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No. III.

To Mons. JAMES SMITH, Mauchline.

MY DEAR SIR,

Monday Morning, Mosgiel, 1786.

I WENT to Dr. Douglas yesterday fully resolved to take the opportunity of Capt. Smith; but I found the Doctor with a Mr. and Mrs. White, both Jamaicans, and they have deranged my plans altogether. They assure him that to send me from Savannah la Mar to Port Antonio will cost my master, Charles Douglas, upwards of fifty pounds; besides running the risk of throwing myself into a pleuritic fever in consequence of hard travelling in the sun. On these accounts, he refuses sending me with Smith, but a vessel sails from Greenock the first of Sept. right for the place of my destination. The Captain of her is an intimate of Mr. Garvin Hamilton's, and as good a fellów as heart could wish: with him I am destined to go. Where I shall shelter, I know not, but I hope to weather the storm. Perish the drop of blood of mine that fears them! I know their worst, and am prepared to meet it.

I'll laugh, an' sing, an' shake my leg,

As lang's I dow.

On Thursday morning if you can muster as much self-denial as to be out of bed about seven o'clock, I shall see you as I ride through to Cumnock. After all, Heaven bless the sex! I feel there is still happiness for me among them.

O woman, lovely woman! Heaven designed you
To temper man! we had been brutes without you!

No. IV.

To Mr. DAVID BRICE..

Mosgeil, June 12, 1786.

DEAR BRICE,

I RECEIVED your message øy G. Paterson, and as I am not very throng at present, I just write to let you know that there is such a worthless, rhyming reprobate, as your humble servant, still in the land of the living, though I can scarcely say, in the place of hope. I have no news to tell you that will give me any pleasure to mention or you to hear.

*

And now for a grand cure; the ship is on her way home that is to take me out to Jamaica; and then, farewel dear old Scotland, and farewel dear ungrateful Jean, for never, never will I see you more.

You will have heard that I am going to commence Poet in print; and to-morrow my works go to the press. I expect it will be a volume of about two hundred pages-it is just the last foolish action I intend to do; and then turn a wise man as fast as possible.

Believe me to be,

Dear BRICE,

Your friend and well-wisher.

No. V.

To GAVIN HAMILTON, Esq. Mauchline.

Edinburgh, Dec. 7, 1786.

HONORED SIR,

I HAVE paid every attention to your commands, but can only say what perhaps you will have heard before this reach you, that Muirkirklands were bought by a John Gordon, W. S. but for whom I know not; Mauchlands, Haugh Miln, &c. by a Frederick Fotheringham, supposed to be for Ballochmyle Laird, and Adamhill and Shawood were bought for Oswald's folks. This is so imperfect an account, and will be so late ere it reach you, that were it not to discharge my conscience I would not trouble you with it; but after all my diligence I could make it no sooner nor better.

For my own affairs, I am in a fair way of becoming as eminent as Thomas a Kempis or John Bunyan; and you may expect henceforth to see my birth-day inserted among the wonderful events, in the poor Robin's and Aberdeen Almanacks, along with the Black Monday, and the battle of Bothwel bridge.-My lord Glencairn and the Dean of Faculty, Mr. H. Erskine, have taken me under their wing; and by all probability I shall soon be the tenth worthy, and the eighth wise man of the world. Through my lord's influence it is inserted in the records of the Caledonian hunt, that they universally, one and all, subscribe for the 2d edition. My subscription bills come out to-morrow, and you shall have some of them next post. I have met in Mr. Dalrymple, of Orangefield, what Solomon emphatically calls, "A friend that sticketh closer than a brother."-The warmth with which he interests himself in my affairs is of the same enthusiastic kind which you, Mr. Aiken, and the few patrons that took

notice of my earlier poetic days shewed for the poor unlucky devil of a poet.

I always remember Mrs. Hamilton and Miss Kennedy in my poetic prayers, but you both in prose and

verse.

May cauld ne'er catch you but* a hap,
Nor hunger but in plenty's lap!
Amen!

No. VI.

To Dr. McKENZIE, Mauchline.

Inclosing him the Extempore Verses on dining with

Lord Daer.

Wednesday Morning.

DEAR SIR,

I NEVER spent an afternoon among great folks with half that pleasure as when, in company with you, I had the honor of paying my devoirs to that plain, honest, worthy man, the professor.† I would be delighted to see him perform acts of kindness and friendship, though I were not the object; he does it with such a grace. I think his character, divided into ten parts, stands thus-four parts Socrates-four parts Nathaniel-and two parts Shakspeare's Brutus.

The foregoing verses were really extempore, but a little corrected since. They may entertain you a little with the help of that partiality with which you are so good as favor the performances of

Dear Sir,

Your very humble Servant.

"But" is frequently used for "without;" i. e. without clothing.

Professor Dugald Stewart.

No. VII.

To JOHN BALLANTINE, Esq. Banker, Ayr.

Edinburgh, 13th Dec. 1786.

MY HONORED FRIEND,

I WOULD not write you till I could have it in my power to give you some account of myself and my matters, which by the bye is often no easy task.— I arrived here on Tuesday was se'nnight, and have suffered ever since I came to town with a miserable head-ache and stomach complaint, but am now a good deal better. I have found a worthy warm friend in Mr. Dalrymple, of Orangefield, who introduced me to Lord Glencairn, a man whose worth and brotherly kindness to me, I shall remember when time shall be no more. By his interest it is passed in the Caledonian hunt, and entered in their books, that they are to take each a copy of the second edition, for which they are to pay one guinea.-I have been introduced to a good many of the Noblesse, but my avowed patrons and patronesses are, the Duchess of Gordon-The Countess of Glencairn, with my Lord, and Lady Betty-The Dean of Faculty-Sir John Whitefoord. -I have likewise warm friends among the literati; Professors Stewart, Blair, and Mr. McKenzie-the Man of feeling.—An unknown hand left ten guineas for the Ayrshire bard with Mr. Sibbald, which I got. -I since have discovered my generous unknown friend to be Patrick Miller, Esq. brother to the Jus-. tice Clerk; and drank a glass of claret with him by invitation at his own house yesternight. I am nearly agreed with Creech to print my book, and I suppose I will begin on Monday. I will send a subscription

*Lady Betty Cunningham.

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