CHAP. I.] Agwin Escapes. 35 
always running after his “ beasts,” his father at last deter- 
mined to take his clothes from him altogether; so, one 
morning when he went to work, he carried them with him. 
When the boy got up, and found that he had nothing to 
wear, he was in a state of great dismay. His mother, hay- 
ing pinned a bit of an old petticoat round his neck, said to 
him, “I am sure you'll be a prisoner this day.” But no! 
His mother went down-stairs for milk, leaving him in the 
house. He had tied a string round his middle, to render 
himself a little more fit for moving about. He followed 
his. mother down-stairs, and hid himself at the back of the 
entry door; and as soon as she had passed in, Tom bolted 
out, ran down the street, and immediately was at his old 
employment of hunting for crabs, horse-leeches, puddocks, 
and sticklebacks. 
His father, on coming home at night with Tom’s clothes 
in his hand, looked round the room, and asked, “Is he in 
bed?” “Nal” “Far* is he?’ “ Weel, I left him here 
when I gaed to the door for milk, and when I came back 
he was awa; but whether he gaed out o’ the window or 
up the lum,+ I canna tell.” “Did ye gie him ony claes ?” 
“No!” “Most extraordinary!” exclaimed the father, sit- 
ting down in his chair. He was perfectly thunderstruck. 
His supper was waiting for him, but he could not partake 
of it. A neighboring woman shortly after entered, say- 
* The pronunciation of the Aberdeenshire dialect is peculiar. For 
instance, far is where; fat, what; tee, to; dee, do; feel, fool; peer, poor ; 
byeuk, book ; been, bone, etc. It is said that Jane Maxwell, the hand- 
some and beautiful Duchess of Gordon, was in the habit of amusing 
George III. by repeating phrases in Aberdonian doric; and that his 
majesty plumed himself on his ability to interpret them. The duch- 
ess one day tried his mettle with the following: “A gangrel bodie oot 
0’ the toon 6’ Stanhive was i’ the way o’ wan’erin the kwintra wi’ a 
bit basket owre ’er gardie, crying, ‘Fa’ll buy my black doctors fulpit in 
a peel?’?” The gangrel bodie was a leech-seller of Stonehaven, and of 
course the “ doctors” were “ whelped” in a pool. 
+ Lum, chimney. 
