THE REGALIA OF SCOTLAND. Kept in the Castle of Edinburgh in testimony of the Independence of the Kingdom. THE SCOTSMAN'S LIBRARY; BEING A COLLECTION OF ANECDOTES AND FACTS ILLUSTRATIVE OF BY JAMES MITCHELL, LL. D. OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN; CORRESPONDENT MEMBER OF THE SOCIETY "Land of brown heath and shaggy wood, That knits me to thy rugged strand!" WALTER SCOTT. "It is the chief glory of Scotsmen that, next to God and their parents, they love their country and their country- PRINTED FOR J. ANDERSON, JUN. NORTH BRIDGE-STREET, EDINBURGH; PATERNOSTER-ROW, LONDON. Price 10s: 6d. bound in red or blue. PREFACE. A LONG Preface is seldom necessary, and is generally disagreeable; the Author, therefore, will content himself by merely giving a short account of the origin of this Work. A residence of twenty years in the Metropolis, and its vicinity, has not diminished his attachment to the land of his birth; and it has been his chief gratification to occupy his leisure hours in studying the Antiquities and History of Scotland, particularly of the county of Aberdeen, of which he is a native. This employment has been the more agreeable, as the past history of Scotland contains matter, which, to every impartial and reasonable mind, ought to be far more interesting than any thing found in the histories of the more celebrated, but less meritorious nations of Greece and Rome. Examples of every virtue which adorns human nature are found more abundantly in the history of Scotland than in that of any other country; and it is only for any one to take up a Biographical Dictionary, to see, that in proportion to its population, Scotland has produced a greater number of persons distinguished in Arts and Arms, in Literature and Science, than any other country in the world. Her present condition is the delight and admiration of her sons, who return from other lands. Her capital, the modern Athens, is not only the most learned, but is, in every other respect, the finest city in Europe. The Manufactures and Agriculture of Scotland are pre-eminent; and in the exalted moral and intellectual condition of the whole body of the people, the country has no rival in the world. Whoever will peruse the numerous Works which have been written about Great Britain, by learned Foreigners, within the last ten years, will see, that at the present day Scotland continues to hold a high place and name amongst the nations of the earth. Whatever benefit the author may have derived from his course of study, he has at least experienced very great pleasure, which has stimulated him to read every printed Work |