THOMAS EDWARD. 75 



he espied some smoke issuing out of a thatched roof, 

 and for this highland cottage, arriving suddenly, to the 

 consternation of two little girls who stood at the turf 

 fire, and dropped on the nearest chair, without for a few 

 minutes being able to speak. The mother was out, but 

 the girls said that he might remain, and he presently 

 began to see in what condition his cardboard boxes and 

 the inmates were. 



The two girls evidently found something very amus- 

 ing about him, for they laughed away heartily, looking 

 at him as they did so. Then off they scampered to 

 fetch their mother, who was out some distance cutting 

 firewood. Presently she came with an axe in one hand 

 and a stout branch from a tree in the other, and looked 

 6ternly at Edward, in such a way that he was not quite 

 sure which she was going to use on him first. " "Will 

 ye' gang, ye varmin?' : she kept repeating, Edward 

 protesting meanwhile that she was wrong ; but, poor 

 fellow, he very soon found out that she wasn't, for 

 crawling all about him were caterpillars, moths, and 

 butterflies, and other live-stock in a kalf-drowned 

 condition, but in such a way that he was literally all 

 alive. He strode rapidly away to an outhouse and 

 overhauled all his clothes, and then came back to thank 

 the woman — standing at a respectful distance, for she 

 would not let him come near her or enter her house 

 again — for the shelter which she had given him. 



Edward had much cheap advice given him as soon as 

 his exhibition at Banff brought himself and his hobby 

 into notice. There is always more than enough of this 

 stale commodity to be had cheap, but practical help he 



