J. F. Campbell Collection > Popular tales of the West Highlands > Volume 2

THE TALE OF THE SOLDIER. 285
to learn what shivering meant (Grimm), though it has only a
very few of the incidents which are in the German version.
Another version of the same story was told me in English hy
a man whom 1 met in London, and have never heen ahle to find
again. (See Introduction.)
It is a story very widely spread in Europe ; and I helieve this
to be a genuine tradition, tliougli I have but one Gaelic version
of it.
John MacDonald, travelling tinker, has but a small stock
of lore ; and the tinker whom I met in London could not read
the card which I gave him, with a promise of payment if he
would come and repeat his stock of stories. His female com-
panion, indeed, could both read the card and speak French. The
whole lot seemed to suspect some evil design on my part ; and I
have never seen the one who told the story, or the woman since,
though I met their comrade afterwards.
For the pedigree of Grimm's version, see vol. iii. p. 15, edition
1856.