CHAPTER X.

THE HIGHLAND GLENS.

"Now," said Grimkie, when the party arrived at the hotel in Glasgow, "we have come to the end of the first stage of our journey, that is the railway stage of it. The next is the steamboat stage."

"I am glad of that," said Florence. "The railway ride was very pleasant, but I am ready for a change."

Grimkie had learned in the course of the conversations which he had held with his fellowpassengers on board the ship at sea, that it was best, in travelling in Scotland, especially among the Highlands, to take as little baggage as possible.

"On whichever side of Scotland you go up," said one of these gentlemen, "you will be likely to come down on the other side, so that your journey will either begin at Glasgow and end at Edinburgh, or it will begin at Edinburgh and end at Glasgow. You will find it better therefore, when you are ready to set out from either

of those towns, to put all that you will want for the journey in one trunk, and send all the rest of your baggage across to some hotel in the other town, to wait there for you till you come back."

Grimkie explained all this to his aunt, at the breakfast table at their hotel in Glasgow. Mrs. Morelle looked at her travelling map of Scotland, and she saw that Edinburgh and Glasgow were in fact situated as is represented above.

"We shall probably come down from the Orkneys on that side of the island," said she, "and I think it would be convenient to have our trunks go there, all except one-but then, Grimkie, we don't know how to send them there. I suppose there is some kind of express, if we only knew where the office was."

"Ah," but you remember, Auntie, that father told us that all we had to do was to be able to tell distinctly what we wanted, and the people here would find out how it was to be done."

"That was in the public offices," said Mrs. Morelle.

"It will do just as well in the hotels I expect, Auntie," said Grimkie. "May I ring the bell

and try ?"

Mrs. Morelle gave the required permission, and Grimkie rang the bell. Very soon the waiter appeared.

"I want to see about sending some baggage to Edinburgh," said Grimkie.

"Yes, sir," said the waiter.

Boots directly."

"I'll send up

Boots is the familiar name by which the porter is designated in the English inns. In these inns moreover every servant has his own definite duties to perform, and these are never on any account intermingled. It is the porter's duty to know about railway trains, and conveyances of all kinds, and about baggage, and sending letters and parcels, and all such things. The waiter's duty, on the other hand, is confined entirely to the service of the table, and to acts of personal attendance upon the guests within the hotel. If any question arises pertaining to transportation or conveyance of any kind, he has but one answer "Yes, sir. I'll send Boots."

In a few minutes the porter appeared, cap in hand.

"We want to inquire about sending some of our luggage to Edinburgh," said Grimkie. "We are going to make a tour in the north of Scotland, and we thought it would be best to send most of our luggage to Edinburgh to wait there till we come."

"Yes, sir," said the porter, "that will be much the best way for you."

"And how shall we manage it ?" asked Grimkie. "What have I to do ?"

"You have nothing at all to do," said the porter," except to tell me the name of the hotel where you will go-or put it upon your luggage, and leave it in your room here when you go away. I will attend to it all, and you will find it quite safe at the hotel when you arrive there." "And how about paying ?" asked Grimkie. "Shall we pay you ?"

"No, sir," said the porter, "you will have nothing to pay here. It will not be much, and they will pay at the hotel in Edinburgh and put it in your bill."

"That will be exactly the thing, Auntie,” said Grimkie. "Only," he added, "we do not know what hotel we shall go to."

On being asked by Mrs. Morelle, the porter gave them the address of a good hotel in Edinburgh, which he said was in a pleasant situation, and a well kept house. He also brought Grimkie a package of gum labels, such as are used in England for labelling baggage. Grimkie wrote Mrs. Morelle's name on several of these labels, and also the name of the hotel which the porter had given him, and then, after his aunt had selected from all the trunks what she thought would be required for the whole party during the

tour in Scotland, and had put them in the one which she was to take, Grimkie with the assistance of the porter locked and strapped the others, and put the labels upon them.

The party spent the rest of the day in rambling about Glasgow, and in amusing themselves with the various objects of interest which met their view in the streets and in the environs, and the next morning before breakfast, they went on board the steamer Iona, which was to take them to Inverness.

They enjoyed the voyage exceedingly although at first Florence was somewhat disappointed in respect to the steamer, which she had expected would be as much superior, in respect to its size, and its decorations, to those plying upon the North River, as Europe is generally considered superior to America. Instead of this, the Iona was comparatively quite small, but it was very neatly arranged, and there was a small, but richly furnished cabin below, which looked exceedingly snug and comfortable.

After rambling about the steamer until they had explored it in every part, the children went with Mrs. Morelle and chose a place upon the deck at a corner near the companion-way, where they could enjoy the views on every side, and at the same time, could be comfortably seated all