the honour to be President, was instituted in February
1823, for the purpose of printing and publishing works illustrative of
the history, literature, and antiquities of Scotland. It continues to
prosper, and has already rescued from oblivion many curious materials
of Scottish history.] when I propose to throw off an edition, limited
according to the rules of that erudite Society, with a facsimile of
the manuscript, emblazonry of the family arms surrounded by their
quartering, and a handsome disclamation of family pride, with HAEC NOS
NOVIMUS ESSE NIHIL, or VIX EA NOSTRA VOCO.

In the meantime, to speak truth, I cannot but suspect that, though my
worthy ancestor puffed vigorously to swell up the dignity of his family,
we had never, in fact, risen above the rank of middling proprietors. The
estate of Glentanner came to us by the intermarriage of my ancestor with
Tib Sommeril, termed by the southrons Sommerville, a daughter of that
noble house, but, I fear, on what my great-grandsire calls "the wrong
side of the blanket." [The ancient Norman family of the Sommervilles
came into this island with William the Conqueror, and established one
branch in Gloucestershire, another in Scotland. After the lapse of seven
hundred years, the remaining possessions of these two branches were
united in the person of the late Lord Sommerville, on the death of his
English kinsman, the well-known author of "The Chase."] Her husband,
Gilbert, was killed fighting, as the INQUISITIO POST MORTEM has it, "SUB
VEXILLO REGIS, APUD PRAELIUM JUXTA BRANXTON, LIE FLODDDEN-FIELD."

We had our share in other national misfortunes--were forfeited, like
Sir John Colville of the Dale, for following our betters to the field
of Langside; and in the contentious times of the last Stewarts we were
severely fined for harbouring and resetting intercommuned ministers, and
narrowly escaped giving a martyr to the Calendar of the Covenant, in the
person of the father of our family historian. He "took the sheaf from
the mare," however, as the MS. expresses it, and agreed to accept of the
terms of pardon offered by Government, and sign the bond in evidence he
would give no further ground of offence. My grandsire glosses over his
father's backsliding as smoothly as he can, and comforts himself with
ascribing his want of resolution to his unwillingness to wreck the
ancient name and family, and to permit his lands and lineage to fall
under a doom of forfeiture.

"And inde