Heriot

   HERIOT, a parish, in the county of Edinburgh; containing, with the hamlets of Fala-Hill Inn, Robertson, and Broomieknowe, 355 inhabitants. The history of this parish is of little interest, except as connected with the various proprietors of its lands and ecclesiastical revenues. The church was formerly of considerable value; and its patronage, in the 12th and 13th centuries, belonged to Roger de Quincy, then lord of the manor, and constable of Scotland, who is supposed to have derived it from the lords of Galloway, and these latter from the Morvilles. In portioning out his estates among his three daughters, De Quincy gave Heriot to Elena, the youngest, who married La Touche, an English baron, and who afterwards granted the church of "Heryeth," as it was then called, to the monastery of Newbottle, which gift was confirmed by a bull of pope Nicholas, and by Fraser, Bishop of St. Andrew's, the diocesan. In 1309, William Blair, the incumbent, resigned his vicarage to Bishop Lamberton, who immediately gave the vicarage revenues to the monks of Newbottle, who already possessed the rectory. At the time of the Reformation, these monks held both the church and lands of Heryeth. The property soon afterwards came into the hands of Mark Kerr, commendator of Newbottle, to whose heir it regularly descended; and the lands then successively passed to Robert, second earl of Lothian, by whom they were sold to Walter Hay, to whose son they fell in 1643. On the failure of this family in 1692, by the death of lord Borthwick, the barony of Heriot came to a son of Lord Stair, from whom it descended, through the late dowager lady Dalrymple, to her eldest son, the Earl of Stair, present proprietor of the lands.

   The parish, which is of oblong form, is about six and a half miles long, and three and three-quarters broad, and contains 15,000 acres. It is bounded on the north-west by Temple and Borthwick parishes; on the east by Stow, and part of Fala; and on the south by Innerleithen, in Peeblesshire. It is altogether hilly, and a pastoral parish, only about one-tenth of the land being arable. The ground rises in some parts to a great elevation, particularly in the south-east, where is the hill of Dewar, about 1654 feet above the level of the sea; and also in the south-west, where Blackup Scars, which is the highest hill, rises 1000 feet above the sea at its base, and 2193 at its summit. These hills are part of the Moorfoot range, which is a branch of the Lammermoor and Soutra, stretching from the north-east towards Peebles on the south-west. A great variety of rare plants is to be found, affording, especially in the months of August and September, a rich field for botanical research. The higher grounds are mostly bare of trees, there being, indeed, a great want of plantations in every part of the parish. The climate, from the elevated situation of the district, and the hilly character of the surface, is bleak and piercing, though salubrious. The Heriot water rises in the south-west extremity of the parish, and, after winding in its course for five miles, unites with the Gala at the eastern boundary, about a mile and a half below the church. This stream, which is subject to frequent swellings, rose in August 1837 to an unusual height, destroying dykes and walls, and bringing desolation to the property within the range of its violence. The Gala water has its source in the north, and, after a course of about two miles, quits the parish near its junction with the Heriot.

   The soil on the banks of the rivers is rich and fertile, and capable of producing the finest crops, though the severity of the climate is a great obstacle to the operations of husbandry. The wheat grown is inconsiderable, and barley is now substituted in the place of bear. The number of acres under pasture is upwards of 12,000, of which about 1600 are considered susceptible of profitable cultivation. Besides the grain, potatoes and turnips of good quality are raised. The parish, however, is chiefly celebrated for its sheep and cattle, the former, which are partly of the Cheviot kind, being reared in very large numbers; about 7660 sheep are regularly kept, and the lambs fetch the highest prices. Of the small quantity of wood grown, the beech, larch, and plane seem best adapted to the soil. There are numerous enclosures, and these of a very superior kind; and the farm-steadings throughout the parish are generally in a pretty fair state. The farms vary in extent from 50 to 2000 acres. There is no village: the chief communication of the inhabitants is with Dalkeith, nine miles distant. About three miles of good turnpike road run through the parish; but the other roads belonging to the locality are indifferent, and there are no facilities of this kind in the higher lands for the purpose of transporting lime and other manure, the extensive application of which, for the improvement of the poorer grounds, is thus prevented. The rateable annual value of Heriot is £3854. The ecclesiastical affairs are subject to the presbytery of Dalkeith and synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, and the patronage is vested in the Earl of Stair. The stipend of the minister is £158, of which about a fifth is received from the Exchequer, with a manse, built in 1793, and repaired in 1829, and a fine garden of the best soil; adjoining it is a glebe of twenty acres of land, valued at £30 per annum. The church is situated about the centre of the parish, and accommodates 200 persons with sittings; it was rebuilt in 1804, and has since undergone extensive repairs, by which it has been rendered convenient and comfortable. A parochial school is supported, the master of which has a salary of £34, with a house, and about £25 fees. There is also a parochial library. The relics of antiquity merely comprise some camps, consisting of two or three concentric circles, and a gateway, the history of which is unknown.