Mm, and Ms hefrs, according to the laws and customs of the said isle, shaU be, and shaU be adjudged, esteemed, and taken, and are hereby declared to be seized thereof, as of good and perfect customary estates of inheritance, to them and thefr heirs, descendible from ancestor to hefr, according to the customs of the said isle; and that aU and every the said tenants of and witMn the said isle, and members of the same, as weU aU tenants in possession as iu reversion, and remainder particularly or generaUy named, mentioned, or intended to be parties to the said proposals, and not hereby excluded, thefr and every of thefr respective heirs and assigns, shaU and may, from hence forth forever, quietly and peaceably have, hold, and enjoy aU thefr respective messuages, lands, tenements, and hereditaments, with thefr and every of thefr appurtenances, to them and to thefr hefrs severaUy and respectively, as customary tenants of and -witMn the said isle, against the said James, Earl of Derby, Ms hefrs and assigns, and against aU and every other person or persons, claiming or to claim from, by, or under him or them, or any of them : aU and singular the tenants -within the said isle, and members of the same, thefr hefrs and assigns, and aU and every other person, or persons, claiming, or to claim from, by, or under them, or any of them, respectively yielding, paying, per forming, and doing unto the said James, Earl of Derby, his hefrs and assigns, and aU and every other the lords of the said isle for the time being, such yearly rents, boons, suits, and services, as herein-before are mentioned, and which now are, or heretofore have been, usually paid and performed ; and also paying unto the said James, Earl of Derby, Ms hefrs and assigns, such general and other fines certain, as in the said proposals are also, for that purpose, particularly mentioned and expressed : sa-nng always unto the said James, Earl of Derby, Ms heirs and assigns, and unto aU and every other person and persons, that shaU at any time hereafter become lords of the said isle, aU such royalties, regalia, prerogatives, homages, fealties, escheats, forfeitures, seizures, mines, and minerals, of what kind and nature soever, quarries, and delfs of flag, slate, and stone, franchises, Hberties, privileges, and jurisdictions whatsoever, as now are, or at any time heretofore have been uivested in the said James, Earl of Derby, or in any of Ms ancestors, lords of the said isle ; and saving, nevertheless, to aU and every person and persons, bodies politic and corporate, thefr hefrs and successors (other than the said James, Earl of Derby, Ms heirs and APPENDIX. 251 assigns), aU such actions, estate, rigM, title, interest use, trust claim, and demand whatsoever, in law or equity, as they or any of them have, may, should, or ought to have, of, iato or out of the said isle, or any part thereof, and in such sort and manner as if this act had never been made : Provided that such person or persons, their hefrs, executors, and administrators, do yield, pay, perform, and do unto the said James, Earl of Derby, Ms hefrs and assigns, and to aU and every other the lords of the said isle for the time being, the several yearly rents, boons, suits, and services, that have been accustomarUy and usually paid for the estates which they or any of them shaU or may make any claim or title to, and do also pay unto the said lord and lords of the said isle for the time being, aU such fines certain for the same, and in such manner and form, as in the said proposals are particularly mentioned and agreed unto, and not otherwise. And it is further provided, that nothing in the said saving shall impeach, or be prejudicial to, or be construed to impeach or be prejudicial to, the settlement of the nature and quality of the estates, tenures, fines, rents, suits, and services, which hereby and by the said proposals are agreed upon, and intended to be enacted, granted, and confirmed : anytMng in the said saving to the contrary not-withstanding. Note, That it is agreed and consented unto, by the governor, officers, and twenty-four keys aforesaid, at the sigmng hereof, that this act shaU be no way construed and taken, to free and discharge the tenants and inhabitants of this isle from giving thefr best assistance, or supply, for the defence of this isle, in time of war, or other imminent danger, in such manner as shaU be agreed upon by the govemor, officers, and twenty-four keys of the island for the time being, as occasion and necessity -wiU require. — (Signed, &c.) I do hereby declare my fuU and free consent to this Act of Settlement, sa-ving and except so much thereof as relates to the tithes arising out of the abbey demesnes therein mentioned to be sold by Charles, late Earl of Derby, to Bishop Barrow, and the several rectories of Kk. Christ Lezayre, Kk. Marown, Kk: Lonan, Kk. Conchan, Kk. Malew, Kk. Maughold, Kfrk Arbory, Kk. Christ Eushen, Kk. Michael, and Kk. St. Anne, -with their and every of thefr appurtenances, and aU tenths and tithes rene-wing, gro-wing within, or belonging to the said rectories ; and all oblations, obventions, pensions, rights, and duties thereunto belonging or appertaining, wMch were, by 252 APPENDIX. mdenture, bearing date the 1st day of Nov. 1666, made between the said Charles, Eari of Derby, of the one part, and Isaac, Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, and Jonathan Eletcher, archdeacon of the said isle, of the other part granted, bar- gauied, and sold, to the bishop and archdeacon, thefr executors and assigns, for ten thousand years, at the several yearly rents and upon the trasts therein-mentioned ; and such estate, rigM, title, interest claim, and demand, as I have or may or can claim or demand o^ mto, or out of the same, as if this act had never been made or passed. And I do hereby confirm tMs act (except as aforesaid), accordmg to my undoubted prerogative -within the said isle, and requfre that the said act be published at the next T-ynwald-court m usual manner. DEEBY. At a Tynwald-court, holden at St John's chapel, the 6th of June, A D. 1704. The foregoing Act of Settlement being confirmed by our Honourable Lord, in manner as aforesaid, was this day pubHcly proclaimed, upon the Tynwald-MU, according to ancient form and custom. As witness our hands, the day and year above--WTitten. — (Signed, &c.) INSULA \ Acts likewise passed by the Eight Hon. Jambs, Earl of MON.S. ] Derby, Lord of the said Isle, and by his Govemor, officers, and twenty-four Keys, the Eepresentatives thereof, at the before-mentioned Court of Tynwald, holden the 4th day of February, a. d. 1703. Whebbas by a clause in the before-mentioned Act of Settlement the respective tenants and inhabitants of the said isle are obHged to pay (besides their rents and fines therein contained and expressed) aU other then dues, duties, and carriages, as have been formerly accustomed and expressed, and that the fixing and ascertaining of the said carriages is, by the said act, left to the consideration of a Tynwald-court. Be it therefore ordered, ordained, enacted, and declared, by the authority of the said, Court of Tynwald, that the tenants and inhabitants of this isle shall pay and do their carriages to the lord as formerly accustomed, that is to say, four carriages from every quarter of land, and one carriage from every cottage and intackholder, within the said isle: and tho same to be performed either by the labour of horses, or service APPENDIX. 253 of men, as the governor shall think fit to order, and as hath been formerly accustomed ; and that these carriages shall be taken for the lord's use, as Ms lordsMp, or the governor for the time being, shall think fit to employ them ; and that no tenant shaU be exempt from doing of these carriages, but such as have been legally accustomed to be freed thereof ' Also, Whereas by another clause in the aforesaid Act of Settlement, all persons who then had mortgaged, or should thenceafter mortgage, all or any part of his messuages, lands, tenements, mUls, cottages, intacks, or other hereditaments, unto any person, and should not aetuaUy redeem the same to Ms o-wn proper use, within the space of five years next after the commencement of the said mortgage, that then such mortgage should be looked upon as an alienation, and the mortgagee admitted as tenant to the same, in such manner, and on .such terms, as in and by the said clause is fuUy mentioned and expressed. And forasmuch as it is conceived that several fraudulent bargains may be made, by letting of lands, tenements, mUls, cottages, intacks, and other hereditaments, for the security of money, under other notions than that of a mortgage, to defraud our honourable lord of his fine : Be it therefore ordered, ordained, and enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that aU such bargains as shaU hereafter be made, and given for the security of any sum of money, upon lands, tenements, miUs, cottages, intacks, and other hereditaments, as aforesaid, longer than for the term of ~five years, shaU be declared and taken to be a mortgage -within the intendment of the said act unless the Court of Chancery within this isle shaU adjudge it otherwise ; and that the mortgagee shaU be Hable to pay such fine for the same, as in and by the said clause inserted in the said act, is mentioned and declared And also. Whereas by another clause in the aforesaid Act of Settle ment, it is mentioned and expressed, that.aU such intacks and cottages as had been taken out of the Mghways adjoining to the quarterlands, or other estates, but not belonging to the same, should not ^ot -were not intended to be included in the said Act of Settlement ; but that such intacks and cottages (being complained of as great nuisances) should be referred to the consideration of a Tynwald-court to determine where the rents and fines of and for such intacks and cottages might most conveMently be fixed. Be it therefore hereby ordered, ordained, and enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that the rents and fines of all such cottages and intacks, taken out of the Mghways adjoining to any quarterlands, or other estates, whether they belong to the lord or 254 APPENDIX. barons, being taken to rent in or since the year of our Lord 1610, are to be paid by those farmers and tenants, or other persons, unto whose lands and tenements these cottages and intacks do adjoin, and they to become tenants thenceforward to the lord, for the said cottages and intacks ; and that the .said tenants and inhabitants dweUing in and possessing those cottages and intacks, shaU henceforward become sub tenants to the said farmers, tenants, and other persons, upon such reasonable terms as can be agreed upon betwixt them, or as shall be thought reasonable by the Court of Chancery of this island ; and if any such cottage or fritack holder do not submit to such terms as the court shaU order therein, then such cottage or intack holder is to be ejected out of the said holding, and a jury of four men swom to value what improvements he has made on the same ; wMch said value (being approved of by the court) the said farmer, tenant, or other person is to pay and reimburse unto the said cottage or intack holder, and there upon to be immediately possessed of the same, and have Hberty to dispose of the said cottage, or intack, to whom and to what uses he shall thmk fitting. Pro-vided always, that such farmer, tenants, or other persons, unto whose lands such cottages or mtacks do adjoin, complaining of such to be a nuisance, shaU be obHged to make the same appear to be so, -within eighteen months next after the date hereo:^ otherwise, and in default thereof, the said cottage or intack holder shaU have and enjoy the same on the Hke terms that other cottages and intacks are held and enjoyed -within this isle, by -vfr-tue of the said Act of Settlement, without any disturbance of the said farmer, tenant, or other person, at any time after the said eighteen months are determined and expfred. And it is like-wise provided and declared, that aU Mgh ways out of which any intacks or cottages have been taken, that shaU be found not to be eighteen feet broad, according as the statute pro-vides, shaU be enlarged out of the said intacks or cottages (when compledned of) at any time hereafter ; anything herein-mentioned to the contrary not-withstanding. And whereas, in the sa-mig part of the said Act of Settlement it is mentioned, and declared, that all quarries and delfs of fiag, slate, and stone, are reserved to his lordsMp and Ms heirs, as a royalty and pre rogative belonging to them within this isle : wMch part of the said act seems to restrain the farmers and tenants of the said isle from digging, and getting such sort of common stone as might be necessary for building, and making of other improvements on thefr estates and tenements ; be it therefore enacted, ordained, and declared, by the APPENDIX. 255 authority aforesaid, that, notwithstanding the general words in the said Act of Settlement, every tenant and farmer shaU, nevertheless, have free liberty of digging, raising, and disposing of aU sorts of stones and slates, upon thefr respective tenements, as hath been formerly accustomed ; so that they be employed only for thefr own use, and for the improvement of thefr own and neighbours' estates and tene ments, and that they shall not dispose or make merchandise of the same otherwise, without the licence or Hberty of the lord or governor of the said isle first had and obtained for the same ; and if any farmer, or inhabitant, having a quarry or quarries of Umestone, or other common stone, on Ms or thefr grounds, shaU obstinately refuse or deny Hberty to any other person or persons, to dig or get such limestone, or other stones, for the improvement of Ms or their lands or tenements, or other-wise, -without paying him a high and unreasonable consideration for the same, then, and in such case, it shall and may be lawful for the govemor of tMs isle for the time being, to interpose, and order that such person, or persons, as stand in need of such Hmestones, or other stones, may dig, raise, and carry away as much as wdl be necessary for Ms or thefr use, pajdng unto the farmer, or inhabitant, on whose lands the same shaU be so gotten, such moderate and reasonable satisfaction, as the govemor, in his discretion, shaU think fit to order and aUow. (Signed by the officers and keys.) These four acts relating to the settlement, are Hkewise aUowed of and confirmed by me, and ordered to be ' m Hke manner pubhshed at the next Tynwald-court DEEBT. At a Tynwald-court, holden at St John's chapel, the 6th day of June, a. d. 1704. The foregoing four acts relating to, the settlement -viz. an act touching carriages, &c. ; an act concerning aHenations and mortgages ; an act touching intacks and cottages ; and an act concermng quarries and delfs, &c., were this day pubHcly proclaimed, upon Tynwald-hUl, according to ancient form and custom. As witness our hands, the day and year above-written. — (Signed by the officers and keys.) POSTSCEIPT. BY the act at present under consideration of the British ParUameM, (July, 1798), the foUo-wing provisions are probably to take place, for the encouragement of the teade and the manufactures of the island, and for the prevention of smuggling : — So much of the act of 20 Geo. IIL [see page 71] granting additional duties on certain itUportations into the island, and for better regulating the trade, and securing the revenues, as permits the exportation of British spirits feom any ports in England to the island, is to be repealed ; and a Hmited quantity of brandy and Geneva permitted to be imported, under a duty of 3s. per gaUon, -with certain resteictions. An additional quantity of tobacco, under a duty of 3d. per pound, is to be permitted to be exported annuaUy from England to the island. The duty on British hops imported is to be annuUed, and a duty of 1 Jc?. imposed on every pound imported into the island The drawback of the whole duties on British hops to be aUowed on exportation thereof to the island. The quantity of -wine imported to be limited, -with an additional duty of 8?. per ton. (See page 71.) Cotton yam and cotton cloth, of the island manufacture, to be per mitted, under certain restrictions, to be imported into Great Britain, -without payment of any custom duty. But no cotton yam, or cotton cloth, is to be permitted to be imported into the island from any place whatsoever but Great Britain. A limited number of sheep to be permitted to be exported annuaUy from England to the island ; and the drawback of sUk goods imported into the island from Great Britain to cease. This, I apprehend, is to be the basis of the act about to take place. NOTES. NOTES BY THE EDITOR. Page 4. — " The voyage of two days and two nights." Our author here writes as a tourist in August, 1797, sixty-four years ago. The excursionist of August, 1861, would describe his pleasant passage of Jive and a half or six hours. The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company's vessels are of a superior class, affording every accommodation to the numerous tourists who visit the Island in the summer months. They are, moreover, commanded and worked by officers and men of great skill, experience, and courtesy. Page 5, Line 8, — " The country appeared," <&c. One generally acknowledged charm, in the features of our Island scenery, is the great variety of beauties contained in a small space. Although Mona is somewhat scantily clothed with woodland vesture, yet this seems to be amply atoned for, in the charming and ever-changing scenes, which the pedestrian or the artist may enjoy, as he cUmbs the mountain height, traverses the heath and gorse-clad hills, and winds his way through the wild and romantic glens. It may not be generally known that the late John Martin, Esq., K.L,, was a frequent visitor to the Isle of Man, — painted, died, and was buried here. His remains now rest in the Cemetery of the Parish of Kirk Braddan. Page 5. — " CentricaUy situated," &c. "In hoc medio cursu est insula quse appeUatur Mona." — Caesar's Commentaries, book V. The Isle of Man is also about the centre o£ the space occupied by the British Islands. Page 14, Line 7. — " The bishopric being estimated," tke. By the Tithe Commutation Act, 2 Victorise, 1839, the proportion to be paid to the Bishop was £1515, which, added to the rent of the Glebe Lands of the Bishop (commonly called the Bishop's Domain) amounted to £1965 ISs, 9d. ^60 NOTES. Page 17. — " Tico 'Vicars-Oeneral," itc'. For many years past tho office of Vicar-General has been held by one person. Formerly this officer was a clergyman. The present functionary is Thomas Arthur Corlett, Esq,, member of the Manx Bar, Page 17, Line 17,—" The Govemor," die. The present Lieutenant-Governor, Francis Pigott, Esq,, formerly M.P. for Read ing, resides at Villa Marina, Douglas. The Hon. Charles Hope, his immediate predecessor occupied Lorn House, Castletown. Tlie Attorney-General,— O^axlsa R, Ogden, Esq,, is non-resident, and acts by deputy in the person of Alfred "W, Adams, Esq,, advocate, Douglas, The Hon, Wm, L. Drinkwater, of Kirby, near Douglas, is Her Majesty's Southern or Chief Deemster (Doomster or Judge), and the Hon. J. C. Stephen, of Ramsey, the Deemster for the Northern Division of the Island. There is a great difference between the official salaries of the present day, and those mentioned by our Author as the emoluments when he wrote, but the Editor is not prepared to make an exact statement thereof. Page 28. — " Illicit practices" Certainly no coast could, in former times, be more favourable for the prosecution of contraband trade, than that of the Isle of Man. Page 41 to 62. — Letter I^V. In no department does the Island of Man exhibit a more marked improvement than in that which forms the subject of this letter. The prediction in page 52, liues 1 and 2, is well nigh literally fulfilled at the present time. Page 53, Line 7. — Letter V. See the excellent remarks ou this very interesting subject, by the Rev. W. Gill, Vicar of Malew, in his Introduction to the Manx Grammar, -Vol. II, of the Manx Society's publications, Douglas, 1859. Page 53, Line 11. — "A Dictionary of the Manx Language." A Dictionary (Manx-English) was published at Douglas in 1835, by Archibald Cregeen, Arbory, Isle of Man. It is considered, by good Manx scholars, to be a carefully compiled work, aud an excellent vocabulary of the Manx branoh of the Celtic language. Mr, Cregeen made a conditional promise to follow up his work with "ita counterpart, English rendered into Manks." The latter has, however, never made its appearance. The doficioucy is likely to be made up, in a short time, through the auspices of the Manx Society. Page 65, Line 5. — " Laa-noo." The orthography of this word adopted in the Manx translation of the Holy Scriptures, in the Book of Common Prayer, and by A. Cregeen in his Dictionary NOTES. 201 above mentioned, is Lhiannoo. "Trog dty Ihiannoo 'sy raad lUisagh eh goaill." — " Train thy child in the way he ought to go."— Pkov. xxii. 6. " Vel ass, yns Ennym y Ihiannoo shoh," &c,— " Dost thou in the name of this child," &o, — Public Baptism of Infants. "Lhiannoo, a child," — Cregeen's Dictionary, p. 106 Page 55, Line 18. I have been frequently told, that the difference between the Northern and Southern Manx consists, more in the provincial pronounciation of certain words, than in dialect or idiom. All classes of the inhabitants speak remarkably good English. The peculiar idiomatic phrases in common use, and which are certainly for the most part very pretty and expressive, are translations from the origiual Manx. It is easy to conceive how such phrases originated, and how they have become a fixed condition of colloquial intercourse, even with the better educated portion of the community. The same condition is observable in Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and in different parts of England. The strictures implied at the end of this page are undeserved ; the Manx Schools stand high in the Reports of Her Majesty's inspectors. Page 69. — Letter VI. The Rev. Thomas Cubbon, Vicar of Maughold, was the father of the late Lieut.-Gen. Sir Mark Cubbon. K.C.B., who, after spending 60 years in the service of his country in India, died at Suez on hia passage home, and was buried in the family sepulchre, in Maughold Churchyard, on Friday, May 17th, 1861. Page 69.— " Post-office." Much progress has beeu made in this department. A daily mail is enjoyed dm'ing the summer months, but, from the end of September to the end of April, the number of English mails depends upon the sailings of the company's steamers. Exertions are being made to induce the Home Government so to increase the grant to the Steam Packet Company, as to enable them to despatch a daily mail throughout the year. Another wonderful stride in inter-communication with alt the world has been lately effected, in the successful laying down of a telegraphic cable between the Island aud St. Bees, Page 78, Line 14. — Letter VII. — "Manks Boats, ^c." Boats of superior class are now employed in this important fishery. Each vessel costs about £120, exclusive of the nets. Upwards of 2,000 men are engaged, and more than £60,000 invested. On September 19th, 1787, a terrible disaster befel the herring fleet, in its almost total destruction, and the loss of most of the hands, during a storm in Douglas Bay. The present year (up to the beginning of Sep tember) has been very unproductive. 262 NOTES. Page 89, Line 8 to 19.— Letter VIIL—" The Clergy of the Island f c," The rectories are three in number, viz,, Andreas, BaUaugh, and Bride, Our author speaks of these as rectories in his "Parochial Tour," so that his statement here, "that there are only two rectories," is a singular error. There are fourteen vicarages. The Lord Bishop of the diocese is the patron of four, viz., Braddan, Patrick, German, and Jurby, The remaining vicarages and the three rectories are in the gift of the Crown, By the Tithe Commutation Act, 2 Vic, 1839, the eum to be paid to the rector of Andreas, (who is also archdeacon), was £808, out of which £101 was to be apportioned to the chaplain or minister of " a Church or Chapel of Base, in the said parish of Andreas, &c.;'' to the rectors of BaUaugh and Bride respectively, £303; and to each of the vicars, £141 8s, Bride and Marown are still without parsonage houses ; but the other parishes, as well as several out lying chapelries, are provided with suitable residences. By a wise and judicious application of the " Barrow Fund," &c,, the Isle of Man now boasts a first-class school, called King William's College. The building, containing a chapel, school rooms, boys' domitories, masters' residences, &c., is situate on the sea shore near Castletown, Page 107 (Foot Note), — Letter X. — " To Douglas, die." — (See note on page 4.) The four fine steamers now plying between Liverpool and Douglas are, the "Douglas," Kermode ; "Tynwald," M'Queen ; "Mona's Queen," Corlett; and " Mona's Isle," SkiUicom. Page 108,—" Permit, S^c" It need hardly be stated that this pass is no longer required. Page 109, Line 10. — " Some InqixiHes, isc." The coinage and currency are now the same as in Great Britain, Page 112, Line 20, — Letter XI. — "An evident rise of late." This haa been gradually increasing, until prices of provisions in Douglas and Ramsey are little, if any, lower than in England. Page 113, Line 1. — " The better kind of fruit,"