290 AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY LAIRD 



emphasis : ' It's just seeven-an'-twenty years since Rab 

 and me cam to this hoose, and the fire 's never been oot 

 sin' syne ! ' 



For more than a quarter of a century that humble 

 hearth had never been cold. Night and day, summer 

 and winter, shine and storm, it had yielded warmth and 

 fragrance, and the ' stour ' remained in its proper place, 

 distributed by no baffling draughts through iron bars. 

 Alas ! when I was in that room three months ago the 

 open hearth had been built up, and some stinking 

 Whitehaven coal was smouldering in an up-to-date 

 kitchen-range. 



Now let me back to my theme, from which there is 

 the less excuse for diverging, because, on closer inspec- 

 tion, I find that on sundry occasions Sir Alexander 

 paid 'fraught' for a cargo of sea-coal from White- 

 haven. 



In the year following his marriage and the appearance 

 of his first-born, the laird allowed himself to be ' ta'en 

 up wi' affairs o' the State/ standing for the county 

 against his neighbour, Colonel Vans of Barnbarroch, 

 and getting returned for the moderate outlay of about 

 twelve guineas. This entailed parting for a while from 

 his bonnie Jean. He set out on horseback for London, 

 with 111 guineas 'sealed up in a harn bag,' glad to 

 know that the election left no bitterness between 

 neighbours. 



' To Coll. Vance's eldest son, when I gave him 

 my good advice about his behaviour & 

 manadgement going abroad for Bristoll & 

 New England, a broad piece Carolus . 1 3 ' 



