From Robert Chambers to William Kemp   8 December 1847

Dear Sir,

I have great pleasure in acknowledging receipt of your letter this morning, for now at length I think we are coming to a right view of the Tweedside elevations. We must after all take the railway as right at 320, and the top of Eildon as about what Mr Mitchell makes it above that point, thus discarding the measurement of Sir John Leslie. I yesterday ascertained after much trouble, that the datum of the railway is nearly 14 feet above the sea level. When we add this, and take the Melrose station at 334 (6 above the original assumption) the series as now set down by you falls into an order which I think tolerably harmonious with that obtained in other markings of a similar kind. Pray make up such a list for yourself; adding 22 feet to the measurements you send me to-day will make it what I now think a near approximation to the truth. It gives you the Old Galashiels terrace at 394, which is about what I find elsewhere. Dingleton Mains 542: now I have just yesterday ascertained from railway plans that the plateau at Peebles is 542$\frac{1}{2}$. I may mention, however, some small discrepancies which make me wish you would look into matters again to see if they can be reconciled. Housebyres is now 842 in your last list: i.e. 22 added to 820. Now my set of measurements would make this 833, which is nearer to an agreement with other terraces. You cite an intermediate level above this at “about 860,” which may now be translated into “about 882.” Were it 878, it would agree with the lowest Glenroy terrace, for which I am extremely anxious to obtain co-ordinates. Could you search out this marking a little more distinctly, and come to precision about its height? The second shelf of Cauldshiels Hill is now 970. This is a few feet lower than what I made it, and than some other terraces in distant districts. Then your lowest on Meigle &c. is 1176. Were it a few feet less, it wou⁠⟨⁠ld⁠⟩⁠ as exactly correspond with the 3rd of the Glenroy terraces. We shall now want one at about 1200 on Tweed to correspond with the Glen Glenroy terraces, the highest of those in Lochaber hitherto observed. Pray take all these things in tow, and say what candour allows regarding them. If you write before Sunday, address me at “Fingask Castle, Perth”.

I remain, | dear Sir, | yours always sincerely obliged, | R. Chambers.