put on the board by the bustling Mrs M'Claver, and the bonny Peggy Galravage.

"I see," said the good-natured Baronet, who could not resist a pun,-" I see, Mr Oakenwold, that your friend Captain Cleaver has already brought himself to an anchor, like a good seaman, chee! hehe!"-The joke, though it produced the usual spasm of approval in the face of Macflae, and a laugh from such of the rest as were within earshot, was lost upon the subject of it, who was too much occupied with his haddock to hear it.

"My friend," said Amherst, "though long a man-of-war's-man by profession, is now only a navigator for pleasure."

"Your present voyage is of that nature?" said Sir Alisander.

"It is so," said Amherst," and is occasioned chiefly by our wish to see a little of Scotland."

"A very laudable desire," replied Sir Alisander," and I hope our Land of Cakes will not disappoint you. Since pleasure then, and not business, is your object, you cannot do better than make my house of Sanderson-Mains your

head-quarters for some weeks. I shall be happy to do my best to entertain you, or rather, to see that you are entertained, for I am but a weak vessel myself, and not much able now to leave the house. I will take you thither as soon as I can get away from these honest people, who must always have me for their preses on such occasions as this much against my will, I assure you, for such bouts do not by any means agree with my stomach, which has been very ticklish for some years. But they will not have me excused, so I must e'en sacrifice a little to the wishes of my good neighbours, by yielding to their importunity, though it should even be to the curtailing of my life."

Amherst, whilst he expressed his thanks for so kind an invitation, given to strangers, and assured the worthy Baronet, that his friend and he would be happy to avail themselves of his hospitality, stared with astonishment at the person who gave it, and wondered where the secret sapping disease could lurk, that rendered him a frail vessel, who had so much the outward appearance of good health and a robust constitution, and whose trappings, consisting of all the parapher

nalia of the sick man, had so whimsical an effect when contrasted with the embonpoint of his figure, and the rustic healthfulness of his face.

The prepossessing, and even noble appearance of Amherst, followed by the Baronet's invitation, that sufficiently spoke his good opinion of the strangers, like oil upon the stormy seas, produced a certain lull upon the obstreperous mirth of the company, and it was some time before it again began to swell itself into a roar.—A deep pledge was passed round by the chairman to the health of the new guests, and replied to, of course, by one from each of them, and the claret again began to mount into the brains of the votaries of Bacchus, and again to loosen the shackles of their tongues.

"Maister Oakenwold," said Bailie Sparrowpipe, rising and addressing Amherst in a tone of voice, thin, shrill, and sharp, resembling the cutting notes of a fife," I drink to you, and to your country, Sir-I rejoice for to see ane Inglishman amang us.-I have a high respeck for Ingland Sir, and troth, gif I shou'd say otherwise, my verra speech itsell wad betray me, for ye may observe that my dialeck is somewhat polished.

And nae wonder nor it shou'd be sae, for I was nae less than sax weeks in Lunnon itsell about aughteen years syne, whare I gathered the tongue, as likewise thae manners which hae acquired for me the appellation of the feenished man."-A simper of great self-approbation followed this speech.

"I am glad, Bailie," said Macgillivray with an air of gravity, evidently intended to bring him out-" I am very glad that you are here, were it only to show our English guests, that we are not all barbarians in this country."

"Hout fye, hout fye, Maister Macgillivray !— barbarians !-na truly, though we do leeve in the North, we're no just that neither;-there's mony a ane o' us has traivelled,-there's you hae been in Italy-and Maister Macflae in the Wast Indians-and Dr Partenclaw there, forbye mony ither voyages, was aince at the Greenland fishing-no to crack o' mysell being in Lunnon."

"Upon few people, however, are the advantages of travel so apparent as upon the elegant Mr Sparrowpipe," said Macgillivray. "But then

nature, Sir,-nature is everything."

"Troth that's true eneugh,” replied Sparrowpipe-" I had aye a sort o' genty cast about me

-I mind verra weil that Sally Hopkins, the dancin' master's dochter in Threadneedle Street, used aye to say that o' me; and her father, wha was a verra gude judge o' siccan matters, used to declare, that I could mak as bonny a boo as ony Lord o' the bed-chammer."

"I have no doubt of that, Bailie," said Macgillivray-" you are still remarkable for your talent that way, which indeed has rather improved than otherwise, and is perhaps one of the causes of your being such a terrible fellow among the ladies."

"Hout fye, hout fye, Maister Macgillivray," said the Bailie, stretching his long neck and nose across the table like a goose, with a simper of ineffable delight upon his face; "ye are pleas ed for to flatter me, Sir,-that is to say-I mean -ye wrang me sair, Sir-I dinna deserve nae siccan character. But an I do," added he, looking down, or rather inwards upon his yellow waistcoat, with manifest satisfaction,-" ane canna help ane's attraction, ye ken."

"Aye, aye,” said the Baronet—“ very true, Mr Sparrowpipe,-the rose cannot be blamed for its fragrance."