Richard Heber (1773-1833) half-brother of Bishop Heber, was for some
time M. P. for Oxford University. His large inherited fortune
enabled him freely to indulge his love of books, and his, English
library of 105,000 volumes cost him L180,000. He had thousands
besides on the continent. As a cherished friend of Scott's he is
frequently mentioned in the 'Life.' He introduced Leyden to Scott
(Life, i. 333, 1837 ed.).
'Mertoun House, the seat of Hugh Scott, Esq., of Harden, is
beautifully situated on the Tweed, about two miles below Dryburgh
Abbey.'--LOCKHART.
line 7. 'The Iol of the heathen Danes (a word still applied to
Christmas in Scotland; was solemnized with great festivity. The
humour of the Danes at table displayed itself in pelting each other
with bones, and Torfaeus tells a long and curious story, in the
History of Hrolfe Kraka, of one Hottus, an inmate of the Court of
Denmark, who was so generally assailed with these missiles, that he
constructed, out of the bones with which he was overwhelmed, a very
respectable intrenchment, against those who continued the raillery.
The dances of the northern warriors round the great fires of pine-
trees, are commemorated by Olaus Magnus, who says, they danced with
such fury, holding each other by the hands, that, if the grasp of
any failed, he was pitched into the fire with the velocity of a
sling. The sufferer, on such occasions, was instantly plucked out,
and obliged to quaff off a certain measure of ale, as a penalty for
"spoiling the king's fire."'-SCOTT.
line 33. Scott, after explaining that in Roman Catholic countries
mass is never said at night except on Christmas eve, quotes as
illustrative of early celebrations of the festival the names and
descriptions of the allegorical characters in Jonson's 'Christmas
his Masque. 'The personages are Father Christmas himself and his ten
sons and daughters, led in by Cupid. 'Baby-Cake,' the youngest
child, is misprinted 'Baby-Cocke in Scott.
line 45. Post and pair, a game at cards, is one of the sons of
Father Christmas in Jonson's Masque. He comes in with 'a pair-royal
of aces in his hat; his garment all done over with pairs and purs;
his squire carrying a box, cards, and counters.'
line 55. The reference is to the ancient salt-cellar, which parted
superiors from inferiors at table.
line 75. 'It seems certain that the MUMMERS of England, who (in
Northumberland at least) used to go about in disguise to the
neighbouring houses, bearing the then useless ploughshares; and the
GUISARDS of Scotland, not yet in total disuse, present, in some
indistinct degree, a shadow of the old mysteries, which were the
origin of the English drama. In Scotland, (me ipso teste,) we were
wont, during my boyhood, to take the characters of the apostles, at
least of Peter, Paul, and Judas Iscariot; the first had the keys,
the second carried a sword, and the last the bag, in which the dole
of our neighbours' plum-cake was deposited. One played as a
champion, and recited some traditional rhymes; another was:--
...."Alexander, King of Macedon,
Who conquer'd all the world but Scotland alone.
When he came to Scotland his courage grew cold,
To see a little nation courageous and bold."
These, and many such verses, were repeated, but by rote, and
unconnectedly. There were also, occasionally, I believe, a Saint
George. In all, there was a confused resemblance of the ancient
mysteries, in which the characters of Scripture, the Nine Worthies,
and other popular personages, were usually exhibited. It were much
to be wished that the Chester Mysteries were published from the MS.
in the Museum, with the annotations which a diligent investigator of
popular antiquities might still supply. The late acute and valuable
antiquary, Mr. Ritson, showed me several memoranda towards such a
task, which are probably now dispersed or lost. See, however, his
"Remarks on Shakspeare," 1783, p. 38.
'Since the first edition of "Marmion" appeared, this subject has
received much elucidation from the learned and extensive labours of
Mr. Douce; and the Chester Mysteries (edited by J. H. Markland,
Esq.) have been printed in a style of great elegance and accuracy
(in 1818) by Bensley and Sons, London, for the Roxburghe Club.
1830.'--SCOTT.
line 93. The proverb 'Blood is warmer than water' is also common in
the form 'Blood is thicker than water.'
line 96. 'Mr. Scott of Harden, my kind and affectionate friend, and
distant relation, has the original of a poetical invitation,
addressed from his grandfather to my relative, from which a few
lines in the text are imitated. They are dated, as the epistle in
the text, from Mertoun-house, the seat of the Harden family:--
"With amber beard, and flaxen hair,
And reverend apostolic air,
Free of anxiety and care,
Come hither, Christmas-day, and dine;
We'll mix sobriety with wine,
And easy mirth with thoughts divine.
We Christians think it holiday,
On it no sin to feast or play;
Others, in spite, may fast and pray.
No superstition in the use
Our ancestors made of a goose;
Why may not we, as well as they,
Be innocently blithe that day,
On goose or pie, on wine or ale,
And scorn enthusiastic zeal?--
Pray come, and welcome, or plague rott
Your friend and landlord, Walter Scott.
"Mr. Walter Scott, Lessuden"
'The venerable old gentleman, to whom the lines are addressed was
the younger brother of William Scott of Raeburn. Being the cadet of
a cadet of the Harden family, he had very little to lose; yet he
contrived to lose the small property he had, by engaging in the
civil wars and intrigues of the house of Stuart. His veneration for
the exiled family was so great, that he swore he would not shave his
beard till they were restored: a mark of attachment, which, I
suppose, had been common during Cromwell's usurpation; for, in
Cowley's "Cutter of Coleman Street," one drunken cavalier upbraids
another, that, when he was not able to afford to pay a barber, he
affected to "wear a beard for the King." I sincerely hope this was
not absolutely the original reason of my ancestor's beard; which, as
appears from a portrait in the possession of Sir Henry Hay
Macdougal, Bart., and another painted for the famous Dr. Pitcairn,
was a beard of a most dignified and venerable appearance.'-- SCOTT.
line 111. 'See Introduction to the 'Minstrelsy,' vol. iv. p. 59.'--
LOCKHART.
lines 117-20. The Tweed winds and loiters around Mertoun and its
grounds as if fascinated by their attractiveness. With line. 120 cp.
'clipped in with the sea,' I Henry IV, iii. I. 45.
line 126. Cp. 2 Henry IV, iii. 2. 228: 'We have heard the chimes at
midnight, Master Shallow!'
line 132. Scott quotes from Congreve's 'Old Bachelor,'--'Hannibal
was a pretty fellow, sir--a very pretty fellow in his day,' which is
part of a speech by Noll Bluffe, one of the characters.
line 139. With 'Limbo lost,' cp. the 'Limbo large and broad' of
'Paradise Lost,' iii. 495. Limbo is the borders of hell, and also
hell itself.
line 143. 'John Leyden, M. D., who had been of great service to Sir
Walter Scott in the preparation of the 'Border Minstrelsy,' sailed
for India in April, 1803, and died at Java in August, 1811, before
completing his 36th year.
"Scenes sung by him who sings no more!
His brief and bright career is o'er,
And mute his tuneful strains;
Quench'd is his lamp of varied lore,
That loved the light of song to pour;
A distant and a deadly shore
Has LEYDEN'S cold remains."
Lord of the Isles, Canto IV.
'See a notice of his life in the Author's Miscellaneous Prose Works,
vol. iv.'--LOCKHART.
line 146. For the solemn and powerful interview of Hercules and
Ulysses, see close of Odyssey XI. Wraith (Icel. vordhr, guardian) is
here used for SHADE. In Scottish superstition it signifies the
shadow of a person seen before death, as in 'Guy Mannering,' chap.
x: 'she was uncertain if it were the gipsy, or her WRAITH.' The
most notable use of the word and the superstition in recent poetry
is in Rossetti's 'King's Tragedy':--
'And the woman held his eyes with her eyes:--
"O King; thou art come at last;
But thy WRAITH has haunted the Scottish sea
To my sight for four years past.
"Four years it is since first I met,
'Twixt the Duchray and the Dhu,
A shape whose feet clung close in a shroud,
And that shape for thine I knew,"' &c.
line 148. AEneid, III. 19.
line 159. 'This passage is illustrated by "Ceubren yr Ellyll, or the
Spirit's Blasted Tree," a legendary tale, by the Reverend George
Warrington, who says:--
'"The event, on which the tale is founded, is preserved by tradition
in the family of the Vaughans of Hengwyrt; nor is it entirely lost,
even among the common people, who still point out this oak to the
passenger. The enmity between the two Welsh chieftains, Howel Sele,
and Owen Glendwr, was extreme, and marked by vile treachery in the
one, and ferocious cruelty in the other. {3} The story is somewhat
changed and softened, as more favourable to the character of the two
chiefs, and as better answering the purpose of poetry, by admitting
the passion of pity, and a greater degree of sentiment in the
description. Some trace of Howel Sele's mansion was to be seen a few
years ago, and may perhaps be still visible, in the park of Nannau,
now belonging to Sir Robert Vaughan, Baronet, in the wild and
romantic tracks of Merionethshire. The abbey mentioned passes under
two names, Vener and Cymmer. The former is retained, as more
generally used."--See the Metrical Tale in Sir
Walter Scott's Poetical Works, vol. vii. pp. 396-402.'--LOCKHART.
line 161. By a victory gained at Maida, 6 July 1806, Sir John Stuart
broke the power of the French in southern Italy.
line 163. 'The Daoine shi,' or Men of Peace, of the Scottish
Highlanders, rather resemble the Scandinavian Duergar, than the
English Fairies. Notwithstanding their name, they are, if not
absolutely malevolent, at least peevish, discontented, and apt to do
mischief on slight provocation. The belief of their existence is
deeply impressed on the Highlanders, who think they are particularly
offended at mortals, who talk of them, who wear their favourite
colour green, or in any respect interfere with their affairs. This
is especially to be avoided on Friday, when, whether as dedicated to
Venus, with whom, in Germany, this subterraneous people are held
nearly connected, or for a more solemn reason, they are more active
and possessed of greater power. Some curious particulars concerning
the popular superstitions of the Highlanders may be found in Dr.
Graham's Picturesque Sketches of Perthshire.'--SCOTT.
Friday (the day of the goddess Freya) is regarded as lucky for
marriages. Mr. Thiselton Dyer in 'Domestic Folk-lore,' p. 39, quotes
the City Chamberlain of Glasgow as affirming that 'nine-tenths of
the marriages in Glasgow are celebrated on a Friday.' In Hungary
nothing of any importance is undertaken on a Friday, and there is a
Hungarian proverb which says that 'whoever is merry on a Friday is
sure to weep on the Sunday.' The Sicilians make the exception for
weddings. In America Friday is a lucky day-the New World, no doubt,
upsetting in this as other matters the conservatism of the Old. The
superstition of sailors about Friday is famous. Cp. the old English
song 'The Mermaid.' For further discussion of the subject see 'Notes
and Queries,' 6th S. vol. vi.
line 175. 'The journal of the Friend, to whom the Fourth Canto of
the poem is inscribed, furnished me with the following account of a
striking superstition:--
'"Passed the pretty little village of Franchemont (near Spaw), with
the romantic ruins of the old castle of the counts of that name. The
road leads through many delightful vales, on a rising ground: at
the extremity of one of them stands the ancient castle, now the
subject of many superstitions legends. It is firmly believed by the
neighbouring peasantry, that the last Baron of Franchemont
deposited, in one of the vaults of the castle, a ponderous chest,
containing an immense treasure in gold and silver, which, by some
magic spell, was intrusted to the care of the Devil, who is
constantly found sitting on the chest in the shape of a huntsman.
Any one adventurous enough to touch the chest is instantly seized
with the palsy. Upon one occasion, a priest of noted piety was
brought to the vault: he used all the arts of exorcism to persuade
his infernal majesty to vacate his seat, but in vain; the huntsman
remained immovable. At last, moved by the earnestness of the priest,
he told him, that he would agree to resign the chest, if the
exorciser would sign his name with blood. But the priest understood
his meaning, and refused, as by that act he would have delivered
over his soul to the Devil. Yet if any body can discover the mystic
words used by the person who deposited the treasure, and pronounced
them, the fiend must instantly decamp. I had many stories of a
similar nature from a peasant, who had himself seen the Devil, in
the shape of a great cat."'--SCOTT.
line 190. Begun has always been a possible past tense in poetry, and
living poets continue its use. There is an example in Mr. Browning's
'Waring':--
'Give me my so-long promised son,
Let Waring end what I BEGUN;
and Lord Tennyson writes:--
'The light of days when life BEGUN!
in the memorial verses prefixed to his brother's 'Collected Sonnets'
(1879).
line 205. Robert Lindsay of Pittscottie (a Fife estate, eastward of
Cupar) lived in the first half of the sixteenth century, and wrote
'Chronicles of Scotland' from James II to Mary. Nothing further of
him is known with certainty. Like the Lion King he was a cadet of
the noble family of Lindsay, including Crawford and Lindsay and
Lindsay of the Byres.
line 207. See above, IV. xiv.
line 212. John of Fordun (a village in Kincardineshire) about the
end of the fourteenth century wrote the first five of the sixteen
books of the 'Scotochronicon,' the work being completed by Walter
Bower, appointed Abbot of St. Colm's, 1418.
line 220. Gripple, tenacious, narrow. See 'Waverley,' chap. lxvii. -
-'Naebody wad be sae gripple as to take his gear'; and cp. 'Faerie
Queene,' VI. iv. 6:--
'On his shield he GRIPPLE hold did lay.'
line 225. They hide away their treasures without using them, as the
magpie or the jackdaw does with the articles it steals.