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ROBERTSON.

JOINED in friendship and in fame with the great man whose life and writings we have been contemplating, and equally with him, founder of the reputation of our country for excellence in historical composition, was William Robertson, also a native of Scotland. His father, a learned, pious, and eloquent divine, was settled for several years as minister of the Scotch church in London Wall, but had returned to Scotland before his marriage with Miss Pitcairn of Dreghorn, in the county of Edinburgh, and was settled at Borthwick, in the same county, at the time of the historian's birth, on the 19th of September, 1721. I have been curious to ascertain the kind of genius which distinguished his father beside his talent for drawing, of which I possess a specimen showing some skill, and by the kindness of a kinsman I have had the great satisfaction of receiving a copy of the only sermon which he ever published, as well as of two or three hymns, translations, and paraphrases from the Hebrew of the Old Testament. The sermon is able, judicious, correctly composed, both for accuracy of diction and severity of taste, and contains passages of great beauty and effect. It resembles what in England would be called an Ordination Sermon or Charge, being delivered at the opening of the Metropolitan Synod in

*

* It is a miniature in Indian ink of James, Earl of Seafield, one of the forfeited Lords, to whom he was believed to be distantly related. A tradition prevailed in the family that they descended from John Knox. The historian professed himself quite unacquainted with the reasons of th rumour which connected him with "the rustic Apostle," whose character and conduct he has described most faithfully and strikingly.

May, 1737, and is a full description of the duties of ministers, the title of it being that "they should please God rather than men." The poetry is elegant and classical. Both productions plainly show that good taste, as well as strong but sober reason, came to the great historian by descent as well as by study. But that his father held opinions more strict on some subjects than the relaxed rigour of the Presbyterian rule prescribed half a century later, may be seen from his requiring his son's promise never to enter a playhouse. This was stated by him in reference to his father, when debating the question of John Home's having written the play of Douglas.' It is needless to add that, however much he differed with his father on this subject, he strictly adhered through life to the promise thus given, insomuch that when Garrick and Henderson at different times visited him, they entertained and interested him by exhibiting to him in private specimens of the art in which both so eminently excelled. The traditional character in his family, of the venerable person whom I have mentioned, was anything rather than sour or stern, how severe and unbending soever may have been his moral feelings. For the sweetness of his placid temper, and the cheerfulness of his kindly disposition, I have heard him spoken of in terms of the warmest enthusiasm by such of his children as were old enough at the time of his decease to recollect him distinctly. The idea of again meeting him in another state was ever present to my grandmother's mind, (who was his eldest daughter), and especially when stricken with any illness. It was with her a common source of argument for a future state, as proved by the light of nature, and in her pious mind a confirmation of the truth of Christianity, that, believing in the Divine goodness, she could not conceive the extinction of so much angelical purity as adorned her parent, and so fine an understanding as he possessed. Their mother

was a woman of great ability and force of character; but like many of that cast, women especially, she was more stern, and even severe than amiable; and this contrast, unfavourable to the one, redounded to the augmented love of the other. It cannot be doubted that the son's character derived a strong tincture from both parents, but that while he was mild and gentle in his temper, and of an engaging demeanour, his firmness and decision, nay, his inclination towards the Stoical system of morals, and even to a certain degree of Stoical feeling too, was derived from his

mother.

The death of these two excellent persons was singularly melancholy, and served to impress on the minds of their family a mournful recollection of their virtues. Mr. Robertson had been removed to the Old Grey Friars' Church of Edinburgh in 1733; and ten years afterwards, both he and his wife, seized with putrid fever, died within a few days of one another, leaving eight children, six daughters and two sons, of whom William was the elder. He had been educated first at the school of Dalkeith, under a very able teacher of the name of Leslie, a gentleman at that time of the greatest eminence in his profession. On his father's removal to Edinburgh, he was taken thither and placed at the University, though only twelve years old. His diligence in study was unremitting, and he pursued his education at the different classes for eight years with indefatigable zeal. He had laid down for himself a strict plan of reading; and of the notes which he took there remain a number of books, beginning when he was only fourteen, all bearing the sentence as a motto which so characterised his love of learning, indicating that he delighted in it abstractedly, and for its own sake, without regarding the uses to which it might be turned-" Vita sine litteris mors.” I give this as his gloss upon the motto or text advisedly. His whole life was spent in study. I well

remember his constant habit of quitting the drawingroom both after dinner and again after tea, and remaining shut up in his library. The period of time when I saw this was after the 'History of America' had been published, and before Major Rennell's map and memoir appeared, which he tells us first suggested the 'Disquisition on Ancient India.' Consequently, for above ten years he was in the course of constant study, engaged in extending his information, examin ing and revolving the facts of history, contemplating ethical and theological truths, amusing his fancy with the strains of Greek and Roman poetry, or warming it at the fire of ancient eloquence so conge nial to his mind, at once argumentative and rhetorical; and all this study produced not one written line, though thus unremittingly carried on. The same may be said of the ten years he passed in constant study from 1743, the beginning of his residence in a small parish, of very little clerical duty, to 1752, when we know from his letter to Lord Hailes he began his first work. But, indeed, the composition of his three great works, spread over a period of nearly thirty years, clearly evinces that during this long time his studies must have been much more subservient to his own gratification than to the preparation of his writings, which never could have required one half that number of years for their completion.*

Translations from the classics, and especially from the Greek, of which he was a perfect master, formed a considerable part of his labour as a student. He considered this exercise as well calculated to give an accurate knowledge of our own language, by obliging us to weigh the shades of difference between words or

The love of science or letters for their own sake, and without any regard to other benefits than the pleasure afforded by the discovery, or by the contemplation of truth, is strikingly illustrated in others of these Lives, especially that of D'Alembert, Black, and Banks. to this Life.

See Appendix

phrases, and to find the expression, whether by the selection of the terms or the turning of the idiom, which is required for a given meaning; whereas, when composing originally, the idea may be varied in order to suit the diction which most easily presents itself, of which the influence produced manifestly by rhymes, in moulding the sense as well as suggesting it, affords a striking and familiar example. His translations, however, were not wholly confined to their purpose of teaching composition; he appears to have at the same time undertaken the work of rendering some ancient treatises, which peculiarly interested him. He had even prepared for the press a translation of Antoninus's 'Meditations,'† having thus early felt a strong leaning towards the Stoical philo. sophy. The appearance of a very poor translation at Glasgow prevented the execution of this design, but the work remains: I have it now in my possession, and shall give one or two passages in the Appendix. In elocution he acquired facility and correctness by attending a society which met weekly to debate literary and philosophical questions. This society gave rise many years later to another, which was frequented by the men who in after life proved the most distinguished of their countrymen: Hume, Smith (neither of whom ever took part in debate), Wedderburn (afterwards Chancellor), Ferguson, Home (Lord Kames), were of the number. But his thirst for knowledge was not confined to these its more easy and more inviting walks. He had deeply studied some branches of the severer sciences. It is not, therefore, without good cause that he speaks of mathematical subjects (in his preface to the work on India) as having been embraced in his course of study, though not having

* I may mention that both he and his son, the Judge, prescribed this exercise to me, and among other things, made me translate all the 'History' of Florus.

Marc. Aurel.: Twy sis ἑαυτον.