The Works of Robert Burns

his marriage a number of Letters to a lady in Edinburgh, whose name we choose with the Poet and herself to conceal in that of Clarinda. They are in general hasty effusions, with passages of great brilliancy and force: if the remark of Wilson be accurate, that the Poet was drunk when he composed some of his letters, few would feel disinclined to claim for three or four of these effusions the protection of insobriety, there is an audacity and dash about them which alarm the timid and the sensitive. Nay Syme, as he collected for Currie the correspondence of the Bard, was afraid lest Clarinda might be tempted to burn them, and wrote to her accordingly. Her reply can never be quoted, but to her praise.

score.

"What can have impressed," said Clarinda, "such an idea upon you as that I ever conceived the most distant intention to destroy these precious memorials of an acquaintance, the recollection of which would influence me were I to live till fourBe assured I never will suffer one of them to perish this I give you my solemn word of honour upon nay more, on condition that you send me my letters, I will select such passages from our dear bard's letters as will do honour to his memory, and cannot hurt my own fame even with the most rigid. His letters however are really not literary they are the passionate effusions of an elegant mind indeed too tender to be exposed to the eye of any but a partial friend. Were the world

composed of minds such as yours, it would be cruel even to bury them but ah! how very few would understand, much less relish such compositions. The bulk of mankind are strangers to the delicate refinements of superior minds."

The promised extracts were probably made, for Clarinda seems to have offered them in full sincerity of soul they were not however employed by Currie, in the life of the Poet; nor do we hear more of the letters till the year 1802, when they unexpectedly made their appearance from the press of Stewart, of Glasgow. It seems that Finlay, a poet and antiquarian, had obtained them from Clarinda, with permission only to make extracts for his life of Burns: forgetting, however, his promise, he printed the whole-twenty-five in number-with an announcement that the " originals" might be seen by all who were either suspicious or curious. This alarmed Clarinda, and exasperated the proprietors of the posthumous works of the Poet: an injunction was moved for and obtained, the publication was stopt, and up to the present hour the law forbids the introduction of Clarinda's letters among the other works of Burns. The consequence is that they are printed and sold without let, or hindrance, by a certain portion of the trade, while Booksellers of character are prevented from giving them to the world in a shape worthy of their merits.

During the progress of this work the editor deemed it his duty to the memory of the Poet, and

to the kindness of five thousand purchasers, to solicit permission from Clarinda to unite "The Letters" to the rest of the works of Burns. This request he regrets to say was not complied with: she continues to think that the time is not yet come, when they can be published with propriety: he bows to her decision and respects her motives. He is however of opinion, that as they are already pretty widely known it would be judicious to permit the reprint: it is in vain to wait for the time when passionate effusions," offered at the shrine of wit and beauty, will be regarded as sermons.