[14] Bessie’s Well was not far from the foot of “Cuddie’s Lane.”
The writer has been informed that the well was drained or filled
up by operations connected with the formation of the railway. This
ancient fountain, the destruction of which is to be deplored, had the
traditional reputation of attaching all who drank of it with a lasting
affection to the town of Lockerbie.
[15] The existence of “closes mirk” in Lockerbie may be disputed; but
the writer holds one or two in his recollection well suited to the
taste of those who love the darkness rather than the light.
[16] The town drummer and bellman, one of whose functions was to parade
the streets, drumming the lieges of Lockerbie to bed at ten p.m., and
out of bed at six a.m.—a custom which some thought “more honoured in
the breach than the observance.”