This volume owes its existence to the desire of some of the teachers and
pupils of the public schools in the northeastern part of Cecil county,
to do honor to the memory of the late School Commissioner David Scott.
Shortly after Mr. Scott's death, some of the parties referred to,
proposed to collect enough money by voluntary contributions to erect a
monument over his grave, in order to perpetuate his memory, and also to
show the high regard in which he was held by them. This project being
brought to the knowledge of the editor, he ventured to express the
opinion that the best monument Mr. Scott could have, would be the
collection and publication of his poems in book form. This suggestion
met the approbation of the originators of the project, who asked the
writer to undertake the work of collecting the poems and editing the
book. Subsequent investigation showed that Mr. Scott had not left enough
poems to justify their publication in a volume by themselves; and the
original plan of the work was changed, so as to include, so far as it
has been practicable to do so, the writings of all the native poets of
the county, and those who though not natives, have resided and written
in it.
Owing to causes not necessary to state it was impracticable, in some
cases, to make as creditable a selection as could have been made had it
been possible to have had access to all the poetry of the different
writers. In a few instances the book contains all the poetry of the
different writers that it has been practicable to obtain. Herein, it is
hoped, will be found sufficient apology, if any apology is needed, for
the character of some of the matter in the book.
If any apology is needed for the prominence given to the poems of David
Scott (of John.) it may be found in the foregoing statement concerning
the origin of the book; and in the fact, that, for more than a quarter
of a century, the editor was probably his most intimate friend. So
intimate indeed were the relations between Mr. Scott and the writer,
that the latter had the pleasure of reading many of his friend's poems
before they were published. The same may be said in a more extended
sense, of the poems of David Scott (of James) to whose example and
teaching, as well as to that of the other Mr. Scott--for he was a pupil
of each of them--the writer owes much of whatever literary ability he
may possess.
The editor is also on terms of intimacy with many of the other
contemporary writers whose poetry appears in the book, and has striven
to do justice to their literary ability, by the selection of such of
their poems as are best calculated, in his opinion, to do credit to
them, without offending the taste of the most fastidious readers of the
book.
From the foregoing statement it will be apparent that the object of the
editor was not to produce a book of poetical jems, but only to select
the poems best adapted to the exemplification of the diversified talents
of their authors. The work has been a labor of love; and though
conscious that it has been imperfectly performed, the compiler ventures
to express the hope that it will be received by a generous and
discriminating public, in the same spirit in which it was done.