Besides a share of the fines imposed, the Brehon or judge obtained a piece of arable land for his support. When he administered justice, he used to sit sometimes on the top of a hillock or heap of stones, sometimes on turf, and sometimes even on the middle of a bridge, surrounded by the suitors, who, of course, pleaded their own cause. We have already seen that, under the system of the Druids, the offices of religion, the instruction of youth, and the administration of the laws, were conducted in the open air; and hence the prevalence of the practice alluded to. But this practice was not peculiar to the Druids; for all nations, in the early stages of society, have followed a similar custom. The Tings of the Scandinavians, which consisted of circular enclosures of stone, without any covering, and within which both the judicial and legislative powers were exercised, afford a striking instance of this. According to Pliny,[107] even the Roman Senate first met in the open air, and the sittings of the Court of the Areopagus, at Athens, were so held. The present custom of holding courts of justice in halls is not of very remote antiquity in Scotland, and among the Scoto-Irish, the baron bailie long continued to dispense justice to the baron’s vassals from a moothill or eminence, which was generally on the bank of a river, and near to a religious edifice.
Of the various customs and peculiarities which distinguished the ancient Irish, as well as the Scoto-Irish, none has given rise to greater speculation than that of fosterage; which consisted in the mutual exchange, by different families, of their children for the purpose of being nursed and bred. Even the son of the chief was so entrusted during pupilarity with an inferior member of the clan. An adequate reward was either given or accepted in every case, and the lower orders, to whom the trust was committed, regarded it as an honour rather than a service. “Five hundred kyne and better,” says Campion, “were sometimes given by the Irish to procure the nursing of a great man’s child.” A firm and indissoluble attachment always took place among foster-brothers, and it continues in consequence to be a saying among Highlanders, that “affectionate to a man is a friend, but a foster-brother is as the life-blood of his heart.” Camden observes, that no love in the world is comparable by many degrees to that of foster-brethren in Ireland.[108] The close connexion which the practice of fosterage created between families, while it frequently prevented civil feuds, often led to them. But the strong attachment thus created was not confined to foster-brothers, it also extended to their parents. Spenser relates of the foster-mother to Murrough O’Brien, that, at his execution, she sucked the blood from his head, and bathed her face and breast with it, saying that it was too precious to fall to the earth.
It is unnecessary, at this stage of our labours, to enter upon the subject of clanship; we mean to reserve our observations thereon till we come to the history of the clans, when we shall also notice some peculiarities or traits of the Highlanders not hitherto mentioned. We shall conclude this chapter by giving lists of the Pictish and Scoto-Irish Kings, which are generally regarded as authentic. A great many other names are given by the ancient chroniclers previous to the points at which the following lists commence, but as these are considered as totally untrustworthy, we shall omit them.
A CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE PICTISH KINGS, CHIEFLY ACCORDING TO THE PICTISH CHRONICLE.
| Series. | NAMES AND FILIATIONS. | Date of Accession. | Duration of Reigns. | Date of Death. |
| 1 | Drust, the son of Erp, | 451 | ||
| 2 | Talorc, the son of Aniel, | 451 | 4 years. | 455 |
| 3 | Necton Morbet, the son of Erp, | 455 | 25 | 480 |
| 4 | Drest Gurthinmoch, | 480 | 30 | 510 |
| 5 | Galanau Etelich, or Galanan Erelech, | 510 | 12 | 522 |
| 6 | Dadrest, | 522 | 1 | 523 |
| 7 | Drest, the son of Girom, | 523 | 1 | 524 |
| Drest, the son of Wdrest, with the former, | 524 | 5 | 529 | |
| Drest, the son of Girom, alone, | 529 | 5 | 534 | |
| 8 | Gartnach, the son of Girom, | 534 | 7 | 541 |
| 9 | Gealtraim, or Cailtraim, the son of Girom, | 541 | 1 | 542 |
| 10 | Talorg, the son of Muircholaich, | 542 | 11 | 553 |
| 11 | Drest, the son of Munait, | 553 | 1 | 554 |
| 12 | Galam, with Aleph, | 554 | 1 | 555 |
| Galam, with Bridei, | 555 | 1 | 556 | |
| 13 | Bridei, the son of Mailcon, | 556 | 30 | 586 |
| 14 | Gartnaich, the son of Domelch, or Donald, | 586 | 11 | 597 |
| 15 | Nectu, or Nechtan, the nephew of Verb, | 597 | 20 | 617 |
| 16 | Cineoch, or Kenneth, the son of Luthrin, | 617 | 19 | 636 |
| 17 | Garnard, the son of Wid, | 636 | 4 | 640 |
| 18 | Bridei, the son of Wid, | 640 | 5 | 645 |
| 19 | Talorc, their brother, | 645 | 12 | 657 |
| 20 | Tallorcan, the son of Enfret, | 657 | 4 | 661 |
| 21 | Gartnait, the son of Donnel, | 661 | 6½ | 667 |
| 22 | Drest, his brother, | 667 | 7 | 674 |
| 23 | Bridei, the son of Bili, | 674 | 21 | 695 |
| 24 | Taran, the son of Entifidich, | 695 | 4 | 699 |
| 25 | Bridei, the son of Dereli, | 699 | 11 | 710 |
| 26 | Nechton, the son of Dereli, | 710 | 15 | 725 |
| 27 | Drest, and Elpin, | 725 | 5 | 730 |
| 28 | Ungus, or Onnust, the son of Urguist, | 730 | 31 | 761 |
| 29 | Bridei, the son of Wirguist, | 761 | 2 | 763 |
| 30 | Cinioch, or Kenneth, the son of Wredech, | 763 | 12 | 775 |
| 31 | Elpin, the son of Wroid, | 775 | 3½ | 779 |
| 32 | Drest, the son of Talorgan, | 779 | 5 | 784 |
| 33 | Talorgan, the son of Ungus or Angus, | 784 | 2½ | 786 |
| 34 | Canaul, the son of Tarla, | 786 | 5 | 791 |
| 35 | Constantine, the son of Urguist, | 791 | 30 | 821 |
| 36 | Ungus, the son of Urguist, | 821 | 12 | 833 |
| 37 | Drest, the son of Constantine, and Talorgan, the son of Wthoil, | 833 | 3 | 836 |
| 38 | Uuen, or Uven, the son of Ungus, | 836 | 3 | 839 |
| 39 | Wrad, the son of Bargoit, | 839 | 3 | 842 |
| 40 | Bred, or Briudi, | 842 | 1 | 843 |
A CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE SCOTO-IRISH KINGS, FROM THE YEAR 503 TO 843.
| Series. | NAMES AND FILIATIONS. | Date of Accession. | Duration of Reigns. | Date of Death. |
| A. D. | Years. | A. D. | ||
| 1 | Fergus, the son of Erc, | 503 | 3 | 506 |
| 2 | Domangart, the son of Fergus, | 506 | 5 | 511 |
| 3 | Comgal, the son of Domangart, | 511 | 24 | 535 |
| 4 | Gavran, the son of Domangart, | 535 | 22 | 557 |
| 5 | Conal, the son of Comgal, | 557 | 14 | 571 |
| 6 | Aidan, the son of Gavran, | 571 | 34 | 605 |
| 7 | Eoacha’-Bui, the son of Aidan, | 605 | 16 | 621 |
| 8 | Kenneth-Cear, the son of Eoacha’-Bui, | 621 | ¼ | 621 |
| 9 | Ferchar, the son of Eogan, the first of the race of Lorn, | 621 | 16 | 637 |
| 10 | Donal-Breac, the son of Eoacha’-Bui, | 637 | 5 | 642 |
| 11 | Conal II., the grandson of Conal I. | 642 | 10 | 652 |
| 12 | Dungal reigned some years with Conal, | ... | ... | ... |
| 13 | Donal-Duin, the son of Conal, | 652 | 13 | 665 |
| 14 | Maol-Duin, the son of Conal, | 665 | 16 | 681 |
| 15 | Ferchar-Fada, the grandson of Ferchar I., | 681 | 21 | 702 |
| 16 | Eoacha’-Rinevel, the son of Domangart, and the grandson of Donal-breac, | 702 | 3 | 705 |
| 17 | Ainbhcealach, the son of Ferchar-fada, | 705 | 1 | 706 |
| 18 | Selvach, the son of Ferchar-fada, reigned over Lorn from 706 to 729, | ... | ... | ... |
| 19 | Duncha Beg reigned over Cantyre and Argaill till 720, | 706 | 27 | 733 |
| 20 | Eocha’ III., the son of Eoacha’-rinevel, over Cantyre and Argaill, from 720 to 729; and also over Lorn from 729 to 733, | ... | ... | ... |
| 21 | Muredach, the son of Ainbhcealach, | 733 | 3 | 736 |
| 22 | Eogan, the son of Muredach, | 736 | 3 | 739 |
| 23 | Aodh-Fin, the son of Eoacha’ III., | 739 | 30 | 769 |
| 24 | Fergus, the son of Aodh-fin, | 769 | 3 | 772 |
| 25 | Selvach II., the son of Eogan, | 772 | 24 | 796 |
| 26 | Eoacha’-Annuine IV., the son of Aodh-fin, | 796 | 30 | 826 |
| 27 | Dungal, the son of Selvach II., | 826 | 7 | 833 |
| 28 | Alpin, the son of Eoacha’-Annuine IV., | 833 | 3 | 836 |
| 29 | Kenneth, the son of Alpin, | 836 | 7 | 843 |
It is right to mention that the Albanic Duan omits the names between Ainbhcealach and Dungal (17–27), most of which, however, are contained in the St. Andrews’ list.