“I never heard of such queer folks!” said I. “And what became of them, Sir?”
“The Iberians and Celts together,” he answered, “made up the people we call Britons. When the Saxons invaded the country, they were driven into the remote fastnesses of Wales, Cumberland, and Cornwall. Some antiquaries think the Picts had the same original, but this is one of the unsettled points of history.”
“I wish it were possible to settle all such questions!” said Flora.
“So do the antiquaries, I can assure you,” returned Mr Cameron, with a smile. “But it is scarce possible to come to a conclusion with any certainty as to the origin of a people of whom we cannot recover the language.”
“If you please, Sir,” said I, “what has the language to do with it?”
“It has everything to do with it, Miss Caroline. You did not know that languages grew, like plants, and could be classified in groups after the same manner?”
“Please explain to us, Mr Cameron,” said Flora. “It all sounds so strange.”
“But it is very interesting,” I said. “I want to know all about it.”
“If you want to know all about it,” answered our friend, “you must consult some one else than me, for I do not know nearly all about it. In truth, no one does. For myself, I have only arrived at the stage of knowing that I know next to nothing.”
“That’s easy enough to know, surely,” said Angus.