Unseemly meaning
Sir: In his review of Mr J.I.M. Stewart's autobiography (Books, 7 November), Pro- fessor Peter Levi suggests that Mr Stewart made an 'odd mistake' when he referred to A.H. Clough's poem `The Bothie of Toper na Fuosich', instead of `Tober na Vuolich'. In fact, Mr Stewart was right. 'Toper na Fuosich' was Clough's original title, to be found in the poem's first edition. Unfortu- nately, and unknown to poor Clough, the Gaelic name carries `an unseemly mean- ing'; it has been conjectured that the innocent Sassenach poet had been the victim of 'some very unscrupulous Gaelic wit'. Clough, as one would expect of such a sensitive Victorian, was deeply upset, when he discovered this unkind jest, and changed the title accordingly — to some- thing, it would seem, more or less con- cocted ad hoc by himself.
Patrick Cruttwell
Highsett, Hills Road, Cambridge
Previous page
