sentences:  In 1817, following the death of his father, Riddell began attending the parish school in nearby Biggar, where he met Eliza Clark, the daughter of a local merchant whom he would later marry.However, not yet independent he opted to finish his education before pursuing the marriage.While at Biggar school Riddell was a contributor to the ‘Clydesdale Magazine’ and wrote ‘The Crook and Plaid,’ one of his most successful songs inspired by a trip to Pinkie Cleugh, near Musselburgh, East Lothian.