Page:History and comical transactions of Lothian Tom (2).pdf/6

[ 8 ] promiſed to buy one as like the other as poſſible he could get; then he gets a piece of chalk and brays it as ſmall as meal, and ſteeps it in a little water, and therewith rubs over the cows face and back, which made her both brocket and rigget; ſo Tom in the morning takes the cow to a public houſe, within a little of the fair, and there left her till the air was over, and then drives her home before him; and as ſoon as they come home, the cow began to rout as ſhe uſed to do, which made the old woman to rejoice, thinking it was her own black cow, but when ſhe ſaw her white face, ſighed and ſaid, alas! thou'll never be like the kindly brute my black lady, and yet roots as like her as ony I ever did hear; but Tom ſays to himſelf, the mercy is you know not; in two or three days the old woman put forth her bra' right cow in the morning with the reſt of the neighbours cattle, but it came on a fore day of heavy rain, which waſhed away all the white from her face and back; ſo the old woman's black lady came home at night, and her rigget cow went away with the ſhower and was never heard of. But Tom's father having ſome ſuſpicion, and looking narrowly into the cow's face found ſome of the chalk not waſhed away; and then he gave poor Tom a heart beating and ſent him away to ſeek his fortune with a ſkinful of ſore bones.

PART II.

TOM being turned to his ſhifts, conſiders with himſelf how to raiſe a little money, gets a long ſtring, as near as he could gueſs to be the length of his mother, and into Edinburgh he goes, to wright, who was acquainted with his father and mother the wright aſked him how he did? he anſwered him very ſoberly, for he had loſt a good dutiful mother laſt night, and there's a meaſure of