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Article DR. WILLIAM ROBERTSON. Page 1 of 3 →
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Dr. William Robertson.
DR . WILLIAM ROBERTSON .
A SKETCH OF THE LITERARY CHARACTER OF THE LATE
STAT MAGNI NOMINIS UMBRA .
THE late Dr . V / ILLIAM ROBERTSON , the object of this short sketch , died the nth , inst . at the Grange-House , near Edinburgh , after terminating a longlife , the latter part of Which had been affected with a lingering illness , supported ' with manly fortitude , and the resignation of a Philosopher . He was born in the year 1721 , and licensed for the Ministry at . the age of twenty-two . That a life of fifty yearsoccupied in the
, sacred function , has been useful with such talents cannot be doubted . In the year 1744 he obtained the Parish of Gladsmuir , and in his retreat he composed the History of Scotland . In the year 1758 , he was inducted to Lady YEsi'ER ' s . Parish in the city of Edinburgh ; when his prospects opening , the year following he published his great Work in two quarto volumes . A . writer who investigates the great period of Scottish History during
which MARY reigned , has a task before him , of all others the most perilous , and it may be obnoxious . If he establishes her guilt , he provokes a numerous party—besides that in general the convicter of MARY diminishes the honour of his country .
It is not our design to enter into the controversy . Either tha guilt or the folly of MARY was excessive . If she thought BOTHWELL , innocent of the murder of her husband , to marry him so speedily shewed an indecent contempt for the common accusation , and established the suspicion of those who insinuated her privacy to the act . If MARY owed nothing to the slaughtered DARNLEY , she owed something to her own characterand more to public Justice .
, When ROBERTSON ' book first appeared , it was welcomed with every tribute of admiration and praise . ' The Author displayed a fine spirit of Philosophy , so calculated to dissipate the mists of party through which all records are viewed ; and his investigations of the baronial manners , were at once learned and elegant , concise and yet clear . Lord CHESTERFIELD recommended the book with
peculiar ardour , as the only work of modern times calculated to restore the lost art of Historic Composition . In all the publications of Dr . ROBERTSON , he has sedulously studied the graces of style ; and though a native of Scotland , we have not observed any traces in his periods by which that fact mi ght be ascertained : Plis attention to language waseminently
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Dr. William Robertson.
DR . WILLIAM ROBERTSON .
A SKETCH OF THE LITERARY CHARACTER OF THE LATE
STAT MAGNI NOMINIS UMBRA .
THE late Dr . V / ILLIAM ROBERTSON , the object of this short sketch , died the nth , inst . at the Grange-House , near Edinburgh , after terminating a longlife , the latter part of Which had been affected with a lingering illness , supported ' with manly fortitude , and the resignation of a Philosopher . He was born in the year 1721 , and licensed for the Ministry at . the age of twenty-two . That a life of fifty yearsoccupied in the
, sacred function , has been useful with such talents cannot be doubted . In the year 1744 he obtained the Parish of Gladsmuir , and in his retreat he composed the History of Scotland . In the year 1758 , he was inducted to Lady YEsi'ER ' s . Parish in the city of Edinburgh ; when his prospects opening , the year following he published his great Work in two quarto volumes . A . writer who investigates the great period of Scottish History during
which MARY reigned , has a task before him , of all others the most perilous , and it may be obnoxious . If he establishes her guilt , he provokes a numerous party—besides that in general the convicter of MARY diminishes the honour of his country .
It is not our design to enter into the controversy . Either tha guilt or the folly of MARY was excessive . If she thought BOTHWELL , innocent of the murder of her husband , to marry him so speedily shewed an indecent contempt for the common accusation , and established the suspicion of those who insinuated her privacy to the act . If MARY owed nothing to the slaughtered DARNLEY , she owed something to her own characterand more to public Justice .
, When ROBERTSON ' book first appeared , it was welcomed with every tribute of admiration and praise . ' The Author displayed a fine spirit of Philosophy , so calculated to dissipate the mists of party through which all records are viewed ; and his investigations of the baronial manners , were at once learned and elegant , concise and yet clear . Lord CHESTERFIELD recommended the book with
peculiar ardour , as the only work of modern times calculated to restore the lost art of Historic Composition . In all the publications of Dr . ROBERTSON , he has sedulously studied the graces of style ; and though a native of Scotland , we have not observed any traces in his periods by which that fact mi ght be ascertained : Plis attention to language waseminently