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426 CRITICAL STUDIES participation in my beverage of rum punch. For a poet to refuse his glass was to me a phenomenon ; and I confess I doubted in my own mind, and doubt to this day, if perfect sobriety and transcendent poetical genius can exist together. In Scotland I am sure they cannot. With regard to the English, I shall leave them to settle that among themselves, as they have little that is worth drinking." There's a noble Scottish note for us ! And the justice of Hoggs literary opinion is sustained by the fact that all Southey's great epics are dead as cofifin-nails. As to his bibulous judgment, it concerns "those wiio labour under the disadvantage of having been born on the south side of the Tweed " to controvert it if they can ; let them but send liberal samples of their best in every kind to the present writer, and he will give an impartial verdict. In these years Hogg generally had a summer tour in the Highlands, tours which well served him in his authorship. He went on thenceforth writing poems, tales, and sketches, which need not be here particu- larised, as they are easily accessible in the edition noted at the beginning of these articles. In the spring of 1814, having no home wherein to shelter his parents, each over eighty-four years of age, he wrote to his generous patroness, Harriet, Duchess of Buc- cleuch, indirectly asking for a farm; she kept his want in mind, but died in August ; the good Duke then said to Scott : *' My friend, I must now consider this poor man's case as her legacy," and presented him with the small farm of Altrive Lake, in the wilds of Yarrow, The Duke's letter said : " The rent shall be nominal;" in fact no rent was ever mentioned or