but of their Christian names we have no record to draw upon. They might, however, be William Paton and Agnes Paton, names common in the Kyle district of Ayrshire. The Richmonds resided for some time at a place named Meadowside, near Cairnhill, and it was there that " Betty Burns" handed the plate to one of them. In 1902, there seems to have been some correspondence anent the Bishops in a Linlithgow journal, inspired, we have been told, by a previous article on the subject, which we have failed to trace. The two letters which follow are all we have been enabled to recover :— Sir, For the information of enquirer in your last week's issue, Elizabeth Burns, the image of the Poet's bonnie Betty, borne by Betty Paton at Logieside, Tarbolton, in 1784, was brought up under care of the Poet's mother. She was married to John Bishop, overseer, Halfway-House, Polkemmet, and had a family. She died in December, 1817, aged 32 years, and was buried in Whitburn Churchyard, where a monument stands to her memory. John Bishop was married a second time; his second wife was my auntmy father's sister.-Yours, &c., DUMBACK. "Whit Sir, In response to the inquiry of your correspondent burn," in to-day's issue, I send you a few notes on Mrs Bishop, daughter of Robert Burns. As she was thirty-two years old at her death in January, 1817, the year of her birth may be given as 1784. Her mother was Elizabeth Paton, a servant of the Poet's mother. She was the 'sonsie, smirkin', dear-bought Bess of "The Inventory," dated from Mossgiel, February 22nd, 1786, at which time the child would be in her second year :- "I hae nae wife-and that my bliss is An' ye hae laid nae tax on misses; An' gin ye tax her or her mither, By the L- d! ye'se get them a' thegither! Currie, in his life of Burns, says she grew up extremely like her father, a statement the Poet himself confirms in the line "She stares the daddy in her face." From documents in the Burns Museum at Kilmarnock, published in volume IX. of The Burns Chronicle, we find that the child was reared by the Poet's mother and brother Gilbert. The latter, in 1788, had received from the profits of the Edinburgh edition £200 in loan, and on the Poet's death in 1796, he rendered to his brother's executors an account of his repayments of part of the sum. Among these items, under date 21st December, 1791, occur the following:— By a year's bed, board and washing to Elizabeth Burns, my brother's natural daughter ... By clothes, books, and school wages for ditto... £6 10 0 0 14 6 ... £3 15 10 The account closes on July 6th, 1796, with an item for :Seven months' maintenance of Elizabeth Burns... By clothes, &c., for ditto ... ... 0 10 21 Gilbert Burns, in 1801, removed to Moreham Mains, in Haddington, but whether accompanied by Elizabeth or not I have failed to discover. Eventually she married John Bishop, overseer at Polkemmet, and resided there with her husband at the Half-way House, between Whitburn and Harthill. There she died, and was buried in Whitburn Churchyard, where a neat iron slab, with the following inscription, marks the place where she sleeps with her husband and child IN Regard To the Memory of And of his daughter, MARY LYON, Who died 26th April, 1817, Aged 1 year and 11 months. Died 20th June, 1857, Aged 75 years. 0 1 Probably some other reader may be able to amplify the information regarding her latter life.-Yours, &c., The Evening Times of May 30th, 1906, had the following paragraph : John Pender, engineman at Hyndshaw Pit, Carluke, belonging to the Shotts Iron Company, died with startling suddenness this] morning while engaged at his work. He had just let the fireman down the pit, and the men were gathering at the pit-head when, suspecting something was wrong, some of them went to the enginehouse and discovered Pender lying dead. Death was due to heart failure. Deceased was a man of over 50 years of age. He was a grandson of Burns's Dear-bought Bess," and, being the nearest living relative, was approached recently and gave his permission to the promoters of the movement in Whitburn to have the monument erected there to "Bess put into a better state of repair. This last extract appeared in the same newspaper on a subsequent date: We have this week to report that the repairs to the monument erected in the old Churchyard to the memory of Burns's "Dearbought Bess" have been completed. The monument has now a much better appearance. It has been raised a foot higher and placed on a solid stone foundation, which, like the iron monument itself, has been painted cream colour. The lettering is black, and shows up well on the cream. The following is the inscription : To the Memory of Elizabeth Burns, spouse to John Bishop, Polkemmet, who died January 8th, 1817, aged 32 years; and of his daughter Mary Lyon, who died 26th April, 1817, aged 1 year and 11 months. John Bishop died 20th June, 1857, aged 75 years.' ,, On the back of the monument, for the guidance of visitors, are painted the words : "Here lies the daughter of Robert Burns— The National Bard." Mr White thanks the subscribers for their assistance in helping him to carry out the necessary repairs. EDITOR. A STATUE OF BURNS AT TIMARU, N.Z. F ROM far and near people of Canterbury and Otago foregathered in Timaru on Thursday, May 22nd, 1913, to attend the unveiling of the fine statue of Robert Burns which Mr James Craigie, M.P., has erected in the Timaru Domain, and presented to the citizens of Timaru. The weather was beautifully fine, and in the presence of some thousands of people the ceremony passed off under the happiest possible auspices. A special train ran up from Dunedin, bringing the Mayor, Councillors, and a good many prominent residents of that city, including fifty-five members of the Dunedin Burns Choir and members of the Dunedin Pipe Band. There were also a good many visitors from Christchurch, and from various parts of the Canterbury and Otago provinces. On arrival of the special train from Dunedin, the visitors were taken for a motor drive around the suburbs of Timaru (a great many local people generously providing cars for the purpose), and at one o'clock they returned to the Arcade Café for luncheon, except the members of the Burns Choir, who lunched at the Hydro-Grand. When the guests were all seated, Mr Craigie extended to them a very cordial welcome to Timaru, and expressed the hope that they would enjoy their visit. Sir Robert Stout delivered an eloquent eulogium of the Poet at the unveiling ceremony, which was gracefully performed by Miss Craigie, the daughter of the donor. An impressive tribute to the Bard was paid by Mr W. B. M'Ewan, past president of the Dunedin Burns Club, which was supplemented by Mr David Stuart, J.P., in a short and able address on Burns as a lover of Nature. Mr Craigie, the donor, then stepped forward, and said :— I am delighted to see so large an attendance, and to see so many of our Otago and North Canterbury friends. I might add that "Timaru is honoured indeed in having so many distinguished visitors, |