Dr Alexander Adam, engraved by Samuel Freeman after Sir Henry Raeburn (1835)

From: Robert Chambers (ed.), A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Scotsmen, vol. I (Glasgow: Blackie. 1835)

Alexander Adam (1741-1809) was Rector of the High School of Edinburgh where Sir Walter Scott was educated from 1779 to 1783. One of the most innovative educators of his age, he sought to instill in his pupils not only a grasp of grammar but a sensitivity to literary language. With Adam's encouragement, the young Scott translated Horace and Virgil into English verse and made his first attempts at original composition. The original portrait was painted by Raeburn ca. 1808.