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small collection of similar papers. Lord Edmond Fitzmaurice has drawn up an account of them. It will be found at p. 89 of the Appendix.

His Lordship has also called attention to the collection of manuscripts which was formed by the late Mr. Dilke, the grandfather of the present Baronet, Sir Charles W. Dilke (App., p. 63).

With the same liberality with which the Duke of Montrose has so often opened his charter repositories for the illustration of historical works, he readily consented that a report should be made on the muniments of his noble house. The special report by Mr. Fraser on upwards of 200 of these muniments, carefully detailed in calendar form, giving the import of each, will be found in the Appendix, p. 165. So varied are these collections, that perhaps they are not surpassed in historical importance and interest by those of any other ancient family. They include charters from King William the Lion, and subsequent Scottish sovereigns, to successive representatives of the family of Graham, who held high offices in the State, and acted a prominent part in the political transactions of their times. The papers relating to the first Marquis of Montrose include the correspondence of King Charles the First, King Charles the Second, Queen Henrietta Maria, Elizabeth Queen of Bohemia, James Duke of York, Prince Rupert, William Prince of Orange, and others, with that devoted Royalist. The letters of King Charles the First, which are nearly all holograph, and were written at different places during the progress of the Civil War, show the great difficulties in which the King was frequently placed. The letters of the Queen of Bohemia are written with the wit and vivacity which were characteristic of that royal lady. Montrose having presented her with his picture, for which she gives him many thanks, she hung it in her cabinet "to "fright away the brethren ;" an epithet which she applies sarcastically to the Covenanters. Living at a place where she had little to do, she had become a good archer, and begged the Marquis to come and help her to shoot. She writes of proposed new commissions to be sent from the King from "godlie brethren" to cross "wicked Jamie Graham's proceedings." In one of her letters, the Queen playfully alludes to her son Prince Rupert as "Robert le Diable ;" and also to the proclamation which was issued against Montrose as that "detestable, bloodie murtherer and excommunicated traitour." On these strong expressions the Queen remarks that the Turks never called the Christians. So. In the same letter she adds in a postscript, that the Earl of Brentford told her he was too old to be a knave, having been honest ever. The papers connected with the trial of Montrose and his companions, the depositions of numerous witnesses concerning his invasion of Scotland and the battle of Tippermuir in Perthshire; the petitions of the Ecclesiastical Courts for the execution of justice on his adherents who were imprisoned at St. Andrew's; the acts and proceedings of the Privy Council, and the Committee of Estates for enforcing "the swearing and subscribing" of the solemn League and Covenant, all throw light on the sad condition of Scotland in those unhappy times of civil and ecclesiastical convulsion. The Montrose Papers subsequent to the first Marquis have yet to be inspected and reported on. But it may be stated generally, that they consist of an extensive correspondence of the first Duke of Montrose, who, invested with several offices of State, acted a chief part in the management of the public affairs in Scotland, and was greatly instrumental in accomplishing the union between Scotland and England, for which Queen Anne wrote to him a holograph letter of thanks, which is still preserved in the family. But rich in historical materials as are the Montrose Papers proper, we are informed that there are in the possession of the Duke of Montrose other two collections, the Lennox and the Menteith, which are scarcely of less historical importance. On these collections Mr. Fraser has promised to make a separate report.

The Duke of Sutherland's collection at Dunrobin Castle, reported on by Dr. Stuart (App., p. 177), is very valuable. Besides the series of title deeds of lands which occur in the muniment-room there are many miscellaneous documents of importance. Some of these relate to the cathedral establishment of Bishop Gilbert de Moravia, at Dornoch, in the beginning of the 13th century, after the collapse of the earlier ecclesiastical arrangements. Others afford illustrations of the working of the law of sanctuary before the Reformation. One of the papers is of special interest, being letters of dispensation for the marriage of the Earl of Bothwell to Lady Jean Gordon, his first wife, in 1565. This document was not produced in the suit brought by Bothwell to have this marriage declared null, although Lady Jean was a party to it. In the articles given in by the Earl of Murray at Westminster in 1568, it is asserted that the dispensation was abstracted, and all subsequent writers have speculated on the cause of its disappearance down to Mr. Burton, who after discussing the subject says that it is still involved in mystery. It would seem that Lady Jean Gordon, who

probably possessed the document throughout, had carried it along with her to Dunrobin on her marriage to the Earl of Sutherland in 1573, and that she declined to produce it in the suit against her, although its production would have made it impossible for Bothwell to have procured the wished-for decreet of nullity. Dr. Stuart has adverted in his report to the suppositions which historians have hazarded as to the cause of the withdrawal, but it seems plain that it is only now that the real circumstances have come to light. There is a mass of correspondence with the leading public men of the day, during the 17th and early part of the 18th centuries, in which are many references to events of national importance. Among them are several from Col. Robert Monro, the author of "The Expedition under Gustavus Adolphus." A series from the Duke of Gordon in the years 1684-5 and 6. In a letter from the Viscount Dundee, in answer to one from the Earl of Sutherland, dissuading him from taking part with King James, the Viscount asserts the instability of the new Government, and advises the Earl to throw in his lot with King James, offering his mediation if he should join with him. There are also many characteristic letters from Simon Lord Lovat. Among the manuscripts are the account books of Sir Robert Gordon, who managed the earldom during the years from 1616 to 1622. They afford many illustrations of the condition of agriculture, as well as of the sports and dress of the period. There is also the original Kalendar of the Abbey of Fearn, in Ross, in which at various periods obits, mainly of neighbouring ecclesiastics, barons, and burgesses, and historical memoranda, have been entered, ranging in date from 1322 to 1650.

The collection of the Earl of Dalhousie at Brechin Castle (App., p. 186), is chiefly remarkable for its extent, comprising (besides the MSS. formerly reported on) the registers of most of the Scotch bishoprics and religious houses, and selections from many of the more important charter rooms of Scotland. One of the volumes is a copy of Wintown's chronicle, and most of the transcripts were made for the Earl of Panmure, and his brother, Mr. Henry Maule, of Kelly, in the early part of last century.

The papers of the Marquis of Huntly at Aboyne Castle relate exclusively to the titles of lands belonging to the family. They begin in the 15th century, and are of great interest for purposes of local history and genealogy. (App., p. 180.)

The documents of the Earl of Airlie at Cortachy are very numerous, illustrating the descents of the family lands and many points of local history from an early period. Dr. Stuart's report will be found at p. 186 of the Appendix. Among the miscellaneous papers is one which shows the importance of the bell of St. Medan (a relic of Celtic times) down to the year 1447, when its hereditary keeper resigned it into the hands of the Lady of Airly as part of her dowry. There is also a charter by William the Lion, to the Abbey of Cupar, and various deeds connected with the office of hereditary porters of the abbey; also Commissions to the Ogilvys of Airly, as Baillies, from the Abbots of Arbroath and Cupar. In a document by the vicar of Lintrathin, dated 27th May 1560, he sets forth that "he has caused the common prayers and homilies to "be read weeklie to the parishioners," referring apparently to the English book of Common Prayer. Several papers relating to the embassy of Lord Ogilvy to Denmark in 1596; others connected with the burning of the bonny house of Airlie in 1640; and many about other events of public as well as domestic interest.

The first portion of the charters of the Earl Cawdor at Cawdor Castle serves, as Dr. Stuart shows in his report (App., p. 193), to throw light on the early thanes and thanages of Scotland, and the whole are of value in illustrating the condition of the country at various periods from the 14th century downwards. In the beginning of the 16th century the line of the thanes ended in a female who was married to Sir John Campbell, a younger son of the Earl of Argyll. Sir John acquired various lands in Argyllshire which had belonged to the monks of Iona, and the documents connected with these contain references of considerable interest.

The documents in the Dunecht collection, belonging to the Earl of Crawford and Balcarres (App., p. 181), consist of the title deeds of various branches of the house of Lindsay to their lands in the north of Scotland, as well as miscellaneous contracts and letters, all of which have been used in the Lives of the Lindsays by Lord Lindsay (now Earl of Crawford). Among the manuscripts is a volume containing the proceedings under a Commission issued by King James I., in 1605, for the settlement of the borders. It contains lists of all the Grahams, and is full of details of the state of society then prevalent in the debateable land, one of them being a list of "the names of those "that standis in feud with otheris." The Commissioners began by expatriating 150 of the Grahams to the low countries, but most of them soon found their way back to their native glens. The proceedings led to an extensive correspondence, all of

which is recorded. Among the writers are the Bishop of Carlisle and Lord William Howard, the "Belted Will" of border history.

Besides the charters of the family of the Earl of Morton, at Dalmahoy (App., p. 183), there are in the muniment-room a large collection of miscellaneous original documents, dated from 1474 to 1656. Many of the letters are written by the leading political personages of the day, and they as well as sundry warrants and bonds relate to important public events, while other letters illustrate the social and domestic arrangements of the time. One of the Morton papers about Queen Mary is picturesque. It is a notarial instrument showing how William Douglas, of Lochleven, having entered the Queen's chamber at Lochleven, on the day after her demission of the crown, represented that he had come to know of that act which was accomplished while he was from home, and that he now wished to learn from the Queen herself whether the act had been done of her own free will. Thereupon the Queen asserted that it had been entirely of her free will and consent. The instrument gives the questions and answers in Scotch.

Most of the early charters of the family of the Earl of Rosslyn, Dysart House, were destroyed in an accidental fire in 1722, but a few of very early date, and a few more documents relating to lands in Orkney, escaped. In an obligation by Maitland of Lethington, secretary to Queen Mary, in 1564, relative to a marriage settlement, is a reference to a house called "the Hermitage" in the town of Dysart, which connects itself with a body of early ecclesiastical history, and especially with the circumstance of St. Serf, or Servanus, having here established a hermitage or "desertum," from which the surrounding territory took its name. Among the manuscripts is a journal kept by Archbishop Paterson of Glasgow while in London in 1695-6, and a book of household expenses of the Lord of Dysart in 1564. There is an extensive collection of letters of more modern date, to the first and second Earls of Rosslyn, by some of the most eminent political leaders of the period; the earliest portion was addressed to the first Earl, while he was Lord High Chancellor of England, as Lord Loughborough, and comprises a series from Lord Clive, Edmund Burke, Lord Carlisle, the Duke of Portland, Charles James Fox, William Pitt, Lord Thurlow, and others. There are also papers by Chancellor Loughborough on the state of affairs in America, on the union between Great Britain and Ireland, memoranda of law cases, drafts of bills, with the Chancellor's remarks and relative correspondence. The later portion of the letters addressed to the second Earl of Rosslyn ranges in date from 1806 to 1830; among them are despatches from Henry Brougham to Lord Rosslyn, October and November 1806, and private letters from him to the Earl, 1806-7; there are besides many letters from Mr. Brougham, of later dates, on all sorts of subjects, such as the Roman Catholic question and the King's opinion of it, the position of the writer with regard to office, and the like. There is an extensive series of unreserved political letters from Earl Grey to Lord Rosslyn, dated from 1821 to 1829, and several from the Duke of Wellington in 1829. There is a separate series, dated in 1799, from Lord Nelson, Lord St. Vincent, and Lord Keith, to General Sir James St. Clair, Bart., who became second Earl of Rosslyn in 1805. Dr. Stuart's interesting report will be found in the Appendix, p. 191. There are masses of charters in the Earl of Stair's muniment-room, but the feature of most public interest in his collection (App., p. 188) is the "Stair Papers," being the despatches, instructions, and correspondence of Field Marshal John second Earl of Stair, the soldier and diplomatist. He began his military career by distinguished services in the campaigns of Marlborough ; and commanded at the battle of Dettingen; he was Ambassador in Poland in 1709 and in France under the Regency. These papers have been arranged in 28 volumes folio, and one volume 4to. The last contains a series of letters which passed between the Earl of Stair (as "Captain John Brown,") and the Earl of Mar (as "John Murray,") in the years from 1716 to 1720. The folio volumes contain the correspondence of Lord Stair, while ambassador at the French Court, with the Secretaries of State and other political officials, some of the letters are in cipher, and amid many merely formal documents there are others which are of value for understanding the politics of Europe, and the state of parties in England during the period which they embrace, the writers being very various and of all countries.

Among the papers of the Earl of Strathmore (App., p. 185) is a series of charters of the lands belonging to the family of Lord Strathmore, from the time of Sir John Lyon, who in the year 1372 received a grant of the thanage of Glamis from King Robert II., with his daughter, whom he married. The manuscripts include a "Book of "Record" kept by Patrick, Earl of Strathmore, who towards the end of the 17th century rebuilt the castle of Glamis, and has left a minute account of the steps which he took in doing so, including his contracts with tradesmen, among them was the Dutch

painter, De Wit; besides giving many particulars of his personal history. There are numerous inventories of furniture, plate, pictures, dresses, and jewels, partly of Earl Patrick's time, and partly of earlier date.

The collection of Lord Forbes, on which Dr. Stuart has made a full report (App., p. 193), contains many ancient documents of value for illustrating local history and topography. Among the miscellanea are early examples of those bonds of manrent by which powerful families entered into league with each other for protection in days when the law was too weak to assert its supremacy; there are several letters of interest, some of them illustrate the spirit which led so many of the younger sons of Scotch families to seek employment as soldiers under the leader who could afford the highest pay; one of them relates certain occurrences which had nearly led to the last judicial combat in England; others illustrate the disorganized condition of the north of Scotland, and one series describes the services of Lord Forbes in Ireland during the rebellion of 1642. A document, of which it is not known that any other copy has been preserved, is a memorial of 20 Scottish peers to Queen Anne, occasioned by a resolution of the House of Lords when the Duke of Hamilton was created an English peer. A volume containing rentals of the Forbes estates in 1552 affords very detailed information on the state of agriculture, and the condition of the country generally.

The early charters in the collection of Lord Torphichen at Calder House (App., p. 196), are of interest in connexion with the history of the house of Douglas, by marriage with a daughter of which the representation of the old Earls of Douglas is claimed by the family of Sandilands of Calder. There is also a series of papers of still wider interest connected with the history of the Knights Templars in Scotland, whose estates became vested in the family of Sandilands at the period of the Reformation. Some of these are of the 13th century, and others of the 15th and 16th.

The family of Burnett was settled at Crathes by King Robert Bruce in 1323, and has continued to flourish to the present time. The charters begin at that time, and the collection of Sir J. H. Burnett (App., p. 197) is large, but there are few papers of general historical interest in it. Among the letters is one from the Covenanting leaders in 1639; one from the Earl Marischal in 1650; and one from King Charles II. in 1651. There is also a letter from Bishop Burnet (descended from this house) in 1700. There is a Court Book of the Barony of Leys, and another of the Barony of Skene, ranging from 1613 to 1674, which afford some insight into the agricultural and social arrangements of the district.

Amongst the papers belonging to Mr. John Guthrie (App., p. 197) are various letters and papers of John Guthry, Bishop of Murray, who was deprived of his office by the Covenanters in 1638. There is a series of letters addressed to Francis Guthry of that Another series is ilk by the Bishop of Raphoe, and others, dated from 1639 to 1660.

from the Marquis of Douglas and his son, the Earl of Angus, to the Laird of Guthry. Most are on matters of local interest, but a few of them contain references to public events, such as the coronation of Charles II. Several manuscripts of necromancy are filled with prayers and conjurations for revealing secrets and exorcising evil spirits.

The great bulk of the papers in the collection of Mr. Alex. F. Irvine (App., p. 198) consist of the title deeds of the many lands acquired by the family, beginning with their first grant of Drum from King Robert I., and many of them are of value for purposes of county history. Among the miscellaneous papers is a protestation by Sir Alexander Irvine, and his appeal to Col. Overtoun, one of Cromwell's captains, against the Presbytery of Aberdeen, which seems to illustrate the aspect of the contest between Presbytery and Independency, then in progress.

In the Whitehaugh collection (App., p. 198) are the valuable charters of the family of Forbes of Tolquhon, dating from 1420, of which Mr. Leith is the representative, besides those relating to the lands which have at various periods belonged to his own branch of the family of Leith. Among the manuscripts is a Book of Accounts kept by George, third Earl of Winton, from 1627 to 1651. This Earl was the builder of the house of Winton, and many of the entries relate to his expenditure on it. There are also payments to Sir Thomas Hope, the Lord Advocate; to Adame, the painter, for portraits of Lord Errol, Lady Hay, and the Earl himself; and many of the entries throw light on the condition of society at the time.

The documents belonging to the University of Aberdeen are numerous, consisting of the deeds of foundation, papers regarding the course of education and internal management, and also the buildings and library. Among the manuscripts the most prominent portion consists of about 20 volumes, mostly lectures and notes of books on canon law, which belonged to Bishop Elphinstone, the founder. There is also a copy of "The

"Mirrour of our Lady" for half of the year. In the library of Marischal College are several MSS. of the Fathers, formerly in the monastic houses in Aberdeen; a Commentary on the Revelations, written by Thomas Reid, secretary to King James VI., with alterations in his Majesty's handwriting; also original papers and correspondence of Maclaurin. Dr. Stuart's report will be found at p. 199 of the Appendix.

The records of St. Andrew's (App., p. 206), which are unusually complete, commence almost with the foundation of the University in 1411, and contain materials for tracing the history of this great literary institution both before and after the Reformation; its schemes of study, its modes of collegiate life, and the eminent men whom it has nurtured in learning. There are also many records of a miscellaneous description, illustrative of the ecclesiastical foundations in the churches of St. Andrew's, the endowments of which were conferred on the University and colleges. In one of these is a contemporary notice of the proceedings against Patrick Hamilton, Abbot of Fearn, who was burned for heresy at St. Andrew's in 1527. Among the manuscripts is a copy of Wyntown's Cronikil and a Formulare, or volume of styles of the 16th century. The latter contains more than 600 writs, illustrating every variety of process in the Roman Court or at home-and the pervading influence of the system of the old Church-and is especially deserving of notice.

Among the letters at Trinity College, Glenalmond (App., p. 203), are several from Archbishop Sharp and the Duke of Lauderdale, relating to ecclesiastical proceedings in Scotland; and an extensive series illustrates the history and internal condition of the Episcopal Church subsequent to the Revolution of 1688, especially on questions of liturgical usages then in debate. A letter from Rose, the last established Bishop of Edinburgh, gives a graphic picture of his interviews with the Bishop of London and William III. There are some historical papers from the collections of Bishop Keith and Bishop Forbes, and sundry manuscripts and letters relating to the Eastern Church, and the proposals for an alliance between it and the Nonjurors in Scotland and England, which were mooted in the early part of the 18th century.

The records of the burgh of Montrose (App., p. 205) are of early date, and throw light on the early position of a Scotch burgh, showing that their privileges extended over a wide territory around the town. Much of their history at the outset is occupied with the encroachments which one burgh made on another within the enfranchised district, and which called for frequent acts of the King in their determination. Many of the documents afford incidental illustrations of the commercial arrangements of the period, while others relate to the ancient hospital of Montrose; altarages within the parish church; and a house of Dominican friars in the burgh.

The MSS. contained in the library of Blairs College, reported on by Mr. Stevenson (App., p. 201), relate for the most part to the early ecclesiastical history of Scotland; of these the more important are the collections of Father Brockie towards the formation of a "Monasticon Scotia," MSS. 25-34; two annotated copies of the Salisbury missal, MSS. 2, 3, 4; the collections of Father Placidus Fleming, MS. 14; the charters and other early documents connected with the history of the Scottish Benedictines in Germany, MS. 15. The narrative of Gilbert Blackal, No. 20, has already been printed. As illustrative at once of the history of art and as personal memorials connected with such individuals as Anne of Bretagne and Mary Beton, the MSS. numbered 22 and 23 have an especial interest.

In Ireland the labours of the Commission have during the past year been attended with very satisfactory results, as will be apparent from the amount of important matter brought to light in the reports from Mr. Gilbert now appended.

The documents of the house of Forbes in the archives of the Earl of Granard (App., p. 210) are of importance in illustrating the public affairs of Ireland, in which his Lordship's ancestors acted conspicuous parts. These papers also contain matter relative to the embassy of Admiral Forbes, afterwards third Earl of Granard, to Russia in 1733-34, and his affairs with the Emperor of Austria for the establishment of a marine force in the Adriatic. In the collection of Lord Granard is preserved a hitherto unnoticed personal narrative of affairs in England and Ireland from the Restoration to the accession of James II., supplying details not elsewhere extant. This manuscript is anonymous, but Mr. Gilbert assigns its authorship to Sir Alexander Stewart, first Viscount Mountjoy, in 1689.

In the collection of the Earl of Rosse have been preserved several fragile papers of high interest in connexion with Irish affairs from 1641 to 1690. (App., p. 217.)

The "Plunket Manuscript," which its hereditary owner, the Right Hon. Francis Plunket Dunne, placed at the disposal of the Commission, is all that is now accessible of a large work compiled in the 17th century on the affairs of Ireland from 1641, and referred