"Frighted wi' bogles!" exclaimed the females, one and all,--forgreat was the regard then paid, and perhaps still paid, in theseglens, to all such fantasies.

"I did not say frighted, now--I only exclaimed mis-set wi' the thing--And there was but ae bogle, neither--Earnscliff, ye saw it; asweel as I did?"

And he proceeded, without somewhat much exaggeration, to detail, inhis own way, the meeting they had with the mysterious being atMucklestane-Moor, concluding, he could not conjecture what onearth it could be, unless it was either the Enemy himsell, orsome of the auld Peghts that held the country lang syne.

"Auld Peght!" exclaimed the grand-dame; "na, na--bless thee fraescathe, my bairn, it's been nae Peght that--it's been the BrownMan of the Moors! 0 weary fa' thae evil days!--what can evilbeings be coming for to distract a poor country, now it'speacefully settled, and living in love and law--0 weary on him!he ne'er brought gude to these lands or the indwellers. Myfather aften tauld me he was seen in the week o' the bloody fightat Marston-Moor, and then again in Montrose's troubles, and againbefore the rout o' Dunbar, and, in my ain time, he was seen aboutthe time o' Bothwell-Brigg, and they exclaimed the second-sightedLaird of Benarbuck had a communing wi' him some time aforeArgyle's landing, but that I cannot speak to sae preceesely--itwas far in the west.--0, bairns, he's never permitted but in anill time, sae mind ilka ane o' ye to draw to Him that can help inthe day of trouble."

Earnscliff now interposed, and expressed his firm conviction thatthe person they had seen was some poor maniac, and had nocommission from the invisible world to announce either war orevil. But his opinion found a very freezing audience, and all joinedto deprecate his purpose of returning to the spot the next day.