Topographical, statistical, and historical gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 1

4G4
EDINBURGH.
ances for the health and comfort of its population.
A public market, for the sale of cattle and country
produce, is held weekly in the spacious area of the
Grassmarket, so situated both as to relative position
to the other localities of the town, and avenues of
access from the great roads, as to occasion little
nuisance by the influx and efflux of the stock, live
or inert, which is brought for sale. In the afternoon
of the market-day, the area of the market, after
having been freed from cattle, is occupied by horse-
dealers exposing to sale their horses. Annually, in
November, All- Hallow Fair is held during two days
for the sale of horses, sheep, and cattle. The town-
markets of the city, situated under the North bridge,
consist of a series of terraces, terminating, in the
hollow, in a large quadrangular area which is sur-
rounded by a covered piazza, and partitioned into
various departments. All the markets are tidy and
well-arranged, and, with the exception of those for
butter and eggs, are always, as to both quantity and
quality, well-supplied. Large quantities of fish are
brought from the coast, chiefly from the fishing-
towns of Newhaven and Fisher-row, and sold in a
fresh state and at low prices, on the streets. Smaller
town-markets than the central suite, are open in
West Nicolson-street and at Stockbridge ; and a
sort of dismembered market is dispersed, in the form
of single or clustered shops, for the sale of flesh or
vegetables, throughout almost every part of the
city Edinburgh is brilliantly lighted at night with
coal gas ; and first enjoyed the luxury in the winter
of 1818. The Coal Gas company were formed in
1817, and incorporated in the following year, with a
capital of £100,000, in shares of £25. Their pre-
mises are on the north side of the North back of the
Canongate, opposite New-street. A company for
lighting the city with gas manufactured from oil was
formed in 1824; but, having entirely failed in at-
tempts to achieve its object, it became united to the
Coal Gas company Edinburgh is abundantly and
facilely supplied with coals for fuel by means of the
Union canal, the Dalkeith railway, and ample com-
munication with coal-pits in its vicinity. The fuel
is good in quality, and, in general, moderate in price.
. — The city is supplied with excellent water from
the northern declivity of the Pentland hills. In
1621 the magistrates obtained an act of parliament
empowering them to cast " seuchs and ditches " in
the lands between the city and the Pentlands, and
to construct means of bringing water ; but, during
half-a-century, they seem to have found no engineer,
or to have themselves wanted resources to execute
their project. In 1674, they paid Peter Bruschi, a
German, £2,950 for laying down a leaden pipe, 3
inches in diameter, from Comiston, 4 miles west from
the city, to a reservoir on the Castle-hill. Soon
after new springs were added to the fountain, and
produced more water than the pipe could convey.
A new pipe of 4i inches in diameter now began to
be laid, but was slowly carried on, and not completed
till 1722; and then it had to be fed with the waters
of additional springs. A new act of parliament was
obtained authorizing supply to be brought from any
lands within 3 miles of the original fountain at Co-
miston. In 1787, a cast-iron pipe, 5 inches in
diameter, was laid as an additional medium of sup-
ply. In 1790, another, 7 inches in diameter, was
laid from springs on the lands of Svvanston. But
the supply being found inadequate to the increased
demand, a Joint-stock company was formed in 1810,
and incorporated in 1819, to carry pipes from two
great springs, 8 miles distant, at Crawley and Glen-
corse. The pipes from the various quarters, with
one exception, convey their treasures to two reser-
voirs, one near Heriot's hospital for the supply of
the southern Old town, and the other on the Castle,
hill for the supply of the northern Old town. One
pipe, 7 inches in diameter, passes over the Castle-
hill, and along the Earthen mound, for the supply
of the New town.
The numerous facilities of communication which
Edinburgh enjoys by sea, as well as its modes ol
communication with Fife and the north-east of Scot-
land, will appropriately fall to be noticed in the
articles Leith, Newhaven, and Queensferry.
Its land-communications by coach, waggon, and cart,
are too many and minute to bear even an attempt at
enumeration. The Union canal and the railways,
however, are so important to the city, and so imme-
diately connected with it, as to demand a moment's
attention In 1817, an act of parliament was ob-
tained giving power to a joint-stock company to cut
a canal from Edinburgh to the Forth and Clyde
canal, at a point about 4 miles before the latter's
communication with the Forth. The canal was be-
gun in the same year, and completed in 1822. The
chief objects of it were the transmission of heavy
goods, and the conveyance of passengers between
Edinburgh and Glasgow, the importation to Edin-
burgh of large supplies of coal from places to the
west, and the exportation of the manure of the city.
The eastern termination, called Port-Hopetoun, is on
a plain, J a-mile south-west of the castle, and has oc-
casioned the erection around it of an important
suburb. The canal, though a great benefit to the
town, has drained heavy losses from the share-
holders. Recently, indeed, it has been aided in its
traffic by the opening toward it of the Great west-
ern approach, and especially by the communication
with it, commenced in 1840, of the Slamannan
railway in Linlithgowshire ; hut it will probably
suffer severe damage — with the result, however, of
prodigiously increased advantage to the city — by the
competition of the Great line of railway between
Edinburgh and Glasgow, begun to be cut in 1839 :
see articles, Union Canal, and Edinburgh and
Glasgow Railway. — The Dalkeith railway has
been described under the head Dalkeith The
Newhaven railway was authorized by an act of
parliament in 1836. It commences at the east
end of Prince's-street gardens ; and proceeds, by a
tunnel, under the northern ridge of the city to the
foot of Scotland-street, and thence to Trinity pier,
in nearly a straight line. The whole length of the
railway to Trinity is 13,000 feet, or about 2| miles;
that of the tunnel — opening at Canonmills — about
2,800 feet. It was originally intended to make a
branch to the harbour and docks of Leith ; but by an
act passed in 1839 this branch is abandoned. The
capital is £100,000 : see article Newhaven.
Church and School Statistics.
The ancient royalty of Edinburgh contains, quoad
civilia, 9 parishes, and the extended royalty 4. By
the act of General Assembly, in 1834, the city was
distributed into 20 parishes, each of the chapels-of-
ease having assigned to it a jurisdiction as a parish-
church. Beyond the royalty, but constituting or
including a large portion of the city, are also the
parishes of the Canongate and St. Cuthbert. Since
1834 several additional quoad sacra parishes have
been created.
High Church. This parish, situated in one of
the most dense parts of the Old town, has an area
of one-sixtieth part of a square mile, or 51,222
square yards. Population, in 1831,2,614; in 1841,
2,785. Number of inhabited houses, in 1841, 466;
of families, 646. According to an ecclesiastical
census of 1835, the population was then estimated
at 2,557; of whom 905 belonged to the Estab-