“Witness, you told the jury that on the night before the murder of Sir Lemuel Levison, you were employed in your master’s service up to a late hour.”

“Ay, your honor; but I waur fain to see the wedding decorations, for a’ that,” said the boy.

“Precisely.  But now tell the jury what was the service upon which you were employed to so late an hour that night.”

“It wad be a bit wedding offering to our laird, wha hae always favored his ain folks wi’ his custom.  It waur a Russia leather traveling dressing-bag for his lairdship, the whilk the master had ta’en unco guid care suld be as brawa bag as ony to be boughten in Lunnen town itsel’, whilk mysel’ was commissioned, and proud I waur, to tak’, wi’ my master’s duty, to his lairdship.”

“Doubtless.  Now tell the jury at what hour you took this wedding offering to Lord Arondelle.”

“Aweel, it wad be about half-past nine o’clock.  I went wi’ the dressing-case to the Arondelle Arms, where his lairdship and his lairdship’s feyther, the auld duk’ were biding.  The hostler telt me that his lairdship had gane for a walk o’er the brig to Castle Lone.  Sae I were fain to wait there for him.”

“How long did you wait?”

“Na lang.  I was na mair than five minutes before I saw his lairdship coming o’er the brig toward the house.  And sune his lairdship came into the inn, and I made my bow, and offered his lairdship the wedding-gift, wi’ my maister’s respectful guid wishes.  His lairdship smiled pleasantly, and tauld me to fetch it after him up to his chamber.  I followed my laird up-stairs to his ain room, where his lairdship’s valet, Mr. Kerr, was waiting on him.  His lairdship wrote a braw note of acknowledgements to my maister, and gie it me to take away.  My laird also gie me a half-sovereign, for mysel’.  I dinna tak’ the note just then to my maister.  I saw by the clock on the mantel that it only lacked a quarter to ten o’clock, sae I e’en made my duty to his lairdship and run down stairs, ran a’ the way o’er to Castle Lone, for I war fain to see the decorations.  I got to Malcolm’s Tower just in time to hear the auld clock in the turret strike eleven, and to see the mon and the woman meet thegither in the shadows.”

“Are you sure that you could not identify that man or woman?”

“Anan?”

“Would you know either of them again?” inquired Mr. Guthrie, changing the manner of his question.

“Na!  I tauld ye sae before.  They were half hidden i’ the bushes.”

“You say it was a quarter to ten when you left Lord Arondelle in his room at the inn?”

“Ay, war it.”

“And that it was eleven o’clock when you witnessed the meeting between the man and the woman at Castle Lone!”

“Ay, war it.  And I had to run a’ the way to do it in that time.  It waur guid rinning.”

“You left his lordship’s valet with him, do you say?”

“Ay, I did.  And the head waiter o’ the Arondelle Arms, too, wha was just gaeing in wi’ his lairdship’s supper.”