The most striking thing about him was his walk, which to the casual observer seemed a limp.

The glen in our part is marshy, and to progress along it you have to jump from one little island of grass or heather to another.
Perhaps it was this that made the dominie take the main road and even the streets of Thrums in leaps, as if there were boulders or puddles in the way.

It is, however, currently believed among those who knew him best that he jerked himself along in that way when he applied for the vacancy in Glen Quharity school, and that he was therefore chosen from among the candidates by the committee of farmers, who saw that he was specially constructed for the district.
In the spring the inspector was sent to report on the school, and, of course, he said, with a wave of his hand, that this would never do.

So a new school was built, and the ramshackle little academy that had done good service in its day was closed for the last time.

For years it had been without a lock; ever since a blatter of wind and rain drove the door against the fireplace.