ton, &c. &c. will be thankfully received. I will quit them, however, awhile, for Grainger, whenever you are pleased to furnish me with materials to work upon. If you have made a selection of the proper pieces for publication, a safe conveyance now offers by the return of the gentleman who leaves this, in passing through Dromore. I inclose his address, for any parcel sent to Belfast by the coach in eight days, under cover to Mr. Robert Thomson, care of J. S. Ferguson, Esq. Belfast.

"Two very dear and ingenious friends of mine, admirers of Dr. Percy's writings, have availed themselves of this conveyance to desire your Lordship's acceptance of some of their publications, The Pictures of Poetry' * and The Pleasures of Hope;'t the last is universally admired here, and has had an unprecedented sale. The intended edition of Grainger is known in London, and has, I observe, been noticed with approbation in several periodical publications. Having to write by this conveyance, upon a very short notice, to Mr. Cooper Walker and Mr. Whyte, in return for books and useful information, will, I trust, apologize for this hasty and imperfect acknowledgment, from my Lord, your Lordship's grateful servant, "Ro. ANDERSON."

Bp. PERCY to Dr. ANDERSON. "DEAR SIR,

Dromore House, July 1st, 1799. "I received your very obliging letter of June 20th, accompanied with two elegant presents of poems from your ingenious friends, to whom I beg you will return my best acknowledgments. I should gladly avail myself of the opportunity of transmitting to you by Mr. Thomson the MSS. of my dear friend Dr. Grainger, but I have found, by collating the copy of his Poem on Cheerfulness, in the European Magazine for August 1798, with a printed and a manuscript copy in my possession, that it would be very desirable first to collate his other poems with the copies promised in the European Magazines for September et seqq., which I have not yet been able to procure in this remote region, but I am expecting them; and, as soon as I can settle a good text from these various copies, I will easily get the whole conveyed to you, and * By Alexander Thomson. See Monthly Review, vol. XXXIII. 149. By Thomas Campbell. He died June 15, 1844. See Gent. Mag. 1844, ii. 213.

then we can settle the terms and adjust the mode of printing the proposed edition of Dr. Grainger's Poems, &c. "In the mean time, I must request your acceptance of my last edition of the Reliques of Ancient English Poetry,' from the editor, my nephew.

"In your Life of Shenstone you refer to a passage in Mr. Graves's Recollections,' concerning the share he (Mr. Shenstone) is supposed to have had in the 'Reliques,' &c. On this subject be pleased to look into a Note in my Preface, vol. 1, page xvii. (†); and, if you have his letter to Mr. Graves there mentioned, you will see how that matter was. But I have had a letter of retractation in form from Mr. Graves himself, which I hope to show

you.

"As I could not now send you Grainger's Poems prepared for the press, I was glad of the opportunity of sending you these slight volumes; and if I had been possessed of two copies more, I would have transmitted two other sets for the two gentlemen who so obligingly favoured me with the productions of their muse; but if you will be pleased to inform me how my London bookseller can transmit the books to them, they shall be forwarded to Edinburgh without delay; as also another copy for Mr. Paton, if he has never received one of this edition.

"In the mean time believe me to be, dear Sir, your most obedient humble servant, THO. DROMORE."

Dr. ANDERSON to the Bishop of DROMORE.

"MY LORD, Heriot's Green, July 31st, 1799. "This letter will be delivered to your Lordship by your friend Dr. Traill, who sets out from this place, on his return to Ireland, to-morrow, and expects to be at Dromore in the course of eight days. The Doctor was so obliging as to take the trouble to call at my house this morning, to inquire, by your Lordship's desire, if I had received a parcel you sent by Mr. Thomson; and, with a politeness that seems natural to him, to offer to take charge of anything I had to send to Dromore.

"I thankfully and willingly avail myself of the Doctor's offer, to write a few hasty lines to your Lordship; for though I have not yet received the present you intended for me, owing to Mr. Thomson's not returning, as he intended, by Belfast, I feel myself obliged by the honour

you have done me, by presenting me with a copy of your Reliques,' and seize this opportunity to return you my sincere thanks for such an obliging mark of your attention and regard. I am impatient for the arrival of the parcel, and I have hopes that your Lordship's much-valued present may be accompanied with some papers or useful information relative to Grainger; but I am under no apprehension for its safety. Mr. Thomson assures me that, upon his leaving Dublin, he wrote to Mr. Ferguson at Belfast, to be careful to send any parcel that might be addressed to him, by a safe shipmaster, to Greenock. As he has not yet received any of the goods which he commissioned at Belfast, he supposes that no ship has come from that place to Greenock since he was there.

"I was favoured by Mr. Thomson with a letter from your friend Mr. J. C. Walker, containing some useful information for my republication of the Lives of the Poets; particularly some information relating to Goldsmith's Auburn." I am at present engaged among the old poets. To your stock of biographical notices,' says Mr. Walker, respecting them, I can, I fear, add but little; but from my friend Bp. Percy you may derive much. I hope his Lordship will indulge us with a Life of Surrey. Need I add my wishes to those of your ingenious and learned friend? I wish also to be indulged with those notices, which you are best enabled to give, of Shenstone, and your other poetical contemporaries. Mr. T. Park, of London, has favoured me with a curious MS. poem, Eloisa to Abelard, which, in the opinion of Mr. Malone, bears indubitable marks of being an anterior production to that of Pope. It is supposed to be of the æra of Q. Anne, and probably belonged to Gay. The parallelisms are numerous and striking. Who could have the idle vanity to compose a poem after Pope, on a similar subject? This poetic curiosity I reserve for critical disquisition in my republication of Pope's Life.

"Another poem of Grainger's has appeared in the European Magazine.

"I am happy to inform your Lordship that Mr. Paton is upon the recovery. I dined with him last week; his conversation was cheerful and instructive, but he has as yet found no poems or letters of Grainger's. He is to renew his researches.

Fancy, an irregular Ode." See Vol. XXXV.

P. 405.

"I am, very respectfully, my Lord, your Lordship's faithful, humble servant,

"MY LORD,

6

Ro. ANDERSON.'

Heriot's Green, 28 Sept. 1799.

"I am much obliged by your Lordship's last favour of July 1st, and beg leave to repeat my sincere thanks for the much valued present of a very elegant copy of the new edition of the Reliques,' which accompanied it. The parcel, which should have been brought here by Mr. Thomson, had been long delayed at Belfast, and afterwards at Greenock; for it reached Edinburgh only about three weeks ago, when I happened to be from home. The volumes, very fortunately, had been so carefully packed that they received no injury. They have been frequently in my hands; and are now upon my table.

"I observe many useful and important additions, &c. in the preliminary essays and prefatory notices; but no additions appear to have been made to the poetry. Indeed very little could have been added without enlarging the volumes to an inconvenient size, or forming an additional volume. Yet I could have wished, among other pieces that might be mentioned, that both the first and second parts of Love will find out the way' (vol. iii.), which are said in the St. James's Chronicle to have been printed together at London, for F. Foulis, dwelling in the Old Baily,' had again been united in one publication. It is there said also that the first part of this ballad varies in many instances from that printed in the Reliques.'

"In a folio MS. collection of old heroic ballads and songs in my possession, I observe a different copy of 'Sir Patrick Spence' from that printed in the Reliques.' "The elegant and appropriate inscription of the Reliques' to the memory of the late Duchess of Northumberland, is highly honourable to her Grace's character and to your Lordship's feelings, yet I cannot help regretting the omission of the former dedication to the Countess, which I have always admired, as it contains a handsome vindication and recommendation of the work, and exhibits a beautiful specimen of dignified, delicate, and wellturned compliments.

"I observe an allusion to that magnificent and high spirited lady, the rebuilding of Alnwick Castle, and the local scenery, in a MS. Monody' in my possession,

VOL. VII.

G

*

written in 1787 by a gentleman who had resided in Alnwick, on the death of a beloved wife, a relation of the Howick family. The subject, at least, will, I think, please your Lordship; for the Percy family, and the scenery in the neighbourhood of Alnwick Castle, which your taste contributed to embellish, must be associated in your mind with many agreeable and affecting images. If I am not prevented, I will transcribe the passages relating to Alnwick, for your Lordship's perusal; and likewise the ballad above mentioned. I have a strong temptation, in the opportunity of a private conveyance, of which I willingly avail myself, though I must write in haste.

66

My poetical friends, Thomson and Campbell, are much obliged by your Lordship's acceptance of their little volumes; and highly flattered by the honour you intend them of a present of the Reliques.' They bid me say that copies addressed to Messrs. Mundell and Son, Edinburgh, to the care of Messrs. Longman and Rees, booksellers, Paternoster-row, London, will come here safely, with other books. Mr. G. Paton has not yet received a present of the new edition, and is equally gratified with the honour you intend him. The copy, he bids me say, may be sent here, by the same conveyance, to Messrs. Mundell and Sons. I have just been with this liberal and communicable old man, to procure a copy of the 'Orpheus Caledonius,' for the use of my friend Dr. Currie of Liverpool, the biographer and editor of Burns, the Scottish poet.

"I have observed only one other piece of Grainger's in the European Magazine, which, probably, you have seen. I am thinking to desire a friend in London to send the Editor a note, requesting him to print the remaining pieces, that your Lordship may be enabled to proceed with the collation. My hands are pretty full at present, with revising the old poets; corresponding with Dr. Currie on Scotish song, &c. G. Chalmers likewise is preparing a Life of A. Ramsay, and levying contributions. I have observed the note respecting Shenstone. I wish for more information; but I cannot urge your Lordship further. Surrey's Life I yet expect from you, when you edit his poems, so long promised. I am always, my Lord, yours, most faithfully, Ro. ANDERSON."

*This was Dr. Anderson himself. See p. 69.