at date. When
on the scaffold he prophesied that "the water o' Almond runs ower mony
a stane, but it'll ne'er run twa years withoot takin' ane." The
prophecy has reference to the number of people drowned in the river,
which is remarkable for the impetuosity of its floods.

At Fendoch--the entrance to the Sma' Glen--we tread on historical
ground. Here, at Tom-an-Die--"Hill of God"--there is no reason to
doubt, was one of the chief stations of the Romans, a standing camp,
formed, not for a halt of a few days, but to be occupied for a
considerable time. It was formed by Agricola in the year 84 A.D., in
his seventh and last campaign, probably a little before the Battle of
Mons Grampius. It had many advantages of situation, and we may well
believe that it continued to be occupied by the Romans so long as they
had possession of North Britain;--by Lollius Urbicus, who in the next
century anew drove back the Caledonians to their fastnesses beyond the
Grampians; and by the Emperor Severus in the beginning of the third
century. So distinct were the traces of the camp in the year 1795,
when the first Statistical Account of the parish was written, as to
admit of its being measured. At that time the trenches were entire,
and in some places six feet deep; but both rampart and trenches have
disappeared under the operation of the plough. Though the camp covered
upwards of fifty acres, nothing can now be seen but a small piece of
breast-work facing the Almond.

At the mouth of the Sma' Glen there is a round
knoll--Tom-an-Tighe--"the House of the Hill"--where Fingal, the father
of Ossian, is said to have dwelt until his house was destroyed by Gara.
The place is called Fendoch, a corruption of Finn-Tighe--"Finn's
House." When Fendoch was burnt, Fingal built a fort on the summit of
Dunmore, on the east side of the glen, where he and his father, Comhal,
are said to be buried. The remains of this fort, still visible, show
it to have been a place of retreat almost impregnable. That Comhal,
his son, and grandson lived in the parish, the etymology of the place
can scarcely leave a doubt. Not only have we Fingal's house, but on
the moor contiguous to Fendoch we have Cairn-Comhal--"the cairn over
the grave of Comhal"; while at Cultoquhey we have a camp called in
Gaelic Comhal Cults--that is, "Comhal's battle"; and it is worthy of
note that, towards the close of last century, some urns with ashes in
them were dug up in this locality.