Virginia Advocate

The Scotch Novels.—It is not generally known, that none of the parties engaged in the production of these immortal works—not even their distinguished author—at first anticipated their astonishing success; or rather, they all feared that Waverly might prove a failure. Waverly was written about the period when the author's poetical fame was beginning to decline: and it lay half printed for about two years in the warehouse of Messrs. Ballantyne & Co. in whose bookselling trade Mr. Scott was said to be interested as a partner. Upon the failure of Mr. Ballantyne, part of his stock was transferred to Mr. Constable; but even that sagacious bookseller demurred to the purchase of the half printed Waverly. At last, however, the novel was completed, and appeared. Its success was equally sudden and surprising, and its anonymous author received all the honors of a first rate novelist, long before either Review or Magazine had proclaimed to the world that such a mighty genius had arisen.—London Weekly Review.