Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 2.djvu/774

Rh MAN, ISLE OF. 766 MAN, ISLE OF. it, as he had previously done the other possessions of the Kings of the Isles, viz. the Orkneys and the Hebrides. In token of his conquest he substituted for the ancient armorial ensign of the isle, which was a ship in full sail, the device of three legs joined at the thigh, armed and spurred, with the motto " Qiwcunque jeceru stabit," which it still retains. Under the Scottish kings the ancient regal government was abolished, and a military despotism by lieutenants established in its place. In 1289 the island was surrendered by the Scottish Commissioners to Edward I., who restored it the following year to John Baliol ; but on the death of Edward I. in 1307, his successor, Edward II., seized it, and in one year bestowed it successively upon his favourites Piers de Gavestone, Gilbert de M. Gascall, and Henry de Bello Monte. In 1333 Edward III. gave the heiress of Reginald, the last of the Manx princes, in marriage to Sir William de Montacute, and confirmed to him the sovereignty of Man, to the great delight of the inhabitants, who saw the Scots once more expelled and the ancient government restored in the right line. In 1395 William de Montacute, Earl of Salisbury, having become indebted, sold his title to Sir William Scroope, afterwards Earl of Wiltshire, who was beheaded during the wars of the Roses, when the sovereignty successively passed to the Percys, earls of Northumberland, and Sir John Stanley, ancestor of the earls of Derby, under whom the title of King of Man was exchanged for that of " Lord of Man." This earl obtained a parliamentary title, in confirmation of the regal grant of James I. During the parliamentary war the island remained steadily attached to the interests of Charles I., for which James Earl of Derby was beheaded in 1651 at Bolton-le-Moors. His countess, the Charlotte Tremouille of Sir Walter Scott's " Peveril of the Peak," then undertook its defence, but was compelled, through the treachery of deputy- governor William Christian, who had the command of the garrison of Castle Rushen, to surrender it to Lord Fairfax, to whom it was granted. On the Restoration it was restored with their other estates to the earls of Derby, one of whom, James, the tenth earl, by the Act of Settlement, confirmed to the lessees of estates their lands in perpetuity, upon the payment of certain rents and fines to the lord. Upon the death of this noble- man without issue in 1735, the lordship of Man descended to James Murray, second duke of Athol, as heir-general of his great-grandfather, James Earl of Derby, who was beheaded at Bolton. In 1765 measures were introduced into parliament for the effectual sup- pression of smuggling, which had previously been carried on from this island to such an extent as to affect the revenue of the kingdom. It was further pro- posed to purchase the sovereignty and revenue of the island for 70,000 ; and, after some other payments, in 1829 the remaining interest of the Athol family was finally purchased by the Lords of the Treasury for 416,000, and the Isle of Man, with all its privileges and immunities, was thus entirely ceded to the British crown. Its affairs are now managed by a governor, or lieutenaut-governor, assisted by the estates or Court of Tynwald, composed of a council, or Upper House of Ten, in which the bishop, archdeacon, and two vicars- general have seats, and a House of Keys consisting of 24 life members, chosen from amongst the freeholders by the House with the approval of the governor, who selects one of two nominated on each vacancy. For purposes of local administration it is separated into two divisions, north and south, each comprising three sheadings, viz. Ayre, Garff, and Michael in the N., and Middle, Eushen, and Glaufaba in the S. These are further divided into 17 parishes, all beginning with Kirk (under which heading a more particular descrip- tion will be found). In each of these parishes schools and libraries were established by Bishop Wilson, whose name is still revered throughout the island. These 17 pars., of which 14 are vies, and 3 rects., constitute a dioc. in the prov. of York, called Sodor and Man, from the circumstance of King Magnus in 1098 having united the Sodereys, or Southern Hebrides, with Man a one dioc. Besides the 17 civil pars, there are 14 distric pars, or chplries. Service is performed alternately i the churches in Manx and English. The courts consis of chancery, exchequer, and common-law procedure which sit four times a year at Castletown, Kushen, o Ramsey. The general gaol delivery takes place twice year at Castletown ; deemsters' courts weekly at Ramse and Douglas ; high bailiffs' at Castletown, Douglas, Pee and Ramsey ; also occasionally admiralty, seneschals' ecclesiastical rolls', and coroners', the last for eac sheading. The island is nearly 110 miles in circum ference, and contains an area of about 200,000 acres, o which 30,000 are hill and common. The coast is for the most part rocky, the cliffs frequently rising perpendicu- larly from the level of the beach to the height of from 100 to 300 feet. At the southern extremity is the pro- montory of Spanish Head (where one of the ships of the Armada was wrecked in the reign of Elizabeth), consist- ing of bold precipices washed by a rocky channel. In this channel are the islands of Kitterland and the Calf of Man, the largest of the rocky islets which surround the coast. The other important points along the coast are Ramsey, Douglas, Peel, Port-le-Mary, and Castle- town harbours, the Bahama and King William's hanks, Laxey oyster bed and haven, Derby Haven, and Port- Erin, these three last, being natural havens. Douglas harbour, which is dry at low water, is considered the best dry harbour in the Irish Sea, having from 15 to 20 feet depth at high water, when vessels of considerable burden can approach the quay. The pier is 520 feet in length, and 40 broad, to an extent of 450 feet from iU commencement, when it expands to a breadth of 90 feet, with a lighthouse in the centre. All vessels having goods or merchandise for bonding are, by Act of Parlia- ment, compelled to deliver their cargoes exclusively at this port, where is situated the custom-house, and of which Derby Haven, Peel, and Ramsay, are members. Although Castletown is the capital of the island, Douglas is by far the handsomest and most populous town, carrying on an extensive trade, and having recently become a favourite watering place, with good hotels, boarding houses, and every accommodation for visitors. Steamers run to Liverpool and Whitehaven. It publishes the Manx Guardian, Manx Sun, Manx Liberal, Mono Herald, National Reformer, and Odd Fellow's Chronicle. A few years ago it was almost consumed by fire, but has been restored. The other towns are Peel and Ramsey. The island is divided into two unequal parts by a chain, of heathy hills running N.E. and S.W., from North Barrule, which is 1,840 feet high at the northern extremity of the chain to Brada Head at the southern, and including Sneafell, or Snafield, Ben-e- phot, or Penypot, Garraghan, Mount Greeba, and South Barrule, ranging from 1,600 to 2,000 feet above the sea- level. The loftiest of these summits is Sneafell, which is 2,004 feet, and commands a noble view of the Irish Sea, and the coast of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, spread out in a circle around it. The prevailing rocks are mica, clay, and graywacke slates resting on granite, which shows itself at Foxdale, Laxey, and other points, occasionally intermixed with silvery mica, red and white felspar, and grey quartz, with some isolated portions of Old Red sandstone near Peel and Castletown, and mountain limestone at Poolvash. The principal minerals are lead, which contains from 60 to 150 ounces of silver per ton, copper, zinc, anthracite coal, roofing slate, slate for lintels. The chief mines are at Laxey, Foxdale, and Breda Head. Bones of the fossil elk are found in the shell marl, and agates and cornelians on the sands, also many rare fish and shells are met with on the shore, which abounds in curious caverns. The animal of most interest in the island is the tailless cat ; there are also snipes, partridges, and quails ; and sea-fowl and rabbits abound at the southern extremity of the island, and at the Calf. Many of the rivers are well stocked with trout, as the Laxey and Sulby, the latter of which has a cascade, as have also the Peel, (Jk-n- meay, or Glen Moij, and the Dhoon. The Douglas,