Waverley | Page 2

H. Macbeth Raeburn
DISBANDED----Painted by John Pettie, Etched by F. Huth
BAILIE MACWHEEBLE----Painted by J. Lauder, Etched by H. Lefort
"LADY WAUVERLEY! TEN THOUSAND A YEAR!"----Etching by
Cruickshank
WAVERLEY'S LAST VISIT TO FLORA MAC-IVOR----Painted by
Herdman
DOUNE CASTLE (FROM THE TEITH)----Etched by John Andrew
and Son

EDITOR'S NOTE.
The purpose of the added matter in this edition of the Waverley
Novels--a reprint of the magnum opus of 1829-1832--is to give to the
stories their historical setting, by stating the circumstances in which
they were composed and made their first appearance.
Sir Walter's own delightful Introductions, written hastily, as Lockhart
says, and with a failing memory, have occasionally been corrected by
Lockhart himself. His "Life of Scott" must always be our first and best
source, but fragments of information may be gleaned from Sir Walter's
unpublished correspondence.
The Editor owes to the kindness of Mrs. Maxwell Scott permission to
examine the twenty-four large volumes of letters to Sir Walter, and

some other manuscripts, which are preserved at Abbotsford. These
yield but little of contemporary criticism or remark, as is natural, for
Scott shared his secret with few, and most topics were more grateful to
him than his own writings. Lockhart left little for his successors to do,
and the more any one studies the Abbotsford manuscripts, the more
must he admire the industry and tact of Scott's biographer.
The Editor has also put together some examples of contemporary
published criticism which it is now not uninteresting to glance over. In
selecting these he has been aided by the kindness of Mrs. Ogilbie. From
the Abbotsford manuscripts and other sources he has added notes on
points which have become obscure by lapse of time. He has especially
to thank, for their courteous and ready assistance, Lady Napier and
Ettrick, who lent him Sir Walter's letters to her kinswoman, the
Marchioness of Abercorn; Mr. David Douglas, the editor and publisher
of Scott's "Journal," who has generously given the help of his
antiquarian knowledge; and Mr. David MacRitchie, who permitted him
to use the corrected proofs of "Redgauntlet."
ANDREW LANG

ADVERTISEMENT TO THE WAVERLEY NOVELS
It has been the occasional occupation of the Author of Waverley, for
several years past, to revise and correct the voluminous series of
Novels which pass under that name, in order that, if they should ever
appear as his avowed productions, he might render them in some
degree deserving of a continuance of the public favour with which they
have been honoured ever since their first appearance. For a long period,
however, it seemed likely that the improved and illustrated edition
which he meditated would be a posthumous publication. But the course
of the events which occasioned the disclosure of the Author's name
having, in a great measure, restored to him a sort of parental control
over these Works, he is naturally induced to give them to the press in a
corrected, and, he hopes, an improved form, while life and health
permit the task of revising and illustrating them. Such being his

purpose, it is necessary to say a few words on the plan of the proposed
Edition.
In stating it to be revised and corrected, it is not to be inferred that any
attempt is made to alter the tenor of the stories, the character of the
actors, or the spirit of the dialogue. There is no doubt ample room for
emendation in all these points,--but where the tree falls it must lie. Any
attempt to obviate criticism, however just, by altering a work already in
the hands of the public is generally unsuccessful. In the most
improbable fiction, the reader still desires some air of vraisemblance,
and does not relish that the incidents of a tale familiar to him should be
altered to suit the taste of critics, or the caprice of the Author himself.
This process of feeling is so natural, that it may be observed even in
children, who cannot endure that a nursery story should be repeated to
them differently from the manner in which it was first told.
But without altering, in the slightest degree, either the story or the
mode of telling it, the Author has taken this opportunity to correct
errors of the press and slips of the pen. That such should exist cannot
be wondered at, when it is considered that the Publishers found it their
interest to hurry through the press a succession of the early editions of
the various Novels, and that the Author had not the usual opportunity
of revision. It is hoped that the present edition will be found free from
errors of that accidental kind.
The Author has also ventured to make some emendations of a different
character, which, without being such apparent deviations from the
original stories as to disturb the reader's old