To Lord Hailes, from Aberdeen He does not know what the reception of the 'Dissertations' will have, but Hailes's and Mercer's approval will count more. He encloses a copy of son's first attempts in Latin poetry - three stanzas from The Minstrel, and 'On a Rock by Seas Surrounded': English verses with Latin translation, written out in Beatties' hand. 23 June 1783