Rob Roy — Complete

by Walter Scott

  CHAPTER TENTH.

  Far as the eye could reach no tree was seen, Earth, clad in russet, scorned the lively green; No birds, except as birds of passage flew; No bee was heard to hum, no dove to coo; No streams, as amber smooth-as amber clear, Were seen to glide, or heard to warble here. Prophecy of Famine.

  It was in the bracing atmosphere of a harvest morning, that I met byappointment Fairservice, with the horses, at the door of Mr. Jarvie'shouse, which was but little space distant from Mrs. Flyter's hotel. Thefirst matter which caught my attention was, that whatever were thedeficiencies of the pony which Mr. Fairservice's legal adviser, ClerkTouthope, generously bestowed upon him in exchange for Thorncliff's mare,he had contrived to part with it, and procure in its stead an animal withso curious and complete a lameness, that it seemed only to make use ofthree legs for the purpose of progression, while the fourth appeared asif meant to be flourished in the air by way of accompaniment. "What doyou mean by bringing such a creature as that here, sir? and where is thepony you rode to Glasgow upon?" were my very natural and impatientinquiries.

  "I sell't it, sir. It was a slink beast, and wad hae eaten its head aff,standing at Luckie Flyter's at livery. And I hae bought this on yourhonour's account. It's a grand bargain--cost but a pund sterling thefoot--that's four a'thegither. The stringhalt will gae aff when it's gaena mile; it's a weel-ken'd ganger; they call it Souple Tam."

  "On my soul, sir," said I, "you will never rest till my supple-jack andyour shoulders become acquainted. If you do not go instantly and procurethe other brute, you shall pay the penalty of your ingenuity."

  Andrew, notwithstanding my threats, continued to battle the point, as hesaid it would cost him a guinea of rue-bargain to the man who had boughthis pony, before he could get it back again. Like a true Englishman,though sensible I was duped by the rascal, I was about to pay hisexaction rather than lose time, when forth sallied Mr. Jarvie, cloaked,mantled, hooded, and booted, as if for a Siberian winter, while twoapprentices, under the immediate direction of Mattie, led forth thedecent ambling steed which had the honour on such occasions to supportthe person of the Glasgow magistrate. Ere he "clombe to the saddle," anexpression more descriptive of the Bailie's mode of mounting than that ofthe knights-errant to whom Spenser applies it, he inquired the cause ofthe dispute betwixt my servant and me. Having learned the nature ofhonest Andrew's manoeuvre he instantly cut short all debate, bypronouncing, that if Fairservice did not forthwith return thethree-legged palfrey, and produce the more useful quadruped which he haddiscarded, he would send him to prison, and amerce him in half his wages."Mr. Osbaldistone," said he, "contracted for the service of both yourhorse and you--twa brutes at ance--ye unconscionable rascal!--but I'selook weel after you during this journey."

  "It will be nonsense fining me," said Andrew, doughtily, "that hasna agrey groat to pay a fine wi'--it's ill taking the breeks aff aHielandman."

  "If ye hae nae purse to fine, ye hae flesh to pine," replied the Bailie,"and I will look weel to ye getting your deserts the tae way or thetither."

  To the commands of Mr. Jarvie, therefore, Andrew was compelled to submit,only muttering between his teeth, "Ower mony maisters,--ower monymaisters, as the paddock said to the harrow, when every tooth gae her atig."

  Apparently he found no difficulty in getting rid of Supple Tam, andrecovering possession of his former Bucephalus, for he accomplished theexchange without being many minutes absent; nor did I hear further of hishaving paid any smart-money for breach of bargain.

  We now set forward, but had not reached the top of the street in whichMr. Jarvie dwelt, when a loud hallooing and breathless call of "Stop,stop!" was heard behind us. We stopped accordingly, and were overtaken byMr. Jarvie's two lads, who bore two parting tokens of Mattie's care forher master. The first was conveyed in the form of a voluminous silkhandkerchief, like the mainsail of one of his own West-Indiamen, whichMrs. Mattie particularly desired he would put about his neck, and which,thus entreated, he added to his other integuments. The second youngsterbrought only a verbal charge (I thought I saw the rogue disposed to laughas he delivered it) on the part of the housekeeper, that her master wouldtake care of the waters. "Pooh! pooh! silly hussy," answered Mr. Jarvie;but added, turning to me, "it shows a kind heart though--it shows a kindheart in sae young a quean--Mattie's a carefu' lass." So speaking, hepricked the sides of his palfrey, and we left the town without fartherinterruption.

  While we paced easily forward, by a road which conducted usnorth-eastward from the town, I had an opportunity to estimate and admirethe good qualities of my new friend. Although, like my father, heconsidered commercial transactions the most important objects of humanlife, he was not wedded to them so as to undervalue more generalknowledge. On the contrary, with much oddity and vulgarity ofmanner,--with a vanity which he made much more ridiculous by disguisingit now and then under a thin veil of humility, and devoid as he was ofall the advantages of a learned education, Mr. Jarvie's conversationshowed tokens of a shrewd, observing, liberal, and, to the extent of itsopportunities, a well-improved mind. He was a good local antiquary, andentertained me, as we passed along, with an account of remarkable eventswhich had formerly taken place in the scenes through which we passed.And as he was well acquainted with the ancient history of his district,he saw with the prospective eye of an enlightened patriot, the buds ofmany of those future advantages which have only blossomed and ripenedwithin these few years. I remarked also, and with great pleasure, thatalthough a keen Scotchman, and abundantly zealous for the honour of hiscountry, he was disposed to think liberally of the sister kingdom. WhenAndrew Fairservice (whom, by the way, the Bailie could not abide) choseto impute the accident of one of the horses casting his shoe to thedeteriorating influence of the Union, he incurred a severe rebuke fromMr. Jarvie.

  "Whisht, sir!--whisht! it's ill-scraped tongues like yours, that makemischief atween neighbourhoods and nations. There's naething sae gude onthis side o' time but it might hae been better, and that may be said o'the Union. Nane were keener against it than the Glasgow folk, wi' theirrabblings and their risings, and their mobs, as they ca' them now-a-days.But it's an ill wind blaws naebody gude--Let ilka ane roose the ford asthey find it--I say let Glasgow flourish! whilk is judiciously andelegantly putten round the town's arms, by way of by-word.--Now, sinceSt. Mungo catched herrings in the Clyde, what was ever like to gar usflourish like the sugar and tobacco trade? Will onybody tell me that, andgrumble at the treaty that opened us a road west-awa' yonder?"

  Andrew Fairservice was far from acquiescing in these arguments ofexpedience, and even ventured to enter a grumbling protest, "That it wasan unco change to hae Scotland's laws made in England; and that, for hisshare, he wadna for a' the herring-barrels in Glasgow, and a' thetobacco-casks to boot, hae gien up the riding o' the Scots Parliament, orsent awa' our crown, and our sword, and our sceptre, and Mons Meg,* to bekeepit by thae English pock-puddings in the Tower o' Lunnon.

  * Note G. Mons Meg.

  What wad Sir William Wallace, or auld Davie Lindsay, hae said to theUnion, or them that made it?"

  The road which we travelled, while diverting the way with thesediscussions, had become wild and open, as soon as we had left Glasgow amile or two behind us, and was growing more dreary as we advanced. Hugecontinuous heaths spread before, behind, and around us, in hopelessbarrenness--now level and interspersed with swamps, green withtreacherous verdure, or sable with turf, or, as they call them inScotland, peat-bogs,--and now swelling into huge heavy ascents, whichwanted the dignity and form of hills, while they were still more toilsometo the passenger. There were neither trees nor bushes to relieve the eyefrom the russet livery of absolute sterility. The very heath was of thatstinted imperfect kind which has little or no flower, and affords thecoarsest and meanest covering, which, as far as my experience enables meto judge, mother Earth is ever arrayed in. Living thing we saw none,e
xcept occasionally a few straggling sheep of a strange diversity ofcolours, as black, bluish, and orange. The sable hue predominated,however, in their faces and legs. The very birds seemed to shun thesewastes, and no wonder, since they had an easy method of escaping fromthem;--at least I only heard the monotonous and plaintive cries of thelapwing and curlew, which my companions denominated the peasweep andwhaup.

  At dinner, however, which we took about noon, at a most miserablealehouse, we had the good fortune to find that these tiresome screamersof the morass were not the only inhabitants of the moors. The goodwifetold us, that "the gudeman had been at the hill;" and well for us that hehad been so, for we enjoyed the produce of his _chasse_ in the shape ofsome broiled moor-game,--a dish which gallantly eked out the ewe-milkcheese, dried salmon, and oaten bread, being all besides that the houseafforded. Some very indifferent two-penny ale, and a glass of excellentbrandy, crowned our repast; and as our horses had, in the meantime,discussed their corn, we resumed our journey with renovated vigour.

  I had need of all the spirits a good dinner could give, to resist thedejection which crept insensibly on my mind, when I combined the strangeuncertainty of my errand with the disconsolate aspect of the countrythrough which it was leading me. Our road continued to be, if possible,more waste and wild than that we had travelled in the forenoon. The fewmiserable hovels that showed some marks of human habitation, were now ofstill rarer occurrence; and at length, as we began to ascend anuninterrupted swell of moorland, they totally disappeared. The onlyexercise which my imagination received was, when some particular turn ofthe road gave us a partial view, to the left, of a large assemblage ofdark-blue mountains stretching to the north and north-west, whichpromised to include within their recesses a country as wild perhaps, butcertainly differing greatly in point of interest, from that which we nowtravelled. The peaks of this screen of mountains were as wildly variedand distinguished, as the hills which we had seen on the right were tameand lumpish; and while I gazed on this Alpine region, I felt a longing toexplore its recesses, though accompanied with toil and danger, similar tothat which a sailor feels when he wishes for the risks and animation of abattle or a gale, in exchange for the insupportable monotony of aprotracted calm. I made various inquiries of my friend Mr. Jarvierespecting the names and positions of these remarkable mountains; but itwas a subject on which he had no information, or did not choose to becommunicative. "They're the Hieland hills--the Hieland hills--Ye'll seeand hear eneugh about them before ye see Glasgow Cross again--I downalook at them--I never see them but they gar me grew. It's no for fear--nofor fear, but just for grief, for the puir blinded half-starved creaturesthat inhabit them--but say nae mair about it--it's ill speaking o'Hielandmen sae near the line. I hae ken'd mony an honest man wadna haeventured this length without he had made his last will andtestament--Mattie had ill-will to see me set awa' on this ride, and gratawee, the sillie tawpie; but it's nae mair ferlie to see a woman greetthan to see a goose gang barefit."

  I next attempted to lead the discourse on the character and history ofthe person whom we were going to visit; but on this topic Mr. Jarvie wastotally inaccessible, owing perhaps in part to the attendance of Mr.Andrew Fairservice, who chose to keep so close in our rear that his earscould not fail to catch every word which was spoken, while his tongueassumed the freedom of mingling in our conversation as often as he saw anopportunity. For this he occasionally incurred Mr. Jarvie's reproof.

  "Keep back, sir, as best sets ye," said the Bailie, as Andrew pressedforward to catch the answer to some question I had asked about Campbell.--"ye wad fain ride the fore-horse, an ye wist how.--That chield's ayefor being out o' the cheese-fat he was moulded in.--Now, as for yourquestions, Mr. Osbaldistone, now that chield's out of ear-shot, I'll justtell you it's free to you to speer, and it's free to me to answer, orno--Gude I canna say muckle o' Rob, puir chield; ill I winna say o' him,for, forby that he's my cousin, we're coming near his ain country, andthere may be ane o' his gillies ahint every whin-bush, for what Iken--And if ye'll be guided by my advice, the less ye speak about him, orwhere we are gaun, or what we are gaun to do, we'll be the mair likely tospeed us in our errand. For it's like we may fa' in wi' some o' hisunfreends--there are e'en ower mony o' them about--and his bonnet sitseven on his brow yet for a' that; but I doubt they'll be upsides wi' Robat the last--air day or late day, the fox's hide finds aye the flayingknife."

  "I will certainly," I replied, "be entirely guided by your experience."

  "Right, Mr. Osbaldistone--right. But I maun speak to this gabbling skytetoo, for bairns and fules speak at the Cross what they hear at theingle-side.--D'ye hear, you, Andrew--what's your name?--Fairservice!"

  Andrew, who at the last rebuff had fallen a good way behind, did notchoose to acknowledge the summons.

  "Andrew, ye scoundrel!" repeated Mr. Jarvie; "here, sir here!"

  "Here is for the dog." said Andrew, coming up sulkily.

  "I'll gie you dog's wages, ye rascal, if ye dinna attend to what I sayt'ye--We are gaun into the Hielands a bit"--

  "I judged as muckle," said Andrew.

  "Haud your peace, ye knave, and hear what I have to say till ye--We aregaun a bit into the Hielands"--

  "Ye tauld me sae already," replied the incorrigible Andrew.

  "I'll break your head," said the Bailie, rising in wrath, "if ye dinnahaud your tongue."

  "A hadden tongue," replied Andrew, "makes a slabbered mouth."

  It was now necessary I should interfere, which I did by commandingAndrew, with an authoritative tone, to be silent at his peril.

  "I am silent," said Andrew. "I'se do a' your lawfu' bidding without anay-say. My puir mother used aye to tell me,

  Be it better, be it worse, Be ruled by him that has the purse.

  Sae ye may e'en speak as lang as ye like, baith the tane and the tithero' you, for Andrew."

  Mr. Jarvie took the advantage of his stopping after quoting the aboveproverb, to give him the requisite instructions. "Now, sir, it's asmuckle as your life's worth--that wad be dear o' little siller, to besure--but it is as muckle as a' our lives are worth, if ye dinna mindwhat I sae to ye. In this public whar we are gaun to, and whar it is likewe may hae to stay a' night, men o' a' clans and kindred--Hieland andLawland--tak up their quarters--And whiles there are mair drawn dirksthan open Bibles amang them, when the usquebaugh gets uppermost. See yeneither meddle nor mak, nor gie nae offence wi' that clavering tongue o'yours, but keep a calm sough, and let ilka cock fight his ain battle."

  "Muckle needs to tell me that," said Andrew, contemptuously, "as if I hadnever seen a Hielandman before, and ken'd nae how to manage them. Nae manalive can cuitle up Donald better than mysell--I hae bought wi' them,sauld wi' them, eaten wi' them, drucken wi' them"--

  "Did ye ever fight wi' them?" said Mr. Jarvie.

  "Na, na," answered Andrew, "I took care o' that: it wad ill hae set me,that am an artist and half a scholar to my trade, to be fighting amang awheen kilted loons that dinna ken the name o' a single herb or flower inbraid Scots, let abee in the Latin tongue."

  "Then," said Mr. Jarvie, "as ye wad keep either your tongue in yourmouth, or your lugs in your head (and ye might miss them, for as saucymembers as they are), I charge ye to say nae word, gude or bad, that yecan weel get by, to onybody that may be in the Clachan. And ye'llspecially understand that ye're no to be bleezing and blasting about yourmaster's name and mine, or saying that this is Mr. Bailie Nicol Jarvie o'the Saut Market, son o' the worthy Deacon Nicol Jarvie, that a' body hasheard about; and this is Mr. Frank Osbaldistone, son of the managingpartner of the great house of Osbaldistone and Tresham, in the City."

  "Eneueh said," answered Andrew--"eneueh said. What need ye think I wad bespeaking about your names for?--I hae mony things o' mair importance tospeak about, I trow."

  "It's thae very things of importance that I am feared for, ye bletheringgoose; ye maunna speak ony thing, gude or bad, that ye can by anypossibility help."

 
"If ye dinna think me fit," replied Andrew, in a huff, "to speak likeither folk, gie me my wages and my board-wages, and I'se gae back toGlasgow--There's sma' sorrow at our parting, as the auld mear said to thebroken cart."

  Finding Andrew's perverseness again rising to a point which threatened tooccasion me inconvenience, I was under the necessity of explaining tohim, that he might return if he thought proper, but that in that case Iwould not pay him a single farthing for his past services. The argument_ad crumenam,_ as it has been called by jocular logicians, has weightwith the greater part of mankind, and Andrew was in that particular farfrom affecting any trick of singularity. He "drew in his horns," to usethe Bailie's phrase, on the instant, professed no intention whatever todisoblige, and a resolution to be guided by my commands, whatever theymight be.

  Concord being thus happily restored to our small party, we continued topursue our journey. The road, which had ascended for six or seven Englishmiles, began now to descend for about the same space, through a countrywhich neither in fertility nor interest could boast any advantage overthat which we had passed already, and which afforded no variety, unlesswhen some tremendous peak of a Highland mountain appeared at a distance.We continued, however, to ride on without pause and even when night felland overshadowed the desolate wilds which we traversed, we were, as Iunderstood from Mr. Jarvie, still three miles and a bittock distant fromthe place where we were to spend the night.