them. In my last letter I mentioned to you that there
was not the smallest appearance of the work being yet begun, and there
is as little still. James Ballantyne shifts this off his own shoulders
by saying that he cannot help it. Now, my own belief is that at the time
he made such solemn promises to me that the first volume would be in my
hands in a month, he had not the smallest expectation of this being the
case; but he knew that he would not have got our bills, which he
absolutely wanted, without holding this out. It is now seven weeks since
the bills were granted, and it is five weeks since I gave him the list
of books which were to be delivered. I have applied to him again and
again for them, and on Tuesday last his man at length called on me to
say that John Ballantyne & Co. could not deliver fifty sets of 'Kerr's
Voyages'--that they had only such quantities of particular odd volumes
of which he showed me a list."

Blackwood called upon Ballantyne, but he could not see him, and instead
of returning Blackwood's visit, he sent a note of excuse. Next time they
met was at Hollingworth's Hotel, after which Ballantyne sent Blackwood a
letter "begging for a loan of L50 till next week, but not a word of
business in it." Next time they met was at the same hotel, when the two
dined with Robert Miller.

_Mr. Wm. Blackwood to John Murray_.

"After dinner I walked home with J.B. Perhaps from the wine he had
drunk, he was very communicative, and gave me a great deal of very
curious and interesting private history. Would you believe it, that
about six weeks ago--at the very time our transaction was going
on--these worthies, Scott, Ballantyne & Co., concluded a transaction
with Constable for 10,000 copies of this said 'History of Scotland'
[which had been promised to Blackwood and Murray] in 4 vols., and
actually received bills for the profits expected to be realized from
this large number! Yet, when I put James Ballantyne in mind on Tuesday
of what he had formally proposed by desire of Mr. Scott, and assured us
we were positively to get the work, and asked him if there was any truth
in the rumour I had heard, and even that you had heard, about Mr. Scott
being about to publish a 'History of Scotland' with his name, and
further asked him if Mr. Scott was now ready to make any arrangements
with us about it (for it never occurred to me that he could make
arrangements with any one else), he solemnly assured me that he knew
nothing