120 YOUNG RENNIE AT SCHOOL, PART VII. 



trying his own hand when they would let him. But 

 his favourite resort was Andrew Meikle's millwright's 

 shop, down by the river Tyne, only a few fields off. 

 When he began to go to the parish school, then at 

 Prestonkirk, he had to pass Meikle's shop daily, going 

 and coming ; and he either crossed the river by the 

 planks fixed a little below the mill, or by the miller's 

 boat when the waters were high. But the temptations 

 of the millwright's workshop while passing to school in 

 the mornings not unfrequently proved too great for him 

 to resist, and he played truant ; the delinquency being 

 only discovered by the state of his fingers and clothes 

 on his return home, when an interdict was laid against 

 his " idling " away his time at Andrew Meikle's shop. 



The millwright, on his part, had taken a strong liking 

 for the boy, whose tastes were so congenial to his own. 

 Besides, he was somewhat proud of his landlady's son 

 frequenting his house, and was not disposed to discourage 

 his visits. On the contrary, he let him have the run 

 of his workshop, and allowed him to make his minia- 

 ture water-mills and windmills with tools of his own. 

 The river which flowed in front of Houston Mill was 

 often swollen by spates or floods, which descended from 

 the Lammermoors with great force ; and on such occa- 

 sions young Rennie took pleasure in watching the flow 

 of the waters, and following the floating stacks, field- 

 gates, and other farm wreck along the stream, down to 

 where the Tyne joined the sea at Tyningham, about 

 four miles below. Amongst his earliest pieces of work- 

 manship was a fleet of miniature ships. But not finding 

 tools to suit his purposes, he contrived, by working at 

 the forge, to make them for himself; then he con- 

 structed his fleet, and launched his ships, to the admi- 

 ration and astonishment of his playfellows. This was 

 when he was about ten years old. Shortly after, by 

 the advice and assistance of his friend Meikle, who took 

 as much pride in his performances as if they had been 



