A Boyhood in Scotland 



ambition, our dearest aim in life in or out of 

 school. To be a good scholar was a secondary 

 consideration, though we tried hard to hold 

 high places in our classes and gloried in being 

 Dux. We fairly reveled in the battle stories of 

 glorious William Wallace and Robert the Bruce, 

 with which every breath of Scotch air is sat- 

 urated, and of course we were all going to be 

 soldiers. On the Davel Brae battleground we 

 often managed to bring on something like real 

 war, greatly more exciting than personal com- 

 bat. Choosing leaders, we divided into two 

 armies. In winter damp snow furnished plenty 

 of ammunition to make the thing serious, and 

 in summer sand and grass sods. Cheering and 

 shouting some battle-cry such as "Bannock- 

 bum! Bannockbum! Scotland forever! The 

 Last War in India!" we were led bravely on. 

 For heavy battery work we stuffed our Scotch 

 blue bonnets with snow and sand, sometimes 

 mixed with gravel, and fired them at each 

 other as cannon-balls. 

 Of course we always looked eagerly forward 

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