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SCOTTISH LITERATURE

1709

SCOTT

rout of Solway Moss; Mary, twice a widow and twenty years a captive, beheaded at Fotheringay Castle; and James VI of Scotland and I of England. The ferns of the powerful nobles of Scotland and the struggles with England kept the country in a state of turmoil. In 1503 James IV married Margaret of England wnich finally resulted in the Union of the two kingdoms. Under James V reli ious struggles added to the troubles of the country, and James VI became king of England on the death of Elizabeth in 1603.

The Scotch parliament met for the last time in 1706. The leading statesmen of both Scotland and England felt that nothing but a complete union of the two countries would bring about permanent peace, and, though opposed by a majority of the people, the Scottish parliament passed the Act of Union on Jan. 16, 1707. The union was unpopular in Scotland for many years, but with the evident prosperity of the country under the new arrangement discontent gradually disappeared; though Scotland and England are still two countries, and a Scot abroad, if asked if he is an Englishman, will seldom answer "yes." The Gaelic language used in the west and north of Scotland is a Celtic dialect, while the Lowland Scotch is a form of the Saxon, being the same as the northern English of I^orthumbria. The dialects are many, classed as Border Scotch, Central Scotch and Northeastern Scotch. The chief cities of Scotland are Edinburgh the capital (population 355,366), Glasgow (872,021), Dundee, Aberdeen, Leith, Paisley and Green-ock. Population 4,759,445. See BRUCE, ENGLAND, GREAT BRITAIN and MARY STUART. See Scotland under Early Kings, by Robertson; Scotland as It Was and as It Is, by Argyll; Scotland from the Earliest Century to the Present Time, by Mackintosh.

Scottish Literature. See LITERATURE, ENGLISH.

Scott, Captain Robert F., of the British navy, commanded two expeditions to the South Pole. He successfully reached the Pole with four companions January 18, 1912, and there found Amundsen's tent and records (See POLAR EXPLORATION). On the return journey with his three surviving companions, he perished in a blizzard. With his body was found his diary in which he recorded their misfortunes, and asked his countrymen to provide for their dependents. All were pensioned by parliament, and Captain Scott's wife given the title of "Lady Scott."

Scotf, Duncan Campbell, was born in 1862, educated at Stanstead College (Quebec), and joined the Canadian Civil Service at Ottawa in 1879 and quickly received promotion. His short stories and poems have appeared in the best magazines. He is an editor of historical biographies now being published.

SIR  WALTER   SCOTT

Scott, Sir Walter, the Scottish novelist, was born at Edinburgh, Aug. 15, 1771. He became lame as tthe result of a fever when an infant. At Edinburgh University, where he studied, he declined t o learn Greek .which he regretted in his later years. He studied law, and as a lawyer's clerk superintending the removal of a family who had not paid their rent he first entered the Highlands. His first publication was rhymed versions of ballads by Burger (1796). The first two volumes of The Border Minstrelsy, for which he had been preparing himself by gathering legends and hunting up old ballads for nearly ten years, appeared in 1802. The Lay of the Last Minstrel, began as a ballad, published in 1805, made him very popular; Marmion followed in 1808; and in 1810 came The Lady of the Lake, He was now offered the place of poet-laureate, but declined in favor of Southey. His first novel, Waver ley, was begun in 1805, but laid aside until 1814, when he wrote the last two volumes in three weeks. Guy Mannering, "the work of six weeks," and. The Antiquary followed, all "by the Author of Waver ley," as Scott's authorship was not known. They were very popular, and in wonderfully quick succession followed Rob Roy, Old Mortality, The Heart of Midlothian, Ivanhoe and the rest of the world-famous stories. His purchase of Abbotsford, the sums spent on its improvement and his generous hospitality and liberality, especially to poor writers, had ^ used up his large receipts from his writings. The failure of both the firms that published his works, in one of which he had been a secret partner, placed Scott heavily in debt. His friends offered help and his creditors a compromise, but he declined both, and at 55 bravely undertook to pay off a debt of $700,000 by his pen. He wrote 14 hours a day, producing his Life of Bonaparte, several series of Tales of a Grandfather from Scottish history and Woodstock. At a public dinner in Edinburgh in 1826 he made himself known as the author of the Waverley Novels; which the public had already discovered, and he afterwards furnished notes and prefaces for a new edition. But his excessive labors brought on symptoms of paralysis, and he sailed to Italy for rest, everywhere receiving the honors due to his literary fame. His failing strength warned him of the end,