Ossian Collection > Report of the Committee of the Highland Society of Scotland, appointed to inquire into the nature and authenticity of the poems of Ossian

POEMS OF OSSIAN. 91
chiefly in Ireland and the adjoining coall of Argyll-
fiiire. A fhort hiflory of this collection, and of the
manner in which Lord Bannatyne firft became ac-
quainted with it, is contained in a letter from his
Lordfhip to Mr Mackenzie, given in the Appendix,
p. 280. An account of its contents, by Dr D.
Smith, is fubjoined (Appendix, p. 285.), together
with 2ifac simile of a palTage in the oldefl of the
MSS. This colledtion, however curious in itfelf,
and as exhibiting the early Itate of writing in the
Highlands, contains but little ancient poetry, and
fome of what it does contain appears to be very
much corrupted.
Lord Bannatyne, by whofe means Major IMac-
Lachlan's MSS. were communicated to the Com-
mittee, alfo procured for them another MS. appa-
rently of great antiquity, pronounced by the late Mr
William Robertfon, keeper of the RejT,iiter Office
at Edinburgh, to be a writing of the 12th century.
It bears no date, however, in its extant contcnti^ ;
biit on the cover is a date, written in Gaelic, in blacli
letter, but in a comparatively modern hand, which
agrees with Mr Robertfon's opinion. ' Glenmaflin,
the 1.5th day of the [a fpace illegible, by the wear-
ing of the parchment] of M***' [a fjinilar fpace] hi
the year of our Redemption 12-58.' Thk MS. con-
tains part of the poem of ' Clan Uiiiioachan,' called
by Macpherfon, from the lady v.'ho makes the prin-
cipal figure in it, Darthula ; but her name in Gae-
lic, thus lengthened and made mufica! bv Macpher-
fon, is Dcìrdìr. A particular account of this MS^
with