Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 4.djvu/451

 ii s. iv. DEC. 2, ion.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

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the outbreak of the Revolutionary War it was believed that one-third of the entire population of Pennsylvania was of Ulster Scottish origin," and " out of the fifty-six members of the Congress that adopted the Declaration of Independence, eleven were of Scottish descent. It was written by an Ulster Scot, first publicly read by another, and first printed by a third Ulster Scot."

When the States gained their inde- pendence, twelve out of the fifty-four members of the Convention were of Scottish descent, among them Alexander Hamilton, whose efforts to secure a successful constitution Mr. Reid described. " Wash- ington's first Cabinet contained four members two were Scots, and a third was an Ulster Scot," while two-thirds of the first Governors for the new State Governments were either of Scottish or Ulster Scottish origin. The same tendency distinguishes the list of men who have filled the office of President of the United States. Eleven out of the twenty -five were of Scottish or Ulster Scottish origin.

Mr. Reid concluded his address in these eloquent words :

" We have not forgotten our origin or our obliga- tions. In all parts of the continental Republic hearts still turn fondly to the old land, thrilling with pride in your past and hope for your future, and joining with you, as we have good reason to join, in the old cry, ' Scotland for ever ! ' "

I have taken this brief summary from, the full report which appeared in The Daily Telegraph on November 2nd.

JOHN COLLINS FRANCIS.

DR. JOHNSON AND DR. DODD. In view of the prominence given in The National Review for November, p. 456, to Horace Walpole's description of a visit of fashionable people to the Magdalene Asylum to hear a sermon by Dr. Dodd " a very pleasing performance " it may be well to quote the following passage from the ' Autobiography ' of Carlyle of Inveresk, who also moved in high society (p. 503 of the Blackwood edition, 1861, and p. 528 of the Foulis edition, 1910) :

" It being much the fashion [in 1769] to go on a Sunday evening to a chapel of the Magdalene Asylum, we went there on the second Sunday we were in London, and had difficulty to get tolerable seats for my sister and wife, the crowd of genteel people was so great. The preacher was Dr. Dodd, a man afterwards too well known. The un- fortunate young women were in a latticed gallery, where you could only see those who chose to be seen. The preacher's text was, ' If a man look on a woman,' &c. The text itself was shocking, and the sermon was composed with the least

possible delicacy, and was a shocking insult on a sincere penitent, and fuel for the warm passions- of the hypocrites. The fellow was handsome, and delivered his discourse remarkably well for a reader. When he had finished, there Were unceasing whispers of applause, which I could not help contradicting aloud, and condemning the whole institution, as well as the exhibition of the preacher, as contra bonos mores, and a disgrace to a Christian city."

w. s.

A HACKET Cow. In 1904 Dr. Hans Hecht of Kiel published ' Songs from David Herd's Manuscripts,' with introduction- and notes. He is very careful of his texts, scrupulously presenting various readings, and he annotates judiciously and without didactic effusiveness. Occasionally a prof- fered equivalent seems less precise than it might have been geer, for example, does not necessarily mean " tocher," and loofs are not adequately represented by " hands " but, generally, the marginal glossary is intelligible and sufficient. Perhaps the most notable exception to the prevalent accuracy occurs in the notes supplied to Song XXV., which is entitled ' Rantin, Rovin Lad.' This is the lament of a desolated maiden for her Aberdonian lover, who has for some reason been constrained to leave her and to go " o'er the hills and far away." Resolving to follow him, the damsel thus enumerates certain details of her projected arrange- ments :

I'll sell my rock, my reel, my tow, My gude gray mare and hacket cow, To buy my love a tartan plaid, Because he is a roving blade.

Opposite the first two lines Dr. Hecht places the words " distaff ; fear crumpled- horned," with no punctuation mark except that which follows " distaff." With regard to this particular term his readers should find no difficulty, but they will be at a loss to decide which of the remaining words in the stanza signifies " fear." Clearly, there is something amiss, but what, it is impossible at the moment to say, and it is not desirable to indulge in conjecture. As to the " hacket cow," however, comment may be allowed. " Hacket " in Aberdeen no doubt corre- sponds to " hawkit " in the southern parts of the country, and " hawkit " (which Burns uses in 'The White Cockade,' his Musical Museum version of the song) means having a white face. " Hawkie " is the name com- monly given to a cow with this peculiarity, and by some it is used to denote a cow generally. It will be remembered that " their only Hawkie " figures in ' The Cotter's Saturday Night,' and that a