obliterating the words, the minister had ordered it to be broken, and of
the pieces another mason had made stands for watches, one of which was
now in Thrums Street.

"Aaron Latta ain't a mason now," Tommy rattled on: "he is a warper,
because he can warp in his own house without looking on mankind or
speaking to mankind. Auld Petey said he minded the day when Aaron Latta
was a merry loon, and then Andrew McVittie said, 'God behears, to think
that Aaron Latta was ever a merry man!' and Baker Lumsden said, 'Curse
her!'"

His mother shrank in her chair, but said nothing, and Tommy explained:
"It was Jean Myles he was cursing; did you ken her, mother? she ruined
Aaron Latta's life."

"Ay, and wha ruined Jean Myles's life?" his mother cried passionately.

Tommy did not know, but he thought that young Petey might know, for
young Petey had said: "If I had been Jean Myles I would have spat in
Aaron's face rather than marry him."

Mrs. Sandys seemed pleased to hear this.

"They wouldna tell me what it were she did," Tommy went on; "they said
it was ower ugly a story, but she were a bad one, for they stoned her
out of Thrums. I dinna know where she is now, but she were stoned out of
Thrums!"

"No alane?"