bis would not be confined to the mecha mical services of a library keeper. about two years ago; has been fince at home painting here like a Raphael-fets out for the feat of the beast, beyond the Alps, within a month hence to be away about two years. I'm fweer (loth) to part with him, but canna stem the current, which flows from the advice of his patrons and his own inclinations The time of his death is fo varioufly related, that we find the dates differ fo widely as 1758 and 1743; the latter appears to us the most probable. One of his family, Allan Ramfay, Efq; his fon, the celebrated painter, died a few years ago, on his return from the Con- I have three daughters, one of seventinent. He was principal portrait-painter to their Majeftics. By his death, the polite and literary world fuftained an irreparable lofs, as few men exceeded him in correctness of tafte, brilliancy of wit, or foundness of understanding. His writings bear the ftamp of all these excellencies, and his merit as an artift has been long acknowledged. The following letter was written by the paftoral poet to Mr John Smibert, a portrait-painter, who left England with Dean Berkely, to fettle in Bermudas. It is dated Edinburgh, May 10. 1736. "My dear old friend, teen, one of fixteen, and one of twelve "Frae twenty-five to five and forty ; "Your health and happinefs are ever ane addition to my fatisfaction. God make your life ever eafy and pleasanthalf a century of years have now row'd o'er my pow, that begins now to be ALLAN RAMSAY." lyart; yet, thanks to my author, I eat, Few works have undergone publicadrink, and fleep as found as I did twen- tion more frequently than the Gentle ty years fyne (ago) yes, I laugh heartily Shepherd. It is alfo popular on the too, and find as many fubjects to em- Scottish ftage, but there, as well as ploy that faculty upon as ever; fools, on the English ftage, where it appeared fops, and knaves, grow as rank as for- in 1781, it is almoft impoffible to colmerly, yet here and there are to be lect a fet of performers capable of doing found good and worthy men, who are juftice to the language; and in England ane honour to humane life. We have it has been found as difficult to colle& fmall hopes of feeing you again in our an audience capable of understanding old world; then let us be virtuous, and it when properly spoken. For thefe hope to meet in heaven. My good auld reafons the chief pleasure it affords has wife is ftill my bed fellow; my fon Al- been in the clofet, and that reader has lan has been purfuing your fcience fince little taffe, and lefs knowledge of poehe was a dozen years auld-was with try, who does not relish its fimple beauMr Hyffidg, at London, for fome time, ties. FOR THE SCOTS MAGAZINE. LETTER FIRST. On Ramsay's Gentle Shepherd. SIR, Before I enter particularly upon the Gentle Shepherd, I beg leave to make a few obfervations upon the poem in general, as is customary with the greatest ancient as well as modern critics; I fhall, in doing this, have an eye upon Aristotle's method of examining epic poetry poetry, which Addison has adopted in fuch feeling strains, that the fympathethat excellent critique upon Milton's tic rocks and vallies refound his tale of Paradife Loft. He firft confiders the woe. fable; fecondly, the characters; thirdly, the fentiments and behaviour of the actors; and fourthly, the language. We further fuppofe, that thefe happy people formed themselves into convenient focieties, where they did and received good offices to and from one another; and who, from the nature of their profeffion, and from their fituation in life, we may conclude were remarkable for the innocency of their lives, and fimplicity of their manners. Such is a fample of the golden age, which is no more to be met with in thefe iron times. f, The fables of all dramatic works nuft be probable, but those of the palto ral drama must be peculiarly fo; nay thefe laft must confift chiefly of common incidents, fubfervient to one interefting event, which is the end and occafion of the whole. Exactly fuch is the paltoral before us; almost all the scenes in it are familiar to the Scotchman, who hath paffed his days on this fide the In the third place, the fentiments and Tweed; and there is one leading cir- behaviour of the actors are perfectly cumftance, one principal occurrence, correfpondent to their refpective condiwhich all the reft (nicely organized) approximate, at their feveral diftances. This great and happy event is no lefs than the fafe return of Sir William Worthy from the wars, and his arrival at his paternal feat. tions. All of them, except the knight, are placed in an humble fphere of life, and their opinions and actions are fuch as befit perfons who have not received a liberal education; yet notwithstanding, they (tutored by nature. and uncorrupted by the world) make use of fimiles drawn from objects immediately furrounding them, which come home with greater There are few, very few of my countrymen, I believe, who have not perufed the Gentle Shepherd again and again, with increafed fatisfaction and force to the feeling heart, than any delight; and from whence, let me afk, arife thefe pleafing emotions? are they not occafioned by the affinity which we obferve between this comedy and nature, and its uniform concordance with what we have feen and experienced in the world? 24, Of the characters. Thefe are perhaps as well diverfified as the paftoral life will admit of. The incidents in it are fuppofed to be few, and thofe uninteresting. We imagine that the pipe and crook alternately engage the thepherd's attention; in every feafon of the year he spends to-day as he did yefterday, with little or no variation. In like manner, the fon (making allowance for the difference in natural difpofitions) grows up in the very footsteps of his father; his ambition ends with the boundaries of his pasture; his affections are fixed on fome coy fhepherd fs, whofe praifes he fings with unwearied affiduity, or whofe cruelty he laments in YOL. LIX. thing which can be effected by the choiceft language, or most elaborate phrafeology. Part of thefe it fhall be my bufinefs hereafter to point out, when I confider each act particularly by itself, In the mean time, I fhall conclude the prefent communication by remarking, in the fourth place, of the language: that by fome it hath been reprobated for its vulgarity and meannefs; that there are fome vulgarifms in this poem which it would certainly have been better without, I am not difpofed to deny, but that these abound throughout, or that the language on the whole is mean, I can on no account admit it is feldom (if ever) unfuitable to the quality of the fpeakers, who it may be proper here to obferve, muft not be confidered as every way the fame with the primitive fhepherds fpoken of before, or as exactly of that caft which Pope defcribes to be the fittelt characters for paftoral poetry, but M in in a great degree below both; they may this is nothing in comparison to the concluding verfe of the poem, where (ill pleated) we fee the gentle and chaite, though unaccomplished Peggy, finging before her virtuous and truly honourable uncle, &c. be faid to be their equals in felicity; their inferiors in birth, riches, and mental qualifications; viewing them in this light, we ought not to be out of humour with the poet, when we meet with one or two unpolished phrafes in the mouths of any of his dramatis persona ; because, f, they are taken from real life; 2d, they render the poem more ludicrous; and lastly, the author meant they should please. In fhort I am of opinion, that if fuch naturalities do not always beautify, they feldom disfigure a work of this kind. I may finally remark, Sir, that the Speeches of the good old Knight are happily characteristic. They poffefs a degree of dignity, tempered with affability, which is exceedingly agreeable to the reader, and which is highly meritorious in the author. My next effay fhall comprise those parts of this delightful comedy which I account blemishes. In the interim I remain yours, PHILO-SCOTICUS. SIR, LETTER SECOND. IN purfuance of my plan, I fhall here take the liberty of quoting a few paffages from the Gentle Shepherd, out of thofe which I deem the most exceptionable. The first which I fhall cite is to be found in the veries compofed by Patie, and fung by him and Peggy, where the latter, after feveral amorous expreffions, and while in the arms of her lover, fays, But ftint your wishes to this kind embrace, And mint nae farther till we've got the grace. to which we may eke the fentiment conveyed in the laft ftanza, which, in my opinion, helps to deform this beautiful compofition. A little farther on we obferve Roger, in a rhapfodical manner, intreating Jen ny to brifs her bonny breafls to his. O fye Roger! how could you fpeak fo to a young lafs?'tis a mercy for you fhe took it in good part-to her love, not to your own difcretion, you are beolden for a wife. But, Mr Editor, all In Sir William's speech, 5th act, about old wives ftories, there is a word or two which may be properly claffed with the above; as well as part of Glaud's dialogue with his daughter and fuppofed niece, which is to be found in the 2d scene of faid act. Thefe, though I may not be juftified in terming them directly indelicate, have nevertheless all of them a tendency that way; a circumftance which cannot be too much guarded against by writers of every defcription, particularly by the Paftoralift, from whom we expect a tranfcript of the feelings, fentiments, and actions of a fpecies of beings whose morals, as I faid before, were incorrupt, and whofe felicity we fuppofe to have been little inferior to the blifs of our first parents in the garden of Eden. The next fault which I fhall point out, is very trifling; the reader will find it at the beginning of the 2d af, where Glaud fays, They tell me ye was in the ither day. Ither is the word which I obje&t to. The author has here made it synonymous with yeler, otherwife his poem is inconfiftent; becaufe, for fundry reafons which I could adduce, Symon must have feen Sir William's fervant when in town. This meaning I think the word will hardly admit of, When we fay, in common converfation, as in the prefent cafe, that we did fo and fo the other day, the time spoken of is at least the fecond day from the time We we speak, and very frequently the third. Or the fame trivial nature is the objeton I have to the question put by Symon to Bauldy, at the commencement of the last act: It is too laboured and prolix; and we with Bauldy may not have fallen into the falfe pathetic in the return he makes Symon, O! Symon, O! By this time, Sir, I am doubtful fone of your readers will confider me trifing, both with the comedy and themicives; and that, instead of setting forth the faults of the author, I am only displaying the ignorance of the critic. I fhall therefore conclude this most difagreeable fection of my plan, by obferving, that the Knight's appearance in the character of a fortune-teller, is nicely imagined, and would have formed a most excellent feature in this dra ma, but for one unlucky circumstance. I mean the prefence of the Gentle Shepherd during the whole time. This, Sir, ought not to have been the cafe; be caufe Sir William knew well who he was; and hence, the poet, by allowing him to delay the embracing of his dar ling till he had thrown aside his affumed character, and ceremoniously invited him to his prefence, has rendered his performance in this place not only unpleafing, but forced and unnatural. Thus, Sir, have I endeavoured to fclect, and lay before you, what I confidered the reprehenfible articles in this delightful, performance-a performance which abounds with excellent traits of nature, and which is the beft picture of what is commonly called low life in the country which I have hitherto met with. I am, Sir, your's, &c. PHILO-SCOTICUS. TOPOGRAPHY AND NATURAL HISTORY OF SCOTLAND. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 28. COUNTY OF DUMFRIES. APPLEGIKTM. Lies nearly at an equal distance from Dumfries and Annan, It miles. It is of a triangular form, measuring, where longest 6, and where broadest 5 miles, and contains about 750 inhabitants. The total rent is about 300ol. Sterling. Of late the fpirit of improvement by liming and green crops has been confiderable. The ful upon the banks of the Annan and Dryfe, being a rich loam, are capable of much improvement. JOHNSTON. This parish is 4 miles long, and about 3 broad, and contains 560 perfons. The ground is fat and fertile, lying on the banks of the Annan. A confiderable part has been planted of late, and various improvements are going on, but the diftance from coal (30 miles,) and from lime (18 miles,) renders these expenfive and laborious. This parifh gave birth to Drs Rogerfon and Halliday, both phyficians to her Imperial Majesty. CANOBY. This parifh borders with England, and extends, from east to weft, 9 miles, from north to fouth 6, containing about 2725 perfons: it is, in general, flat, and may be confidered as the low lands of Efkdale: it is interfected by the river Efk in the centre; the rivers Liddel and Tarras also water it; the foil may be all confidered as holm land, and is chiefly a light loam. There is upwards of 1000 acres of wood in the parish; there is also plenty of coal, lime, and free-ftone; there is a chalybeate fpring on the fide of the Liddel, and a petrifying water on the banks of Tarras. The Duke of Buccleugh is fole proprietor of this parish, which yields about 3000l. per annum. DRYSDALE. This parish is 7 miles long, and, at an average, about 3 broad, containing 1600 perfons. To the weft and fouth, the ground is generally flat, the northern parts are hilly. In this parish, a great number of Roman and British camps are to be found, and the veftiges of ftrong towers, caftles, and walls indicate it to have been the scene of much contention and blood-fhed. M 2 From HUTTON and CORRIE. Thefe united parishes, extend from weft to east, about 12 miles, the breadth is unequal, the contents of the whole is between 18 and 19,000 acres, and produce about 3000l. per annum. The number of inhabitants 585. About one half of the parish is cultivated. The foil upon the rivers Dryfe and Corrie is good and capable of much improvement. On the fummit of the hill Carthur, which rifes almoft perpendicular betwixt 400 and 500 feet, there is the remains of a fortified camp, and on the hill on the oppofite fide of the Dryfe, there is a fimilar one, between them may be traced two fquare inclofures. From the top of White-woollen hill narkshire. It is of an irregular form, there is an enchanting and extenfive but its greatest length is not less than profect of the English border, the Ile 15 miles, from north to fouth, it is 9 of Man, &c. There is both lime and miles. The yearly rent is about 3,300l. freeftone in the parish. Sterling. The number of inhabitants is about 16.0. Three rivers water this parish, the Evan, Moffat, and Annan; upon the banks of the two laft, there is a good deal of meadow and arable land. The foil is a ftiff clay mixed with fand and gravel. By far the greater part is hilly, which, however, is good fheep pafture. The highest of the hills is Hartfell, which measures 3,300 feet above the level of the fea, and 3000 above the village, it is perhaps the highest ground fouth of the Frith of Forth. The profpect from the top is immenfe. From the bottom of the mountain iffues the Hartfell Spa, a ftrong chalybeate; it is remarked to be always ftrongeft after rain. Befides this mineral water, Moffat has long been much reforted to for what is called peculiarly Moffat water, it is a strong fulphureous Ipring about a mile and a half diftant from the village. It was discovered more than 150 years ago, and still keeps up its reputation for relieving ftomach and bowel complaints, rhumatism, &c. the ESKDALEMUIR. This parish lies at the head of the Efk, and as it is hilly and mountainous, the principal produce is fheep. The little that is arable rents at about 10s. per acre; the rent of the whole is 27271. Sterling per annum. The length of this parish is 11 miles, the breadth about 8. There are veftiges of camps on the tops of feveral of the bills, which indicate that that there has been a chain of encampments down the Efk to Netherby, and down the river Milk to Middleby. This part of the country is bare and bleak, there being very little wood in it*. MOFFAT. This parish lies on the northern extremity of the county, and at the head of the diftri&t called Annandale. A part of the parish is in La Formerly a fair was held annually on a piece of ground where the Black and White Efks meet. At that fair it was the custom for anmarried perfons to choose a companion, with whom they lived till the return of the fair; this was called handfifting, or hand in fift; if they then agreed to continue the connection, the marriage was confirmed by a prieft, to whom they gave the name of Book i bofom, (probably because he carried in his bofom either a Bible, or register of the marriages.) If either was diffatisfied, both tention. In different parts of the panade a new choice, leaving the child, if rifh are shown the veftiges of camps any, to the charge of the party refiling. There is alfo a petrifying water about 4 miles north-west from village. Notwithstanding of these, no minerals have been difcovered in the parish. Coals are brought at the diftance of 30 miles, the chief fuel is peat. There is a flate quarry opened here, and fpecimens of allum rock have been found, but no ufe hitherto made of it. The town ftands in a delightful bafon on the water of Moffat, and behind it runs the Annan. There is a number of good houfes fitted for the reception of company, who frequent the wells; and there are two good inns. To increafe the number of invalids, there is alfo goat whey to be had here. The cafcade, called the Grey Mare's Tail. (from its refembling it, when feen at a diftance), is worthy of the travellers at both |