y successor of old Drummond-Ernoch. It is
this: _Gleann-ard-an-fheidh_--"the high glen of the deer." This would
certainly account for the last syllable of the modern name, and would
also accord with the fact of the place being an ancient forest; but we
prefer the derivation _Gleann-ardan_--"the glen of heights," and we
think the last syllable has been added merely to suit the imperfection
of the Saxon's vocal organs.

The mansion-houses of the head of Strathearn and their occupants are of
some historical interest, but, as our space is limited, our reference
to them must be brief, and confined to a few of the oldest. On the
margin of Loch Earn stands Ardvoirlich House. The present occupant of
the estate is Colonel John Stewart, who spent the first part of his
life in India, and now resides upon the estate. With the exception of
the Drummonds, who trace their ancestry back to Maurice, the Hungarian,
who lived about the time of the Norman Conquest, the Stewarts of
Ardvoirlich are the oldest family in the district. They lay claim not
only to a long ancestral line, but also to Royal blood, through a son
of Murdoch, Duke of Albany, Regent of Scotland, and son of Robert II.
Among the antique curiosities of this family, it is said, there is a
large gem called _clach dhearg_--red stone, seemingly white rock
crystal, bound with four silver bands, which used to be regarded as a
talisman, giving to water into which it is dipped virtue for the cure
of all diseases of cattle. In recent times the Stewarts have been a
family of soldiers who served in India. Their burying-place is within
the old Chapel of Dundurn, but the monuments erected to the memory of
members of the family recently deceased are in the Parish Church of
Comrie. They are all handsome, and a great ornament to the interior of
the Parish Church; but one of them is worthy of special notice on
account of its artistic beauty. It is that erected by the
Governor-General of India and other dignitaries and friends to
commemorate the death of William Stewart, who, along with his wife and
infant son, was murdered in the Indian Mutiny of 1857. It is a
cenotaph of pure Carrara marble, with the figure of a Sepoy soldier
with arms reversed on the one side, and a Hindoo in a kneeling posture
on the other.

Dunira House is the seat of the Dundases. The present proprietor is
Sir Sidney James Dundas, the third baronet of Beechwood and Dunira, who
succeeded his father, Sir