Reconsidering the Highland Roots of Adam Ferguson
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‘A Bastard Gaelic Man’: Reconsidering the Highland Roots of Adam Ferguson Denise Ann Testa College of Arts University of Western Sydney Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Humanities and Languages September 2007 Supervisor: Dr David Burchell © Denise Testa 2007 DEDICATION In memory of Anna Sutherland Acknowledgements A postgraduate student cannot successfully complete their task without the aid of numerous people. Dr David Burchell, my supervisor has been unwavering in his support and generosity. His patience has been exceptional. I also must commend the University of Western Sydney for the patience and support I received within the institution. Three months of research in Edinburgh and London, would not have been possible without the generous financial support of the Centre for Cultural Research at UWS and a grant from the Australian Bicentennial Scholarship Committee. The staff of the University of Western Sydney’s branch libraries supplied the all too numerous document delivery requests I placed. A special thank-you must go to Judy Egan, Cheryl Harris and the staff of Blacktown and Ward libraries. Thanks must also go to the staff of Fisher Library at the University of Sydney, the National Library of Australia, the National Archives of Scotland, the National Library of Scotland and the British Library. The staff at the Special or Rare books Collections at Fisher Library, the University of Canberra, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Stirling also came to my aid. A special thank-you must go to Associate Professor Brian Taylor for his encouragement over the years and also the help of his son, Alasdair Taylor, who supplied moral support and introduced me to some contacts in Edinburgh. Dr Wilson Macleod kindly permitted me to have access to the Celtic and Scottish Studies specialty Libraries at the University of Edinburgh. For this, I was very grateful. I also benefited from an unpublished book chapter sent to me by Dr P. Howard Gaskill of University of Edinburgh. Such a project cannot be undertaken without the help and support of other academic staff and postgraduates. I especially would like to pass on my appreciation for her patience and support to Associate Professor Carol Liston, head of the School of Humanities and Languages at UWS. I could not have completed the work without the suggestions and skill of a fellow postgraduate student, Alison Harwood, who helped with the proofreading phase of the work. She was also a great source of solace during the writing process. I would also like to thank professional proofreader, Jean Cooney, for the assistance she gave in compliance with the Australian Standards for Editing Practice. Thanks to Reenard Hoekzema, who translated a Dutch journal article at my request. I owe a great debt to John and Katie Graham who taught Scottish Gaelic in the Centre for Celtic Studies at the University of Sydney. They gave me advice on certain aspects of the work. I could not have made it without their encouragement over the years. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Major Ronnie Proctor for his kindness and hospitality when I visited the Museum of the Black Watch at Balhousie Castle in Perth. Although he was unable to furnish me with new information on Adam Ferguson, meeting him was a highlight of my research trip to the United Kingdom. The following people provided support with computer problems or kept me in a good operational state: Gary Wong, Susan Britton, Karl Baumgart, Professor Les Barnsley, and Associate Professor Glen Croxson. Karen Frost was a great support and helped me with sorting and checking work in the final stages. I cannot forget to acknowledge the unconditional support of my mother who braved uproar in the home when software and hardware problems arose, but who was always there for me when things got desperate. Statement of Authentication The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, original except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this material, either in part or in full, for a degree at this or any other institution. Denise Ann Testa 20 September 2007 Table of Contents List of Tables. ........................................................................................................ iii List of Figures. ....................................................................................................... iv Abbreviations...................................................................................................................... v Abstract ................................................................................................................. vii Introduction............................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1 Logierait - The Prelude: Setting and Daily Round............................. 24 Chapter 2 Adam Ferguson or Adhamh Fhearghuis: Ferguson and the Gaelic Language............................................................................................ 60 Chapter 3 'The Gosple according To Logyreat': Fergusson and Son, Highland Moderates in the Church of Scotland............................................... 103 Chapter 4 'In the garb of old Gaul with the fire of old Rome': Ferguson, the Military and Highland Scotland....................................................... 149 Chapter 5 'For the honour of our ancestors': Ferguson, the Macphersons, Ossian and related Works ............................................................................ 198 Chapter 6 The artless song of the savage: Ferguson and oral tradition ........... 241 Chapter 7 Ferguson, primitive roots and societal progress............................... 276 Chapter 8 'The peculiar genius of nations' Ferguson as proto anthropologist: ....... concluding reflections ...................................................................... 318 References............................................................................................................354 Table of Contents Appendices Appendix A Portraits of Adam Ferguson through various stages of life.......... 410 Appendix B The Fergusons’ close ties with Sir Walter Scott’s family. ............412 Appendix C Logierait parish and language usage..............................................414 Appendix D Further characteristics and features of the Gaelic language..........415 Appendix E The Macphersons’ Gaelic. .............................................................417 Appendix F Comparison chart of consonants and vowels in Australian English, Ancient Greek and Gaelic ..............................................................419 Appendix G Alasdair MacMhaighstir Alasdair and Gaelic Prohibition in Highland Schools ..........................................................................................422 Appendix H Milton’s Sonnet No. 11. ................................................................424 Appendix I Preamble and text of The Garb of Old Gaul..................................426 Appendix J Stoicism, shame-honour, Enlightenment and Ferguson ................428 Appendix K Background to the inception of the Scottish Militia, 1793–97......431 Appendix L The service careers of Ferguson’s offspring..................................433 Appendix M Ferguson’s epitaph and memorial.................................................435 Appendix N An example of rhythm and repetition in puirt-a-beul ...................437 Appendix O The Family of Adam Ferguson .....................................................438 ii List of Tables Appendices Table F-1. Australian English consonants. ....................................................... 420 Table F-2. Ancient Greek consonants............................................................... 420 Table F-3. Scottish Gaelic consonants.............................................................. 420 Table F-4. Australian English vowels............................................................... 421 Table F-5. Ancient Greek vowels. .................................................................... 421 Table F-6. Scottish Gaelic vowels. ................................................................... 421 Table G-1. Examples from Alexander MacDonald’s Glossary. ....................... 423 Table I-1. The Text of The Garb of Old Gaul in English and Gaelic. ............................................................................................. 427 iii List of Figures Chapters Figure 1. Roy Map showing Logierait........................................................................... 24 Figure 2. Logierait Cross Slab showing reverse. ........................................................... 33 Figure 3. Logierait Cross Slab showing front. ............................................................... 33 Figure 4. Logierait Hotel on the site of the Old Regality Court. ................................... 33 Figure 5. Neidpath Castle. ............................................................................................. 57 Figure 6. 1867 Ordnance Survey Map of Logierait showing its location...................... 57 Figure 7. A soldier of the Black Watch. ..................................................................... 149 Figure 8. Mutiny leader, Farquhar Shaw. .................................................................... 149 Figure 9. Painting by Thomas Faed of Scott and his friends at Abbotsford ..............