Rollo in Scotland Part 7

"Yes," said he, "John Knox was a true hero. He stood up manfully and fearlessly for the right when almost all the world was against him; and to do that requires a great deal of courage, as well as great strength of character. Many people reviled and hated him while he lived, but now his memory is universally honored.

"I hope you two boys, when you come to be men," continued Mr. George, "will follow his example. What you know is right, that always defend, no matter if all the world are against it. And what is wrong, that always oppose, no matter if all the world are in favor of it."

"Yes, sir," said Waldron, "I mean to."

Mr. George and the boys rambled about the Necropolis some time longer, and then went on.

While they were in Glasgow the party visited several of the great manufacturing establishments. They were all very much surprised at the loftiness of some of the chimneys. There was one at a great establishment, called the St. Rollox Chemical Works, which was over four hundred and thirty feet high, and Mr. George estimated that it must have been thirty or forty feet diameter at the base. If, now, you ask your father, or some friend, how high the steeple is of the nearest church to where you live, and multiply that height by the necessary number, you will get some idea of the magnitude of this prodigious column. The lightning rod, that came down the side of it in a spiral line, looked like a spider's web that had been, by chance, blown against the chimney by the wind.

CHAPTER VII.

ENTERING THE HIGHLANDS.

The Highland district of Scotland occupies almost the whole of the western part of the island north of the valley of the Clyde. It consists of mountains, glens, and lakes, with roads winding in every direction through and among them. Of course the number of different Highland excursions which a tourist can plan is infinite. Most visitors to Scotland are, however, satisfied with a short tour among these mountains, on account of the great uncertainty of the weather. Indeed, as it rains here more than half the time, the chance is always in favor of bad weather; and the really pleasant days are very few.

The valley by which tourists from Glasgow most frequently go into the Highlands is the valley of Loch Lomond. The lower end of this lake comes to within about ten miles of the Clyde. The upper end of it extends about twenty-five miles into the very heart of the Highlands. There is an inn at the lower end of the lake, that is, the end nearest the Clyde, called Balloch Inn. At the upper end of the lake is another resting-place for travellers. A small steamboat pa.s.ses every day through the lake, from one of these inns to the other, touching at various intermediate points on the way, at little villages or landing-places, where roads from the interior of the country come down to the lake.

From Balloch there is a railroad leading to the Clyde, though it does not extend to Glasgow. Travellers from Glasgow come down the Clyde in a steamer about ten miles to the railroad landing. There they take the cars, and proceed down the river, along the bank, amidst scenery of the grandest and most beautiful character, to Dunbarton Castle, where the road leaves the river, and turns into the interior of the country, towards the valley of Loch Lomond.

The road terminates at Balloch. Here the travellers are transferred to the steamer, and pursue their journey by water. It was this route Mr.

George had determined to take on leaving Glasgow.

He got ready to leave Glasgow on the afternoon of a certain Thursday.

"Now, boys," said he, "we are ready to go to the Highlands. Find out for me when the boats and trains go, while I settle the bill."

So saying, Mr. George rose and rang the bell.

In Europe we do not go down to the office or bar room, when we are ready to leave a hotel, to call for and settle our bill there, as we do in America, but we ring the bell in our room, and ask the waiter to bring the bill to us.

"I have found out already," said Waldron. "There is a boat at four o'clock. It starts from the Broomielaw."

"And is there a train that connects with that boat?" asked Mr. George.

"Yes, sir," said Waldron.

"Then," said Mr. George, "we will go at four o'clock; we shall just have time."

I am not certain that Waldron was entirely honest in giving this information to Mr. George, for he concealed one very important circ.u.mstance; or rather he omitted to mention it. This circ.u.mstance was, that there was no boat from Balloch to connect with the train, so that if they were to go to Balloch that night, he knew that they could not go any farther till the next morning. He liked this, for he and Rollo had both begun to be tired of Glasgow, and he thought that if they should get to Balloch two or three hours before dark, there might be some chance for him and Rollo to go out fishing on the lake.

Very soon, however, he reflected that he should enjoy his fishing less, if he resorted to any thing like artifice or concealment to obtain it; and so, after a little hesitation, he frankly told Mr. George that they could go no farther than to the foot of the lake that night. There was only one boat each day, he said, on the lake, and that left Balloch in the morning, and returned at night.

Mr. George said that that made no difference. He was tired of being in a great city, and would like to see the country and the mountains again; and he should, therefore, prefer going to spend the night at Balloch, rather than to remain in Glasgow.

So the party set off. They embarked on board the steamer at the Broomielaw. They ran rapidly down the river to the railroad landing.

They found the train waiting for them there, and were whirled rapidly up the valley. There were most charming views of the mountains on either hand, with hamlets and villages scattered along the slopes of them. At length they arrived at Balloch. There was no village here, but only a pretty inn, situated delightfully on the margin of the lake, very near the outlet. There was an elegant suspension bridge across the outlet, very near the railroad station. There were several thatch-covered cottages near, and two or three castles were seen through openings among the trees on the hill-sides around. As the party crossed the suspension bridge, Rollo and Waldron, to their great delight, saw several boats floating in the water near the inn, and there was a boy on the bridge fishing over the railing. They stopped to talk with this boy, while Mr. George went on to engage rooms at the inn, and to order a supper.

When the boys came in they gave such fine accounts of the fishing on the lake, and of the facility with which they could obtain a boat, and a boatman to go out with them, that Mr. George was half persuaded to allow them to engage a boat, and to go out with them for an hour or two.

"And we want you to go with us, too," said Waldron, "if you can; but if you have any thing else to do, we can go by ourselves, with the boatman."

"Yes," said Rollo, "and if you think it is not best for us to go at all, we can fish on the bridge."

Mr. George was much pleased to hear the boys speak in this manner in respect to the excursion. He was particularly glad to hear Waldron say that he desired that _he_ should go with them. It is always an excellent sign when a boy wishes his father, or his mother, or his uncle, or whoever has the charge of him, to go with him, and share his pleasures; and those parents and uncles who take an interest in the plans and enjoyments of their children, and sympathize with them in their feelings, in such a manner that the children like their company, place themselves in a position to exercise the highest possible influence over their conduct and character.

"Shall we have time?" asked Mr. George.

"Yes, sir," said Waldron. "It is not dark here till half past ten, and it is only half past six now, so that there are four hours."

The farther you go north the longer the evenings are, in summer; and at the time when our party made this visit to the Highlands, the evenings there were so long that you could see to read very well till nearly ten o'clock. The dawn, and the sunrise, too, come on proportionately early in the morning. The boys forgot this one morning, and finding that it was very light in their room when they woke, they got up, and dressed themselves, and went down stairs, thinking that it was nearly breakfast time. But they found, on looking at a clock in the hall of the inn, that it was not quite three o'clock!

But to return to the story.

Mr. George told the boys that if they would arrange the boat party, that is, if they would engage the boat and the boatman, and also some fishing lines, he would go with them. They would have supper first, and then set out immediately afterwards.

This plan was carried into effect. Mr. George himself cared nothing about the fishing. His only object was to see the lake, and talk with the Highland boatmen. Still he took a line and fished a little, for company to the boys. The excursion proved a very pleasant one. The lake was beautiful. The surface of the water was studded with pretty islands, and the sh.o.r.es were formed of picturesque hills, which were every where adorned with cottages, castles, groves, fields, and all the other elements of rural beauty.

The excursion itself was very much like any fishing excursion in America, only the peculiar dialect of the boatman continually reminded the travellers that they were in Scotland. For "I don't know," he said "I dinna ken;" for "trouble" the word was "fash," and for "not," "na."

The boys had heard this phraseology before. The railway porter, when he put Mr. George's valise in the carriage, crowded it under the seat, where he said it would not "fash the other travellers;" and at the inn, where Mr. George asked the servant girl if she would let them know when their supper was ready, she said, "Yes, sir, I will coom and tak ye doon."

Waldron enjoyed the fishing excursion very much indeed. He said that he should like to make the whole tour of Scotland in a boat, round among the islands on the western and northern sh.o.r.es. These islands are, indeed, very grand and picturesque. They are groups of dark mountains, rising out of the sea. To cruise among them in a yacht would be a very pleasant tour, were it not for the incessant storms of wind and rain to which the voyagers would be exposed.

Waldron said he particularly desired to go to the Shetland Islands, on the north of Scotland, in order to buy himself a pony.

"My father has promised me," said he, "that if ever he goes to the Shetlands he will buy me a pony."

"I should like a Shetland pony," said Rollo.

"Yes," said Waldron. "They are very hardy animals, and then they are very docile and gentle. Some of them are as gentle and sagacious as a dog. I read a story in a book once of one that saved the life of a child, by plunging into the water, and seizing the child by the clothes, between his teeth, and bringing it safe to land. The child fell into the water off of a steep bank, and the horse jumped after it."

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SHETLAND PONY.]

Here is a picture of the horse which Waldron read about, climbing up the bank of the stream, bringing the child.

The party returned from the fishing excursion about eight o'clock; but as it was still half an hour before sunset, Mr. George proposed to take a walk to one of the castles. The waiter at the hotel had told them that he could give them a ticket, and then the porter at the castle would let them in at the gate, and allow them to walk about the grounds and around the castle, but they could not go into it, for the proprietor and his family were residing there.

Accordingly, when the party reached the landing, at the end of their excursion, they left the boat, and walking across the bridge, they took their course towards the castle. The road was as smooth and hard as a floor, but it was bordered by close stone walls on either side, with trees overhanging them. At length, after one or two turnings, they came to the great gate which led to the castle. The gateway was bordered on each side with ma.s.ses of trees and shrubbery, and just within it was a small but very pretty house, built of stone. This was the porter's lodge. When they came up to the gate, and looked through the bars of it, a little barefooted girl came out from the door of the lodge, and opened the gate to let them in.

On entering they found themselves at the commencement of a smoothly gravelled avenue, which led in a winding direction among the trees through a beautiful park. They walked on along this avenue, supposing that it would lead them to the castle. They pa.s.sed various paths which branched off here and there from the avenue, and seemed to lead in various directions about the grounds. The views which presented themselves on every side were varied and beautiful. They saw several hares leaping about upon the gra.s.s--a sight which attracted the attention of the boys very strongly.

At length they came in sight of the castle. It stood on a swell of ground, at the foot of a high hill. The body of it consisted in part of a great round tower, with turrets and battlements above. The walls were covered with ivy.

After viewing the edifice as much as they wished, the party followed some of the winding walks, which led in various directions over the grounds; and, though every thing had a finished and beautiful appearance, still the whole scene wore a very sombre expression.