Afore his supper cam in,
her hert was at his wull.
"They say that whan a wuman's late o' fa'in' in love--ye'll
ken my lord--I ken naething aboot it--it 's the mair likly to
be an oonrizzonin' an ooncontrollable fancy; in sic maitters it
seems wisdom comesna wi' gray hairs: within ae hoor the leddy was
enamoured o' the stranger in a fearfu' w'y. She poored oot his wine
till him wi' her ane han'; an' the moment he put the glaiss till
's lips, the win' fell an' the lichtnin' devallt (ceased). She set
hersel' to put questions till him, sic as she thoucht he wad like
to answer--a' aboot himsel' an' what he had come throu'; an' sic
stories as he tellt! She atten't till him as she had never dune to
guest afore, an' her father saw 'at she was sair taen wi' the man.
But he wasna a'thegither sae weel pleased, for there was something
aboot him--he cudna say what--'at garred him grue (shudder). He
wasna a man to hae fancies, or stan' upo' freits, but he cudna help
the creep that gaed doon his backbane ilka time his ee encoontert
that o' the prence--it was aye sic a strange luik the prence cuist
upon him--a luik as gien him an' the yerl had been a'ready ower
weel acquant, though the yerl cudna min' 'at ever he had set ee
upo' him. A' the time, hooever, he had a kin' o' suspicion 'at they
bude to be auld acquantances, an' sair he soucht to mak him oot,
but the prence wad never lat a body get a glimp o' his een 'cep'
the body he was speykin' till--that is gien he cud help it, for
the yerl did get twa or three glimps o' them as he spak till 's
dauchter; an' he declaret efterhin to the king's commissioner, that
a pale blue kin' o' a licht cam frae them, the whilk the body he
was conversin' wi', an' luikin' straucht at, never saw.
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