He turned his fit; he spak nae mair. The lift was like to fa'; And Elsie's heart grew grit and sair (big and sore), At sicht o' the drivin' snaw. She laid her doun, but no to sleep, For her verra heart was cauld; And the sheets war like a frozen heap O' snaw aboot her faul'd. She rase fu' ear'. And a' theroot Was ae braid windin' sheet; At the door-sill, or winnock-lug (window-corner), Was never a mark o' feet. She crap a' day aboot the hoose, Slow-fittit and hert-sair, Aye keekin' oot like a frichtit moose,-- But Johnnie cam nae mair! When saft the thow begud to melt Awa' the ghaistly snaw, Her hert was safter nor the thow, Her pride had ta'en a fa.' And she oot ower the hill wad gang, Whaur the sun was blinkin' bonnie, To see his auld minnie (mother) in her cot, And speir aboot her Johnnie. But as alang the hill she gaed, Through snaw und slush and weet, She stoppit wi' a chokin' cry-- 'Twas Johnnie at her feet. His heid was smoored aneath the snaw, But his breist was maistly bare; And 'twixt his breist and his richt han', He claisp't a lock o' hair. 'Twas gowden hair: she kent it weel. Alack, the sobs and sighs! The warm win' blew, the laverock flew, But Johnnie wadna rise. The spring cam ower the wastlin (westward) hill, And the frost it fled awa'; And the green grass luikit smilin' up, Nane the waur for a' the snaw. And saft it grew on Johnnie's grave, Whaur deep the sunshine lay; But, lang or that, on Elsie's heid The gowden hair was gray. George Macwha, who was at work in the other end of the shop when she began, had drawn near, chisel in hand, and joined the listeners. "Weel dune, Annie!" exclaimed he, as soon as she had finished�-feeling very shy and awkward, now that her experiment had been made. But she had not long to wait for the result. "Say't ower again, Annie," said Alec, after a moment's pause. Could she have wished for more? She did say it over again. "Eh, Annie! that's rale bonnie. Whaur did ye get it?" he asked. "In an auld buikie o' my father's," answered she. "Is there ony mair in't like it?" "Ay, lots." "Jist learn anither, will ye, afore the morn's nicht?" "I'll do that, Alec." "Dinna ye like it, Curly?" asked Alec, for Curly had said nothing. "Ay, fegs! (faith)" was Curly's emphatic and uncritical reply. Annie therefore learned and repeated a few more, which, if not received with equal satisfaction, yet gave sufficient pleasure to the listeners. They often, however, returned to the first, demanding it over and over again, till at length they knew it as well as she. Hut a check was given for a while to these forenight meetings. CHAPTER XXIII.