ecured for him a foremost place among the most
brilliant men of his age. These services which the Borders have thus
rendered to the literature of the country have been valuable and important
in a high degree.

And--if we dare suggest it--it is not altogether improbable that even
Burns himself was sprung of a Border stock. We find in the "Border
Papers," from which much of our information regarding Border reiving has
been drawn, that the name "Burness" frequently occurs. The family bearing
this patronymic was well known in Liddesdale and the Debateable land, and
the various branches of the family, like the Armstrongs and Elliots, were
distinguished for their reiving propensities. The grandfather of the poet
found a home in Argyleshire, and Burns' father, as is well known, hailed
from Kincardineshire. The removal from the Borders of a representative of
the family may be easily accounted for. Reference has already been made to
a law which was passed by the Scottish Parliament enacting that the
various families and clans on the Borders should find pledges for their
good behaviour. These "pledges" were sent north of the Forth, and were
strictly prohibited from returning to their former haunts. It is just
possible that in this way an ancestor of Burns may have been called to
leave the Border district in the interests of his family or clan. This
much at least is certain, the name is one which was common on the Borders
in those times of which we write. But whatever truth there may be in the
suggestion we have made (it would be foolish to dogmatise in the absence
of authentic information), Burns furnishes many points of resemblance to
the distinctive traits of Border character in the olden time. His
disregard of conventionality in all its forms, combined with his
aggressive sense of independence, mark him out as of the true Border type.

This district, once so famous as the favourite haunt of the reiver, may
now be described as one of the most peaceful in the country. Every year it
attracts an increasing number of tourists, who come from almost every part
of the world to visit its numerous shrines. To the literary and
professional classes it has become a kind of Mecca, to which they feel
constrained to resort once and again for intellectual refreshment and
inspiration. The glamour which Scott, Wordsworth, and Hogg--and many other
tuneful poets--have thrown around its green hills and bosky glens has
given it an air of enchantment