52 The Naturalist of Cumbrae. 



to foster his taste for natural history, and from which 

 it may also be inferred that he had inclinations very 

 ready to turn to literature and science. 



A young man, named John Hamilton, of about his 

 own age, arranged with him to go for a month or so 

 to the harvest. Not much caring whither they went, 

 they set off eastward, and obtained employment at 

 a farm called Spindlehoe, in the neighbourhood of 

 Uddingston. The farmer had but few labourers, and 

 they were all exceptionally good shearers, or, as we 

 should say, reapers. There were two to each ridge. 

 As Hamilton had not had much experience in the 

 harvest-field, it was hard work for Robertson, with an 

 unskilled mate, to keep up with the others. 



The two friends took lodgings in the neighbour- 

 hood of the farm. Hamilton was a young man of a 

 literary turn, and, as David was by no means averse 

 to reading, they soon discovered that there was a 

 good library at Bellshill, not far off. They applied 

 for and obtained, first, Buffon's " Natural History," 

 then Goldsmith's " Animated Nature," and lastly, 

 Homer's " Iliad," not in the original Greek, but 

 probably in Pope's version. These books they read 

 of an evening and on Sundays. 



In the same house was another lodger, a man ot 

 about fifty, who professed to hold the creed of the 

 old covenanters, and who did not by any means 

 impress the two boys as being a person in whom 

 amiability was carried to excess. He had been in 

 the house rather more than two years. The lads 

 had very little conversation with him. He seemed 

 to shun them. They saw that he had nothing in 



