Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1882-10-05
SCOTT AND BURNS.
The House in Which the Poets HID
Their Only Meeting to be De
SIrpycd

stroycd
A local link between Robert Burns
and Sir Walter Scott is about to disap-
pear. The two great Scottish poets
met only once. Their meeting was in
the house of Principal Ferguson, the
historian of the Roman republic, and
a leading spirit of the literati of Edn-
burgh in his day. The house was a
large and handsome mansion at the
south end of the SCHEMES, with coach
house and wellstocked fruit and flower
garden attached. The dining and
drawing room floor were approached
by double outside staircase of broad
steps, guarded by massive balus-
trade Until lately the house remain
ed the finest in the neighborhood. But
a few years ago the garden ground was
fenced for building purposes, and last
year the house itself, with its three
flats, was subdivided into workmen's
houses. The west gable with the
drawing room window still remain; but
now this gable is 10 be closed in by a
tenement rising beside it, and in "A short
time the place where Burns and Scott
met may be forgot. In the meantime
| it will interest our Edinburgh readers
and others to be reminded of Sir
Walters account of his "elder brother
Of the muses." Writing to Lockhart,
he says GAS for Burns, l may truly
say, "Virgllium vidi tantum." Twas
lad Of 10 in 1867, when he first
came to Edinburgh, but he'd sense and
| feeling enough 10 be much interested
in his poetry, and would have given
the world to know bim but | had very
little acquaintance With any literary
people, and still less with the gentry OF
| the west country, the two sets whom
he much frequented. Mr.. Thomas
Grierson was at that time clerk OF
my fathers. He knew Burns, and
promised to ask him to his lodgings to
dinner, but had no opportunity to keep
his word, otherwise ! might have seen
more of this distinguished man. As
| it was, saw him one day at the late
venerable Prof. FER uson's, where
there were several gentlemen of liter
airy reputation, among whom | remem-
Der the celebrated Mr.. Dugald Stewart.
| OF course, We youngsters sat silent,
| locked, and listened. The only thing
| rem ember which was memorable
in Burns manner was the effect pro
duced upon him by a print Of Bun
bury's representing soldier lying
dead on the snow, his dog sitting III
misery on one side, on the other his
widow, with child in her arms.
These lines were written beneath
Cold on Canadian hills or Mindern's plain,
Perhaps that parent wept her soldier slain
| Bent DER her babe, her eye dissolved in dew
! The big drops mingling with the milk he drew
Gave the sad pressage of his future years
The child of misery baItised in tears"
Burns seemed much affected by the
print, or rather the ideas which it sug-
gested to his mind. He actually SHED
tears. He asked from whom the lines
we're, and it CHANGED that nobody bu
myself remembered that they occur II
halt-forgotten poem of Langhorne's
called by the unpromising title Of
The Justice of Peace / whispered
my Information to a friend present
who mentioned it to Burns, who re
warded me with a look and word
which, though of mere civilty, / ther
received, and still recollect with very
great pleasuel. "-Ediab,ugh Daily re
piplU.