Fergusson, Robert

Robert (1750-1774), a Scottish poet. He lived in Edinburgh. He was a scholar of St. Andrew's University, and later held a clerkship in his native town. He led a brief, convivial life, but died in deep melancholy. He was a favorite of society. He wrote Lowland Scots verse with facility, and is considered a forerunner of Burns. Burns fully acknowledged his indebtedness and raised a memorial stone in the old Canongate above the remains of "his elder brother in the Muses."