Ossian Collection > Romance of the Highlands

THE BARDS. OSSIAN. 75
language, on receiving a copy of the "Fragments" wrote,
"The whole external evidence would make one believe
these fragments counterfeit but the internal is so strong
on the other side that I am resolved to believe them
genuine spite of the Devil and the Kirk. This man is
the very Daemon of poetry or he has lighted on a treasure
hid for ages."
As time advanced the few original doubters of the
authenticity increased, and it began to be openly reported
that the poems had been formulated in the fertile brain of
MacPherson himself. What searchings among the
literary critics immediately followed to endeavour to
detect by one stray word, or by plagiarism, anything that
might fix the guilt on the poor youth's head !
In Scotland, and particularly in the Highlands where
the people had the best right to judge on the merits of
the poems, the consensus of opinion was entirely in
favour of their being the traditional poems from early
times. The names of Ossian, Oscar, Fion and others
common in the verses, had been continually on Highland
tongues. So much was this the case that the very
children used them in their quotations, when they asked
for fairplay or privilege in their games. As we speak at
the present time of the wisdom of Solomon, or the
patience of Job, so the Highlanders spoke of the sorrows
of Ossian (because of his blindness and the death of all
his kindred), and when they had anything to say of
female loveliness they compared it with Agandecca, the
daughter of the snow.
Staunch adherents to MacPherson 's cause were soon
forthcoming in the Highlands. MacDonald of Killep-
hedir declared that there was infinitely more Ossianic
poetry among the people around him than MacPherson
had translated in all his books.