SCOTT,
(SIR) WALTER, baronet, a distinguished poet and novelist, was born in
Edinburgh, August 15, 1771. He was a younger son of Mr Walter Scott, writer
to the signet, by Anne, daughter of Dr John Rutherford, professor of the
practice of medicine in the university of Edinburgh. Sir Walter’s father was
grandson to a younger son of Scott of Raeburn, a branch of the ancient
baronial house of Harden; and his mother was grand-daughter to Sir John
Swinton, of Swinton, in Berwickshire. Being an ailing child, he was sent at
a very early period of life to Sandyknow, a farm near the bottom of Leader
water, in Roxburghshire, occupied by his paternal grandfather, where he had
ample opportunities of storing his mind with border tradition. The first
school he attended is said to have been one in Kelso, taught by a Mr Whale,
where he had for school-fellows James and John Ballantyne, who subsequently
became intimately connected with him in public life. He entered the high
school of Edinburgh in 1779, when the class with which he was ranked (that
of Mr Luke Fraser) was commencing its third season. Under this master he
continued during two years, after which he entered the rector’s class, then
taught by Mr Alexander Adam. In October, 1783, having completed the usual
classical course, he was matriculated at the university of Edinburgh,
studying humanity,or Latin, under professor Hill, and Greek under
professor Dalzell. Another year under Dalzell, and a third in the logic
class, taught by professor Bruce, appear to have formed the sum of his
unprofessional studies at college. He was much devoted at this period to
reading; and an illness, which interrupted his studies in his sixteenth
year, afforded him an unusually ample opportunity of gratifying this taste.
He read, by his own confession, all the old romances, old plays, and epic
poems, contained in the extensive circulating library of Mr Sibbald (founded
by Allan Ramsay); and soon after extended his studies to histories, memoirs,
voyages, and travels. On the restoration of his health, he commenced, in his
father’s office, an apprenticeship to legal business, which was completed in
July, 1792, by his entering at the Scottish bar.
The literary character of
Scott is to be traced to the traditionary lore which he imbibed in the
country, and the vast amount of miscellaneous reading above referred to, in
conjunction with the study of the modern German poets and romancers, which
he entered upon at a subsequent period. The earlier years of his life, as an
advocate, were devoted rather to the last mentioned study, than to business;
and the result was, a translation of "Burger’s Lenore," and "Der Wilde Jager,"
which he published in a small quarto volume in 1796. The success of this
attempt was by no means encouraging; yet he persevered in his German
studies, and, in 1799, gave to the world a translation of Göthe’s "Goetz of
Berlichengen." Previously to the latter event, namely, on the 24th December,
1797, he had married Miss Carpenter, a young Frenchwoman of good parentage,
whom he accidentally met at Gilsland wells, in Cumberland, and who possessed
a small annuity. It is also worthy of notice, that, in 1799, he was
appointed sheriff of Selkirkshire, a respectable situation, to which an
income of £300 was attached.
The success of Burger in
ballad-writing, operating upon his predilection for that part of our own
national poetry, induced him, about this time, to make several attempts in
that line of composition, and soon after to commence the collection of those
ancient original ballads, which in 1802 were published in two volumes
octavo, as the Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. On the reprinting of this
work, in the ensuing year, he added a third volume, consisting chiefly of
original ballads, by himself and others. The work was, upon the whole, a
pleasing melange of history, poetry, and tradition; and it gained the author
a considerable reputation, though certainly not that of an original poet in
any eminent degree. In the annotations to the ancient romance of Sir
Tristrem, which he published in 1804, he gave still more striking proof of
the extent of his acquirements in metrical antiquities.
It was not till the year
1805, when Scott had reached the age of thirty-four, and had a family rising
around him, that he attracted decided attention as an original poet. He
published in that year his "Lay of the Last Minstrel," an extended specimen
of the ballad style, and one which fell upon the public mind as something
entirely new in poetry. The caution which he may be said to have observed in
coming before the world, arose from prudential considerations. He hesitated
to come to a breach with his professional hopes, which a decided attempt in
literature would have implied, before he should have attained something to
assure him of a competency in the worst resort. This he had in some measure
secured by his patrimony, his wife’s annuity, and his salary as sheriff; but
it was not till 1806, when he received the appointment of a principal clerk
of session, that he considered himself at perfect liberty to pursue a
literary career. For this latter appointment, he was indebted to the
interest of the Buccleuch and Melville families, which he had conciliated
partly by his talents, and partly by the zeal with which he entered into the
volunteer system at the close of the past century He succeeded Mr George
Home, upon an arrangement, by which that gentleman was to enjoy the salary
for life, so that it was not till 1811 that the poet reaped any actual
benefit from it. The appointment was given by Mr Pitt, but was formally
completed under the ensuing administration of Lord Grenville.
In 1808, Mr Scott published
his second poem of magnitude, "Marmion," which displayed his metrical genius
in greater perfection than the Lay of the Last Minstrel and greatly
increased his reputation. While the latter work had produced him £600, the
present secured one thousand guineas. Previously to 1825, no fewer than
thirty-six thousand copies of Marmion were sold. In the same year, Mr Scott
published an edition of Dryden’s works, with notes and a life of that poet.
In 1809 he edited the State Papers and Letters of Sir Ralph Sadler, and soon
after he became a contributer to the Edinburgh Annual Register, started by
Mr Southey.
"The Lady of the Lake," in
which his poetical genius seems to have reached the acme of its powers, was
published in 1810. His earlier efforts were less matured and refined, and
the later are all, in various degrees, less spirited and effective. In 1811
appeared "Don Roderick," a dreamy vaticination of modern Spanish history; in
1813 he published "Rokeby," in which he attempted, but without success, to
invest English scenery and a tale of the civil war with the charm which he
had already thrown over the Scottish Highlands and Borders, and their
romantic inhabitants. Rokeby met with a decidedly unfavourable reception;
and, it cannot be denied, the public enjoyed to a greater extent a
burlesque, which appeared upon it, under the title of "Jokeby." The evil
success of this poem induced him to make a desperate adventure to retrieve
his laurels; and in 1814 he published "The Lord of the Isles." Even the name
of Bruce, however, could not compensate the want of what had been the most
captivating charm of his earlier productions—the development of new powers
and styles of poesy. The public was now acquainted with his whole "fence,"
and could, therefore, take no longer the same interest in his exhibitions.
As if to try how far his name now operated in promoting the sale of his
writings, he produced, anonymously, two small poems in succession, "Harold
the Dauntless," and "The Bridal of Triermain." Neither made any considerable
impression upon the public; and he, therefore, seems to have concluded that
poetry was no longer a line in which he ought to exercise his talents.
Many years before, while as
yet unknown as a poet, he had commenced a prose tale upon the legendary
story of Thomas the Rymer, which never went beyond the first chapter.
Subsequently, he contemplated a prose romance, relating to an age much
nearer our own time. "My early recollections," says he, [In the
auto-biographical introduction to the revised editions of his works.] "of
the Highland scenery and customs made so favourable an impression in the
poem called the ‘Lady of the Lake,’ that I was induced to think of
attempting something of the same kind in prose. I had been a good deal in
the Highlands at a time when they were much less accessible, and much less
visited, than they have been of late years, and was acquainted with many of
the old warriors of 1745, who were, like most veterans, easily induced to
fight their battles over again, for the benefit of a willing listener like
myself. It naturally occurred to methat the ancient traditions and
high spirit of people, who, living in a civilized age and country, retained
so strong a tincture of manners belonging to an early period of society,
must afford a subject favourable for romance, if it should not prove a
curious tale marred in the telling.
"It was with some idea of
this kind, that, about the year 1805, I threw together about one-third part
of the first volume of Waverley. It was advertised to be published by the
late Mr John Ballantyne, bookseller in Edinburgh, under the name of
‘Waverley.’ * * * Having proceeded as far, I think, as the seventh
chapter, I showed my work to a critical friend, whose opinion was
unfavourable, and having some poetical reputation, I was unwilling to risk
the loss of it by attempting a new style of composition. I therefore threw
aside the work I had commenced, without either reluctance or remonstrance. *
* *This portion of the manuscript was laid aside in the drawers of
an old writing-desk, which, on my first coming to reside at Abbotsford in
1811, was placed in a lumber garret, and entirely forgotten. Thus, though I
sometimes, among other literary avocations, turned my thoughts to the
continuation of the romance which I had commenced, yet, as I could not find
what I had already written, after searching such repositories as were within
my reach, and was too indolent to attempt to write it anew from memory, I as
often laid aside all thoughts of that nature."
The author then adverts to
two circumstances, which particularly fixed in his mind the wish to continue
this work to a close--namely, the success of Miss Edgeworth’s delineations
of Irish life, and his happening to be employed in 1808, in finishing the
romance of Queen-Hoo-Hall, left imperfect by Mr Strutt. "Accident," he
continues, "at length threw the lost sheets in my way."
"I happened to want some
fishing-tackle for the use of a guest, when it occurred to me to search the
old writing-desk already mentioned, in which I used to keep articles of that
nature. I got access to it with some difficulty; and in looking for lines
and flies, the long-lost manuscript presented itself. I immediately set to
work to complete it, according to my original purpose. * * * Among other
unfounded reports, it has been said that the copyright was, during the
book’s progress through the press, offered for sale to various booksellers
in London at a very inconsiderable price. This was not the case. Messrs
Constable and Cadell, who published the work, were the only persons
acquainted with the contents of the publication, and they offered a large
sum for it, while in the course of printing, which, however, was declined,
the author not choosing to part with the copyright.
"Waverley was published in
1814, and as the title-page was without the name of the author, the work was
left to win its way in the world without any of the usual recommendations.
Its progress was for some time slow; but after the first two or three
months, its popularity had increased in a degree which must have satisfied
the expectations of the author, had these been farmore sanguine than
he ever entertained.
"Great anxiety was expressed
to learn the name of the author, but on this no authentic information could
be attained. My original motive for publishing the work anonymously, was the
consciousness that it was an experiment onthe public taste, which
might very probably fail, and therefore there was no occasion to take on
myself the personal risk of discomfiture. For this purpose, considerable
precautions were used to preserve secrecy. My old friend and schoolfellow,
Mr James Ballantyne, who printed these novels, had the exclusive task of
corresponding with the author, who thus had not only the advantage of his
professional talents, but of his critical abilities. The original
manuscript, or, as it is technically called, copy, was transcribed
under Mr Ballantyne’s eye, by confidential persons; nor was there an
instance of treachery during the many years in which these precautions were
resorted to, although various individuals were employed at different times.
Double proof-sheets were regularly printed off. One was forwarded to the
author by Mr Ballantyne, and the alterations which it received were, by his
own hand, copied upon the other proof-sheet for the use of the printers, so
that even the corrected proofs of the author were never seen in the printing
office; and thus the curiosity of such eager inquirers as made the most
minute investigation, was entirely at fault."
To this account of the
publication of Waverley it is only to be added, that the popularity of the
work became decided rather more quickly, and was, when decided, much higher,
than the author has given to be understood. It was read and admired
universally, both in Scotland and England, so that, in a very short time
about twelve thousand copies were disposed of.
Previously to 1811, Mr Scott
had been in the habit of residing, during the summer months, at a villa
called Ashiestiel on the banks of the Tweed, near Selkirk, belonging to his
kinsman colonel Russell. He now employed part of his literary gains in
purchasing a farm a few miles farther down the Tweed, and within three miles
of Melrose. Here he erected a small house, which he gradually enlarged, as
his emoluments permitted, till it eventually became a Gothic castellated
mansion of considerable size. He also continued for some years to make
considerable purchases of the adjacent grounds, generally paying much more
for them than their value. The desire of becoming an extensive
land-proprietor was a passion which glowed more warmly in his bosom than any
appetite which he ever entertained for literary fame. The whole cast of his
mind, from the very beginning, was essentially aristocratic; and it is
probable that he looked with more reverence upon an old title to a good
estate, than upon the most ennobled title-page in the whole catalogue of
contemporary genius. Thus it was a matter of astonishment to many, that,
while totally insensible to flattery on the score of his works, and
perfectly destitute of all the airs of a professed or practised author, he
could not so well conceal his pride in the possession of a small patch of
territory, or his sense of importance as a local dispenser of justice. As
seen through the medium of his works, he rather appears like an old baron or
chivalrous knight, displaying his own character and feelings, and surrounded
by the ideal creatures which such an individual would have mixed with in
actual life, than as an author of the modern world, writing partly for fame,
and partly for subsistence, and glad to work at that which he thinks he can
best execute. It was unquestionably owing to the same principle that he kept
the Waverley secret with such pertinacious closeness—being unwilling to be
considered as an author writing for fortune, which he must have thought
somewhat degrading to the baronet of Abbotsford. It was now the principal
spring of his actions to add as much as possible to the little realm of
Abbotsford, in order that he might take his place—not among the great
literary names which posterity is to revere, but among the country gentlemen
of Roxburghshire! [Lest these speculations may appear somewhat paradoxical,
the editor may mention that they were pronounced, by the late Mr James
Ballantyne, in writing, to be "admirably true."]
Under the influence of this
passion--for such it must be considered—Mr Scott produced a rapid succession
of novels, of which it will be sufficient here to state the names and dates.
To Waverley succeeded, in 1815, Guy Mannering; in 1816, the Antiquary, and
the First Series of the Tales of my Landlord, containing the Black Dwarf and
Old Mortality; in 1818, Rob Roy, and the Second Series of the Tales of my
Landlord, containing the Heart of Mid Lothian; and in 1819, the Third Series
of the Tales of my Landlord, containing the Bride of Lammermoor, and a
Legend of Montrose.
It is to be observed, that
the series, called "Tales of my Landlord," were professedly by a different
author from him of Waverley: an expedient which the real author had thought
conducive to the maintenance of the public interest. Having now drawn upon
public curiosity to the extent of twelve volumes in each of his two
incognitos, he seems to have thought it necessary to adopt a third, and
accordingly he intended Ivanhoe, which appeared in the beginning of 1820, to
come forth as the first work of a new candidate for public favour. From this
design he was diverted by a circumstance of trivial importance, the
publication of a novel at London, pretending to be a fourth series of the
Tales of my Landlord. It was therefore judged necessary that Ivanhoe should
appear, as a veritable production of the author of Waverley. To it
succeeded, in the course of the same year, the Monastery and the Abbot,
which were judged as the least meritorious of all his prose tales. In the
beginning of the year 1821, appeared Kenilworth; making twelve volumes, if
not written, at least published, in as many months. In 1822 he produced the
Pirate and the Fortunes of Nigel; in 1823, Peveril of the Peak (four
volumes) and Quentin Durward; in 1824, St Ronan’s Well and Redgauntlet; in
1825, Tales of the Crusaders (four volumes); in 1826, Woodstock; in 1827,
Chronicles of the Canongate, first series (two volumes); in 1828,
Chronicles of the Canongate, second series; in 1829, Anne of
Geierstein; and in 1831, a fourth series of Tales of my Landlord, in four
volumes, containing two tales, respectively entitled Count Robert of Paris,
and Castle Dangerous. The whole of these novels, except where otherwise
specified, consisted of three volumes, and, with those formerly enumerated,
make up the amount of his fictitious prose compositions to the enormous sum
of seventy-four volumes.
Throughout the whole of his
career, both as a poet and novelist, Sir Walter was in the habit of turning
aside occasionally to less important avocations of a literary character. He
was a contributor to the Edinburgh Review during the first few years of its
existence. To the Quarterly Review, he was a considerable contributor,
especially for the last five or six years of his life, during which the work
was conducted by his son-in-law, Mr Lockhart. To the Supplement of the sixth
edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, he contributed the articles
Chivalry, Romance, and the Drama. In 1818, he wrote one or two small prose
articles for a periodical, after the manner of the Spectator, which was
started by his friend Mr John Ballantyne, under the title of "The Saleroom,"
and was soon after dropped for want of encouragement. In 1814, he edited the
Works of Swift, in nineteen volumes, with a life of the author. In 1814, Sir
Walter gave his name and an elaborate introductory essay to a work, entitled
"Border Antiquities," (two volumes, quarto,) which consisted of engravings
of the principal antique objects on both sides of the Border, accompanied by
descriptive letter-press. In 1 815, he made a tour of France and Belgium,
visiting the scene of the recent victory over Napoleon. The result was a
lively traveller’s volume, under the title of "Paul’s Letters to his
Kinsfolk," and a poem, styled "The Field of Waterloo." In the same year he
joined with Mr Robert Jamieson and Mr Henry Weber, in composing a quarto on
Icelandic Antiquities. In 1819, he published "An Account of the Regalia of
Scotland," and undertook to furnish the letter-press to a second collection
of engravings, under the title of "Provincial Antiquities and Picturesque
Scenery of Scotland," one of the most elegant books which has ever been
published respecting the native country of the editor.
In the year 1820, the
agitated state of the country was much regretted by Sir Walter Scott; and he
endeavoured to prove the absurdity of the popular excitement in favour of a
more extended kind of parliamentary representation, by three papers, which
he inserted in the Edinburgh Weekly Journal newspaper, under the title of
"The Visionary." However well intended, these were not by any means happy
specimens of political disquisition. Some months afterwards, itwas
deemed necessary by a few Tory gentlemen and lawyers, to establish a
newspaper, in which the more violent of the radical prints should be met
upon their own grounds. To this association Mr Scott subscribed and by means
partly furnished upon his credit a weekly journal was commenced, under the
title of "The Beacon." As the scurrilities of this print inflicted much pain
in very respectable quarters, it sank, after an existence of a few months,
amidst the general execrations of the community. Mr Scott, though he
probably never contemplated, and perhaps was hardly aware of the guilt of
the Beacon, was loudly blamed for his connexion with it.
In 1822, Sir Walter published
"Trivial Poems and Triolets, by P. Carey, with a Preface;"and, in
1822, appeared his dramatic poem of "Halidon Hill." In the succeeding year,
he contributed a smaller dramatic poem, under the title of "Macduff’s
Cross," to a collection of Miss Joanna Baillie. The sum of his remaining
poetical works may here be made up, by adding "The Doom of Devorgoil," and
"The Auchindrane Tragedy," which appeared in one volume in 1830. It cannot
be said of any of these compositions, that they have made the least
impression upon the public.
The great success of the
earlier novels of Sir Walter Scott had encouraged his publishers, Messrs
Archibald Constable and Company, to give large sums for those works; and,
previous to 1824, it was understood that the author had spent from fifty to
a hundred thousand pounds, thus acquired, upon his house and estate of
Abbotsford. During the months which his official duties permitted him to
spend in the country—that is, the whole of the more genial part of the year,
from March till November, excepting the months of May and June—he kept
state, like a wealthy country gentleman, at this delightful seat, where he
was visited by many distinguished persons from England, and from the
continent. As he scarcely ever spent any other hours than those between
seven and eleven, A.M.,in composition, he was able to devote the
greater part of the morning to country exercise, and the superintendence of
his planting and agricultural operations; while the evenings were, in a
great measure, devoted to his guests. Almost every day, he used to ride a
considerable distance--sometimes not less than twenty miles—on horseback. He
also walked a great deal; and, lame as he was, would sometimes tire the
stoutest of his companions.
Among the eminent persons to
whom he had been recommended by his genius, and its productions, the late
king George IV. was one, and not the least warm in his admiration. The poet
of Marmion had been honoured with many interviews by his sovereign, when
prince of Wales and prince regent; and his majesty was pleased, in March,
1820, to create him a baronet of the United Kingdom, being the first to whom
he had extended that honour after his accession to the crown.
In 1822, when his majesty
visited Scotland, Sir Walter found the duty imposed upon him, as in some
measure the most prominent man in the country, of acting as a kind of master
of ceremonies, as well as a sort of dragoman, or mediator, between the
sovereign and his people. It was an occasion for the revival of all kinds of
historical and family reminiscences; and Sir Walter’s acquaintance with
national antiquities, not less than his universally honoured character,
caused him to be resorted to by innumerable individuals, and many
respectable public bodies, for information and advice. On the evening of the
14th of August, when his majesty cast anchor in Leith Roads, Sir Walter
Scott went out in a boat, commissioned by the LADIES OF SCOTLAND, to welcome
the king, and to present his majesty with an elegant jewelled cross of St
Andrew, to be worn on his breast, as a national emblem. When the king was
informed of Sir Walter’s approach, he exclaimed, "What! Sir Walter Scott?
The man in Scotland I most wish to see! Let him come up." Sir Walter
accordingly ascended the ship, and was presented to the king on the
quarter-deck, where he met with a most gracious reception. After an
appropriate speech, Sir Walter presented his gift, and then knelt and kissed
the king’s hand. He had afterwards the honour of dining with his majesty,
being placed on his right hand. Throughout the whole proceedings connected
with the reception and residence of the king in Scotland, Sir Walter Scott
bore a very conspicuous part.
Sir Walter Scott had now
apparently attained a degree of human greatness, such as rarely falls to the
lot of literary men; and he was generally considered as having, by prudence,
fairly negatived the evils to which the whole class are almost proverbially
subject. It was now to appear, that, though he had exceeded his brethren in
many points of wisdom, and really earned an unusually large sum of money, he
had not altogether secured himself against calamity. The bookselling house
with which he had all along been chiefly connected, was one in which the
principal partner was Mr Archibald Constable, a man who will long be
remembered in Scotland for the impulse which he gave by his liberality to
the literature of the country, but at the same time for a want of
calculation and prudence, which in a great measure neutralized his best
qualities. It is difficult to arrive at exact information respecting the
connexion of the author with his publisher, or to assign to each the exact
degree of blame incidental to him, for the production of their common ruin.
It appears, however, to be ascertained, that Sir Walter Scott, in his
eagerness for the purchase of land, and at the same time to maintain the
style of a considerable country gentleman, incurred obligations to Messrs
Constable and Company, for money or acceptances, upon the prospect of works
in the course of being written, or which the author only designed to write,
and was thus led, by a principle of gratitude, to grant counter-acceptances
to the bookselling house, to aid in its relief from those embarrassments, of
which he was himself partly the cause. It is impossible otherwise to account
for Sir Walter Scott having incurred liabilities to the creditors of that
house, to the amount of no less than £72,000, while of its profits he had
not the prospect of a single farthing.
On the failure of Messrs
Constable and Company, in January, 1826, Messrs Ballantyne and Company,
printers, of which firm Sir Walter Scott was a partner, became insolvent,
with debts to the amount of £102,000, for the whole of which Sir Walter was,
of course, liable, in addition to his liabilities for the bookselling house.
It thus appeared that the most splendid literary revenue that ever man made
for himself, had been compromised by a connexion, partly for profit, and
partly otherwise, with the two mechanical individuals concerned in the mere
bringing of his writings before the world. A percentage was all that these
individuals were fairly entitled to for their trouble in putting the works
of Sir Walter into shape; but they had absorbed the whole, and more than the
whole, leaving both him and themselves poorer than they were at the
beginning of their career.
The blow was endured with a
magnanimity worthy of the greatest writer of the age. On the very day after
the calamity had been made known to him, a friend accosted him as he was
issuing from his house, and presented the condolences proper to such a
melancholy occasion.
"It is very hard," said he,
in his usual slow and thoughtful voice, "thus to lose all the labours
of a lifetime, and be made a poor man at last, when I ought to have been
otherwise. But if God grant me health and strength for a few years longer, I
have no doubt that I shall redeem it all."
The principal assets which he
could present against the large claims now made upon him, were the mansion
and grounds of Abbotsford, which he had entailed upon his son, at the
marriage of that young gentleman to Miss Jobson of Lochore, but in a manner
now found invalid, and which were burdened by a bond for £10,000. He had
also his house in Edinburgh, and the furniture of both mansions. His
creditors proposed a composition; but his honourable nature, and perhaps a
sense of reputation, prevented him from listening to any such scheme. "No,
gentlemen," said he, quoting a favourite Spanish proverb, "Time and I
against any two. Allow me time, and I will endeavour to pay all." A
trust-deed was, accordingly, executed in favour of certain gentlemen, whose
duties were to receive the funds realized by our author’s labours, and
gradually pay off the debts, with interest, by instalments. He likewise
insured his life, with the sanction of his trustees, for the sum of £22,000,
by which a post-obit interest to that amount was secured to his
creditors. He was the betterenabled to carry into execution the
schemes of retrenchment which he had resolved on, by the death of lady
Scott, in May, 1826. Her ladyship had born to him two sons and two
daughters; of the latter of whom, the elder had been married, in 1820, to Mr
L. G. Lockhart, advocate.
Sir Walter was engaged, at
the time of his bankruptcy, in the composition of a Life of Napoleon
Bonaparte, which was originally designed to fill only four volumes, but
eventually extended to nine. In the autumn of 1826, he paid a visit to
Paris, in company with his youngest and only unmarried daughter, in order to
acquaint himself with several historical and local details, requisite for
the work upon which he was engaged. On this occasion, he was received with
distinguished kindness by the reigning monarch, Charles X. The "Life of
Napoleon" appeared in summer, 1827; and, though too bulky to be very
popular, and perhaps too hastily written to bear the test of rigid
criticism, it was understood to produce to its author a sum little short of
£12,000. This, with other earnings and accessory resources, enabled him to
pay a dividend of six shillings and eightpence to his creditors.
Till this period, Sir Walter
Scott had made no avowal to the public of his being the author of that long
series of prose fictions, which had for some years engaged so much of public
attention. It being no longer possible to preserve his incognito, he
permitted himself, at a dinner for the benefit of the Edinburgh Theatrical
Fund, February 23, 1827, to be drawn into a disclosure of the secret. On his
health being proposed by lord Meadowbank, as the "Great Unknown," now
unknown no longer, he acknowledged the compliment in suitable terms, and
declared himself, unequivocally, to be the sole author of what were called
the Waverley Novels.
About the same time, the
copyright of all his past novels was brought to the hammer, as part of the
bankrupt stock of Messrs Constable and Company. It was bought by Mr Robert
Cadell, of the late firm of Archibald Constable and Company, and who was now
once more engaged in the bookselling business, at 8,400 pounds, for the
purpose of republishing the whole of these delightful works in a cheap
uniform series of volumes, illustrated by notes and prefaces, and amended in
many parts by the finishing touches of the author. Sir Walter or his
creditors were to have half the profits, in consideration of his literary
aid.
This was a most fortunate
design. The new edition began to appear in June, 1829; and such was its
adaptation to the public convenience, and the eagerness of all ranks of
people to contribute in a way convenient to themselves towards the
reconstruction of the author’s fortunes, that the sale soon reached an
average of twenty-three thousand copies. To give the reader an idea of the
magnitude of this concern—speaking commercially—it may be stated
that, in the mere production of the work, not to speak of its sale,
about a thousand persons, or nearly a hundredths part of the population of
Edinburgh, were supported. The author was now chiefly employed in preparing
these narratives for the new impression; but he nevertheless found time
occasionally to produce original works. In November, 1828, he published the
first part of a juvenile History of Scotland, under the title of "Tales of a
Grandfather," being addressed to his grandchild, John Hugh Lockhart, whom he
typified under the appellation of Hugh Littlejohn, Esq. In 1829, appeared
the second, and in 1830, the third and concluding series of this charming
book, which fairly fulfilled a half-sportive expression that had escaped him
many years before, in the company of his children —that "he would yet make
the history of Scotland as familiar in the nurseries of England as lullaby
rhymes." In 1830, he also contributed a graver History of Scotland, in two
volumes, to the periodical work called "Lardner’s Cabinet Cyclopaedia." In
the same year, appeared his Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft, as a
volume of Mr Murray’s "Family Library;" and, in 1831, he added to his Tales
of a Grandfather, a uniform series on French history. In the same year, two
sermons which he had written a considerable time before, for a young
clerical friend, were published by that individual in London, and, as
specimens of so great an author in an extraordinary line of composition, met
with an extensive sale.
The profits of these various
publications, but especially his share of the profits of the new edition of
his novels, enabled him, towards the end of the year 1830, to pay a dividend
of three shillings in the pound, which, but for the accumulation of
interest, would have reduced his debts to nearly one-half. Of £54,000 which
had now been paid, all except six or seven thousand had been produced by his
own literary labours; a fact which fixes the revenue of his intellect for
the last four or five years at nearly £10,000 a-year. Besides this sum, Sir
Walter had also paid up the premium of the policy upon his life, which, as
already mentioned, secured a post obit interest of £22,000 to his
creditors. On this occasion, it was suggested by one of these gentlemen,
(Sir James Gibson Craig,) and immediately assented to, that they should
present to Sir Walter personally the library, manuscripts, curiosities, and
plate, which had once been his own, as an acknowledgment of the sense they
entertained of his honourable conduct.
In November, 1830, he retired
from his office of principal clerk of session, with the superannuation
allowance usually given after twenty-three years’ service. Earl Grey offered
to make up the allowance to the full salary; but, from motives of delicacy,
Sir Walter firmly declined to accept of such a favour from one to whom he
was opposed in politics.
His health, from his
sixteenth year, had been very good, except during the years 1818 and 1819,
when he suffered under an illness of such severity as to turn his hair quite
grey, and send him out again to the world apparently ten years older than
before. It may be mentioned, however, that this illness, though accompanied
by very severe pain, did not materially interrupt or retard his intellectual
labours. He was only reduced to the necessity of employing an amanuensis, to
whom he dictated from his bed. The humorous character, Dugald Dalgetty, in
the third series of the Tales of my Landlord, and the splendid scene of the
Siege of Torquilston in Ivanhoe, were created under these circumstances. Mr
William Laidlaw, his factor, who at one time performed the task of
amanuensis, has described how he would sometimes be stopped in the midst of
some of the most amusing or most elevated scenes, by an attack of pain—which
being past, he would recommence in the same tone at the point where he had
left off, and so on for day after day, till the novel wasfinished.
It happened very
unfortunately, that the severe task which he imposed upon himself, for the
purpose of discharging his obligations came at a period of life when he was
least able to accomplish it.It will hardly be believed that even
when so far occupied with his official duties in town, he seldom permitted a
day to pass over his head without writing as much as to fill a sheet of
print, or sixteen pages, and this, whether itwas of an historical
nature, with of course the duty of consulting documents, or of fictitious
matter spun from the loom of his fancy. Although this labour was alleviated
in the country by considersble exercise, itnevertheless must have
pressed severely upon the powers of a man nearly sixty by years, and
fully seventy by constitution. The reader may judge how strong must
have been that principle of integrity, which could command such a degree of
exertion and self denial, not so much to pay debts contracted by himself, as
to discharge obligations in which he was involved by others. He can only be
likened indeed, to the generous elephant which, being set to a task above
its powers, performed it at the expense of life, and then fell dead at the
feet of its master.
His retirement from official
duty might have been expected to relieve in some measure the pains of
intense mental application. It was now too late, however, to redeem the
health that had fled. During the succeeding winter, symptoms of gradual
paralysis, a disease hereditary in his family, began to be manifested. His
contracted limb became gradually weaker and more painful, and his tongue
less readily obeyed the impulse of the will. In March, 1831, he attended a
meeting of the freeholders of the county of Roxburgh, to aid in the
expression of disapprobation, with which a majority of those gentlemen
designed to visit the contemplated reform bills. Sir Walter was, as already
hinted, a zealous Tory, though more from sentiment, perhaps, than opinion,
and he regarded those regenerating measures as only the commencement of the
ruin of his country. Having avowed this conviction in very warm language, a
few of the individuals present by courtesy, expressed their dissent in the
usual vulgar manner; whereupon he turned, with anger flashing in his
eye--with him a most unwonted passion—and said, that he cared no more for
such expressions of disapproval than he did for the hissing of geese or the
braying of asses. He was evidently, however, much chagrined at the reception
his opinions had met with, and in returning home was observed to shed tears.
During the summer of 1831,
the symptoms of his disorder became gradually more violent; and to add to
the distress of those around him, his temper, formerly so benevolent, so
imperturbable, became peevish and testy, insomuch that his most familiar
relatives could hardly venture, on some occasions, to address him. At this
period, in writing to the editor of the present work, he thus expressed
himself:—
"Although it is said in the
newspapers, I am actually far from well, and instead of being exercising
(sic), on a brother novelist, Chateaubriand, may influence to decide him
to raise an insurrection in France, which is the very probable employment
allotted to me by some of the papers, I am keeping my head as cool as I can,
and speaking with some difficulty.
"I have owed you a letter longer than
I intended, but write with pain, and in general use the hand of a friend. I
sign with my initials, as enough to ex press the poor half of me that is
left. But I am still much yours,
"W. S.,"
Since the early part of the
year, he had, in a great measure, abandoned the pen for the purposes of
authorship. This, however, he did with some difficulty, and it is to be
feared that he resumed it more frequently than he ought to have done. "Dr
Abercromby," says he, in a letter dated March 7, "threatens me with death if
I write so much; and die, I suppose, I must, if I give it up suddenly. I
must assist Lockhart a little, for you are aware of our connexion, and he
has always showed me the duties of a son; but, except that, and my own
necessary work at the edition of the Waverley Novels, as they call them, I
can hardly pretend to put pen to paper; for after all this same dying is a
ceremony one would put off as long as possible."
In the autumn, his physicians
recommended a residence in Italy, as a means of delaying the approaches of
his illness. To this scheme he felt the strongest repugnance, as he feared
he should die on a foreign soil, far from the mountain-land which was so
endeared to himself, and which he had done so much to endear to others; but
by the intervention of some friends, whose advice he had been accustomed to
respect from his earliest years, he was prevailed upon to comply. By the
kind offices of captain Basil Hall, liberty was obtained for him to sail in
his majesty’s ship the Barham, which was then fitting out for Malta.
He sailed in this vessel from
Portsmouth, on the 27th of October, and on the 27th of December landed at
Naples, where he was received by the king and his court with a feeling
approaching to homage. In April, he proceeded to Rome, and was there
received in the same manner. He inspected the remains of Roman grandeur with
some show of interest, but was observed to mark with a keener feeling, and
more minute care, the relics of the more barbarous middle ages; a
circumstance, in our opinion, to have been predicated from the whole strain
of his writings. He paid visits to Tivoli, Albani, and Frescati. If any
thing could have been effectual in re-illuming that lamp, which was now
beginning to pale its mighty lustres, it might have been expected that
this would have been the ground on which the miracle was to take place.
But he was himself conscious, even amidst the flatteries of his friends,
that all hopes of this kind were at an end. Feeling that his strength was
rapidly decaying, he determined upon returning with all possible speed to
his native country, in order that his bones might not be laid (to use the
language of his own favourite minstrelsy) "far from the Tweed." His journey
was performed too rapidly for his strength. For six days he travelled
seventeen hours a-day. The consequence was, that in passing down the Rhine
he experienced a severe attack of his malady, which produced complete
insensibility, and would have inevitably carried him off but for the
presence of mind of his servant, who bled him profusely. On his arrival in
London, he was conveyed to the St James’s Hotel, Jermyn Street, and
immediately attended by Sir Henry Halford and Dr Holland, as well as by his
son-in-law and daughter. All help was now, however, useless. The disease had
reached nearly its most virulent stage, producing a total insensibility to
the presence of even his most beloved relatives—
—"omni
Membrorum damno major, dementia, quae nec
Nomina servorum, nec vultum agnoscit amici."
After residing for some weeks
in London, in the receipt of every attention which filial piety and medical
skill could bestow, the expiring poet desired that, if possible, he might be
removed to his native land—to his own home. As the case was reckoned quite
desperate, it was resolved to gratify him in his dying wish, even at the
hazard of accelerating his dissolution by the voyage. He accordingly left
London on the 7th of July, and, arriving at Newhaven on the evening of the
9th, was conveyed with all possible care to a hotel in his native city.
After spending two nights and a day in Edinburgh, he was removed, on the
morning of the 11th, to Abbotsford.
That intense love of home and
of country, which had urged his return fromthe continent, here
seemed to dispel for a moment the clouds of the mental atmosphere. In
descending the vale of Gala, at the bottom of which the view of Abbotsford
first opens, it was found difficult to keep him quiet in his carriage, so
anxious was he to rear himself up, in order to catch an early glimpse of the
beloved scene. On arriving at his house, he hardly recognized any body or
any thing. He looked vacantly on all the objects that met his gaze, except
the well-remembered visage of his friend Laidlaw, whose hand he
affectionately pressed, murmuring, "that now he knew that he was at
Abbotsford." He was here attended by most of the members of his family,
including Mr Lockhart, while the general superintendence of his death-bed
(now too certainly such) was committed to Dr Clarkson of Melrose. He was now
arrived at that melancholy state, when the friends of the patient can form
no more affectionate wish than that death may step in to claim his own. Yet
day after day did the remnants of a robust constitution continue to hold out
against the gloomy foe of life, until, notwithstanding every effort to the
contrary, mortification commenced at several parts of the body. This was
about twelve days before his demise, which atlength took place on
the 21st of September, (1832,) the principles of life having been by that
time so thoroughly worn out, that nothing remained by which pain could be
either experienced or expressed. On the 26th, the illustrious deceased was
buried in an aisle in Dryburgh abbey, which had belonged to one of his
ancestors, and which had been given to him by the late earl of Buchan.
Sir Walter Scott was instature above six feet; but, having been lame from an early period of
life in the right limb, he sank a little on that side in walking. His person
was, in latter life, bulky, but not corpulent, and made a graceful
appearance on horseback. Of his features, it is needless to give any
particular description, as they must be familiar to every reader through the
medium of the innumerable portraits, busts, and medallions, by which they
have been commemorated. His complexion was fair, and the natural colour of
his hair sandy. The portrait, by Raeburn, of which an engraving was prefixed
to the Lady of the Lake, gives the best representation of the poet, as he
appeared in the prime of life. The bust of Chantry, taken in 1820, affords
the most faithful delineation of his features as he was advancing into age.
And his aspect, in his sixtieth year, when age and reflection had more
deeply marked his countenance, is most admirably preserved in Mr Watson
Gordon’s portrait, of which an engraving is prefixed to the new edition of
his novels. There is, likewise, a very faithful portrait by Mr Leslie, an
American artist.
Sir Walter Scott possessed,
in an eminent degree, the power of imagination, with the gift of memory. If
to this be added his strong tendency to venerate past things, we at once
have the most obvious features of his intellectual character. A desultory
course of reading had brought him into acquaintance with almost all the
fictitious literature that existed before his own day, as well as the
minutest points of British, and more particularly Scottish history. His easy
and familiar habits had also introduced him to an extensive observation of
the varieties of human character. His immense memory retained the ideas thus
acquired, and his splendid imagination gave them new shape and colour. Thus,
his literary character rests almost exclusively upon his power of combining
and embellishing past events, and his skill in delineating natural
character. In early life, accident threw his --ons into the shape of
verse--in later life, into prose; but, in whatever form they appear, the
powers are not much different. The same magician is still at work,
re-awaking the figures and events of history, or sketching the characters
which we every day see aroundus, and investing the whole with the light of a
most extraordinary fancy.
It is by far the greatest
glory of Sir Walter Scott, that he shone equally as a good and virtuous man,
as he did in his capacity of the first fictitious writer of the age. His
behaviour through life was marked by undeviating integrity and purity. His
character as a husband and father is altogether irreproachable. Indeed, in
no single relation of life does he appear liable to blame, except in the
facility with which he yielded his fortunes into the power of others, of
whom he ought to have stood quite independent. Laying this imprudence out of
view, his good sense, and good feeling united, appear to have guided him
aright through all the difficulties and temptations of life. Along with the
most perfect uprightness of conduct, he was characterized by extraordinary
simplicity of manners. He was invariably gracious and kind, and it was
impossible ever to detect in his conversation a symptom of his grounding the
slightest title to consideration upon his literary fame, or of his even
being conscious of it.
By dint of almost incredible
exertions, Sir Walter Scott had reduced the amount of his debts, at the time
of his decease, to about £20,000, exclusive of the accumulated interest. On
the 29th of October, a meeting of his creditors was called, when an offer
was made by his family of that sum against the ensuing February, on
condition of their obtaining a complete discharge. The meeting was very
numerously attended, and the proposal was accepted without a dissentient
voice. In addition to the resolution accepting the offer, and directing the
trustees to see the acceptance carried into effect, the following resolution
was moved and carried with a like unanimity:--
"And while the meeting state
their anxious wish that every creditor, who is not present, may adopt the
same resolution, they think it a tribute justly due to the memory of Sir
Walter Scott, to express, in the strongest manner, their deep sense of his
most honourable conduct, and of the unparalleled benefits which they have
derived from the extraordinary exertion of his unrivalled talents under
misfortunes and difficulties, which would have paralyzed the exertions of
anyone else, but in him only proved the greatness of mind which enabled him
to rise superior to them."
The Father of Historical Fiction
Sir Walter Scott was born on August 15, 1771 in Edinburgh. At
the age of 18 months he contracted infantile paralysis - probably a form of Polio - which
left him lame in his right leg. As a result he was sent to recuperate with his grandfather
in the Borders where he first started to hear the history and legends of the area which
would provide him with much of his inspiration. He returned to Edinburgh for his schooling
and attended classes at the university at a young age. He became an apprentice at his
father's legal practice in 1786 and came into contact with many of the literati of
Edinburgh. He studied at the classes of people like Prof. Dugald Stewart to prepare for
his Bar exams and was called to the Bar in 1792. At around this time he started collecting
the ballads of the Border areas which were to later be published as The Minstrelsy of
the Scottish Border.
He had developed an interest in German literature and in 1796
published translations including one of Goethe. The following year saw him marry Charlotte
Carpenter and after a period of living in Lasswade he was appointed Sheriff-Depute of
Selkirkshire in 1799. He completed the Minstrelsy and was encourage by the Countess of
Dalkeith to compose a ballad of a Border story which developed into The Lay of the Last
Minstrel which was published in 1805 and became a great success. The romantic story
set against a Scottish historical background became a main theme of his and he continued
this with Marmion in 1808 and his most popular poem The Lady of the Lake in
1810.
The following year saw him build the house at Abbotsford
where he would live for the rest of his life and which he added to over the years. He was
now moving more towards prose and in 1814 his novel Waverley, which was to be the
beginning of a long and famous series, was published by Constable. This was in many ways
the birth of the historical novel, and he brought it immediately to a fine art which would
seldom be equalled. Over the next few years he produced a stream of titles such as Guy
Mannering, The Antiquary, Rob Roy, The Heart of Midlothian, Ivanhoe and Redgauntlet.
They were written anonymously - appearing variously as "by the writer of
Waverley", and by the fictitious Jedediah Cleishbotham. He seemed to feel that novel
writing was not a fit profession for someone in his position but was also a lover of
mystery and saw the value of it a a promotional device.
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