Wedderburn book; a history of the Wedderburns in ... - waughfamily.ca

THE WEDDEllBURN BOOK.
Preface, published State Papers, a complete catalogue of the material will.s recorded
at Somerset House, and the results of a search at the Heralds' Colle"-e.
I
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have, however, in addition to the above, also examined the modem
: registers of births, deaths, and marriages, both in Edinburgii and in London,
together with some of the records at the India Office, and a few parish
registers in England. A large number of printed volumes have also been
consulted, as for instance many of the cliartularics of the Scottish
mona-steries, edited by the Maitland or liannatyne Clubs ;
the histories of
great Scotch houses, by Sir William Fraser, and numerous other books. The
material so supplied has been embodied in the first, but has not been
separately piinted in the second volume, partly because of its fragmentary
nature, and partly because much of it was not obtained until after the
second volume had passed through the press, that portion of the work
having in fact been almost entirely printed before any of the Hrst volume
had been set up in type.
The book in fact may be said to have been to a large extent written
and printed in the reverse order to that in which it is pre.-cnted to the
reader. The first thing was to collect the evidence, the next to sekct antory I have
endeavoured to refer to or quote the authority for each statement
made, and though I have not despised tradition I have never consciunsiv
confused it with proved fact. But such a plan, though scii'utitic,
involves the necessary tediousness of laboured proof, and much of Volume i.,
though it will, I hope, bear close examination as a work of ridVrenct; ttt to
particular individuals or events, is unavoidably far from rcadalile. I linvc,
therefore, added an introduction, in which, after dealing with Mune giTK-rni
matters, I have summed up the main contents of the [)iigi-s wiiieli follow
it. This course means, no doubt, considerable repetition, l>cciiuse the same
fact is thus sometimes stated three times over, first iu the intKJ.luction, next
in the detailed history, and lastly in the abstract of .some ilocutiR'iit given
in the second volume ; but at the same time it has the ailvaiitagu of
providing first a guide to and a summary of the main contents of the hook ;
then a history of the family, shewn to be authentic; and, lastly, wliut .-^eeiM.i
to me essential, the actual evidence on which the history n-.stx, and liy
means of which the reader may gauge the accuracy of any statements which
seem to him doubtful.
The order in which the book has thus been written an.l printed
accounts for my having in some instances corrected in the tir>t volume homo
eiror or omission of the second. A little additional matt.T has aKo gone on
reaching me from time to time up to the last moment of corjij.i.-tion. Thi.s
is embodied in the additions and corrections at the clo.^e ot Volume i. I
much regret that there should be so many of the latter, but the con-.clion
of the press in such a work as the present is very dilhculi.^ In r.gard to
In particular I regret the incomplete and incorrect account of the family of I~*'^^:^ C^-Ir:'. !«nu
Marindin) on y. 309. The account was compiled from pnnlcl U,.U .t ,r..,r^^ ..r.l ^a„
personal information, and alter being set up in type was sent to .i i.mi--r .1 .... .....i.y I «•
any corrections and additions. After waiting for tome time without rrp,y. 1 »«-..i.^. iJ..i^i.^
were none of importance, and piB.ed the sheet for press. .Sj«,n Mlcr, i.u. ••^ -*" ' --^^'^
that the delHV in answering had been due to abseuce abroa