n."

And at the Big House it would be Bryde this and Bryde that, till I am
thinking poor Hugh would be near demented.

And the night before the wedding Bryde stayed with us, and we had a
great night of it, for Hugh would not be having any other for his best
man, as they will be calling it, and Margaret was to be helping the
lass Helen, and was at Glenscaur already with the Laird and her mother,
and that night Hugh slept with Bryde like boys again, and I would be
hearing the laughing of them.

In the morning Bryde was up and crying that the sun was shining, and
that it would be time to be on the road.

"You will not be last at your ain wedding," he would say to Hugh, for
the boy was not very clever with his fingers that day; but we gave him
a good jorum, and he brisked up at that, and we got on the horses and
away, with the bauchles raining round our lugs and the horses sketch.
On all the road the folk would be walking to be seeing the couple, and
it was all we could be doing to be holding the horses, for there would
be salutes from blunderbusses, and flags on the trams of creels, old
flags and tattered from many's the sea, and we came to Scaurdale, and
smuggled Hugh into the house like a thief, for fear he would be seeing
Helen, and got at the dressing of him.

It was Bryde who had mind of all the freits.

"Something old and something new,
Something borrowed and something blue,"

he would be singing, for it will not be lucky to be married without the
due observance of these old sayings.

I would be sitting with Hugh in his room, and Bryde away to be seeing
if all things were ready, and to have a word with Margaret, for this
wedding would be putting things into his head maybe. At last back he
came, tall and swarthy and smiling.

"She is a beautiful wife you will be getting, Hughie," said he; "and
Margaret and the old women will have her imprisoned, so you will be
coming with me,"--and we took Hugh out under the trees where the place
was made ready, and the guests were gathered, and in a little Helen
came to his side and Margaret with her, and the marrying was begun.

And the Laird of Scaurdale was lifted out in his chair, very white, but
with a good spirit in him yet.

It would be Helen I would be watching, for her hand was tight clenched,
and she swayed a little as a flower sways, but she spoke bravely. It
would be a long business, a marriage in these days.

But when the ring was on her finger and M