BERWICK-UPON-TWEED

BERWICK-UPON-TWEED is situated on the north side of the river Tweed, about half a mile from its mouth. It is a borough possessing, with its liberties, which extend about three miles, many of the characteristics of a "town and county," but it is not, as is often erroneously stated, a town and county of itself, neither is it within any county. Berwick being the threshold of the Scottish kingdom in entering from England, it repeatedly suffered in the wars between the two hostile nations, particularly at that disastrous era when Edward I. trampled upon Scottish liberty. It was in the castle of this town that that ambitious monarch, as lord paramount, put Baliol in possession of the crown of Scotland. Previously to its conquest by King Edward I. it was the chief or county town of Berwickshire, but it is now part of the kingdom of England. By a charter granted by King James I. the town and its liberties, which are incorporated, enjoy many valuable privileges of a peculiar nature. The justices of the peace are elected by the corporation, not by the crown. They hold courts for the trial of all manner of offenders, and have the power of inflicting capital punishment; and the English judges of assize have no jurisdiction there. The civil courts, for the recovery of debts, damages, and such like, are also unlimited and supreme, subject however to the revision of the courts of Westminster Hall. The corporation, consisting of above 1000 freemen, of whom about a half reside in the borough, are the owners of a considerable proportion of the lands and tenements within the liberties, which produce an annual revenue of about £12,000, part of which is expended in supporting the public institutions of the town, including several excellent schools, and the remainder divided amongst the burgesses. The town is surrounded by walls. The town-hall is an elegant structure, with a stately spire

150 feet high, in which there are eight bells. The parish church is a spacious and commodious building. It has no steeple, having been built in the time of the puritans. The bridge over the Tweed contains fifteen arches, and measures 1164 feet in length, but it is only seventeen feet in width. The barracks, for infantry, form a handsome quadrangle, and are capable of accommodating upwards of 600 men. The town cannot boast of any manufactories of the least importance, and it has recently lost one of its main sources of income, an immense exportation of pork and eggs to London, which is now supplied by Ireland and the continent. The trade of Berwick is at present principally confined to the exportation of corn and salmon. The Tweed is a navigable river as high as the bridge, but the entrance is narrowed by sand banks, to obviate which a stone pier, about half a mile in length, terminated by a light-house, has been recently constructed. The quays and warehouses are commodious. There are two weekly markets on Wednesday and Saturday; and an annual fair on the Friday in Trinity week, for horses, cattle, and sheep. The castle, which once gave dignity and afforded protection to the town, is a mass of ruins. Berwick sends two members to parliament. It contains 463 houses. The population, according to the census of 1831, consists of 3937 males, 4983 females; total 8920. It is 336 miles N. W. from London, and 56 S. E. from Edinburgh. Long. 2. 3. W. Lat. 55. 46. 40. N.