her as having disposed of the only temptation which had been ever in her power; and the laird when in his cups, sometimes wishing to celebrate the wonderful purity of his wife, would declare that she was not only singularly virtuous, but that he would venture to say no man ever desired her to be otherwise. So wrong-headed women are sometimes found, that the lady did not relish this compliment, and no subject was more grateful to her than assertions that attempts had been made upon her virtue. The laird and she, after the honey-moon was over, were not extremely rapturous in their expressions of affection. Sometimes, indeed, they fell into little sparring matches which temper the sweets of connubial ecstacies. In these family-pieces Mrs. Sourkrout would now and then take a part. The chief subject of dispute was the rank and consequence of
