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"Survey return from William MacIntyre"
Melness, Golspie.
1850.
RCP/COL/4/8/107
William MacIntyre was a church minister in Melness.
Melness was a district in the parish of Tongue and had a population of 690 in 1834. For further information on the area, see the entry for Tongue.
[[Addressee]]
The Revd
Willm MacIntyre
Melness
Golspie
[[Survey]]
QUERIES
1. How many Medical Men practice within the Parish of Tongue, Melness being a district thereof ?
One
2. The Names and Addresses of these.
Robert W. Black Tongue by Golspie
3. Has the number increased or diminished of late years?
No
4. Have any left the Parish since you became connected with it? If so, for what reasons?
Successors have been appointed to supply vacancies when happening they have generally left for more lucrative situations, & the labour being too much for them.
5. Is there any complaint among the people of inadequacy in the supply of Medical aid?
The chief complaint is the distance to travel
6. Do you know of any cases of protracted suffering, or of injury by Accident, such as might have been alleviated had proper advice been at hand?
There must be such cases in a poor & thinly inhabited country The range of District for the medical man being upwards of 45 miles in length by 15 in breadth1
7. To what extent is the deficiency of qualified Practitioners made up by the efforts of other parties?
very little, except a few who can use the lancet
8. Does your experience enable you to suggest any measure – of general applicability – such as would be likely to relieve to some extent the evils (if they exist) of deficiency in the supply of Medical aid?
I am not prepared to state at present
9. What Heritors2 are resident, either generally or occasionally, in your Parish?
None, once a year the Duke of Sutherland passes through the country, & pays the Medical practioner3 £50 & free House & about a like sum by the principal Tacksmen4 of 3 Parishes viz Durness, Tongue & Farr.
Explanatory notes:
1. There is an ink stain covering most of the word but it appears to be “breadth”.
2. A heritor was a landowner, under Scots Law, whose holdings were sizeable enough for them to be liable for the payment of public burdens such as Poor Law rates, road and bridge assessments and the church minister’s stipend.
3. Misspelling of “practitioner”.
4. A person who held a lease and sublet land to others.
Remote & Rural Remedies
