little. I know what they will say of my poems; by second sight I suppose; for I am seldom out in my conjectures; and you may believe me, my dear madam, I would not run any risk of hurting you by an ill-judged compliment. I wish to show to the world, the odds between a poet's friends, and those of simple prosemen. More for your information, both the pieces go in. One of them, "Where braving all the winter's harms," is already set-the tune is Neil Gow's Lamentation for Abercarny; the other is to be set to an old Highland air in Daniel Dow's "collection of ancient Scots music; the name is Ha a Chaillich air mo Dheidh. My treacherous memory has forgot every circumstance about Les Incas, only I think you mentioned them as being in C———————'s possession. I shall ask him about it. I am afraid the song of " Somebody" will come too late-as I shall, for certain, leave town in a week for Ayrshire, and from that to Dumfries, but there my hopes are slender. I leave my direction in town, so any thing, wherever I am, will reach me.

it is not too severe,

I saw your's to nor did he take it amiss. On the contrary, like a whipt spaniel, he talks of being with you in the Christmas days. Mr. has given him the invitation, and he is determined to accept of

it.

it. O selfishness! he owns in his sober moments, that from his own volatility of inclination, the circumstances in which he is situated, and his knowledge of his father's disposition, the whole affair is chimerical-yet he will gratify an idle penchant at the enormous, cruel expense, of perhaps ruining the peace of the very woman for whom he professes the generous passion of love! He is a gentleman in his mind and mantant pis!-He is a volatile school-boy: The heir of a man's fortune who well knows the value of two times two!

ners.

Perdition seize them and their fortunes, before they should make the amiable, the lovely the derided object of their purse-proud contempt.

I am doubly happy to hear of Mrs. — 's recovery, because I really thought all was over with her. There are days of pleasure yet awaiting her.

"As I cam in by Glenap

"I met with an aged woman;

"She bad me chear up my heart.
"For the best o' my days was comin."

No.

No. XXII.

To MR. MORISON,*

WRIGHT, MAUCH LINE.

Ellisland, Jan. 22, 1788.

MY DEAR SIR,

NECESSITY obliges me to go into my new house even before it be plastered, I will inhabit the one end until the other is finished. About three weeks more, I think, will at farthest, be my time, beyond which I cannot stay in this present house. If ever you wished to deserve the blessing of him that was ready to perish; if ever you were in a situation that a little kindness would have rescued you from many evils; if ever you hope to find rest in future states of untried being;-get these matters of mine ready. My servant will be out in the beginning of next week for the clock. My compliments to Mrs. Morison.

I am, after all my tribulation,

Dear Sir, yours.

*This letter refers to chairs, and other articles of fur

niture, which the Poet had ordered.

No. XXIII.

To MR. JAMES SMITH,

AVON PRINTFIELD, LIN LITHGOW.

Mauchline, April 28, 1788.

BEWARE of your Strasburgh, my good Sir! Look on this as the opening of a correspondence, like the opening of a twenty-four gun battery!

There is no understanding a man properly, without knowing something of his previous ideas (that is to say, if the man has any ideas; for I know many who, in the animal-muster, pass for men, that are the scanty masters of only one idea on any given subject, and by far the greatest part of your acquaintances and mine can barely boast of ideas, 1.25-1.5-1.75, or some such fractional matter) so to let you a little into the secrets of my pericranium, there is, you must know, a certain clean-limbed, handsome, bewitching young hussy of your acquaintance, to

whom

whom I have lately and privately given a matrimonial title to my corpus.

"Bode a robe and wear it."

Says the wise old Scots adage! I hate to presage ill luck; and as my girl has been doubly kinder to me than even the best of women usually are to their partners of our sex, in similar circumstances, I reckon on twelve times a brace of children against I celebrate my twelfth wedding day: these twenty-four will give me twenty-four gossippings, twenty-four christenings, (I mean one equal to two) and I hope, by the blessing of the God of my fathers, to make them twenty-four dutiful children to their parents, twenty-four useful Members of Society, and twenty-four approven servants of their God!

66

*

*

Light's heartsome," quo' the wife when she was stealing sheep. You see what a lamp I have hung up to lighten your paths, when you are idle enough to explore the combinations and relations of my ideas. 'Tis now as plain as a pike-staff, why a twenty-four gun battery was a metaphor I could readily employ.

Now for business.-I intend to present Mrs. Burns with a printed shawl, an article of which I dare say you have variety: 'tis my first present

to