BOfiN BLIND AND DEAF. 29 



" The last time I saw young Mitchell, was on the melan- 

 choly occasion of his father's funeral, in the month of June 

 last. According to Mr Glennie's communication, it would 

 seem, that the boy, even before his father's interment, had ex- 

 pressed by sorrow and bemoaning, a knowledge of the irrepa- 

 rable loss he had sustained. On this point, the deep distress 

 under which the family then laboured, prevented me from ma- 

 king any inquiries. But the poor lad's behaviour on the day 

 of the funeral, seemed to me so little expressive of grief, that 

 I cannot help doubting in some degree the accuracy of Mr 

 Glennie's information. It will be regarded as a pleasing tes- 

 timony of the sincere esteem in which Mr Mitchell was held 

 for his moral worth and exemplary piety, that several hundreds 

 of his friends and parishioners assembled together, to carry his 

 remains to the grave. While this concourse of people waited 

 the commencement of the procession in front of the manse, 

 young JNiiTCHELL at one tune moved rapidly among the crowd, 

 touching almost every body, and examining some very mi- 

 nutely ; at another time, he amused himself opening and shut- 

 ting the doors, or turning down and up the steps of the carri- 

 ages ; or suddenly he would walk towards the coffin, which 

 was placed on chairs before the door of the house, run his fin- 

 gers along it with marks even of pleasure, and then trip light- 

 ly away, without the slightest expression of sorrow. He ac- 

 companied the procession to the church-yard, and returned af- 

 ter the interment, apparently as much unmoved as before. 

 But on the following morning, as I have since been informed, 

 and on several mornings afterwards, he visited the grave, pat- 

 ted gently the turf which had been laid over it, and at last, as 



if 



