An Eureka moment !

"To Google" has become a verb in the English language in just a few short years and I have been doing plenty of that in my research so far. Last night was an absolute eureka moment - I was searching the very helpful function of Google Books and found two books on Scottish poetry that mentioned William Robertson. The first was called The Harp of Perthshire: A Collection of Songs, Ballads and Other Poetical Works by Robert Ford. A search for this book showed me that it was extremely valuable and very rare - not likely to come up on Abebooks or similar any time soon at a price I can afford! The second book was not one book but a volume of 16 books called One Hundred Modern Scottish Poets:With Biographical and Critical Notices by David Herschell Edwards (1880).

The problem with Google books is that it would only show a small snippet of the text. Switching back to "normal" google I found this wonderful site and this wonderful site. I don't personally know the person or people who faithfully scanned all 16 volumes of 100 Modern Scottish Poets or The Harp of Perthshire - but I would love to kiss their feet as I was able to read both books online and here's what they said.

Firstly - The Harp of Perthshire - page 502 (which is part of a list of poets featured in the book)

"William Robertson - page 192

Born in Longforgan, in the Carse of Gowrie, in 1808, has been for many years a working gardener in Broughty Ferry. He was forty years old before he blossomed into verse, but a deal of fragrant bloom has fallen from him in old age. A collection of his poems and songs published a few years ago went speedily out of print. He has long been a frequent and welcome contributor to the Dundee Evening Telegraph and the People's Journal. "

The poem, which I will replicate in a new post, is called Morning Musings in The Highlands.

It's also interesting to note there is another William Robertson, who was born in Dundee and subsequently lived in Bankfoot and who had articles published in the People's Journal too. I guess it is fortunate that my William Robertson published his in book form as a collection - as it would be impossible to distinguish the different William Robertsons in the People's Journal. The other slightly sad thing is that I found Isabella Robertson in 100 Modern Scottish Poets - and she is described as the elder sister of William Robertson. I excitedly thought I'd discovered more gold - but the autobiographical details say that she retired to Bankfoot to live with her brother - making her the sister of the other William Robertson who was featured in Volume 7 (which University of California has not scanned)- and sadly not mine. Which brings me to the gold in 100 Modern Scottish Poets: Volume 1 - p306

" William Robertson

GARDENER, residing in Broughty Ferry, was born at Longforgan, Carse of Gowrie in 1808. When he was seven years old his parents removed to Glengarry, Inverness-shire, where he was put to school. The schoolhouse was built with turf, and thatched with dry ferns, while the seats were also of turf, and a heathery surface formed the cushions. His schoolmaster was tall, and always wore a suit of white moleskin, which gave him a ghostly appearance in the dingy apartment. The amount of learning communicated by this teacher was reading, writing and arithmetic - compound multiplication being generally the farthest rule reached. Robertson's parents ultimately removed to the Howe of Strathmore, where he served his apprenticeship. He was forty years old before he wooed the muse, and he regarded Highland scenery, amidst which he passed the most of his life, as first awakening poetic fancies in his soul. He has contributed numerous thoughtful verses and engaging stories to the press."

How wonderful is that biographical detail - where he lived with his parents as a young man, his education - not through the largess of George Patterson as I'd supposed in this post but rather from the ghostly apparition of a school teacher in a turf schoolhouse!

The poem - which I will replicate in a new post which was used in this book was Moonlit Scenery in The Highlands.

So - I am very happy to have found more poems and more details about the life of William Robertson!