Ossian Collection > Poems of Ossian

A PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. xv
the question was put, and answered, that really if they
had owed bim any thing, the bonds and obligations
were lost, and he believed any attempt to recover
them at that time of day would be unavailing. Which
sally of Mac Codrum's wit seemed to have hurt Mr.
Macpherson,who cut short the conversation, and pro-
ceeded on towards Benbecula. And the declarant
being asked whether or not the late Mr. James Mac-
phereon was capable of composing such poems as
those of Ossiau, declares most explicitly and posi-
tively that he is certain Mr. Macp'jerson was as un-
equal to such compositions as the declarant himself,
who could no more make them than take wings and
fly." P. 96.
We would here observe, that the sufficiency of a
man's knowledge of such a language as the Gaelic,
for all the purposes of composition, is not to be ques-
tioned, because he does not speak* it accurately or
elegantly, much less is it to be quibbled into suspi-
cion by the pleasantry of a double entendre. But
we hold it prudent, and it shall be our endeavour in
this place, to give no decided opinion on the main sub-
ject of dispute. For us the contention shall still re-
main sub Judice.
To the Queries circulated through such parts of the
Highlands as the Committee imagined most likely to
afford information in reply to them, they received
many answers, most of which were conceived in
nearly similar terms ; that the persons themselves had
never doubted of the existence of such poems as Mr.
JMacpherson had translated ; that they had heard many
of them repeated in their youth: that listening to
• We doubt not that Mr. Professor Porson conld,
if he pleased, forge a short poem in Greek, and"
ascribing it, for instance, to Theocritus, maintain its
authenticity with considerable force and probability ;
and yet were it possible for him to speak to the
simplest shepherd of ancient Greece, he would quick-
ly afford as good reason as Mr. M. to be suspected of
being an "indifferent proficient" in the language.