family lived in their decadence as a mouse (said an old farmer)
lives under a firlot. Pulling down part of these venerable ruins, he
built with the stones a narrow house of three stories high, with a front
like a grenadier's cap, having in the very centre a round window like the
single eye of a Cyclops, two windows on each side, and a door in the
middle, leading to a parlour and withdrawing-room full of all manner of
cross lights.

This was the New Place of Ellangowan, in which we left our hero, better
amused perhaps than our readers, and to this Lewis Bertram retreated,
full of projects for re-establishing the prosperity of his family. He
took some land into his own hand, rented some from neighbouring
proprietors, bought and sold Highland cattle and Cheviot sheep, rode to
fairs and trysts, fought hard bargains, and held necessity at the staff's
end as well as he might. But what he gained in purse he lost in honour,
for such agricultural and commercial negotiations were very ill looked
upon by his brother lairds, who minded nothing but cock-fighting,
hunting, coursing, and horse-racing, with now and then the alternative of
a desperate duel. The occupations which he followed encroached, in their
opinion, upon the article of Ellangowan's gentry, and he found it
necessary gradually to estrange himself from their society, and sink into
what was then a very ambiguous character, a gentleman farmer. In the
midst of his schemes death claimed his tribute, and the scanty remains of
a large property descended upon Godfrey Bertram, the present possessor,
his only son.

The danger of the father's speculations was soon seen. Deprived of Laird
Lewis's personal and active superintendence, all his undertakings
miscarried, and became either abortive or perilous. Without a single
spark of energy to meet or repel these misfortunes, Godfrey put his faith
in the activity of another. He kept neither hunters nor hounds, nor any
other southern preliminaries to ruin; but, as has been observed of his
countrymen, he kept a man of business, who answered the purpose equally
well. Under this gentleman's supervision small debts grew into large,
interests were accumulated upon capitals, movable bonds became heritable,
and law charges were heaped upon all; though Ellangowan possessed so
little the spirit of a litigant that he was on two occasions charged to
make payment of the expenses of a long lawsuit, although he had never
before heard that he had s