Janet Little facts for kids

Janet Little, who was also known as Janet Richmond, was a Scottish poet. She lived from 1759 to 1813. People sometimes called her The Scotch Milkmaid. She wrote her poems in the Scots language, which is a language spoken in Scotland.

About Janet Little

Janet Little was born in a place called Ecclefechan. She received a "common education," which means she went to a regular school. She also worked as an assistant to local church leaders. This job allowed her to read and write a lot, which she loved to do. By the 1780s, she became known as a "rustic poetess." This meant she was a poet from the countryside.

Her Connection to Robert Burns

Janet's boss, Mrs. Frances Dunlop, thought Janet's poems were very good. She told the famous poet Robert Burns about them. At first, Burns was careful because many people were trying to copy his style, and most were not very good. But later, he helped Mrs. Dunlop get Janet's poems published.

Janet worked in the dairy of Mrs. Dunlop's daughter. This was when her daughter was renting Loudoun Castle near Galston. In 1792, Janet published a small book of her poems called 'The Poetical Works of Janet Little, The Scotch Milkmaid'. Unlike some other poets, her book was a big success! Many people signed up to buy it before it was even printed, thanks to Mrs. Dunlop's help. This made her book a financial success.

Later Life and Family

Besides Robert Burns and Mrs. Dunlop, another important person who supported Janet was James Boswell. He was a famous writer. Around the early 1790s, Janet married John Richmond. He was a widower, meaning his first wife had died, and he was more than eighteen years older than her. Janet kept writing poems until she passed away in 1813. She was buried at Loudoun Kirk, which is near Loudoun Castle.

Trying to Meet Robert Burns

In 1789, Janet Little wrote a letter to Robert Burns. She told him that she really liked his poems. She also said she felt a special connection to him because of his writing.

In her letter, she wrote: "I hope you will forgive me for being so bold. My hand shakes as I write to you. I know I might not be worthy of what I want most, which is your kindness and friendship. But I hope you will be generous and kind enough not to make fun of what I'm doing. I will sign my name." She added a note: "P.S. If you would be kind enough to write me a few lines, I would be very grateful."

We don't know for sure if Burns wrote back to her. However, Janet made a long trip to visit Burns at his Ellisland Farm. But when she got there, he was away working as a tax collector. Then she found out he had fallen from his horse and broken his arm. Burns did mention her in a letter to Frances Dunlop. He said Janet's letter was "very clever, but also modest."

Her Poems

Janet Little wrote many poems. Here are some of her well-known ones:

• 'On a Visit to Mr. Burns' (written in 1791)
• 'An Epistle to a Lady'
• 'Given to A Lady Who Asked me to Write a Poem' (written in 1792)
• 'On Halloween' (written in 1792)
• 'To My Aunty'
• 'Upon a Young Lady's Breaking a Looking Glass'

See Also

• List of 18th-century British working-class writers