The Highland monthly - National Library of Scotland

670
The Uichland MojitJUy.
struggling with the unwieldy thing, when a sudden gust of
wind relieved me of all anxiety with regard to it, b\' flapp-
ing it inside out two or three times in rapid succession, and
finally tearing the cloth off the stem, and whirling it like a
huge raven away down the hill. I thought of throwing the
stem after it, but on reflection I perceived that the wind
had thoughtfulh' relieved me of a positive nuisance, and
pro\'ided me with a good and efficient support, so I stuck
manfully to m}- umbrella-stem, and after I had cut off some
small debris which the wind had not cleared, I went forward
with a lighter hand and heart.
At this juncture, by way of pro\-ing that good fortune
never comes singl}', I believe I did actually strike the road ;
it was—like the gain in the loss of the umbrella— purely
accidental. I looked behind and ahead of me, and could
.see to my delight that there w as a more or less continuous
track winding its wa)- round brae faces and over hills.
How I happened to get on to it shall nexcr be ex-
plained. Be that as it may, there 1 was, a solitar\' speck on
an undoubted man's trail, leading from somewhere to some-
whither.
On more intimate knowledge, howexer, I found the
track not altogether an advantage. In dry weather it
would have been better, no doubt, but after some six weeks
of more or less incessant rain, it led mc into bogs, and wet
rank grass, places which were certain 1\' worse than the
hopping about from one heathery knoll to another, which
had characterised my progress before.
However, there was a certain companionship in it, just
as there was in recognising here and there the sheeps-bit, the
grass of Parnassus, the scabious, and the stag moss,
mingling with the universal heather, the crowberry, the
sweet mountain th)-mc, and the humble tormentil. Yes,
there certainly was a companionship in it, for the feet of
man had worn it into existence, and it mu.st lead to a
desired end. My attention was, however, more directed to
keeping it in \ icw rather than taking the natural use of it.