162 TRANSACTIONS OF THE [Sess. lxxvii. 



at some length, because they were interesting characters 

 themselves, and had a considerable influence, both directly 

 and indirectly, upon their younger relative. In his early 

 years, however, his mother had to care for him as best she 

 could. He evidently got some little schooling, was taught 

 to read and write, and after that, the rest lay mainly with 

 himself. In his habits and tastes he seems to have been 

 as troublesome to his mother and others as Smiles' " Tarn 

 Edward." The story has been told that once, when having 

 a game at " bools," and finding that his favourite " plunker " 

 had got inside the lining of his jacket, he got a companion 

 to put his hand into the opening in his pocket and search 

 round the corner for the missing " bool." With a yell the 

 boy withdrew his hand in great consternation. " What's 

 the matter?" queried the assembled group of players, as 

 they gathered round the frightened boy, who was holding 

 his hand as if bitten by a snake. " The matter ! I dinna 

 ken, but there's something queer in Will Gardiner's pouch." 

 " Man, fat are ye roarin' at, it's jist a kailie," said Gardiner, 

 who had got the " plunker " now himself, and produced 

 along with it a number of wriggling kail-worms and snails 

 which he was carrying home to watch at his leisure. 



During his earlier years he seems to have been fond 

 of getting into the open country and seeing Nature in all 

 weathers His apprenticeship, at the age of ten years, to 

 Mr. Barclay, umbrella-maker in Barrack Street, while it 

 naturally confined him more closely during the working- 

 day, only stimulated his ardour in using the time he could 

 call his own to the best purpose. A second-hand copy of 

 the vegetable section of Berkenhout's " Synopsis of the 

 Natural History of Great Britain" (1789), came into his 

 hands, and this he found of great use to him, so much so, 

 that in after years he said that by it " he was enabled to 

 identify all the plants in the neighbourhood." A ragged 

 copy of Ray's " Synopsis of British Plants " was useful 

 in supplementing Berkenhout. Side by side with these 

 natural history studies and rambles, he was devouring all 

 the books he could come across ; and it is really surprising 

 to find both from actual quotations and from little tricks 

 of style in his earlier writings, what a wide field his reading 

 must have covered. 



