The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1843-12-19 00:00:00

Taire Edinburgh Magazine

for this month

its usual
varied and interesting matter, a notice of " A Correspon-
dence between Burns and Clarinda," just published by
Mr. Tait, and which, we may fairly predict, will excite
the attention of the entire S

- .
---.....• .F..“. 011 , C1....11 LUG fJCSJOW .VS aaapp,a.a u.,.. ....cottish people, as calculated
oe in any doubt as to their order and class in ornithology, to throw a new, and we fear not brighter light upon the
the words written beneath " The three pigeons—good character of their favourite poet. The article in question
lodging therein," at once gave him the necessary informa- is ably written, but, as we have noticed the work itself
1 tion. In fact, nothing could be more primitive than the
elsewhere, we need not here recur to it. The " Scenes
appearance of the hostelrie in question. in the Life of an Authoress," commenced in this num-
The arrival of the travellers, as may be supposed, pro- ber, promise well ; and " Reminiscences of the Life of
duced a great sensation in this plebian quarter; but it Sir Walter Scott" are highly interesting, as indeed must
-ed away after they had dismounted and entered be any authentic records of the life and literary career of
that great man. The political part of the magazi-

soon pass

he tavern

„,
__ ....6 ,se, as
In about a quarter of an hour the Baron departed alone, usual, we shall say little about ; and with respect to the
leaving Fabien under the care of the inn-keeper, to whom poetry which it contains, much of which has high merit,
he gave instructions in a low voice, and departed on foot we shall only remark, that the absence of ” Verses on
towards the aristocratic part of the city, where the Hotel Free Trade, by a Lady," might. with advantage, have
Croissi was situated. been omitted. Poetry upon such a subject is but thrown

The next morning, at an hour when most of the inha- away ; and a poetical lady might surely find something
bitanta of Paris were wrapped in deep slumber, Fabien de more suitable upon which to display any taste or talent
Croissi was, conformable to his country habits, up and she may possess. The reviews are, as usual with Tait,
stirring. During the night his sleep had been disturbed, excellently and impartially written.
and he had many times regretted that he had not inquired
of his.brother as to the fate of the young Countess de
Montglat. As the appearance of daylight did not dissi-

The Abbotßford Edition of Waverley. Edinburgh : Ca-
dell and Co. ; London : Houlston and Stoneman.

•
. . . ... ...... •...” ........... ..........•..........••••
pate his inquietade, he determined upon addressing the No. 43 of this splendid edition of the novels of,
the
dear companion of his youth ; and scarcely had he corn- Author of Waverley concludes the romance of Ivanhoe
menced his task when rapid and heavy steps were heard and the fourth volume. The illustrations continue ex-
ascending the staircase. Fabien ran to the door, and cellent—none the less so for the acquisition of Franklin
found himself in the presence of his brother. as one of their designers. On the first of January, we
The Baron was dressed with a simplicity that was not observe, a new monthly issue of the same edition is to be
usual with him. His garments were of but one colour, commenced, which will enable those who have not availed
and he was without a scarf. His face wore an expression themselves of the opportunity hitherto, to place this most
of pleasure mingled with gravity. He did not notice the noble copy of a noble writer's works in their libraries.
preoccupation of his brother, but said briskly to the land-

lord, who accompanied him, and who bov;ed low to the The Post Magazine Almanack, and Court and Parlia-
ground, to receive his commands— tuentary Reoister. Plico 6d. W. S. D. PatFtraan.
" Have you done us I desired you ? Has any one been Wine-Ottice-uuurt, Ficet-street.
here ?" The most ably arranged and useful Book of reference
"
" No,— sir," said the host, with an embarrassed air ; which we have seen.
but"

" It is well ; leave us," interrupted the Baron, abruptly,
without listening to him further.

NEW WORKS

As soon as he was alone with Fabien, the Baron cast The Correspondence between Burns and Clarinda. Edin-
-
himself into a chair, and said, with considerable vivacity, burgh :W. Tait, Bvo., p.p. 297. Philip, Liverpool.
he least innniry a. 2 tr. 1,;. With all his frailties—and their name was "legion"—
' • -
poor Robert Burns slept in peace, his genius acknow.
ledged, his memory shrined in the hearts of his fellow-
countrymen, and the tale of his follies fast passing into
oblivion. We admired and loved the poet ; we were content,
in charity, to cease to remember the man; or, if occa-
sionally some association or incident of his varied life
brought him before us, to regard him only as one of those
sad examples of the facility with which splendid talents, a
warm heart and amiable feelings are dragged to earth and
defiled by unruly and ill regulated passions, combined
with bodily infirmity. The publication of this corres-
pondence has however once more drawn the shroud from
before the face of the dead. We are compelled again to
contemplate the wayward character of the poet and the
man ; and, with these added materials before us, to view
it, we fear, in a darker shade than even that, which had
previously rested upon it, and obscured so much of its
brightness.

health, after so much fatigue. ""
" All goes as well as one could wish," my dear Fabien ;
" your adventure of yesterday has caused considerable
conversation in Paris; but no one knows the name of the
hero, and my friends and myself think we can at once
commence operations."

Fabien listened in silence, expecting that his elder bro-
ther would explain these enigmatiCal words.

" You do not yet comprehend me," continued the Ba-
ron in a serious tone; " but the moment is now arrived
when I ought to dissipate the mystery that appears to en-
velope my proceedings. You shall now know all."
So saying, he closed the door with a considerable show
of precaution before he reseated himself; then drawing
near to Fabien, he spoke in so low a tone that if any lis-
tener had been placed at the extremity of the chamber, he
would not have been able to gather a single word.

CHAPTER VII

The circumstances under which these letters of the poet
are now for the first time given entire to the world do not
at all reconcile us to the propriety and advantage of their
publication. Of that, however, it is not our province to
complain ; and we shall therefore at once proceed to ex-
plain the facts which they develope, and the feelings and
situation under the influence of which they were written.
Towards the close of the year 1787, after the eminent suc-
cess of the first edition of his poems, and when he was
sounewb-

Gives the gentle reader a slight i❑

ht of the way

afterwar

es him into the very t

On the morning of the same day, the COUT
the grand gallery of the Palais-Royal,
pearance of the queen-regent, Anne
court at this epoch of troubles and factions, did not exhi-
bit that brilliant and animated appearance which it mani-

tiers crowded

awaiting the ap-
of Austria! The

of a lion at Edinburgh, the poet spent an even-
ing at the house of a friend, on which occasion he was in-
troduced to Mrs. M•Lehose, (Clarinda,) the deserted
wife of a writer, (lawyer,) who had left her, with two
children, and was then residing in Jamaica. At this in-
terview both parties were much struck with each other,
Burns finding in his new acquaintance a beautiful and ta-
lented woman, of pletical temperament and ardent dispo-
sition, and she in him that dangerous description of male
friend, towards whom the sympathies of such a woman so
rapidly warm into love. A correspondence was immedi-
ately

commenced between them, commencing, of course,
in the strain of friendship and compliment, and rapidly
verging, as might have been expected, into one of raptu-
rous, though platonic, affection. Both were enthusiasts ;
and the heart of one—the lady—was disengaged, if not
also the heart of Burns. Mrs. McLehose however was
wedded to another ; whilst Burns, legally at liberty, was
lly bound to Miss Jean Armour his " lovely
..a" who was subsequently his wife, and was
already the mother of his first children (twins,) and in a
fair way to be again a mother. For this second l;