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Elspeth was a little in front of them, walking with a gentleman who still wondered what they meant by saying that they had heard his baby cry. "For he's no here," Corp had said earnestly to them all; "though I'm awid for the time to come when I'll be able to bring him to the Den and let him see the Jacobites' Lair."
"My heart was near breaking wi' woe, but, oh, I was awid they shouldna ken it, and the bravest thing I ever did was to sit through the supper that night, making muckle o' your father, looking fond-like at him, laughing at his coarse jokes, and secretly hating him down to my very marrow a' the time. The crowd got word o' the ongoings, and they took a cruel revenge.
"Oh, Corp!" exclaimed Grizel, and immediately began to put on her hat and jacket. Corp watched her uneasily. "Mrs. Shiach's compliments," he said firmly, "and he's ower young to be bathed yet; but she's awid to show him off to you," he hastened to add. "'Tell Grizel, was her first words." "Tell Grizel"! They were among the first words of many mothers.
She had often told him that some day he should go to Thrums, but not with her; she would be far away from him then in a dark place she was awid to be lying in. Thus it seemed, to Tommy that she denied herself the pleasure of writing to Thrums lest the sorry news of Elspeth's advent should spoil his reception when he went north.
"Has she come back?" The train had stopped for the taking of tickets, and his tremulous question checked the joy of Corp at sight of him. "She's back," Corp answered in an excited whisper; and oh, the relief to Tommy! "She came back by the afternoon train; but I had scarce a word wi' her, she was so awid to be hame. 'I am going home, she cried, and hurried away up the brae.
"She's so awid to do it," he said basely to Elspeth, "that we needna let on how much we want it done." And he also mentioned her eagerness to Aaron as a reason why she should be allowed to do it for nothing. For Aaron to hold out against her admittance would have been to defraud himself, for she transformed his house.
Elspeth nestled against her, crying, "My mother was thinking about Thrums, wasn't she, Tommy?" "I was thinking about the part o't I'm most awid to be in," the poor woman said, sinking back into her chair. "It's the Den," Tommy told Elspeth. "It's the Square," Elspeth told Tommy. "No, it's Monypenny." "No, it's the Commonty." But it was none of these places.
"I'm willing," replied Whamond, "to gang back and speir, or to search Caddam next; but let the matter drop I winna, though I ken you're a' awid to be hame now." "And naturally," retorted Tosh, "for the nicht's coming on as black as pick, and by the time we're at Caddam we'll no even see the trees."
"Say again," he burst forth, "that I was speaking agin the minister and I'll practise on you what I'm awid to do to her." "Who is she?" "Wha's wha?" "The woman whom the minister " "I said nothing about a woman," said poor Rob, alarmed for Gavin. "Doctor, I'm ready to swear afore a bailie that I never saw them thegither at the Kaims." "The Kaims!" exclaimed the doctor suddenly enlightened.
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