"The mair's the pity," replied the Corporal, "for I consider it a great blin'ness and misfortin' when ae regiment dislikes anither. An army, minister, is no' ae regiment, but mony. There's cavalry and artillery, light troops and heavy troops, field guns and siege guns in an army, and ilka pairt does its ain wark sae lang as it obeys the commander-in-chief, and fechts for the kingdom. What's the use, then, o' fechtin' agin each ither? In my opinion it's real daft like!"
The minister looked impatiently at his watch, but Dick went on to say--
"In Spain, I can tell ye, we were a hantle the better o' thae wild chiels the guerillas. Altho' they didna enlist into the gand or ony regular drilled regiment, Scotch or English, the Duke himsel' was thankfu' for them. Noo, Mr. Porteous, altho' ye think us a sort o' guerillas, let us alane,--let us alane!--dinna forbid us tho' we dinna follow your flag, but fecht the enemy under oor ain."
"Well, well, Dick, we need not argue about it. My principles are too firm, too long made up, to be shaken at this time of day by the Haldanites," said Mr. Porteous, rising and looking out of the window.
"Weel, weel!" said Dick. "I'm no' wantin' to shake your principles, but to keep my ain."
At this stage of the conversation Miss Thomasina entered the room, with "I beg pardon", as if searching for something in the press, but yet for no other purpose, in her eager curiosity, than to ascertain what the Corporal was saying, as she knew him to be a friend of the Sergeant's. Her best attention, with her ear placed close to the door, had made out nothing more than that the rather prolonged conversation had something to do with the great ecclesiastical question of the passing hour in Drumsylie.
Almost breathless with indignation that anyone, especially a Haldanite,--for she was quite as "High Church" as her brother,--should presume to take the part of the notorious heretic in the august presence of his great antagonist, she broke in, with what was intended to be a good-humoured smile, but was, to ordinary observers, a bad-natured grin, saying, "Eh! Mr. Dick, you to stand up for that man--suspended by the Session, and deservedly so--yes, most deservedly so! Him and his starling, forsooth! It's infidelity at the root."
"It's what?" asked the Corporal, with amazement. "Infidelity did you say, my lady?"
The "my lady" rather softened Miss Thomasina, who returned to the charge more softly, saying, "Well, it's pride and stubbornness, and that's as bad. But I hope his illness will be sanctified to the changing of his heart!" she added, with a sigh, intended to express a very deep concern for his spiritual welfare.
"I hope not, wi' your leave!" replied the Corporal.