the animal before him, with the pack saddle on her back, the wary beast boggled at a particular part in the road, where she had " laired " on a previous occasion, Introductory. 3 and fairly refused to go on. But the mare had overlooked the fact that it was now in the drought of summer, whereas it had formerly been raw winter. And her master, failing to persuade her that it was safe to hold on her way, exclaimed " Wae-worth ye, beastie ; yer memory's a hantle better than your jeedgment." The people dwelt almost of necessity much amongst themselves, living in a simple, homely style, on the produce of their own cultivation. Observant strangers, in speaking of diversities in manners, and style of speech, among the common people, professed to note specific differences, if not between the inhabitants of one parish and the inhabitants of another, certainly between those of one district and those of other districts in the same shire ; and it might be, in some instances, not half-a-dozen miles apart. The state of matters was not unfavourable to the growth of certain virtues, such as neighbourliness, social sympathy, and the like. And along with these there was almost necessarily contractedness of view and lack of the spirit of progress. It was equally natural that there should exist a considerable tinge of superstitious feeling, manifesting itself in such forms as the prevailing beliefs in fairies, ghosts, witches, and water kelpies, as well as in a sort of character who seems to have held a midway place between the fully developed warlock, who had his commission directly from the Prince of Darkness, and the seer, or person originally gifted, more or less, with superhuman power which enabled him to cope with certain bodily ailments and various other of the ills that afflict humanity. Among the peasantry generally, as indeed amongst other classes of society during the same period, religious feeling was in a rather dormant state. The prevailing sentiment was pretty much that which, at a later era, came to be described by the term " moderate," understood in its worst sense. The " Seceder," when, in due time, lie became an existing entity, here and there, was possibly a pair of these growing side by side like twin sisters with their arms interlaced. They have yielded many a slip for crosses to put above the byre-door, on Kood even, to fend the bestial from " uncanny fowk." For, as we know, Rowan tree and red thread, Keep the witches fae their speed. Such, in a general way, was the outward aspect of the hamlet and its surroundings. * Strathbogie was of old divided into forty-eight davochs, each containing as much as four ploughs could till in a year. (Antiq. Shires, vol. IV.) Hence the phrase " the aucht-an'-forty dauch." Certain neighbours * If a guess might be hazarded on the point, the internal evidence would seem to indicate that this minute had been drafted by Dr,
