Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 56.djvu/259

 things,’ and ‘to teach the young idea how to shoot,’ while the ‘Castle of Indolence’ has the beautiful line ‘Placed far amid the melancholy main’ (cf., Highland Girl; , Wordsworthiana, pp. 331 sq.).

There are three portraits of Thomson—that by William Aikman (described by Pitt as ‘beastly like’), dated 1725, and now at Edinburgh (it was, like the Paton portrait, engraved by Basire for the edition of 1762); that of Slaughter, dated 1736, and now at Dryburgh Abbey; and that of Paton, painted in 1746, and presented to the National Portrait Gallery in 1857 by Miss Bell of Springhall, the grand-niece of the poet. Of this many engravings, mostly very indifferent likenesses, exist. A miniature, presented to the bygone Ednam Club by the Earl of Buchan, is still preserved at Ednam manse. In addition to the above, two oil portraits have been ascribed to William Hogarth; from one of these a good profile was lithographed in 1820 by M. Gauci (Brit. Mus. Print-room;, Hogarth, pp. 315, 350).

Between Thomson's death and the issue of the splendid quarto edition of 1762 (which was long exhibited in a show-case in the King's Library at the British Museum as an example of British typography), some eight editions of Thomson's works were issued. Subsequently to that date the following are the more important of the editions (I) of Thomson's ‘Works’ and (II) of ‘The Seasons.’

I. ‘The Works of James Thomson, with his last Corrections and Improvements,’ London, 1763, 2 vols. 12mo; 1768, 8vo (the British Museum copy has some of Lyttelton's manuscript corrections); Edinburgh, 1772, 4 vols. 8vo; London, 1773, 4 vols. 12mo; 1788, 3 vols. 8vo and 2 vols. 12mo; 1802, 3 vols. 8vo; ed. J. Nichols, 1849, 12mo; 1866, 8vo. A folio edition appeared at Glasgow in 2 vols. 1784. ‘Thomson's Poetical Works’ were edited by George Gilfillan for the Library edition of the ‘British Poets’ in 1853, Edinburgh, 8vo; by Sir Harris Nicolas for an American edition in 1854 (Boston, 2 vols. 8vo); by Robert Bell in 1855 (with useful notes and appendixes), London, 2 vols. 8vo; by W. M. Rossetti, with illustrations by T. Seccombe in 1873, London, 8vo, and 1879; by Gilfillan and Clarke, 1873, 1874, 1878, London, 8vo. The poems have also appeared in the ‘Collections’ of Johnson, Bell, Anderson, Park, Chalmers, Sanford, and in the Aldine edition of the ‘British Poets’ edited by Sir Harris Nicolas in 1830, reprinted 1862 with additions by Peter Cunningham, and revised throughout by D. C. Tovey in 1897.

II. ‘The Seasons, with Notes, Illustrations, and a complete Index by G. Wright,’ London [1770], 8vo. ‘The Seasons … with Britannia … to which is prefixed the Life and Literary Character of Thomson, with new Designs,’ Dublin, 1773, 12mo. ‘The Seasons,’ Amsterdam, 1775, 4to, with plates by Moreau and Cheffard (a copy sold in 1890 for 4l. 17s. 6d.). ‘The Seasons,’ Paris, 1780, 12mo. ‘The Seasons. New edition by J. J. C. Timæus. To which is prefixed … an Essay on the Plan and Character of the Poem by J. Aikin,’ Hamburg, 1791, 8vo. ‘The Seasons, with Engravings designed by C. Ansell,’ London, 1792, 8vo; new edition, with original engravings and Aikin's ‘Essay,’ London, 1792, 8vo (the British Museum copy has manuscript notes); new edition, ‘with original Life and Critical Essay by R. Heron,’ Perth, 1793, 4to; another edition, illustrated, with index, glossary, and notes, by P. Stockdale, F.P., London, 1793, 8vo; McKenzie's edition, with Johnson's ‘Life’ and new cuts, Dublin, 1793, 8vo. ‘The Seasons,’ Parma, 1794, 4to (a sumptuous edition printed by Bodoni). ‘The Seasons, illustrated with Engravings by F. Bartolozzi and S. W. Tomkins from original Pictures by W. Hamilton,’ London, 1797, folio (a copy of this edition with coloured plates fetched 54l. in 1893; much higher prices are occasionally obtained), and 1807, 4to. ‘The Seasons,’ Paris, 1800, sm. 8vo (printed by Egron). ‘The Seasons, with illustrative Remarks by J. Evans,’ London, 1802, 8vo; another edition, L.P. 1802, 8vo. ‘The Seasons, adorned with plates,’ 1802, 8vo. ‘The Seasons, with a Life of the Author by J. Evans,’ London, 1805, 8vo. ‘The Seasons,’ with engravings by Bewick from Thurston's designs, 1805, 8vo, two editions, one F.P. (sold for 5l. 10s. in 1895); another edition, Bordeaux, 1808, 12mo; with Bewick's cuts, Edinburgh, 1809, 8vo; another edition, Manchester [1810], 12mo; Boston, Mass., 1810, 12mo; Ludlow, 1815, 12mo; Leipzig, 1815, 8vo; with engravings from the designs of R. Westall, New York, 1817, 12mo; the same, London, 1824, 12mo; new edition, with notes, historical and explanatory, by Dingwell Williams, London, 1824, 8vo (the museum copy has manuscript notes and collations by the editor); Boston, 1833, 12mo; with a biographical and critical introduction by A. Cunningham, London, 1841, 8vo. ‘The Seasons … with engraved Illustrations from Designs by J. Bell, C. W. Cope, T. Creswick, R. Redgrave … and with the Life of the Author by P. Murdoch’ (a copy, with a few extra plates, fetched 8l. in 1891), edited by Bolton Corney, London, 1842, 4to (in this edition the text was for the first time carefully restored from the edition of