Bathgate is easily reached by the North British Railway from either Edinburgh or Glasgow. It lies to the north of the railway station, and is made up of an old part, with streets very narrow, and sometimes steep, and a new part, with the streets broad and tidylooking, and shops that seem to say they serve a thriving population. The tall chimneys to the south, and the coal waggons at the station, tell that the town is located in a coal district. It has some fame for its schools for education. The Bathgate Academy, a building of a nondescript style of architecture, destitute of beauty, is a prominent object from the station. The aim of our visit was the old churchyard, about a mile and a quarter on the road to Edinburgh, to the east of the town. It was a warm day in the latter part of June, and the season had been late, so that the hawthorn was yet in full blossom in the hedges that lined the road, and the air was fragrant with the sweet odours cast forth by its flowers. In about halfan-hour's leisurely walking from the station, we came to the churchyard, and got the keys from an old man of eighty, who lives hard by in a house that looks like as if it had once been the manse. The church stands in the centre of the burying-ground, and the burying-ground rises up by a gentle slope from the plain that stretches away to the south. The church is roofless, and has evidently been so for many a day. It is of the type by no means uncommon in Scotland -long and narrow. It is thirty-one paces in length by six and a half in breadth, and its walls are about nine feet in height. All within the walls is occupied as a place of burial. The tombstone we came to see lies in the centre of the churchyard, to the south of the church. It is a flat stone, seven feet in length by three in breadth. The inscription is: Here lies the Body Repair'd by a Few Men Davie formed one of a congregation that had assembled to worship their God and Redeemer in a hollow on the farm of Blackdub, to the west of the parish, when they were dispersed by a party of dragoons. The congregation had got timely warning of their approach, and fled across a strip of deep moss, which stopped their pursuers. When they crossed, they stood still, and looked over to their enemies, and fancied they were now in safety. The soldiers fired at them. The only shot which took effect was that which killed James Davie. The churchyard is well filled with gravestones. Two inscriptions arrested our attention. The one was: Nor wealth, nor want, nor youth, nor age, can death's strong arm arrest. Some with a sudden stroke he smites, Through life beloved, in death bewailed, Ye mortals, hear the warning voice, To Jesus live and die. The other was over the mortal remains of a man with the unusual name of Burd: O SONS OF MEN, COME & BEHOLD, THE PLACE APPOINTED FOR THE OLD. K CHAPTER V. KIRKINTILLOCH AND CAMPSIE. IRKINTILLOCH is best reached by the North British Railway from Glasgow. At the Kirkintilloch station we asked for Inchbelly Bridge, and were directed to take the road to the right, that leads to Kilsyth. The day was fine, and, late as it was in the season, the trees were still clothed with foliage, although its sere and yellow aspect told that its end was near. As we took the road to the right, we left Kirkintilloch behind us, and a rich-looking country spread itself out to view. To the left, in the background, two miles away, were the Campsie Hills, and all between was under the plough. The hedgerows were dotted here and there with trees, while an occasional farmhouse told of the presence of man. To the right, rising some twenty feet above us, was the embankment of the Forth and Clyde Canal. For nearly three-quarters of a mile it runs parallel to the road. The trees that cover it must have been planted soon after it was made, for they are now of a stately size. About a mile's walk brought us to Inchbelly Bridge, where the road leaves the canal, and strikes away north-east for Kilsyth. Three-quarters of a mile further from the bridge. brought us to the object of our search, under an iron grating, on the right hand side of the road. It was two flat stones, six feet by three, lying side by side. The one was new, and the other evidently not above forty years old. A stone parapet, rising a few inches above their surface, surrounded them, and formed the basis for the iron grating that covered the whole. The effect of the parapet is, that the stones were nearly buried under an accumulation of leaves and dust. The inscription on the older stone is still legible, but from the superincumbent mass that lay on its surface, it was only here and there that we could make it out. That on the newer stone, after clearing away its covering, we read and copied. It is: Twas Martyrs Blood Bought Scotlands Liberty FEBRUARY 1865 IN ROOM OF THE OLD TOMBSTONE BY THE PEOPLE OF KIRKINTILLOCH AND NEIGHBOURHOOD ORIGINAL INSCRIPTION— IN THIS FIELD LIES THE CORPS OF JOHN WHARRY AND JAMES SMITH, WHO SUFFERED IN GLASGOW, 13 JUNE 1683, FOR THEIR ADHERENCE TO THE WORD OF GOD— AND SCOTLANDS COVENANTED WORK OF REFORMATION * H |