“Having thus, as becometh our kindred, given you our poor mind on the subject of your journeying forth of Scotland, we would willingly add reasons of weight, which might materially advantage you and your father’s house, thereby to determine you to abide at Wolf’s Crag, until this harvest season shall be passed over.  But what sayeth the proverb, verbum sapienti—­a word is more to him that hath wisdom than a sermon to a fool.  And albeit we have written this poor scroll with our own hand, and are well assured of the fidelity of our messenger, as him that is many ways bounden to us, yet so it is, that sliddery ways crave wary walking, and that we may not peril upon paper matters which we would gladly impart to you by word of mouth.  Wherefore, it was our purpose to have prayed you heartily to come to this our barren Highland country to kill a stag, and to treat of the matters which we are now more painfully inditing to you anent.  But commodity does not serve at present for such our meeting, which, therefore, shall be deferred until sic time as we may in all mirth rehearse those things whereof we now keep silence.  Meantime, we pray you to think that we are, and will still be, your good kinsman and well-wisher, waiting but for times of whilk we do, as it were, entertain a twilight prospect, and appear and hope to be also your effectual well-doer.  And in which hope we heartily write ourself,

“Right Honourable,

“Your loving cousin,

“A——. 
“Given from our poor house of B——­,” etc.

Superscribed—­“For the right honourable, and our honoured kinsman, the Master of Ravenswood—­These, with haste, haste, post haste—­ride and run until these be delivered.”

“What think you of this epistle, Bucklaw?” said the Master, when his companion had hammered out all the sense, and almost all the words of which it consisted.

“Truly, that the Marquis’s meaning is as great a riddle as his manuscript.  He is really in much need of Wit’s Interpreter, or the Complete Letter-Writer, and were I you, I would send him a copy by the bearer.  He writes you very kindly to remain wasting your time and your money in this vile, stupid, oppressed country, without so much as offering you the countenance and shelter of his house.  In my opinion, he has some scheme in view in which he supposes you can be useful, and he wishes to keep you at hand, to make use of you when it ripens, reserving the power of turning you adrift, should his plot fail in the concoction.”

“His plot!  Then you suppose it is a treasonable business,” answered Ravenswood.

“What else can it be?” replied Bucklaw; “the Marquis has been long suspected to have an eye to Saint Germains.”

“He should not engage me rashly in such an adventure,” said Ravenswood; “when I recollect the times of the first and second Charles, and of the last James, truly I see little reason that, as a man or a patriot, I should draw my sword for their descendants.”