each stood a big dish of milk, while a varied covering for this open-air dairy had been extemporised out of Jeems' Sabbath umbrella, a tea-tray, a copy of the Advertiser, and a picture of the battle of Waterloo Elspeth had bought from a packman. It was an amazing spectacle, and one not lightly to be forgotten.

"A 'm clean ashamed that ye sud hae seen sic an exhibition, ma lord, and gin a 'd hed time it wud hae been cleared awa."

"Ye see oor dairy 's that sma' and close that a' daurna keep the mulk in 't a' the het days, an' sae a' aye gie it an airin'; a' wud keep it in anither place, but there's barely room for the bairns an' oorsels."

Then Elspeth apologised for speaking about household affairs to his lordship, and delighted him with all the gossip of the district, told in her best style, and three new stories, till he promised to build her a dairy and a bed-room for Elsie, to repair the byres, and renew the lease at the old terms.

Elspeth said so at least to the factor, and when he inquired concerning the truth of this foolish concession, Kilspindie laughed, and declared that if he had sat longer he might have had to rebuild the whole place.

As Hillocks could not expect any help from personal fascinations, he had to depend on his own sagacity, and after he had laboured for six months creating an atmosphere, operations began one day at Muirtown market. The factor and he happened to meet by the merest accident, and laid the first parallels.

"Man, Hillocks, is that you? I hevna seen ye since last rent time. I hear ye 're githering the bawbees thegither as usual; ye 'ill be buying a farm o' yir own soon."

"Nae fear o' that, Maister Leslie; it's a' we can dae tae get a livin'; we 're juist fechtin' awa'; but it comes harder on me noo that a'm gettin' on in years."

"Toots, nonsense, ye're makin' a hundred clear off that farm if ye mak a penny," and then, as a sudden thought, "When is your tack out? it canna hae lang tae run."

"Weel," said Hillocks, as if the matter had quite escaped him also, "a' believe ye 're richt; it dis rin oot this verra Martinmas."

"Ye'ill need tae be thinkin', Hillocks, what rise ye can offer; his lordship 'ill be expeckin' fifty pund at the least."

Hillocks laughed aloud, as if the factor had made a successful joke.

"Ye wull hae yir fun, Maister Leslie, but ye ken hoo it maun gae fine. The gude wife an' me were calculating juist by chance, this verra mornin', and we baith settled that we cudna face a new lease comfortable wi' less than a fifty pund reduction, but we micht scrape on wi' forty."

"You and the wife 'ill hae tae revise yir calculations then, an' a'll see ye again when ye 're reasonable."

Three weeks later there was another accidental meeting, when the factor and Hillocks discussed the price of fat cattle at length, and then drifted into the lease question before parting.

"Weel, Hillocks, what aboot that rise? will ye manage the fifty, or must we let ye have it at forty?"

"Dinna speak like that, for it 's no jokin' maitter tae me; we micht dae wi' five-and-twenty aff, or even twenty, but a' dinna believe his lordship wud like to see ain o' his auldest tenants squeezed."

"It's no likely his lordship 'ill take a penny off when he's been expecting a rise; so I 'll just need to put the farm in the Advertiser—'the present tenant not offering '; but I 'll wait a month to let ye think over it."

When they parted both knew that the rent would be settled, as it was next Friday, on the old terms.

Opinion in the kirkyard was divided over this part of the bargain, a minority speaking of it as a drawn battle, but the majority deciding that Hillocks had wrested at least ten pounds from the factor, which on the tack of nineteen years would come to £190. So far Hillocks had done well, but the serious fighting was still to come.

One June day Hillocks sauntered into the factor's office and spent half an hour in explaining the condition of the turnip "breer" in Drumtochty, and then reminded the factor that he had not specified the improvements that would be granted with the new lease.

"Improvements," stormed the factor. "Ye're the most barefaced fellow on the estate, Hillocks; with a rent like that ye can do yir own repairs," roughly calculating all the time what must be allowed.

Hillocks opened his pocket-book, which contained in its various divisions a parcel of notes, a sample of oats, a whip lash, a bolus for a horse, and a packet of garden seeds, and finally extricated a scrap of paper.

"Me and the wife juist made a bit note o' the necessaries that we maun hae, and we 're sure ye 're no the gentleman tae refuse them.

"New windows tae the hoose, an' a bit place for dishes, and maybe a twenty pund note for plastering and painting; that's naething.

"Next, a new stable an' twa new byres, as weel as covering the reed."

"Ye may as well say a new steadin' at once and save time. Man, what do you mean by coming and havering here with your papers?"

"Weel, if ye dinna believe me, ask Peter Robertson, for the condeetion o' the oot-houses is clean reediklus."

So it was agreed that the factor should drive out to see for himself, and the kirkyard felt that Hillocks was distinctly holding his own although no one expected him to get the reed covered.

Hillocks received the great man with obsequious courtesy, and the gude wife gave him of her best, and then they proceeded to business. The factor laughed to scorn the idea that Lord Kilspindie should do anything for the house, but took the bitterness out of the refusal by a well-timed compliment to Mrs. Stirton's skill, and declaring she could set up the house with the profits of one summer's butter. Hillocks knew better than try to impress the factor himself by holes in the roof, and they argued greater matters, with the result that the stable was allowed and the byres refused, which was exactly what Hillocks anticipated. The reed roof was excluded as preposterous in cost, but one or two lighter repairs were given as a consolation.

Hillocks considered that on the whole he was doing well, and he took the factor round the farm in fair heart, although his face was that of a man robbed and spoiled.

Hillocks was told he need not think of wire-fencing, but if he chose to put up new palings he might have the fir from the Kilspindie woods, and if he did some draining, the estate would pay the cost of tiles. When Hillocks brought the factor back to the house for a cup of tea before parting, he explained to his wife that he was afraid they would have to leave in November—the hardness of the factor left no alternative.

Then they fought the battle of the cattle reed up and down, in and out, for an hour, till the factor, who knew that Hillocks was a careful and honest tenant, laid down his ultimatum.

"There's not been a tenant in my time so well treated, but if ye see the draining is well done, I'll let you have the reed."

"A' suppose," said Hillocks, "a 'll need tae fall in." And he reported his achievement to the kirkyard next Sabbath in the tone of one who could now look forward to nothing but a life of grinding poverty.

FOR CONSCIENCE SAKE

No man was better liked or more respected than Burnbrae, but the parish was not able to take more than a languid interest in the renewal of his lease, because it was understood that he would get it on his own terms.

Drumsheugh indeed stated the situation admirably one Sabbath in the kirkyard.

"Whatever is a fair rent atween man an' man Burnbrae 'ill offer, and what he canna gie is no worth hevin' frae anither man.

"As for buildings, he 'ill juist tell the factor onything that's needfu', an' his lordship 'ill be content.

"Noo, here's Hillocks; he'd argle-bargle wi' the factor for a summer, an' a'm no