The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1910-11-29
OLD MORTALITY
81 SIR WALTER SCOTT 17u-1832
oViuaNeEhLe90@s gY n2v0K& EAN5e anil EnEEurs EEsEzHzEn

The title OF this novel has noti,in. In
,fo Nth the story itself. But it Is a
good title and Scott used il as smell,
old Mortality was u wandering reli-
gious enthusiast who went about Scot
land res7srsinS on their
tOinbstoneS the names OF the Cove
nanters who slept beneath. He is .un-
posed TO have told the story TO a Peter
saF1lson, IN whfe Posthumous papers
SCOTS old mythical friend. JesIe.fi,h
CeiShbOtham.. found il. The story IT.
aeff II one of the best OF SIR Walters
and though its nominal hero is a
Youhg nlan named Henry Morton, its
reai hero Is Bonnie Dundee with
BaifoHF OF hurley as the heavy william.
md Sef scott did not intend, evidently.
10 assign these parts to Dundeo ara
BUriey. He seems to have started out
&c make Burnley u brave and noble.
dough fanatic patriot and .layer-
house Il cruel though brave and pol
ished ruf1iaH. But once III the COM
pai4 OF the two men the cfivalroUs
and knightly Sir Walter could no more
help crying Hey for the bonnet OF
Bonnie Dundee than he could helm
breathing IL is easy to see where his
heart II, wherever his intellect n;ay
"s'nder' 50 The leaves Us a picture of
tiaveFtiot.se which ~raseinates us and u
picture of Burnley which is dark and
f0rbiGdiBg.
Young Henry Morton. having won
tie ffSt prize. which the title of can
tain OF the Popinjay." by his skill in
shooting at 4 stuffed popinjay on a
pole at the militia gathering. or Wap-
'nsch-1W, 81 Upper ClEdesdale, was en-
t"rtd!utng his competitors III the hos
pltabie inn of Neil Blame in the little
uorough town near the place Of gath
ring. Besides those who had ridden
with Morton from the Wapinschaw
theFe was at the inn q company of
soldiers of the Royal Life Guards, I'm
der command Of Sergeant Francis
stew art, called by his fellow Dragons,
and by his officers. also. Sergeant
Boutwell,. as being the heir OF the last
Earl OF Boutwell,. whose name had
been attained and whose estates had
neen confiscated. Boutwell, had sery-
ID as a soldier of FORUM in many
parts Of the world and had been ia
'nliiar With courts az We'll as cam ps.
Nut his dissipated and reckless char
acter, his INSTRUMENTATION and his tur-
hulence- had, III spite OF his birth and
mis- undoubted bravery ana skill as a
soldier, reduced him to the humble
position which he now held and kept
Tim there.
The times were those which iume-
diately preceded the uprising OK the
COVenanters in the year 1879. The sec
ton of country in which the opening
OF the story Is laid WAS strongly Pres
5yterian, the sterner of the sect. those
who scorned TO sit under an ''indulg-
ed" minister. but thought him but a
false shepherd" who, though Of
their own faith, made any ~cofnpro-
mise with government. these fanatics,
stern. cruel and bloody. regarded the
wapiDSchaw as down to Baal''
a proclamation and goddess revel OF
sin'-ttlough In truth the thing was
harmless enough. Harmless enough
from any standpoint. as the loyal gen.
try Of The country, though they had
exerted themselves to the utmost. had
been able 10 muster but a Scant and
motley assemblage Of armed vassals
and retainers. Most Of the p~easanrrv
and yeomanry simply discoursed about
''Beiial," the scarlet woman" and
other unpleasant persons and refused
TO attend.
There was at the gathering the cour-
ageous and stately dame the widowed
Lady Bellenden, III whose
house the Tower of Tillietdiern. his
sacred majesty the second Charles had
once "deigned to partake OF his dis
june"-as she told every n who
would listen to her over ana over
with all the narrowing details OF that
morning feast until self preservation
required that the good lady should be
cut short by some INTERCEPTED subject
as soon as she was observed approach
ing the subject Of His Majesty break
fast Lady Margaret had a chair IN
which His Majesty had sat and called
II the throne, and would allow no one
TO sit in it But she vas obliged, IN
order TO fill up the quota OF her vas
sals On the day Of the waplnschaw, 70
arm the butler and the household
servants. even calling in the service OF
Goose Gibble. h haaf-Wftted goose
boy, and incIosing him in jackboots
and breastplate. In this guise' being
mounted on a horse. Gibbie looked
fierce enough until, before the whole
assembled gentry, Lady MargaTet's Ina
provised I~nan-at-arms was thrown
from his steed and extricated with DIT
ficulty from the ENHANCEMENT OF his
sword and aTInor greatly TO the amuse-
ment OF the crowd and TO The mortl-
fcat1on ana rage OF Lady Margaret.