SWANTON-AND-SIMPRIM, a parish, in the county of Berwick, 5 miles (N.) from Coldstream; containing 1095 inhabitants. This parish comprehends the old parishes of Swinton and Simprim, which were united in 1*61. The name of the latter is of very uncertain derivation; that of the former place, which is of great antiquity, is said by some to have been derived from the number of wild boars with which the lands were anciently infested, whilst others suppose the word simply to mean " Dane town ", the Danes having held possessions here, and many of the border surnames being of Danish extraction. During the heptarchy, Swinton constituted part of the kingdom of Northumbria; and on its separation it was granted, about the year 1060, b)' INIalcolm Canmore to Edulph de Swinton, who had materially assisted that monarch in his efforts to recover the Scottish throne. From its exposed and defenceless position, it became the frequent scene of devastation and predatory incursion during the period of border warfare; and soon after its incorporation with Scotland, it appears to have fallen from a state of tillage and fertility into a dreary and unproductive desert. It was probably with a view to its being restored that the lands were granted by Edgar, son of Malcolm Canmore, to the Abbey of Coldingham, together with cattle to be employed in their cultivation. This gift was confirmed by Alexander, the brother and successor of Edgar; but the lands were afterwards restored to the family of Swinton by David, the youngest son of Malcolm, who bestowed on them all the privileges of a free baronial tenure. The family of Swinton is one of the most ancient in the country, and its members were distinguished by acts of heroism during some of the most important events recorded in Scottish history. Allan de Swinton, the fifth baron, was especially eminent for his military prowess; and his name appears as a subscribing witness to several deeds executed by William the Lion. To the valour and conduct of his descendant, Sir John, is attributed the victory obtained by the Scots at Otterburu; and his heroic death at the battle of Homelden, after having vainly endeavoured to rally the Scottish forces, is recorded by Sir Walter Scott in his poem of IlaUidon Hill. He had married a daughter of Robert II., King of Scotland, by whom he had a son, who distinguished himself in the wars with France during the reign of Henry V. of England. Sir John Swinton, another member of the family, was a zealous adlierent to the party of his lawful sovereign in the rebellion of Bothwell and Home. In the time of Cromwell the jiroprietor of Swinton, having embraced the cause of the parliament, was made a nieniber of the privy council, and appointed one of the commissioners for the administration of justice in the arrangement of Scottish affairs. After the Restoration, he was arraigned for treason in having borne arms against his sovereign at the battle of Worcester; his estates were forfeited to the crown, and himself and family driven into exile. His son, however, returned to England after the Revolution, and succeeded in obtaining an act of parliament, by which the attainder was taken oil', and the family estates restored. Since that time the lands of Swinton have remained in the possession of his descendants. The only memorable event connected witii the parish since the earlier j)eriods of border warfare, is the battle that occurred here between the Scottish troops and Sir Henry Percy, brother of the Earl of Northumherlaiid, who, in 1558, accompanied by the Marshal of Berwick, with 8000 foot and '200 horse, made an irruption into the Merse, and burnt the towns of Dunse and Langton. On their return from that district, they were overtaken at this place by the Scottish forces under Lord Keith, and the French troops stationed at Kelso and Eyemouth for the defence of the Marches; and after an obstinate and sanguinary conflict, the Scottish and French forces were defeated with great loss, and the English quietly retreated with all their plunder. The PARISH is about four miles in length, rather less than three miles in average breadth, and of very irregular form. Its surface is varied only by gentle undulations, rising in no part into eminences of any great elevation; and in the intervals the grounds are flat, forming plains of considerable extent. The scenery is generally pleasing, and is embellished with wood, which, being planted chiefly in hedge-rows and ditfused over the surface, has a very good eifect. The only stream of any importance is the small river Leet, which has its source in the parish of Whitsome, and flowing through this parish in a western direction, falls into the Tweed at Coldstream. Much benefit has arisen from the improvement of this river by deepening its channel, and thus preventing the inundations to which it was liable. There are but few springs; and unless sunk to a very considerable depth, the wells are frequently dry in summer. Loch Swinton, which was of great extent, has been drained, and is under profitable culture. The soil of the parish is deep, and generally rich. The number of acres is estimated at about 5450, and, with the exception of thirty acres in plantations, the whole is arable: the crops are oats, wheat, barley, beans, turnips, &c. Agriculture is in an improved state; the lands are inclosed, and the farm houses and offices substantially built and well arranged. The plantations consist of oak, ash, elm, and firs, for all of which the soil is adapted; they are comparatively of recent growth, but are well managed and in a prosperous condition. The more ancient timber appears to have been destroyed during the short time the chief lands were in the possession of the Duke of Lauderdale, on whom they were conferred by Charles IL In this parish the substrata are a white sandstone and a dark-coloured sandstone-slate, with beds of indurated marl. A red micaceous sandstone also occurs in some parts, and is quarried. Boulders of sandstone, greywacke, transition granite, and greenstone are to be seen in the fields. The annual value of real property in the parish is £8494: there are four landowners. Swinton House, the seat of Mr. Swinton, is a handsome mansion situated in a richly cultivated demesne. The village stands pleasantly on the turnpike-road to Berwick, and is neatly built, containing many good houses; it is mostly inhabited by persons carrying on the handicraft trades requisite for the supply of the neighbourhood, and contains one or two good shops and a comfortable inn. Fairs are held here in June and October; formerly they were great markets for cattle and agricultural produce, but at present they retain little of that character, and are chiefly for pleasure. Facility of communication is maintained with the neighbouring towns by good turnpike-roads, of which more than eight miles pass through the parish. A sub-post is established. For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs this place is within the bounds of the presbytery of Chirnside and synod of Merse and Teviotdale. The stipend of tiie incumbent averages £270: the manse, an old building repaired and enlarged in 1815 and 183.'J, is a comfortable residence; and tiie glebe, including the glebe land of tlie parish of Simprim, comprises twenty-one acres, valued at £70 per annum. The church, erected in 1729, and enlarged and repaired in 1782 and 1837, is a neat edifice adapted for a congregation of 500 persons: in an arched niche in the south wall, is a statue of Allan Swinton, fifth baron of Swinton. The members of the Free Church have a place of worship. The parochial school affords a useful course of instruction; the master has a salary of £34. 4., with a house built in 1816, a large and very productive garden, and the fees. There is also a school the master of which derives his income exclusively from the fees. A friendly society has been many years established. There are some slight remains of the ancient church of Simprim, which has long been in ruins. It appears to have been a very small building, surrounded by a fosse, vestiges of which may still be traced; and in times of danger was resorted to as a place of safety, where the inhabitants took shelter till the population of the adjacent district, apprized by certain signals, came to their assistance. John Swinton, Esq., who was sheriff of Perthshire, and afterwards one of the senators of the college of justice, a zealous advocate for the introduction into Scotland of trial by jury in civil causes, and at whose suggestion the court of session was divided into two separate chambers, was a native of Swinton. He was the author of An Abridgement of the British Statutes since the Union, and of an elaborate treatise on weights and measures, which formed the basis of the act of parliament for reducing them to one general standard throughout the United Kingdom. It is also a fact worth recording, that Thomas Boston, author of the well-known work Human Nature in its Fourfold State, was at one time minister of the now suppressed parish of Simprim, being ordained there in the year I699.