INCHTURE-AND-ROSSIE, a parish, in the county of Perth; including the villages of Baledgarno and Ballindean, and containing 765 inhabitants, of whom 243 are in the village of Inchture, 13 miles (E. by N.) from Perth. The word Inchture is altogether of doubtful derivation, but is conjectured to be formed from the terms innis, " an island ", and ear, " the east ", the eminence on which the church and village stand being the most eastern of a series of elevations that are said to have been formerly islands. The present parish comprehends the ancient parish of Rossie, which is now extinct, though the ruin of the church still remains. It is situated on the north-west side of the estuary of the Tay, and measures in length four miles from north to south, and three miles in breadth, comprising an area of about 4650 acres, of which about 4000 are in tillage and pasture, and the remainder in wood. Being mostly included in the rich and fertile tract of the Carse of Gowrie, usually considered as the " garden of Scotland ", the parish shares in all the superiority of scenery, soil, and produce for which that beautiful district is so justly celebrated. The surface is considerably diversified. On the south-east, where the lands are washed by the estuary, are extensive sand-banks, which at ebb-tide are seen stretching over several hundreds of acres, and which are bordered inland with a broad margin of sedge or reeds. This is succeeded by a rich alluvial plain, elevated about twenty feet, extending the whole breadth of the parish, and reaching north-westward for two or three miles. At the extremity of this plain, again, is the eminence ornamented with the pleasing village of Inchture; and still further towards the north-west appear in succession the hills of Rossie, Baledgarno, and Ballindean, forming a portion of the district called the " braes of the carse "; and the border of the Sidlaw range, rising about 500 feet high. The parish is watered by two principal streams designated "pows", which are augmented by numerous rivulets descending from the hills. One of the two streams flows for a considerable distance along the south-western boundary into the Firth at Powgavie, where it forms the harbour of that name; while the other, towards the north, formed of the burns of Baledgarno and Rossie, partly separates the parish from Longforgan, into which it afterwards runs, and where it reaches the Firth. The estuary is about three miles wide; but at low water the tide recedes to a great distance from the shore, and the sands are marked by many deep fissures, called " water-runs ", being channels for the streams. The water of the Tay is strongly impregnated with salt in consequence of the large influx from the sea and the rapidity of the tide. On the level grounds, which constitute by far the larger portion of the parish, the soil is a rich alluvial clay of great depth; the undulations and hills comprise loam, gravel, and sand, w'ith a little peat, resting generally on red sandstone or on whinstone. The whole is highly cultivated, and presents one of the finest specimens to be met with of agricultural skill. All kinds of crops are raised: the rotation followed on about twothirds of the grounds is the seven-shift, and in the remainder the six-shift course is followed. A large part of the district in which the parish is situated being a corn country, the rearing of cattle has hitherto been a subordinate consideration; but much more attention is now paid to it than formerly; and Leicester sheep, and the Ayrshire and the Teeswater stock of cattle, have been to some extent introduced, as well as an improved breed of horses. Most of the farms have been thoroughly drained; the reclaiming of land overflowed by the tide is carried on with spirit, and many embankments have been raised. Though the inclosures at present are principally in the upper portion of the parish, numerous hedge-rows have been planted, and palings erected, on the lower grounds; and in general the farm-houses and buildings are in good condition. In 183S a threshingmill driven by steam, the only one of the kind in the parish, was erected on Lord Kinnaird's property at Powgavie. The substratum of the lower parts consists of red sandstone, and the hills of whinstone, of each of which several quarries are in operation. There is limestone, but not at present worked; and the locality contains several veins of copper, which, however, have never been wrought: valuable pebbles also, and various minerals, have occasionally been found. The plantations, with the exception of the ornamental portions, are chiefly on the hills; they comprise oak, ash, elm, beech, birch, larch, and other kinds. The annual value of real property in the parish is £8011. Rossie Priory, situated on the slope of Rossie hill, and commanding most extensive and beautiful views, was built chiefly by the late Lord Kinnaird, in 1807; it is a very superior mansion, erected with stone from the quarries on the estate, and has been much enlarged and improved by the present noble proprietor, whose ancestor, in the twelfth century, obtained a grant of the lands here from William the Lion. The only other mansion is a modern edifice named Ballindean House, situated near the foot of the hiU of the same name. The village of Inchture is famed for its excellent beer; and from its brewery large supplies are sent weekly to Perth, Dundee, Cupar-Angus, and all parts of the surrounding district. Besides Inchture the parish contains the villages of Baledgarno and Ballindean. The former of these is supposed to have been so called from Edgar, who came to the throne at the beginning of the eleventh century, and whose name is contained in the two middle syllables: his castle was on an adjoining hill, still called Castle hill, but no remains of the building are now visible. There are also several hamlets in the parish. The manufacture of linen is carried on in private houses; the article produced is a very coarse fabric for sacks or packing. The population, however, are almost all agricultural, and have somewhat diminished in number within the last few years, in consequence of the consolidation of some of the smaller farms. There is a general post-office established at Inchture, and both the railway and the high road between Perth and Dundee pass through the parish. Powgavie or Polgavie harbour forms the chief point of traffic: a considerable number of vessels come laden with coal, lime, manure, seeds, and grain, and carry away farm-produce, especially corn and potatoes, wood, fruits, &c. In 1 847 an act of parliament was passed for the construction of a branch of threequarters of a mile, from the Perth and Dundee railway, to Powgavie; and of a branch of one mile and threequarters, to Inchture. Ecclesiastically the parish is in the presbytery of Dundee, synod of Angus and Mearns, and in the patronage of the Crown: the minister's stipend is about £'200, with a manse, and a glebe of ten acres, valued at £30 per annum. Inchture church, conveniently situated in the middle of the principal village, was built in 1835, of red sandstone from a quarry in the vicinity. The parochial school affords instruction in the usual branches; the master has a salary of £34, with a dwelhng-house, and £27 fees. On the borders of the parish is a large stone, supposed by some to be that on which the falcon alighted when, according to tradition, boundaries were assigned to the lands given to the gallant Hay and his two sons, after the celebrated battle of Luncarty. Other antiquities are, the ruins of the castle of Moncur, the cross formerly surrounded by the village of Rossie, and the interesting remains of the old church of that name, now overgrown with ivy and ash.