r heart gurged within her,
and instead of laughter, her voice broke out into wild and horrid yells,
and falling back in her chair, she grew stiff and ghastly to behold, in
so much that both Elspa and my grandfather were terrified, and had to
work with her for some time before they were able to recover her; nor
indeed did she come rightly to herself till she got relief by tears; but
they were tears of rage, and not shed for any remorse on account of her
foul fault. Indeed, no sooner was she come to herself, than she began to
rail at her sister and my grandfather, calling them by all the terms of
scorn that her tongue could vent. At last she said,--

"But nae doubt ye're twa Reformers."

"Ay," replied Elspa, "in a sense we are sae, for we would fain help to
reform you."

But after a long, faithful, and undaunted endeavour on the part of
Elspa, in this manner, to reach the sore of her sinful conscience, she
saw that all her ettling was of no avail, and her heart sank, and she
began to weep, saying, "O, Marion, Marion, ye were my dear sister ance;
but frae this night, if ye leave me to gang again to your sins, I hope
the Lord will erase the love I bear you utterly out of my heart, and
leave me but the remembrance of what ye were when we were twa wee
playing lassies, clapping our young hands, and singing for joy in the
bonny spring mornings that will never, never come again."

The guilty Marion was touched with her sorrow, and for a moment seemed
to relent and melt, replying in a softened accent,--

"But tell me, Eppie, for ye hae na telt me yet, how did ye leave my
weans?"

"Would you like to see them?" said Elspa, eagerly.

"I would na like to gang to Crail," replied her sister, thoughtfully;
"but if--" and she hesitated.

"Surely, Marion," exclaimed Elspa, with indignation, "ye're no sae lost
to all shame as to wish your innocent dochters to see you in the midst
of your iniquities?"

Marion reddened, and sat abashed and rebuked for a short time in
silence, and then reverting to her children, she said, somewhat
humbly,--

"But tell me how they are--poor things!"

"They are as weel as can be hoped for," replied Elspa, moved by her
altered manner; "but they'll lang miss the loss of their mother's care.
O, Marion, how could ye quit them! The beasts that perish are kinder to
their young, for they nourish and protect them till they can do for
themselves; but your wee May can neither yet gang nor speak. She's your