Page:History and comical transactions of Lothian Tom (7).pdf/2

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THE COMICAL TRANSACTIONS OF LOTHIAN TOM.

PART I.

THIS THOMAS BLACK, vulgarly called LOTHIAN TOM, becaufe of that country, was born four miles from Edin- burgh, his father, being a very wealthy far- mer, gave him good education, which he was very aukward in receiving, being a ve- ry wild, crofs, mifchievous boy. When he was about ten years of age, he was almoft killed by the ftroke of a horfe’s foot, which his father had, who had a trick of kicking at every perfon that came in be- hind him. But when Tom was got heal of the dreadful wound, whereof many thought he would have died ; to be even with the horfe, he gets a clog, or piece of tree which was full of wooden pins; fuch a thing as the fhoemakers ufe to foften their leather upon; and with a rope he tied it to the couple- bauk in the ftable, directly oppofite to the horfe’s tail, gets up on the bauk, and gives it a fwing back, fo that the pikes in the end of it, came with full drive againft the horfe’s arfe, which made him to fling, and the