muckle (31) readier till (32) tak (33) than till gie (34)."

66

Speak wi' (35) a gude tongue, granny.

It's nae (36) jesting wi' the ferry-folk (37), But whar's the man?

I weel (38) trow!

They say he was a graand (39) jantleman."

Here the old woman got very angry. -"Graand jantleman indeed!" she exclaimed, and then falling sulkily to her knitting, she kept muttering to herself. The visitor, in the meantime, pulled out a small parcel from the loop of her pinnedup petticoat, and very leisurely undid the worsted thread with which it was tied up. The old woman watched her with an anxious look, her countenance gradually unbending." Whar's a' your folk, granny? Will they be lang (40) out?"

No (41) far, lamb (42); no far. The lads are at the sea (43); the lasses at the hill (44); the gude-man (45) and peerie (46) Willy's out luken (47) after the sheep,

and

and the gude-wife's (48) awa (49) till the

manse (50)."

"To the manse!" with a curious look.

"Yea (51), yea!

Ye ken (52) and I

wat! But haste ye,

granny, Loard safe

ye, and boil's (53) a drap (54) water to mask (55) this air (56) o' comfort afore (57) your folk comes in."

"Weel (58), weel, Ibbie, lass, it's a lang (59) time since I saw an air o' tae (60)," said the old woman.

The water was boiled in an old teakettle, the tea made in an old tea-pot, and down they sat to it. They drank it with much seeming relish, without milk or sugar. Ibbie then gave the old woman a very small quantity of snuff, and immediately they were the best friends in the world.

"Noo, Ibbie Tammison, I's (61) tell ye the true way, a' (62) about it, lamb. It wis (63) upo (64) Monanday (65)—na(66), it was Tiseday, the last ook (67), after

the

the storm, the gudeman, and Mucky o' Easterness, an Willy Lesslie o' the Grind, gaed (68), Loard help us! what can puir (69) bodies do? till luke (70) if ony (71) bits o' trees (72), or rapes (73), or ony ither (74) wracks (75), wis kuest upo the shoar (76). Na, na, lamb, na ae (77) vandivle (78) o' (79) the t'aen (80) or the tither (81) wis t' be seen. Bit (82) Loard be var us! the dead body o' a man, nirded (83) hard and fast in atween (84) twa (85) rocks; the men could na weel win (86) at the body, and to tell the truth, they were na owr (87) keen set upo it, for he was bit an wan (88) earthy-lukin crater (89); and Mucky says, whan he first spied him, he raise (90) up in a grit black bouk (91), and skreeghed (92) and banned (93) at him: so the men tuke (94) the boaat (95), and gaed (96) roun (97) the voe (98), and whan they cam (99), the dead body was leeven (100), bit feint (101) ae wird it spak (102) fae (103) that gude till day this."

The

The old woman looked out at the door, to see if none of the family were near. Finding all safe, she returned, and drawing near to her companion, she spoke in a lower tone." I ken (104) na, lamb! They wiss (105) till mak folk believe that the man or jantleman wis mither (106) naked whan (107) they fand (108) him. Bit auld granny kens (109) better, silly and doited (110) as they think her. He had on a holland sark (111), the like o'it's (112) no upo the grandest laird in Zetland grund (113), wi (114) lace ruffles on it. And he had on a vest and cot (115), an mair forby (116). I ken weel he had a gowd (117) watch, and a lang (118) purse fou (119) o' siller (120), in his pouch (121); and a grand ring upo his finger. Yea, yea, and ye winna (122) hinder some folk till say that a great muckle kist (123), fou o' fine claise (124) and siller, was fand at the sam time. But as for that, auld Breda canna (125) tak' upo her till say.

The

The gudewife tells a' body, and the gudeman, and Mucky, and Willy, keeps till the sam' story, that no ae vandivle (126) wis fund, or seen, or heard o', bit the bare naked body, a' scarted (127) and cloured (128); and muckle wark (129) they mak' about the trouble and the cost (130) the'ir (131) pitten (132) till. Bit, atween ye and me, the cost's no muckle; and as for the trouble, I hae the maist (183) o' that mysell (134). The minister (135), gude man! sent him a flannin (136) sark and a cap, and mony a vayage (137) shoe's (138) made till the manse, and gotten white bread, and wine, and spirits, and Gude (139) kens what a'! bit little o' it a' gangs (140) owr his craig (141)."

Ibbie listened very eagerly to this account, frequently uttering ejaculations, and holding up her hands and turning up her eyes, with every symptom of astonishment. When it was concluded, she looked suddenly and keenly around." Bit whar's the man, granny ?"

VOL. I.

H

"Yonder,