Psalms of Scotland
Sta.—As a Scot I have been greatly moved by Professor John Baillie's tribute to the metrical psalms in his review of Dr. Millar Patrick's book on that subject. It is. as he says, hardly possible to exaggerate the hold which the metrical psalms have upon the affections of Scots folk. It is, indeed, true that, when a Scot in exile listens to a broadcast service from the homeland, it is the singing of the psalms—of course to the beautiful old tunes—that most deeply moves him. The metrical psalms arc a part of the Scottish heritage which, particularly in these unsettling days, Scots would do well to treasure. Yet, as a very frequent listener, I wonder whether Scots at home are as devoted to the metrical psalms as, I feel, they should be. Few broadcast services nowadays contain more than one of these psalms. I heard a service from Edinburgh the other day which ignored them altogether. That I think deplorable. I have nothing to say against hymns, though many of them do not seem suited to the congregational singing which has been so notable a part of Scottish services. There are psalms, on the other hand, which are intimately bound up with Scottish history and reflect the spirit of the people in their finest and most characteristic moods.—Yours faithfully,
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