the black
firmament, driving the red sparks high into the air, where they died away
like the tail of a comet, or the train of a skyrocket; the joisting
crazing, cracking, and tumbling down; and now and then the bursting cans
playing flee in a hundred flinders from the chimney-heads. One would
have naturally enough thought that our engine could have drowned out a
fire of any kind whatsoever in half a second, scores of folks driving
about with pitcherfuls of water, and scaling half of it on one another
and the causey in their hurry; but, woe's me! it did not play puh on the
red-het stones, that whizzed like iron in a smiddy trough; so, as soon as
it was darkness and smoke in one place, it was fire and fury in another.

My anxiety was great; seeing that I had done my best for my neighbours,
it behoved me now, in my turn, to try and see what I could do for myself;
so, notwithstanding the remonstrances of my friend James Batter--whom
Nanse, knowing I had bare feet, had sent out to seek me, with a pair of
shoon in his hand; and who, in scratching his head, mostly rugged out
every hair of his wig with sheer vexation--I ran off, and mounted the
ladder a second time, and succeeded, after muckle speeling, in getting
upon the top of the wall; where, having a bucket slung up to me by means
of a rope, I swashed down such showers on the top of the flames, that I
soon did more good, in the space of five minutes, than the engine and the
ten men, that were all in a broth of perspiration with pumping it, did
the whole night over; to say nothing of the multitude of drawers of
water, men, wives, and weans, with their cuddies, leglins, pitchers,
pails, and water-stoups; having the satisfaction, in a short time, to
observe every thing getting as black as the crown of my hat, and the
gable of my own house becoming as cool as a cucumber.

Being a man of method, and acquainted with business, I could have liked
to have given a finishing stitch to my work before descending the ladder;
but, losh me! sic a whingeing, girning, greeting, and roaring, got up all
of a sudden, as was never seen or heard of since bowed Joseph raised the
meal-mob, and burned Johnnie Wilkes in effigy: and, looking down, I saw
Benjie, the bairn of my own heart, and the callant Glen, my apprentice on
trial, that had both been as sound as tops till this blessed moment,
standing in their nightgowns and their little red cowls, rubbing their
eyes, cowering with cold and fright,