Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1827-12-15

tha, celebrated Wanderer, so lar odIH do i''N'
when found him on his usual task. he was
then engaged in repairing the 6favestohes VI
the Convenan,ers who had died while impris- |
oned in the castle .fDunooiiar, TO whioh man.
of,hem were commi,,ed prisoners Of the period
Of Areyle's rising; their place OF confinement
i called the Wings Vault. Mr.. Train, how
ever, procured for me far more extensive 'nio''
nation concerning this singular person, whose
name was Patterson, than had been able TO
acquire during my short conversation with
him. He was Gas may have somewhere al
ready stately nativ. of the parish OF Close
burn, in Dumfries. shire, and ii is believed that
domestic affection, as we'll az devotional ieel-
ing, induced him to commence The wandering
mode OF life, which he pursued Tor very long
period l, is more than twenty years since
Robert Parierson's death, which took place on
the high road near Lockerby, where he was
found exhausted and expiring. The white po'
ny, the companion ofhis pilgrimage, was stand
ing by the side Gifts dying master; 'he whole
furnishing scene not untitled for the pencil
These particulars had from MIR. Train. An
other debt, which pay most willingly, is tha'
which owe to an unknown correspondent,
a lae.y.l who favoured me- with the history OIL
the upright and high principled female, whom
in the Heart of Mid Lothian, / have termed
Jeanie Deans The circumstance Of her re-
fusinc 10 save her sisters life ty an act Of per-
Jury, and undertaking pilgrimage 10 London
10 procure her pardon are both represented as
true hy my fair and obliging correspondent,
they led me 10 consider the possibility OF rem
dering fictitious parsonage interesting ny mere
dignity Of mind and rcc,Itude OF principle, as
sisted by unpretending good sense and temper,
wi,hou, any Of the beauty, grace, talent, and
wit, to which heroine Of romance is snPpos-
ed ,nhave preScri3ti.c right Ii the portrait
was received with interest by the pubic, am
conscious bow much It was owing 10 The truth
and force of the original sketch, which regret
that am unable to presrn, to the public, as it
was written with much feeling aod spirit. Old
and odd books, and a considerable collection OF
family legends, formed another quarry,so am pie
iha, il " as much more likely that the strength OF
the laboQrer should be exhausted, than that ma
tcrials should fail. l may menion,tor examples
sake, that the terrible catastrophe oil the Bride
of Lammetmoor actually occurred In a Scot
i,h family Of rank. The female relative, 10y
whom the melancholy tale was communicated
10 nae many years since, was near connexion
Of the family in which the event happened, and
ALWAYS told ii with an appearance OF me'ancho-
ly mystery, which enhanced the interest. She
had known, in her youth, the brother who rode
before the unhappy victim to The 1Atai a'tar,
who, though then mere boy and occupied
almost entirely with the salantry Of his own
appearance IN the bridal procession, could not
but remark that the hand OF his sister was
moist, and cold Us tina, Of statue, 1T is unne-
ces ,ary further 10 withdraw the veil from this
scene OF family distress, nor, although IL, oct
1t be altogether agreeable to the representa-
tives Of the families concerned in the narrative.
1t may DE proper TO say, that the events are inn
itated; but had neither the means nor inten-
ZION Of copying the manners, or tracing the
characters Of the persons concerned in the real
story. Indeed, may here state generally, that
although have deemed historical personages
free subjects of define alton, have never on
any occasion violated the respec, due to private
life. 1t was indeed impossible that traits pro-
per 10 persons, both living and dead, with whom
have had intercourse in society, should not
have risen 10 my pen in such works as Wavcr-
ly, and those which followed it. Blu, | have
always studied TO generalize The portraits, so
that they should still! seem, on the whole, the
productions of fancy, though possessing some
resemblance 10 real individuals. Ye, l mus,
own my attempts have not in this last parlicu-
lar been uniformly successful. There are men
whose characters are so peculiarly marked,
cip'e feature inevitably p!a"es the whole person
before you in his individuality. Thus, the
character Of Jonathan Oldbuck, in the Anti
quarry, was founded on that Of an old friend Of
my youth, to whom l am indebted for inlro-
ducing me to Shakespeare, and other invalua-
bic faYors; but thought had so completely
disguised The likeness, that it could not be
recognized by any one now alive. | was mis-.
taken, however, and indeed had endangered
what desired should be considered as q secret;
for afterwards learned that highly respcuta-
BILE gentleman, one of the few surviving friends
of my father, an acute critic, had Said, upon
the appearance Of the work, that he was now
convinced who was the author Of it, as he re-
cognised, in he Antiquary, traces of tho char
acter Of a very intimate friend Of my fathers
family,-I may here also notice, that thr sort
Of exchange of gai'antry, which is represented
as taking place betwixt the Baron Of Brad war
dine anil Colonel Taiho, is literal fact
The real Wing aud Tory, are these:-Alexan-
der S'ewar', Of lnvsrnahyle,-a name which
cannot wife without the wa.mest recolec tons