Page 13 - Heart of the Travellers Vol 3 ed 2 May 2017

Wully got a laach at that because a loochy in Cant wiz a rat. Bit whit a clivver dog Loochy wiz seemin tae

understand ilka word said tillt. Wully asked the aal man if she ivver hid pups could he get yin, a female of coorse.

He promised Wully that he'd get the pick o the litter.

Aboot the middle o the mornin things got a gey bit waar witherwyes fin the snaw startit, an in nae time the

grun hid a fair coatin lyin on't. Wully didna like bidin aitin mait fae the aal man but michty fin he let that een slip

the aal man gaed tae the big press an showed him that there wiz plenty mait there tae laist months.

Wully felt a bit better seein that the aal man widna be left in stairvation if he'd tae bide for a few days ower
the heeds o the snaw. That nicht the music got gyan again an their fingers were fair swaak due tae the toddies an

the news inatween.

Anither three days were tae pass afore Wully teen leave o the aal man. He promised he'd come back the neist

year wi twa’r three reels o strings for his fiddle. It wiz a sad pairtin fae that place.He'd been trickit wi the aal man's
company an he could see by the look on Hebbie's face that he felt the same aboot it.

Loochy led him farrer up the glen tae faar the aal man said he'd find a clear path back doon ontae Glenfetter.

He said there wid be nae snaw there because o the wye it faced awa fae the north. Loochy led him richt tae the

path an startit bowffin as if tae tell him so. Wully bent doon an

pettit Loochy, gie’in him a bit oatcake that he snappit up. He gid

Wully’s haan a lick then took aff back tae his maister. tae his surprise she
burst oot greetin
Wi a sair hairt Wully made his wye doo intae the Glenfetter
an said he wiz
an made up his mind that he'd jist haud back doon tae the fairm at
deed
Scorranclach an pick up the skins he'd aaready left there. By the

time he got doon tae the fairm it wiz mid aifterneen an for some
reason it felt as if he wiz gan inaboot tae a strange place, something seemed different tae him, something he jist

couldna pit a finger on.

Athing lookit the same as he mined an then he saw that, in the fyowe days he'd been awa the fairmer hid

pitten up a new shed at the side o the hoose. He chappit at the door an Scorranclach's wife came oot lookin gey

doonhairtit an speired at him fit he wintit. He askit if her man wiz aboot but tae his surprise she burst oot greetin

an said he wiz deed.

“O michty quine faan did this happen?”

She dried her een an telt him he'd been killed in the war.

“War? Fit war?”

She lookit at him strangely as if he wiz a feel. “The Great War- the war they focht in France!”

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