Page:A biographical dictionary of eminent Scotsmen, vol 7.djvu/241

Rh Spring, the splendour of Summer, the tranquillity of Autumn, and the horrors of Winter, take, in their turns, possession of the mind. The poet leads us through the appearances of things, as they are successively varied by the vicissitudes of the year; and imparts to us so much of his own enthusiasm, that our thoughts expand with his imagery, and kindle with his sentiments. Nor is the naturalist without his share in the entertainment; for he is assisted to recollect and to combine, to arrange his discoveries, and to amplify the sphere of his contemplation."

"Thomson," says Dr Aikin, "was in person large and ungainly, with a heavy unanimated countenance, and nothing in his appearance or manner in mixed society indicating the man of genius or refinement. He was, however, easy and cheerful with select friends, by whom he was singularly beloved for the kindness of his heart, and his freedom from all the little malignant passions, which too often debase the literary character. His benevolence is said to be more ardent than active, for indolence was extremely prevalent in his nature; and though he would readily give to the utmost of his ability, he could not overcome his reluctance to exert himself in doing services. He was fond of indulgences of every kind, and was more attached to the grosser pleasures of sense, than the sentimental delicacy of his writings would lead a reader to suppose: but this is a common failing. No poet has deserved more praise for the moral tenor of his works. Undoubted philanthropy, enlarged ideas of the dignity of man, and of his rights; love of virtue, public and private, and of a devotional spirit, narrowed by no views of sect or party, give soul to his verse, when not merely descriptive: and no one can rise from the perusal of his pages, without melioration of his principles or feelings."

The remark here made as to the attachment of Thomson "to the grosser, pleasures of sense," demands some comment. The purity of his writings has been celebrated by lord Lyttleton, and generally allowed by the world; and, excepting the above remark, which is to be traced to the report of Savage to Dr Johnson, and has not been generally credited, no charge has ever, till lately, been laid against the private character of the poet

In a work lately published, under the title of "Records of my Life," a posthumous autobiography of Mr John Taylor, the author of the humorous poem of "Monsieur Tonson," a curious tale is related, on the authority of the late Mr George Chalmers. "Mr Chalmers," says Taylor, "had heard that an old housekeeper of Thomson's was alive, and still resided at Richmond. Having determined to write a life of the celebrated poet of his country, he went to Richmond, thinking it possible he might obtain some account of the domestic habits of the poet, and other anecdotes which might impart interest and novelty to his narration. He found that the old housekeeper had a good memory, and was of a communicative turn. She informed him Thomson had been actually married in early life, but that his wife had been taken by him merely for her person, and was so little calculated to be introduced to his great friends, or indeed his friends in general, that he had kept her in a state of obscurity for many years; and when he at last, from some compunctious feelings, required her to come and live with him at Richmond, he still kept her in the same secluded state, so that she appeared to be only one of the old domestics of the family. At length his wife, experiencing little of the attention of a husband, though otherwise provided with every thing that could make her easy, if not comfortable, asked his permission to go for a few weeks to visit her own relations in the north. Thomson gave his consent, exacting a promise that she would not reveal her real situation to any of his or her own family. She agreed; but when she had advanced no farther on her journey than to London she was