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.

320 WAVERLEY NOVELS.
-having her own will in the domestic and commercial departments which he
abandoned to her. Now, as Bartoline Saddletree had a considerable gift
of words, which he mistook for eloquence, and conferred more liberally upon
the society in which he lived than was at all times gracious and acceptable,
there went forth a saying, with which wags used sometimes to interrupt his
rhetoric, that, as he had a golden nag at his door, so he had a grey mare in
his shop. This reproach induced Mr. Saddletree, on all occasions, to assume
rather a haughty and stately tone towards his good woman, a circumstance
by which she seemed very little affected unless. he attempted to exercise
any real authority, when she never failed to fly into open rebellion. But
such extremes Bartoline seldom provoked; for, like the gentle. King Jamie.
he was fonder of talking of authority than really exercising it. This
turn of mind was, on the whole, lucky for him; since his substance was
increased without any trouble on his part, or any interruption of his favourite studies.
This word in explanation has been thrown in to the reader, while Saddletree was laying down, with great precision, the law upon Porteous's case,
by which he arrived at this conclusion, that, if Porteous had fired five minutes sooner, before Wilson was cut down, he would have been versans in
licito; engaged, that is, in a lawful act, and only liable to be punished
pivopter excessum, or for lack of discretion, which might have mitigated the
punishment to pmna ordinaria.
" Discretion! " echoed' Mrs. Howden, on whom, it may well be supposed,
the fineness of this distinction was entirely thrown away, -" whan had
Jock Porteous either grace, discretion, or gude manners?-I mind when his
father "
"But, Mrs. Howden," said Saddletree
"And I," said Miss Damahoy, "mind when his mother "
"Miss Damahoy," entreated the interrupted orator"And I," said Plumdamas, "mind when his wife — "
"Mr. Plumdamas-Mrs. Howden-Miss Damahoy," again implored the
orator, -" mind the distinction, as Counsellor Crossmyloof says -' I,' says
he,'take a distinction.' Now, the body of the criminal being cut down,
and the execution ended, Porteous was no longer official; the act which he
came to protect and guard, being done and ended, he was no better than
cuivis ex populo."
" uivis — quivis, Mr. Saddletree, craving your pardon," said (vwith a
prolonged emphasis on the first syllable) Mr. Butler, the deputy schoolmaster
of a parish near Edinburgh, who at that moment came up behind them as
the false Latin was uttered.
"What signifies interrupting me, Mr. Butler? - but I am glad to see ye
notwithstanding-I speak after Counsellor Crossmyloof, and he said cuivis."
"If Counsellor Crossmyloof used the dative for the nominative, I would
have crossed his loof with a tight leathern strap, Mr. Saddletree; there is
not a boy on the booby form but should have been scourged for such a
solecism in grammar?"
"I speak Latin like a lawyer, Mr. Butler, and not like a schoolmaster,"
retorted Saddletree.
"Scarce like a schoolboy, I think," rejoined Butler.
"It matters little," said Bartoline; " all I mean to say is, that Porteous
has become liable to the pena extra ordinem, or capital punishment-which
is to say, in plain Scotch, the gallows-simply because he did not fire when
he was in office, buit waited till the body was cut down, the execution whilk
he had in charge to guard implemented, and he himself exonered of the
public trust imposed on him."
" But, Mr. Saddletree," said Plumdamas, " do you really think John Porteous's case wad hae been better if he had begun firing before ony stanes
were flung at a'?"