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to the Edinburgh booksellers, Messrs. Bell and Bradfute, to forward one to your lordship, of which I request acceptance, as a small return for your attention to our old bard.

Your lordship has, I dare say, seen the curious collection of Old Scotish Poems, printed 1508; lately lodged in the Advocates' Library. I spoke to M. Cardonnel, when up here, to get me copies of the chief articles. I should take it very kind, if your lordship will recommend this to Mr. C., and if you could procure for me copies of two poems, the Houlet, and the Bludy Sark, from the Bannatyne manuscript, fol. 302 and 325.

My Scarce Scotish Poems, Reprinted, including Lindsay's Plays, &c., will not appear till next winter.

I beg leave to recommend to your lordship's inquiries "The Memoirs of Lockhart of Lee," Cromwell's Ambassador to France, printed by Uric at Glasgow, about 1760, but, I believe, called in by the family; for, though I read this book when a boy, I can now hear of no copy, except one in the hands of Dr. Adam Smith. It is a pity that it is not republished. If your lordship happens to see your worthy friend, Lord Hailes, have the goodness to mention this; and it will be a favor, if you will also ask him if he did not write an account of Michael Scot of Palwierie, in the Edinburgh Magazine, and for what year; for I wish much to see it.

This letter was written before your lordship's of the 16th came to hand. As to Winton's Chronicle, it will require the copies to be sold at 17. ls. each, to make 250 pay expenses, if printed as the

Bruce, of which 750 are printed, and yet will hardly pay expense of printing, plates, &c. the Winton must stand over for a few

years.

But

I am extremely obliged to your lordship for your liberal and polite offers to assist my history of Scotland, which at present engrosses all my attention. I mean the collecting of materials; for as to the work itself, I have not yet put pen to paper in it. When occasion arises, I shall beg leave to avail myself of your lordship's offers.

I never expected that my "Inquiry into our early History" would find great success among the present generation of our countrymen. Deep prejudices can hardly be done away, even in a second generation. But I should be glad to know if any one has written against it; or what are the chief objections which your lordship hears. My countrymen here object to my saying, that Scotland's chief merit is defensive war; and that she has produced no man of erudition. But what is so easy as to confute me, by naming any one conquest we ever made, or any one book of erudition written by a Scotchman? If we sit down idle, in the idea that we have done great things, it is wrong. The object with a true lover of his country, is to sow the seeds of future spirit. As to the real contents and essence of my book, I have heard no objection here.

Mr. Napier in the Strand is publishing Old Scotish tunes with the words. If your lordship knows any unpublished, it will be a favor if you will communicate them to him. His address is "Music Seller to their Majesties."

EARL OF BUCHAN TO MR. PINKERTON.

Dryburgh Abbey, Aug. 5th, 1790.

I have written to M. de Cardonnel about the transcript you desire to be made from the book of Old Scotish poems in the Advocates' Library, in which, if any difficulty should be found, I shall intervene to have it done, and cause the copies to be sent under the cover of a member of Parliament.

I remember to have seen the Memoirs of Lockhart at Glasgow, when I was engaged in the study of civil law and jurisprudence at that university, with Messrs. Millar and Smith, in the year 1760; and I have heard my uncle, Sir James Stuart Denham, speak of it as having been called in by the instigation of the late Mr. Lockhart, Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, afterwards a Lord of Session, by the name of the Lord Covington, who, with others of his family, was a Jacobite and a foe to the principles which raised the ambassador to his station under Cromwell and the commonwealth of Britain. As soon as I received your letter, I wrote to my cousin, the present Sir James Stuart Denham, member of Parliament for the county of Lanark, begging he would procure me three copies of the book, one of which I shall send you as soon as I receive them; as I agree with you in thinking the book should be published, and wish it to receive such illustration as may be derived from the examination of the Paperoffice and other repositories at London, that may

VOL. I.

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contain his correspondence with Thurloe, and other ministers of state, which have not been accessible to the writer of the Memoirs in question.

press.

I shall obtain leave from the family to put the book into your hands, to receive your notes and illustrations, and to be at your disposal for the I propose, likewise, to send you a drawing of Lockhart's portrait from the picture by Sir Peter Lely, which is at Lee in Lanarkshire, the chief residence of the family. I have consulted Sir David Dalrymple about this business; and, when I have his opinion, I shall inform you of the result; and with respect to the poems in the Bannatyne manuscript &c., if I find that M. de Cardonnel is too much engaged to be able to follow out the extent of your queries, I shall take care to superintend this or any other transcripts you may wish to have made in the Advocates' Library, or any of our libraries in Scotland.

It is my earnest desire to push vigorously forward the literature of Scotland, at a time when we have excited some taste for it among ourselves, and have in you so indefatigable and so excellent an editor, whose merit will be as much exaggerated hereafter as it is detracted from at pre

sent.

I suppose the Scots college at Paris, if the new government of France shall in the end be fully established, will either sell their effects, or cause their valuable manuscripts to be printed or sold to a bookseller. Gordon, their principal, is become old and indolent; but the house must cause some person of erudition and taste to be engaged to arrange the manuscripts, and superintend the

printing of a catalogue, in which case, as you might carry on your work as well at Paris as at London, I should wish to recommend your assistance, if you have no objection to the performance of the task.

There is a whole room full of old letters and papers that were placed in the college by Archbishop Bethune; and the collection of Lesly, Bishop of Ross, is in the same apartment, contain ing much information with respect to the ancient history of Scotland.

To conclude-Use freely every aid that I can afford you in the prosecution of your researches: "Ask, and you shall receive: knock, and it shall be opened to you."

I shall be happy to hear of the re-establishment of your health: I wish death to keep off such quarry. I could let him have plenty of gentlemen at a shilling a dozen, that would fill his maw much better than our historian.

LORD HAILES TO MR. PINKERTON.

Newhailes, Sept. 28th, 1790.

This day I had the favor of your letter: I have no view of beginning where I left off in the History of Scotland. I have not made any collections worth mentioning as to Robert II. and III. Extracts from Froissart, and those very superficial, compose the chief part. Had I meant to write that part of the Scotish History, I should

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