hift their quarters,
and with that seizing a burning brand from the chumla, he ran into a
bedchamber that opened from the room where the riot was raging, and set
fire to the curtains.

My brother seeing the flames rising, and that the infuriated war-wolves
thought only of themselves, ran to extricate Ringlewood from the cords
with which he was tied; and calling to the leddy and her grandson to
quit the burning house, every one was soon out of danger from the fire.

The sense of the soldiers were not so overborne by their drink as to
prevent them from seeing the dreadful extent of their outrage; but
instead of trying to extinguish the flames, they marched away to seek
quarters in some other place, cursing the sergeant for having so
unhoused them in such a night.

At first they thought of carrying my brother and Esau Wardrop with them
as prisoners; but one of them said it would be as well to give the wyte
of the burning, at headquarters, to the rebels; so they left them
behind.

Esau Wardrop, with the young laird and my grandfather, seeing it was in
vain to stop the progress of the fire, did all that in them lay to
rescue some of the furniture, while poor old Ringlewood and his aged and
gentle lady, being both too infirm to lend any help, stood on the green,
and saw the devouring element pass from room to room, till their ancient
dwelling was utterly destroyed. Fortunately, however, the air was calm,
and the out-houses escaping the ruinous contagion of the flames, there
was still a beild left in the barn to which they could retire.

In the meantime the light of the burning spread over the country; but
the people knowing that soldiers were quartered in Ringlewood, stood
aloof in the dread of firearms, thinking the conflagration might be
caused by some contest of war; so that the mansion of a gentleman much
beloved of all his neighbours was allowed to burn to the ground before
their eyes, without any one venturing to come to help him, to so great a
degree had distrust and the outrages of military riot at that epoch
altered the hearts of men.

My brother and Esau Wardrop staid with Ringlewood till the morning, and
had, for the space of three or four hours, a restoring sleep. Fain would
they have remained longer there, but the threat of the soldiers to
accuse them as the incendiaries made Ringlewood urge them to depart;
saying, that maybe a time would come when it would be in his power to
thank them for their help in t