272 The Hunting Field With Horse and Hound 



and he was whistling a new Scotch air, just to show his friend 

 how it went, when out comes the mother and said, "Here you, 

 laddies, come here ; noo ye may have a' the Scotch wliiskey that 

 ye will and ye may go wit the lasses o' a Sunday to your fill, 

 but wliisthng on the Lord's day a'll na ha'." And this 

 reminds McDougal of another one. A minister of the gospel, 

 from America, occupied a pulpit of a church in Edinburgh one 

 Sunday, and going for a walk on King Arthur's seat in the 

 afternoon and not knowing the strict rule of the Free Kirk, 

 was puckering his mouth to a church hymn, when a labourer 

 accosted him with, "O ye are a sare bad man; if a had nane 

 ye'd a wliistle on the Lord's day I'd no coom to hear ye 

 preach the morn." Still the rain swished past and we dis- 

 mounted to lean against the stack for more complete shelter. 

 McDougal, feeling chagrined at missing the meet, was blam- 

 ing himself and the lazy Bess by turns. He thinks he is 

 especially called upon to entertain his guest and keep him from 

 going mad because of missing the meet and probably missing 

 the chase altogether. "Can ye no see the hoose o' James 

 McPherson who lives just yon by the foot o' the moor? Aye, 

 when a wee laddie, the father of the present McPherson came 

 late to school one day and the school mistress said to him, 'Ah! 

 Master McPherson, ye'r late again the morn, what excuse 

 ha' ye this time, for a'm no liking to punish ye till a've heard 

 what ye ha' tae say for yourself.' 



" 'Please, mum, we had a wee lassie come to the house the 

 morn.' 'Ah! indeed,' replied the school mistress, 'I suppose 

 your father was very pleased?' 'Na,' replied youn' McPherson, 

 'ma father knew naught aboot it, he was awa' in Edinburgh.' 

 'Indeed!' 'Aye, and it was a good stroke that me mither was 

 hame or there'd been no one aboot the hoose to welcome her, 

 and — What?" broke off McDougal, springing to his feet, "did 

 ye no catch the note o' a hound?" Placing his hand to his 

 ear, "There's no mistake aboot it," he cried, "and see, both 



