"I apprehend the whole would form a tolerable octavo, or two volumes in twelves, which might be published by subscription at a guinea. The memoirs might occupy about one-half.

THE

POSTHUMOUS WORKS

OF

ROBERT BURNS.

To which are prefixed Memoirs of his Life and Writings: collected principally from his own Letters and Manuscripts ; and published for the benefit of his Widow and Children.

::

By

So far my friend Roscoe; and with his sentiments my own entirely correspond. As you have not perused the MSS., I will give you a general notion of what they consist. You have read the different books probably they consist chiefly of letters and poems copied out fair, the original draughts of which are to be found among the loose papers: and the best of the poems are already in print. But there are a few detached memoranda set down at various times, containing incidental opinions and reflections, which are nowhere else to be found :

a sentiment which

"1. There are nearly fifty sketches of letters, written on various occasions; a few of which, and only a few, may be published entire. The larger part of many are fit for the public; and some will admit of a few passages only being selected. It was seldom that the Bard put pen to paper that something sterling did not flow from him. As might be expected, where detached correspondents were written to without any view to the letters being brought together, there are certain phrases frequently repeated. These chiefly respect independence of spirit in a humble condition; obtruded on his mind as often as he wrote to persons in a higher condition, and which, as he expressed it often, he acquired the habit at last of expressing nearly in the same phraseology. It will be necessary to omit many such passages. Other passages it will be necessary to omit because they respect living characters and recent circumstance which it would be improper to expose to the public; and, in respect to such omissions, it is altogether impossible that I can form a proper judgment. I suspect also that there are passages to be omitted which respect occasions in which the Bard engaged with all the vehemence of his character, and possibly took the wrong side, or carried the right to an extreme. In regard to Dr M'Gill's controversy, for instance, a stranger must be entirely at a loss what to set down or what to suppress; and the same may be said on other occasions, on which his ardent sympathies were

excited.

There are (e.g.) some excellent letters respecting Mr- * a schoolmaster at Moffat. These it would be a pity to suppress ; and it might be hazardous to disclose them. Many such difficulties I might mention.

"2. But one difficulty remains, greater than any other; and that is, what to say or what to suppress in regard to his political opinions. I see that the Bard was admonished on the subject of his heresies, and threatened with the loss of his place; and the letter which he wrote in his own justification is one of the finest of all his compositions. There are several poems that are political; most of them, indeed, of little importance: but there is one which, though short, is of great merit: Libertie, a Vision.’ This, of course, must not die; but the question, how far it might be right to venture the publication of it, and other things of the same delicate nature, at present, is one which the family ought to be consulted on, and which a stranger cannot presume to decide.

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3. There are many detached pieces of poetry, but chiefly in the form of songs, and written, I presume, for the musical work that is going forward. Possibly these may be paid for, and, of course, the property of the persons engaged in that work; and a stranger cannot pretend to publish them without their permission.

"4. There is a very considerable number of letters from Burns's correspondents, some of them very good in themselves, and others which would be interesting as coming from persons of celebrity. A few of these it would be desirable to intermix with those of the but how shall a stranger presume to do this?

Bard;

"5. Not one of the copies of his own letters is dated; and, therefore, a stranger cannot arrange them in the order of time, so as to make them convey a history of his mind. Persons perfectly

acquainted with the Poet might be able, from the contents of these MSS., to form a pretty exact notion of their date, and thus supply the deficiency; but a stranger cannot do this.

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"I might go on enumerating the difficulties, of which these are only a part, that stand in the way of my undertaking to be the editor and biographer of Burns; but I am fatigued, and probably tedious

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You will readily believe me when I tell you that I did not foresee these; nay, I could not possibly foresee them, till the papers were put into my hands;-put into my hands, not selected and arranged as I expected, but with the whole toil and responsibility thrown upon me.

"In this situation you will not be surprised that I feel an anxious wish to decline the undertaking, if any other person can be

* James Clarke, afterwards schoolmaster, Forfar.

found to engage in it.

Edinburgh, doubtless, is the place where the publication should be made; and, among the men of letters there, I earnestly hope that some one perfectly qualified for the task may yet be found willing to engage in it. He that has leisure, and advantages for the proper performance of it, will receive the blessings of the widow and fatherless, and hand down his name with honour to posterity. But to speak my mind to you freely— though the subject has so much interest, yet there are so many delicacies belonging to it, and the materials are so scattered and so peculiar, that a very great deal depends on the taste, and delicacy, and judgment of the biographer.

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My friend Roscoe has given very exactly my opinions of the manner in which it should be executed. But I will be a little more particular.

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The scheme he has mentioned under No. 4 is that which was adopted by Mason in his Life of Gray. The execution was, however, poor; and the whole work is, to me, languid and uninteresting. Gray's life afforded little incident: his sentiments were refined, even to fastidiousness; and his poetry, excellent as it is, afforded no great scope for original criticism. There are several circum

stances in the history of Burns that give greater scope to his biographer. The rise and progress of this daring peasant exhibits an interesting picture of the power and of the evolution of original genius, and naturally connects with, and even introduces, details concerning the condition and character of the Scottish peasantry, their lives and opinions, which, to an English reader at least, will have the attraction of novelty. The Poet painted nature, and particular nature: he gives to all his exhibitions of character— persons; to all his displays of passion-persons, character, and scenery. Besides this, his peculiar cast of poetry, formed in a great measure on the models of his own country, naturally introduces some observations on the poetry of Scotland-a subject on which I have read nothing, but on which I have occasionally ruminated, as I have crooned in my solitary journeyings the old ballads of our ancient bards; all of whom Burns greatly surpassed.

"To show what it is in the poetry of Burns that so strangely takes hold of the heart, even at times in defiance of the taste, may open some views into the sympathies of our nature, and into the powers by which poetry charms.

"The errors and faults, as well as the excellencies of Burns's life and character, afford scope for painful and melancholy observation. This part of the subject must be touched with great tenderness; but it must be touched. If his friends do not touch it, his enemies will. "To speak my mind to you freely, it appears to me that his misfortunes arose chiefly from his errors. This it is unnecessary

and, indeed, improper to say; but his biographer must keep it in mind, to prevent him from running into those bitter invectives against Scotland, &c., which the extraordinary attractions and melancholy fate of the Poet naturally provoke. Six Liverpool poets have sung the requiem of our admired Bard ; and every one of them has indulged in the most pointed, and in some degree unjust, invectives against the country, and the society, in which he lived.

"I have thus given you a sketch of the difficulties which a person in my situation must have in executing the task that has devolved on me, as well as my notion how it should be executed. I give the first, that you and the family of the Bard may yet consider of the subject, and, as you are going into Edinburgh, that you may consult with the friends of his family there, and procure, if possible, some man of letters on the spot to undertake his biography, &c.: if you find anyone so disposed, you can extract from my letter what respects the materials, that he may the better be enabled to judge of them.

"In addition to what I have mentioned to you of the difficulties in my undertaking the business, I have to mention that I am at this moment engaged in a medical work, which will not be off my hands before Midsummer; and till then, that I cannot put pen to paper on the subject; and that such are my incessant toils and my delicate health, that it will be impossible for me to undertake for the publication before Midsummer, 1798, if then.

"I mention all these particulars, that the family may not form any expectations that may be disappointed.

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Finally, if under all these circumstances you and G. Burns (who I see, by his letters, is a man of extraordinary understanding) think it more for the benefit of the family that I should be the editor and biographer, I have only to say, that no expectation of the widow and the fatherless shall be disappointed, as far as my health and my talents will permit; provided always, that you come here and read over and explain all the MSS., and that you procure me such letters, &c., of the Bard as Edinburgh and Ayrshire can afford, and in short, undertake all the correspondence in Scotland; also, that while in Edinburgh, you and Cunningham consult together over this letter, and exert yourselves to smooth my difficulties. I must have the old Scottish poets, &c. On this subject pray consult Mr Dugald Stewart, and get Creech to send me everything that he thinks will be useful. I have got Fergusson, but not Ramsay, nor any of the various collections.

"I understand that Gilbert Burns is now, or will soon be, in Dumfries. Shew him this letter, and consult with him. I must trust to him for the early part of the incidents-to you for the latter.

"I wish you to go into Edinburgh and fix the whole affair with

as little as possible delay, because my friend Roscoe is gone to London; and if I am to undertake this business (which I pray to God may be otherwise ordered), he will have some conversation with the booksellers there before he returns. I doubt if a subscription be the proper way; probably a sum of money may be procured for disposing of the whole. I cannot allow my name to be hawked in a subscription paper; but this is an after consideration.

You

"I perceive that Graham of Fintry was a most sterling friend of the Bard; I think he ought to be consulted on the subject. may assure him that my opinion is that the work should be made as free as possible of offence, in a party view; that it should be literary and critical chiefly.

name,

When you have considered all this, write to me. Keep my pray you, as much as possible out of the public mouth. I sicken when I see it in the newspapers (as I sometimes do), whether for applause or censure.

"I can hold my pen no longer.-Yours always,

"Three o'clock in the morning,

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"8th February, 1797.

"JAMES CURRIE.

"P.S.-Do me the favour to keep all my letters on this subject, and bring them with you. I cannot copy anything I write."

"MY DEAR SIR,-What I address you on now is the necessity of a speedy determination whether the task of editorship, &c., is to devolve on me, or whether some better man is willing to undertake it; and I write to you, because I presume Syme is in Edinburgh, and has communicated the contents of my letter to you, as I mean that you should communicate this to him.

"If I had been aware that I was so much committed on the subject, I believe I should not have stated my objections to Syme so strongly : but I found myself so wholly unsupported in the business, that I wished to state my objections and difficulties fully beforehand, that, in case my execution was slow or imperfect, less blame might attach.

"I shall be happy to resign the MSS. to a respectable and independent man; but I would not have the family of this great genius to suppose I am afraid to undertake toil or trouble. If they cannot dispose of the task more to their advantage, they may devolve it on me, as I have before said: I will task their patience only, and the public candour.