Excerpt from The Bards of Galloway: A Collection of Poems, Songs, Ballads, &C, It is remarkable, however, that Galloway, unlike most other counties in Scotland, has not been fertile in producing the true sons of poetry and song, its barrenness in that respect having been remarked upon by almost every one whose attention has been turned to the subject. On the long list of minor minstrels and verse writers, which it has produced, there are very few names - scarce half-a-dozen - whose poetic fame entitle them to rank among the sons of immortal verse. In a district so well-fitted to kindle the poet's eye and heart, this is rather unaccountable. The customs, amusements, and poetic superstitions and beliefs of the peasantry, and the varied character of its scenery - its picturesque glens and romantic streams, the sylvan beauty of its woods and its wild mountainous regions and pastoral hills, possess all the elements of inspiration. In Galloway romance and tradition are not wanting as themes worthy of the Muse, and the venerable relics of antiquity with which its valleys are studded, by their solemn magnificence and historical interest, ought to have fanned the ¿ame of true poetic genius.The graceful charms Of the Galloway lasses should also have been as potent in inspiring the highest ¿ights of the Muse, and in prompting the true lyric of love, as those Of Ayrshire and the neighbouring shires that have produced such a noble muster roll of singers as Burns, Tannahill, Motherwell, Wilson.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully, any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.