Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-10-01

whished back two or three centuries and
set down face TO face with the grimuess
and cructics Of fcuial times: and | somee
lines think that the nature OF the lowly
folk, beaten To savage hardness In those
sorry times, is In this borderllnd Of both
kingdoms a long time taking on the gen
tier touch of our time Scotland Is rich
est In these weird old border relics of Il
sorry age. The Scotch crowded close to
the border; butt more and stronger places
of sally, even the tiniest of hamlcts
having likeness in stur,lness and strength
TO the larger towns. and then, being the
liyeliest on their legs, ''harrie1" the
English in such brisk and occupying
way that they had little time ON their
hands, after chasing the raiders home,
Tor building important border towns.
The quaint hamlet stands IN a little
hollow of the champaign land of south
eastern Annandnle The same old post
road which leads north from England
through Snrlisle and Grewsome Grelna
Green passes through il, forming the
principal and almost its only street.
From the south this highway leads
through a pleasant country. well watered
and wooded and charningly broken By
clninps of ancient trees Or newer plant
atoms and small, well-tilled fields. Be
You'd the hamlet the road winds upward 70
Il mile or more to a bleak, suggcstiyely
dreary and hopeless horizon as you will
often come upon In Normandy, or as are
seen In the peasant pictures Of Brittany
by the master hand of Millet. 10 the
northeast there are dim outlines of the
ILrtiell and other mountain AAnges
Away TO the southwest arc the misty
wales of lovely Ann0niale aud TO the
northwest, but four miles distant, the
legtnd-haunted hill Of Brunswlrl. where
the boy Carlisle often wandered, lifts
its ROman-camped head into he heecy.
yagri mt clouds.
Ecclcfechan has great age but little
history, aside from having produced this
one famous man At about the center of
the village. where a highway leaves tie
nd Carlisle aud Glasgow posi-road to
wander through the valley of Anuan to
the Solwly-side town OF that name.
a little crOss-street, formed by this road
runs Il few rods with il and stops short
by an ancient graveyard. Ia this lies
Carlyle, his father and mother and other
members of the family. 1t hats also
hundreds OF unnamed graves: for half
n thousand years before the Carlyle line
had crossed the border into Scotland
from Carlyle with the ndherente of re-
turning King David H., II was the site
of a then ancient church called Ecclesie
$. Fechani, or the church OF 81. Fechan.
Fec-ian was an Irish abbot Of the
seventh century from Iona. who was
canonized, his day being the 10th Of Jan
uary. Hence the curious name of Ec-
clelcchan.
Border war brought the ancient
church TO ruip.zThe spirit Of the Cove.
nanters' tune elfaeed what remained.
But the churclyard of At thousand years
ago is Ecelcfcehan's graveyard Of to.
day; and all the stern descendants of
those who sw0re to "endeayor the
eItirpation Of poverty, prelacy. superstl-
ton, heresy. schism, profaneness, etc"
who have departed life Ia little Eccle-
fechan. are lying here in ''consecrated
ground" In Carlyle's boyhood time
there were many Of hand-loom weayers
here. Their stone cottages stood along
the highway intersperscd with few
shops aud highways. The cottages re-
main, housing folk of the same
social order. comfortable labOrens
among the surrounding farms.
AT least three Of the inns are
still standing. Two have been trans
formed Into humble habitations. Ono.
the Bush hotel-a little long. low, ranib-
ling structure. jutting out into the high
way invitingly, and presided over by
brisk, bonnie landlady. Mistress kilROur
who Ia not afraid 10 tell you that she has
no love for "ionkee' pilgrims and their
sneclgng ways-containg most OF the
life OF the sleepy hamlet; and, with min
istering 10 cyclers on their Northern
tours. modern coaching parties and oc-
casionnl pilgrims To Cnrlyles birthplace
grave ~ ulNhbhN as hifAAf anu uuht
ling as IA the times of the packers and
carriers. when the olden post coaches
changed their stcaming horses after the
dash from Gretna before its hospitable
door.
50 this was the spot and these the
physical surroundings Of Thomas Car
lyle from his birth In 1875, until his
stone-mason father. James Carlyle, who |
hammered on at Ecclefechan, making |
IN his best year, 100" removed TO the |
bleak fnrInsicad Of Mainhill, near Lock |
erl,ie, about ten miles north of his native |
hamlet, aud SUI alongside the old Car |
Isle aud Glasgow post road. This com
prised the first fourteen years Of his |
fife. During this time all the boy
hood home and home surroundings |
be ever knew were his; foT ne had al |
ready fel. the terror Of schoolboy life |
at AMMAN; aud just after the family re- |
moyal 10 Mainhill be was sent away to |
TO the university, walking the |
whole distance. through AIofat, In com |
pany with a senior student Ia the unifcr- |
sity named Tom Small.
There are none living here or here 1
about now who knew Thomas Carlyle AZ |
. havs but 1 found vary rannr all old !