Genealogy of the family of Forbes

81
Mr. Forbes's narrative is rather incorrect in some respects, as fair
as regards the composition ; but we did not on the whole think it best
to make corrections, for by such alterations, the raciness of an essay
has often been impaired.
Our notices on Flowdon and Pinkie came naturally with our sub-
ject; and indeed the field of Flowdon is in Scotch history like the
deluge in that of the world, obliterating or making faint and obscure
all former chains of events, and family traditions, and honours.
Had Mr. Lumsden enriched his Genealogy with dates, it would
have added much to the interest of his Essay ; nor can we withhold
our regret that he did not add some anecdotes of the fights of Flow-
don and of Pinkie, both of which he must have had the best means o£
knowing; to have related such events at the time he wrote would have
been telling what the public well knew ; yet what a mass of entertain-
ment and knowledge has been lost to the world from such considera-
tions? so fast does the cloud of oblivion steal on, that even a half cen-
tury obscures the details of biography and history much more than is
generally reflected on, by consigning to the dust the agents and theit
coevals ; it becomes a matter of interest to know whether such a man.
as Milton wore buckles or latchets to his shoes, because such trivial
circumstances are not only generally untold, but they present the live-
liest and most familiar pictures to the mind, — and we think the enter-
tainment and value of Froissart, so far from being lessened, are greatly
enhanced by the minuteness of his descriptions, even when he tells us
he lodged at the Falcon, or the Crown, and narrates the names of his
four greyhounds, as we remember Holland, Tristan. Bruno and Hector.
Yet to the contemplative mind even the reflection on such a mixture
as Froissart gives of the great and of thetrlvlal, may not be without its
due advantage ; vast as the distinctions once were, a few years havo
made them equally unimportant ; and however humiliating the consi-
deration may be, it is nevertheless indisputable, that all the pride of pa-
geantry, and of the mortals whose names and vanity are meant to be
honoured by it, are hastening with ceaseless velocity tothegulph where
the meanest animals of the train of pomp, will equally engage our in-
terest. The pursuits of life become important merely from a delusive
tendency of our nature, (certainly implanted for the best purposes)
which makes us evade the honest and constant conviction of our sedater
thoughts ; yet we cannot too soon or too often habituate our faculties
to throw asido the veil which obscures our vision ; however strong the
tendency to deceive ourselves may be, a moment can always break the