"There's some o' thae Muirtown drapers can busk oot their windows that ye canna pass withoot lookin'; there's bits o' blue and bits o' red, and a ribbon here an' a lace yonder. "It's a bonnie show and denty, an' no wunner the lassies stan' and stare. "But gae intae the shop, and peety me, there's next tae naethin'; it's a' in the window. "Noo, that's Maister Popinjay, as neat an' fikey a little mannie as ever a' saw in a black goon. "His bit sermon wes six poems--five a' hed heard afore--four anecdotes--three aboot himsel' and ain aboot a lord--twa burnies, ae floo'r gairden, and a snowstorm, wi' the text thirteen times and 'beloved' twal; that was a'; a takin' window, and Netherton's lassies cudna sleep thinkin' o' him. "There's ither shopmen in Muirtown that fair scunner ye wi' their windows--they're that ill set out--and inside there's sic a wrale o' stuff that the man canna get what ye want; he's clean smoored wi' his ain goods. "It's a graund shop for the auld fouk that hae plenty o' time and can turn ower the things by the 'oor. Ye 'ill no get a young body inside the door. "That's Maister Auchtermuchty; he hes mair material than he kens hoo tae handle, and naebody, hearin' him, can mak head or tail o' his sermon. "Ye get a rive at the Covenants ae meenute, and a mouthfu' o' justification the next. Yir nae suner wi' the Patriarchs than yir whuppit aff tae the Apostles. "It's rich feedin', nae doot, but sair mixed, an' no verra tasty." So the old and young compromised, and chose Carmichael. Elspeth was candid enough on occasion, but she was not indiscreet. She could convey her mind delicately if need be, and was a mistress of subtle suggestion. When Netherton's nephew preached the missionary sermon--he was a stout young man with a volcanic voice--Mrs. Macfadyen could not shirk her duty, but she gave her judgment with care. "He's a fine lad, and 'ill be sure to get a kirk; he's been weel brocht up, and comes o' decent fouk. "His doctrine soonds richt, and he 'ill no gang aff the track. Ye canna ca' him bashfu', and he's sure to be heard." Her audience still waited, and not in vain. "But the Lord hes nae pleesure in the legs o' a man," and every one felt that the last word had been said on Netherton's nephew. II THE COLLAPSE OF MRS. MACFADYEN