278 NIMROUS NORTHERN 'TO UR. 



having so often been dyed with good Scottish blood, in the wars 

 of the Britons against Agricola, and their struggle for independ- 

 ence against the Roman arms ; and, in more modern legends, 

 for having been the watery grave of a clever whipper-in to the 

 Fife hounds, who rashly attempted to cross it on his horse, when 

 much swollen with repeated rains. He had previously whipped- 

 in to the Worcestershire hounds, in Mr. Parker's time, and was 

 a most expert swimmer. The other stream was the Po not the 

 Po which Pliny speaks of, that king of rivers which bathes the 

 walls of a hundred cities (" Centum urbes rigat et placidis in- 

 terluit undis ") but that which Michael Bruce calls 



"the gulphy Po 



That through the quaking marsh and waving reeds 

 Creeps slow and silent on." 



Now I had observed on our road to Captain Hunter's, that a 

 new temporary bridge had been thrown over the stream ; and 

 that the approach to the chasm made by pulling down the old 

 one was left in a most insecure state in fact with nothing but a 

 low line of loose stones, placed almost close to the breach. "I hope 

 our postilion will not drive us into the Po, as we return at night," 

 said I to the laird, en passant. " No fear," was the reply. How- 

 ever, it appeared that my fears were not quite groundless ; whe- 

 ther it were from the effects of the storm that was raging at the 

 time, and directly in his very teeth, or from an extra glass of 

 something to fortify himself against it, it is not in my power to 

 divine ; but headlong should we have gone into the Po, had not 

 the footman, who was on the box, just seen the danger to stop 

 him in time. Four yards farther, and Abercairney, the Highland 

 ehief, and Nimrod, would have both finished their mortal career, 

 and at rather short notice. 



Tuesday, 3. Nothing to be done in the field ; the snow driving, 

 and sleet, " deforming the day, delightless." When church and 

 king time (as an old friend of mine calls dinner time, alluding to 

 the drop of comfort after it) arrived, we had an addition to our 

 party of a jolly son of Neptune, a half-pay "captain, R.N., who 

 sang us some good songs, and gave us some amusing anecdotes 

 in and out of his profession. 



On Wednesday, the 4th, I quitted Abercairney Abbey, and 

 have only a few more remarks to make respecting my visit to it. 

 The weather was unpropitious to sport with hounds ; still as I 

 was suffering from the effects of my accident, I could not have 

 enjoyed it, had it been within my reach ; but barring these draw- 

 backs, nothing was wanting to real enjoyment of life. As regards 



