at all in the land of the living, was very great; and he
sufficiently expressed this feeling by the lively and highly excited
manner in which he addressed him.

Having put the usual queries, with that air of intense interest which
they naturally excited, as to where Johnny had been, what he had been
about, &c. &c., and having obtained a brief sketch of his adventures,
with the promise of a fuller one afterwards, Mr. Stevenson, in reply,
asked Johnny what course he was now steering.

"Hame, to be sure," said Johnny, with a smile. "It's time noo, I
think--I'm just sae far on my way to tak' oot a ticket for the coach."

"Ye needna do that unless ye like," replied Johnny's friend. "Ye may
save your siller, and no be abune an hour langer tarried, by takin' a
seat wi' me in the gig I hae in wi' me. I'm sure ye're welcome, and I'll
be blythe o' your company."

"Hae ye a gig in wi' ye?" said Johnny, looking pleased by the
intelligence.

"'Deed hae I, Mr. Armstrong, and ye'll just clink down beside me in't."

"I'll do that wi' great thankfu'ness," replied Johnny, "and muckle
obleeged by the offer."

The friends now walked away, arm in arm together; and in about two hours
afterwards--Mr. Stevenson having, in the meantime, despatched what
business he had to do in the city--they were both, seated in the gig,
and birring it on merrily towards Carlisle.

Neither Mr. Stevenson nor Johnny, however, were great whips--a
deficiency which was by no means compensated for by the circumstance of
their having a rather spirited horse, although blind of an eye. He was,
in truth, a very troublesome animal; boggling and shying at everything
that presented itself to his solitary optic. Notwithstanding this, the
travellers got on very well for a time, and were whirling over the
ground at a rapid rate, when an unlucky cart of hay came in their way at
a narrow turn of the road. How this simple occurrence should have
operated so unfavourably as it did for them, we shall explain.

A cart of hay is not a very alarming object to rational creatures like
ourselves, but to the one-eyed horse of the travellers it appeared a
very serious affair; for it had no sooner presented itself to his
solitary organ of vision than he pricked up his ears, snorted furiously,
and began to exhibit sundry other symptoms of disquietude. By dint,
however, of some well-directed punishment from Jamie Stevenson's whip,
which Johnny increased by an energetic application o