of for his pay and allowances. But this was a particular case, my lord,
a CASUS IMPROVISUS, as I may say, in whilk I had no chaplain of my own
persuasion to act as my adviser. I found, in short, that although my
being a Protestant might be winked at, in respect that I was a man of
action, and had more experience than all the Dons in our TERTIA put
together, yet, when in garrison, it was expected I should go to mass
with the regiment. Now, my lord, as a true Scottish man, and educated at
the Mareschal-College of Aberdeen, I was bound to uphold the mass to be
an act of blinded papistry and utter idolatry, whilk I was altogether
unwilling to homologate by my presence. True it is, that I consulted on
the point with a worthy countryman of my own, one Father Fatsides, of
the Scottish Covenant in Wurtzburg--"

"And I hope," observed Lord Menteith, "you obtained a clear opinion from
this same ghostly father?"

"As clear as it could be," replied Captain Dalgetty, "considering we had
drunk six flasks of Rhenish, and about two mutchkins of Kirchenwasser.
Father Fatsides informed me, that, as nearly as he could judge for a
heretic like myself, it signified not much whether I went to mass or
not, seeing my eternal perdition was signed and sealed at any rate,
in respect of my impenitent and obdurate perseverance in my damnable
heresy. Being discouraged by this response, I applied to a Dutch pastor
of the reformed church, who told me, he thought I might lawfully go
to mass, in respect that the prophet permitted Naaman, a mighty man of
valour, and an honourable cavalier of Syria, to follow his master into
the house of Rimmon, a false god, or idol, to whom he had vowed service,
and to bow down when the king was leaning upon his hand. But neither
was this answer satisfactory to me, both because there was an unco
difference between an anointed King of Syria and our Spanish colonel,