St. XXVIII. l. last.—Squanders himself away.
See the note in Stanza VII. l. 14.—Towards the close of the action, Sir A. Wellesley was struck by two balls, (but without injury,) and two of his aid-de-camps were wounded at his side. On this occasion his personal exertions and peril seemed necessary to retrieve the victory.
St. XXIX. l. 2.—A gallant legion.
The 48th regiment, by whose coolness and courage (and both were severely tried) the Guards were enabled to form again. Col. Donellan was unfortunately severely wounded at the head of this gallant corps. 1809.
This wound was mortal. This good and gallant man now ‘sleeps the slumber of the brave.’ 1810.
St. XXX. l. 7.—He vainly toils and dies.
I have lately observed that this line is almost literally borrowed from a description of circumstances nearly similar in ‘Marmion.’
‘While yet on Flodden side,
‘Afar, the royal standard flies,
‘And round it toils, and bleeds, and dies,
‘Our Caledonian pride.’—Cant. IV. St. XXXIII.
I have so many other and greater obligations to the author of ‘Marmion,’ that I should hardly have thought it worth while to notice this involuntary plagiarism, but that, by doing so, I obtain an opportunity of publicly acknowledging these obligations, and of expressing my humble, but most sincere admiration of the vigour, originality, and splendour, which distinguish, from all the other works of our day, the delightful poems of Mr. Scott.
I have just noticed also, that the second line of the XIXth Stanza is copied verbatim from Marmion.