198 A DEVIL OP A FISH. 



again. Sae when I saw it was sae, I held up the water 

 side for my stilts, keepin', for aw that, an ee to the 

 redds. Heaven forgie me ! I neuer saw sic a water o' 

 fish ! If it was na the deil I had seen, I was sure he 

 was na far off. I saw eneugh to temp a better man 

 than me ; and I began to think I had better be at hame 

 reading a chapter o' the gude book, if no a leaf or twae 

 o' " the Fourfold State ; " sae I took the stilts and came 

 through again by the rack, and wan hame just a wee 

 thought afore the master and the mistress, honest 

 woman ! came hame thrae the kirk. I haflins wist I 

 had been there too ; — but yet I was only lookin' at the 

 warks o' the creation \ and couldna say I had done ony 

 great wrang ; an' if I hadna seen Peggy come out o' the 

 byre at Caberston, I ablins hadna stillit the water after 

 a'. But I fand I could na read a styme ; for, do as I 

 might, I could na get the appearance that I had seen 

 out o' my mind; and yet whan I consider'd about the 

 mickle rowaner, that I was sure eneugh was a yeithly 

 thing, I could na help believing that it was, after a', a 

 fish I had seen ; but I never saw sic another. 



" Weel, a' the time the master was at the readin', I 

 could na keep the glisk o' the awsome mickle fish out 

 o' my head, and whan we raise thrae the prayers, I 

 popit the shouther o' the nowtherd callant, and said 

 quietly, ' Sandy, if I raise ye about twal o'clock ye 

 needna wonder ; sleep as fast as ye can till than, and 

 tak' nae notice to Jamie when ye rise.' I had aft ta'en 

 this lad wi' me afore to haud the light ; for he was a 

 stout loon o' his age, and could haud a light weel 

 enough ; having a natural cast rather bye common for 



