ne beguiling."--(1826.)]

In [April, 1758] my father married Anne Rutherford, eldest daughter of
Dr. John Rutherford, professor of medicine in the University of
Edinburgh. He was one of those pupils of Boerhaave, to whom the school
of medicine in our northern metropolis owes its rise, and a man
distinguished {p.009} for professional talent, for lively wit, and
for literary acquirements. Dr. Rutherford was twice married. His first
wife, of whom my mother is the sole surviving child, was a daughter of
Sir John Swinton of Swinton, a family which produced many
distinguished warriors during the Middle Ages, and which, for
antiquity and honorable alliances, may rank with any in Britain. My
grandfather's second wife was Miss Mackay, by whom he had a second
family, of whom are now (1808) alive, Dr. Daniel Rutherford, professor
of botany in the University of Edinburgh, and Misses Janet and
Christian Rutherford, amiable and accomplished women.

My father and mother had a very numerous family, no fewer, I believe,
than twelve children, of whom many were highly promising, though only
five survived very early youth. My eldest brother (that is, the eldest
whom I remember to have seen) was Robert Scott, so called after my
uncle, of whom I shall have much to say hereafter. He was bred in the
King's service, under Admiral, then Captain William Dickson, and was
in most of Rodney's battles. His temper was bold and haughty, and to
me was often checkered with what I felt to be capricious tyranny. In
other respects I loved him much, for he had a strong turn for
literature, read poetry with taste and judgment, and composed verses
himself, which had gained him great applause among his messmates.
Witness the following elegy upon the supposed loss of the vessel,
composed the night before Rodney's celebrated battle of April the
12th, 1782. It alludes to the various amusements of his mess:--

"No more the geese shall cackle on the poop,
No more the bagpipe through the orlop sound,
No more the midshipmen, a jovial group,
Shall toast the girls, and push the bottle round.
In death's dark road at anchor fast they stay,
Till Heaven's loud signal shall in thunder roar;
Then starting up, all hands shall quick obey,
Sheet home the topsail, and with speed unmoor."

Robert {p.010} sung agreeably--(a virtue which was never seen in
me)--understood the m