Letter to John Crawford: n.d.
Mr John
Crawford Largs Paisley
Wednsday Night Dear Sir With
regard to my negligence in not acknowledging your favour of last month – I
plead Guilty, but “Have patience, and I will pay thee all.” I have a few
unpublished songs past ˄me,˄ one or two of which I wished to have
sent you, but still put it off till I would have as much leisure as allow me to
write them something decently. You really hurt me by
using that infernally harsh epithet, contempt, so far from my silence
being owing to any thing like it, I not only assure you that I value your
friendship highly, but that the Poetry you have at different times sent me
entitles you to my real esteem. Your amended copy of “Ye Kelburn groves” has
done away every objection which I formerly made to it, and I now think it
worthy of appearing any where. You must give me a week or two longer to fulfil
my intentions, for without particularizing, it is out of my power to do it
to-night. Why did you return me Hardyknute? I have another copy and wish you to
keep this one, perhaps by an oversight I did not
mention it in my last. I have been trying to get the lend
of the Pleasures of Hope but the man to whom they belonged says they
have fled from him. [#] The objection you have to the
Poem on Society, accords with some observations I have seen somewhere in a
Review, but without I had the Poem before me, cannot say what epithets I might
reckon redundancies, nor what might be allowed to give energy to the lines. Impromptu _______ Our Maids as Godesses
appear Our Wives like sooty
witches These dress’d in braw
white muslin gear And those in plaiding
mutches Tam thinks his Bet of
angel cast Sae mild, sae sweetly
civil But ere their
honey-moon be past He’ll find that Bet’s
a D——l. [#] Lines On one who said the Author’s
works should be burned for containing “Damnable Heresies.” Wee Sowners cries,
let naething foul Polute the godly leven (or leaven) As if his neivefu’ o’
a soul, Was worth a place
in h——n. ____ Lines Tho’ James plies his
gift fu’ weel An’ prays baith in
an’ out o’ season It’s no to save us
frae the deil He does it for a weightier
reason. ______ Let me know in your next whether
you judge any of the forgoing articles worth preserving – I will certainly
write you next week or the following, forgive this shameful scrawl. I remain Yours
sincerely Robt
Tannahill Copy Text: MS Robertson 1/32 Previous Publication: Notes: |