Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1894-02-28
CHAPTER !.

After five and forty years, they Ie!! me,
turbulent students of the University of
Edinburgh listen with cuvg to stories or
the battles Of Peter ClcrhaMc AID Andrew
Kiloour. To one whose sun is far or tie
wrong side of the meridian, and who ought
rather to be engaged with his evening pray
er than his morning folly, the memory OF
early misdeeds can be no matter for salts
faction, vet, must own, it causes me 10
surprise to hear that our ungracious reptt'
tation still lives, for if fervency Of hate
could give immortality to srrl1e ours inlgAV
be forever memorable.
Jonathan and David made covenant OF
love, their souls being knit together IN the
bonds of a mutual affection, but we swore
vows of vengeance, our hearts being afl:;:ne
with reciprocal i'll will. AS Z consequence,
hostilities were frequent and hot, and by
process as quick as it was natural We got
into the very blackest books of the authorl-
ties. Almost as regularly as day succeed
ed day we heard it angrly prophesied that
o1ir rebellious and intrGctablc spirit WoU!d
assuredly bring us 10 Il speed; and an evil
end. / being the greater sinner Qrom
causesw which may presently be appreclated),
was encouraged with the direr predictions.
But the censors might have saved their
breath. If these warnings had any effect
at all, it was to stimulate and cmbitter our
ennity. There are certain moods in which
admonition but fans into tie flame the
spark of rebellion that lies in every unre-
generate human bosom. fear that mood
was ours. Defiant and impenitent, we
wee a grievous aflction to our professors
and the cause of many fits of cloler, result
ing in red faces and shaken nerves. re.
gret to add that what rendered Us no better
than pest to CIR teachers made us
source of endless delight to our fellow
students, particularly to such rs were
studying divinity.
hope students of a later generation are
vouchsafed more grace, though am bound
to add that several of those who used 10
cheer loudest in the thick Of the fray are
now wortkily humping pulDits, and with
evident success pointing their hearers to
the straight gate and marrow waN VINO
knows but they serve heaven all the better
for having some special knowledge Of the
ways of sin? II tie devil were converted,
he would probably make first rate
preacher.
Peter and I were kinsmen, and the dead
lier enemies on that account. We had
come up in the same month Of the same
year to pursue our studies, Is college pas
times are ironically styled, he from Dundee,
I from remote part OF the highlands, and
as we had never previously net nor even
heard Of each other, SAKE by vague and
casual reports, cur introduction was that
of strangers. For cousins the meeting Was
not cordial. y town bred exquisite and
the sole heir OF 4 lawyer with Il big bank
account and & trulkful OF mortgages,
Peter entertained q sovereign contempt for
all such aswere not Of the gilded court Of
Mammon. The wretch VINO could not Zee
a fashionable tailor and live like Il prince, if
he happened to be of princely tastes, would
inspire neither affection nor respect in my
worthy cousin. Himself possessed OF the
longest purse and the finest clothes in the
university, he was fawned upon hy a body
of the most devoted toadies tnat ever
worshiped golden calf.
To the charmed inner circle of his wor-
shippers was neverfor 4 moment admitted.
vet none of his chosen friends touched
him so closely as I did nor yielded him
so much pleasure. They fattered, but
served as target for his wit, an unenviable
capacity that was extremely gratifying to
him and extremely CALLING to me. Never
an opportunity of vexing me did he miss.
Not once during the two years we were to-
gether did he forego the slightest chance of
.taunting and ridiculing me. Though nat
urally averse to toll, he would cEeersuIly
have labcred for half day to coin sen
tence that would sting or contrive an insult
that would humiliate ne.
At our first meeting, though l spoke
purer English than his own, lie begged for
an interpreter, as unhappily be had not tie
delightful Celtic dialect 1T his command,
expressed surprise that one born to the
heritage of kilt should demean his fine
legs with trousers, and then with 4 sar-
casm that was alternately like ice and fire
in the blood he commented on the instruct
i've and interesting antiquarian cut of
breeches made in the highlands.
"As for your coat" said he, sit is the
finest specimen of the antique have seen,
and more than half suspect sou of being
the lucky finder Of garment dropped
from the ark during its cruise among the
northern peat bogs. AS an antedeluvian
relic there would be a fortune in the thing.
Why don't you exhibit yourself?' Where
upon his satellites laughed uproaroUsly,
calling out that it wasn't fair to purloin
the clothes of Noah and say never 4 word
about it.
left him with q crimson face and my
heart already furnace of hate. Thence.
forward we were as powder and flame to
each other-we had but to come into con-
tact to go off. Psychi:al eNpcrimenters
hold that an idea is force OF which the
natural tendency is 10 translate itself into
+nc~..l,ar +l,n tnul-
ency of our ideas was generally violently
that way.
In the tongue was no match for Peter,
nor indeed in the entire university was
there his equal in the cce OF that diabolical
weapon Of oifensc. IN three minutes he
could have blackened the character OF 4
saint beyond hope Of recognition and puta
much more patient man than Job beside
himself with passion. AS for ne, single
sentence, sometimes 4 single Snccring little
laugh or curl of the lip was enough to
bring my blood to the boiling point and
create an irresistible itching in my fingers
to close on his throat TO do him justice,
he took no pains to evade q contest.
When we laid aside our coats to settle
differences, 1 generally managed to pay off
scores satisfactorily, for, though he w2s my
master with the tongue and three years my
senior to boot, l, being bred 4 hunter and
climber of hills, had the frmer muscle.
Perhaps, too, / had the greater ardor in
crucial moments, and ii that had lis eject,
mine was not the first instance in which
the spark OF naphtha fire il the Celtic blood
told in the fight.
But the fortunes of war are 7ariab.e. 1t
CHANGED that one day my enemy caught me
with crippled arm. He rallied upon me,
as was his wont, I Iretaliated, we fought and
the victory was with him. Ithe had whip
ped the whole British nation instead of
manned and insignificant unit Of it, he
could not have exulted more, nor ii he had
been of the race of rebel angels could he
have paid his debt of vengeance with Il
keener or opener malignancy of delight.
'There, you highland blusterer," Ee
ad 1ubor ba iccr1a Gapi1pI