cooper's wife). Ne'er a bit but she looks far better
than when she married Gilbert, and then she was the bonniest lass in our
parochine and the neist till't. But gawsie cow, goodly calf."

The women smiled at the compliment each to herself, and they smiled
again to each other as Caleb wrapt up the puddings in a towel which he
had brought with him, as a dragoon carries his foraging bag to receive
what my fall in his way.

"And what news at the castle?" quo' the gudewife.

"News! The bravest news ye ever heard--the Lord Keeper's up yonder wi'
his fair daughter, just ready to fling her at my lord's head, if he
winna tak her out o' his arms; and I'se warrant he'll stitch our auld
lands of Ravenswood to her petticoat tail."

"Eh! sirs--ay!--and will hae her? and is she weel-favoured? and what's
the colour o' her hair? and does she wear a habit or a railly?" were the
questions which the females showered upon the butler.

"Hout tout! it wad tak a man a day to answer a' your questions, and I
hae hardly a minute. Where's the gudeman?"

"Awa' to fetch the minister," said Mrs. Girder, "precious Mr. Peter
Bide-the-Bent, frae the Mosshead; the honest man has the rheumatism wi'
lying in the hills in the persecution."

"Ay! Whig and a mountain-man, nae less!" said Caleb, with a peevishness
he could not suppress. "I hae seen the day, Luckie, when worthy Mr.
Cuffcushion and the service-book would hae served your turn (to the
elder dame), or ony honest woman in like circumstances."

"And that's true too," said Mrs. Lightbody, "but what can a body do?
Jean maun baith sing her psalms and busk her cockernony the gate the
gudeman likes, and nae ither gate; for he's maister and mair at hame, I
can tell ye, Mr. Balderstone."

"Ay, ay, and does he guide the gear too?" said Caleb, to whose projects
masculine rule boded little good. "Ilka penny on't; but he'll dress her
as dink as a daisy, as ye see; sae she has little reason to complain:
where there's ane better aff there's ten waur."

"Aweel, gudewife," said Caleb, crestfallen, but not beaten off, "that
wasna the way ye guided your gudeman; bt ilka land has its ain lauch.
I maun be ganging. I just wanted to round in the gudeman's lug, that I
heard them say up-bye yonder that Peter Puncheon, that was cooper to the
Queen's stores at the Timmer Burse at Leith, is dead; sae I though that
maybe a word frae my lord to the Lord Keeper might hae served Gilbert;
but since he's frae hame----"