The Lamoille news. (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1877-1881, 1877-04-25

/
about ten years before, and who had
seen some service as a soldier it was
said, in the first British expedition to
Egypt. The sight of his fire deter
mined me at once. i resolved on
passing the evening with him till the
rising of the moon; and, after brief
explanation, and a blunt, though by
no means unl1ind invitation to a place
beside his fire, took my seat fronting
him, ON block of granite which had
been rolled ffom the neighboring beach.
In less than half an hour we were on
as easy terms as if we had been COM
rades of years and, after beating ov-
er fifty different topics, he told Inc the
story of his life, and found an atten-
tive and interested auditor
81 was born, MASTER" said the gip-
sy, sin this very cave, some sixty
years ago, and so am Scotchman like
yourself. Ny mother, however, be-
longed to the Debatable-land; my fa-
ther was an Englishman; and of my
five sisters, one first saw the light in
Jersey, another in Guernsey, a third
in Wales, fourth in Ireland, and the
fifth in the Isle of Man. But this is a
triae, master, to what occurs in some
families. 1t can't be now much less
thay fifty years since my mother left
us, one bright sunny day, on the Eng
lish side of Kelso, and stayed away
about q week. We thought we had
lost her altogeter; but back she came
at last and when she did come, she
brought with her a small sprig Of a lad,
of about three summers or thereby.
Father grumbled a little. We had got
small fry enough already, he said, and
: bare enough and hungry enough they
were at times but mother showed
him a pouch of yellow pieces, and
there was no more grumbling. And
so we called the little fellow Bill Whyte,
as if he had been one of ourselves ;
and he. grew up among Us, as peetty a
fellow as e'er the sun looked upon. /
was few years his senior; but he
i soon contrived to get half a foot ahead
of me and when we quarrelled, as
boys will al times, master, ! always
came off second best. / never knew
. a fellow Of a higher spirit he would
: rather starye than beg, a hundred
l. times over, and never stole in his life
u but then for gin-settiDg, and deer,
. stalking, and black-fishing, not {
Il poacher in the country got beyond
{ him and when there was a smugglel
. in the Solway, who more active thar
u Bill? He was barely nineteen, poo
c fellow, when he made the country toe
; hot to hold him. remember the nigh
Il as well as if it were yesterday. The
l. Cat-maran lugger was in the firth, d'yC
y see, little below Caerlaverock anC
/ father and Bill, and some half-dozeI
y more Of our men, were busy in bump
6 ing the kegs ashore, and hiding then
in the sand. 1t was q thick, smugg,
: night: we could hardly see fifty yard
'e around us and on our last trip, mas
d ter, when we were down in the waite
'r to the gunwale, who should come upol
IL us, in the turning Of handspike, bu
IL the revenue lads from Kirkcudbright
II They hailed us to strike, in the devil
q name. Bill swore he wouldn't. Flasl
n went musket, and the ball whistlet
S through his bonnet. Well, he callet
le on them to row up, and up they came
le but no sooner were they within half
N oars length, than, taking up a keg
6 and raising it just as he used to. do tn,
y putting-stone, he made it spin through
IL their bottom, as if the planks were o
/ window-glass and down went thei
+ cutter in half jify. They had we
Is powder that night, and fired no NOR
* bullets. Well, when they were gath
ie ering themselves up as they best could
= and, goodness be praised ther
were no drownings amongst them,-
y we pumped our kegs ashore, hidin
ie them with the others, and then fled u
l the country. We knew there woul
q be news Of our nights work and s.
- there was; for before next evenin,
W there were advertisements on ever
. post for the apprehension Of Bill, wit
= an offered reward Of twenty pounds.
~ "Bill was bit of o Scholar
le am |, for that matter, and the pa
u pers stared him on every side.
Oh
q Jack he said to me,-'Jac
20 Whyte, this will never do; the law
20 too strong for us now; and if | don
10 make away with myself, they'll eithe
i have me tucked up, or sent over sea
IN to slave for life. III tell you what I