Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1861-01-25
WIDOW SIMPSONS SPOONS

olassic spots of Scotland, inasmuch as 1t
armed part Of the dowry which Robert
Bfucse Bestowed on his eldest daughter
Margery,s when she married Walter the
H{eho Steward Of Scotland and thus be-
enc the progenitrix Of the royal and
LUCKY house Of Stuart Lying midway
bstweeen Edinburgh and Glasgow, those
rival queens of east and west, but out of
tke common co,m track Of traffic and travel it
hRs been for ages pastoral parish, of
6all and rather backward farms. OF
Ia years coal has been fouud there; and
1team and trade, which bid fair to leave
the world no rustic corner,a ARE TO rapidly
farming, it, into a mining district which
nobody thought of,about the time Of the
general peace when Bathgate lived on its
own oats and barley, wore its own holden
gray, and had but two subjects of inter-
est-the corn market and the kirk,session.
Among, the ,peaceable and industrious
population, there wa, one one dame anne w1hoP'
though neither, the wealthiest nor the best
born, stood in her own esteem, above all
but the laird and the minister; nr'5 and her
style and title was Widow Simpson. This
lady valued hcrself-not on the farm LETT
her by her good man who had departed
this life some seven years before the COM
mencement of our story, for its acres
were few, and they consisted of halfre-
claimed ,moorland- on her grown up
son, Robin though he was counted a likely
and sensible. lad-not on her own thrifty
house keeping, though it was known to be
on the tight screw principle-bqt on the
possession of a dozen silver teaspoons.
Her account, of them was that they had
Belonged to the Young CheYalier, and had
been bestowed upon her grandfather in
return for entertaining that claimant to
the British crowd on his march from
Culloden-in proof of which she was
accustomed to point out half oblltea-
led crest and the initials G. S., with which
they were marked The widows neigh
borss however, had different tale regard
ing their coming into the family 1t was
to the effect that her grandfather, who
kept a smallicinn somewhere in Fife, had
bought them of an ill-doing laird for three
gallons of Highland whiskey, and had
bestowed them on his granddaughter, as
the one Of his family most likely to hold
fast to such an important acquisition, fwo
lin the family resided, in the capacity
Of help, one Nancy Campbell, agirl of
about nineteen, who was suspected of hav-
ing taken a fancy to Robin, who reciproca-
ted the sentiment. Nothing however,
would soften the heart of the widow as
regards match, until at length the fol-
lowing event occurred, and caused her to
give avaysIiAbout the haymaking time a
distant and comparatively rich relation
was expected to call and take tea that
evening on his way from Linlithgow. It
was not often that this superior relative
honored her. house with visit, and Mrs.
Simpson, determined that nothing should
be wanting to his entertainment, brought
out the treasured spoons early il. the
forenoon, with many injunctions to- Nancy
touching the care she should take in
brightning thcmiup While this operation
was being performed in the kitchen, in
the midst of one of those uncertain days
Of The northern June, i sudden dark
e,niing Of the sky announced the approach
of,heavyl rain, The hay was dry and
ready for housing. Robin and two farm
men were busy gathering il in; but the
great drops began to fall while q consider
able portion yet remained in the field, and
with the Instinct of crop preservation,
forth flushed the widow, followed by
Nancy, leaving the spoons half-scoured on