should I not pleasure the young gentlemen? I'll
just drink to honest folk at hame and abroad, and deil ane else. And
then--but you have heard it before, Mrs. Crosbie?'

'Not so often as to think it tiresome, I assure ye,' said the lady; and
without further preliminaries, the laird addressed Alan Fairford.

'Ye have heard of a year they call the FORTY-FIVE, young gentleman;
when the Southrons' heads made their last acquaintance with Scottish
claymores? There was a set of rampauging chields in the country then
that they called rebels--I never could find out what for--Some men
should have been wi' them that never came, provost--Skye and the Bush
aboon Traquair for that, ye ken.--Weel, the job was settled at last.
Cloured crowns were plenty, and raxed necks came into fashion. I dinna
mind very weel what I was doing, swaggering about the country with dirk
and pistol at my belt for five or six months, or thereaway; but I had
a weary waking out of a wild dream. When did I find myself on foot in a
misty morning, with my hand, just for fear of going astray, linked into
a handcuff, as they call it, with poor Harry Redgauntlet's fastened into
the other; and there we were, trudging along, with about a score more
that had thrust their horns ower deep in the bog, just like ourselves,
and a sergeant's guard of redcoats, with twa file of dragoons, to
keep all quiet, and give us heart to the road. Now, if this mode of
travelling was not very pleasant, the object did not particularly
recommend it; for, you understand, young man, that they did not trust
these poor rebel bodies to be tried by juries of their ain kindly
countrymen, though ane would have thought they would have found Whigs
enough in Scotland to hang us all; but they behoved to trounce us away
to be tried at Carlisle, where the folk had been so frightened, that
had you brought a whole Highland clan at once into the court, they would
have put their hands upon their een, and cried, "hang them a'," just to
be quit of them.'

'Aye, aye,' said the provost, 'that was a snell law, I grant ye.'

'Snell!' said the wife, 'snell! I wish they that passed it had the jury
I would recommend them to!'

'I suppose the young lawyer thinks it all very right,' said Summertrees,
looking at Fairford--'an OLD lawyer might have thought otherwise.
However, the cudgel was to be found to beat the dog, and they chose
a heavy one. Well, I kept my spirits better than my companion, poor
fellow; for I