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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
+Scotland Volume 17, by Alexander Leighton
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland Volume 17
+
+Author: Alexander Leighton
+
+Release Date: October 19, 2008 [EBook #26962]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILSON'S TALES OF THE BORDERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Clarke, Mark H Van Tuyl and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+  Wilson's
+  Tales of the Borders
+  AND OF SCOTLAND.
+
+  HISTORICAL, TRADITIONARY, & IMAGINATIVE,
+
+  WITH A GLOSSARY.
+
+  REVISED BY
+
+  ALEXANDER LEIGHTON,
+
+  _One of the Original Editors and Contributors_.
+
+  VOL. XVII.
+
+  LONDON
+
+  WALTER SCOTT, 14 PATERNOSTER SQUARE,
+  AND NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE.
+
+  1884.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+                                                                  Page
+  ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE, (_John Mackay Wilson_),                  1
+
+  HOGMANAY; OR, THE LADY OF BALOOCHGRAY, (_Alexander Leighton_),    33
+
+  GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT, (_Professor Thomas Gillespie_)--
+
+      X. SERGEANT WILSON,                                           65
+
+      XI. HELEN PALMER,                                             72
+
+      XII. THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR,                           80
+
+      XIII. PORTER'S HOLE,                                          92
+
+  THE RECLUSE, (_Alexander Campbell_),                              95
+
+  A HIGHLAND TRADITION, (_Alexander Campbell_),                    125
+
+  THE SURGEON'S TALES, (_Alexander Leighton_)--
+
+      THE BEREAVED,                                                129
+
+      THE CONDEMNED,                                               145
+
+  THE UNBIDDEN GUEST, (_John Mackay Wilson_),                      161
+
+  THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER, (_John M. Wilson_),      170
+
+  TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE, (_Matthew Forster Conolly_)--
+
+      THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB,              194
+
+      STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM,            220
+
+  A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR, (_John Howell_),                        237
+
+  HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK, (_Alexander Leighton_),        269
+
+
+
+
+WILSON'S
+
+TALES OF THE BORDERS,
+
+AND OF SCOTLAND.
+
+
+
+
+ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE.
+
+A TALE OF THE FALSE ALARM.
+
+
+Ye have heard of the false alarm, (said Roger Goldie,) which, for the space
+of wellnigh four and twenty hours, filled the counties upon the Border with
+exceeding great consternation, and at the same time called forth an example
+of general and devoted heroism, and love of country, such as is nowhere
+recorded in the annals of any nation upon the face of the globe. Good cause
+have I to remember it; and were I to live a thousand years, it never would
+be effaced from my recollection. What first gave rise to the alarm, I have
+not been able clearly to ascertain unto this day. There was a house-heating
+up beside Preston, with feasting and dancing; and a great light, like that
+of a flambeau, proceeded from the onstead. Now, some say that the man that
+kept the beacon on Hownamlaw, mistook the light for the signal on Dunselaw;
+and the man at Dunselaw, in his turn, seeing Hownam flare up, lighted his
+fires also, and speedily the red burning alphabet of war blazed on every
+hill top--a spirit seemed to fly from mountain to mountain, touching their
+summits with fire, and writing in the flame the word--_invasion!_ Others
+say that it arose from the individual who kept watch at Hume Castle being
+deceived by an accidental fire over in Northumberland; and a very general
+supposition is, that it arose from a feint on the part of a great
+sea-admiral, which he made in order to try the courage and loyalty of the
+nation. To the last report, however, I attach no credit. The fable informs
+us, that the shepherd laddie lost his sheep, because he cried, "The wolf!"
+when there was no wolf at hand; and it would have been policy similar to
+his, to have cried, "_An invasion!_" when there was no invasion. Neither
+nations nor individuals like such practical jokes. It is also certain that
+the alarm was not first given by the beacons on the sea-coast; and there
+can be no doubt that the mistake originated either at Hownamlaw or Hume
+Castle.
+
+I recollect it was in the beginning of February 1804. I occupied a house
+then about half a mile out of Dunse, and lived comfortably, and I will say
+contentedly, on the interest of sixteen hundred pounds which I had invested
+in the funds; and it required but little discrimination to foresee, that,
+if the French fairly got a footing in our country, funded property would
+not be worth an old song. I could at all times have risked my life in
+defence of my native land, for the love I bore it; though you will perceive
+that I had a double motive to do so; and the more particularly, as, out of
+the interest of my funded capital, I maintained in competence an
+affectionate wife and a dutiful son--our only child. The name of my wife
+was Agnes, and the name of my son--who, at the time of the alarm, was
+sixteen--was Robert. Upon their account it often caused me great
+uneasiness, when I read and heard of the victories and the threatenings of
+the terrible Corsican. I sometimes dreamed that he had marched a mighty
+army on a bridge of boats across the straits of Dover, and that he had not
+only seized my sixteen hundred pounds, but drawn my son, my only son,
+Robie, as a conscript, to fight against his own natural and lawful country,
+and, perhaps, to shoot his father! I therefore, as in duty bound, as a true
+and loyal subject, had enrolled myself in the Dunse volunteers. Some joined
+the volunteers to escape being drawn for the militia, but I could give my
+solemn affidavit, that I had no motive but the defence of my country--and
+my property, which, as I have said, was a double inducement.
+
+I did not make a distinguished figure in the corps, for my stature did not
+exceed five feet two inches. But although my body was small, no man was
+more punctual on the parade; and I will affirm, without vanity, none more
+active, or had a bolder heart. It always appeared to me to be the height of
+folly to refuse to admit a man into a regiment, because nature had not
+formed him a giant. The little man is not so apt to shoot over the head of
+an enemy, and he runs less risk of being shot himself--two things very
+necessary to be considered in a battle; and were I a general, I would have
+a regiment where five feet two should be the maximum height even for the
+grenadier company.
+
+But, as I was saying, it was early in the February of 1804, on the second
+night, if I recollect aright--I had been an hour abed, and was lying about
+three parts asleep, when I was started with a sort of bum, bumming, like
+the beating of a drum. I thought also that I heard people running along the
+road, past the door. I listened, and, to my horror, I distinctly heard the
+alarm drum beating to arms. It was a dreadful sound to arouse a man from
+his sleep in our peaceful land.
+
+"Robie!" cried I to my son, "rise, my man, rise, and run down to the town,
+and see what is the matter, that they are beating the alarm drum at this
+time of night. I fear that"--
+
+"Oh, dearsake, Roger!" cried Agnes, grasping my arm, "what do ye fear?"
+
+"That--that there's a fire in the town," said I.
+
+"Weel," quoth she, "it canna reach us. But on dear me! ye have made my
+heart beat as if it would start from my breast--for I thought ye was gaun
+to say that ye was feared the French were landed!"
+
+"I hope not," said I. But, in truth, it was that which I did fear.
+
+Robie was a bold, spirited laddie; and he rushed out of the house, cold as
+it was, half-dressed, and without his jacket; but he had not been absent a
+minute, when he hurried back again, and cried breathlessly as he
+entered--"Faither! faither! the Law is a' in a lowe!--the French are
+landed!"
+
+I was then standing in the middle of the floor, putting on my clothes; and,
+starting as though I had seen an apparition, I exclaimed--"The French
+landed!--rise, Agnes! rise, and get me my accoutrements. For this day I
+will arm and do battle in defence of my native land."
+
+"Roger! Roger!" cried my wife, "wherefore will ye act foolishly. Stop at
+home, as a man ought to do, to preserve and protect his ain family and his
+ain property. Wherefore would ye risk life or limb withouten cause. There
+will be enough to fight the French without you--unmarried men, or men that
+have naebody to leave behint them and to mourn for them."
+
+"Agnes," said I, in a tone which manifested my authority, and at the same
+time shewed the courageousness of my spirit--"get me my accoutrements. I
+have always been the first upon the parade, and I will not be the last to
+shew my face upon the field of battle. I am but a little man--the least
+battalion man in the whole corps--but I have a heart as big as the biggest
+of them. Bonaparte himself is no Goliath, and a shot from my musket might
+reach his breast, when a taller man would be touching the cockade on his
+cocked hat. Therefore, quick! quick!--get me my accoutrements."
+
+"Oh, guidman!" cried she, "your poor, heart-broken wife will fall on her
+knees before ye--and I implore ye, for my sake, and for the sake o' our
+dear bairn, that ye winna fling away life, and rush upon destruction. What
+in the name of fortune, has a peaceable man like you to do wi' war or wi'
+Bonaparte either? Dinna think of leaving the house this night, and I myself
+will go down to the town and procure a substitute in your stead. I have
+fifteen pounds in the kist, that I have been scraping thegither for these
+twelve years past, and I will gie them to ony man that will take your place
+in the volunteers, and go forth to fight the French in your stead."
+
+"Guidwife," said I, angrily, "ye forget what ye are talking about. The
+French are landed, and every man, auld and young, must take up arms. Ye
+would have me to become the laughing-stock of both town and country.
+Therefore get me my accoutrements, and let me down to the cross."
+
+"O Robie, my bairn!--my only bairn!" cried she, weeping, and addressing our
+son, "try ye to prevail upon your faither to gie up his mad resolution. If
+he leave us, he will mak you faitherless and me a widow."
+
+"Mother," said the laddie, gallantly, "the French are landed, and my
+faither maun help to drive them into the sea. I will tak my pistol and gang
+wi' him, and if ony thing happens, I will be at hand to assist him."
+
+"Haud, haud your tongue, ye silly callant!" she exclaimed, in great
+tribulation, "ye are as great a fool as your faither is. He sees what he
+has made o' you. But as the auld cock craws the young ane learns."
+
+I felt a sort of glow of satisfaction warming my heart at the manifestation
+of my son's spirit; but I knew that in one of his age, and especially at
+such a time, and with such a prospect before us, it was not right to
+encourage it, and it was impossible for a fond parent to incite his only
+son to the performance of an act that would endanger his life. I therefore
+spoke to him kindly, but, at the same time, with the firmness necessary to
+enforce the commands of a father, and said--"Ye are too young, Robin, to
+become a participator in scenes of war and horror. Your young bosom, that
+is yet a stranger to sorrow, must not be exposed to the destroying bullet;
+nor your bonny cheek, where the rose-bud blooms, disfigured with the sabre
+or the horse's hoof. Ye must not break your mother's heart, but stay at
+home to comfort and defend her, when your father is absent fighting for ye
+both."
+
+The boy listened to me in silence, but I thought that sullenness mingled
+with his obedience, and I had never seen him sullen before. Agnes went
+around the house weeping, and finding that I was not to be gainsayed, she
+brought me my military apparel and my weapons of war. When, therefore, I
+was arrayed and ready for the field, and while the roll of the drum was
+still summoning us to muster, I took her hand to bid her farewell--but, in
+the fulness of my heart, I pressed my lips to hers, and my tears mingled
+with her own upon her cheek.
+
+"Farewell, Agnes," said I, "but I trust--I hope--I doubt not, but we shall
+soon return safe, sound, and victorious. But if I should not--if it be so
+ordered that it is to be my lot to fall gloriously in defence of our
+country, our son Robert will comfort ye and protect ye; and ye will find
+all the papers relating to the sixteen hundred pounds of funded property in
+my private drawer; although, if the French gain a footing in the country, I
+doubt it will be but of small benefit to ye. And, in that case, Robin, my
+man," added I, addressing my son, "ye will have to labour with your hands
+to protect your mother! Bless you, doubly bless you both."
+
+I saw my son fall upon his mother's neck, and it afforded me a consolation.
+With great difficulty I got out of the house, and I heard Agnes sobbing
+when I was a hundred yards distant. I still also heard the roll of the drum
+rolling and rattling through the stillness of midnight, and, on arriving at
+the cross, I found a number of the volunteers and a multitude of the
+townspeople assembled. No one could tell _where_ the French had landed, but
+all knew that they _had_ landed.
+
+That, I assure ye, was a never-to-be-forgotten night. Every person
+naturally looked anxious, but I believe I may safely say, that there was
+not one face in a hundred that was pale with fear, or that exhibited a
+trace of cowardice or terror upon it. One thought was uppermost in every
+bosom, and that was--to drive back the invaders, yea to drive them into,
+and drown them in the German ocean, even as Pharaoh and his host were
+encompassed by the Red Sea and drowned in it. Generally speaking, a spirit
+of genuine, of universal heroism was manifested. The alacrity with which
+the volunteers assembled under arms, was astonishing; not but that there
+were a few who fell into the ranks rather slowly and with apparent
+reluctance; but some of those, like me, had perhaps wives to cling round
+their necks, and to beseech them not to venture forth into the war. One of
+the last who appeared upon the ground, was my right-hand comrade, Jonathan
+Barlowman. I had to step to the left to make room for Jonathan, and, as he
+took his place by my side, I heard the teeth chattering in his head. Our
+commanding officer spoke to him rather sharply, about being so slow in
+turning out in an hour of such imminent peril. But I believe Jonathan was
+insensible to the reprimand.
+
+The drums began to beat and the fifes to play--the word "March!" was
+given--the townspeople gave us three cheers as we began to move--and my
+comrade Jonathan, in his agitation, put his wrong foot foremost, and could
+not keep the step. So we marched onward, armed and full of patriotism,
+towards Haddington, which in case of the invasion, was appointed our
+head-quarters or place of rendezvous.
+
+I will not pretend to say that I felt altogether comfortable during the
+march; indeed, to have done so was impossible, for the night was bitterly
+cold, and at all times there is but little shelter on the bleak and wild
+Lammermoors; yet the cold gave me but small concern, in comparison of the
+thoughts of my Agnes and my son Robin. I felt that I loved them even better
+than ever I had imagined I loved them before, and it caused me much silent
+agony of spirit when I thought that I had parted with them--perhaps for
+ever. Yet, even in the midst of such thoughts, I was cheered by the
+glorious idea of fighting in defence of one's own native country; and I
+thought of Wallace and of Bruce, and of all the heroes I had read about
+when a laddie, and my blood fired again. I found that I hated our invaders
+with a perfect hatred--that I feared not to meet death--and I grasped my
+firelock more firmly, and a thousand times fancied that I had it levelled
+at the breast of the Corsican.
+
+I indulged in this train of thoughts until we had reached Longformacus, and
+during that period not a word had my right-hand neighbour, Jonathan
+Barlowman, spoken, either good, bad, or indifferent; but I had frequently
+heard him groan audibly, as though his spirit were troubled. At length,
+when we had passed Longformacus, and were in the most desolate part of the
+hills--"O Mr Goldie! Mr Goldie!" said he, "is this no dismal?"
+
+"I always consider it," answered I, "one of the dreariest spots on the
+Lammermoors."
+
+"O sir!" said he, "it isna the dreariness o' the road that I am referring
+to. I would rather be sent across the hills from Cowdingham to Lander,
+blindfold, than I would be sent upon an errand like this. But is it not a
+dismal and a dreadfu' thought that Christian men should be roused out of
+their beds at the dead of night, to march owre moor and mountain, to be
+shot, or to cut each other's throats? It is terrible, Mr Goldie!"
+
+Now, he was a man seven inches taller than I was, and I was glad of the
+opportunity of proving to him that, though I had the lesser body, I had the
+taller spirit of the two--and the spirit makes the man. Therefore I said to
+him--"Why, Mr Barlowman, you surprise me to hear you talk; when our country
+demands our arms in its defence, we should be ready to lay down our lives,
+if necessary, by night or by day, on mountain or in glen, on moor or in
+meadow--and I cannot respond your sentiments."
+
+"Weel," said he, "that may be your opinion, and it may be a good opinion,
+but, for my own part, I do confess that I have no ambition for the honours
+of either heroism or martyrdom. Had a person been allowed a day to make a
+sort of decent arrangement of their worldly affairs, it wadna have been sae
+bad; but to be summoned out of your warm bed at midnight, and to take up an
+instrument of death in the dark, and go forth to be shot at!--there is, in
+my opinion, but a small share of either honour or glory in the transaction.
+This, certainly, is permanent duty now, and peremptory duty also, with a
+witness! But it is a duty the moral obligation of which I cannot perceive;
+and I think that a man's first duty is to look after himself--and family."
+
+He mentioned the word "family" with a peculiarity of emphasis which plainly
+indicated that he wished it to work an effect upon me, and to bring me over
+to his way of thinking. But, instead of its producing that effect, my
+spirit waxed bolder and bolder as I remained an ear-witness of his
+cowardice.
+
+"Comrade Jonathan--I beg your pardon, Mr Barlowman I mean to say," said
+I--"the first duty of every man, when his country is in danger, is to take
+up arms in its defence, and to be ready to lay down his life, if his body
+will form a barrier to the approach of an enemy."
+
+"It may be sae," said he; "but I would just as soon think of my body being
+eaten by cannibals, as applied to any such purpose. It will take a long
+time to convince me that there is any bravery in a man volunteering to 'be
+shot at for sixpence a-day;' and it will be as long before fighting the
+French prepare my land for the spring seed. If I can get a substitute when
+we reach Haddington, they may fight that likes for me."
+
+As we marched along, his body became the victim of one calamity after
+another. Now his shoes pinched his feet and crippled him, and in a while he
+was seized with cramp pains in his breast, which bent him together twofold.
+But, as it was generally suspected by the corps that Jonathan was, at best,
+hen-hearted, he met with little, indeed I may say no sympathy on account of
+his complaints, but rather with contempt; for there was not a man in our
+whole regiment, save himself, that did not hate cowardice with his whole
+heart, and despise it with his whole soul. Whether he actually was
+suffering from bodily pain, in addition to the pain of his spirit, or not,
+it is not for me to judge. The doctor came to the rear to see him, and he
+said that Mr Barlowman certainly was in a state of high fever, that would
+render him incapable of being of much service. But I thought that he made
+the declaration in an ironical sort of tone; and whether it was a fever of
+fear, of spiritual torment, or of bodily torment, he did not tell. One
+thing is certain, the one frequently begets the other.
+
+The words of the doctor gave a sort of license to bold Jonathan Barlowman,
+and his moaning and his groaning, his writhing and complaining, increased.
+He began to fall behind, and now stood fumbling with his pinching shoes, or
+bent himself double with his hands across his breast, sighing piteously,
+and shedding tears in abundance. At length we lost sight and hearing of
+him, and we imagined that he had turned back, or peradventure, lain down by
+the way; but there was no time for us to return to seek him, nor yet to
+look after one man, when, belike a hundred thousand French had landed.
+
+Well, it was about an hour after the final disappearance of Jonathan, that
+a stranger joined our ranks in his stead. He took his place close by my
+side. He carried a firelock over his shoulder, and was dressed in a
+greatcoat; but so far as I could judge from his appearance in the dark, I
+suspected him to be a very young man. I could not get a word out of him,
+save that in answer to a question--"Are ye Mr Barlowman's substitute?"
+
+And he answered--"Yes."
+
+Beyond that one word, I could not get him to open his mouth. However, I
+afterwards ascertained that the youth overtook Jonathan, while he was
+writhing in agony upon the road, and declaring aloud that he would give any
+money, from ten to a hundred guineas, for a substitute, besides his arms
+and accoutrements. The young man leaped at the proposal, or rather at a
+part of it, for he said he would take no money, but that the other should
+give him his arms, ammunition, and such like, and he would be his
+substitute. Jonathan joyfully accepted the conditions; but whether or not
+his pains and groanings left him, when relieved from the weight of his
+knapsack, I cannot tell. Our corps voted him to be no man who could find
+time to be ill, even in earnest, during an invasion.
+
+My attention, however, was now wholly taken up with the stranger, who, it
+appeared, had been dropped, as if from the clouds, in the very middle of a
+waste, howling wilderness, to volunteer to serve in the place of my craven
+comrade, Jonathan Barlowman. The youth excited my curiosity the more,
+because, as I have already informed ye, he was as silent as a milestone,
+and not half so satisfactory; for beyond the little word "Yes," which I
+once got out of him, not another syllable would he breathe--but he kept his
+head half turned away from me. I felt the consciousness and the assurance
+growing in me more and more that he was a French spy; therefore I kept my
+musket so that I could level it at him, and discharge it at half a moment's
+warning; and I was rejoicing to think that it would be a glorious thing if
+I got an opportunity of signalizing myself on the very first day of the
+invasion. I really began to dream of titles and rewards, the thanks of
+parliament, and the command of a regiment. It is a miracle that, in the
+delirium of my waking dream, I did not place the muzzle of my musket to my
+strange comrade's head.
+
+But daylight began to break just as we were about Danskin, and my curiosity
+to see the stranger's face--to make out who he was or what he was, or
+whether he was a Frenchman, or one of our own countrymen--was becoming
+altogether insupportable. But, just with the first peep of day, I got a
+glimpse of his countenance. I started back for full five yards--the musket
+dropped out of my hands!
+
+"Robie! Robie, ye rascal!" I exclaimed, in a voice that was heard from the
+one end of the line to the other, and that made the whole regiment
+halt--"what in the wide world has brought you here? What do ye mean to be
+after?"
+
+"To fight the French, faither!" said my brave laddie; "and ye ken ye always
+said, that in the event of an invasion, it wad be the duty of every one
+capable of firing a musket, or lifting a knife, to take up arms. I can do
+baith; and what mair me than another?"
+
+This was torturing me on the shrine of my own loyalty, and turning my own
+weapons upon myself, in a way that I never had expected.
+
+"Robie! ye daft, disobedient, heart-breaker ye!" continued I, "did I not
+command ye to remain at home with your mother, to comfort her, and, if it
+were necessary, and in your power, to defend her; and how, sirrah, have ye
+dared to desert her, and leave her sorrowing for you?"
+
+"I thought, faither," answered he, "that the best way to defend her, would
+be to prevent the enemy approaching near to our dwellings."
+
+My comrades round about that heard this answer, could not refrain from
+giving three cheers in admiration of the bravery of the laddie's spirit;
+and the cheering attracting the attention of the officers, one of them came
+forward to us, to inquire into its cause; and, on its being explained to
+him, he took Robin by the hand, and congratulated me upon having such a
+son. I confess that I did feel an emotion of pride and gratification
+glowing in my breast at the time; nevertheless, the fears and the anxiety
+of a parent predominated, and I thought what a dreadful thing it would be
+for me, his father, to see him shot or pierced through the body with a
+bayonet, at my very side; and what account, thought I, could I give of such
+a transaction to his bereaved and sorrowing mother? For I felt a something
+within my breast, which whispered, that, if evil befell him in the warfare
+in which we were about to engage, I would not be able to look her in the
+face again. I fancied that I heard her upbraiding me with having instilled
+into his mind a love of war, and I fancied that I heard her voice requiring
+his life at my hands, and crying--"Where is my son?"
+
+At length we arrived at Haddington; and there, in the course of the day, it
+was discovered, to the gratification of some and the disappointment of
+many, that our march had originated in a _false alarm_. I do confess that I
+was amongst those who felt gratified that the peace of the land was not to
+be endangered, but that we were to return every man to his own fireside,
+and to sit down beneath our vine and our fig tree, with the olive branches
+twining between them. But amongst those who were disappointed, and who
+shewed their chagrin by the gnashing of their teeth, was my silly laddie,
+my only son Robert. When he saw the people laughing in the marketplace, and
+heard that the whole Borders had been aroused by an accidental light upon a
+hill, his young brow lowered as black as midnight--his whole body trembled
+with a sort of smothered rage--and his eyebrows drew together until the
+shape of a horse-shoe was engraven between them.
+
+"Robie, my captain," said I, "wherefore are ye looking sae dour? Man, ye
+ought to rejoice that no invader as yet has dared to set his foot upon our
+coast, and that you and I will return to your mother, who, no doubt, will
+be distracted upon your account beyond measure. But, oh, when she meets you
+again, I think that I see her now springing up from the chair, where she is
+sitting rocking and mourning, and flinging her arms round your neck,
+crying--'Robie!--Robie, my son! where have ye been?--how could ye leave
+your mother?' Then she will sob upon your breast, and wet your cheek with
+her tears; and I will lift her arms from your neck, and say--'Look ye,
+Agnes, woman, your husband is restored to ye safe and sound, as well as
+your son?' And then I will tell her all about your bravery, and your
+following us over the moors, and the cowardice of Jonathan Barlowman, and
+of your coming up to him, where he groaned behind us on the road--of your
+becoming his substitute, and of your getting his greatcoat, his knapsack,
+and his gun--and of your marching an hour by your father's side without him
+finding out who you were. I will tell her all about my discovering you, and
+about your answers, and the cheering of the volunteers; and the officers
+coming up and taking your hand, and congratulating me upon having such a
+son. O Robie, man! I will tell her everything! It will be such a meeting as
+there has not been in the memory of man. Therefore, as the French are
+neither landed nor like to land, I will speak to the superior officer, and
+you and I Will set off for Dunse immediately."
+
+We went into a public-house, to have a bottle of ale and baps; and I think
+I never in my life partook of anything more refreshing or more delicious.
+Even Robie, notwithstanding the horse-shoe of angry disappointment on his
+brow, made a hearty repast; but that was natural to a growing laddie, and
+especially after such a tramp as we had had in the death and darkness of
+night, over moor and heather.
+
+"Eat well, Robie, lad," said I; "it's a long road over again between here
+and Dunse, and there is but little to be got on it. Take another glass of
+ale; ye never tasted anything from Clockmill to match that. It is as
+delicious as honey, and as refreshing as fountain water."
+
+That really was the case; though whether the peculiar excellence of the ale
+arose from anything extraordinarily grateful in its flavour, or from my
+long march, my thirst, and sharp appetite--added to the joy I felt in the
+unexpected prospect of returning home in peace and happiness with my son,
+instead of slaughtering at enemies, or being slaughtered by them--I cannot
+affirm. There might be something in both. Robin, however, drank an entire
+bottle to his own head--that was three parts of a choppin, and a great deal
+too much for a laddie of his years. But in the temper he was in, and
+knowing by myself that he must be both thirsty and hungry, I did not think
+it prudent to restrain him. It was apparent that the liquor was getting
+uppermost in his brain, and he began to speak and to argue in company, and
+to strike his hand upon the table like an angry man; in short, he seemed
+forgetful of my presence, and those were exhibitions which I had never
+observed in him before.
+
+I was exceedingly anxious to get home, upon his mother's account; for she
+was a woman of a tender heart and a nervous temperament; and I knew that
+she would be in a state bordering on distraction on account of his absence.
+I therefore said to him--"Robin, I am going to speak to the commanding
+officer; ye will sit here until I come back, but do not drink any more."
+
+"Very weel, faither," said he.
+
+So I went out and spoke to the officer, and told him my reasons for wishing
+to return home immediately; urging the state of anxiety and distress that
+Agnes would be in on account of the absence of our son.
+
+"Very well, Mr Goldie," said he; "it is all very right and proper; I have a
+regard to the feelings of a husband and a parent; and as this has proved
+but a false alarm, there is no obstacle to your returning home
+immediately."
+
+I thanked him very gratefully for his civility, and stepped away up to the
+George Inn, where I took two outside places on the heavy coach to Dunbar,
+intending to walk from there to Broxmouth, and to strike up there by the
+west to Innerwick, and away over the hills, down by Preston, and home.
+
+I am certain I was not twenty minutes or half an hour absent at the
+farthest. When I entered the public-house again, I looked for my son, but
+he was not there.
+
+"What have ye made of Robie?" said I to my comrades.
+
+"Has he no been wi' ye?" answered they; "he left the house just after ye."
+
+Mortal man cannot describe the fear, agony, and consternation that fell
+upon me. The sweat burst upon my brow as though it had been the warmest day
+in summer. A thousand apprehensions laid their hands upon me in a moment.
+
+"With me!" said I; "he's not been with me: have none of you an idea where
+he can have gone?"
+
+"Not the smallest," said they; "but he canna be far off--he will soon cast
+up. He will only be out looking at the town."
+
+"Or showing off gallant Jonathan Barlowman's gun, big-coat, and knapsack,"
+said one.
+
+"Keep yoursel at ease, Mr Goldie," said another, laughing; "there is no
+danger of his passing the advanced posts, and falling into the hands of the
+French."
+
+It was easy for those to jest who were ignorant of a father's fears and a
+father's feelings. I sat down for the space of five minutes, and to me they
+seemed five hours; but I drank nothing, and I said nothing, but I kept my
+eyes fixed upon the door. Robin did not return. I thought the ale might
+have overcome the laddie, and that he had gone out and lain down in a state
+of sickness; and "That," thought I, "will be a _becoming_ state for me to
+take him home in to his distressed mother. Or it will cause us to stop a
+night upon the road."
+
+My anxiety became insupportable, and I again left my comrades, and went out
+to seek him. I sought him in every street, in every public-house in the
+town, amongst the soldiers, and amongst the townspeople; but all were too
+much occupied in discussing the cause of the alarm, to notice him who was
+to me as the apple of my eye. For three hours I wandered in search of him,
+east, west, north, and south, making inquiries at every one I met; but no
+one had seen or heard tell of him. I saw the coach drive off for Dunbar. I
+beheld also my comrades muster on the following morning, and prepare to
+return home, but I wandered up and down disconsolate, seeking my son, but
+finding him not.
+
+The most probable, and the fondest conjecture that I could indulge in, was,
+that he had returned home. I, therefore, shouldered my musket, and followed
+my companions to Dunse, whom I overtook upon the moors. It would be
+impossible for me to describe my feelings by the way--they were torture
+strained to its utmost extremity, and far more gloomy and dreary than the
+gloomiest and dreariest parts of the moors over which we had to pass. Every
+footstep increased my anxiety, every mile the perturbation and agony of my
+spirit. Never, I believe, did a poor parent endure such misery before, and
+I wished that I had never been one. I kept looking for him to the right and
+to the left every minute; and though it was but few travellers that we met
+upon the road, every one that we did meet I described him to them, and
+asked them if they had seen him. But, "No!" "No!" was their unvaried
+answer, and my wretchedness increased.
+
+At length we arrived at Dunse, and a great crowd was there to meet
+us--wives to welcome their husbands, parents to greet their children, and
+children their parents. The first that my eyes singled out, was a sister of
+my Agnes. She ran up to me.
+
+"Roger," she cried, "hae ye seen onything o' Robie?"
+
+The words went through my breast as if it had received the fire of a whole
+French battalion. I stood stock-still, petrified with despair. My looks
+told my answer to her question.
+
+"Oh, dear me! dear me!" I heard her cry; "what will his puir mother do
+noo--for she already is like ane clean out o' her judgment about him."
+
+I did not stop for the word "halt," or for the breaking of the lines; and I
+went home, I may say by instinct, for neither bird, bush, house nor tree,
+man nor bairn, was I capable of discerning by the road. Grief and
+heart-bursting anxiety were as scales upon my eyes. I remember of rushing
+into the house, throwing down my gun, and crying--"O Agnes! Agnes!" And as
+well do I remember her impatient and piteous inquiry--"Where is my
+Robie?--Oh, where is my son?--hae ye no seen him?"
+
+It was long before I could compose myself, so as to tell her all that I
+knew concerning him; and it was even longer before she was sufficiently
+calm to comprehend me. Never did unhappy parents before experience greater
+bitterness of soul. I strove to comfort her, but she would not listen to my
+words; for oh, they were as the blind leading the blind; we both were
+struggling in the slough of despair--both were in the pit of dark,
+bewildering misery. We sometimes sat looking at each other, like criminals
+whose last hour is come; and even when our grief wore itself into a "calm
+sough," there was something in our silence as dismal and more hopeless than
+the silence of the grave itself. But, every now and then, she would burst
+into long, loud lamentations, mourning and crying for "her son!--her son!"
+Often, too, did we sit, suppressing our very breath, listening to every
+foot that approached, and as one disappointment followed another, her
+despair became deeper and deeper, louder and louder, and its crushing
+weight sank heavier and heavier upon my spirit.
+
+Some of his young companions informed us, that Robin had long expressed a
+determination to be a soldier; and, on the following day, I set out for
+Edinburgh to seek for him there, and to buy him off at any price, if he had
+enlisted.
+
+There, however, I could gather no tidings concerning him; and all that I
+could learn was, that a regiment had left the Castle that morning at two
+o'clock, and embarked at Leith for Chatham, from whence they were to
+proceed direct abroad; and that several recruits were attached to it, some
+of them only sworn in an hour before they embarked; but whether my poor
+Robie was among them or not, no one could tell.
+
+I left Edinburgh no wiser, no happier, and in no way more comforted than I
+entered it, and returned to his mother a sad and sorrowing-hearted man. She
+wrung her hands the instant she beheld me, and, in a tone that might have
+touched the heart of a stone, cried aloud--"Oh, my lost! lost bairn! Ye hae
+made a living grave o' yer mother's breast."
+
+I would have set off immediately for London, and from thence down to
+Chatham, to inquire for him there; but the wind was favourable when the
+vessel sailed, and it was therefore certain, that, by the time I got back
+to Dunse, she was at the place of her destination; and moreover, I had no
+certainty or assurance that he was on board. Therefore, we spent another
+day in fruitless lamentations and tears, and in vain inquiries around our
+own neighbourhood, and amongst his acquaintances.
+
+But my own heart yearned continually, and his mother's moaning was
+unceasing in my ear, as the ticking of a spider, or the beating of a
+stop-watch to a person that is doomed to die. I could find no rest. I
+blamed myself for not proceeding direct from Edinburgh to Chatham; and,
+next day, I went down to Berwick, to take my place in the mail to London.
+
+By the way I met several of the yeomanry, who were only returning from
+Dunbar, where they had been summoned by the alarm; and I found that Berwick
+also had been in arms. But taking my place on the mail, I proceeded,
+without sleep or rest, to London, and from thence hastened to Chatham.
+There again I found that the regiment which I sought was already half way
+down the Channel; but I ascertained also that my poor thoughtless boy was
+one of the recruits, and even that was some consolation, although but a
+poor one.
+
+Again I returned to his mother, and told her of the tidings. They brought
+her no comfort, and, night and day, she brooded on the thought of her fair
+son lying dead and mangled on the field of slaughter, or of his returning
+helpless and wounded to his native land. And often it was wormwood to my
+spirit, and an augmentation of my own sorrows, to find that, in secret, she
+murmured against me as the author of her bereavement, and as having
+instilled into my son a liking for a soldier's life. She said it was all
+owing to my getting him, from the time that he was able to read, to take
+the newspaper in his hand and read it aloud to my cronies, and in which
+there were accounts of nothing but wars and battles, of generals and
+captains, and Bonaparte, of whom enough was foretold and enough could be
+read in the Revelations. These murmurings grieved me the more, inasmuch as
+my mind was in no way satisfied that they were without foundation. No man
+knew better than I did, how easily the twig is bent; a passing breeze, the
+lighting of a bird upon it, may do it; and as it is bent, so the branch or
+the tree will be inclined. I, therefore, almost resolved not to permit
+another newspaper to be brought within my door. But, somehow or other, it
+became more necessary than ever. Every time it came it was like a letter
+from Robie; and we read it from beginning to end, expecting always to hear
+something of him or of his regiment. Even Agnes grew fond of it, and was
+uneasy on the Saturdays if the postman was half-an-hour behind the time in
+bringing it.
+
+Full twelvemonths passed before we received a letter from him; and never
+will I forget the delightful sensations that gushed into my bosom at the
+sight of that letter. I trembled from head to foot with joy. I knew his
+handwriting at the first glance, and so did his mother--just as well as if
+he had begun "_dear parents_" on the back of it. It was only to be a penny,
+and his mother could hardly get her hand into her pocket to give the copper
+to the postman, she shook so excessively with joy and with agitation, and
+kept saying to me--"Read, Roger! read! Oh, let me hear what my bairn says."
+
+I could hardly keep my hand steady to open it; and, when I did break the
+seal, I burst into tears at the same moment, and my eyes became as though I
+were blind; and still his mother continued saying to me--"Oh, read! read!"
+
+Twice, thrice, did I draw my sleeve across my eyes, and at last I read as
+follows:--
+
+"MY DEAR PARENTS,--I fear that my conduct has caused you many a miserable
+day, and many a sleepless night. But, even for my offence, cruel as it has
+been, I trust there is forgiveness in a parent's breast. I do not think
+that I ever spoke of it to you, but, from the very earliest period that I
+could think, the wish was formed in my mind to be a soldier. When I used to
+be spelling over the History of Sir William Wallace, or the lives of the
+Seven Champions of Christendom, I used to fancy myself Wallace or Saint
+George; and I resolved, that when I lived to be a man, that I would be a
+soldier and a hero like them; and I used to think what a grand thing it
+would be for you and my mother, and all my acquaintances, to be reading
+about me and my exploits! The continual talking about the war and the
+French, and of their intention to invade Britain, all strengthened my early
+desires. Often when I was reading the newspapers to you and your friends,
+and about the gallant deeds of any particular individual, though I used to
+read _his name_ aloud to you, I always read it in to myself as though it
+were my own. I had resolved to enlist before the false alarm took place;
+and, when you and the other volunteers marched out of Dunse to Haddington,
+I could not resist the temptation which it offered of seeing and being
+present at a battle. About half-an-hour after you left the town, I followed
+ye, and, as ye are already aware, overtook poor Jonathan Barlowman, who had
+fallen behind the corps, in great distress, apparently both of body and
+mind. He seemed to be in a swither whether to return home, to follow ye, or
+to lie down and die by the road. I knew him by the sound of the lamentation
+he was making, and, accosting him, I inquired--'What is the matter wi' ye,
+Jonathan! Has ony o' the French, concealed aboot the moors, shot ye
+already?' 'Oh,' he replied, 'I am ill--I am dying!--I am dying!--I will
+give any money for a substitute!' 'Gie me yer gun,' said I, 'and I will be
+yer substitute without money.' 'A thousand blessings upon yer head, Robie,
+lad!' said he; 'ye shall hae my gun, and ye may tak also my greatcoat and
+knapsack, for they only encumber me. Ye hae rescued a dying man.' I was
+nearly as tall as he; and, though his coat was loose about me, when I got
+it on, and his musket over my shoulder, and felt that I was marching like
+an armed knight of old against the invaders of my country, I felt as proud
+as an emperor; I would not have changed situations with a king. I overtook
+you, and you know the rest. At Haddington, the strong ale was too strong
+for me. I was also sorely mortified to find all my prospects of becoming a
+hero blasted. When, therefore, you went out to take our places in the
+coach to Dunbar, I slipped out of the room, and hiding Mr Barlowman's coat
+and gun in a closet, in the house, I took the road for Edinburgh; which
+city I reached within less than three hours; and before I had been in it
+twenty minutes I was a soldier. I was afraid to write home, lest ye would
+take steps to buy me off. On the fourth day after my enlisting I was landed
+at Chatham, where I was subjected to a perpetual drill; and within thirty
+hours after landing, I again embarked with my regiment; and when I wished
+to have written, I had not an opportunity. Since then, I have been in two
+general engagements and several skirmishes, in all of which I have escaped
+unwounded. I have found that to read of a battle, and to be engaged in a
+battle, are two very different things. The description is grand, but the
+sight dismal. I trust that my behaviour as a soldier has been
+unimpeachable. It has obtained for me the notice of our colonel, who has
+promoted me to the rank of corporal, with the promise of shortly making me
+a sergeant; and I am not without hopes, before the war is over, (of which
+there at present is no prospect), of obtaining a commission; though it
+certainly is not one in a thousand that has such fortune. Hoping,
+therefore, my dear parents, that, under the blessing of Providence, this
+will find you well, as it leaves me, and that I will live to return to ask
+your forgiveness, I remain your affectionate and dutiful son,
+
+      "ROBERT GOLDIE."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Such was Robin's letter. "Read it again," said mother--and I read it again;
+and when I had done so, she took it in her hand and pressed it to her lips
+and to her breast, and wept for "her poor bairn." At last, in a tone of
+despondency, she said--"But, oh, he doesna once particularly mention his
+mother's name in't."
+
+"He surely does," said I; "I think he mentions us both."
+
+So I took the letter again into my hand, and, at the foot corner of the
+third page, I saw what I had not observed before, the letters and
+words--"_P.S. Turn over_."
+
+"P.S." said his mother; "who does that mean?"
+
+"Oh!" said I, "it means nobody. It means that we have not read all the
+letter."
+
+"Read it a', then--read it a'!" she cried.
+
+And I turned to the last page, on the fold above the direction, and read--
+
+"P.S.--But how am I to ask the forgiveness of my dear mother, for all the
+distress and anxiety that my folly and disobedience must have occasioned
+her. I start in my very sleep, and think that I hear her yearning and
+upbraiding. If she knew how deep my repentance is, and how keen my misery
+for the grief which I have caused her, I would not have to ask her
+forgiveness twice. Dear father! dear mother!--both, both of you forgive
+your thoughtless son."
+
+These last lines of his letter drowned us both in tears, and, for the space
+of several minutes, neither of us were able to speak. I was the first to
+break silence, and I said--"Agnes, our dear Robin is now a soldier, and he
+seems to like that way of life. But I dislike the thought of his being only
+a corporal, and I would wish to see him an officer. We have nobody in the
+world but him to care for. He is our only son and heir, and I trust that
+all that we have will one day be his. Now, I believe that the matter of
+four or five hundred pounds will buy him a commission, and make him an
+officer, with a sword by his side, a sash round his waist, and a gold
+epaulette on his shoulder, with genteel pay and provision for life; besides
+setting him on the high road to be a general. Therefore, if ye approve of
+it, I will sell out stock to the amount that will buy him commission."
+
+"Oh," replied she, "ye needna ask me if I approve, for weel do ye ken that
+I will approve o' onything that will be for my bairn's benefit."
+
+I accordingly lifted five hundred pounds, and through the influence of a
+Parliament man, succeeded in procuring him a commission as an ensign. I
+thought the money well spent, as it tended to promote the respectability
+and prospects of my son.
+
+Four years afterwards, his mother and I had the satisfaction of reading in
+the public papers, that he had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant upon
+the field, for his bravery. On the following day we received a letter from
+himself, confirming the tidings, which gave us great joy. Nevertheless, our
+joy was mingled with fears; for we were always apprehensive that some day
+or other we would find his name among the list of killed and wounded. And
+always the first thing that his mother said to me, when I took up the
+papers, was--"Read the list of the killed and wounded." And I always did
+so, with a slow, hesitating, and faltering voice, fearful that the next I
+should mention would be that of my son, Lieutenant Goldie.
+
+There was very severe fighting at the time; and every post was bringing
+news concerning the war. One day, (I remember it was a King's fast-day,)
+several neighbours and myself were leaning upon the dike, upon the footpath
+opposite to my house, and waiting for the postman coming from Ayton, to
+hear what was the news of the day. As he approached us, I thought he looked
+very demure-like, which was not his usual; for he was as cheerful,
+active-looking a little man as you could possibly see.
+
+"Well, Hughie," said I to him, holding out my hand for the papers, "ye look
+dull like to-day; I hope ye have no bad news?"
+
+"I would hope not, Mr Goldie," said he; and, giving me the paper, walked
+on.
+
+The moment that Agnes saw that I had got it, she came running out of the
+house, across the road, to hear as usual, the list of the killed and
+wounded read, and my neighbours gathered round about me. There had been, I
+ought to tell ye, a severe battle, and both the French and our army claimed
+the victory; from which we may infer, that there was no great triumph on
+either side. But, agreeably to my wife's request, I first read over the
+list of the killed, wounded, and _missing_. I got over the two first
+mentioned; but, oh! at the very sight of the first name upon the missing
+list, I clasped my hands together, and the paper dropped upon the ground.
+
+"O Robie! my son! my son!" I cried aloud.
+
+Agnes uttered a piercing scream, and cried, "O my bairn--what has happened
+my bairn? Is he dead! Tell me, is my Robie dead?"
+
+Our neighbours gathered about her, and tried to comfort her; but she was
+insensible to all that they could say. The first name on the missing list
+was that of my gallant son. When the first shock was over, and I had
+composed myself a little, I also strove to console Agnes; but it was with
+great difficulty that we could convince her that Robin was not dead, and
+that the papers did not say he was wounded.
+
+"Oh, then!" she cried, "what do they say about him. Tell me at once. Roger
+Goldie! how can ye, as the faither o' my bairn, keep me in suspense."
+
+"O, dear Agnes," said I, "endeavour, if it be possible, to moderate your
+grief; I am sure ye know that I would not keep ye in suspense if I could
+avoid it. The papers only say that Robin is _amissing_."
+
+"And what mean they by that?" she cried.
+
+"Why," said I to her, "they mean that he, perhaps, pursued the enemy too
+far--or possibly that he may have fallen into their hands, and be a
+prisoner--but that he had not cast up when the accounts came away."
+
+"Yes! yes!" she exclaimed with great bitterness, "and it perhaps means that
+his body is lying dead upon the field, but hasna been found."
+
+And she burst out into louder lamentations, and all our endeavours to
+comfort her were in vain; though, in fact, my sufferings were almost as
+great as hers.
+
+We waited in the deepest anxiety for several days, always hoping that we
+would hear some tidings concerning him, but none came. I therefore wrote to
+the War-Office, and I wrote also to his Colonel. From the War-Office I
+received a letter from a clerk, saying that he was commanded to inform me,
+that they could give me no information relative to Lieutenant Goldie,
+beyond what was contained in the public prints. The whole letter did not
+exceed three lines. You would have said that the writer had been employed
+to write a certain number of letters in a day, at so much a day, and the
+sooner he got through his work the better. I set it down in my mind that he
+had never had a son amissing on the field of battle, or he never would have
+written an anxious and sorrowing father such a cold scrawl. He did not even
+say that, if they got any tidings concerning my son, they would make me
+acquainted with them. He was only commanded to tell me that they did not
+know what I was, beyond every thing on earth, desirous to ascertain. Though
+perhaps, I ought to admit that, in a time of war, the clerks in the
+War-Office had something else to do than enter particularly into the
+feelings of every father that had a son in the army, and to answer all his
+queries.
+
+From the Colonel, however, I received a long, and a very kind letter. He
+said many flattering things in praise of my gallant laddie, and assured me
+that the whole regiment deplored his being separated from them. He,
+however, had no doubt but that he had fallen into the hands of the enemy,
+and that, in some exchange of prisoners, or in the event of a peace, he
+would be restored to his parents and country again.
+
+This letter gave us some consolation. It encouraged us to cherish the hope
+of pressing our beloved son again to our breasts, and of looking on his
+features, weeping and wondering at the alterations which time, war, and
+imprisonment had wrought upon them. But more than three years passed away,
+and not a syllable did we hear concerning him, that could throw the least
+light upon where he was, or whether he was dead or living. Anxiety preyed
+sadly upon his mother's health as well as upon her spirits, and I could not
+drive away a settled melancholy.
+
+About that time a brother of mine, who was a bachelor, died in the East
+Indies, and left me four thousand pounds. This was a great addition to our
+fortune, and we hardly knew what to do with it. I may say that it made us
+more unhappy, for we thought that we had nobody to leave it to; and he who
+ought to have inherited it, and whom it would have made independent, we
+knew not whether he was in the land of the living, or a strange corpse in a
+foreign grave. Yet I resolved that, for his sake, I would not spend one
+farthing of it, but let it lie at interest; and I even provided in a will
+which I made, that unless he cast up, and claimed it, no one should derive
+any benefit from either principal or interest until fifty years after my
+death.
+
+I have said, that the health of Agnes had broken down beneath her weight of
+sadness, and as she had a relation, who was a gentleman of much
+respectability, that then resided in the neighbourhood of Kelso, it was
+agreed that we should spend a few weeks in the summer at his house. I
+entertained the hope that society, and the beautiful scenery around Kelso,
+with the white chalky braes[A] overhung with trees, and the bonny islands
+in the Tweed, with mansions, palaces, and ruins, all embosomed in a
+paradise as fair and fertile as ever land could boast of, would have a
+tendency to cheer her spirits, and ease, if not remove, the one heavy and
+continuing sorrow, which lay like an everlasting nightmare upon her heart,
+weighing her to the grave.
+
+Her relation was a well-educated man, and he had been an officer in the
+army in his youth, and had seen foreign parts. He was also quite
+independent in his worldly circumstances, and as hospitable as he was
+independent. There were at that period a number of French officers,
+prisoners, at Kelso, and several of them, who were upon their parole, were
+visiters at the house of my wife's relation.
+
+There was one amongst them, a fine, though stern-looking man of middle age,
+and who was addressed by the appellation of Count Berthé. He spoke our
+language almost as well as if he had been a native. He appeared to be
+interested when he heard that my name was Goldie, and one day after dinner,
+when the cloth was withdrawn, and my wife's relation had ordered the punch
+upon the table--"Ha! Goldie! Goldie!" said the Count, repeating my name--"I
+can tell one story--which concerns me much--concerning, one Monsieur
+Goldie. When I was governor of the castle La----, (he called it by some
+foreign name, which I cannot repeat to you), there was brought to me, (he
+added), to be placed under my charge, a young British officer, whose name
+was Goldie. I do not recollect the number of his regiment, for he was not
+in uniform when brought to me. He was a handsome man, but represented as a
+terrible one, who had made a violent attempt to escape after being taken
+prisoner, and his desperate bravery in the field was also recorded. I was
+requested to treat him with the respect due to a brave man, but, at the
+same time, to keep a strict watch over him, and to allow him even less
+liberty than I might do to an ordinary prisoner. His being a captive did
+not humble him; he treated his keepers and his guards with as much contempt
+as though he had been their conqueror on the field. We had confined his
+body, but there was no humbling of his spirit. I heard so much of him, that
+I took an interest in the haughty Briton. But he treated me with the same
+sullen disdain that he showed towards my inferiors. I had a daughter, who
+was as dear to me as life itself, for she had had five brothers, and they
+had all fallen in the cause of the great emperor, with the tricolor on
+their brow, and the wing of the eagle over them. She was
+beautiful--beautiful as her sainted mother, than whom Italy boasted not a
+fairer daughter, (for she was a native of Rome.) Hers was not a beauty that
+you may see every day amongst a thousand in the regions of the north--hers
+was the rare beauty amongst ten thousand of the daughters of the sunny
+south, with a face beaming with as bright a loveliness, and I would say
+divinity, as the Medici. Of all the children which that fair being bore
+unto me, I had but one, a daughter, left--beautiful as I have
+said--beautiful as her mother. I had a garden beneath the castle, and over
+it was a terrace, in which the British prisoner, Goldie, was allowed to
+walk. They saw each other. They became acquainted with each other. He had
+despised all who approached; he had even treated me, who had his life in my
+hand, as a dog. But he did not so treat my daughter. I afterwards learned,
+when it was too late, that they had been seen exchanging looks, words, and
+signs with each other. He had been eighteen months my prisoner; and one
+morning when I awoke, I was told that my daughter was not to be found, and
+that the English prisoner, Lieutenant Goldie, also had escaped. I cursed
+both in my heart; for they had robbed me of my happiness--he had robbed me
+of my child; though she only could have accomplished it. Shortly after
+this, (and perhaps because of it,) I was again called into active service,
+where, in my first engagement, it was my lot to be made a prisoner, and
+sent here; and since then I have heard nothing of my daughter--my one, dear
+child--the image of her mother; and nothing of him--the villain who seduced
+her from me."
+
+"Oh, sir," exclaimed I, "do not call him a villain, for if it be he that I
+hope it was, who escaped through the intrumentality of your daughter, and
+took her with him, he has not a drop of villain's blood in his whole body.
+Sir! sir! I have a son--a Lieutenant Goldie; and he has (as I hope) been a
+French prisoner from the time ye speak of. Therefore, tell me, I implore
+ye, what was he like. Was he six inches taller than his father, with light
+complexion, yellowish hair, an aqualine nose; full blue eyes, a mole upon
+his right cheek, and, at the time ye saw him, apparently, perhaps, from
+two-and-twenty to three-and-twenty years of age? Oh, sir--Count, or
+whatever they call ye--if it be my son that your daughter has liberated and
+gone away with, she has fallen upon her feet; she has married a good, a
+kind, and a brave lad; and, though I should be the last to say it, the son
+of an honest man, who will leave him from five to six thousand pounds,
+beside his commission."
+
+By the description which he gave me, I had no doubt but that my poor Robie,
+and the laddie who had run away with his daughter, (or, I might say, the
+laddie with whom his daughter had run away,) were one and the same person.
+
+I ran into the next room, crying, "Agnes! Agnes! hear, woman! I have got
+news of Robie!"
+
+"News o' my bairn!" she cried, before she saw me. "Speak, Roger! speak!"
+
+I could hardly tell her all that the French Count had told me, and I could
+hardly get her to believe what she heard. But I took her into the room to
+him, and he told her everything over again. A hundred questions were asked
+backward and forward upon both sides, and there was not the smallest doubt,
+on either of our parts, but that it was my Robie that his daughter had
+liberated from the prison, and run off with.
+
+"But oh, sir," said Agnes, "where are they now--baith o my bairns--as you
+say I have twa? Where shall I find them?"
+
+He said that he had but little doubt that they were safe, for his daughter
+had powerful friends in France, and that as soon as a peace took place,
+(which he hoped would not be long,) we should all see them again.
+
+Well, the long-wished-for peace came at last--and in both countries the
+captives were released from the places of their imprisonment. I have
+already twice mentioned the infirm state of my wife's health; and we were
+residing at Spittal, for the benefit of the sea air and bathing, and the
+Spa Well, (though it had not then gained its present fashionable
+popularity,) when a post-chaise drove to the door of our lodgings. An
+elderly gentleman stepped off from the dicky beside the driver, and out of
+the chaise came a young lady, a gentleman, and two bonny bairns. In a
+moment I discovered the elderly gentleman to be my old friend the French
+Count. But, oh! how--how shall I tell you the rest! I had hardly looked
+upon the face of the younger stranger, when I saw my own features in the
+countenance of my long lost Robie! The lady was his wife--the Count's bonny
+daughter; and the bairns were their bairns. It is in vain for me to
+describe to you the feelings of Agnes; she was at first speechless and
+senseless, and then she threw her arms round Robie, and she threw them
+round his wife, and she took his bairns on her knee--and, oh! but she was
+proud at seeing herself a grandmother! We have all lived together in
+happiness from that day to this; and the more I see of Robie's wife, the
+more I think she is like an angel; and so thinks his mother. I have only to
+inform you that bold Jonathan Barlowman was forced to leave the
+country-side shortly after his valiant display of courage, and since then
+nobody in Dunse has heard whether he be dead or living and nobody cares.
+This is all I have to tell ye respecting the _false alarm_, and I hope ye
+are satisfied.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[A] It is evidently from the beautiful chalk cliff near Ednam House (though
+now not a very prominent object) that Kelso derives its name--as is proved
+by the ancient spelling.
+
+
+
+
+HOGMANAY;
+
+OR, THE LADY OF BALLOCHGRAY.
+
+
+The last fifty years of mortal regeneration and improvement have effected
+more changes in the old fasts, and feasts, and merrymakings of Scotland,
+than twice and twice over that time of any other period since it became a
+nation. Every year we see the good old customs dying out, or strangled by
+the Protæan imp Fashion, who, in the grand march of improvement of which we
+are so proud, in the perking conceit of heirs-apparent of the millennium,
+seems to be the only creature that derives benefit from the eternal changes
+that, by-and-by, we fear, will turn our heads, and make us look _back_ for
+the true period of happiness and wisdom. But what enrageth us the more is,
+that, while all our fun of Beltane, Halloween, Hogmanay, Hanselmonday, and
+all our old merrymakings, are gone with our absentee lords and thanes--
+
+    "Wha will their tenants pyke and squeize,
+      And purse up all their rent;
+    Syne wallop it to far courts, and bleize
+      Till riggs and schaws are spent"--
+
+and to whose contempt of our old customs we attribute a great part of their
+decay--we, in the very midst of the glorious improvement that has
+succeeded, are still cheated, belied, robbed, and plundered on all hands by
+political adventurers, private jobbers, and saintly hypocrites, in an
+artful, clean-fingered, and beautiful style of the trade, a thousand times
+more provoking than the clumsy, old-fashioned, _honest_ kind of roguery
+that used to be in fashion, when folk were not too large for innocent
+mirth, and not too wise for enjoying what was liked by their ancestors. The
+people cry improvement--so do we; but we cherish a theory that has no
+charm, in these days of absolute faith in politics and parliament for the
+regeneration of man, that the true good of society--that is, the
+improvement of the heart and morals of a great country--lies in a sphere
+far humbler than the gorgeous recesses of Westminster--the fireside; a
+place that in former days, was revered, and honoured, and cherished, not
+only as the cradle of morals, but the abode of soul-stirring joys, and the
+scene of the celebration of many old and sacred amusements which humanized
+the young heart, and moulded and prepared it for the reception of those
+feelings which are interwoven with the very principle of social good. A
+political wrangle is a poor substitute for the old moral tales of the
+winter evenings of old Scotland. Even our legends of superstitious fear
+carried in them the boon of heartfelt obligation, which, when the subject
+was changed for the duties of life, still retained its strength, and
+wrought for good. These things are all gone; and, dissatisfied as we are
+with the bold substitutes of modern wisdom, let us use that which they
+cannot take from us, our books of "auld lear," and refresh ourselves with a
+peep at Leslie, in the Hogmanay of 16--. Who has not heard of "Christ's
+Kirk" in the kingdom of Fife, that place so celebrated by King James, in
+his incomparable "Christ's Kirk on the Green," for the frolics of wooers
+and "kittys washen clean," and "damsels bright," and "maidens mild?" That
+celebrated town was no other than our modern Leslie; and, though we cannot
+say that that once favoured haunt of the satyrs of merrymaking has escaped
+the dull blight that comes from the sleepy eye of the owl of modern wisdom,
+we have good authority for asserting that long after James celebrated the
+place for its unrivalled festivities, the character of the inhabitants was
+kept for many an after-day; and Hogmanay was a choice outlet for the
+exuberant spirits of the votaries of Momus.
+
+The day we find chronicled as remarkable for an exhibition of the true
+spirit of the Leslieans, went off as all days that precede a glorious
+jubilee at night generally do. The ordinary work of the "yape" expectants
+was, no doubt, apparently going on; but the looking of "twa ways" for
+gloaming was, necessarily, exclusive of much interest in the work of the
+day. The sober matrons, as they sat at the door on the "stane settle,"
+little inclined to work, considered themselves entitled to a _feast_ of
+gossip; and even the guidman did not feel himself entitled to curb the glib
+tongue of his dame, or close up her ears with prudential maxims against the
+bad effects of darling, heart-stirring, soul-inspiring scandal. On that day
+there was no excise of the commodities of character. They might be bought
+or sold at a wanworth, or handed or banded about in any way that suited the
+tempers of the people. The bottle and the bicker had already, even in the
+forenoon, been, to a certain extent, employed as a kind of outscouts of the
+array that was to appear at night, and the gossipers were in that blessed
+state, between partial possession and full expectation, that makes every
+part of the body languid and lazy except the tongue. Around them the
+younkers, "hasty hensures" and "wanton winklots," were busy preparing the
+habiliments of the guysers--whose modes of masking and disguising were
+often regulated by the characters they were to assume, or the songs they
+had learned to chant for the occasion. Nor were these mimes limited to the
+urchin caste; for, in these days, wisdom had not got so conceited as to be
+ashamed of innocent mirth; and gaucy queens and stalwarth chiels exhibited
+their superiority only in acting a higher mask, and singing a loftier
+strain. The gossips did not hesitate to suspend the honeyed topic, to give
+sage counsel on the subject of the masking "bulziements;" and anon they
+turned a side look at the minor actors, the imps of devilry, who passed
+along with their smoking horns often made of the stem or "runt" of a winter
+cabbage, wherewith that night they would inevitably smoke out of "house and
+hauld" every devil's lamb of every gossip that did not open her hand and
+"deal her bread" to the guysers. Both parties, gossips and urchins,
+understood each other--like two belligerent powers asserting mutual rights,
+and contemplating each other with that look of half-concealed contention
+and defiance, which only tended to make the attack more inevitable.
+
+The evening set in, and the witching hour--the keystone of night's black
+arch, twelve o'clock--was approaching. To go to bed on such an occasion,
+would have been held no better than for a jolly toper to shirk his bicker,
+a lover to eschew the trysting thorn, or a warrior to fly the scene of his
+country's glory; neither would it have been safe, for no good guyser of the
+old school would take the excuse of being in bed in lieu of the buttered
+pease-bannock--the true hogmanay cake, to which he was entitled, by "the
+auld use and wont" of Scotland; and far better breathe the smoke of the
+"smeikin horn" on foot, and with the means of self-defence at command, than
+lie choked in bed, and "deaved" by the stock and horn, the squalling
+bagpipe, and the eternal--
+
+    "Hery, Hary, Hubblischow,
+    See ye not quha is come now!"
+
+ringing in one's ears during the whole night. The young were out; the old
+were in; but all were equally up and doing the honours of the occasion. At
+auld Wat Wabster's door, one minstrel company were singing--"Great is my
+sorrow;" and Marion, his daughter, with
+
+    "Her glitterand hair, that was sae gowden,"
+
+dealt out, with leal hand, the guyser's bannock. At the very next door, Meg
+Johnston was in the act of being "smecked oot" by a covey of twelve devils,
+who had inserted into every cranny a horn, and were blowing, with puffed
+cheeks, a choking death in every blast. One kept watch, to give the
+concerted signal when Meg should appear with her stick. On which occasion
+they were off in an instant; but only to return when Meg had let out the
+smoke, and satisfied herself that she would be no more tormented that
+night, to blow her up and out again, with greater vigour and a denser smoke
+than before. Farther on, Gib Dempster's dame, Kate, is at her door, with
+the bottle in her hand, to give another menyie of maskers their "hogmanay,"
+in the form of a dram; and Gib is at her back, eyeing her with a squint, to
+count how many interlusive applications of the cordial she will make to her
+own throat before she renounce her _opportunity_. In the middle of the
+street, Gossip Simson is hurrying along, with the necessaries in her lap,
+to treat her "cusin," Christy Lowrie, with a bit and a drop; and ever and
+anon she says, "a guid e'en" to this one, and "a guid e'en" to that; and,
+between the parties, her head is ever thrown back, as if she were counting
+the stars; and, every time the act is repeated, the bottle undergoes a
+perceptible diminution of its contents, till, by the time she reaches her
+"luving cusin's" door, it is empty; and honest John Simson, at her return,
+greets her with--"My feth, Jenny, ye've been at mony a hoose in Christ's
+Kirk this nicht, if ane may judge by yer bottle." At the same instant,
+
+    "Oh, leddy, help yer prisoneer
+    This last nicht o' the passing year,"
+
+is struck up at the door; the stock and horn sounds lustily in the ears of
+her whose bottle is empty; and, obliged to send them away without either
+cake or sup, she hears sounding in her confused ears--
+
+    "The day will come when ye'll be dead.
+    An' ye'll neither care for meal nor bread;"
+
+and, in a short time after, "Jamie the wight," an impling, with a tail of
+half-a-dozen minor and subordinate angels, begin blowing their smoking
+horns in at both door and window, till honest John is fairly smoked out,
+crying, as he hastens to the door--"This comes, Jenny, o' yer lavish
+kindness to yer cusins, that we hae naethin left in oor bottle, either to
+keep oot thae deevils' breath or wash't oot o' oor choking craigs." He is
+no sooner at the door than Geordie Jamieson accosts him in the usual style,
+and says he has come for his "hogmanay;" but John, knowing the state of the
+bottle, begins a loud cough, in the midst of the smoke, and cries, as he
+runs away from his house and visitor, (whom he pretends not to see for the
+smoke.) "It's a deevil o' a hardship to be smeeked oot o' ane's ain hoose."
+
+"Now," mutters Jenny, as she hears him run away, "I'll no see his face till
+mornin; an' he'll come in as blind's a bat." And out she flies to catch
+him; but, in her hurry, she overturns Geordie, just as his lips are
+manufacturing the ordinary "Guid e'en to ye, Jenny!"
+
+"The same to ye, Geordie," says she; and, with that boon, leaves him on her
+flight.
+
+The truth was, that John had the same instinctive antipathy against a house
+where there was an empty bottle as rats have against deserted granaries.
+But, if honest John Simson's house was deserted because Jenny had made too
+free with the bottle, Wat Webster's was full, from a reason precisely the
+very opposite; for the fair Marion--who had
+
+    "Brankit fast and made her bonny"--
+
+was, in the midst of a company, distributing the cakes and bannocks with
+maidenly grace; and many a swain that night was glad, while
+
+    "He quhissilit and he pypit baith,
+      To mak her blyth that meeting--
+    My hony heart, how says the sang,
+      There sall be mirth at oor greeting."
+
+And among the rest might now be seen John Simson and his helpmate, and also
+Meg Johnston, who had been--either in reality, or, at least, with semblance
+sufficient to form their apology for calling where there was plenty of
+drink--smoked out of their own houses, amidst the cheers of the fire-imps.
+About this time, twelve o'clock was chimed from a rough-voiced bell of the
+Franciscan Monastery; and, some time after, in came Christy Lowrie, puffing
+and blowing, as if she too had experienced the effects of the thick breath
+of the fire-imps; and it might have been a fair presumption that her
+throat, like that of some of her predecessors, had been dried from
+pre-perceived gusts of Wat Webster's whisky rather than the smoke of the
+fire-angels, had it not been made quickly apparent, from other symptoms,
+that a horripilant terror had seized her heart and limbs, and inspired her
+tongue with the dry rattle of fearful intelligence. Never stopping till she
+got forward into the very heart of the company, seated round a blazing
+ingle, she sank upon a chair, and held up her hands to heaven, as if
+calling down from that quarter some supernatural agency to help in her
+difficulty. Every one turned and looked at her with wonder, mixed with
+sympathetic fear.
+
+"What, in God's name, is this, Christy? Is he come?" cried Wat Webster.
+
+"Oh! he's come again--he's come again!" she replied, in the midst of an
+effort to catch a spittle to wet her parched throat. "He's been at Will
+Pearson's, and Widow Lindsay's, and Rob Paterson's--he's gaun his auld
+rounds--and dootless he'll be here too. O Marion! Marion! gie me a spark to
+weet my throat."
+
+The door was again opened, and in came Widow Lindsay in great haste and
+terror,
+
+"I've seen him again!" cried she fearfully, and threw herself down in a
+corner of the lang settle.
+
+"Are ye sure it's him, dame?" inquired Meg Johnston, who seemed perfectly
+to understand these extraordinary proceedings.
+
+"Sure!" ejaculated the widow. "Hae I no tasted his _red whisky_; and has it
+no burned my throat till I maun ask Marion there to quench the fire wi' a
+spark o' human-liquor?"
+
+The fire in the two terror-struck women's throats was soon extinguished by
+the "spark" they demanded; and a conversation, composed of twenty voices at
+once, commenced, the essence of which was, that, on the occasion of the
+last Hogmanay, a man dressed in a peculiar manner, with a green doublet,
+and hose of the same colour, a cravat, and a blue bonnet, had, just as
+twelve o'clock pealed from the monastery clock, made his appearance in the
+town, and conducted himself in such a manner as to excite much wonder among
+the inhabitants. Everything about him was mysterious; no person in that
+quarter had ever seen him before; there was nobody along with him; he came
+exactly at twelve; his face was so much shaded by a peculiar manner of
+wearing his bonnet and cravat that no one could say he had ever got a
+proper view of his features; he carried with him a bottle of liquor, which
+the people, from ignorance of its character, denominated _red whisky_, and
+which he distributed freely to all and sundry, without his stock ever
+running out, or being exhausted: his manners were free, boisterous, and
+hilarious; and he possessed the extraordinary power of making people love
+him _ad libitum_. He came as he went, without any one knowing more of him
+than that he was the very prince of good fellows; so exquisite a tosspot,
+that he seemed equal to the task (perhaps no difficult one) of making the
+whole town of Christ's Kirk drunk by the extraordinary spirit of his
+example; and so spirit-stirring a conjurer of odd thoughts and unrivalled
+humour, that melancholy itself laughed a gaunt laugh at his jokes; and
+gizzened gammers and giddy hizzies were equally delighted with his devilry
+and his drink. Arriving in the midst of frolic as high as ordinary mortal
+spirits might be supposed able to sublime human exultation, he effected
+such an increase of the corrybantic power of the laughing and singing
+genius of Hogmanay, that
+
+    "Never in Scotland had been seen
+      Sic dancing nor deray;
+    Nowther at Falkland on the green,
+      Nor Peebles at the play."
+
+But, coming like a fire-flaught, like a fire-flaught he and his red whisky
+had departed; and it was not until he had gone, and one tosspot met another
+tosspot, and gossip another gossip, and compared notes, and exchanged
+shrewd guesses, eloquent winks, and pregnant vibrations of wondering
+noddles, that the mysterious stranger was invested with all the attributes
+to which he was, by virtue of his super-human powers, so clearly entitled.
+He was immediately elevated to the place which, in those days, was reserved
+in every cranium for the throne of the genius of superstition; yea he of
+the red cravat and red liquor was the never-ending subject of conversation,
+investigation, speculation, and consternation of the good folks of the town
+of Christ's Kirk. While the terror he had inspired was still fresh on the
+minds of the people, he returned at the exact hour of twelve on the
+subsequent Halloween. He brought again his bottle of red liquor, was
+dressed in the same style, wore the same red cravat, and was invested with
+the same sublimating powers of extravagant merriment. He went his old
+rounds; cracked nuts with the kittys; ducked for the apple, which never
+escaped his mouth; threw the weight in the barn; spaed fortunes with the
+Mauses; drank with the tosspots--
+
+    "If you can be blest the day,
+      Ne'er defer it till the morn--
+    Peril still attends delay;
+      As the fools will find, when they
+    Have their happy hour forborne;"
+
+and, by means of his wild humour and exhilarating drink, set all the scene
+of his former exploits in an uproar of mixed terror, jollity, superstition,
+and amazement. Every one, not possessed of fear, scrutinized him; those
+(and they were many) who were stricken with terror, avoided him as if he
+had in reality been the gentleman in black, as indeed many at that time
+alleged he was; some who had heard of him, watched to catch a passing
+glimpse of him; but, wonderful as it may seem, the jolly stranger again
+disappeared, and no one, even those who had got royally drunk with him,
+could say aught more of him than was said on the prior occasion; viz., that
+he was the very prince of good fellows, if he should be the "very
+big-horned Deil himsel." On his second disappearance, the point was no
+longer a moot one, "Who the devil he could be?" for the very question, as
+put, decided the question before it was answered. The point was just as
+lucid as ever was the spring of St Anthony, and no one could be gravelled,
+where there was not a grain of sand to interrupt the vision. There was not
+in the limits of the guid toun a dame or damsel, greybeard, or no-beard,
+that possessed within the boundaries of their cerebral dominions a single
+peg on which they could hang a veritable or plausible doubt of the true
+character, origin, and destination of this twelve-o'clock visiter of the
+good old town of "Christ's Kirk on the Green."
+
+Such was the state and condition of public opinion in the town of Leslie on
+this most important and engrossing subject, on the breaking of the day with
+which our history begins--this eventful Hogmanay. As the evening
+approached, every one trembled; but the inspiration of incipient drams had
+had the effect of so far throwing off the incubus as to enable some of the
+inhabitants, and, in particular, those we have mentioned, to go about the
+forms of the festival with decent freedom; while the guysers and "reekers,"
+after the manner of buoyant youth, had been flirting with their terrors,
+and singing and blowing to "keep their spirits up," in the execution of
+what they conceived to be a national duty, as well as very good individual
+fun. But there was little real sport in the case; and we would give it as a
+stanch, and an unflinching opinion, were it put to us, that the terror of
+the stranger, and not a love of the liquor she carried, was the true cause
+of Jenny Simson's having emptied the bottle before she arrived at the
+residence of Christy Lowrie. Nay, more, we might safely allege--and there
+is no affidavit in the case--that there might have been more than smoke in
+the cause of the rapid flight of John Simson and Meg Johnston from their
+own houses to that of Wat Webster; and more than the roses in the cheeks of
+the fair Marion, or Wat Webster's pith of anecdote, that produced the
+congregation of individuals round his "blazing ingle," at the approach of
+the eerie hour of twelve, when it was probable the mysterious stranger
+would again appear. Be all this as it may--and we have no wish to overstate
+a case in which it is scarcely possible to carry language too far--there
+cannot be a doubt that the bells of the Franciscan monastery, as they
+tolled, in reverberating sounds, the termination of the old year and the
+beginning of the new, on that eventful night, struck a panic into the
+boldest Heich Hutcheon that ever figured in "Christ's Kirk on the Green."
+
+The statement of Christy Lowrie was perfectly true. Just as the bell
+tolled, the identical personage, with the red cravat, was seen hurrying
+forward with his ordinary agility--taking immense strides, and, at times,
+laughing with the exuberance of his buoyant spirits, on the eve of being
+gratified by his darling fun--by the east end of the town. The moon threw a
+faint beam on him as he passed, and exhibited him first to a company of
+guysers who were chanting at the door of Will Pearson--
+
+    "O lusty Maye, with Flora queen."
+
+The song was cut by a severed breath, and, uttering a loud scream, the
+whole party darted off at full speed, and, as they flew, spread the
+dreadful intelligence, that he of the red cravat was hurrying into the town
+from the east. The news was just what was expected; hundreds were waiting
+_aperto ore_ to receive it; and the moment they did receive it, they fled
+to communicate the intelligence to others. Guysers, reekers, gossips, and
+tosspots, laid down their songs, their horns, their scandal, and their
+stoups, and acknowledged their Hogmanay occupation gone. The startling
+words--"He's come, he's come!" passed from mouth to mouth. Some shut up
+their houses, to prevent him from coming into them; and many who were
+solitary, sought refuge in the houses of their neighbours. Some went out of
+the town entirely, and sought protection from the abbot of the monastery;
+and many stood about the corners of the passages and the ends of houses,
+consulting what should be done in this emergency they had so long looked
+for, and were so poorly provided against. In every quarter, fear reigned
+with absolute sway; and if, in any instances, there was exhibited any
+portion of courage, it was either derived from the protecting power of a
+crucifix, or assumed in spite of the collapsing heart of real terror.
+
+But all this did not prevent the stranger from going through his wonted
+routine. His long strides, and extreme eagerness to get again into the
+heart of his former extravagant jollity, brought him very soon to the
+threshold of his old tosspot, Will Pearson, who, with his wife Betty, was
+sitting at the fire, engaged in a low-toned conversation, on the very
+subject of him of the red cravat. The door was burst open--the stranger
+entered with a loud laugh and boisterous salutation.
+
+"A good new year to thee," said he, "Will Pearson!" And he took, at the
+same time, out of a side-pocket, the identical bottle, with a long neck,
+and a thin waist, and containing the same red whisky he had been so lavish
+of on former occasions, and set it upon the table with a loud knock that
+rang throughout the small cottage.
+
+Will Pearson and his wife Betty were riveted to the langsettle on which
+they sat. Neither of them could move, otherwise they would have either gone
+out at the back window, or endeavoured to get past the stranger, and
+hurried out of the door. The quietness of the street told them eloquently
+that there was no one near to give them assistance; and such was the
+enchantment (they said) thrown over them by the extraordinary personage,
+that they were fixed to their seats as firmly as if they had been tied by
+cords.
+
+"A good new year to thee!" said the stranger again; and he reached forth
+his hand, and seized two flasks that lay on a side table, and which they
+had been using in the convivialities of the day. These he placed upon the
+table with a loud clank; and, laying hold of a three-footed creepy, he sat
+down right opposite the trembling pair, and proceeded to empty out the red
+liquor into the flasks, which he did in the most flourishing and noble
+style of valiant topers.
+
+"Here, my good old tosspot, Will Pearson!" said he, as he handed to him one
+of the flasks. "I love thee, man, and have called on thee the first of all
+the inhabitants of Christ's Kirk. Ha! by the holy rude, what a jolly cruise
+I shall have!--I have looked forward for it since the last time thou and I
+reduced the consistency of our corporations to the texture of souls,
+through which the moon might have shone, by the power of this inimitable
+liquor. Ho, man, had not we a jolly time of it last time we met? Drink,
+man!"
+
+And he emptied his flask, and flung it down upon the table, with a bold and
+reckless air, as if he did not care whether its continuity might be
+maintained against the force of the bang with which he disposed of it.
+
+Will Pearson was unable to speak a single syllable; and the flask that had
+been filled for him stood upon the table untouched. He sat with his eyes
+fixed upon the stranger, and his skin as pale as a corpse. Betty was in the
+same state of immovable terror. Every word that fell from his lips was a
+death-knell--every drop of his red drink was as much liquid fire--and every
+look was a flame.
+
+"Why won't drink, Will Pearson, mine good old crony?" said he again, with
+the same boisterous manner. "What grieves thee, man? and Betty too?--what
+loss hast thou sustained? Cuffed by fortune? Broken on her wheel? Ha! ha! I
+despise the old gammer, and will laugh out my furlough, though my lungs
+should crack in throwing off the burden.
+
+    "'This warld does ever flight and wary,
+    Fortune sae fast her wheel does cary,
+      Na time but turn can ever rest;
+      For nae false charge suld ane be sary,
+      And to be merry, I think it best.'
+
+Pull up thy jaws, Will Pearson, and pull into them this flask, and thou
+shalt be again my merry tosspot."
+
+Will and his wife were still under the influence of their fear, and stared
+at him in amazement.
+
+"Well, and thou wilt not," he cried, rising hastily, "may the Devil take on
+for't! My time is counted, and I must stuff as much fun into the compass of
+an hour as may serve me for the coming year. Will Pearson, thou and I might
+have had a right jolly time of it. I warrant the gallant Rob Paterson will
+welcome me in a different manner. The sight of this is enough for Rob,"
+(taking up the bottle;) "and as for this--ha! ha! what goodness getteth not
+the fire claims."
+
+And throwing the liquor into the ingle, which blazed up a large and fearful
+flame by the strength of the spirit, he sallied out, and at the same moment
+a loud scream--coming from some bolder investigators, who had ventured near
+the house, and seen the sudden conflagration, followed by the exit of the
+stranger--rung in echoes all around. But the stranger heeded not these
+trifling indications of the effect of his visit. Resuming his long strides
+and pushing-on activity of manner, he soon arrived at the house of Rob
+Paterson, who was at the very moment addressing a figure of the Virgin.
+
+"A good new year to thee, Rob Paterson!" cried the stranger, as he sat down
+upon a kind of chair by the side of the table, and, taking out his
+strange-fashioned bottle of red spirits, banged it down with a noise that
+made Rob start and shake all over.
+
+"Here again, thou seest, Rob Paterson," continued he. "We must have another
+jolly bout. Thou knowest my time is short. Let us begin, for my body feels
+the weight of its own clay. Before the Virgin, Rob? Ha! ha! man, art going
+to die? Come, man--
+
+    "When grim Death is looking for us,
+      We are toping at our bowls;
+    Bacchus joins us in the chorus--
+      Death, begone!--here's none but souls."
+
+Drink, Rob Paterson, and thou'lt pray the better to the Virgin."
+
+And he held out the bottle to Rob, after having put it bodily to his mouth,
+and taking a long draught as an example to the latter, who was known to
+despise flasks. Rob turned up his eyes to the Virgin, and got from her some
+confidence, if not courage. He looked at the tempting bottle, beautiful in
+its fulness and total freedom from the contaminating society of flasks or
+tankards; then he turned a fearful eye on its laughing, rioting possessor,
+and anon sought again the face of the saint.
+
+"Hast lost thine ancient spirit, Rob Paterson?" said the stranger. What
+hath that spare figure, made of dry wood, to do with the mellow fuddling of
+our noses? Come, man--Time flies; let us wet his wings, and keep him
+fluttering a while over our heads.
+
+    "'With an O and an I,
+      Now are we furder found,
+    Drink thou to me, and I to thee,
+      And let the cup go round.'"
+
+"But wha, in the Devil's name, are ye?" now said Rob Paterson, after many
+an ineffectual effort to put the question.
+
+"Ha! ha!" answered the stranger, "does Rob Paterson ask a man who is
+introduced by this friend of noble red-blood, who he is? Why, man, I am Rob
+Paterson's tosspot. Isn't that enough?"
+
+"No quite," answered Rob, drawing nearer the Virgin. "Satan himself might
+use the same words; and I crave the liberty to say in your presence, that I
+hae nae wish to be on drinking terms wi' his Majesty."
+
+And Rob eyed him fearfully as he thus alluded to the subject of the town's
+fears, and again sought the face of the saint.
+
+"Ah, Rob Paterson, my once cherished toper," replied the stranger, "I
+sorrow for thy change. Thine ancient spirit has left thee, and thou hast
+taken up with wooden idols, in place of the well-filled jolly bottle of thy
+and my former love. Well, may the Devil take on for't!--I care not. Thou
+mayst repent of thy folly when I am gone.
+
+    "'Robene thou has hard soung and say,
+      In gesties and stories auld--
+    The man that will not quhen he may,
+      Sall haif nocht quhen he wald.'"
+
+Never mair, Rob Paterson, shalt thou have offer of spirit of wine. It shall
+go there first!"
+
+And, taking a mouthful of the red liquor, the stranger squirted it in the
+fire, and raised a mighty flame that flared out into the very middle of the
+street, and produced another echoing cry or scream from the terrified
+inhabitants. He departed in an instant, and left Rob in a state of
+agitation he had never felt before at the departure of a guest with a
+well-filled bottle of good liquor.
+
+The stranger passed out at the door with his usual bold precipitude, and
+again plied his long limbs in making huge strides along the street, for the
+house of another crony. He took no notice of the extraordinary demeanour of
+the inhabitants, who were seen flying away from corners and angles where
+they had nestled, for the purpose of seeing him come out in a flame of fire
+from Rob Paterson's, as he had done from Will Pearson's. He strode on,
+neither looking to the right nor to the left, till he came to Widow
+Lindsay's.
+
+"A good new year to thee, Dame Lindsay!" said he, as he entered the house
+by opening the door, which the widow thought she had barred when she shoved
+the bolt beyond the staple, and found her sitting by the fire counting her
+rosary, and muttering prayers, with eyes upturned to heaven.
+
+"Holy Mary, save me!" she muttered, as she heard him enter by the supposed
+locked door. "He's come at last." And she retreated to a corner of the
+room, and prayed fervently for deliverance.
+
+"Thy throat has doubtless good memory of me and mine," continued the
+stranger, as he placed on the table the same extraordinary bottle, the
+shape and dimensions of which were as vivid in the mind of Dame Lindsay as
+was the colour of the red cravat. "My male tosspots have forgot the taste
+of my red liquor," he continued; "but what wet gossip's throat ever forgot
+what nipped it. Come, dame, and let us have a right hearty jorum of this
+inimitable drink." And, for want of better measure, he seized lustily a
+bicker that lay near him, and dashed a quantity of the liquor into it. "Ha!
+I forgot. Get thee for Meg Johnston thy gossip, dame, and let us be merry
+together. Meg is a woman of a thousand. What a lusty hold she takes of a
+brimming bicker, and how her eye lightens and brightens as she surveys the
+swimming heaven under her nose! Come, dame--what ails?"
+
+The only reply he got was a groan, and the rustle of Dame Lindsay's
+quivering habiliments.
+
+"By my own saint, this town of Christ's Kirk has a change upon it!" he
+continued. "Last time I was here, it was as merry as King James when he
+sang of it. The young and the old hailed me as the prince of good fellows,
+and the wenches and wives--ha! ha!
+
+    "'To dans thir damysells them dight,
+      Thir lasses light of laits;
+    They were sae skych when I them nicht,
+      They squeild like ony gaits.'"
+
+Dame Lindsay, I perceive what thou wantest, to melt thee into thy former
+jollity. Thou'rt coquetting in the corner there for a kiss; and, by the
+holy rude, thou shalt not want it for the space of the twinkling of thine
+eye."
+
+He rose for the purpose of applying the emollient he had threatened; but a
+loud scream evinced that a woman, however much she may worship his Satanic
+Majesty, cares not for his familiarities. The widow fainted; and what may
+be supposed her feelings, when she found, on coming to herself, that that
+identical and terrific red liquor had had a share in her recovery! Again
+she screamed; but no kindly neighbour came to rescue her from her perilous
+situation. Those who heard her cries, had many strange thoughts as to what
+species of punishment she was undergoing, for her sins. The conjectures
+were endless. "What could he be doing to Widow Lindsay?" was the universal
+question. Some supposed that she was in the act of being carried off, and
+was struggling to get out of his talons; some looked for the passing flame,
+in the midst of which, the poor widow, clasped in his arms, would be seen
+on her luminous journey to the lower world; and there were not few who
+pretended to find, in the past life of the wretched victim, a very good
+legitimate cause for the visit of the stranger, and the severity he was
+clearly exercising towards her.
+
+"Thou'lt be the better for thy faint, Widow Lindsay," said the stranger, as
+she recovered, "seeing that what blood it has sent from thy heart, will be
+returned with the addition of that liquor which is truly the water of life.
+Dost forget, good widow, that, when I was last here, thou and Meg Johnston
+would have fought for a can of it, if I had not made the can two? Come now,
+and let us fuddle our noses till they be as red as the liquor itself, and
+thy spectacles shew thee two noses, before they melt with the heat of their
+ruby supporter.
+
+    "'However this world do change and vary,
+    Oh, let us in heart never more be sary.'"
+
+"Avaunt ye! in the name o' the five holy wounds!" muttered the widow, as
+she held up the Sathanifuge crow in his face.
+
+"Well, and if thou wilt not, here goes!" replied he, as he threw the
+contents of the bicker in the fire, which blazed up till the house seemed,
+to those waiting fearfully in the distance, to be in flames.
+
+Many an eye was now directed to the door and windows, to see Widow Lindsay
+take her pyromantic flight through the flaming fields of ether; and they
+continued their gaze till they saw him of the red cravat sally forth, when
+fear closed up the vision, and they saw no more. Meanwhile he strode on,
+singing all the way--
+
+    "Full oft I muse, and be's in thocht;
+    How this false world is aye on flocht,"
+
+till he came to the door of Meg Johnston's cottage. He found it deserted;
+and then stalked on to honest John Simson's, which was in like manner
+empty.
+
+"What can this mean?" he said to himself, as he bent his long steps to Wat
+Webster's, where fearful messengers, as we have seen, had already preceded
+him. "My person has lost its charm, my converse its interest, and my drink
+its spirit-stirring power. But we shall see what Wat Webster and his Dame
+Kitty, and the fair Marion, say to the residue of my authority. Ah, Marion,
+as I think of thee--
+
+    "'How heises and bleizes
+      My heart wi' sic a fyre,
+    As raises these praises
+      That do to heaven aspire.'"
+
+"Ha! ha! I will there outdevil all my devilries. My fire-chariots have as
+yet flown off without a passenger; but this night I shall not go home
+alone."
+
+And he continued striding onwards in the deserted and silent passage, till
+he came to Wat Webster's, where the collected inmates were all huddled
+together round the fire, in that state of alarm produced by the
+intelligence of Christy Lowry and Widow Lindsay, and already partly set
+forth by us heretofore. Bang up went the door.
+
+"A good new year to ye all!" said he, as he stalked into the middle of the
+apartment.
+
+There was a dead silence throughout the company. Marion was the only
+individual that dared to look him in the face; and there was an expression
+in her eye that seemed to have the effect of increasing the boisterous glee
+of his mysterious manner.
+
+"Here we are once more, again," he continued, as he took out the eternal
+imp-shaped bottle, and clanged it on the table.
+
+Every eye was fixed upon him as if watching his motions and evolutions. Meg
+Johnston was busy in a corner, defending herself, by drawing a circle round
+her; Widow Lindsay was clinging close to the figure of the Virgin that was
+placed against the wall by her side; Jenny Wilson sought refuge in the arms
+of honest John; Wat Webster himself got his hand placed upon an old Latin
+Bible, not one word of which he could read; and some followed one mode of
+self-defence, and some another, against the expected efforts of the
+stranger, whose proceedings at his other places of call had been all
+related at Wat Webster's, with an exaggeration they perhaps stood little in
+need of. The stranger cared nothing for these indications, not a cinder;
+and took no notice of them.
+
+"I'll e'en begin our potations myself," said he, filling out a flaskful of
+his liquor, and drinking it off. "By him that brewed it, it tastes well
+after my long walk! Wat Webster, wilt thou pledge me, man--
+
+    "'And let us all, my friends, be merry,
+    And set nocht by this world a cherry;
+      Now while there is good wyne to sell,
+    He that does on dry bread worry,
+      I gif him to the devil of hell.'"
+
+And he trowled the flask upon the table while he sung, as a kind of bass
+chorus to his song.
+
+"There's for thee, Wat!" continued he, filling out a flask.
+
+Wat kept his hand upon the holy book.
+
+"Wilt thou, honest John Wilson, pledge thy old friend in this red liquor,
+which formerly claimed so strong an acquaintanceship with the secret power
+of the topers' hearts of merry Christ's Kirk?"
+
+"For the luve o' heaven," whispered Jenny, as she clung closer to him,
+"touch it not!--it will scald yer liver like brimstone, and may, besides,
+be the price o' yer soul's purchase."
+
+John looked at the liquor, and would have spoken; but his heart failed him.
+
+"Wilt thou, Meg Johnston, empty this flask to the health of thy old
+friend?"
+
+"Guid faith, I, lad," muttered Meg, safe as she thought within the walls of
+her necromantic circumvallation--"I ken ye owre weel. Ye needna think to
+cheat me. I'm no a spunk to be dipped in brimstone, and then set lowe to.
+But [aside] how can he stand the look o' the haly rude! and the haly book?
+The deevil o' sic a deevil I ever heard, saw, or read o'. Avaunt ye, avaunt
+ye, in the name o the seven churches! The deil a bane ye'll get here--yere
+owre weel kenned. Set aff in a flash o' yer ain fire to Falkland."
+
+"Wilt thou, Christy Lowry, pledge thine old friend?" continued the
+stranger, without noticing Meg's recommendation.
+
+"In guid troth na," replied Christy, to whom the cross afforded some
+confidence. "It's a' out, man--it's owre the hail town. There's nae use in
+concealin't langer. Just put a spunk to the neck o't and set aff. Wae! wae!
+[aside] but it's an awfu thing to look the enemy i' the very face, and
+hauld converse wi' lips that mak nae gobs at cinders! Ave Maria! help
+Christy Lowry in this her trial and temptation?"
+
+"Come from thy langsettle, jolly Kate Webster," continued he of the red
+cravat, "and let us, as thou wert wont to say, have a little laughing and
+drinking deray in this last night of the old year. I see, by the very
+mouths thou makest, thy throat is as dry as a dander, and, by and by, may
+set fire to my red liquor. Ha! I love a jolly gossip for a tosspot; for she
+gives more speech, and takes more liquor, than your 'breeked' steers that
+drink down the words, and drown them in the throat. Nothing drowns a
+woman's speech. It strengthens and improves in ale or whisky as if it were
+its natural element. Come open thy word-mill, Kate, and pour in the red
+grist, lass."
+
+"The soopleness o' his tongue has been long kent," whispered Kitty to Meg
+Johnston.
+
+"Ay, an' lang felt," replied Meg, in a suppressed tone. "Our sins are
+naething but a coil o't. When, in God's name, will he tak flight? I canna
+stand this muckle langer."
+
+"Three times have I warded off a swarf," said Kitty. "The gouch o' his
+breath comes owre me like the reek o' a snuffed-out candle. Will the men no
+interfere?"
+
+"Marion Webster," said the stranger, as if unconscious of the fear he was
+producing, "did I not, sweet queen, dance a jolly fandango with thee, last
+Halloween, to the rondeau of love--
+
+    "'Return the hamewart airt agane,
+      And byde quhair thou wast wont to be--
+    Thou art ane fule to suffer paine,
+      For love of her that loves not thee.'
+
+And wilt thou not pledge thy old friend in a half flask--the maiden's
+bumper?"
+
+"I hae nae objections," replied the sprightly Marion, and took up the
+flask.
+
+The company looked on in amazement and terror. The flame would rise on the
+application of the liquor to her lips, and doubtless little more of Marion
+Webster would be seen on the face of this lower world. While Marion still
+held the flask in her hand, the sound of carriage wheels was heard. The
+vehicle seemed to halt at Wat Webster's door. The door opened with a bang.
+Marion had not time to drink off her "spark," and, still holding the flask,
+went to the door to see who had so unceremoniously opened it; he of the red
+cravat, taking up his bottle, followed with a long stride. A sudden
+exclamation was heard from Marion; the sound of the shutting of the door of
+a carriage followed; then came Jehu's "hap-away," with three loud cracks of
+a whip, and all was ended by the rolling of rapid wheels, lost in a moment
+in the distance.
+
+Wat Webster, who had hitherto been chained to his seat, now started up;
+and, clasping his hands in his agony, ejaculated, that "Marion was off in a
+flame o' fire." The fact scarcely required mention--alas! too evident to
+all the company--that the greatest beauty of Christ's Kirk was away in the
+talons of the great Enemy of all good; and the evidence within the walls of
+the house was not greater than what was afforded by the watching crowd
+without. The carriage, which was entirely black, and not unlike a hearse,
+was seen to come in by the east end of the town, driving with a furious
+career, the driver (dressed also in black) impelling, with a long whip, the
+black horses, from whose hoofs sparks of fire were seen to fly; and neither
+house nor man seeming to claim his attention, until he arrived at the house
+of Wat Webster, where he of the red cravat was known to be. Many followed
+the carriage, and many remained at a distance to see who the victim was
+that was destined to be carried off in the strangers' vehicle; for, that
+the coach was brought there for no other purpose than to carry off one who
+could command in an instant a chariot of fire, seemed reasonably to be
+entirely out of the question. Marion Webster, the beloved of the village,
+was seen to enter, followed by the stranger; and, as the coach flew off, a
+loud wail burst from the stricken hearts of the villagers, expressive at
+once of their fear and of the intense pity they felt for the fate of one so
+much beloved, and whose crimes, much less than theirs, merited so dreadful
+a punishment as that she should be carried off to the regions of sorrow.
+The evidence, within and without the house, met, and, by the force of
+sympathetic similarity, mixed in an instant, carrying away in their course,
+like floating straws, the strongest doubts that remained in the mind of the
+most sceptical man in Christ's Kirk, of the hapless daughter of Wat Webster
+having been carried off by the Devil. The town was in the greatest
+commotion; terror and pity were painted on every face; but the feelings of
+the public held small proportion, indeed, to the agony which overtook Wat
+Webster and his wife, whose only child she was, as well as their pride, and
+that of every one in the whole town. Wat, who saw no use in flying after
+Sathan--an individual of known locomotive powers--lay extended on the floor
+of his cottage, cursing his fate, and bewailing the condition of his lovely
+daughter, whose entry into Pandemonium, and first scream produced by the
+burning lake, were as distinct in his eye and ear as ever was his morning
+porridge, when they boiled and bubbled by the heat of the fire. But Kitty
+was up and out, with a mighty crowd or tail in attendance, flying up and
+down in every direction, to see if any burning trace could be had of her
+beloved Marion; for she declared that, if she only got "the dander o' her
+body to bury in Christ's Kirk," she would be thankful to heaven for the
+gift, and try to moderate her grief. But no "dander" was to be seen. It was
+by much too evident that Marion Webster would never more be seen on earth;
+and, what might naturally add to the grief of her friends, they had no
+chance of seeing her again in the world to come, unless at the expense of a
+_condemnation_--a dear passport to see an old friend. Such a night was
+never seen in Christ's Kirk as that on which Marion Webster was carried off
+by his Sathanic Majesty.
+
+We have said quite enough to make it to be understood that Marion Webster
+did in reality go off in a coach with the stranger who has occupied so much
+of our attention; but we have (being of Scottish origin) prudently
+abstained from giving any opinion of our own upon the question of the true
+character of him of the red cravat. The two drove off together, apparently
+with much affection, and, after they had got entirely beyond the reach of
+any supposed followers, they became comparatively easy, and very soon
+commenced a conversation--an amusement never awanting when there is a woman
+within reach of a person's articulated breath.
+
+"What is the meaning o' a' this, Geordie, man?" said Marion, looking
+lovingly into the face of the stranger. "Could I no have met ye this night
+at the Three Sisters--the trees in the wood o' Ballochgray--without your
+coming to Christ's Kirk, and spreading the fear o' the deil frae town's-end
+to town's-end? But whar are we journeying to? and what means the carriage?"
+
+The stranger thus accosted by the familiar name by which he was known to
+the young woman, smiled, and told her to hold her tongue, and resign
+herself to the pleasure of being carried through the air at the rate of ten
+miles an hour. The moon was now shining beautifully "owre tower and tree;"
+and ever and anon the maiden glanced her blue eye on the "siller-smolt"
+scenes through which she passed, and then turned to the face of her
+companion, who seemed to enjoy silently the wonder expressed by her fair
+face. After rolling on for some time, they came to a road or avenue of tall
+beech trees, at the end of which appeared an old castle, on which the
+moonbeams were glancing, and exhibiting in strange forms the turrets with
+which it was fancifully decorated. The grey owl's scream was borne along on
+the breeze that met them, and struck on Marion's ear in wild and fitful
+sounds--inspiring a dread which the presence of her mute lover did little
+to remove or assuage.
+
+"Is not that Ballochgray Castle?" said Marion, at last--"that fearfu place
+whar the Baron of Ballochgray haulds his court with the Evil One, on every
+Halloween night, when the bleak muirs are rife with the bad spirits o' the
+earth and air. Whar drives the man, Geordie? Oh, tell him to turn awa frae
+thae auld turrets and skreeching owls. I canna bear the sight o' the ane,
+or the eerie sound o' the ither."
+
+A smile was again the answer of her companion, and the carriage still drove
+on to the well-known residence of the young Baron of Ballochgray--a man
+who, knowing the weakness of his King, James the Third of Scotland, in his
+love of astrology and divination, and their sister black arts, had, with
+much address, endeavoured to recommend himself to his sovereign, by a
+character pre-established in his own castle, for a successful cultivation
+of the occult sciences. He had long withdrawn himself from the eyes of the
+world, and even of his own tenants, and shut himself up in his castle, with
+a due assortment of death's heads, charts, owls, globes, bones, astrolobes,
+and vellum chronicles, with a view to the perfection of his hidden
+knowledge; or, as some thought, with a view to produce such a fame of his
+character and pursuits as might reach the ears of James, and acquire for
+him that sway at court for which he sighed more than for real knowledge.
+Some alleged that he was a cunning diplomatist, who cared no more for the
+nostrums of astrology than he did for the dry bones that, while they
+terrified his servants, had no more virtue in them than sap, and were, with
+the other furniture of his dark study, collected for the mere purpose of
+forwarding his ambitious designs upon the weak prince. His true character
+was supposed to be--what he possessed before he took to his new
+calling--that of a wild, eccentric, devil-daring man, who loved adventures
+for their own sake, and worshipped the fair face of the "theekit and
+tenanted skull" of a bouncing damsel, with far greater enthusiasm and
+sincerity than he ever did his mortal osteological relics that lay in so
+much profusion in the recesses of his old castle. But he had, doubtless, so
+far succeeded in his plans; for he possessed a most unenviable fame for all
+sort of cantrips and sorceries; and the wandering beggar would rather have
+solicited a bit of bread from the iron hand of misery itself, than ventured
+near Ballochgray to ask his awmous.
+
+"I winna gang near that fearfu place, Geordie!" again cried Marion. "What
+hae ye, a puir hind, to do wi' the Baron o' Ballochgray? Turn, for the sake
+o' heaven!--turn frae that living grave o' dry banes, an' the weary goul
+that sits jabbering owre them, by their ain light!"
+
+Her companion again smiled; and the man dashed up the avenue, and never
+stopped till he came to the gate of the castle--over which there were
+placed two human shank-bones of great length, that were said to have
+sustained the body of the Baron of Balwearie--that prince of the black art,
+and the most cunning necromancer that ever drew a circle. The carriage
+stopped; and two servants, dressed in red doublets, (like garments of
+fire,) slashed with black, waited at the carriage door, with flambeaux in
+their hands, to shew the couple into the hall. Out sprang the male first,
+and then Marion Webster was handed, with great state, and led into the
+interior of the old castle. She was led direct into the hall, which was
+lighted up in a very fanciful manner, by means of many skulls arranged
+round the room, and through the eyes and jaws of which lurid lights
+streamed all around. Marion was filled with terror as she cast her eyes on
+these shining monuments of mortality; and had, in her fear, scarcely
+noticed a man in black, sitting at the end of the room, poring over a
+black-lettered manuscript.
+
+"Marion Webster," now said her travelling companion, "behold in your old
+lover of the Ballochgray Wood the Baron of Ballochgray!"
+
+A scream burst from the choking throat of the terrified damsel, and rung
+through the old hall.
+
+"Come, love," he continued, "abate thy terrors. My fame is worse than my
+real character. I have wooed thee for reasons known to myself, and to be
+known soon to thee. Thou didst love Geordie Dempster; and thy love was weak
+indeed, if it is to be scared by brainless tongues or tongueless skulls.
+Wilt thou consent to be the lady of the Baron of Ballochgray?"
+
+"Geordie! Geordie!" cried the wondering, and yet loving maiden, "if I would
+willingly wed thee in the grave, wi' death himsel for oor priest, shall I
+refuse to be yours in a castle o' the livin, filled though it be wi' thae
+signs o' mortality?"
+
+"Come forth, Father Anthony!" cried the Baron, "and join us by the rules
+and bands of holy kirk!"
+
+The man in black lifted up his head from the black-letter page; and, having
+called his witnesses, went through the requisite ceremonies; and Marion
+Webster became, within a short space, the lady of Ballochgray.
+
+Next day the Baron took her forth to the green woods, where, as they
+sauntered among elms many centuries old, and as high as castles, he told
+her that he had more reasons than other men for having a wife _who could
+keep a secret_. When he first met her, he was struck with her beauty, but
+had no more intention than ordinary love adventurers for making her his
+wife; frequent intercourse had revealed to him a jewel he had never seen in
+such brightness in the _head gear_ of the nobles of the land--a stern and
+unflinching regard to the sanction of her word. He quickly resolved to test
+this in such a manner as would leave no doubt in his mind that a
+secret-keeping wife he might find in his humble maiden of Ballochgray
+woods. He had three times visited Christ's Kirk in such a manner as would
+raise an intense curiosity in the inhabitants as to who he was. Marion had
+the secret only of his being plain Geordie Dempster; but so firmly and
+determinedly had she kept it, that, in the very midst of a general belief
+that he was the Prince of Darkness, she had never even let it be known that
+she had once seen his face before. So far Marion was enlightened; and it is
+not improbable that, afterwards, she knew _why_ a secret-keeping wife was
+so much prized by the Baron of Ballochgray, and why he could serve two
+purposes--that of love, and fame of supernatural powers--in personating, as
+he had done, the Prince of Darkness in his visits to Christ's Kirk on the
+Green. So far, at least, it is certain that Marion never revealed the
+secret of his pretended astrological acquirements.
+
+For weeks after the marriage, inquiries were made in every quarter for the
+lost damsel; but, at last, all search and inquiry was given up, and the
+belief that she was in the place appointed for the wicked had settled down
+on the minds of the people. One evening a number of cronies were assembled
+at the house of the disconsolate parents, and among these were Meg
+Johnston, Christy Lowrie, Widow Lindsay, and others of the Leslians.
+
+"The will o' the Lord maun be done," said Meg; "but wae's me! there was
+mony an auld gimmer in Leslie, whose horns are weel marked wi' the lines o'
+her evil days, that Clootie might hae taen, afore he cam to the bonnie ewe
+that had only tasted the first leaves o' her simmer girse. What did Marion
+Webster ever do in this warld to bring upon her this warst and last o' the
+evils o' mortals?"
+
+"It's just the like o' her the auld villain likes best," rejoined Christy.
+"He doesna gie a doit for a gizzened sinner, wha will fa' into his hands at
+the lang run without trouble. But the young, the blooming, and the bonny
+are aye sair beset by temptations; and, heard ye never, Mrs Webster, o'
+Marion's meetings at the Three Sisters, sometimes, they say, at the dead
+hour, wi' some lover that naebody ever kenned."
+
+"Ay, ay, dame," said Widow Lindsay; "that's just _his_ way. He comes in the
+shape o' a young lover, and beguiles the hearts o' young maidens. Ye mind
+o' bonny Peggy Lorimer o' the town's end, wha never did mair guid after she
+met a stranger in the woods o' Ballochgray. Ae glance o' his ee, she said,
+took awa her heart; and, every day after, she pined and pined, and wandered
+amang the woods till she grew like a wraith, but nae mair o' him did she
+ever see. I stricked her wi' my ain hands, and sic a corpse I never
+handled. There wasna a pound o' flesh on her bones; and the carriers at the
+burial aye said, that there wasna a corpse ava in the coffin. But puir
+Marion has dreed a waur weird."
+
+"My puir bairn! my puir bairn!" cried the mother. "The folk o' Leslie aye
+said she wad ride in her carriage, for she was the bonniest lass that ever
+was seen in Christ's Kirk. But, wear-awins! little kenned they what kind o'
+a carriage she wad ride awa in on her marriage night."
+
+"Some folks say, the monks will pray her back again," rejoined Meg; "but,
+my faith, they'll hae hard work o't. He'll no let her awa without a fearfu
+tuilzie, Christy."
+
+"She'll never mair be seen on earth, woman," answered Christy. "And, even
+if she were to be prayed back again, she wad never be the creature she was
+again. A coal black lire, and singit ee-brees, wadna set her auld lovers in
+Christ's Kirk in a bleeze again."
+
+"They should watch the smoking field o' Dysart," cried Widow Lindsay. "If
+she come again ava, it will be through that deil's porch. But what noise is
+that, Kitty? Didna ye hear the sound o' carriage wheels?"
+
+The party listened attentively; and, to be sure, there was a carriage
+coming rattling along the street.
+
+"Get out the Latin Bible, Wat!" cried Kitty. "He's maybe coming to tak us
+awa next."
+
+The listening continued; and when the sounds ceased, as the carriage
+stopped at the door, and the postilion's whip cracked over the restless
+horses, a cry of terror rang through the room. Every one shrank into a
+corner, and muttered prayers mixed with the cries of fear. The door opened.
+Every eye was fixed upon it, for no one doubted that their old friend had
+returned. The Baron of Ballochgray and his lady, dressed in the most
+gorgeous style, entered the house of the old couple. The sight of the gay
+visiters made Wat and Kitty's eyes reel; and they screamed again from the
+fear that the Prince had come back, only in a new doublet, to exhibit to
+them their _sold_ daughter.
+
+"I beg to introduce thee," said the Baron, "to the lady of Ballochgray--my
+wedded wife."
+
+Marion, without waiting for an answer, fell upon the neck of her father;
+and then, in the same manner, she embraced her mother; but it was a long
+time before the fears of Wat and Kitty were removed. At last, they were
+persuaded to accompany them on a visit to Ballochgray Castle; and, when
+they rode off in the chariot, they left behind them the belief that they
+too were carried off by the "Old One." We cannot pretend to describe the
+feelings of Wat and his wife when they were introduced into the old castle;
+but they soon came to see that the Baron of Ballochgray was just "as guid a
+chiel in his ain castle as ever he was when he acted the Deevil in Christ's
+Kirk on the Green."
+
+
+
+
+GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT.
+
+
+X.--SERGEANT WILSON.
+
+It was early on Monday morning, in the cold month of March, Anno Domini
+1683, that the farm-house of Barjarg, in the parish of Keir and county of
+Dumfries, was surrounded by dragoons. They were in quest of a sergeant of
+the name of Wilson--a Sergeant Wilson--who had all unexpectedly (for he was
+a steady man and a good soldier) deserted his colours, and was nowhere to
+be found. The reason why they had come to Barjarg, was the report which one
+of Sergeant Wilson's companions in arms had made, that he knew the deserter
+was in love with Catherine Chalmers, the farmer's fair and only child.
+Catherine Chalmers was indeed forthcoming in all her innocence and
+bloom--but William was nowhere to be found, though they searched most
+minutely into every hole and corner. Being compelled, at last, to retire
+without their object--though not without threatening Catherine with the
+thumbikins, if she persevered in refusing to discover her lover's
+retreat--the family of Barjarg was once more left to enjoy its wonted
+quietude and peace. Adjoining to the farm-house of Barjarg, and occupying
+the ground where the mansion-house now stands, there stood an old tower,
+containing one habitable apartment; but only occupied as a sleeping room by
+one of the ploughmen, and the herd boy. There were one or two
+lumber-garrets besides; but these were seldom entered, as they were
+understood to contain nothing of any value, besides being dark, and
+swarming with vermin. Reports of odd noises and fearful apparitions had
+begun to prevail about the place, and both ploughman and herd were
+unwilling to continue any longer in a lodgment into which it was their firm
+persuasion that something "no canny" had entered. Holding this exceedingly
+cheap, Adam Chalmers, the veteran guidman of Barjarg, agreed to take a
+night of the old tower, and to set the devil and all his imps at defiance;
+but it was observed, that he came home next morning thoughtful and out of
+spirits, agreeing, at once, that nobody should, in future, be compelled to
+sleep in the old tower. He said little of what he had seen or heard, but he
+shook his head, and seemed to intimate that he knew more than he was at
+liberty to divulge. Things went on in this manner for some time--reports of
+noises at unseasonable hours still prevailing, and every one shunning the
+place after dark--till, one morning before daylight, the whole building was
+observed to be on fire, surrounded at the same time, as the flames were, by
+a troop of Grierson's men, with their leader at their head. The scream
+which Catherine Chalmers uttered when she beheld the flames, but too
+plainly intimated the state of her mind; nor was her father less composed,
+but went about, wringing his hands and exclaiming--"Oh! poor Sergeant
+Wilson! poor Sergeant Wilson!" At this instant, the fire had made its way
+to the upper apartment, and had thrown light upon a human head and
+shoulders, which leaned over the decayed battlement. Every one was
+horror-struck except the inhuman soldiery, who collected around the burning
+pile, and shouted up their profane and insulting jests, in the face of the
+poor perishing being, who, from his footing immediately giving way, was
+precipitated into the flames, and disappeared.
+
+"There, let him go," said Grierson, "dog and traitor as he is, let him sink
+to the lowest pit, there to wait the arrival of his canting and Covenanting
+spouse, whom we shall now take the liberty of carrying to head-quarters,
+there to await her sentence, for decoying a king's sworn servant and a
+sergeant, from his duty and allegiance."
+
+No sooner said than done, was the order of these dreadful times. Catherine
+Chalmers was placed in one of her father's carts; and, notwithstanding
+every remonstrance, and an assurance that poor Catherine was now a widow,
+she was placed betwixt two soldiers, who rode alongside the cart on
+horseback, and conveyed her to Dumfries, there to stand her trial before
+the Sheriff, Clavers, and the inhuman Laird of Lag. When arrived at her
+destination, she was put under lock and key, but allowed more personal
+liberty than many others who were accused of crimes more heinous in the
+eyes of the persecutors, than those of which she was merely suspected to be
+guilty. It so happened, that the quarterly meeting of the court was held in
+a few days, and the chief witness produced against Catherine Wilson, was a
+servant maid of her father, who was compelled, very much against her will,
+to bear evidence to her having seen Sergeant Wilson and her mistress (for
+Catherine kept her father's house) several times together in the old tower,
+as well as under a particular tree at the end of the old avenue, and that
+her mistress had told her that Sergeant Wilson was heartily tired of the
+service in which he was engaged. Her own father, too, was compelled to
+confess, that he had had an interview with the sergeant, in the tower, who
+had confessed to him the marriage, had asked and with difficulty obtained
+his forgiveness, and that he meditated a departure along with his wife, to
+some distant place, beyond the reach of his enemies. There was no direct
+evidence, however, that Catherine had persuaded him to desert, or to vilify
+the service which he had left; and the court were about to dismiss her
+_simpliciter_ from the bar, when, to the amazement of all, Catherine rose
+in her place, and addressed the court to the following purpose:--"And now
+ye have done your utmost, and I am innocent, in as far as your evidence has
+gone; but I am NOT INNOCENT--I am deeply guilty, if guilt ye deem it, in
+this matter. 'Twas I that first awakened poor William's conscience to a
+sense of his danger, in serving an emissary of Satan; 'twas I that spoke to
+him of the blood that cries day and night under the Altar; 'twas I that
+made him tremble--ay, as an aspen leaf, and as some here will yet shake
+before the Judge of all--when I brought to his recollection the brutal
+scenes which he had witnessed, and in which he had taken a part; 'twas I
+that agreed to marry him privately, without my dear father's consent,
+(whose pardon I have sought on my knees, and whose blessing I have already
+obtained,) [hereupon her father nodded assent] provided he would desert,
+and retire with me, at least for a time, beyond the reach of ye all--ye
+messengers of evil, sent to scourge a guilty and backsliding race; 'twas I
+that visited him night after night in that old tower, which you inhumanly
+set on fire, and in which--O my God!"----Hereupon she laid hold of the desk
+before her, and would have dropped to the earth, had not an officer in
+attendance supported her, and borne her, under the authority of the court,
+into the open air. She was now, notwithstanding her self-accusation,
+declared to be at liberty: and immediately, so soon as strength was given
+her, retired into the house of an acquaintance and relative, where suitable
+restoratives and refreshments were administered. The house where her friend
+lived was close upon what is called the Sands of Dumfries, adjoining to the
+river, which up to this point is navigable, and where boats are generally
+to be seen. During the night, she disappeared, and, though all search was
+made at home and everywhere else, she was not heard of. Her father at first
+took her disappearance sadly to heart; but time seemed to have a remedial
+effect upon his spirits, and he at length rallied, even into cheerfulness.
+Things went on for years and years, very much in the old way at Barjarg.
+The old man's hairs gradually whitened and became more scanty, whilst this
+loss was made up for by an increase of wrinkles. The only change in his
+habits were not unfrequent visits which he payed to an old friend, he said,
+in Whitehaven, and from which he always returned in high spirits. It might
+have been stated formerly that, when the ashes of the old tower were
+searched, after they had cooled, for the body of poor Wilson, no such body
+was found--but the inference was made by the neighbours, that the remains
+had been early removed by his wife's orders, who would naturally wish to
+possess herself of so valued a deposit. In fact, the whole transaction
+melted away in the stream of time, like the snow-flake on the surface of
+the water; and things went on very much us usual. Six long years revolved,
+and still no word of Catherine Wilson. Many conjectured that she had missed
+her foot in the dark, and fallen into the river, and been carried out to
+sea by the reflux of the tide. Others again hinted at suicide, from extreme
+grief; and some very charitable females nodded and winked something meant
+to be significant, about some people's not being easily known--and that
+some people, provided that they got a _grip_ of a man, would not be very
+nice about the object or the manner!
+
+Oh, what a blessed thing it was when King William came in!--and with him
+came amnesty, and peace, and restoration! It was upon a fine summer
+evening, in the year 1689, just six years after the mysterious
+disappearance of Catherine Wilson, that the old guidman of Barjarg was
+sitting enjoying the setting sun at his own door, on the root of an old
+tree, which had been converted into a _dais_, or out-of-doors seat. It was
+about the latter end of July, that most exuberantly lovely of all months,
+when Adam Chalmers, with Rutherford's Letters on his knee, sat gazing upon
+one of the most beautiful landscapes which our own romantic country can
+boast of. Before him flowed the Nith, over its blue pebbles, and through a
+thousand windings; beyond it were the woods and hills of Closeburn, all
+blooming and blushing in the setting beams of the sun, and rising up, tier
+above tier, till they terminated in the blue sky of the east. To the left
+were the Louther Hills, with their smooth-green magnificence, bearing away
+into the distance, and placed, as it were, to shelter this happy valley
+from the stormy north and its wintry blasts. At present, however, all idea
+of storm and blast was incongruous, for they seemed to sleep in the sun's
+effulgence, as if cradled into repose by the hand of God. To the south, and
+hard at hand, were the woods and the fields of Collestown, with the echoing
+Linn, and the rush of many waters. O land of our nativity!--how deeply art
+thou impressed upon this poor brain!--go where we will--see what we
+may--thou art still unique to us--thou art still superior to all other
+lands.
+
+It was eight o'clock of the evening above referred to, when a chaise
+entered the old avenue, passed the ruins of the Tower and the old
+mansion-house, and drew up immediately opposite old Adam Chalmers. The
+steps were immediately let down, and out sprung, with a bound, the long
+lost child, the blooming and matronly looking Mrs Wilson. Behind her
+followed one whom the reader, I trust, has long ago considered as dead, and
+perhaps buried, her manly and rejoicing husband William Wilson, handing out
+a fine girl of five years of age, a boy about three, and an infant still at
+the breast! It was indeed a joyous meeting; and the old man bustled about,
+embracing and pressing his child, and then surveying, with silent and
+intense interest, his grandchildren; taking the oldest on his knee, and
+permitting him all manner of intercourse with his wrinkles and his grey
+hairs.
+
+One of Lag's troop, the intimate and attached friend of the sergeant, had
+conveyed to him, by means of a letter, the fact, that his haunt was
+discovered; and that Lag had sworn he would search him out like a fox,--in
+short, that he would burn the old tower about his ears. A thought struck
+Wilson, that even though he should now escape, the pursuit would still be
+continued; but that, if he could by any means persuade his enemies that he
+had perished in the flames, the search of course would cease. As he was
+occupied with these thoughts, it occurred to him, that, by placing a couple
+of pillows, dressed in some old clothes, which were lying about, and which
+belonged to the former tenant, in the topmost turret of the tower, he might
+impose the belief upon Lag and his party, that he had actually perished in
+the flames. Having communicated this plan to his friend in the troop by a
+secret messenger, he immediately, and without waiting even to advertise his
+wife of the deception, departed, and hastened on to a brother's house in
+the neighbourhood of Dumfries, where he lay concealed. By the management of
+his friend, the deception was accomplished; for he even swore to the
+captain, that he heard Wilson scream, and jump upwards, and then sink down
+into the devouring flames. The trial was not unknown to Wilson, and he had
+prevailed upon his brother, with a few friends sworn to secrecy, to assist
+him in possessing himself of the person of his wife, in going to or coming
+from the court-house. Matters, however, succeeded beyond his utmost hopes.
+His spouse was liberated, and, by means of a boat well manned, he reached
+Douglas in the Isle of Man in safety, in the course of eight-and-forty
+hours. There, at last, he was safe, being beyond immediate pursuit, and
+indeed being supposed to be dead; and there, by a successful speculation or
+two, with money which had been left him by an uncle, after whom he was
+named, and who had prospered in the Virginia trade, he soon became
+prosperous, and even wealthy. His wife having a natural desire to see her
+father, took means to have him apprised of the secret of their retreat. His
+visits, nominally to England, were in fact made to Douglas; and the
+Revolution now put it in the power of Sergeant Wilson to return with his
+young and interesting family to the farm of Barjarg, and to purchase the
+property on which the old house stood, it being now in the market; to refit
+the old burnt tower; to rebuild the old castle, and to live there along
+with old Adam for several years, not only in comfort, but in splendour.
+When engaged over a bottle, of which he became ultimately rather more fond
+than was good for his health, he used to amuse his friends with the above
+narrative, adding always at the end--"The burning o' me has been the making
+o' me." The property has long passed into other hands, and is now in the
+family of Hunter; but such was its destination for at least fifty years,
+during the life of the sergeant, and the greater part of the life of the
+son, who, being a spendthrift, spent and sold it.
+
+
+XI.--HELEN PALMER.
+
+Helen Palmer was originally from Cumberland; her parents were English, but
+her father had removed with Helen, an only daughter, whilst yet a child, to
+the neighbourhood of Closeburn Castle, to a small village which still goes
+by the name of Croalchapel. There the husband and father had been employed
+originally as forester on the estate of Closeburn, belonging to Sir Roger
+Kirkpatrick, and had afterwards become chamberlain or factor on the same
+property. Peter Palmer was a superior man. He had been well educated for
+the time in which he lived, and had been employed in Cumberland in keeping
+accounts for a mining establishment. The death, however, in child-birth, of
+his beloved and well-born wife, (she had married below her station,) had,
+for some time, disgusted him with life, and his intellects had nearly given
+way. Having committed several acts of insanity, so as to make himself
+spoken of in the neighbourhood, he took a moonlight flitting, with his
+child and a faithful nurse, and, wandering north and north, at last fixed
+his residence in the locality already mentioned, where he was soon noticed
+as a superior person by the Laird of Closeburn, and advanced as has been
+stated.
+
+Helen Palmer was the apple of her father's eye; he would permit no one but
+the nurse to approach her person, and he himself was her only instructor;
+he taught her to read, to write, and to calculate accounts; in short, every
+spare hour he had was spent with little Helen. There you might see him,
+after dinner, with Helen on his knee, his forest dog sleeping before him,
+and a tumbler of negus on a small table by his side, conversing with his
+child, as he would have done with her mother; holding her out at arm's
+length, to mark her opening features; and then again straining her to his
+bosom in a paroxysm of tears.
+
+"Just my Helen--my own dear Helen anew!" he would say; "oh, my child--my
+child!--dear, dear art thou to thy poor heart-broken father! but I will
+live for thee!--I will live with thee!--and when thou diest, child, thou
+shalt sleep on this breast--thou shalt be buried, child, in thy father's
+dust; and thy mother and we shall meet, and I will tell her of her babe; of
+that babe which cost her so much, and we will rejoin in divine love for
+ever and ever!"
+
+Oh, how beautiful is paternal affection!--the love of an only surviving
+parent for an only child--and she a female. It is beautiful as the smile of
+Providence on benevolence--it is strong as the bond which binds the world
+to a common centre--it is enduring as the affections which, being cherished
+on earth, are matured above!
+
+As Helen grew up, her eye kindled, her brow expanded, her cheeks freshened
+into the most delicious bloom, and she walked on fairy footsteps of the
+most delicate impression. Her feet, her hands, her arms, her bust, her
+whole person, spoke her at once the lady of a thousand descents--ages had
+modelled her into aristocratic symmetry. But with all this, there was a
+rustic simplicity about her, an open, frank, unaffected manner, which
+seemed to say, as plain as any manner could, "I am not ashamed of being my
+father's daughter." When Helen Palmer had attained her sixteenth year, she
+was quite a woman--not one of your thread-paper bulrushes, which shoot
+upwards merely into unfleshed gentility; but a round, firm, well-spread,
+and formed woman--a bonny lass, invested with all the delicacy and softness
+of a complete lady. Her bodily accomplishments, however, were not her only
+recommendation; her mind was unusually acute, and her memory was stored
+with much and varied information. She knew, for example, that the age in
+which she lived was one of cruelty and bloodshed; that the second Charles,
+who, at that time, filled the throne, was a sensual tyrant; that Lag,
+Clavers, Douglas, Johnstone, and others, were bloody persecutors; and that
+even Sir Roger Kirkpatrick himself, the humane and amiable in many
+respects, was "a friend of the castle"--of the court--and would not permit
+any of the poor persecuted remnant to take refuge in the linns of Creehope,
+or in any of the fastnesses on his estate of Closeburn. All this grieved
+Helen's heart; but her father had taught her that it was _her_ duty, as
+well as his own, to be silent on such subjects, and not to give offence to
+one whose bread he was eating, and whose patronage he had enjoyed to so
+great an extent.
+
+There were frequent visiters, in those days, at Closeburn Castle. In fact,
+with all the chivalric hospitality of ancient times and of an ancient
+family, Sir Roger kept, in a manner, open house. During dinner, the
+drawbridge was regularly elevated, and, for a couple of hours at least,
+none might enter. This state ceremony had cost the family of Kirkpatrick
+many broad acres; for, when the old and heirless proprietor of the fine
+estate of Carlaverock called at the castle of Closeburn, with the view of
+bequeathing his whole property to the then laird, the drawbridge was up--he
+was refused immediate entrance, because Sir Thomas was at dinner. "Tell Sir
+Thomas," said the enraged visitor, "tell your master to take his dinner,
+and with zest; but tell him, at the same time, that I will put a better
+dinner _by_ his table this day than ever was on it." So he went on to
+Drumlanrig, and left the whole property to Douglas of Queensberry. Such,
+however, was not the reception of some young gentlemen who arrived about
+this time at the castle of Closeburn, on a sporting expedition, with dogs
+and guns, and a suitable accompaniment of gamekeepers and other servants.
+These strangers were manifestly Englishmen, but from what quarter of
+England nobody knew, and, indeed, nobody inquired. They were only birds of
+passage, and would, in a month or so, give place to another arrival, about
+to disappear, in its turn, from a similar cause. As Helen Palmer was one
+day walking, according to her wont, amongst the Barmoor-woods, in her
+immediate neighbourhood, a hare crossed her path, followed closely by a
+greyhound, by which it was immediately killed. Poor Helen started,
+screamed, and dropped her book in an agony of pity. She had not been
+accustomed to such barbarities; and the poor dying animal cried like a
+child, too, as it expired! At this instant, a horseman brought up his steed
+in her presence, and, immediately alighting, proceeded, in the most polite
+and delicate manner imaginable, to administer such relief as was in his
+power. He begged her to be composed, for the animal was now dead, and its
+suffering over; and her feelings should never be lascerated again in this
+manner, as they would pursue their sport somewhere else, at a greater
+distance from her abode. Upon recovering herself, Helen felt ashamed at her
+position, and even at her weakness in betraying her feelings, and, begging
+the stranger's pardon for the interruption to his sport which she had
+occasioned, with a most graceful courtesy she withdrew from his sight. The
+stranger was exceedingly struck with her appearance. It was not that she
+was beautiful, for with beautiful women he had long been familiar; but
+there was something in the expression of her countenance which made him
+tremble all over--she was the very picture of his father; nay, his own
+features and hers bore a close resemblance. The same indefinite terror
+which had seized this young and exceedingly handsome sportsman had
+penetrated the breast of Helen. The resemblance of the stranger to herself,
+was what struck her with amazement. There was the same arched eyebrow--the
+same hazel eye--and the same dimple in the chin. Besides, there was an
+all-over sameness in the air, manner, and even step, which she could not,
+with all her efforts, drive from her recollection. She did not, however,
+think proper to inform her father of this little foolish incident; but, ere
+she went to bed that night, she surveyed herself in the glass with more
+than wonted attention. Still, still, she was left in surprise, by comparing
+what she saw with what she recollected--the image in her bosom with that in
+the glass.
+
+Next day, as might have been anticipated, the stranger called to see if she
+had recovered from her fright, and spent a considerable time in very
+pleasing conversation. Her father happened to be in the writing office at
+the time, and did not see him. These calls were repeated from time to time,
+till at last it became evident to all about the castle, that the young heir
+of Middlefield, in Cumberland, was deeply in love. He had almost entirely
+given up his former amusements, and even railed against the cruelty of such
+sports. Mr Graham, a near connection of him of Netherby, was a young person
+of an excellent heart, and of a large property, to which, from his father's
+death, by an accident, he had just succeeded. He was besides, one of the
+handsomest men in Cumberland; and it was reported that Sir James Graham's
+oldest daughter had expressed herself very favourably respecting her
+kinsman's pretensions to her hand, should he _presume so high_! However,
+his heart was not in the match, and he had made this visit to his father's
+intimate friend, in order to avoid all importunity on a subject which was
+irksome to him. It is useless to mince the matter. Helen, in spite of her
+father's remonstrances and representations, was deeply and irrecoverably in
+love with the gallant Graham, and he, in his turn, was at least equally
+enamoured of the face, person, manners, mind, and soul, of the lovely and
+fascinating Miss Palmer.
+
+There was only one subject on which there was any division of opinion
+betwixt the lovers--Helen was every inch a Covenanter; whilst Mr William
+was rather, if anything, inclined to view their opposition to government as
+factious and inexcusable. He did not, indeed, approve of the atrocities
+which were practising every day around him, and in the parish of Closeburn
+in particular; but he ventured to hope that a few instances of severity
+would put an end to the delusion of the people, and that they would again
+return to their allegiance and their parish churches. Helen was mighty and
+magnificent in the cause of non-conformity and humanity. She talked of
+freedom, conscience, religion, on the one hand--of tyranny, treachery,
+oppression, and cruelty, on the other--till Mr William, either convinced,
+or appearing to be so, fairly gave in, promising most willingly, and in
+perfect good faith, that he would never assist the Laird of Closeburn, or
+of Lag, in any of their unhallowed proceedings.
+
+One day when Helen and her lover (for it was now no secret) were on a walk
+into the Barmoor-wood, they were naturally attracted to the spot where
+their intercourse had begun; and, sitting down opposite to each other on
+the trunks of some felled trees, they gradually began a somewhat
+confidential conversation respecting their birth and parentage. Helen
+disguised nothing; she was born in Cumberland, and brought here whilst a
+child; her mother, whose name was Helen Graham, had died at her birth. At
+the mention of this name, the stranger and lover started convulsively to
+his feet, and running up to and embracing Helen, he exclaimed--"O God! O
+God! you are my own cousin!" Helen fainted, and was with difficulty
+recovered, by an application of water from the adjoining brook. It was
+indeed so. Out of delicacy, Mr William had made no particular inquiries at
+Helen respecting her mother; and Helen, on the other hand, knew that Graham
+is an almost universal name, in Cumberland in particular. This, therefore,
+excited no suspicion; but true it is, and of verity, these two similar and
+affianced beings were cousins-german. Helen Graham, the sister of the Lord
+of Middlefield having married beneath her rank, was abandoned by her
+brother and family, and her name was never mentioned in Middlefield House.
+An old servant, however, of the family had made the young heir master of
+the fact of the marriage, and of the death of his old aunt; but he could
+not tell what had become of the father or the child; he supposed that they
+had either died or gone to the plantations abroad; and there the matter
+rested till this sudden and unexpected discovery. Peter Palmer, the father
+of Helen, was altogether unacquainted with William Graham, as he was a mere
+child when Peter left Cumberland; and his father had used him so cruelly as
+to make him avoid his residence and presence as carefully as possible.
+
+Would to heaven we could stop here, and gratify the reader with a wedding,
+and as much matrimonial happiness as poor mortality can possibly
+inherit!--But it may not be. As Lockhart says beautifully of Sir Walter, we
+hear "the sound of the muffled drum."
+
+Sir Roger and all the friends of Mr William Graham were opposed to his
+union with Miss Palmer, as Graham always called her. Her own father, too,
+was opposed to her forming a connection with the son of one who had treated
+him so cruelly, and, as he thought, unjustly--and it became manifest to
+William, as he was in every sense of the word his own master, that had he
+his fair betrothed in the leas of Middlefield, he might set them all at
+defiance, and effect their union peaceably, according to the rules of the
+church. In an evil hour, Helen consented to leave her father's house by
+night, along with her William, and on horseback, to take their way across
+the Border for Cumberland. They had reached the parish of Kirkconnel about
+two o'clock in the morning, and were giving their horses a mouthful of
+water in the little stream called Kirtle, when a shot was heard in the
+immediate neighbourhood--it was heard, alas! by two only, for the third was
+dying, and in the act of falling from her seat in the saddle. She was
+caught by a servant, and by her lover; but she could only say--"I am
+gone--I am gone!" before breathing her last. Oh, curse upon the hand that
+fired the shot? It was, indeed, an accursed hand, but a fatal mistake. It
+was one of the bloody persecutors of Lag's troop, who, having been
+appointed to watch at this spot for some Covenanters who were expected to
+be passing on horseback into England, in order to escape from the savage
+cruelty of their persecutors, had immediately, and in drunken blindness,
+fired upon this inoffensive group. The ball, alas! took too fatal effect in
+the heart of Helen Palmer; and it was on her, and not as Allan Cunningham
+represents it, "on Helen Irving, the daughter of the laird of Kirkconnel,"
+that the following most pathetic verses were written--
+
+    "I wish I were where Helen lies;
+    Night and day on me she cries:
+    Oh, that I were where Helen lies,
+          On fair Kirkconnel lea!
+
+    "Oh, Helen fair beyond compare,
+    I'll make a garland of thy hair;
+    Shall bind my heart for ever mair,
+          Until the day I dee.
+
+    "Curst be the heart that thought the thought,
+    And curst the hand that fired the shot,
+    When in my arms burd Helen dropped
+          On fair Kirkconnel lea!"
+
+
+XII.--THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR.
+
+There is a wild, uninhabited district, which separates Nithsdale from
+Annandale, in Dumfriesshire. It is called Gavin Muir; and, though lonely,
+and covered with spret and heather, exhibits some objects which merit the
+attention of the traveller in the wilderness. There is the King's Loch, the
+King's Burn, and the King's Chair, all records of King James V.'s
+celebrated raid to subdue the thieves of Annandale. Tradition says, what
+seems extremely likely, that he spent a night in the midst of this muir;
+and hence the appellations of royalty which adhere to the objects which
+witnessed his bivouac. But, although the localities referred to possess an
+interest, they are exceeded, in this respect, by a number of "cairns," by
+which the summits of several hills, or rising grounds, are topped. These
+cairns, which amount to five or six, are all within sight of each other,
+all on eminences, and all composed of an immense mass of loose, water-worn
+stones. And yet the neighbourhood is free from stones, being bare, and fit
+for sheep-pasturage only. Tradition says nothing of these cairns in
+particular; or, indeed, very little of any similar collections, frequent as
+they are in Scotland and throughout all Scandinavia. Stone coffins, no
+doubt, have been discovered in them, and human bones; but, beyond this, all
+is surmise and uncertainty. Often, when yet a boy, and engaged in fishing
+in the King's Burn, have we mounted these pyramids, and felt that we were
+standing on holy ground. "Oh," thought we, "that some courteous cairn would
+blab it out what 'tis they are!" But the cairns were silent; and hence the
+necessity we are under of professing our ignorance of what they refused to
+divulge. But there is a large opening in the side of one of these cairns,
+respecting which tradition has preserved a pretty distinct narrative, which
+we shall now venture, for the first time, to put under types, for the
+instruction of our readers.
+
+The whole hill country, in Dumfriesshire and Galloway in particular, is
+riddled, as it were, with caves and hiding-places. These, no doubt,
+afforded refuge, during the eight-and-twenty years of inhuman persecution,
+to the poor Covenanter; but they were not, in general, constructed for or
+by him. They existed from time immemorial, and were the work of that son of
+night and darkness--the smuggler, who, in passing from the Brow at the
+mouth of the Nith, from Bombay, near Kirkcudbright, or from the estuary of
+the Cree, with untaxed goods from the Isle of Man--then a separate and
+independent kingdom--found it convenient to conceal both his goods and
+himself from the observation of the officers of excise. So frequent are
+these concealed caves in the locality to which we refer, that, in passing
+through the long, rank heather, we have more than once disappeared in an
+instant, and found ourselves several feet below the level of the upper
+world, and in the midst of a damp, but roomy subterraneous apartment of
+considerable extent. We believe that they are now, in these piping times of
+peace and preventive service, generally filled up and closed by the
+shepherds, as they were dangerous pitfalls in the way of their flocks. In
+the time, however, to which we refer--namely, in the year 1683--they were
+not only open, but kept, as it were, in a state of repair, being tenanted
+by the poor, persecuted remnant (as they expressed it) of God's people.
+That the reader may fully understand the incidents of this narrative, it
+will be necessary that he and we travel back some hundred and fifty years,
+and some miles from the farm-house of Auchincairn, that we may have ocular
+demonstration of the curious contrivances to which the love of life, of
+liberty, and of a good conscience, had compelled our forefathers to have
+recourse. That cairn which appears so entire and complete, of which the
+stones seem to have been huddled together without any reference to
+arrangement whatever, is, nevertheless, hollow underneath, and on occasions
+you may see--but only if you examine it narrowly--the blue smoke seeking
+its way in tiny jets through a thousand apertures. There is, in fact, room
+for four or five individuals. Beneath, there are a few plaids and
+bed-covers, with an old chair, a stool, and seats of stone. There is
+likewise a fire-place and some peats, extracted from the adjoining moss.
+But there is, in fact, no entrance in this direction. You must bend your
+course round by the brow of that hollow, over which the heather hangs
+profusely; and there, by dividing and gently lifting up the heathy cover,
+you will be able to insert your person into a small orifice, from which you
+will escape into a dark but a roomy dungeon, which will, in its turn,
+conduct you through a narrow passage, into the very heart or centre of this
+seemingly solid accumulation of stones. When there, you will have light
+such as Milton gives to Pandemonium--just as much as to make darkness
+visible, through the small, and, on the outside, invisible crevices betwixt
+the stones. Should you be surprised in your lighted and fire
+apartment--should any accident or search bring a considerable weight above
+you, so as to break through your slightly supported roofing--you can
+retreat to your ante-room or dungeon, and from thence, if necessary, make
+your way into the adjoining linn, along the bottom of which, you may
+ultimately find skulking-shelter, or a pathway into a more inhabited
+district. Now that you have surveyed this arrangement, as it existed a
+hundred and fifty years ago, we may proceed to give you the narrative which
+is connected with it.
+
+In the year above referred to, the persecution of the saints was at its
+height--Clavers, in particular, went about the country with his dragoons,
+whom he designated (like the infamous Kirk) his _Lambs_, literally seeking
+to hurt and destroy in all the hill country, in particular of Dumfriesshire
+and Galloway. Auchincairn was a marked spot; it had often been a city of
+refuge to the shelterless and the famishing; but it had so frequently been
+searched, that every hole and corner was as well known to Clavers and his
+troop as to the inhabitants themselves. There was now, therefore, no longer
+any refuge to the faithful at Auchincairn; in fact, to come there was to
+meet the enemy half-way--to rush as it were into the jaws of the lion. In
+these circumstances, old Walter Gibson, a man upwards of seventy years of
+age, who, by his prayers and his attending conventicles, had rendered
+himself particularly obnoxious, was obliged to prolong a green old age by
+taking up his abode in the cave and under the cairn which has already been
+described. With him were associated, in his cold and comfortless retreat,
+the Rev. Robert Lawson, formerly minister of the parish of Closeburn; but
+who, rather than conform to the English prayer-book and formula, had taken
+to the mountain, to preach, to baptize, and even to dispense the Sacrament
+of the Supper, in glens, and linns, and coverts, far from the residence of
+man. Their retreat was known to the shepherds of the district, and indeed
+to the whole family of Auchincairn; but no one ever was suspected of
+imitating the conduct of the infamous Baxter, who had proved false, and
+discovered a cave in Glencairn, where four Covenanters were immediately
+shot, and two left hanging upon a tree. On one occasion, a little innocent
+girl, a grand-daughter of old Walter, was surprised whilst carrying some
+provisions towards the hill-retreat, by a party of Clavers' dragoons, who
+devoured the provisions, and used every brutal method to make the girl
+disclose the secret of the retreat; but she was neither to be intimidated
+nor cajoled, and told them plainly that she would rather die, as her
+granduncle had done before her, than betray her trust. They threw her into
+a peat-hag filled with water, and left her to sink or swim. She did _not_
+swim, however, but sank never to rise again. Her spirit had been broken,
+and life had been rendered a burden to her. She expressed to her murderers,
+again and again, a wish that they would send her to meet her uncle (as she
+termed it) William. Her body was only discovered some time after, when the
+process of decomposition had deformed one of the most pleasing countenances
+which ever beamed with innocence and piety.
+
+"The old hound will not be far off, when the young whelp was so near,"
+exclaimed Clavers, upon a recital of the inhuman murder. "We must watch the
+muirs by night; for it is then that these creatures congregate and fatten.
+We must continue to spoil their feasting, and leave them to feed on
+cranberries and moss-water." In consequence of this resolution, a strict
+watch was set all along Gavin Muir; and it became almost impossible to
+convey any sustenance to the famishing pair; yet the thing was done, and
+wonderfully managed, not in the night-time, but in the open day. One
+shepherd would call to another, in the note of the curlew or the miresnipe,
+and without exciting suspicion, convey from the corner of his plaid the
+necessary refreshments, even down to a bottle of Nantz. The cave was never
+entered on such occasions; but the provisions were dropped amidst the rank
+heather; and a particular whistle immediately secured their disappearance.
+Night after night, therefore, were these prowlers disappointed of their
+object, till at last, despairing of success, or thinking, probably, that
+the birds had escaped, they betook themselves, for the time, elsewhere, and
+the cairn was relieved from siege. Clavers, in fact, had retired to
+Galloway, along with Grierson and Johnstone, and the coast was clear, at
+least for the present.
+
+It was about the latter end of October, when Mr Lawson was preaching and
+dispensing the Sacrament to upwards of a hundred followers, in the hollow
+where stood the King's Chair. This locality was wonderfully well suited for
+the purpose--it was, in fact, a kind of amphitheatre, surrounded on all
+sides by rising ground, and in the centre of which three large stones
+constituted a chair, and several seats of the same material were ranged in
+a circular form around. The stones remain to this hour, and the truth of
+this description can be verified by any one who crosses Gavin Muir. It was
+a moonlight night--a harvest moon--and Mr Lawson, having handed the
+Sacramental cup around, was in the act of concluding with prayer, when the
+note of a bird, seemingly a plover, was heard at a great distance. It was
+responded to by a similar call, somewhat nearer; and, in an instant, a
+messenger rushed in upon their retreat, out of breath, and exclaiming, "You
+are lost!--you are all dead men!--Clavers is within sight, and at full
+gallop, with all his troop at his back."
+
+One advantage which the poor persecuted had over their persecutors, was a
+superior knowledge of localities. In an instant the hollow was tenantless;
+for the inmates had fled in all directions, and to various coverts and
+outlets into the vale of Annan. The minister alone remained at his post
+continuing in ejaculatory prayer, and resisting all persuasion even to take
+advantage of the adjoining cairny cave. In vain did Walter Gibson delay
+till the last moment, and talk of his farther usefulness. Mr Lawson's only
+answer was--"I am in the hands of a merciful Master, and, if he has more
+service for me, he himself will provide a way for my escape. I have neither
+wife nor child, nor, I may say, relation, alive. I am, as it were, a
+stranger in the land of duty. If the Lord so will it that the man of blood
+shall prevail over me, he will raise up others in my stead, fitter to serve
+him effectually than ever I have been; but, Walter, _you_ have a bonny
+family of grandchildren around you, and your ain daughter the mother of
+them a', to bless you, and hear you speak the words of counselling and
+wisdom; so, make you for the cave and the cairn out by yonder--I will e'en
+remain where I am, and the Lord's will be done!" Seeing that all persuasion
+was unavailable, and that, by delaying his flight, he would only sacrifice
+his own life, without saving that of his friend, Walter appeared to take
+his departure for his place of refuge. It was neither Clavers, however, nor
+Lag, nor Johnstone, nor Winram, who was upon them; but only Captain
+Douglas, from Drumlanrig, to which place secret information of the night's
+_wark_, as it was termed, had been conveyed. Captain Douglas' hands were
+red with blood; he had shot poor Daniel M'Michan in Dalveen Glen, and had
+given word of command to blow out his brother's brains, as has been already
+recorded in the notices of these times. One of his troop had been wounded
+in the affair at Dalveen, and he was literally furious with rage and the
+thirst of blood. Down, therefore, Douglas came with about half-a-dozen men,
+(the rest being on duty in Galloway,) determined to kill or be killed--to
+put an end to these nightly conventicles, or perish in the attempt.
+
+Mr Lawson had taken his position in the King's Chair, which, as was
+formerly described, consisted of three large stones set on end, around one
+in the centre, which served as a seat; and when Douglas came in sight,
+nothing appeared visible in the moonshine but these solitary stones.
+
+"They are off, by G----d!" exclaimed Douglas; "the fox has broken cover--we
+must continue the chase; and Rob," added he, to one who rode near him,
+"blaw that bugle till it crack again. When you start the old fox, I should
+like mightily to be at the death. But--so ho!--what have we here?--why,
+here are bottles and a cup, by Jove! These friends of the Covenant are no
+enemies, I perceive, to good cheer"--putting the bottle to his mouth, and
+making a long pull--"by the living Jingo! most excellent wine. Here, Rob,"
+emptying what remained into the silver goblet or cup, "here, line your
+weasan with a drop of the red, and then for the red heart's blood of these
+psalm-singing, cup-kissing gentry. So ho--so ho!--hilloa--one and all--the
+fox is under cover still," (advancing towards the stone chair,) "and we
+thought him afield, too. Stand forth, old Canticles, 5 and 8th, and let us
+see whether you have got one or five bottles under your belt. What! you
+won't, or you can't stand! Grunt again!--you are made of stone, are
+you?--why, then, we will try your qualities with a little burnt powder and
+lead. Gentlemen of the horse-brigade, do you alight, and be d----d to you,
+and, just by way of experiment, rattle me half-a-dozen bullets in the face
+of that there image of stone, which looks so mighty like the parson of
+Closeburn that one might easily mistake the one for the other."
+
+The men had alighted with their holster pistols, and had arranged
+themselves, as directed, in the front of the stone chair, and with a full
+view of the figure which occupied the seat, when, at this very critical
+juncture, a band of upwards of fifty horses, with panniers on their backs,
+came up at a smart trot.
+
+"Stop your hellish speed!" said a voice from the front of the band; "or, by
+this broadsword, and these long six-footers, you are all dead men, ere you
+can say, Present, fire!" Instantly, Douglas saw and comprehended his
+position--"To horse!" was his short exhortation, and, in an instant, his
+five followers and himself had cleared the brow of the glen, and were out
+of sight at full speed. "Shed not their blood!--shed not their blood!"
+continued to exclaim a well-known voice amongst the band of smugglers--for
+such the reader may have guessed they were. It was the voice of Walter
+Gibson, well known to many of the smugglers; for again and again they had
+supplied Auchincairn with Hollands and Nantz. "Shed not one drop of blood,
+I say; but leave them to Him who has said, 'Vengeance is mine, and I will
+repay it;'--He will find His own time of revenging the death of my poor
+murdered bairn, whom they drowned in the King's Moss, owre by there. But,
+dear me, Mr Lawson, are ye dead or living, that ye tak nae tent o' what's
+going on?" In fact, Mr Lawson, having given himself up as lost, had
+committed himself, with shut eyes, so intently to prayer, that he had but a
+very confused notion of what had happened.
+
+"The Lord's will be done!" he exclaimed at last; "and is this you, Walter
+Gibson?--fearful! fearful!--are these the Philistines around you?--and are
+you and I to travel, hand in hand, into Immanuel's land?--or, but do my
+poor eyes deceive me, and are these only our good friends, the fair
+traders, come to the rescue, under God and his mercy, in the time of our
+need?"
+
+"Indeed," responded a known voice--that, namely, at whose bidding the work
+of death had been staid--"indeed, Mr Lawson, we are friends and not foes;
+and, whilst our cattle, which are a little blawn, with the haste into which
+they were hurried by old Walter here--until the beasts bite, I say, and eat
+their corn, we will e'en thank God, and take a little whet of the creature.
+You know, such comforts are not forbidden in the laws of Moses, or, indeed,
+in any laws but those of this persecuted and oppressed land."
+
+So saying, he disengaged from a hamper a flagon of Nantz, and was about to
+make use of the Sacramental cup, which Douglas had dropped, to convey it
+around, when his arm was arrested by the still strong hand of Walter.
+
+"For the sake of God and his church--of Him who shed his blood for poor
+sinners--profane not, I beseech you, the consecrated, the hallowed vessel
+which I have so lately held in these vile hands as the emblem of my
+purification through the blood of sprinkling--profane not, I say, that
+vessel which, when all worldly goods were forfeited and relinquished as
+things of no value, our worthy pastor has borne along with him--being the
+gift of his parishioners--to the mountain and the glen--to the desert and
+the wilderness!"
+
+There needed no further admonition; the cup was deposited in the hands of
+its owner, and the whole _posse comitatus_ spread themselves out on the
+grass--for, though all around was heath, this little spot was green and
+lovely--and, by applying the vessel directly to their lips, each one took a
+draught so long and hearty that the captain or leader had again and again
+to replenish the measure. Nor were Lawson and old Walter Gibson behind in
+this work of refreshment. Many a day they had laid themselves down to rest
+in the damp and cold cave, with little of food and with nothing to cheer
+and support them but a mouthful, from time to time, of the _Solway
+waters_--viz., _smuggled brandy_. We are all the children, to a great
+amount, of circumstances; and the very men who, but a little ago, were
+engaged in the most solemn act of religion, and counted themselves as at
+the point of death--these very men were now so much cheered, and even
+exhilarated, by the reviving cordial, that they forgot, for the time, their
+dangers and their privations, and were not displeased to hear the smugglers
+sing the old song, "We are merry men all," when a figure approached, out of
+breath, exclaiming--
+
+"The gaugers! the gaugers!--the excisemen from Dumfries!"
+
+In an instant the whole troop stood to arms. They had been
+well-disciplined; and the horses, along with the parson and Walter, were
+stowed away, as they called it, behind. They spoke not; but there was the
+click of gunlocks, and a powerful _recover_, on the ground, of heavy
+muskets, with barrels fully six feet long, which had been used by their
+forefathers in the times of the first Charles and the civil commotion. The
+enemy came up at the gallop; but they had plainly miscalculated the forces
+of their opponents--_they_ were only about fifteen strong; so, wheeling
+suddenly round, they took their departure with as much dispatch as they had
+advanced.
+
+"We must off instantly!" exclaimed the leader of this trading band. "We
+must gain the pass of Enterkin ere day-dawn; for these good neighbours will
+make common cause with the King's troops, whenever they meet them, and
+there will be bloody work, I trow, ere these kegs and good steeds change
+masters."
+
+So saying, the march immediately proceeded up Gavin Muir, and the minister
+and Walter took possession of their usual retreat--the Cairny Cave I have
+so often referred to.
+
+Douglas was not thus, by accident, to be foiled in his object; for having,
+in the course of a few days, obtained additional forces from Galloway, he
+returned to the search in Gavin Muir, where he had, again and again, been
+told meetings still continued to be held, and some caves of concealment
+existed. Old Lauderdale in council had one day said--"Why, run down the
+devils, like the natives of Jamaica, with blood-hounds." And the hint was
+not lost on bloody Clavers--he had actually a pair of hounds of this
+description with him in Galloway at this time; and, at his earnest request,
+Douglas was favoured with one of them. Down, therefore, this monster came
+upon Gavin Muir, not to shoot blackcocks or muirfowl, in which it abounded,
+but to track, and start and pistol, if necessary, poor, shivering,
+half-starved human beings, who had dared to think the laws of their God
+more binding than the empire and despotism of sinful men. The game was a
+merry one, and it was played by "merry men all:" forward went the hound
+through muirs and mosses; onward came the troop, hallooing and encouraging
+the animal in pursuit of its horrid instincts. As they passed the moss-hole
+in which the poor grand-daughter of Walter had been suffocated, the jest,
+and the oath, and the merriment were at their utmost.
+
+"Had we but a slice of the young pup," said one, "to flesh our hound with,
+he would soon scent out the old one--they are kindred blood, you know. But
+what do I see?--old Bloody, is it, on the top of the cairn yonder?--and
+scooping, nosing, and giving tongue most determinedly. By the holy
+poker!--and that's a sanctified oath--I will on and see what's agoing
+here." Thus saying, he put spurs to his horse, and, waving his sword round
+his head, "Here goes for old Watty!--and may the devil burn me if I do not
+unearth the fox at last!" Onwards they all advanced at the gallop; but Jack
+Johnston was greatly in front, and had dashed his horse half-way up the
+steep cairn, when, in an instant, horse and man rushed down, and
+immediately disappeared.
+
+"Why," said Douglas, "what has become of Jack?--has old Sooty smelt him,
+and sent for him, on a short warning, to help in roasting Covenanters?--or
+have the fairies, those fair dames of the green knowe and the grey cairn,
+seen and admired his proportions, and made a young 'Tam Lean' of poor Jack
+Johnston? Let us on and see."
+
+And see to be sure they did; for there was Jack, lying in the last agonies
+of death, under his horse, which itself was lamed and lying with feet
+uppermost. The horrid hound was lapping, with a growl, the blood which
+oozed from the nose and lips of the dying man, and with a dreadful curse,
+the terrible being expired, just as the party came within view. He had
+tumbled headlong, owing to the pressure from the horse's feet, through the
+slight rafter-work beneath, and had pitched head-foremost against a stone
+seat, in consequence of which his skull was fractured, and his immediate
+death ensued. Douglas looked like one bewildered, he would scarcely credit
+his eyes; but his companion in arms did the needful; and Jack Johnston's
+body was removed, his horse shot through the brain, and the whole band
+returned, drooping and crestfallen, to Drumlanrig. Throwing his sword down
+on the hall table when he arrived, he was heard to say, looking wildly and
+fearfully all the while, "The hand of God is in this thing, and I knew it
+not." It is a curious fact, but one of which my informant had no doubt,
+that this very Douglas became, after this, quite an altered man. Mr Lawson,
+who lived some years after his death, attended upon him in his last
+illness. "God only knows the heart," would he say; "but, to all _outward_
+appearance, William Douglas was a cleansed and a sanctified vessel: the
+mercy of God is infinite--it even extended to the thief on the cross."
+
+
+XIII.--PORTER'S HOLE.
+
+In the west corner of the churchyard of Dalgarno--now a section of the
+parish of Closeburn--there is a small, but neat headstone, with two figures
+joining hands, as if in the attitude of marrying. Beneath is written, and
+still legible--"John Porter and Augnas Milligan. They were lovely in their
+lives, and in their deaths they were not divided." There is neither date
+nor narrative; but, as this part of the churchyard has not been used as a
+burial-ground since the union of the parishes, in the reign of Charles the
+Second, the date must have been some time betwixt 1660 and 1684. This
+beautiful and sequestered churchyard, all silent and cheerless as it is,
+lies upon the banks of the Nith, immediately upon its union with the ocean;
+and near to the most famous salmon-fishing pool in the whole river, called
+Porter's Hole. Whilst yet a boy, and attending Closeburn school, our
+attention was, one sunny afternoon, (when the trouts were unwilling to
+visit the dry land,) drawn to the little stone in the corner, of which we
+have just made mention, and recollecting, at the same time, that Porter was
+the name of the pool, as well as of the person buried, we began to
+speculate upon the possibility of there being some connection betwixt the
+two circumstances--the name of the individual, and the well-known
+designation of the blackest and deepest pool in the Closeburn part of the
+river. Near to this solitary restingplace of the ashes of our
+forefathers--the Harknesses, the Gibsons, and the Watsons of Closeburn from
+time immemorial--there stood, at that time, an old cottage, straw or rather
+_grass_-thatched, (for it was covered with green chicken-weed,) where
+dwelt, in single solitude, Janet M'Guffoch--whether any relation of the
+celebrated individual of that name mentioned by Sir Walter Scott, we know
+not--but there dwelt Janet, a discontented, old waspish body of one hundred
+years of age, according to general belief; and, being accompanied by a
+black cat and a broom besom, was marked by us _boys_ as a decided witch. We
+never had any doubt about it, and the thing was confirmed by the Laird of
+Closeburn's gamekeeper, who swore that he had often hunted hares to Janet's
+door; but never could start them again. Under all these circumstances, it
+required no common impulse to induce us to enter the den of this emissary
+of Satan; but our curiosity was excited by the similarity of the names
+"Porter's Grave" and "Porter's Hole," (as the pool was familiarly named,)
+and we at length mustered faith, and strength, and courage to thrust
+ourselves past a bundle of withered twigs, which served Janet as a door in
+summer, and as a door-protector in the blasts of winter. Janet was as usual
+at her wheel, and crooning some old Covenanting ditty, about--
+
+    "Oh, gin Lag were dead and streekit,
+    An' that his ha' wi' mools was theekit!"
+
+when, by means of a six-inch-square skylight, our physiognomy became
+visible to Janet.
+
+"And what art thou, that's creeping into an old body's dark den, and
+leaving ahint thee the guid sunshine?"
+
+We responded by mentioning our name.
+
+"Ay, ay," said Janet, "come away and sit thee down on the creepy there,
+beside the heidstane[B]--thou art freely welcome, for thou art o' the seed
+o' the faithful, the precious salt of the earth: and the blessing of the
+God of the Covenant will rest upon its children, even to the third and the
+fourth generation!" Thus welcomed, we took our position as requested,
+eyeing all the while the large black cat with a somewhat suspicious regard.
+
+"The beast winna stir thee," said Janet, "it has, like its auld mistress,
+mair regard for the martyr's seed."
+
+Having hereupon taken advantage of a pause in Janet's discourse, we at once
+stated the subject of our inquiry.
+
+"Ay, ay," said Janet; "and atweel there is a connection betwixt that bonny
+angel stane, and the pool ca'ed Porter's Hole. Ay, is there; an an awfu'
+connection it is. But what comes thou here for to torment an auld body like
+me, wi' greeting and groaning at my time o' life? Gae awa, gae awa--I canna
+thole the very thochts o' the story whilk thou ettles to ken."
+
+This only increased our curiosity, and, after some flattering language
+about Janet's good nature, retentive memory, and Covenanting lineage, the
+old crone proceeded to the following purpose; and, as nearly as we can
+mind, (for it is a tale o' fifty years,) repeated it in the following
+words:--
+
+"Thou ken's the auld ruin, bairn, the auld wa's out by there. That's the
+auld farm-house o' Dalgarno, ere the new one at the path-head was biggit;
+and there, within the wa's, was ance a warm hearth, and twa as leal hearts
+as ever beat against pin or button. John Porter was young, handsome, and
+the tenant of the best farm in the parish o' Dalgarno; but he was nae frien
+to the vile curate, and a marked bird, as they ca' it, by Grierson o' Lag,
+in particular, who had been heard to say, that he would decant his porter
+for him some day yet, in the shape and colour of heart's bluid. Agnes
+Milligan was an orphan, brought up at Dalgarno--a sister's son o' the auld
+Dalgarno, and a fu' cousin, ye ken, o' the young farmer. They had baith fed
+frae the same plate; sleeped under the same roof; played at the same
+sports; and dabbled in the same river--the bloody, bloody Nith!--from
+infancy to youth. Oh! sirs! but I canna get on ava"---- Here Janet sorted
+her wheel, and apparently shed a tear, for she moved her apron corner to
+her eye. "Aweel, this was the nicht o' the wedding, bairn--no _this_ nicht,
+like; but I think I just see it present, for I was there mysel, a wee bit
+whilking lassie. Lawson, guid godly Lawson, had tied the knot, an' we war
+a' merry like; but it was a fearfu' spate, and the Nith went frae bank to
+brae. 'They are comin!' was the cry. I kenna wha cried it, but a voice said
+it, an' twenty voices repeated it. Lag an' his troop's coming; they're
+gallopin owre the Cunning-holm at this moment. John Porter flew to his
+bonnet, an', in an instant, was raised six or seven feet high on his long
+stilts, with which he had often crossed the Nith when nae mortal could tak
+it on horseback. Agnes Milligan was out and after; the moon shone clear
+through a cloud, and she saw the brave man tak the water at the broadest.
+On he went--for we a' witnessed what he did--on he went, steady, firm, an'
+unwaverin; but, alas! it was hin' harvest, an' some sheaves o' corn had
+been carried off the holms by the spate. Ane o' them crossed his upper
+stilt, an', in a moment, his feet went frae him, an' doon he cam into the
+roarin flood. He was still near the Closeburn bank, an' we a' ran down the
+side to see if we could help him out. Again an' again he rose to his feet;
+but the water was mighty, it was terrible, it just whumbled him owre, an'
+we saw nae mair o' him. Agnes ran for Porter's Hole, (then only kent as the
+salmon pool,) an' stood watching the eddy, as it whirled straw an' corn,
+an' sic like rubbish, aboot. Her husband's head appeared floating in the
+whirl--she screamed, leaped into the deep, deep pool, an' next day they
+were found clasped in each other's arms. Oh, my bairn, my bairn!--what
+brocht ye here the day?"
+
+Janet was found, next morning, dead in her bed--the exertion and excitement
+had killed her.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[B] _Vide_ Jameson.
+
+
+
+
+THE RECLUSE.
+
+
+The situations of farm-houses, or steadings, as we call them in Scotland,
+are very rarely selected so much for their beauty, with reference to the
+surrounding scenery, as for conveniency; and hence it is that we find but
+few of them in positions which a view-hunter would term strikingly
+felicitous. When they are so, we rather presume the circumstance arises
+from its happening that eligibility and choice have agreed in determining
+the point. Yet, seriously, though the generality of farm-steadings have
+little to boast of as regards situation, there are many pleasing
+exceptions. Nay, there are some to be found occupying the most choice
+positions--surrounded with or overlooking all that is beautiful in nature.
+One of these, most certainly, is the farm-house of West Mains, in the
+parish of Longorton, Lanarkshire. It stands on the summit of a gentle,
+isolated eminence that rises in the very centre of a deep and romantic
+valley, formed of steep green hills, thickly wooded towards the bottom, but
+rising in naked verdancy from about the centre upwards. The view from the
+house is thus, indeed, limited; but this limitation is amply compensated by
+its singular beauty.
+
+About fifty years ago, this beautifully-situated farm-house was occupied by
+one Robert Adair, who rented also the entire valley in which it is
+situated. Adair's family, at this time, consisted of himself, his wife, a
+son, and two daughters, Martha and Rosina, or Rosy, as she was familiarly
+called. The former was, at the period of our story, in her twentieth year,
+the latter in her eighteenth. Martha was a good-looking and good-tempered
+girl; but, in both respects, and in several others, she was much surpassed
+by her younger sister, Rosy, as we, too, prefer to call her. The latter,
+with, personal attractions of no common order, was one of the liveliest and
+most cheerful creatures imaginable. Nothing could damp her buoyant spirit;
+nothing, be it what it might, could make her sad for longer than ten
+minutes together. From morning to night she continued pouring out, in a
+voice of the richest and most touching melody, the overflowings of a light
+and innocent heart. And scarcely less melodious was the joyous and gleeful
+laugh, in which she ever and anon gave way to the promptings of a lively
+and playful imagination. Let it not, however, be thought that all this
+apparent levity of manner was the result of an unthinking or uncalculating
+mind, or that it was in her case, as it frequently is in others, associated
+with qualities which exclude the finer and better feelings of female
+nature. It was by no means so. With all her gaiety and sportiveness, she
+had a heart filled with all the tenderest sensibilities of a woman. Her
+attachments were warm and ardent. In character, simple and sincere, Rosy
+could have died for those she loved; and so finely strung were the
+sympathies of her nature, that they were wrought on at will by either mirth
+or pathos, and with each were found equally to accord.
+
+Rosy's father, Mr Adair, although holding a considerable extent of land,
+and paying a very handsome rental, was yet by no means in affluent
+circumstances. Both his name and his credit in the country were on a fair
+footing, and he was not encumbered with more debt than he could very easily
+pay. But this was all; there was no surplus--nothing to spare; and the
+less, that he had been liberal in his expenditure on the education of his
+daughters. On this he had grudged no cost; they had both passed several
+winters in Glasgow, and had there possessed themselves of some of the more
+elegant accomplishments in female education.
+
+In character, Robert Adair was something of an original. In speech, blunt,
+plain, and humorous; but in disposition, kind, sincere, and generous. He
+was, in short, in all respects an excellent and worthy man. On the score of
+education, he had not much to boast of; but this deficiency was, in part at
+any rate, compensated by great natural shrewdness and vigour of mind.
+
+Such, then, were the inmates of the farm-house of West Mains, at the period
+to which our story refers, and which is somewhere about the year 1788.
+
+It was at the close of a day of incessant rain, in the month of September
+of that year, or it may, perhaps, have been of the year following, that a
+young man, of somewhere about five-and-twenty years of age, respectably
+dressed, with a stick in his hand, and a small leathern bundle under his
+arm, presented himself at the door of Robert Adair's house, and knocked for
+admittance. The door was opened by Robert himself; and when it was so, the
+person whom we have described stood before him. He was drenched with wet.
+It was streaming from his hat, and had soaked him all over to the skin. He
+was thus, altogether, in most uncomfortable plight; for, besides being wet,
+the night was intensely cold.
+
+"Can you, my good friend," said the stranger, in a tone and manner that
+bespoke a person of education at least, if it might not be ventured to call
+him a gentleman--"Can you give me quarters for a night?" he said, on being
+confronted by Mr Adair. "I am an entire stranger in this part of the
+country, and do not know of any inn at hand, otherwise I would not have
+troubled you. I will, very readily, pay for my accommodation."
+
+"A nicht's quarters, frien," replied Adair. "Oh, surely, ye'll get that,
+an' welcome. Walk in. Save us, man, but ye hae gotten a soakin! Ye're like
+a half-drooned rat. But stap in, stap in. There's a guid fire there in the
+kitchen and I'm sure ye're no out the need o' a blink o't."
+
+In a minute after, the stranger was comfortably seated before a roaring
+fire. But his host's hospitality did not end with this kindness; he
+insisted on his guest shifting himself; and, to enable him to do so,
+brought him a whole armfull of his own clothes; shirt, coat, waistcoat,
+trousers, and stockings. Nor with this kindness did his benevolence yet
+terminate; he invited the stranger to accept of some refreshment; an
+invitation which he followed up by desiring his daughter Rosy to cover a
+small table close by the fire, and to place thereon such edibles as she had
+at hand. Delighting as much as her father in acts of kindness, Rosy
+hastened to obey an order so agreeable to her. In a trice, she had the
+table covered with various good things, conspicuous amongst which was a
+jolly round of salt beef. In compliance with the request of his host, the
+stranger drew into the table thus kindly prepared for him; but, to the
+great disappointment of his entertainer, ate very sparingly.
+
+"Dear help me, man!--eat, eat, canna ye!" exclaimed Adair, every now and
+then, as he marked the listless manner in which the stranger pecked at the
+food on his plate. "Eat, man, canna ye!" he said, getting absolutely angry
+at his guest's want of appetite, which he construed into diffidence. "Lord,
+man, take a richt whang on your plate at once, and dinna be nibblin at it
+that way, like a mouse at a Du'lap cheese." Saying this, he seized a knife
+and fork, cut a slice from the cold round, an inch in thickness, and at
+least six in diameter, and threw it on the stranger's plate with much about
+the same grace which he exhibited in tossing a truss of hay with a
+pitchfork. "There, man, tak half-a-dizzen o' cuts like that, and then ye
+may say ye hae made a bit supper o't."
+
+Robert Adair was, in truth, but a rough table attendant, but he was a kind
+one, and in all he said and did meant well, however uncouthly it might be
+expressed.
+
+Of this the stranger seemed perfectly aware; and, although he could not
+eat, he appeared fully to appreciate the sincerity of his host's
+invitations to him to do so.
+
+After persevering, therefore, a little longer, as if to please his
+entertainer, he at length laid down his knife and fork, and declared that
+he was now satisfied, and could take no more. On his making this decided
+movement--
+
+"My faith," said his hospitable landlord, "an' ye be na waur to water than
+to corn, I think I could board ye, an' no be a loser, for a very sma'
+matter. Rosy, bring butt the bottle."
+
+Obedient to the command, Rosy tripped out of the kitchen, and in an instant
+returned with the desiderated commodity--a dumpy, bluff, opaque bottle, of
+about a gallon contents--which she placed on the table. Adair seized it by
+its long neck, and, filling up a brimming bumper, tossed it off to the
+health of his guest. This done, he filled up another topping glass, and
+presented it to the stranger, with a strong recommendation on the score of
+excellence. "Ra-a-l guid stuff, sir," he said, "tak my word for't. Juist a
+cordial. Noo, dinna trifle wi' your drink as ye did wi' your meat, or I'll
+no ken what to think o' ye at a'."
+
+The stranger, with renewed acknowledgments for the kindness shewn him, took
+the proffered beverage; but, instead of taking it off as his worthy host
+had expected, he merely put it to his lips, and replaced it on the table.
+
+"Weel, that cowes the gowan!" said Adair. "Ye'll neither hap nor
+wyn--neither dance nor haud the candle. Try't again, man, try't again.
+Steek your een hard, gie ae gulp, an' ower wi't."
+
+The worthy man, however, pressed in vain. The stranger would not drink; but
+once more acknowledged the kindness and well-meant hospitality of his
+entertainer.
+
+During all this time, the stranger had neither said nor done any single
+thing which was capable of imparting the slightest idea of who or what he
+was--where he was from, or whence he was going. Indeed, he hardly spoke at
+all; and the little he did speak was almost all confined to brief
+expressions of thanks for the kindness shewn him. When seen as he was now,
+under more favourable circumstances than those in which he had first
+presented himself, shivering with cold and drenched with wet, he exhibited
+a handsome exterior. His countenance was full of expression and
+intelligence, but was overspread with an apparently deep-seated and settled
+melancholy. He appeared, in short, to be a person who was suffering
+severely either in body or mind; but his affliction exhibited all the
+symptoms of being of the latter rather than the former. Yet was not the
+profound gravity of his manner of an unpleasing or repulsive character; it
+partook of a gentleness and benevolence that rendered it rather graceful
+than otherwise. The tones of his voice, too, corresponded with these
+qualities; they were mild and impressive, and singularly agreeable.
+Altogether, the stranger appeared a mysterious sort of person; and greatly
+did it puzzle Mr Adair and all his household to conjecture who or what he
+could possibly be; a task to which they set themselves after he had retired
+to bed, which he did--pleading fatigue as an excuse--at an early hour. The
+first ostensible circumstance connected with their guest of the night,
+which the family divan, with the father of it at their head, took into
+consideration when discussing the knotty points of the stranger's character
+and calling, was his apparel. But of this they could make nothing. His
+habiliments were in no ways remarkable for anything; they being neither
+good, bad, nor indifferent, but of that indefinite description called
+respectable. So far as these were concerned, therefore, he might be either
+a peer of the realm or an English bagman.
+
+Finding they could make nothing of the clothes, the family cabinet council
+next proceeded to the looks and manners of the stranger; and, with regard
+to these, all agreed that they seemed to bespeak the gentleman; and on this
+conclusion from the premises, none insisted more stoutly than Rosy, who,
+let us observe, although she thought nobody saw her, had taken several
+stolen glances at the subject of discussion while he was seated at the
+kitchen fire; and at each glance, let us farther observe, more and more
+approved of his finely arched eyebrows, his well-formed mouth, dark
+expressive eyes, and rich black locks that clustered around his white and
+open forehead. But all this is a secret, good reader, and should not have
+been told.
+
+So far, then, had the united opinions of the family determined regarding
+their guest. But what should have brought him the way of West Mains, such
+an out-of-the-way place, seeing that he had neither gun, dog, nor
+fishing-rod, and could not therefore have been in pursuit of sport? It was
+odd, unaccountable. Where could he be from? Where could he be going to?
+These were questions more easily put than answered; and by all were they
+put, but by none were they replied to. At length, Mr Adair took speech in
+hand himself on the subject.
+
+"I kenna, nor, indeed, neither do I muckle care, wha the lad is; but he
+seems to me to be a ceevil, discreet, young man; and I rather like him
+a'thegither, although he's a dooms bad haun at baith cap and trencher. A',
+however, that we hae to do wi' him, is to treat him ceevily while he's
+under our roof. He's gotten a guid bed to lie in, and in the mornin we'll
+gie him a guid breakfast to tak the road wi', and there'll be an end o't.
+It's no likely we'll ever hear or see mair o' him." Having said this,
+Robert broke up the conclave; gave the long-drawn sonorous yawn that his
+family knew to be the signal of preparation for bed. In the next moment,
+Adair's left hand was busily employed in undoing the knee buttons of his
+small clothes. Another powerful yawn, and he proceeded to perform the same
+operation on his right leg. In two minutes after, he was snugly buried
+beneath the blankets; his "honest, sonsy, bawsint face," and red Kilmarnock
+night-cap, being all that was left visible of him; and, in five minutes
+more, a magnificent snore intimated to all whom it might concern, that
+worthy Robin Adair was fairly in the land of Nod, and oblivious of all
+earthly concerns.
+
+On the following morning, Mr Adair and his guest met at breakfast, when
+that liking for each other which had begun to manifest itself on the
+preceding night--although neither, perhaps, could say precisely whence it
+arose--gradually waxed into a somewhat stronger feeling. Adair was pleased
+with the gentle and unaffected manners of his guest, while the latter was
+equally pleased with the sincerity of character and generosity of heart of
+his entertainer. It appeared, however, as if their acquaintance was to be
+but of short duration, and as if they were now soon to part, in all
+probability for ever. Circumstances seemed to point to this result; yet it
+was by no means the one that followed--an odd incident at once threw out
+all such calculation.
+
+When breakfast was concluded, and the party who had sat around the
+table--Adair, his family, and the stranger--had risen to their feet, the
+latter, smiling through his natural gravity, asked his host if he would be
+so good as give him a private interview with him. To this Mr Adair,
+although not a little surprised at the request, consented, and led the way
+into a small back-parlour that opened from the room in which they had
+breakfasted.
+
+"Mr Adair," said the stranger, on their entering this apartment, and having
+previously secured the door, "I am greatly indebted to you for the kindness
+and hospitality you have shewn me."
+
+"No the least, sir--no the least," replied the farmer, with a decree of
+respect in his manner with which his guest's air and bearing had
+unconsciously inspired him, he did not know how or wherefore--"No the
+least. I am aye glad to shew civility to them that seek the shelter o' my
+rufe; it's just a pleasure to me. Ye're not only heartily welcome, sir, to
+a' ye hae gotten, but to a week o't, an' ye like. I dinna think that I wad
+be the first to weary o't."
+
+"Have you any objection to try?" said the stranger, with a gentle smile.
+
+"None whatever," replied the hospitable yeoman.
+
+"Well, Mr Adair," said the stranger, with more gravity of manner, "to
+convert jest into earnest, I have a proposal to make to you. I have been
+for some time looking out for such a quiet retirement as this is, and a
+family as respectable and agreeable as yours seems to me to be. Now, having
+found both of these things to my mind here, I will, if you have no
+objection, become a boarder with you, Mr Adair, paying you a hundred
+guineas a-year; and here," he said, drawing out a well-filled purse, and
+emptying its contents on the table--"here are fifty guineas in advance."
+And he told off from the heap that lay on the table, the sum he named, and
+thrust it towards his astonished host. "And let me add," went on the
+mysterious stranger, "that, if you agree to my proposal, and continue to
+put up as well together as I expect we shall, I will not limit my payment
+to the sum I have mentioned. What say you to this, Mr Adair?"
+
+To _this_ Mr Adair could say nothing for some time. Not a word. He was lost
+in perplexity and amazement--a state of mental difficulty and
+embarrassment, which he made manifest by scratching his head, and looking,
+with a bewildered sort of smile, alternately at the gold and its late
+owner--first at the one, then at the other. At length--
+
+"Well," he said, still scratching his head, "this is a queer sort o'
+business, an' a turn o' matters I didna look for ava; but I hae seen waur
+things come o' better beginnins. To tell ye a truth, sir," continued the
+perplexed yeoman, "I'm no oot o' the need o' the siller. But, if ye'll just
+stop a minute, if ye please, till I speak to the guidwife on the subject."
+
+And, with this, Adair hurried out of the room; and, having done this, he
+hurried his wife into another, and told her of what had just taken place,
+concluding with a--"An', noo, guidwife, what do ye think we should do?"
+
+"Tak the siller, to be sure," replied the latter. "He seems to me to be a
+decent, canny lad; and, at ony rate, we canna be far wrang wi' ae six
+months o' him, ony way, seein that he's payin the siller afore haun. That's
+the grand point, Rab."
+
+"Feth, it's that, guidwife--nae doot o't," replied her husband. "Juist the
+pint o' pints. But whar'll ye put the lad?"
+
+"Ou, tak ye nae fash about that, guidman. I'll manage that. Isna there the
+wee room up the stair, wi' a bed in't that micht sair the king
+himself--sheets as white as the driven snaw, and guid stripped druggit
+curtains just oot o' the mangle?"
+
+"Weel, weel, guidwife, ony way ye like as to thae matters," replied Adair;
+"and I'll awa, in the meantime, and get haud o' the siller. There's gowd
+yonner for the liftin. Deil o' the like o't ever I saw." Saying this, he
+flung out of the apartment, and in the next minute was again in the
+presence of the mysterious stranger.
+
+On his entering--"Well, Mr Adair," said the latter, "what does your good
+lady say to my becoming a boarder with her?"
+
+"Feth, sir, she's very willin, and says ye may depend on her and her
+dochter doin everything in their power to make ye comfortable."
+
+"Of that I have no doubt," said the stranger; "and now, then, that this
+matter is so far settled, take up your money, Mr Adair, and reckon on
+punctual payments for the future."
+
+"No misdoubtin that, sir, at a'," said the latter, picking up the guineas,
+one after another, and chucking them into a small leathern purse which he
+had brought for the purpose. "No misdoubtin' at a', sir," he said. "I tak
+this to be guid earnest o' that."
+
+The stranger, then, whoever he was, was now fairly domiciled in the house
+of Mr Adair. The name he gave himself was Mowbray; and by this name he was
+henceforth known.
+
+For two years succeeding the period of which we have just been speaking,
+did Mr Mowbray continue an inmate of West Mains, without any single
+circumstance occurring to throw the smallest light on his history. At the
+end of this period, as little was known regarding him as on the day of his
+first arrival. On this subject he never communicated anything himself; and,
+as he was always punctual in his payments, and most exemplary in his
+general conduct, those with whom he resided did not feel themselves called
+upon, nor would it have been decorous, to make any further inquiry on the
+subject. Indeed although they had desired to do so, there was no way open
+to them by which to obtain such information.
+
+During the period alluded to, Mr Mowbray spent the greater part of his time
+in reading; having, since his settlement at West Mains, opened a
+communication with a bookseller in the neighbouring country town of ----;
+and in walking about the country, visiting the more remarkable scenery, and
+other interesting objects in the neighbourhood.
+
+During all this time, too, his habits were extremely retired; shunning, as
+much as he possibly could, all intercourse with those whom he accidentally
+met; and, even at home, mingling but little with the family with which he
+resided. Privacy and quietness, in short, seemed to be the great objects of
+his desire; and the members of Mr Adair's household, becoming aware of
+this, not only never needlessly intruded themselves on him, but studiously
+avoided involving him in conversation, which they observed was always
+annoying to him. He was thus allowed to go abroad and to return, and even
+to pass, when accidentally met by any members of the family, without any
+notice being taken of him, further, perhaps, than a slight nod of civility,
+which he usually returned without uttering a syllable.
+
+From all this--his retired habits, deep-seated melancholy, and immoveable
+taciturnity--it was evident to Mr Adair and his family that their boarder
+was labouring under some grievous depression of mind; and in this opinion
+they were confirmed by various expressions of grief, not unaccompanied by
+others of contrition, which they had frequently overheard, accidentally, as
+they passed the door of his apartment on occasions--and these were
+frequent--when Mr Mowbray seemed more than usually depressed by the sorrow
+to which he was a prey.
+
+With all this reserve and seclusion, however, there was nothing repulsive
+in Mr Mowbray's manners or habits. He was grave without being morose,
+taciturn without being churlish, and sought quietness and retirement
+himself, without any expression of impatience with, or sign of peevishness
+at, the stir and bustle around him.
+
+As a matter of course, the history and character of Mr Mowbray excited, at
+least for a time, much speculation in the neighbourhood; and these
+speculations, as a matter of course, also, as we may venture to say, were
+not in general of the most charitable description. One of these held forth
+that he was a retired highwayman, who had sought a quiet corner in which to
+enjoy the fruits of his industry, and to avoid the impertinences of the
+law; another held that he was a murderer, who had fled from justice;
+another that he was a bankrupt, who had swindled his creditors; a fourth,
+that he was a forger, who had done business in that way to a vast extent.
+
+As to the nature of the crime which Mr Mowbray had committed, it will be
+seen that there were various opinions; but that he had committed some
+enormous crimes of some sort or other, was a universal opinion--in this
+general sentiment all agreed.
+
+Amongst other mysteries, was that involved in the query--where did he get
+his money? Where did it come from? He did not, indeed, seem to have the
+command of very extensive resources; but always to have enough to pay
+punctually and promptly everything he desired, and to settle all pecuniary
+claims upon him.
+
+His remittances, it was also ascertained, came to him, from whatever
+quarter it might be, regularly twice a-year, per the English mail, which
+passed within a mile and a half of West Mains. The exact amount of these
+remittances, which were always in gold, and put up in a small, neat, tight
+parcel, was never exactly known; but was supposed, on pretty good grounds,
+to be, each, somewhere about a hundred and fifty guineas, one of which went
+to Mr Adair; for Mr Mowbray had, of his own accord, added fifty guineas per
+annum to the hundred which he had first promised. The other hundred and
+fifty was disposed of in various ways, or left to accumulate with their
+owner. Such, then, was the amount of information acquired regarding Mr
+Mowbray's pecuniary resources; and more, on this point, or any other
+regarding him, could not, by any means, be arrived at.
+
+By the end of the period, however, which we have above named--namely, two
+years--public opinion had, we must observe, undergone a considerable
+modification in Mr Mowbray's favour. He had been gradually acquitted of his
+various crimes; and the worst that was now believed of him was, that he was
+a gentleman whom troubles, of some kind or other, had driven from the
+world.
+
+This favourable change in public opinion regarding him was, in a great
+measure, if not, indeed, wholly owing to the regularity of his conduct, the
+gentleness of his manners, his generosity--for he was a liberal contributor
+to the relief of the necessitous poor in his vicinity--and to the rigid
+punctuality he observed in all his pecuniary transactions.
+
+In the family in which he resided, where there were, of course, better
+opportunities for judging of his character, and estimating his good
+qualities, he came to be much beloved. Adair, as he often said himself,
+would "gae through fire and water to serve him;" for a more honourable, or
+"discreet" young gentleman, as he also frequently said, "didna breathe the
+breath o' existence."
+
+On every other member of the family, the impression he made was equally
+favourable; and, on one of them, in particular, we might speak of it in yet
+stronger language. But of this anon.
+
+The general conviction into which the family with which Mr Mowbray resided
+fell, regarding the personal history of that person, was, that he was a
+gentleman who possessed a moderate annuity from some fixed sum, and that
+some disgust with the world had driven him into his present retirement; and
+in this conviction they had now been so long and so completely settled,
+that they firmly believed in its truth, and never after dreamed of again
+agitating the question, even in the most distant manner.
+
+Thus, then, stood matters at West Mains at the end of two years from the
+period at which our story opens. Hitherto, however, we have only exhibited
+what was passing above board. We will now give the reader a peep of certain
+little matters that were going on behind the scenes.
+
+A short while previous to the time of which we now speak, Rosy's sister,
+Martha, had gone to Edinburgh to spend the winter with a near relative of
+her father; partly as a friendly visit, and partly for the purpose of
+perfecting herself in certain branches of female education. This separation
+was a painful one to the two sisters, for they were much attached to each
+other; but they determined to compensate it by maintaining a close and
+regular correspondence; and huge was the budget that each soon accumulated
+of the other's epistolary performances. Out of these budgets we will select
+a couple, which will give the reader a hint of some things of which, we
+daresay, he little dreamed. The first is from Martha to her sister, and is
+dated from Edinburgh.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"MY DEAR ROSY," (runs this document,) "I received your kind letter by Mr
+Meiklewham, likewise the little jar of butter for Aunt, who says it is
+delicious, and that she would know it to be West Mains butter wherever she
+should have met with it.
+
+"I am delighted to hear that you are all well, and that Mr Mowbray has got
+better of his slight indisposition. By the by, Rosy, I have observed that
+you are particularly guarded in all your communications about Mr M. When
+you speak of him you don't do so with your usual sprightliness of manner.
+Ah! Rosy, Rosy, I doubt--I doubt--I have long doubted, or rather, I have
+been long convinced--of _what_, say you blushing! _N'importe_--nothing at
+all. Do you believe me, Rosy?--No, you don't. Does Mr M. fix his fine
+expressive eyes on you as often and as intensely as he used to do? Eh,
+Rosy!--Now, there's something you can't deny.
+
+"To be serious, Rosy, my dear sister, I have long been satisfied that you
+are loved by Mr Mowbray--deeply, sincerely, ardently loved. And, more, my
+dear Rosy, I am equally satisfied that Mr Mowbray is loved by _you_. I am
+certain of it. I have marked many symptoms of it, although I have never
+mentioned it to you before; and I do it now in order to induce you to
+unburden yourself of such feelings, as it may relieve you to discover to a
+sister who loves you tenderly and sincerely," &c, &c.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Our next quotation is from Martha's budget; and we shall select the letter
+she received in reply to the one above given. It is dated West Mains, and
+proceeds thus:--
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"MY DEAR MARTHA,--It is not in my nature to play a double part. I freely
+confess, my dear Martha, in reply to your lecture on a certain subject,
+that Mr Mowbray is not indifferent to me. I have long, I avow it, admired
+the many good qualities which we have all acknowledged him to possess--his
+gentlemanly bearing; his accomplishments; the elegance of his manners, and
+the noble generosity of his nature. These I have indeed, Martha, long
+admired. But what reason have you for supposing that your sister, with
+nothing to recommend her but some very homely advantage of person, can have
+made any impression on the heart of such a man as Mr Mowbray? Here, Martha,
+you are decidedly at fault, and have jumped to a conclusion which you have
+rather wished than believed. But, enough of this foolish matter."--And here
+the fair writer leaps off to another subject, which, as it has no reference
+to our story, nor any particular interest of its own, we beg to leave in
+the oblivion in which it reposes. And having quoted enough of the sisters'
+correspondence for our purpose, we will here, again, throw our narrative
+into its more direct and legitimate channel.
+
+By the letters above given, we have shewn pretty plainly that, on the part
+of the one sister, a secret attachment to the unknown lodger was in rapid
+progress, if it had not indeed already attained a height fatal to the peace
+of mind of her by whom it was entertained; and that, on the part of the
+other, a strong suspicion existed, not only that such love had been
+generated, but that this love was mutual. And was it so? It was. Mr Mowbray
+had not, indeed, made any very palpable advances, nor displayed any
+symptoms of the state of his feelings, which any one but such a close and
+shrewd observer as Martha could have detected. To no other eyes did this
+secret stand revealed. But there was now, in his general manner towards
+Rosy, much that such an observer could not fail to be struck with, or to
+attribute to its real and proper cause. Nor was this change confined to his
+intercourse with Rosy Adair--to the slight confusion that appeared in his
+countenance whenever they accidentally met each other, unseen of any one
+besides, and to the evident pleasure which he took in her society--to the
+circumstance of his seeking that pleasure as often as he could without
+making it subject of remark. No, the change that had now come over Mr
+Mowbray was not confined to what such incidents as these may be presumed to
+indicate; his spirit also, the whole tenor of his thoughts, the whole
+constitution of his mind, seemed equally under the influence of his
+new-born passion. His manner became more cheerful; his eye became lighted
+up with an unwonted fire; and he no longer indulged in the seclusion which
+he had so sedulously sought when he first came to West Mains. Mr Mowbray
+was now, in fact, a changed man, and changed for the better. He was now no
+longer the weeping, melancholy recluse, but a character evidently much more
+suitable to his natural temper and dispositions--a gay and cheerful man of
+the world. It was, indeed, a marvellous change; but so it was.
+
+This, however--referring to the attachment which had thus grown up between
+Rosy Adair and Mr Mowbray--was a state of matters which could not long
+remain in the position in which we have represented them; some result or
+conclusion was inevitable--and it arrived. Mr Mowbray gradually became more
+and more open in his communications with Miss Adair; gradually disclosed
+the state of his feelings with regard to her, and finally avowed his love.
+Miss Adair heard the delightful confession with an emotion she could not
+conceal; and, ingenuous in everything, in all she said and did, avowed that
+she loved in return.
+
+"Then, my Rosina, my beloved Rosina," exclaimed Mr Mowbray, in a wild
+transport of joy--and throwing himself, in the excitation of the moment, at
+the feet of her whom he addressed--"allow me to mention this matter to your
+father, and to seek his consent to your making me the happiest of living
+men."
+
+The liberty he thus sought with such grace and earnestness, was blushingly
+granted; not indeed, in express words, but with a silence equally
+intelligible and more eloquent than words.
+
+In five minutes after, Mr Mowbray was closeted, and in earnest conversation
+with Mr Adair. He had already announced his attachment to his daughter, and
+had sought his consent to their union. Mr Adair had yet made no reply. The
+request was one of too serious a nature to be hastily or unreflectingly
+acquiesced in. At length--
+
+"Weel, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair, "I'll tell ye what it is: although I
+certainly haena a' the knowledge o' ye--that is, regarding yoursel and your
+affairs--that I maybe hae a richt to insist on haein before giein ye the
+haun o' my dochter--and this for a' the time that ye hae been under my
+roof--yet, as in that time--noo, I think, something owre twa year gane
+by--yer conduct has aye been that o' a gentleman, in a' respects--sober,
+discreet, and reglar; most exemplary, I maun say;--and, as I am satisfied
+that ye hae the means o' supportin a wife, in a decent way, no to say that
+there may be muckle owre either, I really think I can hae nae reasonable
+objections to gie ye Rosy after a'."
+
+During this speech of the worthy yeoman's, there was on Mr Mowbray's
+countenance a smile of peculiar meaning; evidently one under which lay
+something amusing, mingled with the expression of satisfaction which Mr
+Adair's sanction to his marriage with Rosina had elicited.
+
+Delighted with the success of his mission, Mr Mowbray now flew to the
+apartment in which he had left Miss Adair, and, enfolding her in his arms,
+in a transport of joy, informed her that he had obtained her father's
+consent to their union, and concluded by asking her to name the day which
+should make her his for ever. This, however, being rather too summary a
+proceeding, Rosina declined; and Mr Mowbray was obliged to be content with
+a promise of the matter being taken into consideration on an early day.
+
+Leaving the lovers in discussion on these very agreeable points, and others
+connected therewith, we will follow Mr Adair on the errand on which he
+went, after Mr Mowbray had left him. This was to communicate to his wife
+the unexpected and important proposal which had just been made to him, and
+to which he had just acceded.
+
+"Weel, guidwife, here's a queer business," said Mr Adair, on joining his
+thrifty helpmate, who was busy at the moment in scouring a set of milk
+dishes. "What do ye think? Mr Mowbray has just noo asked my consent to his
+marrying Rosy. Now, isna that a queer affair! My feth, but they maun hae
+managed matters unco cannily and cunningly; for deil a bit o' me ever could
+see the least inklin o' anything past ordinar between them."
+
+"You see onything o' that kind!" replied Mrs Adair, with an expression of
+the greatest contempt for her husband's penetration in _affaires de
+coeur_. "You see't, Robin! No--I dare say no. Although they were sitting
+under your very nose, wi' their arms aboot ithers' necks, I dinna believe
+ye wad see that there was onything in't. But, though ye didna see't, Robin,
+I saw't--and plainly enough, too--although I said naething about it. I saw,
+mony a day sin', that Mr Mowbray had a notion o' Rosy; and, if truth be
+tell't, I saw as weel that she had a notion o' him, and hae lang expected
+that it wad come to this."
+
+"Weel, weel, guidwife, ye hae a glegger ee for thae things than I hae,"
+replied Mr Adair. "But here's the end o' the matter noo."
+
+"And hae ye gien your consent, Robin?"
+
+"'Deed hae I; for I think he's an honest, decent lad; and, no to say he's
+rich maybe, fair aneuch aff, I think, as to worldly matters."
+
+"As to that, I daresay, there's naething far amiss," replied Mrs Adair,
+"nor as regards his character either, maybe; but I'm no sure. I dinna ken,
+Robert, considerin a' things, if ye haena been a wee owre rash in giein
+your consent to this business. It's a serious affair. And, after a', we ken
+but little about the lad; although, I canna but say he seems to be a
+decent, honourable chiel, and I houp'll mak Rosy happy." Here the good
+woman raised the corner of her apron to her eyes, and gave way, for a
+second or two, to those maternal feelings which the occasion was so well
+calculated to excite.
+
+"Tuts, woman; what's the use o' that?" said Mr Adair, with a sort of
+good-natured impatience. "The thing's a' richt aneuch, and sae'll be seen
+in the end, nae doot."
+
+"God grant it!" replied his wife, with solemn earnestness; and here the
+conversation dropped for the time.
+
+We now revert to the proceedings of Mr Mowbray at this eventful crisis of
+his life; but in these we find only one circumstance occurring between the
+day on which he solicited, and that on which he obtained, the hand of Rosy
+Adair. This circumstance, however, was one of rather curious import. It was
+a letter which Mr Mowbray addressed to a friend, and ran thus:--
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"DEAR NARESBY,--The appearance of this well-known hand--well known to you,
+my friend--will, I daresay, startle you not a little. My letter will seem
+to you as a communication from the dead; for it is now upwards of two long
+years since you either heard from me or of me. On this subject I have much
+to say to you, and on some others besides, but defer it until I shall have
+the pleasure of seeing you at Wansted--a pleasure which I hope to have in
+about three weeks hence--when we shall talk over old affairs, and, mayhap,
+some new ones. Would you believe me, Naresby, if I was to say, that the sea
+had ceased to ebb and flow, that the hills had become valleys, and the
+valleys had risen into hills; that the moon had become constant, and that
+the sun had forgotten to sink in the west when his daily course was run?
+Would you believe any or all of these things, if I were to assert them to
+be true? No, you wouldn't. Yet will you as readily believe them, I daresay,
+as that I am to be--how can I come out with the word!--to be--to be
+married, Naresby! Married! Yes, married. I am to be married--I repeat it
+slowly and solemnly--and to one of the sweetest and fairest creatures that
+ever the sun of heaven shone upon. 'Oh! of course,' say you. But it's true,
+Naresby; and, ere another month has passed away, you will yourself confess
+it; for ere that period has come and gone, you will have seen her with your
+own eyes.
+
+"So much then for resolution, for the weakness of human nature. I
+thought--nay, I swore, Naresby, as you know--that I would, that I could
+never love again. I thought that the treachery, the heartlessness of one,
+one smiling deceiver, had seared my heart, and rendered it callous to all
+the charms and blandishments of her sex. But I have been again deceived.
+
+"I have not, however, this time, chosen the object of my affections from
+the class to which--I cannot pronounce her name--that fatal name--belonged;
+but from one which, however inferior in point of adventitious acquirement,
+far surpasses it--of this experience has convinced me--in all the better
+qualities of the heart.
+
+"The woman to whom I am to be married--my Rosina Adair!--is the daughter of
+a humble yeoman, and has thus neither birth nor fortune to boast of. But
+what in a wife are birth or fortune to me? Nothing, verily nothing, when
+their place is supplied--as in the case of my betrothed--by a heart that
+knows no guile; by a temper cheerful and complying; and by personal charms
+that would add lustre to a crown. Birth, Naresby, I do not value; and
+fortune I do not want.
+
+"Well, then, Naresby, my period of seclusion is now about over, and I
+return again to the world. Who would have said this two years ago? If any
+had, I would have told them they spoke untruly--that I had abjured the
+world, and all its joys, for ever; and that, henceforth, William Mowbray
+would not be as other men. But so it is. I state the fact, and leave others
+to account for and moralize on it."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Such, then, was the letter which Mr Mowbray wrote to his friend, Naresby,
+during the interval to which we formerly alluded. Several other letters he
+also wrote and despatched about the same time; but the purpose of these,
+and to whom written, we must leave the sequel of our story to explain.
+
+Having no further details of any interest wherewith to fill up the
+intervening period between the occurrence of the circumstances just related
+and the marriage of Rosina Adair and William Mowbray, we at once carry
+forward our narrative to the third day after the celebration of that event.
+On that day--
+
+"Rosy, my love," said Mr Mowbray, smiling, "I have a proposal to make to
+you."
+
+"Indeed!--what is it, William?"
+
+"Why, I'll tell you what it is," said the latter; "I wish to go on a visit
+to a particular friend, and I wish you to go with me."
+
+"Oh, surely," replied Mrs Mowbray. "Is it far?"
+
+"Why, a pretty long way; a two days' journey. Will you still venture on
+it?"
+
+"Surely--surely, William. Anywhere with you!"
+
+"Thank you, my love," said Mr Mowbray, embracing his young wife.
+
+"Now, I have another proposal to make, Rosy," continued the former; "I wish
+your father and mother to accompany us."
+
+"What! my father and mother too!" exclaimed Mrs Mowbray, in great surprise.
+"Dear me, wouldn't that be odd, William. What would your friend say to such
+a cavalcade of visiters?"
+
+"Delighted to see them, I assure you, my love. It's my friend's own express
+wish; and, however odd it may seem, it is a point which must be conceded
+me."
+
+"Well, well, William, any way you please. I am content. But have you
+thought of the expense? That will be rather serious."
+
+"Oh, not in the least, my love," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "Not in the
+least serious, I assure you. I will manage that part of the matter."
+
+"Well, well; but my father's consent, William. There's the difficulty. To
+get him to leave his farm for so long a time; I doubt you will scarcely
+prevail upon him to do that. He would not live a week from home, I verily
+believe, although it were to make a lord of him."
+
+"I'll try, Rosy; I'll try this minute," said Mr Mowbray, hurrying out of
+the apartment, and proceeding in quest of Mr Adair, whom he soon found.
+
+"Leave hame for a week!" exclaimed the latter, on Mr Mowbray's making known
+to him his wishes on this subject. "Impossible! my dear sir; impossible!
+Wholly out o' the question. I hae a stack o' oats to thrash oot; a bit o' a
+fauld dyke to build; twa acres o' the holme to ploo; the new barn to theek;
+the lea-field to saw wi' wheat; the turnips to bring in; the taties to
+bing; forbye a hunner ither things that can on nae account stan owre.
+Impossible, my dear sir--impossible. Juist wholly oot the question. But ye
+may get the guidwife wi' ye an' ye like, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair,
+laughing jocosely; "and may keep her too, if ye like."
+
+"Yes--yes. All very well, Mr Adair; but I must have you too, in spite of
+the manifold pieces of work you have on hand. I have a particular reason
+for pressing this point, and really will not be denied."
+
+For a full half-hour did this sort of sparring continue between Mr Mowbray
+and his father-in-law; both being resolute--the one to carry his point, the
+other to keep his ground; but, what could hardly be expected, the former
+finally prevailed. His urgency carried the day; and Mr Adair was
+ultimately, although we need scarcely say it, reluctantly, prevailed on to
+promise that he would be one of the intended party. Having obtained this
+promise, Mr Mowbray farther secured its performance by naming the following
+day as that on which they should set out.
+
+On the following day, accordingly--Mrs Adair's consent having, in the
+meantime, been obtained, and with much less difficulty than her
+husband's--two chaises--unwonted sight--appeared at the door of West Mains
+House; they had been ordered by Mr Mowbray from the neighbouring country
+town; and, in a little after, out came the party by which they were to be
+occupied.
+
+"I wad far rather hae ridden the black mare than go into ane o' thae
+things," said Mr Adair, looking contemptuously at the couple of chaises
+that stood at the door. "I never was fond o' ridin in cotches a' my life.
+Nasty, rattlin, jinglin things. Ane micht as weel be shut up in a corn kist
+as in ane o' them."
+
+Having expressed this opinion of the conveyance he was about to enter, Mr
+Adair, notwithstanding of that opinion, proceeded, with the assistance of
+Mr Mowbray, to help his wife into one of them. This done, he followed
+himself. Mrs and Mr Mowbray stepped into the other chaise. The doors were
+shut by the coachman with a bang; and, in the next minute, both the
+vehicles were in rapid motion.
+
+On the forenoon of the second day after their departure--nothing, in the
+interval, having occurred worth relating--the party arrived at a certain
+noble mansion not far from the borders of England. The two chaises having
+drawn up before the door of this splendid residence, three or four servants
+in rich livery hastened to release the travellers by throwing open the
+doors of their carriages, and unfolding the steps, which they did with very
+marked deference and respect, and with smiles on their faces, (particularly
+in the case of one not in livery, who seemed the principal of them,) of
+very puzzling meaning.
+
+On the party having got out of their chaises--"Is this your freen's house,
+Mr Mowbray?" said Mr Adair, standing fast, and looking up with great
+astonishment and admiration at the splendid building before him.
+
+"It is, sir," replied Mr Mowbray.
+
+"My feth! an' he maun be nae sma' drink then--that's clear. He has a rare
+sittin-down here. It's a house for a lord."
+
+"The house is very respectable, certainly," said Mr Mowbray; "and, I think,
+you'll find the inside every way worthy of the out."
+
+"I dinna doot it--I dinna doot it," replied Mr Adair. "But whar's your
+freen, himsel?"
+
+"Oh! we'll see him presently. In the meantime let us walk in." And, taking
+his wife's arm within his, Mr Mowbray led the way into the house, conducted
+by the principal domestic, and followed by Mr and Mrs Adair; the latter no
+less overwhelmed than her husband by the grandeur with which she was
+surrounded.
+
+Having entered the house, the party were led up a magnificent staircase,
+and ushered into a room of noble dimensions, and gorgeously furnished. All
+but Mr Mowbray himself, and the servant who attended, were awe-stricken
+with the splendours around them. Even Mrs Mowbray was oppressed with this
+feeling; so much so as not to be able to speak a word; and on her father
+and mother it had a similar effect. Not one opened a mouth, but continued
+gazing around them in silent amazement and admiration.
+
+When the party had seated themselves--"Shall I serve up some refreshment,
+sir?" said the servant to Mr Mowbray, with great respect of manner, but
+with that perplexing smile on his face.
+
+"Yes, John, do," said Mr Mowbray; "and as quick's you like; for we are all,
+I fancy, pretty sharp-set; and some of us--I speak for myself at any
+rate--not a little thirsty."
+
+The servant bowed and retired. When he had done so--"'Od, sir, ye seem to
+be greatly at your ease here," said Mr Adair, who was not a little
+surprised, with the others, as well he might, at the free and easy manner
+of his son-in-law in his friend's house, "You and your freen maun surely be
+unco intimate."
+
+"Oh! we certainly are so," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "I can use any
+freedom here--the same as if I were in my own house."
+
+"Weel, that's pleasant and friendly like," said Mr Adair. "But isna your
+freen himsel lang o' makin his appearance?"
+
+"Rather, I confess; but he'll be here shortly, I daresay--something of a
+particular nature detaining him, I have no doubt; but, in the meantime,
+we'll make ourselves at home. I know it will please him if we do so." And
+Mr Mowbray proceeded to the bell-pull, and rung it violently.
+
+A servant instantly appeared, and received an order, fearlessly given, from
+Mr Mowbray, to hasten the refreshment in preparation.
+
+Mr Adair's countenance expressed increased amazement at this very
+unceremonious proceeding; and he felt as if he would have said that he
+thought it the most impertinent thing ever he had seen done in his life;
+but he refrained. In this feeling Mrs Adair also partook; and in this
+feeling Mr Mowbray's own wife shared, although not, perhaps, to the same
+extent. Not the least curious part, let us observe too, of this odd scene,
+was that Mr Mowbray seemed to delight in the perplexity of feeling which
+his proceedings excited in his friends, and appeared studiously to do
+everything he could think of to increase them.
+
+By and by, the promised repast was served up; and an exceedingly handsome
+one it was. The party took their seats, no host or hostess having yet
+appeared--Mr Mowbray placing his wife at the head of the table, and himself
+taking the foot--and proceeded to do justice to the good things before
+them. The repast over, wine was introduced. This done, Mr Mowbray--who, to
+the now utterly inexpressible amazement, and even confusion, of both Mr and
+Mrs Adair, had all this while been ordering away, right and left, as if he
+had been in a common inn--desired all the attendants to retire. When they
+had done so, he filled up a bumper of wine, lifted it, rose to his feet
+and, advancing with smiling countenance and extended hand towards his wife,
+bade her welcome to _her own house_!
+
+"What!" shouted Mr Adair, leaping from his chair.
+
+"Eh!" exclaimed his wife, doing precisely the same thing by hers.
+
+"William," said Mrs Mowbray, in a voice faint with agitation, and
+endeavouring to rise from her chair, into which, however, she was obliged
+again to sink.
+
+"True, my friends," said Mr Mowbray; "all true. This, Mr Adair, is your
+daughter's house; all that is within it and around it. Welcome again, my
+love, to your own fireside!" said Mr Mowbray, embracing his wife, "and
+long may you live to enjoy all the comfort and happiness which Malton
+House, and ten thousand a-year, are capable of affording!"
+
+Here, then, ends our story, good reader; and as we do not think you would
+choose to be much longer detained, especially with dry details of
+explanation which are all that now remains to add, we shall be brief.
+
+Mr Mowbray was a young man of large fortune, who, having been crossed in
+love, had imagined that he had been thereby weaned from the world and all
+its joys; and, under this impression, had sought to retire from the busy
+scenes of life, with a determination never to return to them again. How he
+kept to this resolution our story tells.
+
+
+
+
+A HIGHLAND TRADITION.
+
+
+On the summit of a bluff headland that projects into the Sound of Sky,
+there stand the grey ruins of an ancient castle, which was once the
+residence of a Highland chieftain of the name of M'Morrough--a man of
+fierce nature and desperate courage, but not without some traits of a
+generous disposition. When about middle age, M'Morrough married the
+daughter of a neighbouring chief--a lady of much sweetness of manner and
+gentleness of nature. On the part of the former, however, this connection
+was one in which love had little share: its chief purpose would have been
+attained by the birth of a male heir to the name and property of the feudal
+chieftain; and this was an event to which he looked anxiously forward.
+
+When the accouchement of his lady arrived, M'Morrough retired to an upper
+apartment of the castle to await the result--having desired a trusty
+domestic to bring him instant intelligence when the child was born, whether
+it was a male or a female. The interval he employed in walking up and down
+the chamber in a fever of impatience. At length the door of the apartment
+opened, and Innes M'Phail entered. The chieftain turned quickly and
+fiercely round, glanced at the countenance of his messenger, and there read
+the disappointment of his hopes without a word being uttered.
+
+"It is even so, then," roared out the infuriated chieftain. "It is a girl,
+Innes; a girl. My curses on her!"
+
+"Say _girls_, M'Morrough," said Innes, despondingly. "There are twins."
+
+"And both girls--both!" exclaimed the former, stamping the floor in the
+violence of his passion. "To the battlements with them, Innes!--to the
+battlements with them instantly, and toss them over into the deep sea! Let
+the waves of Loch Sonoran rock them to sleep, and the winds that rush
+against Inch Caillach sing their lullaby. Let it be done--done instantly,
+Innes, as you value your own life; and I will witness the fidelity with
+which you serve me from this window. I will, with my own eyes, see the deed
+done. Go--go--quick--quick!"
+
+Innes, who had been previously aware that such would be the fate of a
+female child, if such should unfortunately be born to his ruthless chief,
+and who had promised to be the instrument of that fate, now left the
+apartment to execute the atrocious deed. In less than ten minutes after,
+Innes M'Phail appeared on the battlements, carrying a large wicker basket.
+From this depository he took out a child, swaddled in its first apparel,
+and raising it aloft, tossed it over to perish in the raging sea below. The
+little arms of the infant extended as it fell; but the sight was momentary.
+It glanced white through the air like an ocean bird, and, in an instant
+after, disappeared in the dark waters of Loch Sonoran. The murderer
+followed with his eye the descent of his little victim, till the sea closed
+over it, when, returning to the basket, he took from it another child, and
+disposed of it as he had done the first.
+
+During the whole of this dreadful exhibition, M'Morrough was standing at a
+window several yards lower down than the battlements, but so situated in an
+angle of the building that he could distinctly see what passed on the
+former. Satisfied that his atrocious decree had been fully executed, he
+withdrew from the window; and, avoiding an interview with his wife,
+whom--stern and ruthless as he was--he dreaded to meet with the murder of
+her infants on his head, he left the castle on a hunting expedition, from
+which he did not return for three days. On his return, M'Morrough would
+have waited on his lady, whom he hoped now to find in some measure
+reconciled to her bereavement, but was told that she would see no one; that
+she had caused a small apartment at the top of the castle to be hung with
+black; and that, immuring herself in this dismal chamber, she spent both
+her nights and days in weeping and lamentation. On learning this,
+M'Morrough did not press his visit, but left it to time to heal, or, at
+least, to soothe the grief of his unhappy wife. In the expectation which he
+had formed from the silent but powerful operation of this infallible
+anodyne, M'Morrough was not mistaken. In about a month after the murder of
+her babes, the lady of M'Morrough, deeply veiled, and betraying every
+symptom of a profound but subdued grief, presented herself at the morning
+meal which was spread for her husband. It was the first time they had met
+since the occurrence of the tragical event recorded above. To that event,
+however, neither made even the slightest allusion; and, whether it was that
+time had weakened the impression of her late misfortune, or that she
+dreaded rousing the enmity of her husband towards herself by a longer
+estrangement, the lady of M'Morrough showed no violent disinclination to
+accept of the courtesies which, well-pleased with her having made her
+appearance of her own accord, he seemed anxious to press upon her. A
+footing of companionship having thus been restored between the chieftain
+and his lady, matters, from this day, went on at Castle Tulim much as they
+had done before, only that the latter long continued to wear a countenance
+expressive of a deeply wounded, but resigned spirit. Even this, however,
+gradually gave way beneath the influence of time; and, when seventeen years
+had passed away, as they now did, unmarked by the occurrence, at Castle
+Tulim, of any event of the smallest importance, the lady of M'Morrough had
+long been in the possession of her wonted cheerfulness.
+
+It was about the end of this period, that the haughty chieftain, now
+somewhat subdued by age, and no longer under the evil influence of those
+ungovernable passions that had run riot with him in his more vigorous
+years, was invited, along with his lady, to a great entertainment which was
+about to be given by his father-in-law. M'Morrough and his lady proceeded
+to the castle of their relative. The banquet hall was lighted up; it was
+hung with banners, crowded with gay assemblage, and filled with music.
+There were many fair faces in that assemblage; but the fairest of all, were
+those of two sisters, who sat apart by themselves. The beauty of
+countenance and elegance of form of these two girls, who seemed to be both
+about the same age--seventeen--were surpassing. M'Morrough marked them; he
+watched them during the dance; he could not keep his eyes off them. At
+length, turning to his lady, he asked who they were.
+
+"They are _your_ daughters, M'Morrough," replied the former.
+
+A deadly paleness overspread the countenance of the chief. He shook in
+every limb, and would have sunk on the floor had he not been supported. On
+recovering a little, he covered his face with his hands, burst into a flood
+of tears, and rushed out of the apartment. On gaining a retired and
+unoccupied chamber, M'Morrough sent for his daughters. When they came, they
+found him on his knees, fervently thanking God for this signal instance of
+his mercy and beneficence. He took his daughters in his arms, blessed them
+a thousand times over, buried his head between them, and wept like a child.
+
+
+
+
+THE SURGEON'S TALES.
+
+
+THE BEREAVED.
+
+By looking over the memorial of my professional life; and writing out the
+extended details of my experience, I am, in effect, living my life over
+again. Most of the scenes I witnessed left such an impression upon my mind,
+that it requires only the touch of the _caduceus_ of the witching power of
+memory, to call them all up again with a vividness scarcely less than that
+by which they were formerly presented to me. There is only this difference,
+that my remembered experiences, now invested with a species of borrowed
+light, seem like scenery which one has seen in the glance of a mid-day sun,
+presented again to the dreamy "evening sense" under the soft blue
+effulgence of the waning harvest-moon; the trees with the sere leaf
+rustling under the fluttering wing of the night bird; and the dead silence,
+which is not broken by the internal voice speaking the words that have been
+spoken by those who lie under the yew tree. In an early leaf of my journal,
+I find some broken details of a visit I paid to Mr B----, a rich
+manufacturer in the town where I began my practice; but which I left when I
+had more confidence in those humble powers of ministering to the afflicted,
+which have raised me to an honourable station, and supplied me with the
+means of passing my old age in affluence. This individual had lost his
+wife--a very amiable woman, with whom he had lived a period of twenty-five
+years--and took on grief so heavily, that he was unfit to attend the
+funeral. He lay in bed, and would not be comforted. Having attended his
+wife, I continued my attentions to the husband. Three days had passed since
+his wife had been buried, and during all that time, he had eaten nothing;
+and, what augured gloomily for his fate, he had never been heard to speak,
+or sigh, or even to give vent to his sufferings in a single groan. There
+seemed to have fallen over him a heavy load, which, pressing with deadly
+force upon the issues of life, defied those reacting energies of nature,
+which usually struggle, by sighs and groans, to throw off the incubus of
+extraordinary griefs.
+
+I have met with many wiseacre-sceptics who laugh at the idea of what is
+vulgarly called a "broken heart," as a direct consequence either of
+unrequited love or extraordinary grief--admitting, however, in their
+liberality, that death may ensue from great griefs operating merely as an
+inductive original cause, which destroying gradually the foundations of
+health, bring on a train of other ailments, that may, in the end, prove
+mortal. The admission cares for nothing, as a matter of every-day
+experience; and the original proposition to which it is objected as a
+qualification, remains as a truth which may humble the pride of man, and
+speak to the sceptic through the crushed heart of a fatal experience. I
+have seen many instances of the fatal effects of grief as a direct mortal
+agent, killing, by its own unaided energies, as certainly, though not in so
+short a time, as a blow or a wound in the vital organs of the human body.
+The common nosologies contain no name for the disease, because, in truth,
+it cannot properly be called a disease, any more than a stab with a sword
+can deserve that name; and this, combined with the fact that it is only in
+a very few instances that the _coup_ works by itself, without the aid of
+some ailment generated by it, that young practitioners often homologate the
+vulgar notions that prevail upon this important subject.
+
+Among all the many causes of grief to which mankind are daily exposed, I
+know not that there is one that strikes so deeply into the secret recesses
+of the vital principle as the loss of a dearly-beloved wife, who has lived
+with a man for a lengthened period, through early adversity and late
+prosperity--borne him a family which have bound closer the tie that was
+knitted by early affection, and who has left him to tread the last weary
+stages of existence alone, and without that support which almost all men
+derive from woman. The effects are often supposed to be proportioned to the
+affection; yet I doubt if this solves the curious problem of the diversity
+of consequences resulting from this great privation. There are many men of
+strong powers of mind, who are so constituted that they _cannot_ but press
+heavily on the support of another. They seem almost to live through the
+thoughts and feelings of their helpmates; and the energies they take credit
+for in the busy affairs of the world, have their source--unknown often to
+themselves--in the bosom of wedded affection. It is in proportion to the
+strength of the habit of this _leaning_, combined, doubtless, with the
+coexistent affection, that the effects of the loss of a helpmate, in the
+later period of life, work with such varied influence on the survivor. It
+may also seem a curious fact, and I have no doubt of the truth of it, that
+a man when advanced in years is much more apt to break suddenly down under
+this visitation than a woman; while, again, the consequence would seem to
+be reversed if the calamity has overtaken them in the more early stages of
+the connection. These are grounds for speculation. At present I have only
+to do with facts.
+
+The individual whose case has suggested these observations, presented, when
+I saw him first after the funeral of his wife, the symptom--present in all
+cases of an utterly crushed spirit--of a wish to die. I was the first to
+whom he had uttered a syllable since the day on which she had been carried
+out of the house which she had so long filled with the spirit of
+cheerfulness and comfort. His only daughter, Martha, a fine young woman,
+had contributed but little to his relief--if she had not, indeed, increased
+his depression by her own emotions, which she had no power to conceal; and
+his only son had gone off to Edinburgh, to attend his classes in the
+college, where he intended to graduate as a physician. He was thus, in a
+manner, left in a great degree alone; for his daughter sought her apartment
+at every opportunity, to weep over her sorrows unobserved; and she had
+naturally thought that her father's grief, attended by no exacerbations of
+groaning or weeping like her own, presented less appearance of intensity
+than that which convulsed her own heart, and got relief by nature's
+appointed modes of alleviation. When the heart is stricken with a certain
+force, all forms of presenting less gloomy views of the condition of the
+individual, will generally be found to be totally unavailing in affording
+relief. Nay, I am satisfied that there was genuine philosophy in the custom
+of the Greeks and the ancient Germans, in _forcing_ victims of great
+sorrows to _weep_ out the rankling barbed shaft. These had a species of
+licensed mourners, whose duty it was to soften the heart by melting strains
+of mournful melody, whereby, as by the application of a bland liniment, the
+rigid issues of the feelings were softened and opened, and the oppressed
+organ, the heart, was relieved of the load which defies the force of
+argument, and even the condolence of friendship. The curing of cold-nips by
+the appliance of snow, and of burns by the application of heat, could not
+have appeared more fraught with ridicule to the old women of former days,
+than would the custom I have here cited to the comforters of modern times.
+If I cannot say that, amongst some bold remedies, I have recommended it, I
+have, at least, avoided, on all occasions, officious endeavours to
+counteract the oppressing burden, by wrenching the mind from the engrossing
+thought--a process generally attended with no other result than making it
+adhere with increased force.
+
+The greatest triumph that can be effected with the truly heart-stricken
+victim, to whom is denied the usual bursts that indicate a bearable
+misfortune, or, at least, one whose intensity is partly abated, is the
+bringing about of that more natural condition of the heart, which, indeed,
+is generally most feared by the ordinary paraclete. In the case of the
+bereaved husband, there is no charm so powerful in its effects as the vivid
+portrayment of the virtues of her who has gone down to the grave; and it
+may well be said, that the heart that will not give out its feelings to the
+impassioned description of the amiable properties of the departed helpmate,
+is all but incurable. The sister of Mr B----, who saw the necessity of
+administering relief, tried to awaken him to a sense of religious
+consolation; but he was as yet unfit even for that sacred ministration; and
+all her efforts having failed to rouse him, even from the deathlike stupor
+in which he lay, she had recourse, by my advice, to probing the wound, to
+take off the stricture by which the natural humours were pent up. She
+discoursed pathetically on the qualities of the departed, which, she said,
+would be the passport of her spirit to a sphere where he would again
+contemplate them unclouded by the dingy vapours of earthly feelings. She
+kept in the same strain for a lengthened period; but declared to me, when I
+visited him again, that he exhibited no signs of being moved by her
+discourse. He, once or twice, turned his eyes on her for a moment, drew
+occasionally a heavy sigh, that told, by the difficulty of the operation,
+the load with which he was oppressed; but his eyes were dry, no groan
+escaped from him, or any other sign of the heart being aided in an effort
+to restore the current of natural feeling. The _coup de peine_ had too
+clearly taken the very core of the heart; the lamp of hope had been dashed
+out violently, and, under the cloud of his great evil, all things that
+remained to him upon earth were tinged with its dark hues. He presented all
+the appearances--except the dilation of the pupil of the eye--of one whose
+brain had been concussed by a deep fall, or laboured under a fracture of
+the bones of the _cranium_. The few words he spoke to me came slowly, with
+a heavy oppressive sound, as if spoken through a hollow tube; and what may,
+to some, be remarkable, though certainly not to me, they embraced not the
+slightest allusion to his bereavement--a symptom almost invariably
+attendant upon those deeper strokes of grief, which, being but seldom
+witnessed, are much less understood in their effects than the more ordinary
+oppressions, whose intense demonstrations and allusions to the cause of the
+evil, mark the victims as objects for the portrayments of poets.
+
+Two or three days passed off in this way, without the slightest
+amelioration of his condition. The efforts of Miss B---- had been repeated
+often without effect. As she expressed herself to me, he would neither eat
+nor speak, sleep nor weep. "He has not," she added, "even muttered her
+name. His heart seems utterly broken; and time and the power of Heaven
+alone will effect a change." Such is the common philosophy of sorrow: time
+is held forth as all-powerful, all-saving; and while I admit its force, I
+only insist for the certainty of the existence of exceptions. The eighth
+day had passed without any support having been taken to sustain the system.
+A course of maceration, that had been going on during his wife's illness,
+was thus continued; yet, in the few words I occasionally drew from him,
+there was no indication of anything like the sullen determination of the
+suicide; the cause lay in the total cessation of the powers of the
+stomach--a consequence of the cerebral pressure, whose action is felt not
+where it operates primarily, but in the heart and other organs, where it
+works merely by sympathy.
+
+It was on the evening of the eighth day after the funeral, as I have it
+noted, that I called to see if any change for the better had been effected
+by the ministrations of his sister. She sat by his bedside, with the Bible
+placed before her, from which she had been reading passages to him. His
+face was turned to the front of the bed, but he did not seem to be in any
+way moved by my entrance. All the efforts his sister had made to get him to
+enter into the spirit of the passages she had been reading had been
+fruitless; nor had he as yet made the slightest allusion to the cause of
+his illness, or mentioned the name of his deceased partner. A few words of
+no importance, and not related to the circumstances of his grief, were
+wrung from him painfully by my questions; but it seemed as if the language
+that represents the things of the world had lost all power of charming the
+ear; the deadness that had overtaken the heart like a palsy, was felt from
+the fountain of feelings, to the minute endings of the nerves; and the
+external senses, which are the ministers of the soul, had renounced their
+ordinary ministrations to the spirit that heeded them not. Only once his
+sister had observed a slight moisture rise for a moment in his eye, as she
+touched some tender traits of the character of the departed; but it passed
+away rather as an evidence of the utter powerlessness of nature, in a faint
+heave of the reactive energy, telling at once how little she could perform,
+yet how much was necessary to overcome the weight by which she was
+oppressed. I sat for some moments silent by the side of the bed, and
+meditated a recourse to some more strenuous effort directed to his sense of
+duty as a parent; though I was aware, that until the heart is in some
+degree relieved, all such appeals are too often vain, if not rather
+attended with unfavourable effects, but, in extreme cases, we are not
+entitled to rest upon the generality of theories where so various and
+mutable an essence as the human mind is the object to which they are to be
+applied. I was on the point of making a trial, by recurring to the position
+of his son and daughter, when I heard the sound of a horse's feet
+approaching, with great rapidity, the door. The sister started; and I could
+hear Martha open the window above, to ascertain who might be the visiter.
+In another moment the outer door opened with a loud clang. Some one
+approached along the passage, in breathless haste. He entered. It was
+George B----, under the excitement of some strong internal emotion; his
+eyes gleaming with a fearful light, and his limbs shaking violently. He
+stood for a moment as if he were gathering his energies to speak; but the
+words stuck in his throat, the sounds died away amidst the noise of an
+indistinct jabbering. I noticed the eye of his father fixed upon him,
+betraying only a very slight increase of animation; but even this
+extraordinary demeanour of his son did not draw from him a question; so
+utterly dead to all external impulses had his grief made him, that the
+harrowing cause of so much excitement in his son, remained unquestioned by
+the feelings of the parent. In another moment the youth was stretched
+across the bed, locking the father in his embrace, and sobbing out
+inarticulate words, none of which I could understand. The aunt was as much
+at a loss to solve the mystery of the violent paroxysm as myself; for some
+time neither of us could put a question; the sobbings of the youth seemed
+to chain up our tongues by the charm of the eloquence of nature's
+impassioned language. Meanwhile, Martha entered, ran forward to the
+bedside, lifted her brother from the position which he occupied, and seated
+him, by the application of some force, on the empty chair that stood by the
+side of the bed.
+
+"What is the matter, George?" she cried; the question was repeated by the
+aunt, and the eyes of the parent sought languidly the face of the youth,
+which was, however, now covered by his hands. The question was more than
+once repeated by both the aunt and myself; the father never spoke, nor
+could I perceive a single ray of curiosity in his eye. He seemed to await
+the issue of the son's explanation, heedless what it might be--whether the
+announcement of a great or a lesser evil--its magnitude, though
+transcending the bounds of ordinary bearing, comprehending every other
+misfortune that fate could have in store for him, being, whatever its
+proportions, as nothing to the death-stricken heart of one whose hope was
+buried.
+
+"This is scarcely a time or an occasion, George," said I, "for the
+manifestation of these emotions. If the cause lies in the grief, come back
+with increased force, for the death of your mother, you should have known
+that there is one lying there whose load is still greater, and who is,
+unfortunately, as yet, beyond the relief which, as your agitation
+indicates, nature in the young heart is working for you."
+
+"The death!--the death!" he muttered in a choking voice; "but there is
+something after the death that is worse than the death itself."
+
+"Are you distracted, George?" said the aunt. "This Bible was the hand-book
+and the rule of your mother's conduct in this world. A better woman never
+offered up her prayers at the fountain of the waters of immortal life; no
+one that ever lived had a better right to draw from the blessing, or better
+qualified for enjoying it as she now enjoys it. She is in heaven; and will
+you say that that is worse than death?"
+
+"You speak of her spirit, aunt," replied he, as he still covered his face
+with his hands. "Her spirit is there!"--and he took away one of his hands
+from his face and pointed to heaven--"There, where the saints rest, does my
+mother's soul rest; but, O God, where--where is the body?"
+
+A thought struck me on the instant. I was afraid to utter it. I looked at
+the father, and suspected, from the sudden light of animation that started
+to his eye, that the gloom of his mind had at last been penetrated by the
+thought which had suggested itself to me.
+
+"Where is the body!" responded the aunt. "Why, George, where should it be
+but in C---- churchyard, beneath the stone that has told the virtues of her
+ancestors, and will, in a short time, declare her own, greater than those
+of her kindred that have gone before?"
+
+"It is on Dr M----'s table!" cried the youth, starting to his feet, and
+again throwing himself violently on the chair. "I purchased it; paid the
+price for it; and recognised it only when the dissecting-knife was in my
+hand!" Every one started aghast; terror froze up the issues of speech; a
+deep groan issued from the bed-ridden patient; he beckoned me to his ear.
+"Tell the women to go out," he whispered, as he twisted his body
+convulsively among the bedclothes.
+
+I complied with his request; and the aunt, seizing Martha, who stood as if
+she had been transfixed to the floor, dragged her out of the room. In the
+passage, I heard a loud scream; and, in a moment, all was again silence. Mr
+B----, without uttering a word, raised his feeble body from the bed, and
+came forth, the spectre of what he was only a few weeks before. His limbs,
+which were reduced to bony shanks, covered with shrivelled skin, seemed
+totally unable to support even the decayed, emaciated frame. He staggered
+as he reached the floor; but, recovering himself, stood firm, and then
+proceeded to his wardrobe, from which he drew his vestments, and proceeded
+to attire himself.
+
+"An hour since," he said, in a slow, solemn voice, "I thought these clothes
+would never again be on my body. My only hope was the winding-sheet, and
+that grave which has been robbed."
+
+"George may have been deceived," said I, as he was proceeding to dress
+himself. "I have often thought that I saw resemblances to deceased friends
+in the features of subjects in the dissecting-room."
+
+"The grave will test it," answered he, with a deep groan, as he proceeded
+slowly, but resolutely, to put one garment after another on his skeleton
+body.
+
+He was at length dressed; and, proceeding to the kitchen, he appeared
+again, in a short time, with a lighted lantern in his hand, the light of
+which, as it threw its beam on his sallow face--for the candle had,
+meanwhile, burned down into the socket--exhibited, in its lurid glare, the
+deep-sunken eyes and protruding bones of his emaciated countenance.
+
+"Come, we shall proceed to the grave of my Isabella," said he.
+
+"You are unable," said I. "Your limbs will not carry you that length; and
+you are, besides, unfitted by the state of your mind and feelings, for an
+investigation of this kind. Stay here with your son, and I will go to the
+churchyard and satisfy myself of the deception under which George,
+doubtless, labours."
+
+"I feel now more than my former strength," he replied. "I am awakened from
+a death-stupor of the soul; and I feel that within me which will enable me
+to go through this trial. I will look into my Isabella's grave; will meet
+with those eyes again--that countenance through which I have read the
+workings of love in a spirit that is now far from the precincts of the
+clay. Deny me not; I will be satisfied of this, if I should come back from
+her grave to complete that which is begun, and is already visible in these
+shrunken members, that now obey a supernatural power."
+
+There seemed to be no gainsaying him; his manner was inspired and resolute;
+and I proceeded to accompany him to C---- churchyard. George, who, in the
+meantime, had been tossing himself in the chair, rose to make one of the
+party. The agitation under which he still laboured was in direct contrast
+to the cold stillness of his father; yet the one was a more living
+expression than the other; and, while my eye shrunk not from the ordinary
+indications of suffering, I--maugre all the experience of misery I had
+had--could scarcely look on the animated corpse thus preparing to visit the
+grave where the object of all his hopes and affections in this world had
+been buried, and might now be found to have been desecrated by the knife of
+the anatomist. We went forth together. George's horse still stood at the
+door, reeking and bloody. I requested Mr B---- to mount, as we had a full
+mile to go to the burying-ground, and I deemed it utterly impossible that
+he could accomplish the distance. He did not answer me, but proceeded
+onwards with a firm step, in the face of a cold, bleak, east wind, that
+moaned mournfully among a clump of trees that skirted the road. Some flakes
+of snow were winging through the air--driven now by the breeze, or
+lingering over our heads as if afraid to be soiled by the earth, which we
+were bent to open where the dead then lay--or some time before lay--a mass
+of putrefaction; yet dear to the feelings of the bereaved, and sought now
+with greater avidity than when the body was arrayed in the smiles of
+beauty, and filled with living, breathing love. The husband spoke nothing;
+and George was silent, save for the deep sobs that burst from him as he
+looked upon the woe-worn form of his father, who stalked away before us
+like a creature hurrying to the grave to seek the home there from which a
+troubled spirit had removed him in the dark hour of night. In this way we
+wandered on. I was not in a mood to speak. The occasion and the scene
+depressed me more than ever did the prospect of a deathbed, or the sight of
+a patient about to submit to a painful and dangerous operation. My habits
+of thought are little conversant with the poetry of nature, or of man's
+condition in this stage of suffering--the duties of an arduous profession
+are exclusive of those dreamy moods of the mind, which have little in
+common with the doings of every-day life; yet, on this occasion, I felt all
+the inspiration of the sad muse; and, were I to endeavour to account for
+it, I could only seek for the cause in the aspect of the night, and the
+unusual nature of the vocation, operating, at the moment, on a mind
+loosened from the cares of my profession.
+
+In a much less time than I could have anticipated, from the weak condition
+of Mr B----, we arrived at the churchyard--a solitary spot, surrounded with
+an old grey dyke, at the back of which rose in deep shade a wood of firs.
+The snow lay on the top of the walls, and on the higher branches of the
+firs, reminding one of streaks of white clouds in the sky, as the darkness
+of the night, enveloping the lower portions, kept them almost from our
+view. From a small house at the ridge of the fir-belt, a slight ray of
+light beamed forth, and, striking upon the top of a monument placed against
+the wall, exhibited the left all around in deeper gloom. Without uttering a
+word, Mr B---- made up to the house, and, knocking at the door, a young
+female appeared. She uttered a scream, and ran back, doubtless from the
+pale and death-like appearance presented by the face of the visiter. Her
+place was momentarily supplied by the sexton, who, the moment he saw Mr
+B----, shrunk back in what I conceived to be conscious fear. I was standing
+behind, and noticing, what I thought, the guilty expression of the man's
+face, concluded unfavourably for the sad hope of my friend.
+
+"I have reason to believe that there have been resurrectionists in your
+churchyard, James," said Mr B---- mournfully.
+
+"Impossible!" replied the sexton; "we have been guarding the ground for
+some time past. It is a dream, Mr B----; many relations are troubled by the
+same fears. It was only yesterday that I opened a grave to satisfy the
+wishes of Mrs G----, whose husband was buried a week ago. The body was as
+safe as if it had been in her own keeping. Take my advice; be satisfied
+there is no cause of apprehension; you forget the sacred nature of my
+trust."
+
+"I can only be satisfied by an examination of the grave," replied Mr B----.
+"I insist upon having this satisfaction. The cemetery is my property, and I
+have a right to examine it."
+
+The man hesitated, and said that his assistant was from home. But the
+bereaved husband was not to be thus diverted from his purpose. He stood
+resolutely with the lantern in his hand, and demanded admittance into the
+churchyard. The man at length reluctantly took down the key from a nail in
+the passage, and bringing another lantern with him, led us to the door,
+which, in the midst of many grumblings, he opened. He then led the way over
+the snowy hillocks to nearly the middle of the burying-ground, where the
+grave of Mrs B----, headed by an ornamented stone, was exhibited to us. Mr
+B---- bent down, and, moving the lantern backwards and forwards, examined
+it slowly and carefully, casting his eye over the snow, which presented an
+unbroken appearance, and examining every chink, as if he there found an
+evidence of the truth of George's statement.
+
+"That grave has not been touched," said the man. "The head of it is the
+part to judge by. You will find the turf lies whole and unbroken under the
+wreath."
+
+"It may be as you say," replied Mr B----, as he bent down in his
+examination; "but the late snow may have removed the traces of the opening.
+I cannot return home till I am satisfied. My own bones must mix with those
+of my Isabella. Proceed to open the grave; I myself will assist you."
+
+At that moment a figure was seen gliding alone amidst the tombstones. It
+had all the legitimate whiteness like the ideal spirit. I stood and gazed
+at it, and George's eyes were also fixed upon it; Mr B---- paid no
+attention; he was too intent upon the investigation he was engaged in; and
+the grave-digger, whose head was down, did not notice it. I said nothing;
+but George, pointing to it as it approached, cried--
+
+"See, see! what is that?"
+
+The sexton looked up, and cried--"It is David. He has been out, and is
+covered with snow. He comes in good time."
+
+It was even so. The man approached, and the implements having been
+procured, they set about opening the grave. Mr. B---- stood motionless, his
+head hanging down, and deep sighs occasionally coming from his breast,
+mixed with the quick breathing of the men, as they plied their shovels. He
+still held the lantern in his hand, by the light of which the group before
+me is brought out in faint relief. The silence around was signally that of
+a churchyard; for the fir belt shrouded the scene from the night breeze,
+and there was only occasionally heard a low, mournful gust, as it died
+among the branches of the trees. On that spot only there was quick
+breathing action. The men had got down pretty far into the grave; and, as
+they brought their heads within the ray of the lantern, in their acts of
+throwing up the earth, their flushed faces contrasted strongly with the
+cadaverous countenance of the husband, who leant over them, watching every
+motion, and intent upon the expected stroke of the shovel upon the coffin
+lid. The recollection of the attributes of the German ghoul came over me;
+nor did the difference between the beings, the motives, and the actions,
+prevent me from conjuring up the similitude, so unlike a human being did he
+appear in his complexion, his fixed, dead-like stare into the grave, and
+the perfect stillness of his body, as he crouched down to be nearer to the
+object of his search. At length, the sound was heard, the rattle on the
+coffin lid. The victim's ear seemed chained to the sound, as if he could
+have augured from it whether or not the chest was empty. In a short time,
+
+    "The heavy moil that shrouds the dead"
+
+was entirely removed. The sexton now took his own lamp down into the grave.
+The screw-nails were undone, the lid was raised, and the body of Mrs B----,
+arrayed in her winding-sheet and scalloped sere-clothes, was seen, by the
+sickly, yellow gleam of the lantern, lying in the stillness and placidity
+of death--
+
+    "For still, still she lay,
+    With a wreath on her bosom."
+
+One of the men now came out, and Mr B---- descended into the grave. He
+lifted off the face-cloth, gazed on the clay-cold face, touched it, and now
+was opened the
+
+    "Sacred source of sympathetic tears."
+
+He burst into a loud paroxysm; and, as if nature had been to take her
+revenge for her sufferings, under the freezing influence of his sorrow, he
+wept as if there had been to be no end of his weeping. It was latterly
+found necessary to force him out of the grave; though, as I was informed by
+George, he had shrunk from the view of the dead body of his wife, while it
+lay in the house, and before it was interred. The lid was again placed on
+the coffin, the screws fixed, and the grave filled up. Mr B---- slipped a
+guinea into the hand of the sexton, and we took our way back to the town.
+George informed us, as we went, that he had been for several nights haunted
+by the image of his mother; and could only thus account for the conviction
+that had seized him, that the body of the female he had seen in the
+dissecting-room was that of his parent. It is a remarkable fact, and the
+one which chiefly induced me to give this narrative, that the scene I have
+now described wrought so powerfully on the feelings of Mr B----, that the
+form of his grief was entirely changed. During the whole of the subsequent
+night, he wept intensely--nature was relieved--his sorrow was mollified
+into one of those
+
+    "Moods that speak their softened woes;"
+
+and time soon wrought its accustomed amelioration. I never saw one who
+seemed more certainly doomed to the fate of the heart-stricken; and,
+however fanciful it may seem, I attribute to the mistake of his son the
+restoration of the father.
+
+
+THE CONDEMNED.
+
+I believe it was Fontenelle who said that, if he were to have been
+permitted to pass his life over again, he would have done everything he did
+in the world, and, of course, consented to suffer what he had suffered, in
+consideration of what he had enjoyed. I have heard the same statement from
+others. A very learned and ingenious professor in the north, whose
+lucubrations have often cast the effulgence of his rare genius over the
+pages of the Border Tales, has no hesitation in declaring that he would
+gladly consent to receive another tack of existence in this strange world,
+with all its pains and penalties, were it for nothing but to be allowed to
+witness the curious scenes, the startling occurrences, the humorous
+bizarrerie of cross-purposes, the conceits, the foibles, the triumphs of
+the creature man. Moore the poet has somewhere said, that he would not
+consent to live his life over again, except upon the condition that he were
+to be gifted with less love and more judgment--probably forgetting that in
+that case he would not have been the author of "Lallah Rookh;" though,
+mayhap, of a still drier life of Sheridan than that which came from his
+pen. I have often put the question to patients, and have found the answer
+to be regulated by the state of their disease. Upon the whole, it requires
+a very sharp, bitter pang, indeed, to extort the confession, that they
+would not accept another lease of life. If men were not Christians, they
+would choose, I think, to be Pythagoreans, were it for nothing but the
+slight chance they would enjoy of passing into some state of existence not
+in a remote degree different from that which they have declared themselves
+sick of a thousand times before they died. Sick of it as many, however, say
+they are, they would all live "a little and a little longer still," when
+the dread hour comes that calls them home. These remarks have been
+suggested by the following passage in my note-book:--"17th August, ----,
+case of Eugene D----, in the jail of ----. Extraordinary example of the
+_amor vitæ_." I find I had jotted a number of the details; but such was the
+impression the scene of that tragedy of life produced in me, that even now,
+though many years have passed, I recollect the minutiæ of the drama as
+distinctly as if I had witnessed it yesterday. I was indeed interested in
+the case more than professionally; for the subject of it was an early
+companion of my own, and was, besides, calculated, from his acquirements,
+and a free, open generosity of spirit, to produce a deep interest in the
+fate which, in an unhappy hour, he brought upon himself. It was on the
+forenoon of the day I have mentioned, that the under turnkey of the prison
+of ---- came in breathless haste, and called me to a prisoner. It was
+Eugene D----. I was at the moment occupied in thinking of the youth. He had
+forged a bill upon his father, Mr. D----, a wealthy merchant; and it was
+very clearly brought out, in evidence that he applied the money to
+extricate a friend from pecuniary embarrassments. The father had paid the
+bill; but the legal authorities had prosecuted the case; and he, at that
+moment, lay in jail a criminal, condemned to die. The gallows was standing
+ready to exact its victim within two hours; the post from London would
+arrive in an hour with or without a reprieve. His father and mother, what
+were they then doing, thinking, suffering? On them and him I was meditating
+when the words of the turnkey fell upon my ear.
+
+"What has occurred?" was my question to the messenger.
+
+"Eugene D----, the condemned criminal, has taken some poisonous drug," said
+he, "and the provost has sent me for you to come to his relief."
+
+I meditated a moment. It might have been as well, I thought, for all
+parties, that I had not been called, and that the drug, whatever it was,
+might be allowed to anticipate the law, but I had no alternative; I was
+called in my official capacity; and then a messenger might still arrive
+from London. I provided myself with the necessary counteracting agents, and
+followed the man. I passed the house of his father. The blinds were drawn,
+and all seemed wrapped in dead silence, as if there had been a corpse in
+the house. Several people were passing the door, and cast, as they went, a
+melancholy look at the windows. They had, in all likelihood, seen the
+gallows; at least, they knew the precise posture of affairs within the
+house. I was inclined to have entered; but I could see no benefit to be
+derived from my visit, and hurried forwards to the jail, from the window of
+which the black apparatus projected in ghastly array. The post-office in
+---- Street was in the neighbourhood, and an assembly of people was
+beginning to collect, to wait for the incoming of the mail. There was
+sympathy in every face; for the fate of the youth, who had been well
+esteemed over the town, for a handsome, generous-minded young man, and the
+situation of his parents--wealthy and respectable citizens--had called
+forth an extraordinary feeling in his favour. Indeed, thousands had signed
+the petition to the King, but forgery was, at that time, a crime of
+frequent occurrence, and the doubts that were entertained as to the success
+of the application were apparently justified by the arrival of the eleventh
+hour. On passing through the jail, I saw the various preparations in
+progress for the execution; the chaplain was in attendance; and, in a small
+cell, at the end of the apartment from which the fatal erection projected,
+there sat, guarded by an officer, from a fear that he would escape, the
+executioner himself--
+
+    "Grim as the mighty Polypheme."
+
+My guide led me forward, and, in a few minutes, I stood beside Eugene, who,
+dressed in a suit of black, lay twisting his body in a chair, making the
+chains by which he was bound clank in a fearful manner. A small phial was
+on the floor. I took it up, and ascertained, in an instant, that he had
+betaken himself to the drug most commonly resorted to by suicides.
+
+"Laudanum!" I exclaimed.
+
+"Yes, yes--as much as would kill two men!" he cried wildly.
+
+The poison had not had time to operate; or rather, its narcotic power had
+been suspended by the terrors of an awakened love and hope of life, that
+had followed close upon the prospect of death caused by his own act.
+
+"You had a chance for life, Eugene," said I, hurriedly. "A courier may yet
+arrive, independently of the mail, which has not yet come."
+
+"Chance or no chance," he cried, as I proceeded with my assistant, who now
+entered, to apply the remedies; "I would yet live the two hours! I had no
+sooner swallowed the drug, than I thought I had intercepted the mercy of
+heaven; life seemed--and, oh, it even now seems--sweeter than ever, and
+death still more dreadful! Quick--quick--quick! The poison is busy with my
+heart. I would give a world for even these two hours of life and
+hope--small, small as that is!"
+
+I proceeded with the application of the usual remedies. A portion, but only
+a portion of the laudanum, had been taken off; and the next efficient
+remedy was motion, to keep off the sleepy lethargy that drinks up the
+fountain of life. Two men were got to drag him as violently as possible
+along the floor, leaving him enough of his own weight to force him to use
+his limbs. I noticed that he struggled with terrible energy against the
+onset of the subtle agent; exhibiting the most signal instance I ever
+beheld of the power of that hope which seems to be consistent with life
+itself. Already an eighth part of the apparent period of his sojourn upon
+earth had passed. Seven quarters more would, in all likelihood, bring him
+to the scaffold, and, by resisting my energies to counteract the effects of
+the poison, he might have eluded the grim arm of the law, by a death a
+thousand times less dreadful. Every now and then, as the men dragged him
+along, he turned his eyes to me, and asked the hour. Sometimes he repeated
+the question within two minutes of my answer. As often was his ear directed
+to the street, to try to catch the sounds of a coach, or the feet of a
+horse; and then he redoubled his energies to keep off the onset of the
+lethargy, which I told him was most to be feared. The operation was
+persevered in; but the men informed me they thought he was gradually
+getting heavier on their hands, and I noticed his eye, at times, get so
+dull that he seemed to be on the eve of falling asleep and sinking. Another
+quarter of an hour soon passed; and in a little further time, the bailies
+and chaplain would find it their duty to come and prepare him for his
+fate--alas! now indeed so certain, that no reasonable thought could suggest
+even the shadow of a hope; a reprieve, so near the time of execution, would
+not have been trusted to the mail, and a messenger would have arrived, by
+quick stages, long before; unless there had, indeed, been any fault in the
+government authorities, in tampering with a man's life within an hour of
+his execution. If I had not been under the strict law of professional
+discipline, I would certainly have allowed him to lie down and pass into
+death or oblivion. I had, however, my duty to perform; and, strange as it
+may appear, that duty quadrated with the wishes of the young man himself;
+who, as he struggled with the demon that threatened to overpower him,
+seemed to rise in hope as every minute diminished the chance of his
+salvation. By the increased energies of the men, he was again roused into a
+less dull perception of sounds, and I could perceive him start as the
+rattle of the wheels of a carriage was heard at the jail door. He fixed his
+half-dead, staring eye in my face, and muttered, with a difficult effort of
+his sinking jaws--
+
+"Is that it--is that it?--I hear a carriage wheels, and they have stopped
+at the door."
+
+As he uttered the words, it appeared as if he again exerted himself to keep
+the enemy, who still threatened him, at bay. I replied nothing; for I
+suspected that the carriage brought only some official, or, probably, some
+mourner, to see him, previous to the fatal scene--that scene which, in all
+likelihood, I was endeavouring to render more heart-rending to his friends
+and spectators, by keeping alive the vital spark, that might only serve to
+make him conscious of pain. It appeared to be too evident that he had
+increased tenfold the misery of his situation; for the stern law would
+admit of no excuse, and if he was not able to walk to the scaffold he would
+be carried; yet, if I remitted my endeavours to keep in life, I might, in
+the event of the looked-for reprieve still arriving, be liable to be
+accused, by my own conscience, of having been as cruel as the law itself.
+The door of the jail now opened, and a turnkey told me that the usual time
+had arrived when the officials began their preparatory duties. I replied
+that it was in vain to attempt, at present, the performance of these sacred
+rites; the prisoner was wrestling with death; and, if the exertions of the
+men, who kept still dragging him backwards and forwards, were remitted, he
+would sink, in a few minutes, into insensibility. I noticed the eye of poor
+Eugene turned imploringly upon me, as if he wished to know who it was that
+had arrived in the carriage. I merely shook my head; and the sign was no
+sooner made than his chin fell down on his breast; his limbs became weaker,
+his knees bent, and if the supporters had not exerted themselves still
+farther, he would have sunk. But the men still performed their duty, and
+dragged him hurriedly along, scarcely now with any aid from his feet,
+which, obeying no impulse of the loose and flaccid muscles, were thrown
+about in every direction, with, a shuffling, lumbering noise, and a
+clanking of the chain, that must have produced an extraordinary effect on
+those who waited in the adjoining cells. The noise thus produced was indeed
+all that was heard; for the effect of the poison was such as to take away
+all power of groaning. I was now doubtful if all the working of the men
+would be able to keep off much longer the sleepy incubus, for he seemed to
+have lost almost all power of seconding their efforts; but the door of the
+jail again opened, and the sound of the grating hinges made him again lift
+his head. His eye seemed to indicate that he had lost all sense of the
+passing of the moments, and I could not discover whether he looked for the
+entry of one bearing his letter of salvation, or of the jailor with his
+hammer, to knock the chain from his feet, and lead him forth to the
+scaffold. He again muttered some words as the turnkey was proceeding
+forward to where I was. I could not make them out, so faint had his voice
+now become; but one of the men said he wished to know the hour. I told him
+it was one o'clock--that was just one hour from the appointed termination
+of his life. The turnkey, meanwhile, whispered in my ear that his father,
+mother, and sister had arrived. It was the sound of their carriage wheels
+that we had heard. I enjoined upon the men the necessity of continuing
+their labours, and went out to prevent the entry of his parents to the
+witnessing of a scene transcending all their powers of bearing. I found the
+three standing in the recess where the executioner was sitting in gloomy
+silence. I took the father and mother by the arms, and hurried them away to
+the empty cell, where the chaplain and several officials were collected.
+The turnkey saw his error, and excused himself, on the ground that he was
+confused by the extraordinary state of affairs within the prison. I
+ascertained that no notice had been made to his parents of his having taken
+the drug. They had come to take farewell of him. The mail had arrived, but
+had brought no intelligence--not even of the petition having been disposed
+of; and, having given up all hope, their intention was that the mother and
+daughter should, after the last act of parting, fly to the country, to be
+as far as possible from the scene of the impending tragedy. I was the first
+who communicated the tidings of the condition of their son; and the noise
+in the prisoner's cell, as the men still continued their operations, was a
+sad commentary on my words. The sister, who was veiled, uttered a shrill
+scream, and fell back on the floor. The father stood like
+
+    "Wo's bleak, voiceless petrifaction,"
+
+moving neither limb nor countenance; his eye was fixed steadfastly on the
+ground, and a deadly paleness was over his face. The mother, who was also
+veiled, staggered to a bench--recovering herself suddenly, as some thought,
+rising wildly, stung her to a broken utterance of some words. I approached
+her, while Mr H----, the chaplain, was assisting in getting Miss D---- to a
+chair.
+
+"Let him die!--let him die!" she exclaimed. "Is not his doom inevitable?
+You will torture my Eugene by keeping in his life till the law demands its
+victim, and he may be carried--carried! O God!--to a second death, ten
+times more cruel than that which he is now suffering."
+
+"No rejection of the petition has been intimated," I replied; "and there is
+hope to the last grain in life's ebbing glass. It is not yet two years
+since a reprieve came to a prisoner, in this very jail, within three hours
+of the appointed term of his life. You have spoken from the impulse of an
+agony which has overcome the truer feelings of a mother and the better
+dictates of prudence."
+
+"Small, small, indeed, is that hope which a mother may not see through the
+gloom of a despair such as mine," she replied. "But what means that
+dreadful noise in Eugene's cell?"
+
+"Only the efforts of the men to keep him awake," replied I. "My duty
+requires my efforts in behalf of a fellow-creature to the last moment.
+Reflect for an instant, and the proper feeling will again vindicate its
+place in the heart of a parent."
+
+"Dreadful alternative!" she replied. "But, sir, hear me. I am his mother,
+and I tell you, from the divination of a mother's heart, that there will
+now be no respite. I say it again; it would be a relief to me if I heard,
+at this moment, that he had escaped by death that tragedy which will now be
+rendered a thousand times more painful to him and dreadful to me."
+
+The father moved his eyes, and fixed them on the face of the mother of his
+boy, who, in her agony, thus called for his death in a form which bore even
+a shade of relief from the horror of what awaited the victim. It was,
+indeed, an extraordinary request; and told, as no words spoken by mortal
+had ever told, the pregnancy of an anguish that could seek for alleviation
+(if I may use so inadequate a phrase) from so fearful an alternative. All
+were, for a time, now silent, and there was no sound to be heard but the
+deep sobs of the daughter, as she recovered from her swoon; the struggle in
+the throat of the mother; and the shuffling and tramping in the cell of the
+prisoner.
+
+"There is still hope," I whispered in the ear of the mother.
+
+"None--none!" she ejaculated again. "My Eugene! my Eugene!"
+
+She reclined back, with her hands over her face, still sobbing out the name
+of her son. I pointed to the father to assist her, while I should go again
+to ascertain the state of the son; but he did not seem to understand
+me--retaining still his rigid position, and looking with the calmness of
+despair on the scene around him. Her silence continued but a few moments;
+and when she opened her eyes again, it was to fix them on me.
+
+"What are you doing?" she exclaimed again. "What, in the name of heaven,
+are you doing to my Eugene?--Saving him for second, and still more cruel
+death. It might have been all over. Let me see him--let me see him!"
+
+And she rose to proceed to the cell where her son was confined; but her
+strength failed her, and she again reclined helplessly back in her seat.
+The clergyman's ministrations were called for by these uttered sentiments,
+which seemed so little in accordance with the precepts of Holy Writ,
+however natural to the bursting heart of the mother, to whom the reported
+death of her son, in his unparalleled situation might almost have been
+termed a boon. Retreating from a scene so fraught with misery, I hastened
+back to Eugene, who was still in the arms of the men. One of them whispered
+to me that he had spoken when he heard the shrill cry of his sister; but,
+immediately after, he relapsed again into stupor. The men complained of
+being exhausted by their efforts to keep him moving. His weight was now
+almost that of a dead body; and it was only at intervals that he made any
+struggles to move himself by the aid of his paralysed limbs. Two other
+individuals were got to relieve them; and the compulsory motions were
+continued. The lethargy had not altogether mastered the sentient powers;
+and, the operation having been stopped that I might examine his condition,
+he lifted his head slowly, looked round him with a vacant stare, and, after
+a few moments, muttered again the word "hour." I pulled out my watch, and
+told him that it was twenty minutes past one, he understood me, as I
+thought; and pronouncing indistinctly "mother," he again sank into apparent
+listlessness. The men again resumed their work.
+
+Meanwhile, a buzz from without intimated too distinctly that the mob was
+collecting to witness the fate of their townsman. There was no distinct
+sound, save that which a mass of people, under the depressing feelings of
+sorrow, seem to send forth involuntarily--making the air, as it were,
+thick, and yet with no articulation or distinct noise which can be caught
+by the ear of one at a distance, or within the walls of a house. Eugene, I
+am satisfied, was unable to recognise the faint indication. It was well for
+him. I learned, from the turnkey, that the sound of the hammer in the
+erection of the gallows had put him almost distracted, and precipitated the
+execution of the purpose, which he had wished to delay till after the
+arrival of the mail. I had little doubt that he might now be kept from the
+grasp of the death-stupor for the remaining three quarters of an hour; but,
+alas! what would be my triumph? Every minute added to the certainty that I
+was only preparing for him and his relations greater pain; for, in any
+view, he could not walk to the fatal spot without as much aid as might have
+sufficed to carry him; and it was even more than probable that he would be
+so overcome that that latter operation would require to be resorted to,
+under the stern sanction of a law that behoved to be put in force within a
+given time, or not at all. The case I am now describing might suggest some
+consideration worthy of the attention of our legislators, who, arrogating
+to themselves a license as wide as the limits of the human mind, deny all
+manner of discretion to the superintendents of the last execution of the
+law. We profess to be abhorrent from scenes of torture, as well as, on
+grounds of policy, hostile to a species of punishment which, indeed,
+defeats its own ends; and yet I could give more than one case where the
+substance has been retained in all its atrocity, while the form was veiled
+by flimsy excuses of a false necessity. My situation was now a very painful
+one indeed. I was training and supporting the victim for the altar;
+rescuing from death only to sacrifice him with more bloody rites and a
+crueller spirit of immolation. The words of his mother, wrung from the
+agony of a parent's love, rang in my ears; the look of the father--that of
+imbecile despair--was imprinted on my mind; the hour was fast on the wing;
+all hope had perished; and before me was the unfortunate youth, handsome,
+elegant, and interesting, even in the writhings of the master-fiend,
+suffering a death which was to be, in effect, repeated in another and a
+crueller form. I had seen him under circumstances of friendship, and the
+ebullitions of his generous spirit; and I was become, as I pictured to
+myself, his enemy, who would not allow him to die, to escape from shame and
+an increased agony of dissolving nature. Will I admit it? For a moment or
+two I hesitated; and, indeed, had half-resolved to tell the men to
+stop--the time might yet have sufficed for finishing what he had begun. If
+he was not dead before two, he would, at least be beyond feeling; and, if
+the officials chose to take the last step of getting him carried to the
+gallows, they would in effect be immolating a corpse.
+
+My better and calmer thoughts of duty, however, prevailed; and, in the
+meantime, I saw the prudence of preventing any meeting between Eugene and
+his parents, which could tend to nothing but an increase of pain on the
+side of those who were still able to feel--for, as regarded the young man
+himself, he was beyond the impulse of the feelings that might otherwise
+have been called up, even by such a scene. I was not even ill pleased to
+hear from the under turnkey, that the magistrates had given orders for the
+departure of the friends; though, for my own satisfaction, I wished that
+the father, who had still some command of himself, might visit his son for
+a few minutes, and sanction my proceedings with his approbation. I was
+informed also by the turnkey, that the father was resisting to the utmost
+of his power the efforts of the mother to get into the cell. He probably
+saw too clearly that in the excited condition in which she still remained,
+the scene might prove disastrous, as affecting either life or reason; and,
+if I could judge from what I myself felt in spite of the blunting effects
+of a long acquaintanceship with misery in its various phases, there was
+good reason for his fears. The scene presented features
+
+    "Direr than incubus's haggard train."
+
+I had just looked my watch--it wanted now only twenty minutes of the last
+hour. The order for the friends to quit the jail was about to be obeyed.
+The father sent a messenger for me. I repaired to the cell; but to avoid
+the appeals of the mother and daughter, I beckoned him forth to the lobby.
+He asked me whether he should see his son now that he was all but
+insensible, and could not probably recognise him. He feared that he could
+not stand the scene, for that the calmness he assumed was false! I replied
+that it certainly required no ordinary firmness; and yet the pain might in
+some degree be even lessened by the state of stupor and insensibility in
+which the youth still continued. He fixed his eyes on my face with an
+expression of forced and unnatural calmness, that pained me more than the
+death-like inanity of the still beautiful countenance of his son, or the
+hysterical excitement of the mother. He at last seized my hand and
+proceeded along to the cell hurriedly, as the turnkey was crying loudly for
+the friends to depart. We entered and stood for a moment. He stood and
+gazed at his son, as the latter was still kept moving by the men; but
+Eugene was apparently unconscious of the presence of his parents. A loud
+cry from the dense crowd who had assembled to witness the execution, struck
+my ear. I ran to the window, and saw a man in the act of coming off a
+horse, whose sides were covered with foam and blood. The cries of the crowd
+continued, and I could distinctly hear the word "_reprieve_" mixed with the
+shouts. Mr. D---- was at my back, and I felt his hands press me like a
+vice. The two men who were supporting Eugene, had also heard the sound,
+and, paralysed by the extraordinary announcement, they actually let the
+prisoner sink on the floor. The sound of his fall made me turn; the father
+had vanished, doubtless to meet the messenger, and communicate the tidings
+to his wife and daughter. A great bustle in the neighbouring cells
+succeeded. The two men stood and looked at me in silence. Eugene still lay
+on the floor, to all appearance insensible. By my orders he was immediately
+again lifted up, and dragged more violently than ever, backwards and
+forwards. In a few seconds, the turnkey came in, and struck off the irons,
+by which his ancle had been so severely torn that the blood flowed from it
+on the floor. He informed me that he was indeed reprieved, and that the
+fault of the delay was attributable to the authorities in London. I shouted
+in the ear of the young man the electric word; he lifted his head, looked
+wildly around him for a few seconds, and uttered a strange gurgling sound
+unlike any expression of the human voice I ever heard. I was indeed
+uncertain whether he understood me or not. In a few minutes more, the cell
+was crowded--the father, mother, and daughter, the chaplain, the messenger,
+and several of the officials, all bursting in, to see the condition of the
+criminal. To this I was not averse; because the more excitement that could
+be produced in the mind of the youth, the greater chance remained of our
+being able to keep off the deadly effects of the drug. A thousand times did
+the parent and mother sound into his dull ear the vocable pregnant with so
+much relief to him and his friends; but it was not until two hours
+afterwards that he was so far recovered as to understand perfectly the
+narrow escape he had made from death. In the evening he was conveyed home
+in a carriage; and, as they were leaving the jail, he looked out at the
+grim apparatus which had been erected for him, and which the workmen were
+removing in the midst of a dense crowd of citizens.
+
+Some days afterwards, Eugene D---- had almost entirely recovered from the
+effects of the poison. One day when I called, I found him lying on a sofa,
+with his mother sitting by his side. She took her eyes off her son, and
+bent them on me till tears filled them.
+
+"Before you entered," she said, "I was talking to Eugene about the request
+I made to you in the jail on that dreadful day, to let my son die.
+Repeatedly since, have I thought of my wild words; but they know little of
+human nature, at least little of the feelings of a mother in my situation,
+who could brand them as unnatural, or doubt the sanity that recognised
+fully their effect."
+
+"I am too well apprised, madam," I replied, "of the workings of that organ,
+whose changes often startle ourselves, to be surprised at the words you
+then made use of. I knew not, after all, if you did not exhibit as much
+heroism as Brutus, who condemned his son to death; certainly more than
+Zaleucus, who condemned his to the loss of an eye, having first submitted
+to the loss of his own, to make the love of a father quadrate with the
+justice of the law-giver."
+
+"And what say you to yourself, to whom I owe the safety of my Eugene?" she
+added.
+
+"An Acesias might have accomplished all that I accomplished, madam--for all
+I did was to keep off sleep; but, if the secret must needs be told, I had
+some doubts at least of the humanity of my proceedings, whatever I might
+have thought of my duty."
+
+Eugene afterwards went to the East Indies, where he made a fortune. Some
+pecuniary embarrassments afterwards overtook the family, on which occasion
+he sent them home the one half of the money he had made, whereby they were
+again placed in a condition of affluence. A present was also sent to me. It
+is not yet very many years ago since I saw Eugene. He had assumed another
+name in India, where he had married a very beautiful woman, and to whom he
+again returned.
+
+
+
+
+THE UNBIDDEN GUEST,
+
+OR, JEDBURGH'S REGAL FESTIVAL.
+
+    "In the mid revels, the first ominous night
+    Of their espousals, when the room shone bright
+    With lighted tapers--the king and the queen leading
+    The curious measures, lords and ladies treading
+    The self-same strains--the king looks back by chance,
+    And spies a strange intruder fill the dance;
+    Namely, a mere anatomy, quite bare,
+    His naked limbs both without flesh and hair,
+    (As we decipher Death,) who stalks about
+    Keeping true measure till the dance be out."
+
+    _Heywood's Hierarchie of the Blessed Angels._
+
+
+There is no river in this country which presents in its course, scenes more
+beautifully romantic than the little Jed. Though it exhibits not the dizzy
+cliffs where the eagles build their nests, the mass of waters, the
+magnitude and the boldness, which give the character of sublimity to a
+scene; yet, as it winds its course through undulating hills where the
+forest trees entwine their broad branches, or steals along by the foot of
+the red, rocky precipices, where the wild flowers and the broom blossom
+from every crevice of their perpendicular sides, and from whose summits the
+woods bend down, beautiful as rainbows, it presenteth pictures of
+surpassing loveliness, which the eye delights to dwell upon. It is a fair
+sight to look down from the tree-clad hills upon the ancient burgh, with
+the river half circling it, and gardens, orchards, woods, in the beauty of
+summer blossoming, or the magnificence of their autumnal hues, encompassing
+it, while the venerable Abbey riseth stately in the midst of all, as a
+temple in paradise. Such is the character of the scenery around Jedburgh
+now; and, in former ages, its beauty rendered it a favourite resort of the
+Scottish Kings.
+
+About the year 1270, an orphan boy, named Patrick Douglas, herded a few
+sheep upon the hills, which were the property of the monks of Melrose. Some
+of the brotherhood, discovering him to be a boy of excellent parts,
+instructed him to read and to write; and perceiving the readiness with
+which he acquired these arts, they sought also to initiate him into all the
+learning of the age, and to bring him up for their order. To facilitate and
+complete his instructions, they had him admitted amongst them, as a
+_convert_ or lay-brother. But, though the talents of the shepherd boy
+caused him to be regarded as a prodigy by all within the monastery, from
+the Lord Abbot down to the kitchener and his assistants; yet, with Patrick,
+as with many others even now, gifts were not graces. He had no desire to
+wear the white cassock, narrow scapulary, and plain linen hood of the
+Cistertian brethren; neither did he possess the devoutness necessary for
+performing his devotions seven times a-day; and when the bell roused him at
+two in the morning, to what was called the _nocturnal_ service, Patrick
+arose reluctantly; for, though compelled to wedge himself into a narrow bed
+at eight o'clock in the evening, it was his wont to lie awake, musing on
+what he had read or learned, until past midnight; and, when the _nocturnal_
+was over, he again retired to sleep, until he was aroused at six for
+_matins_; but, after these came other devotions, called _tierce_, the
+_sexte_, the _none_, _vespers_, and the _compline_, at nine in the morning,
+at noon, at three in the afternoon, at six in the evening and before eight.
+These services broke in on his favourite studies; and, possessing more
+talent than devotion, while engaged in them he thought more of his studies
+than of them. Patrick, therefore, refused to take the monastic vow. He
+
+                      "had heard of war,
+    And longed to follow to the field some warlike lord."
+
+He, however, was beloved by all; and when he left the monastery, the Abbot
+and the brethren gave him their benediction, and bestowed gifts upon him.
+He also carried with him letters from the Lord Abbot and Prior, to men who
+were mighty in power at the court of King Philip of France.
+
+From the testimonials which he brought with him, Patrick Douglas, the
+Scottish orphan, speedily obtained favour in the eyes of King Philip and
+his nobles, and became as distinguished on the field for his prowess and
+the feats of his arms, as he had been in the Abbey of Melrose for his
+attainments in learning. But a period of peace came; and he who was but a
+few years before a shepherd boy by Tweedside, now bearing honours conferred
+on him by a foreign monarch, was invited as a guest to the palace of the
+illustrious Count of Dreux. A hundred nobles were there, each exhibiting
+all the pageantry of the age; and there, too, were a hundred ladies, vying
+with each other in beauty, and in the splendour of their array. But chief
+of all was Jolande, the daughter of their host, the Count of Dreux, and the
+fame of whose charms had spread throughout Christendom. Troubadours sang of
+her beauty, and princes bent the knee before her. Patrick Douglas beheld
+her charms. He gazed on them with a mixed feeling of awe, of regret, and of
+admiration. His eyes followed her, and his soul followed them. He beheld
+the devoirs which the great and the noble paid to her, and his heart was
+heavy; for she was the fairest and the proudest flower among the French
+nobility --he an exotic weed of desert birth. And, while princes strove for
+her hand, he remembered, he felt, that he was an orphan of foreign and of
+obscure parentage--a scholar by accident, (but to be a scholar was no
+recommendation in those days, and it is but seldom that it is one even
+now.) and a soldier of fortune, to whose name royal honours were not
+attached, while his purse was light, and who, because his feet covered more
+ground than he could call his own, his heels were denied the insignia of
+knighthood. Yet, while he ventured not to breathe his thoughts or wishes
+before her, he imagined that she looked on him more kindly, and that she
+smiled on him more frequently than on his lordly rivals; and his heart
+deceived itself, and rejoiced in secret.
+
+Now, it was early in the year 1283, the evening was balmy for the season,
+the first spring flowers were budding forth, and the moon, as a silver
+crescent, was seen among the stars. The young scholar and soldier of
+unknown birth walked in the gardens of the Count of Dreux, and the lovely
+Jolande leaned upon his arm. His heart throbbed as he listened to the
+silver tones of her sweet voice, and felt the gentle pressure of her soft
+hand in his. He forgot that she was the daughter of a prince--he the son of
+a dead peasant. In the delirium of a moment, he had thrown himself on his
+knee before her, he had pressed her hand on his bosom, and gazed eagerly in
+her face.
+
+She was startled by his manner, and had only said--"Sir! what
+means?"--though in a tone neither of reproach nor of pride, when what she
+would have said was cut short by the sudden approach of a page, who, bowing
+before her, stated that four commissioners having arrived from the King of
+Scotland, the presence of the Princess Jolande was required at the palace.
+Patrick Douglas started to his feet as he heard the page approach, and as
+he listened to his words he trembled.
+
+The princess blushed, and turning from Patrick, proceeded in confusion
+towards the palace; while he followed at a distance, repenting of what he
+had said, and of what he had done, or, rather, wishing that he had said
+more, or said less.
+
+"Yet," thought he, "she did not look on me as if I had spoken
+presumptuously! I will hope, though it be against hope--even though it be
+but the shadow of despair."
+
+But an hour had not passed, although he sought to hide himself with his
+thoughts in his chamber, when he heard that the commissioners who had
+arrived from his native land, were Thomas Charteris, the High Chancellor;
+Patrick de Graham, William de St Clair, and John de Soulis; and that their
+errand was to demand the beautiful Jolande as the bride and queen of their
+liege sovereign, Alexander the Third, yet called good.
+
+Now, the praise of Alexander was echoed in every land. He was as a father
+to his people, and as a husband to his kingdom. He was wise, just,
+resolute, merciful. Scotland loved him--all nations honoured him. But
+Death, that spareth not the prince more than the peasant, and which, to
+short-sighted mortals, seemeth to strike alike at the righteous and the
+wicked, had made desolate the hearths of his palaces, and rendered their
+chambers solitary. Tribulation had fallen heavily on the head of a virtuous
+King. A granddaughter, the infant child of a foreign prince, was all that
+was left of his race; and his people desired that he should leave behind
+him, as inheritor of the crown, one who might inherit also his name and
+virtues. He was still in the full vigour of his manhood, and the autumn of
+years was invisible on his brow. No "single silverings" yet marked the
+raven ringlets which waved down his temples; and, though his years were
+forty and three, his appearance did not betoken him to be above thirty.
+
+His people, therefore, wished, and his courtiers urged, that he should
+marry again; and fame pointed out the lovely Jolande, the daughter of the
+Count of Dreux, as his bride.
+
+When Patrick Douglas, the learned and honoured, but fortuneless soldier,
+found that his new competitor for the hand of the gentle Jolande was none
+other than his sovereign, he was dumb with despair, and the last, the
+miserable _hope_ which it imparts, and which maketh wretched, began to
+leave him. He now accused himself for having been made the sacrifice of a
+wild and presumptuous dream, and again he thought of the kindly smile and
+the look of sorrow which met together on her countenance, when, in a rash,
+impassioned moment, he fell on his knee before her, and made known what his
+heart felt.
+
+But, before another sun rose, Patrick Douglas, the honoured military
+adventurer of King Philip, was not to be found in the palace of the Count
+de Dreux. Many were the conjectures concerning his sudden departure; and,
+amongst those conjectures, as regarding the cause, many were right. But
+Jolande stole to her chamber, and in secret wept for the brave stranger.
+
+More than two years passed away, and the negotiations between the Courts of
+Scotland and of France, respecting the marriage of King Alexander and Fair
+Jolande, were continued; but, during that period, even the name of Patrick
+Douglas, the Scottish soldier, began to be forgotten--his learning became a
+dead letter, and his feats of arms continued no longer the theme of
+tongues. It is seldom that kings are such tardy wooers; but between the
+union of the good Alexander and the beautiful Jolande many obstacles were
+thrown. When, however, their nuptials were finally agreed to, it was
+resolved that they should be celebrated on a scale of magnificence such as
+the world had not seen. Now, the loveliest spot in broad Scotland, where
+the Scottish King could celebrate the gay festivities, was the good town of
+Jedworth, or, as it is now called, Jedburgh. For it was situated, like an
+Eden, in the depth of an impenetrable forest; gardens circled it; wooded
+hills surrounded it; precipices threw their shadows over flowery glens;
+wooded hills embraced it, as the union of many arms; waters murmured amidst
+it; and it was a scene on which man could not gaze without forgetting, or
+regretting his fallen nature. Yea, the beholder might have said--"If the
+earth be yet so lovely, how glorious must it have been ere it was cursed
+because of man's transgression!"
+
+Thither, then, did the Scottish monarch, attended by all the well-affected
+nobles of his realm, repair to meet his bride. He took up his residence in
+the castle of his ancestors, which was situated near the Abbey, and his
+nobles occupied their own, or other houses, in other parts of the town; for
+Jedburgh was then a great and populous place, and, from the loveliness of
+its situation, the chosen residence of royalty. (It is a pity but that our
+princes and princesses saw it now, and they would hardly be again charmed
+with the cold, dead, and bare beach of Brighton.) An old writer (I forget
+whom) has stated, in describing the magnitude of Jedburgh in those days,
+that it was six times larger than Berwick. This, however, is a mistake, for
+Berwick, at that period, was the greatest maritime town in the kingdom, and
+surpassed London, which strove to rival it.
+
+On the same day that King Alexander and his splendid retinue reached
+Jedburgh, his bride, escorted by the nobles of France and their attendants,
+also arrived. The dresses of the congregated thousands were gorgeous as
+summer flowers, and variegated as gorgeous. The people looked with wonder
+on the glittering throng. The trees had lost the hues of their fresh and
+living green--for brown October threw its deep shadows o'er the
+landscape--but the leaves yet trembled on the boughs from which they were
+loath to part; and, as a rainbow that had died upon the trees, and left its
+hues and impression there, the embrowning forest appeared.
+
+The marriage ceremony was performed in the Abbey, before Morel, the Lord
+Abbot, and glad assembled thousands. The town and the surrounding hills
+became a scene of joy. The bale-fires blazed from every hill; music echoed
+in the streets; and from every house, while the light of tapers gleamed,
+was heard the sounds of dance and song. The Scottish maiden and the French
+courtier danced by the side of the Jed together. But chief of all the
+festive scene was the assembly in the hall of the royal castle. At the
+farther end of the apartment, elevated on a purpled covered dais, sat King
+Alexander, with the hand of his bridal queen locked in his. On each side
+were ranged, promiscuously, the Scottish and the French nobility, with
+their wives, daughters, and sisters. Music lent its influence to the scene,
+and the strains of a hundred instruments blended in a swell of melody.
+
+Thrice a hundred tapers burned suspended from the roof, and on each side of
+the hall stood twenty men with branches of blazing pine. Now came the
+morris dance, with the antique dress and strange attitudes of the
+performers, which was succeeded by a dance of warriors in their coats of
+mail, and with their swords drawn. After these a masque, prepared by Thomas
+the Rymer, who sat on the right hand of the King, followed; and the company
+laughed, wept, and wondered, as the actors performed their parts before
+them.
+
+But now came the royal dance; the music burst into a bolder strain, and
+lord and lady rose, treading the strange measure down the hall, after the
+King and his fair Queen. Louder, and yet more loud the music pealed; and,
+though it was midnight, the multitude without shouted at its enlivening
+strains. Blithely the dance went on, and the King well nigh forgot the
+measure as he looked enraptured in the fair face of his beauteous bride.
+
+He turned to take her hand in the dance, and in its stead the bony fingers
+of a skeleton were extended to him. He shrank back aghast; for royalty
+shuddereth at the sight of Death as doth a beggar, and, in its presence,
+feeleth his power to be as the power of him who vainly commanded the waves
+of the sea to go back. Still the skeleton kept true measure before
+him--still it extended to him its bony hand. He fell back, in horror,
+against a pillar where a torch-bearer stood. The lovely Queen shrieked
+aloud, and fell as dead upon the ground. The music ceased--silence fell on
+the multitude--they stood still--they gazed on each other. Dismay caused
+the cold damp of terror to burst from every brow, and timid maidens sought
+refuge and hid their faces on the bosom of strangers. But still, visible to
+all, the spectre stood before the king, its bare ribs rattling as it moved,
+and its finger pointed towards him. The music, the dancers, became
+noiseless, as if Death had whispered--"_Hush_!--_be still_!" For the figure
+of death stood in the midst of them, as though it mocked them, and no sound
+was heard save the rattling of the bones, the moving of its teeth, and the
+motion of its fingers before the king.
+
+The lord abbot gathered courage, he raised his crucifix from his breast, he
+was about to exorcise the strange spectre, when it bent its grim head
+before him, and vanished as it came--no man knew whither.
+
+"Let the revels cease!" gasped the terror-stricken king; and they did
+cease. The day had begun in joy, it was ended in terror. Fear spread over
+the land, and while the strange tale of the marriage spectre was yet in the
+mouths of all men, yea before six months had passed, the tidings spread
+that the good King Alexander, at whom the figure of Death had pointed its
+finger, was with the dead, and his young queen a widow in a strange land.
+
+The appearance of the spectre became a tale of wonder amongst all men,
+descending from generation to generation, and unto this day it remains a
+mystery. But, on the day after the royal festival at Jedburgh, Patrick
+Douglas, the learned soldier, took the vows, and became a monastic brother
+at Melrose; and, though he spoke of Jolande in his dreams, he smiled, as if
+in secret triumph, when the spectre that had appeared to King Alexander was
+mentioned in his hearing.
+
+
+
+
+THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER.
+
+
+"Many a time," said Nicholas Middlemiss, as he turned round the skirts and
+the sleeve of his threadbare coat to examine them, "many a time have I
+heard my mother say to my faither--'Roger, Roger (for that was my faither's
+name,) _the simple man is the beggar's brother_.' But, notwithstanding my
+mother's admonitions, my faither certainly was a very simple man. He
+allowed people to take him in, even while they were laughing in his face at
+his simplicity. I dinna think that ever there was a week but that somebody
+or other owrereached him, in some transaction or other; for every knave,
+kennin' him to be a simpleton, (a nosey-wax, as my mother said,) always
+laid their snares to entrap Roger Middlemiss--and his family were the
+sufferers. He had been a manufacturer in Langholm for many a long year, and
+at his death he left four brothers, a sister and mysel', four hundred
+pounds each. Be it remembered, however, that his faither before him left
+him near to three thousand, and that was an uncommon fortune in those days,
+a fortune I may say that my faither might have made his bairns dukes by.
+Had he no been a simple man, his family might have said that they wouldna
+ca' the Duke o' Buccleuch their cousin. But he was simple--simplicity's
+sel'--(as my mother told him weel about it)--and he didna leave his bairns
+sae meikle to divide among them, as he had inherited from their
+grandfaither. Yet, if, notwithstanding his opportunities to make a fortune,
+he did not even leave us even what he had got, he at least left us his
+simpleness unimpaired. My brothers were honest men--owre honest, I am sorry
+to say, for the every-day transactions of this world--but they always
+followed the _obliging_ path, and kept their face in a direction, which, if
+they had had foresight enough to see it, was sure to land them _in_, or
+_on_,(just as ye like to take the expression,) their _native parish_. Now,
+this is a longing after the place o' one's birth for which I have no
+ambition; but on the parish it did land my brothers. My sister, too, was a
+poor simple thing, that married a man who had a wife living when he married
+her; and, after he had got every shilling that she had into his possession,
+he decamped and left her.
+
+"But it is not the history of my brothers and sisters that I would tell you
+about, but my own. With the four hundred pounds which my faither left me, I
+began business as a linen manufacturer--that is, as a maister weaver, on
+what might be called a respectable scale. The year after I had commenced
+business upon my own account, and before I was two and twenty, I was taking
+a walk one Sunday afternoon on the Hawick road, along by Sorbie, and there
+I met the bonniest lassie, I think, that I had ever seen. I was so struck
+wi' her appearance, that I actually turned round and followed her. She was
+dressed in a duffel coat or pelisse, which I think country folk call a
+_Joseph_; but I followed her at a distance, through fields and owre stiles,
+till I saw her enter a sma' farm-house. There were some bits o' bairns,
+apparently hinds' bairns, sitting round a sort o' duck-dub near the
+stackyard.
+
+"'Wha lives there, dearies?' says I to them, pointing wi' my finger to the
+farm-house.
+
+"'Ned Thomson,' says they.
+
+"'And wha was that bonny lassie,' asked I, 'that gaed in just the now?'
+
+"'He! he! he!' the bairns laughed, and gaed me nae answer. So I put my
+question to them again, and ane o' the auldest o' them, a lassie about
+thirteen, said--'It was the maister's daughter, sir, the laird's bonny
+Jenny--if ye like, I'll gang in and tell her that a gentleman wishes to
+speak to her.'
+
+"I certainly was very proud o' the bairn taking me to be a gentleman; but I
+couldna think o' meeting Miss Thompson, even if she should come out to see
+me, wi' such an introduction, for I was sure I would make a fool o' mysel';
+and I said to the bit lassie--'No I thank ye, hinny; I'm obliged to ye'"
+and a' her little companions 'he! he! he'd!' and laughed the louder at my
+expense; which, had I not been a simple man, I never would have placed it
+in their power to do.
+
+"So I went away, thinking on her face as if I had been looking at it in a
+glass a' the time; and to make a long story short, within three months,
+Miss Jenny Thompson and me became particularly weel acquaint. But my
+mother, who had none o' the simpleness that came by my faither's side o'
+the house, was then living; and when Jenny and I were on the eve o' being
+publicly cried in the kirk, she clapped her affidavit against it.
+
+"'Nicol,' said she, 'son as ye are o' mine, ye're a poor simple goniel.
+There isna a bairn that I have among ye to mend another. Ye are your
+faither owre again, every one o' ye--each one more simple than another.
+Will ye marry a taupie that has nae recommendation but a doll's face, and
+bring shame and sorrow to your door?'
+
+"I flew into a rampaging passion wi' my mother, for levelling Jenny to
+either shame or sorrow: but she maintained that married we should not be,
+if she could prevent it; and she certainly said and did everything that lay
+in her power to render me jealous. She might as weel have lectured to a
+whinstane rock. I believed Jenny to be as pure as the dew that falleth upon
+a lily before sunrise in May. But on the very night before we were to be
+married, and when I went to fit on the gloves and the ring--to my horror
+and inexpressible surprise, who should I see in the farm-yard, (for it was
+a fine star-light night,) but my Jenny--my thrice cried bride--wi' her hand
+upon the shouther o' the auldest son o' her faither's laird, and his arm
+round her waist. My first impulse was to run into the stackyard where they
+were, and to knock him down; but he was a strong lad, and, thinks I,
+'second thoughts are best.' I was resolved, however, that my mother should
+find I wasna such a simpleton as she gied me out to be--so I turned round
+upon my heel and went home saying to mysel, as the song says--
+
+    'If this be the way of courting a wife,
+      I'll never look after another;
+    But I'll away hame and live single my lane,
+      And I'll away hame to my mother.'
+
+When I went hame, and informed her o' what I had seen, and o' what I had
+dune, the auld woman clapped me upon the shouther, and says she--'Nicholas,
+my man, I am glad that yer ain een have been made a witness in the matter
+of which your mother forewarned ye. Ye was about to bring disgrace upon
+your family; but I trust ye have seen enough to be a warning to ye. O
+Nicholas! they that marry a wife merely for the sake o' a bonny face, or
+for being a smart dancer, or onything o' that kind, never repent it but
+once, and that is for ever. Marriage lad, lifts the veil from the face o'
+beauty, and causes it to be looked upon as an every-day thing; and even if
+ye were short-sighted before, marriage will make ye see through spectacles
+that will suit your sight, whither ye will or no. Dinna think that I am
+against ye taking a wife; for I ken it is the best thing that a young man
+can do. Had your faither not married me when he did, he would hae died a
+beggar, instead o' leaving ye what he did. And especially a simple creature
+like you, Nicholas, needs one to take care o' him. But you must not expect
+to meet wi' such a one in every bonny face, handsome waist, or smart ancle
+that ye meet wi'. Na, na, lad; ye maun look to the heart, and the
+disposition or temper, and the affection for you. They are the grand points
+that ye are to study; and not the beauty o' the face, the shape o' the
+waist, (which a mantua-maker has a principal hand in making,) the colour o'
+the een, or the texture o' the hair. Thae are things that are forgotten
+before ye hae been married a twalmonth; but the feelings o' the heart, and
+the sentiments o' the soul, aye rin pure, Nicholas, and grow stronger and
+stronger, just like a bit burn oozing frae a hill, and wimpling down its
+side, waxing larger and larger, and gathering strength on strength as it
+runs, until it meets the sea, like a great river; and even so it is wi' the
+affections o' the heart between man and wife, where they really love and
+understand each other; for they begin wi' the bit spring o' courtship,
+following the same course, gathering strength, and flowing side by side,
+until they fall into the ocean o' eternity, as a united river that cannot
+be divided! Na, son, if ye will take a wife, I hope ye hae seen enough to
+convince ye that she ought never to be the bonny Miss Thompson. But if I
+might advise ye in the matter, there is our own servant, Nancy Bowmaker, a
+young lass, a weel-faured lass, and as weel behaved as she is good-looking.
+She has lived wi' us, now, for four years, and from term to term I never
+have had to quarrel her. I never saw her encouraging lads about the
+house--I never missed the value o' a prin since she came to it--I never
+even saw her light a candle at the fire, or keep the cruisy burning when
+she had naething to do but to spin, or to knit. Now, Nicholas, if ye will
+be looking after a wife, I say that ye canna do better than just draw up
+wi' Nancy Bowmaker.'
+
+"So my mother ended her long-winded harangue; which I had hardly patience
+to listen to. In the course o' the week, the faither and brothers o' Miss
+Jenny Thompson called upon me, to see why I had not fulfilled my
+engagement, by taking her before the minister, and declaring her to be my
+wife. I stood before them like a man touched wi' a flash o' lightning--pale
+as death and trembling like a leaf. But, when they began to talk big owre
+me, and to threaten me wi' bringing the terrors o' the law upon my
+head--(and be it remembered I have an exceeding horror o' the law, and
+would rather lose a pound ony day, than spend six and eightpence, which is
+the least ye can spend on it)--as good luck would have it, while they were
+stamping their feet, and shaking their nieves in my face, my mother came
+forward to where we were standing, and says she to me--'Nicholas, what is
+a' this about? What does Mr Thompson and his sons want?'
+
+"The very sound o' her voice inspired me; I regained my strength and my
+courage, as the eagle renews its age. And, simple man as I was--'Sir,' said
+I, 'what is it that ye mean? Gae ask your daughter wha it was that had his
+arm round her waist on Thursday night last, and her hand upon his shouther!
+Go to _him_ to marry her!--but dinna hae the audacity to look me in the
+face.'
+
+"'Weel said, Nicol,' whispered my mother, coming behint me, and clapping me
+on the back; 'aye act in that manner, my man.'
+
+"And both her faithers and her brothers stood looking one to another for an
+answer, and slunk away without saying another word either about the law or
+our marriage. I found I had gotten the whip hand o' them most completely.
+So, there never was another word between me and bonny Jenny Thompson, who,
+within a month, ran away wi' the son o' her faither's laird--and, poor
+hizzy, I am sorry to say, her end wasna a good one.
+
+"My mother, however, always kept teasing me about Nancy Bowmaker, and
+saying what a notable wife she would make. Now, some folk are foolish
+enough to say that they couldna like onybody that was in a manner forced
+upon them. And, nae doubt, if either a faither or a mother, or onybody else
+that has power owre ye, says--'_Like_ such a one,' it is not in your power
+to comply, and actually love the person in obedience to a command. Yet this
+I will say, that my mother's sermons to me about Nancy Bowmaker, and my
+being always _evened_ to her upon that account, caused me to think more
+about her than I did concerning ony other woman under the sun. And ye canna
+think lang about ony lass in particular, without beginning to have a sort
+o' regard for her, as it were. In short, I began to find that I liked Nancy
+just as weel as I had done Jenny; we, therefore, were married, and a most
+excellent and affectionate wife she has been to me, even to this day.
+
+"It was now that I began the world in good earnest. But though my wife was
+an active woman, I was still the same simple, easy-imposed-upon sort o'
+being that I had always been. Every rogue in the country-side very soon
+became acquainted wi' my disposition. I had no reason to complain of my
+business; for orders poured in upon me faster than I was able to supply
+them. Only, somehow or other--and I thought it very strange--money didna
+come in so fast as the orders. My wife said to me--'This trade will never
+do, Nicholas--ye will gang on trust, trusting, until ye trust yoursel' to
+the door. Therefore, do as I advise ye, and look after the siller.'
+
+"'O my dear,' said I, 'they are good customers, and I canna offend them for
+the sake o' a few pounds. I have no doubt but they are safe enough.
+
+"'Safe or no safe,' quoth she, 'get ye your accounts settled. Their siller
+will do as meikle for ye as their custom. Take a woman's advice for once,
+and remember, that, 'short accounts make long friends.' Look ye after your
+money.'
+
+"I couldna but confess that there was a great deal o' truth in what Mrs
+Middlemiss (that is my wife) said to me. But I had not her turn for doing
+things. I could not be so sharp wi' folk, had it been to save my life. I
+never could affront onybody in my days. Yet I often wished that I could
+take her advice; for I saw people getting deeper and deeper into my books,
+without the prospect o' payment being made more manifest. Under such
+circumstances I began to think wi' her, that their siller would be as good
+as their custom--the one was not much worth without the other.
+
+"But, just to give ye a few instances o' my simplicity:--I was walking, on
+a summer evening, as my custom was, about a mile out o' the town, when I
+overtook a Mr Swanston, a very respectable sort o' man, a neighbour, and an
+auld acquaintance, who appeared to be in very great tribulation. I think,
+indeed, that I never saw a fellow-creature in such visible distress. His
+countenance was perfectly wofu', and he was wringing his hands like a body
+dementit.
+
+"'Preserve us, Mr Swanston!' says I, 'what's the matter wi' ye?--has
+onything happened?'
+
+"'Oh! happened!' said he; 'I'm a ruined man!--I wish that I had never been
+born!--that I had never drawn breath in this world o' villany! I believe
+I'll do some ill to mysel'.'
+
+"'Dear me, Mr Swanston!' quoth I, 'I'm sorry to hear ye talk so. It is very
+unchristian-like to hear a body talking o' doing harm to theirsels. There
+is a poet, (Dr Young, if I mistake not,) that says--
+
+    'Self-murder! name it not, our island's shame!'
+
+Now, I dinna like to hear ye talking in such a way; and though I have no
+wish to be inquisitive, I would just beg to ask what it is upon your mind
+that is making ye unhappy?'
+
+"'Oh, Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'it is o' no use telling ye o't, for I
+believe that sympathy has left this world, as weel as honesty.'
+
+"'Ye're no very sure o' that, neighbour,' says I; 'and I dinna think that
+ye do mysel' and other people justice.'
+
+"'Maybe not, sir,' said he; 'but is it not a hard case, that, after I have
+carried on business for more than twenty years, honestly and in credit wi'
+all the world, that I should have to stop my business to-morrow, for the
+want o' three hundred pounds?'
+
+"'It certainly is,' said I, 'a very hard case; but, dear me, Mr Swanston, I
+always thought that ye would be worth twenty shillings in the pound.'
+
+"'So I am,' said he; 'I am worth twice twenty, if my things should be put
+up at their real value; but at present I canna command the ready money--and
+there is where the rock lies that I am to be wrecked upon.'
+
+"'Assuredly,' returned I, 'three hundred pounds are no bauble. It requires
+a person to turn owre a number o' shillings to make them up. But I would
+think that, you having been so long in business, and always having borne an
+irreproachable character, it would be quite a possible thing for you to
+raise the money amongst your friends.'
+
+"'Sir,' said he, 'I wouldna require them to raise the money, nor ever to
+advance or pay a farthing upon my account; all that I require is, that some
+sponsible person, such as yourself, would put their name to a bill for six
+months. There would be nothing but the signing o' the name required o'
+them; and if you, sir, would so far oblige me, ye will save a neighbour
+from ruin.'
+
+"I thought there was something very reasonable in what he said, and that it
+would be a grand thing if by the mere signing o' my name, I could save a
+fellow-creature and auld acquaintance from ruin, or from raising his hand
+against his own life. Indeed, I always felt a particular pleasure in doing
+a good turn to onybody. I therefore said to him--
+
+'Weel, Mr Swanston, I have no objections to sign my name, if, as you say,
+that be all that is in it, and if my doing so will be of service to you.'
+
+"He grasped hold o' my hand wi' both o' his, and he squeezed it until I
+thought he would have caused the blood to start from my finger ends.
+
+"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I shall never be able to repay you for this act
+o' kindness. I will feel it in my heart the longest day I have to live.'
+
+"I was struck with his agitation; in fact, I was very much put about. For
+even a tear upon the face o' a woman distresses me beyond the power o'
+words to describe; but to see the salt water on the cheeks of a man
+indicates that there is something dreadfully ill at ease about the heart.
+And really the tears ran down his face as if he had been a truant
+school-laddie that had been chastised by his master.
+
+"'There is no occasion for thanks, Mr Swanston,' said I--'none in the
+world; for the man would be worse than a heathen, that wouldna be ready to
+do ten times more.'
+
+"Weel, he grasped my hand the harder, and he shook it more fervently,
+saying--'O, sir! sir!--a friend in need is a friend indeed; and such ye
+have proved to be--and I shall remember it.'
+
+"That very night we went to a public-house, and we had two half-mutchkins
+together; in the course of drinking which, he got out a stamped paper, and
+after writing something on it, which I was hardly in a condition to read,
+(for my head can stand very little,) he handed it to me, and pointed with
+his finger where I was to put my name upon the back o't. So I took the pen
+and wrote my name--after which, we had a parting gill, and were both very
+comfortable.
+
+"When I went home, Nancy perceiving me to be rather sprung, and my een no
+as they ought to be, said to me--'Where have you been, Nicholas, until this
+time o' nicht?'
+
+"'Touts!' said, I, 'what need ye mind? It is a hard maiter that a body
+canna stir out owre the door but ye maun ask--'where hae ye been?' I'm my
+own maister, I suppose--at least after business hours.'
+
+"'No doubt o' that, Nicholas,' said she; 'but while ye are your own
+maister, ye are also my husband, and the faither o' my family, and it
+behoves me to look after ye.'
+
+"'Look after yoursel'!' said I, quite pettedly--'for I am always very high
+and independent when I take a glass extra--ye wouldna tak me to be a simple
+man then.'
+
+"'There is no use in throwing yoursel' into a rage, added she; 'for ye ken
+as weel as me, Nicholas, that ye never take a glass more than ye ought to
+do, but ye invariably make a fool o' yoursel' by what ye say or do, and
+somebody or ither imposes on ye. And ye are so vexed with yoursel' the next
+day, that there is nae living in the house wi' ye. Ye wreak a' the shame
+and ill-nature that ye feel on account o' your conduct upon us.'
+
+"'Nancy!' cried I, striking my hand upon the table, as though I had been an
+emperor, 'what in the name o' wonder do ye mean? Who imposes upon me?--who
+dare?--tell me that!--I say tell me that?' And I struck my hand upon the
+table again.
+
+"'Owre mony impose upon ye, my man,' quoth she; 'and I hope naebody has
+been doing it the night, for I never saw ye come hame in this key, but that
+somebody had got ye to do something that ye was to repent afterwards.'
+
+"'Confound ye, Nancy!' cried I, very importantly whipping up the tails o'
+my coat in a passion, and turning my back to the fire, while I gied a sort
+o' stagger, and my head knocked against the chimley piece--'confound ye,
+Nancy, I say, what do ye mean? Simple man as ye ca' me, and as ye tak me to
+be, do ye think that I am to come home to get naething but a dish o'
+tongues from you! Bring me my supper.'
+
+"'Oh, certainly, ye shall have your supper,' said she, 'if ye can eat
+it--only I think that your bed is the fittest place for ye. O man,' added
+she in a lower tone, half speaking to hersel, 'but ye'll be sorry for this
+the morn.'
+
+"'What the mischief are ye muttering at?' cried I--'get me my supper.'
+
+"'Oh, ye shall have that,' said she very calmly, for she was, and is, a
+quiet woman, and one that would put up with a great deal, rather than allow
+her voice to be heard by her neighbours.
+
+"My head was in a queer state the next day; for ye see I had as good as
+five glasses, and I never could properly stand above two. I was quite
+ashamed to look my wife in the face, and I was so certain that I had been
+guilty o' some absurdity or other, that my cheeks burned just under the
+dread o' its being mentioned to me. Neither could I drive the idea of
+having put my name upon the back of the bill from my mind. I was conscious
+that I had done wrong. Yet, thought I, Mr Swanston is a very decent man; he
+is a very respectable man; he has always borne an excellent character; and
+is considered a good man, both amongst men o' business and in
+society--therefore, I have nothing to apprehend. I, according to his own
+confession, did him a good turn, and I could in no way implicate myself in
+his transactions by merely putting my name upon the back o' a bit o' paper,
+to oblige him. So I thought within myself, and I became perfectly satisfied
+that I had done a good action, without in the slightest degree injuring my
+family.
+
+"But just exactly six months and three days afterwards, a clerk belonging
+to a branch o' the Commercial Bank called upon me, and, after making his
+bow, said he--'Mr Middlemiss, I have a bill to present to you.'
+
+"'A bill!' said I, 'what sort o' a bill, sir? Is it an auctioneer's, for a
+roup o' furniture or a sale o' stock?'
+
+"He laughed quite good-natured like in my face, and pulling out the bit
+stamped paper that I had been madman enough to sign my name upon the back
+o'--'It is that, sir,' said he.
+
+"'That!' cried I; 'what in the earthly globe have I to do wi' that? It is
+Mr Swanston's business--not mine. I only put my name upon the back o't to
+_oblige_ him. Why do ye bring it to me?'
+
+"'You are responsible, sir,' said the clerk.
+
+"'Responsible! the meikle mischief!' I exclaimed; 'what am I responsible
+for, sir?--I only put my name doun to oblige him, I tell ye! For what am I
+responsible?'
+
+"'For three hundred pounds, and legal interest for six months,' said my
+unwelcome visiter, wi' a face that shewed as little concern for the
+calamity in which, through mere simplicity and goodness of heart, I was
+involved, as if he had ordered me to take a pipe, and blow three hundred
+soap-bubbles!
+
+"'Oh! lack-o'-me!' cried I, 'is that possible? Is Mr Swanston sic a
+villain? I am ruined--I am clean ruined. Who in all the world will tell
+Nancy?'
+
+"But that I found was a question that I did not need to ask; for she kenned
+almost as soon as I did mysel'.
+
+"I need not say that I had the three hundred pounds, ineerest and all,
+plack and farthing, to pay; though, by my folly and simplicity, I had
+brought my wife and family to the verge o' ruin, she never was the woman to
+fling my silly conduct in my teeth; and all that she ever did say to me
+upon the subject, was--'Weel, Nicholas, this is the first o' your bill
+transactions, or o' your being caution for onybody, and I trust it has
+proved such a lesson as I hope ye will never need another.'
+
+"'O Nancy, woman!' cried I, 'dinna speak to me! for I could knock my brains
+oot! I am the greatest simpleton upon the face o' the earth.'
+
+"Now, that was one instance o' my simple conduct and its consequences, and
+I will just relate to you another or two. I had bought some ninety pounds
+worth o' flax from a merchant in Glasgow, for which I was to receive six
+months' credit. Weel, he came round for his money at the appointed time,
+and I paid him accordingly, and got a line off his hand in acknowledgment.
+On that very day, and just about an hour after he had left, Nancy says to
+me--'Nicholas, I dinna owre and aboon like that man that ye hae been
+dealing wi' the day. He has owre muckle gab, and scraping, and bowing for
+me. I wish he may be honest. Have ye got a receipt from him?'
+
+"'Certainly,' says I; 'do ye think I would pay onybody money without one?'
+
+"'And I hope it is on a stamp,' said she.
+
+"'A stamp!' quoth I--'a stamp!--hoots, woman! I wonder to see ye so
+suspicious. Ye dinna tak a' the world to be rogues?'
+
+"'No,' said she, 'I do not, and I should be sorry if I did; but if ye hae
+taken a receipt from him without a stamp, ye are a simple man--that is all
+that I say.'
+
+'A simple man!' cried I; 'gracious! what does the woman mean? Ye are for
+ever saying that I am simple this, and simple that! I wish that ye would
+explain yoursel, and say what ye wish to be after! Where, or how am I
+simple?'
+
+"'It's not been one lesson that you've had, Nicholas,' said she, 'nor ten,
+nor twenty either, but it is every week, I may say every day, wi' ye. There
+is perpetually some person or another showing ye that the 'simple man is
+the beggar's brother,' and ye canna see it, or ye winna regard it. But ye
+will, perhaps, be brought to think on't, when neither your bairns nor me
+have a stool to sit upon.'
+
+"'Woman!' exclaimed I, 'flesh and blood cannot stand your tongue! Ye would
+exasperate the patience o' Job! What is it that ye wish to be after?--what
+would ye have me to do?'
+
+"'Oh, it is o' nae use getting into a passion about it,' said she, 'for
+that winna mend the matter. But there is only this in it, Nicholas: I would
+have ye to be as sharp in your dealings in the world, as ye are wi' me when
+I happen to speak a word to ye for your good.'
+
+"There was so much truth in what she said, and she always spoke in such a
+calm, good-natured manner that it was impossible to continue to be in a
+passion wi' her. So I said no more about the subject; but I thought to
+mysel', that, as I knew very little about the man I had dealt with, it
+would hae been quite as safe to have had the receipt upon a stamp.
+
+"A few months afterwards, I saw his name amongst the list o' bankrupts; and
+to my very great astonishment, I received a letter from a writer, demanding
+payment from me o' the ninety pounds for the flax which I had already paid.
+
+"'The thing is unreasonable a'thegither,' said I; 'here is a man that hasna
+paid once himself, and he would come upon me to pay twice! But I'll see him
+far enough first!'
+
+"I paid no attention to the letter, and I was summoned to appear before the
+writer, and three men that were called the trustees to the bankrupt's
+estate. (Dear kens where the estate lay.)
+
+"'Sir,' said they to me, as haughtily as if I had been a criminal before
+them; 'wherefore do ye refuse to pay the ninety pounds?'
+
+"'For the best o' a' reasons, gentlemen,' said I, very civilly; 'and that
+simply is, because I have paid it already.'
+
+"'What proof can you show for that!' asked the writer.
+
+"'Proof, sir,' said I--'here is a line off the man's own hand,
+acknowledging the payment o' every farthing o' the money.'
+
+"'Let me look at it,' says he.
+
+"So, as honesty never needs to be feared for what it does, I handed him the
+bit paper. But after looking at it for a moment, he held it up between his
+finger and thumb, and wi' a kind o' sarcastic laugh, inquired--'Where is
+the stamp?'
+
+"The sweat broke ower me from head to foot. 'Sir, my wife, Nancy! Is that
+document, in the handwriting o' the man himsel', not proof positive that I
+have paid the money?'
+
+"The writer shook his head; and a gentleman that was standing near me, and
+who was very probably in a similar predicament to myself, said--'Unstamped
+receipts, sir, may do very well, where ye find a world o' purely honest
+men--but they winna do where ye arena sure but ye may be dealing wi' a
+rogue.'
+
+"'Gentlemen!' cried I, 'have ye really the cruelty and injustice to say
+that I am to pay that money owre again?'
+
+"'Owre again or not owre again,' said the writer, 'ye must pay it,
+otherwise summary proceedings will be entered against ye. If ye have
+already paid it in the way ye say, it is only making good the proverb, that
+the 'simple man is the beggar's brother.'"
+
+"'Oh, confound ye!' cried I, 'for a parcel o' unprincipled knaves--that is
+exactly what my wife says; and had I followed her advice, I would ne'er hae
+seen ane o' yer faces.'
+
+"However, the ninety pounds I had to pay again, doun upon the nail; and
+that was another o' the beautiful effects o' my simplicity. I didna ken
+how, in the universal globe, I was to muster courage to look my wife in the
+face again. Yet all that she said was--'O Nicholas! Nicholas!--would ye
+only be less simple!'
+
+"'Heigho!' said I, 'dinna talk about it, Nancy--I'm owre grieved as it
+is--I can stand no more!'
+
+"The loss o' the three hundred pounds, wi' the bill business, and the
+ninety just mentioned, made me to stagger, and those that knew about the
+circumstances wondered how I stood them. But I had just begun a new
+concern, which was the manufacture o' table-cloths upon a new principle,
+and with exceedingly splendid patterns. I got an extraordinary sale for
+them, and orders came pouring in upon me. But I had to employ more men to
+fulfil them, and their wages were to pay every Saturday, while the
+remittances did not come in by half so regular as the orders, and I found
+it was not easy to pay men without receiving money for their work. Had I
+been a man o' a great capital, the case might have been different. There
+was one day, however, that a gentleman that had dealt wi' me very
+extensively called upon me, and he gied me a very excellent order. But,
+although he had seen a great deal o' my goods, I never had seen the shadow
+o' his cash. I canna say that I exactly liked his manner o' doing business;
+yet I couldna, for the breath that was in my body, have the face to say an
+impertinent thing to ony one, and I was just telling him that his order
+should be attended to, when my wife, who was sitting in a room off the
+parlour, gave a tap upon the door, and, asking the gentleman to excuse me
+for a minute, I stepped ben, and I half whispered to her--'What is it,
+dear?'
+
+"'Has that man spoken about paying ye?' said she.
+
+"'No,' said I.
+
+"'But I think it is time he was,' quoth she, 'before ye trust him ony
+farther. Remember that ye have men's wages to pay, and accounts to pay, and
+a wife and family to support, and those things canna be done upon nothing.'
+
+"'Very true, dearie,' said I; 'but ye wouldna have me to speak abruptly to
+the gentleman, or to affront him?'
+
+"'It will affront no gentleman,' replied she--'at least, no honest man--to
+ask him for what is your own. Therefore, ask him for your money. Remember,
+Nicholas, that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'
+
+"'O dear, woman!' says I, 'ye ken I dinna like to hear thae words. I'll ask
+the gentleman to pay me--to be sure I will; and what is the use o' your
+keeping tease, teasing at a body, just as if I were a simpleton.'
+
+"So I slipped back to the customer, and, after a few words about his order,
+I said to him--'Sir, ye understand I have men's wages to pay, and accounts
+to pay, and a wife and family to support, and it's no little that does it;
+therefore, if ye could just oblige me wi' the settlement o' your account,
+it would be a favour.'
+
+"'My dear Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I am extremely sorry that you did not
+inform me that you were in want of cash sooner, as I have just, before I
+saw you, parted with all I can spare. But, if you be very much in want of
+it, I can give you a note, that is, a bill for the money, at three or six
+months. You can get it cashed, you know, and it is only minus the discount,
+and that is not much upon your profits, eh?'
+
+"'Begging your pardon, sir,' says I, 'but I take I would have my name to
+write on the back o't.'
+
+"'Certainly, sir,' said he, 'you know that follows as a matter of course.'
+
+"'Yes, sir,' continued I, 'and I have found that it sometimes follows also
+as a matter o' _coercion!_ I never had to do wi' what ye call a bill in my
+life but once, which was merely writing my name upon the back o't, and that
+cost me three hundred pounds--exactly sixteen pounds, two shillings and
+threepence, and a fraction, for every letter in the name of Nicholas
+Middlemiss, as my wife has often told me. Therefore, sir, I would never
+wish to see the _face_ o' a bill again; or, I should say, the _back_ o'
+one.'
+
+"'But, my good sir,' said the gentleman, 'I have told you that it is not
+convenient for me to give you the cash just now; and, if you won't take my
+bill, why, what do you wish me to do? Do you intend to affront me? Do you
+suppose I have nothing to attend to but your account?'
+
+"'Oh, by no means, sir,' said I; 'and it would be the last thing in my
+thoughts either to offend you or ony man. If ye have not the money at
+command, I suppose I must take the bill; for I know that cash down is a
+sort o' curiosity, as I sometimes say, and is very difficult to be met
+wi'.'
+
+"While we were conversing thegither, I heard my wife gie a tap, tap, tap,
+twice or thrice upon the parlour door, and I was convinced that she
+owreheard us; but I didna take the least notice o' it, for I felt conscious
+that it would only be to ring the auld sang in my ears, about the simple
+man. So I took the gentleman's bill at six months; and immediately after he
+left me, Nancy came into the parlour.
+
+"'Weel,' said she, 'ye've gotten your money.' But she said it wi' a
+scornful air, such as I had never seen her use before, and which caused me
+to feel excessively uncomfortable.
+
+"'Yes, I've got my money,' says I, 'but, dear me, Nancy, what business is
+it o' yours whether I have got my money or no?'
+
+"'If it isna my business, Nicholas,' said she, 'I would like to ken whase
+business it is? I am the wife o' your bosom--the mother o' your family--am
+I not? Guidman, ye may take ill what I say to ye, but it is meant for your
+good. Now, ye hae ta'en the bill o' the man that has just left ye, for four
+hundred and odd pounds! What do ye ken aboot him? Naething!--naething in
+the blessed world! Ye are a simple man, Nicholas!'
+
+"'Dinna say that,' said I; 'I am not simple. I told him to his face that I
+didna like his bills. But ye are like a' women--ye would do wonders if ye
+were men! But his bill prevents a' disputes about his account--do ye not
+see that--and I can cash it if I wish.'
+
+"'Very true,' said she, 'ye can cash it, Nicholas, but upon your own
+credit, and at your own risk.'
+
+"'Risk!' said I, 'the woman's a fool to talk in such a manner about an
+every-day transaction.'
+
+"'Weel,' answered she, 'not to say that there is the slightest risk in the
+matter, have ye considered, that, if ye do cash this bill, there will be a
+heavy discount to pay, and if ye pay it, what is to become o' your profits?
+Did ye tell him, that if ye took his bill ye would carry the discount to
+his next account?'
+
+"'O Nancy! Nancy!' cried I, 'ye would skin the wind! Just take yoursel'
+away, if ye please; for really ye're tormenting me--making a perfect gowk
+o' me, for neither end nor purpose.'
+
+"'Oh, if that be the way,' said she, 'I can leave ye--but I have seen the
+day when ye thought otherwise o' my company. Yet, the more I see o' your
+transactions, Nicholas, the more I am convinced in the truth o' the saying,
+that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'
+
+"'Sorrow take ye, wife!' cried I, 'will ye really come owre thae words
+again. Are ye not aware that I detest and abhor them? Have I not said that
+to ye again and again?--and yet ye will repeat them in my hearing? Do ye
+wish to drive me mad?'
+
+"'I would wish to see ye act,' answered she, 'so that I would ne'er need to
+use them again.' And, on saying that, she went out o' the room, which to me
+was a great deliverance.
+
+"I got the bill cashed, and, to tell ye the plain truth, I also had it to
+pay. This was a dreadfu' loss to me; and I found there was naething left
+for me but so _sit down_,(if ye understand what that means,) as mony a guid
+man has been compelled to do. Hooever, I paid every body seventeen
+shillings and sixpence half-penny in the pound. Some of my creditors said
+it was owre meikle--that I had been simple and wronged mysel'.
+
+"'I would wish to the utmost o' my power to be honest,' said I; 'and if I
+hae wronged mysel', I hae saved my conscience. If there be naething else
+left for me noo, as Burns says--
+
+    'Heaven be thankit! I can beg.'
+
+"My business, hooever, had been entirely at a stand for the space o' sax
+weeks. I had neither journeyman nor apprentice left. My looms, and the hale
+apparatus connected wi' the concern, had been sold off, and I had naething
+in the world but a few articles o' furniture, which a freend bought back
+for me at the sale. I got the loan o' a loom, and in order to support my
+wife and family, I had to sit down to drive the shuttle again. I had
+wrought nane to speak o' for ten years before, and my hands were quite oot
+o' use. I made but a puir job o' it. The first week I didna mak aboon
+half-a-crown; and that was but a sma' sum for the support o' a wife and
+half-a-dozen hungry bairns. Hooever, I was still as simple as ever; and
+there wasna a wife in the countryside that was a bad payer, but brought her
+web to Nicholas Middlemiss. I wrought late and early; but though I did my
+utmost, I couldna keep my bairns' teeth gaun. Many a time it has wrung my
+heart, when I hae heard them crying to their mother, clinging round her,
+and pulling at her apron, saying--'Mother, gie's a piece!--Oh just a wee
+bite, mother!'
+
+"'O my darlings,' she used to say to them, 'dinna ask me for bread the noo.
+I haena a morsel in the house, and hae na siller to buy meal. But yer
+faither is aboot finished wi' the web, and ye shall hae plenty the nicht.'
+
+"Then the bits o' dear creatures would hae come runnin' ben to me, and
+asked--'Faither, when will the web be ready?'
+
+"'Soon, soon, hinnies!' said I, half choked wi' grief and blind wi' tears;
+'haud awa' oot and play yoursels!'
+
+"For I couldna stand to see them yearning afore me, and to behold want,
+like a gnawing worm, eating the flesh from their lovely cheeks. Then, when
+I had went out wi' the web, Nancy would say to me--'Noo, Nicholas, remember
+the situation we're in. There's neither food o' ae description nor anither
+in the house, and ye see the last o' oor coals upon the fire. Therefore,
+afore ye leave the web, see that ye get the money for the working o't.'
+
+"Yet, scores o' times, even after such admonitions, hae I come hame without
+a penny in my pocket. Ane put me aff with ae excuse, and anither wi'
+anither. Some were to ca' and pay me on the Saturday, and others when they
+killed their pig. But those Saturdays seldom came; and, in my belief, the
+pigs are living yet. It used to put me in terror to meet my poor starving
+family. The consequence generally was, that Nancy had to go to where I had
+come frae and request payment hersel'; and, at last, she wadna trust me wi'
+the taking hame o' the webs.
+
+"We suffered more than I'm willing to tell aboot, at the period I mention,
+and a' arose oot o' my simpleness. But I was confined to my bed for ten
+weeks, wi' a dreadfu' attack o' rheumatism--it was what was ca'ed a
+rheumatic fever--it reduced me to a perfect anatomy. I was as feckless as a
+half-burned thread. Through fatigue, anxiety, and want o' support
+thegither, Nancy also took very ill; and there did we lie to a' appearance
+hastening to the grave. What we suffered, and what our family suffered upon
+this occasion, no person in a Christian country could believe. But for the
+kindness o' the minister, and some o' oor neebors, we must a' hae perished.
+As a matter of course we fell sadly back; and when the house rent became
+due, we had not wherewith to pay it. The landlord distrained us for it. A
+second time the few things I had left were put under the hammer o' the
+auctioneer. 'Oh!' said I, 'surely misery and I were born thegither!' For we
+had twa dochters, the auldest only gaun six, baith lying ill o' the scarlet
+fever in the same bed, and I had to suffer the agony o' beholding the bed
+sold out from under them. It was more than human nature could endure. The
+poor, dear lammies cried--'Faither! mither! dinna let them touch us!' I
+took the auldest up in my arms, and begged that I micht be allowed a
+blanket to row her in. Nancy took up the youngest one, and while the sale
+went on, with our dying bairns in our arms, we sat down in the street
+before the door, as twa beggars--but we were not begging.
+
+"Our case excited universal commiseration. A number o' respectable people
+began to take an interest in our weelfare; and business came so thick upon
+me that I had to get twa other looms, and found constant employment, not
+only for my auldest laddie, whom I was bringing up to the business, but
+also for a journeyman.
+
+"Just as I was beginning to prosper, hooever, and to get my head aboon the
+water, there was ane o' my auld creditors to whom I had paid the
+composition of seventeen and sixpence halfpenny in the pound, wha was a
+hard-hearted, avaricious sort o' man, and to whom I had promised, and not
+only promised, but given a written pledge, to pay him the remaining two and
+fivepence halfpenny in the pound, together with interest, in the course of
+six years. The time was just expiring, when he came to me, and presenting
+the bit paper, which was in my own handwriting, demanded payment.
+
+"'Really, sir,' said I, 'I acknowledge that I must pay ye, though everybody
+said at the time that I was a very simple man for entering into ony such
+agreement wi' ye; but it is not in my power to pay ye just now. In the
+course o' a twalmonth I hope to be able to do it.'
+
+"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, as slowly as if he were spelling my name, 'my
+money I want, and my money I will have; and have it immediately, too.'
+
+"'Sir,' said I, 'the thing is impossible; I canna gie ye what I haena got.'
+
+"'I dinna care for that,' said he; 'if I dinna get it, I shall _get you_.'
+
+"He had the cruelty to throw me into jail, just as I was beginning to
+gather my feet. It knocked all my prospects in the head again. I began to
+say it was o' nae use for me to strive, for the stream o' fate was against
+me.'
+
+"'Dinna say so, Nicholas,' said Nancy, who came on foot twice every week,
+a' the way from Langholm, to see me--'dinna say sae. Yer ain simplicity is
+against ye--naething else.'
+
+"Weel, the debt was paid, and I got my liberty. But, come weel, come woe, I
+was still simple Nicol Middlemiss. Ne'er hae I been able to get the better
+o' my easy disposition. It has made me acquainted wi' misery--it has kept
+me constantly in the company o' poverty; and, when I'm dead, if onybody
+erect a gravestane for me, they may inscribe owre it--
+
+    "THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER."
+
+
+
+
+TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE.
+
+
+THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB.
+
+On the 2nd of March 1736, Andrew Wilson in Pathhead, William Hall in
+Edinburgh, and George Robertson, stabler at Bristo Port there, were
+indicted and accused, at the instance of Duncan Forbes of Culloden, then
+Lord Advocate, before the high court of justiciary at Edinburgh, of the
+crimes of stouthrief housebreaking and robbery, in so far as James Stark,
+collector of excise in Kirkcaldy, being upon his circuit in collecting that
+revenue, and having along with him a considerable sum of money collected by
+him by virtue of his office, upon Friday the 9th day of January then last,
+was at the house of Margaret Ramsay, relict of Andrew Fowler, excise-office
+keeper at Pittenweem; and Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob
+Collector Stark of the money and other effects he had along with him, and
+having taken William Hall and George Robertson as associates, they came
+together from Edinburgh that morning, and towards evening put up their
+horses in Anstruther-Easter, in the inn kept by James Wilson, brewer
+there;[C] and after having had some deliberations upon their intended
+robbery, leaving their horses there, they went privately on foot to
+Pittenweem, and about eleven o'clock that night called at the house of
+Widow Fowler, and under the pretence of drinking, remained there until
+they were informed, or might reasonably presume Collector Stark was gone to
+bed; and about twelve that night, or one next morning, Andrew Wilson and
+William Hall, or one or other of them, did impudently and in defiance of
+law forcibly and with violence break the door of the room where Collector
+Stark was lying in bed, and having knocked out the under pannel, Collector
+Stark suspecting an attack upon his life, for his safety jumped out at a
+window in his shirt; whereupon Andrew Wilson and William Hall, or one or
+other of them, entered the room, and did feloniously carry off bank-notes
+in a pocket-book belonging to Collector Stark, and gold and money in his
+possession to the value of L.200, less or more, and did rob and take away a
+pair of pistols, a seal, a penknife, a cloak bag, a pair of silver
+buckles, a bible, several suits of linens and other goods belonging to
+Collector Stark and in his possession; and when they went out of that room,
+did divide, disperse of, and distribute the gold, money, and other goods so
+robbed and taken away at their pleasure. And while the said Andrew Wilson
+and William Hall were committing the foresaid crimes, the said George
+Robertson was standing, sometimes at the door and sometimes at the foot of
+the stair of said house, as a sentinel and guard, with a drawn cutlass in
+his hand, to prevent any person from interfering and stopping the said
+violence and robbery, and did threaten to kill or otherwise intimidate the
+servants of the house when going towards the door of the collector's room;
+and when several of the inhabitants, alarmed by the noise, gathered
+together upon the street, and coming towards the door, inquired what was
+going on there; he, George Robertson, did treacherously endeavour to
+persuade them not to attempt to enter the house, falsely affirming that he
+had tried to go up stairs, but being in danger of being shot, he was by
+fear obliged to leave the house. And in order to keep them still amused
+with his false suggestion of danger by entering the house, having gone
+along with them into the house of John Hyslop in Pittenweem, he detained
+them there for some time, until he judged that his associates might have
+made their escape with their spoil; and soon afterwards William Hall was
+seized in the street of Anstruther-Easter, between twelve and one next
+morning, being Saturday the 10th January, having several of the goods and a
+purse of gold so robbed in his possession, which he dropped and endeavoured
+to conceal. And they, Andrew Wilson, and George Robertson, having met some
+short time afterwards in the house of said James Wilson in
+Anstruther-Easter, where they were informed that the house was beset,
+conscious of their own guilt, they, one or other of them, did deliver to
+said James Wilson the seal, the penknife, the pair of buckles, some money,
+and other things robbed, telling that if they were found in their
+possession they would be hanged or undone, or words to that purpose,
+expressing an apprehension of the utmost danger; and immediately thereafter
+got into bed, as if they had lain all night asleep, where both were
+apprehended, and upon the top of which bed were found the bank notes robbed
+from Collector Stark, and his pocket-book above another bed in another room
+of the house, &c. Wherefore, on these crimes being confessed or proven, the
+parties ought to be most severely and exemplarily punished with the pains
+of law, in terror of others committing the like in time coming.
+
+The indictment to the foregoing effect was read--the case debated, and the
+Lords ordered both parties to give in informations.
+
+On the 19th March 1736, the Lords found the libel relevant--but allowed
+George Robertson a proof, with respect to his behaviour at the time stated,
+for taking off the circumstances tending to infer his being accessory, or
+art and part of the crimes libelled.
+
+A jury was empannelled, and the trial proceeded. To give even notes of the
+depositions on both sides would exceed our limits. We shall therefore
+merely select the evidence of two or three witnesses, whose statements will
+serve to form a continuation of our narrative, and pass over the remainder
+as unnecessary for our purpose.
+
+The first we shall adduce is the collector, the individual robbed.
+
+James Stark, collector of excise, Kirkcaldy, aged forty-nine years or
+thereby, married, solemnly sworn, purged of malice partial, counsel
+examined and interrogated, depones time and place libelled--the deponent
+being then upon his collection as collector of excise. He went to bed about
+ten o'clock, and about an hour and a-half thereafter, he was waked out of
+sleep by a noise and some chapping at the door of the room where he
+lay--which door he had secured before he went to bed by screwing down the
+sneck of the door--which noise the deponent at first imagined was
+occasioned by some drunken people in the house; but afterwards, upon the
+strokes on the door being repeated with violence, the deponent jumped out
+of his bed, and heard the under part of the door of the bed-room giving
+way, upon which the deponent laid hold upon two bags of money, which, with
+the deponent's breeches, in which were about L.100 in gold, and bank notes
+and silver, the deponent had put below his head when he went to bed; and
+the deponent did then, in the confusion in which he was, put the table and
+some chairs to the back of the door to stap the gap, and thereafter opened
+the window, and returning to find the bags of money and his breeches, he
+could only find one of the bags of money, and being in fear of his life, he
+jumped out at the window with one of the bags of money, and fell at the
+foot of the stair, the said window being just above the entry to the house,
+and recovering himself a little, he went towards the corn-yard, and hearing
+a person call out "Hold him," the deponent apprehending the voice to be
+before him, he returned a few paces, and then perceiving a man standing or
+walking at the foot of the stair, the deponent returned again to the yard,
+where he hid the bag of money, and thereafter coming back towards the house
+to hear what was a-doing, the deponent heard a knocking in the room where
+he had been lodged, and thereupon retired to the yard again--lay covered
+with some straw till about four in the morning--and then returning to the
+house saw the panel, William Hall, in custody of some soldiers; and the
+deponent having said to him that he had given him a cold bath that night,
+William Hall answered that he was not to blame, being only hired, and had
+no hand in it, but that Andrew Wilson and George Robertson had come there
+of a design to rob the deponent that night, and that this design had been
+formed several months before by Andrew Wilson, and particularly at the
+preceding collection at Elie; and further depones that soon after the
+deponent got out of the window as aforesaid, he heard the clock strike
+twelve; that when the deponent was first awakened out of his sleep as
+aforesaid, he heard Mrs Fowler, the landlady, call to the persons who were
+breaking open the deponent's bed-room, "What are ye doing?" or "Why do ye
+this?" and the deponent heard them at the same time cursing and swearing
+and making a great noise; and the deponent having only carried one bag of
+money along with him as aforesaid, he left in said bed-room the money and
+goods following, viz., the deponent's breeches, in which was a purse with
+fifty-two and a-half guineas, betwixt six and seven pounds in silver, and a
+pocket-book with one and forty pounds in bank notes, which purse and
+pocket-book the deponent exhibits in court; that besides the bank notes,
+there were several bills and other papers in the pocket-book, and that
+there was likewise in the deponent's breeches, a seal, a pair of silver
+shoe-buckles, and a penknife, which the deponent likewise exhibits; the
+deponent likewise left in his room a cloak-bag with some linens in it,
+which cloak-bag the deponent likewise exhibits in court; as also a bible, a
+pair of pistols, which the deponent likewise exhibits; that upon the
+deponent returning to his room as aforesaid, he found the door of the room
+broken up, and saw a press in the room which had been broken up, and found
+his breeches empty and all the several particulars above enumerated
+amissing; and thereafter, about seven o'clock in the morning, the deponent
+having gone to Anstruther-Easter, he soon thereafter saw the three panels
+in custody; and the deponent did then see in the hands of the magistrates
+of Anstruther, the seal, the buckles, and penknife above mentioned; depones
+that upon Monday following, being the 12th of January last, William Hall,
+panel, told the deponent that he had informed Alexander Clerk, supervisor
+of excise, where the purse of gold was to be found, whereupon the deponent
+desired the supervisor to go in quest of it, which he did, and having found
+it, he restored it to the deponent with the whole gold in it; and that the
+bible was returned to the deponent by one of the soldiers who apprehended
+Hall; that on Saturday night the 10th of January, the deponent got back his
+pocket-book and bank notes, with the other papers in the said pocket-book,
+from Bailie Robert Brown in Anstruther-Easter. _Causa scientiæ patet. _And
+this is truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) James Stark; Andrew
+Fletcher.
+
+Alexander Clerk, supervisor of excise at Cupar-Fife, being solemnly sworn,
+and depones time and place libelled, the deponent was lodged in the room
+next to Collector Stark, and went to bed about ten, and was wakened about
+twelve by persons rapping either at his door or that of the collector's;
+and heard a cry of "Murder the dogs and burn the house!" upon which the
+deponent swore that the first man that came in he would put a pair of balls
+in him. The deponent then put on some of his clothes and got out at a
+window at the backside of the house,[D] and walked to Anstruther, about a
+mile, and awakened the serjeant who commanded a small party of soldiers
+there, and with the serjeant and two of the soldiers set out for
+Pittenweem, and left orders for the rest of the party to follow as soon as
+possible. As they passed the entry to Sir John Anstruther's house in
+Easter-Anstruther,[E] they met with some men who having challenged the
+deponent, "Who comes there?" the deponent desired them to give an account
+of themselves, and upon their running off, the deponent ordered the
+soldiers to seize them, upon which the serjeant with his halbert hooked one
+of them, the rest escaping, which afterwards proved to be William Hall, one
+of the panels, and whom the deponent carried along with him to the excise
+office at Pittenweem, and having brought him into the house of Mrs Fowler,
+Jean Finlay, servant to Mrs Fowler, upon seeing the said Hall, said, "This
+is the villain that broke my head a little while ago;" and Thomas Durkie,
+another servant in the house, said, "This is one of the persons who robbed
+the collector the night;" and the soldiers who brought Hall produced a bag
+of linen and a bible which they said they had taken up as Hall had dropped
+them by the way; and William Geddes, clerk to the collector, did then say,
+"This is the collector's bible, and there are his linens," whereupon Hall
+confessed that he had been guilty of robbing the collector; and the
+deponent thereupon telling Hall that he was now _in for it_, and that the
+best way for him was to discover the rest, which, if he would do, the
+deponent would do his endeavours to get him made an evidence, and having
+then asked if he promised to get him a pardon? depones that he understood
+it so, but does not remember that he used the word _pardon_; upon which
+Hall told deponent he would get these other persons whom he named;
+remembers particularly that he named Andrew Wilson, panel, to have been one
+of them. That they had come upon four horses that morning from Kinghorn,
+and that he would find them all in the house of James Wilson in
+Anstruther-Easter, or in a house twenty yards on this side of it, which the
+deponent understood to be Bailie Andrew Johnston's.[F] By this time the
+rest of the party having come up from Anstruther, the deponent made some
+search for the collector, but could not find him, and thereafter the
+deponent carried up Hall to the room where the collector had lodged, the
+door of which he saw broken in the under part, and left Hall prisoner there
+in custody of some of the soldiers and the rest of the party, and Thomas
+Durkie and William Geddes. The deponent then went east to Anstruther in
+search of the rest of the robbers, and having surrounded the house of James
+Wilson there, he found three men in a room there, viz., Andrew Wilson and
+George Robertson, panels, and one John Friar, and having shown them to the
+above Thomas Durkie, he declared that they were two of the persons who had
+robbed the collector; upon which the deponent having applied to Bailies
+Robert Brown and Philip Millar, both in Anstruther-Easter, he got the
+accused committed to prison; and further depones that as the panels were
+being carried prisoners to Edinburgh, and while they were halting at
+Kirkcaldy, the deponent asked George Robertson, panel, what was become of
+the collector's purse of gold, George answered that Andrew Wilson, the
+other panel, told him that William Hall got the purse; upon which the
+deponent inquired at Hall about it, and added that unless he confessed and
+discovered where the purse was, he could not expect that the promises made
+would be kept to him; when after some entreaty Hall told deponent that he
+had dropped it upon being seized in a wet furr near a dung-hill, and
+accordingly the deponent went back to Pittenweem, and upon application to
+Bailie Andrew Fowler, of Pittenweem, and in his presence the purse was
+found near to a dung-hill between Anstruther-Wester and Pittenweem, in the
+spot described by Hall, with fifty-two guineas and a-half in it, which
+purse and gold was given to the deponent, and the purse exhibited in court
+being shown to him, he thinks it is the very same purse. And all this is
+truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) Alexander Clerk; Andrew
+Fletcher.
+
+John Galloway, servant to Patrick Galloway, horse-hirer in Kinghorn, aged
+twenty-six, depones that at the time libelled, William Hall came to the
+deponent's master's house in Kinghorn, and desired him to get two horses,
+one for himself and one for the deponent, telling him that they were going
+to Anstruther to get some brandy; and that George Robertson and Andrew
+Wilson were to be their masters and pay their expenses; and desired him to
+go to the houses where they then were. The deponent having gone
+accordingly, and spoken to the said persons, George Robertson desired to
+get their horses ready, and Hall and the deponent to go before and they
+would overtake them; that about six o'clock at night they came to
+Anstruther-Easter, and set up their horses in James Wilson's house, where
+he found Andrew Wilson before him; and after they put up their horses they
+went to Andrew Johnston's there, where they found Robertson and Wilson
+drinking punch. Depones that the three panels and the deponent went from
+Anstruther to Pittenweem on foot, between ten and eleven o'clock at night.
+Depones that when they came to Pittenweem, he (the deponent), Hall, and
+Wilson went into a house, but does not know the name of the landlord, where
+they drank a bottle of ale, and it was agreed while they were there that
+Robertson and the other panel should walk on the street; that when they
+came out of that house, the three panels and the deponent went to Widow
+Fowler's house, where they drank some ale and brandy. Andrew Wilson having
+asked the landlady if she could lodge any casks of brandy for him, she
+desired him to speak low, because the collector was in the house; upon
+which Wilson said, Is he here? She answered, he was. Robertson, the panel,
+called for a reckoning, and all four went down stairs, at least went to the
+stair-head. Robertson, Hall, and the deponent went out to the street, and
+as the maid was going to shut the outer door, Andrew Wilson pushed it open
+and went in, upon which the deponent and William Hall went in also; and
+George Robertson drew his cutlass and stood at the outer door, saying that
+no person should go out or in of that house but upon the point of that
+weapon. Depones when they went in to the house they saw Andrew Wilson
+standing at the door of the room where the collector was lodged, and the
+lower part of the door broken; that upon seeing the door broken, he, the
+deponent, asked Wilson what it meant? or what he would be at? to which
+Wilson answered, that he had lost a great deal of money, and understood
+that there was some of it there, and was resolved to have it back again;
+upon which the deponent said to him, that he would have nothing to do in
+the matter. Depones that after the door of the collector's room was broken
+open as aforesaid, Andrew Wilson went into the room, and brought out a pair
+of breeches, and shewing them to the deponent, said, "Here is a good deal
+of money;" the deponent telling him that he would have nothing to do with
+it, the said Andrew took out several handfuls of money, and put it into the
+deponent's pocket; which money, except a few shillings, the deponent
+delivered back to the said Andrew Wilson in the house of James Wilson in
+Anstruther. Depones that Andrew Wilson went again into the room, and
+brought out a cloak-bag, which he desired the deponent to carry, which he
+refused to do. The said Andrew then carried the cloak-bag himself, till
+they came to the end of the town, together with a pair of pistols, which he
+then delivered to William Hall, who carried it half way to Anstruther, and
+then Andrew Wilson desired Hall to set it down, that they might see if
+there was any bank-notes in it; and Hall, having opened the cloak-bag, took
+out some linens and a bible, which he stowed about himself. That at the
+same time he saw Andrew Wilson take out of his pocket the pocket-book, out
+of which he took several bank-notes and put in his pocket, and then threw
+the pocket-book on the floor. Depones that Andrew Wilson and the deponent
+went out of Wilson's house, and threw one of the pistols and some linens
+which they had brought from Pittenweem in among some straw in a barn-yard;
+thereafter the deponent, Bailie Thomas Brown, Anstruther-Easter, and some
+soldiers, went to the place where the cloak-bag was left, and to the
+barn-yard where the pistols and linen were thrown, where they were all
+found. Being further examined, depones that as Wilson and Hall and the
+deponent were on the road from Pittenweem to Anstruther, a little to the
+west of Sir John Anstruther's house, they met Mr Clerk, the supervisor, and
+some soldiers, who, having challenged him who they were, one of the
+soldiers seized Hall with his halbert, upon which Andrew Wilson and the
+deponent made their escape. Depones that the cutlass now produced is the
+same that George Robertson had in his hand at Widow Fowler's house. _Causa
+scienticæ patet._ And this is truth, as he shall answer to God, and depones
+he cannot write. (Signed) James Mackenzie.
+
+Upon the indictment against the panels being read in court, they all pled
+"Not guilty," and certain defences were offered for them.
+
+And first, in opposition to what the indictment alleged with regard to
+Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob Collector Stark, and having
+taken Hall and Robertson, his associates, from Edinburgh that morning, it
+was stated that they did not set out from Edinburgh in company, but met
+upon the water in the passage between Leith and Kinghorn, where two of
+them, Wilson and Hall, were passing in a yawl, and Robertson was crossing
+in a passage boat; that instead of leaving Edinburgh and going to the East
+Neuk on the criminal design libelled, they had each of them lawful business
+in that part of the country, viz., for buying goods in which they
+ordinarily dealt, and which it was neither criminal nor capital to buy and
+sell; and particularly George Robertson, who kept an inn near Bristo Port
+in Edinburgh, where the Newcastle carriers commonly put up; that having
+occasion to buy liquors in the east of Fife, he agreed to take share of a
+cargo with Andrew Wilson, and with that view got a letter of credit from
+Francis Russell, druggist addressed to Bailie Andrew Waddell, Cellardyke,
+for the value of £50 sterling; and further, he carried with him an accepted
+bill of John Fullerton in Causeyside, to the like extent, as a fund of
+credit for the goods he might buy; and William Hall, the third panel, was a
+poor workman in Edinburgh, commonly attending the weigh-house, who was
+carried along to take care of and fetch home the goods; that accordingly,
+as soon as they came to Anstruther, and put up their horses at James
+Wilson's, they went to a respectable man, Bailie Johnston, and bought goods
+to the value of £46 10s., and whilst making the bargain they drank some
+quantity of liquor; that after this, not finding at Anstruther all the
+sorts of liquor they wanted to purchase, they went on foot to Pittenweem,
+when they first went to the house of ---- Drummond, another respectable
+merchant, and drank some time with him, desiring to buy some brandy of him,
+but he told them he could not furnish them at that time; that after this
+the panels went into the house of Widow Fowler, where, calling for a room,
+they were shown into the kitchen, and inquired at the landlady if she could
+furnish them any place for lodging the goods they had bought, and there
+they drank both ale and punch, till, with what they had got before at
+different places, they became all very drunk; that at this place it was
+told by the landlady or servants, in conversation, that there was money to
+a considerable value in the next room, and if any part of the facts
+libelled were committed by the panels, Wilson and Hall, it must have been
+done upon occasion of this purely accidental information, when they were
+insane from strong drink: it was more like a drunken frolic than a
+preconcerted robbery. As a further evidence of this fact, it appeared by
+the libel itself that they acted like persons in such a condition; for
+they, as well as the other panel Robertson, were all seized in an hour or
+two thereafter, before the effects of the liquor had worn off, and before
+they had time to come to themselves, and without any of them taking the
+most rational and obvious measures to make their escape.
+
+As to the case of George Robertson, it is not said that the inhabitants
+gathered together upon the streets, came there to save or rescue what was
+contained in the room; on the contrary, it was admitted on debate that the
+inhabitants of small coast towns are not very ready on these occasions to
+lend their assistance to the officers of justice; and if George Robertson
+had truly said to the persons whom he met on the street that he was by fear
+obliged to leave the house, it might very possibly have been true, and an
+argument of his innocence, and therefore ought not to be turned into a
+circumstance of his guilt.
+
+Our space will not admit of further argument. Suffice it to say that the
+jury unanimously found Andrew Wilson and William Hall guilty, and George
+Robertson art and part on the crimes libelled; and the Lords of Justiciary
+passed sentence of death on all three, which sentence they appointed to be
+executed on Wednesday the 14th of April 1736.
+
+Leaving the criminals in the condemned cells, where they are to remain five
+weeks before being executed, let us, in the meanwhile, in order to the
+better understanding the case, and forming a clearer opinion in reference
+to the nature and origin of the Porteous mob--one of the most extraordinary
+events recorded in history, and which arose out of the trial and sentence
+against Andrew Wilson and the others before narrated--let us endeavour to
+give a brief sketch of Mr Porteous' history, from his birth till the time
+of which we write, namely, the recording of the sentence of death against
+Wilson and his associates.
+
+John Porteous, one of the captains of the Edinburgh City Guard, was son of
+Stephen Porteous, a tailor in Canongate. The father held a fair character,
+and was esteemed a good honest man in the whole conduct of his life, his
+greatest misfortune was his having such a son as John.
+
+The father early discovered in his son a perverseness of nature, and a
+proneness to commit mischievous and more than childish tricks. The mother,
+out of a blind affection for her child, took them all for growing proofs of
+spirit and manliness, and as marks of an extraordinary and sprightly
+genius.
+
+Thus the family were divided upon the education of the son, and from being
+often thwarted in his measures about him, the father lost his authority,
+and for the peace of his family winked at the faults which the good man saw
+it his duty to correct. The loss of parental authority begot want of filial
+regard, so that the boy, shooting up with these vicious habits and
+disregard of the father, advanced from reproaches and curses to blows,
+whenever the unfortunate old man ventured to remonstrate against the folly
+and madness of his son's conduct.
+
+The mother saw, when it was too late, what her misguided affection had
+produced, and how to her fond love in childhood the man made the base
+return of threatening language and the utmost disregard; for he proved too
+hard for both father and mother at last.
+
+The father having a good business, wanted John to learn his trade of a
+tailor, both because it was easiest and cheapest for the old man, and a
+sure source of good living for the son, whether he began business for
+himself or waited to succeed the father after his death; but as he grew up
+his evil habits increased, and at last when checked by his father in his
+mad career, he almost put the good old man to death by maltreatment.
+
+At last, provoked beyond all endurance, the father resolved to rid himself
+of him by sending him out of the country, and managed to get him engaged to
+serve in the army under the command of Brigadier Newton.
+
+While in Flanders, he saw, in passing along with one of his brother
+soldiers, a hen at a little distance covering her chickens under her wings,
+and out of pure wanton and malicious mischief he fired his musket and shot
+the hen. The poor woman to whom it belonged, startled by the shot, went out
+and saw her hen dead; and following the young soldier, asked him to pay the
+price of the hen and chickens, for both were lost to her, and they formed a
+great part of her means of subsistence; but the unfeeling youth would not
+give her a farthing--threatening if she annoyed him he would send her after
+her hen; upon which the injured old woman predicted, "that as many people
+would one day gaze in wonder on his lifeless body as that hen had feathers
+on hers."
+
+Young Porteous afterwards left the army and returned to London, where he
+wrought for some time as a journeyman tailor; but his evil habits brought
+him to poverty, and he was found in rags by a friend of his father's, who
+wrote to the old man to remit £10 to clothe him and defray his travelling
+charges to Edinburgh, which, moved by the compassion of a father, he did,
+and when John appeared, the kind-hearted old man received him with tears of
+joy, and embraced him with all the warmth of paternal affection. Vainly
+hoping that his son was a reformed man, he gave up his business to him, and
+agreed that he should only have a room in the house and his maintenance and
+clothes.
+
+Young Porteous, thus possessed of the house and trade of his father, and of
+all his other goods and effects, began by degrees to neglect and maltreat
+the old man, first, by refusing him a fire in his room in the middle of
+winter, and even grudging him the benefit of the fire in the kitchen. In
+addition to this, he disallowed him a sufficiency of victuals, so that he
+was in danger of being starved to death with cold and hunger. In this
+unhappy condition he applied for admission into the Trinity Hospital.
+
+John Porteous having been for some time in the army, and being known to be
+possessed of no small courage and daring, was selected by John Campbell,
+lord provost of Edinburgh, in the memorable year 1715, to be drill-sergeant
+of the city-guard, as it became necessary to have the guard well
+disciplined and made as effective as possible in that eventful period, for
+the support of the government and the protection of Edinburgh. In this
+office he discharged his duty remarkably well, and was often sent for by
+the lord provost to report what progress his men made in military
+discipline. This gave him an opportunity of meeting sometimes with a
+gentlewoman who had the charge of the lord provost's house and family, with
+whom he fell deeply in love; after paying his addresses for some time, and
+proposing to her, he was accepted, and they were married. From a grateful
+sense of her services, as well as from a conviction of Porteous's ability
+for the office, the lord provost proposed that John Porteous should be
+elected one of the captains of the city-guard, and it was agreed to.
+
+This was a situation of trust and respectability, and would have enabled
+the young couple to live in comfort and ease if the husband had conducted
+himself properly. The gentlewoman was a person of virtue and merit, but was
+unlucky in her choice of a husband--Porteous was no better a husband than
+he had been a son. They were not long married when he began to ill-use her.
+He dragged her out of bed by the hair of the head, and beat her to the
+effusion of blood. The whole neighbourhood were alarmed sometimes at
+midnight by her shrieks and cries; so much so, indeed, that a lady living
+above them was obliged, between terms, to take a lodging elsewhere for her
+own quiet. Mrs Porteous was obliged to separate from her husband, and this
+was her requital for having been the occasion of his advancement.
+
+His command of the city-guard gave him great opportunities of displaying
+his evil temper, and manifesting his ungovernable passions. Seldom a day
+passed but some of his men experienced his severity. The mob on all public
+occasions excited his naturally bad temper; and on all days of rejoicing,
+when there was a multitude from the country as well as from the town, the
+people were sure to experience offensive and tyrannical treatment from him.
+The hatred and terror of him increased every year, and his character as an
+immoral man was known to everybody, so that he was universally hated and
+feared by the lower orders both in town and country.
+
+This was the position in which Captain Porteous stood with the people when
+he was called upon to take charge of the execution of the law in reference
+to Andrew Wilson, whose case it has been thought proper to detail before
+proceeding to narrate the extraordinary events that followed, and which,
+indeed, partly serves to explain the cause of these events.
+
+We have stated that Andrew Wilson, George Robertson, and William Hall, were
+condemned by the High Court of Justiciary to die on Wednesday the 14th of
+April 1736. Hall was reprieved, but Wilson and Robertson were left to
+suffer the extreme penalty of the law. A plan was concocted to enable them
+to escape out of the Tolbooth, by sawing the iron bars of the window; but
+Wilson, who is described as a "round, squat man," stuck fast, and before he
+could be disentangled the guard were alarmed. It is said that Robertson
+wished to attempt first the escape, and there is little doubt he would have
+succeeded, but he was prevented by Wilson, who obstinately resolved that he
+himself should hazard the experiment. This circumstance seems to have
+operated powerfully on the mind of the criminal, who now accused himself as
+the more immediate cause of his companion's fate. The Tolbooth stood near
+to St Giles' Church; it was customary at that time for criminals to be
+conducted on the last Sunday they had to live to church to hear their last
+sermon preached, and, in accordance with this practice, Wilson and
+Robertson were, upon Sunday the 11th of April, carried from prison to the
+place of worship. They were not well settled there, when Wilson boldly
+attempted to break out, by wrenching himself out of the hands of the four
+armed soldiers. Finding himself disappointed in this, his next care was to
+employ the soldiers till Robertson should escape; this he effected by
+securing two of them in his arms, and after calling out, "_Run, Geordie,
+run for your life_!" snatched hold of a third with his teeth. Thereupon
+Robertson, after tripping up the heels of the fourth soldier, jumped out of
+the pew, and ran over the tops of the seats with incredible agility, the
+audience opening a way for him sufficient to receive them both; in hurrying
+out at the south gate of the church, he stumbled over the collection money.
+Thence he reeled and staggered through the Parliament Close, and got down
+the back stairs, which have now disappeared, often stumbling by the way,
+and thus got into the Cowgate, some of the town-guard being close after
+him. He crossed the Cowgate, ran up the Horse Wynd, and proceeded along the
+Potterrow, the crowd all the way covering his retreat, and by this time
+become so numerous, that it was dangerous for the guard to look after him.
+In the Horse Wynd there was a horse saddled, which he would have mounted,
+but was prevented by the owner. Passing the Crosscauseway, he got into the
+King's Park, and took the Duddingstone road, but seeing two soldiers
+walking that way, he jumped the dyke and made for Clear Burn. On coming
+there, hearing a noise about the house, he stopt short, and, repassing the
+dyke, he retook the route for Duddingstone, under the rocks. When he
+crossed the dyke at Duddingstone, he fainted away; but, after receiving
+some refreshment, the first he had tasted for three days, he passed out of
+town, and, soon after getting a horse, he rode off, and was not afterwards
+heard of, notwithstanding a diligent search.
+
+Upon Robertson's getting out of the church door, Wilson was immediately
+carried out without hearing sermon, and put in close confinement to prevent
+his escape, which the audience seemed much inclined to favour.
+
+Notwithstanding his surprising escape, Robertson came back about a
+fortnight afterwards, and called at a certain house in the neighbourhood of
+Edinburgh. Being talked to by the landlord touching the risk he ran by his
+imprudence, and told that, if caught, he would suffer unpitied as a madman,
+he answered, that as he thought himself indispensably bound to pay the last
+duties to his beloved friend, Andrew Wilson, he had been hitherto detained
+in the country, but that he was determined to steer another course soon. He
+was resolved, however, not to be hanged, pointing to some weapons he had
+about him.
+
+It was strongly surmised that plots were laid for favouring Wilson's
+escape. It was well known that no blood had been shed at the robbery; that
+all the money and effects had been recovered, except a mere trifle; that
+Wilson had suffered severely in the seizure of his goods on several
+occasions by the revenue officers; and that, however erroneous the idea, he
+thought himself justified in making reprisals. Besides, Wilson's conduct
+had excited a very great sympathy in his favour; and the crime for which he
+was condemned was considered very venial at that time by the populace, who
+hated the malt-tax, and saw no more harm in smuggling, or in robbing a
+collector of excise, than in any matter of trifling importance. The
+magistrates of Edinburgh, in order to defeat all attempts at a rescue,
+lodged the executioner the day previous in the Tolbooth, to prevent his
+being carried off; the sentinels were doubled outside the prison; the
+officers of the trained bands were ordered to attend the execution,
+likewise the city constables with their batons; the whole city-guard,
+having ammunition distributed to them, were marched to the place of
+execution with screwed bayonets, and, to make all sure, at desire of the
+lord provost, a battalion of the Welch Fusiliers, commanded by commissioned
+officers, marched up the streets of the city, and took up a position on
+each side of the Lawnmarket; whilst another body of that corps was placed
+under arms at the Canongate guard. A little before two o'clock, Porteous
+came to receive Wilson, the prisoner, from the captain of the city prison.
+He was in a terrible rage, first against Wilson, who had affronted his
+soldiers, and next against the mob, who were charmed with Wilson's generous
+action in the church, and had favoured Robertson's escape. They are always
+on the side of humanity and mercy, unless they are engaged themselves.
+Porteous was also infuriated because the Welch Fusiliers had been brought
+to the Canongate, as if he and his guard had not been sufficient to keep
+down any riot within the city. The manacles were too little for Wilson's
+wrists, who was a strong, powerful man; when the hangman could not make
+them meet, Porteous flew furiously to them, and squeezed the poor man, who
+cried piteously during the operation, till he got them to meet, to the
+exquisite torture of the miserable prisoner, who told him he could not
+entertain one serious thought, so necessary to one in his condition, under
+such intolerable pain. "No matter," said Porteous, "your torment will soon
+be at an end." "Well," said Wilson, "you know not how soon you may be
+placed in my condition; God Almighty forgive you as I do."
+
+This cruel conduct of Porteous' still more embittered the minds of the
+populace, who were sufficiently exasperated against him before, and the
+report of it was soon spread over town and country.
+
+Porteous conducted Wilson to the gallows, where he died very penitent, but
+expressing more sorrow on account of the common frailties of life, than the
+crime for which he suffered. His body was given to his friends, who carried
+it over to Pathhead in Fife, where it was interred; George Robertson
+having, as we have seen, rashly attended the funeral before going abroad.
+
+During the melancholy procession of the criminal and his guard, accompanied
+by the magistrates, ministers, and others from the Old Tolbooth, which
+stood in the Lawnmarket, to the scaffold, which was placed in the
+Grassmarket, there was not the slightest appearance of a riot, nor after
+Wilson had been suspended, until life was extinct, did the least
+manifestation of disturbance occur on the part of a vast crowd of people
+collected from town and country to witness the execution. The magistrates
+of Edinburgh had retired from the scaffold to a house close by--concluding,
+with reason, that as all was over with poor Wilson, no disturbance could
+then happen, and the executioner was actually on the top of the ladder,
+cutting Wilson down, when a few idle men and boys began to throw pebbles,
+stones, or garbage at him (a common practice at that time,) thinking he was
+treating the affair rather ludicrously; whereupon Captain Porteous, who was
+in very bad humour, became highly incensed, and instantly resented, by
+commanding the city-guard, without the slightest authority from the
+magistrates, and without reading the riot act or proclamation according to
+law, to fire their muskets, loaded with ball, and by firing his own fuzee
+among the crowd, by which four persons were killed on the spot, and eleven
+wounded, many of them dangerously, who afterwards died. The magistrates,
+ministers, and constables, who had retired to the first storey of a house
+fronting the street, were themselves in danger of being killed, a ball, as
+was discovered afterwards, having grazed the side of the window where they
+stood. The lord provost and magistrates immediately convened, and ordered
+Captain Porteous to be apprehended and brought before them for examination;
+after taking a precognition, his lordship committed Porteous to close
+imprisonment for trial for the crime of murder; and, next day, fifteen
+sentinels of the guard were also committed to prison, it clearly appearing,
+after a careful examination of the firelocks of the party, that they were
+the persons who had discharged their pieces among the crowd.
+
+On the 25th of March 1736, Captain Porteous was put on trial, at the
+instance of the lord-advocate of Scotland, before the High Court of
+Justiciary, for the murder of Charles Husband, and twelve other persons, on
+the 14th of April preceding, being the day of the execution of Andrew
+Wilson; and after sundry steps of procedure, having been found, by the
+unanimous voice of the jury, guilty, he was, on the 20th of July following,
+sentenced to suffer death in the Grassmarket of Edinburgh, on Wednesday the
+8th of September in the same year--that was, about five months after
+Wilson's execution.
+
+On the 26th of August, the Duke of Newcastle, one of the secretaries of
+state, wrote a letter to the right honourable the lord justice-general,
+justice-clerk, and other lords of justiciary, of which the following is a
+copy:--"My lords, application having been made to her Majesty[G] in the
+behalf of John Porteous, late captain-lieutenant of the city-guard of
+Edinburgh, a prisoner under sentence of death in the gaol of that city, I
+am commanded to signify to your lordships her Majesty's pleasure, that the
+execution of the sentence pronounced against the said John Porteous be
+respited for six weeks from the time appointed for his execution. I am, my
+lords, your lordships' most obedient, humble servant, (Signed) Holles,
+Newcastle."
+
+On receipt of this letter, the lords of justiciary granted warrant to the
+magistrates of Edinburgh for stopping the execution of Porteous till the
+20th day of October following.
+
+The effect of this respite on the minds of the people of Scotland was to
+induce the belief that the government did not intend to carry out the
+sentence of death against Porteous at all--that it was merely a
+preliminary step to his pardon and liberation--and that, so far from
+condemning him, the government had rather taken up a prejudice against the
+town of Edinburgh, on account of the proceedings, and in some measure
+against all Scotland. A number of persons, therefore, who were never
+discovered, resolved to take the matter into their own hands, and on the
+7th of September 1736, a body of strangers, supposed to be from the
+counties of Fife, Stirling, Perth, and Dumfries, many of them landed
+gentlemen, entered the West Port of Edinburgh between nine and ten o'clock
+at night, and having seized the Portsburgh drummer by the way, brought
+along his drum with them, and his son. Some of them advancing up into the
+Grassmarket, commanded the drummer's son to beat to arms. They then called
+out, "Here! all those who dare to avenge innocent blood!" This probably
+was a signal for their associates to fall in. It was followed by instantly
+shutting up the gates of the city, posting guards at each, and flying
+sentinels at all places where a surprise might be expected, while a
+separate detachment threw themselves upon and disarmed the city-guard; and
+seizing the drum, beat about the High Street to notify their success so
+far at least. At that instant, a body of them proceeded to the Tolbooth,
+called for the keeper, and finding he was gone, fell a-breaking the door
+with fore-hammers; but making no great progress in that way, they got
+together a parcel of dried broom, whins, with other combustibles, and
+heaps of timber, and a barrel of pitch, all previously provided for the
+purpose, and taking the flambeaux or torches from the city officers, they
+set fire to the pile. When the magistrates appeared, they repulsed them
+with showers of stones, and threatened, if they continued in the streets
+and offered resistance, they would discharge platoons of fire-arms among
+them; and it is even reported they placed sentinels on the magistrates to
+watch their motions.
+
+Upon the prison door taking fire, two gentlemen made up to the rioters, and
+remonstrated with them on the imminent danger of setting the whole
+neighbourhood on fire, insinuating that this outrage was likely to be
+deeply resented, and might bring them to trouble; to which it was answered
+that they should take care no damage should be done to the city, and that
+as to the rest, they knew their business, and that they (the gentlemen)
+might go about theirs.
+
+Before the prison door was burnt down, several persons rushed through the
+flames, ran up stairs, demanded the keys from the keepers; and though they
+could scarcely see one another for the smoke, got into Captain Porteous'
+apartment, calling, "Where is the murdering villain?" He is said to have
+answered, "Gentlemen, I am here; but what are you going to do with me?"
+When they answered, "We are to carry you to the place where you shed so
+much innocent blood, and hang you." He begged for mercy, but they instantly
+seized and pulled him to the door in his bed-gown and cap; and as he
+struggled, they caught him by the legs and dragged him to the foot of the
+stair, while others set all the rest of the prisoners in the Tolbooth at
+liberty. As soon as Porteous was brought to the street, he was set on his
+feet, and some seized him by the breast, while others pushed behind. He was
+thus conducted to the Bow-head, where they stopped a moment, at the
+pressing solicitation of some of the citizens, on the pretence that he
+might die peaceably, but really that time might be gained, as they expected
+the Welch Fusiliers every moment from the Canongate, or that the garrison
+of the Castle would come to Porteous' relief. By this time some who
+appeared to be the leaders in the enterprise ordered him to march, and he
+was hurried down the Bow and to the gallows stone, where he was to
+kneel,--to confess his manifold sins and wickedness, particularly the
+destruction of human life he had committed in that place, and to offer up
+his petitions to Almighty God for mercy on his soul. After which, in a very
+few minutes, he was led to the fatal tree. A halter being wanting, they
+broke open a shop in the Grassmarket, and took out a coil of ropes, for
+which they left a guinea on the counter,[H] and threw the one end over a
+dyer's cross-trees close by the place of execution. On seeing the rope,
+Porteous made remonstrances, and caught hold of the tree, but being
+disengaged they set him down, and as the noose was about to be put over his
+head, he appeared to gather fresh spirit, struggling and wrenching his head
+and body. Here again some citizens appeared for him, telling that the
+troops being now in full march, they must all expect to be sacrificed, and
+that the artillery of the Castle would doubtless be discharged among them.
+They answered, "No man will die till his time come."
+
+About a quarter of an hour before twelve they put the rope about his neck,
+and ordered him to be pulled up; which being done, observing his hands
+loose, he was let down again; after tying his hands he was hauled up a
+second time, but after a short space, having wrought one of his arms loose,
+he was let down once more, in order to tie it up and cover his face.
+Stripping him of one of the shirts he had on, they wrapped it about his
+head, and got him up a third time with loud huzzas and a ruff of the drum.
+After he had hung a long time, they nailed the rope to the tree; then
+formally saluting one another, grounding their arms, and another ruff of
+the drum, they separated, retired out of town, and numbers of them were
+seen riding off in bodies well mounted to different quarters, leaving the
+body hanging till near five next morning.
+
+Neither the two gentlemen who conversed with the rioters at the Tolbooth,
+nor those who were sent out by the magistrates to see if they knew any of
+them, could say they had ever seen any one of them before, though the
+flames of the fire at the Tolbooth door rendered it as light as noonday;
+so that it was generally believed no citizen acted any principal part in
+the tragedy; though, indeed, it is certain that many of the burgesses and
+inhabitants of Edinburgh, led by curiosity, went to the streets to behold
+the surprising boldness and incredible extravagance of the scene.
+
+Upon the whole, it would seem that the rioters were a body of gentlemen and
+others in disguise, some having masons' aprons, others joiners', fleshers',
+shoemakers', dyers', and those of other trades, who had concerted their
+plot with judgment, conducted it with secresy, executed it with resolution
+and manly daring, and completed the whole in the short space of two hours
+with unparalleled success.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[C] The inn or house here referred to is now demolished. It was a back
+house which stood behind Mr Thomas Foggo's shop, through which there was a
+passage or entry to it; and from its concealed and backlying situation, it
+would seem to have been a very likely place for smugglers to resort to with
+their contraband goods. And here it may be remarked, that less than 100
+years ago, smuggling was very prevalent in the east of Fife; almost every
+merchant and trader in the east coast burghs, and farmers from St Andrews
+all along the southeast coast, were less or more concerned in the
+importation of brandy, gin, teas, silks, and tobacco, &c. The penalties at
+one time were only the forfeiture of the goods seized, and if one vessel's
+cargo escaped out of two or three, it was a profitable trade. The measures
+of Government were then thought to be so stringent and despotic, that men
+of principle, of probity, and integrity in all other respects, manifested
+great obliquity of vision in viewing the traffic in smuggled goods, and
+felt no compunctious visitings in embarking in that trade. In the better
+class of houses in the district, hiding holes and places of concealment
+were always to be found, and some of these places are only now being
+discovered. It is not many years since, that an honest man in Pittenweem,
+while employed in his cellar, fell down into a large concealment capable of
+holding a great many ankers of spirits and boxes of tea, of which he
+previously knew nothing.
+
+[D] The window referred to is still pointed out. It is that at the back of
+the house on the second storey, and is near the north-east corner of the
+tenement.
+
+[E] Anstruther House, which stood a little west, on the opposite side of
+the road, to Mr Russell's printing office, was demolished in 1811.
+According to Miss Strickland, Queen Mary passed a night in it; and it is a
+well established fact that King Charles II. lodged a night there in 1651.
+
+[F] Bailie Johnston's house was that now occupied by Mr William Russell,
+with the brewery behind the same. It was formerly a house of one storey,
+and was rebuilt and heightened on the walls by the late Mr James Rodger, or
+Mr David Rodger his son.
+
+[G] This was Queen Caroline, who was regent of the kingdom during the
+absence of her husband, George the First, at Hanover.
+
+[H] The person who did this was a man of the name of Bruce, belonging to
+Anstruther, who returned some time after to the town, and was well known to
+the late Mrs Black, the mother of the late Admiral Black.
+
+
+THE STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM.
+
+On the 21st of March, 1743, Captain Richard Dundas, commander of the
+frigate _Arethusa_, carrying forty-four guns and 250 men, sailed from
+Deptford with that vessel in perfect order and condition, and bound for
+Leith. The ship was one of the finest in the service, and the commander a
+man of great energy and intelligence. Mr Charles Gordon, superintendent of
+his Majesty's dockyard at Deptford, a young officer of distinguished
+ability and exemplary character, was one of the passengers. No incident
+worthy of notice occurred until they reached St Abb's Head, when they were
+overtaken with a strong adverse gale of wind and heavy snow storm, which
+unfortunately drove them from their course, and prevented sight of land for
+a considerable time. The wind continued to increase in violence, but the
+snow ceased falling for a little, when it was discovered that they had been
+driven past the mouth of the Firth of Forth and were now in St Andrews Bay.
+
+They then close-reefed their sails, and made all snug; and Captain Dundas,
+declaring that they should have to encounter a strong south-easter, all
+their efforts were directed to double the headland of Fifeness and the
+dreaded Carr Rock, and get into the Forth; but their utmost endeavours were
+unavailing, so that the best part of a day was spent in tacking and veering
+to, close in with the land, to no purpose.
+
+The sun set angrily, and the wind veering more adversely, to their utter
+dismay, brought them on a lee shore. The storm increased with the night.
+The snow began again to fall, and neither the stars nor the lights of Tay
+or of the Firth could be seen. The sea was lashed into tremendous fury.
+There was a fearful sullen sound of rushing waves and broken surges--"Deep
+called unto deep." At times the black volume of clouds overhead seemed rent
+asunder by flashes of lightning that quivered along the foaming billows,
+and made the succeeding darkness doubly terrible. The thunders bellowed
+over the wild waste of waters, and were echoed and prolonged by the
+mountain-like waves. As the ship was seen staggering and plunging among
+these roaring caverns, it seemed miraculous that she regained her balance,
+or preserved her buoyancy. Her yards dipped into the water--her bow was
+buried almost beneath the waves. Sometimes an impending surge appeared
+ready to overwhelm her, and nothing but a dexterous movement of the helm
+preserved her from the shock.
+
+"The impervious horrors of a leeward shore" they were doomed to experience
+during a moonless and starless night. They reduced their sails to a few
+yards of canvass, and lowered their yards on deck. The waves, that rolled
+the vessel with irresistible force, threatened to swallow them up; a
+tremendous sea carried away the boat which was hoisted up at the stern, and
+broke in all the bulkheads of the quarters. For safety of lives and
+property, all hands, after being revived with a glass of rum, began to
+throw overboard the guns. The long-boat was then released from her
+lashings; and, as they wished, the waves soon swept her from the deck. The
+two large anchors were cut from the bows, and the vessel, thus eased of a
+heavy top-load, danced more lightly over the tremendous billows, and
+inspired them with fresh hopes. The crew were all ordered to the after part
+of the deck, and again refreshed with another glass of rum and water.
+
+A little before daylight, the captain, who had been anxiously looking out,
+acquainted the officers, so as not to be heard by the crew, that he saw
+breakers nearly ahead, and had no thought of being able to weather them. Mr
+Gordon coincided in this opinion, to which some one said, "Well, we are all
+born to die; I shall go with regret, but certainly not with fear."
+
+The breakers were soon visible to all the crew, being not more than a
+quarter of a mile distant on the lee bow, when Captain Dundas remarked,
+"Our only chance is to put away a point before the wind, or we are sure to
+go broadside into the surf and perish at once."
+
+A heavy sea now struck the vessel, swept the deck fore and aft, and carried
+overboard five of the crew, who instantly sank to rise no more.
+
+The captain seeing a mighty billow approaching, and viewing nothing but
+death before them, exclaimed, "Lord have mercy upon us," and at that moment
+the vessel rose upon a mountain wave to a tremendous height, from whose
+summit she descended with the velocity of lightning, as if she were going
+to bury herself in the remorseless deep. By this rapid movement she was
+precipitated beyond the reach of the breakers, which now rolled behind her
+stern, and burst in impotence, as if incensed at the loss of their destined
+prey. "We are safe!" exclaimed Captain Dundas; "jump, men, from the yards,
+and make sail." This they did with tumultuous joy, which Mr Gordon checked,
+and said to them, "Whilst you are working silently, thank God for your
+miraculous preservation." The sea upon which the vessel rose was the means
+of her preservation and that of her crew. Probably there was not, if the
+sea had been calm, a depth of two feet water on the Carr Rock, for it was
+that dangerous reef she had passed; but the mighty wave carried her safe
+over at a moment when every hope but that of immortality was gone from the
+minds of the ship's company.[I]
+
+The tempest having somewhat abated, and the wind veered round to a more
+favourable quarter, the vessel rode more smoothly, and the hour of eight
+being arrived, all hands were enabled to sit up and take coffee for
+breakfast.
+
+For about three hours the ship had been working up the Firth, and had come
+off Anstruther, into which port she entered shortly afterwards, in order
+to undergo a survey, and get all necessary repairs completed in hull and
+rigging; and as the vessel had been seen from the _Windmill Tower_ and the
+_Brae_ all the morning to be in great distress, the eastern pier (for the
+west pier had not then been built) was crowded with spectators to witness
+her arrival.
+
+Amongst others who had gone down the pier was Captain John Cunningham, the
+provost or chief magistrate of the burgh, who, being a sea captain himself,
+deeply sympathised both as a sailor and a man with the officers and crew of
+the _Arethusa_, on seeing them in such a miserable plight, and proffered to
+afford them all the aid and assistance in his power. He got into
+conversation with Mr Gordon, and found him so intelligent and gentlemanly
+in his manners, that he invited him to his house (which stood in the Shore
+Street, and on the east side of the Pend Wynd, and was that which formerly
+belonged to the late Mr Willis, collector of customs, and is presently
+possessed by Mrs Rodger, Mr Imrie, and others), until the vessel was
+repaired and made ready for sea. Mr Gordon thanked him for his kindness,
+and cordially accepted his hospitable invitation.
+
+Anstruther is a small country town, pleasantly situated on the banks of the
+Forth. It is a favourable specimen of a good old Scottish town. There is an
+old town-hall, and an old burgh school, (lately rebuilt,) an old jail, and
+an old bridge, besides an old church, now completely renewed and repaired,
+and forming, with the steeple, a handsome edifice, situated on the ridge or
+high ground above the town. The manse, a fine old building, placed on the
+summit of the same ridge near the church, was built by James Melville,
+minister of the place in the reign of James VI. It afterwards became the
+property of the Anstruther family, who, it is supposed, presented it to the
+town, or exchanged it for a house in the _Pend Wynd_, now belonging to Mr
+John Darsie, which was occupied for some time as the manse. At the time of
+which we write, there was a fine old baronial mansion, called "Anstruther
+Place," which stood near the present junction of the Crail and St Andrews
+roads. It belonged to the above-mentioned ancient family, the Anstruthers
+of Anstruther, whose progenitor was a Norman warrior that came to Britain
+with William the Conqueror. It was a mansion as large as Balcaskie,
+surmounted by a tower, and surrounded by fine old ancestral trees. A
+magnificent hall graced its interior, large enough to contain a company of
+volunteers, or local militiamen at drill, within its four corners. In
+addition to these old buildings, which gave a peculiar character to the
+place, there were a good many handsome new houses in the town of
+Anstruther, for it was far from being in a state of decay. Many wealthy and
+intelligent families chose it for their residence. It was the seat of a
+custom-house and excise-office. There was a branch of the Paisley Bank
+established in the town, under the management of a Mr Henry Russell, of the
+customs, and the bank office was kept in that shop now belonging to Mr
+James Reddie, ironmonger.[J] There was also a Greenland Whale Fishing
+Company connected with the town, of which a Bailie Johnston was manager.
+The company's place of business was situated in the East Green, and is now
+the property of Mr Robert Todd, and it is still known to old people by the
+name of the Greenland Close. There is, or was lately, an old stone placed
+over the door at the southern entrance into the yard, indicating the
+nature of the manufacture formerly carried on therein.[K] And before the
+Reform Bill was passed, Anstruther-Easter joined with the other four
+burghs of the district in sending a member to Parliament. Many thriving
+and respectable trades-people, whose forefathers had resided there for
+generations, and who looked upon the old buildings of their native town
+with something of the same sort of feeling as the landowner surveys the
+oaks which encircle his paternal hall, regarded it with pride and
+veneration. Perhaps no town of its size in Scotland could be named where
+so much good feeling prevailed among all classes. An eminent physician,
+who came to settle in the place, expressed his astonishment at the amount
+of private charity distributed. If a poor man met with any accident, every
+kind assistance was given him by his wealthier neighbours. If a small
+tradesman suffered a loss, or a carter his horse, or a widow's cow died, a
+subscription was set on foot, and the accident often turned out a gain,
+rather than a loss.
+
+The old Castle of Dreel, another ancient seat of the Anstruther family,
+stood on the east side of the Dreel Burn, at its entrance into the sea.
+Several curious traditions are in circulation respecting this old baronial
+residence and its proprietors. The castle has entirely disappeared, and its
+site is now partly occupied by fish-curing premises, and partly by a large
+antiquated tenement called Wightman's house. Some eminent men have been
+born in Anstruther, among whom may be mentioned Drs Chalmers and Tennant,
+and Professor Goodsir.
+
+Such is a brief description of Anstruther at the time of which we write.
+It is unnecessary to give a particular account of it at the present day,
+because its trade and commerce, its fishing, farming, and shipping
+interests--its new buildings and projected undertakings--its Sunday
+schools and provident societies, and savings' banks and subscription
+libraries, are familiar to the most of my readers.
+
+Captain Cunningham, the chief magistrate of Anstruther, was a wealthy and
+respectable shipowner, and his family consisted of a son about twenty, and
+a daughter about seventeen years of age, besides some younger children. Mr
+Gordon, their guest, then in his twenty-fifth year, was a light-hearted and
+rising young officer. He was, at first, a little impatient of the delay
+occasioned by the repairs of the vessel, the superintendence of which fell
+to be his duty; but circumstances soon occurred which checked this
+impatience, and more than reconciled him to his present quarters.
+
+As Christina Cunningham is destined to occupy no unimportant position in
+this narrative, some description of her will therefore be necessary.
+
+Let us endeavour to draw her portrait.
+
+She was not only beautiful, but full of life and animation, her smiling
+face being the true index of a cheerful, happy disposition. Gentle,
+amiable, affectionate, good-natured, she was beloved by all who knew her;
+although, from a maidenly modesty and a natural reserve, she was really
+known by few. With the figure of a sylph, and the face of a Hebe, she had
+luxuriant hair of the darkest possible chestnut, wreathed generally in
+thick cable plaits round her beautifully-shaped head, which, owing to the
+fashion of that day, as well as of the present, of wearing the bonnets on
+the shoulders, enabled her well-formed head to be seen to the greatest
+advantage. In the delicate outline of her faultless features, there was a
+harmony that made of her whole face a concerted loveliness of form, colour,
+and expression, that was irresistible. Hackneyed as the simile is, her skin
+was literally like snow, upon which blush rose-leaves seemed to have
+fallen. Her long-cut oriental-looking eyes, were "deeply, darkly,
+beautifully blue," while their heavy, snowy lids were fringed with long
+black silken lashes, that seemed to be continually trying to salute her
+cheeks, for which no one could possibly blame them. Her nose was, to say
+the least, irreproachable. Then came the rich red pouting under, and the
+short chisselled upper lip; the beautiful pearly arched teeth within them;
+the little round velvety chin, and the perfectly oval peach-like cheeks. In
+short, so pretty a creature was seldom to be seen.
+
+But Miss Cunningham was something _more_ than beautiful, she was amiable,
+and gentle, and affectionate; and besides, she was a Christian in the full
+and true sense of the word; and, young as she was, she had learned to look
+upon herself as a sinner, however innocent and pure she might appear in the
+eyes of men. While enjoying the blessings of health, peace, and competence,
+that providence had poured upon her, she looked upon them all as undeserved
+mercies, marks and tokens of her heavenly Father's love--a love manifested
+in man's redemption, in a way surpassing all understanding. Where on earth
+can there be found a more lovely character than that in which are blended
+true religion and natural amiability, rectitude of conduct, and tenderness
+of disposition?
+
+Residing under the same roof with Miss Cunningham, who can wonder that,
+before many weeks had elapsed, Mr Gordon was as devoted to Captain
+Cunningham's daughter as any young and ardent lover could be. Miss
+Cunningham was not conscious of any deeper feeling than that of
+affectionate friendship, nor was it till some time after that her heart
+told her, that Charles Gordon occupied a place in her affections, which
+could be held by one, and by one only.
+
+Several weeks had passed away, the repairs of the _Arethusa_ had been
+nearly completed, and the time was fast approaching when Charles Gordon
+would be obliged to depart from Anstruther. It happened, however, that a
+day or two previously to his leaving, a party of pleasure was planned for
+visiting Kellie Law, near Carnbee, and Macduff's Cave, near Earlsferry. The
+party consisted of Mr John Cunningham, junior, and his sister, and Mr
+Gordon and Miss Anderson, the daughter of an opulent merchant in the town.
+A vehicle having been hired for the occasion, a drive of about an hour
+brought the excursionists to Kellie Law. Having put up the horse and
+equipage at Gillingshill, and partaken of the hospitality of the occupants,
+they ascended this beautiful conical eminence, which is 800 feet above the
+level of the sea, and about four miles distant from it, and rises from the
+ridge running eastward from Largo Law. From the summit of Kellie Law, on
+which there is a large cairn of stones, one of the most magnificent views
+in Scotland is obtained. Immediately below, to the south, is a rich and
+beautiful stretch of country, all enclosed and highly cultivated; an
+extensive range of sea-coast, studded with numerous little towns and
+villages; the ample bosom of the Firth of Forth, enlivened with shipping
+and fishing-boats; and in the extreme distance, the coast of the Lothians,
+from St Abb's Head to Edinburgh. Near the south base of this hill stands
+Kellie Castle, a fine baronial seat of the Earls of Kellie, surrounded by
+old trees, and containing some princely apartments. Sir Thomas Erskine of
+Gogar was one of those who rescued James VI. from the attempt of the Earl
+of Gowrie to assassinate him at Perth in 1600, and killed the earl's
+brother with his own hand. He was created Viscount Fenton in 1606, and Earl
+of Kellie in 1619. The earldom merged into that of Marr on the death of
+Methven, tenth Earl of Kellie, who was great-grand-uncle to Sir Thomas
+Erskine of Cambo, the present baronet. It is said these earldoms may, and
+probably will, be again disjoined, and the titles and honours of Marr and
+Kellie inherited by two distinct noblemen.
+
+After enjoying the splendid prospect from Kellie Law, the party set off for
+Elie, on their way to view the caves in Kincraig Hill. The drive between
+Gillingshill and Elie is delightful. The turnpike road passes in some
+places through a long line of tall trees, arching high overhead, and
+showing, at the termination, picturesque vistas. It skirts Kilconquhar
+Loch, and affords not very distant views of Charlton and Balcarres,
+Colinsburgh and Cairnie House; and passing through Kilconquhar, the
+beautiful church of the parish and manse (which do credit to the heritors)
+are close by. The noble mansions of Elie and Kilconquhar, in the immediate
+neighbourhood, are also seen, surrounded with fine old trees, and standing
+in a rich and fertile district.
+
+On arriving at Elie, the party gave the horse and vehicle in charge of the
+hostler, and set out on foot for Kincraig. Immediately from the beach, at
+the south-west end of the parish, Kincraig Hill rises to the height of
+about two hundred feet above the level of the sea. Its southern front
+presents a nearly perpendicular rugged wall of trap rock, of the most
+picturesque appearance, and in these rocks are several caves, called
+Macduff's Cave, the Hall Cave, and the Devil's Cave. There is a tradition
+that Macduff, the Maormar or Earl of Fife, in his flight from the vengeance
+of Macbeth, was concealed in the cave which still bears his name, and was
+afterwards ferried across the Firth to Dunbar by the fishermen of the
+place, from which circumstance it was called "Earlsferry;" and, besides
+being constituted a royal burgh by Malcolm III, about 1057, it obtained the
+privilege, that the persons of all, in flight, who should cross the Firth
+from thence, should be for a time inviolable--no boat being allowed to
+leave the shore in pursuit, till those who were pursued were half-seas
+over.
+
+The party now resolved that they should partake of luncheon on the
+greensward, to fortify themselves for their proposed expedition among the
+cliffs. While the viands were being produced, Mr Gordon set forth of
+himself in quest of a very rare plant, which he was informed grew in this
+locality.
+
+On observing a group of persons gazing anxiously upwards at the overhanging
+cliffs, he joined them, inquiring on what their attention was so earnestly
+fixed. The persons addressed spoke not, but pointed to a spot about
+half-way up the face of the rock. Mr Gordon looked in the direction
+indicated, when, to his horror, he beheld a boy, apparently of about
+fifteen years of age, climbing along a stony ledge, which was so narrow as
+to be hardly visible from the spot where the group of terrified beholders
+was stationed. Scarcely had there been time for Mr Gordon to fix his eye on
+the human form that had reached so perilous a position, when a portion of
+the ledge of rock on which the unhappy boy was standing gave way--a loud
+scream rent the air, echoing through the cliffs--and in another instant all
+that remained of him was a lifeless, mangled corpse. The poor fellow's
+story is soon told. He was an idiot, and having wandered from his mother's
+side, had reached the fatal spot, no one knew how, and thus met a fearful
+death.
+
+His poor mother witnessed the dreadful catastrophe, and agonizing was her
+grief as she followed the body of her child, which was borne on the
+shoulders of the awe-struck villagers to her home. Mr Gordon also followed
+the body to the house, and, feeling that at such a time any attempt at
+comforting the childless widow would be of no avail, he merely placed a sum
+of money in the hands of a respectable-looking person, a bystander, for her
+use, and slowly and sick at heart he was in the act of returning to his
+friends, when he met Christina Cunningham, who was in search of him, for
+the purpose of bringing him back to luncheon. She saw that he was deadly
+pale, and hurriedly asked if he felt ill. He told her all that had
+happened.
+
+"Oh!" she exclaimed, "if it had been _you_!"
+
+"Well, Miss Cunningham," he replied, carelessly, "and if it had, few would
+have missed me. I should probably have had fewer mourners than that poor
+idiot boy."
+
+"Oh, how can you say so?" she returned, and bending down her head, became
+visibly agitated. And yet poor Christina knew not, even now, that she loved
+Charles Gordon: she understood not the true cause of the beatings of her
+disturbed heart. He looked at her. As he looked, a momentary smile passed
+over his features, which was soon exchanged for an expression of deep
+sorrow, as he thought of the lonely widow, bending over the lifeless form
+of her lost son. The sad story was related to the rest of the party, and
+all cheerfulness for the time was at an end.
+
+This was destined to be an eventful day. Another calamity--and one that,
+although it was not attended with fatal results, affected Charles more than
+that which had occurred--was yet to take place. We have said that there
+were some remarkable caves at this place, which had long been objects of
+interest to the traveller and excursionist. One there is in particular,
+called the Devil's Cave, which penetrates far into the heart of the rock,
+on the face of which lies its entrance. From the steepness of the path
+which leads into this cavern, it is rarely visited by tourists. The party,
+however, with perhaps more curiosity than prudence, determined to explore
+and visit this cave. A female guide was procured, and a candle supplied to
+each person. All being ready, in single file they entered the mouth of the
+cavern, carefully groping their way, not without difficulty. Miss Anderson
+soon lost courage, and turned back, stating that she and Mr Cunningham
+would return to the inn at Elie, and prepare tea; the other two resolved to
+proceed along with the guide. The aperture through which they had to pass
+became at length so low, and so narrow, that a consultation was held, and
+it was agreed that it would be prudent to return. Charles now led the way
+as they retraced their steps. He had not proceeded far when he heard a
+heavy fall, and turning quickly round, beheld, to his horror, Christina
+stretched upon the humid soil of the cavern; her eyes were closed, and her
+candle had fallen from her hand. Whether bad air had struck her down or
+not, he could not tell. For an instant he believed her to be dead, but,
+bending over her, he perceived that she breathed. What was now to be done?
+Only one plan lay before him which he could adopt. Giving his candle to the
+guide, and directing her to keep in front of him, holding the light so as
+he could see, he raised Miss Cunningham in his arms, and with all the
+strength he was master of, bore her along in the direction of the entrance.
+The roof of the cave was so low, that it was impossible to maintain an
+upright position, and his strength so entirely failed him that he was
+obliged to stop and take a rest before he could proceed with his precious
+burden. On reaching the mouth or entrance of the now detested cave, signs
+of returning consciousness began to appear in the poor sufferer. On
+breathing the fresh air of heaven, she opened her eyes for a moment, then
+closed them again, drawing several long and apparently painful
+respirations. Charles placed her on a grassy bank, and seating himself
+beside her, supported her by placing his arm round her waist. The guide was
+despatched for water. By and by, Christina, looking round, said with her
+own sweet smile, "I am better now." Charles pressed the form of her whom he
+already loved so well, to himself, and then assisting her to rise, with
+slow and measured steps they returned to Elie.
+
+"You are very tired, I fear, and I am the cause," said Christina, as she
+leaned on Charles's arm, turning her face to his.
+
+For a moment their eyes met, those of Christina fell, while a shade of
+colour tinged her still pallid face. She had met a look in Charles's face
+that she had never seen there before. She again relapsed into silence.
+
+Charles, in reply to her remark, uttered something that was inaudible; the
+name of "Christina," however, was substituted for that of "Miss
+Cunningham."
+
+Any endeavour to conceal what had occurred would have been useless. The
+pale face of the sufferer plainly told that she had been ill, and general
+was the consternation of all on hearing what had happened. Charles resigned
+her to the care of Miss Anderson and the hostess, and, passing to the
+little parlour of the village inn, flung himself on the sofa in a state of
+complete exhaustion.
+
+Long he remained buried in thought. At length his good nature and
+compassion prompted him to visit once more the poor, childless widow, while
+preparations were being made for their return to Anstruther. She was alone
+with the body of her idiot son. Carefully had she cleansed away the blood
+and dust from his face, which now appeared to exhibit more intelligence in
+death than it had done in life.
+
+As Charles entered, the poor Irish widow exclaimed,--"May the blessing of
+the Great God, who is above us this day, be about ye, and wid ye for ever
+and ever, my jewel young gentleman!" She held in her hand the money that he
+had left for her, and added, "Sure isn't there enough here for the poor
+lone widow, to buy her darlint son a dacent coffin for to lay him in the
+could earth, in the land of the stranger, before she goes far, far away, to
+a land beyant the rowling say (referring to America). You've given me money
+when I wanted it sore, an' the blessin' of the lone widow woman will be wid
+you wherever ye go; but none can give me back my boy! Oh, Patrick, jewel!
+why did ye die? Och, my poor boy! my poor boy! my poor boy!"
+
+The tears came into Charles's eyes as he listened to this pathetic
+lamentation, but longer he could not remain. He succeeded, however, in
+learning that she had resolved to accede to a proposal of her sister's, to
+join her in America, which his gift had provided her with the means of
+accomplishing.
+
+The drive to Anstruther was speedily made out, and in few days Miss
+Cunningham was quite restored to her usual state of health and enjoyment.
+
+Time rolled on. The _Arethusa_ has sailed. Mr Gordon has returned to
+Deptford, and resumed his ordinary duties. Has all intercourse ceased
+between him and Miss Cunningham? Assuredly not. Many a kind letter has
+passed between them. She has been to England visiting his sister, at that
+sister's kind invitation, and is come back to Anstruther. Charles has
+proposed to her, and been accepted, and has obtained a special licence for
+their marriage. He comes back to Anstruther to claim his bride.
+
+If you, my reader, were at this moment greedily perusing a modern novel,
+you would here be gratified by a very romantic and touching account, three
+or four pages long at least, of the meeting of the two ardent lovers after
+a long separation; smiles and tears, sighs and sobs, broken accents,
+protestations of eternal love and fidelity, and all that sort of thing.
+Here you will find nothing of the kind. I very much doubt myself as to
+whether anything of the kind took place in this instance at all; I rather
+imagine the meeting was a calm and quietly happy one, without anything
+strikingly romantic or stage-like about it. But even suppose there had
+been, and that I had been present to see, (which, by the by, would have
+been an awkward enough situation for me, or any other third party, to have
+found himself in) ought we to have disclosed it? Certainly not; such a
+scene, every one knows, ought to be strictly private and confidential
+Suffice it then to say, that doubtless both, parties found themselves
+extremely comfortable and happy.
+
+Let me now convey you, in thought, backwards one hundred and fourteen
+years, and place you in the street of Pittenweem, opposite the Scottish
+Episcopal Chapel. We see a crowd; let us inquire what is the occasion of
+it.
+
+"What is this crowd collecting for, so early this morning?"
+
+"There's going to be a wedding, ma'am."
+
+"Do you know whose wedding it is?"
+
+"No ma'am, I don't; I'm only here to keep order--nothing else to do with
+it."
+
+It is some time since we have seen a wedding, suppose we go into church.
+Here we are. We shall have a nice view of them from that front pew in the
+gallery. How tastefully the chapel is decorated with foliage and flowers!
+Make haste! I hear the carriages coming, that will do. Wait! here they
+come, only fancy, it's Christina Cunningham, and--Who? Charles Gordon, I
+declare. How nicely he looks in his naval uniform. Then the reports were
+all true. Poor Christina! she's very much agitated. I suppose being married
+must be rather nervous work. The clergyman who is marrying them is a
+relation of the bridegroom's--he's rector of a large parish near
+Deptford--how beautifully he reads. And there is our dear old clergyman, Mr
+Spence, assisting him, how happy he looks. They say he has known the bride
+since she was an infant, and the bridegroom for some time. There!--she's no
+longer Christina Cunningham! I wonder where they are going to after
+breakfast? Blessings on them both!
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[I] On account of the many accidents which happen almost yearly at the Carr
+Rock, some plan for marking its dangerous locality has long been an object
+of deep solicitude. The writer recollects of a round tower of some height
+having been built on the rock, on the same principle as that on the Bell
+Rock, but it was soon overthrown by the first winter's storm, because there
+was not a sufficient surface of rock at the base to admit of a strong
+enough building being placed upon it. But might not an erection be made of
+strong bars of iron, and a large bell placed on its summit, with an iron
+cylinder in the centre, perforated with holes to admit the sea water?
+Within the cylinder let a powerful floater be placed, which by the
+perpetual action of the tides' ebb and flow, would cause the bell to ring,
+and so give timeous warning of danger near. Or, another method might be
+adopted, viz., Let a steady officer be stationed at Fifeness, whose duty it
+should be to fire a gun, say a six or eight-pounder, at short intervals in
+snow storms, or in thick and foggy weather, when neither the land during
+the day, nor the stars or lights at night, can be seen. In either way the
+expense would be trifling, and the benefit might be great. Captains of
+steamers and of other vessels enveloped in the fog would then, on hearing
+the sound of the bell or gun, know where they were, and would take their
+bearings from Fifeness accordingly.
+
+[J] The principles of banking seem to have been imperfectly understood in
+our fathers' days, for it appears that, at the Anstruther branch, there was
+a certain fixed sum _per month_ allotted for bills to be discounted. When
+that sum was exhausted, it mattered not what further sum was wanted, there
+were no more discounts allowed that month. It followed, that the most
+_needy_ were always, at the beginning of the month, the _earliest_
+customers, and, consequently, post-due bills became the rule, retired bills
+the exception. Under these circumstances, it is not difficult to foresee
+what would be the result. The bank was closed at no distant period, and the
+agent, it is said, lost L1500 of his own money. No other banking company
+attempted to establish a bank in Anstruther till May 1832, when the
+National Bank of Scotland opened a branch under the management of Mr F.
+Conolly, town-clerk, which he conducted successfully for twenty-five years.
+A handsome new building has lately been erected for the use of this bank.
+Two other branch banks have been opened in the town.
+
+[K] There were two vessels belonging to the company, one named the _Hawk_,
+and the other the _Rising Sun_. The _Hawk_ was lost on her first voyage,
+and Bailie Meldrum--some time chief magistrate of Anstruther-Wester--one of
+the crew, lost the toes of both his feet by frost-bite. The undertaking did
+not prove a successful one; the company was dissolved; and the premises,
+which were sold to the late John Miller, senior, shipowner in Anstruther,
+afterwards became, as I said, the property of Mr Todd.
+
+
+
+
+A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR.
+
+
+It was a beautiful evening in the month of September--the air still and
+serene, forming a delightful change from the sultry heat of the day, which
+had been oppressive in the extreme. Nature seemed to have redoubled her
+energies; the swallows twittered cheerfully over the small pond; the bees
+returned laden with the rich fruits of their industry, humming their
+satisfaction; the heath sent its fragrance around; and the few sheep that
+Simon Wallace attended were nibbling earnestly the stunted grass, having
+spent the greater part of the day in the shade of a small knoll, listless
+from the heat which oppressed them. In the midst stood Simon, enjoying the
+scene around him, which, barren and desolate as it might be in the eyes of
+a stranger, was to him the loveliest spot in the universe; nor would he
+have bade it farewell to dwell in the most fertile vale in the Lothians.
+Here he had been born sixty summers before, and here he had enjoyed as much
+of happiness as falls to the lot of man. Humble and content, his wishes
+were bounded by the few acres of moss land that his fathers had reclaimed
+from the waste, and his knowledge of the busy world that lay beyond the
+hills that bounded the horizon around his humble cottage, was derived from
+a few books. Farther than the next market-town, Mid-Calder, he had never
+been, save upon one occasion--an important epoch in his life--when, upon
+some business of importance, concerning his lease, he had visited the
+capital, the wonders of which had been a never-failing subject of discourse
+at his humble hearth; yet, Simon was not ignorant, for he made good profit
+of the few books he could procure; and there was one--the fountain of all
+knowledge--he knew so well, that even Esdras, the holy scribe, could
+scarcely have found him at fault, in pointing out all the most beautiful of
+the inspired passages. His constant companion, he had been reading it on
+the hill for the last hour, and now, before retiring to his home for the
+night, he stood there in mental prayer, his face turned to the setting sun,
+which sunk beyond a sea of clouds, tinged with the most gorgeous colours,
+and his mind away among the bright realms of eternal felicity. A faint
+breeze had arisen, and the heavy clouds began to sail along, denoting rain,
+when he gave his orders to his faithful dog, to gather his sheep for the
+night, and urged him to be active, to enable him to proceed home before the
+shower came on. Looking along in the direction of the road that led through
+the moor, he thought he could perceive, at a considerable distance, three
+objects, urging their way forward; and, through the gloom, he with
+difficulty made them out to be a man and two females upon horseback. A
+feeling of surprise crossed his mind, as he saw travellers journeying over
+the moor, at a period when it was not usual, except upon urgent business,
+to leave Mid-Calder at a late hour, and proceed along roads almost
+impassable, with no other prospect than a night journey, in dangerous and
+troubled times. Musing on the circumstance, he had just reached the road on
+his way to his cottage, when the travellers came up and accosted him with
+an inquiry if they could find shelter for the night, as they had been
+overtaken by the storm, and one of the females had been taken suddenly ill
+since they had left the last town. With an apology for the poorness of his
+accommodation, Simon made them welcome to his home, and led the way
+homewards. Neither of the females spoke; but he thought he heard one of
+them utter, at intervals, a stifled groan, while the other supported her on
+her saddle, and the male led her horse over the rough path to prevent its
+stumbling. A few minutes brought them to the house, and they were soon
+seated by the blazing hearth, while Helen Wallace was busy preparing for
+them some humble refreshments; but the lady continued to become worse--she
+had been taken in labour, prematurely, as the female said, from the fatigue
+of travelling. She appeared to be of a rank far above her companions, who
+treated her with lowly attentions; but there was something harsh and
+forbidding in the manner and appearance of the man, which made Helen quail,
+and feel uneasy in his presence; and the female, who was above the middle
+age, and of a masculine appearance, had a harshness of voice and manner,
+that was disagreeable, even to the rustic wife of the moorland farmer. The
+young and beautiful female they attended--apparently not above eighteen,
+pale and dejected, her eyes red and swollen with weeping--had not, as yet,
+uttered a single word; but, apparently fearful of her attendants,
+especially the female, who sat close by her at the fire, had cast several
+stolen and imploring glances at Helen, and seemed anxious to speak, but
+afraid to give utterance to her thoughts.
+
+The lady rapidly grew worse, and was put into their only spare bed, while
+Helen requested her husband to take one of the horses and ride to the town
+for assistance. This the man promptly forbade--saying, that the other
+attendant, a skilful woman, was capable of doing all that was required at
+such a time, with the assistance of the farmer's wife; that they were on
+their way to the residence of his master when the present unfortunate
+illness had occurred much sooner than was expected; that he had in the
+_valise_ with him everything requisite; and that for any trouble the farmer
+or his wife might be put to, they should be amply rewarded. The cottage
+consisted of only one apartment, divided by a hallen or thin partition,
+which did not extend beyond the centre of the floor, to protect the
+fire-place from the blasts of winter; and Simon and the stranger retired to
+a small distance from the door, where they stood and saw the full moon
+rising in grandeur in the east. In vain the farmer endeavoured to gain any
+information from his companion of who the strangers were, and whither they
+were going. He got only an evasive answer. His position was extraordinary
+and uncomfortable. Three hours had passed: no person appeared from the
+house; his unsocial acquaintance scarcely spoke; a scowl in his eye, and a
+shade of ferocity in his countenance, alarmed him; his whole soul,
+sometimes intent upon some signal from the cottage, at other periods became
+absent; and he clutched at the sword that hung by his side, as if he meant
+to draw it and attack the farmer, endeavouring again, in a husky voice, to
+make an apology for the inconvenience they had put him to. At length Helen
+came to the door, and requested them to come into the house, for the lady
+was now better.
+
+"What has she got?" inquired Simon.
+
+"Two beautiful boys as ever I saw," answered the wife; "--but one of them
+is dead, and the mother is very weak."
+
+While this and some other conversation passed between the farmer and his
+wife, the man and the woman were busy whispering at the other end of the
+house; but they at length approached the hearth and partook of some
+refreshment which had been prepared for them. The farmer offered the
+female, for the remainder of the night, the use of their only other bed;
+but both the man and the woman objected to this proposition--saying, that
+they preferred to sit by the hearth and attend to their mistress, and
+requesting that their hosts should retire to it themselves. This they did,
+and soon both fell into a sound sleep. Helen awoke about two hours
+afterwards, and, to her astonishment, found that neither of the two
+attendants was in the cottage. She arose and went to the bed of the sick
+lady, who lay apparently in a deep and troubled sleep, with the babe in her
+bosom. She looked for the body of its brother; but it was gone. She felt
+alarmed, and gently awaking Simon, in a whisper told him to arise. He was
+soon dressed, and, on going out, found that the strangers were gone, the
+horses were away, and with them everything that had been brought, even to
+the dress the lady had worn upon her arrival. In great anxiety they
+approached the bed: the lady still appeared in a deep sleep; her breathing
+was heavy and laborious, every attempt to awaken her was in vain; her eyes
+were opened and closed unconsciously, and without a word of utterance.
+
+"Surely," said Helen, with clasped hands, "that woman hasna poisoned the
+puir young creature wi' that mixture she requested me to gie her just
+before I ca'ed you into the house. She said it was to compose her to sleep.
+She had offered it to the lady hersel, who, being afraid o' her, wadna
+taste it. Then she gave me the cup, and I offered it. O Simon! what a
+piteous look she threw upon me, as she said, 'From you I will take
+anything; you, I know, will not do me harm'--and she drank it from my
+hands. Surely, surely, I am not guilty of her blood, if death was in that
+cup!"
+
+Here the poor woman sank upon the side of the bed in a passion of tears,
+while Simon stood the image of horror, gazing alternately upon his wife and
+the unconscious lady in the bed. Sinking upon his knees, he prayed for
+counsel in this hour of distress, and his mind became more calm and
+collected.
+
+"Helen," said he, "you will not be afraid to stay by the poor young
+creature, while I go and catch Mally, and ride as fast as she can carry me
+to the manse, and bring the minister, who is a skilful man, and who,
+perhaps, may be able to do something for the sufferer; at least, he will
+advise us what is best for us to do in this hour of need."
+
+"I will, indeed, be eerie," answered Helen--"very eerie; but do mak all the
+haste ye can, and I will tent baith mother and bairn until ye return."
+
+In a very short time, the farmer was on his way to the manse, and soon,
+along with the minister, on his return to his cottage; but, before they
+arrived, the victim had breathed her last sigh.
+
+Helen was at the door, weeping and wringing her hands. She blamed herself
+as being the cause of the young mother's death; nor was it until after the
+minister had prayed, and assured her that no guilt could attach to her,
+that she became composed. On his way to the cottage, the farmer had
+informed him of every circumstance, as far as it had happened under his own
+eye:--That the young lady had been very ill; that the female appeared
+expert at her duty, and kept Helen as much at a distance from her patient
+as she could; that the young creature wished her much to be near her, as if
+she had something to communicate; but the attendant always told her, in a
+harsh manner, that it was improper for her to speak, and found always some
+excuse to send her from the bedside; that the lady appeared to be in great
+awe of her; and that the first boy, the one that was alive, Helen kept at
+the hearth until the other came; that she heard it cry once, and inquired
+what it was, when the assistant said it was also a boy, but dead, and she
+threw it from her upon the bed; that, after a time, she took a vial from
+her pocket, and poured it into a cup, requesting the lady to drink it, as
+it was a composing draught, but she put it away from her; and that the poor
+murdered creature was persuaded by Helen to accept it at her hands.
+
+The minister having drawn up a circumstantial detail of all the
+circumstances narrated, bade the sorrowing couple adieu, and departed, to
+send one of his maids to assist Helen, and to stay with her through the
+day. He vowed to make the horrid transaction as public as possible, in
+hopes of discovering the two wretches and their employer, and promised to
+call in the evening, and direct what was further to be done. He rode direct
+to Mid-Calder; and, on inquiry at the hostelry, if any such travellers had
+been there the day before, found that they had passed through the town,
+only stopping to bait their horses, and no particular attention had been
+paid to them by the landlord of the house. Here his inquiries necessarily
+terminated. In the meantime, Helen and her assistant had been employed
+laying out the corpse of the murdered woman, and tending the orphan boy.
+Tied by a silken cord, a curious gold ring, of massive workmanship, was
+suspended from her neck, and lay resting upon her bosom.
+
+"A true love-gift," ejaculated Helen, "an exchange o' plighted faiths.
+Dearly had you loved the giver, for, even in sore distress and death it lay
+upon thy bosom. Cruelly has your love been requited; but rest in
+peace--your sorrows are past. I will keep this for your babe, and, as soon
+as he can speak, I will tell him where I found it. I fear it will be a' I
+will ever be able to inform him of either father or mother." She then
+placed the ring in her own bosom, until she could shew it to her husband;
+renewed her offices to the dead; took the babe in her lap, and, weeping
+over it, resolved, as she thought of its desolate state, without a relation
+in the world, that, so long as she had life, she would be a parent to
+it--for death had been a spoiler in her own family of three sons, all of
+whom it had been her misfortune to bury.
+
+The minister arrived again in the evening. They shewed him the ring, and
+told where it had been found. He examined it closely; but there were
+neither armorial bearings nor cypher upon it, to lead even to a guess of
+the person to whom it had belonged--yet the make and chasing were peculiar,
+and might lead a person who had once examined it to remember it. The mother
+was interred; the babe baptized by the name of William, put out to nurse;
+and the usual routine of the cottage once more restored. The boy grew up
+under the roof of his kind protectors. To his education the minister paid
+particular attention, and was proud of his pupil--for William Wallace, as
+he was called, did honour to the labour bestowed upon him. He was quick to
+learn, yet his mind was not given to literary pursuits--for he delighted in
+feats of strife, and dwelt with rapture on the feats of the warrior. Sir
+William Wallace was the hero of his youthful imagination--and he longed to
+be of man's stature, only that he might be a soldier. Thus years rolled on.
+William was now eighteen years of age; the labour of the farm, in which he
+engaged, was irksome to him; yet he restrained his inclinations, and toiled
+on for his benefactors, who had both become so frail that they required his
+aid. By the time he arrived at his twentieth year, his foster parents died
+within a few months of each other, and left him possessor of their little
+wealth. When spring returned, he made known to his benefactor, the
+minister, his resolution of leaving the moor and going into the busy world.
+The stock was turned into cash, and William, bidding a long adieu to the
+scenes of his youth, set off for the capital, accompanied by the prayers of
+the good man for his success. Since the death of his protectors he had worn
+his mother's ring, and he had a vague hope that it might, by some way or
+other, lead to a discovery of his parents, and enable him to avenge her
+murder. All the mild lessons of his teacher upon this point had been vain.
+His mind dwelt with a gloomy satisfaction upon a just retribution. At times
+his feelings rose to agony--the idea that the guilty individual might be
+his own parent, often flashed across his mind and made him love his
+ignorance; but, nature prevailing, his wonted desire recurred again, and,
+musing thus, he rode on towards Edinburgh, now with the reins resting upon
+his horse's neck; and then, when urged by his troubled mind, urging forward
+his steed. He stopped at the borders of the moor, and turned towards the
+scenes so dear to him, where he had passed what of his life had gone by in
+innocence and peace. For the first time, he felt alone in the world; and a
+few involuntary tears fell from his eyes--a token of regret due to the
+memory of departed worth, and a pleasing recollection of scenes endeared to
+him by many tender associations. Thus in pensive meditation he rode on,
+undetermined as to his future mode of life. Prior to his setting out,
+everything had appeared to his imagination of easy execution; but now he
+began to encounter difficulties he had never dreamed of before; and the
+sight of Edinburgh, which he reached before nightfall, did not diminish
+them. The vastness of the city overpowered him; the stateliness of the
+buildings appeared to him the work of giants; and he almost shrank from
+entering it, through a feeling of his own littleness. In his approach, his
+eyes had been constantly fixed upon the buildings of the Castle, perched
+high above the town, and crowning the almost circular, bold, and craggy
+rocks on which it stands. Along the line of houses to the east, that
+stretched farther than his eye could trace, the setting sun threw his
+departing rays, and innumerable windows glanced like burnished gold; while
+the diadem-shaped spire of St Giles', towering above all, in the centre,
+seemed to proclaim her the queen of cities. With all the impatience of
+youth, he urged on his horse, expecting to see all the inhabitants of so
+fair a place themselves fair. But scarce had he entered the West-Port gate,
+when his feelings were shocked to witness, on every side, squalid misery
+and wretchedness, and every token of poverty and vice. He put up for the
+night at one of the many inns of the Grassmarket; and, revolving in his
+mind what he had already seen, retired to bed.
+
+Early next morning, he arose, dressed, and sallied forth to gratify his
+curiosity; but, with no one to whom he could communicate the feelings that
+every new object awakened, he felt solitary among the surrounding crowds.
+On the second day after his arrival, as he walked in the Meadows, he
+observed among the crowd of well-dressed pedestrians that thronged the
+walks, an elderly gentleman, who eyed him with marked attention. William's
+curiosity was excited, and he threw himself again in his way. The old
+gentleman bowed.
+
+"I beg pardon," said he--"may I be so bold as to request your name?--for I
+feel as if you and I had not now met for the first time. Yet it cannot be;
+for it is now above twenty years since that time, and you do not appear to
+be more than that time old."
+
+"My name is William Wallace," answered William, with a beating heart. "I
+never had the honour to see you until to-day."
+
+"Wallace? Wallace?" said the old gentleman, musing. "No---my friend's name
+was not Wallace; we were both of Monro's regiment--his name was Seaton; but
+the likeness was so strong that you must excuse me for addressing you."
+
+William's heart sank--he remained silent for a few minutes--his face was
+alternately flushed and pale--a new train of ideas crowded upon his
+mind--he wished to speak, but he could not find utterance--wiped his
+forehead with his handkerchief, and went through the other forms of
+confusion and bashfulness. His new acquaintance looked upon him, much
+surprised at his emotion; and, with an energy bordering on violence, seized
+his hand.
+
+"Young man," said he, "that ring was once the property of my friend: how
+came you by it? He valued it above all things, nor would he have parted
+with it but with life. At this moment, I almost think the last long twenty
+years of my life a dream, and that I am still a captain in Monro's
+regiment. You must come and dine with me, and explain how this came into
+your possession."
+
+"With pleasure," replied William. "It is a sad account, I have to give, and
+I am most impatient to learn something of its possessor. Alas! I fear I
+must feel too great an interest in him."
+
+"The early friend I allude to," replied the old man, "was an honour to his
+country. A braver or more generous heart, no officer in the army possessed.
+This you will acknowledge when I have told you all. Alas! poor Seaton!
+shall I ever see you again?"
+
+Thus conversing, they reached the house of Colonel Gordon, one of the
+principal flats of a house in the High Street. After they had dined,
+William gave a distinct account of his birth and the death of his mother,
+and a modest outline of himself. His hearer listened to him with the
+greatest interest, only interrupting him at the account of his mother's
+death by an exclamation of horror.
+
+"Henry Seaton," he cried, "had no hand in this, I could pledge my head for
+him. I am strongly impressed, young man, with the idea, that my friend has
+been cruelly injured, and his generous heart wounded past recovery by this
+deed of darkness. Savage monsters! worse than demons! would to God I had
+you in my power!" And he walked about the room in a state of violent
+excitement. "William," said he again, "I have no doubt you are the son of
+Henry Seaton, my more than brother; and, so far as is in my power, I shall
+assist you in the discovery of your parents, and avenge the murder of your
+mother. I shall now give you my story:--I was an ensign in Munro's regiment
+of Scots, serving in Flanders, when your father (for I have no doubt that
+he was such) joined us, early in the spring of the year 1706, a short time
+before the battle of Ramilies. We were both of the same company, and of
+congenial minds; so that we soon became bosom friends, and were ever as
+much as possible in each other's society. In battle we fought side by side,
+without being jealous of each other's fame. In our first battle, that of
+Ramilies, the Scots had more than their share of the loss, and I had the
+misfortune to be shot in the leg early in the action. When I fell, your
+father saved me from the sword of the enemy, and bore me out of the line at
+the hazard of his own life; for we were at the time, pressed by a strong
+division of the French. I soon recovered, and joined the ranks, when our
+friendship, if possible, was stronger than ever. At the battle of Oudenard,
+where we drove the French from their trenches, your father led on his men,
+over the works, with too much eagerness, and was not supported for a time,
+as the enemy sprung a mine and made the ditch impassable, killing and
+wounding a great many of the advancing column. Bravely did he and his
+handful of Scots stand their ground, surrounded and overwhelmed by numbers;
+but they were dropping fast, for they fought hand to hand, and they were so
+pressed by the enemy, and hemmed in, that they could not fire, for fear of
+killing their own men. I saw the perilous situation of my friend; with the
+greatest efforts, I and a few noble countrymen got clambered up to their
+rescue. At our arrival, there were not more than six of them upon their
+feet--all were covered with wounds and spent with fatigue. Your father
+still raged like a lion in the toils--all swords were aimed at him--he
+seemed invulnerable. I had reached his side, when a severe wound laid him
+insensible at my feet; but I stood over him, and backed by my brave
+followers, we fought till the French gave way before the numbers of our
+troops that had forced the works and poured in on every side. I raised him
+up--the blood streamed from his side--he appeared to be dead--his eyes were
+closed--I placed my hand upon his breast--all appeared still--then
+mournfully I supported his head on my knee, and saw his eyelids move, and
+then a faint heaving of the breast. I snatched the canteen of a dead
+soldier that lay by my side; there was some wine in it; I applied it to his
+lips--he opened his eyes."
+
+"'Edward,' said he, 'I thank you. I fear my career of glory is run. I hope
+we have beat the enemy. I die content. Farewell!' And he sank again into
+insensibility."
+
+"All this had passed in the course of a couple of minutes The enemy had
+made a fresh stand, and were forcing our troops back upon the
+intrenchments. I gently laid him down, and, rallying the men who were
+retreating, again forced them back. The enemy began to give way in all
+directions, and we followed up our advantage until the order for ceasing
+the pursuit was given. For a time I had forgot everything, in the
+impetuosity of battle; but, after rallying my company, and marching back to
+our camp, I took a file of men, and proceeded to the spot where I had left
+my friend. I looked for some time in vain. So active had been the work of
+the pillagers that followed the camp, that the dead and the dying had been
+stripped; and by the countenance alone could one discover a friend from a
+foe, I examined every face amidst a heap of dead bodies, and discovered my
+friend. Life was not yet extinct. I had him removed to my tent, and went
+for a surgeon, who examined and dressed his wound, but gave me no hopes of
+his recovery. He was carefully removed into Oudenard, where our hospitals
+were established, and for some days his life was despaired of; but youth
+and a good constitution prevailed, and he again bade fair for life and
+happiness. As soon as he was enabled to converse, I was at my usual place
+by his bedside, when, after thanking me for his preservation, he expressed
+the deepest sorrow for the loss of his ring, which had been torn from his
+finger by the pillagers.
+
+"I had, until now, scarcely paid any attention to this bauble; but
+remembered, when he spoke of it, of having seen at all times a ring upon
+his finger. I expressed my concern at his loss, but said, that it ought not
+to give him so much concern, at a time when a miraculously spared life
+called for his gratitude to God.
+
+"'I value it next to life itself,' was his reply, 'for it was the gift of
+my mother, and had been in our family for ages. Publish among the sutlers,
+my good friend, that fifty dollars will be given for the ring, upon its
+delivery to me; and twenty dollars to any one who will give information
+that will lead to its recovery.'
+
+"I promised, and left him, consoled with the hopes of again getting the
+jewel; yet I could not help thinking my friend too profuse in his offer. I
+immediately published in the camp, a reward of ten dollars for the ring, or
+five for any information to lead to its recovery, and next morning the ring
+was delivered, and the ten dollars paid to one of the fiends in human
+shape, that, like vultures, follow in the track of war. My fingers itched
+to cut the ruffian down, but I restrained myself. I paid him the promised
+reward with a hearty curse--the word of a soldier is sacred; and it was at
+this time that I examined the bauble so minutely, that I never can forget
+it. I never saw joy more vividly expressed than when he placed it upon his
+emaciated finger, and said I had given him a medicine that would quickly
+recover him.
+
+"'Shade of my sainted mother,' he ejaculated, 'I have still thy latest
+gift, and it shall be parted with only with my latest breath.' And he
+kissed it fervently as he spoke."
+
+"In the course of a few weeks, he was convalescent, and again joined the
+regiment. Each officer had received one step of promotion, and our duties
+went on in the usual routine, though we were principally occupied in
+foraging parties. It was the depth of winter, and provisions were scarce.
+Henry had the command of a strong foraging party; and, on one occasion, he
+came in his route to a large farm-house, where he hoped to obtain supplies.
+Approaching the house, he heard cries of distress and supplication in
+female voices. He put his men into rapid motion, and rushed forward alone.
+Passing a thick fence, he saw a party of Dutch soldiers, who had
+anticipated him, and some of whom were at the door, guarding it; but the
+greater part were within the house. The cries became more piteous and
+piercing. He drew his sword and rushed past the sentinels at the door, who
+attempted to prevent him; but the view of his men coming up unnerved them.
+A scene of horror met his eyes: the male inmates of the house were bound,
+and soldiers were standing over them, ready to plunge their bayonets into
+their bosoms at the least movement, while others were proceeding to acts of
+violence towards the females. With a voice of thunder, he commanded them to
+desist, and, seizing the officer, hurled him from the terrified and
+fainting daughter of the farmer. The Dutchman, in rage, drew and made a
+furious lounge at him, which he parried; and his men entering at the same
+time, they drove the others out of the house. My friend, in French,
+requested the Dutchman to follow his men; but he refused, and challenged
+him to single combat, for the insult he said he had received at his
+hands--adding some opprobrious epithets, which roused the choler of the
+brave Englishman. In an instant, they were engaged hand to hand; but short
+was the strife--the Dutchman fell dead on the scene of his violence, and
+his men returned to the camp, and made a complaint against Monro's
+regiment, which was like to have led to some serious consequences; but,
+after your father stating the circumstances to the colonel, the latter
+waited upon the Duke of Marlborough, and we heard no more of the affair.
+
+"The last action we were in together, we both escaped unhurt; yet it was
+the bloodiest one we had ever been in. Of all the honours of Malplaquet,
+the Monroes had their full share; for, although the Duke did not like the
+Scots, and used at times to throw a sarcasm at their country, he always
+gave them a situation of danger, either from dislike or a reliance on their
+courage. About twelve months after Malplaquet, your father left the service
+and retired into France. Peace was now evidently at hand, and an armistice
+had been agreed upon and signed by several of the allies of the English;
+and our gallant leader was now in disgrace. Much as Henry Seaton and I
+esteemed each other in all other points, we had no fellowship in politics.
+I was and am a Whig; he, a Tory of the first water--a devoted adherent of
+the exiled family; yet, high as parties ran at this time in cities, we had
+no differences in the camp, where each respected his neighbour's opinion,
+nor overvalued his own. The last letter I received from him was about
+twelve months after we parted. It was dated St Germain's. He said, and in a
+mysterious sort of way, half-earnest, half-jest, that, in a short time, we
+might meet, to try the force of our different opinions. I, at the time,
+only laughed at it, and returned, for answer, that I had no doubt we would
+both do our best, and leave the issue to the Disposer of events. Soon
+after, Mar's ill-concerted rebellion took place, in which I have no doubt
+your father was an active agent; but I have, since this last letter, lost
+all trace of him. Your being born in the year '16 would lead me to suppose
+that he must have married your mother about the time of the Rebellion,
+either in Scotland or France."
+
+That Henry Seaton was his father, William earnestly prayed; but how was he
+to ascertain this fact? He knew not; neither could his kind host assist
+him. The lapse of time was so great, that, in all probability, he was dead;
+and, with a mind worse at ease than it had ever been, he took leave of the
+Colonel, promising to call again in the forenoon of the following day, to
+consult what steps he should take to follow out the information he had so
+unexpectedly acquired. He reached the inn, and retired to rest; but sleep
+had fled his pillow. A thousand ideas crowded his mind; method after method
+was canvassed, each for a time offering assured success, but, upon more
+mature consideration, being rejected. Day dawned, and found him as
+unresolved as when he left Colonel Gordon. As soon as it was consistent
+with propriety, he waited upon the Colonel, by whom he was greeted
+heartily.
+
+"Well, tell me," said he, "the fruit of your invention for tracing out your
+father, and I will tell you what has occurred to me as the best mode of
+procedure."
+
+William, without hesitation, told the state of his mind, and his utter
+inability to think of any feasible plan, from his ignorance of the world
+and its ways.
+
+"Poor fellow! I do not wonder at what you tell me," replied the Colonel.
+"Before many years go over your head, you and the world will be better
+acquainted. My own opinion is, that you must forthwith proceed to France,
+where you will find many of the adherents of the Stuarts. The young Charles
+Edward is easy of access to Scotchmen, for he is anxious to make adherents;
+and I have no doubt that he, or others of his followers, will be able to
+give you every information about Henry Seaton. But you must beware how you
+acquit yourself, lest they cajole you into their party; for, if your father
+be alive and acknowledge you, the trial will be greater than you are aware,
+to resist him."
+
+"I will at once follow your wise counsel," replied William. "I trust--nay,
+my heart tells me I shall be successful. Of my ever being an adherent of
+the Stuart family, I have no fears. Before that can happen, I must first
+forget all I have ever learned, from my first dawn of reason up to this
+present moment. The first tears of sorrow I ever shed were for the woes of
+others, drawn forth by the tale of the sufferings of my foster parent's
+father, who suffered for the cause of truth, near the very spot where I now
+lodge. The worthy minister, to whom I am indebted for all the learning I
+possess, had also some share in my politics. Nay, do not smile, when I say
+he had political opinions. He spiritualized everything. Nebuchadnezzar was
+a type of the Stuart family. The Babylonish king, driven out from men, was
+only an emblem of their expulsion, during the time of the Commonwealth, and
+his being restored was only the fortune of Charles II.; but, as he
+continued in idolatry after his restoration, so did Charles, after his
+subscribing the Covenant at Scone; and, as Nebuchadnezzar's family were
+destroyed, so are the Stuarts cut off from the throne for ever. To the
+whole of this I do not subscribe; but my aversion to the family of the
+Stuarts, I can never overcome."
+
+"My young friend," replied the Colonel, "I am not one to quarrel with any
+one for his opinion; but I rejoice to find we are of one mind. I will
+accompany you to Leith, and we will make inquiries if there is any vessel
+there likely soon to sail for France."
+
+They accordingly proceeded to Leith, where they found there was a brig to
+sail in the course of a week or two for Bourdeaux, to bring home a cargo of
+wine. There were also several vessels to sail in a few days, for different
+ports in Holland; but the Colonel advised William to agree with the captain
+of the vessel for Bourdeaux--which, he did; and, having never seen the sea
+but at a distance, nor a vessel in his life, his friend, to oblige him,
+lingered on the shore, and examined them with him. In this manner the time
+passed. They dined in Leith, and again walked about the shore, enjoying the
+delightful scene. The shades of evening were beginning to approach, when
+they resumed their way back to the city. They had reached about half-way to
+the Abbey-Hill, when two men rushed from behind the fence, and, presenting
+pistols to their breasts, demanded their money or their lives.
+
+"Ho, my good fellows, not so fast!" exclaimed the Colonel, and drew his
+sword. William did the same. One of the villains fired, and wounded the
+Colonel in the right shoulder. William, at the same moment, plunged his
+sword into his side, and he fell. The other ruffian fled, pursued by
+William; but he escaped. He then hastened to his friend, who stood leaning
+against the wall, with the wounded robber beside him. William inquired if
+he was much injured.
+
+"No, Seaton," he said. "I believe it is only a flesh wound, for I can wield
+my sword yet." And he raised it up, and pointing it at the breast of the
+fallen wretch, who lay groaning at his feet--"We must secure him," said the
+Colonel; "and, at the same time, be on our guard against his cowardly
+associate. If he could walk, I would know how to act with him; but I am not
+going to carry the base carrion. Indeed, my arm bleeds, and is getting
+stiff; otherwise I would dispatch him where he lies, and save the hangman
+his labour."
+
+"For the love of God, do not despatch me!" cried the man. "I will try to
+walk; I would not be cut off so suddenly. In mercy, spare me, even for a
+few hours. I am unfit to die; yet I feel life ebbing fast."
+
+He rose to his feet, but was sinking again, when William's pity overcoming
+his anger, he supported him. The wretch looked in his face, uttered a
+scream of horror, and sank senseless in his arms. He looked to the Colonel
+in astonishment. The latter looked narrowly into the face of the robber,
+passed his hand across his forehead, and mused, as if recalling something
+to his memory, but spake not.
+
+Two men now came up to them, and assisted them to carry the body to the
+nearest house, where a surgeon was sent for, and intimation given to the
+authorities, who were all in a state of the greatest alacrity--stimulated,
+doubtless, by the Porteous mob, which had taken place only a few months
+before. Until the surgeon arrived, William, by the directions of the
+Colonel, bound up his shoulder. What the Colonel called a scratch, appeared
+to him a serious wound; for the ball had passed through the muscle of his
+arm. They proceeded to stanch the blood which flowed from the side of their
+prisoner, when the surgeon arrived; who, after having examined it, at once
+declared it mortal, and that the man had not many hours to live. After some
+time, he succeeded in restoring sensibility to the sufferer. He opened his
+eyes--fixed them on William, who was assisting the surgeon in his
+efforts--a fearful change came over him--he groaned, and, clasping his
+hands, shrieked, and closed them again. A sudden recollection had come over
+the Colonel.
+
+"I cannot be mistaken," said he; "I have seen him before; but when or where
+I cannot say, unless he was one of my company in Monro's regiment."
+
+At the mention of Monro's regiment, the wretched man shuddered--his eye
+fell upon the ring upon William's hand, as he held up the candle by the
+bedside--the sweat stood in large drops upon his forehead--he would have
+started up, but was restrained.
+
+"Nay, then, since I am discovered," he cried, "I will confess all to you,
+my injured and betrayed master. I see the Colonel recollects me; but I am
+surprised you do not remember your old servant, Alick Brown."
+
+"Who was your master?" exclaimed William, in surprise.
+
+"Captain Henry Seaton--yourself," said the man. "I cannot be mistaken. That
+ring--your height and countenance. You are, I am happy to see, much
+improved since I last saw you--time appears to have made no change."
+
+"Know you aught of Henry Seaton?" demanded the Colonel; while William stood
+mute in astonishment and surprise.
+
+"If this is not my old master whom I see," said the man, "who can he be? My
+mind is filled with guilt and remorse. Die I must, either of this wound, or
+by the law--for me there is no hope here or hereafter." And he groaned and
+ground his teeth in despair, while the surgeon bade him prepare for death,
+as he had but a few hours to live. The officers entered, and claimed him as
+their prisoner. The villain once more arose in his mind. "Ha!" he
+exclaimed, "I have bilked you yet. I have a sufficient bail in my side to
+rescue me out of your hands." The effort to speak now became more
+difficult; his voice sank into whispers; he appeared to be dying. Remorse
+again roused him; and, turning his head, he inquired who William was? The
+Colonel told him. He became more dreadfully agitated, and groaned in
+anguish, till the officers of justice looked upon him in horror.
+
+"I can doubt no longer," he cried. "It is too true. There is a God that
+governs all! Mercy, mercy! How shall I appear before Him, covered with the
+blood of his creatures? Let me perform the only act now in my power--to
+atone for the past. Young man, you are the son of my noble and injured
+master. After he left the army in Flanders, I accompanied him to France,
+where he lived on terms of great intimacy with the royal exiles and their
+followers for several months; at the end of which time, he and two other
+gentlemen, accompanied by me, set out for Scotland on a secret mission to
+the disaffected, preparatory to the preconcerted rising. We remained
+concealed for several months, in the houses of those whom we knew to be
+adherents to the cause we were embarked in. At the house of Lord Somerville
+we remained for a long time, where my master won the affections of his
+daughter, and proposed for her; but his Lordship objected to their union at
+that time, on account of the unsettled state of affairs. With the consent
+of Helen, they were, however, privately married; and soon after we set out
+for Aboyne, and joined in the unfortunate affair. He was slightly wounded
+at Sheriff-muir, but escaped by my assistance, and got safe to our camp.
+The Prince and the Earl of Mar embarked when all hopes of success were cut
+off, and I was sent back to the house of his wife's father, to bring her to
+her husband, who had remained concealed in the Highlands, during the
+severity of the winter. It was arranged, through me, that, as soon as he
+had received remittances from France, I was to conduct her to the coast of
+Argyle, by Glasgow and the Clyde. It was far on in the summer before he
+could get all the arrangements made. His wife, who expected in a few weeks
+to be confined, and concealed her situation with difficulty, became most
+urgent. Early in the month of September, she escaped unseen from her
+father's house, and joined me at the appointed place, accompanied by a
+fiend in woman's shape, the agent whom I had employed to carry on our
+intercourse. She had been a follower of the camp, and, by the little
+service for which I paid her well, had won the confidence of the simple
+Helen. We rode as fast as the lady's circumstances would admit, only
+halting twice for a short time, in secret places. It was then that the
+devil first assailed me in the person of this woman. She told me what a
+quantity of money and jewels the lady had in her valise, and how easy it
+would be to get all into our possession. I shuddered at the very idea, and
+threatened to shoot her upon the spot. She laughed, and said it was all a
+jest; but it took hold of my mind during the course of our journey, and she
+judged by my looks, I suppose, that I was now more fit for her purpose. We
+conversed about it; the idea became familiar; but I shuddered at blood. She
+said there would be none shed. Still I could not consent--neither was I
+sufficiently averse. The poor lady was taken ill as we passed through the
+moor. You know the rest. As we stood at the cottage door, the pious
+discourse of the farmer tortured me past endurance. I was several times on
+the point of rushing into the cottage, and guarding my lady from the fiend;
+but my evil genius prevailed. When we entered and got the unsuspecting
+couple to their bed, my tempter smiled, and whispered 'All is safe.' I
+shuddered, and inquired what she meant.
+
+"'Oh, nothing,' she replied. 'The lady cannot recover; the woman of the
+house has given her a composing draught. She will never awake. The money
+and jewels are our own.'
+
+"And cautiously she displayed before me more gold than I had ever seen. I
+could not think of parting with it. We carried off all that had belonged to
+my mistress, even her body-clothes and the body of the dead babe, resolved
+to shew it to my master, and impose upon him by saying that his wife had
+died in childbed, and that we had left her to be buried by the clergyman.
+Our object in this was to do away all suspicion of unfair play. Our excuse
+for not seeing the body interred was haste to inform him, and prevent
+inquiries that might lead to his discovery. On the day after we left the
+cabin, I found my master at the appointed place, in the utmost anxiety for
+the arrival of his wife. Every hour of delay was attended by the utmost
+danger. A government cruiser had been seen on the coast; and there were
+fears that the small vessel might be discovered. Oh, moment that has ever
+since embittered my life! The agony he endured no human tongue can
+describe. He was in a state of distraction. I, with a guilty officiousness,
+displayed her wardrobe. He turned from it in an agony. The dead body of the
+babe he kissed and pressed to his bosom. Low groans had as yet only escaped
+him; but suddenly, to my alarm, he resolved to go with me and die on her
+grave. I trembled and felt a faintness come over me--for I was then young
+in guilt. My associate, hardened and inventive, began to urge the folly of
+the attempt. He pushed her from him with violence, and would have set out;
+but at that moment word was given that the cruiser was in sight, as if
+bearing for the land. Two friends and some of the crew seized him, and by
+force hurried him on board the vessel, and set sail. I felt as if reprieved
+from death, and did not go on board; for I dreaded the presence of my
+injured master. We returned to Glasgow, where we remained for a few weeks,
+rioting on the fruits of our guilt. One morning when I awoke after a
+debauch, I found my companion fled, and all the gold and valuables gone. I
+arose in a state of distraction, ran to the port in quest of her; but in
+vain--no vessel had sailed. I proceeded to Greenock; on the way I got
+traces of her, and dogged her at every turn. My mind took a new direction
+as I followed her. I looked upon her now as a fiend that had led me to
+ruin, and left me, loaded with guilt, to die under the pangs of poverty and
+an awakened conscience. My mind was distracted. Holding up my hands to
+heaven, I vowed vengeance, and cursed and swore in such a manner that
+people on the road turned and looked at me, and thought me mad. I was mad;
+but it was the madness of passion that burned in my brain, and the stings
+of conscience that pierced my heart. I paused several times in my pursuit.
+I was told by one traveller that the woman I sought was not a mile from me,
+that she was sitting by the road-side drinking ardent spirits alone, and
+muttering strange words to herself. Ha! thought I, conscience is busy with
+her too, and she drinks to drown its dreadful voice. 'Shall I kill her?' I
+said to myself. My heart yearned for her blood. Why should I deny it? I
+felt that I required that satisfaction to enable me to live a little longer
+upon earth. So much was my frenzy roused, that I pictured to myself a total
+impossibility to live and breathe if I did not feel the satisfaction of
+having visited on that woman's head the evil she brought on that sweet lady
+who died by her hands. Then did her beautiful face beam before me in full
+contrast with that of the hag who had led me to ruin, to misery, to hell.
+Every thought inflamed me more and more, and on I flew to the relief of my
+burning brain. Wretch! How little did I think that, even in meditating her
+death, who deserved that punishment, I was only adding more and more power
+to my burning conscience? But all calculation of future accidents died
+amidst my thirst of vengeance. Breathless I hurried on. I had a dagger in
+my hand ready for the work of death. At a turn of a beech wood, I saw her
+sitting by the road-side. She was drinking spirits; and, as I approached, I
+heard her muttering strange words--yet she was not intoxicated. She was
+only under the power of the demons that ruled her. Her back was to me, and
+she knew not of my approach. I saw her take out the money and jewels she
+had stolen from me, and for which, by her advice, I had sold my soul to
+Satan. The sight again brought before me the horrid crime I had committed.
+I saw the sweet lady before me, extended in the grasp of death; and
+conscience, with a thousand fangs, tore at my heart. I grasped the dagger
+firmer and firmer as she counted the money, and wrought myself up to the
+pitch of a demon's fury. I advanced quietly. She burst into a loud laugh as
+she finished the counting of the gold. 'Ha, ha, ha!' she cried--'I
+have'--she would have said 'outwitted him,' but my dagger fixed the word in
+her death-closed jaws. I struck her to the heart through her back, and the
+word 'outwitted' died in her throat. She lay at my feet a corpse. I threw
+the body in a ditch, and took up the money and jewels for which I had sold
+my soul. I would have cast them away; but the devil again danced in the
+faces of the gold coins. I put them in my pocket. The gold again corrupted
+me. I drowned my conscience in drink at the next inn. I fled into England,
+where I have lived by rapine ever since, until the other day, when I
+returned to Scotland to meet the fate I so well deserve, from the hands of
+the son of those I had injured. Of my old master I have never heard
+anything. If he is alive, he is still in France."
+
+Life seemed only to have been prolonged until he had made the horrid
+disclosure; for he fell into convulsions and expired, soon after the
+Colonel, whose wound had become stiff and painful, had left the house. Next
+morning, William visited his friend, and was grieved to find that he was
+rather feverish. His wound was still painful. The occurrence of the
+preceding evening occupied both their minds. William had no doubt of his
+being the lawful son of Henry Seaton by Miss Somerville; but was as much in
+doubt as to whether his father was alive as ever. In a few days, the
+Colonel was enabled to leave his bed-room, and became convalescent. He
+urged the propriety of William's proceeding to France in quest of his
+father; and, as the vessel was not yet to sail for a few days, he resolved
+to pay a visit to his friend, the minister, to inform him of his
+intentions, and relate the history of his mother's murderers. The Colonel
+would have accompanied him; but he could not ride. He rode along to the
+manse, with feelings very different from those with which he had left it.
+The worthy minister rejoiced to see him, and held up his pious hands at
+the horrid recital. He approved of William's determination of going in
+quest of his father, and, after paying a visit to his mother's and foster
+parents' graves, he once more mounted to return to Edinburgh. As he rode
+slowly along, musing upon the wayward fate of his parents unconscious of
+all around, he was roused by the tread of horses' feet behind him. He
+looked back, and saw a gentleman, attended by a servant in livery,
+approaching. He roused himself, and put his horse off the slow pace at
+which he had been going. The stranger and he saluted each other, and
+entered into conversation upon indifferent subjects. At length they became
+interested in each other, and found that they were both on the eve of
+sailing for France in the same vessel. The stranger requested to have the
+pleasure of knowing the name of his fellow-traveller.
+
+"Seaton," said William, "is my name."
+
+"Seaton, Seaton," said the other--"I am surprised I did not recognise you
+before. I thought we had met before; but your youth made me always doubt
+the truth of my surmises. Colonel Henry Seaton was an intimate acquaintance
+of mine--have I the pleasure of seeing his son?"
+
+"I hope you have," replied William. "Pray, sir, when saw you him last? Was
+he in good health?"
+
+"It is some time since I left France," said the other. "At that time he was
+in his ordinary health; but not more cheerful than usual--always grave and
+sad as ever."
+
+"Thank God!" cried William; "he is, I trust, then, still alive." And he
+pressed the stranger's hand with a warmth that surprised him. "Where do you
+mean to stay," resumed William, "until the vessel sails?"
+
+"I have no relations," replied he, "in Edinburgh. I meant to stay at an inn
+in the Canongate, where I have lived before; but it is all one to me--I may
+as well tarry in the White Hart with you."
+
+When they arrived, William sent a cadie to give notice to Colonel Gordon
+that he was arrived in town; but was detained upon business with a
+stranger, to whom he would be happy to introduce him, as he was an
+acquaintance of his father's, and had seen him within the last few years.
+Soon after dinner, they were all seated at their wine, and deep in
+conversation. The stranger had been, from what he said, well acquainted
+with the exiled party in France, and, more particularly, with Colonel
+Seaton; but he knew nothing of his history, further than that he had lost a
+beloved wife and child at the time of his expatriation, and had, both by
+friends here and every other means, endeavoured in vain to get any
+information of where she was buried, or what had become of a faithful
+servant who had not embarked with him in the confusion of his flight--that
+on this account he was often oppressed by a lowness of spirits, and had
+many suspicions that all had not been as it ought to have been. This
+subject discussed, they would have had recourse to politics; but each
+seemed cautious of betraying his opinions, and the stranger, who did not
+seem to relish much some of the sentiments that occasionally escaped the
+Colonel, appeared to be a Tory. After the Colonel departed, the
+conversation of William and Mr Graham--for this was the gentleman's
+name--became more pointed, and it appeared that he was on business
+connected with the exiles. He had assumed that William was of his own way
+of thinking in politics, and was evidently much disappointed when he
+discovered that he was not. He became much more reserved, but not less
+attached to him; for William gave him a general outline of his misfortunes
+and early education, and they parted for the night with the best opinion of
+each other. Next morning both proceeded to Leith, where Graham expected to
+find a messenger from the north with a packet of letters for him. When they
+reached Leith, they found that the messenger had arrived on the previous
+day, and was waiting for Mr Graham, who, having several persons to visit in
+the neighbourhood, William and he parted, agreeing to meet in the Colonel's
+to supper. They met in the evening.
+
+"I have been making some inquiries," said Mr Graham, "about Colonel Henry
+Seaton, on your account, and am happy to say that he is well. I fear I
+shall not have the pleasure of your company to France. I have every reason
+to believe that he is now in Scotland, or will be very soon. Excuse me if I
+am not more particular. I shall, I hope, to-morrow, or at least before the
+vessel sails, be able to give you more particular information. I can rely,
+I think, upon your honour, that no harm shall come from my confidence."
+
+Both thanked him for the interest he took, and the good news he had
+communicated. They parted for the night, all in the best spirits--William
+anticipating the joy he should feel at the sight of his parent, and the
+Colonel anxious to see his old friend. Afterwards Mr Graham and William
+occasionally met. Their evenings were spent with the Colonel, and all party
+discussion carefully avoided. On the evening of the fourth day after Mr
+Graham's last information, William had begun to fear that the vessel might
+sail before any certainty could be obtained; and he was in doubt whether to
+proceed with her or remain. Upon Mr Graham's arrival, which was later than
+usual, he went directly up to William--
+
+"I have good news for you," said he. "Colonel Seaton is at present in
+Scotland--somewhere in Inverness-shire. He is the bearer of intelligence
+that will render it unnecessary for me to proceed at present to France. I
+am, I confess, much disappointed; but you, I perceive, are not."
+
+"From my soul I thank you," said William. "Where shall I find my father?"
+
+"That is more than I can tell you," answered the other--"I cannot even tell
+the name he has at present assumed; all I know is, that he is the bearer of
+intelligence from the Prince that crushes for a time our sanguine hopes.
+The fickle and promise-breaking Louis has again deceived us. The Prince,
+and the lukewarm, timid part of his adherents, the worshippers of the
+ascendant, refuse to act without his powerful aid. His concurrence we have,
+and a prospect of future aid at a more convenient season; but, bah! for a
+Frenchman's promise! I am off from ever taking a leading part again. I will
+wait the convenient season. I may be led, but shall never lead again. He
+does not deserve a crown that will not dare for it; nor does he deserve the
+hearts of a generous people that would not dare everything to free them
+from the yoke of a foreign tyrant. Excuse me, gentlemen,--I go too far, and
+am giving you offence; but I assure you it is not meant. My heart is full
+of bitterness, and I forget what I say."
+
+The Colonel, whose blood had begun to inflame when Graham checked himself,
+cooled and felt rather gratified at the intelligence thus so unexpectedly
+communicated. He felt for a generous mind crossed in its favourite object,
+however much he thought that mind misled, from education and early
+prejudice, and assured him he had already forgot his expressions. A
+different turn was given to the conversation, by William's continued
+inquiries after his father. Graham meant to set off for the north in a few
+days, for a secret meeting of the heads of the disaffected, at which
+Colonel Seaton was to communicate the message he had to them from France.
+He offered to be William's guide. The Colonel, whose shoulder was now quite
+well, requested to accompany them; and on the Monday morning after, they
+crossed at Kinghorn, and proceeded by the most direct route, passing
+through Perthshire to the Highlands. They arrived at Glengarry, and found
+that Colonel Seaton was at the time on a visit, with the chief, to Glenelg,
+but would be back on the following day. There were a number of visiters at
+the castle, with all whom Graham was on the most intimate terms. Gordon and
+William were introduced, and the latter was most cordially received, from
+the strong resemblance he bore to his father. They got a guide to conduct
+them to see the beautiful scenery around the house, and they were amusing
+themselves admiring the grandeur of the mountain scenes, when the guide
+said, pointing to a bend in the road--
+
+"Gentlemen, there is Glengarry."
+
+They looked towards the spot, and could perceive two persons on horseback,
+approaching in earnest conversation. William's heart beat quick--the reins
+almost dropped from his hand--he felt giddy, and his temples throbbed as if
+they would have burst. They approached--they bowed to each other--William's
+eyes were fixed upon the countenance of his father, who returned his gaze,
+but neither spoke a word. The Colonel said, in answer to the polite
+salutation, that he and his young friend had had the honour to accompany Mr
+Graham on a visit.
+
+"Has Graham come back so soon?" he said, with surprise, "I feared as much;
+but, gentlemen, you are kindly welcome." And he shook hands with them.
+
+"Macdonald, what is this?" he said, turning to Seaton, who was absorbed in
+thought. "Here is a youthful counterpart of yourself!"
+
+"My father!" exclaimed William, as he leaped from his horse, and clasped
+his leg, leaning his face upon it, and bedewing it with his tears.
+
+"Young man," said Seaton, coldly, "you are mistaken; I have no son."
+William lifted his hands in an imploring manner, and the ring met his
+father's eye. "Good heavens! what do I see!" he exclaimed, and sank
+forward, overpowered by his feelings, upon his horse's neck. The chief and
+the Colonel raised him up--the tears were streaming from his eyes. "A
+thousand painful remembrances," said he, "have quite unmanned me. Young
+man, you just now called me father--where, for mercy's sake tell me, did
+you get that ring?"
+
+"It was found on the bosom of my dead mother," faltered William.
+
+"Then you are my son!"
+
+And the next moment they were locked in each other's embrace. The chief and
+Gordon were moved. They passed their hands hastily across their eyes.
+
+"Dear father," said William, "have you forgot your old friend and associate
+in arms--my best of friends?"
+
+Seaton for the first time looked to him, and, extending his disengaged
+hand, grasped the Colonel's, saying--
+
+"Excuse me, Gordon--I am now too happy. I have found a son and a brother."
+
+They walked to the castle, and William detailed to his father his mournful
+story. Often had he to stop, to allow his father to give vent to his
+anguish.
+
+"Ah, I often feared," said he, "that my Helen had been hardly dealt with;
+but this I never did suspect. Cursed villain! and, oh! my poor murdered
+Helen!"
+
+They returned to the castle. It was agreed that Seaton should still retain
+the name of Macdonald, until the Colonel should obtain, through the
+influence of his friends, a pardon for him. He also had lost all hopes of
+success for the Prince, and wished to enjoy the company of his son, visit
+the grave of his beloved wife, and, at death, be buried by her side. All
+was obtained; and Henry Seaton lived for many years, blessed in the society
+of his son, who studied the law, at the suggestion of the Colonel, and
+became distinguished in his profession.
+
+
+
+
+HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK.
+
+
+It has been asserted by at least one historian, that it has been observed,
+that the inhabitants of towns which have undergone a cruel siege, and
+experienced all the horrors of storm and pillage, have retained for ages
+the traces of the effects of their sufferings, in a detestation of war,
+indications of pusillanimity, and decline of trade. If there be any truth
+in this observation, what caitiffs must the inhabitants of Berwick be! No
+town in the world has been so often exposed to the "ills that wait on the
+red chariot of war;" for Picts, Romans, Danes, Saxons, English, and Scotch
+have, in their turn, wasted their rage and their strength upon her broken
+ribs. Her boasted "barre," (barrier,) from which her name, Barrewick, is
+derived, has never been able to save her effectually, either from her
+enemies of land or water. From the reign of Osbert, the king of
+Northumberland, down to the time when Lord Sidmouth saw treason in her big
+guns, she has been devoted to the harpies of foreign and intestine war and
+discord. Yet who shall say, that the hearts or spirits of the inhabitants
+of this extraordinary town lost either blood or buoyancy from their
+misfortunes? No sooner were her bulwarks raised than they appeared
+renascent; the inhabitants defended the new fortifications with a spirit
+that received a salient power from the depression produced by the
+demolition of the old; and her ships, that one day were shattered by
+engines of war, sailed in a state of repair with the next fair wind, to
+fetch from distant ports articles of merchandise, not seldom for those who
+were fighting or had fought against her liberties. Such was Berwick; and
+her sons of to-day inherit too much of the nobility and generosity of her
+old children, to find fault with us for telling them a tale which, while it
+exhibits some shades of the warlike spirit of their ancestors, shews also
+that war and citizen warriors have their foibles, and are not always exempt
+from the harmless laugh that does the heart more good than the touch of an
+old spear.
+
+The Lord Hume of the latter period of the seventeenth century, had a
+natural son, Patrick, an arch rogue, inheriting the fire of the blood of
+the Humes, along with that which burnt in the black eyes of the gipsies of
+Yetholm. He was brought up by his father; and, true to the principles of
+his education, would acknowledge no patrons of the heart, save the three
+ruling powers of love, laughter, and war--Cupid, Momus, and Mars--a trio
+chosen from all the gods, (the remainder being sent to Hades,) as being
+alone worthy of the worship of a gentleman. How Patrick got acquainted,
+and, far less, how he got in love with the Mayor of Berwick's daughter,
+Isabella, we cannot say, nor need antiquarians try to discover; for where
+there was a Southron to be slain or a lady to be won, Patrick Hume cared no
+more for bar, buttress, battlement, fire, or water, than did Jove for his
+own thunder-cloud, under the shade of which he courted the daughter of
+Inachus. Letting alone the recondite subject of "love's beginning," we
+shall tread safer ground in stating, that the affection had been very
+materially increased on both sides by the walls of Berwick; for, although
+Patrick was a great despiser of fortifications, he had felt, in the affair
+of his love for Isabella, the fair daughter of the Mayor of Berwick, that
+there is no getting a damsel through a _loop-hole_, though there might be
+poured as much sentimental and pathetic speech and sigh-breath through the
+invidious opening, as ever passed through the free air that fills the
+breeze under the trysting thorn.
+
+What we have now said requires the explanation, that at the period of our
+story, the town of Berwick belonged to the English; and the Mayor, being
+himself either an Englishman, or connected by strong ties of relationship
+with the English, had a strong antipathy towards the Scottish Border
+raiders, whom he denominated as gentlemen-robbers, headed by the noble
+robber Hume. But, above all, he hated young Patrick--into whose veins, he
+said, there had been poured the distilled raid-venom and love-poison of all
+the gentlemen-scaumers that ever infested the Borders. The origin of this
+hatred had some connection with an affair of the Newmilne, belonging to
+Berwick; the dam-dike of which, Patrick alleged, prevented the salmon from
+getting up the river, and hence destroyed all his angling sport, as well as
+that of all the noblemen and gentlemen that resorted to the river for the
+purpose of practising the "gentle art." He had therefore threatened to pull
+it down, to let up the fish; and sounded his threat in the ears of the
+indignant Mayor, in terms that were, peradventure, made stronger and
+bitterer by the thought that dikes and walls were his greatest bane upon
+earth: by the walls of Berwick the Mayor kept from his arms the fair
+Isabella, and by the dam-dike of Newmilne the same Mayor deprived him of
+the pleasure of angling. Was such power on the part of a Mayor to be borne
+by the high-spirited youth who had been trained to look upon mason-work as
+a mere stimulant to love or war--a thing that raised the value of what it
+enclosed by the opposition it offered to the young blood that raged for
+entrance? The youth thought not. He vowed that he would neither lose his
+Isabella nor his salmon; and, as fate would have it, the old Mayor had
+heard the vow, and vowed also that young Patrick should lose both.
+
+Having fished one day to no purpose, in consequence of the obstruction of
+"that most accursed of all dam-dikes, the Newmilne dike," as Patrick styled
+it, he threw down his rod, and lay down upon the bank of the river, to wait
+the hour when the moon should summon and lighten him to the loop-hole in
+the other of his hated obstructions, the walls of Berwick--where that
+evening he expected to meet his beloved Isabella, and commune with her in
+the eloquent language of their mutual passion. The bright luminary burst in
+the midst of his reveries from behind an autumn cloud, and flashed a long
+silver beam upon the rolling waters. He started to his feet.
+
+"It is beyond my time," he said, self-accusingly. "My Isabella is on
+Berwick Wall, and I am still lingering here by the banks of the river,
+three miles from where my love and honour require me to be. The loiterer in
+love is a laggard in war; and shame on the Hume who is either!"
+
+In a short time the young Hume was standing beneath a buttress of the old
+walls of the town, looking earnestly through a small opening, in which he
+expected to see the face of the fair daughter of the Mayor.
+
+"Art there at last, love?" said he, in a soft voice, as he saw, with
+palpitating heart, the pretty but arch face of the bewitching heiress of
+all the wealth of the old burgher lord peering through the aperture. "What,
+in the name of him who got his wings in the lap of Venus, and useth them to
+this hour as cleverly as doth our pretty messenger of Spring, hath kept
+thee, wench?"
+
+"Ha! ha! hush! hush, man!" responded she, whose spirit equalled that of the
+boldest Hume that ever headed a raid. "Thou'rt the laggard. I've waited for
+thee an hour, until I've sighed this little love-hole into an oven-heat,
+waiting thee, thou lover of broken troth! Some gipsy queen in Haugh of the
+Tweed hath wooed thee out of thy affection for thy Isabel; and now thou
+askest what hath kept me. Ha! ha! Good--for a Hume."
+
+"The moon cheated me, and went skulking under a cloud," responded Hume.
+
+"And the cloud threw thy love in the shade," added quickly the gay girl.
+"Methought love kept his own dial, and was independent of sun or moon. What
+if a rebel vapour cometh over the queen of heaven that night thou art to
+make me free? My hope of liberty, I fancy, would be clouded; and I would be
+remitted again to the care of Captain Wallace, who keepeth the town and the
+Mayor's daughter from the spoiling arms of the robber Humes."
+
+"Ha! ha!" replied he--"thy father wanteth not a Mayor's wits, Isabella, in
+offering thee as a prize to the Governor of the town. Excellent device,
+i'faith! The old burgher lord knew he could not keep thee, mad-cap wench as
+thou art, from a hated Hume's arms, unless he gave the Captain an interest
+as a _lover_ in guarding thee, like a piece of the old wall of Berwick."
+
+"And therein thou'rt well complimented," replied she; "for my father could
+not get, in all Berwick, a man that could keep me from thee, but he who
+guardeth town, and Mayor, and maiden together. Since the Governor, as a
+lover, got charge of me, I am more firmly caged than ever was the old
+countess, who was so long confined in the grated wing-cage of the old
+castle. When art thou to free me from the Governor's love and surveillance,
+good Patrick? If what I have now to tell thee hath no power to quicken thy
+wits and nerve thine arm, thou art indeed thyself no better than one of
+those stones, to which, in thy wit, thou hast likened me. Knowest that a
+day is fixed for Captain Wallace being my _legal_ governor?"
+
+"Ha!" cried Hume, in agitation. "This soundeth differently from the playful
+hammer of thy wit, Bell. What day is fixed? Thou hast fired me with high
+purposes."
+
+"How high tower they?" cried the maiden, laughing. "Do they reach thy
+former threat, to pull down the Newmilne dam-dike, and let _up_ the salmon,
+in revenge for the letting _down_ of the Mayor's daughter?"
+
+"Another time for thy wit, Bell," replied Patrick, in a more serious tone.
+"Thou hast put to flight my spirits. The grey owl Meditation is flapping
+his dingy wing over my heart. The time--the time--when is the day?"
+
+"This day se'ennight," answered Isabel. "Hush! hush! here cometh the
+Governor, blowing like a Tweedmouth grampus, fresh from the German Sea, in
+full run after a lady-fish of the queen of rivers."
+
+And now Hume heard the hoarse voice of the redoubted Governor, Captain
+Wallace--that fat overgrown _bellygerent_ son of Mars, so famous, in his
+day, for vaunting of feats of arms, at Bothwell, (where he never was,) over
+the Mayor's wine, and in presence of his fair daughter, whom he thus
+courted after the manner of the noble Moor, with a slight difference as to
+the truth of his feats scarce worth mentioning. It appeared to Hume, as he
+listened, that Wallace, and the Mayor, who was with him, had sallied out,
+after the fourth bottle, in search of Isabel--a suspicion verified by the
+speech of the warlike Captain.
+
+"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," said the Governor, in a voice that
+reverberated among the walls, and fell distinctly on Hume's ear, "that she
+would be about the fortifications? Ha!--anything appertaining to war
+delighteth the fair creature as much as it did that rare author, Will
+Shakspeare's Desdemona. If I had been as black as the Moor--ay, or as the
+devil himself--my prowess at Bothwell would have given this person of mine,
+albeit somewhat enlarged, the properties of beauty in the eyes of
+noble-spirited women--so much do our bodies borrow from the qualities of
+our souls."
+
+"Where is she?" rejoined the Mayor. "I like not that love of the
+fortifications. It is the outside of the walls she loves. See, she flies,
+conscience-smitten. I like not this, my noble Captain--see, there is
+Patrick Hume beyond the wall, if thou hast courage, drive thy pike through
+that loop, and, peradventure, ye may blind a Hume for life."
+
+"I like to strike a man fair--body to body--as we did on the Bridge of
+Bothwell," responded the Captain. "Ha! ha! Give me the loop-hole of a good
+bilbo-thrust, out of which the soul wings its flight in a comfortable
+manner. Nevertheless, to please my noble friend the mayor, and to get quit
+of a rival, I may" (lowering his voice to a whisper) "as well kill him in
+the way thou hast propounded; but I assure thee, upon my honour, I would
+much rather have the fellow before me, without the intervention of these
+plaguey walls, that come thus in the way and march of one's valour. There
+goes!"
+
+On looking-up, Hume saw the Captain's bilbo thrusting manfully through the
+night air, as if it would pierce the night gnomes and spirits that love to
+hang over old battlements. Taking out his handkerchief, he wrapped it round
+his hand, and seizing the point of the sword, gave it a jerk, which (and
+the consequent terror) disengaged it from the hand of the pot-valiant hero
+of Bothwell. A shout of fear was heard from within.
+
+"Stop! stop! mine good Mr Mayor!" cried the Captain to the Mayor, who had
+begun to fly; "I do not see, as yet, any very great, that is, serious cause
+of apprehension; but, I forget, thou wert not at Bothwell. By my honour,
+I've done for him! He hath carried off my sword in his body. Was it Patrick
+Hume, saidst thou? Then is he dead as my grandmother, and no more shall he
+follow after my betrothed, or threaten thee with the downfall of the
+Newmilne dam-dike. All I sorrow for is my good sword, which, but for that
+accursed loop, I might have redrawn from his vile carcass, and thus saved
+my property at the same time that I gave the carrion crows of old Berwick a
+dinner."
+
+"Ah! but he's a devil that Hume," responded the Mayor. "Long has he hounded
+after my daughter Bell; and though it is now likely near an end with him, I
+should not like to come in the way of the dying tiger. Let us home."
+
+The sound of the retreating warriors brought back Hume to the loop-hole, to
+see if Isabel was still there, to whom he was anxious to propose a plan,
+whereby he might (with the gay romp's most cheerful good-will and hearty
+co-operation) carry her off from the contaminating embrace of the
+pot-valiant Governor, with whom she was to be wed on that day se'ennight.
+He waited a long time, but no Isabel came. He suspected that the Mayor,
+after having caught her speaking to him, (Hume,) his most inveterate foe,
+would, as he had often done before, lock her up, and set the noble Captain
+as a guard upon his lady-love. Cursing his unlucky fate, that brought them
+out to interrupt his converse with the mistress of his heart, and prevent
+the arrangement of an elopement, he bent the Captain's bilbo hilt to point
+till it rebounded with a loud twang, and stepping away up the Tweed, fell
+into a deep meditation as to the manner by which he should secure Isabel.
+As he went along, his eye fell upon that source of so much contention
+between the men of Berwick and the border barons, the dam-dike of the
+Newmilne, and against which the Lord Hume, as well as himself and many of
+the neighbouring knights and lairds, had vowed destruction. A thought
+flashed across his mind, and his eye sparkled in the moonbeam, as brightly
+as did the Captain's sword, which he still held in his hand.
+
+"I have hit it!" he cried, as he clapped his hand on his limb, and the
+sound echoed back from the mill-walls. "For spearing a salmon or a
+Southron, dissolving that old foolish tenure between a proprietor and his
+cattle, or cutting the tie of forced duty between a rich old Mayor and his
+daughter, where shall the bastard of Hume be equalled on the Borders? My
+fair Bell, thou wouldst spring with the elasticity of this bent blade, and
+dance like these moonbeams in the Tweed, if thou wert in the knowledge of
+this thought that now tickles the wild fancy of thy lover, whom thou
+equallest in all that belongest to the gay heart and the bounding spirit."
+
+Occupied with these thoughts, Patrick went home to the castle of the Humes;
+and, next morning, he bent his way to Foulden, where he sought Lord Ross's
+baillie, James Sinclair, a man who had a very hearty spite against the
+obstruction to the passage of the Tweed salmon. With him he communed for a
+considerable time, and thereafter he proceeded to Paxton and to others of
+the gentlemen in the vicinity. The subject of these interviews will perhaps
+best be explained by the following placard, which appeared in various parts
+of Berwick in two days thereafter:--
+
+"On Friday last, the tenant of Newmilne, belonging to the toun of Baricke,
+gave information to our honourable Mayor, who has communicated the same to
+our gallant Governor, Captain Wallace, that the Lord Hume and other the
+Scotch gentlemen, our neighbours, do, on Monday next, intend to be at the
+Newmilne aforesaid, by tenn of the clock of the morninge; and that they had
+summoned their tenants to be then and there present, alsoe, to assist in
+the breaking downe and demolishing the dam of the said Newmilne; and that
+the Lord Ross his bailiffe of Foulden had given out in speeches, that he
+was desired to summon the said Lord Ross, his tenants, and inhabitants of
+Foulden barronry, to be then and there aiding and assisting them, alsoe,
+for better effecting the same: Whereupon, it is necessary, that, at a
+ringing of a belle, our tounsmen, headed by our Mayor, and directed by the
+warlike genius of Captain Wallace, should proceed to the said Newmilne, and
+give battle in defence of the said dike, which is indispensable to the
+existence of the toun's property. God save the Mayor!"
+
+The effect produced by this proclamation was rapid and stirring. The
+English, at that period, had contrived to raise a strong prejudice in the
+minds of the Berwick burghers against the Border Scots; and the
+intelligence that the daring robbers intended to demolish their property,
+inflamed them to the high point of resolution to fight under their valorous
+Captain, while one stone of the dike remained on another, and one drop of
+blood was left in their bodies. Hume, who had a greater part in the
+occasion of these preparations than had been made apparent, got secret
+intelligence, on all that was going on within the town; but none of his
+vigils at the loop-hole were rewarded with a sight of his spirited Isabel,
+who, he understood, had been confined in her father's house since the night
+on which she had been discovered upon the wall. Meanwhile, the preparations
+for the defence of the town's property proceeded; and, on the Monday
+morning, a bell, whose loud tongue spoke "war's alarums," sounded over town
+and walls, spreading fear among the timid, and rousing in the noble breasts
+of the valorous proud and swelling resolutions to give battle to the Border
+robbers, in the style of their ancestors. Ever since the first
+announcement, they had been drilled by the Captain, whose loud command of
+voice, proud bearing, bent back (bent in self-defence against the
+counterpoise of his stomach), and martial strut, filled them with great awe
+of his power, and great confidence in his abilities. Many hundred people,
+"on horse and foote," (we use the language of our old chronicle), "were
+gathered together, considerably armed with swordes, pistolles, firelocks,
+blunderbushes, foalingpieces, bowes and arrowes of the tyme of the first
+Edward, and uther powerful ammunition, fit to resist the ryot of the
+Scotch; and away they marched to the newe miln, with Mr Mayor and the
+Governor (a verrie terrible man of war--to be married the morn to the
+Mayor's dochter Isabel, if he come back with lyffe), and the sergeants with
+their halberts, and constables with their staves, going before them." In
+front, there was beat some thundering engines of warlike music, which was
+cut occasionally by sharp screams of small fifes, blown into by the burgher
+amateurs of that lively musical machine. Altogether, the cavalcade
+presented many appearances of a stern and warlike nature, which might well
+have prevented the Scotch raiders from proceeding with their felonious
+intention of driving down the obstruction to the salmon, and forced them to
+remain content with the angling of trout and parr. The "verrie sight" of
+the brave Wallace was deemed sufficient by those who followed him, "to put
+an end to the fraye before it was begunne."
+
+This extraordinary cavalcade was seen passing along the road by Patrick
+Hume, who had, with his companions, retired behind some brushwood, the
+better to enjoy the sight. The warriors passed on, and every now and then
+the loud voice of the captain was heard commanding and exhorting his troops
+to keep up their courage for the coming strife. When the last file was
+disappearing, Hume and his companions made the woods resound with a loud
+laugh, and, starting up, and crying, "For Berwick, ho!" they hurried away
+in the direction of the town, which the Governor, in his anxiety to form a
+large assemblage, had left without a guard. Meanwhile the burgher army
+pushed on for Newmilne; "and, when they came there," (says the chronicle),
+"they pitched their camp; and nae doubt butt they were well disciplined,
+seeing theye had the advantage of the Captain's training, with the great
+blessing attour of weapons suitable--viz., rusty ould swords and pistolles;
+and they continued about three or foure houres on the bankes and about the
+milne: still there was nae appearance of the Scotch coming to fecht with
+them." For a long time the Captain was solemn and quiet; but when it
+appeared that the Scots "were not to come to show fecht," he got as wordy
+as a blank-verse poet, and stood up in the face of a neighbouring wood,
+from which it was expected the enemy would emanate, and called upon the
+cowards (as he styled them) to come out "and dare to touche one stone of
+the milne dam-dike."
+
+"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," he cried, "that I killed Patrick Hume? If
+not, where is he now, and he the Lord Ross of Foulden, and he of Paxton,
+and all the rest of the Border heroes? Come forth from thy wood recesses,
+if there be as much pluck in thee as will enable thee to meet the fire of
+the eye of the Governor of Berwick! Ha! ha! The rascals must have been at
+Bothwell, where, doubtless, they felt the pith of this arm. There goeth the
+disadvantage of bravery! The devil a man will encounter one whose name is
+terrible, and I fear I may never have the luxury of a good fight again.
+This day I expected to have fleshed my good sword. To-morrow is my
+wedding-day. How glorious would it have been to have made it also a day of
+victory! I could almost hack these unconscious trees for very spite, and to
+give my sword the exercise it lacketh."
+
+And he swung his falchion from side to side, cutting off the tops of the
+young firs, just as if they had been men's heads; but no Scotchman made his
+appearance. The whole bells of Berwick now began to swing and ring as if
+the town had been invaded; and messengers, breathless and panting, arrived
+at the camp, and communicated the intelligence that the Bastard of Hume
+had, with a body of men, got entrance to the Mayor's house, by shewing the
+guard the Governor's sword, and carried off Isabel, the Mayor's daughter,
+who was more willing to go than to stay. The route of the fugitives was
+distinctly laid down, and it was represented by the messengers that, by
+crossing over a couple of miles, they had every chance of overtaking them
+and reclaiming the disobedient maid. The recommendation was instantly
+seized by the distracted Mayor, and a shout of the burgher forces, and an
+accompanying peal from the drums and fifes, shewed the desire of the men to
+fulfil the wish of their master. The captain's spirit was changed. He
+burned to reclaim his bride; but he feared the Bastard of Hume, whose
+prowess was acknowledged far and wide from the Borders. Shame did what
+could not have been accomplished by love; and, putting himself, with a mock
+warlike air, at the head of the troops, away he posted as fast as sixteen
+stone of beef, penetrated by alternate currents of fear, shame, and valour,
+would permit. The musical instruments of war were hushed; and as the forces
+hurried on, panting and breathing, not a voice was heard but the occasional
+vaunts of the captain, who found it necessary to conceal his fear by these
+running shots of assumed valour. As fate would have it, the Berwickers came
+up with the Bastard's party, who, with the gay and laughing Isabel in the
+midst of them, were seated, as they thought securely, in the old Berwick
+wood, enjoying some wine, which she, with wise providence, had handed to
+one of the men as a refreshment when they should be beyond danger. The
+sounds of merriment struck on the ear of the invaders; they stopped, and
+thought it safer, in the first instance, to reconnoitre--a step highly
+eulogized by the Captain, who seemed to want breath as well from the toil
+of the chase as from some misgivings of his valour, which had come, like
+qualms of sickness, over his stout heart.
+
+"Ha! traitor!" cried the Mayor, "the device of sending us to Newmilne will
+not avail thee. Give me my daughter, traitor!" addressing himself to the
+Bastard, who stood now in the front of the party, all prepared for a tough
+defence.
+
+"In either of two events thou shalt have her," cried Hume--"if thou canst
+take her, or if she is willing to go with thee."
+
+"No, no!" cried the sprightly maid herself, coming boldly forward. "I love
+my father and the good citizens of Berwick, and none of them shall lose a
+drop of their blood for Isabel. If we are to have battle, let it be between
+the two lovers who claim my hand. By the honour of a Mayor's daughter, I
+shall be his who gaineth the day! Stand forward, Patrick Hume and Governor
+Wallace."
+
+"Bravo!" shouted the burghers, delighted with a scheme that smacked so
+sweetly of justice and safety.
+
+All eyes were now turned on the Captain; and Isabel, delighted with her
+scheme, was seen concealing her face with the corner of her cloak, to
+suppress her laughter. The Captain saw, however, neither justice nor safety
+in the scheme, and, edging near the Mayor, whispered into his ear his
+intention not to fight. Palpable indications of fear were escaping from his
+trembling limbs, and the hero of Bothwell was on the eve of being
+discovered. Hume was prepared--he stood, sword in hand, ready for the
+combat.
+
+"Come forward, Captain!" cried the Bastard.
+
+"Come forward!" resounded from Isabel, and a hundred voices of the
+burghers.
+
+"I am the Governor of Berwick," answered the hero, in a trembling voice,
+keeping the body of the Mayor between him and Hume. "As the servant of the
+King, I dare not" (panting) "run the risk of reducing my
+authority--by--by--engaging, I say, by committing myself in single combat,
+like a knight errant, for a runaway damsel. It comporteth not with my
+dignity--hegh--hegh--I say, I cannot come down from the height of my glory
+at Bothwell, by committing myself in a love brawl. But ye are my
+men--hegh--hegh--ye are bound to fight when I command. Do your duty--on,
+on, I say, to the rescue."
+
+"We want not the wench," responded many voices. "He that will not fight for
+his love, deserves to lose her for his cowardice." "Resign her, good
+Mayor," cried others. "Give the damsel her choice," added others. "Bravo,
+good fellows!" cried Bell, in the midst of her laughter; and a shout from
+Hume's men rewarded her spirit. The enthusiasm was caught by the
+Berwickers, some of whom, observing certain indications thrown out by
+Isabel, ran forward and got from her a flagon of good wine. The vessel was
+handed from one to another. "Hurra for Hume!" shouted the Berwickers. The
+tables were turned. All, to a man, were with Isabel and her partner. The
+Mayor had sense enough to see his position. In any way he was to lose his
+daughter, and he heartily despised the coward that would not fight for his
+love.
+
+"Hume," he cried, standing forward, "come hither; and, Isabel, approach the
+side of thy father."
+
+The laughing damsel ran forward, and, perceiving her absolute safety, flung
+herself on her father's neck, and hung there, amidst the continued shouts
+of the men.
+
+"Forgive me, forgive me, father!" cried she. "My choice is justified by my
+love, and the characters of my lovers. The one is a coward, the other a
+brave youth. Hume's intentions are honourable, and I may be the respected
+wife of one of noble blood."
+
+"I forgive thee, Bell," answered the father. And he took her hand and
+placed it in Hume's. "Come, Captain, forgive her too, and let us all be
+friends."
+
+He looked round for the Captain, and all the party looked also; but the
+hero was gone. He had mounted a white Rosinante, as thin as he was fat, and
+was busy striking her protruding bones with his sword, to propel her on to
+Berwick, where he thought he would be more safe than where he was. The
+figure he made in his retreat--his large swelled body on the lean jade,
+like a tun of wine on a gantress--his anxiety to get off--his receding
+position--his flight after such a day of vaunting--all conspired to render
+the sight ludicrous in the extreme. One general burst of laughter filled
+the air; but the Captain held on his course, and never stopped till he
+arrived at Berwick. That day Hume and Isabel were wed--and a happy day it
+was for the Berwickers; who, in place of fighting, were occupied in
+drinking the healths of the couple. The device of Hume, in sending them to
+the Newmilne, was admired for its ingenuity; and all Berwick rung with the
+praises of Hume and his fair spouse. Regular entries were made in the
+council books, of the expedition to the Newmilne, "where they braived the
+Scottes to come and fecht them, butte the cowardes never appeared." But it
+was deemed prudent to say nothing therein of Hume's trick, which,
+doubtless, might have reduced the amount of bravery which it was necessary
+should appear, for the honour of the town.
+
+
+END OF VOL. XVII.
+
+_Tubbs & Brook, Printers, Manchester._
+
+
+    +----------------------------------------------------------+
+    |                                                          |
+    | Transcriber's Note:                                      |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Inconsistencies and unexpected spelling, punctuation and |
+    | hyphenation have been retained as they appear in the     |
+    | original book except:                                    |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Page 31 through the intrumentality has been changed to   |
+    | through the instrumentality                              |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Page 43 and and unflinching opinion has been changed to  |
+    | and an unflinching opinion                               |
+    |                                                          |
+    +----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
+Scotland Volume 17, by Alexander Leighton
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILSON'S TALES OF THE BORDERS ***
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+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
+Scotland Volume 17, by Alexander Leighton
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland Volume 17
+
+Author: Alexander Leighton
+
+Release Date: October 19, 2008 [EBook #26962]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILSON'S TALES OF THE BORDERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Clarke, Mark H Van Tuyl and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h1><big>Wilson's</big><br />
+<br />
+<big>Tales of the Borders</big><br />
+<br />
+<small>AND OF SCOTLAND</small>.</h1>
+
+<hr />
+
+<h3>HISTORICAL, TRADITIONARY, &amp; IMAGINATIVE,<br />
+<br />
+<small>WITH A GLOSSARY</small>.</h3>
+
+<hr />
+
+<h4><small>REVISED BY</small><br />
+<br />
+<big>ALEXANDER LEIGHTON,</big><br />
+<br />
+<small><em>One of the Original Editors and Contributors</em></small>.<br />
+<br /><br />
+VOL. XVII.<br />
+<br /><br />
+LONDON<br />
+<br />
+WALTER SCOTT, 14 PATERNOSTER SQUARE,<br />
+<small>AND NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE</small>.<br />
+<br />
+<small>1884.</small><br />
+</h4>
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2>CONTENTS.</h2>
+
+<table summary="Contents">
+<colgroup span="3">
+<col width="15px"></col>
+<col width="370px"></col>
+<col width="15px"></col>
+</colgroup>
+
+<tr>
+<th colspan="3">Page</th>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE</span>, (<em>John Mackay Wilson</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#roger">1</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">HOGMANAY; OR, THE LADY OF BALOOCHGRAY</span>, (<em>Alexander Leighton</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#hogmanay">33</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="3"><span class="smcap">GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT</span>, (<em>Professor Thomas Gillespie</em>)&mdash;</td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdr2"><span class="smcap">X.</span></td>
+<td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">SERGEANT WILSON</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#gleanings">65</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdr2"><span class="smcap">XI.</span></td>
+<td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">HELEN PALMER</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#helen">72</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdr2"><span class="smcap">XII.</span></td>
+<td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#cairny">80</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdr2"><span class="smcap">XIII.</span></td>
+<td class="tdl"><span class="smcap">PORTER'S HOLE</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#porter">92</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE RECLUSE</span>, (<em>Alexander Campbell</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#recluse">95</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">A HIGHLAND TRADITION</span>, (<em>Alexander Campbell</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#highland">125</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="3"><span class="smcap">THE SURGEON'S TALES</span>, (<em>Alexander Leighton</em>)&mdash;</td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl2" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE BEREAVED</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#bereaved">129</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl2" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE CONDEMNED</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#condemned">145</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE UNBIDDEN GUEST</span>, (<em>John Mackay Wilson</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#unbidden">161</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER</span>, (<em>John M. Wilson</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#simple">170</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="3"><span class="smcap">TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE</span>, (<em>Matthew Forster Conolly</em>)&mdash;</td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl2" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#robbery">194</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl2" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM</span>,</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#story">220</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR</span>, (<em>John Howell</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#legend">237</a></td>
+</tr>
+
+<tr>
+<td class="tdl" colspan="2"><span class="smcap">HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK</span>, (<em>Alexander Leighton</em>),</td>
+<td class="tdr"><a href="#hume">269</a></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<hr />
+
+<h1><small>WILSON'S</small><br />
+TALES OF THE BORDERS,<br />
+<small><small>AND OF SCOTLAND.</small></small></h1>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="roger" id="roger"></a>ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE.<br />
+<br />
+<small>A TALE OF THE FALSE ALARM.</small></h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">Ye</span> have heard of the false alarm, (said Roger Goldie,) which, for the space
+of wellnigh four and twenty hours, filled the counties upon the Border with
+exceeding great consternation, and at the same time called forth an example
+of general and devoted heroism, and love of country, such as is nowhere
+recorded in the annals of any nation upon the face of the globe. Good cause
+have I to remember it; and were I to live a thousand years, it never would
+be effaced from my recollection. What first gave rise to the alarm, I have
+not been able clearly to ascertain unto this day. There was a house-heating
+up beside Preston, with feasting and dancing; and a great light, like that
+of a flambeau, proceeded from the onstead. Now, some say that the man that
+kept the beacon on Hownamlaw, mistook the light for the signal on Dunselaw;
+and the man at Dunselaw, in his turn, seeing Hownam flare up, lighted his
+fires also, and speedily the red burning alphabet of war blazed on every
+hill top&mdash;a spirit seemed to fly from mountain to mountain, touching their
+summits with fire, and writing in the flame the word&mdash;<em>invasion!</em> Others
+say that it arose from the individual who kept watch at Hume Castle being
+deceived by an accidental fire over in Northumberland; and a very general
+supposition is, that it arose from a feint on the part of a great
+sea-admiral, which he made in order to try the courage and loyalty of the
+nation. To the last report, however, I attach no credit. The fable informs
+us, that the shepherd laddie lost his sheep, because he cried, "The wolf!"
+when there was no wolf at hand; and it would have been policy similar to
+his, to have cried, "<em>An invasion!</em>" when there was no invasion. Neither
+nations nor individuals like such practical jokes. It is also certain that
+the alarm was not first given by the beacons on the sea-coast; and there
+can be no doubt that the mistake originated either at Hownamlaw or Hume
+Castle.</p>
+
+<p>I recollect it was in the beginning of February 1804. I occupied a house
+then about half a mile out of Dunse, and lived comfortably, and I will say
+contentedly, on the interest of sixteen hundred pounds which I had invested
+in the funds; and it required but little discrimination to foresee, that,
+if the French fairly got a footing in our country, funded property would
+not be worth an old song. I could at all times have risked my life in
+defence of my native land, for the love I bore it; though you will perceive
+that I had a double motive to do so; and the more particularly, as, out of
+the interest of my funded capital, I maintained in competence an
+affectionate wife and a dutiful son&mdash;our only child. The name of my wife
+was Agnes, and the name of my son&mdash;who, at the time of the alarm, was
+sixteen&mdash;was Robert. Upon their account it often caused me great
+uneasiness, when I read and heard of the victories and the threatenings of
+the terrible Corsican. I sometimes dreamed that he had marched a mighty
+army on a bridge of boats across the straits of Dover, and that he had not
+only seized my sixteen hundred pounds, but drawn my son, my only son,
+Robie, as a conscript, to fight against his own natural and lawful country,
+and, perhaps, to shoot his father! I therefore, as in duty bound, as a true
+and loyal subject, had enrolled myself in the Dunse volunteers. Some joined
+the volunteers to escape being drawn for the militia, but I could give my
+solemn affidavit, that I had no motive but the defence of my country&mdash;and
+my property, which, as I have said, was a double inducement.</p>
+
+<p>I did not make a distinguished figure in the corps, for my stature did not
+exceed five feet two inches. But although my body was small, no man was
+more punctual on the parade; and I will affirm, without vanity, none more
+active, or had a bolder heart. It always appeared to me to be the height of
+folly to refuse to admit a man into a regiment, because nature had not
+formed him a giant. The little man is not so apt to shoot over the head of
+an enemy, and he runs less risk of being shot himself&mdash;two things very
+necessary to be considered in a battle; and were I a general, I would have
+a regiment where five feet two should be the maximum height even for the
+grenadier company.</p>
+
+<p>But, as I was saying, it was early in the February of 1804, on the second
+night, if I recollect aright&mdash;I had been an hour abed, and was lying about
+three parts asleep, when I was started with a sort of bum, bumming, like
+the beating of a drum. I thought also that I heard people running along the
+road, past the door. I listened, and, to my horror, I distinctly heard the
+alarm drum beating to arms. It was a dreadful sound to arouse a man from
+his sleep in our peaceful land.</p>
+
+<p>"Robie!" cried I to my son, "rise, my man, rise, and run down to the town,
+and see what is the matter, that they are beating the alarm drum at this
+time of night. I fear that"&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dearsake, Roger!" cried Agnes, grasping my arm, "what do ye fear?"</p>
+
+<p>"That&mdash;that there's a fire in the town," said I.</p>
+
+<p>"Weel," quoth she, "it canna reach us. But on dear me! ye have made my
+heart beat as if it would start from my breast&mdash;for I thought ye was gaun
+to say that ye was feared the French were landed!"</p>
+
+<p>"I hope not," said I. But, in truth, it was that which I did fear.</p>
+
+<p>Robie was a bold, spirited laddie; and he rushed out of the house, cold as
+it was, half-dressed, and without his jacket; but he had not been absent a
+minute, when he hurried back again, and cried breathlessly as he
+entered&mdash;"Faither! faither! the Law is a' in a lowe!&mdash;the French are
+landed!"</p>
+
+<p>I was then standing in the middle of the floor, putting on my clothes; and,
+starting as though I had seen an apparition, I exclaimed&mdash;"The French
+landed!&mdash;rise, Agnes! rise, and get me my accoutrements. For this day I
+will arm and do battle in defence of my native land."</p>
+
+<p>"Roger! Roger!" cried my wife, "wherefore will ye act foolishly. Stop at
+home, as a man ought to do, to preserve and protect his ain family and his
+ain property. Wherefore would ye risk life or limb withouten cause. There
+will be enough to fight the French without you&mdash;unmarried men, or men that
+have naebody to leave behint them and to mourn for them."</p>
+
+<p>"Agnes," said I, in a tone which manifested my authority, and at the same
+time shewed the courageousness of my spirit&mdash;"get me my accoutrements. I
+have always been the first upon the parade, and I will not be the last to
+shew my face upon the field of battle. I am but a little man&mdash;the least
+battalion man in the whole corps&mdash;but I have a heart as big as the biggest
+of them. Bonaparte himself is no Goliath, and a shot from my musket might
+reach his breast, when a taller man would be touching the cockade on his
+cocked hat. Therefore, quick! quick!&mdash;get me my accoutrements."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, guidman!" cried she, "your poor, heart-broken wife will fall on her
+knees before ye&mdash;and I implore ye, for my sake, and for the sake o' our
+dear bairn, that ye winna fling away life, and rush upon destruction. What
+in the name of fortune, has a peaceable man like you to do wi' war or wi'
+Bonaparte either? Dinna think of leaving the house this night, and I myself
+will go down to the town and procure a substitute in your stead. I have
+fifteen pounds in the kist, that I have been scraping thegither for these
+twelve years past, and I will gie them to ony man that will take your place
+in the volunteers, and go forth to fight the French in your stead."</p>
+
+<p>"Guidwife," said I, angrily, "ye forget what ye are talking about. The
+French are landed, and every man, auld and young, must take up arms. Ye
+would have me to become the laughing-stock of both town and country.
+Therefore get me my accoutrements, and let me down to the cross."</p>
+
+<p>"O Robie, my bairn!&mdash;my only bairn!" cried she, weeping, and addressing our
+son, "try ye to prevail upon your faither to gie up his mad resolution. If
+he leave us, he will mak you faitherless and me a widow."</p>
+
+<p>"Mother," said the laddie, gallantly, "the French are landed, and my
+faither maun help to drive them into the sea. I will tak my pistol and gang
+wi' him, and if ony thing happens, I will be at hand to assist him."</p>
+
+<p>"Haud, haud your tongue, ye silly callant!" she exclaimed, in great
+tribulation, "ye are as great a fool as your faither is. He sees what he
+has made o' you. But as the auld cock craws the young ane learns."</p>
+
+<p>I felt a sort of glow of satisfaction warming my heart at the manifestation
+of my son's spirit; but I knew that in one of his age, and especially at
+such a time, and with such a prospect before us, it was not right to
+encourage it, and it was impossible for a fond parent to incite his only
+son to the performance of an act that would endanger his life. I therefore
+spoke to him kindly, but, at the same time, with the firmness necessary to
+enforce the commands of a father, and said&mdash;"Ye are too young, Robin, to
+become a participator in scenes of war and horror. Your young bosom, that
+is yet a stranger to sorrow, must not be exposed to the destroying bullet;
+nor your bonny cheek, where the rose-bud blooms, disfigured with the sabre
+or the horse's hoof. Ye must not break your mother's heart, but stay at
+home to comfort and defend her, when your father is absent fighting for ye
+both."</p>
+
+<p>The boy listened to me in silence, but I thought that sullenness mingled
+with his obedience, and I had never seen him sullen before. Agnes went
+around the house weeping, and finding that I was not to be gainsayed, she
+brought me my military apparel and my weapons of war. When, therefore, I
+was arrayed and ready for the field, and while the roll of the drum was
+still summoning us to muster, I took her hand to bid her farewell&mdash;but, in
+the fulness of my heart, I pressed my lips to hers, and my tears mingled
+with her own upon her cheek.</p>
+
+<p>"Farewell, Agnes," said I, "but I trust&mdash;I hope&mdash;I doubt not, but we shall
+soon return safe, sound, and victorious. But if I should not&mdash;if it be so
+ordered that it is to be my lot to fall gloriously in defence of our
+country, our son Robert will comfort ye and protect ye; and ye will find
+all the papers relating to the sixteen hundred pounds of funded property in
+my private drawer; although, if the French gain a footing in the country, I
+doubt it will be but of small benefit to ye. And, in that case, Robin, my
+man," added I, addressing my son, "ye will have to labour with your hands
+to protect your mother! Bless you, doubly bless you both."</p>
+
+<p>I saw my son fall upon his mother's neck, and it afforded me a consolation.
+With great difficulty I got out of the house, and I heard Agnes sobbing
+when I was a hundred yards distant. I still also heard the roll of the drum
+rolling and rattling through the stillness of midnight, and, on arriving at
+the cross, I found a number of the volunteers and a multitude of the
+townspeople assembled. No one could tell <em>where</em> the French had landed, but
+all knew that they <em>had</em> landed.</p>
+
+<p>That, I assure ye, was a never-to-be-forgotten night. Every person
+naturally looked anxious, but I believe I may safely say, that there was
+not one face in a hundred that was pale with fear, or that exhibited a
+trace of cowardice or terror upon it. One thought was uppermost in every
+bosom, and that was&mdash;to drive back the invaders, yea to drive them into,
+and drown them in the German ocean, even as Pharaoh and his host were
+encompassed by the Red Sea and drowned in it. Generally speaking, a spirit
+of genuine, of universal heroism was manifested. The alacrity with which
+the volunteers assembled under arms, was astonishing; not but that there
+were a few who fell into the ranks rather slowly and with apparent
+reluctance; but some of those, like me, had perhaps wives to cling round
+their necks, and to beseech them not to venture forth into the war. One of
+the last who appeared upon the ground, was my right-hand comrade, Jonathan
+Barlowman. I had to step to the left to make room for Jonathan, and, as he
+took his place by my side, I heard the teeth chattering in his head. Our
+commanding officer spoke to him rather sharply, about being so slow in
+turning out in an hour of such imminent peril. But I believe Jonathan was
+insensible to the reprimand.</p>
+
+<p>The drums began to beat and the fifes to play&mdash;the word "March!" was
+given&mdash;the townspeople gave us three cheers as we began to move&mdash;and my
+comrade Jonathan, in his agitation, put his wrong foot foremost, and could
+not keep the step. So we marched onward, armed and full of patriotism,
+towards Haddington, which in case of the invasion, was appointed our
+head-quarters or place of rendezvous.</p>
+
+<p>I will not pretend to say that I felt altogether comfortable during the
+march; indeed, to have done so was impossible, for the night was bitterly
+cold, and at all times there is but little shelter on the bleak and wild
+Lammermoors; yet the cold gave me but small concern, in comparison of the
+thoughts of my Agnes and my son Robin. I felt that I loved them even better
+than ever I had imagined I loved them before, and it caused me much silent
+agony of spirit when I thought that I had parted with them&mdash;perhaps for
+ever. Yet, even in the midst of such thoughts, I was cheered by the
+glorious idea of fighting in defence of one's own native country; and I
+thought of Wallace and of Bruce, and of all the heroes I had read about
+when a laddie, and my blood fired again. I found that I hated our invaders
+with a perfect hatred&mdash;that I feared not to meet death&mdash;and I grasped my
+firelock more firmly, and a thousand times fancied that I had it levelled
+at the breast of the Corsican.</p>
+
+<p>I indulged in this train of thoughts until we had reached Longformacus, and
+during that period not a word had my right-hand neighbour, Jonathan
+Barlowman, spoken, either good, bad, or indifferent; but I had frequently
+heard him groan audibly, as though his spirit were troubled. At length,
+when we had passed Longformacus, and were in the most desolate part of the
+hills&mdash;"O Mr Goldie! Mr Goldie!" said he, "is this no dismal?"</p>
+
+<p>"I always consider it," answered I, "one of the dreariest spots on the
+Lammermoors."</p>
+
+<p>"O sir!" said he, "it isna the dreariness o' the road that I am referring
+to. I would rather be sent across the hills from Cowdingham to Lander,
+blindfold, than I would be sent upon an errand like this. But is it not a
+dismal and a dreadfu' thought that Christian men should be roused out of
+their beds at the dead of night, to march owre moor and mountain, to be
+shot, or to cut each other's throats? It is terrible, Mr Goldie!"</p>
+
+<p>Now, he was a man seven inches taller than I was, and I was glad of the
+opportunity of proving to him that, though I had the lesser body, I had the
+taller spirit of the two&mdash;and the spirit makes the man. Therefore I said to
+him&mdash;"Why, Mr Barlowman, you surprise me to hear you talk; when our country
+demands our arms in its defence, we should be ready to lay down our lives,
+if necessary, by night or by day, on mountain or in glen, on moor or in
+meadow&mdash;and I cannot respond your sentiments."</p>
+
+<p>"Weel," said he, "that may be your opinion, and it may be a good opinion,
+but, for my own part, I do confess that I have no ambition for the honours
+of either heroism or martyrdom. Had a person been allowed a day to make a
+sort of decent arrangement of their worldly affairs, it wadna have been sae
+bad; but to be summoned out of your warm bed at midnight, and to take up an
+instrument of death in the dark, and go forth to be shot at!&mdash;there is, in
+my opinion, but a small share of either honour or glory in the transaction.
+This, certainly, is permanent duty now, and peremptory duty also, with a
+witness! But it is a duty the moral obligation of which I cannot perceive;
+and I think that a man's first duty is to look after himself&mdash;and family."</p>
+
+<p>He mentioned the word "family" with a peculiarity of emphasis which plainly
+indicated that he wished it to work an effect upon me, and to bring me over
+to his way of thinking. But, instead of its producing that effect, my
+spirit waxed bolder and bolder as I remained an ear-witness of his
+cowardice.</p>
+
+<p>"Comrade Jonathan&mdash;I beg your pardon, Mr Barlowman I mean to say," said
+I&mdash;"the first duty of every man, when his country is in danger, is to take
+up arms in its defence, and to be ready to lay down his life, if his body
+will form a barrier to the approach of an enemy."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be sae," said he; "but I would just as soon think of my body being
+eaten by cannibals, as applied to any such purpose. It will take a long
+time to convince me that there is any bravery in a man volunteering to 'be
+shot at for sixpence a-day;' and it will be as long before fighting the
+French prepare my land for the spring seed. If I can get a substitute when
+we reach Haddington, they may fight that likes for me."</p>
+
+<p>As we marched along, his body became the victim of one calamity after
+another. Now his shoes pinched his feet and crippled him, and in a while he
+was seized with cramp pains in his breast, which bent him together twofold.
+But, as it was generally suspected by the corps that Jonathan was, at best,
+hen-hearted, he met with little, indeed I may say no sympathy on account of
+his complaints, but rather with contempt; for there was not a man in our
+whole regiment, save himself, that did not hate cowardice with his whole
+heart, and despise it with his whole soul. Whether he actually was
+suffering from bodily pain, in addition to the pain of his spirit, or not,
+it is not for me to judge. The doctor came to the rear to see him, and he
+said that Mr Barlowman certainly was in a state of high fever, that would
+render him incapable of being of much service. But I thought that he made
+the declaration in an ironical sort of tone; and whether it was a fever of
+fear, of spiritual torment, or of bodily torment, he did not tell. One
+thing is certain, the one frequently begets the other.</p>
+
+<p>The words of the doctor gave a sort of license to bold Jonathan Barlowman,
+and his moaning and his groaning, his writhing and complaining, increased.
+He began to fall behind, and now stood fumbling with his pinching shoes, or
+bent himself double with his hands across his breast, sighing piteously,
+and shedding tears in abundance. At length we lost sight and hearing of
+him, and we imagined that he had turned back, or peradventure, lain down by
+the way; but there was no time for us to return to seek him, nor yet to
+look after one man, when, belike a hundred thousand French had landed.</p>
+
+<p>Well, it was about an hour after the final disappearance of Jonathan, that
+a stranger joined our ranks in his stead. He took his place close by my
+side. He carried a firelock over his shoulder, and was dressed in a
+greatcoat; but so far as I could judge from his appearance in the dark, I
+suspected him to be a very young man. I could not get a word out of him,
+save that in answer to a question&mdash;"Are ye Mr Barlowman's substitute?"</p>
+
+<p>And he answered&mdash;"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>Beyond that one word, I could not get him to open his mouth. However, I
+afterwards ascertained that the youth overtook Jonathan, while he was
+writhing in agony upon the road, and declaring aloud that he would give any
+money, from ten to a hundred guineas, for a substitute, besides his arms
+and accoutrements. The young man leaped at the proposal, or rather at a
+part of it, for he said he would take no money, but that the other should
+give him his arms, ammunition, and such like, and he would be his
+substitute. Jonathan joyfully accepted the conditions; but whether or not
+his pains and groanings left him, when relieved from the weight of his
+knapsack, I cannot tell. Our corps voted him to be no man who could find
+time to be ill, even in earnest, during an invasion.</p>
+
+<p>My attention, however, was now wholly taken up with the stranger, who, it
+appeared, had been dropped, as if from the clouds, in the very middle of a
+waste, howling wilderness, to volunteer to serve in the place of my craven
+comrade, Jonathan Barlowman. The youth excited my curiosity the more,
+because, as I have already informed ye, he was as silent as a milestone,
+and not half so satisfactory; for beyond the little word "Yes," which I
+once got out of him, not another syllable would he breathe&mdash;but he kept his
+head half turned away from me. I felt the consciousness and the assurance
+growing in me more and more that he was a French spy; therefore I kept my
+musket so that I could level it at him, and discharge it at half a moment's
+warning; and I was rejoicing to think that it would be a glorious thing if
+I got an opportunity of signalizing myself on the very first day of the
+invasion. I really began to dream of titles and rewards, the thanks of
+parliament, and the command of a regiment. It is a miracle that, in the
+delirium of my waking dream, I did not place the muzzle of my musket to my
+strange comrade's head.</p>
+
+<p>But daylight began to break just as we were about Danskin, and my curiosity
+to see the stranger's face&mdash;to make out who he was or what he was, or
+whether he was a Frenchman, or one of our own countrymen&mdash;was becoming
+altogether insupportable. But, just with the first peep of day, I got a
+glimpse of his countenance. I started back for full five yards&mdash;the musket
+dropped out of my hands!</p>
+
+<p>"Robie! Robie, ye rascal!" I exclaimed, in a voice that was heard from the
+one end of the line to the other, and that made the whole regiment
+halt&mdash;"what in the wide world has brought you here? What do ye mean to be
+after?"</p>
+
+<p>"To fight the French, faither!" said my brave laddie; "and ye ken ye always
+said, that in the event of an invasion, it wad be the duty of every one
+capable of firing a musket, or lifting a knife, to take up arms. I can do
+baith; and what mair me than another?"</p>
+
+<p>This was torturing me on the shrine of my own loyalty, and turning my own
+weapons upon myself, in a way that I never had expected.</p>
+
+<p>"Robie! ye daft, disobedient, heart-breaker ye!" continued I, "did I not
+command ye to remain at home with your mother, to comfort her, and, if it
+were necessary, and in your power, to defend her; and how, sirrah, have ye
+dared to desert her, and leave her sorrowing for you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I thought, faither," answered he, "that the best way to defend her, would
+be to prevent the enemy approaching near to our dwellings."</p>
+
+<p>My comrades round about that heard this answer, could not refrain from
+giving three cheers in admiration of the bravery of the laddie's spirit;
+and the cheering attracting the attention of the officers, one of them came
+forward to us, to inquire into its cause; and, on its being explained to
+him, he took Robin by the hand, and congratulated me upon having such a
+son. I confess that I did feel an emotion of pride and gratification
+glowing in my breast at the time; nevertheless, the fears and the anxiety
+of a parent predominated, and I thought what a dreadful thing it would be
+for me, his father, to see him shot or pierced through the body with a
+bayonet, at my very side; and what account, thought I, could I give of such
+a transaction to his bereaved and sorrowing mother? For I felt a something
+within my breast, which whispered, that, if evil befell him in the warfare
+in which we were about to engage, I would not be able to look her in the
+face again. I fancied that I heard her upbraiding me with having instilled
+into his mind a love of war, and I fancied that I heard her voice requiring
+his life at my hands, and crying&mdash;"Where is my son?"</p>
+
+<p>At length we arrived at Haddington; and there, in the course of the day, it
+was discovered, to the gratification of some and the disappointment of
+many, that our march had originated in a <em>false alarm</em>. I do confess that I
+was amongst those who felt gratified that the peace of the land was not to
+be endangered, but that we were to return every man to his own fireside,
+and to sit down beneath our vine and our fig tree, with the olive branches
+twining between them. But amongst those who were disappointed, and who
+shewed their chagrin by the gnashing of their teeth, was my silly laddie,
+my only son Robert. When he saw the people laughing in the marketplace, and
+heard that the whole Borders had been aroused by an accidental light upon a
+hill, his young brow lowered as black as midnight&mdash;his whole body trembled
+with a sort of smothered rage&mdash;and his eyebrows drew together until the
+shape of a horse-shoe was engraven between them.</p>
+
+<p>"Robie, my captain," said I, "wherefore are ye looking sae dour? Man, ye
+ought to rejoice that no invader as yet has dared to set his foot upon our
+coast, and that you and I will return to your mother, who, no doubt, will
+be distracted upon your account beyond measure. But, oh, when she meets you
+again, I think that I see her now springing up from the chair, where she is
+sitting rocking and mourning, and flinging her arms round your neck,
+crying&mdash;'Robie!&mdash;Robie, my son! where have ye been?&mdash;how could ye leave
+your mother?' Then she will sob upon your breast, and wet your cheek with
+her tears; and I will lift her arms from your neck, and say&mdash;'Look ye,
+Agnes, woman, your husband is restored to ye safe and sound, as well as
+your son?' And then I will tell her all about your bravery, and your
+following us over the moors, and the cowardice of Jonathan Barlowman, and
+of your coming up to him, where he groaned behind us on the road&mdash;of your
+becoming his substitute, and of your getting his greatcoat, his knapsack,
+and his gun&mdash;and of your marching an hour by your father's side without him
+finding out who you were. I will tell her all about my discovering you, and
+about your answers, and the cheering of the volunteers; and the officers
+coming up and taking your hand, and congratulating me upon having such a
+son. O Robie, man! I will tell her everything! It will be such a meeting as
+there has not been in the memory of man. Therefore, as the French are
+neither landed nor like to land, I will speak to the superior officer, and
+you and I Will set off for Dunse immediately."</p>
+
+<p>We went into a public-house, to have a bottle of ale and baps; and I think
+I never in my life partook of anything more refreshing or more delicious.
+Even Robie, notwithstanding the horse-shoe of angry disappointment on his
+brow, made a hearty repast; but that was natural to a growing laddie, and
+especially after such a tramp as we had had in the death and darkness of
+night, over moor and heather.</p>
+
+<p>"Eat well, Robie, lad," said I; "it's a long road over again between here
+and Dunse, and there is but little to be got on it. Take another glass of
+ale; ye never tasted anything from Clockmill to match that. It is as
+delicious as honey, and as refreshing as fountain water."</p>
+
+<p>That really was the case; though whether the peculiar excellence of the ale
+arose from anything extraordinarily grateful in its flavour, or from my
+long march, my thirst, and sharp appetite&mdash;added to the joy I felt in the
+unexpected prospect of returning home in peace and happiness with my son,
+instead of slaughtering at enemies, or being slaughtered by them&mdash;I cannot
+affirm. There might be something in both. Robin, however, drank an entire
+bottle to his own head&mdash;that was three parts of a choppin, and a great deal
+too much for a laddie of his years. But in the temper he was in, and
+knowing by myself that he must be both thirsty and hungry, I did not think
+it prudent to restrain him. It was apparent that the liquor was getting
+uppermost in his brain, and he began to speak and to argue in company, and
+to strike his hand upon the table like an angry man; in short, he seemed
+forgetful of my presence, and those were exhibitions which I had never
+observed in him before.</p>
+
+<p>I was exceedingly anxious to get home, upon his mother's account; for she
+was a woman of a tender heart and a nervous temperament; and I knew that
+she would be in a state bordering on distraction on account of his absence.
+I therefore said to him&mdash;"Robin, I am going to speak to the commanding
+officer; ye will sit here until I come back, but do not drink any more."</p>
+
+<p>"Very weel, faither," said he.</p>
+
+<p>So I went out and spoke to the officer, and told him my reasons for wishing
+to return home immediately; urging the state of anxiety and distress that
+Agnes would be in on account of the absence of our son.</p>
+
+<p>"Very well, Mr Goldie," said he; "it is all very right and proper; I have a
+regard to the feelings of a husband and a parent; and as this has proved
+but a false alarm, there is no obstacle to your returning home
+immediately."</p>
+
+<p>I thanked him very gratefully for his civility, and stepped away up to the
+George Inn, where I took two outside places on the heavy coach to Dunbar,
+intending to walk from there to Broxmouth, and to strike up there by the
+west to Innerwick, and away over the hills, down by Preston, and home.</p>
+
+<p>I am certain I was not twenty minutes or half an hour absent at the
+farthest. When I entered the public-house again, I looked for my son, but
+he was not there.</p>
+
+<p>"What have ye made of Robie?" said I to my comrades.</p>
+
+<p>"Has he no been wi' ye?" answered they; "he left the house just after ye."</p>
+
+<p>Mortal man cannot describe the fear, agony, and consternation that fell
+upon me. The sweat burst upon my brow as though it had been the warmest day
+in summer. A thousand apprehensions laid their hands upon me in a moment.</p>
+
+<p>"With me!" said I; "he's not been with me: have none of you an idea where
+he can have gone?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not the smallest," said they; "but he canna be far off&mdash;he will soon cast
+up. He will only be out looking at the town."</p>
+
+<p>"Or showing off gallant Jonathan Barlowman's gun, big-coat, and knapsack,"
+said one.</p>
+
+<p>"Keep yoursel at ease, Mr Goldie," said another, laughing; "there is no
+danger of his passing the advanced posts, and falling into the hands of the
+French."</p>
+
+<p>It was easy for those to jest who were ignorant of a father's fears and a
+father's feelings. I sat down for the space of five minutes, and to me they
+seemed five hours; but I drank nothing, and I said nothing, but I kept my
+eyes fixed upon the door. Robin did not return. I thought the ale might
+have overcome the laddie, and that he had gone out and lain down in a state
+of sickness; and "That," thought I, "will be a <em>becoming</em> state for me to
+take him home in to his distressed mother. Or it will cause us to stop a
+night upon the road."</p>
+
+<p>My anxiety became insupportable, and I again left my comrades, and went out
+to seek him. I sought him in every street, in every public-house in the
+town, amongst the soldiers, and amongst the townspeople; but all were too
+much occupied in discussing the cause of the alarm, to notice him who was
+to me as the apple of my eye. For three hours I wandered in search of him,
+east, west, north, and south, making inquiries at every one I met; but no
+one had seen or heard tell of him. I saw the coach drive off for Dunbar. I
+beheld also my comrades muster on the following morning, and prepare to
+return home, but I wandered up and down disconsolate, seeking my son, but
+finding him not.</p>
+
+<p>The most probable, and the fondest conjecture that I could indulge in, was,
+that he had returned home. I, therefore, shouldered my musket, and followed
+my companions to Dunse, whom I overtook upon the moors. It would be
+impossible for me to describe my feelings by the way&mdash;they were torture
+strained to its utmost extremity, and far more gloomy and dreary than the
+gloomiest and dreariest parts of the moors over which we had to pass. Every
+footstep increased my anxiety, every mile the perturbation and agony of my
+spirit. Never, I believe, did a poor parent endure such misery before, and
+I wished that I had never been one. I kept looking for him to the right and
+to the left every minute; and though it was but few travellers that we met
+upon the road, every one that we did meet I described him to them, and
+asked them if they had seen him. But, "No!" "No!" was their unvaried
+answer, and my wretchedness increased.</p>
+
+<p>At length we arrived at Dunse, and a great crowd was there to meet
+us&mdash;wives to welcome their husbands, parents to greet their children, and
+children their parents. The first that my eyes singled out, was a sister of
+my Agnes. She ran up to me.</p>
+
+<p>"Roger," she cried, "hae ye seen onything o' Robie?"</p>
+
+<p>The words went through my breast as if it had received the fire of a whole
+French battalion. I stood stock-still, petrified with despair. My looks
+told my answer to her question.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dear me! dear me!" I heard her cry; "what will his puir mother do
+noo&mdash;for she already is like ane clean out o' her judgment about him."</p>
+
+<p>I did not stop for the word "halt," or for the breaking of the lines; and I
+went home, I may say by instinct, for neither bird, bush, house nor tree,
+man nor bairn, was I capable of discerning by the road. Grief and
+heart-bursting anxiety were as scales upon my eyes. I remember of rushing
+into the house, throwing down my gun, and crying&mdash;"O Agnes! Agnes!" And as
+well do I remember her impatient and piteous inquiry&mdash;"Where is my
+Robie?&mdash;Oh, where is my son?&mdash;hae ye no seen him?"</p>
+
+<p>It was long before I could compose myself, so as to tell her all that I
+knew concerning him; and it was even longer before she was sufficiently
+calm to comprehend me. Never did unhappy parents before experience greater
+bitterness of soul. I strove to comfort her, but she would not listen to my
+words; for oh, they were as the blind leading the blind; we both were
+struggling in the slough of despair&mdash;both were in the pit of dark,
+bewildering misery. We sometimes sat looking at each other, like criminals
+whose last hour is come; and even when our grief wore itself into a "calm
+sough," there was something in our silence as dismal and more hopeless than
+the silence of the grave itself. But, every now and then, she would burst
+into long, loud lamentations, mourning and crying for "her son!&mdash;her son!"
+Often, too, did we sit, suppressing our very breath, listening to every
+foot that approached, and as one disappointment followed another, her
+despair became deeper and deeper, louder and louder, and its crushing
+weight sank heavier and heavier upon my spirit.</p>
+
+<p>Some of his young companions informed us, that Robin had long expressed a
+determination to be a soldier; and, on the following day, I set out for
+Edinburgh to seek for him there, and to buy him off at any price, if he had
+enlisted.</p>
+
+<p>There, however, I could gather no tidings concerning him; and all that I
+could learn was, that a regiment had left the Castle that morning at two
+o'clock, and embarked at Leith for Chatham, from whence they were to
+proceed direct abroad; and that several recruits were attached to it, some
+of them only sworn in an hour before they embarked; but whether my poor
+Robie was among them or not, no one could tell.</p>
+
+<p>I left Edinburgh no wiser, no happier, and in no way more comforted than I
+entered it, and returned to his mother a sad and sorrowing-hearted man. She
+wrung her hands the instant she beheld me, and, in a tone that might have
+touched the heart of a stone, cried aloud&mdash;"Oh, my lost! lost bairn! Ye hae
+made a living grave o' yer mother's breast."</p>
+
+<p>I would have set off immediately for London, and from thence down to
+Chatham, to inquire for him there; but the wind was favourable when the
+vessel sailed, and it was therefore certain, that, by the time I got back
+to Dunse, she was at the place of her destination; and moreover, I had no
+certainty or assurance that he was on board. Therefore, we spent another
+day in fruitless lamentations and tears, and in vain inquiries around our
+own neighbourhood, and amongst his acquaintances.</p>
+
+<p>But my own heart yearned continually, and his mother's moaning was
+unceasing in my ear, as the ticking of a spider, or the beating of a
+stop-watch to a person that is doomed to die. I could find no rest. I
+blamed myself for not proceeding direct from Edinburgh to Chatham; and,
+next day, I went down to Berwick, to take my place in the mail to London.</p>
+
+<p>By the way I met several of the yeomanry, who were only returning from
+Dunbar, where they had been summoned by the alarm; and I found that Berwick
+also had been in arms. But taking my place on the mail, I proceeded,
+without sleep or rest, to London, and from thence hastened to Chatham.
+There again I found that the regiment which I sought was already half way
+down the Channel; but I ascertained also that my poor thoughtless boy was
+one of the recruits, and even that was some consolation, although but a
+poor one.</p>
+
+<p>Again I returned to his mother, and told her of the tidings. They brought
+her no comfort, and, night and day, she brooded on the thought of her fair
+son lying dead and mangled on the field of slaughter, or of his returning
+helpless and wounded to his native land. And often it was wormwood to my
+spirit, and an augmentation of my own sorrows, to find that, in secret, she
+murmured against me as the author of her bereavement, and as having
+instilled into my son a liking for a soldier's life. She said it was all
+owing to my getting him, from the time that he was able to read, to take
+the newspaper in his hand and read it aloud to my cronies, and in which
+there were accounts of nothing but wars and battles, of generals and
+captains, and Bonaparte, of whom enough was foretold and enough could be
+read in the Revelations. These murmurings grieved me the more, inasmuch as
+my mind was in no way satisfied that they were without foundation. No man
+knew better than I did, how easily the twig is bent; a passing breeze, the
+lighting of a bird upon it, may do it; and as it is bent, so the branch or
+the tree will be inclined. I, therefore, almost resolved not to permit
+another newspaper to be brought within my door. But, somehow or other, it
+became more necessary than ever. Every time it came it was like a letter
+from Robie; and we read it from beginning to end, expecting always to hear
+something of him or of his regiment. Even Agnes grew fond of it, and was
+uneasy on the Saturdays if the postman was half-an-hour behind the time in
+bringing it.</p>
+
+<p>Full twelvemonths passed before we received a letter from him; and never
+will I forget the delightful sensations that gushed into my bosom at the
+sight of that letter. I trembled from head to foot with joy. I knew his
+handwriting at the first glance, and so did his mother&mdash;just as well as if
+he had begun "<em>dear parents</em>" on the back of it. It was only to be a penny,
+and his mother could hardly get her hand into her pocket to give the copper
+to the postman, she shook so excessively with joy and with agitation, and
+kept saying to me&mdash;"Read, Roger! read! Oh, let me hear what my bairn says."</p>
+
+<p>I could hardly keep my hand steady to open it; and, when I did break the
+seal, I burst into tears at the same moment, and my eyes became as though I
+were blind; and still his mother continued saying to me&mdash;"Oh, read! read!"</p>
+
+<p>Twice, thrice, did I draw my sleeve across my eyes, and at last I read as
+follows:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">My Dear Parents</span>,&mdash;I fear that my conduct has caused you many a miserable
+day, and many a sleepless night. But, even for my offence, cruel as it has
+been, I trust there is forgiveness in a parent's breast. I do not think
+that I ever spoke of it to you, but, from the very earliest period that I
+could think, the wish was formed in my mind to be a soldier. When I used to
+be spelling over the History of Sir William Wallace, or the lives of the
+Seven Champions of Christendom, I used to fancy myself Wallace or Saint
+George; and I resolved, that when I lived to be a man, that I would be a
+soldier and a hero like them; and I used to think what a grand thing it
+would be for you and my mother, and all my acquaintances, to be reading
+about me and my exploits! The continual talking about the war and the
+French, and of their intention to invade Britain, all strengthened my early
+desires. Often when I was reading the newspapers to you and your friends,
+and about the gallant deeds of any particular individual, though I used to
+read <em>his name</em> aloud to you, I always read it in to myself as though it
+were my own. I had resolved to enlist before the false alarm took place;
+and, when you and the other volunteers marched out of Dunse to Haddington,
+I could not resist the temptation which it offered of seeing and being
+present at a battle. About half-an-hour after you left the town, I followed
+ye, and, as ye are already aware, overtook poor Jonathan Barlowman, who had
+fallen behind the corps, in great distress, apparently both of body and
+mind. He seemed to be in a swither whether to return home, to follow ye, or
+to lie down and die by the road. I knew him by the sound of the lamentation
+he was making, and, accosting him, I inquired&mdash;'What is the matter wi' ye,
+Jonathan! Has ony o' the French, concealed aboot the moors, shot ye
+already?' 'Oh,' he replied, 'I am ill&mdash;I am dying!&mdash;I am dying!&mdash;I will
+give any money for a substitute!' 'Gie me yer gun,' said I, 'and I will be
+yer substitute without money.' 'A thousand blessings upon yer head, Robie,
+lad!' said he; 'ye shall hae my gun, and ye may tak also my greatcoat and
+knapsack, for they only encumber me. Ye hae rescued a dying man.' I was
+nearly as tall as he; and, though his coat was loose about me, when I got
+it on, and his musket over my shoulder, and felt that I was marching like
+an armed knight of old against the invaders of my country, I felt as proud
+as an emperor; I would not have changed situations with a king. I overtook
+you, and you know the rest. At Haddington, the strong ale was too strong
+for me. I was also sorely mortified to find all my prospects of becoming a
+hero blasted. When, therefore, you went out to take our places in the
+coach to Dunbar, I slipped out of the room, and hiding Mr Barlowman's coat
+and gun in a closet, in the house, I took the road for Edinburgh; which
+city I reached within less than three hours; and before I had been in it
+twenty minutes I was a soldier. I was afraid to write home, lest ye would
+take steps to buy me off. On the fourth day after my enlisting I was landed
+at Chatham, where I was subjected to a perpetual drill; and within thirty
+hours after landing, I again embarked with my regiment; and when I wished
+to have written, I had not an opportunity. Since then, I have been in two
+general engagements and several skirmishes, in all of which I have escaped
+unwounded. I have found that to read of a battle, and to be engaged in a
+battle, are two very different things. The description is grand, but the
+sight dismal. I trust that my behaviour as a soldier has been
+unimpeachable. It has obtained for me the notice of our colonel, who has
+promoted me to the rank of corporal, with the promise of shortly making me
+a sergeant; and I am not without hopes, before the war is over, (of which
+there at present is no prospect), of obtaining a commission; though it
+certainly is not one in a thousand that has such fortune. Hoping,
+therefore, my dear parents, that, under the blessing of Providence, this
+will find you well, as it leaves me, and that I will live to return to ask
+your forgiveness, I remain your affectionate and dutiful son,</p>
+
+<p class="right">"<span class="smcap">Robert Goldie</span>."</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>Such was Robin's letter. "Read it again," said mother&mdash;and I read it again;
+and when I had done so, she took it in her hand and pressed it to her lips
+and to her breast, and wept for "her poor bairn." At last, in a tone of
+despondency, she said&mdash;"But, oh, he doesna once particularly mention his
+mother's name in't."</p>
+
+<p>"He surely does," said I; "I think he mentions us both."</p>
+
+<p>So I took the letter again into my hand, and, at the foot corner of the
+third page, I saw what I had not observed before, the letters and
+words&mdash;"<em>P.S. Turn over</em>."</p>
+
+<p>"P.S." said his mother; "who does that mean?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" said I, "it means nobody. It means that we have not read all the
+letter."</p>
+
+<p>"Read it a', then&mdash;read it a'!" she cried.</p>
+
+<p>And I turned to the last page, on the fold above the direction, and read&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"P.S.&mdash;But how am I to ask the forgiveness of my dear mother, for all the
+distress and anxiety that my folly and disobedience must have occasioned
+her. I start in my very sleep, and think that I hear her yearning and
+upbraiding. If she knew how deep my repentance is, and how keen my misery
+for the grief which I have caused her, I would not have to ask her
+forgiveness twice. Dear father! dear mother!&mdash;both, both of you forgive
+your thoughtless son."</p>
+
+<p>These last lines of his letter drowned us both in tears, and, for the space
+of several minutes, neither of us were able to speak. I was the first to
+break silence, and I said&mdash;"Agnes, our dear Robin is now a soldier, and he
+seems to like that way of life. But I dislike the thought of his being only
+a corporal, and I would wish to see him an officer. We have nobody in the
+world but him to care for. He is our only son and heir, and I trust that
+all that we have will one day be his. Now, I believe that the matter of
+four or five hundred pounds will buy him a commission, and make him an
+officer, with a sword by his side, a sash round his waist, and a gold
+epaulette on his shoulder, with genteel pay and provision for life; besides
+setting him on the high road to be a general. Therefore, if ye approve of
+it, I will sell out stock to the amount that will buy him commission."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh," replied she, "ye needna ask me if I approve, for weel do ye ken that
+I will approve o' onything that will be for my bairn's benefit."</p>
+
+<p>I accordingly lifted five hundred pounds, and through the influence of a
+Parliament man, succeeded in procuring him a commission as an ensign. I
+thought the money well spent, as it tended to promote the respectability
+and prospects of my son.</p>
+
+<p>Four years afterwards, his mother and I had the satisfaction of reading in
+the public papers, that he had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant upon
+the field, for his bravery. On the following day we received a letter from
+himself, confirming the tidings, which gave us great joy. Nevertheless, our
+joy was mingled with fears; for we were always apprehensive that some day
+or other we would find his name among the list of killed and wounded. And
+always the first thing that his mother said to me, when I took up the
+papers, was&mdash;"Read the list of the killed and wounded." And I always did
+so, with a slow, hesitating, and faltering voice, fearful that the next I
+should mention would be that of my son, Lieutenant Goldie.</p>
+
+<p>There was very severe fighting at the time; and every post was bringing
+news concerning the war. One day, (I remember it was a King's fast-day,)
+several neighbours and myself were leaning upon the dike, upon the footpath
+opposite to my house, and waiting for the postman coming from Ayton, to
+hear what was the news of the day. As he approached us, I thought he looked
+very demure-like, which was not his usual; for he was as cheerful,
+active-looking a little man as you could possibly see.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Hughie," said I to him, holding out my hand for the papers, "ye look
+dull like to-day; I hope ye have no bad news?"</p>
+
+<p>"I would hope not, Mr Goldie," said he; and, giving me the paper, walked
+on.</p>
+
+<p>The moment that Agnes saw that I had got it, she came running out of the
+house, across the road, to hear as usual, the list of the killed and
+wounded read, and my neighbours gathered round about me. There had been, I
+ought to tell ye, a severe battle, and both the French and our army claimed
+the victory; from which we may infer, that there was no great triumph on
+either side. But, agreeably to my wife's request, I first read over the
+list of the killed, wounded, and <em>missing</em>. I got over the two first
+mentioned; but, oh! at the very sight of the first name upon the missing
+list, I clasped my hands together, and the paper dropped upon the ground.</p>
+
+<p>"O Robie! my son! my son!" I cried aloud.</p>
+
+<p>Agnes uttered a piercing scream, and cried, "O my bairn&mdash;what has happened
+my bairn? Is he dead! Tell me, is my Robie dead?"</p>
+
+<p>Our neighbours gathered about her, and tried to comfort her; but she was
+insensible to all that they could say. The first name on the missing list
+was that of my gallant son. When the first shock was over, and I had
+composed myself a little, I also strove to console Agnes; but it was with
+great difficulty that we could convince her that Robin was not dead, and
+that the papers did not say he was wounded.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, then!" she cried, "what do they say about him. Tell me at once. Roger
+Goldie! how can ye, as the faither o' my bairn, keep me in suspense."</p>
+
+<p>"O, dear Agnes," said I, "endeavour, if it be possible, to moderate your
+grief; I am sure ye know that I would not keep ye in suspense if I could
+avoid it. The papers only say that Robin is <em>amissing</em>."</p>
+
+<p>"And what mean they by that?" she cried.</p>
+
+<p>"Why," said I to her, "they mean that he, perhaps, pursued the enemy too
+far&mdash;or possibly that he may have fallen into their hands, and be a
+prisoner&mdash;but that he had not cast up when the accounts came away."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes! yes!" she exclaimed with great bitterness, "and it perhaps means that
+his body is lying dead upon the field, but hasna been found."</p>
+
+<p>And she burst out into louder lamentations, and all our endeavours to
+comfort her were in vain; though, in fact, my sufferings were almost as
+great as hers.</p>
+
+<p>We waited in the deepest anxiety for several days, always hoping that we
+would hear some tidings concerning him, but none came. I therefore wrote to
+the War-Office, and I wrote also to his Colonel. From the War-Office I
+received a letter from a clerk, saying that he was commanded to inform me,
+that they could give me no information relative to Lieutenant Goldie,
+beyond what was contained in the public prints. The whole letter did not
+exceed three lines. You would have said that the writer had been employed
+to write a certain number of letters in a day, at so much a day, and the
+sooner he got through his work the better. I set it down in my mind that he
+had never had a son amissing on the field of battle, or he never would have
+written an anxious and sorrowing father such a cold scrawl. He did not even
+say that, if they got any tidings concerning my son, they would make me
+acquainted with them. He was only commanded to tell me that they did not
+know what I was, beyond every thing on earth, desirous to ascertain. Though
+perhaps, I ought to admit that, in a time of war, the clerks in the
+War-Office had something else to do than enter particularly into the
+feelings of every father that had a son in the army, and to answer all his
+queries.</p>
+
+<p>From the Colonel, however, I received a long, and a very kind letter. He
+said many flattering things in praise of my gallant laddie, and assured me
+that the whole regiment deplored his being separated from them. He,
+however, had no doubt but that he had fallen into the hands of the enemy,
+and that, in some exchange of prisoners, or in the event of a peace, he
+would be restored to his parents and country again.</p>
+
+<p>This letter gave us some consolation. It encouraged us to cherish the hope
+of pressing our beloved son again to our breasts, and of looking on his
+features, weeping and wondering at the alterations which time, war, and
+imprisonment had wrought upon them. But more than three years passed away,
+and not a syllable did we hear concerning him, that could throw the least
+light upon where he was, or whether he was dead or living. Anxiety preyed
+sadly upon his mother's health as well as upon her spirits, and I could not
+drive away a settled melancholy.</p>
+
+<p>About that time a brother of mine, who was a bachelor, died in the East
+Indies, and left me four thousand pounds. This was a great addition to our
+fortune, and we hardly knew what to do with it. I may say that it made us
+more unhappy, for we thought that we had nobody to leave it to; and he who
+ought to have inherited it, and whom it would have made independent, we
+knew not whether he was in the land of the living, or a strange corpse in a
+foreign grave. Yet I resolved that, for his sake, I would not spend one
+farthing of it, but let it lie at interest; and I even provided in a will
+which I made, that unless he cast up, and claimed it, no one should derive
+any benefit from either principal or interest until fifty years after my
+death.</p>
+
+<p>I have said, that the health of Agnes had broken down beneath her weight of
+sadness, and as she had a relation, who was a gentleman of much
+respectability, that then resided in the neighbourhood of Kelso, it was
+agreed that we should spend a few weeks in the summer at his house. I
+entertained the hope that society, and the beautiful scenery around Kelso,
+with the white chalky braes<a name="FNanchor_A_1" id="FNanchor_A_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_A_1" class="fnanchor">[A]</a> overhung with trees, and the bonny islands
+in the Tweed, with mansions, palaces, and ruins, all embosomed in a
+paradise as fair and fertile as ever land could boast of, would have a
+tendency to cheer her spirits, and ease, if not remove, the one heavy and
+continuing sorrow, which lay like an everlasting nightmare upon her heart,
+weighing her to the grave.</p>
+
+<p>Her relation was a well-educated man, and he had been an officer in the
+army in his youth, and had seen foreign parts. He was also quite
+independent in his worldly circumstances, and as hospitable as he was
+independent. There were at that period a number of French officers,
+prisoners, at Kelso, and several of them, who were upon their parole, were
+visiters at the house of my wife's relation.</p>
+
+<p>There was one amongst them, a fine, though stern-looking man of middle age,
+and who was addressed by the appellation of Count Berth&eacute;. He spoke our
+language almost as well as if he had been a native. He appeared to be
+interested when he heard that my name was Goldie, and one day after dinner,
+when the cloth was withdrawn, and my wife's relation had ordered the punch
+upon the table&mdash;"Ha! Goldie! Goldie!" said the Count, repeating my name&mdash;"I
+can tell one story&mdash;which concerns me much&mdash;concerning, one Monsieur
+Goldie. When I was governor of the castle La&mdash;&mdash;, (he called it by some
+foreign name, which I cannot repeat to you), there was brought to me, (he
+added), to be placed under my charge, a young British officer, whose name
+was Goldie. I do not recollect the number of his regiment, for he was not
+in uniform when brought to me. He was a handsome man, but represented as a
+terrible one, who had made a violent attempt to escape after being taken
+prisoner, and his desperate bravery in the field was also recorded. I was
+requested to treat him with the respect due to a brave man, but, at the
+same time, to keep a strict watch over him, and to allow him even less
+liberty than I might do to an ordinary prisoner. His being a captive did
+not humble him; he treated his keepers and his guards with as much contempt
+as though he had been their conqueror on the field. We had confined his
+body, but there was no humbling of his spirit. I heard so much of him, that
+I took an interest in the haughty Briton. But he treated me with the same
+sullen disdain that he showed towards my inferiors. I had a daughter, who
+was as dear to me as life itself, for she had had five brothers, and they
+had all fallen in the cause of the great emperor, with the tricolor on
+their brow, and the wing of the eagle over them. She was
+beautiful&mdash;beautiful as her sainted mother, than whom Italy boasted not a
+fairer daughter, (for she was a native of Rome.) Hers was not a beauty that
+you may see every day amongst a thousand in the regions of the north&mdash;hers
+was the rare beauty amongst ten thousand of the daughters of the sunny
+south, with a face beaming with as bright a loveliness, and I would say
+divinity, as the Medici. Of all the children which that fair being bore
+unto me, I had but one, a daughter, left&mdash;beautiful as I have
+said&mdash;beautiful as her mother. I had a garden beneath the castle, and over
+it was a terrace, in which the British prisoner, Goldie, was allowed to
+walk. They saw each other. They became acquainted with each other. He had
+despised all who approached; he had even treated me, who had his life in my
+hand, as a dog. But he did not so treat my daughter. I afterwards learned,
+when it was too late, that they had been seen exchanging looks, words, and
+signs with each other. He had been eighteen months my prisoner; and one
+morning when I awoke, I was told that my daughter was not to be found, and
+that the English prisoner, Lieutenant Goldie, also had escaped. I cursed
+both in my heart; for they had robbed me of my happiness&mdash;he had robbed me
+of my child; though she only could have accomplished it. Shortly after
+this, (and perhaps because of it,) I was again called into active service,
+where, in my first engagement, it was my lot to be made a prisoner, and
+sent here; and since then I have heard nothing of my daughter&mdash;my one, dear
+child&mdash;the image of her mother; and nothing of him&mdash;the villain who seduced
+her from me."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, sir," exclaimed I, "do not call him a villain, for if it be he that I
+hope it was, who escaped through the <a name="instrumentality" id="instrumentality"></a><ins title="instrumentality changed to instrumentality">intsrumentality</ins> of your daughter, and
+took her with him, he has not a drop of villain's blood in his whole body.
+Sir! sir! I have a son&mdash;a Lieutenant Goldie; and he has (as I hope) been a
+French prisoner from the time ye speak of. Therefore, tell me, I implore
+ye, what was he like. Was he six inches taller than his father, with light
+complexion, yellowish hair, an aqualine nose; full blue eyes, a mole upon
+his right cheek, and, at the time ye saw him, apparently, perhaps, from
+two-and-twenty to three-and-twenty years of age? Oh, sir&mdash;Count, or
+whatever they call ye&mdash;if it be my son that your daughter has liberated and
+gone away with, she has fallen upon her feet; she has married a good, a
+kind, and a brave lad; and, though I should be the last to say it, the son
+of an honest man, who will leave him from five to six thousand pounds,
+beside his commission."</p>
+
+<p>By the description which he gave me, I had no doubt but that my poor Robie,
+and the laddie who had run away with his daughter, (or, I might say, the
+laddie with whom his daughter had run away,) were one and the same person.</p>
+
+<p>I ran into the next room, crying, "Agnes! Agnes! hear, woman! I have got
+news of Robie!"</p>
+
+<p>"News o' my bairn!" she cried, before she saw me. "Speak, Roger! speak!"</p>
+
+<p>I could hardly tell her all that the French Count had told me, and I could
+hardly get her to believe what she heard. But I took her into the room to
+him, and he told her everything over again. A hundred questions were asked
+backward and forward upon both sides, and there was not the smallest doubt,
+on either of our parts, but that it was my Robie that his daughter had
+liberated from the prison, and run off with.</p>
+
+<p>"But oh, sir," said Agnes, "where are they now&mdash;baith o my bairns&mdash;as you
+say I have twa? Where shall I find them?"</p>
+
+<p>He said that he had but little doubt that they were safe, for his daughter
+had powerful friends in France, and that as soon as a peace took place,
+(which he hoped would not be long,) we should all see them again.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the long-wished-for peace came at last&mdash;and in both countries the
+captives were released from the places of their imprisonment. I have
+already twice mentioned the infirm state of my wife's health; and we were
+residing at Spittal, for the benefit of the sea air and bathing, and the
+Spa Well, (though it had not then gained its present fashionable
+popularity,) when a post-chaise drove to the door of our lodgings. An
+elderly gentleman stepped off from the dicky beside the driver, and out of
+the chaise came a young lady, a gentleman, and two bonny bairns. In a
+moment I discovered the elderly gentleman to be my old friend the French
+Count. But, oh! how&mdash;how shall I tell you the rest! I had hardly looked
+upon the face of the younger stranger, when I saw my own features in the
+countenance of my long lost Robie! The lady was his wife&mdash;the Count's bonny
+daughter; and the bairns were their bairns. It is in vain for me to
+describe to you the feelings of Agnes; she was at first speechless and
+senseless, and then she threw her arms round Robie, and she threw them
+round his wife, and she took his bairns on her knee&mdash;and, oh! but she was
+proud at seeing herself a grandmother! We have all lived together in
+happiness from that day to this; and the more I see of Robie's wife, the
+more I think she is like an angel; and so thinks his mother. I have only to
+inform you that bold Jonathan Barlowman was forced to leave the
+country-side shortly after his valiant display of courage, and since then
+nobody in Dunse has heard whether he be dead or living and nobody cares.
+This is all I have to tell ye respecting the <em>false alarm</em>, and I hope ye
+are satisfied.</p>
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noi"><a name="Footnote_A_1" id="Footnote_A_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_A_1"><span class="label">[A]</span></a> It is evidently from the beautiful chalk cliff near Ednam
+House (though now not a very prominent object) that Kelso derives its
+name&mdash;as is proved by the ancient spelling.</p></div>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="hogmanay" id="hogmanay"></a>HOGMANAY;<br />
+<small>OR, THE LADY OF BALLOCHGRAY.</small></h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">The</span> last fifty years of mortal regeneration and improvement have effected
+more changes in the old fasts, and feasts, and merrymakings of Scotland,
+than twice and twice over that time of any other period since it became a
+nation. Every year we see the good old customs dying out, or strangled by
+the Prot&aelig;an imp Fashion, who, in the grand march of improvement of which we
+are so proud, in the perking conceit of heirs-apparent of the millennium,
+seems to be the only creature that derives benefit from the eternal changes
+that, by-and-by, we fear, will turn our heads, and make us look <em>back</em> for
+the true period of happiness and wisdom. But what enrageth us the more is,
+that, while all our fun of Beltane, Halloween, Hogmanay, Hanselmonday, and
+all our old merrymakings, are gone with our absentee lords and thanes&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Wha will their tenants pyke and squeize,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And purse up all their rent;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Syne wallop it to far courts, and bleize<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Till riggs and schaws are spent"&mdash;<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">and to whose contempt of our old customs we attribute a great part of their
+decay&mdash;we, in the very midst of the glorious improvement that has
+succeeded, are still cheated, belied, robbed, and plundered on all hands by
+political adventurers, private jobbers, and saintly hypocrites, in an
+artful, clean-fingered, and beautiful style of the trade, a thousand times
+more provoking than the clumsy, old-fashioned, <em>honest</em> kind of roguery
+that used to be in fashion, when folk were not too large for innocent
+mirth, and not too wise for enjoying what was liked by their ancestors. The
+people cry improvement&mdash;so do we; but we cherish a theory that has no
+charm, in these days of absolute faith in politics and parliament for the
+regeneration of man, that the true good of society&mdash;that is, the
+improvement of the heart and morals of a great country&mdash;lies in a sphere
+far humbler than the gorgeous recesses of Westminster&mdash;the fireside; a
+place that in former days, was revered, and honoured, and cherished, not
+only as the cradle of morals, but the abode of soul-stirring joys, and the
+scene of the celebration of many old and sacred amusements which humanized
+the young heart, and moulded and prepared it for the reception of those
+feelings which are interwoven with the very principle of social good. A
+political wrangle is a poor substitute for the old moral tales of the
+winter evenings of old Scotland. Even our legends of superstitious fear
+carried in them the boon of heartfelt obligation, which, when the subject
+was changed for the duties of life, still retained its strength, and
+wrought for good. These things are all gone; and, dissatisfied as we are
+with the bold substitutes of modern wisdom, let us use that which they
+cannot take from us, our books of "auld lear," and refresh ourselves with a
+peep at Leslie, in the Hogmanay of 16&mdash;. Who has not heard of "Christ's
+Kirk" in the kingdom of Fife, that place so celebrated by King James, in
+his incomparable "Christ's Kirk on the Green," for the frolics of wooers
+and "kittys washen clean," and "damsels bright," and "maidens mild?" That
+celebrated town was no other than our modern Leslie; and, though we cannot
+say that that once favoured haunt of the satyrs of merrymaking has escaped
+the dull blight that comes from the sleepy eye of the owl of modern wisdom,
+we have good authority for asserting that long after James celebrated the
+place for its unrivalled festivities, the character of the inhabitants was
+kept for many an after-day; and Hogmanay was a choice outlet for the
+exuberant spirits of the votaries of Momus.</p>
+
+<p>The day we find chronicled as remarkable for an exhibition of the true
+spirit of the Leslieans, went off as all days that precede a glorious
+jubilee at night generally do. The ordinary work of the "yape" expectants
+was, no doubt, apparently going on; but the looking of "twa ways" for
+gloaming was, necessarily, exclusive of much interest in the work of the
+day. The sober matrons, as they sat at the door on the "stane settle,"
+little inclined to work, considered themselves entitled to a <em>feast</em> of
+gossip; and even the guidman did not feel himself entitled to curb the glib
+tongue of his dame, or close up her ears with prudential maxims against the
+bad effects of darling, heart-stirring, soul-inspiring scandal. On that day
+there was no excise of the commodities of character. They might be bought
+or sold at a wanworth, or handed or banded about in any way that suited the
+tempers of the people. The bottle and the bicker had already, even in the
+forenoon, been, to a certain extent, employed as a kind of outscouts of the
+array that was to appear at night, and the gossipers were in that blessed
+state, between partial possession and full expectation, that makes every
+part of the body languid and lazy except the tongue. Around them the
+younkers, "hasty hensures" and "wanton winklots," were busy preparing the
+habiliments of the guysers&mdash;whose modes of masking and disguising were
+often regulated by the characters they were to assume, or the songs they
+had learned to chant for the occasion. Nor were these mimes limited to the
+urchin caste; for, in these days, wisdom had not got so conceited as to be
+ashamed of innocent mirth; and gaucy queens and stalwarth chiels exhibited
+their superiority only in acting a higher mask, and singing a loftier
+strain. The gossips did not hesitate to suspend the honeyed topic, to give
+sage counsel on the subject of the masking "bulziements;" and anon they
+turned a side look at the minor actors, the imps of devilry, who passed
+along with their smoking horns often made of the stem or "runt" of a winter
+cabbage, wherewith that night they would inevitably smoke out of "house and
+hauld" every devil's lamb of every gossip that did not open her hand and
+"deal her bread" to the guysers. Both parties, gossips and urchins,
+understood each other&mdash;like two belligerent powers asserting mutual rights,
+and contemplating each other with that look of half-concealed contention
+and defiance, which only tended to make the attack more inevitable.</p>
+
+<p>The evening set in, and the witching hour&mdash;the keystone of night's black
+arch, twelve o'clock&mdash;was approaching. To go to bed on such an occasion,
+would have been held no better than for a jolly toper to shirk his bicker,
+a lover to eschew the trysting thorn, or a warrior to fly the scene of his
+country's glory; neither would it have been safe, for no good guyser of the
+old school would take the excuse of being in bed in lieu of the buttered
+pease-bannock&mdash;the true hogmanay cake, to which he was entitled, by "the
+auld use and wont" of Scotland; and far better breathe the smoke of the
+"smeikin horn" on foot, and with the means of self-defence at command, than
+lie choked in bed, and "deaved" by the stock and horn, the squalling
+bagpipe, and the eternal&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Hery, Hary, Hubblischow,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">See ye not quha is come now!"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">ringing in one's ears during the whole night. The young were out; the old
+were in; but all were equally up and doing the honours of the occasion. At
+auld Wat Wabster's door, one minstrel company were singing&mdash;"Great is my
+sorrow;" and Marion, his daughter, with</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Her glitterand hair, that was sae gowden,"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>dealt out, with leal hand, the guyser's bannock. At the very next door, Meg
+Johnston was in the act of being "smecked oot" by a covey of twelve devils,
+who had inserted into every cranny a horn, and were blowing, with puffed
+cheeks, a choking death in every blast. One kept watch, to give the
+concerted signal when Meg should appear with her stick. On which occasion
+they were off in an instant; but only to return when Meg had let out the
+smoke, and satisfied herself that she would be no more tormented that
+night, to blow her up and out again, with greater vigour and a denser smoke
+than before. Farther on, Gib Dempster's dame, Kate, is at her door, with
+the bottle in her hand, to give another menyie of maskers their "hogmanay,"
+in the form of a dram; and Gib is at her back, eyeing her with a squint, to
+count how many interlusive applications of the cordial she will make to her
+own throat before she renounce her <em>opportunity</em>. In the middle of the
+street, Gossip Simson is hurrying along, with the necessaries in her lap,
+to treat her "cusin," Christy Lowrie, with a bit and a drop; and ever and
+anon she says, "a guid e'en" to this one, and "a guid e'en" to that; and,
+between the parties, her head is ever thrown back, as if she were counting
+the stars; and, every time the act is repeated, the bottle undergoes a
+perceptible diminution of its contents, till, by the time she reaches her
+"luving cusin's" door, it is empty; and honest John Simson, at her return,
+greets her with&mdash;"My feth, Jenny, ye've been at mony a hoose in Christ's
+Kirk this nicht, if ane may judge by yer bottle." At the same instant,</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Oh, leddy, help yer prisoneer<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">This last nicht o' the passing year,"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">is struck up at the door; the stock and horn sounds lustily in the ears of
+her whose bottle is empty; and, obliged to send them away without either
+cake or sup, she hears sounding in her confused ears&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"The day will come when ye'll be dead.<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">An' ye'll neither care for meal nor bread;"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">and, in a short time after, "Jamie the wight," an impling, with a tail of
+half-a-dozen minor and subordinate angels, begin blowing their smoking
+horns in at both door and window, till honest John is fairly smoked out,
+crying, as he hastens to the door&mdash;"This comes, Jenny, o' yer lavish
+kindness to yer cusins, that we hae naethin left in oor bottle, either to
+keep oot thae deevils' breath or wash't oot o' oor choking craigs." He is
+no sooner at the door than Geordie Jamieson accosts him in the usual style,
+and says he has come for his "hogmanay;" but John, knowing the state of the
+bottle, begins a loud cough, in the midst of the smoke, and cries, as he
+runs away from his house and visitor, (whom he pretends not to see for the
+smoke.) "It's a deevil o' a hardship to be smeeked oot o' ane's ain hoose."</p>
+
+<p>"Now," mutters Jenny, as she hears him run away, "I'll no see his face till
+mornin; an' he'll come in as blind's a bat." And out she flies to catch
+him; but, in her hurry, she overturns Geordie, just as his lips are
+manufacturing the ordinary "Guid e'en to ye, Jenny!"</p>
+
+<p>"The same to ye, Geordie," says she; and, with that boon, leaves him on her
+flight.</p>
+
+<p>The truth was, that John had the same instinctive antipathy against a house
+where there was an empty bottle as rats have against deserted granaries.
+But, if honest John Simson's house was deserted because Jenny had made too
+free with the bottle, Wat Webster's was full, from a reason precisely the
+very opposite; for the fair Marion&mdash;who had</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Brankit fast and made her bonny"&mdash;<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">was, in the midst of a company, distributing the cakes and bannocks with
+maidenly grace; and many a swain that night was glad, while</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"He quhissilit and he pypit baith,</span><br />
+<span class="i2">To mak her blyth that meeting&mdash;</span><br />
+<span class="i0">My hony heart, how says the sang,</span><br />
+<span class="i2">There sall be mirth at oor greeting."</span><br />
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">And among the rest might now be seen John Simson and his helpmate, and also
+Meg Johnston, who had been&mdash;either in reality, or, at least, with semblance
+sufficient to form their apology for calling where there was plenty of
+drink&mdash;smoked out of their own houses, amidst the cheers of the fire-imps.
+About this time, twelve o'clock was chimed from a rough-voiced bell of the
+Franciscan Monastery; and, some time after, in came Christy Lowrie, puffing
+and blowing, as if she too had experienced the effects of the thick breath
+of the fire-imps; and it might have been a fair presumption that her
+throat, like that of some of her predecessors, had been dried from
+pre-perceived gusts of Wat Webster's whisky rather than the smoke of the
+fire-angels, had it not been made quickly apparent, from other symptoms,
+that a horripilant terror had seized her heart and limbs, and inspired her
+tongue with the dry rattle of fearful intelligence. Never stopping till she
+got forward into the very heart of the company, seated round a blazing
+ingle, she sank upon a chair, and held up her hands to heaven, as if
+calling down from that quarter some supernatural agency to help in her
+difficulty. Every one turned and looked at her with wonder, mixed with
+sympathetic fear.</p>
+
+<p>"What, in God's name, is this, Christy? Is he come?" cried Wat Webster.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! he's come again&mdash;he's come again!" she replied, in the midst of an
+effort to catch a spittle to wet her parched throat. "He's been at Will
+Pearson's, and Widow Lindsay's, and Rob Paterson's&mdash;he's gaun his auld
+rounds&mdash;and dootless he'll be here too. O Marion! Marion! gie me a spark to
+weet my throat."</p>
+
+<p>The door was again opened, and in came Widow Lindsay in great haste and
+terror,</p>
+
+<p>"I've seen him again!" cried she fearfully, and threw herself down in a
+corner of the lang settle.</p>
+
+<p>"Are ye sure it's him, dame?" inquired Meg Johnston, who seemed perfectly
+to understand these extraordinary proceedings.</p>
+
+<p>"Sure!" ejaculated the widow. "Hae I no tasted his <em>red whisky</em>; and has it
+no burned my throat till I maun ask Marion there to quench the fire wi' a
+spark o' human-liquor?"</p>
+
+<p>The fire in the two terror-struck women's throats was soon extinguished by
+the "spark" they demanded; and a conversation, composed of twenty voices at
+once, commenced, the essence of which was, that, on the occasion of the
+last Hogmanay, a man dressed in a peculiar manner, with a green doublet,
+and hose of the same colour, a cravat, and a blue bonnet, had, just as
+twelve o'clock pealed from the monastery clock, made his appearance in the
+town, and conducted himself in such a manner as to excite much wonder among
+the inhabitants. Everything about him was mysterious; no person in that
+quarter had ever seen him before; there was nobody along with him; he came
+exactly at twelve; his face was so much shaded by a peculiar manner of
+wearing his bonnet and cravat that no one could say he had ever got a
+proper view of his features; he carried with him a bottle of liquor, which
+the people, from ignorance of its character, denominated <em>red whisky</em>, and
+which he distributed freely to all and sundry, without his stock ever
+running out, or being exhausted: his manners were free, boisterous, and
+hilarious; and he possessed the extraordinary power of making people love
+him <em>ad libitum</em>. He came as he went, without any one knowing more of him
+than that he was the very prince of good fellows; so exquisite a tosspot,
+that he seemed equal to the task (perhaps no difficult one) of making the
+whole town of Christ's Kirk drunk by the extraordinary spirit of his
+example; and so spirit-stirring a conjurer of odd thoughts and unrivalled
+humour, that melancholy itself laughed a gaunt laugh at his jokes; and
+gizzened gammers and giddy hizzies were equally delighted with his devilry
+and his drink. Arriving in the midst of frolic as high as ordinary mortal
+spirits might be supposed able to sublime human exultation, he effected
+such an increase of the corrybantic power of the laughing and singing
+genius of Hogmanay, that</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Never in Scotland had been seen<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Sic dancing nor deray;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Nowther at Falkland on the green,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Nor Peebles at the play."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">But, coming like a fire-flaught, like a fire-flaught he and his red whisky
+had departed; and it was not until he had gone, and one tosspot met another
+tosspot, and gossip another gossip, and compared notes, and exchanged
+shrewd guesses, eloquent winks, and pregnant vibrations of wondering
+noddles, that the mysterious stranger was invested with all the attributes
+to which he was, by virtue of his super-human powers, so clearly entitled.
+He was immediately elevated to the place which, in those days, was reserved
+in every cranium for the throne of the genius of superstition; yea he of
+the red cravat and red liquor was the never-ending subject of conversation,
+investigation, speculation, and consternation of the good folks of the town
+of Christ's Kirk. While the terror he had inspired was still fresh on the
+minds of the people, he returned at the exact hour of twelve on the
+subsequent Halloween. He brought again his bottle of red liquor, was
+dressed in the same style, wore the same red cravat, and was invested with
+the same sublimating powers of extravagant merriment. He went his old
+rounds; cracked nuts with the kittys; ducked for the apple, which never
+escaped his mouth; threw the weight in the barn; spaed fortunes with the
+Mauses; drank with the tosspots&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"If you can be blest the day,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Ne'er defer it till the morn&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peril still attends delay;<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">As the fools will find, when they<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Have their happy hour forborne;"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">and, by means of his wild humour and exhilarating drink, set all the scene
+of his former exploits in an uproar of mixed terror, jollity, superstition,
+and amazement. Every one, not possessed of fear, scrutinized him; those
+(and they were many) who were stricken with terror, avoided him as if he
+had in reality been the gentleman in black, as indeed many at that time
+alleged he was; some who had heard of him, watched to catch a passing
+glimpse of him; but, wonderful as it may seem, the jolly stranger again
+disappeared, and no one, even those who had got royally drunk with him,
+could say aught more of him than was said on the prior occasion; viz., that
+he was the very prince of good fellows, if he should be the "very
+big-horned Deil himsel." On his second disappearance, the point was no
+longer a moot one, "Who the devil he could be?" for the very question, as
+put, decided the question before it was answered. The point was just as
+lucid as ever was the spring of St Anthony, and no one could be gravelled,
+where there was not a grain of sand to interrupt the vision. There was not
+in the limits of the guid toun a dame or damsel, greybeard, or no-beard,
+that possessed within the boundaries of their cerebral dominions a single
+peg on which they could hang a veritable or plausible doubt of the true
+character, origin, and destination of this twelve-o'clock visiter of the
+good old town of "Christ's Kirk on the Green."</p>
+
+<p>Such was the state and condition of public opinion in the town of Leslie on
+this most important and engrossing subject, on the breaking of the day with
+which our history begins&mdash;this eventful Hogmanay. As the evening
+approached, every one trembled; but the inspiration of incipient drams had
+had the effect of so far throwing off the incubus as to enable some of the
+inhabitants, and, in particular, those we have mentioned, to go about the
+forms of the festival with decent freedom; while the guysers and "reekers,"
+after the manner of buoyant youth, had been flirting with their terrors,
+and singing and blowing to "keep their spirits up," in the execution of
+what they conceived to be a national duty, as well as very good individual
+fun. But there was little real sport in the case; and we would give it as a
+stanch, and <a name="an" id="an"></a><ins title="and changed to an">an</ins> unflinching opinion, were it put to us, that the terror of
+the stranger, and not a love of the liquor she carried, was the true cause
+of Jenny Simson's having emptied the bottle before she arrived at the
+residence of Christy Lowrie. Nay, more, we might safely allege&mdash;and there
+is no affidavit in the case&mdash;that there might have been more than smoke in
+the cause of the rapid flight of John Simson and Meg Johnston from their
+own houses to that of Wat Webster; and more than the roses in the cheeks of
+the fair Marion, or Wat Webster's pith of anecdote, that produced the
+congregation of individuals round his "blazing ingle," at the approach of
+the eerie hour of twelve, when it was probable the mysterious stranger
+would again appear. Be all this as it may&mdash;and we have no wish to overstate
+a case in which it is scarcely possible to carry language too far&mdash;there
+cannot be a doubt that the bells of the Franciscan monastery, as they
+tolled, in reverberating sounds, the termination of the old year and the
+beginning of the new, on that eventful night, struck a panic into the
+boldest Heich Hutcheon that ever figured in "Christ's Kirk on the Green."</p>
+
+<p>The statement of Christy Lowrie was perfectly true. Just as the bell
+tolled, the identical personage, with the red cravat, was seen hurrying
+forward with his ordinary agility&mdash;taking immense strides, and, at times,
+laughing with the exuberance of his buoyant spirits, on the eve of being
+gratified by his darling fun&mdash;by the east end of the town. The moon threw a
+faint beam on him as he passed, and exhibited him first to a company of
+guysers who were chanting at the door of Will Pearson&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"O lusty Maye, with Flora queen."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>The song was cut by a severed breath, and, uttering a loud scream, the
+whole party darted off at full speed, and, as they flew, spread the
+dreadful intelligence, that he of the red cravat was hurrying into the town
+from the east. The news was just what was expected; hundreds were waiting
+<em>aperto ore</em> to receive it; and the moment they did receive it, they fled
+to communicate the intelligence to others. Guysers, reekers, gossips, and
+tosspots, laid down their songs, their horns, their scandal, and their
+stoups, and acknowledged their Hogmanay occupation gone. The startling
+words&mdash;"He's come, he's come!" passed from mouth to mouth. Some shut up
+their houses, to prevent him from coming into them; and many who were
+solitary, sought refuge in the houses of their neighbours. Some went out of
+the town entirely, and sought protection from the abbot of the monastery;
+and many stood about the corners of the passages and the ends of houses,
+consulting what should be done in this emergency they had so long looked
+for, and were so poorly provided against. In every quarter, fear reigned
+with absolute sway; and if, in any instances, there was exhibited any
+portion of courage, it was either derived from the protecting power of a
+crucifix, or assumed in spite of the collapsing heart of real terror.</p>
+
+<p>But all this did not prevent the stranger from going through his wonted
+routine. His long strides, and extreme eagerness to get again into the
+heart of his former extravagant jollity, brought him very soon to the
+threshold of his old tosspot, Will Pearson, who, with his wife Betty, was
+sitting at the fire, engaged in a low-toned conversation, on the very
+subject of him of the red cravat. The door was burst open&mdash;the stranger
+entered with a loud laugh and boisterous salutation.</p>
+
+<p>"A good new year to thee," said he, "Will Pearson!" And he took, at the
+same time, out of a side-pocket, the identical bottle, with a long neck,
+and a thin waist, and containing the same red whisky he had been so lavish
+of on former occasions, and set it upon the table with a loud knock that
+rang throughout the small cottage.</p>
+
+<p>Will Pearson and his wife Betty were riveted to the langsettle on which
+they sat. Neither of them could move, otherwise they would have either gone
+out at the back window, or endeavoured to get past the stranger, and
+hurried out of the door. The quietness of the street told them eloquently
+that there was no one near to give them assistance; and such was the
+enchantment (they said) thrown over them by the extraordinary personage,
+that they were fixed to their seats as firmly as if they had been tied by
+cords.</p>
+
+<p>"A good new year to thee!" said the stranger again; and he reached forth
+his hand, and seized two flasks that lay on a side table, and which they
+had been using in the convivialities of the day. These he placed upon the
+table with a loud clank; and, laying hold of a three-footed creepy, he sat
+down right opposite the trembling pair, and proceeded to empty out the red
+liquor into the flasks, which he did in the most flourishing and noble
+style of valiant topers.</p>
+
+<p>"Here, my good old tosspot, Will Pearson!" said he, as he handed to him one
+of the flasks. "I love thee, man, and have called on thee the first of all
+the inhabitants of Christ's Kirk. Ha! by the holy rude, what a jolly cruise
+I shall have!&mdash;I have looked forward for it since the last time thou and I
+reduced the consistency of our corporations to the texture of souls,
+through which the moon might have shone, by the power of this inimitable
+liquor. Ho, man, had not we a jolly time of it last time we met? Drink,
+man!"</p>
+
+<p>And he emptied his flask, and flung it down upon the table, with a bold and
+reckless air, as if he did not care whether its continuity might be
+maintained against the force of the bang with which he disposed of it.</p>
+
+<p>Will Pearson was unable to speak a single syllable; and the flask that had
+been filled for him stood upon the table untouched. He sat with his eyes
+fixed upon the stranger, and his skin as pale as a corpse. Betty was in the
+same state of immovable terror. Every word that fell from his lips was a
+death-knell&mdash;every drop of his red drink was as much liquid fire&mdash;and every
+look was a flame.</p>
+
+<p>"Why won't drink, Will Pearson, mine good old crony?" said he again, with
+the same boisterous manner. "What grieves thee, man? and Betty too?&mdash;what
+loss hast thou sustained? Cuffed by fortune? Broken on her wheel? Ha! ha! I
+despise the old gammer, and will laugh out my furlough, though my lungs
+should crack in throwing off the burden.</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'This warld does ever flight and wary,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fortune sae fast her wheel does cary,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Na time but turn can ever rest;<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">For nae false charge suld ane be sary,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And to be merry, I think it best.'<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">Pull up thy jaws, Will Pearson, and pull into them this flask, and thou
+shalt be again my merry tosspot."</p>
+
+<p>Will and his wife were still under the influence of their fear, and stared
+at him in amazement.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, and thou wilt not," he cried, rising hastily, "may the Devil take on
+for't! My time is counted, and I must stuff as much fun into the compass of
+an hour as may serve me for the coming year. Will Pearson, thou and I might
+have had a right jolly time of it. I warrant the gallant Rob Paterson will
+welcome me in a different manner. The sight of this is enough for Rob,"
+(taking up the bottle;) "and as for this&mdash;ha! ha! what goodness getteth not
+the fire claims."</p>
+
+<p>And throwing the liquor into the ingle, which blazed up a large and fearful
+flame by the strength of the spirit, he sallied out, and at the same moment
+a loud scream&mdash;coming from some bolder investigators, who had ventured near
+the house, and seen the sudden conflagration, followed by the exit of the
+stranger&mdash;rung in echoes all around. But the stranger heeded not these
+trifling indications of the effect of his visit. Resuming his long strides
+and pushing-on activity of manner, he soon arrived at the house of Rob
+Paterson, who was at the very moment addressing a figure of the Virgin.</p>
+
+<p>"A good new year to thee, Rob Paterson!" cried the stranger, as he sat down
+upon a kind of chair by the side of the table, and, taking out his
+strange-fashioned bottle of red spirits, banged it down with a noise that
+made Rob start and shake all over.</p>
+
+<p>"Here again, thou seest, Rob Paterson," continued he. "We must have another
+jolly bout. Thou knowest my time is short. Let us begin, for my body feels
+the weight of its own clay. Before the Virgin, Rob? Ha! ha! man, art going
+to die? Come, man&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"When grim Death is looking for us,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">We are toping at our bowls;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Bacchus joins us in the chorus&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Death, begone!&mdash;here's none but souls."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">Drink, Rob Paterson, and thou'lt pray the better to the Virgin."</p>
+
+<p>And he held out the bottle to Rob, after having put it bodily to his mouth,
+and taking a long draught as an example to the latter, who was known to
+despise flasks. Rob turned up his eyes to the Virgin, and got from her some
+confidence, if not courage. He looked at the tempting bottle, beautiful in
+its fulness and total freedom from the contaminating society of flasks or
+tankards; then he turned a fearful eye on its laughing, rioting possessor,
+and anon sought again the face of the saint.</p>
+
+<p>"Hast lost thine ancient spirit, Rob Paterson?" said the stranger. What
+hath that spare figure, made of dry wood, to do with the mellow fuddling of
+our noses? Come, man&mdash;Time flies; let us wet his wings, and keep him
+fluttering a while over our heads.</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'With an O and an I,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Now are we furder found,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Drink thou to me, and I to thee,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And let the cup go round.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>"But wha, in the Devil's name, are ye?" now said Rob Paterson, after many
+an ineffectual effort to put the question.</p>
+
+<p>"Ha! ha!" answered the stranger, "does Rob Paterson ask a man who is
+introduced by this friend of noble red-blood, who he is? Why, man, I am Rob
+Paterson's tosspot. Isn't that enough?"</p>
+
+<p>"No quite," answered Rob, drawing nearer the Virgin. "Satan himself might
+use the same words; and I crave the liberty to say in your presence, that I
+hae nae wish to be on drinking terms wi' his Majesty."</p>
+
+<p>And Rob eyed him fearfully as he thus alluded to the subject of the town's
+fears, and again sought the face of the saint.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, Rob Paterson, my once cherished toper," replied the stranger, "I
+sorrow for thy change. Thine ancient spirit has left thee, and thou hast
+taken up with wooden idols, in place of the well-filled jolly bottle of thy
+and my former love. Well, may the Devil take on for't!&mdash;I care not. Thou
+mayst repent of thy folly when I am gone.</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'Robene thou has hard soung and say,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">In gesties and stories auld&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">The man that will not quhen he may,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Sall haif nocht quhen he wald.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">Never mair, Rob Paterson, shalt thou have offer of spirit of wine. It shall
+go there first!"</p>
+
+<p>And, taking a mouthful of the red liquor, the stranger squirted it in the
+fire, and raised a mighty flame that flared out into the very middle of the
+street, and produced another echoing cry or scream from the terrified
+inhabitants. He departed in an instant, and left Rob in a state of
+agitation he had never felt before at the departure of a guest with a
+well-filled bottle of good liquor.</p>
+
+<p>The stranger passed out at the door with his usual bold precipitude, and
+again plied his long limbs in making huge strides along the street, for the
+house of another crony. He took no notice of the extraordinary demeanour of
+the inhabitants, who were seen flying away from corners and angles where
+they had nestled, for the purpose of seeing him come out in a flame of fire
+from Rob Paterson's, as he had done from Will Pearson's. He strode on,
+neither looking to the right nor to the left, till he came to Widow
+Lindsay's.</p>
+
+<p>"A good new year to thee, Dame Lindsay!" said he, as he entered the house
+by opening the door, which the widow thought she had barred when she shoved
+the bolt beyond the staple, and found her sitting by the fire counting her
+rosary, and muttering prayers, with eyes upturned to heaven.</p>
+
+<p>"Holy Mary, save me!" she muttered, as she heard him enter by the supposed
+locked door. "He's come at last." And she retreated to a corner of the
+room, and prayed fervently for deliverance.</p>
+
+<p>"Thy throat has doubtless good memory of me and mine," continued the
+stranger, as he placed on the table the same extraordinary bottle, the
+shape and dimensions of which were as vivid in the mind of Dame Lindsay as
+was the colour of the red cravat. "My male tosspots have forgot the taste
+of my red liquor," he continued; "but what wet gossip's throat ever forgot
+what nipped it. Come, dame, and let us have a right hearty jorum of this
+inimitable drink." And, for want of better measure, he seized lustily a
+bicker that lay near him, and dashed a quantity of the liquor into it. "Ha!
+I forgot. Get thee for Meg Johnston thy gossip, dame, and let us be merry
+together. Meg is a woman of a thousand. What a lusty hold she takes of a
+brimming bicker, and how her eye lightens and brightens as she surveys the
+swimming heaven under her nose! Come, dame&mdash;what ails?"</p>
+
+<p>The only reply he got was a groan, and the rustle of Dame Lindsay's
+quivering habiliments.</p>
+
+<p>"By my own saint, this town of Christ's Kirk has a change upon it!" he
+continued. "Last time I was here, it was as merry as King James when he
+sang of it. The young and the old hailed me as the prince of good fellows,
+and the wenches and wives&mdash;ha! ha!</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'To dans thir damysells them dight,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Thir lasses light of laits;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">They were sae skych when I them nicht,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">They squeild like ony gaits.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">Dame Lindsay, I perceive what thou wantest, to melt thee into thy former
+jollity. Thou'rt coquetting in the corner there for a kiss; and, by the
+holy rude, thou shalt not want it for the space of the twinkling of thine
+eye."</p>
+
+<p>He rose for the purpose of applying the emollient he had threatened; but a
+loud scream evinced that a woman, however much she may worship his Satanic
+Majesty, cares not for his familiarities. The widow fainted; and what may
+be supposed her feelings, when she found, on coming to herself, that that
+identical and terrific red liquor had had a share in her recovery! Again
+she screamed; but no kindly neighbour came to rescue her from her perilous
+situation. Those who heard her cries, had many strange thoughts as to what
+species of punishment she was undergoing, for her sins. The conjectures
+were endless. "What could he be doing to Widow Lindsay?" was the universal
+question. Some supposed that she was in the act of being carried off, and
+was struggling to get out of his talons; some looked for the passing flame,
+in the midst of which, the poor widow, clasped in his arms, would be seen
+on her luminous journey to the lower world; and there were not few who
+pretended to find, in the past life of the wretched victim, a very good
+legitimate cause for the visit of the stranger, and the severity he was
+clearly exercising towards her.</p>
+
+<p>"Thou'lt be the better for thy faint, Widow Lindsay," said the stranger, as
+she recovered, "seeing that what blood it has sent from thy heart, will be
+returned with the addition of that liquor which is truly the water of life.
+Dost forget, good widow, that, when I was last here, thou and Meg Johnston
+would have fought for a can of it, if I had not made the can two? Come now,
+and let us fuddle our noses till they be as red as the liquor itself, and
+thy spectacles shew thee two noses, before they melt with the heat of their
+ruby supporter.</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'However this world do change and vary,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, let us in heart never more be sary.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>"Avaunt ye! in the name o' the five holy wounds!" muttered the widow, as
+she held up the Sathanifuge crow in his face.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, and if thou wilt not, here goes!" replied he, as he threw the
+contents of the bicker in the fire, which blazed up till the house seemed,
+to those waiting fearfully in the distance, to be in flames.</p>
+
+<p>Many an eye was now directed to the door and windows, to see Widow Lindsay
+take her pyromantic flight through the flaming fields of ether; and they
+continued their gaze till they saw him of the red cravat sally forth, when
+fear closed up the vision, and they saw no more. Meanwhile he strode on,
+singing all the way&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Full oft I muse, and be's in thocht;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">How this false world is aye on flocht,"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">till he came to the door of Meg Johnston's cottage. He found it deserted;
+and then stalked on to honest John Simson's, which was in like manner
+empty.</p>
+
+<p>"What can this mean?" he said to himself, as he bent his long steps to Wat
+Webster's, where fearful messengers, as we have seen, had already preceded
+him. "My person has lost its charm, my converse its interest, and my drink
+its spirit-stirring power. But we shall see what Wat Webster and his Dame
+Kitty, and the fair Marion, say to the residue of my authority. Ah, Marion,
+as I think of thee&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'How heises and bleizes<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">My heart wi' sic a fyre,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">As raises these praises<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">That do to heaven aspire.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">"Ha! ha! I will there outdevil all my devilries. My fire-chariots have as
+yet flown off without a passenger; but this night I shall not go home
+alone."</p>
+
+<p>And he continued striding onwards in the deserted and silent passage, till
+he came to Wat Webster's, where the collected inmates were all huddled
+together round the fire, in that state of alarm produced by the
+intelligence of Christy Lowry and Widow Lindsay, and already partly set
+forth by us heretofore. Bang up went the door.</p>
+
+<p>"A good new year to ye all!" said he, as he stalked into the middle of the
+apartment.</p>
+
+<p>There was a dead silence throughout the company. Marion was the only
+individual that dared to look him in the face; and there was an expression
+in her eye that seemed to have the effect of increasing the boisterous glee
+of his mysterious manner.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we are once more, again," he continued, as he took out the eternal
+imp-shaped bottle, and clanged it on the table.</p>
+
+<p>Every eye was fixed upon him as if watching his motions and evolutions. Meg
+Johnston was busy in a corner, defending herself, by drawing a circle round
+her; Widow Lindsay was clinging close to the figure of the Virgin that was
+placed against the wall by her side; Jenny Wilson sought refuge in the arms
+of honest John; Wat Webster himself got his hand placed upon an old Latin
+Bible, not one word of which he could read; and some followed one mode of
+self-defence, and some another, against the expected efforts of the
+stranger, whose proceedings at his other places of call had been all
+related at Wat Webster's, with an exaggeration they perhaps stood little in
+need of. The stranger cared nothing for these indications, not a cinder;
+and took no notice of them.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll e'en begin our potations myself," said he, filling out a flaskful of
+his liquor, and drinking it off. "By him that brewed it, it tastes well
+after my long walk! Wat Webster, wilt thou pledge me, man&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'And let us all, my friends, be merry,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And set nocht by this world a cherry;<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Now while there is good wyne to sell,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">He that does on dry bread worry,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">I gif him to the devil of hell.'"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">And he trowled the flask upon the table while he sung, as a kind of bass
+chorus to his song.</p>
+
+<p>"There's for thee, Wat!" continued he, filling out a flask.</p>
+
+<p>Wat kept his hand upon the holy book.</p>
+
+<p>"Wilt thou, honest John Wilson, pledge thy old friend in this red liquor,
+which formerly claimed so strong an acquaintanceship with the secret power
+of the topers' hearts of merry Christ's Kirk?"</p>
+
+<p>"For the luve o' heaven," whispered Jenny, as she clung closer to him,
+"touch it not!&mdash;it will scald yer liver like brimstone, and may, besides,
+be the price o' yer soul's purchase."</p>
+
+<p>John looked at the liquor, and would have spoken; but his heart failed him.</p>
+
+<p>"Wilt thou, Meg Johnston, empty this flask to the health of thy old
+friend?"</p>
+
+<p>"Guid faith, I, lad," muttered Meg, safe as she thought within the walls of
+her necromantic circumvallation&mdash;"I ken ye owre weel. Ye needna think to
+cheat me. I'm no a spunk to be dipped in brimstone, and then set lowe to.
+But [aside] how can he stand the look o' the haly rude! and the haly book?
+The deevil o' sic a deevil I ever heard, saw, or read o'. Avaunt ye, avaunt
+ye, in the name o the seven churches! The deil a bane ye'll get here&mdash;yere
+owre weel kenned. Set aff in a flash o' yer ain fire to Falkland."</p>
+
+<p>"Wilt thou, Christy Lowry, pledge thine old friend?" continued the
+stranger, without noticing Meg's recommendation.</p>
+
+<p>"In guid troth na," replied Christy, to whom the cross afforded some
+confidence. "It's a' out, man&mdash;it's owre the hail town. There's nae use in
+concealin't langer. Just put a spunk to the neck o't and set aff. Wae! wae!
+[aside] but it's an awfu thing to look the enemy i' the very face, and
+hauld converse wi' lips that mak nae gobs at cinders! Ave Maria! help
+Christy Lowry in this her trial and temptation?"</p>
+
+<p>"Come from thy langsettle, jolly Kate Webster," continued he of the red
+cravat, "and let us, as thou wert wont to say, have a little laughing and
+drinking deray in this last night of the old year. I see, by the very
+mouths thou makest, thy throat is as dry as a dander, and, by and by, may
+set fire to my red liquor. Ha! I love a jolly gossip for a tosspot; for she
+gives more speech, and takes more liquor, than your 'breeked' steers that
+drink down the words, and drown them in the throat. Nothing drowns a
+woman's speech. It strengthens and improves in ale or whisky as if it were
+its natural element. Come open thy word-mill, Kate, and pour in the red
+grist, lass."</p>
+
+<p>"The soopleness o' his tongue has been long kent," whispered Kitty to Meg
+Johnston.</p>
+
+<p>"Ay, an' lang felt," replied Meg, in a suppressed tone. "Our sins are
+naething but a coil o't. When, in God's name, will he tak flight? I canna
+stand this muckle langer."</p>
+
+<p>"Three times have I warded off a swarf," said Kitty. "The gouch o' his
+breath comes owre me like the reek o' a snuffed-out candle. Will the men no
+interfere?"</p>
+
+<p>"Marion Webster," said the stranger, as if unconscious of the fear he was
+producing, "did I not, sweet queen, dance a jolly fandango with thee, last
+Halloween, to the rondeau of love&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"'Return the hamewart airt agane,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And byde quhair thou wast wont to be&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Thou art ane fule to suffer paine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">For love of her that loves not thee.'<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">And wilt thou not pledge thy old friend in a half flask&mdash;the maiden's
+bumper?"</p>
+
+<p>"I hae nae objections," replied the sprightly Marion, and took up the
+flask.</p>
+
+<p>The company looked on in amazement and terror. The flame would rise on the
+application of the liquor to her lips, and doubtless little more of Marion
+Webster would be seen on the face of this lower world. While Marion still
+held the flask in her hand, the sound of carriage wheels was heard. The
+vehicle seemed to halt at Wat Webster's door. The door opened with a bang.
+Marion had not time to drink off her "spark," and, still holding the flask,
+went to the door to see who had so unceremoniously opened it; he of the red
+cravat, taking up his bottle, followed with a long stride. A sudden
+exclamation was heard from Marion; the sound of the shutting of the door of
+a carriage followed; then came Jehu's "hap-away," with three loud cracks of
+a whip, and all was ended by the rolling of rapid wheels, lost in a moment
+in the distance.</p>
+
+<p>Wat Webster, who had hitherto been chained to his seat, now started up;
+and, clasping his hands in his agony, ejaculated, that "Marion was off in a
+flame o' fire." The fact scarcely required mention&mdash;alas! too evident to
+all the company&mdash;that the greatest beauty of Christ's Kirk was away in the
+talons of the great Enemy of all good; and the evidence within the walls of
+the house was not greater than what was afforded by the watching crowd
+without. The carriage, which was entirely black, and not unlike a hearse,
+was seen to come in by the east end of the town, driving with a furious
+career, the driver (dressed also in black) impelling, with a long whip, the
+black horses, from whose hoofs sparks of fire were seen to fly; and neither
+house nor man seeming to claim his attention, until he arrived at the house
+of Wat Webster, where he of the red cravat was known to be. Many followed
+the carriage, and many remained at a distance to see who the victim was
+that was destined to be carried off in the strangers' vehicle; for, that
+the coach was brought there for no other purpose than to carry off one who
+could command in an instant a chariot of fire, seemed reasonably to be
+entirely out of the question. Marion Webster, the beloved of the village,
+was seen to enter, followed by the stranger; and, as the coach flew off, a
+loud wail burst from the stricken hearts of the villagers, expressive at
+once of their fear and of the intense pity they felt for the fate of one so
+much beloved, and whose crimes, much less than theirs, merited so dreadful
+a punishment as that she should be carried off to the regions of sorrow.
+The evidence, within and without the house, met, and, by the force of
+sympathetic similarity, mixed in an instant, carrying away in their course,
+like floating straws, the strongest doubts that remained in the mind of the
+most sceptical man in Christ's Kirk, of the hapless daughter of Wat Webster
+having been carried off by the Devil. The town was in the greatest
+commotion; terror and pity were painted on every face; but the feelings of
+the public held small proportion, indeed, to the agony which overtook Wat
+Webster and his wife, whose only child she was, as well as their pride, and
+that of every one in the whole town. Wat, who saw no use in flying after
+Sathan&mdash;an individual of known locomotive powers&mdash;lay extended on the floor
+of his cottage, cursing his fate, and bewailing the condition of his lovely
+daughter, whose entry into Pandemonium, and first scream produced by the
+burning lake, were as distinct in his eye and ear as ever was his morning
+porridge, when they boiled and bubbled by the heat of the fire. But Kitty
+was up and out, with a mighty crowd or tail in attendance, flying up and
+down in every direction, to see if any burning trace could be had of her
+beloved Marion; for she declared that, if she only got "the dander o' her
+body to bury in Christ's Kirk," she would be thankful to heaven for the
+gift, and try to moderate her grief. But no "dander" was to be seen. It was
+by much too evident that Marion Webster would never more be seen on earth;
+and, what might naturally add to the grief of her friends, they had no
+chance of seeing her again in the world to come, unless at the expense of a
+<em>condemnation</em>&mdash;a dear passport to see an old friend. Such a night was
+never seen in Christ's Kirk as that on which Marion Webster was carried off
+by his Sathanic Majesty.</p>
+
+<p>We have said quite enough to make it to be understood that Marion Webster
+did in reality go off in a coach with the stranger who has occupied so much
+of our attention; but we have (being of Scottish origin) prudently
+abstained from giving any opinion of our own upon the question of the true
+character of him of the red cravat. The two drove off together, apparently
+with much affection, and, after they had got entirely beyond the reach of
+any supposed followers, they became comparatively easy, and very soon
+commenced a conversation&mdash;an amusement never awanting when there is a woman
+within reach of a person's articulated breath.</p>
+
+<p>"What is the meaning o' a' this, Geordie, man?" said Marion, looking
+lovingly into the face of the stranger. "Could I no have met ye this night
+at the Three Sisters&mdash;the trees in the wood o' Ballochgray&mdash;without your
+coming to Christ's Kirk, and spreading the fear o' the deil frae town's-end
+to town's-end? But whar are we journeying to? and what means the carriage?"</p>
+
+<p>The stranger thus accosted by the familiar name by which he was known to
+the young woman, smiled, and told her to hold her tongue, and resign
+herself to the pleasure of being carried through the air at the rate of ten
+miles an hour. The moon was now shining beautifully "owre tower and tree;"
+and ever and anon the maiden glanced her blue eye on the "siller-smolt"
+scenes through which she passed, and then turned to the face of her
+companion, who seemed to enjoy silently the wonder expressed by her fair
+face. After rolling on for some time, they came to a road or avenue of tall
+beech trees, at the end of which appeared an old castle, on which the
+moonbeams were glancing, and exhibiting in strange forms the turrets with
+which it was fancifully decorated. The grey owl's scream was borne along on
+the breeze that met them, and struck on Marion's ear in wild and fitful
+sounds&mdash;inspiring a dread which the presence of her mute lover did little
+to remove or assuage.</p>
+
+<p>"Is not that Ballochgray Castle?" said Marion, at last&mdash;"that fearfu place
+whar the Baron of Ballochgray haulds his court with the Evil One, on every
+Halloween night, when the bleak muirs are rife with the bad spirits o' the
+earth and air. Whar drives the man, Geordie? Oh, tell him to turn awa frae
+thae auld turrets and skreeching owls. I canna bear the sight o' the ane,
+or the eerie sound o' the ither."</p>
+
+<p>A smile was again the answer of her companion, and the carriage still drove
+on to the well-known residence of the young Baron of Ballochgray&mdash;a man
+who, knowing the weakness of his King, James the Third of Scotland, in his
+love of astrology and divination, and their sister black arts, had, with
+much address, endeavoured to recommend himself to his sovereign, by a
+character pre-established in his own castle, for a successful cultivation
+of the occult sciences. He had long withdrawn himself from the eyes of the
+world, and even of his own tenants, and shut himself up in his castle, with
+a due assortment of death's heads, charts, owls, globes, bones, astrolobes,
+and vellum chronicles, with a view to the perfection of his hidden
+knowledge; or, as some thought, with a view to produce such a fame of his
+character and pursuits as might reach the ears of James, and acquire for
+him that sway at court for which he sighed more than for real knowledge.
+Some alleged that he was a cunning diplomatist, who cared no more for the
+nostrums of astrology than he did for the dry bones that, while they
+terrified his servants, had no more virtue in them than sap, and were, with
+the other furniture of his dark study, collected for the mere purpose of
+forwarding his ambitious designs upon the weak prince. His true character
+was supposed to be&mdash;what he possessed before he took to his new
+calling&mdash;that of a wild, eccentric, devil-daring man, who loved adventures
+for their own sake, and worshipped the fair face of the "theekit and
+tenanted skull" of a bouncing damsel, with far greater enthusiasm and
+sincerity than he ever did his mortal osteological relics that lay in so
+much profusion in the recesses of his old castle. But he had, doubtless, so
+far succeeded in his plans; for he possessed a most unenviable fame for all
+sort of cantrips and sorceries; and the wandering beggar would rather have
+solicited a bit of bread from the iron hand of misery itself, than ventured
+near Ballochgray to ask his awmous.</p>
+
+<p>"I winna gang near that fearfu place, Geordie!" again cried Marion. "What
+hae ye, a puir hind, to do wi' the Baron o' Ballochgray? Turn, for the sake
+o' heaven!&mdash;turn frae that living grave o' dry banes, an' the weary goul
+that sits jabbering owre them, by their ain light!"</p>
+
+<p>Her companion again smiled; and the man dashed up the avenue, and never
+stopped till he came to the gate of the castle&mdash;over which there were
+placed two human shank-bones of great length, that were said to have
+sustained the body of the Baron of Balwearie&mdash;that prince of the black art,
+and the most cunning necromancer that ever drew a circle. The carriage
+stopped; and two servants, dressed in red doublets, (like garments of
+fire,) slashed with black, waited at the carriage door, with flambeaux in
+their hands, to shew the couple into the hall. Out sprang the male first,
+and then Marion Webster was handed, with great state, and led into the
+interior of the old castle. She was led direct into the hall, which was
+lighted up in a very fanciful manner, by means of many skulls arranged
+round the room, and through the eyes and jaws of which lurid lights
+streamed all around. Marion was filled with terror as she cast her eyes on
+these shining monuments of mortality; and had, in her fear, scarcely
+noticed a man in black, sitting at the end of the room, poring over a
+black-lettered manuscript.</p>
+
+<p>"Marion Webster," now said her travelling companion, "behold in your old
+lover of the Ballochgray Wood the Baron of Ballochgray!"</p>
+
+<p>A scream burst from the choking throat of the terrified damsel, and rung
+through the old hall.</p>
+
+<p>"Come, love," he continued, "abate thy terrors. My fame is worse than my
+real character. I have wooed thee for reasons known to myself, and to be
+known soon to thee. Thou didst love Geordie Dempster; and thy love was weak
+indeed, if it is to be scared by brainless tongues or tongueless skulls.
+Wilt thou consent to be the lady of the Baron of Ballochgray?"</p>
+
+<p>"Geordie! Geordie!" cried the wondering, and yet loving maiden, "if I would
+willingly wed thee in the grave, wi' death himsel for oor priest, shall I
+refuse to be yours in a castle o' the livin, filled though it be wi' thae
+signs o' mortality?"</p>
+
+<p>"Come forth, Father Anthony!" cried the Baron, "and join us by the rules
+and bands of holy kirk!"</p>
+
+<p>The man in black lifted up his head from the black-letter page; and, having
+called his witnesses, went through the requisite ceremonies; and Marion
+Webster became, within a short space, the lady of Ballochgray.</p>
+
+<p>Next day the Baron took her forth to the green woods, where, as they
+sauntered among elms many centuries old, and as high as castles, he told
+her that he had more reasons than other men for having a wife <em>who could
+keep a secret</em>. When he first met her, he was struck with her beauty, but
+had no more intention than ordinary love adventurers for making her his
+wife; frequent intercourse had revealed to him a jewel he had never seen in
+such brightness in the <em>head gear</em> of the nobles of the land&mdash;a stern and
+unflinching regard to the sanction of her word. He quickly resolved to test
+this in such a manner as would leave no doubt in his mind that a
+secret-keeping wife he might find in his humble maiden of Ballochgray
+woods. He had three times visited Christ's Kirk in such a manner as would
+raise an intense curiosity in the inhabitants as to who he was. Marion had
+the secret only of his being plain Geordie Dempster; but so firmly and
+determinedly had she kept it, that, in the very midst of a general belief
+that he was the Prince of Darkness, she had never even let it be known that
+she had once seen his face before. So far Marion was enlightened; and it is
+not improbable that, afterwards, she knew <em>why</em> a secret-keeping wife was
+so much prized by the Baron of Ballochgray, and why he could serve two
+purposes&mdash;that of love, and fame of supernatural powers&mdash;in personating, as
+he had done, the Prince of Darkness in his visits to Christ's Kirk on the
+Green. So far, at least, it is certain that Marion never revealed the
+secret of his pretended astrological acquirements.</p>
+
+<p>For weeks after the marriage, inquiries were made in every quarter for the
+lost damsel; but, at last, all search and inquiry was given up, and the
+belief that she was in the place appointed for the wicked had settled down
+on the minds of the people. One evening a number of cronies were assembled
+at the house of the disconsolate parents, and among these were Meg
+Johnston, Christy Lowrie, Widow Lindsay, and others of the Leslians.</p>
+
+<p>"The will o' the Lord maun be done," said Meg; "but wae's me! there was
+mony an auld gimmer in Leslie, whose horns are weel marked wi' the lines o'
+her evil days, that Clootie might hae taen, afore he cam to the bonnie ewe
+that had only tasted the first leaves o' her simmer girse. What did Marion
+Webster ever do in this warld to bring upon her this warst and last o' the
+evils o' mortals?"</p>
+
+<p>"It's just the like o' her the auld villain likes best," rejoined Christy.
+"He doesna gie a doit for a gizzened sinner, wha will fa' into his hands at
+the lang run without trouble. But the young, the blooming, and the bonny
+are aye sair beset by temptations; and, heard ye never, Mrs Webster, o'
+Marion's meetings at the Three Sisters, sometimes, they say, at the dead
+hour, wi' some lover that naebody ever kenned."</p>
+
+<p>"Ay, ay, dame," said Widow Lindsay; "that's just <em>his</em> way. He comes in the
+shape o' a young lover, and beguiles the hearts o' young maidens. Ye mind
+o' bonny Peggy Lorimer o' the town's end, wha never did mair guid after she
+met a stranger in the woods o' Ballochgray. Ae glance o' his ee, she said,
+took awa her heart; and, every day after, she pined and pined, and wandered
+amang the woods till she grew like a wraith, but nae mair o' him did she
+ever see. I stricked her wi' my ain hands, and sic a corpse I never
+handled. There wasna a pound o' flesh on her bones; and the carriers at the
+burial aye said, that there wasna a corpse ava in the coffin. But puir
+Marion has dreed a waur weird."</p>
+
+<p>"My puir bairn! my puir bairn!" cried the mother. "The folk o' Leslie aye
+said she wad ride in her carriage, for she was the bonniest lass that ever
+was seen in Christ's Kirk. But, wear-awins! little kenned they what kind o'
+a carriage she wad ride awa in on her marriage night."</p>
+
+<p>"Some folks say, the monks will pray her back again," rejoined Meg; "but,
+my faith, they'll hae hard work o't. He'll no let her awa without a fearfu
+tuilzie, Christy."</p>
+
+<p>"She'll never mair be seen on earth, woman," answered Christy. "And, even
+if she were to be prayed back again, she wad never be the creature she was
+again. A coal black lire, and singit ee-brees, wadna set her auld lovers in
+Christ's Kirk in a bleeze again."</p>
+
+<p>"They should watch the smoking field o' Dysart," cried Widow Lindsay. "If
+she come again ava, it will be through that deil's porch. But what noise is
+that, Kitty? Didna ye hear the sound o' carriage wheels?"</p>
+
+<p>The party listened attentively; and, to be sure, there was a carriage
+coming rattling along the street.</p>
+
+<p>"Get out the Latin Bible, Wat!" cried Kitty. "He's maybe coming to tak us
+awa next."</p>
+
+<p>The listening continued; and when the sounds ceased, as the carriage
+stopped at the door, and the postilion's whip cracked over the restless
+horses, a cry of terror rang through the room. Every one shrank into a
+corner, and muttered prayers mixed with the cries of fear. The door opened.
+Every eye was fixed upon it, for no one doubted that their old friend had
+returned. The Baron of Ballochgray and his lady, dressed in the most
+gorgeous style, entered the house of the old couple. The sight of the gay
+visiters made Wat and Kitty's eyes reel; and they screamed again from the
+fear that the Prince had come back, only in a new doublet, to exhibit to
+them their <em>sold</em> daughter.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg to introduce thee," said the Baron, "to the lady of Ballochgray&mdash;my
+wedded wife."</p>
+
+<p>Marion, without waiting for an answer, fell upon the neck of her father;
+and then, in the same manner, she embraced her mother; but it was a long
+time before the fears of Wat and Kitty were removed. At last, they were
+persuaded to accompany them on a visit to Ballochgray Castle; and, when
+they rode off in the chariot, they left behind them the belief that they
+too were carried off by the "Old One." We cannot pretend to describe the
+feelings of Wat and his wife when they were introduced into the old castle;
+but they soon came to see that the Baron of Ballochgray was just "as guid a
+chiel in his ain castle as ever he was when he acted the Deevil in Christ's
+Kirk on the Green."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="gleanings" id="gleanings"></a>GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT.</h2>
+
+
+<h3>X.&mdash;SERGEANT WILSON.</h3>
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">It</span> was early on Monday morning, in the cold month of March, Anno Domini
+1683, that the farm-house of Barjarg, in the parish of Keir and county of
+Dumfries, was surrounded by dragoons. They were in quest of a sergeant of
+the name of Wilson&mdash;a Sergeant Wilson&mdash;who had all unexpectedly (for he was
+a steady man and a good soldier) deserted his colours, and was nowhere to
+be found. The reason why they had come to Barjarg, was the report which one
+of Sergeant Wilson's companions in arms had made, that he knew the deserter
+was in love with Catherine Chalmers, the farmer's fair and only child.
+Catherine Chalmers was indeed forthcoming in all her innocence and
+bloom&mdash;but William was nowhere to be found, though they searched most
+minutely into every hole and corner. Being compelled, at last, to retire
+without their object&mdash;though not without threatening Catherine with the
+thumbikins, if she persevered in refusing to discover her lover's
+retreat&mdash;the family of Barjarg was once more left to enjoy its wonted
+quietude and peace. Adjoining to the farm-house of Barjarg, and occupying
+the ground where the mansion-house now stands, there stood an old tower,
+containing one habitable apartment; but only occupied as a sleeping room by
+one of the ploughmen, and the herd boy. There were one or two
+lumber-garrets besides; but these were seldom entered, as they were
+understood to contain nothing of any value, besides being dark, and
+swarming with vermin. Reports of odd noises and fearful apparitions had
+begun to prevail about the place, and both ploughman and herd were
+unwilling to continue any longer in a lodgment into which it was their firm
+persuasion that something "no canny" had entered. Holding this exceedingly
+cheap, Adam Chalmers, the veteran guidman of Barjarg, agreed to take a
+night of the old tower, and to set the devil and all his imps at defiance;
+but it was observed, that he came home next morning thoughtful and out of
+spirits, agreeing, at once, that nobody should, in future, be compelled to
+sleep in the old tower. He said little of what he had seen or heard, but he
+shook his head, and seemed to intimate that he knew more than he was at
+liberty to divulge. Things went on in this manner for some time&mdash;reports of
+noises at unseasonable hours still prevailing, and every one shunning the
+place after dark&mdash;till, one morning before daylight, the whole building was
+observed to be on fire, surrounded at the same time, as the flames were, by
+a troop of Grierson's men, with their leader at their head. The scream
+which Catherine Chalmers uttered when she beheld the flames, but too
+plainly intimated the state of her mind; nor was her father less composed,
+but went about, wringing his hands and exclaiming&mdash;"Oh! poor Sergeant
+Wilson! poor Sergeant Wilson!" At this instant, the fire had made its way
+to the upper apartment, and had thrown light upon a human head and
+shoulders, which leaned over the decayed battlement. Every one was
+horror-struck except the inhuman soldiery, who collected around the burning
+pile, and shouted up their profane and insulting jests, in the face of the
+poor perishing being, who, from his footing immediately giving way, was
+precipitated into the flames, and disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>"There, let him go," said Grierson, "dog and traitor as he is, let him sink
+to the lowest pit, there to wait the arrival of his canting and Covenanting
+spouse, whom we shall now take the liberty of carrying to head-quarters,
+there to await her sentence, for decoying a king's sworn servant and a
+sergeant, from his duty and allegiance."</p>
+
+<p>No sooner said than done, was the order of these dreadful times. Catherine
+Chalmers was placed in one of her father's carts; and, notwithstanding
+every remonstrance, and an assurance that poor Catherine was now a widow,
+she was placed betwixt two soldiers, who rode alongside the cart on
+horseback, and conveyed her to Dumfries, there to stand her trial before
+the Sheriff, Clavers, and the inhuman Laird of Lag. When arrived at her
+destination, she was put under lock and key, but allowed more personal
+liberty than many others who were accused of crimes more heinous in the
+eyes of the persecutors, than those of which she was merely suspected to be
+guilty. It so happened, that the quarterly meeting of the court was held in
+a few days, and the chief witness produced against Catherine Wilson, was a
+servant maid of her father, who was compelled, very much against her will,
+to bear evidence to her having seen Sergeant Wilson and her mistress (for
+Catherine kept her father's house) several times together in the old tower,
+as well as under a particular tree at the end of the old avenue, and that
+her mistress had told her that Sergeant Wilson was heartily tired of the
+service in which he was engaged. Her own father, too, was compelled to
+confess, that he had had an interview with the sergeant, in the tower, who
+had confessed to him the marriage, had asked and with difficulty obtained
+his forgiveness, and that he meditated a departure along with his wife, to
+some distant place, beyond the reach of his enemies. There was no direct
+evidence, however, that Catherine had persuaded him to desert, or to vilify
+the service which he had left; and the court were about to dismiss her
+<em>simpliciter</em> from the bar, when, to the amazement of all, Catherine rose
+in her place, and addressed the court to the following purpose:&mdash;"And now
+ye have done your utmost, and I am innocent, in as far as your evidence has
+gone; but I am <small>NOT INNOCENT</small>&mdash;I am deeply guilty, if guilt ye deem it, in
+this matter. 'Twas I that first awakened poor William's conscience to a
+sense of his danger, in serving an emissary of Satan; 'twas I that spoke to
+him of the blood that cries day and night under the Altar; 'twas I that
+made him tremble&mdash;ay, as an aspen leaf, and as some here will yet shake
+before the Judge of all&mdash;when I brought to his recollection the brutal
+scenes which he had witnessed, and in which he had taken a part; 'twas I
+that agreed to marry him privately, without my dear father's consent,
+(whose pardon I have sought on my knees, and whose blessing I have already
+obtained,) [hereupon her father nodded assent] provided he would desert,
+and retire with me, at least for a time, beyond the reach of ye all&mdash;ye
+messengers of evil, sent to scourge a guilty and backsliding race; 'twas I
+that visited him night after night in that old tower, which you inhumanly
+set on fire, and in which&mdash;O my God!"&mdash;&mdash;Hereupon she laid hold of the desk
+before her, and would have dropped to the earth, had not an officer in
+attendance supported her, and borne her, under the authority of the court,
+into the open air. She was now, notwithstanding her self-accusation,
+declared to be at liberty: and immediately, so soon as strength was given
+her, retired into the house of an acquaintance and relative, where suitable
+restoratives and refreshments were administered. The house where her friend
+lived was close upon what is called the Sands of Dumfries, adjoining to the
+river, which up to this point is navigable, and where boats are generally
+to be seen. During the night, she disappeared, and, though all search was
+made at home and everywhere else, she was not heard of. Her father at first
+took her disappearance sadly to heart; but time seemed to have a remedial
+effect upon his spirits, and he at length rallied, even into cheerfulness.
+Things went on for years and years, very much in the old way at Barjarg.
+The old man's hairs gradually whitened and became more scanty, whilst this
+loss was made up for by an increase of wrinkles. The only change in his
+habits were not unfrequent visits which he payed to an old friend, he said,
+in Whitehaven, and from which he always returned in high spirits. It might
+have been stated formerly that, when the ashes of the old tower were
+searched, after they had cooled, for the body of poor Wilson, no such body
+was found&mdash;but the inference was made by the neighbours, that the remains
+had been early removed by his wife's orders, who would naturally wish to
+possess herself of so valued a deposit. In fact, the whole transaction
+melted away in the stream of time, like the snow-flake on the surface of
+the water; and things went on very much us usual. Six long years revolved,
+and still no word of Catherine Wilson. Many conjectured that she had missed
+her foot in the dark, and fallen into the river, and been carried out to
+sea by the reflux of the tide. Others again hinted at suicide, from extreme
+grief; and some very charitable females nodded and winked something meant
+to be significant, about some people's not being easily known&mdash;and that
+some people, provided that they got a <em>grip</em> of a man, would not be very
+nice about the object or the manner!</p>
+
+<p>Oh, what a blessed thing it was when King William came in!&mdash;and with him
+came amnesty, and peace, and restoration! It was upon a fine summer
+evening, in the year 1689, just six years after the mysterious
+disappearance of Catherine Wilson, that the old guidman of Barjarg was
+sitting enjoying the setting sun at his own door, on the root of an old
+tree, which had been converted into a <em>dais</em>, or out-of-doors seat. It was
+about the latter end of July, that most exuberantly lovely of all months,
+when Adam Chalmers, with Rutherford's Letters on his knee, sat gazing upon
+one of the most beautiful landscapes which our own romantic country can
+boast of. Before him flowed the Nith, over its blue pebbles, and through a
+thousand windings; beyond it were the woods and hills of Closeburn, all
+blooming and blushing in the setting beams of the sun, and rising up, tier
+above tier, till they terminated in the blue sky of the east. To the left
+were the Louther Hills, with their smooth-green magnificence, bearing away
+into the distance, and placed, as it were, to shelter this happy valley
+from the stormy north and its wintry blasts. At present, however, all idea
+of storm and blast was incongruous, for they seemed to sleep in the sun's
+effulgence, as if cradled into repose by the hand of God. To the south, and
+hard at hand, were the woods and the fields of Collestown, with the echoing
+Linn, and the rush of many waters. O land of our nativity!&mdash;how deeply art
+thou impressed upon this poor brain!&mdash;go where we will&mdash;see what we
+may&mdash;thou art still unique to us&mdash;thou art still superior to all other
+lands.</p>
+
+<p>It was eight o'clock of the evening above referred to, when a chaise
+entered the old avenue, passed the ruins of the Tower and the old
+mansion-house, and drew up immediately opposite old Adam Chalmers. The
+steps were immediately let down, and out sprung, with a bound, the long
+lost child, the blooming and matronly looking Mrs Wilson. Behind her
+followed one whom the reader, I trust, has long ago considered as dead, and
+perhaps buried, her manly and rejoicing husband William Wilson, handing out
+a fine girl of five years of age, a boy about three, and an infant still at
+the breast! It was indeed a joyous meeting; and the old man bustled about,
+embracing and pressing his child, and then surveying, with silent and
+intense interest, his grandchildren; taking the oldest on his knee, and
+permitting him all manner of intercourse with his wrinkles and his grey
+hairs.</p>
+
+<p>One of Lag's troop, the intimate and attached friend of the sergeant, had
+conveyed to him, by means of a letter, the fact, that his haunt was
+discovered; and that Lag had sworn he would search him out like a fox,&mdash;in
+short, that he would burn the old tower about his ears. A thought struck
+Wilson, that even though he should now escape, the pursuit would still be
+continued; but that, if he could by any means persuade his enemies that he
+had perished in the flames, the search of course would cease. As he was
+occupied with these thoughts, it occurred to him, that, by placing a couple
+of pillows, dressed in some old clothes, which were lying about, and which
+belonged to the former tenant, in the topmost turret of the tower, he might
+impose the belief upon Lag and his party, that he had actually perished in
+the flames. Having communicated this plan to his friend in the troop by a
+secret messenger, he immediately, and without waiting even to advertise his
+wife of the deception, departed, and hastened on to a brother's house in
+the neighbourhood of Dumfries, where he lay concealed. By the management of
+his friend, the deception was accomplished; for he even swore to the
+captain, that he heard Wilson scream, and jump upwards, and then sink down
+into the devouring flames. The trial was not unknown to Wilson, and he had
+prevailed upon his brother, with a few friends sworn to secrecy, to assist
+him in possessing himself of the person of his wife, in going to or coming
+from the court-house. Matters, however, succeeded beyond his utmost hopes.
+His spouse was liberated, and, by means of a boat well manned, he reached
+Douglas in the Isle of Man in safety, in the course of eight-and-forty
+hours. There, at last, he was safe, being beyond immediate pursuit, and
+indeed being supposed to be dead; and there, by a successful speculation or
+two, with money which had been left him by an uncle, after whom he was
+named, and who had prospered in the Virginia trade, he soon became
+prosperous, and even wealthy. His wife having a natural desire to see her
+father, took means to have him apprised of the secret of their retreat. His
+visits, nominally to England, were in fact made to Douglas; and the
+Revolution now put it in the power of Sergeant Wilson to return with his
+young and interesting family to the farm of Barjarg, and to purchase the
+property on which the old house stood, it being now in the market; to refit
+the old burnt tower; to rebuild the old castle, and to live there along
+with old Adam for several years, not only in comfort, but in splendour.
+When engaged over a bottle, of which he became ultimately rather more fond
+than was good for his health, he used to amuse his friends with the above
+narrative, adding always at the end&mdash;"The burning o' me has been the making
+o' me." The property has long passed into other hands, and is now in the
+family of Hunter; but such was its destination for at least fifty years,
+during the life of the sergeant, and the greater part of the life of the
+son, who, being a spendthrift, spent and sold it.</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<h3><a name="helen" id="helen"></a>XI.&mdash;HELEN PALMER.</h3>
+
+<p>Helen Palmer was originally from Cumberland; her parents were English, but
+her father had removed with Helen, an only daughter, whilst yet a child, to
+the neighbourhood of Closeburn Castle, to a small village which still goes
+by the name of Croalchapel. There the husband and father had been employed
+originally as forester on the estate of Closeburn, belonging to Sir Roger
+Kirkpatrick, and had afterwards become chamberlain or factor on the same
+property. Peter Palmer was a superior man. He had been well educated for
+the time in which he lived, and had been employed in Cumberland in keeping
+accounts for a mining establishment. The death, however, in child-birth, of
+his beloved and well-born wife, (she had married below her station,) had,
+for some time, disgusted him with life, and his intellects had nearly given
+way. Having committed several acts of insanity, so as to make himself
+spoken of in the neighbourhood, he took a moonlight flitting, with his
+child and a faithful nurse, and, wandering north and north, at last fixed
+his residence in the locality already mentioned, where he was soon noticed
+as a superior person by the Laird of Closeburn, and advanced as has been
+stated.</p>
+
+<p>Helen Palmer was the apple of her father's eye; he would permit no one but
+the nurse to approach her person, and he himself was her only instructor;
+he taught her to read, to write, and to calculate accounts; in short, every
+spare hour he had was spent with little Helen. There you might see him,
+after dinner, with Helen on his knee, his forest dog sleeping before him,
+and a tumbler of negus on a small table by his side, conversing with his
+child, as he would have done with her mother; holding her out at arm's
+length, to mark her opening features; and then again straining her to his
+bosom in a paroxysm of tears.</p>
+
+<p>"Just my Helen&mdash;my own dear Helen anew!" he would say; "oh, my child&mdash;my
+child!&mdash;dear, dear art thou to thy poor heart-broken father! but I will
+live for thee!&mdash;I will live with thee!&mdash;and when thou diest, child, thou
+shalt sleep on this breast&mdash;thou shalt be buried, child, in thy father's
+dust; and thy mother and we shall meet, and I will tell her of her babe; of
+that babe which cost her so much, and we will rejoin in divine love for
+ever and ever!"</p>
+
+<p>Oh, how beautiful is paternal affection!&mdash;the love of an only surviving
+parent for an only child&mdash;and she a female. It is beautiful as the smile of
+Providence on benevolence&mdash;it is strong as the bond which binds the world
+to a common centre&mdash;it is enduring as the affections which, being cherished
+on earth, are matured above!</p>
+
+<p>As Helen grew up, her eye kindled, her brow expanded, her cheeks freshened
+into the most delicious bloom, and she walked on fairy footsteps of the
+most delicate impression. Her feet, her hands, her arms, her bust, her
+whole person, spoke her at once the lady of a thousand descents&mdash;ages had
+modelled her into aristocratic symmetry. But with all this, there was a
+rustic simplicity about her, an open, frank, unaffected manner, which
+seemed to say, as plain as any manner could, "I am not ashamed of being my
+father's daughter." When Helen Palmer had attained her sixteenth year, she
+was quite a woman&mdash;not one of your thread-paper bulrushes, which shoot
+upwards merely into unfleshed gentility; but a round, firm, well-spread,
+and formed woman&mdash;a bonny lass, invested with all the delicacy and softness
+of a complete lady. Her bodily accomplishments, however, were not her only
+recommendation; her mind was unusually acute, and her memory was stored
+with much and varied information. She knew, for example, that the age in
+which she lived was one of cruelty and bloodshed; that the second Charles,
+who, at that time, filled the throne, was a sensual tyrant; that Lag,
+Clavers, Douglas, Johnstone, and others, were bloody persecutors; and that
+even Sir Roger Kirkpatrick himself, the humane and amiable in many
+respects, was "a friend of the castle"&mdash;of the court&mdash;and would not permit
+any of the poor persecuted remnant to take refuge in the linns of Creehope,
+or in any of the fastnesses on his estate of Closeburn. All this grieved
+Helen's heart; but her father had taught her that it was <em>her</em> duty, as
+well as his own, to be silent on such subjects, and not to give offence to
+one whose bread he was eating, and whose patronage he had enjoyed to so
+great an extent.</p>
+
+<p>There were frequent visiters, in those days, at Closeburn Castle. In fact,
+with all the chivalric hospitality of ancient times and of an ancient
+family, Sir Roger kept, in a manner, open house. During dinner, the
+drawbridge was regularly elevated, and, for a couple of hours at least,
+none might enter. This state ceremony had cost the family of Kirkpatrick
+many broad acres; for, when the old and heirless proprietor of the fine
+estate of Carlaverock called at the castle of Closeburn, with the view of
+bequeathing his whole property to the then laird, the drawbridge was up&mdash;he
+was refused immediate entrance, because Sir Thomas was at dinner. "Tell Sir
+Thomas," said the enraged visitor, "tell your master to take his dinner,
+and with zest; but tell him, at the same time, that I will put a better
+dinner <em>by</em> his table this day than ever was on it." So he went on to
+Drumlanrig, and left the whole property to Douglas of Queensberry. Such,
+however, was not the reception of some young gentlemen who arrived about
+this time at the castle of Closeburn, on a sporting expedition, with dogs
+and guns, and a suitable accompaniment of gamekeepers and other servants.
+These strangers were manifestly Englishmen, but from what quarter of
+England nobody knew, and, indeed, nobody inquired. They were only birds of
+passage, and would, in a month or so, give place to another arrival, about
+to disappear, in its turn, from a similar cause. As Helen Palmer was one
+day walking, according to her wont, amongst the Barmoor-woods, in her
+immediate neighbourhood, a hare crossed her path, followed closely by a
+greyhound, by which it was immediately killed. Poor Helen started,
+screamed, and dropped her book in an agony of pity. She had not been
+accustomed to such barbarities; and the poor dying animal cried like a
+child, too, as it expired! At this instant, a horseman brought up his steed
+in her presence, and, immediately alighting, proceeded, in the most polite
+and delicate manner imaginable, to administer such relief as was in his
+power. He begged her to be composed, for the animal was now dead, and its
+suffering over; and her feelings should never be lascerated again in this
+manner, as they would pursue their sport somewhere else, at a greater
+distance from her abode. Upon recovering herself, Helen felt ashamed at her
+position, and even at her weakness in betraying her feelings, and, begging
+the stranger's pardon for the interruption to his sport which she had
+occasioned, with a most graceful courtesy she withdrew from his sight. The
+stranger was exceedingly struck with her appearance. It was not that she
+was beautiful, for with beautiful women he had long been familiar; but
+there was something in the expression of her countenance which made him
+tremble all over&mdash;she was the very picture of his father; nay, his own
+features and hers bore a close resemblance. The same indefinite terror
+which had seized this young and exceedingly handsome sportsman had
+penetrated the breast of Helen. The resemblance of the stranger to herself,
+was what struck her with amazement. There was the same arched eyebrow&mdash;the
+same hazel eye&mdash;and the same dimple in the chin. Besides, there was an
+all-over sameness in the air, manner, and even step, which she could not,
+with all her efforts, drive from her recollection. She did not, however,
+think proper to inform her father of this little foolish incident; but, ere
+she went to bed that night, she surveyed herself in the glass with more
+than wonted attention. Still, still, she was left in surprise, by comparing
+what she saw with what she recollected&mdash;the image in her bosom with that in
+the glass.</p>
+
+<p>Next day, as might have been anticipated, the stranger called to see if she
+had recovered from her fright, and spent a considerable time in very
+pleasing conversation. Her father happened to be in the writing office at
+the time, and did not see him. These calls were repeated from time to time,
+till at last it became evident to all about the castle, that the young heir
+of Middlefield, in Cumberland, was deeply in love. He had almost entirely
+given up his former amusements, and even railed against the cruelty of such
+sports. Mr Graham, a near connection of him of Netherby, was a young person
+of an excellent heart, and of a large property, to which, from his father's
+death, by an accident, he had just succeeded. He was besides, one of the
+handsomest men in Cumberland; and it was reported that Sir James Graham's
+oldest daughter had expressed herself very favourably respecting her
+kinsman's pretensions to her hand, should he <em>presume so high</em>! However,
+his heart was not in the match, and he had made this visit to his father's
+intimate friend, in order to avoid all importunity on a subject which was
+irksome to him. It is useless to mince the matter. Helen, in spite of her
+father's remonstrances and representations, was deeply and irrecoverably in
+love with the gallant Graham, and he, in his turn, was at least equally
+enamoured of the face, person, manners, mind, and soul, of the lovely and
+fascinating Miss Palmer.</p>
+
+<p>There was only one subject on which there was any division of opinion
+betwixt the lovers&mdash;Helen was every inch a Covenanter; whilst Mr William
+was rather, if anything, inclined to view their opposition to government as
+factious and inexcusable. He did not, indeed, approve of the atrocities
+which were practising every day around him, and in the parish of Closeburn
+in particular; but he ventured to hope that a few instances of severity
+would put an end to the delusion of the people, and that they would again
+return to their allegiance and their parish churches. Helen was mighty and
+magnificent in the cause of non-conformity and humanity. She talked of
+freedom, conscience, religion, on the one hand&mdash;of tyranny, treachery,
+oppression, and cruelty, on the other&mdash;till Mr William, either convinced,
+or appearing to be so, fairly gave in, promising most willingly, and in
+perfect good faith, that he would never assist the Laird of Closeburn, or
+of Lag, in any of their unhallowed proceedings.</p>
+
+<p>One day when Helen and her lover (for it was now no secret) were on a walk
+into the Barmoor-wood, they were naturally attracted to the spot where
+their intercourse had begun; and, sitting down opposite to each other on
+the trunks of some felled trees, they gradually began a somewhat
+confidential conversation respecting their birth and parentage. Helen
+disguised nothing; she was born in Cumberland, and brought here whilst a
+child; her mother, whose name was Helen Graham, had died at her birth. At
+the mention of this name, the stranger and lover started convulsively to
+his feet, and running up to and embracing Helen, he exclaimed&mdash;"O God! O
+God! you are my own cousin!" Helen fainted, and was with difficulty
+recovered, by an application of water from the adjoining brook. It was
+indeed so. Out of delicacy, Mr William had made no particular inquiries at
+Helen respecting her mother; and Helen, on the other hand, knew that Graham
+is an almost universal name, in Cumberland in particular. This, therefore,
+excited no suspicion; but true it is, and of verity, these two similar and
+affianced beings were cousins-german. Helen Graham, the sister of the Lord
+of Middlefield having married beneath her rank, was abandoned by her
+brother and family, and her name was never mentioned in Middlefield House.
+An old servant, however, of the family had made the young heir master of
+the fact of the marriage, and of the death of his old aunt; but he could
+not tell what had become of the father or the child; he supposed that they
+had either died or gone to the plantations abroad; and there the matter
+rested till this sudden and unexpected discovery. Peter Palmer, the father
+of Helen, was altogether unacquainted with William Graham, as he was a mere
+child when Peter left Cumberland; and his father had used him so cruelly as
+to make him avoid his residence and presence as carefully as possible.</p>
+
+<p>Would to heaven we could stop here, and gratify the reader with a wedding,
+and as much matrimonial happiness as poor mortality can possibly
+inherit!&mdash;But it may not be. As Lockhart says beautifully of Sir Walter, we
+hear "the sound of the muffled drum."</p>
+
+<p>Sir Roger and all the friends of Mr William Graham were opposed to his
+union with Miss Palmer, as Graham always called her. Her own father, too,
+was opposed to her forming a connection with the son of one who had treated
+him so cruelly, and, as he thought, unjustly&mdash;and it became manifest to
+William, as he was in every sense of the word his own master, that had he
+his fair betrothed in the leas of Middlefield, he might set them all at
+defiance, and effect their union peaceably, according to the rules of the
+church. In an evil hour, Helen consented to leave her father's house by
+night, along with her William, and on horseback, to take their way across
+the Border for Cumberland. They had reached the parish of Kirkconnel about
+two o'clock in the morning, and were giving their horses a mouthful of
+water in the little stream called Kirtle, when a shot was heard in the
+immediate neighbourhood&mdash;it was heard, alas! by two only, for the third was
+dying, and in the act of falling from her seat in the saddle. She was
+caught by a servant, and by her lover; but she could only say&mdash;"I am
+gone&mdash;I am gone!" before breathing her last. Oh, curse upon the hand that
+fired the shot? It was, indeed, an accursed hand, but a fatal mistake. It
+was one of the bloody persecutors of Lag's troop, who, having been
+appointed to watch at this spot for some Covenanters who were expected to
+be passing on horseback into England, in order to escape from the savage
+cruelty of their persecutors, had immediately, and in drunken blindness,
+fired upon this inoffensive group. The ball, alas! took too fatal effect in
+the heart of Helen Palmer; and it was on her, and not as Allan Cunningham
+represents it, "on Helen Irving, the daughter of the laird of Kirkconnel,"
+that the following most pathetic verses were written&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"I wish I were where Helen lies;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Night and day on me she cries:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, that I were where Helen lies,<br /></span>
+<span class="i6">On fair Kirkconnel lea!<br /></span>
+</div><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Oh, Helen fair beyond compare,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I'll make a garland of thy hair;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Shall bind my heart for ever mair,<br /></span>
+<span class="i6">Until the day I dee.<br /></span>
+</div><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Curst be the heart that thought the thought,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And curst the hand that fired the shot,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">When in my arms burd Helen dropped<br /></span>
+<span class="i6">On fair Kirkconnel lea!"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<h3><a name="cairny" id="cairny"></a>XII.&mdash;THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR.</h3>
+
+<p>There is a wild, uninhabited district, which separates Nithsdale from
+Annandale, in Dumfriesshire. It is called Gavin Muir; and, though lonely,
+and covered with spret and heather, exhibits some objects which merit the
+attention of the traveller in the wilderness. There is the King's Loch, the
+King's Burn, and the King's Chair, all records of King James V.'s
+celebrated raid to subdue the thieves of Annandale. Tradition says, what
+seems extremely likely, that he spent a night in the midst of this muir;
+and hence the appellations of royalty which adhere to the objects which
+witnessed his bivouac. But, although the localities referred to possess an
+interest, they are exceeded, in this respect, by a number of "cairns," by
+which the summits of several hills, or rising grounds, are topped. These
+cairns, which amount to five or six, are all within sight of each other,
+all on eminences, and all composed of an immense mass of loose, water-worn
+stones. And yet the neighbourhood is free from stones, being bare, and fit
+for sheep-pasturage only. Tradition says nothing of these cairns in
+particular; or, indeed, very little of any similar collections, frequent as
+they are in Scotland and throughout all Scandinavia. Stone coffins, no
+doubt, have been discovered in them, and human bones; but, beyond this, all
+is surmise and uncertainty. Often, when yet a boy, and engaged in fishing
+in the King's Burn, have we mounted these pyramids, and felt that we were
+standing on holy ground. "Oh," thought we, "that some courteous cairn would
+blab it out what 'tis they are!" But the cairns were silent; and hence the
+necessity we are under of professing our ignorance of what they refused to
+divulge. But there is a large opening in the side of one of these cairns,
+respecting which tradition has preserved a pretty distinct narrative, which
+we shall now venture, for the first time, to put under types, for the
+instruction of our readers.</p>
+
+<p>The whole hill country, in Dumfriesshire and Galloway in particular, is
+riddled, as it were, with caves and hiding-places. These, no doubt,
+afforded refuge, during the eight-and-twenty years of inhuman persecution,
+to the poor Covenanter; but they were not, in general, constructed for or
+by him. They existed from time immemorial, and were the work of that son of
+night and darkness&mdash;the smuggler, who, in passing from the Brow at the
+mouth of the Nith, from Bombay, near Kirkcudbright, or from the estuary of
+the Cree, with untaxed goods from the Isle of Man&mdash;then a separate and
+independent kingdom&mdash;found it convenient to conceal both his goods and
+himself from the observation of the officers of excise. So frequent are
+these concealed caves in the locality to which we refer, that, in passing
+through the long, rank heather, we have more than once disappeared in an
+instant, and found ourselves several feet below the level of the upper
+world, and in the midst of a damp, but roomy subterraneous apartment of
+considerable extent. We believe that they are now, in these piping times of
+peace and preventive service, generally filled up and closed by the
+shepherds, as they were dangerous pitfalls in the way of their flocks. In
+the time, however, to which we refer&mdash;namely, in the year 1683&mdash;they were
+not only open, but kept, as it were, in a state of repair, being tenanted
+by the poor, persecuted remnant (as they expressed it) of God's people.
+That the reader may fully understand the incidents of this narrative, it
+will be necessary that he and we travel back some hundred and fifty years,
+and some miles from the farm-house of Auchincairn, that we may have ocular
+demonstration of the curious contrivances to which the love of life, of
+liberty, and of a good conscience, had compelled our forefathers to have
+recourse. That cairn which appears so entire and complete, of which the
+stones seem to have been huddled together without any reference to
+arrangement whatever, is, nevertheless, hollow underneath, and on occasions
+you may see&mdash;but only if you examine it narrowly&mdash;the blue smoke seeking
+its way in tiny jets through a thousand apertures. There is, in fact, room
+for four or five individuals. Beneath, there are a few plaids and
+bed-covers, with an old chair, a stool, and seats of stone. There is
+likewise a fire-place and some peats, extracted from the adjoining moss.
+But there is, in fact, no entrance in this direction. You must bend your
+course round by the brow of that hollow, over which the heather hangs
+profusely; and there, by dividing and gently lifting up the heathy cover,
+you will be able to insert your person into a small orifice, from which you
+will escape into a dark but a roomy dungeon, which will, in its turn,
+conduct you through a narrow passage, into the very heart or centre of this
+seemingly solid accumulation of stones. When there, you will have light
+such as Milton gives to Pandemonium&mdash;just as much as to make darkness
+visible, through the small, and, on the outside, invisible crevices betwixt
+the stones. Should you be surprised in your lighted and fire
+apartment&mdash;should any accident or search bring a considerable weight above
+you, so as to break through your slightly supported roofing&mdash;you can
+retreat to your ante-room or dungeon, and from thence, if necessary, make
+your way into the adjoining linn, along the bottom of which, you may
+ultimately find skulking-shelter, or a pathway into a more inhabited
+district. Now that you have surveyed this arrangement, as it existed a
+hundred and fifty years ago, we may proceed to give you the narrative which
+is connected with it.</p>
+
+<p>In the year above referred to, the persecution of the saints was at its
+height&mdash;Clavers, in particular, went about the country with his dragoons,
+whom he designated (like the infamous Kirk) his <em>Lambs</em>, literally seeking
+to hurt and destroy in all the hill country, in particular of Dumfriesshire
+and Galloway. Auchincairn was a marked spot; it had often been a city of
+refuge to the shelterless and the famishing; but it had so frequently been
+searched, that every hole and corner was as well known to Clavers and his
+troop as to the inhabitants themselves. There was now, therefore, no longer
+any refuge to the faithful at Auchincairn; in fact, to come there was to
+meet the enemy half-way&mdash;to rush as it were into the jaws of the lion. In
+these circumstances, old Walter Gibson, a man upwards of seventy years of
+age, who, by his prayers and his attending conventicles, had rendered
+himself particularly obnoxious, was obliged to prolong a green old age by
+taking up his abode in the cave and under the cairn which has already been
+described. With him were associated, in his cold and comfortless retreat,
+the Rev. Robert Lawson, formerly minister of the parish of Closeburn; but
+who, rather than conform to the English prayer-book and formula, had taken
+to the mountain, to preach, to baptize, and even to dispense the Sacrament
+of the Supper, in glens, and linns, and coverts, far from the residence of
+man. Their retreat was known to the shepherds of the district, and indeed
+to the whole family of Auchincairn; but no one ever was suspected of
+imitating the conduct of the infamous Baxter, who had proved false, and
+discovered a cave in Glencairn, where four Covenanters were immediately
+shot, and two left hanging upon a tree. On one occasion, a little innocent
+girl, a grand-daughter of old Walter, was surprised whilst carrying some
+provisions towards the hill-retreat, by a party of Clavers' dragoons, who
+devoured the provisions, and used every brutal method to make the girl
+disclose the secret of the retreat; but she was neither to be intimidated
+nor cajoled, and told them plainly that she would rather die, as her
+granduncle had done before her, than betray her trust. They threw her into
+a peat-hag filled with water, and left her to sink or swim. She did <em>not</em>
+swim, however, but sank never to rise again. Her spirit had been broken,
+and life had been rendered a burden to her. She expressed to her murderers,
+again and again, a wish that they would send her to meet her uncle (as she
+termed it) William. Her body was only discovered some time after, when the
+process of decomposition had deformed one of the most pleasing countenances
+which ever beamed with innocence and piety.</p>
+
+<p>"The old hound will not be far off, when the young whelp was so near,"
+exclaimed Clavers, upon a recital of the inhuman murder. "We must watch the
+muirs by night; for it is then that these creatures congregate and fatten.
+We must continue to spoil their feasting, and leave them to feed on
+cranberries and moss-water." In consequence of this resolution, a strict
+watch was set all along Gavin Muir; and it became almost impossible to
+convey any sustenance to the famishing pair; yet the thing was done, and
+wonderfully managed, not in the night-time, but in the open day. One
+shepherd would call to another, in the note of the curlew or the miresnipe,
+and without exciting suspicion, convey from the corner of his plaid the
+necessary refreshments, even down to a bottle of Nantz. The cave was never
+entered on such occasions; but the provisions were dropped amidst the rank
+heather; and a particular whistle immediately secured their disappearance.
+Night after night, therefore, were these prowlers disappointed of their
+object, till at last, despairing of success, or thinking, probably, that
+the birds had escaped, they betook themselves, for the time, elsewhere, and
+the cairn was relieved from siege. Clavers, in fact, had retired to
+Galloway, along with Grierson and Johnstone, and the coast was clear, at
+least for the present.</p>
+
+<p>It was about the latter end of October, when Mr Lawson was preaching and
+dispensing the Sacrament to upwards of a hundred followers, in the hollow
+where stood the King's Chair. This locality was wonderfully well suited for
+the purpose&mdash;it was, in fact, a kind of amphitheatre, surrounded on all
+sides by rising ground, and in the centre of which three large stones
+constituted a chair, and several seats of the same material were ranged in
+a circular form around. The stones remain to this hour, and the truth of
+this description can be verified by any one who crosses Gavin Muir. It was
+a moonlight night&mdash;a harvest moon&mdash;and Mr Lawson, having handed the
+Sacramental cup around, was in the act of concluding with prayer, when the
+note of a bird, seemingly a plover, was heard at a great distance. It was
+responded to by a similar call, somewhat nearer; and, in an instant, a
+messenger rushed in upon their retreat, out of breath, and exclaiming, "You
+are lost!&mdash;you are all dead men!&mdash;Clavers is within sight, and at full
+gallop, with all his troop at his back."</p>
+
+<p>One advantage which the poor persecuted had over their persecutors, was a
+superior knowledge of localities. In an instant the hollow was tenantless;
+for the inmates had fled in all directions, and to various coverts and
+outlets into the vale of Annan. The minister alone remained at his post
+continuing in ejaculatory prayer, and resisting all persuasion even to take
+advantage of the adjoining cairny cave. In vain did Walter Gibson delay
+till the last moment, and talk of his farther usefulness. Mr Lawson's only
+answer was&mdash;"I am in the hands of a merciful Master, and, if he has more
+service for me, he himself will provide a way for my escape. I have neither
+wife nor child, nor, I may say, relation, alive. I am, as it were, a
+stranger in the land of duty. If the Lord so will it that the man of blood
+shall prevail over me, he will raise up others in my stead, fitter to serve
+him effectually than ever I have been; but, Walter, <em>you</em> have a bonny
+family of grandchildren around you, and your ain daughter the mother of
+them a', to bless you, and hear you speak the words of counselling and
+wisdom; so, make you for the cave and the cairn out by yonder&mdash;I will e'en
+remain where I am, and the Lord's will be done!" Seeing that all persuasion
+was unavailable, and that, by delaying his flight, he would only sacrifice
+his own life, without saving that of his friend, Walter appeared to take
+his departure for his place of refuge. It was neither Clavers, however, nor
+Lag, nor Johnstone, nor Winram, who was upon them; but only Captain
+Douglas, from Drumlanrig, to which place secret information of the night's
+<em>wark</em>, as it was termed, had been conveyed. Captain Douglas' hands were
+red with blood; he had shot poor Daniel M'Michan in Dalveen Glen, and had
+given word of command to blow out his brother's brains, as has been already
+recorded in the notices of these times. One of his troop had been wounded
+in the affair at Dalveen, and he was literally furious with rage and the
+thirst of blood. Down, therefore, Douglas came with about half-a-dozen men,
+(the rest being on duty in Galloway,) determined to kill or be killed&mdash;to
+put an end to these nightly conventicles, or perish in the attempt.</p>
+
+<p>Mr Lawson had taken his position in the King's Chair, which, as was
+formerly described, consisted of three large stones set on end, around one
+in the centre, which served as a seat; and when Douglas came in sight,
+nothing appeared visible in the moonshine but these solitary stones.</p>
+
+<p>"They are off, by G&mdash;&mdash;d!" exclaimed Douglas; "the fox has broken cover&mdash;we
+must continue the chase; and Rob," added he, to one who rode near him,
+"blaw that bugle till it crack again. When you start the old fox, I should
+like mightily to be at the death. But&mdash;so ho!&mdash;what have we here?&mdash;why,
+here are bottles and a cup, by Jove! These friends of the Covenant are no
+enemies, I perceive, to good cheer"&mdash;putting the bottle to his mouth, and
+making a long pull&mdash;"by the living Jingo! most excellent wine. Here, Rob,"
+emptying what remained into the silver goblet or cup, "here, line your
+weasan with a drop of the red, and then for the red heart's blood of these
+psalm-singing, cup-kissing gentry. So ho&mdash;so ho!&mdash;hilloa&mdash;one and all&mdash;the
+fox is under cover still," (advancing towards the stone chair,) "and we
+thought him afield, too. Stand forth, old Canticles, 5 and 8th, and let us
+see whether you have got one or five bottles under your belt. What! you
+won't, or you can't stand! Grunt again!&mdash;you are made of stone, are
+you?&mdash;why, then, we will try your qualities with a little burnt powder and
+lead. Gentlemen of the horse-brigade, do you alight, and be d&mdash;&mdash;d to you,
+and, just by way of experiment, rattle me half-a-dozen bullets in the face
+of that there image of stone, which looks so mighty like the parson of
+Closeburn that one might easily mistake the one for the other."</p>
+
+<p>The men had alighted with their holster pistols, and had arranged
+themselves, as directed, in the front of the stone chair, and with a full
+view of the figure which occupied the seat, when, at this very critical
+juncture, a band of upwards of fifty horses, with panniers on their backs,
+came up at a smart trot.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop your hellish speed!" said a voice from the front of the band; "or, by
+this broadsword, and these long six-footers, you are all dead men, ere you
+can say, Present, fire!" Instantly, Douglas saw and comprehended his
+position&mdash;"To horse!" was his short exhortation, and, in an instant, his
+five followers and himself had cleared the brow of the glen, and were out
+of sight at full speed. "Shed not their blood!&mdash;shed not their blood!"
+continued to exclaim a well-known voice amongst the band of smugglers&mdash;for
+such the reader may have guessed they were. It was the voice of Walter
+Gibson, well known to many of the smugglers; for again and again they had
+supplied Auchincairn with Hollands and Nantz. "Shed not one drop of blood,
+I say; but leave them to Him who has said, 'Vengeance is mine, and I will
+repay it;'&mdash;He will find His own time of revenging the death of my poor
+murdered bairn, whom they drowned in the King's Moss, owre by there. But,
+dear me, Mr Lawson, are ye dead or living, that ye tak nae tent o' what's
+going on?" In fact, Mr Lawson, having given himself up as lost, had
+committed himself, with shut eyes, so intently to prayer, that he had but a
+very confused notion of what had happened.</p>
+
+<p>"The Lord's will be done!" he exclaimed at last; "and is this you, Walter
+Gibson?&mdash;fearful! fearful!&mdash;are these the Philistines around you?&mdash;and are
+you and I to travel, hand in hand, into Immanuel's land?&mdash;or, but do my
+poor eyes deceive me, and are these only our good friends, the fair
+traders, come to the rescue, under God and his mercy, in the time of our
+need?"</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed," responded a known voice&mdash;that, namely, at whose bidding the work
+of death had been staid&mdash;"indeed, Mr Lawson, we are friends and not foes;
+and, whilst our cattle, which are a little blawn, with the haste into which
+they were hurried by old Walter here&mdash;until the beasts bite, I say, and eat
+their corn, we will e'en thank God, and take a little whet of the creature.
+You know, such comforts are not forbidden in the laws of Moses, or, indeed,
+in any laws but those of this persecuted and oppressed land."</p>
+
+<p>So saying, he disengaged from a hamper a flagon of Nantz, and was about to
+make use of the Sacramental cup, which Douglas had dropped, to convey it
+around, when his arm was arrested by the still strong hand of Walter.</p>
+
+<p>"For the sake of God and his church&mdash;of Him who shed his blood for poor
+sinners&mdash;profane not, I beseech you, the consecrated, the hallowed vessel
+which I have so lately held in these vile hands as the emblem of my
+purification through the blood of sprinkling&mdash;profane not, I say, that
+vessel which, when all worldly goods were forfeited and relinquished as
+things of no value, our worthy pastor has borne along with him&mdash;being the
+gift of his parishioners&mdash;to the mountain and the glen&mdash;to the desert and
+the wilderness!"</p>
+
+<p>There needed no further admonition; the cup was deposited in the hands of
+its owner, and the whole <em>posse comitatus</em> spread themselves out on the
+grass&mdash;for, though all around was heath, this little spot was green and
+lovely&mdash;and, by applying the vessel directly to their lips, each one took a
+draught so long and hearty that the captain or leader had again and again
+to replenish the measure. Nor were Lawson and old Walter Gibson behind in
+this work of refreshment. Many a day they had laid themselves down to rest
+in the damp and cold cave, with little of food and with nothing to cheer
+and support them but a mouthful, from time to time, of the <em>Solway
+waters</em>&mdash;viz., <em>smuggled brandy</em>. We are all the children, to a great
+amount, of circumstances; and the very men who, but a little ago, were
+engaged in the most solemn act of religion, and counted themselves as at
+the point of death&mdash;these very men were now so much cheered, and even
+exhilarated, by the reviving cordial, that they forgot, for the time, their
+dangers and their privations, and were not displeased to hear the smugglers
+sing the old song, "We are merry men all," when a figure approached, out of
+breath, exclaiming&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"The gaugers! the gaugers!&mdash;the excisemen from Dumfries!"</p>
+
+<p>In an instant the whole troop stood to arms. They had been
+well-disciplined; and the horses, along with the parson and Walter, were
+stowed away, as they called it, behind. They spoke not; but there was the
+click of gunlocks, and a powerful <em>recover</em>, on the ground, of heavy
+muskets, with barrels fully six feet long, which had been used by their
+forefathers in the times of the first Charles and the civil commotion. The
+enemy came up at the gallop; but they had plainly miscalculated the forces
+of their opponents&mdash;<em>they</em> were only about fifteen strong; so, wheeling
+suddenly round, they took their departure with as much dispatch as they had
+advanced.</p>
+
+<p>"We must off instantly!" exclaimed the leader of this trading band. "We
+must gain the pass of Enterkin ere day-dawn; for these good neighbours will
+make common cause with the King's troops, whenever they meet them, and
+there will be bloody work, I trow, ere these kegs and good steeds change
+masters."</p>
+
+<p>So saying, the march immediately proceeded up Gavin Muir, and the minister
+and Walter took possession of their usual retreat&mdash;the Cairny Cave I have
+so often referred to.</p>
+
+<p>Douglas was not thus, by accident, to be foiled in his object; for having,
+in the course of a few days, obtained additional forces from Galloway, he
+returned to the search in Gavin Muir, where he had, again and again, been
+told meetings still continued to be held, and some caves of concealment
+existed. Old Lauderdale in council had one day said&mdash;"Why, run down the
+devils, like the natives of Jamaica, with blood-hounds." And the hint was
+not lost on bloody Clavers&mdash;he had actually a pair of hounds of this
+description with him in Galloway at this time; and, at his earnest request,
+Douglas was favoured with one of them. Down, therefore, this monster came
+upon Gavin Muir, not to shoot blackcocks or muirfowl, in which it abounded,
+but to track, and start and pistol, if necessary, poor, shivering,
+half-starved human beings, who had dared to think the laws of their God
+more binding than the empire and despotism of sinful men. The game was a
+merry one, and it was played by "merry men all:" forward went the hound
+through muirs and mosses; onward came the troop, hallooing and encouraging
+the animal in pursuit of its horrid instincts. As they passed the moss-hole
+in which the poor grand-daughter of Walter had been suffocated, the jest,
+and the oath, and the merriment were at their utmost.</p>
+
+<p>"Had we but a slice of the young pup," said one, "to flesh our hound with,
+he would soon scent out the old one&mdash;they are kindred blood, you know. But
+what do I see?&mdash;old Bloody, is it, on the top of the cairn yonder?&mdash;and
+scooping, nosing, and giving tongue most determinedly. By the holy
+poker!&mdash;and that's a sanctified oath&mdash;I will on and see what's agoing
+here." Thus saying, he put spurs to his horse, and, waving his sword round
+his head, "Here goes for old Watty!&mdash;and may the devil burn me if I do not
+unearth the fox at last!" Onwards they all advanced at the gallop; but Jack
+Johnston was greatly in front, and had dashed his horse half-way up the
+steep cairn, when, in an instant, horse and man rushed down, and
+immediately disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>"Why," said Douglas, "what has become of Jack?&mdash;has old Sooty smelt him,
+and sent for him, on a short warning, to help in roasting Covenanters?&mdash;or
+have the fairies, those fair dames of the green knowe and the grey cairn,
+seen and admired his proportions, and made a young 'Tam Lean' of poor Jack
+Johnston? Let us on and see."</p>
+
+<p>And see to be sure they did; for there was Jack, lying in the last agonies
+of death, under his horse, which itself was lamed and lying with feet
+uppermost. The horrid hound was lapping, with a growl, the blood which
+oozed from the nose and lips of the dying man, and with a dreadful curse,
+the terrible being expired, just as the party came within view. He had
+tumbled headlong, owing to the pressure from the horse's feet, through the
+slight rafter-work beneath, and had pitched head-foremost against a stone
+seat, in consequence of which his skull was fractured, and his immediate
+death ensued. Douglas looked like one bewildered, he would scarcely credit
+his eyes; but his companion in arms did the needful; and Jack Johnston's
+body was removed, his horse shot through the brain, and the whole band
+returned, drooping and crestfallen, to Drumlanrig. Throwing his sword down
+on the hall table when he arrived, he was heard to say, looking wildly and
+fearfully all the while, "The hand of God is in this thing, and I knew it
+not." It is a curious fact, but one of which my informant had no doubt,
+that this very Douglas became, after this, quite an altered man. Mr Lawson,
+who lived some years after his death, attended upon him in his last
+illness. "God only knows the heart," would he say; "but, to all <em>outward</em>
+appearance, William Douglas was a cleansed and a sanctified vessel: the
+mercy of God is infinite&mdash;it even extended to the thief on the cross."</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<h3><a name="porter" id="porter"></a>XIII.&mdash;PORTER'S HOLE.</h3>
+
+<p>In the west corner of the churchyard of Dalgarno&mdash;now a section of the
+parish of Closeburn&mdash;there is a small, but neat headstone, with two figures
+joining hands, as if in the attitude of marrying. Beneath is written, and
+still legible&mdash;"John Porter and Augnas Milligan. They were lovely in their
+lives, and in their deaths they were not divided." There is neither date
+nor narrative; but, as this part of the churchyard has not been used as a
+burial-ground since the union of the parishes, in the reign of Charles the
+Second, the date must have been some time betwixt 1660 and 1684. This
+beautiful and sequestered churchyard, all silent and cheerless as it is,
+lies upon the banks of the Nith, immediately upon its union with the ocean;
+and near to the most famous salmon-fishing pool in the whole river, called
+Porter's Hole. Whilst yet a boy, and attending Closeburn school, our
+attention was, one sunny afternoon, (when the trouts were unwilling to
+visit the dry land,) drawn to the little stone in the corner, of which we
+have just made mention, and recollecting, at the same time, that Porter was
+the name of the pool, as well as of the person buried, we began to
+speculate upon the possibility of there being some connection betwixt the
+two circumstances&mdash;the name of the individual, and the well-known
+designation of the blackest and deepest pool in the Closeburn part of the
+river. Near to this solitary restingplace of the ashes of our
+forefathers&mdash;the Harknesses, the Gibsons, and the Watsons of Closeburn from
+time immemorial&mdash;there stood, at that time, an old cottage, straw or rather
+<em>grass</em>-thatched, (for it was covered with green chicken-weed,) where
+dwelt, in single solitude, Janet M'Guffoch&mdash;whether any relation of the
+celebrated individual of that name mentioned by Sir Walter Scott, we know
+not&mdash;but there dwelt Janet, a discontented, old waspish body of one hundred
+years of age, according to general belief; and, being accompanied by a
+black cat and a broom besom, was marked by us <em>boys</em> as a decided witch. We
+never had any doubt about it, and the thing was confirmed by the Laird of
+Closeburn's gamekeeper, who swore that he had often hunted hares to Janet's
+door; but never could start them again. Under all these circumstances, it
+required no common impulse to induce us to enter the den of this emissary
+of Satan; but our curiosity was excited by the similarity of the names
+"Porter's Grave" and "Porter's Hole," (as the pool was familiarly named,)
+and we at length mustered faith, and strength, and courage to thrust
+ourselves past a bundle of withered twigs, which served Janet as a door in
+summer, and as a door-protector in the blasts of winter. Janet was as usual
+at her wheel, and crooning some old Covenanting ditty, about&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Oh, gin Lag were dead and streekit,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">An' that his ha' wi' mools was theekit!"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">when, by means of a six-inch-square skylight, our physiognomy became
+visible to Janet.</p>
+
+<p>"And what art thou, that's creeping into an old body's dark den, and
+leaving ahint thee the guid sunshine?"</p>
+
+<p>We responded by mentioning our name.</p>
+
+<p>"Ay, ay," said Janet, "come away and sit thee down on the creepy there,
+beside the heidstane<a name="FNanchor_B_2" id="FNanchor_B_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_B_2" class="fnanchor">[B]</a>&mdash;thou art freely welcome, for thou art o' the seed
+o' the faithful, the precious salt of the earth: and the blessing of the
+God of the Covenant will rest upon its children, even to the third and the
+fourth generation!" Thus welcomed, we took our position as requested,
+eyeing all the while the large black cat with a somewhat suspicious regard.</p>
+
+<p>"The beast winna stir thee," said Janet, "it has, like its auld mistress,
+mair regard for the martyr's seed."</p>
+
+<p>Having hereupon taken advantage of a pause in Janet's discourse, we at once
+stated the subject of our inquiry.</p>
+
+<p>"Ay, ay," said Janet; "and atweel there is a connection betwixt that bonny
+angel stane, and the pool ca'ed Porter's Hole. Ay, is there; an an awfu'
+connection it is. But what comes thou here for to torment an auld body like
+me, wi' greeting and groaning at my time o' life? Gae awa, gae awa&mdash;I canna
+thole the very thochts o' the story whilk thou ettles to ken."</p>
+
+<p>This only increased our curiosity, and, after some flattering language
+about Janet's good nature, retentive memory, and Covenanting lineage, the
+old crone proceeded to the following purpose; and, as nearly as we can
+mind, (for it is a tale o' fifty years,) repeated it in the following
+words:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Thou ken's the auld ruin, bairn, the auld wa's out by there. That's the
+auld farm-house o' Dalgarno, ere the new one at the path-head was biggit;
+and there, within the wa's, was ance a warm hearth, and twa as leal hearts
+as ever beat against pin or button. John Porter was young, handsome, and
+the tenant of the best farm in the parish o' Dalgarno; but he was nae frien
+to the vile curate, and a marked bird, as they ca' it, by Grierson o' Lag,
+in particular, who had been heard to say, that he would decant his porter
+for him some day yet, in the shape and colour of heart's bluid. Agnes
+Milligan was an orphan, brought up at Dalgarno&mdash;a sister's son o' the auld
+Dalgarno, and a fu' cousin, ye ken, o' the young farmer. They had baith fed
+frae the same plate; sleeped under the same roof; played at the same
+sports; and dabbled in the same river&mdash;the bloody, bloody Nith!&mdash;from
+infancy to youth. Oh! sirs! but I canna get on ava"&mdash;&mdash; Here Janet sorted
+her wheel, and apparently shed a tear, for she moved her apron corner to
+her eye. "Aweel, this was the nicht o' the wedding, bairn&mdash;no <em>this</em> nicht,
+like; but I think I just see it present, for I was there mysel, a wee bit
+whilking lassie. Lawson, guid godly Lawson, had tied the knot, an' we war
+a' merry like; but it was a fearfu' spate, and the Nith went frae bank to
+brae. 'They are comin!' was the cry. I kenna wha cried it, but a voice said
+it, an' twenty voices repeated it. Lag an' his troop's coming; they're
+gallopin owre the Cunning-holm at this moment. John Porter flew to his
+bonnet, an', in an instant, was raised six or seven feet high on his long
+stilts, with which he had often crossed the Nith when nae mortal could tak
+it on horseback. Agnes Milligan was out and after; the moon shone clear
+through a cloud, and she saw the brave man tak the water at the broadest.
+On he went&mdash;for we a' witnessed what he did&mdash;on he went, steady, firm, an'
+unwaverin; but, alas! it was hin' harvest, an' some sheaves o' corn had
+been carried off the holms by the spate. Ane o' them crossed his upper
+stilt, an', in a moment, his feet went frae him, an' doon he cam into the
+roarin flood. He was still near the Closeburn bank, an' we a' ran down the
+side to see if we could help him out. Again an' again he rose to his feet;
+but the water was mighty, it was terrible, it just whumbled him owre, an'
+we saw nae mair o' him. Agnes ran for Porter's Hole, (then only kent as the
+salmon pool,) an' stood watching the eddy, as it whirled straw an' corn,
+an' sic like rubbish, aboot. Her husband's head appeared floating in the
+whirl&mdash;she screamed, leaped into the deep, deep pool, an' next day they
+were found clasped in each other's arms. Oh, my bairn, my bairn!&mdash;what
+brocht ye here the day?"</p>
+
+<p>Janet was found, next morning, dead in her bed&mdash;the exertion and excitement
+had killed her.</p>
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_B_2" id="Footnote_B_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_B_2"><span class="label">[B]</span></a> <em>Vide</em> Jameson.</p></div>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="recluse" id="recluse"></a>THE RECLUSE.</h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">The</span> situations of farm-houses, or steadings, as we call them in Scotland,
+are very rarely selected so much for their beauty, with reference to the
+surrounding scenery, as for conveniency; and hence it is that we find but
+few of them in positions which a view-hunter would term strikingly
+felicitous. When they are so, we rather presume the circumstance arises
+from its happening that eligibility and choice have agreed in determining
+the point. Yet, seriously, though the generality of farm-steadings have
+little to boast of as regards situation, there are many pleasing
+exceptions. Nay, there are some to be found occupying the most choice
+positions&mdash;surrounded with or overlooking all that is beautiful in nature.
+One of these, most certainly, is the farm-house of West Mains, in the
+parish of Longorton, Lanarkshire. It stands on the summit of a gentle,
+isolated eminence that rises in the very centre of a deep and romantic
+valley, formed of steep green hills, thickly wooded towards the bottom, but
+rising in naked verdancy from about the centre upwards. The view from the
+house is thus, indeed, limited; but this limitation is amply compensated by
+its singular beauty.</p>
+
+<p>About fifty years ago, this beautifully-situated farm-house was occupied by
+one Robert Adair, who rented also the entire valley in which it is
+situated. Adair's family, at this time, consisted of himself, his wife, a
+son, and two daughters, Martha and Rosina, or Rosy, as she was familiarly
+called. The former was, at the period of our story, in her twentieth year,
+the latter in her eighteenth. Martha was a good-looking and good-tempered
+girl; but, in both respects, and in several others, she was much surpassed
+by her younger sister, Rosy, as we, too, prefer to call her. The latter,
+with, personal attractions of no common order, was one of the liveliest and
+most cheerful creatures imaginable. Nothing could damp her buoyant spirit;
+nothing, be it what it might, could make her sad for longer than ten
+minutes together. From morning to night she continued pouring out, in a
+voice of the richest and most touching melody, the overflowings of a light
+and innocent heart. And scarcely less melodious was the joyous and gleeful
+laugh, in which she ever and anon gave way to the promptings of a lively
+and playful imagination. Let it not, however, be thought that all this
+apparent levity of manner was the result of an unthinking or uncalculating
+mind, or that it was in her case, as it frequently is in others, associated
+with qualities which exclude the finer and better feelings of female
+nature. It was by no means so. With all her gaiety and sportiveness, she
+had a heart filled with all the tenderest sensibilities of a woman. Her
+attachments were warm and ardent. In character, simple and sincere, Rosy
+could have died for those she loved; and so finely strung were the
+sympathies of her nature, that they were wrought on at will by either mirth
+or pathos, and with each were found equally to accord.</p>
+
+<p>Rosy's father, Mr Adair, although holding a considerable extent of land,
+and paying a very handsome rental, was yet by no means in affluent
+circumstances. Both his name and his credit in the country were on a fair
+footing, and he was not encumbered with more debt than he could very easily
+pay. But this was all; there was no surplus&mdash;nothing to spare; and the
+less, that he had been liberal in his expenditure on the education of his
+daughters. On this he had grudged no cost; they had both passed several
+winters in Glasgow, and had there possessed themselves of some of the more
+elegant accomplishments in female education.</p>
+
+<p>In character, Robert Adair was something of an original. In speech, blunt,
+plain, and humorous; but in disposition, kind, sincere, and generous. He
+was, in short, in all respects an excellent and worthy man. On the score of
+education, he had not much to boast of; but this deficiency was, in part at
+any rate, compensated by great natural shrewdness and vigour of mind.</p>
+
+<p>Such, then, were the inmates of the farm-house of West Mains, at the period
+to which our story refers, and which is somewhere about the year 1788.</p>
+
+<p>It was at the close of a day of incessant rain, in the month of September
+of that year, or it may, perhaps, have been of the year following, that a
+young man, of somewhere about five-and-twenty years of age, respectably
+dressed, with a stick in his hand, and a small leathern bundle under his
+arm, presented himself at the door of Robert Adair's house, and knocked for
+admittance. The door was opened by Robert himself; and when it was so, the
+person whom we have described stood before him. He was drenched with wet.
+It was streaming from his hat, and had soaked him all over to the skin. He
+was thus, altogether, in most uncomfortable plight; for, besides being wet,
+the night was intensely cold.</p>
+
+<p>"Can you, my good friend," said the stranger, in a tone and manner that
+bespoke a person of education at least, if it might not be ventured to call
+him a gentleman&mdash;"Can you give me quarters for a night?" he said, on being
+confronted by Mr Adair. "I am an entire stranger in this part of the
+country, and do not know of any inn at hand, otherwise I would not have
+troubled you. I will, very readily, pay for my accommodation."</p>
+
+<p>"A nicht's quarters, frien," replied Adair. "Oh, surely, ye'll get that,
+an' welcome. Walk in. Save us, man, but ye hae gotten a soakin! Ye're like
+a half-drooned rat. But stap in, stap in. There's a guid fire there in the
+kitchen and I'm sure ye're no out the need o' a blink o't."</p>
+
+<p>In a minute after, the stranger was comfortably seated before a roaring
+fire. But his host's hospitality did not end with this kindness; he
+insisted on his guest shifting himself; and, to enable him to do so,
+brought him a whole armfull of his own clothes; shirt, coat, waistcoat,
+trousers, and stockings. Nor with this kindness did his benevolence yet
+terminate; he invited the stranger to accept of some refreshment; an
+invitation which he followed up by desiring his daughter Rosy to cover a
+small table close by the fire, and to place thereon such edibles as she had
+at hand. Delighting as much as her father in acts of kindness, Rosy
+hastened to obey an order so agreeable to her. In a trice, she had the
+table covered with various good things, conspicuous amongst which was a
+jolly round of salt beef. In compliance with the request of his host, the
+stranger drew into the table thus kindly prepared for him; but, to the
+great disappointment of his entertainer, ate very sparingly.</p>
+
+<p>"Dear help me, man!&mdash;eat, eat, canna ye!" exclaimed Adair, every now and
+then, as he marked the listless manner in which the stranger pecked at the
+food on his plate. "Eat, man, canna ye!" he said, getting absolutely angry
+at his guest's want of appetite, which he construed into diffidence. "Lord,
+man, take a richt whang on your plate at once, and dinna be nibblin at it
+that way, like a mouse at a Du'lap cheese." Saying this, he seized a knife
+and fork, cut a slice from the cold round, an inch in thickness, and at
+least six in diameter, and threw it on the stranger's plate with much about
+the same grace which he exhibited in tossing a truss of hay with a
+pitchfork. "There, man, tak half-a-dizzen o' cuts like that, and then ye
+may say ye hae made a bit supper o't."</p>
+
+<p>Robert Adair was, in truth, but a rough table attendant, but he was a kind
+one, and in all he said and did meant well, however uncouthly it might be
+expressed.</p>
+
+<p>Of this the stranger seemed perfectly aware; and, although he could not
+eat, he appeared fully to appreciate the sincerity of his host's
+invitations to him to do so.</p>
+
+<p>After persevering, therefore, a little longer, as if to please his
+entertainer, he at length laid down his knife and fork, and declared that
+he was now satisfied, and could take no more. On his making this decided
+movement&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"My faith," said his hospitable landlord, "an' ye be na waur to water than
+to corn, I think I could board ye, an' no be a loser, for a very sma'
+matter. Rosy, bring butt the bottle."</p>
+
+<p>Obedient to the command, Rosy tripped out of the kitchen, and in an instant
+returned with the desiderated commodity&mdash;a dumpy, bluff, opaque bottle, of
+about a gallon contents&mdash;which she placed on the table. Adair seized it by
+its long neck, and, filling up a brimming bumper, tossed it off to the
+health of his guest. This done, he filled up another topping glass, and
+presented it to the stranger, with a strong recommendation on the score of
+excellence. "Ra-a-l guid stuff, sir," he said, "tak my word for't. Juist a
+cordial. Noo, dinna trifle wi' your drink as ye did wi' your meat, or I'll
+no ken what to think o' ye at a'."</p>
+
+<p>The stranger, with renewed acknowledgments for the kindness shewn him, took
+the proffered beverage; but, instead of taking it off as his worthy host
+had expected, he merely put it to his lips, and replaced it on the table.</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, that cowes the gowan!" said Adair. "Ye'll neither hap nor
+wyn&mdash;neither dance nor haud the candle. Try't again, man, try't again.
+Steek your een hard, gie ae gulp, an' ower wi't."</p>
+
+<p>The worthy man, however, pressed in vain. The stranger would not drink; but
+once more acknowledged the kindness and well-meant hospitality of his
+entertainer.</p>
+
+<p>During all this time, the stranger had neither said nor done any single
+thing which was capable of imparting the slightest idea of who or what he
+was&mdash;where he was from, or whence he was going. Indeed, he hardly spoke at
+all; and the little he did speak was almost all confined to brief
+expressions of thanks for the kindness shewn him. When seen as he was now,
+under more favourable circumstances than those in which he had first
+presented himself, shivering with cold and drenched with wet, he exhibited
+a handsome exterior. His countenance was full of expression and
+intelligence, but was overspread with an apparently deep-seated and settled
+melancholy. He appeared, in short, to be a person who was suffering
+severely either in body or mind; but his affliction exhibited all the
+symptoms of being of the latter rather than the former. Yet was not the
+profound gravity of his manner of an unpleasing or repulsive character; it
+partook of a gentleness and benevolence that rendered it rather graceful
+than otherwise. The tones of his voice, too, corresponded with these
+qualities; they were mild and impressive, and singularly agreeable.
+Altogether, the stranger appeared a mysterious sort of person; and greatly
+did it puzzle Mr Adair and all his household to conjecture who or what he
+could possibly be; a task to which they set themselves after he had retired
+to bed, which he did&mdash;pleading fatigue as an excuse&mdash;at an early hour. The
+first ostensible circumstance connected with their guest of the night,
+which the family divan, with the father of it at their head, took into
+consideration when discussing the knotty points of the stranger's character
+and calling, was his apparel. But of this they could make nothing. His
+habiliments were in no ways remarkable for anything; they being neither
+good, bad, nor indifferent, but of that indefinite description called
+respectable. So far as these were concerned, therefore, he might be either
+a peer of the realm or an English bagman.</p>
+
+<p>Finding they could make nothing of the clothes, the family cabinet council
+next proceeded to the looks and manners of the stranger; and, with regard
+to these, all agreed that they seemed to bespeak the gentleman; and on this
+conclusion from the premises, none insisted more stoutly than Rosy, who,
+let us observe, although she thought nobody saw her, had taken several
+stolen glances at the subject of discussion while he was seated at the
+kitchen fire; and at each glance, let us farther observe, more and more
+approved of his finely arched eyebrows, his well-formed mouth, dark
+expressive eyes, and rich black locks that clustered around his white and
+open forehead. But all this is a secret, good reader, and should not have
+been told.</p>
+
+<p>So far, then, had the united opinions of the family determined regarding
+their guest. But what should have brought him the way of West Mains, such
+an out-of-the-way place, seeing that he had neither gun, dog, nor
+fishing-rod, and could not therefore have been in pursuit of sport? It was
+odd, unaccountable. Where could he be from? Where could he be going to?
+These were questions more easily put than answered; and by all were they
+put, but by none were they replied to. At length, Mr Adair took speech in
+hand himself on the subject.</p>
+
+<p>"I kenna, nor, indeed, neither do I muckle care, wha the lad is; but he
+seems to me to be a ceevil, discreet, young man; and I rather like him
+a'thegither, although he's a dooms bad haun at baith cap and trencher. A',
+however, that we hae to do wi' him, is to treat him ceevily while he's
+under our roof. He's gotten a guid bed to lie in, and in the mornin we'll
+gie him a guid breakfast to tak the road wi', and there'll be an end o't.
+It's no likely we'll ever hear or see mair o' him." Having said this,
+Robert broke up the conclave; gave the long-drawn sonorous yawn that his
+family knew to be the signal of preparation for bed. In the next moment,
+Adair's left hand was busily employed in undoing the knee buttons of his
+small clothes. Another powerful yawn, and he proceeded to perform the same
+operation on his right leg. In two minutes after, he was snugly buried
+beneath the blankets; his "honest, sonsy, bawsint face," and red Kilmarnock
+night-cap, being all that was left visible of him; and, in five minutes
+more, a magnificent snore intimated to all whom it might concern, that
+worthy Robin Adair was fairly in the land of Nod, and oblivious of all
+earthly concerns.</p>
+
+<p>On the following morning, Mr Adair and his guest met at breakfast, when
+that liking for each other which had begun to manifest itself on the
+preceding night&mdash;although neither, perhaps, could say precisely whence it
+arose&mdash;gradually waxed into a somewhat stronger feeling. Adair was pleased
+with the gentle and unaffected manners of his guest, while the latter was
+equally pleased with the sincerity of character and generosity of heart of
+his entertainer. It appeared, however, as if their acquaintance was to be
+but of short duration, and as if they were now soon to part, in all
+probability for ever. Circumstances seemed to point to this result; yet it
+was by no means the one that followed&mdash;an odd incident at once threw out
+all such calculation.</p>
+
+<p>When breakfast was concluded, and the party who had sat around the
+table&mdash;Adair, his family, and the stranger&mdash;had risen to their feet, the
+latter, smiling through his natural gravity, asked his host if he would be
+so good as give him a private interview with him. To this Mr Adair,
+although not a little surprised at the request, consented, and led the way
+into a small back-parlour that opened from the room in which they had
+breakfasted.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr Adair," said the stranger, on their entering this apartment, and having
+previously secured the door, "I am greatly indebted to you for the kindness
+and hospitality you have shewn me."</p>
+
+<p>"No the least, sir&mdash;no the least," replied the farmer, with a decree of
+respect in his manner with which his guest's air and bearing had
+unconsciously inspired him, he did not know how or wherefore&mdash;"No the
+least. I am aye glad to shew civility to them that seek the shelter o' my
+rufe; it's just a pleasure to me. Ye're not only heartily welcome, sir, to
+a' ye hae gotten, but to a week o't, an' ye like. I dinna think that I wad
+be the first to weary o't."</p>
+
+<p>"Have you any objection to try?" said the stranger, with a gentle smile.</p>
+
+<p>"None whatever," replied the hospitable yeoman.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Mr Adair," said the stranger, with more gravity of manner, "to
+convert jest into earnest, I have a proposal to make to you. I have been
+for some time looking out for such a quiet retirement as this is, and a
+family as respectable and agreeable as yours seems to me to be. Now, having
+found both of these things to my mind here, I will, if you have no
+objection, become a boarder with you, Mr Adair, paying you a hundred
+guineas a-year; and here," he said, drawing out a well-filled purse, and
+emptying its contents on the table&mdash;"here are fifty guineas in advance."
+And he told off from the heap that lay on the table, the sum he named, and
+thrust it towards his astonished host. "And let me add," went on the
+mysterious stranger, "that, if you agree to my proposal, and continue to
+put up as well together as I expect we shall, I will not limit my payment
+to the sum I have mentioned. What say you to this, Mr Adair?"</p>
+
+<p>To <em>this</em> Mr Adair could say nothing for some time. Not a word. He was lost
+in perplexity and amazement&mdash;a state of mental difficulty and
+embarrassment, which he made manifest by scratching his head, and looking,
+with a bewildered sort of smile, alternately at the gold and its late
+owner&mdash;first at the one, then at the other. At length&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Well," he said, still scratching his head, "this is a queer sort o'
+business, an' a turn o' matters I didna look for ava; but I hae seen waur
+things come o' better beginnins. To tell ye a truth, sir," continued the
+perplexed yeoman, "I'm no oot o' the need o' the siller. But, if ye'll just
+stop a minute, if ye please, till I speak to the guidwife on the subject."</p>
+
+<p>And, with this, Adair hurried out of the room; and, having done this, he
+hurried his wife into another, and told her of what had just taken place,
+concluding with a&mdash;"An', noo, guidwife, what do ye think we should do?"</p>
+
+<p>"Tak the siller, to be sure," replied the latter. "He seems to me to be a
+decent, canny lad; and, at ony rate, we canna be far wrang wi' ae six
+months o' him, ony way, seein that he's payin the siller afore haun. That's
+the grand point, Rab."</p>
+
+<p>"Feth, it's that, guidwife&mdash;nae doot o't," replied her husband. "Juist the
+pint o' pints. But whar'll ye put the lad?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ou, tak ye nae fash about that, guidman. I'll manage that. Isna there the
+wee room up the stair, wi' a bed in't that micht sair the king
+himself&mdash;sheets as white as the driven snaw, and guid stripped druggit
+curtains just oot o' the mangle?"</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, weel, guidwife, ony way ye like as to thae matters," replied Adair;
+"and I'll awa, in the meantime, and get haud o' the siller. There's gowd
+yonner for the liftin. Deil o' the like o't ever I saw." Saying this, he
+flung out of the apartment, and in the next minute was again in the
+presence of the mysterious stranger.</p>
+
+<p>On his entering&mdash;"Well, Mr Adair," said the latter, "what does your good
+lady say to my becoming a boarder with her?"</p>
+
+<p>"Feth, sir, she's very willin, and says ye may depend on her and her
+dochter doin everything in their power to make ye comfortable."</p>
+
+<p>"Of that I have no doubt," said the stranger; "and now, then, that this
+matter is so far settled, take up your money, Mr Adair, and reckon on
+punctual payments for the future."</p>
+
+<p>"No misdoubtin that, sir, at a'," said the latter, picking up the guineas,
+one after another, and chucking them into a small leathern purse which he
+had brought for the purpose. "No misdoubtin' at a', sir," he said. "I tak
+this to be guid earnest o' that."</p>
+
+<p>The stranger, then, whoever he was, was now fairly domiciled in the house
+of Mr Adair. The name he gave himself was Mowbray; and by this name he was
+henceforth known.</p>
+
+<p>For two years succeeding the period of which we have just been speaking,
+did Mr Mowbray continue an inmate of West Mains, without any single
+circumstance occurring to throw the smallest light on his history. At the
+end of this period, as little was known regarding him as on the day of his
+first arrival. On this subject he never communicated anything himself; and,
+as he was always punctual in his payments, and most exemplary in his
+general conduct, those with whom he resided did not feel themselves called
+upon, nor would it have been decorous, to make any further inquiry on the
+subject. Indeed although they had desired to do so, there was no way open
+to them by which to obtain such information.</p>
+
+<p>During the period alluded to, Mr Mowbray spent the greater part of his time
+in reading; having, since his settlement at West Mains, opened a
+communication with a bookseller in the neighbouring country town of &mdash;&mdash;;
+and in walking about the country, visiting the more remarkable scenery, and
+other interesting objects in the neighbourhood.</p>
+
+<p>During all this time, too, his habits were extremely retired; shunning, as
+much as he possibly could, all intercourse with those whom he accidentally
+met; and, even at home, mingling but little with the family with which he
+resided. Privacy and quietness, in short, seemed to be the great objects of
+his desire; and the members of Mr Adair's household, becoming aware of
+this, not only never needlessly intruded themselves on him, but studiously
+avoided involving him in conversation, which they observed was always
+annoying to him. He was thus allowed to go abroad and to return, and even
+to pass, when accidentally met by any members of the family, without any
+notice being taken of him, further, perhaps, than a slight nod of civility,
+which he usually returned without uttering a syllable.</p>
+
+<p>From all this&mdash;his retired habits, deep-seated melancholy, and immoveable
+taciturnity&mdash;it was evident to Mr Adair and his family that their boarder
+was labouring under some grievous depression of mind; and in this opinion
+they were confirmed by various expressions of grief, not unaccompanied by
+others of contrition, which they had frequently overheard, accidentally, as
+they passed the door of his apartment on occasions&mdash;and these were
+frequent&mdash;when Mr Mowbray seemed more than usually depressed by the sorrow
+to which he was a prey.</p>
+
+<p>With all this reserve and seclusion, however, there was nothing repulsive
+in Mr Mowbray's manners or habits. He was grave without being morose,
+taciturn without being churlish, and sought quietness and retirement
+himself, without any expression of impatience with, or sign of peevishness
+at, the stir and bustle around him.</p>
+
+<p>As a matter of course, the history and character of Mr Mowbray excited, at
+least for a time, much speculation in the neighbourhood; and these
+speculations, as a matter of course, also, as we may venture to say, were
+not in general of the most charitable description. One of these held forth
+that he was a retired highwayman, who had sought a quiet corner in which to
+enjoy the fruits of his industry, and to avoid the impertinences of the
+law; another held that he was a murderer, who had fled from justice;
+another that he was a bankrupt, who had swindled his creditors; a fourth,
+that he was a forger, who had done business in that way to a vast extent.</p>
+
+<p>As to the nature of the crime which Mr Mowbray had committed, it will be
+seen that there were various opinions; but that he had committed some
+enormous crimes of some sort or other, was a universal opinion&mdash;in this
+general sentiment all agreed.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst other mysteries, was that involved in the query&mdash;where did he get
+his money? Where did it come from? He did not, indeed, seem to have the
+command of very extensive resources; but always to have enough to pay
+punctually and promptly everything he desired, and to settle all pecuniary
+claims upon him.</p>
+
+<p>His remittances, it was also ascertained, came to him, from whatever
+quarter it might be, regularly twice a-year, per the English mail, which
+passed within a mile and a half of West Mains. The exact amount of these
+remittances, which were always in gold, and put up in a small, neat, tight
+parcel, was never exactly known; but was supposed, on pretty good grounds,
+to be, each, somewhere about a hundred and fifty guineas, one of which went
+to Mr Adair; for Mr Mowbray had, of his own accord, added fifty guineas per
+annum to the hundred which he had first promised. The other hundred and
+fifty was disposed of in various ways, or left to accumulate with their
+owner. Such, then, was the amount of information acquired regarding Mr
+Mowbray's pecuniary resources; and more, on this point, or any other
+regarding him, could not, by any means, be arrived at.</p>
+
+<p>By the end of the period, however, which we have above named&mdash;namely, two
+years&mdash;public opinion had, we must observe, undergone a considerable
+modification in Mr Mowbray's favour. He had been gradually acquitted of his
+various crimes; and the worst that was now believed of him was, that he was
+a gentleman whom troubles, of some kind or other, had driven from the
+world.</p>
+
+<p>This favourable change in public opinion regarding him was, in a great
+measure, if not, indeed, wholly owing to the regularity of his conduct, the
+gentleness of his manners, his generosity&mdash;for he was a liberal contributor
+to the relief of the necessitous poor in his vicinity&mdash;and to the rigid
+punctuality he observed in all his pecuniary transactions.</p>
+
+<p>In the family in which he resided, where there were, of course, better
+opportunities for judging of his character, and estimating his good
+qualities, he came to be much beloved. Adair, as he often said himself,
+would "gae through fire and water to serve him;" for a more honourable, or
+"discreet" young gentleman, as he also frequently said, "didna breathe the
+breath o' existence."</p>
+
+<p>On every other member of the family, the impression he made was equally
+favourable; and, on one of them, in particular, we might speak of it in yet
+stronger language. But of this anon.</p>
+
+<p>The general conviction into which the family with which Mr Mowbray resided
+fell, regarding the personal history of that person, was, that he was a
+gentleman who possessed a moderate annuity from some fixed sum, and that
+some disgust with the world had driven him into his present retirement; and
+in this conviction they had now been so long and so completely settled,
+that they firmly believed in its truth, and never after dreamed of again
+agitating the question, even in the most distant manner.</p>
+
+<p>Thus, then, stood matters at West Mains at the end of two years from the
+period at which our story opens. Hitherto, however, we have only exhibited
+what was passing above board. We will now give the reader a peep of certain
+little matters that were going on behind the scenes.</p>
+
+<p>A short while previous to the time of which we now speak, Rosy's sister,
+Martha, had gone to Edinburgh to spend the winter with a near relative of
+her father; partly as a friendly visit, and partly for the purpose of
+perfecting herself in certain branches of female education. This separation
+was a painful one to the two sisters, for they were much attached to each
+other; but they determined to compensate it by maintaining a close and
+regular correspondence; and huge was the budget that each soon accumulated
+of the other's epistolary performances. Out of these budgets we will select
+a couple, which will give the reader a hint of some things of which, we
+daresay, he little dreamed. The first is from Martha to her sister, and is
+dated from Edinburgh.</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">My Dear Rosy</span>," (runs this document,) "I received your kind letter by Mr
+Meiklewham, likewise the little jar of butter for Aunt, who says it is
+delicious, and that she would know it to be West Mains butter wherever she
+should have met with it.</p>
+
+<p>"I am delighted to hear that you are all well, and that Mr Mowbray has got
+better of his slight indisposition. By the by, Rosy, I have observed that
+you are particularly guarded in all your communications about Mr M. When
+you speak of him you don't do so with your usual sprightliness of manner.
+Ah! Rosy, Rosy, I doubt&mdash;I doubt&mdash;I have long doubted, or rather, I have
+been long convinced&mdash;of <em>what</em>, say you blushing! <em>N'importe</em>&mdash;nothing at
+all. Do you believe me, Rosy?&mdash;No, you don't. Does Mr M. fix his fine
+expressive eyes on you as often and as intensely as he used to do? Eh,
+Rosy!&mdash;Now, there's something you can't deny.</p>
+
+<p>"To be serious, Rosy, my dear sister, I have long been satisfied that you
+are loved by Mr Mowbray&mdash;deeply, sincerely, ardently loved. And, more, my
+dear Rosy, I am equally satisfied that Mr Mowbray is loved by <em>you</em>. I am
+certain of it. I have marked many symptoms of it, although I have never
+mentioned it to you before; and I do it now in order to induce you to
+unburden yourself of such feelings, as it may relieve you to discover to a
+sister who loves you tenderly and sincerely," &amp;c., &amp;c.</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>Our next quotation is from Martha's budget; and we shall select the letter
+she received in reply to the one above given. It is dated West Mains, and
+proceeds thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">My Dear Martha</span>,&mdash;It is not in my nature to play a double part. I freely
+confess, my dear Martha, in reply to your lecture on a certain subject,
+that Mr Mowbray is not indifferent to me. I have long, I avow it, admired
+the many good qualities which we have all acknowledged him to possess&mdash;his
+gentlemanly bearing; his accomplishments; the elegance of his manners, and
+the noble generosity of his nature. These I have indeed, Martha, long
+admired. But what reason have you for supposing that your sister, with
+nothing to recommend her but some very homely advantage of person, can have
+made any impression on the heart of such a man as Mr Mowbray? Here, Martha,
+you are decidedly at fault, and have jumped to a conclusion which you have
+rather wished than believed. But, enough of this foolish matter."&mdash;And here
+the fair writer leaps off to another subject, which, as it has no reference
+to our story, nor any particular interest of its own, we beg to leave in
+the oblivion in which it reposes. And having quoted enough of the sisters'
+correspondence for our purpose, we will here, again, throw our narrative
+into its more direct and legitimate channel.</p>
+
+<p>By the letters above given, we have shewn pretty plainly that, on the part
+of the one sister, a secret attachment to the unknown lodger was in rapid
+progress, if it had not indeed already attained a height fatal to the peace
+of mind of her by whom it was entertained; and that, on the part of the
+other, a strong suspicion existed, not only that such love had been
+generated, but that this love was mutual. And was it so? It was. Mr Mowbray
+had not, indeed, made any very palpable advances, nor displayed any
+symptoms of the state of his feelings, which any one but such a close and
+shrewd observer as Martha could have detected. To no other eyes did this
+secret stand revealed. But there was now, in his general manner towards
+Rosy, much that such an observer could not fail to be struck with, or to
+attribute to its real and proper cause. Nor was this change confined to his
+intercourse with Rosy Adair&mdash;to the slight confusion that appeared in his
+countenance whenever they accidentally met each other, unseen of any one
+besides, and to the evident pleasure which he took in her society&mdash;to the
+circumstance of his seeking that pleasure as often as he could without
+making it subject of remark. No, the change that had now come over Mr
+Mowbray was not confined to what such incidents as these may be presumed to
+indicate; his spirit also, the whole tenor of his thoughts, the whole
+constitution of his mind, seemed equally under the influence of his
+new-born passion. His manner became more cheerful; his eye became lighted
+up with an unwonted fire; and he no longer indulged in the seclusion which
+he had so sedulously sought when he first came to West Mains. Mr Mowbray
+was now, in fact, a changed man, and changed for the better. He was now no
+longer the weeping, melancholy recluse, but a character evidently much more
+suitable to his natural temper and dispositions&mdash;a gay and cheerful man of
+the world. It was, indeed, a marvellous change; but so it was.</p>
+
+<p>This, however&mdash;referring to the attachment which had thus grown up between
+Rosy Adair and Mr Mowbray&mdash;was a state of matters which could not long
+remain in the position in which we have represented them; some result or
+conclusion was inevitable&mdash;and it arrived. Mr Mowbray gradually became more
+and more open in his communications with Miss Adair; gradually disclosed
+the state of his feelings with regard to her, and finally avowed his love.
+Miss Adair heard the delightful confession with an emotion she could not
+conceal; and, ingenuous in everything, in all she said and did, avowed that
+she loved in return.</p>
+
+<p>"Then, my Rosina, my beloved Rosina," exclaimed Mr Mowbray, in a wild
+transport of joy&mdash;and throwing himself, in the excitation of the moment, at
+the feet of her whom he addressed&mdash;"allow me to mention this matter to your
+father, and to seek his consent to your making me the happiest of living
+men."</p>
+
+<p>The liberty he thus sought with such grace and earnestness, was blushingly
+granted; not indeed, in express words, but with a silence equally
+intelligible and more eloquent than words.</p>
+
+<p>In five minutes after, Mr Mowbray was closeted, and in earnest conversation
+with Mr Adair. He had already announced his attachment to his daughter, and
+had sought his consent to their union. Mr Adair had yet made no reply. The
+request was one of too serious a nature to be hastily or unreflectingly
+acquiesced in. At length&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair, "I'll tell ye what it is: although I
+certainly haena a' the knowledge o' ye&mdash;that is, regarding yoursel and your
+affairs&mdash;that I maybe hae a richt to insist on haein before giein ye the
+haun o' my dochter&mdash;and this for a' the time that ye hae been under my
+roof&mdash;yet, as in that time&mdash;noo, I think, something owre twa year gane
+by&mdash;yer conduct has aye been that o' a gentleman, in a' respects&mdash;sober,
+discreet, and reglar; most exemplary, I maun say;&mdash;and, as I am satisfied
+that ye hae the means o' supportin a wife, in a decent way, no to say that
+there may be muckle owre either, I really think I can hae nae reasonable
+objections to gie ye Rosy after a'."</p>
+
+<p>During this speech of the worthy yeoman's, there was on Mr Mowbray's
+countenance a smile of peculiar meaning; evidently one under which lay
+something amusing, mingled with the expression of satisfaction which Mr
+Adair's sanction to his marriage with Rosina had elicited.</p>
+
+<p>Delighted with the success of his mission, Mr Mowbray now flew to the
+apartment in which he had left Miss Adair, and, enfolding her in his arms,
+in a transport of joy, informed her that he had obtained her father's
+consent to their union, and concluded by asking her to name the day which
+should make her his for ever. This, however, being rather too summary a
+proceeding, Rosina declined; and Mr Mowbray was obliged to be content with
+a promise of the matter being taken into consideration on an early day.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the lovers in discussion on these very agreeable points, and others
+connected therewith, we will follow Mr Adair on the errand on which he
+went, after Mr Mowbray had left him. This was to communicate to his wife
+the unexpected and important proposal which had just been made to him, and
+to which he had just acceded.</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, guidwife, here's a queer business," said Mr Adair, on joining his
+thrifty helpmate, who was busy at the moment in scouring a set of milk
+dishes. "What do ye think? Mr Mowbray has just noo asked my consent to his
+marrying Rosy. Now, isna that a queer affair! My feth, but they maun hae
+managed matters unco cannily and cunningly; for deil a bit o' me ever could
+see the least inklin o' anything past ordinar between them."</p>
+
+<p>"You see onything o' that kind!" replied Mrs Adair, with an expression of
+the greatest contempt for her husband's penetration in <em>affaires de
+c&oelig;ur</em>. "You see't, Robin! No&mdash;I dare say no. Although they were sitting
+under your very nose, wi' their arms aboot ithers' necks, I dinna believe
+ye wad see that there was onything in't. But, though ye didna see't, Robin,
+I saw't&mdash;and plainly enough, too&mdash;although I said naething about it. I saw,
+mony a day sin', that Mr Mowbray had a notion o' Rosy; and, if truth be
+tell't, I saw as weel that she had a notion o' him, and hae lang expected
+that it wad come to this."</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, weel, guidwife, ye hae a glegger ee for thae things than I hae,"
+replied Mr Adair. "But here's the end o' the matter noo."</p>
+
+<p>"And hae ye gien your consent, Robin?"</p>
+
+<p>"'Deed hae I; for I think he's an honest, decent lad; and, no to say he's
+rich maybe, fair aneuch aff, I think, as to worldly matters."</p>
+
+<p>"As to that, I daresay, there's naething far amiss," replied Mrs Adair,
+"nor as regards his character either, maybe; but I'm no sure. I dinna ken,
+Robert, considerin a' things, if ye haena been a wee owre rash in giein
+your consent to this business. It's a serious affair. And, after a', we ken
+but little about the lad; although, I canna but say he seems to be a
+decent, honourable chiel, and I houp'll mak Rosy happy." Here the good
+woman raised the corner of her apron to her eyes, and gave way, for a
+second or two, to those maternal feelings which the occasion was so well
+calculated to excite.</p>
+
+<p>"Tuts, woman; what's the use o' that?" said Mr Adair, with a sort of
+good-natured impatience. "The thing's a' richt aneuch, and sae'll be seen
+in the end, nae doot."</p>
+
+<p>"God grant it!" replied his wife, with solemn earnestness; and here the
+conversation dropped for the time.</p>
+
+<p>We now revert to the proceedings of Mr Mowbray at this eventful crisis of
+his life; but in these we find only one circumstance occurring between the
+day on which he solicited, and that on which he obtained, the hand of Rosy
+Adair. This circumstance, however, was one of rather curious import. It was
+a letter which Mr Mowbray addressed to a friend, and ran thus:&mdash;</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">Dear Naresby</span>,&mdash;The appearance of this well-known hand&mdash;well known to you,
+my friend&mdash;will, I daresay, startle you not a little. My letter will seem
+to you as a communication from the dead; for it is now upwards of two long
+years since you either heard from me or of me. On this subject I have much
+to say to you, and on some others besides, but defer it until I shall have
+the pleasure of seeing you at Wansted&mdash;a pleasure which I hope to have in
+about three weeks hence&mdash;when we shall talk over old affairs, and, mayhap,
+some new ones. Would you believe me, Naresby, if I was to say, that the sea
+had ceased to ebb and flow, that the hills had become valleys, and the
+valleys had risen into hills; that the moon had become constant, and that
+the sun had forgotten to sink in the west when his daily course was run?
+Would you believe any or all of these things, if I were to assert them to
+be true? No, you wouldn't. Yet will you as readily believe them, I daresay,
+as that I am to be&mdash;how can I come out with the word!&mdash;to be&mdash;to be
+married, Naresby! Married! Yes, married. I am to be married&mdash;I repeat it
+slowly and solemnly&mdash;and to one of the sweetest and fairest creatures that
+ever the sun of heaven shone upon. 'Oh! of course,' say you. But it's true,
+Naresby; and, ere another month has passed away, you will yourself confess
+it; for ere that period has come and gone, you will have seen her with your
+own eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"So much then for resolution, for the weakness of human nature. I
+thought&mdash;nay, I swore, Naresby, as you know&mdash;that I would, that I could
+never love again. I thought that the treachery, the heartlessness of one,
+one smiling deceiver, had seared my heart, and rendered it callous to all
+the charms and blandishments of her sex. But I have been again deceived.</p>
+
+<p>"I have not, however, this time, chosen the object of my affections from
+the class to which&mdash;I cannot pronounce her name&mdash;that fatal name&mdash;belonged;
+but from one which, however inferior in point of adventitious acquirement,
+far surpasses it&mdash;of this experience has convinced me&mdash;in all the better
+qualities of the heart.</p>
+
+<p>"The woman to whom I am to be married&mdash;my Rosina Adair!&mdash;is the daughter of
+a humble yeoman, and has thus neither birth nor fortune to boast of. But
+what in a wife are birth or fortune to me? Nothing, verily nothing, when
+their place is supplied&mdash;as in the case of my betrothed&mdash;by a heart that
+knows no guile; by a temper cheerful and complying; and by personal charms
+that would add lustre to a crown. Birth, Naresby, I do not value; and
+fortune I do not want.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, then, Naresby, my period of seclusion is now about over, and I
+return again to the world. Who would have said this two years ago? If any
+had, I would have told them they spoke untruly&mdash;that I had abjured the
+world, and all its joys, for ever; and that, henceforth, William Mowbray
+would not be as other men. But so it is. I state the fact, and leave others
+to account for and moralize on it."</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<p>Such, then, was the letter which Mr Mowbray wrote to his friend, Naresby,
+during the interval to which we formerly alluded. Several other letters he
+also wrote and despatched about the same time; but the purpose of these,
+and to whom written, we must leave the sequel of our story to explain.</p>
+
+<p>Having no further details of any interest wherewith to fill up the
+intervening period between the occurrence of the circumstances just related
+and the marriage of Rosina Adair and William Mowbray, we at once carry
+forward our narrative to the third day after the celebration of that event.
+On that day&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Rosy, my love," said Mr Mowbray, smiling, "I have a proposal to make to
+you."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed!&mdash;what is it, William?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, I'll tell you what it is," said the latter; "I wish to go on a visit
+to a particular friend, and I wish you to go with me."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, surely," replied Mrs Mowbray. "Is it far?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, a pretty long way; a two days' journey. Will you still venture on
+it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Surely&mdash;surely, William. Anywhere with you!"</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, my love," said Mr Mowbray, embracing his young wife.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, I have another proposal to make, Rosy," continued the former; "I wish
+your father and mother to accompany us."</p>
+
+<p>"What! my father and mother too!" exclaimed Mrs Mowbray, in great surprise.
+"Dear me, wouldn't that be odd, William. What would your friend say to such
+a cavalcade of visiters?"</p>
+
+<p>"Delighted to see them, I assure you, my love. It's my friend's own express
+wish; and, however odd it may seem, it is a point which must be conceded
+me."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, well, William, any way you please. I am content. But have you
+thought of the expense? That will be rather serious."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, not in the least, my love," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "Not in the
+least serious, I assure you. I will manage that part of the matter."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, well; but my father's consent, William. There's the difficulty. To
+get him to leave his farm for so long a time; I doubt you will scarcely
+prevail upon him to do that. He would not live a week from home, I verily
+believe, although it were to make a lord of him."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll try, Rosy; I'll try this minute," said Mr Mowbray, hurrying out of
+the apartment, and proceeding in quest of Mr Adair, whom he soon found.</p>
+
+<p>"Leave hame for a week!" exclaimed the latter, on Mr Mowbray's making known
+to him his wishes on this subject. "Impossible! my dear sir; impossible!
+Wholly out o' the question. I hae a stack o' oats to thrash oot; a bit o' a
+fauld dyke to build; twa acres o' the holme to ploo; the new barn to theek;
+the lea-field to saw wi' wheat; the turnips to bring in; the taties to
+bing; forbye a hunner ither things that can on nae account stan owre.
+Impossible, my dear sir&mdash;impossible. Juist wholly oot the question. But ye
+may get the guidwife wi' ye an' ye like, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair,
+laughing jocosely; "and may keep her too, if ye like."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes&mdash;yes. All very well, Mr Adair; but I must have you too, in spite of
+the manifold pieces of work you have on hand. I have a particular reason
+for pressing this point, and really will not be denied."</p>
+
+<p>For a full half-hour did this sort of sparring continue between Mr Mowbray
+and his father-in-law; both being resolute&mdash;the one to carry his point, the
+other to keep his ground; but, what could hardly be expected, the former
+finally prevailed. His urgency carried the day; and Mr Adair was
+ultimately, although we need scarcely say it, reluctantly, prevailed on to
+promise that he would be one of the intended party. Having obtained this
+promise, Mr Mowbray farther secured its performance by naming the following
+day as that on which they should set out.</p>
+
+<p>On the following day, accordingly&mdash;Mrs Adair's consent having, in the
+meantime, been obtained, and with much less difficulty than her
+husband's&mdash;two chaises&mdash;unwonted sight&mdash;appeared at the door of West Mains
+House; they had been ordered by Mr Mowbray from the neighbouring country
+town; and, in a little after, out came the party by which they were to be
+occupied.</p>
+
+<p>"I wad far rather hae ridden the black mare than go into ane o' thae
+things," said Mr Adair, looking contemptuously at the couple of chaises
+that stood at the door. "I never was fond o' ridin in cotches a' my life.
+Nasty, rattlin, jinglin things. Ane micht as weel be shut up in a corn kist
+as in ane o' them."</p>
+
+<p>Having expressed this opinion of the conveyance he was about to enter, Mr
+Adair, notwithstanding of that opinion, proceeded, with the assistance of
+Mr Mowbray, to help his wife into one of them. This done, he followed
+himself. Mrs and Mr Mowbray stepped into the other chaise. The doors were
+shut by the coachman with a bang; and, in the next minute, both the
+vehicles were in rapid motion.</p>
+
+<p>On the forenoon of the second day after their departure&mdash;nothing, in the
+interval, having occurred worth relating&mdash;the party arrived at a certain
+noble mansion not far from the borders of England. The two chaises having
+drawn up before the door of this splendid residence, three or four servants
+in rich livery hastened to release the travellers by throwing open the
+doors of their carriages, and unfolding the steps, which they did with very
+marked deference and respect, and with smiles on their faces, (particularly
+in the case of one not in livery, who seemed the principal of them,) of
+very puzzling meaning.</p>
+
+<p>On the party having got out of their chaises&mdash;"Is this your freen's house,
+Mr Mowbray?" said Mr Adair, standing fast, and looking up with great
+astonishment and admiration at the splendid building before him.</p>
+
+<p>"It is, sir," replied Mr Mowbray.</p>
+
+<p>"My feth! an' he maun be nae sma' drink then&mdash;that's clear. He has a rare
+sittin-down here. It's a house for a lord."</p>
+
+<p>"The house is very respectable, certainly," said Mr Mowbray; "and, I think,
+you'll find the inside every way worthy of the out."</p>
+
+<p>"I dinna doot it&mdash;I dinna doot it," replied Mr Adair. "But whar's your
+freen, himsel?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! we'll see him presently. In the meantime let us walk in." And, taking
+his wife's arm within his, Mr Mowbray led the way into the house, conducted
+by the principal domestic, and followed by Mr and Mrs Adair; the latter no
+less overwhelmed than her husband by the grandeur with which she was
+surrounded.</p>
+
+<p>Having entered the house, the party were led up a magnificent staircase,
+and ushered into a room of noble dimensions, and gorgeously furnished. All
+but Mr Mowbray himself, and the servant who attended, were awe-stricken
+with the splendours around them. Even Mrs Mowbray was oppressed with this
+feeling; so much so as not to be able to speak a word; and on her father
+and mother it had a similar effect. Not one opened a mouth, but continued
+gazing around them in silent amazement and admiration.</p>
+
+<p>When the party had seated themselves&mdash;"Shall I serve up some refreshment,
+sir?" said the servant to Mr Mowbray, with great respect of manner, but
+with that perplexing smile on his face.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, John, do," said Mr Mowbray; "and as quick's you like; for we are all,
+I fancy, pretty sharp-set; and some of us&mdash;I speak for myself at any
+rate&mdash;not a little thirsty."</p>
+
+<p>The servant bowed and retired. When he had done so&mdash;"'Od, sir, ye seem to
+be greatly at your ease here," said Mr Adair, who was not a little
+surprised, with the others, as well he might, at the free and easy manner
+of his son-in-law in his friend's house, "You and your freen maun surely be
+unco intimate."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! we certainly are so," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "I can use any
+freedom here&mdash;the same as if I were in my own house."</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, that's pleasant and friendly like," said Mr Adair. "But isna your
+freen himsel lang o' makin his appearance?"</p>
+
+<p>"Rather, I confess; but he'll be here shortly, I daresay&mdash;something of a
+particular nature detaining him, I have no doubt; but, in the meantime,
+we'll make ourselves at home. I know it will please him if we do so." And
+Mr Mowbray proceeded to the bell-pull, and rung it violently.</p>
+
+<p>A servant instantly appeared, and received an order, fearlessly given, from
+Mr Mowbray, to hasten the refreshment in preparation.</p>
+
+<p>Mr Adair's countenance expressed increased amazement at this very
+unceremonious proceeding; and he felt as if he would have said that he
+thought it the most impertinent thing ever he had seen done in his life;
+but he refrained. In this feeling Mrs Adair also partook; and in this
+feeling Mr Mowbray's own wife shared, although not, perhaps, to the same
+extent. Not the least curious part, let us observe too, of this odd scene,
+was that Mr Mowbray seemed to delight in the perplexity of feeling which
+his proceedings excited in his friends, and appeared studiously to do
+everything he could think of to increase them.</p>
+
+<p>By and by, the promised repast was served up; and an exceedingly handsome
+one it was. The party took their seats, no host or hostess having yet
+appeared&mdash;Mr Mowbray placing his wife at the head of the table, and himself
+taking the foot&mdash;and proceeded to do justice to the good things before
+them. The repast over, wine was introduced. This done, Mr Mowbray&mdash;who, to
+the now utterly inexpressible amazement, and even confusion, of both Mr and
+Mrs Adair, had all this while been ordering away, right and left, as if he
+had been in a common inn&mdash;desired all the attendants to retire. When they
+had done so, he filled up a bumper of wine, lifted it, rose to his feet
+and, advancing with smiling countenance and extended hand towards his wife,
+bade her welcome to <em>her own house</em>!</p>
+
+<p>"What!" shouted Mr Adair, leaping from his chair.</p>
+
+<p>"Eh!" exclaimed his wife, doing precisely the same thing by hers.</p>
+
+<p>"William," said Mrs Mowbray, in a voice faint with agitation, and
+endeavouring to rise from her chair, into which, however, she was obliged
+again to sink.</p>
+
+<p>"True, my friends," said Mr Mowbray; "all true. This, Mr Adair, is your
+daughter's house; all that is within it and around it. Welcome again, my
+love, to your own fireside!" said Mr Mowbray, embracing his wife, "and
+long may you live to enjoy all the comfort and happiness which Malton
+House, and ten thousand a-year, are capable of affording!"</p>
+
+<p>Here, then, ends our story, good reader; and as we do not think you would
+choose to be much longer detained, especially with dry details of
+explanation which are all that now remains to add, we shall be brief.</p>
+
+<p>Mr Mowbray was a young man of large fortune, who, having been crossed in
+love, had imagined that he had been thereby weaned from the world and all
+its joys; and, under this impression, had sought to retire from the busy
+scenes of life, with a determination never to return to them again. How he
+kept to this resolution our story tells.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="highland" id="highland"></a>A HIGHLAND TRADITION.</h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">On</span> the summit of a bluff headland that projects into the Sound of Sky,
+there stand the grey ruins of an ancient castle, which was once the
+residence of a Highland chieftain of the name of M'Morrough&mdash;a man of
+fierce nature and desperate courage, but not without some traits of a
+generous disposition. When about middle age, M'Morrough married the
+daughter of a neighbouring chief&mdash;a lady of much sweetness of manner and
+gentleness of nature. On the part of the former, however, this connection
+was one in which love had little share: its chief purpose would have been
+attained by the birth of a male heir to the name and property of the feudal
+chieftain; and this was an event to which he looked anxiously forward.</p>
+
+<p>When the accouchement of his lady arrived, M'Morrough retired to an upper
+apartment of the castle to await the result&mdash;having desired a trusty
+domestic to bring him instant intelligence when the child was born, whether
+it was a male or a female. The interval he employed in walking up and down
+the chamber in a fever of impatience. At length the door of the apartment
+opened, and Innes M'Phail entered. The chieftain turned quickly and
+fiercely round, glanced at the countenance of his messenger, and there read
+the disappointment of his hopes without a word being uttered.</p>
+
+<p>"It is even so, then," roared out the infuriated chieftain. "It is a girl,
+Innes; a girl. My curses on her!"</p>
+
+<p>"Say <em>girls</em>, M'Morrough," said Innes, despondingly. "There are twins."</p>
+
+<p>"And both girls&mdash;both!" exclaimed the former, stamping the floor in the
+violence of his passion. "To the battlements with them, Innes!&mdash;to the
+battlements with them instantly, and toss them over into the deep sea! Let
+the waves of Loch Sonoran rock them to sleep, and the winds that rush
+against Inch Caillach sing their lullaby. Let it be done&mdash;done instantly,
+Innes, as you value your own life; and I will witness the fidelity with
+which you serve me from this window. I will, with my own eyes, see the deed
+done. Go&mdash;go&mdash;quick&mdash;quick!"</p>
+
+<p>Innes, who had been previously aware that such would be the fate of a
+female child, if such should unfortunately be born to his ruthless chief,
+and who had promised to be the instrument of that fate, now left the
+apartment to execute the atrocious deed. In less than ten minutes after,
+Innes M'Phail appeared on the battlements, carrying a large wicker basket.
+From this depository he took out a child, swaddled in its first apparel,
+and raising it aloft, tossed it over to perish in the raging sea below. The
+little arms of the infant extended as it fell; but the sight was momentary.
+It glanced white through the air like an ocean bird, and, in an instant
+after, disappeared in the dark waters of Loch Sonoran. The murderer
+followed with his eye the descent of his little victim, till the sea closed
+over it, when, returning to the basket, he took from it another child, and
+disposed of it as he had done the first.</p>
+
+<p>During the whole of this dreadful exhibition, M'Morrough was standing at a
+window several yards lower down than the battlements, but so situated in an
+angle of the building that he could distinctly see what passed on the
+former. Satisfied that his atrocious decree had been fully executed, he
+withdrew from the window; and, avoiding an interview with his wife,
+whom&mdash;stern and ruthless as he was&mdash;he dreaded to meet with the murder of
+her infants on his head, he left the castle on a hunting expedition, from
+which he did not return for three days. On his return, M'Morrough would
+have waited on his lady, whom he hoped now to find in some measure
+reconciled to her bereavement, but was told that she would see no one; that
+she had caused a small apartment at the top of the castle to be hung with
+black; and that, immuring herself in this dismal chamber, she spent both
+her nights and days in weeping and lamentation. On learning this,
+M'Morrough did not press his visit, but left it to time to heal, or, at
+least, to soothe the grief of his unhappy wife. In the expectation which he
+had formed from the silent but powerful operation of this infallible
+anodyne, M'Morrough was not mistaken. In about a month after the murder of
+her babes, the lady of M'Morrough, deeply veiled, and betraying every
+symptom of a profound but subdued grief, presented herself at the morning
+meal which was spread for her husband. It was the first time they had met
+since the occurrence of the tragical event recorded above. To that event,
+however, neither made even the slightest allusion; and, whether it was that
+time had weakened the impression of her late misfortune, or that she
+dreaded rousing the enmity of her husband towards herself by a longer
+estrangement, the lady of M'Morrough showed no violent disinclination to
+accept of the courtesies which, well-pleased with her having made her
+appearance of her own accord, he seemed anxious to press upon her. A
+footing of companionship having thus been restored between the chieftain
+and his lady, matters, from this day, went on at Castle Tulim much as they
+had done before, only that the latter long continued to wear a countenance
+expressive of a deeply wounded, but resigned spirit. Even this, however,
+gradually gave way beneath the influence of time; and, when seventeen years
+had passed away, as they now did, unmarked by the occurrence, at Castle
+Tulim, of any event of the smallest importance, the lady of M'Morrough had
+long been in the possession of her wonted cheerfulness.</p>
+
+<p>It was about the end of this period, that the haughty chieftain, now
+somewhat subdued by age, and no longer under the evil influence of those
+ungovernable passions that had run riot with him in his more vigorous
+years, was invited, along with his lady, to a great entertainment which was
+about to be given by his father-in-law. M'Morrough and his lady proceeded
+to the castle of their relative. The banquet hall was lighted up; it was
+hung with banners, crowded with gay assemblage, and filled with music.
+There were many fair faces in that assemblage; but the fairest of all, were
+those of two sisters, who sat apart by themselves. The beauty of
+countenance and elegance of form of these two girls, who seemed to be both
+about the same age&mdash;seventeen&mdash;were surpassing. M'Morrough marked them; he
+watched them during the dance; he could not keep his eyes off them. At
+length, turning to his lady, he asked who they were.</p>
+
+<p>"They are <em>your</em> daughters, M'Morrough," replied the former.</p>
+
+<p>A deadly paleness overspread the countenance of the chief. He shook in
+every limb, and would have sunk on the floor had he not been supported. On
+recovering a little, he covered his face with his hands, burst into a flood
+of tears, and rushed out of the apartment. On gaining a retired and
+unoccupied chamber, M'Morrough sent for his daughters. When they came, they
+found him on his knees, fervently thanking God for this signal instance of
+his mercy and beneficence. He took his daughters in his arms, blessed them
+a thousand times over, buried his head between them, and wept like a child.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="THE_SURGEONS_TALES" id="THE_SURGEONS_TALES"></a>THE SURGEON'S TALES.</h2>
+
+<h3><a name="bereaved" id="bereaved"></a>THE BEREAVED.</h3>
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">By</span> looking over the memorial of my professional life; and writing out the
+extended details of my experience, I am, in effect, living my life over
+again. Most of the scenes I witnessed left such an impression upon my mind,
+that it requires only the touch of the <em>caduceus</em> of the witching power of
+memory, to call them all up again with a vividness scarcely less than that
+by which they were formerly presented to me. There is only this difference,
+that my remembered experiences, now invested with a species of borrowed
+light, seem like scenery which one has seen in the glance of a mid-day sun,
+presented again to the dreamy "evening sense" under the soft blue
+effulgence of the waning harvest-moon; the trees with the sere leaf
+rustling under the fluttering wing of the night bird; and the dead silence,
+which is not broken by the internal voice speaking the words that have been
+spoken by those who lie under the yew tree. In an early leaf of my journal,
+I find some broken details of a visit I paid to Mr B&mdash;&mdash;, a rich
+manufacturer in the town where I began my practice; but which I left when I
+had more confidence in those humble powers of ministering to the afflicted,
+which have raised me to an honourable station, and supplied me with the
+means of passing my old age in affluence. This individual had lost his
+wife&mdash;a very amiable woman, with whom he had lived a period of twenty-five
+years&mdash;and took on grief so heavily, that he was unfit to attend the
+funeral. He lay in bed, and would not be comforted. Having attended his
+wife, I continued my attentions to the husband. Three days had passed since
+his wife had been buried, and during all that time, he had eaten nothing;
+and, what augured gloomily for his fate, he had never been heard to speak,
+or sigh, or even to give vent to his sufferings in a single groan. There
+seemed to have fallen over him a heavy load, which, pressing with deadly
+force upon the issues of life, defied those reacting energies of nature,
+which usually struggle, by sighs and groans, to throw off the incubus of
+extraordinary griefs.</p>
+
+<p>I have met with many wiseacre-sceptics who laugh at the idea of what is
+vulgarly called a "broken heart," as a direct consequence either of
+unrequited love or extraordinary grief&mdash;admitting, however, in their
+liberality, that death may ensue from great griefs operating merely as an
+inductive original cause, which destroying gradually the foundations of
+health, bring on a train of other ailments, that may, in the end, prove
+mortal. The admission cares for nothing, as a matter of every-day
+experience; and the original proposition to which it is objected as a
+qualification, remains as a truth which may humble the pride of man, and
+speak to the sceptic through the crushed heart of a fatal experience. I
+have seen many instances of the fatal effects of grief as a direct mortal
+agent, killing, by its own unaided energies, as certainly, though not in so
+short a time, as a blow or a wound in the vital organs of the human body.
+The common nosologies contain no name for the disease, because, in truth,
+it cannot properly be called a disease, any more than a stab with a sword
+can deserve that name; and this, combined with the fact that it is only in
+a very few instances that the <em>coup</em> works by itself, without the aid of
+some ailment generated by it, that young practitioners often homologate the
+vulgar notions that prevail upon this important subject.</p>
+
+<p>Among all the many causes of grief to which mankind are daily exposed, I
+know not that there is one that strikes so deeply into the secret recesses
+of the vital principle as the loss of a dearly-beloved wife, who has lived
+with a man for a lengthened period, through early adversity and late
+prosperity&mdash;borne him a family which have bound closer the tie that was
+knitted by early affection, and who has left him to tread the last weary
+stages of existence alone, and without that support which almost all men
+derive from woman. The effects are often supposed to be proportioned to the
+affection; yet I doubt if this solves the curious problem of the diversity
+of consequences resulting from this great privation. There are many men of
+strong powers of mind, who are so constituted that they <em>cannot</em> but press
+heavily on the support of another. They seem almost to live through the
+thoughts and feelings of their helpmates; and the energies they take credit
+for in the busy affairs of the world, have their source&mdash;unknown often to
+themselves&mdash;in the bosom of wedded affection. It is in proportion to the
+strength of the habit of this <em>leaning</em>, combined, doubtless, with the
+coexistent affection, that the effects of the loss of a helpmate, in the
+later period of life, work with such varied influence on the survivor. It
+may also seem a curious fact, and I have no doubt of the truth of it, that
+a man when advanced in years is much more apt to break suddenly down under
+this visitation than a woman; while, again, the consequence would seem to
+be reversed if the calamity has overtaken them in the more early stages of
+the connection. These are grounds for speculation. At present I have only
+to do with facts.</p>
+
+<p>The individual whose case has suggested these observations, presented, when
+I saw him first after the funeral of his wife, the symptom&mdash;present in all
+cases of an utterly crushed spirit&mdash;of a wish to die. I was the first to
+whom he had uttered a syllable since the day on which she had been carried
+out of the house which she had so long filled with the spirit of
+cheerfulness and comfort. His only daughter, Martha, a fine young woman,
+had contributed but little to his relief&mdash;if she had not, indeed, increased
+his depression by her own emotions, which she had no power to conceal; and
+his only son had gone off to Edinburgh, to attend his classes in the
+college, where he intended to graduate as a physician. He was thus, in a
+manner, left in a great degree alone; for his daughter sought her apartment
+at every opportunity, to weep over her sorrows unobserved; and she had
+naturally thought that her father's grief, attended by no exacerbations of
+groaning or weeping like her own, presented less appearance of intensity
+than that which convulsed her own heart, and got relief by nature's
+appointed modes of alleviation. When the heart is stricken with a certain
+force, all forms of presenting less gloomy views of the condition of the
+individual, will generally be found to be totally unavailing in affording
+relief. Nay, I am satisfied that there was genuine philosophy in the custom
+of the Greeks and the ancient Germans, in <em>forcing</em> victims of great
+sorrows to <em>weep</em> out the rankling barbed shaft. These had a species of
+licensed mourners, whose duty it was to soften the heart by melting strains
+of mournful melody, whereby, as by the application of a bland liniment, the
+rigid issues of the feelings were softened and opened, and the oppressed
+organ, the heart, was relieved of the load which defies the force of
+argument, and even the condolence of friendship. The curing of cold-nips by
+the appliance of snow, and of burns by the application of heat, could not
+have appeared more fraught with ridicule to the old women of former days,
+than would the custom I have here cited to the comforters of modern times.
+If I cannot say that, amongst some bold remedies, I have recommended it, I
+have, at least, avoided, on all occasions, officious endeavours to
+counteract the oppressing burden, by wrenching the mind from the engrossing
+thought&mdash;a process generally attended with no other result than making it
+adhere with increased force.</p>
+
+<p>The greatest triumph that can be effected with the truly heart-stricken
+victim, to whom is denied the usual bursts that indicate a bearable
+misfortune, or, at least, one whose intensity is partly abated, is the
+bringing about of that more natural condition of the heart, which, indeed,
+is generally most feared by the ordinary paraclete. In the case of the
+bereaved husband, there is no charm so powerful in its effects as the vivid
+portrayment of the virtues of her who has gone down to the grave; and it
+may well be said, that the heart that will not give out its feelings to the
+impassioned description of the amiable properties of the departed helpmate,
+is all but incurable. The sister of Mr B&mdash;&mdash;, who saw the necessity of
+administering relief, tried to awaken him to a sense of religious
+consolation; but he was as yet unfit even for that sacred ministration; and
+all her efforts having failed to rouse him, even from the deathlike stupor
+in which he lay, she had recourse, by my advice, to probing the wound, to
+take off the stricture by which the natural humours were pent up. She
+discoursed pathetically on the qualities of the departed, which, she said,
+would be the passport of her spirit to a sphere where he would again
+contemplate them unclouded by the dingy vapours of earthly feelings. She
+kept in the same strain for a lengthened period; but declared to me, when I
+visited him again, that he exhibited no signs of being moved by her
+discourse. He, once or twice, turned his eyes on her for a moment, drew
+occasionally a heavy sigh, that told, by the difficulty of the operation,
+the load with which he was oppressed; but his eyes were dry, no groan
+escaped from him, or any other sign of the heart being aided in an effort
+to restore the current of natural feeling. The <em>coup de peine</em> had too
+clearly taken the very core of the heart; the lamp of hope had been dashed
+out violently, and, under the cloud of his great evil, all things that
+remained to him upon earth were tinged with its dark hues. He presented all
+the appearances&mdash;except the dilation of the pupil of the eye&mdash;of one whose
+brain had been concussed by a deep fall, or laboured under a fracture of
+the bones of the <em>cranium</em>. The few words he spoke to me came slowly, with
+a heavy oppressive sound, as if spoken through a hollow tube; and what may,
+to some, be remarkable, though certainly not to me, they embraced not the
+slightest allusion to his bereavement&mdash;a symptom almost invariably
+attendant upon those deeper strokes of grief, which, being but seldom
+witnessed, are much less understood in their effects than the more ordinary
+oppressions, whose intense demonstrations and allusions to the cause of the
+evil, mark the victims as objects for the portrayments of poets.</p>
+
+<p>Two or three days passed off in this way, without the slightest
+amelioration of his condition. The efforts of Miss B&mdash;&mdash; had been repeated
+often without effect. As she expressed herself to me, he would neither eat
+nor speak, sleep nor weep. "He has not," she added, "even muttered her
+name. His heart seems utterly broken; and time and the power of Heaven
+alone will effect a change." Such is the common philosophy of sorrow: time
+is held forth as all-powerful, all-saving; and while I admit its force, I
+only insist for the certainty of the existence of exceptions. The eighth
+day had passed without any support having been taken to sustain the system.
+A course of maceration, that had been going on during his wife's illness,
+was thus continued; yet, in the few words I occasionally drew from him,
+there was no indication of anything like the sullen determination of the
+suicide; the cause lay in the total cessation of the powers of the
+stomach&mdash;a consequence of the cerebral pressure, whose action is felt not
+where it operates primarily, but in the heart and other organs, where it
+works merely by sympathy.</p>
+
+<p>It was on the evening of the eighth day after the funeral, as I have it
+noted, that I called to see if any change for the better had been effected
+by the ministrations of his sister. She sat by his bedside, with the Bible
+placed before her, from which she had been reading passages to him. His
+face was turned to the front of the bed, but he did not seem to be in any
+way moved by my entrance. All the efforts his sister had made to get him to
+enter into the spirit of the passages she had been reading had been
+fruitless; nor had he as yet made the slightest allusion to the cause of
+his illness, or mentioned the name of his deceased partner. A few words of
+no importance, and not related to the circumstances of his grief, were
+wrung from him painfully by my questions; but it seemed as if the language
+that represents the things of the world had lost all power of charming the
+ear; the deadness that had overtaken the heart like a palsy, was felt from
+the fountain of feelings, to the minute endings of the nerves; and the
+external senses, which are the ministers of the soul, had renounced their
+ordinary ministrations to the spirit that heeded them not. Only once his
+sister had observed a slight moisture rise for a moment in his eye, as she
+touched some tender traits of the character of the departed; but it passed
+away rather as an evidence of the utter powerlessness of nature, in a faint
+heave of the reactive energy, telling at once how little she could perform,
+yet how much was necessary to overcome the weight by which she was
+oppressed. I sat for some moments silent by the side of the bed, and
+meditated a recourse to some more strenuous effort directed to his sense of
+duty as a parent; though I was aware, that until the heart is in some
+degree relieved, all such appeals are too often vain, if not rather
+attended with unfavourable effects, but, in extreme cases, we are not
+entitled to rest upon the generality of theories where so various and
+mutable an essence as the human mind is the object to which they are to be
+applied. I was on the point of making a trial, by recurring to the position
+of his son and daughter, when I heard the sound of a horse's feet
+approaching, with great rapidity, the door. The sister started; and I could
+hear Martha open the window above, to ascertain who might be the visiter.
+In another moment the outer door opened with a loud clang. Some one
+approached along the passage, in breathless haste. He entered. It was
+George B&mdash;&mdash;, under the excitement of some strong internal emotion; his
+eyes gleaming with a fearful light, and his limbs shaking violently. He
+stood for a moment as if he were gathering his energies to speak; but the
+words stuck in his throat, the sounds died away amidst the noise of an
+indistinct jabbering. I noticed the eye of his father fixed upon him,
+betraying only a very slight increase of animation; but even this
+extraordinary demeanour of his son did not draw from him a question; so
+utterly dead to all external impulses had his grief made him, that the
+harrowing cause of so much excitement in his son, remained unquestioned by
+the feelings of the parent. In another moment the youth was stretched
+across the bed, locking the father in his embrace, and sobbing out
+inarticulate words, none of which I could understand. The aunt was as much
+at a loss to solve the mystery of the violent paroxysm as myself; for some
+time neither of us could put a question; the sobbings of the youth seemed
+to chain up our tongues by the charm of the eloquence of nature's
+impassioned language. Meanwhile, Martha entered, ran forward to the
+bedside, lifted her brother from the position which he occupied, and seated
+him, by the application of some force, on the empty chair that stood by the
+side of the bed.</p>
+
+<p>"What is the matter, George?" she cried; the question was repeated by the
+aunt, and the eyes of the parent sought languidly the face of the youth,
+which was, however, now covered by his hands. The question was more than
+once repeated by both the aunt and myself; the father never spoke, nor
+could I perceive a single ray of curiosity in his eye. He seemed to await
+the issue of the son's explanation, heedless what it might be&mdash;whether the
+announcement of a great or a lesser evil&mdash;its magnitude, though
+transcending the bounds of ordinary bearing, comprehending every other
+misfortune that fate could have in store for him, being, whatever its
+proportions, as nothing to the death-stricken heart of one whose hope was
+buried.</p>
+
+<p>"This is scarcely a time or an occasion, George," said I, "for the
+manifestation of these emotions. If the cause lies in the grief, come back
+with increased force, for the death of your mother, you should have known
+that there is one lying there whose load is still greater, and who is,
+unfortunately, as yet, beyond the relief which, as your agitation
+indicates, nature in the young heart is working for you."</p>
+
+<p>"The death!&mdash;the death!" he muttered in a choking voice; "but there is
+something after the death that is worse than the death itself."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you distracted, George?" said the aunt. "This Bible was the hand-book
+and the rule of your mother's conduct in this world. A better woman never
+offered up her prayers at the fountain of the waters of immortal life; no
+one that ever lived had a better right to draw from the blessing, or better
+qualified for enjoying it as she now enjoys it. She is in heaven; and will
+you say that that is worse than death?"</p>
+
+<p>"You speak of her spirit, aunt," replied he, as he still covered his face
+with his hands. "Her spirit is there!"&mdash;and he took away one of his hands
+from his face and pointed to heaven&mdash;"There, where the saints rest, does my
+mother's soul rest; but, O God, where&mdash;where is the body?"</p>
+
+<p>A thought struck me on the instant. I was afraid to utter it. I looked at
+the father, and suspected, from the sudden light of animation that started
+to his eye, that the gloom of his mind had at last been penetrated by the
+thought which had suggested itself to me.</p>
+
+<p>"Where is the body!" responded the aunt. "Why, George, where should it be
+but in C&mdash;&mdash; churchyard, beneath the stone that has told the virtues of her
+ancestors, and will, in a short time, declare her own, greater than those
+of her kindred that have gone before?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is on Dr M&mdash;&mdash;'s table!" cried the youth, starting to his feet, and
+again throwing himself violently on the chair. "I purchased it; paid the
+price for it; and recognised it only when the dissecting-knife was in my
+hand!" Every one started aghast; terror froze up the issues of speech; a
+deep groan issued from the bed-ridden patient; he beckoned me to his ear.
+"Tell the women to go out," he whispered, as he twisted his body
+convulsively among the bedclothes.</p>
+
+<p>I complied with his request; and the aunt, seizing Martha, who stood as if
+she had been transfixed to the floor, dragged her out of the room. In the
+passage, I heard a loud scream; and, in a moment, all was again silence. Mr
+B&mdash;&mdash;, without uttering a word, raised his feeble body from the bed, and
+came forth, the spectre of what he was only a few weeks before. His limbs,
+which were reduced to bony shanks, covered with shrivelled skin, seemed
+totally unable to support even the decayed, emaciated frame. He staggered
+as he reached the floor; but, recovering himself, stood firm, and then
+proceeded to his wardrobe, from which he drew his vestments, and proceeded
+to attire himself.</p>
+
+<p>"An hour since," he said, in a slow, solemn voice, "I thought these clothes
+would never again be on my body. My only hope was the winding-sheet, and
+that grave which has been robbed."</p>
+
+<p>"George may have been deceived," said I, as he was proceeding to dress
+himself. "I have often thought that I saw resemblances to deceased friends
+in the features of subjects in the dissecting-room."</p>
+
+<p>"The grave will test it," answered he, with a deep groan, as he proceeded
+slowly, but resolutely, to put one garment after another on his skeleton
+body.</p>
+
+<p>He was at length dressed; and, proceeding to the kitchen, he appeared
+again, in a short time, with a lighted lantern in his hand, the light of
+which, as it threw its beam on his sallow face&mdash;for the candle had,
+meanwhile, burned down into the socket&mdash;exhibited, in its lurid glare, the
+deep-sunken eyes and protruding bones of his emaciated countenance.</p>
+
+<p>"Come, we shall proceed to the grave of my Isabella," said he.</p>
+
+<p>"You are unable," said I. "Your limbs will not carry you that length; and
+you are, besides, unfitted by the state of your mind and feelings, for an
+investigation of this kind. Stay here with your son, and I will go to the
+churchyard and satisfy myself of the deception under which George,
+doubtless, labours."</p>
+
+<p>"I feel now more than my former strength," he replied. "I am awakened from
+a death-stupor of the soul; and I feel that within me which will enable me
+to go through this trial. I will look into my Isabella's grave; will meet
+with those eyes again&mdash;that countenance through which I have read the
+workings of love in a spirit that is now far from the precincts of the
+clay. Deny me not; I will be satisfied of this, if I should come back from
+her grave to complete that which is begun, and is already visible in these
+shrunken members, that now obey a supernatural power."</p>
+
+<p>There seemed to be no gainsaying him; his manner was inspired and resolute;
+and I proceeded to accompany him to C&mdash;&mdash; churchyard. George, who, in the
+meantime, had been tossing himself in the chair, rose to make one of the
+party. The agitation under which he still laboured was in direct contrast
+to the cold stillness of his father; yet the one was a more living
+expression than the other; and, while my eye shrunk not from the ordinary
+indications of suffering, I&mdash;maugre all the experience of misery I had
+had&mdash;could scarcely look on the animated corpse thus preparing to visit the
+grave where the object of all his hopes and affections in this world had
+been buried, and might now be found to have been desecrated by the knife of
+the anatomist. We went forth together. George's horse still stood at the
+door, reeking and bloody. I requested Mr B&mdash;&mdash; to mount, as we had a full
+mile to go to the burying-ground, and I deemed it utterly impossible that
+he could accomplish the distance. He did not answer me, but proceeded
+onwards with a firm step, in the face of a cold, bleak, east wind, that
+moaned mournfully among a clump of trees that skirted the road. Some flakes
+of snow were winging through the air&mdash;driven now by the breeze, or
+lingering over our heads as if afraid to be soiled by the earth, which we
+were bent to open where the dead then lay&mdash;or some time before lay&mdash;a mass
+of putrefaction; yet dear to the feelings of the bereaved, and sought now
+with greater avidity than when the body was arrayed in the smiles of
+beauty, and filled with living, breathing love. The husband spoke nothing;
+and George was silent, save for the deep sobs that burst from him as he
+looked upon the woe-worn form of his father, who stalked away before us
+like a creature hurrying to the grave to seek the home there from which a
+troubled spirit had removed him in the dark hour of night. In this way we
+wandered on. I was not in a mood to speak. The occasion and the scene
+depressed me more than ever did the prospect of a deathbed, or the sight of
+a patient about to submit to a painful and dangerous operation. My habits
+of thought are little conversant with the poetry of nature, or of man's
+condition in this stage of suffering&mdash;the duties of an arduous profession
+are exclusive of those dreamy moods of the mind, which have little in
+common with the doings of every-day life; yet, on this occasion, I felt all
+the inspiration of the sad muse; and, were I to endeavour to account for
+it, I could only seek for the cause in the aspect of the night, and the
+unusual nature of the vocation, operating, at the moment, on a mind
+loosened from the cares of my profession.</p>
+
+<p>In a much less time than I could have anticipated, from the weak condition
+of Mr B&mdash;&mdash;, we arrived at the churchyard&mdash;a solitary spot, surrounded with
+an old grey dyke, at the back of which rose in deep shade a wood of firs.
+The snow lay on the top of the walls, and on the higher branches of the
+firs, reminding one of streaks of white clouds in the sky, as the darkness
+of the night, enveloping the lower portions, kept them almost from our
+view. From a small house at the ridge of the fir-belt, a slight ray of
+light beamed forth, and, striking upon the top of a monument placed against
+the wall, exhibited the left all around in deeper gloom. Without uttering a
+word, Mr B&mdash;&mdash; made up to the house, and, knocking at the door, a young
+female appeared. She uttered a scream, and ran back, doubtless from the
+pale and death-like appearance presented by the face of the visiter. Her
+place was momentarily supplied by the sexton, who, the moment he saw Mr
+B&mdash;&mdash;, shrunk back in what I conceived to be conscious fear. I was standing
+behind, and noticing, what I thought, the guilty expression of the man's
+face, concluded unfavourably for the sad hope of my friend.</p>
+
+<p>"I have reason to believe that there have been resurrectionists in your
+churchyard, James," said Mr B&mdash;&mdash; mournfully.</p>
+
+<p>"Impossible!" replied the sexton; "we have been guarding the ground for
+some time past. It is a dream, Mr B&mdash;&mdash;; many relations are troubled by the
+same fears. It was only yesterday that I opened a grave to satisfy the
+wishes of Mrs G&mdash;&mdash;, whose husband was buried a week ago. The body was as
+safe as if it had been in her own keeping. Take my advice; be satisfied
+there is no cause of apprehension; you forget the sacred nature of my
+trust."</p>
+
+<p>"I can only be satisfied by an examination of the grave," replied Mr B&mdash;&mdash;.
+"I insist upon having this satisfaction. The cemetery is my property, and I
+have a right to examine it."</p>
+
+<p>The man hesitated, and said that his assistant was from home. But the
+bereaved husband was not to be thus diverted from his purpose. He stood
+resolutely with the lantern in his hand, and demanded admittance into the
+churchyard. The man at length reluctantly took down the key from a nail in
+the passage, and bringing another lantern with him, led us to the door,
+which, in the midst of many grumblings, he opened. He then led the way over
+the snowy hillocks to nearly the middle of the burying-ground, where the
+grave of Mrs B&mdash;&mdash;, headed by an ornamented stone, was exhibited to us. Mr
+B&mdash;&mdash; bent down, and, moving the lantern backwards and forwards, examined
+it slowly and carefully, casting his eye over the snow, which presented an
+unbroken appearance, and examining every chink, as if he there found an
+evidence of the truth of George's statement.</p>
+
+<p>"That grave has not been touched," said the man. "The head of it is the
+part to judge by. You will find the turf lies whole and unbroken under the
+wreath."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be as you say," replied Mr B&mdash;&mdash;, as he bent down in his
+examination; "but the late snow may have removed the traces of the opening.
+I cannot return home till I am satisfied. My own bones must mix with those
+of my Isabella. Proceed to open the grave; I myself will assist you."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment a figure was seen gliding alone amidst the tombstones. It
+had all the legitimate whiteness like the ideal spirit. I stood and gazed
+at it, and George's eyes were also fixed upon it; Mr B&mdash;&mdash; paid no
+attention; he was too intent upon the investigation he was engaged in; and
+the grave-digger, whose head was down, did not notice it. I said nothing;
+but George, pointing to it as it approached, cried&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"See, see! what is that?"</p>
+
+<p>The sexton looked up, and cried&mdash;"It is David. He has been out, and is
+covered with snow. He comes in good time."</p>
+
+<p>It was even so. The man approached, and the implements having been
+procured, they set about opening the grave. Mr. B&mdash;&mdash; stood motionless, his
+head hanging down, and deep sighs occasionally coming from his breast,
+mixed with the quick breathing of the men, as they plied their shovels. He
+still held the lantern in his hand, by the light of which the group before
+me is brought out in faint relief. The silence around was signally that of
+a churchyard; for the fir belt shrouded the scene from the night breeze,
+and there was only occasionally heard a low, mournful gust, as it died
+among the branches of the trees. On that spot only there was quick
+breathing action. The men had got down pretty far into the grave; and, as
+they brought their heads within the ray of the lantern, in their acts of
+throwing up the earth, their flushed faces contrasted strongly with the
+cadaverous countenance of the husband, who leant over them, watching every
+motion, and intent upon the expected stroke of the shovel upon the coffin
+lid. The recollection of the attributes of the German ghoul came over me;
+nor did the difference between the beings, the motives, and the actions,
+prevent me from conjuring up the similitude, so unlike a human being did he
+appear in his complexion, his fixed, dead-like stare into the grave, and
+the perfect stillness of his body, as he crouched down to be nearer to the
+object of his search. At length, the sound was heard, the rattle on the
+coffin lid. The victim's ear seemed chained to the sound, as if he could
+have augured from it whether or not the chest was empty. In a short time,</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"The heavy moil that shrouds the dead"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>was entirely removed. The sexton now took his own lamp down into the grave.
+The screw-nails were undone, the lid was raised, and the body of Mrs B&mdash;&mdash;,
+arrayed in her winding-sheet and scalloped sere-clothes, was seen, by the
+sickly, yellow gleam of the lantern, lying in the stillness and placidity
+of death&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"For still, still she lay,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With a wreath on her bosom."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>One of the men now came out, and Mr B&mdash;&mdash; descended into the grave. He
+lifted off the face-cloth, gazed on the clay-cold face, touched it, and now
+was opened the</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Sacred source of sympathetic tears."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>He burst into a loud paroxysm; and, as if nature had been to take her
+revenge for her sufferings, under the freezing influence of his sorrow, he
+wept as if there had been to be no end of his weeping. It was latterly
+found necessary to force him out of the grave; though, as I was informed by
+George, he had shrunk from the view of the dead body of his wife, while it
+lay in the house, and before it was interred. The lid was again placed on
+the coffin, the screws fixed, and the grave filled up. Mr B&mdash;&mdash; slipped a
+guinea into the hand of the sexton, and we took our way back to the town.
+George informed us, as we went, that he had been for several nights haunted
+by the image of his mother; and could only thus account for the conviction
+that had seized him, that the body of the female he had seen in the
+dissecting-room was that of his parent. It is a remarkable fact, and the
+one which chiefly induced me to give this narrative, that the scene I have
+now described wrought so powerfully on the feelings of Mr B&mdash;&mdash;, that the
+form of his grief was entirely changed. During the whole of the subsequent
+night, he wept intensely&mdash;nature was relieved&mdash;his sorrow was mollified
+into one of those</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Moods that speak their softened woes;"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>and time soon wrought its accustomed amelioration. I never saw one who
+seemed more certainly doomed to the fate of the heart-stricken; and,
+however fanciful it may seem, I attribute to the mistake of his son the
+restoration of the father.</p>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<h3><a name="condemned" id="condemned"></a>THE CONDEMNED.</h3>
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">I believe</span> it was Fontenelle who said that, if he were to have been
+permitted to pass his life over again, he would have done everything he did
+in the world, and, of course, consented to suffer what he had suffered, in
+consideration of what he had enjoyed. I have heard the same statement from
+others. A very learned and ingenious professor in the north, whose
+lucubrations have often cast the effulgence of his rare genius over the
+pages of the Border Tales, has no hesitation in declaring that he would
+gladly consent to receive another tack of existence in this strange world,
+with all its pains and penalties, were it for nothing but to be allowed to
+witness the curious scenes, the startling occurrences, the humorous
+bizarrerie of cross-purposes, the conceits, the foibles, the triumphs of
+the creature man. Moore the poet has somewhere said, that he would not
+consent to live his life over again, except upon the condition that he were
+to be gifted with less love and more judgment&mdash;probably forgetting that in
+that case he would not have been the author of "Lallah Rookh;" though,
+mayhap, of a still drier life of Sheridan than that which came from his
+pen. I have often put the question to patients, and have found the answer
+to be regulated by the state of their disease. Upon the whole, it requires
+a very sharp, bitter pang, indeed, to extort the confession, that they
+would not accept another lease of life. If men were not Christians, they
+would choose, I think, to be Pythagoreans, were it for nothing but the
+slight chance they would enjoy of passing into some state of existence not
+in a remote degree different from that which they have declared themselves
+sick of a thousand times before they died. Sick of it as many, however, say
+they are, they would all live "a little and a little longer still," when
+the dread hour comes that calls them home. These remarks have been
+suggested by the following passage in my note-book:&mdash;"17th August, &mdash;&mdash;,
+case of Eugene D&mdash;&mdash;, in the jail of &mdash;&mdash;. Extraordinary example of the
+<em>amor vit&aelig;</em>." I find I had jotted a number of the details; but such was the
+impression the scene of that tragedy of life produced in me, that even now,
+though many years have passed, I recollect the minuti&aelig; of the drama as
+distinctly as if I had witnessed it yesterday. I was indeed interested in
+the case more than professionally; for the subject of it was an early
+companion of my own, and was, besides, calculated, from his acquirements,
+and a free, open generosity of spirit, to produce a deep interest in the
+fate which, in an unhappy hour, he brought upon himself. It was on the
+forenoon of the day I have mentioned, that the under turnkey of the prison
+of &mdash;&mdash; came in breathless haste, and called me to a prisoner. It was
+Eugene D&mdash;&mdash;. I was at the moment occupied in thinking of the youth. He had
+forged a bill upon his father, Mr. D&mdash;&mdash;, a wealthy merchant; and it was
+very clearly brought out, in evidence that he applied the money to
+extricate a friend from pecuniary embarrassments. The father had paid the
+bill; but the legal authorities had prosecuted the case; and he, at that
+moment, lay in jail a criminal, condemned to die. The gallows was standing
+ready to exact its victim within two hours; the post from London would
+arrive in an hour with or without a reprieve. His father and mother, what
+were they then doing, thinking, suffering? On them and him I was meditating
+when the words of the turnkey fell upon my ear.</p>
+
+<p>"What has occurred?" was my question to the messenger.</p>
+
+<p>"Eugene D&mdash;&mdash;, the condemned criminal, has taken some poisonous drug," said
+he, "and the provost has sent me for you to come to his relief."</p>
+
+<p>I meditated a moment. It might have been as well, I thought, for all
+parties, that I had not been called, and that the drug, whatever it was,
+might be allowed to anticipate the law, but I had no alternative; I was
+called in my official capacity; and then a messenger might still arrive
+from London. I provided myself with the necessary counteracting agents, and
+followed the man. I passed the house of his father. The blinds were drawn,
+and all seemed wrapped in dead silence, as if there had been a corpse in
+the house. Several people were passing the door, and cast, as they went, a
+melancholy look at the windows. They had, in all likelihood, seen the
+gallows; at least, they knew the precise posture of affairs within the
+house. I was inclined to have entered; but I could see no benefit to be
+derived from my visit, and hurried forwards to the jail, from the window of
+which the black apparatus projected in ghastly array. The post-office in
+---- Street was in the neighbourhood, and an assembly of people was
+beginning to collect, to wait for the incoming of the mail. There was
+sympathy in every face; for the fate of the youth, who had been well
+esteemed over the town, for a handsome, generous-minded young man, and the
+situation of his parents&mdash;wealthy and respectable citizens&mdash;had called
+forth an extraordinary feeling in his favour. Indeed, thousands had signed
+the petition to the King, but forgery was, at that time, a crime of
+frequent occurrence, and the doubts that were entertained as to the success
+of the application were apparently justified by the arrival of the eleventh
+hour. On passing through the jail, I saw the various preparations in
+progress for the execution; the chaplain was in attendance; and, in a small
+cell, at the end of the apartment from which the fatal erection projected,
+there sat, guarded by an officer, from a fear that he would escape, the
+executioner himself&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="right">"Grim as the mighty Polypheme."</p>
+
+<p>My guide led me forward, and, in a few minutes, I stood beside Eugene, who,
+dressed in a suit of black, lay twisting his body in a chair, making the
+chains by which he was bound clank in a fearful manner. A small phial was
+on the floor. I took it up, and ascertained, in an instant, that he had
+betaken himself to the drug most commonly resorted to by suicides.</p>
+
+<p>"Laudanum!" I exclaimed.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, yes&mdash;as much as would kill two men!" he cried wildly.</p>
+
+<p>The poison had not had time to operate; or rather, its narcotic power had
+been suspended by the terrors of an awakened love and hope of life, that
+had followed close upon the prospect of death caused by his own act.</p>
+
+<p>"You had a chance for life, Eugene," said I, hurriedly. "A courier may yet
+arrive, independently of the mail, which has not yet come."</p>
+
+<p>"Chance or no chance," he cried, as I proceeded with my assistant, who now
+entered, to apply the remedies; "I would yet live the two hours! I had no
+sooner swallowed the drug, than I thought I had intercepted the mercy of
+heaven; life seemed&mdash;and, oh, it even now seems&mdash;sweeter than ever, and
+death still more dreadful! Quick&mdash;quick&mdash;quick! The poison is busy with my
+heart. I would give a world for even these two hours of life and
+hope&mdash;small, small as that is!"</p>
+
+<p>I proceeded with the application of the usual remedies. A portion, but only
+a portion of the laudanum, had been taken off; and the next efficient
+remedy was motion, to keep off the sleepy lethargy that drinks up the
+fountain of life. Two men were got to drag him as violently as possible
+along the floor, leaving him enough of his own weight to force him to use
+his limbs. I noticed that he struggled with terrible energy against the
+onset of the subtle agent; exhibiting the most signal instance I ever
+beheld of the power of that hope which seems to be consistent with life
+itself. Already an eighth part of the apparent period of his sojourn upon
+earth had passed. Seven quarters more would, in all likelihood, bring him
+to the scaffold, and, by resisting my energies to counteract the effects of
+the poison, he might have eluded the grim arm of the law, by a death a
+thousand times less dreadful. Every now and then, as the men dragged him
+along, he turned his eyes to me, and asked the hour. Sometimes he repeated
+the question within two minutes of my answer. As often was his ear directed
+to the street, to try to catch the sounds of a coach, or the feet of a
+horse; and then he redoubled his energies to keep off the onset of the
+lethargy, which I told him was most to be feared. The operation was
+persevered in; but the men informed me they thought he was gradually
+getting heavier on their hands, and I noticed his eye, at times, get so
+dull that he seemed to be on the eve of falling asleep and sinking. Another
+quarter of an hour soon passed; and in a little further time, the bailies
+and chaplain would find it their duty to come and prepare him for his
+fate&mdash;alas! now indeed so certain, that no reasonable thought could suggest
+even the shadow of a hope; a reprieve, so near the time of execution, would
+not have been trusted to the mail, and a messenger would have arrived, by
+quick stages, long before; unless there had, indeed, been any fault in the
+government authorities, in tampering with a man's life within an hour of
+his execution. If I had not been under the strict law of professional
+discipline, I would certainly have allowed him to lie down and pass into
+death or oblivion. I had, however, my duty to perform; and, strange as it
+may appear, that duty quadrated with the wishes of the young man himself;
+who, as he struggled with the demon that threatened to overpower him,
+seemed to rise in hope as every minute diminished the chance of his
+salvation. By the increased energies of the men, he was again roused into a
+less dull perception of sounds, and I could perceive him start as the
+rattle of the wheels of a carriage was heard at the jail door. He fixed his
+half-dead, staring eye in my face, and muttered, with a difficult effort of
+his sinking jaws&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Is that it&mdash;is that it?&mdash;I hear a carriage wheels, and they have stopped
+at the door."</p>
+
+<p>As he uttered the words, it appeared as if he again exerted himself to keep
+the enemy, who still threatened him, at bay. I replied nothing; for I
+suspected that the carriage brought only some official, or, probably, some
+mourner, to see him, previous to the fatal scene&mdash;that scene which, in all
+likelihood, I was endeavouring to render more heart-rending to his friends
+and spectators, by keeping alive the vital spark, that might only serve to
+make him conscious of pain. It appeared to be too evident that he had
+increased tenfold the misery of his situation; for the stern law would
+admit of no excuse, and if he was not able to walk to the scaffold he would
+be carried; yet, if I remitted my endeavours to keep in life, I might, in
+the event of the looked-for reprieve still arriving, be liable to be
+accused, by my own conscience, of having been as cruel as the law itself.
+The door of the jail now opened, and a turnkey told me that the usual time
+had arrived when the officials began their preparatory duties. I replied
+that it was in vain to attempt, at present, the performance of these sacred
+rites; the prisoner was wrestling with death; and, if the exertions of the
+men, who kept still dragging him backwards and forwards, were remitted, he
+would sink, in a few minutes, into insensibility. I noticed the eye of poor
+Eugene turned imploringly upon me, as if he wished to know who it was that
+had arrived in the carriage. I merely shook my head; and the sign was no
+sooner made than his chin fell down on his breast; his limbs became weaker,
+his knees bent, and if the supporters had not exerted themselves still
+farther, he would have sunk. But the men still performed their duty, and
+dragged him hurriedly along, scarcely now with any aid from his feet,
+which, obeying no impulse of the loose and flaccid muscles, were thrown
+about in every direction, with, a shuffling, lumbering noise, and a
+clanking of the chain, that must have produced an extraordinary effect on
+those who waited in the adjoining cells. The noise thus produced was indeed
+all that was heard; for the effect of the poison was such as to take away
+all power of groaning. I was now doubtful if all the working of the men
+would be able to keep off much longer the sleepy incubus, for he seemed to
+have lost almost all power of seconding their efforts; but the door of the
+jail again opened, and the sound of the grating hinges made him again lift
+his head. His eye seemed to indicate that he had lost all sense of the
+passing of the moments, and I could not discover whether he looked for the
+entry of one bearing his letter of salvation, or of the jailor with his
+hammer, to knock the chain from his feet, and lead him forth to the
+scaffold. He again muttered some words as the turnkey was proceeding
+forward to where I was. I could not make them out, so faint had his voice
+now become; but one of the men said he wished to know the hour. I told him
+it was one o'clock&mdash;that was just one hour from the appointed termination
+of his life. The turnkey, meanwhile, whispered in my ear that his father,
+mother, and sister had arrived. It was the sound of their carriage wheels
+that we had heard. I enjoined upon the men the necessity of continuing
+their labours, and went out to prevent the entry of his parents to the
+witnessing of a scene transcending all their powers of bearing. I found the
+three standing in the recess where the executioner was sitting in gloomy
+silence. I took the father and mother by the arms, and hurried them away to
+the empty cell, where the chaplain and several officials were collected.
+The turnkey saw his error, and excused himself, on the ground that he was
+confused by the extraordinary state of affairs within the prison. I
+ascertained that no notice had been made to his parents of his having taken
+the drug. They had come to take farewell of him. The mail had arrived, but
+had brought no intelligence&mdash;not even of the petition having been disposed
+of; and, having given up all hope, their intention was that the mother and
+daughter should, after the last act of parting, fly to the country, to be
+as far as possible from the scene of the impending tragedy. I was the first
+who communicated the tidings of the condition of their son; and the noise
+in the prisoner's cell, as the men still continued their operations, was a
+sad commentary on my words. The sister, who was veiled, uttered a shrill
+scream, and fell back on the floor. The father stood like</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Wo's bleak, voiceless petrifaction,"<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">moving neither limb nor countenance; his eye was fixed steadfastly on the
+ground, and a deadly paleness was over his face. The mother, who was also
+veiled, staggered to a bench&mdash;recovering herself suddenly, as some thought,
+rising wildly, stung her to a broken utterance of some words. I approached
+her, while Mr H&mdash;&mdash;, the chaplain, was assisting in getting Miss D&mdash;&mdash; to a
+chair.</p>
+
+<p>"Let him die!&mdash;let him die!" she exclaimed. "Is not his doom inevitable?
+You will torture my Eugene by keeping in his life till the law demands its
+victim, and he may be carried&mdash;carried! O God!&mdash;to a second death, ten
+times more cruel than that which he is now suffering."</p>
+
+<p>"No rejection of the petition has been intimated," I replied; "and there is
+hope to the last grain in life's ebbing glass. It is not yet two years
+since a reprieve came to a prisoner, in this very jail, within three hours
+of the appointed term of his life. You have spoken from the impulse of an
+agony which has overcome the truer feelings of a mother and the better
+dictates of prudence."</p>
+
+<p>"Small, small, indeed, is that hope which a mother may not see through the
+gloom of a despair such as mine," she replied. "But what means that
+dreadful noise in Eugene's cell?"</p>
+
+<p>"Only the efforts of the men to keep him awake," replied I. "My duty
+requires my efforts in behalf of a fellow-creature to the last moment.
+Reflect for an instant, and the proper feeling will again vindicate its
+place in the heart of a parent."</p>
+
+<p>"Dreadful alternative!" she replied. "But, sir, hear me. I am his mother,
+and I tell you, from the divination of a mother's heart, that there will
+now be no respite. I say it again; it would be a relief to me if I heard,
+at this moment, that he had escaped by death that tragedy which will now be
+rendered a thousand times more painful to him and dreadful to me."</p>
+
+<p>The father moved his eyes, and fixed them on the face of the mother of his
+boy, who, in her agony, thus called for his death in a form which bore even
+a shade of relief from the horror of what awaited the victim. It was,
+indeed, an extraordinary request; and told, as no words spoken by mortal
+had ever told, the pregnancy of an anguish that could seek for alleviation
+(if I may use so inadequate a phrase) from so fearful an alternative. All
+were, for a time, now silent, and there was no sound to be heard but the
+deep sobs of the daughter, as she recovered from her swoon; the struggle in
+the throat of the mother; and the shuffling and tramping in the cell of the
+prisoner.</p>
+
+<p>"There is still hope," I whispered in the ear of the mother.</p>
+
+<p>"None&mdash;none!" she ejaculated again. "My Eugene! my Eugene!"</p>
+
+<p>She reclined back, with her hands over her face, still sobbing out the name
+of her son. I pointed to the father to assist her, while I should go again
+to ascertain the state of the son; but he did not seem to understand
+me&mdash;retaining still his rigid position, and looking with the calmness of
+despair on the scene around him. Her silence continued but a few moments;
+and when she opened her eyes again, it was to fix them on me.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you doing?" she exclaimed again. "What, in the name of heaven,
+are you doing to my Eugene?&mdash;Saving him for second, and still more cruel
+death. It might have been all over. Let me see him&mdash;let me see him!"</p>
+
+<p>And she rose to proceed to the cell where her son was confined; but her
+strength failed her, and she again reclined helplessly back in her seat.
+The clergyman's ministrations were called for by these uttered sentiments,
+which seemed so little in accordance with the precepts of Holy Writ,
+however natural to the bursting heart of the mother, to whom the reported
+death of her son, in his unparalleled situation might almost have been
+termed a boon. Retreating from a scene so fraught with misery, I hastened
+back to Eugene, who was still in the arms of the men. One of them whispered
+to me that he had spoken when he heard the shrill cry of his sister; but,
+immediately after, he relapsed again into stupor. The men complained of
+being exhausted by their efforts to keep him moving. His weight was now
+almost that of a dead body; and it was only at intervals that he made any
+struggles to move himself by the aid of his paralysed limbs. Two other
+individuals were got to relieve them; and the compulsory motions were
+continued. The lethargy had not altogether mastered the sentient powers;
+and, the operation having been stopped that I might examine his condition,
+he lifted his head slowly, looked round him with a vacant stare, and, after
+a few moments, muttered again the word "hour." I pulled out my watch, and
+told him that it was twenty minutes past one, he understood me, as I
+thought; and pronouncing indistinctly "mother," he again sank into apparent
+listlessness. The men again resumed their work.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile, a buzz from without intimated too distinctly that the mob was
+collecting to witness the fate of their townsman. There was no distinct
+sound, save that which a mass of people, under the depressing feelings of
+sorrow, seem to send forth involuntarily&mdash;making the air, as it were,
+thick, and yet with no articulation or distinct noise which can be caught
+by the ear of one at a distance, or within the walls of a house. Eugene, I
+am satisfied, was unable to recognise the faint indication. It was well for
+him. I learned, from the turnkey, that the sound of the hammer in the
+erection of the gallows had put him almost distracted, and precipitated the
+execution of the purpose, which he had wished to delay till after the
+arrival of the mail. I had little doubt that he might now be kept from the
+grasp of the death-stupor for the remaining three quarters of an hour; but,
+alas! what would be my triumph? Every minute added to the certainty that I
+was only preparing for him and his relations greater pain; for, in any
+view, he could not walk to the fatal spot without as much aid as might have
+sufficed to carry him; and it was even more than probable that he would be
+so overcome that that latter operation would require to be resorted to,
+under the stern sanction of a law that behoved to be put in force within a
+given time, or not at all. The case I am now describing might suggest some
+consideration worthy of the attention of our legislators, who, arrogating
+to themselves a license as wide as the limits of the human mind, deny all
+manner of discretion to the superintendents of the last execution of the
+law. We profess to be abhorrent from scenes of torture, as well as, on
+grounds of policy, hostile to a species of punishment which, indeed,
+defeats its own ends; and yet I could give more than one case where the
+substance has been retained in all its atrocity, while the form was veiled
+by flimsy excuses of a false necessity. My situation was now a very painful
+one indeed. I was training and supporting the victim for the altar;
+rescuing from death only to sacrifice him with more bloody rites and a
+crueller spirit of immolation. The words of his mother, wrung from the
+agony of a parent's love, rang in my ears; the look of the father&mdash;that of
+imbecile despair&mdash;was imprinted on my mind; the hour was fast on the wing;
+all hope had perished; and before me was the unfortunate youth, handsome,
+elegant, and interesting, even in the writhings of the master-fiend,
+suffering a death which was to be, in effect, repeated in another and a
+crueller form. I had seen him under circumstances of friendship, and the
+ebullitions of his generous spirit; and I was become, as I pictured to
+myself, his enemy, who would not allow him to die, to escape from shame and
+an increased agony of dissolving nature. Will I admit it? For a moment or
+two I hesitated; and, indeed, had half-resolved to tell the men to
+stop&mdash;the time might yet have sufficed for finishing what he had begun. If
+he was not dead before two, he would, at least be beyond feeling; and, if
+the officials chose to take the last step of getting him carried to the
+gallows, they would in effect be immolating a corpse.</p>
+
+<p>My better and calmer thoughts of duty, however, prevailed; and, in the
+meantime, I saw the prudence of preventing any meeting between Eugene and
+his parents, which could tend to nothing but an increase of pain on the
+side of those who were still able to feel&mdash;for, as regarded the young man
+himself, he was beyond the impulse of the feelings that might otherwise
+have been called up, even by such a scene. I was not even ill pleased to
+hear from the under turnkey, that the magistrates had given orders for the
+departure of the friends; though, for my own satisfaction, I wished that
+the father, who had still some command of himself, might visit his son for
+a few minutes, and sanction my proceedings with his approbation. I was
+informed also by the turnkey, that the father was resisting to the utmost
+of his power the efforts of the mother to get into the cell. He probably
+saw too clearly that in the excited condition in which she still remained,
+the scene might prove disastrous, as affecting either life or reason; and,
+if I could judge from what I myself felt in spite of the blunting effects
+of a long acquaintanceship with misery in its various phases, there was
+good reason for his fears. The scene presented features</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Direr than incubus's haggard train."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">I had just looked my watch&mdash;it wanted now only twenty minutes of the last
+hour. The order for the friends to quit the jail was about to be obeyed.
+The father sent a messenger for me. I repaired to the cell; but to avoid
+the appeals of the mother and daughter, I beckoned him forth to the lobby.
+He asked me whether he should see his son now that he was all but
+insensible, and could not probably recognise him. He feared that he could
+not stand the scene, for that the calmness he assumed was false! I replied
+that it certainly required no ordinary firmness; and yet the pain might in
+some degree be even lessened by the state of stupor and insensibility in
+which the youth still continued. He fixed his eyes on my face with an
+expression of forced and unnatural calmness, that pained me more than the
+death-like inanity of the still beautiful countenance of his son, or the
+hysterical excitement of the mother. He at last seized my hand and
+proceeded along to the cell hurriedly, as the turnkey was crying loudly for
+the friends to depart. We entered and stood for a moment. He stood and
+gazed at his son, as the latter was still kept moving by the men; but
+Eugene was apparently unconscious of the presence of his parents. A loud
+cry from the dense crowd who had assembled to witness the execution, struck
+my ear. I ran to the window, and saw a man in the act of coming off a
+horse, whose sides were covered with foam and blood. The cries of the crowd
+continued, and I could distinctly hear the word "<em>reprieve</em>" mixed with the
+shouts. Mr. D&mdash;&mdash; was at my back, and I felt his hands press me like a vice.
+The two men who were supporting Eugene, had also heard the sound, and,
+paralysed by the extraordinary announcement, they actually let the prisoner
+sink on the floor. The sound of his fall made me turn; the father had
+vanished, doubtless to meet the messenger, and communicate the tidings to
+his wife and daughter. A great bustle in the neighbouring cells succeeded.
+The two men stood and looked at me in silence. Eugene still lay on the
+floor, to all appearance insensible. By my orders he was immediately again
+lifted up, and dragged more violently than ever, backwards and forwards. In
+a few seconds, the turnkey came in, and struck off the irons, by which his
+ancle had been so severely torn that the blood flowed from it on the floor.
+He informed me that he was indeed reprieved, and that the fault of the
+delay was attributable to the authorities in London. I shouted in the ear
+of the young man the electric word; he lifted his head, looked wildly
+around him for a few seconds, and uttered a strange gurgling sound unlike
+any expression of the human voice I ever heard. I was indeed uncertain
+whether he understood me or not. In a few minutes more, the cell was
+crowded&mdash;the father, mother, and daughter, the chaplain, the messenger, and
+several of the officials, all bursting in, to see the condition of the
+criminal. To this I was not averse; because the more excitement that could
+be produced in the mind of the youth, the greater chance remained of our
+being able to keep off the deadly effects of the drug. A thousand times did
+the parent and mother sound into his dull ear the vocable pregnant with so
+much relief to him and his friends; but it was not until two hours
+afterwards that he was so far recovered as to understand perfectly the
+narrow escape he had made from death. In the evening he was conveyed home
+in a carriage; and, as they were leaving the jail, he looked out at the
+grim apparatus which had been erected for him, and which the workmen were
+removing in the midst of a dense crowd of citizens.</p>
+
+<p>Some days afterwards, Eugene D&mdash;&mdash; had almost entirely recovered from the
+effects of the poison. One day when I called, I found him lying on a sofa,
+with his mother sitting by his side. She took her eyes off her son, and
+bent them on me till tears filled them.</p>
+
+<p>"Before you entered," she said, "I was talking to Eugene about the request
+I made to you in the jail on that dreadful day, to let my son die.
+Repeatedly since, have I thought of my wild words; but they know little of
+human nature, at least little of the feelings of a mother in my situation,
+who could brand them as unnatural, or doubt the sanity that recognised
+fully their effect."</p>
+
+<p>"I am too well apprised, madam," I replied, "of the workings of that organ,
+whose changes often startle ourselves, to be surprised at the words you
+then made use of. I knew not, after all, if you did not exhibit as much
+heroism as Brutus, who condemned his son to death; certainly more than
+Zaleucus, who condemned his to the loss of an eye, having first submitted
+to the loss of his own, to make the love of a father quadrate with the
+justice of the law-giver."</p>
+
+<p>"And what say you to yourself, to whom I owe the safety of my Eugene?" she
+added.</p>
+
+<p>"An Acesias might have accomplished all that I accomplished, madam&mdash;for all
+I did was to keep off sleep; but, if the secret must needs be told, I had
+some doubts at least of the humanity of my proceedings, whatever I might
+have thought of my duty."</p>
+
+<p>Eugene afterwards went to the East Indies, where he made a fortune. Some
+pecuniary embarrassments afterwards overtook the family, on which occasion
+he sent them home the one half of the money he had made, whereby they were
+again placed in a condition of affluence. A present was also sent to me. It
+is not yet very many years ago since I saw Eugene. He had assumed another
+name in India, where he had married a very beautiful woman, and to whom he
+again returned.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="unbidden" id="unbidden"></a>THE UNBIDDEN GUEST,<br />
+<small>OR, JEDBURGH'S REGAL FESTIVAL.</small></h2>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"In the mid revels, the first ominous night<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Of their espousals, when the room shone bright<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With lighted tapers&mdash;the king and the queen leading<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">The curious measures, lords and ladies treading<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">The self-same strains&mdash;the king looks back by chance,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And spies a strange intruder fill the dance;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Namely, a mere anatomy, quite bare,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">His naked limbs both without flesh and hair,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">(As we decipher Death,) who stalks about<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Keeping true measure till the dance be out."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p class="right mb"><em>Heywood's Hierarchie of the Blessed Angels.</em></p>
+</div>
+
+
+<p>There is no river in this country which presents in its course, scenes more
+beautifully romantic than the little Jed. Though it exhibits not the dizzy
+cliffs where the eagles build their nests, the mass of waters, the
+magnitude and the boldness, which give the character of sublimity to a
+scene; yet, as it winds its course through undulating hills where the
+forest trees entwine their broad branches, or steals along by the foot of
+the red, rocky precipices, where the wild flowers and the broom blossom
+from every crevice of their perpendicular sides, and from whose summits the
+woods bend down, beautiful as rainbows, it presenteth pictures of
+surpassing loveliness, which the eye delights to dwell upon. It is a fair
+sight to look down from the tree-clad hills upon the ancient burgh, with
+the river half circling it, and gardens, orchards, woods, in the beauty of
+summer blossoming, or the magnificence of their autumnal hues, encompassing
+it, while the venerable Abbey riseth stately in the midst of all, as a
+temple in paradise. Such is the character of the scenery around Jedburgh
+now; and, in former ages, its beauty rendered it a favourite resort of the
+Scottish Kings.</p>
+
+<p>About the year 1270, an orphan boy, named Patrick Douglas, herded a few
+sheep upon the hills, which were the property of the monks of Melrose. Some
+of the brotherhood, discovering him to be a boy of excellent parts,
+instructed him to read and to write; and perceiving the readiness with
+which he acquired these arts, they sought also to initiate him into all the
+learning of the age, and to bring him up for their order. To facilitate and
+complete his instructions, they had him admitted amongst them, as a
+<em>convert</em> or lay-brother. But, though the talents of the shepherd boy
+caused him to be regarded as a prodigy by all within the monastery, from
+the Lord Abbot down to the kitchener and his assistants; yet, with Patrick,
+as with many others even now, gifts were not graces. He had no desire to
+wear the white cassock, narrow scapulary, and plain linen hood of the
+Cistertian brethren; neither did he possess the devoutness necessary for
+performing his devotions seven times a-day; and when the bell roused him at
+two in the morning, to what was called the <em>nocturnal</em> service, Patrick
+arose reluctantly; for, though compelled to wedge himself into a narrow bed
+at eight o'clock in the evening, it was his wont to lie awake, musing on
+what he had read or learned, until past midnight; and, when the <em>nocturnal</em>
+was over, he again retired to sleep, until he was aroused at six for
+<em>matins</em>; but, after these came other devotions, called <em>tierce</em>, the
+<em>sexte</em>, the <em>none</em>, <em>vespers</em>, and the <em>compline</em>, at nine in the morning,
+at noon, at three in the afternoon, at six in the evening and before eight.
+These services broke in on his favourite studies; and, possessing more
+talent than devotion, while engaged in them he thought more of his studies
+than of them. Patrick, therefore, refused to take the monastic vow. He</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i8">"had heard of war,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And longed to follow to the field some warlike lord."<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p>He, however, was beloved by all; and when he left the monastery, the Abbot
+and the brethren gave him their benediction, and bestowed gifts upon him.
+He also carried with him letters from the Lord Abbot and Prior, to men who
+were mighty in power at the court of King Philip of France.</p>
+
+<p>From the testimonials which he brought with him, Patrick Douglas, the
+Scottish orphan, speedily obtained favour in the eyes of King Philip and
+his nobles, and became as distinguished on the field for his prowess and
+the feats of his arms, as he had been in the Abbey of Melrose for his
+attainments in learning. But a period of peace came; and he who was but a
+few years before a shepherd boy by Tweedside, now bearing honours conferred
+on him by a foreign monarch, was invited as a guest to the palace of the
+illustrious Count of Dreux. A hundred nobles were there, each exhibiting
+all the pageantry of the age; and there, too, were a hundred ladies, vying
+with each other in beauty, and in the splendour of their array. But chief
+of all was Jolande, the daughter of their host, the Count of Dreux, and the
+fame of whose charms had spread throughout Christendom. Troubadours sang of
+her beauty, and princes bent the knee before her. Patrick Douglas beheld
+her charms. He gazed on them with a mixed feeling of awe, of regret, and of
+admiration. His eyes followed her, and his soul followed them. He beheld
+the devoirs which the great and the noble paid to her, and his heart was
+heavy; for she was the fairest and the proudest flower among the French
+nobility &mdash;he an exotic weed of desert birth. And, while princes strove for
+her hand, he remembered, he felt, that he was an orphan of foreign and of
+obscure parentage&mdash;a scholar by accident, (but to be a scholar was no
+recommendation in those days, and it is but seldom that it is one even
+now.) and a soldier of fortune, to whose name royal honours were not
+attached, while his purse was light, and who, because his feet covered more
+ground than he could call his own, his heels were denied the insignia of
+knighthood. Yet, while he ventured not to breathe his thoughts or wishes
+before her, he imagined that she looked on him more kindly, and that she
+smiled on him more frequently than on his lordly rivals; and his heart
+deceived itself, and rejoiced in secret.</p>
+
+<p>Now, it was early in the year 1283, the evening was balmy for the season,
+the first spring flowers were budding forth, and the moon, as a silver
+crescent, was seen among the stars. The young scholar and soldier of
+unknown birth walked in the gardens of the Count of Dreux, and the lovely
+Jolande leaned upon his arm. His heart throbbed as he listened to the
+silver tones of her sweet voice, and felt the gentle pressure of her soft
+hand in his. He forgot that she was the daughter of a prince&mdash;he the son of
+a dead peasant. In the delirium of a moment, he had thrown himself on his
+knee before her, he had pressed her hand on his bosom, and gazed eagerly in
+her face.</p>
+
+<p>She was startled by his manner, and had only said&mdash;"Sir! what
+means?"&mdash;though in a tone neither of reproach nor of pride, when what she
+would have said was cut short by the sudden approach of a page, who, bowing
+before her, stated that four commissioners having arrived from the King of
+Scotland, the presence of the Princess Jolande was required at the palace.
+Patrick Douglas started to his feet as he heard the page approach, and as
+he listened to his words he trembled.</p>
+
+<p>The princess blushed, and turning from Patrick, proceeded in confusion
+towards the palace; while he followed at a distance, repenting of what he
+had said, and of what he had done, or, rather, wishing that he had said
+more, or said less.</p>
+
+<p>"Yet," thought he, "she did not look on me as if I had spoken
+presumptuously! I will hope, though it be against hope&mdash;even though it be
+but the shadow of despair."</p>
+
+<p>But an hour had not passed, although he sought to hide himself with his
+thoughts in his chamber, when he heard that the commissioners who had
+arrived from his native land, were Thomas Charteris, the High Chancellor;
+Patrick de Graham, William de St Clair, and John de Soulis; and that their
+errand was to demand the beautiful Jolande as the bride and queen of their
+liege sovereign, Alexander the Third, yet called good.</p>
+
+<p>Now, the praise of Alexander was echoed in every land. He was as a father
+to his people, and as a husband to his kingdom. He was wise, just,
+resolute, merciful. Scotland loved him&mdash;all nations honoured him. But
+Death, that spareth not the prince more than the peasant, and which, to
+short-sighted mortals, seemeth to strike alike at the righteous and the
+wicked, had made desolate the hearths of his palaces, and rendered their
+chambers solitary. Tribulation had fallen heavily on the head of a virtuous
+King. A granddaughter, the infant child of a foreign prince, was all that
+was left of his race; and his people desired that he should leave behind
+him, as inheritor of the crown, one who might inherit also his name and
+virtues. He was still in the full vigour of his manhood, and the autumn of
+years was invisible on his brow. No "single silverings" yet marked the
+raven ringlets which waved down his temples; and, though his years were
+forty and three, his appearance did not betoken him to be above thirty.</p>
+
+<p>His people, therefore, wished, and his courtiers urged, that he should
+marry again; and fame pointed out the lovely Jolande, the daughter of the
+Count of Dreux, as his bride.</p>
+
+<p>When Patrick Douglas, the learned and honoured, but fortuneless soldier,
+found that his new competitor for the hand of the gentle Jolande was none
+other than his sovereign, he was dumb with despair, and the last, the
+miserable <em>hope</em> which it imparts, and which maketh wretched, began to
+leave him. He now accused himself for having been made the sacrifice of a
+wild and presumptuous dream, and again he thought of the kindly smile and
+the look of sorrow which met together on her countenance, when, in a rash,
+impassioned moment, he fell on his knee before her, and made known what his
+heart felt.</p>
+
+<p>But, before another sun rose, Patrick Douglas, the honoured military
+adventurer of King Philip, was not to be found in the palace of the Count
+de Dreux. Many were the conjectures concerning his sudden departure; and,
+amongst those conjectures, as regarding the cause, many were right. But
+Jolande stole to her chamber, and in secret wept for the brave stranger.</p>
+
+<p>More than two years passed away, and the negotiations between the Courts of
+Scotland and of France, respecting the marriage of King Alexander and Fair
+Jolande, were continued; but, during that period, even the name of Patrick
+Douglas, the Scottish soldier, began to be forgotten&mdash;his learning became a
+dead letter, and his feats of arms continued no longer the theme of
+tongues. It is seldom that kings are such tardy wooers; but between the
+union of the good Alexander and the beautiful Jolande many obstacles were
+thrown. When, however, their nuptials were finally agreed to, it was
+resolved that they should be celebrated on a scale of magnificence such as
+the world had not seen. Now, the loveliest spot in broad Scotland, where
+the Scottish King could celebrate the gay festivities, was the good town of
+Jedworth, or, as it is now called, Jedburgh. For it was situated, like an
+Eden, in the depth of an impenetrable forest; gardens circled it; wooded
+hills surrounded it; precipices threw their shadows over flowery glens;
+wooded hills embraced it, as the union of many arms; waters murmured amidst
+it; and it was a scene on which man could not gaze without forgetting, or
+regretting his fallen nature. Yea, the beholder might have said&mdash;"If the
+earth be yet so lovely, how glorious must it have been ere it was cursed
+because of man's transgression!"</p>
+
+<p>Thither, then, did the Scottish monarch, attended by all the well-affected
+nobles of his realm, repair to meet his bride. He took up his residence in
+the castle of his ancestors, which was situated near the Abbey, and his
+nobles occupied their own, or other houses, in other parts of the town; for
+Jedburgh was then a great and populous place, and, from the loveliness of
+its situation, the chosen residence of royalty. (It is a pity but that our
+princes and princesses saw it now, and they would hardly be again charmed
+with the cold, dead, and bare beach of Brighton.) An old writer (I forget
+whom) has stated, in describing the magnitude of Jedburgh in those days,
+that it was six times larger than Berwick. This, however, is a mistake, for
+Berwick, at that period, was the greatest maritime town in the kingdom, and
+surpassed London, which strove to rival it.</p>
+
+<p>On the same day that King Alexander and his splendid retinue reached
+Jedburgh, his bride, escorted by the nobles of France and their attendants,
+also arrived. The dresses of the congregated thousands were gorgeous as
+summer flowers, and variegated as gorgeous. The people looked with wonder
+on the glittering throng. The trees had lost the hues of their fresh and
+living green&mdash;for brown October threw its deep shadows o'er the
+landscape&mdash;but the leaves yet trembled on the boughs from which they were
+loath to part; and, as a rainbow that had died upon the trees, and left its
+hues and impression there, the embrowning forest appeared.</p>
+
+<p>The marriage ceremony was performed in the Abbey, before Morel, the Lord
+Abbot, and glad assembled thousands. The town and the surrounding hills
+became a scene of joy. The bale-fires blazed from every hill; music echoed
+in the streets; and from every house, while the light of tapers gleamed,
+was heard the sounds of dance and song. The Scottish maiden and the French
+courtier danced by the side of the Jed together. But chief of all the
+festive scene was the assembly in the hall of the royal castle. At the
+farther end of the apartment, elevated on a purpled covered dais, sat King
+Alexander, with the hand of his bridal queen locked in his. On each side
+were ranged, promiscuously, the Scottish and the French nobility, with
+their wives, daughters, and sisters. Music lent its influence to the scene,
+and the strains of a hundred instruments blended in a swell of melody.</p>
+
+<p>Thrice a hundred tapers burned suspended from the roof, and on each side of
+the hall stood twenty men with branches of blazing pine. Now came the
+morris dance, with the antique dress and strange attitudes of the
+performers, which was succeeded by a dance of warriors in their coats of
+mail, and with their swords drawn. After these a masque, prepared by Thomas
+the Rymer, who sat on the right hand of the King, followed; and the company
+laughed, wept, and wondered, as the actors performed their parts before
+them.</p>
+
+<p>But now came the royal dance; the music burst into a bolder strain, and
+lord and lady rose, treading the strange measure down the hall, after the
+King and his fair Queen. Louder, and yet more loud the music pealed; and,
+though it was midnight, the multitude without shouted at its enlivening
+strains. Blithely the dance went on, and the King well nigh forgot the
+measure as he looked enraptured in the fair face of his beauteous bride.</p>
+
+<p>He turned to take her hand in the dance, and in its stead the bony fingers
+of a skeleton were extended to him. He shrank back aghast; for royalty
+shuddereth at the sight of Death as doth a beggar, and, in its presence,
+feeleth his power to be as the power of him who vainly commanded the waves
+of the sea to go back. Still the skeleton kept true measure before
+him&mdash;still it extended to him its bony hand. He fell back, in horror,
+against a pillar where a torch-bearer stood. The lovely Queen shrieked
+aloud, and fell as dead upon the ground. The music ceased&mdash;silence fell on
+the multitude&mdash;they stood still&mdash;they gazed on each other. Dismay caused
+the cold damp of terror to burst from every brow, and timid maidens sought
+refuge and hid their faces on the bosom of strangers. But still, visible to
+all, the spectre stood before the king, its bare ribs rattling as it moved,
+and its finger pointed towards him. The music, the dancers, became
+noiseless, as if Death had whispered&mdash;"<em>Hush</em>!&mdash;<em>be still</em>!" For the figure
+of death stood in the midst of them, as though it mocked them, and no sound
+was heard save the rattling of the bones, the moving of its teeth, and the
+motion of its fingers before the king.</p>
+
+<p>The lord abbot gathered courage, he raised his crucifix from his breast, he
+was about to exorcise the strange spectre, when it bent its grim head
+before him, and vanished as it came&mdash;no man knew whither.</p>
+
+<p>"Let the revels cease!" gasped the terror-stricken king; and they did
+cease. The day had begun in joy, it was ended in terror. Fear spread over
+the land, and while the strange tale of the marriage spectre was yet in the
+mouths of all men, yea before six months had passed, the tidings spread
+that the good King Alexander, at whom the figure of Death had pointed its
+finger, was with the dead, and his young queen a widow in a strange land.</p>
+
+<p>The appearance of the spectre became a tale of wonder amongst all men,
+descending from generation to generation, and unto this day it remains a
+mystery. But, on the day after the royal festival at Jedburgh, Patrick
+Douglas, the learned soldier, took the vows, and became a monastic brother
+at Melrose; and, though he spoke of Jolande in his dreams, he smiled, as if
+in secret triumph, when the spectre that had appeared to King Alexander was
+mentioned in his hearing.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="simple" id="simple"></a>THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER.</h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi">"<span class="smcap">Many</span> a time," said Nicholas Middlemiss, as he turned round the skirts and
+the sleeve of his threadbare coat to examine them, "many a time have I
+heard my mother say to my faither&mdash;'Roger, Roger (for that was my faither's
+name,) <em>the simple man is the beggar's brother</em>.' But, notwithstanding my
+mother's admonitions, my faither certainly was a very simple man. He
+allowed people to take him in, even while they were laughing in his face at
+his simplicity. I dinna think that ever there was a week but that somebody
+or other owrereached him, in some transaction or other; for every knave,
+kennin' him to be a simpleton, (a nosey-wax, as my mother said,) always
+laid their snares to entrap Roger Middlemiss&mdash;and his family were the
+sufferers. He had been a manufacturer in Langholm for many a long year, and
+at his death he left four brothers, a sister and mysel', four hundred
+pounds each. Be it remembered, however, that his faither before him left
+him near to three thousand, and that was an uncommon fortune in those days,
+a fortune I may say that my faither might have made his bairns dukes by.
+Had he no been a simple man, his family might have said that they wouldna
+ca' the Duke o' Buccleuch their cousin. But he was simple&mdash;simplicity's
+sel'&mdash;(as my mother told him weel about it)&mdash;and he didna leave his bairns
+sae meikle to divide among them, as he had inherited from their
+grandfaither. Yet, if, notwithstanding his opportunities to make a fortune,
+he did not even leave us even what he had got, he at least left us his
+simpleness unimpaired. My brothers were honest men&mdash;owre honest, I am sorry
+to say, for the every-day transactions of this world&mdash;but they always
+followed the <em>obliging</em> path, and kept their face in a direction, which, if
+they had had foresight enough to see it, was sure to land them <em>in</em>, or
+<em>on</em>,(just as ye like to take the expression,) their <em>native parish</em>. Now,
+this is a longing after the place o' one's birth for which I have no
+ambition; but on the parish it did land my brothers. My sister, too, was a
+poor simple thing, that married a man who had a wife living when he married
+her; and, after he had got every shilling that she had into his possession,
+he decamped and left her.</p>
+
+<p>"But it is not the history of my brothers and sisters that I would tell you
+about, but my own. With the four hundred pounds which my faither left me, I
+began business as a linen manufacturer&mdash;that is, as a maister weaver, on
+what might be called a respectable scale. The year after I had commenced
+business upon my own account, and before I was two and twenty, I was taking
+a walk one Sunday afternoon on the Hawick road, along by Sorbie, and there
+I met the bonniest lassie, I think, that I had ever seen. I was so struck
+wi' her appearance, that I actually turned round and followed her. She was
+dressed in a duffel coat or pelisse, which I think country folk call a
+<em>Joseph</em>; but I followed her at a distance, through fields and owre stiles,
+till I saw her enter a sma' farm-house. There were some bits o' bairns,
+apparently hinds' bairns, sitting round a sort o' duck-dub near the
+stackyard.</p>
+
+<p>"'Wha lives there, dearies?' says I to them, pointing wi' my finger to the
+farm-house.</p>
+
+<p>"'Ned Thomson,' says they.</p>
+
+<p>"'And wha was that bonny lassie,' asked I, 'that gaed in just the now?'</p>
+
+<p>"'He! he! he!' the bairns laughed, and gaed me nae answer. So I put my
+question to them again, and ane o' the auldest o' them, a lassie about
+thirteen, said&mdash;'It was the maister's daughter, sir, the laird's bonny
+Jenny&mdash;if ye like, I'll gang in and tell her that a gentleman wishes to
+speak to her.'</p>
+
+<p>"I certainly was very proud o' the bairn taking me to be a gentleman; but I
+couldna think o' meeting Miss Thompson, even if she should come out to see
+me, wi' such an introduction, for I was sure I would make a fool o' mysel';
+and I said to the bit lassie&mdash;'No I thank ye, hinny; I'm obliged to ye'"
+and a' her little companions 'he! he! he'd!' and laughed the louder at my
+expense; which, had I not been a simple man, I never would have placed it
+in their power to do.</p>
+
+<p>"So I went away, thinking on her face as if I had been looking at it in a
+glass a' the time; and to make a long story short, within three months,
+Miss Jenny Thompson and me became particularly weel acquaint. But my
+mother, who had none o' the simpleness that came by my faither's side o'
+the house, was then living; and when Jenny and I were on the eve o' being
+publicly cried in the kirk, she clapped her affidavit against it.</p>
+
+<p>"'Nicol,' said she, 'son as ye are o' mine, ye're a poor simple goniel.
+There isna a bairn that I have among ye to mend another. Ye are your
+faither owre again, every one o' ye&mdash;each one more simple than another.
+Will ye marry a taupie that has nae recommendation but a doll's face, and
+bring shame and sorrow to your door?'</p>
+
+<p>"I flew into a rampaging passion wi' my mother, for levelling Jenny to
+either shame or sorrow: but she maintained that married we should not be,
+if she could prevent it; and she certainly said and did everything that lay
+in her power to render me jealous. She might as weel have lectured to a
+whinstane rock. I believed Jenny to be as pure as the dew that falleth upon
+a lily before sunrise in May. But on the very night before we were to be
+married, and when I went to fit on the gloves and the ring&mdash;to my horror
+and inexpressible surprise, who should I see in the farm-yard, (for it was
+a fine star-light night,) but my Jenny&mdash;my thrice cried bride&mdash;wi' her hand
+upon the shouther o' the auldest son o' her faither's laird, and his arm
+round her waist. My first impulse was to run into the stackyard where they
+were, and to knock him down; but he was a strong lad, and, thinks I,
+'second thoughts are best.' I was resolved, however, that my mother should
+find I wasna such a simpleton as she gied me out to be&mdash;so I turned round
+upon my heel and went home saying to mysel, as the song says&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="block"><div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">'If this be the way of courting a wife,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">I'll never look after another;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But I'll away hame and live single my lane,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And I'll away hame to my mother.'<br /></span>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="noi">When I went hame, and informed her o' what I had seen, and o' what I had
+dune, the auld woman clapped me upon the shouther, and says she&mdash;'Nicholas,
+my man, I am glad that yer ain een have been made a witness in the matter
+of which your mother forewarned ye. Ye was about to bring disgrace upon
+your family; but I trust ye have seen enough to be a warning to ye. O
+Nicholas! they that marry a wife merely for the sake o' a bonny face, or
+for being a smart dancer, or onything o' that kind, never repent it but
+once, and that is for ever. Marriage lad, lifts the veil from the face o'
+beauty, and causes it to be looked upon as an every-day thing; and even if
+ye were short-sighted before, marriage will make ye see through spectacles
+that will suit your sight, whither ye will or no. Dinna think that I am
+against ye taking a wife; for I ken it is the best thing that a young man
+can do. Had your faither not married me when he did, he would hae died a
+beggar, instead o' leaving ye what he did. And especially a simple creature
+like you, Nicholas, needs one to take care o' him. But you must not expect
+to meet wi' such a one in every bonny face, handsome waist, or smart ancle
+that ye meet wi'. Na, na, lad; ye maun look to the heart, and the
+disposition or temper, and the affection for you. They are the grand points
+that ye are to study; and not the beauty o' the face, the shape o' the
+waist, (which a mantua-maker has a principal hand in making,) the colour o'
+the een, or the texture o' the hair. Thae are things that are forgotten
+before ye hae been married a twalmonth; but the feelings o' the heart, and
+the sentiments o' the soul, aye rin pure, Nicholas, and grow stronger and
+stronger, just like a bit burn oozing frae a hill, and wimpling down its
+side, waxing larger and larger, and gathering strength on strength as it
+runs, until it meets the sea, like a great river; and even so it is wi' the
+affections o' the heart between man and wife, where they really love and
+understand each other; for they begin wi' the bit spring o' courtship,
+following the same course, gathering strength, and flowing side by side,
+until they fall into the ocean o' eternity, as a united river that cannot
+be divided! Na, son, if ye will take a wife, I hope ye hae seen enough to
+convince ye that she ought never to be the bonny Miss Thompson. But if I
+might advise ye in the matter, there is our own servant, Nancy Bowmaker, a
+young lass, a weel-faured lass, and as weel behaved as she is good-looking.
+She has lived wi' us, now, for four years, and from term to term I never
+have had to quarrel her. I never saw her encouraging lads about the
+house&mdash;I never missed the value o' a prin since she came to it&mdash;I never
+even saw her light a candle at the fire, or keep the cruisy burning when
+she had naething to do but to spin, or to knit. Now, Nicholas, if ye will
+be looking after a wife, I say that ye canna do better than just draw up
+wi' Nancy Bowmaker.'</p>
+
+<p>"So my mother ended her long-winded harangue; which I had hardly patience
+to listen to. In the course o' the week, the faither and brothers o' Miss
+Jenny Thompson called upon me, to see why I had not fulfilled my
+engagement, by taking her before the minister, and declaring her to be my
+wife. I stood before them like a man touched wi' a flash o' lightning&mdash;pale
+as death and trembling like a leaf. But, when they began to talk big owre
+me, and to threaten me wi' bringing the terrors o' the law upon my
+head&mdash;(and be it remembered I have an exceeding horror o' the law, and
+would rather lose a pound ony day, than spend six and eightpence, which is
+the least ye can spend on it)&mdash;as good luck would have it, while they were
+stamping their feet, and shaking their nieves in my face, my mother came
+forward to where we were standing, and says she to me&mdash;'Nicholas, what is
+a' this about? What does Mr Thompson and his sons want?'</p>
+
+<p>"The very sound o' her voice inspired me; I regained my strength and my
+courage, as the eagle renews its age. And, simple man as I was&mdash;'Sir,' said
+I, 'what is it that ye mean? Gae ask your daughter wha it was that had his
+arm round her waist on Thursday night last, and her hand upon his shouther!
+Go to <em>him</em> to marry her!&mdash;but dinna hae the audacity to look me in the
+face.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Weel said, Nicol,' whispered my mother, coming behint me, and clapping me
+on the back; 'aye act in that manner, my man.'</p>
+
+<p>"And both her faithers and her brothers stood looking one to another for an
+answer, and slunk away without saying another word either about the law or
+our marriage. I found I had gotten the whip hand o' them most completely.
+So, there never was another word between me and bonny Jenny Thompson, who,
+within a month, ran away wi' the son o' her faither's laird&mdash;and, poor
+hizzy, I am sorry to say, her end wasna a good one.</p>
+
+<p>"My mother, however, always kept teasing me about Nancy Bowmaker, and
+saying what a notable wife she would make. Now, some folk are foolish
+enough to say that they couldna like onybody that was in a manner forced
+upon them. And, nae doubt, if either a faither or a mother, or onybody else
+that has power owre ye, says&mdash;'<em>Like</em> such a one,' it is not in your power
+to comply, and actually love the person in obedience to a command. Yet this
+I will say, that my mother's sermons to me about Nancy Bowmaker, and my
+being always <em>evened</em> to her upon that account, caused me to think more
+about her than I did concerning ony other woman under the sun. And ye canna
+think lang about ony lass in particular, without beginning to have a sort
+o' regard for her, as it were. In short, I began to find that I liked Nancy
+just as weel as I had done Jenny; we, therefore, were married, and a most
+excellent and affectionate wife she has been to me, even to this day.</p>
+
+<p>"It was now that I began the world in good earnest. But though my wife was
+an active woman, I was still the same simple, easy-imposed-upon sort o'
+being that I had always been. Every rogue in the country-side very soon
+became acquainted wi' my disposition. I had no reason to complain of my
+business; for orders poured in upon me faster than I was able to supply
+them. Only, somehow or other&mdash;and I thought it very strange&mdash;money didna
+come in so fast as the orders. My wife said to me&mdash;'This trade will never
+do, Nicholas&mdash;ye will gang on trust, trusting, until ye trust yoursel' to
+the door. Therefore, do as I advise ye, and look after the siller.'</p>
+
+<p>"'O my dear,' said I, 'they are good customers, and I canna offend them for
+the sake o' a few pounds. I have no doubt but they are safe enough.</p>
+
+<p>"'Safe or no safe,' quoth she, 'get ye your accounts settled. Their siller
+will do as meikle for ye as their custom. Take a woman's advice for once,
+and remember, that, 'short accounts make long friends.' Look ye after your
+money.'</p>
+
+<p>"I couldna but confess that there was a great deal o' truth in what Mrs
+Middlemiss (that is my wife) said to me. But I had not her turn for doing
+things. I could not be so sharp wi' folk, had it been to save my life. I
+never could affront onybody in my days. Yet I often wished that I could
+take her advice; for I saw people getting deeper and deeper into my books,
+without the prospect o' payment being made more manifest. Under such
+circumstances I began to think wi' her, that their siller would be as good
+as their custom&mdash;the one was not much worth without the other.</p>
+
+<p>"But, just to give ye a few instances o' my simplicity:&mdash;I was walking, on
+a summer evening, as my custom was, about a mile out o' the town, when I
+overtook a Mr Swanston, a very respectable sort o' man, a neighbour, and an
+auld acquaintance, who appeared to be in very great tribulation. I think,
+indeed, that I never saw a fellow-creature in such visible distress. His
+countenance was perfectly wofu', and he was wringing his hands like a body
+dementit.</p>
+
+<p>"'Preserve us, Mr Swanston!' says I, 'what's the matter wi' ye?&mdash;has
+onything happened?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh! happened!' said he; 'I'm a ruined man!&mdash;I wish that I had never been
+born!&mdash;that I had never drawn breath in this world o' villany! I believe
+I'll do some ill to mysel'.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Dear me, Mr Swanston!' quoth I, 'I'm sorry to hear ye talk so. It is very
+unchristian-like to hear a body talking o' doing harm to theirsels. There
+is a poet, (Dr Young, if I mistake not,) that says&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>
+<span style="margin-left: 2em;">'Self-murder! name it not, our island's shame!'</span><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="noi">Now, I dinna like to hear ye talking in such a way; and though I have no
+wish to be inquisitive, I would just beg to ask what it is upon your mind
+that is making ye unhappy?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'it is o' no use telling ye o't, for I
+believe that sympathy has left this world, as weel as honesty.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Ye're no very sure o' that, neighbour,' says I; 'and I dinna think that
+ye do mysel' and other people justice.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Maybe not, sir,' said he; 'but is it not a hard case, that, after I have
+carried on business for more than twenty years, honestly and in credit wi'
+all the world, that I should have to stop my business to-morrow, for the
+want o' three hundred pounds?'</p>
+
+<p>"'It certainly is,' said I, 'a very hard case; but, dear me, Mr Swanston, I
+always thought that ye would be worth twenty shillings in the pound.'</p>
+
+<p>"'So I am,' said he; 'I am worth twice twenty, if my things should be put
+up at their real value; but at present I canna command the ready money&mdash;and
+there is where the rock lies that I am to be wrecked upon.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Assuredly,' returned I, 'three hundred pounds are no bauble. It requires
+a person to turn owre a number o' shillings to make them up. But I would
+think that, you having been so long in business, and always having borne an
+irreproachable character, it would be quite a possible thing for you to
+raise the money amongst your friends.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Sir,' said he, 'I wouldna require them to raise the money, nor ever to
+advance or pay a farthing upon my account; all that I require is, that some
+sponsible person, such as yourself, would put their name to a bill for six
+months. There would be nothing but the signing o' the name required o'
+them; and if you, sir, would so far oblige me, ye will save a neighbour
+from ruin.'</p>
+
+<p>"I thought there was something very reasonable in what he said, and that it
+would be a grand thing if by the mere signing o' my name, I could save a
+fellow-creature and auld acquaintance from ruin, or from raising his hand
+against his own life. Indeed, I always felt a particular pleasure in doing
+a good turn to onybody. I therefore said to him&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>'Weel, Mr Swanston, I have no objections to sign my name, if, as you say,
+that be all that is in it, and if my doing so will be of service to you.'</p>
+
+<p>"He grasped hold o' my hand wi' both o' his, and he squeezed it until I
+thought he would have caused the blood to start from my finger ends.</p>
+
+<p>"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I shall never be able to repay you for this act
+o' kindness. I will feel it in my heart the longest day I have to live.'</p>
+
+<p>"I was struck with his agitation; in fact, I was very much put about. For
+even a tear upon the face o' a woman distresses me beyond the power o'
+words to describe; but to see the salt water on the cheeks of a man
+indicates that there is something dreadfully ill at ease about the heart.
+And really the tears ran down his face as if he had been a truant
+school-laddie that had been chastised by his master.</p>
+
+<p>"'There is no occasion for thanks, Mr Swanston,' said I&mdash;'none in the
+world; for the man would be worse than a heathen, that wouldna be ready to
+do ten times more.'</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, he grasped my hand the harder, and he shook it more fervently,
+saying&mdash;'O, sir! sir!&mdash;a friend in need is a friend indeed; and such ye
+have proved to be&mdash;and I shall remember it.'</p>
+
+<p>"That very night we went to a public-house, and we had two half-mutchkins
+together; in the course of drinking which, he got out a stamped paper, and
+after writing something on it, which I was hardly in a condition to read,
+(for my head can stand very little,) he handed it to me, and pointed with
+his finger where I was to put my name upon the back o't. So I took the pen
+and wrote my name&mdash;after which, we had a parting gill, and were both very
+comfortable.</p>
+
+<p>"When I went home, Nancy perceiving me to be rather sprung, and my een no
+as they ought to be, said to me&mdash;'Where have you been, Nicholas, until this
+time o' nicht?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Touts!' said, I, 'what need ye mind? It is a hard maiter that a body
+canna stir out owre the door but ye maun ask&mdash;'where hae ye been?' I'm my
+own maister, I suppose&mdash;at least after business hours.'</p>
+
+<p>"'No doubt o' that, Nicholas,' said she; 'but while ye are your own maister,
+ye are also my husband, and the faither o' my family, and it behoves me to
+look after ye.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Look after yoursel'!' said I, quite pettedly&mdash;'for I am always very high
+and independent when I take a glass extra&mdash;ye wouldna tak me to be a simple
+man then.'</p>
+
+<p>"'There is no use in throwing yoursel' into a rage, added she; 'for ye ken
+as weel as me, Nicholas, that ye never take a glass more than ye ought to
+do, but ye invariably make a fool o' yoursel' by what ye say or do, and
+somebody or ither imposes on ye. And ye are so vexed with yoursel' the next
+day, that there is nae living in the house wi' ye. Ye wreak a' the shame
+and ill-nature that ye feel on account o' your conduct upon us.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Nancy!' cried I, striking my hand upon the table, as though I had been an
+emperor, 'what in the name o' wonder do ye mean? Who imposes upon me?&mdash;who
+dare?&mdash;tell me that!&mdash;I say tell me that?' And I struck my hand upon the
+table again.</p>
+
+<p>"'Owre mony impose upon ye, my man,' quoth she; 'and I hope naebody has
+been doing it the night, for I never saw ye come hame in this key, but that
+somebody had got ye to do something that ye was to repent afterwards.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Confound ye, Nancy!' cried I, very importantly whipping up the tails o'
+my coat in a passion, and turning my back to the fire, while I gied a sort
+o' stagger, and my head knocked against the chimley piece&mdash;'confound ye,
+Nancy, I say, what do ye mean? Simple man as ye ca' me, and as ye tak me to
+be, do ye think that I am to come home to get naething but a dish o'
+tongues from you! Bring me my supper.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, certainly, ye shall have your supper,' said she, 'if ye can eat
+it&mdash;only I think that your bed is the fittest place for ye. O man,' added
+she in a lower tone, half speaking to hersel, 'but ye'll be sorry for this
+the morn.'</p>
+
+<p>"'What the mischief are ye muttering at?' cried I&mdash;'get me my supper.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, ye shall have that,' said she very calmly, for she was, and is, a
+quiet woman, and one that would put up with a great deal, rather than allow
+her voice to be heard by her neighbours.</p>
+
+<p>"My head was in a queer state the next day; for ye see I had as good as
+five glasses, and I never could properly stand above two. I was quite
+ashamed to look my wife in the face, and I was so certain that I had been
+guilty o' some absurdity or other, that my cheeks burned just under the
+dread o' its being mentioned to me. Neither could I drive the idea of
+having put my name upon the back of the bill from my mind. I was conscious
+that I had done wrong. Yet, thought I, Mr Swanston is a very decent man; he
+is a very respectable man; he has always borne an excellent character; and
+is considered a good man, both amongst men o' business and in
+society&mdash;therefore, I have nothing to apprehend. I, according to his own
+confession, did him a good turn, and I could in no way implicate myself in
+his transactions by merely putting my name upon the back o' a bit o' paper,
+to oblige him. So I thought within myself, and I became perfectly satisfied
+that I had done a good action, without in the slightest degree injuring my
+family.</p>
+
+<p>"But just exactly six months and three days afterwards, a clerk belonging
+to a branch o' the Commercial Bank called upon me, and, after making his
+bow, said he&mdash;'Mr Middlemiss, I have a bill to present to you.'</p>
+
+<p>"'A bill!' said I, 'what sort o' a bill, sir? Is it an auctioneer's, for a
+roup o' furniture or a sale o' stock?'</p>
+
+<p>"He laughed quite good-natured like in my face, and pulling out the bit
+stamped paper that I had been madman enough to sign my name upon the back
+o'&mdash;'It is that, sir,' said he.</p>
+
+<p>"'That!' cried I; 'what in the earthly globe have I to do wi' that? It is
+Mr Swanston's business&mdash;not mine. I only put my name upon the back o't to
+<em>oblige</em> him. Why do ye bring it to me?'</p>
+
+<p>"'You are responsible, sir,' said the clerk.</p>
+
+<p>"'Responsible! the meikle mischief!' I exclaimed; 'what am I responsible
+for, sir?&mdash;I only put my name doun to oblige him, I tell ye! For what am I
+responsible?'</p>
+
+<p>"'For three hundred pounds, and legal interest for six months,' said my
+unwelcome visiter, wi' a face that shewed as little concern for the
+calamity in which, through mere simplicity and goodness of heart, I was
+involved, as if he had ordered me to take a pipe, and blow three hundred
+soap-bubbles!</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh! lack-o'-me!' cried I, 'is that possible? Is Mr Swanston sic a
+villain? I am ruined&mdash;I am clean ruined. Who in all the world will tell
+Nancy?'</p>
+
+<p>"But that I found was a question that I did not need to ask; for she kenned
+almost as soon as I did mysel'.</p>
+
+<p>"I need not say that I had the three hundred pounds, ineerest and all,
+plack and farthing, to pay; though, by my folly and simplicity, I had
+brought my wife and family to the verge o' ruin, she never was the woman to
+fling my silly conduct in my teeth; and all that she ever did say to me
+upon the subject, was&mdash;'Weel, Nicholas, this is the first o' your bill
+transactions, or o' your being caution for onybody, and I trust it has
+proved such a lesson as I hope ye will never need another.'</p>
+
+<p>"'O Nancy, woman!' cried I, 'dinna speak to me! for I could knock my brains
+oot! I am the greatest simpleton upon the face o' the earth.'</p>
+
+<p>"Now, that was one instance o' my simple conduct and its consequences, and
+I will just relate to you another or two. I had bought some ninety pounds
+worth o' flax from a merchant in Glasgow, for which I was to receive six
+months' credit. Weel, he came round for his money at the appointed time,
+and I paid him accordingly, and got a line off his hand in acknowledgment.
+On that very day, and just about an hour after he had left, Nancy says to
+me&mdash;'Nicholas, I dinna owre and aboon like that man that ye hae been
+dealing wi' the day. He has owre muckle gab, and scraping, and bowing for
+me. I wish he may be honest. Have ye got a receipt from him?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Certainly,' says I; 'do ye think I would pay onybody money without one?'</p>
+
+<p>"'And I hope it is on a stamp,' said she.</p>
+
+<p>"'A stamp!' quoth I&mdash;'a stamp!&mdash;hoots, woman! I wonder to see ye so
+suspicious. Ye dinna tak a' the world to be rogues?'</p>
+
+<p>"'No,' said she, 'I do not, and I should be sorry if I did; but if ye hae
+taken a receipt from him without a stamp, ye are a simple man&mdash;that is all
+that I say.'</p>
+
+<p>'A simple man!' cried I; 'gracious! what does the woman mean? Ye are for
+ever saying that I am simple this, and simple that! I wish that ye would
+explain yoursel, and say what ye wish to be after! Where, or how am I
+simple?'</p>
+
+<p>"'It's not been one lesson that you've had, Nicholas,' said she, 'nor ten,
+nor twenty either, but it is every week, I may say every day, wi' ye. There
+is perpetually some person or another showing ye that the 'simple man is
+the beggar's brother,' and ye canna see it, or ye winna regard it. But ye
+will, perhaps, be brought to think on't, when neither your bairns nor me
+have a stool to sit upon.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Woman!' exclaimed I, 'flesh and blood cannot stand your tongue! Ye would
+exasperate the patience o' Job! What is it that ye wish to be after?&mdash;what
+would ye have me to do?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, it is o' nae use getting into a passion about it,' said she, 'for
+that winna mend the matter. But there is only this in it, Nicholas: I would
+have ye to be as sharp in your dealings in the world, as ye are wi' me when
+I happen to speak a word to ye for your good.'</p>
+
+<p>"There was so much truth in what she said, and she always spoke in such a
+calm, good-natured manner that it was impossible to continue to be in a
+passion wi' her. So I said no more about the subject; but I thought to
+mysel', that, as I knew very little about the man I had dealt with, it
+would hae been quite as safe to have had the receipt upon a stamp.</p>
+
+<p>"A few months afterwards, I saw his name amongst the list o' bankrupts; and
+to my very great astonishment, I received a letter from a writer, demanding
+payment from me o' the ninety pounds for the flax which I had already paid.</p>
+
+<p>"'The thing is unreasonable a'thegither,' said I; 'here is a man that hasna
+paid once himself, and he would come upon me to pay twice! But I'll see him
+far enough first!'</p>
+
+<p>"I paid no attention to the letter, and I was summoned to appear before the
+writer, and three men that were called the trustees to the bankrupt's
+estate. (Dear kens where the estate lay.)</p>
+
+<p>"'Sir,' said they to me, as haughtily as if I had been a criminal before
+them; 'wherefore do ye refuse to pay the ninety pounds?'</p>
+
+<p>"'For the best o' a' reasons, gentlemen,' said I, very civilly; 'and that
+simply is, because I have paid it already.'</p>
+
+<p>"'What proof can you show for that!' asked the writer.</p>
+
+<p>"'Proof, sir,' said I&mdash;'here is a line off the man's own hand,
+acknowledging the payment o' every farthing o' the money.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Let me look at it,' says he.</p>
+
+<p>"So, as honesty never needs to be feared for what it does, I handed him the
+bit paper. But after looking at it for a moment, he held it up between his
+finger and thumb, and wi' a kind o' sarcastic laugh, inquired&mdash;'Where is
+the stamp?'</p>
+
+<p>"The sweat broke ower me from head to foot. 'Sir, my wife, Nancy! Is that
+document, in the handwriting o' the man himsel', not proof positive that I
+have paid the money?'</p>
+
+<p>"The writer shook his head; and a gentleman that was standing near me, and
+who was very probably in a similar predicament to myself, said&mdash;'Unstamped
+receipts, sir, may do very well, where ye find a world o' purely honest
+men&mdash;but they winna do where ye arena sure but ye may be dealing wi' a
+rogue.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Gentlemen!' cried I, 'have ye really the cruelty and injustice to say
+that I am to pay that money owre again?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Owre again or not owre again,' said the writer, 'ye must pay it,
+otherwise summary proceedings will be entered against ye. If ye have
+already paid it in the way ye say, it is only making good the proverb, that
+the 'simple man is the beggar's brother.'"</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, confound ye!' cried I, 'for a parcel o' unprincipled knaves&mdash;that is
+exactly what my wife says; and had I followed her advice, I would ne'er hae
+seen ane o' yer faces.'</p>
+
+<p>"However, the ninety pounds I had to pay again, doun upon the nail; and
+that was another o' the beautiful effects o' my simplicity. I didna ken
+how, in the universal globe, I was to muster courage to look my wife in the
+face again. Yet all that she said was&mdash;'O Nicholas! Nicholas!&mdash;would ye
+only be less simple!'</p>
+
+<p>"'Heigho!' said I, 'dinna talk about it, Nancy&mdash;I'm owre grieved as it
+is&mdash;I can stand no more!'</p>
+
+<p>"The loss o' the three hundred pounds, wi' the bill business, and the
+ninety just mentioned, made me to stagger, and those that knew about the
+circumstances wondered how I stood them. But I had just begun a new
+concern, which was the manufacture o' table-cloths upon a new principle,
+and with exceedingly splendid patterns. I got an extraordinary sale for
+them, and orders came pouring in upon me. But I had to employ more men to
+fulfil them, and their wages were to pay every Saturday, while the
+remittances did not come in by half so regular as the orders, and I found
+it was not easy to pay men without receiving money for their work. Had I
+been a man o' a great capital, the case might have been different. There
+was one day, however, that a gentleman that had dealt wi' me very
+extensively called upon me, and he gied me a very excellent order. But,
+although he had seen a great deal o' my goods, I never had seen the shadow
+o' his cash. I canna say that I exactly liked his manner o' doing business;
+yet I couldna, for the breath that was in my body, have the face to say an
+impertinent thing to ony one, and I was just telling him that his order
+should be attended to, when my wife, who was sitting in a room off the
+parlour, gave a tap upon the door, and, asking the gentleman to excuse me
+for a minute, I stepped ben, and I half whispered to her&mdash;'What is it,
+dear?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Has that man spoken about paying ye?' said she.</p>
+
+<p>"'No,' said I.</p>
+
+<p>"'But I think it is time he was,' quoth she, 'before ye trust him ony
+farther. Remember that ye have men's wages to pay, and accounts to pay, and
+a wife and family to support, and those things canna be done upon nothing.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Very true, dearie,' said I; 'but ye wouldna have me to speak abruptly to
+the gentleman, or to affront him?'</p>
+
+<p>"'It will affront no gentleman,' replied she&mdash;'at least, no honest man&mdash;to
+ask him for what is your own. Therefore, ask him for your money. Remember,
+Nicholas, that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'</p>
+
+<p>"'O dear, woman!' says I, 'ye ken I dinna like to hear thae words. I'll ask
+the gentleman to pay me&mdash;to be sure I will; and what is the use o' your
+keeping tease, teasing at a body, just as if I were a simpleton.'</p>
+
+<p>"So I slipped back to the customer, and, after a few words about his order,
+I said to him&mdash;'Sir, ye understand I have men's wages to pay, and accounts
+to pay, and a wife and family to support, and it's no little that does it;
+therefore, if ye could just oblige me wi' the settlement o' your account,
+it would be a favour.'</p>
+
+<p>"'My dear Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I am extremely sorry that you did not
+inform me that you were in want of cash sooner, as I have just, before I
+saw you, parted with all I can spare. But, if you be very much in want of
+it, I can give you a note, that is, a bill for the money, at three or six
+months. You can get it cashed, you know, and it is only minus the discount,
+and that is not much upon your profits, eh?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Begging your pardon, sir,' says I, 'but I take I would have my name to
+write on the back o't.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Certainly, sir,' said he, 'you know that follows as a matter of course.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Yes, sir,' continued I, 'and I have found that it sometimes follows also
+as a matter o' <em>coercion!</em> I never had to do wi' what ye call a bill in my
+life but once, which was merely writing my name upon the back o't, and that
+cost me three hundred pounds&mdash;exactly sixteen pounds, two shillings and
+threepence, and a fraction, for every letter in the name of Nicholas
+Middlemiss, as my wife has often told me. Therefore, sir, I would never
+wish to see the <em>face</em> o' a bill again; or, I should say, the <em>back</em> o'
+one.'</p>
+
+<p>"'But, my good sir,' said the gentleman, 'I have told you that it is not
+convenient for me to give you the cash just now; and, if you won't take my
+bill, why, what do you wish me to do? Do you intend to affront me? Do you
+suppose I have nothing to attend to but your account?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, by no means, sir,' said I; 'and it would be the last thing in my
+thoughts either to offend you or ony man. If ye have not the money at
+command, I suppose I must take the bill; for I know that cash down is a
+sort o' curiosity, as I sometimes say, and is very difficult to be met
+wi'.'</p>
+
+<p>"While we were conversing thegither, I heard my wife gie a tap, tap, tap,
+twice or thrice upon the parlour door, and I was convinced that she
+owreheard us; but I didna take the least notice o' it, for I felt conscious
+that it would only be to ring the auld sang in my ears, about the simple
+man. So I took the gentleman's bill at six months; and immediately after he
+left me, Nancy came into the parlour.</p>
+
+<p>"'Weel,' said she, 'ye've gotten your money.' But she said it wi' a
+scornful air, such as I had never seen her use before, and which caused me
+to feel excessively uncomfortable.</p>
+
+<p>"'Yes, I've got my money,' says I, 'but, dear me, Nancy, what business is
+it o' yours whether I have got my money or no?'</p>
+
+<p>"'If it isna my business, Nicholas,' said she, 'I would like to ken whase
+business it is? I am the wife o' your bosom&mdash;the mother o' your family&mdash;am
+I not? Guidman, ye may take ill what I say to ye, but it is meant for your
+good. Now, ye hae ta'en the bill o' the man that has just left ye, for four
+hundred and odd pounds! What do ye ken aboot him? Naething!&mdash;naething in
+the blessed world! Ye are a simple man, Nicholas!'</p>
+
+<p>"'Dinna say that,' said I; 'I am not simple. I told him to his face that I
+didna like his bills. But ye are like a' women&mdash;ye would do wonders if ye
+were men! But his bill prevents a' disputes about his account&mdash;do ye not
+see that&mdash;and I can cash it if I wish.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Very true,' said she, 'ye can cash it, Nicholas, but upon your own
+credit, and at your own risk.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Risk!' said I, 'the woman's a fool to talk in such a manner about an
+every-day transaction.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Weel,' answered she, 'not to say that there is the slightest risk in the
+matter, have ye considered, that, if ye do cash this bill, there will be a
+heavy discount to pay, and if ye pay it, what is to become o' your profits?
+Did ye tell him, that if ye took his bill ye would carry the discount to
+his next account?'</p>
+
+<p>"'O Nancy! Nancy!' cried I, 'ye would skin the wind! Just take yoursel'
+away, if ye please; for really ye're tormenting me&mdash;making a perfect gowk
+o' me, for neither end nor purpose.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, if that be the way,' said she, 'I can leave ye&mdash;but I have seen the
+day when ye thought otherwise o' my company. Yet, the more I see o' your
+transactions, Nicholas, the more I am convinced in the truth o' the saying,
+that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Sorrow take ye, wife!' cried I, 'will ye really come owre thae words
+again. Are ye not aware that I detest and abhor them? Have I not said that
+to ye again and again?&mdash;and yet ye will repeat them in my hearing? Do ye
+wish to drive me mad?'</p>
+
+<p>"'I would wish to see ye act,' answered she, 'so that I would ne'er need to
+use them again.' And, on saying that, she went out o' the room, which to me
+was a great deliverance.</p>
+
+<p>"I got the bill cashed, and, to tell ye the plain truth, I also had it to
+pay. This was a dreadfu' loss to me; and I found there was naething left
+for me but so <em>sit down</em>,(if ye understand what that means,) as mony a guid
+man has been compelled to do. Hooever, I paid every body seventeen
+shillings and sixpence half-penny in the pound. Some of my creditors said
+it was owre meikle&mdash;that I had been simple and wronged mysel'.</p>
+
+<p>"'I would wish to the utmost o' my power to be honest,' said I; 'and if I
+hae wronged mysel', I hae saved my conscience. If there be naething else
+left for me noo, as Burns says&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>
+<span style="margin-left: 2em;">'Heaven be thankit! I can beg.'</span><br />
+</p>
+
+<p>"My business, hooever, had been entirely at a stand for the space o' sax
+weeks. I had neither journeyman nor apprentice left. My looms, and the hale
+apparatus connected wi' the concern, had been sold off, and I had naething
+in the world but a few articles o' furniture, which a freend bought back
+for me at the sale. I got the loan o' a loom, and in order to support my
+wife and family, I had to sit down to drive the shuttle again. I had
+wrought nane to speak o' for ten years before, and my hands were quite oot
+o' use. I made but a puir job o' it. The first week I didna mak aboon
+half-a-crown; and that was but a sma' sum for the support o' a wife and
+half-a-dozen hungry bairns. Hooever, I was still as simple as ever; and
+there wasna a wife in the countryside that was a bad payer, but brought her
+web to Nicholas Middlemiss. I wrought late and early; but though I did my
+utmost, I couldna keep my bairns' teeth gaun. Many a time it has wrung my
+heart, when I hae heard them crying to their mother, clinging round her,
+and pulling at her apron, saying&mdash;'Mother, gie's a piece!&mdash;Oh just a wee
+bite, mother!'</p>
+
+<p>"'O my darlings,' she used to say to them, 'dinna ask me for bread the noo.
+I haena a morsel in the house, and hae na siller to buy meal. But yer
+faither is aboot finished wi' the web, and ye shall hae plenty the nicht.'</p>
+
+<p>"Then the bits o' dear creatures would hae come runnin' ben to me, and
+asked&mdash;'Faither, when will the web be ready?'</p>
+
+<p>"'Soon, soon, hinnies!' said I, half choked wi' grief and blind wi' tears;
+'haud awa' oot and play yoursels!'</p>
+
+<p>"For I couldna stand to see them yearning afore me, and to behold want,
+like a gnawing worm, eating the flesh from their lovely cheeks. Then, when
+I had went out wi' the web, Nancy would say to me&mdash;'Noo, Nicholas, remember
+the situation we're in. There's neither food o' ae description nor anither
+in the house, and ye see the last o' oor coals upon the fire. Therefore,
+afore ye leave the web, see that ye get the money for the working o't.'</p>
+
+<p>"Yet, scores o' times, even after such admonitions, hae I come hame without
+a penny in my pocket. Ane put me aff with ae excuse, and anither wi'
+anither. Some were to ca' and pay me on the Saturday, and others when they
+killed their pig. But those Saturdays seldom came; and, in my belief, the
+pigs are living yet. It used to put me in terror to meet my poor starving
+family. The consequence generally was, that Nancy had to go to where I had
+come frae and request payment hersel'; and, at last, she wadna trust me wi'
+the taking hame o' the webs.</p>
+
+<p>"We suffered more than I'm willing to tell aboot, at the period I mention,
+and a' arose oot o' my simpleness. But I was confined to my bed for ten
+weeks, wi' a dreadfu' attack o' rheumatism&mdash;it was what was ca'ed a
+rheumatic fever&mdash;it reduced me to a perfect anatomy. I was as feckless as a
+half-burned thread. Through fatigue, anxiety, and want o' support
+thegither, Nancy also took very ill; and there did we lie to a' appearance
+hastening to the grave. What we suffered, and what our family suffered upon
+this occasion, no person in a Christian country could believe. But for the
+kindness o' the minister, and some o' oor neebors, we must a' hae perished.
+As a matter of course we fell sadly back; and when the house rent became
+due, we had not wherewith to pay it. The landlord distrained us for it. A
+second time the few things I had left were put under the hammer o' the
+auctioneer. 'Oh!' said I, 'surely misery and I were born thegither!' For we
+had twa dochters, the auldest only gaun six, baith lying ill o' the scarlet
+fever in the same bed, and I had to suffer the agony o' beholding the bed
+sold out from under them. It was more than human nature could endure. The
+poor, dear lammies cried&mdash;'Faither! mither! dinna let them touch us!' I
+took the auldest up in my arms, and begged that I micht be allowed a
+blanket to row her in. Nancy took up the youngest one, and while the sale
+went on, with our dying bairns in our arms, we sat down in the street
+before the door, as twa beggars&mdash;but we were not begging.</p>
+
+<p>"Our case excited universal commiseration. A number o' respectable people
+began to take an interest in our weelfare; and business came so thick upon
+me that I had to get twa other looms, and found constant employment, not
+only for my auldest laddie, whom I was bringing up to the business, but
+also for a journeyman.</p>
+
+<p>"Just as I was beginning to prosper, hooever, and to get my head aboon the
+water, there was ane o' my auld creditors to whom I had paid the
+composition of seventeen and sixpence halfpenny in the pound, wha was a
+hard-hearted, avaricious sort o' man, and to whom I had promised, and not
+only promised, but given a written pledge, to pay him the remaining two and
+fivepence halfpenny in the pound, together with interest, in the course of
+six years. The time was just expiring, when he came to me, and presenting
+the bit paper, which was in my own handwriting, demanded payment.</p>
+
+<p>"'Really, sir,' said I, 'I acknowledge that I must pay ye, though everybody
+said at the time that I was a very simple man for entering into ony such
+agreement wi' ye; but it is not in my power to pay ye just now. In the
+course o' a twalmonth I hope to be able to do it.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, as slowly as if he were spelling my name, 'my
+money I want, and my money I will have; and have it immediately, too.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Sir,' said I, 'the thing is impossible; I canna gie ye what I haena got.'</p>
+
+<p>"'I dinna care for that,' said he; 'if I dinna get it, I shall <em>get you</em>.'</p>
+
+<p>"He had the cruelty to throw me into jail, just as I was beginning to
+gather my feet. It knocked all my prospects in the head again. I began to
+say it was o' nae use for me to strive, for the stream o' fate was against
+me.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Dinna say so, Nicholas,' said Nancy, who came on foot twice every week,
+a' the way from Langholm, to see me&mdash;'dinna say sae. Yer ain simplicity is
+against ye&mdash;naething else.'</p>
+
+<p>"Weel, the debt was paid, and I got my liberty. But, come weel, come woe, I
+was still simple Nicol Middlemiss. Ne'er hae I been able to get the better
+o' my easy disposition. It has made me acquainted wi' misery&mdash;it has kept
+me constantly in the company o' poverty; and, when I'm dead, if onybody
+erect a gravestane for me, they may inscribe owre it&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>
+"<span class="smcap">The Simple Man is the Beggar's Brother</span>."<br />
+</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="tales" id="tales"></a>TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE.</h2>
+
+<h3><a name="robbery" id="robbery"></a>THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB.</h3>
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="noi">On</span> the 2nd of March 1736, Andrew Wilson in Pathhead, William Hall in
+Edinburgh, and George Robertson, stabler at Bristo Port there, were
+indicted and accused, at the instance of Duncan Forbes of Culloden, then
+Lord Advocate, before the high court of justiciary at Edinburgh, of the
+crimes of stouthrief housebreaking and robbery, in so far as James Stark,
+collector of excise in Kirkcaldy, being upon his circuit in collecting that
+revenue, and having along with him a considerable sum of money collected by
+him by virtue of his office, upon Friday the 9th day of January then last,
+was at the house of Margaret Ramsay, relict of Andrew Fowler, excise-office
+keeper at Pittenweem; and Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob
+Collector Stark of the money and other effects he had along with him, and
+having taken William Hall and George Robertson as associates, they came
+together from Edinburgh that morning, and towards evening put up their
+horses in Anstruther-Easter, in the inn kept by James Wilson, brewer
+there;<a name="FNanchor_C_3" id="FNanchor_C_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_C_3" class="fnanchor">[C]</a> and after having had some deliberations upon their intended
+robbery, leaving their horses there, they went privately on foot to
+Pittenweem, and about eleven o'clock that night called at the house of
+Widow Fowler, and under the pretence of drinking, remained there until
+they were informed, or might reasonably presume Collector Stark was gone to
+bed; and about twelve that night, or one next morning, Andrew Wilson and
+William Hall, or one or other of them, did impudently and in defiance of
+law forcibly and with violence break the door of the room where Collector
+Stark was lying in bed, and having knocked out the under pannel, Collector
+Stark suspecting an attack upon his life, for his safety jumped out at a
+window in his shirt; whereupon Andrew Wilson and William Hall, or one or
+other of them, entered the room, and did feloniously carry off bank-notes
+in a pocket-book belonging to Collector Stark, and gold and money in his
+possession to the value of L.200, less or more, and did rob and take away a
+pair of pistols, a seal, a penknife, a cloak bag, a pair of silver
+buckles, a bible, several suits of linens and other goods belonging to
+Collector Stark and in his possession; and when they went out of that room,
+did divide, disperse of, and distribute the gold, money, and other goods so
+robbed and taken away at their pleasure. And while the said Andrew Wilson
+and William Hall were committing the foresaid crimes, the said George
+Robertson was standing, sometimes at the door and sometimes at the foot of
+the stair of said house, as a sentinel and guard, with a drawn cutlass in
+his hand, to prevent any person from interfering and stopping the said
+violence and robbery, and did threaten to kill or otherwise intimidate the
+servants of the house when going towards the door of the collector's room;
+and when several of the inhabitants, alarmed by the noise, gathered
+together upon the street, and coming towards the door, inquired what was
+going on there; he, George Robertson, did treacherously endeavour to
+persuade them not to attempt to enter the house, falsely affirming that he
+had tried to go up stairs, but being in danger of being shot, he was by
+fear obliged to leave the house. And in order to keep them still amused
+with his false suggestion of danger by entering the house, having gone
+along with them into the house of John Hyslop in Pittenweem, he detained
+them there for some time, until he judged that his associates might have
+made their escape with their spoil; and soon afterwards William Hall was
+seized in the street of Anstruther-Easter, between twelve and one next
+morning, being Saturday the 10th January, having several of the goods and a
+purse of gold so robbed in his possession, which he dropped and endeavoured
+to conceal. And they, Andrew Wilson, and George Robertson, having met some
+short time afterwards in the house of said James Wilson in
+Anstruther-Easter, where they were informed that the house was beset,
+conscious of their own guilt, they, one or other of them, did deliver to
+said James Wilson the seal, the penknife, the pair of buckles, some money,
+and other things robbed, telling that if they were found in their
+possession they would be hanged or undone, or words to that purpose,
+expressing an apprehension of the utmost danger; and immediately thereafter
+got into bed, as if they had lain all night asleep, where both were
+apprehended, and upon the top of which bed were found the bank notes robbed
+from Collector Stark, and his pocket-book above another bed in another room
+of the house, &amp;c. Wherefore, on these crimes being confessed or proven, the
+parties ought to be most severely and exemplarily punished with the pains
+of law, in terror of others committing the like in time coming.</p>
+
+<p>The indictment to the foregoing effect was read&mdash;the case debated, and the
+Lords ordered both parties to give in informations.</p>
+
+<p>On the 19th March 1736, the Lords found the libel relevant&mdash;but allowed
+George Robertson a proof, with respect to his behaviour at the time stated,
+for taking off the circumstances tending to infer his being accessory, or
+art and part of the crimes libelled.</p>
+
+<p>A jury was empannelled, and the trial proceeded. To give even notes of the
+depositions on both sides would exceed our limits. We shall therefore
+merely select the evidence of two or three witnesses, whose statements will
+serve to form a continuation of our narrative, and pass over the remainder
+as unnecessary for our purpose.</p>
+
+<p>The first we shall adduce is the collector, the individual robbed.</p>
+
+<p>James Stark, collector of excise, Kirkcaldy, aged forty-nine years or
+thereby, married, solemnly sworn, purged of malice partial, counsel
+examined and interrogated, depones time and place libelled&mdash;the deponent
+being then upon his collection as collector of excise. He went to bed about
+ten o'clock, and about an hour and a-half thereafter, he was waked out of
+sleep by a noise and some chapping at the door of the room where he
+lay&mdash;which door he had secured before he went to bed by screwing down the
+sneck of the door&mdash;which noise the deponent at first imagined was
+occasioned by some drunken people in the house; but afterwards, upon the
+strokes on the door being repeated with violence, the deponent jumped out
+of his bed, and heard the under part of the door of the bed-room giving
+way, upon which the deponent laid hold upon two bags of money, which, with
+the deponent's breeches, in which were about L.100 in gold, and bank notes
+and silver, the deponent had put below his head when he went to bed; and
+the deponent did then, in the confusion in which he was, put the table and
+some chairs to the back of the door to stap the gap, and thereafter opened
+the window, and returning to find the bags of money and his breeches, he
+could only find one of the bags of money, and being in fear of his life, he
+jumped out at the window with one of the bags of money, and fell at the
+foot of the stair, the said window being just above the entry to the house,
+and recovering himself a little, he went towards the corn-yard, and hearing
+a person call out "Hold him," the deponent apprehending the voice to be
+before him, he returned a few paces, and then perceiving a man standing or
+walking at the foot of the stair, the deponent returned again to the yard,
+where he hid the bag of money, and thereafter coming back towards the house
+to hear what was a-doing, the deponent heard a knocking in the room where
+he had been lodged, and thereupon retired to the yard again&mdash;lay covered
+with some straw till about four in the morning&mdash;and then returning to the
+house saw the panel, William Hall, in custody of some soldiers; and the
+deponent having said to him that he had given him a cold bath that night,
+William Hall answered that he was not to blame, being only hired, and had
+no hand in it, but that Andrew Wilson and George Robertson had come there
+of a design to rob the deponent that night, and that this design had been
+formed several months before by Andrew Wilson, and particularly at the
+preceding collection at Elie; and further depones that soon after the
+deponent got out of the window as aforesaid, he heard the clock strike
+twelve; that when the deponent was first awakened out of his sleep as
+aforesaid, he heard Mrs Fowler, the landlady, call to the persons who were
+breaking open the deponent's bed-room, "What are ye doing?" or "Why do ye
+this?" and the deponent heard them at the same time cursing and swearing
+and making a great noise; and the deponent having only carried one bag of
+money along with him as aforesaid, he left in said bed-room the money and
+goods following, viz., the deponent's breeches, in which was a purse with
+fifty-two and a-half guineas, betwixt six and seven pounds in silver, and a
+pocket-book with one and forty pounds in bank notes, which purse and
+pocket-book the deponent exhibits in court; that besides the bank notes,
+there were several bills and other papers in the pocket-book, and that
+there was likewise in the deponent's breeches, a seal, a pair of silver
+shoe-buckles, and a penknife, which the deponent likewise exhibits; the
+deponent likewise left in his room a cloak-bag with some linens in it,
+which cloak-bag the deponent likewise exhibits in court; as also a bible, a
+pair of pistols, which the deponent likewise exhibits; that upon the
+deponent returning to his room as aforesaid, he found the door of the room
+broken up, and saw a press in the room which had been broken up, and found
+his breeches empty and all the several particulars above enumerated
+amissing; and thereafter, about seven o'clock in the morning, the deponent
+having gone to Anstruther-Easter, he soon thereafter saw the three panels
+in custody; and the deponent did then see in the hands of the magistrates
+of Anstruther, the seal, the buckles, and penknife above mentioned; depones
+that upon Monday following, being the 12th of January last, William Hall,
+panel, told the deponent that he had informed Alexander Clerk, supervisor
+of excise, where the purse of gold was to be found, whereupon the deponent
+desired the supervisor to go in quest of it, which he did, and having found
+it, he restored it to the deponent with the whole gold in it; and that the
+bible was returned to the deponent by one of the soldiers who apprehended
+Hall; that on Saturday night the 10th of January, the deponent got back his
+pocket-book and bank notes, with the other papers in the said pocket-book,
+from Bailie Robert Brown in Anstruther-Easter. <em>Causa scienti&aelig; patet. </em>And
+this is truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) James Stark; Andrew
+Fletcher.</p>
+
+<p>Alexander Clerk, supervisor of excise at Cupar-Fife, being solemnly sworn,
+and depones time and place libelled, the deponent was lodged in the room
+next to Collector Stark, and went to bed about ten, and was wakened about
+twelve by persons rapping either at his door or that of the collector's;
+and heard a cry of "Murder the dogs and burn the house!" upon which the
+deponent swore that the first man that came in he would put a pair of balls
+in him. The deponent then put on some of his clothes and got out at a
+window at the backside of the house,<a name="FNanchor_D_4" id="FNanchor_D_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_D_4" class="fnanchor">[D]</a> and walked to Anstruther, about a
+mile, and awakened the serjeant who commanded a small party of soldiers
+there, and with the serjeant and two of the soldiers set out for
+Pittenweem, and left orders for the rest of the party to follow as soon as
+possible. As they passed the entry to Sir John Anstruther's house in
+Easter-Anstruther,<a name="FNanchor_E_5" id="FNanchor_E_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_E_5" class="fnanchor">[E]</a> they met with some men who having challenged the
+deponent, "Who comes there?" the deponent desired them to give an account
+of themselves, and upon their running off, the deponent ordered the
+soldiers to seize them, upon which the serjeant with his halbert hooked one
+of them, the rest escaping, which afterwards proved to be William Hall, one
+of the panels, and whom the deponent carried along with him to the excise
+office at Pittenweem, and having brought him into the house of Mrs Fowler,
+Jean Finlay, servant to Mrs Fowler, upon seeing the said Hall, said, "This
+is the villain that broke my head a little while ago;" and Thomas Durkie,
+another servant in the house, said, "This is one of the persons who robbed
+the collector</p>
+
+<p>the night;" and the soldiers who brought Hall produced a bag of linen and a
+bible which they said they had taken up as Hall had dropped them by the
+way; and William Geddes, clerk to the collector, did then say, "This is the
+collector's bible, and there are his linens," whereupon Hall confessed that
+he had been guilty of robbing the collector; and the deponent thereupon
+telling Hall that he was now <em>in for it</em>, and that the best way for him was
+to discover the rest, which, if he would do, the deponent would do his
+endeavours to get him made an evidence, and having then asked if he
+promised to get him a pardon? depones that he understood it so, but does
+not remember that he used the word <em>pardon</em>; upon which Hall told deponent
+he would get these other persons whom he named; remembers particularly that
+he named Andrew Wilson, panel, to have been one of them. That they had come
+upon four horses that morning from Kinghorn, and that he would find them
+all in the house of James Wilson in Anstruther-Easter, or in a house twenty
+yards on this side of it, which the deponent understood to be Bailie Andrew
+Johnston's.<a name="FNanchor_F_6" id="FNanchor_F_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_F_6" class="fnanchor">[F]</a> By this time the rest of the party having come up from
+Anstruther, the deponent made some search for the collector, but could not
+find him, and thereafter the deponent carried up Hall to the room where the
+collector had lodged, the door of which he saw broken in the under part,
+and left Hall prisoner there in custody of some of the soldiers and the
+rest of the party, and Thomas Durkie and William Geddes. The deponent then
+went east to Anstruther in search of the rest of the robbers, and having
+surrounded the house of James Wilson there, he found three men in a room
+there, viz., Andrew Wilson and George Robertson, panels, and one John
+Friar, and having shown them to the above</p>
+
+<p>Thomas Durkie, he declared that they were two of the persons who had robbed
+the collector; upon which the deponent having applied to Bailies Robert
+Brown and Philip Millar, both in Anstruther-Easter, he got the accused
+committed to prison; and further depones that as the panels were being
+carried prisoners to Edinburgh, and while they were halting at Kirkcaldy,
+the deponent asked George Robertson, panel, what was become of the
+collector's purse of gold, George answered that Andrew Wilson, the other
+panel, told him that William Hall got the purse; upon which the deponent
+inquired at Hall about it, and added that unless he confessed and
+discovered where the purse was, he could not expect that the promises made
+would be kept to him; when after some entreaty Hall told deponent that he
+had dropped it upon being seized in a wet furr near a dung-hill, and
+accordingly the deponent went back to Pittenweem, and upon application to
+Bailie Andrew Fowler, of Pittenweem, and in his presence the purse was
+found near to a dung-hill between Anstruther-Wester and Pittenweem, in the
+spot described by Hall, with fifty-two guineas and a-half in it, which
+purse and gold was given to the deponent, and the purse exhibited in court
+being shown to him, he thinks it is the very same purse. And all this is
+truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) Alexander Clerk; Andrew
+Fletcher.</p>
+
+<p>John Galloway, servant to Patrick Galloway, horse-hirer in Kinghorn, aged
+twenty-six, depones that at the time libelled, William Hall came to the
+deponent's master's house in Kinghorn, and desired him to get two horses,
+one for himself and one for the deponent, telling him that they were going
+to Anstruther to get some brandy; and that George Robertson and Andrew
+Wilson were to be their masters and pay their expenses; and desired him to
+go to the houses where they then were. The deponent having gone
+accordingly, and spoken to the said persons, George Robertson desired to
+get their horses ready, and Hall and the deponent to go before and they
+would overtake them; that about six o'clock at night they came to
+Anstruther-Easter, and set up their horses in James Wilson's house, where
+he found Andrew Wilson before him; and after they put up their horses they
+went to Andrew Johnston's there, where they found Robertson and Wilson
+drinking punch. Depones that the three panels and the deponent went from
+Anstruther to Pittenweem on foot, between ten and eleven o'clock at night.
+Depones that when they came to Pittenweem, he (the deponent), Hall, and
+Wilson went into a house, but does not know the name of the landlord, where
+they drank a bottle of ale, and it was agreed while they were there that
+Robertson and the other panel should walk on the street; that when they
+came out of that house, the three panels and the deponent went to Widow
+Fowler's house, where they drank some ale and brandy. Andrew Wilson having
+asked the landlady if she could lodge any casks of brandy for him, she
+desired him to speak low, because the collector was in the house; upon
+which Wilson said, Is he here? She answered, he was. Robertson, the panel,
+called for a reckoning, and all four went down stairs, at least went to the
+stair-head. Robertson, Hall, and the deponent went out to the street, and
+as the maid was going to shut the outer door, Andrew Wilson pushed it open
+and went in, upon which the deponent and William Hall went in also; and
+George Robertson drew his cutlass and stood at the outer door, saying that
+no person should go out or in of that house but upon the point of that
+weapon. Depones when they went in to the house they saw Andrew Wilson
+standing at the door of the room where the collector was lodged, and the
+lower part of the door broken; that upon seeing the door broken, he, the
+deponent, asked Wilson what it meant? or what he would be at? to which
+Wilson answered, that he had lost a great deal of money, and understood
+that there was some of it there, and was resolved to have it back again;
+upon which the deponent said to him, that he would have nothing to do in
+the matter. Depones that after the door of the collector's room was broken
+open as aforesaid, Andrew Wilson went into the room, and brought out a pair
+of breeches, and shewing them to the deponent, said, "Here is a good deal
+of money;" the deponent telling him that he would have nothing to do with
+it, the said Andrew took out several handfuls of money, and put it into the
+deponent's pocket; which money, except a few shillings, the deponent
+delivered back to the said Andrew Wilson in the house of James Wilson in
+Anstruther. Depones that Andrew Wilson went again into the room, and
+brought out a cloak-bag, which he desired the deponent to carry, which he
+refused to do. The said Andrew then carried the cloak-bag himself, till
+they came to the end of the town, together with a pair of pistols, which he
+then delivered to William Hall, who carried it half way to Anstruther, and
+then Andrew Wilson desired Hall to set it down, that they might see if
+there was any bank-notes in it; and Hall, having opened the cloak-bag, took
+out some linens and a bible, which he stowed about himself. That at the
+same time he saw Andrew Wilson take out of his pocket the pocket-book, out
+of which he took several bank-notes and put in his pocket, and then threw
+the pocket-book on the floor. Depones that Andrew Wilson and the deponent
+went out of Wilson's house, and threw one of the pistols and some linens
+which they had brought from Pittenweem in among some straw in a barn-yard;
+thereafter the deponent, Bailie Thomas Brown, Anstruther-Easter, and some
+soldiers, went to the place where the cloak-bag was left, and to the
+barn-yard where the pistols and linen were thrown, where they were all
+found. Being further examined, depones that as Wilson and Hall and the
+deponent were on the road from Pittenweem to Anstruther, a little to the
+west of Sir John Anstruther's house, they met Mr Clerk, the supervisor, and
+some soldiers, who, having challenged him who they were, one of the
+soldiers seized Hall with his halbert, upon which Andrew Wilson and the
+deponent made their escape. Depones that the cutlass now produced is the
+same that George Robertson had in his hand at Widow Fowler's house. <em>Causa
+scientic&aelig; patet.</em> And this is truth, as he shall answer to God, and depones
+he cannot write. (Signed) James Mackenzie.</p>
+
+<p>Upon the indictment against the panels being read in court, they all pled
+"Not guilty," and certain defences were offered for them.</p>
+
+<p>And first, in opposition to what the indictment alleged with regard to
+Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob Collector Stark, and having
+taken Hall and Robertson, his associates, from Edinburgh that morning, it
+was stated that they did not set out from Edinburgh in company, but met
+upon the water in the passage between Leith and Kinghorn, where two of
+them, Wilson and Hall, were passing in a yawl, and Robertson was crossing
+in a passage boat; that instead of leaving Edinburgh and going to the East
+Neuk on the criminal design libelled, they had each of them lawful business
+in that part of the country, viz., for buying goods in which they
+ordinarily dealt, and which it was neither criminal nor capital to buy and
+sell; and particularly George Robertson, who kept an inn near Bristo Port
+in Edinburgh, where the Newcastle carriers commonly put up; that having
+occasion to buy liquors in the east of Fife, he agreed to take share of a
+cargo with Andrew Wilson, and with that view got a letter of credit from
+Francis Russell, druggist addressed to Bailie Andrew Waddell, Cellardyke,
+for the value of &pound;50 sterling; and further, he carried with him an accepted
+bill of John Fullerton in Causeyside, to the like extent, as a fund of
+credit for the goods he might buy; and William Hall, the third panel, was a
+poor workman in Edinburgh, commonly attending the weigh-house, who was
+carried along to take care of and fetch home the goods; that accordingly,
+as soon as they came to Anstruther, and put up their horses at James
+Wilson's, they went to a respectable man, Bailie Johnston, and bought goods
+to the value of &pound;46 10s., and whilst making the bargain they drank some
+quantity of liquor; that after this, not finding at Anstruther all the
+sorts of liquor they wanted to purchase, they went on foot to Pittenweem,
+when they first went to the house of &mdash;&mdash; Drummond, another respectable
+merchant, and drank some time with him, desiring to buy some brandy of him,
+but he told them he could not furnish them at that time; that after this
+the panels went into the house of Widow Fowler, where, calling for a room,
+they were shown into the kitchen, and inquired at the landlady if she could
+furnish them any place for lodging the goods they had bought, and there
+they drank both ale and punch, till, with what they had got before at
+different places, they became all very drunk; that at this place it was
+told by the landlady or servants, in conversation, that there was money to
+a considerable value in the next room, and if any part of the facts
+libelled were committed by the panels, Wilson and Hall, it must have been
+done upon occasion of this purely accidental information, when they were
+insane from strong drink: it was more like a drunken frolic than a
+preconcerted robbery. As a further evidence of this fact, it appeared by
+the libel itself that they acted like persons in such a condition; for
+they, as well as the other panel Robertson, were all seized in an hour or
+two thereafter, before the effects of the liquor had worn off, and before
+they had time to come to themselves, and without any of them taking the
+most rational and obvious measures to make their escape.</p>
+
+<p>As to the case of George Robertson, it is not said that the inhabitants
+gathered together upon the streets, came there to save or rescue what was
+contained in the room; on the contrary, it was admitted on debate that the
+inhabitants of small coast towns are not very ready on these occasions to
+lend their assistance to the officers of justice; and if George Robertson
+had truly said to the persons whom he met on the street that he was by fear
+obliged to leave the house, it might very possibly have been true, and an
+argument of his innocence, and therefore ought not to be turned into a
+circumstance of his guilt.</p>
+
+<p>Our space will not admit of further argument. Suffice it to say that the
+jury unanimously found Andrew Wilson and William Hall guilty, and George
+Robertson art and part on the crimes libelled; and the Lords of Justiciary
+passed sentence of death on all three, which sentence they appointed to be
+executed on Wednesday the 14th of April 1736.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the criminals in the condemned cells, where they are to remain five
+weeks before being executed, let us, in the meanwhile, in order to the
+better understanding the case, and forming a clearer opinion in reference
+to the nature and origin of the Porteous mob&mdash;one of the most extraordinary
+events recorded in history, and which arose out of the trial and sentence
+against Andrew Wilson and the others before narrated&mdash;let us endeavour to
+give a brief sketch of Mr Porteous' history, from his birth till the time
+of which we write, namely, the recording of the sentence of death against
+Wilson and his associates.</p>
+
+<p>John Porteous, one of the captains of the Edinburgh City Guard, was son of
+Stephen Porteous, a tailor in Canongate. The father held a fair character,
+and was esteemed a good honest man in the whole conduct of his life, his
+greatest misfortune was his having such a son as John.</p>
+
+<p>The father early discovered in his son a perverseness of nature, and a
+proneness to commit mischievous and more than childish tricks. The mother,
+out of a blind affection for her child, took them all for growing proofs of
+spirit and manliness, and as marks of an extraordinary and sprightly
+genius.</p>
+
+<p>Thus the family were divided upon the education of the son, and from being
+often thwarted in his measures about him, the father lost his authority,
+and for the peace of his family winked at the faults which the good man saw
+it his duty to correct. The loss of parental authority begot want of filial
+regard, so that the boy, shooting up with these vicious habits and
+disregard of the father, advanced from reproaches and curses to blows,
+whenever the unfortunate old man ventured to remonstrate against the folly
+and madness of his son's conduct.</p>
+
+<p>The mother saw, when it was too late, what her misguided affection had
+produced, and how to her fond love in childhood the man made the base
+return of threatening language and the utmost disregard; for he proved too
+hard for both father and mother at last.</p>
+
+<p>The father having a good business, wanted John to learn his trade of a
+tailor, both because it was easiest and cheapest for the old man, and a
+sure source of good living for the son, whether he began business for
+himself or waited to succeed the father after his death; but as he grew up
+his evil habits increased, and at last when checked by his father in his
+mad career, he almost put the good old man to death by maltreatment.</p>
+
+<p>At last, provoked beyond all endurance, the father resolved to rid himself
+of him by sending him out of the country, and managed to get him engaged to
+serve in the army under the command of Brigadier Newton.</p>
+
+<p>While in Flanders, he saw, in passing along with one of his brother
+soldiers, a hen at a little distance covering her chickens under her wings,
+and out of pure wanton and malicious mischief he fired his musket and shot
+the hen. The poor woman to whom it belonged, startled by the shot, went out
+and saw her hen dead; and following the young soldier, asked him to pay the
+price of the hen and chickens, for both were lost to her, and they formed a
+great part of her means of subsistence; but the unfeeling youth would not
+give her a farthing&mdash;threatening if she annoyed him he would send her after
+her hen; upon which the injured old woman predicted, "that as many people
+would one day gaze in wonder on his lifeless body as that hen had feathers
+on hers."</p>
+
+<p>Young Porteous afterwards left the army and returned to London, where he
+wrought for some time as a journeyman tailor; but his evil habits brought
+him to poverty, and he was found in rags by a friend of his father's, who
+wrote to the old man to remit &pound;10 to clothe him and defray his travelling
+charges to Edinburgh, which, moved by the compassion of a father, he did,
+and when John appeared, the kind-hearted old man received him with tears of
+joy, and embraced him with all the warmth of paternal affection. Vainly
+hoping that his son was a reformed man, he gave up his business to him, and
+agreed that he should only have a room in the house and his maintenance and
+clothes.</p>
+
+<p>Young Porteous, thus possessed of the house and trade of his father, and of
+all his other goods and effects, began by degrees to neglect and maltreat
+the old man, first, by refusing him a fire in his room in the middle of
+winter, and even grudging him the benefit of the fire in the kitchen. In
+addition to this, he disallowed him a sufficiency of victuals, so that he
+was in danger of being starved to death with cold and hunger. In this
+unhappy condition he applied for admission into the Trinity Hospital.</p>
+
+<p>John Porteous having been for some time in the army, and being known to be
+possessed of no small courage and daring, was selected by John Campbell,
+lord provost of Edinburgh, in the memorable year 1715, to be drill-sergeant
+of the city-guard, as it became necessary to have the guard well
+disciplined and made as effective as possible in that eventful period, for
+the support of the government and the protection of Edinburgh. In this
+office he discharged his duty remarkably well, and was often sent for by
+the lord provost to report what progress his men made in military
+discipline. This gave him an opportunity of meeting sometimes with a
+gentlewoman who had the charge of the lord provost's house and family, with
+whom he fell deeply in love; after paying his addresses for some time, and
+proposing to her, he was accepted, and they were married. From a grateful
+sense of her services, as well as from a conviction of Porteous's ability
+for the office, the lord provost proposed that John Porteous should be
+elected one of the captains of the city-guard, and it was agreed to.</p>
+
+<p>This was a situation of trust and respectability, and would have enabled
+the young couple to live in comfort and ease if the husband had conducted
+himself properly. The gentlewoman was a person of virtue and merit, but was
+unlucky in her choice of a husband&mdash;Porteous was no better a husband than
+he had been a son. They were not long married when he began to ill-use her.
+He dragged her out of bed by the hair of the head, and beat her to the
+effusion of blood. The whole neighbourhood were alarmed sometimes at
+midnight by her shrieks and cries; so much so, indeed, that a lady living
+above them was obliged, between terms, to take a lodging elsewhere for her
+own quiet. Mrs Porteous was obliged to separate from her husband, and this
+was her requital for having been the occasion of his advancement.</p>
+
+<p>His command of the city-guard gave him great opportunities of displaying
+his evil temper, and manifesting his ungovernable passions. Seldom a day
+passed but some of his men experienced his severity. The mob on all public
+occasions excited his naturally bad temper; and on all days of rejoicing,
+when there was a multitude from the country as well as from the town, the
+people were sure to experience offensive and tyrannical treatment from him.
+The hatred and terror of him increased every year, and his character as an
+immoral man was known to everybody, so that he was universally hated and
+feared by the lower orders both in town and country.</p>
+
+<p>This was the position in which Captain Porteous stood with the people when
+he was called upon to take charge of the execution of the law in reference
+to Andrew Wilson, whose case it has been thought proper to detail before
+proceeding to narrate the extraordinary events that followed, and which,
+indeed, partly serves to explain the cause of these events.</p>
+
+<p>We have stated that Andrew Wilson, George Robertson, and William Hall, were
+condemned by the High Court of Justiciary to die on Wednesday the 14th of
+April 1736. Hall was reprieved, but Wilson and Robertson were left to
+suffer the extreme penalty of the law. A plan was concocted to enable them
+to escape out of the Tolbooth, by sawing the iron bars of the window; but
+Wilson, who is described as a "round, squat man," stuck fast, and before he
+could be disentangled the guard were alarmed. It is said that Robertson
+wished to attempt first the escape, and there is little doubt he would have
+succeeded, but he was prevented by Wilson, who obstinately resolved that he
+himself should hazard the experiment. This circumstance seems to have
+operated powerfully on the mind of the criminal, who now accused himself as
+the more immediate cause of his companion's fate. The Tolbooth stood near
+to St Giles' Church; it was customary at that time for criminals to be
+conducted on the last Sunday they had to live to church to hear their last
+sermon preached, and, in accordance with this practice, Wilson and
+Robertson were, upon Sunday the 11th of April, carried from prison to the
+place of worship. They were not well settled there, when Wilson boldly
+attempted to break out, by wrenching himself out of the hands of the four
+armed soldiers. Finding himself disappointed in this, his next care was to
+employ the soldiers till Robertson should escape; this he effected by
+securing two of them in his arms, and after calling out, "<em>Run, Geordie,
+run for your life</em>!" snatched hold of a third with his teeth. Thereupon
+Robertson, after tripping up the heels of the fourth soldier, jumped out of
+the pew, and ran over the tops of the seats with incredible agility, the
+audience opening a way for him sufficient to receive them both; in hurrying
+out at the south gate of the church, he stumbled over the collection money.
+Thence he reeled and staggered through the Parliament Close, and got down
+the back stairs, which have now disappeared, often stumbling by the way,
+and thus got into the Cowgate, some of the town-guard being close after
+him. He crossed the Cowgate, ran up the Horse Wynd, and proceeded along the
+Potterrow, the crowd all the way covering his retreat, and by this time
+become so numerous, that it was dangerous for the guard to look after him.
+In the Horse Wynd there was a horse saddled, which he would have mounted,
+but was prevented by the owner. Passing the Crosscauseway, he got into the
+King's Park, and took the Duddingstone road, but seeing two soldiers
+walking that way, he jumped the dyke and made for Clear Burn. On coming
+there, hearing a noise about the house, he stopt short, and, repassing the
+dyke, he retook the route for Duddingstone, under the rocks. When he
+crossed the dyke at Duddingstone, he fainted away; but, after receiving
+some refreshment, the first he had tasted for three days, he passed out of
+town, and, soon after getting a horse, he rode off, and was not afterwards
+heard of, notwithstanding a diligent search.</p>
+
+<p>Upon Robertson's getting out of the church door, Wilson was immediately
+carried out without hearing sermon, and put in close confinement to prevent
+his escape, which the audience seemed much inclined to favour.</p>
+
+<p>Notwithstanding his surprising escape, Robertson came back about a
+fortnight afterwards, and called at a certain house in the neighbourhood of
+Edinburgh. Being talked to by the landlord touching the risk he ran by his
+imprudence, and told that, if caught, he would suffer unpitied as a madman,
+he answered, that as he thought himself indispensably bound to pay the last
+duties to his beloved friend, Andrew Wilson, he had been hitherto detained
+in the country, but that he was determined to steer another course soon. He
+was resolved, however, not to be hanged, pointing to some weapons he had
+about him.</p>
+
+<p>It was strongly surmised that plots were laid for favouring Wilson's
+escape. It was well known that no blood had been shed at the robbery; that
+all the money and effects had been recovered, except a mere trifle; that
+Wilson had suffered severely in the seizure of his goods on several
+occasions by the revenue officers; and that, however erroneous the idea, he
+thought himself justified in making reprisals. Besides, Wilson's conduct
+had excited a very great sympathy in his favour; and the crime for which he
+was condemned was considered very venial at that time by the populace, who
+hated the malt-tax, and saw no more harm in smuggling, or in robbing a
+collector of excise, than in any matter of trifling importance. The
+magistrates of Edinburgh, in order to defeat all attempts at a rescue,
+lodged the executioner the day previous in the Tolbooth, to prevent his
+being carried off; the sentinels were doubled outside the prison; the
+officers of the trained bands were ordered to attend the execution,
+likewise the city constables with their batons; the whole city-guard,
+having ammunition distributed to them, were marched to the place of
+execution with screwed bayonets, and, to make all sure, at desire of the
+lord provost, a battalion of the Welch Fusiliers, commanded by commissioned
+officers, marched up the streets of the city, and took up a position on
+each side of the Lawnmarket; whilst another body of that corps was placed
+under arms at the Canongate guard. A little before two o'clock, Porteous
+came to receive Wilson, the prisoner, from the captain of the city prison.
+He was in a terrible rage, first against Wilson, who had affronted his
+soldiers, and next against the mob, who were charmed with Wilson's generous
+action in the church, and had favoured Robertson's escape. They are always
+on the side of humanity and mercy, unless they are engaged themselves.
+Porteous was also infuriated because the Welch Fusiliers had been brought
+to the Canongate, as if he and his guard had not been sufficient to keep
+down any riot within the city. The manacles were too little for Wilson's
+wrists, who was a strong, powerful man; when the hangman could not make
+them meet, Porteous flew furiously to them, and squeezed the poor man, who
+cried piteously during the operation, till he got them to meet, to the
+exquisite torture of the miserable prisoner, who told him he could not
+entertain one serious thought, so necessary to one in his condition, under
+such intolerable pain. "No matter," said Porteous, "your torment will soon
+be at an end." "Well," said Wilson, "you know not how soon you may be
+placed in my condition; God Almighty forgive you as I do."</p>
+
+<p>This cruel conduct of Porteous' still more embittered the minds of the
+populace, who were sufficiently exasperated against him before, and the
+report of it was soon spread over town and country.</p>
+
+<p>Porteous conducted Wilson to the gallows, where he died very penitent, but
+expressing more sorrow on account of the common frailties of life, than the
+crime for which he suffered. His body was given to his friends, who carried
+it over to Pathhead in Fife, where it was interred; George Robertson
+having, as we have seen, rashly attended the funeral before going abroad.</p>
+
+<p>During the melancholy procession of the criminal and his guard, accompanied
+by the magistrates, ministers, and others from the Old Tolbooth, which
+stood in the Lawnmarket, to the scaffold, which was placed in the
+Grassmarket, there was not the slightest appearance of a riot, nor after
+Wilson had been suspended, until life was extinct, did the least
+manifestation of disturbance occur on the part of a vast crowd of people
+collected from town and country to witness the execution. The magistrates
+of Edinburgh had retired from the scaffold to a house close by&mdash;concluding,
+with reason, that as all was over with poor Wilson, no disturbance could
+then happen, and the executioner was actually on the top of the ladder,
+cutting Wilson down, when a few idle men and boys began to throw pebbles,
+stones, or garbage at him (a common practice at that time,) thinking he was
+treating the affair rather ludicrously; whereupon Captain Porteous, who was
+in very bad humour, became highly incensed, and instantly resented, by
+commanding the city-guard, without the slightest authority from the
+magistrates, and without reading the riot act or proclamation according to
+law, to fire their muskets, loaded with ball, and by firing his own fuzee
+among the crowd, by which four persons were killed on the spot, and eleven
+wounded, many of them dangerously, who afterwards died. The magistrates,
+ministers, and constables, who had retired to the first storey of a house
+fronting the street, were themselves in danger of being killed, a ball, as
+was discovered afterwards, having grazed the side of the window where they
+stood. The lord provost and magistrates immediately convened, and ordered
+Captain Porteous to be apprehended and brought before them for examination;
+after taking a precognition, his lordship committed Porteous to close
+imprisonment for trial for the crime of murder; and, next day, fifteen
+sentinels of the guard were also committed to prison, it clearly appearing,
+after a careful examination of the firelocks of the party, that they were
+the persons who had discharged their pieces among the crowd.</p>
+
+<p>On the 25th of March 1736, Captain Porteous was put on trial, at the
+instance of the lord-advocate of Scotland, before the High Court of
+Justiciary, for the murder of Charles Husband, and twelve other persons, on
+the 14th of April preceding, being the day of the execution of Andrew
+Wilson; and after sundry steps of procedure, having been found, by the
+unanimous voice of the jury, guilty, he was, on the 20th of July following,
+sentenced to suffer death in the Grassmarket of Edinburgh, on Wednesday the
+8th of September in the same year&mdash;that was, about five months after
+Wilson's execution.</p>
+
+<p>On the 26th of August, the Duke of Newcastle, one of the secretaries of
+state, wrote a letter to the right honourable the lord justice-general,
+justice-clerk, and other lords of justiciary, of which the following is a
+copy:&mdash;"My lords, application having been made to her Majesty<a name="FNanchor_G_7" id="FNanchor_G_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_G_7" class="fnanchor">[G]</a> in the
+behalf of John Porteous, late captain-lieutenant of the city-guard of
+Edinburgh, a prisoner under sentence of death in the gaol of that city, I
+am commanded to signify to your lordships her Majesty's pleasure, that the
+execution of the sentence pronounced against the said John Porteous be
+respited for six weeks from the time appointed for his execution. I am, my
+lords, your lordships' most obedient, humble servant, (Signed) Holles,
+Newcastle."</p>
+
+<p>On receipt of this letter, the lords of justiciary granted warrant to the
+magistrates of Edinburgh for stopping the execution of Porteous till the
+20th day of October following.</p>
+
+<p>The effect of this respite on the minds of the people of Scotland was to
+induce the belief that the government did not intend to carry out the
+sentence of death against Porteous at all&mdash;that it was merely a
+preliminary step to his pardon and liberation&mdash;and that, so far from
+condemning him, the government had rather taken up a prejudice against the
+town of Edinburgh, on account of the proceedings, and in some measure
+against all Scotland. A number of persons, therefore, who were never
+discovered, resolved to take the matter into their own hands, and on the
+7th of September 1736, a body of strangers, supposed to be from the
+counties of Fife, Stirling, Perth, and Dumfries, many of them landed
+gentlemen, entered the West Port of Edinburgh between nine and ten o'clock
+at night, and having seized the Portsburgh drummer by the way, brought
+along his drum with them, and his son. Some of them advancing up into the
+Grassmarket, commanded the drummer's son to beat to arms. They then called
+out, "Here! all those who dare to avenge innocent blood!" This probably
+was a signal for their associates to fall in. It was followed by instantly
+shutting up the gates of the city, posting guards at each, and flying
+sentinels at all places where a surprise might be expected, while a
+separate detachment threw themselves upon and disarmed the city-guard; and
+seizing the drum, beat about the High Street to notify their success so
+far at least. At that instant, a body of them proceeded to the Tolbooth,
+called for the keeper, and finding he was gone, fell a-breaking the door
+with fore-hammers; but making no great progress in that way, they got
+together a parcel of dried broom, whins, with other combustibles, and
+heaps of timber, and a barrel of pitch, all previously provided for the
+purpose, and taking the flambeaux or torches from the city officers, they
+set fire to the pile. When the magistrates appeared, they repulsed them
+with showers of stones, and threatened, if they continued in the streets
+and offered resistance, they would discharge platoons of fire-arms among
+them; and it is even reported they placed sentinels on the magistrates to
+watch their motions.</p>
+
+<p>Upon the prison door taking fire, two gentlemen made up to the rioters, and
+remonstrated with them on the imminent danger of setting the whole
+neighbourhood on fire, insinuating that this outrage was likely to be
+deeply resented, and might bring them to trouble; to which it was answered
+that they should take care no damage should be done to the city, and that
+as to the rest, they knew their business, and that they (the gentlemen)
+might go about theirs.</p>
+
+<p>Before the prison door was burnt down, several persons rushed through the
+flames, ran up stairs, demanded the keys from the keepers; and though they
+could scarcely see one another for the smoke, got into Captain Porteous'
+apartment, calling, "Where is the murdering villain?" He is said to have
+answered, "Gentlemen, I am here; but what are you going to do with me?"
+When they answered, "We are to carry you to the place where you shed so
+much innocent blood, and hang you." He begged for mercy, but they instantly
+seized and pulled him to the door in his bed-gown and cap; and as he
+struggled, they caught him by the legs and dragged him to the foot of the
+stair, while others set all the rest of the prisoners in the Tolbooth at
+liberty. As soon as Porteous was brought to the street, he was set on his
+feet, and some seized him by the breast, while others pushed behind. He was
+thus conducted to the Bow-head, where they stopped a moment, at the
+pressing solicitation of some of the citizens, on the pretence that he
+might die peaceably, but really that time might be gained, as they expected
+the Welch Fusiliers every moment from the Canongate, or that the garrison
+of the Castle would come to Porteous' relief. By this time some who
+appeared to be the leaders in the enterprise ordered him to march, and he
+was hurried down the Bow and to the gallows stone, where he was to
+kneel,&mdash;to confess his manifold sins and wickedness, particularly the
+destruction of human life he had committed in that place, and to offer up
+his petitions to Almighty God for mercy on his soul. After which, in a very
+few minutes, he was led to the fatal tree. A halter being wanting, they
+broke open a shop in the Grassmarket, and took out a coil of ropes, for
+which they left a guinea on the counter,<a name="FNanchor_H_8" id="FNanchor_H_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_H_8" class="fnanchor">[H]</a> and threw the one end over a
+dyer's cross-trees close by the place of execution. On seeing the rope,
+Porteous made remonstrances, and caught hold of the tree, but being
+disengaged they set him down, and as the noose was about to be put over his
+head, he appeared to gather fresh spirit, struggling and wrenching his head
+and body. Here again some citizens appeared for him, telling that the
+troops being now in full march, they must all expect to be sacrificed, and
+that the artillery of the Castle would doubtless be discharged among them.
+They answered, "No man will die till his time come."</p>
+
+<p>About a quarter of an hour before twelve they put the rope about his neck,
+and ordered him to be pulled up; which being done, observing his hands
+loose, he was let down again; after tying his hands he was hauled up a
+second time, but after a short space, having wrought one of his arms loose,
+he was let down once more, in order to tie it up and cover his face.
+Stripping him of one of the shirts he had on, they wrapped it about his
+head, and got him up a third time with loud huzzas and a ruff of the drum.
+After he had hung a long time, they nailed the rope to the tree; then
+formally saluting one another, grounding their arms, and another ruff of
+the drum, they separated, retired out of town, and numbers of them were
+seen riding off in bodies well mounted to different quarters, leaving the
+body hanging till near five next morning.</p>
+
+<p>Neither the two gentlemen who conversed with the rioters at the Tolbooth,
+nor those who were sent out by the magistrates to see if they knew any of
+them, could say they had ever seen any one of them before, though the
+flames of the fire at the Tolbooth door rendered it as light as noonday;
+so that it was generally believed no citizen acted any principal part in
+the tragedy; though, indeed, it is certain that many of the burgesses and
+inhabitants of Edinburgh, led by curiosity, went to the streets to behold
+the surprising boldness and incredible extravagance of the scene.</p>
+
+<p>Upon the whole, it would seem that the rioters were a body of gentlemen and
+others in disguise, some having masons' aprons, others joiners', fleshers',
+shoemakers', dyers', and those of other trades, who had concerted their
+plot with judgment, conducted it with secresy, executed it with resolution
+and manly daring, and completed the whole in the short space of two hours
+with unparalleled success.</p>
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_C_3" id="Footnote_C_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_C_3"><span class="label">[C]</span></a> The inn or house here referred to is now demolished. It was a
+back house which stood behind Mr Thomas Foggo's shop, through which there
+was a passage or entry to it; and from its concealed and backlying
+situation, it would seem to have been a very likely place for smugglers to
+resort to with their contraband goods. And here it may be remarked, that
+less than 100 years ago, smuggling was very prevalent in the east of Fife;
+almost every merchant and trader in the east coast burghs, and farmers from
+St Andrews all along the southeast coast, were less or more concerned in
+the importation of brandy, gin, teas, silks, and tobacco, &amp;c. The penalties
+at one time were only the forfeiture of the goods seized, and if one
+vessel's cargo escaped out of two or three, it was a profitable trade. The
+measures of Government were then thought to be so stringent and despotic,
+that men of principle, of probity, and integrity in all other respects,
+manifested great obliquity of vision in viewing the traffic in smuggled
+goods, and felt no compunctious visitings in embarking in that trade. In
+the better class of houses in the district, hiding holes and places of
+concealment were always to be found, and some of these places are only now
+being discovered. It is not many years since, that an honest man in
+Pittenweem, while employed in his cellar, fell down into a large
+concealment capable of holding a great many ankers of spirits and boxes of
+tea, of which he previously knew nothing.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_D_4" id="Footnote_D_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_D_4"><span class="label">[D]</span></a> The window referred to is still pointed out. It is that at the
+back of the house on the second storey, and is near the north-east corner
+of the tenement.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_E_5" id="Footnote_E_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_E_5"><span class="label">[E]</span></a> Anstruther House, which stood a little west, on the opposite
+side of the road, to Mr Russell's printing office, was demolished in 1811.
+According to Miss Strickland, Queen Mary passed a night in it; and it is a
+well established fact that King Charles II. lodged a night there in 1651.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_F_6" id="Footnote_F_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_F_6"><span class="label">[F]</span></a> Bailie Johnston's house was that now occupied by Mr William
+Russell, with the brewery behind the same. It was formerly a house of one
+storey, and was rebuilt and heightened on the walls by the late Mr James
+Rodger, or Mr David Rodger his son.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_G_7" id="Footnote_G_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_G_7"><span class="label">[G]</span></a> This was Queen Caroline, who was regent of the kingdom during
+the absence of her husband, George the First, at Hanover.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_H_8" id="Footnote_H_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_H_8"><span class="label">[H]</span></a> The person who did this was a man of the name of Bruce,
+belonging to Anstruther, who returned some time after to the town, and was
+well known to the late Mrs Black, the mother of the late Admiral Black.</p></div>
+</div>
+
+<hr class="hr2" />
+
+<h3><a name="story" id="story"></a>THE STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM.</h3>
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">On</span> the 21st of March, 1743, Captain Richard Dundas, commander of the
+frigate <em>Arethusa</em>, carrying forty-four guns and 250 men, sailed from
+Deptford with that vessel in perfect order and condition, and bound for
+Leith. The ship was one of the finest in the service, and the commander a
+man of great energy and intelligence. Mr Charles Gordon, superintendent of
+his Majesty's dockyard at Deptford, a young officer of distinguished
+ability and exemplary character, was one of the passengers. No incident
+worthy of notice occurred until they reached St Abb's Head, when they were
+overtaken with a strong adverse gale of wind and heavy snow storm, which
+unfortunately drove them from their course, and prevented sight of land for
+a considerable time. The wind continued to increase in violence, but the
+snow ceased falling for a little, when it was discovered that they had been
+driven past the mouth of the Firth of Forth and were now in St Andrews Bay.</p>
+
+<p>They then close-reefed their sails, and made all snug; and Captain Dundas,
+declaring that they should have to encounter a strong south-easter, all
+their efforts were directed to double the headland of Fifeness and the
+dreaded Carr Rock, and get into the Forth; but their utmost endeavours were
+unavailing, so that the best part of a day was spent in tacking and veering
+to, close in with the land, to no purpose.</p>
+
+<p>The sun set angrily, and the wind veering more adversely, to their utter
+dismay, brought them on a lee shore. The storm increased with the night.
+The snow began again to fall, and neither the stars nor the lights of Tay
+or of the Firth could be seen. The sea was lashed into tremendous fury.
+There was a fearful sullen sound of rushing waves and broken surges&mdash;"Deep
+called unto deep." At times the black volume of clouds overhead seemed rent
+asunder by flashes of lightning that quivered along the foaming billows,
+and made the succeeding darkness doubly terrible. The thunders bellowed
+over the wild waste of waters, and were echoed and prolonged by the
+mountain-like waves. As the ship was seen staggering and plunging among
+these roaring caverns, it seemed miraculous that she regained her balance,
+or preserved her buoyancy. Her yards dipped into the water&mdash;her bow was
+buried almost beneath the waves. Sometimes an impending surge appeared
+ready to overwhelm her, and nothing but a dexterous movement of the helm
+preserved her from the shock.</p>
+
+<p>"The impervious horrors of a leeward shore" they were doomed to experience
+during a moonless and starless night. They reduced their sails to a few
+yards of canvass, and lowered their yards on deck. The waves, that rolled
+the vessel with irresistible force, threatened to swallow them up; a
+tremendous sea carried away the boat which was hoisted up at the stern, and
+broke in all the bulkheads of the quarters. For safety of lives and
+property, all hands, after being revived with a glass of rum, began to
+throw overboard the guns. The long-boat was then released from her
+lashings; and, as they wished, the waves soon swept her from the deck. The
+two large anchors were cut from the bows, and the vessel, thus eased of a
+heavy top-load, danced more lightly over the tremendous billows, and
+inspired them with fresh hopes. The crew were all ordered to the after part
+of the deck, and again refreshed with another glass of rum and water.</p>
+
+<p>A little before daylight, the captain, who had been anxiously looking out,
+acquainted the officers, so as not to be heard by the crew, that he saw
+breakers nearly ahead, and had no thought of being able to weather them. Mr
+Gordon coincided in this opinion, to which some one said, "Well, we are all
+born to die; I shall go with regret, but certainly not with fear."</p>
+
+<p>The breakers were soon visible to all the crew, being not more than a
+quarter of a mile distant on the lee bow, when Captain Dundas remarked,
+"Our only chance is to put away a point before the wind, or we are sure to
+go broadside into the surf and perish at once."</p>
+
+<p>A heavy sea now struck the vessel, swept the deck fore and aft, and carried
+overboard five of the crew, who instantly sank to rise no more.</p>
+
+<p>The captain seeing a mighty billow approaching, and viewing nothing but
+death before them, exclaimed, "Lord have mercy upon us," and at that moment
+the vessel rose upon a mountain wave to a tremendous height, from whose
+summit she descended with the velocity of lightning, as if she were going
+to bury herself in the remorseless deep. By this rapid movement she was
+precipitated beyond the reach of the breakers, which now rolled behind her
+stern, and burst in impotence, as if incensed at the loss of their destined
+prey. "We are safe!" exclaimed Captain Dundas; "jump, men, from the yards,
+and make sail." This they did with tumultuous joy, which Mr Gordon checked,
+and said to them, "Whilst you are working silently, thank God for your
+miraculous preservation." The sea upon which the vessel rose was the means
+of her preservation and that of her crew. Probably there was not, if the
+sea had been calm, a depth of two feet water on the Carr Rock, for it was
+that dangerous reef she had passed; but the mighty wave carried her safe
+over at a moment when every hope but that of immortality was gone from the
+minds of the ship's company.<a name="FNanchor_I_9" id="FNanchor_I_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_I_9" class="fnanchor">[I]</a></p>
+
+<p>The tempest having somewhat abated, and the wind veered round to a more
+favourable quarter, the vessel rode more smoothly, and the hour of eight
+being arrived, all hands were enabled to sit up and take coffee for
+breakfast.</p>
+
+<p>For about three hours the ship had been working up the Firth, and had come
+off Anstruther, into which port she entered shortly afterwards, in order
+to undergo a survey, and get all necessary repairs completed in hull and
+rigging; and as the vessel had been seen from the <em>Windmill Tower</em> and the
+<em>Brae</em> all the morning to be in great distress, the eastern pier (for the
+west pier had not then been built) was crowded with spectators to witness
+her arrival.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst others who had gone down the pier was Captain John Cunningham, the
+provost or chief magistrate of the burgh, who, being a sea captain himself,
+deeply sympathised both as a sailor and a man with the officers and crew of
+the <em>Arethusa</em>, on seeing them in such a miserable plight, and proffered to
+afford them all the aid and assistance in his power. He got into
+conversation with Mr Gordon, and found him so intelligent and gentlemanly
+in his manners, that he invited him to his house (which stood in the Shore
+Street, and on the east side of the Pend Wynd, and was that which formerly
+belonged to the late Mr Willis, collector of customs, and is presently
+possessed by Mrs Rodger, Mr Imrie, and others), until the vessel was
+repaired and made ready for sea. Mr Gordon thanked him for his kindness,
+and cordially accepted his hospitable invitation.</p>
+
+<p>Anstruther is a small country town, pleasantly situated on the banks of the
+Forth. It is a favourable specimen of a good old Scottish town. There is an
+old town-hall, and an old burgh school, (lately rebuilt,) an old jail, and
+an old bridge, besides an old church, now completely renewed and repaired,
+and forming, with the steeple, a handsome edifice, situated on the ridge or
+high ground above the town. The manse, a fine old building, placed on the
+summit of the same ridge near the church, was built by James Melville,
+minister of the place in the reign of James VI. It afterwards became the
+property of the Anstruther family, who, it is supposed, presented it to the
+town, or exchanged it for a house in the <em>Pend Wynd</em>, now belonging to Mr
+John Darsie, which was occupied for some time as the manse. At the time of
+which we write, there was a fine old baronial mansion, called "Anstruther
+Place," which stood near the present junction of the Crail and St Andrews
+roads. It belonged to the above-mentioned ancient family, the Anstruthers
+of Anstruther, whose progenitor was a Norman warrior that came to Britain
+with William the Conqueror. It was a mansion as large as Balcaskie,
+surmounted by a tower, and surrounded by fine old ancestral trees. A
+magnificent hall graced its interior, large enough to contain a company of
+volunteers, or local militiamen at drill, within its four corners. In
+addition to these old buildings, which gave a peculiar character to the
+place, there were a good many handsome new houses in the town of
+Anstruther, for it was far from being in a state of decay. Many wealthy and
+intelligent families chose it for their residence. It was the seat of a
+custom-house and excise-office. There was a branch of the Paisley Bank
+established in the town, under the management of a Mr Henry Russell, of the
+customs, and the bank office was kept in that shop now belonging to Mr
+James Reddie, ironmonger.<a name="FNanchor_J_10" id="FNanchor_J_10"></a><a href="#Footnote_J_10" class="fnanchor">[J]</a> There was also a Greenland Whale Fishing
+Company connected with the town, of which a Bailie Johnston was manager.
+The company's place of business was situated in the East Green, and is now
+the property of Mr Robert Todd, and it is still known to old people by the
+name of the Greenland Close. There is, or was lately, an old stone placed
+over the door at the southern entrance into the yard, indicating the
+nature of the manufacture formerly carried on therein.<a name="FNanchor_K_11" id="FNanchor_K_11"></a><a href="#Footnote_K_11" class="fnanchor">[K]</a> And before the
+Reform Bill was passed, Anstruther-Easter joined with the other four
+burghs of the district in sending a member to Parliament. Many thriving
+and respectable trades-people, whose forefathers had resided there for
+generations, and who looked upon the old buildings of their native town
+with something of the same sort of feeling as the landowner surveys the
+oaks which encircle his paternal hall, regarded it with pride and
+veneration. Perhaps no town of its size in Scotland could be named where
+so much good feeling prevailed among all classes. An eminent physician,
+who came to settle in the place, expressed his astonishment at the amount
+of private charity distributed. If a poor man met with any accident, every
+kind assistance was given him by his wealthier neighbours. If a small
+tradesman suffered a loss, or a carter his horse, or a widow's cow died, a
+subscription was set on foot, and the accident often turned out a gain,
+rather than a loss.</p>
+
+<p>The old Castle of Dreel, another ancient seat of the Anstruther family,
+stood on the east side of the Dreel Burn, at its entrance into the sea.
+Several curious traditions are in circulation respecting this old baronial
+residence and its proprietors. The castle has entirely disappeared, and its
+site is now partly occupied by fish-curing premises, and partly by a large
+antiquated tenement called Wightman's house. Some eminent men have been
+born in Anstruther, among whom may be mentioned Drs Chalmers and Tennant,
+and Professor Goodsir.</p>
+
+<p>Such is a brief description of Anstruther at the time of which we write.
+It is unnecessary to give a particular account of it at the present day,
+because its trade and commerce, its fishing, farming, and shipping
+interests&mdash;its new buildings and projected undertakings&mdash;its Sunday
+schools and provident societies, and savings' banks and subscription
+libraries, are familiar to the most of my readers.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Cunningham, the chief magistrate of Anstruther, was a wealthy and
+respectable shipowner, and his family consisted of a son about twenty, and
+a daughter about seventeen years of age, besides some younger children. Mr
+Gordon, their guest, then in his twenty-fifth year, was a light-hearted and
+rising young officer. He was, at first, a little impatient of the delay
+occasioned by the repairs of the vessel, the superintendence of which fell
+to be his duty; but circumstances soon occurred which checked this
+impatience, and more than reconciled him to his present quarters.</p>
+
+<p>As Christina Cunningham is destined to occupy no unimportant position in
+this narrative, some description of her will therefore be necessary.</p>
+
+<p>Let us endeavour to draw her portrait.</p>
+
+<p>She was not only beautiful, but full of life and animation, her smiling
+face being the true index of a cheerful, happy disposition. Gentle,
+amiable, affectionate, good-natured, she was beloved by all who knew her;
+although, from a maidenly modesty and a natural reserve, she was really
+known by few. With the figure of a sylph, and the face of a Hebe, she had
+luxuriant hair of the darkest possible chestnut, wreathed generally in
+thick cable plaits round her beautifully-shaped head, which, owing to the
+fashion of that day, as well as of the present, of wearing the bonnets on
+the shoulders, enabled her well-formed head to be seen to the greatest
+advantage. In the delicate outline of her faultless features, there was a
+harmony that made of her whole face a concerted loveliness of form, colour,
+and expression, that was irresistible. Hackneyed as the simile is, her skin
+was literally like snow, upon which blush rose-leaves seemed to have
+fallen. Her long-cut oriental-looking eyes, were "deeply, darkly,
+beautifully blue," while their heavy, snowy lids were fringed with long
+black silken lashes, that seemed to be continually trying to salute her
+cheeks, for which no one could possibly blame them. Her nose was, to say
+the least, irreproachable. Then came the rich red pouting under, and the
+short chisselled upper lip; the beautiful pearly arched teeth within them;
+the little round velvety chin, and the perfectly oval peach-like cheeks. In
+short, so pretty a creature was seldom to be seen.</p>
+
+<p>But Miss Cunningham was something <em>more</em> than beautiful, she was amiable,
+and gentle, and affectionate; and besides, she was a Christian in the full
+and true sense of the word; and, young as she was, she had learned to look
+upon herself as a sinner, however innocent and pure she might appear in the
+eyes of men. While enjoying the blessings of health, peace, and competence,
+that providence had poured upon her, she looked upon them all as undeserved
+mercies, marks and tokens of her heavenly Father's love&mdash;a love manifested
+in man's redemption, in a way surpassing all understanding. Where on earth
+can there be found a more lovely character than that in which are blended
+true religion and natural amiability, rectitude of conduct, and tenderness
+of disposition?</p>
+
+<p>Residing under the same roof with Miss Cunningham, who can wonder that,
+before many weeks had elapsed, Mr Gordon was as devoted to Captain
+Cunningham's daughter as any young and ardent lover could be. Miss
+Cunningham was not conscious of any deeper feeling than that of
+affectionate friendship, nor was it till some time after that her heart
+told her, that Charles Gordon occupied a place in her affections, which
+could be held by one, and by one only.</p>
+
+<p>Several weeks had passed away, the repairs of the <em>Arethusa</em> had been
+nearly completed, and the time was fast approaching when Charles Gordon
+would be obliged to depart from Anstruther. It happened, however, that a
+day or two previously to his leaving, a party of pleasure was planned for
+visiting Kellie Law, near Carnbee, and Macduff's Cave, near Earlsferry. The
+party consisted of Mr John Cunningham, junior, and his sister, and Mr
+Gordon and Miss Anderson, the daughter of an opulent merchant in the town.
+A vehicle having been hired for the occasion, a drive of about an hour
+brought the excursionists to Kellie Law. Having put up the horse and
+equipage at Gillingshill, and partaken of the hospitality of the occupants,
+they ascended this beautiful conical eminence, which is 800 feet above the
+level of the sea, and about four miles distant from it, and rises from the
+ridge running eastward from Largo Law. From the summit of Kellie Law, on
+which there is a large cairn of stones, one of the most magnificent views
+in Scotland is obtained. Immediately below, to the south, is a rich and
+beautiful stretch of country, all enclosed and highly cultivated; an
+extensive range of sea-coast, studded with numerous little towns and
+villages; the ample bosom of the Firth of Forth, enlivened with shipping
+and fishing-boats; and in the extreme distance, the coast of the Lothians,
+from St Abb's Head to Edinburgh. Near the south base of this hill stands
+Kellie Castle, a fine baronial seat of the Earls of Kellie, surrounded by
+old trees, and containing some princely apartments. Sir Thomas Erskine of
+Gogar was one of those who rescued James VI. from the attempt of the Earl
+of Gowrie to assassinate him at Perth in 1600, and killed the earl's
+brother with his own hand. He was created Viscount Fenton in 1606, and Earl
+of Kellie in 1619. The earldom merged into that of Marr on the death of
+Methven, tenth Earl of Kellie, who was great-grand-uncle to Sir Thomas
+Erskine of Cambo, the present baronet. It is said these earldoms may, and
+probably will, be again disjoined, and the titles and honours of Marr and
+Kellie inherited by two distinct noblemen.</p>
+
+<p>After enjoying the splendid prospect from Kellie Law, the party set off for
+Elie, on their way to view the caves in Kincraig Hill. The drive between
+Gillingshill and Elie is delightful. The turnpike road passes in some
+places through a long line of tall trees, arching high overhead, and
+showing, at the termination, picturesque vistas. It skirts Kilconquhar
+Loch, and affords not very distant views of Charlton and Balcarres,
+Colinsburgh and Cairnie House; and passing through Kilconquhar, the
+beautiful church of the parish and manse (which do credit to the heritors)
+are close by. The noble mansions of Elie and Kilconquhar, in the immediate
+neighbourhood, are also seen, surrounded with fine old trees, and standing
+in a rich and fertile district.</p>
+
+<p>On arriving at Elie, the party gave the horse and vehicle in charge of the
+hostler, and set out on foot for Kincraig. Immediately from the beach, at
+the south-west end of the parish, Kincraig Hill rises to the height of
+about two hundred feet above the level of the sea. Its southern front
+presents a nearly perpendicular rugged wall of trap rock, of the most
+picturesque appearance, and in these rocks are several caves, called
+Macduff's Cave, the Hall Cave, and the Devil's Cave. There is a tradition
+that Macduff, the Maormar or Earl of Fife, in his flight from the vengeance
+of Macbeth, was concealed in the cave which still bears his name, and was
+afterwards ferried across the Firth to Dunbar by the fishermen of the
+place, from which circumstance it was called "Earlsferry;" and, besides
+being constituted a royal burgh by Malcolm III, about 1057, it obtained the
+privilege, that the persons of all, in flight, who should cross the Firth
+from thence, should be for a time inviolable&mdash;no boat being allowed to
+leave the shore in pursuit, till those who were pursued were half-seas
+over.</p>
+
+<p>The party now resolved that they should partake of luncheon on the
+greensward, to fortify themselves for their proposed expedition among the
+cliffs. While the viands were being produced, Mr Gordon set forth of
+himself in quest of a very rare plant, which he was informed grew in this
+locality.</p>
+
+<p>On observing a group of persons gazing anxiously upwards at the overhanging
+cliffs, he joined them, inquiring on what their attention was so earnestly
+fixed. The persons addressed spoke not, but pointed to a spot about half-way
+up the face of the rock. Mr Gordon looked in the direction indicated, when,
+to his horror, he beheld a boy, apparently of about fifteen years of age,
+climbing along a stony ledge, which was so narrow as to be hardly visible
+from the spot where the group of terrified beholders was stationed.
+Scarcely had there been time for Mr Gordon to fix his eye on the human form
+that had reached so perilous a position, when a portion of the ledge of
+rock on which the unhappy boy was standing gave way&mdash;a loud scream rent the
+air, echoing through the cliffs&mdash;and in another instant all that remained
+of him was a lifeless, mangled corpse. The poor fellow's story is soon
+told. He was an idiot, and having wandered from his mother's side, had
+reached the fatal spot, no one knew how, and thus met a fearful death.</p>
+
+<p>His poor mother witnessed the dreadful catastrophe, and agonizing was her
+grief as she followed the body of her child, which was borne on the
+shoulders of the awe-struck villagers to her home. Mr Gordon also followed
+the body to the house, and, feeling that at such a time any attempt at
+comforting the childless widow would be of no avail, he merely placed a sum
+of money in the hands of a respectable-looking person, a bystander, for her
+use, and slowly and sick at heart he was in the act of returning to his
+friends, when he met Christina Cunningham, who was in search of him, for
+the purpose of bringing him back to luncheon. She saw that he was deadly
+pale, and hurriedly asked if he felt ill. He told her all that had
+happened.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" she exclaimed, "if it had been <em>you</em>!"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Miss Cunningham," he replied, carelessly, "and if it had, few would
+have missed me. I should probably have had fewer mourners than that poor
+idiot boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, how can you say so?" she returned, and bending down her head, became
+visibly agitated. And yet poor Christina knew not, even now, that she loved
+Charles Gordon: she understood not the true cause of the beatings of her
+disturbed heart. He looked at her. As he looked, a momentary smile passed
+over his features, which was soon exchanged for an expression of deep
+sorrow, as he thought of the lonely widow, bending over the lifeless form
+of her lost son. The sad story was related to the rest of the party, and
+all cheerfulness for the time was at an end.</p>
+
+<p>This was destined to be an eventful day. Another calamity&mdash;and one that,
+although it was not attended with fatal results, affected Charles more than
+that which had occurred&mdash;was yet to take place. We have said that there
+were some remarkable caves at this place, which had long been objects of
+interest to the traveller and excursionist. One there is in particular,
+called the Devil's Cave, which penetrates far into the heart of the rock,
+on the face of which lies its entrance. From the steepness of the path
+which leads into this cavern, it is rarely visited by tourists. The party,
+however, with perhaps more curiosity than prudence, determined to explore
+and visit this cave. A female guide was procured, and a candle supplied to
+each person. All being ready, in single file they entered the mouth of the
+cavern, carefully groping their way, not without difficulty. Miss Anderson
+soon lost courage, and turned back, stating that she and Mr Cunningham
+would return to the inn at Elie, and prepare tea; the other two resolved to
+proceed along with the guide. The aperture through which they had to pass
+became at length so low, and so narrow, that a consultation was held, and
+it was agreed that it would be prudent to return. Charles now led the way
+as they retraced their steps. He had not proceeded far when he heard a
+heavy fall, and turning quickly round, beheld, to his horror, Christina
+stretched upon the humid soil of the cavern; her eyes were closed, and her
+candle had fallen from her hand. Whether bad air had struck her down or
+not, he could not tell. For an instant he believed her to be dead, but,
+bending over her, he perceived that she breathed. What was now to be done?
+Only one plan lay before him which he could adopt. Giving his candle to the
+guide, and directing her to keep in front of him, holding the light so as
+he could see, he raised Miss Cunningham in his arms, and with all the
+strength he was master of, bore her along in the direction of the entrance.
+The roof of the cave was so low, that it was impossible to maintain an
+upright position, and his strength so entirely failed him that he was
+obliged to stop and take a rest before he could proceed with his precious
+burden. On reaching the mouth or entrance of the now detested cave, signs
+of returning consciousness began to appear in the poor sufferer. On
+breathing the fresh air of heaven, she opened her eyes for a moment, then
+closed them again, drawing several long and apparently painful
+respirations. Charles placed her on a grassy bank, and seating himself
+beside her, supported her by placing his arm round her waist. The guide was
+despatched for water. By and by, Christina, looking round, said with her
+own sweet smile, "I am better now." Charles pressed the form of her whom he
+already loved so well, to himself, and then assisting her to rise, with
+slow and measured steps they returned to Elie.</p>
+
+<p>"You are very tired, I fear, and I am the cause," said Christina, as she
+leaned on Charles's arm, turning her face to his.</p>
+
+<p>For a moment their eyes met, those of Christina fell, while a shade of
+colour tinged her still pallid face. She had met a look in Charles's face
+that she had never seen there before. She again relapsed into silence.</p>
+
+<p>Charles, in reply to her remark, uttered something that was inaudible; the
+name of "Christina," however, was substituted for that of "Miss
+Cunningham."</p>
+
+<p>Any endeavour to conceal what had occurred would have been useless. The
+pale face of the sufferer plainly told that she had been ill, and general
+was the consternation of all on hearing what had happened. Charles resigned
+her to the care of Miss Anderson and the hostess, and, passing to the
+little parlour of the village inn, flung himself on the sofa in a state of
+complete exhaustion.</p>
+
+<p>Long he remained buried in thought. At length his good nature and
+compassion prompted him to visit once more the poor, childless widow, while
+preparations were being made for their return to Anstruther. She was alone
+with the body of her idiot son. Carefully had she cleansed away the blood
+and dust from his face, which now appeared to exhibit more intelligence in
+death than it had done in life.</p>
+
+<p>As Charles entered, the poor Irish widow exclaimed,&mdash;"May the blessing of
+the Great God, who is above us this day, be about ye, and wid ye for ever
+and ever, my jewel young gentleman!" She held in her hand the money that he
+had left for her, and added, "Sure isn't there enough here for the poor
+lone widow, to buy her darlint son a dacent coffin for to lay him in the
+could earth, in the land of the stranger, before she goes far, far away, to
+a land beyant the rowling say (referring to America). You've given me money
+when I wanted it sore, an' the blessin' of the lone widow woman will be wid
+you wherever ye go; but none can give me back my boy! Oh, Patrick, jewel!
+why did ye die? Och, my poor boy! my poor boy! my poor boy!"</p>
+
+<p>The tears came into Charles's eyes as he listened to this pathetic
+lamentation, but longer he could not remain. He succeeded, however, in
+learning that she had resolved to accede to a proposal of her sister's, to
+join her in America, which his gift had provided her with the means of
+accomplishing.</p>
+
+<p>The drive to Anstruther was speedily made out, and in few days Miss
+Cunningham was quite restored to her usual state of health and enjoyment.</p>
+
+<p>Time rolled on. The <em>Arethusa</em> has sailed. Mr Gordon has returned to
+Deptford, and resumed his ordinary duties. Has all intercourse ceased
+between him and Miss Cunningham? Assuredly not. Many a kind letter has
+passed between them. She has been to England visiting his sister, at that
+sister's kind invitation, and is come back to Anstruther. Charles has
+proposed to her, and been accepted, and has obtained a special licence for
+their marriage. He comes back to Anstruther to claim his bride.</p>
+
+<p>If you, my reader, were at this moment greedily perusing a modern novel,
+you would here be gratified by a very romantic and touching account, three
+or four pages long at least, of the meeting of the two ardent lovers after
+a long separation; smiles and tears, sighs and sobs, broken accents,
+protestations of eternal love and fidelity, and all that sort of thing.
+Here you will find nothing of the kind. I very much doubt myself as to
+whether anything of the kind took place in this instance at all; I rather
+imagine the meeting was a calm and quietly happy one, without anything
+strikingly romantic or stage-like about it. But even suppose there had
+been, and that I had been present to see, (which, by the by, would have
+been an awkward enough situation for me, or any other third party, to have
+found himself in) ought we to have disclosed it? Certainly not; such a
+scene, every one knows, ought to be strictly private and confidential
+Suffice it then to say, that doubtless both, parties found themselves
+extremely comfortable and happy.</p>
+
+<p>Let me now convey you, in thought, backwards one hundred and fourteen
+years, and place you in the street of Pittenweem, opposite the Scottish
+Episcopal Chapel. We see a crowd; let us inquire what is the occasion of
+it.</p>
+
+<p>"What is this crowd collecting for, so early this morning?"</p>
+
+<p>"There's going to be a wedding, ma'am."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know whose wedding it is?"</p>
+
+<p>"No ma'am, I don't; I'm only here to keep order&mdash;nothing else to do with
+it."</p>
+
+<p>It is some time since we have seen a wedding, suppose we go into church.
+Here we are. We shall have a nice view of them from that front pew in the
+gallery. How tastefully the chapel is decorated with foliage and flowers!
+Make haste! I hear the carriages coming, that will do. Wait! here they
+come, only fancy, it's Christina Cunningham, and&mdash;Who? Charles Gordon, I
+declare. How nicely he looks in his naval uniform. Then the reports were
+all true. Poor Christina! she's very much agitated. I suppose being married
+must be rather nervous work. The clergyman who is marrying them is a
+relation of the bridegroom's&mdash;he's rector of a large parish near
+Deptford&mdash;how beautifully he reads. And there is our dear old clergyman, Mr
+Spence, assisting him, how happy he looks. They say he has known the bride
+since she was an infant, and the bridegroom for some time. There!&mdash;she's no
+longer Christina Cunningham! I wonder where they are going to after
+breakfast? Blessings on them both!</p>
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noi"><a name="Footnote_I_9" id="Footnote_I_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_I_9"><span class="label">[I]</span></a> On account of the many accidents which happen almost yearly at
+the Carr Rock, some plan for marking its dangerous locality has long been
+an object of deep solicitude. The writer recollects of a round tower of
+some height having been built on the rock, on the same principle as that on
+the Bell Rock, but it was soon overthrown by the first winter's storm,
+because there was not a sufficient surface of rock at the base to admit of
+a strong enough building being placed upon it. But might not an erection be
+made of strong bars of iron, and a large bell placed on its summit, with an
+iron cylinder in the centre, perforated with holes to admit the sea water?
+Within the cylinder let a powerful floater be placed, which by the
+perpetual action of the tides' ebb and flow, would cause the bell to ring,
+and so give timeous warning of danger near. Or, another method might be
+adopted, viz., Let a steady officer be stationed at Fifeness, whose duty it
+should be to fire a gun, say a six or eight-pounder, at short intervals in
+snow storms, or in thick and foggy weather, when neither the land during
+the day, nor the stars or lights at night, can be seen. In either way the
+expense would be trifling, and the benefit might be great. Captains of
+steamers and of other vessels enveloped in the fog would then, on hearing
+the sound of the bell or gun, know where they were, and would take their
+bearings from Fifeness accordingly.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noi"><a name="Footnote_J_10" id="Footnote_J_10"></a><a href="#FNanchor_J_10"><span class="label">[J]</span></a> The principles of banking seem to have been imperfectly
+understood in our fathers' days, for it appears that, at the Anstruther
+branch, there was a certain fixed sum <em>per month</em> allotted for bills to be
+discounted. When that sum was exhausted, it mattered not what further sum
+was wanted, there were no more discounts allowed that month. It followed,
+that the most <em>needy</em> were always, at the beginning of the month, the
+<em>earliest</em> customers, and, consequently, post-due bills became the rule,
+retired bills the exception. Under these circumstances, it is not difficult
+to foresee what would be the result. The bank was closed at no distant
+period, and the agent, it is said, lost L1500 of his own money. No other
+banking company attempted to establish a bank in Anstruther till May 1832,
+when the National Bank of Scotland opened a branch under the management of
+Mr F. Conolly, town-clerk, which he conducted successfully for twenty-five
+years. A handsome new building has lately been erected for the use of this
+bank. Two other branch banks have been opened in the town.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p class="noi"><a name="Footnote_K_11" id="Footnote_K_11"></a><a href="#FNanchor_K_11"><span class="label">[K]</span></a> There were two vessels belonging to the company, one named the
+<em>Hawk</em>, and the other the <em>Rising Sun</em>. The <em>Hawk</em> was lost on her first
+voyage, and Bailie Meldrum&mdash;some time chief magistrate of
+Anstruther-Wester&mdash;one of the crew, lost the toes of both his feet by
+frost-bite. The undertaking did not prove a successful one; the company was
+dissolved; and the premises, which were sold to the late John Miller,
+senior, shipowner in Anstruther, afterwards became, as I said, the property
+of Mr Todd.</p></div>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="legend" id="legend"></a>A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR.</h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">It</span> was a beautiful evening in the month of September&mdash;the air still and
+serene, forming a delightful change from the sultry heat of the day, which
+had been oppressive in the extreme. Nature seemed to have redoubled her
+energies; the swallows twittered cheerfully over the small pond; the bees
+returned laden with the rich fruits of their industry, humming their
+satisfaction; the heath sent its fragrance around; and the few sheep that
+Simon Wallace attended were nibbling earnestly the stunted grass, having
+spent the greater part of the day in the shade of a small knoll, listless
+from the heat which oppressed them. In the midst stood Simon, enjoying the
+scene around him, which, barren and desolate as it might be in the eyes of
+a stranger, was to him the loveliest spot in the universe; nor would he
+have bade it farewell to dwell in the most fertile vale in the Lothians.
+Here he had been born sixty summers before, and here he had enjoyed as much
+of happiness as falls to the lot of man. Humble and content, his wishes
+were bounded by the few acres of moss land that his fathers had reclaimed
+from the waste, and his knowledge of the busy world that lay beyond the
+hills that bounded the horizon around his humble cottage, was derived from
+a few books. Farther than the next market-town, Mid-Calder, he had never
+been, save upon one occasion&mdash;an important epoch in his life&mdash;when, upon
+some business of importance, concerning his lease, he had visited the
+capital, the wonders of which had been a never-failing subject of discourse
+at his humble hearth; yet, Simon was not ignorant, for he made good profit
+of the few books he could procure; and there was one&mdash;the fountain of all
+knowledge&mdash;he knew so well, that even Esdras, the holy scribe, could
+scarcely have found him at fault, in pointing out all the most beautiful of
+the inspired passages. His constant companion, he had been reading it on
+the hill for the last hour, and now, before retiring to his home for the
+night, he stood there in mental prayer, his face turned to the setting sun,
+which sunk beyond a sea of clouds, tinged with the most gorgeous colours,
+and his mind away among the bright realms of eternal felicity. A faint
+breeze had arisen, and the heavy clouds began to sail along, denoting rain,
+when he gave his orders to his faithful dog, to gather his sheep for the
+night, and urged him to be active, to enable him to proceed home before the
+shower came on. Looking along in the direction of the road that led through
+the moor, he thought he could perceive, at a considerable distance, three
+objects, urging their way forward; and, through the gloom, he with
+difficulty made them out to be a man and two females upon horseback. A
+feeling of surprise crossed his mind, as he saw travellers journeying over
+the moor, at a period when it was not usual, except upon urgent business,
+to leave Mid-Calder at a late hour, and proceed along roads almost
+impassable, with no other prospect than a night journey, in dangerous and
+troubled times. Musing on the circumstance, he had just reached the road on
+his way to his cottage, when the travellers came up and accosted him with
+an inquiry if they could find shelter for the night, as they had been
+overtaken by the storm, and one of the females had been taken suddenly ill
+since they had left the last town. With an apology for the poorness of his
+accommodation, Simon made them welcome to his home, and led the way
+homewards. Neither of the females spoke; but he thought he heard one of
+them utter, at intervals, a stifled groan, while the other supported her on
+her saddle, and the male led her horse over the rough path to prevent its
+stumbling. A few minutes brought them to the house, and they were soon
+seated by the blazing hearth, while Helen Wallace was busy preparing for
+them some humble refreshments; but the lady continued to become worse&mdash;she
+had been taken in labour, prematurely, as the female said, from the fatigue
+of travelling. She appeared to be of a rank far above her companions, who
+treated her with lowly attentions; but there was something harsh and
+forbidding in the manner and appearance of the man, which made Helen quail,
+and feel uneasy in his presence; and the female, who was above the middle
+age, and of a masculine appearance, had a harshness of voice and manner,
+that was disagreeable, even to the rustic wife of the moorland farmer. The
+young and beautiful female they attended&mdash;apparently not above eighteen,
+pale and dejected, her eyes red and swollen with weeping&mdash;had not, as yet,
+uttered a single word; but, apparently fearful of her attendants,
+especially the female, who sat close by her at the fire, had cast several
+stolen and imploring glances at Helen, and seemed anxious to speak, but
+afraid to give utterance to her thoughts.</p>
+
+<p>The lady rapidly grew worse, and was put into their only spare bed, while
+Helen requested her husband to take one of the horses and ride to the town
+for assistance. This the man promptly forbade&mdash;saying, that the other
+attendant, a skilful woman, was capable of doing all that was required at
+such a time, with the assistance of the farmer's wife; that they were on
+their way to the residence of his master when the present unfortunate
+illness had occurred much sooner than was expected; that he had in the
+<em>valise</em> with him everything requisite; and that for any trouble the farmer
+or his wife might be put to, they should be amply rewarded. The cottage
+consisted of only one apartment, divided by a hallen or thin partition,
+which did not extend beyond the centre of the floor, to protect the
+fire-place from the blasts of winter; and Simon and the stranger retired to
+a small distance from the door, where they stood and saw the full moon
+rising in grandeur in the east. In vain the farmer endeavoured to gain any
+information from his companion of who the strangers were, and whither they
+were going. He got only an evasive answer. His position was extraordinary
+and uncomfortable. Three hours had passed: no person appeared from the
+house; his unsocial acquaintance scarcely spoke; a scowl in his eye, and a
+shade of ferocity in his countenance, alarmed him; his whole soul,
+sometimes intent upon some signal from the cottage, at other periods became
+absent; and he clutched at the sword that hung by his side, as if he meant
+to draw it and attack the farmer, endeavouring again, in a husky voice, to
+make an apology for the inconvenience they had put him to. At length Helen
+came to the door, and requested them to come into the house, for the lady
+was now better.</p>
+
+<p>"What has she got?" inquired Simon.</p>
+
+<p>"Two beautiful boys as ever I saw," answered the wife; "&mdash;but one of them
+is dead, and the mother is very weak."</p>
+
+<p>While this and some other conversation passed between the farmer and his
+wife, the man and the woman were busy whispering at the other end of the
+house; but they at length approached the hearth and partook of some
+refreshment which had been prepared for them. The farmer offered the
+female, for the remainder of the night, the use of their only other bed;
+but both the man and the woman objected to this proposition&mdash;saying, that
+they preferred to sit by the hearth and attend to their mistress, and
+requesting that their hosts should retire to it themselves. This they did,
+and soon both fell into a sound sleep. Helen awoke about two hours
+afterwards, and, to her astonishment, found that neither of the two
+attendants was in the cottage. She arose and went to the bed of the sick
+lady, who lay apparently in a deep and troubled sleep, with the babe in her
+bosom. She looked for the body of its brother; but it was gone. She felt
+alarmed, and gently awaking Simon, in a whisper told him to arise. He was
+soon dressed, and, on going out, found that the strangers were gone, the
+horses were away, and with them everything that had been brought, even to
+the dress the lady had worn upon her arrival. In great anxiety they
+approached the bed: the lady still appeared in a deep sleep; her breathing
+was heavy and laborious, every attempt to awaken her was in vain; her eyes
+were opened and closed unconsciously, and without a word of utterance.</p>
+
+<p>"Surely," said Helen, with clasped hands, "that woman hasna poisoned the
+puir young creature wi' that mixture she requested me to gie her just
+before I ca'ed you into the house. She said it was to compose her to sleep.
+She had offered it to the lady hersel, who, being afraid o' her, wadna
+taste it. Then she gave me the cup, and I offered it. O Simon! what a
+piteous look she threw upon me, as she said, 'From you I will take
+anything; you, I know, will not do me harm'&mdash;and she drank it from my
+hands. Surely, surely, I am not guilty of her blood, if death was in that
+cup!"</p>
+
+<p>Here the poor woman sank upon the side of the bed in a passion of tears,
+while Simon stood the image of horror, gazing alternately upon his wife and
+the unconscious lady in the bed. Sinking upon his knees, he prayed for
+counsel in this hour of distress, and his mind became more calm and
+collected.</p>
+
+<p>"Helen," said he, "you will not be afraid to stay by the poor young
+creature, while I go and catch Mally, and ride as fast as she can carry me
+to the manse, and bring the minister, who is a skilful man, and who,
+perhaps, may be able to do something for the sufferer; at least, he will
+advise us what is best for us to do in this hour of need."</p>
+
+<p>"I will, indeed, be eerie," answered Helen&mdash;"very eerie; but do mak all the
+haste ye can, and I will tent baith mother and bairn until ye return."</p>
+
+<p>In a very short time, the farmer was on his way to the manse, and soon,
+along with the minister, on his return to his cottage; but, before they
+arrived, the victim had breathed her last sigh.</p>
+
+<p>Helen was at the door, weeping and wringing her hands. She blamed herself
+as being the cause of the young mother's death; nor was it until after the
+minister had prayed, and assured her that no guilt could attach to her,
+that she became composed. On his way to the cottage, the farmer had
+informed him of every circumstance, as far as it had happened under his own
+eye:&mdash;That the young lady had been very ill; that the female appeared
+expert at her duty, and kept Helen as much at a distance from her patient
+as she could; that the young creature wished her much to be near her, as if
+she had something to communicate; but the attendant always told her, in a
+harsh manner, that it was improper for her to speak, and found always some
+excuse to send her from the bedside; that the lady appeared to be in great
+awe of her; and that the first boy, the one that was alive, Helen kept at
+the hearth until the other came; that she heard it cry once, and inquired
+what it was, when the assistant said it was also a boy, but dead, and she
+threw it from her upon the bed; that, after a time, she took a vial from
+her pocket, and poured it into a cup, requesting the lady to drink it, as
+it was a composing draught, but she put it away from her; and that the poor
+murdered creature was persuaded by Helen to accept it at her hands.</p>
+
+<p>The minister having drawn up a circumstantial detail of all the
+circumstances narrated, bade the sorrowing couple adieu, and departed, to
+send one of his maids to assist Helen, and to stay with her through the
+day. He vowed to make the horrid transaction as public as possible, in
+hopes of discovering the two wretches and their employer, and promised to
+call in the evening, and direct what was further to be done. He rode direct
+to Mid-Calder; and, on inquiry at the hostelry, if any such travellers had
+been there the day before, found that they had passed through the town,
+only stopping to bait their horses, and no particular attention had been
+paid to them by the landlord of the house. Here his inquiries necessarily
+terminated. In the meantime, Helen and her assistant had been employed
+laying out the corpse of the murdered woman, and tending the orphan boy.
+Tied by a silken cord, a curious gold ring, of massive workmanship, was
+suspended from her neck, and lay resting upon her bosom.</p>
+
+<p>"A true love-gift," ejaculated Helen, "an exchange o' plighted faiths.
+Dearly had you loved the giver, for, even in sore distress and death it lay
+upon thy bosom. Cruelly has your love been requited; but rest in
+peace&mdash;your sorrows are past. I will keep this for your babe, and, as soon
+as he can speak, I will tell him where I found it. I fear it will be a' I
+will ever be able to inform him of either father or mother." She then
+placed the ring in her own bosom, until she could shew it to her husband;
+renewed her offices to the dead; took the babe in her lap, and, weeping
+over it, resolved, as she thought of its desolate state, without a relation
+in the world, that, so long as she had life, she would be a parent to
+it&mdash;for death had been a spoiler in her own family of three sons, all of
+whom it had been her misfortune to bury.</p>
+
+<p>The minister arrived again in the evening. They shewed him the ring, and
+told where it had been found. He examined it closely; but there were
+neither armorial bearings nor cypher upon it, to lead even to a guess of
+the person to whom it had belonged&mdash;yet the make and chasing were peculiar,
+and might lead a person who had once examined it to remember it. The mother
+was interred; the babe baptized by the name of William, put out to nurse;
+and the usual routine of the cottage once more restored. The boy grew up
+under the roof of his kind protectors. To his education the minister paid
+particular attention, and was proud of his pupil&mdash;for William Wallace, as
+he was called, did honour to the labour bestowed upon him. He was quick to
+learn, yet his mind was not given to literary pursuits&mdash;for he delighted in
+feats of strife, and dwelt with rapture on the feats of the warrior. Sir
+William Wallace was the hero of his youthful imagination&mdash;and he longed to
+be of man's stature, only that he might be a soldier. Thus years rolled on.
+William was now eighteen years of age; the labour of the farm, in which he
+engaged, was irksome to him; yet he restrained his inclinations, and toiled
+on for his benefactors, who had both become so frail that they required his
+aid. By the time he arrived at his twentieth year, his foster parents died
+within a few months of each other, and left him possessor of their little
+wealth. When spring returned, he made known to his benefactor, the
+minister, his resolution of leaving the moor and going into the busy world.
+The stock was turned into cash, and William, bidding a long adieu to the
+scenes of his youth, set off for the capital, accompanied by the prayers of
+the good man for his success. Since the death of his protectors he had worn
+his mother's ring, and he had a vague hope that it might, by some way or
+other, lead to a discovery of his parents, and enable him to avenge her
+murder. All the mild lessons of his teacher upon this point had been vain.
+His mind dwelt with a gloomy satisfaction upon a just retribution. At times
+his feelings rose to agony&mdash;the idea that the guilty individual might be
+his own parent, often flashed across his mind and made him love his
+ignorance; but, nature prevailing, his wonted desire recurred again, and,
+musing thus, he rode on towards Edinburgh, now with the reins resting upon
+his horse's neck; and then, when urged by his troubled mind, urging forward
+his steed. He stopped at the borders of the moor, and turned towards the
+scenes so dear to him, where he had passed what of his life had gone by in
+innocence and peace. For the first time, he felt alone in the world; and a
+few involuntary tears fell from his eyes&mdash;a token of regret due to the
+memory of departed worth, and a pleasing recollection of scenes endeared to
+him by many tender associations. Thus in pensive meditation he rode on,
+undetermined as to his future mode of life. Prior to his setting out,
+everything had appeared to his imagination of easy execution; but now he
+began to encounter difficulties he had never dreamed of before; and the
+sight of Edinburgh, which he reached before nightfall, did not diminish
+them. The vastness of the city overpowered him; the stateliness of the
+buildings appeared to him the work of giants; and he almost shrank from
+entering it, through a feeling of his own littleness. In his approach, his
+eyes had been constantly fixed upon the buildings of the Castle, perched
+high above the town, and crowning the almost circular, bold, and craggy
+rocks on which it stands. Along the line of houses to the east, that
+stretched farther than his eye could trace, the setting sun threw his
+departing rays, and innumerable windows glanced like burnished gold; while
+the diadem-shaped spire of St Giles', towering above all, in the centre,
+seemed to proclaim her the queen of cities. With all the impatience of
+youth, he urged on his horse, expecting to see all the inhabitants of so
+fair a place themselves fair. But scarce had he entered the West-Port gate,
+when his feelings were shocked to witness, on every side, squalid misery
+and wretchedness, and every token of poverty and vice. He put up for the
+night at one of the many inns of the Grassmarket; and, revolving in his
+mind what he had already seen, retired to bed.</p>
+
+<p>Early next morning, he arose, dressed, and sallied forth to gratify his
+curiosity; but, with no one to whom he could communicate the feelings that
+every new object awakened, he felt solitary among the surrounding crowds.
+On the second day after his arrival, as he walked in the Meadows, he
+observed among the crowd of well-dressed pedestrians that thronged the
+walks, an elderly gentleman, who eyed him with marked attention. William's
+curiosity was excited, and he threw himself again in his way. The old
+gentleman bowed.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg pardon," said he&mdash;"may I be so bold as to request your name?&mdash;for I
+feel as if you and I had not now met for the first time. Yet it cannot be;
+for it is now above twenty years since that time, and you do not appear to
+be more than that time old."</p>
+
+<p>"My name is William Wallace," answered William, with a beating heart. "I
+never had the honour to see you until to-day."</p>
+
+<p>"Wallace? Wallace?" said the old gentleman, musing. "No&mdash;-my friend's name
+was not Wallace; we were both of Monro's regiment&mdash;his name was Seaton; but
+the likeness was so strong that you must excuse me for addressing you."</p>
+
+<p>William's heart sank&mdash;he remained silent for a few minutes&mdash;his face was
+alternately flushed and pale&mdash;a new train of ideas crowded upon his
+mind&mdash;he wished to speak, but he could not find utterance&mdash;wiped his
+forehead with his handkerchief, and went through the other forms of
+confusion and bashfulness. His new acquaintance looked upon him, much
+surprised at his emotion; and, with an energy bordering on violence, seized
+his hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Young man," said he, "that ring was once the property of my friend: how
+came you by it? He valued it above all things, nor would he have parted
+with it but with life. At this moment, I almost think the last long twenty
+years of my life a dream, and that I am still a captain in Monro's
+regiment. You must come and dine with me, and explain how this came into
+your possession."</p>
+
+<p>"With pleasure," replied William. "It is a sad account, I have to give, and
+I am most impatient to learn something of its possessor. Alas! I fear I
+must feel too great an interest in him."</p>
+
+<p>"The early friend I allude to," replied the old man, "was an honour to his
+country. A braver or more generous heart, no officer in the army possessed.
+This you will acknowledge when I have told you all. Alas! poor Seaton!
+shall I ever see you again?"</p>
+
+<p>Thus conversing, they reached the house of Colonel Gordon, one of the
+principal flats of a house in the High Street. After they had dined,
+William gave a distinct account of his birth and the death of his mother,
+and a modest outline of himself. His hearer listened to him with the
+greatest interest, only interrupting him at the account of his mother's
+death by an exclamation of horror.</p>
+
+<p>"Henry Seaton," he cried, "had no hand in this, I could pledge my head for
+him. I am strongly impressed, young man, with the idea, that my friend has
+been cruelly injured, and his generous heart wounded past recovery by this
+deed of darkness. Savage monsters! worse than demons! would to God I had
+you in my power!" And he walked about the room in a state of violent
+excitement. "William," said he again, "I have no doubt you are the son of
+Henry Seaton, my more than brother; and, so far as is in my power, I shall
+assist you in the discovery of your parents, and avenge the murder of your
+mother. I shall now give you my story:&mdash;I was an ensign in Munro's regiment
+of Scots, serving in Flanders, when your father (for I have no doubt that
+he was such) joined us, early in the spring of the year 1706, a short time
+before the battle of Ramilies. We were both of the same company, and of
+congenial minds; so that we soon became bosom friends, and were ever as
+much as possible in each other's society. In battle we fought side by side,
+without being jealous of each other's fame. In our first battle, that of
+Ramilies, the Scots had more than their share of the loss, and I had the
+misfortune to be shot in the leg early in the action. When I fell, your
+father saved me from the sword of the enemy, and bore me out of the line at
+the hazard of his own life; for we were at the time, pressed by a strong
+division of the French. I soon recovered, and joined the ranks, when our
+friendship, if possible, was stronger than ever. At the battle of Oudenard,
+where we drove the French from their trenches, your father led on his men,
+over the works, with too much eagerness, and was not supported for a time,
+as the enemy sprung a mine and made the ditch impassable, killing and
+wounding a great many of the advancing column. Bravely did he and his
+handful of Scots stand their ground, surrounded and overwhelmed by numbers;
+but they were dropping fast, for they fought hand to hand, and they were so
+pressed by the enemy, and hemmed in, that they could not fire, for fear of
+killing their own men. I saw the perilous situation of my friend; with the
+greatest efforts, I and a few noble countrymen got clambered up to their
+rescue. At our arrival, there were not more than six of them upon their
+feet&mdash;all were covered with wounds and spent with fatigue. Your father
+still raged like a lion in the toils&mdash;all swords were aimed at him&mdash;he
+seemed invulnerable. I had reached his side, when a severe wound laid him
+insensible at my feet; but I stood over him, and backed by my brave
+followers, we fought till the French gave way before the numbers of our
+troops that had forced the works and poured in on every side. I raised him
+up&mdash;the blood streamed from his side&mdash;he appeared to be dead&mdash;his eyes were
+closed&mdash;I placed my hand upon his breast&mdash;all appeared still&mdash;then
+mournfully I supported his head on my knee, and saw his eyelids move, and
+then a faint heaving of the breast. I snatched the canteen of a dead
+soldier that lay by my side; there was some wine in it; I applied it to his
+lips&mdash;he opened his eyes."</p>
+
+<p>"'Edward,' said he, 'I thank you. I fear my career of glory is run. I hope
+we have beat the enemy. I die content. Farewell!' And he sank again into
+insensibility."</p>
+
+<p>"All this had passed in the course of a couple of minutes The enemy had
+made a fresh stand, and were forcing our troops back upon the
+intrenchments. I gently laid him down, and, rallying the men who were
+retreating, again forced them back. The enemy began to give way in all
+directions, and we followed up our advantage until the order for ceasing
+the pursuit was given. For a time I had forgot everything, in the
+impetuosity of battle; but, after rallying my company, and marching back to
+our camp, I took a file of men, and proceeded to the spot where I had left
+my friend. I looked for some time in vain. So active had been the work of
+the pillagers that followed the camp, that the dead and the dying had been
+stripped; and by the countenance alone could one discover a friend from a
+foe, I examined every face amidst a heap of dead bodies, and discovered my
+friend. Life was not yet extinct. I had him removed to my tent, and went
+for a surgeon, who examined and dressed his wound, but gave me no hopes of
+his recovery. He was carefully removed into Oudenard, where our hospitals
+were established, and for some days his life was despaired of; but youth
+and a good constitution prevailed, and he again bade fair for life and
+happiness. As soon as he was enabled to converse, I was at my usual place
+by his bedside, when, after thanking me for his preservation, he expressed
+the deepest sorrow for the loss of his ring, which had been torn from his
+finger by the pillagers.</p>
+
+<p>"I had, until now, scarcely paid any attention to this bauble; but
+remembered, when he spoke of it, of having seen at all times a ring upon
+his finger. I expressed my concern at his loss, but said, that it ought not
+to give him so much concern, at a time when a miraculously spared life
+called for his gratitude to God.</p>
+
+<p>"'I value it next to life itself,' was his reply, 'for it was the gift of
+my mother, and had been in our family for ages. Publish among the sutlers,
+my good friend, that fifty dollars will be given for the ring, upon its
+delivery to me; and twenty dollars to any one who will give information
+that will lead to its recovery.'</p>
+
+<p>"I promised, and left him, consoled with the hopes of again getting the
+jewel; yet I could not help thinking my friend too profuse in his offer. I
+immediately published in the camp, a reward of ten dollars for the ring, or
+five for any information to lead to its recovery, and next morning the ring
+was delivered, and the ten dollars paid to one of the fiends in human
+shape, that, like vultures, follow in the track of war. My fingers itched
+to cut the ruffian down, but I restrained myself. I paid him the promised
+reward with a hearty curse&mdash;the word of a soldier is sacred; and it was at
+this time that I examined the bauble so minutely, that I never can forget
+it. I never saw joy more vividly expressed than when he placed it upon his
+emaciated finger, and said I had given him a medicine that would quickly
+recover him.</p>
+
+<p>"'Shade of my sainted mother,' he ejaculated, 'I have still thy latest
+gift, and it shall be parted with only with my latest breath.' And he
+kissed it fervently as he spoke."</p>
+
+<p>"In the course of a few weeks, he was convalescent, and again joined the
+regiment. Each officer had received one step of promotion, and our duties
+went on in the usual routine, though we were principally occupied in
+foraging parties. It was the depth of winter, and provisions were scarce.
+Henry had the command of a strong foraging party; and, on one occasion, he
+came in his route to a large farm-house, where he hoped to obtain supplies.
+Approaching the house, he heard cries of distress and supplication in
+female voices. He put his men into rapid motion, and rushed forward alone.
+Passing a thick fence, he saw a party of Dutch soldiers, who had
+anticipated him, and some of whom were at the door, guarding it; but the
+greater part were within the house. The cries became more piteous and
+piercing. He drew his sword and rushed past the sentinels at the door, who
+attempted to prevent him; but the view of his men coming up unnerved them.
+A scene of horror met his eyes: the male inmates of the house were bound,
+and soldiers were standing over them, ready to plunge their bayonets into
+their bosoms at the least movement, while others were proceeding to acts of
+violence towards the females. With a voice of thunder, he commanded them to
+desist, and, seizing the officer, hurled him from the terrified and
+fainting daughter of the farmer. The Dutchman, in rage, drew and made a
+furious lounge at him, which he parried; and his men entering at the same
+time, they drove the others out of the house. My friend, in French,
+requested the Dutchman to follow his men; but he refused, and challenged
+him to single combat, for the insult he said he had received at his
+hands&mdash;adding some opprobrious epithets, which roused the choler of the
+brave Englishman. In an instant, they were engaged hand to hand; but short
+was the strife&mdash;the Dutchman fell dead on the scene of his violence, and
+his men returned to the camp, and made a complaint against Monro's
+regiment, which was like to have led to some serious consequences; but,
+after your father stating the circumstances to the colonel, the latter
+waited upon the Duke of Marlborough, and we heard no more of the affair.</p>
+
+<p>"The last action we were in together, we both escaped unhurt; yet it was
+the bloodiest one we had ever been in. Of all the honours of Malplaquet,
+the Monroes had their full share; for, although the Duke did not like the
+Scots, and used at times to throw a sarcasm at their country, he always
+gave them a situation of danger, either from dislike or a reliance on their
+courage. About twelve months after Malplaquet, your father left the service
+and retired into France. Peace was now evidently at hand, and an armistice
+had been agreed upon and signed by several of the allies of the English;
+and our gallant leader was now in disgrace. Much as Henry Seaton and I
+esteemed each other in all other points, we had no fellowship in politics.
+I was and am a Whig; he, a Tory of the first water&mdash;a devoted adherent of
+the exiled family; yet, high as parties ran at this time in cities, we had
+no differences in the camp, where each respected his neighbour's opinion,
+nor overvalued his own. The last letter I received from him was about
+twelve months after we parted. It was dated St Germain's. He said, and in a
+mysterious sort of way, half-earnest, half-jest, that, in a short time, we
+might meet, to try the force of our different opinions. I, at the time,
+only laughed at it, and returned, for answer, that I had no doubt we would
+both do our best, and leave the issue to the Disposer of events. Soon
+after, Mar's ill-concerted rebellion took place, in which I have no doubt
+your father was an active agent; but I have, since this last letter, lost
+all trace of him. Your being born in the year '16 would lead me to suppose
+that he must have married your mother about the time of the Rebellion,
+either in Scotland or France."</p>
+
+<p>That Henry Seaton was his father, William earnestly prayed; but how was he
+to ascertain this fact? He knew not; neither could his kind host assist
+him. The lapse of time was so great, that, in all probability, he was dead;
+and, with a mind worse at ease than it had ever been, he took leave of the
+Colonel, promising to call again in the forenoon of the following day, to
+consult what steps he should take to follow out the information he had so
+unexpectedly acquired. He reached the inn, and retired to rest; but sleep
+had fled his pillow. A thousand ideas crowded his mind; method after method
+was canvassed, each for a time offering assured success, but, upon more
+mature consideration, being rejected. Day dawned, and found him as
+unresolved as when he left Colonel Gordon. As soon as it was consistent
+with propriety, he waited upon the Colonel, by whom he was greeted
+heartily.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, tell me," said he, "the fruit of your invention for tracing out your
+father, and I will tell you what has occurred to me as the best mode of
+procedure."</p>
+
+<p>William, without hesitation, told the state of his mind, and his utter
+inability to think of any feasible plan, from his ignorance of the world
+and its ways.</p>
+
+<p>"Poor fellow! I do not wonder at what you tell me," replied the Colonel.
+"Before many years go over your head, you and the world will be better
+acquainted. My own opinion is, that you must forthwith proceed to France,
+where you will find many of the adherents of the Stuarts. The young Charles
+Edward is easy of access to Scotchmen, for he is anxious to make adherents;
+and I have no doubt that he, or others of his followers, will be able to
+give you every information about Henry Seaton. But you must beware how you
+acquit yourself, lest they cajole you into their party; for, if your father
+be alive and acknowledge you, the trial will be greater than you are aware,
+to resist him."</p>
+
+<p>"I will at once follow your wise counsel," replied William. "I trust&mdash;nay,
+my heart tells me I shall be successful. Of my ever being an adherent of
+the Stuart family, I have no fears. Before that can happen, I must first
+forget all I have ever learned, from my first dawn of reason up to this
+present moment. The first tears of sorrow I ever shed were for the woes of
+others, drawn forth by the tale of the sufferings of my foster parent's
+father, who suffered for the cause of truth, near the very spot where I now
+lodge. The worthy minister, to whom I am indebted for all the learning I
+possess, had also some share in my politics. Nay, do not smile, when I say
+he had political opinions. He spiritualized everything. Nebuchadnezzar was
+a type of the Stuart family. The Babylonish king, driven out from men, was
+only an emblem of their expulsion, during the time of the Commonwealth, and
+his being restored was only the fortune of Charles II.; but, as he
+continued in idolatry after his restoration, so did Charles, after his
+subscribing the Covenant at Scone; and, as Nebuchadnezzar's family were
+destroyed, so are the Stuarts cut off from the throne for ever. To the
+whole of this I do not subscribe; but my aversion to the family of the
+Stuarts, I can never overcome."</p>
+
+<p>"My young friend," replied the Colonel, "I am not one to quarrel with any
+one for his opinion; but I rejoice to find we are of one mind. I will
+accompany you to Leith, and we will make inquiries if there is any vessel
+there likely soon to sail for France."</p>
+
+<p>They accordingly proceeded to Leith, where they found there was a brig to
+sail in the course of a week or two for Bourdeaux, to bring home a cargo of
+wine. There were also several vessels to sail in a few days, for different
+ports in Holland; but the Colonel advised William to agree with the captain
+of the vessel for Bourdeaux&mdash;which, he did; and, having never seen the sea
+but at a distance, nor a vessel in his life, his friend, to oblige him,
+lingered on the shore, and examined them with him. In this manner the time
+passed. They dined in Leith, and again walked about the shore, enjoying the
+delightful scene. The shades of evening were beginning to approach, when
+they resumed their way back to the city. They had reached about half-way to
+the Abbey-Hill, when two men rushed from behind the fence, and, presenting
+pistols to their breasts, demanded their money or their lives.</p>
+
+<p>"Ho, my good fellows, not so fast!" exclaimed the Colonel, and drew his
+sword. William did the same. One of the villains fired, and wounded the
+Colonel in the right shoulder. William, at the same moment, plunged his
+sword into his side, and he fell. The other ruffian fled, pursued by
+William; but he escaped. He then hastened to his friend, who stood leaning
+against the wall, with the wounded robber beside him. William inquired if
+he was much injured.</p>
+
+<p>"No, Seaton," he said. "I believe it is only a flesh wound, for I can wield
+my sword yet." And he raised it up, and pointing it at the breast of the
+fallen wretch, who lay groaning at his feet&mdash;"We must secure him," said the
+Colonel; "and, at the same time, be on our guard against his cowardly
+associate. If he could walk, I would know how to act with him; but I am not
+going to carry the base carrion. Indeed, my arm bleeds, and is getting
+stiff; otherwise I would dispatch him where he lies, and save the hangman
+his labour."</p>
+
+<p>"For the love of God, do not despatch me!" cried the man. "I will try to
+walk; I would not be cut off so suddenly. In mercy, spare me, even for a
+few hours. I am unfit to die; yet I feel life ebbing fast."</p>
+
+<p>He rose to his feet, but was sinking again, when William's pity overcoming
+his anger, he supported him. The wretch looked in his face, uttered a
+scream of horror, and sank senseless in his arms. He looked to the Colonel
+in astonishment. The latter looked narrowly into the face of the robber,
+passed his hand across his forehead, and mused, as if recalling something
+to his memory, but spake not.</p>
+
+<p>Two men now came up to them, and assisted them to carry the body to the
+nearest house, where a surgeon was sent for, and intimation given to the
+authorities, who were all in a state of the greatest alacrity&mdash;stimulated,
+doubtless, by the Porteous mob, which had taken place only a few months
+before. Until the surgeon arrived, William, by the directions of the
+Colonel, bound up his shoulder. What the Colonel called a scratch, appeared
+to him a serious wound; for the ball had passed through the muscle of his
+arm. They proceeded to stanch the blood which flowed from the side of their
+prisoner, when the surgeon arrived; who, after having examined it, at once
+declared it mortal, and that the man had not many hours to live. After some
+time, he succeeded in restoring sensibility to the sufferer. He opened his
+eyes&mdash;fixed them on William, who was assisting the surgeon in his
+efforts&mdash;a fearful change came over him&mdash;he groaned, and, clasping his
+hands, shrieked, and closed them again. A sudden recollection had come over
+the Colonel.</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot be mistaken," said he; "I have seen him before; but when or where
+I cannot say, unless he was one of my company in Monro's regiment."</p>
+
+<p>At the mention of Monro's regiment, the wretched man shuddered&mdash;his eye
+fell upon the ring upon William's hand, as he held up the candle by the
+bedside&mdash;the sweat stood in large drops upon his forehead&mdash;he would have
+started up, but was restrained.</p>
+
+<p>"Nay, then, since I am discovered," he cried, "I will confess all to you,
+my injured and betrayed master. I see the Colonel recollects me; but I am
+surprised you do not remember your old servant, Alick Brown."</p>
+
+<p>"Who was your master?" exclaimed William, in surprise.</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Henry Seaton&mdash;yourself," said the man. "I cannot be mistaken. That
+ring&mdash;your height and countenance. You are, I am happy to see, much
+improved since I last saw you&mdash;time appears to have made no change."</p>
+
+<p>"Know you aught of Henry Seaton?" demanded the Colonel; while William stood
+mute in astonishment and surprise.</p>
+
+<p>"If this is not my old master whom I see," said the man, "who can he be? My
+mind is filled with guilt and remorse. Die I must, either of this wound, or
+by the law&mdash;for me there is no hope here or hereafter." And he groaned and
+ground his teeth in despair, while the surgeon bade him prepare for death,
+as he had but a few hours to live. The officers entered, and claimed him as
+their prisoner. The villain once more arose in his mind. "Ha!" he
+exclaimed, "I have bilked you yet. I have a sufficient bail in my side to
+rescue me out of your hands." The effort to speak now became more
+difficult; his voice sank into whispers; he appeared to be dying. Remorse
+again roused him; and, turning his head, he inquired who William was? The
+Colonel told him. He became more dreadfully agitated, and groaned in
+anguish, till the officers of justice looked upon him in horror.</p>
+
+<p>"I can doubt no longer," he cried. "It is too true. There is a God that
+governs all! Mercy, mercy! How shall I appear before Him, covered with the
+blood of his creatures? Let me perform the only act now in my power&mdash;to
+atone for the past. Young man, you are the son of my noble and injured
+master. After he left the army in Flanders, I accompanied him to France,
+where he lived on terms of great intimacy with the royal exiles and their
+followers for several months; at the end of which time, he and two other
+gentlemen, accompanied by me, set out for Scotland on a secret mission to
+the disaffected, preparatory to the preconcerted rising. We remained
+concealed for several months, in the houses of those whom we knew to be
+adherents to the cause we were embarked in. At the house of Lord Somerville
+we remained for a long time, where my master won the affections of his
+daughter, and proposed for her; but his Lordship objected to their union at
+that time, on account of the unsettled state of affairs. With the consent
+of Helen, they were, however, privately married; and soon after we set out
+for Aboyne, and joined in the unfortunate affair. He was slightly wounded
+at Sheriff-muir, but escaped by my assistance, and got safe to our camp.
+The Prince and the Earl of Mar embarked when all hopes of success were cut
+off, and I was sent back to the house of his wife's father, to bring her to
+her husband, who had remained concealed in the Highlands, during the
+severity of the winter. It was arranged, through me, that, as soon as he
+had received remittances from France, I was to conduct her to the coast of
+Argyle, by Glasgow and the Clyde. It was far on in the summer before he
+could get all the arrangements made. His wife, who expected in a few weeks
+to be confined, and concealed her situation with difficulty, became most
+urgent. Early in the month of September, she escaped unseen from her
+father's house, and joined me at the appointed place, accompanied by a
+fiend in woman's shape, the agent whom I had employed to carry on our
+intercourse. She had been a follower of the camp, and, by the little
+service for which I paid her well, had won the confidence of the simple
+Helen. We rode as fast as the lady's circumstances would admit, only
+halting twice for a short time, in secret places. It was then that the
+devil first assailed me in the person of this woman. She told me what a
+quantity of money and jewels the lady had in her valise, and how easy it
+would be to get all into our possession. I shuddered at the very idea, and
+threatened to shoot her upon the spot. She laughed, and said it was all a
+jest; but it took hold of my mind during the course of our journey, and she
+judged by my looks, I suppose, that I was now more fit for her purpose. We
+conversed about it; the idea became familiar; but I shuddered at blood. She
+said there would be none shed. Still I could not consent&mdash;neither was I
+sufficiently averse. The poor lady was taken ill as we passed through the
+moor. You know the rest. As we stood at the cottage door, the pious
+discourse of the farmer tortured me past endurance. I was several times on
+the point of rushing into the cottage, and guarding my lady from the fiend;
+but my evil genius prevailed. When we entered and got the unsuspecting
+couple to their bed, my tempter smiled, and whispered 'All is safe.' I
+shuddered, and inquired what she meant.</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, nothing,' she replied. 'The lady cannot recover; the woman of the
+house has given her a composing draught. She will never awake. The money
+and jewels are our own.'</p>
+
+<p>"And cautiously she displayed before me more gold than I had ever seen. I
+could not think of parting with it. We carried off all that had belonged to
+my mistress, even her body-clothes and the body of the dead babe, resolved
+to shew it to my master, and impose upon him by saying that his wife had
+died in childbed, and that we had left her to be buried by the clergyman.
+Our object in this was to do away all suspicion of unfair play. Our excuse
+for not seeing the body interred was haste to inform him, and prevent
+inquiries that might lead to his discovery. On the day after we left the
+cabin, I found my master at the appointed place, in the utmost anxiety for
+the arrival of his wife. Every hour of delay was attended by the utmost
+danger. A government cruiser had been seen on the coast; and there were
+fears that the small vessel might be discovered. Oh, moment that has ever
+since embittered my life! The agony he endured no human tongue can
+describe. He was in a state of distraction. I, with a guilty officiousness,
+displayed her wardrobe. He turned from it in an agony. The dead body of the
+babe he kissed and pressed to his bosom. Low groans had as yet only escaped
+him; but suddenly, to my alarm, he resolved to go with me and die on her
+grave. I trembled and felt a faintness come over me&mdash;for I was then young
+in guilt. My associate, hardened and inventive, began to urge the folly of
+the attempt. He pushed her from him with violence, and would have set out;
+but at that moment word was given that the cruiser was in sight, as if
+bearing for the land. Two friends and some of the crew seized him, and by
+force hurried him on board the vessel, and set sail. I felt as if reprieved
+from death, and did not go on board; for I dreaded the presence of my
+injured master. We returned to Glasgow, where we remained for a few weeks,
+rioting on the fruits of our guilt. One morning when I awoke after a
+debauch, I found my companion fled, and all the gold and valuables gone. I
+arose in a state of distraction, ran to the port in quest of her; but in
+vain&mdash;no vessel had sailed. I proceeded to Greenock; on the way I got
+traces of her, and dogged her at every turn. My mind took a new direction
+as I followed her. I looked upon her now as a fiend that had led me to
+ruin, and left me, loaded with guilt, to die under the pangs of poverty and
+an awakened conscience. My mind was distracted. Holding up my hands to
+heaven, I vowed vengeance, and cursed and swore in such a manner that
+people on the road turned and looked at me, and thought me mad. I was mad;
+but it was the madness of passion that burned in my brain, and the stings
+of conscience that pierced my heart. I paused several times in my pursuit.
+I was told by one traveller that the woman I sought was not a mile from me,
+that she was sitting by the road-side drinking ardent spirits alone, and
+muttering strange words to herself. Ha! thought I, conscience is busy with
+her too, and she drinks to drown its dreadful voice. 'Shall I kill her?' I
+said to myself. My heart yearned for her blood. Why should I deny it? I
+felt that I required that satisfaction to enable me to live a little longer
+upon earth. So much was my frenzy roused, that I pictured to myself a total
+impossibility to live and breathe if I did not feel the satisfaction of
+having visited on that woman's head the evil she brought on that sweet lady
+who died by her hands. Then did her beautiful face beam before me in full
+contrast with that of the hag who had led me to ruin, to misery, to hell.
+Every thought inflamed me more and more, and on I flew to the relief of my
+burning brain. Wretch! How little did I think that, even in meditating her
+death, who deserved that punishment, I was only adding more and more power
+to my burning conscience? But all calculation of future accidents died
+amidst my thirst of vengeance. Breathless I hurried on. I had a dagger in
+my hand ready for the work of death. At a turn of a beech wood, I saw her
+sitting by the road-side. She was drinking spirits; and, as I approached, I
+heard her muttering strange words&mdash;yet she was not intoxicated. She was
+only under the power of the demons that ruled her. Her back was to me, and
+she knew not of my approach. I saw her take out the money and jewels she
+had stolen from me, and for which, by her advice, I had sold my soul to
+Satan. The sight again brought before me the horrid crime I had committed.
+I saw the sweet lady before me, extended in the grasp of death; and
+conscience, with a thousand fangs, tore at my heart. I grasped the dagger
+firmer and firmer as she counted the money, and wrought myself up to the
+pitch of a demon's fury. I advanced quietly. She burst into a loud laugh as
+she finished the counting of the gold. 'Ha, ha, ha!' she cried&mdash;'I
+have'&mdash;she would have said 'outwitted him,' but my dagger fixed the word in
+her death-closed jaws. I struck her to the heart through her back, and the
+word 'outwitted' died in her throat. She lay at my feet a corpse. I threw
+the body in a ditch, and took up the money and jewels for which I had sold
+my soul. I would have cast them away; but the devil again danced in the
+faces of the gold coins. I put them in my pocket. The gold again corrupted
+me. I drowned my conscience in drink at the next inn. I fled into England,
+where I have lived by rapine ever since, until the other day, when I
+returned to Scotland to meet the fate I so well deserve, from the hands of
+the son of those I had injured. Of my old master I have never heard
+anything. If he is alive, he is still in France."</p>
+
+<p>Life seemed only to have been prolonged until he had made the horrid
+disclosure; for he fell into convulsions and expired, soon after the
+Colonel, whose wound had become stiff and painful, had left the house. Next
+morning, William visited his friend, and was grieved to find that he was
+rather feverish. His wound was still painful. The occurrence of the
+preceding evening occupied both their minds. William had no doubt of his
+being the lawful son of Henry Seaton by Miss Somerville; but was as much in
+doubt as to whether his father was alive as ever. In a few days, the
+Colonel was enabled to leave his bed-room, and became convalescent. He urged
+the propriety of William's proceeding to France in quest of his father;
+and, as the vessel was not yet to sail for a few days, he resolved to pay a
+visit to his friend, the minister, to inform him of his intentions, and
+relate the history of his mother's murderers. The Colonel would have
+accompanied him; but he could not ride. He rode along to the manse, with
+feelings very different from those with which he had left it. The worthy
+minister rejoiced to see him, and held up his pious hands at the horrid
+recital. He approved of William's determination of going in quest of his
+father, and, after paying a visit to his mother's and foster parents'
+graves, he once more mounted to return to Edinburgh. As he rode slowly
+along, musing upon the wayward fate of his parents unconscious of all
+around, he was roused by the tread of horses' feet behind him. He looked
+back, and saw a gentleman, attended by a servant in livery, approaching. He
+roused himself, and put his horse off the slow pace at which he had been
+going. The stranger and he saluted each other, and entered into
+conversation upon indifferent subjects. At length they became interested in
+each other, and found that they were both on the eve of sailing for France
+in the same vessel. The stranger requested to have the pleasure of knowing
+the name of his fellow-traveller.</p>
+
+<p>"Seaton," said William, "is my name."</p>
+
+<p>"Seaton, Seaton," said the other&mdash;"I am surprised I did not recognise you
+before. I thought we had met before; but your youth made me always doubt
+the truth of my surmises. Colonel Henry Seaton was an intimate acquaintance
+of mine&mdash;have I the pleasure of seeing his son?"</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you have," replied William. "Pray, sir, when saw you him last? Was
+he in good health?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is some time since I left France," said the other. "At that time he was
+in his ordinary health; but not more cheerful than usual&mdash;always grave and
+sad as ever."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank God!" cried William; "he is, I trust, then, still alive." And he
+pressed the stranger's hand with a warmth that surprised him. "Where do you
+mean to stay," resumed William, "until the vessel sails?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have no relations," replied he, "in Edinburgh. I meant to stay at an inn
+in the Canongate, where I have lived before; but it is all one to me&mdash;I may
+as well tarry in the White Hart with you."</p>
+
+<p>When they arrived, William sent a cadie to give notice to Colonel Gordon
+that he was arrived in town; but was detained upon business with a
+stranger, to whom he would be happy to introduce him, as he was an
+acquaintance of his father's, and had seen him within the last few years.
+Soon after dinner, they were all seated at their wine, and deep in
+conversation. The stranger had been, from what he said, well acquainted
+with the exiled party in France, and, more particularly, with Colonel
+Seaton; but he knew nothing of his history, further than that he had lost a
+beloved wife and child at the time of his expatriation, and had, both by
+friends here and every other means, endeavoured in vain to get any
+information of where she was buried, or what had become of a faithful
+servant who had not embarked with him in the confusion of his flight&mdash;that
+on this account he was often oppressed by a lowness of spirits, and had
+many suspicions that all had not been as it ought to have been. This
+subject discussed, they would have had recourse to politics; but each
+seemed cautious of betraying his opinions, and the stranger, who did not
+seem to relish much some of the sentiments that occasionally escaped the
+Colonel, appeared to be a Tory. After the Colonel departed, the
+conversation of William and Mr Graham&mdash;for this was the gentleman's
+name&mdash;became more pointed, and it appeared that he was on business
+connected with the exiles. He had assumed that William was of his own way
+of thinking in politics, and was evidently much disappointed when he
+discovered that he was not. He became much more reserved, but not less
+attached to him; for William gave him a general outline of his misfortunes
+and early education, and they parted for the night with the best opinion of
+each other. Next morning both proceeded to Leith, where Graham expected to
+find a messenger from the north with a packet of letters for him. When they
+reached Leith, they found that the messenger had arrived on the previous
+day, and was waiting for Mr Graham, who, having several persons to visit in
+the neighbourhood, William and he parted, agreeing to meet in the Colonel's
+to supper. They met in the evening.</p>
+
+<p>"I have been making some inquiries," said Mr Graham, "about Colonel Henry
+Seaton, on your account, and am happy to say that he is well. I fear I
+shall not have the pleasure of your company to France. I have every reason
+to believe that he is now in Scotland, or will be very soon. Excuse me if I
+am not more particular. I shall, I hope, to-morrow, or at least before the
+vessel sails, be able to give you more particular information. I can rely,
+I think, upon your honour, that no harm shall come from my confidence."</p>
+
+<p>Both thanked him for the interest he took, and the good news he had
+communicated. They parted for the night, all in the best spirits&mdash;William
+anticipating the joy he should feel at the sight of his parent, and the
+Colonel anxious to see his old friend. Afterwards Mr Graham and William
+occasionally met. Their evenings were spent with the Colonel, and all party
+discussion carefully avoided. On the evening of the fourth day after Mr
+Graham's last information, William had begun to fear that the vessel might
+sail before any certainty could be obtained; and he was in doubt whether to
+proceed with her or remain. Upon Mr Graham's arrival, which was later than
+usual, he went directly up to William&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"I have good news for you," said he. "Colonel Seaton is at present in
+Scotland&mdash;somewhere in Inverness-shire. He is the bearer of intelligence
+that will render it unnecessary for me to proceed at present to France. I
+am, I confess, much disappointed; but you, I perceive, are not."</p>
+
+<p>"From my soul I thank you," said William. "Where shall I find my father?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is more than I can tell you," answered the other&mdash;"I cannot even tell
+the name he has at present assumed; all I know is, that he is the bearer of
+intelligence from the Prince that crushes for a time our sanguine hopes.
+The fickle and promise-breaking Louis has again deceived us. The Prince,
+and the lukewarm, timid part of his adherents, the worshippers of the
+ascendant, refuse to act without his powerful aid. His concurrence we have,
+and a prospect of future aid at a more convenient season; but, bah! for a
+Frenchman's promise! I am off from ever taking a leading part again. I will
+wait the convenient season. I may be led, but shall never lead again. He
+does not deserve a crown that will not dare for it; nor does he deserve the
+hearts of a generous people that would not dare everything to free them
+from the yoke of a foreign tyrant. Excuse me, gentlemen,&mdash;I go too far, and
+am giving you offence; but I assure you it is not meant. My heart is full
+of bitterness, and I forget what I say."</p>
+
+<p>The Colonel, whose blood had begun to inflame when Graham checked himself,
+cooled and felt rather gratified at the intelligence thus so unexpectedly
+communicated. He felt for a generous mind crossed in its favourite object,
+however much he thought that mind misled, from education and early
+prejudice, and assured him he had already forgot his expressions. A
+different turn was given to the conversation, by William's continued
+inquiries after his father. Graham meant to set off for the north in a few
+days, for a secret meeting of the heads of the disaffected, at which
+Colonel Seaton was to communicate the message he had to them from France.
+He offered to be William's guide. The Colonel, whose shoulder was now quite
+well, requested to accompany them; and on the Monday morning after, they
+crossed at Kinghorn, and proceeded by the most direct route, passing
+through Perthshire to the Highlands. They arrived at Glengarry, and found
+that Colonel Seaton was at the time on a visit, with the chief, to Glenelg,
+but would be back on the following day. There were a number of visiters at
+the castle, with all whom Graham was on the most intimate terms. Gordon and
+William were introduced, and the latter was most cordially received, from
+the strong resemblance he bore to his father. They got a guide to conduct
+them to see the beautiful scenery around the house, and they were amusing
+themselves admiring the grandeur of the mountain scenes, when the guide
+said, pointing to a bend in the road&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Gentlemen, there is Glengarry."</p>
+
+<p>They looked towards the spot, and could perceive two persons on horseback,
+approaching in earnest conversation. William's heart beat quick&mdash;the reins
+almost dropped from his hand&mdash;he felt giddy, and his temples throbbed as if
+they would have burst. They approached&mdash;they bowed to each other&mdash;William's
+eyes were fixed upon the countenance of his father, who returned his gaze,
+but neither spoke a word. The Colonel said, in answer to the polite
+salutation, that he and his young friend had had the honour to accompany Mr
+Graham on a visit.</p>
+
+<p>"Has Graham come back so soon?" he said, with surprise, "I feared as much;
+but, gentlemen, you are kindly welcome." And he shook hands with them.</p>
+
+<p>"Macdonald, what is this?" he said, turning to Seaton, who was absorbed in
+thought. "Here is a youthful counterpart of yourself!"</p>
+
+<p>"My father!" exclaimed William, as he leaped from his horse, and clasped
+his leg, leaning his face upon it, and bedewing it with his tears.</p>
+
+<p>"Young man," said Seaton, coldly, "you are mistaken; I have no son."
+William lifted his hands in an imploring manner, and the ring met his
+father's eye. "Good heavens! what do I see!" he exclaimed, and sank
+forward, overpowered by his feelings, upon his horse's neck. The chief and
+the Colonel raised him up&mdash;the tears were streaming from his eyes. "A
+thousand painful remembrances," said he, "have quite unmanned me. Young
+man, you just now called me father&mdash;where, for mercy's sake tell me, did
+you get that ring?"</p>
+
+<p>"It was found on the bosom of my dead mother," faltered William.</p>
+
+<p>"Then you are my son!"</p>
+
+<p>And the next moment they were locked in each other's embrace. The chief and
+Gordon were moved. They passed their hands hastily across their eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Dear father," said William, "have you forgot your old friend and associate
+in arms&mdash;my best of friends?"</p>
+
+<p>Seaton for the first time looked to him, and, extending his disengaged
+hand, grasped the Colonel's, saying&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"Excuse me, Gordon&mdash;I am now too happy. I have found a son and a brother."</p>
+
+<p>They walked to the castle, and William detailed to his father his mournful
+story. Often had he to stop, to allow his father to give vent to his
+anguish.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, I often feared," said he, "that my Helen had been hardly dealt with;
+but this I never did suspect. Cursed villain! and, oh! my poor murdered
+Helen!"</p>
+
+<p>They returned to the castle. It was agreed that Seaton should still retain
+the name of Macdonald, until the Colonel should obtain, through the
+influence of his friends, a pardon for him. He also had lost all hopes of
+success for the Prince, and wished to enjoy the company of his son, visit
+the grave of his beloved wife, and, at death, be buried by her side. All
+was obtained; and Henry Seaton lived for many years, blessed in the society
+of his son, who studied the law, at the suggestion of the Colonel, and
+became distinguished in his profession.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<h2><a name="hume" id="hume"></a>HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK.</h2>
+
+
+<p class="noi"><span class="smcap">It</span> has been asserted by at least one historian, that it has been observed,
+that the inhabitants of towns which have undergone a cruel siege, and
+experienced all the horrors of storm and pillage, have retained for ages
+the traces of the effects of their sufferings, in a detestation of war,
+indications of pusillanimity, and decline of trade. If there be any truth
+in this observation, what caitiffs must the inhabitants of Berwick be! No
+town in the world has been so often exposed to the "ills that wait on the
+red chariot of war;" for Picts, Romans, Danes, Saxons, English, and Scotch
+have, in their turn, wasted their rage and their strength upon her broken
+ribs. Her boasted "barre," (barrier,) from which her name, Barrewick, is
+derived, has never been able to save her effectually, either from her
+enemies of land or water. From the reign of Osbert, the king of
+Northumberland, down to the time when Lord Sidmouth saw treason in her big
+guns, she has been devoted to the harpies of foreign and intestine war and
+discord. Yet who shall say, that the hearts or spirits of the inhabitants
+of this extraordinary town lost either blood or buoyancy from their
+misfortunes? No sooner were her bulwarks raised than they appeared
+renascent; the inhabitants defended the new fortifications with a spirit
+that received a salient power from the depression produced by the
+demolition of the old; and her ships, that one day were shattered by
+engines of war, sailed in a state of repair with the next fair wind, to
+fetch from distant ports articles of merchandise, not seldom for those who
+were fighting or had fought against her liberties. Such was Berwick; and
+her sons of to-day inherit too much of the nobility and generosity of her
+old children, to find fault with us for telling them a tale which, while it
+exhibits some shades of the warlike spirit of their ancestors, shews also
+that war and citizen warriors have their foibles, and are not always exempt
+from the harmless laugh that does the heart more good than the touch of an
+old spear.</p>
+
+<p>The Lord Hume of the latter period of the seventeenth century, had a
+natural son, Patrick, an arch rogue, inheriting the fire of the blood of
+the Humes, along with that which burnt in the black eyes of the gipsies of
+Yetholm. He was brought up by his father; and, true to the principles of
+his education, would acknowledge no patrons of the heart, save the three
+ruling powers of love, laughter, and war&mdash;Cupid, Momus, and Mars&mdash;a trio
+chosen from all the gods, (the remainder being sent to Hades,) as being
+alone worthy of the worship of a gentleman. How Patrick got acquainted,
+and, far less, how he got in love with the Mayor of Berwick's daughter,
+Isabella, we cannot say, nor need antiquarians try to discover; for where
+there was a Southron to be slain or a lady to be won, Patrick Hume cared no
+more for bar, buttress, battlement, fire, or water, than did Jove for his
+own thunder-cloud, under the shade of which he courted the daughter of
+Inachus. Letting alone the recondite subject of "love's beginning," we
+shall tread safer ground in stating, that the affection had been very
+materially increased on both sides by the walls of Berwick; for, although
+Patrick was a great despiser of fortifications, he had felt, in the affair
+of his love for Isabella, the fair daughter of the Mayor of Berwick, that
+there is no getting a damsel through a <em>loop-hole</em>, though there might be
+poured as much sentimental and pathetic speech and sigh-breath through the
+invidious opening, as ever passed through the free air that fills the
+breeze under the trysting thorn.</p>
+
+<p>What we have now said requires the explanation, that at the period of our
+story, the town of Berwick belonged to the English; and the Mayor, being
+himself either an Englishman, or connected by strong ties of relationship
+with the English, had a strong antipathy towards the Scottish Border
+raiders, whom he denominated as gentlemen-robbers, headed by the noble
+robber Hume. But, above all, he hated young Patrick&mdash;into whose veins, he
+said, there had been poured the distilled raid-venom and love-poison of all
+the gentlemen-scaumers that ever infested the Borders. The origin of this
+hatred had some connection with an affair of the Newmilne, belonging to
+Berwick; the dam-dike of which, Patrick alleged, prevented the salmon from
+getting up the river, and hence destroyed all his angling sport, as well as
+that of all the noblemen and gentlemen that resorted to the river for the
+purpose of practising the "gentle art." He had therefore threatened to pull
+it down, to let up the fish; and sounded his threat in the ears of the
+indignant Mayor, in terms that were, peradventure, made stronger and
+bitterer by the thought that dikes and walls were his greatest bane upon
+earth: by the walls of Berwick the Mayor kept from his arms the fair
+Isabella, and by the dam-dike of Newmilne the same Mayor deprived him of
+the pleasure of angling. Was such power on the part of a Mayor to be borne
+by the high-spirited youth who had been trained to look upon mason-work as
+a mere stimulant to love or war&mdash;a thing that raised the value of what it
+enclosed by the opposition it offered to the young blood that raged for
+entrance? The youth thought not. He vowed that he would neither lose his
+Isabella nor his salmon; and, as fate would have it, the old Mayor had
+heard the vow, and vowed also that young Patrick should lose both.</p>
+
+<p>Having fished one day to no purpose, in consequence of the obstruction of
+"that most accursed of all dam-dikes, the Newmilne dike," as Patrick styled
+it, he threw down his rod, and lay down upon the bank of the river, to wait
+the hour when the moon should summon and lighten him to the loop-hole in
+the other of his hated obstructions, the walls of Berwick&mdash;where that
+evening he expected to meet his beloved Isabella, and commune with her in
+the eloquent language of their mutual passion. The bright luminary burst in
+the midst of his reveries from behind an autumn cloud, and flashed a long
+silver beam upon the rolling waters. He started to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>"It is beyond my time," he said, self-accusingly. "My Isabella is on
+Berwick Wall, and I am still lingering here by the banks of the river,
+three miles from where my love and honour require me to be. The loiterer in
+love is a laggard in war; and shame on the Hume who is either!"</p>
+
+<p>In a short time the young Hume was standing beneath a buttress of the old
+walls of the town, looking earnestly through a small opening, in which he
+expected to see the face of the fair daughter of the Mayor.</p>
+
+<p>"Art there at last, love?" said he, in a soft voice, as he saw, with
+palpitating heart, the pretty but arch face of the bewitching heiress of
+all the wealth of the old burgher lord peering through the aperture. "What,
+in the name of him who got his wings in the lap of Venus, and useth them to
+this hour as cleverly as doth our pretty messenger of Spring, hath kept
+thee, wench?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ha! ha! hush! hush, man!" responded she, whose spirit equalled that of the
+boldest Hume that ever headed a raid. "Thou'rt the laggard. I've waited for
+thee an hour, until I've sighed this little love-hole into an oven-heat,
+waiting thee, thou lover of broken troth! Some gipsy queen in Haugh of the
+Tweed hath wooed thee out of thy affection for thy Isabel; and now thou
+askest what hath kept me. Ha! ha! Good&mdash;for a Hume."</p>
+
+<p>"The moon cheated me, and went skulking under a cloud," responded Hume.</p>
+
+<p>"And the cloud threw thy love in the shade," added quickly the gay girl.
+"Methought love kept his own dial, and was independent of sun or moon. What
+if a rebel vapour cometh over the queen of heaven that night thou art to
+make me free? My hope of liberty, I fancy, would be clouded; and I would be
+remitted again to the care of Captain Wallace, who keepeth the town and the
+Mayor's daughter from the spoiling arms of the robber Humes."</p>
+
+<p>"Ha! ha!" replied he&mdash;"thy father wanteth not a Mayor's wits, Isabella, in
+offering thee as a prize to the Governor of the town. Excellent device,
+i'faith! The old burgher lord knew he could not keep thee, mad-cap wench as
+thou art, from a hated Hume's arms, unless he gave the Captain an interest
+as a <em>lover</em> in guarding thee, like a piece of the old wall of Berwick."</p>
+
+<p>"And therein thou'rt well complimented," replied she; "for my father could
+not get, in all Berwick, a man that could keep me from thee, but he who
+guardeth town, and Mayor, and maiden together. Since the Governor, as a
+lover, got charge of me, I am more firmly caged than ever was the old
+countess, who was so long confined in the grated wing-cage of the old
+castle. When art thou to free me from the Governor's love and surveillance,
+good Patrick? If what I have now to tell thee hath no power to quicken thy
+wits and nerve thine arm, thou art indeed thyself no better than one of
+those stones, to which, in thy wit, thou hast likened me. Knowest that a
+day is fixed for Captain Wallace being my <em>legal</em> governor?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ha!" cried Hume, in agitation. "This soundeth differently from the playful
+hammer of thy wit, Bell. What day is fixed? Thou hast fired me with high
+purposes."</p>
+
+<p>"How high tower they?" cried the maiden, laughing. "Do they reach thy
+former threat, to pull down the Newmilne dam-dike, and let <em>up</em> the salmon,
+in revenge for the letting <em>down</em> of the Mayor's daughter?"</p>
+
+<p>"Another time for thy wit, Bell," replied Patrick, in a more serious tone.
+"Thou hast put to flight my spirits. The grey owl Meditation is flapping
+his dingy wing over my heart. The time&mdash;the time&mdash;when is the day?"</p>
+
+<p>"This day se'ennight," answered Isabel. "Hush! hush! here cometh the
+Governor, blowing like a Tweedmouth grampus, fresh from the German Sea, in
+full run after a lady-fish of the queen of rivers."</p>
+
+<p>And now Hume heard the hoarse voice of the redoubted Governor, Captain
+Wallace&mdash;that fat overgrown <em>bellygerent</em> son of Mars, so famous, in his
+day, for vaunting of feats of arms, at Bothwell, (where he never was,) over
+the Mayor's wine, and in presence of his fair daughter, whom he thus
+courted after the manner of the noble Moor, with a slight difference as to
+the truth of his feats scarce worth mentioning. It appeared to Hume, as he
+listened, that Wallace, and the Mayor, who was with him, had sallied out,
+after the fourth bottle, in search of Isabel&mdash;a suspicion verified by the
+speech of the warlike Captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," said the Governor, in a voice that
+reverberated among the walls, and fell distinctly on Hume's ear, "that she
+would be about the fortifications? Ha!&mdash;anything appertaining to war
+delighteth the fair creature as much as it did that rare author, Will
+Shakspeare's Desdemona. If I had been as black as the Moor&mdash;ay, or as the
+devil himself&mdash;my prowess at Bothwell would have given this person of mine,
+albeit somewhat enlarged, the properties of beauty in the eyes of
+noble-spirited women&mdash;so much do our bodies borrow from the qualities of
+our souls."</p>
+
+<p>"Where is she?" rejoined the Mayor. "I like not that love of the
+fortifications. It is the outside of the walls she loves. See, she flies,
+conscience-smitten. I like not this, my noble Captain&mdash;see, there is
+Patrick Hume beyond the wall, if thou hast courage, drive thy pike through
+that loop, and, peradventure, ye may blind a Hume for life."</p>
+
+<p>"I like to strike a man fair&mdash;body to body&mdash;as we did on the Bridge of
+Bothwell," responded the Captain. "Ha! ha! Give me the loop-hole of a good
+bilbo-thrust, out of which the soul wings its flight in a comfortable
+manner. Nevertheless, to please my noble friend the mayor, and to get quit
+of a rival, I may" (lowering his voice to a whisper) "as well kill him in
+the way thou hast propounded; but I assure thee, upon my honour, I would
+much rather have the fellow before me, without the intervention of these
+plaguey walls, that come thus in the way and march of one's valour. There
+goes!"</p>
+
+<p>On looking-up, Hume saw the Captain's bilbo thrusting manfully through the
+night air, as if it would pierce the night gnomes and spirits that love to
+hang over old battlements. Taking out his handkerchief, he wrapped it round
+his hand, and seizing the point of the sword, gave it a jerk, which (and
+the consequent terror) disengaged it from the hand of the pot-valiant hero
+of Bothwell. A shout of fear was heard from within.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop! stop! mine good Mr Mayor!" cried the Captain to the Mayor, who had
+begun to fly; "I do not see, as yet, any very great, that is, serious cause
+of apprehension; but, I forget, thou wert not at Bothwell. By my honour,
+I've done for him! He hath carried off my sword in his body. Was it Patrick
+Hume, saidst thou? Then is he dead as my grandmother, and no more shall he
+follow after my betrothed, or threaten thee with the downfall of the
+Newmilne dam-dike. All I sorrow for is my good sword, which, but for that
+accursed loop, I might have redrawn from his vile carcass, and thus saved
+my property at the same time that I gave the carrion crows of old Berwick a
+dinner."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! but he's a devil that Hume," responded the Mayor. "Long has he hounded
+after my daughter Bell; and though it is now likely near an end with him, I
+should not like to come in the way of the dying tiger. Let us home."</p>
+
+<p>The sound of the retreating warriors brought back Hume to the loop-hole, to
+see if Isabel was still there, to whom he was anxious to propose a plan,
+whereby he might (with the gay romp's most cheerful good-will and hearty
+co-operation) carry her off from the contaminating embrace of the
+pot-valiant Governor, with whom she was to be wed on that day se'ennight.
+He waited a long time, but no Isabel came. He suspected that the Mayor,
+after having caught her speaking to him, (Hume,) his most inveterate foe,
+would, as he had often done before, lock her up, and set the noble Captain
+as a guard upon his lady-love. Cursing his unlucky fate, that brought them
+out to interrupt his converse with the mistress of his heart, and prevent
+the arrangement of an elopement, he bent the Captain's bilbo hilt to point
+till it rebounded with a loud twang, and stepping away up the Tweed, fell
+into a deep meditation as to the manner by which he should secure Isabel.
+As he went along, his eye fell upon that source of so much contention
+between the men of Berwick and the border barons, the dam-dike of the
+Newmilne, and against which the Lord Hume, as well as himself and many of
+the neighbouring knights and lairds, had vowed destruction. A thought
+flashed across his mind, and his eye sparkled in the moonbeam, as brightly
+as did the Captain's sword, which he still held in his hand.</p>
+
+<p>"I have hit it!" he cried, as he clapped his hand on his limb, and the
+sound echoed back from the mill-walls. "For spearing a salmon or a
+Southron, dissolving that old foolish tenure between a proprietor and his
+cattle, or cutting the tie of forced duty between a rich old Mayor and his
+daughter, where shall the bastard of Hume be equalled on the Borders? My
+fair Bell, thou wouldst spring with the elasticity of this bent blade, and
+dance like these moonbeams in the Tweed, if thou wert in the knowledge of
+this thought that now tickles the wild fancy of thy lover, whom thou
+equallest in all that belongest to the gay heart and the bounding spirit."</p>
+
+<p>Occupied with these thoughts, Patrick went home to the castle of the Humes;
+and, next morning, he bent his way to Foulden, where he sought Lord Ross's
+baillie, James Sinclair, a man who had a very hearty spite against the
+obstruction to the passage of the Tweed salmon. With him he communed for a
+considerable time, and thereafter he proceeded to Paxton and to others of
+the gentlemen in the vicinity. The subject of these interviews will perhaps
+best be explained by the following placard, which appeared in various parts
+of Berwick in two days thereafter:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"On Friday last, the tenant of Newmilne, belonging to the toun of Baricke,
+gave information to our honourable Mayor, who has communicated the same to
+our gallant Governor, Captain Wallace, that the Lord Hume and other the
+Scotch gentlemen, our neighbours, do, on Monday next, intend to be at the
+Newmilne aforesaid, by tenn of the clock of the morninge; and that they had
+summoned their tenants to be then and there present, alsoe, to assist in
+the breaking downe and demolishing the dam of the said Newmilne; and that
+the Lord Ross his bailiffe of Foulden had given out in speeches, that he
+was desired to summon the said Lord Ross, his tenants, and inhabitants of
+Foulden barronry, to be then and there aiding and assisting them, alsoe,
+for better effecting the same: Whereupon, it is necessary, that, at a
+ringing of a belle, our tounsmen, headed by our Mayor, and directed by the
+warlike genius of Captain Wallace, should proceed to the said Newmilne, and
+give battle in defence of the said dike, which is indispensable to the
+existence of the toun's property. God save the Mayor!"</p>
+
+<p>The effect produced by this proclamation was rapid and stirring. The
+English, at that period, had contrived to raise a strong prejudice in the
+minds of the Berwick burghers against the Border Scots; and the
+intelligence that the daring robbers intended to demolish their property,
+inflamed them to the high point of resolution to fight under their valorous
+Captain, while one stone of the dike remained on another, and one drop of
+blood was left in their bodies. Hume, who had a greater part in the
+occasion of these preparations than had been made apparent, got secret
+intelligence, on all that was going on within the town; but none of his
+vigils at the loop-hole were rewarded with a sight of his spirited Isabel,
+who, he understood, had been confined in her father's house since the night
+on which she had been discovered upon the wall. Meanwhile, the preparations
+for the defence of the town's property proceeded; and, on the Monday
+morning, a bell, whose loud tongue spoke "war's alarums," sounded over town
+and walls, spreading fear among the timid, and rousing in the noble breasts
+of the valorous proud and swelling resolutions to give battle to the Border
+robbers, in the style of their ancestors. Ever since the first
+announcement, they had been drilled by the Captain, whose loud command of
+voice, proud bearing, bent back (bent in self-defence against the
+counterpoise of his stomach), and martial strut, filled them with great awe
+of his power, and great confidence in his abilities. Many hundred people,
+"on horse and foote," (we use the language of our old chronicle), "were
+gathered together, considerably armed with swordes, pistolles, firelocks,
+blunderbushes, foalingpieces, bowes and arrowes of the tyme of the first
+Edward, and uther powerful ammunition, fit to resist the ryot of the
+Scotch; and away they marched to the newe miln, with Mr Mayor and the
+Governor (a verrie terrible man of war&mdash;to be married the morn to the
+Mayor's dochter Isabel, if he come back with lyffe), and the sergeants with
+their halberts, and constables with their staves, going before them." In
+front, there was beat some thundering engines of warlike music, which was
+cut occasionally by sharp screams of small fifes, blown into by the burgher
+amateurs of that lively musical machine. Altogether, the cavalcade
+presented many appearances of a stern and warlike nature, which might well
+have prevented the Scotch raiders from proceeding with their felonious
+intention of driving down the obstruction to the salmon, and forced them to
+remain content with the angling of trout and parr. The "verrie sight" of
+the brave Wallace was deemed sufficient by those who followed him, "to put
+an end to the fraye before it was begunne."</p>
+
+<p>This extraordinary cavalcade was seen passing along the road by Patrick
+Hume, who had, with his companions, retired behind some brushwood, the
+better to enjoy the sight. The warriors passed on, and every now and then
+the loud voice of the captain was heard commanding and exhorting his troops
+to keep up their courage for the coming strife. When the last file was
+disappearing, Hume and his companions made the woods resound with a loud
+laugh, and, starting up, and crying, "For Berwick, ho!" they hurried away
+in the direction of the town, which the Governor, in his anxiety to form a
+large assemblage, had left without a guard. Meanwhile the burgher army
+pushed on for Newmilne; "and, when they came there," (says the chronicle),
+"they pitched their camp; and nae doubt butt they were well disciplined,
+seeing theye had the advantage of the Captain's training, with the great
+blessing attour of weapons suitable&mdash;viz., rusty ould swords and pistolles;
+and they continued about three or foure houres on the bankes and about the
+milne: still there was nae appearance of the Scotch coming to fecht with
+them." For a long time the Captain was solemn and quiet; but when it
+appeared that the Scots "were not to come to show fecht," he got as wordy
+as a blank-verse poet, and stood up in the face of a neighbouring wood,
+from which it was expected the enemy would emanate, and called upon the
+cowards (as he styled them) to come out "and dare to touche one stone of
+the milne dam-dike."</p>
+
+<p>"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," he cried, "that I killed Patrick Hume? If
+not, where is he now, and he the Lord Ross of Foulden, and he of Paxton,
+and all the rest of the Border heroes? Come forth from thy wood recesses,
+if there be as much pluck in thee as will enable thee to meet the fire of
+the eye of the Governor of Berwick! Ha! ha! The rascals must have been at
+Bothwell, where, doubtless, they felt the pith of this arm. There goeth the
+disadvantage of bravery! The devil a man will encounter one whose name is
+terrible, and I fear I may never have the luxury of a good fight again.
+This day I expected to have fleshed my good sword. To-morrow is my
+wedding-day. How glorious would it have been to have made it also a day of
+victory! I could almost hack these unconscious trees for very spite, and to
+give my sword the exercise it lacketh."</p>
+
+<p>And he swung his falchion from side to side, cutting off the tops of the
+young firs, just as if they had been men's heads; but no Scotchman made his
+appearance. The whole bells of Berwick now began to swing and ring as if
+the town had been invaded; and messengers, breathless and panting, arrived
+at the camp, and communicated the intelligence that the Bastard of Hume
+had, with a body of men, got entrance to the Mayor's house, by shewing the
+guard the Governor's sword, and carried off Isabel, the Mayor's daughter,
+who was more willing to go than to stay. The route of the fugitives was
+distinctly laid down, and it was represented by the messengers that, by
+crossing over a couple of miles, they had every chance of overtaking them
+and reclaiming the disobedient maid. The recommendation was instantly
+seized by the distracted Mayor, and a shout of the burgher forces, and an
+accompanying peal from the drums and fifes, shewed the desire of the men to
+fulfil the wish of their master. The captain's spirit was changed. He
+burned to reclaim his bride; but he feared the Bastard of Hume, whose
+prowess was acknowledged far and wide from the Borders. Shame did what
+could not have been accomplished by love; and, putting himself, with a mock
+warlike air, at the head of the troops, away he posted as fast as sixteen
+stone of beef, penetrated by alternate currents of fear, shame, and valour,
+would permit. The musical instruments of war were hushed; and as the forces
+hurried on, panting and breathing, not a voice was heard but the occasional
+vaunts of the captain, who found it necessary to conceal his fear by these
+running shots of assumed valour. As fate would have it, the Berwickers came
+up with the Bastard's party, who, with the gay and laughing Isabel in the
+midst of them, were seated, as they thought securely, in the old Berwick
+wood, enjoying some wine, which she, with wise providence, had handed to
+one of the men as a refreshment when they should be beyond danger. The
+sounds of merriment struck on the ear of the invaders; they stopped, and
+thought it safer, in the first instance, to reconnoitre&mdash;a step highly
+eulogized by the Captain, who seemed to want breath as well from the toil
+of the chase as from some misgivings of his valour, which had come, like
+qualms of sickness, over his stout heart.</p>
+
+<p>"Ha! traitor!" cried the Mayor, "the device of sending us to Newmilne will
+not avail thee. Give me my daughter, traitor!" addressing himself to the
+Bastard, who stood now in the front of the party, all prepared for a tough
+defence.</p>
+
+<p>"In either of two events thou shalt have her," cried Hume&mdash;"if thou canst
+take her, or if she is willing to go with thee."</p>
+
+<p>"No, no!" cried the sprightly maid herself, coming boldly forward. "I love
+my father and the good citizens of Berwick, and none of them shall lose a
+drop of their blood for Isabel. If we are to have battle, let it be between
+the two lovers who claim my hand. By the honour of a Mayor's daughter, I
+shall be his who gaineth the day! Stand forward, Patrick Hume and Governor
+Wallace."</p>
+
+<p>"Bravo!" shouted the burghers, delighted with a scheme that smacked so
+sweetly of justice and safety.</p>
+
+<p>All eyes were now turned on the Captain; and Isabel, delighted with her
+scheme, was seen concealing her face with the corner of her cloak, to
+suppress her laughter. The Captain saw, however, neither justice nor safety
+in the scheme, and, edging near the Mayor, whispered into his ear his
+intention not to fight. Palpable indications of fear were escaping from his
+trembling limbs, and the hero of Bothwell was on the eve of being
+discovered. Hume was prepared&mdash;he stood, sword in hand, ready for the
+combat.</p>
+
+<p>"Come forward, Captain!" cried the Bastard.</p>
+
+<p>"Come forward!" resounded from Isabel, and a hundred voices of the
+burghers.</p>
+
+<p>"I am the Governor of Berwick," answered the hero, in a trembling voice,
+keeping the body of the Mayor between him and Hume. "As the servant of the
+King, I dare not" (panting) "run the risk of reducing my
+authority&mdash;by&mdash;by&mdash;engaging, I say, by committing myself in single combat,
+like a knight errant, for a runaway damsel. It comporteth not with my
+dignity&mdash;hegh&mdash;hegh&mdash;I say, I cannot come down from the height of my glory
+at Bothwell, by committing myself in a love brawl. But ye are my
+men&mdash;hegh&mdash;hegh&mdash;ye are bound to fight when I command. Do your duty&mdash;on,
+on, I say, to the rescue."</p>
+
+<p>"We want not the wench," responded many voices. "He that will not fight for
+his love, deserves to lose her for his cowardice." "Resign her, good
+Mayor," cried others. "Give the damsel her choice," added others. "Bravo,
+good fellows!" cried Bell, in the midst of her laughter; and a shout from
+Hume's men rewarded her spirit. The enthusiasm was caught by the
+Berwickers, some of whom, observing certain indications thrown out by
+Isabel, ran forward and got from her a flagon of good wine. The vessel was
+handed from one to another. "Hurra for Hume!" shouted the Berwickers. The
+tables were turned. All, to a man, were with Isabel and her partner. The
+Mayor had sense enough to see his position. In any way he was to lose his
+daughter, and he heartily despised the coward that would not fight for his
+love.</p>
+
+<p>"Hume," he cried, standing forward, "come hither; and, Isabel, approach the
+side of thy father."</p>
+
+<p>The laughing damsel ran forward, and, perceiving her absolute safety, flung
+herself on her father's neck, and hung there, amidst the continued shouts
+of the men.</p>
+
+<p>"Forgive me, forgive me, father!" cried she. "My choice is justified by my
+love, and the characters of my lovers. The one is a coward, the other a
+brave youth. Hume's intentions are honourable, and I may be the respected
+wife of one of noble blood."</p>
+
+<p>"I forgive thee, Bell," answered the father. And he took her hand and
+placed it in Hume's. "Come, Captain, forgive her too, and let us all be
+friends."</p>
+
+<p>He looked round for the Captain, and all the party looked also; but the
+hero was gone. He had mounted a white Rosinante, as thin as he was fat, and
+was busy striking her protruding bones with his sword, to propel her on to
+Berwick, where he thought he would be more safe than where he was. The
+figure he made in his retreat&mdash;his large swelled body on the lean jade,
+like a tun of wine on a gantress&mdash;his anxiety to get off&mdash;his receding
+position&mdash;his flight after such a day of vaunting&mdash;all conspired to render
+the sight ludicrous in the extreme. One general burst of laughter filled
+the air; but the Captain held on his course, and never stopped till he
+arrived at Berwick. That day Hume and Isabel were wed&mdash;and a happy day it
+was for the Berwickers; who, in place of fighting, were occupied in
+drinking the healths of the couple. The device of Hume, in sending them to
+the Newmilne, was admired for its ingenuity; and all Berwick rung with the
+praises of Hume and his fair spouse. Regular entries were made in the
+council books, of the expedition to the Newmilne, "where they braived the
+Scottes to come and fecht them, butte the cowardes never appeared." But it
+was deemed prudent to say nothing therein of Hume's trick, which,
+doubtless, might have reduced the amount of bravery which it was necessary
+should appear, for the honour of the town.</p>
+
+
+<h4>END OF VOL. XVII.<br />
+<br />
+<small><em>Tubbs &amp; Brook, Printers, Manchester.</em></small></h4>
+
+
+
+<hr />
+
+<div class="tn">
+<p class="noi"><strong>Transcriber's Note</strong>:</p>
+
+<p class="noi">Inconsistencies and unexpected spelling, punctuation and
+hyphenation have been retained as they appear in the
+original book except:</p>
+
+<p class="noi">Page 31 through the intrumentality has been changed to
+through the <a href="#instrumentality">instrumentality</a></p>
+
+<p class="noi">Page 43 and and unflinching opinion has been changed to
+and <a href="#an">an</a> unflinching opinion</p>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
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@@ -0,0 +1,9253 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
+Scotland Volume 17, by Alexander Leighton
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland Volume 17
+
+Author: Alexander Leighton
+
+Release Date: October 19, 2008 [EBook #26962]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WILSON'S TALES OF THE BORDERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Clarke, Mark H Van Tuyl and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+  Wilson's
+  Tales of the Borders
+  AND OF SCOTLAND.
+
+  HISTORICAL, TRADITIONARY, & IMAGINATIVE,
+
+  WITH A GLOSSARY.
+
+  REVISED BY
+
+  ALEXANDER LEIGHTON,
+
+  _One of the Original Editors and Contributors_.
+
+  VOL. XVII.
+
+  LONDON
+
+  WALTER SCOTT, 14 PATERNOSTER SQUARE,
+  AND NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE.
+
+  1884.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+                                                                  Page
+  ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE, (_John Mackay Wilson_),                  1
+
+  HOGMANAY; OR, THE LADY OF BALOOCHGRAY, (_Alexander Leighton_),    33
+
+  GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT, (_Professor Thomas Gillespie_)--
+
+      X. SERGEANT WILSON,                                           65
+
+      XI. HELEN PALMER,                                             72
+
+      XII. THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR,                           80
+
+      XIII. PORTER'S HOLE,                                          92
+
+  THE RECLUSE, (_Alexander Campbell_),                              95
+
+  A HIGHLAND TRADITION, (_Alexander Campbell_),                    125
+
+  THE SURGEON'S TALES, (_Alexander Leighton_)--
+
+      THE BEREAVED,                                                129
+
+      THE CONDEMNED,                                               145
+
+  THE UNBIDDEN GUEST, (_John Mackay Wilson_),                      161
+
+  THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER, (_John M. Wilson_),      170
+
+  TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE, (_Matthew Forster Conolly_)--
+
+      THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB,              194
+
+      STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM,            220
+
+  A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR, (_John Howell_),                        237
+
+  HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK, (_Alexander Leighton_),        269
+
+
+
+
+WILSON'S
+
+TALES OF THE BORDERS,
+
+AND OF SCOTLAND.
+
+
+
+
+ROGER GOLDIE'S NARRATIVE.
+
+A TALE OF THE FALSE ALARM.
+
+
+Ye have heard of the false alarm, (said Roger Goldie,) which, for the space
+of wellnigh four and twenty hours, filled the counties upon the Border with
+exceeding great consternation, and at the same time called forth an example
+of general and devoted heroism, and love of country, such as is nowhere
+recorded in the annals of any nation upon the face of the globe. Good cause
+have I to remember it; and were I to live a thousand years, it never would
+be effaced from my recollection. What first gave rise to the alarm, I have
+not been able clearly to ascertain unto this day. There was a house-heating
+up beside Preston, with feasting and dancing; and a great light, like that
+of a flambeau, proceeded from the onstead. Now, some say that the man that
+kept the beacon on Hownamlaw, mistook the light for the signal on Dunselaw;
+and the man at Dunselaw, in his turn, seeing Hownam flare up, lighted his
+fires also, and speedily the red burning alphabet of war blazed on every
+hill top--a spirit seemed to fly from mountain to mountain, touching their
+summits with fire, and writing in the flame the word--_invasion!_ Others
+say that it arose from the individual who kept watch at Hume Castle being
+deceived by an accidental fire over in Northumberland; and a very general
+supposition is, that it arose from a feint on the part of a great
+sea-admiral, which he made in order to try the courage and loyalty of the
+nation. To the last report, however, I attach no credit. The fable informs
+us, that the shepherd laddie lost his sheep, because he cried, "The wolf!"
+when there was no wolf at hand; and it would have been policy similar to
+his, to have cried, "_An invasion!_" when there was no invasion. Neither
+nations nor individuals like such practical jokes. It is also certain that
+the alarm was not first given by the beacons on the sea-coast; and there
+can be no doubt that the mistake originated either at Hownamlaw or Hume
+Castle.
+
+I recollect it was in the beginning of February 1804. I occupied a house
+then about half a mile out of Dunse, and lived comfortably, and I will say
+contentedly, on the interest of sixteen hundred pounds which I had invested
+in the funds; and it required but little discrimination to foresee, that,
+if the French fairly got a footing in our country, funded property would
+not be worth an old song. I could at all times have risked my life in
+defence of my native land, for the love I bore it; though you will perceive
+that I had a double motive to do so; and the more particularly, as, out of
+the interest of my funded capital, I maintained in competence an
+affectionate wife and a dutiful son--our only child. The name of my wife
+was Agnes, and the name of my son--who, at the time of the alarm, was
+sixteen--was Robert. Upon their account it often caused me great
+uneasiness, when I read and heard of the victories and the threatenings of
+the terrible Corsican. I sometimes dreamed that he had marched a mighty
+army on a bridge of boats across the straits of Dover, and that he had not
+only seized my sixteen hundred pounds, but drawn my son, my only son,
+Robie, as a conscript, to fight against his own natural and lawful country,
+and, perhaps, to shoot his father! I therefore, as in duty bound, as a true
+and loyal subject, had enrolled myself in the Dunse volunteers. Some joined
+the volunteers to escape being drawn for the militia, but I could give my
+solemn affidavit, that I had no motive but the defence of my country--and
+my property, which, as I have said, was a double inducement.
+
+I did not make a distinguished figure in the corps, for my stature did not
+exceed five feet two inches. But although my body was small, no man was
+more punctual on the parade; and I will affirm, without vanity, none more
+active, or had a bolder heart. It always appeared to me to be the height of
+folly to refuse to admit a man into a regiment, because nature had not
+formed him a giant. The little man is not so apt to shoot over the head of
+an enemy, and he runs less risk of being shot himself--two things very
+necessary to be considered in a battle; and were I a general, I would have
+a regiment where five feet two should be the maximum height even for the
+grenadier company.
+
+But, as I was saying, it was early in the February of 1804, on the second
+night, if I recollect aright--I had been an hour abed, and was lying about
+three parts asleep, when I was started with a sort of bum, bumming, like
+the beating of a drum. I thought also that I heard people running along the
+road, past the door. I listened, and, to my horror, I distinctly heard the
+alarm drum beating to arms. It was a dreadful sound to arouse a man from
+his sleep in our peaceful land.
+
+"Robie!" cried I to my son, "rise, my man, rise, and run down to the town,
+and see what is the matter, that they are beating the alarm drum at this
+time of night. I fear that"--
+
+"Oh, dearsake, Roger!" cried Agnes, grasping my arm, "what do ye fear?"
+
+"That--that there's a fire in the town," said I.
+
+"Weel," quoth she, "it canna reach us. But on dear me! ye have made my
+heart beat as if it would start from my breast--for I thought ye was gaun
+to say that ye was feared the French were landed!"
+
+"I hope not," said I. But, in truth, it was that which I did fear.
+
+Robie was a bold, spirited laddie; and he rushed out of the house, cold as
+it was, half-dressed, and without his jacket; but he had not been absent a
+minute, when he hurried back again, and cried breathlessly as he
+entered--"Faither! faither! the Law is a' in a lowe!--the French are
+landed!"
+
+I was then standing in the middle of the floor, putting on my clothes; and,
+starting as though I had seen an apparition, I exclaimed--"The French
+landed!--rise, Agnes! rise, and get me my accoutrements. For this day I
+will arm and do battle in defence of my native land."
+
+"Roger! Roger!" cried my wife, "wherefore will ye act foolishly. Stop at
+home, as a man ought to do, to preserve and protect his ain family and his
+ain property. Wherefore would ye risk life or limb withouten cause. There
+will be enough to fight the French without you--unmarried men, or men that
+have naebody to leave behint them and to mourn for them."
+
+"Agnes," said I, in a tone which manifested my authority, and at the same
+time shewed the courageousness of my spirit--"get me my accoutrements. I
+have always been the first upon the parade, and I will not be the last to
+shew my face upon the field of battle. I am but a little man--the least
+battalion man in the whole corps--but I have a heart as big as the biggest
+of them. Bonaparte himself is no Goliath, and a shot from my musket might
+reach his breast, when a taller man would be touching the cockade on his
+cocked hat. Therefore, quick! quick!--get me my accoutrements."
+
+"Oh, guidman!" cried she, "your poor, heart-broken wife will fall on her
+knees before ye--and I implore ye, for my sake, and for the sake o' our
+dear bairn, that ye winna fling away life, and rush upon destruction. What
+in the name of fortune, has a peaceable man like you to do wi' war or wi'
+Bonaparte either? Dinna think of leaving the house this night, and I myself
+will go down to the town and procure a substitute in your stead. I have
+fifteen pounds in the kist, that I have been scraping thegither for these
+twelve years past, and I will gie them to ony man that will take your place
+in the volunteers, and go forth to fight the French in your stead."
+
+"Guidwife," said I, angrily, "ye forget what ye are talking about. The
+French are landed, and every man, auld and young, must take up arms. Ye
+would have me to become the laughing-stock of both town and country.
+Therefore get me my accoutrements, and let me down to the cross."
+
+"O Robie, my bairn!--my only bairn!" cried she, weeping, and addressing our
+son, "try ye to prevail upon your faither to gie up his mad resolution. If
+he leave us, he will mak you faitherless and me a widow."
+
+"Mother," said the laddie, gallantly, "the French are landed, and my
+faither maun help to drive them into the sea. I will tak my pistol and gang
+wi' him, and if ony thing happens, I will be at hand to assist him."
+
+"Haud, haud your tongue, ye silly callant!" she exclaimed, in great
+tribulation, "ye are as great a fool as your faither is. He sees what he
+has made o' you. But as the auld cock craws the young ane learns."
+
+I felt a sort of glow of satisfaction warming my heart at the manifestation
+of my son's spirit; but I knew that in one of his age, and especially at
+such a time, and with such a prospect before us, it was not right to
+encourage it, and it was impossible for a fond parent to incite his only
+son to the performance of an act that would endanger his life. I therefore
+spoke to him kindly, but, at the same time, with the firmness necessary to
+enforce the commands of a father, and said--"Ye are too young, Robin, to
+become a participator in scenes of war and horror. Your young bosom, that
+is yet a stranger to sorrow, must not be exposed to the destroying bullet;
+nor your bonny cheek, where the rose-bud blooms, disfigured with the sabre
+or the horse's hoof. Ye must not break your mother's heart, but stay at
+home to comfort and defend her, when your father is absent fighting for ye
+both."
+
+The boy listened to me in silence, but I thought that sullenness mingled
+with his obedience, and I had never seen him sullen before. Agnes went
+around the house weeping, and finding that I was not to be gainsayed, she
+brought me my military apparel and my weapons of war. When, therefore, I
+was arrayed and ready for the field, and while the roll of the drum was
+still summoning us to muster, I took her hand to bid her farewell--but, in
+the fulness of my heart, I pressed my lips to hers, and my tears mingled
+with her own upon her cheek.
+
+"Farewell, Agnes," said I, "but I trust--I hope--I doubt not, but we shall
+soon return safe, sound, and victorious. But if I should not--if it be so
+ordered that it is to be my lot to fall gloriously in defence of our
+country, our son Robert will comfort ye and protect ye; and ye will find
+all the papers relating to the sixteen hundred pounds of funded property in
+my private drawer; although, if the French gain a footing in the country, I
+doubt it will be but of small benefit to ye. And, in that case, Robin, my
+man," added I, addressing my son, "ye will have to labour with your hands
+to protect your mother! Bless you, doubly bless you both."
+
+I saw my son fall upon his mother's neck, and it afforded me a consolation.
+With great difficulty I got out of the house, and I heard Agnes sobbing
+when I was a hundred yards distant. I still also heard the roll of the drum
+rolling and rattling through the stillness of midnight, and, on arriving at
+the cross, I found a number of the volunteers and a multitude of the
+townspeople assembled. No one could tell _where_ the French had landed, but
+all knew that they _had_ landed.
+
+That, I assure ye, was a never-to-be-forgotten night. Every person
+naturally looked anxious, but I believe I may safely say, that there was
+not one face in a hundred that was pale with fear, or that exhibited a
+trace of cowardice or terror upon it. One thought was uppermost in every
+bosom, and that was--to drive back the invaders, yea to drive them into,
+and drown them in the German ocean, even as Pharaoh and his host were
+encompassed by the Red Sea and drowned in it. Generally speaking, a spirit
+of genuine, of universal heroism was manifested. The alacrity with which
+the volunteers assembled under arms, was astonishing; not but that there
+were a few who fell into the ranks rather slowly and with apparent
+reluctance; but some of those, like me, had perhaps wives to cling round
+their necks, and to beseech them not to venture forth into the war. One of
+the last who appeared upon the ground, was my right-hand comrade, Jonathan
+Barlowman. I had to step to the left to make room for Jonathan, and, as he
+took his place by my side, I heard the teeth chattering in his head. Our
+commanding officer spoke to him rather sharply, about being so slow in
+turning out in an hour of such imminent peril. But I believe Jonathan was
+insensible to the reprimand.
+
+The drums began to beat and the fifes to play--the word "March!" was
+given--the townspeople gave us three cheers as we began to move--and my
+comrade Jonathan, in his agitation, put his wrong foot foremost, and could
+not keep the step. So we marched onward, armed and full of patriotism,
+towards Haddington, which in case of the invasion, was appointed our
+head-quarters or place of rendezvous.
+
+I will not pretend to say that I felt altogether comfortable during the
+march; indeed, to have done so was impossible, for the night was bitterly
+cold, and at all times there is but little shelter on the bleak and wild
+Lammermoors; yet the cold gave me but small concern, in comparison of the
+thoughts of my Agnes and my son Robin. I felt that I loved them even better
+than ever I had imagined I loved them before, and it caused me much silent
+agony of spirit when I thought that I had parted with them--perhaps for
+ever. Yet, even in the midst of such thoughts, I was cheered by the
+glorious idea of fighting in defence of one's own native country; and I
+thought of Wallace and of Bruce, and of all the heroes I had read about
+when a laddie, and my blood fired again. I found that I hated our invaders
+with a perfect hatred--that I feared not to meet death--and I grasped my
+firelock more firmly, and a thousand times fancied that I had it levelled
+at the breast of the Corsican.
+
+I indulged in this train of thoughts until we had reached Longformacus, and
+during that period not a word had my right-hand neighbour, Jonathan
+Barlowman, spoken, either good, bad, or indifferent; but I had frequently
+heard him groan audibly, as though his spirit were troubled. At length,
+when we had passed Longformacus, and were in the most desolate part of the
+hills--"O Mr Goldie! Mr Goldie!" said he, "is this no dismal?"
+
+"I always consider it," answered I, "one of the dreariest spots on the
+Lammermoors."
+
+"O sir!" said he, "it isna the dreariness o' the road that I am referring
+to. I would rather be sent across the hills from Cowdingham to Lander,
+blindfold, than I would be sent upon an errand like this. But is it not a
+dismal and a dreadfu' thought that Christian men should be roused out of
+their beds at the dead of night, to march owre moor and mountain, to be
+shot, or to cut each other's throats? It is terrible, Mr Goldie!"
+
+Now, he was a man seven inches taller than I was, and I was glad of the
+opportunity of proving to him that, though I had the lesser body, I had the
+taller spirit of the two--and the spirit makes the man. Therefore I said to
+him--"Why, Mr Barlowman, you surprise me to hear you talk; when our country
+demands our arms in its defence, we should be ready to lay down our lives,
+if necessary, by night or by day, on mountain or in glen, on moor or in
+meadow--and I cannot respond your sentiments."
+
+"Weel," said he, "that may be your opinion, and it may be a good opinion,
+but, for my own part, I do confess that I have no ambition for the honours
+of either heroism or martyrdom. Had a person been allowed a day to make a
+sort of decent arrangement of their worldly affairs, it wadna have been sae
+bad; but to be summoned out of your warm bed at midnight, and to take up an
+instrument of death in the dark, and go forth to be shot at!--there is, in
+my opinion, but a small share of either honour or glory in the transaction.
+This, certainly, is permanent duty now, and peremptory duty also, with a
+witness! But it is a duty the moral obligation of which I cannot perceive;
+and I think that a man's first duty is to look after himself--and family."
+
+He mentioned the word "family" with a peculiarity of emphasis which plainly
+indicated that he wished it to work an effect upon me, and to bring me over
+to his way of thinking. But, instead of its producing that effect, my
+spirit waxed bolder and bolder as I remained an ear-witness of his
+cowardice.
+
+"Comrade Jonathan--I beg your pardon, Mr Barlowman I mean to say," said
+I--"the first duty of every man, when his country is in danger, is to take
+up arms in its defence, and to be ready to lay down his life, if his body
+will form a barrier to the approach of an enemy."
+
+"It may be sae," said he; "but I would just as soon think of my body being
+eaten by cannibals, as applied to any such purpose. It will take a long
+time to convince me that there is any bravery in a man volunteering to 'be
+shot at for sixpence a-day;' and it will be as long before fighting the
+French prepare my land for the spring seed. If I can get a substitute when
+we reach Haddington, they may fight that likes for me."
+
+As we marched along, his body became the victim of one calamity after
+another. Now his shoes pinched his feet and crippled him, and in a while he
+was seized with cramp pains in his breast, which bent him together twofold.
+But, as it was generally suspected by the corps that Jonathan was, at best,
+hen-hearted, he met with little, indeed I may say no sympathy on account of
+his complaints, but rather with contempt; for there was not a man in our
+whole regiment, save himself, that did not hate cowardice with his whole
+heart, and despise it with his whole soul. Whether he actually was
+suffering from bodily pain, in addition to the pain of his spirit, or not,
+it is not for me to judge. The doctor came to the rear to see him, and he
+said that Mr Barlowman certainly was in a state of high fever, that would
+render him incapable of being of much service. But I thought that he made
+the declaration in an ironical sort of tone; and whether it was a fever of
+fear, of spiritual torment, or of bodily torment, he did not tell. One
+thing is certain, the one frequently begets the other.
+
+The words of the doctor gave a sort of license to bold Jonathan Barlowman,
+and his moaning and his groaning, his writhing and complaining, increased.
+He began to fall behind, and now stood fumbling with his pinching shoes, or
+bent himself double with his hands across his breast, sighing piteously,
+and shedding tears in abundance. At length we lost sight and hearing of
+him, and we imagined that he had turned back, or peradventure, lain down by
+the way; but there was no time for us to return to seek him, nor yet to
+look after one man, when, belike a hundred thousand French had landed.
+
+Well, it was about an hour after the final disappearance of Jonathan, that
+a stranger joined our ranks in his stead. He took his place close by my
+side. He carried a firelock over his shoulder, and was dressed in a
+greatcoat; but so far as I could judge from his appearance in the dark, I
+suspected him to be a very young man. I could not get a word out of him,
+save that in answer to a question--"Are ye Mr Barlowman's substitute?"
+
+And he answered--"Yes."
+
+Beyond that one word, I could not get him to open his mouth. However, I
+afterwards ascertained that the youth overtook Jonathan, while he was
+writhing in agony upon the road, and declaring aloud that he would give any
+money, from ten to a hundred guineas, for a substitute, besides his arms
+and accoutrements. The young man leaped at the proposal, or rather at a
+part of it, for he said he would take no money, but that the other should
+give him his arms, ammunition, and such like, and he would be his
+substitute. Jonathan joyfully accepted the conditions; but whether or not
+his pains and groanings left him, when relieved from the weight of his
+knapsack, I cannot tell. Our corps voted him to be no man who could find
+time to be ill, even in earnest, during an invasion.
+
+My attention, however, was now wholly taken up with the stranger, who, it
+appeared, had been dropped, as if from the clouds, in the very middle of a
+waste, howling wilderness, to volunteer to serve in the place of my craven
+comrade, Jonathan Barlowman. The youth excited my curiosity the more,
+because, as I have already informed ye, he was as silent as a milestone,
+and not half so satisfactory; for beyond the little word "Yes," which I
+once got out of him, not another syllable would he breathe--but he kept his
+head half turned away from me. I felt the consciousness and the assurance
+growing in me more and more that he was a French spy; therefore I kept my
+musket so that I could level it at him, and discharge it at half a moment's
+warning; and I was rejoicing to think that it would be a glorious thing if
+I got an opportunity of signalizing myself on the very first day of the
+invasion. I really began to dream of titles and rewards, the thanks of
+parliament, and the command of a regiment. It is a miracle that, in the
+delirium of my waking dream, I did not place the muzzle of my musket to my
+strange comrade's head.
+
+But daylight began to break just as we were about Danskin, and my curiosity
+to see the stranger's face--to make out who he was or what he was, or
+whether he was a Frenchman, or one of our own countrymen--was becoming
+altogether insupportable. But, just with the first peep of day, I got a
+glimpse of his countenance. I started back for full five yards--the musket
+dropped out of my hands!
+
+"Robie! Robie, ye rascal!" I exclaimed, in a voice that was heard from the
+one end of the line to the other, and that made the whole regiment
+halt--"what in the wide world has brought you here? What do ye mean to be
+after?"
+
+"To fight the French, faither!" said my brave laddie; "and ye ken ye always
+said, that in the event of an invasion, it wad be the duty of every one
+capable of firing a musket, or lifting a knife, to take up arms. I can do
+baith; and what mair me than another?"
+
+This was torturing me on the shrine of my own loyalty, and turning my own
+weapons upon myself, in a way that I never had expected.
+
+"Robie! ye daft, disobedient, heart-breaker ye!" continued I, "did I not
+command ye to remain at home with your mother, to comfort her, and, if it
+were necessary, and in your power, to defend her; and how, sirrah, have ye
+dared to desert her, and leave her sorrowing for you?"
+
+"I thought, faither," answered he, "that the best way to defend her, would
+be to prevent the enemy approaching near to our dwellings."
+
+My comrades round about that heard this answer, could not refrain from
+giving three cheers in admiration of the bravery of the laddie's spirit;
+and the cheering attracting the attention of the officers, one of them came
+forward to us, to inquire into its cause; and, on its being explained to
+him, he took Robin by the hand, and congratulated me upon having such a
+son. I confess that I did feel an emotion of pride and gratification
+glowing in my breast at the time; nevertheless, the fears and the anxiety
+of a parent predominated, and I thought what a dreadful thing it would be
+for me, his father, to see him shot or pierced through the body with a
+bayonet, at my very side; and what account, thought I, could I give of such
+a transaction to his bereaved and sorrowing mother? For I felt a something
+within my breast, which whispered, that, if evil befell him in the warfare
+in which we were about to engage, I would not be able to look her in the
+face again. I fancied that I heard her upbraiding me with having instilled
+into his mind a love of war, and I fancied that I heard her voice requiring
+his life at my hands, and crying--"Where is my son?"
+
+At length we arrived at Haddington; and there, in the course of the day, it
+was discovered, to the gratification of some and the disappointment of
+many, that our march had originated in a _false alarm_. I do confess that I
+was amongst those who felt gratified that the peace of the land was not to
+be endangered, but that we were to return every man to his own fireside,
+and to sit down beneath our vine and our fig tree, with the olive branches
+twining between them. But amongst those who were disappointed, and who
+shewed their chagrin by the gnashing of their teeth, was my silly laddie,
+my only son Robert. When he saw the people laughing in the marketplace, and
+heard that the whole Borders had been aroused by an accidental light upon a
+hill, his young brow lowered as black as midnight--his whole body trembled
+with a sort of smothered rage--and his eyebrows drew together until the
+shape of a horse-shoe was engraven between them.
+
+"Robie, my captain," said I, "wherefore are ye looking sae dour? Man, ye
+ought to rejoice that no invader as yet has dared to set his foot upon our
+coast, and that you and I will return to your mother, who, no doubt, will
+be distracted upon your account beyond measure. But, oh, when she meets you
+again, I think that I see her now springing up from the chair, where she is
+sitting rocking and mourning, and flinging her arms round your neck,
+crying--'Robie!--Robie, my son! where have ye been?--how could ye leave
+your mother?' Then she will sob upon your breast, and wet your cheek with
+her tears; and I will lift her arms from your neck, and say--'Look ye,
+Agnes, woman, your husband is restored to ye safe and sound, as well as
+your son?' And then I will tell her all about your bravery, and your
+following us over the moors, and the cowardice of Jonathan Barlowman, and
+of your coming up to him, where he groaned behind us on the road--of your
+becoming his substitute, and of your getting his greatcoat, his knapsack,
+and his gun--and of your marching an hour by your father's side without him
+finding out who you were. I will tell her all about my discovering you, and
+about your answers, and the cheering of the volunteers; and the officers
+coming up and taking your hand, and congratulating me upon having such a
+son. O Robie, man! I will tell her everything! It will be such a meeting as
+there has not been in the memory of man. Therefore, as the French are
+neither landed nor like to land, I will speak to the superior officer, and
+you and I Will set off for Dunse immediately."
+
+We went into a public-house, to have a bottle of ale and baps; and I think
+I never in my life partook of anything more refreshing or more delicious.
+Even Robie, notwithstanding the horse-shoe of angry disappointment on his
+brow, made a hearty repast; but that was natural to a growing laddie, and
+especially after such a tramp as we had had in the death and darkness of
+night, over moor and heather.
+
+"Eat well, Robie, lad," said I; "it's a long road over again between here
+and Dunse, and there is but little to be got on it. Take another glass of
+ale; ye never tasted anything from Clockmill to match that. It is as
+delicious as honey, and as refreshing as fountain water."
+
+That really was the case; though whether the peculiar excellence of the ale
+arose from anything extraordinarily grateful in its flavour, or from my
+long march, my thirst, and sharp appetite--added to the joy I felt in the
+unexpected prospect of returning home in peace and happiness with my son,
+instead of slaughtering at enemies, or being slaughtered by them--I cannot
+affirm. There might be something in both. Robin, however, drank an entire
+bottle to his own head--that was three parts of a choppin, and a great deal
+too much for a laddie of his years. But in the temper he was in, and
+knowing by myself that he must be both thirsty and hungry, I did not think
+it prudent to restrain him. It was apparent that the liquor was getting
+uppermost in his brain, and he began to speak and to argue in company, and
+to strike his hand upon the table like an angry man; in short, he seemed
+forgetful of my presence, and those were exhibitions which I had never
+observed in him before.
+
+I was exceedingly anxious to get home, upon his mother's account; for she
+was a woman of a tender heart and a nervous temperament; and I knew that
+she would be in a state bordering on distraction on account of his absence.
+I therefore said to him--"Robin, I am going to speak to the commanding
+officer; ye will sit here until I come back, but do not drink any more."
+
+"Very weel, faither," said he.
+
+So I went out and spoke to the officer, and told him my reasons for wishing
+to return home immediately; urging the state of anxiety and distress that
+Agnes would be in on account of the absence of our son.
+
+"Very well, Mr Goldie," said he; "it is all very right and proper; I have a
+regard to the feelings of a husband and a parent; and as this has proved
+but a false alarm, there is no obstacle to your returning home
+immediately."
+
+I thanked him very gratefully for his civility, and stepped away up to the
+George Inn, where I took two outside places on the heavy coach to Dunbar,
+intending to walk from there to Broxmouth, and to strike up there by the
+west to Innerwick, and away over the hills, down by Preston, and home.
+
+I am certain I was not twenty minutes or half an hour absent at the
+farthest. When I entered the public-house again, I looked for my son, but
+he was not there.
+
+"What have ye made of Robie?" said I to my comrades.
+
+"Has he no been wi' ye?" answered they; "he left the house just after ye."
+
+Mortal man cannot describe the fear, agony, and consternation that fell
+upon me. The sweat burst upon my brow as though it had been the warmest day
+in summer. A thousand apprehensions laid their hands upon me in a moment.
+
+"With me!" said I; "he's not been with me: have none of you an idea where
+he can have gone?"
+
+"Not the smallest," said they; "but he canna be far off--he will soon cast
+up. He will only be out looking at the town."
+
+"Or showing off gallant Jonathan Barlowman's gun, big-coat, and knapsack,"
+said one.
+
+"Keep yoursel at ease, Mr Goldie," said another, laughing; "there is no
+danger of his passing the advanced posts, and falling into the hands of the
+French."
+
+It was easy for those to jest who were ignorant of a father's fears and a
+father's feelings. I sat down for the space of five minutes, and to me they
+seemed five hours; but I drank nothing, and I said nothing, but I kept my
+eyes fixed upon the door. Robin did not return. I thought the ale might
+have overcome the laddie, and that he had gone out and lain down in a state
+of sickness; and "That," thought I, "will be a _becoming_ state for me to
+take him home in to his distressed mother. Or it will cause us to stop a
+night upon the road."
+
+My anxiety became insupportable, and I again left my comrades, and went out
+to seek him. I sought him in every street, in every public-house in the
+town, amongst the soldiers, and amongst the townspeople; but all were too
+much occupied in discussing the cause of the alarm, to notice him who was
+to me as the apple of my eye. For three hours I wandered in search of him,
+east, west, north, and south, making inquiries at every one I met; but no
+one had seen or heard tell of him. I saw the coach drive off for Dunbar. I
+beheld also my comrades muster on the following morning, and prepare to
+return home, but I wandered up and down disconsolate, seeking my son, but
+finding him not.
+
+The most probable, and the fondest conjecture that I could indulge in, was,
+that he had returned home. I, therefore, shouldered my musket, and followed
+my companions to Dunse, whom I overtook upon the moors. It would be
+impossible for me to describe my feelings by the way--they were torture
+strained to its utmost extremity, and far more gloomy and dreary than the
+gloomiest and dreariest parts of the moors over which we had to pass. Every
+footstep increased my anxiety, every mile the perturbation and agony of my
+spirit. Never, I believe, did a poor parent endure such misery before, and
+I wished that I had never been one. I kept looking for him to the right and
+to the left every minute; and though it was but few travellers that we met
+upon the road, every one that we did meet I described him to them, and
+asked them if they had seen him. But, "No!" "No!" was their unvaried
+answer, and my wretchedness increased.
+
+At length we arrived at Dunse, and a great crowd was there to meet
+us--wives to welcome their husbands, parents to greet their children, and
+children their parents. The first that my eyes singled out, was a sister of
+my Agnes. She ran up to me.
+
+"Roger," she cried, "hae ye seen onything o' Robie?"
+
+The words went through my breast as if it had received the fire of a whole
+French battalion. I stood stock-still, petrified with despair. My looks
+told my answer to her question.
+
+"Oh, dear me! dear me!" I heard her cry; "what will his puir mother do
+noo--for she already is like ane clean out o' her judgment about him."
+
+I did not stop for the word "halt," or for the breaking of the lines; and I
+went home, I may say by instinct, for neither bird, bush, house nor tree,
+man nor bairn, was I capable of discerning by the road. Grief and
+heart-bursting anxiety were as scales upon my eyes. I remember of rushing
+into the house, throwing down my gun, and crying--"O Agnes! Agnes!" And as
+well do I remember her impatient and piteous inquiry--"Where is my
+Robie?--Oh, where is my son?--hae ye no seen him?"
+
+It was long before I could compose myself, so as to tell her all that I
+knew concerning him; and it was even longer before she was sufficiently
+calm to comprehend me. Never did unhappy parents before experience greater
+bitterness of soul. I strove to comfort her, but she would not listen to my
+words; for oh, they were as the blind leading the blind; we both were
+struggling in the slough of despair--both were in the pit of dark,
+bewildering misery. We sometimes sat looking at each other, like criminals
+whose last hour is come; and even when our grief wore itself into a "calm
+sough," there was something in our silence as dismal and more hopeless than
+the silence of the grave itself. But, every now and then, she would burst
+into long, loud lamentations, mourning and crying for "her son!--her son!"
+Often, too, did we sit, suppressing our very breath, listening to every
+foot that approached, and as one disappointment followed another, her
+despair became deeper and deeper, louder and louder, and its crushing
+weight sank heavier and heavier upon my spirit.
+
+Some of his young companions informed us, that Robin had long expressed a
+determination to be a soldier; and, on the following day, I set out for
+Edinburgh to seek for him there, and to buy him off at any price, if he had
+enlisted.
+
+There, however, I could gather no tidings concerning him; and all that I
+could learn was, that a regiment had left the Castle that morning at two
+o'clock, and embarked at Leith for Chatham, from whence they were to
+proceed direct abroad; and that several recruits were attached to it, some
+of them only sworn in an hour before they embarked; but whether my poor
+Robie was among them or not, no one could tell.
+
+I left Edinburgh no wiser, no happier, and in no way more comforted than I
+entered it, and returned to his mother a sad and sorrowing-hearted man. She
+wrung her hands the instant she beheld me, and, in a tone that might have
+touched the heart of a stone, cried aloud--"Oh, my lost! lost bairn! Ye hae
+made a living grave o' yer mother's breast."
+
+I would have set off immediately for London, and from thence down to
+Chatham, to inquire for him there; but the wind was favourable when the
+vessel sailed, and it was therefore certain, that, by the time I got back
+to Dunse, she was at the place of her destination; and moreover, I had no
+certainty or assurance that he was on board. Therefore, we spent another
+day in fruitless lamentations and tears, and in vain inquiries around our
+own neighbourhood, and amongst his acquaintances.
+
+But my own heart yearned continually, and his mother's moaning was
+unceasing in my ear, as the ticking of a spider, or the beating of a
+stop-watch to a person that is doomed to die. I could find no rest. I
+blamed myself for not proceeding direct from Edinburgh to Chatham; and,
+next day, I went down to Berwick, to take my place in the mail to London.
+
+By the way I met several of the yeomanry, who were only returning from
+Dunbar, where they had been summoned by the alarm; and I found that Berwick
+also had been in arms. But taking my place on the mail, I proceeded,
+without sleep or rest, to London, and from thence hastened to Chatham.
+There again I found that the regiment which I sought was already half way
+down the Channel; but I ascertained also that my poor thoughtless boy was
+one of the recruits, and even that was some consolation, although but a
+poor one.
+
+Again I returned to his mother, and told her of the tidings. They brought
+her no comfort, and, night and day, she brooded on the thought of her fair
+son lying dead and mangled on the field of slaughter, or of his returning
+helpless and wounded to his native land. And often it was wormwood to my
+spirit, and an augmentation of my own sorrows, to find that, in secret, she
+murmured against me as the author of her bereavement, and as having
+instilled into my son a liking for a soldier's life. She said it was all
+owing to my getting him, from the time that he was able to read, to take
+the newspaper in his hand and read it aloud to my cronies, and in which
+there were accounts of nothing but wars and battles, of generals and
+captains, and Bonaparte, of whom enough was foretold and enough could be
+read in the Revelations. These murmurings grieved me the more, inasmuch as
+my mind was in no way satisfied that they were without foundation. No man
+knew better than I did, how easily the twig is bent; a passing breeze, the
+lighting of a bird upon it, may do it; and as it is bent, so the branch or
+the tree will be inclined. I, therefore, almost resolved not to permit
+another newspaper to be brought within my door. But, somehow or other, it
+became more necessary than ever. Every time it came it was like a letter
+from Robie; and we read it from beginning to end, expecting always to hear
+something of him or of his regiment. Even Agnes grew fond of it, and was
+uneasy on the Saturdays if the postman was half-an-hour behind the time in
+bringing it.
+
+Full twelvemonths passed before we received a letter from him; and never
+will I forget the delightful sensations that gushed into my bosom at the
+sight of that letter. I trembled from head to foot with joy. I knew his
+handwriting at the first glance, and so did his mother--just as well as if
+he had begun "_dear parents_" on the back of it. It was only to be a penny,
+and his mother could hardly get her hand into her pocket to give the copper
+to the postman, she shook so excessively with joy and with agitation, and
+kept saying to me--"Read, Roger! read! Oh, let me hear what my bairn says."
+
+I could hardly keep my hand steady to open it; and, when I did break the
+seal, I burst into tears at the same moment, and my eyes became as though I
+were blind; and still his mother continued saying to me--"Oh, read! read!"
+
+Twice, thrice, did I draw my sleeve across my eyes, and at last I read as
+follows:--
+
+"MY DEAR PARENTS,--I fear that my conduct has caused you many a miserable
+day, and many a sleepless night. But, even for my offence, cruel as it has
+been, I trust there is forgiveness in a parent's breast. I do not think
+that I ever spoke of it to you, but, from the very earliest period that I
+could think, the wish was formed in my mind to be a soldier. When I used to
+be spelling over the History of Sir William Wallace, or the lives of the
+Seven Champions of Christendom, I used to fancy myself Wallace or Saint
+George; and I resolved, that when I lived to be a man, that I would be a
+soldier and a hero like them; and I used to think what a grand thing it
+would be for you and my mother, and all my acquaintances, to be reading
+about me and my exploits! The continual talking about the war and the
+French, and of their intention to invade Britain, all strengthened my early
+desires. Often when I was reading the newspapers to you and your friends,
+and about the gallant deeds of any particular individual, though I used to
+read _his name_ aloud to you, I always read it in to myself as though it
+were my own. I had resolved to enlist before the false alarm took place;
+and, when you and the other volunteers marched out of Dunse to Haddington,
+I could not resist the temptation which it offered of seeing and being
+present at a battle. About half-an-hour after you left the town, I followed
+ye, and, as ye are already aware, overtook poor Jonathan Barlowman, who had
+fallen behind the corps, in great distress, apparently both of body and
+mind. He seemed to be in a swither whether to return home, to follow ye, or
+to lie down and die by the road. I knew him by the sound of the lamentation
+he was making, and, accosting him, I inquired--'What is the matter wi' ye,
+Jonathan! Has ony o' the French, concealed aboot the moors, shot ye
+already?' 'Oh,' he replied, 'I am ill--I am dying!--I am dying!--I will
+give any money for a substitute!' 'Gie me yer gun,' said I, 'and I will be
+yer substitute without money.' 'A thousand blessings upon yer head, Robie,
+lad!' said he; 'ye shall hae my gun, and ye may tak also my greatcoat and
+knapsack, for they only encumber me. Ye hae rescued a dying man.' I was
+nearly as tall as he; and, though his coat was loose about me, when I got
+it on, and his musket over my shoulder, and felt that I was marching like
+an armed knight of old against the invaders of my country, I felt as proud
+as an emperor; I would not have changed situations with a king. I overtook
+you, and you know the rest. At Haddington, the strong ale was too strong
+for me. I was also sorely mortified to find all my prospects of becoming a
+hero blasted. When, therefore, you went out to take our places in the
+coach to Dunbar, I slipped out of the room, and hiding Mr Barlowman's coat
+and gun in a closet, in the house, I took the road for Edinburgh; which
+city I reached within less than three hours; and before I had been in it
+twenty minutes I was a soldier. I was afraid to write home, lest ye would
+take steps to buy me off. On the fourth day after my enlisting I was landed
+at Chatham, where I was subjected to a perpetual drill; and within thirty
+hours after landing, I again embarked with my regiment; and when I wished
+to have written, I had not an opportunity. Since then, I have been in two
+general engagements and several skirmishes, in all of which I have escaped
+unwounded. I have found that to read of a battle, and to be engaged in a
+battle, are two very different things. The description is grand, but the
+sight dismal. I trust that my behaviour as a soldier has been
+unimpeachable. It has obtained for me the notice of our colonel, who has
+promoted me to the rank of corporal, with the promise of shortly making me
+a sergeant; and I am not without hopes, before the war is over, (of which
+there at present is no prospect), of obtaining a commission; though it
+certainly is not one in a thousand that has such fortune. Hoping,
+therefore, my dear parents, that, under the blessing of Providence, this
+will find you well, as it leaves me, and that I will live to return to ask
+your forgiveness, I remain your affectionate and dutiful son,
+
+      "ROBERT GOLDIE."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Such was Robin's letter. "Read it again," said mother--and I read it again;
+and when I had done so, she took it in her hand and pressed it to her lips
+and to her breast, and wept for "her poor bairn." At last, in a tone of
+despondency, she said--"But, oh, he doesna once particularly mention his
+mother's name in't."
+
+"He surely does," said I; "I think he mentions us both."
+
+So I took the letter again into my hand, and, at the foot corner of the
+third page, I saw what I had not observed before, the letters and
+words--"_P.S. Turn over_."
+
+"P.S." said his mother; "who does that mean?"
+
+"Oh!" said I, "it means nobody. It means that we have not read all the
+letter."
+
+"Read it a', then--read it a'!" she cried.
+
+And I turned to the last page, on the fold above the direction, and read--
+
+"P.S.--But how am I to ask the forgiveness of my dear mother, for all the
+distress and anxiety that my folly and disobedience must have occasioned
+her. I start in my very sleep, and think that I hear her yearning and
+upbraiding. If she knew how deep my repentance is, and how keen my misery
+for the grief which I have caused her, I would not have to ask her
+forgiveness twice. Dear father! dear mother!--both, both of you forgive
+your thoughtless son."
+
+These last lines of his letter drowned us both in tears, and, for the space
+of several minutes, neither of us were able to speak. I was the first to
+break silence, and I said--"Agnes, our dear Robin is now a soldier, and he
+seems to like that way of life. But I dislike the thought of his being only
+a corporal, and I would wish to see him an officer. We have nobody in the
+world but him to care for. He is our only son and heir, and I trust that
+all that we have will one day be his. Now, I believe that the matter of
+four or five hundred pounds will buy him a commission, and make him an
+officer, with a sword by his side, a sash round his waist, and a gold
+epaulette on his shoulder, with genteel pay and provision for life; besides
+setting him on the high road to be a general. Therefore, if ye approve of
+it, I will sell out stock to the amount that will buy him commission."
+
+"Oh," replied she, "ye needna ask me if I approve, for weel do ye ken that
+I will approve o' onything that will be for my bairn's benefit."
+
+I accordingly lifted five hundred pounds, and through the influence of a
+Parliament man, succeeded in procuring him a commission as an ensign. I
+thought the money well spent, as it tended to promote the respectability
+and prospects of my son.
+
+Four years afterwards, his mother and I had the satisfaction of reading in
+the public papers, that he had been promoted to the rank of lieutenant upon
+the field, for his bravery. On the following day we received a letter from
+himself, confirming the tidings, which gave us great joy. Nevertheless, our
+joy was mingled with fears; for we were always apprehensive that some day
+or other we would find his name among the list of killed and wounded. And
+always the first thing that his mother said to me, when I took up the
+papers, was--"Read the list of the killed and wounded." And I always did
+so, with a slow, hesitating, and faltering voice, fearful that the next I
+should mention would be that of my son, Lieutenant Goldie.
+
+There was very severe fighting at the time; and every post was bringing
+news concerning the war. One day, (I remember it was a King's fast-day,)
+several neighbours and myself were leaning upon the dike, upon the footpath
+opposite to my house, and waiting for the postman coming from Ayton, to
+hear what was the news of the day. As he approached us, I thought he looked
+very demure-like, which was not his usual; for he was as cheerful,
+active-looking a little man as you could possibly see.
+
+"Well, Hughie," said I to him, holding out my hand for the papers, "ye look
+dull like to-day; I hope ye have no bad news?"
+
+"I would hope not, Mr Goldie," said he; and, giving me the paper, walked
+on.
+
+The moment that Agnes saw that I had got it, she came running out of the
+house, across the road, to hear as usual, the list of the killed and
+wounded read, and my neighbours gathered round about me. There had been, I
+ought to tell ye, a severe battle, and both the French and our army claimed
+the victory; from which we may infer, that there was no great triumph on
+either side. But, agreeably to my wife's request, I first read over the
+list of the killed, wounded, and _missing_. I got over the two first
+mentioned; but, oh! at the very sight of the first name upon the missing
+list, I clasped my hands together, and the paper dropped upon the ground.
+
+"O Robie! my son! my son!" I cried aloud.
+
+Agnes uttered a piercing scream, and cried, "O my bairn--what has happened
+my bairn? Is he dead! Tell me, is my Robie dead?"
+
+Our neighbours gathered about her, and tried to comfort her; but she was
+insensible to all that they could say. The first name on the missing list
+was that of my gallant son. When the first shock was over, and I had
+composed myself a little, I also strove to console Agnes; but it was with
+great difficulty that we could convince her that Robin was not dead, and
+that the papers did not say he was wounded.
+
+"Oh, then!" she cried, "what do they say about him. Tell me at once. Roger
+Goldie! how can ye, as the faither o' my bairn, keep me in suspense."
+
+"O, dear Agnes," said I, "endeavour, if it be possible, to moderate your
+grief; I am sure ye know that I would not keep ye in suspense if I could
+avoid it. The papers only say that Robin is _amissing_."
+
+"And what mean they by that?" she cried.
+
+"Why," said I to her, "they mean that he, perhaps, pursued the enemy too
+far--or possibly that he may have fallen into their hands, and be a
+prisoner--but that he had not cast up when the accounts came away."
+
+"Yes! yes!" she exclaimed with great bitterness, "and it perhaps means that
+his body is lying dead upon the field, but hasna been found."
+
+And she burst out into louder lamentations, and all our endeavours to
+comfort her were in vain; though, in fact, my sufferings were almost as
+great as hers.
+
+We waited in the deepest anxiety for several days, always hoping that we
+would hear some tidings concerning him, but none came. I therefore wrote to
+the War-Office, and I wrote also to his Colonel. From the War-Office I
+received a letter from a clerk, saying that he was commanded to inform me,
+that they could give me no information relative to Lieutenant Goldie,
+beyond what was contained in the public prints. The whole letter did not
+exceed three lines. You would have said that the writer had been employed
+to write a certain number of letters in a day, at so much a day, and the
+sooner he got through his work the better. I set it down in my mind that he
+had never had a son amissing on the field of battle, or he never would have
+written an anxious and sorrowing father such a cold scrawl. He did not even
+say that, if they got any tidings concerning my son, they would make me
+acquainted with them. He was only commanded to tell me that they did not
+know what I was, beyond every thing on earth, desirous to ascertain. Though
+perhaps, I ought to admit that, in a time of war, the clerks in the
+War-Office had something else to do than enter particularly into the
+feelings of every father that had a son in the army, and to answer all his
+queries.
+
+From the Colonel, however, I received a long, and a very kind letter. He
+said many flattering things in praise of my gallant laddie, and assured me
+that the whole regiment deplored his being separated from them. He,
+however, had no doubt but that he had fallen into the hands of the enemy,
+and that, in some exchange of prisoners, or in the event of a peace, he
+would be restored to his parents and country again.
+
+This letter gave us some consolation. It encouraged us to cherish the hope
+of pressing our beloved son again to our breasts, and of looking on his
+features, weeping and wondering at the alterations which time, war, and
+imprisonment had wrought upon them. But more than three years passed away,
+and not a syllable did we hear concerning him, that could throw the least
+light upon where he was, or whether he was dead or living. Anxiety preyed
+sadly upon his mother's health as well as upon her spirits, and I could not
+drive away a settled melancholy.
+
+About that time a brother of mine, who was a bachelor, died in the East
+Indies, and left me four thousand pounds. This was a great addition to our
+fortune, and we hardly knew what to do with it. I may say that it made us
+more unhappy, for we thought that we had nobody to leave it to; and he who
+ought to have inherited it, and whom it would have made independent, we
+knew not whether he was in the land of the living, or a strange corpse in a
+foreign grave. Yet I resolved that, for his sake, I would not spend one
+farthing of it, but let it lie at interest; and I even provided in a will
+which I made, that unless he cast up, and claimed it, no one should derive
+any benefit from either principal or interest until fifty years after my
+death.
+
+I have said, that the health of Agnes had broken down beneath her weight of
+sadness, and as she had a relation, who was a gentleman of much
+respectability, that then resided in the neighbourhood of Kelso, it was
+agreed that we should spend a few weeks in the summer at his house. I
+entertained the hope that society, and the beautiful scenery around Kelso,
+with the white chalky braes[A] overhung with trees, and the bonny islands
+in the Tweed, with mansions, palaces, and ruins, all embosomed in a
+paradise as fair and fertile as ever land could boast of, would have a
+tendency to cheer her spirits, and ease, if not remove, the one heavy and
+continuing sorrow, which lay like an everlasting nightmare upon her heart,
+weighing her to the grave.
+
+Her relation was a well-educated man, and he had been an officer in the
+army in his youth, and had seen foreign parts. He was also quite
+independent in his worldly circumstances, and as hospitable as he was
+independent. There were at that period a number of French officers,
+prisoners, at Kelso, and several of them, who were upon their parole, were
+visiters at the house of my wife's relation.
+
+There was one amongst them, a fine, though stern-looking man of middle age,
+and who was addressed by the appellation of Count Berthe. He spoke our
+language almost as well as if he had been a native. He appeared to be
+interested when he heard that my name was Goldie, and one day after dinner,
+when the cloth was withdrawn, and my wife's relation had ordered the punch
+upon the table--"Ha! Goldie! Goldie!" said the Count, repeating my name--"I
+can tell one story--which concerns me much--concerning, one Monsieur
+Goldie. When I was governor of the castle La----, (he called it by some
+foreign name, which I cannot repeat to you), there was brought to me, (he
+added), to be placed under my charge, a young British officer, whose name
+was Goldie. I do not recollect the number of his regiment, for he was not
+in uniform when brought to me. He was a handsome man, but represented as a
+terrible one, who had made a violent attempt to escape after being taken
+prisoner, and his desperate bravery in the field was also recorded. I was
+requested to treat him with the respect due to a brave man, but, at the
+same time, to keep a strict watch over him, and to allow him even less
+liberty than I might do to an ordinary prisoner. His being a captive did
+not humble him; he treated his keepers and his guards with as much contempt
+as though he had been their conqueror on the field. We had confined his
+body, but there was no humbling of his spirit. I heard so much of him, that
+I took an interest in the haughty Briton. But he treated me with the same
+sullen disdain that he showed towards my inferiors. I had a daughter, who
+was as dear to me as life itself, for she had had five brothers, and they
+had all fallen in the cause of the great emperor, with the tricolor on
+their brow, and the wing of the eagle over them. She was
+beautiful--beautiful as her sainted mother, than whom Italy boasted not a
+fairer daughter, (for she was a native of Rome.) Hers was not a beauty that
+you may see every day amongst a thousand in the regions of the north--hers
+was the rare beauty amongst ten thousand of the daughters of the sunny
+south, with a face beaming with as bright a loveliness, and I would say
+divinity, as the Medici. Of all the children which that fair being bore
+unto me, I had but one, a daughter, left--beautiful as I have
+said--beautiful as her mother. I had a garden beneath the castle, and over
+it was a terrace, in which the British prisoner, Goldie, was allowed to
+walk. They saw each other. They became acquainted with each other. He had
+despised all who approached; he had even treated me, who had his life in my
+hand, as a dog. But he did not so treat my daughter. I afterwards learned,
+when it was too late, that they had been seen exchanging looks, words, and
+signs with each other. He had been eighteen months my prisoner; and one
+morning when I awoke, I was told that my daughter was not to be found, and
+that the English prisoner, Lieutenant Goldie, also had escaped. I cursed
+both in my heart; for they had robbed me of my happiness--he had robbed me
+of my child; though she only could have accomplished it. Shortly after
+this, (and perhaps because of it,) I was again called into active service,
+where, in my first engagement, it was my lot to be made a prisoner, and
+sent here; and since then I have heard nothing of my daughter--my one, dear
+child--the image of her mother; and nothing of him--the villain who seduced
+her from me."
+
+"Oh, sir," exclaimed I, "do not call him a villain, for if it be he that I
+hope it was, who escaped through the intrumentality of your daughter, and
+took her with him, he has not a drop of villain's blood in his whole body.
+Sir! sir! I have a son--a Lieutenant Goldie; and he has (as I hope) been a
+French prisoner from the time ye speak of. Therefore, tell me, I implore
+ye, what was he like. Was he six inches taller than his father, with light
+complexion, yellowish hair, an aqualine nose; full blue eyes, a mole upon
+his right cheek, and, at the time ye saw him, apparently, perhaps, from
+two-and-twenty to three-and-twenty years of age? Oh, sir--Count, or
+whatever they call ye--if it be my son that your daughter has liberated and
+gone away with, she has fallen upon her feet; she has married a good, a
+kind, and a brave lad; and, though I should be the last to say it, the son
+of an honest man, who will leave him from five to six thousand pounds,
+beside his commission."
+
+By the description which he gave me, I had no doubt but that my poor Robie,
+and the laddie who had run away with his daughter, (or, I might say, the
+laddie with whom his daughter had run away,) were one and the same person.
+
+I ran into the next room, crying, "Agnes! Agnes! hear, woman! I have got
+news of Robie!"
+
+"News o' my bairn!" she cried, before she saw me. "Speak, Roger! speak!"
+
+I could hardly tell her all that the French Count had told me, and I could
+hardly get her to believe what she heard. But I took her into the room to
+him, and he told her everything over again. A hundred questions were asked
+backward and forward upon both sides, and there was not the smallest doubt,
+on either of our parts, but that it was my Robie that his daughter had
+liberated from the prison, and run off with.
+
+"But oh, sir," said Agnes, "where are they now--baith o my bairns--as you
+say I have twa? Where shall I find them?"
+
+He said that he had but little doubt that they were safe, for his daughter
+had powerful friends in France, and that as soon as a peace took place,
+(which he hoped would not be long,) we should all see them again.
+
+Well, the long-wished-for peace came at last--and in both countries the
+captives were released from the places of their imprisonment. I have
+already twice mentioned the infirm state of my wife's health; and we were
+residing at Spittal, for the benefit of the sea air and bathing, and the
+Spa Well, (though it had not then gained its present fashionable
+popularity,) when a post-chaise drove to the door of our lodgings. An
+elderly gentleman stepped off from the dicky beside the driver, and out of
+the chaise came a young lady, a gentleman, and two bonny bairns. In a
+moment I discovered the elderly gentleman to be my old friend the French
+Count. But, oh! how--how shall I tell you the rest! I had hardly looked
+upon the face of the younger stranger, when I saw my own features in the
+countenance of my long lost Robie! The lady was his wife--the Count's bonny
+daughter; and the bairns were their bairns. It is in vain for me to
+describe to you the feelings of Agnes; she was at first speechless and
+senseless, and then she threw her arms round Robie, and she threw them
+round his wife, and she took his bairns on her knee--and, oh! but she was
+proud at seeing herself a grandmother! We have all lived together in
+happiness from that day to this; and the more I see of Robie's wife, the
+more I think she is like an angel; and so thinks his mother. I have only to
+inform you that bold Jonathan Barlowman was forced to leave the
+country-side shortly after his valiant display of courage, and since then
+nobody in Dunse has heard whether he be dead or living and nobody cares.
+This is all I have to tell ye respecting the _false alarm_, and I hope ye
+are satisfied.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[A] It is evidently from the beautiful chalk cliff near Ednam House (though
+now not a very prominent object) that Kelso derives its name--as is proved
+by the ancient spelling.
+
+
+
+
+HOGMANAY;
+
+OR, THE LADY OF BALLOCHGRAY.
+
+
+The last fifty years of mortal regeneration and improvement have effected
+more changes in the old fasts, and feasts, and merrymakings of Scotland,
+than twice and twice over that time of any other period since it became a
+nation. Every year we see the good old customs dying out, or strangled by
+the Protaean imp Fashion, who, in the grand march of improvement of which we
+are so proud, in the perking conceit of heirs-apparent of the millennium,
+seems to be the only creature that derives benefit from the eternal changes
+that, by-and-by, we fear, will turn our heads, and make us look _back_ for
+the true period of happiness and wisdom. But what enrageth us the more is,
+that, while all our fun of Beltane, Halloween, Hogmanay, Hanselmonday, and
+all our old merrymakings, are gone with our absentee lords and thanes--
+
+    "Wha will their tenants pyke and squeize,
+      And purse up all their rent;
+    Syne wallop it to far courts, and bleize
+      Till riggs and schaws are spent"--
+
+and to whose contempt of our old customs we attribute a great part of their
+decay--we, in the very midst of the glorious improvement that has
+succeeded, are still cheated, belied, robbed, and plundered on all hands by
+political adventurers, private jobbers, and saintly hypocrites, in an
+artful, clean-fingered, and beautiful style of the trade, a thousand times
+more provoking than the clumsy, old-fashioned, _honest_ kind of roguery
+that used to be in fashion, when folk were not too large for innocent
+mirth, and not too wise for enjoying what was liked by their ancestors. The
+people cry improvement--so do we; but we cherish a theory that has no
+charm, in these days of absolute faith in politics and parliament for the
+regeneration of man, that the true good of society--that is, the
+improvement of the heart and morals of a great country--lies in a sphere
+far humbler than the gorgeous recesses of Westminster--the fireside; a
+place that in former days, was revered, and honoured, and cherished, not
+only as the cradle of morals, but the abode of soul-stirring joys, and the
+scene of the celebration of many old and sacred amusements which humanized
+the young heart, and moulded and prepared it for the reception of those
+feelings which are interwoven with the very principle of social good. A
+political wrangle is a poor substitute for the old moral tales of the
+winter evenings of old Scotland. Even our legends of superstitious fear
+carried in them the boon of heartfelt obligation, which, when the subject
+was changed for the duties of life, still retained its strength, and
+wrought for good. These things are all gone; and, dissatisfied as we are
+with the bold substitutes of modern wisdom, let us use that which they
+cannot take from us, our books of "auld lear," and refresh ourselves with a
+peep at Leslie, in the Hogmanay of 16--. Who has not heard of "Christ's
+Kirk" in the kingdom of Fife, that place so celebrated by King James, in
+his incomparable "Christ's Kirk on the Green," for the frolics of wooers
+and "kittys washen clean," and "damsels bright," and "maidens mild?" That
+celebrated town was no other than our modern Leslie; and, though we cannot
+say that that once favoured haunt of the satyrs of merrymaking has escaped
+the dull blight that comes from the sleepy eye of the owl of modern wisdom,
+we have good authority for asserting that long after James celebrated the
+place for its unrivalled festivities, the character of the inhabitants was
+kept for many an after-day; and Hogmanay was a choice outlet for the
+exuberant spirits of the votaries of Momus.
+
+The day we find chronicled as remarkable for an exhibition of the true
+spirit of the Leslieans, went off as all days that precede a glorious
+jubilee at night generally do. The ordinary work of the "yape" expectants
+was, no doubt, apparently going on; but the looking of "twa ways" for
+gloaming was, necessarily, exclusive of much interest in the work of the
+day. The sober matrons, as they sat at the door on the "stane settle,"
+little inclined to work, considered themselves entitled to a _feast_ of
+gossip; and even the guidman did not feel himself entitled to curb the glib
+tongue of his dame, or close up her ears with prudential maxims against the
+bad effects of darling, heart-stirring, soul-inspiring scandal. On that day
+there was no excise of the commodities of character. They might be bought
+or sold at a wanworth, or handed or banded about in any way that suited the
+tempers of the people. The bottle and the bicker had already, even in the
+forenoon, been, to a certain extent, employed as a kind of outscouts of the
+array that was to appear at night, and the gossipers were in that blessed
+state, between partial possession and full expectation, that makes every
+part of the body languid and lazy except the tongue. Around them the
+younkers, "hasty hensures" and "wanton winklots," were busy preparing the
+habiliments of the guysers--whose modes of masking and disguising were
+often regulated by the characters they were to assume, or the songs they
+had learned to chant for the occasion. Nor were these mimes limited to the
+urchin caste; for, in these days, wisdom had not got so conceited as to be
+ashamed of innocent mirth; and gaucy queens and stalwarth chiels exhibited
+their superiority only in acting a higher mask, and singing a loftier
+strain. The gossips did not hesitate to suspend the honeyed topic, to give
+sage counsel on the subject of the masking "bulziements;" and anon they
+turned a side look at the minor actors, the imps of devilry, who passed
+along with their smoking horns often made of the stem or "runt" of a winter
+cabbage, wherewith that night they would inevitably smoke out of "house and
+hauld" every devil's lamb of every gossip that did not open her hand and
+"deal her bread" to the guysers. Both parties, gossips and urchins,
+understood each other--like two belligerent powers asserting mutual rights,
+and contemplating each other with that look of half-concealed contention
+and defiance, which only tended to make the attack more inevitable.
+
+The evening set in, and the witching hour--the keystone of night's black
+arch, twelve o'clock--was approaching. To go to bed on such an occasion,
+would have been held no better than for a jolly toper to shirk his bicker,
+a lover to eschew the trysting thorn, or a warrior to fly the scene of his
+country's glory; neither would it have been safe, for no good guyser of the
+old school would take the excuse of being in bed in lieu of the buttered
+pease-bannock--the true hogmanay cake, to which he was entitled, by "the
+auld use and wont" of Scotland; and far better breathe the smoke of the
+"smeikin horn" on foot, and with the means of self-defence at command, than
+lie choked in bed, and "deaved" by the stock and horn, the squalling
+bagpipe, and the eternal--
+
+    "Hery, Hary, Hubblischow,
+    See ye not quha is come now!"
+
+ringing in one's ears during the whole night. The young were out; the old
+were in; but all were equally up and doing the honours of the occasion. At
+auld Wat Wabster's door, one minstrel company were singing--"Great is my
+sorrow;" and Marion, his daughter, with
+
+    "Her glitterand hair, that was sae gowden,"
+
+dealt out, with leal hand, the guyser's bannock. At the very next door, Meg
+Johnston was in the act of being "smecked oot" by a covey of twelve devils,
+who had inserted into every cranny a horn, and were blowing, with puffed
+cheeks, a choking death in every blast. One kept watch, to give the
+concerted signal when Meg should appear with her stick. On which occasion
+they were off in an instant; but only to return when Meg had let out the
+smoke, and satisfied herself that she would be no more tormented that
+night, to blow her up and out again, with greater vigour and a denser smoke
+than before. Farther on, Gib Dempster's dame, Kate, is at her door, with
+the bottle in her hand, to give another menyie of maskers their "hogmanay,"
+in the form of a dram; and Gib is at her back, eyeing her with a squint, to
+count how many interlusive applications of the cordial she will make to her
+own throat before she renounce her _opportunity_. In the middle of the
+street, Gossip Simson is hurrying along, with the necessaries in her lap,
+to treat her "cusin," Christy Lowrie, with a bit and a drop; and ever and
+anon she says, "a guid e'en" to this one, and "a guid e'en" to that; and,
+between the parties, her head is ever thrown back, as if she were counting
+the stars; and, every time the act is repeated, the bottle undergoes a
+perceptible diminution of its contents, till, by the time she reaches her
+"luving cusin's" door, it is empty; and honest John Simson, at her return,
+greets her with--"My feth, Jenny, ye've been at mony a hoose in Christ's
+Kirk this nicht, if ane may judge by yer bottle." At the same instant,
+
+    "Oh, leddy, help yer prisoneer
+    This last nicht o' the passing year,"
+
+is struck up at the door; the stock and horn sounds lustily in the ears of
+her whose bottle is empty; and, obliged to send them away without either
+cake or sup, she hears sounding in her confused ears--
+
+    "The day will come when ye'll be dead.
+    An' ye'll neither care for meal nor bread;"
+
+and, in a short time after, "Jamie the wight," an impling, with a tail of
+half-a-dozen minor and subordinate angels, begin blowing their smoking
+horns in at both door and window, till honest John is fairly smoked out,
+crying, as he hastens to the door--"This comes, Jenny, o' yer lavish
+kindness to yer cusins, that we hae naethin left in oor bottle, either to
+keep oot thae deevils' breath or wash't oot o' oor choking craigs." He is
+no sooner at the door than Geordie Jamieson accosts him in the usual style,
+and says he has come for his "hogmanay;" but John, knowing the state of the
+bottle, begins a loud cough, in the midst of the smoke, and cries, as he
+runs away from his house and visitor, (whom he pretends not to see for the
+smoke.) "It's a deevil o' a hardship to be smeeked oot o' ane's ain hoose."
+
+"Now," mutters Jenny, as she hears him run away, "I'll no see his face till
+mornin; an' he'll come in as blind's a bat." And out she flies to catch
+him; but, in her hurry, she overturns Geordie, just as his lips are
+manufacturing the ordinary "Guid e'en to ye, Jenny!"
+
+"The same to ye, Geordie," says she; and, with that boon, leaves him on her
+flight.
+
+The truth was, that John had the same instinctive antipathy against a house
+where there was an empty bottle as rats have against deserted granaries.
+But, if honest John Simson's house was deserted because Jenny had made too
+free with the bottle, Wat Webster's was full, from a reason precisely the
+very opposite; for the fair Marion--who had
+
+    "Brankit fast and made her bonny"--
+
+was, in the midst of a company, distributing the cakes and bannocks with
+maidenly grace; and many a swain that night was glad, while
+
+    "He quhissilit and he pypit baith,
+      To mak her blyth that meeting--
+    My hony heart, how says the sang,
+      There sall be mirth at oor greeting."
+
+And among the rest might now be seen John Simson and his helpmate, and also
+Meg Johnston, who had been--either in reality, or, at least, with semblance
+sufficient to form their apology for calling where there was plenty of
+drink--smoked out of their own houses, amidst the cheers of the fire-imps.
+About this time, twelve o'clock was chimed from a rough-voiced bell of the
+Franciscan Monastery; and, some time after, in came Christy Lowrie, puffing
+and blowing, as if she too had experienced the effects of the thick breath
+of the fire-imps; and it might have been a fair presumption that her
+throat, like that of some of her predecessors, had been dried from
+pre-perceived gusts of Wat Webster's whisky rather than the smoke of the
+fire-angels, had it not been made quickly apparent, from other symptoms,
+that a horripilant terror had seized her heart and limbs, and inspired her
+tongue with the dry rattle of fearful intelligence. Never stopping till she
+got forward into the very heart of the company, seated round a blazing
+ingle, she sank upon a chair, and held up her hands to heaven, as if
+calling down from that quarter some supernatural agency to help in her
+difficulty. Every one turned and looked at her with wonder, mixed with
+sympathetic fear.
+
+"What, in God's name, is this, Christy? Is he come?" cried Wat Webster.
+
+"Oh! he's come again--he's come again!" she replied, in the midst of an
+effort to catch a spittle to wet her parched throat. "He's been at Will
+Pearson's, and Widow Lindsay's, and Rob Paterson's--he's gaun his auld
+rounds--and dootless he'll be here too. O Marion! Marion! gie me a spark to
+weet my throat."
+
+The door was again opened, and in came Widow Lindsay in great haste and
+terror,
+
+"I've seen him again!" cried she fearfully, and threw herself down in a
+corner of the lang settle.
+
+"Are ye sure it's him, dame?" inquired Meg Johnston, who seemed perfectly
+to understand these extraordinary proceedings.
+
+"Sure!" ejaculated the widow. "Hae I no tasted his _red whisky_; and has it
+no burned my throat till I maun ask Marion there to quench the fire wi' a
+spark o' human-liquor?"
+
+The fire in the two terror-struck women's throats was soon extinguished by
+the "spark" they demanded; and a conversation, composed of twenty voices at
+once, commenced, the essence of which was, that, on the occasion of the
+last Hogmanay, a man dressed in a peculiar manner, with a green doublet,
+and hose of the same colour, a cravat, and a blue bonnet, had, just as
+twelve o'clock pealed from the monastery clock, made his appearance in the
+town, and conducted himself in such a manner as to excite much wonder among
+the inhabitants. Everything about him was mysterious; no person in that
+quarter had ever seen him before; there was nobody along with him; he came
+exactly at twelve; his face was so much shaded by a peculiar manner of
+wearing his bonnet and cravat that no one could say he had ever got a
+proper view of his features; he carried with him a bottle of liquor, which
+the people, from ignorance of its character, denominated _red whisky_, and
+which he distributed freely to all and sundry, without his stock ever
+running out, or being exhausted: his manners were free, boisterous, and
+hilarious; and he possessed the extraordinary power of making people love
+him _ad libitum_. He came as he went, without any one knowing more of him
+than that he was the very prince of good fellows; so exquisite a tosspot,
+that he seemed equal to the task (perhaps no difficult one) of making the
+whole town of Christ's Kirk drunk by the extraordinary spirit of his
+example; and so spirit-stirring a conjurer of odd thoughts and unrivalled
+humour, that melancholy itself laughed a gaunt laugh at his jokes; and
+gizzened gammers and giddy hizzies were equally delighted with his devilry
+and his drink. Arriving in the midst of frolic as high as ordinary mortal
+spirits might be supposed able to sublime human exultation, he effected
+such an increase of the corrybantic power of the laughing and singing
+genius of Hogmanay, that
+
+    "Never in Scotland had been seen
+      Sic dancing nor deray;
+    Nowther at Falkland on the green,
+      Nor Peebles at the play."
+
+But, coming like a fire-flaught, like a fire-flaught he and his red whisky
+had departed; and it was not until he had gone, and one tosspot met another
+tosspot, and gossip another gossip, and compared notes, and exchanged
+shrewd guesses, eloquent winks, and pregnant vibrations of wondering
+noddles, that the mysterious stranger was invested with all the attributes
+to which he was, by virtue of his super-human powers, so clearly entitled.
+He was immediately elevated to the place which, in those days, was reserved
+in every cranium for the throne of the genius of superstition; yea he of
+the red cravat and red liquor was the never-ending subject of conversation,
+investigation, speculation, and consternation of the good folks of the town
+of Christ's Kirk. While the terror he had inspired was still fresh on the
+minds of the people, he returned at the exact hour of twelve on the
+subsequent Halloween. He brought again his bottle of red liquor, was
+dressed in the same style, wore the same red cravat, and was invested with
+the same sublimating powers of extravagant merriment. He went his old
+rounds; cracked nuts with the kittys; ducked for the apple, which never
+escaped his mouth; threw the weight in the barn; spaed fortunes with the
+Mauses; drank with the tosspots--
+
+    "If you can be blest the day,
+      Ne'er defer it till the morn--
+    Peril still attends delay;
+      As the fools will find, when they
+    Have their happy hour forborne;"
+
+and, by means of his wild humour and exhilarating drink, set all the scene
+of his former exploits in an uproar of mixed terror, jollity, superstition,
+and amazement. Every one, not possessed of fear, scrutinized him; those
+(and they were many) who were stricken with terror, avoided him as if he
+had in reality been the gentleman in black, as indeed many at that time
+alleged he was; some who had heard of him, watched to catch a passing
+glimpse of him; but, wonderful as it may seem, the jolly stranger again
+disappeared, and no one, even those who had got royally drunk with him,
+could say aught more of him than was said on the prior occasion; viz., that
+he was the very prince of good fellows, if he should be the "very
+big-horned Deil himsel." On his second disappearance, the point was no
+longer a moot one, "Who the devil he could be?" for the very question, as
+put, decided the question before it was answered. The point was just as
+lucid as ever was the spring of St Anthony, and no one could be gravelled,
+where there was not a grain of sand to interrupt the vision. There was not
+in the limits of the guid toun a dame or damsel, greybeard, or no-beard,
+that possessed within the boundaries of their cerebral dominions a single
+peg on which they could hang a veritable or plausible doubt of the true
+character, origin, and destination of this twelve-o'clock visiter of the
+good old town of "Christ's Kirk on the Green."
+
+Such was the state and condition of public opinion in the town of Leslie on
+this most important and engrossing subject, on the breaking of the day with
+which our history begins--this eventful Hogmanay. As the evening
+approached, every one trembled; but the inspiration of incipient drams had
+had the effect of so far throwing off the incubus as to enable some of the
+inhabitants, and, in particular, those we have mentioned, to go about the
+forms of the festival with decent freedom; while the guysers and "reekers,"
+after the manner of buoyant youth, had been flirting with their terrors,
+and singing and blowing to "keep their spirits up," in the execution of
+what they conceived to be a national duty, as well as very good individual
+fun. But there was little real sport in the case; and we would give it as a
+stanch, and an unflinching opinion, were it put to us, that the terror of
+the stranger, and not a love of the liquor she carried, was the true cause
+of Jenny Simson's having emptied the bottle before she arrived at the
+residence of Christy Lowrie. Nay, more, we might safely allege--and there
+is no affidavit in the case--that there might have been more than smoke in
+the cause of the rapid flight of John Simson and Meg Johnston from their
+own houses to that of Wat Webster; and more than the roses in the cheeks of
+the fair Marion, or Wat Webster's pith of anecdote, that produced the
+congregation of individuals round his "blazing ingle," at the approach of
+the eerie hour of twelve, when it was probable the mysterious stranger
+would again appear. Be all this as it may--and we have no wish to overstate
+a case in which it is scarcely possible to carry language too far--there
+cannot be a doubt that the bells of the Franciscan monastery, as they
+tolled, in reverberating sounds, the termination of the old year and the
+beginning of the new, on that eventful night, struck a panic into the
+boldest Heich Hutcheon that ever figured in "Christ's Kirk on the Green."
+
+The statement of Christy Lowrie was perfectly true. Just as the bell
+tolled, the identical personage, with the red cravat, was seen hurrying
+forward with his ordinary agility--taking immense strides, and, at times,
+laughing with the exuberance of his buoyant spirits, on the eve of being
+gratified by his darling fun--by the east end of the town. The moon threw a
+faint beam on him as he passed, and exhibited him first to a company of
+guysers who were chanting at the door of Will Pearson--
+
+    "O lusty Maye, with Flora queen."
+
+The song was cut by a severed breath, and, uttering a loud scream, the
+whole party darted off at full speed, and, as they flew, spread the
+dreadful intelligence, that he of the red cravat was hurrying into the town
+from the east. The news was just what was expected; hundreds were waiting
+_aperto ore_ to receive it; and the moment they did receive it, they fled
+to communicate the intelligence to others. Guysers, reekers, gossips, and
+tosspots, laid down their songs, their horns, their scandal, and their
+stoups, and acknowledged their Hogmanay occupation gone. The startling
+words--"He's come, he's come!" passed from mouth to mouth. Some shut up
+their houses, to prevent him from coming into them; and many who were
+solitary, sought refuge in the houses of their neighbours. Some went out of
+the town entirely, and sought protection from the abbot of the monastery;
+and many stood about the corners of the passages and the ends of houses,
+consulting what should be done in this emergency they had so long looked
+for, and were so poorly provided against. In every quarter, fear reigned
+with absolute sway; and if, in any instances, there was exhibited any
+portion of courage, it was either derived from the protecting power of a
+crucifix, or assumed in spite of the collapsing heart of real terror.
+
+But all this did not prevent the stranger from going through his wonted
+routine. His long strides, and extreme eagerness to get again into the
+heart of his former extravagant jollity, brought him very soon to the
+threshold of his old tosspot, Will Pearson, who, with his wife Betty, was
+sitting at the fire, engaged in a low-toned conversation, on the very
+subject of him of the red cravat. The door was burst open--the stranger
+entered with a loud laugh and boisterous salutation.
+
+"A good new year to thee," said he, "Will Pearson!" And he took, at the
+same time, out of a side-pocket, the identical bottle, with a long neck,
+and a thin waist, and containing the same red whisky he had been so lavish
+of on former occasions, and set it upon the table with a loud knock that
+rang throughout the small cottage.
+
+Will Pearson and his wife Betty were riveted to the langsettle on which
+they sat. Neither of them could move, otherwise they would have either gone
+out at the back window, or endeavoured to get past the stranger, and
+hurried out of the door. The quietness of the street told them eloquently
+that there was no one near to give them assistance; and such was the
+enchantment (they said) thrown over them by the extraordinary personage,
+that they were fixed to their seats as firmly as if they had been tied by
+cords.
+
+"A good new year to thee!" said the stranger again; and he reached forth
+his hand, and seized two flasks that lay on a side table, and which they
+had been using in the convivialities of the day. These he placed upon the
+table with a loud clank; and, laying hold of a three-footed creepy, he sat
+down right opposite the trembling pair, and proceeded to empty out the red
+liquor into the flasks, which he did in the most flourishing and noble
+style of valiant topers.
+
+"Here, my good old tosspot, Will Pearson!" said he, as he handed to him one
+of the flasks. "I love thee, man, and have called on thee the first of all
+the inhabitants of Christ's Kirk. Ha! by the holy rude, what a jolly cruise
+I shall have!--I have looked forward for it since the last time thou and I
+reduced the consistency of our corporations to the texture of souls,
+through which the moon might have shone, by the power of this inimitable
+liquor. Ho, man, had not we a jolly time of it last time we met? Drink,
+man!"
+
+And he emptied his flask, and flung it down upon the table, with a bold and
+reckless air, as if he did not care whether its continuity might be
+maintained against the force of the bang with which he disposed of it.
+
+Will Pearson was unable to speak a single syllable; and the flask that had
+been filled for him stood upon the table untouched. He sat with his eyes
+fixed upon the stranger, and his skin as pale as a corpse. Betty was in the
+same state of immovable terror. Every word that fell from his lips was a
+death-knell--every drop of his red drink was as much liquid fire--and every
+look was a flame.
+
+"Why won't drink, Will Pearson, mine good old crony?" said he again, with
+the same boisterous manner. "What grieves thee, man? and Betty too?--what
+loss hast thou sustained? Cuffed by fortune? Broken on her wheel? Ha! ha! I
+despise the old gammer, and will laugh out my furlough, though my lungs
+should crack in throwing off the burden.
+
+    "'This warld does ever flight and wary,
+    Fortune sae fast her wheel does cary,
+      Na time but turn can ever rest;
+      For nae false charge suld ane be sary,
+      And to be merry, I think it best.'
+
+Pull up thy jaws, Will Pearson, and pull into them this flask, and thou
+shalt be again my merry tosspot."
+
+Will and his wife were still under the influence of their fear, and stared
+at him in amazement.
+
+"Well, and thou wilt not," he cried, rising hastily, "may the Devil take on
+for't! My time is counted, and I must stuff as much fun into the compass of
+an hour as may serve me for the coming year. Will Pearson, thou and I might
+have had a right jolly time of it. I warrant the gallant Rob Paterson will
+welcome me in a different manner. The sight of this is enough for Rob,"
+(taking up the bottle;) "and as for this--ha! ha! what goodness getteth not
+the fire claims."
+
+And throwing the liquor into the ingle, which blazed up a large and fearful
+flame by the strength of the spirit, he sallied out, and at the same moment
+a loud scream--coming from some bolder investigators, who had ventured near
+the house, and seen the sudden conflagration, followed by the exit of the
+stranger--rung in echoes all around. But the stranger heeded not these
+trifling indications of the effect of his visit. Resuming his long strides
+and pushing-on activity of manner, he soon arrived at the house of Rob
+Paterson, who was at the very moment addressing a figure of the Virgin.
+
+"A good new year to thee, Rob Paterson!" cried the stranger, as he sat down
+upon a kind of chair by the side of the table, and, taking out his
+strange-fashioned bottle of red spirits, banged it down with a noise that
+made Rob start and shake all over.
+
+"Here again, thou seest, Rob Paterson," continued he. "We must have another
+jolly bout. Thou knowest my time is short. Let us begin, for my body feels
+the weight of its own clay. Before the Virgin, Rob? Ha! ha! man, art going
+to die? Come, man--
+
+    "When grim Death is looking for us,
+      We are toping at our bowls;
+    Bacchus joins us in the chorus--
+      Death, begone!--here's none but souls."
+
+Drink, Rob Paterson, and thou'lt pray the better to the Virgin."
+
+And he held out the bottle to Rob, after having put it bodily to his mouth,
+and taking a long draught as an example to the latter, who was known to
+despise flasks. Rob turned up his eyes to the Virgin, and got from her some
+confidence, if not courage. He looked at the tempting bottle, beautiful in
+its fulness and total freedom from the contaminating society of flasks or
+tankards; then he turned a fearful eye on its laughing, rioting possessor,
+and anon sought again the face of the saint.
+
+"Hast lost thine ancient spirit, Rob Paterson?" said the stranger. What
+hath that spare figure, made of dry wood, to do with the mellow fuddling of
+our noses? Come, man--Time flies; let us wet his wings, and keep him
+fluttering a while over our heads.
+
+    "'With an O and an I,
+      Now are we furder found,
+    Drink thou to me, and I to thee,
+      And let the cup go round.'"
+
+"But wha, in the Devil's name, are ye?" now said Rob Paterson, after many
+an ineffectual effort to put the question.
+
+"Ha! ha!" answered the stranger, "does Rob Paterson ask a man who is
+introduced by this friend of noble red-blood, who he is? Why, man, I am Rob
+Paterson's tosspot. Isn't that enough?"
+
+"No quite," answered Rob, drawing nearer the Virgin. "Satan himself might
+use the same words; and I crave the liberty to say in your presence, that I
+hae nae wish to be on drinking terms wi' his Majesty."
+
+And Rob eyed him fearfully as he thus alluded to the subject of the town's
+fears, and again sought the face of the saint.
+
+"Ah, Rob Paterson, my once cherished toper," replied the stranger, "I
+sorrow for thy change. Thine ancient spirit has left thee, and thou hast
+taken up with wooden idols, in place of the well-filled jolly bottle of thy
+and my former love. Well, may the Devil take on for't!--I care not. Thou
+mayst repent of thy folly when I am gone.
+
+    "'Robene thou has hard soung and say,
+      In gesties and stories auld--
+    The man that will not quhen he may,
+      Sall haif nocht quhen he wald.'"
+
+Never mair, Rob Paterson, shalt thou have offer of spirit of wine. It shall
+go there first!"
+
+And, taking a mouthful of the red liquor, the stranger squirted it in the
+fire, and raised a mighty flame that flared out into the very middle of the
+street, and produced another echoing cry or scream from the terrified
+inhabitants. He departed in an instant, and left Rob in a state of
+agitation he had never felt before at the departure of a guest with a
+well-filled bottle of good liquor.
+
+The stranger passed out at the door with his usual bold precipitude, and
+again plied his long limbs in making huge strides along the street, for the
+house of another crony. He took no notice of the extraordinary demeanour of
+the inhabitants, who were seen flying away from corners and angles where
+they had nestled, for the purpose of seeing him come out in a flame of fire
+from Rob Paterson's, as he had done from Will Pearson's. He strode on,
+neither looking to the right nor to the left, till he came to Widow
+Lindsay's.
+
+"A good new year to thee, Dame Lindsay!" said he, as he entered the house
+by opening the door, which the widow thought she had barred when she shoved
+the bolt beyond the staple, and found her sitting by the fire counting her
+rosary, and muttering prayers, with eyes upturned to heaven.
+
+"Holy Mary, save me!" she muttered, as she heard him enter by the supposed
+locked door. "He's come at last." And she retreated to a corner of the
+room, and prayed fervently for deliverance.
+
+"Thy throat has doubtless good memory of me and mine," continued the
+stranger, as he placed on the table the same extraordinary bottle, the
+shape and dimensions of which were as vivid in the mind of Dame Lindsay as
+was the colour of the red cravat. "My male tosspots have forgot the taste
+of my red liquor," he continued; "but what wet gossip's throat ever forgot
+what nipped it. Come, dame, and let us have a right hearty jorum of this
+inimitable drink." And, for want of better measure, he seized lustily a
+bicker that lay near him, and dashed a quantity of the liquor into it. "Ha!
+I forgot. Get thee for Meg Johnston thy gossip, dame, and let us be merry
+together. Meg is a woman of a thousand. What a lusty hold she takes of a
+brimming bicker, and how her eye lightens and brightens as she surveys the
+swimming heaven under her nose! Come, dame--what ails?"
+
+The only reply he got was a groan, and the rustle of Dame Lindsay's
+quivering habiliments.
+
+"By my own saint, this town of Christ's Kirk has a change upon it!" he
+continued. "Last time I was here, it was as merry as King James when he
+sang of it. The young and the old hailed me as the prince of good fellows,
+and the wenches and wives--ha! ha!
+
+    "'To dans thir damysells them dight,
+      Thir lasses light of laits;
+    They were sae skych when I them nicht,
+      They squeild like ony gaits.'"
+
+Dame Lindsay, I perceive what thou wantest, to melt thee into thy former
+jollity. Thou'rt coquetting in the corner there for a kiss; and, by the
+holy rude, thou shalt not want it for the space of the twinkling of thine
+eye."
+
+He rose for the purpose of applying the emollient he had threatened; but a
+loud scream evinced that a woman, however much she may worship his Satanic
+Majesty, cares not for his familiarities. The widow fainted; and what may
+be supposed her feelings, when she found, on coming to herself, that that
+identical and terrific red liquor had had a share in her recovery! Again
+she screamed; but no kindly neighbour came to rescue her from her perilous
+situation. Those who heard her cries, had many strange thoughts as to what
+species of punishment she was undergoing, for her sins. The conjectures
+were endless. "What could he be doing to Widow Lindsay?" was the universal
+question. Some supposed that she was in the act of being carried off, and
+was struggling to get out of his talons; some looked for the passing flame,
+in the midst of which, the poor widow, clasped in his arms, would be seen
+on her luminous journey to the lower world; and there were not few who
+pretended to find, in the past life of the wretched victim, a very good
+legitimate cause for the visit of the stranger, and the severity he was
+clearly exercising towards her.
+
+"Thou'lt be the better for thy faint, Widow Lindsay," said the stranger, as
+she recovered, "seeing that what blood it has sent from thy heart, will be
+returned with the addition of that liquor which is truly the water of life.
+Dost forget, good widow, that, when I was last here, thou and Meg Johnston
+would have fought for a can of it, if I had not made the can two? Come now,
+and let us fuddle our noses till they be as red as the liquor itself, and
+thy spectacles shew thee two noses, before they melt with the heat of their
+ruby supporter.
+
+    "'However this world do change and vary,
+    Oh, let us in heart never more be sary.'"
+
+"Avaunt ye! in the name o' the five holy wounds!" muttered the widow, as
+she held up the Sathanifuge crow in his face.
+
+"Well, and if thou wilt not, here goes!" replied he, as he threw the
+contents of the bicker in the fire, which blazed up till the house seemed,
+to those waiting fearfully in the distance, to be in flames.
+
+Many an eye was now directed to the door and windows, to see Widow Lindsay
+take her pyromantic flight through the flaming fields of ether; and they
+continued their gaze till they saw him of the red cravat sally forth, when
+fear closed up the vision, and they saw no more. Meanwhile he strode on,
+singing all the way--
+
+    "Full oft I muse, and be's in thocht;
+    How this false world is aye on flocht,"
+
+till he came to the door of Meg Johnston's cottage. He found it deserted;
+and then stalked on to honest John Simson's, which was in like manner
+empty.
+
+"What can this mean?" he said to himself, as he bent his long steps to Wat
+Webster's, where fearful messengers, as we have seen, had already preceded
+him. "My person has lost its charm, my converse its interest, and my drink
+its spirit-stirring power. But we shall see what Wat Webster and his Dame
+Kitty, and the fair Marion, say to the residue of my authority. Ah, Marion,
+as I think of thee--
+
+    "'How heises and bleizes
+      My heart wi' sic a fyre,
+    As raises these praises
+      That do to heaven aspire.'"
+
+"Ha! ha! I will there outdevil all my devilries. My fire-chariots have as
+yet flown off without a passenger; but this night I shall not go home
+alone."
+
+And he continued striding onwards in the deserted and silent passage, till
+he came to Wat Webster's, where the collected inmates were all huddled
+together round the fire, in that state of alarm produced by the
+intelligence of Christy Lowry and Widow Lindsay, and already partly set
+forth by us heretofore. Bang up went the door.
+
+"A good new year to ye all!" said he, as he stalked into the middle of the
+apartment.
+
+There was a dead silence throughout the company. Marion was the only
+individual that dared to look him in the face; and there was an expression
+in her eye that seemed to have the effect of increasing the boisterous glee
+of his mysterious manner.
+
+"Here we are once more, again," he continued, as he took out the eternal
+imp-shaped bottle, and clanged it on the table.
+
+Every eye was fixed upon him as if watching his motions and evolutions. Meg
+Johnston was busy in a corner, defending herself, by drawing a circle round
+her; Widow Lindsay was clinging close to the figure of the Virgin that was
+placed against the wall by her side; Jenny Wilson sought refuge in the arms
+of honest John; Wat Webster himself got his hand placed upon an old Latin
+Bible, not one word of which he could read; and some followed one mode of
+self-defence, and some another, against the expected efforts of the
+stranger, whose proceedings at his other places of call had been all
+related at Wat Webster's, with an exaggeration they perhaps stood little in
+need of. The stranger cared nothing for these indications, not a cinder;
+and took no notice of them.
+
+"I'll e'en begin our potations myself," said he, filling out a flaskful of
+his liquor, and drinking it off. "By him that brewed it, it tastes well
+after my long walk! Wat Webster, wilt thou pledge me, man--
+
+    "'And let us all, my friends, be merry,
+    And set nocht by this world a cherry;
+      Now while there is good wyne to sell,
+    He that does on dry bread worry,
+      I gif him to the devil of hell.'"
+
+And he trowled the flask upon the table while he sung, as a kind of bass
+chorus to his song.
+
+"There's for thee, Wat!" continued he, filling out a flask.
+
+Wat kept his hand upon the holy book.
+
+"Wilt thou, honest John Wilson, pledge thy old friend in this red liquor,
+which formerly claimed so strong an acquaintanceship with the secret power
+of the topers' hearts of merry Christ's Kirk?"
+
+"For the luve o' heaven," whispered Jenny, as she clung closer to him,
+"touch it not!--it will scald yer liver like brimstone, and may, besides,
+be the price o' yer soul's purchase."
+
+John looked at the liquor, and would have spoken; but his heart failed him.
+
+"Wilt thou, Meg Johnston, empty this flask to the health of thy old
+friend?"
+
+"Guid faith, I, lad," muttered Meg, safe as she thought within the walls of
+her necromantic circumvallation--"I ken ye owre weel. Ye needna think to
+cheat me. I'm no a spunk to be dipped in brimstone, and then set lowe to.
+But [aside] how can he stand the look o' the haly rude! and the haly book?
+The deevil o' sic a deevil I ever heard, saw, or read o'. Avaunt ye, avaunt
+ye, in the name o the seven churches! The deil a bane ye'll get here--yere
+owre weel kenned. Set aff in a flash o' yer ain fire to Falkland."
+
+"Wilt thou, Christy Lowry, pledge thine old friend?" continued the
+stranger, without noticing Meg's recommendation.
+
+"In guid troth na," replied Christy, to whom the cross afforded some
+confidence. "It's a' out, man--it's owre the hail town. There's nae use in
+concealin't langer. Just put a spunk to the neck o't and set aff. Wae! wae!
+[aside] but it's an awfu thing to look the enemy i' the very face, and
+hauld converse wi' lips that mak nae gobs at cinders! Ave Maria! help
+Christy Lowry in this her trial and temptation?"
+
+"Come from thy langsettle, jolly Kate Webster," continued he of the red
+cravat, "and let us, as thou wert wont to say, have a little laughing and
+drinking deray in this last night of the old year. I see, by the very
+mouths thou makest, thy throat is as dry as a dander, and, by and by, may
+set fire to my red liquor. Ha! I love a jolly gossip for a tosspot; for she
+gives more speech, and takes more liquor, than your 'breeked' steers that
+drink down the words, and drown them in the throat. Nothing drowns a
+woman's speech. It strengthens and improves in ale or whisky as if it were
+its natural element. Come open thy word-mill, Kate, and pour in the red
+grist, lass."
+
+"The soopleness o' his tongue has been long kent," whispered Kitty to Meg
+Johnston.
+
+"Ay, an' lang felt," replied Meg, in a suppressed tone. "Our sins are
+naething but a coil o't. When, in God's name, will he tak flight? I canna
+stand this muckle langer."
+
+"Three times have I warded off a swarf," said Kitty. "The gouch o' his
+breath comes owre me like the reek o' a snuffed-out candle. Will the men no
+interfere?"
+
+"Marion Webster," said the stranger, as if unconscious of the fear he was
+producing, "did I not, sweet queen, dance a jolly fandango with thee, last
+Halloween, to the rondeau of love--
+
+    "'Return the hamewart airt agane,
+      And byde quhair thou wast wont to be--
+    Thou art ane fule to suffer paine,
+      For love of her that loves not thee.'
+
+And wilt thou not pledge thy old friend in a half flask--the maiden's
+bumper?"
+
+"I hae nae objections," replied the sprightly Marion, and took up the
+flask.
+
+The company looked on in amazement and terror. The flame would rise on the
+application of the liquor to her lips, and doubtless little more of Marion
+Webster would be seen on the face of this lower world. While Marion still
+held the flask in her hand, the sound of carriage wheels was heard. The
+vehicle seemed to halt at Wat Webster's door. The door opened with a bang.
+Marion had not time to drink off her "spark," and, still holding the flask,
+went to the door to see who had so unceremoniously opened it; he of the red
+cravat, taking up his bottle, followed with a long stride. A sudden
+exclamation was heard from Marion; the sound of the shutting of the door of
+a carriage followed; then came Jehu's "hap-away," with three loud cracks of
+a whip, and all was ended by the rolling of rapid wheels, lost in a moment
+in the distance.
+
+Wat Webster, who had hitherto been chained to his seat, now started up;
+and, clasping his hands in his agony, ejaculated, that "Marion was off in a
+flame o' fire." The fact scarcely required mention--alas! too evident to
+all the company--that the greatest beauty of Christ's Kirk was away in the
+talons of the great Enemy of all good; and the evidence within the walls of
+the house was not greater than what was afforded by the watching crowd
+without. The carriage, which was entirely black, and not unlike a hearse,
+was seen to come in by the east end of the town, driving with a furious
+career, the driver (dressed also in black) impelling, with a long whip, the
+black horses, from whose hoofs sparks of fire were seen to fly; and neither
+house nor man seeming to claim his attention, until he arrived at the house
+of Wat Webster, where he of the red cravat was known to be. Many followed
+the carriage, and many remained at a distance to see who the victim was
+that was destined to be carried off in the strangers' vehicle; for, that
+the coach was brought there for no other purpose than to carry off one who
+could command in an instant a chariot of fire, seemed reasonably to be
+entirely out of the question. Marion Webster, the beloved of the village,
+was seen to enter, followed by the stranger; and, as the coach flew off, a
+loud wail burst from the stricken hearts of the villagers, expressive at
+once of their fear and of the intense pity they felt for the fate of one so
+much beloved, and whose crimes, much less than theirs, merited so dreadful
+a punishment as that she should be carried off to the regions of sorrow.
+The evidence, within and without the house, met, and, by the force of
+sympathetic similarity, mixed in an instant, carrying away in their course,
+like floating straws, the strongest doubts that remained in the mind of the
+most sceptical man in Christ's Kirk, of the hapless daughter of Wat Webster
+having been carried off by the Devil. The town was in the greatest
+commotion; terror and pity were painted on every face; but the feelings of
+the public held small proportion, indeed, to the agony which overtook Wat
+Webster and his wife, whose only child she was, as well as their pride, and
+that of every one in the whole town. Wat, who saw no use in flying after
+Sathan--an individual of known locomotive powers--lay extended on the floor
+of his cottage, cursing his fate, and bewailing the condition of his lovely
+daughter, whose entry into Pandemonium, and first scream produced by the
+burning lake, were as distinct in his eye and ear as ever was his morning
+porridge, when they boiled and bubbled by the heat of the fire. But Kitty
+was up and out, with a mighty crowd or tail in attendance, flying up and
+down in every direction, to see if any burning trace could be had of her
+beloved Marion; for she declared that, if she only got "the dander o' her
+body to bury in Christ's Kirk," she would be thankful to heaven for the
+gift, and try to moderate her grief. But no "dander" was to be seen. It was
+by much too evident that Marion Webster would never more be seen on earth;
+and, what might naturally add to the grief of her friends, they had no
+chance of seeing her again in the world to come, unless at the expense of a
+_condemnation_--a dear passport to see an old friend. Such a night was
+never seen in Christ's Kirk as that on which Marion Webster was carried off
+by his Sathanic Majesty.
+
+We have said quite enough to make it to be understood that Marion Webster
+did in reality go off in a coach with the stranger who has occupied so much
+of our attention; but we have (being of Scottish origin) prudently
+abstained from giving any opinion of our own upon the question of the true
+character of him of the red cravat. The two drove off together, apparently
+with much affection, and, after they had got entirely beyond the reach of
+any supposed followers, they became comparatively easy, and very soon
+commenced a conversation--an amusement never awanting when there is a woman
+within reach of a person's articulated breath.
+
+"What is the meaning o' a' this, Geordie, man?" said Marion, looking
+lovingly into the face of the stranger. "Could I no have met ye this night
+at the Three Sisters--the trees in the wood o' Ballochgray--without your
+coming to Christ's Kirk, and spreading the fear o' the deil frae town's-end
+to town's-end? But whar are we journeying to? and what means the carriage?"
+
+The stranger thus accosted by the familiar name by which he was known to
+the young woman, smiled, and told her to hold her tongue, and resign
+herself to the pleasure of being carried through the air at the rate of ten
+miles an hour. The moon was now shining beautifully "owre tower and tree;"
+and ever and anon the maiden glanced her blue eye on the "siller-smolt"
+scenes through which she passed, and then turned to the face of her
+companion, who seemed to enjoy silently the wonder expressed by her fair
+face. After rolling on for some time, they came to a road or avenue of tall
+beech trees, at the end of which appeared an old castle, on which the
+moonbeams were glancing, and exhibiting in strange forms the turrets with
+which it was fancifully decorated. The grey owl's scream was borne along on
+the breeze that met them, and struck on Marion's ear in wild and fitful
+sounds--inspiring a dread which the presence of her mute lover did little
+to remove or assuage.
+
+"Is not that Ballochgray Castle?" said Marion, at last--"that fearfu place
+whar the Baron of Ballochgray haulds his court with the Evil One, on every
+Halloween night, when the bleak muirs are rife with the bad spirits o' the
+earth and air. Whar drives the man, Geordie? Oh, tell him to turn awa frae
+thae auld turrets and skreeching owls. I canna bear the sight o' the ane,
+or the eerie sound o' the ither."
+
+A smile was again the answer of her companion, and the carriage still drove
+on to the well-known residence of the young Baron of Ballochgray--a man
+who, knowing the weakness of his King, James the Third of Scotland, in his
+love of astrology and divination, and their sister black arts, had, with
+much address, endeavoured to recommend himself to his sovereign, by a
+character pre-established in his own castle, for a successful cultivation
+of the occult sciences. He had long withdrawn himself from the eyes of the
+world, and even of his own tenants, and shut himself up in his castle, with
+a due assortment of death's heads, charts, owls, globes, bones, astrolobes,
+and vellum chronicles, with a view to the perfection of his hidden
+knowledge; or, as some thought, with a view to produce such a fame of his
+character and pursuits as might reach the ears of James, and acquire for
+him that sway at court for which he sighed more than for real knowledge.
+Some alleged that he was a cunning diplomatist, who cared no more for the
+nostrums of astrology than he did for the dry bones that, while they
+terrified his servants, had no more virtue in them than sap, and were, with
+the other furniture of his dark study, collected for the mere purpose of
+forwarding his ambitious designs upon the weak prince. His true character
+was supposed to be--what he possessed before he took to his new
+calling--that of a wild, eccentric, devil-daring man, who loved adventures
+for their own sake, and worshipped the fair face of the "theekit and
+tenanted skull" of a bouncing damsel, with far greater enthusiasm and
+sincerity than he ever did his mortal osteological relics that lay in so
+much profusion in the recesses of his old castle. But he had, doubtless, so
+far succeeded in his plans; for he possessed a most unenviable fame for all
+sort of cantrips and sorceries; and the wandering beggar would rather have
+solicited a bit of bread from the iron hand of misery itself, than ventured
+near Ballochgray to ask his awmous.
+
+"I winna gang near that fearfu place, Geordie!" again cried Marion. "What
+hae ye, a puir hind, to do wi' the Baron o' Ballochgray? Turn, for the sake
+o' heaven!--turn frae that living grave o' dry banes, an' the weary goul
+that sits jabbering owre them, by their ain light!"
+
+Her companion again smiled; and the man dashed up the avenue, and never
+stopped till he came to the gate of the castle--over which there were
+placed two human shank-bones of great length, that were said to have
+sustained the body of the Baron of Balwearie--that prince of the black art,
+and the most cunning necromancer that ever drew a circle. The carriage
+stopped; and two servants, dressed in red doublets, (like garments of
+fire,) slashed with black, waited at the carriage door, with flambeaux in
+their hands, to shew the couple into the hall. Out sprang the male first,
+and then Marion Webster was handed, with great state, and led into the
+interior of the old castle. She was led direct into the hall, which was
+lighted up in a very fanciful manner, by means of many skulls arranged
+round the room, and through the eyes and jaws of which lurid lights
+streamed all around. Marion was filled with terror as she cast her eyes on
+these shining monuments of mortality; and had, in her fear, scarcely
+noticed a man in black, sitting at the end of the room, poring over a
+black-lettered manuscript.
+
+"Marion Webster," now said her travelling companion, "behold in your old
+lover of the Ballochgray Wood the Baron of Ballochgray!"
+
+A scream burst from the choking throat of the terrified damsel, and rung
+through the old hall.
+
+"Come, love," he continued, "abate thy terrors. My fame is worse than my
+real character. I have wooed thee for reasons known to myself, and to be
+known soon to thee. Thou didst love Geordie Dempster; and thy love was weak
+indeed, if it is to be scared by brainless tongues or tongueless skulls.
+Wilt thou consent to be the lady of the Baron of Ballochgray?"
+
+"Geordie! Geordie!" cried the wondering, and yet loving maiden, "if I would
+willingly wed thee in the grave, wi' death himsel for oor priest, shall I
+refuse to be yours in a castle o' the livin, filled though it be wi' thae
+signs o' mortality?"
+
+"Come forth, Father Anthony!" cried the Baron, "and join us by the rules
+and bands of holy kirk!"
+
+The man in black lifted up his head from the black-letter page; and, having
+called his witnesses, went through the requisite ceremonies; and Marion
+Webster became, within a short space, the lady of Ballochgray.
+
+Next day the Baron took her forth to the green woods, where, as they
+sauntered among elms many centuries old, and as high as castles, he told
+her that he had more reasons than other men for having a wife _who could
+keep a secret_. When he first met her, he was struck with her beauty, but
+had no more intention than ordinary love adventurers for making her his
+wife; frequent intercourse had revealed to him a jewel he had never seen in
+such brightness in the _head gear_ of the nobles of the land--a stern and
+unflinching regard to the sanction of her word. He quickly resolved to test
+this in such a manner as would leave no doubt in his mind that a
+secret-keeping wife he might find in his humble maiden of Ballochgray
+woods. He had three times visited Christ's Kirk in such a manner as would
+raise an intense curiosity in the inhabitants as to who he was. Marion had
+the secret only of his being plain Geordie Dempster; but so firmly and
+determinedly had she kept it, that, in the very midst of a general belief
+that he was the Prince of Darkness, she had never even let it be known that
+she had once seen his face before. So far Marion was enlightened; and it is
+not improbable that, afterwards, she knew _why_ a secret-keeping wife was
+so much prized by the Baron of Ballochgray, and why he could serve two
+purposes--that of love, and fame of supernatural powers--in personating, as
+he had done, the Prince of Darkness in his visits to Christ's Kirk on the
+Green. So far, at least, it is certain that Marion never revealed the
+secret of his pretended astrological acquirements.
+
+For weeks after the marriage, inquiries were made in every quarter for the
+lost damsel; but, at last, all search and inquiry was given up, and the
+belief that she was in the place appointed for the wicked had settled down
+on the minds of the people. One evening a number of cronies were assembled
+at the house of the disconsolate parents, and among these were Meg
+Johnston, Christy Lowrie, Widow Lindsay, and others of the Leslians.
+
+"The will o' the Lord maun be done," said Meg; "but wae's me! there was
+mony an auld gimmer in Leslie, whose horns are weel marked wi' the lines o'
+her evil days, that Clootie might hae taen, afore he cam to the bonnie ewe
+that had only tasted the first leaves o' her simmer girse. What did Marion
+Webster ever do in this warld to bring upon her this warst and last o' the
+evils o' mortals?"
+
+"It's just the like o' her the auld villain likes best," rejoined Christy.
+"He doesna gie a doit for a gizzened sinner, wha will fa' into his hands at
+the lang run without trouble. But the young, the blooming, and the bonny
+are aye sair beset by temptations; and, heard ye never, Mrs Webster, o'
+Marion's meetings at the Three Sisters, sometimes, they say, at the dead
+hour, wi' some lover that naebody ever kenned."
+
+"Ay, ay, dame," said Widow Lindsay; "that's just _his_ way. He comes in the
+shape o' a young lover, and beguiles the hearts o' young maidens. Ye mind
+o' bonny Peggy Lorimer o' the town's end, wha never did mair guid after she
+met a stranger in the woods o' Ballochgray. Ae glance o' his ee, she said,
+took awa her heart; and, every day after, she pined and pined, and wandered
+amang the woods till she grew like a wraith, but nae mair o' him did she
+ever see. I stricked her wi' my ain hands, and sic a corpse I never
+handled. There wasna a pound o' flesh on her bones; and the carriers at the
+burial aye said, that there wasna a corpse ava in the coffin. But puir
+Marion has dreed a waur weird."
+
+"My puir bairn! my puir bairn!" cried the mother. "The folk o' Leslie aye
+said she wad ride in her carriage, for she was the bonniest lass that ever
+was seen in Christ's Kirk. But, wear-awins! little kenned they what kind o'
+a carriage she wad ride awa in on her marriage night."
+
+"Some folks say, the monks will pray her back again," rejoined Meg; "but,
+my faith, they'll hae hard work o't. He'll no let her awa without a fearfu
+tuilzie, Christy."
+
+"She'll never mair be seen on earth, woman," answered Christy. "And, even
+if she were to be prayed back again, she wad never be the creature she was
+again. A coal black lire, and singit ee-brees, wadna set her auld lovers in
+Christ's Kirk in a bleeze again."
+
+"They should watch the smoking field o' Dysart," cried Widow Lindsay. "If
+she come again ava, it will be through that deil's porch. But what noise is
+that, Kitty? Didna ye hear the sound o' carriage wheels?"
+
+The party listened attentively; and, to be sure, there was a carriage
+coming rattling along the street.
+
+"Get out the Latin Bible, Wat!" cried Kitty. "He's maybe coming to tak us
+awa next."
+
+The listening continued; and when the sounds ceased, as the carriage
+stopped at the door, and the postilion's whip cracked over the restless
+horses, a cry of terror rang through the room. Every one shrank into a
+corner, and muttered prayers mixed with the cries of fear. The door opened.
+Every eye was fixed upon it, for no one doubted that their old friend had
+returned. The Baron of Ballochgray and his lady, dressed in the most
+gorgeous style, entered the house of the old couple. The sight of the gay
+visiters made Wat and Kitty's eyes reel; and they screamed again from the
+fear that the Prince had come back, only in a new doublet, to exhibit to
+them their _sold_ daughter.
+
+"I beg to introduce thee," said the Baron, "to the lady of Ballochgray--my
+wedded wife."
+
+Marion, without waiting for an answer, fell upon the neck of her father;
+and then, in the same manner, she embraced her mother; but it was a long
+time before the fears of Wat and Kitty were removed. At last, they were
+persuaded to accompany them on a visit to Ballochgray Castle; and, when
+they rode off in the chariot, they left behind them the belief that they
+too were carried off by the "Old One." We cannot pretend to describe the
+feelings of Wat and his wife when they were introduced into the old castle;
+but they soon came to see that the Baron of Ballochgray was just "as guid a
+chiel in his ain castle as ever he was when he acted the Deevil in Christ's
+Kirk on the Green."
+
+
+
+
+GLEANINGS OF THE COVENANT.
+
+
+X.--SERGEANT WILSON.
+
+It was early on Monday morning, in the cold month of March, Anno Domini
+1683, that the farm-house of Barjarg, in the parish of Keir and county of
+Dumfries, was surrounded by dragoons. They were in quest of a sergeant of
+the name of Wilson--a Sergeant Wilson--who had all unexpectedly (for he was
+a steady man and a good soldier) deserted his colours, and was nowhere to
+be found. The reason why they had come to Barjarg, was the report which one
+of Sergeant Wilson's companions in arms had made, that he knew the deserter
+was in love with Catherine Chalmers, the farmer's fair and only child.
+Catherine Chalmers was indeed forthcoming in all her innocence and
+bloom--but William was nowhere to be found, though they searched most
+minutely into every hole and corner. Being compelled, at last, to retire
+without their object--though not without threatening Catherine with the
+thumbikins, if she persevered in refusing to discover her lover's
+retreat--the family of Barjarg was once more left to enjoy its wonted
+quietude and peace. Adjoining to the farm-house of Barjarg, and occupying
+the ground where the mansion-house now stands, there stood an old tower,
+containing one habitable apartment; but only occupied as a sleeping room by
+one of the ploughmen, and the herd boy. There were one or two
+lumber-garrets besides; but these were seldom entered, as they were
+understood to contain nothing of any value, besides being dark, and
+swarming with vermin. Reports of odd noises and fearful apparitions had
+begun to prevail about the place, and both ploughman and herd were
+unwilling to continue any longer in a lodgment into which it was their firm
+persuasion that something "no canny" had entered. Holding this exceedingly
+cheap, Adam Chalmers, the veteran guidman of Barjarg, agreed to take a
+night of the old tower, and to set the devil and all his imps at defiance;
+but it was observed, that he came home next morning thoughtful and out of
+spirits, agreeing, at once, that nobody should, in future, be compelled to
+sleep in the old tower. He said little of what he had seen or heard, but he
+shook his head, and seemed to intimate that he knew more than he was at
+liberty to divulge. Things went on in this manner for some time--reports of
+noises at unseasonable hours still prevailing, and every one shunning the
+place after dark--till, one morning before daylight, the whole building was
+observed to be on fire, surrounded at the same time, as the flames were, by
+a troop of Grierson's men, with their leader at their head. The scream
+which Catherine Chalmers uttered when she beheld the flames, but too
+plainly intimated the state of her mind; nor was her father less composed,
+but went about, wringing his hands and exclaiming--"Oh! poor Sergeant
+Wilson! poor Sergeant Wilson!" At this instant, the fire had made its way
+to the upper apartment, and had thrown light upon a human head and
+shoulders, which leaned over the decayed battlement. Every one was
+horror-struck except the inhuman soldiery, who collected around the burning
+pile, and shouted up their profane and insulting jests, in the face of the
+poor perishing being, who, from his footing immediately giving way, was
+precipitated into the flames, and disappeared.
+
+"There, let him go," said Grierson, "dog and traitor as he is, let him sink
+to the lowest pit, there to wait the arrival of his canting and Covenanting
+spouse, whom we shall now take the liberty of carrying to head-quarters,
+there to await her sentence, for decoying a king's sworn servant and a
+sergeant, from his duty and allegiance."
+
+No sooner said than done, was the order of these dreadful times. Catherine
+Chalmers was placed in one of her father's carts; and, notwithstanding
+every remonstrance, and an assurance that poor Catherine was now a widow,
+she was placed betwixt two soldiers, who rode alongside the cart on
+horseback, and conveyed her to Dumfries, there to stand her trial before
+the Sheriff, Clavers, and the inhuman Laird of Lag. When arrived at her
+destination, she was put under lock and key, but allowed more personal
+liberty than many others who were accused of crimes more heinous in the
+eyes of the persecutors, than those of which she was merely suspected to be
+guilty. It so happened, that the quarterly meeting of the court was held in
+a few days, and the chief witness produced against Catherine Wilson, was a
+servant maid of her father, who was compelled, very much against her will,
+to bear evidence to her having seen Sergeant Wilson and her mistress (for
+Catherine kept her father's house) several times together in the old tower,
+as well as under a particular tree at the end of the old avenue, and that
+her mistress had told her that Sergeant Wilson was heartily tired of the
+service in which he was engaged. Her own father, too, was compelled to
+confess, that he had had an interview with the sergeant, in the tower, who
+had confessed to him the marriage, had asked and with difficulty obtained
+his forgiveness, and that he meditated a departure along with his wife, to
+some distant place, beyond the reach of his enemies. There was no direct
+evidence, however, that Catherine had persuaded him to desert, or to vilify
+the service which he had left; and the court were about to dismiss her
+_simpliciter_ from the bar, when, to the amazement of all, Catherine rose
+in her place, and addressed the court to the following purpose:--"And now
+ye have done your utmost, and I am innocent, in as far as your evidence has
+gone; but I am NOT INNOCENT--I am deeply guilty, if guilt ye deem it, in
+this matter. 'Twas I that first awakened poor William's conscience to a
+sense of his danger, in serving an emissary of Satan; 'twas I that spoke to
+him of the blood that cries day and night under the Altar; 'twas I that
+made him tremble--ay, as an aspen leaf, and as some here will yet shake
+before the Judge of all--when I brought to his recollection the brutal
+scenes which he had witnessed, and in which he had taken a part; 'twas I
+that agreed to marry him privately, without my dear father's consent,
+(whose pardon I have sought on my knees, and whose blessing I have already
+obtained,) [hereupon her father nodded assent] provided he would desert,
+and retire with me, at least for a time, beyond the reach of ye all--ye
+messengers of evil, sent to scourge a guilty and backsliding race; 'twas I
+that visited him night after night in that old tower, which you inhumanly
+set on fire, and in which--O my God!"----Hereupon she laid hold of the desk
+before her, and would have dropped to the earth, had not an officer in
+attendance supported her, and borne her, under the authority of the court,
+into the open air. She was now, notwithstanding her self-accusation,
+declared to be at liberty: and immediately, so soon as strength was given
+her, retired into the house of an acquaintance and relative, where suitable
+restoratives and refreshments were administered. The house where her friend
+lived was close upon what is called the Sands of Dumfries, adjoining to the
+river, which up to this point is navigable, and where boats are generally
+to be seen. During the night, she disappeared, and, though all search was
+made at home and everywhere else, she was not heard of. Her father at first
+took her disappearance sadly to heart; but time seemed to have a remedial
+effect upon his spirits, and he at length rallied, even into cheerfulness.
+Things went on for years and years, very much in the old way at Barjarg.
+The old man's hairs gradually whitened and became more scanty, whilst this
+loss was made up for by an increase of wrinkles. The only change in his
+habits were not unfrequent visits which he payed to an old friend, he said,
+in Whitehaven, and from which he always returned in high spirits. It might
+have been stated formerly that, when the ashes of the old tower were
+searched, after they had cooled, for the body of poor Wilson, no such body
+was found--but the inference was made by the neighbours, that the remains
+had been early removed by his wife's orders, who would naturally wish to
+possess herself of so valued a deposit. In fact, the whole transaction
+melted away in the stream of time, like the snow-flake on the surface of
+the water; and things went on very much us usual. Six long years revolved,
+and still no word of Catherine Wilson. Many conjectured that she had missed
+her foot in the dark, and fallen into the river, and been carried out to
+sea by the reflux of the tide. Others again hinted at suicide, from extreme
+grief; and some very charitable females nodded and winked something meant
+to be significant, about some people's not being easily known--and that
+some people, provided that they got a _grip_ of a man, would not be very
+nice about the object or the manner!
+
+Oh, what a blessed thing it was when King William came in!--and with him
+came amnesty, and peace, and restoration! It was upon a fine summer
+evening, in the year 1689, just six years after the mysterious
+disappearance of Catherine Wilson, that the old guidman of Barjarg was
+sitting enjoying the setting sun at his own door, on the root of an old
+tree, which had been converted into a _dais_, or out-of-doors seat. It was
+about the latter end of July, that most exuberantly lovely of all months,
+when Adam Chalmers, with Rutherford's Letters on his knee, sat gazing upon
+one of the most beautiful landscapes which our own romantic country can
+boast of. Before him flowed the Nith, over its blue pebbles, and through a
+thousand windings; beyond it were the woods and hills of Closeburn, all
+blooming and blushing in the setting beams of the sun, and rising up, tier
+above tier, till they terminated in the blue sky of the east. To the left
+were the Louther Hills, with their smooth-green magnificence, bearing away
+into the distance, and placed, as it were, to shelter this happy valley
+from the stormy north and its wintry blasts. At present, however, all idea
+of storm and blast was incongruous, for they seemed to sleep in the sun's
+effulgence, as if cradled into repose by the hand of God. To the south, and
+hard at hand, were the woods and the fields of Collestown, with the echoing
+Linn, and the rush of many waters. O land of our nativity!--how deeply art
+thou impressed upon this poor brain!--go where we will--see what we
+may--thou art still unique to us--thou art still superior to all other
+lands.
+
+It was eight o'clock of the evening above referred to, when a chaise
+entered the old avenue, passed the ruins of the Tower and the old
+mansion-house, and drew up immediately opposite old Adam Chalmers. The
+steps were immediately let down, and out sprung, with a bound, the long
+lost child, the blooming and matronly looking Mrs Wilson. Behind her
+followed one whom the reader, I trust, has long ago considered as dead, and
+perhaps buried, her manly and rejoicing husband William Wilson, handing out
+a fine girl of five years of age, a boy about three, and an infant still at
+the breast! It was indeed a joyous meeting; and the old man bustled about,
+embracing and pressing his child, and then surveying, with silent and
+intense interest, his grandchildren; taking the oldest on his knee, and
+permitting him all manner of intercourse with his wrinkles and his grey
+hairs.
+
+One of Lag's troop, the intimate and attached friend of the sergeant, had
+conveyed to him, by means of a letter, the fact, that his haunt was
+discovered; and that Lag had sworn he would search him out like a fox,--in
+short, that he would burn the old tower about his ears. A thought struck
+Wilson, that even though he should now escape, the pursuit would still be
+continued; but that, if he could by any means persuade his enemies that he
+had perished in the flames, the search of course would cease. As he was
+occupied with these thoughts, it occurred to him, that, by placing a couple
+of pillows, dressed in some old clothes, which were lying about, and which
+belonged to the former tenant, in the topmost turret of the tower, he might
+impose the belief upon Lag and his party, that he had actually perished in
+the flames. Having communicated this plan to his friend in the troop by a
+secret messenger, he immediately, and without waiting even to advertise his
+wife of the deception, departed, and hastened on to a brother's house in
+the neighbourhood of Dumfries, where he lay concealed. By the management of
+his friend, the deception was accomplished; for he even swore to the
+captain, that he heard Wilson scream, and jump upwards, and then sink down
+into the devouring flames. The trial was not unknown to Wilson, and he had
+prevailed upon his brother, with a few friends sworn to secrecy, to assist
+him in possessing himself of the person of his wife, in going to or coming
+from the court-house. Matters, however, succeeded beyond his utmost hopes.
+His spouse was liberated, and, by means of a boat well manned, he reached
+Douglas in the Isle of Man in safety, in the course of eight-and-forty
+hours. There, at last, he was safe, being beyond immediate pursuit, and
+indeed being supposed to be dead; and there, by a successful speculation or
+two, with money which had been left him by an uncle, after whom he was
+named, and who had prospered in the Virginia trade, he soon became
+prosperous, and even wealthy. His wife having a natural desire to see her
+father, took means to have him apprised of the secret of their retreat. His
+visits, nominally to England, were in fact made to Douglas; and the
+Revolution now put it in the power of Sergeant Wilson to return with his
+young and interesting family to the farm of Barjarg, and to purchase the
+property on which the old house stood, it being now in the market; to refit
+the old burnt tower; to rebuild the old castle, and to live there along
+with old Adam for several years, not only in comfort, but in splendour.
+When engaged over a bottle, of which he became ultimately rather more fond
+than was good for his health, he used to amuse his friends with the above
+narrative, adding always at the end--"The burning o' me has been the making
+o' me." The property has long passed into other hands, and is now in the
+family of Hunter; but such was its destination for at least fifty years,
+during the life of the sergeant, and the greater part of the life of the
+son, who, being a spendthrift, spent and sold it.
+
+
+XI.--HELEN PALMER.
+
+Helen Palmer was originally from Cumberland; her parents were English, but
+her father had removed with Helen, an only daughter, whilst yet a child, to
+the neighbourhood of Closeburn Castle, to a small village which still goes
+by the name of Croalchapel. There the husband and father had been employed
+originally as forester on the estate of Closeburn, belonging to Sir Roger
+Kirkpatrick, and had afterwards become chamberlain or factor on the same
+property. Peter Palmer was a superior man. He had been well educated for
+the time in which he lived, and had been employed in Cumberland in keeping
+accounts for a mining establishment. The death, however, in child-birth, of
+his beloved and well-born wife, (she had married below her station,) had,
+for some time, disgusted him with life, and his intellects had nearly given
+way. Having committed several acts of insanity, so as to make himself
+spoken of in the neighbourhood, he took a moonlight flitting, with his
+child and a faithful nurse, and, wandering north and north, at last fixed
+his residence in the locality already mentioned, where he was soon noticed
+as a superior person by the Laird of Closeburn, and advanced as has been
+stated.
+
+Helen Palmer was the apple of her father's eye; he would permit no one but
+the nurse to approach her person, and he himself was her only instructor;
+he taught her to read, to write, and to calculate accounts; in short, every
+spare hour he had was spent with little Helen. There you might see him,
+after dinner, with Helen on his knee, his forest dog sleeping before him,
+and a tumbler of negus on a small table by his side, conversing with his
+child, as he would have done with her mother; holding her out at arm's
+length, to mark her opening features; and then again straining her to his
+bosom in a paroxysm of tears.
+
+"Just my Helen--my own dear Helen anew!" he would say; "oh, my child--my
+child!--dear, dear art thou to thy poor heart-broken father! but I will
+live for thee!--I will live with thee!--and when thou diest, child, thou
+shalt sleep on this breast--thou shalt be buried, child, in thy father's
+dust; and thy mother and we shall meet, and I will tell her of her babe; of
+that babe which cost her so much, and we will rejoin in divine love for
+ever and ever!"
+
+Oh, how beautiful is paternal affection!--the love of an only surviving
+parent for an only child--and she a female. It is beautiful as the smile of
+Providence on benevolence--it is strong as the bond which binds the world
+to a common centre--it is enduring as the affections which, being cherished
+on earth, are matured above!
+
+As Helen grew up, her eye kindled, her brow expanded, her cheeks freshened
+into the most delicious bloom, and she walked on fairy footsteps of the
+most delicate impression. Her feet, her hands, her arms, her bust, her
+whole person, spoke her at once the lady of a thousand descents--ages had
+modelled her into aristocratic symmetry. But with all this, there was a
+rustic simplicity about her, an open, frank, unaffected manner, which
+seemed to say, as plain as any manner could, "I am not ashamed of being my
+father's daughter." When Helen Palmer had attained her sixteenth year, she
+was quite a woman--not one of your thread-paper bulrushes, which shoot
+upwards merely into unfleshed gentility; but a round, firm, well-spread,
+and formed woman--a bonny lass, invested with all the delicacy and softness
+of a complete lady. Her bodily accomplishments, however, were not her only
+recommendation; her mind was unusually acute, and her memory was stored
+with much and varied information. She knew, for example, that the age in
+which she lived was one of cruelty and bloodshed; that the second Charles,
+who, at that time, filled the throne, was a sensual tyrant; that Lag,
+Clavers, Douglas, Johnstone, and others, were bloody persecutors; and that
+even Sir Roger Kirkpatrick himself, the humane and amiable in many
+respects, was "a friend of the castle"--of the court--and would not permit
+any of the poor persecuted remnant to take refuge in the linns of Creehope,
+or in any of the fastnesses on his estate of Closeburn. All this grieved
+Helen's heart; but her father had taught her that it was _her_ duty, as
+well as his own, to be silent on such subjects, and not to give offence to
+one whose bread he was eating, and whose patronage he had enjoyed to so
+great an extent.
+
+There were frequent visiters, in those days, at Closeburn Castle. In fact,
+with all the chivalric hospitality of ancient times and of an ancient
+family, Sir Roger kept, in a manner, open house. During dinner, the
+drawbridge was regularly elevated, and, for a couple of hours at least,
+none might enter. This state ceremony had cost the family of Kirkpatrick
+many broad acres; for, when the old and heirless proprietor of the fine
+estate of Carlaverock called at the castle of Closeburn, with the view of
+bequeathing his whole property to the then laird, the drawbridge was up--he
+was refused immediate entrance, because Sir Thomas was at dinner. "Tell Sir
+Thomas," said the enraged visitor, "tell your master to take his dinner,
+and with zest; but tell him, at the same time, that I will put a better
+dinner _by_ his table this day than ever was on it." So he went on to
+Drumlanrig, and left the whole property to Douglas of Queensberry. Such,
+however, was not the reception of some young gentlemen who arrived about
+this time at the castle of Closeburn, on a sporting expedition, with dogs
+and guns, and a suitable accompaniment of gamekeepers and other servants.
+These strangers were manifestly Englishmen, but from what quarter of
+England nobody knew, and, indeed, nobody inquired. They were only birds of
+passage, and would, in a month or so, give place to another arrival, about
+to disappear, in its turn, from a similar cause. As Helen Palmer was one
+day walking, according to her wont, amongst the Barmoor-woods, in her
+immediate neighbourhood, a hare crossed her path, followed closely by a
+greyhound, by which it was immediately killed. Poor Helen started,
+screamed, and dropped her book in an agony of pity. She had not been
+accustomed to such barbarities; and the poor dying animal cried like a
+child, too, as it expired! At this instant, a horseman brought up his steed
+in her presence, and, immediately alighting, proceeded, in the most polite
+and delicate manner imaginable, to administer such relief as was in his
+power. He begged her to be composed, for the animal was now dead, and its
+suffering over; and her feelings should never be lascerated again in this
+manner, as they would pursue their sport somewhere else, at a greater
+distance from her abode. Upon recovering herself, Helen felt ashamed at her
+position, and even at her weakness in betraying her feelings, and, begging
+the stranger's pardon for the interruption to his sport which she had
+occasioned, with a most graceful courtesy she withdrew from his sight. The
+stranger was exceedingly struck with her appearance. It was not that she
+was beautiful, for with beautiful women he had long been familiar; but
+there was something in the expression of her countenance which made him
+tremble all over--she was the very picture of his father; nay, his own
+features and hers bore a close resemblance. The same indefinite terror
+which had seized this young and exceedingly handsome sportsman had
+penetrated the breast of Helen. The resemblance of the stranger to herself,
+was what struck her with amazement. There was the same arched eyebrow--the
+same hazel eye--and the same dimple in the chin. Besides, there was an
+all-over sameness in the air, manner, and even step, which she could not,
+with all her efforts, drive from her recollection. She did not, however,
+think proper to inform her father of this little foolish incident; but, ere
+she went to bed that night, she surveyed herself in the glass with more
+than wonted attention. Still, still, she was left in surprise, by comparing
+what she saw with what she recollected--the image in her bosom with that in
+the glass.
+
+Next day, as might have been anticipated, the stranger called to see if she
+had recovered from her fright, and spent a considerable time in very
+pleasing conversation. Her father happened to be in the writing office at
+the time, and did not see him. These calls were repeated from time to time,
+till at last it became evident to all about the castle, that the young heir
+of Middlefield, in Cumberland, was deeply in love. He had almost entirely
+given up his former amusements, and even railed against the cruelty of such
+sports. Mr Graham, a near connection of him of Netherby, was a young person
+of an excellent heart, and of a large property, to which, from his father's
+death, by an accident, he had just succeeded. He was besides, one of the
+handsomest men in Cumberland; and it was reported that Sir James Graham's
+oldest daughter had expressed herself very favourably respecting her
+kinsman's pretensions to her hand, should he _presume so high_! However,
+his heart was not in the match, and he had made this visit to his father's
+intimate friend, in order to avoid all importunity on a subject which was
+irksome to him. It is useless to mince the matter. Helen, in spite of her
+father's remonstrances and representations, was deeply and irrecoverably in
+love with the gallant Graham, and he, in his turn, was at least equally
+enamoured of the face, person, manners, mind, and soul, of the lovely and
+fascinating Miss Palmer.
+
+There was only one subject on which there was any division of opinion
+betwixt the lovers--Helen was every inch a Covenanter; whilst Mr William
+was rather, if anything, inclined to view their opposition to government as
+factious and inexcusable. He did not, indeed, approve of the atrocities
+which were practising every day around him, and in the parish of Closeburn
+in particular; but he ventured to hope that a few instances of severity
+would put an end to the delusion of the people, and that they would again
+return to their allegiance and their parish churches. Helen was mighty and
+magnificent in the cause of non-conformity and humanity. She talked of
+freedom, conscience, religion, on the one hand--of tyranny, treachery,
+oppression, and cruelty, on the other--till Mr William, either convinced,
+or appearing to be so, fairly gave in, promising most willingly, and in
+perfect good faith, that he would never assist the Laird of Closeburn, or
+of Lag, in any of their unhallowed proceedings.
+
+One day when Helen and her lover (for it was now no secret) were on a walk
+into the Barmoor-wood, they were naturally attracted to the spot where
+their intercourse had begun; and, sitting down opposite to each other on
+the trunks of some felled trees, they gradually began a somewhat
+confidential conversation respecting their birth and parentage. Helen
+disguised nothing; she was born in Cumberland, and brought here whilst a
+child; her mother, whose name was Helen Graham, had died at her birth. At
+the mention of this name, the stranger and lover started convulsively to
+his feet, and running up to and embracing Helen, he exclaimed--"O God! O
+God! you are my own cousin!" Helen fainted, and was with difficulty
+recovered, by an application of water from the adjoining brook. It was
+indeed so. Out of delicacy, Mr William had made no particular inquiries at
+Helen respecting her mother; and Helen, on the other hand, knew that Graham
+is an almost universal name, in Cumberland in particular. This, therefore,
+excited no suspicion; but true it is, and of verity, these two similar and
+affianced beings were cousins-german. Helen Graham, the sister of the Lord
+of Middlefield having married beneath her rank, was abandoned by her
+brother and family, and her name was never mentioned in Middlefield House.
+An old servant, however, of the family had made the young heir master of
+the fact of the marriage, and of the death of his old aunt; but he could
+not tell what had become of the father or the child; he supposed that they
+had either died or gone to the plantations abroad; and there the matter
+rested till this sudden and unexpected discovery. Peter Palmer, the father
+of Helen, was altogether unacquainted with William Graham, as he was a mere
+child when Peter left Cumberland; and his father had used him so cruelly as
+to make him avoid his residence and presence as carefully as possible.
+
+Would to heaven we could stop here, and gratify the reader with a wedding,
+and as much matrimonial happiness as poor mortality can possibly
+inherit!--But it may not be. As Lockhart says beautifully of Sir Walter, we
+hear "the sound of the muffled drum."
+
+Sir Roger and all the friends of Mr William Graham were opposed to his
+union with Miss Palmer, as Graham always called her. Her own father, too,
+was opposed to her forming a connection with the son of one who had treated
+him so cruelly, and, as he thought, unjustly--and it became manifest to
+William, as he was in every sense of the word his own master, that had he
+his fair betrothed in the leas of Middlefield, he might set them all at
+defiance, and effect their union peaceably, according to the rules of the
+church. In an evil hour, Helen consented to leave her father's house by
+night, along with her William, and on horseback, to take their way across
+the Border for Cumberland. They had reached the parish of Kirkconnel about
+two o'clock in the morning, and were giving their horses a mouthful of
+water in the little stream called Kirtle, when a shot was heard in the
+immediate neighbourhood--it was heard, alas! by two only, for the third was
+dying, and in the act of falling from her seat in the saddle. She was
+caught by a servant, and by her lover; but she could only say--"I am
+gone--I am gone!" before breathing her last. Oh, curse upon the hand that
+fired the shot? It was, indeed, an accursed hand, but a fatal mistake. It
+was one of the bloody persecutors of Lag's troop, who, having been
+appointed to watch at this spot for some Covenanters who were expected to
+be passing on horseback into England, in order to escape from the savage
+cruelty of their persecutors, had immediately, and in drunken blindness,
+fired upon this inoffensive group. The ball, alas! took too fatal effect in
+the heart of Helen Palmer; and it was on her, and not as Allan Cunningham
+represents it, "on Helen Irving, the daughter of the laird of Kirkconnel,"
+that the following most pathetic verses were written--
+
+    "I wish I were where Helen lies;
+    Night and day on me she cries:
+    Oh, that I were where Helen lies,
+          On fair Kirkconnel lea!
+
+    "Oh, Helen fair beyond compare,
+    I'll make a garland of thy hair;
+    Shall bind my heart for ever mair,
+          Until the day I dee.
+
+    "Curst be the heart that thought the thought,
+    And curst the hand that fired the shot,
+    When in my arms burd Helen dropped
+          On fair Kirkconnel lea!"
+
+
+XII.--THE CAIRNY CAVE OF GAVIN MUIR.
+
+There is a wild, uninhabited district, which separates Nithsdale from
+Annandale, in Dumfriesshire. It is called Gavin Muir; and, though lonely,
+and covered with spret and heather, exhibits some objects which merit the
+attention of the traveller in the wilderness. There is the King's Loch, the
+King's Burn, and the King's Chair, all records of King James V.'s
+celebrated raid to subdue the thieves of Annandale. Tradition says, what
+seems extremely likely, that he spent a night in the midst of this muir;
+and hence the appellations of royalty which adhere to the objects which
+witnessed his bivouac. But, although the localities referred to possess an
+interest, they are exceeded, in this respect, by a number of "cairns," by
+which the summits of several hills, or rising grounds, are topped. These
+cairns, which amount to five or six, are all within sight of each other,
+all on eminences, and all composed of an immense mass of loose, water-worn
+stones. And yet the neighbourhood is free from stones, being bare, and fit
+for sheep-pasturage only. Tradition says nothing of these cairns in
+particular; or, indeed, very little of any similar collections, frequent as
+they are in Scotland and throughout all Scandinavia. Stone coffins, no
+doubt, have been discovered in them, and human bones; but, beyond this, all
+is surmise and uncertainty. Often, when yet a boy, and engaged in fishing
+in the King's Burn, have we mounted these pyramids, and felt that we were
+standing on holy ground. "Oh," thought we, "that some courteous cairn would
+blab it out what 'tis they are!" But the cairns were silent; and hence the
+necessity we are under of professing our ignorance of what they refused to
+divulge. But there is a large opening in the side of one of these cairns,
+respecting which tradition has preserved a pretty distinct narrative, which
+we shall now venture, for the first time, to put under types, for the
+instruction of our readers.
+
+The whole hill country, in Dumfriesshire and Galloway in particular, is
+riddled, as it were, with caves and hiding-places. These, no doubt,
+afforded refuge, during the eight-and-twenty years of inhuman persecution,
+to the poor Covenanter; but they were not, in general, constructed for or
+by him. They existed from time immemorial, and were the work of that son of
+night and darkness--the smuggler, who, in passing from the Brow at the
+mouth of the Nith, from Bombay, near Kirkcudbright, or from the estuary of
+the Cree, with untaxed goods from the Isle of Man--then a separate and
+independent kingdom--found it convenient to conceal both his goods and
+himself from the observation of the officers of excise. So frequent are
+these concealed caves in the locality to which we refer, that, in passing
+through the long, rank heather, we have more than once disappeared in an
+instant, and found ourselves several feet below the level of the upper
+world, and in the midst of a damp, but roomy subterraneous apartment of
+considerable extent. We believe that they are now, in these piping times of
+peace and preventive service, generally filled up and closed by the
+shepherds, as they were dangerous pitfalls in the way of their flocks. In
+the time, however, to which we refer--namely, in the year 1683--they were
+not only open, but kept, as it were, in a state of repair, being tenanted
+by the poor, persecuted remnant (as they expressed it) of God's people.
+That the reader may fully understand the incidents of this narrative, it
+will be necessary that he and we travel back some hundred and fifty years,
+and some miles from the farm-house of Auchincairn, that we may have ocular
+demonstration of the curious contrivances to which the love of life, of
+liberty, and of a good conscience, had compelled our forefathers to have
+recourse. That cairn which appears so entire and complete, of which the
+stones seem to have been huddled together without any reference to
+arrangement whatever, is, nevertheless, hollow underneath, and on occasions
+you may see--but only if you examine it narrowly--the blue smoke seeking
+its way in tiny jets through a thousand apertures. There is, in fact, room
+for four or five individuals. Beneath, there are a few plaids and
+bed-covers, with an old chair, a stool, and seats of stone. There is
+likewise a fire-place and some peats, extracted from the adjoining moss.
+But there is, in fact, no entrance in this direction. You must bend your
+course round by the brow of that hollow, over which the heather hangs
+profusely; and there, by dividing and gently lifting up the heathy cover,
+you will be able to insert your person into a small orifice, from which you
+will escape into a dark but a roomy dungeon, which will, in its turn,
+conduct you through a narrow passage, into the very heart or centre of this
+seemingly solid accumulation of stones. When there, you will have light
+such as Milton gives to Pandemonium--just as much as to make darkness
+visible, through the small, and, on the outside, invisible crevices betwixt
+the stones. Should you be surprised in your lighted and fire
+apartment--should any accident or search bring a considerable weight above
+you, so as to break through your slightly supported roofing--you can
+retreat to your ante-room or dungeon, and from thence, if necessary, make
+your way into the adjoining linn, along the bottom of which, you may
+ultimately find skulking-shelter, or a pathway into a more inhabited
+district. Now that you have surveyed this arrangement, as it existed a
+hundred and fifty years ago, we may proceed to give you the narrative which
+is connected with it.
+
+In the year above referred to, the persecution of the saints was at its
+height--Clavers, in particular, went about the country with his dragoons,
+whom he designated (like the infamous Kirk) his _Lambs_, literally seeking
+to hurt and destroy in all the hill country, in particular of Dumfriesshire
+and Galloway. Auchincairn was a marked spot; it had often been a city of
+refuge to the shelterless and the famishing; but it had so frequently been
+searched, that every hole and corner was as well known to Clavers and his
+troop as to the inhabitants themselves. There was now, therefore, no longer
+any refuge to the faithful at Auchincairn; in fact, to come there was to
+meet the enemy half-way--to rush as it were into the jaws of the lion. In
+these circumstances, old Walter Gibson, a man upwards of seventy years of
+age, who, by his prayers and his attending conventicles, had rendered
+himself particularly obnoxious, was obliged to prolong a green old age by
+taking up his abode in the cave and under the cairn which has already been
+described. With him were associated, in his cold and comfortless retreat,
+the Rev. Robert Lawson, formerly minister of the parish of Closeburn; but
+who, rather than conform to the English prayer-book and formula, had taken
+to the mountain, to preach, to baptize, and even to dispense the Sacrament
+of the Supper, in glens, and linns, and coverts, far from the residence of
+man. Their retreat was known to the shepherds of the district, and indeed
+to the whole family of Auchincairn; but no one ever was suspected of
+imitating the conduct of the infamous Baxter, who had proved false, and
+discovered a cave in Glencairn, where four Covenanters were immediately
+shot, and two left hanging upon a tree. On one occasion, a little innocent
+girl, a grand-daughter of old Walter, was surprised whilst carrying some
+provisions towards the hill-retreat, by a party of Clavers' dragoons, who
+devoured the provisions, and used every brutal method to make the girl
+disclose the secret of the retreat; but she was neither to be intimidated
+nor cajoled, and told them plainly that she would rather die, as her
+granduncle had done before her, than betray her trust. They threw her into
+a peat-hag filled with water, and left her to sink or swim. She did _not_
+swim, however, but sank never to rise again. Her spirit had been broken,
+and life had been rendered a burden to her. She expressed to her murderers,
+again and again, a wish that they would send her to meet her uncle (as she
+termed it) William. Her body was only discovered some time after, when the
+process of decomposition had deformed one of the most pleasing countenances
+which ever beamed with innocence and piety.
+
+"The old hound will not be far off, when the young whelp was so near,"
+exclaimed Clavers, upon a recital of the inhuman murder. "We must watch the
+muirs by night; for it is then that these creatures congregate and fatten.
+We must continue to spoil their feasting, and leave them to feed on
+cranberries and moss-water." In consequence of this resolution, a strict
+watch was set all along Gavin Muir; and it became almost impossible to
+convey any sustenance to the famishing pair; yet the thing was done, and
+wonderfully managed, not in the night-time, but in the open day. One
+shepherd would call to another, in the note of the curlew or the miresnipe,
+and without exciting suspicion, convey from the corner of his plaid the
+necessary refreshments, even down to a bottle of Nantz. The cave was never
+entered on such occasions; but the provisions were dropped amidst the rank
+heather; and a particular whistle immediately secured their disappearance.
+Night after night, therefore, were these prowlers disappointed of their
+object, till at last, despairing of success, or thinking, probably, that
+the birds had escaped, they betook themselves, for the time, elsewhere, and
+the cairn was relieved from siege. Clavers, in fact, had retired to
+Galloway, along with Grierson and Johnstone, and the coast was clear, at
+least for the present.
+
+It was about the latter end of October, when Mr Lawson was preaching and
+dispensing the Sacrament to upwards of a hundred followers, in the hollow
+where stood the King's Chair. This locality was wonderfully well suited for
+the purpose--it was, in fact, a kind of amphitheatre, surrounded on all
+sides by rising ground, and in the centre of which three large stones
+constituted a chair, and several seats of the same material were ranged in
+a circular form around. The stones remain to this hour, and the truth of
+this description can be verified by any one who crosses Gavin Muir. It was
+a moonlight night--a harvest moon--and Mr Lawson, having handed the
+Sacramental cup around, was in the act of concluding with prayer, when the
+note of a bird, seemingly a plover, was heard at a great distance. It was
+responded to by a similar call, somewhat nearer; and, in an instant, a
+messenger rushed in upon their retreat, out of breath, and exclaiming, "You
+are lost!--you are all dead men!--Clavers is within sight, and at full
+gallop, with all his troop at his back."
+
+One advantage which the poor persecuted had over their persecutors, was a
+superior knowledge of localities. In an instant the hollow was tenantless;
+for the inmates had fled in all directions, and to various coverts and
+outlets into the vale of Annan. The minister alone remained at his post
+continuing in ejaculatory prayer, and resisting all persuasion even to take
+advantage of the adjoining cairny cave. In vain did Walter Gibson delay
+till the last moment, and talk of his farther usefulness. Mr Lawson's only
+answer was--"I am in the hands of a merciful Master, and, if he has more
+service for me, he himself will provide a way for my escape. I have neither
+wife nor child, nor, I may say, relation, alive. I am, as it were, a
+stranger in the land of duty. If the Lord so will it that the man of blood
+shall prevail over me, he will raise up others in my stead, fitter to serve
+him effectually than ever I have been; but, Walter, _you_ have a bonny
+family of grandchildren around you, and your ain daughter the mother of
+them a', to bless you, and hear you speak the words of counselling and
+wisdom; so, make you for the cave and the cairn out by yonder--I will e'en
+remain where I am, and the Lord's will be done!" Seeing that all persuasion
+was unavailable, and that, by delaying his flight, he would only sacrifice
+his own life, without saving that of his friend, Walter appeared to take
+his departure for his place of refuge. It was neither Clavers, however, nor
+Lag, nor Johnstone, nor Winram, who was upon them; but only Captain
+Douglas, from Drumlanrig, to which place secret information of the night's
+_wark_, as it was termed, had been conveyed. Captain Douglas' hands were
+red with blood; he had shot poor Daniel M'Michan in Dalveen Glen, and had
+given word of command to blow out his brother's brains, as has been already
+recorded in the notices of these times. One of his troop had been wounded
+in the affair at Dalveen, and he was literally furious with rage and the
+thirst of blood. Down, therefore, Douglas came with about half-a-dozen men,
+(the rest being on duty in Galloway,) determined to kill or be killed--to
+put an end to these nightly conventicles, or perish in the attempt.
+
+Mr Lawson had taken his position in the King's Chair, which, as was
+formerly described, consisted of three large stones set on end, around one
+in the centre, which served as a seat; and when Douglas came in sight,
+nothing appeared visible in the moonshine but these solitary stones.
+
+"They are off, by G----d!" exclaimed Douglas; "the fox has broken cover--we
+must continue the chase; and Rob," added he, to one who rode near him,
+"blaw that bugle till it crack again. When you start the old fox, I should
+like mightily to be at the death. But--so ho!--what have we here?--why,
+here are bottles and a cup, by Jove! These friends of the Covenant are no
+enemies, I perceive, to good cheer"--putting the bottle to his mouth, and
+making a long pull--"by the living Jingo! most excellent wine. Here, Rob,"
+emptying what remained into the silver goblet or cup, "here, line your
+weasan with a drop of the red, and then for the red heart's blood of these
+psalm-singing, cup-kissing gentry. So ho--so ho!--hilloa--one and all--the
+fox is under cover still," (advancing towards the stone chair,) "and we
+thought him afield, too. Stand forth, old Canticles, 5 and 8th, and let us
+see whether you have got one or five bottles under your belt. What! you
+won't, or you can't stand! Grunt again!--you are made of stone, are
+you?--why, then, we will try your qualities with a little burnt powder and
+lead. Gentlemen of the horse-brigade, do you alight, and be d----d to you,
+and, just by way of experiment, rattle me half-a-dozen bullets in the face
+of that there image of stone, which looks so mighty like the parson of
+Closeburn that one might easily mistake the one for the other."
+
+The men had alighted with their holster pistols, and had arranged
+themselves, as directed, in the front of the stone chair, and with a full
+view of the figure which occupied the seat, when, at this very critical
+juncture, a band of upwards of fifty horses, with panniers on their backs,
+came up at a smart trot.
+
+"Stop your hellish speed!" said a voice from the front of the band; "or, by
+this broadsword, and these long six-footers, you are all dead men, ere you
+can say, Present, fire!" Instantly, Douglas saw and comprehended his
+position--"To horse!" was his short exhortation, and, in an instant, his
+five followers and himself had cleared the brow of the glen, and were out
+of sight at full speed. "Shed not their blood!--shed not their blood!"
+continued to exclaim a well-known voice amongst the band of smugglers--for
+such the reader may have guessed they were. It was the voice of Walter
+Gibson, well known to many of the smugglers; for again and again they had
+supplied Auchincairn with Hollands and Nantz. "Shed not one drop of blood,
+I say; but leave them to Him who has said, 'Vengeance is mine, and I will
+repay it;'--He will find His own time of revenging the death of my poor
+murdered bairn, whom they drowned in the King's Moss, owre by there. But,
+dear me, Mr Lawson, are ye dead or living, that ye tak nae tent o' what's
+going on?" In fact, Mr Lawson, having given himself up as lost, had
+committed himself, with shut eyes, so intently to prayer, that he had but a
+very confused notion of what had happened.
+
+"The Lord's will be done!" he exclaimed at last; "and is this you, Walter
+Gibson?--fearful! fearful!--are these the Philistines around you?--and are
+you and I to travel, hand in hand, into Immanuel's land?--or, but do my
+poor eyes deceive me, and are these only our good friends, the fair
+traders, come to the rescue, under God and his mercy, in the time of our
+need?"
+
+"Indeed," responded a known voice--that, namely, at whose bidding the work
+of death had been staid--"indeed, Mr Lawson, we are friends and not foes;
+and, whilst our cattle, which are a little blawn, with the haste into which
+they were hurried by old Walter here--until the beasts bite, I say, and eat
+their corn, we will e'en thank God, and take a little whet of the creature.
+You know, such comforts are not forbidden in the laws of Moses, or, indeed,
+in any laws but those of this persecuted and oppressed land."
+
+So saying, he disengaged from a hamper a flagon of Nantz, and was about to
+make use of the Sacramental cup, which Douglas had dropped, to convey it
+around, when his arm was arrested by the still strong hand of Walter.
+
+"For the sake of God and his church--of Him who shed his blood for poor
+sinners--profane not, I beseech you, the consecrated, the hallowed vessel
+which I have so lately held in these vile hands as the emblem of my
+purification through the blood of sprinkling--profane not, I say, that
+vessel which, when all worldly goods were forfeited and relinquished as
+things of no value, our worthy pastor has borne along with him--being the
+gift of his parishioners--to the mountain and the glen--to the desert and
+the wilderness!"
+
+There needed no further admonition; the cup was deposited in the hands of
+its owner, and the whole _posse comitatus_ spread themselves out on the
+grass--for, though all around was heath, this little spot was green and
+lovely--and, by applying the vessel directly to their lips, each one took a
+draught so long and hearty that the captain or leader had again and again
+to replenish the measure. Nor were Lawson and old Walter Gibson behind in
+this work of refreshment. Many a day they had laid themselves down to rest
+in the damp and cold cave, with little of food and with nothing to cheer
+and support them but a mouthful, from time to time, of the _Solway
+waters_--viz., _smuggled brandy_. We are all the children, to a great
+amount, of circumstances; and the very men who, but a little ago, were
+engaged in the most solemn act of religion, and counted themselves as at
+the point of death--these very men were now so much cheered, and even
+exhilarated, by the reviving cordial, that they forgot, for the time, their
+dangers and their privations, and were not displeased to hear the smugglers
+sing the old song, "We are merry men all," when a figure approached, out of
+breath, exclaiming--
+
+"The gaugers! the gaugers!--the excisemen from Dumfries!"
+
+In an instant the whole troop stood to arms. They had been
+well-disciplined; and the horses, along with the parson and Walter, were
+stowed away, as they called it, behind. They spoke not; but there was the
+click of gunlocks, and a powerful _recover_, on the ground, of heavy
+muskets, with barrels fully six feet long, which had been used by their
+forefathers in the times of the first Charles and the civil commotion. The
+enemy came up at the gallop; but they had plainly miscalculated the forces
+of their opponents--_they_ were only about fifteen strong; so, wheeling
+suddenly round, they took their departure with as much dispatch as they had
+advanced.
+
+"We must off instantly!" exclaimed the leader of this trading band. "We
+must gain the pass of Enterkin ere day-dawn; for these good neighbours will
+make common cause with the King's troops, whenever they meet them, and
+there will be bloody work, I trow, ere these kegs and good steeds change
+masters."
+
+So saying, the march immediately proceeded up Gavin Muir, and the minister
+and Walter took possession of their usual retreat--the Cairny Cave I have
+so often referred to.
+
+Douglas was not thus, by accident, to be foiled in his object; for having,
+in the course of a few days, obtained additional forces from Galloway, he
+returned to the search in Gavin Muir, where he had, again and again, been
+told meetings still continued to be held, and some caves of concealment
+existed. Old Lauderdale in council had one day said--"Why, run down the
+devils, like the natives of Jamaica, with blood-hounds." And the hint was
+not lost on bloody Clavers--he had actually a pair of hounds of this
+description with him in Galloway at this time; and, at his earnest request,
+Douglas was favoured with one of them. Down, therefore, this monster came
+upon Gavin Muir, not to shoot blackcocks or muirfowl, in which it abounded,
+but to track, and start and pistol, if necessary, poor, shivering,
+half-starved human beings, who had dared to think the laws of their God
+more binding than the empire and despotism of sinful men. The game was a
+merry one, and it was played by "merry men all:" forward went the hound
+through muirs and mosses; onward came the troop, hallooing and encouraging
+the animal in pursuit of its horrid instincts. As they passed the moss-hole
+in which the poor grand-daughter of Walter had been suffocated, the jest,
+and the oath, and the merriment were at their utmost.
+
+"Had we but a slice of the young pup," said one, "to flesh our hound with,
+he would soon scent out the old one--they are kindred blood, you know. But
+what do I see?--old Bloody, is it, on the top of the cairn yonder?--and
+scooping, nosing, and giving tongue most determinedly. By the holy
+poker!--and that's a sanctified oath--I will on and see what's agoing
+here." Thus saying, he put spurs to his horse, and, waving his sword round
+his head, "Here goes for old Watty!--and may the devil burn me if I do not
+unearth the fox at last!" Onwards they all advanced at the gallop; but Jack
+Johnston was greatly in front, and had dashed his horse half-way up the
+steep cairn, when, in an instant, horse and man rushed down, and
+immediately disappeared.
+
+"Why," said Douglas, "what has become of Jack?--has old Sooty smelt him,
+and sent for him, on a short warning, to help in roasting Covenanters?--or
+have the fairies, those fair dames of the green knowe and the grey cairn,
+seen and admired his proportions, and made a young 'Tam Lean' of poor Jack
+Johnston? Let us on and see."
+
+And see to be sure they did; for there was Jack, lying in the last agonies
+of death, under his horse, which itself was lamed and lying with feet
+uppermost. The horrid hound was lapping, with a growl, the blood which
+oozed from the nose and lips of the dying man, and with a dreadful curse,
+the terrible being expired, just as the party came within view. He had
+tumbled headlong, owing to the pressure from the horse's feet, through the
+slight rafter-work beneath, and had pitched head-foremost against a stone
+seat, in consequence of which his skull was fractured, and his immediate
+death ensued. Douglas looked like one bewildered, he would scarcely credit
+his eyes; but his companion in arms did the needful; and Jack Johnston's
+body was removed, his horse shot through the brain, and the whole band
+returned, drooping and crestfallen, to Drumlanrig. Throwing his sword down
+on the hall table when he arrived, he was heard to say, looking wildly and
+fearfully all the while, "The hand of God is in this thing, and I knew it
+not." It is a curious fact, but one of which my informant had no doubt,
+that this very Douglas became, after this, quite an altered man. Mr Lawson,
+who lived some years after his death, attended upon him in his last
+illness. "God only knows the heart," would he say; "but, to all _outward_
+appearance, William Douglas was a cleansed and a sanctified vessel: the
+mercy of God is infinite--it even extended to the thief on the cross."
+
+
+XIII.--PORTER'S HOLE.
+
+In the west corner of the churchyard of Dalgarno--now a section of the
+parish of Closeburn--there is a small, but neat headstone, with two figures
+joining hands, as if in the attitude of marrying. Beneath is written, and
+still legible--"John Porter and Augnas Milligan. They were lovely in their
+lives, and in their deaths they were not divided." There is neither date
+nor narrative; but, as this part of the churchyard has not been used as a
+burial-ground since the union of the parishes, in the reign of Charles the
+Second, the date must have been some time betwixt 1660 and 1684. This
+beautiful and sequestered churchyard, all silent and cheerless as it is,
+lies upon the banks of the Nith, immediately upon its union with the ocean;
+and near to the most famous salmon-fishing pool in the whole river, called
+Porter's Hole. Whilst yet a boy, and attending Closeburn school, our
+attention was, one sunny afternoon, (when the trouts were unwilling to
+visit the dry land,) drawn to the little stone in the corner, of which we
+have just made mention, and recollecting, at the same time, that Porter was
+the name of the pool, as well as of the person buried, we began to
+speculate upon the possibility of there being some connection betwixt the
+two circumstances--the name of the individual, and the well-known
+designation of the blackest and deepest pool in the Closeburn part of the
+river. Near to this solitary restingplace of the ashes of our
+forefathers--the Harknesses, the Gibsons, and the Watsons of Closeburn from
+time immemorial--there stood, at that time, an old cottage, straw or rather
+_grass_-thatched, (for it was covered with green chicken-weed,) where
+dwelt, in single solitude, Janet M'Guffoch--whether any relation of the
+celebrated individual of that name mentioned by Sir Walter Scott, we know
+not--but there dwelt Janet, a discontented, old waspish body of one hundred
+years of age, according to general belief; and, being accompanied by a
+black cat and a broom besom, was marked by us _boys_ as a decided witch. We
+never had any doubt about it, and the thing was confirmed by the Laird of
+Closeburn's gamekeeper, who swore that he had often hunted hares to Janet's
+door; but never could start them again. Under all these circumstances, it
+required no common impulse to induce us to enter the den of this emissary
+of Satan; but our curiosity was excited by the similarity of the names
+"Porter's Grave" and "Porter's Hole," (as the pool was familiarly named,)
+and we at length mustered faith, and strength, and courage to thrust
+ourselves past a bundle of withered twigs, which served Janet as a door in
+summer, and as a door-protector in the blasts of winter. Janet was as usual
+at her wheel, and crooning some old Covenanting ditty, about--
+
+    "Oh, gin Lag were dead and streekit,
+    An' that his ha' wi' mools was theekit!"
+
+when, by means of a six-inch-square skylight, our physiognomy became
+visible to Janet.
+
+"And what art thou, that's creeping into an old body's dark den, and
+leaving ahint thee the guid sunshine?"
+
+We responded by mentioning our name.
+
+"Ay, ay," said Janet, "come away and sit thee down on the creepy there,
+beside the heidstane[B]--thou art freely welcome, for thou art o' the seed
+o' the faithful, the precious salt of the earth: and the blessing of the
+God of the Covenant will rest upon its children, even to the third and the
+fourth generation!" Thus welcomed, we took our position as requested,
+eyeing all the while the large black cat with a somewhat suspicious regard.
+
+"The beast winna stir thee," said Janet, "it has, like its auld mistress,
+mair regard for the martyr's seed."
+
+Having hereupon taken advantage of a pause in Janet's discourse, we at once
+stated the subject of our inquiry.
+
+"Ay, ay," said Janet; "and atweel there is a connection betwixt that bonny
+angel stane, and the pool ca'ed Porter's Hole. Ay, is there; an an awfu'
+connection it is. But what comes thou here for to torment an auld body like
+me, wi' greeting and groaning at my time o' life? Gae awa, gae awa--I canna
+thole the very thochts o' the story whilk thou ettles to ken."
+
+This only increased our curiosity, and, after some flattering language
+about Janet's good nature, retentive memory, and Covenanting lineage, the
+old crone proceeded to the following purpose; and, as nearly as we can
+mind, (for it is a tale o' fifty years,) repeated it in the following
+words:--
+
+"Thou ken's the auld ruin, bairn, the auld wa's out by there. That's the
+auld farm-house o' Dalgarno, ere the new one at the path-head was biggit;
+and there, within the wa's, was ance a warm hearth, and twa as leal hearts
+as ever beat against pin or button. John Porter was young, handsome, and
+the tenant of the best farm in the parish o' Dalgarno; but he was nae frien
+to the vile curate, and a marked bird, as they ca' it, by Grierson o' Lag,
+in particular, who had been heard to say, that he would decant his porter
+for him some day yet, in the shape and colour of heart's bluid. Agnes
+Milligan was an orphan, brought up at Dalgarno--a sister's son o' the auld
+Dalgarno, and a fu' cousin, ye ken, o' the young farmer. They had baith fed
+frae the same plate; sleeped under the same roof; played at the same
+sports; and dabbled in the same river--the bloody, bloody Nith!--from
+infancy to youth. Oh! sirs! but I canna get on ava"---- Here Janet sorted
+her wheel, and apparently shed a tear, for she moved her apron corner to
+her eye. "Aweel, this was the nicht o' the wedding, bairn--no _this_ nicht,
+like; but I think I just see it present, for I was there mysel, a wee bit
+whilking lassie. Lawson, guid godly Lawson, had tied the knot, an' we war
+a' merry like; but it was a fearfu' spate, and the Nith went frae bank to
+brae. 'They are comin!' was the cry. I kenna wha cried it, but a voice said
+it, an' twenty voices repeated it. Lag an' his troop's coming; they're
+gallopin owre the Cunning-holm at this moment. John Porter flew to his
+bonnet, an', in an instant, was raised six or seven feet high on his long
+stilts, with which he had often crossed the Nith when nae mortal could tak
+it on horseback. Agnes Milligan was out and after; the moon shone clear
+through a cloud, and she saw the brave man tak the water at the broadest.
+On he went--for we a' witnessed what he did--on he went, steady, firm, an'
+unwaverin; but, alas! it was hin' harvest, an' some sheaves o' corn had
+been carried off the holms by the spate. Ane o' them crossed his upper
+stilt, an', in a moment, his feet went frae him, an' doon he cam into the
+roarin flood. He was still near the Closeburn bank, an' we a' ran down the
+side to see if we could help him out. Again an' again he rose to his feet;
+but the water was mighty, it was terrible, it just whumbled him owre, an'
+we saw nae mair o' him. Agnes ran for Porter's Hole, (then only kent as the
+salmon pool,) an' stood watching the eddy, as it whirled straw an' corn,
+an' sic like rubbish, aboot. Her husband's head appeared floating in the
+whirl--she screamed, leaped into the deep, deep pool, an' next day they
+were found clasped in each other's arms. Oh, my bairn, my bairn!--what
+brocht ye here the day?"
+
+Janet was found, next morning, dead in her bed--the exertion and excitement
+had killed her.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[B] _Vide_ Jameson.
+
+
+
+
+THE RECLUSE.
+
+
+The situations of farm-houses, or steadings, as we call them in Scotland,
+are very rarely selected so much for their beauty, with reference to the
+surrounding scenery, as for conveniency; and hence it is that we find but
+few of them in positions which a view-hunter would term strikingly
+felicitous. When they are so, we rather presume the circumstance arises
+from its happening that eligibility and choice have agreed in determining
+the point. Yet, seriously, though the generality of farm-steadings have
+little to boast of as regards situation, there are many pleasing
+exceptions. Nay, there are some to be found occupying the most choice
+positions--surrounded with or overlooking all that is beautiful in nature.
+One of these, most certainly, is the farm-house of West Mains, in the
+parish of Longorton, Lanarkshire. It stands on the summit of a gentle,
+isolated eminence that rises in the very centre of a deep and romantic
+valley, formed of steep green hills, thickly wooded towards the bottom, but
+rising in naked verdancy from about the centre upwards. The view from the
+house is thus, indeed, limited; but this limitation is amply compensated by
+its singular beauty.
+
+About fifty years ago, this beautifully-situated farm-house was occupied by
+one Robert Adair, who rented also the entire valley in which it is
+situated. Adair's family, at this time, consisted of himself, his wife, a
+son, and two daughters, Martha and Rosina, or Rosy, as she was familiarly
+called. The former was, at the period of our story, in her twentieth year,
+the latter in her eighteenth. Martha was a good-looking and good-tempered
+girl; but, in both respects, and in several others, she was much surpassed
+by her younger sister, Rosy, as we, too, prefer to call her. The latter,
+with, personal attractions of no common order, was one of the liveliest and
+most cheerful creatures imaginable. Nothing could damp her buoyant spirit;
+nothing, be it what it might, could make her sad for longer than ten
+minutes together. From morning to night she continued pouring out, in a
+voice of the richest and most touching melody, the overflowings of a light
+and innocent heart. And scarcely less melodious was the joyous and gleeful
+laugh, in which she ever and anon gave way to the promptings of a lively
+and playful imagination. Let it not, however, be thought that all this
+apparent levity of manner was the result of an unthinking or uncalculating
+mind, or that it was in her case, as it frequently is in others, associated
+with qualities which exclude the finer and better feelings of female
+nature. It was by no means so. With all her gaiety and sportiveness, she
+had a heart filled with all the tenderest sensibilities of a woman. Her
+attachments were warm and ardent. In character, simple and sincere, Rosy
+could have died for those she loved; and so finely strung were the
+sympathies of her nature, that they were wrought on at will by either mirth
+or pathos, and with each were found equally to accord.
+
+Rosy's father, Mr Adair, although holding a considerable extent of land,
+and paying a very handsome rental, was yet by no means in affluent
+circumstances. Both his name and his credit in the country were on a fair
+footing, and he was not encumbered with more debt than he could very easily
+pay. But this was all; there was no surplus--nothing to spare; and the
+less, that he had been liberal in his expenditure on the education of his
+daughters. On this he had grudged no cost; they had both passed several
+winters in Glasgow, and had there possessed themselves of some of the more
+elegant accomplishments in female education.
+
+In character, Robert Adair was something of an original. In speech, blunt,
+plain, and humorous; but in disposition, kind, sincere, and generous. He
+was, in short, in all respects an excellent and worthy man. On the score of
+education, he had not much to boast of; but this deficiency was, in part at
+any rate, compensated by great natural shrewdness and vigour of mind.
+
+Such, then, were the inmates of the farm-house of West Mains, at the period
+to which our story refers, and which is somewhere about the year 1788.
+
+It was at the close of a day of incessant rain, in the month of September
+of that year, or it may, perhaps, have been of the year following, that a
+young man, of somewhere about five-and-twenty years of age, respectably
+dressed, with a stick in his hand, and a small leathern bundle under his
+arm, presented himself at the door of Robert Adair's house, and knocked for
+admittance. The door was opened by Robert himself; and when it was so, the
+person whom we have described stood before him. He was drenched with wet.
+It was streaming from his hat, and had soaked him all over to the skin. He
+was thus, altogether, in most uncomfortable plight; for, besides being wet,
+the night was intensely cold.
+
+"Can you, my good friend," said the stranger, in a tone and manner that
+bespoke a person of education at least, if it might not be ventured to call
+him a gentleman--"Can you give me quarters for a night?" he said, on being
+confronted by Mr Adair. "I am an entire stranger in this part of the
+country, and do not know of any inn at hand, otherwise I would not have
+troubled you. I will, very readily, pay for my accommodation."
+
+"A nicht's quarters, frien," replied Adair. "Oh, surely, ye'll get that,
+an' welcome. Walk in. Save us, man, but ye hae gotten a soakin! Ye're like
+a half-drooned rat. But stap in, stap in. There's a guid fire there in the
+kitchen and I'm sure ye're no out the need o' a blink o't."
+
+In a minute after, the stranger was comfortably seated before a roaring
+fire. But his host's hospitality did not end with this kindness; he
+insisted on his guest shifting himself; and, to enable him to do so,
+brought him a whole armfull of his own clothes; shirt, coat, waistcoat,
+trousers, and stockings. Nor with this kindness did his benevolence yet
+terminate; he invited the stranger to accept of some refreshment; an
+invitation which he followed up by desiring his daughter Rosy to cover a
+small table close by the fire, and to place thereon such edibles as she had
+at hand. Delighting as much as her father in acts of kindness, Rosy
+hastened to obey an order so agreeable to her. In a trice, she had the
+table covered with various good things, conspicuous amongst which was a
+jolly round of salt beef. In compliance with the request of his host, the
+stranger drew into the table thus kindly prepared for him; but, to the
+great disappointment of his entertainer, ate very sparingly.
+
+"Dear help me, man!--eat, eat, canna ye!" exclaimed Adair, every now and
+then, as he marked the listless manner in which the stranger pecked at the
+food on his plate. "Eat, man, canna ye!" he said, getting absolutely angry
+at his guest's want of appetite, which he construed into diffidence. "Lord,
+man, take a richt whang on your plate at once, and dinna be nibblin at it
+that way, like a mouse at a Du'lap cheese." Saying this, he seized a knife
+and fork, cut a slice from the cold round, an inch in thickness, and at
+least six in diameter, and threw it on the stranger's plate with much about
+the same grace which he exhibited in tossing a truss of hay with a
+pitchfork. "There, man, tak half-a-dizzen o' cuts like that, and then ye
+may say ye hae made a bit supper o't."
+
+Robert Adair was, in truth, but a rough table attendant, but he was a kind
+one, and in all he said and did meant well, however uncouthly it might be
+expressed.
+
+Of this the stranger seemed perfectly aware; and, although he could not
+eat, he appeared fully to appreciate the sincerity of his host's
+invitations to him to do so.
+
+After persevering, therefore, a little longer, as if to please his
+entertainer, he at length laid down his knife and fork, and declared that
+he was now satisfied, and could take no more. On his making this decided
+movement--
+
+"My faith," said his hospitable landlord, "an' ye be na waur to water than
+to corn, I think I could board ye, an' no be a loser, for a very sma'
+matter. Rosy, bring butt the bottle."
+
+Obedient to the command, Rosy tripped out of the kitchen, and in an instant
+returned with the desiderated commodity--a dumpy, bluff, opaque bottle, of
+about a gallon contents--which she placed on the table. Adair seized it by
+its long neck, and, filling up a brimming bumper, tossed it off to the
+health of his guest. This done, he filled up another topping glass, and
+presented it to the stranger, with a strong recommendation on the score of
+excellence. "Ra-a-l guid stuff, sir," he said, "tak my word for't. Juist a
+cordial. Noo, dinna trifle wi' your drink as ye did wi' your meat, or I'll
+no ken what to think o' ye at a'."
+
+The stranger, with renewed acknowledgments for the kindness shewn him, took
+the proffered beverage; but, instead of taking it off as his worthy host
+had expected, he merely put it to his lips, and replaced it on the table.
+
+"Weel, that cowes the gowan!" said Adair. "Ye'll neither hap nor
+wyn--neither dance nor haud the candle. Try't again, man, try't again.
+Steek your een hard, gie ae gulp, an' ower wi't."
+
+The worthy man, however, pressed in vain. The stranger would not drink; but
+once more acknowledged the kindness and well-meant hospitality of his
+entertainer.
+
+During all this time, the stranger had neither said nor done any single
+thing which was capable of imparting the slightest idea of who or what he
+was--where he was from, or whence he was going. Indeed, he hardly spoke at
+all; and the little he did speak was almost all confined to brief
+expressions of thanks for the kindness shewn him. When seen as he was now,
+under more favourable circumstances than those in which he had first
+presented himself, shivering with cold and drenched with wet, he exhibited
+a handsome exterior. His countenance was full of expression and
+intelligence, but was overspread with an apparently deep-seated and settled
+melancholy. He appeared, in short, to be a person who was suffering
+severely either in body or mind; but his affliction exhibited all the
+symptoms of being of the latter rather than the former. Yet was not the
+profound gravity of his manner of an unpleasing or repulsive character; it
+partook of a gentleness and benevolence that rendered it rather graceful
+than otherwise. The tones of his voice, too, corresponded with these
+qualities; they were mild and impressive, and singularly agreeable.
+Altogether, the stranger appeared a mysterious sort of person; and greatly
+did it puzzle Mr Adair and all his household to conjecture who or what he
+could possibly be; a task to which they set themselves after he had retired
+to bed, which he did--pleading fatigue as an excuse--at an early hour. The
+first ostensible circumstance connected with their guest of the night,
+which the family divan, with the father of it at their head, took into
+consideration when discussing the knotty points of the stranger's character
+and calling, was his apparel. But of this they could make nothing. His
+habiliments were in no ways remarkable for anything; they being neither
+good, bad, nor indifferent, but of that indefinite description called
+respectable. So far as these were concerned, therefore, he might be either
+a peer of the realm or an English bagman.
+
+Finding they could make nothing of the clothes, the family cabinet council
+next proceeded to the looks and manners of the stranger; and, with regard
+to these, all agreed that they seemed to bespeak the gentleman; and on this
+conclusion from the premises, none insisted more stoutly than Rosy, who,
+let us observe, although she thought nobody saw her, had taken several
+stolen glances at the subject of discussion while he was seated at the
+kitchen fire; and at each glance, let us farther observe, more and more
+approved of his finely arched eyebrows, his well-formed mouth, dark
+expressive eyes, and rich black locks that clustered around his white and
+open forehead. But all this is a secret, good reader, and should not have
+been told.
+
+So far, then, had the united opinions of the family determined regarding
+their guest. But what should have brought him the way of West Mains, such
+an out-of-the-way place, seeing that he had neither gun, dog, nor
+fishing-rod, and could not therefore have been in pursuit of sport? It was
+odd, unaccountable. Where could he be from? Where could he be going to?
+These were questions more easily put than answered; and by all were they
+put, but by none were they replied to. At length, Mr Adair took speech in
+hand himself on the subject.
+
+"I kenna, nor, indeed, neither do I muckle care, wha the lad is; but he
+seems to me to be a ceevil, discreet, young man; and I rather like him
+a'thegither, although he's a dooms bad haun at baith cap and trencher. A',
+however, that we hae to do wi' him, is to treat him ceevily while he's
+under our roof. He's gotten a guid bed to lie in, and in the mornin we'll
+gie him a guid breakfast to tak the road wi', and there'll be an end o't.
+It's no likely we'll ever hear or see mair o' him." Having said this,
+Robert broke up the conclave; gave the long-drawn sonorous yawn that his
+family knew to be the signal of preparation for bed. In the next moment,
+Adair's left hand was busily employed in undoing the knee buttons of his
+small clothes. Another powerful yawn, and he proceeded to perform the same
+operation on his right leg. In two minutes after, he was snugly buried
+beneath the blankets; his "honest, sonsy, bawsint face," and red Kilmarnock
+night-cap, being all that was left visible of him; and, in five minutes
+more, a magnificent snore intimated to all whom it might concern, that
+worthy Robin Adair was fairly in the land of Nod, and oblivious of all
+earthly concerns.
+
+On the following morning, Mr Adair and his guest met at breakfast, when
+that liking for each other which had begun to manifest itself on the
+preceding night--although neither, perhaps, could say precisely whence it
+arose--gradually waxed into a somewhat stronger feeling. Adair was pleased
+with the gentle and unaffected manners of his guest, while the latter was
+equally pleased with the sincerity of character and generosity of heart of
+his entertainer. It appeared, however, as if their acquaintance was to be
+but of short duration, and as if they were now soon to part, in all
+probability for ever. Circumstances seemed to point to this result; yet it
+was by no means the one that followed--an odd incident at once threw out
+all such calculation.
+
+When breakfast was concluded, and the party who had sat around the
+table--Adair, his family, and the stranger--had risen to their feet, the
+latter, smiling through his natural gravity, asked his host if he would be
+so good as give him a private interview with him. To this Mr Adair,
+although not a little surprised at the request, consented, and led the way
+into a small back-parlour that opened from the room in which they had
+breakfasted.
+
+"Mr Adair," said the stranger, on their entering this apartment, and having
+previously secured the door, "I am greatly indebted to you for the kindness
+and hospitality you have shewn me."
+
+"No the least, sir--no the least," replied the farmer, with a decree of
+respect in his manner with which his guest's air and bearing had
+unconsciously inspired him, he did not know how or wherefore--"No the
+least. I am aye glad to shew civility to them that seek the shelter o' my
+rufe; it's just a pleasure to me. Ye're not only heartily welcome, sir, to
+a' ye hae gotten, but to a week o't, an' ye like. I dinna think that I wad
+be the first to weary o't."
+
+"Have you any objection to try?" said the stranger, with a gentle smile.
+
+"None whatever," replied the hospitable yeoman.
+
+"Well, Mr Adair," said the stranger, with more gravity of manner, "to
+convert jest into earnest, I have a proposal to make to you. I have been
+for some time looking out for such a quiet retirement as this is, and a
+family as respectable and agreeable as yours seems to me to be. Now, having
+found both of these things to my mind here, I will, if you have no
+objection, become a boarder with you, Mr Adair, paying you a hundred
+guineas a-year; and here," he said, drawing out a well-filled purse, and
+emptying its contents on the table--"here are fifty guineas in advance."
+And he told off from the heap that lay on the table, the sum he named, and
+thrust it towards his astonished host. "And let me add," went on the
+mysterious stranger, "that, if you agree to my proposal, and continue to
+put up as well together as I expect we shall, I will not limit my payment
+to the sum I have mentioned. What say you to this, Mr Adair?"
+
+To _this_ Mr Adair could say nothing for some time. Not a word. He was lost
+in perplexity and amazement--a state of mental difficulty and
+embarrassment, which he made manifest by scratching his head, and looking,
+with a bewildered sort of smile, alternately at the gold and its late
+owner--first at the one, then at the other. At length--
+
+"Well," he said, still scratching his head, "this is a queer sort o'
+business, an' a turn o' matters I didna look for ava; but I hae seen waur
+things come o' better beginnins. To tell ye a truth, sir," continued the
+perplexed yeoman, "I'm no oot o' the need o' the siller. But, if ye'll just
+stop a minute, if ye please, till I speak to the guidwife on the subject."
+
+And, with this, Adair hurried out of the room; and, having done this, he
+hurried his wife into another, and told her of what had just taken place,
+concluding with a--"An', noo, guidwife, what do ye think we should do?"
+
+"Tak the siller, to be sure," replied the latter. "He seems to me to be a
+decent, canny lad; and, at ony rate, we canna be far wrang wi' ae six
+months o' him, ony way, seein that he's payin the siller afore haun. That's
+the grand point, Rab."
+
+"Feth, it's that, guidwife--nae doot o't," replied her husband. "Juist the
+pint o' pints. But whar'll ye put the lad?"
+
+"Ou, tak ye nae fash about that, guidman. I'll manage that. Isna there the
+wee room up the stair, wi' a bed in't that micht sair the king
+himself--sheets as white as the driven snaw, and guid stripped druggit
+curtains just oot o' the mangle?"
+
+"Weel, weel, guidwife, ony way ye like as to thae matters," replied Adair;
+"and I'll awa, in the meantime, and get haud o' the siller. There's gowd
+yonner for the liftin. Deil o' the like o't ever I saw." Saying this, he
+flung out of the apartment, and in the next minute was again in the
+presence of the mysterious stranger.
+
+On his entering--"Well, Mr Adair," said the latter, "what does your good
+lady say to my becoming a boarder with her?"
+
+"Feth, sir, she's very willin, and says ye may depend on her and her
+dochter doin everything in their power to make ye comfortable."
+
+"Of that I have no doubt," said the stranger; "and now, then, that this
+matter is so far settled, take up your money, Mr Adair, and reckon on
+punctual payments for the future."
+
+"No misdoubtin that, sir, at a'," said the latter, picking up the guineas,
+one after another, and chucking them into a small leathern purse which he
+had brought for the purpose. "No misdoubtin' at a', sir," he said. "I tak
+this to be guid earnest o' that."
+
+The stranger, then, whoever he was, was now fairly domiciled in the house
+of Mr Adair. The name he gave himself was Mowbray; and by this name he was
+henceforth known.
+
+For two years succeeding the period of which we have just been speaking,
+did Mr Mowbray continue an inmate of West Mains, without any single
+circumstance occurring to throw the smallest light on his history. At the
+end of this period, as little was known regarding him as on the day of his
+first arrival. On this subject he never communicated anything himself; and,
+as he was always punctual in his payments, and most exemplary in his
+general conduct, those with whom he resided did not feel themselves called
+upon, nor would it have been decorous, to make any further inquiry on the
+subject. Indeed although they had desired to do so, there was no way open
+to them by which to obtain such information.
+
+During the period alluded to, Mr Mowbray spent the greater part of his time
+in reading; having, since his settlement at West Mains, opened a
+communication with a bookseller in the neighbouring country town of ----;
+and in walking about the country, visiting the more remarkable scenery, and
+other interesting objects in the neighbourhood.
+
+During all this time, too, his habits were extremely retired; shunning, as
+much as he possibly could, all intercourse with those whom he accidentally
+met; and, even at home, mingling but little with the family with which he
+resided. Privacy and quietness, in short, seemed to be the great objects of
+his desire; and the members of Mr Adair's household, becoming aware of
+this, not only never needlessly intruded themselves on him, but studiously
+avoided involving him in conversation, which they observed was always
+annoying to him. He was thus allowed to go abroad and to return, and even
+to pass, when accidentally met by any members of the family, without any
+notice being taken of him, further, perhaps, than a slight nod of civility,
+which he usually returned without uttering a syllable.
+
+From all this--his retired habits, deep-seated melancholy, and immoveable
+taciturnity--it was evident to Mr Adair and his family that their boarder
+was labouring under some grievous depression of mind; and in this opinion
+they were confirmed by various expressions of grief, not unaccompanied by
+others of contrition, which they had frequently overheard, accidentally, as
+they passed the door of his apartment on occasions--and these were
+frequent--when Mr Mowbray seemed more than usually depressed by the sorrow
+to which he was a prey.
+
+With all this reserve and seclusion, however, there was nothing repulsive
+in Mr Mowbray's manners or habits. He was grave without being morose,
+taciturn without being churlish, and sought quietness and retirement
+himself, without any expression of impatience with, or sign of peevishness
+at, the stir and bustle around him.
+
+As a matter of course, the history and character of Mr Mowbray excited, at
+least for a time, much speculation in the neighbourhood; and these
+speculations, as a matter of course, also, as we may venture to say, were
+not in general of the most charitable description. One of these held forth
+that he was a retired highwayman, who had sought a quiet corner in which to
+enjoy the fruits of his industry, and to avoid the impertinences of the
+law; another held that he was a murderer, who had fled from justice;
+another that he was a bankrupt, who had swindled his creditors; a fourth,
+that he was a forger, who had done business in that way to a vast extent.
+
+As to the nature of the crime which Mr Mowbray had committed, it will be
+seen that there were various opinions; but that he had committed some
+enormous crimes of some sort or other, was a universal opinion--in this
+general sentiment all agreed.
+
+Amongst other mysteries, was that involved in the query--where did he get
+his money? Where did it come from? He did not, indeed, seem to have the
+command of very extensive resources; but always to have enough to pay
+punctually and promptly everything he desired, and to settle all pecuniary
+claims upon him.
+
+His remittances, it was also ascertained, came to him, from whatever
+quarter it might be, regularly twice a-year, per the English mail, which
+passed within a mile and a half of West Mains. The exact amount of these
+remittances, which were always in gold, and put up in a small, neat, tight
+parcel, was never exactly known; but was supposed, on pretty good grounds,
+to be, each, somewhere about a hundred and fifty guineas, one of which went
+to Mr Adair; for Mr Mowbray had, of his own accord, added fifty guineas per
+annum to the hundred which he had first promised. The other hundred and
+fifty was disposed of in various ways, or left to accumulate with their
+owner. Such, then, was the amount of information acquired regarding Mr
+Mowbray's pecuniary resources; and more, on this point, or any other
+regarding him, could not, by any means, be arrived at.
+
+By the end of the period, however, which we have above named--namely, two
+years--public opinion had, we must observe, undergone a considerable
+modification in Mr Mowbray's favour. He had been gradually acquitted of his
+various crimes; and the worst that was now believed of him was, that he was
+a gentleman whom troubles, of some kind or other, had driven from the
+world.
+
+This favourable change in public opinion regarding him was, in a great
+measure, if not, indeed, wholly owing to the regularity of his conduct, the
+gentleness of his manners, his generosity--for he was a liberal contributor
+to the relief of the necessitous poor in his vicinity--and to the rigid
+punctuality he observed in all his pecuniary transactions.
+
+In the family in which he resided, where there were, of course, better
+opportunities for judging of his character, and estimating his good
+qualities, he came to be much beloved. Adair, as he often said himself,
+would "gae through fire and water to serve him;" for a more honourable, or
+"discreet" young gentleman, as he also frequently said, "didna breathe the
+breath o' existence."
+
+On every other member of the family, the impression he made was equally
+favourable; and, on one of them, in particular, we might speak of it in yet
+stronger language. But of this anon.
+
+The general conviction into which the family with which Mr Mowbray resided
+fell, regarding the personal history of that person, was, that he was a
+gentleman who possessed a moderate annuity from some fixed sum, and that
+some disgust with the world had driven him into his present retirement; and
+in this conviction they had now been so long and so completely settled,
+that they firmly believed in its truth, and never after dreamed of again
+agitating the question, even in the most distant manner.
+
+Thus, then, stood matters at West Mains at the end of two years from the
+period at which our story opens. Hitherto, however, we have only exhibited
+what was passing above board. We will now give the reader a peep of certain
+little matters that were going on behind the scenes.
+
+A short while previous to the time of which we now speak, Rosy's sister,
+Martha, had gone to Edinburgh to spend the winter with a near relative of
+her father; partly as a friendly visit, and partly for the purpose of
+perfecting herself in certain branches of female education. This separation
+was a painful one to the two sisters, for they were much attached to each
+other; but they determined to compensate it by maintaining a close and
+regular correspondence; and huge was the budget that each soon accumulated
+of the other's epistolary performances. Out of these budgets we will select
+a couple, which will give the reader a hint of some things of which, we
+daresay, he little dreamed. The first is from Martha to her sister, and is
+dated from Edinburgh.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"MY DEAR ROSY," (runs this document,) "I received your kind letter by Mr
+Meiklewham, likewise the little jar of butter for Aunt, who says it is
+delicious, and that she would know it to be West Mains butter wherever she
+should have met with it.
+
+"I am delighted to hear that you are all well, and that Mr Mowbray has got
+better of his slight indisposition. By the by, Rosy, I have observed that
+you are particularly guarded in all your communications about Mr M. When
+you speak of him you don't do so with your usual sprightliness of manner.
+Ah! Rosy, Rosy, I doubt--I doubt--I have long doubted, or rather, I have
+been long convinced--of _what_, say you blushing! _N'importe_--nothing at
+all. Do you believe me, Rosy?--No, you don't. Does Mr M. fix his fine
+expressive eyes on you as often and as intensely as he used to do? Eh,
+Rosy!--Now, there's something you can't deny.
+
+"To be serious, Rosy, my dear sister, I have long been satisfied that you
+are loved by Mr Mowbray--deeply, sincerely, ardently loved. And, more, my
+dear Rosy, I am equally satisfied that Mr Mowbray is loved by _you_. I am
+certain of it. I have marked many symptoms of it, although I have never
+mentioned it to you before; and I do it now in order to induce you to
+unburden yourself of such feelings, as it may relieve you to discover to a
+sister who loves you tenderly and sincerely," &c, &c.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Our next quotation is from Martha's budget; and we shall select the letter
+she received in reply to the one above given. It is dated West Mains, and
+proceeds thus:--
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"MY DEAR MARTHA,--It is not in my nature to play a double part. I freely
+confess, my dear Martha, in reply to your lecture on a certain subject,
+that Mr Mowbray is not indifferent to me. I have long, I avow it, admired
+the many good qualities which we have all acknowledged him to possess--his
+gentlemanly bearing; his accomplishments; the elegance of his manners, and
+the noble generosity of his nature. These I have indeed, Martha, long
+admired. But what reason have you for supposing that your sister, with
+nothing to recommend her but some very homely advantage of person, can have
+made any impression on the heart of such a man as Mr Mowbray? Here, Martha,
+you are decidedly at fault, and have jumped to a conclusion which you have
+rather wished than believed. But, enough of this foolish matter."--And here
+the fair writer leaps off to another subject, which, as it has no reference
+to our story, nor any particular interest of its own, we beg to leave in
+the oblivion in which it reposes. And having quoted enough of the sisters'
+correspondence for our purpose, we will here, again, throw our narrative
+into its more direct and legitimate channel.
+
+By the letters above given, we have shewn pretty plainly that, on the part
+of the one sister, a secret attachment to the unknown lodger was in rapid
+progress, if it had not indeed already attained a height fatal to the peace
+of mind of her by whom it was entertained; and that, on the part of the
+other, a strong suspicion existed, not only that such love had been
+generated, but that this love was mutual. And was it so? It was. Mr Mowbray
+had not, indeed, made any very palpable advances, nor displayed any
+symptoms of the state of his feelings, which any one but such a close and
+shrewd observer as Martha could have detected. To no other eyes did this
+secret stand revealed. But there was now, in his general manner towards
+Rosy, much that such an observer could not fail to be struck with, or to
+attribute to its real and proper cause. Nor was this change confined to his
+intercourse with Rosy Adair--to the slight confusion that appeared in his
+countenance whenever they accidentally met each other, unseen of any one
+besides, and to the evident pleasure which he took in her society--to the
+circumstance of his seeking that pleasure as often as he could without
+making it subject of remark. No, the change that had now come over Mr
+Mowbray was not confined to what such incidents as these may be presumed to
+indicate; his spirit also, the whole tenor of his thoughts, the whole
+constitution of his mind, seemed equally under the influence of his
+new-born passion. His manner became more cheerful; his eye became lighted
+up with an unwonted fire; and he no longer indulged in the seclusion which
+he had so sedulously sought when he first came to West Mains. Mr Mowbray
+was now, in fact, a changed man, and changed for the better. He was now no
+longer the weeping, melancholy recluse, but a character evidently much more
+suitable to his natural temper and dispositions--a gay and cheerful man of
+the world. It was, indeed, a marvellous change; but so it was.
+
+This, however--referring to the attachment which had thus grown up between
+Rosy Adair and Mr Mowbray--was a state of matters which could not long
+remain in the position in which we have represented them; some result or
+conclusion was inevitable--and it arrived. Mr Mowbray gradually became more
+and more open in his communications with Miss Adair; gradually disclosed
+the state of his feelings with regard to her, and finally avowed his love.
+Miss Adair heard the delightful confession with an emotion she could not
+conceal; and, ingenuous in everything, in all she said and did, avowed that
+she loved in return.
+
+"Then, my Rosina, my beloved Rosina," exclaimed Mr Mowbray, in a wild
+transport of joy--and throwing himself, in the excitation of the moment, at
+the feet of her whom he addressed--"allow me to mention this matter to your
+father, and to seek his consent to your making me the happiest of living
+men."
+
+The liberty he thus sought with such grace and earnestness, was blushingly
+granted; not indeed, in express words, but with a silence equally
+intelligible and more eloquent than words.
+
+In five minutes after, Mr Mowbray was closeted, and in earnest conversation
+with Mr Adair. He had already announced his attachment to his daughter, and
+had sought his consent to their union. Mr Adair had yet made no reply. The
+request was one of too serious a nature to be hastily or unreflectingly
+acquiesced in. At length--
+
+"Weel, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair, "I'll tell ye what it is: although I
+certainly haena a' the knowledge o' ye--that is, regarding yoursel and your
+affairs--that I maybe hae a richt to insist on haein before giein ye the
+haun o' my dochter--and this for a' the time that ye hae been under my
+roof--yet, as in that time--noo, I think, something owre twa year gane
+by--yer conduct has aye been that o' a gentleman, in a' respects--sober,
+discreet, and reglar; most exemplary, I maun say;--and, as I am satisfied
+that ye hae the means o' supportin a wife, in a decent way, no to say that
+there may be muckle owre either, I really think I can hae nae reasonable
+objections to gie ye Rosy after a'."
+
+During this speech of the worthy yeoman's, there was on Mr Mowbray's
+countenance a smile of peculiar meaning; evidently one under which lay
+something amusing, mingled with the expression of satisfaction which Mr
+Adair's sanction to his marriage with Rosina had elicited.
+
+Delighted with the success of his mission, Mr Mowbray now flew to the
+apartment in which he had left Miss Adair, and, enfolding her in his arms,
+in a transport of joy, informed her that he had obtained her father's
+consent to their union, and concluded by asking her to name the day which
+should make her his for ever. This, however, being rather too summary a
+proceeding, Rosina declined; and Mr Mowbray was obliged to be content with
+a promise of the matter being taken into consideration on an early day.
+
+Leaving the lovers in discussion on these very agreeable points, and others
+connected therewith, we will follow Mr Adair on the errand on which he
+went, after Mr Mowbray had left him. This was to communicate to his wife
+the unexpected and important proposal which had just been made to him, and
+to which he had just acceded.
+
+"Weel, guidwife, here's a queer business," said Mr Adair, on joining his
+thrifty helpmate, who was busy at the moment in scouring a set of milk
+dishes. "What do ye think? Mr Mowbray has just noo asked my consent to his
+marrying Rosy. Now, isna that a queer affair! My feth, but they maun hae
+managed matters unco cannily and cunningly; for deil a bit o' me ever could
+see the least inklin o' anything past ordinar between them."
+
+"You see onything o' that kind!" replied Mrs Adair, with an expression of
+the greatest contempt for her husband's penetration in _affaires de
+coeur_. "You see't, Robin! No--I dare say no. Although they were sitting
+under your very nose, wi' their arms aboot ithers' necks, I dinna believe
+ye wad see that there was onything in't. But, though ye didna see't, Robin,
+I saw't--and plainly enough, too--although I said naething about it. I saw,
+mony a day sin', that Mr Mowbray had a notion o' Rosy; and, if truth be
+tell't, I saw as weel that she had a notion o' him, and hae lang expected
+that it wad come to this."
+
+"Weel, weel, guidwife, ye hae a glegger ee for thae things than I hae,"
+replied Mr Adair. "But here's the end o' the matter noo."
+
+"And hae ye gien your consent, Robin?"
+
+"'Deed hae I; for I think he's an honest, decent lad; and, no to say he's
+rich maybe, fair aneuch aff, I think, as to worldly matters."
+
+"As to that, I daresay, there's naething far amiss," replied Mrs Adair,
+"nor as regards his character either, maybe; but I'm no sure. I dinna ken,
+Robert, considerin a' things, if ye haena been a wee owre rash in giein
+your consent to this business. It's a serious affair. And, after a', we ken
+but little about the lad; although, I canna but say he seems to be a
+decent, honourable chiel, and I houp'll mak Rosy happy." Here the good
+woman raised the corner of her apron to her eyes, and gave way, for a
+second or two, to those maternal feelings which the occasion was so well
+calculated to excite.
+
+"Tuts, woman; what's the use o' that?" said Mr Adair, with a sort of
+good-natured impatience. "The thing's a' richt aneuch, and sae'll be seen
+in the end, nae doot."
+
+"God grant it!" replied his wife, with solemn earnestness; and here the
+conversation dropped for the time.
+
+We now revert to the proceedings of Mr Mowbray at this eventful crisis of
+his life; but in these we find only one circumstance occurring between the
+day on which he solicited, and that on which he obtained, the hand of Rosy
+Adair. This circumstance, however, was one of rather curious import. It was
+a letter which Mr Mowbray addressed to a friend, and ran thus:--
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"DEAR NARESBY,--The appearance of this well-known hand--well known to you,
+my friend--will, I daresay, startle you not a little. My letter will seem
+to you as a communication from the dead; for it is now upwards of two long
+years since you either heard from me or of me. On this subject I have much
+to say to you, and on some others besides, but defer it until I shall have
+the pleasure of seeing you at Wansted--a pleasure which I hope to have in
+about three weeks hence--when we shall talk over old affairs, and, mayhap,
+some new ones. Would you believe me, Naresby, if I was to say, that the sea
+had ceased to ebb and flow, that the hills had become valleys, and the
+valleys had risen into hills; that the moon had become constant, and that
+the sun had forgotten to sink in the west when his daily course was run?
+Would you believe any or all of these things, if I were to assert them to
+be true? No, you wouldn't. Yet will you as readily believe them, I daresay,
+as that I am to be--how can I come out with the word!--to be--to be
+married, Naresby! Married! Yes, married. I am to be married--I repeat it
+slowly and solemnly--and to one of the sweetest and fairest creatures that
+ever the sun of heaven shone upon. 'Oh! of course,' say you. But it's true,
+Naresby; and, ere another month has passed away, you will yourself confess
+it; for ere that period has come and gone, you will have seen her with your
+own eyes.
+
+"So much then for resolution, for the weakness of human nature. I
+thought--nay, I swore, Naresby, as you know--that I would, that I could
+never love again. I thought that the treachery, the heartlessness of one,
+one smiling deceiver, had seared my heart, and rendered it callous to all
+the charms and blandishments of her sex. But I have been again deceived.
+
+"I have not, however, this time, chosen the object of my affections from
+the class to which--I cannot pronounce her name--that fatal name--belonged;
+but from one which, however inferior in point of adventitious acquirement,
+far surpasses it--of this experience has convinced me--in all the better
+qualities of the heart.
+
+"The woman to whom I am to be married--my Rosina Adair!--is the daughter of
+a humble yeoman, and has thus neither birth nor fortune to boast of. But
+what in a wife are birth or fortune to me? Nothing, verily nothing, when
+their place is supplied--as in the case of my betrothed--by a heart that
+knows no guile; by a temper cheerful and complying; and by personal charms
+that would add lustre to a crown. Birth, Naresby, I do not value; and
+fortune I do not want.
+
+"Well, then, Naresby, my period of seclusion is now about over, and I
+return again to the world. Who would have said this two years ago? If any
+had, I would have told them they spoke untruly--that I had abjured the
+world, and all its joys, for ever; and that, henceforth, William Mowbray
+would not be as other men. But so it is. I state the fact, and leave others
+to account for and moralize on it."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Such, then, was the letter which Mr Mowbray wrote to his friend, Naresby,
+during the interval to which we formerly alluded. Several other letters he
+also wrote and despatched about the same time; but the purpose of these,
+and to whom written, we must leave the sequel of our story to explain.
+
+Having no further details of any interest wherewith to fill up the
+intervening period between the occurrence of the circumstances just related
+and the marriage of Rosina Adair and William Mowbray, we at once carry
+forward our narrative to the third day after the celebration of that event.
+On that day--
+
+"Rosy, my love," said Mr Mowbray, smiling, "I have a proposal to make to
+you."
+
+"Indeed!--what is it, William?"
+
+"Why, I'll tell you what it is," said the latter; "I wish to go on a visit
+to a particular friend, and I wish you to go with me."
+
+"Oh, surely," replied Mrs Mowbray. "Is it far?"
+
+"Why, a pretty long way; a two days' journey. Will you still venture on
+it?"
+
+"Surely--surely, William. Anywhere with you!"
+
+"Thank you, my love," said Mr Mowbray, embracing his young wife.
+
+"Now, I have another proposal to make, Rosy," continued the former; "I wish
+your father and mother to accompany us."
+
+"What! my father and mother too!" exclaimed Mrs Mowbray, in great surprise.
+"Dear me, wouldn't that be odd, William. What would your friend say to such
+a cavalcade of visiters?"
+
+"Delighted to see them, I assure you, my love. It's my friend's own express
+wish; and, however odd it may seem, it is a point which must be conceded
+me."
+
+"Well, well, William, any way you please. I am content. But have you
+thought of the expense? That will be rather serious."
+
+"Oh, not in the least, my love," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "Not in the
+least serious, I assure you. I will manage that part of the matter."
+
+"Well, well; but my father's consent, William. There's the difficulty. To
+get him to leave his farm for so long a time; I doubt you will scarcely
+prevail upon him to do that. He would not live a week from home, I verily
+believe, although it were to make a lord of him."
+
+"I'll try, Rosy; I'll try this minute," said Mr Mowbray, hurrying out of
+the apartment, and proceeding in quest of Mr Adair, whom he soon found.
+
+"Leave hame for a week!" exclaimed the latter, on Mr Mowbray's making known
+to him his wishes on this subject. "Impossible! my dear sir; impossible!
+Wholly out o' the question. I hae a stack o' oats to thrash oot; a bit o' a
+fauld dyke to build; twa acres o' the holme to ploo; the new barn to theek;
+the lea-field to saw wi' wheat; the turnips to bring in; the taties to
+bing; forbye a hunner ither things that can on nae account stan owre.
+Impossible, my dear sir--impossible. Juist wholly oot the question. But ye
+may get the guidwife wi' ye an' ye like, Mr Mowbray," said Mr Adair,
+laughing jocosely; "and may keep her too, if ye like."
+
+"Yes--yes. All very well, Mr Adair; but I must have you too, in spite of
+the manifold pieces of work you have on hand. I have a particular reason
+for pressing this point, and really will not be denied."
+
+For a full half-hour did this sort of sparring continue between Mr Mowbray
+and his father-in-law; both being resolute--the one to carry his point, the
+other to keep his ground; but, what could hardly be expected, the former
+finally prevailed. His urgency carried the day; and Mr Adair was
+ultimately, although we need scarcely say it, reluctantly, prevailed on to
+promise that he would be one of the intended party. Having obtained this
+promise, Mr Mowbray farther secured its performance by naming the following
+day as that on which they should set out.
+
+On the following day, accordingly--Mrs Adair's consent having, in the
+meantime, been obtained, and with much less difficulty than her
+husband's--two chaises--unwonted sight--appeared at the door of West Mains
+House; they had been ordered by Mr Mowbray from the neighbouring country
+town; and, in a little after, out came the party by which they were to be
+occupied.
+
+"I wad far rather hae ridden the black mare than go into ane o' thae
+things," said Mr Adair, looking contemptuously at the couple of chaises
+that stood at the door. "I never was fond o' ridin in cotches a' my life.
+Nasty, rattlin, jinglin things. Ane micht as weel be shut up in a corn kist
+as in ane o' them."
+
+Having expressed this opinion of the conveyance he was about to enter, Mr
+Adair, notwithstanding of that opinion, proceeded, with the assistance of
+Mr Mowbray, to help his wife into one of them. This done, he followed
+himself. Mrs and Mr Mowbray stepped into the other chaise. The doors were
+shut by the coachman with a bang; and, in the next minute, both the
+vehicles were in rapid motion.
+
+On the forenoon of the second day after their departure--nothing, in the
+interval, having occurred worth relating--the party arrived at a certain
+noble mansion not far from the borders of England. The two chaises having
+drawn up before the door of this splendid residence, three or four servants
+in rich livery hastened to release the travellers by throwing open the
+doors of their carriages, and unfolding the steps, which they did with very
+marked deference and respect, and with smiles on their faces, (particularly
+in the case of one not in livery, who seemed the principal of them,) of
+very puzzling meaning.
+
+On the party having got out of their chaises--"Is this your freen's house,
+Mr Mowbray?" said Mr Adair, standing fast, and looking up with great
+astonishment and admiration at the splendid building before him.
+
+"It is, sir," replied Mr Mowbray.
+
+"My feth! an' he maun be nae sma' drink then--that's clear. He has a rare
+sittin-down here. It's a house for a lord."
+
+"The house is very respectable, certainly," said Mr Mowbray; "and, I think,
+you'll find the inside every way worthy of the out."
+
+"I dinna doot it--I dinna doot it," replied Mr Adair. "But whar's your
+freen, himsel?"
+
+"Oh! we'll see him presently. In the meantime let us walk in." And, taking
+his wife's arm within his, Mr Mowbray led the way into the house, conducted
+by the principal domestic, and followed by Mr and Mrs Adair; the latter no
+less overwhelmed than her husband by the grandeur with which she was
+surrounded.
+
+Having entered the house, the party were led up a magnificent staircase,
+and ushered into a room of noble dimensions, and gorgeously furnished. All
+but Mr Mowbray himself, and the servant who attended, were awe-stricken
+with the splendours around them. Even Mrs Mowbray was oppressed with this
+feeling; so much so as not to be able to speak a word; and on her father
+and mother it had a similar effect. Not one opened a mouth, but continued
+gazing around them in silent amazement and admiration.
+
+When the party had seated themselves--"Shall I serve up some refreshment,
+sir?" said the servant to Mr Mowbray, with great respect of manner, but
+with that perplexing smile on his face.
+
+"Yes, John, do," said Mr Mowbray; "and as quick's you like; for we are all,
+I fancy, pretty sharp-set; and some of us--I speak for myself at any
+rate--not a little thirsty."
+
+The servant bowed and retired. When he had done so--"'Od, sir, ye seem to
+be greatly at your ease here," said Mr Adair, who was not a little
+surprised, with the others, as well he might, at the free and easy manner
+of his son-in-law in his friend's house, "You and your freen maun surely be
+unco intimate."
+
+"Oh! we certainly are so," replied Mr Mowbray, laughing. "I can use any
+freedom here--the same as if I were in my own house."
+
+"Weel, that's pleasant and friendly like," said Mr Adair. "But isna your
+freen himsel lang o' makin his appearance?"
+
+"Rather, I confess; but he'll be here shortly, I daresay--something of a
+particular nature detaining him, I have no doubt; but, in the meantime,
+we'll make ourselves at home. I know it will please him if we do so." And
+Mr Mowbray proceeded to the bell-pull, and rung it violently.
+
+A servant instantly appeared, and received an order, fearlessly given, from
+Mr Mowbray, to hasten the refreshment in preparation.
+
+Mr Adair's countenance expressed increased amazement at this very
+unceremonious proceeding; and he felt as if he would have said that he
+thought it the most impertinent thing ever he had seen done in his life;
+but he refrained. In this feeling Mrs Adair also partook; and in this
+feeling Mr Mowbray's own wife shared, although not, perhaps, to the same
+extent. Not the least curious part, let us observe too, of this odd scene,
+was that Mr Mowbray seemed to delight in the perplexity of feeling which
+his proceedings excited in his friends, and appeared studiously to do
+everything he could think of to increase them.
+
+By and by, the promised repast was served up; and an exceedingly handsome
+one it was. The party took their seats, no host or hostess having yet
+appeared--Mr Mowbray placing his wife at the head of the table, and himself
+taking the foot--and proceeded to do justice to the good things before
+them. The repast over, wine was introduced. This done, Mr Mowbray--who, to
+the now utterly inexpressible amazement, and even confusion, of both Mr and
+Mrs Adair, had all this while been ordering away, right and left, as if he
+had been in a common inn--desired all the attendants to retire. When they
+had done so, he filled up a bumper of wine, lifted it, rose to his feet
+and, advancing with smiling countenance and extended hand towards his wife,
+bade her welcome to _her own house_!
+
+"What!" shouted Mr Adair, leaping from his chair.
+
+"Eh!" exclaimed his wife, doing precisely the same thing by hers.
+
+"William," said Mrs Mowbray, in a voice faint with agitation, and
+endeavouring to rise from her chair, into which, however, she was obliged
+again to sink.
+
+"True, my friends," said Mr Mowbray; "all true. This, Mr Adair, is your
+daughter's house; all that is within it and around it. Welcome again, my
+love, to your own fireside!" said Mr Mowbray, embracing his wife, "and
+long may you live to enjoy all the comfort and happiness which Malton
+House, and ten thousand a-year, are capable of affording!"
+
+Here, then, ends our story, good reader; and as we do not think you would
+choose to be much longer detained, especially with dry details of
+explanation which are all that now remains to add, we shall be brief.
+
+Mr Mowbray was a young man of large fortune, who, having been crossed in
+love, had imagined that he had been thereby weaned from the world and all
+its joys; and, under this impression, had sought to retire from the busy
+scenes of life, with a determination never to return to them again. How he
+kept to this resolution our story tells.
+
+
+
+
+A HIGHLAND TRADITION.
+
+
+On the summit of a bluff headland that projects into the Sound of Sky,
+there stand the grey ruins of an ancient castle, which was once the
+residence of a Highland chieftain of the name of M'Morrough--a man of
+fierce nature and desperate courage, but not without some traits of a
+generous disposition. When about middle age, M'Morrough married the
+daughter of a neighbouring chief--a lady of much sweetness of manner and
+gentleness of nature. On the part of the former, however, this connection
+was one in which love had little share: its chief purpose would have been
+attained by the birth of a male heir to the name and property of the feudal
+chieftain; and this was an event to which he looked anxiously forward.
+
+When the accouchement of his lady arrived, M'Morrough retired to an upper
+apartment of the castle to await the result--having desired a trusty
+domestic to bring him instant intelligence when the child was born, whether
+it was a male or a female. The interval he employed in walking up and down
+the chamber in a fever of impatience. At length the door of the apartment
+opened, and Innes M'Phail entered. The chieftain turned quickly and
+fiercely round, glanced at the countenance of his messenger, and there read
+the disappointment of his hopes without a word being uttered.
+
+"It is even so, then," roared out the infuriated chieftain. "It is a girl,
+Innes; a girl. My curses on her!"
+
+"Say _girls_, M'Morrough," said Innes, despondingly. "There are twins."
+
+"And both girls--both!" exclaimed the former, stamping the floor in the
+violence of his passion. "To the battlements with them, Innes!--to the
+battlements with them instantly, and toss them over into the deep sea! Let
+the waves of Loch Sonoran rock them to sleep, and the winds that rush
+against Inch Caillach sing their lullaby. Let it be done--done instantly,
+Innes, as you value your own life; and I will witness the fidelity with
+which you serve me from this window. I will, with my own eyes, see the deed
+done. Go--go--quick--quick!"
+
+Innes, who had been previously aware that such would be the fate of a
+female child, if such should unfortunately be born to his ruthless chief,
+and who had promised to be the instrument of that fate, now left the
+apartment to execute the atrocious deed. In less than ten minutes after,
+Innes M'Phail appeared on the battlements, carrying a large wicker basket.
+From this depository he took out a child, swaddled in its first apparel,
+and raising it aloft, tossed it over to perish in the raging sea below. The
+little arms of the infant extended as it fell; but the sight was momentary.
+It glanced white through the air like an ocean bird, and, in an instant
+after, disappeared in the dark waters of Loch Sonoran. The murderer
+followed with his eye the descent of his little victim, till the sea closed
+over it, when, returning to the basket, he took from it another child, and
+disposed of it as he had done the first.
+
+During the whole of this dreadful exhibition, M'Morrough was standing at a
+window several yards lower down than the battlements, but so situated in an
+angle of the building that he could distinctly see what passed on the
+former. Satisfied that his atrocious decree had been fully executed, he
+withdrew from the window; and, avoiding an interview with his wife,
+whom--stern and ruthless as he was--he dreaded to meet with the murder of
+her infants on his head, he left the castle on a hunting expedition, from
+which he did not return for three days. On his return, M'Morrough would
+have waited on his lady, whom he hoped now to find in some measure
+reconciled to her bereavement, but was told that she would see no one; that
+she had caused a small apartment at the top of the castle to be hung with
+black; and that, immuring herself in this dismal chamber, she spent both
+her nights and days in weeping and lamentation. On learning this,
+M'Morrough did not press his visit, but left it to time to heal, or, at
+least, to soothe the grief of his unhappy wife. In the expectation which he
+had formed from the silent but powerful operation of this infallible
+anodyne, M'Morrough was not mistaken. In about a month after the murder of
+her babes, the lady of M'Morrough, deeply veiled, and betraying every
+symptom of a profound but subdued grief, presented herself at the morning
+meal which was spread for her husband. It was the first time they had met
+since the occurrence of the tragical event recorded above. To that event,
+however, neither made even the slightest allusion; and, whether it was that
+time had weakened the impression of her late misfortune, or that she
+dreaded rousing the enmity of her husband towards herself by a longer
+estrangement, the lady of M'Morrough showed no violent disinclination to
+accept of the courtesies which, well-pleased with her having made her
+appearance of her own accord, he seemed anxious to press upon her. A
+footing of companionship having thus been restored between the chieftain
+and his lady, matters, from this day, went on at Castle Tulim much as they
+had done before, only that the latter long continued to wear a countenance
+expressive of a deeply wounded, but resigned spirit. Even this, however,
+gradually gave way beneath the influence of time; and, when seventeen years
+had passed away, as they now did, unmarked by the occurrence, at Castle
+Tulim, of any event of the smallest importance, the lady of M'Morrough had
+long been in the possession of her wonted cheerfulness.
+
+It was about the end of this period, that the haughty chieftain, now
+somewhat subdued by age, and no longer under the evil influence of those
+ungovernable passions that had run riot with him in his more vigorous
+years, was invited, along with his lady, to a great entertainment which was
+about to be given by his father-in-law. M'Morrough and his lady proceeded
+to the castle of their relative. The banquet hall was lighted up; it was
+hung with banners, crowded with gay assemblage, and filled with music.
+There were many fair faces in that assemblage; but the fairest of all, were
+those of two sisters, who sat apart by themselves. The beauty of
+countenance and elegance of form of these two girls, who seemed to be both
+about the same age--seventeen--were surpassing. M'Morrough marked them; he
+watched them during the dance; he could not keep his eyes off them. At
+length, turning to his lady, he asked who they were.
+
+"They are _your_ daughters, M'Morrough," replied the former.
+
+A deadly paleness overspread the countenance of the chief. He shook in
+every limb, and would have sunk on the floor had he not been supported. On
+recovering a little, he covered his face with his hands, burst into a flood
+of tears, and rushed out of the apartment. On gaining a retired and
+unoccupied chamber, M'Morrough sent for his daughters. When they came, they
+found him on his knees, fervently thanking God for this signal instance of
+his mercy and beneficence. He took his daughters in his arms, blessed them
+a thousand times over, buried his head between them, and wept like a child.
+
+
+
+
+THE SURGEON'S TALES.
+
+
+THE BEREAVED.
+
+By looking over the memorial of my professional life; and writing out the
+extended details of my experience, I am, in effect, living my life over
+again. Most of the scenes I witnessed left such an impression upon my mind,
+that it requires only the touch of the _caduceus_ of the witching power of
+memory, to call them all up again with a vividness scarcely less than that
+by which they were formerly presented to me. There is only this difference,
+that my remembered experiences, now invested with a species of borrowed
+light, seem like scenery which one has seen in the glance of a mid-day sun,
+presented again to the dreamy "evening sense" under the soft blue
+effulgence of the waning harvest-moon; the trees with the sere leaf
+rustling under the fluttering wing of the night bird; and the dead silence,
+which is not broken by the internal voice speaking the words that have been
+spoken by those who lie under the yew tree. In an early leaf of my journal,
+I find some broken details of a visit I paid to Mr B----, a rich
+manufacturer in the town where I began my practice; but which I left when I
+had more confidence in those humble powers of ministering to the afflicted,
+which have raised me to an honourable station, and supplied me with the
+means of passing my old age in affluence. This individual had lost his
+wife--a very amiable woman, with whom he had lived a period of twenty-five
+years--and took on grief so heavily, that he was unfit to attend the
+funeral. He lay in bed, and would not be comforted. Having attended his
+wife, I continued my attentions to the husband. Three days had passed since
+his wife had been buried, and during all that time, he had eaten nothing;
+and, what augured gloomily for his fate, he had never been heard to speak,
+or sigh, or even to give vent to his sufferings in a single groan. There
+seemed to have fallen over him a heavy load, which, pressing with deadly
+force upon the issues of life, defied those reacting energies of nature,
+which usually struggle, by sighs and groans, to throw off the incubus of
+extraordinary griefs.
+
+I have met with many wiseacre-sceptics who laugh at the idea of what is
+vulgarly called a "broken heart," as a direct consequence either of
+unrequited love or extraordinary grief--admitting, however, in their
+liberality, that death may ensue from great griefs operating merely as an
+inductive original cause, which destroying gradually the foundations of
+health, bring on a train of other ailments, that may, in the end, prove
+mortal. The admission cares for nothing, as a matter of every-day
+experience; and the original proposition to which it is objected as a
+qualification, remains as a truth which may humble the pride of man, and
+speak to the sceptic through the crushed heart of a fatal experience. I
+have seen many instances of the fatal effects of grief as a direct mortal
+agent, killing, by its own unaided energies, as certainly, though not in so
+short a time, as a blow or a wound in the vital organs of the human body.
+The common nosologies contain no name for the disease, because, in truth,
+it cannot properly be called a disease, any more than a stab with a sword
+can deserve that name; and this, combined with the fact that it is only in
+a very few instances that the _coup_ works by itself, without the aid of
+some ailment generated by it, that young practitioners often homologate the
+vulgar notions that prevail upon this important subject.
+
+Among all the many causes of grief to which mankind are daily exposed, I
+know not that there is one that strikes so deeply into the secret recesses
+of the vital principle as the loss of a dearly-beloved wife, who has lived
+with a man for a lengthened period, through early adversity and late
+prosperity--borne him a family which have bound closer the tie that was
+knitted by early affection, and who has left him to tread the last weary
+stages of existence alone, and without that support which almost all men
+derive from woman. The effects are often supposed to be proportioned to the
+affection; yet I doubt if this solves the curious problem of the diversity
+of consequences resulting from this great privation. There are many men of
+strong powers of mind, who are so constituted that they _cannot_ but press
+heavily on the support of another. They seem almost to live through the
+thoughts and feelings of their helpmates; and the energies they take credit
+for in the busy affairs of the world, have their source--unknown often to
+themselves--in the bosom of wedded affection. It is in proportion to the
+strength of the habit of this _leaning_, combined, doubtless, with the
+coexistent affection, that the effects of the loss of a helpmate, in the
+later period of life, work with such varied influence on the survivor. It
+may also seem a curious fact, and I have no doubt of the truth of it, that
+a man when advanced in years is much more apt to break suddenly down under
+this visitation than a woman; while, again, the consequence would seem to
+be reversed if the calamity has overtaken them in the more early stages of
+the connection. These are grounds for speculation. At present I have only
+to do with facts.
+
+The individual whose case has suggested these observations, presented, when
+I saw him first after the funeral of his wife, the symptom--present in all
+cases of an utterly crushed spirit--of a wish to die. I was the first to
+whom he had uttered a syllable since the day on which she had been carried
+out of the house which she had so long filled with the spirit of
+cheerfulness and comfort. His only daughter, Martha, a fine young woman,
+had contributed but little to his relief--if she had not, indeed, increased
+his depression by her own emotions, which she had no power to conceal; and
+his only son had gone off to Edinburgh, to attend his classes in the
+college, where he intended to graduate as a physician. He was thus, in a
+manner, left in a great degree alone; for his daughter sought her apartment
+at every opportunity, to weep over her sorrows unobserved; and she had
+naturally thought that her father's grief, attended by no exacerbations of
+groaning or weeping like her own, presented less appearance of intensity
+than that which convulsed her own heart, and got relief by nature's
+appointed modes of alleviation. When the heart is stricken with a certain
+force, all forms of presenting less gloomy views of the condition of the
+individual, will generally be found to be totally unavailing in affording
+relief. Nay, I am satisfied that there was genuine philosophy in the custom
+of the Greeks and the ancient Germans, in _forcing_ victims of great
+sorrows to _weep_ out the rankling barbed shaft. These had a species of
+licensed mourners, whose duty it was to soften the heart by melting strains
+of mournful melody, whereby, as by the application of a bland liniment, the
+rigid issues of the feelings were softened and opened, and the oppressed
+organ, the heart, was relieved of the load which defies the force of
+argument, and even the condolence of friendship. The curing of cold-nips by
+the appliance of snow, and of burns by the application of heat, could not
+have appeared more fraught with ridicule to the old women of former days,
+than would the custom I have here cited to the comforters of modern times.
+If I cannot say that, amongst some bold remedies, I have recommended it, I
+have, at least, avoided, on all occasions, officious endeavours to
+counteract the oppressing burden, by wrenching the mind from the engrossing
+thought--a process generally attended with no other result than making it
+adhere with increased force.
+
+The greatest triumph that can be effected with the truly heart-stricken
+victim, to whom is denied the usual bursts that indicate a bearable
+misfortune, or, at least, one whose intensity is partly abated, is the
+bringing about of that more natural condition of the heart, which, indeed,
+is generally most feared by the ordinary paraclete. In the case of the
+bereaved husband, there is no charm so powerful in its effects as the vivid
+portrayment of the virtues of her who has gone down to the grave; and it
+may well be said, that the heart that will not give out its feelings to the
+impassioned description of the amiable properties of the departed helpmate,
+is all but incurable. The sister of Mr B----, who saw the necessity of
+administering relief, tried to awaken him to a sense of religious
+consolation; but he was as yet unfit even for that sacred ministration; and
+all her efforts having failed to rouse him, even from the deathlike stupor
+in which he lay, she had recourse, by my advice, to probing the wound, to
+take off the stricture by which the natural humours were pent up. She
+discoursed pathetically on the qualities of the departed, which, she said,
+would be the passport of her spirit to a sphere where he would again
+contemplate them unclouded by the dingy vapours of earthly feelings. She
+kept in the same strain for a lengthened period; but declared to me, when I
+visited him again, that he exhibited no signs of being moved by her
+discourse. He, once or twice, turned his eyes on her for a moment, drew
+occasionally a heavy sigh, that told, by the difficulty of the operation,
+the load with which he was oppressed; but his eyes were dry, no groan
+escaped from him, or any other sign of the heart being aided in an effort
+to restore the current of natural feeling. The _coup de peine_ had too
+clearly taken the very core of the heart; the lamp of hope had been dashed
+out violently, and, under the cloud of his great evil, all things that
+remained to him upon earth were tinged with its dark hues. He presented all
+the appearances--except the dilation of the pupil of the eye--of one whose
+brain had been concussed by a deep fall, or laboured under a fracture of
+the bones of the _cranium_. The few words he spoke to me came slowly, with
+a heavy oppressive sound, as if spoken through a hollow tube; and what may,
+to some, be remarkable, though certainly not to me, they embraced not the
+slightest allusion to his bereavement--a symptom almost invariably
+attendant upon those deeper strokes of grief, which, being but seldom
+witnessed, are much less understood in their effects than the more ordinary
+oppressions, whose intense demonstrations and allusions to the cause of the
+evil, mark the victims as objects for the portrayments of poets.
+
+Two or three days passed off in this way, without the slightest
+amelioration of his condition. The efforts of Miss B---- had been repeated
+often without effect. As she expressed herself to me, he would neither eat
+nor speak, sleep nor weep. "He has not," she added, "even muttered her
+name. His heart seems utterly broken; and time and the power of Heaven
+alone will effect a change." Such is the common philosophy of sorrow: time
+is held forth as all-powerful, all-saving; and while I admit its force, I
+only insist for the certainty of the existence of exceptions. The eighth
+day had passed without any support having been taken to sustain the system.
+A course of maceration, that had been going on during his wife's illness,
+was thus continued; yet, in the few words I occasionally drew from him,
+there was no indication of anything like the sullen determination of the
+suicide; the cause lay in the total cessation of the powers of the
+stomach--a consequence of the cerebral pressure, whose action is felt not
+where it operates primarily, but in the heart and other organs, where it
+works merely by sympathy.
+
+It was on the evening of the eighth day after the funeral, as I have it
+noted, that I called to see if any change for the better had been effected
+by the ministrations of his sister. She sat by his bedside, with the Bible
+placed before her, from which she had been reading passages to him. His
+face was turned to the front of the bed, but he did not seem to be in any
+way moved by my entrance. All the efforts his sister had made to get him to
+enter into the spirit of the passages she had been reading had been
+fruitless; nor had he as yet made the slightest allusion to the cause of
+his illness, or mentioned the name of his deceased partner. A few words of
+no importance, and not related to the circumstances of his grief, were
+wrung from him painfully by my questions; but it seemed as if the language
+that represents the things of the world had lost all power of charming the
+ear; the deadness that had overtaken the heart like a palsy, was felt from
+the fountain of feelings, to the minute endings of the nerves; and the
+external senses, which are the ministers of the soul, had renounced their
+ordinary ministrations to the spirit that heeded them not. Only once his
+sister had observed a slight moisture rise for a moment in his eye, as she
+touched some tender traits of the character of the departed; but it passed
+away rather as an evidence of the utter powerlessness of nature, in a faint
+heave of the reactive energy, telling at once how little she could perform,
+yet how much was necessary to overcome the weight by which she was
+oppressed. I sat for some moments silent by the side of the bed, and
+meditated a recourse to some more strenuous effort directed to his sense of
+duty as a parent; though I was aware, that until the heart is in some
+degree relieved, all such appeals are too often vain, if not rather
+attended with unfavourable effects, but, in extreme cases, we are not
+entitled to rest upon the generality of theories where so various and
+mutable an essence as the human mind is the object to which they are to be
+applied. I was on the point of making a trial, by recurring to the position
+of his son and daughter, when I heard the sound of a horse's feet
+approaching, with great rapidity, the door. The sister started; and I could
+hear Martha open the window above, to ascertain who might be the visiter.
+In another moment the outer door opened with a loud clang. Some one
+approached along the passage, in breathless haste. He entered. It was
+George B----, under the excitement of some strong internal emotion; his
+eyes gleaming with a fearful light, and his limbs shaking violently. He
+stood for a moment as if he were gathering his energies to speak; but the
+words stuck in his throat, the sounds died away amidst the noise of an
+indistinct jabbering. I noticed the eye of his father fixed upon him,
+betraying only a very slight increase of animation; but even this
+extraordinary demeanour of his son did not draw from him a question; so
+utterly dead to all external impulses had his grief made him, that the
+harrowing cause of so much excitement in his son, remained unquestioned by
+the feelings of the parent. In another moment the youth was stretched
+across the bed, locking the father in his embrace, and sobbing out
+inarticulate words, none of which I could understand. The aunt was as much
+at a loss to solve the mystery of the violent paroxysm as myself; for some
+time neither of us could put a question; the sobbings of the youth seemed
+to chain up our tongues by the charm of the eloquence of nature's
+impassioned language. Meanwhile, Martha entered, ran forward to the
+bedside, lifted her brother from the position which he occupied, and seated
+him, by the application of some force, on the empty chair that stood by the
+side of the bed.
+
+"What is the matter, George?" she cried; the question was repeated by the
+aunt, and the eyes of the parent sought languidly the face of the youth,
+which was, however, now covered by his hands. The question was more than
+once repeated by both the aunt and myself; the father never spoke, nor
+could I perceive a single ray of curiosity in his eye. He seemed to await
+the issue of the son's explanation, heedless what it might be--whether the
+announcement of a great or a lesser evil--its magnitude, though
+transcending the bounds of ordinary bearing, comprehending every other
+misfortune that fate could have in store for him, being, whatever its
+proportions, as nothing to the death-stricken heart of one whose hope was
+buried.
+
+"This is scarcely a time or an occasion, George," said I, "for the
+manifestation of these emotions. If the cause lies in the grief, come back
+with increased force, for the death of your mother, you should have known
+that there is one lying there whose load is still greater, and who is,
+unfortunately, as yet, beyond the relief which, as your agitation
+indicates, nature in the young heart is working for you."
+
+"The death!--the death!" he muttered in a choking voice; "but there is
+something after the death that is worse than the death itself."
+
+"Are you distracted, George?" said the aunt. "This Bible was the hand-book
+and the rule of your mother's conduct in this world. A better woman never
+offered up her prayers at the fountain of the waters of immortal life; no
+one that ever lived had a better right to draw from the blessing, or better
+qualified for enjoying it as she now enjoys it. She is in heaven; and will
+you say that that is worse than death?"
+
+"You speak of her spirit, aunt," replied he, as he still covered his face
+with his hands. "Her spirit is there!"--and he took away one of his hands
+from his face and pointed to heaven--"There, where the saints rest, does my
+mother's soul rest; but, O God, where--where is the body?"
+
+A thought struck me on the instant. I was afraid to utter it. I looked at
+the father, and suspected, from the sudden light of animation that started
+to his eye, that the gloom of his mind had at last been penetrated by the
+thought which had suggested itself to me.
+
+"Where is the body!" responded the aunt. "Why, George, where should it be
+but in C---- churchyard, beneath the stone that has told the virtues of her
+ancestors, and will, in a short time, declare her own, greater than those
+of her kindred that have gone before?"
+
+"It is on Dr M----'s table!" cried the youth, starting to his feet, and
+again throwing himself violently on the chair. "I purchased it; paid the
+price for it; and recognised it only when the dissecting-knife was in my
+hand!" Every one started aghast; terror froze up the issues of speech; a
+deep groan issued from the bed-ridden patient; he beckoned me to his ear.
+"Tell the women to go out," he whispered, as he twisted his body
+convulsively among the bedclothes.
+
+I complied with his request; and the aunt, seizing Martha, who stood as if
+she had been transfixed to the floor, dragged her out of the room. In the
+passage, I heard a loud scream; and, in a moment, all was again silence. Mr
+B----, without uttering a word, raised his feeble body from the bed, and
+came forth, the spectre of what he was only a few weeks before. His limbs,
+which were reduced to bony shanks, covered with shrivelled skin, seemed
+totally unable to support even the decayed, emaciated frame. He staggered
+as he reached the floor; but, recovering himself, stood firm, and then
+proceeded to his wardrobe, from which he drew his vestments, and proceeded
+to attire himself.
+
+"An hour since," he said, in a slow, solemn voice, "I thought these clothes
+would never again be on my body. My only hope was the winding-sheet, and
+that grave which has been robbed."
+
+"George may have been deceived," said I, as he was proceeding to dress
+himself. "I have often thought that I saw resemblances to deceased friends
+in the features of subjects in the dissecting-room."
+
+"The grave will test it," answered he, with a deep groan, as he proceeded
+slowly, but resolutely, to put one garment after another on his skeleton
+body.
+
+He was at length dressed; and, proceeding to the kitchen, he appeared
+again, in a short time, with a lighted lantern in his hand, the light of
+which, as it threw its beam on his sallow face--for the candle had,
+meanwhile, burned down into the socket--exhibited, in its lurid glare, the
+deep-sunken eyes and protruding bones of his emaciated countenance.
+
+"Come, we shall proceed to the grave of my Isabella," said he.
+
+"You are unable," said I. "Your limbs will not carry you that length; and
+you are, besides, unfitted by the state of your mind and feelings, for an
+investigation of this kind. Stay here with your son, and I will go to the
+churchyard and satisfy myself of the deception under which George,
+doubtless, labours."
+
+"I feel now more than my former strength," he replied. "I am awakened from
+a death-stupor of the soul; and I feel that within me which will enable me
+to go through this trial. I will look into my Isabella's grave; will meet
+with those eyes again--that countenance through which I have read the
+workings of love in a spirit that is now far from the precincts of the
+clay. Deny me not; I will be satisfied of this, if I should come back from
+her grave to complete that which is begun, and is already visible in these
+shrunken members, that now obey a supernatural power."
+
+There seemed to be no gainsaying him; his manner was inspired and resolute;
+and I proceeded to accompany him to C---- churchyard. George, who, in the
+meantime, had been tossing himself in the chair, rose to make one of the
+party. The agitation under which he still laboured was in direct contrast
+to the cold stillness of his father; yet the one was a more living
+expression than the other; and, while my eye shrunk not from the ordinary
+indications of suffering, I--maugre all the experience of misery I had
+had--could scarcely look on the animated corpse thus preparing to visit the
+grave where the object of all his hopes and affections in this world had
+been buried, and might now be found to have been desecrated by the knife of
+the anatomist. We went forth together. George's horse still stood at the
+door, reeking and bloody. I requested Mr B---- to mount, as we had a full
+mile to go to the burying-ground, and I deemed it utterly impossible that
+he could accomplish the distance. He did not answer me, but proceeded
+onwards with a firm step, in the face of a cold, bleak, east wind, that
+moaned mournfully among a clump of trees that skirted the road. Some flakes
+of snow were winging through the air--driven now by the breeze, or
+lingering over our heads as if afraid to be soiled by the earth, which we
+were bent to open where the dead then lay--or some time before lay--a mass
+of putrefaction; yet dear to the feelings of the bereaved, and sought now
+with greater avidity than when the body was arrayed in the smiles of
+beauty, and filled with living, breathing love. The husband spoke nothing;
+and George was silent, save for the deep sobs that burst from him as he
+looked upon the woe-worn form of his father, who stalked away before us
+like a creature hurrying to the grave to seek the home there from which a
+troubled spirit had removed him in the dark hour of night. In this way we
+wandered on. I was not in a mood to speak. The occasion and the scene
+depressed me more than ever did the prospect of a deathbed, or the sight of
+a patient about to submit to a painful and dangerous operation. My habits
+of thought are little conversant with the poetry of nature, or of man's
+condition in this stage of suffering--the duties of an arduous profession
+are exclusive of those dreamy moods of the mind, which have little in
+common with the doings of every-day life; yet, on this occasion, I felt all
+the inspiration of the sad muse; and, were I to endeavour to account for
+it, I could only seek for the cause in the aspect of the night, and the
+unusual nature of the vocation, operating, at the moment, on a mind
+loosened from the cares of my profession.
+
+In a much less time than I could have anticipated, from the weak condition
+of Mr B----, we arrived at the churchyard--a solitary spot, surrounded with
+an old grey dyke, at the back of which rose in deep shade a wood of firs.
+The snow lay on the top of the walls, and on the higher branches of the
+firs, reminding one of streaks of white clouds in the sky, as the darkness
+of the night, enveloping the lower portions, kept them almost from our
+view. From a small house at the ridge of the fir-belt, a slight ray of
+light beamed forth, and, striking upon the top of a monument placed against
+the wall, exhibited the left all around in deeper gloom. Without uttering a
+word, Mr B---- made up to the house, and, knocking at the door, a young
+female appeared. She uttered a scream, and ran back, doubtless from the
+pale and death-like appearance presented by the face of the visiter. Her
+place was momentarily supplied by the sexton, who, the moment he saw Mr
+B----, shrunk back in what I conceived to be conscious fear. I was standing
+behind, and noticing, what I thought, the guilty expression of the man's
+face, concluded unfavourably for the sad hope of my friend.
+
+"I have reason to believe that there have been resurrectionists in your
+churchyard, James," said Mr B---- mournfully.
+
+"Impossible!" replied the sexton; "we have been guarding the ground for
+some time past. It is a dream, Mr B----; many relations are troubled by the
+same fears. It was only yesterday that I opened a grave to satisfy the
+wishes of Mrs G----, whose husband was buried a week ago. The body was as
+safe as if it had been in her own keeping. Take my advice; be satisfied
+there is no cause of apprehension; you forget the sacred nature of my
+trust."
+
+"I can only be satisfied by an examination of the grave," replied Mr B----.
+"I insist upon having this satisfaction. The cemetery is my property, and I
+have a right to examine it."
+
+The man hesitated, and said that his assistant was from home. But the
+bereaved husband was not to be thus diverted from his purpose. He stood
+resolutely with the lantern in his hand, and demanded admittance into the
+churchyard. The man at length reluctantly took down the key from a nail in
+the passage, and bringing another lantern with him, led us to the door,
+which, in the midst of many grumblings, he opened. He then led the way over
+the snowy hillocks to nearly the middle of the burying-ground, where the
+grave of Mrs B----, headed by an ornamented stone, was exhibited to us. Mr
+B---- bent down, and, moving the lantern backwards and forwards, examined
+it slowly and carefully, casting his eye over the snow, which presented an
+unbroken appearance, and examining every chink, as if he there found an
+evidence of the truth of George's statement.
+
+"That grave has not been touched," said the man. "The head of it is the
+part to judge by. You will find the turf lies whole and unbroken under the
+wreath."
+
+"It may be as you say," replied Mr B----, as he bent down in his
+examination; "but the late snow may have removed the traces of the opening.
+I cannot return home till I am satisfied. My own bones must mix with those
+of my Isabella. Proceed to open the grave; I myself will assist you."
+
+At that moment a figure was seen gliding alone amidst the tombstones. It
+had all the legitimate whiteness like the ideal spirit. I stood and gazed
+at it, and George's eyes were also fixed upon it; Mr B---- paid no
+attention; he was too intent upon the investigation he was engaged in; and
+the grave-digger, whose head was down, did not notice it. I said nothing;
+but George, pointing to it as it approached, cried--
+
+"See, see! what is that?"
+
+The sexton looked up, and cried--"It is David. He has been out, and is
+covered with snow. He comes in good time."
+
+It was even so. The man approached, and the implements having been
+procured, they set about opening the grave. Mr. B---- stood motionless, his
+head hanging down, and deep sighs occasionally coming from his breast,
+mixed with the quick breathing of the men, as they plied their shovels. He
+still held the lantern in his hand, by the light of which the group before
+me is brought out in faint relief. The silence around was signally that of
+a churchyard; for the fir belt shrouded the scene from the night breeze,
+and there was only occasionally heard a low, mournful gust, as it died
+among the branches of the trees. On that spot only there was quick
+breathing action. The men had got down pretty far into the grave; and, as
+they brought their heads within the ray of the lantern, in their acts of
+throwing up the earth, their flushed faces contrasted strongly with the
+cadaverous countenance of the husband, who leant over them, watching every
+motion, and intent upon the expected stroke of the shovel upon the coffin
+lid. The recollection of the attributes of the German ghoul came over me;
+nor did the difference between the beings, the motives, and the actions,
+prevent me from conjuring up the similitude, so unlike a human being did he
+appear in his complexion, his fixed, dead-like stare into the grave, and
+the perfect stillness of his body, as he crouched down to be nearer to the
+object of his search. At length, the sound was heard, the rattle on the
+coffin lid. The victim's ear seemed chained to the sound, as if he could
+have augured from it whether or not the chest was empty. In a short time,
+
+    "The heavy moil that shrouds the dead"
+
+was entirely removed. The sexton now took his own lamp down into the grave.
+The screw-nails were undone, the lid was raised, and the body of Mrs B----,
+arrayed in her winding-sheet and scalloped sere-clothes, was seen, by the
+sickly, yellow gleam of the lantern, lying in the stillness and placidity
+of death--
+
+    "For still, still she lay,
+    With a wreath on her bosom."
+
+One of the men now came out, and Mr B---- descended into the grave. He
+lifted off the face-cloth, gazed on the clay-cold face, touched it, and now
+was opened the
+
+    "Sacred source of sympathetic tears."
+
+He burst into a loud paroxysm; and, as if nature had been to take her
+revenge for her sufferings, under the freezing influence of his sorrow, he
+wept as if there had been to be no end of his weeping. It was latterly
+found necessary to force him out of the grave; though, as I was informed by
+George, he had shrunk from the view of the dead body of his wife, while it
+lay in the house, and before it was interred. The lid was again placed on
+the coffin, the screws fixed, and the grave filled up. Mr B---- slipped a
+guinea into the hand of the sexton, and we took our way back to the town.
+George informed us, as we went, that he had been for several nights haunted
+by the image of his mother; and could only thus account for the conviction
+that had seized him, that the body of the female he had seen in the
+dissecting-room was that of his parent. It is a remarkable fact, and the
+one which chiefly induced me to give this narrative, that the scene I have
+now described wrought so powerfully on the feelings of Mr B----, that the
+form of his grief was entirely changed. During the whole of the subsequent
+night, he wept intensely--nature was relieved--his sorrow was mollified
+into one of those
+
+    "Moods that speak their softened woes;"
+
+and time soon wrought its accustomed amelioration. I never saw one who
+seemed more certainly doomed to the fate of the heart-stricken; and,
+however fanciful it may seem, I attribute to the mistake of his son the
+restoration of the father.
+
+
+THE CONDEMNED.
+
+I believe it was Fontenelle who said that, if he were to have been
+permitted to pass his life over again, he would have done everything he did
+in the world, and, of course, consented to suffer what he had suffered, in
+consideration of what he had enjoyed. I have heard the same statement from
+others. A very learned and ingenious professor in the north, whose
+lucubrations have often cast the effulgence of his rare genius over the
+pages of the Border Tales, has no hesitation in declaring that he would
+gladly consent to receive another tack of existence in this strange world,
+with all its pains and penalties, were it for nothing but to be allowed to
+witness the curious scenes, the startling occurrences, the humorous
+bizarrerie of cross-purposes, the conceits, the foibles, the triumphs of
+the creature man. Moore the poet has somewhere said, that he would not
+consent to live his life over again, except upon the condition that he were
+to be gifted with less love and more judgment--probably forgetting that in
+that case he would not have been the author of "Lallah Rookh;" though,
+mayhap, of a still drier life of Sheridan than that which came from his
+pen. I have often put the question to patients, and have found the answer
+to be regulated by the state of their disease. Upon the whole, it requires
+a very sharp, bitter pang, indeed, to extort the confession, that they
+would not accept another lease of life. If men were not Christians, they
+would choose, I think, to be Pythagoreans, were it for nothing but the
+slight chance they would enjoy of passing into some state of existence not
+in a remote degree different from that which they have declared themselves
+sick of a thousand times before they died. Sick of it as many, however, say
+they are, they would all live "a little and a little longer still," when
+the dread hour comes that calls them home. These remarks have been
+suggested by the following passage in my note-book:--"17th August, ----,
+case of Eugene D----, in the jail of ----. Extraordinary example of the
+_amor vitae_." I find I had jotted a number of the details; but such was the
+impression the scene of that tragedy of life produced in me, that even now,
+though many years have passed, I recollect the minutiae of the drama as
+distinctly as if I had witnessed it yesterday. I was indeed interested in
+the case more than professionally; for the subject of it was an early
+companion of my own, and was, besides, calculated, from his acquirements,
+and a free, open generosity of spirit, to produce a deep interest in the
+fate which, in an unhappy hour, he brought upon himself. It was on the
+forenoon of the day I have mentioned, that the under turnkey of the prison
+of ---- came in breathless haste, and called me to a prisoner. It was
+Eugene D----. I was at the moment occupied in thinking of the youth. He had
+forged a bill upon his father, Mr. D----, a wealthy merchant; and it was
+very clearly brought out, in evidence that he applied the money to
+extricate a friend from pecuniary embarrassments. The father had paid the
+bill; but the legal authorities had prosecuted the case; and he, at that
+moment, lay in jail a criminal, condemned to die. The gallows was standing
+ready to exact its victim within two hours; the post from London would
+arrive in an hour with or without a reprieve. His father and mother, what
+were they then doing, thinking, suffering? On them and him I was meditating
+when the words of the turnkey fell upon my ear.
+
+"What has occurred?" was my question to the messenger.
+
+"Eugene D----, the condemned criminal, has taken some poisonous drug," said
+he, "and the provost has sent me for you to come to his relief."
+
+I meditated a moment. It might have been as well, I thought, for all
+parties, that I had not been called, and that the drug, whatever it was,
+might be allowed to anticipate the law, but I had no alternative; I was
+called in my official capacity; and then a messenger might still arrive
+from London. I provided myself with the necessary counteracting agents, and
+followed the man. I passed the house of his father. The blinds were drawn,
+and all seemed wrapped in dead silence, as if there had been a corpse in
+the house. Several people were passing the door, and cast, as they went, a
+melancholy look at the windows. They had, in all likelihood, seen the
+gallows; at least, they knew the precise posture of affairs within the
+house. I was inclined to have entered; but I could see no benefit to be
+derived from my visit, and hurried forwards to the jail, from the window of
+which the black apparatus projected in ghastly array. The post-office in
+---- Street was in the neighbourhood, and an assembly of people was
+beginning to collect, to wait for the incoming of the mail. There was
+sympathy in every face; for the fate of the youth, who had been well
+esteemed over the town, for a handsome, generous-minded young man, and the
+situation of his parents--wealthy and respectable citizens--had called
+forth an extraordinary feeling in his favour. Indeed, thousands had signed
+the petition to the King, but forgery was, at that time, a crime of
+frequent occurrence, and the doubts that were entertained as to the success
+of the application were apparently justified by the arrival of the eleventh
+hour. On passing through the jail, I saw the various preparations in
+progress for the execution; the chaplain was in attendance; and, in a small
+cell, at the end of the apartment from which the fatal erection projected,
+there sat, guarded by an officer, from a fear that he would escape, the
+executioner himself--
+
+    "Grim as the mighty Polypheme."
+
+My guide led me forward, and, in a few minutes, I stood beside Eugene, who,
+dressed in a suit of black, lay twisting his body in a chair, making the
+chains by which he was bound clank in a fearful manner. A small phial was
+on the floor. I took it up, and ascertained, in an instant, that he had
+betaken himself to the drug most commonly resorted to by suicides.
+
+"Laudanum!" I exclaimed.
+
+"Yes, yes--as much as would kill two men!" he cried wildly.
+
+The poison had not had time to operate; or rather, its narcotic power had
+been suspended by the terrors of an awakened love and hope of life, that
+had followed close upon the prospect of death caused by his own act.
+
+"You had a chance for life, Eugene," said I, hurriedly. "A courier may yet
+arrive, independently of the mail, which has not yet come."
+
+"Chance or no chance," he cried, as I proceeded with my assistant, who now
+entered, to apply the remedies; "I would yet live the two hours! I had no
+sooner swallowed the drug, than I thought I had intercepted the mercy of
+heaven; life seemed--and, oh, it even now seems--sweeter than ever, and
+death still more dreadful! Quick--quick--quick! The poison is busy with my
+heart. I would give a world for even these two hours of life and
+hope--small, small as that is!"
+
+I proceeded with the application of the usual remedies. A portion, but only
+a portion of the laudanum, had been taken off; and the next efficient
+remedy was motion, to keep off the sleepy lethargy that drinks up the
+fountain of life. Two men were got to drag him as violently as possible
+along the floor, leaving him enough of his own weight to force him to use
+his limbs. I noticed that he struggled with terrible energy against the
+onset of the subtle agent; exhibiting the most signal instance I ever
+beheld of the power of that hope which seems to be consistent with life
+itself. Already an eighth part of the apparent period of his sojourn upon
+earth had passed. Seven quarters more would, in all likelihood, bring him
+to the scaffold, and, by resisting my energies to counteract the effects of
+the poison, he might have eluded the grim arm of the law, by a death a
+thousand times less dreadful. Every now and then, as the men dragged him
+along, he turned his eyes to me, and asked the hour. Sometimes he repeated
+the question within two minutes of my answer. As often was his ear directed
+to the street, to try to catch the sounds of a coach, or the feet of a
+horse; and then he redoubled his energies to keep off the onset of the
+lethargy, which I told him was most to be feared. The operation was
+persevered in; but the men informed me they thought he was gradually
+getting heavier on their hands, and I noticed his eye, at times, get so
+dull that he seemed to be on the eve of falling asleep and sinking. Another
+quarter of an hour soon passed; and in a little further time, the bailies
+and chaplain would find it their duty to come and prepare him for his
+fate--alas! now indeed so certain, that no reasonable thought could suggest
+even the shadow of a hope; a reprieve, so near the time of execution, would
+not have been trusted to the mail, and a messenger would have arrived, by
+quick stages, long before; unless there had, indeed, been any fault in the
+government authorities, in tampering with a man's life within an hour of
+his execution. If I had not been under the strict law of professional
+discipline, I would certainly have allowed him to lie down and pass into
+death or oblivion. I had, however, my duty to perform; and, strange as it
+may appear, that duty quadrated with the wishes of the young man himself;
+who, as he struggled with the demon that threatened to overpower him,
+seemed to rise in hope as every minute diminished the chance of his
+salvation. By the increased energies of the men, he was again roused into a
+less dull perception of sounds, and I could perceive him start as the
+rattle of the wheels of a carriage was heard at the jail door. He fixed his
+half-dead, staring eye in my face, and muttered, with a difficult effort of
+his sinking jaws--
+
+"Is that it--is that it?--I hear a carriage wheels, and they have stopped
+at the door."
+
+As he uttered the words, it appeared as if he again exerted himself to keep
+the enemy, who still threatened him, at bay. I replied nothing; for I
+suspected that the carriage brought only some official, or, probably, some
+mourner, to see him, previous to the fatal scene--that scene which, in all
+likelihood, I was endeavouring to render more heart-rending to his friends
+and spectators, by keeping alive the vital spark, that might only serve to
+make him conscious of pain. It appeared to be too evident that he had
+increased tenfold the misery of his situation; for the stern law would
+admit of no excuse, and if he was not able to walk to the scaffold he would
+be carried; yet, if I remitted my endeavours to keep in life, I might, in
+the event of the looked-for reprieve still arriving, be liable to be
+accused, by my own conscience, of having been as cruel as the law itself.
+The door of the jail now opened, and a turnkey told me that the usual time
+had arrived when the officials began their preparatory duties. I replied
+that it was in vain to attempt, at present, the performance of these sacred
+rites; the prisoner was wrestling with death; and, if the exertions of the
+men, who kept still dragging him backwards and forwards, were remitted, he
+would sink, in a few minutes, into insensibility. I noticed the eye of poor
+Eugene turned imploringly upon me, as if he wished to know who it was that
+had arrived in the carriage. I merely shook my head; and the sign was no
+sooner made than his chin fell down on his breast; his limbs became weaker,
+his knees bent, and if the supporters had not exerted themselves still
+farther, he would have sunk. But the men still performed their duty, and
+dragged him hurriedly along, scarcely now with any aid from his feet,
+which, obeying no impulse of the loose and flaccid muscles, were thrown
+about in every direction, with, a shuffling, lumbering noise, and a
+clanking of the chain, that must have produced an extraordinary effect on
+those who waited in the adjoining cells. The noise thus produced was indeed
+all that was heard; for the effect of the poison was such as to take away
+all power of groaning. I was now doubtful if all the working of the men
+would be able to keep off much longer the sleepy incubus, for he seemed to
+have lost almost all power of seconding their efforts; but the door of the
+jail again opened, and the sound of the grating hinges made him again lift
+his head. His eye seemed to indicate that he had lost all sense of the
+passing of the moments, and I could not discover whether he looked for the
+entry of one bearing his letter of salvation, or of the jailor with his
+hammer, to knock the chain from his feet, and lead him forth to the
+scaffold. He again muttered some words as the turnkey was proceeding
+forward to where I was. I could not make them out, so faint had his voice
+now become; but one of the men said he wished to know the hour. I told him
+it was one o'clock--that was just one hour from the appointed termination
+of his life. The turnkey, meanwhile, whispered in my ear that his father,
+mother, and sister had arrived. It was the sound of their carriage wheels
+that we had heard. I enjoined upon the men the necessity of continuing
+their labours, and went out to prevent the entry of his parents to the
+witnessing of a scene transcending all their powers of bearing. I found the
+three standing in the recess where the executioner was sitting in gloomy
+silence. I took the father and mother by the arms, and hurried them away to
+the empty cell, where the chaplain and several officials were collected.
+The turnkey saw his error, and excused himself, on the ground that he was
+confused by the extraordinary state of affairs within the prison. I
+ascertained that no notice had been made to his parents of his having taken
+the drug. They had come to take farewell of him. The mail had arrived, but
+had brought no intelligence--not even of the petition having been disposed
+of; and, having given up all hope, their intention was that the mother and
+daughter should, after the last act of parting, fly to the country, to be
+as far as possible from the scene of the impending tragedy. I was the first
+who communicated the tidings of the condition of their son; and the noise
+in the prisoner's cell, as the men still continued their operations, was a
+sad commentary on my words. The sister, who was veiled, uttered a shrill
+scream, and fell back on the floor. The father stood like
+
+    "Wo's bleak, voiceless petrifaction,"
+
+moving neither limb nor countenance; his eye was fixed steadfastly on the
+ground, and a deadly paleness was over his face. The mother, who was also
+veiled, staggered to a bench--recovering herself suddenly, as some thought,
+rising wildly, stung her to a broken utterance of some words. I approached
+her, while Mr H----, the chaplain, was assisting in getting Miss D---- to a
+chair.
+
+"Let him die!--let him die!" she exclaimed. "Is not his doom inevitable?
+You will torture my Eugene by keeping in his life till the law demands its
+victim, and he may be carried--carried! O God!--to a second death, ten
+times more cruel than that which he is now suffering."
+
+"No rejection of the petition has been intimated," I replied; "and there is
+hope to the last grain in life's ebbing glass. It is not yet two years
+since a reprieve came to a prisoner, in this very jail, within three hours
+of the appointed term of his life. You have spoken from the impulse of an
+agony which has overcome the truer feelings of a mother and the better
+dictates of prudence."
+
+"Small, small, indeed, is that hope which a mother may not see through the
+gloom of a despair such as mine," she replied. "But what means that
+dreadful noise in Eugene's cell?"
+
+"Only the efforts of the men to keep him awake," replied I. "My duty
+requires my efforts in behalf of a fellow-creature to the last moment.
+Reflect for an instant, and the proper feeling will again vindicate its
+place in the heart of a parent."
+
+"Dreadful alternative!" she replied. "But, sir, hear me. I am his mother,
+and I tell you, from the divination of a mother's heart, that there will
+now be no respite. I say it again; it would be a relief to me if I heard,
+at this moment, that he had escaped by death that tragedy which will now be
+rendered a thousand times more painful to him and dreadful to me."
+
+The father moved his eyes, and fixed them on the face of the mother of his
+boy, who, in her agony, thus called for his death in a form which bore even
+a shade of relief from the horror of what awaited the victim. It was,
+indeed, an extraordinary request; and told, as no words spoken by mortal
+had ever told, the pregnancy of an anguish that could seek for alleviation
+(if I may use so inadequate a phrase) from so fearful an alternative. All
+were, for a time, now silent, and there was no sound to be heard but the
+deep sobs of the daughter, as she recovered from her swoon; the struggle in
+the throat of the mother; and the shuffling and tramping in the cell of the
+prisoner.
+
+"There is still hope," I whispered in the ear of the mother.
+
+"None--none!" she ejaculated again. "My Eugene! my Eugene!"
+
+She reclined back, with her hands over her face, still sobbing out the name
+of her son. I pointed to the father to assist her, while I should go again
+to ascertain the state of the son; but he did not seem to understand
+me--retaining still his rigid position, and looking with the calmness of
+despair on the scene around him. Her silence continued but a few moments;
+and when she opened her eyes again, it was to fix them on me.
+
+"What are you doing?" she exclaimed again. "What, in the name of heaven,
+are you doing to my Eugene?--Saving him for second, and still more cruel
+death. It might have been all over. Let me see him--let me see him!"
+
+And she rose to proceed to the cell where her son was confined; but her
+strength failed her, and she again reclined helplessly back in her seat.
+The clergyman's ministrations were called for by these uttered sentiments,
+which seemed so little in accordance with the precepts of Holy Writ,
+however natural to the bursting heart of the mother, to whom the reported
+death of her son, in his unparalleled situation might almost have been
+termed a boon. Retreating from a scene so fraught with misery, I hastened
+back to Eugene, who was still in the arms of the men. One of them whispered
+to me that he had spoken when he heard the shrill cry of his sister; but,
+immediately after, he relapsed again into stupor. The men complained of
+being exhausted by their efforts to keep him moving. His weight was now
+almost that of a dead body; and it was only at intervals that he made any
+struggles to move himself by the aid of his paralysed limbs. Two other
+individuals were got to relieve them; and the compulsory motions were
+continued. The lethargy had not altogether mastered the sentient powers;
+and, the operation having been stopped that I might examine his condition,
+he lifted his head slowly, looked round him with a vacant stare, and, after
+a few moments, muttered again the word "hour." I pulled out my watch, and
+told him that it was twenty minutes past one, he understood me, as I
+thought; and pronouncing indistinctly "mother," he again sank into apparent
+listlessness. The men again resumed their work.
+
+Meanwhile, a buzz from without intimated too distinctly that the mob was
+collecting to witness the fate of their townsman. There was no distinct
+sound, save that which a mass of people, under the depressing feelings of
+sorrow, seem to send forth involuntarily--making the air, as it were,
+thick, and yet with no articulation or distinct noise which can be caught
+by the ear of one at a distance, or within the walls of a house. Eugene, I
+am satisfied, was unable to recognise the faint indication. It was well for
+him. I learned, from the turnkey, that the sound of the hammer in the
+erection of the gallows had put him almost distracted, and precipitated the
+execution of the purpose, which he had wished to delay till after the
+arrival of the mail. I had little doubt that he might now be kept from the
+grasp of the death-stupor for the remaining three quarters of an hour; but,
+alas! what would be my triumph? Every minute added to the certainty that I
+was only preparing for him and his relations greater pain; for, in any
+view, he could not walk to the fatal spot without as much aid as might have
+sufficed to carry him; and it was even more than probable that he would be
+so overcome that that latter operation would require to be resorted to,
+under the stern sanction of a law that behoved to be put in force within a
+given time, or not at all. The case I am now describing might suggest some
+consideration worthy of the attention of our legislators, who, arrogating
+to themselves a license as wide as the limits of the human mind, deny all
+manner of discretion to the superintendents of the last execution of the
+law. We profess to be abhorrent from scenes of torture, as well as, on
+grounds of policy, hostile to a species of punishment which, indeed,
+defeats its own ends; and yet I could give more than one case where the
+substance has been retained in all its atrocity, while the form was veiled
+by flimsy excuses of a false necessity. My situation was now a very painful
+one indeed. I was training and supporting the victim for the altar;
+rescuing from death only to sacrifice him with more bloody rites and a
+crueller spirit of immolation. The words of his mother, wrung from the
+agony of a parent's love, rang in my ears; the look of the father--that of
+imbecile despair--was imprinted on my mind; the hour was fast on the wing;
+all hope had perished; and before me was the unfortunate youth, handsome,
+elegant, and interesting, even in the writhings of the master-fiend,
+suffering a death which was to be, in effect, repeated in another and a
+crueller form. I had seen him under circumstances of friendship, and the
+ebullitions of his generous spirit; and I was become, as I pictured to
+myself, his enemy, who would not allow him to die, to escape from shame and
+an increased agony of dissolving nature. Will I admit it? For a moment or
+two I hesitated; and, indeed, had half-resolved to tell the men to
+stop--the time might yet have sufficed for finishing what he had begun. If
+he was not dead before two, he would, at least be beyond feeling; and, if
+the officials chose to take the last step of getting him carried to the
+gallows, they would in effect be immolating a corpse.
+
+My better and calmer thoughts of duty, however, prevailed; and, in the
+meantime, I saw the prudence of preventing any meeting between Eugene and
+his parents, which could tend to nothing but an increase of pain on the
+side of those who were still able to feel--for, as regarded the young man
+himself, he was beyond the impulse of the feelings that might otherwise
+have been called up, even by such a scene. I was not even ill pleased to
+hear from the under turnkey, that the magistrates had given orders for the
+departure of the friends; though, for my own satisfaction, I wished that
+the father, who had still some command of himself, might visit his son for
+a few minutes, and sanction my proceedings with his approbation. I was
+informed also by the turnkey, that the father was resisting to the utmost
+of his power the efforts of the mother to get into the cell. He probably
+saw too clearly that in the excited condition in which she still remained,
+the scene might prove disastrous, as affecting either life or reason; and,
+if I could judge from what I myself felt in spite of the blunting effects
+of a long acquaintanceship with misery in its various phases, there was
+good reason for his fears. The scene presented features
+
+    "Direr than incubus's haggard train."
+
+I had just looked my watch--it wanted now only twenty minutes of the last
+hour. The order for the friends to quit the jail was about to be obeyed.
+The father sent a messenger for me. I repaired to the cell; but to avoid
+the appeals of the mother and daughter, I beckoned him forth to the lobby.
+He asked me whether he should see his son now that he was all but
+insensible, and could not probably recognise him. He feared that he could
+not stand the scene, for that the calmness he assumed was false! I replied
+that it certainly required no ordinary firmness; and yet the pain might in
+some degree be even lessened by the state of stupor and insensibility in
+which the youth still continued. He fixed his eyes on my face with an
+expression of forced and unnatural calmness, that pained me more than the
+death-like inanity of the still beautiful countenance of his son, or the
+hysterical excitement of the mother. He at last seized my hand and
+proceeded along to the cell hurriedly, as the turnkey was crying loudly for
+the friends to depart. We entered and stood for a moment. He stood and
+gazed at his son, as the latter was still kept moving by the men; but
+Eugene was apparently unconscious of the presence of his parents. A loud
+cry from the dense crowd who had assembled to witness the execution, struck
+my ear. I ran to the window, and saw a man in the act of coming off a
+horse, whose sides were covered with foam and blood. The cries of the crowd
+continued, and I could distinctly hear the word "_reprieve_" mixed with the
+shouts. Mr. D---- was at my back, and I felt his hands press me like a
+vice. The two men who were supporting Eugene, had also heard the sound,
+and, paralysed by the extraordinary announcement, they actually let the
+prisoner sink on the floor. The sound of his fall made me turn; the father
+had vanished, doubtless to meet the messenger, and communicate the tidings
+to his wife and daughter. A great bustle in the neighbouring cells
+succeeded. The two men stood and looked at me in silence. Eugene still lay
+on the floor, to all appearance insensible. By my orders he was immediately
+again lifted up, and dragged more violently than ever, backwards and
+forwards. In a few seconds, the turnkey came in, and struck off the irons,
+by which his ancle had been so severely torn that the blood flowed from it
+on the floor. He informed me that he was indeed reprieved, and that the
+fault of the delay was attributable to the authorities in London. I shouted
+in the ear of the young man the electric word; he lifted his head, looked
+wildly around him for a few seconds, and uttered a strange gurgling sound
+unlike any expression of the human voice I ever heard. I was indeed
+uncertain whether he understood me or not. In a few minutes more, the cell
+was crowded--the father, mother, and daughter, the chaplain, the messenger,
+and several of the officials, all bursting in, to see the condition of the
+criminal. To this I was not averse; because the more excitement that could
+be produced in the mind of the youth, the greater chance remained of our
+being able to keep off the deadly effects of the drug. A thousand times did
+the parent and mother sound into his dull ear the vocable pregnant with so
+much relief to him and his friends; but it was not until two hours
+afterwards that he was so far recovered as to understand perfectly the
+narrow escape he had made from death. In the evening he was conveyed home
+in a carriage; and, as they were leaving the jail, he looked out at the
+grim apparatus which had been erected for him, and which the workmen were
+removing in the midst of a dense crowd of citizens.
+
+Some days afterwards, Eugene D---- had almost entirely recovered from the
+effects of the poison. One day when I called, I found him lying on a sofa,
+with his mother sitting by his side. She took her eyes off her son, and
+bent them on me till tears filled them.
+
+"Before you entered," she said, "I was talking to Eugene about the request
+I made to you in the jail on that dreadful day, to let my son die.
+Repeatedly since, have I thought of my wild words; but they know little of
+human nature, at least little of the feelings of a mother in my situation,
+who could brand them as unnatural, or doubt the sanity that recognised
+fully their effect."
+
+"I am too well apprised, madam," I replied, "of the workings of that organ,
+whose changes often startle ourselves, to be surprised at the words you
+then made use of. I knew not, after all, if you did not exhibit as much
+heroism as Brutus, who condemned his son to death; certainly more than
+Zaleucus, who condemned his to the loss of an eye, having first submitted
+to the loss of his own, to make the love of a father quadrate with the
+justice of the law-giver."
+
+"And what say you to yourself, to whom I owe the safety of my Eugene?" she
+added.
+
+"An Acesias might have accomplished all that I accomplished, madam--for all
+I did was to keep off sleep; but, if the secret must needs be told, I had
+some doubts at least of the humanity of my proceedings, whatever I might
+have thought of my duty."
+
+Eugene afterwards went to the East Indies, where he made a fortune. Some
+pecuniary embarrassments afterwards overtook the family, on which occasion
+he sent them home the one half of the money he had made, whereby they were
+again placed in a condition of affluence. A present was also sent to me. It
+is not yet very many years ago since I saw Eugene. He had assumed another
+name in India, where he had married a very beautiful woman, and to whom he
+again returned.
+
+
+
+
+THE UNBIDDEN GUEST,
+
+OR, JEDBURGH'S REGAL FESTIVAL.
+
+    "In the mid revels, the first ominous night
+    Of their espousals, when the room shone bright
+    With lighted tapers--the king and the queen leading
+    The curious measures, lords and ladies treading
+    The self-same strains--the king looks back by chance,
+    And spies a strange intruder fill the dance;
+    Namely, a mere anatomy, quite bare,
+    His naked limbs both without flesh and hair,
+    (As we decipher Death,) who stalks about
+    Keeping true measure till the dance be out."
+
+    _Heywood's Hierarchie of the Blessed Angels._
+
+
+There is no river in this country which presents in its course, scenes more
+beautifully romantic than the little Jed. Though it exhibits not the dizzy
+cliffs where the eagles build their nests, the mass of waters, the
+magnitude and the boldness, which give the character of sublimity to a
+scene; yet, as it winds its course through undulating hills where the
+forest trees entwine their broad branches, or steals along by the foot of
+the red, rocky precipices, where the wild flowers and the broom blossom
+from every crevice of their perpendicular sides, and from whose summits the
+woods bend down, beautiful as rainbows, it presenteth pictures of
+surpassing loveliness, which the eye delights to dwell upon. It is a fair
+sight to look down from the tree-clad hills upon the ancient burgh, with
+the river half circling it, and gardens, orchards, woods, in the beauty of
+summer blossoming, or the magnificence of their autumnal hues, encompassing
+it, while the venerable Abbey riseth stately in the midst of all, as a
+temple in paradise. Such is the character of the scenery around Jedburgh
+now; and, in former ages, its beauty rendered it a favourite resort of the
+Scottish Kings.
+
+About the year 1270, an orphan boy, named Patrick Douglas, herded a few
+sheep upon the hills, which were the property of the monks of Melrose. Some
+of the brotherhood, discovering him to be a boy of excellent parts,
+instructed him to read and to write; and perceiving the readiness with
+which he acquired these arts, they sought also to initiate him into all the
+learning of the age, and to bring him up for their order. To facilitate and
+complete his instructions, they had him admitted amongst them, as a
+_convert_ or lay-brother. But, though the talents of the shepherd boy
+caused him to be regarded as a prodigy by all within the monastery, from
+the Lord Abbot down to the kitchener and his assistants; yet, with Patrick,
+as with many others even now, gifts were not graces. He had no desire to
+wear the white cassock, narrow scapulary, and plain linen hood of the
+Cistertian brethren; neither did he possess the devoutness necessary for
+performing his devotions seven times a-day; and when the bell roused him at
+two in the morning, to what was called the _nocturnal_ service, Patrick
+arose reluctantly; for, though compelled to wedge himself into a narrow bed
+at eight o'clock in the evening, it was his wont to lie awake, musing on
+what he had read or learned, until past midnight; and, when the _nocturnal_
+was over, he again retired to sleep, until he was aroused at six for
+_matins_; but, after these came other devotions, called _tierce_, the
+_sexte_, the _none_, _vespers_, and the _compline_, at nine in the morning,
+at noon, at three in the afternoon, at six in the evening and before eight.
+These services broke in on his favourite studies; and, possessing more
+talent than devotion, while engaged in them he thought more of his studies
+than of them. Patrick, therefore, refused to take the monastic vow. He
+
+                      "had heard of war,
+    And longed to follow to the field some warlike lord."
+
+He, however, was beloved by all; and when he left the monastery, the Abbot
+and the brethren gave him their benediction, and bestowed gifts upon him.
+He also carried with him letters from the Lord Abbot and Prior, to men who
+were mighty in power at the court of King Philip of France.
+
+From the testimonials which he brought with him, Patrick Douglas, the
+Scottish orphan, speedily obtained favour in the eyes of King Philip and
+his nobles, and became as distinguished on the field for his prowess and
+the feats of his arms, as he had been in the Abbey of Melrose for his
+attainments in learning. But a period of peace came; and he who was but a
+few years before a shepherd boy by Tweedside, now bearing honours conferred
+on him by a foreign monarch, was invited as a guest to the palace of the
+illustrious Count of Dreux. A hundred nobles were there, each exhibiting
+all the pageantry of the age; and there, too, were a hundred ladies, vying
+with each other in beauty, and in the splendour of their array. But chief
+of all was Jolande, the daughter of their host, the Count of Dreux, and the
+fame of whose charms had spread throughout Christendom. Troubadours sang of
+her beauty, and princes bent the knee before her. Patrick Douglas beheld
+her charms. He gazed on them with a mixed feeling of awe, of regret, and of
+admiration. His eyes followed her, and his soul followed them. He beheld
+the devoirs which the great and the noble paid to her, and his heart was
+heavy; for she was the fairest and the proudest flower among the French
+nobility --he an exotic weed of desert birth. And, while princes strove for
+her hand, he remembered, he felt, that he was an orphan of foreign and of
+obscure parentage--a scholar by accident, (but to be a scholar was no
+recommendation in those days, and it is but seldom that it is one even
+now.) and a soldier of fortune, to whose name royal honours were not
+attached, while his purse was light, and who, because his feet covered more
+ground than he could call his own, his heels were denied the insignia of
+knighthood. Yet, while he ventured not to breathe his thoughts or wishes
+before her, he imagined that she looked on him more kindly, and that she
+smiled on him more frequently than on his lordly rivals; and his heart
+deceived itself, and rejoiced in secret.
+
+Now, it was early in the year 1283, the evening was balmy for the season,
+the first spring flowers were budding forth, and the moon, as a silver
+crescent, was seen among the stars. The young scholar and soldier of
+unknown birth walked in the gardens of the Count of Dreux, and the lovely
+Jolande leaned upon his arm. His heart throbbed as he listened to the
+silver tones of her sweet voice, and felt the gentle pressure of her soft
+hand in his. He forgot that she was the daughter of a prince--he the son of
+a dead peasant. In the delirium of a moment, he had thrown himself on his
+knee before her, he had pressed her hand on his bosom, and gazed eagerly in
+her face.
+
+She was startled by his manner, and had only said--"Sir! what
+means?"--though in a tone neither of reproach nor of pride, when what she
+would have said was cut short by the sudden approach of a page, who, bowing
+before her, stated that four commissioners having arrived from the King of
+Scotland, the presence of the Princess Jolande was required at the palace.
+Patrick Douglas started to his feet as he heard the page approach, and as
+he listened to his words he trembled.
+
+The princess blushed, and turning from Patrick, proceeded in confusion
+towards the palace; while he followed at a distance, repenting of what he
+had said, and of what he had done, or, rather, wishing that he had said
+more, or said less.
+
+"Yet," thought he, "she did not look on me as if I had spoken
+presumptuously! I will hope, though it be against hope--even though it be
+but the shadow of despair."
+
+But an hour had not passed, although he sought to hide himself with his
+thoughts in his chamber, when he heard that the commissioners who had
+arrived from his native land, were Thomas Charteris, the High Chancellor;
+Patrick de Graham, William de St Clair, and John de Soulis; and that their
+errand was to demand the beautiful Jolande as the bride and queen of their
+liege sovereign, Alexander the Third, yet called good.
+
+Now, the praise of Alexander was echoed in every land. He was as a father
+to his people, and as a husband to his kingdom. He was wise, just,
+resolute, merciful. Scotland loved him--all nations honoured him. But
+Death, that spareth not the prince more than the peasant, and which, to
+short-sighted mortals, seemeth to strike alike at the righteous and the
+wicked, had made desolate the hearths of his palaces, and rendered their
+chambers solitary. Tribulation had fallen heavily on the head of a virtuous
+King. A granddaughter, the infant child of a foreign prince, was all that
+was left of his race; and his people desired that he should leave behind
+him, as inheritor of the crown, one who might inherit also his name and
+virtues. He was still in the full vigour of his manhood, and the autumn of
+years was invisible on his brow. No "single silverings" yet marked the
+raven ringlets which waved down his temples; and, though his years were
+forty and three, his appearance did not betoken him to be above thirty.
+
+His people, therefore, wished, and his courtiers urged, that he should
+marry again; and fame pointed out the lovely Jolande, the daughter of the
+Count of Dreux, as his bride.
+
+When Patrick Douglas, the learned and honoured, but fortuneless soldier,
+found that his new competitor for the hand of the gentle Jolande was none
+other than his sovereign, he was dumb with despair, and the last, the
+miserable _hope_ which it imparts, and which maketh wretched, began to
+leave him. He now accused himself for having been made the sacrifice of a
+wild and presumptuous dream, and again he thought of the kindly smile and
+the look of sorrow which met together on her countenance, when, in a rash,
+impassioned moment, he fell on his knee before her, and made known what his
+heart felt.
+
+But, before another sun rose, Patrick Douglas, the honoured military
+adventurer of King Philip, was not to be found in the palace of the Count
+de Dreux. Many were the conjectures concerning his sudden departure; and,
+amongst those conjectures, as regarding the cause, many were right. But
+Jolande stole to her chamber, and in secret wept for the brave stranger.
+
+More than two years passed away, and the negotiations between the Courts of
+Scotland and of France, respecting the marriage of King Alexander and Fair
+Jolande, were continued; but, during that period, even the name of Patrick
+Douglas, the Scottish soldier, began to be forgotten--his learning became a
+dead letter, and his feats of arms continued no longer the theme of
+tongues. It is seldom that kings are such tardy wooers; but between the
+union of the good Alexander and the beautiful Jolande many obstacles were
+thrown. When, however, their nuptials were finally agreed to, it was
+resolved that they should be celebrated on a scale of magnificence such as
+the world had not seen. Now, the loveliest spot in broad Scotland, where
+the Scottish King could celebrate the gay festivities, was the good town of
+Jedworth, or, as it is now called, Jedburgh. For it was situated, like an
+Eden, in the depth of an impenetrable forest; gardens circled it; wooded
+hills surrounded it; precipices threw their shadows over flowery glens;
+wooded hills embraced it, as the union of many arms; waters murmured amidst
+it; and it was a scene on which man could not gaze without forgetting, or
+regretting his fallen nature. Yea, the beholder might have said--"If the
+earth be yet so lovely, how glorious must it have been ere it was cursed
+because of man's transgression!"
+
+Thither, then, did the Scottish monarch, attended by all the well-affected
+nobles of his realm, repair to meet his bride. He took up his residence in
+the castle of his ancestors, which was situated near the Abbey, and his
+nobles occupied their own, or other houses, in other parts of the town; for
+Jedburgh was then a great and populous place, and, from the loveliness of
+its situation, the chosen residence of royalty. (It is a pity but that our
+princes and princesses saw it now, and they would hardly be again charmed
+with the cold, dead, and bare beach of Brighton.) An old writer (I forget
+whom) has stated, in describing the magnitude of Jedburgh in those days,
+that it was six times larger than Berwick. This, however, is a mistake, for
+Berwick, at that period, was the greatest maritime town in the kingdom, and
+surpassed London, which strove to rival it.
+
+On the same day that King Alexander and his splendid retinue reached
+Jedburgh, his bride, escorted by the nobles of France and their attendants,
+also arrived. The dresses of the congregated thousands were gorgeous as
+summer flowers, and variegated as gorgeous. The people looked with wonder
+on the glittering throng. The trees had lost the hues of their fresh and
+living green--for brown October threw its deep shadows o'er the
+landscape--but the leaves yet trembled on the boughs from which they were
+loath to part; and, as a rainbow that had died upon the trees, and left its
+hues and impression there, the embrowning forest appeared.
+
+The marriage ceremony was performed in the Abbey, before Morel, the Lord
+Abbot, and glad assembled thousands. The town and the surrounding hills
+became a scene of joy. The bale-fires blazed from every hill; music echoed
+in the streets; and from every house, while the light of tapers gleamed,
+was heard the sounds of dance and song. The Scottish maiden and the French
+courtier danced by the side of the Jed together. But chief of all the
+festive scene was the assembly in the hall of the royal castle. At the
+farther end of the apartment, elevated on a purpled covered dais, sat King
+Alexander, with the hand of his bridal queen locked in his. On each side
+were ranged, promiscuously, the Scottish and the French nobility, with
+their wives, daughters, and sisters. Music lent its influence to the scene,
+and the strains of a hundred instruments blended in a swell of melody.
+
+Thrice a hundred tapers burned suspended from the roof, and on each side of
+the hall stood twenty men with branches of blazing pine. Now came the
+morris dance, with the antique dress and strange attitudes of the
+performers, which was succeeded by a dance of warriors in their coats of
+mail, and with their swords drawn. After these a masque, prepared by Thomas
+the Rymer, who sat on the right hand of the King, followed; and the company
+laughed, wept, and wondered, as the actors performed their parts before
+them.
+
+But now came the royal dance; the music burst into a bolder strain, and
+lord and lady rose, treading the strange measure down the hall, after the
+King and his fair Queen. Louder, and yet more loud the music pealed; and,
+though it was midnight, the multitude without shouted at its enlivening
+strains. Blithely the dance went on, and the King well nigh forgot the
+measure as he looked enraptured in the fair face of his beauteous bride.
+
+He turned to take her hand in the dance, and in its stead the bony fingers
+of a skeleton were extended to him. He shrank back aghast; for royalty
+shuddereth at the sight of Death as doth a beggar, and, in its presence,
+feeleth his power to be as the power of him who vainly commanded the waves
+of the sea to go back. Still the skeleton kept true measure before
+him--still it extended to him its bony hand. He fell back, in horror,
+against a pillar where a torch-bearer stood. The lovely Queen shrieked
+aloud, and fell as dead upon the ground. The music ceased--silence fell on
+the multitude--they stood still--they gazed on each other. Dismay caused
+the cold damp of terror to burst from every brow, and timid maidens sought
+refuge and hid their faces on the bosom of strangers. But still, visible to
+all, the spectre stood before the king, its bare ribs rattling as it moved,
+and its finger pointed towards him. The music, the dancers, became
+noiseless, as if Death had whispered--"_Hush_!--_be still_!" For the figure
+of death stood in the midst of them, as though it mocked them, and no sound
+was heard save the rattling of the bones, the moving of its teeth, and the
+motion of its fingers before the king.
+
+The lord abbot gathered courage, he raised his crucifix from his breast, he
+was about to exorcise the strange spectre, when it bent its grim head
+before him, and vanished as it came--no man knew whither.
+
+"Let the revels cease!" gasped the terror-stricken king; and they did
+cease. The day had begun in joy, it was ended in terror. Fear spread over
+the land, and while the strange tale of the marriage spectre was yet in the
+mouths of all men, yea before six months had passed, the tidings spread
+that the good King Alexander, at whom the figure of Death had pointed its
+finger, was with the dead, and his young queen a widow in a strange land.
+
+The appearance of the spectre became a tale of wonder amongst all men,
+descending from generation to generation, and unto this day it remains a
+mystery. But, on the day after the royal festival at Jedburgh, Patrick
+Douglas, the learned soldier, took the vows, and became a monastic brother
+at Melrose; and, though he spoke of Jolande in his dreams, he smiled, as if
+in secret triumph, when the spectre that had appeared to King Alexander was
+mentioned in his hearing.
+
+
+
+
+THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER.
+
+
+"Many a time," said Nicholas Middlemiss, as he turned round the skirts and
+the sleeve of his threadbare coat to examine them, "many a time have I
+heard my mother say to my faither--'Roger, Roger (for that was my faither's
+name,) _the simple man is the beggar's brother_.' But, notwithstanding my
+mother's admonitions, my faither certainly was a very simple man. He
+allowed people to take him in, even while they were laughing in his face at
+his simplicity. I dinna think that ever there was a week but that somebody
+or other owrereached him, in some transaction or other; for every knave,
+kennin' him to be a simpleton, (a nosey-wax, as my mother said,) always
+laid their snares to entrap Roger Middlemiss--and his family were the
+sufferers. He had been a manufacturer in Langholm for many a long year, and
+at his death he left four brothers, a sister and mysel', four hundred
+pounds each. Be it remembered, however, that his faither before him left
+him near to three thousand, and that was an uncommon fortune in those days,
+a fortune I may say that my faither might have made his bairns dukes by.
+Had he no been a simple man, his family might have said that they wouldna
+ca' the Duke o' Buccleuch their cousin. But he was simple--simplicity's
+sel'--(as my mother told him weel about it)--and he didna leave his bairns
+sae meikle to divide among them, as he had inherited from their
+grandfaither. Yet, if, notwithstanding his opportunities to make a fortune,
+he did not even leave us even what he had got, he at least left us his
+simpleness unimpaired. My brothers were honest men--owre honest, I am sorry
+to say, for the every-day transactions of this world--but they always
+followed the _obliging_ path, and kept their face in a direction, which, if
+they had had foresight enough to see it, was sure to land them _in_, or
+_on_,(just as ye like to take the expression,) their _native parish_. Now,
+this is a longing after the place o' one's birth for which I have no
+ambition; but on the parish it did land my brothers. My sister, too, was a
+poor simple thing, that married a man who had a wife living when he married
+her; and, after he had got every shilling that she had into his possession,
+he decamped and left her.
+
+"But it is not the history of my brothers and sisters that I would tell you
+about, but my own. With the four hundred pounds which my faither left me, I
+began business as a linen manufacturer--that is, as a maister weaver, on
+what might be called a respectable scale. The year after I had commenced
+business upon my own account, and before I was two and twenty, I was taking
+a walk one Sunday afternoon on the Hawick road, along by Sorbie, and there
+I met the bonniest lassie, I think, that I had ever seen. I was so struck
+wi' her appearance, that I actually turned round and followed her. She was
+dressed in a duffel coat or pelisse, which I think country folk call a
+_Joseph_; but I followed her at a distance, through fields and owre stiles,
+till I saw her enter a sma' farm-house. There were some bits o' bairns,
+apparently hinds' bairns, sitting round a sort o' duck-dub near the
+stackyard.
+
+"'Wha lives there, dearies?' says I to them, pointing wi' my finger to the
+farm-house.
+
+"'Ned Thomson,' says they.
+
+"'And wha was that bonny lassie,' asked I, 'that gaed in just the now?'
+
+"'He! he! he!' the bairns laughed, and gaed me nae answer. So I put my
+question to them again, and ane o' the auldest o' them, a lassie about
+thirteen, said--'It was the maister's daughter, sir, the laird's bonny
+Jenny--if ye like, I'll gang in and tell her that a gentleman wishes to
+speak to her.'
+
+"I certainly was very proud o' the bairn taking me to be a gentleman; but I
+couldna think o' meeting Miss Thompson, even if she should come out to see
+me, wi' such an introduction, for I was sure I would make a fool o' mysel';
+and I said to the bit lassie--'No I thank ye, hinny; I'm obliged to ye'"
+and a' her little companions 'he! he! he'd!' and laughed the louder at my
+expense; which, had I not been a simple man, I never would have placed it
+in their power to do.
+
+"So I went away, thinking on her face as if I had been looking at it in a
+glass a' the time; and to make a long story short, within three months,
+Miss Jenny Thompson and me became particularly weel acquaint. But my
+mother, who had none o' the simpleness that came by my faither's side o'
+the house, was then living; and when Jenny and I were on the eve o' being
+publicly cried in the kirk, she clapped her affidavit against it.
+
+"'Nicol,' said she, 'son as ye are o' mine, ye're a poor simple goniel.
+There isna a bairn that I have among ye to mend another. Ye are your
+faither owre again, every one o' ye--each one more simple than another.
+Will ye marry a taupie that has nae recommendation but a doll's face, and
+bring shame and sorrow to your door?'
+
+"I flew into a rampaging passion wi' my mother, for levelling Jenny to
+either shame or sorrow: but she maintained that married we should not be,
+if she could prevent it; and she certainly said and did everything that lay
+in her power to render me jealous. She might as weel have lectured to a
+whinstane rock. I believed Jenny to be as pure as the dew that falleth upon
+a lily before sunrise in May. But on the very night before we were to be
+married, and when I went to fit on the gloves and the ring--to my horror
+and inexpressible surprise, who should I see in the farm-yard, (for it was
+a fine star-light night,) but my Jenny--my thrice cried bride--wi' her hand
+upon the shouther o' the auldest son o' her faither's laird, and his arm
+round her waist. My first impulse was to run into the stackyard where they
+were, and to knock him down; but he was a strong lad, and, thinks I,
+'second thoughts are best.' I was resolved, however, that my mother should
+find I wasna such a simpleton as she gied me out to be--so I turned round
+upon my heel and went home saying to mysel, as the song says--
+
+    'If this be the way of courting a wife,
+      I'll never look after another;
+    But I'll away hame and live single my lane,
+      And I'll away hame to my mother.'
+
+When I went hame, and informed her o' what I had seen, and o' what I had
+dune, the auld woman clapped me upon the shouther, and says she--'Nicholas,
+my man, I am glad that yer ain een have been made a witness in the matter
+of which your mother forewarned ye. Ye was about to bring disgrace upon
+your family; but I trust ye have seen enough to be a warning to ye. O
+Nicholas! they that marry a wife merely for the sake o' a bonny face, or
+for being a smart dancer, or onything o' that kind, never repent it but
+once, and that is for ever. Marriage lad, lifts the veil from the face o'
+beauty, and causes it to be looked upon as an every-day thing; and even if
+ye were short-sighted before, marriage will make ye see through spectacles
+that will suit your sight, whither ye will or no. Dinna think that I am
+against ye taking a wife; for I ken it is the best thing that a young man
+can do. Had your faither not married me when he did, he would hae died a
+beggar, instead o' leaving ye what he did. And especially a simple creature
+like you, Nicholas, needs one to take care o' him. But you must not expect
+to meet wi' such a one in every bonny face, handsome waist, or smart ancle
+that ye meet wi'. Na, na, lad; ye maun look to the heart, and the
+disposition or temper, and the affection for you. They are the grand points
+that ye are to study; and not the beauty o' the face, the shape o' the
+waist, (which a mantua-maker has a principal hand in making,) the colour o'
+the een, or the texture o' the hair. Thae are things that are forgotten
+before ye hae been married a twalmonth; but the feelings o' the heart, and
+the sentiments o' the soul, aye rin pure, Nicholas, and grow stronger and
+stronger, just like a bit burn oozing frae a hill, and wimpling down its
+side, waxing larger and larger, and gathering strength on strength as it
+runs, until it meets the sea, like a great river; and even so it is wi' the
+affections o' the heart between man and wife, where they really love and
+understand each other; for they begin wi' the bit spring o' courtship,
+following the same course, gathering strength, and flowing side by side,
+until they fall into the ocean o' eternity, as a united river that cannot
+be divided! Na, son, if ye will take a wife, I hope ye hae seen enough to
+convince ye that she ought never to be the bonny Miss Thompson. But if I
+might advise ye in the matter, there is our own servant, Nancy Bowmaker, a
+young lass, a weel-faured lass, and as weel behaved as she is good-looking.
+She has lived wi' us, now, for four years, and from term to term I never
+have had to quarrel her. I never saw her encouraging lads about the
+house--I never missed the value o' a prin since she came to it--I never
+even saw her light a candle at the fire, or keep the cruisy burning when
+she had naething to do but to spin, or to knit. Now, Nicholas, if ye will
+be looking after a wife, I say that ye canna do better than just draw up
+wi' Nancy Bowmaker.'
+
+"So my mother ended her long-winded harangue; which I had hardly patience
+to listen to. In the course o' the week, the faither and brothers o' Miss
+Jenny Thompson called upon me, to see why I had not fulfilled my
+engagement, by taking her before the minister, and declaring her to be my
+wife. I stood before them like a man touched wi' a flash o' lightning--pale
+as death and trembling like a leaf. But, when they began to talk big owre
+me, and to threaten me wi' bringing the terrors o' the law upon my
+head--(and be it remembered I have an exceeding horror o' the law, and
+would rather lose a pound ony day, than spend six and eightpence, which is
+the least ye can spend on it)--as good luck would have it, while they were
+stamping their feet, and shaking their nieves in my face, my mother came
+forward to where we were standing, and says she to me--'Nicholas, what is
+a' this about? What does Mr Thompson and his sons want?'
+
+"The very sound o' her voice inspired me; I regained my strength and my
+courage, as the eagle renews its age. And, simple man as I was--'Sir,' said
+I, 'what is it that ye mean? Gae ask your daughter wha it was that had his
+arm round her waist on Thursday night last, and her hand upon his shouther!
+Go to _him_ to marry her!--but dinna hae the audacity to look me in the
+face.'
+
+"'Weel said, Nicol,' whispered my mother, coming behint me, and clapping me
+on the back; 'aye act in that manner, my man.'
+
+"And both her faithers and her brothers stood looking one to another for an
+answer, and slunk away without saying another word either about the law or
+our marriage. I found I had gotten the whip hand o' them most completely.
+So, there never was another word between me and bonny Jenny Thompson, who,
+within a month, ran away wi' the son o' her faither's laird--and, poor
+hizzy, I am sorry to say, her end wasna a good one.
+
+"My mother, however, always kept teasing me about Nancy Bowmaker, and
+saying what a notable wife she would make. Now, some folk are foolish
+enough to say that they couldna like onybody that was in a manner forced
+upon them. And, nae doubt, if either a faither or a mother, or onybody else
+that has power owre ye, says--'_Like_ such a one,' it is not in your power
+to comply, and actually love the person in obedience to a command. Yet this
+I will say, that my mother's sermons to me about Nancy Bowmaker, and my
+being always _evened_ to her upon that account, caused me to think more
+about her than I did concerning ony other woman under the sun. And ye canna
+think lang about ony lass in particular, without beginning to have a sort
+o' regard for her, as it were. In short, I began to find that I liked Nancy
+just as weel as I had done Jenny; we, therefore, were married, and a most
+excellent and affectionate wife she has been to me, even to this day.
+
+"It was now that I began the world in good earnest. But though my wife was
+an active woman, I was still the same simple, easy-imposed-upon sort o'
+being that I had always been. Every rogue in the country-side very soon
+became acquainted wi' my disposition. I had no reason to complain of my
+business; for orders poured in upon me faster than I was able to supply
+them. Only, somehow or other--and I thought it very strange--money didna
+come in so fast as the orders. My wife said to me--'This trade will never
+do, Nicholas--ye will gang on trust, trusting, until ye trust yoursel' to
+the door. Therefore, do as I advise ye, and look after the siller.'
+
+"'O my dear,' said I, 'they are good customers, and I canna offend them for
+the sake o' a few pounds. I have no doubt but they are safe enough.
+
+"'Safe or no safe,' quoth she, 'get ye your accounts settled. Their siller
+will do as meikle for ye as their custom. Take a woman's advice for once,
+and remember, that, 'short accounts make long friends.' Look ye after your
+money.'
+
+"I couldna but confess that there was a great deal o' truth in what Mrs
+Middlemiss (that is my wife) said to me. But I had not her turn for doing
+things. I could not be so sharp wi' folk, had it been to save my life. I
+never could affront onybody in my days. Yet I often wished that I could
+take her advice; for I saw people getting deeper and deeper into my books,
+without the prospect o' payment being made more manifest. Under such
+circumstances I began to think wi' her, that their siller would be as good
+as their custom--the one was not much worth without the other.
+
+"But, just to give ye a few instances o' my simplicity:--I was walking, on
+a summer evening, as my custom was, about a mile out o' the town, when I
+overtook a Mr Swanston, a very respectable sort o' man, a neighbour, and an
+auld acquaintance, who appeared to be in very great tribulation. I think,
+indeed, that I never saw a fellow-creature in such visible distress. His
+countenance was perfectly wofu', and he was wringing his hands like a body
+dementit.
+
+"'Preserve us, Mr Swanston!' says I, 'what's the matter wi' ye?--has
+onything happened?'
+
+"'Oh! happened!' said he; 'I'm a ruined man!--I wish that I had never been
+born!--that I had never drawn breath in this world o' villany! I believe
+I'll do some ill to mysel'.'
+
+"'Dear me, Mr Swanston!' quoth I, 'I'm sorry to hear ye talk so. It is very
+unchristian-like to hear a body talking o' doing harm to theirsels. There
+is a poet, (Dr Young, if I mistake not,) that says--
+
+    'Self-murder! name it not, our island's shame!'
+
+Now, I dinna like to hear ye talking in such a way; and though I have no
+wish to be inquisitive, I would just beg to ask what it is upon your mind
+that is making ye unhappy?'
+
+"'Oh, Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'it is o' no use telling ye o't, for I
+believe that sympathy has left this world, as weel as honesty.'
+
+"'Ye're no very sure o' that, neighbour,' says I; 'and I dinna think that
+ye do mysel' and other people justice.'
+
+"'Maybe not, sir,' said he; 'but is it not a hard case, that, after I have
+carried on business for more than twenty years, honestly and in credit wi'
+all the world, that I should have to stop my business to-morrow, for the
+want o' three hundred pounds?'
+
+"'It certainly is,' said I, 'a very hard case; but, dear me, Mr Swanston, I
+always thought that ye would be worth twenty shillings in the pound.'
+
+"'So I am,' said he; 'I am worth twice twenty, if my things should be put
+up at their real value; but at present I canna command the ready money--and
+there is where the rock lies that I am to be wrecked upon.'
+
+"'Assuredly,' returned I, 'three hundred pounds are no bauble. It requires
+a person to turn owre a number o' shillings to make them up. But I would
+think that, you having been so long in business, and always having borne an
+irreproachable character, it would be quite a possible thing for you to
+raise the money amongst your friends.'
+
+"'Sir,' said he, 'I wouldna require them to raise the money, nor ever to
+advance or pay a farthing upon my account; all that I require is, that some
+sponsible person, such as yourself, would put their name to a bill for six
+months. There would be nothing but the signing o' the name required o'
+them; and if you, sir, would so far oblige me, ye will save a neighbour
+from ruin.'
+
+"I thought there was something very reasonable in what he said, and that it
+would be a grand thing if by the mere signing o' my name, I could save a
+fellow-creature and auld acquaintance from ruin, or from raising his hand
+against his own life. Indeed, I always felt a particular pleasure in doing
+a good turn to onybody. I therefore said to him--
+
+'Weel, Mr Swanston, I have no objections to sign my name, if, as you say,
+that be all that is in it, and if my doing so will be of service to you.'
+
+"He grasped hold o' my hand wi' both o' his, and he squeezed it until I
+thought he would have caused the blood to start from my finger ends.
+
+"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I shall never be able to repay you for this act
+o' kindness. I will feel it in my heart the longest day I have to live.'
+
+"I was struck with his agitation; in fact, I was very much put about. For
+even a tear upon the face o' a woman distresses me beyond the power o'
+words to describe; but to see the salt water on the cheeks of a man
+indicates that there is something dreadfully ill at ease about the heart.
+And really the tears ran down his face as if he had been a truant
+school-laddie that had been chastised by his master.
+
+"'There is no occasion for thanks, Mr Swanston,' said I--'none in the
+world; for the man would be worse than a heathen, that wouldna be ready to
+do ten times more.'
+
+"Weel, he grasped my hand the harder, and he shook it more fervently,
+saying--'O, sir! sir!--a friend in need is a friend indeed; and such ye
+have proved to be--and I shall remember it.'
+
+"That very night we went to a public-house, and we had two half-mutchkins
+together; in the course of drinking which, he got out a stamped paper, and
+after writing something on it, which I was hardly in a condition to read,
+(for my head can stand very little,) he handed it to me, and pointed with
+his finger where I was to put my name upon the back o't. So I took the pen
+and wrote my name--after which, we had a parting gill, and were both very
+comfortable.
+
+"When I went home, Nancy perceiving me to be rather sprung, and my een no
+as they ought to be, said to me--'Where have you been, Nicholas, until this
+time o' nicht?'
+
+"'Touts!' said, I, 'what need ye mind? It is a hard maiter that a body
+canna stir out owre the door but ye maun ask--'where hae ye been?' I'm my
+own maister, I suppose--at least after business hours.'
+
+"'No doubt o' that, Nicholas,' said she; 'but while ye are your own
+maister, ye are also my husband, and the faither o' my family, and it
+behoves me to look after ye.'
+
+"'Look after yoursel'!' said I, quite pettedly--'for I am always very high
+and independent when I take a glass extra--ye wouldna tak me to be a simple
+man then.'
+
+"'There is no use in throwing yoursel' into a rage, added she; 'for ye ken
+as weel as me, Nicholas, that ye never take a glass more than ye ought to
+do, but ye invariably make a fool o' yoursel' by what ye say or do, and
+somebody or ither imposes on ye. And ye are so vexed with yoursel' the next
+day, that there is nae living in the house wi' ye. Ye wreak a' the shame
+and ill-nature that ye feel on account o' your conduct upon us.'
+
+"'Nancy!' cried I, striking my hand upon the table, as though I had been an
+emperor, 'what in the name o' wonder do ye mean? Who imposes upon me?--who
+dare?--tell me that!--I say tell me that?' And I struck my hand upon the
+table again.
+
+"'Owre mony impose upon ye, my man,' quoth she; 'and I hope naebody has
+been doing it the night, for I never saw ye come hame in this key, but that
+somebody had got ye to do something that ye was to repent afterwards.'
+
+"'Confound ye, Nancy!' cried I, very importantly whipping up the tails o'
+my coat in a passion, and turning my back to the fire, while I gied a sort
+o' stagger, and my head knocked against the chimley piece--'confound ye,
+Nancy, I say, what do ye mean? Simple man as ye ca' me, and as ye tak me to
+be, do ye think that I am to come home to get naething but a dish o'
+tongues from you! Bring me my supper.'
+
+"'Oh, certainly, ye shall have your supper,' said she, 'if ye can eat
+it--only I think that your bed is the fittest place for ye. O man,' added
+she in a lower tone, half speaking to hersel, 'but ye'll be sorry for this
+the morn.'
+
+"'What the mischief are ye muttering at?' cried I--'get me my supper.'
+
+"'Oh, ye shall have that,' said she very calmly, for she was, and is, a
+quiet woman, and one that would put up with a great deal, rather than allow
+her voice to be heard by her neighbours.
+
+"My head was in a queer state the next day; for ye see I had as good as
+five glasses, and I never could properly stand above two. I was quite
+ashamed to look my wife in the face, and I was so certain that I had been
+guilty o' some absurdity or other, that my cheeks burned just under the
+dread o' its being mentioned to me. Neither could I drive the idea of
+having put my name upon the back of the bill from my mind. I was conscious
+that I had done wrong. Yet, thought I, Mr Swanston is a very decent man; he
+is a very respectable man; he has always borne an excellent character; and
+is considered a good man, both amongst men o' business and in
+society--therefore, I have nothing to apprehend. I, according to his own
+confession, did him a good turn, and I could in no way implicate myself in
+his transactions by merely putting my name upon the back o' a bit o' paper,
+to oblige him. So I thought within myself, and I became perfectly satisfied
+that I had done a good action, without in the slightest degree injuring my
+family.
+
+"But just exactly six months and three days afterwards, a clerk belonging
+to a branch o' the Commercial Bank called upon me, and, after making his
+bow, said he--'Mr Middlemiss, I have a bill to present to you.'
+
+"'A bill!' said I, 'what sort o' a bill, sir? Is it an auctioneer's, for a
+roup o' furniture or a sale o' stock?'
+
+"He laughed quite good-natured like in my face, and pulling out the bit
+stamped paper that I had been madman enough to sign my name upon the back
+o'--'It is that, sir,' said he.
+
+"'That!' cried I; 'what in the earthly globe have I to do wi' that? It is
+Mr Swanston's business--not mine. I only put my name upon the back o't to
+_oblige_ him. Why do ye bring it to me?'
+
+"'You are responsible, sir,' said the clerk.
+
+"'Responsible! the meikle mischief!' I exclaimed; 'what am I responsible
+for, sir?--I only put my name doun to oblige him, I tell ye! For what am I
+responsible?'
+
+"'For three hundred pounds, and legal interest for six months,' said my
+unwelcome visiter, wi' a face that shewed as little concern for the
+calamity in which, through mere simplicity and goodness of heart, I was
+involved, as if he had ordered me to take a pipe, and blow three hundred
+soap-bubbles!
+
+"'Oh! lack-o'-me!' cried I, 'is that possible? Is Mr Swanston sic a
+villain? I am ruined--I am clean ruined. Who in all the world will tell
+Nancy?'
+
+"But that I found was a question that I did not need to ask; for she kenned
+almost as soon as I did mysel'.
+
+"I need not say that I had the three hundred pounds, ineerest and all,
+plack and farthing, to pay; though, by my folly and simplicity, I had
+brought my wife and family to the verge o' ruin, she never was the woman to
+fling my silly conduct in my teeth; and all that she ever did say to me
+upon the subject, was--'Weel, Nicholas, this is the first o' your bill
+transactions, or o' your being caution for onybody, and I trust it has
+proved such a lesson as I hope ye will never need another.'
+
+"'O Nancy, woman!' cried I, 'dinna speak to me! for I could knock my brains
+oot! I am the greatest simpleton upon the face o' the earth.'
+
+"Now, that was one instance o' my simple conduct and its consequences, and
+I will just relate to you another or two. I had bought some ninety pounds
+worth o' flax from a merchant in Glasgow, for which I was to receive six
+months' credit. Weel, he came round for his money at the appointed time,
+and I paid him accordingly, and got a line off his hand in acknowledgment.
+On that very day, and just about an hour after he had left, Nancy says to
+me--'Nicholas, I dinna owre and aboon like that man that ye hae been
+dealing wi' the day. He has owre muckle gab, and scraping, and bowing for
+me. I wish he may be honest. Have ye got a receipt from him?'
+
+"'Certainly,' says I; 'do ye think I would pay onybody money without one?'
+
+"'And I hope it is on a stamp,' said she.
+
+"'A stamp!' quoth I--'a stamp!--hoots, woman! I wonder to see ye so
+suspicious. Ye dinna tak a' the world to be rogues?'
+
+"'No,' said she, 'I do not, and I should be sorry if I did; but if ye hae
+taken a receipt from him without a stamp, ye are a simple man--that is all
+that I say.'
+
+'A simple man!' cried I; 'gracious! what does the woman mean? Ye are for
+ever saying that I am simple this, and simple that! I wish that ye would
+explain yoursel, and say what ye wish to be after! Where, or how am I
+simple?'
+
+"'It's not been one lesson that you've had, Nicholas,' said she, 'nor ten,
+nor twenty either, but it is every week, I may say every day, wi' ye. There
+is perpetually some person or another showing ye that the 'simple man is
+the beggar's brother,' and ye canna see it, or ye winna regard it. But ye
+will, perhaps, be brought to think on't, when neither your bairns nor me
+have a stool to sit upon.'
+
+"'Woman!' exclaimed I, 'flesh and blood cannot stand your tongue! Ye would
+exasperate the patience o' Job! What is it that ye wish to be after?--what
+would ye have me to do?'
+
+"'Oh, it is o' nae use getting into a passion about it,' said she, 'for
+that winna mend the matter. But there is only this in it, Nicholas: I would
+have ye to be as sharp in your dealings in the world, as ye are wi' me when
+I happen to speak a word to ye for your good.'
+
+"There was so much truth in what she said, and she always spoke in such a
+calm, good-natured manner that it was impossible to continue to be in a
+passion wi' her. So I said no more about the subject; but I thought to
+mysel', that, as I knew very little about the man I had dealt with, it
+would hae been quite as safe to have had the receipt upon a stamp.
+
+"A few months afterwards, I saw his name amongst the list o' bankrupts; and
+to my very great astonishment, I received a letter from a writer, demanding
+payment from me o' the ninety pounds for the flax which I had already paid.
+
+"'The thing is unreasonable a'thegither,' said I; 'here is a man that hasna
+paid once himself, and he would come upon me to pay twice! But I'll see him
+far enough first!'
+
+"I paid no attention to the letter, and I was summoned to appear before the
+writer, and three men that were called the trustees to the bankrupt's
+estate. (Dear kens where the estate lay.)
+
+"'Sir,' said they to me, as haughtily as if I had been a criminal before
+them; 'wherefore do ye refuse to pay the ninety pounds?'
+
+"'For the best o' a' reasons, gentlemen,' said I, very civilly; 'and that
+simply is, because I have paid it already.'
+
+"'What proof can you show for that!' asked the writer.
+
+"'Proof, sir,' said I--'here is a line off the man's own hand,
+acknowledging the payment o' every farthing o' the money.'
+
+"'Let me look at it,' says he.
+
+"So, as honesty never needs to be feared for what it does, I handed him the
+bit paper. But after looking at it for a moment, he held it up between his
+finger and thumb, and wi' a kind o' sarcastic laugh, inquired--'Where is
+the stamp?'
+
+"The sweat broke ower me from head to foot. 'Sir, my wife, Nancy! Is that
+document, in the handwriting o' the man himsel', not proof positive that I
+have paid the money?'
+
+"The writer shook his head; and a gentleman that was standing near me, and
+who was very probably in a similar predicament to myself, said--'Unstamped
+receipts, sir, may do very well, where ye find a world o' purely honest
+men--but they winna do where ye arena sure but ye may be dealing wi' a
+rogue.'
+
+"'Gentlemen!' cried I, 'have ye really the cruelty and injustice to say
+that I am to pay that money owre again?'
+
+"'Owre again or not owre again,' said the writer, 'ye must pay it,
+otherwise summary proceedings will be entered against ye. If ye have
+already paid it in the way ye say, it is only making good the proverb, that
+the 'simple man is the beggar's brother.'"
+
+"'Oh, confound ye!' cried I, 'for a parcel o' unprincipled knaves--that is
+exactly what my wife says; and had I followed her advice, I would ne'er hae
+seen ane o' yer faces.'
+
+"However, the ninety pounds I had to pay again, doun upon the nail; and
+that was another o' the beautiful effects o' my simplicity. I didna ken
+how, in the universal globe, I was to muster courage to look my wife in the
+face again. Yet all that she said was--'O Nicholas! Nicholas!--would ye
+only be less simple!'
+
+"'Heigho!' said I, 'dinna talk about it, Nancy--I'm owre grieved as it
+is--I can stand no more!'
+
+"The loss o' the three hundred pounds, wi' the bill business, and the
+ninety just mentioned, made me to stagger, and those that knew about the
+circumstances wondered how I stood them. But I had just begun a new
+concern, which was the manufacture o' table-cloths upon a new principle,
+and with exceedingly splendid patterns. I got an extraordinary sale for
+them, and orders came pouring in upon me. But I had to employ more men to
+fulfil them, and their wages were to pay every Saturday, while the
+remittances did not come in by half so regular as the orders, and I found
+it was not easy to pay men without receiving money for their work. Had I
+been a man o' a great capital, the case might have been different. There
+was one day, however, that a gentleman that had dealt wi' me very
+extensively called upon me, and he gied me a very excellent order. But,
+although he had seen a great deal o' my goods, I never had seen the shadow
+o' his cash. I canna say that I exactly liked his manner o' doing business;
+yet I couldna, for the breath that was in my body, have the face to say an
+impertinent thing to ony one, and I was just telling him that his order
+should be attended to, when my wife, who was sitting in a room off the
+parlour, gave a tap upon the door, and, asking the gentleman to excuse me
+for a minute, I stepped ben, and I half whispered to her--'What is it,
+dear?'
+
+"'Has that man spoken about paying ye?' said she.
+
+"'No,' said I.
+
+"'But I think it is time he was,' quoth she, 'before ye trust him ony
+farther. Remember that ye have men's wages to pay, and accounts to pay, and
+a wife and family to support, and those things canna be done upon nothing.'
+
+"'Very true, dearie,' said I; 'but ye wouldna have me to speak abruptly to
+the gentleman, or to affront him?'
+
+"'It will affront no gentleman,' replied she--'at least, no honest man--to
+ask him for what is your own. Therefore, ask him for your money. Remember,
+Nicholas, that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'
+
+"'O dear, woman!' says I, 'ye ken I dinna like to hear thae words. I'll ask
+the gentleman to pay me--to be sure I will; and what is the use o' your
+keeping tease, teasing at a body, just as if I were a simpleton.'
+
+"So I slipped back to the customer, and, after a few words about his order,
+I said to him--'Sir, ye understand I have men's wages to pay, and accounts
+to pay, and a wife and family to support, and it's no little that does it;
+therefore, if ye could just oblige me wi' the settlement o' your account,
+it would be a favour.'
+
+"'My dear Mr Middlemiss,' said he, 'I am extremely sorry that you did not
+inform me that you were in want of cash sooner, as I have just, before I
+saw you, parted with all I can spare. But, if you be very much in want of
+it, I can give you a note, that is, a bill for the money, at three or six
+months. You can get it cashed, you know, and it is only minus the discount,
+and that is not much upon your profits, eh?'
+
+"'Begging your pardon, sir,' says I, 'but I take I would have my name to
+write on the back o't.'
+
+"'Certainly, sir,' said he, 'you know that follows as a matter of course.'
+
+"'Yes, sir,' continued I, 'and I have found that it sometimes follows also
+as a matter o' _coercion!_ I never had to do wi' what ye call a bill in my
+life but once, which was merely writing my name upon the back o't, and that
+cost me three hundred pounds--exactly sixteen pounds, two shillings and
+threepence, and a fraction, for every letter in the name of Nicholas
+Middlemiss, as my wife has often told me. Therefore, sir, I would never
+wish to see the _face_ o' a bill again; or, I should say, the _back_ o'
+one.'
+
+"'But, my good sir,' said the gentleman, 'I have told you that it is not
+convenient for me to give you the cash just now; and, if you won't take my
+bill, why, what do you wish me to do? Do you intend to affront me? Do you
+suppose I have nothing to attend to but your account?'
+
+"'Oh, by no means, sir,' said I; 'and it would be the last thing in my
+thoughts either to offend you or ony man. If ye have not the money at
+command, I suppose I must take the bill; for I know that cash down is a
+sort o' curiosity, as I sometimes say, and is very difficult to be met
+wi'.'
+
+"While we were conversing thegither, I heard my wife gie a tap, tap, tap,
+twice or thrice upon the parlour door, and I was convinced that she
+owreheard us; but I didna take the least notice o' it, for I felt conscious
+that it would only be to ring the auld sang in my ears, about the simple
+man. So I took the gentleman's bill at six months; and immediately after he
+left me, Nancy came into the parlour.
+
+"'Weel,' said she, 'ye've gotten your money.' But she said it wi' a
+scornful air, such as I had never seen her use before, and which caused me
+to feel excessively uncomfortable.
+
+"'Yes, I've got my money,' says I, 'but, dear me, Nancy, what business is
+it o' yours whether I have got my money or no?'
+
+"'If it isna my business, Nicholas,' said she, 'I would like to ken whase
+business it is? I am the wife o' your bosom--the mother o' your family--am
+I not? Guidman, ye may take ill what I say to ye, but it is meant for your
+good. Now, ye hae ta'en the bill o' the man that has just left ye, for four
+hundred and odd pounds! What do ye ken aboot him? Naething!--naething in
+the blessed world! Ye are a simple man, Nicholas!'
+
+"'Dinna say that,' said I; 'I am not simple. I told him to his face that I
+didna like his bills. But ye are like a' women--ye would do wonders if ye
+were men! But his bill prevents a' disputes about his account--do ye not
+see that--and I can cash it if I wish.'
+
+"'Very true,' said she, 'ye can cash it, Nicholas, but upon your own
+credit, and at your own risk.'
+
+"'Risk!' said I, 'the woman's a fool to talk in such a manner about an
+every-day transaction.'
+
+"'Weel,' answered she, 'not to say that there is the slightest risk in the
+matter, have ye considered, that, if ye do cash this bill, there will be a
+heavy discount to pay, and if ye pay it, what is to become o' your profits?
+Did ye tell him, that if ye took his bill ye would carry the discount to
+his next account?'
+
+"'O Nancy! Nancy!' cried I, 'ye would skin the wind! Just take yoursel'
+away, if ye please; for really ye're tormenting me--making a perfect gowk
+o' me, for neither end nor purpose.'
+
+"'Oh, if that be the way,' said she, 'I can leave ye--but I have seen the
+day when ye thought otherwise o' my company. Yet, the more I see o' your
+transactions, Nicholas, the more I am convinced in the truth o' the saying,
+that the simple man is the beggar's brother.'
+
+"'Sorrow take ye, wife!' cried I, 'will ye really come owre thae words
+again. Are ye not aware that I detest and abhor them? Have I not said that
+to ye again and again?--and yet ye will repeat them in my hearing? Do ye
+wish to drive me mad?'
+
+"'I would wish to see ye act,' answered she, 'so that I would ne'er need to
+use them again.' And, on saying that, she went out o' the room, which to me
+was a great deliverance.
+
+"I got the bill cashed, and, to tell ye the plain truth, I also had it to
+pay. This was a dreadfu' loss to me; and I found there was naething left
+for me but so _sit down_,(if ye understand what that means,) as mony a guid
+man has been compelled to do. Hooever, I paid every body seventeen
+shillings and sixpence half-penny in the pound. Some of my creditors said
+it was owre meikle--that I had been simple and wronged mysel'.
+
+"'I would wish to the utmost o' my power to be honest,' said I; 'and if I
+hae wronged mysel', I hae saved my conscience. If there be naething else
+left for me noo, as Burns says--
+
+    'Heaven be thankit! I can beg.'
+
+"My business, hooever, had been entirely at a stand for the space o' sax
+weeks. I had neither journeyman nor apprentice left. My looms, and the hale
+apparatus connected wi' the concern, had been sold off, and I had naething
+in the world but a few articles o' furniture, which a freend bought back
+for me at the sale. I got the loan o' a loom, and in order to support my
+wife and family, I had to sit down to drive the shuttle again. I had
+wrought nane to speak o' for ten years before, and my hands were quite oot
+o' use. I made but a puir job o' it. The first week I didna mak aboon
+half-a-crown; and that was but a sma' sum for the support o' a wife and
+half-a-dozen hungry bairns. Hooever, I was still as simple as ever; and
+there wasna a wife in the countryside that was a bad payer, but brought her
+web to Nicholas Middlemiss. I wrought late and early; but though I did my
+utmost, I couldna keep my bairns' teeth gaun. Many a time it has wrung my
+heart, when I hae heard them crying to their mother, clinging round her,
+and pulling at her apron, saying--'Mother, gie's a piece!--Oh just a wee
+bite, mother!'
+
+"'O my darlings,' she used to say to them, 'dinna ask me for bread the noo.
+I haena a morsel in the house, and hae na siller to buy meal. But yer
+faither is aboot finished wi' the web, and ye shall hae plenty the nicht.'
+
+"Then the bits o' dear creatures would hae come runnin' ben to me, and
+asked--'Faither, when will the web be ready?'
+
+"'Soon, soon, hinnies!' said I, half choked wi' grief and blind wi' tears;
+'haud awa' oot and play yoursels!'
+
+"For I couldna stand to see them yearning afore me, and to behold want,
+like a gnawing worm, eating the flesh from their lovely cheeks. Then, when
+I had went out wi' the web, Nancy would say to me--'Noo, Nicholas, remember
+the situation we're in. There's neither food o' ae description nor anither
+in the house, and ye see the last o' oor coals upon the fire. Therefore,
+afore ye leave the web, see that ye get the money for the working o't.'
+
+"Yet, scores o' times, even after such admonitions, hae I come hame without
+a penny in my pocket. Ane put me aff with ae excuse, and anither wi'
+anither. Some were to ca' and pay me on the Saturday, and others when they
+killed their pig. But those Saturdays seldom came; and, in my belief, the
+pigs are living yet. It used to put me in terror to meet my poor starving
+family. The consequence generally was, that Nancy had to go to where I had
+come frae and request payment hersel'; and, at last, she wadna trust me wi'
+the taking hame o' the webs.
+
+"We suffered more than I'm willing to tell aboot, at the period I mention,
+and a' arose oot o' my simpleness. But I was confined to my bed for ten
+weeks, wi' a dreadfu' attack o' rheumatism--it was what was ca'ed a
+rheumatic fever--it reduced me to a perfect anatomy. I was as feckless as a
+half-burned thread. Through fatigue, anxiety, and want o' support
+thegither, Nancy also took very ill; and there did we lie to a' appearance
+hastening to the grave. What we suffered, and what our family suffered upon
+this occasion, no person in a Christian country could believe. But for the
+kindness o' the minister, and some o' oor neebors, we must a' hae perished.
+As a matter of course we fell sadly back; and when the house rent became
+due, we had not wherewith to pay it. The landlord distrained us for it. A
+second time the few things I had left were put under the hammer o' the
+auctioneer. 'Oh!' said I, 'surely misery and I were born thegither!' For we
+had twa dochters, the auldest only gaun six, baith lying ill o' the scarlet
+fever in the same bed, and I had to suffer the agony o' beholding the bed
+sold out from under them. It was more than human nature could endure. The
+poor, dear lammies cried--'Faither! mither! dinna let them touch us!' I
+took the auldest up in my arms, and begged that I micht be allowed a
+blanket to row her in. Nancy took up the youngest one, and while the sale
+went on, with our dying bairns in our arms, we sat down in the street
+before the door, as twa beggars--but we were not begging.
+
+"Our case excited universal commiseration. A number o' respectable people
+began to take an interest in our weelfare; and business came so thick upon
+me that I had to get twa other looms, and found constant employment, not
+only for my auldest laddie, whom I was bringing up to the business, but
+also for a journeyman.
+
+"Just as I was beginning to prosper, hooever, and to get my head aboon the
+water, there was ane o' my auld creditors to whom I had paid the
+composition of seventeen and sixpence halfpenny in the pound, wha was a
+hard-hearted, avaricious sort o' man, and to whom I had promised, and not
+only promised, but given a written pledge, to pay him the remaining two and
+fivepence halfpenny in the pound, together with interest, in the course of
+six years. The time was just expiring, when he came to me, and presenting
+the bit paper, which was in my own handwriting, demanded payment.
+
+"'Really, sir,' said I, 'I acknowledge that I must pay ye, though everybody
+said at the time that I was a very simple man for entering into ony such
+agreement wi' ye; but it is not in my power to pay ye just now. In the
+course o' a twalmonth I hope to be able to do it.'
+
+"'Mr Middlemiss,' said he, as slowly as if he were spelling my name, 'my
+money I want, and my money I will have; and have it immediately, too.'
+
+"'Sir,' said I, 'the thing is impossible; I canna gie ye what I haena got.'
+
+"'I dinna care for that,' said he; 'if I dinna get it, I shall _get you_.'
+
+"He had the cruelty to throw me into jail, just as I was beginning to
+gather my feet. It knocked all my prospects in the head again. I began to
+say it was o' nae use for me to strive, for the stream o' fate was against
+me.'
+
+"'Dinna say so, Nicholas,' said Nancy, who came on foot twice every week,
+a' the way from Langholm, to see me--'dinna say sae. Yer ain simplicity is
+against ye--naething else.'
+
+"Weel, the debt was paid, and I got my liberty. But, come weel, come woe, I
+was still simple Nicol Middlemiss. Ne'er hae I been able to get the better
+o' my easy disposition. It has made me acquainted wi' misery--it has kept
+me constantly in the company o' poverty; and, when I'm dead, if onybody
+erect a gravestane for me, they may inscribe owre it--
+
+    "THE SIMPLE MAN IS THE BEGGAR'S BROTHER."
+
+
+
+
+TALES OF THE EAST NEUK OF FIFE.
+
+
+THE ROBBERY AT PITTENWEEM AND THE PORTEOUS MOB.
+
+On the 2nd of March 1736, Andrew Wilson in Pathhead, William Hall in
+Edinburgh, and George Robertson, stabler at Bristo Port there, were
+indicted and accused, at the instance of Duncan Forbes of Culloden, then
+Lord Advocate, before the high court of justiciary at Edinburgh, of the
+crimes of stouthrief housebreaking and robbery, in so far as James Stark,
+collector of excise in Kirkcaldy, being upon his circuit in collecting that
+revenue, and having along with him a considerable sum of money collected by
+him by virtue of his office, upon Friday the 9th day of January then last,
+was at the house of Margaret Ramsay, relict of Andrew Fowler, excise-office
+keeper at Pittenweem; and Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob
+Collector Stark of the money and other effects he had along with him, and
+having taken William Hall and George Robertson as associates, they came
+together from Edinburgh that morning, and towards evening put up their
+horses in Anstruther-Easter, in the inn kept by James Wilson, brewer
+there;[C] and after having had some deliberations upon their intended
+robbery, leaving their horses there, they went privately on foot to
+Pittenweem, and about eleven o'clock that night called at the house of
+Widow Fowler, and under the pretence of drinking, remained there until
+they were informed, or might reasonably presume Collector Stark was gone to
+bed; and about twelve that night, or one next morning, Andrew Wilson and
+William Hall, or one or other of them, did impudently and in defiance of
+law forcibly and with violence break the door of the room where Collector
+Stark was lying in bed, and having knocked out the under pannel, Collector
+Stark suspecting an attack upon his life, for his safety jumped out at a
+window in his shirt; whereupon Andrew Wilson and William Hall, or one or
+other of them, entered the room, and did feloniously carry off bank-notes
+in a pocket-book belonging to Collector Stark, and gold and money in his
+possession to the value of L.200, less or more, and did rob and take away a
+pair of pistols, a seal, a penknife, a cloak bag, a pair of silver
+buckles, a bible, several suits of linens and other goods belonging to
+Collector Stark and in his possession; and when they went out of that room,
+did divide, disperse of, and distribute the gold, money, and other goods so
+robbed and taken away at their pleasure. And while the said Andrew Wilson
+and William Hall were committing the foresaid crimes, the said George
+Robertson was standing, sometimes at the door and sometimes at the foot of
+the stair of said house, as a sentinel and guard, with a drawn cutlass in
+his hand, to prevent any person from interfering and stopping the said
+violence and robbery, and did threaten to kill or otherwise intimidate the
+servants of the house when going towards the door of the collector's room;
+and when several of the inhabitants, alarmed by the noise, gathered
+together upon the street, and coming towards the door, inquired what was
+going on there; he, George Robertson, did treacherously endeavour to
+persuade them not to attempt to enter the house, falsely affirming that he
+had tried to go up stairs, but being in danger of being shot, he was by
+fear obliged to leave the house. And in order to keep them still amused
+with his false suggestion of danger by entering the house, having gone
+along with them into the house of John Hyslop in Pittenweem, he detained
+them there for some time, until he judged that his associates might have
+made their escape with their spoil; and soon afterwards William Hall was
+seized in the street of Anstruther-Easter, between twelve and one next
+morning, being Saturday the 10th January, having several of the goods and a
+purse of gold so robbed in his possession, which he dropped and endeavoured
+to conceal. And they, Andrew Wilson, and George Robertson, having met some
+short time afterwards in the house of said James Wilson in
+Anstruther-Easter, where they were informed that the house was beset,
+conscious of their own guilt, they, one or other of them, did deliver to
+said James Wilson the seal, the penknife, the pair of buckles, some money,
+and other things robbed, telling that if they were found in their
+possession they would be hanged or undone, or words to that purpose,
+expressing an apprehension of the utmost danger; and immediately thereafter
+got into bed, as if they had lain all night asleep, where both were
+apprehended, and upon the top of which bed were found the bank notes robbed
+from Collector Stark, and his pocket-book above another bed in another room
+of the house, &c. Wherefore, on these crimes being confessed or proven, the
+parties ought to be most severely and exemplarily punished with the pains
+of law, in terror of others committing the like in time coming.
+
+The indictment to the foregoing effect was read--the case debated, and the
+Lords ordered both parties to give in informations.
+
+On the 19th March 1736, the Lords found the libel relevant--but allowed
+George Robertson a proof, with respect to his behaviour at the time stated,
+for taking off the circumstances tending to infer his being accessory, or
+art and part of the crimes libelled.
+
+A jury was empannelled, and the trial proceeded. To give even notes of the
+depositions on both sides would exceed our limits. We shall therefore
+merely select the evidence of two or three witnesses, whose statements will
+serve to form a continuation of our narrative, and pass over the remainder
+as unnecessary for our purpose.
+
+The first we shall adduce is the collector, the individual robbed.
+
+James Stark, collector of excise, Kirkcaldy, aged forty-nine years or
+thereby, married, solemnly sworn, purged of malice partial, counsel
+examined and interrogated, depones time and place libelled--the deponent
+being then upon his collection as collector of excise. He went to bed about
+ten o'clock, and about an hour and a-half thereafter, he was waked out of
+sleep by a noise and some chapping at the door of the room where he
+lay--which door he had secured before he went to bed by screwing down the
+sneck of the door--which noise the deponent at first imagined was
+occasioned by some drunken people in the house; but afterwards, upon the
+strokes on the door being repeated with violence, the deponent jumped out
+of his bed, and heard the under part of the door of the bed-room giving
+way, upon which the deponent laid hold upon two bags of money, which, with
+the deponent's breeches, in which were about L.100 in gold, and bank notes
+and silver, the deponent had put below his head when he went to bed; and
+the deponent did then, in the confusion in which he was, put the table and
+some chairs to the back of the door to stap the gap, and thereafter opened
+the window, and returning to find the bags of money and his breeches, he
+could only find one of the bags of money, and being in fear of his life, he
+jumped out at the window with one of the bags of money, and fell at the
+foot of the stair, the said window being just above the entry to the house,
+and recovering himself a little, he went towards the corn-yard, and hearing
+a person call out "Hold him," the deponent apprehending the voice to be
+before him, he returned a few paces, and then perceiving a man standing or
+walking at the foot of the stair, the deponent returned again to the yard,
+where he hid the bag of money, and thereafter coming back towards the house
+to hear what was a-doing, the deponent heard a knocking in the room where
+he had been lodged, and thereupon retired to the yard again--lay covered
+with some straw till about four in the morning--and then returning to the
+house saw the panel, William Hall, in custody of some soldiers; and the
+deponent having said to him that he had given him a cold bath that night,
+William Hall answered that he was not to blame, being only hired, and had
+no hand in it, but that Andrew Wilson and George Robertson had come there
+of a design to rob the deponent that night, and that this design had been
+formed several months before by Andrew Wilson, and particularly at the
+preceding collection at Elie; and further depones that soon after the
+deponent got out of the window as aforesaid, he heard the clock strike
+twelve; that when the deponent was first awakened out of his sleep as
+aforesaid, he heard Mrs Fowler, the landlady, call to the persons who were
+breaking open the deponent's bed-room, "What are ye doing?" or "Why do ye
+this?" and the deponent heard them at the same time cursing and swearing
+and making a great noise; and the deponent having only carried one bag of
+money along with him as aforesaid, he left in said bed-room the money and
+goods following, viz., the deponent's breeches, in which was a purse with
+fifty-two and a-half guineas, betwixt six and seven pounds in silver, and a
+pocket-book with one and forty pounds in bank notes, which purse and
+pocket-book the deponent exhibits in court; that besides the bank notes,
+there were several bills and other papers in the pocket-book, and that
+there was likewise in the deponent's breeches, a seal, a pair of silver
+shoe-buckles, and a penknife, which the deponent likewise exhibits; the
+deponent likewise left in his room a cloak-bag with some linens in it,
+which cloak-bag the deponent likewise exhibits in court; as also a bible, a
+pair of pistols, which the deponent likewise exhibits; that upon the
+deponent returning to his room as aforesaid, he found the door of the room
+broken up, and saw a press in the room which had been broken up, and found
+his breeches empty and all the several particulars above enumerated
+amissing; and thereafter, about seven o'clock in the morning, the deponent
+having gone to Anstruther-Easter, he soon thereafter saw the three panels
+in custody; and the deponent did then see in the hands of the magistrates
+of Anstruther, the seal, the buckles, and penknife above mentioned; depones
+that upon Monday following, being the 12th of January last, William Hall,
+panel, told the deponent that he had informed Alexander Clerk, supervisor
+of excise, where the purse of gold was to be found, whereupon the deponent
+desired the supervisor to go in quest of it, which he did, and having found
+it, he restored it to the deponent with the whole gold in it; and that the
+bible was returned to the deponent by one of the soldiers who apprehended
+Hall; that on Saturday night the 10th of January, the deponent got back his
+pocket-book and bank notes, with the other papers in the said pocket-book,
+from Bailie Robert Brown in Anstruther-Easter. _Causa scientiae patet. _And
+this is truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) James Stark; Andrew
+Fletcher.
+
+Alexander Clerk, supervisor of excise at Cupar-Fife, being solemnly sworn,
+and depones time and place libelled, the deponent was lodged in the room
+next to Collector Stark, and went to bed about ten, and was wakened about
+twelve by persons rapping either at his door or that of the collector's;
+and heard a cry of "Murder the dogs and burn the house!" upon which the
+deponent swore that the first man that came in he would put a pair of balls
+in him. The deponent then put on some of his clothes and got out at a
+window at the backside of the house,[D] and walked to Anstruther, about a
+mile, and awakened the serjeant who commanded a small party of soldiers
+there, and with the serjeant and two of the soldiers set out for
+Pittenweem, and left orders for the rest of the party to follow as soon as
+possible. As they passed the entry to Sir John Anstruther's house in
+Easter-Anstruther,[E] they met with some men who having challenged the
+deponent, "Who comes there?" the deponent desired them to give an account
+of themselves, and upon their running off, the deponent ordered the
+soldiers to seize them, upon which the serjeant with his halbert hooked one
+of them, the rest escaping, which afterwards proved to be William Hall, one
+of the panels, and whom the deponent carried along with him to the excise
+office at Pittenweem, and having brought him into the house of Mrs Fowler,
+Jean Finlay, servant to Mrs Fowler, upon seeing the said Hall, said, "This
+is the villain that broke my head a little while ago;" and Thomas Durkie,
+another servant in the house, said, "This is one of the persons who robbed
+the collector the night;" and the soldiers who brought Hall produced a bag
+of linen and a bible which they said they had taken up as Hall had dropped
+them by the way; and William Geddes, clerk to the collector, did then say,
+"This is the collector's bible, and there are his linens," whereupon Hall
+confessed that he had been guilty of robbing the collector; and the
+deponent thereupon telling Hall that he was now _in for it_, and that the
+best way for him was to discover the rest, which, if he would do, the
+deponent would do his endeavours to get him made an evidence, and having
+then asked if he promised to get him a pardon? depones that he understood
+it so, but does not remember that he used the word _pardon_; upon which
+Hall told deponent he would get these other persons whom he named;
+remembers particularly that he named Andrew Wilson, panel, to have been one
+of them. That they had come upon four horses that morning from Kinghorn,
+and that he would find them all in the house of James Wilson in
+Anstruther-Easter, or in a house twenty yards on this side of it, which the
+deponent understood to be Bailie Andrew Johnston's.[F] By this time the
+rest of the party having come up from Anstruther, the deponent made some
+search for the collector, but could not find him, and thereafter the
+deponent carried up Hall to the room where the collector had lodged, the
+door of which he saw broken in the under part, and left Hall prisoner there
+in custody of some of the soldiers and the rest of the party, and Thomas
+Durkie and William Geddes. The deponent then went east to Anstruther in
+search of the rest of the robbers, and having surrounded the house of James
+Wilson there, he found three men in a room there, viz., Andrew Wilson and
+George Robertson, panels, and one John Friar, and having shown them to the
+above Thomas Durkie, he declared that they were two of the persons who had
+robbed the collector; upon which the deponent having applied to Bailies
+Robert Brown and Philip Millar, both in Anstruther-Easter, he got the
+accused committed to prison; and further depones that as the panels were
+being carried prisoners to Edinburgh, and while they were halting at
+Kirkcaldy, the deponent asked George Robertson, panel, what was become of
+the collector's purse of gold, George answered that Andrew Wilson, the
+other panel, told him that William Hall got the purse; upon which the
+deponent inquired at Hall about it, and added that unless he confessed and
+discovered where the purse was, he could not expect that the promises made
+would be kept to him; when after some entreaty Hall told deponent that he
+had dropped it upon being seized in a wet furr near a dung-hill, and
+accordingly the deponent went back to Pittenweem, and upon application to
+Bailie Andrew Fowler, of Pittenweem, and in his presence the purse was
+found near to a dung-hill between Anstruther-Wester and Pittenweem, in the
+spot described by Hall, with fifty-two guineas and a-half in it, which
+purse and gold was given to the deponent, and the purse exhibited in court
+being shown to him, he thinks it is the very same purse. And all this is
+truth, as he shall answer to God. (Signed) Alexander Clerk; Andrew
+Fletcher.
+
+John Galloway, servant to Patrick Galloway, horse-hirer in Kinghorn, aged
+twenty-six, depones that at the time libelled, William Hall came to the
+deponent's master's house in Kinghorn, and desired him to get two horses,
+one for himself and one for the deponent, telling him that they were going
+to Anstruther to get some brandy; and that George Robertson and Andrew
+Wilson were to be their masters and pay their expenses; and desired him to
+go to the houses where they then were. The deponent having gone
+accordingly, and spoken to the said persons, George Robertson desired to
+get their horses ready, and Hall and the deponent to go before and they
+would overtake them; that about six o'clock at night they came to
+Anstruther-Easter, and set up their horses in James Wilson's house, where
+he found Andrew Wilson before him; and after they put up their horses they
+went to Andrew Johnston's there, where they found Robertson and Wilson
+drinking punch. Depones that the three panels and the deponent went from
+Anstruther to Pittenweem on foot, between ten and eleven o'clock at night.
+Depones that when they came to Pittenweem, he (the deponent), Hall, and
+Wilson went into a house, but does not know the name of the landlord, where
+they drank a bottle of ale, and it was agreed while they were there that
+Robertson and the other panel should walk on the street; that when they
+came out of that house, the three panels and the deponent went to Widow
+Fowler's house, where they drank some ale and brandy. Andrew Wilson having
+asked the landlady if she could lodge any casks of brandy for him, she
+desired him to speak low, because the collector was in the house; upon
+which Wilson said, Is he here? She answered, he was. Robertson, the panel,
+called for a reckoning, and all four went down stairs, at least went to the
+stair-head. Robertson, Hall, and the deponent went out to the street, and
+as the maid was going to shut the outer door, Andrew Wilson pushed it open
+and went in, upon which the deponent and William Hall went in also; and
+George Robertson drew his cutlass and stood at the outer door, saying that
+no person should go out or in of that house but upon the point of that
+weapon. Depones when they went in to the house they saw Andrew Wilson
+standing at the door of the room where the collector was lodged, and the
+lower part of the door broken; that upon seeing the door broken, he, the
+deponent, asked Wilson what it meant? or what he would be at? to which
+Wilson answered, that he had lost a great deal of money, and understood
+that there was some of it there, and was resolved to have it back again;
+upon which the deponent said to him, that he would have nothing to do in
+the matter. Depones that after the door of the collector's room was broken
+open as aforesaid, Andrew Wilson went into the room, and brought out a pair
+of breeches, and shewing them to the deponent, said, "Here is a good deal
+of money;" the deponent telling him that he would have nothing to do with
+it, the said Andrew took out several handfuls of money, and put it into the
+deponent's pocket; which money, except a few shillings, the deponent
+delivered back to the said Andrew Wilson in the house of James Wilson in
+Anstruther. Depones that Andrew Wilson went again into the room, and
+brought out a cloak-bag, which he desired the deponent to carry, which he
+refused to do. The said Andrew then carried the cloak-bag himself, till
+they came to the end of the town, together with a pair of pistols, which he
+then delivered to William Hall, who carried it half way to Anstruther, and
+then Andrew Wilson desired Hall to set it down, that they might see if
+there was any bank-notes in it; and Hall, having opened the cloak-bag, took
+out some linens and a bible, which he stowed about himself. That at the
+same time he saw Andrew Wilson take out of his pocket the pocket-book, out
+of which he took several bank-notes and put in his pocket, and then threw
+the pocket-book on the floor. Depones that Andrew Wilson and the deponent
+went out of Wilson's house, and threw one of the pistols and some linens
+which they had brought from Pittenweem in among some straw in a barn-yard;
+thereafter the deponent, Bailie Thomas Brown, Anstruther-Easter, and some
+soldiers, went to the place where the cloak-bag was left, and to the
+barn-yard where the pistols and linen were thrown, where they were all
+found. Being further examined, depones that as Wilson and Hall and the
+deponent were on the road from Pittenweem to Anstruther, a little to the
+west of Sir John Anstruther's house, they met Mr Clerk, the supervisor, and
+some soldiers, who, having challenged him who they were, one of the
+soldiers seized Hall with his halbert, upon which Andrew Wilson and the
+deponent made their escape. Depones that the cutlass now produced is the
+same that George Robertson had in his hand at Widow Fowler's house. _Causa
+scienticae patet._ And this is truth, as he shall answer to God, and depones
+he cannot write. (Signed) James Mackenzie.
+
+Upon the indictment against the panels being read in court, they all pled
+"Not guilty," and certain defences were offered for them.
+
+And first, in opposition to what the indictment alleged with regard to
+Andrew Wilson having formed a design to rob Collector Stark, and having
+taken Hall and Robertson, his associates, from Edinburgh that morning, it
+was stated that they did not set out from Edinburgh in company, but met
+upon the water in the passage between Leith and Kinghorn, where two of
+them, Wilson and Hall, were passing in a yawl, and Robertson was crossing
+in a passage boat; that instead of leaving Edinburgh and going to the East
+Neuk on the criminal design libelled, they had each of them lawful business
+in that part of the country, viz., for buying goods in which they
+ordinarily dealt, and which it was neither criminal nor capital to buy and
+sell; and particularly George Robertson, who kept an inn near Bristo Port
+in Edinburgh, where the Newcastle carriers commonly put up; that having
+occasion to buy liquors in the east of Fife, he agreed to take share of a
+cargo with Andrew Wilson, and with that view got a letter of credit from
+Francis Russell, druggist addressed to Bailie Andrew Waddell, Cellardyke,
+for the value of L50 sterling; and further, he carried with him an accepted
+bill of John Fullerton in Causeyside, to the like extent, as a fund of
+credit for the goods he might buy; and William Hall, the third panel, was a
+poor workman in Edinburgh, commonly attending the weigh-house, who was
+carried along to take care of and fetch home the goods; that accordingly,
+as soon as they came to Anstruther, and put up their horses at James
+Wilson's, they went to a respectable man, Bailie Johnston, and bought goods
+to the value of L46 10s., and whilst making the bargain they drank some
+quantity of liquor; that after this, not finding at Anstruther all the
+sorts of liquor they wanted to purchase, they went on foot to Pittenweem,
+when they first went to the house of ---- Drummond, another respectable
+merchant, and drank some time with him, desiring to buy some brandy of him,
+but he told them he could not furnish them at that time; that after this
+the panels went into the house of Widow Fowler, where, calling for a room,
+they were shown into the kitchen, and inquired at the landlady if she could
+furnish them any place for lodging the goods they had bought, and there
+they drank both ale and punch, till, with what they had got before at
+different places, they became all very drunk; that at this place it was
+told by the landlady or servants, in conversation, that there was money to
+a considerable value in the next room, and if any part of the facts
+libelled were committed by the panels, Wilson and Hall, it must have been
+done upon occasion of this purely accidental information, when they were
+insane from strong drink: it was more like a drunken frolic than a
+preconcerted robbery. As a further evidence of this fact, it appeared by
+the libel itself that they acted like persons in such a condition; for
+they, as well as the other panel Robertson, were all seized in an hour or
+two thereafter, before the effects of the liquor had worn off, and before
+they had time to come to themselves, and without any of them taking the
+most rational and obvious measures to make their escape.
+
+As to the case of George Robertson, it is not said that the inhabitants
+gathered together upon the streets, came there to save or rescue what was
+contained in the room; on the contrary, it was admitted on debate that the
+inhabitants of small coast towns are not very ready on these occasions to
+lend their assistance to the officers of justice; and if George Robertson
+had truly said to the persons whom he met on the street that he was by fear
+obliged to leave the house, it might very possibly have been true, and an
+argument of his innocence, and therefore ought not to be turned into a
+circumstance of his guilt.
+
+Our space will not admit of further argument. Suffice it to say that the
+jury unanimously found Andrew Wilson and William Hall guilty, and George
+Robertson art and part on the crimes libelled; and the Lords of Justiciary
+passed sentence of death on all three, which sentence they appointed to be
+executed on Wednesday the 14th of April 1736.
+
+Leaving the criminals in the condemned cells, where they are to remain five
+weeks before being executed, let us, in the meanwhile, in order to the
+better understanding the case, and forming a clearer opinion in reference
+to the nature and origin of the Porteous mob--one of the most extraordinary
+events recorded in history, and which arose out of the trial and sentence
+against Andrew Wilson and the others before narrated--let us endeavour to
+give a brief sketch of Mr Porteous' history, from his birth till the time
+of which we write, namely, the recording of the sentence of death against
+Wilson and his associates.
+
+John Porteous, one of the captains of the Edinburgh City Guard, was son of
+Stephen Porteous, a tailor in Canongate. The father held a fair character,
+and was esteemed a good honest man in the whole conduct of his life, his
+greatest misfortune was his having such a son as John.
+
+The father early discovered in his son a perverseness of nature, and a
+proneness to commit mischievous and more than childish tricks. The mother,
+out of a blind affection for her child, took them all for growing proofs of
+spirit and manliness, and as marks of an extraordinary and sprightly
+genius.
+
+Thus the family were divided upon the education of the son, and from being
+often thwarted in his measures about him, the father lost his authority,
+and for the peace of his family winked at the faults which the good man saw
+it his duty to correct. The loss of parental authority begot want of filial
+regard, so that the boy, shooting up with these vicious habits and
+disregard of the father, advanced from reproaches and curses to blows,
+whenever the unfortunate old man ventured to remonstrate against the folly
+and madness of his son's conduct.
+
+The mother saw, when it was too late, what her misguided affection had
+produced, and how to her fond love in childhood the man made the base
+return of threatening language and the utmost disregard; for he proved too
+hard for both father and mother at last.
+
+The father having a good business, wanted John to learn his trade of a
+tailor, both because it was easiest and cheapest for the old man, and a
+sure source of good living for the son, whether he began business for
+himself or waited to succeed the father after his death; but as he grew up
+his evil habits increased, and at last when checked by his father in his
+mad career, he almost put the good old man to death by maltreatment.
+
+At last, provoked beyond all endurance, the father resolved to rid himself
+of him by sending him out of the country, and managed to get him engaged to
+serve in the army under the command of Brigadier Newton.
+
+While in Flanders, he saw, in passing along with one of his brother
+soldiers, a hen at a little distance covering her chickens under her wings,
+and out of pure wanton and malicious mischief he fired his musket and shot
+the hen. The poor woman to whom it belonged, startled by the shot, went out
+and saw her hen dead; and following the young soldier, asked him to pay the
+price of the hen and chickens, for both were lost to her, and they formed a
+great part of her means of subsistence; but the unfeeling youth would not
+give her a farthing--threatening if she annoyed him he would send her after
+her hen; upon which the injured old woman predicted, "that as many people
+would one day gaze in wonder on his lifeless body as that hen had feathers
+on hers."
+
+Young Porteous afterwards left the army and returned to London, where he
+wrought for some time as a journeyman tailor; but his evil habits brought
+him to poverty, and he was found in rags by a friend of his father's, who
+wrote to the old man to remit L10 to clothe him and defray his travelling
+charges to Edinburgh, which, moved by the compassion of a father, he did,
+and when John appeared, the kind-hearted old man received him with tears of
+joy, and embraced him with all the warmth of paternal affection. Vainly
+hoping that his son was a reformed man, he gave up his business to him, and
+agreed that he should only have a room in the house and his maintenance and
+clothes.
+
+Young Porteous, thus possessed of the house and trade of his father, and of
+all his other goods and effects, began by degrees to neglect and maltreat
+the old man, first, by refusing him a fire in his room in the middle of
+winter, and even grudging him the benefit of the fire in the kitchen. In
+addition to this, he disallowed him a sufficiency of victuals, so that he
+was in danger of being starved to death with cold and hunger. In this
+unhappy condition he applied for admission into the Trinity Hospital.
+
+John Porteous having been for some time in the army, and being known to be
+possessed of no small courage and daring, was selected by John Campbell,
+lord provost of Edinburgh, in the memorable year 1715, to be drill-sergeant
+of the city-guard, as it became necessary to have the guard well
+disciplined and made as effective as possible in that eventful period, for
+the support of the government and the protection of Edinburgh. In this
+office he discharged his duty remarkably well, and was often sent for by
+the lord provost to report what progress his men made in military
+discipline. This gave him an opportunity of meeting sometimes with a
+gentlewoman who had the charge of the lord provost's house and family, with
+whom he fell deeply in love; after paying his addresses for some time, and
+proposing to her, he was accepted, and they were married. From a grateful
+sense of her services, as well as from a conviction of Porteous's ability
+for the office, the lord provost proposed that John Porteous should be
+elected one of the captains of the city-guard, and it was agreed to.
+
+This was a situation of trust and respectability, and would have enabled
+the young couple to live in comfort and ease if the husband had conducted
+himself properly. The gentlewoman was a person of virtue and merit, but was
+unlucky in her choice of a husband--Porteous was no better a husband than
+he had been a son. They were not long married when he began to ill-use her.
+He dragged her out of bed by the hair of the head, and beat her to the
+effusion of blood. The whole neighbourhood were alarmed sometimes at
+midnight by her shrieks and cries; so much so, indeed, that a lady living
+above them was obliged, between terms, to take a lodging elsewhere for her
+own quiet. Mrs Porteous was obliged to separate from her husband, and this
+was her requital for having been the occasion of his advancement.
+
+His command of the city-guard gave him great opportunities of displaying
+his evil temper, and manifesting his ungovernable passions. Seldom a day
+passed but some of his men experienced his severity. The mob on all public
+occasions excited his naturally bad temper; and on all days of rejoicing,
+when there was a multitude from the country as well as from the town, the
+people were sure to experience offensive and tyrannical treatment from him.
+The hatred and terror of him increased every year, and his character as an
+immoral man was known to everybody, so that he was universally hated and
+feared by the lower orders both in town and country.
+
+This was the position in which Captain Porteous stood with the people when
+he was called upon to take charge of the execution of the law in reference
+to Andrew Wilson, whose case it has been thought proper to detail before
+proceeding to narrate the extraordinary events that followed, and which,
+indeed, partly serves to explain the cause of these events.
+
+We have stated that Andrew Wilson, George Robertson, and William Hall, were
+condemned by the High Court of Justiciary to die on Wednesday the 14th of
+April 1736. Hall was reprieved, but Wilson and Robertson were left to
+suffer the extreme penalty of the law. A plan was concocted to enable them
+to escape out of the Tolbooth, by sawing the iron bars of the window; but
+Wilson, who is described as a "round, squat man," stuck fast, and before he
+could be disentangled the guard were alarmed. It is said that Robertson
+wished to attempt first the escape, and there is little doubt he would have
+succeeded, but he was prevented by Wilson, who obstinately resolved that he
+himself should hazard the experiment. This circumstance seems to have
+operated powerfully on the mind of the criminal, who now accused himself as
+the more immediate cause of his companion's fate. The Tolbooth stood near
+to St Giles' Church; it was customary at that time for criminals to be
+conducted on the last Sunday they had to live to church to hear their last
+sermon preached, and, in accordance with this practice, Wilson and
+Robertson were, upon Sunday the 11th of April, carried from prison to the
+place of worship. They were not well settled there, when Wilson boldly
+attempted to break out, by wrenching himself out of the hands of the four
+armed soldiers. Finding himself disappointed in this, his next care was to
+employ the soldiers till Robertson should escape; this he effected by
+securing two of them in his arms, and after calling out, "_Run, Geordie,
+run for your life_!" snatched hold of a third with his teeth. Thereupon
+Robertson, after tripping up the heels of the fourth soldier, jumped out of
+the pew, and ran over the tops of the seats with incredible agility, the
+audience opening a way for him sufficient to receive them both; in hurrying
+out at the south gate of the church, he stumbled over the collection money.
+Thence he reeled and staggered through the Parliament Close, and got down
+the back stairs, which have now disappeared, often stumbling by the way,
+and thus got into the Cowgate, some of the town-guard being close after
+him. He crossed the Cowgate, ran up the Horse Wynd, and proceeded along the
+Potterrow, the crowd all the way covering his retreat, and by this time
+become so numerous, that it was dangerous for the guard to look after him.
+In the Horse Wynd there was a horse saddled, which he would have mounted,
+but was prevented by the owner. Passing the Crosscauseway, he got into the
+King's Park, and took the Duddingstone road, but seeing two soldiers
+walking that way, he jumped the dyke and made for Clear Burn. On coming
+there, hearing a noise about the house, he stopt short, and, repassing the
+dyke, he retook the route for Duddingstone, under the rocks. When he
+crossed the dyke at Duddingstone, he fainted away; but, after receiving
+some refreshment, the first he had tasted for three days, he passed out of
+town, and, soon after getting a horse, he rode off, and was not afterwards
+heard of, notwithstanding a diligent search.
+
+Upon Robertson's getting out of the church door, Wilson was immediately
+carried out without hearing sermon, and put in close confinement to prevent
+his escape, which the audience seemed much inclined to favour.
+
+Notwithstanding his surprising escape, Robertson came back about a
+fortnight afterwards, and called at a certain house in the neighbourhood of
+Edinburgh. Being talked to by the landlord touching the risk he ran by his
+imprudence, and told that, if caught, he would suffer unpitied as a madman,
+he answered, that as he thought himself indispensably bound to pay the last
+duties to his beloved friend, Andrew Wilson, he had been hitherto detained
+in the country, but that he was determined to steer another course soon. He
+was resolved, however, not to be hanged, pointing to some weapons he had
+about him.
+
+It was strongly surmised that plots were laid for favouring Wilson's
+escape. It was well known that no blood had been shed at the robbery; that
+all the money and effects had been recovered, except a mere trifle; that
+Wilson had suffered severely in the seizure of his goods on several
+occasions by the revenue officers; and that, however erroneous the idea, he
+thought himself justified in making reprisals. Besides, Wilson's conduct
+had excited a very great sympathy in his favour; and the crime for which he
+was condemned was considered very venial at that time by the populace, who
+hated the malt-tax, and saw no more harm in smuggling, or in robbing a
+collector of excise, than in any matter of trifling importance. The
+magistrates of Edinburgh, in order to defeat all attempts at a rescue,
+lodged the executioner the day previous in the Tolbooth, to prevent his
+being carried off; the sentinels were doubled outside the prison; the
+officers of the trained bands were ordered to attend the execution,
+likewise the city constables with their batons; the whole city-guard,
+having ammunition distributed to them, were marched to the place of
+execution with screwed bayonets, and, to make all sure, at desire of the
+lord provost, a battalion of the Welch Fusiliers, commanded by commissioned
+officers, marched up the streets of the city, and took up a position on
+each side of the Lawnmarket; whilst another body of that corps was placed
+under arms at the Canongate guard. A little before two o'clock, Porteous
+came to receive Wilson, the prisoner, from the captain of the city prison.
+He was in a terrible rage, first against Wilson, who had affronted his
+soldiers, and next against the mob, who were charmed with Wilson's generous
+action in the church, and had favoured Robertson's escape. They are always
+on the side of humanity and mercy, unless they are engaged themselves.
+Porteous was also infuriated because the Welch Fusiliers had been brought
+to the Canongate, as if he and his guard had not been sufficient to keep
+down any riot within the city. The manacles were too little for Wilson's
+wrists, who was a strong, powerful man; when the hangman could not make
+them meet, Porteous flew furiously to them, and squeezed the poor man, who
+cried piteously during the operation, till he got them to meet, to the
+exquisite torture of the miserable prisoner, who told him he could not
+entertain one serious thought, so necessary to one in his condition, under
+such intolerable pain. "No matter," said Porteous, "your torment will soon
+be at an end." "Well," said Wilson, "you know not how soon you may be
+placed in my condition; God Almighty forgive you as I do."
+
+This cruel conduct of Porteous' still more embittered the minds of the
+populace, who were sufficiently exasperated against him before, and the
+report of it was soon spread over town and country.
+
+Porteous conducted Wilson to the gallows, where he died very penitent, but
+expressing more sorrow on account of the common frailties of life, than the
+crime for which he suffered. His body was given to his friends, who carried
+it over to Pathhead in Fife, where it was interred; George Robertson
+having, as we have seen, rashly attended the funeral before going abroad.
+
+During the melancholy procession of the criminal and his guard, accompanied
+by the magistrates, ministers, and others from the Old Tolbooth, which
+stood in the Lawnmarket, to the scaffold, which was placed in the
+Grassmarket, there was not the slightest appearance of a riot, nor after
+Wilson had been suspended, until life was extinct, did the least
+manifestation of disturbance occur on the part of a vast crowd of people
+collected from town and country to witness the execution. The magistrates
+of Edinburgh had retired from the scaffold to a house close by--concluding,
+with reason, that as all was over with poor Wilson, no disturbance could
+then happen, and the executioner was actually on the top of the ladder,
+cutting Wilson down, when a few idle men and boys began to throw pebbles,
+stones, or garbage at him (a common practice at that time,) thinking he was
+treating the affair rather ludicrously; whereupon Captain Porteous, who was
+in very bad humour, became highly incensed, and instantly resented, by
+commanding the city-guard, without the slightest authority from the
+magistrates, and without reading the riot act or proclamation according to
+law, to fire their muskets, loaded with ball, and by firing his own fuzee
+among the crowd, by which four persons were killed on the spot, and eleven
+wounded, many of them dangerously, who afterwards died. The magistrates,
+ministers, and constables, who had retired to the first storey of a house
+fronting the street, were themselves in danger of being killed, a ball, as
+was discovered afterwards, having grazed the side of the window where they
+stood. The lord provost and magistrates immediately convened, and ordered
+Captain Porteous to be apprehended and brought before them for examination;
+after taking a precognition, his lordship committed Porteous to close
+imprisonment for trial for the crime of murder; and, next day, fifteen
+sentinels of the guard were also committed to prison, it clearly appearing,
+after a careful examination of the firelocks of the party, that they were
+the persons who had discharged their pieces among the crowd.
+
+On the 25th of March 1736, Captain Porteous was put on trial, at the
+instance of the lord-advocate of Scotland, before the High Court of
+Justiciary, for the murder of Charles Husband, and twelve other persons, on
+the 14th of April preceding, being the day of the execution of Andrew
+Wilson; and after sundry steps of procedure, having been found, by the
+unanimous voice of the jury, guilty, he was, on the 20th of July following,
+sentenced to suffer death in the Grassmarket of Edinburgh, on Wednesday the
+8th of September in the same year--that was, about five months after
+Wilson's execution.
+
+On the 26th of August, the Duke of Newcastle, one of the secretaries of
+state, wrote a letter to the right honourable the lord justice-general,
+justice-clerk, and other lords of justiciary, of which the following is a
+copy:--"My lords, application having been made to her Majesty[G] in the
+behalf of John Porteous, late captain-lieutenant of the city-guard of
+Edinburgh, a prisoner under sentence of death in the gaol of that city, I
+am commanded to signify to your lordships her Majesty's pleasure, that the
+execution of the sentence pronounced against the said John Porteous be
+respited for six weeks from the time appointed for his execution. I am, my
+lords, your lordships' most obedient, humble servant, (Signed) Holles,
+Newcastle."
+
+On receipt of this letter, the lords of justiciary granted warrant to the
+magistrates of Edinburgh for stopping the execution of Porteous till the
+20th day of October following.
+
+The effect of this respite on the minds of the people of Scotland was to
+induce the belief that the government did not intend to carry out the
+sentence of death against Porteous at all--that it was merely a
+preliminary step to his pardon and liberation--and that, so far from
+condemning him, the government had rather taken up a prejudice against the
+town of Edinburgh, on account of the proceedings, and in some measure
+against all Scotland. A number of persons, therefore, who were never
+discovered, resolved to take the matter into their own hands, and on the
+7th of September 1736, a body of strangers, supposed to be from the
+counties of Fife, Stirling, Perth, and Dumfries, many of them landed
+gentlemen, entered the West Port of Edinburgh between nine and ten o'clock
+at night, and having seized the Portsburgh drummer by the way, brought
+along his drum with them, and his son. Some of them advancing up into the
+Grassmarket, commanded the drummer's son to beat to arms. They then called
+out, "Here! all those who dare to avenge innocent blood!" This probably
+was a signal for their associates to fall in. It was followed by instantly
+shutting up the gates of the city, posting guards at each, and flying
+sentinels at all places where a surprise might be expected, while a
+separate detachment threw themselves upon and disarmed the city-guard; and
+seizing the drum, beat about the High Street to notify their success so
+far at least. At that instant, a body of them proceeded to the Tolbooth,
+called for the keeper, and finding he was gone, fell a-breaking the door
+with fore-hammers; but making no great progress in that way, they got
+together a parcel of dried broom, whins, with other combustibles, and
+heaps of timber, and a barrel of pitch, all previously provided for the
+purpose, and taking the flambeaux or torches from the city officers, they
+set fire to the pile. When the magistrates appeared, they repulsed them
+with showers of stones, and threatened, if they continued in the streets
+and offered resistance, they would discharge platoons of fire-arms among
+them; and it is even reported they placed sentinels on the magistrates to
+watch their motions.
+
+Upon the prison door taking fire, two gentlemen made up to the rioters, and
+remonstrated with them on the imminent danger of setting the whole
+neighbourhood on fire, insinuating that this outrage was likely to be
+deeply resented, and might bring them to trouble; to which it was answered
+that they should take care no damage should be done to the city, and that
+as to the rest, they knew their business, and that they (the gentlemen)
+might go about theirs.
+
+Before the prison door was burnt down, several persons rushed through the
+flames, ran up stairs, demanded the keys from the keepers; and though they
+could scarcely see one another for the smoke, got into Captain Porteous'
+apartment, calling, "Where is the murdering villain?" He is said to have
+answered, "Gentlemen, I am here; but what are you going to do with me?"
+When they answered, "We are to carry you to the place where you shed so
+much innocent blood, and hang you." He begged for mercy, but they instantly
+seized and pulled him to the door in his bed-gown and cap; and as he
+struggled, they caught him by the legs and dragged him to the foot of the
+stair, while others set all the rest of the prisoners in the Tolbooth at
+liberty. As soon as Porteous was brought to the street, he was set on his
+feet, and some seized him by the breast, while others pushed behind. He was
+thus conducted to the Bow-head, where they stopped a moment, at the
+pressing solicitation of some of the citizens, on the pretence that he
+might die peaceably, but really that time might be gained, as they expected
+the Welch Fusiliers every moment from the Canongate, or that the garrison
+of the Castle would come to Porteous' relief. By this time some who
+appeared to be the leaders in the enterprise ordered him to march, and he
+was hurried down the Bow and to the gallows stone, where he was to
+kneel,--to confess his manifold sins and wickedness, particularly the
+destruction of human life he had committed in that place, and to offer up
+his petitions to Almighty God for mercy on his soul. After which, in a very
+few minutes, he was led to the fatal tree. A halter being wanting, they
+broke open a shop in the Grassmarket, and took out a coil of ropes, for
+which they left a guinea on the counter,[H] and threw the one end over a
+dyer's cross-trees close by the place of execution. On seeing the rope,
+Porteous made remonstrances, and caught hold of the tree, but being
+disengaged they set him down, and as the noose was about to be put over his
+head, he appeared to gather fresh spirit, struggling and wrenching his head
+and body. Here again some citizens appeared for him, telling that the
+troops being now in full march, they must all expect to be sacrificed, and
+that the artillery of the Castle would doubtless be discharged among them.
+They answered, "No man will die till his time come."
+
+About a quarter of an hour before twelve they put the rope about his neck,
+and ordered him to be pulled up; which being done, observing his hands
+loose, he was let down again; after tying his hands he was hauled up a
+second time, but after a short space, having wrought one of his arms loose,
+he was let down once more, in order to tie it up and cover his face.
+Stripping him of one of the shirts he had on, they wrapped it about his
+head, and got him up a third time with loud huzzas and a ruff of the drum.
+After he had hung a long time, they nailed the rope to the tree; then
+formally saluting one another, grounding their arms, and another ruff of
+the drum, they separated, retired out of town, and numbers of them were
+seen riding off in bodies well mounted to different quarters, leaving the
+body hanging till near five next morning.
+
+Neither the two gentlemen who conversed with the rioters at the Tolbooth,
+nor those who were sent out by the magistrates to see if they knew any of
+them, could say they had ever seen any one of them before, though the
+flames of the fire at the Tolbooth door rendered it as light as noonday;
+so that it was generally believed no citizen acted any principal part in
+the tragedy; though, indeed, it is certain that many of the burgesses and
+inhabitants of Edinburgh, led by curiosity, went to the streets to behold
+the surprising boldness and incredible extravagance of the scene.
+
+Upon the whole, it would seem that the rioters were a body of gentlemen and
+others in disguise, some having masons' aprons, others joiners', fleshers',
+shoemakers', dyers', and those of other trades, who had concerted their
+plot with judgment, conducted it with secresy, executed it with resolution
+and manly daring, and completed the whole in the short space of two hours
+with unparalleled success.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[C] The inn or house here referred to is now demolished. It was a back
+house which stood behind Mr Thomas Foggo's shop, through which there was a
+passage or entry to it; and from its concealed and backlying situation, it
+would seem to have been a very likely place for smugglers to resort to with
+their contraband goods. And here it may be remarked, that less than 100
+years ago, smuggling was very prevalent in the east of Fife; almost every
+merchant and trader in the east coast burghs, and farmers from St Andrews
+all along the southeast coast, were less or more concerned in the
+importation of brandy, gin, teas, silks, and tobacco, &c. The penalties at
+one time were only the forfeiture of the goods seized, and if one vessel's
+cargo escaped out of two or three, it was a profitable trade. The measures
+of Government were then thought to be so stringent and despotic, that men
+of principle, of probity, and integrity in all other respects, manifested
+great obliquity of vision in viewing the traffic in smuggled goods, and
+felt no compunctious visitings in embarking in that trade. In the better
+class of houses in the district, hiding holes and places of concealment
+were always to be found, and some of these places are only now being
+discovered. It is not many years since, that an honest man in Pittenweem,
+while employed in his cellar, fell down into a large concealment capable of
+holding a great many ankers of spirits and boxes of tea, of which he
+previously knew nothing.
+
+[D] The window referred to is still pointed out. It is that at the back of
+the house on the second storey, and is near the north-east corner of the
+tenement.
+
+[E] Anstruther House, which stood a little west, on the opposite side of
+the road, to Mr Russell's printing office, was demolished in 1811.
+According to Miss Strickland, Queen Mary passed a night in it; and it is a
+well established fact that King Charles II. lodged a night there in 1651.
+
+[F] Bailie Johnston's house was that now occupied by Mr William Russell,
+with the brewery behind the same. It was formerly a house of one storey,
+and was rebuilt and heightened on the walls by the late Mr James Rodger, or
+Mr David Rodger his son.
+
+[G] This was Queen Caroline, who was regent of the kingdom during the
+absence of her husband, George the First, at Hanover.
+
+[H] The person who did this was a man of the name of Bruce, belonging to
+Anstruther, who returned some time after to the town, and was well known to
+the late Mrs Black, the mother of the late Admiral Black.
+
+
+THE STORY OF CHARLES GORDON AND CHRISTINA CUNNINGHAM.
+
+On the 21st of March, 1743, Captain Richard Dundas, commander of the
+frigate _Arethusa_, carrying forty-four guns and 250 men, sailed from
+Deptford with that vessel in perfect order and condition, and bound for
+Leith. The ship was one of the finest in the service, and the commander a
+man of great energy and intelligence. Mr Charles Gordon, superintendent of
+his Majesty's dockyard at Deptford, a young officer of distinguished
+ability and exemplary character, was one of the passengers. No incident
+worthy of notice occurred until they reached St Abb's Head, when they were
+overtaken with a strong adverse gale of wind and heavy snow storm, which
+unfortunately drove them from their course, and prevented sight of land for
+a considerable time. The wind continued to increase in violence, but the
+snow ceased falling for a little, when it was discovered that they had been
+driven past the mouth of the Firth of Forth and were now in St Andrews Bay.
+
+They then close-reefed their sails, and made all snug; and Captain Dundas,
+declaring that they should have to encounter a strong south-easter, all
+their efforts were directed to double the headland of Fifeness and the
+dreaded Carr Rock, and get into the Forth; but their utmost endeavours were
+unavailing, so that the best part of a day was spent in tacking and veering
+to, close in with the land, to no purpose.
+
+The sun set angrily, and the wind veering more adversely, to their utter
+dismay, brought them on a lee shore. The storm increased with the night.
+The snow began again to fall, and neither the stars nor the lights of Tay
+or of the Firth could be seen. The sea was lashed into tremendous fury.
+There was a fearful sullen sound of rushing waves and broken surges--"Deep
+called unto deep." At times the black volume of clouds overhead seemed rent
+asunder by flashes of lightning that quivered along the foaming billows,
+and made the succeeding darkness doubly terrible. The thunders bellowed
+over the wild waste of waters, and were echoed and prolonged by the
+mountain-like waves. As the ship was seen staggering and plunging among
+these roaring caverns, it seemed miraculous that she regained her balance,
+or preserved her buoyancy. Her yards dipped into the water--her bow was
+buried almost beneath the waves. Sometimes an impending surge appeared
+ready to overwhelm her, and nothing but a dexterous movement of the helm
+preserved her from the shock.
+
+"The impervious horrors of a leeward shore" they were doomed to experience
+during a moonless and starless night. They reduced their sails to a few
+yards of canvass, and lowered their yards on deck. The waves, that rolled
+the vessel with irresistible force, threatened to swallow them up; a
+tremendous sea carried away the boat which was hoisted up at the stern, and
+broke in all the bulkheads of the quarters. For safety of lives and
+property, all hands, after being revived with a glass of rum, began to
+throw overboard the guns. The long-boat was then released from her
+lashings; and, as they wished, the waves soon swept her from the deck. The
+two large anchors were cut from the bows, and the vessel, thus eased of a
+heavy top-load, danced more lightly over the tremendous billows, and
+inspired them with fresh hopes. The crew were all ordered to the after part
+of the deck, and again refreshed with another glass of rum and water.
+
+A little before daylight, the captain, who had been anxiously looking out,
+acquainted the officers, so as not to be heard by the crew, that he saw
+breakers nearly ahead, and had no thought of being able to weather them. Mr
+Gordon coincided in this opinion, to which some one said, "Well, we are all
+born to die; I shall go with regret, but certainly not with fear."
+
+The breakers were soon visible to all the crew, being not more than a
+quarter of a mile distant on the lee bow, when Captain Dundas remarked,
+"Our only chance is to put away a point before the wind, or we are sure to
+go broadside into the surf and perish at once."
+
+A heavy sea now struck the vessel, swept the deck fore and aft, and carried
+overboard five of the crew, who instantly sank to rise no more.
+
+The captain seeing a mighty billow approaching, and viewing nothing but
+death before them, exclaimed, "Lord have mercy upon us," and at that moment
+the vessel rose upon a mountain wave to a tremendous height, from whose
+summit she descended with the velocity of lightning, as if she were going
+to bury herself in the remorseless deep. By this rapid movement she was
+precipitated beyond the reach of the breakers, which now rolled behind her
+stern, and burst in impotence, as if incensed at the loss of their destined
+prey. "We are safe!" exclaimed Captain Dundas; "jump, men, from the yards,
+and make sail." This they did with tumultuous joy, which Mr Gordon checked,
+and said to them, "Whilst you are working silently, thank God for your
+miraculous preservation." The sea upon which the vessel rose was the means
+of her preservation and that of her crew. Probably there was not, if the
+sea had been calm, a depth of two feet water on the Carr Rock, for it was
+that dangerous reef she had passed; but the mighty wave carried her safe
+over at a moment when every hope but that of immortality was gone from the
+minds of the ship's company.[I]
+
+The tempest having somewhat abated, and the wind veered round to a more
+favourable quarter, the vessel rode more smoothly, and the hour of eight
+being arrived, all hands were enabled to sit up and take coffee for
+breakfast.
+
+For about three hours the ship had been working up the Firth, and had come
+off Anstruther, into which port she entered shortly afterwards, in order
+to undergo a survey, and get all necessary repairs completed in hull and
+rigging; and as the vessel had been seen from the _Windmill Tower_ and the
+_Brae_ all the morning to be in great distress, the eastern pier (for the
+west pier had not then been built) was crowded with spectators to witness
+her arrival.
+
+Amongst others who had gone down the pier was Captain John Cunningham, the
+provost or chief magistrate of the burgh, who, being a sea captain himself,
+deeply sympathised both as a sailor and a man with the officers and crew of
+the _Arethusa_, on seeing them in such a miserable plight, and proffered to
+afford them all the aid and assistance in his power. He got into
+conversation with Mr Gordon, and found him so intelligent and gentlemanly
+in his manners, that he invited him to his house (which stood in the Shore
+Street, and on the east side of the Pend Wynd, and was that which formerly
+belonged to the late Mr Willis, collector of customs, and is presently
+possessed by Mrs Rodger, Mr Imrie, and others), until the vessel was
+repaired and made ready for sea. Mr Gordon thanked him for his kindness,
+and cordially accepted his hospitable invitation.
+
+Anstruther is a small country town, pleasantly situated on the banks of the
+Forth. It is a favourable specimen of a good old Scottish town. There is an
+old town-hall, and an old burgh school, (lately rebuilt,) an old jail, and
+an old bridge, besides an old church, now completely renewed and repaired,
+and forming, with the steeple, a handsome edifice, situated on the ridge or
+high ground above the town. The manse, a fine old building, placed on the
+summit of the same ridge near the church, was built by James Melville,
+minister of the place in the reign of James VI. It afterwards became the
+property of the Anstruther family, who, it is supposed, presented it to the
+town, or exchanged it for a house in the _Pend Wynd_, now belonging to Mr
+John Darsie, which was occupied for some time as the manse. At the time of
+which we write, there was a fine old baronial mansion, called "Anstruther
+Place," which stood near the present junction of the Crail and St Andrews
+roads. It belonged to the above-mentioned ancient family, the Anstruthers
+of Anstruther, whose progenitor was a Norman warrior that came to Britain
+with William the Conqueror. It was a mansion as large as Balcaskie,
+surmounted by a tower, and surrounded by fine old ancestral trees. A
+magnificent hall graced its interior, large enough to contain a company of
+volunteers, or local militiamen at drill, within its four corners. In
+addition to these old buildings, which gave a peculiar character to the
+place, there were a good many handsome new houses in the town of
+Anstruther, for it was far from being in a state of decay. Many wealthy and
+intelligent families chose it for their residence. It was the seat of a
+custom-house and excise-office. There was a branch of the Paisley Bank
+established in the town, under the management of a Mr Henry Russell, of the
+customs, and the bank office was kept in that shop now belonging to Mr
+James Reddie, ironmonger.[J] There was also a Greenland Whale Fishing
+Company connected with the town, of which a Bailie Johnston was manager.
+The company's place of business was situated in the East Green, and is now
+the property of Mr Robert Todd, and it is still known to old people by the
+name of the Greenland Close. There is, or was lately, an old stone placed
+over the door at the southern entrance into the yard, indicating the
+nature of the manufacture formerly carried on therein.[K] And before the
+Reform Bill was passed, Anstruther-Easter joined with the other four
+burghs of the district in sending a member to Parliament. Many thriving
+and respectable trades-people, whose forefathers had resided there for
+generations, and who looked upon the old buildings of their native town
+with something of the same sort of feeling as the landowner surveys the
+oaks which encircle his paternal hall, regarded it with pride and
+veneration. Perhaps no town of its size in Scotland could be named where
+so much good feeling prevailed among all classes. An eminent physician,
+who came to settle in the place, expressed his astonishment at the amount
+of private charity distributed. If a poor man met with any accident, every
+kind assistance was given him by his wealthier neighbours. If a small
+tradesman suffered a loss, or a carter his horse, or a widow's cow died, a
+subscription was set on foot, and the accident often turned out a gain,
+rather than a loss.
+
+The old Castle of Dreel, another ancient seat of the Anstruther family,
+stood on the east side of the Dreel Burn, at its entrance into the sea.
+Several curious traditions are in circulation respecting this old baronial
+residence and its proprietors. The castle has entirely disappeared, and its
+site is now partly occupied by fish-curing premises, and partly by a large
+antiquated tenement called Wightman's house. Some eminent men have been
+born in Anstruther, among whom may be mentioned Drs Chalmers and Tennant,
+and Professor Goodsir.
+
+Such is a brief description of Anstruther at the time of which we write.
+It is unnecessary to give a particular account of it at the present day,
+because its trade and commerce, its fishing, farming, and shipping
+interests--its new buildings and projected undertakings--its Sunday
+schools and provident societies, and savings' banks and subscription
+libraries, are familiar to the most of my readers.
+
+Captain Cunningham, the chief magistrate of Anstruther, was a wealthy and
+respectable shipowner, and his family consisted of a son about twenty, and
+a daughter about seventeen years of age, besides some younger children. Mr
+Gordon, their guest, then in his twenty-fifth year, was a light-hearted and
+rising young officer. He was, at first, a little impatient of the delay
+occasioned by the repairs of the vessel, the superintendence of which fell
+to be his duty; but circumstances soon occurred which checked this
+impatience, and more than reconciled him to his present quarters.
+
+As Christina Cunningham is destined to occupy no unimportant position in
+this narrative, some description of her will therefore be necessary.
+
+Let us endeavour to draw her portrait.
+
+She was not only beautiful, but full of life and animation, her smiling
+face being the true index of a cheerful, happy disposition. Gentle,
+amiable, affectionate, good-natured, she was beloved by all who knew her;
+although, from a maidenly modesty and a natural reserve, she was really
+known by few. With the figure of a sylph, and the face of a Hebe, she had
+luxuriant hair of the darkest possible chestnut, wreathed generally in
+thick cable plaits round her beautifully-shaped head, which, owing to the
+fashion of that day, as well as of the present, of wearing the bonnets on
+the shoulders, enabled her well-formed head to be seen to the greatest
+advantage. In the delicate outline of her faultless features, there was a
+harmony that made of her whole face a concerted loveliness of form, colour,
+and expression, that was irresistible. Hackneyed as the simile is, her skin
+was literally like snow, upon which blush rose-leaves seemed to have
+fallen. Her long-cut oriental-looking eyes, were "deeply, darkly,
+beautifully blue," while their heavy, snowy lids were fringed with long
+black silken lashes, that seemed to be continually trying to salute her
+cheeks, for which no one could possibly blame them. Her nose was, to say
+the least, irreproachable. Then came the rich red pouting under, and the
+short chisselled upper lip; the beautiful pearly arched teeth within them;
+the little round velvety chin, and the perfectly oval peach-like cheeks. In
+short, so pretty a creature was seldom to be seen.
+
+But Miss Cunningham was something _more_ than beautiful, she was amiable,
+and gentle, and affectionate; and besides, she was a Christian in the full
+and true sense of the word; and, young as she was, she had learned to look
+upon herself as a sinner, however innocent and pure she might appear in the
+eyes of men. While enjoying the blessings of health, peace, and competence,
+that providence had poured upon her, she looked upon them all as undeserved
+mercies, marks and tokens of her heavenly Father's love--a love manifested
+in man's redemption, in a way surpassing all understanding. Where on earth
+can there be found a more lovely character than that in which are blended
+true religion and natural amiability, rectitude of conduct, and tenderness
+of disposition?
+
+Residing under the same roof with Miss Cunningham, who can wonder that,
+before many weeks had elapsed, Mr Gordon was as devoted to Captain
+Cunningham's daughter as any young and ardent lover could be. Miss
+Cunningham was not conscious of any deeper feeling than that of
+affectionate friendship, nor was it till some time after that her heart
+told her, that Charles Gordon occupied a place in her affections, which
+could be held by one, and by one only.
+
+Several weeks had passed away, the repairs of the _Arethusa_ had been
+nearly completed, and the time was fast approaching when Charles Gordon
+would be obliged to depart from Anstruther. It happened, however, that a
+day or two previously to his leaving, a party of pleasure was planned for
+visiting Kellie Law, near Carnbee, and Macduff's Cave, near Earlsferry. The
+party consisted of Mr John Cunningham, junior, and his sister, and Mr
+Gordon and Miss Anderson, the daughter of an opulent merchant in the town.
+A vehicle having been hired for the occasion, a drive of about an hour
+brought the excursionists to Kellie Law. Having put up the horse and
+equipage at Gillingshill, and partaken of the hospitality of the occupants,
+they ascended this beautiful conical eminence, which is 800 feet above the
+level of the sea, and about four miles distant from it, and rises from the
+ridge running eastward from Largo Law. From the summit of Kellie Law, on
+which there is a large cairn of stones, one of the most magnificent views
+in Scotland is obtained. Immediately below, to the south, is a rich and
+beautiful stretch of country, all enclosed and highly cultivated; an
+extensive range of sea-coast, studded with numerous little towns and
+villages; the ample bosom of the Firth of Forth, enlivened with shipping
+and fishing-boats; and in the extreme distance, the coast of the Lothians,
+from St Abb's Head to Edinburgh. Near the south base of this hill stands
+Kellie Castle, a fine baronial seat of the Earls of Kellie, surrounded by
+old trees, and containing some princely apartments. Sir Thomas Erskine of
+Gogar was one of those who rescued James VI. from the attempt of the Earl
+of Gowrie to assassinate him at Perth in 1600, and killed the earl's
+brother with his own hand. He was created Viscount Fenton in 1606, and Earl
+of Kellie in 1619. The earldom merged into that of Marr on the death of
+Methven, tenth Earl of Kellie, who was great-grand-uncle to Sir Thomas
+Erskine of Cambo, the present baronet. It is said these earldoms may, and
+probably will, be again disjoined, and the titles and honours of Marr and
+Kellie inherited by two distinct noblemen.
+
+After enjoying the splendid prospect from Kellie Law, the party set off for
+Elie, on their way to view the caves in Kincraig Hill. The drive between
+Gillingshill and Elie is delightful. The turnpike road passes in some
+places through a long line of tall trees, arching high overhead, and
+showing, at the termination, picturesque vistas. It skirts Kilconquhar
+Loch, and affords not very distant views of Charlton and Balcarres,
+Colinsburgh and Cairnie House; and passing through Kilconquhar, the
+beautiful church of the parish and manse (which do credit to the heritors)
+are close by. The noble mansions of Elie and Kilconquhar, in the immediate
+neighbourhood, are also seen, surrounded with fine old trees, and standing
+in a rich and fertile district.
+
+On arriving at Elie, the party gave the horse and vehicle in charge of the
+hostler, and set out on foot for Kincraig. Immediately from the beach, at
+the south-west end of the parish, Kincraig Hill rises to the height of
+about two hundred feet above the level of the sea. Its southern front
+presents a nearly perpendicular rugged wall of trap rock, of the most
+picturesque appearance, and in these rocks are several caves, called
+Macduff's Cave, the Hall Cave, and the Devil's Cave. There is a tradition
+that Macduff, the Maormar or Earl of Fife, in his flight from the vengeance
+of Macbeth, was concealed in the cave which still bears his name, and was
+afterwards ferried across the Firth to Dunbar by the fishermen of the
+place, from which circumstance it was called "Earlsferry;" and, besides
+being constituted a royal burgh by Malcolm III, about 1057, it obtained the
+privilege, that the persons of all, in flight, who should cross the Firth
+from thence, should be for a time inviolable--no boat being allowed to
+leave the shore in pursuit, till those who were pursued were half-seas
+over.
+
+The party now resolved that they should partake of luncheon on the
+greensward, to fortify themselves for their proposed expedition among the
+cliffs. While the viands were being produced, Mr Gordon set forth of
+himself in quest of a very rare plant, which he was informed grew in this
+locality.
+
+On observing a group of persons gazing anxiously upwards at the overhanging
+cliffs, he joined them, inquiring on what their attention was so earnestly
+fixed. The persons addressed spoke not, but pointed to a spot about
+half-way up the face of the rock. Mr Gordon looked in the direction
+indicated, when, to his horror, he beheld a boy, apparently of about
+fifteen years of age, climbing along a stony ledge, which was so narrow as
+to be hardly visible from the spot where the group of terrified beholders
+was stationed. Scarcely had there been time for Mr Gordon to fix his eye on
+the human form that had reached so perilous a position, when a portion of
+the ledge of rock on which the unhappy boy was standing gave way--a loud
+scream rent the air, echoing through the cliffs--and in another instant all
+that remained of him was a lifeless, mangled corpse. The poor fellow's
+story is soon told. He was an idiot, and having wandered from his mother's
+side, had reached the fatal spot, no one knew how, and thus met a fearful
+death.
+
+His poor mother witnessed the dreadful catastrophe, and agonizing was her
+grief as she followed the body of her child, which was borne on the
+shoulders of the awe-struck villagers to her home. Mr Gordon also followed
+the body to the house, and, feeling that at such a time any attempt at
+comforting the childless widow would be of no avail, he merely placed a sum
+of money in the hands of a respectable-looking person, a bystander, for her
+use, and slowly and sick at heart he was in the act of returning to his
+friends, when he met Christina Cunningham, who was in search of him, for
+the purpose of bringing him back to luncheon. She saw that he was deadly
+pale, and hurriedly asked if he felt ill. He told her all that had
+happened.
+
+"Oh!" she exclaimed, "if it had been _you_!"
+
+"Well, Miss Cunningham," he replied, carelessly, "and if it had, few would
+have missed me. I should probably have had fewer mourners than that poor
+idiot boy."
+
+"Oh, how can you say so?" she returned, and bending down her head, became
+visibly agitated. And yet poor Christina knew not, even now, that she loved
+Charles Gordon: she understood not the true cause of the beatings of her
+disturbed heart. He looked at her. As he looked, a momentary smile passed
+over his features, which was soon exchanged for an expression of deep
+sorrow, as he thought of the lonely widow, bending over the lifeless form
+of her lost son. The sad story was related to the rest of the party, and
+all cheerfulness for the time was at an end.
+
+This was destined to be an eventful day. Another calamity--and one that,
+although it was not attended with fatal results, affected Charles more than
+that which had occurred--was yet to take place. We have said that there
+were some remarkable caves at this place, which had long been objects of
+interest to the traveller and excursionist. One there is in particular,
+called the Devil's Cave, which penetrates far into the heart of the rock,
+on the face of which lies its entrance. From the steepness of the path
+which leads into this cavern, it is rarely visited by tourists. The party,
+however, with perhaps more curiosity than prudence, determined to explore
+and visit this cave. A female guide was procured, and a candle supplied to
+each person. All being ready, in single file they entered the mouth of the
+cavern, carefully groping their way, not without difficulty. Miss Anderson
+soon lost courage, and turned back, stating that she and Mr Cunningham
+would return to the inn at Elie, and prepare tea; the other two resolved to
+proceed along with the guide. The aperture through which they had to pass
+became at length so low, and so narrow, that a consultation was held, and
+it was agreed that it would be prudent to return. Charles now led the way
+as they retraced their steps. He had not proceeded far when he heard a
+heavy fall, and turning quickly round, beheld, to his horror, Christina
+stretched upon the humid soil of the cavern; her eyes were closed, and her
+candle had fallen from her hand. Whether bad air had struck her down or
+not, he could not tell. For an instant he believed her to be dead, but,
+bending over her, he perceived that she breathed. What was now to be done?
+Only one plan lay before him which he could adopt. Giving his candle to the
+guide, and directing her to keep in front of him, holding the light so as
+he could see, he raised Miss Cunningham in his arms, and with all the
+strength he was master of, bore her along in the direction of the entrance.
+The roof of the cave was so low, that it was impossible to maintain an
+upright position, and his strength so entirely failed him that he was
+obliged to stop and take a rest before he could proceed with his precious
+burden. On reaching the mouth or entrance of the now detested cave, signs
+of returning consciousness began to appear in the poor sufferer. On
+breathing the fresh air of heaven, she opened her eyes for a moment, then
+closed them again, drawing several long and apparently painful
+respirations. Charles placed her on a grassy bank, and seating himself
+beside her, supported her by placing his arm round her waist. The guide was
+despatched for water. By and by, Christina, looking round, said with her
+own sweet smile, "I am better now." Charles pressed the form of her whom he
+already loved so well, to himself, and then assisting her to rise, with
+slow and measured steps they returned to Elie.
+
+"You are very tired, I fear, and I am the cause," said Christina, as she
+leaned on Charles's arm, turning her face to his.
+
+For a moment their eyes met, those of Christina fell, while a shade of
+colour tinged her still pallid face. She had met a look in Charles's face
+that she had never seen there before. She again relapsed into silence.
+
+Charles, in reply to her remark, uttered something that was inaudible; the
+name of "Christina," however, was substituted for that of "Miss
+Cunningham."
+
+Any endeavour to conceal what had occurred would have been useless. The
+pale face of the sufferer plainly told that she had been ill, and general
+was the consternation of all on hearing what had happened. Charles resigned
+her to the care of Miss Anderson and the hostess, and, passing to the
+little parlour of the village inn, flung himself on the sofa in a state of
+complete exhaustion.
+
+Long he remained buried in thought. At length his good nature and
+compassion prompted him to visit once more the poor, childless widow, while
+preparations were being made for their return to Anstruther. She was alone
+with the body of her idiot son. Carefully had she cleansed away the blood
+and dust from his face, which now appeared to exhibit more intelligence in
+death than it had done in life.
+
+As Charles entered, the poor Irish widow exclaimed,--"May the blessing of
+the Great God, who is above us this day, be about ye, and wid ye for ever
+and ever, my jewel young gentleman!" She held in her hand the money that he
+had left for her, and added, "Sure isn't there enough here for the poor
+lone widow, to buy her darlint son a dacent coffin for to lay him in the
+could earth, in the land of the stranger, before she goes far, far away, to
+a land beyant the rowling say (referring to America). You've given me money
+when I wanted it sore, an' the blessin' of the lone widow woman will be wid
+you wherever ye go; but none can give me back my boy! Oh, Patrick, jewel!
+why did ye die? Och, my poor boy! my poor boy! my poor boy!"
+
+The tears came into Charles's eyes as he listened to this pathetic
+lamentation, but longer he could not remain. He succeeded, however, in
+learning that she had resolved to accede to a proposal of her sister's, to
+join her in America, which his gift had provided her with the means of
+accomplishing.
+
+The drive to Anstruther was speedily made out, and in few days Miss
+Cunningham was quite restored to her usual state of health and enjoyment.
+
+Time rolled on. The _Arethusa_ has sailed. Mr Gordon has returned to
+Deptford, and resumed his ordinary duties. Has all intercourse ceased
+between him and Miss Cunningham? Assuredly not. Many a kind letter has
+passed between them. She has been to England visiting his sister, at that
+sister's kind invitation, and is come back to Anstruther. Charles has
+proposed to her, and been accepted, and has obtained a special licence for
+their marriage. He comes back to Anstruther to claim his bride.
+
+If you, my reader, were at this moment greedily perusing a modern novel,
+you would here be gratified by a very romantic and touching account, three
+or four pages long at least, of the meeting of the two ardent lovers after
+a long separation; smiles and tears, sighs and sobs, broken accents,
+protestations of eternal love and fidelity, and all that sort of thing.
+Here you will find nothing of the kind. I very much doubt myself as to
+whether anything of the kind took place in this instance at all; I rather
+imagine the meeting was a calm and quietly happy one, without anything
+strikingly romantic or stage-like about it. But even suppose there had
+been, and that I had been present to see, (which, by the by, would have
+been an awkward enough situation for me, or any other third party, to have
+found himself in) ought we to have disclosed it? Certainly not; such a
+scene, every one knows, ought to be strictly private and confidential
+Suffice it then to say, that doubtless both, parties found themselves
+extremely comfortable and happy.
+
+Let me now convey you, in thought, backwards one hundred and fourteen
+years, and place you in the street of Pittenweem, opposite the Scottish
+Episcopal Chapel. We see a crowd; let us inquire what is the occasion of
+it.
+
+"What is this crowd collecting for, so early this morning?"
+
+"There's going to be a wedding, ma'am."
+
+"Do you know whose wedding it is?"
+
+"No ma'am, I don't; I'm only here to keep order--nothing else to do with
+it."
+
+It is some time since we have seen a wedding, suppose we go into church.
+Here we are. We shall have a nice view of them from that front pew in the
+gallery. How tastefully the chapel is decorated with foliage and flowers!
+Make haste! I hear the carriages coming, that will do. Wait! here they
+come, only fancy, it's Christina Cunningham, and--Who? Charles Gordon, I
+declare. How nicely he looks in his naval uniform. Then the reports were
+all true. Poor Christina! she's very much agitated. I suppose being married
+must be rather nervous work. The clergyman who is marrying them is a
+relation of the bridegroom's--he's rector of a large parish near
+Deptford--how beautifully he reads. And there is our dear old clergyman, Mr
+Spence, assisting him, how happy he looks. They say he has known the bride
+since she was an infant, and the bridegroom for some time. There!--she's no
+longer Christina Cunningham! I wonder where they are going to after
+breakfast? Blessings on them both!
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[I] On account of the many accidents which happen almost yearly at the Carr
+Rock, some plan for marking its dangerous locality has long been an object
+of deep solicitude. The writer recollects of a round tower of some height
+having been built on the rock, on the same principle as that on the Bell
+Rock, but it was soon overthrown by the first winter's storm, because there
+was not a sufficient surface of rock at the base to admit of a strong
+enough building being placed upon it. But might not an erection be made of
+strong bars of iron, and a large bell placed on its summit, with an iron
+cylinder in the centre, perforated with holes to admit the sea water?
+Within the cylinder let a powerful floater be placed, which by the
+perpetual action of the tides' ebb and flow, would cause the bell to ring,
+and so give timeous warning of danger near. Or, another method might be
+adopted, viz., Let a steady officer be stationed at Fifeness, whose duty it
+should be to fire a gun, say a six or eight-pounder, at short intervals in
+snow storms, or in thick and foggy weather, when neither the land during
+the day, nor the stars or lights at night, can be seen. In either way the
+expense would be trifling, and the benefit might be great. Captains of
+steamers and of other vessels enveloped in the fog would then, on hearing
+the sound of the bell or gun, know where they were, and would take their
+bearings from Fifeness accordingly.
+
+[J] The principles of banking seem to have been imperfectly understood in
+our fathers' days, for it appears that, at the Anstruther branch, there was
+a certain fixed sum _per month_ allotted for bills to be discounted. When
+that sum was exhausted, it mattered not what further sum was wanted, there
+were no more discounts allowed that month. It followed, that the most
+_needy_ were always, at the beginning of the month, the _earliest_
+customers, and, consequently, post-due bills became the rule, retired bills
+the exception. Under these circumstances, it is not difficult to foresee
+what would be the result. The bank was closed at no distant period, and the
+agent, it is said, lost L1500 of his own money. No other banking company
+attempted to establish a bank in Anstruther till May 1832, when the
+National Bank of Scotland opened a branch under the management of Mr F.
+Conolly, town-clerk, which he conducted successfully for twenty-five years.
+A handsome new building has lately been erected for the use of this bank.
+Two other branch banks have been opened in the town.
+
+[K] There were two vessels belonging to the company, one named the _Hawk_,
+and the other the _Rising Sun_. The _Hawk_ was lost on her first voyage,
+and Bailie Meldrum--some time chief magistrate of Anstruther-Wester--one of
+the crew, lost the toes of both his feet by frost-bite. The undertaking did
+not prove a successful one; the company was dissolved; and the premises,
+which were sold to the late John Miller, senior, shipowner in Anstruther,
+afterwards became, as I said, the property of Mr Todd.
+
+
+
+
+A LEGEND OF CALDER MOOR.
+
+
+It was a beautiful evening in the month of September--the air still and
+serene, forming a delightful change from the sultry heat of the day, which
+had been oppressive in the extreme. Nature seemed to have redoubled her
+energies; the swallows twittered cheerfully over the small pond; the bees
+returned laden with the rich fruits of their industry, humming their
+satisfaction; the heath sent its fragrance around; and the few sheep that
+Simon Wallace attended were nibbling earnestly the stunted grass, having
+spent the greater part of the day in the shade of a small knoll, listless
+from the heat which oppressed them. In the midst stood Simon, enjoying the
+scene around him, which, barren and desolate as it might be in the eyes of
+a stranger, was to him the loveliest spot in the universe; nor would he
+have bade it farewell to dwell in the most fertile vale in the Lothians.
+Here he had been born sixty summers before, and here he had enjoyed as much
+of happiness as falls to the lot of man. Humble and content, his wishes
+were bounded by the few acres of moss land that his fathers had reclaimed
+from the waste, and his knowledge of the busy world that lay beyond the
+hills that bounded the horizon around his humble cottage, was derived from
+a few books. Farther than the next market-town, Mid-Calder, he had never
+been, save upon one occasion--an important epoch in his life--when, upon
+some business of importance, concerning his lease, he had visited the
+capital, the wonders of which had been a never-failing subject of discourse
+at his humble hearth; yet, Simon was not ignorant, for he made good profit
+of the few books he could procure; and there was one--the fountain of all
+knowledge--he knew so well, that even Esdras, the holy scribe, could
+scarcely have found him at fault, in pointing out all the most beautiful of
+the inspired passages. His constant companion, he had been reading it on
+the hill for the last hour, and now, before retiring to his home for the
+night, he stood there in mental prayer, his face turned to the setting sun,
+which sunk beyond a sea of clouds, tinged with the most gorgeous colours,
+and his mind away among the bright realms of eternal felicity. A faint
+breeze had arisen, and the heavy clouds began to sail along, denoting rain,
+when he gave his orders to his faithful dog, to gather his sheep for the
+night, and urged him to be active, to enable him to proceed home before the
+shower came on. Looking along in the direction of the road that led through
+the moor, he thought he could perceive, at a considerable distance, three
+objects, urging their way forward; and, through the gloom, he with
+difficulty made them out to be a man and two females upon horseback. A
+feeling of surprise crossed his mind, as he saw travellers journeying over
+the moor, at a period when it was not usual, except upon urgent business,
+to leave Mid-Calder at a late hour, and proceed along roads almost
+impassable, with no other prospect than a night journey, in dangerous and
+troubled times. Musing on the circumstance, he had just reached the road on
+his way to his cottage, when the travellers came up and accosted him with
+an inquiry if they could find shelter for the night, as they had been
+overtaken by the storm, and one of the females had been taken suddenly ill
+since they had left the last town. With an apology for the poorness of his
+accommodation, Simon made them welcome to his home, and led the way
+homewards. Neither of the females spoke; but he thought he heard one of
+them utter, at intervals, a stifled groan, while the other supported her on
+her saddle, and the male led her horse over the rough path to prevent its
+stumbling. A few minutes brought them to the house, and they were soon
+seated by the blazing hearth, while Helen Wallace was busy preparing for
+them some humble refreshments; but the lady continued to become worse--she
+had been taken in labour, prematurely, as the female said, from the fatigue
+of travelling. She appeared to be of a rank far above her companions, who
+treated her with lowly attentions; but there was something harsh and
+forbidding in the manner and appearance of the man, which made Helen quail,
+and feel uneasy in his presence; and the female, who was above the middle
+age, and of a masculine appearance, had a harshness of voice and manner,
+that was disagreeable, even to the rustic wife of the moorland farmer. The
+young and beautiful female they attended--apparently not above eighteen,
+pale and dejected, her eyes red and swollen with weeping--had not, as yet,
+uttered a single word; but, apparently fearful of her attendants,
+especially the female, who sat close by her at the fire, had cast several
+stolen and imploring glances at Helen, and seemed anxious to speak, but
+afraid to give utterance to her thoughts.
+
+The lady rapidly grew worse, and was put into their only spare bed, while
+Helen requested her husband to take one of the horses and ride to the town
+for assistance. This the man promptly forbade--saying, that the other
+attendant, a skilful woman, was capable of doing all that was required at
+such a time, with the assistance of the farmer's wife; that they were on
+their way to the residence of his master when the present unfortunate
+illness had occurred much sooner than was expected; that he had in the
+_valise_ with him everything requisite; and that for any trouble the farmer
+or his wife might be put to, they should be amply rewarded. The cottage
+consisted of only one apartment, divided by a hallen or thin partition,
+which did not extend beyond the centre of the floor, to protect the
+fire-place from the blasts of winter; and Simon and the stranger retired to
+a small distance from the door, where they stood and saw the full moon
+rising in grandeur in the east. In vain the farmer endeavoured to gain any
+information from his companion of who the strangers were, and whither they
+were going. He got only an evasive answer. His position was extraordinary
+and uncomfortable. Three hours had passed: no person appeared from the
+house; his unsocial acquaintance scarcely spoke; a scowl in his eye, and a
+shade of ferocity in his countenance, alarmed him; his whole soul,
+sometimes intent upon some signal from the cottage, at other periods became
+absent; and he clutched at the sword that hung by his side, as if he meant
+to draw it and attack the farmer, endeavouring again, in a husky voice, to
+make an apology for the inconvenience they had put him to. At length Helen
+came to the door, and requested them to come into the house, for the lady
+was now better.
+
+"What has she got?" inquired Simon.
+
+"Two beautiful boys as ever I saw," answered the wife; "--but one of them
+is dead, and the mother is very weak."
+
+While this and some other conversation passed between the farmer and his
+wife, the man and the woman were busy whispering at the other end of the
+house; but they at length approached the hearth and partook of some
+refreshment which had been prepared for them. The farmer offered the
+female, for the remainder of the night, the use of their only other bed;
+but both the man and the woman objected to this proposition--saying, that
+they preferred to sit by the hearth and attend to their mistress, and
+requesting that their hosts should retire to it themselves. This they did,
+and soon both fell into a sound sleep. Helen awoke about two hours
+afterwards, and, to her astonishment, found that neither of the two
+attendants was in the cottage. She arose and went to the bed of the sick
+lady, who lay apparently in a deep and troubled sleep, with the babe in her
+bosom. She looked for the body of its brother; but it was gone. She felt
+alarmed, and gently awaking Simon, in a whisper told him to arise. He was
+soon dressed, and, on going out, found that the strangers were gone, the
+horses were away, and with them everything that had been brought, even to
+the dress the lady had worn upon her arrival. In great anxiety they
+approached the bed: the lady still appeared in a deep sleep; her breathing
+was heavy and laborious, every attempt to awaken her was in vain; her eyes
+were opened and closed unconsciously, and without a word of utterance.
+
+"Surely," said Helen, with clasped hands, "that woman hasna poisoned the
+puir young creature wi' that mixture she requested me to gie her just
+before I ca'ed you into the house. She said it was to compose her to sleep.
+She had offered it to the lady hersel, who, being afraid o' her, wadna
+taste it. Then she gave me the cup, and I offered it. O Simon! what a
+piteous look she threw upon me, as she said, 'From you I will take
+anything; you, I know, will not do me harm'--and she drank it from my
+hands. Surely, surely, I am not guilty of her blood, if death was in that
+cup!"
+
+Here the poor woman sank upon the side of the bed in a passion of tears,
+while Simon stood the image of horror, gazing alternately upon his wife and
+the unconscious lady in the bed. Sinking upon his knees, he prayed for
+counsel in this hour of distress, and his mind became more calm and
+collected.
+
+"Helen," said he, "you will not be afraid to stay by the poor young
+creature, while I go and catch Mally, and ride as fast as she can carry me
+to the manse, and bring the minister, who is a skilful man, and who,
+perhaps, may be able to do something for the sufferer; at least, he will
+advise us what is best for us to do in this hour of need."
+
+"I will, indeed, be eerie," answered Helen--"very eerie; but do mak all the
+haste ye can, and I will tent baith mother and bairn until ye return."
+
+In a very short time, the farmer was on his way to the manse, and soon,
+along with the minister, on his return to his cottage; but, before they
+arrived, the victim had breathed her last sigh.
+
+Helen was at the door, weeping and wringing her hands. She blamed herself
+as being the cause of the young mother's death; nor was it until after the
+minister had prayed, and assured her that no guilt could attach to her,
+that she became composed. On his way to the cottage, the farmer had
+informed him of every circumstance, as far as it had happened under his own
+eye:--That the young lady had been very ill; that the female appeared
+expert at her duty, and kept Helen as much at a distance from her patient
+as she could; that the young creature wished her much to be near her, as if
+she had something to communicate; but the attendant always told her, in a
+harsh manner, that it was improper for her to speak, and found always some
+excuse to send her from the bedside; that the lady appeared to be in great
+awe of her; and that the first boy, the one that was alive, Helen kept at
+the hearth until the other came; that she heard it cry once, and inquired
+what it was, when the assistant said it was also a boy, but dead, and she
+threw it from her upon the bed; that, after a time, she took a vial from
+her pocket, and poured it into a cup, requesting the lady to drink it, as
+it was a composing draught, but she put it away from her; and that the poor
+murdered creature was persuaded by Helen to accept it at her hands.
+
+The minister having drawn up a circumstantial detail of all the
+circumstances narrated, bade the sorrowing couple adieu, and departed, to
+send one of his maids to assist Helen, and to stay with her through the
+day. He vowed to make the horrid transaction as public as possible, in
+hopes of discovering the two wretches and their employer, and promised to
+call in the evening, and direct what was further to be done. He rode direct
+to Mid-Calder; and, on inquiry at the hostelry, if any such travellers had
+been there the day before, found that they had passed through the town,
+only stopping to bait their horses, and no particular attention had been
+paid to them by the landlord of the house. Here his inquiries necessarily
+terminated. In the meantime, Helen and her assistant had been employed
+laying out the corpse of the murdered woman, and tending the orphan boy.
+Tied by a silken cord, a curious gold ring, of massive workmanship, was
+suspended from her neck, and lay resting upon her bosom.
+
+"A true love-gift," ejaculated Helen, "an exchange o' plighted faiths.
+Dearly had you loved the giver, for, even in sore distress and death it lay
+upon thy bosom. Cruelly has your love been requited; but rest in
+peace--your sorrows are past. I will keep this for your babe, and, as soon
+as he can speak, I will tell him where I found it. I fear it will be a' I
+will ever be able to inform him of either father or mother." She then
+placed the ring in her own bosom, until she could shew it to her husband;
+renewed her offices to the dead; took the babe in her lap, and, weeping
+over it, resolved, as she thought of its desolate state, without a relation
+in the world, that, so long as she had life, she would be a parent to
+it--for death had been a spoiler in her own family of three sons, all of
+whom it had been her misfortune to bury.
+
+The minister arrived again in the evening. They shewed him the ring, and
+told where it had been found. He examined it closely; but there were
+neither armorial bearings nor cypher upon it, to lead even to a guess of
+the person to whom it had belonged--yet the make and chasing were peculiar,
+and might lead a person who had once examined it to remember it. The mother
+was interred; the babe baptized by the name of William, put out to nurse;
+and the usual routine of the cottage once more restored. The boy grew up
+under the roof of his kind protectors. To his education the minister paid
+particular attention, and was proud of his pupil--for William Wallace, as
+he was called, did honour to the labour bestowed upon him. He was quick to
+learn, yet his mind was not given to literary pursuits--for he delighted in
+feats of strife, and dwelt with rapture on the feats of the warrior. Sir
+William Wallace was the hero of his youthful imagination--and he longed to
+be of man's stature, only that he might be a soldier. Thus years rolled on.
+William was now eighteen years of age; the labour of the farm, in which he
+engaged, was irksome to him; yet he restrained his inclinations, and toiled
+on for his benefactors, who had both become so frail that they required his
+aid. By the time he arrived at his twentieth year, his foster parents died
+within a few months of each other, and left him possessor of their little
+wealth. When spring returned, he made known to his benefactor, the
+minister, his resolution of leaving the moor and going into the busy world.
+The stock was turned into cash, and William, bidding a long adieu to the
+scenes of his youth, set off for the capital, accompanied by the prayers of
+the good man for his success. Since the death of his protectors he had worn
+his mother's ring, and he had a vague hope that it might, by some way or
+other, lead to a discovery of his parents, and enable him to avenge her
+murder. All the mild lessons of his teacher upon this point had been vain.
+His mind dwelt with a gloomy satisfaction upon a just retribution. At times
+his feelings rose to agony--the idea that the guilty individual might be
+his own parent, often flashed across his mind and made him love his
+ignorance; but, nature prevailing, his wonted desire recurred again, and,
+musing thus, he rode on towards Edinburgh, now with the reins resting upon
+his horse's neck; and then, when urged by his troubled mind, urging forward
+his steed. He stopped at the borders of the moor, and turned towards the
+scenes so dear to him, where he had passed what of his life had gone by in
+innocence and peace. For the first time, he felt alone in the world; and a
+few involuntary tears fell from his eyes--a token of regret due to the
+memory of departed worth, and a pleasing recollection of scenes endeared to
+him by many tender associations. Thus in pensive meditation he rode on,
+undetermined as to his future mode of life. Prior to his setting out,
+everything had appeared to his imagination of easy execution; but now he
+began to encounter difficulties he had never dreamed of before; and the
+sight of Edinburgh, which he reached before nightfall, did not diminish
+them. The vastness of the city overpowered him; the stateliness of the
+buildings appeared to him the work of giants; and he almost shrank from
+entering it, through a feeling of his own littleness. In his approach, his
+eyes had been constantly fixed upon the buildings of the Castle, perched
+high above the town, and crowning the almost circular, bold, and craggy
+rocks on which it stands. Along the line of houses to the east, that
+stretched farther than his eye could trace, the setting sun threw his
+departing rays, and innumerable windows glanced like burnished gold; while
+the diadem-shaped spire of St Giles', towering above all, in the centre,
+seemed to proclaim her the queen of cities. With all the impatience of
+youth, he urged on his horse, expecting to see all the inhabitants of so
+fair a place themselves fair. But scarce had he entered the West-Port gate,
+when his feelings were shocked to witness, on every side, squalid misery
+and wretchedness, and every token of poverty and vice. He put up for the
+night at one of the many inns of the Grassmarket; and, revolving in his
+mind what he had already seen, retired to bed.
+
+Early next morning, he arose, dressed, and sallied forth to gratify his
+curiosity; but, with no one to whom he could communicate the feelings that
+every new object awakened, he felt solitary among the surrounding crowds.
+On the second day after his arrival, as he walked in the Meadows, he
+observed among the crowd of well-dressed pedestrians that thronged the
+walks, an elderly gentleman, who eyed him with marked attention. William's
+curiosity was excited, and he threw himself again in his way. The old
+gentleman bowed.
+
+"I beg pardon," said he--"may I be so bold as to request your name?--for I
+feel as if you and I had not now met for the first time. Yet it cannot be;
+for it is now above twenty years since that time, and you do not appear to
+be more than that time old."
+
+"My name is William Wallace," answered William, with a beating heart. "I
+never had the honour to see you until to-day."
+
+"Wallace? Wallace?" said the old gentleman, musing. "No---my friend's name
+was not Wallace; we were both of Monro's regiment--his name was Seaton; but
+the likeness was so strong that you must excuse me for addressing you."
+
+William's heart sank--he remained silent for a few minutes--his face was
+alternately flushed and pale--a new train of ideas crowded upon his
+mind--he wished to speak, but he could not find utterance--wiped his
+forehead with his handkerchief, and went through the other forms of
+confusion and bashfulness. His new acquaintance looked upon him, much
+surprised at his emotion; and, with an energy bordering on violence, seized
+his hand.
+
+"Young man," said he, "that ring was once the property of my friend: how
+came you by it? He valued it above all things, nor would he have parted
+with it but with life. At this moment, I almost think the last long twenty
+years of my life a dream, and that I am still a captain in Monro's
+regiment. You must come and dine with me, and explain how this came into
+your possession."
+
+"With pleasure," replied William. "It is a sad account, I have to give, and
+I am most impatient to learn something of its possessor. Alas! I fear I
+must feel too great an interest in him."
+
+"The early friend I allude to," replied the old man, "was an honour to his
+country. A braver or more generous heart, no officer in the army possessed.
+This you will acknowledge when I have told you all. Alas! poor Seaton!
+shall I ever see you again?"
+
+Thus conversing, they reached the house of Colonel Gordon, one of the
+principal flats of a house in the High Street. After they had dined,
+William gave a distinct account of his birth and the death of his mother,
+and a modest outline of himself. His hearer listened to him with the
+greatest interest, only interrupting him at the account of his mother's
+death by an exclamation of horror.
+
+"Henry Seaton," he cried, "had no hand in this, I could pledge my head for
+him. I am strongly impressed, young man, with the idea, that my friend has
+been cruelly injured, and his generous heart wounded past recovery by this
+deed of darkness. Savage monsters! worse than demons! would to God I had
+you in my power!" And he walked about the room in a state of violent
+excitement. "William," said he again, "I have no doubt you are the son of
+Henry Seaton, my more than brother; and, so far as is in my power, I shall
+assist you in the discovery of your parents, and avenge the murder of your
+mother. I shall now give you my story:--I was an ensign in Munro's regiment
+of Scots, serving in Flanders, when your father (for I have no doubt that
+he was such) joined us, early in the spring of the year 1706, a short time
+before the battle of Ramilies. We were both of the same company, and of
+congenial minds; so that we soon became bosom friends, and were ever as
+much as possible in each other's society. In battle we fought side by side,
+without being jealous of each other's fame. In our first battle, that of
+Ramilies, the Scots had more than their share of the loss, and I had the
+misfortune to be shot in the leg early in the action. When I fell, your
+father saved me from the sword of the enemy, and bore me out of the line at
+the hazard of his own life; for we were at the time, pressed by a strong
+division of the French. I soon recovered, and joined the ranks, when our
+friendship, if possible, was stronger than ever. At the battle of Oudenard,
+where we drove the French from their trenches, your father led on his men,
+over the works, with too much eagerness, and was not supported for a time,
+as the enemy sprung a mine and made the ditch impassable, killing and
+wounding a great many of the advancing column. Bravely did he and his
+handful of Scots stand their ground, surrounded and overwhelmed by numbers;
+but they were dropping fast, for they fought hand to hand, and they were so
+pressed by the enemy, and hemmed in, that they could not fire, for fear of
+killing their own men. I saw the perilous situation of my friend; with the
+greatest efforts, I and a few noble countrymen got clambered up to their
+rescue. At our arrival, there were not more than six of them upon their
+feet--all were covered with wounds and spent with fatigue. Your father
+still raged like a lion in the toils--all swords were aimed at him--he
+seemed invulnerable. I had reached his side, when a severe wound laid him
+insensible at my feet; but I stood over him, and backed by my brave
+followers, we fought till the French gave way before the numbers of our
+troops that had forced the works and poured in on every side. I raised him
+up--the blood streamed from his side--he appeared to be dead--his eyes were
+closed--I placed my hand upon his breast--all appeared still--then
+mournfully I supported his head on my knee, and saw his eyelids move, and
+then a faint heaving of the breast. I snatched the canteen of a dead
+soldier that lay by my side; there was some wine in it; I applied it to his
+lips--he opened his eyes."
+
+"'Edward,' said he, 'I thank you. I fear my career of glory is run. I hope
+we have beat the enemy. I die content. Farewell!' And he sank again into
+insensibility."
+
+"All this had passed in the course of a couple of minutes The enemy had
+made a fresh stand, and were forcing our troops back upon the
+intrenchments. I gently laid him down, and, rallying the men who were
+retreating, again forced them back. The enemy began to give way in all
+directions, and we followed up our advantage until the order for ceasing
+the pursuit was given. For a time I had forgot everything, in the
+impetuosity of battle; but, after rallying my company, and marching back to
+our camp, I took a file of men, and proceeded to the spot where I had left
+my friend. I looked for some time in vain. So active had been the work of
+the pillagers that followed the camp, that the dead and the dying had been
+stripped; and by the countenance alone could one discover a friend from a
+foe, I examined every face amidst a heap of dead bodies, and discovered my
+friend. Life was not yet extinct. I had him removed to my tent, and went
+for a surgeon, who examined and dressed his wound, but gave me no hopes of
+his recovery. He was carefully removed into Oudenard, where our hospitals
+were established, and for some days his life was despaired of; but youth
+and a good constitution prevailed, and he again bade fair for life and
+happiness. As soon as he was enabled to converse, I was at my usual place
+by his bedside, when, after thanking me for his preservation, he expressed
+the deepest sorrow for the loss of his ring, which had been torn from his
+finger by the pillagers.
+
+"I had, until now, scarcely paid any attention to this bauble; but
+remembered, when he spoke of it, of having seen at all times a ring upon
+his finger. I expressed my concern at his loss, but said, that it ought not
+to give him so much concern, at a time when a miraculously spared life
+called for his gratitude to God.
+
+"'I value it next to life itself,' was his reply, 'for it was the gift of
+my mother, and had been in our family for ages. Publish among the sutlers,
+my good friend, that fifty dollars will be given for the ring, upon its
+delivery to me; and twenty dollars to any one who will give information
+that will lead to its recovery.'
+
+"I promised, and left him, consoled with the hopes of again getting the
+jewel; yet I could not help thinking my friend too profuse in his offer. I
+immediately published in the camp, a reward of ten dollars for the ring, or
+five for any information to lead to its recovery, and next morning the ring
+was delivered, and the ten dollars paid to one of the fiends in human
+shape, that, like vultures, follow in the track of war. My fingers itched
+to cut the ruffian down, but I restrained myself. I paid him the promised
+reward with a hearty curse--the word of a soldier is sacred; and it was at
+this time that I examined the bauble so minutely, that I never can forget
+it. I never saw joy more vividly expressed than when he placed it upon his
+emaciated finger, and said I had given him a medicine that would quickly
+recover him.
+
+"'Shade of my sainted mother,' he ejaculated, 'I have still thy latest
+gift, and it shall be parted with only with my latest breath.' And he
+kissed it fervently as he spoke."
+
+"In the course of a few weeks, he was convalescent, and again joined the
+regiment. Each officer had received one step of promotion, and our duties
+went on in the usual routine, though we were principally occupied in
+foraging parties. It was the depth of winter, and provisions were scarce.
+Henry had the command of a strong foraging party; and, on one occasion, he
+came in his route to a large farm-house, where he hoped to obtain supplies.
+Approaching the house, he heard cries of distress and supplication in
+female voices. He put his men into rapid motion, and rushed forward alone.
+Passing a thick fence, he saw a party of Dutch soldiers, who had
+anticipated him, and some of whom were at the door, guarding it; but the
+greater part were within the house. The cries became more piteous and
+piercing. He drew his sword and rushed past the sentinels at the door, who
+attempted to prevent him; but the view of his men coming up unnerved them.
+A scene of horror met his eyes: the male inmates of the house were bound,
+and soldiers were standing over them, ready to plunge their bayonets into
+their bosoms at the least movement, while others were proceeding to acts of
+violence towards the females. With a voice of thunder, he commanded them to
+desist, and, seizing the officer, hurled him from the terrified and
+fainting daughter of the farmer. The Dutchman, in rage, drew and made a
+furious lounge at him, which he parried; and his men entering at the same
+time, they drove the others out of the house. My friend, in French,
+requested the Dutchman to follow his men; but he refused, and challenged
+him to single combat, for the insult he said he had received at his
+hands--adding some opprobrious epithets, which roused the choler of the
+brave Englishman. In an instant, they were engaged hand to hand; but short
+was the strife--the Dutchman fell dead on the scene of his violence, and
+his men returned to the camp, and made a complaint against Monro's
+regiment, which was like to have led to some serious consequences; but,
+after your father stating the circumstances to the colonel, the latter
+waited upon the Duke of Marlborough, and we heard no more of the affair.
+
+"The last action we were in together, we both escaped unhurt; yet it was
+the bloodiest one we had ever been in. Of all the honours of Malplaquet,
+the Monroes had their full share; for, although the Duke did not like the
+Scots, and used at times to throw a sarcasm at their country, he always
+gave them a situation of danger, either from dislike or a reliance on their
+courage. About twelve months after Malplaquet, your father left the service
+and retired into France. Peace was now evidently at hand, and an armistice
+had been agreed upon and signed by several of the allies of the English;
+and our gallant leader was now in disgrace. Much as Henry Seaton and I
+esteemed each other in all other points, we had no fellowship in politics.
+I was and am a Whig; he, a Tory of the first water--a devoted adherent of
+the exiled family; yet, high as parties ran at this time in cities, we had
+no differences in the camp, where each respected his neighbour's opinion,
+nor overvalued his own. The last letter I received from him was about
+twelve months after we parted. It was dated St Germain's. He said, and in a
+mysterious sort of way, half-earnest, half-jest, that, in a short time, we
+might meet, to try the force of our different opinions. I, at the time,
+only laughed at it, and returned, for answer, that I had no doubt we would
+both do our best, and leave the issue to the Disposer of events. Soon
+after, Mar's ill-concerted rebellion took place, in which I have no doubt
+your father was an active agent; but I have, since this last letter, lost
+all trace of him. Your being born in the year '16 would lead me to suppose
+that he must have married your mother about the time of the Rebellion,
+either in Scotland or France."
+
+That Henry Seaton was his father, William earnestly prayed; but how was he
+to ascertain this fact? He knew not; neither could his kind host assist
+him. The lapse of time was so great, that, in all probability, he was dead;
+and, with a mind worse at ease than it had ever been, he took leave of the
+Colonel, promising to call again in the forenoon of the following day, to
+consult what steps he should take to follow out the information he had so
+unexpectedly acquired. He reached the inn, and retired to rest; but sleep
+had fled his pillow. A thousand ideas crowded his mind; method after method
+was canvassed, each for a time offering assured success, but, upon more
+mature consideration, being rejected. Day dawned, and found him as
+unresolved as when he left Colonel Gordon. As soon as it was consistent
+with propriety, he waited upon the Colonel, by whom he was greeted
+heartily.
+
+"Well, tell me," said he, "the fruit of your invention for tracing out your
+father, and I will tell you what has occurred to me as the best mode of
+procedure."
+
+William, without hesitation, told the state of his mind, and his utter
+inability to think of any feasible plan, from his ignorance of the world
+and its ways.
+
+"Poor fellow! I do not wonder at what you tell me," replied the Colonel.
+"Before many years go over your head, you and the world will be better
+acquainted. My own opinion is, that you must forthwith proceed to France,
+where you will find many of the adherents of the Stuarts. The young Charles
+Edward is easy of access to Scotchmen, for he is anxious to make adherents;
+and I have no doubt that he, or others of his followers, will be able to
+give you every information about Henry Seaton. But you must beware how you
+acquit yourself, lest they cajole you into their party; for, if your father
+be alive and acknowledge you, the trial will be greater than you are aware,
+to resist him."
+
+"I will at once follow your wise counsel," replied William. "I trust--nay,
+my heart tells me I shall be successful. Of my ever being an adherent of
+the Stuart family, I have no fears. Before that can happen, I must first
+forget all I have ever learned, from my first dawn of reason up to this
+present moment. The first tears of sorrow I ever shed were for the woes of
+others, drawn forth by the tale of the sufferings of my foster parent's
+father, who suffered for the cause of truth, near the very spot where I now
+lodge. The worthy minister, to whom I am indebted for all the learning I
+possess, had also some share in my politics. Nay, do not smile, when I say
+he had political opinions. He spiritualized everything. Nebuchadnezzar was
+a type of the Stuart family. The Babylonish king, driven out from men, was
+only an emblem of their expulsion, during the time of the Commonwealth, and
+his being restored was only the fortune of Charles II.; but, as he
+continued in idolatry after his restoration, so did Charles, after his
+subscribing the Covenant at Scone; and, as Nebuchadnezzar's family were
+destroyed, so are the Stuarts cut off from the throne for ever. To the
+whole of this I do not subscribe; but my aversion to the family of the
+Stuarts, I can never overcome."
+
+"My young friend," replied the Colonel, "I am not one to quarrel with any
+one for his opinion; but I rejoice to find we are of one mind. I will
+accompany you to Leith, and we will make inquiries if there is any vessel
+there likely soon to sail for France."
+
+They accordingly proceeded to Leith, where they found there was a brig to
+sail in the course of a week or two for Bourdeaux, to bring home a cargo of
+wine. There were also several vessels to sail in a few days, for different
+ports in Holland; but the Colonel advised William to agree with the captain
+of the vessel for Bourdeaux--which, he did; and, having never seen the sea
+but at a distance, nor a vessel in his life, his friend, to oblige him,
+lingered on the shore, and examined them with him. In this manner the time
+passed. They dined in Leith, and again walked about the shore, enjoying the
+delightful scene. The shades of evening were beginning to approach, when
+they resumed their way back to the city. They had reached about half-way to
+the Abbey-Hill, when two men rushed from behind the fence, and, presenting
+pistols to their breasts, demanded their money or their lives.
+
+"Ho, my good fellows, not so fast!" exclaimed the Colonel, and drew his
+sword. William did the same. One of the villains fired, and wounded the
+Colonel in the right shoulder. William, at the same moment, plunged his
+sword into his side, and he fell. The other ruffian fled, pursued by
+William; but he escaped. He then hastened to his friend, who stood leaning
+against the wall, with the wounded robber beside him. William inquired if
+he was much injured.
+
+"No, Seaton," he said. "I believe it is only a flesh wound, for I can wield
+my sword yet." And he raised it up, and pointing it at the breast of the
+fallen wretch, who lay groaning at his feet--"We must secure him," said the
+Colonel; "and, at the same time, be on our guard against his cowardly
+associate. If he could walk, I would know how to act with him; but I am not
+going to carry the base carrion. Indeed, my arm bleeds, and is getting
+stiff; otherwise I would dispatch him where he lies, and save the hangman
+his labour."
+
+"For the love of God, do not despatch me!" cried the man. "I will try to
+walk; I would not be cut off so suddenly. In mercy, spare me, even for a
+few hours. I am unfit to die; yet I feel life ebbing fast."
+
+He rose to his feet, but was sinking again, when William's pity overcoming
+his anger, he supported him. The wretch looked in his face, uttered a
+scream of horror, and sank senseless in his arms. He looked to the Colonel
+in astonishment. The latter looked narrowly into the face of the robber,
+passed his hand across his forehead, and mused, as if recalling something
+to his memory, but spake not.
+
+Two men now came up to them, and assisted them to carry the body to the
+nearest house, where a surgeon was sent for, and intimation given to the
+authorities, who were all in a state of the greatest alacrity--stimulated,
+doubtless, by the Porteous mob, which had taken place only a few months
+before. Until the surgeon arrived, William, by the directions of the
+Colonel, bound up his shoulder. What the Colonel called a scratch, appeared
+to him a serious wound; for the ball had passed through the muscle of his
+arm. They proceeded to stanch the blood which flowed from the side of their
+prisoner, when the surgeon arrived; who, after having examined it, at once
+declared it mortal, and that the man had not many hours to live. After some
+time, he succeeded in restoring sensibility to the sufferer. He opened his
+eyes--fixed them on William, who was assisting the surgeon in his
+efforts--a fearful change came over him--he groaned, and, clasping his
+hands, shrieked, and closed them again. A sudden recollection had come over
+the Colonel.
+
+"I cannot be mistaken," said he; "I have seen him before; but when or where
+I cannot say, unless he was one of my company in Monro's regiment."
+
+At the mention of Monro's regiment, the wretched man shuddered--his eye
+fell upon the ring upon William's hand, as he held up the candle by the
+bedside--the sweat stood in large drops upon his forehead--he would have
+started up, but was restrained.
+
+"Nay, then, since I am discovered," he cried, "I will confess all to you,
+my injured and betrayed master. I see the Colonel recollects me; but I am
+surprised you do not remember your old servant, Alick Brown."
+
+"Who was your master?" exclaimed William, in surprise.
+
+"Captain Henry Seaton--yourself," said the man. "I cannot be mistaken. That
+ring--your height and countenance. You are, I am happy to see, much
+improved since I last saw you--time appears to have made no change."
+
+"Know you aught of Henry Seaton?" demanded the Colonel; while William stood
+mute in astonishment and surprise.
+
+"If this is not my old master whom I see," said the man, "who can he be? My
+mind is filled with guilt and remorse. Die I must, either of this wound, or
+by the law--for me there is no hope here or hereafter." And he groaned and
+ground his teeth in despair, while the surgeon bade him prepare for death,
+as he had but a few hours to live. The officers entered, and claimed him as
+their prisoner. The villain once more arose in his mind. "Ha!" he
+exclaimed, "I have bilked you yet. I have a sufficient bail in my side to
+rescue me out of your hands." The effort to speak now became more
+difficult; his voice sank into whispers; he appeared to be dying. Remorse
+again roused him; and, turning his head, he inquired who William was? The
+Colonel told him. He became more dreadfully agitated, and groaned in
+anguish, till the officers of justice looked upon him in horror.
+
+"I can doubt no longer," he cried. "It is too true. There is a God that
+governs all! Mercy, mercy! How shall I appear before Him, covered with the
+blood of his creatures? Let me perform the only act now in my power--to
+atone for the past. Young man, you are the son of my noble and injured
+master. After he left the army in Flanders, I accompanied him to France,
+where he lived on terms of great intimacy with the royal exiles and their
+followers for several months; at the end of which time, he and two other
+gentlemen, accompanied by me, set out for Scotland on a secret mission to
+the disaffected, preparatory to the preconcerted rising. We remained
+concealed for several months, in the houses of those whom we knew to be
+adherents to the cause we were embarked in. At the house of Lord Somerville
+we remained for a long time, where my master won the affections of his
+daughter, and proposed for her; but his Lordship objected to their union at
+that time, on account of the unsettled state of affairs. With the consent
+of Helen, they were, however, privately married; and soon after we set out
+for Aboyne, and joined in the unfortunate affair. He was slightly wounded
+at Sheriff-muir, but escaped by my assistance, and got safe to our camp.
+The Prince and the Earl of Mar embarked when all hopes of success were cut
+off, and I was sent back to the house of his wife's father, to bring her to
+her husband, who had remained concealed in the Highlands, during the
+severity of the winter. It was arranged, through me, that, as soon as he
+had received remittances from France, I was to conduct her to the coast of
+Argyle, by Glasgow and the Clyde. It was far on in the summer before he
+could get all the arrangements made. His wife, who expected in a few weeks
+to be confined, and concealed her situation with difficulty, became most
+urgent. Early in the month of September, she escaped unseen from her
+father's house, and joined me at the appointed place, accompanied by a
+fiend in woman's shape, the agent whom I had employed to carry on our
+intercourse. She had been a follower of the camp, and, by the little
+service for which I paid her well, had won the confidence of the simple
+Helen. We rode as fast as the lady's circumstances would admit, only
+halting twice for a short time, in secret places. It was then that the
+devil first assailed me in the person of this woman. She told me what a
+quantity of money and jewels the lady had in her valise, and how easy it
+would be to get all into our possession. I shuddered at the very idea, and
+threatened to shoot her upon the spot. She laughed, and said it was all a
+jest; but it took hold of my mind during the course of our journey, and she
+judged by my looks, I suppose, that I was now more fit for her purpose. We
+conversed about it; the idea became familiar; but I shuddered at blood. She
+said there would be none shed. Still I could not consent--neither was I
+sufficiently averse. The poor lady was taken ill as we passed through the
+moor. You know the rest. As we stood at the cottage door, the pious
+discourse of the farmer tortured me past endurance. I was several times on
+the point of rushing into the cottage, and guarding my lady from the fiend;
+but my evil genius prevailed. When we entered and got the unsuspecting
+couple to their bed, my tempter smiled, and whispered 'All is safe.' I
+shuddered, and inquired what she meant.
+
+"'Oh, nothing,' she replied. 'The lady cannot recover; the woman of the
+house has given her a composing draught. She will never awake. The money
+and jewels are our own.'
+
+"And cautiously she displayed before me more gold than I had ever seen. I
+could not think of parting with it. We carried off all that had belonged to
+my mistress, even her body-clothes and the body of the dead babe, resolved
+to shew it to my master, and impose upon him by saying that his wife had
+died in childbed, and that we had left her to be buried by the clergyman.
+Our object in this was to do away all suspicion of unfair play. Our excuse
+for not seeing the body interred was haste to inform him, and prevent
+inquiries that might lead to his discovery. On the day after we left the
+cabin, I found my master at the appointed place, in the utmost anxiety for
+the arrival of his wife. Every hour of delay was attended by the utmost
+danger. A government cruiser had been seen on the coast; and there were
+fears that the small vessel might be discovered. Oh, moment that has ever
+since embittered my life! The agony he endured no human tongue can
+describe. He was in a state of distraction. I, with a guilty officiousness,
+displayed her wardrobe. He turned from it in an agony. The dead body of the
+babe he kissed and pressed to his bosom. Low groans had as yet only escaped
+him; but suddenly, to my alarm, he resolved to go with me and die on her
+grave. I trembled and felt a faintness come over me--for I was then young
+in guilt. My associate, hardened and inventive, began to urge the folly of
+the attempt. He pushed her from him with violence, and would have set out;
+but at that moment word was given that the cruiser was in sight, as if
+bearing for the land. Two friends and some of the crew seized him, and by
+force hurried him on board the vessel, and set sail. I felt as if reprieved
+from death, and did not go on board; for I dreaded the presence of my
+injured master. We returned to Glasgow, where we remained for a few weeks,
+rioting on the fruits of our guilt. One morning when I awoke after a
+debauch, I found my companion fled, and all the gold and valuables gone. I
+arose in a state of distraction, ran to the port in quest of her; but in
+vain--no vessel had sailed. I proceeded to Greenock; on the way I got
+traces of her, and dogged her at every turn. My mind took a new direction
+as I followed her. I looked upon her now as a fiend that had led me to
+ruin, and left me, loaded with guilt, to die under the pangs of poverty and
+an awakened conscience. My mind was distracted. Holding up my hands to
+heaven, I vowed vengeance, and cursed and swore in such a manner that
+people on the road turned and looked at me, and thought me mad. I was mad;
+but it was the madness of passion that burned in my brain, and the stings
+of conscience that pierced my heart. I paused several times in my pursuit.
+I was told by one traveller that the woman I sought was not a mile from me,
+that she was sitting by the road-side drinking ardent spirits alone, and
+muttering strange words to herself. Ha! thought I, conscience is busy with
+her too, and she drinks to drown its dreadful voice. 'Shall I kill her?' I
+said to myself. My heart yearned for her blood. Why should I deny it? I
+felt that I required that satisfaction to enable me to live a little longer
+upon earth. So much was my frenzy roused, that I pictured to myself a total
+impossibility to live and breathe if I did not feel the satisfaction of
+having visited on that woman's head the evil she brought on that sweet lady
+who died by her hands. Then did her beautiful face beam before me in full
+contrast with that of the hag who had led me to ruin, to misery, to hell.
+Every thought inflamed me more and more, and on I flew to the relief of my
+burning brain. Wretch! How little did I think that, even in meditating her
+death, who deserved that punishment, I was only adding more and more power
+to my burning conscience? But all calculation of future accidents died
+amidst my thirst of vengeance. Breathless I hurried on. I had a dagger in
+my hand ready for the work of death. At a turn of a beech wood, I saw her
+sitting by the road-side. She was drinking spirits; and, as I approached, I
+heard her muttering strange words--yet she was not intoxicated. She was
+only under the power of the demons that ruled her. Her back was to me, and
+she knew not of my approach. I saw her take out the money and jewels she
+had stolen from me, and for which, by her advice, I had sold my soul to
+Satan. The sight again brought before me the horrid crime I had committed.
+I saw the sweet lady before me, extended in the grasp of death; and
+conscience, with a thousand fangs, tore at my heart. I grasped the dagger
+firmer and firmer as she counted the money, and wrought myself up to the
+pitch of a demon's fury. I advanced quietly. She burst into a loud laugh as
+she finished the counting of the gold. 'Ha, ha, ha!' she cried--'I
+have'--she would have said 'outwitted him,' but my dagger fixed the word in
+her death-closed jaws. I struck her to the heart through her back, and the
+word 'outwitted' died in her throat. She lay at my feet a corpse. I threw
+the body in a ditch, and took up the money and jewels for which I had sold
+my soul. I would have cast them away; but the devil again danced in the
+faces of the gold coins. I put them in my pocket. The gold again corrupted
+me. I drowned my conscience in drink at the next inn. I fled into England,
+where I have lived by rapine ever since, until the other day, when I
+returned to Scotland to meet the fate I so well deserve, from the hands of
+the son of those I had injured. Of my old master I have never heard
+anything. If he is alive, he is still in France."
+
+Life seemed only to have been prolonged until he had made the horrid
+disclosure; for he fell into convulsions and expired, soon after the
+Colonel, whose wound had become stiff and painful, had left the house. Next
+morning, William visited his friend, and was grieved to find that he was
+rather feverish. His wound was still painful. The occurrence of the
+preceding evening occupied both their minds. William had no doubt of his
+being the lawful son of Henry Seaton by Miss Somerville; but was as much in
+doubt as to whether his father was alive as ever. In a few days, the
+Colonel was enabled to leave his bed-room, and became convalescent. He
+urged the propriety of William's proceeding to France in quest of his
+father; and, as the vessel was not yet to sail for a few days, he resolved
+to pay a visit to his friend, the minister, to inform him of his
+intentions, and relate the history of his mother's murderers. The Colonel
+would have accompanied him; but he could not ride. He rode along to the
+manse, with feelings very different from those with which he had left it.
+The worthy minister rejoiced to see him, and held up his pious hands at
+the horrid recital. He approved of William's determination of going in
+quest of his father, and, after paying a visit to his mother's and foster
+parents' graves, he once more mounted to return to Edinburgh. As he rode
+slowly along, musing upon the wayward fate of his parents unconscious of
+all around, he was roused by the tread of horses' feet behind him. He
+looked back, and saw a gentleman, attended by a servant in livery,
+approaching. He roused himself, and put his horse off the slow pace at
+which he had been going. The stranger and he saluted each other, and
+entered into conversation upon indifferent subjects. At length they became
+interested in each other, and found that they were both on the eve of
+sailing for France in the same vessel. The stranger requested to have the
+pleasure of knowing the name of his fellow-traveller.
+
+"Seaton," said William, "is my name."
+
+"Seaton, Seaton," said the other--"I am surprised I did not recognise you
+before. I thought we had met before; but your youth made me always doubt
+the truth of my surmises. Colonel Henry Seaton was an intimate acquaintance
+of mine--have I the pleasure of seeing his son?"
+
+"I hope you have," replied William. "Pray, sir, when saw you him last? Was
+he in good health?"
+
+"It is some time since I left France," said the other. "At that time he was
+in his ordinary health; but not more cheerful than usual--always grave and
+sad as ever."
+
+"Thank God!" cried William; "he is, I trust, then, still alive." And he
+pressed the stranger's hand with a warmth that surprised him. "Where do you
+mean to stay," resumed William, "until the vessel sails?"
+
+"I have no relations," replied he, "in Edinburgh. I meant to stay at an inn
+in the Canongate, where I have lived before; but it is all one to me--I may
+as well tarry in the White Hart with you."
+
+When they arrived, William sent a cadie to give notice to Colonel Gordon
+that he was arrived in town; but was detained upon business with a
+stranger, to whom he would be happy to introduce him, as he was an
+acquaintance of his father's, and had seen him within the last few years.
+Soon after dinner, they were all seated at their wine, and deep in
+conversation. The stranger had been, from what he said, well acquainted
+with the exiled party in France, and, more particularly, with Colonel
+Seaton; but he knew nothing of his history, further than that he had lost a
+beloved wife and child at the time of his expatriation, and had, both by
+friends here and every other means, endeavoured in vain to get any
+information of where she was buried, or what had become of a faithful
+servant who had not embarked with him in the confusion of his flight--that
+on this account he was often oppressed by a lowness of spirits, and had
+many suspicions that all had not been as it ought to have been. This
+subject discussed, they would have had recourse to politics; but each
+seemed cautious of betraying his opinions, and the stranger, who did not
+seem to relish much some of the sentiments that occasionally escaped the
+Colonel, appeared to be a Tory. After the Colonel departed, the
+conversation of William and Mr Graham--for this was the gentleman's
+name--became more pointed, and it appeared that he was on business
+connected with the exiles. He had assumed that William was of his own way
+of thinking in politics, and was evidently much disappointed when he
+discovered that he was not. He became much more reserved, but not less
+attached to him; for William gave him a general outline of his misfortunes
+and early education, and they parted for the night with the best opinion of
+each other. Next morning both proceeded to Leith, where Graham expected to
+find a messenger from the north with a packet of letters for him. When they
+reached Leith, they found that the messenger had arrived on the previous
+day, and was waiting for Mr Graham, who, having several persons to visit in
+the neighbourhood, William and he parted, agreeing to meet in the Colonel's
+to supper. They met in the evening.
+
+"I have been making some inquiries," said Mr Graham, "about Colonel Henry
+Seaton, on your account, and am happy to say that he is well. I fear I
+shall not have the pleasure of your company to France. I have every reason
+to believe that he is now in Scotland, or will be very soon. Excuse me if I
+am not more particular. I shall, I hope, to-morrow, or at least before the
+vessel sails, be able to give you more particular information. I can rely,
+I think, upon your honour, that no harm shall come from my confidence."
+
+Both thanked him for the interest he took, and the good news he had
+communicated. They parted for the night, all in the best spirits--William
+anticipating the joy he should feel at the sight of his parent, and the
+Colonel anxious to see his old friend. Afterwards Mr Graham and William
+occasionally met. Their evenings were spent with the Colonel, and all party
+discussion carefully avoided. On the evening of the fourth day after Mr
+Graham's last information, William had begun to fear that the vessel might
+sail before any certainty could be obtained; and he was in doubt whether to
+proceed with her or remain. Upon Mr Graham's arrival, which was later than
+usual, he went directly up to William--
+
+"I have good news for you," said he. "Colonel Seaton is at present in
+Scotland--somewhere in Inverness-shire. He is the bearer of intelligence
+that will render it unnecessary for me to proceed at present to France. I
+am, I confess, much disappointed; but you, I perceive, are not."
+
+"From my soul I thank you," said William. "Where shall I find my father?"
+
+"That is more than I can tell you," answered the other--"I cannot even tell
+the name he has at present assumed; all I know is, that he is the bearer of
+intelligence from the Prince that crushes for a time our sanguine hopes.
+The fickle and promise-breaking Louis has again deceived us. The Prince,
+and the lukewarm, timid part of his adherents, the worshippers of the
+ascendant, refuse to act without his powerful aid. His concurrence we have,
+and a prospect of future aid at a more convenient season; but, bah! for a
+Frenchman's promise! I am off from ever taking a leading part again. I will
+wait the convenient season. I may be led, but shall never lead again. He
+does not deserve a crown that will not dare for it; nor does he deserve the
+hearts of a generous people that would not dare everything to free them
+from the yoke of a foreign tyrant. Excuse me, gentlemen,--I go too far, and
+am giving you offence; but I assure you it is not meant. My heart is full
+of bitterness, and I forget what I say."
+
+The Colonel, whose blood had begun to inflame when Graham checked himself,
+cooled and felt rather gratified at the intelligence thus so unexpectedly
+communicated. He felt for a generous mind crossed in its favourite object,
+however much he thought that mind misled, from education and early
+prejudice, and assured him he had already forgot his expressions. A
+different turn was given to the conversation, by William's continued
+inquiries after his father. Graham meant to set off for the north in a few
+days, for a secret meeting of the heads of the disaffected, at which
+Colonel Seaton was to communicate the message he had to them from France.
+He offered to be William's guide. The Colonel, whose shoulder was now quite
+well, requested to accompany them; and on the Monday morning after, they
+crossed at Kinghorn, and proceeded by the most direct route, passing
+through Perthshire to the Highlands. They arrived at Glengarry, and found
+that Colonel Seaton was at the time on a visit, with the chief, to Glenelg,
+but would be back on the following day. There were a number of visiters at
+the castle, with all whom Graham was on the most intimate terms. Gordon and
+William were introduced, and the latter was most cordially received, from
+the strong resemblance he bore to his father. They got a guide to conduct
+them to see the beautiful scenery around the house, and they were amusing
+themselves admiring the grandeur of the mountain scenes, when the guide
+said, pointing to a bend in the road--
+
+"Gentlemen, there is Glengarry."
+
+They looked towards the spot, and could perceive two persons on horseback,
+approaching in earnest conversation. William's heart beat quick--the reins
+almost dropped from his hand--he felt giddy, and his temples throbbed as if
+they would have burst. They approached--they bowed to each other--William's
+eyes were fixed upon the countenance of his father, who returned his gaze,
+but neither spoke a word. The Colonel said, in answer to the polite
+salutation, that he and his young friend had had the honour to accompany Mr
+Graham on a visit.
+
+"Has Graham come back so soon?" he said, with surprise, "I feared as much;
+but, gentlemen, you are kindly welcome." And he shook hands with them.
+
+"Macdonald, what is this?" he said, turning to Seaton, who was absorbed in
+thought. "Here is a youthful counterpart of yourself!"
+
+"My father!" exclaimed William, as he leaped from his horse, and clasped
+his leg, leaning his face upon it, and bedewing it with his tears.
+
+"Young man," said Seaton, coldly, "you are mistaken; I have no son."
+William lifted his hands in an imploring manner, and the ring met his
+father's eye. "Good heavens! what do I see!" he exclaimed, and sank
+forward, overpowered by his feelings, upon his horse's neck. The chief and
+the Colonel raised him up--the tears were streaming from his eyes. "A
+thousand painful remembrances," said he, "have quite unmanned me. Young
+man, you just now called me father--where, for mercy's sake tell me, did
+you get that ring?"
+
+"It was found on the bosom of my dead mother," faltered William.
+
+"Then you are my son!"
+
+And the next moment they were locked in each other's embrace. The chief and
+Gordon were moved. They passed their hands hastily across their eyes.
+
+"Dear father," said William, "have you forgot your old friend and associate
+in arms--my best of friends?"
+
+Seaton for the first time looked to him, and, extending his disengaged
+hand, grasped the Colonel's, saying--
+
+"Excuse me, Gordon--I am now too happy. I have found a son and a brother."
+
+They walked to the castle, and William detailed to his father his mournful
+story. Often had he to stop, to allow his father to give vent to his
+anguish.
+
+"Ah, I often feared," said he, "that my Helen had been hardly dealt with;
+but this I never did suspect. Cursed villain! and, oh! my poor murdered
+Helen!"
+
+They returned to the castle. It was agreed that Seaton should still retain
+the name of Macdonald, until the Colonel should obtain, through the
+influence of his friends, a pardon for him. He also had lost all hopes of
+success for the Prince, and wished to enjoy the company of his son, visit
+the grave of his beloved wife, and, at death, be buried by her side. All
+was obtained; and Henry Seaton lived for many years, blessed in the society
+of his son, who studied the law, at the suggestion of the Colonel, and
+became distinguished in his profession.
+
+
+
+
+HUME AND THE GOVERNOR OF BERWICK.
+
+
+It has been asserted by at least one historian, that it has been observed,
+that the inhabitants of towns which have undergone a cruel siege, and
+experienced all the horrors of storm and pillage, have retained for ages
+the traces of the effects of their sufferings, in a detestation of war,
+indications of pusillanimity, and decline of trade. If there be any truth
+in this observation, what caitiffs must the inhabitants of Berwick be! No
+town in the world has been so often exposed to the "ills that wait on the
+red chariot of war;" for Picts, Romans, Danes, Saxons, English, and Scotch
+have, in their turn, wasted their rage and their strength upon her broken
+ribs. Her boasted "barre," (barrier,) from which her name, Barrewick, is
+derived, has never been able to save her effectually, either from her
+enemies of land or water. From the reign of Osbert, the king of
+Northumberland, down to the time when Lord Sidmouth saw treason in her big
+guns, she has been devoted to the harpies of foreign and intestine war and
+discord. Yet who shall say, that the hearts or spirits of the inhabitants
+of this extraordinary town lost either blood or buoyancy from their
+misfortunes? No sooner were her bulwarks raised than they appeared
+renascent; the inhabitants defended the new fortifications with a spirit
+that received a salient power from the depression produced by the
+demolition of the old; and her ships, that one day were shattered by
+engines of war, sailed in a state of repair with the next fair wind, to
+fetch from distant ports articles of merchandise, not seldom for those who
+were fighting or had fought against her liberties. Such was Berwick; and
+her sons of to-day inherit too much of the nobility and generosity of her
+old children, to find fault with us for telling them a tale which, while it
+exhibits some shades of the warlike spirit of their ancestors, shews also
+that war and citizen warriors have their foibles, and are not always exempt
+from the harmless laugh that does the heart more good than the touch of an
+old spear.
+
+The Lord Hume of the latter period of the seventeenth century, had a
+natural son, Patrick, an arch rogue, inheriting the fire of the blood of
+the Humes, along with that which burnt in the black eyes of the gipsies of
+Yetholm. He was brought up by his father; and, true to the principles of
+his education, would acknowledge no patrons of the heart, save the three
+ruling powers of love, laughter, and war--Cupid, Momus, and Mars--a trio
+chosen from all the gods, (the remainder being sent to Hades,) as being
+alone worthy of the worship of a gentleman. How Patrick got acquainted,
+and, far less, how he got in love with the Mayor of Berwick's daughter,
+Isabella, we cannot say, nor need antiquarians try to discover; for where
+there was a Southron to be slain or a lady to be won, Patrick Hume cared no
+more for bar, buttress, battlement, fire, or water, than did Jove for his
+own thunder-cloud, under the shade of which he courted the daughter of
+Inachus. Letting alone the recondite subject of "love's beginning," we
+shall tread safer ground in stating, that the affection had been very
+materially increased on both sides by the walls of Berwick; for, although
+Patrick was a great despiser of fortifications, he had felt, in the affair
+of his love for Isabella, the fair daughter of the Mayor of Berwick, that
+there is no getting a damsel through a _loop-hole_, though there might be
+poured as much sentimental and pathetic speech and sigh-breath through the
+invidious opening, as ever passed through the free air that fills the
+breeze under the trysting thorn.
+
+What we have now said requires the explanation, that at the period of our
+story, the town of Berwick belonged to the English; and the Mayor, being
+himself either an Englishman, or connected by strong ties of relationship
+with the English, had a strong antipathy towards the Scottish Border
+raiders, whom he denominated as gentlemen-robbers, headed by the noble
+robber Hume. But, above all, he hated young Patrick--into whose veins, he
+said, there had been poured the distilled raid-venom and love-poison of all
+the gentlemen-scaumers that ever infested the Borders. The origin of this
+hatred had some connection with an affair of the Newmilne, belonging to
+Berwick; the dam-dike of which, Patrick alleged, prevented the salmon from
+getting up the river, and hence destroyed all his angling sport, as well as
+that of all the noblemen and gentlemen that resorted to the river for the
+purpose of practising the "gentle art." He had therefore threatened to pull
+it down, to let up the fish; and sounded his threat in the ears of the
+indignant Mayor, in terms that were, peradventure, made stronger and
+bitterer by the thought that dikes and walls were his greatest bane upon
+earth: by the walls of Berwick the Mayor kept from his arms the fair
+Isabella, and by the dam-dike of Newmilne the same Mayor deprived him of
+the pleasure of angling. Was such power on the part of a Mayor to be borne
+by the high-spirited youth who had been trained to look upon mason-work as
+a mere stimulant to love or war--a thing that raised the value of what it
+enclosed by the opposition it offered to the young blood that raged for
+entrance? The youth thought not. He vowed that he would neither lose his
+Isabella nor his salmon; and, as fate would have it, the old Mayor had
+heard the vow, and vowed also that young Patrick should lose both.
+
+Having fished one day to no purpose, in consequence of the obstruction of
+"that most accursed of all dam-dikes, the Newmilne dike," as Patrick styled
+it, he threw down his rod, and lay down upon the bank of the river, to wait
+the hour when the moon should summon and lighten him to the loop-hole in
+the other of his hated obstructions, the walls of Berwick--where that
+evening he expected to meet his beloved Isabella, and commune with her in
+the eloquent language of their mutual passion. The bright luminary burst in
+the midst of his reveries from behind an autumn cloud, and flashed a long
+silver beam upon the rolling waters. He started to his feet.
+
+"It is beyond my time," he said, self-accusingly. "My Isabella is on
+Berwick Wall, and I am still lingering here by the banks of the river,
+three miles from where my love and honour require me to be. The loiterer in
+love is a laggard in war; and shame on the Hume who is either!"
+
+In a short time the young Hume was standing beneath a buttress of the old
+walls of the town, looking earnestly through a small opening, in which he
+expected to see the face of the fair daughter of the Mayor.
+
+"Art there at last, love?" said he, in a soft voice, as he saw, with
+palpitating heart, the pretty but arch face of the bewitching heiress of
+all the wealth of the old burgher lord peering through the aperture. "What,
+in the name of him who got his wings in the lap of Venus, and useth them to
+this hour as cleverly as doth our pretty messenger of Spring, hath kept
+thee, wench?"
+
+"Ha! ha! hush! hush, man!" responded she, whose spirit equalled that of the
+boldest Hume that ever headed a raid. "Thou'rt the laggard. I've waited for
+thee an hour, until I've sighed this little love-hole into an oven-heat,
+waiting thee, thou lover of broken troth! Some gipsy queen in Haugh of the
+Tweed hath wooed thee out of thy affection for thy Isabel; and now thou
+askest what hath kept me. Ha! ha! Good--for a Hume."
+
+"The moon cheated me, and went skulking under a cloud," responded Hume.
+
+"And the cloud threw thy love in the shade," added quickly the gay girl.
+"Methought love kept his own dial, and was independent of sun or moon. What
+if a rebel vapour cometh over the queen of heaven that night thou art to
+make me free? My hope of liberty, I fancy, would be clouded; and I would be
+remitted again to the care of Captain Wallace, who keepeth the town and the
+Mayor's daughter from the spoiling arms of the robber Humes."
+
+"Ha! ha!" replied he--"thy father wanteth not a Mayor's wits, Isabella, in
+offering thee as a prize to the Governor of the town. Excellent device,
+i'faith! The old burgher lord knew he could not keep thee, mad-cap wench as
+thou art, from a hated Hume's arms, unless he gave the Captain an interest
+as a _lover_ in guarding thee, like a piece of the old wall of Berwick."
+
+"And therein thou'rt well complimented," replied she; "for my father could
+not get, in all Berwick, a man that could keep me from thee, but he who
+guardeth town, and Mayor, and maiden together. Since the Governor, as a
+lover, got charge of me, I am more firmly caged than ever was the old
+countess, who was so long confined in the grated wing-cage of the old
+castle. When art thou to free me from the Governor's love and surveillance,
+good Patrick? If what I have now to tell thee hath no power to quicken thy
+wits and nerve thine arm, thou art indeed thyself no better than one of
+those stones, to which, in thy wit, thou hast likened me. Knowest that a
+day is fixed for Captain Wallace being my _legal_ governor?"
+
+"Ha!" cried Hume, in agitation. "This soundeth differently from the playful
+hammer of thy wit, Bell. What day is fixed? Thou hast fired me with high
+purposes."
+
+"How high tower they?" cried the maiden, laughing. "Do they reach thy
+former threat, to pull down the Newmilne dam-dike, and let _up_ the salmon,
+in revenge for the letting _down_ of the Mayor's daughter?"
+
+"Another time for thy wit, Bell," replied Patrick, in a more serious tone.
+"Thou hast put to flight my spirits. The grey owl Meditation is flapping
+his dingy wing over my heart. The time--the time--when is the day?"
+
+"This day se'ennight," answered Isabel. "Hush! hush! here cometh the
+Governor, blowing like a Tweedmouth grampus, fresh from the German Sea, in
+full run after a lady-fish of the queen of rivers."
+
+And now Hume heard the hoarse voice of the redoubted Governor, Captain
+Wallace--that fat overgrown _bellygerent_ son of Mars, so famous, in his
+day, for vaunting of feats of arms, at Bothwell, (where he never was,) over
+the Mayor's wine, and in presence of his fair daughter, whom he thus
+courted after the manner of the noble Moor, with a slight difference as to
+the truth of his feats scarce worth mentioning. It appeared to Hume, as he
+listened, that Wallace, and the Mayor, who was with him, had sallied out,
+after the fourth bottle, in search of Isabel--a suspicion verified by the
+speech of the warlike Captain.
+
+"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," said the Governor, in a voice that
+reverberated among the walls, and fell distinctly on Hume's ear, "that she
+would be about the fortifications? Ha!--anything appertaining to war
+delighteth the fair creature as much as it did that rare author, Will
+Shakspeare's Desdemona. If I had been as black as the Moor--ay, or as the
+devil himself--my prowess at Bothwell would have given this person of mine,
+albeit somewhat enlarged, the properties of beauty in the eyes of
+noble-spirited women--so much do our bodies borrow from the qualities of
+our souls."
+
+"Where is she?" rejoined the Mayor. "I like not that love of the
+fortifications. It is the outside of the walls she loves. See, she flies,
+conscience-smitten. I like not this, my noble Captain--see, there is
+Patrick Hume beyond the wall, if thou hast courage, drive thy pike through
+that loop, and, peradventure, ye may blind a Hume for life."
+
+"I like to strike a man fair--body to body--as we did on the Bridge of
+Bothwell," responded the Captain. "Ha! ha! Give me the loop-hole of a good
+bilbo-thrust, out of which the soul wings its flight in a comfortable
+manner. Nevertheless, to please my noble friend the mayor, and to get quit
+of a rival, I may" (lowering his voice to a whisper) "as well kill him in
+the way thou hast propounded; but I assure thee, upon my honour, I would
+much rather have the fellow before me, without the intervention of these
+plaguey walls, that come thus in the way and march of one's valour. There
+goes!"
+
+On looking-up, Hume saw the Captain's bilbo thrusting manfully through the
+night air, as if it would pierce the night gnomes and spirits that love to
+hang over old battlements. Taking out his handkerchief, he wrapped it round
+his hand, and seizing the point of the sword, gave it a jerk, which (and
+the consequent terror) disengaged it from the hand of the pot-valiant hero
+of Bothwell. A shout of fear was heard from within.
+
+"Stop! stop! mine good Mr Mayor!" cried the Captain to the Mayor, who had
+begun to fly; "I do not see, as yet, any very great, that is, serious cause
+of apprehension; but, I forget, thou wert not at Bothwell. By my honour,
+I've done for him! He hath carried off my sword in his body. Was it Patrick
+Hume, saidst thou? Then is he dead as my grandmother, and no more shall he
+follow after my betrothed, or threaten thee with the downfall of the
+Newmilne dam-dike. All I sorrow for is my good sword, which, but for that
+accursed loop, I might have redrawn from his vile carcass, and thus saved
+my property at the same time that I gave the carrion crows of old Berwick a
+dinner."
+
+"Ah! but he's a devil that Hume," responded the Mayor. "Long has he hounded
+after my daughter Bell; and though it is now likely near an end with him, I
+should not like to come in the way of the dying tiger. Let us home."
+
+The sound of the retreating warriors brought back Hume to the loop-hole, to
+see if Isabel was still there, to whom he was anxious to propose a plan,
+whereby he might (with the gay romp's most cheerful good-will and hearty
+co-operation) carry her off from the contaminating embrace of the
+pot-valiant Governor, with whom she was to be wed on that day se'ennight.
+He waited a long time, but no Isabel came. He suspected that the Mayor,
+after having caught her speaking to him, (Hume,) his most inveterate foe,
+would, as he had often done before, lock her up, and set the noble Captain
+as a guard upon his lady-love. Cursing his unlucky fate, that brought them
+out to interrupt his converse with the mistress of his heart, and prevent
+the arrangement of an elopement, he bent the Captain's bilbo hilt to point
+till it rebounded with a loud twang, and stepping away up the Tweed, fell
+into a deep meditation as to the manner by which he should secure Isabel.
+As he went along, his eye fell upon that source of so much contention
+between the men of Berwick and the border barons, the dam-dike of the
+Newmilne, and against which the Lord Hume, as well as himself and many of
+the neighbouring knights and lairds, had vowed destruction. A thought
+flashed across his mind, and his eye sparkled in the moonbeam, as brightly
+as did the Captain's sword, which he still held in his hand.
+
+"I have hit it!" he cried, as he clapped his hand on his limb, and the
+sound echoed back from the mill-walls. "For spearing a salmon or a
+Southron, dissolving that old foolish tenure between a proprietor and his
+cattle, or cutting the tie of forced duty between a rich old Mayor and his
+daughter, where shall the bastard of Hume be equalled on the Borders? My
+fair Bell, thou wouldst spring with the elasticity of this bent blade, and
+dance like these moonbeams in the Tweed, if thou wert in the knowledge of
+this thought that now tickles the wild fancy of thy lover, whom thou
+equallest in all that belongest to the gay heart and the bounding spirit."
+
+Occupied with these thoughts, Patrick went home to the castle of the Humes;
+and, next morning, he bent his way to Foulden, where he sought Lord Ross's
+baillie, James Sinclair, a man who had a very hearty spite against the
+obstruction to the passage of the Tweed salmon. With him he communed for a
+considerable time, and thereafter he proceeded to Paxton and to others of
+the gentlemen in the vicinity. The subject of these interviews will perhaps
+best be explained by the following placard, which appeared in various parts
+of Berwick in two days thereafter:--
+
+"On Friday last, the tenant of Newmilne, belonging to the toun of Baricke,
+gave information to our honourable Mayor, who has communicated the same to
+our gallant Governor, Captain Wallace, that the Lord Hume and other the
+Scotch gentlemen, our neighbours, do, on Monday next, intend to be at the
+Newmilne aforesaid, by tenn of the clock of the morninge; and that they had
+summoned their tenants to be then and there present, alsoe, to assist in
+the breaking downe and demolishing the dam of the said Newmilne; and that
+the Lord Ross his bailiffe of Foulden had given out in speeches, that he
+was desired to summon the said Lord Ross, his tenants, and inhabitants of
+Foulden barronry, to be then and there aiding and assisting them, alsoe,
+for better effecting the same: Whereupon, it is necessary, that, at a
+ringing of a belle, our tounsmen, headed by our Mayor, and directed by the
+warlike genius of Captain Wallace, should proceed to the said Newmilne, and
+give battle in defence of the said dike, which is indispensable to the
+existence of the toun's property. God save the Mayor!"
+
+The effect produced by this proclamation was rapid and stirring. The
+English, at that period, had contrived to raise a strong prejudice in the
+minds of the Berwick burghers against the Border Scots; and the
+intelligence that the daring robbers intended to demolish their property,
+inflamed them to the high point of resolution to fight under their valorous
+Captain, while one stone of the dike remained on another, and one drop of
+blood was left in their bodies. Hume, who had a greater part in the
+occasion of these preparations than had been made apparent, got secret
+intelligence, on all that was going on within the town; but none of his
+vigils at the loop-hole were rewarded with a sight of his spirited Isabel,
+who, he understood, had been confined in her father's house since the night
+on which she had been discovered upon the wall. Meanwhile, the preparations
+for the defence of the town's property proceeded; and, on the Monday
+morning, a bell, whose loud tongue spoke "war's alarums," sounded over town
+and walls, spreading fear among the timid, and rousing in the noble breasts
+of the valorous proud and swelling resolutions to give battle to the Border
+robbers, in the style of their ancestors. Ever since the first
+announcement, they had been drilled by the Captain, whose loud command of
+voice, proud bearing, bent back (bent in self-defence against the
+counterpoise of his stomach), and martial strut, filled them with great awe
+of his power, and great confidence in his abilities. Many hundred people,
+"on horse and foote," (we use the language of our old chronicle), "were
+gathered together, considerably armed with swordes, pistolles, firelocks,
+blunderbushes, foalingpieces, bowes and arrowes of the tyme of the first
+Edward, and uther powerful ammunition, fit to resist the ryot of the
+Scotch; and away they marched to the newe miln, with Mr Mayor and the
+Governor (a verrie terrible man of war--to be married the morn to the
+Mayor's dochter Isabel, if he come back with lyffe), and the sergeants with
+their halberts, and constables with their staves, going before them." In
+front, there was beat some thundering engines of warlike music, which was
+cut occasionally by sharp screams of small fifes, blown into by the burgher
+amateurs of that lively musical machine. Altogether, the cavalcade
+presented many appearances of a stern and warlike nature, which might well
+have prevented the Scotch raiders from proceeding with their felonious
+intention of driving down the obstruction to the salmon, and forced them to
+remain content with the angling of trout and parr. The "verrie sight" of
+the brave Wallace was deemed sufficient by those who followed him, "to put
+an end to the fraye before it was begunne."
+
+This extraordinary cavalcade was seen passing along the road by Patrick
+Hume, who had, with his companions, retired behind some brushwood, the
+better to enjoy the sight. The warriors passed on, and every now and then
+the loud voice of the captain was heard commanding and exhorting his troops
+to keep up their courage for the coming strife. When the last file was
+disappearing, Hume and his companions made the woods resound with a loud
+laugh, and, starting up, and crying, "For Berwick, ho!" they hurried away
+in the direction of the town, which the Governor, in his anxiety to form a
+large assemblage, had left without a guard. Meanwhile the burgher army
+pushed on for Newmilne; "and, when they came there," (says the chronicle),
+"they pitched their camp; and nae doubt butt they were well disciplined,
+seeing theye had the advantage of the Captain's training, with the great
+blessing attour of weapons suitable--viz., rusty ould swords and pistolles;
+and they continued about three or foure houres on the bankes and about the
+milne: still there was nae appearance of the Scotch coming to fecht with
+them." For a long time the Captain was solemn and quiet; but when it
+appeared that the Scots "were not to come to show fecht," he got as wordy
+as a blank-verse poet, and stood up in the face of a neighbouring wood,
+from which it was expected the enemy would emanate, and called upon the
+cowards (as he styled them) to come out "and dare to touche one stone of
+the milne dam-dike."
+
+"Did I not tell thee, Mr Mayor," he cried, "that I killed Patrick Hume? If
+not, where is he now, and he the Lord Ross of Foulden, and he of Paxton,
+and all the rest of the Border heroes? Come forth from thy wood recesses,
+if there be as much pluck in thee as will enable thee to meet the fire of
+the eye of the Governor of Berwick! Ha! ha! The rascals must have been at
+Bothwell, where, doubtless, they felt the pith of this arm. There goeth the
+disadvantage of bravery! The devil a man will encounter one whose name is
+terrible, and I fear I may never have the luxury of a good fight again.
+This day I expected to have fleshed my good sword. To-morrow is my
+wedding-day. How glorious would it have been to have made it also a day of
+victory! I could almost hack these unconscious trees for very spite, and to
+give my sword the exercise it lacketh."
+
+And he swung his falchion from side to side, cutting off the tops of the
+young firs, just as if they had been men's heads; but no Scotchman made his
+appearance. The whole bells of Berwick now began to swing and ring as if
+the town had been invaded; and messengers, breathless and panting, arrived
+at the camp, and communicated the intelligence that the Bastard of Hume
+had, with a body of men, got entrance to the Mayor's house, by shewing the
+guard the Governor's sword, and carried off Isabel, the Mayor's daughter,
+who was more willing to go than to stay. The route of the fugitives was
+distinctly laid down, and it was represented by the messengers that, by
+crossing over a couple of miles, they had every chance of overtaking them
+and reclaiming the disobedient maid. The recommendation was instantly
+seized by the distracted Mayor, and a shout of the burgher forces, and an
+accompanying peal from the drums and fifes, shewed the desire of the men to
+fulfil the wish of their master. The captain's spirit was changed. He
+burned to reclaim his bride; but he feared the Bastard of Hume, whose
+prowess was acknowledged far and wide from the Borders. Shame did what
+could not have been accomplished by love; and, putting himself, with a mock
+warlike air, at the head of the troops, away he posted as fast as sixteen
+stone of beef, penetrated by alternate currents of fear, shame, and valour,
+would permit. The musical instruments of war were hushed; and as the forces
+hurried on, panting and breathing, not a voice was heard but the occasional
+vaunts of the captain, who found it necessary to conceal his fear by these
+running shots of assumed valour. As fate would have it, the Berwickers came
+up with the Bastard's party, who, with the gay and laughing Isabel in the
+midst of them, were seated, as they thought securely, in the old Berwick
+wood, enjoying some wine, which she, with wise providence, had handed to
+one of the men as a refreshment when they should be beyond danger. The
+sounds of merriment struck on the ear of the invaders; they stopped, and
+thought it safer, in the first instance, to reconnoitre--a step highly
+eulogized by the Captain, who seemed to want breath as well from the toil
+of the chase as from some misgivings of his valour, which had come, like
+qualms of sickness, over his stout heart.
+
+"Ha! traitor!" cried the Mayor, "the device of sending us to Newmilne will
+not avail thee. Give me my daughter, traitor!" addressing himself to the
+Bastard, who stood now in the front of the party, all prepared for a tough
+defence.
+
+"In either of two events thou shalt have her," cried Hume--"if thou canst
+take her, or if she is willing to go with thee."
+
+"No, no!" cried the sprightly maid herself, coming boldly forward. "I love
+my father and the good citizens of Berwick, and none of them shall lose a
+drop of their blood for Isabel. If we are to have battle, let it be between
+the two lovers who claim my hand. By the honour of a Mayor's daughter, I
+shall be his who gaineth the day! Stand forward, Patrick Hume and Governor
+Wallace."
+
+"Bravo!" shouted the burghers, delighted with a scheme that smacked so
+sweetly of justice and safety.
+
+All eyes were now turned on the Captain; and Isabel, delighted with her
+scheme, was seen concealing her face with the corner of her cloak, to
+suppress her laughter. The Captain saw, however, neither justice nor safety
+in the scheme, and, edging near the Mayor, whispered into his ear his
+intention not to fight. Palpable indications of fear were escaping from his
+trembling limbs, and the hero of Bothwell was on the eve of being
+discovered. Hume was prepared--he stood, sword in hand, ready for the
+combat.
+
+"Come forward, Captain!" cried the Bastard.
+
+"Come forward!" resounded from Isabel, and a hundred voices of the
+burghers.
+
+"I am the Governor of Berwick," answered the hero, in a trembling voice,
+keeping the body of the Mayor between him and Hume. "As the servant of the
+King, I dare not" (panting) "run the risk of reducing my
+authority--by--by--engaging, I say, by committing myself in single combat,
+like a knight errant, for a runaway damsel. It comporteth not with my
+dignity--hegh--hegh--I say, I cannot come down from the height of my glory
+at Bothwell, by committing myself in a love brawl. But ye are my
+men--hegh--hegh--ye are bound to fight when I command. Do your duty--on,
+on, I say, to the rescue."
+
+"We want not the wench," responded many voices. "He that will not fight for
+his love, deserves to lose her for his cowardice." "Resign her, good
+Mayor," cried others. "Give the damsel her choice," added others. "Bravo,
+good fellows!" cried Bell, in the midst of her laughter; and a shout from
+Hume's men rewarded her spirit. The enthusiasm was caught by the
+Berwickers, some of whom, observing certain indications thrown out by
+Isabel, ran forward and got from her a flagon of good wine. The vessel was
+handed from one to another. "Hurra for Hume!" shouted the Berwickers. The
+tables were turned. All, to a man, were with Isabel and her partner. The
+Mayor had sense enough to see his position. In any way he was to lose his
+daughter, and he heartily despised the coward that would not fight for his
+love.
+
+"Hume," he cried, standing forward, "come hither; and, Isabel, approach the
+side of thy father."
+
+The laughing damsel ran forward, and, perceiving her absolute safety, flung
+herself on her father's neck, and hung there, amidst the continued shouts
+of the men.
+
+"Forgive me, forgive me, father!" cried she. "My choice is justified by my
+love, and the characters of my lovers. The one is a coward, the other a
+brave youth. Hume's intentions are honourable, and I may be the respected
+wife of one of noble blood."
+
+"I forgive thee, Bell," answered the father. And he took her hand and
+placed it in Hume's. "Come, Captain, forgive her too, and let us all be
+friends."
+
+He looked round for the Captain, and all the party looked also; but the
+hero was gone. He had mounted a white Rosinante, as thin as he was fat, and
+was busy striking her protruding bones with his sword, to propel her on to
+Berwick, where he thought he would be more safe than where he was. The
+figure he made in his retreat--his large swelled body on the lean jade,
+like a tun of wine on a gantress--his anxiety to get off--his receding
+position--his flight after such a day of vaunting--all conspired to render
+the sight ludicrous in the extreme. One general burst of laughter filled
+the air; but the Captain held on his course, and never stopped till he
+arrived at Berwick. That day Hume and Isabel were wed--and a happy day it
+was for the Berwickers; who, in place of fighting, were occupied in
+drinking the healths of the couple. The device of Hume, in sending them to
+the Newmilne, was admired for its ingenuity; and all Berwick rung with the
+praises of Hume and his fair spouse. Regular entries were made in the
+council books, of the expedition to the Newmilne, "where they braived the
+Scottes to come and fecht them, butte the cowardes never appeared." But it
+was deemed prudent to say nothing therein of Hume's trick, which,
+doubtless, might have reduced the amount of bravery which it was necessary
+should appear, for the honour of the town.
+
+
+END OF VOL. XVII.
+
+_Tubbs & Brook, Printers, Manchester._
+
+
+    +----------------------------------------------------------+
+    |                                                          |
+    | Transcriber's Note:                                      |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Inconsistencies and unexpected spelling, punctuation and |
+    | hyphenation have been retained as they appear in the     |
+    | original book except:                                    |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Page 31 through the intrumentality has been changed to   |
+    | through the instrumentality                              |
+    |                                                          |
+    | Page 43 and and unflinching opinion has been changed to  |
+    | and an unflinching opinion                               |
+    |                                                          |
+    +----------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of
+Scotland Volume 17, by Alexander Leighton
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