Under the authority of an act of Parliament obtained in 1811, the navigation of the Nith has been greatly improved already; and as the plan is far from being com pleted, is likely soon to be much more so. Formerly, few vessels of more than 40 tons ever reached the town, and these only at high tides. All above that burthen were obliged to unload either at the New Quay, three miles down the river, or at Glencaple, which is twice that dis tance. Now, however, in consequence of the removal of obstructions, improving the direction of the channel, and confining the water, vessels of 150 tons can, under favourable circumstances, bring their cargoes almost to the very doors of those to whom they are consigned ; and it is expected, by some sanguine ship owners, that ere long, vessels will be seen there of a much higher bur then still.
From the date of the earliest documents, the popula tion of Dumfries has been uniformly on the increase. Previous to 1695, one church and one minister were sufficient for the parish. In that year, owing to llte augmented numbers of the inhabitants, it was found necessary to make the charge collegiate; and, in 1726, the foundation stone was laid of a new church, at the north end of the town, which was then more than three quarters of a mile in length.
For most of the historical information contained in this article, the writer is indebted to a manuscript of the late Rev. Dr Burnside, minister of St :Michael's church in Min ft s copy of which valuable document is lodged le ?emit•n:it's Library there. See also Statistical ..•lccount rf Scu land; flint. of Scotland, by P nscutiic , Kr it , & Robertson ; Peter Rae's Kist. of the Rebellion; au I .Stowe's Mal. of England. (k. T 6.) a border comas.. in the south of Scotland, adjacent to that of Cumberland. in England. It extends in latitude front 53° 2' to 55° 3 l' North, and in longitude from 2° 39' to 53' \I/Ls( from London. The colonies adjacent to that of Duralies arc, on the north, Lanai k, Peebles, and Selkirk ; on the east, Rox burgh, and part of Cumberland ; and, on the west, Ayr. and the stewartry of Kirkcudbright: the Solway Frith, on the south of Dumfries-shire, separates it from Cum berland in that quarter. According to the observations of Mr White, mathematical teacher in Dumfries, the latitude of this town, which is the most eminent in the south-western districts of Scotland, is 55° 8' 30".
The territory which is now the county of Dumfries. consists of three larger, and many lesser vales, together with the ridges which divide or intersect them; the mountainous tracts at the sources of the main rivers, Nith, Annan, and Esk ; and the open country through which they pass, near the Solway Frith. Out of all these tracts, were formed three ancient and separate jurisdictions, the sheriffdom of Nithsdale, the stcwartry of Annandale, and the regality of Eskdalc ; all which are now under the civil jurisdiction of the sheriff-depute of Dumfries shire, and his substitute. Formerly, the conterminous
districts around this county also were known by other names ; viz. on the north, Clydesdale and Tweeddale ; on the cast, Ettrick Forest, with Tiviotdalc and Liddes dale, and part of the Border Marches; and, on the west, the ancient province of Galloway, and the district of Kyle. The Solway, on the south, appears to have been connected with the Roman district-name of the Selgovat, of whom the inhabitants of this county, in the time or the Roman empire, were a part, when the province call ed Valentia extended front the Solway to the Clyde.
The figure of Dumfries-shire approaches towards that of an ellipsoid ; the greater diameter measuring 50, and the lesser 32 miles. The line of circumference consists of 21 miles of seacoast, 33 miles of low inland territory, and 120 miles in the mountains; being, in all, 174 miles. Of the contents are about 1006 square miles; being, in Scots acres, 513.3c0; and, in English acres, 644,385. The surface of the waters within the county, consisting of lakes, rivers, and streams, is about 10 square miles.
In the lower part of the county, adjacent or near to the Solway Filth, a gently undulating surface, consist ing mostly of dry soil, presents itself, intersected by those rivers and streams which flow into the Solway, diversified also by spots or fields of haugh or clay soils, and of peat moss. Farther inland, a few lakes appear, mostly in the central district of Lochmaben. Towards the sources of the principal rivers, a range of mountains cnviron the county on the north, and form its boundaries with those of Ayr, Lanark, and Peebles. These detach considerable arms, terminating in ridges of less eleva tion, which divide the river-courses, or form the boun daries of the county on the cast and west. The general slope and aspect are to the south, in which direction the principal rivers flow. Thus, on the north side 'the county is mountainous, and partly also on the north-east and the north-west. The middle districts are separated by lower hills and ridges. Three principal dales open towards the south, and lesser lateral vales communicate with each of them, on either side; the courses of the rivers and streams having tracts of holm or haugh lands along their margins. As the main rivers approach the Solway, their separating ridges vanish, and their course for some miles is through an open country, elevated a little above the sea, and exhibiting a surface, not level, hut in that wav ing form which commonly indicates a light soil, improv able rather than rich, and a country naturally adapted for pleasing embellishment and agreeable residence.