'Tibbie! say ye?' gasped Joseph, looking around. His eyes fell on the disordered bed, and there they fastened, widening and rolling as though they beheld a ghost.
'Gudesakes! Pity me! gin there's no' a wummin' i' my very bed! To the de'il wi' the weemin', say I! gin ye gang na to them, they'se come efter ye! Sae there's nae haudin' awa frae them!'
'Deed no! Joseph! an' that's sae. Whan it's a likely bit chappie, like yersel'. They're no that plenty, ye see. But keep up yer heart, laad! Atween yer wife an' yer gude-mither, ye'll be clear o' the lave. Ye needna misdoubt o' that.'
'But set ye doon an' eat yer supper, or it grows cauld,' she continued, at the same time selecting a piece of the bacon from the dish and putting it in her mouth with manifest relish.
'Lay by! ye auld wutch. An' awa wi' ye!' cried Joseph, roused into vigour by the raid on his provisions. 'I'se pet ye out gin ye winna gang!'
'No ye winna! Joseph. Ye hae mair sense nor raise a din whan it's yersel' wad get the dirdom o't.'
'Gang quiet then, an' gang smart!''
'An' wad ye? Honest noo! wad ye raelly pet 's a' out e'y the dark this nicht? There's yer ain wee bairn no sax month auld. An' him juist in his wee sark, an' a' his coats hingin' afore the fire! Wad ye noo?
'Deed then, Luckie, an' I wad!' cried Joseph, gathering courage at the tone of remonstrance he thought he detected in the old woman's voice. 'An' it's no afore my fire but intil't, the duds o' yer dochter's brat sall gang, ay! an' her ain as weel! gin ye tak na them out o' here. The shameless limmer! to lay hersel' down in a decent man's bed, an' never "wi' yer leave?"' He even got so far as to begin tossing the child's clothing together in a heap, when the old woman, snatching a brand from the hearth, struck him across the hand with the red hot end, making him desist with a scream of pain. He glared at her for an instant as if about to rush on her, then wavered and turned round as if about to call for help.
'Noo! set ye doon, Joseph Smiley! an hear sense. Gin ye gang yaupin' an' skirlin' out there, ye'se raise a din wull do far mair scaith to yersel', nor it can til hiz. An' gin ye aince raise 't, ye'll ne'er can lay't again! sae keep ye a calm sough, an' let me hae my say.'