EEMINISCENCES OF THE LEWS. 57 



frequent little festivities that used to take place 

 at the birth or christening day of a little 

 F. M., she was, of course, the mistress of the 

 ceremonies. She brewed the best, and by far 

 the strongest, toddy I ever drank in my life ; 

 and when, in the pauses of the pipers' strains, 

 and after the Reel of TuUoch, perhaps she, by 

 way of a little variation, on the earnest call of 

 the company, sang the charming ditty, " Sweet 

 Richmond '111," one resigned oneself to one's 

 fate, and, softened by her punch and beguiled 

 by her melody, gave way to the spell, and 

 Celery was the houri of the hour. 



Years passed on, and one fine day, long after 

 I had taken to Soval, I got a letter to say that 

 C. was getting odd, and falling into a species 

 of religious melancholy, and doing queer 

 things. The only point on which there was 

 no variation was her love and care for the 

 missionary-box. I could make nothing of her, 

 excepting that she had grown much more mys- 

 terious. She also was in a melancholy state 

 about her young charges — her awful responsi- 

 bility as to the future if the young ladies did 

 not turn out so many young '' Miss Frys ;" if 

 her young gentlemen were not fit and willing 

 to carry her missionary-box cause throughout 

 all heathendom. We began all to entertain the 



