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subscribers might have readily looked for in this second volume; but that manuscript being in the hands of some of the author's relations, who think it not ready for the press until it be carefully revised, they have reckoned it more proper to have it printed by way of Appendix to this second volume, howsoon they have it revised and transcribed by a good hand.'

For many years, the History thus announced was supposed to have been either suffered to perish, or to have been intentionally destroyed. The second Earl of Bute, who supported the government of the House of Hanover, and had married the sister of John Duke of Argyll, the celebrated leader of the Whig party in Scotland, enjoyed, in the year 1722, the estates of Sir George Mackenzie, and probably possessed his papers. It was not unnatural that he should be suspected, at that juncture, of suppressing such a manuscript, more especially as his family, by conforming to the Revolution, and accepting a title from Anne, had rendered themselves peculiarly obnoxious to the adherents of the House of Stuart. Whatever might have been the plausibility of these conjectures, they have been, in part at least, proved to be false, by the discovery of the present manuscript. In the year 1817, a large mass of papers was sold to a shopkeeper in Edinburgh. From these, his curiosity induced him to select a manuscript volume, which appeared to him to be something of an historical nature; and, by another and equal piece of good fortune, he communicated this volume to Dr M'Crie, the well known author of the Lives of Knox and of Melville. On examining this volume, Dr M'Crie discovered that it was the composition of Sir George Mackenzie, and that it must be a portion of that history of his own times, which had been so long a desideratum in Scottish literature. Of this the intrinsic evidence was obvious and complete; and the manuscript, though written by one of the ordinary transcribers of that age, was decisively identified by numerous corrections and additions in the well known handwriting of Sir George Mackenzie himself.

Sir George Mackenzie, the author of these Memoirs, was the grandson of Kenneth, first Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, and the nephew of Colin and George, first and second Earls of Seaforth. He was born at Dundee in 1636; and, after passing through the usual course of education in his own country, he was sent for three years to the University of Bourges, at that

all Jacobites, refused to acknowledge that their dialect was not a national language. The omission of the substantive 'year' between the article and the numeral, is peculiar to Scotland.

time, as he tells us, called the Athens of Lawyers.' The Scotch lawyers, who had no sufficient means of instruction in the Roman law at home, were then accustomed to frequent the University of Bourges, as in later times they usually repaired to Utrecht and Leyden. He was called to the Bar, and began to practise before the Restoration; and, in a sketch of an eminent advocate, has given us a picture (probably heightened by party spirit) of the canting tone which courts then adopted, and to which the most learned advocates were obliged to conform.*

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Immediately after the Restoration, he was appointed one of the Justices-Depute,-criminal judges who exercised that ju risdiction, which was soon after vested in five Lords of Session, under the denomination of Commissioners of Justiciary. In 1661, he and his colleagues were, in Parliament ordained to repair, once in the week at least, to Mussellburgh and Dalkeith, and to try and judge such persons as are ther or therabouts dilate of witchcraft; so much more urgent did the Scotch Parliament then deem the punishment of that offence than of any other crime. His name appears in the Parliamentary proceedings as counsel in almost every important cause; and his connexion in that character with the Marquis of Argyll, gives no small importance to a passage which will be presently considered in the present Memoirs, respecting a circumstance in the trial of that Nobleman, which has been the subject of much historical controversy. Between 1663 and 1667, he was knighted. He represented the county of Ross for the four Sessions of the Parliament which was called in 1669. In 1677 he was appointed Lord Advocate, in the room of Sir John Nisbet, who, if we may believe Mackenzie himself, was a person of deep and universal learning;'+ and of whom, in another place, he says, that in the conduct of causes he displayed the great⚫est learning and consummate eloquence.' By that preferment he was, most unhappily for his character, involved in the worst acts of the Scotch administration of Charles II.; a system of misgovernment which has only one parallel in the Eu

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* Nicholsonus junior eloquio usus est fanatico non Romano; et hinc concionabatur potius quam orabat: documentum posteris futurus, illud ad persuadendum aptius quod seculo, licet sordido, et ju dicibus, licet hebetioribus placet. Si autem doctus hic Orationes Posteris transmisisset, Augusti seculum (illi notissimum) imitatus fuisset." -Charac. quorundam ap. Scot. Advocat.'

+ Mem. 324.

Char. Advoc. Qui summâ doctrinâ consummatâque eloquentia causas agebat.'

subscribers might have readily looked for in this second volume; but that manuscript being in the hands of some of the author's relations, who think it not ready for the press until it be carefully revised, they have reckoned it more proper to have it printed by way of Appendix to this second volume, howsoon they have it revised and transcribed by a good hand. '

For many years, the History thus announced was supposed to have been either suffered to perish, or to have been intentionally destroyed. The second Earl of Bute, who supported the government of the House of Hanover, and had married the sister of John Duke of Argyll, the celebrated leader of the Whig party in Scotland, enjoyed, in the year 1722, the estates of Sir George Mackenzie, and probably possessed his papers. It was not unnatural that he should be suspected, at that juncture, of suppressing such a manuscript, more especially as his family, by conforming to the Revolution, and accepting a title from Anne, had rendered themselves peculiarly obnoxious to the adherents of the House of Stuart. Whatever might have been the plausibility of these conjectures, they have been, in part at least, proved to be false, by the discovery of the present manuscript. In the year 1817, a large mass of papers was sold to a shopkeeper in Edinburgh. From these, his curiosity induced him to select a manuscript volume, which appeared to him to be something of an historical nature; and, by another and equal piece of good fortune, he communicated this volume to Dr M'Crie, the well known author of the Lives of Knox and of Melville. On examining this volume, Dr M'Crie discovered that it was the composition of Sir George Mackenzie, and that it must be a portion of that history of his own times, which had been so long a desideratum in Scottish literature. Of this the intrinsic evidence was obvious and complete; and the manuscript, though written by one of the ordinary transcribers of that age, was decisively identified by numerous corrections and additions in the well known handwriting of Sir George Mackenzie himself.

Sir George Mackenzie, the author of these Memoirs, was the grandson of Kenneth, first Lord Mackenzie of Kintail, and the nephew of Colin and George, first and second Earls of Seaforth. He was born at Dundee in 1636; and, after passing through the usual course of education in his own country, he was sent for three years to the University of Bourges, at that

all Jacobites, refused to acknowledge that their dialect was not a national language. The omission of the substantive 'year' between the article and the numeral, is peculiar to Scotland.

time, as he tells us, called the Athens of Lawyers.' The Scotch lawyers, who had no sufficient means of instruction in the Roman law at home, were then accustomed to frequent the University of Bourges, as in later times they usually repaired to Utrecht and Leyden. He was called to the Bar, and began to practise before the Restoration; and, in a sketch of an eminent advocate, has given us a picture (probably heightened by party spirit) of the canting tone which courts then adopted, and to which the most learned advocates were obliged to conform. *

Immediately after the Restoration, he was appointed one of the Justices-Depute,-criminal judges who exercised that jurisdiction, which was soon after vested in five Lords of Session, under the denomination of Commissioners of Justiciary. In 1661, he and his colleagues were, in Parliament ordained to repair, once in the week at least, to Mussellburgh and Dalkeith, and to try and judge such persons as are ther or therabouts dilate of witchcraft; so much more urgent did the Scotch Parliament then deem the punishment of that offence than of any other crime. His name appears in the Parliamentary proceedings as counsel in almost every important cause; and his connexion in that character with the Marquis of Argyll, gives no small importance to a passage which will be presently considered in the present Memoirs, respecting a circumstance in the trial of that Nobleman, which has been the subject of much historical controversy. Between 1663 and 1667, he was knighted. He represented the county of Ross for the four Sessions of the Parliament which was called in 1669. In 1677 he was appointed Lord Advocate, in the room of Sir John Nisbet, who, if we may believe Mackenzie himself, was

a person of deep and universal learning;'+ and of whom, in another place, he says, that in the conduct of causes he displayed the greatest learning and consummate eloquence.' By that preferment he was, most unhappily for his character, involved in the worst acts of the Scotch administration of Charles II.; a system of misgovernment which has only one parallel in the Eu

Nicholsonus junior eloquio usus est fanatico non Romano; et hinc concionabatur potius quam orabat: documentum posteris futurus, illud ad persuadendum aptius quod seculo, licet sordido, et ju dicibus, licet hebetioribus placet. Si autem doctus hic Orationes Posteris transmisisset, Augusti seculum (illi notissimum) imitatus fuisset." -Charac. quorundam ap. Scot. Advocat.'

+ Mem. 324.

Char. Advoc. Qui summâ doctrinâ consummatâque eloquenti causas agebat.'

ropean territories of the British empire. Having betrayed some repugnance to concur in those measures which openly and directly led to the establishment of Popery, he was removed from his office in 1686,-but reinstated in February 1688, when such measures were still more avowedly carried on. At the Revolution, he adhered to the fortunes of his master. Being elected a member of the Convention, he maintained the pretensions of James with courage and ability against Sir John Dalrymple and Sir James Montgomery, who were the most considerable speakers of the Revolutionary party; and, remaining in his place after the imprisonment of Balcarras and the escape of Dundee, he was one of the minority of five in the memorable division on the forfeiture of the Crown. King William had before refused to accede to a proposal of some eager partisans for incapacitating Mackenzie and a few others from all public office, agreeably to the maxims of that wise policy, which uniformly induced that illustrious monarch not to concur in those measures, even of the most just retribution, which in moments of violent change are apt to degenerate into proscription and revenge. It shows considerable firmness in Sir G. Mackenzie to have composed and delivered his inaugural speech on the foundation of the Library of the Faculty of Advocates, at so critical a moment as that in which the Crown + was placed on the head of a new King. When the death of Dundee destroyed the hopes of his party in Scotland, he took refuge at Oxford, the natural asylum of so learned and inveterate a Tory. Under the tolerant government of William, he appears, however, to have enjoyed his ample fortune (the fruit of his professional labours) with perfect comfort as well as security. In Evelyn's Diary of the 9th March 1690, we have the following account of the freedom of Sir George's conversation at the table of a Prelate, who was a zealous supporter of the new Government. • I dined at

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the Bishop of St Asaph's, almoner to the new Queen, with the famous lawyer Sir G. Mackenzie (late Lord Advocate of Scotland), against whom both the Bishop and myself had written and published books, both now most friendly reconciled. He related to us many particulars of Scotland, the pre'sent sad condition of it, the inveterate hatred which the Presbyterians show to the family of the Stewarts, and the exceeding tyranny of those bigots, who acknowledge no superior on

*Balcarras Memoirs, MS.

+ This oration was published at London in 1689, under the following title: Oratio Inauguralis habita Edenburgi Id. Mar. 1689 'a Dom. Georgeo Mackenzco, de Structura Bibliothecæ pure Juri'dicæ,' &c.

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