ABERDEENSIIIRE, a county in the north of Scot land, bounded by the German ocean on the east ; by the counties of Kincardine, Angus, and Perth, on the south; and by the counties of I 11\ erness, Moray, and Banff, on the west. It contains 85 parishes, 1170 square miles; and, in 1801, its population was 123,082, being an increase of 6146 since the year 1755. The inland part of the county is, in general, Avid, barren, and mountainous, though the eye is frequently relieved by large forests of natural wood, which stretch along the .? ides of the hills. That part of the county which bor ders un the coast is more fertile, though still suscepti ble of great improvement. It slopes gradually from the central districts to the sea, where it terminates in a bold, rocky coast, occasionally rising into stupendous precipices, which arrest the attention of every travel ler. The principal rivers which traverse the county, are the Dee, the Don, the Ythan, the Ugh-, and the Cruden, which are all celebrated for the excellent sal mon with which they abound. In the \'than several pearls have been found, which sold separately at two and three pounds sterling.
The shapes and the various connexions and grou pings of the mountains of this county are still imper fectly known ; and we have but little information res pecting the geognostic structure and relations of the numerous rocks and minerals that render this part of Scotland su very interesting. It would appear from the observations that have been published, and the se ries of specimens which we have had opportunities of examining, that the lollowing rocks and simple mine rals occur in Aberdeenshire. RocKs, Primittue rocks,
granite, gneiss, mica-slate, clay slate, hornblende-slate, hornblende rock, primitive limestone, and sienite. Flat: rocks, sandstone, and limestone. SIMPLE MINERALS. Topaz found near Cairngorum; rock-crystal, at Cairn gorum and other places, falsely denominated topaz. Agates, common quartz, crystallized. Also amethyst, cyanite, mica, with radiated fracture. Precious beryl, calx-spar in various forms, gray manganese ore. From the granite, or sienite, quarries, tons of that stone, valued at 84001. are annually exported to Lon don. The limestone is very abundant, but, from the scarcity of coal, it cannot be wrought to much advan tage. The county contains many mineral waters, and those of Peterhead and Glendee are much resorted to for their medicinal qualities. The principal manufac ture in the county was formerly the knitting of stock ings and hose, in which great numbers of the common people were engaged; but the linen and sail-cloth ma nufactures have been lately introduced with great success into Aberdeen, Peterhead, and Huntiv. The valued rent of Aberdeenshire is '235,665/. 8s. 11d. Scotch, and the real land-rent was lately estimated at 133,632/. sterling. (r) (IT)