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history of his mysterious appearance, and hasty rearing of the cottage, rests on no better grounds than the mere exaggerations of vulgar report. He lived to the advanced age of 76 years, and, rendered more dwarf-like by infirmity, died 6th December 1811,—utterly unconscious, I dare say, that his name and story would ever come before the public. He was interred in the parish church-yard—although he himself had expressed a wish that he might be interred on a particular hillock in the neighbourhood of his cottage. The following not inappropriate epitaph was proposed by some pseudo-poet, to mark his remains:
“Here lies D. Ritchie's singular banes,
Stretched on the light red gravel stanes.
In yon queer cave on Woodhouse croft,
A little garden he had wrought,
'Twas there, through life, his way he fought.”
June 6, 1817. J. A.
EPISTLE OF A HIGHLAND CHIEF.
[The following article, purporting to be the " Copy of a letter of Sir Ewan Cameron of Lochiel," was given to us for insertion in our ' Antiquarian Repertory,' by a very worthy gentleman, who had allowed him- self to be bronzed by a facetious correspon- dent. We insert it, however, as a curiosity in its kind.]
(" Probable date about 1702."^
DEAR JAMES, Yt is a grete losse that ye plee is takin this turne, forr ye Min r . * C A . gang of certy his alone, but I wull se mysell richtit iff ye wull not, on that poore sillie callont which kens not his bettirs. What forr wull ye nivir com doon in the vucins tull se us a butt ye heelans is sore changitt syn .ye sa yem. Yt is amashiug hoo ye are changyt forr ye warse. I was at dcner on Satirday at ye Duke's, and yt is a sore changet hous. I mynd in my you* whan I was a younge litil callont, I dynit on a day at ye Duke's wy l . meny nobilities, and ithers of a degris ; and behynt ilk chair or stul, as we hadde yem, was a rid-loggit loone, wy l . a clapadhut shelle ; and all ye dyshes was timmer ; and whan I was dune I pitet my dysh our my shouther to the ladie, and he scartet yt
- Sir Ewan seems to have been engaged
in some lawsuit, wherein the law of death- bed was concerned. The letter is to his counsel.
f I believe this is the large rock-mussel.
clene %vy* his shelle, and gave yt back ; but noo all is changytt forr ye waur ; and a ye platters was sylver of wate, and a ye quaigs was glashes. Ye Avull here newes orr lang bee. I luk forr no goot of yis changys. I hav sent ye a stott* p r . my lad Donill going southe, and houp al is wel w l . y r . ladie and ye barns. Y r . trystie friend,
LOCHIEL. (Address.)
To my worthie and honourab 1 . freend, Mister James Campbell, advocat, own brother to ye Laird off Arkin- less, at his lodgin in Edin r . , wy' ane black beest by Donill M'Pher- son.
OATH OF BREAD AND SALT. MR EDITOR,
You have already furnished your readers with two learned dissertations on the expression of " Sitting below the Salt," and it seems we are to be favoured with more of them. With- out wishing to divert them from this inquiry, or to prevent an answer to the very edifying questions of P. F. may I request, from some of your an- tiquarian correspondents, information on an ancient practice, which bears some affinity to that which has en- gaged their attention. In the Records of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, Sept. 20, 1,586, the following account is given of an oath required from Scots merchants trading to the Baltic, when they passed the Sound :
" Certan merchantis passing to Dan- skerne, and earning neir elsinnure, cbus- sing out ane quhen they acoompted for the payment of the toill of the goods, And that be depositioun of ane othe in forme follow- ing, viz. Thei present and offer breid and salt to the deponer of the othe, whereon he layis his hand, and deponis his conscience, and sweiris."
I shall be glad to learn the origin and precise meaning of this rite, and the extent to which it prevailed. Pro- vided I obtain satisfaction on these heads, I am not very anxious to know whether the bread was presented on a pktter, and the salt in a vat ; and if so, of what materials these were com- posed, &c. &c. ; but your corres- pondents, notwithstanding, may com- municate their own information in their own way. I am, yours, &c.
Y. Z.
- Query Was this Mr Campbell's fee ?