New-York tribune., 1896-10-18
WEIR or HERNfSTON.
\ PORTRAIT OF LORD BRANFIElD. Tif.
ORIGINAL OF STEVENSOSS FEAR
SOME JUDGE.
Fravin Watt. In The New Review

Fravin Watt In The New Review.
anything but oull everybody knew everybody else.
there was much good fellowship mere & "e.s ere. 'ns
stories. The pathetic AMI heroic memories of the
died the Imagination There was old, and
famous aristooracy. whose very names % we're ,,n III
breeding. there WAS learning. there was genius Tor
that strange city during the second half OF last
century lived Ten who have profoundly influenced
the thought and literature OF me World ,trr. as
bG nms Ad" hc S phosophcr s
scott the future novelist Could liying i.ondon iur
iner i1 rf hough Ts s hot s1ns 'G Smd there were
crowds Of lesser and yct Distinguished names. And
portentous hsuro of Robert Macqueen. Lord Brax-
noa sena,or % o. nG ~ ,a 4 CSrt Of stc"ry
the Weir OF licrmston Of Stevenson r"InarhalIe
before the end Of tho century the old mode OF life
was given up by the more prosperous classes.
There was moro space. more light. more ceanl-
field removed to Gcorgo square: that wa MIS- sole
@ tSansc to me Mr Evan % M we was crmed By S
Edinburgh, by H. W.T. Its le"rns. iT prea'~ics, r
speech. and IT Is as representative Of Old Edin-
iiiifTs origin was provincial HIS grandfather
gardener the Earl OF Sclkirk and his father was
lordship lie prospered. became Sheriff Of l,anark-
shire and acquired the estate OF BraNheld. near
ihore. and served a fun term OF apprenticeship
w boTrnf wr m to hr sf"G m the rTTg the for G
sso- har ard a a yysny-'wo was admitted advo-
Macqueen's success due to other than LEGAL
qualities. H. was boon ccnpanion OF the choi'
head that iron frame. tina, seasoned stomach no
potation took effect. liis ak was agreeaby con-
Legal consuation. Ike Other business. done in
n" ,9yern ii"rr over long succession OF drams.
eestons. IN" advocate gave his opinion one can
whose 'Cangiag plea. IN one shape or nno'her. had
tried he temper Of "a m, me ift"en again and again
magic, on the salient features II his case. and
plain with admirable brcvly aud clearncss. in
accent hro' der than his own. and with delightful
carnishnent Of o,ths. exactly how things were aud
exactly what things ought 10 bH done: that in the
services stop here. HAVING supplied mis- client with
Indecent anrr,lorc enough to fe"d III" countryside
evening or the morning by drinking both client and
agent under th. table just in tine to allow him to
accustomed clearness and exaotness before their
ordshps Gn noon n when he ara mis- lellow,Iaw
Parliament Close for their meridian In Johns Cof-
fee tIou.e. No wonder that he ros" be- tho mos,
twenty cases I'm ON" day before the Lord Ordinary.
pr m tor for n" cEnSc r meant saS rcaSS% W."
rased 20 ih@ h,nr ;s Lord hraTnG1 IN 1So he WAS
ice Clerk. hc hcctn" practically President OF the
judiciary Court. He died in i'a3, after long Illness
50 tha, Ten years measure the time Of his pre-ern-
ncnc". ON the bench his characteristics were ac-
centuai"d. AMI made. OF course, moro noiic"ahlo
lor wine for hawdy talk. WAS soanda!ous In an
elderly Judge. ana swearing lao longer consid-
cred "a great ornament to the conversation OF
rcntlcman' Vet Bra xhcid out -Herodei Herod. Tie
cursed without prov9cation: Ike an ensign o, thc
contemporary, Ramsay Of Ochter,yre.
Weir of licrmston Is profcssedly a resuscitation
OF BraAheld. Bui Stevenson was too true an artist
to repeat old anecdotes. The sayings he put in
liermiston's mouth are such as Braxheld might
have uttered. hut not one OF them Is Braxhclds.
two points wherein itermston differs
from Bra xteld. The srangest Gas pointed out in
Mr. Sidney Covin's interesting editorial noe) is the
later date. Weir Is active In 1913. whereas Braxhcld
twenty years before Then BraXheld Advocate
Depute. but never Lord Advocate. Hcrmiston
was.
Stevenson with proper dclcacy) deserted history
altogether IN his account of the Weir family other
than their chief Mrs. Weir is an admirable Scotch
type. exquisltey drawn. and one of the Braxield
stories would ut her very well. His Lordshp had
piayed very badly. whereat he Iowsd his tinker
jaw" to the danes great Indignation. tIe had
Thought (hc explained for the moment that he
stories about Brixilsid The first tells Of his pro,
posal to his lady tt am loosin' out fer a Wife
Let haze your answer OFF or on the morn and nae
mair aboot it," The second Is jewel OF the first
water, His butler gave him notice. alleging that
MAN. returned His Lordship. we've little to COM
plain o. ye may be thankfu ye're no married upon
her" Both these stories druc or fase) refer
Chief Baron OF the Exchequer in Scotland. His
belonged very Old family which held he neredi.
tary sherTshlp of Galloway for centuries In the
days of the Persecution 1t had (unllkc the Ruther-
fords) inclined TO the Covenanting interest Ii Is
useless to trace the history OF Braxiieds descend
ants. who through the female line, still hold the
estate.
Much OF Braxhslds table talk owes is pauancy
10 the high place Of the talker. Sir James tolqu-
partner. refused unless my Lord promised no TO
mis-ca' fim" I'm no mis-ca' 70. Jamie" said
badly and was visorcu>iv cursed as "f,,,e" and
Idiot "" taxed his Iordshp with broken faith