Taken from Malcolm McLachlan Harper's "Rambles in Galloway", published in 1876, this is an excellent introduction to the Parishes of Balmaclellan and Parton.

BALMACLELLAN AND PARTON

The Manse of Balmaclellan stands in a cosy situation near the road. The Rev. George Murray is the venerable and respected incumbent. Attached to his flock, and beloved by them in return, he has lived and grown gray among them. Kind-hearted and genial, he shares in the sorrows and joys, and mingles in all the innocent pastimes of his parishioners. He has for many years been a corresponding member of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, and holds an honourable place among the bards of Galloway. His most lengthened pieces that we have seen are, "Helen, the Welsh Harper," "The Bridge," and the "Upland Vale." Some of his lyrical pieces are very beautiful. His tribute to the memory of the late Mr. Maxwell of Glenlee, who was Captain of the New Galloway Volunteers, is such a perfect little gem that we make room for it here:

OUR CAPTAIN SLEEPS!

Our Captain sleeps! what is it that keeps
Our chief from the field away?
Each Volunteer in the ranks is here;
What aileth Glenlee to-day?

Our Captain sleeps! death cometh and reaps
The green and the stately com!
To his lone grave, the young and the brave
Is slowly and sadly borne.

Our Captain sleeps! and his widow weeps
For the gift gone to the Giver!
Each Volunteer sheds a bitter tear
That his chief has gone for ever.

For ever? Not so! the trump shall blow,
Arousing the good and true!
The chief and his men shall meet again.
At the last, — the Grand Review.  

The name Balmaclellan means the Tillage or township of the Maclellans, once a powerful family in the Stewartry, a considerable branch of which, for several centuries, possessed lands contiguous to the church or village. According to Chalmers, "By the annexation of the lordship of Galloway to the Crown, in 1455, the king became patron of the Church of Balmaclellan. In the beginning of the following century, when James IV. enlarged the establishment of the chapel royal of Stirling, he annexed to it the church of Balmaclellan, with its tithes and revenues, parsonage and vicarage, which was then constituted one of the prebends of the chapel royal, and the cure of the parish was served by a vicar pensioner. The patronage of this prebend belonged to the king, but after the Restoration it appears to have been conceded to the chapel royal" When Symson wrote, in 1684, the bishop of Dunblane, a dean of that chapel, was patron of the church of Balmaclellan. When the Revolution laid in ruins the fabric of episcopacy the advowson of this church reverted to the Crown.

The church, parochial school, and churchyard, are in proximity to the village. In the churchyard may be seen some very ancient stones of rude workmanship and with quaint inscriptions. There is one, dated 1695, to the memory of Jean Gordon, eldest daughter of Alexander, Viscount Kenmure, spouse to William Gordon of Shirmars. Another, to the memory of the Rev. Thomas Verner, minister of Balmaclellan for 59 years, who died 10th September 1716, in the 89th year of his age, bears that he "was the last of the Presbyterian

ministers that survived the Revolution." He was also uncle of Wodrow, the historian of the Church of Scotland. A very handsome spiral column has been erected by the inhabitants of Balmaclellan in memory of the valour and devotedness of five soldiers, natives of the parish, who fell during the war with Russia. Their names are William Barr, Thomas McRobert, James Gibson, lance-corporal James McMichael, and lance-corporal James Gordon, A stone over a Covenanter's grave bears the following inscription; —

" Here lyeth Robert Grierson, who was shot to death by command of Colonel James Douglas, at Ingleston, in the Parish of Glencairn, 1685.

"This monument to passengers shall cry
That goodly Grierson under it doth lie,
Betrayed by knavish Watson to his foes,
Which made this Martyr's days by murder close.
If you would know the nature of his crime,
Then read the stoty of that killing time.
When Babels brats by hellish plots concealed,
Designed to make our South their hunting-field.
Here's one of five at once were laid in dust
To gratify Rome's execrable lust.
If carabines with molten bullets could
Have reached their souls, these mighty Nimrods would
Them have cut off; for here could no request
Three minutes get to pray for future rest. "

Robert Paterson, alias "Old Mortality," was intimately connected with this district. Among the moors and churchyards of Galloway he wandered for many years, erecting, lettering, and renewing tombstones to the memory of the martyrs. Leaving his family and his home at Morton, Dumfriesshire, nothing would persuade him to renounce his peculiar calling; and his wife, in order to be nearer the scene of his labours, removed in the summer of 1768 to Balmaclellan village, where she supported her family by keeping a little school. His son, Robert, also resided at Balmaclellan. In his 70th year he furnished Mr. Train with an interesting sketch of his father's life, which, on being forwarded by the Antiquary to Sir Walter Scott, was embodied in the introduction to the novel of Old Mortality,

Several members of the family are buried in this churchyard. The inscription on the tombstone, erected in 1855 by Thomas Paterson, is as follows :— "In memory of Robert Paterson, stone engraver, well known as ‘Old Mortality,’ who died at Bankend of Carlaverock, 14th February 1800, aged 88; also of Elizabeth Gray, his spouse, who died at Balmaclellan village, 5th May 1785, aged 59 ; also of Robert, their son, who died 30th April 1846, aged 90; also of Agnes McKnight, his spouse, who died 5th August 1818; and their three sons, John, Alexander, and Robert."

Holm House, in a fine situation on the banks of the Garple Burn, is at no great distance from Balmaclellan. The grounds are very inviting, commanding views of great extent and beauty. Near the mansion-house is a statue of "Old Mortality," similar to the one at the Observatory, Maxwelltown, very appropriately placed on a brae face, amongst broom and heather. From this we follow a charming winding footpath, running near the edge of the deep and thickly-wooded glen of the Garple. A secluded spot in this glen is memorable as having been, according to tradition, the site of a hermitage built by the hapless Jean Gordon, the heroine of Mr. Barbour's story "Jean's Wa's." Here, it is narrated, she delighted to muse in her seclusion from the world, and we can conceive of no situation more suited for such an abode. The stream murmurs plaintively at the base of the rocky glen; the trunks of the old trees by its sides are now moss-grown, and begin to show signs of decay, their long straggling branches meet across the stream, and the banks around are clad with wild flowers and bright golden moss, all looking extremely beautiful when lit up by the afternoon sun.

Following the course of the Garple, and a little way farther up the valley, is the Holy Linn, almost hidden from view with the o'er-arching, and at this season truly, rich foliage growing by the sides of the glen in which it is situated. The trees by its brink seem to grow and flourish from out of the barren rock. Here growing by the steep declivity are the rowan, the birch, the oak, and the mountain pine, and growing in profusion at their roots are specimens of the richest wild flowers. The rugged rocks in its course are worn into the most grotesque shapes by the current of the waters. The Holy Linn is supposed to get its name from a well where, it is said, the ousted ministers during the persecution were wont to assemble to worship, and use the well as a baptismal font.*

At a short distance from the Linn is the old castle of Barscobe, built in 1684 by William Maclellan, a branch of the family of Kirkcudbright. He married one of the Gordons of Kenmure, and her armorial bearings, conjoined with those of Maclellan, are still seen over the chief entrance. It is in good repair and habitable.

In a cave and other sequestered retreats of this glen, the Covenanters often found a place of refuge from their pursuers. Simpson, in his Traditions of the Covenanters, states that in the retirement of this glen the gospel has often been preached by the ousted ministers. The Rev. Mr. Vemer, the ejected minister of Balmaclellan, on one occasion preached to a small audience in this place, and baptized, it is said, no fewer than six and thirty children at one time. The baptismal water was contained in the hollow basin of a rock; from which circumstance the spot received the name of the Holy Linn, which it retains till this day. Mr. Verner was minister of Balmaclellan after the Revolution.

We again retrace our steps towards Kenmure Bridge on our way to Parton Station. Soon after passing Kenmure Bridge, the farm house of Shirmars is reached, where we turn in for a short time to see the ivy-clad remains of the old tower of Shirmars, supposed to have been the birthplace of Thomas Gordon, a political writer in the pay of Sir Robert Walpole, Editor of the Independent Whig, and translator of Tacitus and Sallust. The scenery here is somewhat varied, — on the one side we have the fertile vale of the Ken with a view of Kenmure Castle, and on the other the bare and barren moors of Arvie and Mochrum.

On the farm of Upper Arvie, now Ken-Ervie, "There is," says the Rev. Mr. Crosbie, in the Statistical Account, "a flat stone about three feet in diameter, on which are the marks of what might be supposed a cow’s foot, a horse shoe, the four nails on each side being very distinct, and the impression which might be made by a man's foot and knee while he was in the act of kneeling, the knot of the garter being quite evident. The tradition connected with this remarkable stone, commonly called the ‘Cow Clout,' is, that the proprietor, in order to get up arrears of rent, ‘drave the pun,’ or, in other words, carried off the hypothecated stock, while a fierce resistance was made by the people, and that over this stone, on which a man had just been praying for relief against his enemies, the cattle passed, followed by an officer on horseback, and that it remains as a memorial to posterity of the cruel deed."

The rock, with the "Cow's Clout," etc., on it, appears at the present time as represented in the pencil sketch. It stands about 100 yards to the north of the march dyke betwixt Upper Ervie now Ken-Ervie and Nether Ervie. There is little to indicate its whereabouts, but the visitor coming from Kenmure Bridge, and leaving the road on the left, opposite Ringour and Bennan farms, on the opposite side of Loch Ken, would come upon it without much trouble by following the march dyke half a mile up.

In the life of St. Ninian there is a story related somewhat similar to this, but the locality in which "the miracle" was performed by the saint is not given. The story, according to a translator of the Lives of the English Saints, is this: — "St. Ninian and his brethren had many flocks and herds, which they kept for their own use; for milk and cheese would be monk's fare; and for hospitality to strangers and the use of the poor; making provision to fulfill the precept which bishops and their chapters and all monasteries were used to keep in mind, to exercise hospitality without grudging. These cattle were kept in pasture grounds, at some distance from the monastery, and St. Ninian went to bless the herds and their keepers. The bishop had them all brought together, lifted up his hands, and committed himself and all that was his to the guardianship of God. He then went round them, and with his staff marked the ground within the limits of which they were to stay, something like what was afterwards done as a superstitious spell. He then retired to the house of an honourable matron where he and his brethren were to lodge. After refreshing themselves with food, and their souls with the word of God, they retired to rest. Meanwhile robbers arrive, and seeing the herds unenclosed and unguarded, expect an easy prey. The cattle remain quiet, no sound is heard, no dog even is heard to bark; they enter within the limits, but do it to their cost. The bull of the herd attacks and severely gores the ringleader of the thieves, and himself, digging his hoof violently into the ground, impresses the mark of it on the rock, as if in wax. The mark remained, and the place was called in Saxon, Farres Last, that is, the bull's foot-mark, — Tauri Vestigium, as the Latin Life explains it. Meanwhile, after his regular morning prayers, St. Ninian arrives, finds the poor robber with his entrails torn out, and now lifeless, and the others running about, as if insane, within the limit he had marked around the cattle. He was deeply moved with pity, and entreated that the robber might be restored to life; nor did he cease from prayers and tears till the same Power which had caused his death restored him again to life. The other robbers, who seemed possessed on seeing St. Ninian, fell at his feet in fear and trembling, and begged forgiveness. He kindly reproved them, pointed out the punishment which awaited the robber, and at last, after giving them his blessing, allowed them to depart. The result was the sincere conversion of the man whose life had been restored."

Proceeding on our ramble we pass Drumrash, situated on the left of the road, and near a burn of the same name. A short way farther on is Glenlaggan, scarcely visible in the woods with which it is surrounded. Beyond it the wooded promontory of Airds is seen, rendered interesting as being associated with the sweet song of "Mary's Dream."

The author of this popular poem was, according to Murray's Memoir, "born at Kenmure in 1750. His father was gardener to Mr. Gordon of Kenmure, son to that unfortunate nobleman who forfeited his life in 1715 in the cause of the Stewarts. Having at the parish school acquired the rudiments of classical learning, he early betrayed a wish to become a scholar; but the narrowness of his father's circumstances did not enable him to carry this laudable desire into effect, and at the age of fourteen he was apprenticed to a weaver in New-Galloway. He removed to the University of Edinburgh in the year 1771. Amid his severer studies Lowe did not fail to cultivate poetry, to which the natural bent of his genius had early inclined him. But the most important event of Lowe's life was his introduction, in the capacity of tutor, to the family of Mr. McGhie of Airds. The house of Airds, situated on the declivity of a wooded hill, which is washed on opposite sides by the Dee and Ken, two rivers whose streams unite at its base, commands an extensive view of a beautiful and varied landscape. The hand of nature has shut it out from almost all communication with the living world; it seems, indeed, intended as the nursery or dwelling of a poet. Lowe could not but appreciate the happiness of his lot. He delighted to "muse o'er nature with a poet's eye;" and the sweet and poetic charms of Airds he did not cease to remember with melancholy pleasure when he was far removed from them. "The beautiful banks of the Rappahannock," says he, in a letter to a friend, "where the town in which I now reside is situated, with all their luxuriance and fragrance, have never to me had charms equal to smooth Ken or murmuring Dee. Thou wood of Airds! balmy retreat of peace, innocence, harmony, and love, with what raptures do I still reflect on thee!"

To derive his happiness more from his own mind, he used to retire to an elevated cliff in a sequestered part of the wood of Airds, "to view the beauties of the rising day," and to hold sweet converse with the genii of the mountains and the streams. On this spot he erected a rural seat, and environed it with a sweet arbour, entwined with honey-suckle and woodbine. It was on this spot that he composed those verses that have conferred immortality on his name, and it is thus described by him in his poem "Morning:"

“High on a rock his favourite arbour stood,
Near Ken's fair bank, amid a verdant wood,
Beneath its grateful shade, at ease he lay,
And viewed the beauties of the rising day;
Whilst with mellifluous lays the grove did ring
He also join'd. "

His two most distinguished effusions were — "A Morning Poem," of a descriptive and pastoral kind, and "Mary's Dream." The story of this latter poem, continues Mr. Murray, was founded in truth. Mary, of the family of Airds, had been promised in marriage to a gentleman named Alexander Miller, a surgeon, who was drowned at sea. The impression which such an event must in any case have made upon the mind of a poet was, in the instance before us, rendered deeper from the circumstance that the sister of Mary had inspired Lowe with feelings of a tender kind. The subject, therefore, was one which could not fail to call forth all the energy of which he was capable — and, accordingly, the poem is regarded as one of the happiest efforts. There is a simplicity, a pathos, and sublimity about it to which there are few parallels in the class of composition to which it belongs.

Having been engaged as tutor to the family of a brother of the illustrious Washington, Lowe crossed the Atlantic, and settled in America, where he met with many disappointments and hardships. He died in 1798, in the 48th year of his age, and lies buried near Fredericksburgh, Virginia.

We now take train at Parton for Castle-Douglas.