Imperial gazeteer of Scotland, or, Dictionary of Scottish topography > Volume 1

EARN.
501
EASDALE.
ns far as to tlio Bridge- of-Earn, for vessels of from
30 to 50 tons burden. Salmon, trout, pike, and
perch, are found in its waters. The salmon-fishings
are, however, of no great value.
The basin of the Earn, including that of the Loch
and its affluents, is one of the most picturesque in
Scotland. The styles of it vary from the wildly
highland at the head to the lusciously lowland at the
foot ; but are beautiful both in natural feature, and
in artificial adornment. The parts proper to the
Loch are described in the article Earx (Loch); and
the parts proper to the river will be described in the
article Strathearn. The richest parts of all, how-
ever, are those round the end of the lake and the
first reaches of the stream, where the highland glen
begins fitfully to soften into the lowland valley, es-
pecially at the place where the poet Hogg lays the
scene of his " Kilmeny," — where alone went the
maid in " the pride of her purity;" and those parts
are graphically touched as follows, with allusion to
that scene, by George Gilfillan : — " We have seen
this scene from the summit of Dunmore and the side
of Melville's monument, wdiich stands upon it, —
seen it at all hours, in all circumstances, and in all
seasons — in the clear morning, while the smoke of
a thousand cottages was seen rising through the
dewy air, and when the mountains seemed not
thoroughly awakened from their night's repose — in
the garish noon-day, when the feeling of mystery
was removed by the open clearness, but that of
majesty in form and outline remained — in the after-
noon, with its sunbeams streaking huge shadows,
and writing characters of fire upon all the hills — in
the golden evening, when the sun was going down
over Benmore in blood — in the dim evening, to us
dearer still, when a faint rich mist was steeping all
the landscape in religious hues — in the waste night,
while the moon was rising red in the north-east,
like a beacon, or a torch uplifted by some giant
hand — under the breezes and bashful green of
spring — in the laughing luxuriance of summer —
under the yellow shade of autumn — at the close of
autumn, when the woods were red and the stubble
sovereign of the fields — and again, when hill, val-
ley, and wood were spotted with snow, have seen it
in a hush so profound, that you might have ima-
gined nature listening for mysterious tidings, and
hardly dared to breathe — and in the cloudy and dark
day, while the thunder was shaking the column,
and the lightning painting the landscape. And
gazing at it, whether in glimmer or in gloom, have
we sometimes fancied that we saw that fearless
form ' gaeing' up through the plains of Dalwhinnie,
and the fairy plantations of Dunira,
' To pu' the cress-flower round the spring,
The scarlet hyp and the hyndberrie,
And the nut that hung frae the hazel tree ;
For Kilmeny was pure as pure could be. 1
And when gloaming especially had poured her dim
divine lustre over the dark hills and white castle of
Abruchill, and allowed the last lingering ray of
sunshine to rest on the crest of Benvoirlich, and
hushed the streams of Glenlednock behind, and
drawn a dewy veil over the plain of Dalginross be-
fore, and softened the call of the Cauldron in the
glen below, and suffused over all the landscape of
earth and heaven, a sense unutterable of peace, and
introduced into the scene, as a last glorious touch,
the moon, to enhance the sense of solemnity, and to
deepen the feeling of repose, have we, reclining on
the hill, and seeing the stars coming out above the
Bilent column, thought of the ' eve in a sinless
world,' when,
*In ecstasy of sweet devotion;
O then the glen was all i* 1 motion;'
and owned the power of the 'consecration,' and felt
the might of the ' poet's dream.' "
EARN (The), Renfrewshire. See Eaolesham.
EARNSIDE WOOD, an ancient forest, now ex-
tinct, which extended around the abbey of Lindores,
and along the shore of the frith of Tay a consider-
able way below the junction of the Earn and the
Tay. Sibbald says that it was anciently four miles
in length and three in breadth. The name of it,
taken in connexion with its situation, seems to coun-
tenance a tradition that the Earn once flowed to the
base of the hills in the north-west of Fifeshire, that
the Tay ran close by the foot of the heights which
now screen the north side of the Carse of Gowrie,
and that the two rivers did not unite till they reached
a point considerably to the east of their present
place of junction.
EAESA Y, or Ioesa, a stream, a glen, and a lake,
in the parish of Kilmorie, in the island of Arran.
The stream rises adjacent to the watershed of the
northern half of the island, and runs about 7 miles
south-westward to the north side of Mauchray bay.
The glen is the trough of the stream's basin. The
lake lies on the right side of the glen, about 2 miles
from the stream's mouth ; and it measures about a
mile in length, but is proportionally very narrow.
The lake contains trout and salmon.
EASDALE, or Eisdale, a Hebridean island, and
a post-office village, in the parish of Kilbrandon,
Argyleshire. The island lies J a mile east of Seil
and 12 miles south-west by south of Oban. It is
nearly circular, and does not comprise quite one
square mile of surface. It consists wholly of slate
of similar quality to that of the Welsh slate w-orks,
traversed in many places with basaltic veins, and
interstratified with thin layers of quartzose and
calcareous stones. This slate has been quarried for
nearly two centuries, and has all along been in
great request for its fine qualities. The quarries
have eventually eaten up a large proportion of the
island's hulk ; and one of them is even so far down
as 120 feet below the level of the sea. They have
for a number of years past been worked with the
appliances of steam-engines and railroads; and they
employ upwards of 200 men, and produce from four
millions to five millions of slates in the year. The
island is the property of the Marquis of Breadal-
bane, lying at the western verge of that nobleman's
immense estates. The strait between it and the
island of Seil bears the name of the Sound of Eas-
dale, and is part of the ordinary marine highway of
the western steamers between Glasgow and the
north. Population of the island in 1841, 531 ; in
1861, 449. Houses, 112.
The village of Easdale stands on both sides of the
sound of Easdale. The houses of the quarriers are
only one story high and slated, and all look neat
and comfortable. So many as about 400 sailing-
vessels, principally sloops, have in one year entered
the harbour. The visits from steam-vessels, also,
in their transit between Glasgow and the north, are
remarkably numerous. A brilliant reception was
given to Queen Victoria at this place, on occasion of
her passing north to Adverikie. Population about
449. See Seil.
EASSIE. See Essie.
EAST-BARNS. See Barns (East).
EAST-CALDER. See Calder (East).
EAST-COATS. See Coats.
EASTER ANSTRUTHER. See Anstruther
(Easter).
EASTER BUCKIE. See Buckie.
EASTER CLUNE. See Birse.
EASTER-DUDDINGSTON. See Duddingston.
EASTEE-GALLATOWN. See Gallatown.