No wonder, then, that I was deeply
touched by the kindness with which the Public and the Press received
the story.
One critic did me the honour of remarking upon what he called the
'absolute newness of the plot and incidents of _Aylwin_.' He
seems to have forgotten, however, that one incident--the most daring
incident in the book--that of the rifling of a grave for treasure
--is not new: it will at once remind folk-lorists of certain
practices charged against our old Norse invaders. And students of
Celtic and Gaelic literature are familiar with the same idea. Quite,
lately, indeed, Mr. Alfred Nutt, in his analysis of the Gaelic
_Agallamh na Senorach_, or 'Colloquy of the Elders,' has made
some interesting remarks upon the subject.
As far as I remember, the only objection made by the critics to
_Aylwin_ was that I had imported into a story written for
popular acceptance too many speculations and breedings upon the
gravest of all subjects--the subject of love at struggle with death.
My answer to this is that although it did win a great popular
acceptance I never expected it to do so.
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