Ossian Collection > Morison's edition of the Poems of Ossian, the son of Fingal

NOTES ON FINGAL. 119
Forth march'd the chief, and diftant from the crowd
High on the rampart rais'd his voice aloud.
So high his brazen voice the hero rear'd
Hofts drop their arms and trembled as they fear'd. Pope.
^ Offian never fails to give a fine character to his beloved
fon. His fpeech to his father is that of a hero ;it contains
the fubmiffion due to a parent, and the warmth that be-
comes a young warriour. There is a propriety in dwelling
here on the actions of Ofcar, as the beautiful Malvina, to
whom the book is addrefled, was in love with that hero.
f The war-fong of UUin varies from the reft of the poem,
in the verfification. It runs down like a torrent ; and con-
fifts almoft entirely of epithets. The cuftom of encoura-
ging men in battle with extempore rhymes, has been car-
ried down almoft to our own times. Several of thefe war-
fongs are extant, but the moft of them are only a group
of epithets, without beauty or harmony, utterly deftitute
of poetical merit.
£ Th' imperial enfign, which full high advanc'd
Shone like a meteor ftreaming to the wind. Milton.
h Fingal's ftandard was diftinguifhed by the name of/««-
beam ; probably on account of its bright colour, and its
being ftudded with gold. To begin a battle is exprefled.
In old compofition, by lifting ofthefun-heam.
' Above the reft, the fun, who never lies.
Foretells the change of weather in the Ikies.
For if he rife, unwilling to his race.
Clouds on his brow, and fpots upon his face ;
Or if through mifts he fhoots his fuUen beams.
Frugal of light, in loofe and ftraggling ftreams,
Sufped a drilling day. Drydsn.
t For