The reception of Mrs. Bowes into his household, especially with his knowledge of her deep-seated melancholia, says much for the kindliness of Knox's heart; and contrasts strongly with the spirit manifested on a similar matter by that other Scotsman whose {102} correspondence has so recently been given to the world. We know not if the cheap sneer indulged in by so many at the expense of the mother-in-law were as common in his days as it is in ours, but, in any case, Knox in all this was thoughtfully tender, and though he admits that the desponding habit of Mrs. Bowes was often a great trial to him, yet he never withdrew his regard from her. The following sentences of Dr. Laing express all that needs to be said more on this subject: "Her husband, I presume, was a bigoted adherent of the Roman Catholic faith, and this may serve as the key both to his opposition to Knox's marriage with his daughter, and to the mother's attachment to her son-in-law. It cannot at least be said that Knox was actuated by the expectation of wealth. In his last will and testament he states that all the money he received from the mother's succession for the benefit of his two sons was one hundred marks sterling, which he, 'out of his poverty,' had increased to five hundred pounds Scots, and had paid through Mr. Randolph to their uncle, Mr. Robert Bowes, for their use. The comparative value of money at this time was very variable; but we may reckon (that) the hundred marks, or £66 13s. 4d., were increased by Knox to £100 sterling."[1]