If there was as little in your honours'
wames as there is in Caleb Balderstone's, less caickling wad serve ye on
sic a gravaminous subject."
Caleb's blunt expression of resentment again awakened the mirth of the
company, which, by the way, he regarded not only as an aggression upon
the dignity of the family, but a special contempt of the eloquence with
which he himself had summed up the extent of their supposed losses. "A
description of a dinner," as he said afterwards to Mysie, "that wad hae
made a fu' man hungry, and them to sit there laughing at it!"
"But," said Miss Ashton, composing her countenance as well as she could,
"are all these delicacies so totally destroyed that no scrap can be
collected?"
"Collected, my leddy! what wad ye collect out of the sute and the ass?
Ye may gang down yoursell, and look into our kitchen--the cookmaid in
the trembling exies--the gude vivers lying a' about--beef, capons, and
white broth--florentine and flams--bacon wi' reverence--and a' the sweet
confections and whim-whams--ye'll see them a', my leddy--that is," said
he, correcting himself, "ye'll no see ony of them now, for the cook
has soopit them up, as was weel her part; but ye'll see the white broth
where it was spilt.
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