Tweet
Roxburgh, Selkirk, Peebles by Sir George Douglas Bart.
PREFACE
In composing a History of the Border Counties, a writer’s first inclination is to produce a book made up largely of legend and tradition, and freely interspersed with citations from the Border Ballads. But, fascinating as is the material thus presented, so long as Sir Walter Scott’s ‘ Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border,’ with its rich equipment of notes and introduction, is within the reach of every one, a new book of the kind can scarcely be considered necessary; whilst those who seek for a critical study of the ballads will find it ready to their hand in the second volume of the ‘History and Poetry of the Scottish Border’ by the late Professor Veitch. The aim, then, of the following sketch is rather to bring the history of the Border counties into line with the results of recent historical and antiquarian research, presenting to the reader, so far as may be, only well authenticated fact, and thus not scrupling, when necessary, to explode even long-cherished error. In pursuit of this method, where no reliable information is available, a matter is occasionally left doubtful—though the ingenious surmises of competent students have of course been allowed their due weight.
In preparing his little monograph, the author has of course made free use of the existing histories of the district—namely, of the careful but somewhat ponderous work of Ridpath ; of Jeffrey’s ‘ Roxburghshire,’ which, much of its information has been superseded, still for Borderers contains much good reading; of the animated narrative and valuable documents of Mr Craig-Brown’s 'Selkirkshire’; of William Chambers’s pleasantly written ‘Peeblesshire’; and, finally, of Mr F. H. Groome’s useful ‘Short Border History.’
His researches have also been much aided by such standard works as—to name but one or two—Morton’s ‘Monastic Annals of Teviotdale,’and the valuable Introductions to the Cartularies of the Border abbeys, as well as by the many interesting books dealing with the Borders which in more recent years have poured from the press, among which it may suffice to specify the two volumes of ‘Calendars of Border Papers’ (1560-1603), the ‘History of Liddesdale’ by Mr R. B. Armstrong, the histories of the Douglas and Scott families, compiled from original sources by the late Sir William Fraser, the ‘Border Elliots’ of the Hon. George Elliot, and the Rev. J. Wood Brown’s ‘Life and Legend of Michael Scot.’
It now remains for the author gratefully to acknowledge the goodwill which he has met with generally in the course of his labours, and to record his special thanks to the gentlemen and lady hereafter named : to Dr David Christison and Dr Joseph Anderson, for notes lent and help by consultation; to Mr F. H. Groome and the Rev. George Gunn of Stichill for reading the proof-sheets of the book; to the gentleman last-named and to the Rev. J. A. Findlay of Sprouston for local information; and to Mrs M. M. Turnbull of Eastfield and others for information regarding Borderers in the Colonies. He also wishes to convey his thanks to Mr James Sinton for undertaking the compilation of the Bibliography appended to the volume, at the same time acknowledging the assistance Mr Sinton has received from Messrs D. Johnstone and Orr of Edinburgh and Messrs W. & J. Kennedy of Hawick.
Springwood Park, Kelso,
March 1899
You can read this book at http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...s/counties.htm
Alastair
PREFACE
In composing a History of the Border Counties, a writer’s first inclination is to produce a book made up largely of legend and tradition, and freely interspersed with citations from the Border Ballads. But, fascinating as is the material thus presented, so long as Sir Walter Scott’s ‘ Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border,’ with its rich equipment of notes and introduction, is within the reach of every one, a new book of the kind can scarcely be considered necessary; whilst those who seek for a critical study of the ballads will find it ready to their hand in the second volume of the ‘History and Poetry of the Scottish Border’ by the late Professor Veitch. The aim, then, of the following sketch is rather to bring the history of the Border counties into line with the results of recent historical and antiquarian research, presenting to the reader, so far as may be, only well authenticated fact, and thus not scrupling, when necessary, to explode even long-cherished error. In pursuit of this method, where no reliable information is available, a matter is occasionally left doubtful—though the ingenious surmises of competent students have of course been allowed their due weight.
In preparing his little monograph, the author has of course made free use of the existing histories of the district—namely, of the careful but somewhat ponderous work of Ridpath ; of Jeffrey’s ‘ Roxburghshire,’ which, much of its information has been superseded, still for Borderers contains much good reading; of the animated narrative and valuable documents of Mr Craig-Brown’s 'Selkirkshire’; of William Chambers’s pleasantly written ‘Peeblesshire’; and, finally, of Mr F. H. Groome’s useful ‘Short Border History.’
His researches have also been much aided by such standard works as—to name but one or two—Morton’s ‘Monastic Annals of Teviotdale,’and the valuable Introductions to the Cartularies of the Border abbeys, as well as by the many interesting books dealing with the Borders which in more recent years have poured from the press, among which it may suffice to specify the two volumes of ‘Calendars of Border Papers’ (1560-1603), the ‘History of Liddesdale’ by Mr R. B. Armstrong, the histories of the Douglas and Scott families, compiled from original sources by the late Sir William Fraser, the ‘Border Elliots’ of the Hon. George Elliot, and the Rev. J. Wood Brown’s ‘Life and Legend of Michael Scot.’
It now remains for the author gratefully to acknowledge the goodwill which he has met with generally in the course of his labours, and to record his special thanks to the gentlemen and lady hereafter named : to Dr David Christison and Dr Joseph Anderson, for notes lent and help by consultation; to Mr F. H. Groome and the Rev. George Gunn of Stichill for reading the proof-sheets of the book; to the gentleman last-named and to the Rev. J. A. Findlay of Sprouston for local information; and to Mrs M. M. Turnbull of Eastfield and others for information regarding Borderers in the Colonies. He also wishes to convey his thanks to Mr James Sinton for undertaking the compilation of the Bibliography appended to the volume, at the same time acknowledging the assistance Mr Sinton has received from Messrs D. Johnstone and Orr of Edinburgh and Messrs W. & J. Kennedy of Hawick.
Springwood Park, Kelso,
March 1899
You can read this book at http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...s/counties.htm
Alastair
Comment