The Portland daily press., 1883-01-20
Sandie Macpherson.
BY ROBERT BUCHANAN.
A Vignette in prose,

called by the generation 10 Wnom ne IOlu SO
many grim truths. 1 had gone to him as
literary aspirant-one of the many who COM
ing up from Scotland TO fight for fortune,
carried letters of introduction to the great
man. The nation delighted to honor him,
and despite his dislike OF the literary class
generally, he never falled 10 say KIND WORD
TO any younger brother Scot who sought
MS ADVICE. TOT some reason or other, ne
TOOK 10 me, ana tnough SO many years ms
junior, became frequent VISITOR at MS
house, and received great zeal OF MS con-
fidence. 1t was one winter evening, as we
sat alone together in his study-that study
which was very Mecca TO literary pilgrims
of all nations-that he made the singular
confession which am about to place on
record.
There he sat, aged, honored, famous, the
leafing man of letters, perhaps, of his gem
GRAFTON; an old dressing gown wrapped a.
round him, slippers on his feet, his face
grim as granite (just as it appears in Wood
mans bust), and his eyes with that sad
prophetic gaze which is reproduced in all
the photographs. On the book-shelves close
round him were well thumbed volumes,
nearly all of them presentation copies, with
the autographs of their mighty authors;
chief among them a set of Goethe, with
notes in the poets own handwriting. On
the wall, over the mantlepiece, was a scroll
in vellum, given to Ercildoune by the sa-
wants of Germany on the occasion of his
sixtieth birthday, and his reception of the
Grand Cross of the Legion of Sauerkraut,
from the hands of the King of Thuringia
In the deik at his elbow was a precious cor
espondence-signed by such names as
Heine, Theirs, Balzac, Hartmann, Darwin,
Macaulay. Coleridge, Dickens Only the
day before Ercildoune had been sent for bv
the Queen of England as one of the two or
three great men it behooved her to know
and honor: and. having spent several hours
of conversation with her, he had pronounced
her mice homeIy body, just like scores of
farmers wives he had met in Allandale."
Certainly, he was one to whom the world
did homage--kings might have envied his
authoritative position. 1t was, therefore,
with some surprise that discovered. listen
ing to his confession, that the great man
was not altogether contented with his sue
cess; that it had one serious qualification,
which had las he himself expressed it, cost
him many a sleepl5ss night.
Let me explain the matter, as far as pos
sible, in his own words. l despair of repro
ducing the peculiar accent and the deep pa
thetic "burr'' of his voice-which he pre-
served to the last, as well as certain eccen-
tricities of pronounciaticn, which shall not
initiate.
"You think me a successful man, and
such, allow. is the popular opinion. Well,
maybe have been successful beyond my
merits, which are small enough, Lord knows;
but lest | should grow daft with my own
self-conceit, the Lord sent Sande Macpher-
son to keep me humble!
ut is Illuminating confession to make,
but almost at any point of my long career,
from the very beginning, the thought of hav-
ing converted Sandie would have been more
precious to me than the admiration of all
the rest OF the world. Sandie, however,
never believed III me from the first. When
published my nrst DOCK, my chief thought
was, What Will Sandle Macpherson think of
thisT and when ! heard the criticisms,
Wnlch cut me up IKE a haggls right and left
couid nave borne everything bit the
tncugnC OF now ne would gloat-9ver them
uoWn yohoer IN ocotlana. was somewhat
consoled, and d wee bit hopeful, when,
some Years aiterWard, published my His
Sy- o. the Renaissance in Thuringia;' for
crltlcs, knowing nothing OF the subject,
praised IL 10 man, ana talked nonsense
about my industry, my originality and my
erudluon; L cared nothlng for the critics,
puI sadu 10 ihyseI VIII smile, Ihats
one Tor oandie macpherson, at last!
rSrnaps you WIZ De ASKING VINO Sapdle
macpherson Is, tnat set sucn store by his
gooo oplnion9 wen, up 10 lew months
ago you might have seen his name-'Alex-
ander Macpherson, as II was given baptis-
maiiy-over the door OF small grocer store
IN tne GalloWgale OF glasgow.
0an6ie ana were schoolfellows.
we nrst met III tne Rev. Mr.. Macindow's
seminary, out beyond tne CowcaddeDs, and
afterward we attended Mr.. Parallels Math-
ematlcal ana Df. SKe,pum Latln classes,
IN Inc dlgn SCHOOL. AS mind Sandle now,
ne was wee, sihug-lhoutneu, Dlack-aVeezed
isuule, Win eyes IKE naWK, ana stoop IN
tne shoulders. FROM nrst TO last he was ev-
er al the top OF the class. he carried a"ay
all the prizes at the Rev. Maclndows, and
wnen ne came 10 Inc Hlgn school: among
iads twice MS size, ne was 'dux' OF the class.
ouch memory as ne mad 1t was wonder
Iui. woDuer1ui. lie could repeat the whole
Latin Delectus with MS eyes shut, and he
knew Inc wnoie OF EUCLID, when we were la
Doring over the .Pons Asinorum' DR.. Skel-
pun hlmseH was afraid OF him. AS for me,
Wnere ne was aux was Ounce. L had the
'taws' nearly every day from the Doctor, and
ever ana aye, Whlle Writhed IN my corntr,
couid near the cry, Alexander Macpher-
son, tell Tammas ErcildoHne how TO con-
strue' this or that passage in the sMetamor-
pheses.' Sometimes, just to shame US, he
was put at the very bottom of the class, and
then-Lord, to see him louping from place
to place, like one running mp brae, and
tnen standing, flushed and triumphant, in
his old place at the very top!
"Sandy,s father was small tradesman in
Glasgow, and you may be sure he was proud
enough of his son. Sandy was ever spick
and span, had the best of clothes and sill
yer watch and chain given to him by his
aunt on his birthday. His books were like
himself, clean, white and neat, with no
thumb-marks or dog's-leaves to disfgure the
pages. He wrote beautiful hand like cop
per plate, and in the writing class, as well
as the rest, he was fdciIe princeps. Well
might he look with scorn on my slovenly
dress, my books all thumbed and torn, and
on my handwriting, which was ill to make
out as heather Greek. Well might he be
held up 10 me as a shining light and exam
pie. 'Tammas Ercildoune, go out and wash
your face; when will ye learn to be tidy, like
Alexander Macpherson 'Tammas, your
books are a disgrace; do We ma think shame
when We see the books of Alexander Mac
phel sonp For shame, Tammas. for shame !:
do you ever see Alexander Macpherson
sucking black man in the midst O. schoolT
'Tammas, your handwriting is abomination ::
Alexander, set him copy yourself, to show
him how a lad should write These were
cries ringing for ever in my ears. What
wonder if grew to look on Sandie as SUI
perior belng-to be gaZed at with admiration
and envy, to be initiated with awe and fear?