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1746]

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Campbell by Captain Skipness Campbell 450 guineas, with my July gold watch, broadsword, and pistols, all which he has thought proper (to be sure consistent with his honour) to keep from me fol. 692. upon diverse applications made to him to that purpose.

I hope the public will excuse this long digression, that I have made since my separation from the Prince, the more so that I have only made it to show that I did everything in my power as well to fulfil my duty as to endeavour to deserve the confidence with which the Prince was graciously pleased to honour me.

A coppy.

(Sic subscribitur) F. O'NEILLE.

8 Dec.

N.B.-After getting notice that Captain Felix O'Neille, after 747 his being removed from the Castle of Edinburgh to some part in England, had transmitted an attested copy of his Journal to one of his friends in Edinburgh, I was at no small pains to find it out. At last I discovered that it was in the hands of the Countess of Dundonald. Upon Tuesday, December 8th, 1747, I did myself the honour of paying my respects to lady Mary Cochran in Edinburgh. I begged to know of her ladyship if it was true that the Countess had any such Journal and if I fol. 693. could have the favour of seeing it. Lady Mary said it was very true that her mamma had the Journal with O'Neille's own subscription at it, and that it was transmitted to her from O'Neille himself, and that she would endeavour to procure it for me from her mamma and send it down to me as soon as possible. But, then, her ladyship was pleased to observe that the Countess would not allow any copy to be taken of it, as Captain O'Neille had desired that no copy should be given of it, till he should send a letter to the Countess from France, wherein he would give allowance for copies to be taken of it at a proper time. And therefore Lady Mary added that all the favour I could obtain was only the reading of it. To this I answered that I had heard the Journal was made a great secret, and seeing it was so, I did not chuse to have the trust of it; for that if copies should happen to appear from other quarters it might be said that I had taken a copy without any allowance, and thereby had become the occasion of spreading it. And fol. 694.

8 Dec. therefore I would much rather chuse to read it in her ladyship's presence and return it directly into her hands, if her ladyship would take the trouble of procuring me a sight of it while I had the honour of being with her. Lady Mary was so good as to say that though my Lady Dundonald was confined to her apartment with a severe cold, she would step to her and ask a reading of the Journal. Accordingly, in a very short time, Lady Mary returned and gave me the Journal. After reading of it I could not help declaring my surprize that the Journal should be made a matter of so much nicety when I could assure her ladyship that I had been master of a copy of it (the preface and conclusion only excepted) for about six months past, and that several such copies as mine were in Edinburgh and other places of Scotland. Lady Mary said that certainly Captain O'Neille's touching so severely upon General Campbell behoved to be the reason why he made his Journal an affair of such secrecy. To this I answered that the reason ol. 695. was good so long as Captain O'Neille remained in any part of Scotland or England, because the making such a particular the subject of common conversation might have brought rough enough treatment upon Captain O'Neille. But now that he was safe in France, I could not help looking upon it as a point of justice to make that particular part of the Journal known to the world, that so General Campbell might have an opportunity of vindicating himself, if there was any mistake in the case, and that if the charge was a fact, the truth might be fixed. Then I added that if my Lady Dundonald could be prevailed upon to allow me the use of the attested copy to compare it with my own, and to take transcripts of the preface and conclusion, I would promise to give her ladyship in return for that favour a copy of Ker of Gradyne's account; and withal I said I should not give copies of the preface and conclusion or have any hand in making them common. Lady Mary was so good as to assure me that she would faithfully report that to fol. 696. my Lady Dundonald, and would employ her interest to procure that favour for me upon the conditions I had mentioned. I then took leave, and said I would do myself the honour of waiting upon her ladyship some day next week.

Upon Thursday, December 17th, I again made my court to

1747]

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Lady Mary, who had most faithfully performed her promise, 17 Dec. and had procured what I so much desired. Upon receiving the attested Journal at Lady Mary's hands, I repeated the conditions and assured her ladyship I would observe them.

I had been promised the use of Ker of Gradyne's account from the right reverend Bishop Keith in the Canongate, who at that time had the only copy of it in Scotland. Lady Mary informed me that the Countess was very much surprized to hear that I should have a copy of O'Neille's Journal, the preface and conclusion excepted, for that her ladyship had firmly believed that there was no such thing in all Scotland as the copy of a single sentence of it. Upon this I informed Lady Mary that Mr. William MacDougal, Wine merchant, was master of a transcript of O'Neille's attested Journal, which fol. 697. he had got when taking a jaunt with his lady in England for her health sometime in the month of September, from one of the French officers then prisoners upon parole at Berwick, but that Mr. MacDougal had given his promise not to communicate it by giving a copy to any one whatsoever, even though O'Neille had before that time set out for France, the officers that were left behind being much afraid that they themselves might feel the effects of resentment, should the animadversion upon General Campbell be publickly known before they should be exchanged and set free. Upon comparing the attested copy with the one I had formerly transcribed [vol. i. f. 181] I found no other difference betwixt them than what might proceed from a multiplicity of copies and from the unskilfulness and inattention of transcribers. And therefore at first I intended only to remark the differences of the two copies and to take transcripts of the preface and conclusion. But, upon second thoughts, I judged it more eligible to take an exact and faithful transcript fol. 698. of the whole of the attested copy, that so I might have it all as it had come from the hands of Captain O'Neille, who had sent it to my Lady Dundonald wrapped up in a cover with two seals upon it, and with an address in the following words precisely :

"To the right honble. the Countess of Dondanold, Edinburgh.'

17 Dec.

The remarks I have made1 still hold good even as to the attested copy: for (to omit other particulars) considering the long time that Captain O'Neille was with the Prince after the battle of Culloden (about ten or eleven weeks), and the great variety of difficulties and dangers they had to struggle with during all that time, certainly the Captain behoved to have much more to say than what he has given an account of in his Journal, had he only been at the trouble of taking time and leisure to recollect himself with that accuracy and exactness fol. 699. which the importance of the subject justly calls for. In such an uncommon and interesting scene of life the minutest occurrence that has the smallest tendency to illustrate the character of the suffering hero should not be omitted. Let this piece of history be cooly and impartially considered only from April 16th to September 20th, and I dare venture to say one will not find a parallel to it in any history whatsoever. For a prince to be a-skulking five long months exposed to the hardships of hunger and cold, thirst and nakedness, and surrounded on all hands by a numerous army of blood-thirsty men, both by sea and land, eagerly hunting after the price of blood, and yet that they should miss the much coveted aim, is an event of life far surpassing the power of words to paint. In a word, I presume it may be asserted with great truth that the Prince (all circumstances considered) could not have been safe in any other place of the three kingdoms but in the Highlands of Scotland. Let any one compare O'Neille's Journal fol. 700. with Donald MacLeod's, and I am persuaded he will find the Captain's account of things dull and wanting when put into the balance with that of the old honest Palinurus, whose simple unadorn'd sayings have a peculiar energy and beauty in them. ROBERT FORBES, A.M.

1748

2 Feb.

Tuesday's forenoon, February 2d, 1748.

I paid my respects to the Countess of Dundonald and Lady Mary Cochran, when I delivered back to the Countess the attested copy of O'Neille's Journal, and likewise gave to her

1 See f. 189.

2 See ff. 277-307.

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ladyship the copy I had promised of Gradyne's account. I then asked the Countess if her ladyship remembered at what time she had received the attested copy from O'Neille. Her ladyship was pleased to answer that as she had received a letter along with the Journal from Captain O'Neille, so she could fully satisfy me about that; and going to a cabinet her ladyship fetched O'Neille's letter out of one of the drawers and showed me the date of it, which was as follows: 'Berwick, August 30th, 1747.'

ROBERT FORBES, A.M.

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