DOCSLIB.ORG

Dictionary of National Biography

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Dictionary of National Biography Ball 79 Ballantine ' ' of his own, in his Brief Assertion (1660) concentric bodies, but the elliptic outline of of the annular character of the Saturniaii the wide-open ring is represented as broken appendages against the objections of Eus- by a depression at each extremity of the tachio Divini. Ball joined the meetings of minor axis. Sir Robert Moray's suggestion to * the Oxonian Society'' at Gresham College in Huygens seems (very obscurely) to convey ' ' 1659, co-operated in founding the Royal his opinion that these hollownesses were in was Society the following year, and named, ; due to the intersection of a pair of crossed in the charter of 15 July 1662, its first trea- . rings. Their true explanation is unquestion- surer. On his resignation of this office, ably that Ball, though he employed a 38-foot ' 30 Nov. 1663, he promised, and subsequently telescope with a double eyeglass, and never paid to the funds of the society, a donation ! saw the planet more distinct,' was deceived of 100/. (WELD, Hist. Royal Soc. i. 171). by an optical illusion. The impossible deli- Soon after 15 June 1665, when he was present ! neations of the same object by other ob- at a meeting of the Royal Society (BiRCH, servers of that period (see plate facing p. 634 Soc. i. he to Hist. Royal 439), appears have of Huygens's Op. Varia, iii.) render Ball's left London, and resumed his astronomical error less surprising. Indeed, it was antici- pursuits at his father's residence, Mamhead pated at Naples in 1633 by F.. Fontana House, Devonshire, about ten miles south of : (Novce Observations, p. 130; see Observatory, Exeter. Here, at six P.M. 13 Oct. 1665, he No. 79, p. 341). in with his Peter tells us ed. v. that made, conjunction brother, \ Pepys (Bright's 375) Ball, M.D., F.R.S., an observation which has Ball accompanied him and Lord Brouncker a certain He to Lincoln's Inn to visit the new of acquired spurious celebrity. | Bishop described it in the following sentence of a Chester (Wilkins) 18 Oct. 1668, and he was letter to Sir Robert which was ac- one of a committee for the accounts Moray, j auditing a the words were of the in November companied by drawing ; Royal Society following. inserted in No. 9 of the ' He succeeded to the estates on his Philosophical j family ' Transactions (i. 153) : father's death in 1680, and erected a monu- ' This appear'd to me the present figure of ment to him in the little church of Mamhead. j Saturn, somewhat otherwise than I expected, I He died in 1690, and was buried in the it would have been but Round of the Middle 22 thinking decreasing ; Temple Oct. of j I found it full as ever, and a little hollow that year (Temple Register; cf. Letters of above and below. Whereupon,' the report Administration P. C. C., by decree, 14 Jan. ' continues, the person to whom notice was 1692). He married Mary Posthuma | Hussey, sent this hath of who survived hereof, examining shape, by j Lincolnshire, him, and had letters desired the worthy author of the by her a son, William. The last of the Balls " " j Systeme of this Planet [Huygens] that he of Mamhead died 13 Nov. 1749. would now attentively consider the present j [Prince's Worthies of Devon (1701), 111-3; of his anses or to see whether figure ring, | Polwhele's Hist, of Devonshire ii. (1797), 155-7 ; the to him as in this I appearance be figure, Watt's Bibl. Brit, i. Prof. J. C. Adams 67 ; and whether he there meets consequently (Month. Not. Royal Astr. Soc. Jan. 1883, pp. 92-7) with nothing that may make him think that attempts to prove that Ball's observation was it is not one body of a circular figure that misrepresented, both in the plate (cancelled, as embraces his diske, but t wo.' he suggests, on that account) and in the letter- Owing to some unexplained circumstance, press of Phil. Trans. See, on the other side, Vivian in Month. Not. March and the plate containing the figure referred to was 1883, Lynn, in 1 June and 1 Oct. 1883. Prof. omitted or removed from the great majority of Observatory, ' Bakhuysen of Leyden gives, Observatory, 2 copies of the Philosophical Transactions,' and July 1883, the passage from Moray's letter to Huygens the letterpress standing alone might naturally referred to in Phil. Trans, i. 153. Huygens's be interpreted to signify that the brothers Ball reply has not been brought to light.] had ten Cassini's dis- yet anticipated by years A. M. C. covery of the principal division in Saturn's This merit was in fact attributed to ring. BALLANDEN. [See BELLENDEN.] them by Admiral (then Captain) Smyth in 1844 (A Cycle of Celestial Objects, p. 51), BALLANTINE, JAMES (1808-1877), and his lead was followed by most writers on artist and man of letters, born at Edinburgh astronomical subjects down to October 1882, in 1808, was entirely a self-made man. when Mr. W. T. Lynn pointed out, in the His first occupation was that of a house- ' Observatory,' the source of the misconcep- painter. He learned drawing under Sir tion. In the few extant impressions of the William Allen at the Trustees' Gallery in woodcut from Ball's drawing not the slightest Edinburgh, and was one of the first to re- indication is given of separation into two vive the art of glass-painting. In 1845 he Ballantyne Ballantyne ' ' show- ' and bad weather to the close published a treatise on Stained Glass, through good of Archi- of Scott's life. ing its applicability to every style Induced the of tecture/ and was appointed by the royal by strong representations commissioners on the fine arts to execute the Scott, Ballantyne, about the close of 1802, House of Lords. removed to ' accommoda- stained-glass windows for the Edinburgh, finding He was the author of several popular works : tion for two presses and a proof one in the 1. 'The Gaberlunzie's Wallet/ 1843. 2. 'The precincts of Holyrood House.' Scott, besides ' Miller of Deanhaugh/ 1845. 3. An Essay advancing a loan of 500/., exerted himself on Ornamental Art/ 1847. 4. 'Poems/ 1856. to procure for him both legal and literary ' with 1865. and such was the soon 5. One Hundred Songs, Music/ printing ; reputation 6. 'The Life of David Koberts, K.A.' 1866. acquired by his press for beauty and correct- There is also a volume of verses published ness of execution that in 1805 the capital by Ballantine in Jamaica, whither in later at his command was too small to fulfil the life he seems to have retired for the benefit contracts that were offered him, and he ap- ' < of his health. The Gaberlunzie's Wallet plied to Scott for a second loan, who there- and some of his songs are still popular in upon became a third sharer in the business. Scotland. He died in Edinburgh in Decem- In 1808 the firm of John Ballantyne & Co., ber 1877. He was the head of the firm of booksellers, was also started, Scott having Messrs. Ballantine, glass stainers, Edinburgh. one half share, and James and John Ballan- each. 22 Dec. 29 Dec. tyne one fourth John Ballantyne [q.v.] [Athenseum, 1877 ; Academy, of the undertook the management of the book- 1877 ; Cooper's Men Time, 1875.] E. E. selling and publishing business, the printing business continuing under the superintend- ence of the elder brother but the actual BALLANTYNE, JAMES (1772-1833), ; of concerns al- the printer of Sir Walter Scott's works, was head both was Scott, who, the son of a general merchant in Kelso, though in establishing them he was actuated where he was born in 1772. His friendship by a friendly interest in the Ballantynes, with Scott began in 1783 at the grammar wished both to find a convenient method of school of Kelso. After mastering his lessons, engaging in a commercial undertaking with- ' Scott used to whisper to Ballantyne, Come, out risk to his status in society, and also as slink over beside me, Jamie, and I'll tell you an author to avoid the irksome intervention a and in the interval of school hours of a between him and the story ;' publisher reading it was also their custom to walk together by public. The publishing business was gradu- the banks of the Tweed, engaged in the same ally discontinued, but the printing business occupation. Before entering the office of a was in itself a brilliant success. The high solicitor in Kelso, Ballantyne passed the perfection to which Ballantyne had brought winter of 1785-6 at Edinburgh University. the art of printing, and his connection with His apprenticeship concluded, he again went Scott, secured such enormous employment to Edinburgh to attend the class of Scots for his press that a large pecuniary profit law, and on this occasion renewed his ac- was almost an inevitable necessity. But with Scott at the Teviotdale though not deficient in natural shrewd- Siaintanceub, of which both were members. In 1795 ness, he was careless in his money transac- he commenced practice as a solicitor in tions, and it was the artistic and literary Kelso, but as his business was not immedi- aspect of his business that chiefly engaged ately successful he undertook in the follow- his interest. Much of his time was occupied ing year the printing and editing of an anti- in the correction and revision of the proofs democratic weekly newspaper, the 'Kelso of Scott's works, the writing of critical and Mail.' A casual conversation with Scott, in theatrical notices, and the editing of the * 1799, led to his printing, under the title of Weekly Journal/ of which, along with his ' Apologies for Tales of Terror/ a few copies brother, he became proprietor in 1817.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Walter Scott's Kelso
    Walter Scott’s Kelso The Untold Story Published by Kelso and District Amenity Society. Heritage Walk Design by Icon Publications Ltd. Printed by Kelso Graphics. Cover © 2005 from a painting by Margaret Peach. & Maps Walter Scott’s Kelso Fifteen summers in the Borders Scott and Kelso, 1773–1827 The Kelso inheritance which Scott sold The Border Minstrelsy connection Scott’s friends and relations & the Ballantyne Family The destruction of Scott’s memories KELSO & DISTRICT AMENITY SOCIETY Text & photographs by David Kilpatrick Cover & illustrations by Margaret Peach IR WALTER SCOTT’s connection with Kelso is more important than popular histories and guide books lead you to believe. SScott’s signature can be found on the deeds of properties along the Mayfield, Hempsford and Rosebank river frontage, in transactions from the late 1790s to the early 1800s. Scott’s letters and journal, and the biography written by his son-in-law John Gibson Lockhart, contain all the information we need to learn about Scott’s family links with Kelso. Visiting the Borders, you might believe that Scott ‘belongs’ entirely to Galashiels, Melrose and Selkirk. His connection with Kelso has been played down for almost 200 years. Kelso’s Scott is the young, brilliant, genuinely unknown Walter who discovered Border ballads and wrote the Minstrelsy, not the ‘Great Unknown’ literary baronet who exhausted his phenomenal energy 30 years later saving Abbotsford from ruin. Guide books often say that Scott spent a single summer convalescing in the town, or limit references to his stays at Sandyknowe Farm near Smailholm Tower. The impression given is of a brief acquaintance in childhood.
    [Show full text]
  • Lockhart'smemoirs of the Life of Sir Walter Scott, Bart
    Studies in Scottish Literature Volume 38 | Issue 1 Article 16 2012 WRITER, READER, AND RHETORIC IN JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART'S MEMOIRS OF THE LIFE OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART. Gerald P. Mulderig DePaul University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/ssl Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Mulderig, Gerald P. (2012) "WRITER, READER, AND RHETORIC IN JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART'S MEMOIRS OF THE LIFE OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART.," Studies in Scottish Literature: Vol. 38: Iss. 1, 119–138. Available at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/ssl/vol38/iss1/16 This Article is brought to you by the Scottish Literature Collections at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Studies in Scottish Literature by an authorized editor of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WRITER, READER, AND RHETORIC IN JOHN GIBSON LOCKHART’S MEMOIRS OF THE LIFE OF SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART. Gerald P. Mulderig “[W]hat can the best character in any novel ever be, compared to a full- length of the reality of genius?” asked John Gibson Lockhart in his 1831 review of John Wilson Croker’s edition of Boswell’s Life of Johnson.1 Like many of his contemporaries in the early decades of the nineteenth century, Lockhart regarded Boswell’s dramatic recreation of domestic scenes as an intrusive and doubtfully appropriate advance in biographical method, but also like his contemporaries, he could not resist a biography that opened a window on what he described with Wordsworthian ardor as “that rare order of beings, the rarest, the most influential of all, whose mere genius entitles and enables them to act as great independent controlling powers upon the general tone of thought and feeling of their kind” (ibid.).
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Mathew and Henry Carey, Archibald Constable, and the Discourse
    1 Mathew and Henry Carey, Archibald Constable, and the Discourse of Materiality in the Anglophone Periphery Joseph Rezek, Boston University A Paper Submitted to “Ireland, America, and the Worlds of Mathew Carey” Co-Sponsored by: The McNeil Center for Early American Studies The Program in Early American Economy and Society The Library Company of Philadelphia, The University of Pennsylvania Libraries Philadelphia, PA October 27-29, 2011 *Please do not cite without permission of the author 2 British and American literary publishing were not separate affairs in the early nineteenth century. The transnational circulation of texts, fueled by readerly demand on both sides of the Atlantic; a reprint trade unregulated by copyright law and active, also, on both sides of the Atlantic; and transatlantic publishing agreements at the highest level of literary production all suggest that, despite obvious national differences in culture and circumstance, authors and booksellers in Britain and the United States participated in a single literary field. This literary field cohered through linked publishing practices and a shared English-language literary heritage, although it was also marked by internal division and cultural inequalities. Recent scholarship in the history of books, reading, and the dissemination of texts has suggested that literary producers in Ireland, Scotland, and the United States occupied analogous positions as they nursed long- standing rivalries with England and depended on English publishers and readers for cultural legitimation. Nowhere is such rivalry and dependence more evident than in the career of the most popular author in the period, Walter Scott, whose books were printed in Edinburgh but distributed mostly in London, where they reached their largest and most lucrative audience.
    [Show full text]
  • Irresolute Ravishers and the Sexual Economy of Chivalry in the Romantic Novel
    Cleveland State University EngagedScholarship@CSU English Faculty Publications English Department 12-1-2000 Irresolute Ravishers and the Sexual Economy of Chivalry in the Romantic Novel Gary Dyer Cleveland State University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/cleng_facpub Part of the Literature in English, British Isles Commons How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! Publisher's Statement Article originally published as Dyer, Gary, "Irresolute Ravishers and the Sexual Economy of Chivalry in the Romantic Novel," Nineteenth-Century Literature, Vol. 55, No. 3 (Dec 2000): 340-68. © 2000 by The University of California Press. Recommended Citation Dyer, Gary, "Irresolute Ravishers and the Sexual Economy of Chivalry in the Romantic Novel" (2000). English Faculty Publications. 26. https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/cleng_facpub/26 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the English Department at EngagedScholarship@CSU. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of EngagedScholarship@CSU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Irresolute Ravishersand the Sexual Economy of Chivalryin the Romantic Novel GARY DYER - HZT theclimax ofJames Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans (1826) the American Indian Magua, findinghimself unable to kill his cap- tiveCora Munro as he has threatened,looks at her witha facial expression "in which conflictingpassions fiercelycontended." ' The situationhere evokes the climax of Walter Scott's Ivanhoe, published seven years earlier, in which Rebecca is saved from being burned at the stake when the villain Brian de Bois- Guilbert abruptlyfalls dead, overcome by "the violence of his own contending passions."2 In this essay I explore how these historical novels from the Romantic period attempt to deal withthe problems attendanton the chivalrousdesire to defend women-chivalry that ultimately becomes inconsequential, Nineteenth-CenturyLiterature, Vol.
    [Show full text]
  • Walter Scott, James Hogg and Uncanny Testimony: Questions of Evidence and Authority Deirdre A
    Walter Scott, James Hogg and Uncanny Testimony: Questions of Evidence and Authority Deirdre A. M. Shepherd PhD – The University of Edinburgh – 2009 Contents Preface i Acknowledgements ii Abstract iii Chapter One: Opening the Debate, 1790-1810 1 1.1 Walter Scott, James Hogg and Literary Friendship 8 1.2 The Uncanny 10 1.3 The Supernatural in Scotland 14 1.4 The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, 1802-3, The Lay of the Last Minstrel, 1805, and The Mountain Bard, 1807 20 1.5 Testimony, Evidence and Authority 32 Chapter Two: Experimental Hogg: Exploring the Field, 1810-1820 42 2.1 The Highlands and Hogg: literary apprentice 42 2.2 Nineteenth-Century Edinburgh: ‘Improvement’, Periodicals and ‘Polite’ Culture 52 2.3 The Spy, 1810 –1811 57 2.4 The Brownie of Bodsbeck, 1818 62 2.5 Winter Evening Tales, 1820 72 Chapter Three: Scott and the Novel, 1810-1820 82 3.1 Before Novels: Poetry and the Supernatural 82 3.2 Second Sight and Waverley, 1814 88 3.3 Astrology and Witchcraft in Guy Mannering, 1815 97 3.4 Prophecy and The Bride of Lammermoor, 1819 108 Chapter Four: Medieval Material, 1819-1822 119 4.1 The Medieval Supernatural: Politics, Religion and Magic 119 4.2 Ivanhoe, 1820 126 4.3 The Monastery, 1820 135 4.4 The Three Perils of Man, 1822 140 Chapter Five: Writing and Authority, 1822-1830 149 5.1 Divinity Matters: Election and the Supernatural 149 5.2 Redgauntlet, 1824 154 5.3 The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner, 1824 163 Chapter Six: Scott: Reviewing the Fragments of Belief, 1824-1830 174 6.1 In Pursuit of the Supernatural 174 6.2 ‘My Aunt Margaret’s Mirror’ and ‘The Tapestried Chamber’ in The Keepsake, 1828 178 6.3 Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft, addressed to J.
    [Show full text]
  • B.J. Mcmullin
    from page 13 Thomas Sprat, later Bishop of Rochester, to prepare, in its defence, an SIR WALTER SCOTT account of the Society and its work that was published by the Society in 1667 as AT IV MOURNE UNIVERSITY The History of the Royal Society of BY London, For the Improving of Natural B, J, McMullin Knowledge. The University Library has a copy of this, presented by the Friends of the Baillieu Library, and also a copy of the later, 1734 edition, as well as a modern reprint. The controversialist Joseph Glanvill, who became a Fellow in 1664, also leapt to the Society's defence; the Library has a copy of his Philosophia Pia, or a discourse of the religious temper, and the tendencies of the experimental philosophy (1670), pre- sented by the Friends of the Baillieu. It also has a very fine copy of one of the most important published attacks on the Society, Henry Stubbe's A Censure Upon Certain Passages Contained in the History of the Royal Society, as Being Destructive to the Established Religion and Church of England (1670). The Royal Society weathered such storms, as we know, as well as others later on. The works described in this brief and by no means comprehensive account are one of the splendours of the Baillieu Library's collection, and deserve to be better known. I MONG STUDENTS OF THE WORKS made up of works by and about the R. W. Home has been Professor of History of Sir Walter Scott there may be author; it forms (with some additions) and Philosophy of Science at the University an awareness that the University part of the Poynton collection of close of Melbourne since 1975.
    [Show full text]
  • The Antiquary, Complete
    The Antiquary, Complete Sir Walter Scott The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Antiquary, Complete, by Sir Walter Scott This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net Title: The Antiquary, Complete Author: Sir Walter Scott Release Date: August 17, 2004 [EBook #7005] Language: English Character set encoding: ASCII *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ANTIQUARY, COMPLETE *** Produced by David Widger THE ANTIQUARY BY SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART. COMPLETE VOLUME ONE I knew Anselmo. He was shrewd and prudent, Wisdom and cunning had their shares of him; But he was shrewish as a wayward child, And pleased again by toys which childhood please; As---book of fables, graced with print of wood, Or else the jingling of a rusty medal, Or the rare melody of some old ditty, That first was sung to please King Pepin's cradle Livros Grátis http://www.livrosgratis.com.br Milhares de livros grátis para download. INTRODUCTION The present work completes a series of fictitious narratives, intended to illustrate the manners of Scotland at three different periods. _Waverley_ embraced the age of our fathers, _Guy Mannering_ that of our own youth, and the _Antiquary_ refers to the last ten years of the eighteenth century. I have, in the two last narratives especially, sought my principal personages in the class of society who are the last to feel the influence of that general polish which assimilates to each other the manners of different nations.
    [Show full text]
  • Nineteenth Century Literary Manuscripts, Part 4
    Nineteenth Century Literary Manuscripts, Part 4 NINETEENTH CENTURY LITERARY MANUSCRIPTS Part 4: The Correspondence and Papers of John Gibson Lockhart (1794-1854), Editor of the Quarterly Review, from the National Library of Scotland Contents listing PUBLISHER'S NOTE CONTENTS OF REELS DETAILED LISTING EXTRACTS: On the Cockney School of Poetry When Youthful Faith has Fled Nineteenth Century Literay Manuscripts, Part 4 Publisher's Note John Gibson Lockhart (1794-1854) desrves our attention for many reasons: He was one of the most important critics of the 19th century He was Editor of The Quarterly Review He became Scott’s Boswell, writing an acknowledged masterpiece of biography He played an important part in the rise of the novel as a literary form His letters provide a detailed account of literary society in Edinburgh and London His papers are now opened to a wider audience through the publication of this microform edition. They include: 14 volumes of correspondence received by Lockhart as Editor of The Quarterly Review, 1825-1854 (NLS MSS.923-936); 3 volumes of letters from Lockhart to Whitwell Elwin, his successor as Editor (NLS MSS.145, 341 & 2262); 3 volumes of correspondence between Lockhart and Scott, 1818-1832 (NLS.MSS.142-143, & 859); 7 volumes of family letters, 1820-1854 (NLS.MSS.1552-1558); 1 volume of letters from Lockhart to Allan Cunningham about the Lives of British Painters (NLS.MS.820); and 10 volumes of literary manuscripts by Lockhart (NLS.MSS.1623-1626, 3995 & 4817-4822). The Editorial correspondence is especially rich and includes letters from Byron, Coleridge, Croker, Disraeli, Edgeworth (one entire volume and numerous other letters besides), Murray, Norton, Southey (“a willing and ready assistant in your new undertaking”), and Wordsworth.
    [Show full text]
  • The Theatre of Shelley
    Jacqueline Mulhallen The Theatre of Shelley OpenBook Publishers To access digital resources including: blog posts videos online appendices and to purchase copies of this book in: hardback paperback ebook editions Go to: https://www.openbookpublishers.com/product/27 Open Book Publishers is a non-profit independent initiative. We rely on sales and donations to continue publishing high-quality academic works. Jacqueline Mulhallen has studied and worked as an actor and writer in both England and Australia and won a scholarship to study drama in Finland. She worked as performer and writer with Lynx Theatre and Poetry and her plays Sylvia and Rebels and Friends toured England and Ireland (1987-1997). Publications include ‘Focus on Finland’, Theatre Australia, 1979; (with David Wright) ‘Samuel Johnson: Amateur Physician’, Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 1982; ‘Sylvia Pankhurst’s Northern Tour’, www.sylviapankhurst. com, 2008; ‘Sylvia Pankhurst’s Paintings: A Missing Link’, Women’s History Magazine, 2009 and she is a contributor to the Oxford Handbook of the Georgian Playhouse 1737-1832 (forthcoming). Jacqueline Mulhallen The Theatre of Shelley Cambridge 2010 Open Book Publishers CIC Ltd., 40 Devonshire Road, Cambridge, CB1 2BL, United Kingdom http://www.openbookpublishers.com © 2010 Jacqueline Mulhallen. Some rights are reserved. This book is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 UK: England & Wales License. This license allows for copying any part of the work for personal and non-commercial use, providing author attribution is clearly stated. Details of allowances and restrictions are available at: http://www.openbookpublishers.com As with all Open Book Publishers titles, digital material and resources associated with this volume are available from our website: http://www.openbookpublishers.com ISBN Hardback: 978-1-906924-31-7 ISBN Paperback: 978-1-906924-30-0 ISBN Digital (pdf): 978-1-906924-32-4 Acknowledgment is made to the The Jessica E.
    [Show full text]
  • British Fiction, 1800-1830
    CENTRE FOR EDITORIAL AND INTERTEXTUAL RESEARCH (CARDIFF CORVEY: READING THE ROMANTIC TEXT) Project Report Number 10 —————————— BRITISH FICTION, 1800–1829: A DATABASE OF PRODUCTION AND RECEPTION Phase II: Walter Scott, Tales of My Landlord (1816): A Publishing Record —————————— Sharon Ragaz, Jacqueline Belanger, Peter Garside, Anthony Mandal DATABASE PROJECT ‘TALES OF MY LANDLORD’ THE PUBLISHING CONTEXT ‘I HAVE thus my dear friend brought to bear what I conceive is a very important business for both of us. If these people had sooner seen their true interest we should have had Waverley and both the others. I have been occupied with this for years, and I hope I have now accomplished what will be of immense importance of us.’ In such terms William Blackwood wrote confidentially to the London publisher, John Murray II, on 20 April 1816. Blackwood was on the point of finalising an agreement with James Ballantyne the printer for an as yet untitled work of fiction by an unnamed author, and Murray had just written to accept a share in the venture. Behind Blackwood’s exultation, and Murray’s acceptance, lay a conviction that what was being offered was the latest (the fourth) in a line of publications by ‘the author of Waverley’. Ballantyne had not said as much directly, but Blackwood felt enough hints had been dropped that Walter Scott was indeed to be the author. The thought of such an acquisition was to send Blackwood into similar moments of rapture: on completing the contract for what was to be eventually titled Tales of My Landlord; on first reading a sizeable chunk of the first story to be included, ‘The Black Dwarf’, in August; and on publication early in December 1816, when the second and larger story, ‘Old Mortality’, received especial acclaim from readers, and it rapidly came clear that the two publishers had a runaway success on their hands.
    [Show full text]
  • The Antiquary, Complete by Sir Walter Scott</H1>
    The Antiquary, Complete by Sir Walter Scott The Antiquary, Complete by Sir Walter Scott This eBook was produced by David Widger [[email protected]] THE ANTIQUARY BY SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART. I knew Anselmo. He was shrewd and prudent, Wisdom and cunning had their shares of him; But he was shrewish as a wayward child, And pleased again by toys which childhood please; As---book of fables, graced with print of wood, Or else the jingling of a rusty medal, Or the rare melody of some old ditty, That first was sung to please King Pepin's cradle INTRODUCTION The present work completes a series of fictitious narratives, intended to page 1 / 707 illustrate the manners of Scotland at three different periods. _Waverley_ embraced the age of our fathers, _Guy Mannering_ that of our own youth, and the _Antiquary_ refers to the last ten years of the eighteenth century. I have, in the two last narratives especially, sought my principal personages in the class of society who are the last to feel the influence of that general polish which assimilates to each other the manners of different nations. Among the same class I have placed some of the scenes in which I have endeavoured to illustrate the operation of the higher and more violent passions; both because the lower orders are less restrained by the habit of suppressing their feelings, and because I agree, with my friend Wordsworth, that they seldom fail to express them in the strongest and most powerful language. This is, I think, peculiarly the case with the peasantry of my own country, a class with whom I have long been familiar.
    [Show full text]
  • L8l5 Letters 1 to JAMES BALLANTYNE (4-1)DEAR JAMES,-I
    l8l5 Letters 1 TO JAMES BALLANTYNE (4-1)DEAR JAMES,-I cannot I think make what you want (4-1)of a good tone or so as to harmonize well with what is (4-1)already written. I could easily I think please your (4-1)partiality but I cannot, please myself especially as I think (4-1)the sheet rounded off as it stands. If I alter my mind (4-1)I will let you know before the sheet can go to press but (4-1)I have already lost too much time about it. (4-1)I send you more Guy.1 It is time to think of mottoes. (4-1)The 1st. Chapter. (4-1)" He cannot deny that looking round upon the dreary (4-1)region & seeing nothing but bleak fields & naked trees (4-1)hills obscured by fogs & flats coverd with inundations he (4-1)did for some time suffer melancholy to prevail upon him (4-1)& wishd himself again safe at home." (4-1)Travels of Will Marvel. Idler No 49. (4-1)Second Chapt. (4-1)-- Comes me crankling 2 in, (4-1)And cuts me from the best of all my land (4-1)A huge half moon a monstrous cantle out- (4-1)Henry fourth p. I. (4-1)Third Chapter. (4-1)There is a good mottoe for this in Byroms poems which (4-1)are in the Chalmers collection of British poets. Will (4-1)you see to get me sight of thi[s] volume.3 W. S. (4-1)[1814-15] [Signet Library] 2 LETTERS OF 1815 TO JAMES BALLANTYNE (4-2)DEAR JAMES,-It is quite impossible to alter Bruces (4-2)speech & more than impossible to take away the letter.1 (4-2)The art of writing not universal was however perfectly (4-2)known among females of high rank.
    [Show full text]