kind of knowledge was of no practical use,
for, as my after-life was spent in towns, I never had a garden, to my
great regret.

George the Third was so popular, that even in Burntisland nosegays were
placed in every window on the 4th of June, his birthday; and it
occasionally happened that our garden was robbed the preceding night of
its gayest flowers.

My father at last said to my mother,--"This kind of life will never do,
Mary must at least know how to write and keep accounts." So at ten years
old I was sent to a boarding-school, kept by a Miss Primrose, at
Musselburgh, where I was utterly wretched. The change from perfect
liberty to perpetual restraint was in itself a great trial; besides,
being naturally shy and timid, I was afraid of strangers, and although
Miss Primrose was not unkind she had an habitual frown, which even the
elder girls dreaded. My future companions, who were all older than I,
came round me like a swarm of bees, and asked if my father had a title,
what was the name of our estate, if we kept a carriage, and other such
questions, which made me first feel the difference of station. However,
the girls were very kind, and often bathed my eyes to prevent our stern
mistress from seeing that I was perpetually in tears. A few days after
my arrival, although perfectly straight and well-made, I was enclosed in
stiff stays with a steel busk in front, while, above my frock, bands
drew my shoulders back till the shoulder-blades met. Then a steel rod,
with a semi-circle which went under the chin, was clasped to the steel
busk in my stays. In this constrained state I, and most of the younger
girls, had to prepare our lessons. The chief thing I had to do was to
learn by heart a page of Johnson's dictionary, not only to spell the
words, give their parts of speech and meaning, but as an exercise of
memory to remember their order of succession. Besides I had to learn the
first principles of writing, and the rudiments of French and English
grammar. The method of teaching was extremely tedious and inefficient.
Our religious duties were attended to in a remarkable way. Some of the
girls were Presbyterians, others belonged to the Church of England, so
Miss Primrose cut the matter short by taking us all to the kirk in the
morning and to church in the afternoon.

In our play-hours we amused ourselves with playing at ball, marbles, and
especially at "Scotch and English," a game which represented a raid on
the debatable