rt of that night in the graveyard, and we believe it to have been
Jamie. He walked up the glen to the school-house next forenoon, and I
went out to meet him when I saw him coming down the path.

"Ay," he said, "it's me come back."

I wanted to take him into the house and speak with him of his mother,
but he would not cross the threshold.

"I came oot," he said, "to see if ye would gie me her staff--no 'at I
deserve 't."

I brought out the staff and handed it to him, thinking that he and I
would soon meet again. As he took it I saw that his eyes were sunk
back into his head. Two great tears hung on his eyelids, and his mouth
closed in agony. He stared at me till the tears fell upon his cheeks,
and then he went away.

That evening he was seen by many persons crossing the square. He went
up the brae to his old home, and asked leave to go through the house
for the last time. First he climbed up into the attic, and stood
looking in, his feet still on the stair. Then he came down and stood
at the door of the room, but he went into the kitchen.

"I'll ask one last favour o' ye," he said to the woman: "I would like
ye to leave me here alane for juist a little while."

"I gaed oot," the woman said, "meanin' to leave 'im to 'imsel', but my
bairn wouldna come, an' he said, 'Never mind her,' so I left her wi'
'im, an' closed the door. He was in a lang time, but I never kent what
he did, for the bairn juist aye greets when I speir at her.

"I watched 'im frae the corner window gang doon the brae till he came
to the corner. I thocht he turned round there an' stood lookin' at the
hoose. He would see me better than I saw him for my lamp was i' the
window, whaur I've heard tell his mother keepit her cruizey. When my
man came in I speired at 'im if he'd seen onybody standin' at the
corner o' the brae, an' he said he thocht he'd seen somebody wi' a
little staff in his hand. Davit gaed doon to see if he was aye there
after supper-time, but he was gone."

Jamie was never again seen in Thrums.

***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A WINDOW IN THRUMS***

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