The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1876-08-19
have no resource but to pronounce them


Miss Bailie, the author, on visit al
Abbotsford, expressed wish to see Mel
rose Abbey by moonlight, and thus realize
the admirably poetic description with which
she was familiar. Sir Walter ordered the
carriage, and, handing her into it, said
when you return from the abbey, you
will have the advantage over me; for al
though | have often seen Melrose, have
never seen it by moonlight"
When George ". had reached Leith
Roads on his way to Edinburgh, met Sir
Walter Scott hobbling along George street.
l mentioned some absurd things, which, to
my great annoyance, it was reported that
our fellow-townsmen were about to do in
honor of the royal visit. "There is one
thing" replied Sir Walter, (Which you
must not forget; the king is coming sud-
from premeditated absurdities.
The Lord Marjoribanks informed me
that, many years ago, Sir Walter and he
accompanied the Commissioners for the
North Light Houses in one of their annual
voyages of inspection. They landed on
Bell Rock, ten miles out to sea, on the
coast of Fife, and heard from the keeper
many interesting particulars of its con-
struction, and of the fearful storms it had
encountered. When Sir Walter was about
ore embark, the keeper suddenly requested
a specimen Of his handwriting. The poet
took up his pen, looked up for a moment,
and then wrote as follows:
Far on the bosom of the deep,
Ger these wild rocks my watch keep:
ruddy gem of changeful light
Borne on the bosom of the night:
The seaman bids my lustre hail,
And scorns to furl tim'rous SAIL"
The party afterward visited the light
houses in the Orkney and Shetland Isles,
and the result was-7Ae Pirate
Before Sir Walter acknowledged him
self to be author of the Waverley Novels,
my sister Catharine said to him: elf you
will tell me which of these novels you pre-
fer, | shall tell you, in return, which of
them has the preference given to it by
very good aathority-Miss Edgeworth."
Sir Walter agreed to the bargain, and she
told him that her brother had put the ques-
ton to Miss Edgeworth, who replied
"There is freshness and originality about
the first novel;. which, in my opinion, give
it a decided superiority over all the rest"
swell, Miss Sinclair" said Sir Walter,
I" / for my part enjoyed the Antiquary
more than any other. There are touches
of pathos in it which much affected me;
and had many hearty laugh at the ex-
pense of the Antiquary himself" EYES,"
reioined my sister, "the author of these
novels, whoever he may be, is always laugh
ing at somebody; and in the case of the
Antiquary, the person he is laughing at is
evidently himself"
l shall only add to this sketch two anec-
detes of Sir Walter, related to me in 1888,
by one of his most intimate friends, Mr..
Guthrie Wright. @ Sir Walter and I, he
said, "spent few days together at Dunn
fries, when he was preparing to publish
Mdrmion. He offered to read the first
cantos aloud-a proposal to which, of
course, l readily assented. When he had
finished, congratulated him on his per-
Torrance, but added that l had two objec
tions to make. In the first place, he had
brought Marmion to Edinburgh, by road
which had no existence. 'Oh,' replied Sir
Walter, 'Marmion was coming to Edin-
burgh, and it was for him, not for me, to
find a road But, said l, my other OBJ
lection is that if you had brought him
along the coast. you might have taken him
of Archibald Bell-tle Cat There is
something in that, replied Sir Walter, and
Immediately began to ask a multiplicity of
questions about Tantalon. elf was ia
mliar with it," continued Mr.. Wright,
'.and he made me describe to him the
broad plateau on which it stands-the
cliffs, several hundred feet high, projecting
on three sides far into the sea; the lofty
massive walls, the moat, the drawbridge,
the remains of donjon, to defend it from
the land side, and even the very weeds that
grew among the ruins. When he had com.
pleted his cross-examination, he continued,
well, Mr.. Wright, Marmion went to
Edinburgh without seeing Tantallon; but
he shall not return without paying his re-
spects in due form to Archibald Bell-the-
Cat.''
The following noble description Of Tan
TALON in Marmion was the result of that
conversations:
"But scant three miles the band had rode,
When DER height they passed,
And sudden, close before them showed
His towers, Tantallon vast;
Broad, massive, high, and stretching far,
And help impregnable in war.
On projecting rock they rose,
And round three sides the ocean flown;
The fourth did battle walls inclose,
And double mound and fosse.
By narrow drawbridge, outwards strong,
Through studded gates, and entrance long,
To the main court they cross.
1t was wide and stately square,
Around were lodgings fit aud fair,
And towers of various form,
Which on the court pro ected far,
And broke its lines quadrangular.
Here was square keep, there turret high,
Or pinnacle that sought the sky,
When oft the warder could descry
The gathering ocean storms
The other anecdote which Mr.. Guthrie
Wright related to me is still more charac
teristic. 81 called one day." he said, cat
the Fdiuburgh post office, and began to
read in the lobby letter from Lady Aber
corn, in which she gave an answer to some
arguments had stated to her in proof that
Sir Walter was the author of Waperley.
While thus employed l stumbled on Sir
Walter himself. He Immediately inquired
about whom l was reading SO busily.-
about you, replied, and put the letter
into his hand. soon observed him blush
as red as scarlet, and recollected that Lady
Abercorn in her letter had said, Il am
W.