Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

the naked, feed the hungry, and shelter the orphan and fatherless, seemed to constitute the pleasure and happiness of her life, and the cause was only extinct with her breath. Her acts of charity and benevolence, which were not local, but extended to the abodes of distress wherever they were, will long be remembered with grateful emotions, especially by those who shared her bounty. The remains were brought from Orrard to Pitfour on Saturday, and the funeral took place on Tuesday. The tenantry, and others from the neighbourhood, to show the deep sorrow they felt for the loss of so amiable and useful a lady, assembled to pay their last tribute of gratitude to the memory of one whose tender and generous heart was ever open to the cry of misery and distress, and whose bountiful hand was ever ready to administer, to the wants of the suffering, the necessaries and comforts of life, and along with these the use of medical aid when necessary. Aug. 5. At Dumfries, Mr James Dinniston, late merchant there.

At Mary's Cottage. Trinity, Mrs J. Linning. 6. At Tynéfield, William Hunter, Esq. 7. Mrs Jessie Hamilton, wife of John Glassford, Hopkirk, Esq. W. S., in the 28th year of her age. 9. At Bath, Major-General William Augustine Prevost, C. B. son of the late Major-General, and brother of the late Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost, Bart.

-At Juniper Green, Colinton, Lieut. Henry Rymer, R. N.

10. In Lauriston Lane, Edinburgh, Francis, the only son of Leonard Horner, Esq.

-At Glasgow, Mrs Powlett, the widow of Lieutenant-Colonel Horatio Armand Powlett, in her 86th year.

-At Coruhill, in the 64th year of his age, Lawrence Robertson, Esq. of Cornhill, late Provost of Perth.

11. At Edinburgh, Maria Jane Craigie, eldest daughter of Captain Edmund Craigie, of the Hon. East India Company's service.

-At Aberdeen, in the d year of her age, Jane Allan Kidd, daughter of the Rev. Dr Kidd.

12. At Rothesay, at an advanced age, the Rev. James Ramsay, formerly minister of the gospel in Glasgow.

13. In Upper Gower-Street, London, Lucy Elizabeth, wife of Lord Maurice Drummond.

-At Clifton, Lieut. John Bushnan, R. N., aged 28. He sailed with Captains Ross and Parry in the three north-west expeditions, and was attached to the overland expedition destined for Behring's Straits, under Captain Franklin.

14. At Glasgow, Dr William Buchanan, late Surgeon of the 82d regiment of foot.

At Edinburgh, Mrs Jean Lawton, widow of Edward Lawton, Esq. of the island of Jamaica. -At his house, Dean Bank, Captain James Matthew.

15. At Edinburgh, the Rev. James Duguid, third son of the Rev. John Duguid, minister of Evie and Rendal, Orkney, aged 27.

- At Glasgow, in the 28th year of his age, Mr John Johnston, formerly midshipman on board H. M. S. Royal Oak, 74 guns, Admiral Sir Pultney Malcolm, and, at the period of his decease, agent for the Forth and Clyde Canal Company.

Aug. 16. At Sandwich, Mr Frend, landlord of the Mermaid inn. The deceased, with several young men, a few days back, were enjoying themselves in a field running, when a blade of grass by some means cut his foot, and the wound gradually getting worse, caused his speedy dissolution.

16. At Newtown, Paisley, at an advanced age, Miss Mary Rainy.

- At Arbroath, in the 58th year of his age, the Rev. John Cruikshanks, pastor of the Scots Episcopal Church there.

-At Edinburgh, Mr James Richardson, surgeon and druggist.

17. At Leith, Peter F. Hay, son of Mr John Hay, ship-owner.

At Inverness, Mrs Sirella M'Iver, relict of the late Rev. Murdoch M'Iver, minister of Lochalsh.

-At Meadowsale, near Strathaven, James Millar, Esq. advocate.

At Rockhill, Argyllshire, Mrs M⚫Lachlan, sen. of M'Lachlan, in the 91st year of her age.

18. At Glasgow, Lieutenant James Joseph Gordon, R. N. aged 4 years, only son of Captain Gordon, late of Gordon Bank.

- Mrs Heugh, relict of John Heugh of Cartcows, Esq.

-At Cupar, Mr Peter Morgan, Supervisor of Excise.

19. In the 28th year of her age, Susanna Davidson, wife of William Kirkaldy, Esq. merchant in Dundee.

-At Edinburgh, William Calder, Esq. late Lord Provost of that city, much and deeply regretted.

-At the Bridge of Allan, near Stirling, Mrs Ann Thomson, second daughter of the late Alex. Thomson, tobacconist, Edinburgh, and spouse of Robert Rankin, some time general agent, Katharine-Street, there.

20. At Dalnaspidal, Blair Atholl, Lieut.-Colonel George Johnston, brother to the Right Hon. Lady Gray.

At London, Thomas Trevor Hampden, Viscount Hampden and Baron Trevor of Bromham. -At Eden, Mrs Grant Duff, relict of the late John Grant, Esq. of Kincardine O'Neil.

At Edinburgh, Mr Daniel Miller, late of the Excise. 29. At Inverleith Mains, Mr George Lauder, farmer.

23. At Stranraer, James Mackay, Esq. merchant, Glasgow, in the 60th year of his age.

Lately. At Tewkesbury, a few days since, Thomas Tippen, a Chelsea, pensioner, in his 100th year. The veteran enjoyed his faculties in tolerable perfection until a very short period before his death. He entered the army in his 23d year, and served as a private in the 20th regiment at the memorable battle of Minden, as well as in five other general actions on the continent.

- At Okegem, near Ninove, in the Netherlands, a woman named Marie De Brakeleer, aged 103. She possessed her intellectual faculties to the last, and her hair was long, black, and thick.

-On board his Majesty's ship Owen Glendower, on his passage home from the coast of Africa, Mr Thos. Thomson, youngest son of the Rev. George Thomson, minister of Melrose.

J. Ruthven & Son, Printers.

[blocks in formation]

419

Scots Judicature Bill,

I. Assimilation of the Jurispru
dence of Great Britain and

425

ib.

[blocks in formation]

434 Meteorological Table,....................................

The Infidel's Wife,.......................................... 442 Agricultural Report,..................................... ib.
The Traveller.-No. I. 448 Course of Exchange,
Sketches from Nature,........ 459 Bankrupts,...................................................................... ib.

Young Howardy

[ocr errors]
[merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]
[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]

The Correspondents of the EDINBURGH MAGAZINE and LITERARY MISCELLANY are respectfully requested to transmit their Communications for the Editor to ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE & COMPANY, Edinburgh, or to HURST, ROBINSON, & COMPANY, London; 'to whom also orders for the Work should be addressed.

Printed by J. Ruthven & Son.

THE

EDINBURGH MAGAZINE,

AND

LITERARY MISCELLANY.

OCTOBER 1824.

THE SCOTTISH GALLOVIDIAN ENCYCLOPEDIA

THIS is, beyond all question, the most extraordinary, not to say, monstrous production of the present age. That there are individuals capable of any extravagance may well be believed; but here the cause of astonishment is, that the press, accommodating as it is to every species of folly, should have become subservient to the purposes of such an obscene, drivelling blockhead as John Mactaggart. By what "windlasses and assays of bias" he got it to work for him, and throw into the lap of gaping curiosity a work compounded of all that is offensive and abominable, and which exhibits intellect in the lowest stage of infirmity, must, even in this book-making age, be matter of wonder.

In point of propriety, we should, before taking any notice of his work, introduce the reader to its redoubtable author, whose history forms one of the most imposing articles in his Encyclopedia. "The Friday night before Keltonhill fair was the night in which I, gomerall Johnie, first opened my mouth in this wicked world." His grandfather's grandfather, it appears, got his head cloven (an accident which was sufficient to lay the foundation of a hereditary complaint) "at the brack o' Dunbar, fighting in the Highland army against Oliver Cromwell." What brack this was, or what a brack is, we profess not to know; but of this we are certain, that Old Noll never encountered a Highland Host at Dunbar, or elsewhere. His father, we are told, is a farmer; and throughout John's "pilgrimage on earth, from the cradle, till this moment, he has never met with any whom he considered had so much native strength of intellect." Upon no higher authority than the testimony of his son, we shall suppose Mactaggart, senior, to be a most judicious personage; and so supposing and believing, but denying to him the attribute of foresight, we sincerely grieve for his domestic afflictions, the greatest of all which we conceive to be the one which developed itself on "the Friday night before Keltonhill fair." The Jewish law prescribed penances for the act of involuntary manslaughter; and to a man of tender conscience, the act, however involuntary, of begetting such a being as our author, must appear equally heinous. John, at an early age, was placed, along with some brothers and sisters, under the tuition of a half-grown boy, "who taught and lashed them occasionally;" and John was most happy when the seed-time commenced, because this juvenile dominie was then transferred from the thrashing to the harrowing department. When six years of age, our author had no companion at home" but a howlet,”—the

The Scottish Gallovidian Encyclopedia, or the Original, Antiquated, and Natural Curiosities of the South of Scotland; containing sketches of eccentric characters and curious places, with explanations of singular words, terms, and phrases; interspersed with poems, tales, anecdotes, &c., and various other strange matters; the whole illustrative of the ways of the peasantry, and manners of Caledonia; drawn out and alphabetically arranged. By John Mactaggart.

VOL. XV.

S B

bird of Minerva; and this bird having fallen a victim to the malice of a dunghill-cock, John "mourned about it many a day," more than ever Minerva will mourn for the death of himself. Next he was sent to a Latin lashed up school; and as he "could learn nothing about it," he was stairs and down stairs, and was saved, he believes, from dying an unnatural death, from his parents' flitting from Lennox Plunton, to the farm of Torrs, in the parish of Kirkcudbright." Now, John and we differ toto cælo respecting what is a natural death. To have been lashed out of existence for stupidity would, in his case, have been the most natural death in the world; and as to the pedagogue who made the experiment, we "laud him for it,' and much regret that it did not succeed, which we attribute to John's running "up stairs and down stairs," instead of remaining stationary during the trying operation. This pedagogue we take to have been a most philanthropic individual. No one would submit to the laborious task of extinguishing vitality in such a mass of brute matter, but from some high and benevolent motive. Whether it was to make an atonement for the philoprogenitive proceedings of the father, or to save his country from a future deluge of nonsense, we cannot determine, though no one will doubt that one or other of these must have been his object.

Our author was now removed to another academy, the master of which he thus eulogizes: "In truth, Mr Caig is an excellent teacher; he gives Nature fair play; he lets the scholars pursue their own inclination, be what it will. If I have any learning, or any genius about me, to this man am I indebted for their improvement. Had he been a dominie who gave out tasks, who obliged the scholars to learn this, and then that, who made a slave of the mind when in its tender state, and who valued the feelings nothing, I, MAC, would never have been heard of." The above passage is not only the best piece of writing in the whole book, but is eminently logical. Had the worthy Mr Caig pursued a course of education opposite to that which he did, it is possible he might have taught Mac to form a humble and becoming estimate of his own abilities; in which case he never would have been led, by a rampant vanity, to exhibit himself as a laughing-stock to the British public. He thus proceeds: "I should have crawled about, a mean artificial worm of man's formation, without one spark of Nature's fire about me;" which, after all the compliments paid to his father's astonishing good sense, really reduces the good old man to the rank of a wormbreeder. Our author was next despatched to the school of Kirkcudbright, where he laid all the school below him, with the mathematics;" but could make nothing of French. "In his thirteenth year he took a huff at schools and schoolmasters altogether, leaving them both with disgust;" so he would learn a trade, and wrote to two respectable bookselling firms in Edinburgh, also to a printer in Dumfries, expressing his wish to become an apprentice; but neither bibliopolists nor printer would return him an answer! He then felt "a melancholy working in on him, which he will never get rid of;" and which was caused by his mother one night communicating to him the alarming truth," that there would come a day on which he should die, and be covered up with cold mould in a grave." He next became " bookish-inclined," and started on foot for Edinburgh College. But "before this time, I had taken a ramble through England,' -at the heels of a drove of nolt, we presume," had been often in love, had wrote poetry, and the devil knows what. I have rhymed since ever I remember, but I keeped dark. After passing a hard winter in Edinburgh, attending my favourite natural classes, reading from libraries, writing for Magazines, (credut Judæus!) and what not, I returned to the rural world in the spring; and the next winter I went back to Edinburgh, but not to attend the College, though that was the ap parent motive. I never received any good from attending the University."

[ocr errors]

This same melancholy, it would seem, was so intense as to superinduce a severe bodily ailment, which he feelingly alludes to in the following articles: "Nocks-Little beautiful hills; Nockshinnie and Nocktannie used to be favourite nocks of mine; to these places I would steal sometimes, when melancholy set sore upon me, and so get

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
« AnteriorContinuar »