The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-03-03
SANDIE MACPHERSON

1t was my privilege, during the last days
cf his strangely prosperous career, to see a
good deal of the late Mr.. Thomas Carlyle
TRUE Thomas" as ne was affectionately
called by the generation to whom he told
so many grim truths. / had gone to him
as d literary aspirant-0ne of the many
who, coming 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
I literary class generally, he never failed to
! say kind word TO any young brother Scot
who sought his advice.
/ For some reason or other he took to me,
and though so many years his junior be-
came a frequent visitor at his house and
/ received a great deal of his confidence. 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
J record.
/ Let me explain the matter, as far as pos
sible, in his own words. despair of repro
| ducing the peculiar accent and the deep,
pathetic burr" of his voice-which he
preserved to the last-as well as certain
| eccentricities Of pronunciation, which l
! shall not initiate.
You think me a successful man, and
such, ! allow, is the popular opinion.
| Well, maybe ] have been successful be-
| You'd my merits, which are small enough,
Lord knows, but lest | should grow daft
with my own self conceit the Lord sent
Sandie Macpherson to keep me humble!
1T is a humiliating confession to make,
but almost at any point of my long career,
from the very beginning, the thought of
having converted Sandie would have been
more precious TO me than the admiration
of all the rest of the world. Sandie, how
ever, never believed in me from the first.
when | published my first book my
chief thought was. What will Sandie Mac
pherson think of this?' and when heard
the criticisms, which cut me up like
haggis right and left, / could have borne
everything but the thought of how he
would gIoat over them, down yonder in
Scotland. was somewhat consoled and
wee bit hopeful when, some years after
ward, published my History for the
critics, knowing nothing of the subject,
praised it to a man. and talked havers
about my industry, my originality and my
erUnlition. | cared nothing for the critics,
but said to myself with a smile, That's
one for Sandie Macpherson at lastr'
Perhaps you will be asking who Sandie
Macpherson is that set such store by his
good opinion? Well, up till few months
ago you might have seen his name-'Alex-
ander Macpherson as it was given bap-
tismally-over the front of small grocer'S
shop in the Gallowgate of Glasgow.
"Sandie and were schoolfellows.
1--WE first met in the seminary and after
ward we attended the high school. AS I
mind Sandie now, he was wee, snug
mouthed, black aveezed laddie, with eyes
like hawk and a stoop in the shoulders.
From first to last he was ever at the top
of the class. He carried away all the
prizes at the seminary, and when he came
to the high school, among lads twice his
size, he was dug of the class. Such
memory as he had! 1t was wonderful,
wonderful! He could repeat the whole
Latin Delectus with his eyes shut, and he
knew the whole of Euclid, when he were
peching over the 'PonS Asinorum.'
The doctor himself was afraid of him.
As for me, where he was dux was Ounce
| had the taws nearly every day from the
doctor. and ever and aye while | writhed
in my corner, | could hear the cry, Alex
ander Macpherson tell Tammas Carlyle
how TO cOnstrue this or that passage in the
MetamorphoseS Sometimes, Just to shame
US, he WAS put ut the very bottom of the
c. ass, and then-I4ord, to see him Looping
from place to place, like one running up
brae, and then standing, flushed and tri-
umpbant, in his old place, at the very topl
'Sandie's father was a small tradesman
in Glasgow, and you may be sure he was
proud enough of his sou. Sandie was ever
Spck and span, had the best of clothes
and silver 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 dogs leaves to
disfigure the pages. He wrote beautiful
hand, like copperplate. and in the writing
class, as well as the rest, he was fecile
princeps. Well might he look with scorn
on my slovenly dress, my books all thumbed
and torn, and on my handwriting, which
was i'll to make out as heather Greek.
We'll might he he held up to me as he
was, for u shining light and an example.
'Tammas Carlyle, go out and wash your
face; when will We learn to be tidy like
Alexander Macpherson 'Tammas, your
books are IA disgrace; do ye no think shame
when We see the books of Alexander Mac
pherson" For shame, Tammas, for shame;
do you ever see Alexander Macpherson
sucking black man in the midst o. school?'
'Tammas, your handwriting is abomina-
ton; Alexander, set him copy yourself,
TO show him how a lad should write
These were the cries ringing forever in
my ears What wonder if | grew to look
Oh Sandie a a superior being-to be gaze6
at with admiration and envy, to be imi-
tated with awe and fear?
1t was just the same story when we
went to college
We met there on our former footing;
that is to say, he distinguished himself as
usual while | watched him from a re-
spectful distance. Few words ever passed
between us. for we had never been on
speaking terms-either in or out OF school.
But the relationship between Us was clear
ly understood. Sometimes rs he passed
me in the street, wearing grandly his red
college gown and his college hat, while
crept along with my gown on nv arm. he
would give me a patronizing nod. that was
all. We began Greek and moral philos-
ophy under the same professors. Ii was
the old story. He was the pet pupil OF
both. He drank in learning like his moth
er's milk From the first Greek TO the
second and third / followed him-as u
clumsy hedeling follows the flight of some
splendid eagle, whom it seeks 10 emulate
in vain.
After we left college I lost sight OF him
for some years. believe he might have
received a buISary and gone 10 Oxford, but
his father, proud a. he was of his attain
mentS, did not want 20 spoil him for trade
and withdrew him before be had completed