“Hear to him!” he cried. “Her poy will be a creat pard some tay, and sing pefore ta Stuart kings, when they come pack to Holyrood!” Mrs Courthope had enough of poetry in her to be pleased with Malcolm’s quiet enthusiasm, and spoke a kind word of sympathy with the old man’s delight as she rose to take her leave. Duncan rose also, and followed her to the door, making her a courtly bow, and that just as she turned away. “It’ll pe a coot ’oman, Mistress Kertope,” he said as he came back; “and it’ll no pe to plame her for forgifing Glenlyon, for he did not kill _her_ creat-crandmother. Put it’ll pe fery paad preeding to request her nainsel, Tuncan MacPhail, to be forgifing ta rascal. Only she’ll pe put a voman, and it’ll not pe knowing no petter to her.--You’ll be minding you’ll be firing ta cun at six o’clock exackly, Malcolm, for all she says; for my lord peing put shust come home to his property, it might be a fex to him if tere was any mistake so soon. Put inteed, I vonder he hasn’t been sending for old Tuncan to be gifing him a song or two on ta peeps; for he’ll pe hafing ta oceans of fery coot highland plood in his own feins; and his friend, ta Prince of Wales, who has no more rights to it than a maackerel fish, will pe wearing ta kilts at Holyrood. So mind you pe firing ta cun at sax, my son.” For some years, young as he was, Malcolm had hired himself to one or other of the boat-proprietors of the Seaton or of Scaurnose, for the herring-fishing--only, however, in the immediate neighbourhood, refusing to go to the western islands, or any station whence he could not return to sleep at his grandfather’s cottage. He had thus on every occasion earned enough to provide for the following winter, so that his grandfather’s little income as piper, and other small returns, were accumulating in various concealments about the cottage; for, in his care for the future, Duncan dreaded lest Malcolm should buy things for him, without which, in his own sightless judgment, he could do well enough. Until the herring-season should arrive, however, Malcolm made a little money by line-fishing; for he had bargained, the year before, with the captain of a schooner for an old ship’s-boat, and had patched and caulked it into a sufficiently serviceable condition. He sold his fish in the town and immediate neighbourhood, where a good many housekeepers favoured the handsome and cheery young fisherman.