54 The Naturalist of Cumbrae. 



to say that he got it from a farmer for wages, and 

 that he had more of it than he could use. The truth 

 is, the lying rascal bought it from a shopkeeper in 

 Bellshill that was selling it for the use of hens. I 

 told him to sell it to you himself. That is the godly 

 man that was afraid to anger his Maker, and told me 

 to mind that I would have to answer one day for the 

 kind of lodgers I was keeping ! I told him that if he 

 were not pleased with the house, he could leave it, 

 for I saw nothing wrong with the decent, quiet lads 

 reading books on God's own works ; that my own 

 father read a great many of these books himself; 

 and that, as long as the young men were willing to 

 stay, I was willing to keep them." 



She further added that her lodger had no intention 

 to leave ; he knew he was too well off where he was ; 

 that he had tried the same thing before with other 

 lodgers she had had. " He wants," she said, " to have 

 the whole house and fire to himself." 



Seeing how matters stood between the honest 

 landlady and this Monsieur Tartuffe, Robertson 

 stayed on throughout the harvest-time. At the end 

 of the second week, Hamilton, finding the work too 

 hard for him, was obliged to give it up and go away. 

 The two friends had shared between them the 

 expense of a single bedroom. When Robertson had 

 to occupy it alone, his hostess kindly offered to take 

 only the share that he had previously paid, well 

 knowing how ill he could afford to pay double. It 

 may well be that if anywhere the history of good 

 actions has a lasting home, "this that this woman 

 hath done will be told for a memorial of her." It is 



