Ordnance gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 4

KINCARDINESHIRE
of turnips, and it is stated that the crop was considered
90 rare that it was sold in small quantities, at one penny
per stone, for kitchen vegetables. This crop was culti-
vated on only a very few farms till 1775, but by the
beginning of the present century it was grown all over
the county. Sown grasses were not in general use till
about 1770 ; but it is stated that, as early as 1730, Sir
William Nicolson of Glenbervie, "a spirited cultivator
at an early period," raised hay from sown seeds, "not,
however, from the seeds of any of the species of clover
now in use, but from such seeds as were found among
the natural meadow hay." The number of cattle in 1807
was 21,825, and it is stated that a four-year-old Mearns
ox weighed about 45 stones. The best cattle are de-
scribed as black or brown, or brindled with spreading
horns. There were also some very good polled cattle
similar to, and, no doubt, of the same breed as the
Buchan "Humlies," the progenitors, along with the
Angus Doddies, of the improved polled Aberdeen and
Angus breed. The sheep stock numbered 21,957, and
consisted mainly of blackfaced sheep and the ancient
dun faces. Along the coast there were a few Bakewell
Leicesters, and also some Southdowns. At the com-
mencement of the century the farm implements were
somewhat primitive. The ancient Scotch plough was
fast giving way to Small's improved ploughs, which
cost about £4 each, and which by 1807 was almost the
only sort of plough used in the county. Harrows, with
five wooden bills and five iron teeth in each, were coming
into use, as also were single carts. During the first ten
years of the century about a score of threshing-mills
were erected in the county at a cost of from £140 to
£180 each. Among the noted early improvers, Mr
Barclay is mentioned as having been the most pro-
minent. Between 1760 and 1790 he reclaimed over
900, and planted 1000, acres, raising the rental of his
estate of Ury from £200 to £1800 in less than fifty
years. Early in the century great improvement was
effected in houses, roads, and fences.
' Coming to speak of more recent times, the spirit of
improvement aroused in the last century has never
been allowed to lie dormant. True, during the last
twenty-five years a smaller extent of land has been
reclaimed than during either of the last twenty-five
years of the 18th century or the first twenty-five of the
present ; but that has not been due to any flagging in
the spirit of improvement, but simply to the fact that
only a limited area of suitable land remained for the
proprietors and tenants of the past twenty-five years to
bring under cultivation. There has been less done
simpiy because there has been less to do.'
The acreage under the various crops at different dates
is given in the following tables : —
Grain Crops. — Acres.
Tear.
Wheat.
Earley or
Bere.
Oats.
Total.
1S54
isro
1S77
1S82
2327
1130
546
59S
S.4S0
11.032
13,072
12,006
29,451
32,187
30,607
S1.6SS
40,258
44,349
44,225
44,292
Grass, Root Crops, etc. — Acres.
Year.
Hay, Grass,
and Permanent
Pasture.
Turnips.
Potatoes.
1S54
1S70
1S77
1882
49,990
41,2S8
52,551
53,223
16,087
19.214
18,989
18,133
2645
3135
2729
3410
while there are about 1500 acres annually under beans,
rye, vetches, fallow, etc. Between 1854 and 1882 the
permanent pasture never broken up, and included above,
has decreased from 13,029 to 6983. Harvest in the
earlier districts commences between 10 and 31 Aug., and
KINCARDINESHIRE
in the later districts between 1 and 16 Sept. The large
farms are worked mostly on the seven shift rotation,
most of the others on the six shift. The average yield
of wheat per acre is from 28 to 30 bushels ; barley, from 36
to 40 bushels; oats, from 36 to 46 bushels; hay, If ton;
turnips, from 14 to 30 tons ; and potatoes, 5 tons ; but
the last is very variable. Wages of farm servants vary
from £25 to £35 a year. AVomen for out-door work
get Is. 3d. a day, and in harvest 3s. 4d. a day. The
decrease in the area under wheat is due partly to a
decrease in the price of wheat, and partly to a slight
falling off in the yield per acre, which make its growing
still less remunerative. The latter is due to the chemical
falling off in the soil.
The agricultural live stock in the county at different
dates is shown in the following table : —
Year.
Cattle.
Horses.
Sheep.
• Pigs-
Total.
1854
1S70
1S70
18S2
25,409
27.15S
28,504
24,162
39S4
4305
474S
4737
35,195
32,101
32,176
24,434
3395
2617
2523
2740
67,9S3
66,181
67,951
56,073
Owing to the time when cattle are sold for the meat
market, the actual number of cattle reared is more than
is given in the table. Breeding of cattle is now mostly
confined to polled animals, the chief herd being that of
Mr James Scott at Easter Tulloch ; while there are good
herds also kept by Mr Walker at Portlethen, Sir Thomas
Gladstone of Fasque, and Mr Grant of Ecclesgreig.
Kincardineshire, in the earlier years of the present cen-
tury, figured prominently in the breeding of shorthorns,
the herd being that of Captain Barclay of Ury, founded
in 1829, and from which a large number of the short-
horns in the north of Scotland are descended. The
horses are principally Clydesdales, but there are no
celebrated breeders. A stud established by Mr Baird,
the present proprietor of Ury, was dispersed some years
ago. Sheep-farming is carried on in the upper districts,
and the heather of Glen Dye is supposed to be parti-
cularly tender and sweet. The sheep are of the black-
faced breed, and the largest stock belongs to Sir Thomas
Gladstone of Fasque. In 1875 there were 1200 hold-
ings of 50 acres or less, 301 of from 50 to 100 acres,
362 of 100 to 300, and 51 of more than 300 acres.
Rents vary from 15s. to £3 per acre, according to
the quality of the soil. There are 5 proprietors hold-
ing each between 10,000 and 50,000 acres, 5 between
5000 and 10,000, 18 between 2000 and 5000, 13 be-
tween 1000 and 2000, and 1342 owning land of less
extent. The largest landowner in the county is
Sir Thomas Gladstone of Fasque. The chief estates,
most of which are separately noticed, are Altries,
Arbuthnot, Badentoy, Ballogie, Balmain, Balmakewan,
Banchory, Benholm, Blackball, Brotherton, The Burn,
Cowie, Coul, Drumlithie, Drumtoehty, Dunnottar, Eccles-
greig, Fasque, Fawside, Fettercairn, Fetteresso, Gillie-
brands, Glenbervie, Hallgreen, Haulkerton, Inchmarlo,
Inglismaldie, Johnston, Kingcausie, Kirktonhill, Lauris-
ton, Leys, Luthermuir, Morphie, Muchalls, Netkerley,
Pitarrow, Pitcarrie, Portlethen, Eaemoir, Rickarton,
Strachan, Thornton, and Ury. The manufactures of
Kincardineshire are practically nil, as a weaving trade
once carried on in the smaller villages is now practically
extinct. Finely-jointed wooden snuff-boxes were for-
merly made at Laurencekirk, but this is also now gone.
There are small manufactories of woollen cloth at one
or two places, and two large distilleries. The herring,
haddock, cod, and ling fisheries round the coast are of
great importance, and afford employment to the inha-
bitants of the coast towns and villages. The chief of
these are Stonehaven, Gourdon, and Johnshaven. There
are also good salmon fishings along the coast and in
the Dee and Esk, while there are some excellent grouse
moors.
Roads, etc. — The county is traversed by three rail-
ways, viz., the Caledonian, which, entering on the SW
side at Marykirk, passes along the Howe of the Mearns
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