particular: but woe be unto him if he was not soon convinced of
the fallacy of such damning security! for his lady was the most
severe and gloomy of all bigots to the principles of the
Reformation. Hers were not the tenets of the great reformers, but
theirs mightily overstrained and deformed. Theirs was an unguent
hard to be swallowed; but hers was that unguent embittered and
overheated until nature could not longer bear it. She had imbibed
her ideas from the doctrines of one flaming predestinarian divine
alone; and these were so rigid that they became a stumbling block
to many of his brethren, and a mighty handle for the enemies of
his party to turn the machine of the state against them.

The wedding festivities at Dalcastle partook of all the gaiety, not
of that stern age, but of one previous to it. There was feasting,
dancing, piping, and singing: the liquors were handed, around in
great fulness, the ale in large wooden bickers, and the brandy in
capacious horns of oxen. The laird gave full scope to his homely
glee. He danced--he snapped his fingers to the music--clapped his
hands and shouted at the turn of the tune. He saluted every girl in
the hall whose appearance was anything tolerable, and requested
of their sweethearts to take the same freedom with his bride, by
way of retaliation. But there she sat at the head of the hall in still
and blooming beauty, absolutely refusing to tread a single
measure with any gentleman there. The only enjoyment in which
she appeared to partake was in now and then stealing a word of
sweet conversation with her favourite pastor about divine things;
for he had accompanied her home after marrying her to her
husband, to see her fairly settled in her new dwelling. He
addressed her several times by her new name, Mrs. Colwan; but
she turned away her head disgusted, and looked with pity and