The Sun.
London, England, 1842-09-05 00:00:00

ROYAL VISIT TO SCOTLAND.

have accounts from Edinburgh up to Satur-
day, from which we are glad to learn that her Ma-
jesty and Prince Albert were in excellent health and
spirits, and were highly delighted with the romantic
scenery around that ancient city. Her Majesty had
quite recovered from the fatigue of the voyage, and,
with the Prince, was enjoying herself in visiting some
of the places in the neighbourhood. The city was
illuminated in grand style on Friday night. The
eff-ct, particularly the view of the Old Town from
Prince's-street, with ten thousand lights shining like
the starry firmament, excited great admiration.
On Friday morning his Royal Highness Prince
Albert, accompanied by his Grace the Duke of Buc-
clench, set off from Dalkeith Palace to visit Arthur
Seat, and to contemplate from its lofty summit the
unrivalled view around. After this spirited under-
taking his Royal Highness and his Noble host re-
turned to Dalkeith Palace.
Throughout the day the inhabitants of Dalkeith,
and the immense concourse of visitors who were in
that town, were in the expectation that her Majesty
would drive abroad. They were not disappointed, for
at a little past four o'clock, her Majesty and Prince
Albert were seen issuing from the Dalkeith gate, in
a carriage and four; opposite the Royal pair, sat the
Duchess of Buccleuch and the Duchess of Norfolk.
A carriage and four followed, containing several ladies
of the Royal suite. The Duke of Buccleuch and the
Honourable Colonel Bouverie rode by the side of the
Royal carriage. Her Majesty looked extremely well,
and repeatedly bowed in return to the enthusiastic
cheering which greeted the Royal party in riding
through Dalkeith.
The Royal party drove in the direction of Dal.
h°llsle and Melville Castles, and returned to Dalkeith
Palace in about an hour, entering by the Edin-
burgh gate.
The following are extracts from letters and the
Edinburgh papers, giving accounts of the illumination
and the beacon fires kindled on the hills throughout
the country on Wednesday night.
THE ILLUMINATIONS.
On Friday night the whole ofthis great city was illu-
minated in honour of the Royal visit to Scotland, and
certainly a more splendid sight was never witnessed.
Those who have only seen a public illumination of
the_ streets of London can form no idea of the gran-
cleur of the effect produced by an illumination of
Edinburgh ; not but that the variety and brilliancy
of the devices exhibited on such an occasion in London
on the fronts of the club-houses and public offices far
exceeds in detail and piecemeal anything that
was
exhibited last night in Edinburgh ; but then
the
general effect in London is vastly inferior, because, from the locality of the streets and the flatness of the
general surface which they occupy, only
portions can be viewed at the sametime and smallfrom
one point of view; but in Edinburgh, a line of
illuminated houses forming almost three sides of a
;parallelogram, and extending at least three miles,
viz., the whole range of Prince's-street and
the line of the Old Town stretching from the rock
on which the Castle is built, and running eastward
nearly a mile, can be seen at one view by a spectator
standing on the Mound, by which the two parts of
the city are joined. In addition to this, the immense
height of the houses in the Old Town, lit from top to
bottom in every window, and the height of the hill on
which they stand, afford a coup diced which for gene-
ral splendour of effect was magnificent and imposing
be. yond what can be well expressed by any descrip-
There were, moreover, some very good speci-
znen3 of variegated lamps describing crowns, wreaths,
the letters V. and A., some brilliant illuminated gas
atars and crowns, &c., and some well designed allego-
/ical transparencies. George-street was very
and so was St. Andrew's-square. In the
Od city, the Canongate, the Lawn-market, and
-tank-street, were equally' good. All the public
institutions were brilliant with oil or gas. The
'Exchange, the College of Justice, the Theatre, the Re-
gister-office, the Post-office, &c., all vied with each
other in good taste and vivid light. The banks and
klub and assembly rooms were also good, and so in-
03ced was every large and public building. There was
vturcely a house which was not lit up in every win-
40w whilst every empty house had a man stationed
zlt the door with a lighted torch. The general effect
'was increased by the lighting up of Nelson's Monu-
llont, which blazed from top to bottom, and stood a
:pillar of light overlooking the whole city, and by the
:firing of salvoes and discharging showers of rockets
irom the Castle, the old tower and turrets of which
were occasionally lit up with blue and red fires,
'spreading an almost magic light upon the battlements
:and embrasures, which were rendered as distinct as if
t had been midday. The crowds of people in the
:streets were immem e ; it was a living stream of hu-
man beings, all in gcoi humour, and all actuated and
-brought together by the. best feelings of veneration and
loyalty towards Queen Victoria.
TIIE BONFIRES ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT.
_Among the numerous modes by which the Scottish
nation are testifying their loyalty and affection to
-their beloved Sovereign, none has been so grand and
magnificent, or on such an extensive scale, as the
.larga fires on the summits of the mountains. These
qres were all precen2erted throughout Scotland, and
z o judiciously arranged, as to take place simulta-
neously last Wednes lay night, by which time it had
bs,'en confidently believed that her Majesty would
have landed in her Scottish dominions. From the
state of the wind, that event could not take place
until early on Thursday morning. But the large
fires on the hills had a most splendid effect during the
:night of the Royal squadron beating up the Firth
cf Forth, and illuminated the waters during the
Zlight, all the fires being visible by the squadron for
* bout fifty miles around. Their effect is stated to have
..en magnificent, as bonfire after bonfire blazed forth
in streams of light to cheer and welcome the Sovereign
cht ring the night, and served to lighten up the Forth,
anti pilot the Royal squadron to their moorings near
InCl'ikeith. These large fires, therefore, served both
wolcome her Majesty during the night along her
ccrtt.'sh shores, and illuminated and guided her course
Alp the Firth of Forth, the effect of which was most
imposing from the ocean. It may not be known to
:all our readers, that these beacon fires, in ancient
/times, were invariably used to raise the Scottish war-
iors to assemble in arms during the fierce wars that
aged between England and Scotland. The numerous
be :aeon fires on Wednesday night were lighted up as tes-
tit lonies ofjov, affection, and loyalty. That on the rugged
IMO craggy top of Arthur Seat, which is eight hundred
feet above the level of the sea, was sublime, and, from
-the darkness of the night, shed a flood of light over
*tit?. whole surrounding romantic and picturesque
scenery of Salisbury Craggs, and also to a very great
distance. Arthur Seat beacon was got up by the
Earl of Iraddington, as Keeper of the King's Park. The
Noble Earl caused to be prepared the most splendid
fire we ever have seen blaze forth on that romantic

Pak. This fire was erected on a circular area or
''.ll-se, of which the diameter was 40 feet, and the
Fight of the pile varying from eight to ten feet. It
Iva s composed of about 180 tar barrels, besides those
-of turpentine, 25 tons of coals, about 40 cart loads of
'wood, besides tarred canvass, yarn ropes, &c., and was
seen about fifty miles distant. His Lordship's beacon
was the signal to the whole mountains within sight,
Which in their turn telegraphed to more distant hills,
and thus the beacon fires were simultaneously kindled
throughout Scotland. From Arthur's Seat and the
Calton-hill, above fifty beacons were seen lighted up
all round, taking their signals simultaneously from
• :the romantic peak of the Scottish metropolis. To
t numerate all these would be impossible, but we
nvty record some on this memorable occasion,
while to mention those in the distant counties is
impracticable. In Mid Lothian there were Car-
nethy-hill, otherwise called Logan House-hill,
nearly 1,800 feet high, Capelaw-hill, about 1,600 feet
high ; Caerkelaw Craig, another high summit, all
on the Pentland Hills, the Braid, Blackford, Car-
. cerry, and Soutra Hills, the latter 1,000 feet high,
ad Dalmahoy-hill. In East Lothian and Ber-
Ne ickshire, Lammerlaw and Lammermuir range
of hills, from Dunglas and Coldingham, to their
ten. nination at Soutra-hill ; Traprane Law,
Nor th Berwick Law, Gossport, Ninewar, Black
Casio, Garleton, and the Moorfoot Hills. In Lin-
lithgowshire, Binny Craggs and Dichmont Hills. In
Fife there were Kelly Law, Largo Law, the west and
.eastern Lomonds, the latter being 1,700 feet above
the level of the town of Falkland, which is situated
ve. its base--Dunearn, Raith, Dysart, Kinghorn, Petty:.
env, Burntisland, Dunfermline Caroline Hill, Salim
Hill, and along the whole high grounds near the
southern shores of Fife, the latter reflecting a bright
glare of light on the _Forth. In Clackmannanshire were
visible Tulliboclv,Tullilellan, and Clackmannan's ancient
Tower. In Perthshire' and Kinross-shire the Ochil
Hills, Fossaway. and Tl'illiebole Hills; and in the
latter county the. Cleish Dills, while Benartie Moun-
tain blazed a torrent of light from its high summit,
and an equally dazzling beacon was on the crest of
-Durnbegloo. In Peeblesshire was seen the Black-
Vount of Walston; while in Lanarkshire, Cul-
Iterfell, one thousand seven hundred feet above the
leyel of the sea, and Tintock or Tinto, which is
Gaelic, and means "The Hill of Fire " and the
Cairn ion the top of which is elevated 2,400 feet
move the level of the sea, were even discernible,
spreading the tidings over that important county.
The above is a very imperfect enumeration of the
beacons within sight of Arthur's Seat, but to which
must be added the small isles in the Frith of Forth,
the beasons upon which cast a broad bright glare
over the waters. These and many more beacons of
loyalty and welcome formed a splendid galaxy, a
luminous tract, a combined radiance, the effect of
'vhich cannot be described; but we may venture to
assert, that an equal number of beacons, and of such
syze and on such .an extended scale, never occurred
simultaneously in her Majesty's Scottish dominions.
Edinburgh, Thursday Evening, 8 o'clock.
Extract from a private letter received in the City
,this morning :—This morning the Duke and Sir
Robert ran off with the Queen from Granton Pier an