Visited that grand Fall of Water, the Gray-Mare's-Tail

In this fertile Valley there were like-
wise Herds of Horses &and Black Cattle,
fat &and sleek as Otters; which, upon yethe Sight
&and Rattling of the Chaises, took Fright, stared,
snorted, &and galloped up &and down with Ears e-
rect &and Tails standing out. There was one
Colt of a brownish Colour, beautiful and
well-shap’dshaped, which B.Bishop G.Gordon admired greatly.

When in the Midst of a Wood, about Half-
Way to the Fall, one of the Ends of the
Flitchet1 of our Chaise happened to break,
which occasioned a Halt. Instantly all got out,
&and Mrs Forbes held a Council of War agtagainst
me for a safe Retreat in Time, with the
shrill Vociferation of a Female General.
“I can, said she, with pleasure be fell’dfelled my
“selfmyself, rather than that B.Bishop G.Gordon should be fell’dfelled.
“For, how can we account to Mrs Gordoun, if he
“be fell’dfelled sae far frae home?” “Ay, ay, very
“pretty indeed! said Mr Lyon. There is not
“a word of your Husband, tho’though in equal Dan-
“ger with Mr G.Gordon or any of us!” “O! said she,
“he has no Fear. He can take Care of
“himself. But for Mr G.Gordon who is a Stranger,
“we ought, all of us, to have a particular
“Concern about him.” This occasioned a loud
Laugh to the re-ecchoingechoing of the Woods.
Mr G.Gordon would frequently say, “O that good
“Woman! O that good Woman! who is pleased to
“have such a great Concern about my Safety.”
The kind Contention was so much in earnest, that
Mr 1928 (1928) Mr MackDonell, tho’though one of absolute Cou-
rage, joined Mrs Forbes heartily for an im-
mediate Return. “What! Mr MackDonell, said I,
“did not you tell me, that many Wheel-Machines
“have ^been driven this same Way? And may not Chaises
“go now, where Chaises have gone before?” “All true,
said he; “but then such heavy Rains have fallen of
“late, that the Fords will be very deep, &and they are
“rough &and bad enough of themselves.” “O then, said I,
“the Fall will be in it’sits greater Glory: And, if all of
“you should return, I will go on.” Mr Gordon luckily
join’djoined me, which ended the Debate. But then Mrs
Forbes strenuously ^insisted against Mr Gordon’s going into
the broken Chaise, tho’though the Breach was inconsidera-
ble; as with the Help of a Rope it was made as
strong as ever, &and so Mr G.Gordon &and I went into it again.

At length the Rush of mighty Waters reach’dreached
the Ear; before we could see it with yethe Eye.
When we came in View of it, I could well
see, that, by crossing the large Burn flowing
from it into Moffat-Water, &and called the Tail-
Burn, we could have still a fuller View
of the Fall; &and therefore I steptstepped over yethe Burn,
&and scamper’dscampered up a green Hill the best Way
I could; about the Midst of which I came to a
levelllevel Bit of Green, about the Extent of an
ordinary Table, where I took up my Station
directly over against the Face of the Fall,
about the Middle of it. I then hallooedhollered to those
below what a fine View ^I had of the Fall, begging
them to follow me. Jackie MackDonell skip’dskipped
up to me like any Roe. Mr G.Gordon mounted the
Conductor’s Mare, &and cross’dcrossed the Burn. I cried
to Mr MackDonell to hand Mr G.Gordon up after
me as far as he would chusechoose to come, which
he did only half-way. Mr Lyon likewise
mounted the Mare, &and cross’dcrossed the Burn. He
came up to me with such leisurely Steps as
his Corpulence would allow, &and squatted
down instantly. “What do you mean, Sir? said I,
“Get up, &and view this grand Sight!” “O Sir, said he,
“I have lost all my Breath! Oh!—Oh!—Oh!”
After resting a little, he rose up, &and took a View
of it, with his SpectsSpectacles on his Nose.
When 1929 (1929)

When descending, I took hold of Jackie
MackDonell, &and guided her in the spiral way;
&and Mr Lyon’s Servant took him by the Arm;
but no, that would not do. Looking behind
me, I saw Mr David hitching down like any
Hare on his Breech. “Ay, Mr David, said I,
“what is the Matter with you?” “O Sir, said he,
“I man take my Arse to it.” This I fail’dfailed not
to repeat, when down at the Burn, taking our sea-
sonable Glass of Wine, which made the Hills
resound with a loud Peal of Laughter.

During all the Time we were upon the Face
of the Green Hill, Mrs Forbes down below
turned her Back towards us, &and with Fright
was seized with a pain in one of her Shoul-
ders, taking a Peep now &and then to see if any
of us were tumbling down, &and wondering how
she would fall upon a Scheme to get back
to Moffat with three Chaises &and six dead
Men, with many a Thump upon the pain’dpained
Shoulder. The Drivers diverted themselves
with tumbling Stones down the Hill, which
Mrs Forbes, full of Fear, imagined to be
some of our Hats.

I asked Mr MackDonell, what might be yethe
Height of the Fall. He said, he was per-
suaded, it was more than 100 Fathoms, frmfrom
Top to Bottom. It is white as Snow, &and falls
with such Violence, that the Drops of Water
rebound to an extraordinary Height. For
ordinary it consists of three Falls, rushing from
one Shelf of the Rock to another, &and at last
disappearing into a hollow GulphGulf, which no Eye
could ever yet reach; around the Mouth of qchwhich
some Trees wave their Tops, &and serve to add to
the Beauty. When we viewed this wond’rouswondrous
Work of God in Nature, it consisted only of One
Fall, as Plenty of Rain had lately fallen,
&and thereby had increased it’sits Grandeur; So ytthat
we beheld it, tho’though not in it’sits greatest Perfecti-
on, yet in a Medium between it’sits lowest &and
it’sits highest Degree of Glory. It issues out of Loch-
Skeen of a pretty large Extent; in the Midst of
which there is an Island, where a pair of Eagles
nestle every Year. This Loch is clear on one
Side, 1930 (1930) Side, where speckled Trouts are to be had, &and
muddy on the other, where black Trouts take
up their Abode.

When got into the Chaises, Mr G.Gordon said, “We
“crossdcrossed Moffat-Water so often, that we will
“now, in our Return, count the Number.” qchwhich
turned out to be no less than 16. without
^counting several other Crossings of Rivulets, that
discharge themselves from the Hills into
Moffat-Water; but we brought the Crossing
of the Tail-Burn into the Reckoning.

At Supper, we recounted the Beauties &and
Adventures of the chequer’dchequered Scene with great ^good
Humour &and Pleasantry. Mr G.Gordon smiling in Mr
Lyon’s Face, said, “Well, Mr Lyon, I hope, you’ll
“indulge me the pleasure of making merry wtwith
“my Wife at your Method of moving down a
“Hill.” “With all my Heart,”answered he.
“Then, Mr Lyon, I assure you, your Bum
“shall not be forgot. Ha, ha, ha!”