“Dead! what did he die of?”
“Well, sir,” said he, getting redder, “he didna exactly dee; he was killed. I had to brain him wi’ a rack-pin; there was nae doing wi’ him. He lay in the treviss wi’ the mear, and wadna come oot. I tempit him wi’ the kail and meat, but he wad tak naething, and keepit me frae feedin’ the beast, and he was aye gur gurrin’, and grup gruppin’ me by the legs. I was laith to make awa wi’ the old dowg, his like wasne atween this and Thornhill—but, ’deed, sir, I could do naething else.”
I believed him. Fit end for Rab, quick and complete. His teeth and his friends gone, why should he keep the peace and be civil?
[101-1] Amende means apology.
[109-2] Glower, a Scotch word meaning a savage stare.
[111-3] Semper paratus means always ready.
[112-4] Fremyt means trembling, querulous.
[113-5] Animula blandula, vagula, hospes, comesque, means sweet fleeting life, companion and sojourner.
[115-6] In statu quo means in the same position.