GHT HONOURABLE OUR COUSIN:

"Our hearty commendations premised, these come to assure you of the
interest which we take in your welfare, and in your purpose towards its
augmentation. If we have been less active in showing forth our effective
good-will towards you than, as a loving kinsman and blood-relative, we
would willingly have desired, we request that you will impute it to lack
of opportunity to show our good-liking, not to any coldness of our will
Touching your resolution to travel in foreign parts, as at this time we
hold the same little advisable, in respect that your ill-willers may,
according to the custom of such persons, impute motives for your
journey, whereof, although we know and believe you to be as clear as
ourselves, yet natheless their words may find credence in places where
the belief in them may much prejudice you, and which we should see with
more unwillingness and displeasure than with means of remedy.

"Having thus, as becometh our kindred, given you our poor mind on the
subject of your journeying forth of Scotland, we would willingly
add reasons of weight, which might materially advantage you and your
father's house, thereby to determine you to abide at Wolf's Crag, until
this harvest season shall be passed over. But what sayeth the proverb,
verbum sapienti--a word is more to him that hath wisdom than a sermon to
a fool. And albeit we have written this poor scroll with our own hand,
and are well assured of the fidelity of our messenger, as him that is
many ways bounden to us, yet so it is, that sliddery ways crave wary
walking, and that we may not peril upon paper matters which we would
gladly impart to you by word of mouth. Wherefore, it was our purpose to
have prayed you heartily to come to this our barren Highland country to
kill a stag, and to treat of the matters which we are now more painfully
inditing to you anent. But commodity does not serve at present for such
our meeting, which, therefore, shall be deferred until sic time as we
may in all mirth rehearse those things whereof we now keep silence.
Meantime, we pray you to think that we are, and will still be, your good
kinsman and well-wisher, waiting but for times of whilk we do, as it
were, entertain a twilight prospect, and appear and hope to be also your
effectual well-doer. And in which hope we heartily write ourself,

"Right Honourable,

"Your loving cousin,

"A----.
"Given from our poor house of B----," etc.

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