Xviii AN ACCOUNT OF THE 



lived in good repute with all who knew them, and 

 died with good characters. 



As my father had nothing to support a lar^ 

 family but his daily labour, and the profits arisi 

 from a few acres of land which he rented, it wai 

 not to be expected that he could bestow much on 

 the education of his children; yet they were i 

 neglected ; for, at his leisure hours, he taught 1 

 to read and write. And it was while he wai 

 teaching my elder brother to read the Scotch Oate 

 chism that I acquired my reading. Ashamed 

 ask my father to instruct me, I used, when he ant 

 my brother were abroad, to take the Catechism, 

 and study the lesson which he had been teaching 

 my brother: and when any difficulty occurred, 1 

 went to a neighbouring old woman, who gave me 

 such help as enabled me to read tolerably well be- 

 fore my father had thought of teaching me. 



Some time after, he was agreeably surprised 

 to find me reading by myself; he thereupon gave 

 me further instruction, and also taught me 

 write ; which, with about three 'months ] 

 wards had at the grammar-school at Keith, was 

 all the education I ever received. 



My taste for mechanics arose from an odd ac- 

 cident When about 7 or 8 years of age, a part 

 of the roof of the house being decayed, my father, 

 desirous of mending it, applied a prop and lever 

 to an upright spar to raise it to its former : 

 tion; and, to my great astonishment, I saw him 

 without considering the reason, lift up thepomK 



