"Yes, lathies," Haggart was saying, "daftness about women comes to all, gentle and simple, common and colleged, humourists and no humourists. You say Mr. Dishart has preached ower muckle at women to stoop to marriage, but that makes no differ. Mony a humorous thing hae I said about women, and yet Chirsty has me. It's the same wi' ministers. A' at aince they see a lassie no' unlike ither lassies, away goes their learning, and they skirl out, 'You dawtie!' That's what comes to all." "But it hasna come to Mr. Dishart," cried Rob Dow, jumping to his feet. He had sought Haggart to tell him all, but now he saw the wisdom of telling nothing. "I'm sick o' your blathers. Instead o' the minister's being sweethearting yesterday, he was just at the Kaims visiting the gamekeeper. I met him in the Wast town-end, and gaed there and back wi' him." "That's proof it's a Glasgow leddy," said Snecky. "I tell you there's no leddy ava!" swore Rob. "Yea, and wha sends the baskets o' flowers, then?" "There was only one flower," said Rob, turning to his host. "I aye understood," said Haggart heavily, "that there was only one flower." "But though there was just ane," persisted Chirsty, "what we want to ken is wha gae him it." "It was me that gae him it," said Rob; "it was growing on the roadside, and I plucked it and gae it to him." The company dwindled away shamefacedly, yet unconvinced; but Haggart had courage to say slowly-- "Yes, Rob, I had aye a notion that he got it frae you." Meanwhile, Gavin, unaware that talk about him and a woman unknown had broken out in Thrums, was gazing, sometimes lovingly and again with scorn, at a little bunch of holly-berries which Jean had gathered from her father's garden. Once she saw him fling them out of his window, and then she rejoiced. But an hour afterwards she saw him pick them up, and then she mourned. Nevertheless, to her great delight, he preached his third sermon against Woman on the following Sabbath. It was universally acknowledged to be the best of the series. It was also the last. CHAPTER XVIII. CADDAM--LOVE LEADING TO A RUPTURE.