CONTENTS. PAGE A Sketch of Scottish Literature from the Earliest Times The Raucle Tongue of Burns-The Editor, 5 26 The Centenary Edition-A Correction- W. Innes Addison, 38 Reminiscences of the Nieces of Burns-J. D., An 1851 Celebration in Wisconsin-Robert Shiells, 41 47 65 68 78 91 93 The late Mr. W. Craibe Angus--Neil Munro, 95 Office-Bearers, &c., of the Burns Federation, 128 Annual Meeting of Federation, 130 Club Directory, 134 PREFACE. WITH each successive issue of the Chronicle, the Executive note with satisfaction that its circulation amongst the Clubs shows a decided increase. The serial being essentially the venture of the Federated Clubs, and therefore entitled to their support, the Executive trust that this encouraging state of matters will continue. As in former years, the Editor tenders his warmest thanks to the contributors and correspondents who so substantially aid him in his work, and without whose generous assistance the Chronicle would be an impossibility. BENRIG, KILMAURS, 1st January, 1901. DM NAUGHT. A SKETCH OF SCOTTISH LITERATURE FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES. IT ARTICLE FIRST. INTRODUCTION. is usually a perplexing task to place one's finger on the earliest manifestations of the literary spirit amongst any Tace of people that can lay claim to a long historical career, and the Scots are no exception though their national persistency from the earliest times has been of a most pronounced character maintaining their individuality in defiance of religious and political upheavals of an extreme and violent nature. The Scottish Highlander, whose reputation for humour is by no means proverbial, has been accused of claiming that Gaelic speech was the language of Eden, and the first thing Adam said to Eve when she stood before him in all the glory of womanhood was ciamar tha sibh'n diuch, or, as one would say in English, "How are you?" Be this as it may, it is a fact that in the Annals of Tacitus, who was chronicler to Agricola the Roman general in Scotland in the year 86 A.D., there are two distinguished speeches reported-the one by Agricola, and the other by Galgacus the chief of the Caledonians. The harangues are said to have been made by the respective generals to their armies on the eve of the great battle of Mons Grampius. Excellently adapted though both speeches are for such an occasion, it will be generally admitted that the palm of pre-eminence should be accorded to the Caledonian chief. Both speeches, it is true, are put into the mouths of the speakers by Tacitus, but the assumption is that he would scarcely have put such a speech into the mouth of Galgacus if that chief had been merely an unlettered barbarian, and the further inference is that even in those remote times some standard of grammatical knowledge surely must have obtained, though the gift of high literary expression might not exactly prevail. The most reliable testimony favours the assumption that the form in which the literary sentiment was embodied and expressed was in songs, ballads, and tales, calculated to inspire heroic and patriotic ideas among the tribes who had to protect their inheritance from the incursions of strangers whose ideas of proprietary rights were of an exceedingly elastic character. We learn, too, that the Celts had a great deal of poetic fervour in their nature from the time they first appear within the definite scope of history, that they had their Finn and Ossian, with other renowned heroes whose imaginary actions and valorous deeds originated in pre-historic times, and were preserved and transmitted from generation to generation by oral tradition. As the reputed actions of such heroes receded into byegone ages with the passing of the centuries, the heroes themselves became glorified myths moving in ideal regions invested with more than mortal attributes, thus giving scope for the imagination of the poet and romance writer; but the period alluded to scarcely comes within the realm of authentic history. Previous to the Roman period there is really not much known of Scotland of a definite or trustworthy character, which is probably due to the tribal conditions under which the inhabitants of the northern portion existed. With respect to the Roman period itself, it is natural to expect that after three centuries of contact with the Romans the Celts should have been influenced in some form or other by the dominant race, but it appears to have been to a very limited extent indeed. The fact is, the Romans did not even succeed in Latinising the language of the Celts, and Roman institutions rapidly disappeared after the Roman arms were withdrawn from Britain. Neither does it appear that subsequent conquerors were a great deal more successful in transforming the Celtic spirit. Viewed by the light of the past, the Celt is not destined to rule, and as a political factor is practically dead, yet the fire and spirit of his genius has found a permanent refuge in much of the literature in South, as well as in North, Britain. To some extent the Celt is something of a paradox, and though he has not a keen eye for measurement, mathematical precision, or love of detail, and his natural inclination is to chafe against the despotism of facts, there is an element of persistency and durability in the fibre of his being which will preserve his soul, if not his body, from extinction. It is significant that though the Anglo-Saxon occupied political supremacy in the south of Scotland as early as the sixth century, yet up to the fourteenth the language of the people continued to be Celtic, and they retained the individual characteristics which survived through the Roman occupation. such a One hears much nowadays about Take the Celtic the literary and artistic temperament going hand-in-hand, and that literature and art are twin sisters; but is it a fact that relationship harmonises at all points of the historical compass? Indeed it is open to question. genius as it is manifest to the student of history, with its vivid perception, its fervour, and its spiritual sensibility, and how do matters stand? The assumption is that for lack of a necessary balance and proportion the Celtic genius has never achieved great things in plastic art, and it has rather been the prerogative of other communities, such as the Greeks, the Romans, and the Germans, to produce that species of genius that has accomplished so much in painting and sculpture. Within the sphere of poetry and romance, however, with which the literature of Scotland abounds, the Celtic genius furnishes a different testimony. As Matthew Arnold has well expressed it :-"The Celt's quick feeling for what is noble and distinguished gave his poetry style; his indomitable personality gave it pride and passion; his sensibility and nervous exaltation gave it a better gift still-the gift of rendering with wonderful felicity the magical charm of nature. The forest solitude, the bubbling spring, the wild flowers are everywhere in romance. They have a mysterious life and grace there. They are Nature's own children, and utter her secret in a way which makes them something quite different from the wood, waters, and plants of Greek and Latin poetry. Now, of this delicate magic, Celtic romance is so prominent a mistress that it seems impossible to believe the power did not come into romance from the Celts." As it has been already indicated, the earliest form of literary expression in Scotland was through the medium of ballads, songs, and metrical romances. These were numerous long before it was customary to preserve them in writing, and it is not surprising to find that a nation so rich in song when in a barbarous condition produced refined poetry when it became more polished, subsequently exercising a permanent influence * "The Study of Celtic Literature," p. 132-1891. |