It were easy to multiply examples of the skill and industry with which our author has gathered these old pieces. The field he has made accessible to us is exceedingly rich and varied. The spirit which has animated him throughout, is entitled to our warmest admiration, for we do well know how little substantial remuneration can ever be hoped for by the man, who devotes himself, soul and body, to patriotic labours, such as he has so well executed. It has long been our wish to see a knowledge in these matters widely diffused among our countrymen, and a taste for them created more general and decided than there is in the present day. To minds vitiated by the blandishments of art, it is long before they can be brought to relish the simple beauties of these early strains; and it requires some study ere their value, either as illustrative of history, or national

character, can be duly appreciated by the man of letters, the moralist, or metaphysician. But their beauties and value will be discovered in time, and the quickening effect this perception will communicate to the mind of the people, must prove as salutary to their mora!, as to their literary character. In glancing over what we have written, we observe many things have escaped us, which in justice we should say of these volumes. What we have said, however, may suffice to satisfy all of the esteem in which we hold them. The notes we may dismiss with stating, that they principally tend to connect the ballads with matters of history, or are of an explanatory nature regarding their subjects. We are not sure that in his positions Mr Buchan is always correct, or that in his comments he is uniformly happy. This much, however, we can safely vouch for, that they are abundantly curious, and that to many, the volumes without them would be deprived of a great portion of their interest. To conclude, no one bearing an honest affection towards the Song of his father-land, should lack for a moment the " Ancient Ballads and Songs of the North of Scotland."

DUGALD GRAHAM.

A HISTORY of Vulgar Literature, from the earliest to the present times, we beheve, would form a valuable acquisition to the libraries of the curious. We projected a work of this kind sometime ago, but the difficulty of obtaining materials, and the little leisure we could devote to the interesting subject, compelled us to relinquish the undertaking. Sorry should we be, however, were some work of the sort we allude to, not attempted by one more qualified to do it justice, whose facilities of obtaining copious and accurate information, were more enlarged than ours; and who could animate the whole with a spirit of philosophy, sufficient to elevate it to the due rank it should hold in the scale of moral and literary enquiry. Induced by considerations of the influence which Chap books, and Vulgar Facetion, exert in forming the mind of a people, and how these again are modified by national peculiarities, we shall, in this article, introduce to the notice of the public, one of the most prolific writers, that last century produced, in this unambitious walk of letters. We remember the time, when we enjoyed his works with a lively relish, and we are not yet so diversly constituted from the bulk of our country men in the humbler walks of life, as to refuse a laugh, even now, to some of his fat jokes, and grossly indecent, though true portraitures, of Scottish life and

manners.

The writer to whom we allude, is the individual whose Vera effigies, fronte h this page, and which we copied from the third edition of his Metrical History of the Rebellion in 1745 Dugall Graham, the product of whose brain, has formed the staple of the Saltmarket press of Glasgow, and subsequently of the classic presses of Paisley, Stirling, and Falkirk, filled for many years the notable office of "Skellat" Bellman of Glasgow, and was honestly, we believe, one of the most ingenious, witty, and learned men, that ever congregated the leiges by tinkle of Bell, or sonarous Oyes.

That a man who, in his day and generation, was so famous, should have left no dear recollections behind him; some Boswell to record his life, actions, and conversation, need be subject of admiration to no one who has reflected on the contemptuous neglect with which Time often treats the most illustrious Dead. Men, who deemed that in their works they would be remembered, till the thick rotundity

of this globe was flattened by the lightnings of the latter day, would, were they to return to this nether sphere, be sadly mortified to find that their name had been lost in the shadows of non-entity-their actions deemed the offspring of the imagination of a fabulous antiquity, and the authorship of their noblest works a matter of eternal dispute and error with curious scholars and men of research.

It is about forty years ago since Dougald Graham moved and lived, indited his comical stories, and rang his Skellat Bell within the Royalty of Glasgow, and yet how apocryphal is his fame! how little of his whole eventful history is known in this day. There is not a pedlar who traverses broad Scotland with a pack on his back and an ellwand in his hand, but in all likelihood disposes of some of Dougald's works at every cottage he rests in for the night, or at every Country fair he visits, in the course of his peregrinations. When he retails the adventures of John Cheap the Chapman-Leper the Tailor-John Falkirk's Carritches-Granny McNab's Lectures to clashing wives and witless dochters-Simple John and his XII. misfortunes, every one enough to break the heart of a giant-or the whole proceedings of Jockie and Maggie's Courtship, does he bestow one thought on their humourous author? Is he aware of the fact, that the Scottish Rabelais, who penned these inimitable stories, was Dougald Graham, Skellat Bellman of Glasgow?

For the few particulars we know of Dougald Graham and his writings, we have been chiefly indebted to the friendly communications of the late George Caldwell, bookseller in this town, and Dr. Cleland of Glasgow.

In consequence of the notices we had received from Mr. Caldwell, we addressed a letter to Dr. Cleland, containing a few queries respecting the date of Graham's appointment as Bellman, and as to the period when he died. To this we received the following answer:-" With regard to Dougald Graham, I may safely say there is nothing in the Records concerning him. This, from my own knowledge, corroborated by Mr. Thomson, one of our Town Clerks, who lately made an Index of every thing in the books for 150 years back. We have a very sensible old Town Officer here, a good way above 80, with whom I have conversed, and have received from him the following information. Turner does not know the time either of his appointment or death. Turner was appointed a Town Officer 41 years ago, at that time George Gibson was bellman, better known by the name of Bell Geordie. When Turner was a boy of about 10 years of age, Dougald was bellman, and being very poetical, he collected a crowd of boys round him at every corner where he rang the bell. Turner says that Dougald was a bit wee gash bodie under five feet. Till lately, Turner had a pamphlet of Dougald's about two dogs quarreling." Dr. Cleland's letter is dated Oct. 1828.

The late Mr. Caldwell, who died here on the 4th Aug. 1826, at the advanced age of 82 years, was intimately acquainted with Dougald. In fact, Mr. Caldwell was an extensive dealer in penny histories and bawbee ballads, as will be known to every one who has made any collection of these things worth while. "Printed for Geo. Caldwell, Bookseller in Paisley," occurs in the titles of hundreds of the copies we have amassed. Many of the works of popular entertainment which Dongald wrote, were printed for, and sold by Mr Caldwell.

About the time, (30th April 1824,) we were forming a collection of materials for our projected history, we called on Mr. Caldwell, and had a conversation with him on the subject of Dougald. We may state that it is on the authority of Mr Caldwell, that we ascribe to Dougald the penny histories which will be afterwards enumerated. Besides these, there were many others, the titles of which Mr. Caldwell did not remember at the time;-and before we had leisure to resume our enquiries, that intelligent individual had paid the debt of nature.

In the conversation alluded to, Mr Caldwell said, and we quote his very words:" Dougald was an unco glib body at the pen, and could screed aff a bit penny history in less than nae time. A' his warks took weel-they were level to the meanest capacity, and had plenty o' coarse jokes to season them. I never kent a history of Dougald's that stack in the sale yet, and we were aye fainsto get a haud of some new piece frae him. Dougald was a lang time skellat bellman o'