A WOMAN'S LOVE. HERE is a feeling in the heart TH Of woman which can have no part In man-a self-devotedness, As victims round their idols press, All this woman's love can be. L. E. LANDON. THE HENPECKED MAN. stream and Kelso, though, if I should say that the village itself is beautiful, I should be speaking on the wrong side of the truth. Yet there may be many who have both heard the saying and seen the village who never heard of little Patie Crichton, the bicker-maker. Patie was of diminutive stature, and he followed the profession (if the members of the learned professions be not offended at my using the term) of a cooper, or bicker-maker, in Birgham for many years. His neighbors used to say of him, "The puir body's henpecked." Patie was in the habit of attending the neighboring fairs with the water-cogs, creambowies, bickers, piggins and other articles of his manufacture. It was Dunse fair, and Patie said he "had dune extraordinar' weel : the sale had been far beyond what he expeckit." His success might be attributed to the circumstance that when out of the sight and hearing of his better half, for every EVERY one has heard the phrase "Go bicker he sold, he gave his customers half a to Birgham!" which signifies much the same as bidding you go to a worse place. The phrase is familiar not only on the Borders, but throughout all Scotland, and has been in use for more than five hundred years, having taken its rise from Birgham being the place where the Scottish nobility were when they dastardly betrayed their country into the hands of the first Edward; and the people, despising the conduct and the cowardice of the nobles, have rendered the saying "Go to Birgham!" an expression of contempt until this day. Many, however, may have heard the saying, and even used it, who know not that Birgham is a small village beautifully situated on the north side of the Tweed, about midway between Cold dozen jokes into the bargain. Every one, therefore, liked to deal with little Patie. The fair being over, he retired with a crony to a public-house in the castle-wynd to crack off old stories over a glass and inquire into each other's welfare. It was seldom they met, and it was as seldom that Patie dared to indulge in a single glass; but on the day in question he thought they could manage another gill, and another was brought. Whether the sight of it reminded him of his domestic miseries and of what awaited him at home I cannot tell; but after drinking another glass and pronouncing the spirits excellent, he thus addressed his friend: "Ay, Robin" (his friend's name was Rob in Roughead), "ye're a happy man: ye're maister in your ain house and ye've a wife that adores and obeys ye; but I'm nae better than naebody at my ain fireside. I'll declare, I'm waur: wife an' bairns* laugh at me; I'm treated like an outlan' body an' a fule. Though, without me, they micht gang and beg, there is nae mair respeck paid to me than if I were a pair o' auld bauchels† flung into a corner. Fifteen years syne I couldna believe it o' Tibby though onybody had sworn it to me. I firmly believe that a guid wife is the greatest blessin' that can be conferred upon a man upon this earth. I can imagine it by the treasure that my faither had in my mither; for, though the best may hae words atween them occasionally, and I'm no saying that they hadna, yet they were just like passing showers to mak' the kisses o' the sun upon the earth mair sweet after them. Her whole study was to please him and to mak' him comfortable. She was never happy but when he was happy, an' he was just the same wi' her. I've heard him say that she was worth untold gold. But oh, Robin, if I think that a guid wife is the greatest blessin' a man can enjoy, weel do I ken that a scoldin', domineerin' wife is his greatest curse. It's a terrible thing to be snooled‡ in your ain house; naebody can form an idea o't but they wha experience it. "Ye remember when I first got acquainted wi' Tibby she was doing the bondage-work up at Riselaw. I first saw her coming out o' Eccles kirk ae day, and I really thocht that I had never seen a better-faured or a more gallant-looking lass. Her cheeks were red and white like a half-ripe strawberryor rather, I should say, like a cherry-and * Children. † Shoes. Subjugated by tyranny. she seemed as modest and meek as a lamb. It wasna very lang until I drew up; and, though she didna gie me ony great encouragement at first, yet in a week or twa, after the ice was fairly broken, she became remarkably ceevil and gied me her oxter§ on a a Sunday. We used to saunter about the loanings, no saying meikle, but unco' happy, and I was aye restless whan I was out o' her sight. Ye may guess that the shoemaker was nae loser by it during the six months that I ran four times a week, wet or dry, between Birgham and Riselaw. But the termtime was drawing nigh, and I put the important question and pressed her to name the day. She hung her head, and she no seemed to ken weel what to say; for she was sae mim || and sae gentle then that ye wad hae said butter wadna melt in her mouth. And when I pressed her mair urgently, I'll just leave it to yersel', Peter,' says she. "I thocht my heart wad louped out at my mouth. I believe there never was a man sae beside himsel' wi' joy in this warld afore. I fairly danced again, and cut as many antics as a Merry Andrew. 666 Oh, Tibby,' says I, "I'm ower happy now! Oh, haud my head! 'I hope no, Peter,' said she; 'I wad rather hae ye to live than dee for me.' "I thocht she was as sensible as she was bonny, and better-natured than baith. "Weel, I got the house set up, the wedding-day cam, and everything passed ower as agreeably as onybody could desire. I thocht Tibby turnin' bonnier and bonnier. For the first five or six days after the wed? Armpit. || Modest. din' everything was 'Hinny,' and 'My love,' and Tibby dear' or 'Peter dear.' But matters didna stand lang at this. It was on a Saturday nicht, I mind, just afore I was gaun to drap work, that three or four acquaintances cam into the shop to wush me joy, and they insisted that I should pay off for the weddin'. Ye ken I never was behindhand, and I agreed that I wad just fling on my coat and step up wi' them to Orange Lane. So I gaed into the house and took doun my market coat, which was hingin' behint the bed, and after that I gaed to the kist to tak' out a shilling or twa; for up to that time Tibby had not usurped the office o' chancellor o' the exchequer. I did it as cannily as I could, but she had suspected something and heard the jinkin' o' the siller. wish to guidness that ye wad understand them, though. If that's the way ye intend to mak' the siller flee, it's time there were somebody to tak' care o't.' "I had put the silver in my pocket, and I was gaun to the door mair surprised than I can weel express, when she cried to me, "Mind what ye spend, and see that ye dinna stop.' 666 Ye need be under nae apprehensions o' that, hinny,' said I, wishing to pacify her. "See that it be sae,' cried she as I shut the door. "I joined my neebors in a state o' greater uneasiness o' mind than I had experienced for a length o' time. I could nae help thinkin' but that Tibby had rather early begun to tak' the upper hand, and it was what I never expected from her. However, as I was say What are ye doing, Patie?' says she. ing, we went up to Orange Lane, and we sat Whar are ye gaun?' doun and ae gill brocht on anither. Tibby's health and mine was drunk; we had several capital sangs; and I daresay it was weel on for ten o'clock afore we rose to gang awa. I was nae mair affected wi' drink than I am at "I had never heard her voice hae sic a sound afore save the first time I drew up to her, when it was rather sharp than agreeable. "Ou, my dear,' says I, 'I'm just gaun up this moment, but, somehow or ither, I was to Orange Lane for a wee while." uneasy at the idea o' facing Tibby. I thocht 'Nursing ner wrath to keep it warm,' it was her that nicht. "I drew in a chair, and, though I was †The side of the head. half feared to speak, What's the matter, my pet?' says I. 'What's happened ye?' "But she sat looking into the fire, and never let on she heard me. E'en 's ye like, Meg Dorts,' thought I, as Allan Ramsay says; but I durstna say it, for I saw that there was a storm brewing. At last I ventured to say again, "What ails ye, Tibby dear? Are you day nicht till Sabbath mornin'! If this is no weel?' "Toots, Tibby!' said I; whar's the cause for a' this! What great deal could it cost me?' "But hair by hair mak's the carl's head bare,' added she; 'mind ye that, and mind that ye've a house to keep aboon yer head But if ye canna do it, I maun to do it for ye; sae gie me the key o' that kist-gie me it instantly—and I'll tak' car' how ye gang drinkin' wi' onybody and treatin' them till mornin' again.' noo. * Alone. the life ye intend to lead, I wush to guidness I had ne'er had onything to say to ye.' "And if this is the life ye intend to lead me,' thought I, 'I wush the same thing.' "But that was but the beginnin' o' my slavery. From that hour to this she has continued on from bad to worse. No man livin' can form an idea o' what I've suffered but mysel'. In a mornin'-or rather, I may say, in the forenoon; for it was aye nine or ten o'clock afore she got up-she sat doun to her tea and white scones and butter, while I had to be content wi' a scrimpit bicker o' brose and sour milk for kitchen. Nor was this the warst o't; for when I cam' in frae my work for my breakfast mornin' after mornin', the fire was black out, and there had I, before I could get a bite to put in my mouth, to bend doun upon my knees and blaw it and blaw it till I was half blind wi' ashes, for we hadna a pair o' bellowses; and there wad she lie grumblin' a' the time, ca'in' me useless this and useless that, and I just had to put up wi' it. But after our first bairn was born she grew far worse, and I became mair and mair miserable every day. If I had been sleepin' through the nicht and the bairn had begun a-hickin' or whingin', then she was at the scoldin', and I was sure to be Dish of meal made from ground peas, with boiling milk or water. |