Ordnance gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 3

EILEAN
woods and enclosed grounds, cultivation extends a good
way up from their base, though not so far as it once
did, it would seem, under the monks, on the side of
Melrose particularly. — Orel. Sur., sli. 25, 1865. See
chap, xxxiv. of James Hunnewell's La'/ids of Scott (Edinb.
1871).
Eilean. See Ellan.
Eilean-Aigas. See Aigas.
Eileanmore. See Ellanmoee.
Eillan. See Ellan.
Eire. See Findhoen.
Eisdale. See Easdalb.
Eishart, a sea-loch in the S of the Isle of Skye,
Inverness-shire, separating the Strathaird peninsula
from the upper part of the peninsula of Sleat. It opens
at right angles to the mouth of Loch Slapin, and, strik-
ing 6^ miles east-north-eastward, diminishing gradually
from a width of 2J- miles to a near point, and terminates
at an isthmus 3J mUes broad from the head of Loch
Indal. ' There is not, ' says Alexander Smith, ' a
prettier sheet of water in the whole world. Everything
about is wild, beautiful, and lovely. You drink a
strange unfamiliar air ; you seem to be sailing out of
the 19th century away back into the 9th.'
Elchaig, a stream of EintaU parish, SW Eoss-shire,
formed by two head-streams — the AUt na Doire Gairblie,
flowing 5J mUes south-westward from Loch Muirichinn
(1480 feet) ; aad the AUt a Ghlomaich, which, winding
3f mUes north-north-westward from Loch a Bhealaich
(1242 feet), makes, by the way, the beautiful Falls of
Glomach. From their confluence, at an altitude of
290 feet, the Elchaig itself flows 6J mUes west-north-
westward to the head of salt-water Loch Ling. It
is a fine salmon and trout stream. — Ord. Sur., sh.
72, 1880.
Elohies. See Knookando.
Elcho, a ruined castle in Rhynd parish, Perthshire,
on the right bank of the Tay, 4 mUes by river, 5J by
road, ESE of Perth. Ee-roofed about 18-30, to preserve
it from further dUapidation, it is of considerable extent,
and remains entire in the walls, which are strong and
massive, in very durable material. Its battlemented
top, gained by several winding stairs, in good preseiwa-
tiou, commands magniiicent prospects up and down the
river. Elcho belongs to the Earl of Wemyss, and gives
to him, and through him to his eldest son, the title of
Baron Elcho, dating from ie2S.— Ord. Sur., sh. 48,
1868.
Elderslie, a village in Abbey parish, Renfrewshire,
with a station on the Glasgow and South-Western Rail-
way, 2J mUes W by S of Paisley, under which it has a
post of&ce. Consisting principally of two rows of houses
along the road from Paisley to Johnstone, and inhabited
chiefly by weavers and other operatives, it is notable
as the reputed birthplace of Sir WUliam WaUace, who
hence is often styled the Knight of Elderslie. The
estate on which it stands was granted in the latter half
of the 13th century to Sir Malcolm Wallace, who is sup-
posed to have been the Scottish hero's father, and with
whose descendants it continued tUl, in 1729, it came to
Helen, only chUd of John WaUace of EldersUe, and
wife of Archibald Campbell of Succoth. By her it was
sold, in 1769, to the family of Speirs. A plain old house
in the viUage claims to be that in which Sir William
Wallace was born ; but, though partly of ancient struc-
ture, bears unmistakable marks of having been built
long after his death ; yet, very probably occupies the
spot on which the house of Sir Malcolm WaUace stood.
A venerable yew tree in its garden, known popularly as
' WaUace's Yew,' must likewise have got its name, not
from any real connection with the patriot, but simply
from the situation in which it stands. A still more
famous oak tree — 'WaUace's Oak' — standing a little
distance to the E, was gravely asserted to have afforded
shelter, from the pursuit of an English force, to Wallace
and 300 of his followers ; and continued in tolerable
vigour till 1825, when its trunk girthed 21 feet at the
base, ISJ feet at 5 feet from the ground, and 67 feet
in altitude, whilst the branches covered 495 square
556
ELGIN
yards. Time and relic-mongers, however, had reduced
it to little more than a blackened torso, when by the
gale of Feb. 1856 it was leveUed with the dust (pp.
205, 206 of Tram. HicjM. and Ag. Soc, 1881). At the
vUlage are a quoad sacra church (1840 ; 800 sittings)
and the WaUace pubUc school. — Ord. Sur., sh. 30, 1866.
Elderslie, an estate, with a mansion, in Renfrew
parish, Renfrewshire, named after Elderslie in Abbey
parish. The mansion, on the left bank of the Clyde, ^
mile E of Renfrew town, was buUt in 1777-82, and en-
larged and improved at subsequent periods. Engirt by
a fine park, it presents a handsome frontage to the
Clyde, and contains a number of interesting relics as-
sociated with the name of Sir WUliam WaUace, and
brought from Elderslie viUage. It owner, Alexander
Archibald Speirs, Esq. (b. and sue. 1869), holds 11,259
acres in the shire, valued at £14,954 per annum.
Eldrig or Elrig, a vUlage in Mochrum parish, SE Wig-
townshire, 3 miles NW of Port WUUam. Eldrig Loch,
1 mile to the N, Ues 260 feet above sea-level, has an
utmost length and width of J mUe and 1 furlong, and
contains some fine trout. — Ord. Sur., sh. 4, 1857.
Eldrig. See Elleig.
Elgar or Ella. See Shapinshat.
Elgin, a parish containing a city and royal burgh of
the same name in the E" of the coimty of Elgin. It is
bounded on the N by Spynie ; on the NE and E by St
Andrews-Lhanbryd ; on the S by Rothes, Birnie, and
DaUas ; on the W by Eafford, and on the NW by Alves.
Its shape is very irregular, but the greatest length from
SW to NE is 11 mUes, and its greatest breadth from N
to S 4J miles. The area is 19,258 acres, of which nearly
12,000 are under cultivation, upwards of 2000 are under
wood, and most of the remainder is pasturs-land, very
Utile of the surface being waste. The soil varies consi-
derably, being in many places (especiaUy on the aUuvial
flats lying along the banks of the river Lossie) a good
black loam, rich and fertile ; in other places, particularly
towards the S of the parish, it is a Ught sandy loam pass-
ing in many parts into almost pure sand ; elsewhere,
again, it is clay. The subsoU is clay, sand, or gravel.
In the W of the parish the underlying rock is a hard,
whitish-grey sandstone, which is almost throughout of
exceUent quality for building purposes. In 1826 a con-
siderable quantity of it from the ridge to the N of Plus-
carden was sent to London, to be used in the construc-
tion of the new London Bridge. In the E the underlying
rock is an impure siUcious limestone, which was at one
time, at several places, quarried and burned for lime, but
this, which was of a duU brown colour, was so impure
and inferior, whether for buUding or agricultural pur-
poses, that the workings have been abandoned. The
western part of the parish is occupied by the long vaUey
of Pluscarden, which is bounded on the N by the steep
slope of the EUdon or Heldun HUl (767 feet), separating
the parish from Alves, and on the S by the gentler
slope leading to the Hill of the Wangle (1020), which
separates Elgin from DaUas. The smface of the rest of
the parish is undulating, and rises graduaUy from N to
S from the height of about 36 feet above sea-level at the
extreme E end of the parish to a height of about 900
feet on the extreme S, on the slopes of the Brown Muir
HOI. The main line of drainage is by the river Lossie,
and the tributary streams that flow into it. The Lossie
enters the parish near the middle of the S side, and
forms the boundary between Elgin and Birnie for about
3 mUes. It thereafter passes across to the northern side
where it turns abruptly to the E and winds along, form-
ing the boundary between Elgin and Spynie, and be-
tween Elgin and St Andrews-Lhanbryd. It has every-
where a very winding course, and is confined by
artificial banks, against which (notwithstanding its
quiet appearance and placid flow on ordinary occasions)
it rushes furiously in times of flood. About 2 miles
from the city of Elgin it is joined by the Black Burn or
Black Water, a stream of fair size, which flows along
and carries oif the drainage of the whole valley of Plus-
carden. About a quarter of a mile lower it receives the
water from a small canal formed for the drainage of the