"
"That is the case in the Lossie family," said the marquis.
"That's hoo I hae hard the tale, my lord; but I wad be sorry sud
a' it conteens meet wi' like corroboration.--As I say, a dochter
there was, an' gien a' was surpassin', she was surpassin' a'. The
faimily piper, or sennachy, as they ca'd him--I wadna wonner, my
lord, gien thae gran' pipes yer boonty gae my gran'father, had been
his!--he said in ane o' his sangs, 'at the sun blinkit whanever
she shawed hersel' at the hoose door. I s' warran' ae thing--'at
a' the lads blinkit whan she luikit at them, gien sae be she cud
ever be said to condescen' sae far as to luik at ony; for gien
ever she set ee upo' ane, she never loot it rist: her ee aye jist
slippit ower a face as gien the face micht or micht not be there
--she didna ken or care. A'body said she had sic a hauchty leuk
as was never seen on human face afore; an' for freen'ly luik, she
had nane for leevin' cratur, 'cep' it was her ain father, or her
ain horse 'at she rade upo'. Her mither was deid.
"Her father wad fain hae seen her merriet afore he dee'd, but the
pride he had gien her was like to be the en' o' a', for she coontit
it naething less than a disgrace to pairt wi' maiden leeberty.
'There's no man,' she wad say, whan her father wad be pressin' upo'
the subjec',--'there's no mortal man, but yersel', worth the turn
o' my ee.' An' the father, puir man, was ower weel pleased wi' the
flattery to be sae angry wi' her as he wad fain hae luikit.
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