 who remember that gentleman will readily grant, that, with general
talents at least equal to those of his elder brother, he added a power of social
humour, and a deep insight into human character, which rendered him an
universally delightful member of society, and that the habit of composition
alone was wanting to render him equally successful as a writer. The Author of
Waverley was so persuaded of the truth of this, that he warmly pressed his
brother to make such an experiment, and willingly undertook all the trouble of
correcting and superintending the press. Mr. Thomas Scott seemed at first very
well disposed to embrace the proposal, and had even fixed on a subject and a
hero. The latter was a person well known to both of us in our boyish years, from
having displayed some strong traits of character. Mr. T. Scott had determined to
represent his youthful acquaintance as emigrating to America, and encountering
the dangers and hardships of the New World, with the same dauntless spirit which
he had displayed when a boy in his native country. Mr. Scott would probably have
been highly successful, being familiarly acquainted with the manners of the
native Indians, of the old French settlers in Canada, and of the Brulés or
Woodsmen, and having the power of observing with accuracy what, I have no doubt,
he could have sketched with force and expression. In short, the Author believes
his brother would have made himself distinguished in that striking field, in
which, since that period, Mr. Cooper has achieved so many triumphs. But Mr. T.
Scott was already affected by bad health, which wholly unfitted him for literary
labour, even if he could have reconciled his patience to the task. He never, I
believe, wrote a single line of the projected work; and I only have the
melancholy pleasure of preserving in the Appendix,* the simple anecdote on which
he proposed to found it.
    To this I may add, I can easily conceive that there may have been
circumstances which gave a colour to the general report of my brother being
interested in these works; and in particular that it might derive strength from
my having occasion to remit to him, in consequence of certain family
transactions, some considerable sums of money about that period. To which it is
to be added, that if any person chanced to evince particular curiosity on such a
subject, my brother was likely enough to divert himself with practising on their
credulity.
    It may be mentioned, that while the paternity of these Novels was from time
to time warmly disputed in Britain, the foreign booksellers expressed no
hesitation on the
