Ossian Collection > Authenticity of the poems of Ossian

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'' Cia nieud a bliròiii tha nir Oisinn,
Is thusa, thriath thoisich gun (Kò-'
Cha ehluinn mi air Cona do ghmh,
Clia-n fliaicear do chrutli le i-ùil dliall,
'S iomadh la agus oidliicir flmar
A sliuidlieam aig t-uniniii fo ii' chain
Dh'faireac ham fom' liiimli i 's a' ehruaic Ii,
'Smi' ga d' mholadh le luaidh nam biird.
'N Uiiiv shaoilinn gu 'n cluinnear do ghuth,
'Se th' ann osag dhubh na h-oidhch ;
'S fhada o'n la thuit thu 'n a d'shuain,
A shàr — cheannaird nan cruaidh— chòmhra^."
All this — all that the poems are — M'Pherson had t()
give, with a naturalness and simplicity which we know
to be true, otherwise they could never have captivated
so many great minds. Burns was passionately fond of
these poems. Writing from the east coast, after re-
turning from his Highland tour, he exclaims, " Warm
as I am from the country of Ossian, where I have seen
his very grave, what care I for fishing town or fertile
carse." Sapoleon Bona])arte Avas equally fond of them,
and carried his admiration of them so far as to make
the military tactics of Fingal, the leading hero of the
poems, the model of his own generalship. W ho does not
see in his plan of devolving the command in hattle on
his most distinguished officers— thus stimulating them
by such confidence to the greatest possible display of
bravery — while he himself stood aloof, waiting to de-
scend with his irresistible invincibles only when the
issue threatened to be doubtful or adverse, a resem-
blance to the conduct of Fingal, as described in the
poems ? Sismondi, in his " Literature of Southern
Europe," when treating of the writings of Ceasarotti,
the translator of Ossian into Italian, says that " he
was deeply penetrated with the spirit of the ancient
Caledonian, much of whose dim and gigantic grandeur
he has preserved in his translation." The writings of
most of our modern poets are said to have been nnich
influenced by Ossian. Scott, in particular, is pointed
out as having acted on his method in the extreme
localization given by him on that beautiful poem,
"The Lady of the Lake."
I have brought forward these examples to show the
extensive and enduring influence exercised by these
compositions on the literary woi-ld, and I Avould ask,
where in the annals of literature do we meet witli
another instance of writings, without a foundation in
fact, exercising such power? But there is yet another
feature about them which amazes me more than all