The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-06-05
TALES OF THE BORDERS.
RECOLLECTIONs OF BURNS.


The degrees shorten as " proceed from
tbe higher 10 the lower lsutudes-the years
seem no shorten In a much greater ratio as
ws pass Onward through life We are all
mos. disposed % question whether the brief
period of storus and foul weather that floats
rve- us with such dream-lke rapiditv, and
tbe transient season ~ flowers aHd sunshine
lat seems almost too shoT. f0r ani0vu ant,
~ at aii Identical with Tie long semmers
and still longer winters Of eur boyL0ed,
..hsn CAV slsvE Gay aHd week after wssk
stretched away ~ dim perspective, ill losl
a tne obscurlty ~ an almost lnc0nceivable
distance. Young as | was, | had already
p5ssed the period OF life when we wOnder
b0w il IS thai tine yeaIs shOaid b. described
as short ana Heeling; and u seemed as if
had stood huty yesterday beside the death Ted
0i tile unfortunate Fr-guson, though the
n0xes ~ loaF summers ami the SHOWS of four
winters had nov been shed over his grave.
NV prospects Ia iie bad begun 70 bright
"a : served in the capacity of mate 10 a
large West India trader, the master of which
-au elderly man OF considerable wealth
Eas on the eve Of quitting Ihe sea and the
owners bad determlUe1 that should succeed
him in the charge. But fate bad ordered il
otherwise. Our seas were infested at this
period by Amer can priyateeTs prime sail
ur- ana strongly armed and, when home
gar1 bound from Jamaica with a valuable
cargo, W. were attacked a captured when
within day s sailing 81 Ireland, by one Of
tile most formidable OF tbe class Vain as
resist Zee might have been deemed tor the
( rec OF the American was altogether over
p0wering though our master, poor ola
man aud three Of the crew, had fallen by
the .irst broadside, we had yet stood stifly
by our guns, and we're only oVermastered
when, alter falling foul of the enemy, we
were immediate. boarded by a large
party Of twice our strength and number
I1e Americans, irritated BY our resistance,
proved on this occasion NJ generous enemies;
We were stripped and heavily roned. and
two days after, were set ashore on the wild
coast Of C0unaught, without a single change
Of dress, or a sixpence to bear US by ws,
| was sitting, on the following nigh, be-
side the turf hre Of a hospitable Irish pea-
sant when a seafaring man, whom | had
sailed with about two years before, entered
the cabin. The meeting was equally unex-
pected on either side. My acqusintance was
the master 81 a smuggling lugger then on
the coast; and on acquaInting him with the
details Of mg disaster, and the state Of des-
ututiou 90 which it had reduced me, he kind
" proposed that should accompany him on
bis voyage to the west coast Of Scotland, Tor
which he was then on the eve of sailing
you viii run some little risk" be said, sas
the companion of man who has now been
three outlawed for firing On his Maiesty's
flag but 1 know your proud heart will pre-
ier the danger Of bad company at its worst.
u the alternative Of begging your way
home" He judged rightly. Before day
break we Es 4 lost SIGHT Of land, and il four
days more we could discern the precip,tous
shores Of Carrick stretching 10 dark line
along the horizon, and the bills, OF the inte-
rior rising thin and blue behind, like . vol
ume Of clouds. A considerable part # our
cargo, which consisted mostly Of tea ana
spirits, was consigned to an AyI Srader,wh
bad several agents in the remote parish Of
kifkoswald, which at this period afforded
more facilities for carrying on the contra
band trade than any other on the western
coast Of Scotland; and, in a rocky bay or
the parish, We proposed unlading on the fol-
loving night. IL was necessary, however,
that ne eve \ agents who were yet igno-
itNttN " ehi 0AtiNAs, >itUttu pc prepared to
meet w'tt . and or yo.uu.eering M ser
vice for the purpose, | was landed near the
runs OF the ancient castle Of Turuberry.
occe the seat Of Robert the Bruce.
| had accomplished my object; il was
evening, and party Of countrymen we're
sauntering among the cliffs, waiting for
nighIfall and the appearance Of the !ugger
There are splendid caverns on the coast Of
kirkoswad ; and, to while away the time, !
had descended to the shore by broken ana
PERCEPTIONS path, With view of exploring
what are termed the Caves OF Colzean, by
far the finest in TINS part Of Scotland. The
evening was Of great beauty the sea spread
out from the cilfs TO the far horizon, like
the sea Of gold and or, stal described by the
prophet and its warm orange hues 80 har-
moulzed with those Of the sky, that, passing
over the dimlY defined line Of demaroa.;on'
the whole upper and neither expanse seemed
but one glorious frmament, with the dark
Asia, like thunder cloud, sleeping in tbe
midst The sun was Fastening to his setting
and threw hts strong, red light on the wall
0f rock Kblrb- loff-er vn1-.