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第47节

lay morals-第47节

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ds; barrows  of the dead; standing stones; beside these; the faint;  durable footprints and handmarks of the Roman; and an  antiquity older perhaps than any; and still living and active  … a complete Celtic nomenclature and a scarce…mingled Celtic  population。  These rugged and grey hills were once included  in the boundaries of the Caledonian Forest。  Merlin sat here  below his apple…tree and lamented Gwendolen; here spoke with  Kentigern; here fell into his enchanted trance。  And the  legend of his slumber seems to body forth the story of that  Celtic race; deprived for so many centuries of their  authentic speech; surviving with their ancestral inheritance  of melancholy perversity and patient; unfortunate courage。

The Traquairs of Montroymont (MONS ROMANUS; as the erudite  expound it) had long held their seat about the head…waters of  the Dule and in the back parts of the moorland parish of  Balweary。  For two hundred years they had enjoyed in these  upland quarters a certain decency (almost to be named  distinction) of repute; and the annals of their house; or  what is remembered of them; were obscure and bloody。  Ninian  Traquair was 'cruallie slochtered' by the Crozers at the  kirk…door of Balweary; anno 1482。  Francis killed Simon  Ruthven of Drumshoreland; anno 1540; bought letters of  slayers at the widow and heir; and; by a barbarous form of  compounding; married (without tocher) Simon's daughter  Grizzel; which is the way the Traquairs and Ruthvens came  first to an intermarriage。  About the last Traquair and  Ruthven marriage; it is the business of this book; among many  other things; to tell。

The Traquairs were always strong for the Covenant; for the  King also; but the Covenant first; and it began to be ill  days for Montroymont when the Bishops came in and the  dragoons at the heels of them。  Ninian (then laird) was an  anxious husband of himself and the property; as the times  required; and it may be said of him; that he lost both。  He  was heavily suspected of the Pentland Hills rebellion。  When  it came the length of Bothwell Brig; he stood his trial  before the Secret Council; and was convicted of talking with  some insurgents by the wayside; the subject of the  conversation not very clearly appearing; and of the reset and  maintenance of one Gale; a gardener man; who was seen before  Bothwell with a musket; and afterwards; for a continuance of  months; delved the garden at Montroymont。  Matters went very  ill with Ninian at the Council; some of the lords were clear  for treason; and even the boot was talked of。  But he was  spared that torture; and at last; having pretty good  friendship among great men; he came off with a fine of seven  thousand marks; that caused the estate to groan。  In this  case; as in so many others; it was the wife that made the  trouble。  She was a great keeper of conventicles; would ride  ten miles to one; and when she was fined; rejoiced greatly to  suffer for the Kirk; but it was rather her husband that  suffered。  She had their only son; Francis; baptized  privately by the hands of Mr。 Kidd; there was that much the  more to pay for!  She could neither be driven nor wiled into  the parish kirk; as for taking the sacrament at the hands of  any Episcopalian curate; and tenfold more at those of Curate  Haddo; there was nothing further from her purposes; and  Montroymont had to put his hand in his pocket month by month  and year by year。  Once; indeed; the little lady was cast in  prison; and the laird; worthy; heavy; uninterested man; had  to ride up and take her place; from which he was not  discharged under nine months and a sharp fine。  It scarce  seemed she had any gratitude to him; she came out of gaol  herself; and plunged immediately deeper in conventicles;  resetting recusants; and all her old; expensive folly; only  with greater vigour and openness; because Montroymont was  safe in the Tolbooth and she had no witness to consider。   When he was liberated and came back; with his fingers singed;  in December 1680; and late in the black night; my lady was  from home。  He came into the house at his alighting; with a  riding…rod yet in his hand; and; on the servant…maid telling  him; caught her by the scruff of the neck; beat her  violently; flung her down in the passageway; and went  upstairs to his bed fasting and without a light。  It was  three in the morning when my lady returned from that  conventicle; and; hearing of the assault (because the maid  had sat up for her; weeping); went to their common chamber  with a lantern in hand and stamping with her shoes so as to  wake the dead; it was supposed; by those that heard her; from  a design to have it out with the good man at once。  The  house…servants gathered on the stair; because it was a main  interest with them to know which of these two was the better  horse; and for the space of two hours they were heard to go  at the matter; hammer and tongs。  Montroymont alleged he was  at the end of possibilities; it was no longer within his  power to pay the annual rents; she had served him basely by  keeping conventicles while he lay in prison for her sake; his  friends were weary; and there was nothing else before him but  the entire loss of the family lands; and to begin life again  by the wayside as a common beggar。  She took him up very  sharp and high: called upon him; if he were a Christian? and  which he most considered; the loss of a few dirty; miry  glebes; or of his soul?  Presently he was heard to weep; and  my lady's voice to go on continually like a running burn;  only the words indistinguishable; whereupon it was supposed a  victory for her ladyship; and the domestics took themselves  to bed。  The next day Traquair appeared like a man who had  gone under the harrows; and his lady wife thenceforward  continued in her old course without the least deflection。

Thenceforward Ninian went on his way without complaint; and  suffered his wife to go on hers without remonstrance。  He  still minded his estate; of which it might be said he took  daily a fresh farewell; and counted it already lost; looking  ruefully on the acres and the graves of his fathers; on the  moorlands where the wild…fowl consorted; the low; gurgling  pool of the trout; and the high; windy place of the calling  curlews … things that were yet his for the day and would be  another's to…morrow; coming back again; and sitting ciphering  till the dusk at his approaching ruin; which no device of  arithmetic could postpone beyond a year or two。  He was  essentially the simple ancient man; the farmer and  landholder; he would have been content to watch the seasons  come and go; and his cattle increase; until the limit of age;  he would have been content at any time to die; if he could  have left the estates undiminished to an heir…male of his  ancestors; that duty standing first in his instinctive  calendar。  And now he saw everywhere the image of the new  proprietor come to meet him; and go sowing and reaping; or  fowling for his pleasure on the red moors; or eating the very  gooseberries in the Place garden; and saw always; on the  other hand; the figure of Francis go forth; a beggar; into  the broad world。

It was in vain the poor gentleman sought to moderate; took  every test and took advantage of every indulgence; went and  drank with the dragoons in Balweary; attended the communion  and came regularly to the church to Curate Haddo; with his  son beside him。  The mad; raging; Presbyterian zealot of a  wife at home made all of no avail; and indeed the house must  have fallen years before if it had not been for the secret  indulgence of the curate; who had a great sympathy with the  laird; and winked hard at the doings in Montroymont。  This  curate was a man very ill reputed in the countryside; and  indeed in all Scotland。  'Infamous Haddo' is Shield's  expression。  But Patrick Walker is more copious。  'Curate  Hall Haddo;' says he; SUB VOCE Peden; 'or HELL Haddo; as he  was more justly to be called; a pokeful of old condemned  errors and the filthy vile lusts of the flesh; a published  whore…monger; a common gross drunkard; continually and  godlessly scraping and skirling on a fiddle; continually  breathing flames against the remnant of Israel。  But the Lord  put an end to his piping; and all these offences were  composed into one bloody grave。'  No doubt this was written  to excuse his slaughter; and I have never heard it claimed  for Walker that he was either a just witness or an indulgent  judge。  At least; in a merely human character; Haddo comes  off not wholly amiss in the matter of these Traquairs: not  that he showed any graces of the Christian; but had a sort of  Pagan decency; which might almost tempt one to be concerned  about his sudden; violent; and unprepared fate。



HEATHERCAT CHAPTER II … FRANCIE



FRANCIE was eleven years old; shy; secret; and rather  childish of his age; though not backward in schooling; which  had been pushed on far by a private governor; one M'Brair; a  forfeited minister harboured in that capacity at Montroymont。   The boy; already much employed in secret by his mother; was  the most apt hand conceivable to run upon a message; to carry  food to lurking fugitives; or to stand sentry on the skyline  above a conventic

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