little loss, and more real advantage, than could well have been expected.

The principal objects aimed at by the march of the troops directly to the north, were, in the first place, to extinguish the spark of rebellion ere it had time to be fanned into a flame, which, from the strength it had already attained, and the total want of co-operation on the part of the people, it was utterly impossible he could accomplish; but, secondly, it was also an object to overawe those clans whose fidelity might be doubtful, and to determine those whose judgments might be wavering, and this he accomplished in no inconsiderable degree; for it would be ridiculous to suppose, that the admonitions of the lord president were not considerably more powerful when backed by an army of so much magnitude, and so well found, so suddenly set down at their very doors, than they could possibly have been without any such demonstration. It is to this very circumstance we are disposed to attribute the continuance of that hesitating policy among a number of the disaffected clans, which prevented them from declaring themselves till their services were unavailing, except to deepen the horrors of a desperate struggle, and to add to the tempest of retributive justice that was so speedily to overtake them.

This movement was, however, to Charles and his council, for the present, no small relief, for their money was by this time expended, and no sooner were they informed of the circumstance, than the Highlanders were put in motion, who marched down the traverses of Corryarrak, with the hasty strides of conquerors about to divide the spoil. When they came to Garvamore, proposals were made to pursue the king's troops, or to get between them and Inverness, by cutting across the country; but it was judged to be much more for their interest to fall down into the Low Country, and, if possible, possess themselves of Edinburgh before the general and his forces could return from the north, where in the meantime a correspondence was carrying on fully as important as the movements of either army had yet become.

The lord president of the court of session, Duncan Forbes of Culloden, a man, from his many virtues, dear to all parties, and particularly revered in the north, where his family had been

long distinguished, was no sooner certified of the landing of Charles, than he hastened to his family residence, by his presence and his advice to restrain that turbulence of disposition which he knew to be but too common with a number of his neighbours. We have already seen that he had notice very early of the landing of Charles from Macleod of Skye, who was always understood to be in the Stuart interest, and he had been only two days at Culloden, where he arrived on the thirteenth of August, when he received the following notice from Sir Alexander Macdonald, dated the eleventh :-" My lord, you will have heard before this reaches you, that some of our neighbours of the mainland have been mad enough to arm and join the Young Adventurer, mentioned in Macleod's letter to you. Your lordship will find our conduct, with regard to this unhappy scrape, such as you'd wish, and such as the friendship you have always showed us will prompt to direct. Young Clanronald is deluded, notwithstanding his assurances to us lately; and what is more astonishing, Lochiel's prudence has quite forsaken him. You know too much of Glengary not to know that he will easily be led to be of the party; but as far as I can learn, he has not yet been with them. Mr. Maclean of Coll is here with his daughter, lately married to Tallisker, and he assures us of his own wisdom; and as he has mostly the direction of that clan, promises as much as in him lies to prevent their being led astray. You may believe, my lord, our spirits are in a good deal of agitation, and that we are much at a loss how to behave in so extraordinary an occurrence: that we will have no connexion with these madmen is certain, but are bewildered in every other respect till we hear from you. Whenever these madmen meet with a check, 'tis more than probable they will retire to their islands: how we ought to behave in that event we expect to know from your lordship. Their force, even in that case, must be very inconsiderable to be repelled with batons, and we have no other arms in any quantity. I pledge Macleod in writing for him and myself. I come now to tell you what you surely know, that I am most faithfully," &c. &c.*

* Culloden Papers, p. 207.

This was followed by one from Macleod, dated Sconsar the seventeenth" My dear lord, I got yours here, which is eighteen miles from my house, on the road to Glenelg, where I go armless and alone, to prevent any mischief there from their close neighbourhood with Knodart; I mean any of my people's being tempted with plenty of money to go a volunteering. As to their being pillaged, it's what I take for granted. My dear lord, I have all along wrote you without reserve, which Sir Alexander's last letter, (which you ought to have got the same day as yours was wrote,) will evince; and all I have to add, is, that what we wrote is true, and no more. He had but one ship, a privateer, of eighteen guns, with about sixteen hundred bad guns, and as many worse swords; about twenty-five officers, mostly Irish, or of Irish parents, and there is but one of them that ever was so high a rank as lieutenant colonel. I hear of no more that has as yet joined them. He sets up his standard on Monday, and as I am pretty sure of information from thence, you shall know it. The place Glenfinnin, which is the outlet from Moydart and Arisack to Lochaber. Except the duke of P-h get at them, I really do not see where they will find another man, for I know from Lovat his forwardness to serve the government; and as to the M'Intoshes, M'Phersons, &c. &c. sure they are all quiet, at least, if not wellaffected. In my weak opinion, it would be a very wrong step to draw many of the troops to Scotland, as there can be little danger here, and that they give out there is a strong landing to come either from Cadiz or Ferrol, to the south-west of England, with thirty thousand stand of arms to the discontented there, who are ready to take them. This may be only meant to put spirit in his adherents here, but if it is true, it's worth notice, which the insurrection here hardly is yet. Sir Alexander Macdonald and I can easily raise from fifteen hundred to two thousand men for the king's service, if they are wanted, and I am sure we are willing; but then some of our ships would require to land that number of arms here, else eighteen hundred staves, with about two hundred guns and swords, would make but a foolish figure. The privateer is sailed away to the northward, and it is true she took three meal barks, and ransomed them, and sent some of her crew with the ships where the young

chevalier was; they took as much of the meal as they thought proper, and paid for it, and dismissed them. I can think of nothing else just now; the place and paper agree. You will soon hear from me. I am, with the utmost friendship and attachment," &c. &c.

"There is surely no Scotsman of any note come over with him but the duke's brother, who is turned an old woman, if I can credit my cousin."*

These letters are exceedingly characteristic. The writers were both evidently at bottom in the interest of the pretender, though they were labouring to convince their correspondent of the contrary. The appeal made to the zeal and loyalty of Lovat is curious and striking, when we know that he was one of the principal conspirators, and, like themselves, was at the very moment embarrassed beyond measure in what manner to conduct himself, so as to play a sure game whatever side might at last prevail. The talk of repelling the disaffected with batons and staves, is a very artful mode of reflecting on the government for the disarming act, and of excusing themselves from taking any active hand in suppressing the insurrection. We have already spoken of that act, which, from the way in which it was executed, it was easy to see behoved to be highly prejudicial, all those having given up their arms whom it was the interest of the government to have kept in arms, while all those whom it was their interest to disarm, retained them, by which means they became terrible to their neighbours, and now were able to beard the government itself:-" As to what you mention touching the disarming act," says the lord president, writing to the lord Lyon, only two years previous to this, "without entering into the question how far it was expedient to have enacted that law at the time, I believe no one will think this a fit time for repealing it; and I am confident, that to the effect of it, is owing in a great measure the disorder we now so sensibly feel. Had the host of thieves who now plunder us been thoroughly disarmed, and kept from the use of arms since the date of the first act, we should have had no complaints at present; or if that act had never passed, and if the Highlands adjacent to the

• Culloden Papers, p. 208.

*

thieving countries had remained armed as formerly, these robbers durst never have ventured to prey upon them, and must even make their inroads on the lowest countries with much more precaution; but at present, as the banditti are armed whilst their neighbours are disarmed, they roam about in troops in broad daylight, without any apprehension from the country which is disarmed, or from the troops who cannot follow so as to come up with them." The complaints and the professions of these chieftains evidently, however, gained credit with the president, and led him to indulge hopes in his own mind, and to encourage them in others, respecting the aid that might be derived from the Highlands, which were not realized. But he possessed a noble spirit of patriotism, which no discouragement could damp, and he continued to reason, to advise, and to remonstrate with his friends, long after he must have seen through their deceit.

Of those friends the most remarkable and among the most powerful was Fraser of Lovat, who, under the direction of the lord president, then only lord advocate, had been of signal service in suppressing the rebellion in the north in the year 1715, in consequence of which he had obtained many particular favours from the government, which he had carefully improved for extending his power and his influence, without at all attending to the tone of his loyalty, which had for years been sadly relaxed. He had indeed been used a great deal better than he really deserved, but, for some years back, not as sound policy required; and, though it was not yet certainly known to any of the authorities, there were strong reasons for suspecting that he would throw himself into the arms of the pretender. Aware of his power, and perhaps conscious of his having been rather neglected, the lord advocate, Mr. Robert Craigie, wrote him from Edinburgh, on the fifteenth of August, to the following effect:-"My lord, though I have not had the honour of any epistolary correspondence with your lordship for some time past, yet I think it my duty, at this juncture, to trouble your lordship with a letter. The government hath certain intelligence that a sloop from France hath lately arrived upon the

* Culloden Papers, p. 363.