The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-10-13 00:00:00

tizemsdks"

~~,

1 ___,....—.. I
The Anniversary of the Birth of Thomson was
celebrated in his native village on Tuesday, the Ttil
ult. at the house of Mrs. Spinks, by the Members
of the Ednatn Club, Major Douglas, of Edenside, •
in the Chair. The company sat down to an excel-
lent dinner, followed by a desert, consisting of the
' fruits of the season, neatly ornamented with flowers.
" The memory of Thomson," was then drunk, by
''the company standing, with expressive silence: Sr.
verat toasts of a patriotic nature succeeded ; and
! after " The Wooden Walls," our • inspiring no-
tional song of 46 Rale Rritannia," the well-known
1 production of Thomson; was finely snug by Mr.
Waldie, younger, of liendersyde, the company
joining in the chorus. A variety of toasts and sen- 1
itiments,' either arising from, or strictly in unison
' with, the subject of the meeting, were given in the 1
I clitirse of the evening, and the virtues of many of
1 the friends and patrons of the honoured Bard, %ere
I thus, in a most pleasing manner, recalled to the re-
Imembrance of the meeting. Among those to whom
a tribute of respect was paid, were, A. Trotter, the
revered mother of Thomson ; Iticcalton, the catty
companion and counsellor of Thomson, a man who,
though known only to the public as the Author of a
'I Metaphysical Work on Theology, is, on good
grounds, believed to have given the first idea of the
" Seasons" to Thomson, by a Poem which lie
wrote, bladed, we believe, " Prospect of a Storm
front Raberstmc." This Poem, which would he so
interesting to those who delight to study the progress
of genius, and to mark the circumstance by which
its course has been determiued, has, we are sorry to
, say, eluded the most diligent search ; and, unlest4 it
shall yet be found in some old and forgotten peri-
odical work, is, we fear, irrecoverably lost. A tri-
bute of respect was also paid to Lady Grivel Baillie,
the amiable daughter of that illustrious patriot Sir
Patrick Home, afterwards Earl of Marchmont, as
one of the earliest friends and patrons of the Poet ;
and to Frederick Prince of Wales, the enlightened
friend of liberty, who honoured Thomson with his
esteem and affection. _ _ _ ..._ _

• The Meeting was attended by the Earl of Buchan,
whom the President, in the name of the Society, hati
invited to be present on this occasion, in testimony
of their respect and gratitude for his Lordship's
taste and patriotism, as recently displayed in the
erection of the Temple of the 44ses, at Dryburgh
Abbey, to the memory of the Poet of the Seasons,:
on the banks of what he himself called Ms 44 Pure 1
Parent Stream." His Lordship, when his health I
was drunk, expressed the pleasure be felt in making
his compliance with this invitation an exception to
the resolution he had formed, in consequence of his
advanced age and general habits, not to attend pub-
lic
meetings; and added, that though he had built a
Crecian Temple in hi-moth-of Thomson, vet he had
constructed it on a 'small scale, as suitable to the
place, and, far from wishing to supersede the design of
the Ednitm Club, he intended to stimulate them to com-
plete their long-delayed design, either-by. piacitag,a!
handsome Doric building on Ednam Mil or itn • elle;
gorical monument in the Church-yard :, oi on the
wall of.the church of Edam 'MT Whir was,
the time of the Poet's birth, the pastor'ot that pa-
rish. His Lordship also hinteslqthe &Cp. of build-
ing a cottage near the monument at Dryburgh, as
an asylum for some poor relation of the Poet, to
whom he meant to give- a small yearly allowance,
I and whose duty it shottldtte to take care of it, and
I show it to strangers. This is certainly one of the
best modes of shewittg respect to his memory, nor
could any have been more grateful to the feeling and
• benevolent heart of Thompson, could he have antici-
pated the posthumous honours which were intended
to perpetuate the remembrance of his genius and his

worth.
The day was spent with the utmost harmony and
conviviality, and the following Gentlemen were
elected Members of the Club :—Charles Brandling,
Esq. M. P, the Rev. James Thompson, Minister of
Eccles; and Mr. John Smith, of Kelso.

DiszarsslNG Cpse.-7--A respectable family, not
many miles from London, has lately experienced the
greatest misfortune imaginable. The father, who is
an independent man, and who, on account of the
excellency of his heart ought to enjoy all the bless-
ings in this world, has, nevertheless, of late, been
reduced to one of the most unfortunate beings, and
this by his own offspring, a girl of 17 years of age.
This girl has had the very best education : she can
speak the French and Italian languages fluently—
plays the piano-forte and guitar excellently. But,
however, from the time she was ten years old, has
been addicted to the vice of stealing. Her mother,
who is the most affectionate and kind woman, has,
as well as the father, done every thing in their
power, both by good and severe means, to prevail
on the girl to leave off her vicious practices, but to
no purpose. No day passed but the servauts of the
house lost money or trinkets. Whenever the girl
went into a shop, or even passed a fruitmonger's
stall, she always stole something. The other day
she went into a haderdasher's shop, with her brother,
and having bought some ribbons, they went out to-
gether ; but they had hardly walked 20yards before
they were taken up and brdeght' back to the shop ;
! and on searching them, seVerar yards of lace were
found on the girl, and she was accordingly brciught
before a Magistrate. Every means were tried by the
unhappy parents to prevent her being committed;
but the Justice, according 'to his duty, committed her
for felony, and bound,the other party over to prose-
cute. The,poor parents are in 'the greatest attalety.:
the mother lays 111, and no hOper of Hitt .recovery
are entertained ; and the father, who oh "ne:rdiger
bear the sight of his nighbbere TaTter- thii'disgface,
has resolved to Mare England;antt retife,to Irelaad
with his remainingeight children.
' Friday night a Workman belonging So thorn's" at
work upon St. James's Palace, 'heard the cries ofd t.
".infant, and making 'search to discovet;witence it
. proceeded, he found a child in one of..the cellarsi
where it had been left by its utritatur.l, protectors.
The babying apparently about three: teentits !old,
and was left in' a tub covered overwith a basket;
,i 0 $ dark recess :of the bending. ifivos.eartied xo
St. Mattitaitc,Workhoneeo whtre fare taken
to supply those wants common to its helpless state.