When the reader hears such things of the Freir Wynd, he must not be
surprised overmuch on perusing the following advertisement from the
_Edinburgh Gazette_ of April 19, 1703: ‘There is a Boarding-school to
be set up in Blackfriars Wynd, in Robinson’s Land, upon the west side
of the wynd, near the middle thereof, in the first door of the stair
leading to the said land, against the latter end of May, or first of
June next, where young Ladies and Gentlewomen may have all sorts of
breeding that is to be had in any part of Britain, and great care taken
of their conversation.’
I know not whether this was the same seminary which, towards the
middle of the century, was kept by a distinguished lady named Mrs
Euphame or Effie Sinclair, who was descended from the ancient family
of Longformacus, in Berwickshire, being the granddaughter of Sir
Robert Sinclair, first baronet of Longformacus, upon whom that dignity
was conferred by King Charles II., in consideration of his services
and losses during the civil war. Mrs Effie was allied to many of
the best families in Scotland, who made it a duty to place their
children under her charge; and her school was thus one of the most
respectable in Edinburgh. By her were educated the beautiful Miss Duff,
afterwards Countess of Dumfries and Stair, and, by a second marriage,
lady of the Honourable Alexander Gordon (Lord Rockville); the late
amiable and excellently well informed Mrs Keith, sister of Sir Robert
Keith, commonly called, from his diplomatic services, _Ambassador
Keith_;[195] the two Misses Hume of Linthill; and Miss Rutherford,
the mother of Sir Walter Scott. All these ladies were Scottish cousins
to Mrs Effie. To judge by the proficiency of her scholars, although
much of what is called accomplishment might be then left untaught, she
must have been possessed of uncommon talents for education; for all
the ladies before mentioned had well-cultivated minds, were fond of
reading, wrote and spelled admirably, were well acquainted with history
and with _belles-lettres_, without neglecting the more homely duties of
the needle and the account-book; and, while two of them were women of
extraordinary talents, all of them were perfectly well-bred in society.
[Illustration]
It may be added that many of these young ladies were sent to reside
with and be _finished off_ by the Honourable Mrs Ogilvie, lady of the
Honourable Patrick Ogilvie of Longmay and Inchmartin, who was supposed
to be the _best-bred_ woman of her time in Scotland (ob. 1753). Her
system was very rigorous, according to the spirit of the times. The
young ladies were taught to sit quite upright; and the mother of
my informant (Sir Walter Scott), even when advanced to nearly her
eightieth year, never permitted her back to touch the chair in sitting.
There is a remarkably good and characteristic anecdote told of the
husband of this rigorous preceptress, a younger brother of the Earl of
Findlater, whose exertions, while Lord High-chancellor of Scotland,
in favour of the Union were so conspicuous. The younger brother, it
appears, had condescended to trade a little in cattle, which was not
considered derogatory to the dignity of a Scottish gentleman at that
time, and was by no means an uncommon practice among them. However,
the earl was offended at the measure, and upbraided his brother for
it. ‘Haud your tongue, man!’ said the cattle-dealer; ‘better sell
nowte than sell nations,’ pronouncing the last word with peculiar and
emphatic breadth.
I am tempted, by the curious and valuable document appended, to suspect
that the female accomplishments of the last century were little behind
those of the present in point of useless elaboration.
‘_Thursday, December 9, 1703._—Near Dundee, at Dudhope, there is
to be taught, by a gentlewoman from London, the following works,
viz.—1. Wax-work of all sorts, as any one’s picture to the life,
figures in shadow glasses, fruits upon trees or in dishes, all manner
of confections, fish, flesh, fowl, or anything that can be made of
wax.—2. Philligrim-work of any sort, whether hollow or flat.—3.
Japan-work upon timber or glass.—4. Painting upon glass.—5. Sashes
for windows, upon sarsnet or transparent paper.—6. Straw-work of any
sort, as houses, birds, or beasts.—7. Shell-work, in sconces, rocks,
or flowers.—8. Quill-work.—9. Gum-work.—10. Transparent-work.—11.
Puff-work.—12. Paper-work.—13. Plate-work on timber, brass,
or glass.—14. Tortoise-shell-work.—15. Mould-work, boxes and
baskets.—16. Silver landskips.—17. Gimp-work.—18. Bugle-work.—19.
A sort of work in imitation of japan, very cheap.—20. Embroidering,
stitching, and quilting.—21. True point or tape lace.—22. Cutting
glass.—23. Washing gauzes, or Flanders lace and point.—24.
Pastry of all sorts, with the finest cuts and shapes that’s now
used in London.—25. Boning fowls, without cutting the back.—26.
Butter-work.—27. Preserving, conserving, and candying.—28. Pickling
and colouring.—29. All sorts of English wines.—30. Writing and
arithmetic.—31. Music, and the great end of dancing, which is a good
carriage; and several other things too tedious here to be mentioned.
Any who are desirous to learn the above works may board with herself at
a reasonable rate, or may board themselves in Dundee, and may come to
her quarterly.’—Advertisement in _Edinburgh Gazette_, 1703.
[Illustration: ‘The great end of dancing.’]
Another distinguished Edinburgh boarding-school of the last century was
kept by two ladies, of Jacobite predilections, named the Misses Ged, in
Paterson’s Court, Lawnmarket. They were remarkable at least for their
family connections, for it was a brother of theirs who, under the name
of Don Patricio Ged, rendered such kindly and effective service to
Commodore Byron, as gratefully recorded in the well-known _Narrative_,
and gracefully touched on by Campbell in the _Pleasures of Hope_:
‘He found a warmer world, a milder clime,
A home to rest, a shelter to defend,
Peace and repose, _a Briton and a friend_.’
Another member of the family, William Ged, originally a goldsmith in
Edinburgh, was the inventor of stereotype printing. The Misses Ged
were described by their friends as of the Geds of Baldridge, near
Dunfermline; thorough Fife Jacobites every one of them. The old ladies
kept a portrait of the Chevalier in their parlour, and looked chiefly
to partisans of the Stuarts for support. They had another relative of
less dignity, who, accepting a situation in the Town-guard, became
liable to satiric reference from Robert Fergusson:
‘Nunc est bibendum, et bendere bickerum magnum,
Cavete Town-guardum, _Dougal Geddum_, atque Campbellum.’
Dougal had been a silversmith, but in his own conceit his red coat as a
Town-guard officer made him completely military. Seeing a lady without
a beau at the door of the Assembly Room, he offered his services, ‘if
the arm of an old soldier could be of any use.’ ‘Hoot awa, Dougal,’
said the lady, accepting his assistance, however; ‘an auld tinkler, you
mean.’