Geology and Mineralogy.— The Lammermuirs are composed chiefly of Lower Silurian strata, overlaid in part by Old Red Sandstone and conglomerate—one great mass of the latter extending south-east from Spott, with a breadth of 3 or 4 miles, across the hills into Berwickshire. Another belt of Old Red Sιndstone rather more than 1 mile in breadth begins at the sea a little to the south of Dunbar, and stretches along the base of the Lammermuirs. Patches of Old Red Conglomerate occur also here and there in the Lammermuirs further to the west, and are seen in the upper tributaries of Gifford and Humbie waters. The ground to the north of the Lammermuirs is occupied chiefly by rocks belonging to the Calciferous Sandstone and Carboniferous Limestone series of the Carboniferous formation. The Calciferous Sandstones cover a wide area west and east of Haddington, extending south to the Lammermuirs, along the base of which they trend south-west beyond the county boundary. They also appear in the lower reaches of the Tyne valley, covering a considerable area between Tynning-harne Links and Biel Water. Again they are seen on the shore between Torness Point and Dunglass Burn, whence they strike inland. The hilly tract between Haddington and North Berwick is made up of various volcanic rocks of Lower Carboniferous age, such as porphyrite, dolerite, and tuff. In the western part of the county the Carboniferous Limestone series occupies an extensive area and is rich in limestones and coal-seams. This area forms the eastern margin of the Midlothian coal-field. A patch of the Limestone series also appears upon the coast about a mile south of Duubar. Besides these bedded aqueous and volcanic rocks, there are numerous intruded masses, dykes, and veins of felstone and basalt, and some pipes of tuff and agglomerate which mark the sites of ancient volcanoes of Lower Carboniferous age. Granite is found at Priestlaw. Deposits of glacial origin are met with more or less abundantly, especially in the low-lying tracts. These consist of till or boulder-clay and mounds and sheets of sand and gravel, underneath which the older rocks are often concealed over wide areas. Alluvial deposits occur along the course of many streams, but the only considerable alluvial flats are those of the Tyne.

Coal of a very fair quality is extensively worked in the west. So long ago as 1200 the monks of Newbattle. obtained this mineral from Prestongrange. Limestone is found throughout the greater part of the shire. A vein of hematite of a peculiarly fine character was discovered in 1866 at the Garleton Hills, and wrought for some years; but from a variety of causes the works have been meanwhile suspended.

Climate.— The climate is on the whole mild and equable. East winds, however, prevail in the months of March, April, and May, and from the lie of the county it is exposed to their full sweep. The amount of rainfall is far below the average of Great Britain. During the period 1835-64 the average annual rainfall was 24’85 inches,— the greatest fall being 32'7 in 1836, the least 17'3 in 1842. The average monthly fall is lowest in April (1 ∙16) and highest in August (2 - 57). In 1872 the rainfall reached the exceptional amount of 41’51 inches.

Agriculture, Ac.— The soils are various. The Lammermuirs are of course unproductive, but the slopes to a considerable height are cultivated; and for a considerable way down the land is very good. In the centre of the county there is “a tenacious yellow clay resting upon a tilly subsoil/’ and this land is not well suited for agricultural purposes. Along the margin of the Firth the soil is naturally of a sandy nature, but farther inland it is composed of rich loam and is very fertile. The most productive region is the land about Dunbar. The potatoes there are very good, and under the name of “Dunbar reds ’ are highly esteemed in the London market, selling at times for as much as £45 an acre. From the beginning of the present century till within the past few years East Lothian agriculture has on the whole been held to be the best in Scotland. This is not so much due to the natural fertility of the soil as to the enlightened enterprise of its cultivators. Andrew Meikle here first introduced the threshing mill (1787). Tile draining was first extensively used here, and the reaping machine (now universally employed) and the steam plough were introduced ata comparatively early period of their history. The high price of grain at the time of the Crimean War gave a great impetus to farming, and in consequence rents rose as much as from 15s. to £1 per acre; this, with the increased cost of labour, which has risen 35 or 40 per cent, (about 10s. per acre) within the last seven or eight years, has sadly diminished the profits of the farmer. The size of the farms is above the average of Great Britain. The majority are from 200 to 500 acres—a very few from 600 to 1200 acres. They are usually let on leases of nineteen years’ duration. The rotation of crops is generally the six-course shift, viz., (1) grass (pasture or hay), (2) oats, (3) potatoes, turnips, or beans, (4) wheat, (5) turnips, (6) barley 7 .

According to the agricultural returns of 1879, of the total area of 179,142 acres 115,364 acres were under cultivation, distributed as follows:—com crops, 44,719 (wheat, 7910; barley, 19,536; oats, 15,746); green crops, 25,656 (potatoes, 9835; turnips and swedes, 14,796); clover and grass, 27,194; permanent pasture, 16,000; bare fallow, 1075. Of live stock the numbers were—

horses, 3818, or 3’3 for every 100 imperial acres as against a general average for Scotland of 4 ’ 2; cattle, 8205, or 7‘1 as against 23Ό; sheep, 108,672, or 94 ’ 2 as against 145 ’ 1; pigs, 2485, or 2'2 as against 2 - 7. Those comparatively small averages are of course explained by the fact that the county is not a pastoral one. It deserves to be noted, however, that its flocks of Leicester sheep have for years been justly celebrated, and shorthorns of a very high class have been successfully bred.

Game is no great hindrance to agriculture. A source of greater annoyance is the immense number of wood pigeons which, in defiance of all efforts to hold them in check, commit great havoc yearly.

The wages of farm servants average about 18s. weekly, the ‘ ‘grieve” or farm overseer receiving a little more; but of this only from £20 to £25 per annum is given in money. The rest is paid in kind, and consists of meal, potatoes, a cow’s keep, a cottage, and piece of ground. These cottages have been greatly improved of late years, and are now very fair dwellings indeed. The “bothy system” is practically a thing of the past. Extra field labour is supplied by gangs of Irish or Highland workers, who dwell in the towns, but go out during the day to work in the country. The regular employés are hired for the most part at “feeing-markets,” though advertisement and private arrangement are also often employed.

According to the return for 1873-74, there were 1509 proprietors in the county owning a total 171,739 of acres, of the annual value of £349,209. The average rental was £2, 0s. 8d. peracre,—that of all Scotland being £1. There were 1191 proprietors (79 per cent, of the whole) who owned less than 1 acre; from 1 to 188 owned 10 acres, and 47 from 10 to 100; and 9 owned between 5000 and 21,000, the largest proprietors being—Marquis of Tweeddale, Yester House, 20,486 acres; Lady Mary Hamilton, Biel, 14,345; Balfour of Whittinghame, 10,564; Earl of Wemyss, Gosford, 10,136; Sir G. Grant Suttie, Balgone, 8788; Earl of Haddington, Tynninghame, 8302; Earl of ∏opetoun, 7967; Hunter of Thurston, 6492; and Houston of Clerkington, 5148. Communication.— The county is well supplied with roads. The chief line of railway, however, runs along the coast, and this, notwithstanding the aid of branch lines, places a considerable district at a serious disadvantage.

Population, <kc.— The population of the county, which is divided into 25 parishes, was 37,676 in 1871, showing an increase of 78 over the number for 1861. It thus appears that the growth of the county town, of North Berwick, a thriving watering-place, and of the mining parishes does little more than counterbalance the decrease in purely agricultural parishes, which in some cases amounts to as much as from 7 to 18 per cent. The chief towns and villages are—Haddington, the county town, 4004; Dunbar, 3422; North Berwick, 1418; Tranent, 2306; East Linton, Prestonpans, Aberlady, Gullane, and Dirleton. The county returns one member to parliament, and the burghs of Haddington, Dunbar, and North Berwick unite with Lauder (Berwickshire) and Jedburgh (Roxburghshire) in returning another.

Educational Endowments.— The provision for education outside of the public school system is inconsiderable. Schaw’s and StielΓs Hospitals in the parishes of Prestonpans and Tranent are charitable educational institutions. In Salton parish there is a fund for educational purposes, left by Gilbert Burnet, bishop of Salisbury. According to the Endowed Schools’ Report of 1875, the annual incomes of these were £864, £812, and £97 respectively. School and college bursaries are given annually by the East Lothian Association.

History and Antiquities.— The early Celtic inhabitants of the district have left as memorials of their possession a few local names, and some traces of circular camps (Garvald and Whittingham parishes) and hill forts (Bolton parish). The Romans built here no enduring edifices, and there are no certain remains of their camps, but they brought the ground to a high degree of cultivation. The county afterwards formed part of the Saxon kingdom of Northumberland, but it was joined to Scotland by Malcolm II. in 1020. It was fairly prosperous till the wars of Bruce and Balliol; but from that time till the union of the kingdoms it suffered from its proximity to the English border, and from civil wars. In more modern times it was the scene of two great battles—that of Dunbar (1650) gained by Cromwell over Leslie and the Covenanters, and that of Prestonpans (1745) in which Prince Charles defeated Sir John Cope. The prosperity of the county, like that of many other parts of Scotland, is the growth of the present century.

The chief ruins are—Hailes Castle, where Queen Mary of Scots resided for a brief period after her abduction by Bothwell; Dunbar Castle, defended in 1337 by Black Agnes against the earl of Salisbury; Dirleton Castle, a venerable ruin of the 12th century,—

taken in 1298 by Edward I. and again in 1650 by Cromwell’s forces; Innerwick Castle, near Dunbar; the collegiate church of Seton in the parish of Tranent, built before 1390; North Berwick Abbey, founded about the middle of the 12th century; and Tantallon Castle, opposite the Bass Rock, formerly the chief seat in the east of the Douglas family. The genius of Scott has given to Tantallon a name in English literature greater even than its name in Scottish history; and readers of Mannion will also remember the name of Hobgoblin Hall, romantically situated near the village of Gifford (about six miles south of the county town), a place connected by name and legend with all manner of popular superstitions. Of modern mansions the chief are Broxmouth Park (Duke of Roxburghe), Yester House (Marquis of Tweeddale), Tynninghame House (Earl of Haddington), Gosford and Amisfield House (Earl of Wemyss)—Gosford containing a fine collection of pictures, Lennoxlove House (Lord Blantyre), Biel and Archerfield (Lady Μ. Hamilton), Winton House (Lady Ruthven), and Salton Hall (Fletcher). A lofty column on one of the Garleton hills, -erected to the memory of the fourth earl of Hopetoun, is seen from nearly every part of the county.

Of the eminent men bora in or connected with the county the following may be mentioned :—Sir David Lyndsay of the Mount was bora 1490 at Garleton Castle, an old keep now utterly ruinous; William Dunbar was born at Biel about 1460; Blair, author of the Grave, and Home, author of Douglas, were successively ministers of Athelstaneford; David Calderwood, the historian of the Kirk of Scotland, was minister at Pencaitland, and Principal William Robertson at Gladsmuir; George Heriot, the famous goldsmith of James VI., is said to have been born in Gladsmuir. The historic families of Fletcher of Salton, Dalrymple of Hailes, Maitland of Lethington, and Hamilton of Preston belong to the county.

Haddington, a royal and parliamentary burgh, and the chief town of the above county, is situated on the banks of the Tyne, about 17 miles east of Edinburgh. It occupies almost the centre of the shire to which it has given the name. It consists of two main streets, which are wide and well built,—High Street to the south and Market Street to the north; both run towards the Tyne, here crossed by three bridges, two of which connect the town with its suburb of Nungate. This suburb consists of old and ruinous houses, and is inhabited for the most part by Irish agricultural labourers. The systems of drainage and water supply are excellent, but the want of manufactures and the inconvenience of its railway branch line have prevented the growth of the burgh.

The chief edifices are the county buildings, the corn exchange, which next to that of Edinburgh is the largest in Scotland, the town-house adorned with a very elegant spire 150 feet high, and the district asylum for the insane. There is a monument of some pretensions to Robert Fergusson of Raith, and a somewhat trifling one to the memory of Home the author of Douglas. The chief structure, however, is the church, an edifice probably dating from the 13th century It is 210 feet long, and is surmounted by a square tower 90 feet high. One part is used as the parish church; the remainder, though ruinous, is now preserved with a care that makes some amends for centuries of neglect. To this church the name of Lucerιιa Laudonice has long been applied, but it seems probable that the edifice to which Fordun and Major applied that name was the church of the Franciscan Friars close to the Tyne, of which not a fragment now remains. The Nungate possesses the ruin of an old chapel of St Martin. The grammar school of Haddington was established at a very early period, and carefully fostered by the burghal authorities. At one time it attained considerable eminence, but latterly fell into complete disuse. Under the name of the Knox Memorial Institute, a very handsome school building has been erected (1879), and with this the ancient burgh school is incorporated. The population of the burgh in 1861 was 3874and in 1871 4004.

Haddington is said to have been erected into a burgh by David I. It must have been a place of considerable importance, for when the ‘ ‘ Curia Quatuor Burgorum” subsisted there was an appeal from the sentences of burgh courts to that of the chamberlain at Haddington. There are also extant charters in its favour from Robert the Bruce and Robert II. Exposed as it was to the English attack it was frequently ravaged and burned. In 1548 it was fortified by Lord Grey of Wilton, the English commander, but was besieged in the following year by the Scotch and their French auxiliaries, who forced the garrison to abandon the town. As one result of all this struggle and suffering, it is impossible to dig far in any direction without coming on human remains. Haddington has also suffered frequently from floods. An inscription in the centre of the town commemorates one of the most notable of these (October 4, 1775), marking the point to which the water rose. John Knox was born (1505) at the Giffordgate in the Nungate; John Brown, a celebrated dissenting divine, several of whose descendants have been eminent in science and literature, had a charge in Haddington for many years; and Edward Irving was for somo years mathematical master in the burgh school.

For the general history of the county see Chalmers’s Caledonia, vol. ii.; also Dr Barclay's paper on “Haddington," in the 1st vol. of the Transactions of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol i. (1792); Hepburn’s View of the Agriculture of East Lothian (1794); Somerville’s Survey of East Lothian (1805); New Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. ii. (1845); History of Haddington, by James Miller (1844). The siege of the town is fully narrated in Histoire de la Guerre d , Escosse, by Jean de Beaugué. For an account of the burgh records, see Thomas Thomson’s paper in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. ii. pt. iii. The question as to the birthplaces of Knox, Lyndsay, and Dunbar is fully discussed in David Laing’s editions of those writers.