The brief account of Macbeth's life raises his character above all the preeeding princes, at least in as far as their actions are known to us. The 66 gret plente "Abowndand, bath on land and se," and the riches of the country during his reign, which, together with the firm establishment of his government, enabled him to make a journey to Rome, and there to exercise a liberality of charity to the poor, remarkable even in that general refort of wealthy pilgrims, exhibit undeniable proofs of a beneficent government, and a prudent attention to agriculture, and to the fishery, that inexhauftible fund of wealth, wherewith bountiful nature has furrounded Scotland. Macbeth's journey to Rome is not a fable, as supposed by the learned and worthy author of The Annals of Scotland, [Vol. I. p. 3, note,] but refts on the evidence of Marianus Scotus, a respectable contemporary hiftorian, whose words, almoft literally translated by Wyntown, are---" A. D. ml. Rex Scotie Machetad Rome argentum feminando pauperibus diftribuit." [See VI. xviii. 48, 53, 303, 408.] The only blot upon his memory is the murder of his predeceffor, (if it was indeed a murder,) who, to make the crime the blacker, is called his uncle, though that point is extremely doubtful. Among the numerous kings who made their way to the throne by the same means, is Greg, who is held up as a mirror to princes. To this is added the crime of incest in taking his uncle's widow to wife; but, admitting her former husband to have been hisuncle, we must remember, that the rules concerning marriage in Scotland appear to have been partly formed upon the Jewish model, before the ecclefiaftical polity was re-formed, or romanized, by the influence of Queen Margaret. [Vita Margaretæ ap. Bollandi Acta Sanctorum 10mo. Junii, p. 331.] Thus much was due from juftice to a character calumniated in the beaten track of hiftory. D. MACPHERSON. Lyk all wrythyn in hys skyn, Hys awyn Nek he fuld put in 135 Noucht dowtand all hys Kynnys awe. Frá þe Thayne Makbeth herd speke, 140 145 F151 a And þat Láyf bare wyth hym þan At Dwnsynane Makbeth bat nycht, 150 155 160 L. 152.] In the infancy of navigation, when its efforts extended no further than croffing a river, ferrying places were the only harbours, and were called port in the Gaelic languages, and apparently in the most ancient Greek. Hence we have so many places on the banks of rivers and lochs in Scotland, called ports, and hence the Greeks called their ferry-boats porthmia and porthmides. [Dictionaries, and Calcagnini opera, p. 307.] No ferry on the Earn is known by this name; perhaps it was originally the brade (broad) ferry, which being confounded with bread, has been gaelized port-ne-bara, -the harbour of bread. [v. Davies Dict. Brit. V. BARA.] The transcriber of the Cotton MS. has here interpolated a line with a French explanation of the name. [v. V. R.] D. MACPHERSON. And Felny gret bare wald have done: F 151 b Bot þis Lady wyth fayre Trettè 200 L. 179.] This "hows of defens" was perhaps Maiden Castle, the ruins of which are on the fouth fide of the prefent Kennoway. There are some remains of Roman antiquity in this neighbourhood, and it is very probable that Macduff's castle stood on the fite of a Roman Castellum. D. MACPHERSON. 1 Scho sayd, Makbeth, luke wp, and se In Scotland cald be Erlys-ferry. 205 210 215 220 225 230 L. 228.] Four pennies, in Wyntown's time, weighed about one eightieth part of a pound of filver: how much they were in Macbeth's time, I suppose, cannot be afcertained; but, in the reign of David Ift, they weighed one fixtieth of a pound. If we could truft to Regiam Majestatem, four pennies, in David's time, were the value of one third of a boll of wheat, or two lagenæ of wine, or four lagenæ of ale, or half a sheep. [Tables of Money and Prices in Ruddiman's Introduction to And. Diplo. For the quantity of the lagenæ compare VIII. xvii. 35, with Fordun, p. 990: Sc. Chr. V. II. p. 223, wherein lagena is equivalent to galown in Wyntown.] It is reasonable to suppose, that the whole of the boat was hired for this fum. The landing place on the fouth fide was most probably at North Berwick, which belonged to the family of Fife, who founded the nunnery there. D. MACPHERSON. Saynt Edward Kyng of Ingland þan, 235 240 245 F 152 a Wes to se for be profyte Of þá Barnys; and hys wille 250 As þai wald þame redy mak Schortly to fay, be lawchful twá Brebire forsuke wyth hym to gá Dat banysyd hym and hys Bredyr twa. 255 260 265 270 L. 274.] The story of these two brothers of Malcolm, (fee alfo c. xvi. of this book) and their refusal of the kingdom, which he, a bastard, obtained, feems to be a mere fiction. Yet, why it should have been invented, I can fee no reafon: furely not with intent to disgrace Malcolm, whose pofterity never loft the crown, and were such eminent friends to the church. The |