When we visited Philiphaugh, in September, 1824, we entered fully into the spirit of the weaver, and on that occasion extended our observations to his wife, who is a tall, hollow woman, with dark eyes, and who speaks and smokes with equal assiduity. The result of our investigation was the following versified sketch, in which we have endeavoured to give the reader a complete idea of that hitherto nondescript animal, a country weaver: his feelings, fortunes, family, domestic economy, and—above all—his _customer-wark!_ FOOTNOTES: [48] “19th January, 1595, the young Earl of Montrose fought a combat with Sir James Sandilands, at the salt trone of Edinburgh, thinking to have revenged the slaughter of his cousin, Mr. John Graham, who was slain with the shot of a pistol, and four of his men slain with swords.”—_Birrel’s Diary_, p. 34. [49] It was reported that Montrose, while a child, swallowed a toad, by the command and direction of his mother, in order to render himself invulnerable. As Mr. Sharpe says, in his amusing work, “Law’s Memorialls,” he swallowed in after-life something worse,—the Covenant. [50] Wood’s Peerage, vol. ii. [51] “The Muse’s Threnodie.” [52] Stewart’s “Sketches of the Highlands,” vol. ii. [53] “Border Minstrelsy,” vol. iii. [54] Wishart. [55] A covenanted minister, present at the execution of these gentlemen, observed,—“This wark gaes bonnily on!”[A] an amiable exclamation, equivalent to the modern _ça ira_, so often used on similar occasions. [A] Wishart, “Memoirs of Montrose.” [56] Wood’s Peerage. [57] Letter of Archibald, Lord Napier, Brussels, 14th June, 1648, _penes_ D. Napier. [58] M‘Leod got 400 bolls of meal from the Covenanters for his treachery. [59] Laing’s History, vol. i. [60] “Law’s Memorialls.” [61] “History of the Church of Scotland,” p. 126. In the “Mercurius Caledonius” the place of this inhumation was “under the public gibbet, half a mile from town.” [62] The rescinded acts, January, 1645, contain a ratification of James Stewart’s pardon for killing Lord Kinpont. He was made major of the Marquis of Argyll’s regiment of foot, 24th October, 1648.—_Nisbet’s Heraldry_, vol. ii., _App._ 77. [63] Scott of Scottstarvet’s “Staggering State of Scots Statesmen” is a curious memoir, written shortly after the Restoration, but not printed till early in the year 1754, after the death of the persons whose characters and actions are mentioned with so little respect in the course of its satirical details. It is adverted to, as in a condition of manuscript, at the 25th page of the 2nd volume of the “Bride of Lammermoor”; and the Author appears to have made some use of its informations in the construction of the subsequent Tale. [64] This article forms part of a work which I have recently projected, to be entitled, “Pilgrimages to the most remarkable Scenes celebrated in Scottish History.”