I offered to play you at the dambrod to keep you out.
Ay, you ken that without my telling you, but do you ken what makes me tell you now?
It's to see whether you'll go in and stop him; let's see you do that, and I'll hae some hope yet." He waited eagerly.
"You do puzzle me now," Tommy said.
"Ay," replied the old man, bitterly, "you're dull in the uptak' when you like! I dinna ken, I suppose, and you dinna ken, that if you had the least dread o' her taking him you would be into that room full bend to stop it; but you're so sure o' her, you're so michty sure, that you can sit here and lauch instead." "Am I laughing, Aaron?
If you but knew, Elspeth's marriage would be a far more joyful thing to me than it could ever be to you." The old warper laughed unpleasantly at that.

"And I'se uphaud," he said, "you're none sure but what shell tak' him! You're no as sure she'll refuse him as that there's a sun in the heavens, and I'm a broken man." For a moment sympathy nigh compelled Tommy to say a hopeful thing, but he mastered himself.

"It would be weakness," was what he did say, "to pretend that there is any hope." Aaron gave him an ugly look, and was about to leave the house; but Tommy would not have it.

"If one of us must go, Aaron," he said, with much gentleness, "let it be me"; and he went out, passing the parlour door softly, so that he might not disturb poor David.

The warper sat on by the fire, his head sunk miserably in his shoulders.