, as we have before hinted, with even the most original. Had not
Shakspeare and Milton been "celestial thieves," their writings would
have been far less rich and brilliant than they are; although, had they
not possessed true originality, they would not have taken their present
lofty position in the world of letters. So, to say that Burns was much
indebted to his predecessors, and that he often imitated Ramsay and
Fergusson, and borrowed liberally from the old ballads, is by no means
to derogate from his genius. If he took, he gave with interest. The most
commonplace songs, after they had, as he said, "got a brushing" from his
hands, assumed a totally different aspect. Each ballad was merely a
piece of canvas, on which he inscribed his inimitable paintings.
Sometimes even by a single word he proclaimed the presence of the
master-poet, and by a single stroke exalted a daub into a picture. His
imitations of Ramsay and Fergusson far surpass the originals, and remind
you of Landseer's dogs, which seem better than the models from which he
drew. When a king accepts a fashion from a subject, he glorifies it, and
renders it the rage. It was in this royal style that Burns treated the
inferior writers who had gone before him; and although he highly admired
and warmly praised them, he must have felt a secret sense of his own
vast superiority.

We come now shortly to speak of the influence he has exerted on Scottish
poetry. This was manifold. In the first place, a number were encouraged
by his success to collect and publish their poems, although few of them
possessed much merit; and he complained that some were a wretched
"spawn" of mediocrity, which the sunshine of his fame had warmed and
brought forth prematurely. Lapraik, for instance, was induced by the
praise of Burns to print an edition of his poems, which turned out a
total failure. There was only one good piece in it all, and _that_ was
pilfered from an old magazine. Secondly, Burns exerted an inspiring
influence on some men of real genius, who, we verily believe, would, but
for Burns, have never written, or, at least, written so well--such as
Alexander Wilson, Tannahill, Macneil, Hogg, and the numerous members of
the "Whistle-Binkie" school. In all these writers we trace the influence
of the large "lingering star" of the genius of Burns. "Wattie and Meg,"
by Wilson, when it first appeared anonymously, was attributed to Burns.
Tannahill is, in much of his poetry, an echo of B