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William Alexander Clouston,
b. 1813, at Stromness, Orkney Islands, of an old Norse family, d. 1896,
in early life was engaged in commercial pursuits in Glasgow and London,
but relinquished these to engage in journalism and literature; he edited
several Scotch provincial newspapers, 1871-79, and is a writer for the
Glasgow Herald, Evening Times, &c. He has given particular attention to
Oriental fiction and folk-lore, and contributed to Sir R. F. Burton's
“Supplemental Arabian Nights" analogues and variants of some of the
tales in vols. i.-iii. 1. (Ed.) Literary Curiosities and Eccentricities:
a Book of Anecdote, Laconic Sayings, and Gems of Thought, in Prose and
Verse, Lon., 1875; new ed., 1879,12mo. Same, with title Wine and
Walnuts; or. The Gossip of Great Writers, 1876. 2. (Ed.) The Book of
Scottish Story, Historical, Traditionary, Imaginary, and Humorous. Part
I. Edin., 1876, 8vo. 3. (Ed.) The Wisdom and Genius of Dr. Samuel
Johnson: selected from his Prose Writings, Lon.. 1876, p. 8vo. 4. (Ed.)
Arabian Poetry for English Readers: with Introduction and Notes,
Glasgow, 1881, 8vo. Privately printed. (Consists chiefly of reprints of
translations by Sir W. Jones and other Orientalists, with some original
translations by J. W. Redhouse.) 5. (Ed.) Choice Anecdotes and Good
Sayings of the Witty and Wise: in Prose and Verse, Lon., 1883, p. 8vo.
6. (Trans.) Baktyár Náma: or. The Ten Viziers: a Persian Romance: with
Introduction and Illustrations, Glasgow, 1883. Privately printed. 7.
(Trans.) The Book of Sindibad; or, The Story of the King, his Son, the
Damsel, and the Seven Vazirs; from the Persian and Arabic: with
Introduction. Notes, and Appendix. Glasgow, 1884, 8vo. Privately
printed. Reviewed by R. F. Burton, Arnd., xxvi. 175. 8. Additional
Analogues to “The Wright's Chaste Wife" (Early Eng. Text Soc.) 1885. 9.
Popular Tales and Fictions: their Migrations and Transformations, Edin,
and Lon.. 1887, 2 vote. p. 8vo.
His chief aim has been to show that, in at least a great many cases the
tale which has been rendered familiar by oral tradition to successive
generations of European peasants has existed for centuries in Oriental
literature. About his success in this respect there can be but little
doubt, even among readers who may be sceptical with regard to the
exclusively Eastern origin of the great mass of Western popular tales. .
. . His work forms a rich storehouse of materials.”—W. R. I. Ralston:
Acad., xxxi. 388.
10. Originals and Analogues of some of Chaucer's “Canterbury Tales."
Parts IV. and V. (Chaucer Soc. Pub.) 1886-87.
11. The Book of Noodles:
Stories of Simpletons; or, Fools and their Follies, (“The Book-Lover’s
Library,") Lon., 1888. 12mo.
“A compendium of stories about the Wise Men of Gotham in all
countries.”—Sit. Rev., Ixv. 802.
12. A Group of Eastern Romances and Stories: from the Persian, the
Tamil, and the Urdd: with Introduction, &c., 1889. Privately printed.
13. Flowers from a Persian Garden, and other Papers, Lon., 1890, 12mo.
William Alexander
Clouston (1843-96)
Folklorist: Introduction and Bibliography by Gareth Whittaker (2004)
Popular Tales and Fictions
Their Migrations and Transformations by W. A. Clouston in two volumes
Volume 1 |
Volume 2
The Book of
Noodles
Or, Fools and their Follies by W. A. Clouston (1888) (pdf)
From the Orcades to Ind
By D. Clouston, C.I.E., M.A., D.Sc., F.R.S.G.S., F.R.S.E. (1936) (pdf)
Wine and
Walnuts
or Gossip of Great Writers, A Book of Anecdote, Laconic Saying and Gems
of Thought in Prose and Verse Edited by W. A. Clouston (1876) (pdf)
Literary curiosities and eccentricities: a book of anecdote, laconic
sayings, and gems of thought, in prose and verse
By W. A. (William Alexander) Clouston (1875) (pdf)
CHARLES CLOUSTON
THE Rev. Chas. Clouston,
LL.D., of Sandwick Manse, near Stromness, who died on the 10th ult. at
the very advanced age of eighty-four years, was a man who deserves more
than a passing notice in our columns. To name one only of his many
claims to scientific recognition, he commenced meteorological
observations in Stromncss in the year 1822, and continued them, either
there or in the adjacent parish of Sand wick, to within a fortnight of
his death in 1884.
He belonged to the old Norse stock in Orkney, coming from the township
of Clouston in Stennis. Two families of this name now live in the
township, having succeeded to their farms, by direct descent, for over
400 years. He studied in Edinburgh University, and had at first been
destined for the medical profession. He became a Licentiate of the R.C.S.
in Edinburgh in 1819, and at his death was probably the father of the
College. When in 1826 he entered on his duties as assistant and
successor to his father, in the combined parishes of Stromness and
Sandwick, there was no medical man in the latter place. For nearly fifty
years he acted as the local doctor, in addition to his clerical duties,
giving advice and medicines gratis. His father had been minister of
Stromness for over sixty years, so that father and son had kept up a
continuous ministry for 120 years. He received the degree of LL.D, from
the University of St. Andrew’s many years ago.
In the year 1862 Dr. Clouston’s reputation as a careful meteorological
observer was so well established that Admiral FitzRoy intrusted to his
charge an anemometer, which has been kept in constant operation for the
space of twenty-two years. The original instrument was replaced by a new
one in 1869. A discussion of the results of the first five years’
records (1863-68) appeared in the Quarterly Weather Report for 1871. In
addition to his regular observations and deductions therefrom, which he
occasionally published, he wrote an essay, “An Explanation of the
Popular Weather Prognostics of Scotland, on Scientific Principles,”
which gained the prize allotted by the Marquis of Tweeddale in 1867. His
observations for the last thirty years, at least, have been regularly
published by the Registrar-General for Scotland.
Dr. Clouston was not only a meteorologist, but an ardent follower of
every branch of science which came in his way. In his "Guide to the
Orkney Islands,” a reprint of a portion of “Anderson’s Guide,” he
modestly says, “Taking the Orkney Flora, as Dr. Neill left it, to
include 462 specimens, and adding our own contribution of 156, it now
contains 618 species.” In archaeology he took an active part in the
exploration of Maes How, and the House of Skaill, both of them within a
walk of his home.
Dr. Clouston leaves a widow, two sons, and two daughters, but more than
one member of his family passed away before him. In conclusion, we can
only say that a visit to Sandwick was ever a rare treat; the warm
hospitality of the manse, and the interest of the conversation carried
on round the table, could not fail to leave an impression which will not
easily wear away. |
