h the proposal of the proprietors of the magazine,
and wrote to the old man a letter, partly of condolence, but more of
triumph. He was almost glad that the resources of his father were
destroyed, now that he himself had the means of supporting him; and it
was with a joyous heart that he sat down to write his paper for the
new periodical. But alas! he felt what all who have so occupied
themselves have felt, how the mind becomes weak, and the fancy flags,
when compelled to action. He rushed into society, to escape from the
dreadful depression which follows high mental excitement; the warmth
of friendship with which he was met fell gratefully on his spirit; the
glee and glory of social intercourse first relieved his wearied
faculties, and then pleasantly excited them; the titillation of
gratified vanity, and the exercise of intellectual power, combined to
make the scene fascinating; he went more and more into society; it
became more and more necessary to him--he was a _social man_. His
father was a strange, I had almost said a stubborn man in some
respects, and he might in some measure be blamed for this gradual
sliding from sobriety of his son. To the affectionate letter of
William, which beseeched him, now that his little hoard had been
carried away, and now that his years were above fourscore, to come to
Edinburgh, and dwell with his son, the old man answered, that God had
yet left him vigour to mount the hills, and thread the valleys; and
that, so long as this was the case, he would consider it unjust to
become a burden to others. There was a stern independence and lofty
resolve in the determination of the aged shepherd which harmonised
well with his character; but it fell like lead upon the bright dreams
of William--it strangled many of his best resolutions of future virtue
and industry. He did not know that his father had already heard of his
relaxed habits, and had even had reported to him, in exaggerated
phrase, the detail of some of his midnight carousals. William went on,
gaining fame, but losing virtue. In the popular use of the word, it
was _impossible_ for him to resist the importunities of those who
pressed him to partake of their bottle or their bowl. They grasped his
hand cordially; they sang the songs which he loved, or perhaps had
written; they drank his health with cheers of enthusiasm. It was
_impossible_ for him to resist the entreaties of those persons--it was
_impossible_ for him not to believe them