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. 7
are mentioned in every flanza. The only doubt is,
whether thefe poems have any farther refemblance
to the poems publifhed by Macpherfon. I was told
by Bourke, * a very ingenious Iriili gentleman, the
author of a traèt on the Sublime and Beautiful, that
cnthefirft publication of Macpherfon's book, all the
Irilh cried out, We hiozu all those poems ; we have al-
ways heard them from mr infancy ; but when he alk-
ed more particular queilions, he could never learn
that any one had ever heard or could repeat the ori-
ginal of any one paragraph of the pretended tranfla-
tion. This generality, then, muft be carefully guard-
ed againft, as being of no authority.
Your connections among your brethren of the
clergy may here be of great ufe to you. You may
eafily learn the names cf all minifters of that coun-
try who understand the language of it. You may
write to them, expreffing the doubts that have arifca,
and defiring them to fend for fuch of the bards as
remain, and make them rehearfe their ancient poems.
Let the clergymen then have the tranflation in their
hands, and let them write back to you, and inform
you that they heard fuch a one (naming him), liv-
ing in fuch a place, rehearfe the original of fuch a
palTage, from fuch a page to fuch a page of the Eng-
lifh tranflation, which appeared exadt and faithful.
If you give to the pubhc a fufficient number of fuch
ieftimonies, you may prevail : But I venture to
sforetel to you that nothing lefs will ferve the pur-
A 4i pofe ;
* So in MS.