'The Howe o' Hope, or if you will "the valley of good cheer "howe meaning a little valley or" sma' glen "is a hole marked by fresh uplifting influences.

Hope! of all the ills that men endure. The only cheap and universal cure.

If through hard luck or bad play you have made, prior to arriving at this point, a slough of despond tor yourself, you have now reached the valley of consolation. There are no awkward and unexpected snags to trap the well-placed shot. You get a fair field and every favour. What that means, with the end of the round so near, more than justifies the belief that to do badly here is a remote chance. There is encouragement to do well. An old verse has a reference to Howe that may fittingly be quoted

As I cam' doon the Howe o' Meatus,

1 heard a lassie singin', Within my licit the sound o't yet

Like fairy bells is ringin' O bonnie is the Hower at dawn.

And bonnie still at nicht, But ilka howe is bonnie when a body' s he it light.

An apt translation of The Howe o' Hope might well read "the star of hope." That is a phrase that may suggest good fortune here. It is a phrase we find in one of Burns' finest songs, "Ae Fond Kiss ": -

Who shall say that Fortune grieves him While the star of hope she leaves him I'll ne'er blame my partial fancy, Naething could resist my Nancy, But to see her was to love her, Love but her, and love forever.

The Howe o' Hope does not belie the title it has won. It holds for all prospects of success that, even though they may not win the game for us, are doubly delightful when realised.