Time and circumstances change the character of nations and the fate of
cities; and it is some pride to a Scotchman to reflect that the
independent and manly character of a country, willing to entrust its own
protection to the arms of its children, after having been obscured for
half a century, has, during the course of his own lifetime, recovered its
lustre.
Other illustrations of Waverley will be found in the Notes at the foot of
the pages to which they belong. Those which appeared too long to be so
placed are given at the end of the chapters to which they severally
relate. [Footnote: In this edition at the end of the several volumes.]
PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION
To this slight attempt at a sketch of ancient Scottish manners the public
have been more favourable than the Author durst have hoped or expected.
He has heard, with a mixture of satisfaction and humility, his work
ascribed to more than one respectable name. Considerations, which seem
weighty in his particular situation, prevent his releasing those
gentlemen from suspicion by placing his own name in the title-page; so
that, for the present at least, it must remain uncertain whether Waverley
be the work of a poet or a critic, a lawyer or a clergyman, or whether
the writer, to use Mrs.
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