Mrs Scott remembers lain emigrating to Canada and her seeing him off.

The future in Canada

What are the dangers that she fears for him?
· Ships being blown off-course
· Dysentery
· No work for emigrants when they arrive
· Despair

How do we know from earlier chapters that she was right about some of them?

The drunk

What is he singing about?
· Having difficulties in foreign lands, specifically Canada.

What is the purpose of the piper?
· To provide a sense of ceremony for the departing emigrants.

Why does the drunk imitate (parody) him?
· He makes a mockery of the solemn occasion.

Iain

How does lain feel about his future in Canada?
· He is keen to get away from his mother and Scotland.

What does she realise about their relationship?
· He is happy to be leaving her, even though she is despairing.

Music

The Old Hundredth

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture
Enter into his gates with thankfulness and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him and bless his name.
For the Lord is good: his mercy is everlasting: and his truth endureth to all generations.

What do each of the three kinds of music, spoken of during this incident, tell us about different aspects of Scotland?

The drunk’s songs?
· He mocks the pain and suffering of emigration. He is cynical about life.

The piper’s music?
· It is mournful and respectful of the sadness and loss. It is dignified.

The psalm?
· It asks Christian followers to be happy in their suffering because God loves them. It is intended to be a comfort to those in pain.

“So it all began again”(last line of the chapter)

On which other occasions had Mrs Scott felt as she did now?

What do you feel about her at this stage in the novel?