 notwithstanding the boasted wine of these
foreign countries. The country people of North-Britain live chiefly on oat-meal,
and milk, cheese, butter, and some garden-stuff, with now and then a
pickled-herring, by way of delicacy; but flesh-meat they seldom or never taste;
nor any kind of strong liquor, except two-penny, at times of uncommon festivity
- Their breakfast is a kind of hasty-pudding, of oat-meal or pease-meal, eaten
with milk. They have commonly pottage to dinner, composed of cale or cole,
leeks, barley or big, and butter; and this is reinforced with bread and cheese,
made of skimmed-milk - At night they sup on sowens or flummery of oat-meal - In
a scarcity of oats, they use the meal of barley and pease, which is both
nourishing and palatable. Some of them have potatoes; and you find parsnips in
every peasant's garden - They are cloathed with a coarse kind of russet of their
own making, which is both decent and warm - They dwell in poor huts, built of
loose stones and turf, without any mortar, having a fireplace or hearth in the
middle, generally made of an old mill-stone, and a hole at top to let out the
smoke.
    These people, however, are content, and wonderfully sagacious - All of them
read the Bible, and are even qualified to dispute upon the articles of their
faith; which, in those parts I have seen, is entirely Presbyterian. I am told,
that the inhabitants of Aberdeen-shire are still more acute. I once knew a
Scotch gentleman at London, who had declared war against this part of his
countrymen; and swore that the impudence and knavery of the Scots, in that
quarter, had brought a reproach upon the whole nation.
    The river Clyde, above Glasgow, is quite pastoral; and the banks of it are
every where adorned with fine villas. From the sea to its source, we may reckon
the seats of many families of the first rank, such as the duke of Argyle at
Roseneath, the earl of Bute in the isle of that name, the earl of Glencairn at
Finlayston, lord Blantyre at Areskine, the dutchess of Douglas at Bothwell, duke
Hamilton at Hamilton, the duke of Douglas at Douglas, and the earl of Hyndford
at Carmichael. Hamilton is a noble palace, magnificently furnished; and hard by
is the village of that name, one of the neatest little towns I have seen in any
country. The old castle
