Blair Collection > Mackintosh's collection of Gaelic proverbs, and familar phrases

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for the Italian adage is home to this point, I fatti sono viasckiif le
parole femine^ Deeds are males, words are females. ^
Note {g) page 176.
A man, who delighted in the marvellous,, describing to another
that he saw once a huge ox, whose horns reached to the clouds,
when the animal was in a recumbent posture •, the relater, on
being questioned how the ox disposed of his horns when he stood
up ; answered, in the words of the text, ** Tha car 'eif ann an
adkarc an damk ; i. e. There is another twist [bend] in the ox's
horn.
Note {d) page 183.
Since the first appearance in the literary world of that mas-
terly display of human character, the fictitious history entitled
** Guy Mannering," the peculiar race of men, called Tinkers
or GypsieSy being therein depicted with such truth and nature,
hath awakened the attention to a minute enquiry concerning
those lawless wanderers, and privileged, as it were, depredators,
•which has brought to light many strange particulars that lay long
dormant, or at least were but little known to the public, save to
those who had local access, and could contemplate at leisure the
licentious lives of these outcasts from society. Highland tinkers,
however, have as yet been but little, if at all, noticed in the re-
cent inquiries alluded to. Something concerning those tinkers,
who speak the language of our Gael, and have assumed the sir-
names of our clans, might be here stated, did the limits prescrib-