"Na, na, Ayrshireman," she said; "it's maybe time aneuch as it is for you to marry Bell Mulwhulter. It's sma' savin' o' expense to bring up a rachle o' bairns." "Dod, woman, I never thocht a' that," said Tammock. "It's maybe as weel as it is." "Ay, better a deal. Let weel alane," said the mistress. "I doot I'll hae to do that ony way noo," said Tammock. "But what said Tibby o' the Hilltap to ye, Tammock, that ye gied up thochts o' her sae sudden-like?" "Na, I can tell that to naebody," he said at last. "Hoots, haivers!" said the wife, who wanted very much to know. "Ye ken that it'll gang nae farder." "Aweel," said Tammock, "I'll tell ye." And this he had intended to do from the first, as we knew, and he knew that we knew it. But the rules of the game had to be observed. There was something of a woman's round-the-corner ways about Tammock all his days, and that was the way he got on so well with them as a general rule--though Tibby o' the Hilltap had given him the go-by, as we were presently to hear. "The way o't was this," began Tammock, putting a red doit of peat into the bowl of his pipe and squinting down at it with one eye shut to see that it glowed. "I had been payin' my respects to Tibby up at the Hilltap off and on for a year or twa--" "Maistly on," said my wife. Tammock paid no attention. "Tibby didna appear to mislike it to ony extent. She was fond o' caa'in' the crack, an' I was wullin' that she should miscaa' me as muckle as she likit--for I'm no' yin o' your crouse, conceity young chaps to be fleyed awa' wi' a gibe frae a lassie." "Ye never war that a' the days o' ye, Tammock!" said the mistress. "Ay, ye are beginnin' to mind noo, mistress," said Tammas dryly. "Weel, the nicht afore last I gaed to the Hilltap to see Tibby, an' as usual there was a lad or twa in the kitchen, an' the crack was gaun screevin' roond. But I can tak' my share in that," continued Tammas modestly, "so we fell on to the banter. "Tibby was knitting at a reid pirnie[4] for her faither; but, of course, I let on that it was for her guidman, and wanted her to tak' the size o' my held so that she micht mak' it richt. [Footnote 4: Night-cap.] "'It'll never be on the pow o' an Ayrshire drover,' says she, snell as the north wind. "'An' what for that?' says I. "'The yairn 's owre dear,' says Tibby. 'It cost twa baskets o' mushrooms in Dumfries market!' "'An' what price paid ye for the mushrooms that the airn should be owre dear?' said I. "'Ou, nocht ava,' says Tibby. 'I juist gat them whaur the Ayrshire drover gat the coo. I fand them in a field!' "Then everybody _haa-haa_ed with laughing. She had me there, I wull alloo--me that had been a drover," said Tammas Thackanraip. "But that was naething to discourage ye, Tammock," said I. "That was juist her bit joke."