The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-11-10

" But mind, nothing must be said
 about it to- and he cooked his thumb
 over his shoulder in the direction of his
 uncle. I nodded, to let him ken that l
 was a there, as the sayin' is, an that he
 needa be feared O Abraham Fyfe openin'
 his mouth when he had need to keep 1t
 shut Weel l saw the lass married, for
 l gaed to the kirk. It was in an Episco-
 plan kirk in England-naebody but them
 selves twa an the beadle-craitur to gie
 the puir young thing ava! Me? l was
 safe hid in the gallery. Naebody kepned
 that 1 was there to see. But somehow
 the marriage didna answer Never did
 Jacob Romer dour to whisper a word to |, his uncle. for fear that the ould bachelor
 thief wad disinherit him. An after Jacob
 Gorm was in his grave, it was not whit
 better. The wife gaed wrang f the mind, or deed or something. An sac 1t may
 be wi reason that Jacob Romer gangs
 by the Glebe yeti wi his horses aye at speed an q face on him like death an
 hell following after.'
 "Yes. perhaps he has needv' said Vida in low voice.
 The old gardener, who had been busily
 manipulating his pruning knife all the time, turned sharply upon her, measuring her with his eye.
 "Maybe-maybel" he said, "aiblins the sins O some gang before them into judS-
 ment, as it is written. And l, sinner
 though l be, I would rather hae the con- science O puir Abraham the gardener to talk wi me to bed, than that of Jacob
 Gorm Romer the maister O thoosands- ay an tens O thoosands l judge he's gye an lonely whiles-juist him an his
 Maker, Ech ay, him and his Makeri'
 Vida would have liked to asked other questions, but fear of appearing over
 inquisitive withheld her However, the l.1 l,t. ,a
 mounted on the hazardous, stumbling nag of his octogenarian reminiscence.
 There was a bairn, too-lad-bairn or lassie-bairn, l never richtly heard. But the bit thing lived not long, l wot,
 though, it wasna killed wi kindness. How could it? It's mither a puir peeferin' in valid an nae father but Jacob Romer! The puir wee snipe was far better aff, l'se warrant, at hame wi it's Ither Fai-
 ther and aboot kindlier Hearthstanel" Abraham was silent awhile with the
 natural instinct of the man. For though, as a good Cameronian, he had officially his doctrine as to elect and non-eleet in
 fants, as a private person Abraham
 thought of heaven a place where las
 sies and laddies played at marbles and
 ball upon golden streets.
 For" said he, in explanation of this,
 its natural that the young lightsome things wad whiles be trim O the eternal
 harpin' an singin'!'
 He was cruel to his wife, then?" Vida went on with an accent which might have put Abraham Fyfe on his guard
 save for the fact that he had his deaf ear towards her at the moment.
 "Cruel-weel, no exactly" said the an
 cient gardener of Corn House, ''ye see he was juist a man that should never hae been marriet. Of such there are twa kinds. And talk ye tent, lassock, O what
 I am sayin' There are them that eanna
 settle to ony woman, an them that can
 ma settle to ony ae woman. Jacob Romer l was O the first sort. After month, his ! wife was nae mair to him than coat l that didna fit A that he thocht aboot was just how to get rid O her!" A moan forced itself from Vida's lips. The old man turned in astonishment his shears still clip-cipping emptily in his fingers.
 "Eh. lassie-but what's the maitter-are ye allbins no weel?e
 q am better already said Vida, snatching desperately at her self-control, "I was only sorry for the poor wife that died without ever being loved" If ye kenned Jacob Romer well as me- ye wadna greet for herb said Abra- ham Fyfe Sure am I that bath the
 mither an bairn will be leapin' an skip pin like twa bonnie young lambs on the mountains O Beaulah-juist to be rid O
 Jacob Romer an Jacob Romers tenn perr'
 And why, then, do you serve such a man?' said Vida, looking at the sober face of the old Cameronian, momentarily lighted up with a flash of sombre fire. Deed then, my bonnie, it is because Abraham canna weel do otherwise. Ye see, 1 served his uncle the Auld Man he was caa'ed after-Jacob Gorm the First An I kenned the lad, an fed him wi apples an comforted him wi goose gogs when his uncle thrashed him-ay, for he was sorely thrashed in his youth. An maybe it was his uncles Housing him that made him the hard man he is this day But at ony rate. God didna
 mak me judge an a divider over Jacob Romer. He has been a hard, but no an i'll master to me. The pur lads at the pits wha are under the thumb O that misleared ill-doer James Kahn they can tell a different tale. But for