On the occasion of George Gilfillan's funeral at Balgay Cemetery in Dundee, the coffin was followed by a procession some two miles in length. The tribute was primarily being paid to a clergyman who had been for many years a major influence in the United Presbyterian Church in Scotland and a distinguished member of the local community; Gilfillan's literary influence, however, was also considerable and not wholly incommensurate with such an occasion. He was the author of widely read biographies of Sir Walter Scott and Robert Burns. He was the editor of one of the Victorian age's most popular editions of the major and some minor British poets. He was largely responsible for bringing to public attention the work of two young poets who were to become immensely fashionable, Sydney Dobell and Alexander Smith. His series of essays, known as "Literary Portraits," ensured that, in the words of...