Maria Ridoi-ll, the Friend of Blrns. 51 



Thus ends my story of Maria Riddell, the friend of Burns. 

 Of lier it has been stated by Dr. James Currie,^^^ a kindlier 

 critic than " the Scottish Walpole " : — " The graces of her 

 person were only equalled by the singular endowments of her 

 mind, and her poetical talents rendered her an interesting 

 friend to Burns, in a part of the world where he was in a great 

 measure excluded from the sweet intercourse of literary 

 society. " 



APPENDIX. A 



Publications bv Maria Riddell. 



Voyages j to the / Madeira, / and / Leeward Caribbean 

 Isles : I with / Sketches / o/ the / Natural History of these 



Islands. / By Maria R / Edinburgh : / printed 



for Peter Hill, / and / T. Cadell. London, / i-jg2. i vol. (6f 

 by Jfl in. cut), pp. ix. + 105. 



Voyages / to the / Madeira, j and j Leeward Caribbean 

 Isles : / with / Sketches / of the / Natural History of these 



Islands, j By Maria R / Salem : / Printed by N. 



Coverly, jun : / 1802. i vol. (6f by 4^ in. uncut), pp. v. +75. 



Essay on Robert Burns, dated August 7th, 1796, and 

 commencing " The attention of the public seems to be much 

 occupied at present with the loss it has recently sustained in 



the death of the Caledonian poet Robert Burns "in 



the Dumfries Weekly Journal.^^ 



Maria Riddell also contributed the following poems to 

 The Metrical Miscellany^^ (1802, and second edition 1803). 



105 The Tt'orks of Rohfii Burns ... by Dr. James Cinrie. vol. 

 ii. (18'20). p. 440. 



106 This first appeared in the Dumfries Weekly Jouniul. from 

 which it was copied into the Edinburgh newspapers, and into 

 variouf! other i)eriodical publications. (See footnote 75.) 



10^ Amongst other contributors were: Hon. Henry P]rskine. 

 William Roscoe ; Dr. Erasmus Darwin; Georgina. Duchess of Devon- 

 shire; R. R. Sheridan; Mrs. Barbauld; T. J. Mathias ; Richard 

 Cumberland; Right Hon. C. J. Fox ; Lord Palmerston ; etc., etc. 



