History and traditions of the land of the Lindsays in Angus and Mearns

EDZELL — SCHOOLMASTER AND MINISTER. 11
a big gruff man, and when in full Sunday habit, sported " a
three-nookit business," or sort of cocked hat, but when on his
brose-making excursions he wore a broad blue bonnet with
scarlet brim, an old-fashioned drab great coat thrown loosely
over his shoulders, and fastened at the neck with a big buckle —
presenting altogether more the appearance of a sturdy beggar
than the learned instructor of the parish, or the possessor, as
he was in reality, of some two or three thousand pounds.
As his contemporary, the minister, also gained a provincial
notoriety, it will, perhaps, excuse our noticing him. This
arose, however, not certainly from the penuriousness of his habits,
but from the awful and lamentable manner in which he is
reported to have closed his career. It is admitted, on all hands,
that his learning was only surpassed by his eloquence as a
preacher, and by his gentlemanly bearing and generosity of
heart, for his ear was ever open to the tale of distress, and his
hand ever ready to afford relief. Unlike Mr. Bonnyman, he was
an enthusiastic gambler, and from his expertness in that respect,
and his kindly disposition, he was the courted of surrounding
landlords, and possessed more influence, perhaps, than any of his
brethren ; but, with all these accomplishments, and admirable
mental qualities, the strange infatuation of his nature, and the
circumstances of his death, teach a sad lesson of human frailty,
and its certain consequences.
Dining at a neighbouring mansion with a large party of
gentlemen on one occasion, the game of hazard, as usual, was
their after dinner amusement, and the stakes being heavy, and
the minister fortunate, the fairness of his play was questioned,
and an angry altercation ensuing, one of the losing party, in the
heat of passion, lifted a candlestick from the table and felled the
minister to the floor. From the injuries thus inflicted, he is
said to have almost immediately expired ; but the matter being
quietly managed, the circumstance ultimately became forgotten,
and all the parties concerned, and a generation or two to boot,
have now gone to their reckoning. Still, the generous character
of the minister, and the sad nature of his death, live in the
memories of the children of those to whom his goodness of heart
and other amiable qualities were known.