On the death of John Cunningham, his widow removed with her family to Dalswinton village, where, through the generous liberality of Mr. Miller, she was allowed a free house and a small field for a cow's grazure during her lifetime. This she did not long enjoy, however, for her daughter Mary, Mrs. Pagan at Curriestanes, kindly prevailed on her to remove from Dalswinton and reside with herself, which she was probably the more easily induced to do from the circumstance that she had not been well provided for at her husband's death. It will be seen afterwards how affectionate and mindful of his mother, in this respect, was her son Allan, till the day of his death. She was a little woman, with sharp black eyes, and retained her faculties till the age of ninety, when she died. During her lifetime she was greatly respected, both on account of her own sterling qualities, and as being the mother of Allan Cunningham. The following verses on the ancestral family are contributed by a grand-nephew of Allan Cunningham, Mr. Anthony C. M'Bryde, artist, Edinburgh, who seems to inherit a portion of the genius of his great kinsman : "THE CUNNINGHAMS OF CUNNINGHAM. "The Cunninghams of Cunningham, in good old days of yore, Were doughty barons stout and bold as ever drew claymore; Who for their King and Country's right in battle foremost stood, And gave to dye full many a field the Sassenach's best blood. "Within their halls at festive board, in many days langsyne, When freely passed the jest and song, the usquebae and wine, Amid their leal retainers, so merry, free, and gay, They were the blythest of the blythe, none merrier were than they. "That nighton Carrick's rock-bound shore the warning beacon burned, "In Killiecrankie's mountain pass they fought right gallantlie, "And well, I wot, the lion heart survives those 'good old days'The patriotic spirit breathes in kinsman Allan's lays; His 'Hame and it's hame,' and his 'Wee, wee German laird,' Shall live with Scotland's lyric fame while the Scottish tongue is spared. "O! let us cherish proudly now their virtues manifold, And strive to emulate the deeds they did in days of old; Than the Cunninghams of Cunningham-none nobler lived on earth." CHAPTER II. ALLAN CUNNINGHAM'S BIRTH-EDUCATION-APPRENTICED TO THE MASON TRADE-GEORGE DOUGLAS M'GHIE-HUMOROUS MEMORIAL TO MR. LENY OF DALS WINTON-BURNING OF CUNNINGHAM'S LETTERS-FEAR OF FRENCH INVASION-MYSTERIOUS MARKING OF THE HOUSES-DISCOVERED ΤΟ BE A HOAX, AND REWARD OFFERED-FIRST EFFORTS IN SONG-MEETING WITH THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD ON QUEENSBERRY HILL-INCIDENT AT ALTRIVETRAVELS ON FOOT TO EDINBURGH TO SEE SIR WALTER SCOTT -ATTENDS THE FUNERAL OF BURNS. ALLAN CUNNINGHAM was born in a cottage near Blackwood House, on the banks of the Nith, in the parish of Keir, Dumfriesshire, on the 7th of December, 1784. The cottage has long since disappeared, and its site is now covered with a gigantic yew, but he who there first became a citizen of the world cannot be forgotten. He was but a child, scarcely two years old, when the family removed from Blackwood to Dalswinton; and, consequently, he always looked upon Kirkmahoe very much as his native parish-where his oldest memories took their rise, his boyish days were spent, his youthful associations formed-where his education was acquired, and his apprenticeship served-where his poetic fancy first burst into song, and the flame of love first kindled in his breast. These, and such as these, constitute home, and make the place where they were experienced the scene of our nativity, though it may not be strictly and literally the true place of our birth. So folt Allan B Cunningham when, in after years, and far away, he sang "Dalswinton hill, Dalswinton holm, And Nith, thou gentle river, Rise in my heart, flow in my soul, Allan, like the elder members of the family, was also trained at a Dame's school, which was of the usual order, and conducted in the village of Quarrelwood by a Mrs. Gray. These schools were not only useful but absolutely necessary in their day, as parochial schools were "few and far between," but they were not by any means of a high educational character. This, indeed, was not required. Ability to spell one's way through the Bible was considered all that was necessary, and when this was attained, the pupil was sent out to country service, to herd the cows, or nurse the children, till age and strength fitted for higher and weightier duties. Writing was not considered essential, as few parents could "read write," and letter postage was entirely beyond reach. The Bible was the grand climax, and when a scholar was "once through the Bible," his education was finished, and he was removed. At the age of eleven, or rather before he had attained that period, Allan was taken from school, and put under the care of his brother James, resident in Dalswinton village, to learn the trade of a stone-mason, while his physical frame, as may well be imagined, was yet scarcely strong enough for handling the mallet and the chisel with anything like effect. However, in his case the maxim was true, "Learn young, learn fair," as his |
