Waverley, Or \'Tis Sixty Years Hence, Complete - Sir Walter Scott
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WAVERLY
WAVERLY, By Sir Walter Scott
WAVERLEY
OR
'TIS SIXTY YEARS SINCE
Complete
BY SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART.
With Introductory Essay and Notes
By ANDREW LANG
With Illustrations
1893
THIS NEW EDITION OF THE WAVERLEY NOVELS
IS DEDICATED TO THE HON. MRS. MAXWELL SCOTT OF
ABBOTSFORD AND HER CHILDREN,
Walter, Mary, Michael, Alice, Malcolm
Margaret and Herbert
GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER AND GREAT-GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN
OF THE AUTHOR,
BY THE PUBLISHERS
TO
THE KING'S MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY.
SIRE,
The Author of this collection of Works of Fiction would not have presumed
to solicit for them your Majesty's august patronage, were it not that the
perusal has been supposed in some instances to have succeeded in amusing
hours of relaxation, or relieving those of languor, pain, or anxiety, and
therefore must have so far aided the warmest wish of your Majesty's
heart, by contributing in however small a degree to the happiness of your
people.
They are therefore humbly dedicated to your Majesty, agreeably to your
gracious permission, by
Your Majesty's Dutiful Subject,
WALTER SCOTT.
ABBOTSFORD, 1st January, 1829.
CONTENTS.
EDITOR'S NOTE
ADVERTISEMENT
GENERAL PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION OF WAVERLEY
APPENDIX
No. I. Fragment of a Romance which was to have been
entitled Thomas the Rhymer. Chapter I.
No. II. Conclusion of Mr. Strutt's Romance of
Queen-Hoo Hall. Chapter IV., Chapter V.
No. III. Anecdote of School Days
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION TO WAVERLEY
INTRODUCTION
PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION
VOLUME I.
I. INTRODUCTORY
II. WAVERLEY HONOUR--A RETROSPECT
III. EDUCATION
IV. CASTLE-BUILDING
V. CHOICE OF A PROFESSION
VI. THE ADIEUS OF WAVERLEY
VII. A HORSE-QUARTER IN SCOTLAND
VIII. A SCOTTISH MANOR-HOUSE SIXTY YEARS SINCE
IX. MORE OF THE MANOR-HOUSE AND ITS ENVIRONS
X. ROSE BRADWARDINE AND HER FATHER
XI. THE BANQUET
XII. REPENTANCE AND A RECONCILIATION
XIII. A MORE RATIONAL DAY THAN THE LAST
XIV. WAVERLEY BECOMES DOMESTICATED AT TULLY-VEOLAN
XV. A CREAGH, AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
XVI. AN UNEXPECTED ALLY APPEARS
XVII. THE HOLD OF A HIGHLAND ROBBER
XVIII. WAVERLEY PROCEEDS ON HIS JOURNEY
XIX. THE CHIEF AND HIS MANSION
XX. A HIGHLAND FEAST
XXI. THE CHIEFTAIN'S SISTER
XXII. HIGHLAND MINSTRELSY
XXIII. WAVERLEY CONTINUES AT GLENNAQUOICH
XXIV. STAG-HUNT AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
XXV. NEWS FROM ENGLAND
XXVI. AN ECLAIRCISSEMENT
XXVII. UPON THE SAME SUBJECT
XXVIII. A LETTER FROM TULLY-VEOLAN
XXIX. WAVERLEY'S RECEPTION IN THE LOWLANDS
AUTHOR'S NOTES--Volume I.
GLOSSARY--Volume I.
VOLUME II.
I. LOSS OF A HORSE'S SHOE MAY BE A SERIOUS INCONVENIENCE
II. AN EXAMINATION
III. A CONFERENCE, AND THE CONSEQUENCE
IV. A CONFIDANT
V. THINGS MEND A LITTLE
VI. A VOLUNTEER SIXTY YEARS SINCE
VII. AN INCIDENT
VIII. WAVERLEY IS STILL IN DISTRESS
IX. A NOCTURNAL ADVENTURE
X. THE JOURNEY IS CONTINUED
XI. AN OLD AND A NEW ACQUAINTANCE
XII. THE MYSTERY BEGINS TO BE CLEARED
XIII. A SOLDIER'S DINNER
XIV. THE BALL
XV. THE MARCH
XVI. AN INCIDENT GIVES RISE TO UNAVAILING REFLECTIONS
XVII. THE EVE OF BATTLE
XVIII. THE CONFLICT
XIX. AN UNEXPECTED EMBARRASSMENT
XX. THE ENGLISH PRISONER
XXI. RATHER UNIMPORTANT
XXII. INTRIGUES OF LOVE AND POLITICS
XXIII. INTRIGUES OF SOCIETY AND LOVE
XXIV. FERGUS A SUITOR
XXV. "TO ONE THING CONSTANT NEVER"
XXVI. A BRAVE MAN IN SORROW
XXVII. EXERTION
XXVIII. THE MARCH
XXIX. THE CONFUSION OF KING AGRAMANT'S CAMP
XXX. A SKIRMISH
XXXI. CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS
XXXII. A JOURNEY TO LONDON
XXXIII. WHAT'S TO BE DONE NEXT?
XXXIV. DESOLATION
XXXV. COMPARING OF NOTES
XXXVI. MORE EXPLANATION
XXXVII.
XXXVIII.
XXXIX.
XL.
XLI. DULCE DOMUM
XLII.
XLIII. A POSTSCRIPT WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN A PREFACE
AUTHOR'S NOTES--Volume II.
GLOSSARY--Volume II.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
VOLUME I.
PORTRAIT OF SIR WALTER SCOTT----Painted by Raeburn,Etched by Batley
ABBOTSFORD (FROM THE TWEED)----Etched by D. Y. Cameron
TULLY-VEOLAN----Painted by W. J. Leitch, Etched by H. W. Batley
"EH, SIRS!"----Original Etching by George Cruickshank
WAVERLEY AND ROSE BRADWARDINE----Etched by Ben. Damman
THE HOLD OF A HIGHLAND ROBBER---Original Etching by R. W. Macbeth
FLORA Mac-IVOR AT THE WATERFALL---Original Etching by R. W. Macbeth
VOLUME II.
PRINCE CHARLES EDWARD IN SHELTER----Etched by H. M. Raeburn
STIRLING CASTLE----Etched by John Andrew and Son
BONNIE PRINCE CHARLIE---Painted by Pettie, Etched by Raeburn
COLONEL GARDINER---Original Etching by H. Macbeth Raeburn
DISBANDED----Painted by John Pettie, Etched by F. Huth
BAILIE MACWHEEBLE----Painted by J. Lauder, Etched by H. Lefort
"LADY WAUVERLEY! TEN THOUSAND A YEAR!"----Etching by Cruickshank
WAVERLEY'S LAST VISIT TO FLORA MAC-IVOR----Painted by Herdman
DOUNE CASTLE (FROM THE TEITH)----Etched by John Andrew and Son
EDITOR'S NOTE.
The purpose of the added matter in this edition of the Waverley Novels--a
reprint of the magnum opus of 1829-1832--is to give to the stories their
historical setting, by stating the circumstances in which they were
composed and made their first appearance.
Sir Walter's own delightful Introductions, written hastily, as Lockhart
says, and with a failing memory, have occasionally been corrected by
Lockhart himself. His "Life of Scott" must always be our first and best
source, but fragments of information may be gleaned from Sir Walter's
unpublished correspondence.
The Editor owes to the kindness of Mrs. Maxwell Scott permission to
examine the twenty-four large volumes of letters to Sir Walter, and some
other manuscripts, which are preserved at Abbotsford. These yield but
little of contemporary criticism or remark, as is natural, for Scott
shared his secret with few, and most topics were more grateful to him
than his own writings. Lockhart left little for his successors to do, and
the more any one studies the Abbotsford manuscripts, the more must he
admire the industry and tact of Scott's biographer.
The Editor has also put together some examples of contemporary published
criticism which it is now not uninteresting to glance over. In selecting
these he has been aided by the kindness of Mrs. Ogilbie. From the
Abbotsford manuscripts and other sources he has added notes on points
which have become obscure by lapse of time. He has especially to thank,
for their courteous and ready assistance, Lady Napier and Ettrick, who
lent him Sir Walter's letters to her kinswoman, the Marchioness of
Abercorn; Mr. David Douglas, the editor and publisher of Scott's
"Journal," who has generously given the help of his antiquarian
knowledge; and Mr. David MacRitchie, who permitted him to use the
corrected proofs of "Redgauntlet."
ANDREW LANG
ADVERTISEMENT TO THE WAVERLEY NOVELS
It has been the occasional occupation of the Author of Waverley, for
several years past, to revise and correct the voluminous series of Novels
which pass under that name, in order that, if they should ever appear as
his avowed productions, he might render them in some degree deserving of
a continuance of the public favour with which they have been honoured
ever since their first appearance. For a long period, however, it seemed
likely that the improved and illustrated edition which he meditated would
be a posthumous publication. But the course of the events which
occasioned the disclosure of the Author's name having, in a great
measure, restored to him a sort of parental control over these Works, he
is naturally induced to give them to the press in a corrected, and, he
hopes, an improved form, while life and health permit the task of
revising and illustrating them. Such being his purpose, it is necessary
to say a few words on the plan of the proposed Edition.
In stating it to be revised and corrected, it is not to be inferred that
any attempt is made to alter the tenor of the stories, the character of
the actors, or the spirit of the dialogue. There is no doubt ample room
for emendation in all these points,--but where the tree falls it must
lie. Any attempt to obviate criticism, however just, by altering a work
already in the hands of the public is generally unsuccessful. In the most
improbable fiction, the reader still desires some air of vraisemblance,
and does not relish that the incidents of a tale familiar to him should
be altered to suit the taste of critics, or the caprice of the Author
himself. This process of feeling is so natural, that it may be observed
even in children, who cannot endure that a nursery story should be
repeated to them differently from the manner in which it was first told.
But without altering, in the slightest degree, either the story or the
mode of telling it, the Author has taken this opportunity to correct
errors of the press and slips of the pen. That such should exist cannot
be wondered at, when it is considered that the Publishers found it their
interest to hurry through the press a succession of the early editions of
the various Novels, and that the Author had not the usual opportunity of
revision. It is hoped that the present edition will be found free from
errors of that accidental kind.
The Author has also ventured to make some emendations of a different
character, which, without being such apparent deviations from the
original stories as to disturb the reader's old associations, will, he
thinks, add something to the spirit of the dialogue, narrative, or
description. These consist in occasional pruning where the language is
redundant, compression where the style is loose, infusion of vigour where
it is languid, the exchange of less forcible for more appropriate
epithets--slight alterations in short, like the last touches of an
artist, which contribute to heighten and finish the picture, though an
inexperienced eye can hardly detect in what they consist.
The General Preface to the new Edition, and the Introductory Notices to
each separate work, will contain an account of such circumstances
attending the first publication of the Novels and Tales as may appear
interesting in themselves, or proper to be communicated to the public.
The Author also proposes to publish, on this occasion, the various
legends, family traditions, or obscure historical facts which have formed
the ground-work of these Novels, and to give some account of the places
where the scenes are laid, when these are altogether, or in part, real;
as well as a statement of particular incidents founded on fact; together
with a more copious Glossary, and Notes explanatory of the ancient
customs and popular superstitions referred to in the Romances.
Upon the whole, it is hoped that the Waverley Novels, in their new dress,
will not be found to have lost any part of their attractions in
consequence of receiving illustrations by the Author, and undergoing his
careful revision.
ABBOTSFORD, January, 1829.
GENERAL PREFACE TO THE WAVERLEY NOVELS
And must I ravel out
My weaved-up follies?
Richard II, Act IV.
Having undertaken to give an Introductory Account of the compositions
which are here offered to the public, with Notes and Illustrations, the
Author, under whose name they are now for the first time collected, feels
that he has the delicate task of speaking more of himself and his
personal concerns than may perhaps be either graceful or prudent. In this
particular he runs the risk of presenting himself to the public in the
relation that the dumb wife in the jest-book held to her husband, when,
having spent half of his fortune to obtain the cure of her imperfection,
he was willing to have bestowed the other half to restore her to her
former condition. But this is a risk inseparable from the task which the
Author has undertaken, and he can only promise to be as little of an
egotist as the situation will permit. It is perhaps an indifferent sign
of a disposition to keep his word, that, having introduced himself in the
third person singular, he proceeds in the second paragraph to make use of
the first. But it appears to him that the seeming modesty connected with
the former mode of writing is overbalanced by the inconvenience of
stiffness and affectation which attends it during a narrative of some
length, and which may be observed less or more in every work in which the
third person is used, from the Commentaries of Caesar to the
Autobiography of Alexander the Corrector.
I must refer to a very early period of my life, were I to point out my
first achievements as a tale-teller; but I believe some of my old
schoolfellows can still bear witness that I had a distinguished character
for that talent, at a time when the applause of my companions was my
recompense for the disgraces and punishments which the future
romance-writer incurred for being idle himself, and keeping others idle,
during hours that should have been employed on our tasks. The chief
enjoyment of my holidays was to escape with a chosen friend, who had the
same taste with myself, and alternately to recite to each other such wild
adventures as we were able to devise. We told, each in turn, interminable
tales of knight-errantry and battles and enchantments, which were
continued from one day to another as opportunity offered, without our
ever thinking of bringing them to a conclusion. As we observed a strict
secrecy on the subject of this intercourse, it acquired all the character
of a concealed pleasure, and we used to select for the scenes of our
indulgence long walks through the solitary and romantic environs of
Arthur's Seat, Salisbury Crags, Braid Hills, and similar places in the
vicinity of Edinburgh; and the recollection of those holidays still forms
an oasis in the pilgrimage which I have to look back upon. I have only to
add, that my friend still lives, a prosperous gentleman, but too much
occupied with graver business to thank me for indicating him more plainly
as a confidant of my childish mystery.
When boyhood advancing into youth required more serious studies and
graver cares, a long illness threw me back on the kingdom of fiction, as
if it were by a species of fatality. My indisposition arose, in part at
least, from my having broken a blood-vessel; and motion and speech were
for a long time pronounced positively dangerous. For several weeks I was
confined strictly to my bed, during which time I was not allowed to speak
above a whisper, to eat more than a spoonful or two of boiled rice, or to
have more covering than one thin counterpane. When the reader is informed
that I was at this time a growing youth, with the spirits, appetite, and
impatience of fifteen, and suffered, of course, greatly under this severe
regimen, which the repeated return of my disorder rendered indispensable,
he will not be surprised that I was abandoned to my own discretion, so
far as reading (my almost sole amusement) was concerned, and still less
so, that I abused the indulgence which left my time so much at my own
disposal.
There was at this time a circulating library in Edinburgh, founded, I
believe, by the celebrated Allan Ramsay, which, besides containing a most
respectable collection of books of every description, was, as might have
been expected, peculiarly rich in works of fiction. It exhibited
specimens of every kind, from the romances of chivalry and the ponderous
folios of Cyrus and Cassandra, down to the most approved works of later
times. I was plunged into this great ocean of reading without compass or
pilot; and, unless when some one had the charity to play at chess with
me, I was allowed to do nothing save read from morning to night. I was,
in kindness and pity, which was perhaps erroneous, however natural,
permitted to select my subjects of study at my own pleasure, upon the
same principle that the humours of children are indulged to keep them out
of mischief. As my taste and appetite were gratified in nothing else, I
indemnified myself by becoming a glutton of books. Accordingly, I believe
I read almost all the romances, old plays, and epic poetry in that
formidable collection, and no doubt was unconsciously amassing materials
for the task in which it has been my lot to be so much employed.
At the same time I did not in all respects abuse the license permitted
me. Familiar acquaintance with the specious miracles of fiction brought
with it some degree of satiety, and I began by degrees to seek in
histories, memoirs, voyages and travels, and the like, events nearly as
wonderful as those which were the work of imagination, with the
additional advantage that they were at least in a great measure true. The
lapse of nearly two years, during which I was left to the exercise of my
own free will, was followed by a temporary residence in the country,
where I was again very lonely but for the amusement which I derived from
a good though old-fashioned library. The vague and wild use which I made
of this advantage I cannot describe better than by referring my reader to
the desultory studies of Waverley in a similar situation, the passages
concerning whose course of reading were imitated from recollections of my
own. It must be understood that the resemblance extends no farther.
Time, as it glided on, brought the blessings of confirmed health and
personal strength, to a degree which had never been expected or hoped
for. The severe studies necessary to render me fit for my profession
occupied the greater part of my time; and the society of my friends and
companions, who were about to enter life along with, me, filled up the
interval with the usual amusements of young men. I was in a situation
which rendered serious labour indispensable; for, neither possessing, on
the one hand, any of those peculiar advantages which are supposed to
favour a hasty advance in the profession of the law, nor being, on the
other hand, exposed to unusual obstacles to interrupt my progress, I
might reasonably expect to succeed according to the greater or less
degree of trouble which I should take to qualify myself as a pleader.
It makes no part of the present story to detail how the success of a few
ballads had the effect of changing all the purpose and tenor of my life,
and of converting a painstaking lawyer of some years' standing into a
follower of literature. It is enough to say, that I had assumed the
latter character for several years before I seriously thought of
attempting a work of imagination in prose, although one or two of my
poetical attempts did not differ from romances otherwise than by being
written in verse. But yet I may observe, that about this time (now, alas!
thirty years since) I had nourished the ambitious desire of composing a
tale of chivalry, which was to be in the style of the Castle of Otranto,
with plenty of Border characters and supernatural incident. Having found
unexpectedly a chapter of this intended work among some old papers, I
have subjoined it to this introductory essay, thinking some readers may
account as curious the first attempts at romantic composition by an
author who has since written so much in that department. [Footnote: See
Appendix No I.] And those who complain, not unreasonably, of the
profusion of the Tales which have followed Waverley, may bless their
stars at the narrow escape they have made, by the commencement of the
inundation, which had so nearly taken place in the first year of the
century, being postponed for fifteen years later.
This particular subject was never resumed, but I did not abandon the idea
of fictitious composition in prose, though I determined to give another
turn to the style of the work.
My early recollections of the Highland scenery and customs made so
favourable an impression in the poem called the Lady of the Lake, that I
was induced to think of attempting something of the same kind in prose. I
had been a good deal in the Highlands at a time when they were much less
accessible and much less visited than they have been of late years, and
was acquainted with many of the old warriors of 1745, who were, like most
veterans, easily induced to fight their battles over again for the
benefit of a willing listener like myself. It naturally occurred to me
that the ancient traditions and high spirit of a people who, living in a
civilised age and country, retained so strong a tincture of manners
belonging to an early period of society, must afford a subject favourable
for romance, if it should not prove a curious tale marred in the telling.
It was with some idea of this kind that, about the year 1805, I threw
together about one-third part of the first volume of Waverley. It was
advertised to be published by the late Mr. John Ballantyne, bookseller in
Edinburgh, under the name of Waverley; or, 'Tis Fifty Years Since--a
title afterwards altered to 'Tis Sixty Years Since, that the actual date
of publication might be made to correspond with the period in which the
scene was laid. Having proceeded as far, I think, as the seventh chapter,
I showed my work to a critical friend, whose opinion was unfavourable;
and having then some poetical reputation, I was unwilling to risk the
loss of it by attempting a new style of composition. I therefore threw
aside the work I had commenced, without either reluctance or
remonstrance. I ought to add that, though my ingenious friend's sentence
was afterwards reversed on an appeal to the public, it cannot be
considered as any imputation on his good taste; for the specimen
subjected to his criticism did not extend beyond the departure of the
hero for Scotland, and consequently had not entered upon the part of the
story which was finally found most interesting.
Be that as it may, this portion of the manuscript was laid aside in the
drawers of an old writing-desk, which, on my first coming to reside at
Abbotsford in 1811, was placed in a lumber garret and entirely forgotten.
Thus, though I sometimes, among other literary avocations, turned my
thoughts to the continuation of the romance which I had commenced, yet,
as I could not find what I had already written, after searching such
repositories as were within my reach, and was too indolent to attempt to
write it anew from memory, I as often laid aside all thoughts of that
nature.
Two circumstances in particular recalled my recollection of the mislaid
manuscript. The first was the extended and well-merited fame of Miss
Edgeworth, whose Irish characters have gone so far to make the English
familiar with the character of their gay and kind-hearted neighbours of
Ireland, that she may be truly said to have done more towards completing
the Union than perhaps all the legislative enactments by which it has
been followed up.
Without being so presumptuous as to hope to emulate the rich humour,
pathetic tenderness, and admirable tact which pervade the works of my
accomplished friend, I felt that something might be attempted for my own
country, of the same kind with that which Miss Edgeworth so fortunately
achieved for Ireland--something which might introduce her natives to
those of the sister kingdom in a more favourable light than they had been
placed hitherto, and tend to procure sympathy for their virtues and
indulgence for their foibles. I thought also, that much of what I wanted
in talent might be made up by the intimate acquaintance with the subject
which I could lay claim to possess, as having travelled through most
parts of Scotland, both Highland and Lowland, having been familiar with
the elder as well as more modern race, and having had from my infancy
free and unrestrained communication with all ranks of my countrymen, from
the Scottish peer to the Scottish plough-man. Such ideas often occurred
to me, and constituted an ambitious branch of my theory, however far
short I may have fallen of it in practice.
But it was not only the triumphs of Miss Edgeworth which worked in me
emulation, and disturbed my indolence. I chanced actually to engage in a
work which formed a sort of essay piece, and gave me hope that I might in
time become free of the craft of romance-writing, and be esteemed a
tolerable workman.
In the year 1807-08 I undertook, at the request of John Murray, Esq., of
Albemarle Street, to arrange for publication some posthumous productions
of the late Mr. Joseph Strutt, distinguished as an artist and an
antiquary, amongst which was an unfinished romance, entitled Queenhoo
Hall. The scene of the tale was laid in the reign of Henry VI, and the
work was written to illustrate the manners, customs, and language of the
people of England during that period. The extensive acquaintance which
Mr. Strutt had acquired with such subjects in compiling his laborious
Horda Angel-Cynnan, his Regal and Ecclesiastical Antiquities, and his
Essay on the Sports and Pastimes of the People of England had rendered
him familiar with all the antiquarian lore necessary for the purpose of
composing the projected romance; and although the manuscript bore the
marks of hurry and incoherence natural to the first rough draught of the
author, it evinced (in my opinion) considerable powers of imagination.