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456 APPENDIX.
well remembers to have heard in his youth, and from
his having heard very lately a confiderable part of the
poem of Temora rehearfed in the original, which agreed
exadly with the printed verlion.
By the reverend Mr. Alexander Pope, minifler of Reay,
in the fliire of Caithnefs, I am informed, that twenty-four
years ago, he had begun to make a collection of fome of
the old poems current in his part of the country ; on
comparing which, with Mr. Macphcrfon's work, he found
in his collection the poem intitled, the Battle of Lora,
fome parts of Lathmon, and the account of the Death of
Ofcar. From the above mentioned Lieutenant Duncan
Macnicol, tellimonies have been alfo received to a great
part of Fingal, to part of Tem.ora, and Carric-thura, as
well as to the whole of Dar-thula, as recited in his prefence
in the original, compared, and found to agree with the
tranllation.
I myfelf read over the greateft part of the Englifh ver-
lion of the fix books of Fingal, to Mr. Kenneth Macpher-
fonof Stornoway, in the llland of Lewis, merchant, in pre-
fence of the reverend Mr. Alexander Macauly, chaplain
to the 88th regiment. In going along, Mr. Macpherfon
vouched what was read to be well known to him in the
original, both the defcriptions and the fentiments. In
fome places, though he remembered the Rory, he did
not remember the words of the original ; in other places,
he remembered and repeated the Gahc lines themfelves,
which, being interpreted to me by Mr. Macaulay, were
found, upon comparifon, to agree often literally with the
printed verlion, and fometimes with flight variations of a
word or an epithet. This tellimony carried to me, and
mull have carried to any other who had been jirefent,
the higheft conviction ; being precifely a teflimony of
that nature which an Englillnnan well acquainted witli
Milton, or any favourite author, would give to a foreign-
er, who fliewed him a verlion of this author into his own
language, and wanted to be fatisfied from what the En-
gliflnuan could recoiled of the original, whether it was
really a tranllation of Paradife Loll, or a fpurious work
under that title which had been put into his hands.
The above-mentioned Mr. Alexander Macaulay,) Mr.
Adam Ferguilbn profellbr of moral philofophy, and Mr.
Alexander
well remembers to have heard in his youth, and from
his having heard very lately a confiderable part of the
poem of Temora rehearfed in the original, which agreed
exadly with the printed verlion.
By the reverend Mr. Alexander Pope, minifler of Reay,
in the fliire of Caithnefs, I am informed, that twenty-four
years ago, he had begun to make a collection of fome of
the old poems current in his part of the country ; on
comparing which, with Mr. Macphcrfon's work, he found
in his collection the poem intitled, the Battle of Lora,
fome parts of Lathmon, and the account of the Death of
Ofcar. From the above mentioned Lieutenant Duncan
Macnicol, tellimonies have been alfo received to a great
part of Fingal, to part of Tem.ora, and Carric-thura, as
well as to the whole of Dar-thula, as recited in his prefence
in the original, compared, and found to agree with the
tranllation.
I myfelf read over the greateft part of the Englifh ver-
lion of the fix books of Fingal, to Mr. Kenneth Macpher-
fonof Stornoway, in the llland of Lewis, merchant, in pre-
fence of the reverend Mr. Alexander Macauly, chaplain
to the 88th regiment. In going along, Mr. Macpherfon
vouched what was read to be well known to him in the
original, both the defcriptions and the fentiments. In
fome places, though he remembered the Rory, he did
not remember the words of the original ; in other places,
he remembered and repeated the Gahc lines themfelves,
which, being interpreted to me by Mr. Macaulay, were
found, upon comparifon, to agree often literally with the
printed verlion, and fometimes with flight variations of a
word or an epithet. This tellimony carried to me, and
mull have carried to any other who had been jirefent,
the higheft conviction ; being precifely a teflimony of
that nature which an Englillnnan well acquainted witli
Milton, or any favourite author, would give to a foreign-
er, who fliewed him a verlion of this author into his own
language, and wanted to be fatisfied from what the En-
gliflnuan could recoiled of the original, whether it was
really a tranllation of Paradife Loll, or a fpurious work
under that title which had been put into his hands.
The above-mentioned Mr. Alexander Macaulay,) Mr.
Adam Ferguilbn profellbr of moral philofophy, and Mr.
Alexander
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Early Gaelic Book Collections > Ossian Collection > Poems of Ossian, the son of Fingal > (470) |
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Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/77587946 |
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Description | Selected books from the Ossian Collection of 327 volumes, originally assembled by J. Norman Methven of Perth. Different editions and translations of James MacPherson's epic poem 'Ossian', some with a map of the 'Kingdom of Connor'. Also secondary material relating to Ossianic poetry and the Ossian controversy. |
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Description | Selected items from five 'Special and Named Printed Collections'. Includes books in Gaelic and other Celtic languages, works about the Gaels, their languages, literature, culture and history. |
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