Lady Victoria Campbell

CHILDHOOD AND HOME 11
front in the scampering party from the school-
room.
Later on, she drove a pair of grey cobs in a four-
seated pony - carriage. Driving herself was one of
her greatest pleasures. She had a light hand and a
strong arm, and she and her horses were soon on
terms of understanding. After she had this inde-
pendent mode of conveyance, she used to plan her
drives so as to stop at as many cottages as she was
able, and they were never complete if she had not
visited some old friend or taken the needful to the sick.
A less successful vehicle was a small goat-carriage,
drawn by two goats. It was always difficult to say
when the goats were doing their best, or when jibbing
from obstinacy. The family were too inclined to be
merciful to the beasts, and insisted, to the disgust
of the coachman, that the splinter-bar should be
padded so that the goats' hindquarters would not
be inconvenienced when, instead of pulling, they
sat down and contemplated the road they should be
trotting along.
" Blackberry/' the donkey, belonged to a still
later day, but he and a series of small ponies were
great allies of Lady Victoria's, when her riding days
were done, and her visits through the town demanded
some smaller form of conveyance than the carriage
drawn by the beautiful greys called after the islands,
" Largie " and " Sanda."
It was a long struggle to gain back even a measure
of activity, but the happy, buoyant nature, with
the keen vitality of youth, carried her through the