Earth here inclofes the loveliest pair on the hill. The grafs grows between the ftones of the tomb; I often fit in the mournful fhade. The wind fighs through the grafs; their memorushes on my mind. Undisturbed you now fleep together; in the tomb of the mountain you reft alone.

And foft be your reft, faid Utha, children of ftreamy Lora. I will remember you with tears, and my fecret fong fhall rife; when the wind is in the groves of Tora, and the ftream is roaring near. Then fhall ye come on my foul, with all your lovely grief.

Three days feafted the kings; on the fourth their white fails arofe. The winds of the north carry the fhip of Fingal to Morven's woody land. But the fpirit of Loda fat, in his cloud, behind the fhips of Frothal. He hung forward with all his blasts, and spread the white-bofomed fails. The wounds of his form

were not forgot; he ftill feared *) the hand

*) The story of Fingal and the spirit of Loda, fuppofed to be the famous Odin, is the moft extrava

1

It is not,

gant fiction in all Offian's poems. however, without precedents in the best poets; and it must be said for Offian, that he says nothing but what perfectly agreed with the notions of the times, concerning ghofts. They thought, the fouls of the dead were material, and confequently fusceptible of pain. Whether a proof could be drawn from this paffage, that Offian had no notion of divinity, I shall leave to others to determine: it appears, however, that he was of opinion, that fuperior beings ought to take no notice of what paffed among men.

1

THE

165)

THE

SONGS OF SELMA *).

Star

tar of the defcending night! fair is thy light in the weft! thou lifteft thy unshorn head from thy cloud: thy fteps are ftately on thy

hill.

*) This poem fixes the antiquity of a custom, which is well known to have prevailed afterwards, in the north of Scotland, and in Ireland. The bards, at an annual feaft, provided by the king or chief, repeated their poems, and fuch of them as were thought, by him, worthy of being preferved, were carefully taught to their children, in order to have them transmitted to pofterity. was one of thofe occafions that afforded the subject of the prefent poem to Offian, It is called, in the original, The Songs of Selma, which title it was thought proper to adopt in the translation.

It

The poem is entirely lyric, and has great variety of verfification. The addrefs to the eveningftar, with which it opens, has, in the original, all the harmony, that numbers could give it; flowing

L 3

hill. What doft thou behold in the plain?

Roaring wa flies of even

and the hum What doft thou,

The ftormy winds are laid. The murmur of
the torrent comes from afar.
ves climb the diftant rock. The
ing are on their feeble wings,
of their courfe is on the field.
behold, fair light? But thou doft fmile and de-
part. The waves come with joy around thee,
and bathe thy lovely hair. Farewel, thou filent
beam!
Let the light of Offian's foul arise.

And it does arife in its ftrength! I be hold my departed friends. Their gathering is

on Lora, as in the days that are paft.
Fingal comes like a watry column of mift; his
heroes are around. And fee the bards of the
fong, gray-haired Ullin; ftately Ryno; Alpin *),
with the tuneful voice, and the foft complaint

of

ing down with all that tranquillity and softness,
which the scene defcribed naturally inspires.
Three of the fongs which are introduced in this
piece, were published among the fragments of
ancient poetry, printed last year.

*) Alpin is from the fame root with Albion, or rather
Albin, the ancient name of Britain; Alp, high,

in

of Minona!

How are ye changed, my

friends, fince the days of Selma's feaft! when we contended, like the gales of the fpring, that, flying over the hill, by turns bend the feebly-whistling grafs.

Minona then came forth in her beauty; with down-caft look and tearful eye; her hair flew flowly on the blaft, that rushed unfrequento from the hill. The fouls of the heroes

were

fad, when she raifed the tuneful voice; for often had they feen the grave of Salgar *),' and the dark dwelling of white bofomed Colma *). Colma left alone on the hill, with all her voice of mufic! Salgar promised to come: but the night defcended round.

**

Hear the voice of Colma when the fat alone on the hill.

COLMA.

in land, or country. The prefent name of our if
land has its origin in the Celtic tongue; so that
those who derived it from any other, betrayed
their ignorance of the ancient language of our
country.
Britain comes from Breac't in
variegated ifland, fo called from the face of the

country, from the natives painting themselves, or
from their party-coloured cloaths.

*) Sealg-'er, a hunter.

**) Cul-math, a woman with fine hair.