STIRLINGSHIRE, a county in Scotland, partly maritime, being situated at the upper extremity of the Firth of Forth, and lying between 52° 30' and 56° 17' north latitude, and between 3° 35' and 4° 40' west longitude, upon the isthmus between the Forth and Clyde. It is bounded on the north by the counties of Perth and Clackmannan, on the east by the Firth of Forth and Linlithgowshire, on the south chiefly by Dunbartonshire; but at both the east and west extremities it is bounded for a few miles by Lanarkshire, and on the south-west and west by Dunbarton. Its length, upon the average of three measurements, is forty-two and a half miles; and its breadth, upon the average of six measurements, thirteen and a half, although in one parallel it extends to eighteen miles; and it contains 502 square miles, or 321,280 acres, divided into twenty-two entire parishes, with portions of other four which partly belong to the adjoining counties. The river and Firth of Forth is, for the most part, the boundary on the north, though parts of two parishes are on the north side of that river; on the west it includes part of Lochlomond, and a narrow neck extends to the north-west, the east side of which touches Loch Katrine. Like many other of the Scotish counties, it is of a very irregular form; yet most of its outline is well defined. Besides the Forth on the north and north-east, the Avon marks its separation from Linlithgowshire on the east and north-east, the Kelvin flows along a great part of the southern boundary, and the Endrick, before entering Lochlomond, divides it for some extent from Dunbartonshire on the west.

About two thirds of Stirlingshire consist of hills unfit for cultivation, but affording good pasturage for sheep, being chiefly covered with green herbage, though sometimes intermixed with heath. The principal chain of this description, called the Lennox Hills, but having other distinctive names, as Campsie Fells, Fintry Hills, runs across the county, from Dunbartonshire on the west, nearly to the town of Stirling on the north, but it seldom presents an elevation of more than 1500 feet. In other quarters, however, the elevation is greater; Benlomond, on the north-west, on the banks of Lochlomond, being 3191 feet high; and Bencleuch, in the parish of Alva, on the north side of the Forth, upwards of 2400 feet. On the north, and still more on the east of the Lennox Hills, the country is low; the summit-level of the Forth and Clyde Canal, which passes through the south-eastern side, being only about 162 feet above the sea; and much of the land along the Forth is a very rich plain, only a few feet higher than the water. Towards the western and southern extremities the surface is more varied, presenting tracts of heath, moss, and green pastures, intermixed with cultivated land; the latter confined, for the most part, to the banks of the streams.

Stirlingshire has every variety of soil common in Scotland; but that for which it is chiefly distinguished is the alluvial or corse land on the Forth, which is computed to extend to about 40,000 English acres within this county, and twice as much more in the adjoining counties of Perth, Clackmannan, and Linlithgow, or in all to about 187 square miles; certainly by far the richest tract in Scotland. It consists of the finest particles of earth, without stones; in point of friability approaching to the character of loam; in some places 30 feet deep, and seldom more than 25 feet above the level of the sea at high water; and contains beds of shells, moss, and clay marl. In one instance, at the depth of 19 feet, there have been found in a stratum of moss the r∞ts of large trees, deers horns, and bones, while the superior strata were composed entirely of fine earth. In another instance, the skeleton of a whale, now in the museum of the university of Edinburgh, covered with four feet of soil, was found in a field, the surface of which is 18 feet above the present average level of the Forth, from which it was a mile distant.

Coal, limestone, ironstone, and sandstone, abound in this county. Coal has not been found to the north and west of the Lennox Hills, but prevails very generally along their southern base, from Baldernock on the west, to Denny, St Ninian’s, Falkirk, Larbert, and Airth, on the east; and generally throughout all the eastern quarter, on both sides of the Forth and Clyde Canal. By means of the Union Canal carried from the city of Edinburgh to the Forth and Clyde Canal near Falkirk, these extensive coal-fields have been rendered of easy access to the metropolis, which already receives large supplies of coal from that quarter, at little more than two thirds of the price which the inhabitants formerly paid for this necessary article. Limestone abounds in the same quarters with the coal, and in many instances there is one stratum of it above and another below the coal, the former always of the best quality. Sandstone also frequently accompanies both, though it is found in other parts. At Kilsyth there is a quarry of white sandstone, which takes a fine polish, and has been often used in ornamental work. Ironstone is in great abundance throughout the coal district, and is wrought in several places to a considerable extent, chiefly for the use of the Carron Works. It is also found in the parish of Kilsyth, in balls from a quarter of an inch to a foot in diameter, which are richer in metal than the common stone. Copper has not been discovered in veins so rich as to encourage their working, though mines were formerly opened at one or two places. Veins of silver were discovered, about sixty years ago, in the parishes of Logic and Alva, on the northern extremity of the county, and for a few weeks the working was very successful, but was soon abandoned. Cobalt was found in the same quarter. There are indications of other minerals in different parts of the county. In connection with the minerals it may be noticed, that in the parish of Logie, near to the beautiful village of Bridge of Allan, the mineral springs of Airthrey were discovered some years ago, and recommended to public notice. They are now attracting a great many visitors, and Bridge of Allan is rapidly assuming the appearance of a handsome town.

Besides the Forth, the Avon, the Kelvin, and the Endrick, which, though having their sources in Stirlingshire, soon cease to belong to it exclusively, flowing for the most part on its boundaries, this district is well supplied with other streams, which traverse its interior. The Forth, however, is by far the most important. It rises from a spring on the northern side and near the summit of Benlomond. After a course of eight or ten miles, under the name of the Water of Duckray, it passes into Perthshire, where it is called Avendhu, or Black River; and soon after, on returning to the borders of this county, it obtains the name of the Forth A few miles above Stirling it receives the Teith, and after-[7:20:730] wards the Allan, from the north, and the Bannockburn from the south. The tide, which flows a little above Stirling, renders it navigable to that town for vessels of 70 tons. Below Stirling the river winds in a remarkable manner across its valley, making so little progress, that, following its course to Alloa, the distance from Stirling Bridge is about 16 miles, while in a direct line it is scarcely seven. These windings are called the Links of the Forth. Two miles above Alloa it receives the Devon from the north-east. Below Alloa it expands into the large estuary called the Firth of Forth, which washes the north-eastern side of the county, till it meets with Linlithgowshire, a little to the south of Grangemouth. Next in importance, and the only other stream worthy of particular notice, is the Carron, which, rising in the interior, pursues an easterly course, and joins the Firth of Forth at Grangemouth. It is navigable for vessels of 200 tons as far as the village of Carron Shore, the shipping place of the Carron Company, nearly two miles from its confluence with the Forth. Besides Lochlomond, of which the greater part is in Dunbartonshire, several small pieces of water occur in different parts, none of them remarkable. Salmon are caught in the Forth, and also in Lochlomond, and in 1839 the fishery afforded a revenue of L.650 a year to the town of Stirling. Formerly the salmon-fishings were let as high as L.1400, part of which belonged to another proprietor.

The valued rent of Stirlingshire is L.108,509. 3s. 3d. Scots, and the real rent of the lands and houses in 1815 was L.218,761. sterling. In 1811 the number of estates was 117, of which 109 were below L.500 Scots, and only nine above L.2000 of valuation, thus indicating that the landed property was much divided; and not a fourth of the whole was entailed, a smaller proportion than in most parts of Scotland. The estates of the duke of Montrose, Lord Dundas, Sir Charles Edmonstone, Mr Forbes of Callendar, Mr Murray of Polmaise, the principal proprietors, are rented at from L.6000 to L.14,000, and several others are worth from L.1000 to L.4000 a year; but the greater number are below L.1000. Some of the proprietors have increased the value of their estates by means of embankments on the Firth of Forth. Several hundred acres, many of them worth as high a rent as any in the county, have thus been reclaimed and brought into cultivation, and a great deal more may be gained in the same manner. All the small proprietors, and most of the great ones, reside upon their estates; and several of the latter occupy considerable farms of their own, which they have improved, and continue to cultivate in a very judicious manner. There is accordingly a great number of seats over all the lower parts of the county. Before the union between Scotland and England, considerable tracts were granted to the retainers and dependants, or the tenants, of the principal proprietors, and their heirs, for ever; subject only to the payment of the rent of those times, which is now very trifling. These are called feuars or portioned., and in some parishes, especially Denny, form a pretty numerous class.

There is a good deal of both natural and planted wood in Stirlingshire, about 13,000 acres of the former, and 10,000 of the latter; and much of the former, in the state of coppice, has long yielded a regular income to the proprietors, little if at all inferior to the average rent of the arable land. The Buchanan woods, belonging to the duke of Montrose, seem to be under very regular management, being divided into twenty-four hags or portions, of which one is cut every year. About twenty-five years ago, this produced from L.16 to L.24 the Scots acre, after leaving a number of reserves to stand for timber. Every acre gives at a medium about one ton and a half of bark, which, during the late war, sold at L.18; and the small timber generally pays expenses. This does not now hold true, as bark does not bring above L.7. Much of the land on which this wood grows is of little value for any other purpose; not worth half a crown an acre. On the same estate, and also in other parts of the county, extensive plantations have been formed within the last seventy years.

The mountainous parts of Stirlingshire are occupied with sheep of the black-faced or heath breed, but of late years many Cheviot and other breeds have been introduced; and the lower bills by Highland cattle; and there the farms are necessarily of considerable extent. The arable land, how ever, is for the most part divided into small farms, especially the Carse lands on the Forth, where the general size does not exceed from 40 to 100 or perhaps 120 acres.

The agriculture of this county, which a few years ago was in a very inferior condition, is now ( 1840) in the highest state of improvement. Stirlingshire farmers and farm-servants are anxiously sought after in every part of the united kingdom. Landed proprietors even in East Lothian and Berwickshire, where farming had long been managed in a very spirited manner, and with decided success, have latterly confessed that an inoculation of Stirlingshire farming would prove highly beneficial to the agriculture of those counties. For the attainment of this confessed superiority, Stirlingshire is indebted to a variety of favourable circumstances, to which we shall now shortly advert in quite a practical manner, as the theory has already been submitted to our readers in the article upon Agriculture. Among these circumstances may be chiefly noticed the Deanston or thorough-draining system, the subsoil or deep ploughing system, and the encouragement given to both by many of the landed proprietors. But before proceeding to state these circumstances, we may premise, that had not the farmers in this county been morally prepared to admit innovation, and to follow good example, these improvements, like many others equally beneficial in various departments of practical knowledge, must have fallen to the ground, to be again resuscitated and pressed upon public attention in more auspicious times. It is therefore to the zeal and indefatigable industry, stimulated by enlarged notions alike of public and private interest, and exercised by Stirlingshire formers, that we and the whole empire have to congratulate ourselves upon those immense improvements in agriculture, which are enabling a small, and, generally speaking, a sterile country, to support a rapidly increasing population, while at the same time we regret to add, that those very farmers are, notwithstanding these improvements, scarcely able to maintain their position, in consequence of the depreciated and still depreciating value of the products of arable husbandry.

This admirable system, which was either invented by Mr Smith of the Deanston Works, or by him carried to the highest state of perfection, consists in running longitudinal cuts or drains to the depth of three feet, or at least two and a half, parallel to the ridges of the field, taking care that at the lower extremity they all terminate in a main drain running at right angles to the other drains, and which must at least be six or twelve inches deeper than the longitudinal or proper drains for the field. This cross drain is technically called the “main and, besides its greater depth, it should otherwise be more capacious, that it may with ease carry off the accumulated waters of the whole or greater part of the field. When the farm is drained wholly at the expense of the farmer, the main is frequently left open, although he incurs a considerable loss of ground, and some expense annually for clearing it out. The best mode of covering is to form an arch both below and above, or, in other words, make a cylinder of it. The building may be either with or without mortar; but with mortar it is much more durable, and leaves a smoother run for the water. The drain or main is sometimes covered with flag-stones, and soil to the depth of eighteen inches laid over all, bringing it to the level of the field; and so nothing is lost, but something gained. It must however be confessed that this pro[7:20:731] cess is too expensive for a tenant. With respect to the longitudinal drains, they ought, as already stated, to be at least three feet or two and a half deep, and from three to six inches wide at the bottom. If upon dry-field ground, where stones can easily and cheaply be procured, they are then filled to the height of from nine to twelve inches, with the stones broken so small as to pass through a ring of two and a half inches in diameter. They are then covered with sod having the grassy side under, or, when sod cannot be procured, with damaged hay or straw, old thatch, ferns, or even roots of quickens (triticum repens), saved for the purpose in cleaning the same and other fields of the farm. Over these looser materials, care must be taken to spread a layer of soil of a few inches in depth, which must be trodden down and well compacted together, that it may serve as a permanent close cover to the looser materials below, to prevent the crumbling and loose soil from dropping in among the small stones, and thus preventing the run of the water. Simple as this mode of covering is, it has hitherto been found to answer the purpose effectually; as some drains at Deanston constructed in this manner fifteen years ago are still as efficient as at first. These various preparations must not be raised higher than half the depth of the cut, as the super-incumbent soil, to meliorate which all this labour has been undertaken, has now to be thrown in; and it must have an average depth of eighteen inches, in order that the subsoil-plough, in traversing the field, may not by any possibility injure the drain.

The expense of this mode of draining is very considerable, and has in most cases been deemed beyond the means of ordinary farmers, without some stipulated aid from their landlords. This we believe to be fiir the best way of managing so expensive an improvement; because the practical farmer, when the operations are entirely left to himself, will devise expedients for lessening expense, in direct outlay at least, of which expedients the landlord could not be supposed to avail himself. In some cases the drains must be distant from each other only ten feet. This is the most expensive system that has hitherto been thought necessary, even upon the wettest land or the most tenacious bottom. The other extreme is at the distance of forty feet, which is deemed sufficiently wide for any land that requires draining; and there is little in Scotland, except what is incumbent upon pure sand or fine gravel, which draining may not improve. It is thus evident that the expense of draining each acre must depend upon circumstances. We shall give Mr Smith’s calculations, which we believe not to be overrated where every thing has to be paid for in money. It is unnecessary to give the whole table: it will be sufficient to state the expense at ten, twenty, thirty, and forty feet distance between the cuts. At ten feet between the cuttings, where the subsoil is an obdurate till, almost if not altogether impervious to water, the cost will amount to L.12; at twenty feet, which implies sandy clay partially pervious to water, L.6; at thirty feet, which implies a free open stony bottom, L.4; at forty feet, which implies the most open bottom or subsoil requiring draining, L.3. These sums, especially the first two, are large, but not larger than the work can actually be done for in money value; nor are they too great for the benefit to be derived from such judicious outlay; for if the work be properly executed, experience has not yet taught the real benefit which may be derived from such efficient drainage, nor how long it will endure in an effective state.

The actual outlay to a practical farmer, who calculates nothing but the cutting of the drains, breaking the stones, and putting them into the drains, his own people gathering the stones which are found in the field, carting them, and filling up the remaining part of the cuts, so as to bring the field to its proper level, for which he estimates no charge, the labour being performed by the force upon the farm, amounted to L.2. 14s. the acre. This was only eightpence more upon the acre than the sum stated in Mr Smith’s table for the distance of thirty feet between the drains, which was the scheme executed by the farmer referred to upon a field of thirteen acres since last autumn, and which field afterwards produced an excellent green crop of potatoes and turnips. Here then is an admirable example of what may be accomplished by an active and enterprising farmer, wholly at his own expense, and without losing either the whole or any part of a crop. This was accomplished upon the farm of Bearside, near Stirling, the property of William Murray, Esq. of Touchadam and Polmaise, and possessed by Mr James Gray, whose active and enlightened industry is rapidly converting a piece of moorland, which some years ago bore only an unprofitable crop of tall furze, affording shelter to some scores of rabbits, into one of the most valuable farms upon the Polmaise estates. He has been busily engaged upon the same laborious task for the last six years, and two or three more will complete the object which he has in view. He may then with confidence rely upon his expense and toil being rewarded.^[1. To some it may appear invidious to select the names of individuals, when so many are at least equally active in improving. It will serve as our apology, that some names were absolutely necessary to verify our statements; and Mr Murray took the lead as a landlord in introducng these improvements, while among the tenantry Mr Gray has not been the least active. ] When stones have to be quarried and carted a greater distance, the expense will be somewhat greater.

When stones cannot be procured in sufficient quantity, or at moderate expense, recourse is had to tiles made for the purpose. The accompanying figure represents a section of the tile. They are about five inches deep and four across, and generally fourteen inches long; and in most cases flat tiles are placed in the bottom of the drain, and the arched ones placed over them; but where the subsoil is very stiff, the extra expense of sole tiles is dispensed with. As draining with tile is the cheapest mode in clayey land, such as the Carses in Stirlingshire, and with stones as described above in dry-field, and as the filling-in process in both is the same, it is needless to repeat the description already given. With respect to the comparative merits of the two modes, the most competent judges prefer the small stone-drains, when at all practicable, to those formed with tile, both as concern durability and practical utility. Certain it is, they possess one decided advantage over tile, as they present a perfect barrier to the admission of vermin, as moles rats &c. and therefore the chances of being choked by the ravages of these noxious animals are greatly diminished, and the durability increased. It may be useful to add, that “the frequent drain system” is another appellation by which it is pretty generally known.

Not satisfied, however, with this expensive system of draining, Mr Smith of Deanston has had recourse to a system of ploughing invented by himself, and denominated, aptly enough, “subsoil-ploughing.” The implement by which the work is accomplished, is just like any other old Scotish plough, without a mould, but larger, heavier, and stronger. It is never wrought with fewer than three, most commonly with four, and not unfrequently with six horses, according to the nature of the soil in which it has to operate. Where it is desirable to bring up any of the subsoil, this is performed by another large plough, called a “trench-plough,” which has a mould attached to it like an ordinary plough, and is generally drawn by three horses. The mode of procedure consists in an ordinary plough with two horses going before it, with the usual depth of furrow, the subsoil-plough following with a depth of at least ten or even twelve inches more, and forcing to the surface, besides[7:20:732] stirring the soil below, whatever stones of the weight of not more than four hundredweight it may encounter in its progress. When stones exceed the above weight, a lad following the plough marks their situation with a tally, that they may afterwards be removed with crowbars. These, with others found upon the surface, are the stones with which the drains are filled; and thus, while the drains serve as leaders for conveying the water away when collected, the thorough stirring of the subsoil permits a more rapid percolation, and also evaporation, by which the ground becomes very speedily dry, and consequently much better fitted for the reception and nourishment of seed of every kind. The expense of subsoil-ploughing, when paid in money, generally varies from 24s. to 30s. the acre; but it is now becoming a part of the routine labour of the farm. Supposing it, however, to be contracted for, and paid in cash, the extra expense does not exceed one fifth of the cost of trenching with the spade, and yet the work is as effectually done. The reader ought to remember, that the calculations are adjusted to the Scotish acre, and that four Scotish are equal to five statute acres; so that the amount of money required to execute four Scotish, will cover the expense of five imperial acres.

In noticing this part of the subject, we shall first copy two short extracts from a writer in the Quarterly Journal of Agriculture for June 1839, pp. 69 and 70. Speaking principally of the draining, he says, “This so great benefit, not for Scotland only, but for the whole kingdom, is as yet in its infancy. Already the fame and the utility of it is spreading all over the island; and we have not a doubt, in a short time, there will not be found a spot that has not been made anew by means of this simple yet powerful and efficient system of draining....It is perfectly wonderful to behold the mighty change this thorough-drain system is making in the different parts of the country where it is in operation. Wet land is made dry, poor weeping clays are converted into turnip-soil, and even what would formerly have been accounted dry is advanced in quality. Whole parishes in the vicinity of Stirling are completely transformed from unsightly marshes into beautiful and rich wheat-fields; and where the plough could scarcely be driven for slush and water, we see heavy crops per acre, and heavy weight per bushel, the quantity and the quality alike improved.” But these statements, although true, and in no degree exaggerated, are yet of too general a nature to fix the attention of the reader. We shall therefore simply state two facts, which are well authenticated, as illustrative of the beneficial results of these decided improvements in agriculture. In the Carses, which have been cultivated from time immemorial, and have always been very productive, and which have sometimes been considered beyond the reach of improvement, the most distinct improvement is visible even in the best years; and in wet seasons the condition of the crop is still more distinctly marked for the better. In the driest seasons it is not beyond the truth to say, that the crop is larger from a sixth to a fourth, and the quality vastly improved in weight and fineness, while in wet and cold seasons, such as 1838 and 1839, it is impossible to estimate the value of these admirable improvements. Again, with respect to the other kinds of soil in Stirlingshire, namely, the dry-field, our remarks must be understood to apply less generally, as the soil is not so uniformly good; yet are the effects more decisively manifested here than in the Carses, as in wet seasons, without the draining and subsoil-ploughing, many fields would scarcely carry any crop at all, and so both seed and labour would be lost. The following statement may be received as applicable to many different instances of management. A small field of seven Scotish acres had during sixteen years of a nineteen years’ lease produced upon an average the sum of from 10s. to 15s. the acre as its whole return. At this period, when the farmer felt himself secure in the prospect of another lease, he drained the ground at intervals of only fifteen feet, in consequence of the great wetness of both the active and subsoil. It was then subsoil-ploughed, and covered with a crop of potatoes and turnip. This was in 1836, a very wet season. The product was a good fair crop of both. In 1837 it was sown with barley, and produced the heaviest crop of that grain that had hitherto been produced on the farm. This yielded more pounds per acre than it had formerly given shillings. In 1838, although an exceedingly bad season, it yielded fully two tons of hay per acre; and in the ensuing year, although only seven acres in extent, it produced more food to the same number of milk-cows than thirteen acres of an undrained field did in the preceding year. As these were the first crops after being drained, there is reason to believe, that when again subjected to tillage after pasture it will be still more productive, as the drains will have had more time thoroughly to dry the field. Many such instances of beneficial influence could easily be pointed out in dry-field farming, but this would only be a useless repetition. It is pertinent enough to add, that not only are the crops improved, but both the seed-time and the harvest are rendered earlier than formerly; a circumstance of vital interest in the upland districts, where, under the ordinary modes of culture, it has not unfrequently been difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get the corn to ripen at all in wet seasons, which so frequently occur in our climate.

The encouragement of the landlords, most of whom are resident in this county, has been prompt and judicious, especially in patronising the introduction of the draining system, which is the basis of modern agriculture. Decidedly the most active of these were Mr Murray of Polmaise, the late Mr Graham of Airth, and Mr Moir of Leckie, who were among the first to direct their attention to this subject, and who effectually introduced the new system among their tenantry, and thus obtained for it a fair field. Since then its advantages have been so manifest as to induce the most prejudiced and stubborn of the farming population to adopt it to a greater or less extent. Nor has any popular clamour ever been raised against the improved culture; a proof that even the rural population are beginning to admit new ideas.

Another circumstance which has risen out of this improved agriculture, is the establishment of Drummonds Agricultural Museum; an institution which, while it may be called the offspring of the improved culture, has yet had a very beneficial effect in promoting the objects which gave rise to it. It was begun in the year 1831 by the Messrs Drummond, the spirited seedsmen in Stirling, and was founded, and for the first two or three years conducted, at their own expense. The gentlemen, and some of the more public-spirited of the farmers, of the district, have since contributed so much towards its expense, that the public are now admitted gratis. It is still, however, the Drummonds Museum, and they arc at this moment building large premises for containing it and their own business establishment. The principal object contemplated by this museum is the collecting together under one view practical working specimens of every possible, or at least known implement, connected with agriculture, from the twisting of a straw-rope to the ponderous draining plough, the invention of Mr Macewan, farmer at Blackdub, near Stirling, and which is drawn by twelve horses. Few persons, even of those who are most conversant with the details of agriculture upon the most extensive and complicated scale, could have the slightest idea of the immense variety of implements here exhibited, both for show and sale. To specify particulars would answer no purpose. Besides the implements, there are also specimens of every kind of grain, root, or fruit, which will bear exhibition, along with soils, sections of drains, corn and hay stacks, amounting in all to between six and eight thousand specimens; and few weeks pass without additions being made to the number. It is only fair to[7:20:733] add, that the landlords and farmers of the adjoining counties of Perth and Clackmannan, which, although politically separated, form only one district, the basin of the Forth, have as promptly availed themselves of these improvements as those of Stirlingshire.

The land on the banks of the Forth is exceedingly well adapted for orchards, of which there are a few, but of no great extent. The island of Inchmurrin, in Lochlomond, the property of the duke of Montrose, has been stocked with fellow deer for more than a century, the number being about 240, which are properly attended to, and kept always in a thriving condition.

The manufactures are carpets, tartans, plaid-shawls, trouser-stuffs, and other woollens, in the town of Stirling, but more in the neighbourhood. These within the last ten years have increased in nearly a tenfold degree, so that this district has now become one of the principal seats of the woollen manufacture in Scotland, and promises soon to take the lead. Paper, cottons, alum, copperas, soda, Prussian blue, &c. are produced on an extensive scale; spirits at several large distilleries, the amount of duty from home-made spirits being greater than in any other district in Scotland; and iron goods at Carron. The Carron Works, celebrated over all Europe, were established upon the banks of the river of that name about eighty years ago, by Dr Roebuck and Messrs Cadell and Garbet, who were joined in the undertaking by several other gentlemen. By the charter of the company, they are authorized to employ a capital of L.150,000, which is divided into 600 shares; and ten of these are required to give a vote in the management. During the late war they employed upwards of 2000 able-bodied men, and paid in wages above L.120,000 yearly; and this is nearly true at the present day. At these works all sorts of cast-iron goods are made, and also bar-iron, said to be equal to the Russian, but particularly cannon, and that kind called carronades, which having been invented here, take their name from the works. The boring of the cannon is a very interesting operation, which is performed in about forty-eight hours, by machinery moved by water. One of their engines raises upwards of thirty tons of water in a minute; and so extensive are the works, that they are said to consume every day about 200 tons of coals. They have water-carriage from the Firth of Forth by means of the Carron, and to the Firth of Clyde by the Forth and Clyde Canal, which passes through the district a little to the south of the Carron. The number of vessels in the London trade alone is seven, and about as many more are constantly trading to other places.

Some years ago another extensive foundery was projected, and it is at present in operation upon a respectable footing, manufacturing goods equal to those of Carron.

Notwithstanding the favourable situation of Stirlingshire, on a navigable river, and between the east and west seas, which for many years have been connected by a canal, it has but a small town-population, and till lately its commerce was inconsiderable. Even now, half its exports, not including its agricultural produce, is supposed to be furnished by the Carron Works. In consequence of the increase of the woollen manufacture, commerce must necessarily be increased also. The principal town is Stirling, containing, in 1831,8556 inhabitants; a place of great antiquity, which, though situated on the navigable part of the Forth, has little trade by water, and is chiefly indebted for its importance to its situation on the confines of the Highlands. Falkirk, on the eastern side of the county, a little to the south of the Forth and Clyde Canal, had a population, including a large and populous parish, in 1831, of 12,743, and is distinguished for its great fairs or trysts, which are held on the second Tuesday in August, September, and October, where cattle, sheep, and horses are brought for sale to the annual value of L.650,000. Grangemouth, founded by Sir Laurence Dundas in 1777, on the angle formed by the junction of the Carron and the Forth and Clyde Canal, is now a considerable town, and the principal seaport of the county. Its trade is chiefly with the north of Europe and along the east coast. It has a custom-house, a dry dock, and other necessary works. The depth of water in the harbour is generally, in spring tides from sixteen to eighteen feet, and in neap tides from ten to twelve. The only other towns are Kilsyth, Bannockburn, Denny, Campsie, and Balfron. On the east side there is a number of small villages, occupied partly by agricultural labourers and mechanics, and partly by weavers employed by the Glasgow manufacturers.

Besides the Forth and Clyde and Union Canals, the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway, now constructing, passes through this county, in a direction nearly parallel to the canals, and must be productive of great benefit to its population.

The county, which in 1831 had only 118 freeholders, has now a constituency of 2332, who send one member to parliament. Stirling, its only royal borough, is associated with Culross, Dunfermline, Inverkeithing, and Queensferry, in the elections for the Scotish burghs; and Falkirk, a parliamentary borough, with Airdrie, Hamilton, Lanark, and Linlithgow; Stirling and Falkirk being both the returning burghs. A poor-rate is only levied in a few parishes, the poor being chiefly supported, as in most parts of Scotland, by voluntary contributions.

Stirlingshire exhibits remains highly interesting to the antiquary, and has been the scene of some of the most remarkable events in Scotish history. The Roman wall, called the Wall of Antoninus, and vulgarly Graeme’s Dyke, which traversed this county, may still be traced in several places. The battles of Stirling, in which Wallace defeated the English under Warren carl of Surrey; of Falkirk, in which he in his turn was defeated; of Bannockburn, which secured the independence of Scotland; of Sauchie-burn, between James III. and his rebellious subjects, in which the former was defeated, and was afterwards treacherously slain at Milton; were fought in this county. Stirlingshire was in former days the battle-ground of Scotland. Here we may refer to Nimmo’s History of Stirlingshire, Ray’s Military Antiquities, and Chalmers’s Caledonia.

The population of Stirlingshire, according to the census of 1801, was 50,825, in 1811 it amounted to 58,174, in 1821 to 65,376, and in 1831 to 72,600. The increase of population from 1811 to 1831 was 21,775. (d. d.)