fire, as if it had been a planned thing wi' auld spunkie, to make a like attempt on our laird's roosts of fat capons. But bide awee-the chap wha tried it didna ken the laird draw ane o' his capon's necks, an' try to draw a drap o' his dearest blude carry awa ane o' his fat turkeys, an' ye had better carry awa the lady o' Caponcrapin herself, wi' her seven lad weans-whom the neighbours aye number wi' his chickens, as they are all alike dear-whare should the laird be lying, think ye, when this caponreaver came-whare, but where the auld sang says

• Whar'll our gude man lie

Till he shoot owre the simmer?
Up aboon the hen-bawks

Amang the rotten timmer." And well for me,' exclaimed the laird- and well for my many capons which I have tenderly hatched-carefully cut, and anxiously fattened well for us all that I lay among their roosts to-night-else, instead of being killed, and dressed, and eaten, with culinary skill, and with Mr Markfin's famous sauce, as they shall infallibly be-they would have fluttered to death in some tinkler's dirty bag, and walloped amang kale and castocks in his cauldron.' " To make a lang tale short,' said the first rustic, accustomed to interrupt the laird, who was never known to finish his tale when the mystery of capon fattening was his theme, except when the fowls reeked, in all the richness of preparation, on the dinner table- to make a lang tale short, the loon had but drawn the necks o' three, when the fourth cried 'chuck,' and the laird cried 'murder.' The knave ran, and we ran we chased him into this wood, and the deil that drave him there may drive him out again for me.' During these disclosures, the old man held up his hands, and looked on one, and looked on another, in blank and innocent amazement. The rustic, who spoke last, led the laird aside, and said in a whisper, If ye were to hing the auld man on the highest tree i' the wood, and drown the damsel in the deepest pool i' the water, there would be as meikle o' the deevil left, else I'm sadly deceived, as would ding the roof of yere hame about yere lugs, and rax yere ain neck as lang as ever ye raxed a capon's-sae come away, and let the dour fox die in his den, for his death

his

"No sooner had the sound of our unwelcome visitors' footsteps died away, than the chieftain said, Now, Kate, my winsome bairn, and my bauld ane, make ready my poor auld ass, and we'se even forsake this hazardous place-that gowk, Deil gin he were drowned in Dryfe, that the place that produced might quench folly, instead o' leading his pursuers a wild goose chase by water and wood, away came he direct for this den of refuge, where, wi' cannie guiding, wi' might hac dwalt the feck o' a month, and lived on the fatness of Nithsdale. Aweel! we maun wagwe maun wag, and that soon and sudden. Mind, Kate, my bairn, to drap something i' the road for douce Jamie Nivieson to find-but for him we might hae been hard bested. And now Mark, my young lad,' continued the gypsey chief, turning to me, 'ye had nae better abide the coming and the wrath o' Cursan Collieson; come with us up amang the mountains till the cloud flies past-and then if ye like our calling, e'en come and live and laugh amang us; and wha kens but ye might win the loove o' my ain sonsie Katherine.' The love o' me,' said the gypsey damsel, with a look of compassion to her grandfather, and of insufferable scorn to me, and bear the budgets of a Cameronian psalmsinger-a raw haspan of a callan! he might mind o' that-he'll be aulder gin simmer, as the sang says. whan will he have the right heart and the ready hand; and aboon a', will he love to dwall i' the hollow o'

But

the wild wood-roam on the bank of some lonesome burn, and pitch his tent on some wild and steep mountain? Can he bear the scoffs that we maun bear? Can he loup sheep-faulds, revel amang hen-roosts, and gather plumbs and pears for his joe and his darling, like my cannie cousin, Tam Marshall? Say nae mair about itthough I canna help thinking, wi’ douce guiding amang cannie hands, something might be made of him, but never a man for me.' During this conversation, the relics of our establishment were gathered together, packed into the panniers of the old man's ass, and, with the halter of the animal in his hand, forth he walked once more into the moonlight air, followed by his descendant and me. We instantly dived into the bosom of the wood, wound our way through the green and winding avenues, and at last, emerging into the free and open country, ascended a small hillock, and began to look around. At our feet the Nith, swollen with the heavy thunder shower, came down from her uplands, lifting her voice far above its usual mild and gentle tone into an agitating dash from bank to bank, sounding sullen and deep. The moon, glimmering along its reddened and undulating surface, showed an unusual expanse of water-the wooded banks, lessened with the swelling of the flood, and high beyond all the dark heathery hills of Closeburn, shining in liquid light. The old man gazed on the troubled river, and smiting both 'thighs with his expanded palms, said, Oh! bairns, bairns! just on sic a night did I lose twa o' my fairest sons! -ane seventeen, the other seven-andtwenty, crossing this bonny, but bloodie water; and my gray hairs would soon be added to their raven locks were I to dare the awfu' flood tonight-and cross it we maun in some way or other.' We all stood several minutes looking on the stream, and the old man resumed. That's the fause ford forment us. It has a bonny and promising look, but few who ride it live to roose it. A gude bowshot below is the kindly ford-it looks broad and burly; but I have never wet my foot in that water since I lost any bonny bairns.' And he turned the head of his ass to the kindly ford, and we prepared to follow. At this moment, shriek succeeding shriek

came from the passage, (called by the old man the fause ford') mingling with the plunging and braying of asses, and the cheers and entreaties of men. The chieftain, with a cry of indescribable anguish, called out, Oh! rin, rin! that's either the wraiths of my drowned bairns welcoming me, or the yell of suffering flesh and blood.' And down we ran towards the ford, the old man foremost, for the agony of spirit added unusual swiftness to his feet-a doomed man runs swift to destruction. He reached the river as soon as me-a fearful scene presented itself. Men and women and asses were struggling in the middle of the deep and rapid current. I saw the Galwegian gypsey up to his leathern girdle in the flood, leading two asses, on which women were seated-the cousin of Kate Marshall succeeded in the same order-the desperado of Dryfe followed, conducting the remainder of the horde, and they all seemed in immediate peril. When the unhappy old man saw the jeopardy of all his dependants, he forgot his age and infirmities, and the depth and violence of the current. 'Bairns! bairns!' he called loudly, and in a tone of the deepest pathos, keep together-keep yere heads up the flood cling to the brutes, and let warld's gear gang.

6

"The o'ermastering fears of the Man of Dryfe rendered this counsel of importance. When he felt the rapid under current of the river whirling the large pebbles from below his feet, heard the asses bray, and the women scream, all reflection forsook him, he cried, Oh to be haurning bread at my aunt's hearthstane,' and finally he lifted up his voice and wept. At the same time he quitted the halters of the asses which he led, and the whole detachment was thrown into confusion. One ass, without panniers, was instantly swept away, the women raised a loud shriek, and the miserable chieftain made an instant dash to their assistance from the bank of the river. He soon required the aid he so unavailingly offered to others. The place into which he plunged was (particularly when the river was swollen,) a deep and dangerous eddy, or whirl occasioned by the weight of water flung against the sure-rooted trunk of an old oak that projected far into the

stream. This land abutment threw back the flood into the main body of the current, narrowing its channel and increasing its rapidity. In a moment he was carried off his feet, and though he clutched his arms around the neck of his faithful old ass, such was the force of the stream, that he was instantly borne down, his loose dress and long hoary hair floating and mingling like drift leafs on the surface of the water. Regardless of danger, I leaped from the bank with a plunge into the current, seized the poor old man, who was now disengaged from the ass, and certainly would have gained the shore, had not the deep love of his granddaughter, which I have heard preserved his life upon another occasion, caused it to be lost now. She stood on the steep bank above, as motionless as a statue, her lips apart and quivering with agony, and her large dark eyes, dilated beyond their usual size, seemed glazed as ice. She lifted her hands, and she tried to speak, at last she shrieked out, 'save him, oh save him,' and, leap ing from the bank, wreathed her arms round him, and placed herself and me in the greatest peril. Twice the force of the stream heaved us all over, the old man was unable to assist himself, and his faithful granddaughter was senseless and suffocated with the water. I made one desperate effort; already we were borne to the brink of a deep impassable pool; I saw no chance of saving all, so, seizing the maiden by the hair, and clutching my right arm round the bough of an elm tree, that hung low and far over the stream, I succeeded in gaining the bank. Ere this was accomplished, I saw the old man, for the last time, rise half above the water, his hands held up more like hands of a man in prayer, than in agony. The moon shone full on his face, over which his thin hair streamed; it was turned on us; and I heard a voice, something like human speech and the murmuring of waters, say, Bless ye, my bairn, bless ye l'As he uttered this, he was swept into the deep pool, and farther attempts to save him were abandoned. Meantime the coolness, and courage, and strength, of the redoubted Galwegian Macgrab, had saved the rest of the horde from the dangerous situation in which they were placed, and they

had forded the river, with the loss of a pannier, and a seething cauldron. As they ascended the bank, Macgrab, wholly ignorant of the fate of his leader, turned round, and cried across the river, at the moment I carried the female sovereign of the tribe up the bank, Bide ye there, auld man, and my winsome young lass, and I'll bring ye o'er this fause flood, as safe as if ye had the wings o' water hens.' He changed his voice in a moment, and, turning to his companions, said, 'Rin, Tam, rin, Dryfe Dub, deevil's ye're name? kep at the ford, or the auld man 'll be drowned!' And then, tying the halters of two of the strongest asses together, he gained the bank at my feet. Mark, Cameronian, or whatever they call ye,' said he, leaping on the turf, guide that poor maiden kindly,' and down the pool side he flew, to look for the body of his venerable leader. He returned in a moment, He will be whirled o'er by the thrawart current to the other side, there's nae doubt o' that, sae come awa' Kate, my winsome lass,' said he to the living but senseless maiden, and taking her in his arms, we all forded the river a little lower down, and reached the opposite side în safety. Here we found the whole tribe in active search for the body of the old man, and the man of Dryfe Dub, forgetting his fears, joined actively in the look out in the ford. The Galwegran committed the damsel to my care, who was fast recovering, and joined his friends in the search. The clouds now began to return and thicken on the tops of the hills, and one large and black, came edging upon the moon, gradually lessening the splendour of the beautiful planet. Assisted by her imperfect light, I could still see the gypsies straggling about the border, and even some in the middle of the ford, and I heard the voice of the Galwegian, repeatedly admonishing them to look close to the water. At last the man of Dryfe shouted out, Here's the auld ass howsever; dom me if it is nae ; glower glegly, its rider canna be far aff; we ken a' they were cronies.' tent o't,' said the Galwegian, in a tone of sympathy, I'll howk it a graff wi' my ain twa hands, rather than it should feast the corbies, and tak' tent o' ye're mirth, my man, this is nae time for daffin', an' daffin too

Take

at ye're ain misdeeds; carry ye're caams cannie, else the sowther will scand ye, d'ye understand the gypsey's proverb.' To this admonition and threat, the desperado answered with a suppressed laugh, and the search continued. The gypsey women, who had been all this while preparing their equipage for marching, disordered and diminished by their adventure in the river, came to the margin of the water, and taking away the chieftainess, left me at liberty, so down I went to the ford to assist in the search. Just as I reached the margin of the stream, the man of Dryfe stooped into the water, with a loud unearthly laugh, and called out, Here's a prize or dom me than,' and he lifted the body of the poor old man half out of the river, gazed at it for a moment with grievous disappointment, and, casting it at his feet in the flood, said, 'God, it's the drowned carle; I thought it was the tool bag, dom me if I didnae! The Galwegian Macgrab waxed red with wrath, and, uttering a deep and deadly imprecation, rushed across the ford upon his Dryfesdale associate, and felled him into the water with a blow of his fist. He instantly caught up the drowned body of his chief, bore it out to the green bank, the horde gathered with a wail and a moan around it, and endeavoured in vain to restore him to life. His unhappy granddaughter threw herself beside him, and lay as mute and as motionless as the corpse. Macgrab looked on the body with a face of deep and composed grief, and then on the unhappy young woman, whom the rest of the females were endeavouring to sooth. Weel wad it be for thee,' he said, and weel wad it be for me, did we baith grace ae grave, wi' the poor auld man aside us, but I canna forget the faithful brute beast either,' and up the bank he pulled the dead ass, and laid it on the sward by the side of its master. All this while, the unfortunate man of Dryfe was allowed to float, stunned and senseless, down the river, and I never heard a single remark made on his absence, except a brief sentence from the Galwegian, Let him sink or swoom; a doomed man's easily drowned.'

"It was about three o'clock in the morning, when, after interring the old man and his ass in the river sand,

marking a neighbouring tree with the initials of his name, and collecting all the diminished property of the tribe together, the forlorn gypsies sat down on a green hillock, to consult on the present pressure of their affairs. The granddaughter of their chief sat in the midst, with his silver mounted pistols at her belt, and all the rest seated themselves in order around. I stood and awaited the result. The chieftainess was the first that spoke

To you, Mark, my man-Cameronian I should call thee-I owe my life; and to thee, Robin Macgrab, I owe all the rest. I canna hae ye baith

it's against a' rule, though in a distressed state like mine, it ought to be allowed. However, I maun tak the tane o' ye; that's set and settled-sae on thee my choice lights-rise, and come and sit aside me,'-and up rose the Galwegian, in great delight, and up rose the whole of the tribe in stern and sudden anger. I expected an immediate battle-but the prowess of the new chief, and the determined character of the young cheftainess, preserved order, if they failed to command respect. I shall wander nae langer wi' ane sae witless, and wi' anither sae rash,' said one gypsey, mounting his panniers, and departing by himself. His defection was followed by others-one marched up the river, another marched down, and a third took the road for the hills of Closeburn and Kirkmahoe. The cousin of bonny Kate himself alone remained with the new heads of the tribe-but his adherence was more from affection to the family name, and the blood of kindred, than to the chief who commenced the Galwegian dynasty. Thank ye, my kind cousin,' said the chieftainess, thank ye for no ganging growling awa wi' thae sackless coofs-to seek your fortune asunder frae the lawful head o' your house

and amang the cauld-hearted fremit. I hae a bonnie loove-letter to shew ye

it cam frae a southern branch o' our name that flourishes in the braw forests ayont the Tweed.' So saying, she produced from her girdle a bright piece of copper, on which was rudely etched a very singular scene. Under a large forest tree sat a numerous and busy group, with a cauldron suspended over a fire-there were baskets with fish and fowl, and all the indications of gypsey wealth; a fat buck was in