children in a strange
land, surrounded by new conditions, and in their wise simplicity went
as children to a father for what they most needed. After Praying
Donald came Big Malcolm, then Store Thompson, and Roarin' Sandy, and
then the leader called upon Tom Caldwell. Tom Caldwell's big Irish
heart was overflowing with good-will to his Scottish neighbours; and
carried away by his emotions, he prayed long and loud and shouted
hallelujahs in a manner that rather alarmed the company. Indeed, Store
Thompson's wife, who was considered quite a genteel person in the
community, declared afterwards that "it jist garred her ears tingle,"
and Store Thompson himself, though never given to censure anyone,
admitted that though Tom certainly had a fine gift of prayer, he was,
"jist a wee thing tumultuous-like."

The meeting had been very solemn and the youngest person there very
well-behaved during the earlier prayers, but after Tom Caldwell came
the host of the evening, and the young men began to grow restless. For
Long Lauchie was never so long as when at his devotions. Indeed, for
years it had been the scandal of the Oa that his sons were in the habit
of slipping out during family worship to attend to the "chores" about
the stable, returning to appear decorously upon their knees when their
father arose.

At Callum Fiach's suggestion the "Lauchie boys" even arranged a
competition in which the five sons strove to see who could make the
longest excursion during prayer-time. The palm was yielded to Hughie,
the third son, who crossed the swamp on skis one evening, and saw
Kirsty John chase the Weaver from her door with the porridge stick,
arriving home, breathless but triumphant, just before the amen was
pronounced. No one quite believed Hughie's story, until it was
ruefully corroborated by Jimmie himself; whereupon the limit was
declared to be reached, and the boys turned their attention to new
fields.

But on this first prayer-meeting night, spurred on by the enthusiasm of
the company, Long Lauchie bade fair to give his sons ample opportunity
to journey through the length and breadth of the township of Oro and
return before he was finished. The pious old man had a fine poetic
temperament, and to-night he soared beyond anything his family had ever
heard. The petition ramified and expanded to an alarming length, and
still showed no signs of stopping. Even Mrs. Lauchie, whose chief
pride was her husband's devotional fluenc