an

mustard and crefe, which would be fit to be cut in a few days. Sir, this paffion for the vegetable world is fo predominant in my wife's mind, that not a broken chamber-pot is free from fome cultivation or other : as I hope to be faved, he had fome time fince a geranium in full bloffom, which, to fave expence, was ftuck faft in a cef1 pan; a myrtle in a butter firkin; orange-tree in a washing tub; a tulip in a falt-box; and a young goofeberry-bufh in a punch bowl. Nay, to fuch a pitch of extravagance does this enthufiaftic helpmate of mine carry this gardening taste of her's, that the houfe was thrown into convulfions three days ago, upon a report that the cat had kittened upon the grafs-plot, which grew upon the top fhelf of the pantry. Then, fir, to add to my vexation, I have had the happiness to be threatened with an indictment for being a nuifance to my neighbours and the public, as hardly a week paffes without fome pan or pot tumbling upon the heads of paffengers, and doing fome mifchief or other. If I expoftulate, I have no tafte; if I threaten, I have no humanity; if I coax her, I have no influence; and if I give way to her I can expect no comfort. My very bed-room in fummer, fir, is fo filled with flowers, that I am in nightly dread of being perfumed to death before morning. Then I never muft ftir out without a nofegay in my button hole, becaufes it makes fo rural and fo countrified an appearance. In fhort, what with rural fmells and rural converfation, rural ornaments and rural nonfenfe of one kind or another, my patience is quite exhaufted: therefore I take this public method of giving my

school in Thames-ftreet, and never travelled farther than Bethnal-green, or Hoxton, or Hackney, or Newington-Butts; yet fhe affects fuch a tate and paffion for the country, as would have ruined the patience of all the heathen philofophers put together: every room in my houfe, from the celler to the garrets, bears teftimony to her rural ideas in fome way or other the leads of my houfe, and the rails of the windows, are crowded with pots and pans, and vegetables, and ever-greens, like the fhop of a botanift or feedfman. When I go into the kitchen, I find the light, which is none of the liveliest at the beft, totally fhut out by a range of phyfic phials huddled together as clofe as they can tick, and filled with mint, to give the windows a rural appearance. Then, fir, the dining-room windows, in fummer time, are fo croffed and crowded with pack-threads faftened like bars from the top to the bottom of them, that if it were not for the French-beans which cluster round the ftrings, it would enliven my mind with the pleating imagination of being cooped up in a fpunginghoufe. Every chimney-corner is then fet out, as it is called, with bough-pots, and not a china jar in my houfe efcapes an ornament from Covent-garden market. I have been, you must know, feverely lectured for this week paft, for fpoiling a charming bed of parfly, as my wife calls it, upon the leads, while I was giving a bricklayer orders to make fome repairs to the chimney; and what is fill more provoking, upon enquiring for my best wig-box, a few days ago, I was told, by the maid, that the box was put to much better ufe, for that her miftrefs had fown a fmall fallad in it of

M 4

wife

me to give the following relation of a fact refpecting it, which has been greatly mifreprefented.

"On October 8, 1765, I arrived at Edinburgh, where I paffed five days with the Rev. Dr. Blair, who, among many learned and ingenious men, introduced me to Dr. Fergufon, profeffor of Moral Philofophy. To this gentleman he mentioned fome doubts I had entertained concerning the genuineness of Offian's Poems; and he, in the evening before I left Edinburgh (viz. October 13), invited us to drink tea at his houfe, where he produced a ftudent, a native of the Highlands, who recited feveral paffages, or verfes, in Earfe, (fome of which he afterwards fung to me) as what he had heard in his own country; and I perfectly remember, that when he interpreted the verfes to me, fome of them appeared to contain part of the defcription of Fingal's chariot. Dr. Fergufon alfo gave me, in his own hand-writing, fome fpecimens of Earfe poetry in the original. Dr. Blair afterwards defired me to mention the recital I had heard, in the next edition of the Reliques of Ancient poetry; and, in compliance with his requeft, I gave a fhort account of what had paffed, in a note to the first volume of my fecond edition, 1767, (p. xlv.) Sone years after, on difcuffing this fubject with a very judicious friend, a native of Scotland alfo, who knew much more of the grounds of the Earfe poetry than I did, he made it credible to me, that there might be fome deception in the cafe, and advifed me to fupprefs the paffage in queftion; which I did, foon after, in my third edition, in 1775. But as I never believed Dr. Blair to have been confcious of any deception in what paffed between the student and

me, fo the fame may have been the cafe with Dr. Fergufon alfo, as he now appears fo entirely to have forgot the whole tranfaction.

Carlile, Nov. THOMAS PERCY." 10, 1781,

IV.

"In an advertisement, dated Carlifle, November 10, and figned Thomas Percy, the attention of the public is recalled, among other particulars, to a declaration, figned by me on the 21st of July laft. My fenfe of how little confequence the fubject is to the public, would hinder my intruding my felf again in this manner; and my very great refpect for the station in which Dr. Percy is placed would incline me to be filent, where I have the misfor tune to differ from him on a matter of fact, if I did not apprehend that filence in this cafe might be interpreted against me.

"At the date of my former declaration, I had found myself charged in a pamphlet, on the authenticity of Offian's Poems, as acceffary to a cheat which was put upon Dr. Percy, in a recital of fome pretended fpecimens of that poetry, by a young ftudent from the Highlands. Whoever may have been the author of this charge, I thought and think myfelf entitled to fay it is falfe.

"I had many reafons likewife to deny my having ever been present at the recital of verfes to Dr. Percy, by a young student from the Highlands; and it caused me much furprize to find, in a correfpondence on this fubject, which took place between Dr. Percy and Dr. Blair, that Dr. Percy had conceived of me as having not only been prefent at the recital of veríes by a ftudent, but as fending for a student into his company, who, in a deliberate

manner,

manner, paffed upon him what he afterwards believed to be an impofi

tion.

"Dr. Percy may not have been aware of the part which he affigned to me in this impofition, as it depended upon an inference to be drawn from my knowledge of the Earfe Janguage: nor was it credible that he meant to apply it to a perfon for whom he ftill profeffed fome efteem. But whatever may have been the idea, I flattered myself that upon recollection he would think it more probable, that he himfelf had committed fome mistake in the fact, ra ther than that I fhould have concurred in fuch a cheat. In this perfuafion I wrote to Dr. Blair the following letter, to be tranfmitted to him; and am now very forry to publifh this or any thing elfe on a controverfy in which neither the attack nor the defence can do credit to any perfon whatever.

Copy of a Letter From Dr. Fergufon

to Dr. Blair.

Edinburgh, 18th Aug. 1781. "Dear Sir,

"I have just feen in the hands of Dr. Black the letter which you have received from Dr. Percy, and am exceedingly vexed to have a difference on a matter of fact with a perfon whofe character I fo much refpect I did no imagine that Dr. Percy, any more than you, could have been affected by the late declaration relating to a paffage in a pamphlet, on the authenticity of Offian's Poems, farther than by the repetition of your names, which were already made free with. If I had thought Dr. Percy any way committed, I fhould certainly have troubled him with a copy of my declaration, and waited his commands before it was published. But it did not occur to me that he, any more

than you, could be cited in fupport of any allegation which it concerned me to deny.

"The most respectful thing I can now do to Dr. Percy is to remind him, as far as my memory ferves me, of the fact in the only converfation which I had the honour to have with him. Among other fubjects Earfe poetry was mentioned; and I remember to have fewn him, in my own hand-writing, fome fcraps which I had received from Mr. James Macpherfon, or from Mr. Maclaggan, chaplain to the 42d regiment. I remember a line, or expreffion, in which the poet, defcribing the time and the fcene, faid, the fon of day was fcorching the mountain, and that Dr. Percy was pleafed to say it was pleonaẩm, but a beautiful one. I remember to have left the paper with Dr. Percy, and have long fince loft every other copy of it.

"The difference between Dr.

Percy and me is perhaps not very material; no more, as he ftates it, than that he remembers what I have forgot. If, nevertheless, what he is pleafed to publifh fhall feem to corroborate the charge which I have already thought myself called upon to deny, I must recur to the entire fenfe and confcioufnefs of my innocence, and renew my declaration, that I was not prefent at the repetition of verfes to Dr. Percy, by a young student from the Highlands; and I give my denial in thefe pofitive terms, becaufe I not only do not remember the repetition of verfes in Earfe, by a ftudent from the Highlands, on that occafion, but because I do not remember the repetition of verfes in Earfe, by a ftudent, upon any other occafion: and becaufe, though intimate with fome ftudents from the Highlands, I do not remember that any of them

ever repeated verfes in my. prefence beyond a fong or a catch; and this circumstance remains with me, with refpect to fome of them, as a circumftance I noted; fo that I am entirely perfuaded Dr. Percy, in recollecting the paffages of his few days ftay at Edinburgh, must have jumbled together circumftances that, in point of time, were actually feparate; the repetition of verfes by a young ftudent, with the communication of verfes in writing by me. If this fuppofition does not compofe the difference, I must despair of being able to remove it, and must leave the matter to the candour of thofe who are pleased to bestow any thought on me or my affairs.

"If I fhould be under the neceffity of publishing any more on this fubject, I fhall, with your leave, fend a copy of this letter to the prefs. In the mean time, as I have not the honour of a perfonal correfpondence with Dr. Percy, I must beg the favour that you will tranfmit it to him. I am, whith great regard and esteem, dear fir, your most obedient and most humble fervant,

(Signed) ADAM FERGUSON." The Rev. Dr. Blair.

"To the contents of this letter, I muft now add, that although the facts ftated by Dr. Percy might be admitted on lefs authority than his, yet as they are entirely contrary to any feeling or recollection I have of the matter, and have been employed to convey a very injurious imputation against me, he muft excufe me, if I do not admit them. And if he ftill perfift, that over and above the fpecimen of Earfe poetry, which I gave him in my own hand-writing, I likewife procured a student to recite other fpecimens to him, he will farther excufe me, if I infist, that every paffage, of which the interpretatian was vouched by me, was in truth what it was given for. As he allows, that I may not have been confcious of any deception in what paffed between the student and him, I muft, in return, allow that he may not be confcious of any mifreprefentation of the fact. But I cannot allow that he has made the beft ufe of his understanding, in thinking it credible, that any perfon, poffeffed of a decent character, could be concerned in fuch a cheat, as he fuppofes to have been practifed upon him. ADAM FERGUSON."

POETRY.