WHITSOME-AND-HILTON, a parish, in the county
of Berwick; containing 6'22 inhabitants, of whom
about 200 are in the village of Whitsome, 7 miles (N. by
E.) from Coldstream. These two ancient parishes, in
the eastern part of the county, were united in 1*3.5, after
the decay of the old church of Hilton, from the situation
of which upon an eminence that district derived its
name. The incumbents of both the parishes, together
with several of the clergy in the vicinity, swore fealty to
Edward I. of England, at Berwick, in 1296, upon which
occasion their parsonages were restored to them. In
1482, the Duke of Gloucester, afterwards Richard III.
of England, in his progress through the county of Berwick,
burnt this place, and laid waste many of the circumjacent
lands. The united parish is about four miles
and a half in length and nearly two miles in breadth,
comprising an area of 4900 acres, of which 4720 are
arable and pasture, and ISO woodland and plantations:
there is no waste. Towards the north and east the surface
is generally even, but in other parts diversified with
rising grounds and hills, of which the highest has an
elevation of rather less than 3.50 feet above the level of
the sea. The only river is the Leet, a small stream
which, from its source near the northern boundary,
flows southward through the parish, and after receiving
various tributaries, falls into the Tweed at Coldstream.
The SOIL is fertile, and the lands are under excellent
cultivation; the crops are, grain of every kind, potatoes,
and turnips, with the usual grasses. Great improvement
has taken place in the system of husbandry, and
considerable tracts of land previously unprofitable have
been drained and rendered productive. The farm-houses
are substantial, and on all the farms are threshing-mills,
five of them driven by steam; the cottages of the labourers,
also, have in many instances been rebuilt in a
more comfortable style. The lands are inclosed with
hedges of thorn, kept in excellent order; and all the
more recent improvements in the construction of agricultural
implements have been adopted. Few sheep or
cattle are reared in the parish; such as are kept on the
pasture lands are generally purchased at the neighbouring
markets. The plantations include firs and various
kinds of forest-trees, which are all in a thriving state,
and contribute materially to the beauty of the scenery.
Sandstone and whinstone are the principal rocks, and
there are extensive quarries in operation: in 1824 and
1825 an attempt was made to work coal, and after
boring to a great depth, some seams were discovered,
but not sufficiently promising to warrant the opening of
a mine. The annual value of real property in the parish
is £7639. The village of Whitsome is situated nearly
in the centre of the parish, and adjoining it, on the east
and north, are two portions of the ancient common, used
for bleaching, and in each of which is a spring of pure
water. Facility of communication with Dunse, Berwick,
Coldstream, and other towns, is maintained by good
roads, and by bridges over the various streams.
Ecclesiastically this place is in the presbytery of
Chirnside, synod of Merse and Teviotdale. The minister's
stipend is £233. 17. 11., with a manse, and the
glebes of Whitsome and Hilton, together containing
thirty acres, and valued at £60 per annum; patron,
David Logan, Esq. The church, erected in 1803, is a
plain structure containing 260 sittings. The parochial
school, situated west of the village, is attended bv up-
wards of eighty or ninety children j the master has a
salary of £34. 4. 4., with a house and garden, arid the
fees average about £60 per annum. In a field on the
farm of Leetside, called the " Battle Knowes," are the
remains of a camp supposed to be of Roman origin. It
is of quadrilateral form, each side forty-two yards long,
with the entrance on the south-east, to which was an ascent
by a causeway of rough stones lately removed. Near
the site, some workmen, draining a field in 18^7, discovered
a vessel of copper, now preserved in Blackadder
House; and in the vicinity were found, more recently,
several stone coffins about four feet and a half in length,
each composed of six flags, and containing the remains
of a skeleton apparently of a person six feet in stature.
In each of the coffins was also an urn of unglazed pottery,
of triangular shape, containing black dust. While
draining some lands near Leetside in 1832, a well, inclosed
with hewn stone, was discovered at a considerable
depth below the surface of the ground. According to
tradition, there were some houses near the well, called
Temple Hall from their proprietors, the Knights Templars,
who possessed lands in this parish.