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

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HIS BEQUEST TO S. ANDREW'S. 137
He also left^ a larjie and valuable library- to his alma mater, S. rxouard'a Part ir.
College, in the University of S. Amlrew's, a bequest wliicli is the subject of a ^'^^P- '"•
letter dated I'lt July 1G79 and addressed by the principal and professors of that
institution to his nepiiew, Lord Cosford. This letter is as follows'' :
Mny it please your Lni'ilsliip
Tliougli the Hector of tlii.s Uiiiver.sily hath in name thereof ftcknnwledircd tlifl eitemplar
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muuiKcence of yo'' I oji's mo-t learnoil and inoit ju-.tlie honoured uncle sir Jdin W edderburn of
ryer Worthie mein.irie and yo"- L.ip's singular J ustiee and (lenerosity fultillini,' lii« piou.s and prurient
will and the sense the Univeisity hath of the ol)li);aUims they are under to vou l-op'^ honourahlo
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Fauiilie for these and umuy otlier reasons yet he hath not therel.y eitlicr taken olV ur les^neil the
particular oliligation that lye3 upon us to a gratefuU resentment of the spo i.dl favour done to
S. Lesnord's Colledge to which the noble rronati..n is made We canni>t but lu km.wli-.lt'e it the
greatest of that nature tliat ever hath been made by anyone m-iu to anv CoUeilge in the kingdome
And yet we must in Justice to him say that we have no more but hinisclf re-i.ired with this disadvantage
that the t.'oUedge now only jxissesseth in many dead volumes what it enjoved in "no
living man when he in his younger years ailonicil his proies.-.ion therein bv his singular learning
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pietie prudence and his other eminent euilowments whereby he wius also' an ornament to tliis
Universitie as he halh ever since been an honour t" his countrie. As he spent his life in niakiii"
others live so at his death he has not only cnntribnte his greatest endejivours to re.-toro his
languishing Jlother to that vigour which may enable her to biing forth such Children aa
njay iu some measure resemble him but also given su great an esam]i|e as (we wish) niav be n.s
much imitated as tis admired for which and for yoi" l.op's kindness and gencrositie ho frei|'uenllio
and signallie exjaest to our Societie and ]iarticularlie in yo^ Lu\n geneious care to make his pious
endeavour effectual for so good and Gieata desitrn we judge ourselves olili;;ed n|>.iu all occisions to
make most hou'^''* meution as our greatest Benefactor and cif yo' Loji as the greatest promoter of
our interests And also to leave upon record to those who shall come after n^ such a testimordal
as may oblige this Societie iu all tyme coming to pay yo'' Lops Kamilie Ibat dolifull respirt which
itowea to the kindest the justest ami most generous of their KriemU. A.^ the Hector in the name
of the Universitie hath so we for S. l.eanord's CoUed'^e do warraud vo'' Lop to ilelyver the Honks
to our well beloved Brother Mr. Davi 1 Anderson whose Itecci|/t of them. ec.nf"rme to a uitalogue
subscribed by yo'' Lop, shall be an obligation ou us to give your Lop a discharge tliereof when you
shall be ])leased to iisk
for it.
If the length of this be ane indecencie we entreat that our zeal may excuse us nml that yo'
Lop may believe that herein is exprest but a verie .small [>art of tlie grateful rcsentuicnt which in
due to yo'' Lo,' fioui
'Vo' Lop's most oblidgcd mtst humble and most faithful! servants
Alex'' Cockburne 1*. .^^n'.es Wccntes
Gilb. Crokatt
AL .Skene.
A. Cuuniughauic
Facsiuiiles of two of Sir John's signatures will be found ii[i]i. p. .">2 (.f vol. ii.
(S.'W. 2-23, 249). Tl.ere is a portrait "of him by Janiiesou' at .Meredith in the
possession of Sir AVilliam 'Wedderburn, a modem copy of which is in my pos-scssion.
A reproduction of the picture is given opposite.
Of the danohtcrs of Kingenuie and Helen Ramsay, of whom I have yet to give an
account,^
' It would thus appe.ar that he left a will, but I have not fouml any record of the .iKumrnt.
* " Wien at S. Andrew's .some y.ars since (s.iys J W. in his M.S.) I endeavoured t.. ..btain a Hi;lit ..f K.me
of the liookfi thus bequeathed, but in vain. A perfect i)arity i>f dirt an.l di» irr.iy pn-vmled llin.ugli.
out ; one fourth of the books were absent: no ciUilogue e.xistcd ; tlie siielves and lb«.r wrn- nithy ;
portraits, some of them good, of various di.^tingui.-heil per.-ons connected witli tin- ei.|:ii;i werr
banished to the staircase, where two or three of the ]>aintings hung in Uitti'rs. Such i» one dl rf»ult
among nmnv of conveituig wli.at was a distinguished seat of learning into .-v winnmry f"r cli.wn^."
do not know to what change of circumstances J.U'.'s last sentence refem. Mr. J. M.iiiland
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Anderson writes to me (19 Jan. lbS2) that the bocks left by Sir .lohn wore tran.ferrr.1 on th"
di.s.solutiou of S. Leonard's College, in the mid.dle of the last century, to the gencn.1 umicn.ily
library, from the otlier volumes in which they are not now distinu'uish.ii.le.
* Quoted from a copv of the original at ritfirrane as cited in the lirnfil.iiical Arr.nint nf hn>l hju-ik.
bnrow/h (1!1. 81"). It is also given at length, with sli-htly dilferent s|K-;lini,Mn |)..ui:l.w y/..r.,«a.,,
(p. .^79), under the account of Sir John. The abbrevi..tion " I-'l'" )- "' ''.j"^;'- ''" " '•">I-I"P.
while the word "resentment" is used to signify -reciprocal feeling,' htmiily " ir^-nt.iorut. »,
Douglas siicUs it.
'f I 1 I
* So it is said, but Jamieson died in 1641 when Sir John would be in his f..rly-hfih )r,-r, i.i..l ibr [..rtrut
gives the impression of a somewliat oliler man.
. » In the Ocne„lo,,ic„l Accunt of L.nl Louqhho,-ou;,h (B1.P.81) Kingenme - daiKblm. «rr iMvr., .. lhr«, :
1. Klii^ibetii ; 2. Agnes (said to have married Andrew Halyburton .,i Ua.k ;
»nd .1. .M..i-U.rnr rr(er-n.-B
behig made to Mackenzie's Precedency. Cap. S, ].. iti, although 1 can ll.e.,- luel ....tbn,,- ..„ ii.r .„(.,^t.
-LW. in his printed memoir gives a like list, but nd.ls a lourth .,.>UL:l.l.-r, K..|ce put- two d.,uk-bl^r.-J..,rt u, u...»»
Davidson, and Katharine m. William Fergnson. The li.t. g.ven ... the text. i.. "''"•';>"•;"'' •'-;"•
correct, while those iu the Oenealogital Account and in J. W.s pru.lc^l mcuiou- .ud M.>. .re Uu of rrr.^