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

MR. MACKENRIE. , 283
jour assistance in enabling them to lay before the public,
I took occasion, in going to Inveraray, ' to call on Mr.
M'Kinno;-; at Glendaruel. Reminding him of what had
then passed, and asking whether he had himself seen the
Kilbride Collection, he told me he had not, but that he had
then by him a Gaelic manuscript, got from some country-
people in his neighbourhood, which had once, they said,
made part of that collection, which appeared to him very
ancient, and though he could not easily read it on account
of its numerous contractions, he found it to contain Histo-
ries, Tales, and Poems.
This manuscript, as you know, I prevailed on him to
send by me for the use of the Society. It is generally un-
derstood to be of coisiderable antiquity, as the late Mr.
William Robertson of the Register Office supposed, not
later than the 13th century.
The circumstance of this manuscript also being supposed
to come out of the Kilbride collection, induced me to make
inquiry, what part of that collection still remained in the
possession of Major Mac Lachlan, who was my personal
acquaintance. The result you know was, that by means
of the Rev. Francis Stuart minister of Craignish, I obtain-
ed a confirmation of the fact, that his family had once pos-
sessed a very large collection, of which he had given two
or three to General Sir Adolphus Oughton, and the late Sir
James Foulis, both of whom we.e Gaelic scholars, and that
there still remained above twenty in his possession.
Of these he allowed Mr Stuart to bring a few to my
house in Bute for my inspection, all of which appeared to
me to be of some antiquity. Those were returned ; but,
at my request, Mr. Mackintosh was, as you know, allowed
to take inspection, and bring the Society an account of
these and the other MSS. in Major M*Lachlan*s possession.
Part of these the major afterwards seat to the Society, and