BY THE ETTRICK

Evening Star, Issue 20428, 8 March 1930, Page 3

BY THE ETTRICK

WHERE JAMES HOGG FOUND HIS INSPIRATION

VALE OF BEAUTY

[By “J.N.R.,” in the ‘Weekly Scotsman.’]

Were it not for the poets, life would be shorn of much of its romance. If they did not reveal the beauty that lies around us, the chances arc wc would go through the world blind to its marvels. The rural solitudes that havo had tho good fortune to possess a minstrel to hymn their praises, by tho power of winged words, havo taken on an added lustre. Had it not been for Wordsworth and his brother poets, in all likelihood tho English Lake district would have remained comparatively unknown aud unexplored. It is questionable also if the Scottish Highlands, tho Borders, aud tho storied Tweed would ever have become famous had not Scott’s witching pen, like a magician’s wand, brought to view their wonder and romance. And the quiet waters of the Ettrick and tranquil pastoral region through •which this peaceful river flows would probably havo been without honour had not Hogg, tho shepherd poet, illumined it with his genius. My introduction to the Ettrick, I must admit, was a sad disillusionment; it presented such a,contrast to what “my fancy painted.” Associated more with industry than with poetry were my initial impressions as I first saw it at Selkirk in that part of tho town where on its banks are several busy mills. But on a better acquaintance I learned how worthy it was to be a river of romance. And the old Border town through which tho Ettrick flows is in keeping with tho stream. • Situated on a height with a sweeping view of rich, pastoral country, green hills and fair valleys, Selkirk’s setting is most pleasing. According to Sir James Dalrymple, its name is of Celtic origin, the .derivation being from schelch and grcch (kirk in the wood). It has a glamorous past, and connected with it are great names and great deeds. Long agp it was the homo of the monks, until', early in tho twelfth century, for some inexplicable cause, they left it and established their monastery in Kelso. An epoch-making event in the annals of the place was the shining occasion when, in tho kirk there, Sir William Wallace was declared’ Governor of Scotland. Sorrowful toll was taken of tho citizens at tho woeful Flodden Field when, of tho gallant men and true who went forth to the battle, the only one, it is said, who returned was the town clerk; as a mark of prowess of himself and his comrades he brought .with him an English flag; the trophy is still in existence, and may bo seen in Selkirk Free Library. The town has a curious link with the Jacobite rising, 2,000 pairs of shoes for Prince Charlie’s army being made by the “ Souters of Selkirk.” In tho past shoemaking was the chief industry, but aUthe present time the principal manufacture is tweed.

BURKS AND SCOTT IN SELKIRK. Robert Burns visited Selkirk in 1787. James Hogg rentes how the poet and a friend arrived one wet night at the Old Forest lr» (now non-existent) like “twa drookit craws!” While the national bard had but a brief contact with it another famous poet knew it intimately, Sir Walter Scott having been Sheriff ef Selkirk for thirty-two years; in the Market Place there is a fine statue in honour of the “Shirra.” A monument perpetuating tho memory ot Mungo Park, the notable Africa., traveller, stands in the High l street; in his youth this distinguished man studied medicine, and was apprenticed to a doctor in tho town. While the valley of the Ettnck lacks the dramatic quality and wild ■■magnificence of Highland scenery, it has something not found in stern northern straths. That quality- is hard to define —it is so elusive and intangible. Perhaps the essence of it lies in its quietude; emanating from the green vale, with its placid stream and restful, rounded hills, is a spirit of tranquility which brings to the soul a feeling of abiding peace. Its intense solitariness imparts to the landscape an atmosphere charged with the unearthly and sublime; so deeply docs it affect the imagination, in such an environment you feel as if divided by hut a thin partition from tho land of the “little folks.” ‘ BONNY KILMENY.’ No wonder this pastoral glen was the inspiration of not a few old hal/ad makers and of the lovely lays of the bardf of a later generation. Ih such a spot the Ettrick Shepherd’s ‘ Bounie Kilmeny ’ seems more than tho creation of a poet’s fancy; you are haunted by the thought that the beautiful girl was a real being whom you can visualise as she wandered up tlie lonely vale into

A land where sin had never been; A laud of love and a laud of light, Withouten sun, or moon, or night; When tho river swa’d a- living ' ,stream, And the light a pure and cloudless beam; The land of vision it would seem, A still, an everlasting dream.

A few miles from Selkirk, further up t|io river, and quite close to the highway, is to be seen Oak wood Tower; the original building, it was believed, was occupied by Michael Scott the Wizard, in tho thirteenth century; several hundred years later tho present keep was inhabited by the well-known “Wat of Harden,” whose wife, tho “ Flower of Yarrow,” was famed both for her beauty and courage. A grandson of Sir William Scott, the next owner of Oakwood Tower, was tho great-grandfather of the immortal author of the Waverley Novels. At no great distance from Oakwood Tower is Ettrickbridgend. Ideally situated beside tho stream in the midst of charming surroundings, it is an enchanting village. The Ettrick wears a different look here from that in tho other parts of its course; instead of winding calmly about among broad meadows, it comos clashing headlong down a rocky gorge for all the world like a madcap Highland river. It was not far from this point, shortly before going to the Continent, that Sir Walter Scott looked his last upon the Ettrick. Reyond Ettrickbridgend is Crossice, which was, T. Craig Brown tells us in his ‘ History of Selkirkshire,’ the first farm in Ettrick to introduce Cheviot sheep, by which the black-faced or forest breed was almost entirely supplanted at the close of last century. TOWER OF TUSH [FLAW. Tushielaw is an inviting hamlet, and its inn is a favourite haunt of anglers who ply the rod in tho river’s higher reaches. Not the least interesting of the ruined keeps in the vale is the tower of Tushielaw, which stands on the side of the hill of that name, Hogg’s enthralling narrative poem, ‘ Mary Scott,’ centres around this old keep. hi lawless times it was tho

homo of Adam Scott, a “Rob Hoy type of being who, because of his loving, robbing exploits, was _ dubbed “ King of Thieves.” In the neighbourhood arc the remains of another historic stronghold, Thirlstano Tower: beside it is the mansion house of Tlnrlstano, the owner of which is Lord Napier. . , , To tlie angling fraternity the lure oi tho Etrick valley is the river, those who take pleasure in Nature find its chief attraction in its beauty, its ancient strongholds form the principal source of interest to the folks who delight in history and legend; over and above all else, however, to the booklover tho glen is a beloved region by reason of its being the place where James Hogg was born and nurtured and the milieu from whence he drew his inspiration. As 1 happen to be one of that company to whom literature is a wellspring of joy, when, one sweet May morning, the opportunity arose of visiting the birthplace and haunts of the shepherd poet, it was seized with avidity. Ettrick Hall—despite the name it was only a humble cot—where, in 100, Hogg first saw tho light, is now no more. Tho site is easily located, however, as thanks to the Edinburgh Counties’ Association, an obelisk, with a bronze medallion of the poet, has been erected there in his honour. In essentials the district remains very much the Same as it did in his time. Its green solitudes remain unchanged; m the early summer the sheep with thenfrisky lambkins still graze on the lullsides, and tho “ bird of the wilderness ” sings as blithely as in the days when, tending his flocks in tho glen, the inspired shepherd caught fire from the songster’s celestial lay, and wrote an imperishable lyric in its praise. The following description of the vale, given by Hogg in ‘Tho Poet’s Nurture,’ is almost as true to-day- as when it was written:—

0, list the mystic lore sublime Of fairy tales of ancient time! f learned them in the lonely glen, The last abodes of living men, Where never stranger came our way By summer night or winter day; Where neighbouring hind or cot was noneOur converse was with heaven -> alone — With voices through the cloud that sung, And brooding storms tnat round us hung. The echoing rock, the rushing flood, The cataract’s swell, the moaning wood; The undefined and mingled hum— Voice of tlie desert never dumb?” WHERE SCOTT AND HOGG MET. In the vicinity of the site of Ettrick Hull is Ramsaycleuch, the farm where Hogg and Sir Walter Scott made acquaintance with one another, an acquaintance which by and by ripened into friendship. The two men of genius apparently found one another congenial right away, for it is on record that the talk Howell so freely, and they had such a lively time at that first meeting they did not part till three in the morning! Near this noted farmhouse are Ettrick. School and the bridge, which spans the river at the point where it is joined by the Tima. One of the few persons ray friends and I had any intercourse with during our whole day’s motoring was a small boy we came across close to this bridge. Unlike some children we have met in country places who could not even tell the name of the stream that flowed past their cottage door, this wee soul was very intelligent, giving ready answers to the _ various questions with which wo plied him; liking his Border intonation and “ braid Scots ” tongue, wo enjoyed hearing the little fellow talk. We had given him pennies, expecting that, in rccog nised fashion, they would “melt” im the village shop on “ sweeties sue! thriftlessness, however, was never entertained by the recipient, who somewhat astonished us by saying, as hr pocketed the coins, “ A’ll pop them m the schulo bank on Friday!” The inspector, he .informed us, had been at the “schulo” the previous day; on inquiring if he examined the pupils, the answer we got was “ No, the doctor examines us!” Changed days, I reflected, from the times when the only examination the children of the elementary schools knew was the dreaded one which took place, yearly on the day of the annual inspection. On being asked ’f many attended tnc school, the boy replied “ Twelve scholars,” besides, “ a lot o' wee bairns that juist get daein’ whit they like!” It was interesting to learn that the Montessori method was practised even in this remote place—the tiny tots’ energies may have been directed, but apparently they were not controlled. The little grey kirk at Ettrick, with its square tower and quaint, oldfashioned outside stair, has an air of being absolutely in harmony with its surroundings. Beside it is the graveyard, whore sleeps the Ettrick Shepherd and his forbears. One of these, “Will o’ Phanp,” a great athlete, was famed throughout the whole countryside for his feats of agihtv. Tibbie Shiol, who died in 1878. at the venerable age of ninety-live, is also buried in this cemetery. Tibbie Shield’s Inn, beside St. Mary’s Loch, became well known owing to the fact that Hogg and Christopher’ North spent many a jovial evening there. On one of the monuments in the little kirkyard may be seen the name of Thomas Boston, a celebrated Scottish divine, who was minister of Ettrick Kirk from 1/0/ till his death m 1731. Among Godfearing people in Scotland his name was once a household word, and his book. ‘ The Fourfold State,’ a prized possession in thei.* homes. ’ SHEPHERD POET’S GENIUS

The sure criterion of a poet’s genius is the hold his works have on each successive generation ot readers, ior only the dateless po-nns of the immortals can stand the test of time. And, dateless many of the songs and ballads of James Hogg undoubtedly are. Although close on a century since the creator of them died, luminous and starry they still shine on with a radi mice steady and iindimnicd The shepherd poet’s genius was not of the laboured or pedantic order, his best, po'ems and lyrics, as in the case ot Burns, springing forth as naturally as the songs of the birds. Born in poor circumstances, lie had little schooling, and it used to bo far more trouble to Inin to write out his verses than to compose them. But if, in the orthodox way. ho lacked eju cation, m another sense he had it abundantly. For he was blessed with a gifted mother who, in the morning of his life, cultivated his powers cl imagination to Ihe fullest degree, by reciting old ballads, telling hiin fairy stories, and filling his mind with legendary lore and tales of the super natural. From this soil, doubtless, floivered has immortal ' ’ ana the other poems in that wonderful group, 1 The Queen’s Wake.’ The ethereal is by no means the only note struck by his lyre, two of the Rnest of the Jacobite songs, * Bonnie Prince Charlie' and ‘ Flora Macdoivald’s Lament,’ being penned by him His talents were not confined solely to the writing; of poetry; he had a, most versatile, mind and published various prose works, the best known

of which is 1 The Browni3 of Bodsbeck.’ As an example of his versatility it may be mentioned that the author of ‘The Skylark’ was capable also of producing a book on‘The Diseases of Sheep.' With justice, Hogg has been de scribed as “ the greatest poet next to Burns who has ever sprang from the bosom of the comuon people,” and ot his poetry it lias been aptly said that “ ho sustained unbroken Mights in almost pure ether. 1 ’