Wonders Of Operative Masonry.

DRVBLTRGU ABBEY , on the river Tweed , 4 miles south-east of Melrose Abbey , and 35 miles south-east from Edinburgh , was once a superb monastic edifice , but now is in ruins . It was founded A . D . 1150 , on a site once sacred to the Druids ( the name

signifying " the sacred grove of oaks" ) , by Hugh De Moreville , Constable of Scotland , for the Prasmonstratensian Friars . Now , everywhere nature is usurping the place of art . The walls of the abbey are covered with ivy , and even from the top

of some of the arches trees have sprung up to a considerable hei ght . The archtitecture is of various periods , including the Roman , Saxon , Norman , and early Gothic . Near the ruin there flourishes a yew-tree , that is as old as the Abbey—it was planted

seven centuries ago . Dryburgh ' s revenue was . £ 1044 . Bro . Sir Walter Scott gives an interesting account of the "Nun of Dryburgh , " who took up her abode in a vault among the ruins of the Abbey , which she never quitted in the day-time . She went out only hy nightin quest of food

, and charity . She had made a vow that during the absence of her lover she would never look upon the sun . Her lover never returned , and she never more beheld the light . In St . Mary ' s aislethe most beautiful

, part of the ruin , the remains of Bro . Sir Walter Scott Avere entombed , in 1832 , one of his ancestors having been the proprietor of this Abbey . His eldest son , Sir W . Scott , ancl his son-in-law , J . G . Lockhart , were also buried here :

"So , there , in solemn solitude , In that sequestered spot , Lies mingled with its kindred clay The dust of Walter Scott ! Ah , where is UOAV the flashing eve That kindled up at Flodden Field , -

That saw , in fancy , onsets fierce , And clashing spear and shield 1 " That flashing eye is dimmed for aye ; The stalwart limb is stiff ancl cold ; No longer pours his trumpet note To wake the jousts of old .

The generous heart , the open hand , The ruddy cheek , the silver hair , Are mouldering in the silent dust—And all is lonely there !" NEW ABBEY , sometimes denominated SWEETHEART ABBEY , is S miles south of

Dumfries , and SO miles south-west from Edinburgh . Its elegant , although roofless walls , and its airy toAver , are in the earl y English style , while its windows are pointed and decorated . It is woman ' s Avork , erected by a daughter of one of the Lords of Galloway , as a tribute to the

memory of her husband . At his death she caused his heart to be embalmed , and placed in an ivory case , and Avhen her end approached , she directed it to be laid on her bosom , and buried with her in the Abbey Avhich she had founded , and from this incident it derived the name of

Sweetheart Abbey . Its size is 194 feet long , by 102 feet broad at the cross . FURNESS ABBEY , in Lancashire , 15 miles from Lake Windermere—the largest lake in England , ancl 247 miles north-west from London , was founded by Earl , afterwards King Stephenin A . D . 1127 . This

, structure was one of great magnitude , as its ruins testif y , and is romantically situated in the Vale of Nightshade—so called from its former luxuriant growth of that deadly plant .. The massive masonry , graceful arches , and noble tower of

Furness Abbey , all now overspread Avith ivy ( whicli embellishes Avhatever it touches ) , are notable among the antiquities of England . The length of the Abbev is 306 feet , and of its transepts 130 feet . Its walls are five feet thick , Avhile the walls of the tower are eleven thick ! The name , " Furness " is equivalent to " furtherness , "

that is nose or promontory . This Abbey , which in its pristine perfection was one of the most extensive and poAverful monastic establishments in the kingdom , is vow but a storied ruin . The first Barons of Kendal and many of the monks , were interred

within its grounds . Now , however , " No choral anthem floats the laivn along , For sunk in slumber is the hermit throng . There , each alike , the long , the lately dead . The monk , the swain , the minstrel make

their bed . " The Monks of Furness were originally Gray Monks , but soon after the Abbey ' s foundation they Avere merged into the stricter order of Cistercians , or White Monks . Their estates Avere very large and valuable , extending to Yorkshire , the Isle of Man , and even to Ireland , and their numbers were strong ; but at the