Matheson Collection > Modern Gaelic bards

154 MODERN GAELIC BARDS.
occasion of his Parliament in Ardchattan Priory in
1308. The grotto, which was visited by many distin-
guished people during the poet's lifetime, was broken
up in 1903, greatly to the regret of all the people in
the district, to make way for the line of the new rail-
way to Ballachulish.
The bard was much beloved by all who came in
contact with him, and among his closest friends was the
genial Professor Blackie. He left a widow and a family
of five daughters. A few years before his death, he
was presented by his many admirers with a purse of
sovereigns, and the comfort of his old age is pourtrayed
by the pretty villa where he died, and where Mrs.
Campbell and two daughters still reside. This villa,
which is situated near Ledaig station, by its singular
beauty and the neatness of its garden, attracts the
notice of every traveller.
In 1884 a volume of John Campbell's Gaelic poems
was published, and a few of them are accompanied with
English translations by Professor Blackie.
The Bard passed away in May, 1897, and was buried
in Achnaba Churchyard, where his numerous friends
erected a fitting memorial, bearing the words: — "A
sweet singer, an ardent lover of nature, an earnest
Christian teacher, a most lovable man."