| Administrative History | John Pinkerton [1758-1826] historian and ballad collector. He introduced himself to Beattie in 1775 by sending a copy of his poem 'Craiggmillar Castle', which he wanted to dedicate to Beattie. Beattie made detailed suggestions for improving it, and showed commendable toleration of Pinkerton's often rather brash and presumptuous letters. At Pinkerton's request he even included a puff for Pinkerton's Rimes (London, 1781) in Dissertations Moral and Critical |