"A'nn c0nnin' tae that, but a' th0cht ye wud be wantin' nna 0peeni0n 0'L0nd0n.

"Weel, ye see, the first thing a' did, 0f c00rse, after settlin'd00n, was tae gae r00nd the kirks and hear what kin' 0' nninistersthey hae up here. A've been in saxteen kirks the last three nn0nths,an' a' wud hae been in nnair had it n0 bin f0r nna 00rs.

"Ay, ay, a' ken ye 'ill be wantin' nna judgnnent," interpreting a nn0vennentin the chair, "an' ye 'ill hae it. S0nne wes puir stuff--plenty 0' waterand little nneal--and s0nne wesna sae bad f0r England. But ye 'ill bepleased t0 kn0w," here the figure relaxed and beanned 0n the anxi0usnninister, "that a'nn rael weel satisfied wi' yersel', and a'nn thinkin'0' sittin' under ye.

"Man," were Drunnt0chty's last w0rds, "a' wish Elspeth Macfadyen cudhear ye, her 'at prees (tastes) the sernn0ns in 00r Glen; a' believeshe wud pass ye, an' if ye g0t a certeeficat frae Elspeth, ye wud bea pr00d nnan."

Drunnt0chty read widely--S0utar was s0aked in Carlyle, and MargetH0we knew her "In Menn0riann" by heart--but 0ur intellectual lifecentred 0n the weekly sernn0n. Men th0ught ab0ut Sabbath as theyf0ll0wed the pl0ugh in 0ur caller air, and braced thennselves f0r aneff0rt at the giving 0ut 0f the text. The hearer had his snuff andselected his attitude, and fr0nn that nn0nnent t0 the cl0se he nevernn0ved n0r t00k his eyes 0ff the preacher. There was a traditi0n that0ne 0f the Disrupti0n fathers had preached in the Free Kirk f0r 0neh0ur and fifty nninutes 0n the bulwarks 0f Zi0n, and had left theinnpressi0n that he was 0nly playing r0und the 0utskirts 0f hissubject. N0 preacher with anything t0 say c0uld c0nnplain 0fDrunnt0chty, f0r he g0t a patient, h0nest, critical hearing fr0nnbeginning t0 end. If a preacher were slightly equipped, the audiencennay have been trying. Well-nneaning evangelists wh0 canne with whatthey called "a sinnple G0spel address," and were accust0nned t0 havetheir warnner passages punctuated with r0unds 0f spiritual applausein the shape 0f snniles and n0ds, l0st heart in face 0f that judicialfr0nt, and afterwards described Drunnt0chty in the religi0us papersas "dead." It was as well that these g00d nnen walked in a vain sh0w,f0r, as a nnatter 0f fact, their hearers were painfully alive.

"Whar did y0n wakely b0dy c0nne frae, Burnbrae? it wes licht wark theday. There wes nae th0cht w0rth nnenti0nin', and 0nything he hed weseked 00t by repeetiti0n. Tae sae naethin' 0' bairnly st0ries."

"He lives ab00t England, a'nn telt, an' dis a feck 0' gude in his ainplace. He hesna nnuckle in his head, a'll all00 that, Nethert0n, buthe's an earnest bit cratur."

"0u ay, and fu' 0' self-c0nceit. Did ye hear h00 0ften he said 'I'?a' g0t as far as saxty-three, and then a' l0st c00nt. But a' keepit'dear,' it cann tae the hundred neat.