A man of fine intellect, a poet, and an elegant writer, Hamilton Paul
has claims to remembrance. On the 10th April 1773, he was born in a
small cottage on the banks of Girvan Water, in the parish of Dailly, and
county of Ayr. In the same dwelling, Hugh Ainslie, another Scottish
bard, was afterwards born. Receiving his elementary education at the
parish school, he became a student in the University of Glasgow. Thomas
Campbell, author of "The Pleasures of Hope," was a college contemporary;
and their mutual love of poetry drew them closely to each other; they
competed for academical rewards offered for the best compositions in
verse, till frequent adjudication as to the equality of their merits,
induced them to forbear contesting on the same subjects. At least on one
occasion the verses of Paul were preferred to those of the Bard of Hope.
The following lines, exhibiting a specimen of his poetical powers at
this period, are from a translation of Claudian's "Epithalamium on the
Marriage of Honorius and Maria," for which, in the Latin class, he
gained a prize along with his friend:--
"Maria, now the maid of heavenly charms,
Decreed to bliss the youthful monarch's arms;
Inflames Augustus with unwonted fires,
And in his breast awakens new desires.
In love a novice, while his bosom glows
With restless heat, the cause he scarcely knows;
The rural pastimes suited to his age,
His late delight, no more his care engage;
No more he wills to give his steed the reins
In eager chase, and urge him o'er the plains;
No more he joys to bend the twanging bow,
To hurl the javeline, or the dart to throw;
His alter'd thoughts to other objects rove,
To wounds inflicted by the god of love.
How oft, expressive of the inward smart,
Did groans convulsive issue from his heart!
How oft did blushes own the sacred flame,
How oft his hand unbidden wrote her name!
Now presents worthy of the plighted fair,
And nuptial robes his busy train prepare--
Robes wherewith Livia was herself attired,
And those bright dames that to the beds aspired
Of emperors. Yet the celestial maid
Requires no earthly ornamental aid
To give her faultless form a single grace,
Or add one charm to her bewitching face."
The circumstances of the young poets were far from affluent. Campbell
particularly felt the pressure of poverty. He came hastily one morning
to the lodgings of his friend to request his opinion of some verses;
they were immediately printed, and the copies sold to his
fellow-students for a halfpenny each. So Paul sometimes told his
friends, quoting the following lines as all he could remember of the
production:--
"Loud shriek'd afar the angry sprite,
That rode upon the storm of night,
And loud the waves were heard to roar
That lash'd on Jura's rocky shore."
After several sessions of attendance at college, Paul became tutor to a
family in Argyleshire, and Campbell obtained a similar situation in the
island of Mull. They entered into a humorous correspondence in prose
and verse. "Your verses on the Unfortunate Lady," writes Campbell to
his friend, "I read with sweet pleasure; for there is a joy in grief,
when peace dwelleth in the breast of the sad.... Morose as I am in
judging of poetry, I could find nothing inelegant in the whole piece. I
hope you will in your next (since you are such a master of the
plaintive) send me some verses consolatory to a hermit; for my
sequestered situation sometimes stamps a firm belief on my mind that I
am actually an anchorite. In return for your welcome poetical effusion,
I have nothing at present but a chorus of the Jepthes of Buchanan,
written soon after my arrival in Mull:--
"Glassy Jordan, smooth meandering
Jacob's grassy meads between,
Lo! thy waters, gently wandering,
Lave thy valleys rich and green.
"When the winter, keenly show'ring,
Strips fair Salem's holy shade,
Then thy current, broader flowing,
Lingers 'mid the leafless glade.
"When, O! when shall light returning
Gild the melancholy gloom,
And the golden star of morning
Jordan's solemn vault illume?
"When shall Freedom's holy charmer
Cheer my long benighted soul?
When shall Israel, proud in armour,
Burst the tyrant's base control?" &c.
"The similarity of the measure with that of your last made me think of
sending you this piece. I am much hurried at present with my comedy, the
'Clouds of Aristophanes.' I have already finished my translation of the
Choephoroe of AEschylus. I dreamt a dream about your being before
Parnassus upon your trial for sedition and contumacy. I thought Thalia,
Clio, &c. addressed you. Their speeches shall be nonsensified into
rhyme, and shall be part of some other scrawl from your affectionate
friend,
"THOMAS THE HERMIT."
In another epistle Campbell threatens to "send a formal message to the
kind nymphs of Parnassus, telling them that, whereas Hamilton Paul,
their favourite and admired laureate of the north, has been heard to
express his admiration of certain nymphs in a certain place; and that
the said Hamilton Paul has ungratefully and feloniously neglected to
speak with due reverence of the ladies of Helicon; that said Hamilton
Paul shall be deprived of all aid in future from these goddesses, and be
sent to draw his inspiration from the dry fountain of earthly beauty;
and that, furthermore, all the favours taken from the said Hamilton Paul
shall accrue to the informer and petitioner!"
After two years' residence in the Highlands, both the poets returned to
Glasgow to resume their academical studies: Campbell to qualify himself
as a man of letters, and Paul to prepare for the ministry of the
Scottish Church. "It would have been impossible, even during the last
years of their college life," writes Mr Deans,[72] "to have predicted
which of the two students would ultimately arrive at the greatest
eminence. They were both excellent classical scholars; they were both
ingenious poets; and Campbell does not appear to have surpassed his
companion either in his original pieces or his translations; they both
exhibited great versatility of talent; they were both playful and witty;
and seem to have been possessed of great facilities in sport. During
his latter years, when detailing the history of those joyous days, Mr
Paul dwelt on them with peculiar delight, and seemed animated with
youthful emotion when recalling the curious frolics and innocent and
singular adventures in which Campbell and he had performed a principal
part."
While resident at Inverary, Mr Paul composed several poems, which were
much approved by his correspondent. Among these, a ballad entitled "The
Maid of Inverary," in honour of Lady Charlotte Campbell, afterwards Lady
Bury, was set to music, and made the subject of elaborate criticism. On
his return to the university, he composed with redoubled ardour,
contributing verses on every variety of topic to the newspapers and
periodicals. Several of his pieces, attracting the notice of some of the
professors, received their warm commendation.
Obtaining licence to preach, the poet returned to his native county.
During a probation of thirteen years, he was assistant to six parish
ministers, and tutor in five different families. He became
joint-proprietor and editor of the _Ayr Advertiser_, which he conducted
for a period of three years. At Ayr he was a member of every literary
circle; was connected with every club; chaplain to every society; a
speaker at every meeting; the poet of every curious occurrence; and the
welcome guest at every table. Besides editing his newspaper, he gave
private instructions in languages, and preached on Sabbath. His metrical
productions became widely known, and his songs were sung at the cottage
hearths of the district. His presence at the social meeting was the sure
indication of a prevalent good humour.
In 1813, Mr Paul attained the summit of his professional ambition; he
was ordained to the pastoral office in the united parishes of Broughton,
Glenholm, and Kilbucho, in Peeblesshire. Amidst due attention to his
clerical duties, he still found leisure to engage in literary pursuits,
and continued to contribute to the public journals both in prose and
poetry. Of the poet Burns he was an enthusiastic admirer; he was
laureate of the "Burns' Allowa' Club," and of the Glasgow Ayrshire
Friendly Society, whose annual meetings were held on the Bard's
anniversary; and the odes which he composed for these annual assemblages
attracted wide and warm admiration. He therefore recommended himself as
a suitable editor of the works of Burns, when a new edition was
contemplated by Messrs Wilson and M'Cormick, booksellers in Ayr. In the
performance of his editorial task, he was led, in an attempt to palliate
the immoralities of Burns, to make some indiscreet allusions respecting
his own clerical brethren; for this imprudence he narrowly escaped
censure from the ecclesiastical courts. His memoir, though commended in
_Blackwood's Magazine_, conducted by Professor Wilson, was severely
censured by Dr Andrew Thomson in the _Christian Instructor_.
The pastoral parish of Broughton was in many respects suited for a
person of Hamilton Paul's peculiar temperament and habits; in a more
conspicuous position his talents might have shone with more brilliancy;
but, after the burst of enthusiasm in his youth was past, he loved
seclusion, and modestly sought the shade. No man was less conscious of
his powers, or attached less value to his literary performances.[73] Of
his numerous poetical compositions each was the work of a sitting, or
had been uttered impromptu; and, unless secured by a friend, they were
commonly laid aside never to be recollected. As a clergyman, he
retained, during a lengthened incumbency, the respect and affection of
his flock, chiefly, it may be remarked, from the acceptability of his
private services, and the warmth and kindliness of his dispositions. His
pulpit discourses were elegantly composed, and largely impressed with
originality and learning; but were somewhat imperfectly pervaded with
those clear and evangelical views of Divine truth which are best
calculated to edify a Christian audience. In private society, he was
universally beloved. "His society," writes Mr Deans, "was courted by the
rich and the poor, the learned and the unlearned. In every company he
was alike kind, affable, and unostentatious; as a companion, he was the
most engaging of men; he was the best story-teller of his day." His
power of humour was unbounded; he had a joke for every occasion, a
_bon-mot_ for every adventure. He had eminent power of satire when he
chose to wield it; but he generally blended the complimentary with the
pungent, and lessened the keenness of censure by the good-humour of its
utterance. His anecdotes are familiar over a wide district, and many of
his witty sayings have become proverbial. He was abundantly hospitable,
and had even suffered embarrassments from its injudicious exercise;
still he was always able, as he used to say--
"To invite the wanderer to the gate,
And spread the couch of rest."
It was his earnest desire that he might live to pay his liabilities, and
he was spared to accomplish the wish. He died on the 28th of February
1854, in the 81st year of his age.
In appearance, Hamilton Paul presented a handsome person, tall and
erect; his countenance was regular and pleasant; and his eyes, which
were partially concealed by overhanging eye-lashes, beamed with humour
and intelligence. In conversation he particularly excelled, evincing on
every topic the fruits of extensive reading and reflection. He was
readily moved by the pathetic; at the most joyous hour, a melancholy
incident would move him into tears. The tenderness of his heart was
frequently imparted to his verses, which are uniformly distinguished for
smoothness and simplicity.
[72] We are indebted to Mr W. Deans, author of a "History of the Ottoman
Empire," for much of the information contained in this memoir. Mr Deans
was personally acquainted with Mr Hamilton Paul.
[73] "He never took any credit to himself," communicates his friend, Mr
H. S. Riddell, "from the widely-known circumstance of his having carried
off the prize from Campbell. He said that Campbell was at that period a
very young man, much younger than he, and had much less experience in
composition than himself."