Scotland/Scots > Man of the world > Volume 2

THE MAN OF THE WORLD. 39
She informed the grateful miftrefs of it,
that by her interceflion with fome juftices
of the peace, who made part of the judi¬
cature before whom the poor woman's
hufband was brought, his punifhment had
been mitigated to a fmall fine which fhe
had undertaken to pay, and that he would
very foon be on his way homewards. The
joy of the poor man’s family at this in¬
telligence was fuch as they could not,
nor lhall I, attempt to exprefs. His de¬
liverance was indeed unexpected, becaufe
his crime was great j no lefs than that of
having fet a gin in his garden, for fome
cats that ufed to prey on a fingle brood
of chickens, his only property; which gin
had, one night, wickedly and malicioufly,
hanged a hare, which the baronet’s game-
keeper next morning difcovered in it.
His wife and little ones feemed only to
be reftrained by the refpeCted prefence of
their guefts> from running out to meet a
hufband