Their hair was kept short, the rest of the nation wore theirs long; while
they suffered their beard to grow, others were obliged to submit their
chins to the knife. They carried in their hand a white staff, called
"_Slatan drui eachd_," or magic wand, and hung around their necks an amulet
in the form of an egg, set in gold. The object of these distinctions
appears to have been, that no one might fail to recognise a Druid at the
first glance, and pay him the respect which his office was supposed to
demand.

* * * * *



THE SKETCH-BOOK.

RECOLLECTIONS OF A WANDERER.


_The Chase_.

...."It is past eleven," answered Lieutenant ----, as he descended the
companion way, after giving some orders on deck; "a regular gale this, by
Jupiter; but we are spinning away ten knots, off and on."

I stirred the fire in the cabouse, which threw a flickering light around
the cabin,--now revealing the half-concealed face of a sick or sleeping
passenger in the larboard tier of berths, then sinking as suddenly into
gloom. The Lieutenant, Major F----, and myself, barring the boy, were the
only souls astir aft below hatches. We were soon engaged in the agreeable
discussion of grog and small talk. Nothing interrupted our conversation.