As a rule, however, the members were wild bachelors.

When they married they had to settle down.
Gavin's essay on Will'um Pitt, the Father of the Taxes, led to the club's being bundled out of the town-house, where people said it should never have been allowed to meet.

There was a terrible town when Tammas Haggart then disclosed the secret of Mr.Byars's supposed approval of the club.

Mr.Byars was the Auld Licht minister whom Mr.Dishart succeeded, and it was well known that he had advised the authorities to grant the use of the little town-house to the club on Friday evenings.
As he solemnly warned his congregation against attending the meetings the position he had taken up created talk, and Lang Tammas called at the manse with Sanders Whamond to remonstrate.

The minister, however, harangued them on their sinfulness in daring to question the like of him, and they had to retire vanquished though dissatisfied.