The Waverley novels, by Sir Walter Scott, complete in 12 vol., printed from the latest English ed., embracing the author's last corrections, prefaces & notes.

THE HEART' OF MID-LOTHIAN. 627
Butler entreated him to spare the victim for his soul's sake. But Knockdunder answered, "that the soul of such a scum had peen long the tefil's
property, and that, Cot tam! he was determined to gif the tefil his due."
All persuasion was in vain, and Duncan issued his mandate for execution
on the succeeding morning. The child of guilt and misery was separated
from his companions, strongly pinioned, and committed to a separate room,
of which the Captain kept the key.
In the silence of the night, however, Mrs. Butler arose, resolved, if possible, to avert, at least to delay, the fate which hung over her nephew,
especially if, upon conversing with him, she should see any hope of his
being brought to better temper. She had a master-key that opened every
lock in the house; and at midnight, when all was still, she stood before the
eyes of the astonished young savage, as, hard bound with. cords, he lay, like
a sheep designed for slaughter, upon a quantity of the refuse of flax which
filled a corner in the apartment. Amid features sunburnt, tawny, grimed
with dirt, and obscured by his shaggy hair of a rusted black colour, Jeanie
tried in vain to trace the likeness of either of his very handsome parents.
Yet how could she refuse compassion to a creature so young and so wretched,
— so much more wretched than even he himself could be aware of, since the
murder he had too probably committed with his own hand, but in which he
had at any rate participated, was in fact a parricide. She placed food on a
table near him, raised him, and slacked the cords on his arms, so as to
permit him to feed himself. He stretched out his hands, still smeared with
blood, perhaps that of his father, and he ate voraciously and in silence.
" What is your first name?" said Jeanie, by way of opening the conversation.
" The Whistler."
"' But your Christian name, by which you were baptized?"
" I never.was baptized that I know of — I have no other name than the
Whistler."
"Poor unhappy abandoned lad!" said Jeanie. " What would ye do if
you could escape from this place, and the death you are to die to-morrow
morning?"
"Join wi' Rob Roy, or wi' Sergeant More Cameron," (noted freebooters
at that time,) "and revenge Donacha's death on all and sundry."
" O ye unhappy boy," said Jeanie, " do ye ken what will come o' ye when
ye die?"
"I shall neither feel cauld nor hunger more," said the youth doggedly.
"To let him be executed-!W this dreadful state of mind would be to destroy
baith body and soul-and to let him gang I dare not-what will be done?But he is my sister's son-my own nephew-our flesh and blood-and his
hands and feet are yerked as tight as cords can be drawn.-Whistler, do the
cords hurt you?"
"Very much."
" But if I were to slacken them, you would harm me?"
"No, I would not-you never harmed me or mine."
There may be good in him yet, thought Jeanie; I will try fair play with
him.
She cut his bonds —he stood upright, looked round with a laugh of wild
exultation, clapped his hands together, and sprung from the ground, as if
in transport on finding himself at liberty. He looked so wild, that Jeanie
trembled at what she had done.
"Let me out," said the young savage.
" I wunna, unless you promise "
" Then I'll make you glad to let us both out."
He seized the lighted candle and threw it among the flax, which was
instantly in a flame. Jeanie screamed, and ran out of the room; the prisoner rushed past her, threw open a window in the passage, jumped into the