Apparitions > Aloway Kirk, or, Tam o' Shanter, a tale

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superstition, she had, he supposed,
the largest collection in the coun¬
try, of tales and songs, concerning
devils, ghosts, fairies, brownies,
witches, warlocks, spunkies, kel¬
pies, elf-candles, dead-lights, wraths,
apparitions, cantrips, giants, en¬
chanted towers, dragons, and other
trumpery. He no doubt believed
them, and would sit trembling when
he heard these tales at night, until
his manly spirit rose above them,
which cultivated the latent seeds of
poetry ; but had so strong on effect
on his imagination, that to the end
of his career, in his nocturnal ram¬
bles, he sometimes kept a sharp
lookout in suspicious places; and
though nobody could be more scep¬
tical than he was in such matters,
yet, he said, it often took an effort
of philosophy to shake off these idol
terrors.
Burns, in the 17th year of his
age, to give his manners a brush,
went to a country dancing school.