The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1874-02-19
LECTURE BY wALLACE BRUCE
" Eand:nnrlss OF ScOit.D

The sixth and closing lecture OF the
Young Mems Christian Association course
day evening at the Opera House hy Wal
lace Bruce of Poughkecrsie, n. Y. lie
was introduced by joel NJ. Haven. Esq,
WIN took occasion to remark upon the con-
clusion Of the course and to say that al
though the course had not been rs great
success, financially, as could have been
wished, he trusted that in all otherrespects
it had been entirely successful that the
committee had done their best to secure the
best talent that could he obtained. A brief
review Of the lectures given this season
may not be unintcrestiug to cur readers al
this time. The first lecture was delivered
Oct. 23,h by Thomas Mast on "Cir,catur-
ing" which drew u comparatively large
house, who enjoyed the illustrations of the
theme greatly the second lecture, Nov
18th, by Mrs. Mary A. Livcrmnrc, on
"What shall We do with our daughters.
called ont an audience of few over three
hundred, who were well entertained the
third, Nov 2Sth, by Hon. William Parsons
on "Alichacl Angelo" was q fine produc-
tion one of the best OF the course the
fourth, Dec, 9th, by John 3. Cough on
"1hen and Now" brought out the lsrgcs,
house of the season and was enthusiastic.
ally received the fifth, Jan. 9Th, by VIM
). Andrews on Dialect Ilnmor" had much
of originality and good hunor AID was the
best enjoyed, perhaps, of all the sixth, by
Mr.. Bruce on Wednesday evening, drew
small house with but little enthusiasm
manifested by the audience.
The lecturer is decidedly of the oratorical
type, flowcry in his sulject-matler and
profuse, as well as finished, in gesture.
The lecture was glowing tribute 10 Scott
and rs composition is admirably wordtd
by an evidently scholarly mind
We present the following abstract of
MR.. BRucE's LECTURE,
He opened with graphic description Of
Edinburgh where most of his life was spent
and which was very appropriate us his first
landmark to DO noticed. The characters.
tics of this, which he denomlnatcd the most
picturesque city of the world, were most
cloquenlly pointed out from Hollywood
square and the Tobooth, to the great llon
cOuchant, chiseled ont Of the porgy cliff
800 feet high, by the forces of nature. and
which was, perhaps, typical of the genius
of the city which should there lie founded
and flourish. Then he described the great
monument which had been erected "a
SCOTS memory and which stood on the
border line of the Old and new city. He
claimed that this was the most fitting and
appropriate, as Scott himself lived on the
border of tic old and the new. lie LIVED
when the ideas of feudal Europe we've
passing away, to be succeeded by thos,
which were inspired by the reformation
| by the development of commercial and
maritime enterprise, and the discoveries ri
| modern science. He read the inscription
placed upon the corner stone prepared b,
Lord Jeffrey, the great lawyer and literary
critic Of Scotland, in which generous tri-
butte was paid to the productions Of Scott
genius, closing with the prediction thai
when the monument should be destroye,
by human or elemental violence, and the
| civilization which erected it should pas
away, the traveller from another lard anC
of different race, discovering That iEscrp.
ton, would do homage TO the illustrious
man it was intended TO commemorate, and
whose fame would survive The glory oi
the land 10 which lie belonged. He briefly
depressed here TO note the coincidence be-
tween this prediction and that of Macaulay
of the possible extinction Of British ciyiliz-
alton. lie then passed to review Of the
times and places referred TO in Scott's
poems and the Waverly novels, claiming
that in their historic, not the chronologici Al
order, they contained complete history OF
Europe, and particularly Of England and
Scotland, from the eleventh TO tho nine.
tenth centuries. Never had writer s,
completely made history romance, aud TO
nance history.
In the tales of the Crusaders, in Count
Robert of Paris, and In Ivanhoc, they hao
picture of Europe in the palmy days OF
| cbiyalry when IL vas stirred nv tho qroal