lllDDLES. 51 



Wee man o' leather 

 Gaed through the heather, 

 Through a i"ock, through a reel, 

 Through an old spinning wheel. 

 Through a sheep shank bane, 

 Sic a man was never seen. 



The following is a curious piece of natural history : There 

 was a leak in Noah's ark. The cat tried to stop it with its paw, 

 but in vain ; then the dog tried to stop it with its nose, but in 

 vain; then the men tried to stop it with their knees, all in vain. 

 Noah's wife prayed, and it was stopped ; but the cat's paw, the 

 dog's nose, and men's knees remain cold unto the present day. 



The following is a reminiscence of the time before bridges : 

 What goes through the ford head downmost ? Ans., The nails 

 on a horse's shoe. 



The next riddle gives us a glimpse of drudgery which sanitary 

 engineers are rapidly rendering obsolete. What goes away 

 between two woods and comes back between two waters ? Ans.. 

 A woman, when she goes with her empty wooden stoups to the 

 well and comes back with them filled. 



The following riddle is rather gruesome : — What is it that 

 waits wi' its mouth open the whole night in your room for your 

 bones in the morning ? Ans., Your shoes. 



The following verbal quibble is confusing enough when first 

 heard : — Whity looked out of whity, and saw whity in whity, and 

 sent whity to turn whity out of whity. The explanation is that a 

 white woman looked out of her white night-dress and saw a white 

 cow among the white corn, and sent a white dog to turn it out. 



London brig appears in one of Mr Corrie's riddles; it also 

 appears in the following : — 



As I gaed owre London brig, 



I let a wee thing fa' ; 

 The haill folk in London town 



Couldna gather't a'. 



Ans., A pinch of snuff. This reminds us of the Scriptural expres- 

 sion of " water spilt upon the ground which cannot be gathered 

 up again." 



