former strength. The public buildings all present an antique appearance without any evidence of dilapidation, and the population is composed of decidedly a better class of people than it has been our fortune to meet with elsewhere on this side of the channel. Here we saw something of Irish hospitality and the fine old Irish gentleman in his true element.

Londonderry is a place of considerable commerce; vessels of the largest capacity come up the Foyle, and steamers of the first class ply daily to Glasgow and Liverpool. At this season of the year the docks are always crowded with laborers going to Scotland to aid them in gathering in their harvest, after which they return to their families and occupy the intervening time in tending their flocks and growing potatoes.

LETTER EIGHTEEN.

GLASGOW, Scotland. The River Clyde-Dumbarton Castle-Glasgow-Trip to Ayr-Birthplace of Burns--Alloway Kirk-Brig of Doon, etc.

IN my last letter I gave you a description of the scenery on the river Foyle-the pride of Londonderry-out of which we sailed in a magnificent steamer, called the Thistle, for the shores of Caledonia, passing en route, by moonlight, the lofty heights of the Causeway, the chalk bluffs, and several beautiful islands dotted here and there with the thatch-covered cottages of the Irish peasantry. Wishing to enjoy a sea-view of the Highlands and the Firth of Clyde, so celebrated in Scottish song, we gave orders to the steward, before retiring, to have us up by the dawn of day—an injunction obeyed most implicitly, for Aurora had scarcely emerged from the waters when all on board were aroused by a loud voice crying out, "The rock! the rock! the rock!" Many of the passengers, supposing the vessel was in danger of being stranded on some fearful breaker, rushed forth from their berths in their morning gowns, with glaring eyes. and distended mouths, expecting every moment to hear the crash and feel the shock, but were agreeably disappointed when the captain informed them that there was no danger, as the rock was two miles off-pointing out at the same time a lofty object in the shape

of a cone, rising some forty or fifty feet above the surface of the water. This singular rock stands, solitary and alone, several miles from the main land, serving as a beacon for vessels nearing the Scottish shore. The captain of our ship told us, and we have no reason to doubt its truth, that a bold fresh water spring rises from the summit and flows perpetually down the sides of the rock into the sea, furnishing sailors with the pure element to mix with their vile liquor without the trouble of making a landing. Beyond this rock, in the dim distance, the lofty peaks of Ben Lomond, and the whole range of southern highlands, were presented to our view, forming a scene of panoramic beauty far surpassing my expectations, and equalling in every respect the descriptions given by different. writers. In a short time we found ourselves ascending the Clyde, which is in a commercial point of view the most important river in Scotland, being navigable at high water for the largest class of merchant vessels as far as Glasgow. The river as far up as Dumbarton Castle is very wide and beautiful, with many villas and several flourishing towns on the banks, but beyond this it is very narrow and uninteresting except to practical minds, fond of looking at ship yards and dredging machines. Large sums of money have been expended of late by the city of Glasgow in deepening the channel and making the stream wider, an undertaking of great magnitude, evincing a degree of enterprise that we rarely see in any city. Several thousand Irish laborers are now employed night and day, with their shovels and spades, in excavating the banks and conveying the dirt. in boats to the low lands below, which are subject to inundation at high tide. In a few years this river, which was originally very small and unimportant, will become, by human ingenuity and labor, the largest in the kingdom.

Dumbarton Castle is one of the four fortresses stipulated to be kept up at the time of the union between Scotland and England, and, accordingly, it is still in repair, and occupied by a garrison. It is situated on a rock rising from the point of junction of the Leven and Clyde, to the height of two hundred and sixty feet, measuring a mile in circumference, terminating in two sharp points, one higher than the other, and covered over with houses and batteries. Previous to his being sent to England, Wallace was confined in this castle, the governor of which was the notorious Sir John Menteith,

who betrayed him. One of the peaks of the rock is now called. Wallace's Seat, and a part of the castle Wallace's Tower, in which can be seen a huge two-handed sword said to have belonged to that hero. During the wars which desolated Scotland in the reign of Queen Mary, this formidable fortress was taken by Captain Crawford, a distinguished adherent of the King's party, by means of scaling ladders, in the night time, choosing for his dangerous experiment the place where the rock was highest, and where, of course, less pains were taken to keep a regular guard. The exploit at the time was considered very extraordinary, but in this day and generation. of ours, when men do every thing and stop at nothing, it would be regarded as mere child's play.

The city of Glasgow is the great commercial metropolis of Scotland, and in wealth, population, and manufacturing importance, the third city in the United Kingdom. It cannot be called a beautiful place, although it possesses many attractions. The streets are wide, well paved, and kept perfectly clean, and the houses all present a similarity of architecture, and are constructed without an exception of white stone found in the neighborhood. Like most of the cities in this country, it is rich in religious, charitable, and philanthropic institutions, which are supported by annual donations to the amount of fifty thousand pounds. Among the most important establishments of this kind which we visited are, the Asylum for the Houseless Poor, Asylum for Indigent Old Men and Orphan Boys, Institution for Destitute Young Females, and work-houses, all of which are conducted upon superior principles, and do much towards improving the condition of the masses, and elevating the tone of society. Among the many beautiful houses dedicated to the worship of God, the venerable Cathedral erected by Bishop Achaius, in 1136, is the most conspicuous. It occupies the highest point in the city, and stands, like the awful Genius of the place, in perfect preservation, surrounded by the remains and memorials of twenty-five generations. In the centre of the Necropolis, near this ancient structure, stands a beautiful monument erected to the memory of John Knox, the great ecclesiastical reformer. It is a plain and substantial structure, designed more to represent the true character of the man, than as an ornament to perpetuate the name of the architect, or gratify the vanity of those who projected it.

The first object that strikes the eye of the stranger in Glasgow, is the monument recently erected in George's Square to Sir Walter Scott. It is in the form of a fluted Doric column, about eighty feet in height, with a colossal statue of the great Minstrel on the summit. The figure is half enveloped in a shepherd's plaid, which hangs in graceful folds on the wrong arm, and the expression of the countenance is characterized by that air of bonhomie and shrewdness which distinguished the great writer. Directly in front of Sir Walter's pillar, in the same square, there is a fine pedestrian statue, in bronze, by Flaxman, of the lamented Sir John Moore, who was a native and resident of this city. To the right of the statue, in an angle of the square, there is also a noble figure of James Watt, in bronze, and of colossal magnitude. It is intended, as opportunity offers, to place the statues and monuments of other eminent men around the inclosed area of this small but handsome square, which is now ornamented with shrubberies and walks, so that in course of time it will become a sort of open Pantheon, dedicated to the illustrious dead.

Standing on the balcony of my hotel, which fronts on George's Square, I have before me one of the finest architectural vistas in the city. On one side the lofty spire of St. George's Church, one hundred and sixty-two feet in height, catches the eye, surmounting a building obviously too small for such a vast superstructure. Somewhat nearer, on the same side, is the Dissenting Chapel, in which the celebrated Dr. Wardlaw officiates, an elegant building, in the Grecian style of architecture. On the other side George street is presented to the view, extending for about two miles in a straight line, and forming an uninterrupted succession of blocks of the same description. Immediately in front of me the lofty colonnade of the Royal Exchange rises above every other object. This splendid fabric is built in the florid Corinthian style of architecture, and is surmounted by a lantern, which forms at night one of the most conspicuous objects in the city. As a whole, this building is regarded as one of the most striking of the kind in the kingdom. Its general effect is grand and impressive, though some of the details may be liable to the objections of a refined criticism.

The streets of Glasgow present an uninterrupted scene of activity, and the smoke, which almost obscures the light of the sun, shows

conclusively that her manufacturing establishments are carrying on an extensive business, which must in the course of a few it a wealthy, populous, and influential city.

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years render Wishing to see the birth-place of Burns, the great Scottish Bard, and the scene of Tam o' Shanter's route, so much talked of and admired, we formed an agreeable party and ran down by railroad to a little town called Ayr in the space of two hours. Here we procured at one of the inns a drosky, and drove out about two miles to the little cottage where Burns was born. The original erection was a clay bigging, consisting of two apartments, the kitchen and the spence, or sitting-room. The cottage was built by Burns's father, on a small piece of leased land, which he designed for a nursery, but gave up that idea when he was employed by Mr. Ferguson as his gardener and overseer. On removing to Locklee he disposed of his leasehold to the corporation of shoemakers in Ayr, to whom the house and ground still belong. It is occupied at present by an old lady as an ale-house, and every one that goes there is expected to drink to the memory of the departed in a mug which has been used for the purpose ever since the poet's death. In the interior of the kitchen we were shown a recess, where stood the bed in which Burns was born, also several articles of furniture said to have belonged to the family. Proceeding a little further, we saw "Alloway's auld haunted kirk." This interesting building has long been roofless, but the walls, which are very thick and built of stone only one story in height, are pretty well preserved, and it still retains the old bell on the east end, as a memento of its ancient importànce. Every piece of wood-work about the house has long since been removed to make snuff-boxes and other memorials of this celebrated spot. The churchyard of Alloway has now become a fashionable burying place. Its little area is almost filled with modern monuments to the memory of persons, many of whom have been brought from considerable distances to take their rest in this doubly consecrated ground. The poet is not interred here, as might have been expected, but at Dumfries in the extreme south of Scotland. A few yards from the kirk a well trickles down into the Doon, where formerly stood the thorn on which "Mungo's mither hang'd hersel," and just beyond is the "Auld Brig" of Doon, which figures so conspicuously in the tale of Tam o' Shanter. The age of the structure