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or four fine boys, averaging pretty nearly his own age. The minister, who was him- self a remarkably well disposed men, and anxious to bring up his bairns in the nur- ture and admonition of the Lord, was no stranger to Jock's principles and practices, and charged them, with an emphasis that went far to violate his characteristic suavity to avoid the runnagate's company as they would a pestilence. It is but charitable to conclude that the youngsters were serious in their promise of compliance. But the memory at that period of life, at least in such matters as these, is generally some. what treacherous, and as their punctuality deqended of course on their memory, it is not surprising that the old gentleman should sometimes have caught them trip- ping. They were lively vigorous fellows with a great deal more of feeling than re- flection, and Jock might be said to possess the key of their hearts, He could suit himself to every taste; he could assume a character at will, and appear equally na- tural equally fascinating in all. He had more than once had a manifestation of the minister's displeasure through the medium of a cane or a horse whip; but that was a casualty of rare occurrence, and Jock in  such cases had ingenuity enough to devise