, but every man-body an'
woman-body on the farm. It was aye late 'at the soond began, an' we
never saw naething, we juist heard it. The masons said they wouldna
hae been sae fleid if they could hae seen't, but it never was seen. It
had the soond o' a cradle rockin', an' when we lay in our beds
hearkenin', it grew louder an' louder till it wasna to be borne, an'
the women-folk fair skirled wi' fear. The mester was intimate wi' a'
the stories aboot ghosts an' water-kelpies an' sic like, an' we couldna
help listenin' to them. But he aye said 'at ghosts 'at was juist heard
an' no seen was the maist fearsome an' wicked. For all there was sic
fear ower the hale farm-toon 'at naebody would gang ower the door alane
after the gloamin' cam, the mester said he wasna fleid to sleep i' the
kitchen by 'imsel. We thocht it richt brave o' 'im, for ye see he was
as helpless as a bairn.

"Richt queer stories rose aboot the cradle, an' travelled to the ither
farms. The wife didna like them ava, for it was said 'at there maun
hae been some awful murder o' an infant on the farm, or we wouldna be
haunted by a cradle. Syne folk began to mind 'at there had been na
bairns born on the farm as far back as onybody kent, an' it was said
'at some lang syne crime had made the Bog cursed.

"Dinna think 'at we juist lay in our beds or sat round the fire
shakkin' wi' fear. Everything 'at could be dune was dune. In the
daytime, when naething was heard, the masons explored ae place i' the
farm, in the hope o' findin' oot 'at the sound was caused by sic a
thing as the wind playin' on the wood in the garret. Even at nichts,
when they couldna sleep wi' the soond, I've kent them rise in a body
an' gang all ower the house wi' lichts. I've seen them climbin' on the
new steadin', crawlin' alang the rafters, haudin' their cruizey lamps
afore them, an' us women-bodies shiverin' wi' fear at the door. It was
on ane o' thae nights 'at a mason fell off the rafters an' broke his
leg. Weel, sic a state was the men in to find oot what it was 'at was
terrifyin' them sae muckle, 'at the rest o' them climbed up at aince to
the place he'd fallen frae, thinkin' there was something there 'at had
fleid im. But though they crawled back an' forrit there was naething
ava.

"The rockin' was louder, we thocht, after that nicht, an' syne the men
said it would go on till somebody was killed. That idea took a richt
haud o' them, an' twa ran awa back to Tilliedrum, w