Star.
London, England, 1823-08-15 00:00:00

SCOTTISH ANTIQUITIES-

Saturday the 28th June, as a party of Gentlemen
from Ayr and its vicinity were pleasuring upon
Lochdoon, after enjoying themselves for some time in
fishing, and contemplating the delightful romantic
scenery that surrounded them, they agreed to row a ,
little farther up the lake, and examine the old Castle,
which stands upon an island near its southernmost ex-
tremity. 1n approaching the old building, the con-
versation natbrally turned upon thehistory and events
which had caused the demolishing of. so stately an
edifice, when the boatman informed the Gentlemen
it was currently reported that the outer gate of the
Castle vs all had been thrown into the lake, near the
place where their boat then floated. At this time the
weather was calm, the sky serene, and the water so
clear and smooth, that they saw the bottom of the
lake distinctly, and immediately determined to com-
mence a search for the old gate. They were, how-
ever, disappointed in finding it, but they succeeded
in discovering several boats or canoes, of a very rude
and uncommon constructure, lying sludged up with
mud at the bottom of the lake. Information of this
was communicated to the Earl of Cassillis, the pro-
prietor, when his Lordship desired that they should
be immediately taken up, if possible, and deposited
in the Castle. Three of them have since, by great
exertion, been raised, and placed in the Castle, to
which they form a most appropriate accompaniment;
and when viewed in connexion with it, furnish one of
the grandest specimens of rude antiquity.
The canoes are all formed by being cut out of
solid oak trees, and when found contained charcoal,
mud, and hazle nuts, with the husks entire on them.
The sides of one of them were quite greasy and
white with that animal substance which the French
chemists denominate adeposize. The first taken out
measured 22 feet in length, three feet 10 inches in
breadth, two feet one inch inside depth ; the second

16i feet in length, three feet three inches in breadth,
and two feet three inches in depth ; the third was 21
feet in length, three feet three inches in breadth, and
two feet two inches in depth. Of the ancient his-
tory of this Castle, nothing is known with certainty ;
but from what has at present been found, and is still
to be seen in the neighbourhood, we can form some-
estimation of its extraordinary antiquity, since we
may be fairly allowed to conjecture, these canoes
existed at that early period when the neighbouring
mountains were clad with shrubbery, and the vallies
with huge oak trees. These have long since ceased
to exist in a growing state, and the hills have now
become sterile, and quite divested of shrubbery, as if
some great convulsion in nature had taken place, and
the trees which seem to have been companions in
growth with those from which the canoes are formed,
have now lain buried in moss for ages past. From
the situation of the Castle, and traditional accounts,
it must have been a place of great strength, and se-
veral specimens of ancient armoury have been found
on the island. Little more, however, of its real his-
tory is known with certainty, than that it was demo-
lished by command of one of the Kings of Scotland,
along with the other feudal Castles of the west ;
and without making any calculation of the probable
age of these canoes, but considering them to have
lain since then, they are still in a remarkable state of
preservation, so much so, that one of them, after her
long repose, and being emptied of the mud, was
again launched into the deep, when a young man in
the same spirit, and in the same barge of the heroes
of antiquity, made an excursion on the lake, and
again reached the shore in perfect safety, amid the
loud and incessant cheering of his companions.

Wednesday se'nnight, a melancholy accident hap-
pened on the Lasswade-road, between Edinburgh
and Dalkeith. Mr. Douglas, brewer in Dalkeith,
accompanied by Dr. Smith, of Lasswade, were riding
from town, when the former dismounted for a few
minutes, on the road near Edgehead, while the latter
proceeded slowly. Shortly after, Mr. Douglas's
horse, a spirited and restive animal, passed Dr.
Smith without its rider, and on the Doctor returning
td inquire into the cause, he found Mr. Douglas ly-
ing on the ground, with a wound on his temple, it is
supposed from a kick of the animal, which was of so
serious a nature that he survived but a few minutes.

An able practical chemist of Glasgow has disco-
vered a simple and most efficacious method of ren-
dering woollen, silk, or cotton cloth completely water-
proof.
_The mode adopted is to dissolve caoutche in
mineral oil, which is procured in abundance at the
gas works, by a brush to put five or six coatings of
this mixture on one side of the cloth or silk, on
which another piece of cloth is laid, and the whole
passed through between two rollers. The adhesion
is most complete; so much so, that it is easier to tear
the cloth than to separate either piece from the
caoutche. We have seen some specimens of silk and
kerseymere, rendered completely impervious to water
I by this method, and we could not discover that it con-
sisted of more than one ply. This kind of cloth must
be a valuable commodity for persons living in a rainy
climate. We understand that a patent has been ob-
tained by the inventor.
Amongst the prisoners who were tried for felony
and acquitted at the late Salford Quarter Sessions,
was .a Jane Hewitt: she is already again an inmate
of the new prison, under the following circumstances:
A man of the name of Cumberland had absconded
a fortnight ago, taking with him the property of his
employer (Mr. Reyner, of Manchester, merchant) to
the amount of 6001 which he had been directed to
remit to Liverpool by post; it consisted of a. bill of
exchange for 5001. and some bank notes. A large
reward was immediately offered for his apprehen-
sion, but as yet without effect. On'Friday se'nnight,
however, the above female offered a bank note in
payment, at the Green Man, in Ashbourn, under
sonic circumstances which created suspicion; and on
a constable being sent for, he recognized the bank
note as a part of the property described in a placard-
bill sent from Manchester, ,grring notice of the rob-
bery. On examination, all the other bills were found
in her possession, with the exception of a 101. note.
She said she had met with Cunsberland' in Manches-
ter, who told her he was a half-pay officer, and she
agreed to go to Lonion with him. At Macclesfield
she said be had intrusted her with the money, and
for some reason which she did not explain, she pro-
ceeded to 4shbourne, where she was to have met
him. The probability is, that this bad been a " dia-
mond cut diamond* case, and that .she has robbed
the robber.

NAVAL L\TELLIGENCE.

The Cyrus, Witanax, and Neptune, llexao, both of Hull,
are lost at Greenland.

FA mourn, A caucv 13.—Wind W.—Arrived the Prince Re-
gent Packet, from Brazil.7-salled from Rio 25d of Mat. Bahia
20th of June, and Pernambuco 29tb of Jane; Marshal Blucher,
DAVIS, from Plymouth for Malaga. Sailed his Majesty's packet
Nom for America, and his Majesty's brig PARTUIAN to the
Eastward.

Potts...mourn, Atraurr 14.—Wind S.W.—Arrived from the
Downs, the Ann and Elizabeth, 'for the South Seas; Rose, for
Malaga ; Esther, for, Demerara ; Lady Combermere, for Tri-
nidad; Asia, for New South Wales; Probity, for Malaga; and
James Sibbald, for Bombay: also arrived the Ann and• Maria,
from Antwerp for St. Übe's.

DIAL, Amuse 14.-Wind W.—.. Came down from the River
and remain, the Castle Forbes, Oan, for Van Dieman's Land ;
Ocean, Cams, for Quebec; and Wilding, Bovms,for Halifax.
Cusrost-Houss, A noose 14.—Ships Entered Inwards:—The
Phcenis, from Madras; Albion, from St. John's • Chapman and
Choke, from Quebec; Neptune, from Ostend; Malta and
William Congreve, from Villa Neuva; Cicero, from the South
Seas; Anne, from Marseilles; and Ocean, from liamburgh.
Entered Outwards : The Mary, for Elsineur; Shannon, for
Haeannah ; Three Betsey', for Ferrol ; Bellona, for Stettin :
and Aurora, for Gibraltar.—Clearing Outwards : The Asaph,
for Pernambuco; Wilton, for Venice; Spring, for Elsineur ;
Bethel, for Rip; William, for Hamburgh ; and Royalist. for
the South Seas.