is in favour of Agricola's advance by this route across the Cheviots. In particular, it may he noted that among the pottery from Cappuck preserved at Monteviot there are one or two unpublished fragments of Terra Sigillata that may well date from the first century, as well as others referrible to the second century.

At Newstead the road must have crossed the Tweed. Possibly a branch may have diverged here westwards, following the valley of the river to Lyne, and so onwards to the western end of the Antonine Wall. But even of the course of the, main road from Newstead onwards we cannot produce much evidence. The position of both camp and fort seems chosen primarily to command the passage over the river. Milne's reference to a bridge across the Tweed, the ruins of which were being further demolished in his time, has been already quoted. No trace of it exists to-day, and recent attempts to' ascertain its site were unsuccessful. Roy, whose view was that 'the Watling Street' passed the river at this point, thought he could discover some remains of a camp at Channelkirk in Lauderdale. He gives a plan. But the remains upon the site are not now recognisable as Roman. Beyond the watershed at Soutra Hill, we again find definite evidence of Roman military occupation at Inveresk. This does not of itself prove definitely that the Roman road followed the route of the Leader valley. Inveresk might also have been reached by way of the Gala and the line of the North British Railway. But the road through Lauderdale and over Soutra Hill seems to have formed for many centuries the main line of communication between this part of Roxburghshire and the North; and it is not unreasonable to identify it with the original Roman road which in the north of England appears in medieval documents under the name of Dere Street. Monastic charters enable us to trace Dere Street from Durham and Northumberland through Roxburghshire and Lauderdale.

In the History of St Cuthbert, published among the writings of Simeon of Durham, and written between 1104 and 1108, there occurs a reference to the road known as Deorestrete. The passage narrates how the Bishop Ecgred 'built a church at the town which is called Gegnford [Gainford on the Tees] and gave it to Saint Cuthbert with whatever pertained to it from the river Tese to the Weor, and from the way which is called Deorestrete to the high ground towards the west and beyond the

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