John Wilson, one of the most heart-stirring of Scottish prose writers,
and a narrative and dramatic poet, is also entitled to rank among the
minstrels of his country. The son of a prosperous manufacturer, he was
born in Paisley, on the 18th of May 1785. The house of his birth, an old
building, bore the name of _Prior's Croft_; it was taken down in 1787,
when the family removed to a residence at the Town-head of Paisley,
which, like the former, stood on ground belonging to the poet's father.
His elementary education was conducted at the schools of his native
town, and afterwards at the manse of Mearns, a rural parish in
Renfrewshire, under the superintendence of Dr Maclatchie, the parochial
clergyman. To his juvenile sports and exercises in the moor of Mearns,
and his trouting excursions by the stream of the Humbie, and the four
parish lochs, he has frequently referred in the pages of _Blackwood's
Magazine_. In his fifteenth year he became a student in the University
of Glasgow. Under the instructions of Professor Young, of the Greek
Chair, he made distinguished progress in classical learning; but it was
to the clear and masculine intellect of Jardine, the distinguished
Professor of Logic, that he was, in common with Jeffrey, chiefly
indebted for a decided impulse in the path of mental cultivation. In
1804 he proceeded to Oxford, where he entered in Magdalen College as a
gentleman-commoner. A leader in every species of recreation, foremost in
every sport and merry-making, and famous for his feats of agility and
strength, he assiduously continued the prosecution of his classical
studies. Of poetical genius he afforded the first public indication by
producing the best English poem of fifty lines, which was rewarded by
the Newdigate prize of forty guineas. On attaining his majority he
became master of a fortune of about L30,000, which accrued to him from
his father's estate; and, having concluded a course of four years at
Oxford, he purchased, in 1808, the small but beautiful property of
Elleray, on the banks of the lake Windermere, in Westmoreland. During
the intervals of college terms, he had become noted for his eccentric
adventures and humorous escapades; and his native enthusiasm remained
unsubdued on his early settlement at Elleray. He was the hero of
singular and stirring adventures: at one time he joined a party of
strolling-players, and on another occasion followed a band of gipsies;
he practised cock-fighting and bull-hunting, and loved to startle his
companions by his reckless daring. His juvenile excesses received a
wholesome check by his espousing, in 1811, Miss Jane Penny, the daughter
of a wealthy Liverpool merchant, and a lady of great personal beauty and
amiable dispositions, to whom he continued most devotedly attached. He
had already enjoyed the intimate society of Wordsworth, and now sought
more assiduously the intercourse of the other lake-poets. In the autumn
of 1811, on the death of his friend James Grahame, author of "The
Sabbath," he composed an elegy to his memory, which attracted the notice
of Sir Walter Scott; in the year following he produced "The Isle of
Palms," a poem in four cantos.
Hitherto Wilson had followed the career of a man of fortune; and his
original patrimony had been handsomely augmented by his wife's dowry.
But his guardian (a maternal uncle) had proved culpably remiss in the
management of his property, he himself had been careless in pecuniary
matters, and these circumstances, along with others, convinced him of
the propriety of adopting a profession. His inclinations were originally
towards the Scottish Bar; and he now engaged in legal studies in the
capital. In 1815 he passed advocate, and, during the terms of the law
courts, established his residence in Edinburgh. He was early employed as
a counsel at the circuit courts; but his devotion to literature
prevented him from giving his heart to his profession, and he did not
succeed as a lawyer. In 1816 appeared his "City of the Plague," a
dramatic poem, which was followed by his prose tales and sketches,
entitled "Lights and Shadows of Scottish Life," "The Foresters," and
"The Trials of Margaret Lindsay."
On the establishment of _Blackwood's Magazine_, in 1817, Wilson was one
of the staff of contributors, along with Hogg, Lockhart, and others; and
on a difference occurring between the publisher and Messrs Pringle and
Cleghorn, the original editors, a few months after the undertaking was
commenced, he exercised such a marked influence on the fortunes of that
periodical, that he was usually regarded as its editor, although the
editorial labour and responsibility really rested on Mr Blackwood
himself. In 1820 he was elected by the Town-Council of Edinburgh to the
Chair of Moral Philosophy in the University, which had become vacant by
the death of Dr Thomas Brown. In the twofold capacity of Professor of
Ethics and principal contributor to a popular periodical, he occupied a
position to which his genius and tastes admirably adapted him. He
possessed in a singular degree the power of stimulating the minds and
drawing forth the energies of youth; and wielding in periodical
literature the vigour of a master intellect, he riveted public
attention by the force of his declamation, the catholicity of his
criticism, and the splendour of his descriptions. _Blackwood's Magazine_
attained a celebrity never before reached by any monthly periodical; the
essays and sketches of "Christopher North," his literary
_nom-de-guerre_, became a monthly treasure of interest and
entertainment. His celebrated "Noctes Ambrosianae," a series of dialogues
on the literature and manners of the times, appeared in _Blackwood_ from
1822 till 1835. In 1825 his entire poetical works were published in two
octavo volumes; and, on his ceasing his regular connexion with
_Blackwood's Magazine_, his prose contributions were, in 1842, collected
in three volumes, under the title of "Recreations of Christopher North."
Illustrious as a man of letters, and esteemed as a poet, the private
life of Professor Wilson was for many years as destitute of particular
incident, as his youth had been remarkable for singular and stirring
adventure. Till within a few years of his death, he resided during the
summer months at Elleray, where he was in the habit of sumptuously
entertaining his literary friends. His splendid regattas on the lake
Windermere, from which he derived his title of "Admiral of the Lake,"
have been celebrated in various periodical papers. He made frequent
pedestrian tours to the Highlands, in which Mrs Wilson, who was of
kindred tastes, sometimes accompanied him. On the death of this
excellent woman, which took place in March 1837, he suffered a severe
shock, from which he never recovered. In 1850 he was elected first
president of the Edinburgh Philosophical Institution; and in the
following year a civil-list pension of L300 was, on the recommendation
of the premier, Lord John Russell, conferred on him by the Queen. In
1852 he felt necessitated, from a continuance of impaired health, to
resign his professorship in the University. He died in his house in
Gloucester Place, Edinburgh, on the 3d of April 1854. His remains, at a
public funeral, were consigned to the Dean Cemetery, and upwards of a
thousand pounds have been raised to erect a suitable monument to his
memory.
Besides the works already enumerated, Professor Wilson contributed an
admirable essay on the genius of Burns for Blackie's edition of his
works, and an elegant dissertation on Highland scenery, preliminary to
the "Caledonia Illustrata." Of his whole works, a complete edition is in
the course of publication, under the editorial care of his distinguished
son-in-law, Professor Ferrier, of St Andrews. Than Professor Wilson no
Scotsman, Scott and Jeffrey not excepted, has exercised a wider and
deeper influence upon the general intellect of his countrymen. With a
vast and comprehensive genius, he has gathered from every department of
nature the deep and genial suggestions of wisdom; he has found
philosophy in the wilds, and imbibed knowledge by the mountain stream.
Under canvas, in his sporting-jacket, or with the angler's rod, he is
still the eloquent "old Christopher;" his contemplations are always
lofty, and his descriptions gorgeous. As a poet, he is chiefly to be
remarked for meek serenity and gentle pathos. His tales somewhat lack
incident, and are deficient in plot; but his other writings, whether
critical or philosophical, are marked by correctness of taste, boldness
of imagery, and dignity of sentiment. Lion-hearted in the exposure of
absolute error, or vain pretext, he is gentle in judging human frailty;
and irresistible in humour, is overpowering in tenderness. As a
contributor to periodical literature, he will find admirers while the
English language is understood.