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 I 
 
 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 h novel 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM BLACK 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 "A PRINCESS OF THULE" "MACLEOD OF DARE " 
 
 "THE HANDSOME HUMES " ETC. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
 NEW YORK 
 HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS 
 
 1894 

 
 WILLIAM BLACK'S NOVELS. 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 EDITION. 
 
 A DAUGHTER OF HETH. 
 
 STAND FAST, CRAIG-ROYSTON ! 
 
 A PRINCESS OF THULE. 
 
 Illustrated. 
 
 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 SUNRISE. 
 
 GREEN PASTURES AND PICCA- 
 
 THAT BEAUTIFUL WRETCH. Il- 
 
 DILLY 
 
 lustrated. 
 
 IN FAR LOCHABER. 
 
 THE MAGIC INK, AND OTHER 
 
 IN SILK ATTIRE. 
 
 STORIES. Illustrated. 
 
 JUDITH SHAKESPEARE. Illus- 
 
 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF 
 
 trated by Abbey. 
 
 A HOUSE-BOAT. Illustrated. 
 
 KILMENY. 
 
 THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF 
 
 MACLEOD OF DARE. Illustrated. 
 
 A PHAETON. 
 
 MADCAP VIOLET. 
 
 THREE FEATHERS. 
 
 PRINCE FORTUNATUS. Ill'd. 
 
 WHITE HEATHER. 
 
 SABINA ZEMBRA. 
 
 WHITE WINGS. Illustrated. 
 
 SHANDON BELLS. Illustrated. 
 
 YOLANDE. Illustrated. 
 
 12mo, Cloth, $1 25 per volume. 
 
 WOLFENBERG.— THE HANDSOME HUMES. 
 
 Illustrated. 12mo 
 
 Cloth, $1 50 each. 
 
 Complete Sets, 
 
 26 vols., $30 00. 
 
 Published by HARPER & BROTHERS, New Yoke. 
 
 j6®= Any of the above works will be 
 
 sent by mail, pottage prepaid, to any 
 
 part of the United States, Canada 
 
 or Mi xico, on receipt of the price. 
 
 Copyright, 1894, by Harper At Brothkhh.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGR 
 
 I. CONVOY 1 
 
 II. A POOR STUDENT 10 
 
 III. SIGNALS OP DISTRESS 17 
 
 rv. ON A ROCK 24 
 
 V. THE "firefly" 32 
 
 VI. THE DAY AFTER 41 
 
 VII. A CEILIDH 48 
 
 Vin. BARBAROSSA 58 
 
 IX. PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 66 
 
 X. THE SUN-GOD 74 
 
 XI. ' ' THE WILD TEARS FALL " 84 
 
 XII. IN SORE STRAITS . . . .* 93 
 
 XIII. OUT OF THE DEEPS 101 
 
 XIV. A VISITOR 110 
 
 XV. ENCOUNTERS 118 
 
 XVI. SCHEMES AND FORECASTS 127 
 
 XVII. A PTARMIGAN BROOCn 135 
 
 XVIII. A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER ' . . 143 
 
 XIX. COUNCILLOR V. STATION-MASTER 152 
 
 XX. AN INTRUDER 161 
 
 XXI. A RAID ON THE SANCTUARY 169 
 
 XXII. AN INFORMER 179 
 
 XXIII. AT AN OPEN DOOR 188 
 
 XXIV. ON THE VERGE 199 
 
 XXV. PRINCE BEELZEBUB 208 
 
 XXVI. LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI 217 
 
 XXVII. DARK DEALINGS ... 225 
 
 XXVIII. THE RED PARASOL 234 
 
 XXIX. A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 243 
 
 XXX. AN ASSIGNATION 252 
 
 XXXI. SUNLIGHT ABROAD , 260 
 
 XXXII. THE FOOL'S REVENGE 268 
 
 XXXIII. PERPLEXITIES 277 
 
 XXXIV. A RING - . . . . 286 
 
 XXXV. ON A SUMMER'S EVENING 294
 
 IV CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XXXVI. IN THE SOUND OF MULL 303 
 
 XXXVII. A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 312 
 
 XXXVIII. BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 321 
 
 XXXIX. FOREBODINGS 331 
 
 XL. IN PERIL 340 
 
 XLI. HUSBAND, WIFE, AND FRIEND 349 
 
 XLII. THE PLEADING DIET 356 
 
 XLIII. A BREAKING AND ENTERING 364 
 
 XLTV. ASPHODELS AND GOWANS 373 
 
 XLV. ON THE EVE 380 
 
 XLVI. ARRAIGNED 889 
 
 XLVII. DAY AND NIGHT 396 
 
 XLVIII. PAULINE 404 
 
 XLIX. A SUMMONS 414 
 
 L. FAREWELL 422 
 
 LI. "AT EACH REMOVE" 432 
 
 LII. A SAIL 440
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 " 'LET ME GO !' SHE EXCLAIMED, IN A PANTING, HALF-CHOKED 
 
 VOICE THAT THRILLED THOSE 'WHO heard" .... Frontispiece 
 
 " A SMALL AND BLACK PROCESSION WAS STRIVING HARD TO 
 
 MAKE HEADWAY AGAINST A BLINDING GALE " . . . Facing page 2 
 
 " FROM THE DECK OF THE SHIP THE ROCKETS WENT SCREAM- 
 ING INTO THE NIGHT " " "30 
 
 "AT LAST ALL THE PASSENGERS HAD BEEN RESCUED FROM 
 
 THEIR PERILOUS POSITION " " "38 
 
 " ' WHO ARE YOU ? AND WHAT ARE YOU ?' HE DEMANDED " " " 62 
 
 "'THERE IS THE FIRST WILD -FLOWER I HAVE SEEN THIS 
 
 YEAR'" " "72 
 
 "HE CAUGHT AT THE NEAREST OBJECT TO STEADY HIMSELF" " " 98 
 
 " 'HE LIVES! — UNCLE, HE LIVES ! THERE IS HOPE FOR US !' " " " 108 
 
 "'DO YOU REMEMBER THE OLD SAYING, "YOU ARE TOO 
 
 MERRY, YOU'LL HAVE TO MARRY "?' " " " 132 
 
 "THE LUCKLESS SHOEMAKER WAS CONDUCTED TO THE DOOR 
 
 AND EJECTED INTO THE NIGHT " " " 148 
 
 "'FIVE MINUTES GONE OUT OF THE TEN,' SAID THE STATION- 
 MASTER" " "156 
 
 "aw, it's a fine thing to come among friends" . . " " 184 
 "the school-master had hurled himself upon him and 
 
 seized him by the throat " " " 206 
 
 "the next moment she had fled into the outer air " " " 214 
 " ' but there's the rich old gentleman you have the 
 
 chance of '" " " 232 
 
 "'it would be a strange thing if i was thinking 
 
 of any one like that'" " " 258 
 
 "'and would you be sorry too, barbara ?"' . ... " " 266 
 
 "where she was alone" " " 292 
 
 " ' to run her over to mull there ' " " " 300 
 
 " jess was the only one who hung back ; she said she 
 
 would rather remain in the boat" " " 324
 
 VI ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 "'SO THAT I CAN PKACTISE MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING. 
 
 man, it's grand exercise ! — just famous'" . . . Facing page 336 
 
 "'CHECK HIM, SIR — CHECK HIM; OR HE'i.L BE BRINGING ON 
 
 THE COUGH AGAIN ' " " " 378 
 
 ' ; ' BUT i'll go away now, and i'll not COME BACK '" . " " 384 
 
 " THERE WAS HARDLY ANY ONE ABOUT TO WITNESS THEIR 
 
 LAST AND MUTE FAREWELL " " " 402 
 
 "THERE WAS NOT MUCH FOR HIM TO DO BEYOND VISITING 
 
 TWO GRAVES " " " 426 
 
 " ' JESS, THAT'S MR. CAIRD ! HE DID NOT SAY HE WAS TO 
 
 BE HERE SO SOON'" " " 442
 
 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 A CONVOY 
 
 Away out at the edge of the world, facing the wild Atlan- 
 tic seas, a small and black procession was striving hard to 
 make headway against a blinding gale of rain and sleet. First 
 came a horse and cart, and in the cart was a young woman, 
 seated on a sack of straw, and wrapped up in a thick blue- 
 green tartan shawl that in a measure protected her from the 
 driving gusts ; then followed a straggling company of middle- 
 aged men, their figures pitched forward against the wind, 
 their teeth clinched, the salt spin-drift dripping from shaggy 
 eyebrows and beard, while now and again the tail end of a 
 plaid, escaping from the clutch of frozen fingers, w y ould go 
 flying aloft in the air. Occasionally one of the men, from 
 mere force of habit, would stop for a moment to try to light 
 his pipe ; but even if his horny palms were sufficient to shel- 
 ter the sulphur match, the wet tobacco would not burn, and 
 the pipe was mechanically returned to its owner's pocket. 
 There were two or three collies, trotting by the side of their 
 respective masters ; but what with the drenching showers 
 and the bewilderment of the tumultuous waves, there was not 
 a snap or a snarl left amongst them. 
 
 At length, however, the road the travellers were following, 
 which hitherto had wound along the shore, struck inland ; 
 and at this corner stood a solitary and dismal-looking habi- 
 tation. There was no sign of any kind to denote that here 
 was offered entertainment for either man or beast ; but no 
 1
 
 2 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 doubt the company knew the place ; for as with one accord 
 they left the highway and thronged into the narrow passage, 
 pressing and jostling against each other. All of them, that 
 is to say, except one — an elderly man, of respectable appear- 
 ance, who seemed to hesitate about leaving the girl in the cart. 
 
 " Will you not come down, Barbara," said he, addressing 
 her in the Gaelic tongue, " and step into the house ?" 
 
 The young girl with the dark blue Highland eyes and 
 raven-black hair merely shook her head. 
 
 " Then will I bring you out a dram," said he, " or a piece 
 of oatcake and cheese ?" 
 
 " I am not wishing for anything," she answered, also speak- 
 ing in Gaelic ; and thereupon the elderly shepherd, consider- 
 ing himself relieved of present responsibility, followed his 
 companions into the inn. 
 
 Apparently it was but a cold welcome they had received. 
 There seemed to be no one about ; nor was there any fire in 
 the grate of this bare, damp-smelling, comfortless chamber 
 into which they had crowded themselves. But they did not 
 appear to mind much ; all the pent-up speech suppressed by 
 the storm had now broken loose; and there was a confused 
 and high-surging babblement about funeral expenses — arrears 
 of rent — the sale of stock — the intentions of the factor — and 
 what not ; all of them talking at once, and at cross-purposes ; 
 contradicting, asseverating, with renewed striking of matches 
 and sucking of difficult pipes. Indeed, so vehement and vo- 
 ciferous was the hubbub that when a timid-looking young 
 lass of about fourteen came along, bearing before her a shovel- 
 ful of burning peats, she could hardly win attention, until one 
 of them called out: 
 
 " Make way for the lass there ! Come in, Isabel. And 
 where is your mother and the whiskey ?" 
 
 " My mother is not so well to-day," the girl replied, as she 
 put the peats in the grate. 
 
 "But you can get us the whiskey?" was the instant and 
 anxious inquiry. 
 
 " Oh yes, indeed." 
 
 " Then make haste and bring it to us, for there is more 
 warmth in a glass of whiskey than in all the peats in the 
 island."
 
 CONVOY 3 
 
 " And have you any oatcake in the house ?" asked another. 
 
 " No, there is no oatcake in the house," the lass made 
 answer. " It is at this very moment that my grandmother is 
 baking.'' 
 
 She left the room, and shortly returned with a tray on 
 which were ranged a number of thick tumblers and measures, 
 the latter filled with a dull straw-colored fluid ; whereupon 
 each man apportioned his own and paid for the same. There 
 was no drinking of healths, for they had come away from a 
 solemn occasion ; but this additional stimulant, following pre- 
 vious and liberal potations, awoke a fresh enthusiasm of 
 eager speech — about pasture land and arable, the Crofters' 
 Commission, the price of calves, and similar things. And 
 perhaps it was to rebuke them that Lauchlan Maclntyre the 
 shoemaker, a tall gaunt man of melancholy mien, pushed his 
 way through and placed his fist on the table, the better to 
 steady himself. 
 
 " A shame it is," he said, in Gaelic that might have been 
 fluent if it had not been interrupted by apprehensions of hic- 
 cough — " a shame it is that we should be talking of such 
 worldly matters. Aye, aye, indeed, when we should be mourn- 
 ing with our friend — mourning — as Rachel — mourning, and 
 refusing to be comforted. It is this day that my heart is 
 sore for Donald Maclean — that has seen the last of his family 
 put away from him into the earth. A fine lass she was — aye, 
 aye, indeed, not a handsomer in these islands — and a handy 
 and a useful creature about the croft ; but we are as the grass 
 that perisheth and the flower that withereth ; and Donald — 
 Donald will be a sorrowful man — when he finds himself 
 among the folk of Duntroone — so that the saying will be ful- 
 filled that was written : ' Sad is — the lowing — of a cow — on a 
 strange pasture ' — " 
 
 He tilted forward, but he did not fall ; for a powerful pair 
 of hands had got hold of him by the shoulders, and he was 
 dragged away from the table, and thrown unceremoniously 
 into a corner. The elderly shepherd who had thus inter- 
 fered, and who was about the only one of them with any 
 remaining pretensions to sobriety, now addressed him with 
 bitter scorn : 
 
 " Yes, you are the fine man to have your wits and judg-
 
 4 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ment in such a state. You do not know that it is Donald 
 Maclean that we have heen burying ; you do not know that 
 his daughter is alive and well, and waiting for us outside in 
 the cart ; you do not know it is she who is going to* Dun- 
 troone. And you are the fine man to have the charge of 
 her ; sure I am you will be in a drunken sleep as soon as vou 
 get on board the steamer — " 
 
 "Let be — let be," said Lauchlan, fumbling in his pocket 
 for his pipe. " I am not for quarrelling. I am a peaceable 
 man. Duncan, have you a match?" 
 
 " A match !" exclaimed the other, with disdain. " Is it 
 nothing you can think of but whiskey and tobacco ?" 
 
 " Whiskey ?" repeated Lauchlan, with an amazing alertness. 
 " Well, now, it is your head that has the good sense in it, 
 Duncan, sometimes — and that is the Bible's truth. And I say 
 what you say ; another good glass of whiskey will do us no 
 harm, since we have to walk across the island to Kilree. Oh 
 yes, do not fear; I will look after the young lass and her 
 father ; I will take them safely to Duntroone. Have you a 
 match, Duncan ?" 
 
 The older man did not answer. 
 
 " It is I that must try to get a glass of milk for Barbara," 
 he said to himself, as he moved away, " if there is no oatcake 
 in the house." 
 
 But meanwhile. Lauchlan — Long Lauchlan the shoemaker 
 he was called in Duntroone on the mainland — Lauchie, while 
 fumbling about for his pipe, had come upon a jcws-harp ; 
 and this was a new inspiration. With heroic endeavor he 
 struggled to his feet; he balanced himself; he placed the in- 
 strument to his lips, and began to play, in a thin, quavering 
 strain, "Lord Lovat's Lament." Nay, he affected to give him- 
 self something of the airs of a piper; in the limited space at 
 his command, he paced backward and forward with slow and 
 solemn steps; there was an inward look on his face, as if he 
 was forgetful, or disdainful, of these vain roisterers. More- 
 over, there was a kind of nebulous grandeur about the tall 
 and melancholy figure ; for since ever the peats had been put 
 in the grate, the wind had been steadily blowing down the 
 chimney, ami now the apartment was thick with smoke — peat- 
 smoke and tobacco-smoke combined ; so that the performer,
 
 CONVOY 5 
 
 with his slow funereal steps of about three inches in length, 
 was as the dark ghost of a piper, moving to and fro unheeded 
 and apart. And he might very well have been left to his 
 harmless diversion ; but that was not to be. In spite of the 
 din, the tremulous, wiry sound of the jews-harp had caught 
 the ear of a huge red-bearded drover from Mull who was on 
 the other side of the table ; and for some reason or other he 
 became irritated. 
 
 " You there, Long Lauchlan," he called, " why do you play 
 that foolish thing ? If the Free Church will not let you play 
 the pipes, a man who is a man at all would refuse to play on 
 any instrument ! It is the great piper you are — with a child's 
 toy at your mouth !" 
 
 The piper — or harper, rather — paused, advanced to the table, 
 steadied himself, and fixed his gaze on his enemy. 
 
 " What — is it you say — about the Free Church ?" he de- 
 manded, with his small black eyes beginning to glitter. 
 
 "This it is I am saying," responded the big red -bearded 
 giant, with his brows lowering ominously, " that when the 
 Free Church will be for putting down the pipes throughout 
 the islands, then the man is not a man, but a dog every inch 
 of him, who will give up the pipes and take in the place of 
 the pipes what is allowed him, and that is the low, pitiful, vile 
 toy instrument you have there." 
 
 " Then you are a liar !" said the shoemaker, with decision. 
 
 "I am a liar?" repeated the other, in an access of fury. 
 " But you are worse, for you are a son of the devil and a liar 
 besides — and I will smash your d d Free-Church toy !" 
 
 He made a sudden snatch across the table, caught the jews- 
 harp out of the shoemaker's hand, and dashed it on the floor, 
 dancing on it with his heavy-nailed boots. Then the tumult 
 began ! The shoemaker would get round the table. His 
 friends held him back. He broke away, with imprecations 
 and howls of rage. The drover — Red Murdoch — equally 
 frantic, was desperately striving to dispossess himself of those 
 who clung to him or who bravely interposed themselves be- 
 tween the two combatants ; while random blows on both sides 
 did nothing worse, so far, than beat the air. But what por- 
 tended evil was that the angry passions thus aroused showed 
 a tendency to become general. There were excited cries and
 
 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 remonstrances — the invariable prelude of a faction fight. And 
 then, as it chanced, by some accidental swaying of the crowd, 
 the table went over — went over with a breenge fit to wake the 
 dead : the tray, the glasses, the measures, the unnecessary 
 water-bottle, hurling themselves into the little black fireplace. 
 
 It was in the midst of all this indescribable uproar that a 
 new figure suddenly appeared on the scene — an old woman 
 with unkempt silver-white locks and visage of terrible import. 
 She came in quickly ; she was armed with the rolling-pin she 
 had been using at the bake-board ; and with some strange 
 sort of instinct she seemed to make straight for the two chief 
 offenders. 
 
 "What is this, now," she exclaimed, in shrill Gaelic, " what 
 is this going on, and my daughter lying ill ! Out with you, 
 you drunken savages ! Out of the house with you, you 
 heathen crew ! — aye, every one of you ! — out of the house with 
 you — out ! — out ! — " And these panting ejaculations were 
 accompanied by strokes so energetic and unexpected that a 
 universal bewilderment and confusion instantly prevailed. No 
 man's person, nor any part of it, however inferior, was safe 
 from this merciless weapon ; though it was mainly on the 
 Mull drover and on the astonished shoemaker that her valiant 
 belaboring fell. 
 
 " In the name of God, woman, have peace !" cried one of 
 them. 
 
 But there was no peace — there was war — war implacable 
 and ferocious — war that ended in a decisive victory ; for in 
 an incredibly short space of time she had driven forth the 
 whole invertebrate crowd of them, and slammed to the outer 
 door. They found themselves in the rain, they hardly knew 
 how or why. They regarded each other as if something had 
 occurred that they were trying to recollect. Then their eyes 
 fell upon the cart. The young lass was still patiently waiting 
 there, the thick blue-green shawl not entirely confining the 
 tags of raven-black hair that had been loosened by the storm. 
 Ami then Duncan t he shepherd — choosing to ignore this wild 
 thing thai had just happened — said, discreetly : 
 
 " We'd better be getting on, lads. It would be a greal 
 pity if we were to miss the Sam/a." 
 
 They now followed the road that cut across the island ;
 
 CONVOY 7 
 
 and a dismal road it was, leading through sombre wastes of 
 swampy peat-moss and half-frozen tarns; with rarely a symp- 
 tom of life anywhere, except the occasional clanging-by over- 
 head of a string of wild swans on their way to the western 
 seas. But at any rate the rain had stopped ; and the wind, 
 instead of being dead ahead, was now on their quarter, as a 
 sailor might say ; so that they made very good progress — 
 Lauchie the shoemaker clinging on to the tail end of the cart, 
 and talking to himself the while. 
 
 As the day waned, of a sudden they encountered the 
 strangest sound — a long-protracted wail that rose and fell, as 
 if it were some spirit of the dusk in immeasurable pain. 
 
 " May the Good Being save us, but what is that ?" was the 
 pious ejaculation of one of the company. 
 
 Lauchie, holding on to the cart, and still talking to himself, 
 laughed and chuckled. 
 
 " Oh, you are the clever boys, and no mistake !" he said, 
 without looking at them. "You are the clever ones that 
 would squeeze paraffine oil out of the peat, and you would 
 make your own sheep-dip, and you would write to the Queen 
 complaining of the Commission and the rents. And yet you 
 do not know the new steam-whistle — you have never heard 
 the siren steam-whistle before — and the Sanda has given you 
 a splendid fright ! — " 
 
 " The Sanda /" exclaimed a neighbor, in dismay, and in- 
 advertently he relapsed into English. " Is she unn V 
 
 " Aye, she's unn," responded Lauchie, giggling to himself, 
 " and very soon she'll be off again, and we'll hef to tek Bar- 
 bara Maclean ahl the well back to Knockalanish." 
 
 But this dire threat stimulated them ; they pushed ahead, 
 and urged on the ancient animal in the shafts ; and erelong 
 they came in sight of the eastern shores of the island — with 
 the strip of cottages called Kilree — the bay — the rude quay 
 and landing-slip — and, lying some few hundred yards out, a 
 stumpy one-funnelled steamer that was again sending forth 
 its alarming call. And was not yonder the last boat already 
 left? They waved their plaids; they whistled; some of them 
 ran — and one of them fell, and picked himself up again. 
 The end of it was that the horse and cart were stopped at 
 the top of the beach ; the young lass was helped to descend ;
 
 8 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the foremost two or three of the company, hurrying along, 
 had become possessed of a boat lying by the slip ; and when 
 Barbara Maclean and her modest bundle had been deposited 
 in the stern, the promiscuous crew unloosed the painter, 
 shoved off the bow, plunged their oars into the water, and 
 proceeded to pull away with a desperate resolution to overtake 
 the departing steamer. 
 
 They pulled and they pulled and they pulled ; and they 
 were men of strength and sinew; the oars creaked and groaned 
 in the thole-pins. They tugged and they strained and they 
 splashed — heads down and teeth clinched; they put their 
 shoulders into the work with a will ; they would have cheered 
 but that they dared not waste their breath ; and again came a 
 long howl from the Sanda to encourage them — doubtless she 
 had perceived them through the gathering dusk, and might be 
 disposed to grant them a few moments of grace. 
 
 But at this moment an appalling thing occurred. Long 
 Lauchie the shoemaker, who had roused himself from his 
 placid acquiescence of the last hour or two, and was now 
 madly and heroically pulling stroke, chanced to raise his head 
 — and behold there was some phantasmal object confronting 
 his bleared eyes ! 
 
 " Aw, God !" he cried, terror-stricken, " we have pulled the 
 quay away with us !" 
 
 For there, undoubtedly, was the landing-slip, not a dozen 
 yards off ! And the beach, and the cottages — just above — 
 were these also phantoms in the twilight? Surely they could 
 not have hauled the whole island after them, out into the 
 deep ! 
 
 Then came one running down to the shore, gesticulating, 
 shouting : 
 
 " There's a line astern ! The boat's tied astern, man ! Throw 
 off the line !" 
 
 And at last it dawned upon Lauchie's dimly rotating brain 
 that the boat must have been moored both fore and aft along- 
 side the slip — that they had only released the painter at the 
 bow — and that all their frantic pulling had gone for nothing: 
 in point of fact, they had not, moved a yard beyond the length 
 of this still attaching line. So blindly and mechanically he 
 undid the rope from tin; iron ring, and cast it into the water;
 
 CONVOY 9 
 
 then he resumed his place and his strenuous work — this time 
 with considerably less weight dragging behind. And in due 
 course they reached the steamer; the young lass, Long Lauchie, 
 and Red Murdoch from Mull got on board ; the others re- 
 turned with the boat to the shore. And thus it was that 
 Barbara Maclean left her native island to seek a home among 
 her relatives in Duntroone. 
 1*
 
 CHAPTER II 
 A POOR STUDENT 
 
 The aunt of this Barbara Maclean kept a tobacconist's-sliop 
 in Campbell Street, which is the main thoroughfare in the 
 small sea-side town of Duntroone ; and one evening Mrs. 
 Maclean and her daughter Jess were seated in the parlor be- 
 hind the shop, from which, through a window in the inter- 
 vening door, they could observe when any customer entered. 
 Mrs. Maclean was a spruce and trim little body, fresh-com- 
 plexioned, gray-haired, and bright and alert of look; her 
 daughter Jessie — or Jess, as she was called by her intimates 
 — was a young woman of about twenty, flaxen-haired and 
 freckled, of pleasant features and expression, and with gray 
 eyes, ordinarily tranquil and kindly, that could on occasion 
 show themselves merry and humorous enough, not to say 
 malicious. For the rest, this was quite a snug and cheerful 
 apartment on so cold a night ; a brisk coal-fire was burning 
 in the grate ; a kettle simmered on the hob ; and there were 
 tea-things on the table. 
 
 "Aye," said the little Highland widow, as she continued 
 busy with her knitting-needles, " it's a sad thing for a young 
 lass to be left dissolute in the world — " 
 
 " Desolate, mother !" Jess said, impatiently, for her mother's 
 happy carelessness of speech was at times a source of consid- 
 erable embarrassment when neighbors were about. 
 
 "Aye, jist that," the widow said, contentedly; "it's a sad 
 thing for a young lass to be left dissolute. But it's no so 
 bad when she has friends to turn to ; and I'm sure when 
 Barbara Maclean comes to us, there will not be a pennyworth 
 of grudging in her welcome. No, no, my sister and me we 
 had our quarrels in the old days; Imt my sister's lass will not 
 want lor a shelter while I have four walls round me and a fire 
 to warm my hands. And I would not wonder if she took
 
 A POOR STUDENT 11 
 
 kindly to the ways of living here. She'll find a difference 
 between Knockalanish and Duntroone, in the living and the 
 housing. For well you know, Jess, it's not me that's given 
 to the over-praising of creature comforts ; still, at the same 
 time, I like what is Christian ; and I say that having cattle 
 and human beings under the same roof is not Christian. 
 It may be very healthy ; but it is not Christian. And never 
 will I forget the fortnight I spent at Knockalanish when 
 my sister was in her last illness; the damp and the cold; 
 the peats soaked through with the snow ; the supper of 
 mashed potatoes and milk ; and the breathing of the cows 
 in the night. For of course my sister had the ben * of 
 the house ; and the rest of us we had to put up with 
 what beds and screens we could get; and night after night 
 I was lying awake, fearing to hear the tick of the death- 
 watch, or the howling of a dog, and it was the breathing 
 of the cows you could hear, and not so far away. Aye. And 
 Donald Maclean he was never the good manager, nor my 
 poor sister either, but after her death he lost heart altogeth- 
 er, and how he was getting the rent, or whether there was 
 more and more of debt, no one could tell ; only this I am 
 sure of, that when his daughter Barbara comes to us she will 
 not bring with her anvthing more than what she stands up 
 in—" 
 
 At this moment some one entered the shop, and Jess hur- 
 ried away to attend. It was a clerkly -looking youth, who 
 wanted a brier-root pipe ; and very particular he was ; but at 
 length he was satisfied ; whereupon Jess returned to the 
 parlor. 
 
 " Then there's the lad Allan," continued the warm-hearted 
 little widow, still busy with her knitting. " Well, now, I am 
 glad that he sometimes looks in of an evening ; and he is 
 one the more to show to Barbara that she has come among 
 her own kith and kin, though his mother married a Low- 
 lander and he has partly a Lowland name. But this is it 
 now, Jess, my lass, that when he stays to supper I wish you 
 would be pressing a little more on him — yes, yes — I wish you 
 would be pressing a little more on him — " 
 
 * The inner apartment.
 
 12 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Jessie Maclean's fair face flushed somewhat. 
 
 " Allan Henderson is very proud, mother," she said. " And 
 if he suspected anything he would never come hack." 
 
 " Pride and an empty stomach," said the small dame, sen- 
 tentiously, " are not even cousins twenty times removed. 
 Starvation is the worst of training for any one, I do not care 
 who he is ; and the young man is foolish who refuses when 
 there is plenty hefore him on the tahle. But I have heard 
 of Allan and his ways ; oh yes, indeed ; hoth his father and 
 his mother have told me ; that when he was at the College at 
 Glasgow he was costing them nothing — well, next to nothing 
 beyond the fees for the classes, and the hooks, and a lodging ; 
 and now he is paying back, and paying back, though they 
 are not asking for anything, and the post-offus keeping them 
 very comfortable now, and I dare say he has paid them far 
 more than ever they lent him. Besides," she went on, " it's 
 a poor trade the school-mastering. It's very little the School 
 Board give him, after his hard work at the classes. And my 
 heart is sore to see a young man going about at this time of 
 the year without an overcoat — when it's I myself would glad- 
 ly buy him one — and why should he not take it as a present 
 from his mother's cousin — " 
 
 The flush on the girl's face had deepened ; she turned to 
 trim the fire by way of hiding her vexation. 
 
 " You could not do that, mother !" she exclaimed, in a low 
 voice. " You would not insult him ? — and turn him away 
 from the house ? — when he has not too many friends. And 
 as for school-mastering," she continued, raising her head, and 
 at times speaking with an involuntary tremor of pride in her 
 tones, " he may not be always a school-master, though there 
 arc many school-masters that are great and famous men, at 
 the large schools throughout the country. But if Allan is 
 only a poor school-master at present, it will not be always so, 
 you may take my word for that. Of course he has not told 
 me his plans and his hopes — why should he? I think he is 
 too shy to tell them to any one; but I can sec what he is; 
 I can see what there is in him ; and 1 know this, mother, that 
 many a long day hence you and I wjll he wondering that the 
 Allan Henderson they are all talking of in London used to 
 come into our parlor in Puntrodne and smoke his pipe of an
 
 A POOR STUDENT 13 
 
 evening. It may be a long time yet ; but it will be a great 
 day for us — even if be has no recollection of us ; and you'll 
 bear me out, mother, that I prophesied it — " Some slight 
 noise arrested her attention, and she looked up. " Mercy on 
 us, here's Allan himself !" she ejaculated, in an undertone ; 
 and therewith she rose to open the door for him — the color 
 not yet quite gone from her face. 
 
 He was a tall young man of about three or four and twenty, 
 his figure slim and spare but well knit, his head bent forward 
 slightly, his features distinctly ascetic, yet with plenty of 
 firmness about the lines of his mouth, his forehead square 
 and capable, and showing a premature line or two, no doubt 
 the result of hard and perhaps injudicious study. But it was 
 his eyes that chiefly claimed attention : large, soft brown 
 eyes, that were usually contemplative and absent, but that 
 could become singularly penetrating when his attention was 
 challenged. It was a concentration, in obedience to any such 
 summons, that appeared to demand some brief effort ; but 
 his perceptions, once aroused, were swift ; he seemed instant- 
 ly to divine whether this person or this utterance was worth 
 heeding or to be turned away from with indifference and 
 contempt. Jess used laughingly to say -of him, when she was 
 grown spiteful : 
 
 " Poor Allan, the matter with him is that there's a cloud 
 betwixt him and all the world around him ; and when you 
 think he is looking over to Lismore, or to Morven, or Kin- 
 gairloch, it's the cloud he's staring at, and the grand things he 
 sees there — Roman battles, and such like, I suppose. And 
 some day he will be staring at the fine things before him, 
 and he'll step over the end of the quay, and that will be the 
 last of poor Allan !" And she would continue her flouting : 
 " Going on for four-and-twenty, and as big a baby as ever he 
 was in his childhood ! He has not got accustomed to any- 
 thing ! Everything is new to him — and everything wonder- 
 ful — if he comes on a foxglove growing in the woods — or 
 watches a young foal following its mother — or he'll pick up 
 a* shell from the shore, and that's quite enough to stare at 
 and wonder at too ! And what he gets to laugh at passes 
 me ! — he'll burst out laughing when there was no amusement 
 intended at all, and that is not pleasant to people's feelings ;
 
 14 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 or again, when the young folk are a little merry, and mocking 
 at each other, he will sit as glum as if he was looking at his 
 own funeral going by. Temper ? — temper, indeed ! — he is 
 the worst-tempered young man in Duntroone !" 
 
 Yet the visitor who now came in did not look as if he had 
 an evil temper ; rather he seemed diffident as he took the 
 seat that the widow cheerfully offered him. 
 
 " I was passing," said he, by way of apology, " and I 
 thought I would step in to ask if you had heard of your 
 niece. Do you know if the Sanda was able to call at Kilree ? 
 — the weather has been bad out there." 
 
 " "Well, it's little I am likely to hear," responded the wid- 
 ow, " until Barbara and Lauchlan Maclntyre walk straight 
 into the shop, or come knocking at the door of the house ; 
 though maybe some one will run up from the quay to tell us 
 when the Sanda shows round the point. There's Tobermory, 
 to be sure, and they might have telegraphed from Tobermory ; 
 but dear me, what does that poor lass understand about the 
 telegraph ? and Lauchlan — well, Lauchlan would be amongst 
 his friends. And yet I was cautioning him too. ' Lauchie,' 
 I was saying to him, ' this time at least it is absolutely com- 
 parative that you keep a hold on yourself, and behave your- 
 self at the funeral, and in bringing away the lass.' And he 
 was saving, ' Yes, yes, mistress,' again and again. But I have 
 had experience of Lauchie, that he is a good enough man and 
 a sensible man until the whiskey gets over him; and when 
 lie begins laughing, then it's a sign you need not try to talk 
 any more to him ; and afterwards, when he comes out of it 
 and is sober again, oh, the poor, down-hearted crayture that 
 he is ! — as if he had committed every sin in the Catalogue — " 
 
 " You mean the Decalogue, mother !" Jess remonstrated. 
 
 " Aye ; sometimes they say the one and sometimes the 
 other," the widow went on, with blithe effrontery. "But 
 I'm thinking the Sanda should be in erelong now ; and there's 
 a hit supper waiting over the way; and it would be very 
 agreeable to us, Allan, if you would step across with us, 
 when the shop is shut, and take your place at the table, t<> 
 show Barbara that she has come amongst several friends — " 
 
 Hut he seemed to shrink back from this proposal. 
 
 " No, no, thanks to you all the same," he said — and he had
 
 A POOR STUDENT 15 
 
 a grave, gentle, impressive voice, that Jess listened to as if 
 every word were of value. " When a girl comes to a new 
 home in this way, surely she would rather he with her own 
 people, and have no half-strangers to meet. Afterwards there 
 will be plenty of time for her to make acquaintances." 
 
 " And it is very ill done of you, Allan Henderson," said 
 the little widow, boldly and indignantly, " to speak of your- 
 self as a stranger, or half-stranger, in my house. Perhaps 
 these are the ways they have at the College ; but I am not 
 understanding such ways. Jess, she must be forever making 
 excuses ; and it's this one's pride, and that one's pride ; but I 
 am not understanding such pride when there is the family re- 
 lationship between us. Oh yes, every one has heard of the 
 old saying about the Macleans and their pride and their pov- 
 erty : ' Though I am poor, I am well born ; God be thanked, I 
 am a Maclean !' But where is the place for such things be- 
 tween cousins ? And when you know very well, Allan, that 
 over the way, and every night in the week, there is a place at 
 the table for you, and Jessie and me sitting by ourselves, 
 and perhaps you alone in your lodgings, and maybe without 
 a fire, too — for I have heard of such things with young men 
 eager to get on in the world — well, then, it may be College 
 manners for you to stay away, but it is not good High- 
 land manners. And that is the truth I am telling you at last." 
 
 Jess Maclean looked apprehensive and troubled; but the 
 young man took all this in good part. 
 
 " One is not always one's own master," he answered, quiet- 
 ly. " I can only give you my best thanks for so kindly ask- 
 ing me. And I am sure you know another old saying : ' If a 
 man cannot get to his own country, it is a good thing to be 
 in sight of it.' " 
 
 " Will you not light your pipe now, Allan ?" Jess put in 
 skilfully — to get away from a ticklish subject. 
 
 But at this suggestion, Mrs. Maclean, who had been regard- 
 ing the young man (perhaps with some little compunction, 
 for she was not accustomed to scold), quickly rose from her 
 seat and left the room, disappearing into the front shop, and 
 evidently bent on some errand. 
 
 " I hope you are not vexed with my mother, Allan," said 
 Jess, at once.
 
 16 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Oh no, indeed," he made answer. " Every one knows 
 that she is the kindest of women. And when your cousin 
 comes from the islands she will soon find that she is in a 
 friendly home." 
 
 Presently Mrs. Maclean reappeared, bringing with her an 
 unopened tin canister. 
 
 " This is a new mixture, Allan," said she, as she placed the 
 box before the young man, " that has been sent me from 
 Glasgow, and I would be glad if you would take the canister 
 home with you, and try the mixture, and tell me your opin- 
 ion, so that I could be advising my customers when they 
 come in. "Will you put it in your pocket, or will I send Chris- 
 tina along with it to you in the morning ?" 
 
 Jess looked swiftly and in alarm from one to the other of 
 them. But if his stubborn Scotch independence prompted 
 him to refuse the gift, the Highland blood that also flowed in 
 his veins forbade that the refusal should be in any way dis- 
 courteous. He hesitated for a second — to find some excuse ; 
 and there was some color of embarrassment visible on his 
 forehead. 
 
 " I am very much obliged to you, Mrs. Maclean," said he, 
 after this involuntary pause. " But — but I have been think- 
 ing of giving up my pipe altogether." 
 
 And now the anxiety of the younger woman gave place to 
 an infinite distress and pity ; was he — simply because he had 
 been driven into a corner, and found himself unable to refuse 
 in any other manner this proffered kindness — was lie going 
 to deprive himself of the chief, perhaps the only, comfort of 
 a poor and solitary student ? 
 
 But at this moment her attention was distracted. Some 
 one entered the shop, and approached the dividing door ; and 
 a glance through the half-curtained pane told her who this 
 was — this was Mr. Peter McFadyen, coal merchant and town 
 councillor. She rose to receive the new visitor ; but she did 
 so with impatient anger in her heart ; for she knew that now 
 in a very few minutes the proud and contemptuous Allan 
 would be <ni his homeward way.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 SIGNALS OF DISTRESS 
 
 Yet Peter McFadyen himself was about the last man in 
 the world to imagine that he could be unwelcome anywhere ; 
 and as he now, after salutations and inquiries, proceeded to 
 make himself comfortable in front of the fire — pulling out 
 his pipe and tobacco-pouch the while — he went on to give 
 these neighbors a vivid account of his day's doings on the 
 golf-links, nothing doubting of their sympathy and keen in- 
 terest. He was a little man, round and chubby, with eager 
 twinkling eyes, a clipped sandy -brown beard, and hair be- 
 coming conspicuously scant on the top. For the rest, the 
 rumor in Duntroone was that McFadyen, who was an old 
 bachelor, had it in view to amalgamate his fortunes with 
 those of the widow ; bnt some there were who surmised that 
 Peter cherished other and more romantic designs. 
 
 " Dod," he said, with a triumphant chuckle, " Fm thinking 
 the station-master and me we were showing the young fel- 
 lows something this afternoon ! Not that I would call either 
 Mr. Gilmour or myself elderly folk — " 
 
 " Indeed, Mr. McFadyen," said the widow, politely, " it 
 will be many a long day before you can think of such a 
 thing." 
 
 " A few years one way or the other is nothing at all," re- 
 sponded Mr. McFadyen, with obvious satisfaction. " Just 
 nothing at all ! It is a question of keeping yourself in good 
 fettle ; and if one of they young fellows and myself were to 
 start away from Taynuilt, I wonder which of us would be 
 the first to reach the top of Cruachan Ben ? Aye, or throw- 
 ing the hammer ; that is a capital test of what is in a man's 
 shoulders ; and I should not be afraid of a match with some 
 of them — not me ! I've got a practising-place marked out in 
 the backyard — though it's rather narrow — and if anybody
 
 18 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 was a bit careless, the hammer would make a fearfu' smash 
 of the little greenhouse — " 
 
 " Did I ever thank you for the christmasanthemums, Mr. 
 McFadyen ?" the widow interposed. " They were just beau- 
 tiful, though Jessie was sorry you should be cutting them — " 
 
 But Peter was not to be diverted from vaunting his phys- 
 ical prowess. 
 
 " Running — jumping — pulling an oar," he continued, with 
 buoyant assurance (and perhaps widening out his chest a 
 little, for he must have known that Jessie Maclean's ' gray 
 eyes feminine' were now regarding him) — "give me a week 
 or two's training, and I'm not afraid of any of they boastin' 
 young chaps. But it's the links, Mrs. Maclean, it's the links 
 I was coming to ; and we did well there this afternoon, I can 
 tell you ! We did well, both Gilmour and me ; but I beat 
 him — the fact is, Gilmour is a little thing stiff in the joints, 
 though he doesna like to hear it said. Well, we started from 
 the teeing-ground just behind the Dunchoillie farm ; and you 
 know Colquhoun's meadow, Mrs. Maclean, there's a burn 
 comes down through the middle, and then there's a bank 
 covered with whin-bushes : it's just a desperate bunker to get 
 into. Very well ; I put the ball on the tec — a little sand ; 
 not too much sand ; too much sand's a great mistake — and I 
 let drive ! Dod, that was a drive ! Away she went with a 
 ping like a ritle-bullet — sailing and sailing — sailing and sail- 
 ing — and getting smaller and smaller — until my eyes were 
 filled wi' water staring against the white clouds — and Gilmour 
 he lost sight of the ball altogether. ' It's down in the whins !' 
 he cries. ' Ye gomeril,' I answers him, ' it's more near the 
 putting-green, if not close up to the hole !' — for I was just 
 certain I had got far away over the burn and the whins, and 
 was safe on to the higher land. Would you believe it? — 
 when we got up, the ball was within twenty yards of the flag; 
 and in three more strokes I was out; the first hole for four 
 — and me that never touched a golf-club until last summer!'' 
 
 Peter had been growing excited: he now moderated his 
 warmth. 
 
 " I did not do so well at the second hole," he observed, 
 darkly. "Maybe it was the wind; or maybe I toed the ball 
 when 1 was driving from the tee; anyway it got over the
 
 SIGNALS OF DISTRESS 19 
 
 dike and into the road, aye, and into a cart-rut, and I thought 
 I was never going to get it over the dike again. Bother the 
 thing, I smashed my iron niblick clean in two — but — but I'm 
 thinking there must have been a flaw in the wood — " 
 
 He hastened away from these deplorable reminiscences. 
 
 " The Pinnacle," he said, laughing with eager anticipation. 
 " We had a rare game at the Pinnacle ! For that's a most 
 desperate place, Mrs. Maclean, and no mistake — as steep as 
 the side of a house — and all soomin with water — and unless 
 you get clear away on to the top, what happens is that your 
 ball strikes the face of the hill, and doesna lie there, but just 
 comes quietly trintle, trintle, trintling down the slope and 
 back to your feet again. And there was I up on the top — 
 right on the putting-green, after a fine long drive — looking 
 down on Gilmour; and I declare there never was such an 
 angry man! — hacking away with his cleek — splashing the 
 mud — and sweerin' every time the ball would come trintle, 
 trintling back down to his feet. 'Gilmour,' I cries to him, 
 ' put the ball in your pocket, man, and bring it up with ye : 
 it's the only way at the Pinnacle !' And he would not speak, 
 so angry he was ; and still angrier was he when we started 
 away for the next hole ; for he forgot it was blowing up 
 there on the top — blowing right across from Mull and Morven 
 and the Frith of Lorn ; and he put far too much sand on the 
 tee — far too much sand, for he's an obstinate man, Gilmour, 
 and will not take a telling — and in his anger he made a drive 
 that should have sent the ball over to Lismore ! Did it ?" 
 Peter asked — and he roared with laughter, and his small eyes 
 twinkled, and he rubbed his hands. " There was just a blash 
 of sand ! — a blash of sand — that rose in the air — and back 
 it came in his face — just filling his eyes, and filling his mouth, 
 so that he went about splutterin', and could not even sweer ! 
 Dod, the station-master was an angry man this afternoon ! — 
 it's a fearfu' place the Pinnacle !" 
 
 At this point the tall and grave young school-master rose to 
 go, notwithstanding a half-concealed deprecatory glance from 
 Jess. 
 
 " Allan, my lad," said Mr. McFadyen, familiarly, " have you 
 heard of the dance that Mr. and Mrs. McAskill, of the Argyll 
 Arms, are going to give to the Gaelic Choir ?"
 
 20 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " No," said the school-master, somewhat curtly. 
 
 " Yes, indeed, then," continued Peter, with much impor- 
 tance. " In the Volunteer Drill Hall. A great affair, for 
 the choir will sing glees between the dances, and there'll be 
 plenty of pipers. And sure I am that every one in this room 
 at this minute will have an invite ; and I have been thinking, 
 Mrs. Maclean, that if you would let mc call for you and Miss 
 Jessie, I would bring a machine* and drive you up to the Drill 
 Hall, for it's a bad road in the dark, and it would never do 
 for you and Miss Jessie to get your feet wet — " 
 
 " Mr. McFadyen," said Jess, with some touch of resent- 
 ment, " I think you are forgetting what has just happened in 
 our family — " 
 
 " Oh, but the dance is a long way off yet !" said Peter. 
 And then he went on, with humorous shyness : " Maybe, if 
 any one should have a doubt about going, maybe that one's 
 myself ; maybe they'll be saying that my dancing days should 
 be over — " 
 
 "And who could be saying that?" interposed the widow, 
 promptly. " That would be nonsense indeed ! I should not 
 wonder, now, if you could give lessons to some of those young 
 lads and lasses." 
 
 He turned to her with sudden seriousness. 
 
 " If there's one thing surer than another, Mrs. Maclean," he 
 said, " it's this — that a well-trained step is never forgotten. 
 Begin well — that's everything in dancing — and ye acquire a 
 grace — an elegance, I might say — that becomes a kind of sec- 
 ond nature. Not that I object to a rough-and-tumble reel 
 now and again ; no, no ; I'm not more afraid of a foursome 
 reel than I am of a foursome round on the links. But there's 
 something finer. Miss Jessie, do you know the Yarsoviana?" 
 
 " I have seen it," Jess Maclean answered, coldly. 
 
 "But it's the simplest thing — the simplest thing in the 
 world !" he vehemently urged. "Just stand up for a minute, 
 now, and I'll show ye — " 
 
 lie himself got up, put his toes into tin' first position, and 
 held out Ins band to encourage her. But she declined to 
 mo* <•. 
 
 " If yon please, I would rather not, Mr. McFadyen," she 
 said, with flushed fare.
 
 SIGNALS OF DISTRESS 21 
 
 " But look !" said lie. And therewith, whistling an air with 
 pursed lips, he proceeded to execute certain short, stiff mari- 
 onette-like movements, as well as he could in the circumscribed 
 space at his disposal. 
 
 " D'you see, now ? — as simple as simple ! — then lead off 
 with the next foot — the other foot at every turn — d'ye see 
 how simple it is ? — and the most elegant thing that ever was 
 seen, with a lot of couples in a ballroom." He ceased from 
 these valorous efforts, and resumed his chair, proud, breathless, 
 and happy. " We'll get you to have a try at it some other even- 
 ing, Miss Jessie," said he, gayly. " I'm thinking we'll be able 
 to show them something: the nie;ht of Mrs. McAskill's dance !" 
 
 Allan Henderson had been waiting patiently, not wishing 
 to interrupt. 
 
 " I will bid you good-evening now, Mrs. Maclean," said he. 
 
 " Good-night, Allan," she made answer, holding out her hand. 
 
 But Jess followed him into the front shop, shutting the 
 door behind her. 
 
 " I am sorry if Mr. McFadyen and his blethers have driven 
 you away, Allan : you do not come to see us as much as you 
 might." 
 
 " I must get home to my books," he answered her, eva- 
 sively. 
 
 " And I hope, Allan," she said, regarding him with anxious 
 and earnest eyes, " that you are not working too hard at your 
 studies." 
 
 " Well," said he, " when one is young one must work hard. 
 It is the only time ; there is no after-time. But I'll be look- 
 ing in to see you and your mother again one of these even- 
 ings. Good-night, Jessie !" 
 
 " Good-night, Allan !" said she ; and when he had gone, she 
 lingered awhile : she did not care to return at once to the par- 
 lor, where, doubtless, Mr. McFadyen was still engaged in mag- 
 nifying his strength, his agility, and innumerable accomplish- 
 ments. 
 
 On the other hand, Allan, when he left the tobacconist's- 
 shop, did not immediately return to his lodging and his 
 books. He was at an age and in circumstances that imper- 
 atively demanded close and strenuous self-communion ; and 
 that he was accustomed to seek in solitary walks along the
 
 22 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 sea-shore or up on the moorland wastes, especially at night, 
 when darkness and silence were abroad. And tumultuous in- 
 deed were the problems he found confronting him in these lone- 
 ly rambles. There were deep and inscrutable searchings of 
 heart, for no matter what his training and his traditions may 
 have been, he was resolute and uncompromising in his search 
 after such truth as might be discoverable — about human nat- 
 ure, and the surroundings of human nature, and the more aw- 
 ful mysteries beyond ; there were ambitious projects springing 
 thick from an over-active brain — elusive, distracting phan- 
 toms that just as often as not beat wild wings against the res 
 angusta clomi ; the res anr/usta domi itself came in with its 
 sordid cares and pinchings — the need of a pair of weather- 
 proof boots — the counting the cost of a holiday trip to see 
 his father and mother, who kept the post-office at Inverblair 
 — this latest project of giving up tobacco — and the like; 
 while ever-recurrent were the vague and harassing visions of 
 youth — that troubled questioning of the future, with all its 
 tantalizing hopes, its looming anxieties, its hidden dangers 
 and pitfalls. But happily for him, in this seething time, in 
 this time of storm and stress, he had been spared the crown- 
 ing misery of all. The "cruel madness of love" had not 
 overtaken him ; that honeyed poison-cup, at all events, had 
 not been placed to his lips. 
 
 He passed through the now half-dormant town, went round 
 the obscure and silent quays, ascended a steep incline, and 
 eventually, emerging from the black shadow of some larches, 
 stepped out upon a little plateau on the summit of the Gal- 
 lows Hill. It was a favorite resort of his; here he could pace 
 up and down, exorcising the demons of unrest and doubt a # nd 
 despondency, and bidding the great surrounding mountains 
 lend him some little measure of their invulnerable calm. On 
 this particular night, it is true, the darkness was such that 
 nothing was visible of all those vast mountain ranges; but 
 well he knew the whereabouts of the mighty peaks and shoul- 
 ders, from Den Buie and Creachbienn and I Min-da-gu, over in 
 Mull, to Glashven and Fuar Bheinn, up in Morven; from the 
 far giants of Glencoe, murmuring to each other across the 
 silence of the valleys, round to Ben Cruachan and \'^\\ Eunaich, 
 above the lonely and ghostly solitudes of Glen-strae. August
 
 SIGNALS OF DISTRESS 23 
 
 companions, to be sure, even if unseen ; they appeared to lift 
 the soul away from the trivial task and frettings of every-day 
 life ; these he seemed for the moment to have left behind him 
 — down in yonder little town, that he could now make out only 
 by certain glowworm dots scattered here and there, indicating 
 the semicircular sweep of the bay. 
 
 Of a sudden his eyes were attracted elsewhither. Far away 
 at the back of Kerrara Island a white shaft of fire had sprung 
 into the mirk of the night — a distant, trembling, curving, si- 
 lent thing that glared for a second or so, and then vanished, 
 leaving the darkness as impenetrable as before. And for a 
 moment he asked himself whether the Mull people — the peo- 
 ple down about Duart — were setting off fireworks. But what 
 occasion could there be for fireworks ? The next instant 
 another slender white shaft rose silent into the air ; and now, 
 judging by the position of the Lismore light — the one steady, 
 radiant star in all this wide, black picture- — these signals 
 seemed to be coming from some point between Lismore and 
 Mull. But signals ? — not fireworks at all ? And if signals, 
 then signals from some vessel in distress ? And what vessel 
 was now expected, except the Sanda, that was bringing to 
 the household of the Macleans the young girl from the outer 
 isles? 
 
 He sped away down the hill-side and gained the dusky 
 thoroughfares. The few people about had not noticed the 
 signals — perhaps the northern end of Kerrara Island had pre- 
 vented their being seen. But soon there was sufficient com- 
 motion in the little town ; and one old sailor, hurrying along 
 with his companions to a commanding point to discover what 
 had happened or was happening, was heard to say to himself : 
 
 " The Sanda ? But the Sanda would be coming over from 
 Craigenurc ! And how the duffle could she get so far down 
 to the west ?"
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 ON A ROCK 
 
 •Now when the Sanda left Craigenure, Long LauchLn the 
 shoemaker was clown in the fore-cabin, snugly huddled up in 
 a corner ; and he was nursing a soda-water bottle half filled 
 with whiskey, while he softly sang to himself. It was not a 
 lugubrious song ; but lugubriously and slowly he sang it, es- 
 pecially the refrain : 
 
 " ' If ye'll walk, 
 If ye'll walk, 
 If ye'll walk with me anywhere,' 1 " 
 
 the a's in which he pronounced as the a in dark, dwelling on 
 them indefinitely. Red Murdoch, the Mull drover, who had 
 been having a royal time of it since these two left Kilree, and 
 who chanced to be the only other occupant of the cabin, at 
 length interrupted angrily. 
 
 " To the devil with your south-country songs !" he cried, in 
 Gaelic. 
 
 But the long, melancholy -visaged shoemaker took no of- 
 fence ; he was too happy. 
 
 " It's a beautiful song, a beautiful song," he said, also in 
 Gaelic. "And if it is a south -country song, it is a song 
 that is known to every fisherman from Peterhead to Buckie. 
 There is no more favorite song." He raised his forefinger to 
 beat the slow time. " A beautiful song. 
 
 "'Ifx J will buy you a pennyworth of preens, 
 If ye'll walk, 
 If ye'll walk, 
 If ye'll walk with me anywhere.'' " 
 
 "The man is a fool that would sing such a .song!" said the 
 red-bearded drover, bluntly.
 
 ON A ROCK 25 
 
 Whereupon Lauchie laughed and chuckled quietly to him- 
 self. 
 
 " Oh yes, I may be a fool. But I would rather be a fool 
 than a man with bad-luck." 
 
 " Who is a man with bad-luck ?" demanded Murdoch, his 
 bushy eyebrows drawing together. 
 
 Lauchie appeared to be secretly amused. 
 
 " Then you do not know you are of the same name with 
 the man of bad-luck ?" he went on. " Oh, you do not know 
 what they say of the luck of Red Murdoch ? They say to 
 any one, ' You have the luck of Red Murdoch ; for when 
 Red Murdoch is in the north, then the herring are in the 
 south.' " 
 
 "If I knew the man that said that of me," rejoined Mur- 
 doch, with fiery eyes — and he even thrust forth a massive 
 and hairy fist," clinched, to give emphasis to his threat, " I 
 would bash his head against a stone-wall." 
 
 " Have a dram, Murdoch," said Lauchie, tendering the 
 bottle, which was not refused. " It's not I that am going out 
 of the house to-night — no, not to fight any one. I am a 
 peaceable person. Better a warm fireside than a cold hill- 
 side, that is what the wise man of Ross was saying. Mur- 
 doch," he continued, suddenly reverting to the blissful days 
 that were now nearing an end, " it was a beautiful funeral. 
 That is what I am thinking. It was a beautiful funeral. 
 There was no parsimony. How many gallons of whiskey, 
 would you say? — seven ? — aye, aye, and maybe more like seven 
 and a half. There was two or three glasses apiece when we 
 came together ; and there was two more at the house ; well, 
 that was right and proper ; and although it is not easy for 
 eight men to keep in step, when they have a heavy coffin on 
 their shoulders, there was not a single man fell into the road, 
 and each time the coffin was set down, it was set down as 
 gently as if it was a cradle, not a coffin at all. And two more 
 glasses to each man at the gate of the cemetery. And two 
 more coming away. After that — aw, God, I am not remem- 
 bering much — there was little use in counting — but sure I am 
 there was no parsimony ; and it was the fine funeral that was 
 given to Donald Maclean of Knockalanish. Have you a 
 match, Murdoch ?"
 
 26 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " I am tired of giving matches to a fool of a man that will 
 not carry them for himself," answered lied Murdoch, sulkily 
 and tauntingly. 
 
 But Lauchie would not quarrel. He resignedly put his 
 pipe in his pocket again ; he settled himself in a corner, his 
 head drooping somewhat ; and he resumed his placid and 
 happy communing with himself. 
 
 "A beautiful song — not a fisherman from Peterhead to 
 Buckie but knows it — a beautiful song — 
 
 " ' It's / will buy you a braw new gown, 
 
 With buttons so fine, and Jlounces to the ground, 
 If ye 1 11 waak, 
 If ye' 11 waak, 
 If ye' 11 waak with me anywhere.'' 
 
 A beautiful song. . . . And a beautiful funeral ... no par- 
 simony at all — " 
 
 Then his head fell wholly ; he was fast asleep. Red Mur- 
 doch glanced at him with angry scorn, threw a parting oath at 
 him, and turned to leave the cabin. And this he managed, 
 after several efforts — for the steps of the companion were nar- 
 row and exceedingly steep — to do ; bands, knees, and feet were 
 all brought into requisition ; and eventually he emerged into 
 the upper air. 
 
 Meanwhile what had become of the young lass from the 
 outer isles whom these two worthies were convoying to Dun- 
 troone ? Once or twice she had been invited to go down into 
 the fore-cabin ; but she had refused — for the odor of the place 
 was overpowering ; she preferred to remain on deck ; and the 
 steward had considerately brought her some tea and some 
 food. She had got into a more or less sheltered place well 
 away forward ; and there she sat with her tartan shawl drawn 
 close around her, silent and solitary, and half terrified by the 
 strange things around her. For she had never been on a 
 steamer before; and although the monotony of the long voy- 
 age had produced a state of semi-stupefaction, she remained 
 nervously alive to all her surroundings — to the throbbing of 
 the screw, the lash of the waves along the vessel's side, and 
 the dusky figures moving about the deck. The night was ob- 
 scure and squally, but at least there was no rain, and the
 
 ON A ROCK 27 
 
 high bulwarks were a sort of protection to her against the 
 hurling gusts of wind. 
 
 Now there had come on board at Craigenure two gentle- 
 men who were returning home to Duntroone — one of them, 
 indeed, the principal doctor there, the other a well-known 
 bailie ; and these two had wandered up to the bow of the ship 
 to look around them — and they were chatting to each other. 
 Barbara Maclean heard every word. 
 
 " Surely we're keeping a long way from Lismore, bailie," 
 the doctor said, regarding the steady and golden ray of the 
 light-house that was shining boldly through the mirk of the 
 night. " I wonder how many times I have crossed from 
 Craigenure, and yet I never saw a course like this taken 
 before." 
 
 "Maybe Pattison is trying to cheat the tide," replied the 
 bailie. " There's fearful tides running here at times." 
 
 " Well, Captain Pattison should know his own business 
 best," the doctor was saying — when of a sudden he gripped 
 his companion's arm. " What's that there — right ahead ?" 
 he exclaimed, staring with amazement and consternation at 
 some vague, half-invisible, dark object that seemed to loom 
 up out of the water. And then again, instantly recognizing 
 what was about to happen, he called out : " It's the Lady 
 Rock! For God's sake, man, hold on! — hold on to some- 
 thing !" — while he himself caught at the nearest portion of 
 the standing rigging, and braced himself as best he might to 
 withstand the coming crash. 
 
 There appeared to be no interval. Almost simultaneously 
 with his shouted warning came the inevitable, the terrific 
 shock that seemed to rive the ship from stem to stern ; then 
 she lurched forward and upward, with a hideous grinding 
 sound ; then she dipped somewhat ; and then she hung — 
 hung there for one dreadful second of silence, as if she were 
 some dumb animal mutely asking what was next required of 
 her — whether she should carry on some half-dozen yards far- 
 ther, and, with smashed bows and started plates, go headlong 
 to the bottom, in fifty fathoms of water. But no ; she re- 
 mained firm ; and she remained upright, though with a strong 
 list to starboard ; and now, after that one moment of paralyzed 
 silence and suspense, an indescribable clamor and commotion
 
 28 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ensued — women shrieking and running hither and thither for 
 their relatives, the sailors hurrying along with lanterns, the 
 captain calling his orders from the hridge. And all through 
 this bewilderment of noise and confusion there ran the omi- 
 nous hoarse surge of the tide on the isolated rocks beneath 
 and around them ; it was as a voice out of the unseen ; and it 
 was a clamorous and an angry voice — a voice that threatened 
 doom. 
 
 Barbara Maclean had been thrown violently on to the deck ; 
 but when she raised herself, she had no thought of rushing 
 about, claiming protection and succor. Her faculties had been 
 stunned and blunted by these terrors of the sea and of the 
 night ; and when she resumed her place, she only pulled her 
 shawl around her, cowering, and perhaps crying a little in her 
 helplessness. She knew nothing of what was going forward. 
 She saw dark figures going quickly about with lanterns ; but 
 they did not chance to come near her ; and even in that case 
 she would have been too timid to put any question. It is 
 true, she did utter a brief cry of dismay when the first rock- 
 et, with a shrill and sudden scream, sprung high and blinding 
 into the gloom ; but in time she got used even to that ; while 
 the intermittent thunder of the signal-cannon only seemed to 
 shake her frame physically. She was too dazed to feel further 
 or acute alarm ; what might happen would have to happen ; 
 she was far away from her own land, and from things with 
 which she was familiar. As for the two men who had in a 
 kind of fashion undertaken to see her safely to Duntroone, 
 neither was of near relationship to her, and she could not ex- 
 pect much care from them; besides, she knew the ways of 
 people who have been to a Highland funeral out in the west; 
 and she was content to remain unassisted and alone. 
 
 The odd thing was that in such a crisis of danger Red 
 Murdoch should have thought first not of this forlorn creature, 
 but of his boon companion, with whom he was constantly 
 quarrelling. Ho stumbled along to the fore-cabin ; he steadied 
 himself at the top of the companion; he howled aloud his 
 warning; and then, finding there was no reply, he made 
 his way — to speak plainly, lie fell — down the steps; lie 
 crossed the floor, and seized Lauchie Maclntyrc by the coat- 
 collar.
 
 ON A ROCK 29 
 
 " Here, man, come away ! — do you not understand ? — we 
 may all of us be at the bottom of the sea in a minute ! — " 
 
 Lauchie endeavored, but in a gentle manner, to repel this 
 interference. 
 
 " No," he said, slowly, bat firmly, " I will not stir from the 
 house this night. It is I that am knowing when I am well 
 off. Go away yourself, Murdoch. It's a warm house I am 
 in ; and a warm house is better than a cold hill-side — " 
 
 " Son of the devil !" roared Murdoch, furiously. " Do you 
 not know that we are on a rock ?" 
 
 " And the house that is founded on a rock is a beautiful 
 house," said Lauchie, solemnly. " Have you a match, Mur- 
 doch ?" 
 
 Murdoch did not answer, but now with both hands he 
 seized the coat-collar of the shoemaker, and by main force 
 dragged him to the foot of the companion. Then first he 
 tried to shove him up the steps ; next he tried to drag him 
 up ; presently they both fell together ; and it is impossible 
 to say what might have happened had not a sailor, hearing 
 some noise, come to the top of the companion and called 
 down — 
 
 " Uss there any one below there ?" 
 
 " Yes, indeed," called Murdoch, in reply. " Come here and 
 give me a little assustance with a friend of mine, that uss 
 rather too sleepy to go ashore by himself." 
 
 The sailor came running down the companion ; and fortu- 
 nately he was a powerfully built man. 
 
 "Going ashore?" said he, grimly, as he proceeded to hoist 
 and shoulder these two up the steps. " It's miles aweh from 
 any shore you are ! And the sooner you are out of this boat 
 the better. Would you like to be left behind ?" 
 
 For now it appeared that the captain had decided that the 
 passengers, at least, should descend from the steamer, taking 
 such precarious chance of safety as might be afforded by the 
 solitary reef on which they had struck. The gangway was 
 open, a ladder affixed, and by the dusky glare of two lamps 
 woman after woman, and man after man, went down the side, 
 to seek out for some footing among the wet and slippery sea- 
 weed and the hidden pools of salt-water. They crowded 
 together, these poor wretches, deafened by the rush and roar
 
 30 HIGHLAND COUSIXs 
 
 of the tides all around them ; and perhaps wondering when 
 those baleful forces would arise out of the dark and seize 
 and engulf them. They dared hardly move, for a single 
 false step might plunge them into unknown deeps, and the 
 lights of the steamer were dim. Those indeed were best off 
 who could cling on to the massive iron bars of the beacon that 
 marks the rock — a nameless skeleton of a structure that tow- 
 ered away above them into the sombre skies. And mean- 
 while, at intervals, from the deck of the ship, the rockets went 
 screaming into the night, and the signal-cannon boomed its 
 reverberations across the waste of waves. But half -hour 
 after half-hour went by, and there was no response. 
 
 " They can neither see nor hear us," the doctor said to his 
 neighbor. "We are too far away for the sound to carry. 
 And Kerrara lies between us and Duntroone ; they will not 
 see the rockets." 
 
 "But surely the people at Lismore light must see them 1" 
 said the bailie. 
 
 " Yes, indeed, that is possible. But they have no telegraph 
 there." 
 
 "No telegraph at the light-house?" exclaimed the bailie, 
 indignantly. " Then it is a monstrous and mischievous 
 shame ! A fine piece of economy ! Who is responsible for 
 that— the Board of Trade ?" And then he added, " But at 
 least they have a boat at the light-house ?" 
 
 " Aye ; but not a boat that would be of much use to us 
 across that driving sea." 
 
 Nevertheless, the captain was about to tempt these stormy 
 waters, in hopes of obtaining assistance from the mainland. In 
 the dull glow of the lamps, the shipwrecked crowd could per- 
 ceive the boat being lowered from the side of the stranded 
 vessel ; presently the mate and two of the hands had got into 
 it; and in a few minutes it had disappeared — into the niys- 
 terious surrounding chaos. There was no cheer raised as 
 the boat departed ; this small assemblage of folk, hardly visi- 
 ble to each other, and hardly to be distinguished from the 
 blackness of the reef, was too dispirited and perturbed ; Dun- 
 troone and the possibilities of help were miles away, while 
 the dangers immediately encompassing them were pressing 
 and near.
 
 ON A ROCK 31 
 
 " When the tide rises, how many of us could clamber up 
 and hold on to the beacon ?" asked the bailie of his com- 
 panion. 
 
 Barbara Maclean heard this question put, but did not di- 
 vine its import. She was standing alone and friendless and 
 helpless, weeping silently, her shawl not much of a protec- 
 tion now against the blasts of wind tearing across the ex- 
 posed reef. She was benumbed with cold and misery ; not 
 knowing what might happen ; conscious, too, that all her lit- 
 tle possessions — her chest, containing everything that she 
 owned in the world — had been left on board the steamer — the 
 steamer that at any moment might slip forward and vanish 
 from before their eyes into fifty fathoms of ocean.
 
 CHAPTER V 
 THE FIREFLY 
 
 When the young school-master, alarmed by those signals 
 of distress that rose white and silent into the distant night, 
 sped away down from the Gallows Hill, he made straight for 
 the house of the agent of the Steam-Packet Company. 
 
 " It may he the Sanda" said the agent, at once hurrying 
 off to get his overcoat and hat. " She's hours late as it is. 
 Anyway we must run out to see what is the matter ; and 
 luckily the Firefly lighter is lying at the qiuay ; she'll not be 
 long in getting up steam." 
 
 " Would you let me go with you, Mr. Stewart ?" Allan asked. 
 
 "Why not? Why not? You're the first to bring the 
 news — " 
 
 " For there's a young lass," Allan explained, " coming by 
 the Sanda from Kilree ; she's a niece of Mrs. Maclean in 
 Campbell Street ; and the Macleans would take it as a friend- 
 ly thing if I went out to see if there was anything to be done 
 for her — " 
 
 " Why not?" said the good-natured agent; and he took up 
 his stick, which was his symbol of authority, and opened the 
 door for himself and his companion. 
 
 " And would there be time for me to run round to Mrs. 
 Maclean's and get a few wraps, and things of that kind ?" 
 continued Allan. "The night is cold." 
 
 " Well, yes, if you are quick about it; but you must not 
 keep me waiting," said the agent, as he hastened away on his 
 own errand, along the dark and wet sea-front. 
 
 It took the tall young school-master but a minute or two 
 to reach Mrs. Maclean's house — the shop being ihiw shut. 
 
 " And is the Sanda coming in at last?" cried the cheerful 
 little widow. " Ami will there be time for Jessie and mc to 
 go down to meet Barbara?"
 
 the "firefly" 33 
 
 " Well — no," said Allan, with a trifle of hesitation. " The 
 Sanda is not in sight yet. But there's a ship out there in 
 some kind of trouble ; and I'm going out with Mr. Stewart, 
 in a lighter ; and I was thinking — if it was the Sanda — 
 well, I might take a few things that might be of use to your 
 niece, for the weather has been very wet and rough lately." 
 
 At the mere suggestion that anything had happened, or 
 might be happening, to the steamer bringing her niece Bar- 
 bara to Duntroone, the widow became quite unnerved with 
 fright; and her anxious and irrelevant questions, to which 
 there was no possible answer, were nothing but a stumbling- 
 block in the way. It was Jess who was the helpful one — 
 who instantly divined what was wanted. In the briefest 
 space of time she had cleverly put together a serviceable 
 bundle of shawls and wraps, to say nothing of a pair of mit- 
 tens, a paper bag of sweet biscuits, and a flask of some inno- 
 cent cordial. And with these things he was speeding away 
 — indeed, he had got well down the staircase — when at the 
 last moment Jess called to him again : 
 
 "Allan! Allan!" 
 
 He looked up. She came running down the stone steps 
 (for the Macleans lived in a small tenement of flats), and by 
 the uncertain light he saw that she held something in her 
 hand. 
 
 "If you are going out in the steamer," said she, " will you 
 not put this muffler round your neck? It may be a coarse 
 night outside the bay." 
 
 Well, he was loath to offend this gentle half-cousin of his ; 
 but still — still — there was something in the man's nature that 
 drove him to refuse. 
 
 " No, thank you, Jessie," he said. " No, thank you, I am 
 not afraid of the cold." 
 
 " Oh," said she, " if you will not take it because you think 
 it is one of the things that women wear, then that is not very 
 friendly. If I were you, I would not be so proud !" 
 
 The light in the stairway was dim ; it was the tone of her 
 voice that told him he had vexed her, 
 
 " Oh, then, I will take it," he said, " and maybe it will be 
 of use to your cousin Barbara." And therewith he hurried 
 off again, for he was anxious not to keep Mr. Stewart waiting. 
 2*
 
 34 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 As he passed along, it became apparent that the news had 
 spread through the little town of something having hap- 
 pened to the Sanda — or perhaps some other vessel — outside ; 
 and when he reached the quay there was quite a group of 
 folk, mostly superannuated fishermen, eagerly discussing the 
 possibilities. The steam-lighter was ready to start ; as soon 
 as he got on board, the ropes were thrown off, the blades of 
 the screw began to lash the water, and the high-bowed, un- 
 wieldy craft was soon moving crescentwise out into the bay. 
 And then, as she gathered speed, the dull orange points that 
 told of the window-panes of Duntroone — along the shore and 
 up on the hill-side — gradually receded ; and ahead of them 
 was a great black world of invisible mountain and sea and 
 sky, with ever and always the solitary ray of Lismore light- 
 house burning steadfast and clear. 
 
 " If the Sandd's engines have broken down over there," 
 said Mr. Stewart, "the mouth of the Sound of Mull is a bad 
 place. There will be a strong ebb-tide running, and she 
 may drift just anywhere." 
 
 " But the rockets I saw," Allan made answer, " seemed all 
 to rise from the same spot ; and as far as I could make out, 
 that would be over near the Lady Rock, or somewhere in 
 that direction." 
 
 " If Pattison has got the Sanda on to the Lady Rock," 
 observed the agent, "the sooner he sends in his certificate to 
 the Board of Trade the better. But it's not believable ; he's 
 an experienced man." 
 
 The remarkable thing, however, was that though they had 
 by this time rounded Kerrara Point, there was no sign of 
 any vessel anywhere — no repetition of those swift white 
 messengers that had attracted Allan Henderson's attention 
 when he was on the top of the Gallows Hill. The night, it 
 is true, was pitch-dark and squally, and there were occasional 
 gusts of rain living about; but all the same they were now 
 out in the open, and a ship's rocket ought to have been visi- 
 ble a great distance off. 
 
 "Allan, lad," said Mr. Stewart, " I hope you have not 
 brought us on a wild-gooae chase." 
 
 And Allan himself began to think back. His eyes could 
 not have deceived him. He had never been subject to hal-
 
 the "firefly" 35 
 
 lucinations, even when he was working hardest at his stud- 
 ies — with scant fuel for the engine. And surely there could 
 be no mistake about his actually having beheld those long 
 shafts of silvery fire spring into the black heavens ! 
 
 " I think I wass seeing a light," called the man who was peer- 
 ing over the bows," just about right ahead, and no so far aweh." 
 
 All eyes were now eagerly turned in one direction. 
 
 " Aye, there it is ! — there it is !" called one after the other, 
 as an ineffectual glimmer flickered just above the waves, and 
 then vanished. 
 
 "It's a small boat — most likely with a message," said Mr. 
 Stewart to the owner 'of the lighter. " Slack down your 
 speed, Thomson, and let them take their own time about com- 
 ing near." 
 
 The next instant there was another brief flare among the 
 unseen waves ahead, but only for an instant; the people in 
 the rowing boat had presumably lit a bunch of paper to 
 warn the steamer of their whereabouts, and the wind had 
 directly blown out the flame. Nevertheless, they at last got 
 within hailing distance — though with great caution, for the 
 unwieldy lighter was rolling heavily. 
 
 " We're from the Sanda" came a hoarse voice through the 
 darkness. 
 
 " Who are you ?" 
 
 " The mate and two of the hands." 
 
 " Where is she ?" 
 
 " On the Lady Rock." 
 
 "Bless me, how did she get on to the Lady Rock?" 
 
 Silence. 
 
 " No harm to passengers or crew ?" 
 
 " Not yet," was the evasive answer. 
 
 " Steamer damaged ?" 
 
 "Aye. I'm thinking her back's brokken. The passengers 
 are ahl out on the rock." 
 
 " Well, we'll go over and fetch them off." 
 
 " Is it Mr. Stewart ?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " Are we to go on to Duntroone ?" 
 
 " No. We'll want your boat ; and we'll want you too. 
 Come on board, and we'll tow the boat astern."
 
 36 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 It was a difficult business on so rough and dark a night; 
 for the men in the smaller boat bad a wholesome fear of the 
 lurching and pitching of this great, heavy brute of a thing; 
 but at last they managed it ; and the Firefly was sent on again, 
 with such speed as she was capable of making. It turned 
 out that the mate had no story to tell. How the Sanda got 
 on to the Lady Rock was all a mystery. Or perhaps he 
 deemed it prudent, in the circumstances, to hold his peace. 
 
 Then, in course of time, they began to make out, through 
 the mirk and the wet, certain minute dots of light, dim and 
 wavering in the distance, and sometimes almost disappearing, 
 as a thick squall of rain would drive by. But when they drew 
 nearer they perceived that certain of these tremulous points 
 of fire appeared to be stationary, while others were moving 
 like mysterious will-o'-the-wisps over the black water ; and 
 they guessed that the sailors, furnished with lanterns, were 
 perhaps making such small provision of comfort as was pos- 
 sible for the people huddled together on the reef. And here 
 were two other lights — one red and one green ; the port and 
 starboard lights of the stranded ship. 
 
 " Well, I'm sure !" exclaimed Mr. Stewart. " She's right on 
 the top of the rock !" 
 
 " Aye," said the mate, who was standing by him, " she's 
 well up and over. She's on this side — and lying nearly due 
 east and west." 
 
 "Was the man trying to steeple-chase her?" the agent de- 
 manded — but the mate was discreetly deaf. 
 
 Meanwhile the speed of the steam-lighter had been slowed 
 down until she was doing little more than holding her own 
 against the wind and the fierce-running tide — the owner hav- 
 ing no kind of wish to go nearer that dangerous reef than he 
 could help. 
 
 " We'll try the first landing with your boat," said Mr. 
 Stewart to the mate. " Since you came away, you should 
 know the road back. And do not take us too close under the 
 bows of the Sanda, for she might slip forward even yet." 
 
 "If she slips forward a few yards," said the mate, "she'll 
 go straight to the bottom." 
 
 "Ami will you go with us, Allan, lad?" continued Mr. 
 Stewart. "Or will you wait Oil hoard the lighter?"
 
 THE "FIREFLY" 37 
 
 "Well, I would rather go with you," the school-master said, 
 "and take an oar. There'll be somebody wanted up at the 
 bow anyway." 
 
 And so, after some delay, the boat was hauled alongside ; 
 and they jumped or scrambled into it, and got out the oars, 
 and no doubt were glad enough to shove away from the im- 
 mediate neighborhood of the lumbering craft. As yet no 
 figures were discernible on the black reef ahead of them ; but 
 the dots of yellow light were there — -and they were kept 
 briskly moving; this was the last form of signalling left to 
 the stranded folk, after the rockets had all been expended. 
 
 And now, even though they were creeping in under the lee, 
 they could hear the appalling roar of the surf all around these 
 rocks ; and they imagined that their coming would not be un- 
 welcome to the castaways. Apparently for their better guid- 
 ance, those golden glowworms that had been scattered about 
 now seemed to converge ; they appeared to be coming close 
 down to the water; and yet they were kept moving, as if to 
 indicate where some creek had been discovered ; while the 
 man at the bow of the boat, as she got closer and closer, from 
 time to time called aft to his companions : 
 
 " No so hard, Hughie ! Back-watter, man ! Back-watter, 
 both of you ! No — you pull a stroke, Mr. Henderson !" 
 
 " Aye, aye, in here — in here !" shouted the voices from the 
 rock — and the glowworms were clustered together now, shed- 
 ding a dull glare on the sea-weed and on the dark water and 
 on a small group of phantasmal figures. 
 
 Well, they were willing hands that were laid on the gun- 
 wale of the boat, when the swirl of an eddying wave lifted her 
 near enough to be caught ; and up she went on the slippery 
 sea-weed, until she was found to be secure ; then the rescuers 
 stepped out, and Allan got hold of his bundle. It was the 
 strangest sight that met his eyes. The black reef ; the mas- 
 sive black hull of the steamer — chiefly indicated by the ob- 
 scure illumination still remaining in the ports of the saloon 
 and fore-cabin ; the black bars of the beacon, that rose away 
 up into the pitchy skies ; the black figures that stood about 
 in detached groups, or stepped warily forward through the 
 sea-weed to hear what the new-comers proposed to do ; all 
 these were surrounded by a wavering, uncertain, half-impen-
 
 38 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 etrable gloom, for the air was thick with spray and rain, and 
 the wind was blowing hard. Presently, however, one or two 
 of the lamps were brought along, and the sombre phantoms 
 began to take more recognizable shape. Here, for example, 
 was Long Lauchie Maclntyre, contentedly seated in a pool of 
 water, and fumbling about his pockets in search of his pipe ; 
 while the man who stood by him (it was Red Murdoch, but 
 he was not of Allan's acquaintance) was gazing out seaward, 
 with a hand held over one of his eyes, doubtless in the hope 
 of reducing to their real number the sailing lights of the res- 
 cuing steamer. But the young girl from Kilree? — how was 
 he to discover which she was ? — for the women were cowering 
 away from the blast, their faces mostly hidden. 
 
 " Is there one Barbara Maclean ?" he made bold to ask. 
 
 " I am here," said one of those dark figures, in a timid and 
 tearful voice ; and at once he went up to her. 
 
 " There's a few things here that your aunt and your cousin 
 have sent out to you," said he, "and I am sure you will be 
 glad of them, for the night is so wet. Yes, indeed, now," he 
 went on, " you must take off your shawl, and I will put it over 
 my arm — and here is a dry one. And here is a muffler to go 
 round your neck, and a pair of mittens for your hands. For 
 you must not think they were forgetting you — neither Mrs. 
 Maclean nor Jessie would be likely to do that." 
 
 " I am far aweh from my own home," the girl said, with a 
 sob. 
 
 "Oh yes, yes," said he, in a kindly fashion, "but you are 
 going to another home, and a very friendly home. They could 
 not come out to you ; but they let me bring these things out 
 to you ; and I am glad to find that matters are no worse. For 
 we will soon have you on board the lighter now, and you will 
 be quite safe." 
 
 In common circumstances he was inordinately shy with 
 women ; but this poor creature was quite supine and helpless; 
 and in her eyes — those beautiful Highland eyes — large, dark 
 blue, with raven-black lashes — there were piteous tears. He 
 treated her as if she were a child. By the aid of the nearest 
 lamp, he got out these dry wraps, and substituted them for 
 her clinging wet shawl ; he made her put the muffler round 
 her neck, and the mittens on her bauds ; and then he said :
 
 #
 
 THE "firefly" 39 
 
 " Now maybe we will get away in the next boat — or at least 
 you will. And mind your footing. Do not move on the sea- 
 weed. Do not move until you find that your feet are on the 
 limpets." As if it were necessary to teach a West Highland 
 girl how to cross a slippery rock ! 
 
 However, they struggled along and reached the water's 
 edge, and, by favor of Mr. Stewart, Allan was allowed to ac- 
 company his half-cousin, or quarter-cousin, in the next boat 
 returning to the Firefly. He talked to her a little, to give 
 her courage. He assisted her to get into the plunging and 
 rolling lighter ; and there he guided her aft, and procured 
 for her a warm and comfortable seat by the boiler, himself 
 standing by her side, so as not to take up room. And then 
 he would have her partake of the little delicacies that Jess 
 Maclean had sent out for her ; but she only shook her head ; 
 and he was not importunate. 
 
 Of a sudden she looked up timorously. 
 
 " Have you the Gaelic V she asked. 
 
 " Indeed I have !" said he, answering her in that tongue. 
 
 Instantly a grateful light leaped to her eyes ; and at the 
 same moment, somehow or other, she put out her hand, and 
 touched his hand, as if thereby she was recognizing some 
 bond or current of sympathy between them. It was a trifling 
 little action, perhaps quite involuntary and inadvertent, and 
 meaning nothing at all ; but it thrilled him strangely. 
 
 " It is my thanks to you," said she, now speaking in Gae- 
 lic — and she had a shy and softly modulated voice. " It's 
 not every one that would be so kind to a stranger." 
 
 " But you are no stranger," said the young school-master, 
 in an encouraging way. " For it is many a time I have heard 
 the Macleans speak of you ; and besides, I am myself a rela- 
 tive of yours, though not of the same name." 
 
 And thereupon, to beguile the weary time of waiting, he 
 began and gave her a few particulars about himself, and 
 about his relations with the Macleans, and about their ways 
 and modes of life. She did not respond much ; but she 
 mutely regarded him now and again. Indeed, it seemed as 
 if it was not necessary for her to answer him ; her eyes did 
 all that ; they were the most wonderful eyes — it was not 
 merely that they were beautiful with a mystic and pathetic
 
 40 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 beauty, but they appeared capable of saying anything, with- 
 out a word spoken from her lips. For the most part, how- 
 ever, her expression was grave and diffident, as she looked 
 at him from time to time, and listened. 
 
 And at last all the passengers — the captain, mate, and most 
 of the crew were remaining by the stranded steamer — had 
 been rescued from their perilous position and conveyed on 
 board the Firefly ; the blades of the screw began to slash 
 into the tumbling waves, and the vessel moved slowly for- 
 ward. No further adventure befell them until they were 
 all safely landed on Duntroone quay — a sorely wet and be- 
 draggled little assemblage ; and although it was now about 
 one o'clock in the morning, there were plenty of anxious 
 friends and relatives waiting to receive and welcome them. 
 And Mrs. Maclean and Jess would fain have had Allan Hen- 
 derson come into the house and sit down with them at the 
 cheerful and hospitable board that had been prepared for the 
 entertainment of their cousin from the outer isles. But he 
 refused. For some time back he had been drenched to the 
 skin ; the only thing now for him was to speed away home 
 and get to bed. As for the drying of his clothes — well, they 
 would have to take their chance ; there was no means of 
 making up a fire at this hour in these poor lodgings.
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 THE DAY AFTER 
 
 Next morning opened tranquil and serene ; a few flakes 
 of saffron cloud that hung high in the heavens hardly moved 
 through the clear expanse. The mists were slowly rising 
 from Mull and Morven, the hill-sides revealing themselves 
 in hues of ethereal rose-gray, the snow-sprinkled peaks not 
 yet visible. From the eastern skies, just over the early 
 smoke of Duntroone, the golden light of the dawn went 
 level across the bay, and touched the tall spars and the hulls 
 of the vessels moored at Ardentrive, and shone warm along 
 the olive-green slopes of Kerrara ; while a small red-sailed 
 boat, coming home from the cod-fishing, made its appearance 
 at the point, creeping along through the steel-blue rippling 
 sea. 
 
 And perhaps it was to refresh his eyes with these more 
 beautiful colors, after the black visions of the night — or per- 
 haps it was, more practically, to see what the sun could do 
 in the way of drying his outer garments — that Allan Hen- 
 derson, before beginning his daily round in the Board School, 
 strolled away round by the quays, and then made up for his 
 favorite plateau on the top of the Gallows Hill. And truly 
 it was a very different scene that now met his eyes. Last 
 night the solitary and commanding feature in all the form- 
 less gloom was the bold and steady glare of Lismore light- 
 house ; now Lismore light-house was an insignificant little 
 gray object, away at the end of the long, low, green island ; 
 while the important things were the ranges of the mountains, 
 velvet-soft in their dappled colors, with faint cloud-shadows 
 here and there — the wide calm spaces of the sea, trembling 
 in pale and liquid azure, with one vivid red spot of a painted 
 beacon at Kerrara Point — the ivied castle on its picturesque 
 rock — the wintry woods of green pine and brown larch — ■
 
 42 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the sunlight glinting cheerfully on this or that window in the 
 town — the broad sweep of the bay, with a scarlet-funnelled 
 steamer coming slowly through the blue, from this lofty 
 pinnacle looking a mere mite of a thing, with a touch of 
 white at its bows. A fair picture — shining, reposeful, be- 
 nign ; no lurid and ghastly vision of the night, with black 
 phantasms huddled together on a cruel rock, the sombre 
 heavens hurling wind and rain at them, the roar and whirl 
 of the unseen surge all around them. 
 
 Yet it was to that darker vision, and to the incidents con- 
 nected with it, that his mind would return, with a singular 
 and incomprehensible fascination. He gazed abroad upon 
 this wide-stretching and placid panorama with eyes that be- 
 held not. A new element — a perturbing element — had en- 
 tered into his existence ; something he did not understand ; 
 something nevertheless powerful enough to thrust into the 
 background all his ordinary hopes and ambitions and anx- 
 ieties, his restless speculations, his heroic or despondent 
 forecasts as to the future. What was this new force, then, 
 that threatened to upset the whole tenor of his life — dis- 
 tracted as that had already sufficiently been ? He knew not ; 
 or he would not confess ; or he feared to think. Happily he 
 could turn his back on the enigma ; and was even compelled 
 to do so ; for yonder in the town, overlooking the squalid 
 play-ground, stood the dingy gray building where his day's 
 labor was shortly to begin. And so, with his brows knit, 
 and his head thrown a little farther forward than usual, the 
 school-master strode away down from this wooded hill ; and 
 erelong, in that depressing and murmuring room, he had once 
 more taken up his unloved toil. 
 
 It was some hours thereafter, it was about mid-day, that 
 Lauchie Maclntyre awoke to find himself in a disused hay- 
 loft attached to the distillery. How he had come thither on 
 the preceding aight he knew not, nor was there any one to 
 tell him. But that was a minor question ; for it is to he 
 imagined that as the shoemaker now sat up and looked about 
 him, there was no more sick and penitent man, bodily and 
 mentally Bick and BOrry, in all the three kingdoms. Where 
 had he been?— what had he done? — what money had he 
 spent?— nay, what had become of his companion, Red Mm-
 
 THE DAY AFTER 43 
 
 doch? Red Murdoch, who ought to have gone ashore at 
 Tobermory, but would come on to Salen ; and again, after 
 Salen — well, after Salen it was difficult to say anything about 
 Red Murdoch ; he seemed to have vanished away in a mys- 
 terious manner. Then there was the young girl, Barbara 
 Maclean — and here Long Lauchie's conscience became filled 
 with a vague alarm — what had become of her ? — what had 
 he done with her? — whither had she, too, disappeared ? He 
 had a dim recollection of her at some point in the Sound of 
 Mull — for the steward had come to ask about some tea for 
 her ; perhaps, indeed, the steward had looked after her when 
 the Sanda arrived at Duntroone ? All the same, as these 
 remorseful pangs kept urging him, it would be better for 
 him to go along to Mrs. Maclean's, just to see how the land 
 might lie. 
 
 He rose to his feet with a prolonged sigh that was almost 
 a groan ; and, with his ten trembling fingers acting as an in- 
 effectual brush, he tried to remove from his sodden garments 
 the too evident traces of his having passed the night on an 
 unswept floor. Then he left the loft, and with shaky knees 
 descended the flight of wooden steps — fortunately there was 
 no one about. Finally, summoning to him such air of confi- 
 dence as he could command, he passed along the main street 
 until lie came to Mrs. Maclean's shop, which he entered. 
 
 " I hope you are very well the day, Mrs. Maclean," said he, 
 rather nervously. 
 
 " Oh yes, indeed," said the widow, with her accustomed 
 cheerfulness. " And you yourself ? But you are not looking 
 quite so well. Come away in and sit down — " 
 
 " No, no, thank you," said he, shrinking back from the pos- 
 sibility of meeting strangers. 
 
 " There's no one in," said she. " Not even Jessie — Jessie 
 has gone over to the house." 
 
 Thus assured, he stepped into the little parlor, and she 
 followed him, leaving the door a bit open, in case a customer 
 should appear. 
 
 " It's little wonder you should be looking not quite so well," 
 she continued, " after such a night as last night. And you'll 
 just take a little drop of something." With which she went 
 to the cupboard.
 
 44 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Now the very soul of Lauchie was crying aloud and in an- 
 guish for a glass of whiskey ; but sternly he held up his hand. 
 
 " No, Mrs. Maclean," said he, " I'll no touch it. 1 wouldna 
 touch a drop. It's a terrible bad thing, whiskey. It's the 
 very curse and ruin of the kintry. If I was having my way, 
 I would shut up every public-house in the kingdom ; aye, and 
 I would have every distiller put into djile." 
 
 All the same, she put the decanter and the glass on the 
 table, though she did not press him further. 
 
 " And have you got your things come ashore from the 
 wreck ?" she asked. 
 
 He looked up, in a dazed and yet cautiously inquiring 
 manner. 
 
 " Aye ; the wreck ?" he said. 
 
 Had there been a wreck, then ? And was that the cause 
 of Barbara Maclean's vanishing into the unknown ? But here 
 was her aunt sitting quite sprightly and content ! And him- 
 self ? if there had been a wreck, how was he come safely 
 here ? 
 
 " It must have been a fearful time for you," the widow 
 continued, unheeding. " And how the captain managed to 
 put the Sanda on to the Lady Rock just passes comprehen- 
 sion ; that's what every one is saying — " 
 
 " Was the Sanda on a rock ?" he demanded, in a bewil- 
 dered fashion. 
 
 Happily she mistook the. question. 
 
 " Oh yes, she's on the rock still — the high tide has not 
 moved her. But who knows how long she'll be there, if any 
 rough weather comes? And they're saying that if she had 
 struck the rock a few yards to the left, she would not have 
 held at all, but would have gone straight to the bottom. I 
 cannot make it out, for there was no such dreadful bad 
 weather. It was bad weather enough," continued the widow, 
 "that you had out in the west, so I am hearing; and a bad 
 day fur the funeral — with such a long way from the house to 
 t In- seminary." 
 
 "Oh yes, indeed," said the shoemaker, quickly, for here 
 he was on firmer ground. "Terrible bad weather; aw, terri- 
 ble bad weather; and as you say, Mrs. Maclean, a long way 
 from the house to the cemetery."
 
 THE DAY AFTER 45 
 
 A customer entered the shop, and Mrs. Maclean left the 
 parlor. The moment her back was turned, Long Lauchie, 
 overcome by the tragic temptation of the opportunity, hastily 
 seized the decanter, with tremulous fingers poured out a glass 
 of whiskey, and gulped it down. When she returned he was 
 beginning to feel a bit reassured ; if only now he could find 
 out what had become of the young lass Barbara. 
 
 " Mrs. Maclean," said he, tentatively, " it was a bad night 
 for a wreck, was it not ? very wet and uncomfortable — indeed, 
 I'm feeling my clothes a wee thing damp even now." 
 
 " And will you not take a drop of the whiskey, then, Lauch- 
 lan ?" said the widow, considerately. 
 
 " Aw, Mrs. Maclean," said the shoemaker, with great solem- 
 nity, " that you could propose such a thing, and me just tell- 
 ing you that whiskey was the curse of the kintry ! You have 
 a bad opinion of me if you think I would be touching any 
 such thing ! As sure's death, I would sooner walk barefoot 
 to the top of Ben Cruachan than drink a glass of whiskey. 
 But as I was saying, it was a coarse night — and — and the 
 wreck — aye, at the wreck, now — that young lass, your niece — 
 I hope she had plenty round her — " 
 
 "Oh, well, indeed," said Mrs. Maclean, "the bundle that 
 Allan Henderson, the school-master, took out to her was use- 
 ful enough, no doubt. And it was a friendly thing of the lad 
 to do, seeing that she was a stranger to him. Oh yes, he is 
 a good lad, he is a kind-hearted lad, is Allan, though he is 
 very stiff-necked and proud and ill to manage at times. And 
 when he brought her ashore last night — or rather this morn- 
 ing — and when he brought her up to the house, he would not 
 come in — no — the stubborn chiel that he is! — but he half 
 promised to look in and see us this evening." 
 
 Here, indeed, was welcome news ; he began to feel the 
 world more solid beneath his feet. 
 
 " Well, it's very glad I am to hear that your niece has not 
 suffered anything from the shipwreck," Lauchie ventured to 
 say, as he rose to take his departure. " I was looking after 
 her as well as I could — aye — but when there is a wreck — a 
 wreck is a bad thing — a wreck is a terrible bad thing — a man 
 would forget what his own brother was like when there's so 
 many running backward and forward and makkin' a noise.
 
 46 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 And now I must be going home, for they'll be wondering at 
 not seeing me ahl this time." 
 
 It was an unfortunate admission. 
 
 " Were you not home last night, Lauchlan ?" the widow 
 said, her eyes attracted to his clothes, which still showed 
 traces of the hay-loft. 
 
 He hesitated. 
 
 " Well, well — not exactly," said he. " I had to pass the 
 night with a friend. He was very seeck ; and he wanted me 
 to sit up with him. And I was sitting up with him." 
 
 She held the door open for him to pass. 
 
 " You'll not take a dram ?" said she, finally. 
 
 " No, no," he made answer, shaking his head. " No. It 
 would be a bad encouragement for ithers. There's no sich 
 things as that for me." And therewithal he said good-bye, 
 and left the shop, and got out into the open day, his eyes 
 blinking at the stronger light. And perhaps he did go home. 
 
 Meanwhile Jess, in her gentle and almost motherly way, 
 had taken under her charge the solitary creature who had 
 been confided to their care ; and very glad was she to find 
 that her cousin had suffered but little from her recent expe- 
 riences; no doubt the island-nurtured frame of the girl was 
 pretty well used to cold and wet and considerable spells of 
 fasting. Moreover, Barbara Maclean did not at all appear to 
 be too grievously overwhelmed by her bereavement ; she hard- 
 ly ever referred to her father or the funeral ; at the present 
 moment, in truth, she seemed mostly concerned about the 
 wooden chest, which contained all her little belongings, and 
 which had been left on board the Sanda. 
 
 " But you are sure to get it to-day, Barbara," Jess said, in* 
 her persuasive tones. "The lighter is bringing everything 
 ashore from the wreck, and they will send your box up to 
 you. And in the mean time here are my things, and you are 
 welcome to choose just whatever you like." 
 
 The large, dark blue, pathetic eyes of the girl had been 
 drawn 1<> the two white strips that terminated Jess's sleeves. 
 
 " Would you lend me a pair of culls like them?" said she, 
 rather slowly, for her English was not fluent. "I was never 
 seeing BUCh beautiful ironing. And do you wear culls like 
 that all through the week, and every day in the week?"
 
 THE DAY AFTER 47 
 
 " Why not V said Jess, with a laugh. ■ " I iron them my- 
 self. But I will give you a far nicer pair of cuffs than these, 
 Barbara ; yes, and a set of tortoise-shell sleeve-links. For, 
 you see, Allan Henderson, that brought you home last night, 
 he is coming in this evening, and perhaps Mr. McFadyen, a 
 friend of ours, as well ; and you must be looking very nice 
 and smart. And I am sure you will give a word of thanks to 
 Allan for his kindness of last night. He is rather a shy and 
 proud and sensitive lad, and not caring to say much for him- 
 self before strangers ; and a word of thanks would please 
 him ; I am sure of that. Mind this, Barbara, it is not every 
 one that Mr. Stewart would have allowed to go out with him 
 in the lighter ; so you were fortunate to have some one to 
 look after you on such a night." 
 
 For a second the beautiful eyes of the girl — that seemed to 
 say so much, even when they were really saying nothing at all 
 — were raised to her companion's face ; but presently she had 
 withdrawn them, inattentive. 
 
 " Will you be going out now, Jessie ?" said she. " And 
 will you walk down to the quay, until I see if my box is come 
 over from the wreck ?" 
 
 Jess at once and good-naturedly assented ; they made such 
 trifling preparations as were necessary, and in a short space 
 of time the two cousins were passing along the main street of 
 Duntroone.
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 A CEILIDH 
 
 Eventually the box was found and sent along to the 
 house, and on the return of the two girls it was opened, 
 and Jess Maclean was somewhat diffidently invited to look 
 after her cousin's small stock of millinery treasures. These 
 were not sumptuous ; for the most part they had been pro- 
 cured at the solitary " merchant's " shop in Kilree, where 
 feminine finery had to be sought for amidst a heterogeneous 
 display of brown soap, candles, figs, sweetmeats, patent starch, 
 paraffine lamps, and the like ; they had seen a good deal of 
 weather out there in the west ; and now, as Barbara produced 
 them for inspection, it was with a growing sense of disap- 
 pointment. 
 
 " Everything you have seems so neat and clean and so stiff- 
 ly ironed," she said to her cousin, almost resentfully. 
 
 " Well, then," said Jess, with the utmost good - nature, 
 " you must just take any of my things that are of use to 
 you. • And especially when there are visitors coming to the 
 house — " 
 
 " They will be thinking I should be in mourning," said Bar- 
 bara. 
 
 "And I am sure they will think nothing of the kind!" re- 
 sponded Jess. " They know, as the rest of us know, that it 
 is very easy for rich people to buy black silks and black bon- 
 nets and things of that kind ; but it is not so easy for poorer 
 people; and where could any one get mourning at Knocka- 
 lanish ? As for Allan Henderson, the school-master," Jess 
 went on, with a demure laugh, " it is of little consequence 
 what you wear. lie would never see it. If you were dressed 
 as a beggar in the streets, or like the Queen on her throne, he 
 would not know the difference. When he fixes those great 
 eyes of his on you — like burning coals — it isn't your dress he
 
 A CEILIDH 49 
 
 is heeding ; he is trying to understand what you are thinking 
 — that is all he cares about." 
 
 " You talk a good deal about the school-master, Jessie," ob- 
 served Barbara. 
 
 Jess Maclean flushed quickly, and turned her head away ; 
 but she betrayed no anger. 
 
 " I think that every one will be talking of him," said she, 
 quietly, " before many years are over." 
 
 And thus it was with Jessie's help, and with the loan of a 
 few trifling articles of adornment, that the Highland cousin 
 was got ready for the evening, and very smart and trim and 
 effective she looked. She was, indeed, a beautiful creature, 
 quite apart from those wonderful, mysterious, appealing eyes ; 
 her features were refined, and even distinguished; she had the 
 fresh, clear, healthily tinted complexion that not unfrequently 
 in the western isles is found in conjunction with raven-black 
 hair; and when she moved, her step was graceful. Her hands, 
 it is true, bore evidence of rough kitchen-work ; but she did 
 not seem conscious of this defect ; nay, she appeared rather 
 inclined to put them forward a little, so that she could better 
 admire the pair of extremely pretty cuffs and the tortoise-shell 
 links that Jess had given her. 
 
 Of the two visitors the first to arrive was Mr. Peter McFadyen, 
 who, for a second or so, on being introduced to the stranger, 
 was somewhat disconcerted and taken aback. For this was 
 not at all the mere crofter's lass he had expected to meet — 
 this young lady in becoming attire, whose manner, if shy and 
 reserved, at least betrayed no great embarrassment. But 
 Peter prided himself on being a man of the world ; he had 
 soon recovered his self-confidence ; he would hear from her- 
 self further details of the shipwreck ; and finding that she 
 was somewhat silent — the conversation being now in English 
 — he proceeded to give authoritative views on tides, currents, 
 beacons, and the proper navigation of Duntroone Harbor, yet 
 with a touch of jocosity now and again, to show his lightness 
 of heart. Barbara Maclean listened mutely, and sometimes 
 she looked at her cuffs. 
 
 Then the blithe little widow appeared, the shop having 
 been shut ; and she was almost immediately followed by the 
 young school-master, who, after having gravely greeted these 
 3
 
 50 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 friends, seemed in a measure disposed to keep away from 
 this newly found half-cousin of his. He sat somewhat re- 
 moved ; and if by chance, or by some subtle instinct, his 
 eyes were raised to regard the face of the girl, they were al- 
 most instantly withdrawn, as if he were afraid. Of course 
 this was Mr. McFadyen's opportunity. With these women- 
 folk to impress, he was called upon for display ; he was de- 
 termined to shine; he would show them he could talk about 
 other matters than golf. And now — while Mrs. Maclean was 
 stirring up the fire to briskness, and Jess was laying the 
 snow-white table-cloth — it was the marvels of modern science 
 that he had got on to; and in particular he was informing 
 them — as if the illustration were his own — of the astron- 
 omers having brought within their ken stars so distant that 
 if on the day of the battle of Waterloo news of the victory 
 could have been despatched to one of these suns, the tele- 
 gram would not even now have arrived. 
 
 " Aye, and that's not all !" he exclaimed — as a premonitory 
 odor of minced collops and onions wandered in from the 
 kitchen. " They're saying there's no end — no end to the 
 universe — you might go on for ever and ever and only come 
 to more worlds and more worlds, and more space and more 
 space — infinite space — infinite. Just think of it — isn't it 
 terrible to realize — " 
 
 " But you can't realize it," said Allan, with a touch of his 
 scornful impatience. 
 
 " You can't what ?" demanded the town-councillor. 
 
 "It is unthinkable," said the school-master, briefly. ''The 
 mind cannot conceive the idea of infinite space." 
 
 "Ah?" said Mr. McFadyen, with an inquiring glance. 
 "Ah? You've got to imagine a boundary? You can't help 
 thinking of a boundary ? Is that it?" 
 
 "Yes; but you're no further forward that way cither," 
 said the younger man, imperturbably. " For you can't im- 
 agine ;i final boundary; if you think of a boundary yon must 
 think of something outside the boundary; you build a wall, 
 I Mil there must be something outside the wall as well as in. 
 An. I bo ii '_ f, "'s on; and the mischief is that you can neither 
 think <>f spire having an end nor vet of its being end-
 
 A CEILIDH 51 
 
 Peter looked a little dazed — and also suspicious ; but he 
 solved the difficulty by breaking into a loud laugh. 
 
 " Is that metapheesics ?" he cried. " Is that raetapheesics, 
 Allan ? Dod, man, you're a clever chiel ; and the School 
 Board '11 have to be raising your salary ! An annual incre- 
 ment of five pounds is no half enough." 
 
 " I'm sure I'm not caring how many worlds there are," 
 said the contented little widow, as she brought the cruet- 
 •stand and put it on the table. " This is the only one that's 
 handy ; and I doubt whether a better one ever was made. 
 Draw in your chair, Barbara, my lass ; and you, Allan ; and 
 you, Mr. McFadyen. It is well for us that we are under a 
 roof, and with a good fire, and not out on the Lady Rock." 
 
 Minced collops and onions, a dish of spinach garnished 
 with boiled eggs, and bottled stout — these were the materials 
 of the repast ; and a bountiful feast it must have appeared 
 in the eyes of the young lass from the Knockalanish croft. 
 The gay little widow proved a pertinacious hostess ; she 
 would take no refusals, would make no concessions to shame- 
 facedness. " What's good for the Jura factor will do no 
 harm to Fleecy ATP/iail" she said, as she helped herself and 
 others, with here a rallying word, and there a friendly re- 
 monstrance. Indeed, this small party that had been brought 
 together to give Barbara Maclean a welcome on her home- 
 coming performed its duty well ; surely she must have per- 
 ceived that it was not among strangers she had fallen ; only 
 the young school-master remained somewhat aloof and re- 
 served, and of him she did not take much notice. Then 
 again, when Mrs. Maclean, in her frank and off-hand way, 
 came to discuss the girl's position and prospects, she showed 
 a tact that she had not always at command. She would not 
 have Barbara look upon herself in the light of a dependent. 
 Not at all. Serious duties would be expected of her. She 
 would have to manage this house, for example — the young 
 thing Kirsty was hardly to be trusted. And there was more 
 than that. It appeared that the Macleans, mother and daugh- 
 ter, were in the habit of contracting with the tobacco manu- 
 factory for considerable quantities of Lurgan twist ; and this 
 they despatched in lesser consignments to the " merchants " 
 in the outer isles. The correspondence attached to this part
 
 52 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 of the business was carried on by Jess ; but Jess knew little 
 Gaelic, and could write none at all ; whereas, now, if Barbara 
 would undertake to translate these letters into Gaelic, it would 
 be a great advantage and recommendation to a good many of 
 the customers, with whom English was practically a foreign 
 tongue. And what had Barbara to say to all this ? 
 
 "I am sure,'* the girl said, speaking rather slowly, as was 
 her wont, " that I am very willing to do anything that I can 
 do. But I cannot write the Gaelic. I know it very well — 
 oh yes — better than English, a great deal ; but I have never 
 tried to write it. It was always English they were having in 
 the school at Kilree." 
 
 And now, and almost for the first time this evening, Allan 
 Henderson addressed her. 
 
 " If that is all," said he, " there is no trouble. It would 
 be a very easy thing for you to learn the Gaelic spelling when 
 you know the language well. You would not find it very 
 difficult, after you had got the rules." He hesitated— for the 
 large, beautiful eyes were regarding him calmly, perhaps even 
 curiously. " If you would like," he went on, " I would come 
 along in the evening to give you some lessons. An hour each 
 evening would do. It is a pity you should know Gaelic so 
 well and not be able to write it." 
 
 She did not answer him at the moment ; it was Jess Mac- 
 lean who looked up, startled. For could this really "be Allan 
 Henderson, who ordinarily was so backward, or impatient, or 
 scornfully indifferent wherever young women were concerned, 
 yet who now proposed to devote an hour each evening in the 
 week to this solitary converse ? And that was most assuredly 
 what this private tuition would mean. No one else wanted 
 to learn Gaelic spelling. And would the class, consisting of 
 teacher and pupil, be held in the house here, while she and 
 her mother would be over the way in the shop ? 
 
 At this point Peter McFadyen interposed in a storm ily 
 good-humored fashion. 
 
 " Mrs. Maclean," lie cried, " I call you to order. Surely 
 there has been enough of business — enough of business; and 
 I would not have Miss Barbara bothered with threats of les- 
 sons the moment she sets foot in your house. It's all very 
 well for you, Allan, my lad ; every one to his trade ; but at
 
 A CEILIDH 53 
 
 the proper time ; and the proper time is not every time. No, 
 no ; there are other things ; there are amusements ; we can- 
 not have all work and no play ; I may not be very well skilled 
 in metapheesics, but I know when we should have a dance 
 and a song and a merrymaking, to keep the game of life go- 
 ing. And let me see ; what is there to the fore now ?" 
 
 He appeared to be summoning up to his mind the innumer- 
 able gayeties of Duntroone in the winter. 
 
 " Well, now, for example, there's the Gaelic Choir to-mor- 
 row night — the practising in the Drill Hall — and we could 
 not do better than go there, to hear the practising for Mrs. 
 McAskill's soree. I'm going; I must go; I must make my 
 voice heard to-morrow evening — " 
 
 " Oh, are you going to sing, Mr. McFadyen ?" said the wid- 
 ow, encouragingly. 
 
 " To sing ?" he repeated. " Well — well — no — for I am not 
 one of the choir. But, as for a song," he proceeded, re- 
 fusing to confess himself abashed, " if it is a song you would 
 like, well, when we are round the fire, in a little while, I will 
 try a song, just as if we were at an old-fashioned ceilidh.* 
 There is not half enough of spirit among the younger men of 
 the present day—" 
 
 " And do you call yourself anything else than one of the 
 younger men ?" the widow protested, in a kind fashion. 
 
 " Why, in the former days," continued Mr. McFadyen, 
 affecting not to have overheard this agreeable compliment, 
 " when you were at supper, and there were fowls at supper, 
 and if you found a particular bone, you would send it to such 
 or such a one, and he would have to make verses in Gaelic 
 there and then. So I have heard. I am not good at the Gae- 
 lic myself ; but as for a song, I would not spoil any merry 
 party by refusing — not at all ! And what I was saying was 
 this — to-morrow night, when the Gaelic Choir are at the Drill 
 Hall, I am going to put a question to them ; I am, indeed. 
 What kind of songs are they going to sing at Mrs. McAs- 
 kill's soree — that's what I want to know. Dod's bless my 
 soul, is there any use in being muzzerable ? Is there any use 
 in being muzzerable, Mrs. Maclean ?" 
 
 * A visit — a friendly gathering.
 
 54 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " "Well, I never found any myself," said the little widow, 
 suavery. " And I'm told that giving way to it is fearf u' bad 
 for the congestion — " 
 
 " There's some truth in that, any way." observed the school- 
 master, in a kind of grim undertone. 
 
 " Now what's the favorite songs all through the West High- 
 lands?" demanded Peter, indignantly. "I'll tell you, then. 
 There's three in particular. There's the ' Fear a Bhata' (the 
 Farewell to the Boatman); there's the ' Farewell to Fuinary ' ; 
 there's ' Farewell to Mackrimmon' — all of them Farewells ; and 
 are we to have nothing but Farewells and Farewells and Fare- 
 wells, when a few friends have met together to pass a merry 
 hour or two? And I know the choir have plenty of other 
 songs. I can see them in their own books. If I cannot make 
 quite clear sense out of the Gaelic, at least I can read the trans- 
 lation ; and there's plenty of sensible songs, instead of Fare- 
 wells and Farewells." 
 
 He suddenly turned to his neighbor. 
 
 " Miss Barbara," said he, " do you know the ' Return, my 
 Darling'?" 
 
 The color came swiftly to the face of the young Highland 
 girl on her being thus unexpectedly addressed. 
 
 " No, I do not," she said, with downcast eyes. 
 
 " It is the ' 0, till, a leannain,'' Barbara," said Jess — who 
 was a member of the choir. 
 
 " Well, now, there is a sensible song !" continued McFadyen, 
 with spirit. " Some night I will sing it to you — at present I 
 am not sure of the air. But listen to words like this: 
 
 ' //' you on mi/ dear one should gaze, should gaze, 
 If you were to hear what she sags, she sags, 
 If you heard my pretty 
 One singing In r ditty 
 Your bosom would get in a blaze, a blaze? 
 
 That's sense. That's sensible. That doesna belong to the 
 devil's clan <>f Farewells] And I must make my voice heard 
 to-morrow evening at the choir — oh yes, indeed. We are 
 going to have a merry evening at Mrs. McAskill's — and it is 
 useless lamenting for Mackrimmon and Mackintosh and Lov- 
 at, and the rest of them. And sure I am that if Miss Bar-
 
 A CEILIDH 55 
 
 bara here will go with us, there will be an invite for her too ; 
 yes, yes ; Mrs. McAskill is an old friend of mine ; and my 
 friends are her friends. We'll make up a little party, and 
 we'll all go together ; and I'm thinking it might be just as 
 well if I brought a machine." 
 
 Nor did Peter, in his determination to keep things going 
 gayly, forget his promise about singing them a song, when 
 they had left the table and were seated in a cosey semicircle 
 round the fire. The others had forgotten, it is true ; for Allan 
 Henderson had chanced to ask of the widow the origin of a 
 saying she had accidentally used—" Step for step to thee, old 
 woman, and the odd step to Ewen ;" and she was telling them 
 the story : how Ewen Cameron of Lochiel was returning home 
 late one night ; how he was followed by a witch, who tried to 
 overtake him ; how he made use of this phrase, and held on 
 his way successfully, keeping one step in advance of her, until 
 he reached the ferry ; how he had jumped into the boat, while 
 the ferryman drove the witch-hag back ; how she had called 
 to Lochiel " My heart's desire to thee, dear Ewen !" and how 
 he, divining her purpose, had called in return, " Thy heart's 
 desire to the big rock yonder" — whereupon the big rock split 
 into two pieces, visible even unto this day atBallachulish Ferry. 
 To all this Jess listened half laughing — she was familiar with 
 most of her mother's old-world sayings and tales ; but Barba- 
 ra's eyes were intent and awe-stricken ; and it was the expres- 
 sion of her face, rather than the legend, that held the school- 
 master's attention fascinated and enthralled. Of course the 
 town-councillor was too polite to interrupt. But as soon as 
 Mrs. Maclean had finished her narrative, he put his hand over 
 his mouth and coughed significantly. 
 
 " It is not so easy," said he, " to sing without an accom- 
 paniment ; but a promise is a promise, and I will do my 
 best." 
 
 Whereupon he began, in a curious falsetto voice that 
 seemed to come from just behind his teeth, instead of from 
 his chest or throat : 
 
 "' The sun has gane down o'er the lofty Ben- Lomond'' '" 
 
 — this was his song ; and he was evidently proud of his per- 
 formance ; for he took plenty of time, and introduced all
 
 56 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 manner of ornate trills of execution, that could only have been 
 acquired by long practice — 
 
 "'And left the red clouds to preside o'er the scene, 
 While lanely I stray in the calm simmer gloambC , 
 To muse on sweet Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane.'' " 
 
 The dog ! — pretending to sing the praises of Jessie the 
 Flower of Dumblane, when it was as clear as noonday that 
 it was Jessie the Flower of Duntroone he had in his mind. 
 However, there was no covert look or smile ; it was too seri- 
 ous a matter for that ; for now when he came to the second 
 half of the verse he fairly outdid himself — those nourishes 
 and grace-notes were so abundant that the tune got hopeless- 
 ly lost amongst them — never had words been so embroidered — 
 
 " ' How siceet is the brier, wi 1 its soft faulding blossom, 
 And sweet is the birk, wV its mantle o' green ; 
 Yet sweeter and fairer, and dear to this bosom, 
 Is lovely young Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. 
 
 Is lovely young Jessie, 
 Js lovely young Jessie, the flower of Dumblane.'' " 
 
 Nay, when he arrived at the final repetition of the phrase 
 "lovely young Jessie," which is rather high-pitched in the 
 music, he actually opened his mouth, and the consequence 
 was a prolonged and shrill scream ; indeed, so effective and 
 overwhelming was the climax of this last line that the widow, 
 carried away by her enthusiasm, called out, " "Well done ! — 
 well done !" and clapped her hands. 
 
 " Mother," said Jess, blushing furiously, " there's more 
 verses." 
 
 " No, no," said Mr. McFadyen, modestly, " I'll not sing 
 any more the night. I got into rather a high key — and — . 
 and my voice is a little out of practice — " 
 
 "You did well — you did just famously!" the widow 
 maintained. But Peter had given evidence of his possession 
 of musical powers, and was blandly satisfied. 
 
 Altogether it appeared to be a very happy evening for 
 every one concerned, though, to be sure, the young girl from 
 the outer isles remained distant and silent. And to the 
 young school-master that silenco of hers was far more im-
 
 A CEILIDH 57 
 
 pressive than anything else could have been ; it accorded 
 with a certain indefinable quality, a certain mysterious ele- 
 ment of remoteness, that seemed to surround her. And 
 what was the origin, he asked himself as he wandered away 
 homeward through the sleeping town — but not to his books; 
 his thoughts were too perturbed and quick-changing for any 
 application to books — what was the origin of this strange in- 
 fluence she appeared to convey, even without a single spoken 
 word? Was it the mere sense of her loneliness? Or had it 
 anything to do with the circumstances in which he had first 
 encountered her — finding the solitary and forsaken creature on 
 that black reef, with the darkness all around, and the noise 
 of hurrying waters? And what was it that her eyes said, 
 that no mortal eyes had ever said to him before ? Those 
 beautiful blue deeps under the raven lashes — so calm, so still, 
 so mystic in their very apathy — did they not bring some 
 revelation, some message wholly apart from mere human 
 emotions and affections? 
 
 " They seem to speak of the sea and of the night," he said 
 to himself, in the long and sleepless hours of recalling and 
 remembering. 
 8*
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 BARBAROSSA 
 
 The very next day, to Jess Maclean's astonishment, Allan 
 Henderson walked into the shop ; it was a most unusual hour 
 for him to make an appearance. 
 
 " There is a half - holiday at the school," he said ; " the 
 head -master has had great news ahout his son who is at 
 Oxford. And I was thinking, Jessie, if you were free for an 
 hour or so, you might like to go across to Kerrara, and climh 
 up the hill, and find out if anything further has happened 
 to the Sanda. I have got Angus Maclsaac's boat — it's down 
 at the slip — " 
 
 Jess Maclean's kindly gray eyes were lit up with pleasure; 
 in Duntroone it is a special compliment and mark of favor 
 for a young man to ask a young woman to go for a row 
 with him. And this suggestion about the Sanda was obvi- 
 ously the merest excuse ; every one knew what was happen- 
 ing to the Sanda ; she was found to be irrcmovably jammed 
 on to the rock, and irretrievably damaged ; and the steam- 
 lighter was kept engaged in bringing ashore any of her fit- 
 tings that might be of value — before the next gale came 
 along to hammer her to bits. 
 
 " Well, I am not so busy," said Jess, laying down her 
 book-keeping pen. " There is little doing at this time of the 
 year." 
 
 "And would your cousin Barbara care to go too?" the 
 young school-master added, somewhat diffidently. 
 
 The light vanished from Jess Maclean's face. 
 
 " I should think that Barbara had had enough of boats for 
 a while," she said, somewhat coldly. 
 
 Yet she was the soul of good - humor and unselfishness. 
 The hurt and disappointed look did not last a second. Was 
 it to be wondered at that he should have conceived a sudden 

 
 BARBAROSSA 59 
 
 interest in this beautiful creature who had come into their 
 little circle, and who had, by fortune of accident, made espe- 
 cial claim on his attention and pity ? 
 
 "Barbara?" said Jess, after a moment, in her usual bland 
 way. " Oh yes, indeed, I am sure she will be glad to go ; 
 and I will run across the way and tell her — if you will step 
 into the parlor and talk to my mother for a moment or two, 
 while Barbara and I are getting ready." For there was no 
 kind of grudging in this woman's nature ; if it was really 
 on account of Barbara that he had made this proposal — well, 
 Barbara was the more fortunate. 
 
 Now Barbara did not respond to this invitation with the 
 gratitude that might have been expected; but Jess at last 
 induced her to go ; and when both the girls were ready, they 
 crossed over to the shop, and Allan and they proceeded down 
 to the beach, where the boat was awaiting them. They took 
 their places in the stern ; he followed in, and got hold of the 
 oars ; then they shoved off, and he set out to pull them 
 across the bay. On the whole, it was a most auspicious 
 start ; for if the morning had been somewhat squally, all the 
 world was now a blaze of splendor ; the Mull mountains, 
 clear to the top, were of an almost summer-like blue ; sum- 
 mer-like was the blue of the lapping and flashing waters 
 around them ; while between these brilliant breadths of color 
 ran the long spur of Kerrara, its russet and russet - yellow 
 slopes basking in the sun. It is true that Jess, knowing the 
 climate, had brought a thick plaid with her ; it now lay un- 
 heeded over their knees. 
 
 And for a considerable time all went well, and they made 
 good progress across to the island. Allan was a capable oars- 
 man ; the tall young school-master, despite his slight stoop, 
 possessed a wiry frame ; and everybody along this coast can 
 handle a boat. But by-and-by, and almost imperceptibly, the 
 aspect of things began to alter a little. 
 
 "Allan," said Jess, "I think we are going to have a 
 shower." 
 
 " No, no — no shower," said he, confidently ; for, of course, 
 he was looking back to the land — and there all was placid 
 sunlight, from the white houses dotted along the terraced 
 cliffs out to the ivied castle at the point.
 
 60 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Jess laughed. " Allan," said she, " where is the island of 
 Mull ?" 
 
 He turned his head. There was no island of Mull. The 
 mountains of tender ethereal rose-purple and azure had all dis- 
 appeared; and in their place there was a far-stretching film of 
 silvery gray, entirely shutting out the world beyond. 
 
 " And what's that down the Sound ?" Jess demanded 
 again. 
 
 He turned and looked in the other direction. Off the 
 mouth of Loch Feochan a broad black band lay on the water 
 — a band of almost inky hue ; but even as they regarded it, it 
 began to resolve itself — -it came creeping stealthily along, leav- 
 ing a vague indistinctness in its wake. Then Kerrara itself 
 appeared to undergo gradual transformation ; the low-lying 
 hills took loftier and mystic forms ; through this ever-advanc- 
 ing veil they looked strange and remote. And was there not 
 some darkness assembling overhead ? — some pervading gloom 
 all around ? The blue had gone from the sea. 
 
 " Quick ! quick !" cried Jess — and she opened out the thick 
 plaid and threw it round Barbara and herself, the two of them 
 crouching together, their heads bent down. 
 
 Then with a cold and angry swirl of wind came the first 
 rattle of the rain — splashing on thwarts and gunwale and hiss- 
 ing on the leaden sea ; the gloom around them increased ; the 
 island they were making for seemed to recede and recede, un- 
 til it appeared to be a hopeless distance away ; and then again 
 — in about another couple of minutes — they could descry that 
 same island of Kerrara shining a beautiful golden-green be- 
 hind the gray folds of the wet ; the world lightened and still 
 further lightened ; and as they once more emerged into blue 
 water and warm sunshine, behold ! the mountains of Mull had 
 returned — the velvct-hued shoulders of purple and soft rose- 
 gray showing along their summits a slight sprinkling of snow, 
 left by the swift-drifting shower. 
 
 And now they were come to Ardentrivc, the solitary and 
 secluded bay in which the yachts of this part of the coast are 
 laid up for the winter. Very forlorn and ghostly looked those 
 silent, dismantled vessels ; yet they were interesting in a way ; 
 it was like walking past empty rooms, thinking of vanished 
 glories. And as they went from one to the other, Allan
 
 BARBAROSSA 61 
 
 chanced to notice that the gangway of a certain schooner had 
 not been properly fixed down. 
 
 " Would you like to go on board and have a look about 
 the deck ?" said he to his companions. " It would not be 
 difficult." 
 
 "If you're sure there's no one on the yacht," said Jess, 
 doubtfully. 
 
 " There cannot be," he pointed out. " There's no boat 
 astern. And who would be on board a yacht at this time of 
 year ?" 
 
 And yet, when at length he had clambered over the gun- 
 wale, and opened the gangway, and had got the two girls 
 hauled up on deck, and when they began to peer about, there 
 were some unusual symptoms observable. 
 
 " I never saw a boat left like this," said he — for everybody 
 in Duntroone knows something about boats. " Look at the 
 tarpaulin of the skylight — it has been taken off and thrown 
 back again ; what is to prevent a gust of wind from blowing 
 it overboard ?" 
 
 He pursued his investigations. 
 
 " Look here," he called again ; " the doors of the compan- 
 ion-way have been left open. Let us go down and see the 
 saloon." 
 
 He shoved back the hatch of the companion-way, and pro- 
 ceeded to descend the steps, the two girls rather timorously 
 following. Indeed, there was something uncanny in finding 
 themselves in possession of this deserted ship ; moreover, be- 
 neath them was a vague and mysterious gloom, for the tar- 
 paulin, loose as it might be, quite sufficiently covered the 
 deck skylight. 
 
 But the next moment this indefinite apprehension had given 
 way to the most violent alarm and terror. For no sooner had 
 Allan reached the open door of the saloon than he suddenly 
 stopped short, and instinctively threw out both arms, as if to 
 bar the further progress of the women. 
 
 " What in the name of God is that ?" he exclaimed, gazing 
 with awe-stricken eyes into the dim obscurity. 
 
 " It's a dead man !" cried Barbara, with a piercing shriek, 
 " Come away — Jess ! — Jess !" 
 
 But Jess was too terrified to move ; she could only stare
 
 62 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 into the semi-darkness at the ghastly object that there pre- 
 sented itself. And Allan, also, stood and stared— wondering 
 whether they had stumbled into dreamland, and broken in 
 upon the slumbers of the Emperor Barbarossa. For at the 
 farther end of the sombre saloon, half reclining against the 
 cushions, and apparently dead asleep, there was an upright 
 figure clad in a white mantle ; some kind of crown surmount- 
 ed his brows ; and on the table before him lay a metal instru- 
 ment ; brass or gold it seemed to be in the prevailing dusk. 
 The red-bearded sleeper did not stir or show any sign of life; 
 and the silence around him was as the silence of the grave. 
 
 "Jess! — Jess!" said Barbara, with ashen lips. "Come 
 away — it is a work of the devil !" 
 
 But Jess, trembling though she was, would not leave Allan ; 
 she felt safer standing by him than in trying to flee from the 
 neighborhood of that appalling phantasm; unknown to her- 
 self, she had put her hand on the young man's arm, and would 
 have dragged him back, when he advanced a step. 
 
 " Who are you ? — and what are you ?" he demanded, in a 
 loud voice. 
 
 The white figure slowly moved ; a pallid face appeared to 
 regard the intruders; then of a sudden the unknown snatched 
 up the sceptre-looking instrument that lay on the table, and 
 brandished it before him. 
 
 " Away, away I" he called, shrilly, in Gaelic. " It's I that 
 will not be satisfied till the Bay of Duntroonc is filled with 
 blood ! — with blood ! — with blood ! Ten thousand down from 
 the Gallows Hill — ten thousand burled over the Minard cliffs 
 — sweep them, sweep them into the sea — till they know the 
 power of the King! The power of the King! — that must 
 walk on the neck of his enemies, and splash the lintels of his 
 door with the blood, lill not' one of them be left in the land ! 
 Hurl them over — crush them — mangle them — slaves, away 
 now, and do my bidding ! — for the bloody slaughter shall not 
 cease till the going down of the sun I" 
 
 In his frantic gesticulation, the red beard, which was mere- 
 ly a strip of cow's hide, got disarranged, .-mil fell to the floor. 
 
 " It's Niall Gorach!"* cried .less, in amazement. 
 
 * Half-witted Neil,
 
 HARBAROSSA 63 
 
 But the poor half-witted lad, hearing this real voice, began 
 dimly to perceive that these strangers were actual human be- 
 ings, not the ghosts and hallucinations he had been accus- 
 tomed to command, in his madder moments, from this throne 
 of state. He peered curiously at them, in a frightened way, 
 and now he was all trembling. 
 
 " Have you come for me ?" he said, in pitiful and whimper- 
 ing tones — and he humbly laid down his sceptre, which was 
 none other than the brass poker belonging to the stove. 
 
 " Why, how did you get here ?" demanded Allan. 
 
 " I took a boat from the Corran shore," he answered — 
 looking furtively and apprehensively from one to the other in 
 this obscure twilight. 
 
 " And where did you get the oars for her ?" 
 
 " I took a piece of wood from the Dunchoillie fence — and 
 — and I watched the tides." 
 
 " And what have you done with her now ?" 
 
 " I shoved her away." 
 
 " And left yourself to starve ! Why, how long have you 
 been on board this yacht ?" 
 
 " I am not knowing — a long time, I think — many thou- 
 sands of people were coming to see me — " But here he 
 checked himself ; his visionary kingdom was over ; the world 
 of fact and substance had found him. 
 
 " And have you had anything to eat and drink ?" 
 
 " I brought a bag of meal and a cask of water," he said ; 
 and then he added, in an appealing way, " I will give you 
 some if you will not hurt me, or put me in jail." Nay, so 
 -abject and penitent was he that he took the tinselly crown 
 from his forehead and timidly placed it on the table ; it was 
 the last sign and symbol of his abdication. 
 
 Well, they were not disposed to be too hard on the poor 
 wretch, whose royal government of 'spectral armies, in this 
 solitary cabin, could not have done much harm to anybody ; 
 and, indeed, as it turned out, Niall was the means, the unin- 
 tentional means, of doing Allan Henderson an excellent good 
 turn this afternoon. For of course they had to take him with 
 them — after they had dispossessed him of his blanket-robe 
 and returned it to a locker, and after they had shut up and 
 made secure everything on .board the yacht as well as they
 
 64 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 could, with some comments on the negligence of care-takers. 
 Then they pulled ashore and landed on Kerrara, leaving Niall 
 in charge of the boat drawn up on the beach. They next pro- 
 ceeded to climb the nearest hill from which they might have 
 a view of the distant Lady Rock, this being the ostensible aim 
 of their excursion. It was, in truth, very little they could see 
 of the unfortunate Sanda beyond a touch of red that revealed 
 her funnel ; however, they had come to look at the steamer; 
 and now that they had accomplished their object, there was 
 nothing for them but to go away home again — Allan could 
 find no further excuse for prolonging this all too delightful 
 lingering and its secret and magnetic association. 
 
 Of a sudden Jess Maclean, who was a sharp-eyed lass, be- 
 gan to giggle, and then to laugh outright. 
 
 " Do you know what has happened i" she said. " Where 
 is your boat, Allan ?" 
 
 The school-master wheeled round. There was no doubt 
 about what had happened. The young rascal Niall, seizing 
 his opportunity, had shoved off, jumped into the boat, and 
 was now making for the main-land as hard as ever he could 
 pull. 
 
 " The scoundrel !" said Allan, not a little disconcerted. 
 " But it is no matter. Angus Maclsaac will catch him when 
 he gets ashore, and Angus will bring the boat back for us." 
 
 "Oh, do you think so?" said Jess, with merriment in her 
 pretty gray eyes. " Well, now, do you see where the daft lad 
 is going? For he is not so daft as to try landing at the quay 
 or any of the slips ; no, no ; he is making for the little bay at 
 Dunchoillie, and as soon as he has got ashore, he will escape 
 away through the woods. Allan, how many miles is it we'll 
 have to walk to the ferry ?" 
 
 Clearly this was now what stared them in the face. Other 
 hope for them there was none. They waited a long time to 
 see if any sane creature should chance to capture the runa- 
 way, and have the understanding to send back the boat ; but 
 nothing of the kind occurred ; and so they set out — Allan 
 secretly rejoicing — to walk away over the rough island to the 
 ferry that crosses Kerrara Sound. 
 
 He bore Niall no ill-will for having played them this trick. 
 The world was full of wonder and a subtle fascination all
 
 BARBAROSSA 65 
 
 through the hours of this enchanted afternoon ; and when 
 eventually they got across to the main-land there were more 
 of magic spells ; for they walked home through a lambent 
 twilight, with a crescent moon of clear gold nearly overhead, 
 while far away in the west, high above the mystic glooms and 
 phantom shapes of the Mull hills, there was a stormy glare of 
 rose pink that sent a warm flush across the now approaching 
 Duntroone, its houses and woods and scant gardens. Yes, 
 and all his life seemed likewise to have burst into flame : 
 whether a consuming flame, it was for the inscrutable Fates 
 to determine and declare.
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 
 
 Now on the Sabbath day it was the custom of the good 
 folk of Duntroone, excepting the ultra-strict amongst them, to 
 permit themselves a little walk along the sea-front after morn- 
 ing service ; and this was the next opportunity to which the 
 school-master could look for resuming — without any appear- 
 ance of intrusive haste — his acquaintance with the wonderful 
 stranger from the outer isles : perchance in the vague hope 
 of inveigling Jess and her to go with him for some brief 
 landward stroll. But alas for these fond desires ! On the 
 Saturday evening there was a filmy and mysterious halo 
 round the crescent moon ; an hour or two later the wind be- 
 gan to rise — with a vague premonitory howl ; before midnight 
 a full gale was raging, shaking the house to its very founda- 
 tions ; and through the long dark night there was a clatter- 
 ing of windows and a succession of deluges of rain that told 
 of what was happening outside. Then his first despairing 
 glimpse of the new day seemed to say that all was over. The 
 driven and turbulent sea was of a livid green, with the white 
 crests of the chasing waves whirled aloft and scattered in 
 spindrift; the water was surging heavily along the quays and 
 springing high in foam ; the roadways were deep in mud ; 
 and a solitary pedestrian, a woman, witli her head hutted 
 down, and her ineffectual waterproof blown up into a black 
 balloon, was being dragged hither and thither as she strove 
 against the gusts of the storm. A cheerless prospect, truly ; 
 for Ihmtroone, on a wet Sunday, is the wettest-looking place 
 in all tin- wild and wet West Highlands. 
 
 Nevertheless, the weather was not likely to imprison the 
 young sohool-master ; out-of-doors could be no colder than 
 
 this tireless and miserable room of his; besides, he was rest- 
 less, ill at ease, and longing to be away in free and open soli-
 
 PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 67 
 
 tude ; and so, making some inward excuse about having a 
 look round to see if there was any chance of the dav better- 
 ing, he set forth, and eventually found himself climbing to 
 the summit of the Gallows Hill. There he made sure he 
 would have all the world to himself alone. 
 
 But it was not so. To his astonishment, he discovered 
 that he had been forestalled. Lauchie Maclntyre, the shoe- 
 maker, was seated on the bench at the foot of the flag-staff. 
 
 "Well, Lauchlan," said he, "you're early astir. And 
 what's brought you up here ?" 
 
 " My head is not so well," said Lauchlan, sadly, and he took 
 his cap off and laid it on his knees. " And I thought there 
 would be a fine cold wind blowing on the hill." 
 
 " Maybe you had a little drop last night, then ?" Allan 
 suggested. 
 
 The melancholy - visaged shoemaker glanced reproachfully 
 at the younger man. 
 
 " Aw, Mr. Henderson, that you would think the likes of 
 that of me ! — me that's a Rechabite, and was at a Band of 
 Hope meeting only the night before last. There's no such 
 things as that for me — no, no. Now look at this ; there's 
 many a man would have tekken to drink long ago in my 
 place. There's many a man would have tekken to drink 
 when his wife rin aweh from him. But not me — not me ; 
 says I to myself, ' Lauchie, let the duvvle go, and welcome 
 to her.' And this one and that was saying I should c - o 
 through to Fort William, and bash the head of that little 
 bandy - legged carpenter ; but says I to myself, ' No, no ; if 
 he's willing to tek up with a duvvle like that, it is you, 
 Lauchie, that is well rid of them both, and be tammed to 
 them !' What would I be going to Fort AVilliam for ? It's 
 not to Fort William I would be going, when I might have to 
 bring her back again." 
 
 "Yes, I've heard you were a married man," said Allan, ab- 
 sently. And he did not go on his way, as he had purposed 
 doing, to secure silence and solitude for himself. He sat 
 down on the bench beside the shoemaker. For here at least 
 was a human being who had come through, in however blind 
 and bleared a fashion, certain of the great crises and expe- 
 riences of life — had perhaps even, unknown to himself, been
 
 68 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 face to face with problems and mysteries. What, for exam- 
 ple, was the origin of this disenchantment and repulsion that 
 he had so freely confessed ? And Allan had no fear of mak- 
 ing any humiliating or disturbing discoveries. It was the 
 truth he wanted, seen from whatever side. He was well 
 aware that a Sancho Panza element exists in human nature, 
 and that not to its detriment; the gargoyle does not detract 
 from the majesty of the cathedral. " Yet I warrant," said he 
 to Long Lauchie, " that you sang a different song when she 
 was your sweetheart — when you believed her to be the finest 
 creature in all the country — when you cared for nothing, for 
 nothing in the world, so much as to see her eyes look 
 kindly at you when you came near. Isn't that so ? Am I 
 right ?" he went on, seeing that the dejected shoemaker was 
 silent. " I'm thinking there was a time when you wouldn't 
 have contentedly seen her go away with another man. No ; 
 you would rather have been for breaking the head of any 
 man that wanted even to be a little friendly with her. There 
 must have been a time when the madness was on you. They 
 tell me that when a man sees the one woman in all the world 
 that he must have for his wife, it is a kind of madness that 
 comes over him — " 
 
 " A madness ?" said Lauchlan, gloomily. " Aye. There 
 was ten days of it. Her father he keepit a public-house in 
 Tobermory ; and when I came to myself at the end of the 
 ten days, they were saying that I had promised to marry Jean. 
 Aye, they were saying that. And mebbe I had. And mebbe 
 I had not. But it was of little matter ; for her father he was 
 a decent man ; and there was ahlways a glass for a friend ; 
 and there was a talk of a fine wedding — so I said no more." 
 
 Tinkle-tanklc, tinkle-tankle, went the bell of the Catholic 
 chapel ; and one or two small dark figures began to appear 
 in the distant thoroughfares. 
 
 " But no doubt you hoped for the best," continued Allan. 
 " And what was't, think you, made the marriage turn out ill !" 
 
 "The drink," replied Long Lauchie, with mournful resig- 
 nation. " She was just like the rest. Ahl the weemen arc 
 alike. They're ahl alike. They're ahl at the drink, or worse. 
 There's a cousin of mine that is a game-keeper over on Loch 
 Awe-side, and he says the two classes that mek ahl the mis-
 
 PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 69 
 
 chief of the kintry are weemen and meenisters, and that it's 
 a pity there does not brek out a grouse-disease among them 
 to sweep them ahl aweh. Aye, indeed." 
 
 It was without anger that Lauchlan delivered himself of 
 these quite desperate views of life and feminine human nat- 
 ure ; he had escaped from the toils, and was merely a pas- 
 sive spectator now. 
 
 " And do you mean to say," Allan demanded, " that you 
 allowed your wife to run away from you without making the 
 least effort to bring her back ?" 
 
 " Well, now," said the shoemaker, with greater animation, 
 11 1 will just tell you what happened that day, and I will ask 
 you if I did not do right. I was down at the North Quay, 
 with a friend of mine that was going to Ballachulish, and we 
 were waiting for the Fusilier to come over from the South 
 Quay. And when the Fusilier was brought alongside, then 
 one of the lads of the steamer he comes running up the gang- 
 way, and he says, ' Lauchie, do you know that your wife is in 
 the fore-caybin V ' No,' says I, ' I do not.' ' Well, she is,' 
 says he, ' and him that's along with her is MacKillop the car- 
 penter, from Fort William; and I'm thinking it's not ahl 
 right, from the look of them.' 'And do you tell me, now,' 
 says I, ' that my wife is running aweh with MacKillop the 
 carpenter ?' ' It is not for me to answer such a question,' says 
 he. ' It is for you to come on board and get hold of your 
 wife.' 'Is it?' says I. ' Then I will see her tammed first. If 
 she's running aweh with the bandy-legged carpenter, let the 
 duvvle go and welcome !' Then says Johnnie, ' They are 
 carrying a big bundle between them.' Well, at that, Mr. 
 Henderson, at that something came over me. ' Johnnie, lad,' 
 says I, ' come aweh down quick to the fore-caybin, and you'll 
 seize hold of the bundle, and I'll give the carpenter a clout 
 that will mek him think it's the Day of Chidgment.' That's 
 what I was saying ; and my foot was on the gangway ; but I 
 stopped. Aye, indeed, I stopped. Says I to myself: 'Is it 
 not a good thing to be rid of a lot of weemen's clothes ? 
 Does any one want a lot of weemen's clothes hanging about 
 one's house ?' And back I stepped from the gangway. ' Let 
 them go to Fort William, or to the duvvle, bundle and all !' 
 says I — and in a few minutes aweh went the Fusilier, and I've
 
 70 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 never set eyes on either of them since. And there's many a 
 man would have made that excuse for tekkin' to drink ; but 
 I'm not wan of that kind ; no, no ; I would rather do what 
 little I can to banish ahl that sin and shame from our kin try. 
 Aye, that's jist what it is : drink is the sin and shame of the 
 kintry. Have you a fill of tobacco, Mr. Henderson ?" 
 
 But Allan had left his pouch behind him. So Lauchie, 
 with a patient sigh, put his pipe in his pocket again, and rose 
 to his feet. 
 
 "I am thinking I will be getting home now. My head is 
 not so well. Mebbe I will try lying down on my bed for a 
 while — there is little hope of meeting in with a friend on a 
 day like this." So Long Lauchie departed ; and the young 
 school-master was left alone with this great, wide, far-stretch- 
 ing world of moving shapes and vaporous glooms. 
 
 Nevertheless, there was still some small glimmering of 
 hope. Occasionally there would come a suffused silvery look 
 into a portion of the eastern skies ; the lurid and formless 
 heavens would show symptoms of banking up ; while the 
 slopes of Kerrara, catching this or that wandering gleam, 
 would burn an intense russet-yellow against the blue-black of 
 the Mull mountains. Then again a gradual fading of that wild 
 glare ; a gathering darkness ; an advancing murmur of wind 
 and water; and forthwith a white smoke of rain would go 
 tearing across the bay, the squall whirling onward with the 
 hurrying waves. There was not a dog visible along all the 
 deserted sea-front of Duntroone. 
 
 However, storm or shine, the people would soon be coming 
 out of the churches now, and so he slowly and watchfully 
 made his way downward from these gusty heights. As the 
 first of the worshippers began to appear, he quickened his 
 pace; he would have to intercept the two girls — yet in a 
 casual kind of way ; most likely they would make straight for 
 home, instead of attempting any promenade along the wet 
 concrete that was now all littered with sca-wecd. And this 
 was precisely what happened. Another minute or two and he 
 would have missed them, lie encountered them at the cor- 
 ner of the street. They had had no thought of going along 
 by the sea-front on such a morning. 
 
 " Well, now, Allan,"' said Jess, with her gray eyes smiling
 
 PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 71 
 
 benignly (Barbara paid little heed to him ; she seemed more 
 concerned about keeping ber water-proof sleeves well over ber 
 wristbands), " tbis is not a day for any one to be outside. 
 Will you come home with us, and take a little bit of dinner 
 with us ?" 
 
 "It is very kind of you, Jessie — " he was beginning to say, 
 with some embarrassment, when she interrupted him. 
 
 " But you are going to refuse, as usual. Do you think it 
 is very friendly, Allan ? I know that we cannot talk about 
 anything that would interest you, for the President of the 
 Duntroone Literary and Scientific Society is such a great per- 
 son ; but we would make you welcome ; and cousins, cousins 
 in the Highlands especially, should not be so ceremonious." 
 
 Well, the President of the Duntroone Literary and Scien- 
 tific Society might or might not have been a great and learned 
 person ; but at least he had not the heart to refuse this cun- 
 ningly worded invitation ; and the next minute he was accom- 
 panying the two girls on their homeward way. 
 
 " And who knows," continued Jess, in her kindly fashion, 
 '• but that the afternoon may clear up a bit, and Barbara and 
 you and I might go for a walk over to Ganavan ? Oh yes, it 
 is just as likely as not to clear up a little !" 
 
 And eventually, as it turned out, her cheerful optimism was 
 rewarded ; for by three o'clock the state of affairs looked suf- 
 ficiently promising to induce them to leave the house ; and 
 deep was the joy in Allan's heart when they had actually set 
 forth upon this excursion. They took an inland route to 
 begin with, but it mattered little to him whither they went. 
 Perhaps it was merely chance that placed him by Barbara's 
 side as they started off ; at any rate, he found himself once 
 more subject to the overmastering spell of her mere presence 
 — the inexplicable, extraordinary enhancement of being near 
 her — the wonder and delight of being able to regard the wind 
 stirring the wisps and tangles of her raven-black hair. And, 
 indeed, that was about all of her companionship that she vouch- 
 safed to him. She rarely spoke, except to answer a question ; 
 it was Jess who did all the talking — teasing him and mocking 
 him, and yet becoming sympathetic enough when she hap- 
 pened to touch upon anything really affecting himself or his 
 future.
 
 72 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 They left the highway — they followed a farm road — crossed 
 some heights and knolls — and came in sight of the western 
 seas again. A sombre day, perhaps, for a country walk ; and 
 yet there was plenty of color in the wintry landscape — the 
 yellow of the pastures, the dank crimson of the withered 
 breckan, the intense green of the whins, the blood red of the 
 bramble stems trailing across the swollen brook. And when, 
 as they were descending from the heights towards the shore, 
 a sudden fire broke through the heavy clouds lying over the 
 mountains in Mull, why, all the world around them grew ra- 
 diant, and even the leafless ash-trees caught something of the 
 welcome light — a shimmering touch of silver on the branches 
 that stretched away up into the leaden-hued sky. A most 
 comforting gleam ; it was full of promise ; it seemed to speak 
 of a general breaking up of those louring heavens ; perhaps 
 by the time they were returning home they might have for 
 company the crescent moon. 
 
 At the foot of the hill the burn runs at right angles, and as 
 they were crossing the rude little bridge, Allan happened to 
 espy under the straggling blood-red stems of the brambles a 
 small white star. 
 
 " Why," he said, " there is the first wild-flower I have seen 
 this year !" 
 
 He stepped down the slippery bank, reached under the 
 bushes, and brought away the tiny prize. It was only a daisy — 
 not " crimson-tipped " at all — but pale and colorless ; none the 
 less the first timid harbinger of the spring was surely an 
 interesting thing, with its mystic message of wonder and 
 hope. Then it was in its way a rarity ; he was bound to 
 present it to one of his companions. To which of them? 
 Jess rather stood aside a little, looking askance. 
 
 " Would you care to have it ?" said he to Barbara, and he 
 shyly offered her this humble little token. 
 
 Yes, she took it ; and she thanked him in a kind of fashion 
 — that is to say, with her voice, not with any glance of her 
 unfathomable eyes ; then they went on again. And Jess had 
 not lingered behind to wipe away any sudden tears of morti- 
 fication and reproach ; for she was a sensible lass ; and she had 
 but the smallest sense of her own importance and value in the 
 world. Only, for a little time, she was silent and preoccupied.
 
 '"THERE IS THE FIRST WILD FLOWER I HAVE SEEN THIS YEAR !' "
 
 PROBLEMS AND DREAMS 73 
 
 They went down to the shore, and the sands, and the rocks, 
 round which the dark-green sea was monotonously washing, 
 with crisp white flashes of foam here and there. A lonely 
 place, as the calling of the startled birds bore witness — 
 curlews, oyster-catchers, sandpipers, and the like ; while ev- 
 erywhere there was dispersal — the black and white gleam of 
 a pair of arrow-flighted mergansers, the slow-flapping labored 
 progress of a heron, the cautious retreat of a deep-swimming 
 skart that was already a mile out from shore, dipping its 
 head from time to time, and paddling still farther away. 
 But in a very few minutes silence prevailed again ; several of 
 the flocks of birds returned to their feeding -grounds ; and 
 when the three strangers, having sought out a convenient seat 
 for themselves on the rocks, took their places, there was no 
 further cry or sign of protest against the intrusion. 
 
 And of what did these young folk talk, in the gathering 
 twilight? Allan Henderson hardly knew. The folds of her 
 dress were visible to him, that was enough ; the magnetic, 
 alarming consciousness that she was almost within touch of 
 him ; the secret wistful hope that sooner or later she might 
 turn towards him more friendly, more interested, eyes. It 
 was Jess who rather came to the rescue ; and so also on their 
 way back to the town ; she had heard of the great German 
 mediaeval poem that Allan was endeavoring to translate ; and 
 she wanted to know how he was getting on with the laborious 
 task ; and sought to reassure him about his doubts as to 
 whether he should be able to find a publisher. For she was 
 a kindly, helpful sort of creature ; and she had a resolute 
 faith in the future of this young man. 
 
 The last of the twilight was vanishing as he parted from 
 them at the house in Campbell Street. And it was with a 
 heavy heart, it was with a bitter sense of disappointment and 
 despondency, that he turned away and set out for home. For 
 too surely he had observed that the first little tentative token 
 of friendship he had offered to Barbara Maclean she no longer 
 carried in her hand. Doubtless she had tossed the worthless 
 thing aside into the highway, to be trampled in the mud ; or 
 perhaps she had idly dropped it into one of the brackish 
 pools — half rain, half sea-water — out on the dark rocks where 
 they had been sitting during an enchanted but hopeless hour. 
 4
 
 CHAPTER X 
 THE SUN-GOD 
 
 Then the great evening drew near on which the McAskills 
 of the Argyll Anns were to entertain the members of the 
 Gaelic Choir and other friends ; and Peter McFadyen had 
 been as good as his word — he had procured an invitation for 
 Barbara. At first Jess was doubtful as to whether it would 
 be quite fitting for their family, in view of recent events, to 
 be present at any such festivity ; but she found that Barbara 
 was not at all sensitive on the point ; and the compromise 
 finally suggested by Mrs. Maclean was to the effect that the 
 two girls should go to the soiree and concert, but should 
 either come away or remain for a little while as mere spec- 
 tators when the dancing began. And Jessie was indcfatiga- 
 bly kind in looking after Barbara's costume, and lending her 
 some small trifles in the way of feminine finery. 
 
 " Every one will look at Barbara," said she, laughing, to 
 her mother, " and no one will look at me ; so it's but right 
 she should have the choosing of anything I have." 
 
 And again Mr. McFadyen was as good as his word : on the 
 momentous evening in question, and for mere extravagance 
 and display, he brought a "machine" to take the two girls 
 round to the Volunteer Drill Hall ; and Barbara, stepping 
 across the pavement, found herself ushered into a vehicle the 
 like of which she had never entered before — a vehicle with 
 luxuriously cushioned seats, and windows that could be shut 
 up against the rain, and lamps that sent a soft glow out into 
 the black night. Mr. McFadyen, fussy, eager, proud of the 
 charge thai had been bestowed on him — for Mrs. Maclean had 
 begged to be allowed to remain at home — was in the highest, 
 of spirits; and there were more triumphs, more feats of prow- 
 ess, to announce: Gilmourhad again been beaten on the links 
 that very afternoon.
 
 THE SUN-GOD 75 
 
 " It's the Pinnacle," cried Peter, chuckling and grinning, 
 and he rubbed his hands in delight. " It's the Pinnacle that 
 bashes Gilmour every time ! And the angry man he is ! — 
 smashing at the ball with the lofting-iron, and then grinding 
 his teeth as he watches it come trintle, trintle down the hill 
 again, right back to his feet. Dod, that Pinnacle '11 be the 
 death o' the station-master, as sure's I'm living !" 
 
 The way up to the Drill Hall was along an obscure back 
 lane; and in the prevailing darkness the "machine" moved 
 cautiously ; but at length it stopped at the foot of some steps 
 in front of a large oblong building, and Mr. McFadyen de- 
 scended to hand out his companions. And what was this 
 sound that came from the interior of the hall ? This was no 
 feeble trembling of a jews-harp — this was the shrill and war- 
 like scream of the pipes — it was the "Athole Gathering" 
 that was being played to welcome the now-arriving guests. 
 The proud McFadyen, when they got up to the door, would 
 fain have entered with one of his charges on each arm ; but 
 clearly there was no room for this ostentatious parade ; and 
 so, as Jessie hung back a little, in her usual fashion, it was 
 Barbara whom he found himself escorting in — Barbara, whose 
 great, beautiful eyes looked with dumb wonder and astonish- 
 ment on this gay spectacle — at the brilliant illuminations, the 
 walls and ceiling hung with flags of resplendent color, the 
 long tables sumptuously set forth and decorated. She was 
 bewildered, but not frightened. She shook hands with her 
 host and hostess without perturbation. And then the three 
 new-comers moved on to an open space from which they could 
 the better observe the subsequent arrivals. 
 
 " So you say Allan Henderson is not to be here to-night," 
 Mr. McFadyen remarked to Jess. " Why that ? Maybe he 
 thinks his clothes are not quite smart enough for such a fine 
 gathering." 
 
 Jess flushed quickly — perhaps angrily, despite the habitual 
 gentleness of her nature. 
 
 " He has no need to think of any such thing," said she. " He 
 would look well wherever he went, and in whatever clothes. 
 It's not clothes that give a man a distinguished appearance." 
 
 There was more than a touch of indignation in her tone. 
 And then she went on again, proudly :
 
 76 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Perhaps there may be something of more importance for 
 him to be thinking about than a concert and a dance in a drill 
 hall. Do you know this, Mr. McFadyen — that he is preparing 
 a lecture on the Folk-Songs of Germany, and he is translating 
 the lesser known amongst them himself ? Any one else would 
 take the folk-songs that have already been translated and be 
 content with them ; but that is not Allan's way ; he is too 
 thorough, too much in earnest, for that; and suppose, now, 
 when the lecture has been delivered to the society, it was af- 
 terwards to be put into shape and sent to one of the great 
 magazines in London — and perhaps with his name too — that 
 would be something for one to speak of, and him only a 
 school-master in Duntroone." 
 
 "You seem to be very familiar with Allan's plans," said the 
 town-councillor, rather spitefully. 
 
 "Then it is not from any boasting on his part," Jess re- 
 torted, with a fine courage. " It is not boasting that he is 
 given to. And some day we may not be wondering quite so 
 much that he found something more important to do than 
 come to a merrymaking of this kind." 
 
 " Aye, well, well," said Peter. " Allan is a good lad. 
 There's many a worse lad than Allan, whether he has a 
 small salary or a big one. And I'll buy the magazine, yes, 
 that I will. I would not be surprised if I bought six copies 
 of it, and gave them about. lie's a good enough lad is 
 Allan." For he would not have had this unfortunate little 
 disagreement continued on so auspicious an occasion ; es- 
 pecially as every moment new friends were arriving, and he 
 was eager to show that he had been entrusted with this 
 guardianship. Which of the younger men would have been 
 so favored ? 
 
 Meanwhile Barbara had not overheard a single word, so 
 wholly engrossed was she with the kaleidoscopic and many- 
 colored scene before her. But amongst all the guests who 
 were now assembled there was one whom her eyes followed 
 with a curiosity that at length became a species of fascina- 
 tion. He was a young man of about five-and-twenty, fair- 
 complexioned, with close-cropped curly, or rather waw, hair 
 of a lighl golden In-own. lie seemed to be acquainted with 
 every one ; as he went about he was laughing and talking to
 
 THE SUN-GOD 
 
 this one and that ; he had a happy, good-natured, confident 
 air ; he was much at his ease ; his manner seemed to say that 
 he was pretty sure of his welcome wherever he went. Then 
 what rendered him not less conspicuous was that among all 
 the men in the room he alone wore evening dress. Barbara 
 had never seen evening dress before — except, perhaps, as pict- 
 ured in some stray copy of a penny illustrated paper ; but now 
 here, amid these brilliant lights, in this fine company, it ap- 
 peared to her altogether beautiful. Beautiful was the fine, 
 smooth, black cloth that seemed to show off the young man's 
 figure so elegantly ; beautiful the shining shirt front, with its 
 neat little single stud of gold ; necktie and collar and cuffs — 
 all were perfection, and all were worn with such freedom and 
 grace. In dress, in manner, in appearance, he was so wholly 
 different from the others. Could he be the son of some great 
 laird, she asked herself, with a kind of awe. And intently her 
 eyes followed him as he moved hither and thither, shaking 
 hands with this one, nodding to that — a radiant being — an 
 apparition ; had the time come back for the gods to descend 
 and appear among men ? 
 
 And then Barbara found herself all trembling — and wish- 
 ing to be away — and yet powerless to escape. He was clear- 
 ly coming to this corner ; and quickly, too ; he had a card in 
 his hand. 
 
 " How are you, Mr. McFadyen — I've got you at last," said 
 he, and his voice had a cheerful ring. Then he seemed to 
 recognize the fact that the town-councillor had companions. 
 " Oh, how do you do, Miss Maclean ? I hope you are going 
 to give me a dance to-night — " 
 
 " This is my cousin Barbara, Mr. Ogilvie," said Jess. 
 
 He turned towards her with the briefest glance, and bowed. 
 The poor lass — overcome by the splendor of his presence — 
 her eyes abashed and fixed on the ground — made some bun- 
 gling little effort at a courtesy. It was all she knew ; she could 
 do no better ; and probably she was hardly aware of what she 
 did. And most likely he did not notice, for he had turned 
 again to McFadyen. 
 
 " We've put you down for a toast, Mr. McFadyen," said 
 the young master of ceremonies. " You have to propose the 
 ladies — "
 
 78 HIGHLAND COUSIN'S 
 
 " No, no — na, na," said Peter, in sudden fright. " No 
 speech-making from me — " 
 
 " But why not ? — why not ?" remonstrated the young man. 
 "You can make fine speeches about water-rates and gas- 
 lamps — I read the reports in the paper every week ; and 
 you're the ladies' man — you're the very one for this toast — " 
 
 The councillor had been disconcerted only for a moment. 
 He was not going to play craven with Jess looking on. 
 
 " Well, I'll not deny," said he, pulling himself up a bit, 
 " that I can say a few words at a fitting time. I'm not an 
 orator, perhaps — " 
 
 "You'll do just splendid," said the light-hearted M.C., hur- 
 rying away to get his other business finished — and leaving 
 poor Barbara with an overwhelming conviction that she had 
 been guilty of a stupidity and awkwardness too dreadful to 
 be recalled or even thought of. 
 
 And a very merry, happy, excited, loquacious assemblage 
 this was that eventually got itself seated at the long tables ; 
 and right gallantly did the town-councillor proceed to look 
 after and entertain his two companions. It is true that at 
 times a thought of his appointed speech would suddenly pen- 
 etrate him; he would collapse and sink into himself — no 
 doubt desperately hunting in the dark spaces of his mind for 
 impromptus ; but then again he would rouse himself and 
 shake off these vain anxieties, and would strive to convince 
 his neighbors that for wit and sarcasm and apposite raillery 
 there was not one of the younger men in Duntroone to come 
 anywhere near him. And Jess was willing to be pleased ; it was 
 an animated, inspiriting scene — what with the radiant lights, 
 the festooned flags, the decorated tables ; while for variety's 
 sake the general hubbub of conversation would be broken in 
 upon at intervals by the wild skirl of the pipes — the three tar- 
 taned heroes marching round the hall playing "The Hills of 
 Glenorchy," <>r " Hoop Her and Gird Her," or " Mrs. Ronald 
 Graham's Welcome Borne." As for Barbara, she sat as one 
 isolated and estranged. Her eyes followed the sun-god — cov- 
 ertly and intently regarding every smile and glance and gest- 
 ure. And she had ample opportunity for this secret observa- 
 tion ; for the young master of ceremonies seemed to be 
 looking after everybody but himself; he went from table to
 
 THE SUN-GOD 79 
 
 table, joking and laughing, and keeping things moving gen- 
 erally. And Barbara's heart sank within her when she saw 
 that those women he spoke to — maids and matrons alike — 
 were all so splendidly dressed, and had such fine adornments 
 about their sleeves and their necks and the doing up of their 
 hair. She became conscious that her cousin Jess and herself 
 were the two most simply attired young people in the room — 
 a simplicity that appeared to her a distressing plainness. Had 
 the sun-god taken notice ? At least he had not stayed talking 
 to them, as he now stayed talking to those others. 
 
 " Jessie," said Barbara, at length — and her eyes were cast 
 down, and she spoke in tremulous hesitation, "who was the — 
 the young gentleman — that came up to you ?" 
 
 Jess had forgotten. 
 
 " Which one ? When ?" she asked. 
 
 " Before we sat down," continued Barbara. And she vent- 
 ured to raise her eyes a little. " He is standing over there 
 by the door." 
 
 Jess glanced in the direction indicated. 
 
 " Oh, that's Johnnie Ogilvie," said she, blithely. " He's the 
 purser of the Aros Castle.'''' 
 
 Barbara was silent for a second or two, gazing furtively the 
 while. 
 
 " Does he live in Duntroone ?" 
 
 " Well, he'll very soon be living in Duntroone, for they put 
 the Aros Castle on again at the beginning of next month. And 
 I suppose that is why he has come through here to-night — 
 though he is a great friend of the McAskills whatever." 
 Then Jess laughed. " But you must not be casting your eyes 
 that way, Barbara. He's a fearful lad, is Johnnie Ogilive, for 
 breaking young girls' hearts — at least, so they say. I do not 
 believe the lad is any worse than others." 
 
 Here silence was called for by a tumultuous hammering on 
 the tables that made the crystal jump, for Mr. McAskill had 
 risen to say a word of welcome to his guests and to ask them 
 to drink a glass with him. And this was the beginning of 
 the speech-making ; but in truth there was not much of it ; 
 for there were many things to be got through. It ought to 
 be recorded, however, that Mr. McFadyen acquitted himself 
 well ; he was jocose within due moderation ; he paid a manly
 
 80 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 tribute to the charms of youth and beauty ; and he earned 
 great applause by saying he would not detain his audience, 
 because they were all looking forward to seeing those be- 
 witching creatures who now sat expectant by their side — 
 those divine creatures who were the sweeteners of man's des- 
 tiny here below — they were all looking forward to beholding 
 those angelic forms to still better advantage in the mazy in- 
 tricacies of the dance. 
 
 Then the members of the Gaelic Choir withdrew and reas- 
 sembled on the platform ; the remaining visitors also rising 
 from the tables, to allow the attendants to clear the hall. And 
 soon this large, hollow-sounding place was filled with music 
 less ear-splitting than that of the pipes ; the sonorous, soft- 
 ened part-singing of the trained choir was an admirable feat- 
 ure of the evening's entertainment; the guests could not have 
 thanked their host in happier fashion. It may be admitted 
 that the majority of these concerted pieces were of a mourn- 
 ful cast ; one of them, in especial — " The Braes of Glen- 
 Braon " — in its heart-breaking wail seemed to give expression 
 to all the sadness and loneliness of the remote and sea-swept 
 isles ; but those present were familiar with the prevailing 
 character of Highland minstrelsy ; they were not too much 
 cast down by those successive " Farewells," against which 
 Mr. McFadycn had energetically protested. " Farewell, Fare- 
 well to Fuinary 1" sang those harmoniously modulated voices; 
 then came the "Lament of MacCrimmon" — with one wom- 
 an's voice ringing clear and high above the low-rambling re- 
 frain, as if it were some wild note heard, through the surge 
 of tumultuous waves; they repeated the plaint of the distant 
 lover — 
 
 " ' could I be, love, in form of sea-gull, 
 That sails so freely beyond the sea, 
 Vd visit Jslay, for there abiding 
 
 Is that sweet kind one I pine to see ' " 
 
 — with many another favorite. Meanwhile the great hall had 
 been prepared for the dancing; and the pipers were awaiting 
 
 the w Mid. 
 
 " SuaS a 1 phiobf" called nut, the impatient McAskill. 
 
 And presently, after a discordant tuning up of the drones,
 
 THE SUN-GOD 
 
 the pipes broke clear away into " The Marchioness of Tweed- 
 dale's Delight ;" and that was the signal for the choir to 
 come hurrying down from the platform, to secure partners, or 
 to be cbosen as partners, for tbe grand march was about to 
 take place. Then Mr. McAskill and his sister-in-law led the 
 way ; the other couples fell in ; the pipers blew their bravest; 
 and down the long hall went the joyous procession, every one 
 elated with thoughts of the gayety that was about to follow. 
 There had been enough of speech-making and of singing of 
 Farewells; in due course the reel-stage would be arrived at; 
 and the pipers would have encouragement to put fire and 
 glow into the proceedings, if an occasional dram would help. 
 
 Now of all the people here gathered together, only three 
 remained apart. 
 
 " Really, Mr. McFadyen," said Jess, " I am quite ashamed 
 to be keeping you away from the dancing, and you so fond 
 of it—" 
 
 " Not at all — not at all !" protested the gallant Peter. " I 
 undertook a charge, and I must fulfil it. And gladly too. 
 I'm just quite proud and pleased to stay here with you. 
 There'll be plenty of capering later on ; five o'clock will not 
 see the last of them out o' this place." 
 
 " But if we went away now, it would leave you free," said 
 Jess ; and then again, observing that Barbara's attention was 
 so completely absorbed by the pageant taking place before 
 her that it seemed merciless to tear her away, she added, 
 " Well, maybe Barbara would like to stay just a little while 
 yet." 
 
 This, at all events, Barbara heard. She turned her great, 
 mystic, appealing eyes to her companions, and said : 
 
 " Oh yes — yes, I would ! A little while more, Jessie !" 
 
 For it was not only the pageant; better now than before 
 her rapt observation could dwell on the young master of 
 ceremonies, who seemed to combine in himself all the ele- 
 gances and graces of youthful manhood — elegances and 
 graces of a kind she had never hitherto dreamed of. Even 
 his patent-leather boots — the wonderful polish — the pointed 
 and symmetrical shape — the lightness they seemed to lend 
 to his step ; this also was another marvel, an allurement, a 
 mystery of fascination. And when the grand march was 
 4*
 
 82 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 over and the pipes had ceased, when the band had come on 
 to the platform, and a quadrille was being formed, it appeared 
 to her as though lie were the moving spirit in all this brilliant 
 throng: no wonder those finely dressed dames, and the younger 
 women with their hair done up in fashionable ways, regarded 
 him with favoring looks, and answered him with smiling 
 words. 
 
 But Jack Ogilvie, Purser of the Aros Castle, would have 
 been a very poor master of ceremonies had he allowed these 
 three to remain neglected; he swooped down upon them, with 
 urgent remonstrances, until Mr. McFadyen got a chance of 
 interposing an explanation as to why they were taking no part 
 in the programme. Then the young man went away again, 
 for it was a busy night with him. To Barbara it was as if 
 she had been in a " dwawm " — a dim, half-conscious swoon — 
 while he was so near her, while the sound of his voice was in 
 her ears. 
 
 At length, however, the prudent Jess thought it was time for 
 them to depart ; Barbara mutely yielded — with some linger- 
 ing, backward glances ; Peter McFadyen had the " machine " 
 in waiting ; and the girls were driven home under his escort. 
 He left them at the open door — for he was returning to the 
 Drill Hall, where there might yet be a chance for him to 
 shine in the varsoviana or the guaracha ; and they entered 
 the house to find the blithe little widow awaiting them, with 
 the inevitable teapot on the hob. 
 
 " And who, think you," said Mrs. Maclean, as the girls were 
 taking oil their things — "who, think you, was here all the 
 evening ? Who but Allan Henderson ! Isn't he the sober, 
 quiet lad to think of coming to talk to an old woman, when 
 you young folks were away gallivanting by yourselves? Poor 
 Allan," she continued, as she put the teacups on^thc table, 
 " I'm afraid he's not very happy and settled at present. lie 
 was wondering whether he should not try another country, 
 where there might be a better opening for him. Hut we can- 
 not allow that — we cannot allow that at all ! For Allan to 
 leave Duntroone would be just a public calumny — " 
 
 "Is it a public calamity you mean, mother?" Jess inter- 
 posed. 
 
 " Aye, that's what 1 said," the widow went on, in her com- 

 
 THE SUN-GOD 83 
 
 placent fashion. " And I was telling him, instead of going 
 to another country, he should just start a small boarding- 
 house in Duntroone, so that some of the farmers at a dis- 
 tance could send in their children that they wanted to have 
 regularly at school. Only, Allan would need to have a wife 
 to manage for him; and there's more than one lass would be 
 willing, that I'm sure of ; for he's a good lad is Allan ; and 
 you're always saying yourself, Jessie, that he's astonishing 
 clever, and will do great things yet. Well, well, I hope the 
 struggle will not bear too hard on him." 
 
 Barbara Maclean took no part in this discussion. She was 
 standing in front of the fire, staring into it. It was not of 
 the school-master, and of the poor outlook of his life, that she 
 was thinking — there were more luminous, fascinating, won- 
 derful pictures burning in her brain.
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 " THE WILD TEARS FALL " 
 
 Barbara Maclean's household duties were light; practi- 
 cally she had the mid-day to herself ; and she had got into a 
 habit of stealing out and wandering along to the triple win- 
 dows of the chief draper's shop in the town, where she would 
 stand gazing with entranced and covetous eyes. This was 
 indeed different from the " merchant's " store at Kilree ; here 
 were beautiful kid gloves with furred wrists and many but- 
 tons, silk kerchiefs of every hue, ribbons and laces, boas, 
 muffs, tartan scarfs, elegant black hats with surmounting 
 black feathers, and a hundred things, each more wonder- 
 ful than the other. And occasionally a wagonette would 
 drive up, bringing in some family of gentle-folk from the 
 neighboring country ; and as mother and daughters descend- 
 ed, and crossed the pavement, Barbara would watch them 
 with an eager and furtive scrutiny, marking every detail of 
 their deportment and dress. And then she would return to 
 the study of this resplendent finery — which was all so far 
 away from her ; for although her aunt had insisted on her 
 accepting a small salary, it was merely to save the girl's sense 
 of independence, and did not bring these fascinating things 
 any nearer her. 
 
 Now by some means or other Allan the school-master had 
 become aware of this trait in Barbara's character, and it 
 greatly interested and pleased him. A man is tolerant and 
 lenient where a woman has thrown the magic glamour of her 
 eyes over him; this peculiarity, the young school-master said 
 to himself, only proved her to be a daughter of Eve ; she was 
 human, she was one of ourselves; she was no impossible and 
 visionary maiden come out of the night and the sea. And 
 on a certain afternoon he went along to Jess, whom he found 
 at the counter.
 
 "THE WILD TEARS FALL " 85 
 
 " Jessie," said he, with even more than his usual diffidence, 
 "if your mother is in, could you come with me for a few 
 minutes to McLennan's the draper's?" 
 
 " Oh yes, indeed !" said the ever-good-natured Jess ; but 
 she looked up wondering : what concern could the grave and 
 studious Allan have with a haberdasher's shop ? 
 
 " I want you to help me choose a little present — something 
 a young girl would like — something pretty and smart, that 
 she could wear- — " 
 
 Jessie's face flushed quickly ; and she seemed to draw back 
 in confusion. 
 
 "But why should you think of such things, Allan?" she 
 said, in a tone of remonstrance. " Why should you wish to 
 give finery to any one ? I know your own tastes are all very 
 simple ; and it is not right for you to be spending money in 
 this way — " 
 
 "But, Jessie," he answered her, though still with a certain 
 shyness, " I am anxious that Barbara should feel she was 
 amongst people who wish her well. She is a young girl — 
 and still partly a stranger — and I was thinking if I could get 
 something that would please her — a little present of that 
 kind would at least show a friendly intention — and she would 
 understand it." 
 
 He did not notice the swift change of expression — of 
 alarm, almost — that had passed over Jess Maclean's face the 
 instant he had mentioned Barbara's name. 
 
 " Oh yes," she said, in eager haste. " Vou are quite right, 
 Allan. I am sure it would please Barbara. And as you say, 
 she may be feeling a little strange yet in Duntroone. Oh 
 yes, for Barbara. It's quite different with Barbara. And 
 will you be going now ? For I will get ready at once." And 
 with that she disappeared into the back parlor, to fetch her 
 things. 
 
 He never knew what keen arrow he had driven through 
 her heart. For she was a brave kind of a lass and naturally 
 cheerful ; and by the time these two were walking along the 
 pavement, on their way to the draper's, she was making 
 merry over the idea of the austere and absent-minded student 
 going to buy millinery, and was teasing him, and mocking 
 him with her mischievous eyes. But she w T as very friendly
 
 80 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 all the same ; and in the shop her counsel was sage and 
 prudent — for she knew that, though his means were scant 
 and his own habits as regarded himself sparing enough, 
 there was Highland blood in his veins, and there was no 
 saying but that he might do something reckless. Event- 
 ually they decided upon a fichu of black silk, trimmed with 
 black lace, and adorned with black glass bugles. It was Jess 
 Maclean's inward surmise that the bugles would prove attrac- 
 tive to Barbara. 
 
 Then arose the question of presentation ; and here again 
 Jess unselfishly came to his aid : she could see that he was 
 awkward and unskilled in such affairs, and perhaps also a 
 little apprehensive. 
 
 "Why not come along in the evening?" said she, "and 
 smoke a pipe as usual ; and I will send over to the house for 
 Barbara ; and you can give her your present without any 
 great formality. Sure I am she will be very proud of it." 
 
 " That's what I will do, then, Jessie," said he. " And I am 
 very much obliged to you." And then, having seen her as 
 far as the door of the shop, he turned and made his way 
 home to his books — or to such wild fancies and hopes and 
 fears as would obstinately thrust themselves between him and 
 the printed page. 
 
 But he need not have been at all apprehensive as to the 
 manlier in which Barbara would receive his present. When, 
 later on, he was in the little parlor, and when, in answer to 
 a message, Barbara came over from the house, any one could 
 have seen that she knew what was going to happen : there 
 was a tinge <>f pretty embarrassment in her face, and she 
 shook hands with him in a shy kind of way, and for a second 
 — Oh, wonder of wonders! — the beautiful dark-blue eyes, 
 from under their jet-black lashes, glanced at the young man 
 with quite unusual and modest friendliness. He was be- 
 wildered — his heart went beating — so that he could scarce 
 explain to her his reasons for begging her to accept this 
 simple gift; hut Jess proceeded to open the small packet; 
 and Mrs. Maelean was loud in praises of the fichu; while 
 Barbara's mystic and unfathomable eyes were tilled with 
 pleasure when she beheld the silk and the lace and the glit- 
 tering beads. Then she turned to the young man. She
 
 "THE WILD TEARS FALL " 87 
 
 hesitated. And it was in Gaelic that she had to speak her 
 thanks to him, the English not coming freely enough or not 
 being expressive enough ; and for another ineffable moment 
 her glance dwelt upon him with the kindliest regard. And 
 if he was bewildered before, he was bereft of his senses now. 
 He had it in mind to sell his books and all his belongings and 
 lay out every farthing in McLennan's shop. But at this point 
 the town-councillor made his appearance, and something like 
 sanity was restored. 
 
 Peter McFadyen, as it turned out, was an angry man. Nay, 
 did not some tone of complaint and reproach run through 
 his tale of injury — seeing that Lauchie the shoemaker was an 
 especial friend of Mrs. Maclean's? 
 
 " I just went into the Argyll Arms " — such was his indig- 
 nant story — "to say to Mrs. McAskill what everybody has 
 been saying ever since the dance, that it was one of the 
 greatest successes ever known in Duntroone ; and I was not 
 inside but a few minutes ; and when I came out, here was 
 this man Lauchlan Maclntyre — your friend Lauchlau, Mrs. 
 Maclean — and he was waiting for me round the corner. Con- 
 found his impudence ! ' Oh, Mr. McFadyen,' says he, ' I'm 
 sorry to see ye gang that gate. You've been into the very 
 anteroom of hell. And you a man of poseetion, that should 
 be an example to all of us ! But there is time — there is time 
 for you to hold back — you may escape destruction yet. 
 There's a meeting of the Rechabites to-morrow night, and if 
 ye'd come with me, ye might be persuaded to join us. Drink 
 is a terrible thing, but it can be mastered — ' " 
 
 Mr. McFadyen suddenly broke off. 
 
 " Aye, do ye think it is a laughing matter, Miss Jessie ?" he 
 demanded — for Jess had been quietly giggling to herself. 
 " That impudent drunken scoundrel ! — and me, a town-coun- 
 cillor — and one o' the most temperate men in Duntroone. 
 Find me a more temperate man than I am, in the whole of 
 Duntroone — and I'll eat him !" 
 
 " Poor Lauchie !" said the little widow, with easy compas- 
 sion. "Sometimes I think he is going to keep on the straight 
 road ; and maybe he is that way now ; but I am never very 
 sanguinary — " 
 
 " Sanguine, you mean, mother !"
 
 88 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "Aye, just that. You can never be sure about Lauchie. 
 And it's a bad sign when he takes to the preaching. It's a 
 sio-n he is likely to break out again. But he's not a bad kind 
 of man, Lauchie : there's many a worse man than Lauchie." 
 
 Now the town -councillor, when he had made his protest, 
 and asserted his dignity, had no mind to let Jess Maclean 
 think that he was one to bear ill-will; he dismissed the sub- 
 ject of Long Lauchie altogether; and very soon he was giv- 
 ing his audience, with many chucklings of satisfaction, a 
 description of how he had that very afternoon triumphed 
 over all his opponents at throwing the hammer in his back- 
 yard. Nevertheless, he did not wholly monopolize the con- 
 versation ; and the chubby and chirrupy little man was sharp- 
 sighted enough ; it was not long ere he perceived that now, 
 when the school - master addressed Barbara Maclean, she 
 turned to him with a kindly and friendly attention she had 
 never hitherto paid him. And did not Jess notice? Aye, 
 and Mrs. Maclean ? As for Peter, he was delighted. If this 
 was the way things were going, so much the better for his 
 own daring schemes. 
 
 " Dod, man, Allan," said he, as these two were walking 
 home, through a somewhat wet and blustering night, " ye're 
 on the track at last. Ye've made your mark. You'll have 
 her. She's yours — if you've the courage to go in and win. 
 I can see it. I'm not blind. The lass is well disposed 
 towards ye. But ye'll have to speak — yc'll have to speak, 
 man !" 
 
 " I understand what ye mean, Mr. McFadyen," said Hen- 
 derson, in his grave and deliberate fashion. " But these are 
 hardly matters to be guessed at in so light a way. One must 
 not hope for too much, merely on account of a little friendli- 
 ness. And even if what you say were possible, there are 
 many perplexities around me and ahead of me. It's all very 
 well for you that have a fine position, an assured position, to 
 talk in the heroic strain; but I have to consider that I might 
 be draiririiiLC into misery and uncertainty and wretchedness 
 one that's of far more importance than myself — " 
 
 " No, no, man !" returned the sprightly councillor. "Ye 
 take far too serious a view of life. Young folk must have 
 courage and run risks. And if you don't, why, in the case
 
 " THE WILD TEARS FALL " 89 
 
 of a handsome lass like that, somebody else will be coming 
 along and snapping her up. Here, Allan, lad," he said, halt- 
 ing — for they had just arrived at his dwelling-house, which 
 adjoined his office — " ye'll just come in and sit down for a 
 few minutes, for I've something to say to ye that may be of 
 importance to ye by-and-by." 
 
 The young man did not refuse. He had no great love 
 for McFadyen — in fact, he was rather inclined to treat him 
 with impatience and disdain ; but there were momentous 
 issues at stake ; and perhaps some talk with this older man, 
 who had seen more of the world, might make matters a little 
 clearer. So he waited until Peter fumbled in his pockets for 
 his latch-key — both of them no doubt looking forward to a 
 quiet and confidential chat, perhaps with some little solace 
 of tobacco. 
 
 There was to be no such thing at this time and place. 
 McFadyen put the key in the lock, turned it, and was about 
 to enter when immediately behind the door there was a low 
 and savage growl. He sprang back incontinently, dragging 
 the door to with him. 
 
 " Lord's sake alive !" he exclaimed, when he had partly re- 
 covered himself. " It's that dog !" 
 
 " What dog ?" 
 
 "The bull-dog I bought from Jamie Nicholson yesterday ; 
 and it was to be sent home this afternoon ; and that idiot 
 of a servant-lass seems to have left it free in the house in- 
 stead of tying it up in the backyard. What's to be done ? 
 It's a fearfu' beast. Some rascals have been stealing my 
 coals, and I thought I would pay them out — " 
 
 " And the dog is strange to you ?" 
 
 " I never saw it but three minutes yesterday," said the dis- 
 tressed councillor, "and it would not know me from Adam, 
 even if the house was not in darkness !" 
 
 Here the school-master broke into one of those portentous 
 guffaws that had so perplexed Jess Maclean; he roared and 
 laughed ; he better roared and laughed ; while the coun- 
 cillor's temper, amid all his distraction, began to grow 
 warm. 
 
 " A man shut out of his house by his own dog !" Allan 
 cried, with another prodigious fit of laughter. " Well, there's
 
 90 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 but the one thing for it. Maybe he'll recognize you as the 
 master of the place. Go boldly by him — " 
 
 " Go boldly by him yourself !" retorted the councillor, an- 
 grily. 
 
 " But you cannot stand in the street all night ! Where's 
 the maid-servant?'*' 
 
 " She's in her bed long ago !" 
 
 " "Well, then, you must go round by the back and get in 
 that way." 
 
 " How can I ? What's the use of talking nonsense ?" an- 
 swered McFadyen, with savage fretf ulness. " Do you think 
 I would leave my coal-ree open, when I got this infernal 
 beast for the very purpose o' protecting it ? And the key of 
 the gate's in the office ; there's no way round by the back at 
 all !" 
 
 "Well, then," said Allan, "you'll have to try gentleness. 
 Go in a little bit, and try to humor him — " 
 
 " Go in a little bit yourself, if you're so clever I" said the 
 councillor, peevishly. 
 
 " What are you going to do ? Or will you ask the police- 
 man's advice ? — there's sure to be a policeman round by the 
 station." 
 
 " I would not allow any policeman to go into that passage 
 — it's as much as his life would be worth !" Peter rejoined in 
 his despair. 
 
 " You'll have to send for the man who sold the dog to you." 
 
 "Yes! — very likely! — and him at Taynuilt. lie went 
 back to Taynuilt yesterday afternoon." 
 
 " Very well," said Allan, more seriously, " I'll tell you 
 what we'll do. You cannot stand in front of this house all 
 night. You'll just come along to my room, and you can 
 have my bed, and I'll get a shake -down, or a chair's good 
 enough for me in any case. For you were kind enough, 
 Mr. McFadyen, to hint (hat there was something you had t" 
 say to me; and if it affects what you and 1 were' talking 
 about, I would rather bear of it before going to sleep. It's 
 an anxious time with me. There is not much hospitality I 
 can offer you ; but you are welcome." 
 
 " Bare you plenty of tobacco, Allan?" the councillor asked, 
 still regarding his own impossible door.
 
 "the wild tears fall" 91 
 
 " Yes, I have that," responded the younger man. " It's the 
 one thing I can offer you.'" 
 
 " Well and good, then," said he ; but before he turned 
 away to follow his companion, and while he was still con- 
 templating the shut door, he added, bitterly, " You'll see if 
 I haven't that beast chained up to-morrow, if there's a black- 
 smith in Duntroone can fasten a rivet into a stone wall." 
 
 Meanwhile the two girls and Mrs. Maclean had shut the 
 shop, and gone over the way, and partaken of their frugal 
 supper, and were now enjoying a friendly chat along with 
 their needle-work and knitting. Barbara was evidently great- 
 ly elated over her present, and was more talkative than usual ; 
 and Jess, who knew not grudging, was cheerfully responsive. 
 Then the little widow kept throwing out merry and myste- 
 rious hints. 
 
 " Ave, indeed, Barbara," said she, as she was busy with her 
 needle, " ye may well set yourself up. There may be more 
 in that present than you're dreaming of yet. For Allan Hen- 
 derson has so far paid but little heed to the young lasses 
 about ; and they've rather been inclined to look aslant at 
 him, and toss their head, for you know the old . saying : 
 ' Crone, will you have the king ? I will not, as he loonH 
 have me.'' And so the king has thrown the handkerchief at 
 last, has he ? Well, well ! And what will they say now, all 
 them he has passed over? Not a lass in Duntroone good 
 enough for him, but the minute one comes in from the outer 
 isles, the misan — the misanthrope comes out of his cell, and 
 all the world is changed, and there's a miracle for you ! Well, 
 well, indeed !" 
 
 And so she went on, and Jess listened in silence. For the 
 girl had long ago given up any secret and wistful hope that 
 Allan might look her way ; nay, she had argued and steeled 
 herself into the belief that she ought to set herself resolutely 
 against any such thing, even if it were possible. She had 
 formed other plans for him; she knew something of his am- 
 bitions. Duntroone was no place for him. lie was to go 
 away ; he was to win to the front ; he was to conquer Lon- 
 don ; and when he was become a great man and famous, per- 
 haps he might have a single backward and friendly thought
 
 92 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 for that cousin Jess who had believed in him and urged him 
 on. And in the meantime, and with pride and with a warm 
 sisterly affection, she would watch his career. 
 
 Apparently this was a very happy evening. But that same 
 night, in the mid-watches, in the darkness, Jess was lying 
 awake. And at such times the nerves are apt to get unstrung 
 and fall away from their ordinary firmness ; self-control is not 
 so easy ; and certain dreams that she had been ready enough 
 to sacrifice in her auguries of his great future would come 
 back unbidden ; also some lines she had read in an American 
 magazine, that had seemed to her to have in them a curious 
 suggestion of Celtic remoteness and solitariness and lono-ing. 
 Why would the Irish girl's song so haunt her brain ? — 
 
 " / try to knead and .spin, but my life is loiv the while ; 
 Oh, I long to be alone, and walk abroad a mile ; 
 Yet when I walk alone, and tliink of naught at all, 
 Why from me that's young should the icild tears fall ? 
 
 " The cabin door looks down a furze-lighted hill, 
 And far as Leighlin cross the fields are green and still; 
 But once I hear a blackbird in Leighlin hedges call, 
 The foolishness is on me, and the wild tears fall!" 
 
 Well, the " foolishness " was on her, and she buried her 
 head in the pillow, that was soaked with her tears, and she 
 made desperate efforts to subdue her sobbing. For Barbara 
 was in the other bed, and she would not waken Barbara with 
 this unavailing grief — Barbara, who was, no doubt, placidly 
 dreaming of draper's windows and black glass bugles.
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 IN SORE STRAITS 
 
 The apartment into which the school-master ushered his 
 guest bore evidence of a hard and rigid economy, not to say 
 downright penury. There was no fire in the grate ; there 
 was but the one gas-jet; the furniture was scant and bare. 
 There were piles of books, to be sure, but they were all work- 
 like volumes ; not a gay binding among them. 
 
 " Now this is what I like to see," said McFadyen, rubbing 
 his hands with satisfaction as he took a seat and looked 
 around. " This is what I like to see. And I know what it 
 means. When I observe a young man that's sober and in- 
 dustrious, and that has got a reasonable salary — when I ob- 
 serve him living pinched and poor, then I know what it 
 means : he's saving up to get married." 
 
 " It has not been like that with me, then, Mr. McFadyen," 
 the younger man said, as he produced a small jar of tobacco, 
 the only luxury in the place. " I've had to pay back to my 
 folks at home what they lent me for the classes — and that 
 was the least part of what I owed and owe them. And then 
 I undertook the schooling of my two younger brothers ; but 
 one of them has just got a situation, and the other one will 
 soon be looking about too ; so that I may find myself a little 
 freer — " 
 
 " Exactly that !" said the councillor, cheerfully. " Some- 
 thing freer to tackle the great problem — the choosing your- 
 self a mate. It's what we are all bent on, though some may 
 be a little later than others — " 
 
 " And it will have to be a little later, if ever, with me," 
 rejoined Allan — who was in an unusually confidential mood : 
 he did not often deign to speak of his private affairs. " In 
 my position how could I ask any young girl to take such a 
 risk f '
 
 94 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " God bless my soul !" cried the other ; " did ye never hear 
 of such a thing as life-insurance ?" 
 
 " That is some safeguard for the future, no doubt. But 
 the question is as to the meantime. And if I were to ask 
 any girl to look my way, I should have to tell her my present 
 prospects ; and what inducement could I lay before her — " 
 
 " Tuts, tuts, tuts, man !" broke in the happy and hopeful 
 Peter. "That's no the way to talk! Do ye think a young 
 lass is to be won over by a parade of gilded furniture ? It's 
 not that she has in her mind when her fancy settles on a lad. 
 Na, na. It's not that will tempt her to kilt up her coats o' 
 green satin, like Leezie Lindsay, and be off with him through 
 bush and brier. It's love well won, and the world well lost — 
 that's more like the ticket, man! Prospects? Life-insurance? 
 Is that what you think she has in her mind ? Is that what 
 she answers when he asks her the great question ? Not a bit. 
 This is more like what her answer '11 be — " And here the 
 councillor raised his hand triumphantly, and sang in a brave 
 fashion, and with many trills — 
 
 '" Gang down the burn, Davie, love, 
 Down the burn, Davie, love, 
 Gang down the burn, Davie, love y 
 And I will follow theeP " 
 
 Then Peter moderated his enthusiasm. 
 
 " Listen to me, Allan. I will not conceal from ye that I 
 sometimes thought ye had other intentions, when ye came so 
 much about the widow's shop. And then again I said to my- 
 self, No, it was only that you were related to the family, and 
 maybe you had not too many friends in the town, and it was 
 but natural ye should foregather with your own kith and kin. 
 Anil yet again 1 would say to myself, Yes, there's danger: 
 lie's ;t young m;m, lie has eyes, he cannot fail to see what a 
 fine creature Jessie Maclean is — so good-humored and clever 
 and bright-looking — just one in twenty thousand — " 
 
 "Yon may say that, Mr. McFadyon," observed the young 
 
 ^'•1 1 -master, gravely. " Aye, or one in fifty thousand." 
 
 ■ I iut now that I see your thoughts are turned in another 
 direction," continued the councillor, "it's a great relief to 
 me ; for, to tell you the truth, I'm not without hopes that I
 
 IN SORE STRAITS 95 
 
 might get Jessie for myself. That would be a fine ploy, 
 wouldn't it? — the two weddings on the same day ! And I'll 
 tell ye what I'll do with ye, Allan, lad, just to ' mak sikker.' 
 Mrs. Maclean says your best chance is to get married, and 
 start a boarding-house for scholars sent in from the country. 
 And that would need some little capital — the plenishing and 
 what not. Very well; I'm not a rich man; but I have a bit 
 of a nest-egg laid by ; and I wouldna mind lending you fifty 
 pounds, or even one hundred pounds, to help you at the start. 
 And I'm sure if there was an understanding between Jessie 
 and me, she would not grudge it either. She's a half-cousin 
 of yours; and you've been great friends together; I'm sure 
 she would not object — " 
 
 A quick flush had come over Allan's forehead. 
 
 " I thank ye, I thank ye, Mr. McFadyen," he said, hastily, 
 and with lowering brows. " But it is not to be thought of." 
 
 And therewith he closed his mouth and would say no 
 further word about these poor affairs of his : so that Peter, 
 who was evidently in a state of buoyant anticipation, was 
 forced to talk about his own share in this great project, and 
 to describe those personal qualifications — physical strength, 
 skill, tact, knowledge of the world, and the like — which, as 
 he contended, were fairly entitled to put the mere question 
 of years aside. And then, becoming still more sanguine, he 
 grew enthusiastic over the delights of courtship, and the en- 
 chantments of love's young dream. 
 
 Now, although Allan Henderson had somewhat rudely and 
 abruptly repulsed this friendly offer, it was nevertheless a 
 wonderful thing for him to think of, that one or two on-look- 
 ers had actually been considering the possibility of Barbara's 
 being favorably inclined towards him. All through the un- 
 congenial toil of the next day there ran as it were little flash- 
 es of roseate flame ; his eyes would become blind to those 
 monotonous forms and their occupants ; the gray hours had 
 occasional startling moments when the outside world was 
 revealed to him as in a vivid dream. And when at last it 
 was all over, when he could emerge into the clearer air, in- 
 stead of returning to his lodging, he struck away on a solitary 
 ramble by sea and shore : there was a lifetime of contingencies 
 to be faced and resolutely examined, so long as that was pos-
 
 96 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 sible, while those quivering, rose-tinted flashes — those fasci- 
 nating and elusive will-o'-the-wisps — would break in upon his 
 sight and bewilder him. 
 
 He left the town by way of the harbor, climbed the Gal- 
 lows Hill, and proceeded along the edge of the steep cliffs 
 overlooking the sea. The rain of the previous night and 
 morning had long ago ceased ; the clouds were now banked 
 up ; there was a brooding silence ; the click of the oars of a 
 small boat crossing the bay could be distinctly heard, even 
 at this height. And in the prevailing calm of sky and sea 
 and mountain there was something that seemed in a measure 
 to allay the agitation of his mind ; there was peace in those 
 great spaces of the universe ; a quiet that conduced to a 
 serener and saner contemplation. Wild hopes were dazzling 
 and exciting things, no doubt ; but the destruction of them 
 could also be met and endured, by a man. 
 
 As it chanced, he had been so profoundly plunged in these 
 meditations that he had followed the coast-line too mechan- 
 ically, and now he came to the brink of a chasm that struck 
 inland for some little way. He did not think it worth while 
 going round in order to continue his route ; instead he sat 
 down on the verge of this deep cavity, letting his legs dangle 
 over ; and there he gave himself up to still further wrestling 
 with the problems and distractions that beset him. For one 
 thing, if he were to incur these great responsibilities, he 
 would have to give up many cherished ambitions — some 
 snatch of foreign travel, the issue of his version of the 
 Nibelungenlied, and the like: towards which he had been 
 hoarding up his savings. But, after all, what were such 
 trivial considerations when compared with the very crown 
 and joy of life, supposing that were now to be put within 
 his reach? He could hardly believe it possible. He had 
 been bewildered out of his calmer judgment by this sudden 
 friendliness she had shown him during hut one evening. 
 Was it not too much to hope for that the one creature in 
 the world whom he longed to have for his life-companion 
 should on her part turn towards him and choose him out 
 from among all others! How could such a thing happen! 
 It was incredible. It was too marvellous a coincidence. 
 Yet what of the marriages of the people lie saw around him ?
 
 IN SORE STRAITS 97 
 
 In what proportion of cases — or in every case — had the man 
 and the woman found each other in this inscrutable, inexpli- 
 cable way ? 
 
 And so, with his underlip firmly set, his forehead drawn 
 together, and his eyes distant, he sat and pondered; until 
 at length he appeared to make an effort to throw off this 
 weight of thinking in a determination to arise and get home : 
 it was long past the hour for his chief daily meal. But at 
 this moment, whether it was that his foot had been resting 
 on some loose stone, or that his leg had got benumbed, as he 
 attempted to get up something seemed to give way beneath 
 him, and the next instant he found himself slipping down a 
 few inches. He caught at the nearest object — it was a small 
 rowan bush — to steady himself ; but the bush came away in 
 his grasp : nay, this very movement appeared to make his 
 case worse, and he felt himself helplessly going. Then he 
 threw himself back, and thrust out both hands in some des- 
 perate endeavor to grip anything that would check his de- 
 scent ; he clutched and clung, but all to no purpose, for the 
 sides of this chasm were almost sheer ; and the next thing 
 he knew — or half knew — was that he was hurtling down into 
 this black hole — then came a dull crash — a sharp agony of 
 pain — then silence — and a strange, not unblissful sinking out 
 of consciousness. 
 
 When he came to himself again, stunned and dazed, he 
 slowly and gradually became aware of his position. He was 
 at the bottom of one of those fissures in the conglomerate 
 rock that abound along this coast, and that mostly run down 
 to the sea. This one also trended towards the shore ; but 
 there was no escape for him that way ; for the mouth of the 
 cavern was barred by an enormous mass of the same rock. 
 However, he was not much alarmed. He would be able to 
 scramble up again, somewhere or other. The sides of the 
 chasm, if they were steep, were not at all bare : there was a 
 kind of stunted vegetation — bits of rowan bushes, heather, 
 birch, and broom — between him and the strip of daylight ; 
 he would choose his upward path when his head was a little 
 clearer. 
 
 Then he essayed to rise ; but to his consternation he found 
 himself incapable of movement, or only of such movement 
 5
 
 98 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 as caused him indescribable torture. The truth flashed in 
 on him. Something was broken. And then for a moment 
 a frantic resolve to get out of this death-trap possessed him 
 — at any cost of agony he must win up to the open again — 
 surely he could drag the broken limb from point to point, 
 until his fingers clasped the edge, and he could raise himself 
 into the blessed freedom of the outer world. And again and 
 again he tried, making superhuman efforts, and again and 
 again he was baffled by overmastering pain ; until he sank 
 back exhausted and half - despairing on his narrow bed of 
 withered and sodden fern. Thus he lay for a while spent 
 and done ; but of a sudden something occurred that caused 
 his heart to leap. There was a sound in the road below — 
 the road that skirted the shore ; the footfalls drew nearer ; 
 he could even in a dull kind of way hear voices — apparently 
 the voices of two men. Surely this meant rescue for him. 
 And when he judged that the men were about opposite to 
 him, he called and shouted ; but even as he did so he had a 
 dreadful consciousness that the shouts were muffled — that 
 they did not seem to travel out of this cavern. Nevertheless 
 he continued to call as loudly as he could; until the footfalls 
 gradually ceased ; and he was left once more with silence, 
 and the gathering over of the twilight. 
 
 lie began to reason with himself against unnecessary dis- 
 may, lie was not much more than two miles from the town. 
 Some children would be sure to come wandering along, if not 
 this evening then on the following morning or afternoon. Or 
 a shepherd's dog would discover him, and its barking would 
 fetch its master to his aid. Or surely, when his friends missed 
 him from his usual haunts, they would organize a search party. 
 So long as he retained some power of calling to any chance 
 passer-by, he would not abandon himself to despair : what- 
 ever might happen, a stout heart could not harm. 
 
 Night came early over this deep gap ; and the darkness 
 .sci' d to last for ever and ever, lie listened to the moan- 
 ing of the wind in the bushes overhead, and to the long-pro- 
 tracted hiss of the waves along the shore. Towards morning 
 
 — he guessed it must l»e towards morning, after those im- 
 measurable hours — a few small silver points began to glim- 
 mer in the black opening above ; but the starlight was of
 
 " HE CAUGHT AT THE NEAREST OBJECT TO STEADY HIMSELF "
 
 IN SORE STRAITS 99 
 
 little use to him except in so far as it showed the skies were 
 clearing. Further hours, as it seemed to him, passed ; and 
 then, with a great rejoicing and reawakening of hope, he per- 
 ceived that the dawn was really drawing near. Stealthily, 
 imperceptibly, such strip of the heavens as he could see be- 
 came of a pearly blue-gray. A little while, and that was 
 more opalescent in tone. Again, a touch of saffron appeared 
 — soft and distant and luminous : some bit of slowly moving 
 vapor looking over to the opening east. Finally the new day 
 declared itself, in a splendor of mottled rose-gray clouds — 
 and he thought of the happy folk in Duntroone. 
 
 No, he would not give in. Down here in the cold-hued 
 twilight, amid the livid greens and the wet russet of the 
 bracken, there were thin threads of half-melted snow here 
 and there ; and some of these he could reach ; and very wel- 
 come was the chill moisture to his parched lips. Then again, 
 as the morning wore on, there was the distraction of listening 
 to the occasional faint sounds in the road below ; but he had 
 abandoned all hope of aid from that quarter ; he knew he 
 could not make himself heard. His only chance was in at- 
 tracting the attention of some one passing along the summit 
 of the cliffs ; and so from time to time, at random, he called 
 aloud, and paused to listen. But hour after hour went by, 
 and no one came near. At times he grew faint. There was 
 an odor from some decayed herb — St. John's-wort, most 
 likely — that seemed to stifle him. Now and again it appeared 
 to him that he was becoming light-headed; the strangest 
 fancies crowded into his brain ; he was possessed with a wild 
 desire to shout songs — students' songs : " Gaudeamus" " Vive 
 la compagnie ;" and even dafter ditties than these — tem- 
 pora ! mores ! — Per secale obvenisset, Corpus corpori. He 
 had had no food since the previous morning ; his wild efforts 
 to drag himself out of this abyss — the agony he had endured 
 — had left him hopelessly weak ; and now, with these deliri- 
 ous impulses and imaginations taking possession of him, he 
 could only say to himself, " If my senses go from me, that 
 will, indeed, be the end." 
 
 And thus it was that when, some time during the afternoon, 
 he saw a head cautiously protrude itself through the twigs 
 and withered grass at the top of the chasm, he did not be-
 
 100 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 lieve there was anything or anybody there. That was but 
 another of the fantastic visions that had begun to haunt him. 
 Nevertheless, he called out as hitherto he had been calling 
 out at intervals — though now not so loudly as heretofore, for 
 he was enfeebled and listless — 
 
 " Help ! help !" 
 
 The head was instantly withdrawn. But at the very mo- 
 ment of its withdrawal something convinced him that it was 
 a real human face that had been cautiously peering down, and 
 that it was the face of Niall Gorach. 
 
 " Niall ! Niall !" he cried, with all his remaining strength. 
 " Come back ! Come back, man ! Or go and fetch some- 
 body ! Tell them ! Tell them I cannot move !" 
 
 There was no reappearance of that mysterious peering and 
 prying face ; but he comforted himself with the fancy that 
 the frightened Niall had run away into the town, and that 
 soon succor would be at hand. He waited, listening intently, 
 minute after minute, half- hour after half -hour, hour after 
 hour ; and there was no sign. And again the night fell, and 
 the dark. 
 
 But this blackness around him was no longer like the 
 blackness of the previous night ; it was all filled with light 
 and color and moving phantasms ; there were sounds of 
 music also, some mournful, some gay. Jess Maclean brought 
 him a pitcher of ice-cold water, and he drank and drank, 
 and thanked her, and he did not know why she was crying. 
 Barbara Maclean hung back a little ; and he tried to speak to 
 her ; but could not. McFadyen came to him with a copy of 
 a great review in his hand ; there was an article in it on the 
 new translation of the Nibelungenlied ; it was a friendly writ- 
 ing. Again there were students singing in a room in Glas- 
 gow — there was a roaring chorus: " The Old Folks at Home" 
 — then some one sang " Lieb Vatcrland, magst ruhig sein /" — 
 and this phrase kept repeating itself more and more distant- 
 ly and softly — viagst ruhig sein — inagst ruhig sein — until the 
 lights grew dim — and the apparitions vanished — and there 
 was silence — and oblivion.
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 OUT OF THE DEEPS 
 
 Next day about noon Niall Goracli put his head into the 
 little crib of a shop where Long Lauchie was engaged at his 
 cobbling. 
 
 " Mr. Maclntyre," said he, in a pleading kind of way, 
 " will ye gie me a piece of leather to make a sooker ?" 
 
 Lauchie looked up only for a second. 
 
 " Away wi' ye, ye idle vagabond !" he said, sullenly. 
 " Better ye would take to some work than come asking for 
 children's playthings. Away wi' ye !" 
 
 The half-witted lad had probably expected this rebuff. 
 But he did not go away. On the contrary, with a cautious 
 look round, he advanced a step ; and then he said, in a mys- 
 terious voice, 
 
 " Mr. Maclntyre, if ye'll gie me the piece of leather, I'll 
 show ye the opening into the Bad Place." 
 
 " Aye, ye'll find yourself there soon enough !" said the shoe- 
 maker, grimly. 
 
 " But I'll show it to ye," continued Niall, with his eyes 
 longingly fixed on the scraps of leather lying about the floor. 
 " And they've got Henderson the school-master there ; if ye 
 go near enough, ye'll hear him crying out." 
 
 " What's that ye say ?" exclaimed the now startled Lauchie 
 — for, like all the rest of Duntroone, he had heard of the inex- 
 plicable disappearance of the young school-master. " What's 
 that ye say about Henderson — Allan Henderson, do ye 
 mean ?" 
 
 " Aye, just that," said Niall. " They've got him in the Bad 
 Place, aud ye'll hear him crying for help, away down below. 
 And I'll show ye where it is, and there's flames and brim- 
 stone, and little devils running about wi' their pitchforks, and 
 the Big Devil too, and he has fire coming out of his mouth — "
 
 102 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 By this time Long Laucliie was on his feet. 
 
 "I'm no sure what to believe o' your haverings," he said, 
 and he paused irresolutely, revolving possibilities in his 
 mind. "Do ye mean to tell me that you actually heard Allan 
 Henderson crying out somewhere?" 
 
 "Aye, that I did!" answered Niall, eagerly — he saw the 
 " sooker " coming within reach. 
 
 " Where, then ?" 
 
 "It's a black hole away down past the Gallows Hill. It's 
 the opening into the Bad Place — " 
 
 " Come away this minute," said the shoemaker, reaching 
 over for his cap. 
 
 " But I'll no go near — I'll no go near !" cried Niall, shrink- 
 ing back. " There's the Big Devil — and the flames — *' 
 
 " Ye'll take me to the very spot," said the shoemaker, per- 
 emptorily. "And if I find ye've been telling me lies, I'll 
 give ye the finest leatherin' you ever got in your life. And 
 that will be better for you than playing with a sooker." 
 
 It was an unlucky threat; for as they set out it was plain 
 that daft Niall followed with the greatest unwillingness ; there 
 was a curious furtive look in his eyes, as if he were watch- 
 ing for the first opportunity of escape. But in the mean- 
 time Long Lauchlan was a proud man. Had it been reserved 
 for him, then, to discover the missing school-master, while 
 all the others had been searching about and telegraphing in 
 vain? And if that were so, was it not owing to his shrewd- 
 ness in perceiving that there might be some basis of fact in 
 the murky imaginings of this half-witted gangrel ? Laucliie 
 saw himself rising in the esteem of Duntroonc, and stepped 
 out boldly. 
 
 And then — for they had got to go round by the railway 
 station and the quay to get to the Gallows Hill — his glance 
 happened to light on the red-baize door of the refreshment- 
 room. It was a terrible temptation ; and instantly all sorts 
 of devil's logic leaped into his brain. Was not this a great 
 occurrence? Ought he not to fortify himself against what- 
 ever might befall by swallowing a good stiff dram? It is 
 true that his conscience as a liechabite said No. I Jut what 
 was this conscience, after all — this unbidden and unwelcome 
 guest 1 His conscience was only a part of himself; whereas
 
 OUT OF THE DEEPS 103 
 
 he was the whole ; and surely the whole is greater than any 
 part ? Why should he be dictated to by any mere section 
 of himself? Besides, the whiskey of that refreshment-room 
 was a most superior whiskey. And arduous duties might be 
 demanded of him if the poor lad Allan had chanced into 
 trouble. And — and — Then of a sudden he shut his lips 
 firm and hard ; he kept his eyes straight before him, and 
 walking stiffly and erect, he got past the station. 
 
 The next moment, however, he awoke to the fact that his 
 companion had vanished. He looked everywhere around ; 
 there was no Niall visible. He could not at all understand 
 this piece of deviltry, until his wandering gaze fell on the 
 bridge they had crossed in coming along — a bridge that here 
 spans a burn, or rather an open ditch ; and it occurred to 
 him that perhaps the young rascal had slipped over the par- 
 apet, clambered down, and hidden himself in that unsavory 
 refuge. He hurried back. He searched hither and thither. 
 At length he saw two elfish eyes peering from under the 
 archway. 
 
 " Come out o' that, ye limb o' Satan!" he called, angrily. 
 " Come out o' that, will ye ?" 
 
 Instead there was an instant disappearance. And then 
 the baffled and irate shoemaker began to pick up stones 
 from the road ; and these he endeavored to shy into that 
 dusky recess. But it was an awkward angle ; most of the 
 missiles struck the bridge ; and at last, seeing there was noth- 
 ing else for it, Long Lauchie had himself to get over and 
 scramble down, and make for the twilight of the arch. 
 When at last he had dragged Niall out by the scruff of the 
 neck, and had him up into the open air again, he said: 
 
 " That's one leatherin' I owe ye ; and maybe there'll be 
 six more before the day's done. Ye imp o' Satan, wi' your 
 witch's tricks ! But wait till I get ye home again, I'll give 
 ye something better than a sooker — aye, aye, I'll give ye 
 something better than a sooker !" 
 
 And thereafter he drove him on in front, the better to 
 keep an eye on him ; and in this wise they climbed the Gal- 
 lows Hill, and made their way along the summit of the cliffs. 
 
 In time Niall began to move more and more reluctantly ; 
 he was evidently creeping forward with much apprehension.
 
 104 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Whereabouts now ?" demanded the shoemaker. 
 
 The daft laddie pointed vaguely with his finger. 
 
 " Well, go on — go on, man ! What are you feared of ?" 
 said the gloomy and impatient Lauchie. 
 
 " Maybe they'll come out," said Niall, in a whisper, and his 
 eyes were staring ahead. " They hae grippit the school-mas- 
 ter, and maybe they'll come out for us. They can run quick, 
 the small ones, though there's no so much flame about them." 
 
 " Get on, man, get on ! — and let me see the place where ye 
 heard Henderson crying out," said Lauchie ; and then he 
 added, in a more persuasive tone : " And maybe there'll no be 
 a leatherin' for ye at all. Maybe I'll make ye a fine big sooker, 
 and when ye've got the string into it, and when ye've soaked 
 it, it will be strong enough to lift a paving-stone out o' the 
 street. Think o' that, now !" 
 
 But Niall was no longer occupied with playthings. His 
 eyes were full of dread — and his brain was full of cunning. 
 
 " Stand still," he said, in the same cautious whisper — 
 " stand still where ye are, and ye'll hear Henderson. The 
 black hole is just along there. Stand still and listen." And 
 as the shoemaker thoughtlessly obeyed — with his own eyes 
 thrown forward — Niall seized the opportunity to dart away 
 from him, flying off with remarkable swiftness. 
 
 Long Lauchie uttered an imprecation, and started in pur- 
 suit. But his cramped calling had left him little of a runner; 
 whereas the half-witted creature had the speed of a roe and 
 the agility of a wild-cat. Moreover, he had no intention of 
 making this a race in the open. At a certain point he swerved 
 towards the edge of the cliffs, and suddenly disappeared; and 
 Lauchie, arriving a few moments later, found that he must 
 have boldly attacked the descent, swinging from one leafless 
 bush to another, until he reached the road below. Lauchie, 
 under liis breath, called down more curses, and in a morose 
 mood set out to resume his researches alone. He was nut 
 quite sure now but that the imp had befooled him from the 
 beginning. 
 
 Nevertheless, to satisfy his own mind, he went forward in 
 the direction that Niall Gorach had indicated, spying every- 
 where about ; and in a very brief spare he came to the edge 
 of the chasm. At first, in inspecting this deep gap, he could
 
 OUT OF THE DEEPS 105 
 
 make out hardly anything ; but in time, his eyes growing 
 more accustomed, he thought there was some object of un- 
 usual blackness lying away down there, at the foot of the nar- 
 rowing fissure. And the better to examine, he laid himself 
 prone on the heather, just as Niall had done, and pushed his 
 head over the brink ; the next moment he was convinced that 
 the huddled black mass down there was human. 
 
 " Allan — Allan Henderson — is that you ?" he called aloud. 
 
 Then he was silent, and awe-stricken. For there was no 
 answer; and it seemed to him that he was in the presence of 
 death. He stealthily retreated from the edge of the chasm, 
 he regained his feet, he set out for Duntroone — something 
 frightened, no doubt, but still considering rapidly in his own 
 mind what ought now to be done. 
 
 He had to go round by the railway station, and about the 
 first person he met was Mr. Gilmour, who promptly offered to 
 send a couple of his men, with a coil of rope. But Lauchie 
 deemed it advisable to go on and tell his tale at the police-sta- 
 tion, and there the sergeant on duty at once ordered two of 
 the officers to get ready a stretcher and coverlet. Finally, 
 Lauchie, after a good deal of tracking from house to house, 
 succeeded in discovering the doctor; and the doctor, on hear- 
 ing the story, immediately went home to provide himself with 
 some splints, cotton-wool, bandages, and the like, and also a 
 flask of brandy. Thus equipped, the little posae-comitatus 
 set out, Long Lauchie being guide. And it ought to be noted 
 that in these hurryings to and fro the shoemaker had to pass 
 the red-baize door of the refreshment-room no fewer than four 
 times, yet not once did he succumb. With clinched mouth 
 and immovable head he went resolutely by — human weakness 
 only revealing itself, after each achievement, in a long, sad 
 sigh of resignation. 
 
 It turned out that one of the railway servants had been a 
 sailor, and when they arrived at the deep cleft in the rock, he 
 volunteered to descend. And a tedious and difficult business 
 it was to get this limp and insensible body hoisted carefully 
 into the upper air ; but at last the hapless young school-mas- 
 ter lay extended on the heather, and the doctor proceeded to 
 his examination. The faintest moan now and again was the 
 only sign of life lingering in that prostrate form ; there was 
 5*
 
 106 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 no movement, not even a twitch of agony, as the doctor was 
 passing his hand over this or that limb to ascertain the where- 
 abouts of any fracture ; his eyes were closed as in profoundest 
 sleep. 
 
 And meanwhile there were two other persons who had 
 heard of this discovery, and were now hurrying out from 
 Duntroone. The one was a strongly-built elderly man, whose 
 natural freshness of complexion was for the moment over- 
 mastered by a look of vague and anxious alarm ; the other, 
 also with apprehension written in every line of her face, was 
 Jess Maclean. They hardly spoke to each other ; their 
 thoughts were too intent on what might be awaiting them 
 ahead. And thus they hastened round by the harbor ; they 
 ascended the Gallows Hill ; they got out on to the bleak and 
 open and undulating moorland. It was a picture of utter 
 desolation ; for the afternoon had turned out wild and wet 
 and squally ; the livid green waters of the Sound were dark 
 and driven ; the heather bent in waves before the blasts of 
 wind ; the sea-gulls were calling and screaming in the gusty 
 and lowering skies. But into this picture of loneliness and 
 gloom there came something still more sombre — a small black 
 group of figures who seemed to be carefully carrying some 
 horizontal object. It looked so like a funeral procession that 
 Jess Maclean uttered a piteous little exclamation, and laid a 
 trembling hand on her companion's arm; but this man with 
 the haggard eyes and the now almost bloodless face did not 
 pause; he went forward, perhaps a little more slowly; and 
 Jess accompanied him, their gaze tixcd upon that gradually 
 advancing train. 
 
 The doctor had lingered behind, by the side of the chasm, 
 to gather together his surgical appliances, and the station- 
 master had remained with him. None the less, when the men 
 who were bringing along this sad burden arrived at the spot 
 where the new-comers were now standing, they did not wait 
 for orders; instinctively they came to a halt; they guessed 
 that the stranger who was with Jessie Maclean must be the 
 young man's father. And at the first glimpse of the gray 
 ami lifeless features, and the hand banging lim]> and loose 
 from under the coverlet, a spasm of agony crossed the father's 
 face ; he seemed paralyzed ; lie could not step forward, nor
 
 OUT OF THE DEEPS 107 
 
 did he ask any question ; with shaking fingers he reverently 
 removed his hat from his head; and as he did so he mur- 
 mured something to himself : 
 
 " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed 
 be the name of the Lord. But it will bear hard on the lad's 
 mother." 
 
 It was Jess who came to his aid. She advanced timidly ; 
 she took the hand that hung so limply there ; and the next 
 moment she gave a slight short cry. 
 
 " He lives ! — uncle, he lives ! — there is hope for us !" And 
 at this moment the doctor came up. " Doctor," she said, 
 with tears swimming in her eyes, " is there a chance for 
 him? — is there hope for us?" 
 
 " Indeed yes, indeed yes," the doctor made answer. " Go 
 on, lads, go on ; but gently. Indeed yes," he resumed, turn- 
 ing to Jess. " Lying out for two days and nights in this 
 cold and wet weather is bad enough ; and the poor lad has 
 been smashed about sadly ; but I know Allan — I know him 
 well — he's as hard as nails when he gives himself fair treat- 
 ment. And we'll see him through this, or I'm mistaken. 
 There's not so much damage done — a simple fracture of the 
 leg and a sprained foot ; but there's the extreme exhaustion, 
 of course. Well, we must hope for the best, Miss Maclean." 
 
 "Where are you taking him to now, sir?" Allan's father 
 asked. 
 
 " To the poorhouse hospital," was the answer. " It's not 
 the best that could be desired ; but it's the only hospital 
 we've got." 
 
 " His mother will be sore grieved to hear that," the older 
 man said. " There's never been one of the family near a 
 poorhouse ; and this one — this one was just the pride of her 
 life." 
 
 " It is mainly a question of attendance," observed the 
 doctor. " If you would prefer that your son should be taken 
 to his own lodgings, maybe I could make some arrange- 
 ment — " 
 
 " Could I be of any use, doctor ?" Jess interposed, diffi- 
 dently and yet anxiously. 
 
 " Would you be willing to help ?" he said, at once turning 
 to her.
 
 108 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Aye, that I would ! — that I would !" said she, with an in- 
 voluntary tremor of the lip. 
 
 " Very well — very well," said he ; and he stepped on to 
 give the men altered directions. 
 
 They were now come to the top of the Gallows Hill, the 
 descent from which had to be managed with the greatest 
 caution. When, at length, they arrived at the foot of the 
 steep incline, the doctor was not surprised to discover that 
 Jessie Maclean was no longer of the company ; he thought 
 it but natural she should wish to avoid the publicity of walk- 
 ing through the town with this funeral -like cortege, and 
 assumed that she had gone on ahead to her own home. He 
 was mistaken. She had gone on ahead, it is true, and with 
 great swiftness, but it was to Allan Henderson's lodging. 
 And when at last the doctor and his charge arrived, it was 
 clear how busy and alert and dexterous she had been in the 
 interval. Allan's own room was all smartly tidied up ; the 
 gas lit — for the dusk had fallen now; a coal-fire burning 
 briskly in the grate; the bed carefully made and folded 
 down. Moreover, she had requisitioned the adjacent room, 
 which chanced to be vacant; and here also the gas was lit; 
 while a wicker-work easy-chair had been brought in, for the 
 convenience of any nurse who might want to sit up and 
 read and listen. The doctor, busy as he was, looked round, 
 and nodded approval. 
 
 Later on that evening Long Lauchic the shoemaker and an 
 old crony of his, Donald Crane — that is to say, Donald that 
 worked the crane at the quay, his real name being Donald 
 Macdonald — were seated together in a corner of a favorite 
 howff of theirs ; and Lauchlan was happy. It was the stupid- 
 ity of the people of Duntroonc that seemed to be amusing 
 him most; he laughed and chuckled to himself; while there 
 were glasses and a pewter measure on the table before him 
 that ought not to have been there. 
 
 " Donald," said he, in Gaelic, to the crane - worker — and 
 the crane-worker was a thin little hard man, with a thin hard 
 red face and steel-blue eyes — "Donald, it is you that have 
 some knowledge in your head. But the other people in 
 Duntroonc — well, I will give you my opinion about the
 
 OUT OF THE DEEPS 109 
 
 other people in Duntroone ; and it is this — that they were 
 not at home when the sense was shared. To go seeking 
 away along the shore ; when the school - master was not a 
 sailor, nor a fisherman, and when it was known he had not 
 taken a boat anywhere: was not that the work of fools? 
 And for a poor idiot lad to get the better of them — well, I 
 am laughing at that, and no mistake! Donald," he went on, 
 suddenly pretending to be sober, "are you not coming up to 
 Fort William with me to-morrow ? You will see something, 
 aw, as sure as death you will see something worth while ! 
 For I am going to smash the head of the carpenter. I 
 do not want my wife back, and I will not take her back ; 
 but it is the head of the carpenter I am going to smash for 
 him — aw, Dyea, will not that be a pretty sight !" He laughed 
 again and again, softly and quietly, in humorous anticipa- 
 tion ; then he made a grasp at the pewter measure, but found 
 it empty. " Donald, my noble hero, we will now have an- 
 other mutchkin — aye, by the piper of Moses, we will have 
 another mutchkin — and I will drink your health. Donald, it 
 is you that are the son of my heart; and it is you that are 
 coming to Fort William with me ; and we will see if there is 
 not a drop of Long John left somewhere about in Locha- 
 ber !" 
 
 He reached over and rang the bell, and a servant -lass ap- 
 peared. Long Lauchie had broken out with a vengeance 
 this time.
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 A VISITOR 
 
 So Jess was installed as nurse ; and the " foolishness " was 
 no longer upon her ; she was brisk and active and cheerful 
 — especially cheerful when she saw that the care she be- 
 stowed on this intractable patient was being rewarded by a 
 steady convalescence. For the young man had naturally a 
 tough and wiry physique, if only he had allowed it a little 
 more nourishment and a little less tobacco ; and now there 
 was no tobacco, while there was as much nourishment as was 
 deemed prudent; and the progress made was in every way 
 satisfactory. But intractable he assuredly was. He fretted 
 over the waste of time ; he fretted over the expense of certain 
 little delicacies which, as a matter of fact, never cost him a 
 farthing, for they were sent along out of the kindly thought- 
 fulness of Mrs. Maclean ; and he fretted over the rules and 
 regulations that Jess, under the doctor's orders, had to im- 
 pose. Nay, to tell the truth, he was sometimes not over-civil 
 to Jess herself. But she only laughed. 
 
 " A grumbling patient is a recovering patient," she would 
 say to the town-councillor, who called frequently. 
 
 It was not his grumbling that hurt her and opened old 
 wounds. Oftentimes, when she went in to sit with him for 
 half an hour, he would talk of nothing but her cousin Bar- 
 bara; and the questions he asked showed (dearly enough what 
 was running in his mind, and what was the future towards 
 which he was looking. He had got it into his head that a 
 woman must necessarily know more of the character and dis- 
 position and views of a woman than a man possibly could; 
 and when he was not himself talking about Barbara, he would 
 have Jess talk of her; while Jess, in framing her replies to 
 his questions, naturally could speak no word of Barbara that 
 was not hearty commendation.
 
 A VISITOR 111 
 
 " And you say she has courage ?" he proceeded, on one oc- 
 casion. "You imagine she would not be afraid to face strait- 
 ened circumstances ?" 
 
 " As for that," Jess responded, " she has faced nothing else 
 all her life long !" 
 
 "Yes, perhaps," he said, after a moment's hesitation, "but 
 I was thinking if she came to consider the question of marry- 
 ing, she might very fairly look for some better position — 
 some assurance as to the future : marriage is a big enough 
 risk in any case, without any added uncertainty — " 
 
 " She would have to take her chance, like other folk," said 
 Jess, a little tartly. 
 
 But Jess Maclean went and pondered over these things ; 
 and when in the evening she took him in his bit of light sup- 
 per, she said : 
 
 " Now, Allan, you must not keep worrying about your cir- 
 cumstances and your future, as I think you do. It is merely 
 that this accident has driven you to consider possibilities that 
 are never likely to happen. You are none so ill off, as it is. 
 Mr. McFadyen has made it all right with the School Board, 
 and they've got a substitute, and you are to put aside all 
 anxiety to get about again, until you are perfectly well and 
 strong. Then there's another thing. You must give up the 
 scheme about the boarding-house. It would never do. It 
 would want a great deal of capital; and there would be a 
 great responsibility ; and if, as mother suggests, you thought 
 of taking a wife to manage it for you, well, then, how could 
 you go to a girl and say : ' Will you become my house-keeper ? 
 I will marry you, so that you may look after my boarders ?' " 
 
 As she spoke thus Jessie's fair and freckled face showed 
 some color ; but she was determined to have her say out : she 
 had more than a casual interest in this young man and his 
 designs. 
 
 " Now this is what I would advise you, Allan, if you think 
 it is not too impertinent of me to offer one like you advice 
 on any matter at all. In a town like Duntroone there must 
 be plenty of clever young lads, in the shops and the offices, 
 who have never had any chance of the better kind of school- 
 ing, and perhaps some of them half expecting to have a win- 
 ter or two at college by-and-by. Well, now, why not 6tart a
 
 112 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Latin class for those lads — from eight till half-past nine in 
 the evening, or from half- past eight till ten? There would 
 be no risk in it ; there would be no expense except the rent 
 of a big room, and the gas, and the price of an advertisement 
 in the Duntroone Times and Telegraph. They would buy 
 their own grammar-books; and the fees would be all found 
 money to you, once the rent was paid. Now will you consider 
 that, if you must go planning and planning about the future ?" 
 
 He was immensely grateful. And next morning, when she 
 made her appearance, he said : 
 
 " Jessie, you are the wisest creature in the world — and the 
 kindest. I have been lying awake half the night, considering 
 what the advertisement should be, and wondering where I 
 could get a room, and how long it might be before I could 
 begin — " 
 
 " Oh, indeed !" said she. " Well, if it's going to lead to 
 your lying awake at night, I'm not for intermeddling any 
 more in your schemes — or for taking any interest in your 
 affairs. Why should I ?" she added, saucily. 
 
 " Why should you ?" he repeated, with a friendly glance 
 towards her. " Because I don't deserve it. That's the way 
 of women." 
 
 And yet it was hard on Jess that she should be deputed to 
 coax and persuade Barbara Maclean into paying him a visit. 
 For a considerable time he had kept this secret desire of his 
 to himself ; perhaps in the hope that Barbara would of her 
 own accord come along to sec him ; perhaps through some 
 fear that she might he unfavorably impressed by the poor 
 and mean appearance of his dwelling. But the ideas of an 
 invalid arc pertinacious ; they grow in importance through 
 the long hours of thinking; and at last, with some little diili- 
 dcnce, he revealed to Jess what he was most of all longing 
 for, and timidly asked her whether she thought such a thing 
 was possible. 
 
 For a second Jess remained silent. Then she looked at 
 him rather askance. 
 
 "Perhaps," said she — "perhaps you would like Barbara 
 to take my place I" 
 
 He seemed startled by the suggestion — but only for a mo- 
 ment.
 
 A VISITOR 113 
 
 " No, no," said he, " I could not be so ungrateful. There's 
 no one like you, Jessie ; there's no one could be so kind and 
 forgiving and good-humored in the face of all sorts of unrea- 
 sonableness and ill-temper and ill-treatment — " 
 
 "Oh, you treat me well enough, if only you would treat 
 yourself a little better," said Jess, bluntly. " I declare it's 
 most provoking to see you busying away with your books and 
 papers and pencil, when its stories you should be reading if 
 you must read at all. 1 wish your mother were able to come 
 through to Duntroone, to give you a talking to, for my scold- 
 ing is no use — you pay no heed. Well, I am going along to 
 the house now, to see if the hlanc-mange is ready ; and I will 
 try and get Barbara to come back with me." 
 
 And therewith she departed, leaving him to wait and lie 
 and listen, anxiously and half doubtingly and wonderingly, 
 for the first sound of footsteps on the stairs without. 
 
 When Jess had gone along to the house and got ready the 
 carrageen blanc- mange for conveyance to her patient, she 
 turned to Barbara. 
 
 " Barbara," she said, " would you not like to go back with 
 me now, and look in on Allan, and talk to him for a little 
 while ?" 
 
 Barbara hardly raised her eyes from her sewing. 
 
 " I am sure that would do no good," said she, unwillingly. 
 " It would be more of an annoyance than anything else. And 
 when he has the doctor and the landlady and you all look- 
 ing after him, surely that is enough." 
 
 Jess hesitated. She would rather have avoided confessing 
 that it was at Allan's express entreaty she was making this 
 suggestion. But she saw no other way. Barbara was clearly 
 indisposed to go. 
 
 " It would be a friendly thing on your part," she said ; 
 " for it is very dull for him lying there day after day, and 
 hardly seeing any one. And — and to tell you the truth, Bar- 
 bara, he asked me to ask you. Come, now ! — if it is only for 
 a few minutes." 
 
 With evident reluctance the girl put her sewing aside ; she 
 got up and fetched her out-of-door things ; and presently 
 the two of them had left the house. But they had not gone 
 over a hundred yards when something happened that effectu-
 
 114 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ally aroused Barbara from her apathetic acquiescence. There 
 was a distant whistle, repeated again and again — the echo 
 sounding along the shores of Kerrara ; and by-and-by a 
 steamer with flags flying came round the point of the main- 
 land. Jessie's pretty and gentle gray eyes were keen-sighted 
 as well. 
 
 " Barbara," said she, " you have been asking me some- 
 times when Jack Ogilvie was coming back to Duntroone. 
 Well, now, if I am not mistaken, that is the Aros Castle — 
 they are going to put her on her station next week, to Tober- 
 mory and Strontian on Loch Sunart. And no doubt Ogilvie 
 is on board of her at this minute." 
 
 Barbara suddenly stood stock-still. 
 
 "Will he be coming ashore? Will he be coming along 
 through the town ?" she demanded, hurriedly. 
 
 "Very likely," said Jess. "The young man lias plenty of 
 friends." 
 
 "Jessie," said the other, quickly, " I have forgotten some- 
 thing. I must go back home for a few minutes. Will you 
 come with me, or will you wait here?" 
 
 " I will wait here, then," said Jess — for she was at the 
 window of the stationer's shop, and there were plenty of 
 photographs for her to look at. 
 
 Then Barbara hastened away back and got to her room ; 
 and the first thing she did was to get out from a drawer the 
 handsome fichu that Allan Henderson had given her. She 
 whipped off her cloth jacket ; she draped herself in that piece 
 of finery ; she put on her jacket again, leaving it partly open 
 in front, so that at least a portion of the silk and the lace and 
 the bugles remained visible. Next she went to the mirror, 
 and rapidly and yet carefully attended to her hair, regarding 
 herself from various angles, and slow to be satisfied. From 
 another drawer she took out a pair of kid gloves — whereas 
 when she first set forth her hands had been bare; she pro- 
 vided herself with a silk parasol that she had borrowed on 
 Some occasion or another from Mrs. Maclean; she had a final 
 I. n,k into the mirror at the set of her hat and its feather; and 
 
 when she descended into the Street she was quite a smart 
 young lady in appearance. The Aros Castle was now lying 
 alongside the quay.
 
 A VISITOR 115 
 
 Jessie's quick eyes immediately perceived the change in 
 her cousin's attire; and she said to herself, "Now, that is a 
 friendly thing to do : Allan will he pleased to see her wear- 
 ing his present ;" and when at length this beautiful creature 
 entered his room, and went forward in rather a perfunctory 
 way to give him her hand, and then retired to a seat a few 
 yards back, the young school-master was not only bewildered 
 and entranced by the mere fact of her being there — by the 
 occasional glance of those large, mystic, deep blue eyes — he 
 was also overjoyed to see that she wore his gift. He made 
 no doubt it was a piece of kindly thoughtful ness on her part; 
 it was an indication of the amiability and sympathy of her 
 nature ; it was a token of good-will that was worth all the 
 world to him. He was so grateful to her for coming — so 
 thrilled and enthralled by the sight of her — that he did not 
 take particular hee^. of her silence, nor yet of the somewhat 
 cold scrutiny with which she regarded the furniture of his 
 meagre apartment. 
 
 Indeed, he was all too anxious to interest and entertain her ; 
 and for that very reason he found it embarrassingly difficult. 
 Small talk was not in his way. What he really longed to say 
 was : Do you know how wonderful and beautiful you are ? 
 Do you know that your sitting in that chair — even when you 
 are silent — makes a kind of splendor in this poor room? 
 But at least he managed to ask her if she had been to the re- 
 cent practisings of the Gaelic Choir, and whether they had 
 sung the " Fear a Bhata" or " The Brown-haired Maid,' 1 '' or 
 any other of the songs familiar in the outer isles ; and this 
 led him on to speak of his lecture on the German Volkslie- 
 der, which had actually been announced for the 15th of the 
 following month. 
 
 "And will you be quite well and going about by that time?" 
 she asked, turning her great, glorious eyes upon him. 
 
 " Oh yes, and before then, the doctor says," he made an- 
 swer. 
 
 " I am very glad to hear it," she said, rather listlessly. But 
 he did not notice that : the sound of her voice was like mu- 
 sic in his ear. 
 
 " And I hope you will come to the lecture, Miss Barbara," 
 he went on, presently. " The committee of the society have
 
 110 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 got the loan of the Masonic Hall, that has been all newly dec- 
 orated — indeed, they say now it is the most beautiful hall in 
 all the west country — " 
 
 "Oh, then, it is to be a very grand affair?" she said, with 
 a trifle more of attention. 
 
 " Well, not such a gay affair as Mr. McAskill's dance," said 
 he, laughing, " that I heard was a great sight for you. But 
 we are to have dignities present. The rank and fashion of 
 Duntroone have been very kind in sending for tickets ; and 
 the committee are trying to persuade the provost to take the 
 chair. Then I want the front row of seats, next the plat- 
 form, kept for my own particular friends. I should feel more 
 at home that way ; and you and Jessie, if you are so kind as 
 to come, must have seats there — Mr. McFadyen will look after 
 you — and I shall feel that I am among my own folk — " 
 
 "Allan, lad," said Jess, who was placing a small refection 
 on the little table by the side of the bed, " are you trying to 
 persuade Barbara you are so shy and sensitive before an au- 
 dience that you need private help and sympathy ? Oh yes, 
 indeed ! But I know better. I know. I've seen you pre- 
 side over a meeting more than once. And I've seen a dis- 
 pute arise — cross arguments, confusion, words flying ; and 
 then Fve seen the chairman get up, with a face as black as 
 thunder, and weren't the quarrelsome folk pretty soon quieted 
 down — ordered to the right about, and every one of them 
 feeling he had made a fool of himself ! It is not only in 
 the school that the school-master must lay down the law, 
 and hector and have everything his own way — " 
 
 "Jessie!" the young man remonstrated, blushing furi- 
 ously. "What's this you're saying? What will Barbara 
 think?" 
 
 " Keep your temper, Allan," Jess responded, coolly. " If 
 ye lost it, it would be a bad thing for the one that found it." 
 
 At this point Barbara rose, intimating that it was now 
 time for her to go; she advanced to the bedside and bade 
 him good-by; she said a word or two in passing to Jessie; 
 and with that she left. 
 
 "There, you see, you've frightened her away with your 
 nonsense I" he exclaimed, fretfully and angrily. 
 
 " I letter she should go now," Jess said, in her usual placid
 
 A VISITOR 117 
 
 way, " before she got tired ; she is all the more likely to come 
 again." 
 
 " And do you think she will come again ?" he asked, with 
 a sudden alteration in his tone. 
 
 " Why not?" answered Jess, good-naturedly. " She is not 
 kept over-busy. I dare say she is away back home now to 
 hem handkerchiefs for herself." 
 
 However, Barbara Maclean had not returned home to re- 
 sume her sewing. When she got outside, she lingered about 
 the pavement, pretending to study the shop windows, but in 
 reality glancing furtively up and down the thoroughfare, with 
 an occasional look across the bay towards a certain red-fun- 
 nelled steamer moored at the opposite quay. After a while, 
 with an affectation of carelessness, as though she hardly knew 
 whither she was going, she proceeded along the esplanade in 
 the direction of the railway station ; and when she reached 
 the railway station she went to the book-stall, and seemed to 
 be wholly engrossed in contemplating the periodical literature 
 displayed there. But close to the book-stall there is a large 
 gateway opening on to the road that here skirts the harbor ; 
 and along this road any one coming either to or from the 
 South Quay must necessarily pass, whether he chooses to 
 look into the railway station or not. And it was at the South 
 Quay that the Aros Castle was now lying.
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 ENCOUNTERS 
 
 Long Lauciilan the shoemaker did not at once put- into 
 execution his threat of going to Fort William to smash the 
 head of the carpenter ; but the idea remained hidden in the 
 dim recesses of his brain ; and one day, having provided 
 himself with a soda-water bottle, which was not filled with 
 soda-water, he walked down to the quay, and stepped on 
 board the Fusilier. There was no savage purpose visible in 
 bis face; on the contrary, he wore an expression of bland 
 content ; and when he had gone forward to the bow, and 
 made himself comfortable in a corner, with bis back resting 
 against the bulwarks, he was laughing and talking to himself 
 — chuckling over the folly of the contemporary race of man- 
 kind — smiling at his own grim little jokes — and occasionally 
 breaking into gentle song. For Lauchie had not as yet re- 
 turned to the fold of the Kechabites ; the rescue of the 
 school-master had been a great event; and ever since, with 
 but a few intervals of unwilling labor, he had devoted himself 
 to a "terrible keeping up o' the New Year." 
 
 The gangway was withdrawn, the hawsers cast off, the pad- 
 dles struck the green water into a seething white, and the 
 steamer slowly moved away from the quay. Lauchie was 
 now plaintively singing to himself: 
 
 " ' There's nac sorrow there, Jean, 
 
 There's neither cauld nor eare, Jean, 
 Tin ilui's aye fair in 
 The Land e>' the Leal ." " 
 
 "It's a beautiful song — a beautiful, beautiful song," he 
 murmured. Then he burst out laughing. "That foolish 
 
 idiot of a lass! 'Oh, Mr. Madntyre, how dare you mention 
 such a thing to me, and you a married man !' And then says
 
 ENCOUNTERS 119 
 
 I : ' But a man that has not got a wife is not a married man ; 
 and a man that is not married has as much right to get mar- 
 ried as any one else ; and if that is not the law, then it is 
 them that makes the law that have no sense in their head.' " 
 He chuckled again softly and gleefully. " ' Oh, Mr. Mac- 
 Intyre, you should not say such things ! I am quite frightened 
 to hear you say such things !' " His merriment suddenly 
 ceased. A diligent search had revealed the disastrous fact 
 that in not one of his pockets could a single match be found. 
 And so he was forced to struggle up from that snug corner, 
 and make away for the cabin, where some friendly steward 
 might give him a light for his pipe. And if — as he was in 
 the cabin in any case — and there being a refreshment-bar 
 there- — if he should take advantage of the opportunity — why — 
 But Lauchie had disappeared. 
 
 When the steamer reached Fort William, he was as blithe 
 and unconcerned as ever ; and though he said to himself, 
 " Aw, Dyea, I will make the bandy-legged carpenter dance a 
 little dance ! — I will make his bandylegs jump !" — it was said 
 with perfect good-humor. And in this happy mood he landed, 
 passed along the quay, and entered the little town that lies at- 
 the foot of the great Ben Nevis. He knew that if he were to 
 find the carpenter at all, he would find him alone ; for Mac- 
 Killop was in a very small way of business, ordinarily work- 
 ing as his own journeyman. 
 
 At length he turned into an alley, and came upon a yard 
 filled with all sorts of rubbish — old barrels, broken boats, and 
 sodden shavings — at the farther end of which was a shed. 
 The shed was empty ; and there was no one about. But 
 there was also a workshop ; and without a moment's hesita- 
 tion Lauchie went over to it, and raised the latch, and opened 
 the door. The next moment the two men were staring at 
 each other — the one in paralyzed alarm, the other with a 
 grim sort of humor. Then Lauchie began to look about 
 him for some instrument ; and the little, bandy-legged, red- 
 headed carpenter, instantly divining his enemy's purpose, 
 and seeing no way of escape by the door, which was blocked 
 by Lauchie's tall form, made a single spring for the window, 
 and frantically tried to raise the lower sash. But he tugged 
 and shook in vain, for in his haste he had forgotten to undo
 
 120 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the catch ; and meanwhile Lauchie had got hold of a porten- 
 tous beam; so that the luckless carpenter, finding himself 
 caught like a trapped rat, could only throw himself under 
 the table at which he had been planing, in some desperate 
 hope of shelter from the imminent blows. And these came 
 quickly enough ; and thud after thud resounded of the un- 
 equal fray ; but what with his laughing, and what with his 
 somewhat unsteady gait, Lauchie's aim was uncertain. 
 
 " Aw, Dyea," he called aloud — but without the least ap- 
 parent animosity — rather with a kind of hilarious enjoy- 
 ment — " come out of your hole, you red-headed weasel, and I 
 will smash your brains in !" — and therewith he aimed another 
 blow at the carpenter which would undoubtedly have accom- 
 plished that object had it not fortunately descended on a 
 crossbar supporting the table. " Come out from your shav- 
 ings, will you, till I knock your head off your shoulders ! 
 Will you come out, now? Do you hear me? Do you think 
 I have come ahl the way to Fort William for nothing? Come 
 away, now ! You red-headed weasel, will you come out from 
 your hole ?" 
 
 And again with a tremendous crash the beam descended 
 — this time, happily, hitting the table itself. Lauchie laughed 
 loudly. 
 
 " Aw, Dyea, that a weasel should be afraid to come out 
 like that! Will I get the dogs and worry you out? But no 
 — no, no ! — you red-haired son of the devil, I will reach you 
 yet, if I have to keep hammering ahl the day long." 
 
 Then something tumultuous, amazing, inconceivable, hap- 
 pened. Lauchie vaguely knew that the carpenter had darted 
 out from his retreat and hurled himself against his (Lauchie's) 
 legs; there was a wild scuffle and scramble; the carpenter 
 managed to regain his feet and make for the door; and when 
 the injured husband, seeking to pursue him and belabor him, 
 would have followed, he, that is to say, Lauchlan Maclntyre» 
 tripped over a plank of wood, he lurched heavily forward, 
 In' came down like a log, and there was a splintering crash 
 of glass that told of an appalling and irremediable catas- 
 trophe. 
 
 For a time Lauchie lav motionless, while the peccant car- 
 penter was fleeing away into safety. And when lie slowly
 
 ENCOUNTERS 121 
 
 rose, there could be no doubt as to the calamity that had oc- 
 curred ; his nether garments were saturated ; a pocket of his 
 coat was filled with broken glass. More in sorrow than in 
 anger, he pulled out these fragments of the soda-water bottle, 
 and dropped them in the yard ; then with an ever-increas- 
 ing dejection he made his way along the chief thoroughfare 
 in the direction of the quay; and it was a perfectly heart- 
 broken man that seated himself on an empty herring-barrel to 
 await the return of the steamer from Corpach. 
 
 When Lauchlan stepped on board the Fusilier, on her 
 homeward voyage, he looked neither to the right nor to the 
 left, but went away forward and sat down, his naturally dis- 
 mal countenance now heavy with gloom. It was at this mo- 
 ment that a little man dressed all in Sunday black, and with a 
 tall hat on his head, came up to him and said, sympathetically : 
 
 " How are ye, Mr. Maclntyre ? I'm afraid ye look rather 
 down in the mouth." 
 
 " I've had a sad loss, Mr. Robertson," answered Lauchie — 
 but he paid little heed to the Free Kirk elder, who was re- 
 turning from Achnasheen, where he had been engaged with 
 others in protesting against the Declaratory Act. 
 
 " So I have heard — so I have heard," said the elder, with 
 compassion ; he knew the story of Lauchie's domestic mis- 
 fortunes. 
 
 " The best Glenlennan," Lauchie murmured to himself. 
 
 " Do ye say that now ?" rejoined the other. " The best in 
 all the glen, was she ? It's grievous to think how time 
 changes us poor mortal creatures !" 
 
 " Seven years in bond," continued the doleful shoemaker. 
 
 " Indeed, indeed !" said the elder, shaking his head sadly. 
 " Seven years in the bonds of iniquity. I had little idea 
 there were such goings on, over so long a time." 
 
 " But there was no help for it — no help," Lauchie mur- 
 mured again, talking to himself mostly, with his eyes bent on 
 the deck. " It was bound to happen the moment I fell." 
 
 The elder started. 
 
 " You fell likewise ?" he exclaimed, in an awe-stricken 
 voice. " Dear, dear, that ye should have to tell me that ! 
 But the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desper- 
 ately wicked." 
 
 6
 
 122 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Nothing left but bits o' glass ; and all the fine stuff gone. 
 There was nearly a whole mutchkin. I was saving it up for 
 the trip home. Seven years old Glenlennan !" 
 
 The elder stared at him, partly in amazement, partly in 
 anger. 
 
 " Mr. Maclntyre, are ye in your senses ? In the name of 
 mercy what are ye talking about ?" 
 
 " Seven years old Glenlennan," Lauchie. repeated, mourn- 
 fully. " And when I fell the bottle went all to splinters." 
 
 " Aye, the bottle," replied the other, sharply. " I'm think- 
 ing ye've been paying too much attention to the hottle of late. 
 And you that was a Rechabite — " 
 
 " And I am a Rechahite. From this moment I am a Rech- 
 abite," continued Lauchlan, doggedly. " As sure as death, 
 Mr. Robertson. I'm determined this time. From this mo- 
 ment, not a drop. You'll see — you'll see. And on the 
 strength of it, now, we'll just go down below and have a tast- 
 ing—" 
 
 " Mc ?" said the elder. " Me, that has an example to set, 
 unworthy as I am — " 
 
 " Then I draw back," interposed Lauchie, with decision. 
 And he went on, assuming a certain solemnity of air. " And 
 who will be responsible for that ? "Who but yourself, Mr. 
 Robertson ? It is you that have refused to pluck a brand 
 from the burning." 
 
 The argument was irresistible. Together they went down 
 to the cabin to celebrate and confirm the most recent of 
 Lauchie's many conversions ; and as the story of Allan Hen- 
 derson's mishap and rescue had to be told all over again, they 
 were still sitting in the cabin when the Fusilier arrived at 
 Duntroonc. 
 
 One day at this time, Barbara Maclean was seated at the 
 window of her room, sewing, with an occasional glaucc into 
 the street below, when she saw Jack Ogilvie pass along the 
 other side of the thoroughfare. It was a chance she had been 
 looking forward to, perhaps watching for ; immediately she 
 rose, threw aside her work, and began with great rapidity to 
 
 array herself in such out-of-door finery as she possessed, not 
 forgetting to lay her cousin Jessie's stock under contribution.
 
 ENCOUNTERS 123 
 
 For hitherto she had been unsuccessful in obtaining even a 
 few words of speech with the all-too-handsome purser, who 
 had bewildered her senses away on the evening of Mrs. McAs- 
 kill's dance. Once or twice she had wandered round in the 
 direction of tbe South Quay ; and she had actually in the dis- 
 tance seen Ogilvie — smarter than ever in his uniform of navy 
 blue and brass buttons — standing by the gangway of the 
 Aros Castle, superintending the embarkation of passengers ; 
 but she had not had the courage to go nearer. Perhaps he 
 had forgotten that he had ever met her. He might not even 
 know her name. He had to encounter so many people in the 
 course of his duties. 
 
 But now that he had gone along this Campbell Street alone, 
 and would probably return the same way, he might possibly 
 recognize her as he passed. Accordingly, as soon as she had 
 fichu, jacket, hat, gloves, and parasol complete, she stole 
 down-stairs, and went out on to the pavement. Of course, 
 she could not remain here ; for her aunt's shop was just oppo- 
 site ; and Mrs. Maclean might happen to look out, and espy 
 her, and wonder what she was doing. But a short way along 
 there was a watch-maker's window into which she had been 
 in the habit of staring ever since she came to Duntroone ; for 
 in it was an ingenious little clock, the time of which was 
 kept, or rather marked, by a tiny gold ball that rolled down 
 an inclined plane, the plane reversing itself at the end of 
 every quarter of a minute ; and this toy had fascinated her so 
 that she would stand unweariedly following the zigzag course 
 of the small gold sphere. It was in front of this window that 
 she now lingered, her eyes peeping cornerwise. And before 
 long she became conscious that some one was approaching ; 
 a furtive glance assured her that this was indeed none other 
 than Ogilvie ; and so, with apparent carelessness, forsaking 
 the toy clock, she continued on her way, as if she were not 
 expecting to meet any one. 
 
 It was a quick, light, elate step that now sounded along the 
 pavement ; she made certain that in his youthful and joyous 
 audacity and unconcern he would not recollect her or even 
 look her way. As he approached, her heart beat wildly ; her 
 trembling fingers grasped the handle of her parasol as if for 
 support. He drew nearer — she could not raise her eyes — he
 
 124 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 would go by without a word or a glance. And as a matter of 
 fact lie did pass her ; then almost at the same moment he 
 seemed to pause ; she managed to turn her head the least 
 little bit ; and forthwith he came forward to her, in a manner 
 doubtingly, yet with a propitiatory smile. 
 
 "Miss Maclean?" said he, and he raised his cap and held 
 out his hand. " I beg your pardon — I was nearly being very 
 rude — but you remained so short a time the night of Mrs. 
 McAskill's dance. And how is your cousin, Miss Jessie ?" he 
 went on — for he could see that she was overwhelmingly em- 
 barrassed and self-conscious; and he was a good-natured lad, 
 and the spectacle of beauty in distress aroused his sympathy. 
 " I heard from her the other day — about the lecture in the 
 Masonic Hall. Allan Henderson the school-master is a great 
 friend of hers and her mother's, and they are anxious he 
 should have a good audience." 
 
 " And are you going to the lecture ?" said Barbara, finding 
 her voice at last, and even succeeding in letting her eyes 
 question him for a moment. 
 
 " Well, I am not so sure," he made answer. " It is not 
 much in my line ; but if the boat is in in good time, I may 
 go. And I will take one or two tickets whatever." 
 
 Now at this point he ought to have said good-bye, and gone 
 away. But she was a remarkably pretty girl. 
 
 " I hope, Miss Maclean," said he, " that the next time you 
 come to any such gathering, you will stay and join in the 
 dancing. It was quite a disappointment to many of us that 
 you and your cousin left so early. And I suppose you are as 
 fond of dancing as most other young ladies." 
 
 " There was not much dancing in Kilree," said Barbara, 
 blushing furiously. 
 
 And then at last he did say good-bye, and raised his cap 
 and departed, and Campbell Street — though it was high noon 
 — seemed to grow dark. 
 
 No sooner was he gone than she hurried back to her room, 
 and there she went Straight to the mirror to examine her ap- 
 pearance ami her costume from every possible point of view. 
 Ami then, taking off some of her things, she sat down and 
 pondered — until it was time for her to see about getting 
 ready the mid-day meal.
 
 ENCOUNTERS 125 
 
 In the afternoon she was once more alone — that is to say, 
 she was free to leave the house in charge of the girl Chris- 
 tina; and again she wandered out, this time making a cir- 
 cuitous way for a certain back street. Arrived there, she 
 stopped in front of an entry where a small brass plate in- 
 formed the public that " Professor Sylvester, teacher of dan- 
 cing and calisthenics," abode within ; she hesitated for a 
 second or so ; then, summoning up courage, she passed into 
 the dark entry, rang a bell, and inquired if Professor Sylvester 
 were at home. The next thing was that she found herself 
 the sole occupant of a large and empty apartment, almost 
 destitute of furniture save for a bench that went along two 
 of the walls, and a table on which were ranged a number of 
 stone ginger-beer bottles and tumblers. 
 
 The door opened, and the professor appeared, violin in 
 hand. He was an elderly, spare, careworn-looking man ; his 
 demeanor was submissive and deprecatory ; he spoke with a 
 slightly foreign accent when he addressed her. And his 
 terms, when Barbara timidly asked for them, were of the 
 most modest character. 
 
 "But I must see where you will begin — I must see what 
 lessons you will need before joining the class," he said. 
 "And I will call in my daughter to be your partner." 
 
 He rang the bell. A sandy-haired and rather sulky -looking 
 girl appeared, who, recognizing the situation at a glance, took 
 down from a peg on the door a sailor's jacket, and this she 
 donned, no doubt intimating that she had now become a male 
 partner, and was ready, in an impassive and perfunctory way, 
 to go through her share of the performance. Barbara be- 
 trayed the greatest shame and confusion. 
 
 " No," said she, " I cannot dance at all. I must begin at 
 the beginning. And could I have lessons without any one 
 looking on ?" 
 
 " Certainly — certainly," said the grave and worn - eyed 
 professor. " And what time of the day would it please you 
 to come ? — for there are generally some young people here in 
 the evening." 
 
 There was no difficulty about making final arrangements ; 
 and when these were completed, Barbara, leaving the dancing- 
 master's house, returned home by a roundabout route, for
 
 12G HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 she had resolved upon keeping this matter a dark secret 
 from her aunt and her cousin. And so apt and assiduous 
 did she prove to he that in less than ten days' time the pro- 
 fessor said to his daughter : " Eugenie, I do not think in all 
 my life I have known a pupil like that — so quick, so clever, 
 so graceful in every movement. It all comes naturally to 
 her — no effort — no constraint — it is a pleasure to teach her. 
 If she had been trained from infancy, she might have had a 
 career." 
 
 Eugenie the sulky did not respond. She had formed an 
 unreasoning dislike towards the new pupil — perhaps through 
 Jealousy of her elegant figure and her all-conquering and 
 pathetic eyes.
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 SCHEMES AND FORECASTS 
 
 That was a great occasion when the young school-master, 
 though still something of a cripple, made his first reappear- 
 ance in Mrs. Maclean's back parlor. The kind-hearted little 
 widow, with covert tears in her lashes, did not know how to 
 tend him and pet him enough ; would have him sit in her 
 own arm-chair ; feared he was too near the fire, or too far 
 away from the fire ; and generally made such a fuss over him 
 that he had shamefacedly to protest again and again, for he 
 did not like being treated as a child before Jess. 
 
 " Well, indeed," said the widow, as she brought out cur- 
 rant bunn, short -bread, and other elements of festivity, 
 " when something terrible bad has happened, they proclaim 
 a day of general mutilation throughout the country — " 
 
 " Humiliation, you mean, mother," Jess said, impatiently — 
 she did not mind at other times, but when Allan was present 
 these harmless little mistakes vexed her. 
 
 " Exactly that," continued the widow, with much content. 
 " And when something terrible fine happens, like Allan here 
 getting about again, there should be a general rejoicing 
 among us, if one could only manage it. But in the mean- 
 time, Jessie, you'll just step across the way and bid Barbara 
 smarten herself up, and come over, directly. Oh, well I 
 know what pleases young folk ! "When a lad and a lass are 
 thinking of each other, it's little else they think of. Give 
 them a look at each other, and that's enough — so off ye go, 
 Jess." 
 
 Despite herself, a shade of mortification passed over Jess 
 Maclean's face when she was thus ordered to go and summon 
 Barbara ; for in her capacity of nurse she had established a 
 sort of proprietary right in this fractious invalid ; and now 
 that he had come to report himself convalescent, she thought
 
 128 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 it hard that any half-stranger should he allowed to intervene. 
 But she was a biddable lass ; she whipped on her shawl and 
 bonnet, and went away to execute her mission ; the only 
 thing was that on her return she did not accompany Barbara 
 into the parlor. She remained in the front shop. And at 
 the same moment — whether out of mischief or out of sym- 
 pathetic consideration — Mrs. Maclean made some excuse and 
 joined her daughter; so that Barbara Maclean and the young 
 school-master found themselves alone together in the hushed 
 little room. 
 
 " It is I that am pleased to see you going about again," 
 she said, in Gaelic, and she gave him her hand for a moment, 
 and then composedly took a seat. 
 
 " And surely," said he, in the same tongue, "my first visit 
 was due to the house that has been so kind to me." 
 
 He had paled slightly on her entrance ; but now the joy of 
 actually beholding her had recalled something of color and 
 animation to his face ; his dark and glowing eyes drank their 
 fill of her, and yet were never satisfied. How beautiful she 
 was — so much more beautiful than the ph mtom image 
 of her that had occupied his waking dreams ; his covetous 
 longing to secure this glorious creature all to himself seemed 
 to run riot in mad fancies; something appeared to whisper 
 to him that, now when at last she was so near him, he must 
 seize her hands, and hold them tight, and say to her, " You 
 are mine — you are mine — you cannot go away from me — not 
 any more, forever." Meanwhile Barbara was twiddling with 
 the lace frills of her cuffs. 
 
 "And you," lie continued — getting some mastery over 
 himself, and dismissing these delirious imaginings — "you, I 
 am sure, have found the house a kind house, with a warm 
 hearth for you." 
 
 "Oh yes, indeed," replied Barbara, rather indifferently. 
 
 "The night of the wreck of the Sanda" he went on — his 
 glowing eyes still duelling on her — his nostrils sensitive to 
 tin' Bcent of her cost nine — " I thought you were lonely and 
 Bad enough ; bui I told you you were going to a friendly 
 
 home, and I knew thai a friendly home you would find it. 
 And who but 1 was the first one to meet you? — so that ever 
 since 1 have thought of you, and been anxious to know that 

 
 SCHEMES AND FORECASTS 129 
 
 you were well looked after, and not like one strayed into a 
 strange fold. Many is the time I would like to have sent 
 along to ask you to come and see me, that you might talk 
 about yourself ; but I was not so bold, to disturb you. But 
 I often heard of you; and I was sure that from your aunt 
 and your cousin you would have the kindest of treatment — " 
 
 " Indeed I have nothing to complain of," Barbara said — 
 with a glance towards the glass door; perhaps sjie was sur- 
 prised that she was being left alone in this fashion. 
 
 " When a man lies sick in bed he has time to think of 
 many things," the school-master proceeded — not quite know- 
 ing how to make use of these invaluable moments — having 
 so much to say, and yet in a bewilderment of hesitation as 
 to how far he dared go — " and above all things I was anxious 
 you should understand, and be sure that you were among 
 people who wished you well. And perhaps, here or there, 
 might be one whose interest in you was warmer than that — 
 if the time was come to speak — " 
 
 Perhaps she comprehended his meaning, perhaps not; at 
 all events, she somewhat abruptly rose, and said : 
 
 " I am wondering what my aunt is about, and Jessie ; it is 
 not usual for them to neglect you in this way." 
 
 And with that she went to the windowed door, and opened 
 it, and looked into the front shop. But at this moment the 
 arrival of a new visitor — a stormy visitor — absorbed atten- 
 tion : it was the town-councillor, who had come hastily along 
 on hearing of Allan's having adventured forth ; and now he 
 was all excitement and importance in his desire to dominate 
 such a situation; he drove the Macleans before him into the 
 parlor — the door being left a bit open, as was customary. 
 
 " Man, Allan," he cried. " I'm just delighted to see ye 
 here again, among your own kith and kin, and in a cosey 
 circle too. And I've news for ye, lad, I've news for ye ; if 
 ye'll not think I have been taking too great a liberty; but I 
 hardly expected to see ye about so soon, and so I have been 
 making inquiries on your behalf. Yes, indeed," continued 
 Mr. McFadyen, with great vivacity — regarding himself as the 
 hero of the hour, no doubt, and conscious that Jess Maclean's 
 eyes were upon him — " the moment Miss Jessie put that idea 
 of the Latin class into my head says I to myself, ' Well, if 
 6*
 
 130 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Allan is laid by the heels, and cannot look after this matter, 
 it's just me that's going to do it for him.' And I've found a 
 splendid room for ye — the very ticket : the top floor at Ross 
 & Maclagan's, the lawyers ; and I'm sure they'll be reason- 
 able about it, for it's empty, and not a bit of use to them. 
 And just as I was thinking it would cost ye a stiff penny to 
 put benches and desks into it, then I chanced to hear of the 
 Masonic Hall folk wanting to sell off a lot of their old chairs, 
 and says I to myself, 'If we can get them cheap, they'll just 
 do fine.' Then I went to the office of the Times and Tele- 
 graph, and saw the manager, and he says if ye'll give him the 
 advertisement by the year, he'll take it on the easiest terms ; 
 in fact, he was hinting it might not cost ye anything if you 
 would do some writing for the paper at odd hours — " 
 
 " No, no," said Allan, frowning. " I will not have it that 
 way." 
 
 But Peter McFadyen was not the man to be daunted. 
 
 "Just as ye like — just as ye like," he said, blithely. "And 
 that's not all the news. For I've been asking a question here 
 and there, I hope in a discreet kind of way, and I find there's 
 several of my own friends would like their boys to get an 
 hour or two's Latin after the office-work or the shop-work 
 was over ; and that's how it stands, Allan, my lad, that as 
 soon as you care to start, I'll guarantee ye'll have quite a re- 
 spectable size of a class within a fortnight ; and there's no 
 reason why such a class should not go on growing bigger and 
 bigger, for I find it is greatly wanted in Duntroone." 
 
 " I am sure I am very much obliged to you, Mr. McFadyen," 
 the young school-master said, "and especially to Miss Jessie, 
 for it was she that first thought of it. It's a good thing to 
 have friends." 
 
 He ventured to glance towards Barbara. Was she betraying 
 any interest in these poor schemes of his? Nay, could he dare 
 to hope that she was personally concerned in them ? But Bar- 
 bara was staring into the fire with abstracted gaze. 
 
 The councillor, who evidently regarded himself as the 
 founder of Allan's fortunes, now proceeded to prophesy great 
 things ; and he was in a humorous mood as well; those were 
 gay pictures he drew of the future. Even the little widow 
 was constrained to remark :
 
 SCHEMES AND FORECASTS 131 
 
 " Well, Mr. McFadyen, it's you that are in high spirits the 
 night. But take care. Do you remernher the old saying, 
 ' You are too merry, you'll have to marry ' V 
 
 The warning only increased the councillor's jocosity. 
 
 " Faith, that's a good one !" he cried, with a prodigious 
 laugh. " Me marrying ? Is that your advice, Mrs. Maclean ? 
 That's a fine idea, to be sure — the idea of me marrying !" 
 
 " I do not see what there is to laugh at !" the widow pro- 
 tested. 
 
 " Well, then, I'll tell you what stands in the way," he 
 said, with sudden gravity — but it was only part of his pro- 
 found facetiousness. " There's one very good reason, and 
 one's enough ; and the reason is that I'm too bashful. Aye, 
 there it is — that's the truth." 
 
 With beaming face and demurely twinkling eyes he 
 glanced from one to the other ; to himself the notion of his 
 being bashful — a man of the world like himself being bashful 
 — was irresistibly comic. 
 
 " I do not know about that," said the downright little 
 widow ; " but when I was young, if a man had made up his 
 mind about the girl he wanted to marry, I'm thinking there 
 was not much difficulty about his finding words to ask her. 
 Maybe it is different nowadays. Nowadays it seems to be 
 money first, and your sweetheart second. Here have you 
 yourself, Mr. McFadyen, been planning out all that Allan is 
 to be, and the grand things he is to do ; and yet never a 
 word about his taking a wife — though perhaps there would 
 be no great need for him to go far afield." 
 
 These words were spoken with smiling significance — the 
 widow being clearly proud of her diplomacy ; but nothing 
 short of consternation ensued. Jessie looked particularly 
 distressed ; Barbara betrayed less confusion — indeed, she ap- 
 peared to treat this open innuendo as of little import. As 
 for the young man who had thus been almost invited to 
 choose one of the cousins, he maintained a stern silence. It 
 was the councillor who came to the general relief. 
 
 " If there's one thing in the world I would like," he said, 
 "it's just this — that the five of us that are here at this mo- 
 ment could get away for a trip to London to see the sights. 
 Wouldn't that be worth while ? — just by ourselves — a little
 
 132 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 party — and I've been to London myself — I know my ways 
 about — I could show ye all the fine things that belong to 
 the nation, and therefore they belong just as much to you 
 or to me as to anybody else." 
 
 " Indeed, there's truth in what ye say, Mr. McFadyen," the 
 school-master put in. ''And maybe John Smith — the com- 
 mon man, the poor man — would be a little better contented 
 with his lot if he only remembered what great possessions 
 are his, and what has been done to please him. If John 
 were a philosopher, he would begin and ask questions. For 
 whose .delight, for whose use, are splendid public buildings 
 built, and bridges thrown across rivers, and handsome em- 
 bankments made? These belong to him — the poor man 
 — to John Smith. What prince or duke has a collection of 
 pictures like the National Gallery ? — that is John Smith's. 
 The gems and antiquities and books of the British Museum, 
 the art treasures at South Kensington — what private collec- 
 tion has anything to compare with them ? — and they all be- 
 long to John Smith, who has no trouble about them, no fear 
 of being swindled, the best experts of the world buying for 
 him everywhere. The Queen has a fine garden behind Buck- 
 ingham Palace ; but it's not a third as big as Hyde Park — 
 which is John Smith's domain. For I've been to London 
 too, Mr. McFadyen," continued the school-master, who could 
 talk freclv and spiritedly enough when his sombre fits of 
 silence were abandoned, "and I've seen the Green Park, 
 Regent's Park, Battersea Park, and the rest of them, and 
 their ornamental waters, and their great staff of gardeners — 
 all kept up for the public use. What duke or marquis has 
 a ball to compare with Westminster Hall — where plain John 
 Smith can walk up and down at any time of the day and eat 
 ;ui orange in contentment? Royal processions to St. Paul's 
 — lord mayor's shows — pageants of that kind are designed 
 I'm- the poor man, not the rich. And if we here, Mr. Coun- 
 cillor, should ever go to London together, ami when you'll be 
 taking us to the British Museum or to South Kensington, 
 you'll just have to drop a word now and again reminding us 
 
 that these 8X0 our own collections, and better than any oth- 
 er in the land, and kepi ap for us with the greatest, care. 
 I wonder, now," he said, turning to Mrs. Maclean — "1 won-
 
 SCHEMES AND FORECASTS 133 
 
 der, when Mr. McFadyen goes with us to the National Gal- 
 lery, if he'll remember his position. Will he take us up to 
 the famous Raphael, and say to us: 'This is my last great 
 acquisition ; I had to pay a little trifle of £70,000 before I 
 could get it away from Blenheim Palace ' ?" 
 
 The practical little widow was puzzled by these vagaries ; 
 her answer was more to the point. 
 
 " So you would be off to London, the lot of you ?" she 
 said, cheerfully enough. " Well, well, that's natural for 
 young folk ; but such gaddings about are not for an old body 
 like me. I'm tied to the premises ; I'm a fixture here as 
 much as a shelf or a gasalier — " 
 
 " Not at all — we'll not stir without ye," Peter insisted, gal- 
 lantly. "Not one step will we stir. You'll just have to get 
 somebody ye can trust to take your place in the shop ; then 
 off we go — like school-children for a holiday. It's but right 
 — it's but right, Mrs. Maclean. Year after year we keep on 
 working and working ; are we never to give ourselves a bit 
 treat? I'll undertake to say there's not one in this room has 
 seen the Queen. But we've a right to see her ; for she's a 
 part of the Constitution that we pay for. Dod, man, Allan, 
 ye put bold ideas into folks' heads ; for if everything be- 
 longs to John Smith, and if I am John Smith — as ye plainly 
 intimate — then I am the richest man in Europe ; and surely 
 the richest man in Europe should be able to afford a trip to 
 London. What d'ye say, Mrs. Maclean ? And you're coming 
 with us, mind. Not a foot will we stir without ye. My 
 word, we'll make things lively in the big town !" 
 
 But it was not until Mr. McFadyen and Allan had left the 
 hospitable little parlor and started off for home that the 
 councillor revealed the secret reason for his thus insisting on 
 a quite chimerical project. 
 
 " Did ye see how I managed it ?" he said, with great exul- 
 tation. " Did ye see how natural-like I led them on to look 
 on us all as forming a family party — that's you and Barbara, 
 and me and Jessie, with the old lady as general friend and 
 adviser ? For it doesna do to frighten them at first. It's like 
 taming a wild animal — ye must be cautious and slow and 
 cunning. Dod, man," exclaimed the councillor, honestly, "I 
 think I showed a little skill! Did I not, now? — did I not?"
 
 134 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Allan was silent : his thoughts were elsewhere. But Mr. 
 McFadyen was not to be discouraged. 
 
 " What care I," he continued, gleefully, " whether such a 
 trip as that to London is impracticable or no ? Jessie and 
 Barbara have been led into thinking of the four of us being 
 there together, with perhaps the old lady left behind in Dun- 
 troone. And of course that would mean two weddings — 
 two weddings, you rascal! — and when the two weddings 
 come about, you'll just tell me if I did not show a little 
 tact and address in paving the way and making everything 
 easy." 
 
 " I do not like the sound of the wind," said Allan, absent- 
 ly staring out towards the moaning and inscrutable sea. " It 
 is going to be a wild night." 
 
 "Ye're a clever chiel, Allan," continued the complacent 
 councillor, as the two men paused for a second at the part- 
 ing of their ways, "and your head is just filled with learn- 
 ing and knowledge. But it takes experience of the world, 
 it takes experience of human nature, to manage a difficult 
 affair like this ; and maybe you'll be the first to acknowledge 
 as much — maybe you'll be ready to confess that much — 
 when you and Barbara and Jessie and myself find ourselves 
 in a carriage together, driving about and seeing the sights of 
 London." 
 
 The school - master did not reply. With a brief "Good- 
 night!" he turned away — and disappeared into the darkness.
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 A PTARMIGAN BROOCH 
 
 It was indeed a wild night — the wind howling in the chim- 
 neys and shaking the windows, the rain falling in torrents, the 
 long swish of the waves heard all along the shore; but tow- 
 ards morning there came a sudden and unaccountable calm ; 
 and daybreak revealed a brooding stillness over land and sea 
 — revealed a slate-hued world, vague and dull and sombre, 
 with the mountains of Mull and Morven hidden behind a 
 dark, formless, impenetrable wall of vapor. Nevertheless, 
 sullen as the outlook might be, there was steady progress 
 towards the light. Up in the high portals of the east a cu- 
 rious kind of glare began to elbow its way through the heavy 
 masses of cloud ; the slopes of Kerrara answered in warm 
 tones of saffron and orange and golden green ; as the hours 
 went by, the heavens became more and more broken up ; by 
 noon there were shafts of sunlight here and there, and a vivid 
 and welcome blue in the far stretches of water outside the 
 bay ; while the Mull and Morven hills were gradually return- 
 ing into the visible universe, after their sojourn in unknown 
 space. 
 
 And perhaps it was merely this unexpected clearing up of 
 the morning that drew Barbara Maclean away from her house- 
 hold duties ; but, at all events, before going out, she dressed 
 herself with unusual care, for the better display of such small 
 articles of finery as she possessed. When eventually she left 
 the house, she took her way along the sea-front, apparently 
 with no very set purpose. She passed the railway station. 
 She reached the South Quay, at which the Aros Castle was 
 lying ; but, as a single swift and covert glance assured her, no 
 officer was visible on board ; it was not yet time for the 
 steamer to sail, and at present the only work going forward 
 was the trundling in of barrow-loads of coal from the adjoin-
 
 136 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ing trucks. She continued her seemingly aimless stroll. She 
 arrived at the foot of the Gallows Hill ; and here she lingered 
 about for some little time, looking at the nets and boats and 
 whitewashed cottages that are a survival from the time when 
 Duntroone was little more than a fishing-village. The sun- 
 light was becoming more and more general. There was a 
 sj>ring-like mildness and sweetness in the air. The waters of 
 the bay were now a shining azure as well as the farther plain ; 
 and the long spur of Kerrara, shooting out into them, was of 
 burning gold. 
 
 And when she turned to make her way back again, she was 
 regarding an equally cheerful scene — the wooded hills, the 
 houses dotted on the slopes, the ivied castle at the point, the 
 ethereal mountains of Morven beyond the blue ; and it was 
 but natural that when she came to the coal-trucks she should 
 go outside, otherwise her view would have been debarred. But 
 passing outside the coal-trucks brought her close to the Aros 
 Castle — indeed, she had to go by within touching distance of 
 the gangway ; and it was at this moment that she chanced to 
 raise her eyes — and behold ! here was the purser, talking to a 
 friend. He immediately turned from his companion, and ad- 
 dressed her as she approached: 
 
 " Are you going a trip with us to-day, Miss Maclean ?" 
 
 "Oh no," she answered, in pretty confusion; "I — I only 
 went to have a look at the old part of the town." 
 
 "Then if you will come on board," said he, politely, " we 
 will take v<>u across to the North Quay, and it will save you 
 the walk round. We are off in a few minutes now." 
 
 " Oh, thank you, indeed," said she, with modest and smil- 
 ing eyes; and forthwith she passed along the gangway, he 
 following; and she stepped on to the upper deck — whirl) was 
 very different from any part of the old Sanda, for here every- 
 thing v>as trim and smart, the paint and varnish fresh and 
 clean, the brass -work as brilliant as polish could make it. 
 And Ogilvie fetched a deck-chair for her, though she did not 
 care to be seated; the run across to the North Quay would 
 not he of long duration. 
 
 He chatted pleasantly to her for a little while, about the 
 ordinary topics of I hintroonc ; and Barbara did her best to 
 answer with animation and accord, though at times she was a
 
 A PTARMIGAN BROOCH 137 
 
 little hampered for want of the proper English phrase. One 
 thing she did manage — she cured him of the habit of calling 
 her '" Miss Maclean." 
 
 " My name is Barbara," she said, almost with reproach. 
 
 " I'm sure I beg your pardon, Miss Barbara — I ought to 
 have remembered — " 
 
 " But how could you remember ?" said she, coyly ; " I am 
 sure now you do not recollect where it was that we first met." 
 
 " Indeed I do, then," he answered at once. "And the next 
 time we meet on such an occasion, I will look to you to give 
 me a dance." 
 
 " I hope so," murmured Barbara, with some touch of color, 
 and lowered eyes. 
 
 The train crept into the station ; and presently a few pas- 
 sengers made their appearance, coming towards the Aros Cas- 
 tle. Among the first of these to reach the gangway were a lady 
 and her two daughters, the latter tall, fair-haired, English- 
 looking girls, with good features and distinguished bearing. 
 As the little stout mamma stepped on deck, she bestowed a 
 brief nod of recognition upon the purser, who respectfully 
 raised his cap ; then she and her charges went below to the 
 saloon, to deposit there their wares and rugs and books. 
 
 "That is Mrs. Stewart, of Innistroan," said Jack Ogilvie to 
 Barbara, in a confidential whisper. 
 
 Almost immediately thereafter the three ladies reappeared ; 
 and the mother, coining over to where the purser was stand- 
 ing, said — perhaps a trifle brusquely, " Can I speak with you 
 for a moment, Mr. Ogilvie?" 
 
 Barbara was thus left alone ; but she could all the more 
 carefully study the dress and bearing of these three new- 
 comers, whom Ogilvie seemed to regard with considerable 
 deference. Ordinarily he was rather off-hand in his manner ; 
 but now, in speaking to this Mrs. Stewart — probably about 
 some business matter — he was quite subdued and attentive. 
 And as for the two girls, about whom Barbara was chiefly 
 curious, she could not but be conscious of their air of dis- 
 tinction, however simply and plainly they might be dressed. 
 Something, she knew not what, told her they were of " the 
 gentry." With intense but concealed scrutiny she watched 
 their demeanor as they listened to the purser; she observed
 
 138 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the half-indifferent look, the occasional glance towards the sur- 
 rounding neighborhood. As for their costume, it seemed to 
 be the perfection of unostentatious neatness and fitness ; the 
 only ornament that each wore — so far as she could see — was 
 an insignificant little brooch consisting of a ptarmigan's foot 
 set in silver, that fastened the collar of the blue serge jacket. 
 
 But by this time the hawsers had been thrown off, and the 
 Aros Castle was moving across to the other quay. Ogilvie 
 came back to Barbara. 
 
 " This is a very short sail you have taken with us," he said 
 to her, in his easy and familiar way, as they were approach- 
 ing the pier. " Some other time you and Miss Jessie must 
 go for a run with us to Tobermory, and there we will pick 
 you up on our way back. I know that Mrs. Maclean has 
 friends in Tobermory." 
 
 The steamer was now slowing ; and it turned out that Bar- 
 bara was the only passenger that meant to land. When the 
 gangway had been shoved out, she timidly took her purse 
 from her pocket — it was probably but poorly furnished. 
 
 "Will you tell me — " she said, bashfully, when he .inter- 
 rupted her ; he had noticed that little movement. 
 
 " No, no ; no, no," said he, smiling, and he put up his hand 
 in a deprecatory fashion. " You must not think of such a 
 thing. We shall only be too glad to take you across the bay 
 any time you happen to be on the other side. And tell Miss 
 Jessie she must bring you for a longer sail." 
 
 She said good-bye, and stepped ashore ; she watched the 
 passengers embark, and the Aros Castle steam away again ; 
 soon she lost sight of Ogilvie, who had apparently gone 
 below ; and the last figures she could make out were those of 
 the two tall young ladies, who had seemed to possess so 
 strange and mysterious a quality of attraction and perfection, 
 even to the fancy of a girl. 
 
 When she went up into the town she met her cousin Jess, 
 who had been along to buy some wool ; and as they proceed- 
 ed borne together they encountered Lauchlan Maclntyre. The 
 shoemaker was of morose aspect. 
 
 "You'll be coming to the lecture to-morrow eight, Mr. 
 Maclntyre?" Baid Jess, pleasantly. 
 
 " I'm not so sure, 1 ' responded Long Lauchie, in melancholy
 
 A PTARMIGAN BROOCH 139 
 
 tones. "It seems a fearfu' waste of opportunity. To think 
 of a lecture on such things as songs, when there's but the one 
 subject that is a tremendous concern to us, and that's the cry- 
 ing evil that is ruining us as a nation. Aye, just ruining us — 
 ruining us — the curse of drink that is destroying the kintry 
 from end to end. And what can we do but wrestle with it, 
 in Parliament and out of Parliament, in season and out of 
 season, aye, and mek every election turn on it, and every candi- 
 date pledged for total abolition, aye, have a section of the 
 Rechabites in every fullage everywhere, until we put down 
 and stamp out this terrible, terrible drinking. There must be 
 no peace until the whiskey traffic is wholly rooted out; and 
 until a brand is put on a man that would be seen to enter a 
 public-house — aye, a just persecution — a lawful persecution — 
 there must be no moderation — no mercy — " 
 
 " But you'll drive common-sense folk into rebellion," Jess 
 said, good-humoredly. " Would you have them take to drink 
 in self-defence I" 
 
 " Aw, to hear you talk like that, and you at your years !" 
 said the shoemaker, almost in despair. " As sure's death it's 
 just fearful to hear one of your years talk like that. And to 
 think that you are on the side of the drunkards, and the 
 licensed victuallers, and Sodom and Gomorrah. But there's 
 time for ye yet. If you'll tek a warning, ye may turn yet. 
 You'll come over to us — aye — you'll come over to us and be 
 saved — as sure as death, you'll be saved." 
 
 " Well, indeed, Mr. Maclntyre," said Jess — and her pretty 
 gray eyes, that at times were rather inclined to sarcasm, were 
 now perfectly demure, " I'm not afflicted with any great 
 craving, except now and again for a cup of tea ; but when the 
 hour of trial comes — when I have to fight the demon — it will 
 be a great thing for me to have an example to look to. And 
 you'll give me a word of encouragement — " 
 
 " I will, I will," said the shoemaker, with a deep sigh. 
 "It's but little we can do, maybe, to help on the cause; but, 
 little or great, it must be done. 
 
 "I will, I will," said the shoemaker, solemnly and sadly; 
 and with that he continued on his way; while Jess turned to 
 her cousin Barbara, who had for some time been staring into 
 the window of the jeweller's shop.
 
 140 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 It was a favorite resort of hers. For here she could feast 
 her eyes on treasures that were far beyond her means — silver 
 fastening-pins set with lemon-yellow and white and clear lilac 
 cairngorms — scent-bottles inlaid with the various clan tartans 
 — brooches, bracelets, necklets studded with Iona stones — ear- 
 rings, finger-rings, sleeve-links, lockets — tray after tray of 
 fascinating knick-knacks of the very names of many of which 
 she was entirely ignorant. And at this moment, when Jess 
 said — 
 
 " Will you wait a moment, Barbara, or will you come into 
 the shop? I want Mr. Boyd to see what is the matter with 
 my watch — " 
 
 Barbara accepted the invitation with a secret joy ; though 
 it was in a timorous kind of fashion that she followed her 
 cousin into this magician's palace of wonders and splendors. 
 She looked all round the jeweller's shop with an awe-stricken 
 air ; and then her eyes came back to the glass cases on the 
 counter, where there was an endless variety of surprisingly 
 beautiful objects. Not only that, but a tray of brooches 
 that a customer had been inspecting just before they came 
 in, remained open on the top of one of the cases ; so that if she 
 chose she could take up any one of those marvels for closer 
 examination. And so while Mr. Boyd — who was an old friend 
 of the Macleans, and a solicitous, kindly, amiable sort of man — 
 was inquiring into the state and condition of Jessie's watch, 
 Barhara was passing in review these priceless things, compar- 
 ing and admiring and coveting. But in especial she was at- 
 tracted by the brooch that occupied the place of honor in the 
 middle of the tray. It was formed of a ptarmigan's foot, set 
 in gold, with a deep-yellow cairngorm above, and another stone 
 of the same kind and color fixed in the middle claw. Now 
 the ptarmigan brooches worn by the two young ladies who 
 were on board the Aros Castle — and whom Jack Ogilvic 
 seemed to treat with so much respect — were very plain and 
 simple ornaments; here was something of a similar character, 
 but more rich and resplendent, and better calculated for pur- 
 of display. Alas! she knew too well that it was far 
 
 away OUt Of the reach of her small savings: sudi means and 
 
 methods of drawing attention, of compelling admiration, were 
 for people whose purses were abundantly filled.
 
 A PTARMIGAN BROOCH 141 
 
 Ultimately it was decided that the recusant watch should 
 be left behind; and then, business over, Mr. Boyd proceeded 
 to a little neighborly gossip, in the course of which Barbara 
 was introduced to him, her beautiful eyes winning favor as 
 usual. The friendly jeweller sent his best regards to the 
 widow ; and finally Jessie and Barbara left the shop. 
 
 But they had gone only a few yards when Mr. Boyd came 
 after them — he had not stayed to put on any kind of head- 
 covering. 
 
 " Miss Maclean," said he, and simultaneously both girls 
 turned. "I beg your pardon, but did you happen to notice 
 a gold ptarmigan brooch — it was in a tray on the counter — " 
 
 At the same moment there was a slight click as of some- 
 thing dropping on the pavement. He glanced downward. 
 
 " Oh, here it is," he said ; and he stooped and picked it 
 up. 
 
 For a second there was silence. The watch-maker looked 
 grave and troubled ; Jess appeared to be astonished and per- 
 plexed rather than frightened ; Barbara, timid as a fawn as 
 she ordinarily was, alone remained perfectly impassive of 
 countenance. 
 
 " It must have caught on to some part of your dress," said 
 Mr. Boyd, slowly, and with some constraint. " Well, I'm 
 sorry to have caused you any trouble." And thereupon and 
 with no further word he returned to his shop. 
 
 But on the evening of this same day, sitting by his fire- 
 side, John Boyd seemed thoughtful and depressed ; and his 
 wife would insist on knowing the reason. And at last, under 
 severe injunctions of secrecy, he revealed to her the story. 
 
 " I cannot tell what to think," he continued, as if com- 
 muning with himself. " I made the excuse, then and there, 
 for the sake of my old friend Mrs. Maclean. And maybe it 
 was true ; maybe their dress did catch up the brooch. Such 
 things have happened. For how can I believe that Jessie 
 Maclean, or this cousin of hers, that seems a nice, modest, 
 quiet sort of a girl, would knowingly lift a piece of jewelry 
 from the counter and carry it away ? I cannot believe it. 
 And then, ye see, goodwife, I did not actually find it in the 
 possession of either of them. If I had, it would have been 
 my duty to have called in the police — "
 
 142 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Jolin !"' exclaimed his wife, " have ye taken leave of your 
 wits ? Aye, and if it was the half of your shop that was in 
 question, would ye bring scandal and disgrace on the remain- 
 ing years of an old friend ? No, no ! — not for half the shop, 
 or the whole of the shop ! I'm better acquainted with ye 
 than ye are yourself, man ! And no doubt it was the tassels 
 and bugles that the young girls are so fond of nowadays that 
 catched on to the brooch — no doubt at all that was it !" 
 
 " Maybe so, Jean, maybe so," said the watch-maker, who 
 seemed to have been quite unhinged and upset by this in- 
 cident. "But mind, not one word to any living creature. 
 That is my charge to ye. Not one single word about it to 
 any living creature."
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER 
 
 It wanted but an hour to the lecture, yet Jess Maclean did 
 not stir; she sat silent and absorbed — an unusual mood with 
 her, for she was naturally of a merry temperament ; her head 
 was bent over her needle-work, and she did not look up when 
 she was spoken to. 
 
 " Jess," said her mother, " what has ailed you all the day 
 long ? Any one would think this should be a great occasion 
 for you — you that have always been so proud of Allan Hen- 
 derson, and telling us what we might expect of him. And 
 now he is appearing before the public — and a great many 
 people coming to see him — and who should be more pleased 
 than yourself — aye, and more to the front at such a time, for 
 Allan is never tired of saying that you are the best friend 
 and adviser he has got — " 
 
 " I am not going to the lecture, mother," said Jess. 
 
 " Well, well, now, and what is the meaning of it all ?" the 
 widow demanded. She regarded her daughter a little more 
 narrowly, and was alarmed to see that there were tears in her 
 eyes. " What is the matter, Jess ?" she exclaimed. 
 
 " What is the matter, mother? — what is the matter?" the 
 girl cried, suddenly bursting into a passionate fit of weeping 
 and sobbing. " How can I go to the lecture — how can I face 
 those people — when I am a suspected thief ?" 
 
 And there and then, in incoherent fashion, she told the 
 story of the incident of the previous day, over which she had 
 been brooding for four-and-twenty hours and more. Mean- 
 while the little widow's indignation was like to have altogether 
 overcome her powers of utterance. 
 
 "And that's John Boyd — that's John Boyd !" she managed 
 to say at last — though she was about breathless with anger 
 and scorn. "And who but your own father was it that helped
 
 144 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 him when he had to make a composition with his creditors 
 over twenty years ago, aye, helped to make him the well- 
 to-do man he is this day ; and the best of friends we were 
 supposed to be ; and now it's this John Boyd — it's this John 
 Boyd that comes forward and accuses one of my girls of 
 being a thief !" She rose from her chair and threw aside 
 her work. " Well," said she, with resolute lips, " this very 
 minute I am going along to have a word with John Boyd. 
 I will see what he means by calling either of my girls a 
 thief—" 
 
 " Mother," interposed Jess, piteously, " he did not say that 
 — he did not say anything of the kind. When he spoke 
 it was to make an excuse. It was Mr. Boyd himself that 
 suggested it was likely the brooch had caught on to the 
 dress of one or other of us. That's what he said. But all 
 the same I could sec what he was thinking. I saw his look 
 — though I did not quite understand it till afterwards. And 
 ever since I have been going over what happened ; and now 
 — now I know what he was thinking when he picked up the 
 brooch from the pavement. I know it — I know it — I could 
 see it — and — and I never thought to be taken for a thief." 
 And here there was a fresh burst of crying. " It isn't for a 
 thief," she said, between her sobs, " to go to hear Allan's lect- 
 ure — and face all those people — " 
 
 "Jess," said Mrs. Maclean, firmly, "you'll do as I bid ye. 
 You'll go across to the house, and get yourself dressed and 
 ready, and you'll put out my best things, and you'll send 
 Kirsty over to help me to shut up the shop. I was not going 
 to the lecture ; but now I am going ; and I do not care who 
 the people are, but I will show them, when Barbara and you 
 go in, that you can hold up your heads with any. And as for 
 John Boyd—" 
 
 " Mother, you must not quarrel with Mr. Boyd," pleaded 
 Jess. " It was only natural he should he startled. And he 
 is an old friend — •" 
 
 "Aye, and you do not know the saying, then?" retorted 
 the little widow, sharply. " ' Friendship is as it's kept.'' The 
 man tli.it suspects either you or Barbara of being a thief is 
 no friend of mine. But away with ye, now, and get ready — 
 if Barbara will let you have live minutes of the looking-glass,
 
 A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER 145 
 
 for she's a fearfu' creature for making much of herself and 
 decking herself up. And when Mr. McFadyen comes, you 
 will tell him he must get me a ticket, and I will pay him for 
 it afterwards." 
 
 Peter McFadyen was an important and a consequential man 
 this night. The provost, who had consented to preside at the 
 meeting, had been summoned away to Edinburgh on business 
 connected with the town ; and the senior councillor, nothing 
 loath, had been prevailed on to take his place. And fully 
 sensible of his responsibility was Peter. When the members 
 of the Literary and Scientific Association, and their friends, 
 with many of the townsfolk, and a few representatives of the 
 neighboring gentry, were at length assembled in the Masonic 
 Hall, the chairman was in nowise facetious and droll — as if 
 he were in Mrs. Maclean's back parlor ; he was dignified, and 
 measured of speech. And when, in formally introducing the 
 lecturer to the audience, he had pronounced a pompous little 
 eulogium, which caused Allan to look particularly uncomfort- 
 able, Mr. McFadyen thereafter glanced down towards the Mac- 
 leans, who were seated in the front row. It was plain he 
 would have said : " Do you perceive that, now ? A man may 
 be sprightly and jocular enough in the freedom of private so- 
 ciety, and yet know how to perform his public duties with 
 proper state and decorum." Alas ! Jessie Maclean never looked 
 his way — paid no heed to him. She was intently regarding 
 Allan — she was tremblingly anxious that he should betray no 
 nervousness — in her heart she was beseeching this audience 
 to be kind and attentive and sympathetic. Barbara, who had 
 adorned herself with her most effective finery, kept covertly 
 watching the door ; the handsome purser had not yet put in 
 an appearance — perhaps the Aros Castle was late ; perhaps he 
 had forgotten the half-implied promise. 
 
 Jess need not have been concerned. When the young 
 school-master rose and placed the sheets of his MS. on the 
 stand before him, there was not a trace of nervousness about 
 him ; he acknowledged, and barely acknowledged, the friend- 
 ly reception accorded him ; and at once, and in a business-like 
 way, proceeded with his lecture — the main thesis of which 
 was to the effect that if the German people were to vanish 
 from the face of the earth, leaving only this invaluable col- 
 7
 
 146 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 lection of Volkslieder, the philosopher of future centuries 
 could reconstruct the nation, with all its desires, aims, habits, 
 and occupations, from these various and artless utterances. But 
 it was when he proceeded to give specimens of the folk-songs 
 — using for the most part his own translations — songs of fiery 
 patriotism, songs of plaintive home-yearning, love-songs, and 
 sad farewells, songs of simple family life, songs of banter and 
 merriment, more rarely of sarcasm, joyous drinking-songs, 
 songs and choruses of the hunter's craft, legends and old-world 
 tales — then it was that he captured the interest of his audi- 
 ence, and was rewarded by frequent if timid outbursts of ap- 
 plause. It was the non-literary ballad that he chose by pref- 
 erence — the voice of the common people ; but he could not 
 well exclude Heine's " Pilgrimage to Kevlaar," or Uhland's 
 " Landlady's Daughter," for they also were of the people. 
 And when he repeated a lover's passionate appeal to his 
 sweetheart, or told some pathetic story of half - forgotten 
 times, was he not really addressing, out of all this audience, 
 only one ? There was some comparison of these German 
 folk-songs with the Gaelic songs of the West Highlands, and 
 mention made of one or two well-known favorites ; all this 
 was meant for Barbara — since she had been so graciously 
 kind as to come to the lecture. 
 
 And yet it may be doubted whether Barbara heard any- 
 thing more than an occasional word or phrase, conveying next 
 to nothing. She had abandoned any hope she may have en- 
 tertained of seeing Jack Ogilvie appear at the door of the 
 hall ; and now her attention was turned to the hall itself, the 
 like of which she had never beheld before. For over the 
 deep red walls hung a wonderful ceiling of clear gray-blue ; 
 and at the farther end of the ceiling a golden sun sent out 
 flashing rays, while at the other extreme shone a silver moon 
 surrounded by seven stars. Then all round the room were 
 mysterious devices; and there were painted pillars; and an 
 arch ; and in the key-stone of the arch an eye that glared at 
 her as if out of some vague immensity. Compass, square, and 
 trowel she might or might not understand — they were com- 
 monplace emblems; but this immovable eye seemed to have 
 some incomprehensible and compelling power of scrutiny ; it 
 fascinated her; she could not get away from that relentless
 
 A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER 147 
 
 gaze. And so, if she did listen at all, it was in a mechanical 
 fashion. " Prinz Eugen der edle Ritter, " "Doctor Eisenbart," 
 " Der Jager aus Kurpfalz," had apparently but little interest 
 for her. 
 
 Nevertheless, something did at last happen to arouse her 
 from her apathetic dreaming. The lecturer had been giving 
 examples of the better known of the German bacchanalian 
 songs — " Crambambuli," " Im kiihlen Keller," and the like — 
 when, to everybody's amazement, a tall and gaunt form was 
 seen to rise in the very midst of the assemblage. It was Long 
 Lauchie the shoemaker. For a moment he seemed frightened 
 at his own temerity, and looked round in a helpless way ; but 
 there was an inward monitor to support him ; the next second 
 he had found his speech. 
 
 " I am not wishing to interrupt," he said, in Gaelic, " but 
 every man has his duty, and I will not stand by and be listen- 
 ing in silence — " 
 
 " Order, order," called the chairman, with a portentous 
 frown. 
 
 But the shoemaker, pale as he was on finding himself in 
 this novel position, with all eyes turned towards him, was not 
 to be deterred. 
 
 " It is I that must make my protest, if there is to be such 
 praise of drinking, and not a word of warning to the 
 young—" 
 
 " Order, order," the chairman called out again ; and then he 
 added, with still greater severity : " Maclntyre, sit down, and 
 behave yourself I" 
 
 Meanwhile the lecturer had stopped, and was calmly wait- 
 ing to hear what Long Lauchie had to say. It was Mrs. 
 Maclean who was most violently indignant over the interrup- 
 tion. 
 
 " That tipsy maniac !" she exclaimed, in an undertone. 
 " Will nobody put him out ? To bring disgrace on a meet- 
 ing like this, and Allan going on just splendid !" 
 
 " Such praise of the sin of drinking," continued the shoe- 
 maker, doggedly, " I will set my face against, no matter how 
 many there may be to cry me down. I have no word to say 
 against the young man Allan Henderson ; it is not I that 
 have a word to say against him ; but when I hear such fear-
 
 148 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ful things repeated, I am bound to lift up my voice. Yes, in- 
 deed. Is there any one here that knows what drink is doing 
 in this land — what terrible, terrible things are happening all 
 through the whiskey — " 
 
 " Lauchlan Maclntyre," called out the chairman — who was 
 beside himself with rage and shame on finding his authority 
 thus scouted, " if you do not instantly resume your seat I will 
 ask one or two of the young men near you to remove you 
 from this assembly. Do you hear me, now ? Will you sit 
 down ?" 
 
 " Drink," the shoemaker went on, " is the ruin and curse 
 of this country — it is bringing a judgment upon us — " 
 
 " Then I do call on the young men," broke in Peter, with 
 concealed fury. " Remove him ! You there near him, re- 
 move that person! Put him out. I, as chairman of this 
 meeting, authorize you to put him out." 
 
 Well, there were two or three of the younger lads only too 
 glad to have a little bit of fun, and the luckless shoemaker 
 — offering no physical resistance, it is true, but still insisting 
 on his conscientious protest against anything that savored of 
 the praise of drink — was haled away and conducted to the 
 door, and ejected into the night. Thereafter peace and har- 
 mony were restored ; and the lecture was continued and ended 
 in the most satisfactory manner, a unanimous vote of thanks 
 to the school-master bringing the proceedings to a close. 
 
 And very lively and content was the little supper-party that 
 later on assembled at Mrs. Maclean's — a supper-party limited 
 to five, at the cunning suggestion of the councillor. For, said 
 he, they could be much merrier, with less of restraint, when 
 they were " by themselves;" and "by themselves" had come 
 to mean himself and .less, and Allan and Barbara, with the 
 widow as hostess and guardian. This, therefore, was the 
 circle now gathered round the hospitable board ; and a very 
 happy little circle it seemed to be. Jess, in especial, was in 
 -real spirits ; she was delighted with the way everything had 
 gone off, and at the reception accorded to her hero; though, 
 as usual, she could not help gibing and moeking at him. 
 
 "There's some that pretend to be very masterful and cool 
 and undisturbed," said she, darkly. " Put when 1 see a young 
 man that is impatient of every word of introduction — though
 
 A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER 149 
 
 all kinds of fine things are being said about him — and that is 
 anxious to plunge at once into the business before him, I can 
 tell that he is just as timorous as a mouse, for all his affecta- 
 tion of composure." 
 
 " If you mean me, Jessie," said the school-master, laugh- 
 ing, " I will confess this to you — that I think I must have 
 been nervous. I did not know it at the time ; but I guess 
 that it must have been so, from the sensation of relief I have 
 now that it's all over." 
 
 " I hope," observed Mr. McFadyen, who still preserved a 
 certain air of state — " I hope I was not too severe in rebuk- 
 ing that fool of a man Maclntyre — " 
 
 " Severe !" cried the little widow, with returning indigna- 
 tion. " He should have been locked up by the police ! To 
 interrupt a meeting in that way ! I declare it made me feel 
 quite historical — I was like to choke — " 
 
 " And I trust there was no undue violence," continued the 
 councillor, still with something of a grand air, " on the part 
 of the young men who removed him. It was a painful duty 
 that devolved upon me ; but I had to execute it ; and I trust 
 there was no undue violence — " 
 
 " Oh, you need not trouble about that, Mr. McFadyen," 
 Jess said, blithely. " The young lads who carried out your 
 orders — and the shoemaker — did it as peaceably as was pos- 
 sible." 
 
 " Ah, well, ah, well," said Peter, with a sigh of satisfac- 
 tion, " it was but a trifling incident, after all ; and one may 
 fairly say that the whole evening was a distinct success. 
 And though in a measure I was l'esponsible for the conduct 
 of the proceedings, still I do not think I am taking credit to 
 myself when I maintain that everything went off just beauti- 
 ful. And, mind you, Allan, lad, it's a great thing for you to 
 keep yourself before the public — you, that's starting the Latin 
 class, and having a fine career before ye, as we all of us hope. 
 It's a great thing to be known and respected by your fellow- 
 townsmen ; and I was well pleased to see, when ye stood up, 
 that ye had a friendly welcome from them — " 
 
 " And what did you think of the Masonic Hall, Miss Bar- 
 bara ?" said the young school-master, turning abruptly to his 
 neighbor — for he did not like this talk about himself.
 
 150 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " I was never seeing any place like that before," the girl 
 said. "And I could not understand the meaning of the 
 things on the walls. There was one, in front of me, that was 
 very strange — it looked like a large eye, single and star- 
 ing—'' 
 
 " Oh, that is the All-seeing Eye — I suppose, for I am not 
 a mason," he said. 
 
 She regarded him for a moment, doubtfully. 
 
 "All-seeing?" she repeated; and then she said, with some 
 petulance : " But how can it be All-seeing, when it is only 
 painted on the wall ?" 
 
 " It is merely an emblem," he replied, with great gentle- 
 ness. "It does not pretend to be anything but a symbol — " 
 
 " Is it put there to frighten people ?" she demanded, resent- 
 fully. 
 
 " Why, surely not !" 
 
 " Then what is the use of it ? — though any one knows that 
 an eye painted on a wall cannot be seeing anything !" she 
 said. And this was her last word on the subject ; and suf- 
 ficiently enigmatic it was ; for he knew nothing of what se- 
 cret imaginings had been passing through her mind, as she 
 sat and half listened to the discourse about German folk- 
 songs. 
 
 Altogether, a cheerful and pleasant hour or so, after the 
 serious labors of the evening were over ; but it was growing 
 late ; and at length Mr. McFadycn and Allan rose to go. 
 Nevertheless, the councillor was still loquacious; for there 
 was to be a great match at golf between the station-master 
 and himself on the following Monday afternoon ; and he 
 was anxious that Jessie and Barbara and Mrs. Maclean, too, 
 if that were possible, should witness the contest ; and he was 
 discussing this project as he went to the door, both Jess and 
 In t mother accompanying him. This was Allan's opportunity 
 — Barbara having remained behind: it was an opportunity 
 thrust upon him, as it were chancewise — an opportunity he 
 could not, and did not care to, avoid. For he was in a per- 
 turbed and reckless mood; the events of the evening had in 
 some measure excited him ; still more so the bewilderment 
 of having once again been sitting next this beautiful creature, 
 with glimpses of the raven-black tangles of her hair, and an
 
 A LECTURE AND THEREAFTER 151 
 
 occasional glance from the deep, clear, mystic eyes. And 
 now, when the others had gone on, he turned to her ; she be- 
 came aware of his approach ; a sndden touch of apprehension 
 appeared in her face. 
 
 " Barbara," he said — and his tones were low and impas- 
 sioned, " is it too soon for me to speak ?" 
 
 She uttered no word — she looked afraid. 
 
 " Did you hear what some of those lovers said in the 
 songs ?" he went on. " And did you not take it to yourself — 
 as if I were appealing to you ? For — for, surely you under- 
 stand. You came to me out of the night and the dark ; and 
 now I want you to go with me through the long day — the 
 long day that I hope lies before us two together. Will you 
 do that, Barbara ? Or is it too soon to ask ?" 
 
 " Yes, yes," she said, with quick relief, " it is that — it is 
 too soon yet — " 
 
 " But only too soon ?" he urged, seeking in vain for some 
 answering message from those downcast eyes. " Later on, 
 when you have got used to thinking of it, you will not fear 
 to say yes — you will let me hope for that ?" 
 
 But again she was silent ; and here were Jess and her 
 mother returning from the outer staircase ; so that for the 
 present there was no assurance for him — only the solace that 
 now she knew what lay in his mind, burning there like a con- 
 suming: fire.
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 COUNCILLOR V. STATION-MASTER 
 
 Early one afternoon, the councillor, the station-master, the 
 station-master's wife, Jess Maclean, and Barbara left the town 
 by way of the Dunstaffnage road, making for the golf-links 
 facing the western sea. And of course Peter McFadyen was 
 the life and soul of this little group ; he was overjoyed at 
 Jessie's condescension in coming — indeed this was but part 
 of the marked favor she had shown him ever since he had 
 begun to take an active interest in Allan's welfare ; and he 
 was looking forward with delight to another opportunity of 
 displaying his prowess and skill. He talked and laughed 
 and made merry jests ; he was all eager anticipation ; and 
 when they faced the steep highway leading away from Dnn- 
 troone, he it was who led, with his chest manfully puffed out. 
 
 " There's nothing," he maintained, " like a good stiff walk 
 for giving free play to the muscles, and free play to the mus- 
 cles is the ' seeny quah non ' on the links. A soople wrist 
 and a springy ankle — and there ye are ! What's the use of 
 standing up like a stick ? Dod, I'd like to take half the 
 golfers I see and send them to got lessons from a dancing- 
 master !" 
 
 Nor were his high spirits at all damped when the little 
 party had to pass the cemetery. 
 
 " The poor bodies in there," said he, with much cheerful- 
 ness, " arc at rest ; and we'll be the same in our turn. But 
 in the meantime — in the meantime," Peter remarked, with ;i 
 twinkle in his eye, "my opinion is like that of the idiot lad- 
 die al the funeral, ' I'm glad it's no me.'" 
 
 And again when they left the highway to cross Colquhoun's 
 farm In- kept in front in order to open the gates ; and thus 
 he was enabled t<> discover that ahead of them there was 
 nothing more formidable than a number of cows, the bull
 
 COUNCILLOR V. STATION-MASTER 153 
 
 being away down in a hollow near a small loch. Whereupon 
 the cunning Peter affected to regard those animals with some 
 caution. 
 
 " That bull of Colquhoun's," said he, turning to the women- 
 folk, " is a terrible ill-natured beast; but the only way is 
 to pay no heed to him ; you must not shrink back on any 
 account. You just follow me now when I open the gate — " 
 
 Here the station-master — a tall, thin, angular man, with 
 fiery red hair — burst out laughing. 
 
 " Peter, my friend," said he, " you need not be afraid of a 
 lot of cows. Yonder's the bull, away down by the loch." 
 
 Peter looked round and elevated his eyebrows in well- 
 simulated astonishment. 
 
 " Yes, indeed," he observed. " I do believe you're right. 
 Not that it matters whether he's there or here. The one way 
 with a bull is to pay no heed to him. If he had been within 
 a yard of this gate, you'd have seen me open it in his face. 
 There's but the one way with a bull," reiterated Peter — as he 
 piloted the women past the cows. 
 
 Presently they came within view of the wide western seas 
 and the hills ; and a wonderful sight it was ; for while all the 
 world around them, both land and water, lay under a mysteri- 
 ous brooding semi-darkness, because of one unbroken cloud 
 that stretched across the whole of the overarching heavens, 
 away out by Mull and Morven there appeared to be another 
 world altogether, a world of mountains shining as it were be- 
 hind a soft veil of sunlight, in ethereal tones of orange red 
 and silver gray and rose. No wonder the idle wanderers 
 paused to look; but the councillor was impatient for the fray, 
 and hurried them on. 
 
 Of a sudden Jess stopped. 
 
 " What's that ?" said she, staring at a whin-bush a little 
 way up the bank. " Is there somebody there ? I'm sure I 
 saw something or somebody looking at me — just for a mo- 
 ment — " 
 
 " I'll soon find out," said the councillor, valiantly — for in 
 the protection of weak feminine human nature he was afraid 
 of neither robber nor rabbit. At once he sprang up the 
 bank, with surprising agility ; he went round by the back of 
 the whins ; and there he found Niall Gorach, crouching down 
 7*
 
 154 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 like a hare in her form. Ho got hold of the half-witted lad 
 by the collar, and hauled him into the road. 
 
 " Ye young scoundrel, I'll teach ye to go frightening folk 
 in that way — " 
 
 But Jess directly interposed. 
 
 " Indeed, you will not harm him," said she. "I have not 
 seen Niall since the time he found Allan Henderson lying 
 out among the rocks, and I'm sure we are all very much in- 
 debted to him ; and, Mr. McFadyen, it would be wise like if 
 you were to give the lad a sixpence, and he would carry your 
 clubs for you round the links." 
 
 Niall looked from one to the other — with perhaps a side 
 glance to see if there was any way of escape from both. But 
 when McFadyen, delighted to obey Jess in all things, promptly 
 unslung from his shoulder his bag of golfing implements and 
 handed it over, the half-witted creature took possession of it 
 in quite a docile way, and then he turned to her who had in- 
 terceded for him. 
 
 "Am I to get a sixpence?" he asked, timidly. 
 
 " Yes, indeed," said Jess, in friendly fashion. 
 
 "And he'll not strike me ?" 
 
 "He is not thinking of any such thing!" she answered 
 him — and the assurance seemed sufficient. 
 
 A few minutes thereafter Niall sidled up to her again, and 
 said, in an undertone, 
 
 " I'll show ye the white stag." 
 
 " What white Btag ?" she asked, with her gray eyes smiling 
 in a way that generally inspired confidence. 
 
 " The white stag that's in the sanctuary of the Creannoch 
 Forest. There's none but me has seen it. I'll take you there 
 — I'll show it to ye." But at this point Niall's services were 
 required ; they had arrived at the teeing-ground ; the great 
 contest was about to begin. 
 
 And now the councillor, to whom had been accorded the 
 honor of opening the game, selected his driver and took out 
 from tho pocket one of the cream-white balls. But he was 
 very jocular all the same. He wished to show that, even in 
 tin' presence of these fair spectators, he was not in the least 
 DervoUS. Other players might play in solemn silence — he 
 was not to be tyrannized over by either precept or custom.
 
 COUNCILLOR V. STATION-MASTER 155 
 
 And he was still talking and jesting as he stooped down to 
 form a little tee of sand, on the top of which he placed his 
 ball, and even when he rose again and got hold of his club 
 the inward seriousness that had possession of him was not 
 allowed to appear on his face. 
 
 " You'll just stand well back," said he, facetiously, " for 
 golf -clubs sometimes run away wi' the player, and I would 
 not like to do you an injury." 
 
 Then he addressed himself to the ball. He heaved his 
 shoulders slightly, to make sure that everything was free ; he 
 took a last look at the far height which it whs his aim to 
 reach; he clinched his teeth; with his left heel slightly raised, 
 and his eyes fixed determinedly on the white object before 
 him, he elevated his club — up, and up, and up — until from 
 well behind his back it came forward and down again with a 
 most mighty "swipe." There was a whistle of cleft air; the 
 councillor spun round on his left foot, so prodigious had been 
 the force of the stroke ; and when everybody's gaze had re- 
 turned from asking what had happened, it was startlingly 
 evident that the ball still remained on the tee. Peter broke 
 into a laugh. It was a hearty laugh — not like the ironical 
 grin that appeared on the features of the station-master. 
 
 " Dod," said he, in humorous self-disparagement, " that's a 
 fine one ! That's well done ! That's a good beginning ! But 
 better late luck than no luck — " 
 
 " Man, Peter," said his opponent, " were ye for driving the 
 ball to Banavie ?" 
 
 " Keep your breath to cool your own parritch," retorted 
 McFadyen, confidently. " I'm no done with you yet, Jamie. 
 The game's young." 
 
 For he was again addressing himself to the ball. And this 
 time he did manage to hit it, and that with savage energy ; 
 but somehow something went wrong ; it flew off at an oblique 
 angle, it rose unnecessarily high, and almost immediately 
 dropped at the foot of the meadow, where there was a ditch 
 covered over with whins and withered flag and fern. 
 
 "Ye're in a mess this time, Peter," observed the sta- 
 tion-master, grimly, as he proceeded to make a tee for 
 himself. 
 
 But Peter had too much dignity, and was too anxious to
 
 156 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 stand well in the eyes of the fair, to betray resentment or ex- 
 asperation. 
 
 " This driver's fit for nothing," said be, regarding the club 
 with great disfavor. " It's forever heeling or toeing. The 
 only tool that's fit to drive with is a bulger ; catch me coming 
 out with anything else again ! Well, let's see what you can 
 do, Jamie." 
 
 For Gilmour was now about to play his first stroke. And 
 when he did so the ball flew away with a fine metallic "pirr" 
 that sounded pleasantly to all ears but Peter's ; it skimmed 
 the wide meadow, slightly rising before the end of its flight, 
 it got clear over a dangerous hazard formed by a burn banked 
 with whins, and on falling it was conspicuous on the face of 
 the declivity beyond. This patent success of his enemy was 
 even more trying to the councillor's temper than anything 
 that had happened before. But he bore up well, lie said not 
 a word. And it was with a certain air of calm composure 
 that he walked away towards the ditch to look for his ball, 
 his companions following. 
 
 When they came up there was a different story to tell. 
 The councillor could not find the ball, nor was it likely he 
 should ever find it, amid this waste of withered herbage and 
 ponds of stagnant water ; yet 'nevertheless he was hunting 
 and probing hither and thither, and viciously hacking at the 
 whins with his iron cleek, while the anger at his heart was 
 now becoming outwardly visible. 
 
 " Do not mind it, Mr. McFadyen," said the sympathetic 
 Mrs. Gilmour. " Take another ball and go on from where 
 you are." 
 
 But Peter, speechless with vexation, would continue his 
 probing and hacking. 
 
 " Three minutes gone out of the five," said the station-mas- 
 ter, playfully, holding his watch in his hand. 
 
 "James!" remonstrated his wife, in indignant tones. "Ye 
 would not claim any such thing! Mr. McFadyen must take 
 aunt her ball, and go on from where he is." 
 
 "And who in all creation ever heard of women laying 
 flown the law on a golf-links?" cried the ungallanl Gilmour; 
 and thru he added, with a cruel smile, " Four minutes gone, 
 Peter."
 
 'five minutes gone out ok the ten,' said the station-master"
 
 COUNCILLOR V. STATION-MASTER 157 
 
 And at last the imbittered councillor had to abandon the 
 unavailing search. 
 
 " The first hole is yours, Gilmour," he said, gloomily. " But 
 the first hole is not the game ; I would have ye remember 
 that." 
 
 " Well I am aware of it," said the station-master, blithely. 
 " And you know what they say : ' A good ending is better 
 than a bad beginning.' " 
 
 And indeed fortune was not disposed to keep up a perpet- 
 ual quarrel with the councillor ; it would hardly have been 
 fair, considering who were looking on, and considering his ea- 
 ger desire to shine. At the very outset of their progress to 
 the next hole the station-master got into trouble ; the drive 
 which he led off was a good drive in every respect except di- 
 rection ; at the end of its flight the ball disappeared over a 
 stone-wall, and had no doubt dropped into the farm road on 
 the other side. This raised Mr. McFadyen's spirits not a lit- 
 tle. When he came to play, he paid scrupulous attention to 
 his tee ; he placed the ball most carefully ; he paused for a 
 second or two to make sure of the lie of the land ; and when 
 he struck, it was with all the swing and freedom and ar-t he 
 could command. Away went the small white globe, in a 
 gradually rising curve ; they watched and watched it ; they 
 watched and watched it — against the softly gray sky ; and 
 when at length it subsided, at a great distance off, and out in 
 the open, joy returned to the councillor's heart once more. 
 
 " Well done !" said Jess, quite honestly. 
 
 " Well done indeed !" cried Mrs. Gilmour. 
 
 And even Barbara, who had been gazing away towards the 
 Sound of Mull, turned to see what was going on. 
 
 " It's a little better — a little better," said Mr. McFadyen, 
 with a fine indifference. " One cannot always be playing like 
 a born idiot. Now let's go and see what Gilmour is about." 
 
 By this time the station-master had clambered over the dike, 
 and had succeeded in finding his ball, which lay in a deep rut 
 in the road. And now the secret exultation of the councillor 
 could hardly be any longer suppressed. He called up the 
 women-folk to look over the wall at Gilmour's most miserable 
 plight. For truly the station-master was in ill-luck. Twice 
 he got the ball well out of the rut, and twice it struck the top
 
 158 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 of the wall, falling back into the road again. Peter laughed 
 loud and long over this amusing spectacle. 
 
 " Hit him again, Jimmie !" he cried. " Dod, it's grand ex- 
 ercise for ye ! But keep your temper ! Keep your temper 
 now ! — I've seen more than one club bashed in that road." 
 
 Eventually the station-master got out of all his difficulties ; 
 but they had sadly handicapped him ; and when at length he 
 and the councillor had reached the green there could be little 
 doubt about the result ; the proud and pleased Peter won this 
 hole easily. 
 
 And so, with varying success and mishap, they made their 
 way along and across these rude and untutored links, until 
 they were nearing the dreaded Pinnacle. 
 
 "Wait till ye see Gilmourat the Pinnacle," Peter had said, 
 with a sly wink, to Jess Maclean. "Jamie's temper can stand 
 anything and everything — except the Pinnacle." 
 
 They were now come to a rising slope beyond which was an 
 unseen hollow, while beyond the hollow again rose a consider- 
 able height, the steep face of which was scarred across by little 
 ridges of a muddy and sloppy nature. The temptation here 
 placed before the ingenuous player is to try to get over this 
 desperate hazard by oue daring drive from the tee — the com- 
 mon result of which is that he lands in the intervening valley, 
 or strikes the impossible face of the hill, a still more hopeless 
 fate ; while the cunning practitioner, playing a half-stroke 
 from the tec, is content to reach the top of the hither slope, 
 from which he has a better chance of sending his ball right 
 on to the summit of the Pinnacle. It was with a subdued 
 smile that Peter watched the station-master make his prepa- 
 rations. 
 
 "Now for a good one, Jamie," said he, with diabolical guile. 
 " The Pinnacle's always making a fool of ye ! Let's sec what 
 you can do now !" 
 
 But, whether by accident or design, the station - master 
 made no sort of display; his ball landed at the top of the 
 near slope, lying well for the next drive, and considerably 
 dashing the councillor's baleful anticipations. I'etcr now 
 played, getting i<> about the same place. Then came <iil- 
 mour's opportunity ; and with a very excellent " swipe," that 
 earned the generous applause of the spectators, he sent his
 
 COUNCILLOR. V. STATION-MASTER 159 
 
 ball sailing away over that ugly chasm until it dropped on the 
 opposite crest : at last he had conquered the Pinnacle ! 
 
 Now of course Peter could do no better, but at least he 
 might do as well ; and so, with anxious heart but resolute 
 mien, he made ready. He looked at the horrid cliff, with 
 its steps and stairs of sloppy herbage ; he looked at the tiny 
 white globe before him ; he pursed up his lips firmly — he 
 raised his club — he struck a manful stroke. Alas ! that such 
 things should be — the ball did indeed clear the chasm, but all 
 too unmistakably did it alight on the opposite face ; it hesi- 
 tated for a moment ; then the white spot was seen to come 
 hopping slowly and quietly into the valley below. It was 
 now the station-master's turn to jeer, and jeer he did — in 
 such a fashion that his wife had angrily and shamefacedly to 
 protest. 
 
 What followed is almost too painful for narration ; except 
 in this way, that the spectacle of a man wrestling with his 
 agony has always been understood to arouse woman's sympa- 
 thy ; and Jess Maclean was looking on. No matter how the 
 councillor fought and strove, changing the trusted niblick for 
 the crafty sand-iron, or intrusting his fortunes to the useful 
 cleek, that small white sphere, with a remorseless and malig- 
 nant pertinacity, would return from the greatest height he 
 could reach, sliding, hopping, rolling, until it lay contentedly 
 in front of him. 
 
 " Put it in your pocket, Peter — put the ball in your pocket, 
 man !" the station-master shouted from the top of the Pinna- 
 cle — mercilessly returning the taunts that had so often been 
 addressed to himself. 
 
 And this, after a few more frantic trials, Peter was con- 
 strained to do, for by this time the evening was wearing on ; 
 but all the same he was determined to conceal his bitter mor- 
 tification. Jess must see that in the most tragic circum- 
 stances he could preserve his equanimity. 
 
 " Jamie," he called, " come away down out o' that, man ; 
 it's time to be making for home. The afternoon's yours ; 
 we'll live to fight another day." 
 
 So the Homeric contest was ended, and the shades of even- 
 ing fell ; but the overhead sky was clearing as they made their 
 way to the sea-shore, and by the time they entered the woods
 
 160 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 skirting the coast there was some suggestion of moonlight 
 wandering down through the black stems, and causing a shad- 
 ow here and there on the aucient-worn pathway. When they 
 got into the open again the moon was found to be high in 
 the southeast with a halo of pale lemon-hue around it ; there 
 were a few solitary clouds hanging high, that still had a lin- 
 gering touch of saffron about them ; the waters down the 
 Sound of Kerrara were of a cold metallic gray. The coun- 
 cillor was in great form. This was quite a picturesque and 
 romantic ending to their afternoon's diversion. In the woods 
 he had lifted up his voice and sang ; and now, fronting the 
 open bay, he sang ; and the burden of his song, shrill as it 
 might be, was the praise of young Jessie, the Flower of Dum- 
 blane. lie might just as well have said Duntroone : they all 
 knew. 
 
 " ' Is lovely young Jessie, 
 Is lovely young Jessie, 
 Is lovely young Jessie, the Flower of Dumllane' 1 '" — 
 
 thus he skirled away, with many gay flourishes, until they 
 were nearing the town, when decorum demanded silence. 
 
 And of course the first thing they did when they got into 
 Campbell Street was to go and report themselves to the wid- 
 ow ; and the first person they saw — or at least the most con- 
 spicuous — when they entered the little parlor, was Jack Ogil- 
 vie, the purser of the Aros Castle. Barbara seemed to waken 
 out of a dream.
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 AN INTRUDER 
 
 " And how are you yourself, Mr. McFadyen ?" said Ogilvie, 
 when he had paid his respects to the two girls, and resumed 
 his seat. " I'm glad to see by the newspaper that you can 
 hold your own at the council — that you're not afraid of the 
 provost himself." 
 
 Now there was a kind of gay assurance — a happy-go-lucky 
 fashion of making himself at home — about the young man 
 that the councillor keenly resented ; but at the same time this 
 compliment to his courage in debate somewhat mollified Peter. 
 
 " I'll not deny," said he, sententiously, " that there are oc- 
 casions when it is one's duty to stand by one's opinions, even 
 at the risk of being considered quarrelsome. When a man 
 has convictions he must maintain them. And I have never 
 budged from my position that with regard to the water sup- 
 ply, Loch-a-Voulin is the only and proper loch — " 
 
 " What is this your Gaelic Choir are after ?" Jack Ogilvie 
 asked, turning lightly to Jess Maclean. 
 
 " I have not heard of anything, then," she answered. 
 
 " Oh, they are meditating great doings," said he. " It ap- 
 pears that a number of members of the Glasgow Choir are 
 coming through ; and your choir want to entertain them — a 
 concert and ball, or something of the sort ; and they have al- 
 ready asked me to act as M.C. Well, I was not quite sure to 
 say yes or no, when I remembered that Miss Barbara had 
 promised me a dance on the first opportunity of the kind, 
 and of course that decided me." 
 
 Instantly all eyes were turned to Barbara, with surprised 
 inquiry. Where had Barbara learned to dance ? And how 
 could this conversation between her and the purser have 
 taken place ? The girl herself, showing the greatest distress 
 and confusion, was silent.
 
 1C2 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "Aye, and where did }'ou find a dancing -master at 
 Knockalanish ?" asked Mrs. Maclean, smiling good-naturedly 
 enough. 
 
 But Barbara seemed to consider the question a taunt. 
 
 "There's plenty on the island can dance very well," said 
 she, " and the one can show the other." 
 
 So the mystery remained a mystery ; for Jack Ogilvie, per- 
 ceiving that his chance remark had caused some trouble, im- 
 mediately came to her rescue and turned the conversation 
 into another channel. Moreover, he could talk well. Before 
 securing his present employment he had made many voyages, 
 and seen many places and things ; he had an abundance of 
 amusing experiences ; he was accustomed, because of his good 
 looks and his pleasant manners, to be made much of; and he 
 chatted away — to Mrs. Maclean, to Jess, to Barbara — freely 
 and cheerfully, and as one who knew he was welcome. All 
 this but increased the councillor's profound chagrin. What 
 right had this intruder to come into the sacred circle? There 
 was an air of audacious youth about him that was in itself 
 offensive. Then Mr. McFadyen, who was accustomed to 
 boast of his knowledge of the world, found himself driven 
 into a narrow and cramped little provincial corner by this gay 
 conversationalist who had been everywhere and had seen 
 everything. What was the use of vaunting Ben-Nevis and 
 Ben-Cruachan before one who had beheld the pale snows of 
 Mount Etna towering above the burned and torrid slopes of 
 Sicily ? What was the use of talking about the government 
 gunboat just come into the bay to one who had watched a 
 Mediterranean squadron steam into the Pirseusl The hilly 
 semicircle of Duntroone looked well enough as one came sail- 
 ing into the harbor ; but perhaps it was hardly so impressive 
 as the domes and minarets and gardens of Stamboul seen 
 from across the waters of the Golden Horn. And though Mr. 
 Boyd's cairngorms were no doubt very line, and his Bettings 
 of Iona stones ingenious and intricate, they could not well lie 
 compared with the treasures of the museums which this young 
 man had carelessly visited in his various wanderings. And 
 the WOrsI of it was that he had DO BWaggeT about hill). lie 
 
 had no need of Bwagger; he was too handsome, loo good- 
 humored, too used to favoring glances ami smiles. And,
 
 AN INTRUDER 163 
 
 alas ! he was dowered with the terrible dower of youth, that 
 is so merciless in its victories. 
 
 But if the councillor fretted and fumed in his provincial 
 corner, that was not the mood in which Barbara Maclean, 
 who had entirely recovered from her momentary confusion, 
 sat and listened to all this easy, brilliant discursive talk. 
 Never before had she had such an opportunity of studying 
 Ogilvie's appearance, of observing all those elegances and re- 
 finements and perfections that in her eyes appeared to sepa- 
 rate him from the rest of mankind.- New fascinations, new 
 attractions, were every moment being revealed to her. For 
 example, his hair, that was of a light golden-brown, with 
 something more than a tendency to curl, was cut particularly 
 short about the nape of the neck ; but, short as it was, there 
 was no suggestion of stubble ; on the contrary, it lay about 
 in little silken waves on the fair and sun-tanned skin. His 
 laugh, too, was honest and unaffected ; it seemed to be the ex- 
 pression of a naturally happy temperament ; life appeared to 
 go well with him. And of course Jack Ogilvie, whatever he 
 might be talking or laughing about, could not but be con- 
 scious of the presence of an extremely pretty girl, who, be- 
 sides, paid him rapt attention ; and if he did not exactly lay 
 himself out to captivate, at least he had no thought of hiding 
 his light under a bushel. The councillor, disappointed and 
 angry, had relapsed into a sullen silence. 
 
 But Mr. McFadyen had his innings when the dazzling sun- 
 god had departed. 
 
 " There is nothing I despise so much," he declared, with 
 emphasis, " as a flippant young man. For where there is 
 flippancy there is no depth ; and where there is no depth 
 there is no stabeelity ; and where there is no stabeelity there 
 can be nothing to look forward to but the downward road to 
 wreck and ruin. The creature of a summer day — a fluff of a 
 candle — a butterfly blown by the wind ! I appeal to you, 
 Mrs. Maclean," he went on, earnestly, " What would hap- 
 pen to us if we took no heed of the serious interests of life ? 
 Look at the questions that press close on us — look at the 
 water supply — look at vaccination — look at the housing of 
 the poor ; did ye see the last report ?" 
 
 " Indeed I did," said the little widow. " And I was just
 
 1C4 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 shocked to see the rate of infant immortality — it's fearful to 
 think of—" 
 
 " Did not I say so — did not I say so ?" he exclaimed — as 
 though he had discovered some dark connection between 
 Jack Ogilvie and that Herodian slaughter. " If we do not 
 face the problems of existence, we perish ; it's the one thing 
 or the other ; gallivanting about like a butterfly will not do. 
 The world's not made up of idleness and amusement — " 
 
 At this point Mr. McFadyen stopped. It may have oc- 
 curred to him that he was entirely on the wrong tack. For 
 had he not consistently been, especially before these young 
 folk, the foremost champion of all sorts of gayeties and 
 sports and pastimes, and anxious to display his own profi- 
 ciency therein ? These gloomy preachments did not be- 
 come one who excelled in the graceful varsoviana, who sang 
 "When other lips" with touching pathos, who could throw 
 the hammer against any of the younger men, or drive a ball 
 from the Pinnacle right on to the next green. Happily, at 
 this moment, Barbara stepped in to afford him the means of 
 retrieving his error. 
 
 " If the Gaelic Choir are to have dancing," said she, " will 
 it be in the Drill Hall?" 
 
 " Ah, there, now," rejoined the councillor, with some re- 
 turn of his ordinary buoyancy ; " there, now, will be a fine 
 evening; and no doubt it will be in the Drill Hall; and I 
 should not wonder if the Glasgow Choir gave us some part- 
 singing before the dance. Of course, it may be presumptuous 
 in me to assume that I am to be invited — " 
 
 " They could not do without ye, Mr. McFadyen !" cried the 
 widow. 
 
 " But if all goes well," continued the councillor, modestly, 
 " I hope to have Miss Jessie and her cousin under my escort, 
 just as we were before." 
 
 " And this time," said Barbara, glancing somewhat ner- 
 vously from the one to the other, " this time will we wait a 
 little while fur the dancing?" 
 
 "Oh yes, if yuu would like," the widow responded, with 
 lnr usual magnanimity. "I will trust to Mr. McFadyen to 
 look after you both and bring you safe home." Almost im- 
 mediately thereafter, with some trifling excuse, Barbara left
 
 AN INTRUDER 165 
 
 those others to themselves ; she crossed the street, went up 
 the stair, and entered the house ; and there she made straight 
 for her own room, and for the two drawers in which lay the 
 odds and ends of millinery she had managed to acquire since 
 the occasion of Mrs. McAskill's ball. 
 
 Apparently the handsome young purser had found the 
 hour or so he had passed in Mrs. Maclean's parlor pleasant 
 enough ; for he got into the way of looking in of an evening, 
 especially when he had any intelligence to convey about the 
 visit of the Glasgow Choir ; while Barbara, under pretext that 
 she wished to learn how to become useful in the shop, went 
 regularly over at the close of each day, whoever might chance 
 to call. On the other hand, Allan Henderson was conspicu- 
 ously absent ; he was busy about the starting of his Latin 
 class ; and he was keen to have all things well in train before 
 bringing his budget of news to this little circle of friends. 
 Perhaps, if success were assured, or even seen to be probable, 
 Barbara might be attracted ? Hitherto she had shown the 
 scantiest interest in his doings ; but perchance these larger 
 schemes might win her attention ? And she knew what was 
 spurring him on — she knew what hopes he had formed; it 
 miffht be that this future to which he was looking she would 
 recognize as also her own. 
 
 At length one evening the school-master, his brain a chaos 
 of wild anticipations, went along to the tobacconist's shop 
 and entered, and tapped at the partly opened door of the 
 parlor. 
 
 " Come in, Allan," the widow called at once. 
 
 But already he had perceived that a stranger was there — 
 a stranger in one sense, though of course every one in Dun- 
 troone knew by sight the purser of the Aros Castle. 
 
 " Where have you been all this while ?" continued Mrs. 
 Maclean, cheerfully. " We were thinking of sending round 
 the bellman to find you out. And surely you know Mr. 
 Ogilvie ?" 
 
 The two young men nodded — the one lightly and care- 
 lessly, the other stiffly enough. 
 
 " And is the rain off yet ?" she asked again — for there was 
 an awkward pause. 
 
 Allan made some kind of answer. Already his mind was
 
 •166 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 filled with vague misgivings. This stranger appeared to be 
 but little of a stranger; be seemed to be on the most friendly 
 and familiar terms with everybody ; he had installed him- 
 self and made himself at home in a surprisingly short time. 
 And what now happened, simple as the incident was, only 
 served to increase the school - master's nebulous apprehen- 
 sions. 
 
 " Oh, was it raining when you came in ?" Barbara said, in 
 a very amiable way, to Ogilvie. Therewith she crossed over 
 to the peg on which he had hung his cap, and she took 
 down the cap and examined it. " Yes, indeed," said she. 
 " And how careless you are !" With that she went and got 
 a cloth ; she Drought the cap along to the gasalicr ; and very 
 carefully she polished the two brass buttons and the narrow 
 band of glazed leather. It was a good-natured little action, 
 perhaps of no import; but in the eyes of Allan Henderson 
 this betrayal of sympathetic interest, on the part of one ordi- 
 narily so reserved and indifferent, was of startling significance. 
 As for Ogilvie, he only laughed. 
 
 " In my trade," said he, " we don't mind a few drops of 
 water, whether salt or fresh." 
 
 " But when you are on shore, you should do as shore-folk 
 do," she said ; and thereupon she went and returned the cap 
 to its peg. Henderson remembered afterwards that he had 
 never seen her figure look so bewitchingly graceful as when 
 she was holding the brass buttons up to the gaslight, the 
 better to polish them and the glazed leather band. 
 
 No, it was not Jack Ogilvie, purser of the Aros Castle, 
 who was (he stranger; it was he, Allan Henderson, who 
 found himself, or imagined himself to be, a stranger. He felt 
 himself isolated and companionless ; his poor little budget 
 of news, so all-important to himself, neither asked for nor 
 thought of; all the talk was of the festivities in connection 
 with the forthcoming visit of the Glasgow Choir. Jess, it is 
 true, would occasionally try to say a word or two to him, or 
 would proffer him the matches, or the like ; hut he was proud 
 and hurt ; it was in stern silence that he listened to all this 
 
 babblement about dancing and partners and dress. _ Strangest 
 thing of all, it was Barbara — Barbara the apathetic and mo- 
 rose — who was now most animated; her liquid dark-blue eyes
 
 AN INTRUDER 167 
 
 were full of life, her parted lips smiling, a pleased and eager 
 interest giving a fresh bloom to her complexion. 
 
 " I am sure the waltz country-dance is as pretty as any," 
 she was saying. 
 
 " Yes, when you have plenty of good waltzers," Ogilvie 
 interposed, with a laugh. 
 
 " And the figure is so simple," she continued, addressing 
 him alone ; " there is no difficulty in trying to remember. 
 But the figures of the quadrille — and worse still, the figures 
 of the lancers — well, who can remember them ?" 
 
 " Who ?" he repeated, gayly. " Why, your partner, to be 
 sure ! That's his business. You should be taken through a 
 quadrille without a moment's trouble ; it's for your partner 
 to tell you what is coming next. That is the good-fortune of 
 being a young lady — everything is done for you — you have 
 no bother. But I'm afraid that what is considered the best 
 use of a dance in the great houses in London would not be 
 practicable at the Drill Hall. A couple of partners wouldn't 
 find it easy to 'sit out' and have a confidential chat by them- 
 selves — unless they went down the steps into the lane, and 
 that would be awkward, among the mud, with perhaps an ar- 
 riving carriage or two — " 
 
 " But surely Mr. McFadyen will see that everything is done 
 in a proper way," observed Mrs. Maclean, not quite under- 
 standing the point. " It would be a great pity if the young 
 people were not allowed to enjoy themselves — it's not so 
 many chances they have in the course of the year." 
 
 " Oh yes, you may trust the councillor," said Ogilvie, 
 lightly. " All the financial questions have been confided to 
 him, and the refreshment department as well ; though there 
 will be nothing so grand as what the McAskills gave, for a 
 hotel -keeper has a lot of servants, and knows how to do 
 things." 
 
 "I am sure no one will be busier than yourself, Mr. Ogil- 
 vie," said Barbara, with approving eyes. " For I remember 
 at the other dance you were looking after every one — " 
 
 " Busy ?" said he. " But not too busy to remember prom- 
 ises ; and you've promised me a dance, Miss Barbara, and 
 maybe we'll make it into two or three. McFadyen is a des- 
 perate man for the dancing ; he'll be glad enough to stay on ;
 
 168 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 and you hurried away far too soon last time. This time we 
 must treat you better; and you'll not be flying off just when 
 the fun is going to begin." 
 
 "And you, now, Allan, my lad," put in the widow, with 
 the most kindly intention, " are you not thinking of going 
 with them? The life of a young man should not be altogether 
 made up of books and classes." 
 
 The black look on Allan's face was blended now with an 
 active displeasure. 
 
 " No, no," said he, impatiently. " Let them that can enjoy 
 such amusements do so, and welcome ; there's no blame to 
 them. But other folks have other ways — that is all" 
 
 And thereupon he rose from his seat to take his leave. The 
 Avidow urged him to remain, but he refused, with stiff cour- 
 tesy. Jess alone followed him into the front shop. 
 
 "What is it that has vexed you, Allan?" she asked, with 
 direct frankness. 
 
 " There are some things in human nature that I do not 
 understand yet," he replied, and that dark and absent look on 
 his face was as sombre as ever. " And perhaps I shall never 
 be able to understand them. Good-night, Jessie !" 
 
 He held out his hand for a moment, and she pressed it. As 
 he left, her gentle gray eyes followed him, and there was more 
 than sympathetic concern in them. She did not at once re- 
 turn to the parlor. 
 
 Outside, the rain was still falling heavily, and there was a 
 cold wind blowing in from the sea. The school-master was 
 grateful for this stinging Avct that struck about his ears ; it 
 seemed to bewilder him in some kind of way, and to repress 
 and chill down the hot turmoil of his brain.
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 A RAID ON THE SANCTUARY 
 
 A brooding twilight lay over the hills and the lonely 
 corries as two men — the one of them being Lauchlan the 
 shoemaker, the other his cousin Colin, a keeper from Loch- 
 Awe side — made their way along the shores of a solitary 
 and voiceless sea-loch. The keeper was a short person, of ex- 
 traordinary breadth of shoulder and muscular development 
 about the legs ; he looked, indeed, like a compressed giant ; 
 and he walked with the long swinging stride of one used to 
 the heather. Both men spoke in undertones, though that 
 seemed unnecessary enough in this silent and trackless soli- 
 tude. 
 
 " It is I," said Lauchlan, gloomily, in Gaelic, " that am not 
 liking this affair." 
 
 "With your leave, then," rejoined his companion, in the 
 same tongue, " you are a fool. Why, the doings of this 
 night will be talked of throughout the West Highlands for 
 years and years to come ! And you yourself, Lauchlan," he 
 went on, with a grim jocosity — " you yourself will be made 
 famous if names should leak out. As Lauchlan the shoe- 
 maker you could never become famous; but as one that 
 helped to drive the deer out of the Creannoch Sanctuary, 
 you will become famous. The poets will sing of you, 
 Lauchlan — " 
 
 Lauchlan was peevish. He expressed an opinion about 
 poets in general, and a wish as to their future fate that be- 
 trayed his ill-temper. 
 
 " There was one of them," he continued, " living in Dun- 
 troone ; and for two years I was mending boots and shoes 
 for him ; and he went away, and never a penny of his money 
 was I seeing before or since. And if any names leak out, as 
 you say, it will more likely put us into jail than anything
 
 lVO HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 else. That will be a fine thing, to be in jail !" He turned 
 his head, as if suddenly remembering. " Is there a drop in 
 the bottle, Colin ?" 
 
 " Indeed there is," said the keeper, pausing for a moment. 
 " But there's more than a drop or two drops where we are 
 going. Oh, I tell you, Lord Esme is the boy ! He is the 
 boy ! If there's any devilment in the country, he must be 
 at it ; and fearing for nothing ; the lion's heart the young 
 man has got, and no mistake. Was I telling you what hap- 
 pened last year on the Strin, when the water was too low 
 for the fishing ?" continued the keeper, as they resumed their 
 progress. " Well, now, if there's any kind of poaching that 
 is not known to Lord Esme Carruthers, then I am not aware 
 of it. And a fine trick he has if the pools are low, and the 
 salmon are hiding, and you cannot see them so as to drop 
 the snatching-hooks over them ; for he will bring a spaniel 
 with him, and he will put the spaniel into the water, and 
 fling stones here and there, with the spaniel swimming after 
 them, and crossing every inch of the pool ; and do you not 
 think a salmon will imagine it is the devil overhead when he 
 sees the four paws of a spaniel going like the paddles of a 
 steamer? — he will be very glad to make a move of it — " 
 
 " I will take a little drop more, Colin ; I am not used to 
 such long travelling as you." 
 
 Again they halted, and again they resumed — each con- 
 tentedly wiping his mouth with his coat sleeve. 
 
 " Very well, then ; at the time I am telling you of, we 
 managed at length to get sight of a salmon, and Lord Esme 
 he put the line over him, and struck, and sure enough we had 
 him fast. 'Here, Colin,' says his lordship, 'you play this 
 fish, and I'll gaff him for you;' for he never cares about 
 playing a fish, whether he has hooked him by fair means or 
 any means. Then he takes the gaff down to the water's 
 edge; and I was standing over him — with no great strain on 
 the fish either; when, by the holy piper, away comes the line 
 into the air; and the first thing I saw was that the triangle 
 had struck his lordship in the face. And maybe you do not 
 know what, a triangle is, Laurhlan ; hut it is three hooks, each 
 as long as your finger, and they are hound back to back with 
 B hand of iron ; and what do you think, now — one of the
 
 A RAID ON THE SANCTUARY 171 
 
 hooks had gone right into Lord Esme's cheek. If it had 
 been an ordinary salmon-fly, I could have stripped the dress- 
 ing off, and pushed the barb through, and got the hook out 
 that way ; but, bless me, there were the other two hooks, and 
 I could not break them off or do anything with them. ' Your 
 lordship,' says I, ' you will have to go into Inverness, to get a 
 doctor to cut it out.' ' You scoundrel,' says he — but speak- 
 ing was not easy for him, the poor young man — ' do you 
 want me to advertise myself as a poacher all over the country, 
 and me known to every station-master on the Highland Line ? 
 Take your knife in your hand, now, and dig this thing out !' 
 And with that he lay down, and put his head on the heather. 
 Lauchlan, my son, it was a terrible job. More than once have 
 I had to cut a hook out of my own finger; but it was nothing 
 at all to that job. And did he utter a word or a groan all 
 the time ? — not one ! — not a movement of a muscle ! and 
 my handkerchief and his handkerchief smothered. And, do 
 you know what he says when he is on his feet again, and I 
 have the triangle out ? ' Well, Colin,' he says, and he was 
 laughing, ' I do not think it is on this side of my head I will 
 sleep to-night !' Was not that a hero, now ? I tell you, Lord 
 Esme is the boy ! — he's the boy for any devilment that's 
 going !" 
 
 "Aye, and are you sure he will be here this night?" asked 
 Lauchie — whose undertones had sunk almost to a whisper, 
 for the darkness was coming on, and they were in a lonely 
 neighborhood. 
 
 " Sure I am of that," his friend answered, " if Niall Gorach 
 can find out the Black Bothy in Glen Etherick ; and there 
 are few things about this district unknown to the half-witted 
 lad. 'Colin, my old friend,' says his lordship to me — and 
 if there's any one can speak better Gaelic than Lord Esme, I 
 am not acquainted with him — ' Colin,' says he, ' maybe that 
 is a foolish tale of Niall Gorach about the white stag in 
 Creannoch ; but anyway you must get a few of your friends 
 that you can trust, and we will go into the forest, and we 
 will drive out every living head of deer that's in the Sanctu- 
 ary, and scatter them far and wide ; and if there is any white 
 stag there, he will soon be seen wandering about by some- 
 body.' "
 
 172* HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "Aye — when we are in jail," murmured Lauchie, in sombre 
 tones. 
 
 " I do not care," said the telescoped giant, defiantly. " If 
 his lordship came to ma and said, ' Colin, we will go now and 
 knock at the door of the Bad Place, and see what they will 
 do to us,' it's I that would be answering him, ' Very well, 
 your lordship ; where you go I will be at your side.' And 
 maybe they would be quite civil to him, after all ; for there's 
 no one can withstand Lord Esme when he wishes to be merry 
 and friendly ; every one knows that." 
 
 By this time they had got well away from the sea-loch, 
 and were gradually ascending into a wild upland region that 
 looked dreary enough in the gathering dark. An absolute 
 silence prevailed in these mountain solitudes, save for the 
 trickling of some unseen burn ; and Lauchlan, laboriously 
 toiling after his guide, was not disposed to waste his breath 
 in speech. But at last he said, discontentedly : 
 
 "Was there no easier way of getting to Glen Etherick than 
 this way ?" 
 
 "There are many ways of getting to Glen Etherick, as is 
 well known," responded Colin, with quiet dignity. " But 
 when you will be planning an expedition of this kind, it must 
 be done with judgment ; and if all of us had gone together to 
 the Black Bothy,* do you not think that every keeper within 
 ten miles of the Creannoch Forest would have become aware 
 of it? No, no, Lauchlan, my son; that is not the way we 
 manage; for one will come from here, ami another from there ; 
 and the Black Bothy has been chosen as a tryst ing-phice, so 
 that a small keg or two of whiskey could be sent on before- 
 hand. For I tell you that Lord Esme is the boy — aye, that 
 indeed ; and any one that docs him a service — well, he will 
 not die of thirst." 
 
 "It is I that am wishing we were there," responded 
 Lauchie, with a heartfelt sigh, as he plunged and stumbled 
 and fought his way along through rucks and heather. 
 
 After protracted and weary toil they at length began to 
 descend from these solitary heights, eventually getting into 
 a deep and narrow ravine, the sides of which were lined with 
 
 * Black IJotliy— an illicit still.
 
 A RAID ON THE SANCTUARV 173 
 
 birch-trees that made their progress more and more difficult. 
 And the darkness had grown profound. 
 
 " I am thinking this is the right corrie," said the keeper, 
 " but I am not sure. And maybe we will have to wait till the 
 moon rises — " 
 
 At this moment he uttered a brief exclamation, and invol- 
 untarily stopped short. For a human figure had suddenly be- 
 come visible, peering from among the birch-trees. Then he 
 recognized who this was. 
 
 " Son of the devil," he growled, angrily, " what do you 
 mean by haunting the woods like a wild-cat? Well, where is 
 the Black Bothy, then?" 
 
 " It is lower down," answered Niall Gorach ; but he did not 
 wait for any more questions ; he vanished into the gloom 
 again, not even the crackling of a twig betraying his where- 
 abouts. 
 
 However, even without Niall Gorach's guidance, the keeper 
 and his companion experienced but little trouble in discover- 
 ing the appointed rendezvous ; for when they had still farther 
 descended the chasm, a muffled sound of voices proved to be 
 a sufficient clew ; and after crossing the waters of a small 
 stream, they made their way to the entrance of the disman- 
 tled still. Indeed, the half-dozen or so of shepherds, gillies, 
 and the like, who had taken possession of the Bothy, did not 
 appear to have aimed at much concealment ; they had lit a fire 
 of chips and branches in the middle of the floor ; two or three 
 candles, stuck in black bottles, also helped to light up the 
 spacious cavern; while the hilarious talking and laughing go- 
 ing on was quite unrestrained. Beyond the red glare of the 
 fire, and seated on a log of wood, was a young man who was 
 clearly king of the company : a handsome young fellow, with 
 a devil-may-care air about him, and a merry twinkle in his 
 eye. He alone of the group had neither cup nor glass by 
 him ; he hardly even cared to keep his pipe alit, as he lis- 
 tened, with evident diversion, to the clamorous argument go- 
 ing forward, in which gibes and jests and sarcasms were be- 
 ing freely exchanged. 
 
 " Welcome to the hearth !" he called out, in excellent Gae- 
 lic, when he caught a glimpse of the two dusky figures at the 
 door. " Come away in, Colin, and you, Lauchlan, and make
 
 174 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 yourselves art home ; for we will not start till the moon is up. 
 And pass the keg now, lads ; Colin, a seat on the floor is bet- 
 ter than no seat ; and when you have been in the night air, 
 John Barleycorn is a good friend." 
 
 " I am drinking," rejoined the keeper, slowly and formally, 
 as he filled his leathern cup — "I am drinking to your lord- 
 ship, and to the finding of the white stag." 
 
 The young man burst out laughing. 
 
 " We will say nothing about the white stag," said he, " for 
 fear the half-witted lad may have been making fools of us. 
 But this I know, that it will be a fine thing to send the 
 Creannoch deer on their travels. People who go on their 
 travels see many wonders; and it is not good to have either 
 deer or men shut up in a sanctuary ; we will give the Crean- 
 noch stags an opportunity of beholding the world. But in 
 the meantime, lads of my heart, send round that keg ; and I 
 will give you another toast — 'The land of hills and glens and 
 heroes !' " 
 
 He himself did not drink ; but the others did, with a will ; 
 they were all talking vociferously and laughing and arguing ; 
 they had been well primed for this enterprise. 
 
 " And now for a song !" his young lordship called aloud, 
 to still the tumult. " The sons of the Gael must have their 
 bard with them. Who is it, Colin — is it your friend of the 
 shoes?" 
 
 "Yes, yes, indeed!" they all of them cried — rejoiced to 
 find a scape-goat. 
 
 And Lauchlan, staring with bemused eyes into the red- 
 flickering flames, had no thought of declining the honor. As 
 soon as he comprehended that a song was required of him, 
 he began. It was a mournful song ; and in slow and melan- 
 choly tones he sang, his gaze absently fixed on the glowing 
 embers — 
 
 '" The wind it fair, the <!<i;/ is fine, 
 Swiftly, swiftly runs the time ; 
 'I'll, boat if floating mi tin tide 
 
 That wafts me off from Fiunary.' 1 " 
 
 Then all of them caught at the chorus — for there is no strain
 
 A RAID ON THE SANCTUARY 175 
 
 in all the West Highlands so well known as the " Farewell to 
 Fiu nary " — 
 
 Ui Eirich affics tiugainn 0, 
 Eirich agus tiugainn 0, 
 Eirich agus tiugainn 0, 
 
 Mo shoraidh slan le Fionn-Airidh P " 
 
 Lauchlan was near crying through this universal sympathy ; 
 and it was with a still more plaintive pathos that he pro- 
 ceeded — 
 
 " 4 ^1 thousand thousand tender ties 
 Accept this dag mg plaintive sighs ; 
 My heart within me almost dies 
 
 At thought of leaving Fiunary? " 
 
 And again the hoarse wail of the chorus rewarded him — 
 
 " ' Eirich agus tiugainn O, 
 Eirich agus tiugainn 0, 
 Eirich agus tiugainn 0, 
 
 Mo shoraidh slan le Fionn-Airidh P " 
 
 But there was a young gillie present who was either drunk 
 or envious or jocular, or perhaps all three combined ; for he 
 interposed spitefully, 
 
 " That is very well sung for a wintering sheep." 
 Now Lauchlan Maclntyre, as every one knew, was a native 
 of Lismore ; and Lismore is an island to which sheep from 
 the higher districts are sent for the winter; and, for some 
 occult reason or another, the most deadly insult that can be 
 paid to a Lismore man is to say " Meh-h-h " to him, or to 
 ask him the question, " How are you now, you wintering 
 sheep ?" In the present case, when it dawned upon Lauchie's 
 understanding that this atrocious epithet had been bestowed 
 on him, he ceased his song. He regarded the facetious young 
 gillie. He looked around. There was no weapon of any 
 kind at hand. But with a sudden inspiration he whipped 
 off one of his heavy - nailed shoes ; he poised it only for an 
 instant ; he hurled it across the fire at the face of his enemy. 
 Nor had the jocose young gillie been expecting any such 
 attack ; he had no time to ward off the blow ; his nose re- 
 ceived the missile ; and before he could stagger up to his feet
 
 176 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 he was a sad spectacle. And in fact he was not allowed to 
 get to his feet ; they pinned him down ; and by the time 
 they had threatened and expostulated and curbed the raging 
 wild beast within him, the signal had come for them to 
 start, Niall Gorach having appeared at the Bothy with the 
 announcement that the moon was over the hill. 
 
 And very soon, after leaving the secret haunt that the 
 gaugers had discovered and harried, they entered upon a 
 much more desolate country than any they had come through. 
 A ghostly country, moreover ; for now the moon was up ; 
 and a pale and spectral light shone along the treeless wastes, 
 and showed peak after peak of mountains receding into the 
 wan and cloudless skies. Of course there were shadowy 
 hollows here and there; and it was along by thorn, for the 
 most part, that they stealthily made their way ; but on the 
 whole their progress was steadily upward, into far-reaching 
 and sterile altitudes that were plunged in profonndest silence. 
 
 " Now, you will remember, Lauchie," said Colin the keep- 
 er — whose gait was a little uncertain, though he managed to 
 get over the ground — "you will remember, when you are 
 left by yourself, not to be too eager. It will be enough if 
 the deer get our wind ; and maybe they will pass out by his 
 lordship — though I am not believing much in the white 
 stag; anyway, the driving of the Sanctuary will be a noble 
 frolic—" 
 
 " Aw, Dyeea," said Lauchie, who was giggling and chuck- 
 ling to himself, " the liechabites arc the clever boys; but the 
 Rechabites have many things to learn ; it is little they know 
 of a sport like this. There is no sport in the drinking of 
 water ; and that is the truth I am telling you, Colin, my hero. 
 
 What is the use of water — and be to it ! Lord Esme is 
 
 the lad ! CoHd, lend me your cup." 
 
 For <>n leaving the Bothy the black bottles that had served 
 as candlesticks had been filled from the kegs; and Lauchie 
 ha>l become possessed of one of them ; so that lie was now 
 enabled to give his friend and companion a stalwart: dram. 
 In return Colin would have repeated his instructions about 
 the driving of the Sanctuary; but his speech was rather 
 thick ami involved ; while Lauchlan was far too happy to pay 
 any heed to him. Lmehlan was singing little songs to him-
 
 A RAID ON THE SANCTUARY 177 
 
 self, and laughing and making merry at the expense of the 
 Rechabites. He had no quarrel with any deer ; he had no 
 concern about any white stag ; the two moons that lit up 
 this ghostly world shed a gentle and friendly radiance 
 around ; and the black bottle sticking out of his breast- 
 pocket comforted his heart with pleasurable anticipations. 
 
 " Aw, Dyeea, the Rechabites are the clever boys," he kept 
 repeating to himself, with unholy glee, " and it is I that 
 would like to see the whole of the Tent No. 3182 here at this 
 moment, and every man of them with a black bottle in his 
 hand. That would be a new kind of dance for them — the 
 clever boys that they are !" 
 
 By this time the marauders were well within the Crean- 
 noch Forest, and approaching the Sanctuary — a vast hollow 
 formed by the concave sides of two adjoining mountains ; 
 and it was at this point that the straggling little band began 
 to separate. Here, also, Long Lauchie received his orders. 
 He was not to stir from his post for at least an hour ; then 
 he was to go gently and slowly in the direction of the Sanct- 
 uary, down wind. There was to be no calling or signalling 
 of any kind ; indeed, the probability was that he would not 
 again see any of his companions until he might chance to 
 meet them in Duntroone. His own way back thither was 
 left to his own discretion. 
 
 And so Lauchlan sat down on the heather, and let the 
 others go ; and erelong he was quite alone in this phantom 
 world of rock and peak and gray moonlight. He did not 
 listen anxiously for the swift patter of hoofs, nor watch for 
 the startled upraising of an antlered head ; he was content 
 with himself and his own company ; he was carefully nursing 
 the black bottle ; he was crooning to himself the " Leis an 
 Lurgainn " — 
 
 " ' May looming, o hee, 
 
 In the gloaming, o ho, 
 Oar ship's compass set we, 
 And our lights we did show ;' " 
 
 the two or three moons over there in the south, as they 
 looked down upon him, were of a friendly aspect ; and his 
 heart, jogging on warmly and equably, was at peace with all 
 mankind. 
 
 8*
 
 178 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 When Lauchlan Mac In tyre awoke the dawn was declar- 
 ing itself, and he looked around with dazed eyes wondering. 
 For this world in which he found himself was in no wise or 
 seeming the world with which he was familiar ; he recog- 
 nized no feature of it, nor the conditions of it. Had he 
 been translated, then ? Was this the new heaven and the 
 new earth of which he had vaguely heard in slumberous dis- 
 courses ? But there was no living creature visible; there 
 was the strangest silence ; and a thin rain, almost impercep- 
 tible in its fineness, had become glorified by the early sun- 
 light, and hung between him and the east as if it were some 
 magic silver veil, hiding him from the knowledge of mortals. 
 And there w r ere other perplexing things. If he had been 
 spirited away into fairy-land, what had become of his shoe ? 
 One foot had shoe and stocking; the other its stocking only; 
 and a continuous hot throb seemed to say that in his un- 
 known passage from the inhabited regions of the universe 
 his toes must have seriously encountered stones. And the 
 black bottle — alas ! it was empty — the black bottle appeared 
 to be connected with transactions which he could not in the 
 least remember. Then he looked round once more — this 
 poor orphan unit of humanity transferred to an inhospitable 
 sphere that did not even offer him a cup of water wherewith 
 to slake his thirst. And then he put his head on the heath- 
 er, and fell peacefully asleep again ; the rain might rain as it 
 liked.
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 AN INFORMER 
 
 The rumor ran through Duntroone that some accident — 
 some slight accident — had happened to the Ai-os Castle ; cer- 
 tain it is that, instead of continuing her voyage as usual, she 
 had slowly steamed back, and was now lying alongside the 
 quay. And Barbara, as soon as the mid-day meal was over, 
 and herself more or less set at liberty, put on her things 
 quickly and went out, no doubt wishing to hear the latest 
 news. 
 
 But she had not gone a dozen yards when she saw in the 
 distance none other than Jack Ogilvie himself ; he was com- 
 ing along in his usual leisurely fashion, smoking his pipe. 
 She instantly paused. She glanced across towards the tobac- 
 conist's shop, to see if there was any one at the door. Then 
 she retreated into the entry from which she had just emerged ; 
 and there she remained, hiding herself in the dusk, until she 
 knew that Ogilvie must have passed and be well on his way, 
 wherever that might be leading him. And then she came 
 out again ; and, with another nervous glance across the street, 
 she proceeded to follow in the direction he had taken, and 
 that with an idle and indifferent air, as though she were merely 
 going for a haphazard stroll. 
 
 There was no need for her to quicken her pace ; she knew 
 that any one leaving Duntroone by this road must necessari- 
 ly return by it, the pathway around the shore being blocked ; 
 and so she had ample time to arrange her cuffs and smooth 
 her hair — and also to summon up some trifle of courage, in 
 view of a possible meeting. Nevertheless, when her anxious 
 eyes discovered for her that Jack Ogilvie had taken advantage 
 of a way-side seat to rest for a few seconds m order to fill his 
 pipe, her heart began beating in a painful fashion, and once 
 or twice she hesitated, as if afraid to go farther. Then she
 
 180 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 went on more boldly, looking at the brushwood, and at the 
 moss-grown wall, and at the deep hollow with its cottages and 
 gardens, as if her attention were wholly occupied by these. 
 
 She drew near. He did not look up. She came abreast of 
 him — irresolute — her eyes conscious of his every movement 
 and attitude, yet pretending to be fixed far ahead. And then 
 something — perhaps the passing of her skirts — attracted his 
 notice ; there was an upward glance ; the next instant he was 
 on his feet. 
 
 " Oh, how do you do, Miss Barbara ?" he said, in his ready 
 and pleasant fashion. 
 
 Her face was afire as she timidly gave him her hand. If 
 she had been sure that she could safely address him in Gaelic, 
 perhaps she would have been less embarrassed. 
 
 " I hear there was an accident to the Aros Castle," she 
 managed to say in her confusion ; " I hope there was no one 
 hurt," 
 
 " Oh no ; not at all," he answered her, lightly. " Very little 
 of an accident — leaking steam-tubes, or something of that 
 kind. But I may have a day or two's holiday ; and, of course, 
 getting so much of the salt water ordinarily, it is but natural 
 1 should turn landward when 1 have an hour for a stroll. 
 And which way were you going, Miss Barbara?" he contin- 
 ued, in the same free-and-easy manner. " Towards Cowal, 
 perhaps ?" 
 
 " Yes ; I was thinking — " she said ; and there she stopped. 
 She seemed frightened ; for the next word on either side 
 might involve a suggestion that they should walk on to- 
 gether. Her shyness and alarm were equally tmperceived by 
 the purser. 
 
 " Well, I had some half idea of going there myself," he 
 said, cheerfully. "And two's company, and one's none — 
 if you don't mind." 
 
 He appeared to take her acquiescence for granted; for 
 without more ado he placed himself by her side, and they 
 proceeded on their way : she trembling, breathless, over- 
 joyed ; be rather glad that, as he was sauntering towards 
 Cowal Ferry any way, he "had encountered a very pretty girl 
 
 who could walk and chat with him. 
 
 And then, as in duty bound, lie began to ask after the.
 
 AN INFORMER 181 
 
 health of her aunt ; and he would most likely have spoken of 
 Jess ; and perhaps expressed a hope that the tobacconist busi- 
 ness continued to flourish ; but Barbara would have none of 
 these petty and commonplace details ; she hastily brushed 
 them aside: she wanted to know all about the forthcoming 
 ball to be given to the Glasgow Gaelic Choir ; she asked him, 
 rather nervously, how he proposed to secure any dances for 
 himself, if he had to act as master of the ceremonies ; and 
 then, with a certain coyness, she supposed that on so great an 
 occasion he would have no time to come and speak to his 
 friends. Well, if that was her cue, he was willing enough to 
 respond ; it mattered little to him what the conversation was 
 about. And thus it was that visions of festivities began to 
 form themselves before Barbara's eyes ; and there were melo- 
 dious strains, and the continuous whisper of swift -gliding 
 feet ; her brain became exalted with the excitement of brilliant 
 lights and fine dresses and the kaleidoscopic groupings of 
 color. And it was the hero and chief figure of that gay world 
 who was beside her ; who was devoting himself to her en- 
 tertainment ; who had pretty plainly intimated that on the 
 eventful evening in question she and her immediate compan- 
 ions were not likely to be neglected. 
 
 By this time they were well away from the little town, and 
 out in the silence of the country — a silence so hushed and 
 still that the crunching of cart-wheels on the road could be 
 heard at a surprising distance. It was an ideal day for a 
 lovers' ramble — an April day so fine and rare and clear that 
 it seemed as if summer had already taken possession of the 
 land ; the heavens a dome of fleckless sapphire ; the slopes 
 of heather and pasture basking and brooding in the grateful 
 warmth ; far away beyond the waters of Loch Linnhe the 
 long range of the mountains became etherealized and dream- 
 like — the mountains of Kingairloch, of Morven, and " Muile 
 nam mor-bheann," Mull of the great hills. And then they 
 came in sight of the lower end of Lismore, and the light- 
 house, and the entrance to the Sound. 
 
 " That is a beautiful way your steamer goes," said she, 
 " and I am sure you must be pleased to be on so fine a boat." 
 
 " I'm sick tired of the whole thing," he answered her, 
 bluntly. And then, seeing that she looked startled, he went
 
 182 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 on : " I'm sick tired of looking after the landing of herring- 
 boxes, and collecting ninepences and eighteenpences from 
 half-drunk drovers. And as for any position or considera- 
 tion, now and again a shore acquaintance will come up and 
 pretend to be friendly, expecting me to let him off for half- 
 fare ; and the laird's wife, when she comes along the gang- 
 way, may toss me a civil word, if she thinks I can help her 
 with her luggage ; but the daughters — the young ladies — oh, 
 dear, no ! — if they take any notice of me at all, they stare at 
 me as they would stare at a policeman. But look at the 
 purser on one of the Australian liners, for example ; there's a 
 position now — there's consideration ; maybe two or three 
 hundred first-class passengers on board, and the purser of 
 far more consequence to them than the captain — getting up 
 dances and entertainments for them, and taking a chief part 
 — and every evening at the head of his own table in the 
 saloon, in dress uniform, with his particular friends dining 
 along with him. That is something; that is not like landing 
 herring-boxes, or getting the passengers out of the way to 
 have half-a-dozen stirks driven on board. Yes, indeed, I'm 
 sick tired of it — whatever the tourists and people of that 
 sort may say about the beautiful mountains and the islands. 
 Give me a chance, and I tell you I'm off !" 
 
 "Are you — are you wishing to go away from here alto- 
 gether ?" she said — with the strangest look on her face. 
 
 Probably he did not notice. lie answered her with much 
 equanimity : 
 
 " Give me the chance, as I say. There's more fun and 
 frolic in foreign parts — and more to see — " 
 
 « Bat — but one should be fondest of one's own country," 
 she said, rather faintly. 
 
 "Oh yes," he replied, "when one's own country finds one 
 a good berth. But the fact is that the purserships of the 
 Australian liners don't grow on blackberry - bushes ; and in 
 the meantime, Miss Barbara, I've just to put up with what 
 I've got, as best I can." 
 
 And so, wilh varied discourse — quite unconcerned on his 
 part, on hers more strained and nervously anxious — they 
 
 continued on their way, and eventually reached Cowal Ferry, 
 
 which was the goal of their fortuitous excursion. But at this
 
 AN INFORMER 183 
 
 point there is a solitary little inn, overlooking the low-mur- 
 muring rapids of the sea-loch ; and it occurred to Jack Ogil- 
 vie that he ought not to let his companion set out on the re- 
 turn journey without offering her some slight refreshment. 
 
 " Will you not step inside," said he, in his off-hand fash- 
 ion, " and sit down for a few minutes, and have a cup of tea, 
 or a glass of milk, or something of the kind ? It's a good 
 long way back — and the afternoon is drawing on." 
 
 She hesitated, but only for a moment. Being with him, 
 walking with him, was the astounding and bewildering thing ; 
 to go into a room and sit down seemed nothing different from 
 that, nothing more remarkable. So quite obediently she fol- 
 lowed him into the narrow passage ; and when he opened the 
 door of an apartment that was clearly intended for the pub- 
 lic — for there were tea-things on the table and scones and 
 marmalade and the like — she went in there too, and took a 
 modest seat. As for him, he made himself entirely at home. 
 He rang the bell, and ordered tea. Then he turned to ex- 
 amine the pictures — mostly chromo- lithographs of German 
 origin. He brought her the surprising and miraculous orna- 
 ments from the mantel-piece, and he was laughing at the 
 snow-white poodles and the whiskered pards. And again, 
 when the simple repast was placed before them, he drew in a 
 chair for her, and seated himself at the head of the table, and 
 proceeded to help her, with an amiable solicitude. It was all 
 like a dream to Barbara. She hardly knew how she had 
 come hither. The scones were scones of magic — when the 
 sun-god himself was laughing and talking to her. 
 
 In the midst of all this the door was opened and there ap- 
 peared — Long Lauchie the shoemaker. Lauchlan was in a 
 genial mood; he did not stay to apologize for any intrusion; 
 he shut the door behind him, and advanced to the table, and 
 pulled in a chair. 
 
 *•' Aw, it's a fine thing to come among friends," he said ; 
 and he was smiling with a vague benignity, " and I was see- 
 ing you in the distance, before you came near the house. 
 Aye, if it had not been for friends and for a friendly glass 
 here or there, where would I be now ? Aw, Dyeea, I thought 
 I was never to be back in a Christian country again ! — and if 
 it had not been for the farmer at the head of Glen Sharay —
 
 184 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 well, I will pay him that bottle back as sure as I am a living 
 man." He stopped, and regarded the purser with a look of 
 mysterious significance. " Now, Mr. Ogilvie, was you hear- 
 ing any news ?" 
 
 "News? What news!" inquired Ogilvie, who bore the 
 interruption quite good-humorcdly. 
 
 " Aye, was you hearing any news ?" he repeated. 
 
 "News? — news about what?" said the purser. 
 
 " Aw, well, there might be news about many things — and 
 maybe about deer," Lauchlan said, evasively, and there was a 
 dark merriment in his eyes. " I am not saying anything, but 
 maybe there might be news." 
 
 Here the young servant-lass came in, and Lauchlan's face 
 at once became solemn and impenetrable. But when she had 
 placed the whiskey and the tumbler before him, and departed, 
 he burst into a fit of soft and happy laughter. 
 
 " Aw, yes, indeed, there may be news in a day or two," he 
 went on, and clearly he was chuckling over this secret that he 
 would not reveal. " But I was not saying anything to any one 
 — how could I, when there was no one from one glen to the 
 next, and from one hill to the next? — as sure as death you 
 would not believe that the country is such a wide country, 
 with roads leading to no place at ahl. And if it had not been 
 for the farmer at Glen Sharay — he's the man for me ! — with 
 many and many's the good song, sitting ;it the table ahl the 
 night through — and a parting glass at the door in the 
 morning — " 
 
 "Well, Mr. Mac I nty re," said the purser, pleasantly, "you 
 seem to have met with some adventures; but what in Heaven's 
 name is that kind of shoe you're wearing?" 
 
 Lauchlan looked down at his left foot, which was encased 
 in an old battered shoe of portentous dimensions, with straws 
 sticking out at the top. 
 
 " That was the farmer's too," said he, vaguely. "He lent it to 
 me — and it was raj t her large — and we put some straw into it — " 
 
 " Yes, but what has become of your own shoe?" was the 
 next and natural question. 
 
 "I am not remembering," said Lauchlan, with a kind of 
 abstracted look in his eyes. "lam not remembering, just 
 at the moment. Maybe I gave it to a beggar, poor man 1"
 
 AN INFORMER 185 
 
 It was Barbara who now interposed to say it was time for 
 them to go, and Ogilvie at once acceded; but Lauchlan Mac- 
 Intyre wanted to finish his liquor in peace ; so they were well 
 content to leave him. And as these two now walked away 
 into Duntroone, the rosy evening shone along the blood-red 
 leafless heather ; and the withered pasture slopes, not yet an- 
 swering to the summons of the spring, burned a warm gold. 
 But if the world around them seemed all aflame, the heavens 
 above them were of a pure and pale lilac hue, with not even a 
 fleck of cloud visible anywhere. The silence had grown still 
 more profound with the dying down of the day ; and all the 
 birds were mute, save for one solitary thrush, on some dis- 
 tant bough, that kept charming his mate with his clear and 
 silvery trills. Twilight was around them as they entered the 
 small town ; and here and there a golden star appeared among 
 the rigging in the harbor. When Barbara got up-stairs to 
 the semi -darkness of her own room, she sat down without 
 taking off any of her finery ; the gates of wonderland had 
 just been closed, it is true, but the glory and glamour were 
 still before her dazzled eyes. 
 
 On this same evening the school-master was seated in Mrs. 
 Maclean's parlor, and he was in an unusually cheerful mood. 
 He was endeavoring to show — as he placidly smoked his pipe, 
 and watched Jessie's nimble fingers busy with her needle, the 
 little widow attending to the shop when necessary — he was 
 endeavoring to show that the world was progressively and 
 surely becoming wiser, this happy result being brought about 
 by the gradual and inevitable elimination of fools. The fools 
 having become extinct, must not the residue of mankind en- 
 joy a larger average of wisdom ? And then he began to enu- 
 merate the various classes and sections and sub-sections of 
 fools who were by degrees extinguishing themselves out of 
 the universe. There were, for example, the people who went 
 with a lighted candle to discover the origin of an escape of gas • 
 undoubtedly they were removing themselves from amongst 
 us. And there were the people who made fast the main-sheet 
 of a sailing-boat. And there were the people who ate tinned 
 lobster. And the people who got into or out of a train in mo- 
 tion. And the people who made parachute descents, who per- 
 formed with wild beasts, who dived from bridges, and the like.
 
 180 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " And the people who muddle their brains with whiskey," 
 he added, in an undertone, as the tall form of the shoemaker 
 appeared at the half-opened door. 
 
 But Long Lauchlan did not overhear this remark ; if he 
 had overheard it, he probably would have taken no notice ; he 
 was in a benignant mood. For he had been wandering along 
 from one crony's house to another, rejoiced to be back again 
 in human society, and nursing the secret and blissful con- 
 sciousness of having been engaged in an exploit that would 
 soon be the talk and astonishment of all the West Highlands. 
 And when he had established himself among this further 
 group of friends, he was as darkly mysterious as ever ; but 
 very happy. 
 
 " It is a great thing," he was saying, complacently (with 
 one foot hidden beneath his chair) — " it is a great thing to be 
 meeting with adventures. Here have I been out of the world 
 for two days and more — aye, maybe three days, but I am not 
 so sure, for it was a wild country. And it's not so long since 
 I went through to Fort William, and made the red-headed 
 carpenter flee like a hare — aw, Dyeea, you should have seen 
 him run down the street as if the duvvle was after him ; and 
 not long before that again I was at the bringing of you home, 
 Mr. Henderson, from among the rocks; and not long before 
 that was the wreck of the Sanda, aye, and the funeral of 
 Knockalanish, and the coming away with Miss Barbara. And 
 Fin sure I could scarce believe my eyes when I sah her this 
 evening — her and Ogilvie just like lad and lass — as they were 
 drawing near to Cowal Ferry ; and then afterwards the two 
 of them sitting very comfortable-like in the parlor of the 
 inn — " 
 
 " Lauchlan Maclntyre, what are you talking about ?" the 
 widow broke in, angrily. "Are you havering? Arc you out 
 of your senses: 1 Barbara — in the inn at Cowal Ferry? — " 
 
 Thus unexpectedly and sharply challenged, the shoemaker 
 was constrained to make good his veracity; he had to give 
 details; he insisted on the truth of his story; while Jess Mae- 
 lean became more and more indignant. 
 
 " Mr. Maclntyre, you have been asleep and dreaming!" she 
 exclaimed. "Barbara sitting in the inn parlor with Ogilvie 
 the purser? — you never saw any such thing, that I know!
 
 AN INFORMER 187 
 
 Barbara had plenty to do about the house this afternoon ; she 
 could not have gone out — to Cowal or anywhere else — " 
 
 But the shoemaker was obdurate. 
 
 " Very well, then," said Jess, promptly, " I will go over 
 this very minute and see Barbara — I will hear from herself !" 
 
 And therewith she rose, and flung a shawl round her shoul- 
 ders, and passed through the front shop. 
 
 Meanwhile, amid all this insistence and indignant denial, 
 Allan Henderson had remained sternly silent, the hard-lined 
 ascetic face perhaps a trifle grayer than usual. And now 
 that Jess had gone, he paid no heed to the others ; he seemed 
 to listen with a morbid intensity for her return ; his gaze was 
 fixed furtively but unswervingly on the door. 
 
 Jess Maclean was absent for only a few minutes. When 
 she came back into the room, she turned to Long Lauchie ; 
 her eyes were averted ; she dared not look in Allan's direc- 
 tion. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, Mr. Maclntyre," said she, humbly, and 
 with the most painful embarrassment ; " you were quite right. 
 Barbara was at Cowal Ferry this evening — and — and I sup- 
 pose she met Ogilvie by accident." 
 
 And then the school-master knew his doom.
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 
 
 And yet he would know it from herself. On the following 
 afternoon, as soon as his school-work was over, he left the 
 dull gray building and at once and hurriedly walked along to 
 the house in Campbell Street. It was a wild and stormy 
 evening ; and wild and stormy were the conflicting passions 
 that strove for mastery in his heart — black hate and jealousy 
 of the man who had entrapped an innocent girl into these 
 clandestine relations — a stung pride that even now prompted 
 him to turn, and go back home, and have done with her for- 
 ever — and then again a sort of desperate hope that all might 
 yet be well, that some explanation would be forthcoming, 
 that the beautiful eyes might still have a friendly look for 
 him. This way and that surged these emotions and fancies — 
 perhaps with the darker predominating. For she had allowed 
 him to believe that he might win her for his wife ; and she 
 had listened to his schemes, in which she was supposed to 
 have a personal interest ; and if, while thus giving him tacit 
 encouragement, she was holding secret communication with 
 that other ? When Allan Henderson proceeded up the nar- 
 row stairway and knocked at the door, his brows were sombre 
 enough ; and he was steeling himself to indignation and re- 
 proach. 
 
 The girl Christina admitted him, and in answer to his 
 question showed bira into the parlor, where he found Bar- 
 bara alone, engaged in needle-work. On his entering, she 
 looked up startled, and even apprehensive, for he had never 
 called iii this fashion before; but at all events she rose to 
 Kid him welcome; and then she civilly asked him to take a 
 Chair. Her manner was cold and reserved; she seemed to be 
 OH her guard ; it was for him tO speak. 
 
 Bat whither bad tied all the anger and reprobation with
 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 189 
 
 which he had come armed ? The mere sight of her had dis- 
 pelled all that; the touch of her hand had thrilled him strange- 
 ly ; and now that she had returned to her work — now that 
 he could with impunity regard the modestly lowered lashes, 
 the fresh and sweet complexion, the graceful outline of fore- 
 head and cheek and throat — in place of any wrathful up- 
 braiding there was only an irresistible longing to possess and 
 defend. She was a solitary creature — untaught in the ways 
 of the world — she wanted some one to protect her from 
 harm. And then, and above all, she was so maddeningly 
 beautiful that his heart seemed to suffocate within him ; it 
 was he, not she, who was stunned and bewildered by this sud- 
 den juxtaposition. 
 
 " That is a very pretty dress," said he — as the outcome of 
 all his tumultuous wrongs ! 
 
 " I am altering it a little," she answered, without raising 
 her eyes. 
 
 There was a moment or two of silence. 
 
 " It is clever of you to be able to do that for yourself," he 
 observed, anxious to propitiate. 
 
 " I have been used to it all my life," she made answer. " My 
 mother was ill two or three years before she died ; and I had 
 to do everything." 
 
 And now she had recovered somewhat from her vague ap- 
 prehension, and was inclined to be a little more friendly. He 
 had no reproaches to make, then ? It was only a visit from a 
 sweetheart, or one wishing to be a sweetheart? — and that any 
 girl could take only as a compliment. 
 
 " I suppose there was not much fine dress-making at Kil- 
 ree ?" he remarked again. 
 
 " We could not have afforded it in any case," she replied. 
 "And indeed I am rather frightened about what I am doing 
 now ; for this is the dress I am to wear on the evening of the 
 Glasgow Choir being here." 
 
 It was an unintentional shaft, but it struck deep. For that 
 was the evening the purser had talked so much of ; and Bar- 
 bara would be there — attracting attention, no doubt, if not by 
 this costume she was now working at, then at least by the sym- 
 metry of her figure and the elegance of her gait. He was al- 
 most driven to ask her whether she thought it seemly to go to
 
 190 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 a dance within a certain number of months of her father's 
 funeral ; but he forbore ; he would not quarrel with her ; it 
 was so wonderful to find her in some small measure gracious. 
 
 " Have you been over the way ?" she went on. " I heard 
 from Jessie that you looked in yesterday." 
 
 And this also was unlucky ; it reawoke his jealous tortures 
 of the previous afternoon. He could no longer be silent. 
 
 "It was then," he said, in measured tones — and he watched 
 her — " it was then I was told of your having been at Cowal 
 Ferry with Ogilvie the purser." 
 
 She flushed hotly, but she replied, with some touch of dis- 
 dain, 
 
 " Yes ; they make a great deal of that, for a small matter." 
 
 " That is no small matter," said he, slowly and seriously, 
 " that may affect a girl's good name." 
 
 At this she fired up — her cheeks still crimson. 
 
 "And who says anything against my good name ?" she de- 
 manded. 
 
 His breath came and went ; he did not know what to say — 
 whether to let the darker passions in his heart have utterance, 
 or whether it was still possible to forget and forgive, on 
 account of the beauty of her raven hair, her liquid eyes, and 
 the splendid lines of her throat. 
 
 " For myself I care little what Ogilvie's character may be," 
 said he, stiffly and ominously ; " but a young girl would look 
 better after her reputation who did not happen to be found 
 with him in a way-side public-house." 
 
 She raised her head quickly ; her eyes were merciless ; her 
 lips were pale. 
 
 " As for my reputation," she said — hesitating a little in her 
 excitement to find proper expression in English, " I am glad 
 — it is not in the hands of such friends as you !" 
 
 " Barbara!" he exclaimed — as if she had struck him. 
 
 But she was passionate also. 
 
 "And as for Mr. Ogilvie," she continued, in the same taunt- 
 in-- and angry fashion, "if you have anything to say against 
 him, why do you not say it to himself? Why do you come 
 to me with the story? — and suspecting harm wlicrc there is 
 no harm. 1 do not wish for any more friends of that kind. 
 Is it a great thing to have ;i cup of tea at Cowal Ferry? —
 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 191 
 
 well, that is my business, and not the business of any one 
 else ; and I will look after my own good name, and no thanks 
 to any one — no thanks to my friends ! And if you have any 
 complaint against Mr. Ogilvie, I think you would do better 
 to go to himself ; and maybe he will have his answer for 
 you—" 
 
 Henderson rose to his feet, his dark eyes aflame, his cheeks 
 ashen gray. 
 
 " There you have spoken a true word, Barbara," said he — 
 though the effort of speech appeared almost to stifle him. 
 " It is with Ogilvie I will deal. With you I have no quar- 
 rel. If he is trying to take advantage of your ignorance, 
 I will settle scores with him. He knows, if you do not 
 know. I will ask him a question, and I will make him an- 
 swer — " 
 
 Again she looked up quickly ; there was something in the 
 expression of his face that caused her alarm. 
 
 " What — what will you do ?" 
 
 " Well, with you I have no quarrel," was his only reply. 
 " At any rate, you and I can part as friends." 
 
 But at this her eyes fell again, and she would take no no- 
 tice of his extended hand. 
 
 " I am friends with my friends," said she, sullenly, " and 
 not with others." 
 
 He stood for a moment irresolute, gazing at her ; then he 
 abruptly turned on his heel — his brows black and drawn to- 
 gether, his underjaw stern almost to savageness ; and in an- 
 other couple of seconds he had quitted the house. 
 
 On the morning of the day on which the members of the 
 Glasgow Gaelic Choir were to be entertained by their High- 
 land comrades, Mr. McFadyen walked along to the railway 
 station. The hush of noon had fallen over the place ; there 
 were no trains either arriving or departing ; and when the 
 town -councillor stepped into the station-master's office, Mr. 
 Gilmour looked up from his work as if interruption were wel- 
 come. 
 
 " Can ye spare me a few minutes, James ?" the visitor in- 
 quired. 
 
 " Directly — in a second," answered the station - master.
 
 192 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 He signed the document he had been scanning, and re- 
 turned it to the messenger who was standing by. Then he 
 rose from his desk. " Now I'm with you, Peter," he said, 
 blithely. 
 
 " I want you to come along to the house — there's some- 
 thing I would like your advice about," said Peter, with quite 
 unusual shyness. 
 
 The good-natured station-master at once assented ; he took 
 down his cap ; and presently the two friends were outside and 
 making round by the harbor. 
 
 "I say, Jamie," observed the councillor, with an assumption 
 of indifference, " what do you think, now, of the Highland 
 dress for showing off the figure ?" 
 
 " That depends on the figure, I would say," responded the 
 station-master, bluntly. 
 
 " A fine answer !" said Mr. McFadyen, with scorn. " Can- 
 not ye understand what I mean? I mean the Highland dress 
 as compared with any other dress — " 
 
 " Are you going to sport the kilt, Peter — is that what 
 you're aiming at ?" cried the station-master. "Are you going 
 to make a chieftain of yourself ? Are you going to wear two 
 feathers in your cap ? Or three, and make yourself a chief ? 
 Dod, ye might as well be a chief as a chieftain, when it's only 
 an imaginary clan you've got at your back. For who ever 
 heard of the clan McFadyen ?" 
 
 " Who ever heard of the clan Gilmour!" retorted the coun- 
 cillor, angrily. 
 
 "There you're out of it," said the tall thin man with the 
 bright red hair. "There you're out of it, Peter, my friend," 
 In' repeated, in saturnine trinmph. " For at least my name 
 is Highland. 'Gilmour' — 'Gillie mor' — the big young man. 
 Bui McFadyen — McFadyen ! — who on God's earth could ever 
 find "tit tin' meaning of a name like that? And maybe you'll 
 be f<>r saying next that there's a McFadyen tartan !" 
 
 "Oh yes, you're very clever!" remarked the councillor, pee- 
 vishly. "Do you know what they say about people that are 
 as clever as you? — they Say, ' You're so clever you could steal 
 the eggs from under ;i heron, with her two eyes watching 
 you.' \'>w\ although you're so mighty clever, Mr. Jamie, pcr- 
 baps you don'1 know that there are three tartans, the clan
 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 193 
 
 tartan, the hunting tartan, and the dress tartan ; and when it 
 comes to the dress tartan, you can choose for yourself — " 
 
 " Peter," said Gilmour, with a cackle of irreverent laughter, 
 " I would give my best pair of breeks to see ye going through 
 the town rigged out in the royal Stuart !" 
 
 " Indeed !" said Peter, contemptuously. " But if you were 
 still a little more clever, you would understand that people do 
 not go about the streets in a dress tartan." 
 
 Nevertheless, when they reached the councillor's house, this 
 tone of acerbity could not be maintained ; for Peter was se- 
 riously anxious for advice, and perhaps even hopiug for sympa- 
 thetic approval ; and so, when he had ushered the station-mas- 
 ter into his principal room, he said, in a more amicable fashion : 
 
 " I'll tell ye the truth, Jamie. There's the entertainment to 
 the Glasgow Choir this evening, and the dance, and all the 
 rest of it ; and I was saying to myself that that young spark 
 of an Ogilvie was giving himself too many airs with his swal- 
 low-tail coat and his studs and the like. I've a coat of that 
 kind myself, that I got about a dizzen years ago for the dep- 
 utation to Glasgow ; but I was trying it on the other day, and 
 it made me look fearfu' like a Free Kirk minister on a plat- 
 form. And then says I to myself, ' Well, there's other ways 
 o' taking the shine out of that young sprig — ' " He paused. 
 " They came home last night," he resumed, rather timidly 
 glancing towards his friend. " Man, I wish ye would tell me 
 whether you think they'll do — " 
 
 "Let's have a look at them, then!" said Gilmour. 
 
 Thereupon Mr. McFadyen left the room, returning shortly 
 with a number of parcels, which he opened and displayed on 
 the table. Everything was here to make up a correct High- 
 land costume — cap, doublet, vest, kilt, sporran, hose, and 
 shoes; while dirk and sgean-dubh were brave with cairngorms 
 and silver. 
 
 " But put them on, man !" the station-master remonstrated. 
 "Go away and put them on, and let's see how ye look!" 
 
 " I'm not sure whether the dirk and the sgean-dubh should 
 be worn at such a gathering," said the councillor, with some 
 diffidence. 
 
 " Oh, go away and get the things on !" his friend said, im- 
 patiently. " I want to see if ye look at home in them." 
 9
 
 194 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 AVell, when Mr. McFadyen, after a good ten minutes' ab- 
 sence, reappeared at the door of the parlor, he certainly did 
 not look at home in this resplendent costume ; for he was ex- 
 tremely embarrassed and anxious and self-conscious ; but all 
 the same the station-master had not the heart to criticise, 
 much less to smile. It was so abnormal to find Peter — the 
 self-confident, self-assertive Peter — in this sensitive and al- 
 most supplicatory mood that out of mere compassion and to 
 encourage him Gilmour said he thought the general effect was 
 just first-rate. Peter was immensely relieved. 
 
 " You've got to get accustomed to it, of course," said he. 
 " Naturally, you've got to get accustomed to it. And what's 
 more, you've got to get used to people looking at you." 
 
 " Man, you'll cut a dash at the Highland Games !" contin- 
 ued Gilmour, with friendly approval. "It suits ye, Peter — I 
 tell ye it suits ye." 
 
 And now Mr. McFadyen, still further flattered and puffed 
 up, was determined to show that he was not afraid to chal- 
 lenge alien scrutiny. He rang the bell. Presently there ap- 
 peared the maid-servant Sarah, a great, big, stupid-looking, 
 porridge-fed, rubicund lass, with staring blue eyes. 
 
 "Sarah — " said her master, with lofty unconcern. 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 "Yc'll go along to Mr. Dunbar — " 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Ami tell him — " 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 The fact is, the tall lass was saying "Yes, sir," quite inco- 
 herently, and without in the least listening to the message 
 that was being delivered to her — so wholly engrossed was 
 she by the Startling spectacle that her master now presented. 
 
 " — and tell him to have a machine hereto-night at, a quar- 
 ter to eight. A quarter to eight — do ye hear me ? — not a 
 minute later, for 1 have to call for some friends before going 
 on to the concert — " 
 
 "Yes, sir," said Sarah, her eyes all-devouring. 
 
 "Go away, then," said her master, sharply; "and mind, 
 not a minute after a quarter to eight." 
 
 she made a sudden jerky effort to retire — apparently over- 
 come by some extraordinary emotion; she succeeded in get-
 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 195 
 
 ting the door between her and the two men ; and then, the 
 moment it was shut, they heard in the passage a tremendous 
 explosion of long-suppressed, incontrollable, half-choked gig- 
 gling. The infection was irresistible. In spite of himself 
 the station-master burst into a wild guffaw of laughter ; he 
 roared and roared; he could not stop — though his face was 
 purple with shame ; his long, angular carcass was shaken by 
 the violence of this ungovernable merriment, and he struck 
 his knees with his fists. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, Peter," he gasped — with tears running 
 down his cheeks. "I did not intend it — upon my soul. I 
 did not intend it — it was that daft lass — I'm sure she's half- 
 witted — " And here he set to roaring and laughing again. 
 " That daft idiot of a lass ! — what on earth did she break out 
 like that for — a giggling idiot ! — I see nothing myself to laugh 
 at — except — except that she's just a downright born idiot!" 
 
 "Aye, and idiotcy seems to be catching," said Mr. McFad- 
 yen, who had preserved a calm dignity, as the best answer to 
 this disgraceful ebullition. 
 
 " Well, I must be going," the penitent station-master said, 
 as he glanced at his watch and rose. " Never you mind, Peter ; 
 I think you look fine in the tartan — and — and I'm sure I beg 
 your pardon for a bit friendly laugh." 
 
 "You're welcome — you're welcome," said the councillor, 
 with much state ; and ceremoniously and stiffly he conducted 
 the station-master to the door, and bade him good-day. 
 
 But all that afternoon Peter McFadyen was tormented by a 
 thousand vacillating decisions and arguments and fears. He 
 could not attend to his business ; he would leave his office, 
 and run up-stairs to his bedroom, and contemplate that dis- 
 tracting, tempting, dreaded costume. Then, as the hour ar- 
 rived at which he had perforce to dress one way or another 
 for the concert, he grew desperate. Was he to be deterred 
 by the imbecile hilarity of a turnip-headed scullery wench ? 
 The Highland garb was no novelty in Duntroone ; why should 
 he shrink from observant eyes ? And at last, in a fit of mo- 
 rose anger, the result of his reflections over human vacuity 
 and buffoonery, he deliberately arrayed himself in the tartan ; 
 and punctually at a quarter to eight he descended, got into 
 the " machine," and set out for Campbell Street. On this
 
 196 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 occasion the big " porridgy " of a servant-lass exercised a lit- 
 tle more self-control, and her master drove away with some- 
 thing of a lighter heart. 
 
 But as he was ascending the stair towards the widow's 
 rooms, his courage once more oozed away from him; and 
 when he was shown into the parlor, in which Jessie Maclean 
 was waiting, a dreadful consciousness broke over him that he 
 had made a mistake. Jess, poor girl, tried to pretend that 
 she did not notice anything unusual in his attire ; but there 
 was a slight flush of embarrassment on her face ; and the 
 councillor knew — somehow he knew — that in her heart she 
 was contemplating with dismay the prospect of having to go 
 to the concert with him in this guise. 
 
 "Barbara will be ready in a few minutes," Jess said, un- 
 easily, and with her eyes downcast. 
 
 But this casual remark was an inspiration. There was still 
 a precious interval? — there was still a blessed chance of es- 
 cape ? Peter's decision was taken at once. He began to 
 laugh. 
 
 " So I have not frightened ye, Miss Jessie ?" said he, with 
 a jocosely humorous air. " I thought I would have a little bit 
 of fun ; I thought ye'd get a fright if ye fancied I was going 
 to the concert and the dance as a Highland chief. But I'm 
 not so far off my head ; no, no ; I'm not so far left to myself 
 as to wear things like these — except for a joke, ye understand 
 — except for a joke. And ye may tell Miss Barbara not to 
 hurry ; though I'll no be long — no — I'll be back in a jiff." 
 And therewith the councillor, his soul greatly uplifted within 
 him, hurried down-stairs, jumped into the "machine" that 
 had brought him, was driven off home, and there rapidly cx- 
 changed his Highland rig for a more sober outfit. When he 
 returned to Mrs. Maclean'B house, Barbara was fully equipped ; 
 and the three of them drove away to the Drill Hall, Mr. Mc- 
 Fadyen being the merriest of the merry. 
 
 It was altogether a most successful evening. The Glas- 
 gow Choir sang beautifully; at supper Mr. McFadyen wcl- 
 
 COmed them in B Speech that was universally applauded; 
 
 and when at length the hall was cleared for dancing, every 
 
 one was in tin' highest <>f spirits. Barbara, in especial, was 
 all animation ; she seemed t<> drink in excitement from this
 
 AT AN OPEN DOOR 197 
 
 gay scene ; there was a tinge of color in her check, a glow 
 in her great eyes, that told of her delight. Moreover, Jack 
 Ogilvie had not forgotten his promise ; he made Barbara and 
 Jess and the councillor objects of special attention ; any one 
 could see they were a favored group. And at supper, if he 
 did not actually sit with them — for he had to look chiefly 
 after the guests from a distance — at least he came along and 
 chatted with them at times. 
 
 "And what dances are you going to give me, Miss Bar- 
 bara?" said he, on one of these occasions. "No. 1 is a qua- 
 drille. Suppose we make up a party for that? And you 
 must give me a waltz — and maybe two before the night is 
 out. No. 9 is a mazourka — " 
 
 "We must not stay here late," interposed Jess — seeing 
 that Barbara was ready to accept all the dances that the 
 purser proposed. 
 
 " Come, come, it is I that am in authority here," the coun- 
 cillor insisted, " and I'll have no spiriting away of Cinder- 
 ellas before the proper time. We'll begin with the first qua- 
 drille — the four of us here vis-a-vis — and we'll see about the 
 other dances as they come. I'm just in the mood for en- 
 joying myself the night ; yes, I'm that ; and we'll show them 
 how to keep it up !" 
 
 But of all the varied features of this memorable evening 
 none was more remarkable, in Jessie Maclean's eyes, than the 
 ease and elegance with which Barbara danced. Where and 
 how had the Highland lass, away out in the rude island, 
 picked up such an accomplishment, and attained to such a 
 proficiency ? Her naturally graceful figure was seen to the 
 best advantage in all these evolutions ; no wonder (Jess said 
 to herself) that the young men regarded her with covertly 
 admiring glances, and appeared proud and pleased when 
 they were privileged to join hands with her in coming and 
 going. Never before had the councillor found himself so 
 much sought after by those young sparks of whom he was 
 naturally inclined to be somewhat jealous. 
 
 There was one other who, for a few terrible seconds, be- 
 held Barbara in this her hour of display and triumph. The 
 Drill Hall of Duntroone is situated in an out-of-the-way and 
 ill-lighted lane ; and the school-master, wandering aimlessly
 
 198 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 about in the dark, found himself, he hardly knew why, drawn 
 to that long and dusky building from which sounds of music 
 issued into the hollow air. He approached nearer and nearer. 
 The entrance door, for the sake of ventilation, had been left 
 half open ; there were two or three idle lads hanging about 
 and looking in ; he also, if he chose, might gaze upon that 
 brilliant throng, himself unseen. He wished to go away, 
 and could not ; some powerful fascination dragged him on- 
 ward ; at last the dark and glowing eyes were staring in from 
 this outer gloom. And as it chanced it was a waltz that was 
 being performed ; the couples circling swiftly and easily ; the 
 music rising and falling in cadence. And then his eyes 
 seemed to be scared as with a red-hot iron ; there was Bar- 
 bara, in all the flush of her youthful grace and beauty ; and 
 Ogilvie it was who held her one hand clasped in his, whose 
 arm encircled her yielding form. It was plaintive music that 
 sounded down the long hall — so plaintive that there almost 
 appeared to be some cry of human agony in it — some de- 
 spairing note of severance and loss and farewell. Trembling 
 and haggard of visage, the on-looker drew himself away and 
 hid himself in the night ; it was as if he had been blinded, 
 and knew not whither he was going.
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 ON THE VERGE 
 
 All through the black hours of that night he wandered 
 round the shore and the rocks, while the moving world of 
 waters moaned in the dark, and the golden ray of Lismore 
 burned steadily. And still he seemed to hear the low and 
 piteous strains of waltz-music, that spoke of tragic separation 
 and farewell ; and still he seemed to be at a half-open door, 
 sheltered by the obscurity, and gazing in upon that brilliant 
 throng, with one figure there receding from him, as it were, 
 and being lost to him forever. When would they have 
 done with their dancing? When would the colors fade, and 
 the lights go out, and the hush of sleep fall over the small 
 town ? The sound of the revelry appeared to follow him : 
 he heard it all through the unvaried, incessant, mysterious 
 murmur of the sea. 
 
 The long night went by ; a pale and wan glow slowly 
 grew in the east; the hills and woods became dimly distin- 
 guishable ; the trembling plain of water gradually revealed 
 itself, livid and solitary ; beyond, the mountains of Mull and 
 Morven were still swathed in heavy folds of cloud. And 
 what was this object nearer at hand — this first sign of human 
 habitation — what but the gray little inn at Cowal Ferry, sur- 
 rounded by its silent homestead ? At this time of the morn- 
 ing it appeared but as the ghost of a house; and the tale 
 connected with it seemed to have likewise acquired a kind of 
 remoteness ; would the day break into clear and white light, 
 and show firmer and hopefuler things, and drive away those 
 distracting phantoms of the past ? 
 
 Towards eight o'clock or thereabouts he knew that Jess 
 Maclean and the young girl Christina would come down- 
 stairs in order to open the shop ; and a little before that 
 honr he returned to Duntroone, passing along Campbell
 
 200 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Street. He saw the two girls appear and cross the half- 
 empty thoroughfare. He watched Christina take down the 
 shutters. And when, after a few minutes, she went back to 
 the house, leaving Jess in sole possession, he walked forward 
 more quickly. Jess was in the front shop when he entered. 
 
 " You arc early astir, Jessie, after your last night's gaye- 
 ties," said he, with apparent calm ; but despite this forced 
 composure, there was something in his tone, something in 
 his aspect, too, that caused her serious disquiet. 
 
 " What is the matter, Allan f" she demanded at once. 
 
 " Well, I have come to you in my trouble," said he. 
 " Does that surprise you ? It seems but natural I should 
 come to you. Your own life is so placid and happy that 
 suffering and tortured wretches come to you, as if by some 
 kind of instinct, for consolation and sympathy. And you 
 can tell me — Jess, I'm sure you can tell me," he went on, in 
 a more hurried and anxious manner, " whether there is any- 
 thing between Barbara and Ogilvie. What is it ? What is 
 there ? Why should there be any secrecy ? How did she 
 come to be with him in the inn at Cowal ; and how did 
 neither your mother nor you know she was going? What 
 does he mean by it ? He can have his pick and choice of so 
 many — so they say — he gives himself the airs of a lady- 
 killer — why should he turn aside for a simple girl like Bar- 
 bara? I went to her and asked her," he continued, in his too 
 evident distress, " and she had Clothing tor me but angry 
 words and taunts. Plainly enough she told me it was none 
 of my business — that I had no right to interfere. And per- 
 haps I have not ; I had hoped for some better understanding 
 with her; but now, it seems, I must not even speak. And 
 yet how can one stand by and look on — when you see a 
 young girl, ignorant of the ways of the world, being made 
 a fool of, made sport of, for the amusement of an empty- 
 headed fribble 8 Is thai what- it- is.' Or what else is it f 
 What does it mean ?" 
 
 "Come into the parlor, Allan, and sit down," said .less 
 Maclean, in her gentle fashion ; and he followed her into the 
 
 room — but he remained standing, his eyes eagerly searching 
 for an answer in the expression of her face. 
 
 And yet it was about himself that she was mostly concerned.
 
 ON THE VERGE 201 
 
 " You are not looking well," said she ; and somehow she 
 half guessed that he had been wandering to and fro during 
 the night. " Have you had your breakfast this morning, Allan ?" 
 
 " Never mind about that," he replied. And then he pro- 
 ceeded, rapidly : " Tell me, Jessie — what am I to believe 
 about Barbara ? Is there anything between her and Ogilvie ? 
 And is she concealing it? And why? You must know. 
 You are with her constantly. And I can appeal to you for 
 an honest answer and a friendly answer. You will tell me 
 the truth, whatever it is ; and whatever it is, the sooner it is 
 known the better. To you, anyway, I can appeal without 
 being taunted and scorned." 
 
 Jess was quietly and quickly stirring up the fire, and put- 
 ting on the kettle, and getting out the teapot and the like ; 
 and as she went on with these little preparations — the object 
 of which was in nowise perceived by the school-master — she 
 said, in her tranquil way : 
 
 " I would not bother much about Ogilvie, if I were you, 
 Allan. I don't suppose he means anything. He is always 
 running after one pretty face or another ; and there's safety 
 in numbers. I hardly imagine he can mean anything serious 
 with regard to Barbara. A bit of amusement, perhaps — " 
 
 " Amusement ?" he repeated, vehemently. " Amusement 
 that may wreck her peace of mind — that may ruin her life ? 
 If that is the state of affairs, it is time for one of us to step 
 in ; and whether I have the right or not, I will assume the 
 right. She shall not be left defenceless, simply through her 
 ignorance. And perhaps," he said, " perhaps you, too, will 
 tell me it is none of my business — " 
 
 " I don't think, Allan, you ever found me blaming you for 
 anything," Jess made answer ; she was putting a white cloth 
 over the little table. 
 
 " Jess, I beg your pardon !" he said, with instant remorse. 
 "If I have one friend, it's you. I am always safe in coming to 
 you. But I am all at sixes and sevens; worried and harassed; 
 unable to understand what is happening around me. I wonder 
 if you know how other people must envy you your quiet and 
 peaceful life — how you make one wish to be rid forever of 
 maddening hopes and aims ? It must be so fine to be con- 
 tentedly happy — to be without a care." 
 9*
 
 202 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Without a care," murmured Jess, almost to herself. " Aye, 
 just that, Allan. Without a care. You may well say that. 
 AVithout a care." Her back was towards him, for she was 
 about to fetch down a cruet-stand from the cupboard ; so 
 that unobserved she managed to brush away a tear or two 
 that had started to her lashes. Then she turned. " Now r , 
 Allan," said she, cheerfully, " sit down at once. It's but 
 little we keep over here; ouly you can't go along to the school 
 without a mouthful by way of breakfast." 
 
 He would have refused, but she insisted ; and eventually, 
 out of mere gratitude, he was forced to sit down. 
 
 " I looked in at the Drill Hall," he said, slowly and in 
 sombre fashion — and small was the heed he paid to these 
 things before him, though Jess stood by him waiting upon 
 him, as if he were an infant. " I saw Barbara — she was dan- 
 cing with Ogilvie." 
 
 " Well, now," observed Jess, with much blithencss of 
 manner, " is it not surprising that she should have learnt to 
 dance so well, away out in such a place as Kilrcc ! And no 
 one suspecting it cither. But that is the strange thing about 
 Barbara; if you do not find out for yourself, she will never 
 tell you—" 
 
 "Aye, have you discovered that?" he said, glancing tow- 
 ards her quickly. " Have you discovered that, too ?" And 
 then he continued — it was a relief to talk : " Do you know 
 that sometimes she seems to me altogether an enigma; I can- 
 nut make her out; it is as if she had depths of character 
 that no one around her understands as yet. And then again 
 these appear to me mere formless and vacant scapes — the 
 vacant spaces of youth, that time and experience will fill up. 
 Besides, her natural shyness has to be taken into account — a 
 shyness only to be expected in one brought up in that solitary 
 island, and then coming among strangers — " 
 
 "I am sure," said Jess, "mother and I do nut wish her 
 
 to regard us as strangers — far indeed from that ; hut I think 
 
 she hides herself from us as niueh as from others J and ><( 
 course when anyone prefers to keep their own counsel, it 
 
 would only he i inpel't i neliee to press questions." 
 
 "Then Barbara has said nothing to you about Ogilvie?" he 
 a ked, of a sudden.
 
 ON THE VERGE 203 
 
 " Not a word," was the definite answer. " Not a word — 
 and until she offers us her confidence, we are not likely to 
 make ourselves intrusive. If Barbara wishes to keep her own 
 secrets, she is welcome." 
 
 He had pushed away his plate. His hands were resting 
 on his knees ; his eyes were downcast, in profound medita- 
 tion. 
 
 " She is a strange creature," said he. " I had done nothing 
 to anger her. Well, yes ; perhaps she was in the right in re- 
 senting my interference. AVhen I warned her — when I pre- 
 sumed to warn her — perhaps it was only her maidenly pride 
 that retorted. As you say, when she chooses to keep silent, 
 that may be merely her natural habit ; and of course she 
 would be indignant on being pressed with questions. It's 
 quite wonderful, Jessie, how you find excuses for people ; 
 how you seek for the best that is in them ; your disposition 
 is so good-natured ; you want the world to go easily with 
 every one. And indeed, whenever I have to talk with you, it 
 does seem as if things were more hopeful, as if troubles and 
 difficulties could be overcome ; and you must never think 
 that I am not grateful to you because I am a bad hand at 
 making pretty speeches. You must just understand. When 
 you meet a human being who seems to have the faculty of 
 reconciling you to the harsh terms of existence, it is a mar- 
 vellous kind of thing, and you ought to be grateful — but per- 
 haps you have not quite got the knack of saying so — " 
 
 " Enough, enough, Allan," said Jess — her face burning 
 with pleasure ; for when had she received such praise from 
 him before ? 
 
 Then he got to his feet. 
 
 " I must along to the school now, Jessie," said he. 
 
 "And do not put yourself out about the purser," she ob- 
 served to him, as her parting word. " He has too many 
 strings to his bow. And besides, I have heard him say that 
 he wanted to leave this place altogether. Surely, Barbara 
 must have too much sense to attach herself to a sailor-lad 
 that may be off to the West Indies to-morrow. And if you 
 and she have had a quarrel, you'll just have to set to work to 
 make it up again." 
 
 He went away much lighter of heart because of her sisterly
 
 204 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 kindness and wise talk ; but his temperament was brooding 
 rather than sanguine ; and during the long school hours of 
 mechanical and ungrateful toil, his thoughts would go back 
 to the position in which he had been placed by Barbara's 
 disdainful challenge. "If you want any explanations— if you 
 think you have been injured," she had practically said, "go 
 to Ogilvie ; he will answer you, he will answer for us both." 
 It was scornful advice, but it fitted in only too readily with 
 his own humor. He had not got that underjaw for nothing ; 
 and the longer that the lined and knit brows pondered over 
 the problem now before him, the more definite became his re- 
 solve that Ogilvie should not go on his way without one 
 word of question, perhaps even of menace. For the moment, 
 indeed, that was impossible ; on the day following the con- 
 cert and dance, the Aros Castle, her steam -tubes mended, 
 sailed for Loch Sunart. 
 
 But, as it chanced, on the very afternoon of her return, 
 the school-master caught sight of Jack Ogilvie, who was ap- 
 parently leaving the outskirts of the town for a stroll ; and 
 in an instant all Jess's persuasive and kindly counsels had 
 vanished from his mind ; he saw in the distance only the 
 man who had, from vanity or devilment or mere thoughtless 
 disregard of consequences, been leading an inexperienced girl 
 astray, and alienating her from her nearest friends. Without 
 any very clear intention he followed. By the lodge -gate 
 Ogilvie passed into the grounds surrounding the ruins of 
 Duntroonc Castle : these arc thrown open to the public on 
 certain days of the week; but at this season of the year, 
 when there were no tourists abroad, the place was quite de- 
 serted ; and in point of fact the purser continued on his way 
 through the woods without meeting a human being, whether 
 or not he may have been aware that some one was behind 
 him. In due course of time he came in sight of the sea 
 again, and of the castle hill, with the ivied ruins lofty and 
 dark against the west, lie skirted a small hay, went along 
 an avenue of elms, and began to ascend a steep slope. And 
 .■ill this lime Henderson was in his wake; the Bchool-master 
 knowing qoI whal i<> think or what to do, so diverse were the 
 doubts and impulses that occupied his hniin. But momenta- 
 rily the expression of his face was growing darker.
 
 ON THE VERGE 205 
 
 Of course lie could not always maintain this equal distance 
 between himself and his enemy, for the purser, having reached 
 the summit of the hill, stopped short, and began to look 
 around him — at the wide panorama, stretching from Arden- 
 caple in the south to Morven and Kingairloch in the north. It 
 was towards the close of the clay ; there was a steely light in 
 the breaks of the clouded sky, and a metallic gleam on the 
 restlessly lapping water ; but over Mull way there were great 
 masses of soft rain-cloud slowly advancing, that threatened 
 to blot out the livid glare and bring on premature night. 
 And seemingly Ogilvie had no intention of remaining on this 
 solitary eminence ; having walked to the edge of the plateau 
 and glanced downward and around, he idly turned to come 
 away again ; and then it was that he found himself face to 
 face with Allan Henderson. 
 
 For a second the two men regarded each other ; and in- 
 stinctively no phrase of greeting was passed. 
 
 " I am glad to have the chance of a word with you alone," 
 the school-master said, after this momentary silence. 
 
 " You need not have come so far," said the purser, who 
 began to guess that his footsteps had been dogged. 
 
 " I was considering what I ought to say," Henderson pro- 
 ceeded, apparently determined to keep a firm hold over him- 
 self. 
 
 " And have you considered ? — for it is about time for me 
 to be getting home," Ogilvie made answer. Not a syllable 
 had been uttered that could cause offence to either ; but al- 
 ready the two men were in open antagonism. 
 
 " It is about Barbara Maclean — " 
 
 " Oh, indeed !" 
 
 " And I have a question to ask of you — " 
 
 " Suppose I don't choose to answer it." 
 
 " I will make you answer it." 
 
 " Making ? Making ? That is easily said !" 
 
 The school-master was breathing a little more hardly ; that 
 was all. Ogilvie had assumed a certain jaunty indifference 
 of air. 
 
 "You've got to tell me what you mean," Allan went on — 
 with the dark eyes beginning to flame. 
 
 " Mean by what ?" said the other, scornfully.
 
 200 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Well enough you know ! And don't you think I am 
 going to stand by and let you make a plaything of a girl 
 like that, who does not know what all this nonsense may 
 lead to. For I suppose it is nonsense. I do not imagine 
 that a fine gentleman like you could have any serious inten- 
 tions — " 
 
 " And who made it your business to interfere ?" the purser 
 said, defiantly. 
 
 " I have made it my business ; and I mean to make it my 
 business," was the stern rejoinder. " If you have no regard 
 for the good name of the girl, it is for others to see that she is 
 warned, and that you are checked — " 
 
 " A rare fuss to make about nothing !" Ogilvie interjected 
 again. " Why, any one can call in at a tobacconist's shop 
 who has the price of an ounce of bird's-eye." 
 
 "Does the price of an ounce of bird's-eye entitle you to sit 
 in the parlor — or make assignations ?" 
 
 " Oh, I'm sick of this rubbish !" the purser exclaimed — and 
 he made as if he would pass. But Henderson planted himself 
 in front of him. 
 
 " No, you are not going yet. You are not going until you 
 have given me explanations and made me certain promises. 
 But how could I believe your promises — the promises of a 
 miserable hound like you, that would lead a thoughtless girl 
 into a compromising situation ! What were she and you 
 doing at Cowal Ferry?" he demanded, with increasing vehe- 
 mence. "You considered it fine, I suppose, to have the story 
 told about you! You considered it a joke, I suppose, that 
 her good name should be put in peril — that she should be- 
 come a byword — " 
 
 "You lie!" 
 
 The words were hardly out of his mouth when the scliool- 
 master had hurled himself upon him and seized him by the 
 throat; and so sudden and so violent was the onset that both 
 men rolled to the ground, the purser writhing and straggling 
 to free himself from this wild-cat, grip, Henderson striving to 
 
 pinion him to the earth. Ogilvie was no donbt the bulkier of 
 
 the two; hut the school-master's muscles were of iron, while 
 hate and jealousy combined lent him B yet fiercer strength; 
 so that it was in vain that the undermost of the adversaries
 
 ON THE VERGE 207 
 
 fought and tore and flung .himself this way and that in trying 
 to liberate himself from this merciless grasp. And then some- 
 thing happened to Allan Henderson. In their savage wrest- 
 ling they had unwittingly approached the edge of the precip- 
 itous cliff ; and of a sudden it chanced that the school-master 
 caught sight of a dull red patch, far below him, in the old gar- 
 den lying between the castle rock and the sea. It was proba- 
 bly a patch of withered herbage ; but with a startling vivid- 
 ness it recalled to him what he had seen one day when in the 
 company of a game-keeper friend — a wounded roe-deer having 
 rolled over and down into a deep chasm, where it lay motion- 
 less, and hardly to be distinguished from a heap of rusted 
 bracken. And at this same instant it flashed through his 
 brain that the man whose very life he now held in pawn 
 might in another moment be lying away down there, without 
 movement, an inanimate, indistinguishable thing, a horror to 
 the eyes. He relaxed his grip. 
 
 " Come back," he said, hoarsely. " There shall be no mur- 
 der." 
 
 And it was not until he was released that Jack Ogilvie per- 
 ceived how near he had been to his doom. Thoroughly cowed 
 — without a solitary word of threatening or bravado — he re- 
 treated from that ghastly verge, and shook his clothes straight, 
 and departed down the hill, disappearing among the trees. 
 After a while, amid the gathering dusk, the school-master fol- 
 lowed. As he slowly made his way back to the town, an 
 orange spot here and there told of a lighted window and the 
 coming night. And it may have seemed to him, in his som- 
 bre reverie, that it was more easy to seize an enemy, and pin 
 him by the throat, and hold the power of life and death over 
 him — it was more easy to do that than to win a single friend- 
 ly look from a woman whose heart had wandered elsewhither.
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 PRINCE BEELZEBUB 
 
 It was a brilliant morning — the lulls all the way from Mull 
 to Kingairloch clear to the top — the sea a vivid and trem- 
 bling blue — the sunlight warm on the yellow-green slopes of 
 Kerrara. And the councillor, rejoicing in the sweet air and 
 in the proud consciousness of manly vigor, was gayly humming 
 to himself : 
 
 " ' If you on my dear one should gaze, should gaze, 
 If you were to hear what she says, she says, 
 If you heard my pretty 
 One singing her ditty, 
 Your bosom would get in a blaze, a blaze.' 1 " 
 
 Nevertheless, he had business on hand, for he carried a 
 small parcel tucked under his elbow ; and in due course he 
 left the harbor-front, and passed along a side street, until he 
 came to Long Lauchie's shop, which he entered. Maclntyre 
 looked up from his work, the sallow face more sunken and 
 melancholy than ever. 
 
 "Good -morning, friend Lauchlan," said the councillor, 
 blithely, as he undid the parcel, producing a pair of dancing- 
 slices. " I've a bit job here I wish ye'd do for inc. The fact 
 is, once or twice lately, when I've been at a little merry-mak- 
 ing, the next day I've noticed my toes hurt me round the out- 
 side — not that it's gout or anything of that sort — for I'm a very 
 moderate drinker — though the doctor says I might as well give 
 up beer — " 
 
 '• Beer," observed Lauehlan, sadly shaking his head, "beer 
 is a mocker. And moderate drinking, Mr. McFadyen, that's 
 the worst of any. That's the fatal thing. Look at the in-. 
 
 Burance companies— look at the percentage in favor of tho 
 
 total abstainer — "
 
 PRINCE BEELZEBUB 209 
 
 " Ob, hang your insurance companies!" cried the councillor. 
 " Listen to me, now. I've been thinking you could make a 
 bit slit along the side — close to the sole — and it would not be 
 seen if I wore black stockings. Do you understand ? A little 
 bit easement, as it were; for I'm just desperate disinclined to 
 get a new pair — a new pair of shoes is torture to me for 
 montbs. Do ye understand, Lauchlan — a slit that will not be 
 seen — " 
 
 "Ob yes, yes," said Long Lauchie. He examined the shoes, 
 and carelessly put them aside : it was not a paying job. Then 
 he rose, and as bis visitor was leaving, Lauchie accompanied 
 him out to the front. 
 
 " It's fine weather," remarked the shoemaker, as he glanced 
 up and down the pavement. 
 
 But of a sudden his countenance underwent an extraordinary 
 change. Amazement first, then terror — abject terror — was in 
 his eyes. 
 
 " God help us," he exclaimed, as he instantly slunk back 
 into the entry, " there's that woman ! Mr. McFadyen, tell her 
 I'm dead ! — tell her I'm not living here any more." And 
 with that he vanished, leaving the councillor not a little be- 
 wildered. 
 
 There now appeared on the scene a woman rather short of 
 figure, with sharp and angular features, sandy hair, and vin- 
 dictive gray eyes. 
 
 " Was that him ? Did I see him ?" she demanded of the 
 astonished McFadyen ; but she did not wait for an answer ; 
 she whisked by him, and went straight into the cobbler's 
 shop, which was apparently empty. " AVhere are you, you 
 scoundrel !" she called aloud — looking round at the vacant 
 spaces. " I'm for seeing ye face to face this time ! No more 
 banishment for me, and living on friends, when there's a 
 drunken vagabond should be supporting me !" 
 
 The councillor had followed her — she was partly addressing 
 him. 
 
 " I've heard of his goings-on !" she cried. " I've heard of 
 his practices ! But I'll see to it that there's no woman com- 
 ing about this house — a decent, respectable house it was until 
 I was forced to leave it by that drinking ne'er-do-weel. And 
 just let me find the hussy ; my word, I'll put my ten com-
 
 210 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 mandments on her, that will I ! And where is he ? — where is 
 he ? — let me get at him now !" 
 
 She marched along the passage ; with swift and bodeful 
 steps she ascended the staircase ; she flung open the door. 
 But apparently the shoemaker's apartments, which consisted 
 of a kitchen and bedroom, were tenantless. 
 
 " Where are you, you scoundrel !" she called again, in 
 menacing tones. " Let me see ye ! — let my ten nails get at 
 ye !" 
 
 " My good woman," the councillor protested, " this is en- 
 tirely reprehensible ! If you have a complaint to make, let it 
 be done in order. There's law and civilized custom in this 
 town—" 
 
 " Aye, would ye defend him, you old reprobate ?" she re- 
 torted, furiously. " Ye're as bad as he is, I can see by your 
 looks ! Blackguards both o' ye, that's what ye are ! — But 
 ye'll not hinder me !" 
 
 From the empty kitchen she swept into the empty bed- 
 room ; and there the first object that appeared to attract her 
 attention and her wrath was a small mirror standing on the 
 top of a chest of drawers. 
 
 "Aye," she exclaimed, " and has she been decking herself 
 in front of my glass, the brazen trollop? But she'll deck her- 
 self at my glass no more !" She lifted a cane-bottomed chair, 
 and with one drive sent the mirror, glass and wood-work and 
 all, into a hundred fragments. "And looking at my pictures 
 too?" the virago screamed in her rage; and this time the legs 
 of the cane-bottomed chair went crashing through a framed 
 and glazed colored print of St. John the Baptist. " And my 
 ewer — and my soap-dish — and my tumbler — " The work of 
 devastation proceeded apace ; the noise was like the falling of 
 tenements during an earthquake ; until at length, when noth- 
 ing breakable had been left, the shoemaker's wife put down 
 the chair in the midst of the ruins, and seated herself on it, a 
 smile of pitiless triumph on her face. 
 
 " Lei her come now [" she said, with cruel irony. " bet her 
 Come ami take possession! Maybe she'll (leek herself at my 
 <dass, and be keeking Into my press, and thinking thai I'm 
 going to stop at |',,il William for ever and ever, and let, him 
 and her and their line ji^maleeries pass by without a word!
 
 PRINCE ISEELZEBUB 211 
 
 But maybe she'll not find it so easy now to put on her ribbons 
 in front of my glass — " 
 
 " Really — really," said the councillor — who for prudential 
 reasons had remained at the door — " really — if you are Mrs. 
 Maclntyre — " 
 
 " If I am Mrs. Maclntyre ?" she cried, her small gray eyes 
 glittering with anger. " Who am I, then, if I am not Mrs. 
 Maclntyre ? AVhat do you take me for ? Do ye think I am 
 one of the low creatures you and he consort wi' ? Away with 
 ye about your business, you old profligate ! Here I am ; and 
 here I sit ; until that man comes home." 
 
 But at this point she seemed to change her mind. She rose, 
 seized the chair, and advanced to the door ; and when the 
 councillor — only too ready to give her a wide berth — had 
 made way for her on the landing, she proceeded down the 
 staircase and took up a position in the entry. 
 
 " Let him try to get into either shop or bouse," said she, as 
 she planted herself again on the chair. " I'm ready for him. 
 I've had enough of living upon friends, and him spending 
 every penny in the public-houses — " 
 
 " Really, Mrs. Maclntyre," said the councillor, as he sidled 
 past her in order to have free access to the street, " if you 
 consider yourself injured, this is not the proper manner — " 
 
 " Away with ye, ye wicked old wretch !" she broke in, scorn- 
 fully. " You're worse than he is — you're a hundred times 
 worse than he is, or you wouldna be making excuses for him. 
 But you need not come with your excuses to me. What I 
 want is Lauchlan Maclntyre ; and face to face will I have him 
 before me, if I wait here till the Judgment-day. Here I am ; 
 and here I sit ; if he has anything to say to me, I am ready 
 for him." 
 
 Confronted by this implacable resolution, the councillor 
 found himself helpless ; but indeed he did not feel called 
 upon to interfere further, for he was no particular friend of 
 the shoemaker's. Accordingly, and not unwillingly, he took 
 his leave — reflecting that married life appeared occasionally 
 to have its drawbacks, and wondering by what mysterious 
 means Long Lauchie had managed to escape. 
 
 But at this precise moment Long Lauchie had not yet 
 escaped ; he was only on the point of escaping. It was not
 
 212 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 until the wild commotion of the furniture-breaking had sub- 
 sided — it was not until peace once more reigned in the demol- 
 ished room — that a black head and yellow visage were slow- 
 ly and cautiously protruded from under the counterpane of the 
 bed. A careful look round — and the prone figure of the shoe- 
 maker followed. As Lauchie rose to his feet, the last rum- 
 blings of the storm were still audible below ; for he could hear 
 his injured wife announcing to the councillor her determina- 
 tion to remain a fixture ; but here, in this little room, a painful 
 stillness prevailed ; the tornado had expended itself, leaving 
 behind it nothing hut wreckage and ruin. Lauchlan did not 
 stay to contemplate this lamentable spectacle. For a moment 
 or two he listened intently ; then on tiptoe and stealthily he 
 crossed over to the window ; he listened again ; and present- 
 ly, and with the greatest wariness, he began to raise the lower 
 sash. One inch — two inches — and there was no creaking. A 
 few inches further — and there was room for him to put out 
 his head and reconnoitre : he perceived that with the aid of a 
 rain-water barrel it was possible for him to reach the ground. 
 So again he raised the window a few inches, and this also was 
 accomplished in blessed silence ; he put one leg over the sill ; 
 its fellow followed ; then the long, lank body ; in a second or 
 so Lauchlan's feet were resting on the solid wooden covering 
 of the water-butt. From thence he dropped into the yard ; 
 he scrambled over the stone-wall ; he pursued his way swiftly 
 along the lane until he gained a side street ; and there hi' found 
 safe haven in a public-house with which he seemed to be familiar. 
 
 "A glass of whiskey, Mr. Pattison," he gasped — for these 
 unwonted exertions had rendered him breathless. 
 
 "But what have ye done with your hat, Mr. Maclntyrc ?" 
 said the publican, as he proceeded to get the cordial. 
 
 Then Lauchlan remembered that he had nothing on his 
 bead save its natural covering. 
 
 " Oh," said he, uneasily, " the — the wind blew it away. Bn1 
 I'm sure you'll be lending me one, Mr. Pattison, until I get 
 home." 
 
 Ami then it sadly occurred to him that for him there was 
 
 no returning borne while that fearful being barred the way ; 
 and in liis perplexity and helplessness he resolved upon con- 
 fessing the truth to Mr. Pattison.
 
 PRINCE BEELZEBUB 213 
 
 " No," said lie, " I will not tell you any lies. And the fact 
 is, Mr. Pattison, that I have ran aweh from the house, for my 
 wife is there, and raging like a she-duvvle, and ahl the furni- 
 ture brokken, and I do not know what more she would be do- 
 ing if I went back." 
 
 " Well, that is a pretty pass !" said the sympathizing publi- 
 can. " Ye'll have to take Sandy the policeman with ye, and 
 drive her out." 
 
 " Sandy ? — the lad Sandy ?" remonstrated the shoemaker, in 
 accents of reproach. "The poor lad! — could I ask him to 
 face a raging teeger like that?" 
 
 " And what will you do, then ?" was the next question. 
 
 " Aye, that is what I am not knowing myself," answered 
 Lauchlan, with something of a melancholy air ; and there- 
 upon, having borrowed a hat from Mr. Pattison, he set out 
 once more on his travels. 
 
 Now it happened during his subsequent wanderings from 
 one howff to another that the homeless shoemaker encoun- 
 tered Niall Gorach ; and it occurred to him that he could not 
 do better than engage the half-witted youth to go and pry 
 about and discover whether Mrs. Maclntyre had as yet taken 
 it into her head to vacate the premises. When Niall had 
 been got to understand what was wanted, he went off ; but on 
 his return his report was discouraging : the " wumman " was 
 still in the entry seated on a chair. The disconsolate shoe- 
 maker now took Niall with him as the only companion that 
 was available ; and as a few glasses of whiskey, taken at va- 
 rious points and stages, had made him communicative, not to 
 say amiably garrulous, he described to the lad the unhappy 
 predicament in which be was placed. 
 
 " It is I that could drive her out of the house," said Niall, 
 in a darkly meditative manner. He spoke in Gaelic. 
 
 " You ?" rejoined the shoemaker in the same tongue, and 
 he was laughing now and very merry. " Oh yes, it is your 
 head that has the sense in it, and no mistake ! And do you 
 know what she would do to you, my fine boy ? — she would 
 eat you at a mouthful ! Oh yes, you are the grand one to 
 drive her out of the house ! — " 
 
 " What will you give me ? — will you give me a sixpence ?" 
 said Niall, paying no heed to his playful irony.
 
 214 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " But before I give you a sixpence, or the half of a six- 
 pence, " said the shoemaker, with contemptuous mirth, "may- 
 be you would be for telling me how you are going near her? 
 Niall, my tine lad, you do not know what that kind of a wom- 
 an is, or twenty hundred sixpences would be no temptation 
 for you — " 
 
 " As soon as it is dark," said Niall Gorach, doggedly, " it 
 is I that could drive her out, if there is a back way into the 
 house." 
 
 "And how would you do it, my noble hero — how would 
 you do it?" he asked — but he was fumbling about in his 
 pocket for a match. 
 
 "I would show her the prince," said Niall, with his elfin 
 eyes peering upward to his companion's face. 
 
 Long Lauchie only laughed and giggled the more. 
 
 " It's little you understand, my brave youth, what kind of 
 a woman that is. Aw, Dyeea, she would eat you at a mouth- 
 ful ! Do you think I would allow it? — no, not if Sandy the 
 policeman went with you — " 
 
 " Will you give me the sixpence ?" said Niall ; and then he 
 added, in a mysterious whisper : " I would show her Prince 
 Beelzebub; and anyone that is seeing him will go mad. 
 There was a man at Taynuilt that struck me with a whip; 
 and one night Prince Beelzebub went to see him, and he was 
 ill in bed for more than a week after it. Maybe — well, maybe 
 he was not for striking me with a whip during that week." 
 
 The shoemaker began to show a little mure attention, 
 though he was still incredulous and vaguely amused. 
 
 " Now what is the witch's cantrip you would be after, you 
 limb of Satan!" he exclaimed. "Well I know there are 
 queer things get into that noddle of yours ; but sure I am, 
 my famous warrior, that you would make the greatest mis- 
 take of your life if \ on tried to go near the she-devil that is 
 in my house. Niall, my son, 1 will tell j on the truth, and this 
 is the truth — that when she is in the inside of the dwelling, 
 the outside of the dwelling is the best place." 
 
 Niall was still stealthily and eagerly scrutinizing his com- 
 panion's features; but the fact is that Long Lauchie seemed 
 now too vacuously happy to pay much beed to anything. 
 It was his search after a match that ehieilv concerned him.
 
 " THE NEXT MOMENT SHE HAD FLED INTO THE OUTER AIR
 
 PRINCE BEELZEBUB 215 
 
 There even appeared some probability that he would forget 
 all about his wife being in possession of his home. 
 
 " It is not the head of a man," continued Niall, still " glow- 
 ering" and watchful, " that Prince Beelzebub has on him, but 
 it is something more terrible than any head, and there are 
 two eyes, and the light is on them — " 
 
 " Oh yes, yes," said the shoemaker, contemptuously, " and 
 it is a wise lad you are to think of frightening people with 
 a hollowed turnip and a candle." Then of a sudden some 
 idea seemed to strike him. " Niall," said he, in an undertone, 
 and his bemused eyes were mirthful now, " could you give 
 that devil of a woman a fearful fright? Could you, now? 
 Is that your intention ? For if you do it well, I will pay you 
 not one sixpence but two sixpences, and that as sure as death. 
 Will you make her jump ? Will you make her spring out of 
 her senses ? Niall, you are the son of my heart ! Will you 
 make her fly ? Will you make her scream ? Aw, Dyeea, it 
 would be worth a hundred pounds to see her jumping with 
 terror !" 
 
 " If there is a back way into the house," said Niall, slowly, 
 " the prince could get at her — " 
 
 " There is — there is !" said Lauchlan, in great excitement. 
 "There is the rain -barrel — and the window I left open — 
 Niall, will you make her jump ? — will she scream out, do you 
 think ? — it is I that would be laughing, if I could hide some- 
 where on the other side of the street — " 
 
 " Give me one of the sixpences now," said Niall, regarding 
 him furtively. " Maybe I will have to offer something to the 
 prince." 
 
 Lauchlan put his hand in his pocket. 
 
 " And mind you this, you imp of a warlock," said he, " if 
 it is lies you are telling me I will break every bone in your 
 body." 
 
 It was some two hours thereafter, as the twilight was deep- 
 ening into dark, that Niall Gorach cautiously clambered over 
 the wall of Long Lauchie's backyard, and crossed to the rain- 
 barrel, and ascended to the open window. Between his teeth 
 he held the end of a piece of string ; and when he had reached 
 the sill, and peered into the room to make sure no one was 
 there, he noiselessly hauled up after him a bundle to which
 
 210 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the cord was attached. The demolished apartment was now 
 shrouded deep in gloom, and a profound silence prevailed. 
 In this ghostly stillness Niall began to undo his bundle ; and 
 not a whisper of a sound betrayed his presence. 
 
 About ten minutes or a quarter of an hour later there 
 emerged on to the landing one of the most extraordinary ap- 
 paritions that the sick brain of any mortal creature ever con- 
 ceived. It was a figure of more than normal height, draped 
 entirely in black, the shoulders, or what might pass for shoul- 
 ders, square, the two extended arms bearing each a lighted 
 candle. But the astonishing and alarming feature of this 
 phenomenon was that instead of having anything like a hu- 
 man head on its square shoulders, the head was that of some 
 owl-like animal; and the two eyes, each in its hollow recess, 
 caught the light of the candles, and seemed to burn with some 
 infernal riame. This hideous and ghastly manifestation now 
 proceeded to descend the stairway, not even a rustle of the 
 black drapery giving notice of its approach; and when within 
 two steps of the foot it paused. 
 
 " Pentateuch ! — Pentateuch !" said a mournful voice. 
 
 There was a woman sitting in the dusk of the passage. At 
 this sound she turned her head ; the next moment, with a wild 
 scream of terror, she had sprung to her feet ; the next mo- 
 ment, with shriek after shriek — ami shriek after shriek — she 
 bad fled into the outer air, and was blindly rushing down the 
 street as if all the fiends of pandemonium were after her. 
 She did not seem to know whither she was going; she wait- 
 ed for no answer to her piercing cries; to get away from 
 this horrible, unnainahle, appalling thing was her only aim. 
 And meanwhile Long bain lilan the shoemaker, bidden in 
 the friendly shelter of a door over the way, was slapping 
 his thighs, and shaking and laughing with inextinguishable 
 
 laughter.
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI 
 
 On one of these evenings Mrs. Maclean was as usual in the 
 little parlor, seated in her easy -chair, and placidly knitting, and 
 Jess, at the central table, was engaged with her business ac- 
 counts, when Barbara, dressed up in all her finery, appeared 
 at the partially opened door. After a single glance round the 
 room, she seemed to hesitate about an excuse for withdraw- 
 ing again. 
 
 "I was just looking in — " she said. 
 
 "And finding nobody," suggested the little widow, with 
 sly sarcasm. 
 
 This was something of a challenge ; and Barbara at once 
 went into the parlor and sat down. 
 
 " Not but that we're rather dull company," the widow con- 
 tinued, " for there's not so many coming about as there used 
 to be. The lad Allan I can understand ; he is busy with his 
 classes ; and right glad am I that he is getting on so well. 
 But Ogilvie — what have ye been doing to Johnnie Ogilvie, 
 Barbara? They tell me he paid ye great attention at the 
 ball of the Gaelic Choir ; and he used to look in of an even- 
 ing pretty regular ; but now one hears or sees nothing of 
 him—" 
 
 "And perhaps it is better I should hear or see nothing of 
 him," said Barbara, sharply, " if there is to be such a work 
 about my taking a cup of tea at Cowal Ferry !" 
 
 " I did not know there was any such work made," rejoined 
 the widow, with her customary good-humor, "though a young 
 lass cannot be too careful about appearances." She looked 
 up from her knitting, and scanned the girl's costume for a 
 moment. " But are ye sure you were not expecting any one, 
 Barbara? You're finely decked out, to be merely going down 
 the town on an errand or two. In my young days I would 
 10
 
 218 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 not have thought of putting on a hat and feathers if I was 
 only going for a can of mulattoes to flavor the rice for sup- 
 per—" 
 
 " Mother," interposed Jess, glancing up from her accounts, 
 " you may have what you like ; but rice flavored with mulat- 
 toes will be no supper for me. Is it molasses you mean i" 
 
 " Yes, just that," the widow proceeded, cheerfully. "And 
 has there been a quarrel between you and Ogilvie, Barbara ? 
 And are you thinking to fetch him back with a hat and feath- 
 ers ? Well, well : Every one must have her own way of man- 
 aging her sweetheart. When I was young they used to say 
 ' Goat's milk and sweet violets to wash your face with, and 
 there's not a king's son in the world but then will be running 
 after you.' " 
 
 " Perhaps I am not wishing for any sweetheart," said Bar- 
 bara, sullenly. 
 
 "And yet," observed Mrs. Maclean, her eyes demurely bent 
 on her work — " and yet you took a present — and a very hand- 
 some present — from Allan Henderson." 
 
 "Allan Henderson?" retorted Barbara. "I do not care to 
 have anything to do with him and his ill-temper." 
 
 But at this Jess Maclean fired up. 
 
 " Ill-temper?" said she. "And what do you mean by ill- 
 temper ? If to have scorn and contempt for meanness and 
 cunning and despicable things generally, if that is to be ill- 
 tempered, then lie is ill-tempered, but not in any other way, 
 Allan Henderson is a man who has his own opinions, his own 
 character, his own standards of what is worth seeking for ; 
 lie is not a mere copy and echo of other people ; and if he 
 does not strive to please, and say pretty things, I respect him 
 all the more for it. Striving to please! — any empty-headed 
 coxcomb can do that — " 
 
 " Oh yes, you are always on the side of the school-master I" 
 Barbara said, tauntingly ; and at that Jess Maclean's fair and 
 freckled face became suffused with color, and she was proudly 
 sili nt. The widow did not notice this confusion ; she hail re- 
 turned to the subject of sweethearts; and she was relating 
 tlir story of the Northern maiden whose lover, on the eve of 
 their Wedding, was drowned at sea; how the girl pined away 
 and died, her last request being thai she also should have an
 
 LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI 219 
 
 ocean grave ; how her relatives refused, preferring that she 
 should be buried in the church-yard of a neighboring island ; 
 how, on their setting sail, they encountered a dreadful storm 
 that they interpreted as a warning from Heaven ; and how, 
 when they at length carried out her wishes and consigned 
 the corpse to the deep, the phantom of her lover was seen to 
 arise from the waves and clasp her in his arms. It is an old 
 and familiar tale that has been told round many a peat-fire ; 
 but Barbara had not heard it ; and she listened to it with the 
 entranced eyes of a child. 
 
 The narrative had hardly been finished when there was a 
 tapping at the door, and the next moment the tall and spare 
 form of the young school-master appeared. He looked star- 
 tled, almost dismayed, when he perceived that Barbara was 
 seated there ; but no escape was possible for him ; for in an 
 instant the little widow had dashed aside her work, and ran 
 to him, and caught him by one hand, while with the other, 
 as she dragged him into the room, she patted him affection- 
 ately on the shoulder. 
 
 " Welcome indeed to the hearth, as they say in the Gaelic," 
 she cried. "Allan, my lad, I never see you but I feel that 
 blood is thicker than water ; and it is only a few minutes ago 
 I was talking of your absence ; though some would say I 
 should not complain since it is plenty of work that has been 
 keeping you away. And here is your own chair, that always 
 looks empty when you are not here ; and you will light your 
 pipe now, and give us your news ; for though Jessie is always 
 telling us of the great things you are doing and going to do, 
 sure I am you will not show yourself proud and forgetful of 
 your own people. And I hope the classes are getting bigger 
 and bigger, and the boys keeping obedient — " 
 
 " Oh yes," said Jess, with a laugh. "Allan is a fine one to 
 be teaching those young lads the humanities ! It is much 
 of the humanities they are likely to learn ! I know the hu- 
 manities they are likely to have set before them — impatience 
 and browbeating and contempt of the whole of the rest of 
 the civilized world — " 
 
 " You've never a good word for me, Jessie," said he, as he 
 took his seat. 
 
 "And that's true — that's true!" interposed her mother,
 
 220 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 quickly. " She never has a good word for you — before your 
 face, Allan ; but behind your back — you should just hear 
 her ! Behind your back — that's another story ! Was it ten 
 minutes since, was it as much as ten minutes since she was 
 defending- you, and praising you, and telling us how you were 
 different from other people, and everything splendid, and just 
 the one single person in the world to be admired. Oh yes," 
 continued the garrulous little widow, in her terrible indiscre- 
 tion, and now she had turned upon Jess, " yes, yes, you may 
 show as much pink in your face as ye like ; but when my 
 cousin's son comes to the house, I will see that he is treated 
 with proper civility — " 
 
 " I am sure I have little to complain of," Allan said. 
 " Jessie and I understand each other pretty well, I think." 
 
 "Will you take a cup of tea now, Allan?" the widow 
 asked. 
 
 " I should be glad of it," he made answer, "if it is not too 
 much trouble." And thereupon Mrs. Maclean rose and went 
 to the cupboard ; she was delighted that the stiff - necked 
 young man had condescended to accept something at her 
 hands. 
 
 All this while he had hardly dared to look Barbara's way ; 
 though his whole being was conscious of her presence, and 
 thrilled in response to it: he knew that her eyes, pitiless 
 though they might be, were possibly, even by chance, wan- 
 dering in his direction. And by subtle degrees the magnet- 
 ism of this mere proximity had again got hold of him with 
 all its accustomed and mysterious force ; his obduracy melted ; 
 he was ready to forgive her everything by-gone — her open 
 preference of another, her bitter words and taunts — if only 
 there was a hope of his winning a friendly look from under 
 the beautiful lung lashes. And it seemed so easy and reason- 
 able for her to be kind. Surely one so bountifully gifted by 
 nature OUght to have been grateful to the exist ing fabric of 
 
 things, ami ready to do a good turn anywhere? How could 
 One so graciously formed be so merciless and cold and dis- 
 tant | Nay, in what inscrutable way did she continue to ex- 
 ercise this irresistible allurement and glamour, if her attitude 
 towards him was intentionally repellent! 
 
 " Here, Barbara," said the lighl hearted little widow, "take
 
 LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI 221 
 
 off your black hat and feathers, and not sit there like a trag- 
 edy empress. Get out the cups and saucers ; and Jess — away 
 wi' those books o' yours. ' It's a' to pleasure our guidman ' : 
 he'll be somebody's guidman all in good time ; and I trust 
 she'll treat him well after such thankless work as teaching a 
 lot of idle laddies." 
 
 " No, no, you must not say that," Allan protested. " The 
 school-work during the day may be tiresome enough and 
 thankless enough ; but as for my own lads that come to me in 
 the evening, I am just proud of them. I had no idea that in 
 a small place like Duntroone there would be so many worthy 
 young fellows determined on self -improvement in spite of 
 their poor and hard circumstances. Where they get time to 
 prepare their tasks I cannot imagine, unless they snatch an 
 hour or two in the early morning, before going to their desk 
 or the counter. And well-behaved in their manner, too — " 
 
 "They'd better be !" said Jess, spitefully. 
 
 " — civil, and attentive, and anxious to win approval. Poor 
 lads," he continued, with a bit of a sigh, and he appeared to 
 relapse into a profound reverie, "one cannot but sympathize 
 with their ambition ; but if they only knew how little a knowl- 
 edge of books will avail them when they come to live their 
 lives — when they come to discover how inexorable fate is — 
 and how hopeless and cross-grained the world is — " 
 
 " Now I'll not have ye talk like that, Allan !" the widow 
 exclaimed. " I'll not have ye give way to your black moods 
 — though it's but natural, living in such a solitary fashion, 
 and not coming among your friends as much as ye ought. 
 See, try what this will do for you — and a slice or two of 
 cake — " 
 
 He paid little attention. His prematurely lined forehead 
 remained dark and meditative ; until Jess — whose keen gray 
 eyes could read his face as if it were a book — thought fit to 
 interfere. She said to him, with frank good-nature : 
 
 " Come, now, Allan, listen to me, and I will tell you some- 
 thing. Your evening classes promise so well that they will 
 soon become an institution ; and there is one thing an institu- 
 tion cannot do without, and that is an annual soiree. The 
 young men will invite their friends and their sisters and 
 sweethearts ; and there will be addresses and songs ; and a
 
 222 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 report in the newspapers, so that your classes will be recog- 
 nized as one of the established institutions of Duntroone — " 
 
 " Indeed, you can talk common-sense when you like, Jess," 
 her mother said, approvingly, " if ye would not keep bicker- 
 ing at Allan, poor lad. Just a fine advertisement — a fine ad- 
 vertisement to help him in the public notice — most useful — 
 most useful — for if I may say so, Allan, ye' re just a little bit 
 inclined to be reserved and unmanageable — " 
 
 " A little bit inclined !" said Jess, with a laugh ; but im- 
 mediately she added, " Well, now, Allan, if you think such 
 a thing would be liked by the lads themselves, you might 
 have the first soiree before the summer vacation." 
 
 "It is not much of a vacation my youths will expect, or 
 want," the school-master answered her, and he roused him- 
 self somewhat. " They are too anxious and eager to get 
 on. I hear now and again of some of their schemes and en- 
 terprises — most of them translations and useless things they 
 could never get published, if they had any desire of that 
 kind. But happily there do not seem to be many of them 
 aiming at a literary career; I hope none of them, indeed; 
 that will be one disappointment the less for them on their way 
 through the world — -" 
 
 " Your article on the German Folk-songs," said Jess, skil- 
 fully intervening — "when will that be published?" 
 
 " It is not a subject of much importance," he made an- 
 swer ; "they may hold it over for any length of time. Mr, 
 MeFadyen seems more impatient about it, than I am." 
 
 " I think all of us," said Jess, with her gentle gray eyes 
 glistening with pride and pleasure — "I think all of us will 
 be interested enough when that number comes out!" 
 
 It was now about time for the school-master to be getting 
 along to his Latin class; and as he rose to take his leave, 
 the warm-hearted little widow was urgent in her entreaties 
 that he should come oftener to sec them. The strange thing 
 was that Barbara, who had barely spoken a word during 
 
 the risit, and hardly seemed 1<> regard herself as one of the 
 company, rose also, and said that she too would be going. 
 Of course he could not assume that she was leaving with 
 him— that he was even to he allowed to hold the door open 
 for her. When lie had hade good-bye to the othcrs,hc hade
 
 LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI 223 
 
 good-bye to her ; and she coldly and formally gave him her 
 hand. And then he passed through the shop and out into 
 the lamp-lit street : he was on his way home, alone. 
 
 He had not gone a dozen yards when he heard light and 
 swift footsteps behind him. 
 
 " Mr. Henderson !" 
 
 The voice startled him ; he turned instantly ; and then 
 some wild, bewildering hope flashed through his brain. Had 
 she relented? Had her heart softened, after all? Was he 
 now to take her and claim her as his own ? Why was she 
 advancing towards him — here in the magical dusk — if all the 
 possibilities of all the world were not wrapped up in that 
 slim and elegant figure ? 
 
 It was but a momentary madness that possessed him. Just 
 behind him there was one of the street lamps; and the dull 
 light it shed upon her features showed all too clearly that it 
 was no compassion, no kindness, that had moved her to this 
 sudden act. The tone of her voice, when she spoke, gave the 
 final death-blow to that distracting fancy. 
 
 " I wish to know something from you," she said, rather 
 breathlessly, and yet with obvious determination. " We — 
 we had some talk about Mr. Ogilvie. And you threatened. 
 What is it you have said or done to him ? Something has 
 happened : what is it that has happened ? Why does he keep 
 away ? It is through you. I know it is through you. What 
 is it you have done ?" 
 
 He stood irresolute. Even with her face cruel, she looked 
 so winsome ! And then to be alone with her — when he could 
 seize both her hands, and hold her, and tell her at last what 
 was in his burning heart. But then again came the despair- 
 ing consciousness that it was all in vain ; her voice was angry 
 and menacing ; her demeanor was a challenge. 
 
 " Whatever I did, Barbara," he said, quite humbly, " it 
 was through no wish to injure you ; it was far different from 
 that." 
 
 " And who asked you to intermeddle ?" she demanded, with 
 her lips grown pale. "And who made you the judge ? Who 
 gave you the right to say what would injure me or not injure 
 me?" 
 
 " I told you, Barbara," he said, gently — " I told you that I
 
 224 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 could not stand by and see you being led into a false position 
 through your ignorance of the world. Do you know what 
 people would say — " 
 
 "I do not care what people would say!" she broke in, 
 sullenly. 
 
 " Then it is for your friends," said he, with something 
 more of firmness — " if you are so wilful, it is for your friends 
 to see that this man Ogilvie will not take advantage of your 
 recklessness — " 
 
 " What did you do ?" she broke in again. " What have 
 you done? Why does he keep away from us? It is owing 
 to you — it is you that have done it — well I know that !" 
 
 " He can best tell you himself," Henderson said, calmly, 
 " why he keeps away from you. But a young woman would 
 be more regardful of her character who did not show herself 
 so anxious about the visits of a young man." 
 
 " My character is my own," said she, hotly, " and I do not 
 wish for friends that have bad suspicions, and that inter- 
 fere where they are not wanted. I do not wish for such 
 friends. And if you will not tell me what has happened, 
 then I will find out for myself. Yes, indeed ! I will get some 
 one to help me — but not your help — I can do without that! 
 If you have said anything to him in my name, I will find it 
 out ; and if you have done anything to him, 1 will find some 
 one who will take my part — hut not you — not you ! — " 
 
 There were some people coming along the almost deserted 
 pavement; she turned from him without another word, and 
 disappeared into the dusk. And then he made his way 
 home — to those busy and eager lads whose confident and 
 courageous interest in the future lying before them was such 
 a beautiful thing, with its touch of sadness too.
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 DARK DEALINGS 
 
 One morning Barbara Maclean was up on the top of the 
 Gallows Hill, and she was regarding with fixed gaze a small 
 and faintly red speck that was slowly creeping into this wide 
 panorama of aerial blues and grays. It was the funnel of the 
 Aros Castle, that was now on her way across from the Sound 
 of Mull to Duntroone ; and as she came along by Lismore 
 light, the dim spot of red gradually took definite shape and 
 brightened in hue, while the black hull of the steamer was 
 now visible amid the waste of waves. Onward she came — 
 past the Maiden Island — past the end of Kerrara — under the 
 ivied ruins of the castle — and through the smooth waters of 
 the bay ; and by the time she had got in to the South Pier, 
 been made fast there, and discharged her passengers and car- 
 go, Barbara had descended from her lofty pinnacle, and was 
 proceeding along the harbor-front with apparent unconcern, 
 carelessly glancing at the railway-trucks, the lorries, and the 
 herring-barrels. This is not the part of Duntroone ordinarily 
 chosen by young ladies out for a morning walk ; nevertheless, 
 she seemed bent on no very precise errand ; there was some- 
 thing of a holiday look about her attire. 
 
 Ogilvie, his work finished for the moment, had stepped 
 ashore, and was now standing talking to an acquaintance. When 
 Barbara drew near, he glanced towards her with some little 
 surprise ; then he raised his cap ; evidently he assumed that 
 she would continue on her way. But when she paused, hes- 
 itated, and seemed inclined to address him, he at once dis- 
 missed his companion, and turned to her. 
 
 " It is some time since," she said, slowly — " it is some 
 time since you have been to see us." Her eyes were down- 
 cast, and she was nervously smoothing the forefinger of her 
 glove. 
 10*
 
 220 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " I have been rather busy," he said, evasively. 
 
 " I was thinking," said she — " I was thinking — if there was 
 any reason." 
 
 " Oh, nothing particular — nothing particular," he made an- 
 swer. There was no shyness about him, at all events; he was 
 contentedly scanning the various articles of her costume. 
 
 For a second she was silent; then she ventured to raise her 
 eyes, the better to question him. 
 
 " Was Allan Henderson — speaking to you ?" 
 
 At this he laughed rather uneasily. 
 
 " Well, yes, we had a few words, by way of a joke. Only 
 the joke might have had a bad ending ; for both of us were 
 precious near rolling over the edge of the Castle Hill." 
 
 " Was there a fight ?" she demanded, with breathless ea- 
 gerness. 
 
 " A fight? No. But there was a scrimmage — a ridiculous 
 scrimmage. A fuss about nothing. If I may be allowed to 
 say so, Miss Barbara, I'm afraid your friends are just a little 
 bit too officious !" 
 
 There was something of a taunt in this last phrase, notwith- 
 standing the assumed indifference of the speaker. As for her, 
 her cheeks were burning hot with resentment ; her surmises 
 had been only too clearly confirmed. 
 
 " Yes," she went on, in bitter indignation, " it is what you 
 say — my friends arc a good deal too officious. What right 
 have they to interfere on my account? What right has Allan 
 Henderson to meddle with anything that concerns me? Let 
 him keep to his school. He is not my master. I am not in 
 any of his classes — " 
 
 "But really, really," said he, with abundant good-humor, 
 " it is not a matter to make any worry about. It is of no con- 
 Bequence one way or the other. It is a trifle — " 
 
 " I will not have any one speaking for me — any one that 
 has not the right to do it," she continued, with the beautiful 
 lucent eves grown sullen with wrath. "And what was it lie 
 Said? Yes, I guessed that he was going from me to you — I 
 have been thinking of it — I was sure he WOUld he doing that. 
 And ii"u I want 1m know what it was he said — " 
 
 The purser smiled tolerantly. 
 
 "Don't you bother yourself about nothing, Miss Barbara,"
 
 DARK DEALINGS 227 
 
 said he. " Things are very well as they are ; are they not ? 
 I for one am perfectly satisfied." 
 
 She regarded him boldly. 
 
 "If I were a man," said she, "I would not let another man 
 frighten me away from any house." 
 
 He winced under this reproach ; but all the same he an- 
 swered her with a sufficiently confident air: 
 
 " No, no, Miss Barbara ; it isn't that at all. There's n.ot a 
 man in Dnntroone, or anywhere else, would keep me away 
 from any house that I wished to visit — " 
 
 " Then why—" 
 
 " Then why have I not been looking in of late to see you 
 and your folks?" he said, anticipating her question; and then 
 he proceeded, carelessly : " Oh, well, I hate fuss and disturb- 
 ance. I'm for a quiet life. There's no use in seeking trouble 
 when you can avoid it. It isn't worth while. I don't see the 
 object — " 
 
 She appeared to withdraw a little ; and her manner changed. 
 
 "Oh, of course; I understand," she said, stiffly and proudly. 
 " If it is not worth while, why should you come to see us ? 
 If there is no object, I can very well understand. And it is 
 much better as it is — " 
 
 " Besides, as I tell you, I have been busy," he added, with 
 something of apology in his tone. 
 
 " Oh yes, I understand," she said. " I understand very 
 well. And as you say, it is of little consequence. Good- 
 morning, Mr. Ogilvie !" 
 
 She was for moving away, when he intercepted her. 
 
 " One moment, Miss Barbara," said he, as if rather depre- 
 cating her displeasure. " You have never fixed yet when you 
 are coming for a sail with us. We spoke of it before — your 
 going up to Tobermory — and staying the night with Mrs. 
 Maclean's friends — and coming back with us the next day. 
 The weather appears quite settled at present ; and I would see 
 that you were well looked after — " 
 
 " I am very much obliged to you," said she, in the same 
 stiff and cold fashion. " But before I could do that, you 
 woukPhave to come and ask permission for me from Mrs. 
 Maclean ; and as she lives in a house that you dare not come 
 near, there is no possibility of it,"
 
 228 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 He flushed red with vexation. 
 
 " I can go near any house that I choose to go near," he 
 said, shortly. 
 
 " Oh, well, indeed now that is a good thing," she rejoined, 
 with great coolness. " For it is a pity that any one should be 
 afraid to come near the house of a friend." And with another 
 formal word of farewell, she turned from him and walked 
 away, resolute and apparently unconcerned. She even made 
 a show of opening the small leathern reticule she carried, as 
 if to refresh her memory about her next errand ; but her 
 fingers shook so that she could hardly undo the clasp. 
 
 Some little time thereafter, on her way home, Barbara 
 called in at the shop to leave a message ; and there she found 
 Jessie Maclean talking across the counter to Niall Gorach. 
 When Barbara entered, Jess looked up and laughed. 
 
 " Now is your chance, Barbara," said she. " Here is Niall 
 that offers to take me to a wonderful spae-wife — " 
 
 "And what is that?" Barbara asked. 
 
 "A spae-wife — a wise woman — who will tell you whether 
 you are going to marry a prince or a chimney-sweep. She 
 will tell you everything that is to happen to you, and per- 
 haps something more. Well, now, I have no curiosity about 
 myself; I am content to be as I am; but you — I'm think- 
 ing you might want to know the strange and fine things that 
 are to come your way. Though I am not sure that it is safe, 
 Barbara; you might see too much, and lose your senses — " 
 
 Niall was looking from the one to the other of them. At 
 last he said to Jess : 
 
 " It was you that was keeping the man from striking me; 
 and besides I got a suxpence ; and I was to show you the white 
 stag in Creannoch. But that is a long web audi. Mebbe 
 you would come to the wise woman ; and I will see that the 
 policeman is not noticing anything — " 
 
 Barbara stared at him and listened, in silence. And with- 
 out a word — as if this chance proposal were a matter of 
 complete Indifference t<> her — she left the shop. But a few 
 minutes afterwards, when Niall G orach was going along the 
 street, he found himself overtaken. 
 
 " Have you the Gaelic?" said a voice close to him. 
 
 "Yes, indeed," he answered in that tongue, as he turned
 
 DARK DEALINGS 229 
 
 and beheld Barbara Maclean confronting him ; no doubt in 
 his eyes sbe seemed a grand and noble lady, with her fine 
 hat and feathers. 
 
 " Will you take me to the wise woman ?" she said, hur- 
 riedly. 
 
 The half-witted lad regarded her with slow suspicion. 
 
 " ' What you do not do to-day you will not repent to-mor- 
 row ' ; that is what they are always saying to me," he re- 
 plied. 
 
 " But I am Jessie Maclean's cousin, and you are very friend- 
 ly with her," continued Barbara. " And besides that, I will 
 be giving you something." 
 
 Still he hesitated. 
 
 " You would have to go after it is dark," said he. 
 
 " I will go at any time," she responded, eagerly. " Tell me 
 where I am to meet you." 
 
 " And you will not be speaking of it to any one ?" he asked 
 of her, with cautious and peering eyes. 
 
 " As sure as the Good Being lives, not a word will I pass to 
 any person." 
 
 This seemed at length to pacify him ; and, after a glance up 
 and down the thoroughfare, he told her when and where she 
 should find him. Then Barbara hurried off home, for Mrs. 
 Maclean would soon be coming over for her mid-day meal. 
 The little widow, when she did appear, found her niece more 
 preoccupied and silent even than usual ; she did not know that 
 the girl, trembling at her own temerity, had it in mind to lay 
 an impious hand on the veil of the future. 
 
 At the appointed hour, when darkness had fallen and the 
 street lamps were lit, Barbara stole out and along to the ren- 
 dezvous, her finery being now all discarded for a thick tartan 
 plaid which she wore round her head and shoulders, and with 
 which she could pretty effectually conceal her face. Niall was 
 awaiting her. 
 
 "Does the woman — does the wise woman — ever do any 
 one harm ?" Barbara asked of her companion as they set forth 
 — and she spoke in an undertone. 
 
 " You will have to give her money," was the reply. 
 
 " Will you come into the house with me ?" she asked again, 
 timidly.
 
 230 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 *' No. I will be on the outside. And if I see the office?', I 
 will let you have warning. But it is a very secret place, and 
 perhaps they will not be observing anything." 
 
 He led the way towards a back slum in the poorer part of 
 the town ; and there, with all sorts of stealthy precautions 
 against being remarked, he brought her to the mouth of a 
 " close " or entry, and whispered to her to go in. As for him- 
 self, he seemed at the same moment to vanish. Barbara, thus 
 thrown on her own resources, did advance a step or two ; but 
 the place was pitch-dark ; and it is probable that in her vague 
 apprehension she would have retreated and got into the open 
 air again, but that suddenly a hand was laid upon her arm. 
 She shrieked in terror. 
 
 "Be quiet — be still — ye're safe enough," said a woman's 
 voice. " I'll show ye the way." 
 
 Hardly knowing what was happening to her, she suffered 
 herself to be led by this unknown grasp ; she was conducted 
 along a narrow passage ; she was warned about the descent 
 of some steps; she found herself in a stone-paved court; and 
 then a door was opened, and presently she knew that she 
 had come into some confined space. The next moment her 
 guide struck a match and proceeded to light a candle ; and 
 Barbara, looking around with bewildered eyes, discovered that 
 she was in a low-roofed cellar-looking place that was appar- 
 ently empty, while her companion turned out to be a little 
 old woman of slatternly appearance and unkempt gray hair. 
 The ancient witch now shut the door behind them, and fixed 
 the candle on to the wall. 
 
 "There will he no one to disturb us," she said, after a swift 
 and cunning scrutiny of the features of her visitor. "And if 
 anything should appear — there in the middle of the floor — 
 you will mind not to give a cry." 
 
 At these words the figure of the girl began to shiver slightly. 
 
 " 1 am not wishing for anything to appear," she said, in a 
 low voice. 
 
 "Maybe there will no — maybe there will no," the crone 
 proceeded, as she began to got out the implements <>f her 
 craft. " I '»ut- at least I can tell ye some things that's before 
 you; and that I can do because 1 have read the Book of the 
 Law ; aye, and I have beard the Voice ; and open now is all that
 
 DARK DEALINGS 231 
 
 was shut, and shut is all that was open. Be attentive now — 
 the time is at hand." 
 
 What followed — the palmistry, the divination by cards, and 
 the like — was of the most poor and paltry description ; that 
 is to say, the old beldame's tricks and pretences would have 
 appeared tawdry and commonplace to a landward-bred girl, 
 who would have regarded them with a mixture of laughing 
 incredulity and curiosity, the incredulity predominating ; but 
 Barbara had been brought up in a lonely island, with moaning 
 seas around, and the awful silence of the starlight nights ; 
 and her imaginative and impressionable temperament yielded 
 readily to a fear of the supernatural. The gibberish the old 
 woman talked was to her something terrible and strange ; the 
 mysterious hints of what was in store for her were com- 
 munications from the unseen ; it needed no caldrons with 
 green flames, nor spectral figures, nor pentagrams with phan- 
 tom goats to convince her that these blurred glimpses into 
 the future were true. Nay, in her tremulous agitation she 
 almost seemed to think that this revealer of coming events 
 had some power of control over them. 
 
 " No, no ! — he's not to be away for so many years !" she 
 exclaimed, piteously. " Don't say that ! He may change his 
 mind. He may find enough attraction at home. Not for 
 years and years — " 
 
 " But, as I tell ye, there's a lady in the ploy," continued 
 the hag, and she shuffled the dirty bits of pasteboard again, 
 and affected to be examining them profoundly. " Aye, in- 
 deed, a grand lady, and richly dressed. And what is a tartan 
 shawl against a velvet gown ? — " 
 
 " But I have better than a tartan shawl !" said Barbara, 
 quickly. " I only put on the plaid to hide my face in the 
 street. I have far finer things — it need not be for that he 
 will go away and stay away for years. Is there not enough 
 attraction at home, that he should be going away ? What 
 will I do, then, that he is not to go away ?" 
 
 " But the dark sweetheart — you have been thinking of him 
 as well ?" said the withered beldame, watching her prey by 
 the dull light of the solitary candle. 
 
 " Him !" said the girl, with unguarded vehemence. " It is 
 nothing but mischief he has been doing, coming between us !
 
 232 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 No, no, do not tell me about him — do not waste time — tell 
 me about the other one ! How many years is he to be away ? 
 He will forget all about me ! — " 
 
 " Well, well, now," said the ferret-eyed old woman, insid- 
 iously, " but there's the rich old gentleman you have the 
 chance of — " 
 
 " I would rather be dead !" Barbara broke in, passionately. 
 
 " Aye, aye, but carriages and horses are fine things, and rib- 
 bons and satins. You will come to me again now, and bring 
 me a little more money ; and I will tell ye about the rich old 
 gentleman, and the estate, and the grand pew in the church — " 
 
 " I would rather be dead ! — I would rather be dead !" the 
 girl cried — out of her mind with this torture of hopes and 
 fears. " Tell me about the other one — about the fair one : 
 how many years is he to be away ? — and maybe he will not 
 go if he finds enough attraction at home ? What is it that 
 will keep him ? What am I to do? Are you sure that he is 
 going? He never said that to me. Only that he was not 
 satisfied, as many a young man is not satisfied, and wishing 
 for better opportunities—" 
 
 There was a tapping at the door. The old witch instantly 
 blew out the light. 
 
 " There's a policeman at the corner," Niall Gorach whis- 
 pered in to them in Gaelic, "and it is I that am thinking he 
 is on the watch for us. Well, now, if he comes here, as soon 
 as he puts his foot on the steps, I will trip him up ; and you 
 must run — " 
 
 " No, no !" exclaimed Barbara, in still further alarm. " I 
 cannot do that. Every one will know. Will I give him 
 money ? — I have still a little — " 
 
 " Give it to me !" said the beldame, eagerly. " Give it to 
 me — and I will make him quiet — " 
 
 " May the devil cat you !" growled Niall Gorach, using a 
 familiar Gaelic imprecation. "If you take another penny of 
 her money, it is I that will make your life too hard to be 
 borne. I will put more wild beasts into your house than you 
 ever saw in a pack of cards. Now be still — and maybe the 
 officer will go by." 
 
 They stood silent, and unseen by each other in (lie dark, 
 Barbara hardly daring to breathe. And then, after a little
 
 1 BUT THERE'S THE RICH OLD GENTLEMAN VOL' HAVE THE CHANCE OF 1 "
 
 DARK DEALINGS 233 
 
 while, Niall Gorach crept away from the cellar, and ascended 
 the steps, and passed out to the front ; he returned with the 
 welcome intelligence that the coast was clear — Barbara was 
 free to go. A second or two thereafter the shawled figure 
 was again passing swiftly along the thoroughfare — her face 
 concealed from the light of the lamps — and many a wild fancy 
 claiming possession of her brain.
 
 CHAPTER XXVin 
 
 *. THE RED PARASOl 
 
 " I am of opeenion," said the councillor, seated in Mrs. Mac- 
 lean's back parlor, and giving himself considerable airs before 
 the women-folk — " I am of opeenion that in human life there's 
 a great deal to be done with imagination. For example, now, 
 when I want to go to sleep at night — and if there's a grander 
 thing in the world than a sound night's rest, I don't know 
 where you'll find it — when I want to get to sleep, I double up 
 the pillow to give a rounded edge to it, and then I put my 
 cheek quietly and softly on it, and then I try to imagine that 
 my head is a golfball placed on the tee ; not a ball among 
 prickly whins, nor a ball in a cart-rut, nor a ball in a puddle 
 o' water, but a ball carefully and gently and securely placed 
 on the tee — " 
 
 " Aye," said Jess, " and do ye never dream that it's sent 
 whirling into the air with one o' they heavy clubs?" 
 
 " Na, na," he responded, slyly. " By the time it comes to 
 dreaming I'm dreaming of something quite different. It's 
 the getting to sleep is the question, and that's where imag- 
 ination steps in and does the trick. Talking of golf balls," 
 lie went on, "the new links arc nearly completed; and when 
 they're open, Miss Jessie, I want you and Miss Barbara to 
 come and look on at another match between me and Jamie 
 Gilmour. Ye see, I had rather bad luck the last time — " He 
 stopped ; and then proceeded again, with a sudden burst of 
 honesty : " No, I'll not say that. I will not say that. If a man 
 can beat me at golf, he can beat me ; and there's an end of it, 
 1 cannot do better than my best. Dod bless me, I see people 
 worrying and worrying because; they're not equal to their 
 neighbors! — there's no philosophy in that — no philosophy— - n 
 
 " I'm sure, Mr. McFadycn," observed the polite little widow, 
 "there's few can beat ye at golf, or at anything else."
 
 THE RED PARASOL 235 
 
 " Well," said the councillor, modestly, " I'm not saying but 
 that I try to keep myself up to the mark. And maybe I'll 
 show Jamie something on the new links. I've been over the 
 ground. I've been studying the bunkers. I think I can see 
 my way to make a fight of it — if Gilmour does not put me out 
 wi' that cackling laugh of his — " 
 
 At this point Barbara made her appearance, and he in- 
 stantly jumped to his feet to shake hands with her and to 
 pull in a chair for her. 
 
 " I thought I saw you this morning," he said, with adroit 
 flattery, " for there was a young lady going down the street 
 before me that had a very elegant figure and was nicely 
 dressed, and thinks I to myself, ' If that's not Miss Barbara, 
 I'm a Dutchman !' But when I got nearer I discovered who 
 she was — it was one of the Miss Murrays of Inveruran — the 
 younger daughter, I think — " 
 
 Barbara's face flushed with pleasure ; the Murrays of In- 
 veruran were great people in those parts, the ladies of the 
 family being quite the leaders of fashion. 
 
 " It was her red parasol that had hidden her face," ex- 
 plained the councillor. " And I will say this," he continued, 
 with an air of conviction, " that any young lady that carries 
 a scarlet parasol does nothing more nor less than confer a 
 favor on every one coming within sight of her. And I will 
 just explain to ye now why a red parasol should be such a 
 beautiful thing, and grateful to the eye. What is the gen- 
 eral color of the earth ? It's green. And what is the com- 
 plementary color of green ? It's red. And that's the reason 
 uf the harmony — that's why the eye welcomes it. Dod, I tell 
 ye that a brilliant red parasol, on the dullest day ye like, 
 looks to me just like a blaze o' summer, though the young 
 lady may be only standing on the pavement and looking in 
 at McLennan's windows." 
 
 Barbara had been listening intently — in silence ; but the 
 widow said : 
 
 " It's very clever of you, Mr. McFadyen, to understand the 
 meaning of such things." 
 
 " No, no," he responded, with some touch of deprecation, 
 " only there's a why and a wherefore to everything, and one 
 is none the worse for beimr aware of it."
 
 236 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 It was a few days after this that Barbara was again wait- 
 ing and watching for the Aros Castle — this time from the 
 rocky promontory underneath the Gallows Hill. In addition 
 to her ordinary attire, she had a shawl hanging over her arm, 
 though the warmth of early summer was now in the air; while 
 there could be little fear of rain on such a morning, for sea 
 and sky were alike of a faultless blue, while the hills of Mull 
 and Morven and Kingairloch had that peculiar remoteness 
 and aerial quality that tells of settled fine weather. And it 
 was into this world of shining azure that the red speck of a 
 funnel eventually and slowly made its way ; until, as the ship 
 drew nearer and nearer, the throb of her paddles could be 
 heard, echoing up among the ruins of Duntroone Castle. 
 Then she churned her way across the smooth waters of the 
 harbor ; she was made fast alongside the quay ; and the work 
 of discharging passengers and cargo began. 
 
 Barbara lingered and still lingered out on the rocks ; and 
 when any one chanced to pass — for there was a boat-builder's 
 shed down at the shore — she would leisurely walk a few steps 
 one way or another, as though she were entirely engrossed 
 with the seaward view. But by-and-by she turned her back 
 on that brilliant picture ; she left the rocks ; she went along 
 by the fishermen's cottages ; and now before her was the 
 South Pier, with the Aros Castle lying idle, though there were 
 still a few stragglers busy amongst the landed cargo. At this 
 point she paused for a moment to take out something from 
 under the folded shawl. It was a scarlet sunshade ; and 
 when she had opened it and raised it over her head, very fine 
 it looked, for the sharp black rays of the frame-work only 
 made the translucency of the silk more apparent, and there 
 was a soft rose-red glow under this splendid canopy. Per- 
 haps her eyes were a little timid as she went forward again ; 
 but she could lower the sunshade an inch or two and screen 
 herself from observation if she chose. And in this wise she 
 approached the Aros Castle. 
 
 There was little doing on board the steamer, the train not 
 yet having come in; the captain was seated near the bridge, 
 
 Smoking his pipe, while the purser was standing by, with a 
 bundle of papers in his hand. But Ogilvie, at the moment, 
 was not looking at these papers; and it is quite certain that
 
 THE RED PARASOL 237 
 
 as Barbara approached his attention must have been drawn 
 to such a conspicuous object as a scarlet sunshade — conspicu- 
 ous among the squalor of a quay. Moreover, if he had been 
 in the mind to intercept her, even in the way of ordinary 
 friendliness, a couple of seconds would have brought him to 
 the landward end of the gangway. And yet he made no 
 sign; while she on her part, apparently taking no heed of his 
 discourtesy, passed on, the proud elegance of her gait losing 
 nothing of its accent. 
 
 " Who's that flaunting her feathers at ye, Jack ?" the cap- 
 tain said, with a glance after her. 
 
 " That was one of the Maclean girls," he answered, care- 
 lessly. 
 
 But of a sudden Barbara turned ; she came deliberately 
 back to the steamer ; and of course, as soon as he saw her 
 put her foot on the gangway, he stepped forward to meet 
 her. 
 
 " Are you going over to the North Pier soon ?" she asked, 
 somewhat stiffly. 
 
 "Not very long now," he answered her; "the train is 
 nearly due." 
 
 " I am tired — I have been for a long walk," she said. 
 
 " Then you could not do better than let us take you 
 across," said he ; and he went and fetched a camp-stool for 
 her. The captain, a taciturn man, put his pipe in his. waist- 
 coat pocket, and got up and walked away, his hands behind 
 his back. 
 
 She hardly knew what to do or say. Sullen and wrathful 
 as she was over his indifference, she yet feared to widen the 
 breach between them. 
 
 " I suppose you have more and more people coming every 
 day," she said. 
 
 " Oh yes ; the season has well begun now," he answered 
 her. " The fine weather brings out the tourists like horse- 
 flies." 
 
 " You need not quarrel with what gets you your living," she 
 said, again. 
 
 " It's a pretty poor living," he rejoined — but he was look- 
 ing away towards the station, into which the train had just 
 slowly crept.
 
 238 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "And I suppose," she continued, with just the suspicion 
 of a taunt, " that you are kept as husy during the evenings as 
 during the day?" 
 
 " One has got to work," he said. And then he glanced at 
 her costume and the splendor of the rose-red parasol. " You 
 are better off. You can take your holidays when you like." 
 
 " I would not be a slave at all hours," she retorted. " I 
 would not be a slave for any one." 
 
 " You are lucky," he said. " Some of us have got to be 
 slaves." And with that he left her, and went to the head of 
 the gangway ; for the first of the hotel omnibuses had just 
 arrived, and the people were descending. 
 
 She did not have further talk with him for some time ; she 
 could only sit patiently and follow him with her eyes, espe- 
 cially noting his demeanor towards the young ladies and their 
 mammas who came on board. He himself had half jestingly 
 complained of their treatment of him — that at the very most 
 they would throw him a word of civility as they would throw 
 a bone to a dog ; but Barbara's observation did not tell her 
 that such was the case ; he seemed to be known to many ; 
 and the greetings that were exchanged, as this one or that 
 came along and stepped on to the deck, were quite suffi- 
 ciently pleasant and friendly. And why would he not smile 
 in that fashion upon her? The beams of the sun-god could 
 so easily have dissipated her anger? 
 
 She waited and waited, and still he did not return to her. 
 The steamer's bell was rung a third time ; there \v:is a brief 
 interval; a last passenger or two came running; and then 
 the gangway was withdrawn, the captain signalled down to 
 the engine-room, and the puddle- wheels began to revolve. 
 There remained now but the breadth of Duntroonc Bay — so 
 short a space for speech ! With feverish impatience she 
 watched him go hither and thither; and apparently he had 
 no great business on hand ; for eventually he stood idly chat- 
 ting and laughing with a man she knew very well by sight 
 — the chief draper in Duntroonc. Nay, his neglect of her 
 seemed intentional — an open insult; she already saw herself, 
 leave the boat in proud silence, with a bitter resolve that 
 henceforth they should be absolute strangers to each other. 
 And indeed it was not, until (he very last minute, as the
 
 THE RED PARASOL 239 
 
 steamer was nearing the North Pier, that he came quickly 
 along to her and said : 
 
 " Well, now, Miss Barbara, I'm very glad we had the chance 
 of bringing you across ; and you must make use of the steam- 
 er whenever you are over on the other side. And remember 
 me to your aunt and Miss Jessie — Jessie the Flower of Dun- 
 troone, as Mr. McFadyen would say." 
 
 He spoke in his usual free and off-hand fashion ; and her 
 keen mortification and resentment, that had been longing for 
 expression in some indignant act or look, got all blunted and 
 subdued and dispelled. 
 
 " I hope you will come in some evening and see them," 
 she said, as she stepped on to the gangway — and for a mo- 
 ment her eyes did seek his with some timid appeal. 
 
 " Oh yes, yes," he answered her, good-naturedly enough ; 
 and then she passed along, and got ashore, and was lost in 
 the crowd. She did not stay to look at the departing steam- 
 er. She hurriedly shut up the red sunshade, and carefully 
 hid it under the shawl hanging over her arm ; and, thus 
 shorn of her glory, she left the quay and made her way 
 home. 
 
 That same evening Mrs. Maclean, Jess, and Barbara, the 
 varied toil of the day over, were seated at their frugal meal ; 
 and the widow was talking in an unusually concerned and 
 anxious manner. It appeared that some time during the af- 
 ternoon, on her way to the shipping -office to pay freights, 
 she had chanced to meet Allan Henderson ; and she had been 
 greatly struck by the serious change in his looks ; he seemed 
 ill and careworn and depressed, though he would not admit 
 that anything was wrong. 
 
 " And I feel kind of responsible for the lad," she continued, 
 " for we are all the kith and kin he has near him. But he's 
 that stubborn ; he'll not take advice ; he thinks he can 
 do anything with his constitution — that has served him 
 well so far, I admit ; but how long is it going to stand out 
 against careless treatment and overwork ? I'm sure I hope 
 the warning has not come now — poor lad, my heart was sore 
 to see him; but would he say there was anything wrong? — 
 not a bit ! — he only laughed, and declared he had no time to 
 imagine himself an invalid. It was not a happy kind of a
 
 240 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 laugh either — there's something on the lad's mind, that I am 
 convinced of — " 
 
 " Mother," said Jess, " if he is looking so ill, don't you 
 think we could send Dr. McGillivray — Allan could not well 
 refuse to see him — " 
 
 "But he would — he would," the little widow rejoined. " I 
 just begged and prayed him to insult a doctor — if only to 
 save us from anxiety ; but as I tell ye, he's that stubborn ; 
 and he thinks he's made of cast-iron. And a more pernee- 
 cious idea cannot get hold of a young man." 
 
 She paused for a moment or two ; and then resumed, in a 
 more cheerful tone : 
 
 " Well, for another reason I was pleased to meet the lad, 
 and glad to find him just as simple and honest and straight- 
 spoken as ever. lie has not been near us for a while now ; 
 and I was rather wondering whether his college learning and 
 his classes might not be beginning to make him a little set 
 up, so that he would not care about being seen coming into a 
 tobacco-shop and sitting down among friends there — " 
 
 " It's little you know Allan," said Jess, proudly, " if you 
 could suspect him of any such thing !" 
 
 "Ah, but there's curious ideas get into the minds of young 
 folks," said the widow, shaking her head. Then she added, 
 pointedly : " And I would ask you this, Jess : supposing that 
 Allan was ever to give himself airs like that, who would 
 be accountable for it? — who but you yourself? Who but 
 you — talking of the great things he's to look forward to, and 
 setting him on, and making so much of him? Many's the 
 time I've watched him with his great eyes glowering into 
 the fire, while you were telling him of this one and the other 
 that had gone away to London and become famous ; and was 
 it not you yourself, Jessie — and that not so long ago either — 
 was it not you yourself that was saying there would come a 
 day when we would be wondering that Allan Henderson ever 
 used to come into our parlor, and sit down and chat with us, 
 and smoke his pipe?" 
 
 I '.ut .lessic was in nowise abashed. 
 
 "And if I did?" she replied promptly. "That is saying 
 one thing. Bnt it is quite a different thim,' to suppose that 
 Allan would ever show himself ashamed of us; no, not if he
 
 THE RED PARASOL 241 
 
 were coining back from dining with the Queen at Windsor 
 Castle. It is not in his nature to be like that ; he would not 
 understand it; he is too thorough through and through; 
 meanness and pretence of that kind he simply could not com- 
 prehend. You might as well — " 
 
 "Aye, Jess," her mother interposed, dryly, "you've aye got 
 a fair word for Allan behind his back ; it's a pity you're not 
 more civil to him before his face." 
 
 To which there was no reply ; for now sapper was over ; 
 Mrs. Maclean took up the Duntroone Times and Telegraph, to 
 read the news from the outer isles ; the girl Christina was 
 called in to clear the table ; while Jess went away to her own 
 room to fetch some piece of dress that she wished to mend. 
 Barbara sat down and began to plait a collar for a kitten that 
 had recently been presented to her. 
 
 It was a quiet evening, and apparently uneventful ; and 
 yet something strange occurred under that placid surface. 
 Jess Maclean was away for a considerable time before she 
 returned with the garment she had been seeking ; and when 
 she appeared at the door again, she said, in accents of surprise : 
 
 " Barbara, where did you get that red sunshade ? I could 
 not find my pelisse, and I thought it might have been put 
 into your drawer — " 
 
 Barbara had started to her feet, her face betraying the 
 most vivid alarm ; and instantly she stepped across the room 
 before Jess could add another word. Indeed, so quick were 
 her movements, and so deeply was Mrs. Maclean engrossed 
 with her newspaper, that the widow, who had not chanced 
 to overhear Jessie's question, did not even now notice that 
 both girls had disappeared. Barbara dragged her cousin 
 into the adjacent room. 
 
 " I am not wishing your mother to know," she said, in the 
 greatest confusion ; and she went hurriedly to the drawer 
 and opened it, and proceeded to securely cover over the sun- 
 shade, which was down at the bottom. 
 
 Jess was astonished beyond measure. 
 
 " I am sure, Barbara," she said, " I did not intend to pry 
 into any secret. But I thought my pelisse might be there. 
 And how do you think my mother is not to know ? — she 
 will see you carrying the sunshade when you go out." 
 11
 
 242 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " No, no," said Barbara, who seemed terrified. " I can 
 bide it — perhaps I will not use it often — " 
 
 " Why," said Jess, good-naturedly, " you would not have 
 such a fine thing as that, and keep it locked up in a drawer ? 
 What did it cost you, Barbara?" 
 
 The eyes of the girl looked frightened and bewildered. 
 
 "The cost?" she repeated; "the cost — it was fifteen shil- 
 lings." 
 
 " Well, that is a good deal of money — " 
 
 " No, it was twelve shillings," Barbara broke in, in a breath- 
 less kind of way. " I have not paid for it yet — it is to-mor- 
 row that I am to pay for it — the twelve shillings." 
 
 "And even that," said Jess, laughing — though she was 
 still unable to account for her cousin's confusion and dis- 
 tress — "even that is a good deal to pay for something you 
 mean to keep locked up in a drawer. It is not a good in- 
 vestment, Barbara. I think you would be better with the 
 money. A sunshade is not quite the right thing to lay up 
 for a rainy day, is it ?" 
 
 " But you will not tell your mother, Jessie ?" Barbara de- 
 manded, quickly. 
 
 " Oh no," Jess responded. " If it is a secret, it is a secret. 
 But I do not understand why you should have bought such 
 an expensive thing, only to cover it up in a drawer. Barbara, 
 you are a spendthrift — that is what you are." 
 
 " Do not speak of it to any one, Jessie," the girl said, in a 
 low voice. " There is no use in speaking of it." 
 
 And with that she lowered the gas, and the two girls re- 
 turned to the parlor and to their respective occupations: 
 Barbara silent and constrained — Jess, though without any 
 deep pondering on the subject, remaining somewhat puzzled.
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 
 
 When at length the new links were completed and thrown 
 open to the members of the golfing club, the councillor and 
 the station-master managed to secure a vacant couple of 
 hours for their longed-talked-of match ; while Mrs. Gilmour 
 and Jess Macleau — Barbara having declined — had been per- 
 suaded to accompany them, to spur them on to honorable 
 emulation. And auspicious and exhilarating was the morn- 
 ing on which they left the town and climbed away up to the 
 breezy heights on which the greens and the teeing-grounds 
 had been carefully planned out ; the surrounding undulations 
 of larch-wood were stirring, and yet no more than stirring, in 
 the soft summer air; the peaks of Ben Cruachan, clear to the 
 top, were of a faint and transparent azure in the luminous sil- 
 ver skies. Peter of course rose to such an occasion ; he was 
 emphatically insisting on the value of physical exercise ; he 
 made merry jests at the expense of the tall, grim, red-haired 
 station-master ; he playfully wanted to know what reward the 
 fair spectators had in store for the victor in the contest. Nay, 
 as now falls to be related, his high spirits eventfully got the 
 better of him, and landed him in a predicament the like of 
 which it is to be hoped no golfer had ever before encountered. 
 
 For Mr. McFadyen had been over the links, whereas the 
 station-master had not ; and accordingly, when they had se- 
 cured the services of a caddie, the councillor undertook to 
 lead the way and show his friendly enemy the whereabouts 
 of the holes. His first drive was an excellent one. 
 
 " That's something like, now — if you keep that up you'll 
 do," Gilmour cried, encouragingly — though the remark seemed 
 rather to reflect on previous performances. 
 
 " I'll bet ye half a crown on this hole !" interposed the 
 councillor, in a taunting fashion.
 
 244 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Away wi' your half-crowns !" the other said, with con- 
 tempt. " It would be wiser-like if ye'd walk on, and keep 
 an eye on my ball." 
 
 This Peter proceeded to do, though with what secret 
 thoughts — whether of mere devilment or of deliberate re- 
 venge — will probably never be known. He went away for- 
 ward and got on to the top of a knoll ; with word and gest- 
 ure he indicated the whereabouts of the green ; and then he 
 waited for the station-master's drive. This was also an ex- 
 cellent one; the ball came sailing and sailing along, trium- 
 phantly clearing a wide extent of rushy ground that might have 
 proved a formidable hazard ; until finally, out of sight of 
 everybody but the councillor, it landed in a slight hollow, 
 fair on the way to the hole. What followed was remarka- 
 ble. Mr. McFadycn, instead of remaining by his own ball 
 and waiting until the others came up, now walked quickly 
 across to where the station - master's ball had fallen ; he 
 picked up that small white sphere, and slipped it into his 
 pocket; and when his companions arrived, he was diligently 
 striking with his club at patches of ragwort, and hunting all 
 about. 
 
 " Dod," said he, seriously, " I could ha' sworn your ball fell 
 just here, Jamie — it must be in the weeds somewhere — it's 
 just extraordinary how a ball gets covered sometimes — and the 
 next day you'll find it easily enough — lying in the open — " 
 
 They were all looking about now — the station-master in- 
 clined to In' angry at this unexpected check. 
 
 " Ye might have kept an eye on it, man !" he said to the 
 councillor. 
 
 "But I did I" retorted Peter. "I tell ye 1 saw it fall just 
 about here — " 
 
 " Aye, and did ye observe the earth open and swallow it 
 up?" demanded the long, thin, fiery -headed man, peevishly. 
 "A fine one you arc to keep an eye on a hall!" 
 
 " You'd better find it anyway, 1 ' remarked Peter, with great 
 composure, " or the hole's mine." 
 
 They could not find the ball: they pried and prodded; 
 they kicked at the little clumps of ragwort; they pressed 
 their foot on the long grass. And meanwhile the councillor 
 was jeering :
 
 A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 245 
 
 "Jamie, my man, if ye lose five minutes for every drive 
 ye make, it's little ye'll see of the twelve - twenty train the 
 clay." 
 
 " I give ye the hole," the station-master said, snappishly. 
 " Let's get on to the next teeing-ground." 
 
 And again the small group moved on — Jess openly sym- 
 pathizing with the station-master over his misfortune. For 
 she could not but observe that there was about Mr. McFad- 
 yen a look of mysteriously reticent diversion ; he did not say 
 anything, but his eyes were covertly amused and laughing ; 
 while his face remained portentously grave. She did not 
 think it becoming that he should inwardly rejoice over the 
 misadventure of a lost ball. 
 
 They reached the next teeing-ground, and here Peter gave 
 his antagonist general directions as to the lie of the second 
 hole, betwixt which and them ran at right angles a consid- 
 erably high stone- wall. Clearly the object of the opening 
 drive was to get well over this dangerous obstruction ; and 
 the councillor, having the " honor," got away in capital style. 
 
 "Ye're doing fine, Mr. McFadyen," said the station-mas- 
 ter's wife, approvingly — and unmindful of her husband's 
 morose looks. 
 
 " Sometimes I'm better than at other times," the council- 
 lor responded, modestly. And then he gave a sharp little 
 snort of a giggle, without apparent cause. 
 
 It was now Gilmour's turn ; and it was obvious that he 
 meant to secure this next hole, or perish in the attempt. He 
 was most cautious about the tee ; he patted down the ground 
 behind it ; he took a long look forward ; he raised his club 
 slowly, and then down it came with a slashing " swipe ;" 
 away went the ball in a beautiful curve, the size of it dwin- 
 dling and dwindling until it disappeared. 
 
 " You're no over, Jamie," remarked the councillor. 
 
 "Not over?" the station-master rejoined, angrily. "I'm 
 over, and half-way up the other side." 
 
 " You're no over," repeated Peter, with confidence ; and 
 again they moved forward. 
 
 Now for the convenience of players and their friends the 
 constructors of the links had placed a flight of wooden steps 
 on each side of the wall ; and this little party of four were
 
 240 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 just about to ascend and descend when the unspeakable coun- 
 cillor, taking from his pocket the ball (the station-master's) 
 which he had previously picked up, managed to drop it un- 
 seen, and that close in to the foot of the stone dike. 
 
 " Here, Jamie, man," he called to his foe. " Here ye are. 
 Did not I tell ye ye did not get over ?" 
 
 The station-master turned and stared. There certainly was 
 a ball lying there. 
 
 " God bless me !" he exclaimed. " I would have bet a hun- 
 dred pounds I was over, and well over. Did ye not think I 
 was well over, Miss Jessie ?" 
 
 " Indeed, then, I did," answered Jess. 
 
 "My fine chappie, that's all the length ye've got," the coun- 
 cillor maintained. " Take up the ball, and look." 
 
 There could be no doubt about it ; for whereas Mr. McFad- 
 yen, being in such matters of an economical turn of mind, 
 was in the habit of using remade balls, Gilmour was extrava- 
 gant enough to treat himself to the genuine Silvertown. 
 
 " I never saw the like — I could have bet a thousand pounds 
 I was well over !" the mortified station-master exclaimed again. 
 " Well, I must try to get the brute over somehow." 
 
 Alas ! his efforts in this direction were a series of ghastly 
 failures; his score mounted up dreadfully; while Peter Mc- 
 Fadycn, throwing all decency to the winds, abandoned him- 
 self to shrieks and roars of hysterical laughter. It was a dis- 
 graceful exhibition ; for the oftcner Gilmour's hall struck the 
 dike, rebounding on the hither side, the more incontinent be- 
 came Peter's mirth ; his doubled-up frame shook with his 
 wild guffaws; he dashed the fist of one hand into the palm 
 of the other; tears were running down his checks. 
 
 " Oh, Jamie, Jamie," he cried, " if ye hammer long enough, 
 ye'll have the wall down ; but over it ye'll not get this day." 
 
 Nevertheless, the incensed and savage station-master did at 
 length succeed in surmounting this hateful obstacle ; and then 
 it was that the couneillor, getting over the dike, forged rapidly 
 • >ii ahead. Apparently he was looking for his ball; and one. 
 ball he certainly did find — a ball that he swiftly and furtively 
 slipped into his pocket; then he continued his search, until 
 
 he joyfully called out: 
 
 " Yes, here I am. Where are you, Jamie?"
 
 A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 247 
 
 " I may as well give up this hole too," said the station- 
 master, gloomily. 
 
 " No, no, never say die !" rejoined the councillor, in whose 
 twinkling eyes there was still a dark and inscrutable merri- 
 ment. " Maybe you'll beat me on the green, after all." 
 
 " Beat you on the green — when I'm nine already !" the sta- 
 tion-master growled. Indeed he had no chance at all ; for as 
 it turned out, the councillor got on to the green with his next 
 stroke; and by a perfectly marvellous "put" holed out in 
 three. The station-master's wife and Jess were unstinted in 
 their applause. 
 
 And now it was that the victorious McFayden found him- 
 self in the predicament which was the natural and fitting re- 
 quital of his infamy. It is quite possible that he had intended 
 confessing the double trick he had so shamefully played on 
 the station-master, and proposing that they should go back 
 and start fair from the beginning ; but now — now that he had 
 won the second hole in three — now that he had received the 
 congratulations of the spectators — now that there was a chance 
 of his making a splendid score — the temptation to silence was 
 terrible. The only point was : Had the sharp-eyed caddie 
 noticed his picking up Gilmour's ball, and his subsequently 
 depositing it at the foot of the dike ? Would the imp go 
 away among his fellows and tell the tale ? Would they talk 
 amongst themselves about the " cheating man" — and perhaps, 
 some day, reveal the story to one of the members ? These 
 were wild and whirling thoughts ; and yet there was no time 
 for deliberation; Peter had again to lead off; and his com- 
 panions were already on the teeing-ground. The councillor 
 went forward and took up his position ; the caddie made a 
 tee for him and carefully placed the ball; the spectators were 
 all attention. And even now, at this last moment, if he had 
 made a bad stroke, he would probably have owned up, and 
 insisted on beginning all over again ; but unfortunately he 
 led off with a magnificent drive ; to sacrifice such a fascinat- 
 ing chance of the third hole would be too heart-rending; 
 without a word — just as if everything had been fair, square, 
 and above-board — he waited for the station-master to follow. 
 And this third hole also Peter won easily. 
 
 " Well, indeed, Mr. McFadyen," said Jessie, " you are cai*-
 
 248 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 rying everything before you to-day. I think you must have 
 been concealing your skill all this time." 
 
 He glanced at her quickly and nervously ; but there was no 
 guile in Jess's honest gray eyes. 
 
 " Oh, I know something of the game," said he ; "I admit I 
 know a little of the game — but I'm not always at my best." 
 
 The strange thing was that, although success continued to 
 reward his efforts, and that in quite a remarkable manner, his 
 spirits did not rise in proportion ; there was no more wild 
 laughter over Gilmour's disappointment ; there was no bravado 
 on the putting-green. Occasionally, when his triumphant 
 career was winning general approval, he would turn suddenly 
 and scan the face of the caddie ; but that phlegmatic youth 
 returned no answering glance ; if he had seen that which he 
 ought not to have seen, he made no sign. And so the game 
 went on ; and fortune all the way through favored the unjust ; 
 Gilmour was hopelessly beaten ; Peter was the hero of the 
 hour — though he bore his honors with unusual modesty. 
 
 When at length they reached the little wooden shanty be- 
 longing to the club, Gilmour, his wife, and Jess remained 
 outside, while the caddie went inside to hang up the bags. 
 Mr. McFaTlyen, observing his opportunity, slipped in after him. 
 
 "Well, my lad," said he, in an off-hand and merry way — 
 and he pretending to be tightening up a leather strap — " that 
 was a fine trick, wasn't it ?" 
 
 The eyes of the youth answered with a blank stare, which 
 so far was a comforting thing. But Peter was determined to 
 make sure. 
 
 " A good joke, wasn't it — at the two first holes ?" said he, 
 encouragingly. 
 
 And again there was a blank stare; no hideous and self- 
 conscious grin. A heavy weight seemed to be removing it- 
 self from Peter's sinful soul. 
 
 " Why, don't ye remember," he said, with quite blithe 
 
 hypocrisy — "don't ye remember the hash Mr. Gil iir made 
 
 of it at the dike? A great joke that was; Til be bound ye 
 don't often Bee such an angry man. Well, here's an extr-a 
 shilling For ye; ye need not say anything about it, for it's 
 against the rules ; but a discreet tongue is just the best, thing 
 a decent, quiet, Bensible laddie like you can have."
 
 A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 249 
 
 And therewith he went out and rejoined his companions ; 
 and as they walked away across the heights and down tow- 
 ards the town, the chubby and cheerful councillor was more 
 like his natural self. At times, indeed, a thoughtful shade 
 would come over his face — perhaps the small still voice was 
 reminding him how he had basely deceived these trusting 
 friends ; but then again the glory of being the conqueror — 
 the delight of having so thoroughly routed the station-mas- 
 ter — the sweet praises from smiling lips — all combined to 
 stifle his conscience, until he appeared actually to rejoice in 
 his iniquity. When finally they parted to go their several 
 ways, Peter was laughing without and within ; never had he 
 seen Jamie Gilmour so completely crestfallen. 
 
 It was seldom at this busy time of the year that Jess 
 Maclean allowed herself the luxury of even a half -holiday; 
 and to make up for the morning on the links she was de- 
 voting the evening to her account-books, when a tapping at 
 the parlor door announced a visitor. She looked up. It was 
 the school-master. But the sunlight that leaped into her face 
 — and especially into her eyes — at the mere sight of him, 
 soon vanished when she heard his news. 
 
 " It's a great chance for me," he said, in an absent kind of 
 way, when he had explained the offer of a travelling-tutor- 
 ship that had been made him ; " and I owe it to the kindness 
 of Professor Menzies, who was always very friendly towards 
 me when I was in Glasgow. Two years of European travel 
 — all expenses paid — and a handsome salary besides ; I never 
 could have dreamed of such a chance. And the young gen- 
 tleman, I am told, is a most modest, good-natured, well-man- 
 nered lad — " 
 
 " Oh, as for that," said Jess, who, even in her dismay at 
 the prospect of this long separation, could not forego her 
 gibes — " as for that, if there is to be any bear-leading, I 
 know which of you will be the bear." 
 
 " No, 1 never dreamed of such a chance," he went on, 
 " when I was cutting out pictures of the capitals of Europe, 
 and pasting them in a scrap-book, and wondering whether 
 my small savings and a few weeks' holiday would ever carry 
 me to those places. Of course, there will be the giving up 
 11*
 
 250 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 of my classes ; and that will be a sacrifice ; for I am inter- 
 ested in many of the lads — their eagerness, their determina- 
 tion, is something fine — " He stopped short. " I beg your 
 pardon, Mrs. Maclean," he said, humbly, " for bothering you 
 about my poor affairs — they're of little enough concern to 
 any one — " 
 
 " Allan Henderson, I wonder to hear ye !" exclaimed the 
 little widow ; and then she proceeded, with considerable 
 warmth : " Concern ? I should think they were of very near 
 concern to us. And what is this you are talking of now but 
 two years' banishment — nothing but two years' banishment 
 — away among a lot of heathens, with their concerts and 
 dancing and theatres on the blessed Sabbath day. I'm think- 
 ing it would be sensiblerlike of you to stay among your own 
 folk, and wi' your own kith and kin ; and be thankful for the 
 opportunities. But well I know," she continued, with an 
 indignant look towards her daughter — " well I know who is 
 driving you to this. It's none but Jess there, that has her 
 head filled wi' flighty notions, and will not let things be, but 
 would have ye go away among strangers — " 
 
 " Mother !" said Jess, in protest — and tears sprang to her 
 eyes. " If ever I said — that Allan should go away from 
 among us — at least — it was with no thought or wish that 
 harm should come to him — " 
 
 She was not a very emotional young woman ; but at this 
 point she did break down somewhat ; and to hide her shame 
 and distress she rose quickly and went away from the room. 
 When Allan, after a few minutes more of talk with the widow, 
 bade her good-night and passed into the front shop, he found 
 .less Bitting there, shy, embarrassed, and silent. 
 
 " Indeed, Jessie," said he, " I'm very sorry you should 
 have been hurt. Your mother did not mean anything. And 
 if 1 am going away, you know very well what it is that is 
 driving me away." 
 
 She looked up — the gray eyes timid. 
 
 " I can see there is no hope for me now," he went on, in a 
 BOmbre kind "f fashion. " If I were a rich man, it might lie 
 
 different. Have you noticed that about Barbara, Jessie? — 
 
 how easily her fancy is captivated by a pretty thing — some 
 piece of dress — some article of display, 'f if is a weakness,
 
 A HALF-HOLIDAY AND THEREAFTER 251 
 
 it is only a harmless and childish weakness ; it is not very 
 blamable. A beautiful creature like that must know that 
 people like to look at her ; and it is but natural for her to 
 think of adornment ; it is but natural she should wish to be 
 admired. And if I were a rich man, perhaps I could please 
 her that way ; gratitude is very near to affection ; perhaps I 
 could win her regard that way. But as it is — " 
 
 He did not finish the sentence. She was looking at him 
 strangely and wistfully. 
 
 "And are you really leaving us, Allan — and for two long 
 years ?" 
 
 " I cannot remain in this town," he answered her. " It 
 has become an absolute hell to me — an inconceivable and 
 unceasing torture. I must get away — and here is such a 
 chance as I never could have hoped for. But in two years' 
 time, Jessie," he continued, heartening himself up somewhat, 
 " one will have forgotten a great deal ; and when I come back 
 to Duntroone, the very first thing 1 will do will be to come 
 in here, and ask for you, and report myself sane. And this 
 I know well, that I shall find you just as friendly and kindly 
 as ever ; just as unselfish and generous as ever. For it is 
 not necessary that in two years' time one should forget every- 
 thing ; and that is what I am not likely to forget — your gen- 
 tleness and your goodness and your toleration of a thrawn 
 and thankless wretch." 
 
 Her face brightened and flushed with pleasure ; it was 
 rarely that he spoke out in such a fashion. And she had it 
 in mind to ask him if she might write to him and give him 
 the Duntroone news when he was away in the great and busy 
 capitals ; but at this moment a customer entered the shop, 
 whereupon Allan shook hands with her, and bade her good- 
 night, and took his leave. On his homeward way his heart 
 was not quite so heavy ; a chat with Jess — even when she 
 was in a spiteful mood — was a reassuring, inspiriting sort of 
 thing ; and he could not but be grateful to her for the solici- 
 tude and the well-wishing so clearly visible in her kindly 
 gray eyes.
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 AN ASSIGNATION 
 
 Events were now clearly marching on to a climax, if not to 
 a catastrophe ; though these various personages, occupied 
 with the pressing and immediate demands of every-day life, 
 may not themselves have perceived it. Barbara had most 
 time for reflection, if that could be called reflection that was 
 more like the frantic struggling of some wild animal with an 
 environing net. And it was in these dark hours of reverie, 
 with their clinging hopes, their piteous longings, and some- 
 times their bitter and fierce resentment, that she at length 
 arrived at a definite resolve ; she would remain in this anguish 
 of doubt no longer ; she would force the hand of fate, let 
 come what might. As it chanced, the opportunity was soon 
 enough to present itself. 
 
 For there now appeared in Duntroone a certain Mr. and 
 Mrs. McKechnie, who were in some distant way related to the 
 Macleans. Mr. McKechnie was a manufacturer of aerated 
 waters in Greenock, a well-to-do man, ami a person of con- 
 sequence in the eyes of the widow ; and when the McKechnies 
 came along to the tobacconist's shop to pay a friendly visit, 
 and to propose that both mother and daughter should dine 
 with them that evening at the Commercial Hotel, the invita- 
 tion was accepted with alacrity. Then something was said 
 about Barbara — for Mrs. Maclean was ever mindful of her 
 kith and kin; and the soda-water man at once and generously 
 said that she must also be of the party. So when Jess went 
 across to the house for her mid-day meal, she made sure that 
 Barbara would be highly pleased. 
 
 To her astonishment, however, she found that Barbara, as 
 soon as she had ascertained that Mrs. Maclean ami .less were 
 
 to spend the evening at, the Commercial Hotel — Barbara ob- 
 durately refused to go, and would not be persuaded.
 
 AN ASSIGNATION 253 
 
 " Why," said Jess, laughing, " I thought it was just what 
 would delight you, Barbara ! The chance of seeing the gay 
 world — and of wearing your best things — " 
 
 " I have a lot to do," said Barbara, hurriedly and con- 
 fusedly. " And my head is not very well to-day — I would 
 rather stay at home. What hour will it be before you are 
 back, Jessie ?" 
 
 " Ob, well," said Jess, " Mr. McKechnie thinks a good deal 
 of himself, and he is very fond of talking ; and if he has a 
 private room, and some toddy, he may keep us till half-past 
 ten or eleven." 
 
 "You will not be back before half-past ten, anyway?" Bar- 
 bara asked again. 
 
 " It is not likely," said Jess — attaching no weight to the 
 question. 
 
 All that afternoon, whatever her duties happened to be, 
 Barbara would from time to time take out from her pocket a 
 scrap of paper and anxiously scrutinize the words scribbled on 
 it. She seemed perturbed and restless; occasionally she 
 would desist from her tasks altogether, and lapse into pro- 
 found meditation ; then she would resume her work, with a 
 heavy sigh. Or again she would take out the fragment of 
 paper and tear it up, substituting for it another scrap with a 
 different message written on it. The finally amended words 
 — carefully transcribed and folded and placed in an envelope 
 — were these : " Will you meet me to-night at nine o'clock, at 
 the small gate under the Castle Hill? I have something of 
 importance to say to you. — Barbara." 
 
 In the evening, Mrs. Maclean and Jess — leaving the girl 
 Christina in charge of the shop — came over to get ready for 
 their dinner-party ; and directly after they had left the house, 
 Barbara also stole out. It was a beautiful evening — a golden 
 evening in June ; there were plenty of people strolling to and 
 fro, and the quays were still busy ; but she paid little heed to 
 what was passing around her until she reached the South Pier. 
 The Aros Castle was now coming in ; she was already half- 
 way across the bay ; the throb of her paddles was repeated in 
 the echoing hollows of the Gallows Hill. Barbara got hold of 
 a small boy who was playing with his companions about one 
 of the wooden sheds.
 
 254 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Do you know Ogilvie, the purser V she asked of him. 
 
 " Aye, fine," was the prompt reply. 
 
 " Will vou take this letter to him if I give you a penny ?" 
 
 " Aye. 1 ' 
 
 " But you'll make sure that you give it to himself ?" 
 
 " Aye," said the urchin, watching for the unusual coin. 
 
 Lie got the letter and the penny ; the Aros Castle came 
 slowly in to the quay ; and Barbara, from the corner of the 
 shed, could see that Ogilvie was on the upper deck. But still 
 she waited to satisfy herself of the delivering of the message 
 — waited until the steamer had been made fast — until the 
 passengers had come ashore — until she saw the small boy go 
 along the gangway and give the white envelope into the pur- 
 ser's hands. That was enough. She withdrew from her 
 shelter so that she herself could not be perceived ; she hur- 
 ried round by the harbor; and when she reached home again, 
 she sank into a chair, and remained there a long time, think- 
 ing back as to what she had done. But presently she had to 
 think forward — as the clock on the mantel-piece reminded her 
 troubled and anxious eyes ; and she went away to her room 
 to array herself in her best. As she stood before the mirror 
 her fingers were shaking so that she could hardly hold a pin. 
 
 At half-past eight or thereabouts she again left the house, 
 and, taking advantage of such back approaches as were avail- 
 able, she made for the point at which the grounds of Dun- 
 troone ( lastle conic nearly up to the last of the gardened villas. 
 Farther than this point there is no right of way ; but an oc- 
 casional stranger passing along by the rocks is not much ob- 
 jected to ; and it was by the rocks that she now proceeded — 
 before her the sheltered little hay, beyond that the old-fash- 
 ioned garden beneath the Castle Hill, and, towering over all, 
 the ruined keep, dark with its ivy against the splendor of the 
 west. For although the sun had gone down behind the moun- 
 tains at, this time of the year in those latitudes, the marvellous 
 twilights may he said to last almost the night through ; and 
 even now, as the solitary figure went along by the shelving 
 beach, there was a glory around her — all the world was aflame- 
 
 with Color. And then as she drew near to the wind-stunted 
 trees at the fool of the Castle llock, the jet-black stems and 
 Sombre foliage served hut to increase the brilliancy of the
 
 AN ASSIGNATION 255 
 
 western heavens ; these were as a wide sea of clear and luminous 
 steel gray, with long cloud-islands of pale rose-purple, whose 
 golden strands looked down upon the unseen horizon. Over- 
 head the skies were of a faint and exquisite azure, flecked here 
 and there with vaporous fragments of saffron hue, that ap- 
 peared as if they could still behold the sunset fires. And in 
 the east the wooded hills were all aglow. 
 
 She opened the small wicket-gate, and stepped in under the 
 dense canopy of leaves ; from this shadowed retreat, herself 
 unobserved, she could look back over the way she had come 
 — by the out-jutting rocks, and round the semicircular sweep 
 of the shore. It was a peaceful and secluded scene; there 
 was not a sign of life anywhere; an occasional sound, that 
 spoke of distant human habitation, was softened and remote. 
 But there was another sound, all around her, and especially 
 out towards the west : the mysterious murmur of the moving 
 tides, as if the islands were talking to each other of the com- 
 ing darkness — the strange clear darkness that would later on 
 melt into the white dawn. As yet there was no token of 
 change. The saffron flakes of cloud were still lambent in the 
 azure vault ; the hanging woods, of beech and ash and fir, 
 glowed warm above the tranquil waters of the bay. 
 
 Surely it was a fitting time and place for a meeting of 
 lovers ; and yet Barbara, gazing across those placid waters, 
 began to tremble at the thought of seeing the single figure 
 she was looking for appear at the verge of the rocks. What 
 she had done she had done in a sort of desperation ; but now, 
 as minute after minute seemed to bring him nearer, she grew 
 more and more vaguely apprehensive ; until at times a wild 
 impulse would seize her to turn and flee away through the 
 woods and hide herself, and make good her return to Dun- 
 troone by some circuitous route. And then again she had 
 already dared so much. And if she were to escape now and 
 get home in safety, would not to-morrow be but as yesterday 
 — with its agonizing consciousness that she could not speak 
 with Ogilvie except on the deck of a crowded steamer, with 
 strangers all around, and himself liable to be called away hither 
 and thither? whereas here, in this gracious solitude and 
 silence, there would be the charm and magnetism of personal 
 appeal, eyes answering eyes, and speech, no longer cold and
 
 25G HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 conventional, attuned to every varying mood. The anticipa- 
 tion of this meeting made her heart beat violently ; and when 
 her straining eyes fancied they could detect a dark figure out 
 at the rocky promontory, her whole frame shivered. And 
 yet she held her ground. Her lips were dry ; her breathing 
 came and went with difficulty, as if there were some weight 
 on her chest. 
 
 Of a sudden she uttered a sharp, half-stifled scream of 
 terror, and wheeled round, for some one had noiselessly and 
 stealthily approached her from behind. It was Niall Gorach. 
 And the moment she recognized who this was, her fear gave 
 way to wrath. 
 
 " Is it a weasel you are, that you come stealing through the 
 woods like that ?" she said to him in Gaelic ; and the beau- 
 tiful eyes were now blazing with anger. " What is it you 
 want?" 
 
 He regarded her doubtfully. 
 
 "I have two rabbits," he said, also in Gaelic; "I have them 
 back there in the bushes." 
 
 " Away with you, you imp of mischief !" she said. " Is it 
 I that would be wishing for two rabbits?" 
 
 " You could hide them in your dress," said he, in an under- 
 tone, and he was intently watching the expression of her face. 
 "They arc for the other girl — the one that was kind to me. 
 You could take them into the town, and give them to her in 
 the shop — no one would see you." 
 
 "(Jo away — go away at once!" she said, with frowning 
 brows. " It is the game-keeper who will be after you and 
 your rabbits — and the sooner you arc in jail the better." 
 
 Xi.ill needed no further word than that, lie instantly re- 
 treated, by the way he came, disappearing through the trees 
 and bushes; and once more she was alone. But this inter- 
 ruption had at least startled her out of the tremulous, appre- 
 hensive, half-hysterical mood that had taken possession of 
 her; she returned to her post of observation with a bolder 
 spirit; she would no longer he afraid if she saw a dark-clad 
 figure appear at the point of the rocks. Nay, it was some- 
 thing quite dilTerent that she began to fear; a haunting pos- 
 sibility that had more than onee crept into her mind, only to 
 be dismissed with quick alarm and trepidation. And now it
 
 AN ASSIGNATION 257 
 
 would recur with bewildering distinctness. Had he resolved 
 to treat her appeal with scorn? Would he refuse to come 
 near her ? Would he revenge himself on her because she had 
 been the innocent cause of some quarrelling and righting be- 
 tween him and the school-master ? 
 
 No, she tried to persuade herself, it was inconceivable ; he 
 could not be so merciless and unjust. He would, in any case, 
 come and hear what she had to say ; it was the smallest grace 
 he could accord her ; any stranger would do as much. And 
 be had been far from acting the stranger towards her. He 
 had sought her society, and made much of her and paid her 
 compliments ; it was no stranger who had entirely devoted 
 himself to her on the evening of the dance given by the Gae- 
 lic Choir. And when she could talk face to face with him, 
 here in the happy and favoring twilight, it would be otherwise 
 with them both than on the open passenger-deck of the Aros 
 Castle. 
 
 Nevertheless, as the time went slowly and remorselessly 
 by, a pitiful yearning arose in her heart. It could not be 
 that he meant to forsake her — that he meant to put this cruel 
 slight upon her! He had misread the hour. He had been 
 detained by friends. Something had happened to hinder 
 him, perhaps even after he had set out. Another minute — 
 another couple of minutes — and he would become visible 
 yonder at the verge of the rocks, hastening to bring apologies 
 and pacifications. For he was not one to strike a woman — 
 and to strike deep. 
 
 The inexorable moments stole on, one after another — 
 though there was little change in this magic world of light 
 and color ; and now that piteous craving and desire had 
 grown to be an aching that seemed bitterer than death itself. 
 If only he would appear in sight — if only he would come 
 along by the shore there, no matter in what mood of impa- 
 tience, of sarcasm, or even contempt — she would abase herself 
 before him ; she would plead for pardon ; she would beg for 
 kindness. She knew that she had been stiff-necked and 
 flighty and wayward ; she had held her head too high ; she 
 had taunted him — when he was not to blame. But now, if 
 only he would come to her, she would receive his reproaches 
 with meekness ; she would do anything he wished ; she Avould
 
 258 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 be his abject slave. Let him impose his demands, and she 
 would accede — only he could not mean to desert her forever ! 
 Had she not humbled herself already, in seeking for this as- 
 signation ? And life was a pleasant and gay thing for him ; 
 he could not wish to stab her to the heart. 
 
 She withdrew her eyes from the distant promontory, and 
 in a dazed fashion looked around her, asking what time of 
 the night had arrived. There was no darkness nor anything 
 approaching to darkness, as yet. The heavens overhead had 
 grown to be of the rarest rose-gray ; all the fragments of 
 cloud had disappeared ; and through the scarcely moving 
 leaves of the trees — through the jet-black steins — there 
 gleamed the vivid and burning gold of a crescent moon. And 
 still the creeping tides along the coast murmured and whispered 
 to themselves in the silence ; but elsewhere all was still ; not 
 the faintest sound came from the unseen Duntroone. She 
 judged that she had waited there an hour ; it must be now 
 ten o'clock. 
 
 Then suddenly a strange pallor overspread her features, and 
 her mouth was set hard. She pushed open the small gate in 
 front of her, and passed out into the clear twilight. With 
 head erect — and not looking in the direction of the rocks at 
 all — she continued on her way, along by the wall of the old 
 garden, and round by the curve of the shore. It is true that 
 there were tears in her lashes; but they were tears of rage 
 and mortification; they were not bidden there, nor did they 
 betoken any weakness or self-pity. Uer naturally proud gait 
 had no lassitude in it — though she had been standing under 
 those trees for nigh an hour. 
 
 Nay, when Mrs. Maclean and Jess came home, they found 
 Barbara in a mood of most unusual sprightliness and content. 
 She would make tea for them — she would insist on making 
 lea for them, though neither of them wanted it ; and as she 
 win) about the parlor, she was singing to herself. She had 
 hut, little of a voice, to be sure; nevertheless, it. was well that 
 tie- -ill should be of a light heart; and Mrs. Maclean listened 
 , pleased and keiiignant : 
 
 " ' Ifr gave me ribli<»<s for my neck. 
 Ami si<l< combs for my hair,
 
 " ' IT WOULD BE A STRANGE THING IF I WAS THINKING OF ANY ONE LIKE THAT ' "
 
 AN ASSIGNATION 259 
 
 He gave mc ear-rings for my eai's, 
 
 With pearl-drops rich and rare ; 
 No wonder that I love my lad 
 
 That's sailing the salt sea — ' " 
 
 " Aye," said the shrewd little widow, in her kindliest 
 manner, " and is that the purser you are singing about, Bar- 
 bara ?" 
 
 Barbara turned round and stared, as bold as brass. 
 
 " The purser ?" she said. " Do you mean Ogilvie-^him 
 that Mr. McFadyen was calling an empty-headed dandy ? It 
 would be a strange thing indeed if I was thinking of any one 
 like that !" 
 
 And she went on with her ministrations, affecting to sing 
 blithely and carelessly. The widow, not understanding what 
 all this meant, did not say a word.
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 SUNLIGHT ABROAD 
 
 It was between eleven and twelve on the forenoon of the 
 following day that the scholars in Allan Henderson's class 
 were aroused from the weariful monotony of their toil by an 
 amazing apparition — for the advent of a stranger at the door 
 of the hall could hardly be accounted less. Head after head 
 was surreptitiously turned until the whole school was covertly 
 staring at this new-comer, who stood there irresolute ; the 
 master alone remained unconscious — he was working out on 
 a slate before him some arithmetical problem, while two or 
 three lads clustered around. A kind of hush of curiosity had 
 fallen upon the dull, gray benches; the apparition of a visitor 
 was an almost unprecedented thing ; moreover, this visitor 
 was a young woman. So unusual, indeed, was such an event 
 that no one knew what to do ; they waited for the master 
 himself to find out that a caller was there. 
 
 The slate was handed hack to its owner; at the same 
 moment, by some freak of chance, Allan Henderson became 
 aware that the distant doorway framed a human figure; the 
 next instant- his startled vision had told him who this was. 
 At once and hurriedly he quitted the narrow platform, passed 
 down the middle of the room, and went out upon the stone 
 staircase, whither Barbara had retreated as soon as she saw 
 that he was coming. She was rather breathless, but she was 
 trying to look pleased; the bewilderment was all on his side. 
 
 " When will you be leaving the school?" she said. 
 
 '• At one o'clock," he answered her — for this was a Satur- 
 day. 
 
 "Could you not come away rather earlier — about: a quarter 
 to one?" she said. " I am wishing to speak to you, if it is 
 not too much troubled My aunt she was telling me you are 
 thinking of going away from this country for two years, or
 
 SUNLIGHT ABROAD 261 
 
 the like of that ; and she was saying it was a great pity, to 
 be going away from your own people and your friends ; and 
 maybe you have not considered it. If you would come for a 
 little walk, when the school is over, then there would be the 
 chance of talking about it — and perhaps you will not go 
 away from your friends — " 
 
 For a moment he was speechless ; he could hardly believe 
 his senses. Here, in the dusk of the stairway, was a sort of 
 radiant creature ; and the marvel was that her voice, instead 
 of being angry and taunting, was soft and ingratiating ; while 
 her eyes, no longer darting scornful flames, were quite ami- 
 able, with a modest conciliatory appeal in them. She was a 
 trifle excited, it is true ; her sentences were somewhat discon- 
 nected ; but there was nothing save good-will in her aspect. 
 Nay, she seemed anxious he should clearly understand that 
 he had awakened her interest and sympathy ; her looks, timid 
 as they might be, were yet smilingly benignant; he could not 
 but perceive that her heart was warm and well-intentioned 
 towards him. The school-master forgot his wondering school; 
 he forgot all the rest of the universe — blinded as he was by 
 those beautiful, appealing, kindly eyes. 
 
 " Indeed, I would not have sought to bother you with my 
 poor affairs," he managed to say, with great embarrassment — 
 when she interrupted him. 
 
 " But you can come a little before one ?" she asked, quickly. 
 
 " Yes, I think I can do that — " 
 
 " And I will be waiting for you in front of the railway 
 station — we could have a little walk round by the shore — 
 and by the Gallows Hill — or anywhere you pleased — " 
 
 It was an inconceivable kind of thing ; and yet surely he 
 had heard aright ? And surely nothing could exceed the 
 friendliness of her manner — if those liquid, clear-shining 
 eyes spoke true ? 
 
 "I hope you are not vexed with me for interrupting you," 
 she said, and the slight hesitation in her speech, along with 
 its accent, was like music in his ears ; " but I am sure it 
 would be a pity if you went away from your own country, 
 without a little consideration. And I will be there, waiting, 
 if it is not too much trouble for you." 
 
 "The trouble?" said he — and even now he had not rccov-
 
 262 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ered from his stupefaction. " I do not understand why you 
 should concern yourself about me, or about anything that is 
 likely to happen to me. I cannot understand your kind- 
 ness. But I will meet you there — " 
 
 "And at a quarter to one?" she asked again. 
 
 " Yes, as soon as that, I hope," he answered her. And 
 then, without bidding him good-bye, but with a parting 
 glance and a smile, she turned and left. What further in- 
 struction his pupils received that day may have been of any 
 sort; it was little he knew. There was much that was 
 "taken for granted," so as to hurry on ; and by a quarter to 
 one he had dismissed his class, and was himself free and in 
 the outer air. 
 
 Yet that had been no incorporeal vision — no trick of the 
 brain — no waking day-dream in the midst of the weary 
 hours; for now as he drew rapidly near the railway station 
 he could see the actual and living Barbara undoubtedly stand- 
 ing there, just within the door of the ticket-office, where she 
 could occupy herself in watching the passers-by. Moreover, 
 it was also clear that she had made use of the interval to 
 deck herself out very bravely ; and did not that mean some- 
 thing too? A wild confusion of joy arose in his heart; 
 he thought of the student's phrase in Faust — "cine Magd 
 im Putz ;" surely it was something more than a mere friend- 
 ly solicitude about his immediate plans that had led her to 
 array herself so smartly in order to keep this appointment 
 and go for a walk with him? Nay, when she became con- 
 scious of his approach, the soft and rare shell pink of her 
 cheek deepened; it was with a pretty bashfulness that she 
 offered him her hand; and quite naturally and lover-like she 
 set herself by his side to accompany him. They passed out 
 from the railway station and took their way round by the 
 harbor; but in truth he did not heed which direction they 
 followed ; it was enough that some miracle had been wrought 
 — and the world was filled with sunlight. 
 
 The Btrange thing was that, although she had made this 
 tryst, with him ostensibly to discuss his future Schemes, now 
 that the opportunity had arrived she had not a word to say 
 aboul them. She was talking to him, it is true, and with 
 UnUSUal eagerness and vivacity ; she was addressing him
 
 SUNLIGHT ABROAD 263 
 
 with glances as well as with speech; she was smiling and 
 laughing, and apparently she was greatly delighted to have 
 him for her companion ; but all through this light-hearted- 
 ness and affectation of interest there was a forced note. Es- 
 pecially as they drew near to the South Quay — from which 
 the Aros Castle was just about to depart — especially then did 
 this half-hysterical merriment become more pronounced — 
 until she hardly seemed to know what she was saying. 
 
 "Oh yes, indeed," she continued — and never once were 
 her eyes turned in the direction of the steamer — "yes, in- 
 deed — about Mr. McFadyen — the poor man must have suffer- 
 ed a great deal — before he was driven to confess. It was to 
 Jessie that he came — and he told her he never meant to 
 cheat — it was only a joke, picking up Mr. Gihnour's ball — 
 but he was led into it — he was led into it ; and they did not 
 notice the trick — and so, when it was too late, he let them 
 think he had won the game fairly." 
 
 "And how long did his conscience slumber?" the school- 
 master asked. 
 
 " Never at all — never at all," said Barbara, laughing and 
 giggling in that curiously excited manner. At this moment 
 they were passing along the quay, close to the shore end of 
 the gangway ; and if Barbara scrupulously kept her gaze fixed 
 on the ground or turned towards the face of her companion, 
 Allan Henderson at least was well aware that the purser, on 
 the upper deck of the vessel, was staring at them as they 
 went by. " The poor man — I am sorry for him," Barbara 
 went on — and her feverish gayety sounded far from natural. 
 " It was to Jessie that he came first — to confess — maybe he 
 was not able to sleep at nights for thinking of what he had 
 done — and he was asking Jess whether he ought to tell Mr. 
 Gilmour — or maybe it was enough if he confessed to her — " 
 
 " And did she grant him absolution, Barbara? Or did she 
 impose a penance ?" asked the school-master, lightly. By this 
 time, behind them, the Aros Castle had moved away from the 
 quay, and was now steaming across to the North Pier. Allan 
 could not understand why Barbara had so resolutely ignored 
 the existence of the purser; perhaps she was really preoc- 
 cupied with this tale of hers about the dejection of the con- 
 science-stricken councillor. Anyhow, it was as well that the
 
 264 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 steamer had gone ; there would be no fear of interruption 
 now. 
 
 But presently, when they had got past the quay and were 
 approaching the Gallows Hill, her mood changed ; her demon- 
 strative hilarity vanished ; she had nothing further to tell about 
 the councillor and his remorse ; she seemed rather inclined to 
 be proud and morose and petulant. 
 
 " I do not understand," she said, " why you should wish to 
 go away from your own country." 
 
 " It is something to see the world," he answered her, but 
 with no great enthusiasm ; how easy it was for her to say the 
 wind that would have held him back ! 
 
 "The day and the night there," she continued, "are the 
 same as the day and the night here ; you cannot live more 
 there than you can here. And if it is for money, well, I am 
 hearing from more than one that your classes in the evening 
 are doing fine ; and why should you make such a sacrifice — 
 that is what I hear them asking — " 
 
 " Money is not everything," he made answer. And then he 
 hesitated. He dared not imperil these wonderful new rela- 
 tions that had been so suddenly established. It was so sur- 
 prising and unaccountable a thing to find himself walking with 
 Barbara in this sweetheart fashion — herself neatly pranked out 
 for the occasion — her eyes and voice betraying at leasl some 
 measure of amiability towards him — that he dreaded to de- 
 stroy his chances by any precipitancy. And yet he said, 
 "There is one that could bid me stay, if she wished." 
 
 " Ami who is that one J" she asked. 
 
 They were now ascending the Gallows Hill; and she 
 stooped and picked up a wild-flower — a Ml of red campion 
 
 it was -from the loot, of the trees. Without waiting for Ins 
 answer — if he had intended to answer — she presented him 
 with the fragment of blossom, and said, in rather an off-hand 
 way : 
 
 " Will you wear it ' But it is not good enough for to- 
 morrow — you would want something far better for your coat 
 if you were to come along to-morrow, after the church is out, 
 
 ami walk up ami down to look at the people. Maybe .lessie 
 and mi' we would lie <>ul too; and it is very nice t<» see a 
 
 young man have a flower in his coat."
 
 SUNLIGHT ABROAD 265 
 
 11 1 do not care about wearing such things," he said ; " but 
 this little gift of yours, Barbara, I can treasure." And there- 
 with he took out his pocket-book, and carefully placed the 
 scrap of weed in it. Nor even now would he speak unguard- 
 edly ; though the mysterious magnetism of her presence — the 
 fascination of the movement of her dress even — was stealing 
 over him and enthralling his senses ; and wild indeed were 
 the hopes that were thronging thick into his brain. 
 
 Then again, when they had reached the summit of the hill, 
 and gone along and sat down on the circular bench at the 
 foot of the flag-staff — it was a calm and summerlike scene 
 that lay stretched out before them, from Dun-da-gu and the 
 far Glashven in the north round to the silver-gray peaks of 
 Cruachan in the east — then again she said : 
 
 " It is very strange that you should be so different from 
 other young men, and your ways so different ; but maybe it 
 is better that you are so busy with your studies and your 
 classes ; for Jessie she is always speaking of the great and 
 proud position you are to have, and I hope soon. Oh yes, 
 I hope soon ; and it is a fine thing to be ambitious, and have 
 people talk about you — " 
 
 " There are other things of perhaps greater importance in 
 human life," he interposed ; but that was all ; he would not 
 startle her away from him by any passionate appeal ; it suf- 
 ficed that she allowed him to be near her, to be even trem- 
 blingly conscious of the touch of her gown, on this morning 
 of marvels. 
 
 " Barbara," he said, presently, " do you remember the 
 night the Sanda struck on the Lady Rock ? I was up here 
 that night. It was from here that I saw the white things 
 shoot up into the black sky ; and many's the time since then 
 I have thought that they were a sort of message from you 
 to me." 
 
 " And what could you be doing up here at such an hour ?" 
 said she, indifferently, glancing at the wide waters of the bay 
 and the hills. 
 
 " Well, I have always been used to going about a good 
 
 deal by myself," he answered her, in a more absent tone. 
 
 " There are many matters that a man has to thresh out ; and 
 
 the night is the best time for thinking ; the dark is quiet. It 
 
 12
 
 266 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 is well for you that you have not to face these problems and 
 perplexities. All you have to do is to look beautiful and win- 
 ning — that is your place in nature — that is enough; and if you 
 add to that the showing a little kindness here and there, then 
 you become of quite inestimable value to the people around 
 you. Look at my own case," he went on, " look at what you 
 have done for me this morning. I hardly cared whether I 
 went away for two years or stayed at home ; but if you take 
 any interest in these poor affairs of mine, then it would be 
 very different, then it would be worth considering. A single 
 word from you — would be enough — " 
 
 "Oh, as for that," she said, somewhat saucily, "I do not 
 know that I could be interfering. My aunt and Jessie would 
 tell you that I was too stupid and ignorant to understand 
 about the ambitions of a young man — " 
 
 " There are other hopes of far more importance," he said, 
 hastily. "Barbara, don't you understand that you have 
 brought them all back to me again, through your friendliness 
 of this morning? But — but I will not alarm you ; that would 
 be a poor return. I will not even ask you to say the word 
 that will keep me in this country." 
 
 " I was only telling you what I was hearing," she replied, 
 evasively, " that it would be a great sacrifice for you to give 
 up your classes — and your friends would be sorry you went 
 away — " 
 
 " And would you be sorry, too, Barbara?" he asked, making 
 bold to regard her. 
 
 " I would be like the others, I suppose," she answered, 
 toying with the black bugles that adorned the front of her 
 dress. 
 
 But this maiden coyness did not deceive or discourage 
 him ; on the contrary, his heart was filled with a transport 
 that seemed to demand utterance, in spite of his rigorous 
 self-restraint. 
 
 " Barbara," said he, of a sudden, " I have decided I will not 
 accept the tutorship. I will remain where I am, and get on 
 with my classes, and have a word now and again with one or 
 two friends I care for. And it's many thanks to y<>n for con- 
 cerning yourself about such poor trifles." 
 
 She rose.
 
 SUNLIGHT ABROAD 267 
 
 " I must be going now," she said. 
 
 " But, Barbara," he protested — for he could not let her 
 return to the town without seeking to secure a continuance 
 of her favor, without bargaining for a repetition of this be- 
 wildering and enchanting interview — "you must tell me when 
 I am to see you again." 
 
 " Well, to-morrow, then," she answered, cheerfully, " if you 
 come along the front, after the churches are out. And I 
 will be looking for some one wearing a very nice flower in 
 his coat, for you must not forget that." 
 
 Nay, so kind was she, and such an interest did she show in 
 his affairs, that, as they walked back into Duntroone together, 
 she even ventured to remonstrate with him about his cos- 
 tume — which was of a simple, plain, workaday character; 
 and she hinted that on special occasions, such as the next 
 day's after-church promenade, he ought to dress like the 
 fashionable young men, who on Sundays wore colored kid 
 gloves and smart neckties and tall hats. Allan laughed and 
 shook his head ; but all the same he was exceedingly grate- 
 ful to her for her advice ; indeed, when he had bidden farewell 
 to her at the entrance to the house in Campbell Street, and 
 turned to come away again, so overjoyed was he, so happily 
 in love with all the world was he, that a vague and general 
 wish possessed him to give somebody something. And the 
 first person that he chanced to encounter was Niall Gorach.
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 THE FOOL'S REVENGE 
 
 Niall was in a sorry plight. His clothes were dishevelled 
 and smothered with dust ; his face was scratched and bruised ; 
 and the palms of his hands and his wrists, which he ruefully 
 regarded from time to time, were torn and bleeding. 
 
 " What's all this now ?" said the school-master. 
 
 Then the half-witted lad told his tale. He had been out- 
 side the town, at the foot of the Dunach Hill, when the Mel- 
 fort coach came along. On the top of it was a certain farmer- 
 youth named Dan Kingarra — that is, Dan of the Kingarra 
 farm — with one or two of his companions ; and it occurred to 
 this facetious person that he would invite Niall to get up 
 beside them, no doubt for the purpose of providing them 
 with sport. Things appeared to have gone on well enough 
 while they were slowly ascending the hill and driving along 
 the level summit ; but when they were rapidly descending 
 the steep incline on the townward side, the motive of Dan 
 Kingarra's kindness became clear. He would have Niall 
 jump off behind — while the coach was tearing down the hill ; 
 and this the poor chap was eventually compelled to do, with 
 the inevitable consequences: he was hurled along the stony 
 highway, face downward, his hands and wrists shot out in 
 vain, while the lout of a fanner, ensconced among his com- 
 panions, laughed aloud at the merry jest. 
 
 " If I bad been there," said the school-master, with a Hash 
 of flame in his dark eyes, " I'd soon have had that tomfool 
 
 head first into the mad. There would have been a see 1 
 
 one rolling among the stones." 
 
 "Maybe," said Niall, slowly — " maybe something will be 
 coming to him, and before long." 
 
 "Well, here is a shilling for you, anyway, " the school- 
 master continued, good naturedly, "and you can go into the
 
 the fool's revenge '2d9 
 
 chemist's and get some lint and some ointment for your 
 hands. No," said he, on second thoughts — for had not this 
 poor lad done him a good turn when he was hopelessly im- 
 mured in the chasm? — "no; you can keep the shilling; but 
 you'd better come along with me to the doctor, and we'll get 
 the thing done properly for you." And to the doctor's they 
 accordingly went ; and there Niall was patched and mended 
 up as well as might be ; and presently Allan Henderson was 
 again on his way home — his brain filled with recollections that 
 had little to do with Niall Gorach. 
 
 But when Niall was once more his own master he resumed 
 his apparently aimless wanderings, and these in due course 
 of time led him to the neighborhood of the Kingarra farm, 
 which lay just outside the town. Here he became more cir- 
 cumspect ; he crept and slouched along by the side of walls 
 and hedges ; and when he came to the iron gate leading into 
 the farm-yard, he hid behind a clump of elder-bushes — which 
 had doubtless been planted there in former days for the con- 
 fusion of ghosts and evil spirits. From this safe retreat he 
 could command a view — through the slender spars of the 
 gate — of all that was happening in the large and open square 
 that was surrounded by the usual buildings and out-houses. 
 
 Then a little while thereafter Niall withdrew from his 
 hiding, and cautiously and circuitously returned to Dun- 
 troone ; and the first place he made for was Long Lauchie's 
 shop. The shoemaker was at work, or pretending to be at 
 work ; but there was a confused and yet half-comical look 
 about his eyes, when he glanced up and saw who his visitor 
 •was, that seemed to suggest that Lauchlan must have of late 
 been straying from the strait and narrow path. And it was 
 not at all in his usual gloomy tones that he now exclaimed, in 
 Gaelic : 
 
 " Is it you, you grandson of the Witch of Endor ! — and I am 
 of opinion by the look of you that you have been in the wars !" 
 
 Niall answered him in the same tongue : 
 
 " Will you be lending me a long piece of cord, Mr. Macln- 
 tyre, and a bit of rosin to make it dark ?" 
 
 "And what devil's cantrip is this now? — and who has been 
 pulling a harrow over you ?" 
 
 " Will you give me the string ?" said the lad with the cu-
 
 270 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 rious, peering, elfin eyes. " "When the woman was here, it 
 was I that frightened her away for you." 
 
 " My hero, do you think I am forgetting ?" said Lauchie, 
 with an inhuman chuckle. " Aw, Dyeea, many is the time 
 I have been laughing over that ; aye, and waking up in the 
 middle of the night, laughing. Oh, you are the champion of 
 the sorcerers, and no mistake ; and I am sure she ran all the 
 way shrieking to Fort William — and swimming over Cowal 
 Ferry and Creran Ferry. And if she was drowned, who will 
 be crying over it? — if she is drowned, she is silent; and 
 a silent woman is a very good thing that Providence does 
 not always give us. And maybe I will be for letting you 
 have the string, if you will tell me what you are going to do 
 with it, and if you will tell me who has been injuring yon." 
 
 Thereupon Niall — without whimpering, but with a malig- 
 nant glitter in his eyes — repeated the story he had related to 
 the school-master, and Lauchlan promptly said : 
 
 " Well, it is myself that would like to be giving that fel- 
 low a bash on the head. But what about the string now — 
 what about the string, son of my heart?" 
 
 " 1 was up at the farm," said Niall, slowly and darkly. " I 
 was looking at the yard. In the middle of it there is a great 
 barrel to drain the byres and the stables ; and the top of the 
 barrel is even with the ground. If I was to tie the string to 
 the pump, and be hidden somewhere with the other end, the*n 
 maybe Dig Dan would be coming along, and I would pull the 
 string, and trip him — " 
 
 "And he would fall into the barrel of wash !" cried Lauchie 
 — and instantly he threw aside his work. " May the Good* 
 Being preserve us, but I would walk half round the world to 
 see such a thing as that! Niall, it is your head that has the 
 invention in it. Do not mind them if they say you were not 
 at bome when the sense was shared ; you have as niiieh sense 
 as many; and it is I that will be laughing when I see Dan 
 Kiiij.ina fall into the wash. Do you know now what color 
 he will be when he scrambles out? — he will be as brown as. 
 treacle ; and not a enrae Coming from him, for his month will 
 be choking. Aw, the brown man! — Niall, 1 am going with 
 yon to see the brown man! — I would not miss it for the best 
 part of my existence."
 
 . the fool's revenge 271 
 
 Long Lauchie was softly chuckling and giggling to himself 
 as he set about getting the twine and the rosin ; but by the 
 time he was ready to start, he had grown solemn again. He 
 opened a press, and took down a black bottle and a soda-water 
 bottle ; and the latter he filled from the former. 
 
 " Niall," said he, " I will give you advice. Maybe you 
 have not as much wisdom as others ; but I will tell you how 
 you can make up for it ; and what you must do is to keep 
 away from the drink. It is drink that is the ruin of half of 
 them around you ; and if you keep away from it, you will be 
 the equal of many, sense or no sense. For myself now, I was 
 taking a drop or two to-day — the toothache being such a ter- 
 rible, terrible thing." He put the soda-water bottle to his 
 lips, and had a long pull ; then, with a sigh of satisfaction, he 
 corked the flask and placed it in his pocket. " Keep away 
 from the drink, Niall, and there is no fear of you ; it is drink 
 that is the scourge and disgrace of this country — a sad, sad 
 thing to think of !" 
 
 But then again, as they were on their way to Kingarra, on 
 this shining afternoon, his spirits recovered considerably ; and 
 although his toothache seemed to be troubling him at times 
 — and he had to seek the necessary relief — he by-and-by be- 
 came quite gay. 
 
 " Niall," said he — and he was quietly laughing now — " did 
 you ever behold a brown man ? I am thinking that a brown 
 man will be a sight to see ! Do you not imagine that his 
 pockets will be very wet when he will put his hands into 
 them ?— " 
 
 " Maybe," said Niall — " maybe he will not be for pushing 
 me off a coach again." 
 
 " Aw, the brown man," continued Lauchie — and he could 
 not restrain his hilarity — "the brown man ! — it is I that will 
 be laughing to see the brown man climb up out of the barrel, 
 and if he will be using bad words, would not you do the 
 same ? No, not you, not you, Niall, my son ; for there are 
 many things you must avoid ; and the two things that you 
 must avoid most of all are the drink and the women. The 
 drink I have told you about ; and the women — well, now, my 
 hero, perhaps it is not so bad for you to be a little weak in 
 the head, if that will keep the women away from you. Any-
 
 272 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 thing to keep them away from you, for they are the devil's 
 own children, and no mistake ; and I wish he had the lot of 
 them, and would keep them at home with himself. I am not 
 saying," proceeded Lauchlan, " that you may not find one 
 here and there that is pleasing to look at — so long as you do 
 not marry her ; it is the marrying that is the mischief. Aw, 
 yes, I have seen one or two ; I had my young days ; well I 
 remember that some of the girls were not always so shy and 
 innocent as you might think, when there was a bunch of net- 
 tles to be put in your bed and a ghost waiting for you behind 
 the door. We had the fine evenings those evenings." Here 
 Long Lauchie, moved to sentiment by his recollections, burst 
 into gentle melody ; but there was not much of sadness — ■ 
 there was rather triumph — in his singing: 
 
 " "Twas on a simmer's afternoon, 
 A wee before the sun oaed down, 
 My lassie, in a braw new gown, 
 Cam' o'er the hills to Gowrie? " 
 
 Lauchlan, looking all round the landscape, smiled mysterious- 
 ly at these reminiscences of his. But presently he resumed : 
 "Oh yes, I tell you, my brave champion, I have seen many 
 pretty girls in my time, brown-haired and yellow-haired and 
 black-haired; and all of them so smooth-spoken and pleasing, 
 and giving themselves airs as if they had the tail of a peacock 
 to display. But it is a different thing — and now I am telling 
 you the Bible truth — it is a very different thing when you 
 take one of them and make a wife of her, and then the devil's 
 daughter lets you know where she came from. Niall, my boy, 
 yon will be saved from all that, as it is my hope ; and you 
 will be thankful to Providence that you are a little weak in 
 the head. Not that I am so sure about that cither. For I 
 have heard of the great commanders — I have heard of \N VI- 
 lington and Lord Raglan and Colin Campbell that was at 
 the Alma; but could any one of them bave driven that fear- 
 ful woman fleeing out of the hjOiise? Not one of them ; they 
 would have ran away by themselves ; and the faster they went 
 the better lor them — that is my opinion. But you — it is you 
 that have a head on your shoulders — and plenty of invention 
 in it — and no mistake ! And now we will sec if we can make
 
 the fool's revenge 273 
 
 the farmer's son dance — aw, Dyeea, Low I am wishing to see 
 the brown man climbing out of the barrel I" 
 
 At this point Lauchlan began to moderate his too garrulous 
 mirth ; for they were getting near to Kingarra ; and he un- 
 derstood from Niall's stealthy and furtive manner that there 
 might be some danger of their being observed. But they 
 reached the shelter of the elder-bushes in safety ; and then it 
 was that Lauchlan, out of thankfulness — or perhaps owing to 
 another twinge of toothache — brought forth the soda-water 
 bottle again. At present there was nothing else to be done, 
 for there was an old woman in possession of the farm-yard — 
 an old woman in a red jacket, who was hurling stones and ex- 
 ecrations at a terrier that she had caught in the act of scatter- 
 ing a brood of young turkeys. 
 
 But in a minute or two, when the old woman had disap- 
 peared into one of the out-houses, Niall stole from his hiding- 
 place ; and after a careful and catlike scrutiny he clambered 
 over the gate. He went quickly across the square. In the 
 middle, towards which four shallow troughs — one from each 
 corner of the yard — sloped down and converged, there was a 
 huge tun, the top of which was flush with the ground, while on 
 the farther side rose an iron pump. To this pump Niall rap- 
 idly affixed one end of the rosined cord, and then he retreat- 
 ed, paying out the string, and dabbing it down on the earth 
 and stones so that it should be immovable and invisible. "When 
 he came crouching back behind the elder-bushes he had the 
 other end in his hand ; at any moment a powerful jerk would 
 raise the darkened twine some two or three inches from the 
 ground, so that an unwary passer-by must inevitably go over. 
 
 And as it chanced the very next person to put in an ap- 
 pearance was the farmer's son — a great hulking lout of a fel- 
 low — who had a pitchfork over his shoulder. The shoemaker, 
 holding his breath, was sniggering in spite of himself ; but his 
 companion was in a different mood — the strange, elfin eyes 
 were burning with fire — they were like the eyes of some wild 
 animal intently watching its prey. The unhappy thing was 
 that though the lumbering, heavy-shouldered youth seemed 
 to have plenty of half-idle jobs to do about the yard, never 
 once did he approach the drainage-barrel ; if he crossed the 
 string, it was at such a distance from the black hole that trip- 
 12*
 
 274 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ping him up would have been of no avail. They waited and 
 watched, and waited and watched; but with a maddening per- 
 sistence he kept away from the neighborhood of that most 
 unholy well. At last Long Lauchie whispered, 
 
 " Niall, my son, it is you that have the invention ; but this 
 time it is not going to succeed—" 
 
 "Quiet — quiet!" retorted the half-witted lad, trembling 
 with excitement. " Now he is coming — now — now — " 
 
 But again the unsuspecting yokel sheered off ; and at this 
 Lauchie rose from his cramped position. 
 
 " Niall," he said, laughing covertly, " now I will take my 
 turn ; for it is into that hole that the devil must go somehow. 
 Stay where you are — stay where you are, my son — and may- 
 be you will be seeing something." 
 
 He now issued boldly from his ambush ; he opened the 
 gate ; he staggered into the yard. Perhaps he was pretend- 
 ing to be a good deal more intoxicated than was really the 
 case; he held the almost empty bottle in his hand; he swayed 
 up to the farmer's son, who regarded this intruder with evi- 
 dent disfavor. 
 
 " It is not ahl feenished yet," said Lauchie, in English. 
 " Will you be for having a drop ? — I was on my wch home — 
 and how is your father, Dan ?" — aye, and your mother, too? — " 
 
 "Oh, what are you blcthcrin about?" returned the other, 
 with impatient sulkiness. " My mother has been dead these 
 seven years — " 
 
 "Aye, that's what I was thinking," Lauchie went on, most 
 good-naturedly — though his speech was interrupted now and 
 again by an occasional hiccough. "And — and I'm glad to 
 hear that; and you will give her my compliments, and tell 
 her that I was asking after her. And you will hef a drop 
 with me now — it is not ahl feenished — " 
 
 " I am not tasting," was the morose answer. 
 
 " Well, well, then, there's the more for me," said Lauchlan, 
 cheerfully, and he put the bottle in his pocket. "And your 
 father now, is he well ? — and your mother — arc they both of 
 tln-iii pretty well I — " 
 
 " Oh, get out of this — get away home I" was the scornful 
 rejoinder. 
 
 "And I was hearing of you to-day," proceeded Lauchie.
 
 the fool's revenge 275 
 
 " I was hearing of the fine trick you were playing on Niall 
 Gorach — and — and he would be rolling along the road like 
 a football—" 
 
 The big booby condescended to grin. But of a sudden 
 Lauchlan grew preternaturally grave. 
 
 " Maybe," said he, half articulately, " maybe I was having 
 a drop too much the day. Give me your arm, Dan, my lad — 
 give me your arm to the gate — I am wishing to get away 
 home — " 
 
 " Aye, the sooner ye're in bed the better," answered the 
 facetious bumpkin ; but by this time Lauchie had fastened 
 on to him, and rather unwillingly he was being dragged 
 across the yard. 
 
 " Here, do ye want to drown yourself !" he exclaimed 
 angrily, as Lauchie's reeling and staggering took them both 
 dangerously near the pump. 
 
 The next moment the intoxicated shoemaker gave a heavy 
 lurch forward — his companion was thrown over and could 
 not recover himself — there was a mighty souse and a kicking 
 and splashing — and the last that Lauchie saw of the farmer 
 was a pair of hands frantically clinging to the edge of the 
 unspeakable tun. He made away for the gate, and haled 
 Niall Gorach out of his hiding-place. 
 
 " Aw, Dyeea, did you see that now ?" he cried, as they hast- 
 ened along the road — -and he laughed and better laughed 
 until he brought on the hiccough so violently that it threat- 
 ened to choke him. " Niall, my son, hurry, hurry ; but as 
 soon as we are near the houses we are safe ; for you do not 
 think a brown man would come near the houses ? The brown 
 man — aw, the brown man ! — it is I that would like to see 
 him chasing us through Duntroone, and his clothes dripping, 
 and all the people standing and laughing. And what do you 
 think, now, my hero ? — he was very clever when he pushed 
 you down from the coach — oh yes, he was very clever — but 
 maybe he is not considering himself so clever now. What 
 do you say to that, my son ?" 
 
 " Will he get any of it into his mouth ?" said Niall Gorach, 
 with his eyes burning again. 
 
 But the shoemaker was not in the least inclined to be vin- 
 dictive. He was far too happy. He was giggling to him-
 
 276 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 self, and singing little snatches of song, all the way in to 
 Duntroone ; and when he arrived he made straight for one 
 of his favorite howffs, sure of finding there on a Saturday 
 evening some particular crony, to whom, over a friendly glass 
 or two, he could relate his exploit, with such mirthful embel- 
 lishments as happened to occur to him. And thus it was 
 that Niall Gorach was avenged.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 PERPLEXITIES 
 
 When the two Maclean girls came out of church on the 
 following day, Jess seemed disinclined to accede to Barbara's 
 proposal that they should go for a stroll along the sea-front ; 
 indeed, at this time of the year, when the hotels and villas 
 were filled with visitors, the towns-people mostly kept away 
 from the fashionable throng. 
 
 " Do you want to see some one ?" Jessie demanded. " Or 
 do you wish to have your head turned with fine bonnets and 
 the new style of jackets? I never knew the like of you, Bar- 
 bara, for thinking about dress." 
 
 " I do not wish to sit in the house all day reading books," 
 said Barbara, resentfully. 
 
 "Oh, well, I will go with you," said Jess, with her usual 
 good-nature. " I need not be over-shy ; they're not likely to 
 look much at me, Barbara, when they've got you to look at." 
 
 But hardly had they got down to the front when Jess ex- 
 claimed : 
 
 " Why, there is Allan ! Who would have expected to find 
 him here !" 
 
 At the same moment Barbara's face flushed with vexation. 
 For where was the flower she had counselled him to wear in 
 his button-hole ; and where were the smart gloves and the tall 
 hat ? He did not seem to have altered his dress in any one 
 particular ; he had taken no trouble to fit himself for this 
 promenade ; it was as if he had risen from his musty books 
 and come out without a thought of appearances. And this 
 was the result — that she had dressed herself in her best — and 
 brought her scarlet sunshade too — to walk up and down with 
 a long, gawky, ill-attired student. 
 
 When he came up she received him with the most marked 
 coldness ; she would hardly look his way ; she left him to
 
 278 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 talk to Jess — while she regarded, covertly, the people passing 
 to and fro along the parade. And it was in this fashion also 
 that these three set out together — keeping rather to the road- 
 way, for the gay world had possession of the pavement. Al- 
 lan could not but be conscious of the inexplicable change in 
 her manner ; but he did not betray either surprise or chagrin ; 
 while Jessie remained kind as always. 
 
 " I finished the Memoirs this morning," said she, " and I 
 will send you the book back to-morrow, with many thanks." 
 
 " And what do you think of the great Benvenuto ?" he 
 asked. 
 
 " I would not like to say anything disrespectful," Jessie 
 answered, demurely, " but — but I was thinking to myself once 
 or twice that ' aiblins he was a leear.' Do you remember," 
 she went on, with a laugh — and she had a pretty laugh, quiet 
 and happy and humorous — " do you remember the story of 
 the salamander? He says that when he was a small boy he 
 saw a salamander in the fire ; and that there and then his 
 father struck him a blow on the side of the head, so that he 
 should never forget it. That is his story. But I suspect 
 what really happened was this — that he declared he saw a 
 salamander ; and that there and then his father hit him on 
 the side of the head to try to cure him of lying. Isn't that 
 the more likely story, Allan ?" 
 
 " Indeed it is," said he. " And you're quite right ; we've 
 got to guess at what really happened in former times. How 
 do you think, now, that Socrates came by his broken nose?" 
 
 " His wife?" Jess suggested, vaguely. 
 
 " No, no. It is perfectly clear what happened. Socrates 
 bad got hold of an honest citizen, and, right or wrong, would 
 engage him in argument, just for showing off. Then the 
 poor man, finding himself being driven into a corner by a 
 mere trick of logic — feeling that he was being entrapped, 
 ami yd not clever enough to get out — and not liking to be 
 bullied ami made a fool of before his friends — then he got 
 angry ; lie up with his list and gave the philosopher a bloody 
 nose. That was the argummtum ad kominem, you see; and 
 I suppose Socrates thought he had had enough for that day." 
 
 Benvenuto Cellini — Socrates; no wonder Barbara ceased to 
 listen; and turned away with proud indifference from her two
 
 PERPLEXITIES 279 
 
 companions ; and devoted her attention to the fashionable 
 crowd, whose costume and gait and bearing had ever and al- 
 ways for her the profoundest interest. She was accustomed 
 to being left by herself in this way. When those two got to- 
 gether, there seemed to be no end to the subjects on which 
 they could talk ; while she ' was relegated to silence. And 
 perhaps on this particular morning — seeing that every now 
 and again she was aware of a scrutinizing glance sent across 
 from the passers-by — perhaps it was just as well that Allan 
 Henderson should pass for Jess's especial friend ; his appear- 
 ance (in Barbara's eyes) did not confer distinction on his as- 
 sociate for the time being. 
 
 Indeed, she got away from this too public thoroughfare as 
 soon as ever she could ; and the moment she and Jess were 
 back home again and in the seclusion of their own room, her 
 petulance broke forth. 
 
 " He was a fine -like sight to come walking with any one !" 
 she said, in mingled wrath and scorn. 
 
 " Do you mean Allan ?" said Jess, wondering. " He was 
 just as usual." 
 
 " But people are not supposed to be dressed as usual," re- 
 torted Barbara, " when they go along the esplanade on a Sun- 
 day." 
 
 " Dressed ?" repeated her cousin, rather angrily. "He was 
 well enough dressed. He was perfectly well dressed. And, 
 in any case, those that know Allan will not judge of him by 
 his coat." 
 
 " And how is a stranger to judge him except by his coat ?" 
 demanded Barbara ; she did not notice that Jessie's fair and 
 fine complexion had acquired an unusual touch of color. 
 
 " If a stranger," said Jess, with proud lips, " does not see 
 that Allan Henderson is a man of strong and remarkable char- 
 acter — if he does not see that in every line of his face — then 
 the stranger is a fool. And the opinion of a fool is not worth 
 considering." 
 
 " Oh, you need not get into a temper," observed Barbara, 
 tauntingly. " It would be of better use if you lent the school- 
 master a clothes-brush." 
 
 " His clothes are perfectly well brushed," said Jess, hotly, 
 " and perfectly becoming. Perfectly becoming ! I wish I
 
 280 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 could say as much for every one who was there this morn- 
 ing. For there are people who deck themselves out above 
 their station, in imitation of their betters." 
 
 It was a cruel speech — and utterly unlike Jess; nay, she 
 stopped abruptly and hesitated. After all, this cousin of hers 
 had been thrown upon their generosity and hospitality ; and 
 she was a solitary kind of creature. 
 
 " Barbara," Jess went on, after this momentary pause, " I 
 am sorry I said that. I was not meaning it. You provoked me." 
 
 " Oh, you may say what you like," replied Barbara, with 
 assumed indifference, as she put the red parasol down at the 
 bottom of the drawer and covered it over; " it is an old story 
 — that nobody must utter a word about the school -master if 
 you are anywhere near by." 
 
 That same evening Allan Henderson was alone in his own 
 room, seated at an open window, and plunged in profound 
 meditation. For there were many problems he had to face at 
 this crisis. His reason was battling for the mastery, and 
 was pointing out to him that if he wished to withdraw from 
 what he vaguely felt to be a false position, Barbara's inexpli- 
 cably capricious conduct offered an opportune excuse. Even 
 in the midst of his infatuation — even as he dreaded to think 
 of losing her — he was haunted by a distressing consciousness 
 that she was in no sense his equal, that she was not the male 
 he would have chosen if there had been a choice in the mat- 
 ter. But was there a choice ? Or was the pairing of men 
 and women a hap-hazard thing; and was its accidental char- 
 acter the cause of all the mistakes and tragedies that were 
 visible around? And what was the nature of this subtle al- 
 lurement and fascination that was so much more powerful 
 than the will of a man, and that paid no heed whatever to his 
 judgment? But then again, if he was driven to confess to 
 himself that Barbara could be no intellectual helpmeet for 
 him — that she was ignorant and simple in a hundred direc- 
 tions — might not that be part of her mysterious charm I Here 
 was a child of nature, to be taken by the hand and led; here 
 was a \ii'_dn tablet on which the finer wisdom of the World 
 could lie written anew; here was a wild blossom, to lie trained 
 and guided, while one woiideringly watched its growth. And, 
 after all, was not the overriding of reason — the yielding to a
 
 PERPLEXITIES 281 
 
 blind intoxication of the senses — at a particular juncture in 
 life — was not that but obeying one of the fundamental laws of 
 existence ? Who could tell bu+, that there were other powers 
 at work in this business of se'cction — inscrutable and inexo- 
 rable powers? Could there be any sorrier spectacle than that 
 of some poor item of humanity hanging back, consulting his 
 judgment, with " I will — I will not," while the inherited in- 
 fluences of millions of centuries were imperatively saying to 
 him : "There is the woman we have chosen for you; her you 
 must seek to gain, and none other. If you fail, then you 
 have balked our purpose — away with you to the limbo of dis- 
 comfiture and despair !" 
 
 These dark and intricate communings were broken in upon; 
 Mr. McFadyen appeared — merry-eyed, alert, self-confident. 
 
 " Well, to be sure !" he exclaimed. " All by yourself, on 
 a fine evening like this ! I made sure you would be enter- 
 taining your friends at supper, or something of the kind, 
 after what I saw yesterday. Did I not prophesy it many's 
 the day ago ? And a smart young madam to go walking 
 through the town wi' ! — Dod, she's a clipper! — there's style 
 about her, I tell ye — a regular young Queen of Sheba — " 
 
 " Are you talking of Barbara Maclean ?" said the school- 
 master. " But that was twenty-four hours ago. And twenty- 
 four hours in the life of a woman — " 
 
 " What — what now ?" cried the councillor, in great surprise ; 
 he could see that something had occurred. 
 
 " I saw her this morning," said Allan, briefly. " She had 
 hardly a word for me." 
 
 " Man, man, is that all ?" responded Peter, with hearty 
 cheerfulness. " Do ye no understand ? That's only their 
 tricks, man ! They're all like that. They're well aware that 
 if they kept aye in the same temper, they would lose interest 
 for ye ; and so one day it's all smiles and sunshine, and the 
 next day it's nothing but discontent and perversity. Come 
 away, now — come away this very minute ; and we'll go along 
 to the widow's — " 
 
 Well, Allan was in a half-reckless mood; he hardly knew 
 what was happening to him, what toils and snares were sur- 
 rounding him. They went to the widow's. And from her, 
 at least, they had a most friendly welcome.
 
 282 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " And so the holidays begin to-morrow, Allan, lad," said 
 she. " I'm sure they'll do you good ; you've been too hard 
 at work at your classes. And how is your greenhouse get- 
 ting on, Mr. McFadyen ?" 
 
 " Oh, fine; just fine," responded the councillor. "There's 
 some may be laughing at me for keeping a bit greenhouse and 
 a few out-of-door plants cheek by jowl with a coal-yard ; but 
 if they had any philosophy they would know it's just there 
 such a thing is wanted. A touch of verdure — a touch of 
 verdure — it's wonderful how refreshing to the eye it is. And 
 the euonymus-bushes are doing well — it's strange they have 
 not oftener been tried in this climate — I'm looking forward 
 to having them green all through the winter. That's the only 
 drawback about the tree -fuchsias — withering down in the 
 winter — " 
 
 " It's quite true what ye say, Mr. McFadyen," observed the 
 widow, placidly. "And one o' these days I must come along 
 and look at your anonymous-bushes, when it's such an inter- 
 esting experiment — " 
 
 " The sooner the better," returned the councillor, politely 
 — " the sooner the better. And in the mean time I am going 
 to insist on Miss Jessie and Miss Barbara here putting on 
 their things and coming away for half an hour's stroll ; it's 
 just sinful they should be sitting in -doors on so splendid an 
 evening. 1 ' 
 
 And he did insist — stormily, overbearingly — until he had 
 his way ; Jess was the first to give a laughing consent; then 
 she and Barbara quitted the room to get ready. When the 
 four of them by-and-by set out, the councillor was quite gay 
 and triumphant; and it ought to be added that he wore a 
 most dapper and summcrlike costume — white vest, cut-away 
 coat, and variegated necktie. They left the town by the 
 Dunstaffnage road — making for the upland heights overlook- 
 ing the western and northern seas. 
 
 They walked two and two; and the school-master, who had 
 at first been inclined to coldness if not to austerity, vei'y 
 Bpeedilj found, and that, greatly to his surprise, that his com- 
 panion wished to l»e complaisant, and even ingratiating. 
 
 "You have never told me," said she, in rather a low voice, 
 when there was some little space between them and the couple
 
 PERPLEXITIES 283 
 
 ahead of them, " of the fight between you and Ogilvie. I 
 want to know. How did it begin ?" 
 
 It was the very last thing in the world he would have wished 
 to talk about ; but she was insidiously persistent ; she be- 
 trayed the strangest curiosity about the smallest details ; how- 
 ever reluctantly, he was forced to relate to her, bit by bit, 
 what had occurred. 
 
 " And you had him at the very edge ?" she asked, with 
 " glowering" eyes. 
 
 " It was too near for both of us." 
 
 " But he was the undermost — you had the mastery over 
 him?" she demanded. 
 
 He would not say. 
 
 " He was the undermost — did you not tell me that ?" she 
 demanded again. 
 
 " Well— he was." 
 
 "Then why did you not let him go over?" she said, with 
 set teeth. 
 
 He was astounded. 
 
 "Barbara, do you know what you are saying? Would you 
 have had murder committed?" 
 
 " It would have been no murder !" she said, passionately. 
 " It was a fair fight — he would have had you over if he could. 
 Well, maybe you will be serving him better some other day 
 — and more to the purpose !" 
 
 He could not understand this savage outburst ; but he dared 
 not question her further, for the two in front of them had 
 paused in the roadway, to inquire which route they should 
 now adopt. It was by this time nearly nine ; the sun had 
 set ; but there was no lack of light — the after-glow seemed to 
 have set the whole world on fire. Indeed, when they had de- 
 cided to go onward and downward to the sea, and when 
 they had reached the heights above Penyfuir, a most extraor- 
 dinary spectacle lay stretched out before them : the smooth 
 waters of Loch Linnhe were as a lake of blood, the heavens 
 overhead were an indescribable glory of flame, while between 
 the resplendent crimson sea and the dazzling crimson sky 
 stood ranged the mountains of Morven, of the richest, deep- 
 est, softest plum-color, the only apparently solid thing in this 
 wild and general conflagration. The night was yet far off —
 
 284 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 if there was to be any night ; they would have abundant lei- 
 sure for their return through the woods along the shore. 
 
 And so they descended from these uplands to the coast, 
 making their way round by Ganavan and Camas Ban, and 
 through the trees that encircle the base of the Castle Hill. 
 The councillor was in great form ; he was drawing attention, 
 as if he owned them, to the various objects that came within 
 view ; he was displaying his knowledge of natural history. A 
 large dark bird with noiseless wings went sailing from one 
 branch to another; then a sharp, discordant yelp — a strange 
 sound in the prevailing silence — proclaimed the tawny owl. 
 A smaller creature — black as jet against that blaze of crimson 
 light — kept jerkily fluttering over their heads; and Peter re- 
 peated the boyish rhyme, " Bat, bat, come into my hat ;" 
 though, having attained to years of wisdom, he did not fruit- 
 lessly attempt to capture the flittcrmouse. A belated weasel 
 stole along the pathway some distance ahead of them, and 
 then disappeared in among the heaps of stones tumbled down 
 from the lofty ruins. But it was when they had got round 
 by the old-fashioned garden to the corner of the bay that the 
 councillor had an opportunity of really distinguishing him- 
 self ; for at this point a rabbit, closely followed by a black 
 collie, ran across just in front of them, the pursued animal 
 making for the ivied and precipitous cliff underneath the 
 castle. 
 
 "Ah, do you see that, now?" cried Mr. McFadycn, grasp- 
 in.;- his stick by the ferrule end. "That poaching rascal of a 
 dog! — if I could get at him I'd teach him a lesson! The 
 mongrel beasts ! — they don't belong to the place — they come 
 in from the town — I wonder the keeper does not shoot every 
 one o' them — and that black thief of a brute, I'd just like to 
 get near it—" 
 
 Nay, so indignant was he that he left his companions and 
 began to ascend tin' Bteep hill. Both rabbit ami collie had 
 
 U r ot out of Bight ; no doubt the former had reached the shelter 
 of the ivy, and made its way into one of the numerous <iv\- 
 iees well known in these parts to the eony of the rock. lint 
 the dog .' well, the dog must be somewhere about -and here 
 was the \aliant Peter, determined on lawful east igat ion. The 
 next moment .Mr. McFadyen paused. The black collie hav-
 
 PERPLEXITIES 285 
 
 ing relinquished the chase, was now returning ; and when it 
 caught sight of this stranger, it stopped short. The two 
 glared at each other — and Mr. McFadyen did not advance. 
 
 " I'm not so sure," he called down to Jess, " that this is a 
 town dog. It may belong to the place, after all — " 
 
 There was a low growl, ending in a sharp and menacing bark. 
 
 " What do ye think ?" the councillor called again. " I 
 would not like to harm a dog that belonged here — " 
 
 The barking was renewed, with a more savage accent ; the 
 collie, showing angry teeth, was drawing nearer. 
 
 " He deserves a thrashing, of course," called Peter, with 
 some tone of apology. " No doubt about that. But — but 
 maybe it would be best to leave that to the keeper. What 
 do ye think? I would not like to harm the dog if I thought 
 it belonged to the place. What do ye think ? — " 
 
 " Oh, come away, Mr. McFadyen, and leave the dog alone !" 
 Jess called to him. 
 
 It was with a certain caution that Peter began to back 
 down the slope ; and when he rejoined his companions his 
 face was extremely red — perhaps with the exertion of climb- 
 ing and descending again. 
 
 " I'm not sure I was right in letting him off," he said, 
 doubtfully. " Maybe I was wrong in letting him off. When 
 you catch a poaching dog in the very act, ye should thrash 
 him then and there. But on the other hand, ye see, I would 
 not like to punish a dog that belonged to the place — that 
 would hardly be my business, would it ? Oh, well," he con- 
 cluded, with a magnanimous air, "maybe it was better to let 
 him go for this once anyway ; I thought he might have the 
 benefit of the doubt." 
 
 " Yes, yes ; why should you want to harm the poor beast ?" 
 said Jess; and therewith they continued on their route — 
 round by the curve of the shore, towards the out-jutting rocks. 
 
 Barbara was silent and self-absorbed on the way home. 
 For while these others had been watching the encounter be- 
 tween Mr. McFadyen and the black collie, she had been re- 
 garding the steep cliff that towered away upward to the 
 ruins of the ancient castle. It was over that cliff that Ogil- 
 vie would have fallen headlong if the school-master had not 
 released him and given him his life.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 A RING 
 
 Next morning, to Barbara's surprise, Allan Ilenderson 
 presented himself; and the first glimpse she had of him 
 showed her that there was a marked change in his outward 
 appearance — he wore a suit of light -gray Harris homespun, 
 ami he had discarded his slouched felt hat for a wide-awake 
 of the ordinary kind. He at once explained the object of 
 his visit ; the summer school vacation had begun ; he was a 
 free man once more ; and now he wanted to know whether 
 she would not lay aside her work and come away with him 
 for an hour or two's ramble in the country. It was a bold 
 request, truly, considering the capricious and uncertain fash- 
 ion in which she had been treating him of late ; but perhaps 
 with this newly-found liberty certain daring, or even desper- 
 ate, hopes and fancies had got hold of him. 
 
 She seemed to regard the holiday look — the off-duty look 
 — of his attire with distinct approval. 
 
 "But what is the use of the country?" she said. "There 
 is nothing to sec. And it is too early. If you come back 
 about half-past twelve, I can he ready then, and we will go 
 somewhere." 
 
 lie was far too well pleased with her compliance to think 
 of hurrying her; he went away, and loitered up and down 
 the esplanade, scanning the various yachts ; then at the ap- 
 pointed hour he returned. It was obvious that sonic portion 
 at least of the interval Barbara had devoted to decorating 
 herself for tins expedition. The young Queen of Sheba, as 
 Mr. McFadyen had called her, was well hediglit. 
 
 Nor had he ever before found her so gracious. They had 
 gO\ I'Ht b little way from the house when they came to the 
 chief fruit- and -flower shop in Duntroonc; and here she 
 stopped.
 
 A RING 287 
 
 " Come in for a moment," said she, " and I will get you 
 something to wear in your button-hole." 
 
 " Thank you, Barbara," said he, hanging back — with some- 
 thing of an impatient frown as well — " but I do not care 
 about such things." 
 
 She would not be denied. She bade him wait. She went 
 into the shop, and chose one or two flowers, tying the stems 
 together ; and when she came out again, she herself pinned 
 the little nosegay into the lapel of his coat. He forgot his 
 ill-temper — her kindness was so manifest, and so unexpected. 
 
 " You are no longer a school - master," she said, with a 
 laugh ; " you are just like the other young men now. And 
 some day when I have enough pocket-money I will be buy- 
 ing you a pair of gloves." 
 
 " Gloves ?" he repeated. " They are not much in my way, 
 Barbara." 
 
 " Ah, but I see that you can make yourself very nice-look- 
 ing when you choose," she went on. " And now you are 
 no longer the school-master; now it is the holidays; and you 
 will be having plenty of time to dress well and look after 
 yourself when you go out for a walk." 
 
 Indeed, she was quite animated ; and as she passed round 
 by the harbor and approached the South Pier — to which the 
 Aros Castle had just come in — she became still more blithe 
 and communicative. The school-master had not chosen this 
 route ; she had, unperceived by him, led the way ; it mat- 
 tered little to him whither they wandered, so long as he and 
 she were together. But on this occasion it became clear that 
 Barbara did not mean to ignore the presence of the purser. 
 On the contrary, as they were passing the moored steamer, 
 she stared boldly at him — until Ogilvie averted his eyes and 
 went on with his work ; and she talked floutingly and with 
 open scorn ; it seemed as though she was not at all unwill- 
 ing that her taunts should be overheard. 
 
 " The poor fellow !" she exclaimed. " No wonder he is 
 angry that he has to look after herring-barrels ! He is not 
 much better than a railway porter — do you think it is being 
 any better than a railway porter?" 
 
 " Quiet, quiet, Barbara !" her companion said. " Let him 
 alone. You need not look his way, nor he .yours."
 
 288 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Some day will you take Jessie and me for a sail to Tober- 
 mory ?" she demanded. 
 
 In other circumstances he would gladly have welcomed the 
 proposal ; but there was something he did not understand 
 about the relations between Barbara and the purser ; a trip 
 to Tobermory — if it was to be on board the Aros Castle, with 
 Ogilvie passing to and fro — might involve a good deal of em- 
 barrassment. But in the meantime they were now leaving 
 the South Pier behind ; Barbara, for the sake of her pride, 
 appeared to make some effort to recover her equanimity ; and 
 soon they were toiling up the slopes of the Gallows Hill, on 
 their way to the lofty plateau and its spacious view of moun- 
 tain, cloud, and sea. 
 
 And surely this was a day fitted for the allaying of tem- 
 pestuous passions — now as these two seated themselves on 
 the bench at the foot of the flag-staff ; a brooding, calm, and 
 peaceful day ; nor yet a day of gloom, for the soft, white, 
 woolly skies showed here and there a silvery glow as if the 
 sun were trying to break through the thin, transparent veil. 
 There was hardly a breath of wind ; the pale leaden-hued or 
 lilac plain of waters did not stir; a solitary yacht hung idle 
 off the point of Lismore. The ivied ruins of the castle were 
 dark and distinct and intense against the luminous heavens; 
 but the far hills in the west and north seemed to have receded 
 until they had grown aerial and visionary — mere ghosts of 
 mountains. And everywhere a prevailing silence, in which 
 could be heard the throb of the paddles of the Aros Castle, 
 on her way across to the North Pier. 
 
 And whither had fled now all the problems, the doubts and 
 hesitations, the perplexities with which lie had been torturing 
 himself? lie and she were together, the sweet summer all- 
 around them; the world lay brilliant and beautiful before 
 them; the mysterious attraction and allurement <>( youth was 
 a trembling and inexplicable delight. And she was bland and 
 complaisant; a marvellous thing; he knew how it had all 
 come about. What did it matter if abstruse menial and moral 
 enigmas were all a blank to her, so long as the wisps and curls 
 of her raven-blaCK hair clung caressingly about her cars and 
 neck, sn long as ber smile said more than any words, so long 
 as heaven Seemed to shine in the liquid deeps of her eyes?
 
 A RING 289 
 
 Perhaps she did not know much of the story of dead and 
 gone generations ; but for every man and woman the all-im- 
 portant time was their own time ; the universe for them was 
 the universe in which they found themselves alive ; and here 
 was one who could surround herself — and perhaps a neighbor 
 or two — with an atmosphere of unimaginable glamour. The 
 (•harm of books, and forgotten languages, and distant peoples ? 
 — there was a stranger charm when she turned her outcurving 
 lashes towards him, timid, shy, half coquettish as she might 
 chance to be. 
 
 Little need was there for talk ; to be so near to her was 
 enough ; and yet the one consuming thought and desire of 
 his mind drove him on to speech. 
 
 " Barbara," he said, in a low voice — for there were one or 
 two people seated on another bench some dozen or fifteen 
 yards away — "you were kind enough to offer me a pair of 
 gloves. I wish you would accept a little present from me 
 — that would mean more than that — that would mean a good 
 deal more than that — " 
 
 "A present?" she repeated — and her eyes were pleased 
 and expectant. 
 
 " A ring," he said. " Would you wear a ring if I gave it 
 to you ?" 
 
 " Oh yes," she answered, without a moment's hesitation. 
 
 " But do you understand ?" he went on. " Do you under- 
 stand what the significance would be ?" 
 
 The jet-black lashes were lowered now. 
 
 " Maybe — I do not know," she said. 
 
 " Well, your wearing the ring would be a promise — a promise 
 that you will be my wife. Will you wear the ring, Barbara ?" 
 
 " Yes," she said. 
 
 There was no affectation of coyness or fluttering alarm ; 
 there was a touch of pride, of defiance almost, in her tone ; 
 but in his delirium of happiness he took no heed of such tri- 
 fles. Nay, so anxious and eager was he to make secure the 
 prize he had thus unexpectedly won — and won in such an 
 amazingly simple fashion — that he would have her go away 
 down with him, there and then, to Mr. Boyd the jeweller's, 
 that this fateful trinket might straightway be chosen. And 
 Barbara seemed nothing loath ; she rose to her feet. 
 13
 
 290 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Will tliey be thinking it strange," said she, " if they sec 
 me wearing a ring ?" 
 
 " Why, of course not," ho said, joyfully enough. " An en- 
 gagement ring is nothing out of the common. If any one is 
 curious, you can explain ; but they will all get to know — and 
 the sooner the better." 
 
 She did not appear to be at all overwhelmed by the grav- 
 ity of the step she had just taken. As they were going 
 away down and into the town, he was recalling to her certain 
 things that had happened since the night of the wreck of the 
 Sanda, to prove to her that this goal he had triumphantly 
 reached at last he had been aiming at all along. But she in- 
 terrupted him. 
 
 " Oh," she said, " it is no use looking back. All that is 
 gone away and done. The present is enough." 
 
 " Indeed it is," said he. " And it would be marvellous if 
 I were not to think so." 
 
 When these two went into the shop, Mr. Boyd, glancing 
 from one to the other, seemed a little astonished ; but of 
 course he made no remark ; it was only when Allan asked 
 to be shown one or two plain gold rings that the jeweller 
 revealed what was passing in his mind. 
 
 " Aye, is it a wedding-ring, then ?" he asked. 
 
 At this Barbara did betray some slight confusion ; hut 
 Allan stepped in to shield her. 
 
 "No, no," saiil he, good - humoredly. "Not yet. You're 
 in a hurry, Mr. Boyd. It's only a little present I was think- 
 ing of — " 
 
 " Oh yes, to be sure," said the shopkeeper, instantly re- 
 treating from his false position, and finding safety in a study 
 of liis window, from which he presently extracted a small 
 case of his glittering wares. 
 
 Now in the natural course of things it was for Allan to 
 make his choice, subject to her approval; but it very soon 
 appeared that these two were not of one mind in this matter. 
 The school -master's fancy had been attracted by a simple 
 gold hoop — a piece of delicate chain-work set, in a narrow 
 band; 1« carat the metal was, and the price marked on the 
 little ticket w,is twenty -five shillings, lint Barbara was 
 clearly disappointed.
 
 A RING 291 
 
 " It is so plain," said she, with just a touch of petulance. 
 " It is nothing — no one would notice it — " 
 
 " Maybe you would like something more showy ?" Mr. 
 Boyd suggested — and he brought out another case. " This 
 is a very nice one." 
 
 "Well, the ring he now placed before her was certainly a 
 more gaudy ornament — it professed to be of rubies and dia- 
 monds, the stones alternating; while the ticketed price was 
 only fifteen shillings. When Barbara took it in her hand, 
 her eyes lit up with unmistakable pleasure. 
 
 "Yes," she said, "that is something to look at — that is 
 something that can be seen." 
 
 "But, Barbara," remonstrated the school-master, almost 
 angrily, " you don't want to wear imitation things, do you ? 
 These stones are not real, Mr. Boyd ? — of course not, at that 
 price." 
 
 " Oh no ; they're imitations ; but they're very good imita- 
 tions," answered the jeweller. " And the setting is gold — 
 12-carat gold." 
 
 "It is very pretty, whatever," said Barbara, regarding the 
 bauble with fascinated eyes ; and she tried it on her finger 
 to see how it looked there also. 
 
 Allan was vexed and chagrined ; but how could he quarrel 
 with her on this morning of all mornings ? She had just 
 given herself to him — he had just won the crown of life ; 
 and was he to refuse her her choice of a trumpery gewgaw ? 
 
 " Well, if you wish it," he said. " But I should have 
 thought you would have preferred something real — not bits 
 of glass — " 
 
 " Then if I am not to have it, I am not to have it," she 
 said, shortly ; and she pulled the ring off her finger, and 
 tossed it aside. " Show me some others." 
 
 " But if you would rather have it, Barbara — " he was say- 
 ing, to pacify her, when she again interrupted him : 
 
 " I am not caring for it any longer. Some other one — it is 
 no matter which it is." 
 
 And eventually a compromise was arrived at. It is true 
 that the ring she ultimately accepted cost more than either 
 of the others — cost him well over a week's salary; but at 
 least the rosette of garnets which it bore consisted of genu-
 
 292 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ine stones. And there certainly was more display in this 
 deep crimson ornament than in the plain gold hoop that he 
 had at first offered her. 
 
 They did not continue their expedition farther at this 
 time ; but before they parted, Allan promised to come along 
 in the evening; he was impatient to let Mrs. Maclean and 
 Jessie know of the great change that had taken place in his 
 fortunes and prospects. They were to learn of it before 
 then. On her way home Barbara called at the shop ; and 
 Jess, from behind the counter, was not slow in descrying the 
 pretty trinket. 
 
 " Well, Barbara, you are the one for setting yourself off !" 
 she exclaimed. " And where did you get such a beautiful 
 thing as that?" 
 
 "The school-master," said Barbara, with a laugh and a blush. 
 
 Jess was silent only for a second. 
 
 " Then — then it is settled between him and you ?" she 
 asked, diffidently. 
 
 " Oh yes, we are to be married," replied Barbara — still 
 regarding the ring. " Will you tell your mother, Jessie, that 
 Allan is coming along to-night?" 
 
 " Yes, I will tell her. But — but don't you expect me to 
 say something, Barbara? For I am sure I wish that both 
 of you may be very happy — I am sure I wish that." 
 
 " And I am sure of this," said the girl, touched by the 
 tone in which these words were spoken — " I am sure of this, 
 Jessie, that no one can say you are not very kind to those 
 about you." And therewith she left. 
 
 All that long afternoon — after she had confided these tid- 
 ings to her mother — the ordinarily light-hearted Jess was 
 .strangely preoccupied and silent. 
 
 " It is my head — it is nothing," she would say, in answer 
 to her mother's inquiries; and then again she would struggle 
 on with her accounts. 
 
 But at last she gave up. 
 
 " Would you mind attending to the shop, mother ?" she 
 said, with rather a tired air. " I would like to go for a little 
 walk—" 
 
 " But you will be back when Allan calls?" the widow said. 
 " He will he expecting your congratulations — "
 
 WHKHE SHE WAS ALONE
 
 A RING 293 
 
 "Yes, maybe I will be back," Jess said. "Maybe. But 
 if I am not, you will give him my best wisbes, mother, and 
 tell him I hope they will both be very happy. But he 
 knows that — he knows that is what I am wishing for both 
 of tbem." 
 
 And so she got away ; and by unfrequented paths she stole 
 out into the moorland country, where she was alone, and 
 glad to be alone. For perhaps " the foolishness was on her," 
 and if the " wild tears " must fall, she would not have any one 
 know her shame.
 
 CHAPTER XXXV 
 
 ON A SUMMER'S EVENING 
 
 To no one was the great news more welcome than to the 
 councillor, who saw in it but another step towards the realiza- 
 tion of his own far-reaching schemes. And to celebrate the 
 event, and perhaps — for certain dark reasons — to familiarize 
 Jess with the spectacle of a pair of affianced lovers, he came 
 bustling along on the following afternoon, and would have 
 the school-master and the two girls go away with him for a 
 sail in Angus Maclsaac's boat, the Kelpie. There was a fine 
 brisk breeze blowing ; they would adventure out into the 
 golden regions of the west; and the clear twilight would bring 
 them home. 
 
 Well, there was nothing of the spoil-sport about Jess Mac- 
 lean ; if, on some rare occasion, the "foolishness" got hold 
 of her, then she took care to hide herself away in solitude. 
 Moreover, these were Allan's holidays; and during the work- 
 ing-times of the year there was little enough diversion for 
 him. So Jess at once and cheerfully put on her smartest 
 things; Barbara did the same; the school-master was sum- 
 moned ; and the councillor, having marshalled his forces, 
 proceeded to escort them down to the sea-front, lie was in 
 the noblest of spirits; it was as if he were leading them on 
 to the conquest of Mexico or the capture of the last of the 
 Incas. 
 
 Unfortunately, when they reached the esplanade, they found 
 that the Kelpie was away somewhere, and Angus with her ; 
 but there was an alternative cutter, the Osprey, lying at her 
 moorings; and Maclsaac's representative, a young lad named 
 Malcolm, was on the beach. To do this youth justice, he 
 seemed to hesitate a little about the responsibility of letting 
 the boal ; bul Mr. McFadyen, in his stormily heroic mood, 
 
 would take no refusal.
 
 on a summer's evening 295 
 
 " You'll come with us, man," he exclaimed, " and at least 
 ye know how to manage the things at the bow. I'll do the 
 rest ; we'll get on splendid ; anybody can sail a boat on a 
 fine summer evening like this. Oh, I know something about 
 a boat — I've kept my eyes open — you'll see we'll just get on 
 splendid." 
 
 He would have no hanging back; he carried everything be- 
 fore him ; he had himself and his companions pulled out in a 
 dingy ; they got on board ; and the councillor straightway 
 took up his post at the tiller. Columbus, calm and resolved 
 in face of his insurgent followers, could not have looked more 
 imposing. It is true he regarded the movements of the youth 
 Malcolm with a curiosity not unmixed with impatience ; for, 
 the commander being at the helm, why was nothing going for- 
 ward — why was not the vessel making response ? But at 
 length Malcolm got the little half-decked cutter slipped from 
 her moorings, and she began to creep slowly away before the 
 wind. 
 
 It was an altogether auspicious setting-out ; for although 
 there was a stormy look about the skies — the " sun had set 
 up his backstays " over the western hills, the spreading rays 
 of light striking downward from the moving clouds — there 
 was nothing to denote that the breeze would remain other- 
 wise than benign and steady ; the prospect was that after a 
 pleasant run through the wild sunset fires they would come 
 gliding back through the still more wonderful after-glow, to 
 walk homeward in the pearly dusk. There was at this start- 
 ing only one little mischance. 
 
 " Am I trusting my life to you, Mr. McFadyen ?" Jess hap- 
 pened to say, blithely, as she made herself a snug seat in the 
 cockpit. 
 
 " Aye, Miss Jessie," he answered her, " I wish ye would do 
 that for altogether." 
 
 But the confusion caused by this inadvertent remark was 
 only momentary ; Jess pretended to have heard nothing ; 
 while Peter McFadyen was now, and rather angrily, trying to 
 make out what the youth Malcolm meant by certain bashfully 
 suggested hints. 
 
 " Will I haul up the main-tack, sir ?" 
 
 " What's that ye say ?"
 
 296 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Will I haul up the main-tack ?" 
 
 " Oh, we're doing well enough — we're doing fine !" said 
 Peter, fretfully — of course he did not like being interrupted 
 in his task of entertaining his companions. 
 
 Nevertheless, the youth — shy and diffident as he was — 
 would still interfere. He came aft. 
 
 " Will I slack out the boom a bit more, sir?" 
 
 « "We're doing fine — we're doing fine, I tell ye !" retorted 
 Peter, with obvious irritability. " You go and attend to the 
 things at the bow ; I'll manage the rest." 
 
 Malcolm was a biddable lad. He went forward again. He 
 only ventured to say, as he stood by the mast, 
 
 " Will I hoist the foresail, sir ?" 
 
 " What ?" bawled Peter. 
 
 " Will I hoist the foresail ?" 
 
 " Oh, hoist your grandmother ! Do ye no see that we're 
 just fleein' ?" 
 
 And, indeed, they were just fleeing. For the wind was from 
 the east ; and now that they were getting out from the bay, 
 the gusts from over the cliffs struck frequent and hard, so that 
 the Osprey went tearing along at an admirable pace, the foam 
 churning at her bows. And Jess was merry; and the coun- 
 cillor was delighted; and Barbara could show off her ring, 
 with its rosette of garnets ; the school-master alone seemed to 
 have doubts about the wisdom, and the possible result, of 
 this performance. 
 
 " I say, my friend," he observed to the steersman, "this is 
 all very well, but how are we going to get back ? Don't you 
 think we'd better keep up to windward — and try along the 
 Sound — if you like — " 
 
 "Down the Sound of Kcrrara — and a squally east wind 
 blowing?" cried Peter, with explosive hilarity. "Na, na — 
 not me ! I wasna born yesterday ! It's just the very mis- 
 chief when the squalls come down on ye in the Sound ; where- 
 as here we're in the open ; and if there's anything to make a 
 
 bother, ye can see it before it strikes ye. Man, it's a fine 
 
 thing to feel ;i boat just fieem' l.elieatll yC ! And .'111 east 
 
 wind's ;i land wind ; where can the tronble be? — tell me that ! 
 Come, Miss Jessie, sing ils a song, now ! Aye, you can sing, 
 for all that you're so Mate ahout it, and it's so difficult to get
 
 ON a summer's evening 297 
 
 ye to open your mouth. We're just fleein'. It's a fine boat, 
 this. Give us a song, Miss Barbara — come, now ! A fine 
 boat — she answers to the helm just as if she was a living 
 thing. T. tell ye, it's a grand thing to be in a healthy climate 
 like this — I could near sing a song myself — " 
 
 " We're all waiting for you, Mr. McFadyen !" said Jess. 
 
 "Aye, and do ye want me to make an ass of myself?" de- 
 manded Peter. " Well, I will. I would rather make an ass 
 of myself than not keep the thing going, when I'm out on a 
 frolic of this kind. What is it to be ? Dod, I'll make an ass 
 of myself, if ye like — " 
 
 " Why, every one knows you sing very well, Mr. McFad- 
 yen," said Jess, with not a thought of sarcasm in her mind. 
 
 " I'll tell ye a good one now," said Mr. McFadyen, and his 
 small roguish eyes were twinkling mirthfully — " a real good 
 one. There was a chap I Tniew and he was boasting of his 
 fine teeth, and says he, ' I never once beheld the face of a 
 dentist — I mean in anger.' ' In anger, says he. ' Never be- 
 held the face of a dentist — in anger' — " And here Peter 
 burst into such a guffaw of laughter, and paid such small at- 
 tention to the swaying tiller, that only the merciful little 
 cherub that sits up aloft could have said how a most ruthless 
 gybe was avoided. 
 
 " But the song, Mr. McFadyen ?" said Jess. 
 
 For a second time Peter grew grave ; he was considering. 
 Then arose an unearthly howl : 
 
 " ' Cam'' ye by Athol, lad wV the philabeg, 
 
 Down by the Tummel, or banks d 1 the Garry? 
 Saio ye the lads wp their bounds and while cockades, 
 
 Leaving their mountains to follow Prince Charlie? 
 Follow thee, follow thee, wha wadna follow thee — 
 
 Lang hast thou loved and trusted us fairly I 
 Charlie, Charlie, wha wadna follow thee — 
 
 King o' the Highland hearts, Bonnie Prince Charlie P" 
 
 The high-pitched " wha " was almost beyond him ; but Mr. 
 McFadyen was not the man to give in ; he attacked it gal- 
 lantly ; and the result was a screech that must have startled 
 the distant jackdaws far up among the ivied ruins of Dun- 
 troone Castle. 
 
 " It's a little thing high for me," he remarked, with an air 
 13*
 
 298 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 of apology ; and lie did not venture on a second verse ; h'e 
 was again observing the movements of the lad Malcolm — who 
 had come aft to haul in the main-sheet, now that they were 
 taking a more southerly course, with the wind on their beam. 
 
 " Well, Barbara," said the school-master, " do you see the 
 Lady Rock over yonder ?" 
 
 The girl looked up in quick alarm. 
 
 " We're not going near there !" she exclaimed. 
 
 " No, no," said the councillor, gayly. " We'll just hold 
 right on, and give ye a look at the Mull coast. It's a deso- 
 late place ; a passing glimpse is all ye'll want." 
 
 However, as it turned out, they were to have more than a 
 passing glimpse. For as time went on, those squalls from 
 the east became more and more violent and vicious, and 
 with each successive gust the too heavily canvassed boat 
 would go heeling over, with a prodigious rattle of the loose 
 spars on deck. The school-master did not at all like the as- 
 pect of affairs ; but he was loath to call in question the coun- 
 cillor's seamanship, lest he should frighten the young wom- 
 en ; while the lad Malcolm had ceased to make any further 
 suggestions — he watched those tearing and howling blasts, 
 and then glanced uneasily towards the steersmen to see what 
 he would do. Mr. McFadyen of course was not to be daunted 
 by any buffeting of wind and waves ; outwardly at least he 
 maintained a perfectly careless demeanor; he was even face- 
 tious at times ; but it was too evident that his jocundity was 
 forced. And meanwhile Barbara was beginning to show 
 signs of abject terror. 
 
 " 1 say, McFadyen, this '11 never do," Allan interposed at 
 last. " We should have taken down a COUple of reefs before 
 coming out in this squally weather. Or couldn't you lower 
 the peak, to take the strain off her? Anyhow, we must try to 
 work our way back." 
 
 "Aye, just that," responded the councillor, with assumed 
 equanimity. "Oh yes, I suppose we may as well go back 
 now. WC've hail a line spin — and now we'll go back." 
 
 Which was all very well; but to run before a series of 
 s<|iialls is one thing, and to light- back against, them is an- 
 other. Ami now these ousts continued to increase in fury, 
 insomuch that the councillor, hardly concealing his dismay,
 
 on a summer's evening 299 
 
 would seek a precarious safety in jamming the boat's head 
 into the wind, where she would stagger for a second or so 
 with the sails cracking and flapping. Then just as often as 
 not she would fill on the other side — with her weather sheets 
 home; and here again would be further commotion — the 
 clinging folk in the cockpit being flung about like pease in a 
 bladder. And all this time the cutter was steadily drifting — 
 drifting on to a lee shore ; and that lee shore the east coast 
 of Mull. 
 
 "Here, you," called out McFadyen, in his anger and desper- 
 ation, " what's the price of this boat?" 
 
 The lad Malcolm did not answer ; he seemed bewildered. 
 
 "I've a great mind," Peter called out again, savagely, " to 
 run her over to Mull there, and bang her up on the beach !" 
 
 " Oh yes, yes !" cried Barbara, piteously ; " anywhere that 
 wc can get ashore !" 
 
 "Would I not be doing right? — would I not be doing 
 right ?" he said, eagerly appealing to her for confirmation. 
 " What do I care for the cost of a boat ? Human lives are 
 of more value. I am responsible for your safety ; what do I 
 care for this rotten old beast of a boat, that cannot sail any 
 more than a cow ? You, lad, there, get out an oar, and put 
 her head away from the wind ; I'm going to run her up on 
 the nearest shore, that's what I'm going to do, and ye may 
 get the splinters back to Duntroone as best ye can." 
 
 Almost immediately thereafter there seemed to fall around 
 them an amazing calm and quiet ; the tumult appeared to 
 cease ; they were gliding smoothly along with the hurrying 
 waves, the main-sheet slacked out, the jib drawing steadily. 
 Nor had Allan the heart to protest against this ignominious 
 surrender, when he saw the agony of fright that Barbara was 
 in ; her sole prayer was to get to land ; she did not care where 
 or how. And the councillor, smarting under the humiliating 
 consciousness of defeat, was as good as his word ; his teeth 
 were set hard, his looks sullen ; he steered neither to the 
 right nor to the left, for the navigation of Loch Speliv and 
 that of Loch Don were equally unknown to him ; he was 
 resolved upon running this unmanageable boat right up on 
 the nearest shore — and he did it. 
 
 Not that it was accomplished without a good deal of con-
 
 300 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 fusion. As they neared the beach there was a thunder of 
 breaking waves all around ; then of a sudden the bow of the 
 cutter seemed to rise in the air ; she swung over to star- 
 board, the boom splashing into the water ; spray began to 
 break over the stern ; and the wrecked company proceeded 
 to get forward and clamber down by the bowsprit shrouds 
 and the bobstay. Of course they got pretty well wet in the 
 tumbling surf ; but at least they had now gained solid land 
 — in a strange twilight, under the shadows of the hills. And 
 the boat ? 
 
 " Let the boat go to the devil !" said Peter, furiously, as 
 he knocked the water out of his nether garments. " Let her 
 go to the bottom ! She's not fit for anything else. A boat 
 that cannot sail is better at the bottom of the sea than any- 
 where else." 
 
 " Well," said Allan, with a more philosophic air, " I sup- 
 pose we'll have to search for some farm-house or some cot- 
 ter's hut, where Jessie and Barbara can be sheltered for the 
 night ; and I will make my way to Craigenure or some such 
 place, and try to get a telegram sent to Mrs. Maclean." 
 
 " But the lad — what about the young lad ?" asked the ever- 
 considerate Jess. 
 
 The lad Malcolm, who had not made any remark during 
 all this transaction, was now engaged in getting down the 
 main-sail ; and as the bow of the boat was firmly embedded 
 in sea-weed :md shingle — and as the jib remained sheeted 
 home — it appeared quite possible that she would not swing 
 broadside on to the beach. They called to him to come 
 ashore ; but he answered something about a hedge. At all 
 events, he was in no danger — when he chose he could clam- 
 ber down from the bowsprit with no greater damage than 
 wet, knees. 
 
 But tins was a most uncanny region in which they now 
 found themselves: a solitary and voiceless region — no sign 
 
 of any human habitation — n<> sign of any road — nothing but 
 undulations of pocky moorland and heather leading up to 
 precipitous and sterile crags. And DO less remarkable was 
 it when they turned from this clear, intense twilight to re- 
 gard the glowing and warm-colored world they had left be- 
 hind; for the storm seemed already to have abated consid-

 
 ON a summer's evening 301 
 
 erably, and away over by Cruachan and Cruach Lerags and 
 Loch Feochan the skies were quite serene. 
 
 " Barbara," said the school-master, timidly — not wishing to 
 provoke her to any petulance, " don't you think you would 
 make another trial ? We may be wandering about this coast 
 all through the night without finding a house — and Mrs. 
 Maclean will be very anxious. The wind seems to be slack- 
 ening down — " 
 
 "AVill you keep away from the Lady Rock?" she said, 
 with terrified eyes. 
 
 " Yes, yes," he answered her. " I quite understand why 
 you should be nervous — I quite understand that ; but we 
 can keep well away from the Lady Rock ; we will be mak- 
 ing across for Kerrara and the entrance to the bay. If the 
 lad has put out a kedge we might get the boat floated off, 
 for the tide is on the flood ; and anything would be better 
 than wandering about the shores of Mull all night." 
 
 And eventually he did persuade her to go down to the 
 beach again, though she still looked on the disabled Osprey 
 with evident apprehension. There could be no doubt that 
 meanwhile the squalls had moderated in vehemence. 
 
 "Allan," said Jess, demurely, "do you" not think that 
 Mr. McFadyen has had enough of the hard work ? Why 
 should you not sail the boat back ?" 
 
 He looked at her ; and whenever the eyes of those two 
 met there was an instant intelligence between them. 
 
 " Oh, I'll take my turn," said he. " Yes, I'll take my 
 turn. And we'll try her with a little less canvas on her." 
 
 It was a tedious and difficult business getting the boat 
 floated off again ; but at last they had her under way, with 
 her main-sail double-reefed ; and as Allan was now in charge 
 of the tiller, it fell to the gay McFadyen to beguile the time 
 and cheer his companions with song. He sang of " Craigie 
 Burn Wood;" he sang "My Nannie's awa';" he sang "There 
 grows a bonnie brier bush," and "Flow gently, sweet Afton," 
 and " Logie o' Buchan, O Logie the laird," and many another 
 well-established favorite. And all the while they were sail- 
 ing through an enchanted world of fire and splendor ; and 
 when, after the long beat to windward, they entered Dun- 
 troone Bay, there was a golden moon in the south, and
 
 302 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the lapping waters glanced and shivered in this new ra- 
 diance. 
 
 " All's well that ends well," said Peter, as he courageously 
 stepped ashore. " We've had a splendid sail, and a fine ad- 
 venture. And after all, maybe it's better for us to be back 
 on the main-land rather than passing the night in some lonely 
 wee public-house in the east of Mull."
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI 
 
 IN THE SOUND OF MULL 
 
 These ought to have been halcyon days for the school- 
 master — vacation - time — a newly won and beautiful sweet- 
 heart — and the winding shores, the solitary bays, and the 
 wild hills of the West Highlands for their long summer ram- 
 bles. Then he had found an easy way of propitiating her to 
 kindness and even to gratitude ; when he brought her some 
 little bit of millinery ornament she was as pleased as an in- 
 fant with a new toy. Nor did he greatly deprecate the love 
 of finery and the love of display that appeared to have gradu- 
 ally taken possession of her since she came to live in Dun- 
 troone. In many respects she was but a child ; and in her 
 very childishness and ignorance there was for him a mysteri- 
 ous charm. Philosophy — poetry — history: these were all 
 written about human life ; but here was that strangest of all 
 strange things, a human life itself — wonderful, incomprehen- 
 sible, and yet dowered with an increasing and enthralling fas- 
 cination. Halcyon days indeed, " the golden age — the gold- 
 en age come back." 
 
 No, he did not grudge her these pretty trifles — though he 
 would rather have been saving up the cost of them for more 
 important ends ; and he was glad to see her wearing them ; 
 and proud of her appearance at all times. But now a much 
 more serious matter intervened. When they came to discuss 
 the question of choosing a house, he found that Barbara's 
 ideas and claims were of a kind to take his breath away. 
 
 " You will be giving up your lodgings," said she, boldly, 
 " and why should you not give up the rooms for your classes 
 as well, and put everything in one, so that you could have a 
 good house like Rose Bank ?" 
 
 " Rose Bank ?" said he, in astonishment. " Do you know 
 what the rent of Rose Bank is likely to be, Barbara ?"
 
 304 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " They are telling me," she responded, without flinching, 
 " that your classes are sure to be ffcttinp - bigger and bigger." 
 
 " I wonder," said he, good-naturedly, " who ever heard of a 
 poor school-master being able to pay for a view !" 
 
 " Yes, it is a very fine view," said Barbara. " And I would 
 like to see the steamers coming into the bay and going out ; 
 and every one coming in and going out would see the house." 
 
 " And what would they think ? They would think I had 
 married a fortune !" 
 
 " And why not, then ?" she retorted, audaciously. " Let 
 them think that, if they like ! They are welcome to think 
 that, if they like !" 
 
 He did not pursue the argument further, for she was apt to 
 grow petulant when opposed ; but on the earliest possible op- 
 portunity he went along to call on Mr. McFadycn, who he im- 
 agined would be sure to know all about rents and rates and 
 taxes, and the cost of furniture. Mr. McFadycn was in his 
 office ; and when he was told of Barbara's ambitious project, 
 he openly laughed. 
 
 "Rose Bank ?" said the merry councillor. "I'm thinking, 
 Allan, lad,ye'd soon be Rose Bankrupt! What would be the 
 use of that big garden to you ? See, now, I'll just take down 
 my hat, and we'll go out for a half-hour's stroll here and there, 
 and have a look round ; maybe we may light on something a 
 little more practical than Rose Bank." 
 
 So the two left the office together, and set out on their 
 house-hunting expedition ; though it soon began to look as if 
 this freak of generosity on the part of the councillor had not 
 been wholly altruistic. He, also, seemed anxious to have ad- 
 \ ice and assurance. 
 
 " You're a clever fellow, Allan," he went on to say, " and 
 learned and deep i" metapheesics and the like o'that; and 
 [Ve been wanting to pttt a question to you. I've been want- 
 ing to ask you whether it is his real self that a man reveals to 
 himself in his dreams. Ye see, it's this way. I don't boast 
 that I have more courage than other folk; Iwouldna do that-; 
 hut I hope I have ray share — it's reasonable to hope I have 
 my share. Well, then, if in a dream ye feel yourself a terri- 
 ble, terrible COWard, and if ye act as a coward, is that your 
 real self — is that how ye would act, if the circumstances were
 
 IN THE SOUND OF MULL 305 
 
 to happen to ye in real life ? Ye see, it's this way. The night 
 before last I had a long and harassing dream : I thought I was 
 a soldier — and there was going to be a battle — and we were 
 all drawn up in ranks — in a half kind of darkness, for the 
 daylight was not yet declared. The enemy — savages — was 
 coming near; every moment we expected to hear the tiring be- 
 gin. I tell ye. the mortal fear that I was in I cannot describe 
 to ye. There was a great big man in front of me, and I kept 
 behind him as well as I could, and thought he might shelter 
 me from the bullets. And then there was a corporal, or a cap- 
 tain, or somebody like that standing behind us ; and says I to 
 him, in a clever, off-hand sort of way, ' Ye need not think I'm 
 frightened ; I'm just going along to sharpen my sword on the 
 door-step — it's a wee thing blunt.' And then I moved off to 
 an empty house that was hard by ; and I passed in, and went 
 away up to an attic ; and thinks I to myself, ' Now I'll crouch 
 down here in the dark ; and when it's all over, I'll go out 
 again, and flourish my sword, and they'll think I was through 
 everything.' And then thinks I, ' But if the savages drive 
 back our men, will the black devils come up the stair, and 
 find me, and drag me out V Dod, I was in a terrible way ; 
 but I hid close all the same ; and the firing began — crack ! 
 crack ! — until I couldna help creeping up and looking out of 
 the window ; and as sure as death, along with our men, fac- 
 ing the savages, there was a woman. And says I to myself, 
 ' Have ye not as much courage as that woman V — and even 
 then I would have gone down the stair, and gone out, but I 
 declare to ye my knees were shaking so that I could not cross 
 the floor. What happened after that I'm no sure ; but I ask ye 
 ■ — AVas that me ? Was that my real self ? Is that what I would 
 have felt, what I would have done, in a real battle ? It's been 
 distressing me, man, beyond measure ! Was that my real self V 
 " Oh no, not necessarily !" Allan replied, and the councillor 
 seemed instantly to experience considerable relief. " Just as 
 often as not a man does things in dreams that he would never 
 think of in real life — is a perfectly different person, in short. 
 The chances are you may be dreaming when your vitality is at 
 its lowest point — the bravest man may imagine himself as tim- 
 orous as a mouse — the wandering brain may suggest all kinds 
 of horrors — "
 
 306 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Because," said Mr. McFadyen, thoughtfully, " I would not 
 like to think myself just such a coward as all that comes to. 
 And yet — -well, I have been trying to screw up my courage — 
 and — and slackening away again. And I have been wonder- 
 ing — yes, I will confess this to you — I have been wondering 
 what was the best way to ask a young woman if she will mar- 
 ry you ?" 
 
 " I suppose every man has to find that out for himself," 
 Allan answered. 
 
 " Aye, do ye say that?" the councillor rejoined, with a med- 
 itative air. " Do ye say that? Every man to find out for him- 
 self." And then he heaved a pensive sigh. " I'm thinking it's 
 a terrible business," said he, absently. 
 
 On the first expedition they were unsuccessful — it was not 
 a good time of the year for house-hunting, when nearly every 
 place, big or little, was let; but within the next day or two 
 Allan heard of a small villa up in Battery Terrace that would 
 become vacant in about a month's time, and he persuaded Bar- 
 bara to go with him to look at it. Barbara was at first clearly 
 disappointed by the size of this two-storied tenement; but its 
 position — the position of the whole of the Terrace, indeed — 
 was certainly conspicuous enough ; it commanded a view over 
 the whole of the bay. The lady in occupation — who was 
 merely a summer tenant — appeared to recognize the situation 
 of affairs ; she displayed quite a friendly interest in this shy 
 and beautiful-eyed young creatine ; and was most amiable in 
 showing her the not over-numerous apartments. The strange 
 tiling was that when they came Out again, Barbara's first re- 
 mark had no reference to this house they had been exam- 
 ining. 
 
 " When will you be taking Jessie and me to Tobermory?" 
 she asked. 
 
 " Tobermory will not run away," he said, trying to get 
 "lit of it in this fashion. "It will wait for us. There's no 
 hurry." 
 
 " Ymii said you would take us," she persisted. 
 
 " Hut if you wish for a sail, why not lake the Grenadier, 
 
 ami hi us go all the way round, and have a look at StalTa, 
 
 and tona, and the islands?" 
 
 " I do not wish to see islands," she said, almost sullenly;
 
 IN THE SOUND OF MULL 307 
 
 " I have had enough of islands. I wish to see the people in 
 Tobermory who are Mrs. Maclean's relatives, for they are my 
 relatives too." 
 
 Well, he was most reluctant — though he could hardly have 
 explained why — to go anywhere in the Aros Castle; yet, 
 after all, this was but a trifling favor ; whereas she had grant- 
 ed to him the greatest he could have demanded of her. Had 
 she not acceded to his prayer that the wedding should take 
 place in these present summer holidays — though many a girl 
 would have insisted on a longer engagement? 
 
 " Very well, then," he said, " as soon as you like " — and 
 without more ado she would have him at once go down with 
 her to see Jess, and make plans for the trip. 
 
 And thus it was that on one of these mornings the school- 
 master called for these two girls, and together they set forth, 
 leaving the precincts of the town, and making for the South 
 Pier, where the Aros Castle was lying. For this excursion 
 Barbara had certainly decked herself out in her best and 
 bravest ; and again she had compelled him to wear a flower 
 in the lapel of his light-gray coat ; indeed, he and she might 
 well have been taken for bride and bridegroom away on their 
 honey-moon tour, had it not been for the presence of Jess, 
 whose costume, neat and trim as always, was nevertheless not 
 of a showy kind. And yet, in spite of the general holiday 
 appearance of this little party, Allan Henderson's face was 
 grave. He could not but remember what had happened on a 
 recent occasion. 
 
 " Barbara," said he, in something of an undertone, when 
 they were approaching the steamer, " I do not know what 
 quarrel you have with Ogilvie ; but I hope at least you will 
 not make any public display of it." 
 
 " I am not wishing to have anything whatever to do with 
 Ogilvie," she said, with her head erect. 
 
 And here, sure enough, was the purser, who regarded them 
 with not a little surprise, especially when he saw that they 
 were actually coming on board. All the same he advanced to 
 meet them — with a kind of doubtful look on his face. It 
 was Barbara who went first along the gangway. He raised 
 his cap — waiting for her to decide whether there was to be 
 any further greeting ; in response to his salutation she ac-
 
 308 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 corded him the briefest and frigidest of little bows, then she 
 turned haughtily away, without a word. Jess came next ; but 
 with the ever-friendly Jess there was no trouble ; he shook 
 hands with her, and said, " I hope you are very well, Miss 
 Jessie" ; and she passed blithely and smilingly on. As be- 
 tween the two men there was but the common and familiar 
 nod, which meant nothing : it bespoke neither friendship nor 
 enmity. Altogether, whatever embarrassment may have been 
 felt, none was allowed to become manifest ; besides, the pur- 
 ser had his multifarious duties to attend to; there was every 
 excuse for his not coming and paying further attention to 
 these acquaintances of his. 
 
 Barbara would remain on this upper deck, so Allan went 
 and fetched three camp-stools. She was quite gay and talk- 
 ative ; she was in holiday mood as well as in holiday attire ; 
 indeed, Jess had an uneasy feeling that she was making a 
 parade of her high spirits and general satisfaction. How- 
 ever, there was a good deal of bustle going on around ; for 
 now the passengers had arrived from the train ; the cables 
 were being thrown off ; and presently the Aros Castle was 
 steaming across to the North Pier. Then, after a brief delay, 
 the voyage was resumed ; slowly, but with increasing speed, 
 they crept away from the houses ; they passed the lofty 
 Rock with its time-worn ruins ; they stood away out into the 
 swift-glancing blue waters of the Frith of Lorn. It was a 
 perfecl day, the colors on the hills were of a velvet softness, 
 with bei-e and there a stain of ethereal purple, from some high 
 and almost, motionless cloud. The air was sweet and fresh, 
 with a sharp and keen sea-flavor in it. 
 
 I hit as they drew towards Mull, Barbara's ostentatious en- 
 joyment, became moderated somewhat; and once or twice she 
 looked apprehensively forward. 
 
 "Don't you be afraid, Barbara," the school-master said to 
 her, reassuringly ; " we arc not going anywhere near the 
 Lady Rock. Of course I can well understand your being 
 nervous: that must have been a bad hour or two you spent, 
 on the rocks there, in the darkness, t hough there was not SO 
 
 much cause for alarm, if you had only known. Now," lie 
 went on — talking for the sake of talk, to distract her atten- 
 tion from the solitary reef, round which the calm summer
 
 IN THE SOUND OF MULL 309 
 
 seas were now peacefully lapping — " there might have been 
 something to terrify you on the night that Mr. McFadyen 
 ran us ashore on the coast of Mull. Did you ever hear of 
 Ewen of the little head?" 
 
 " No," said she, looking up. 
 
 " Well, that is the district he haunts — from Duart to Loch- 
 buie," he proceeded, " and if we had had to wander about 
 during the night, you might have seen the wild horseman 
 leaping over chasms and spurring up the sides of precipitous 
 cliffs. That might indeed have terrified you — " 
 
 " But who was he ?" she demanded ; her eyes were begin- 
 ning to " glower," as they always did when a phantom story 
 was told her. 
 
 " Ewen of the little head ?" he repeated. " Eobhann a' 
 chinn bhig — he was the eldest son of one of the Maclaines of 
 Lochbuie ; and as he was rebellious and turbulent his father 
 was forced to call in his kinsman, Maclean of Duart, to sub- 
 due him. Duart got together his men and marched down 
 towards Lochbuie ; and there was to be a great battle ; and 
 the night before the battle Ewen of the little head went to a 
 witch to ask her if he was to win on the morrow. But I 
 should have told you that Ewen was married to a woman of 
 great meanness and parsimony. Very well. When he had 
 asked the witch, she says to him, ' To-morrow morning, at 
 breakfast, if your wife gives you butter without your asking 
 for it, then you will win the battle.' Next morning at break- 
 fast Ewen waited and waited, and his wife offered him 
 nothing. ' Why are you drum-drumming with your feet on 
 the ground ?' says she — for he was in a terrible rage. ' It is 
 better for a man to be slain,' says he, ' than live in-doors with 
 a bad wife.' And with that he rushed out, and called his 
 followers to the battle ; and almost at the very first onset he 
 had his head slashed from his shoulders with one stroke of a 
 broadsword. And then it was that his horse tore away, and 
 galloped and galloped through the glens and over the hills — 
 for days and days he was seen — the headless horseman, in 
 full armor, galloping across impossible places at a fearful 
 speed. Aye, and he is seen now. He is seen whenever any 
 harm is going to happen to one of the Maclaines of Lochbuie. 
 And that would indeed have beeu something to terrify you,
 
 310 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 if you had encountered Eobhann a' cliinn bhig the night we 
 were ashore on Mull." 
 
 " It is to frighten children that they are telling such 
 stories," she said — though she herself seemed considerably 
 impressed. 
 
 " No, no, Barbara," Jess said, with the shrewd and pleas- 
 ant gray eyes smiling. "That is not why the story is told. 
 The story is told by husbands to warn their wives not to be 
 too miserly with them." 
 
 And with this desultory talk, varied by an occasional 
 glance at their fellow-passengers, they called in at Craigenure 
 and left again, and went onward and across to Loch Aline — 
 Loch Aluinn, the beautiful loch — and resumed their course 
 up the Sound of Mull, the day all radiant around them. At 
 the same time Jess could not but be conscious that she was 
 the third person here. These two must of necessity have 
 many things to speak of — their wedding — the house in Bat- 
 tery Terrace — their future plans — that they would prefer to 
 talk over by themselves ; and so she by-and-by got up and 
 began to stroll about a little, looking at this and that, until 
 at length, in the course of her apparently aimless peregrina- 
 tions, she went down the steps leading to the main deck, and 
 there she took her place on a scat by the gunwale, just aft of 
 the companion descending to the saloon. Now they were 
 free to talk as they chose ; she could not see them, nor they 
 her; probably by this time they had already forgotten her 
 existence. 
 
 But there was some one else who had observed her retreat 
 to this sheltered spot. In a little while the purser came up 
 to her. 
 
 " Miss Jessie," said he, " I am very glad to have the chance 
 of a word with you. I think your cousin Barbara has got oil 
 her head." 
 
 " What do you mean, Mr. Ogilvie ?" said Jess, rather brid- 
 ling up. 
 
 " Well, she came down to the quay the other day," he went, 
 on, bluntly enough, "and she was as insulting as she could 
 be — aloud — so that, there was no mistake but that 1 should 
 hear. And wh.it I say is, she'd better keep a quiet tongue. 
 1 do not, want to make miseliief ; but I will not suffer that
 
 IN THE SOUND OF MULL 311 
 
 kind of thing from any young madam, I do not care who she 
 is. And that is what I say : your cousin had better keep a 
 quiet tongue. I have a piece of paper in my pocket at this 
 moment; it was lucky I did not tear it up and throw it away. 
 But there was a bit of a tussle between Henderson and me ; 
 and I did not know what might come of it ; and I thought I 
 might as well keep this scrap of writing." He brought out 
 a leathern pocket-book. " I am not vindictive," he proceeded ; 
 " but I will not have insolence from anybody. And I wonder 
 what Henderson would say if he saw this ?" 
 
 He extracted from the pocket-book a folded piece of paper, 
 and opened iL, and handed it to her. She recognized Bar- 
 bara's handwriting readily enough — " Will you meet me to- 
 night at nine o'clock, at the small gate under the Castle Hill ? 
 I have something of importance to say to you — Barbara" 
 
 " Do you see what that means ?" he said. " I can hear 
 her talking and boasting about a house in Battery Terrace, 
 whenever I chance to pass by ; but she does not know that I 
 have that little message in my pocket. And of course I 
 did not go; I did not even answer her ; I'm for a quiet life; 
 I refuse to be dragged into trouble to please her or anybody 
 else." 
 
 For a moment or two Jess was silent, as she stared blankly 
 at the words before her, and her fingers were slightly trem- 
 bling ; she began to understand certain matters that had of 
 late been strange to her. 
 
 " But you told me — you did not wish to make mischief ?" 
 she said, slowly. 
 
 " No," he replied, with a certain hesitation. " I do not 
 particularly want to make mischief. At the same time — " 
 
 Quick as thought she tore the paper twice across and 
 pitched the fragments over the side ; they floated away on 
 the seething foam in the wake of the vessel. And almost as 
 white as that foam were her firm-set lips. 
 
 He looked mortified only for a second. 
 
 " I suppose you think you've done your cousin a very 
 good turn ?" he said, with an appearance of equanimity. 
 "Perhaps so. But if the writing has been destroyed, the 
 facts remain. And I tell you the young madam had better 
 take care."
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII 
 
 A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 
 
 It was on one of these afternoons, as Allan Henderson and 
 Barbara were returning homeward by the shores of the soli- 
 tary and beautiful Loch Sleochan, that they beheld a marvel- 
 lous apparition steal slowly into the still landscape. Far 
 away, beyond the glassy waters of the lake, far away beyond 
 the swampy morass where the curlews were calling, down the 
 lonely moorland road came a long, undulatory, straggling as- 
 semblage, dark in hue as contrasted with the surrounding 
 country, yet showing tags and dots of color here and there. 
 
 "What is that?" asked Barbara, with her eyes staring. 
 
 " Terrible as an army with banners," said the school-master. 
 "It is a revolution, Barbara. No, it is a resurrection — of all 
 the hosts slain in the time of Eobhann a' chinn bhiff — " 
 
 He paused. Surely there was some faint and measured 
 throb borne to them on the listening air! — and was (here not 
 a glint of sunlit brass at the head of the long and serpentine 
 procession ? The martial music became more audible. 
 
 " Whoever they are, friends or foes, wc must meet them, 
 Barbara," said the school-master. 
 
 But that was precisely what did not, happen. For at this 
 point the road wound round one or two promontories jutting 
 <uit into the mirrorlike lake, so that they lost sight of that 
 distant concourse of folk; and when in process of time they 
 again came in view of the head of the loch, there was not a 
 human being anywhere visible. It looked as if the earth had 
 suddenly opened and swallowed them up, 
 
 " Did I not tell you they were ghosts?" said Allan. 
 
 "They have gone into the grounds of Inveruran House," 
 
 retorted Barbara. " I can hear the hand still playing." 
 Well, when these two arrived at: the lodge-gate, Allan made 
 
 bold t<> ask the woman in charge what, was meant l>v this
 
 A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 313 
 
 portentous invasion of so secluded a neighborhood ; and she 
 answered him that the young laird had invited the temperance 
 societies of Duntroone to come out and listen to an address 
 and witness a ceremony ; and that a number of towns-people 
 had accompanied them. From the way she hung back she 
 evidently expected that Allan and his companion would also 
 pass in ; and Barbara was curious ; spectacular displays of 
 any kind are rare in that countryside ; so the two new-comers 
 accepted the mute invitation, and entered. As it chanced, 
 they were well repaid. 
 
 For when they had reached the end of the winding avenue, 
 and emerged into the open, a remarkable scene presented it- 
 self. On the steps in front of the open hall door stood four 
 persons : a tall, elderly lady dressed in deep mourning, two 
 younger ladies in more cheerful attire, and an oldish-looking 
 young man of about eight-and-twenty, with clean-shaven face 
 and rather tired eyes. At the foot of the wide steps, on the 
 carriage drive, were ranged rows of large vats and barrels. 
 Then all around stood the crowd, in a sort of loose semicircle, 
 most of the men wearing badges and insignia, conspicuous 
 amongst which were the red and white and blue and white 
 sashes of the Rechabites. When the school-master and Bar- 
 bara drew near the motley gathering, about the first person 
 they recognized was Long Lauchie the shoemaker; and by 
 him they remained ; doubtless he could tell them as well as 
 any one what was going forward. 
 
 At first, indeed, there was nothing but an ordinary temper- 
 ance lecture, which the young man with the gray, worn face 
 was delivering, if not with eloquence, at least with a convinc- 
 ing simplicity and earnestness. But if these statements he 
 was making were familiar, they were none the less welcomed 
 by his audience with an extraordinary enthusiasm', cheer af- 
 ter cheer arose at the end of each telling sentence ; and even 
 the lads and boys who formed the fringe of the throng con- 
 tributed their reckless hurrahs. All save Long Lauchie seemed 
 to share in the general excitement. The unhappy Lauchlan 
 was silent and depressed ; his eyes were lustreless ; a melan- 
 choly " of Cerberus and blackest Midnight born," appeared to 
 have possession of his soul. His gay sash was hardly in 
 keeping with this air of profound despondency. 
 14
 
 314 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 But it was now that young Murray of Inveruran proceeded 
 to explain the chief reason why he had asked these good folk 
 to assemble. He would not, he said, utter a single word 
 against those who had gone before hirn ; other times had 
 other manners; and there was no doubt that our forefathers 
 had been in the habit of drinking more than was good for 
 them. In these present days the national conscience had be- 
 come awakened ; serious attention had been called to the 
 Avide-spread misery and ruin resulting from the use of alcohol; 
 and man's duty to his fellow-man had become part of the ac- 
 cepted moral law. Long ago, he went on, he had resolved 
 that when in the course of nature he came to succeed to the 
 Inveruran estate, one of his first acts would be to see that 
 every butt and bin of wine, every cask of ale and spirits, 
 found in the cellar should be destroyed ; and if circumstances 
 had detained him in foreign parts during the last few years, 
 and delayed the execution of this project, the time had at 
 length arrived. It was not, he said, a trifling sacrifice. Large 
 sums could have been obtained for the various wines that, for 
 convenience' sake, had now been decanted and emptied into 
 the vats before them. There were ports, sherries, madeiras 
 of almost incredible age ; there were burgundies, clarets, 
 Rhine wines of inestimable quality ; there were brandies and 
 whiskeys that had been handed down from generation to gen- 
 eration, and carefully tended and replenished. But no pe- 
 cuniary inducement could tempt him to the dissemination of 
 poison. It must be destroyed ! 
 
 Mire there was an indescribable commotion throughout the 
 crowd; the yelling and cheering became tumultuous; the 
 small boys threw their caps in the air, with more wild hurrahs. 
 Long Lauehic sighed heavily. 
 
 It had been suggested to him, the young laird proceeded, 
 
 that he might have sent these wines and spirits to the great 
 hospitals in the south. Hut, medical men did not seem to 
 agree as to the efficacy of alcohol in cases of illness,* and 
 even if it could he proved that here and there some slight ad- 
 vantage might accrue, the counterbalancing risk of sowing 
 the seeds of fatal habits was of far greater import. No; he 
 would have no half-measures; he would carry his principles 
 into practice; there was nothing for it, hut the utter exler-
 
 A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 315 
 
 mination, so far as lay in one's power, of those pernicious 
 fluids that were wrecking the body and soul of our fellow- 
 creatures. 
 
 « John !" 
 
 There was a little old man standing by, a little old man with 
 short side-whiskers, who held a hammer in his hand. 
 
 " Perhaps," said the young laird, with a dry smile coming 
 over his prematurely desiccated face — " perhaps it may inter- 
 est you, gentlemen, to know that the* first cask to be opened 
 contains between twenty and thirty dozen of madeira that 
 made several long voyages in my great-grandfather's time. 
 It has come to the end of its travels at last." 
 
 He signed with his finger to the little old man, who in a 
 nervous and tremulous fashion went along to the farthest vat. 
 There, after some tugging and hammering, the bung was ex- 
 tracted, and at once there gushed forth a stream of clear 
 amber fluid. A hoarse roar of rejoicing arose from the crowd. 
 " Hurrah ! — hurrah !" shouted the small boys. And Lauchlan 
 Maclntyre, when he observed the turbid rivulet come along 
 the channel for draining the carriage drive — so close under 
 their feet that Barbara had to step on to the lawn to save her 
 skirts — Lauchlan regarded it with an air of still deeper dejec- 
 tion, and sighed more heavily than before. 
 
 " I admire that young man," said the school-master. " It 
 may be idiotcy — but there's earnestness at the back of it. 
 And he's a weakly-looking creature too." 
 
 Barrel after barrel followed — red streams, golden streams, 
 white streams, commingling and rushing away down the slop- 
 ing drive ; while the din and clamor of the exultant Rechab- 
 ites filled the quiet evening air. 
 
 " Poor old Sandy Livingstone !" said the school-master, 
 absently. " There's now one water the less for him to poach. 
 This stuff will have killed every sea-trout in the Uran burn." 
 
 " It is a sin and a shame !" said Barbara, in sharper tones. 
 " There are many poor people who might have had the benefit, 
 in the cold of the winter." 
 
 "What, what? — you must not talk like that, Barbara!" 
 her companion remonstrated. " You have been greatly privi- 
 leged. You have witnessed a sacred rite. You have beheld 
 a libation poured out in honor of one of the new gods ; and
 
 316 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 who knows but that the new god may be well worthy of wor- 
 ship? Anyhow, the worship itself is the valuable thing; 
 think with what a serene conscience that young man will fall 
 asleep to-night !" 
 
 " Aye, the conscience," murmured Lauchlan, from the 
 depths of his woe. " You may well say that — you may well 
 say that. It's the conscience that has to be obeyed — though 
 the flesh cries out in its wakeness." 
 
 And at length the work of destruction was complete ; there 
 remained nothing but the empty tuns and the purple and 
 brown stains on the gravel. Then the hero of the hour thanked 
 the assemblage for having responded to his invitation ; they 
 gave him three cheers, and one cheer more ; the band took up 
 position; the ranks were reformed; and to the stirring strains 
 of " Neil Gow's Farewell to Whiskey " the whole concourse, 
 small boys and all, set out again for Duntroonc. There was 
 no very strict order kept on this line of march ; stragglers 
 from the crowd joined in the procession so as to chat with 
 their friends; and thus it was that Lauchie Maclntyre could 
 still have with him the two young people whose society, in his 
 present dolorous state, had proved something of a solace to 
 him. 
 
 " I'm afraid," .said Allan — in an interval of peace allowed 
 them by the band — " I'm afraid you're not looking so well, 
 Lauchlan." 
 
 "No, lam DOl well at alii," replied Lauchlan, with another 
 heavy sigh. " I have been eating nothing, or next to nothing, 
 for some time back. I'm not fit to be here the day — but it 
 was a great occasion — for giving testimony — " 
 
 The band broke in upon them with "Johnny Cope" — a fine 
 inarching tunc When quiet had been restored Lauchlan 
 turned to the oilier and younger of his companions. 
 
 "I was hearing of the wedding, Miss Barbara," lie said. 
 " And there's a little present I have waiting for you — will you 
 come into the house, and take it home with you?" 
 
 " Indeed, I am obliged to you, Mr. Maclntyre," responded 
 Barbara, with glad assent. Allan looked a little disconcerted: 
 it was scarcely for one in Long Lauchie's circumstances to be 
 baying wedding-presents. Hut the school-master did not at 
 the moment put in an objection; lie, was unwilling to rob
 
 A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 3.17 
 
 Barbara of any little pleasure ; and perhaps, after all, the gift 
 might not be of much value. 
 
 So when they had got back to Duntroone, the three of them 
 made for the shoemaker's humble dwelling, and ascended to 
 the room on the first floor. It was a cheerless-looking place ; 
 and perhaps it was the doleful aspect of it, or perhaps it was 
 the fatigue of the march, that seemed to overcome Lauchlan : 
 with a hopeless groan he sank down upon a wooden chair. 
 And then again he raised his head, and began to look round 
 the apartment, warily and fearfully. 
 
 " Sometimes," he said, in a sombre fashion — " sometimes I 
 am seeing things that are not there." 
 
 Then he appeared to remember why he had invited these 
 guests to come in-doors ; he got up from the chair, and went 
 away, slowly and dejectedly, to a cupboard in the passage. 
 
 "Barbara," said the school-master, in a quick undertone, 
 " Lauchlan Maclntyre is far from well. Could you not offer 
 to make him some tea f ' 
 
 " I could not offer to make tea in another person's house," 
 she replied, not too civilly. 
 
 Almost at the same moment Lauchlan returned, holding in 
 both hands (for they were shaking a little) his wedding-gift. 
 It was an old-fashioned four-tubed Scandinavian liqueur-bottle, 
 that originally had been something rather fine ; but it had 
 been debased by the addition of a flaunting electro-plated 
 handle and stopper, and was now apparently serving as a 
 whiskey-decanter. 
 
 "It belonged to my wife," said he, "and she might come 
 back to tek it aweh." 
 
 " Oh, thank you indeed !" said Barbara, receiving the gift 
 with manifest gratification. 
 
 " Barbara — you cannot !" interposed the school-master, with 
 an angry and impatient frown. " It is Mrs. Maclntyre's !" 
 
 " Aye, that is the reason — that is just the reason," said 
 Lauchlan, as he sank into the chair again. " She might come 
 back. I am not wishing for it to be here. And it is of no 
 use to me now," he went on, mournfully. " It is of no use 
 any more — never any more. It is a sign of evil things that 
 have been thrown aside ; I am not wishing to see it again." 
 
 " Barbara," the school-master once more protested, " put
 
 318 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 that decanter back in the cupboard. It belongs to Mrs. Mac- 
 Intyre." 
 
 "But if Mr. Maclntyre is wishing it out of the house," Bar- 
 bara rejoined — and she showed no disposition to part with her 
 present — " it is for him to decide." 
 
 " Aye, aye, tek it aweh," said or moaned the shoemaker, and 
 he disconsolately shook his head. " There will be no bottles 
 of any kind in this house, not any more — never any more." 
 
 Well, the school-master would not interfere further ; but as 
 he and Barbara walked away home to Campbell Street, there 
 were black looks on his face ; and barely a word was spoken 
 between them. Barbara did not seem to be much concerned ; 
 she carried the electro-plated decanter wrapped up in a half- 
 sheet of the Duntroone Times ; she was doubtless looking for- 
 ward to a further contemplation of her treasure. And indeed 
 Allan, still in one of his dark moods, was disposed to leave 
 her to her own devices ; when they reached the house, he 
 bade her good-bye curtly, without offering to accompany her 
 up-stairs ; and when she had gone, he forthwith betook him- 
 self to the shop over the way, where he found Jess behind the 
 counter. 
 
 At sight of Jess, the "dour" look on his face softened con- 
 siderably ; and it was in a kind of appealing fashion that he 
 told her all about the shoemaker and his disastrous plight. 
 
 "Oh, the poor man!" she exclaimed. "If he is as ill as 
 that, and not having anything to eat, he will get worse and 
 worse. TIi is is what I will do now, Allan : I will take along a 
 few things, and sec if he cannot be tempted — a Finnan-haddie 
 and some strong tea would do him good, I am sure — and then 
 he could go to his bed. And you must come with me, to 
 compel him," she added, laughing at him as usual. "It will 
 be quite a relief to you to have some one to hector and over- 
 master; it must be very dull for you in the holidays, when 
 you have no one to browbeat and threaten." 
 
 "Will you do that,' Jessie V % he said — not heeding her 
 gibes. 
 
 Her answer was prompt ami decisive. She Went into the 
 parlor to apprise her mother; she whipped on :i hat and jacket; 
 she got a basket and put a number of things into it; and 
 presently these two were on their way to the shoemaker's,
 
 A PUBLIC SACRIFICE 319 
 
 though Jess had to stop here and there to make a few pur- 
 chases. Then, when they were in the house, she directed 
 him to go into the room where the hapless Lauchie was still 
 sitting, while she took possession of the kitchen. Lauchlan 
 was not a cheerful companion ; and Allan, waiting there, could 
 hear quite plainly what she was about ; he could hear the 
 sticks being put into the grate ; he could hear them beginning 
 to crackle in the flames ; he could hear her getting forth plates 
 and knives and forks from the cupboard. And not only that, 
 but he could make out that Jess, as she went hither and thither, 
 was contentedly and blithely singing to herself the song of 
 the " Twa Bonnie Maidens " — 
 
 " ' There are twa bonnie maidens, and three bonnie maidens, 
 Cani 1 over the Minch and cam' over the main ; 
 Wi' the wind for the way, and the cor He for their harne, 
 And they are dearly welcome to Skye again.'' " 
 
 And well he knew the meaning of the enigmatic refrain — 
 
 " ' Come along, come along, wV your boatie and your song, 
 My ain bonnie maidens, my twa bonnie maidens, 
 For the night it is dark, and the redcoat is gone, 
 And ye are dearly welcome to Skye again.' 1 " 
 
 " She's a good - hearted lass, that," said Allan, almost to 
 himself. 
 
 "Did ye speak?" asked Lauchlan— trying to rouse himself 
 out of this stupor of abject misery. 
 
 "I say this," continued the school -master, "that Jessie 
 Maclean has taken a great deal of trouble in bringing you 
 these things, and you're not going to offend her by refusing 
 them." 
 
 Refuse them ? He could not ! — they would have awakened 
 the pangs of hunger in the interior of a caryatid. For here 
 was Jess with a snow-white cloth for the small table ; and 
 here were plates and knives and forks, all bright and clean ; 
 and here was a golden -shining Finnan haddock, smoking 
 hot and well peppered ; and here was crisp brown toast, 
 with pats of fresh butter; and here were young lettuces 
 plentifully besprinkled with vinegar. Then the tea, not over-
 
 320 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 sweetened, was strong enough to have galvanized a mummy ; 
 so that gradually, when Lauchlan had eaten and drank a little, 
 the apprehensions of imminent death — alternating perhaps 
 with some vague longing for the same — appeared to fade 
 away somewhat from his features. 
 
 " It is a kind woman you are," he said to her, in Gaelic, 
 " and it is I that am thankful to you for coming here this 
 erening." 
 
 "Then you must go to bed soon, and have a sound night's 
 rest," Jessie answered him. 
 
 "Aye, aye, just that," he said, reverting to English, " and 
 maybe — maybe I'll not be seeing them things that arc not 
 there." 
 
 They left him much comforted in body and mind ; and as 
 Allan accompanied Jess back to the shop, he was endeavor- 
 ing to express his gratitude to her for her charity towards 
 the unhappy shoemaker. But Jess did not seem to think 
 much of what she had done; when she bade him good-bye 
 she returned to the little parlor and to her placid knitting; 
 and as the "Twa Bonnie Maidens" had got into her head, 
 she occasionally beguiled herself with a phrase or a stanza: 
 
 " ' There's a wind on the tree, and a ship on the sen, 
 My (tin Ion nil maidens, my twa bonnie maidens; 
 Your cradle Pll rock on the lea of the rock, 
 And yd 11 aye be welcome to Sky< again.* " 
 
 "You're crooning there like a cushic-doo," said her mother, 
 looking up from her newspaper. " Has any one asked ye to 
 marry him ?" 
 
 " They're not likely to do that, mother," she answered, 
 with great contentment. "And I'm well enough without."
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII 
 
 BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 
 
 But Jess was mistaken. There was at least one person 
 whose sole and consuming anxiety at this moment was to 
 ask her to become his wife, if only he could summon up his 
 courage and also find an opportune occasion. The latter 
 point was the councillor's chief difficulty. As for courage, 
 he had resolved to discard the shadowy evidence of dreams ; 
 if at times he had found his physical nerve not quite what 
 it might be, he had on the other hand a sufficiency of moral 
 will ; he made no doubt that when the great crisis came he 
 would be able to acquit himself. But how was he to have 
 private speech with Jess, when she was either sitting in the 
 parlor with her mother, or walking out with Barbara, or con- 
 sulting with Allan about the window - hangings of his new 
 house ? And then every day the school - master's wedding 
 was drawing nearer ; and he, Peter, was to be best man — 
 with this supreme problem of his life left unsolved. The 
 councillor grew desperate. He determined that he would 
 take the very first chance that presented itself, no matter 
 how, when, or where, to free himself from this terrible per- 
 plexity. 
 
 And yet it was not an auspicious chance, as it turned out. 
 One morning he was walking along Campbell Street, and in 
 passing the tobacconist's shop he glanced in and noticed that 
 Jessie was behind the counter, and that she was standing 
 there alone. A sort of vertigo of bravery rushed to McFad- 
 yen's head ; he would dare his fate then and there. He stood 
 stock-still for only a second; perhaps it was to collect him- 
 self for the plunge ; then he entered the shop. Jess received 
 him with the kindest greeting. 
 
 " Have you heard," he said, after a brief bewildered pause, 
 " that I am to be Allan's best man 2" 
 14*
 
 322 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Oh yes," she answered, " Barbara was telling me that." 
 
 " Aye — " And here there was another pause. He seemed 
 trying to utter something. " Aye," he managed to say at 
 length, " but I would rather be going to the wedding in an- 
 other capacity." 
 
 " Well, well," said Jess, with a touch of wonder in her 
 benignant gray eyes, "would you like to be the bridegroom 
 yourself? But I am not astonished ; all the young men are 
 daft about Barbara — every one of them; they cannot keep 
 their eyes off her when she is in church — " 
 
 " No, no, I did not mean that at all," the councillor broke 
 in, hurriedly. " Do ye not understand, Miss Jessie — it is not 
 as anybody's best man I would like to go to the wedding — 
 there's something else possible — " 
 
 " I want two ounces of cut cavendisli and a clay pipe," 
 said a thin, small voice, and a little red-headed lassie came 
 timidly forward and put a silver coin on the counter. 
 
 Mr. McFadyen glared at this youthful emissary as though 
 he could have strangled her ; but there was nothing for it 
 but the smothering of his wrath ; he had perforce to wait in 
 silence until she was served and had gone away. 
 
 " Do ye not understand, Miss Jessie ?" he resumed. " If 
 there were two weddings on the same day, would not that be 
 better ? I would rather go in the capacity of bridegroom 
 than as best man — that's what I'm driving at. If Allan and 
 me had our weddings -on the same day, that would be some- 
 thing like. And how can you speak of Barbara? How can 
 ye imagine I was ever thinking of Barbara 1 Til not deny 
 that she's an attractive kind of lass — aye, and well set up — 
 the young Queen of Shcba I was calling her to Allan the 
 other day — but, bless mc, there's finer qualities than a slim 
 waist and a silk gown — " 
 
 At this moment the door was darkened, and no less a per- 
 son than the provost — a big, burly man, with a frank, broad 
 face and a loud, honest voice — looked in. 
 
 "Good-morning, Miss Jessie |" said he. 
 
 " I lood morning, provost." 
 
 " Ay, ye're there, friend McFadyen — I got a glimpse of 
 
 you; and I was wanting to sec you," the provost, continued, 
 briskly. "Have ye drawn out your notice about the North
 
 BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 323 
 
 Pier?— I would like to have a look at it before ye submit it 
 to the council. But we're all with you ; there'll be no op- 
 position ; we must just pay the £50 to the Board of Trade, 
 and get an examination ; and I'll be surprised if they find 
 that the conditions of the grant of the foreshore have been 
 complied with. Every one admits that the state of the North 
 Pier is a scandal and a disgrace to the town ; there'll be no 
 opposition ; but I'd just like to have a look at the terms of 
 the motion — if ye do not mind, that is — " 
 
 Mr. McFadyen was choking with rage and vexation ; but 
 what could he do ? He could not throw the provost into the 
 street, for the provost was a man of large build. He could 
 not bring his all-important conversation with Jess to its prop- 
 er climax in presence of a stranger. And if he remained boxed 
 up in this corner, to be talked to about the North Pier, his 
 anger, that he with the greatest difficulty kept under control, 
 would inevitably break forth and cause an amazing scene. 
 
 " Come away, then — come away," he said at last, with con- 
 cealed ferocity. "The paper is in my desk; come along to 
 the office and I'll show it to ye there. Good-bye, Miss Jessie 
 — I hope I will see you soon." And therewith the luckless 
 councillor departed — no doubt inwardly cursing the North 
 Pier and the foreshore and everybody connected with both. 
 
 But fortune was more friendly towards him on the evening 
 of this same day ; for as he was passing along the front he 
 perceived that the school-master, Jess, and Barbara had all of 
 them just got into a rowing-boat, bent on some excursion or 
 another. He quickened his pace, got down upon the beach, 
 and hailed them before they had gone any distance. 
 
 " Will ye ship another passenger ?" he cried. 
 
 " If ye'll take an oar," Allan called in return — and he pro- 
 ceeded to back the stern in and on to the shingle. 
 
 " That will I !" said the councillor, blithely, and presently 
 he had got into the boat and taken up his post at the bow. 
 " I would not enter myself at a regatta," he proceeded ; " I'm 
 not for showing off ; but in an ordinary kind of way I can 
 take an oar with anybody. Dod, some o' the young fellows at 
 . the gymnasium can do most astounding tricks ! — but what's 
 the use o' them ? It's steady work that pays in the end ; and 
 I could go on like this just the whole day. Did I tell ye they
 
 324 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 had made me treasurer? Aye, that's my proud title: Treas- 
 urer of the Gymnastic Section of the Young Men's Guild. 
 It's -all very well for lads at their time of life to twirl them- 
 selves round wooden bars ; but when it comes to accounts, 
 they have to call in age and experience. A little longer stroke, 
 Allan — slow and steady — that's it — that's it now — man, 1 
 could go on like this for four-and-twenty hours." 
 
 Now oddly enough all of these remarks were addressed ex- 
 clusively to the school-master. The moment of his entering 
 the boat the quick eyes of the councillor had observed that 
 Jess Maclean looked most unusually embarrassed. It could 
 not be that he was unwelcome ? Or had she divined what he 
 had been about to say to her when the burly provost put in 
 his unfortunate appearance ? The latter was the more prob- 
 able ; and so much the better, Mr. McFadyen said to himself: 
 she must have had time to consider; she would not be startled 
 when next he had an opportunity of urging his suit. 
 
 But when and how was any such opportunity to be secured? 
 His companions seemed to have neither aim nor destination ; 
 there was nut even ;i hand-line in the boat; they appeared to 
 be quite content with sailing out into this world of strange 
 and mystic splendor. And they had reason to be content. 
 For if the sun had gone down behind the deep rose - purple 
 hills, there was still plenty of light and radiance; the after- 
 glow was all around them; the bay, and the outer seas as well, 
 formed but one vast lake of molten gold; while there was a 
 warmth of hue along the hanging woods and the terraced gar- 
 dens and houses they were leaving behind. Dark and clear 
 were the lofty ruins of the castle; dark and clear were the 
 outjutting roeks in shadow; soft and clear was the twilight 
 of the Maiden Island ; but out in the open — far out on that 
 golden lake — the one or two small boats that lay at the tish- 
 ing-banks were of the Lntensest black. 'These were magical 
 evenings for lovers: no wonder the councillor longed to be of 
 the company. 
 
 And after all Mr. McKadyen did find his chance; for when 
 they had pulled away round by < 'amas Ban, Allan proposed 
 that they should get ashore and go for a stroll along the level 
 sands. JeS8 win the only one who bung back; she said she 
 would rather remain in the boat; then they remonstrated;
 
 BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 325 
 
 and finally, not to seem singular, she landed with them. And 
 almost immediately the four became two and two ; it could 
 hardly be helped ; in view of the imminent wedding, every 
 one knew that the school-master and Barbara must have many 
 things to talk over ; and it was but common civility to leave 
 them to themselves. 
 
 "Jessie," said the councillor, when some little space inter- 
 vened between the two couples, "did ye not understand what 
 I was going to say to ye when the provost came in this 
 morning ?" 
 
 " Maybe I guessed what it was — and maybe I was sorry to 
 be guessing," answered Jess, in a low voice. 
 
 " Ah, but you must not say that !" the councillor went on, 
 anxiously and earnestly. " I'm not an ill-hearted man ; and 
 I'm not a spendthrift ; ye would find a comfortable home ; 
 and I've waited a long time for ye, Jessie. I know there's 
 younger men than me ; and it's but natural ye should think 
 of some one younger ; but maybe they would not put such a 
 value on you as I do. To me you're just the one in ten thou- 
 sand; the best I ever knew, and the best dispositioned; when 
 you try to say a spiteful thing, there's aye a laugh in it, and 
 no harm done — " 
 
 " Oh, Mr. McFadyen," said Jessie, in great distress, " you 
 must not talk like that; and you must not speak of this any 
 more ; we can be friends, just as we have been for so long. 
 And you must not think I am not sensible of your uncommon 
 kindness, not only to us, but to Allan — your helping him about 
 the classes — and seeing about the new house for him — " 
 
 " It was for your sake, Jessie," he interposed. 
 
 " But," she said, quickly, " you will not let your relations 
 with Allan be altered now, whatever else happens ?" 
 
 " Whether it is to be yes or no from you, Jessie," he an- 
 swered her, " I'm not going back from anything I undertook 
 to do for Allan, you may be sure of that. I'll stand by him, 
 if he should want a friend — " 
 
 Her hand stole timidly towards his, for a second, in mute 
 token of thanks. 
 
 "But, Jessie," he exclaimed, though still in an undertone, 
 " I cannot see why it shouldn't be yes. I have been coming 
 about your house for a long while, and on the best of terms
 
 ii-'ti HIGHLAND COUSIN'S 
 
 with you and your mother, and I'm sure I wasna noticing 
 there was any one you had fixed your fancies on — " 
 
 " Oh, there's no one — there's no one !" said Jess — and she 
 was crying a little. " You need not think of that. It's just 
 that — well, I cannot explain — but, Mr. McFadyen, you have 
 been so kind to us, to all of us, that I will ask something 
 more of your kindness, and it is to put away that idea from 
 your head, once and for all, and let us be the same friends 
 that we have been for so long a time." 
 
 The councillor hesitated for a second. Then he said : 
 
 " I will take your answer, Jessie, for the present. And I 
 will not bother you. But I am a patient man — and I have 
 seen strange things happen, through waiting. Only, I will 
 not bother you, until you yourself give some sign." 
 
 And therewith for a few moments they walked on in silence 
 until they rejoined their companions, who were on the point 
 of turning at the end of the sands ; and together the four of 
 them strolled back to the boat; and presently they had set 
 off for home again, through an enchanted twilight — for 
 now the golden moon had sailed into the lilac heavens, and 
 golden was the pathway of flame that lay on the smooth 
 water all the way over to the black shores of Kerrara. Clear 
 and lambent as the night was, none of them noticed that 
 Jess had been crying. 
 
 And thus it happened that, not as bridegroom, but as best 
 man, Mr. McFadyen beheld the wedding-day approach ; and 
 indefatigable and important was he in the discharge of Ids 
 duties; and handsome indeed were the presents he bestowed 
 on the young couple. Then the little widow would not h;i\e 
 her niece leave the house quite penniless — she must have her 
 modest dowry; and Jess also contributed from her slender 
 store — at the same time persuading Barbara that plum-col- 
 ored velveteen was hardly Suitable as a travelling-dress; and 
 the shoemaker showed his interest and concern by calling' 
 once or twice to beg and implore them not to permit the use 
 of alcohol on the day of the ceremony. Amidst all this hus- 
 tle of preparation a most remarkable piece of luck (as she 
 
 Considered it) fell in .less Maclean's way. She was not much 
 of a reader of newspapers; and it was by the merest acci- 
 dent that her eye happened to light on an advertisement of
 
 BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 327 
 
 the new number of a certain great quarterly, giving the list of 
 contents ; and there she saw, to her inexpressible joy, that 
 the first article was entitled " The Volkslieder of Germany." 
 Within a couple of minutes she was out of the shop and on 
 her way to the railway station. 
 
 " Can you get me that," she said, showing the advertise- 
 ment to the young man at the book-stall — " can you get me 
 that, and make sure that I'm to have it by the day after to- 
 morrow ?" 
 
 " I'll try," said he. " I will write at once." 
 
 " No, no," said she. " That will not do. There must be no 
 mistake about it. You must telegraph ; and I will pay you 
 for the telegram." She took out her purse. " Surely, if you 
 telegraph now to Glasgow, the magazine should be here by 
 to-morrow night, or the next morning at the latest." 
 
 " Oh yes ; there's little doubt," the young man said. 
 
 " And you will send it along to me the moment it comes ?" 
 
 He promised to do so; and Jess, her face radiant with sat- 
 isfaction, hurried away back again. But she did not reveal to 
 a living soul what she had discovered and what she had done. 
 
 The wedding ceremony, as is usual in Scotland, was to 
 take place in the bride's home ; and no doubt it would have 
 been quite modest and unpretentious but that Mr. McFadyen, 
 by virtue of his office, overrode all their scruples and pro- 
 tests, and insisted on having things manage 1 well and prop- 
 erly. He meant to show Jess that he could be as good as 
 his word ; and naturally he was a free-handed kind of a man ; 
 when, for example, there arose the question of getting help 
 at the breakfast — the girl Christina having to attend over 
 the way at the shop — he promptly solved the difficulty by 
 going along to the Argyll Arms and engaging at his own 
 cost two of Mrs. McAskill's waiters. Then he greatly pleased 
 Barbara by consenting to arrange for an open carriage to 
 take them from the house to the railway station, whereas 
 Allan had been pleading for a closed cab. And when the 
 school-master was grumbling and growling against the pro- 
 posal to have speech-making at the breakfast, Peter paid but 
 little attention ; speech-making he would have ; he was al- 
 ready priming himself by the study of a little sixpenny guide 
 to that art.
 
 328 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 At length the fateful day arrived ; and the young Queen of 
 Sheba was arrayed in all her splendor ; and the minister was 
 merciful as to the length of his address. Then, when the 
 simple rites were over, and a decent interval had elapsed, 
 Mrs. McAskill's waiters appeared on the scene; the table was 
 hauled into the room again ; and presently there was furnished 
 forth a quite elegant little feast — the presentation decanters 
 and the crystal and the tiny bouquets of flowers making a 
 most bright and cheerful show on the white cloth. The min- 
 ister presided ; Mr. McFadyen acted as " croupier ;" and 
 when the small company had taken their scats, it was seen 
 that the cunning councillor had so arranged matters that Jess 
 had found herself placed next to himself — Jess, whose friend- 
 ly gray eyes were at their kindliest towards every one present. 
 All went merry as a marriage-bell, indeed ; the minister told 
 humorous stories hoary with age ; the councillor was so ex- 
 tremely facetious that the nimblest wit could hardly follow 
 him; healths and toasts were proposed and answered; and 
 Mis. Maclean, though she was a little overawed by the pres- 
 ence of the two waiters, was nevertheless delighted with the 
 careful way in which they handed round her trembling jellies. 
 In the midst of this prevailing and joyous tumult a tall and 
 melancholy figure presented itself at the door. 
 
 "Aw, it's a sad sight — a sad sight!" exclaimed a mournful 
 voice. " It's a sorrowful sight to see two young lives begin- 
 ning like this — " 
 
 The councillor looked up quickly. lie was just about to rise 
 to ask them to drink the health of Mrs. Maclean; ami he had 
 the opening sentences of his speech ready and pat on the tip of 
 his tongue ; so that the interruption entirely disconcerted him. 
 
 " Well, what do you want?" he demanded, with his eyes 
 glaring. 
 
 " It's my duty to protest," said Long Lauchic, regarding 
 dismally the decanters and the glasses on the table; "I was 
 thinking it would be like this — aye, and it's a pectiful thing 
 to sec the two young people with ruin and destruction star- 
 ing them in the face — " 
 
 "Oh, go to the mischief!" cried the councillor — his eyes 
 now fairly glittering with rage. "Here, you waiters, pitch 
 that man down the stair! — fling him down the stair! — "
 
 BEST MAN AND BRIDEGROOM 329 
 
 But Allan interposed. He rose and went to the door, and 
 got hold of Lauchlan by the arm, and led him out. 
 
 " -My g' 00( i friend," he said, " your zeal does you every 
 credit ; but it lacks discretion. There's no drunkenness going 
 on there, nor anything approaching to it. As for Barbara 
 and myself, we are next door to teetotalers." 
 
 "Aye, that's just it — that's just it," said the shoemaker, 
 with a deep sigh. " Ye do not understand your danger ; ye 
 think you're safe because of such treacherous guides as tem- 
 perance and moderation ; ye do not see that they are leading 
 you to the blink of the pit. It's an ahfu' thing to think of, 
 how near you are to perdition and disgrace — " 
 
 "Tuts, tuts, man!" said the school - master, with angry 
 brows. " Listen to me, now. If you'll come in and sit down 
 and have a bite and a sup with us — water, if you like — you'll be 
 heartily welcome ; but we wish for none o' this havering — " 
 
 " Aye, aye, just that," responded Lauchlan, with a lament- 
 able shake of the head. " But I'll not trouble ye. I've done 
 my duty. Maybe you'll see your grievous mistake before the 
 destruction comes upon ye. I'm hoping that — yes, yes, I'm 
 hoping that — for I wish ye well — I wish ye well — " And 
 therewith he departed — as miserable a human being as any in 
 Duntrooue ; but at least -he had done what he could; if the 
 young couple were rushing on their doom, it was not for 
 want of warning. 
 
 This brief interruption was soon forgotten among the gen- 
 eral festivities, which were, indeed, prolonged until it was 
 about time for the young folk to think of their train. More- 
 over, it had been arranged that while the rest of the company 
 should say good good-bye here in the house, or at farthest on 
 the pavement below, Mr, McFadyen and Jess, as the two 
 special friends, were to drive in a cab to the railway station, 
 to bid farewell there. When Jess and her companion arrived 
 on the platform, she was carrying a small parcel wrapped up 
 in paper. 
 
 There was no time to lose ; the guard was coming alono-, 
 examining the tickets. Barbara got into the compartment, 
 and began assorting her travelling paraphernalia. 
 
 "Allan," said Jess, shyly, "I could not get you any wed- 
 ding-present that I thought you would like — "
 
 330 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " What's that, Jessie?" lie made answer, in accents of re- 
 proach. " When your kindness of these past weeks has been 
 one continual wedding-present !" 
 
 " But I have brought you a little thing here," she proceeded, 
 " that maybe will please you — and surprise you — if you have 
 been too busy lately to notice much in the newspapers — " 
 
 She undid the packet that she carried, and handed to him 
 the new number of the quarterly that had been telegraphed 
 for from Glasgow. He took it from her — and the next mo- 
 ment he gave a sudden little start of astonishment. 
 
 "God bless me," he exclaimed, in a boyish rapture of de- 
 light, "they've given me the first place !" 
 
 And he would turn over the pages — or, rather, the sheaves 
 of pages, for the edges of the review were uncut — his fingers 
 holding the sheets open, his entranced eyes following this or 
 that sentence, this or that paragraph, as if it were all a marvel 
 and wonder to him. He forgot about the urgent guard ; 
 he forgot about the thanks due to Jessie for her ingenious 
 thoughtf ulness ; he even forgot about his impatient, and per- 
 haps petulant, bride. And then amongst them they got him 
 bundled into the carriage, his treasure clasped tightly under 
 his arm ; the door was slammed to; there was a shriek of a 
 whistle, and the train began to move; finally came a flutter- 
 ing of handkerchiefs so long as a certain window remained 
 visible. Then Jess turned away. 
 
 " I'm going back to the house with you, Jessie," said the 
 councillor. "You and your mother will be a wee thing dull 
 after so much excitement; and 1 just mean to take the privi- 
 lege of an old friend to intrude on you."
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX 
 
 FOREBODINGS 
 
 Here surely was an idyllic scene : a silvery lake stretch- 
 ing far away to the south — the ruins of an ancient castle on 
 a solitary island — a fisherman standing up in a drifting boat, 
 and leisurely sending his line out and on to the quiet ripples 
 — his sole companion (for the boy at the oars need not be 
 counted) a beautiful young creature seated in the stern, whose 
 pensive dark-blue eyes had wandered off from the book lying 
 idly in her lap. An all-pervading silence was in the soft sum- 
 mer air ; if a heron made its heavy flight from one promon- 
 tory to the next, it was on slow-moving and noiseless wings. 
 
 "Come, now," said the school-master to Barbara, who had 
 spoken hardly a word during the last two hours. " You'll do 
 yourself a mischief if you go on in that wild way, Barbara. 
 Your high spirits will be the death of you. When you keep 
 up such a rattle of laughing and joking, it is just bewildering 
 to the brain." Then of a sudden he changed his tone. " But 
 really now — tell me the truth, Barbara — do you really find it 
 dull here ?" 
 
 " There is nothing to see," she said. 
 
 " Gracious heavens !" he exclaimed. " Nothing to see ! 
 All around you lies one of the most beautiful lochs in Scot- 
 land ; over there is the Pass of Brander ; yonder is Kilchurn 
 Castle ; and above you are the slopes and peaks of Ben Cru- 
 achan. Plenty of folks would tell you that Loch Awe is 
 about as near to fairyland as anything you could find on the 
 face of the earth — " 
 
 " I do not understand the need of living in a farm-house," 
 she said, rather sulkily, " when we have a better house of our 
 own that we could live in." 
 
 He was so astonished that he forgot to recover his line ; 
 the flies began to sink in the water.
 
 332 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "Do you mean that?" said he. "Would you rather go 
 back to Duntroone now ?" 
 
 " Yes," said she, curtly. 
 
 " Well," he proceeded, after a moment, "people may won- 
 der at our cutting short our honey-moon almost before it has 
 begun ; but, indeed, it is none of their business. And there's 
 a great deal to be done to the house yet ; and I have some 
 literary work I should like to begin hammering at." He was 
 slowly reeling in his line now. " Maybe I have not been 
 quite considerate, Barbara. Of course you could not be ex- 
 pected to interest yourself in trout-fishing — " 
 
 " What is the use of catching fish that no one thinks of 
 eating?" she answered him. 
 
 He was taking off the casting-line to wind it round his cap, 
 for the better drying of the flies. 
 
 " Yes, there's always common-sense in what you say, Bar- 
 bara — always common-sense in what you say. And I should 
 have remembered that you might tire of a quiet place like 
 this. You like looking at people. Well, we'll pack up and 
 be off the first thing to-morrow morning. And you'll get on 
 with the decking out of the house ; and I'll take to my 
 
 books." 
 
 And thus it was that, to Jessie's great surprise, when she 
 was least expected, Barbara walked into the shop. 
 " Have you quarrelled already ?" said .less, laughing. 
 
 "Oh no; but I was wearied of sitting in a boat and doing 
 nothing," answered Barbara. "And there are a number of 
 things wanted for the house yet — 1 have a list here — will you 
 come with me, Jessie, and help me to choose them?" 
 
 " If you are going to make your purchases in such fine 
 dot lies as that, Barbara," said Jess, regarding her cousin's 
 showy attire, " they'll he charging you the highest prices 
 everywhere." 
 
 "There is little advantage," retorted Barbara, with a slight 
 
 toss of her head, "in having nice things and putting them 
 
 awaj in a drawer instead of wearing them." 
 
 Je - was never very anxious to have the last word ; her sole 
 
 reply was to go and fetch her hat and jackel ; and together 
 the two cousins set, forth on their expedition. 
 
 Now all through the furnishing of the house in Battery
 
 FOREBODINGS 333 
 
 Terrace, Jess Maclean had "been the chosen adviser of the 
 young couple ; and lucky it was for them that she could spare 
 the time ; for Barbara's ideas were of a large and liberal 
 order; while Allan — always shy in money matters — was 
 simply unable to deny his betrothed anything. Generally 
 speaking, when Barbara's childish love of finery and display 
 was like to have led them into serious extravagance, some 
 compromise was effected more in accordance with the school- 
 master's limited means. But on this particular morning Bar- 
 bara, now armed with the authority of a wife, seemed to 
 know no restraint ; whilst Jess, finding her remonstrances un- 
 heeded, became frightened at her own complicity. 
 
 " Barbara," she said, on coming out of one of tbe shops, 
 " are you sure your husband would like your opening ac- 
 counts in that way ?" 
 
 " It is impossible to carry money in your pocket to pay for 
 all these things," responded Barbara, at once. 
 
 " I know there is nothing he abhors so much as debt," Jess 
 ventured to say. 
 
 " Every one thinks that the classes will be growing bigger 
 and bigger," Barbara made answer. 
 
 "But they are not meeting just now ; and there is no in- 
 come from them — " 
 
 "And that is why the people can put the things down in a 
 book ; and then, when the classes meet again, they will be 
 paid." 
 
 "I hope at least you will tell Allan," Jess once more vent- 
 ured to say. 
 
 " Whether I tell him or whether I do not tell him is of 
 little matter — he has tbe use of the things I am buying as 
 much as any one else." And with that Jessie's protests were 
 for the moment dismissed. 
 
 By this time it was nearing a quarter to one, and Barbara 
 said she would like to go into the railway station, to call at 
 the book-stall. 
 
 " The book-stall !" repeated Jess, with some surprise. 
 
 " I was reading," her cousin explained, " that if you wish 
 to make a parlor or drawing-room look homelike you should 
 put two or three of the illustrated papers about, and I may 
 as well get them when I am here."
 
 334 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 She got the papers, and had them rolled up ; hut when she 
 came out of the station again she said, 
 
 " Now we will go along to the South Pier and cross the 
 bay in the Aros Castle.' 1 '' 
 
 " It will be quite as quick to walk back," Jess pointed out ; 
 " and you are not half through your list yet." 
 
 "But I would rather cross over in the steamer," she said, 
 impatiently ; and of course a young bride, petted and spoiled 
 by every one, expects to have her own way ; Jess smiled as- 
 sent, said " Very well," and accompanied her — not knowing 
 what all this might mean. 
 
 She was soon to learn. For no sooner had Barbara got on to 
 the upper deck of the Aros Castle than she began to give her- 
 self airs of ostentation ; she affected great gayety of spirits ; 
 and whenever the purser, in the pursuance of his duties, hap- 
 pened to pass by, she would manage somehow or other to be 
 talking of the house in Battery Terrace. 
 
 "Can you see the curtains in the windows, Jessie?" she 
 would say, as if she were oblivious of everything around her, 
 and all intent upon straining her eyes towards the distant villa. 
 " Maybe red is easier seen than anything else. Or maybe it 
 is because Battery Terrace is above the smoke of the town 
 that you can make out things or guess at them. 1 am going 
 to have lace curtains up as well, when I have time. But the 
 red looks very well, when you are passing along the Ter- 
 race." 
 
 Ogilvic paid no heed to her. lie had greeted Jess Mac- 
 lean when she came on hoard; Barbara he had ignored alto- 
 gether — he did not even raise his ( iap. Whether or not he sur- 
 mised that be was being "talked at," he looked sullen and 
 annoyed. 
 
 But she forced him to take notice of her. For when they 
 bad crossed the hay and were approaching the North Tier, she 
 v rut boldly Up to him. 
 
 " Mow much for my cousin and me ?" she said; and she 
 produced her parse, and took out from it a sovereign. In 
 doing so she could hardly help displaying not only her wed- 
 ding-ring, but also the keeper-ring with its rosette of gar- 
 nets. 
 
 " Oh, nothing, nothing," he answered her — but his lace had
 
 FOREBODINGS 335 
 
 flushed red with vexation. For this was an open insult. She 
 knew as well as he that there was no recoo-nized charge for a 
 mere passage from pier to pier ; again and again on former 
 occasions he had asked her to accept the few minutes' sail as 
 a compliment. 
 
 " I wish to pay," she said, coldly, and she offered him the 
 sovereign. 
 
 Anger burned in his eyes. 
 
 " I have not enough change," he said, shortly, and he turned 
 on his heel and left her. When the gangway was shoved on 
 board, Barbara was the first person to go on shore, and she 
 certainly had a proud and erect carriage. Jess followed — 
 with some vague, half -alarmed notion that in the circum- 
 stances silence was best. 
 
 It was about eight or ten days thereafter that Allan Hen- 
 derson went down to call on Mr. McFadyen. The servant- 
 maid who opened the door told him that her master was in 
 the yard behind ; so he passed through the house, and found 
 himself in a large open space, the farther end of which was 
 occupied by massive stacks of coal, while at the nearer end 
 appeared a smart little greenhouse. But it was the group in 
 front of him that caused Allan's eyes to open wide ; for here 
 was the chubby councillor standing in front of a large horse 
 — a great, big, rawboned creature, with prominent knees and 
 shaggy pasterns — while hanging by was a long, loutish lad who 
 had the appearance of an ostler's apprentice. 
 
 " It's a present, what d'ye think !" said McFadyen to his 
 visitor, as he contemplated with a curious expression of face 
 this uncouth quadruped and its rusty saddle and bridle. 
 " Dod, I think I could have done without it ; but, ye see, 
 Mrs. Dugald up at the Rinns she declares that the beast is 
 no manner o' use to them now since her husband died ; and 
 she cannot bear to sell it, for it's an old favorite. Well, if I 
 have to pay for its keep, I must make some use of the creat- 
 ure ; and at present I am getting the stable-lad here to bring 
 it along for an odd half-hour nows and again, so that I can 
 practise mounting and dismounting. Man, it's grand exer- 
 cise ! — just famous! — and I tell ye I'll soon be a dab at it. 
 See this now — " 
 
 He boldly advanced to the animal, and, without bothering
 
 33G HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 about the reins, lie twisted a tuft of the mane round the fin- 
 gers and thumb of his left hand ; then he managed, with a 
 little difficulty — for he was a short man and rather corpulent 
 — to get his left foot in the stirrup ; with a clutch at the 
 cantle and a spring from his right foot he rose in the air ; 
 there was a moment of dreadful suspense ; and then, with 
 a brief but frantic effort, he succeeded in throwing his leg 
 over, while the protuberant part of his person, coming in 
 contact with the pommel, prevented his pitching forward and 
 down the other side. He was quite proud of the perform- 
 ance. 
 
 " Dod, 1 tell ye it's a grand exercise !" said he, sitting 
 serene and happy in the saddle." "It's fifty times better than 
 twirling round a wooden bar. It's just splendid for the 
 liver I" 
 
 And then he clambered down. And then he sprang and 
 clambered up again ; and all the while the patient brute only 
 turned its head occasionally to see what was going on — never 
 once did its ears fall wickedly back, never once did its hind 
 heels lash out. Probably in its day it had beheld many strange 
 things, the meaning of which had never been very clear to its 
 poor old brain. 
 
 But at this point a stranger appeared on the scene, coming 
 out from the house and bringing with him a tripod, a box, 
 and a Mark cloth. At sight of him the councillor, even in 
 his pride of place, seemed to be a little uncomfortable — he 
 even Mushed somewhat. 
 
 "Ye'll not he thinking," he said to Allan, "that I want a 
 
 photograph to show about and pretend I am a great horse 
 
 man. No, no; hut what I say is that a man cannot: have any 
 idea of what, he looks like on horschack — it's impossible for 
 him to tell what appearance lie makes— until he has a, photo- 
 graph taken. Then he sees. Maybe his figure does not suit 
 
 the hark of a horse ; and if that is so, it's hettcr he should 
 he aware of it, and take to slioe-leat her again. So yr'll mil, 
 mind, Allan, my lad, waiting for a minute or two longer ; I'll 
 he with you directly; it's a quiet heast- — there'll he no troii- 
 
 ble." 
 
 There was no trouble. The sober-minded animal stood as 
 if it wen of bronze ami set up In a public s<jiiare ; Mr. Mck.nl
 
 FOREBODINGS 337 
 
 yen, for all bis professions of modesty, maintained a lofty and 
 commanding attitude ; the photographer got through with his 
 work quickly; and then, as the ostler-lad came forward to the 
 horse's head, the councillor dismounted, and ushered his visi- 
 tor into the house. 
 
 " And how are ye at home, Allan ?" he asked, cheerfully, as 
 he threw open the parlor door. 
 
 " That's what I have come to speak to you about," the 
 school-master made reply, " if you can give me a few mo- 
 ments." 
 
 " Sit down and light your pipe, then ; I hope ye've the best 
 of news," Peter observed, as he drew forward a chair and put 
 the tobacco-canister on the table. 
 
 But the school-master did not light his pipe. He seemed un- 
 usually grave and concerned ; and his eyes were bent on the 
 floor. Presently he said : 
 
 "Maybe you could tell me this, McFadyen. If you've been 
 paying the premiums on a life-insurance policy for a number 
 of years, what proportion of the paid-up money would the 
 company give you back if you offered to surrender the pol- 
 icy ? Have you any idea ? This is how the thing stands : 
 ten years ago I took out a policy — no great amount either — 
 but I thought, if anything happened to me, it might make up 
 to the old folk a little of the cost of my schooling and class- 
 es ; and I've sent in the premiums regularly. And now I've 
 been wondering how much they would return me if I banded 
 over the policy — " 
 
 " Man alive, what ye are talking about?" exclaimed the coun- 
 cillor, with open indignation. " You, in your position, a 
 young man just married, to be thinking of giving up your 
 life policy — aye, when you should rather be thinking of doub- 
 ling it ! I'm just astonished to hear ye ! And why come to 
 me ? I'll tell ye the one that has the first right to be con- 
 sulted — I'll tell ye the one that has the right to forbid ye — 
 and that is your young wife. Ask her, and she'll soon stop 
 ye from any such preposterous madness." 
 
 Allan did not raise his eyes from the floor. He merely 
 said, in a resigned sort of fashion : 
 
 " It's on Barbara's account that I am asking. Of course the 
 policy belongs to her now ; and she would rather have the 
 15
 
 338 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ready money — at least I gather as much. Yon see," he con- 
 tinued, and he looked up with some air of apology, " she has 
 a fine courage of temperament. She is not nervously anxious 
 about the future. And she's young — she likes to make much 
 of the present hour — " 
 
 McFadyen appeared to be wholly dumfounded. 
 
 "It's madness — it's sheer madness!" he reiterated, with 
 unmistakable conviction. " To sacrifice such a safeguard 
 for the trifling proportion they would return ye! And what 
 does she want the money for? Bless me, what does she 
 want the money for? But no — it's not my business to 
 inquire." 
 
 The school-master rose from his chair and began to pace 
 slowly up and down the room, his hands behind his back, his 
 brow contracted. 
 
 " There are strange things in human nature," he said, in a 
 half-absent kind of way, " and one has to make allowances. 
 And perhaps it's not so difficult to understand how a girl 
 brought up as she was at Knockalanish, and coming to a 
 place like Duntroone, should have her brain turned a little 
 bit — for the time being — for the time being, I mean. Dun- 
 troone must have seemed a rich and splendid place to her ; 
 and perhaps it was but natural she should wish to dress with 
 the best of them, and have as fine a house as others. She 
 is by nature fond of pretty things. showy things; and it 
 is hard to refuse her, when you see her as proud of her 
 finery as a child mighl he. I'm not complaining. No. As 
 for myself, I could willingly live on oatcake and water — but — 
 hut I could not ash her to do that— 1 could as soon think of 
 ashing her to sell those hits of ornaments and trifles she's so 
 fond of— " 
 
 " What does it all mean, Allan ?" cried the older man, in 
 something like consternation. "What has happened? Are 
 ye not seeing your way quite clear before ye }" 
 
 "Tin' way char hefore me?" said Allan, suddenly stopping 
 short in his nervous pacings to and fro. "God help us all, I 
 see nothing hut ruin staring us in the face!" And then he 
 checked his vehemence. "No, no; I should not say that. 
 Maybe ii is onlj temporary; her head is turned a little just 
 for the time being; maybe her own good sense will show her
 
 FOREBODINGS 339 
 
 that we cannot go on as we are living at present. But it is a 
 terrible thing to have to remonstrate — " 
 
 "And it is a dangerous thing to come between husband 
 and wife," said Mr. McFadyen, " even with the best inten- 
 tioned of advice. But yet — yet I'm not such a coward as to 
 keep silent altogether ; and I tell ye, Allan, that to give up 
 your life policy would be most unjustifiable — would be down- 
 right wicked. It's on her account I speak. It matters nothing 
 to you — only that a man does not like to think that his wife 
 will be left penniless in the case of anything happening to 
 him. And that's what I maintain — I maintain it — that you've 
 no right to sacrifice such a safeguard, I don't care for what 
 purpose — " 
 
 " In any case," said Allan, as he took up his hat again, 
 " you seemed to think the commutation would be but a small 
 affair ?" 
 
 " That's my impression — but small or large is not to the 
 point," McFadyen insisted, as he accompanied his visitor to 
 the door ; and he was still reiterating his emphatic counsel 
 when Allan, with many thanks, bade him good-bye. 
 
 But events were now about to happen that speedily put the 
 question of the insurance policy out of the school-master's 
 mind.
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 It was next day about noon that Jess, hearing some slight 
 noise in the front shop, rose from her seat in the parlor and 
 stepped forward. She found Niall Gorach awaiting her. 
 
 "And what do you want now, you rascal?" she said, in 
 her usual light-hearted fashion. "You are the fine one in- 
 deed — promising to give me a sight of the white stag in the 
 Creannoch Forest — " She paused for a second ; there was 
 something uncanny about the appearance of the half-witted 
 youth ; his eyes seemed starting out of his head. " What is 
 it, then ? Have you seen a warlock ?" 
 
 "It's the other one," he blurted out at last. "The black- 
 haired girl — that was living here — " 
 
 "Do you mean my cousin Barbara?" said Jess. 
 
 " Aye, just that — and — and they've tekken her away to the 
 polus-offus." 
 
 "Oh, what are you havering about?" said Jess, good- 
 humoredly; she was stooping to get some books out of a 
 drawer, and not paying much heed to him. 
 
 " As sure as death — as sure as death !" Niall eagerly pro- 
 tested, now lie had found his tongue. "They were tekken 
 her down the street — a polusman on one side, and — and — 
 McLennan's shopman on the other — and they were going to 
 the polus-offus — " 
 
 Jess regarded him more seriously. 
 
 " If you're telling me a story, Til give it to you I" said she. 
 " Bat maybe some one has been stealing from Barbara's new 
 
 house; and I'd better go along and see what is the matter. 
 An \ |nite certain now they were going to the police- 
 office?" 
 
 •• As uie as death- I wass seeing them myself!" the lad 
 insisted; ami therewith Jess stepped into the back parlor,
 
 IN PERIL 341 
 
 told her mother that she was going out for a few minutes, 
 and, slipping on some slight articles of attire, she left the 
 shop. 
 
 Quickly, but with no great alarm in her heart, she went 
 along the front of the harbor, crossed over by the railway 
 garden-plots, and approached the police-station. There was 
 no sign of Barbara anywhere about. She hesitated for a min- 
 ute or two, looking up and down ; but this small thorough- 
 fare, lying somewhat back from the rest of the houses, was 
 wholly deserted ; and so at length, overmastering a curious 
 kind of reluctance, she forced herself to ascend the few 
 steps, and entered. She found herself in a large, gaunt, bare 
 apartment, the walls placarded with notices and regulations, 
 a wide counter shutting out the public, a desk behind, and 
 seated at the desk the sergeant in charge. He was a little, 
 grizzled-haired man, with a sharp, observant, birdlike eye. 
 
 " Has my cousin Barbara been here ?" said Jess. " That's 
 Mrs. Henderson, the school-master's wife — " 
 
 " Aye ; and she's here now," was the laconic answer. 
 
 " Here ? Where ?" 
 
 " In the cells." 
 
 " What is't ye mean ?" cried Jess — but rather faintly ; and 
 her face had grown suddenly pale. 
 
 The officer glanced mechanically towards the folio volume 
 lying open on the desk beside him. 
 
 " She's charged wi' theft," said he. 
 
 " But — but it's a mistake !" Jess exclaimed, hurriedly. 
 " And — and you'll let her come away with me now ; and if 
 there has been a mistake, my mother and me will pay what- 
 ever is wanted. She's a young lass; she's not used to the 
 ways of a town ; and we will have it all put right before her 
 husband can hear anything about it. Whei;e is she ? Can I 
 see her? You will let her come away with me, and my 
 mother will make sure that no one is wronged, even if there 
 has been a mistake — " 
 
 The sergeant, as it chanced, was no ill-conditioned jack-in- 
 office ; besides, he kneAV the Macleans quite well by sight. 
 And this young woman who now addressed him had pleading 
 gray eyes and a soft and conciliatory voice. 
 
 " You should get an agent," said he ; " that's the first thing
 
 342 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 to be done. And in the meantime you can see your cousin 
 now, if you wish — " 
 
 " And she will come away with me," interposed Jess, 
 quickly, " before any one is told — before her husband can 
 hear anything about it ?" 
 
 There was a shake of the head. 
 
 " No, no ; not that way. The charge has been made 
 against her. There'll have to be the declaration diet as soon 
 as possible ; and both the sheriff-substitute and the procu- 
 rator-fiscal are in the town ; there's no need for delay. But 
 you should get an agent, Miss Maclean ; that's the first 
 thing—" 
 
 " And Barbara — can I see her now ?" 
 
 He turned to a constable that was standing by, and said a 
 word or two to him. 
 
 " If you will follow this officer, he will take you to the 
 cells," he said to Jess — and thereupon he raised a portion of 
 the counter to let her pass through. 
 
 It was hard on Jess Maclean that she had had no oppor- 
 tunity of preparing herself for this interview. All the cir- 
 cumstances were a bewilderment to her ; she only knew 
 vaguely that something terrible had occurred that must at any 
 hazard be concealed from the proud and severe school-master; 
 Barbara, poor lass, had got into this incomprehensible trouble, 
 but surely there was still a chance of spiriting her away he- 
 fore the neighbors' tongues began to wag? And yet when 
 Jess, following the constable, stepped out into the excrcise- 
 vanl of the prison, a cold chill struck at her heart. It was a 
 dismal, deserted-looking place, this cindered court open to the 
 sky and enclosed by lofty and Sombre walls; and again, when 
 
 she regarded the long, low, gray building in front of her, she 
 perceived a series of small, isolated, high windows barred 
 across with iron bars. She guessed thai Barbara was behind 
 one of thesi — the poor, flattering wild-bird from the distant- 
 islands that had come wandering hither to this Borry doom. 
 
 Nevertheless, Jess was in no OVer-piteOUS and tremulous mood. 
 I'.\ this time she had Strung herself together. It was rescue 
 she was bent on — ere Allan COUld hear of what had hap- 
 pened. 
 
 The oilier who led the way rang a bell ; and the door was
 
 IN PEK1L 343 
 
 opened by a big, burly, good-natured-looking man in uniform, 
 who proved to be the warder. Almost before he was told 
 he seemed to divine the mission on which Jess had come ; 
 and at once he called his wife, handing her his bunch of keys. 
 Presently Jess found herself being conducted by this woman 
 along a narrow, dimly lit, stone-paved passage, on one side of 
 which were several doors, each marked with a number, and 
 each furnished with a small square aperture covered with a 
 flap, as well as with a still smaller eye-hcle commanding the 
 interior of the cell. There was not a sound — not a sob nor a 
 groan — to tell which of those silent and unknown cavities 
 contained a broken human life. 
 
 At length the warder's wife stopped ; she inserted a key 
 into a large iron lock and undid the heavy bolt ; and the next 
 moment Jess beheld in front of her a small, bare, oblong 
 chamber, at the farther end of which, in the dusky twilight, 
 and seated on a transverse bench, was a crouching and down- 
 cast figure, that made no sign whatever even at this abrupt 
 interruption. 
 
 " Barbara !" she cried, and she flew forward, and went down 
 on her knees, and took her cousin's hand in hers. " What is 
 it ? What has brought you here ? What is the mistake 
 about ? Tell me — and we will get it cleared up at once. And 
 maybe you would rather I did not send for Allan — just as 
 you like, Barbara — " 
 
 A shiver seemed to run through the girl's frame. 
 
 " No, no — not him — not him !" And then she looked up 
 strangely and fearfully. " Jess, what will they do to me ? — 
 what will they do to me? Will Ogilvie get to hear of it?" 
 
 " I wonder you should think of Ogilvie," said Jess, almost 
 indignantly, " in trouble like this ! What concern has he 
 with you, or with us? But they're saying I should employ 
 an agent for ye — and maybe he will get everything put right 
 before any one knows of it. And you have not told me yet 
 what the mistake was all about, Barbara; how did you come 
 here ?" 
 
 Barbara was trembling from head to foot now ; and her 
 head was bent down. 
 
 " It was in McLennan's shop," she said, in a low and heavily 
 breathing voice. " It was a blouse — a silk tartan blouse —
 
 344 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 and they were saying I took it — l>ut — but it fell from the 
 counter. And then there was the policeman ; they brought 
 him in. What will they do, Jess ? — what will they do to me ? 
 And will Ogilvie hear of it ?" 
 
 " Oh, put Ogilvie out of your mind !" said Jess, as sharply 
 as she could find it in her heart to speak to this hapless creat- 
 ure. " Have ye not Allan to think of first of all ? And then 
 my mother — what will she be saying, that has held up her 
 head high enough all her life long? But never mind, Bar- 
 bara ; I'm going now to get the agent; maybe I'll no be long 
 before I'm back. You see, they'll not let me take you away 
 home just at once ; but the agent — surely the agent will man- 
 age it — and nobody be any the wiser. So I'll not tell Allan ; 
 and I'll not tell your auntie, either ; my word, my word, if 
 she was to hear of this, I'm thinking Mr. McLennan would be 
 getting his kail through the reek, as they say in the south ! 
 So keep up your heart, Barbara — keep up your heart, lass ! 
 and never you think about Ogilvie — there's others that's 
 more to be considered than him." 
 
 And then and swiftly Jess left this dreadful nightmare of 
 a place, and sped away through the town, until she came to 
 the offices of Grant & Lawrie, solicitors. She was fortunate 
 enough to find the senior partner, who was a friend of Mrs. 
 Maclean's, in his rooms; and forthwith she told her story. 
 
 "And will you get her out at once, Mr. Grant J" said she, 
 gazing anxiously and earnestly at this tall, thin, sandy-haired 
 man, whose quiet, attentive, steel-blue eyes seemed to respond 
 so coldly to her urgent prayer. "The sergeant at the police- 
 office he was say inn" something about the sheriff and the 
 fiscal; but Barely there's no need of that, when the mistake 
 can be explained ! The tartan blouse fell from the counter ; 
 and maybe they thought she had laken it; but she will tell 
 
 yon what really happened; and — and if there's anything to 
 my mother and me we will gladly pay it." In spite of 
 If some moisture gathered about her lashes; and she 
 
 covertly put up her hand to remove the glistening drops. 
 
 " I only £8 10*., Mr. Grant," she went on. " I know that, 
 
 for Barbara was telling me about the blouse a week or two 
 
 ago; and my mother would rather pay the money — aye, many 
 times over — than have any disgrace come upon Allan — "
 
 IN PERIL 345 
 
 " There's no disgrace at all if she can be proved innocent," 
 the lawyer interposed. 
 
 " But there is — there is !" said Jess, passionately. " There 
 will be all the people talking — and think what that would 
 be to one that's as proud and sensitive as Allan Henderson. 
 And the young lads at the classes, they will be speaking 
 among themselves. Mr. Grant, can you not get her away ? 
 Never mind what money it will be ! — " 
 
 The long, hard-visaged lawyer slowly rose from his chair. 
 
 " Just rest ye where ye are, Miss Jessie," said he, " for a 
 few minutes ; and I'll step along and see the fiscal." 
 
 So Jess was left alone in this musty-smelling chamber, with 
 its rows of japanned tin boxes. The solitary window looked 
 to the back ; and there were the steep slopes behind Dun- 
 troone, with their terraced gardens and an occasional walled- 
 in villa. She saw a summer-house, too ; and a young mother 
 seated in front of it, knitting ; while a small boy of five or 
 six, to whom she called from time to time, trundled a toy 
 barrow up and down the gravel. There were some people 
 who seemed to have never a care. 
 
 By-and-by she heard a sound of footsteps on the staircase 
 without, and her heart began to beat rapidly ; but when the 
 door was opened she perceived that Mr. Grant had returned 
 as he went, unaccompanied. 
 
 " Where is she ?" Jess demanded, breathlessly. 
 
 " In about an hour's time," responded the lawyer, as he 
 leisurely resumed his seat, " or maybe less, she will be taken 
 before the sheriff, for declaration. I will be there to look 
 after her — " 
 
 " Could not I be with her, too, Mr. Grant ?" Jess put in. 
 " She's used to me ! She'll be terrified going before all these 
 people by herself. Will you let me go with you, Mr. Grant?" 
 
 " Impossible," was the answer. " The proceedings are 
 private— and quite simple. There will be nobody present in 
 the sheriff's room but the sheriff himself, his clerk, the pro- 
 curator-fiscal, your cousin, myself, and a constable or two. 
 And I will strongly advise her to say nothing at all. She 
 will merely have to sign the declaration." 
 
 " And she's not coming back home now V cried Jess. 
 " When, then— when ?" 
 15*
 
 346 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " I can apply for liberation on bail, if you wish " — Jess 
 eagerly assented — " and if the fiscal does not oppose, then 
 we could find caution for her to appear at any diet she may 
 be cited for — " 
 
 " Caution -money ? Yes, yes, surely that! — there's my 
 mother — and Mr. McFadyen, that's ever been a good friend 
 to us — and Mr. Stewart, of the Steam-Packet Company — " 
 
 " But I am afraid, Miss Jessie," the lawyer continued, bend- 
 ing grave eyes on her, " that your desire to keep all this hid- 
 den from your cousin's husband will not answer. I certainly 
 think he ought to be informed — " 
 
 " But if Barbara is let out on bail," said Jess, in this last 
 extremity, " could we not manage to get everything settled 
 without its coming to his ears at all? Why should he be 
 told ? He can do no good. You will be there to look after 
 her, Mr. Grant — " 
 
 There was little further time for argument; the solicitor 
 had to return to attend to the interests of his client. Nor 
 would Jess remain longer in this solitary room ; she said she 
 would rather go and wander about until she could meet him 
 in front of the Courtdiouse, to learn the result of his applica- 
 tion for bail. And indeed, when she had parted from him 
 outside the office, she neither knew nor cared in which direc- 
 tion her steps were turned. Blankly she gazed at the traffic 
 going on in the harbor; at the steamers coming and going; 
 at the shifting glooms and splendors that filled the world. 
 For this was one of those rare days on this windy and change- 
 able coast — a day of slow moving sea-fog ; and while for a 
 lime the silent white mists would come mysteriously creeping 
 ii]) the Sound of Kenara — obliterating headland after head- 
 land, hiding away the boats in Ardentrivc Day, and gradually 
 Bmurring and blotting out craft lying still nearer at hand, so 
 that amid the prevailing gloom stretching all around ope 
 waited to feel the fust tingling touch of the rain — none the 
 less would the interfusing sunlight begin stealthily and im- 
 perceptibly to declare itself again, the floating vapors would 
 roll themselves into softly rounded clouds, until here and there 
 a per ,,f calm blue sea would reveal itself, with the white 
 sails of a schooner or cutter reflected on the perfect azure 
 plain. It was all like a dream, like a vision, to Jess; the
 
 IN PERIL 347 
 
 real thing she saw before her eyes was a narrow cell, a 
 dusky figure downcast and shuddering, and a small barred 
 window that seemed to shut out hope as well as the light of 
 heaven. 
 
 Then, long before the appointed time, her unconscious steps 
 led her along to the Court-house ; and there she waited. The 
 first person who came down the wide stone stairs was Mr. 
 Grant himself. 
 
 "But where is she?" demanded Jess, in accents of surprise 
 and reproach. 
 
 " She has been taken back to the cells," he answered her, 
 with just the least touch of embarrassment. " The fact is, 
 there are some peculiar features in the case ; and the procu- 
 rator-fiscal — well, he rather opposed the application for bail; 
 and the sheriff declined. But it's of little consequence, Miss 
 Jessie ; we must just do our best for your cousin, and help 
 her to clear herself of the charge ; and in the meantime you 
 cannot do better than let her husband know — " 
 
 "But — but what is to happen next?" said Jess, in blank 
 dismay. 
 
 " There'll be the trial," said the lawyer, not quite meeting 
 her eyes. " First of all there will be the Pleading Diet, six 
 days hence ; and then the trial by jury, nine days after 
 that—" 
 
 It seemed to Jess as if Barbara were being inexorably 
 withdrawn from them ; as if she had been grasped in iron 
 clutches ; as if barriers, far more terrible than those across 
 the small window, were being interposed between her and her 
 friends. And now there remained nothing but for Jess to go 
 away back to the shop, to let her mother understand what 
 this was that had befallen them. 
 
 " Mother," she said, at the door of the parlor — and she 
 appeared to speak in almost a light-headed way — "you 
 and I — we have had many years together — with very little 
 trouble. There's been many with far more trouble and suf- 
 fering — and sorry enough we have been if we could not help. 
 And now — now that we may have to take our share — like the 
 others in the world — well, we must not repine too much — and 
 — and we must face whatever is before us — " 
 
 The little widow had risen from her seat ; it was not like
 
 348 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 the gay -hearted Jess to be talking in this half -hysterical 
 fashion. 
 
 " What is it, Jess ?" 
 
 Then Jess told her tale. But the widow, when she had 
 heard the news, so far from being frightened, was moved only 
 to violent anger and indignation. 
 
 "It's a conspiracy — I tell ye, it's a conspiracy amongst 
 them, Jess," she exclaimed, " to drag down our name into 
 shame and disgrace ! "What harm have we done to any o' 
 them ? And yet I can see it — first this one and then that — it's 
 McLennan now ; but how long ago is't since it was Boyd the 
 jeweller — Boyd that came out of his shop and accused one 
 of my girls of stealing a brooch from him ? — I declare to ye 
 it's a conspiracy to bring disgrace on us, Jess — " 
 
 Nay, it was not the widow, it was Jess herself, who now be- 
 trayed a sudden alarm. 
 
 " Mother, mother, what are you saying ?" she cried. " I 
 thought that was all forgotten — forgotten by every one but 
 me. And forgotten it must be by you now ; there must 
 be no word of it ; do ye understand ? Do ye understand, 
 mother?" she went on, earnestly. "There must be not a 
 word of that to any living soul. For there may be suspicion 
 on every side now ; and hunting up of by-gone things; you 
 would not injure Barbara, would you, mother, by speaking 
 indiscreetly ? We must be watchful and careful — and — and 
 help Mr. Granl every way we can; and maybe he'll be able 
 to get all of us — Allan, and Barbara, and ourselves — out of 
 this sore trouble." 
 
 "Ave, and ye say that Allan has not been told yet!" her 
 mother proceeded. "And who is going to tell him, then ?" 
 
 Jess said nothing ; she turned her eyes towards the floor, 
 and sonic slight color suffused her check. 
 
 "There's just none but yourself, .less, and that's the truth," 
 her mother said. " YVre such fl wise kind of creature ; and 
 Allan will pay heed to you when he would not listen to any 
 one of i he rest of us. Will ye go up to Battery Terrace, .less }" 
 
 " If you like, mother," she answered, .after a moment's hesi- 
 tation. And presently she had set forth again — her eyes still 
 downcast — for she had to consider, with some trembling appre- 
 hension, how she was to carry ihis message to the school-master. 

 
 CHAPTER XLI 
 HUSBAND, "WIFE, AND FRIEND 
 
 When Jess went np to Battery Terrace, and asked if the 
 school-master were at home, she was at once shown into the 
 front room ; but nevertheless she paused at the half-opened 
 door ; for she perceived that Allan, up by the window, was 
 pacing to and fro, apparently in great agitation, while he looked 
 from time to time at a letter he held in his hand. Then, when 
 he became aware of her presence, he said hurriedly, and in 
 something of a broken voice : 
 
 " Is't you, Jessie? Aye, aye, you're always at hand to help 
 when there is trouble. And you'll look after Barbara — I cannot 
 imagine where she has got to — but you'll find her, and tell her 
 I had to leave for Glasgow by the four-thirty train. Read this 
 letter, Jess — read it. Did you ever hear anything so pitiable ?" 
 
 He handed her the double sheet of paper, and abruptly 
 turned away towards the window. It was strange to find the 
 usually stern and proud school-master so bereft of self-control. 
 Then her eyes followed the feeble, sprawling caligraphy that 
 rambled across the blue pages : 
 
 " Glasgow, 48 Hamerton Street, Tuesday Morning. 
 "Dear Old Chap, — This is my last message to you. I'm done. 
 And yet it should be a message of congratulation ; moriturus te 
 saluto ; I heard from Tom Dallas all about your wedding; and 
 just about the same time I read your quarterly article, and I 
 called out to yon 'Bravo!' in a fit of coughing, and drank 
 your health in a table-spoonful of doctor's stuff. But did not 
 I always say it, when we were at college together, that you were 
 one of the strong ones, one of the lucky ones ? and now that 
 'you've taen the high road, and I've taen the low road,' all I 
 can send you as a legacy is my share of the grand things we 
 used to talk about and purpose doing.
 
 350 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 "Last night, in the middle of the night, in the darkness — 
 with just a wee bit blob of red light at the tip of the gas-burn- 
 er — I made these verses; and I thought them fine ; for through 
 the gloom I could see the dear old island, and the running seas 
 all round it, and the white skies. Fine enough, I thought them, 
 ' to mak a body greet,' almost, when you're lying alone in the 
 dark and thinking of what you'll never see again on this earth. 
 Here they are : 
 
 11 In Colonsay my heart remains! — 
 Colonsay, ah, Colonsay ! 
 My weary lieart that went from me, 
 And fled afar across the sea, 
 Where the ivild gulls are fleeing free 
 By Colonsay, ah, Colonsay! 
 
 " And here am I with many pains ; 
 
 Colonsay, ah, Colonsay! 
 The heavy footfalls in the street 
 Scarce heavier than my pulses beat; 
 The louring heavens the house-tops meet; 
 
 Colonsay, ah, Colonsay ! 
 
 " The people traffic in their gains ; 
 Colonsay, ah, Colonsay ! 
 Dear God, this is my only cry: 
 Shoio me but once before I die 
 The long white Bands — the silver sky — 
 Colonsay ! — loved Colonsay ! 
 
 But now when I look at them — as you will be looking at them 
 — in the cold and unsparing daylight — I can see well enough 
 what they are: not an atom of spunk in them — no more than 
 there is left in myself — nothing but a sick, tired, aimless cry. 
 And yet what I've been thinking is: If my old chum Allan 
 Henderson would only say to himself — 'Mir triiumt: icfa bin 
 der liebe Gott.' Do you understand, Allan? Will you take 
 me to Colonsay ? — there'* the question, with its bold face of 
 brass. The doctor talks about Torquay — he might as well talk 
 about Terra del Kuego ; I've neither the means, nor the strength, 
 nor the desire. My old grandmother, the last of the stock, sin; 
 still pretends t<> have faith in drugs and nursing; but, Tin far 
 past all that. No, there's only one thing left me to wish for in 
 this world ; and if you, my old friend, would come through to
 
 HUSBAND, WIFE, AND FRIEND 351 
 
 Glasgow, and if you would take me down to Greenock, and 
 carry me on board the Dunara Castle, and maybe you would go 
 as far as Colonsay with me, and help me out there, and lay me 
 down on the sands, so that for a few minutes I could see the 
 clear water again, and the white clouds, and smell the peat-reek 
 coming along from the cottages — aye, just for five minutes — 
 then I would lie down and shut my eyes, and trouble no one 
 any more. You need not think I am any weight to carry now ; 
 and you were always the best of us at the gymnasium ; you 
 would have nothing to lift along the gangway but a rickle o' 
 banes. Will you do it, Allan, lad — for the sake of old times — 
 and let me shut my eyes in peace — " 
 
 She did not need to read any further ; she knew what had 
 been demanded of him ; she saw how all the old comradeship 
 was calling upon him to respond to this piteous cry of despair. 
 
 " Well indeed I am sorry for the poor man," said she, gen- 
 tly ; but he broke in upon her in an excited sort of way. 
 
 "They're often mistaken — the doctors are continually mis- 
 taken," he said. "Consumption is especially deceptive; I've 
 known most remarkable recoveries. And who can tell — if I 
 could get poor Alec taken away back to the island air — and 
 the sweet milk and potatoes — and hearing his own tongue 
 spoken around him — " 
 
 "But just now, Allan," said Jess, timidly regarding him, 
 " your duty lies nearer at hand — " 
 
 And then, with her eyes anxiously watching him, she told 
 him in a roundabout way of what had happened. At first he 
 hardly seemed to follow her, so intently was his mind preoccu- 
 pied with that pitiful sick-bed iu Glasgow ; but at length he got 
 to understand that some incomprehensible mistake had been 
 made, and that Barbara had actually been arrested, and was now 
 locked up in one of the police cells. 
 
 "Yes, yes, it is as you say, Jessie," he answered her. "I 
 cannot go to Glasgow. We must look after Barbara first, and 
 get her out of this extraordinary mishap. And will you come 
 down to the police-station with me, Jessie — you seem always to 
 know what is the best thing to be done." 
 
 She assented at once ; he went and fetched his cap ; and to- 
 gether they left the house. And even now he said something
 
 352 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 about the Glasgow train — showing that certain of his thoughts 
 were still drawn away towards the dim sick-room and his dying 
 friend. Then, by some effort of will, he seemed to recall himself. 
 
 "Tell me, Jessie, what this frightful blunder is all about; 
 what is it they accuse Barbara of stealing?" 
 
 "It's a blouse in tartan silk," Jess made answer; "and I can 
 see very well how the error may have arisen. For Barbara was 
 speaking to me several times about that blouse ; she had a 
 great fancy for it ; the Royal Stewart it was, and very pretty 
 in the silk ; and if she had asked them to show it to her again, 
 and if she was getting other things, then what more likely than 
 that it might have been dragged away by her sleeve, and might 
 have slipped off the counter, and fallen on the floor — " 
 
 " It is simply inconceivable that she should try to steal it or 
 want to steal it !" he exclaimed. " Simply inconceivable ! Even 
 if it were in her nature to covet and steal, where could the ob- 
 ject have been? She has had everything she could think of — 
 nothing grudged her — why, it was only yesterday that I was 
 asking Mr. McFadyen if I could commute my life-insurance 
 policy just to leave her a little more free in her expenditure. 
 She is fond of finery — we all of us know that; and fond of ap- 
 pearances — well, who was ever blaming her? It always seemed 
 to me a pretty kind of thing to see her decking herself out — 
 a kind of childish vanity that was harmless enough; and there 
 was no one checking her and finding fault with her, so that she 
 should take to secrecy or underhand ways to appease this inno- 
 cent craving. Jessie, it is not believable ! If she had come to me 
 I would have bought the silk tartan blouse for her — aye, even 
 if I had to sell the half <>f my books." 
 
 "Poor girl I" said .less. "To think she'll have to be in that 
 terrible place for two whole weeks yet before she can be proved 
 innocent and set free !" 
 
 They went down through the town; and Jess Maclean had 
 
 got into a way <>f regarding the passers-by furtively and mis- 
 piciously — as if wondering whether they knew. It was not like 
 Jess; but she seemed already to feel that some black shadow 
 <>f disgrace hung over her and hers, no matter what the jury 
 rnighl Bay. And she did not talk much to Allan; these present 
 « vents were too serious, too tragic, to admit of idle gossip, or 
 even of make-believe professions of assurance and confidence.
 
 HUSBAND, WIFE, AND FRIEND 353 
 
 Jess and her quiet and simple straightforwardness had found 
 favor in the eyes of the superintendent ; when she and her com- 
 panion entered the police-station he at once called a constable, 
 and bade him conduct the visitors through to the cells. The 
 warder's wife also proved to be friendly ; as soon as she had 
 gone along the narrow corridor, and turned back the heavy bolt, 
 it was clear that she meant her espionage to be entirely per- 
 functory; while Jess, with just as little mind to be a spectator 
 of the meeting between husband and wife, remained with her, 
 trying to frame an indifferent sentence or two. Allan advanced 
 into the cell alone. 
 
 And yet there was no wild scene : Barbara did not spring to 
 her feet and rush into her husband's arms, eager to seek shelter 
 there from all the perils that encompassed her. Nay, when she 
 saw who this was, she rather cowered away from him, until he 
 went forward, and sat down by her, and took her hand in both 
 of his. 
 
 "This is a sad affair, Barbara," he said to her, gently, "but 
 we will soon get you free, and no great harm done. And did 
 you not tell the McLennan's people they were making a mistake? 
 Or maybe it was this way — maybe you were frightened — and 
 not quite so quick with the English as the Gaelic — and very 
 likely they would put a wrong construction on your confusion 
 and alarm. But I will point all this out to Mr. Grant; you 
 were bewildered for the moment, no doubt; and not ready with 
 an explanation in English — " 
 
 She appeared hardly to listen. 
 
 "Is Jessie there?" she said, in a low voice. 
 
 "She is just outside the door — with the woman that has the 
 keys," he answered her. " But you can tell me anything you 
 like, Barbara — they are not hearkening — " 
 
 " I want Jess to come in," she said. 
 
 He rose from the bench and went to the door. 
 
 "Jessie," he said, " will you go to her? She wants you. 
 And you know better than I what to say." 
 
 For a second Jess Maclean seemed to hesitate; it was like 
 an intrusion between husband and wife ; but the next mo- 
 ment she had stepped into the cell, while Allan shyly lingered 
 without. 
 
 " Now you'll be of better heart, Barbara !" said she, cheer-
 
 354 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 fully. " You'll be of better heart now, with your husband 
 come to stand by you." 
 
 " lie was not so angry as I expected," the girl responded, 
 without raising her eyes. 
 
 " Angry ? Who thought he would be angry ? Who gave 
 him the right, to be angry? That is a fine thing to think of! 
 Are we angry with any one that has a slate fall on him from a 
 roof, or that is knocked down by a runaway horse? Angry 
 because of an accident J It is hardly a time to be angry ! No ; 
 but I am sure of this, that he is very, very sorry, as we all are ; 
 and every one of us will be doing our best to make amends to 
 you, Barbara, when once we have got you set free, and the 
 sooner that hour is here the better !" 
 
 Barbara remained silent for a little while ; then she said, in 
 an undertone : 
 
 " Will the people be coming into the court when there is the 
 trial ?" 
 
 " I suppose so," said Jess, doubtfully. " I'm not sure — I 
 will ask Mr. Grant; but I think any one can come in that 
 likes." 
 
 " And they will be looking at me," said Barbara, with a kind 
 of shiver. "Jessie, could you be with me? Would they let 
 you do that? Could you come and sit with me?" 
 
 " If there's any one to be by your side, it ought to be your 
 husband — " 
 
 " No, no — you, Jessie !" she said, hurriedly. " You. Could 
 you come here for me, and go into the court with me, and 
 stay by me? I am frightened, Jessie — and the people will be 
 staring ; but if you wcie with me, it might be different — a little 
 different And did you say any one that liked? Any one? 
 Mr. McKadycn, maybe?" 
 
 " And if lie did," said Jess, warmly, " be sure he would come 
 as a friend !" 
 
 "Ave, him ; but there might be others — there might be 
 others not so friendly ; others may be glad to sec you in such 
 a po ition." She glanced towards the partly -opened door. 
 '•.!■ »," she said, in a whisper, "do you think — Ogilvic — will 
 be among the people in the court ?" 
 
 And Jess also glanced quickly towards the door; happily she 
 could hear that Allan was talking to the warder's wife.
 
 HUSBAND, WIFE, AND FRIEND . 355 
 
 " I wonder at you, Barbara !" she said, under her breath. " It 
 is not of Ogilvie you should be thinking- at such a time !" 
 
 Some few minutes thereafter Jess Maclean and Allan left to- 
 gether ; and there was little speech between these two — there 
 was none at all on the part of Jess, indeed ; for her latest inter- 
 view with Mr. Grant, the solicitor, had aroused in her certain 
 strange misgivings that for the present at least she kept reso- 
 lutely locked away in the unconfessed recesses of her mind. 
 But as they crossed over by the railway station, there was some 
 slight disturbance — one or two laggard travellers hurrying to 
 the ticket-office, the half-past four train for the South being 
 just about to start. 
 
 " Poor Alec MacNeil !" said the school-master, in an absent 
 kind of fashion. " But I will telegraph to him. And if every- 
 thing is going well with Barbara, then maybe after all I'll be 
 able to run through to Glasgow, and see if I cannot get him 
 taken away to his beloved Colonsay." 
 
 And Jess — whose first thought was ever and always for him 
 who was at this moment her companion, and for his lonely life, 
 that now seemed to be lonelier than it had ever been before — 
 Jess said, in quick communing with herself : 
 
 " A good thing. For if this matter goes ill with Barbara — 
 if the worst should come to the worst — it will be some distrac- 
 tion for Allan that from time to time he must needs keep 
 thinking of his distant friend."
 
 CHAPTER XLII 
 
 THE PLEADING DIET 
 
 Dark and sinister rumors and exaggerations of rumors went 
 flying through Duntroone with regard to the unhappy young 
 woman now under arrest; and while the friends and acquaint- 
 ances of Mrs. Maclean indignantly scouted these fatuities, they 
 nevertheless rather refrained from looking in upon Jess and her 
 mother; to offer sympathy in present circumstances might 
 prove to he invidious; on the other hand, when the verdict of 
 acquittal had heen pronounced, they could come forward to 
 tender their congratulations without reserve. The little widow 
 said nothing, hut she was well aware of this temporary deser- 
 tion; occasionally, when she thought nobody was by, a tear 
 would trickle down her cheek; and the small, well-worn Bible 
 that she kept in the back parlor now frequently took the place 
 of the county paper. Once, when she had been summoned 
 across the way, she left the volume open on the table ; and, 
 when she bad gone, Jess slipped round to see what passages 
 her mother had been communing with. These were the verses 
 that caught her eye: " Cast me not off in the time of old age; 
 forsake me not when my strength failcth. . . . For mine ene- 
 mies speak against me ; and they that lay wait for my soul take 
 counsel together, . . . Saying, God hath forsaken him : perse- 
 cute and take him ; for there is none to deliver him. . . . O 
 God, be not far from me; O my God, make haste for my 
 help." 
 
 Not that all her neighbors held aloof. One morning Long 
 Lauchlan, the shoemaker, called, stepped into the parlor, and, 
 unasked, took a scat. 
 
 "I am sorry, Mrs. Maclean," said he, in English, "for the 
 trouble, that has come upon your niece Barbara. Aye, I was 
 jist fearing something of the kind might, happen. For when 
 her father's funeral was getting near to the cemetery at Knock-
 
 THE PLEADING DIET 357 
 
 alanish, there was a black collie ran right across the road in 
 front of us ; and we couldna put down the coffin from our 
 shoulders to chase after the dog and get him killed ; and when 
 we came out again we could not see the beast anywhere; and 
 more than one was saying, ' Well, until that dog is killed there 
 will be ill-luck for the family of poor Donald Maclean.' That's 
 what they were saying; and that is what has come about. But 
 we must jist do for the best ; and it's me that's wishing to help ; 
 and when the poor lass is brought to the trial — well, I would 
 like to be a witness to character." 
 
 " You, Lanchie V 
 
 " Aye, me," continued Lauchlan, detecting no surprise in the 
 widow's tone. "And you would be astonished, Mrs. Maclean, 
 if I was telling you the proportion of Rechabites there is to the 
 people of this countryside. And do you not think that out of 
 the fifteen jurymen there will be three or four Rechabites? — 
 aye, and mebbe the chancellor of the jury himself? Then they 
 will see me — and I hef been made a Guardian of our Tent — I 
 am an office-bearer." 
 
 " I'm sure I'm glad to hear of anything that keeps you from 
 the whiskey, Lauchlan," said the widow, absently. 
 
 "Me! — Mrs. Maclean! — the whiskey ?" ejaculated Lauchlan, 
 sorely hurt. " I wonder you would say that ! Mebbe in for- 
 mer days I might tek a glass when they were hard at me and 
 forcin' me to it; but now — now — ah me, my good friend, I wish 
 I could get ye to understand what a perfect heaven upon earth 
 the strict teetotalism is ! It is so, indeed ! Aw, but it's sweet, 
 sweet, to rise in the mornin', and there's no thirst in your 
 throat, and there's no fearful seeckness in your inside, and 
 your head as clear as a bell ; ye must try it — I'm sure ye 
 would be thanking me if ye'd only try it, Mrs. Maclean." 
 
 " Haud your haverings !" said Jess, breaking in angrily. 
 " My mother's as temperate as any one in Duntroone, and far 
 more than most." 
 
 But Lauchlan shook his head in a despairing way. 
 
 "She doesna belong to the fold yet. There's ahlways the 
 fear of backsliding. I hef myself seen a bottle standing on 
 that very table now before me. And at the wedding — there 
 was sad doings at the school-master's wedding — I sah the 
 glasses and the bottles spread out — fearful, fearful."
 
 358 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " We've a great many things to think of at present, Mr. 
 Maclntyre," said Jess, sharply. 
 
 " Aye, jist that," responded Lauchlan, with good-natured ac- 
 quiescence, and he rose from his chair. " Ye'll not forget, 
 then, Mrs. Maclean, that I'll be a witness to character, if the 
 lawyers want me. Ye see, I'm in an official poseetion now. 
 And there's sure to be some Rechabites on the jury — mebbe 
 the chancellor himself. Well, good-bye to you ; and to you, 
 Miss Jessie ; and I am hoping there will be good-luck at the 
 trial, in spite of the black dog that ran across the funeral at 
 Knockalanish." 
 
 But the one friend who at this crisis stood indefatigably and 
 assiduously by them was distinctly the town-councillor. Mr. 
 McFadyen, eager, important, restless, buzzed about the little 
 parlor, and hurried along for consultation with Mr. Grant, and 
 hurried back ; and all his talk was as of one learned in the law ; 
 he fairly astounded the women with his display of legal knowl- 
 edge : about the precognitions of the witnesses — the warrants 
 for citations — lists of articles labelled and to be produced — ser- 
 vice copies of indictments — pleas admitted in bar of trial — ob- 
 jections to relevancy of the libel — and so forth ; and Mrs. Mac- 
 lean, if she did not quite, or even half, understand, was at least 
 profoundly grateful for his intervention and championship. 
 Jess, on the other hand, silent and watchful, began to suspect 
 that a good part of this brave magniloquence was used as a 
 cloak of concealment, lie could not, for example, be brought 
 to give them precise details of the story told by McLennan, 
 the draper. He would rather come back to the mere mech- 
 anism of the trial ; and above all, he would insist that neither 
 mother nor daughter should go to the Court-house on cither 
 of the two days. 
 
 " What could you do?" he said, addressing himself especial- 
 ly to the widow. "The Pleading Diet in particular is a mere 
 matter of form. Barbara will simply have to say she is Not 
 Guilty; and then she will be taken back to the cells, to await 
 tie' real trial. There'll be no jury for you to look at, to see if 
 there might he a friend or two amongst them. And forbyc 
 that, Mrs. Maclean, Vta sure ye would just be shocked and dis- 
 tressed beyond measure at the commonplace, ordinary, business- 
 like character of the whole proceedings. You would think the
 
 THE PLEADING DIET 359 
 
 people so heartless. And so they are, and necessarily so ; the 
 law is a machine of cogs and wheels and levers ; and it turns 
 out this, or turns out that, without caring a straw. Dod, I tell 
 ye the fellows can sign away a poor creature's life just as if it 
 was a barrel o' raisins — " 
 
 " Mr. McFadyen," said the widow, " where will they put my 
 poor lass? Where will she be, when she comes before all the 
 people I" 
 
 Mr. McFadyen was silent for a second, and his face burned 
 red ; none the less he was equal to the occasion ; he managed 
 to answer her without mentioning the word " dock." 
 
 " Oh, well, Mrs. Maclean, it's this way," he said. " She'll be 
 in what you might call the well of the court ; Mr. Grant will 
 be there, and the fiscal, and the sheriff-clerk at the table ; and 
 if she is in a kind of pew by herself, you see that is like the 
 jury — they have boxes for themselves along one side of the 
 central square. It's the sheriff who is the big man ; he is up 
 on the platform — " 
 
 " She'll not be in a prison-dress ?" asked the widow, with 
 troubled looks. 
 
 At this the councillor laughed, strenuously and stormily. 
 
 " Prison-dress !" he said. " In the eye of the law she is as 
 innocent as you or me! Prison -dress indeed! The only 
 prison-dress ye're likely to see about anywhere in Duntroone 
 the now is the over-all Johnnie Stevenson has for saving his 
 clothes up on the links ; and indeed an angry man at golf is 
 the better of some such covering, when he's striking and 
 smashing half the county of Argyll into the air." 
 
 At length the morning arrived on which Barbara was to ap- 
 pear in court for the first time ; and at an early hour Jess stole 
 away up to the house in Battery Terrace. During these past 
 few days she had been in the habit of paying hidden little 
 visits, especially at such times as she thought the school-master 
 was likely to be absent, so that she could see that things were 
 being properly looked after. But on this occasion, when she 
 had finished with the maid-servant, she sent word to Allan to 
 apprise him of her being there; and as soon as he had made 
 his appearance the two of them set out together, making down 
 for the town. And very speedily she discovered that her 
 companion was bitterly impatient over the law's delay.
 
 360 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " What is the object of all this tomfoolery ?" he demanded. 
 "The prisoner should be allowed to plead 'Guilty' or 'Not 
 Guilty ' when the first declaration is made ; and the case 
 brought for trial directly — or with a fair time for getting the 
 witnesses together. Just think, Jessie, of these days and days 
 going by ; and poor Alec MacNeil in his lonely lodgings, won- 
 dering why I do not come for him. Of course, I could not 
 tell him the real reason. He would not believe such a story. 
 Do you remember, Jess? — he was accusing me of being one of 
 the lucky ones ! Ah, well ; perhaps some night he may fall 
 asleep ; and when his eyes open, they may find before them 
 shores whiter even than the shores of Colonsay — " 
 
 " Allan," said Jess, after a moment, " could I not be of some 
 use? Could I not go through to Glasgow ? My mother knows 
 the captain of the Dunara Castle very well ; and if I could 
 get your friend that is so ill taken as far as Greenock, then I 
 am sure he would want for nothing in the way of kindness — " 
 
 "Ah, no, no, Jessie," he said, hastily. "That is where I 
 would like to be myself — giving poor Alec a last chance; but 
 y OU — you must be here — we could not be without you here ; 
 when Barbara wants anything done for her, it is you that she 
 asks for. And I do not wonder — I do not wonder." 
 
 They were now nearing the Court-house; and as Jess 
 Maclean's quick and apprehensive scrutiny told her that there 
 were certain idlers gathered about the entrance, scorn and 
 black hatred burned in her heart, and were only too visible in 
 her eyes as well. 
 
 "The dolts!" she said, between her teeth. "Have they no 
 work to do, that they must come to stare at a poor creature in 
 distress !" 
 
 Hut the school -master took no heed of these people — no 
 more than if they had been empty wheelbarrows and pickaxes 
 cumbering the highway, lie Went by them unnoticing; he 
 ascended the wide, hollow-sounding, stone steps; he entered 
 the lofty, bare-looking hall ; and took one of the nearest scats, 
 making room for Je8B beside him. Here, also, two or three 
 spectators had assembled; but they were mostly strangers; 
 for the rest, Lauehlan the shoemaker had come along, in his 
 Siiml.n clothes; and from one of the farthest back benches 
 the elfin eyes of Niall Gorach glowered and twinkled.
 
 THE PLEADING DIET 361 
 
 At this moment the well of the court, the dock, the witness- 
 box, the jury boxes, and the raised platform on which stood 
 the sheriff's chair of office and his desk — all these were as yet 
 empty; the business of the day had not begun. And it may 
 be said that the appearance of this provincial hall of justice 
 did credit to Duntroone ; the pew-like benches and the wood- 
 work generally were of polished and shining pitch-pine; the 
 walls and roof were bright and clean ; there were tall and well- 
 proportioned windows looking both to the south and west ; 
 and if most of these windows were dimly blinded over, at least 
 one of them gave a view of the clear outer world — beyond the 
 roofs of the huddled houses was yisible the distant azure sweep 
 of Ardentrive Bay, above that again were the sunny slopes of 
 Kerrara, and over these the pale-blue mountains of Mull, those 
 of them that lie about Loch Speliv and Loch Don. 
 
 But presently this one and that of the officials began to 
 come in, making for their accustomed places by the central 
 table: the sheriff -clerk, the procurator -fiscal, the agents, and 
 the like; while Peter McFadyen, after a final word with Mr. 
 Grant, slipped into the pew next the dock, taking his seat by 
 the side of Allan Henderson. Jess was trembling a little. 
 She seemed to know that the eyes of the people behind her 
 were directed to a certain door in front of her — over by the 
 corner of the hall ; and she also was listening for footsteps. 
 What the lawyers in the well of the court were doing mattered 
 nothing to her. She was half afraid to find Barbara appear. 
 Would there not be some terrible reproach — some accusation 
 even — in the mute glance of the prisoner? For they had re- 
 ceived this poor lass in charge, when she was left destitute out 
 in the far island ; and was this what they had allowed her to 
 come to? 
 
 Then her heart stood still. The red pine door at the cor- 
 ner was opened. A policeman led the way. Next came 
 Barbara; and at the first glimpse of her Jess thought she 
 looked fearfully ill ; but was it not that her eyes, grown ac- 
 customed to the gray twilight of the cell, were partly blinded 
 by this unexpected glare? She followed obediently, and was 
 directed into the dock; and if, during these few yards, she had 
 managed to take some brief and shuddering survey of the peo- 
 ple assembled, it was done so swiftly as to escape notice. 
 1G
 
 362 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Her eyes appeared to be fixed on the ground as she passed in 
 to occupy the chair awaiting her. She remained with her 
 head bent down. She seemed to pay no attention — to make 
 no effort to understand all tins that was going on in court; 
 the various formalities — the questions put and answered — the 
 business-like, half-apathetic conversation between the prosecu- 
 tion and the defence. 
 
 But of a sudden the strangest thing occurred. Her eyes 
 must have been wandering a little, however coweringly and 
 fearfully ; they must have been attracted to the window that 
 gave a view of the shimmering blue sea, and the yellow slopes, 
 and the pallid azure mountains of Mull; and to this poor im- 
 prisoned creature a sight of the far hills was as the sound of 
 the Alphorn to the Swiss soldier in the Strassburg trenches. 
 She uttered a piteous little cry. Involuntarily she stretched 
 forth her hands, and she would have risen from her seat and 
 made in some wild way for that vision of the shining free 
 world without. 
 
 " Let me go !" she exclaimed, in a panting, half-choked voice 
 that thrilled those who heard. " Oh, let me get out — let mo 
 go!" 
 
 Jess could not reach her ; Peter McFadycn was bewildered, 
 and knew not what to do ; it was Mr. Grant, her agent, who 
 stepped quickly across from the table, and put his hand gently 
 on her shoulder. 
 
 "Be still — be still now!" he said in a low and persuasive 
 voice — for the shcrifT, in all the severe majesty of wig and 
 gown, had had his attention attracted by this slight disturb* 
 ance, and was now regarding the prisoner curiously. " We 
 will do our best to get you out. Indeed, indeed we will. You 
 must just sit quiet, and attend to anything that may be asked 
 of yon. And when you are called on to plead, you know what 
 you have to say." 
 
 And so she withdrew her hopeless eyes from the warm 
 splendor of that outer world; she sank into her seat again; 
 and resigned herself to what was going on. But she did not 
 seem to comprehend, any more than hitherto, what that was; 
 and they did not bother her very much; when she was called 
 upon to plead "<iuilty or Not Guilty," she succeeded in utter- 
 ing the two words required of her, and these were forthwith
 
 THE PLEADING DIET 363 
 
 recorded by the clerk. By-and-by the policeman at the end of 
 the dock opened the small door and intimated to her that she 
 was now to leave ; his brother officer, who had been standing 
 just behind her during the proceedings, prepared to follow ; 
 and, thus escorted, the prisoner moved away out of the sight 
 of her friends, disappearing down the narrow stone staircase 
 communicating with the yard and the cells. 
 
 Jess and Allan Henderson descended together into the front 
 street. 
 
 " Jessie," said he, " do you not think I might go through to 
 Glasgow now? You see how aimless all this routine is; and 
 there is nothing further to be done until the jury trial — when 
 they will pronounce her innocent, and set her free. I can be of 
 no use. On the other hand, the cry of a dying man rings in one's 
 ears — an appeal from a death-bed is not to be thrust aside." 
 
 " Poor Allan !" said Jess. " I can see how you are torn two 
 ways." She hesitated for a moment. " But maybe — maybe 
 it would be safer for you to ask Mr. Grant. He might wish 
 to consult you. Then if there's nothing more to be done 
 about the witnesses — then you might hurry through to Glas- 
 gow, and at least show to your friend that you were not heart- 
 lessly neglecting him." 
 
 A stealthy step came following her : she was touched on the 
 arm. 
 
 "You need have no fear," whispered the crouching Niall 
 Gorach ; and he spoke eagerly in the Gaelic tongue. " It is I 
 that will get her out of the prison this night. As sure as the 
 Good Being is above us, I am telling the truth. And the 
 Selma — the Selma will be leaving the North Quay at eight 
 o'clock to-morrow morning for Tobermory and the outer isles ; 
 and will you be there to take your cousin down into the cabin, 
 so that no one will see her?" 
 
 Jess turned to the loose-witted youth. 
 
 " What cantrip is this now, Niall ?" said she. It was no 
 time for folly ; and yet she could not bring herself to speak 
 harshly to the lad. 
 
 But already Niall had left her side ; he was making across 
 the highway towards Long Lauchie — towards Lauchlan the 
 regenerate and respectable, who was walking solemnly home- 
 ward in his Sunday clothes.
 
 CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 A BREAKING AND ENTERING 
 
 But Long Lauchic was obdurate. Uc refused to listen to 
 these mysterious and insidious hints ; he forgot all about old 
 alliances and adventures; nay, from the lofty heights of his 
 new-found virtue he sternly admonished this gangrel-youth. 
 
 " What are you growing up to?" said he. " It's the gallows 
 will be the end of you — I'm sure of that. No lessons like any 
 other lad — no apprenticeship to any decent trade — hiding and 
 jinking about the country like a gypsy — " 
 
 " If we could get the black-haired lass out of jail," said Niall, 
 with his eyes burning eagerly, "and sent away by the steamer 
 to-morrow morning, it's Mrs. Maclean and Jessie Maclean would 
 be fine and glad of that. But it would need a great deal of 
 thick twine — a fearful lot — and rosin — " 
 
 "Away now!" said Lauchlan, scowling. "I'll have nothing 
 more to do wi' you and your tricks. I tell ye, it's the gallows 
 will end you — son of the devil that you arc!" 
 
 Well, Niall was in nowise cast down ; his discursive wits 
 were nimble, and had already contemplated many alternatives; 
 he would manage to get cord and twine somehow. And in 
 the meantime he drew away from these straggling groups of 
 people ; he left the town by the Soroha road ; and at last, w hen 
 lie had got up on the summit, he clambered over a wire fence 
 and entered a plantation of young larch and fir. Amongst the 
 thick undergrowth he searched for and found a worn and tat- 
 tered game-bag that he had hidden there on the previous day; 
 and with this in his band he crept still farther into the twi- 
 light of the wood, and disappeared. 
 
 It was a long while ere he returned to the fence; and the 
 first objects that caught his sight were three children returning 
 from school — an elder girl of thirteen or so, and two younger 
 ones. As they came up, he stepped out into the roadway.
 
 A BREAKING AND ENTERING 365 
 
 "Daftie! daftie !" called one of the small imps — and ran 
 away laughing ; while the other one, half giggling and half 
 frightened, as quickly ran after her. This behavior on the part 
 of her charges seemed greatly to shame and annoy the elder 
 girl, who was a quiet, wise-like little woman of fair complexion 
 and timid, large blue eyes. 
 
 " You've been at the school I" said Niall to her. 
 
 "Yes," said she, still blushing hotly over the misconduct of 
 her companions. 
 
 " Mebbe you can write ?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " That's a strange thing, now," continued Niall — " a wonder- 
 ful strange thing that you can put words down on paper and 
 tek them away, and they are as good as a message to any one. 
 Will ye show me, now? — will ye show me how ye do it? See, 
 here's a piece of paper — and mebbe you've a pencil — let me 
 see you write what I will tell you, and when I get to Duntroone 
 I will be asking them if they can read it." 
 
 Perhaps the small lass felt that she owed him some little 
 piece of civility ; at all events, she brought out her pencil and 
 wrote for him the words he dictated, which were these : " If 
 you can use the file, at the window or the door, and get into the 
 yard, you will find a rope hanging over the wall." 
 
 "But that is silliness," said she. "No one will understand 
 that." 
 
 "Aw, it will do very well," said Niall, in an off-hand fashion. 
 "I am sure I am wishing I could write myself." And with 
 that he folded up the bit of paper and put it in his pocket, 
 leaving the small maiden to continue on her way and overtake 
 her companions — whom she probably slapped well for their im- 
 pudence. 
 
 Niall's next encounter was with Lucais fiar-shuileach — that is 
 to say, cross-eyed Luke — the keeper, who was coming along 
 with a brace of setters at his heels. 
 
 " What's in your bag, Niall ?" he called out. " After the 
 young black game, you scoundrel?" 
 
 "Oh no, Mr. Innes, I would not do that; there's nothing 
 but sticks," said Niall ; and of his own accord he opened the 
 large and ragged bag. 
 
 But the keeper was not suspicious. Niall was an old ac-
 
 3G6 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 quaintance and dependant of his, receiving from him many an 
 odd job in the shooting season ; for among all the youths and 
 lads about there was none so indefatigable in beating through 
 the woods as Niall Gorach. And on this occasion Niall had 
 not lied ; the bag was really half filled with sticks ; the only 
 thing was that if Lucais fiar-shuileach had been a little more 
 particular in his examination he would have perceived that 
 these pieces of wood were carefully cut about the same length, 
 and that each had a notch incised at the middle. The squint- 
 eyed keeper resumed his march, carelessly whistling the praises 
 of the Lass of Loch Etive ; while Niall, shouldering his bag 
 again, proceeded down the hill, until he neared the swampy 
 morass lying at the back of the town. 
 
 Now all round this neighborhood there is a wide tract of 
 land chiefly given over to the goods department of the railway 
 — detached wooden sheds, sidings for trucks, and the like, oc- 
 cupying the loose space in a kind of promiscuous manner; 
 while generally there arc one or two of the clerks or porters 
 coming or going, because of the short-cut to the next platform. 
 Accordingly, Niall Gorach made his way across this outlying 
 suburb without attracting any particular attention ; nor did any 
 spying gaze follow him as he drew nearer and nearer to the 
 wall surrounding the exercise-yard of the police prison. Ar- 
 rived there, his movements were rapid; for he at once pro- 
 ceeded to get the sticks out of the bag, placing them in little 
 bandfuls along the base of the wall, where they were effectually 
 screened from view by the rough herbage — docks, sorrels, rag- 
 wort, and so forth — that grew luxuriantly about. Curiously 
 enough, in this place of coverture there was also a long row of 
 stones of considerable size that had apparently been carefully 
 secreted there; indeed, if these stones had been sufficiently 
 dark to resemble coal, any inquisitive passer-by might very war- 
 rantably have imagined that this youth was bent on some daft 
 project of setting the whole of the police buildings on fire. 
 However, Niall, having deposited these pieces of wood behind 
 the tall weeds, slung his bag over his shoulder, and, with an 
 apparently vacuous look on his face, set out for the back street 
 in Dlintroone that afforded him a small den of a lodging. lie 
 bad first of all to get some scrap of food, and then to wait for 
 the night.
 
 A BREAKING AND ENTERING 367 
 
 But it was a long waiting at this time of the year. The 
 evening and the sunset came together — a fiery sunset that 
 burned fierce and wild behind the Mull and Morven hills; then 
 that was succeeded by a clear and lambent after-glow, in which 
 the plum-hued mountains became dark and vaporous. Ten 
 o'clock arrived, and the heavens and the sea had grown to be 
 of a pale, ethereal lilac ; nevertheless, far away on the still 
 plain, here and there a small jet-black speck of a boat showed 
 no sign of returning. Niall was down on the beach now, talk- 
 ing to Angus Maclsaac ; both of them, with more or less of 
 resignation, regarding one of those distant dots. From the 
 trees below the ancient castle came the sharp, harsh cry of the 
 tawny owl, and along the higher woods in the east sounded a 
 more-protracted and softer too-hoo-hoo-hoo ! — a strange and un- 
 earthly call that found an answer somewhere in the gathering 
 twilight. The Maiden Island was of a keen and sharp-cut 
 ebony against the slow-fluctuating and visionary mists lying 
 about Lismore. A three-quarters moon had come up and over 
 the Sound of Kerrara, and underneath was a long and vivid 
 pathway of golden flame, narrowing and widening here and 
 there, until it seemed to lose itself in a sprinkled radiance 
 among the spars and rigging of the small cutters moored close 
 by. And, at last, through the magical silence, came the first 
 muffled sound of oars. 
 
 Nor yet did Niall leave his companion ; not until the smooth- 
 gliding boat had finally been brought in and hauled up on the 
 beach. Then Angus Maclsaac, his day's work over, briefly said 
 good-night, and went away home to his supper ; while Niall, 
 now deeming himself secure, made straight off for the wooden 
 house in which Maclsaac kept his dismantled craft, and also 
 his store of ship-chandlery. 
 
 This long, low shanty was erected on a piece of waste ground 
 immediately behind the Great Western Hotel; so that, when 
 Niall reached it, it was obscure and almost invisible in the gloom 
 thrown by the greater building. The half-witted lad's move- 
 ments had clearly been premeditated. From a hidden corner 
 he picked up his game-bag ; by means of the fence belonging 
 to the hotel, he easily clambered on to the boat-house. The 
 window in the roof had been left open for ventilation, and he 
 still farther opened it ; he shoved his legs and body through,
 
 3G8 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 and swung himself down inside; from the bag he took out and 
 lit a dark lantern ; and now he found himself in this place of 
 strange forms and vague shadows, with its all-pervading odor 
 of paint and tar. Then, aided by the bull's-eye of the lantern, 
 he began his eager exploration. It was cordage he was in 
 quest of — by preference cordage about the thickness of the 
 signal-halyards of a small yacht ; but it was evident that he 
 was not very scrupulous in his harryings. Cordage new or old 
 — guy-ropes, mizzen-sheets — nothing came amiss ; until, finally, 
 he sat himself down in a sheltered place behind an old boat, 
 and there, by the light of the carefully shaded lamp, he began 
 to cut all his tackle into equal lengths, firmly tying near the 
 middle of each length two of the notched pieces of stick, with 
 about a foot's width between them. 
 
 It was an arduous and tedious task; but Niall was resolute, 
 and eventually he had both of the large pockets of his game- 
 bag crammed full with those lengths of cord. Thereupon he 
 extinguished the lamp ; he slung the bag over his shoulder; he 
 mounted on the upturned keel of a boat, and managed to spring 
 cat-like to the joists supporting the roof; from thence he clam- 
 bered through the window, slid down, and dropped to the 
 ground below. 
 
 But by this time there was a white moonlight filling all the 
 world ; the esplanade was startlingly distinct, and the silence 
 was so profound that the almost glass-like sea could be heard 
 murmuring for a great distance round the smooth bays and the 
 rocks. Middle of the night as it was, Niall dared not go along 
 that exposed front, nor risk attracting the attention of some 
 stray policeman by oven the most stealthy of footfalls. By a 
 circuitous route he got away to the back of Duntroone ; he fol- 
 lowed a winding valley, and climbed up, and passed through 
 the woods of Ardconnel ; and then, cautiously descending 
 again, drew near to the environs of the goods station. Here, 
 even if he were perceived, he would not be so much remarked ; 
 In- would most likely be taken for some ollicial of the line go- 
 in^ about, his nocturnal duties. 
 
 I'n- ently, in the same furtive fashion, he had crept up to 
 
 tin lofty wall surrounding the exercise-yard of the police build- 
 ings; ami now he was tolerably safe, being i" a black shadow 
 cast by the strong moonlight. Forthwith he set to work. lie
 
 A BREAKING AND ENTERING 369 
 
 got out the long lengths of cord, and to the end of each tied 
 one of the big stones he had previously concealed behind the 
 docks and thistles. When he had a number of these engines 
 prepared, he thought he would try one ; so, getting to his feet 
 again, he took the stone in his hand and heaved it over the 
 high wall. There was but a slight noise as it fell on the ashes 
 on the other side. Then he took the hither end of the cord, 
 and began hitching with it a little, until he had got one of the 
 pieces of stick on each side of the top of the wall, which, fort- 
 unately for him, was protected neither by glass, nor spikes, nor 
 any sort of chevaux-de-frise. His calculations had been made 
 with sufficient accuracy. The near end of the cord, hanging 
 down, just about touched the weeds. 
 
 The paramount question was — how many of these stones 
 must he needs get over in order (along with the friction of the 
 pieces of wood at the summit) to withstand his own weight, 
 slight as that might be ? But then he had ravaged Angus Mac- 
 Isaac's boat-house to some purpose ; the abundance of signal- 
 halyards, guy-ropes, jib-sheets, and the like, tempted him to 
 make surer and still more sure ; until, in the end, standing up- 
 right, he began to plait and overlap these strands into some 
 rude resemblance of a cable. Thereto he was, in a measure, 
 aided by the sticks at the top ; but anyhow, if the scaling-lad- 
 der was of the simplest and most rough-and-ready description, 
 it at all events promised to bear his weight. 
 
 He pulled ; nothing gave. He hauled still more determined- 
 ly ; everything seemed secure. And then he began to ascend 
 — warily — twisting his feet round the rope — and fending him- 
 self off with knee and elbow. At first his progress was easy 
 enough ; but higher up the strain on the intertwisted cords was 
 rather bad for his knuckles ; nevertheless, the pieces of wood 
 helped ; and at length, with one hand on the smooth and coni- 
 cal summit of the wall, he managed to raise himself so that he 
 could peer over into the yard. There was no sign of life any- 
 where. The open square was of a pallid and silvery gray; so 
 was the front of the one -storied wing, the small barred 
 windows of which revealed the whereabouts of the cells; but 
 the other buildings were in an intense shadow, along which any 
 interloper might creep with comparative impunity. And now 
 Niall Gorach, grown bold, threw a leg over the wall ; and took 
 16*
 
 370 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 up his position there — with all this white and spectral universe 
 around him, with the solemn peaks of Ben Cruachan, too, ris- 
 ing into the far and clear heavens, beyond the dusky and 
 wooded bills. Perhaps he did not notice that the metallic 
 splendor of the moonlight, touching sea and cliff and house- 
 front, was already beginning to yield to a more ordinary gray- 
 ness, especially towards the east. Niall was busy. For the 
 sake of his own escape, or for tbe escape of the captive whom 
 be had come to release, he had to reverse the ingenious mech- 
 anism by which he had practically gained entrance. He had 
 to unplait the improvised rope ; with each strand he hauled up 
 a stone, to be dropped on the outer side of the wall ; and then, 
 when lie bad roughly reunited tbe cords on the inner side, and 
 made sure tbe outer weight held, he quietly slipped down the 
 cable, and found himself in tbe yard. 
 
 But now he could mistake no longer: the new day was 
 near; the cold and penetrating light was gradually dispersing 
 those sombre shadows. And how was he to tell which of the 
 row of small, barred windows was the one that held imprisoned 
 the black-haired girl? How was he to communicate with her? 
 How was he to convey to her the file, concealed in the breast 
 of his jacket, that had round it the pencilled message? He 
 could pitch the file through one of these windows easily enough; 
 but it might fall into an empty cell. Niall looked back to the 
 twisted cords: it might after ;ill be better to make good his 
 own retreat — until he should have acquired more accurate in- 
 formation. 
 
 The next moment, in the mystic hush and silence of the gray 
 dawn, there was a Bttdden rattle and clamor as of twenty parka 
 of artillery simultaneously bursting forth into roar and fiamc. 
 Niall cowered under the doorway leading to the Court-house; 
 and remained there, breathless and motionless. Presently, 
 after this loud and barsh unbolting of locks ami bars, the big, 
 stalwart warder stepped out into the open; he was clad only 
 in trousers, shirt, ami waiscoat ; he had obviously come forth 
 to have bis morning pipe in the fresh air; and he proceeded to 
 strike a match on the clay bowl. The head of the lucifer 
 dropped off ami fell at his feet; with a friendly curse he Hung 
 the stem after it; then he rummaged in his pockets — in vain ; 
 then he turned and went inside again, leaving the ponderous
 
 A BREAKING AND ENTERING 371 
 
 door open. It was Niall's opportunity — come what might. 
 He darted across the yard, and entered ; he listened for the 
 warder's footsteps ; he took the opposite direction — which led 
 him right into the corridor of the cells; and as he now heard 
 some one coming from the other end, he dodged into the only 
 corner available, which chanced to be the bath-room. Here 
 there was a vast display, not only of towels, but also of colored 
 blankets; and as these were arranged in shelves, Niall, by 
 throwing himself prone on the floor and creeping underneath, 
 found a hiding-place of admirable security. Moreover, he 
 could see what was going on without. 
 
 The new-comer who had startled him now made her appear- 
 ance ; it was the warder's wife, a good-natured-looking woman; 
 and it was in a friendly voice that she said, when she had lifted 
 the flap of the small aperture in the door of the nearest cell : 
 
 " Good-morning ! — and I hope you slept well. And I'm 
 sure Miss Jessie will be coming to see you the day." 
 
 What the reply was Niall could not hear; but this was 
 enough for him ; the black-haired lass was there — in the cell 
 close by ; and as soon as the woman was gone, what could 
 hinder his passing in the file, with its written directions? And 
 if she were but quick-brained and active, surely she could soon 
 get rid of the trifling stanchions across the window ? And 
 then the plaited rope awaiting her — and the busy day not yet 
 abroad — the fair-haired cousin looking for her down at the 
 pier — and the Sehna about to sail for the outer isles ! — all was 
 going well now, and he had done what he could to repay the 
 many little kindnesses and friendly looks of Jess Maclean. 
 
 Alas! at the very moment of success and triumph he was 
 baffled and captured — and captured most ignominiously. For 
 just as he had stolen into the corridor and was in the act of 
 raising the leather flap so that he might drop the file into the 
 interior of the cell, the warder's wife chanced to return; and 
 without any scream, but with astonished eyes, she flew forward 
 at this stranger and seized hold of him, at first by the collar, 
 eventually by the ear. 
 
 "You — you young sinner — is it you, Niall Gorach — and 
 how have you come in here? And what was that you were 
 doing ? . . . Are you there, John — John !" 
 
 In answer to the summons the bulky warder came sedately
 
 372 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 along; and when he saw who this was, he seemed inclined to 
 take a humorous view of the case. 
 
 " Well, well, you young- weasel, you have got in ; but how 
 are you going to get out? And how did you get in? Did you 
 come through the front office? For if you did, it's there you're 
 going back ; and we will see what the sergeant will be saying to 
 von. Was you ever hearing of Paul and Silas," continued the 
 warder, as he inserted his knuckles under the collar of Niall's 
 jacket — " Paul and Silas, that had many stripes laid on them 
 before they were cast into the prison, and had their feet made 
 fast in the stocks? Was it that you were after? Well, no 
 matter; we'll go and see the sergeant." 
 
 So the unhappy Niall was haled away ; and when they had 
 left the building (this time the warder took care uot to leave the 
 door open behind him) he was taken across the exercise-yard, 
 and so into the police-station. There was a constable walking 
 up and down ; the sergeant sat at his desk reading a news- 
 paper ; an old char-woman was on her knees at the front steps, 
 scrubbing the red sandstone. 
 
 "What are we to do with this rascal?" said the warder, 
 dragging his captive in with him. 
 
 The reply was unexpected. With a sudden twist and a 
 spring Niall flung himself on to the intervening counter; the 
 impetus carried him right across the smooth surface; he lit, 
 not on his head, hut on his hands — knocking over the old 
 woman and her pail; and the next instant he was up on his 
 feet, and with the speed of a hare making away for the south 
 end of the harbor, and for the crags and bushes under the 
 Gallows Bill. 
 
 " Will I run after him?" cried the dumfounded constable to 
 his Bergeant. 
 
 J 5 1 1 1 the sergeant leisurely grinned. 
 
 " Kun after Niall Gorach ? Aye. And mebbe you would try 
 to catch b Bquirrel by climbing a tree? It's the devil will catch 
 him, and no other; and I'm thinking old Beelzebub will hef 
 his hands full, when the time comes!"
 
 CHAPTER XLIV 
 ASPHODELS AND GOWANS 
 
 When the servant-lass Sarah appeared at the door of Mr. 
 McFadyen's office, and announced that Miss Jessie Maclean had 
 called, and had been shown into the parlor, the councillor be- 
 trayed an instant alarm. 
 
 "Dod bless my soul!" he exclaimed — heedless of the pres- 
 ence of his clerk. " Without the least intimation ! Is every- 
 thing trim, woman? Is everything redd-up and respectable?" 
 Then he remembered something — and his vexation broke forth 
 in vicious terms : " Ye stupid idjit, how long is it since I was 
 telling ye about the curtains and the sofa-cover ? — how long is 
 it since I bade ye take them off and send them to Perth to be 
 cleaned? But no — no !" he continued, as he hastily passed 
 his hanffs over his topmost and scant locks of hair. " Never 
 a thing done ! All ye're fit for is to stand glowering ! And 
 what on earth are ye glowering at now ? It doesna occur to ye 
 to whip off and bring in some tea? Ye never heard of such a 
 thing as tea, I suppose? Ye never saw a teapot, I'll be bound ! 
 A great, glowering baggage — a great, glowering, staring, open- 
 mouthed gowk — " 
 
 But while the councillor was excitedly and angrily dusting 
 his coat-collar with his silk pocket-handkerchief, Sarah the 
 servant-lass had with much equanimity turned away and beta- 
 ken herself to the kitchen. In her own language, she " never 
 fashed her heid about a daft man." If tea had to be prepared, 
 hurry was the most likely thing to spoil it. And the parlor was 
 just as tidy as it ordinarily was; if any one wanted it better, 
 notice should have been sent. 
 
 But the town-councillor was far from being waspish and 
 truculent when he passed through from his office to the dwell- 
 ing-house part of the premises. He welcomed his unexpect- 
 ed visitor with quite an excess of courtesy and gay gallantry ;
 
 374 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 until Jess, who was of a simple and straightforward turn of 
 mind, .rather put these unnecessary professions aside. 
 
 " Mr. McFadyen," said she, regarding him with her gray 
 eyes, " I want you to tell me: are you hiding anything from 
 us? Is the case against Barbara more serious than Mr. Grant 
 and you would have us believe? Why lias he nothing for us 
 but vague assurances that mean nothing at all ? I do not object 
 to your saying little to Allan Henderson — poor Allan ! you see, 
 he's very childish and perverse in some ways; he does not 
 understand — and will not understand; he has but the one 
 mood just now — a fuming impatience that they should be so 
 long in setting Barbara free; and when she is set free — well, 
 then, I should not be surprised if he took a thick stick in his 
 hand, and marched straight down to the haberdasher's shop, 
 and broke the stick over McLen nan's shoulders. It would be 
 just like Allan — he is that unreasoning and masterful — he 
 thinks that justice should be done somehow — " 
 
 " Na, na, but not that way !" cried the councillor, anxiously. 
 " We've had enough of cells and charges and prosecutions; I 
 tell ye I never get a glimpse o' the Court-house but a shiver 
 runs down my back. I'll be thankful for the time when we can 
 look on the whole o' this as an old story — half forgotten — " 
 
 But Jess was not to be put off. 
 
 "Mr. McFadyen," said she, " what were the things that the 
 police took away when they went up with McLcnnan's man to 
 search through Barbara's boxes and drawers?" 
 
 "Oh, well," said Peter, evasively, "a few articles — the pro- 
 curator-fiscal has them in charge, and they are all scaled and 
 labelled. Of course Mr. Grant has the right of access to them 
 — no mistake about that — he is entitled to sec the productions, 
 as they are called; but what I maintain is that, as the accused's 
 agent, he ought to have access, to the precognitions as well. 
 For I would ask ye this," continued Mr. McFadyen, gaining 
 in breath and in importance, "how are ye to meet a charge 
 nnless ye know particularly and in every point what the charge 
 is? The information that her Majesty's Advocate, the Right 
 Bonorable John Blair Balfour, puts into the indictment is pre- 
 cious little; as a friend of tin; prisoner, I want to see what 
 evidence i^ going to be led — and 1 maintain that is what the 
 law should allow inc. However, we can make a bit of a guess
 
 ASPHODELS AND GOWANS 375 
 
 here and there ; and these things ye speak of, they can help 
 too — there's the red parasol, for example — " 
 
 "Yes, the red parasol !" Jess repeated, quickly. 
 
 " Well," said Mr. McFadyen, after a moment's hesitation, 
 "they may be trying to make some idle story about that too; 
 but your cousin declares that she paid for it — and that she re- 
 members, for you gave her the money — " 
 
 " I did ?" said Jess — and for the briefest second she looked 
 utterly dismayed. But the next instant she had pulled herself 
 together. "And — and if I did — why not?" she demanded, 
 with pale lips. " It was before she was married — " 
 
 "That's just it," returned the councillor, whose pride of 
 knowledge was leading him into disclosures. " Mebbe they 
 will be trying to show that at that time she had no money to 
 afford such things — " 
 
 " But if I had ! — if I had !" exclaimed Jess, who had recov- 
 ered from her temporary trepidation. " Barbara knew well 
 enough where to come; she would not think of hesitating; my 
 purse was hers ; there was the money for the parasol, or for 
 anything else she wished, always ready for her — " 
 
 "I'm sure of that — I'm sure of that," said McFadyen. 
 "And no doubt Mr. Grant will be giving you a hint what 
 questions he will ask of you at the trial — if the prosecution 
 should chance to take that line, and if you should be wanted. 
 And you must not worry yourself or be anxious, Miss Jessie; 
 precognitions or no precognitions, we'll do our best — " 
 
 There was a tapping at the door; the large, rubicund, goose- 
 berry-eyed servant-lass appeared, and ushered in another visitor 
 — it was the school-master. 
 
 " I was told you had come here," said he to Jess, forgetting 
 to make any apology for the interruption. "And — and I have 
 but a few minutes. Will you read this?" 
 
 He put a telegram into her hand ; these were the words she 
 found before her : 
 
 " Good-bye. Not able to write. — Alec." 
 
 " You see I have no alternative," the school-master contin- 
 ued, hurriedly. " I must go through to Glasgow at once ; 
 there is just time for me to catch the train. Onlv, I wanted to 
 say a word to you, Jessie — "
 
 376 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Will you let me walk to the station with you, Allan ?" she 
 responded, promptly. "Then you can tell me on the way 
 what it is you want of me." 
 
 " Will you do that?" said he. "Aye, but you were ever and 
 always the good-hearted one !" 
 
 Jess nodded a friendly farewell to the councillor ; and the 
 next minute she and Allan were passing quickly along the har- 
 bor-front, conversing in low tones, their eyes occasionally glan- 
 cing towards the clock at the railway station. Yet it was no 
 elaborate request he had to make ; it was merely that she 
 should seek the earliest opportunity of gaining an interview 
 with Barbara, and explain to her why he had been thus hastily 
 summoned away. Also, would Jess do what she could to lighten 
 the burden of this inexplicable imprisonment? But he knew 
 she would do that — she could not help it, lie said to her — it 
 was in her nature. 
 
 She accompanied him along the platform, where the guard 
 was urging the last of the passengers into the carriages. As Al- 
 lan stepped into a third-class compartment, he suddenly paused 
 for a moment, and began to search one pocket after another. 
 
 "You've forgotten your pipe!" said she. 
 
 She saw that her surmise was true ; and in another second 
 she was off and down the platform to the tobacconist's stall, 
 where she was able — being known to the lad in chargi — to 
 pounce without question or delay on a wooden pipe and a 
 packet of bird's-eye. When she returned to the carriage the 
 train was already in motion. She banded her parting gifts in 
 at the window. 
 
 " And you'll look after Barbara ?" said he. 
 
 "That will I," she answered, "as well as I can." And she 
 waited until the slow-moving string of carriages had crawled 
 round the curve and was hidden from sight. 
 
 This was the afternoon train for the south ; and by the time 
 it, had panted and shrieked and thundered its way inland by 
 
 the shores of Loch Etive and through the PasB of Brander, the 
 wide, silver-rippling, and glancing waters of Loch Awe had be 
 gun to assume a slightly golden hue, rendered all the more 
 brilliant by being visible through the pendulous branches of 
 the birch-trees. As the evening drew on, there was up by 
 Glen Dochart and Glen Ogle a yet warmer light shining along
 
 ASPHODELS AND GOWANS 377 
 
 the shoulders and peaks of the lonely mountains ; later still, 
 the dark Loch Lubnaig, down in its hollow, had a touch of 
 crimson among the purples and grays that crept into the trem- 
 bling reeds; and still later, the brawling Leny, the widening 
 Teith, the smooth-flowing Allan Water, caught here and there, 
 from the overhanging heavens, a glimmer of saffron and rose- 
 red fire. And then, as he left behind him the last of the High- 
 land hills and Stirling rock, and as he got farther and farther 
 down into the Lowland plains, then " the sun set, and all the 
 ways were overshadowed ;" and when he got into Glasgow 
 town a pervading blue-gray mist had filled the thoroughfares, 
 and the gas-lamps were being lighted. 
 
 He did not stay to secure any lodging for himself; he made 
 straight for the address he had brought with him ; he entered 
 the dusky " close " and ascended the sombre stone stair. He 
 rapped at a door, and was referred to a floor above. Arrived 
 there, he rapped again ; and an old woman appeared, bearing 
 a candle — for now it was practically night. 
 
 " I am Allan Henderson," he said — fearing to question. 
 
 " Well, well, indeed," said the ancient dame, in an accent 
 that sounded friendly to his ear ; " he'll be glad to see you — 
 wake as he is, poor lad. Many was the times he was speaking 
 of you — aye, will you come in now — and not mek mich noise, 
 in case he is sleeping — " 
 
 He followed her into the lobby, taking his cap into his hand; 
 and then, after a moment or two of surveillance, he entered the 
 room she indicated. The eyes of the sick man — which were 
 singularly large and clear and lustrous — lighted up with pleas- 
 ure; a worn smile of welcome appeared on the white and 
 sunken cheeks. The old woman brought forward a chair; but 
 Allan went to the bedside, and took his friend's hand, and re- 
 mained standing. 
 
 "Alec, lad, this is not right — this is not what ought to be," 
 he said. " What have they been doing to you in this great 
 town? — we'll have to get you away to Colonsay, after all — " 
 
 " Sit down, old chap," said the other, in a laboring and husky 
 voice. " And do not burden your soul with lies, Allan ; you 
 never were good at it;- and you never were a good actor, 
 either. You must see I'm dying. What about that? Sit 
 down and let's have a bit of friendly confab, as in the old
 
 378 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 days. I sent ye a silly cry — man, ye should have paid no heed 
 to it—" 
 
 " Come, come, now," Allan interrupted, as he took the chair 
 that was close by. "I'll not have ye talk in that fashion. I 
 should not wonder if your own instinct was the best guide, after 
 all — that ye should be off to have a look at the seas and the 
 clouds about Colonsay — " 
 
 " No, no," MacNicl said, quietly. " The long pantomime's 
 coming to an end. The pantomime with its demons and evil 
 chances — its hopes and adventures — its sham and shimmer of 
 love business even : all coming to an end, and what one is wait- 
 ing for is the transformation-scene. And after?" For a second 
 he glanced with a curious look at his friend. But in those 
 strangely brilliant eyes there was no sort of delirium — nor any 
 trace of agitation or apprehension ; what little life was left him 
 was burning away quite clearly, peacefully, complacently. Nay, 
 there was even a frail touch of humor about the pallid lips as 
 he continued : " Mind, it may stand well with me that 1 have 
 always been respectful about the older deities: I remembered 
 Baudelaire. Heine was wise too : ' Mensch, verspotte nicht den 
 TeufeV — though maybe that's carrying prudence to an extreme. 
 Anyhow, I've always held the great old gods in high respect; 
 and who knows, when I go below, but they may let me wander 
 through the twilight in a harmless hind of way, looking at the 
 famous ghosts. The heavy-browed Homer for one — if he's 
 still blind, I could lead him about, man! — and Ulysses, still 
 thinking and dreaming about Sicily — and Achilles — Achilles, 
 sure to be weeping and bemoaning himself — would rather be 
 the slave of the meanest hind on earth than the lord of all the 
 phantom dead. But Nausicaa, now — what do you say, Allan — 
 if one were to come anywhere within sight of her playing with 
 her maidens — well, I think I might have cheek enough to step 
 forward. 1 don't think I could help it. 'Madam,' I would say 
 to her, as humbly as she might wish — ' madam, 1 am but a poor 
 b student; and yet, if you will permit me, I would like 
 Well to stand by the stream, and bring you back the ball when 
 it chances to fall in.' Allan, lad, what color ia the asphodel?" 
 The Bchool- master, startled oat <>f b reverie, could not say ; 
 be mattered something about the bog asphodel of this country 
 being a small spiked flower, of a yellow color.

 
 ASPHODELS AND GOWANS 379 
 
 "The asphodel down there must be purple — to suit the twi- 
 light," Alec MacNiel went on — garrulous even in his huskiness, 
 and perhaps too much rejoiced over this visit of his old chum. 
 " Purple — aye — and tall, and lily-like — for the huge Orion to 
 go crashing through the meadows, after the wild beasts. But 
 Allan, tell me this now : is't not likely — supposing I were to 
 gather a handful of the asphodels — a whole handful of purple 
 asphodels — do ye not think I would be ready enough to give 
 the lot of them in exchange for just one single gowan — a gowan 
 found away up on Cathkin Braes — in the white light of a May 
 morning ? Man, do ye remember how white the mornings 
 were — Sunday mornings mostly — away out by Cathkin and 
 Kilbryde and Eaglesham ? — aye, and not to be despised either, 
 the other mornings, when we could take a turn nearer at hand 
 — out by Maryhill or that way — before coming back for Ken- 
 nedy and his high Oxford singsong — up Maryhill way — do ye 
 remember the farm-house — and the glimpses of the Argyllshire 
 hills far out in the west — and the fancy that the tops of them 
 were looking across to Jura and Colonsay and the Atlantic 
 waves — " 
 
 The watchful old grandmother came sidling up behind the 
 school-master's chair, and said, in a whisper : 
 
 "Check him, sir — check him; or he'll be bringing on the 
 cough again." 
 
 Allan held up his hand. " Well I remember," he said — 
 " well I remember the white mornings, and Cathkin Braes, and 
 many a silver gowan and yellow buttercup. But, ye see, Alec, 
 fine things of that kind are rather exciting to think of — and 
 you've done talking enough now — " 
 
 "You're not going — after a mere minute or two!" the sick 
 man exclaimed — pantingly and piteously. 
 
 "Nay, I'll stay with ye for a while — until your grandmother 
 puts me out maybe," Allan rejoined ; "but it's I must do the 
 talking now, and I'll tell yon all about my small affairs and ad- 
 ventures, since the time I went to Duntroone." 
 
 And this he did — for a good half-hour or more; and in a 
 blithe and lightsome fashion, the better to interest and amuse 
 this friend of old days. What terrible conviction may have 
 lain lurking behind all this assumed cheerfulness was for his 
 own heart alone.
 
 CHAPTER XLV 
 
 ON THE EVE 
 
 Next day lie went up again to Alec MacNiel's lodgings. Dis- 
 tracted enough he was. On the one hand, he dared not remain 
 longer in Glasgow, fop Barbara was to come before the sheriff 
 the very next morning; on the other hand, it seemed impossi- 
 ble he could tear himself away from this poor wretch, whose 
 eyes, with all their affectation of mirth and content, had a 
 strange, involuntary pleading in them. It was MacNiel him- 
 self who sought to set his mind at rest. 
 
 " Away home, Allan — away home now," he said. " And take 
 this comfort with ye, that you'll never see the island of Colon- 
 say — however far off on the horizon it may be — just a gray 
 line — a bit of thin transparency — I say you'll never sec Colon- 
 say without remembering that you did the last possible kind- 
 ness to an old friend and a dying man. It was more than I 
 conld expect. Railway fares arc something to a school-board 
 master — aye, and one that lias a young wife and a house to 
 think of; and if you had but said good-bye in a sixpenny tele- 
 gram, it would have been enough — " 
 
 " Be quiet now, Aire," said the oilier, sharply. " I tell you, 
 I'm desperate vexed I have to leave you again this afternoon; 
 \oii see, the holidays are coming to an end now, and I must have 
 everything ready — for my olasses as well ; but then I can come 
 back — man, I can come back ! — and we've not done yet with 
 the project of taking ye to Colonsay, and trying you with fresh 
 milk and new potatoes — and your native air around you — " 
 
 The sick man shook his bead, and there was some wan make- 
 believe of a smile on the wasted face. 
 
 " You forget, Allan. I've an appointment. Pm due. I 
 must be waiting in the meadows, among the half-black aspho- 
 dels; and when those Pbseacian young creatures come along, 
 I'm ready; I've got my bit speech-prepared for the light-foot-
 
 ON THE EVE 381 
 
 ed one at their head : ' Madam, I pray yon to forgive my ac- 
 cent ; but if I can make myself understood at all, a poor Scotch 
 student would take it as a favor if you would let him stand 
 down by the stream and stop the ball for you.' " 
 
 " She could not refuse !" 
 
 " Oli, well." said he, with a sigh, and he turned away his 
 head, " there may be some strange doors unlocked for me be- 
 fore long. I wish I could send ye word, Allan." 
 
 When, on the evening of this same day, Allan Henderson 
 returned to Duntroone, he found the ever-faithful Jess await- 
 ing him on the platform. Jessie's eyes may have been some- 
 what concerned and apprehensive ; but outwardly she was bear- 
 ing herself with her accustomed quiet. 
 
 " What's the news, then, Jessie?" said he, as he stepped from 
 the train. 
 
 " Oh, nothing — nothing particular," she answered, " only that 
 all of us are naturally a little anxious — anxious that everything 
 should go right to-morrow. And Mr. McFadyen, he has been 
 as busy and hard at work as Mr. Grant himself — about the wit- 
 nesses to character; and if the jury will believe Barbara's story 
 — and how can they otherwise? — how can they but believe it? 
 — there will be no trouble at all." 
 
 " Could we go in to see her now ?" he asked. 
 
 " I am thinking it is too late now," Jess said, with some em- 
 barrassment. " And, besides, they are maybe not so friendly 
 towards us since Niall Gorach tried to get her away — " 
 
 " What nonsense !" the school-master exclaimed, impatiently. 
 " Are they afraid of the silliness of a crack-brained creature 
 like that?" 
 
 " Perhaps they are not liking that any one should have been 
 able to get over the wall," Jess suggested. 
 
 "Why, then, do they not put spikes on the top?" he de- 
 manded. 
 
 But it was not Jessie's business to devise means for the bet- 
 ter security of the prison. She had already secured her point. 
 She bad led him away from his proposal that they should en- 
 deavor at this unusual hour to gain access to the cells ; and 
 by the time tbey were leaving the railway premises he had 
 taken his place by her side with unconscious submission. Stub- 
 born and fractious as he was with most, he invariably yielded
 
 382 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 to Jess — and never knew be was yielding'. It seemed natural 
 to him to do as she wished; for there was always a shrewd 
 and kindly common-sense in what she said — even when she 
 was flouting and merciless. And if Jess was now taking him 
 along with her to press on him some bit of supper, why, he 
 obediently and unheediugly went ; though supper was about 
 the last thing in his thoughts. 
 
 And yet it was no mere hospitable stratagem that had made 
 Jess solicitous to get the school-master carried away home with 
 her. Earlier in the day she had seen Barbara — in the pale 
 twilight of the cool, clean, quiet, terrible cell; and when she 
 had suggested that perhaps Allan might return from Glasgow 
 in time to obtain admission, Barbara had shrunk back from 
 that prospect with something like dread. 
 
 " No, no," she had replied, in a low voice — so that if possible 
 the warder's wife might not overhear — " I am not wishing to 
 see Allan any more now, before the trial. They have been ask- 
 ing me questions — and I have been thinking — maybe — maybe 
 something will happen to-morrow." 
 
 " Yes, indeed !" cried Jess — with at least a profession of great 
 confidence. "What will happen to-morrow is well enough 
 known. Your story is quite clear, Barbara — they can do noth- 
 ing but admit their mistake — " 
 
 "But you will keep Allan away," continued Barbara, as if 
 not bearing. "You'll keep him away, Jess ! And thou to- 
 morrow — if something should happen — if they say I took the 
 blouse — or any of the other things — then where is it they will 
 be sending me? Can yon tell me, Jessie? Is it away from 
 I)untroone? Is it where I would not have to meet Allan again ? 
 Would they let me go — without having to face him? — " 
 
 " I hardly understand what you mean, Barbara," said Jess, 
 slowly. "Do you mean if — if — the law should say the evi- 
 dence — was against you ? Do you mean a conviction I" 
 
 "Yes," was the answer, uttered in a whisper; and she was 
 hidden and cowering, with lowered head. 
 
 " Well, then," said Jess, recovering herself — and now she 
 spoke boldly — "if the law should find you guilty — justly or 
 unjustly, if the law should find you guilty, Barbara — there is 
 but the one plaee fur vour husband to be, and that is hy your 
 side. And that is where Allan Henderson would be, in such
 
 ON THE EVE 383 
 
 a case — that I know well — I know the man that he is — I know 
 where he would be. And why should you distrust him, Bar- 
 bara? Why should you fear him ? Since ever you two came 
 together, he has had eyes for no one in the world but you. 
 He has given you everything — grudged you nothing — the tem- 
 per and stiffneckedness he many a time shows to others he has 
 never shown to you — " 
 
 " But — but I had never brought shame on him," was the re- 
 sponse, in half -smothered accents — and her hands were clinched 
 now over her knees. " I am frightened of him, Jess. Jess, 
 Jess, I am frightened of him ! — and you'll be sure not to let 
 him come here this afternoon ; and to-morrow — well, to-mor- 
 row, if they are sending me away to jail, where is it? — " 
 
 " The jail ? — in Glasgow, I suppose," said Jess, half stupefied. 
 
 "Ah, and then I can get away without seeing him!" she 
 cried, in the same exhausted voice. " And I'll never come 
 back, Jessie, I'll never come back again to any of you ! — because 
 of the shame." Tears gathered in the beautiful, out-sweeping 
 black lashes; a sort of infantine piteousness trembled about 
 her mouth ; she rocked herself to and fro. " Why was I ever 
 coming to Duntroone ? Why did they bring me here, if there 
 was no more home for me at Knockalanish ? But I'll go away 
 now — I'm going away now — and I'll not come back to bring 
 shame on any one — " And so she would have continued, in 
 despair and childish self-commiseration, but that Jess Maclean 
 was by her side, hushing those wild words, and drawing tow- 
 ards her the downcast head with all its splendor of raven hair, 
 now so sadly despoiled and dishevelled ; and strangely enough 
 the greatest comfort Jess seemed able to afford was the reiter- 
 ated assurance that Allan Henderson, whatever time he might 
 arrive from Glasgow, should not be allowed to come near. 
 
 And even at this eleventh hour the indefatigable Peter 
 McFadyen had not yet done. While all the rest of the world 
 had come forth from the houses to wander hither and thither 
 by the sea-front — for gossip, and smoking, and to watch the jet- 
 hulled rowing-boats move about the wide golden plain — the 
 councillor was making his way along one of the smaller back 
 thoroughfares, until he paused at a certain entrance. Then, 
 in an apparently off-hand way, he glanced up and down the 
 street — but indeed the place was practically deserted ; and
 
 384 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 when at length he dived into the entry and made his way up 
 the dark staircase, lie met no one at all; not only that, but on 
 reaching the top landing he found the door in front of him 
 open, while a profound silence prevailed. He hesitated. It 
 was like as if he had come on a fool's errand. But the next 
 moment there came from the adjoining room the sound of a 
 voice — a loud, raucous, monotonous voice, with the additional 
 sound of some one pacing up and down. 
 
 " Je vous salue, monsieur,'' 1 proceeded the unseen monologist. 
 "Comment va la saute! Qui, je me porte a merveillc, Dieu 
 merci — et toujours pret a vous servir. Des draps ? Parfaite- 
 ment ! Mais, asseyez-vous — asseyez-vous done, monsieur! J'ai 
 des draps d' ' Anglcterre, d" 1 Allemagne, et de Belgique de toutes 
 les couleurs et de bonne qualite. Void un drap superfin, et 
 Men tondu. . . . Monsieur, e'est le dernier prix, je vous assure. 
 . . . Mais voyez cette autre piece, peut-etre vous conviendra- 
 t-elle davantage. . . . Non? . . . Voulez-vous que je vous fassc 
 voir des couleurs melangees? — " 
 
 Mr. McFadyen held back no longer; he knew this was his 
 man. He passed into the lobby, and knocked at the door of 
 the nearest apartment. The French phrases ceased ; there was 
 a half-uncertain "Come in!" and therewithal the councillor 
 entered the room. 
 
 He found before him a young man of about two-and-twenty, 
 with a shock-head of sandy-yellow hair, high cheek-bones, and 
 small, keen blue eyes. The unhappy youth was blushing furi- 
 ously ; his face was about as red as the " Manual of Conversa- 
 tion " be had hastily shut and placed on the table; and he was 
 now reaching over to the bed to pick up his coat, for he had 
 been marching to and fro in his shirt-sleeves, on this warm 
 sunimer night. 
 
 " Mr. McTaggart, I think ?" the councillor said, pleasantly. 
 
 " Aye, that's my name," was the shy answer. 
 
 "Mine is McFadyen — 1 dare say ye know who I am," Peter 
 continued, as he took a chair, and even made bold to possess 
 bimself of the small red volume lying on the table. " I imagine 
 I heard ye at the French — it's a fine language — a great leeter- 
 ary accomplishment — " 
 
 "That is hardly what I'm thinking of," the young man said. 
 " It was rather for business purposes — "
 
 "'but i'll go away now, and Tll not come back'
 
 ON THE EVE 385 
 
 "Ah, for business purposes? But surely there's no so many 
 French folk coming through Duntroone way !" rejoined the 
 visitor. 
 
 "Oh no. But — but I was thinking I might get a better 
 chance abroad than staying here — in some new settlement — 
 maybe in South Africa, or East Africa, or the like; and if I 
 could master a little French and German, perhaps a trifle of 
 Portuguese too, it might help me to get on — " 
 
 "Admirable — admirable!" cried the councillor, with lofty 
 approval. "That's what I like to hear. That's the true spirit. 
 'From scenes like these auld Scotia's grandeur springs' — the 
 humble lodging, the energetic young Scotchman laying his 
 plans, with an eye to the Colonies, or farther even than that. 
 And what would our Colonies be but for the pushing young 
 Scotchman, who is up at the front everywhere? Aye, and in 
 the race for Africa, that they talk about, grant a Scotchman 
 his own mother-wit, and give him besides such implements as 
 these — these languages — and where's his equal, where's his 
 rival?" The councillor calmed down a little from this dithy- 
 rambic outburst, and began to turn over the pages of the 
 Manual. " And teaching yourself, too ?" he resumed, encour- 
 agingly. " That's well — that's well. But do ye not experience 
 a little difficulty with the pronunciation?" 
 
 "I have a Pronouncing Dictionary," the young man made 
 answer — perhaps, with all his bashfulness, beginning to think 
 that Mr. McFadyen the coal merchant might as well state the 
 object of his visit. 
 
 " Not so satisfactory," said Peter, with a critical air. 
 " There's nothing like hearing the folk themselves speak for 
 giving ye the turn of a language. Nothing like travel. Have 
 ye ever been across the water to France ?" 
 
 " I have never been as far south as London," said the young 
 haberdasher. 
 
 " Dod bless me !" exclaimed the councillor. And then he 
 
 added dryly : " But I wouldna have ye begin there. If ye 
 
 would understand what the folk in the street are saying, ye 
 
 must try something easier than London. Ostend, now, or 
 
 Calais, or Paris itself — though in Paris they are rather given 
 
 to that nipping and pinching of their speech, and the hurry 
 
 they're in is just fearful. But it would be practice for ye; it 
 17
 
 386 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 would be practice ; and I'm sure ye'd like to see the way they 
 deck out the splendid windows o' their magazines, as they call 
 them ?" 
 
 "That I would," returned the young man, quickly, with his 
 eyes lighting up. Then he added: "But it's not to be 
 thought of, as far as I am concerned ; it's far away beyond 
 me." 
 
 All this while the town -councillor had been idly turning 
 over leaf after leaf, and glancing at this or that phrase; but 
 now he slowly shut the book, and placed it on the table, and 
 shoved it away from him. 
 
 "I beg your pardon, Mr. McTaggart," said he; "I should 
 have told you ere now my chief purpose in calling upon ye. 
 As I understood it, you are one of the principal witnesses, if 
 not the principal witness, in the trial that's to take place to- 
 morrow." 
 
 The draper's young man looked uncomfortable — but did not 
 reply. 
 
 " No that I'm seeking to interfere wi' the ends of justice," 
 McFadycn continued. " God forbid. I would rather promote 
 them. But you are a young man — perhaps not deeply read 
 in human nature — perhaps not accustomed to seeing a young 
 woman in distress — or to comprehend what she may say or do 
 to save herself. Do ye understand me? It's a terrible thing 
 to give evidence that may ruin a fellow-creature, and bring 
 disgrace on her family. Are ye so sure of your own observa- 
 tion — of your accuracy of sight and hearing? I have learned 
 what story it is you have to tell; most of us have an inkling ; 
 and I suppose to-morrow, when the sheriff has bade ye take 
 the oath, you are prepared to abide by what you think did 
 really happen — " 
 
 " I can but tell the truth !" the young man blurted out — 
 perhaps with some vague sensation of alarm. 
 
 "I admire ye for that," Peter continued, calmly. "But 
 have ye considered, now? If ye were to bear false witness — 
 however innocently, however unintentionally — I'm sure it would 
 haunt ye to your dying dav : what then would be your satis- 
 faction in striving and holding your own among all the fellows 
 that call themselves the pioneers o' civilization? Whereas — 
 and this is what I want particularly to impress on ye, Mr.
 
 ON THE EVE 387 
 
 McTaggart — and I'm not interfering — I would not interfere — 
 what I want to fix in your mind is that it is so easy not to 
 say things when you're called as a witness. It's so easy to be 
 safe, for your own peace of mind, for the satisfaction of your 
 own conscience, in after hours and days. That poor creature 
 of a lass, how could she know what she was doing or saying 
 when she was startled by such a charge being brought against 
 her? You have the impression — an honest impression — yes, 
 yes, doubtless — you have the impression that she offered to pay 
 for the blouse : but are ye sure? — are ye going to hamper your 
 conscience with a possibility? And as for the other things 
 you think she said — why, surely in such a moment of desper- 
 ate flurry and fright, it is all a matter of construction ; and 
 your friendly construction — your friendly word — or, better 
 still, what ye might refuse to say — would just be life or death 
 to her, and the saving or the disgrace of her family and friends.'" 
 
 The young man was staring ; and well he might stare. For 
 now, without a further word, Mr. McFadyen took forth from 
 his pocket-book a brand-new Bank-of-Scotland note for £5, 
 and placed it on the table before him. And then he took out 
 another, and spread that beside its fellow. And then he went 
 to the window, and stood there for a moment or two, looking 
 through the dim panes. 
 
 " Mr. McFadyen," said the poor lad, in an agitated voice, 
 " what do ye mean ? I'm bound to tell the truth — I'll have to 
 take the oath to speak the truth — " 
 
 Peter turned round — with a sharp and swift glance. The 
 two bank-notes still lay on the table. He advanced a step, 
 took them up, and restored them to his pocket-book. 
 
 " Yes," said he, with a bland magnanimity. " That is un- 
 doubtedly so. But I would just remind ye — for ye are a young 
 man yet — that it is hard to tell what the truth may have been 
 in a moment of excitement; and, as I say, a friendly witness 
 can omit this or that, and salve his own conscience as well. 
 Do ye think I am offering a bribe? Na, na, I'm acquainted 
 with the law ! But — but I was thinking, after I heard ye busy 
 wi' your French conversation, that a young man like you would 
 profit just beyond measure by a week or two's travelling abroad 
 — your next holidays, I mean ; and I would like to help you. 
 Aye," concluded the wily councillor, as he rose to his feet, " and
 
 3S8 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 I would add this: that whatever ye happened to see lying on 
 the table remains in my pocket-book, for the present; but — 
 but without prejudice, as the lawyers say, it might come out 
 and lie on the table again. Do ye understand me? There's 
 no bribery attempted or thought of — God forbid ; but a friendly 
 witness is a friendly witness ; and a friendly witness is one that 
 keeps a happy conscience thereafter in his own body. Do ye 
 understand me? — and Til just leave ye to think over what I've 
 said." 
 
 And therewith the unscrupulous McFadyen, quite pleased 
 with himself and his astuteness and diplomacy, got him out of 
 the silent and empty house ; and presently was down again on 
 the busier esplanade — where the moving groups of people were 
 almost ebony-black against the russet and golden after-glow that 
 filled both sea and sky.
 
 CHAPTER XLVI 
 
 ARRAIGNED 
 
 "The Court!" called out the crier; a sudden hush fell over 
 the scattered groups of folk in the red pine pews; from the 
 opened door the sheriff, in wig and gown, advanced to his place 
 on the bench ; the one or two lawyers at the central table rose 
 and bowed, and the salutation was returned; then the business 
 of the day began. It was all so commonplace, familiar, routine- 
 like. Those people — the spectators — had been idly talking to 
 each other about their ordinary affairs ; or glancing out of the 
 tall window towards the blue mountains of Mull ; or with a list- 
 less curiosity scanning some new-comer. They seemed little to 
 comprehend what issues were involved — what all this meant to 
 the solitary figure in the dock, alone with her own dreadful 
 fears, perhaps even with her despair. 
 
 But there was at least one person present who was nervously 
 and excitedly alive to all that was going on ; and that was the 
 little widow, who was seated by her daughter's side, with her 
 hand firmly griping Jessie's arm. She said nothing while the 
 sheriff-clerk, in the well of the court, was reading aloud the 
 charge against the accused ; she only ejaculated, to herself, 
 " Poor lass !" when the judge formally asked Barbara if she 
 adhered to her previously-tendered plea of " Not Guilty ;" but 
 when the clerk proceeded to impanel the jury, her agitation 
 could hardly be kept within control. 
 
 " See, see !" she said, in a hurried undertone, to Jess. " There's 
 Johnnie Wilson — Johnnie ! — that I mind coming to Duntroone 
 a long-legged lad with scarce a pair of shoes to his feet. Aye, 
 and many's the good turn your father was doing him ; do you 
 think Johnnie Wilson would be wishing to harm us now? 
 And McKendrick, Jess — d'ye see McKendrick the boat-builder 
 yonder — ah, that's a good man — just a perfect man — an elder 
 in Queen Street Free Kirk ; and it's no possible he would lift
 
 390 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 a finger against an orphan ! It's just no possible ! And did 
 you think Barbara made it quite clear to them that she was 
 pleading ' Not Guilty ? — I could hardly hear her myself — and 
 they're in such a hurry from one thing to another that a body 
 is just driven daft-like. See, Jess, there's McLaughlin the 
 bookseller ! — a wise, kindly lad — as kindly a lad as ever lived ! 
 — if I had known he was to be on the jury, I would have 
 slippit round one of these past evenings to see him and his 
 mother. And do ye not think ye could make a bit signal to 
 him, and let him see we are here, and looking to him for help? 
 There could be no harm in that, lass — no harm at all — " 
 
 " Sh ! mother !" said Jess, under her breath. 
 
 For now the procurator-fiscal, rising from his place at the 
 table, intimated to the judge that he would proceed to lead 
 evidence ; and the first witness summoned by the crier was 
 Alexander McLennan. Mr. McLennan the draper — a small, 
 pale, black-a-vised, shy-looking man — stepped along and entered 
 the witness-box. The little widow was regarding him with 
 eyes that burned. 
 
 " Ah, the ape ! — ah, the serpent I" she muttered, through her 
 clinched teeth — and she was all trembling with passion. "To 
 bring such a story against one of my girls! If my poor man 
 was alive — if my man was alive to look after us — McLennan 
 would not be standing there with his brazen face — " 
 
 And yet McLennan the draper — when the oath had been 
 administered to him by the sheriff, and when the fiscal, follow- 
 ing the witness's precognition which lie held in his hand, set 
 about eliciting his story — McLennan did not appear to be act- 
 uated by any animosity. The tale he had to tell was simple 
 enough. In answer to the fiscafs questions, he said he had 
 been led to suspect the accused because of the disappearance of 
 certain articles after she had been visiting his shop; and he 
 had resolved to watch, and had jrdercd his assistants to do the 
 like. On the day in question, ihe accused entering the shop, 
 he had directed the silk tartan I ousc now produced — produced 
 and lying on tin; table for the jury to sec — to be placed on the 
 counter. She had on one or two previous visits examined the 
 blouse, inquired the price, and so forth. On this last occasion 
 she had made some small and unimportant purchases, and was 
 about to leave the shop again, when witness, who had been
 
 ARRAIGNED 391 
 
 standing behind a rack used for the hanging and displaying of 
 shawls, stepped forward and intercepted her. He saw that the 
 blouse was gone ; he assumed that she had taken it ; and asked 
 her if she had received a bill for it. The prisoner was greatly 
 disconcerted ; said she had not taken the blouse ; at the same 
 moment it appeared to fall from underneath her half-open 
 jacket. She then made conflicting statements ; first, that she 
 meant to pay for it on her return ; again, that it had fallen on 
 the floor by accident ; again, that she had been commissioned 
 to buy it for her cousin, and would bring the money presently; 
 at last she said she would give them the price of the blouse 
 twice over if they would let her go. Then he sent for a police- 
 man. 
 
 " Aye, aye," said the widow, breathing hard, " but it is not 
 a policeman you would want, if God was to strike you dead 
 for your lies !" 
 
 The fiscal sat down, and the long, thin, sandy-haired Mr. 
 Grant got up, leisurely twisting his watch-chain between finger 
 and thumb. Addressing the witness, he said he wished to put 
 a few questions. Had he, McLennan, on any previous occasion 
 observed the prisoner abstract any article from his shop? No? 
 Then how came he to fix his suspicions on her out of all his 
 customers? Did he do so just at random? Being annoyed 
 over these losses, was he determined to secure a scape-goat, no 
 matter whom? And being resolved to convict somebody, he 
 was not above laving a snare? And having prepared his trap, 
 he was fully anticipating that his designed victim would fall 
 into it? He was behind a screen of shawls, and perhaps 
 could not see very well ; but, expecting a certain thing to 
 happen, he did not need the evidence of his eyes: he jumped 
 to the conclusion that it had happened? 
 
 "Ah, do ye hear? — do ye hear, Allan?" exclaimed the im- 
 plusive and warm-hearted little widow, as she leaned over and 
 touched the school - master on the arm — the school -master, 
 whose absorbed and rapt attention seemed to be following 
 every turn and twist of the desultory narrative. 
 
 The cross-examination continued. Was he, McLennan, ready 
 to swear that he actually saw the blouse in the possession of 
 the accused? No? It only appeared to fall from her when he 
 stepped forward ? At all events, it would be safe to say that,
 
 392 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 when be emerged from his hiding-place and advanced to the 
 accused, the first he saw of the blouse was either that it was 
 falling, or had fallen, to the floor in front of him ? But there 
 were different ways and means by which it might have come 
 there? He was doubtless familiar with the fact that women's 
 dress in the present day was frequently adorned with prehen- 
 sile tags and gewgaws well calculated to sweep off any loose 
 article lying about? As to the so-called confession of the 
 prisoner, was he prepared to swear that these were the exact 
 and literal words she had used ? Was his memory so prodig- 
 iously accurate? He had not jotted down any memorandum of 
 these contradictory sentences? Was he himself somewhat 
 perturbed by this unusual incident? As these quiet, insidious, 
 encouraging little questions came at him one after the other, 
 the shy -looking black-a-vised draper became more and more 
 visibly discomposed — and Mrs. Maclean more and more tri- 
 umphant. It is true, the re - examination by the fiscal in a 
 measure restored Mr. McLennan's equanimity ; and he stepped 
 out from the box and passed along to the witnesses' room 
 happily unconscious of the vengeful and bitter regard with 
 which the widow followed him. 
 
 The next witness — young McTaggart the shopman — was 
 clearly from the very outset in a condition of abject fright, 
 lie entered the box apprehensively ; his uplifted right hand, 
 when the sheriff administered the oath, was tremulous; his 
 replies to the questions of the fiscal were mumbled and almost 
 inaudible. And it is to he presumed that no one in all the 
 Court-house now listened more keenly than Peter MacFadyen ; 
 here was his man; and little did the lawyers biting the end of 
 their quills know of the secret influences that had been brought 
 to bear to outwit them. At first, indeed, the shock-headed 
 youth's narrative of what had happened at the counter was 
 mainly a corroboration of his employer's statements. 
 
 " Aye, aye — yes, yes," muttered the widow, in spite of all 
 her daughter's persuasive repression, "a fine story, ray young 
 
 lad !— and if your master is a liar, why should not you be too? 
 Bu1 wait till Grant gets at ye! Aye, it's souk; combing of 
 your besom -hair that's wanted for yon, my line fellow — and 
 Grant will give it ye directly!" 
 
 But when Mr. Grant came to cross-examine the unhappy
 
 ARRAIGNED 393 
 
 young man, he found him an almost too easy prey. The be- 
 wildered youth was ready to admit anything. His most pas- 
 sionate hope of being able to practise French conversation in 
 the streets and omnibuses of Paris could not have been more 
 effectual than his pathetic desire to propitiate this ruthless 
 questioner. He was not playing into the hands of the defence 
 through any base longing for McFadyen's £10; he was merely 
 frightened out of his wits on finding himself in a public pil- 
 lory ; and willing to assent to every one of the lawyer's sug- 
 gestions, so that he might the sooner escape. Accordingly, he 
 acknowledged that it was with some reluctance he had con- 
 sented to set a trap by means of which this young woman 
 might be tempted into the commission of a crime. He agreed 
 that it was impossible he could have kept the snare under 
 continuous supervision ; for he was fetching down things from 
 the shelves for the accused to examine; again and again he 
 must have turned his back. Moreover, he owned that he had 
 not placed any weight or other article on the blouse, after lay- 
 ing it on the counter : there was nothing to hinder its being 
 swept off by some slight accident. Again, he was on the inside 
 of the counter: how, then, could he see in what manner the 
 blouse came to reach the floor, on the outside? As to the con- 
 flicting statements alleged to have been made by the prisoner, 
 was he prepared to swear to precise words and expressions 
 used in a moment of extreme agitation ? But at this point the 
 shock-headed youth began to develop a confusion and a gasp- 
 ing acquiescence that were not only extremely welcome to the 
 lawyer, but that also convinced Mr. McFadyen he would sooner 
 or later, and in some cryptic fashion, have to pay over £10. 
 The young man, his complexion pale, his forehead clammy, his 
 eyes dilated and nervous — appeared to be in some kind of 
 hypnotic trance; he remembered, or did not remember, just as 
 this long, thin, sandy-haired agent thought fit to suggest ; he 
 clung desperately to the formula ' the best of his belief.' Nor 
 did re - examination restore him to himself; white-faced, pro- 
 tuberant-eyed, he seemed to reel away from the box, as it 
 were; and doubtless began to breathe again only when he 
 found that the gaze of the crowd was no longer upon him. 
 
 And all this while Jess Maclean, when she dared, had been 
 stealing an occasional and covert glance at the school-master, 
 17*
 
 394 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 fearing that he had already divined the truth. Well she knew 
 that the fencing of lawyers and the heckling of witnesses 
 would have but little concern for him ; the progress of the 
 trial would be for him no mere game of skill, that one could 
 watch and study, with a calculation of the chances of acquittal ; 
 the sole and terrible question for him was whether the poor 
 wretch alone there in the dock had really done this thing, 
 bringing upon herself all its tragic and illimitable consequences. 
 And yet Jess, accustomed as she was to read his features, was 
 now completely baffled. His face was immobile and impassive 
 — sombre a little, perhaps — and unmistakably oblivious of the 
 people around. Even the proceedings in court, as they went 
 on, seemed to claim from him but a forced and mechanical 
 sort of attention. There were further witnesses to be exam- 
 ined and re-examined; articles found in the house of the ac- 
 cused, and alleged to have been stolen — the red sunshade con- 
 spicuous amongst them — were produced and identified ; there 
 was evidence of previous good character ; and the like. But 
 throughout all this Allan Henderson remained distraught and 
 absent-minded. Was lie already convinced? Once or twice 
 his eyes rested on the solitary figure in the dock; but little 
 was to be seen of the hapless Barbara; she was facing the 
 sheriff — her head downcast, her figure drawn together as 
 though she were cowering and hiding herself. 
 
 Then the fiscal got up and addressed the Court for the 
 prosecution — insisting that this was a particularly bad case : 
 not a sudden yielding to temptation, but part of a planned 
 and systematic purloining, for which no excuse or palliation 
 hail been offered. Next came Grant the solicitor with his 
 reply for the defence — rather dwelling on the youth of the 
 prisoner, her position as an almost newly-married wife, and the 
 extreme probability that she had been terrified into making 
 damaging admissions when this dreadful charge had been 
 brought against her. Finally the sherilT summed up, keeping 
 mainly to tin: legal aspects of the case. And then fifteen 
 good men and true filed out of the two pine benches, and 
 i ither sheepishly — for they were unaccustomed to this prom- 
 inence and publicity — crossed the hall, and betook themselves 
 to the jury room. 
 
 "Ah, the bonny lads] — the bonny lads!" exclaimed Mrs.
 
 ARRAIGNED 395 
 
 Maclean, in an eager and tremulous whisper — indeed, she was 
 shaking like a leaf — "they will put her right! — they will quit 
 iny lass! — after all the stories and lies!" 
 
 Allan Henderson had not turned to say a word to any of the 
 friends or relatives near liiin ; and now, in this period of wait- 
 ing, his eyes were bent on the floor. Even Jess did not dare 
 to approach him with any little whisper of comfort or hope. 
 The jury were absent for only a few minutes — not over ten. 
 
 Then they came back ; and their chancellor remained stand- 
 ing. The sheriff, in a formal kind of way, asked if they had 
 come to a decision. 
 
 " We find the accused guilty of the charge as libelled," said 
 the chancellor — self-conscious and red of face. 
 
 For just one second the sheriff glanced towards them : was 
 there to be no recommendation to mercy? There was none. 
 The fiscal moved the Court to pronounce sentence ; the clerk at 
 the table pulled his papers towards him ; the sheriff, after a few 
 observations uttered in the same dispassionate tones, announced 
 that the sentence of the Court was six months' imprisonment. 
 
 " My lord ! — my lord ! she's an orphan lass !" cried out the 
 widow, as she sank forward half -fainting, till Jess caught her 
 in her arms ; and at this moment the prisoner — her head still 
 averted, her figure apparently lifeless — was led away by the 
 two policemen, disappearing through the door leading to the 
 exercise-yard and the cells. 
 
 And now some were for going home, and others lingered 
 to talk ; but the school-master found himself alone, at the foot 
 of the wide stairs, his face confronting the white daylight. 
 There was a phrase he had often used recurring now to his 
 brain in some wild, bewildering fashion : " The poor Natur- 
 kind ! The poor JVaturkind that she has always been !" And 
 on his features there was no stern reprehension at all ; nay, as 
 he left the building his eyes were so swimming wet that he 
 could hardly see his way. Jess, with her heart full of yearning 
 pity, nevertheless had not the courage to follow him. She 
 looked after him as he went aimlessly along by the harbor, 
 in the direction of the Gallows Hill. 
 
 44 Mother," said she, in a low voice, though he was now far 
 out of hearing, " if — if you can get Allan to stay in our house 
 to-night, I will go with Barbara wherever they are taking her."
 
 CHAPTER XLVII 
 
 DAY AND NIGHT 
 
 But that was mad and wild counsel — uttered in a moment 
 of half-reckless despair. For Jess Maclean knew this man ; 
 not for nothing had she watched and studied him — him and 
 all his imperfections, his perversities, his scornful endurance of 
 ills, his impatient contempt of meaner natures; and she herself 
 had foretold where, in such a crisis as had now arrived, Allan 
 Henderson would be found. "There is but the one place for 
 your husband to be," she had said to Barbara, "and that is by 
 your side." And when she learned from the police officials 
 that the prisoner was to be taken through to Glasgow on this 
 same afternoon, she went along at the appointed hour to the 
 railway station, knowing well whom she should find waiting there. 
 
 He was on the platform, alone and unnoticed among the 
 scattered crowd of folk bidding good-bye to their friends. And 
 fortunate it was that these people were so busily occupied ; for 
 at this moment Barbara — Barbara, all broken down in appear- 
 ance, listless, hopeless, the beautiful eyes tired and worn with 
 excess of weeping, and now only haunted with a sort of cower- 
 ing and shuddering horror of these groups of strangers — Bar- 
 bara came along in charge of a constable, the two of them at- 
 tracting far less attention than might have been expected. The 
 officer opened the door of a third-class compartment; Barbara 
 entered, and sank into a seat; while Jess Maclean and Allan 
 instinctively moved up, as if to prevent the approach of any 
 curious person. For a second or two no one spoke; but all 
 the same Jess made bold to put her hand into the carriage, and 
 with that hand she held Barbara's hand; the law could not — 
 or, at, least, did not — forbid this form of communication. And 
 then Barbara said, with a timid look towards the constable: 
 
 ".less, if you would — if yon would ask this gentleman — 
 maybe he would let you come in beside me — "
 
 DAY AND NIGHT 39*7 
 
 The gentleman — who was not a gentleman at all — not even 
 an inspector — nor }'et a sergeant — but just a decent and simple 
 lad from Mull, who did not quite appear to relish these duties 
 that had devolved upon him — the ingenuous-looking constable 
 — took no notice of this hint. And meanwhile Jess had to in- 
 terpose with an explanation. 
 
 " I cannot go to Glasgow with you, Barbara," said she. " I 
 was ready and willing — indeed, yes ; but my mother is taken 
 very ill ; and I dare not leave her for so long. But Allan is 
 going with you, Barbara. Who else? Who else would you 
 be wishing to have with you? — who else could protect you as 
 well ?— " 
 
 A strange look of dread or doom seemed to settle on the 
 girl's face; she did not venture a single half-frightened glance 
 towards her husband; when she heard that Jess was not going 
 with her, she appeared to care for nothing after that ; a kind 
 of blankness of despair took possession of her. And Jess could 
 not part with her in this mood. 
 
 "Barbara," said she, with a fine affectation of confidence 
 and good-humor, though her lips were inclined to be tremulous 
 despite all she could do, "you must be remembering this: that 
 when you come back to us, you will be just the same as the 
 rest of us. The law has decided against you, and it may be 
 right, or it may be wrong ; but anyway, when you have done 
 what they require of you, then you are free, you are quits — you 
 are just like every one else. And you will let me know how 
 often I can write to you, and you will write to us as often as 
 you can. And you will tell us when we are to come for you 
 — to bring you back — " 
 
 Barbara shook her head — without a word. 
 
 " Take your seats, please," called the guard ; and as he came 
 up, Allan Henderson stepped forward, and without asking per- 
 mission of any one, entered the carriage, passed to the farther 
 end, and sat down by the window. Then the door was shut, 
 the whistles sounded, and the train began to creep out of the 
 station. Jess walked a few farewell yards along the platform ; 
 it was she who was crying and sobbing now — in spite of her- 
 self ; Barbara seemed lost in a misery and gloom that had ar- 
 rived almost at indifference. Finally, Jess, having watched the 
 carriage window till the very last moment, turned and took her
 
 398 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 way slowly home, while the train thundered on towards the 
 
 south. 
 
 And now « w and si i nt/ was the liujht 
 
 Tliat wan atween thir twae' ;" 
 
 for although no compact had heen entered into by which Allan 
 had gained admission into this compartment, there was some 
 tacit kind of feeling that in the presence of the constable these 
 two must needs regard each other as strangers. Perhaps Bar- 
 bara was so far glad and relieved ; perhaps she had some secret 
 dread of indignation and reproach, though there was little of 
 cither in Allan Henderson's heart. Nay, he was full of sym- 
 pathy and commiseration for "the poor Naturkind and her 
 downcast condition ; it may be that he understood her tragic 
 case far more clearly than she did herself; more clearly than 
 she did, without doubt, he perceived the web of circumstance 
 by which she had been surrounded and brought to ruin. Re- 
 sentment, reprobation — as if he had been the wronged person 
 — was indeed far away from his mind. He remained silent, it 
 is true; but he was tremblingly sensitive to each slight motion 
 of her costume, to each labored and weary sigh, to each shift- 
 ing from one shoulder to the other, as if she were ill and ill at 
 case. He pitied her even for her dress, for Barbara had al- 
 ways liked something of ornament and show ; but now it was 
 only too evident that in the abandonment of her grief and ter- 
 ror she had had no thought for any such trivialities. Perhaps 
 Jess might have looked after her had there been the oppor- 
 tunity. The splendid folds of her raven-black hair had been 
 put back in some rude kind of fashion ; but now there were 
 none of the coquettish tangles and twirls she had been fond of 
 displaying about her ears. She wore no gloves, nor any dainty 
 white cuffs about her wrists, nor any slip of silk tartan ribbon 
 round her throat — this poor Naturkind^ who had been so se- 
 verely buffeted and shipwrecked by the wild storms of human 
 chance. 
 
 As the evening wore on, and they were up among the lonely 
 mountains beyond Crianlaricb, a somewhat chill wind blew in 
 and through the compartment, and Barbara was Beated with 
 her face to the engine. Allan rose, stepped across, and pulled 
 up the window, so as to afford her shelter.
 
 DAY AND NIGHT 399 
 
 " Thank you," she said, in a low voice — without raising her 
 eyes. 
 
 Again, when they got down to Stirling station, he sought 
 out the refreshment-room, had a couple of paper bags filled 
 with sweet biscuits and the like, and when he returned he 
 mutely tendered them to her. She took them, with another 
 word of thanks ; though not even now did she dare to raise her 
 eyes to his. And thus they resumed their journey to Glasgow, 
 and to the great and sombre building that stands by the river. 
 
 But in the meantime Barbara had not failed to notice that 
 when the constable happened to recognize an acquaintance at 
 any of the stations along the line, the few words that passed 
 between them were usually in Gaelic; and accordingly, when 
 she at length ventured to address a hesitating question or two 
 to him, on their drawing near to Glasgow, it was in that tongue 
 she spoke, so as perhaps to win a little favor and friendliness. 
 And it was still in Gaelic that she said, in a diffident undertone 
 that Allan could not well overhear : 
 
 " My husband has come a long way. Will you be giving 
 me a moment that I can say good-bye to him ?" 
 
 " Do you mean at the station ?" responded the constable. 
 
 "It is wherever you please, sir," said Barbara, humbly. "I 
 am not wishing for anything that is not permitted — but — but 
 my husband, he has come a long way." 
 
 "Oh, very well," said the good-natured young officer. 
 " When we get to the station, I will try to leave you by your- 
 selves for a minute, just where you are, but no more than a 
 minute, for there will be a cab to take you on to the jail." 
 
 And he was as good as his word. When the train had 
 passed the ticket-platform, had slowed in to the terminus, and 
 finally come to a stand-still, the constable opened the door, 
 stepped out, and remained there with his back to the carriage. 
 At the same moment Allan rose to his feet, and Barbara rose 
 also; but she did not look up to see the extraordinary compas- 
 sion that dwelt in his eyes; she rather stood before him as a 
 culprit and penitent, ready to receive whatever scorn and chas- 
 tisement of words he chose to heap upon her. And yet — no 
 matter what might be his indignation and contumely — she had 
 so many things she longed to say, and all of them struggling 
 for utterance! Her chest heaved; she seemed to breathe with
 
 400 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 difficulty; her bands, down by her sides, were firmly clinched. 
 She was waiting. Why did he not strike? 
 
 "Poor lass! poor lass!" said he; and the mere tone of his 
 voice, so unexpected, so unmistakable in its true ring of solici- 
 tude and tenderness, caused her whole frame to tremble ; " I 
 suppose I can go no farther with you now — " 
 
 " Allan, Allan," she burst out in a sort of wild way, " I 
 am not hoping that you will ever forgive me for what I have 
 done! Oh no! — no, no! — I do not expect it — I have brought 
 nothing but harm to you — I have been a bad wife to you — I 
 have brought nothing but harm and shame. But now — now 
 you will go away back to your home; and you will soon for- 
 get me; and I will never seek to see Duntroone any more — 
 never, never — I have done enough harm — I will never see you 
 or any of them any more — it is all that I can do now — " 
 
 "Barbara," said he, gently and gravely, " you are talking 
 foolishness. Do you remember the last words that Jessie 
 spoke to you on the platform ? She said that when you came 
 back to us you would be just as one of ourselves — quit and free 
 of everything that had gone by, and all of us only anxious 
 that it should be forgotten — " 
 
 "Ah, no, no!" she broke in upon him, quite incoherently. 
 "That is all away. I will never trouble you any more — I have 
 done too much harm. And there's other things I would say 
 — but — but only a moment now ; and it's my thanks to you 
 for your goodness to me, and that you have not cursed at me, 
 as many a one would have done. Indeed, indeed you have 
 been kind t<> me; and I was not deserving it ; there was many 
 things happening that you did not know about, and there was 
 never any hard word from you. And now you will go away 
 to your home, and Jessie will look after the house for you ; 
 she was always a better friend to you than I was — " 
 
 The constable turned and looked into the compartment; the 
 rah was wailing at the platform. 
 
 " Mv poor lass," said the school-master, trying to smooth 
 bark her disordered hair into some semblance of its former 
 neatness, "you will soon begin to think of the days of your 
 coming back to us — " 
 
 " Ah, never, never," she cried, in panting accents; "it is the 
 one thing I can do, never to trouble you any more — neither
 
 DAY AND NIGHT 401 
 
 you nor any of them — I have brought too much harm and 
 shame — " 
 
 The young constable, irresolute, anxious, a little shame- 
 faced, opened the door wide. 
 
 "Will you be coming now, mem?" said he. 
 
 By this time most of the travellers had left the platform ; 
 when those two crossed to the vehicle that was in attendance, 
 there was hardly any one about to witness their last and mute 
 farewell. And then Barbara was driven away ; and the school- 
 master, not knowing what his next step should be, found him- 
 self a solitary stranger in this great and friendless town. 
 
 Yet not quite friendless either. More than once, during all 
 the recent whirl of experiences and emotions, a wandering 
 thought or two had involuntarily fled away towards the sick- 
 chamber of Alec MacNiel ; and now, in this strange succeeding 
 calm and isolation, it was but natural he should wish to look 
 once again on the face of his old comrade. Not that he pro- 
 posed to carry the tale of his own wounds and sorrows to the 
 invalid's room ; these were for his private hours of reverie and 
 renunciation ; but there would be some kind of solace in merely 
 sitting by the side of his friend; it was, moreover, a duty he 
 owed — if any companionship of his could lighten a weary half- 
 hour. And so, in a dull and mechanical fashion, he betook 
 himself away through the wet and gaslit streets; and eventu- 
 ally reached the building in Garscube Road, at the top of which 
 MacNiel had his poor lodging. 
 
 It was now late ; and, as he ascended to the highest story, 
 he passed noiselessly up the staircase, lest the sick man should 
 have already got to sleep. Not a sound was audible anywhere. 
 With the same cautious footsteps he arrived at the landing, 
 which was quite dark; and then he stealthily approached the 
 door, and listened. No ; not a sound. Nevertheless, he lin- 
 gered ; for MacNiel might be reading; and at any minute he 
 might put down the book, and call to the attendant grand- 
 mother. Nay, the longer Allan Henderson tarried here in the 
 darkness, the more did he seem to crave for a friendly word 
 and glance, if only as a reminiscence of the far-bygone, half- 
 happy student times. He would bring with him no useless 
 tidings of his own broken and shattered life. Rather his talk 
 would be — if his old companion were still awake, and inclined
 
 402 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 to hear — his talk would be of cheerful things — of Cathkin 
 Braes and May mornings, of eager and joyous rambles by 
 Bothwell Banks and Cadzow and Stonebyres. They would 
 recall the early woods — the resonant "Gaudeamtis" of the 
 tramping chorus — the breakfast in the remote little way-side 
 public-house. These were the proper pictures for any poor 
 tired soul to fall asleep with, so that a scent of hawthorn-bushes 
 and a murmur of distant water-falls should come stealing 
 through the vagrant dreams of the night. 
 
 Of a sudden he was startled by a low moaning; hushed and 
 faint it was, and yet the silence around was so intense that he 
 could not be mistaken. It was the old grandmother's voice; 
 it was a kind of plaintive wail she uttered : " och-hon ! — och-hon ! 
 — och-hon !" repeated in despairing tones; and then came silence 
 again. He knew not what was happening, or what had hap- 
 pened, within ; but he dared not go away. He tapped lightly 
 with the back of his hand. There was no answer. He rapped 
 a second time, and waited. Presently the door was opened, 
 and the old grandmother peered out into the gloom. 
 
 " Ah, yes," she said, with a heavy sigh, when she had dis- 
 covered who her visitor was, " you were the last that he was 
 speaking of, the poor lad ! — and the last of his friends that 
 came to sec him." She retreated a little space, as if inviting 
 him to enter. "There is but a sorrowful welcome in the house 
 now; but maybe you would like to look on all that is left of 
 my poor boy. Yes, he was speaking of you to the end — and 
 there are some books for you — and a fishing-rod — to the very 
 end he was speaking of you — " 
 
 The school-master removed his cap, and passed in. 
 
 " When did it happen?" he said — in a needless whisper. 
 
 "This morning," she made answer, "just as the day was 
 coming in at the window." 
 
 Then she led him to the small, dimly-lit room where the 
 dead man lav, peaceful enough now, after the long struggle with 
 his insidious and merciless enemy. 
 
 " And is there no one in the house with you?" he asked of 
 her, in a Utile while. 
 
 " None. But the neighbors have been very kind.'" 
 
 "Grandmother," said he, "I will stay a while with you, if 
 yon will let me; I will stay with you until you tell, me to go.

 
 DAY AND NIGHT 403 
 
 I am rather lonely myself to-night. And I would like to hear 
 what he was thinking of, what he was talking of, when it came 
 near to the last." 
 
 So she softly shut the door behind them, and preceded him 
 into the kitchen, where the turned-up gas was burning a little 
 more cheerfully. She took her chair near the fireplace; she 
 put on her spectacles again ; and made as though she would 
 have resumed her sewing, but that the interest of the pathetic 
 monologue she now entered upon, interrupted as it was by 
 many a covert fit of crying, caused her to desist. For these 
 were not merely death-bed reminiscences that led her garrulity 
 to wander on through the dead hours of the night. This 
 grandson of hers had been during his too brief life her best- 
 beloved ; and she had treasured up a minute recollection of all 
 the wonderful things that had happened to him : his childish 
 exploits — his leaving Colonsay — his successes at school and col- 
 lege — the kindness of the manufacturer in whose warehouse 
 he had secured a situation as book-keeper. It was with pride 
 as well as affection that she rambled on ; this was a marvellous 
 career, she seemed to say, that had been so pitilessly cut short; 
 mournful as the disconnected narrative was, it had its brighter 
 glimpses ; and perhaps for an occasional minute or two Allan for- 
 got to think of the dark and ominous building away down at the 
 other end of the city, near to the dim river. Nay, it was some- 
 thing to have the companionship of this poor old creature, even 
 here in the silent house of death. And she, too, appeared to be 
 grateful to him for remaining with her — as she talked on, in this 
 bushed fashion, broken by many sobs and piteous ejaculations. 
 
 At last he rose to go, after having made patient inquiries as 
 to her circumstances, her plans, and her remaining relatives. 
 When he got outside, he found that the world had undergone 
 transfiguration ; the new dawn was abroad, pale over the mov- 
 ing canopy of smoke in the east; the gray houses near him 
 were waking out of their dream. At such an hour he did not 
 care to go in search of a lodging; moreover, the rain of the 
 night had ceased; soon the morning would be shining fair and 
 wide and clear. And so — perhaps with some vague and rest- 
 less desire to escape from the black shadows that appeared to 
 be encompassing him — he struck away out into the country : 
 everywhere the white daylight was now beginning to tell.
 
 CHAPTER XLYIII 
 
 He was returning, heart-sick and tired and hopeless, from 
 his long and fortuitous ramble, and he was coming in by way 
 of the Botanic Gardens, when he chanced to perceive, leaving a 
 house on the other side of the thoroughfare, a well-known and 
 easily-recognized figure. It was Professor Menzies. And he 
 would fain have slunk by unnoticed; he was in no humor for 
 talking to any one; still less did he wish to be cross-examined 
 about what had recently happened to him or his. But the 
 next minute lie heard himself called by name; he became 
 aware of overtaking strides; and presently, the professor — a 
 big, bulky, fresh -complexioUed, eupeptic-looking man — had 
 him by the shoulder. 
 
 "What — what's this?" he exclaimed, in a hale and hearty 
 voice. "Not running away, are you ? Why, it was only yes- 
 terday I was thinking of you, and wondering how you were 
 getting on in Duntroone. And what's brought you to Glas- 
 gow ? I'm going as far as Garnet Hill — I'll walk with you." 
 
 And so Allan — not unmindful of many kindnesses and con- 
 fidences — was constrained to tell his story, down even to the 
 sombre experiences of the day before. 
 
 "A terrible bad business," said the professor, after a moment 
 or two. "Terrible — terrible. And what are your plans now? 
 Are you going back to Duntroone?" 
 
 " As soon as I get poor MacNicl buried." 
 
 " Your return home will not be a very cheerful thing," was 
 the next, vague uggesl ion. 
 
 " I shall have plenty to do," Allan responded, " when the 
 BCbool opetis; and there will be my own classes in the 
 evening." 
 
 The two walked on for some little time in silence. 
 
 "How I came to be thinking of you yesterday was this,"
 
 PAULINE 405 
 
 the professor said, at length. " I was thinking you knew little 
 of the mischief you had done by refusing the offer of the 
 Cairds — you remember?" 
 
 "Remember? Yes, indeed! And many's the time I've 
 thought that I never half expressed my thanks to you." 
 
 "You appeared unwilling to give up your pupils. But I 
 could have provided you with a substitute — I imagine so ; and 
 you may be pretty certain that the Cairds of Carsehill would 
 not have let you suffer in pocket through the transaction. 
 Well, what happens through your refusal? The lad, whimsi- 
 cal as he may be, was half-inclined to go ; he had heard some- 
 thing about you ; and after all, he is amenable enough — though 
 those tearing, hunting, horse-racing uncles of his seem to look 
 en him as a sort of changeling. You refuse — and what is the 
 result? He returns to his idling, his verse-making, his news- 
 paper-scribbling ; spends most of his time at the Nike-aptcros 
 Club — among artists, journalists, and the like ; and at last — 
 this is the climax — falls in love with an actress — some mem- 
 ber of a strolling company — and declares his intention of 
 marrying her. What do you think of that, now ?" 
 
 " If he was of the mind and temperament to fall in love with 
 an actress," rejoined the school-master, "he would have done 
 that as readily in any town of Austria or Italy as in any city 
 or town of Scotland." 
 
 " Well, no — not necessarily. For there is a certain barrier 
 in language. And he knows a good deal more of Greek and 
 Latin than he does of German or Italian." 
 
 "There is another language," Allan said. 
 
 "Yes. There may be, when two combustible souls happen 
 to catch fire at once. But that doesn't occur often, does it? 
 However, I've shown you how we stand at present; and what 
 are the tearing, swearing, blustering iron-masters of Carsehill 
 to make of it ? He is so sweetly reasonable through it all ! 
 They talk of the disgrace of the family, while he is polishing 
 pretty verses about her brown ringlets." 
 
 " Is she a respectable girl ?" 
 
 "Apparently she is — at least, they can't find out anything 
 to the contrary ; and if they did, or fancied they did, no doubt 
 he would only smile at them in disdain. For, as I say, the 
 scamp is not unreasonable, even in the midst of his folly. He
 
 406 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 is open to argument. In fact, there lias been some revival of 
 that same project that he should go abroad for a considerable 
 time — with the chance of all this blowing over — with several 
 chances indeed ; and I am told he is not afraid to put the 
 young lady's constancy, and his own, to the test. If he were 
 challenged, he would probably consent; but the old difficulty 
 remains — how to secure a proper companion for him. He is 
 capricious in his fancies. The ordinary young men of his own 
 age, and all their pursuits, he regards with detestation. He 
 might have done well at college, for the rascal is clever; but 
 he is without sufficient aim — too erratic for any steady work — 
 would rather put a handful of rhymes in his pocket, walk away 
 out into the country, sit down by the way-side, and tinker at 
 them. Hardly the kind of fellow to attack a translation of 
 the Nibelungenlied, cli ? — by-thc-bye, I should have asked how 
 you were getting on." 
 
 "I have been thinking of other things of late," said the 
 school-master. 
 
 The big, stalwart, friendly professor suddenly halted — as 
 if the better to arrest attention. 
 
 "Look here, Henderson," said he. " The Cairds have come 
 to me several times about this affair — they know I can talk to 
 the youth with some chance of being listened to, whereas they 
 belong to a different world altogether. Now, suppose this 
 former scheme were to be revived. I don't at all like the idea 
 of your going away back home to your ordinary life, in the 
 present circumstances. You want a complete change of scene 
 and occupation ; you want to forget a little — in order to re- 
 cover your mental tone. Very well. Assuming that the uncles 
 and young Caird could come to some agreement, would you 
 he willing to go with hiin on his period of probation — that, is, 
 if you and he found that you got on well together? It would 
 mean the giving up of your place in the school, and also get- 
 ting a substitute to take your classes; but the Carsehill squires 
 would he liberal in such a case; and the young fellow, he is 
 really good-natured, -he would see it was made worth your 
 while. A couple of years' absence from England — " 
 
 "I should have to be back in this town six months from 
 now," said Allan, simply. 
 
 The professor colored slightly ; he understood.
 
 PAULINE 407 
 
 " But even six months," said he, as they resinned their walk, 
 "is a long time, and many things happen in it; six months 
 might find Caird junior restored to his sane and sober senses; 
 and, in any case, six months' absence from England would be a 
 wholesome thing for you. Now I don't want you to make 
 any definite promise ; but come and see this young fellow — see 
 what you think of him. I may be too busy to hunt him up 
 to-day ; but in that case I will write to him, and to-morrow 
 you and I could call on him in the afternoon. Is it a bargain ? 
 I might run across some of his people meanwhile — who knows? 
 Turn it over in your mind, now — and don't be in a hurry ; and 
 if you think well of the scheme, send me a note saying where 
 I shall find you to-morrow afternoon at four." 
 
 Allan did not refuse — could not think of refusing; clearly 
 enough he recognized all the kindliness, the good-will, and 
 thoughtfulness that underlay this apparently rough-and-ready 
 proposal. And accordingly, on the next afternoon, Professor 
 Mcnzies and his protege found themselves being shown into a 
 suite of rooms on the first floor of a house in Sauchiehall Street. 
 They were smartly -furnished rooms; but the decoration was 
 not as the decoration of many young men's apartments. 
 Tliere were no fencing-foils, masks, or dumb-bells, with hunting 
 and yatchting trophies, and colored lithographs representing 
 famous exploits on Epsom Downs ; a gentler tone prevailed ; 
 around the walls, and in one or two small cabinets, and on the 
 mantel-shelves, were displayed llispano-Moresque dishes. Tan- 
 agra figures, squares of Italian sixteenth - century embroidery 
 framed and glazed, bronze statuettes, a number of landscapes, 
 chiefly of the Scotch school, and a series of .prints from the 
 Liber Studiornm. The owner of these various possessions now 
 entered — a young lad of nineteen or twenty, rather under mid- 
 dle height, and distinctly lame in one leg ; the face and head 
 intelligent and interesting, the complexion pale, the mouth 
 finely formed, the eyes large, clear, and amiable. His manners, 
 too, were winning; he bade his visitors welcome with an off- 
 hand simplicity ; and again and again he regarded Allan with 
 a scrutinizing glance that seemed frankly to say, " So, it is you 
 they want me to go travelling with, for six months, or a year, 
 or two years?" On the other hand, the school-master — as he 
 subsequently wrote to Jess — formed from the very first a liking
 
 408 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 for this lame lad. lie was a trifle shy, perhaps, and yet some- 
 how defiant in his shyness. He appeared to treat his horse- 
 racing uncles with more than a suspicion of gentle ridicule. 
 He even ventured upon a little banter with regard to the pro- 
 fessor, which was taken in good part. x\.nd he was especially 
 courteous and civil to his stranger-guest, and said some very 
 pretty things about the West Highlands and the folk living 
 there. 
 
 But it had been the design of Professor Menzies to leave 
 these two to themselves; and so, pleading an engagement, he 
 left; while young Caird, having persuaded Allan to remain, 
 proceeded to talk about himself, and his circumstances, and this 
 projected trip, with the most engaging and useful candor. He 
 was not averse from going, he said, if it would pacify his rela- 
 tives; though their ideas, he added, with a smile, as to what 
 would accrue from this long absence, were purely chimerical. 
 And if, on his side, Mr. Henderson could be induced to join, 
 what countries in Europe would he chiefly wish to visit? 
 
 At this Allan's eyes flashed up in eager flame. 
 
 "There is the one place — the one place in all the world — 
 Athens!" 
 
 And then he shrank back upon himself, as it were, half in 
 shame. 
 
 " I 1 >C S your pardon," he said, quite humbly. " I was bewil- 
 dered for a moment. The mere mention of Athens shows me 
 that it is not for me to go with you on such a journey as you arc 
 thinking of. No, no. You must have somebody with you far 
 less ignorant than I am. What could I tell you at Athena, at 
 Nauplia, at Aero-Corinth ? You must have somebody skilled 
 and learned. They arc the most interesting places in the 
 world ; and what could a country school-master tell you ?" 
 
 The young lad had been looking at him — not with disfavor. 
 
 " I don't want anybody to tell me anything," said he. " I 
 should like to sec the places, no doubt; but 1 am not anxious 
 to be lectured. Not in the least. If I have to do penance — 
 or go 'in probation — if that is their insane idea — it has got to 
 be made easy. The pease must be boiled. Do you know any 
 modern Greek f" 
 
 " Not to speak it, anyway." 
 
 " Well, we can be cheated in some other language," contin
 
 PAULINE - 409 
 
 ued the young man, placidly. "I want some Rhodian plates, 
 and I am told there are a few to be picked up in Athens now 
 and again." He had limped over to the mantel-shelves, appar- 
 ently to have another loving look at the row of splendid red- 
 lustre dishes ; but presently he returned, with a little brown 
 paper-covered book — an acting edition — in his hand. " By-the- 
 way," he said, " have you ever seen ' The Lady of Lyons' ?" 
 
 " No, but I have read the play." 
 
 " And what did you think of it ?" 
 
 "Trash, it seemed to me," was the straight answer. 
 
 Young Caird winced a little. 
 
 " Yes — perhaps — from the point of view of literature. But 
 the language of the stage must necessarily be conventional ; it 
 is a condensation, and it has to be made effective. And it 
 doesn't much matter, does it, how artificial the dialogue may 
 be, so long as you are impressed by the characters — " 
 
 " And find them admirable, or lovable, or even believable and 
 interesting. But look at that fellow," said the school-master, 
 regarding the harmless little brown book with unnecessary 
 scorn — " look at that cowardly cur, who howls and shrieks for 
 revenge simply, because a young woman has rejected his imper- 
 tinent advances. Isn't that the right of every young woman, 
 whether she is rich or poor? But this mouthing fellow, with 
 his turgid blank-verse, when she sends him back his rubbish of 
 verses, has all his outraged vanity set on fire — he will stop her 
 in the open streets — he will publicly insult her — he will de- 
 scend to any meanness and trickery in order to humiliate her 
 — he will conspire with her enemies — anything — so that his 
 own stupendous egotism and self-love may be solaced and 
 avenged — Bah ! there has been many a hero, stuffed with saw- 
 dust, stuck up for the world to admire, but never any one quite 
 so despicable as that !" 
 
 Young Caird was still further disconcerted. 
 
 " Well — perhaps — perhaps with regard to him ; but as for 
 her now — as for Pauline, you know — " 
 
 " As for her ?" continued the ruthless school-master. " When 
 she discovers how basely he has plotted to deceive and betray 
 her, when she perceives all the lying he has gone through in 
 order to fill his nutshell of a heart with the glory of revenge — 
 revenge on a woman ! — how can she stoop to such a hound ? 
 18
 
 410 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 What miracle is likely to change his character? His monstrous 
 vanity — his inconceivable meanness — and, worse than every- 
 thing, his insufferable blank-verse, would remain with him to 
 the end of the chapter — " 
 
 The younger man tossed the book on to the table. 
 
 " Perhaps what you say is right," he repeated, " from the 
 literary point of view. Perhaps. But then you have not seen 
 the piece acted : you have never seen the living human beings 
 before you. Now I happen to know where it is to be played 
 to-night." He named a small town — which need not be more 
 definitely particularized here — some seven or eight miles out 
 of Glasgow. " Would you like to see it — if you have no other 
 engagement for this evening ? What do you say ? We could 
 go down in a cab now to the Nick — the Nike-apteros — and I 
 could send round a message to my livery-stable man to have a 
 carriage got ready for us. Then we have an hour or so at the 
 club for a bite of something to cat — a cigarette or so in the 
 billiard-room — and we start off. It is by far the pleasantest 
 
 way of going out to at this time of the year; there is no 
 
 catching of trains ; and you can come away when you like. 
 What do you say ?" 
 
 To Allan it may have seemed a strange kind of proposal. 
 Last night, the house of the dead ; to-night, the glare of the 
 theatre. But, after all, this was a bizarre kind of world ; and 
 he was getting used to diverse experiences, and perhaps be- 
 coming a little blunted ; moreover, he knew well it was no 
 mere literary discussion that was making this young man so 
 anxious he should sec the divine Pauline tread the stage. So 
 he assented ; a cab was called, and they drove down to the 
 Nike-apteros Club, in West Bcgent Street. 
 
 It was an unpretentious little establishment, well appoint- 
 ed, and with a general look of homely cheerfulness. Besides 
 this, owing to the early hour — and to the fact that most of 
 tin; landscapcrs were now away in the country — they had the 
 place almost to themselves; the dining-room, in especial, was 
 empty. 
 
 '' And why Nike-apteros?" Allan asked, as he looked around 
 at the spacious apartment, with its brightly-laid tables and its 
 pictures. " Not, much like the Temple of JSgeus, surely !" 
 
 " A very good name — a capital name," rejoined his host,
 
 PAULINE 411 
 
 " for a lot of fellows who want to do the very best they can 
 without too much blowing of trumpets." 
 
 Nevertheless, it was not of any achievements, victorious or 
 otherwise, with either pen or pencil, that they proceeded to 
 converse, here on this pleasant summer evening, as they sat at 
 their sufficiently frugal meal. The talk was mostly of Pau- 
 line — of Pauline, and the mysterious magic of stage-presenta- 
 tion, with a little excursus in the direction of Wilhelm Meis- 
 ter, and De Quincey's various judgments and findings, though 
 Pauline managed to reappear after the briefest possible ab- 
 sence. And there was also a good deal of Pauline — and of 
 happy anticipation — as the eager-eyed young host thereafter 
 led the way out to the open barouche that was waiting for 
 them, and as they drove off and through the wide- spreading 
 suburbs. Allan had been implored to cast aside prejudice; 
 instead of prejudice, prepossession was now taking hold of 
 him ; he was almost ready to abjure his heresies, and to 
 range himself as a meek and remote adorer of Miss Deschap- 
 pelles. 
 
 It was rather a rude and barn-like building, this Volunteer 
 Hall ; but it had been made into a semblance of a theatre ; 
 there was an act-drop, and there was a scant orchestra. And 
 hardly had the two new-comers taken their seats when the 
 music came to an end, the curtain was raised, and the first 
 scene was disclosed — with no other than Pauline herself "re- 
 clining on a sofa, R." Well, as shortly appeared, she was not 
 an imposing Pauline ; she was rather a diminutive little per- 
 son, and her finery was sadly tarnished ; but none the less her 
 management of her train and her peacock walk across the 
 stage lent her an imaginary height and stateliness; her figure 
 was elegant and graceful ; her softly-modulated English accent 
 was attractive, and her delivery of blank- verse — when the 
 time came for that — was distinctly admirable. Nay, there was 
 something more. She alone, as the play proceeded, stood out 
 from this grotesque rabble of incompetents. Beauseant and 
 Glavis were dreadful. Damas, with his efforts at Italian pro- 
 nunciation, had wellnigh drawn from the school - master one 
 of his great explosive bursts of laughter. Claude Melnotte — 
 the manager of this travelling company — was unmistakably 
 drank. But all through the ramshackle performance there
 
 412 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 was something of dignity and charm imported by the gentle 
 Pauline; and when she came to her grander passages — 
 
 " Love, sir, hath no sting. 
 What was the slight of a poor powerless girl, 
 To the deep wrong of this most vile revenge ? " * 
 
 or again — 
 
 " I'll ivork— 
 1 'oil — drudge — do what thou wilt — but touch me not; 
 Let my wrongs make me sacred!" 
 
 — she rose to the occasion ; there was a genuine thrill in her 
 voice; and the school-master, all unused to stage effects, could 
 not help exclaiming to himself in an undertone: 
 
 "Good! Good! That's the real ring! Well done !— well 
 done !" 
 
 Meanwhile a close observer might have perceived that Pau- 
 line had become conscious of the presence of a friend in the 
 not over-numerous audience; and in the interval between Acts 
 III. and IV. a small neatly-folded note was brought to Allan's 
 companion. 
 
 "Will you excuse me for a moment?" said the lad, with a 
 mantling blush; and he rose from his scat and disappeared. 
 
 The moments stretched into minutes, the minutes into quar- 
 ters of an hour, and still he returned not. But when the play 
 was all over, and Allan, with the rest of the crowd, had wan- 
 dered out, into the street, young Caird turned up again, with 
 abject apologies ; and here was the barouche to carry them 
 back to Glasgow. And then, perforce, supper at the Nike 
 Club; ami further talk ; and further talk ; amidst which the 
 musically-voiced Pauline was not forgotten. 
 
 It was not, until about a fortnight after this experience — 
 many things happening, and many arrangements having to be 
 made in the meantime — that Allan Henderson found leisure to 
 write out for Jessie's amusement an account of the " Lady of 
 Lyons," as he had seen it played at a provincial theatre. It 
 was rather a malicious account — Claude Mclnotte's pronuncia- 
 tion — 
 
 " .1 palaCe lifting to eternal s'mcr" 
 
 and bis tangled feet not lending themselves to the heroic — and
 
 PAULINE 413 
 
 it may have made Jess laugh a little, in her quiet way. Any- 
 how, the voluminous letter was finished just as the sunset was 
 flaring red along the lonely cliffs of Cape St. Vincent, with 
 the solitary light-house sending out from time to time its sud- 
 den, golden ray ; and on the earliest possible occasion it was 
 consigned to the post-office — that is to say, the busy little post- 
 office in the main street of Gibraltar.
 
 CHAPTER XLIX 
 
 A SUMMONS 
 
 " I hope I am not intruding," said the councillor in Lis po- 
 litest manner, as he made his appearance at the parlor door. 
 
 " To think of such a thing !" responded the little widow. 
 "Come your ways in, Mr. McFadyen — bashfulness is not needed 
 at all. I am sure there was capital good sense in the saying 
 they used to have when T was a girl : ' The house that tve are 
 not made welcome to, may the devil blow the roof off it /" 
 
 " Mother, mother, what fearful language !" cried Jess. 
 
 "But good sense — capital good sense," insisted the widow. 
 " Take a chair, Mr. McFadyen, and give us your news !" 
 
 " Na, na," said Mr. McFadyen, modestly. " It's not me, it's 
 Miss Jessie that has all the news nowadays. Such long let- 
 ters — and such splendid doings — I never heard the like of ; 
 and it's but right and proper of Allan to make ye some re- 
 quital of that kind, seeing the way Miss Jessie has been look- 
 ing after his interests ever since he went away. I thought it 
 was just real clever of her to get the house let to the end of 
 the year ; no one else would have thought of it, the evening 
 classes being such an obstacle ; but the reduced rent was the 
 temptation, no doubt; and a fine thing for Allan — he ought 
 to be greatly obliged to ye — " 
 
 "Oh yes — oh yes," remarked the widow. "Allan and her, 
 they get on fine when the breadth of Europe is between them; 
 but if he were back here to-morrow, she would be at him again 
 with her scoff-scoffing — the poor good-natured lad, that has 
 hardly a word to say for himself — " 
 
 " Allan — good-natured |" retorted Jess, in well-feigned amaze- 
 ment. "Tin' temper <>f a mule, you mean! Good-natured '! 
 It's not Allan Henderson you're speaking of, mother, is it?" 
 
 " For shame — for shame!'' said the widow, angrily. " Snap- 
 snapping at bim behind his back! And the poor lad with not 
 too many friends — "
 
 A SUMMONS 415 
 
 "Oh, as for that," continued Jess, as she took down from 
 the mantel-shelf a closely-written letter of several pages, "he 
 can have but little time to think about us or anything- we may 
 be saying of him. Look at this, Mr. McFadyen ; here is the 
 last budget ; and it's a description of grandeurs enough to turn 
 anybody's head. First of all, he tells us about the Salaamlik — " 
 
 "Aye, just think of that, now, Mr. McFadyen," said the wid- 
 ow — without attempting to pronounce the word. 
 
 " I'm not quite sure," the councillor put in, doubtfully, when 
 Jess proceeded : 
 
 " That is the state procession of the Sultan to the mosque. 
 And it appears that the English ambassador got cards of ad- 
 mission for Mr. Caird and Allan — admission to a pavilion, 
 where they saw everything quite close by. Then the next day 
 they had an invitation to visit the imperial palaces — the Beyler- 
 Bey and the Dolma Baghcha on the Bosporus, and the Se- 
 raglio in Stamboul; and the aide-de-camp came for them in one 
 of His Majesty's caiques — a long, beautiful boat, with ten 
 rowers in costumes of white silk and red fez ; and the two 
 visitors were shown the wonderful display of jewels in the 
 treasury ; and were served with rose-leaf jam in cups in- 
 crusted with precious stones — " 
 
 " Do ye hear that — do ye hear that, Mr. McFadyen," inter- 
 posed Mrs. Maclean, not without a trace of exultation. 
 
 The Golden Horn, the Sweet Waters, the Suleimanieh, the 
 Seven Towers ; these were brave words; and Allan's description 
 of Constantinople by moonlight was no doubt vivid enough ; 
 but all the same Mr. McFayden began to grow impatient and 
 even resentful. He was losing in importance. He was being 
 ignored. In the face of all these glories and dignities, what 
 became of his position as a member of Duntroone Town Council? 
 
 "I would just say this," he observed, "that as a kind of 
 theatrical representation, what you have been reading, Miss 
 Jessie, is very remarkable. But I'm thinking that a man's 
 value in the world depends on what he can do within his own 
 sphere. It is there he must make his influence felt — it is there 
 he becomes of consequence. I dare say, now, that after such a 
 parade of Eastern magnificence and glitter, a question like the 
 granting of spirit licenses, here in Duntroone, must look a 
 small and contemptible affair — "
 
 410 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " Indeed no — indeed no, Mr. McFadyen !" the widow pro- 
 tested. " What can interest us more than what is happening 
 just close around us ?" 
 
 He turned to her with alacrity. 
 
 " Ah, I see ye understand, Mrs. Maclean," he said. " Ye 
 understand what is of main consequence to us. And I will 
 say this for myself : that when we came to consider whether we 
 should grant any further spirit licenses, my brother councillors 
 were all at sixes and sevens until I made the suggestion that 
 the people themselves should be asked what they wanted. 
 1 And how are yon going to do that ?' says they. ' Why, by 
 a plebiscity,' says I. ' The simplest thing possible.' " 
 
 " Ye're right there, Mr. McFadyen," agreed the widow. 
 " There's nothing like publicity. I'm no for any hole-and- 
 corner business — no, no ! Ye must keep an eye on them, Mr. 
 McFadyen." 
 
 " There's one or two things," continued the councillor, in a 
 serious and thoughtful fashion, " that I would like to see done 
 while I have life and health spared me to attend to these pub- 
 lic concerns. There's the condition of the North Pier — as I've 
 said many a time before, it's a disgrace, a perfect disgrace. 
 And if we cannot acquire the property for ourselves — if the 
 Board of Trade cannot help us — then at the very least wc 
 might make some arrangement about sanitary appliances. 
 Why, a good sloshing-down every morning with a solution of 
 carbolic acid — that of itself would be something." 
 
 " Ye're right again, Mr. McFadyen," chimed in the widow, 
 nodding approval. "Carbolic acid's the thing — it's just the 
 best anti-scmitic there is — " 
 
 " Is it antiseptic you mean, mother?" Jess interposed, rather 
 crossly. 
 
 "Ah, that's what I said," continued the widow, with much 
 complacency. " I'm sure the state of the North Pier is just 
 crying aloud for something to be done." 
 
 "I have undertaken to give it my best attention," said the 
 Councillor, grandly ; and he would probably have gone on to 
 mention one or two further arid important reforms, but that at 
 tlii moment a new-comer appeared, all eyes being instantly 
 turned towards him. 
 
 It was the shoemaker. Long Lauchlan seemed perturbed
 
 A SUMMONS 417 
 
 and agitated ; and his excuses for this sudden intrusion were 
 somewhat incoherent. 
 
 " I had just half a minute," said he. " It was the only shelter 
 I could find ; and I'm sure, Mrs. Maclean, you will not object 
 to my coming in — until — until he has gone by." 
 
 " But who, Lauchlan ?" asked the widow. " What is the 
 matter ?" 
 
 " It's that desperate man, Red Murdoch, from Salen," re- 
 sponded Lauchie, with another timorous glance towards the 
 front shop, " and I was hearing that he was in the town and 
 inquiring for me everywhere ; and, thinks I to myself, I will 
 keep out of the rod, and he will be going aweh hom by the 
 evening steamer. Aye, and would you believe it, I was com- 
 ing along Campbell Street, and there was he turning out of the 
 lane by the Bank of Scotland, and if I had not escaped in here, 
 he would hef got hold of me, and that's the Bible's truth — " 
 
 " But what did he want with you ?" Jess demanded, though 
 there were dark suspicions in her mind, prompting her to 
 
 giggle. 
 
 " Oh, he's a terrible man, that," said Long Lauchie, in an 
 awe-stricken way. " If Red Murdoch is for the drink, there's 
 no holding him back — no, nor any one he gets by the arm ; and 
 I heard he was searching for me — me, that's a Rechabite and 
 an officer of the Tent ! But maybe he's gone by now — " 
 
 " What nonsense it is you are talking, Lauchlan Maclntyre !" 
 said the widow, sharply. "Are you telling me that any one 
 can make you drink if you're not that way inclined ? Where 
 is your courage ? I would not be frightened into any corner, 
 if I were you — no, not for twenty Red Murdochs ! Are you 
 not free to walk along the streets ? What kind of a country is 
 this we're living in, then ? I am ashamed to hear you, Lauch- 
 lan !" 
 
 Long Lauchie regarded her for a second. 
 
 " You're a woman, Mrs. Maclean," said he, mysteriously. 
 " And you hef no experience of Red Murdoch when he comes 
 back from Calder Market, and would like a dram with one of 
 his old friends. But he must hef gone by now — yes, indeed, he 
 must hef gone by ; and it's much obliged I am to you, Mrs. 
 Maclean, for giving me the shelter ; and I will go out now and 
 down to the shore, and get a boat, and a lad to pull me over 
 18*
 
 418 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 to Ardentrive Bay ; and I will stop there until I see the Mull 
 steamer passing out. Me that's a Rechabite could not be seen 
 going into a public-house with Red Murdoch, no matter what 
 money he may have got at Calder. May the Good Being pre- 
 serve ns !" 
 
 This last ejaculation was in Gaelic. For there was a sound 
 as of some one opening the front shop. But this was no great 
 red-bearded drover — this was Niall Gorach, who came to the 
 half-opened door, peering in with his elfin eyes. 
 
 " Aw, Mr. Maclntyre," said he, " it is here you are ; and Red 
 Murdoch he was sending me to find you ; and I am to tell him 
 where you are — " 
 
 " Son of the devil !" exclaimed Lauchlan, and he made a step 
 forward and seized the lad by the shoulder. " This is what 
 you will be telling him now — are you listening? You will tell 
 Red Murdoch that my mother is dead, and the funeral will be 
 in a week or two, and I hef gone aweh to Appin for the fu- 
 neral, and it will be a month before I am back. Do you hear 
 me now ? Off with you and find out Red Murdoch, and tell 
 him I am dead, and my mother is dead ; and he is to go aweh 
 horn by the evening steamer. Do you understand me now ?" 
 
 Perhaps Niall Gorach did, and perhaps lie did not ; at all 
 events, he disappeared ; and Lauchlan turned with an air of 
 apology to the widow. 
 
 " Mebbe, Mrs. Maclean, you will not mind my staying a few 
 minutes longer. For Red Murdoch he might be in one street, 
 or another street, but he'll be going aweh horn by the evening 
 boat whatever ; and people that does not want to be drinking 
 will be left in peace and quietness." 
 
 Alas! at this very instant there was another sound outside — 
 on the pavement and in the front shop — that reawakened the 
 conscious fear in Lauchlan's eyes : it was a tread, heavy and 
 irregular, that could not be mistaken for the cat-like approach 
 of Niall Gorach. Almost, simultaneously a gigantic form ap- 
 peared at the door, and the great, shaggy visage of Red Mur- 
 doch stared bemusedly in upon the little group. At first he 
 did not Beem to recognize any one — not even the shoemaker, 
 who had slunk into a twilit corner. 
 
 "A mild woman— a mild woman," said the huge drover, in 
 Gaelic, as he regarded Mrs. Maclean.
 
 A SUMMONS 419 
 
 "A young girl — a handsome young girl," he continued, in 
 his occult approval, as for a moment he contemplated Jess. 
 
 But uow he came to Lauchie, half hidden in that dusky re- 
 treat ; and at once a roar of delighted laughter broke from 
 him ; he strode forward, and laid a vast and hairy paw on the 
 arm of the shrinking shoemaker. 
 
 "Are you there, sou of my heart? And it is a good day, 
 this day, when I have the money in my pocket, and Long 
 Lauchlan to be coming with me for a dram. It is a fine day, 
 this day : Lauchlan, my son, the grass that is not grown is 
 suitable for the unborn calf ; but here I have the money ; and 
 my thanks to the good chance that brings me a friend — " 
 
 " Away, away !" cried Lauchlan, trying to free himself from 
 that tremendous grip. " I am not for any drink. I will not 
 have any drink. I am not one of the drinking kind." 
 
 The stupefied drover gazed and gazed ; and then he shook 
 his head savagely, as if he would clear his brain from these en- 
 cumbering and bewildering mists and fogs ; and then he tried 
 to drag the shoemaker out into the open, to see if it was pos- 
 sible to understand what all this meant. But now it was that 
 the councillor intervened. Mr. McFadyen was a little man, and 
 rather fat and scant of breath ; nevertheless, he had a valiant 
 soul — especially when Jessie Maclean happened to be looking 
 on ; and without more ado he seized Red Murdoch by the 
 elbow. 
 
 " Let the man alone !" said he. "Are you not aware that he 
 has become a Rechabite ?" 
 
 " And who are you ?" said the big drover, turning to glare 
 down on this audacious interloper. 
 
 " I am a member of the town-council," replied Peter, with- 
 out one pin's point of quailing, "and I have sufficient influence 
 with the police authorities to see that no one is allowed to come 
 into any house and disturb and frighten decent, quiet people." 
 
 " Oh, there is no frightening of any one," said Jess, who in- 
 deed was more inclined to laugh. " But if you are going by 
 the evening steamer, Mr. Murdoch, it is about time you were 
 walking along to the quay ; and Mr. McFadyen's house is close 
 by ; and I am sure if you went along with him he would be 
 glad to have a parting glass with you, and you could leave Mr, 
 Maclntyre to his own ways and habits,"
 
 420 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 But at this Red Murdoch drew himself up. 
 
 " Who goes through the thorns for rnc, I'll go through the 
 briers for him," he said, in a dignified manner. "And I will 
 take a parting glass with the gentleman, if he is agreeable. But 
 it is not I that am in the custom of going from one house to 
 another house and asking for a glass of whiskey, when I can 
 pay for my own whiskey. And as for the Rechabites — well, I 
 hope there will be plenty of Rechabites, and more and more 
 Rechabites, until the devil takes them to light his fires with !" 
 
 And thereupon the red-bearded Mull drover, still somewhat 
 proud and offended, suffered himself to be led away by the 
 councillor; while Long Lanchie, tremulously thankful over his 
 escape from this formidable temptation, came forth from his 
 corner and went sadly away home. And all that the little 
 widow said, when they had quitted the premises, was this : 
 
 " The men are strange folk. And it's a Heaven's mercy when 
 they dinna come to blows." 
 
 But during the subsequent and grateful quiet Jess remained 
 for a long time silent and absent-minded ; and she still held 
 Allan Henderson's letter in her hand. 
 
 " Mother," she said, after a while, " I suppose, now, Mr. 
 McFadyen will imagine that Allan is thinking only of himself 
 and all these fine adventures. I did not care to read any more 
 of the letter to him. What would be the use? And what am 
 I to answer to Allan himself, and to all his anxious question- 
 ings — week after week, week after week, very soon it will be 
 months — and me with hardly a word of news to send him? 
 How can I make him understand that Barbara will not write, 
 and that she will not sec any one, and that her only wish ap- 
 pears to be that she should be forgotten, and her name never 
 mentioned among us? And what is to come of it? Sometimes 
 I am dreading that there will be a terrible harm." 
 
 And again she said : 
 
 " Mother, would you mind if T went through to Glasgow for 
 a few days, or maybe longer? Mrs. Guthrie might give me a 
 bed ; for I would not like to be all by myself in a temperance 
 hotel in a l»ig town like that. I must see Barbara —I cannot 
 sleep at, nights for thinking of her." 
 
 "And many'e the wakeful hour I have," rejoined the little 
 widow, "over the poor lass run! her troubles. And as you say,
 
 A SUMMONS 421 
 
 Jessie, what will come of it if she refuses every permission, and 
 will have no comfort and no hope, and wishes to be as one that 
 is dead to us? She was brought up in the fresh air and the 
 open ; and to be shut close within black walls — dear, dear me ! 
 — what is to come of it?" 
 
 " Mother," the girl said, " I will go to Glasgow — and you 
 must not hurry me back." 
 
 So next day Jess made her small preparations, and set out for 
 the great city ; and there she received a most friendly welcome 
 from Mrs. Guthrie, who kept a baker's shop in the Gallowgate. 
 At first her letters home were filled merely with a vague mis- 
 giving — a misgiving that was perhaps mainly caused by her per- 
 plexity ; for she could not fathom and get to comprehend this 
 strange mood of mind on the part of the hapless prisoner. But 
 after awhile those letters struck a sharper note of alarm ; and 
 at last there arrived a telegram begging Mrs. Maclean to go 
 through to Glasgow at once, or, if that were impossible, to send 
 Mr. McFadyen in her stead.
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 FAREWELL ! 
 
 One morning, towards noon, two travellers who had arrived 
 at Calais overnight were walking up and down the breezy prom- 
 enade of the Quai de Marec, with an occasional glance now at 
 the boats in the harbor, and again at the wide waters of the 
 Channel that were flashing and rushing in silver-and-yellow 
 before a brisk east wind. 
 
 "Well, Henderson," said the younger of the two, "you've 
 come a precious long way for what seems to me a mere matter 
 of convention." 
 
 " Convention ?" repeated the school-master, abruptly. " What 
 convention ? I could do nothing else. What else could I do?" 
 
 " I beg your pardon," continued the younger man, with quick 
 pacification; "perhaps I should have said a matter of princi- 
 ple. Anyhow, all that sad business in Glasgow must have been 
 long over by now ; and I hardly understand why you should 
 have thought it necessary — " 
 
 ""At the very least,"' said his companion, "I can go on to 
 Duntroone, and thank those good friends who stood in my 
 place when I was far enough away. No; my starting for 
 home, as soon as that message reached me at Mondanieh, was 
 an inevitable thing — I could not do otherwise ; but you — why 
 you should have undertaken such a tedious and aimless jour- 
 ney, only to stop here — I have not been able to make that out 
 yet." 
 
 "Why I came back with your said young Caird, lightly. 
 " Why I came on to Calais? Oh, for a frolic — or for compa- 
 ny's sake — or to practise self-denial; self-denial, most likely. 
 Von sec, there can't be anything to do in this dull little hole of 
 a town; so, until yon reappear, I suppose I shall spend most of 
 my time on this promenade, strolling about, and addressing 
 polished and elegant speeches to my respected relatives over
 
 FAREWELL ! 423 
 
 the water : ' My dear friends, if you were to learn that I had 
 returned so far, and that at this moment I was almost within 
 sight of English shores, you would, no doubt, jump to the con- 
 clusion that I meant to cross ; and you would be delighted to 
 think that a certain compact was about to be broken. But I 
 am not going to do anything of the kind — not at all. I am 
 playing for too important a stake. There is a little matter of 
 family recognition to be added in, when the stipulated year ex- 
 pires, and when I shall have the pleasure of presenting to you 
 a young person whose accomplishments and refinement and 
 grace will be quite an addition to your domestic circles — and 
 something of a novelty, too.' " 
 
 But here the lame lad sent a rather wistful look away to the 
 north. 
 
 " After all, Henderson, it is a temptation," he confessed. " I 
 do believe if I were to cross with you by this next boat I could 
 slip through to Glasgow without any chance of being discov- 
 ered, and meet you somewhere on the way back. Let's see : 
 you'll be in London between four and five; then on by the 
 Scotch mail to-night; Glasgow quite early to-morrow morning. 
 Then the — the company are playing at Falkirk just now — " 
 
 " How do you know that ?" said the school-master, turning 
 upon him sharply. 
 
 " Oh, yon needn't be afraid," responded the lad, with a laugh. 
 " Direct communication only is forbidden in the bond, and 
 there's been nothing of that kind. But one may have a friend 
 here or there, don't you perceive ?" 
 
 " Yes," observed the school - master ; " you seem to have 
 borne this separation, so far, with great equanimity." 
 
 " Oh, I assure you I have kept strictly to the terms !" the 
 younger man exclaimed, placidly. "Not but that there may 
 have been moments — just now, for example — when one's com- 
 mon-sense rebels. Or which is the common-sense — impatience 
 over this preposterous compact, or the determination, now that 
 so much has been gone through, to hold on to the end ? That 
 is a conundrum I can study while yon are away in the north ; 
 and you have been setting me a good many of late to puzzle 
 over. I remember a very pretty one : ' Can any natural in- 
 stinct or impulse be in itself criminal, or is it onlv criminal in 
 so far as society, for its own protective purposes, chooses to de-
 
 424 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 clare it criminal ?' That's a very dainty suggestion — something 
 like a cartload of dynamite fit to burst up the whole moral or- 
 der of the universe. For example, ray natural impulse at this 
 moment, if I were within reach of that fishing-smack, would 
 be to tip the skipper into the sea. Is there any such loathsome 
 sight as a fat Frenchman in a temper? Look at his clinched 
 fists — look at him jumping with rage — listen to his howls and 
 shrieks at those jibing and mocking people on the quay — and 
 every moment he knows the wind is carrying him farther and 
 farther out of hearing. But what now — what now ! — oh, moug 
 jew, regard ez ! — " 
 
 And with melodramatic horror and reprobation young 
 Caird put his hands over his eyes and averted his head. 
 For the infuriated skipper, standing high on the stern of 
 the departing smack, found himself helpless in the face 
 of that derisive rabble ; his frantic curses and threats 
 would no longer carry the distance ; so in this last ex- 
 tremity, and in the madness of his scorn and hate, he sud- 
 denly executed a scries of inconceivable and indescribable 
 gestures the like of which his shamefaced mother -earth 
 had never before beheld. The fish -wives standing about 
 laughed, but rather among themselves; the thick-set mariners 
 grinned more openly; and meanwhile the all-prevailing breeze 
 was gradually reducing that gesticulating and desperate 
 item of humanity to a small and voiceless and inappreciable 
 dot. 
 
 "Come away, now," said young Caird, "and let's walk along 
 to the steamer. And about my natural impulse to tip that 
 skipper into the sea: wasn't it perfectly justifiable ? If society 
 were to declare it criminal, it would be because society had 
 never witnessed such a deplorable exhibition." 
 
 " Lad, lad," said the school-master, absently, " it is well with 
 you that you can make a joke of such questions. Sometimes 
 they come a little more seriously into human life." 
 
 That was all; and there was no unkindlincss in the hint; 
 but the younger man, who had got to know a good deal of his 
 companion's story, quickly and skilfully changed the subject 
 — and easily, too, for now they were about to separate, and 
 their final arrangements had to be made. 
 
 And thus it was that Allan Henderson, journeying alone,
 
 FAREWELL ! 425 
 
 made his way northward to Glasgow, where indeed there was 
 not much for him to do beyond visiting two graves — grave of 
 wife and grave of friend ; and in his long reveries he may have 
 pondered over the strangely devious paths by which those two 
 children of the far and lonely outer isles, who in life had never 
 known each other, had at length reached this last resting-place, 
 within sight and sound of the great murmuring city. As for 
 him, Glasgow had become a town of dark memories and re- 
 grets ; and he seemed to breathe more freely when on the next 
 day he found himself on the train that was bearing him away 
 out to the western seas — though nevertheless he looked back, 
 and still looked back, so long as any of the gray houses and 
 the tall chimneys were visible. 
 
 It was rather a wet and boisterous afternoon when in due 
 course he arrived at the well-known little station fronting the 
 harbor; but delicious to his nostrils were the soft, fresh, rain- 
 laden gusts that blew in across the bay ; and he forgot all about 
 Pentelicus and Marathon and the basking slopes of Hymettus 
 when he beheld the ancient and ivied castle tall and dark 
 against the windy western skies, and when he saw the wild 
 cloud-wreaths moving and intertwisting in silver and purple 
 above the sombre Morven hills. His heart swelled, and his 
 throat was like to choke him when he heard the kindly speech 
 from which he had so long been absent, and he was glad that 
 neither Jessie Maclean nor her mother was here to meet him ; 
 if he had been less agitated he might have guessed that it was 
 only part of Jess's thoughtfulness that had made them stay 
 away, while here was the alert and indefatigable Mr. McFadyen 
 to represent them. 
 
 " I was to ask you to excuse them," said the councillor, 
 eagerly snatching at handbags and parcels, whether they be- 
 longed to Allan or not, " and I've got a room ready for you 
 at my house, for, as ye've doubtless heard, your own house has 
 been let; but the widow and her daughter will be glad to see 
 you later on, when you've plenty of time, and when you've 
 got more accustomed to the town — " 
 
 At this Allan stopped short, and stood stock-still — here, 
 amongst the luggage and the porters and the bustling pas- 
 sengers. 
 
 " McFadyen, what is't you mean ?" said he. " Do they hold
 
 426 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 rac answerable for all that has happened? Has Mrs. Maclean 
 cast me out?'' 
 
 " Dod bless my soul and body !" exclaimed the councillor, 
 in great confusion and fright ; was this the result of his trying 
 to obey Jess Maclean's earnest injunctions? "You'll not let a 
 body speak ! They thought they might be in the way — and 
 — and I've got everything arranged for ye — as well as I could 
 in my poor dwelling; and we'll go along to see the Macleans as 
 soon as ever yon like — I mean, as soon as you've had a bite of 
 something. And the thrashing — oh yes, Miss Jessie was sure 
 ye'd like to hear of the fearful thrashing I gave the station- 
 master on Saturday afternoon: ye see, Jamie Gilmour has been 
 out o' practice all through the summer-time because of being so 
 busy — morning till night far too busy to think of the links — " 
 
 By this time Mr. McFadyen had secured a porter; and when 
 Allan's not very cumbrous luggage had been put on the barrow, 
 the two friends set out to accompany it — for the councillor's 
 house was but a little way off. 
 
 " And then," continued Peter, with dawning merriment, 
 " I'll tell ye the truth — I'll confess the truth : I had been prac- 
 tising pretty hard, and not letting on to Jamie. There's 
 Tolmie, the professional, hanging about there now; and I was 
 getting a few lessons from him, d'ye understand — on the quiet; 
 so that when the ball did happen to trintle away down into 
 that beast of a hollow by the dike, I began to find myself no 
 just quite so helpless — Here, you thick-headed goineril, where 
 the mischief are ye going?" 
 
 This last execration was hurled at the porter, who, having 
 recognized the school-master, and assuming that this was the 
 school-master's luggage, was for leaving the harbor-front to 
 get away up to Battery Terrace. When it had again been 
 forced in on his mind that they were all of them bound for 
 the councillor's dwelling, Peter continued his brisk conversa- 
 tion — as had been enjoined on him. 
 
 " It was a wonderful clever tiling," said he, " of Miss Jessie 
 to get your house let to those friends o' hers from Peterhead; 
 for it suits them just- splendid — the ailing lass having been 
 ordered to try the suit west-country air; and it matters little 
 to them to have the lower rooms occupied by the Latin classes 
 for an hour or two in the evening — "
 
 farewell! 427 
 
 "If Mr. Fenwick would not mind," said Allan, "I would 
 like to look in for a few minutes to-night, just to see the lads." 
 
 " To be sure — to be sure ! Capital — a capital idea !" cried 
 Peter, approvingly ; and now they were arrived at his house ; 
 and here was the great, gawky, good-natured, gooseberry-eyed 
 servant-lass ready to help with the luggage ; and in the adjoin- 
 ing parlor the dinner-table was laid — and laid for two only. 
 
 For this also was part of Jessie's kindly scheming ; though 
 her mother had furtively cried a little when she learned that 
 Allan, on his return home, was to be received in a strange 
 house. But Jess insisted ; she would have no family gathering- 
 over the way, with its painful blank only too conspicuous ; and 
 of course she found in the councillor a willing ally. So it was 
 that Peter and his guest sat down at this table by themselves ; 
 and the big, bland servant-lass brought in successively cockie- 
 leekie, boiled salmon, and roast fowl and bacon ; while the 
 loquacious host, suddenly remembering that he had dropped 
 the story of the discomfiture and dismay of the station-master, 
 resumed the narrative, and launched into a Homeric description 
 of his own exploits and his enemy's chagrin. 
 
 "Dod, man," he cried, between bursts of irrepressible laugh- 
 ter, "ye never saw any human creature in such a state of 
 bewilderment ! All the tricks that Tolmie had been showing 
 me seemed to come in handy from the very beginning — but 
 more especially at the dike — more especially at the dike — for 
 I made a bad hash of my first attempt, and the ball did not 
 get over, and Jamie he sets to work sniggering. 'Peter,' says 
 he, 'away back wi' ye thirty yards, and try again.' 'Jamie,' 
 says I, 'keep a calm sough for a minute.' And then I gets 
 out my lofter ; and I steadied my aim ; and click ! goes the ball 
 into the air — well and clean over and away ! ' It's an infernal 
 fluke !' says he. ' I'll bet ye half-a-crown on the game !' says I. 
 ' Done with you, Peter,' says he, ' and you'll be whistling an- 
 other tune before I've finished with ye!' Was I? Was I?" 
 continued the councillor, with another hilarious roar. " Man, ye 
 should have seen Jamie get angrier and angrier as we went on ; 
 and when he grows savage, it's all up with him ; he just bashes 
 the ground. I wonder there's an ounce of land or soil left in 
 Argyllshire! And his astonishment when we got to the end, 
 and toted up the scores! 'Jamie,' says I, 'what kind of a
 
 428 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 tunc would you like to be whistling now?' 'Oh, go to the 
 devil !' says he — and ye can imagine what's in a man's mind 
 when that's all he's got to say for himself. Allan, Miss Jessie 
 was saying maybe you yourself would like to take a turn round 
 the links to-morrow." 
 
 The school-master shook his head. 
 
 " I must get away again as soon as ever I can," said he. 
 " Young Caird is waiting for tne in Calais ; and very friendly 
 of him it was to come all the way across Europe with me." 
 
 " And for how long are you off again ?" 
 
 "For some nine months or so — whatever will make up a 
 year from the time we first started." 
 
 The councillor hesitated for a second or so. 
 
 " Then maybe you would like to go along at once to Mrs. 
 Maclean's ?" 
 
 " Well, I would — though I need not hurry you." 
 
 " I was to bring you as soon as it was convenient to your- 
 self," McFadyen interposed, dexterously ; and in a few minutes 
 the two men were outside and on their way to Campbell Street. 
 
 It was a sad enough meeting ; but Mr. McFadyen had had 
 his instructions; the talk was about all manner of ordinary 
 things, with occasional references to Allan's forthcoming de- 
 parture and future plans. It is true that now and again the 
 eyes of the little widow would fill with tears, even when she 
 was trying to join in as bravely as any of them; and Jess 
 seemed rather to keep apart — she was summoned away more 
 than once to the front shop; it was on Peter McFadyen that 
 the difficulties of the situation chiefly fell, and he acquit- 
 ted himself admirably. Nor was there any need to wish the 
 councillor away, that more intimate questions might be asked 
 and answered ; for Jess had communicated all the news by let- 
 ter; np to the arrival of the school-master at Calais, he had 
 heard from her at even possible point. Perhaps it was for 
 tlii-, reason that, she now held herself somewhat aloof. 
 
 At length Mr. McFadyen took out, his watch and said : 
 
 "Tin thinking, Allan, you had some intention of going up 
 to the Terrace to look in on those lads. They'll be at work 
 now — " 
 
 " Indeed, yes," said the school-master, rising. "And yet I've 
 not said a word to you, Mrs. Maclean, nor to you, Jessie, about
 
 FAREWELL ! 429 
 
 the gratitude I owe you for all you've clone for me. I'm just 
 crushed into silence — I cannot speak — " 
 
 "And the least said the better, Allan," returned the widow, 
 with the tears showing again. " It would have been a good 
 thing for you if you had never seen any of us — " 
 
 " Well, come along," said McFadyen, bristly. " I'm sure 
 the lads will be glad to be remembered." And therewith — Jess 
 somewhat lingering in the background — the councillor and Al- 
 lan said good -night to their friends, and left the little parlor 
 that used to be so familiar. 
 
 The youths were all busy at their tasks up there in Bat- 
 tery Terrace ; but when Allan appeared at the door — doubtful 
 about entering, and ready to apologize for his interruption — 
 first one and then another turned and recognized him, and pres- 
 ently there was a general if timid rapping of knuckles on the 
 wooden desks to give him a welcome. Still uncertain as to 
 whether he should go or leave, he could but nod a greeting to 
 this or that well-known face ; and then, drawn by old associa- 
 tion and remembrances, he made bold to step forward ; while 
 the young man who was his substitute rose from his chair and 
 came along to meet him. 
 
 " No, no," said Allan. " I must not hinder you. Go on ; 
 and I will sit down here for a minute or two." And he took a 
 seat at the end of the nearest bench, as it chanced by the side 
 of one of the youngest of the students, who had been a special 
 favorite of his. 
 
 The master in charge was equal to the occasion. He an- 
 nounced that he would send round, written on a piece of paper, 
 a literal translation of a couple of verses from Ovid ; and the 
 students could then occupy themselves in turning the English 
 back into Latin. Nor did he leave them without a little friendly 
 guidance here and there, when he had read out the English 
 lines; he suggested one or two of the equivalents; remind- 
 ed them of the difference between " capillus," " coma," and 
 "crinis," and so forth; and then, when he had set them all 
 going, he returned to Allan and to Mr. McFadyen, free to talk 
 about the business of the school or anything else they pleased. 
 
 It was to the councillor he had to address himself; for Allan 
 was much too interested in the efforts of the diligent youth 
 who was seated next him. It was quite mechanical work, of
 
 430 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 course, this dovetailing of longs and shorts to secure the nec- 
 essary six feet and five; but nevertheless it demanded some lit- 
 tle ingenuity ; and as the lad had quickly jotted down two or 
 three alternatives of the principal nouns, Allan (who was not 
 acquainted with the original) could at least indicate with his 
 forefinger what might be tried next as a solution of the puzzle. 
 Well, as it subsequently turned out, those two together did not 
 quite arrive at the elegance of Ovid ; but they were not so very 
 far away from it ; and the master eventually proclaimed — 
 amidst general giggling — that Mr. Henderson and his com- 
 panion might be said to have produced a very creditable 
 version. 
 
 " Ah, I'd like fine to be back among those boys again," 
 said Allan, as he and the councillor were strolling home- 
 ward together, for a final pipe and a chat before getting 
 to bed. 
 
 "All in good time — all in good time, Allan, lad," responded 
 Mr. McFadyen, cheerfully. " And in the meanwhile I'm glad 
 to hear that the numbers are not dropping off — no, no — rather 
 the reverse." 
 
 Next day Allan was to leave by the 12:40 train; and as he 
 was to be away for so long, Mrs. Maclean herself came to the 
 platform, accompanied by Jess. Mr. McFadyen was also here; 
 likewise, of course, the station-master; and one or two others. 
 Long Lauchie did not put in an appearance, for he would have 
 had to pass the refreshment-room twice, and he was avoiding 
 such places. 
 
 " And we'll not be seeing you now, Allan, till the middle of 
 next summer," said the little widow; " and who can tell what 
 may happen through all the long, long winter?" 
 
 " Why, the best — we must just hope for the best!" said the 
 councillor, gallantly. "And whether it's to be eight months, 
 or whether it's to be ten months, Allan knows first-rate where 
 there's a welcome always waiting for him." 
 
 The guard came up, and a move was made for the carriages. 
 There was much hand-shaking and bidding of good-bye ; and 
 even Jess, who had rather 'hung back, had now to advance, to 
 take farewell — which she did silently. 
 
 " And you will write to us often and often," this was the 
 widow's last word, as the train began to move, " and Jessie
 
 FAREWELL ! 431 
 
 will write back to you, and tell you all that is going on — will 
 you not now, Jessie ?" 
 
 But Jess did not seem to hear ; and presently the line of car- 
 riages had crept away from the platform, and was bending round 
 the curve that in a moment or two would completely bide it 
 from sight.
 
 CHAPTER LI 
 
 AT EACH REMOVE 
 
 It was during this winter that the widow began to give her- 
 self airs. On some former occasions the purser had been 
 rather inclined to impose on this little circle — or, at least, to 
 impress it — with his talk of travel ; but now that Allan's bud- 
 gets of news kept arriving every other week or so, the purser's 
 foreign experiences shrank into insignificance; and Mrs. Mac- 
 lean was proud to know that it was one of her own kith and 
 kin — one of her own family almost — who had these wonderful 
 tales to tell. At first Jessie, to whom the letters were ad- 
 dressed, allowed her mother free access to them ; and the 
 widow would read and reread them,' asking questions, and 
 discreetly getting to understand, before communicating with 
 her neighbors. 
 
 " Dear me, Jess," she would say, for example, " what's this 
 he writes about the Americans? — about the Americans contin- 
 ually boasting of their manifest density? It's not possible! 
 Poor things, they cannot be so stupid as all that !" 
 
 " It's their manifest destiny, mother," Jess would make 
 answer, with a touch of impatience. " The Americans stupid? 
 Don't you see what he says further on? — that there's but the 
 one thing left for them to invent — and they'll be having it 
 before long — and that's a mechanical maid-servant. He says 
 that when the American man gets to realize the misery that 
 tin; American woman endures through the difficulties of do- 
 mestic service, he is bound to come to her aid with machinery." 
 
 Bat in process of time Jess grew more diary of showing 
 these letters; and at length she kept them entirely to herself, 
 merely nailing out to ber mot her such accounts of on-goihgs 
 and adventures as might be expected to interest her. For 
 Allan hail Imt, the one true and safe confidante in his former 
 home ; and there were many intimate and personal things lie
 
 "AT EACH REMOVE" 433 
 
 could write about to Jess that Jess alone could comprehend ; 
 and perhaps some of these things, seen from afar and with 
 clearer vision, were altering in look. Anyhow, Jess no longer 
 showed the letters ; and perhaps her mother did not notice the 
 changed condition of affairs ; she was satisfied to hear that 
 Allan was in excellent spirits, and quite delighted with his 
 travelling companion. 
 
 Not that the closing months of the old year were otherwise 
 devoid of incident. Far from it. All kinds of things were 
 happening. The station-master won the great golfing handi- 
 cap, carrying off the silver-plated claret-jug which now adorns 
 his sideboard. Niall Gorach and three other lads were indicted 
 for trespassing on the grounds of Aultnashellach, in pursuit of 
 rabbits ; but the charge was found not proven, though the 
 sheriff significantly refused to allow their expenses. The 
 shoemaker had found a new doctrine and principle of human 
 life, which he preached to all and sundry ; and which, inter- 
 preted from the Gaelic, and reduced to a more compact for- 
 mula, was to the effect that " tea and religion were the two 
 supreme comforts of existence ; but that a wise man would 
 avoid immoderate indulgence in either." The councillor had 
 been prevailed upon to receive, for a time, a nephew of his who 
 had fallen ill in Glasgow — Mrs. Maclean observed that the doc- 
 tors had hinted something about " angelina pectoris" — and so 
 completely did the sea-air, restore the young man to his ordi- 
 nary health, and so frankly did he show himself interested in 
 his uncle's business, that Mr. McFadyen had serious thoughts 
 of taking him in as a junior partner, to the securing, later on, 
 of some portion of leisure for himself. Then, one morning, 
 the steamer Islesman, from the Outer Hebrides, hove in sight 
 with all her flags flying; and as she came sailing into the en- 
 trance of the bay, she fired off her signal-cannon with a report 
 that sent the jackdaws about the ivied ruin squawking and 
 yawping into the breezy and silver skies. The reason soon 
 became known. Jack Ogilvie, formerly purser of the Aros 
 Castle, was on board ; and he was bringing with him his blush- 
 ing bride, who hitherto had been the widow McAlister, pro- 
 prietress of the Anchor Hotel, Portree. There were many 
 people in Duntroone ready and glad to greet the newly-mar- 
 ried couple ; but all the same, Jack Ogilvie found time to call 
 19
 
 434 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 upon the Macleans; and his wife — a buxom, pleasant-featured 
 young woman of thirty, with coal-black hair and cheeks of the 
 color of red pickled cabbage (for the wind was gusty and cold) 
 — received a most friendly welcome from Jess and her mother. 
 They were going south on their wedding-jaunt — perhaps even 
 as far as London ; but it was intimated that on their return 
 the fortunate bridegroom was to take up his position as gen- 
 eral manager of the Anchor Hotel, which is a famous and 
 flourishing hostlery in those distant parts. 
 
 By-and-by came the New Year; and with it there arrived 
 a capacious chest that had been sent all the way from Yoko- 
 hama. When the widow, with the eager curiosity of a child, 
 began to undo the unfamiliar and convoluted packing-material, 
 her delight soon gave way to amazement. 
 
 " Preserve us !" she cried. " Where could Allan get the 
 money to waste on all this extravagance — I never saw the 
 like—" 
 
 " Mother," said Jess, " did I not tell you ? Most of the 
 things are from Mr. Caird." 
 
 " But how could Mr. Caird be hearing anything about me or 
 you ?" continued the widow, as with cautious fingers she un- 
 wound the bandages from an extremely pretty tea-set. " How 
 was he to know anything about us?" 
 
 Jess looked a little embarrassed. 
 
 " Well," said she, " Allan was sending me a kind of expla- 
 nation, that during many a long hour of travel he used to talk 
 about the people at home; and Mr. Caird got it into his head 
 that he had become quite acquainted with us; and he is a 
 whimsical and obstinate young gentleman — so Allan says; and 
 when there was some mention made of the possibility of send- 
 ing a New-year's Day present, he would insist on taking part. 
 And Mr. Caird wrote a letter, too — " 
 
 " Aye? — and why did ye not show it to me? Where is it?" 
 
 Jess pretended to be busy with the cups; and her mother 
 did not notice the slight color that had mounted to the girl's 
 forehead. 
 
 " Mr. Curd's letter, do yon mean, mother f she said. "It 
 is over at the house. But it is only a sort of friendly apology 
 for sending you these things ; and he writes in a very nice and 
 good-natured way. He says he is greatly obliged to you ; for
 
 "at each remove" 435 
 
 it is of such importance tbat one's travelling-companion should 
 be contented in mind ; and Allan was satisfied and at rest be- 
 cause you were looking after all his affairs for him in his ab- 
 sence — " 
 
 But here the mother did grow suspicious. 
 
 " Jess," said she, abruptly, " go at once and get me tbat 
 letter." 
 
 " But maybe I burned it, mother," she answered. 
 
 " Then are you telling me lies about what was in it !" 
 
 " Why should I ?" said Jess — but with averted face. 
 
 "Because if the young man knows anything at all about it," 
 said the widow, boldly, " he must know very well that it is 
 you, and not me, that has been looking after Allan's affairs. 
 Very well he must know that, and very well Allan knows it ; 
 and the two of them together, when they were buying these 
 presents to be sent across the sea, who was it they were think- 
 ing of ? It was you, Jessie, and no one else — that is as clear 
 as the daylight ; and you need not stand there to deny it. 
 Would they be sending these fine pieces of silk and sewing to 
 one at my years ?" 
 
 " Mother, you are entirely mistaken," said Jess, quite as 
 bluntly. " Did you not look at the label ? I think that is the 
 best proof of all ! They have been sent to you, and they are 
 yours; I am not wishing for any of them; and by-and-by 
 we will see what can be made of them for you. Tbat will be 
 your best way of thanking Allan, when he comes back to his 
 own country." 
 
 But there was many a long day and many a long month to 
 be got through before there was any prospect of that wistfully 
 looked-for return ; though as time went on those many-paged 
 communications that Jess so carefully treasured up and con- 
 cealed began to arrive from ever-lessening distances. And at 
 last there came an afternoon ; and the councillor insisted and 
 better insisted that Miss Jessie should go along with him to 
 the station ; and those two, when the train slowed in and 
 stopped, beheld a stranger step out from one of the compart- 
 ments — a bronzed and bearded man, whose dark eyes, aflame 
 with delight, seemed to say he was not so much of a stranger, 
 after all ; and Jess, involuntarily shrinking back, would have 
 the councillor go forward to receive him ; and this McFadyen,
 
 436 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 when he had recovered his senses, instantly proceeded to do. 
 Bat the next moment Jess found both her hands caught and held. 
 
 " I've seen many a place since I left you last, Jessie, 1 ' Allan 
 said, " but never one-half as welcome as the first glimpse of 
 Duntroone Bay." 
 
 " But where's your luggage, man ? — where the mischief is 
 your luggage?" cried the councillor, determined on asserting 
 his importance. 
 
 Then the school-master had to turn to explain, rather ner- 
 vously, that he had not brought any luggage with him. He 
 had come straight away through as quickly as ever he could. 
 His immediate plans were not fixed yet. And so, with many 
 questions and answers, the three of them set out for Campbell 
 Street, Jess alone keeping somewhat silent. 
 
 The widow was greatly pleased with the change in Allan's 
 appearance ; she declared that his beard, his robuster frame, 
 his firmer carriage, lent him an air of authority that was neces- 
 sary for a school-master; she was proud to hear that he had 
 nearly finished his translation of the unpronounceable poem, 
 and that already he had secured a publisher; and she had no 
 sufficient words of praise for young Mr. Caird, who had un- 
 dertaken to befriend Allan Henderson in more ways than one. 
 
 " And maybe, Allan, lad," she continued, blithely, " maybe 
 Jessie was right, after all, when she was telling us of the great 
 things in store for you, and when she was urging you to do 
 this and do that. Maybe it will becoming true. That was a 
 line saying they used to have : ' The day is lonyer than the 
 brae : we ivill win to the top yet.'' And surely you've had 
 enough of wandering now ; when are you going to settle down 
 among your own folk ?" 
 
 The question seemed to disconcert him, and he evaded it 
 somehow ; for indeed, despite his obvious happiness in being 
 once more in the midst of these old friends, from time to time 
 a look of uncertainty and care would cross his face, as if all 
 were not well. However, at this moment the girl Christina 
 appeared to take charge of the shop; and the widow, rising, 
 forthwith invited her guests to step across to the house, where 
 sapper bad been left in readiness for them. She herself led 
 tin: way, and the councillor was talking to her ; Jess and Allan 
 followed -with little speech between them.
 
 " AT EACH REMOVE " 437 
 
 But as they were going along the twilit entrance leading 
 to the staircase, Allan put his hand gently on her arm, and in 
 obedience to this mute prayer she lingered behind for a mo- 
 ment, while the others passed out of sight. 
 
 " I got your letter in Glasgow, Jessie," said he, in an under- 
 tone. " And is that the last word you have for me ?" 
 
 " Are we not better as we are ?" she made answer, with her 
 eyes downcast. "Did you not hear what mother was say- 
 ing a minute ago of the future that seems lying before 
 you ?— " 
 
 " I know nothing about that," he replied. " And whatever 
 it might be, I should have no interest in it, I should have no 
 care in it, unless you were with me. Jessie, do you think I 
 cannot recognize how stupid and blind I have been? I never 
 knew what you were — well, I knew you were always and al- 
 ways my best and dearest friend and ally — but I never knew 
 what you really were until one after the other those long letters 
 came ; and then you spoke so freely and so kindly ; it was like 
 yourself talking, with nobody by ; and many's the night I lay 
 awake reading and rereading, page after page, and trying to 
 think I could hear the tides off Lismore, and smell the scent 
 of the wind blowing down from the hills. And then when I 
 ventured in writing back to you to say one or two things — 
 wondering whether our close and sure friendship might not 
 blossom into something finer and nearer — and when I found 
 that you were not so very angry — I began to dream wild 
 dreams. I suppose I was mistaken. I suppose you thought, 
 with such a distance between us, that it was hardly necessary 
 to be strict and cautious of speech. But now — if this is to be 
 your last word — this that I got at Glasgow — " 
 
 " Allan," she said, piteously, " surely we are better off as we 
 are—" 
 
 " Oh, I know there are plenty of reasons why you should 
 not throw yourself away on one such as I !" he exclaimed. "Do 
 you think I do not know ? Plenty of reasons — do you think 
 I have not pondered over them, night after night ? And I sup- 
 pose it was a sort of madness of impertinence that got hold of 
 me, to think that any such possibility could come into my life. 
 But I do not wish to vex you, Jessie, or harass you ; I can go 
 — and this time for good."
 
 438 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 " But why not let us be as we are, Allan ?" she said again — 
 and not even yet did she dare to raise her eyes. 
 
 When he spoke, it was in a grave hind of way. 
 
 " That is my decree of banishment, then," he said, slowly ; 
 " and Duntroone will see me no more." 
 
 Nothing short of consternation prevailed at the little supper- 
 table when it became known that the school-master was leaving 
 the very next morning; and the councillor, anxious to hide his 
 ignorance and bewilderment, could only seek refuge in the re- 
 mark that if Allan went by the 8:20 train he might have to 
 change at Stirling to get on to Glasgow. For there were no 
 explanations offered, and none could well be asked ; and if 
 there was some vague mention of Allan's further movements, 
 it was half- intimated and half- understood that these were in 
 some way connected with young Caird and certain schemes of 
 his. In truth, the situation was altogether too embarrassing ; 
 this reunion, that promised so much, was found to be full of 
 perplexity and chagrin; and at the earliest moment the two 
 visitors withdrew — not a word having been said to solve the 
 mystery. 
 
 And perhaps that was a long night for Jess — a long and 
 wakeful night of thinking and tears; at all events, when she 
 got up the next morning, she was in a languid and listless state; 
 and more than once she looked at her little silver watch that 
 lay on the table. And then, as if moved by some sudden im- 
 pulse, she began to dress quickly; and again she would look at 
 the watch ; and again she would go to the mirror, to see if 
 those clear and gentle gray eyes bore less trace of the slow, im- 
 measurable hours of pain. Finally, at a few minutes after 
 eight, she issued forth from the house. It was a beautiful 
 morning — the world all brisk and busy — the sunlight lying 
 soft and golden on the slopes of Kerrara — the sea blue and 
 shining far out towards Lismore. She hurried along by the 
 harbor- front ; her eyes were alert, but no one else she knew 
 was visible; at leDgth her glance' happened to fall on the clock 
 above the railway station. And then her heart seemed to stand 
 still with sickness and fright. She pulled out her watch — it 
 had played her false; at this very instant the train must be
 
 "at each remove" 439 
 
 starting. She could not hasten her pace ; a kind of paralysis 
 of despair had come over her; and yet she struggled on, and 
 eventually entered the station, only to be confronted by the 
 wide and empty platform. She stood irresolute for a moment; 
 then she hid her face with her hands ; and crying and sobbing 
 helplessly, she would have sought some concealment by the side 
 of the book-stall but that the station-master chanced to have 
 perceived her. He immediately came up. 
 
 " Bless me, Miss Jessie, what is the matter !" he exclaimed ; 
 for that Jess — the light-hearted, the laughing-eyed, the merry- 
 tongued Jess — should be so completely broken down was a 
 strange thing to him. And rose-red indeed was she before she 
 would give him the remotest hint of an explanation. 
 
 " Well, I'm sure I am sorry for such an unfortunate mistake," 
 said Mr. Gilmour. " I was wondering that none of you were 
 along to say good-bye to Allan — none but Mr. McFadyen, and 
 he was going on as far as Taynuilt. But if you would like to 
 send a message, I could telegraph it through to Dalmally, and 
 the guard would find him — " 
 
 "Oh, could you send a message to Allan, Mr. Gilmour?" 
 Jess cried. 
 
 " Yes, indeed—" 
 
 " And ask him to come back ! — ask him to come back by 
 the next train ! — " 
 
 Oh yes, I can do that," said Mr. Gilmour, in kindly fash- 
 ion. "But the message — it would have to be in your name, 
 Miss Jessie — or he would not understand." 
 
 Jess, uncertain, distracted, confused — and with the conscious 
 color burning more clearly than ever in her face — hesitated, 
 and yet only for a second. 
 
 " If you think that will be better — if you think he will un- 
 derstand, Mr. Gilmour," said she, shyly — and thereupon the' 
 good-natured station-master (perhaps with his own little guesses 
 concerning this crisis) hurried away to the telegraph-office.
 
 CHAPTER LII 
 
 A SAIL 
 
 One morning, some two or three weeks after these transac- 
 tions, the steamer Grenadier was about to set out on its usual 
 round of the western islands, when Mrs. Maclean, Jess, Allan 
 Henderson, and the councillor came together along the quay, 
 stepped in by the gangway, and took their places in a modest 
 corner of the upper deck. This was a little entertainment that 
 had been planned by the widow, probably as a mark of satis- 
 faction over her daughter's betrothal ; it also coincided with 
 the coming to an end of the school-master's long period of idle- 
 ness ; for in these few weeks he had made his final arrange- 
 ments for resuming work. 
 
 They had waited for a fine day and they had got it — too 
 fine, perchance, for there was promise of a blaze of heat as soon 
 as the sun had dispersed the thin network of white cloud that 
 stretched all across the heavens. At present this was a dream- 
 like world they were about to enter, with hardly any definite 
 color in it; the sea, instead of showing its wind-driven north- 
 ern blue, lay in long swathes of opalescent calm ; the hills, be- 
 hind a tremulous veil of haze, were unsubstantial and feature- 
 less and remote. Nevertheless, Duntroone, with its spacious 
 bay, its ivied castle at the point, its semicircle of houses and 
 terraced gardens, and its background of wooded hills, looked 
 (juite cheerful at this early hour. And soon, when the last 
 passenger had been received on board, and when the hawsers 
 had been cast off, the steamer slowly left the pier; and by-and- 
 by, as those familiar aspects of the sliore were gradually reced- 
 ing, the voyagers found themselves approaching that other and 
 
 Bilent and mysterious phantom universe that seei 1 as yet 
 
 hardly t<> have awakened out <>f the sleep of the night. 
 
 Now it was the widow who had suggested and even insisted 
 on this little frolic ; but it was the councillor who must needs
 
 A SAIL 441 
 
 take the management of it; and not only did he do everything 
 that was necessary for his own party, he was also able to come 
 to the assistance of more than one group of English strangers, 
 who gladly welcomed any information about Craigenure and 
 Loch Aline and the Manse Fiunary. Before they had got 
 half-way up the Sound of Mull, Mr. McFadyen occupied quite 
 a prominent position ; he was asked the name of this, the 
 name of that ; and he greatly comforted two elderly maiden 
 ladies, who had paid a visit to Tangier the previous spring, by 
 assuring them that there was no necessity for riding pickaback 
 on going ashore at Staffa. Jessie's malicious gray eyes were 
 demurely laughing, but she kept her thoughts to herself. Al- 
 lan had fallen into an absent way of regarding this or that 
 stranger with a gaze at once profound and abstracted; perhaps 
 he was trying to read feature-lines. The little widow was just 
 as happy and content as she could be ; she did not care to 
 talk to anybody ; the mountains, the woods and corries, and 
 the increasing bursts of sunlight went by in a pleasant pano- 
 ramic fashion ; and more than once she blithely murmured to 
 herself, " The day is longer than the brae : we'll win to the top 
 yet." And meanwhile Peter had established himself as the 
 man of position and importance on this upper deck. 
 
 By the time they were nearing Tobermory, the sun had 
 effectually cleared away the fleecy veil of cloud; and while 
 they stopped at the quay, the heat pouring down into the cir- 
 cular little harbor almost began to equal that in the immedi- 
 ate neighborhood of the scarlet funnels ; but presently they 
 were off and away again ; and when they had come in sight 
 of the wider spaces — from the mighty rampart of Ardnamur- 
 chan facing the Atlantic out to the long, low-lying reefs of 
 Coll and Tirec — there was an occasional and grateful stir- 
 ring of wind — a stirring of wind that could be watched as 
 it came creeping in silver breadths across the still, shining, 
 azure plain. And then, far away, and one by one, the strange 
 basaltic islands came into view — Carnaburg, Fladda, the Dutch- 
 man, and their lonely brethren ; while nearer at hand, under 
 the lofty cliffs of western Mull, lay the green-shored Ulva and 
 the darker Gometra and the black rocks of Inch Kenneth. 
 Pale and spectral those farther isles appeared to be, and only 
 half visible through the quivering heat; while they kept chang- 
 19*
 
 442 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 ing their forms, too, in an inexplicable fashion, as the steamer 
 clove its way onward across this basking sea. 
 
 The Macleans and Allan did not care to land at Staffa (the 
 councillor, of course, did, to impart further information to 
 those artless folk); they remained on board the steamer; and 
 when the captain had left the bridge, he came along to Allan, 
 with whom he was acquainted ; and for a little while these two 
 paced up and down the empty deck. 
 
 " And so you've made your choice at last, Jessie," said the 
 little widow, " and I hope you'll not repent." 
 
 " I am not likely to do that, mother," Jess replied, very 
 quietly, as her eye followed the school-master's tall figure. " I 
 know what the nature of that man is. I have seen him tried 
 as few men have been tried ; and I know him — better than I do 
 myself, I believe." 
 
 "Very well, then," rejoined the little widow, boldly, "I will 
 say this now : if you are so finely satisfied, it would be but 
 wise-like of you to keep a more civil tongue in your head. 
 The poor lad ! — doing everything to please you ; and any one 
 can see he thinks there's just none in the world like you; and 
 yet you must go scoff-scoffing at him — " 
 
 " It's for his good, mother !" Jess cried — with the gray eyes 
 beginning to laugh again. " Allan goes through his life in a 
 kind of dream, and he must be wakened up now and again — " 
 
 " And I will tell you this as well, Jessie," the mother con- 
 tinued, with unusual warmth, " if you could see the difference 
 in your own appearance since all this affair was settled — for 
 happiness seems to agree with you, as it does with most people 
 when it comes to them — and alters their looks too, and none 
 for the worse — I say you would not put such a light value on 
 what has happened to you, and risk it with that sharp tongue 
 of yours. The poor lad ! — lie has not enough to say for him- 
 self. T think if he would take a stick to you, you would be 
 all the better for it." 
 
 " Mother," said Jess, " that comes after marriage. You arc 
 in too great a hurry." 
 
 At this point Allan himself returned to them. 
 
 "The captain is asking if you would like to have the gig and 
 a couple of the hands to row you into the cave." 
 
 "Me?" cried the widow. " Na, nal More than once I've
 
 A SAIL 443 
 
 been into that cave with the weather as smooth and as fine as 
 this, and all the same the ground-swell was coming thundering 
 in as if it would rive the very island in pieces. Na, na, Allan, 
 lad, I am well content where I am." 
 
 "Jessie," said he, next, "would you like to try steering a 
 steamer ?" 
 
 " Oh yes, indeed !" she answered, eagerly, jumping to her 
 feet. 
 
 "Come along to the wheel, then." 
 
 And so Jess proceeded to try the strength of her arms on 
 those stiff-revolving mahogany spokes, watching the stem of the 
 great vessel slowly incline this way or the other — while far 
 in the distance the people who had landed could be seen like 
 small black ants making their way along the broken basaltic 
 columns. 
 
 They did, however, land at Iona ; for the Macleans had some 
 friends on the island ; and with them they spent the interval of 
 waiting. Then they re-embarked and continued their voyage ; 
 and now the wandering breaths of wind had steadied into a 
 light breeze from the south, so that the sea was a deep sapphire 
 as they passed between the red rocks lying off the Ross of Mull. 
 All the southern ocean indeed was of the same vivid and trou- 
 bled hue ; and when at last they came in sight of Colonsay the 
 distant line of land was a mere film of neutral tint beyond the 
 solid and darkened mass of water. "Colonsay, ah, Colonsay !" 
 — the piteous cry of the dying student came back to Allan's 
 mind. And then again — " If only MacNiel had known Jess !" 
 
 But when they had got over towards Kerrara they entered 
 once more upon a region of calms ; and as they were steaming 
 homewards through the Sound the water around them was like 
 glass. Thus it was that they rapidly overtook a large schooner 
 yacht that had been visible for some time, waiting helpless for 
 any favoring puff of air. Very pretty she looked, with her 
 tall spars, her breadth of cream-white canvas, and her booms 
 lying out; and naturally she was an object of interest to those 
 on board the steamer. Besides the red-capped crew there ap- 
 peared to be only two people on deck, a young man who, as 
 the Grenadier approached, kept his binocular glass almost con- 
 stantly to his eyes, and a young lady, dressed in a smart yacht- 
 ing costume, who now and again addressed a word to him.
 
 444 HIGHLAND COUSINS 
 
 Then, as the steamer came up, he was seen to hand the binoc- 
 ular to his companion, while he himself took out his handker- 
 chief and waved it to some one on board the passing vessel. 
 
 "Jess," said Allan, quickly and in considerable surprise, 
 " that's Mr. Caird ! He did not say he was to be here so soon — " 
 
 And that other — the young lady whose peaked cap of blue 
 cloth displayed to advantage a shapely head of light brown and 
 curly hair? Well, Allan did not recognize her. And yet — 
 even in this rapid second or two of furtive scrutiny — there 
 seemed to be something familiar? — surely he had seen some- 
 where before that slim, graceful, not over-tall figure? — the 
 movement of her arm as she lowered and handed back the 
 glasses had a strange suggestion in it — And then he knew. 
 
 It was Pauline. 
 
 THE END
 
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