Correspondent to go into the antiquity of the word Esquire; or tell us of its derivation; or that the holder of it was created in like manner of Knights of old, before the orders of Knighthood were degraded by Alexander Earl of Stirling nor need he quote the inscription on the tomb-stone of the Poet Gower, who was thus created Esquire; or tell us that the lateral branches of ancient and noble families, who held lands of the King, and were consequently entitled to bear arms; or of officers of the army, or navy, who are styled Esquires by his Majesty, on attaining rank equal to that of Captains in the army; or that Serjeants at Law and Barristers are thus entitled by virtue of their office :-it is only necessary to show us those classes of civilians who ARE entitled to be styled Esquires :-The writer of this paper, being aware that country gentlemen in England, of L.600 per year, have held that title from time immemorial; and since the Union of the two countries, the same has extended to Scotland. To be informed on the above subject, will be a singular gratification to Mr. Editor, Your very obedient Servant, Banks of Ayr, April 5, 1818. FOR THE COILA REPOSITORY. MR. EDITOR, I will be obliged to the translator of the part of Fordun's History, which appeared in your number for February, if he will quote the Latin part of the last sentence in the first section of the 248 page of the Repository, the translation beginning" After their example Godfrey de Ross, Sheriff of Ayr, &c." For I am surprised that any person of the name of Ross, held the Sheriff office of Ayrshire, when it was hereditary in the family of Loudon, from the earliest ages, as "Alexander, Earl of Stirling, having received a grant of Lands in Nova Scotia, prevailed on King James VI. whose favourite he was, to confer a title of a minor order on the petty Lairds, who supplied him with most peasantry to people the above lands:"-thus Kidnapping was the origin of Nova Scotia Baronets. NISBET'S HERALDRY. the office of Bailiff was in that of the Wallaces of Craigie from the twelfth century. When the Romans were expelled from the country, a chieftain of the Picts, ancestor of the Loudon family, had grants of lands in Ayrshire, and about the Norman conquest, when surnames began to be used in this country, his descendant became a Knight, by the title of Sir James de Loudon. About the same time, when order was introduced under the auspices of King Malcolm, the principal Barons were appointed hereditary Sheriffs of counties-an office of more unlimited power than that of Lord Lieutenants of our days--and Sir James de Loudon, being the most powerful Baron in Ayrshire, became heritable Sheriff thereof. The male line of de Loudon having failed, the female heiress, by marrying Sir Ronald Crawford, a noble Knight of Haddington, to whom she carried the lands of Loudon, conveyed the Sheriffdom down till the male line of the Crawfords failed, and the heiress by marrying the younger Campbell of Lochaw, in the reign of Robert Bruce, continued to preserve the power in her family, which her ancestors held for the preceding five hundred years. Now as I have indubitable proofs by me, that one of the Loudon Campbells was sheriff of Ayr, at the time specified, I have no hesitation in saying, that the above portion of Fordun's' history is-like many other parts of it-little to be relied on. I am Sir, yours, &c. HUGH. FOR THE COILA REPOSITORY. ORIGIN OF A FEW SCOTTISH SIRNAMES. 1st. FORTESCUE-The first of this name was Sir Richard le Forte, a person of extraordinary strength and courage, who accompanied William Duke of Normandy in his invasion to England; and bearing a strong shield before the Duke at the battle of Hastings, had three horses killed under him, and from that signal event, the name and motto of the family were assumed, for the Latin word "Scutum," or the old French word "escue" a "shield," being added to "forte," compose their names, and the motto is "forte scutum salus ducum." 2d. NAPIER.-King David 2d, about the year 1344, con. vocating his subjects to battle, the Earl of Lennox sent his son Donald with such forces as his duty obliged him, and coming to an engagement where the Scots gave ground, this Donald, taking his father's standard from the bearer, and valiantly charging the enemy with the Lenox men, the fortune of the battle changed, and they obtained the victory; whereupon, every one advancing, and reporting their acts, as the custom was, the King declared they had all behaved valiantly, bnt Donald had "na pier," that is "no equal;" upon which, he took the name of Napier, and had in reward for his good services, the lands of Gosford and other estates in the county of Fife. The present Lord Napier is lineally descended from this hero. 3d DOUGLAS-During the reign of Salvathus, King of Scotland, one Donald Bain, (that is Donald the White) hav ing possessed himself of all the western islands, and intituled himself king thereof, aspired to set the crown of Scotland also upon his head; for effectuating whereof, he gathered a great army, wherein he confided so much, that without delay he set sail for the nearest province of Scotland. The King's Lieutenants, Duchal and Cullen, Governors of Athol and Argyle, made head against him with such forces as they could assemble. Donald trusting to the number of his men, gave them battle, and so prevailed at first that he made the King's army to give ground, and had almost gained the day, when a certain nobleman disdaining to see so bad a cause have so good success, out of his love to his Prince and desire of honour, accompanied with his sons and followers, attacked the rebels with such courage, that instead of being victorious Donald's troops were routed and himself slain. The King, after the battle, being desirous to see his deliverer, his servants answered him in the Irish tongue (which was then only in use) pointing with their finger to this Nobleman, "Sholto du glass,"that is, behold yonder black man. The King upon this, considering the great service he had done him, rewarded him with the gift of many great lands, and imposed upon him the sirname of Duglas or Douglas, which remains with his posterity to this day. (To be Continued.) MANNERS OF THE GREENLANDERS. From a Work relative to Greenland, now in the Press. The women are treated kindly, but are looked upon as servants, doing all the labours of the house, excepting such parts as the men think their superior understanding only can be equal to. Domestic harmony is seldom known to be disturbed, unless when in the absence of the men, some dowager mother exercises her peevishness upon her daughter-in-law, especially if the latter have not the good fortune to have been the mother of a son; for on the birth of male children they think the existence of the nation rests. The men are the carpenters, the women the tailors, shoemakers, house-masons, and cooks, the last more particularly, as the men, on returning with game, no sooner are disengaged from their kaiaks, than all further concern on their part ceases. This arises very probably from the excessive fatigue to which they have been exposed, rather than to any indifference towards their women. The woman's labour then commences. They have to haul the seals ashore, and convey to the tent or hut the different animals taken. Their first concern being to draw a little blood from the seal (which after being killed, is staunched for that purpose) and present to the men, by way of cordial after their fatigue. Then, having provided the men with dry clothes, they proceed to flay and cut up the spoil. Seals flesh forms their chief support; and they employ various modes of preserving it for future use. The most common is to cut it into thin slips, and dry it over a line in the interior of their huts. The blubber is most carefully preserved, as being convertible to almost every domestic comfort, more precious by far to them than wine is to others. Oil is the luxury of their meals, their bread being nothing more to them than the dried muscular parts of seals or of birds. The Such a representation of life would form little inducement to an European to exchange his comforts in its room. picture is to such appetites truly disgusting; and the horrible smell of their huts, persons, and almost every article belong. ing to tNAP is intolerable to the coarsest feeling. Even the a his been frecalded to the atmosphere of a whale ship, has known to nauseate the inside of a Greenland er's hut. Those poor creatures smile at such squeamishness, and kindly excuse the want of politeness in the stranger, as he could not possibly know any thing better. The whale when wounded, and carrying in his huge body the instrument of destruction, very often in his anguish runs himself ashore, or into some creek among the rocks, and there lingering, dies. Such a chance is an unexpected blessing if discovered; and any person who has ever winded a dead whale, must know, that an occurrence of that kind is not likely to remain long a secret. Every hut is then emptied to take advantage of the fortunate occasion. If any one is within reach of the good tidings, he is immediately invited, and it is easy to imagine what a scene ensues. Men, women, and children, with every edged instrument at command, are in full employment. But in such eagerness wounds are often inflicted by accident, which are never resented. The blub. ber is carefully stored, that it may subside into oil; the muscular parts are removed for future fare, and nothing can be of coarser texture, yet still they relish it, and are thankful for the blessing. The tendons also are carefully-preserved, to be appropriated as cordage, thread, lines, and for various other purposes: and in the whalebone they have sufficient for their own private necessities and for the demands of the Danes. In the winter-time they retire further from the sea than they had been in the summer months, and in their huts or winter house, generally spend the interval between the latter end of Cuto re and the middle of March, in getting up their fishing tac Dawhile the women are busily engaged in repairing the kg, or sewing dresses for the men. On such oc casions tar children have an opportunity of learning the arts peculiar to their sex, and scarcely any other time is given for their education. As soon as the returning sun announces the approach of summer, all is bustle and activity. The materials for the summer huts are got in readiness, and the whole household, sometimes consisting of five or six families, moves downward to the fishing place, which is generally a low island with a sloping beach looking towards the south, for conveniency of Jaunching the boats or drawing the seals ashore. They are not confined to any particular spot for the summer-unless abundance of seals be seen, they generally shift to some other |