“Naturally a cynic, Lockhart was latterly prone to irritation; he possessed that unhappy temperament which magnifies trifles and distorts judgment. His perversity is in a measure illustrated by his harsh treatment of James Hogg; it was wholly unexpected by the Shepherd’s family, who supplied him with papers, and to whom his visits had (as Mrs. Hogg assured me) been frequent and cordial. But Archibald Constable and the brothers Ballantyne he cruelly wronged. By Sir Walter Scott they were loved and trusted; and his biographer had no cause to heap censures on their memory. That Sir Walter’s character might appear bright and pure, it was unnecessary that his associates should be charged with baseness. “The detractor succeeds at the outset. Lockhart, who, as has been shown by an unprejudiced witness, Mrs. Gordon, in the life of her father (Christopher North), was not unwilling to inflict pain, succeeded in deeply wounding the families of Constable and the Ballantynes. But the day of reparation came. The Ballantynes were vindicated at once, and the censorious vehemence with which Lockhart returned to the charge invoked wide disapproval. In 1873 appeared a memoir of Archibald Constable by his son; in the third volume of that work the great bookseller obtains full and complete exculpation.”[41] Sir Walter Scott contributed not only capital to the firm, but great literary influence, which attracted a copious supply of work to the Ballantyne Press; yet the other partners were not very far behind him in their influence upon the business. In addition to some capital, James Ballantyne brought what in many ways was as important, experience in literary matters and great talent as a practical printer, while John’s pleasant manners and social accomplishments must have gained not a few customers for the house. It cannot be denied that Sir Walter had a chief share in maintaining the firm, for he always insisted that his own works should be printed there, no matter who the publishers were; but he was also largely responsible for the collapse, owing to those unsuccessful publications previously referred to, which through his influence had been printed by the firm. Moreover, his excessive desire for family aggrandisement and his profuse baronial hospitality were extremely unfortunate for all concerned; and before the collapse came he had spent £29,000 on land alone, while his expenditure on house and grounds was estimated at £76,000.