SAINTS' NAMES IN RELATION TO SCOTTISH FAIRS. 159 II. THE INCIDENCE OP SAINTS' NAMES IN RELATION TO SCOTTISH FAIRS. BY SIB JAMES BALFOUR PAUL, C.V.O., LL.D., F.S.A. SCOT. The subject of Scottish Fairs in general has not received much attention from the student of past-time institutions, and the following notes, which do not pretend to be exhaustive even in regard to the special subject with which they deal, may perhaps incite someone better qualifie int o mattee g oth o d t tharm a mor nI e thoroughly. Fortunately, we have a very valuable foundation on which to build. Some time before 1888, a Royal Commission was appointed to inquire into the subject of market right tolld an ss withi e Unitenth d Kingdome Comth d - an , missioners durin e ensuinth g g years publishe a dserie f volumeo s s dealing wite minuteth h f evidenco s e taken before them, statistics regarding the various markets and fairs, and their reports thereon. These bluebooks exten o fourteet d n large folio volumes n voli : . vii., issued in 1890, there is an appendix by Sir James Marwick, then Town Cler f Glasgowko , containin e marketd th an g lisa f d fairo w t an sno s formerly held in Scotland, with notes as to the charters, Acts of Parlia- ment othed an , r document whicy b s e righhth holo t t d the s beemha n conferrede mor e th cas th f e eo n moderI . n fairs d eve an ,somn ni f eo older date mentioneds saint'o i n , y sda date th , e being merely gives na the second Tuesday in August or some such day. Altogether nearly 900 place mentionee ar s whicn i d lattewere hr o th fair e f r o ar sheld d an , some 311 are specified to have been held on the anniversary day of some particular saint. It is with the object of not letting this interesting collection of information, which it must have cost a great deal of labour to compile, be lost sight of, that this little paper has been prepared. Prefixe learnelisa e s tth i o dt d introductio whicn i r JamehSi s Marwick trace risprogrese d sth ean f fairo s s fro e earliesmth t times e dowth o nt present: it extends to ten folio pages in double columns. presene th r tFo purpos onls i t eyi necessar glanco yt e very brieflt ya the historical portion of the subject. Fairs have been held since times of immemorial antiquity: their origin, like that of most other institu- e Eastfoune b th t altions ln o bu i t ;dove worlds e i , rth , bot civilisen hi d savagd an e states e holdinth , distinguishina f fairs go wa s g featurn i e the social life of the people. They sprang up quite naturally, because wherever large number f persono s s were drawn togethe t fixea r d times for purposes of business, or religion, or pleasure, an inducement was offeremerchane th o dt pedla d an t supplo t r e assemblewante yth th f o s d 160 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, APRIL. 8, 1918. multitude. Some of these Eastern fairs still exist; that at Hurdwar in India, on the upper course of the Ganges, is attended by from 200,000 to 300,000 persons annually largd ,an e quantitie merchandisf so immensd ean e number cattlef so , horses, sheep cameld an ,. sole it st ar d a Passing over foreign countrie comind an s Englando gt , ther littls ei e doubt that fairs of some sort existed in Saxon times, but it was only after Normae th n Conquest that the importann ya begae b o nt t feature th n ei nationa lrighe life Th o establist t. e th f ho markete on faird s san wa s royal prerogatives faird an , s existin prescriptioy gb n were presumeo dt have bee establishedo ns grantes wa t I d. largel religiouo yt s housest bu , often also to feudal lords and towns. The grantee of the privilege of holding a, fair was usually authorised" to exact: (1) tolls or reasonable charges on the sale of articles sold, or exposed for sale, in the fair; (2) stallag r paymeno e t for libert o erecyt t stalls packag) (3 ; r payeo - ment to the owner of the soil for leave to break it up for the erection of booths or stalls. There was attached to the fair a court of " piepowder " dustr o y feet, which administered justic e cas f th dispute eo n ei s between buyer and seller, and generally kept order in the fair. The lord of the s bounfaiwa r o providt d a epillor r otheo y r means f correctioo - r nfo the. punishmen offendersof t timAs e. wen fairon, t s grew greatlyin importance, and in 1792 it was calculated that about 3760 fairs were held in upwards of 1700 places in England. After this they rapidly decreased, and in 1888 fair's were held only in about 860 places. In Scotland fairs existed from a very early period. We find William the Lion granting to Jocelin, Bishop of Glasgow, some time between 1189 d 1198 e righan th ,hol o t t da yearl y fai laso t r t eight days froe mth octavee Apostleth f o s s Pete Paud an r l (6th July). This is I suppose, , e Glasgoworigie th th f no . Fair, which still flourishes t leasa r o t, forms an excuse for a week's holiday at that period of the year. And Alexande Decembed r III.2n n ,o r 1273, grante Aberdeeo dt e righnth f o t holdin annuan ga l fair fourteefo r n days from the .e Hol Feasth yf o t Trinity lawe Th s . regardin e holdingth f fairgo Scotlann i s d were very much the same in Scotland as in England, and occasionally we find evidenc f somo e e French influenc additionn i e tims A .e wen . fairon t s grew and multiplied till even the most out-of-the-way village places, the names of which are now quite unknown to the traveller in Scotland, could boast of their annual fair, on however small a scale it might be time on e t thera held d ean , must have been about 1000 fairs held through- e countryth t graduallt Bu ou . y other influences made themselves felt. Afte middle e eighteentth rth f eo h century, Scottish roads begae b o nt very much improve peopld dan e coul t aboudge t much more easilyd an ; with the advent of railways a hundred years later, it may be said that SAINTS' NAMES IN RELATION TO SCOTTISH FAIRS. 161 the high days of fairs were over. Besides, as manners and customs grew more civilised, the clergy set their faces against them, and there are many complaints in the pages of the Statistical Account of Scotland of the bad influence that such celebration morale peoplee th th e n f o so Th .d sha buyin sellind gan f cattlgo e still continue tima keer o eb dfo p certain fair thein so institutioe r legsth t leadine ,bu th y nb g cattle-dealere th n si countr f auctioyo n varioue martth t a s s railway centres brought this, too, to a vanishing point. It is well within the memory of many people still living tha Lore tth d Provos Magistrated an t f Edinburgso h useo dt gstatn oi opeo e t Halloe nth w Fair, whicoutskirte hels th n hdi wa f so existencn e cityi whicd th s an , hwa e certainly befort no eo d 1447 I . suppose they do it now, nor do I suppose the fair itself exists. It was going very stron Robergn i t Fergusson's celebratedayo ,wh poem a n i t si : " Near Edinbrough a fair there hads, there't wa I s riaiie whase nam, eis For strappin' dames and sturdy lads, stoupd an Anp , dmaica r famous Tha t thani t day." But, perhaps more than all the above causes, a piece of legislative action in 1846 sounded the death-knell of all fairs. This was the abolition of the exclusive privileges formerly enjoyed by freemen of burghs and member Merchane th f so t Guild. Thes formerld eha exclusive yth e right of trading in their respective toAvns, and it was only on fair days that this right was in abeyance. But this privilege being abolished by the Ac f Parliameno t f thao t t year, fairs became practically valuelessd an , the right of holding them fell gradually into disuse and disappeared after having served its day. The early fairs were so much associated with the celebrations of the Church t surprisin,no thas i t ti fino gt d mos thef o t m fixed with reference to the festival day of some particular saint. A parish generally held holiday on the anniversary of the saint to whom its church was dedi- cated. Special services woul held mordbe and , e tha usuanthe l average of parishioners would attend these. This would lead also to the attend- anc f travellineo g merchants takin e opportunitgth e concoursth f yo o et sell their wares and supply the domestic wants of the people.