Excerpt from Tales of a Grandfather: Being the History of Scotland, From the Earliest Period to the Close of the Reign of James the Fifth The present work has been slightly abridged by the omission of detailed descriptions of some of the more barbarous cruelties of those times and other unimportant matter. The story unimpaired has been given in Scott's own language. History forms an important part in the plan of "Classics for Children," as outlined in the Introduction to "The Lady of the Lake." It is not proposed, however, to inflict upon the children any selections from the various epitomes now in general use. We remember too well the sixteen hours per week given to "Weber's Outlines of Universal History" as among the most dreary and unsatisfactory of our school-days. The study of such anatomical manuals is about as well calculated to create an interest in historical research, as the study of "Webster's Unabridged Dictionary" to inspire a love for English literature. The time allotted for school work is not adequate to complete the cycle of all the events since the creation; and, were it otherwise, a great majority of them would have little value as educational forces. It is not necessary that we should know every little circumstance happening between he great epochs. Sequence of time has played too important a part in historical works. We have been so busy counting the milestones of each days march, that we have lost sight of the great armies struggling along the way. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.