154 NlMilOD'S NORTHERN TOUR. 



at hand. By the general voice of the sporting world he holds a pre- 

 eminent place in the rank of huntsmen ; as a faithful servant he is 

 by none excelled ; and he will leave behind him the example to other 

 servants of a spotless name. The wisdom of the philosopher then, as 

 well as the morality of the divine, must be contented with this, and I 

 shall stand acquitted of bestowing upon him unmerited praise. For my 

 own part I covet the feelings of such a man. The first of human 

 blessings is to be virtuous, the second to be praised ; and he who enjoys 

 both these distinctions — no matter his station — is arrived at the summit 

 of all earthly felicity : 



" The first, the greatest bliss on man conferr'd, 



Is in the acts of virtue to excel ; 

 The second, to obtain their high reward, 



The soul-exalting praise of doing well. 

 Who both these lots attains is bless'd indeed, 

 Since fortune here below can give no richer meed.' 



I am compelled to follow where my subject leads me, and from hunts- 

 man to whipper-in is the next step. Of these indispensable coad- 

 jutors in a kennel, of course the Duke of Buccleuch has his quantum — 

 and this quantum is two. The first, Hugh Burn, is, in my opinion, a 

 most efl5cient man in the field ; an excellent horseman ; and, out of the 

 field, a well-conducted respectable servant. But I cannot stop here. 

 *' The very devil is in these Scotch servants," said I to myself, after half 

 an hour's conversation with this young man in the Dalkeith stables, " they 

 all talk like philosophers." However, to be serious, this said whipper-in 

 discoursed with me on various subjects, one of them a fine run on the 

 preceding day, in language, the structure of which would have done for 

 Professor Wilson in his chair. How different, thought I within myself, 



