teind (or tithe) for which he was said to be indebted to a noble family,
the titulars (lay impropriators of the tithes.) Mr. R----d was strongly
impressed with the belief that his father had, by a form of process
peculiar to the law of Scotland, purchased these lands from the titular,
and therefore that the present prosecution was groundless. But after an
industrious search among his father's papers, an investigation of the
public records, and a careful inquiry among all persons who had transacted
law business for his father, no evidence could be recovered to support his
defence. The period was now near at hand when he conceived the loss of his
lawsuit to be inevitable, and he had formed his determination to ride to
Edinburgh next day, and make the best bargain he could in the way of
compromise. He went to bed with this resolution, and with all the
circumstances of the case floating upon his mind, had a dream to the
following purpose. His father, who had been many years dead, appeared to
him, he thought, and asked him why he was disturbed in his mind. In dreams
men are not surprised at such apparitions. Mr. R----d thought that he had
informed his father of the cause of his distress, adding that the payment
of a considerable sum of money was the more unpleasant to him, because he
had a strong consciousness that it was not due, though he was unable to
recover any evidence in support of his belief. "You are right, my son,"
replied the paternal shade; "I did acquire right to these teinds, for
payment of which you are now prosecuted. The papers relating to the
transaction are in the hands of Mr. ----, a writer (or attorney,) who is
now retired from professional business, and resides at Inveresk, near
Edinburgh. He was a person whom I employed on that occasion for a
particular reason, but who never on any other occasion transacted business
on my account. It is very possible," pursued the vision, "that Mr. ----
may have forgotten a matter which is now of a very old date; but you may
call it to his recollection by this token, that when I came to pay his
account, there was difficulty in getting change for a Portugal piece of