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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7b44311 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #66122 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66122) diff --git a/old/66122-0.txt b/old/66122-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index bb5565a..0000000 --- a/old/66122-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8144 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Scottish Cavalier, Volume 3 (of 3), by -James Grant - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Scottish Cavalier, Volume 3 (of 3) - An Historical Romance - -Author: James Grant - -Release Date: August 23, 2021 [eBook #66122] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Al Haines - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER, VOLUME 3 -(OF 3) *** - - - - - - - THE - - SCOTTISH CAVALIER. - - - An Historical Romance. - - - - BY JAMES GRANT, ESQ., - - AUTHOR OF - "THE ROMANCE OF WAR, OR THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS," - "MEMOIRS OF KIRKALDY OF GRANGE," &C. - - - - Dost thou admit his right, - Thus to transfer our ancient Scottish crown? - Ay, Scotland was a kingdom once, - And, by the might of God, a kingdom still shall be! - ROBERT THE BRUCE, ACT II. - - - - IN THREE VOLUMES. - - VOL. III. - - - - LONDON: - HENRY COLBURN, PUBLISHER, - GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. - - 1850. - - - - - Contents - - I. Lilian - II. How Clermistonlee Pressed His Suit - III. Claverhouse to the Rescue - IV. The Secret Stair - V. The Attempt - VI. Edinburgh--The Night of the Revolution - VII. Sack of Holyrood - VIII. The Veiled Picture - IX. Love and Principle - X. The Pass of Killycrankie - XI. The Last Hour of Dundee - XII. St. Germains - XIII. The Cavaliers of Dundee - XIV. The 20th of September, 1692 - XV. The Effect of the Postscriptum - XVI. The Battle of Steinkirke - XVII. A Disclosure - XVIII. Walter Fenton and the King - XIX. The Returned Exile - XX. The Bubble Burst - XXI. Love and Marriage are Two - XXII. The Ring and the Secret - XXIII. The Iron Room--The Death Shot - - - - -WALTER FENTON; - -OR - -THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER. - - - -CHAPTER I. - -LILIAN. - - I love thee, gentle Knight! but 'tis, - Such love as sisters bear; - O, ask my heart no more than this, - For more it may not spare. - KNIGHT TOGGENBURG. - - -The image of Clermistonlee and his threats came painfully upon -Lilian's memory. She shrieked for aid, but her cries were lost in -the vacuity of the old-fashioned coach in which she was being carried -off. She strove to open the windows, but they were immoveable as -those of a castle, and she resigned herself to tears and despair. -The vehicle was rumbling and jolting over a waste of frozen snow; -here and there, a farm-house or a congealed rivulet were passed, but -everything appeared so strange and new, when viewed in their snowy -guise by the twilight of the mirky winter night, that Lilian had not -the most remote idea in what direction she was taken; and, shuddering -with cold and apprehension, the poor girl crouched down in a corner -of the coach, and abandoned herself to grief and wretchedness. - -The excessive chill of the night, and prostration of spirit under -which she laboured, produced a sort of stupor, and when the coach -stopped, she was unable to move; but a tall dark man, muffled and -masked like an intriguing gallant of the day, lifted her out. As one -in a dream, who would in vain elude some hideous vision, she -attempted to shriek; but the unuttered cry died away on her lips, and -she closed her eyes. A strong embrace encircled her; a hot -breath--(was it not a kiss?)--came upon her cold cheek, and she felt -herself borne along; doors closed behind her, and by the warmth of -the altered temperature she was aware of being within a house. - -She was seated gently in a chair; and now she looked around her. A -large fire of roots was blazing on the rough stone-hearth; its ruddy -glow rendered yet more red the bare walls and strongly arched roof of -a hall (built of red sandstone) such as may be seen in the old -fortlets of the lesser barons of Scotland. The windows on each side -were deeply embayed by the thickness of the wall, and a deep-browed -arch spanned each; they had stone seats covered with crimson -cushions, and foot-mats of plaited rushes. - -The hurrying clouds and occasional stars were seen through the strong -basket-gratings that externally defended these prison-like apertures. -The hall was paved, and its rude massive furniture consisted only of -a great oblong table of oak, several forms or settles, a few -high-backed chairs, and one upon a raised part of the floor, at the -upper end, had a canopy of crimson cloth over it, announcing that it -was the state-chair of the Lord of the Manor. Swords, pikes, -harquebuses, hunting and hawking appurtenances, with a few veiled -pictures, were among its ornaments. - -A great almery, or cupboard (so called from the old hospitable custom -of setting aside food as _alms_ for the poor), occupied one end of -the apartment, and an ancient casque surmounted it. Various bunkers -of carved oak, bound with iron, occupied the other. On the right -hand of the doorway, a stone lavatory, covered with magnificent -sculpture projected from the wall. This old-fashioned bason was -furnished with a hole to carry off water, and was an indispensable -convenience to every ancient dining-hall. - -With one rapid glance of terror Lilian surveyed the whole place, and -started from her chair to be confronted by one whose aspect made her -instinctively shrink back. The keen and hawk-like eyes of Beatrix -Gilruth were fixed upon her with an expression at once menacing, -searching, and scornful. There was something in the wild visage of -this inexplicable woman that excited curiosity, while her air -terrified, and her withered person repelled approach. - -"Who are you, woman?" asked Lilian firmly, as, stepping back a pace, -she surveyed her from head to foot; "and what are you?" - -"_What_ am I?" reiterated the other, with a voice that thrilled, -while her grey eyes gleamed with a blue light, and she ground her -teeth. "I am what thou shalt be, my pretty minx, ere ye leave these -walls, perhaps." - -Lilian, terrified by her aspect and her answer, sank into a chair, -saying, as she clasped her hands, and looked up imploringly from her -bright dishevelled hair-- - -"Woman, for the love of God, say where am I?" - -"In the tower of Clermistonlee." - -"So my soul foreboded; but can _he_ have dared thus far?" - -"What will he not dare that man can do?" - -"O Heaven, protect me!" - -"Neither the Heaven that is above us, nor the Hell that is beneath, -will protect you, pretty one; but you will be made what many as fair -have been,--the toy, the plaything of an hour, to be cast aside when -some new fancy has seized the wayward mind of your lord and betrayer. -Look at that veiled portrait----" - -At that moment three distinct knocks were heard against the almery. -Lilian started and turned pale. - -"Yes, yes," said Beatrix scornfully, addressing the knocker; "you are -impatient. There was a time--but it matters not--I bide mine; and my -long delayed vengeance will wither thee up, false lord, even as if -the lightning of God had scorched thy perjured soul." - -Low as this was uttered, it reached the ears of Lilian; she became -doubly terrified, and a momentary feeling of utter abandonment made -her cover her face with her hands and weep bitterly. But, suddenly -starting up, she said with energy-- - -"I will go hence, madam; and whatever be the danger, I will risk it. -But the snow, the darkness, and the distance--oh, horror!--Aunt -Grisel--gossip Annie--what will they think of this?--what will become -of me?" - -"Stand," said Beatrix, interposing. "Are you mad, to think of -leaving this roof in the middle of a winter night? Remember the -dreary lea of Clermiston, the rocks and the frozen marshes of -Corstorphine, you are fey, maiden, to think it." - -"Begone, thou ill woman," replied Lilian contemptuously; "I will go, -and I dare thee to stay me." - -"Then," rejoined Beatrix spitefully, "remember the barred windows, -the bolted gates, and the good stone walls. Pooh, maiden, take tent -and bide where ye are; for I swear ye can never go from hence, but at -the pleasure of my lord." - -"Insolent! Know ye who I am?" asked Lilian. - -"The young lady of Bruntisfield," answered Beatrix coldly; "a wayward -lass with a braw tocher, it seemeth,--one who prefers a younger cap -and feather than my lord. Ha! hath he not sworn--(and mark me, -maiden, he never swears in vain!)--that he will compel thee yet to -beg his love at his hand as a boon, even as humbly as he now sues -thine." - -"In sooth!" retorted Lilian, with angry surprise. "He will surely -have the aid of some such witch as thee to work so modern a miracle." - -"Witch, quotha!" replied Beatrix, whose withered cheek began to -redden with passion. "Lilian Napier, there was a time when these -grey grizzled locks were once as bright and as glossy as thine; when -this brow was as smooth, this faded form as round, yea, and as -beautiful; this step as light, and this poor face as fair, as thine -now are. So beware thee of taunts, maiden; for the time is coming -(if thou art spared) when thou mayest be loathsome as I now am, and -loathing as I now do. That hour is coming; for Clermistonlee hath an -evil eye, beneath whose baleful influence all that is good and -beautiful in woman will wither and die. Oh! Lilian Napier, what a -tale of love and weakness, shame and misery, sin and horror, would -the history of my life reveal! But my hour of revenge is coming. -Yes----" - -Again three knocks louder than before rang on the almery; and -Beatrix, trembling, ceased to talk, and busied herself in laying a -supper on the hall-table. - -"Oh, Walter! Walter!" murmured Lilian, "if you knew of this--if you -were here to protect me!" Her tears flowed freely. - -"Walter!" reiterated Beatrix musing; "can it really be the same? No, -it is impossible; and yet, why not?--He is your lover, then, this -Walter?" she asked in a low voice, while laying some cold grilled -meat, confections, and wine from a buffet. "I know he is--that blush -tells me (when did my cheek blush last?) He is young and handsome, I -warrant?" - -Lilian nodded an affirmative. - -"And men say he is brave?" - -"Oh, yes! brave as a hero of romance," said Lilian in the same low -tone; for there is nothing so pleasing to love as to hear the object -of it praised. "And so noble--so generous! If true worth gave a -title, my dear Walter would be a belted Earl." - -"Instead of being a poor standard-bearer in the ranks of Dunbarton." - -"You have seen him then?" said Lilian, her blue eyes beaming, as she -almost forgot her present predicament in the thought of her lover. -"Is he not handsome, good woman?" - -"It is the same!" exclaimed Beatrix, in her shrillest tone. "Walter, -the powder-boy--the soldier's brat--hah!"--she ground her teeth, and -clenched her shrivelled hands like knots of serpents--"I bide my -time. Oh, I will be fearfully avenged!" - -A third time there was a knocking on the almery, and Beatrix -muttered-- - -"I am dumb--I will speak no more." - -She pointed to the supper-table, and, throwing herself into a chair, -fixed her sunken eyes upon the red glowing fire, and, lost in her own -wild thoughts, continued to jabber with the rapidity and restlessness -of insanity. It was evident that she was partly deranged,--a -discovery which, while it raised the pity of the gentle Lilian, -increased the dread and the horror of her situation. - -Clermistonlee, with his faithful rascal Juden, were both within -earshot. The former had sufficient tact and experience to know that -it would be better to defer any interview with Lilian until next -morning, by which time he hoped she would be a little more -familiarised with her situation; and leaving Juden, who was ensconced -in the recesses of the almery, to be a check upon the troublesome -garrulity of his only female domestic, he retired to a snug -apartment, where, enveloped in his shag dressing-gown, and comforted -by a great tankard of his favourite mulled sack, and several books of -"ungodly jests," he practised all his philosophy to enable him to -endure this temporary separation from Lilian, consoled by the idea -that she was completely in his clutches, within his strong tower, -which he was entitled to defend against all men living; and well -aware that, in the political storm which in another week would -convulse all Scotland from the Cheviots to Cape Wrath, the abduction -of a girl--more especially the daughter of a "persecuting -cavalier"--would be less regarded than the wind blowing over the muir. - -As the still, quiet night wore on, and the fumes of the wine mounted -into his head, very strange ideas floated through the brain of the -roué. Again and again the thought of Lilian being so utterly in his -power intruded itself upon his heated imagination; he felt his blood -begin to glow; his mind became confused; he endeavoured to combat his -constitutional wickedness, and, by aid of his repeated potations, and -a highly seasoned grillade, dozed away the night very comfortably in -a well-cushioned chair; while his leal henchman was in the same happy -state of oblivion, through the medium of various stoups of ale which -he imbibed in the spence or buttery. - -Not so did poor Lilian pass the slow and heavy hours. - -The repast prepared for her was left untouched, she resisted every -invitation to repose, and resolved on passing the night by the -hall-fire; until, reflecting that she would be quite as safe in one -part of the tower as in another, and wishing to be alone, that she -might weep unseen, she was ushered by Beatrix up a narrow stair into -a little sleeping apartment, the greater part of which was occupied -by a great hearse-looking tester, or canopy bed. The only light in -the chamber came from the fire-place, where a heap of logs and coals -were blazing, and diffusing a warm glow on the dark wainscotted -walls, the oaken floor, and rude ceiling, which was crossed by a -massive dormant-tree of oak, covered with grotesque and hideous -carving. - -There was something very gloomy and catafalcque-like in the aspect of -the gigantic bed in which Lilian was to repose; its massive posts of -dark oak and darker ebony were covered embossage, and the deep -crimson curtains, with heavy fringes, fell in shadowy festoons, while -four great plumes of feathers surmounted the corners in sepulchral -grandeur. It stood upon a raised dais of three steps, and on the -back, amid a wilderness of bassi-relievi, flowers, angels, satyrs, -and ivy, appeared the coronet and gorgeous blazon of Clermistonlee. - -"I cannot sleep here, good woman," said Lilian shuddering; but the -noise of the closing door, and the bolt jarring outside, was her only -reply. She found herself alone. Her first impulse was to fasten her -door within securely; her second to examine the chamber, by the light -of the fire. In the deep little window stood a beautiful cabinet, on -the upper part of which were a mirror and all the usual appurtenances -for a lady's toilet, but of the most costly and elegant description, -with all the perfumes, oils, essences and lotions then most in vogue. -She turned from them with disgust to survey the walls, for the fear -of secret entrances was impressed powerfully upon her mind by her -knowledge of the number that existed in her own home; but, upon -examination, she found nothing to increase her dread, save the -cabinet, the doors of which were locked, and returned an unusually -hollow sound when she touched them. - -Alternately a prey to fear and indignation, she walked about the -little apartment, or sat by the fire weeping and praying, until sleep -began to oppress her; and, unable longer to resist its effects, with -an audible supplication to Heaven that the morrow might bring about -her release, she threw herself (without undressing) on the bed, and -almost immediately fell fast asleep. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -HOW CLERMISTONLEE PRESSED HIS SUIT. - -A strong dose of love is worse than one of ratafia; when once it gets -into our heads it trips up our heels, and then good night to -discretion. THE LYING VALET. - - -From an uneasy slumber that had been disturbed by many a painful -dream, Lilian started, awoke, and leaped from the bed. The embers of -the night fire still smouldered on the hearth stone, and the rays of -the red sun rising above a gorge in the Corstorphine hills, radiated -through her grated window as through a focus. Pressing her hands -upon her temples, she endeavoured to collect the scattered images -that had haunted her sleep. She had dreamt of Walter. He seemed to -be present in that very chamber, to stand by her gloomy bed, and -smiled kindly and fondly as of old. He bent over to kiss her, but -lo! his features turned to those of Lord Clermistonlee; the great -tester bed with its plumage and canopy became a hearse; she screamed -and awoke to find it was day. - -Now all her former fear and indignation revived in full force, and -she wept passionately. Reflecting how completely she was at the -mercy of Clermistonlee, whose character for reckless ferocity, and -steady obstinacy of purpose, she knew too well; she resolved to -endure with patience, and await with caution an opportunity for -release or escape. How little she knew of what was acting in -Edinburgh! And her beloved kinswoman, so revered, so tender, and -affectionate, but so aged and infirm. - -"O horror!" exclaimed Lilian, wringing her hands, "this must have -destroyed her." - -"Open Madam Lilian," said the voice of Beatrix Gilruth, as she -knocked at the door; "open, my lord awaits you at breakfast in the -hall." - -Lilian hesitated; but aware that resistance would not better her -fortune, with her usual frankness ran to the door, opened it, and -despite the repulsive sternness of Gilruth's aspect, impelled by a -sense of loneliness, and a wish to gain her friendship, she bade her -good morning, and lightly touched her hand. Her air of innocence and -candour impressed the misanthropic heart of Beatrix, and she smiled -kindly. While leading her before the mirror to assist in arraying -her for breakfast, the bosom of the unfortunate castaway could not -repress a sigh, and a scanty tear trembled in either eye, as she -writhed her withered fingers in the soft masses of Lilian's hair. - -"I will shew thee my bairn what a braw busker I am," said Beatrix, -"though 'tis long since these poor fingers have had aught to do with -top-knots and fantanges." - -Resigned and careless of what was done with her, Lilian remained with -a pale face of placid composure and grief, gazing unconsciously upon -her own beautiful image as reflected in the polished mirror; and -though she marked it not, there was a vivid and terrible contrast -between her statue-like features, and those of her tire-woman--keen, -attenuated, and graven with the lines of sorrow, rage, bitterness, -and misanthropy; the true index of that storm of evil passions and -resentful thoughts that smouldered in her heart. - -At length the captive was arrayed so far as the skill of Beatrix -would go; her dress (that in which she had left home) was long, -flowing, and heavily flounced in the French fashion, derived from -Albert Durer, who represented an angel in flounced petticoats -expelling Adam and Eve from Paradise--hence flounces were all the -rage. She wore long and heavy ruffles of the richest lace, a string -of pearls and amber was twisted among the bright braids of her -beautiful hair; a diamond drop depended from each of her delicate -ears, and a rich necklace like a collar, with a pendant, encircled -her neck, the whiteness and purity of which never appeared in greater -splendour, than when contrasted with the faded skin of poor Beatrix. -Passive under her hands, Lilian allowed her great natural beauty to -be thus dangerously enhanced, and when she stood up, her rather -diminutive stature being increased by her high heeled maroquin shoes, -and the grace with which she wore her commode and floating flounces, -caused the poor woman, whom so many fair ones had successively -supplanted, to utter an exclamation of delight. - -"Come," said she, "my lord awaits you; how pleased he will be." - -"Oh my God!" exclaimed Lilian, in deep anguish; "and was it to please -him you have thus arrayed and attired me. Fie upon thee, ill woman!" - -"Here at least his bidding must be obeyed implicitly, as when a -hundred of his men stabled their horses in the barbican stalls. He -is a dangerous man, hinny, and never tholed thwarting, though the -hour is coming when he shall thole bitter vengeance, and dree the -deepest remorse. But I bide my time--I bide my time." - -As she led Lilian into the hall, Clermistonlee advanced to receive -her, with an imperturbable air of assurance, gallantry, and devotion. -Through one of the deeply recessed windows, the light of the morning -sun fell full upon his noble face and figure, which the richness of -his dress displayed to the utmost advantage. He wore an embroidered -suit of light blue satin slashed with white; he had round his neck -the gold collar of the thistle, and had over his left breast the -green ribbon and oval badge of the order; a diamond hilted rapier -sparkled in a baldrick that was stiff with gold embroidery; his -flowing peruke was redolent of perfume; his ruffles were miracles of -needlework, and his brilliant sleeve buttons flashed whenever his -hands moved. - -Hateful as he was at all times to Lilian, now he was more so than -ever; surprise, indignation, fear, and contempt, agitated her by -turns, and she gazed on him in painful suspense, awaiting his -address. He had evidently made his toilet with more than usual care, -and resolving to give Lilian no time for reproaches, he led her at -once to a seat, saying, - -"My dear girl will no doubt be in a prodigious passion with me, but -ladies are kindly disposed to forgive every little mistake that has -love for its excuse. 'Tis but a dismal old peelhouse this, dear -Lilian, but I hope you slept well. The wind sings in the corridors, -the corbies scream on the roof, and all that, but with a clear -conscience you know, oh yes, one may dose like a top, or a lord of -session. - -"A clear sharp morning this; I rode as far as Craigroyston before -sunrise. There is nothing so improves one's complexion as a gallop -in the morning air. Apropos! what do you think of this embroidered -suit? 'Tis the last fashion from Paris; that old villain Saunders -Snip, in the Craimes, brought it direct from thence last month. On a -good figure it is quite calculated to make an impression. Look'ee, -fair Lilian; these ruffles cost me twenty guineas a pair, not a -tester less I assure you; and the sleeve buttons are the first of -their kind, and were made by Monsieur Bütong, the eminent Parisian -jeweller, for that glorious fop, the Comte d'Artois, who presented -them to a friend of mine in the Scots Archers. - -"But this tie of my overlay, ha! that is a contrivance of my own; -graceful, is it not? exactly--I knew you would think so. Droll, is -it not, that our tastes should be the same? You see, my dear girl, -at what trouble I have been to please you. Smile again, dear -Lilian," continued his lordship, whose overnight potations, the -morning ride had failed quite to dispel; "by Heaven, you look divine: -where shall I find words to compliment the beauty of your appearance -this morning!" - -"You really seem to require all your verbosity for praising yourself, -my lord," said Lilian, coldly. - -"Now--now, do not be so angry," said Clermistonlee, taking her hand -in spite of all her efforts to prevent him. - -"I am justly so, my lord," replied Lilian making a strong effort to -restrain her tears under an aspect of firmness and determination. -"By what right have you dared to bring me here and detain me -prisoner?" - -"Hoity, toity--right dear Lilian? the right of a most devoted lover." - -"My lord, you will be severely punished for this. The law----" - -"Ha, ha! Lilian, there is no law now, no order, morality, nor any -thing else. The world is turned upside down, (at least Britain -is)--revolutionized, bewildered, and the old days of battle and -broil, reiving and rugging, have come back in all their glory. In -this desperate game, my girl," he added, through his clenched teeth, -"Clermistonlee must repair his fortune or be lost for ever; but -enough of this; let us to breakfast, and then we will talk over -matters that lie nearer our hearts. Nay, nay, no refusal--breakfast -you must have." - -He led her towards the long hall table, where, thanks to Juden's -catering and ingenuity, a noble repast was laid, in the profuse -"style of ancient gourmandizing; and the unscrupulous factotum who -stood near with a napkin under his arm, and a long corkscrew in his -hand, surveyed Lilian with something between a smirk and a leer, -which was sufficient to increase the fear that oppressed, and the -anger that swelled within her breast. She withdrew, saying, with a -voice that trembled between indignation and apprehension, - -"Spare me this continued humiliation. Oh my Lord Clermistonlee, if -there remain within your breast, one spark of that bright spirit -which ought ever to be the guiding star of the noble and the -gentleman, you will restore me to my home, to the only relative (save -one) whom death has left me in this wide world. Be generous, my -lord," continued Lilian, touching his hand, with charming frankness; -"Oh be generous, as I know you are brave and reckless. Restore me to -my home, and I pledge my word you will never be questioned concerning -my abduction. I will pass it over as a foolish but daring frolic. -Hear me, my lord, in pity hear me." - -Clermistonlee trembled beneath her gentle touch; but answered with -his usual air of raillery,-- - -"Hoity, toity, little one! art going to read me curtain lectures -already? My dear Lilian, it is too bad really! The abduction? Oh -the ardour of my love will be a sufficient excuse for that; and as to -being questioned--I don't think any person will permit himself to -question me, if he remembers that I am the best hand at pistol, -rapier, and dagger, in broad Scotland. - -"Beside, dear Lilian, (why dost always shrink? dost think child I am -going to eat thee like a rascally ogre) if thou wouldst save thine -honour," here his voice sank involuntarily into an impressive -whisper, "become mine. Thou shouldst be well aware that after living -in the power of one who is so tremendous a roué by habit and repute, -no woman could go forth into the world without lying under suspicions -of a very unpleasant nature. The roisters at Blair's coffee house -have got hold of the story, for it hath made a devil of a noise in -the city, and in the mouths of the Bowhead gossips, and Bess Wynd -scandal-mongers, our little affair will be quite a romance." - -This cruel speech, which was uttered with the utmost coolness and -deliberation by Clermistonlee, who played the while with his gold -sword-knot, came like ice upon the heart of the unhappy Lilian, who -could not but secretly acknowledge that it was too true. She grew -pale as death, and, unable to reply, gazed upon her tormentor with a -look of such intense aversion, that he could not repress a haughty -smile of astonishment. - -"Ha, ha! for what do you take me?" - -"For a monster!" murmured Lilian, in a voice almost inarticulate. - -"Oh--oh! you regard me as a poor sparrow doth a gerfalcon." - -"Alas!" said Lilian, weeping as she sank into a seat, "the simile is -but too true." - -"You are very unpolite, Madam Lilian; a gerfalcon is between the -vulture and the hawk." - -Lilian answered only by her tears, and his lordship began to get a -little provoked. - -"A devil of a breakfast this, my pretty moppet," he continued, with -an air of composure; "when these vapours have passed away, -peradventure you will condescend to hear my addresses--meantime -consider yourself quite at home, and for Heaven's sake (or rather -your own), do take a share of such humble cheer as this my poor house -of Clermiston affords." And without troubling her farther, he threw -back the curls of his peruke, and attacked the devilled duck, the -cold sirloin, and wassail-bowl of spiced ale, the smoking coffee and -hot bannocks forthwith. - -Within the recess of a window, reclined upon the cushion of one of -those stone side-seats so common in old Scottish towers, Lilian sat -with her face covered with her hands, and shaded by the masses of her -fine hair which fell forward over her drooping head. The glory of -the red morning sun streamed full upon her tresses and turned them to -wreaths of gold. She seemed something etherially beautiful, and the -sensual lord felt his heart beat with increased ardour as he gazed on -her from time to time; but aware, from old experience, that it was -useless to press her to partake of his luxurious breakfast, he -resolved to trouble her no more until the first paroxism of her -indignation had evaporated. - -Juden and Beatrix having finished their luggies of porridge and ale -at the lower and uncovered part of the table, were now engaged, the -former in making lures of feathers and raw meat to train two young -hawks that sat near him on a perch, with their long lunes or leashes -coiled round it; and the latter, while affecting to occupy herself -with some household matter, from the bay of an opposite window, -watched with a keen, restless, and often malicious expression, the -nonchalant lord and the unhappy Lilian, for whom, at times, she felt -something akin to pity, and fain would have set her at liberty; but -the keys of the tower gates were buckled to Juden's girdle, and every -window was closed by a grating like a strong iron harrow. - -In the faint hope of some rescue approaching, Lilian gazed earnestly -from the window she occupied. It faced the south, and overlooked the -then dreary waste of Clermiston Lee, which, with all the undulating -country extending to the base of the Pentlands, and that gigantic -range, towering peak above peak, as they diminished in the western -shire of Linlithgow, were covered with one universal mantle of -dazzling snow. Afar off above the hills of Braid the level sun -poured its red rays through a hazy sky across the desolate landscape; -the thickets, bare and leafless, stood like cypress groves in the -waste; the dim winter smoke from many farm-house and cottage lum of -clay, ascended in murky columns into the frosty air, but around the -lonely tower on the Lee, there was an aspect of stillness and -desolation that struck a chill upon Lilian's heart. - -Far off, on the Glasgow road, that passed the picturesque old church, -the thatched hamlet and Foresters' Castle of Corstorphine, a strong -square fortress flanked by round towers, a solitary traveller, -muffled in his furred rocquelaure and leathern gambadoes, or grey -maud and worsted galligaskins (according to his rank), spurred his -horse towards the city; but such occasional passers were all beyond -the reach of Lilian. The bridle-road to the town was hidden, and not -a foot-print stained the spotless mantle of the level Lee. At times -a hare or fox shot across it, from the woods or rocks of -Corstorphine, but no other living thing approached, and the heart of -poor Lilian grew more and more sad as the dreary day wore on, and -night once more approached. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -CLAVERHOUSE TO THE RESCUE. - - The winter cold is past and gone, - And now comes on the spring; - And I am one of the Scots Life Guards, - And I must fight for the King. - My dear! - And I must fight for him! - OLD SONG. - - -By orders from William of Orange, who had taken possession of James's -palace, and issued from thence his sounding declarations and imperial -mandates, Goderdt de Ginckel, with the utmost expedition, marched the -captured Scots towards London, where the Statholder (though he had -not yet been crowned) was intent on revenging, by the lash and -bullet, this signal instance of resistance to his authority. In -consequence of this event; he had the first "Mutiny Act" framed, but -being an edict of the English Parliament it could in no way apply to -Scottish troops. - -Aware of the esprit du corps and indomitable valour of the old -musqueteers, and fearful of revolt or rescue, de Ginckel sent -Lieutenant Gavin twenty other officers and five hundred privates, in -charge of Sir Marmaduke Langstone, direct to London, towards which -place he marched the remainder by another route; keeping near his -person and under sure escort, Lord Dunbarton, Walter Fenton, Finland, -and other officers, whose hostility of spirit was more undisguised -than their comrades, de Ginckel advanced some miles in rear of the -main body of his Black Horsemen. The Earl was destined for the Tower -of London; Walter and his brothers in misfortune for the cells of -Newgate. - -In every town and village through which they were marched, dense mobs -of "the rascal multitude" attended and loaded them with every insult -and opprobrium, such as the vulgar, the cruel, and the wicked are -ever ready to hurl upon the fallen or the unfortunate. Marrowbones -and cleavers were clattered around them; effigies of King James, and -a figure meant to represent a Scotchman, were carried or kicked along -the streets before them, and amid yells and hootings, warming-pans -were everywhere displayed from the windows at their approach; at that -time a famous mode of insulting the Jacobites, being a palpable hit -against the legitimacy of the young Prince of Wales. - -"Fie upon the Scots! Out upon thee, Mon! No warming-pan King! -William for ever, and down to hell with all Scots, Papists, and -Mass-mongers! hurrah!" yelled the rabble on every hand, while vollies -of mud, stones, dead cats, &c., were showered on them from every -hand. Meanwhile their Dutch escort rode on each side with the most -phlegmatic indifference, every man seeming as if fast asleep in his -voluminous breeches and wide jack-boots. - -"Down with the race of Gog--the soldiers of the priests of Baal!" -cried an old puritan; "down with Scots Jemmy and his cursed Jesuits!" - -Weak and exhausted by constant marching, lack of food and sleep; -dispirited by misfortune, and disfigured by mud and their torn and -soiled attire; in the captives no one could have recognized the -dashing cavaliers who passed northward a day or two before. They had -all been deprived of their horses and arms, and been robbed of -everything of value--their cuirasses, purses, rings, &c.--by their -guard. De Ginckel was as brutal and merciless as a Carrib Indian, -and repeatedly struck the unfortunate cavaliers with his -speaking-trumpet. - -"Ach Gott!" he often cried to his Ruyters; "if von ob de brisoners -escape, ye shall answer for him, body for body, by cast ob dice on de -kettle-trum-head!" - -"My good comrades, and gallant gentlemen," said the Earl of Dunbarton -to the little group that marched around him, "were it not that I feel -in my heart assured that an hour of vengeance and retribution will -come, I would die of sheer spleen and mortification, for the insults -we are compelled to put up with." - -"I pity these bluff-headed Saxon boors, because they know no better," -replied Walter, staggering, as a stone struck him on the temple; "but -De Ginckel----" - -"My dear fellow," said Finland, bitterly, "'tis a sample of the good -old southern hospitality and kindness of which we hear so much in -romance, and so little in history." - -"But," continued Walter, "I despise these poppy-headed Dutch -poltroons in their black iron doublets, and would risk my share of -Heaven to have De Ginckel under my hands on Scottish ground, with -none to interfere, and no weapons but our rapiers and a case of good -pistols." - -"You speak my thoughts," said the Earl, through his clenched teeth. -"My malediction on Langstone and his Red Dragoons. Had they and such -as they been good men and true, we had not been reduced to this -misfortune; and our misguided King, instead of being a houseless -fugitive, had dwelt in Windsor still, where now the usurping -Stadtholder keeps Court and Council. Sirs, of a verity we live in -strange times!" - -As they had now crossed the Nen, had left behind old Peterborough -(with the hoary fane where St. Oswald's bony arm worked miracles of -old), and were marching through the open country, being free from the -yells and missiles of the mob, they could converse with tolerable -freedom, though at times De Ginckel thundered silence through his -trumpet, or a Swart Ruyter, more waggish or wickedly inclined than -his soporific comrades, pushed his horse sidelong to tumble one of -the captives among the half-frozen mud that encumbered the roadways. -Their mortification and dejection increased at every step of their -retrograde march, and even the lively sallies of Dr. Joram failed to -enliven them. - -The sombre evening was closing, when De Ginckel, with his Ruyters and -their captives, after traversing the fenny district between Cambridge -and Lincoln, came in sight of Huntingdon, where, as Dr. Joram -remarked, "the devil's god-son, that prime rascal, old Noll, first -drew breath." The dying light of the winter sun tipped the spires of -the ancient town-hall and the church of All Saints, and glimmered on -the sluggish windings of the Ouse. The prisoners were pursuing a -lonely road; on one side lay a thick copsewood, and on the other one -of those wide and desolate fens then subject to the inundations of -the Ouse, whose waters in many places formed deep and solitary meres -or tarns. Within the recesses of the wood, the quick eye of Walter -had soon detected the glitter of arms, to which he drew the attention -of the Earl. - -"It matters not," replied the dejected noble, "no arms now glitter -under James's standard; we are lost men, my dear lad. It will be -black tidings for my little Lætitia, when the accursed Tower of -London holds the last Lord of Dunbarton." - -"And what thinkest thou, Walter, our dear lassies will say when they -hear we are in Newgate?" asked Finland. - -"'Twill be rare news for the Lord Clermistonlee," replied Walter, in -a fierce whisper. "But look, gentlemen!--behold! In Heaven's name, -are these friends or foes?" - -As he spoke, a troop of horse, clad in brilliant armour, with their -white plumes waving in the evening wind, and their long uplifted -rapiers flashing in the setting sun, and all gallantly mounted on -matchless black horses, filed forth from the coppice, and drew up -like magic on the roadway, about a hundred yards in advance of the -Swart Ruyters, who instantly reined-up. One cavalier, splendidly -accoutred, rode to the front, wheeled round his snorting horse that -pawed the air, and issued his orders with stern rapidity-- - -"Gentlemen of the Scottish Guard, prepare to charge! Uncase the -standards! Sound trumpets!" - -The banneroles were unfurled, the trumpets sounded, the kettle-drums -ruffled, and each brave cavalier pressed forward in the saddle, as if -impatient for the order to rush to the charge. - -"Ach tuyfel!" shouted De Ginckel through his trumpet; "Scots' -Horse--der tuyfel! Sabre de brisoners--cut dem into de towsand -becies! Fall on, you Schelms!" But there was no time. - -"'Tis Claverhouse, and the remains of his regiment. I would know his -black steed among a thousand horse!" exclaimed the Earl. "Now God be -with thee, thou gallant Grahame, for at last our hour of vengeance is -come! Oh for a sword! How gallantly they formed line! Now, now! -forward, my Scottish hearts!" - -The dark eyes of the proud Douglas gleamed with fire, as the deep and -distinct order, "Cavaliers of the Life Guard--forward! _charge!_" -burst from the lips of Dundee; and with the force of a whirlwind, the -sixty Scottish Guardsmen, bridle to bridle and boot to boot, rushed -with their uplifted swords to the onset. - -"Unsling carbines--blow matches--fire!--tousand tuyfels!--no!--traw -sworts!" bellowed De Ginckel through his trumpet, as the front rank -of his Ruyters recoiled in confusion on the rear. - -"Gentlemen, prepare to save yourselves!" exclaimed the Earl of -Dunbarton, as the Dutch troopers cast off the cords that bound the -prisoners to their waist-belts. - -"Heaven save us!" ejaculated Dr. Joram; "'tis a perilous case this, -truly!" - -"To the rescue, Claverhouse! A Grahame! A Grahame! God for -Scotland and James VII.! To the devil with the Stadtholder! hurrah!" -cried the Life Guards. - -It was a critical moment for the dismounted prisoners, who were -hemmed in among the hostile horsemen, and each felt his heart beat -like lightning, and his breath come thick and fast, for death or -deliverance were at hand. - -Between the close files of the Swart Ruyters, Walter Fenton saw the -full rush of the advancing troop, in their shining harness, and chief -of all, the lordly Viscount of Dundee, a lance-length in front, with -his sword brandished aloft, and his white ostrich-feathers streaming -behind him, his cheek glowing, and his wild dark eyes flashing with -that supernatural brightness which was the true index of his fierce -and heroic spirit. Though the Dutch were as four to one, the -Scottish cavaliers were fearless. - -There was a tremendous shock--a flashing of swords, as their keen -edges rang on the tempered helmets and corslets of proof--a furious -spurring of horses--and Walter felt himself beaten to the earth, as -if by the force of a thunderbolt; the light left his eyes, and he -heard the voice of Claverhouse exclaiming enthusiastically-- - -"Well done, my Scots' Life Guard! Well done, my berry-brown blades!" - -"Come on, De Ginckel!" cried Holsterlee. - -"Hand to hand, old gorbelly. Come on! for here are the hand and -sword that shall punch a hole in thine Earl's patent!" - -A heavy hoof struck the head of Walter, as a horse plunged over him, -and the Dutch recoiled in utter confusion. - -He remembered no more. - -Hewn down by the long swords of the Ruyters, poor old Wemyss and -Halbert Elshender lay dead beside him. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE SECRET STAIR. - - Chloris! since first our calm of peace - Was frighted hence, this good we find, - Your favours with your fears increase, - And growing mischiefs make you kind. - EDMUND WALLER. - - -Heavily and slowly passed the cloudy winter day at Clermiston, and -evening found Lilian seated, full of tears and misery, by the great -fire that rumbled in the arched chimney, and threw a ruddy glow on -the rough architecture of the ancient hall. According to old -etiquette, there were but two chairs, one for the lord of the manor -and the other for his lady; the additional seats were mere stools. -Lilian occupied one of these chairs, and her suitor the other. On -one of the stone benches within the ingle sat Juden Stenton still -trimming hawks' lures; opposite was Beatrix, spinning with all the -assiduity of Arachnè. These from time to time regarded her with -furtive glances, which roused her anger not less than the presence -and odious attentions of their lord did her apprehension. She felt a -load accumulating on her breast, as the night wore on; anxiety was -impairing her strength and weakening her fortitude, and whenever -Clermistonlee addressed her, she answered only by tears. Touched at -last by her sorrow, a sentiment of generosity at times would prompt -him to return her to her home; but other thoughts came with greater -power, and the momentary weakness was immediately dismissed. - -"Psha!" thought he; "'tis only a woman." - -Sitting close by her, he spoke from time to time in a low voice; and -the scorn, malice, and jealousy which lighted up the keen grey eyes -and pinched features of the fallen and forgotten Beatrix on these -occasions, filled the gentle Lilian with a horror and pity which she -could not conceal. The presence of this unfortunate woman, who, with -the indefatigable Juden, formed now his entire household, was a curb -for the present on the vivacity of his lordship's passion, and seemed -to restrain it within the decorous bounds of gentle whispering. He -soon tired of that, and ordering supper to be laid, took advantage of -the domestic's absence to draw his chair still nearer Lilian, and -take her hands within his own. She was so humbled, so gentle and -broken in spirit, that she permitted them to remain, and the -passiveness of the action made the heart of Clermistonlee glow with -additional ardour. - -"She loves me in secret," thought he; "but how charming is her -coyness--how enchanting her modesty! My dear Lilian--" - -"My Lord, oh cease to persecute me thus. What wrong have I done you? -In what have I offended, that you should make me so utterly -miserable?" - -"What a soft, low, charming voice! Does it offend you, to hear the -sighs of the most honourable love that ever warmed a human heart?" - -"This is the mere cant of love-making--flirtation--the phrases you -have addressed to hundreds. My Lord, I know their full value, and -despise them. 'Tis enough! I can have no love for you." - -"Indeed!" - -"None--so for heaven sake spare me more of this humiliation, and let -me begone to the house of Bruntisfield." - -"Now what strange infatuation is this? No love for me?" mused the -egotist. "Why, damsel, when I was in London with Charles, all the -women were mad about me--I was quite the rage. Rochester and I led -the way in everything. But that was before Bothwell Brig." He -glanced at a veiled picture that often attracted his eye, and -disturbed the current of his thoughts. "No love for me," he resumed, -after a pause. "My pretty one, does my zeal offend you?" - -"Like your flattery, it does; and my captivity here--a captivity -which, I fear, will ever be a stain upon my honour, makes me abhor -you." - -"Abhor? Oh! 'tis a word never said to me before. Provoking Lilian! -But," he added, maliciously, "you are right--your honour is lost, and -there is only one way to redeem it." - -She gave him a momentary glance of inquiry and disdain. -Clermistonlee drew a ring from his finger. Lilian started back. - -"Never--never! death were better." - -"Hah--then you are still thinking of him--this beggarly boy--this -nameless soldier--this so-named Fenton. 'Tis a cursed infatuation, -Madam; for doubtless, soldierlike he will forget you, while the -flower of your youth is wasted in fruitless reliance on his constancy -and advancement to honour and fortune." - -"Forget me?" reiterated Lilian, raising her bright blue eyes to the -speaker. "Oh no, he never will forget me! Dear, dear Walter," she -added, weeping bitterly; "I know thy worth and truth too well to lose -my own." - -"He will forget thee," said Clermistonlee, angrily. - -"Never!" replied Lilian, energetically clasping her hands. "In the -busy city and on the lonely hills, in the hour of battle and storm by -sea and land, he will ever think of me--ever, ever!" - -"But he may be slain?" said the lord maliciously. - -"Cruel--cruel!" - -"What then--hah?" - -"No second choice would ever make me violate the solemn vow I pledged -to him--that plight which I called on heaven to witness and angels to -register." - -Clermistonlee made no reply, but her fervour and her words stung him -to the soul; her eyes sparkled and her usually pale cheek glowed; but -he knew that it was for the love and by the recollection of another; -his first thoughts were those of wrath; his second spleen and sorrow. -He arose and stepped aside a little. - -"Unfortunate that I am!" said he, with something of sadness and real -love in his tone and manner. "By what witchcraft am I so hateful to -her; but I must quit her presence for a time at least, or lose all -hope of her favour for ever." - -He walked to and fro, while Lilian, resigned again to tears, covered -her face with her handkerchief. - -"Beatrix," said Clermistonlee, in a fierce whisper to the shrinking -woman, as she laid supper on the long dark oaken board, over which -six tall waxen candles flared from a great iron candelabrum. -"Beatrix Gilruth--hear me, old shrivel-skin! Hast never a love -philtre about thee? Ere now I have known thee to my own cost use -such things." - -She gave a keen and fierce glance with her sunken eyes, and drawing -him into one of the deeply bayed windows, pointed to where the square -keep and round towers of the castle of Corstorphine threw a long dark -shadow across the frozen lake that, like a mirror before its gates, -lay shining in the cold light of the winter moon. - -"You see yonder castle?" she said. - -"Yes." - -"And the aged sycamore beside the dovecot-tower?" - -"Yes--yes." - -"Then remember how, nine years ago, the lord of that fair mansion -perished under its shadow; and how his own good rapier, urged by the -hand of the woman he had wronged, was driven--yea, to the very -hilt--in his false and fickle heart. Often at mirk midnight have I -seen the dead-light glimmering on his tomb in St. John's kirk, and -illuminating the west window of the Forresters' aisle." - -She gave him a glance so expressive of hatred, fear, contempt, and -reproach that he almost quailed beneath it; and as she pointed to the -veiled portrait, he turned abruptly away. Her words and allusion had -evidently a deep effect on Clermistonlee. He was about to retire, -but paused irresolutely, turned, and paused again. Then kissing -Lilian's hand, he said in a gentle tone-- - -"Forgive me if I have offended, but love for you makes me perhaps act -unwisely. Adieu, dear Lilian: if my presence is obnoxious, I hasten -to relieve you of it. Till to morrow, adieu; and pleasant dreams to -you." - -He bowed profoundly, and retired to his own apartment followed by -Juden, who kept close to his heels as a spaniel would have done. - -"Will you not sup, Madam Lilian?" asked Beatrix in a kinder tone than -usual. - -"Sup--oh, no!" - -"Bethink you, lady; the whole day hath passed, and you have tasted -nothing but a posset of milk with a little sack. Still weeping! -'Twas so with me once; but I shall never weep again, until I have -wrung tears of blood from my betrayer." - -"Now you are going to frighten me again. A light, if it please you, -good woman; I will retire. Another night under his roof! My poor -aunt Grisel.... how bad, how wicked is this!" - -"My lord desired me to ask if you wished to read a little: it may -compose your mind." - -"Oh, yes!--a thousand thanks, kind Beatrix. Bring me a Bible, if you -have one." - -Beatrix laughed. - -"A Bible! when was one last seen in the tower of Clermiston? Not -since the days of auld Mess John, I warrant; and his was torn up by -the troopers for cartridges. There is nothing here but a rowth of -evil play and jest books, and some anent hawking, hunting, and -farriery, and others, my bairn, that suit only--women like me." - -"Poor Beatrix!" said Lilian kindly, touching her hand, for the -exceeding humility of her manner raised all her pity. Beatrix -surveyed her for a moment, with a troubled and dubious expression. -Seldom was it that a word of compassion or commiseration fell upon -her ear. Her heart was touched; a moisture suffused her eyes; but, -fearing to betray her feelings through the outward aspect of -moroseness and misanthropy she had assumed, she set a light upon the -cabinet of the bedchamber, and hurried away. - -Again, as on the preceding night, Lilian fastened the door; and -though the number and complication of its ancient iron locks somewhat -reassured her, her heart sank when she surveyed the great gloomy -tester-bed, with its dais, its solemn plumage and festooned -canopy--the sombre wainscotting, and well-barred window, past which -the changing clouds were hurrying in scudding masses, alternately -obscuring and revealing stars. Kneeling at a chair near the fire, -she prayed long and fervently, and, with innocent confidence, arose -more assured and courageous, though aware that, by anxiety, want of -food and rest, her natural strength and spirit were greatly impaired. -A folio volume lay upon the cabinet; it was covered with purple -velvet, on which a coat of arms and these words were exquisitely -embroidered:--"Alison, Lady Clermistonlee, on her marriage day, ye -penult Maij, 1668." - -The hand of her tormentor's unhappy wife had probably worked these -words; all the dark and mysterious stories concerning her misfortunes -and her fate came crowding upon the mind of Lilian, and filled her -with melancholy forebodings. Perhaps, thought she, this was her -chamber, and that her bed, where often she had wept away the dreary -night in unseen and unregarded sorrow. Full of mournful interest, -she unclasped and opened the volume. It was the "Bentivolio and -Urania" of Nathaniel Ingelo, one of the prosy and metaphorical -romances of the seventeenth century. The first words arrested her, -and she read on. - -"He was no sooner entered within the borders of the forlorn kingdom -of Ate, than the unhealthfulness of the air had almost choked his -vital spirits; and being removed from the gladsome sun by a chain of -hills, that lifted up their heads so high that they intercepted the -least glance of his comfortable beams: it was dark and rueful. He -chanced to light upon a path that led to Ate's house, which was -encompassed with the pitchy shade of cypresse and ebon trees, so that -it looked like the region of death. As he walked, he perceived the -hollow pavement made with the skulls of murdered wretches. At the -further end of this dismal walk he espied a court, whose gates stand -open day and night; in the midst whereof was placed the image of -cruelty, with a cup of poyson in one hand, and a dagger wet with -reeking bloode in the other. Her hairs crawled up and down her neck, -and sometimes wreathed about her head in knots of snakes; fire all -the while sparkling from her mouth and eyes......" - -This dismal passage in no way tended to alleviate the perturbation of -her spirits; and, hastily closing the volume, she prepared to retire. -Aware that proper repose was absolutely necessary to enable her to -sustain all she might have to encounter or endure from Clermistonlee, -remembering the apparent security of her apartment, and somewhat -reassured by the cheerful blaze thrown by the fire upon the dark -brown panelling and high old-fashioned bed, she slowly and -reluctantly began to undress, often pausing to re-examine her room; -but, perceiving nothing more to alarm her, gathering up the bright -tresses of her hair into a caul, she unrobed and sprang into bed. -The sleep and the heaviness that preyed upon her now completely -evaporated; and, more awake than ever, she felt only the keenest -sensations of fear, and her prevailing horror was Clermistonlee. By -the light of the wood fire, that poured its broad blaze up the -massive stone chimney, she surveyed the room with watchful eyes, that -ached from the very intensity of their gaze, and the shadows of the -carved posts seemed like those of giants thrown against the panelled -wall. - -Weariness overcame her, and she was about to drop asleep, when a -sound was heard, and one of the doors of the cabinet rattled and -opened; a cold wind blew upon her face; and by her recumbent -position, she beheld a steep staircase winding away down into -darkness she knew not where, between the masonry of the massive wall. -She would have screamed, but terror chained her tongue; and almost -fainting, and afraid to move or breathe, she continued to regard it -with the most painful anguish and intense alarm. But up that dark -and mysterious outlet, so suddenly disclosed, no sound came but the -night wind, which moved the oak door of the cabinet mournfully to and -fro. - -Lilian's strength seemed utterly to have left her; and, though -painfully anxious to learn the secrets of this staircase, which -communicated so immediately with her bedchamber, she lacked equally -strength to rise, and presence of mind to examine it. - -But the current of air that swayed the door to and fro, closed it; -the sound rumbled away in the far echoes of the tower, and all became -still. Now more alarmed by the reflection that she was sleeping in -this remote room alone, with a secret entrance, she bitterly -regretted her imprudence in undressing, but had not the courage to -rise and repair what a certain prophetic apprehension made her fear -had been very unwise. - -Excessive lassitude at last completely overcame her, and she -slumbered. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -THE ATTEMPT. - - Once in a lone and secret hour of night, - When every eye was closed, and the pale moon - And stars alone shone conscious of the theft, - Hot with the Tuscan grape, and high in blood, - Haply I stole unheeded to her chamber. - FAIR PENITENT. - - -When Clermistonlee retired from the hall to the study or parlour, -which was the only comfortably furnished apartment in the dreary old -tower, he resigned himself to reflection, and sipping his mulled -sack, a great tankard of which Juden placed unbidden, and quite as a -matter of course, at his elbow. His thoughts at first ran in the -usual channel,--a determination to possess Lilian, from the double -incentives of passion and pecuniary necessity. He was on the brink -of ruin; and her property, or expectations of it, were ample and -noble. She was very unprotected; the land was convulsed and -trembling on the verge of a great civil war, though as yet no tidings -had reached Edinburgh of what was passing in England; and so, as the -sack diminished in the tankard, his lordship's thoughts became in -proportion more strange, more amorous, and confused. His brain -wandered. He was restless and uneasy; his flowing dressing-gown -seemed to fit him like a horse-hair shirt; and his disturbed manner -was not unobserved by his faithful and subservient factotum. - -The latter attempted some consolation, after his fashion; but it was -not palatable. - -"Begone to the bartizan!" exclaimed his master, angrily, "and bring -me instant tidings if anything seems astir in the country about us. -I expect news from the city hourly. Leave me." - -Juden vanished. - -"The deevil tak' lovers and lords!" he muttered, as he drew his broad -worsted bonnet over his cross visage, and ascended to the bartizan of -the tower, and setting his teeth hard, as he faced the keen north -wind, took a survey of the dreary and snow-covered landscape. On the -passing wind ten o'clock came sullenly from the spire of St. John of -Corstorphine; then all was deathly still save the sough of the winter -breeze as it swept over the dreary Lee, and whistled through the open -corbells of the projecting tower. - -Juden had no particular fancy for enacting the part of warder in so -cold a night, and after taking a rapid survey of the extensive waste, -he was about to descend again, when an unusual redness in the sky to -the eastward arrested him. It rose in the direction of the city, and -resembled the lurid and wavering glow of a great conflagration. The -red blaze was rapidly spreading and crimsoning the edges of the dusky -clouds above, and throwing forward in strong relief the southern edge -of the Corstorphine Kills, and the dark pines that shaded them. -Astonished, perplexed, and alarmed, Juden continued to gaze in the -direction of the light, until a loud hollo startled him, and he -perceived a man on horseback close to the foot of the tower. - -"Ho!" cried Juden through his hand, for the wind blew keen and high. -"What want ye, friend?" - -"No a night's lodging, or I wadna come here," answered the other -testily. "Closed gates and dark windows betoken cauld cheer and a -caulder ingle." - -"Beware o' your tongue, friend," replied the butler from aloft. -"Langer lugs than yours hae been nailed to the tower yett. You have -come frae Edinburgh I warrant?" - -"Troth have I, on the spur, man, so open the yett, Juden Stenton." - -"What's a' the steer there this night?" - -"Gif you had been there ye wad ken," responded the other with sulky -importance. "I bear a letter for my Lord Clermistonlee on the king's -service, which king Gude kens and the Deil cares." - -"Thir are kittle times, friend," replied the butler, warily; "so if -King James himsel' came to the peel o' Clermiston this mirk night, -not a bolt would be drawn, or a lock undone. Tie the letter to this -twine, gossip, and sae gang your way in peace." - -Rendered cautious by the nature of the times, and by being constantly -on the alert against force and treachery, the wary old servitor -lowered over the wall a string, to which after sundry curses the -horseman tied a letter, and Juden towed it up, "hand over hand." - -"Ill folk are aye feared," said the stranger; "and I doubt there are -but few clear consciences in Clermistonlee. My horse is sair -forfoughton wi' my ride frae the West Port; he fell at the Foulbrigs, -and was nigh swept awa' when fording the Leith doon by there; but I -maun een ride on to his honor the Laird o' Niddry without a stirrup -cup or a 'God save ye.' Out upon Clermiston and its ill-mannered -loons!" and dashing spurs into his horse, the servant galloped at a -hunting pace away to the westward, and disappeared among the hollows -at the verge of the Lee. - -Anxious to learn the contents of a letter in which he doubted not he -had as much interest as his Lord, Juden hurried down the corkscrew -stair from the bartizan, and repairing to the little study where his -half-muddled master was gazing dreamily into the fire, and imbibing -his sixth cup of sack, he placed the little square billet before him. -Clermistonlee tore it open, and read hurriedly, - -"Dear Gossip, - -"A glorious revolution hath been accomplished, (and I am just -drinking to its success in sugared brandy,) but Satan seems to have -broken loose in the city, whilk the rascal sort hath fired in six -different places. The acts of Estate and Council are mere nullities. -Your presence is required by the Council anent ane address to the new -king. We are to have a grand onslaught to-morrow against Baal's -prophets, the Host of Pharaoh, and a' that, ye ken. - - "Yrs. at service, - "MERSINGTON." - -"_Postscriptum_.--Keep the bonnie bird in the cage close; her kinsman -Napier hath been slain by young Fenton, and ye know how the entail -stands. Vale! King William the Second of Scotland for ever!" - -Clermistonlee's first impulse was to start up and buckle on his -sword, exclaiming, - -"My gambadoes, Juden; the red leather ones--saddle Meg, and, peril of -thy life, look well to--but no--no! I will not. Thou mayest go to -the devil, Mersington, with thy drunken scrawl, the address, and the -Council to boot. I leave not Clermiston to-night. Napier slain--and -by Fenton! By George, how the plot is thickening! 'Tis glorious. -Juden, don your shabble, and ride to the city; tell my gossip -Mersington in the _matter_ pending, mark me, knave! in the matter -pending to use my name as he shall deem fitting." - -Juden replied by a leer of deep cunning (for he too was something of -a politician), and, animated by an intense curiosity to know what was -acting in the city, hurried away, and in ten minutes had left far -behind him the dreary tower and frozen muir, above which its dark -outline reared like that of a spectre. - -As the fumes of the wine mounted upward, the heated imagination and -inflamed passions of Clermistonlee got completely the better of his -senses. Thoughts of Lilian's beauty and helplessness came vividly -before him; but such reflections instead of kindling his pity, roused -all his passion for her to an ungovernable height. Draining a cup of -brandy to make him yet more reckless of consequences, and snatching a -candle, he staggered from the room, and descended the narrow stone -stair that led from his apartment. - -He knew that he was alone, for Beatrix was under lock and key; yet he -stepped with singular caution. Every stone in the rough walls seemed -a grotesque face, regarding him with mockery and wrath; he saw a -figure in every shadow, heard a step in every whistle of the midnight -wind. He dared not look at portraits as he passed, lest their eyes -might seem to move; and thus, though the entire consciousness of his -dark intent came broadly and appallingly home to his heart, such was -the influence of his ungoverned passions that a spirit of the merest -obstinacy urged him to finish what he in part commenced, and the high -pulsations of his heart increased at every step which brought him -nearer to the chamber of his victim. - -He entered the hall. The feeble rays of his upheld candle seemed -only to reveal the size and darkness of the place, and the grey -winter twilight that struggled through its thickly grated and -deeply-arched windows. The embers of the fire still smouldered on -the hearth, and, reddening when the hollow wind rumbled down the wide -chimney, threw the shadows of the great oaken table, the dark -grotesque cabinets and highbacked chairs in long and frightful -figures on the paved floor. - -Entering the almonry, he opened a door, within it, which revealed a -narrow passage in the wall that communicated with the secret outlets -of the place, and led directly to the cabinet in Lilian's room. - -He stood within it, and the warmth of its atmosphere increased the -ferment of his blood. Unconscious of the proximity of so dangerous a -visitor, the innocent girl slept soundly, but lightly. - -Shading the light with his hand, he gazed impatiently upon the -slumbering beauty. - -Her hair, which overnight she had put up with the carelessness so -natural to grief, had now escaped from the caul, and rolled over the -pillow in masses that glittered like gold in the rays of the -uncertain light. She was very pale, but a slight glow began to -redden her cheek, and it was graced with a smile of inexpressible -sweetness. - -Twice he approached, and twice drew back irresolute. - -An unseen hand seemed to restrain him; the air of perfect innocence -pervading the presence of the sleeping girl protected her for a time; -and scarcely daring to breathe, the intruder continued to gaze upon -her. She slept softly. At last, tears fell over her cheeks, and she -tenderly murmured-- - -"Dear Walter, have I not said that I love you?" - -Clermistonlee, on whose bent-down cheek her soft breath came, started -at these words as if a serpent had stung him. One of those fierce, -malicious, and scornful smiles, which so often imparted to his -handsome features a fiendish expression, contracted them but for a -moment; another of intense sadness and languor replaced it. At that -instant, unable longer to restrain himself, he clasped her in his -arms. - -"Lilian!" he exclaimed, "dear Lilian, be not alarmed--it is I." - -A piercing shriek, that startled the furthest recesses of the old and -desolate tower, burst from the lips of Lilian; it was one of those -deep and wailing cries of pain and horror which, when once heard, are -never forgot. - -"Villain, unhand me! Oh! spare me, my Lord--spare me for the love of -God!" - -"Be calm, Lilian--why should you fear me? Do I not adore you? Yes; -I prize your love beyond the possession of life. Dear girl, look not -on me thus. I am the most devoted of lovers, and by this kiss, -dearest----d--nation!" - -He attempted to kiss her; but, endued with new strength by rage and -fear, her little hands clutched fiercely his thick mustachios, and -twisted his head aside, as she had done once before so effectually. - -"Hear me!" he continued, "hear me, sweet Lilian; I came but to say -that I loved thee----." - -"Love me! oh! horror!--leave me, or I shall expire--leave me!" - -At that moment a loud explosion, followed by the fanfare of trumpets -and the ruffling of kettle-drums beneath the walls of the tower -arrested all the faculties of Clermistonlee, and by throwing his -thoughts into another channel, covered him with shame; and he started -back, the image of astonishment and irresolution. - -Not so Lilian; her presence of mind was instantly restored. -Springing to a window, and fearlessly dashing her hands through the -panes of glass, she cried in agonized accents-- - -"Help! help! for the love of the blessed God! Help me, or I perish!" - -"Lilian! Lilian!" cried a voice that filled her with transport. It -was that of Walter Fenton. - -A glance sufficed to show her a gallant troop of horse halted beneath -the tower in the grey morning twilight. Again she would have spoken, -but the strong hand of Clermistonlee dragged her furiously back into -the apartment. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -EDINBURGH--THE NIGHT OF THE REVOLUTION. - - Meanwhile, regardless of the royal cause, - His sword for James no brother sov'raign draws. - The Pope himself, surrounded with alarms, - To France his bulls, to Corfu sends his arms; - And though he hears his darling son's complaint, - Can hardly spare one tutelary saint. - TICKELL, Edit. 1749. - - -From the hour in which Lilian had been torn from her, the ased Lady -Grisel had never raised her head. Affection and horror, wrath and -insulted pride, had all aggravated to the utmost the weakness and -debility consequent to exceeding old age; and by her weeping -domestics the venerable dame was borne to her great chair in the -Chamber-of-Dais, where she remained long insensible to all that -passed around her. - -The storm and hurry of political events employed otherwise Sir Thomas -Dalyel and those friends who might have served her in this dilemma; -and now she found herself quite deserted. - -Syme the baillie, and the whole male population of the barony had -fruitlessly searched the Burghmuir for the remainder of the night and -morning; but, for reasons which will shortly be apparent, any -application to the Privy Council or magistrates of Edinburgh would -have been utterly futile, as their attention was amply occupied by -more important matters than the abduction of a girl. - -Long fits of stupor, succeeded by querulous bursts of passion, left -the poor old lady so weak, that, as Elsie related to Sir Thomas of -Binns, "between the night and morning, she cried on Sir Archibald _to -save_ her doo Lilian; and then she just soughed awa like a blink o' -the sunshine, and lay back under her canopy in the Chaumer-o'-Deese, -a comely corpse to see as ever was streekit." - -The old lady did not die, however, but recovered her senses by having -a pistol fired at her ear by the rough old Muscovite trooper, "a cure -for the vapours, whilk," he said, "he had often seen practised on -Samoieda." - -As before related, in consequence of the vigilance of Sir James -Montgomerie, the Privy Council and people of Scotland had been kept -for several weeks in a state of painful uncertainty as to the fate of -James's affairs in England: but a letter from Lord Dundee reached the -Scottish ministry, expressive of apprehensions for the issue of a -conflict between the troops of the King and those of his invader. - -To ascertain the true aspect of affairs, they despatched into England -a man named Brand, a baillie of Edinburgh, who basely betrayed his -trust by carrying his despatches straight to the Prince of Orange, to -whom he was introduced by Dr. Burnet. - -On Craigdarroch's arrival at the Scottish capital, and others with -similar tidings of the desertion and dissolution of the army, the -flight of James, and success of William, the long-threatening storm -burst forth in all its fury. Scotland at that time swarmed with -brave and hardy soldiers, skilful officers, ruined barons, and -desperate vassals--the veterans of the Covenant, and the endless wars -of Sweden, France, and Flanders; thus, ingloriously as the campaign -had passed over in the south, a cloud was gathering on the Highland -hills, that threatened to descend, as of yore, in wrath and blood on -the fertile Lowlands. - -Infuriated by the severities of what was called the "twenty-eight -years' persecution," the Lowland population were ripe for armed -revolt, and the capital, to which they flocked in overwhelming -masses, became the grand centre of their operations, and the scene of -newer atrocities. The greatest outrages were committed upon the -persons and property of those unhappy Catholics, Episcopalians, and -cavaliers, who fell into the hands of this wild mob. - -Perth, the Lord Chancellor fled; the Privy Council, which had been -severe to the nation, in proportion as it was servile to James, -dispatched an immediate address to William, and none were more -cordial in their offers of dutiful service than Provost Prince, and -the worthy council of Edinburgh: those very men who had so lately -declared to the unfortunate Stuart, that they "would stand by his -sacred person on all occasions." Now they were equally prompt in -offers to his dethroner, to whom they complained bitterly "of the -hellish attempts of Romish incendiaries, and of the just grievances -of all men relating to conscience, liberty, and property." - -For three days the capital was in the power of a mad and lawless -rabble, who, rendered furious by bigotry and intoxication, committed -the most dreadful atrocities. - -The houses of all who were obnoxious to them were plundered and given -to the flames, and all effects of value were scattered in the -streets. There were episodes of horror ensued such as Edinburgh had -never witnessed before. The streets were filled with the smoke of -burning houses; the air was sheeted with flame; the shrieks of the -perishing inmates, the howls of their destroyers, and the crash of -falling masonry, rang night and day. The college of the Jesuits was -levelled to the dust; crosses, and reliques, statues, pictures, and -vestments were borne aloft through the streets, and consigned to the -flames amid yells of derision. - -The ale and wine found in the cellars of the cavaliers, inflamed the -inborn savagism of the multitude, who were urged by their ministers -to commit a thousand nameless atrocities. For three days they -continued in a state of perfect intoxication (says Lord Balcarris in -his _Memoirs_), and in open daylight, in the crowded streets of the -city, committed upon the persons of many Catholic ladies such -outrages as cannot be written, and "without any attempt being made by -the authorities to restrain such brutality." (pp. 22, 27.) - -Of all the members of the old government none was more obnoxious to -the people than Sir George Mackenzie, of Rosehaugh, the celebrated -lawyer and essayist, who had rendered himself an object of intense -hatred, by the severity with which he had stretched the criminal laws -to answer the views of the Government; and who, in his office of -Public Prosecutor, had obtained the unenviable soubriquet of "the -persecutor of God's saints," "the blood-thirsty advocate," "bluidy -Mackenzie;" and to this hour his vaulted mausoleum at Edinburgh is -regarded with hatred and loathing by the old Cameronians and "true -blue" Presbyterians. - -His mansion in Rosehaugh Close was soon made the object of attack. -The night of the third day had closed over the city, and still the -scene of tumult and frenzy, the din and the flames of destruction, -loaded the air with sounds of horror and outrage. - -In great anxiety for his personal safety, the unhappy statesman heard -with no ordinary perturbation the increasing roar of sounds, like the -chafing of a distant sea; the mingling of a myriad human voices, and -the rush of feet, which betokened the approach of a vast mob. - -With drums beating before them, and armed with various weapons, the -thousand bright points of which gleamed in the lurid blaze of the -uplifted torches, a dense mass of ragged, squalid, and insane-looking -men, poured like a human flood into the deep and narrow alley at the -foot of which still stands the house of Rosehaugh. Begrimed with -smoke and filth, maddened by intoxication and excess, their yells as -they resounded between the solid walls of the narrow street, rang -like those of fiends from some deep abyss, and the heart of Mackenzie -died away within him. To appeal to their pity would be like craving -mercy from the waves of an angry ocean? there was no escape, no -remedy, no bribe, no hope; for among that terrible mob were the -fathers, the sons, the brothers--yea, and the mothers of those who at -his instance had perished in thousands, by the sword, by the torture, -and the gibbet, or were lingering out a miserable existence as slaves -and bondsmen in the distant Indies. - -"My God! my God! for what am I reserved?" he exclaimed, as from a -lofty upper window he surveyed the dense mass of madmen, who, wedged -in the alley below, impeded each other's motions. Conspicuous above -all, raised on the shoulders of two strong men, whose arms and faces -were smeared with blood and blackness, there was upborne a man, whose -sad-coloured garments and white bands announced him a preacher; his -gaunt visage and long hair of raven hue waving around a face ghastly, -though flashed with passion, his large hazel eyes glowing like those -of a tiger, his upraised hands clenching one a bible, and the other a -broadsword, declared him a wild enthusiast (another "Habakuk -Mucklewrath"). - -It was Ichabod Bummel, who had escaped from the damp vaults of the -wave-beaten Bass, and had now come to take vengeance on Mackenzie for -his exile, his captivity, his crushed bones, and long persecution. - -"Come forth, Achan, thou troubler of Israel!" he shrieked; "come -forth, thou destroyer of the good and just, thou persecutor of the -saints of God! come forth, thou thing that art accursed, or we will -burn thee in the ruins of thy dwelling, and salt them with salt. -Courage, my brethren! Oh, is not this a brave hour and a glorious -one? For lo, the time is come when the host of Pharaoh shall be -discomfited and stricken as of old. Achan, thou persecutor of the -covenanted kirk, behold me towering amid Baal's prophets, four -hundred and fifty men, as the book saith!" - -This rhapsody was responded to with yells of ardour, and the din of -hammers rang like thunder against the strong oaken door of the -mansion, while many bullets were discharged at the windows, which -were securely grated. A door of massive oak closed the entrance of -the turnpike stair, and though the whole house resounded under the -energy of the blows, the barrier refused to yield, though gradually -it was falling in splinters, a process too slow to suit the fierce -impatience of the increasing mob. - -"Let fire be brought," cried Ichabod, "let the mansion be consumed, -that its flames may be as a light to the house of Judah. Know, O -thou persecutor of God's covenanted saints, that a sword is this -night upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and her -mighty men; for it is the load of graven images, and they are mad -upon their idols." - -Urged by this blasphemous application of Scripture, burning brands -were heaped by the people against the door, and soon the increased -yells of satisfaction announced to the miserable advocate that the -barrier was rapidly giving way, and that in another moment the -reeking hands of the destroyers would be upon him. He threw round a -glance of agony, the barred windows denied all hope of escape, and -now his stern soul sank at the prospect of a cruel and immediate -death, when lo! one tremendous yell of another import brought him -once more to the shattered windows. "It is a dream!" he exclaimed. - -A troop of the Royal Life Guards, with their bright arms flashing in -the light of the waving torches, were hewing and treading down the -mob like a field of rye; and chief above all shone one cavalier--it -was Dundee--the gallant, the terrible Claver'se, that man-fiend, whom -all deemed six hundred miles away. There was no mistaking the -splendour of his armour, the nobility of his air, the ferocity of his -purpose. - -"Close up--fall on, gentlemen; no quarter to the knaves!" he -exclaimed, while, standing erect in his stirrups, he showered his -blows on every side, his white plumes rising and falling in unison -with his trenchant rapier. - -"Hey for King James! Ho for the cavaliers! Down with the -rebels--down with the whigamores!" cried Holsterlee and others, as -they pressed forward, and the rabble grovelled in the dust beneath -the tremendous rush of the heavy horses, and their riders in steel -and buff. In a minute the narrow alley was cleared of the living, -and piled knee-deep with dead and dying. The shrill voice of -Ichabod, as he was borne off by his disciples, was heard dying away -in the distance, like that of an evil spirit carried away by a stormy -wind. - -By something like a miracle, Lord Dundee had traversed the whole of -hostile England, and though menaced on every hand by great bodies of -troops, had reached his native capital in safety; bringing with him -not only the sixty cavalier troopers (who of all his cavalry alone -remained staunch to him), but with them Walter Fenton, Lord -Dunbarton, Finland, and other officers retaken from De Ginckel. They -now rode under his orders as gentlemen-troopers, mounted on heavy -black chargers that had whilome belonged to the Swart Ruyters; and -the whole, with standards displayed, had entered the city about an -hour before the assault on Rosehaugh's house. - -The Rev. Dr. Joram, late chaplain to the Royal Scots, also bestrode a -horse which he had taken as his spoil in battle; and had donned a -trooper's corslet, with which his clerical bob-periwig consorted as -oddly as with the fierce and tipsy expression of his flushed and -florid face, and with the stern cock of the Monmouth beaver that -surmounted it. The gallant divine had recently imbibed so much wine -that he could scarcely keep his saddle. - -Of the fate of their captured comrades they as yet knew nothing; but -Gavin of that Ilk, with twenty other officers and five hundred men, -were then at London, close prisoners; the rest had returned to their -colours; and after a time, the whole, seeing the futility of -resistance, ultimately embarked peaceably under the orders of their -new commander, the veteran Duke de Schomberg. None were punished, -"as the new government had not yet been fully recognized in Scotland." - -Rosehaugh had been saved from a terrible immolation; but the services -of the night were not yet over. Claverhouse, with his cavaliers, -retired to a quiet part of the city, under protection of the castle -batteries, where a brave garrison of Catholic soldiers, led by the -Duke of Gordon, remained yet staunch to James. - -"My lord Earl," said Dundee to Dunbarton, "we must be somewhat -economical of our persons and horses, when encountering these mad -burghers and drunken saints, and not forget that we are the last hope -of the King in this hotbed of Presbytery and rebellion." - -"True," replied the Earl, "and I rejoice that we have but few to -regret, and few to mourn for us if we perish in the struggle on which -we are about to plunge." - -The eyes of the Viscount filled with dusky fire. - -"Dunbarton," said he, "I am alone in the world. Our grateful King -has given me honours to which none can succeed, for I have cast the -die by which they are lost for ever; and nowhere can my coronet be -more gloriously surrendered than on the battle-field." - -"I thank Heaven that the Countess, my dear little Lætitia, is in -England," said the Earl, pointing to the lurid flames that from the -blazing houses of the Abbey-hill flashed along the shadowy vista of -the Canongate, glowing redly under the arch of the Nether Bow, and -throwing forward in bold relief a thousand fantastic projections of -the old Flemish mansions that reared up their giant fronts on either -hand. "I thank Heaven that she is in a safer place than this poor -city of wild fanatics." - -"Would that I could say the same of Lilian!" thought Walter, with a -deep sigh. "Can she be safe amid all this dreadful uproar?" - -At that moment a dense rabble approached, with drums beating, torches -blazing, and weapons glinting. - -"To the Palace! to the Abbey!" cried a thousand hoarse voices. "Let -us pull doon the temple of the Idolater, and gie his fause gods to -the flames!" and they swept forward, greeting the troop of Guards -with yells of hatred and menace. - -They were led--by whom? Lord Mersington, with his wig awry, his -clothes soiled with dust, and his face flushed with exertion! The -Earl of Balcarris relates "that this fanatical judge, with a halbert -in his hand, and drunk as ale and brandy could make him," led on the -rabble to the assault of time-hallowed Holyrood; but before reaching -the eastern extremity of the city, his followers were joined by the -trained bands in their buff coats and bandoleers, the magistrates, -and other authorities, who vested this lawless mob with an air of -order and official importance. - -"Will those villains really dare to molest the palace of our kings?" -said Dundee, his eyes kindling, as he looked after the revolters, and -reined-up his impatient horse. - -"What will they not dare?" rejoined Dunbarton; "but I doubt not they -will experience a warm reception. Wallace, who commands the guard, -is a brave cavalier as ever drew sword, and the traitors will make -nothing of it." - -"Under favour, my Lords," said Fenton, "they are in great numbers, -and I have misgivings as to the issue." - -"Wallace--he is an old friend of mine," said Finland. "'Sdeath! -we've seen some sharp work together on the frontiers of Flanders; and -with your permission, my Lords, I will take a turn of service with -him to-night." - -"As you please," replied the Viscount; "Dunbarton commands here, -though he rides in my troop. Go--ha, ha! two heads are better than -one." - -"I go then; and yonder fanatical senator may beware how he comes -within reach of my hand." - -"Thy riding-whip, say rather." - -"I volunteer also," said Walter, who was under great anxiety to have -an opportunity of visiting Lilian. - -"And I too," added the Reverend Jonadab Joram. "I long to encounter -with bible and bilbo, yonder preacher of sedition, that urges on this -unhanged rout of traitors. For know ye, gentlemen, (hiccup) that one -preacher is better in Scotland than twenty drummers to find recruits -for the devil's service; so, in his own phraseology, I will gird up -my loins, and go forth to battle against them. Come on, gallants! -Ho, for King James, and down with the whigamores! Rub-a-dub, -rub-a-dub----" - -"Beware, sirs, for the good cause has not many such spirits to -spare," said Claver'se, as they dashed spurs into their horses, and -making a detour down one narrow wynd and up another, reached without -interruption the deep groined archway of the Palace Porch, an ancient -gothic edifice, heavily turreted and battlemented. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -SACK OF HOLYROOD. - - 'Twas a dream of the ages of darkness and blood, - When the ministers' home was the mountain and wood; - The musquets were flashing, the blue swords were gleaming, - The helmets were cleft, and the red blood was streaming; - The heavens grew dark, and the thunder was rolling, - When on Welwood's dark muirland the mighty were falling. - ANONYMOUS. - - -"Welcome, gentlemen," exclaimed Wallace; "I never stood in such need -of advice and comradeship." - -He was a handsome man, above six feet in height; his gold-coloured -cuirass and buff coat, laced with silver, announced him a captain; -the slouch of his broad Spanish hat, with its drooping plumes, and -the tie of his voluminous white silk scarf, gave him inimitable grace. - -"Welcome, Finland, to share the poor cheer and hard fighting of -Holyrood. By Mahoun! but times are changed with the King's soldiers. -I have endured a three days' siege here, and matters are not likely -to mend." - -"No; a rabble, many thousands strong, by all the devils! the very -riddlings of St. Ninian's and the Beggars' Row, are at this moment -approaching, and if one of your guard are left alive by daylight it -will be a miracle." - -"Dost think so?" rejoined Wallace, as he led them to a table in the -outer court of the palace, where a lantern placed on a table revealed -a few drinking horns, a keg of eau de vie, and some objects of a more -unpleasant nature, the dead bodies of several soldiers, shot by the -rioters during the day. "You hold out a dark future to us, Finland, -and, nevertheless, like the true soldier I have ever known thee, come -to take a turn of service with us." - -"As you see," replied Finland, laughing, as he filled a horn from the -keg unbidden. - -"Drink with me, gentlemen," said Wallace. - -"With all my soul!" hiccupped Dr. Joram. - -"This keg of brandy was lately in the cellars of the Jesuits, and -some friendly rogue trundled it our way. God bless the good old -cause! my service to ye, sirs. Hark, comrades--drums!" he added, as -he drained and threw down the cup. - -"'Tis the march of the trained bands," said Walter. - -"Indeed!" rejoined Wallace, sternly. "Let all the whigamore scum of -Scotland come, they are welcome. I am one of the good old race of -Elderslie, and I thank heaven that in an hour like this, it hath been -the hap of one of my name to have entrusted to his care the defence -of the palace of our princes, and yonder holy fane, the sepulchre of -their bones--one of the fairest piles that ancient piety ever -founded, or modern fanaticism destroyed." His swart countenance -lighted up, and signing the cross (for this noble cavalier was a true -catholic), he drew his sword. - -"Hark, a chamade!" said Walter Fenton; "now let us hear what these -rascals have the impudence to say;" and the three cavaliers repaired -to the porch, leaving the divine to continue his devoirs to the -brandy keg. They beheld a very extraordinary scene. - -Wallace's company was an Independent one. It was something less than -a hundred strong, and had the great porch of the palace and the two -lesser gates of the boundary wall to defend. In the former there -were sixty musqueteers drawn up, as it was the point of the greatest -danger; the remainder were posted at the small gates, which were well -secured by internal barricades. The great façade of the magnificent -palace, with its deep quadrangle and six round towers, loomed through -the starless gloom of the winter night; lights flickered in the -gallery of the Kings of Scotland, and through the lofty casements of -its long corridors and echoing chambers, for there many proscribed -catholic and cavalier families, terrified women, and helpless -children, hud fled for refuge. And from the great western windows of -the chapel royal shone "the dim religious light" of the distant -altar, where many a devout worshipper, in the ancient faith of our -fathers, sent up, with catholic fervour, the most solemn prayers to -God for conquest and for succour. - -How different was the scene without those sacred walls, with their -shadowy aisles, their glimmering shrines and marble tombs--their -dark, deep, solemn arches, and mysterious echoes. - -Through the strong gate of vertical iron bars that closed the dark -round archway of the porch, the cavaliers beheld the long vista of -the Canon-gate, extending to the westward. Its long perspective of -ancient and picturesque edifices, turrets, outshots, and gables, was -vividly lit up by the crimson glare of the blazing houses on the -Abbey-hill, to the northward of the palace. - -A dense mob that had gathered in the Cow-gate, provided with weapons -and torches, mingled with Trained Bandsmen, and having drums beating, -and the Earl of Perth's effigy, borne aloft before them, after -traversing the West Bow and High-street, maltreating all they met, -were now descending the Canon-gate; and the light of their brandished -flambeaux streamed through the groined portal of the palace, -glittering on the helmets and arms of the soldiers drawn up within it -in close array, and beyond on the tall outline of the tower of James -V. - -As the drums of the Trained Bands continued to beat the point of war, -the rabble poured forth from all the diverging wynds and alleys, -until, like a river swollen by a hundred tributary streams, the dense -mass that debouched upon the open space around the ancient -Girth-cross of the once holy sanctuary, covered the whole arena. The -united roar of ten thousand angry voices swelled along the lofty -street, and the red torchlight revealed many an uncouth visage, -distorted by drunkenness, fanaticism, and ferocity. Several musquets -and pistols were incessantly discharged, while stones, sticks, -fragments of furniture, dead cats, and every available and imaginable -missile were hurled in showers over the battlements of the porch, and -strewed the pavement of the court within. - -In front were Grahame and Macgill, two captains in the trained band, -armed with their buff coats, steel caps, and half pikes; several -baillies, in their scarlet gowns and gold chains; Lord Mersington, -reeling about and brandishing a partisan, his senatorial wig and -robes in a woeful plight; the Rev. Ichabod Bummel, bare-headed and -spurring like a madman a short, plump, and active Galloway cob of -which he had possessed himself, and over the flanks of which, his -long spindle shanks and scabbard trailed upon the ground. On each -side were the Marchmont and Islay heralds, the Unicorn and Ormond -pursuivants, in their tabards blazing with embroidery, and their tall -plumed bonnets; behind was a confused forest of uplifted hands, and -weapons, swords, pikes, staves, and halberts which flashed -incessantly in the wavering glare of the brandished torches, and -chief above all were the effigy of the Chancellor, and a great orange -and blue standard; the first the colour of the Revolutionists, the -second of the Covenanters. - -The houses of the Earl of Perth, the Lairds of Niddry, Blairdrummond, -and others, were blazing close by, and the sky was sheeted with fire. -The contents of their cellars were rolled into the streets and -staved, and the rich and luscious wines of France, the nut-brown ale, -and crystal usquebaugh streamed along the swollen gutters, where -hundreds of rioters were wallowing like pigs in the kennel, and were -trod to death beneath the feet of the mighty host that swept over -them. After a flourish of trumpets, the senior herald cried with a -loud voice,-- - -"In the name of the Lords of His Majesty's Privy Council, I, the -Islay Herald-at-Arms, summon, warn, and charge you, Captain William -Wallace, under pain and penalty of loss of life and escheat of -goods----" - -"Yea, and the loss of salvation," screamed Ichabod, with a voice of a -Stentor, as he brandished his bible and bloody sword. "Woe unto ye -who march against God with banners displayed! Woe unto ye who would -build up the walls of Jericho, which the Lord hath casten down! Take -heed, ye vipers and soldiers of Jeroboam, lest the curse that fell on -Kiel, the Bethelite, fall upon ye also! Woe unto ye, worshippers of -the Babylonian harlot, the mother of sin, for the hour is come when -it is written that ye shall perish!" - -"----And escheat of goods and gear," continued the herald, -"forfeiture of name and fame." - -"Surrender, ye d--d loons!" cried Mersington, "or hee hee, we'll gie -ye cauld kail through the reek, conform to the Acts of Estate." - -"Sound trumpets for silence!" exclaimed the herald indignantly; but -now the voice of Mr. Bummel was again heard. - -"Oh for one moment of the hand that smote the foes of Zion!" he -exclaimed, raising to heaven his sunken eyes that in the torchlight -seemed to fill with a yellow glare. "Oh for God's malediction on the -brats of Babel! Lo! I see a sign in the lift--they are delivered -unto us, that we may dash them against the stones. On, on, and spare -not! smite and slay! death to the false prophets! death to the -soldiers of the idolatrous James!" - -"I, the Islay Herald-at-Arms----" - -"Haud your d--d yammering!" cried Captain Graham, of the trained -bands, interrupting in turn; "close up, my trained men! come on, my -buirdly Baxters, and couthie craftsmen--advance pikes--musqueteers, -blow matches--give fire!" - -"Give fire!" re-echoed the deep voice of Wallace within the groined -portal. A loud discharge of musquetry took place, and the bullets of -the mob rattled like a hailstorm against the walls, or whistled -through the archway of the porch. - -Three soldiers fell dead, but nearly forty of the rabble were shot, -for every bullet fired by the "Brats of Babel" killed at second hand. -Still they pressed forward with undiminished courage, and assailed -the three gates of the palace at once, and pressing close to the bars -of the portal, fired their musquets and pistols through with deadly -precision on the little band within. Here Wallace commanded in -person, with a bravery worthy of his immortal name, and encouraged by -his animated exhortations, his gallant few, though falling fast on -every hand, stood firm, with a resolution to die, but never surrender. - -Walter Fenton and Finland commanded each about twenty musqueteers at -the lesser gates, which the insurrectionists assailed pell-mell with -hammers and pickaxes, and as nothing but a cruel death could be -expected if this mob of infuriated madmen obtained entrance, the poor -soldiers fought as much for their lives as for honour and protection -of the palace and chapel royal. From a platform of planks and -furniture, overlooking the south back of the Canon-gate, Walter's -party poured a fire upon the mob with deadly effect; the palace wall -was high, the gate strong and well secured, so they hurled ponderous -stones and swung hammers against its solid front in vain. - -So it fared with Finland, who defended the northern doorway of the -royal gardens near a little turretted edifice called Queen Mary's -Bath. This experienced soldier had speedily made four loop-holes -through the strong wall, and the rioters, as they approached the -gate, were shot down in such rapid succession that an appalling pile -of dead and dying lay before it, forming a barrier so hideous, that -their companions began to recoil in dismay, and poured a storm of -bullets and abuse from a distance. - -The blaze from the Abbey hill illuminated the whole garden, and the -dark buttresses, the square tower, the deep-ribbed doorway, and tall -lancet windows of the beautiful church of the Sancta Crucis were all -bathed in a blood-red hue by the flaring sheets of flame that -ascended from the burning houses. - -"St. Bride speed you, my gallant Douglas!" cried Wallace, who, -anxious for the maintenance of his post, made a hurried round of the -walls. "Art keeping the knaves in check?" - -"Let the deed show," replied Finland. "By my faith! their dead are -lying chin deep without the barrier. 'Twas a brave stroke in tactics -this enfilade of the approach; and the flames of yonder great mansion -enable my bold hearts to aim with notable precision." - -"'Tis the noble lodging of the Great Chancellor," rejoined Wallace, -turning his flushed face towards the ruddy glow; "and I grieve deeply -that many noble dames of the first quality are likely perishing amid -yonder flames; however, death is preferable to dishonour at the hands -of fanatical clowns. This day they dragged my sister through the -streets ..... and in open day--my God!" He ground his teeth and -smote his breast. - -"Malediction!" exclaimed Finland; "can we not succour them?" - -"Impossible," replied the other, resuming his military nonchalance. -"I cannot spare a man. Bonnie blackeyed Maud, of Madertie, and Merry -Annie, of Maxwelton, are both yonder; this morning they fled to the -house of Perth. God sain them both--now I must see how fares young -Fenton." He hurried away, leaving Finland transfixed by what he had -revealed. - -"Follow me, some of ye," he exclaimed; "let six maintain the post. -Come on, gallants--we will save these noble dames or die." - -His party had now been reduced to twelve, but forgetful of everything -save the probable danger of Annie, he rushed through the garden -followed by six soldiers armed with pikes, and leaving the precincts -of the palace by a secret doorway near the old royal vault, hurried -through the narrow suburb of Croft-an-Righ, and felt his heart leap -as the hot glow of the burning houses was blown upon his cheek, and -the sparks fell like red hail around him. The roar of voices and of -musquetry still continued around the palace with unabated vigour; but -here the mob lay generally wallowing in the liquor that flowed along -the street, or were busy in revelling around piles of wine flasks, -runlets of wine, and barrels of ale, or hurrying away with whatever -plunder they had saved from the fast-spreading conflagration. - -The house of the chancellor, a lofty edifice, with turrets at the -angles, steep roofs, and great stacks of chimneys, stood a little way -back from the street, with a row of tall Dutch poplars before it; but -these were now blackened and scorched by the forky flames that rolled -in volumes from the windows, and clambered over the sinking roofs. -The smoke ascended into the clear air in one vast shadowy pillar, and -showers of sparks were thrown as from the crater of a volcano. Not -one of the inmates was visible, for every window was full of flame, -and Finland felt distraction in his mind as he gazed upon the blazing -house; but suddenly several females appeared upon the stone gutters -and upper bartizan, waving their handkerchiefs and crying in piteous -accents for mercy and for succour; but they were unheeded by the mob, -or, if heard, only treated with derision. - -"A ladder, a ladder!" exclaimed Finland, whose arms and attire were -so much disfigured by smoke and dust, that he seemed in no way -different from the other armed citizens that thronged the streets. -"Death and confusion! a hundred bonnet pieces for a ladder; my brave -friends, my good comrades, your pikes--truss them into a ladder. Ere -now I've led an escalade of such a turnpike. Bravo, my bold hearts!" -and with the silent precision of practised campaigners, the soldiers -with their scarfs trussed or tied their six pikes into the form of a -scaling ladder. In a moment it was placed against the wall. "Guard -the passage," cried Finland, as he disappeared through one of the -upper windows. - -The heat and smoke were so great that he could scarcely breathe; for -the old mansion being all wainscotted, burned like a ship, and -ancient paintings, costly hangings, carpets, furniture, books, and -all the magnificent household of the great chancellor was crumbling -to ashes beneath the relentless flame. - -The hot conflagration often drove Finland back, and made his very -brains whirl; but he found other passages, across the yielding -floors, and ascending from story to story, at last felt gratefully -the cooler air upon his flushed and scorched face as he stepped upon -the flame-lighted bartizan, and Annie, with a wild hysterical laugh, -threw herself into his arms and immediately swooned. - -"Your hand, Lady Madertie--away, away!" cried he; "we have not a -moment to lose;" and bearing his burden like a child, he attempted to -descend the staircase; but lo! the forked flames shot up the spiral -descent and drove him back upon the platform, which was thirty feet -in height. - -All retreat was cut off. - -Annie was insensible, and Finland, as he leant against the parapet -and pressed her to his breast and felt the masses of her soft hair -blown against his face, became giddy with despair. At a little -distance Matilda of Madertie, a beautiful blonde, was kneeling before -her crucifix, and praying with all the happy fervour of a true -Catholic; her long dark hair was streaming over her shoulders. Near -her were several female servants, crouching against the parapet, and -who, exhausted by the energy of their shrieks, and the near approach -of death, lay in a kind of stupor, without motion, and seeming -scarcely to breathe. Finland thought only of Annie; but a glance -sufficed to show that their fate was sealed. - -The whole of the lofty house beneath the turret where they stood was -an abyss of flames, and the glare, as they flashed upward and around -him, compelled him to close his eyes; and thus a prey to grief and -horror, he moved to and fro upon the toppling wall until the slate -roofs sank crashing into the flaming pit with a roar, and now one -vast sheet of broad red fire ascended into the air, making the -calcined walls that confined it rend and tremble; a shout came up -from the street below; the whole city, the hills and the sky seemed -to be on fire. The flames came closer to Finland; he felt their -scorching heat; the next seemed to sweep his cheek, and Annie's -waving locks and his own, that mingled with them, were burned away -together. - -"Laird of Finland," cried a soldier from below, "the tree---the tree!" - -"'Tis death at all events," replied the Cavalier, and quick as light, -with his long scarf, he bound the slender waist of Annie to his own, -and stretching from the wall, got into the lofty and strong poplar -tree, and began to descend slowly and laboriously. A shout burst -from the soldiers in the garden below. - -"God receive us!" cried Maud of Madertie, holding up her crucifix to -heaven. At that moment the wall gave way beneath her, and she -disappeared for ever..... - -Finland's desertion of his post proved ultimately fatal to the -defence of Holyrood, which by the efforts of Wallace, Walter Fenton, -and the church-militant, Dr. Joram, was protracted until eleven at -night. Then the soldiers of Finland, having been all shot down, a -party of the Trained Bands, led by Captain Grahame, broke down the -gate with sledge-hammers, and then the armed mob, roused to an -indescribable pitch of frenzy and ferocity by the liquors they had -imbibed, the resistance and slaughter, and the exhortations of the -religious maniacs who led them, crowded like a hell disgorged into -the outer court and inner quadrangle of the palace. - -Taken thus in flank, the soldiers of Wallace were almost immediately -destroyed. That brave cavalier was hewn down, his body was hacked to -pieces, his entrails torn out and cast into the air. Many of his -soldiers who surrendered were shot in cold blood, and all the wounded -perished. Walter Fenton, gathering a few of the survivors upon his -platform, still continued to fire upon the sea of madmen that swarmed -around them. - -Conspicuous among his followers, upon his prancing Galloway cob, -towered the tall and ghastly figure of Mr. Ichabod Bummel; and, -urging the work of death, he sent his powerful voice before him -wherever he went. - -"No quarter to the birds of Belial!--smite them both hip and thigh. -On, ye chosen of Israel, who now, in the good fight of faith, shall -extirpate the heathen, sent forth even as the Jews were of old." - -"Pick me down yonder villain!" cried Fenton to his soldiers; and -bullet after bullet whistled past the head of the preacher, but he -seemed to bear a charmed life, and escaped them all. - -"On, on to the good work, and prosper!" he cried. "Smite and slay! -smite and slay! lest the curses that befel Saul for sparing the -Amalekites fall upon ye." - -Thus urged, the people hewed the soldiers limb from limb, and the -bodies of the dead shared the same fate. Seeing all lost, Walter and -Dr. Joram had torn the cavalier plumes from their hats, and leaped -upon their horses, hoping to cut their way through the press, or -escape unknown. But, alas! Joram was recognised by the terrible -Ichabod, who, urging his Galloway towards him, brandished his sword, -and exclaimed with stentorian lungs-- - -"'Tis a priest of Baal, and this night will I send him howling to his -false gods! Come on, Jonadab Joram, thou wolf in sheep's clothing." - -"Approach, thou d--ned, round-headed, prick-eared, covenanting, and -rebellious rapscallion!" cried the Doctor in great wrath, urging his -horse towards his clerical antagonist; but the crowd was great -between them, and they were enabled to glare at and menace and -bespatter each other with scriptural abuse and very hard names for -some time before they came within sword's point; for they were both -intoxicated, the one with brandy, and the other with an enthusiasm -that bordered on insanity. "Come on, thou villanous whigamore," -cried Joram, flourishing his long rapier; "thy glory and thee shall -depart to the devil together!" - -"Out upon thee, and the bloody papistical Duke whom thou servest, and -hast blasphemously prayed for; but the curse that fell upon Jeroboam -hath already fallen upon him--he shall die without a son, and be the -last of his persecuting race, despite the brat in the warming pan." - -"On thy carcase, foul kite, will I avenge this treason against the -Lord's anointed!" replied Joram, spurring his horse. - -"Thou fool!" shrieked Ichabod, with a hollow laugh; "was that -accursed tyrant who fiddled while Rome blazed beneath him the -anointed of the Lord?" - -"Have at thee, trumpeter of treason!" - -"Caitiff and firebrand of hell, at last I have thee!" and their -swords flashed as they fell upon each other like two mad bulls. The -superior strength and skill of the cavalier chaplain quite failed him -before the ferocious enthusiasm of the Presbyterian, whose long -broadsword, swayed by both hands, was twice driven through his body -at the first onset. - -"King and High Kirk for ever!" cried poor Joram, as he fell forward -with the blood gushing from his mouth; but, still unsatisfied, -Ichabod seized him as he sank down, writhing one hand in his hair, -and throwing the body across his saddle-bow, he slashed off the head, -and held it aloft, a grinning and dripping trophy. - -"Behold," he exclaimed in an unearthly voice, "behold the head of -Holofernes!" - -All was over now. Walter gave a hurried glance around him. The -palace was being sacked by the rabble, who carried off all they could -lay their hands upon; but it was upon the beautiful chapel, that -venerable monument of ancient art and David's pious zeal, that the -whole tide of popular fury was poured. In five minutes it was -completely devastated. The tall windows, with their rich tracery and -stained glass, were destroyed; the magnificent tombs of marble and -brass, the grand organ, the altar with its burning candles and great -silver crucifix, the rich oak stalls of the Thistle, with the swords, -helmets, and banners of the twelve knights,--were all torn down, and -the beautifully variegated pavement was stripped from the floor. - -All the wood and ornamental work, the pictures, reliques, furniture, -vestments, &c., were piled in front of the palace, and committed to -the flames amid the yells of the populace, whose cries seemed to rend -the very welkin. Dashing spurs into his horse, Walter gave him the -reins, and sweeping his sword around him, right, left, front and -rear, he broke through the crowd, and, followed by a score of -bullets, galloped up the Canongate and escaped,--the sole survivor of -that night's slaughter at Holyrood. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE VEILED PICTURE. - - To the Lords of Convention 'twas Claver's that spoke, - Ere the King's crown shall fall there are crowns to be broke; - So let each Cavalier who loves honour and me, - Come follow the bonnet of bonnie Dundee. - SCOTT. - - -Skirting the city, Walter soon left the roar of the angry multitude -far behind him; he was galloping among fallow fields, hedge-rows, and -solitary lanes, and the silence of the country was a relief to his -excited spirit after the fierce tumult of the last six hours. The -snow had melted; Dairy-burn, and other little rills that traversed -the dark fields, gleamed like silver threads in the starlight. - -Walter passed the loch, and reached the old Place of Drumdryan; the -house was ruined and desolate, roofless and windowless, and the -roadway was strewn with fragments of furniture. His anxiety -increased, and, goring his horse onward, he dashed up the dark dewy -avenue of Bruntisfield, and reined up at the Barbican-gate. The -perfect silence, unbroken even by the barking of a dog, and the -strong odour of burned wood, had in some sort prepared him for the -sight he witnessed. There, too, had been the hand of the destroyer, -and a great part of the once noble mansion was a bare, blackened, and -open ruin. Its corbie-stoned gables and round turrets stood bleakly -in bold relief against the starry sky; and from the depths of its -vaulted chambers, the remains of the smouldering conflagration sent -forth at times a column of smoke into the calm winter atmosphere. -The court and garden were strewn with broken furniture, torn -hangings, books, and household utensils. - -The sudden snorting of his horse drew Walter's attention to two -corpses that lay near the outer door. They were those of John Leekie -the gardener, and Drouthy the aged butler, who, like true vassals, -had both "with harness on their backs" perished at their lady's -threshold. Both had on corslets and steel caps, and one yet grasped -a broken partisan. - -Full of dire thoughts of vengeance, Walter galloped back to the city, -every corner of which was now overflown with the tide of confusion -and uproar that had been so long concentrated around Holyrood. He -naturally sought the Castle-hill, where Dundee and Dunbarton, with -their sixty followers, who of all the Lowlands seemed now alone to -remain true to their fugitive king, were drawn up under the cannon of -the Half-moon. - -"So the villains have sacked Holyrood," said Dundee, smiling grimly. - -"To their contentment," replied Walter. "Poor Finland, our jolly -chaplain, Wallace, and a hundred brave soldiers, have gone to render -a last account of their faithful service; and I alone survive, my -lords." - -"To avenge them, add, sir. 'Tis the hope of repaying with most -usurious interest this heavy account of blood that alone makes me -bear up," replied Dundee with enthusiasm; "and God give me -inspiration, for I feel I am the last hope of the old house of -Stuart." - -At that time certain persons who styled themselves a Convention of -the Estates were assembled in conclave, and thither went the brave -Dundee, though conscious that, personally or politically, he was the -bitterest foe of every man present. - -"My lords and gentlemen," said he, observing the chill that fell on -the assemblage when he appeared---"I have come here as a peer of the -realm, to serve his Majesty James VII. and the Parliament of -Scotland; and I demand that, if the latter has no occasion for my -service, it will at least protect my friends and self from the -insults of the base-born rabble." - -With one voice this hastily collected and illegally constituted -assembly exclaimed--"We cannot and will not!" - -"Then farewell, sirs," replied the Viscount, with a smile of pride -and scorn. "When again I appear before you, it will not be to -entreat, but to command--it will not be to plead, but to punish; and -now, let my trumpets sound To horse! In the country of the clans, -the hills are as steep, the woods are as pathless, the glens as deep, -and the rivers as rapid, as in the days of the Romans; and again from -the wild north shall the whole tide of Celtic war roll on the traitor -Lowlands, as in the days of the great Montrose. When again you hear -the voice of Dundee, my Lords of Convention,--_tremble_!" - -He clasped on his headpiece and retired. As the jangle of his sword -and spurs descending the stone turnpike died away, a deep silence -pervaded the dusky hall; for the threats of this chivalric soldier, -when united to their foreknowledge of his dauntless courage, his -unflinching loyalty, his loftiness of mind, and intense ferocity, -threw a chill upon the more cold-blooded and calculating -revolutionists. But soon the gallant blare of the trumpet, the -stirring brattle of the brass kettle-drums, the clang of iron hoofs, -and jingle of steel scabbards and chain bridles, awaking all the -echoes of the great cathedral, and the hollow arcades of the dark -Parliament Square, announced the march of the Life Guards--those -sixty brave gentlemen who, of all his once numerous and fondly -cherished army, now alone remained staunch to the hapless James. - -Dark looks were exchanged, and as the music grew faint, all seemed to -breathe more freely. Then the querulous voice of Lord Mersington was -heard, and in the half-lighted hall, his dwarfish figure, clad in his -senatorial robes, was dimly seen on the rostrum, and, as he addressed -the convention, from the effect of his recent potations and over -exertion, he swayed on his heels like a statue on a pivot. His -speech was somewhat to the following purpose. - -"That for sae mickle as the vile and bloody papistical James, Duke of -Albany and York, having assumed the regal sceptre without the oath -required for due maintenance of religion, and having altered the -ancient constitution of the kingdom by ane exertion of tyrannous and -arbitrary power, had forfeited all richt to the crown of Scotland, -now and for ever; that it be forthwith settled on the Statholder -William, and Mary his spouse; that there be made a list of grievances -to be redressed, and a new act framit, anent witchcraft, papacy, -prelacy, and ither abominations." - -The last echoes of the trumpets of Dundee had died away under the -arch of the Netherbow Port, and the motions of Mersington were -carried with universal approbation. "Thus," says the author of -_Caledonia_ "the revolution in England was conducted constitutionally -by the parliament; but in Scotland, unconstitutionally by the -convention. The English _found_ a vacancy of the throne, the Scots -_made_ one; the one grave and regarding law, the other vehement and -disregarding it." - -With a heaviness of heart, a deep and morbid sadness against which he -struggled in vain, Walter rode down the steep Leith Wynd. He was now -a private trooper under Dundee, and leaving Lilian far behind him; -for he was going, he foresaw, to perish under the fallen banner of a -desperate cause and ruined king; but soon the clash of the cymbals, -the fanfare of the trumpets, the tramp of the stately horses, the -high bearing of their gallant riders, and that innate loftiness of -soul, which made Dunbarton and Dundee rise superior to their fortune, -and seem to set fate at defiance, communicated a new ardour to his -heart, and it soon beat responsive to the martial music, as the troop -of cavaliers traversed the city's northern ridge, and riding by the -Long Gate saw the morning sun rising afar off above the snow clad -Lammermuir, gilding Preston Bay, the far hills of Fife, and the -shining waters of the dark blue Forth. - -Dundee rode near Fenton, who, finding more than once, the dark and -pensive eyes of this singularly handsome soldier fixed upon him with -something of that foredoomed expression, indicative of his future -fate and fame, he ventured to ask, "Whither go you, my lord?" - -"Wherever the shade of Montrose shall direct me," was the thoughtful -and poetical reply. "Believe me, Mr. Fenton," he continued, after a -pause, "under whatever circumstances, or however oppressed by fate, I -will acquit myself before God, the world, and my own conscience. -Yes!" he exclaimed, with flashing eyes, and striking his gloved hand -upon his corsletted breast, "I will hazard life and limb, estate and -title, name and fame, yes, I would peril even my salvation, were it -possible, in the cause of my honour and allegiance; and if I cannot -save the throne of King James, at least I will not survive its -fall--so the will of God be done!" - -There was something sublime in his aspect as he spoke; his dark and -lustrous eyes were full of fire; his face, the manly beauty of which -few have equalled and none surpassed, was suffused with a warm glow, -and the proud curl of his mustachioed lip, showed the high spirit of -achievement that burned within him. The soul of the great Montrose -seemed indeed to inspire him, and in such a moment all the darker and -weaker points were forgotten. His ardour was communicated to Walter, -whose heart beat fast as he exclaimed, - -"Noble Dundee, to victory or the grave, to the field or the scaffold, -I will follow thee, and in that hour when I fail in my duty or -allegiance, may woe betide me and dishonour blot my name!" - -Dundee pressed his hand and replied, - -"In the wilds of the pathless north, ten thousand claymores will -flash from their scabbards at the call of Dundee. The loyal and -gallant clans have not forgotten the glories of Alford, Inverlochy, -and Auldearn, when the standard of James Grahame, of Montrose, was -never unfurled but to victory. Again, like him, will I lead them -against this Dutch usurper, whom in an evil hour I saved from death -upon the battle-field of Seneff. Yes, after he had fallen beneath -the hoofs of Vaudemont's Reitres, I saved his life at the risk of my -own, and horsed him on my own good charger, when, could his future -ingratitude to me, and the usurpation of this hour have been -foreseen, my petronel had blown his brains to the wind." - -"Ha! what wants his grace of Gordon?" said Dunbarton as the flash of -a cannon broke from the dark castle wall, and a puff of white smoke -curled away on the clear morning air, while the echoes of the report -reverberated like thunder among the black basaltic cliffs of the -great fortress past which they were riding. A little arched postern -to the westward opened, and a soldier appeared waving a white flag -from the brow of the steep rock, which the turretted bastion -overhung. The troop halted, and their kettle-drums gave three -ruffles in honour of the duke. - -"Tarry for me, gentlemen comrades," said Claverhouse, "while I confer -with 'the cock of the north,'" and galloping to the base of the -castle rock, he dismounted, and notwithstanding his steel harness, -buff coat, and jack boots, clambered with great agility to the -postern, where he held a conference with the Duke of Gordon. - -What passed was never known; but each is said to have needlessly -exhorted the other to loyalty and truth. - -The multitude, who from a distance had watched the departure of the -hated Dundee, fled back to the city, and reported to the Lords of the -Convention, that "there was a coalition and general insurrection of -the adherents of the bluidy Claver'se," and thereupon a dreadful -panic ensued. The city drums beat the point of war; the Duke of -Hamilton and other revolutionists, who had for weeks past been -secretly bringing great bands of their vassals into Edinburgh, where -they were concealed in cellars and garrets, now rushed to arms, and -the members of Convention, confined in their hall, were terrified and -put to their wit's end by the uproar. Lord Mersington, it is -related, exchanging his senatorial robe and wig, "for ane auld wife's -mutch and plaid," fled to his lodging, and appeared no more that day; -but their fears were causeless, for Dundee, and the devoted cavaliers -who accompanied him in his chivalric but hopeless enterprise, were -then passing the woods and morasses of Corstorphine, on their route -to the land of the Gael. - -At a hand gallop they soon flanked the grey rocks and pine covered -summits of those beautiful hills, and the sequestered village lay -before them, with the morning smoke curling from its moss-roofed -cottages, its broad lake swollen by the melting snows, but calm as a -mirror, save where the swan and dusky waterouzel squattered its -shining surface; the ancient kirk peeped above a grove of venerable -sycamores, and to the south stood the castle of the old hereditary -Foresters of Corstorphine. - -"What castles are these on the right and left?" asked Dundee. "I -warrant Mr. Holster can tell; he knows everything and everybody." - -"Yonder hold with the loch flowing almost to its gates, is the house -of the Lord Forester," replied the cavalier trooper, "a leal man and -true." - -"And that tall peel on the muirland to the north?" - -"The tower of Clermiston, my lord." - -"What! the house of Randal Clermont--um--a converted covenanter, and -worshipper of the rising sun, eh?" - -"'Tis said his name is at the address sent by the turncoat council to -the Statholder," said Dunbarton. - -"Assure me of that," exclaimed Dundee, sharply reining up his horse, -"and by all the devils, I will hang him from his own bartizan, lord -and baron though he be! Halt, gentlemen, we will pay these lords a -visit; they, or their stewards, must pay us riding money, for the -king's service. My lord, Earl, and thirty of you gentlemen, will -detour across to Clermiston, while I will ride down to make my devoir -to the Forester of these hills--forward, trot." - -The troop separated, and Walter somewhat unwillingly accompanied Lord -Dunbarton, whose party galloped in single files along the muddy and -rough bridle-road that led over the lea to the gate of the solitary -tower. They encircled the barbican wall, which was built partly on -fragments of low rock, without being able to find entrance, the great -gate being securely fastened, and the stillness of the place seemed -to imply that it was uninhabited. A shriek, echoing through the -vaulted recesses of the tower, rang out upon the clear morning air; a -window was dashed open, and a female hand, white and bleeding, -appeared, while a voice calling for aid made the blood of Walter -Fenton rush back upon his heart. - -"On, on, good sirs!" he exclaimed, leaping from his horse; "some work -of hell is being enacted here!" and he rushed against the tower gate, -making fruitless efforts to burst it open; but they were as those of -a child against the solid planks of the barrier. - -"By Mahoud's horns, Clermistonlee is at his old tricks again!" cried -Jack Holster, leaping from his saddle, and unslinging his carbine. -"He hath a lass in his meshes; alight gallants all, or the fair -fortress will be won by storm, while we dally in the trenches." - -"Would to God I had a petard!" exclaimed Walter; "this gate is like a -wall." - -"Unsling your carbines, gentlemen," said the Earl of Dunbarton. "A -volley at the lock--give fire!" - -Thirty carbines poured their concentrated volley upon the gate; it -was torn to fragments, and an aperture formed which admitted the -troopers; to creep through, and rush on with his drawn rapier, were -to Walter a moment's work. By pulling the leathern latch of a long -oak pin which secured the door of the tower, they procured ingress, -and rushed up the turnpike stair to the hall, at the very moment that -Lilian was just sinking backwards, with her hands clasped in despair, -while Lord Clermistonlee, enraged by her outcries, and the new and -pressing danger, was endeavouring with ferocious violence to drag her -into some place of concealment. - -"False villain!" exclaimed Walter, springing upon him with his -rapier. "I have a thousand insults to avenge; but this, and this, -and this, repay them all!" and he made three furious lunges at his -rival, who escaped two by the intervention of Dunbarton, who -vigorously interposed; but he received one severe wound in the left -shoulder. Infuriated by the sight of his own blood, and being a man -of great strength and agility, he grappled fiercely with Walter, -breathlessly exclaiming, in accents of rage-- - -"Woe betide thee, thou unhanged rascal! A sword! a sword! lend me a -sword, some one! Juden! Traitors, I am a Lord of Parliament, and -dare ye slaughter me under the rooftree of my own fortified house? -This is hership and hamesucken with a vengeance! Death and -confusion, villains; recollect I am unarmed!" - -"Lend him a sword, some of you," said Walter. - -"Oh no, no; spare him," moaned Lilian, who was supported by the Earl -of Dunbarton. - -"Base-born runnion, and son of a dunghill!" exclaimed Clermistonlee, -with that intense ferocity and scorn which he could so easily assume -at all times; "an hour will come when this insult shall be fearfully -repaid----" here the clenched hand of Walter struck him down. -Staggering backward, making a futile attempt to recover himself, his -clutching hands tore away the veil that concealed the portrait -already mentioned. The face it revealed instantly arrested the -forward stride and menacing sword of Walter Fenton, who stood -irresolute, trembled, and the sinking sword half fell from his -relaxed hand, as he muttered-- - -"What is this coming over my spirit now? That face seems like a -vision from the grave to me!" - -"'Tis the Lady Alison, my Lord's late wife," said the shrill but -sullen voice of Beatrix. - -"Pshaw!" rejoined Walter; "then my weakness is over. Give him a -sword, gentlemen. In fair stand-up fight, I will meet him here, with -case of pistols, sword, and dagger, or anything he pleases." - -"O part them, for the sake of mercy!" implored Lilian. - -Juden came in at that moment, clad in his steel bonnet and buff jack, -and swaying an enormous partisan, was rushing upon Walter Fenton like -a wild boar, when Holsterlee laid him flat with his clubbed carbine. -The swooning of Lord Clermistonlee closed the brawl for the time; -loss of blood, over-drinking, and over-excitement, had quite -prostrated all his energies. Walter immediately sheathed his sword, -and, kneeling down, was the first to tender assistance; for -"compassion ever marks the brave." - -Clermistonlee was borne away to his own apartment by the growling -Juden, whose thick pate was little the worse of Holsterlee's stroke; -and Lilian was now Walter's next and immediate care. - -The disorder and scantiness of her attire, the pallor and horror of -her aspect, and her presence in such a place, had previously informed -him of all, and no sooner were they in a more retired apartment, -than, throwing herself into his arms, she wept bitterly. Meanwhile, -the unscrupulous cavaliers were ranging over the entire household, -breaking open every press, cabinet, and girnel, with the butts and -balls of their carbines, in search of wine, vivres, or anything else -that suited their fancies. Juden kept always a full larder, and its -contents furnished a sumptuous breakfast. Several whole cheeses, a -cask of ale, and a thirty-gallon runlet or two of canary, were -trundled into the hall; and a hearty repast, with the usual military -accompaniments of mirth and laughter, was enjoyed by the hungry -troopers, whose appetites a night spent in their saddles, and a ride -in the keen air of a winter morning, had sufficiently whetted. - -In a few minutes, Lilian, with faltering accents, had informed Walter -of her abduction, of the hours of suffering she had endured, and her -anxiety to return to Lady Grisel; but, alas! poor Lilian knew not -that perhaps her only relative had perished in the conflagration of -her old ancestral home. - -Aware that Dundee meant to halt for an hour or so, to await -despatches from the Earl of Balcarris and the ex-Lord-Advocate, -Walter resolved without delay to accompany Lilian to Edinburgh, and -there convey her to some place of safety, ere he cast himself upon -the world for ever; for from that hour he was like a reed tossed upon -the waves of misfortune. By the assistance of Jack Holster, he had -Clermistonlee's favourite mare prepared for Lilian; and, after -refreshing her with a milk-posset made by the cynical Beatrix, they -departed for the city at a quick trot: the plain buff coat, steel -cap, and accoutrements of Walter, enabling him to pass for a Royalist -or Revolutionist, as occasion required. - -As soon as they began to converse, the pace of their horses was -checked, and they proceeded slowly: forgetful of Claverhouse and of -his pledged word, Walter remembered only the presence of Lilian; and -their minds were so much absorbed in their mutual explanations and -plans for the future, that they marked not the tardiness of their -progression towards Edinburgh. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -LOVE AND PRINCIPLE. - - My promised husband and my dearest friend; - Since heaven appoints this favoured race to reign, - And blood has drenched the Scottish fields in vain, - May I be wretched and thy flight partake? - Or wilt not thou for thy loved Chloe's sake, - Tired out at length submit to fate's decree. - TICKELL. - - -"And this is the fate to which you have dedicated yourself?" said -Lilian, weeping; "to become a follower of that fierce Dundee in the -desperate course on which he is about to fling himself. Oh, Walter -Fenton, this is the very folly of enthusiasm. Too surely can we see -that the hand of Fate is against the House of Stuart." - -"Lilian," replied her lover, with mournful surprise, "the daughter of -an old Cavalier house should have other thoughts than these. -Remember, dear Lilian, there is not in Europe a royal race for which -so many of the good and the gallant, the brave and the loyal, have -from the foughten field and the reeking scaffold given up their souls -to God. Let no man judge harshly of those whose splendour is dimmed -for a time; for the hour _shall_ come when in the full zenith of -their pride and power, the old line of our Scottish kings----" - -"'Tis all a dream, Walter. The entire nations are against them. I -feel a presentiment that they and their followers are doomed to -wither and perish like brands in the burning." - -"My faith! art turning preacher, lassie?" - -"Oh, what a prospect for thee, Walter!" - -"The world is all before me; and I can always preserve my honour, my -heart, and my sword. But thou, Lilian----" - -"Am beside thee, dear Walter," said she, with touching artlessness; -"and is not happiness better than honour?" - -"True, true," replied the young man, while he kissed her hand, and -his eyes filled with tenderness. "Ah, Lilian, it is the thought that -I am leaving you, perhaps for ever, that alone unnerves me for the -deadly venture in which we are about to engage. Hopeless though the -cause of James may be, we have sworn not to survive it; and, come -weal or woe, we will unfurl his standard on the northern hills, and -if it waves not over us in victory, it shall never do so in defeat or -dishonour; for to the last man we will perish on the sod beneath it. -Your memory alone will make me sad--but am I singular? How many of -these my brave companions have gentle ones to leave, mothers who -bless, and sisters who love them, while I am alone. Save thee, there -is nothing that binds me to this world. What of it is mine? The six -feet that shall make my grave!" - -"O! most ungrateful Walter," said Lilian, in a low voice of confusion -and tenderness; "is not all that I have yours, manor and lands? are -not these possessions ample? Greedy Gled," she added, smiling; "what -better tocher would you have?" - -"Lilian," sighed Walter, in a thick voice, as he pressed her hand to -his heart, "it may not be, dearest--yet awhile, at least." - -The blushing girl gave him a timid and startled glance of inquiry. - -"I am solemnly pledged to Dundee." - -"Cruel Claverhouse! has he more charms for you than I have?" - -"You know that my heart is full of you, Lilian; but there is also -room for ambition in it. I cannot live ignobly and obscure; as such -I would be unworthy to possess you. I would feel myself a nameless -intruder under the rooftree of your crested ancestors, whose armorial -blazons on every panel and window-pane, would shame my meaner birth, -and put me to the blush." - -"Ungrateful! after all I have urged and said. 'Tis a dream, Walter, -a mere dream, but one that will make the world dark--oh! very dark to -me." - -"'Tis very true; I am choosing the path of proscription, danger, and -death; but the fortune of war may better the prospects of my faction." - -"After years of separation, perhaps." - -"With happiness in prospect, they would soon pass, dear Lilian." - -"Oh, this wicked Claverhouse! he hath quite cast a glamour over you. -How can you talk so calmly of years of separation? What may not be -lost in that time?" - -"My life on the field, or scaffold, perhaps." - -"Your life is mine, Walter; it was pledged to me. Have you forgot -the 20th of September, and the hour by the fountain?" - -"Dearest girl, how could I ever forget it? 'Tis true, Lilian, that -we are in the very flower of our days; the bloom of our youth and -existence is at its full; love, tenderness, beauty, and -susceptibility, all glow within our hearts." - -"And will not the roll of years make them dull, diminish their force, -and cool their fervour? Oh, heavens! I am quite making love to -you," said Lilian, blushing crimson; "but danger and the risk of -losing you have endued me with great boldness." - -"But time will never diminish the love I bear thee, Lilian; and the -memory of this hour's bitter struggle--this conflict between a love -that is irresistible and the strong ties of honour, that bind me to -the banner of Dundee, will haunt me to my grave!" Tears started into -his eyes. - -A silence ensued. Poor Lilian had nothing more to urge; and despite -of all her gentleness, felt both intensely grieved and mortified, if -not quite piqued, at Walter, whose heart was wrung by an agony too -acute for words. As they rode past the thick woodlands that shelter -the venerable church of St. Cuthbert, they heard a shrill but cracked -voice chanting slowly-- - - "I like ane owl in désart am, &c." - - -"By Jove! 'tis the villain who slew poor Joram," exclaimed Walter, -drawing a pistol from his holsters; but the voices of two other -persons finishing the verse, arrested him. "Astonishment! 'tis the -voice of Finland!" said Walter, as he spurred his horse close to a -fauld dyke, on the other side of which he saw, what? Annie Laurie, -and his old friend and brother Cavalier, Finland, on their knees, -beside Mr. Ichabod Bummel, chanting a psalm in most dolorous accents. - -"By all the devils!" said Walter, almost bursting with laughter; -"'tis the age of miracles this! What, ho! Dick Douglas and Mistress -Anne Laurie, singing hymns among the heather like two true laverocks -of the persecuted kirk." - -"Woe unto thee, thou troubler of the just in spirit!" cried Mr. -Ichabod, unsheathing his broadsword. "I have plucked the youth and -the maiden like brands from the fire which is fated to consume all -such unrepentant persecutors of Israel as thee." - -"I have seen a new light," said Finland, giving Walter a sly wink of -deep meaning. - -"And so have _I_," added Mistress Laurie, demurely; "and command -thee, Walter Fenton, thou man of sin, to treat this holy expounder of -the Gospel with becoming reverence." - -"Annie--oh, Annie!" cried Lilian, as she boldly leaped the mare over -the fauld dyke, and threw herself into the arms of her friend. - -"My service to you, Mr. Ichabod," said Walter, bowing to the rawboned -preacher; but quite unable to unriddle the mystery of this -rencounter, he whispered to Finland (while the slayer of Joram was -engaged with Lilian), "What the devil does all this mean, Dick?" - -"Learn in a few words," replied Finland, who was in as miserable a -plight as dust, smoke, and a hundred bruises could make him. "Annie -and I had a most miraculous escape amid the horrors of last night. I -will tell you of it anon--'twas quite a devil of a business. As for -me, I am well used to such camisadoes, having been blown up at Namur, -and twice nearly drowned in the Zuiderzluys; but how my adorable -Annie escaped, Heaven, who saved her, can only know. We were in the -hands of the most villanous mob the world ever saw; they were about -to hang me from the arm of the Girth-cross; and Annie--oh! my blood -bubbles like boiling water when I think of what they intended for -her; when this leathern-jawed apostle, who, with all his -psalm-singing and whiggery, hath some good points of honesty about -him, brought us off, sword in hand; we bundled out of the city -without blast of trumpet; and here we are. As a gentleman of -cavalier principles," said Finland, colouring, "you may marvel that I -would condescend to chant a psalm like a mere clown or canting -herdsman; but as we are utterly at the mercy of this Ichabod Mummel -or Bummel, I had no choice. He needs must----tush! you know the -musty old saw." - -"It is enough, maiden," said the preacher, replying to something -Lilian had said, and taking, with an air of real kindness, the little -hand of the shrinking girl within his own great bony paw, "I know -thee to be the kinswoman of that godly matron, Grisel Napier, who, -though wedded to as cruel a persecutor as ever bestrode a -war-horse--yea, and though leavened in their wickedness withal, -sheltered me in the days of my exceeding tribulation, when there was -a flaming sword over Israel, and when, as a humble instrument in the -cause of that great Saviour of the Kirk (whose coming I foretold in -my _Bombshell_, whilk hath not yet the luck to be printed), I came -from Holland to this land of anarchy, and had no where to lay my -head. She clothed and sheltered me, for the sake of that loved -kinsman who is now no more, slain by some accursed persecutor, whom I -would smite--yea, maiden, both hip and thigh, if I had him within -reach of this good old whinger, that so oft hath avenged the fall of -our martyrs!" - -Walter instinctively grasped his sword, startled by the stern energy -of the preacher, who continued-- - -"It is enough maiden,--with me ye are safe, and to a place of peace I -will conduct you and your friend; but for these two sons of the -scarlet woman--these slaves of Jezebel, who have been nursled in the -blood of our saints and martyrs, and in whom it grieves me to think -ye have garnered up your hearts, I may not, and cannot, with a safe -conscience, protect them. Let them depart from me in peace; let them -follow him who, ere long, will be called to a severe account for all -his dark misdeeds--John Grahame of Claverhouse." - -"'Tis sound advice, Mr. Bummel," said Walter, tightening his reins, -and drawing off his glove. "By Heaven! I had quite forgotten; he -will have crossed the Forth by this time, and it will require some -exertion of horseflesh to rescue my honour. Finland, we must go. -Mount Lilian's horse. Lilian," he added, in a low and tremulous -voice, "farewell now; commend me to Lady Grisel, and bid her bless -me; farewell, Lilian--we must part at last;" and stooping from his -horse, he gently pressed her to his steel-cased breast, and kissed -her. - -"Oh! Walter, remain--remain," murmured Lilian. - -"It cannot be--it is impossible now; I am pledged to Grahame of -Claverhouse." And afraid to trust himself longer within hearing of -her soft entreaties, lest love might overcome the stern principles of -loyalty in which he had schooled himself, he leaped his horse over -the fauld dyke; and while he felt as if his very heart was torn by -the agony of that separation, he dashed along the road to the west, -leaving Finland to follow as he chose. - -With a mind overcharged by sad and bitter thoughts, Walter galloped -madly on, retracing the way he had come with Lilian; his mind seemed -a very whirlpool, and the events of the last twenty-four hours a -dream. A steep old bridge, which the roadway crossed near the -ancient manor of Sauchtoun was ringing beneath his horse's heels, -when a distant shout made him rein up. - -"Hollo!" cried Finland, as he came after him breathlessly on the -panting mare; "what the devil--art gone mad, Walter? Oh this -tormenting love--ha! ha!" - -"I envy this happy flow of spirits, Finland!" - -"Then you envy me the possession of all that fate hath left me in -this bad world. This devilish commotion hath confiscated my free -barony of Finland, and torn my arms at the cross; still I am more gay -than thee who hath nothing to lose." - -"And after parting with one you love," continued Walter, almost -piqued by his friend's lightness of heart; "parting perhaps for -ever----" - -"Tush, man--I am used to such partings. I have had many a love that -was true while it lasted; but none like the passion I bear my dear -Annie. My first flame was a blue-eyed damoisella of the Low -Countries (her mother was a fleuriste in Ghent). I thought I loved -her very much; but somehow at Bruges, Mons, and Bergen-op-Zoom, 'twas -ever the same; I always left some one with a heavy heart; and cursed -the générale, when in the cold foggy mornings it rang through the -dark muddy streets, waking the storks on the high roofs above, and -the drowsy boors in their beds below. I know that the wheels of fate -and fortune are ever turning; some points may, and others must come -round, to their first starting place, so I always live in hope. I -was very sad in Ghent when our drums beat along the street of St. -Michael, and I bade adieu to my fair one, coming away I remember by -the window instead of the door." - -"How--why?" - -"I don't know, man," laughed Douglas; "but so we often left our -billets in French Flanders. But I assure thee, lad, that under all -this gaiety my heart is as heavy as thine; for I vow to thee, that -the recollection of Annie with her beseeching blue eyes, her dark -clustering hair and pallid cheek, the touching cadence of her voice, -and the words she said to me are imprinted on my heart as if the hand -of Heaven had written them there. By the bye I have composed a -famous song about her." - -"A song!" - -"Music and all. I wrote it on the night we were about to sack the -old house of Bruntisfield in search of yonder spindle-shanked -apostle. Ah, if in my absence Craigdarroch should dare--but ho! -yonder are some of our friends halted under a tree upon that grassy -knowe." - -"There is something odd being acted there. Does not yonder white -feather wave in the steel bonnet of Dundee?" - -"He is permitting some false Whig to sing his last psalm under _the_ -convenient branch where he is doomed to feed the corbies. Dundee is -very kind in that way sometimes." - -Recrossing the stream called the Leith, they rode towards a knoll -that rose amid the marshy ground near the castle loch of -Corstorphine. There a dozen of the cavalier troopers were -dismounted, and leaning on their swords or carbines, were holding -their bridles in a cluster round Dundee, who was still on horseback, -and in the act of addressing a disarmed prisoner, in whom with -surprise and sorrow they recognized the young Laird of Holsterlee. - -Cool and collected, with folded arms he firmly encountered the large -dark eyes of Dundee, which were fixed with stern scrutiny upon him. -The group of his comrades surveyed him with glances of mingled scorn -and pity. - -"Holsterlee!" said the Viscount, who held in one hand a long Scots -pistol, in the other a letter; "how little could I once have -suspected that you, the best cavalier of the king's life guard, and -one in whose loyalty and high spirit I trusted so much, would stoop -to this dishonour! The attempt simply of deserting to take service -with this vile usurper, though bad enough in itself, is as nothing -compared to the treachery which this stray letter has revealed. Fool -and villain! thou knowest that I am the last hope of the king's cause -in Scotland, and that if I fall it will be buried in my grave; and -yet thou art in league with this accursed Convention to destroy me! -A thousand English guineas for my head, thou villanous -scape-the-gallows and companion of grooms and horseboys, who hast -squandered away a fair repute and noble patrimony among rakehelly -gamesters and women of pleasure, dost thou value the head of a -Scottish peer at a sum so trifling? hah!" He uttered a bitter laugh. -"What," he resumed, "hast thou to urge, that I should not hang thee -from the branch of this beech tree?" - -"That I am a gentleman," replied Holsterlee boldly; "a lesser baron -of blood and coat-armour by twelve descents, and should not die the -death of a peasant churl or faulty hound." - -"Right!" exclaimed Dundee, whose dark and terrible eyes began to fill -with their dusky fire. "A gentleman should die by the hand of -another, for every punishment is disgraceful. DEATH is the only -relief from the consciousness of crime. Thou shalt have the honour -of perishing by the hand of the first cavalier in Scotland. _Thus_ -shalt thou die--now God receive thy soul!" and pointing upward with -his bridle hand, he levelled the pistol and fired. The ball passed -through the brain of Holsterlee, and flattened against the plastered -wail of a neighbouring cottage. The body sank prostrate on the turf, -quivered for a moment, and then lay still and stiffening, with -upturned eyes and relaxed jaws. - -This act, which was the most terrible episode in the life of the -stern Dundee, threw a chill on the hearts of his comrades; but he did -not permit them to remain gazing on the lifeless remains of one who -had ridden so long in their ranks, and who was the gayest fellow that -ever cracked a jest, shuffled a card, or handed a coquette through -the stately cotillion or joyous couranto. - -"Our nags are somewhat breathed after the hot chase he gave us, -gentlemen," said Dundee, deliberately reloading his pistol, and -endeavouring under an aspect of external composure to conceal the -immediate sorrow, remorse, and anger that too surely preyed upon his -heart. "To horse! sling carbines--forward--trot!" and away they rode -in silence leaving the cold remains of the dead man lying on the -grassy sward, with his blood-dabbled locks waving in the morning -wind, while the gleds and ravens wheeled and croaked around him with -impatience. - -But he felt not the one, and heard not the other. - -He was stripped by the cottagers, and as his dress was remarkably -rich, to prevent further inquiry they interred him where he lay -between the bare beech tree and the old cottage wall*. - - -* On removing the walls of an old cottage near Tynecastle, a mile -westward of Edinburgh, in 1843, the remains of a skeleton were found -buried close by; the skull had been pierced by a bullet. In the -plastered wall of the edifice a ball was found flattened against the -stone.--_Edin. Advert._, April 18, 1843. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -THE PASS OF KILLYCRANKIE. - - Heard ye not! heard ye not! how that whirlwind the Gael, - Through Lochaber swept down from Lochness to Locheil-- - And the Campbells to meet them in battle array, - Came on like the billow, and broke like its spray! - Long, long shall our war-song exult in that day! - IAN LOM, OF KEPPOCH. - - -The _Revolution_ might be said to be now fully achieved; save Dundee, -Balcarris, and a few of their followers, all had submitted to the new -sovereign whom these two nobles would rather have slain than -acknowledged. Dundee had been required by a trumpet to return to the -Convention; he treated the summons with scorn, and after cutting his -way through a party sent to intercept him, reached the Highlands a -proscribed fugitive, branded as an outlaw and traitor, and -stigmatized with every epithet that Presbyterian rancour, heightened -by the remembrance of his former military excesses, could heap upon -him. - -Colin, Earl of Balcarris, the High Treasurer, was captured and thrown -into a dungeon. The weak and servile Melville, the crafty and -fanatical Stair (the Scottish Tallyrand), and the not less crafty -Duke of Hamilton, were now at the head of the Government, and these, -though all staunch Presbyterians were by the king united in council -with a few of the high church nobles, an intermixture which inflamed -the animosities of both parties, and sowed the seeds of hatred, -discord, and confusion. - -With his troop of faithful cavaliers Dundee continued to wander from -place to place in the Highlands until the beginning of May, 1689, -when he appeared at the head of about two thousand clansmen led by -Sir Donald Macdonald, the chiefs of Glengarry, Maclean, Locheil, and -Clanronald--all names which shall ever be associated with the purest -ideas of chivalry, generosity, and valour. He had only about 120 -horse, but they were composed entirely of gentlemen, and were -commanded by a Sir William Wallace, a brave cavalier; Walter Fenton -was his cornet, and carried the standard. - -Lieutenant-General Hugh Mackay, of Scoury, now commander-in-chief of -the Scottish forces, Colonel-Commandant of the Scottish Brigade, and -Privy Councillor of Scotland, marched against him at the head of -nearly five thousand foot, and with two regiments of cavalry. -Neither the fall of Edinburgh Castle (which Sir John Lanier -demolished), nor the disappointment of assistance from Ireland which -James had promised him, could damp the ardour of the brave Dundee. -Deficiency of provisions had compelled him to shift his quarters -frequently, and his devoted followers had endured the most severe -privations; but under these they disdained to complain, when they -knew that Dundee shared them all. Like Montrose, he was eminently -calculated for a Highland leader. In his buff coat and headpiece he -marched on foot, now by the side of one clan, and anon by the ranks -of another, addressing the soldiers in their native Gaelic, -flattering their long genealogies, and animating the fierce rivalry -of clanship by reciting the deeds of their forefathers, and the -sonorous verses of their ancient bards. - -"It has ever been my maxim, Mr. Fenton," said he to our friend on one -occasion, "that no general should command an irregular army in the -field without becoming acquainted with every man under his baton." - -On the 17th June, 1689, he marched to the Pass of Killycrankie, where -one of the most decisive battles in Scottish history was bravely -fought and fruitlessly won. Dawn was brightening on the hills of -Athole; and Walter, who, quite exhausted by a long series of -hardships, cold, starvation, and a pistol-shot wound, was sleeping -under his horse's legs, was aroused by the sonorous and guttural cry -of a sentinel, who screamed out in Gaelic-- - -"Hoigh, Mhic Alastair Mhor! Hark to the war-drum of the Saxon!" - -It was the morning of a battle! Walter's first thought was of -Lilian; his second of the prospects of victory. The dear image of -Lilian made him rise superior to his fortune. Since they had so -abruptly separated, he had never heard from her; and it was now many -months. How long the time seemed! Amid his dreamy musings, the -gentle expression of her face often came powerfully to his -recollection, with, all the vigour of a deeply impressed vision; and -recollection summoned the tones of her sweet voice to his heart like -the memory of some old familiar air, and all the gushing tenderness -of his soul was awakened. But with these remembrances too often came -bitterness and despair, and he kissed with all a lover's fervour the -scarf her hands had wrought him. Gleams of memory, and vivid visions -of happiness, which he foresaw too surely could never be realized, -made his heart swell alternately with tender recollections and joyous -anticipations, that died away to leave him hopeless and despairing. -Now they were on the brink of a battle which Walter welcomed with -anxious joy, for it would be not less decisive as to the issue of his -love, than for the fortune of James and the fate of the British -people. - -It was a glorious morning in June; the purple summer heather, the -long yellow broom, the wild briar and honeysuckle, that clambered -among the basaltic cliffs, loaded the air with a rich perfume; while, -through the savage and stupendous gorge of Killycrankie, the rising -sun poured a flood of golden lustre, bringing forward in strong light -the wooded acclivities of those sublime hills, that heave up to -heaven their scaured and wooded sides, involving in dark shadow the -deep rocky chasms, through which the foaming Garry rushes to mingle -its waters with the rapid Tummel--chasms so profound, and hidden by -the overhanging foliage, that the roar only of the unseen water was -heard, awakening the echoes of the dewy woods and shining rocks. - -Nothing in nature can surpass the wild grandeur and imposing -sublimity of this mountain gorge, the frowning terrors of which, in -after years, so impressed a brigade of Hessians in the last of our -Scottish wars, that they refused to penetrate what appeared to them -to be the end of the habitable world. Save the mountain torrent -foaming down from the lofty hills, appearing one moment to hurl its -spray against the shining rocks, and urge masses of earth and stones -along with it, and disappearing the next, as it plunged into the -bosky woodlands,--all was still as death in that Highland solitude, -when, in steadiness and order, Dundee drew up his little host at its -northern verge, admirably posted on well-chosen ground, two miles -from the mouth of the pass; the only road to his position being the -ancient pathway that wound along the face of the precipitous cliffs, -where the least false step threatened instant destruction even to the -most wary passenger. - -Dundee's band--for it was indeed no more, though named an army--was -only two thousand strong, and composed of various little parties, -which were the nucleus of the corps he expected yet to form. On the -right was the soi-disant regiment of Sir John Macdonald; a small body -of the clans, under the illustrious chiefs of Locheil, Glengarry, and -Clanronald, the Atholemen under Ballechin, Wallace's troop of horse, -and a corps of three hundred half-clad and miserably accoutred -Irishmen, composed the mainbody. Dundee's old troop, in which rode -the Earl of Dunbarton, his officers, and several Highland gentlemen, -formed the reserve of cavalry. The Highlanders, arrayed each in the -picturesque tartan of their native tribes, were formed in close -ranks, with their filleadhbegs belted about them; their brass-studded -targets, long claymores, ponderous poleaxes, and long-barrelled -Spanish rifles, shining in the rays of the meridian sun. - -The brandishing of weapons and clan-standards, and the fierce notes -of war and defiance, as the various pibrochs rang among the echoing -hills, announced that the troops of Mackay were in sight. And now -the brave and anxious Dundee, clad in his rich scarlet uniform, with -the tall plumes waving on his polished headpiece, his fine features -full of animation, and his black eyes alternately clouded by anxiety, -or flashing with valour and energy,--galloped from clan to clan, -inspiring them by every exertion of graceful gesture and military -eloquence to add that day to the fame of their forefathers. - -The murmuring hum which, from afar off, announced the drums of -Mackay, grew more and more palpable, and increased until the hoarse -and sharp reverberations of the martial music rang between the steep -impending rocks of the long mountain pass through which the foe was -penetrating. Anon the Scottish standards, the red lion with the -silver cross, and one with that of St. George (borne by Hastings' -regiment), and the yellow banners of the Scots brigade, appeared at -intervals of time, and weapons were seen flashing through the -openings of the chasmed rocks and sable woods of drooping pine. - -The day had passed slowly in anxious expectation: it was evening now, -and the sun had verged to the northwest, but from between gathered -masses of saffron clouds streams of dazzling light were radiating; -and the setting rays, as they poured aslant on the mountain sides, -made the deep pass seem darker as it receded beyond them. The rattle -of the drums, and the blare of trumpet and bugle, the clank of -bandoliers and tread of feet, rang with a thousand reverberations -between the brows of that tremendous gorge, as the army of Mackay -debouched from its windings, and formed successive battalions on the -little level plain or hollow, above which the fierce and impatient -Highlanders, "like greyhounds in the slips straining upon the start," -were formed in array of battle. Undauntedly they surveyed the -measured steadiness and precision of the Lowland soldiers, whose -silken standards fluttered gaily above their moving masses of -polished steel caps, their screwed bayonets, and long pikes, that -were ever flashing in the setting sun. - -Sir James Hastings' English regiment, and those of Leven and Mackay -belonging to Scotland, were arrayed in that bright scarlet which was -to become so famous in future wars; but the battalions of Balfour, -Ramsay, and Kenmore wore the black iron caps, the scarlet hose, and -yellow coats of the Scotch-Dutch brigade. The cavalry corps of the -Marquis of Annandale and the Lord Belhaven wore coats of spotless -buff and caps of polished steel. Their numbers, discipline, and -order would have stricken with dismay any other volunteers than the -Highlanders, whose hearts had never known fear, and who had long been -accustomed to rout both horse and foot with equal speed and success. -As the practised eye of Mackay reconnoitred the position of Dundee, -he pointed to the clan, and said to young Cameron of Locheil, who -rode near him-- - -"Behold your father and his wild savages: how would you like to be -with him?" - -"It matters little," replied the young man haughtily; "but I -recommend you to be prepared, or my father and his 'wild savages' -before night may be nearer you than you would wish." - -The reports of a slight skirmish between the right wing of the -Highlanders and Mackay's left, made the hearts of all beat quicker; -and in the interval, Dundee exchanged his scarlet coat for one of -buff, richly laced with silver; and over it he tied a scarf of -_green_, which the Highlanders considered ominous of evil. Leaping -on horseback, he galloped to the front, and a shout of impatience -burst from the Highland ranks. - -It was now eight o'clock, and the sun was dipping behind the hills, -when a simultaneous volley ran from flank to flank along Mackay's -line; and while the roar of the musketry rang from peak to peak, and -rebellowed along the sky and among the hills like thunder, with a -thousand echoes, Dundee gave the order to charge; and in deep -silence, and like a cloud of battle, the race of old Selma came down! - -Reserving their fire until within a pike's length of King William's -troops, the Highlanders poured upon them a deadly volley; and -throwing down their muskets, drew their claymores, and, under cover -of the smoke, charged with the fury of an avalanche, striking up the -levelled bayonets with their studded targets, and hewing down with -sword and axe, routed the Lowland soldiery in a moment. - -The brave Maclean cut the left wing to pieces; while Hastings' -Englishmen, on the right, had equal fortune from the Camerons and -Macdonalds. Dunbarton, at the head of sixteen mounted cavaliers, -actually routed the whole artillery, and seized the cannon; while, -led by Finland, the remainder of the troop broke among the dense and -recoiling mass of Mackay's regiment, riding through it as easily as -through a field of rye. King William's Dutch standard was captured -by Walter Fenton, who, after a short conflict, drove his sword -through the corslet of the bearer, and, spurning him with his foot -and stirrup, bore off the trophy. - -Meanwhile Finland encountered a mounted cavalier, and had exchanged -blows before he recognised Craigdarroch, his rival, in the leader of -Annandale's Horse, whom his brave little band had now assailed, and -with whom they were maintaining a desperate and unequal combat of one -to five. - -"Surrender, Finland!" said Fergusson haughtily. - -"Have at thee, rebel!" cried his adversary, and by one blow struck -his rapier to pieces. His sword was raised to cut down the now -defenceless trooper, and end their rivalry for ever, but, animated by -chivalric generosity, he spared him, and pressed further on the -broken ranks of the enemy. - -Carrying aloft the Dutch banner, Walter Fenton rode towards Dundee, -who was applauding Sir Evan Cameron of Locheil, and urging his clan -yet further to advance. Dundee (whose panting horse was in the act -of stooping to drink of a mountain runnel), with his eyes of fire -turned to the disordered masses of Mackay, was brandishing his sword -towards them, when a random bullet pierced his buff coat above the -corslet, and buried itself in his shoulder under the left arm. - -The sword dropped from his hand; a deadly pallor overspread his -beautiful features; he reeled in his saddle, and would have fallen, -but Walter supported him, and held before his eyes the yellow -standard of the Statholder. - -"Now God be thanked, they fly!" said he, in a voice which showed how -intense were the torments he endured; "you are a brave lad, -Fenton--the dying hour of Claver'se is at hand, but he will not -forget you. Meet me at the house of Urrard in an hour, if all goes -well and I survive till then. Make my dutiful service to the noble -Lord Dunbarton, and desire him to assume the command. Adieu;" and -placing his hand on the orifice to staunch the blood, he rode over -the field at a rapid trot. - -In a mass of disorder, horse and foot, musqueteers, pikemen, and -cavalry, the soldiers of Mackay were driven like a flock of -frightened sheep down the narrow pass, while the fierce clansmen, -swaying with both hands axe and claymore, "cut down," says an old -author, many of Mackay's officers and soldiers, "through skull and -neck to the very breast; others had their skulls cut off above their -ears like nightcaps; some had their bodies and crossbelts cut through -at one blow; pikes and swords were cut like willows, and whoever -doubts this may consult the witnesses of the tragedy." Thanks to the -skill of Dundee and the valour of the Highlanders, never was a more -decisive victory won. Mackay lost his tents, baggage, artillery, -provisions, and his standards; he had two thousand men slain and five -hundred taken prisoners. Such was the battle of Killycrankie, or -_Rinn Ruaradh_, as it is still named by the peasantry, who attribute -the ultimately fatal effects of the victory to the circumstance of -Dundee wearing _green_, a colour still esteemed ominous to his -sirname. A rude obelisk of rough stone still marks the place where -the death-shot struck him, and is pointed out by the mountaineers -with respect and regret as the _Tombh Claverse_. - -The grief and consternation that spread through the Highland ranks on -the fall of their beloved leader becoming known, prevented the -pursuit being followed with sufficient vigour, otherwise few would -ever have reached the southern mouth of that terrible pass. - -"Dundee hath assuredly been slain," said General Mackay, as he -breathed his sinking charger at the other extremity of Killycrankie, -two miles from the field. "I am convinced of it; otherwise we would -not have been permitted to retreat thus far unmolested." - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -THE LAST HOUR OF DUNDEE. - - Oh last and best of Scots! who did'st maintain - Thy country's freedom from a foreign reign; - New people fill the land, now thou art gone, - New gods the temples, and new kings the throne! - ARCHIBALD PITCAIRN. - - -Now the battle was over, and the fury of the conflict with the fierce -energies it excited had passed away together. In that narrow gorge -lay more than two thousand slain, and the broad round moon, as its -shining circle rose above the dark ridge of the far-off mountains, -poured its cold lustre on the distorted visages of the writhing -wounded, and more ghastly linaments of the pallid dead. While the -Highlanders were plundering the baggage and carousing on the -provisions of Mackay (who was then retreating to Stirling), Walter -Fenton rode to the house of Urrard, and repaired to the presence of -his leader. - -Within a little wainscotted apartment, lighted by four long candles, -that flared in a brazen branch, stretched upon a low canopied bed lay -the great and terrible Dundee. On his proud heart of fierce impulses -and high aspirations, the hand of the grim monarch was now laid -surely and heavily. His fine features were sharpened, pale and -ghastly, by agony and approaching death. He breathed slowly. His -Monmouth wig was laid aside, and his own raven hair, which formed a -strong contrast with the whiteness of his skin, flowed over the -pillow like the tresses of a woman. - -"Can this be Claverhouse?" thought Walter. - -His bloodstained buff coat, his sword and helmet, lay near him on a -chair, and around the couch were Dunbarton, Finland, the great Sir -Evan of Locheil, Glengarry, Clanronald, Grant of Glenmorriston, and -other leaders, who leaned on their swords, conversed in low whispers, -and watched with unfeigned sorrow the ebbing life of the only man who -could lead them like Montrose. - -The whole of his dying energies were now directed to one object, a -despatch to his exiled king, containing an account of the glories he -had gained in his cause, and the long career of service he had sealed -with his own gallant blood. Though every muscle of his face was -contracted at times with the agony he endured, when stretching from -bed to write at the low table beside it, supported by his brother -David Grahame, who was sheathed in steel, _à la Cuirassier_, he -finished this memorable and disputed letter with singular coolness, -appended his name, and instantly falling back, closed his eyes and -lay motionless, as if in death. - -"He is gone," whispered the agitated Earl of Dunbarton to the stern -Locheil. "There lies the strongest pillar of the good old cause." - -"_Hereditary right will face the rocks!_" replied the chieftain in -Gaelic, as he grasped his dirk; "cursed be the green scarf that -wrought this evil work to Scotland and to us!" - -Their voices seemed to call back the fleeting spirit; and, -controlling the painful trembling of his limbs, Dundee opened his -bloodshot eyes, and looked slowly round him. - -"Do not persist," said he to the surgeon, who approached. "I know -that all is over--let me die in peace. Approach, Mr. Fenton--unfurl -that standard;" and his wild dark eyes flashed with their old energy -at the sight of the Stadtholder's banner. "You will, at all risks, -bear this despatch and that trophy to the hands of King James, and -say they are the last--the best--the dying bequest of Dundee." - -Walter's heart was full; he could only lay his hand upon his breast, -and bow a grateful assent. - -"To Colonel Cannon I bequeath my baton and authority; let him use -them well in the King's service, if he would wish to die in peace -when he comes to lie _here_." - -"Colonel Cannon!" muttered the Highland chiefs, as they drew -themselves up, exchanged glances of hauteur, and twisted their -mustachios. - -"Be merciful to our prisoners," continued the sufferer in a voice -more weak and quavering, and stopping often to take breath; "be -merciful to them, for they are our countrymen. Release and bid them -return to their homes in peace; say that such was the last wish of -Dundee. Many have styled me merciless in my time, sirs, and bitterly -will they speak of my spirit when it is far beyond the reach of -mortal malevolence. I have done fierce and stern things, but I have -been hurried to do them by an irrevocable destiny, and a tide of -circumstances incident to these our troubled times. Every iota of -what I have done was fore-ordained--hah! do not your Presbyterians -tell us so? But grateful--deeply grateful is the conviction to my -passing spirit, that my friends will ever remember my name with -honour, and my foes with fear. I feel more bitterness in dying after -a victory than I could have endured by a defeat; for _it_ would have -made life worthless, and death welcome. Oh, may this day's great -achievement be an omen of future success, and a second Restoration! -Go, my comrades; continue in that path of earthly glory which I must -quit for ever; and let ye who survive to behold our beloved King fail -not to tell him--that--that John Grahame of Claverhouse--with his -last breath blessed him--and--died." - -Falling back, he immediately expired, just as daylight (which at that -season scarcely passed away) brightened in the east. - -All started and bent over him; but the fierce spirit of that -remorseless cavalier had fled for ever, and his magnificent features, -as the rigidity and pallor of death overspread them, assumed the -aspect of a beautiful marble statue. A groan that burst from the -lips of his brother, as he knelt down and closed his eyes; the heavy -sobs of a few aged Highlanders; and the low wail of a lament, as the -pipers of Glengarry poured it to the mountain-wind and echoing woods -of Urrard, were the only sounds heard within that gloomy chamber, -where the terror of the Presbyterians--the idol of the cavaliers, and -the last hope of James, lay prostrate, to rise no more. Though by -one faction styled the _last and best of Scots_--by the other, a -murderer and outlaw; yet, by the cause for which he died, and the -manner of his death, he closed in glory a life of singular ferocity -and turbulence. - -His remains were hurriedly interred in the rural kirk of Blair Athol; -and the cause of King James was buried with him. His brother assumed -his title; but died in great obscurity in France in 1700. The buff -coat of Dundee, bearing the mark of the fatal ball, and stained with -his blood, together with his helmet and other relics, are still -preserved in the ducal castle of Blair. - -Remembering the dying desire of their leader on the day after the -battle, the Highland chiefs liberated all the prisoners on parole of -honour not to serve against the King, Colonel Fergusson of -Craigdarroch (notwithstanding all the exertions of his generous rival -Finland) "being excepted," says Captain Crichton, in his Memoirs, "on -account of his more than ordinary zeal for the new establishment." - -In those days the uncertain means of communication between towns, and -the great deficiency of certain information of public events, caused -many strange and varying rumours of the Highland war to be circulated -in the Lowlands, where the only newspaper was the _Caledonius -Mercurius_, which had been published occasionally since the -Restoration. But the astounding intelligence of the victory at -Killycrankie, and the fall of Dundee, spread like wildfire through -the low country, to which he had so long been a terror and scourge. -The defeat of Cannon at the Haughs of Cromdale, and the utter -prostration of James's banner in the north, was soon followed by his -disaster at the Boyne, in Ireland, where the loss of a decisive -battle compelled him again to seek refuge in France. - -Poor Lilian, at home in the then secluded capital of Scotland, heard -of those stirring events at long intervals; and to her they were a -source of deep interest, and of many a sigh and hour of tears; but of -Walter she heard no tidings. Whether he lay mouldering in the Pass -of Killycrankie, among the haughs of Cromdale, or was wandering among -the wildest fastnesses of the north, with the doom of proscription -and treason hanging over him, she knew not; and time in no way -soothed or alleviated the agonies of her suspense. On the return of -Colonel Fergusson, whose apostacy had opened an easy path to -preferment under the new order of affairs, she learned some faint -rumours of his departure to France with the other officers of -Dundee--for that horizon where the sun of the exiled Jacobites was -setting--the lonely palace of St. Germain. Though the tidings fell -like ice on the heart of the poor girl, any certainty was preferable -to suspense; and with her good Aunt Grisel, she could only weep for -the poor youth they loved so well, and pray and hope for happier -times. To lighten the solitude his absence caused, she could not -even hope for a letter; all intercourse with the court of the exiled -King being proscribed under pain of banishment and death; and thus -slowly the melancholy summer of 1690 passed on. - -With the accession of William, and total subversion of the old high -church party, all the sourness and severity of Presbyterian -discipline (which at times compelled the proudest peers to endure a -rebuke on the ignominious repentance-stool, or at least before a -congregation) was resumed by the overbearing clergy in full sway. -From the innate cavalier sentiments of her family, and the wavering -politics of Aunt Grisel, Lilian had never been a very rigid -Presbyterian; and now, looking upon the triumph of "the Kirk" as -having driven her lover into exile, she felt her heart further than -ever removed from Presbytery. She had still to endure the -persecution of Clermistonlee, who, having in a few months spent all -the Revolution had enabled him to extort by fines from his old -cavalier friends, was now more reduced and desperate than ever; and, -as a last shift, was compelled to dispose of his tower of Clermiston -for a trifling sum to his more cautious gossip Mersington; and though -the gaming-table replenished his exchequer at times, gaunt starvation -stared him hourly in the face. - -Though the native kindness and exceeding gentleness of Lilian's -manner had always given this indefatigable suitor some hope of -ultimate success, he soon found that, besieging her whenever she went -abroad, and keeping spies upon her when at home--pestering her with -presents, and letters the most flattering and submissive his -ingenuity and skill could indite, did not bring him nearer the summit -of his wishes. As his funds waxed lower, his perseverance increased; -and he brought a new ally into the field, in the person of our old -friend Mr. Ichabod Bummel, whose zeal for the Revolution had procured -him an incumbency in the city, where, every Sunday, he had the -felicity of preaching in a pulpit of his own, quoting that immortal -work the _Bombshell_, railing at the exiled King, and all other -"bloody-minded massmongers," and "dinging" many successive bibles to -"blads" in the true Knox-like energy of his discourse. This meddling -preacher, after the abduction of Lilian, and the scandalous reports -the kirk party had so industriously circulated concerning it, had -long deemed it, in his own phraseology, "a shameful and malapert -fact, unseemly to men, and abominable in the sight of Heaven, that -these twain should remain unwedded;" and by his influence, -Clermistonlee was duly cited before the kirk session. Resistance was -in vain, for now the clergy had succeeded to the Council's iron rod; -and temporal proscription and spiritual excommunication invariably -followed delay. - -Clad in a sack of coarse white canvass, and on his knees before a -staring congregation of stern Presbyterians, he "confessit his -manifold sins and enormities," as the records of the kirk show, "and -was rebukit by the godlie Mr. Bummel for the space of ane hour, being -comparit to ane owle in ye desart;" and it appears that the minister, -in his ire, made such direct reference to the abduction of Lilian, in -language so pointed, so coarse, and unseemly, that, overwhelmed with -shame and horror, the poor girl, unable to bear the scornful scrutiny -and malevolent glances of her own sex, sank down in the gloomiest -recesses of the old family pew, and swooned. - -This event, together with the cruel inuendos industriously circulated -by the gallants and gossips of the city, was her crowning misfortune; -from that hour her peace was blighted, and her fair fame blotted for -ever. Her friends pitied and acquaintance shunned her. She endured -the most intense grief and bitterness of soul that a sensitive and -delicate woman could feel; for even the very children of the Whig -faction pelted her sedan when it entered the city, and called her "My -Lord's leman," "Clermistonlee's minion," and the "Deil's dearie." - -The united effects of grief, shame, mortification, and insulted -pride, were soon visible on her health; her cheek grew blanched and -thin, her eyes dim; and though she did not weep, her sorrows lay -deeper, and the canker-worm preyed upon her suffering heart. And not -the least offensive to her feelings were those offerings of -friendship which were mingled with condolence, when Lady Drumsturdy -and others advised her to think seriously of the long and assiduous -attentions of Clermistonlee; in short, "_after all that had taken -place_," to receive him as her husband; that being in their opinion -the only way to restore her forfeited honour. - -The inuendo concealed under this odious advice provoked the anger of -Lilian, whose concern was increased by perceiving that Lady Grisel -and her own bosom friend and gossip Annie, were beginning to be of -the same opinion. Their countenance, and the hope of Walter's -return, had alone sustained her so long; but now a sense of utter -desolation sank upon her soul, and her brain reeled with the terrible -thoughts that oppressed it. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -ST. GERMAINS. - - And it was a' for our richtfu' king, - We ere left Scotia's strand, my dear; - And it was a' for our richtfu' king, - We saw another land, my dear. - OLD SONG. - - -Agitated by feelings such as few have experienced, on an evening in -the summer of 1690, Walter Fenton found himself pursuing the dusty -highway from Paris to St. Germains, the place where the hopes and the -fears, the loyalty and the sorrows of the Jacobites were centred. He -wore a plain suit of unlaced grey cloth, very much worn, a hat -without a feather, and a plain walking-sword. He carried under his -arm a small bundle, with particular care, for it contained a few -necessaries and all he possessed in the world--his commission, the -long-treasured letter of Dundee, and the Dutch standard he had taken -at Killycrankie. These were now his whole fortune. - -That day he had walked from Senlis without tasting food, and was -quite exhausted. After spending his last sou on a glass of sour vin -ordinaire at a small cottage near the Wood of Treason (where Ganelon -in 780 formed his plot which betrayed the house of Ardennes, the -peers of Charlemagne, and occasioned the defeat at Roncesvalles), he -grasped his bundle, and pushed on with renewed energy. His handsome -features were impressed by an air of sadness and deep abstraction, -for the acute achings of present sorrow struggled with the gentler -whisperings of hope, and though his feet traversed the hard flinty -roadway from Paris, his thoughts were far away in the land of his -childhood, and his wandering fancy luxuriated on the memory of many a -much-loved scene he might be fated to behold no more, and many an -episode of tenderness and love that would never be re-acted again. - -How vividly he recalled every glance and graceful action of Lilian, -as he had last beheld her. Nearest and dearest to his heart, she -rendered the memory of his native land still more beloved, for she -yet trod its soil and breathed its air, and he knew that daily she -could gaze on those blue hills which are the first landmarks of the -child in youth, and the last of the man in age, and to the -recollection of which the emigrant and the exile cling with the -tenacity of life. - -The current of his thoughts was interrupted, and his cheek flushed. -The great and striking brick façade of the old castle of St. -Germains, with its turrets shining in the setting sun, arose before -him. There dwelt he on whom the hopes of half a nation rested, and -Walter drew breath more freely as he progressed; his eye sparkled, -and his cheek flushed with animation, for now other and less painful -thoughts were occurring to his fancy. With the buoyancy natural to -youth, sorrow gave way as hope spread its rainbow before him: and -bright visions of the King's triumphant return and restoration by the -swords of the Cavaliers or Jacobites, mingled with his own dreams of -love and honour. Fired with ardour, he often grasped his sword, and -springing forward, longed to throw himself at the foot of James VII., -and pour forth in transport that singularly deep and burning passion -of loyalty which animated every member of his faction. - -"And this is the palace of our King!" he exclaimed, with enthusiasm. -"Heaven grant I may yet greet him in his old ancestral dome of -Holyrood!" But the fever of his naturally excitable spirits subsided -when approaching the edifice, for the air of silence and gloom that -pervaded it struck a chill on his anxious heart. - -"Ah," thought he, "if James should be dead!" - -At the distance of twelve miles from Paris, this ancient brick -chateau or palace is beautifully situated on the slope of a verdant -hill, at the base of which flows the Seine, and opposite lies an -immense forest. From the earliest ages, St. Germain-en-laye had been -a hunting-seat of the French kings; but in compliment to his -mistress, whose name was Diana, Francis I. (a monarch unequalled in -gallantry, generosity, and magnificence) built the present palace in -form of the letter D, with five towers, the vanes of which were -gleaming like gold in the setting sun as Walter approached. A dry -fosse crossed by drawbridges surrounded this noble chateau, which had -on one side a range of beautiful arcades built by Henry IV. and Louis -XIII., and a magnificent terrace 2,700 yards long and 50 broad, -extending by the side of the dark-green forest, and from which, as -our exile traversed it, he had a full view of the Seine winding -through a beautiful country, bordered on each side by waving meadows, -vineyards of the deepest green, and cornfields of the brightest -yellow, villages of white cottages thatched with light-coloured -straw, that clustered round the turreted chateaux or the ramparted -châtelets of a noblesse that were then the most aristocratic in -Europe. - -But Walter saw only the home of the exiled Stuarts. On the ruddy -brick-walls, the latticed casements, and gothic towers, the setting -sun was pouring a flood of light as it set at the cloudless horizon. -From the summit of the edifice, the royal standard of Britain hung -down listlessly and still, and the same absence of life seemed to -pervade all beneath it. The ditch was overgrown with luxuriant -weeds, and long tufts of pendant grass waved in the joints of the -masonry; great branches of vine and ivy had clambered up the walls of -the palace, and flourished in masses on its terraced roofs and -balconies. There was no one visible at any of the windows; the -gateway, which was surmounted by a stone salamandre (the cognizance -of Francis I.), was shut, and save two sentinels of the French -guards, who stood motionless as statues on each side, and an old -Jacobite gentleman or two, in full-bottomed wigs and laced coats, -promenading slowly and thoughtfully on the terrace, the old chateau -seemed lifeless and uninhabited. - -As Walter crossed the bridge, and approached the gate with a beating -heart, one of the sentinels, after giving a haughty glance at his -faded and travel-stained attire, his weary aspect, and bundle, ported -his musquet across, and said politely, but firmly-- - -"Pardonnez, monsieur." - -Walter's heart swelled: had he travelled thus far, and reached the -palace of his King, only to be repulsed from its gates? His colour -came and went, as, with a painful mixture of pride and humility, he -replied-- - -"Mon camarade, I am a poor Scots officer, exiled from his native -country, and who has come here to take service in France." The face -of the Frenchman flushed, and his eye glistened, as he drew himself -up, and presented arms. - -"Behold my commission," continued Walter; "I would speak with my -noble Lord and Colonel the Earl of Dunbarton." - -"Aha," replied the sentinel, "il est bon soldat, Monsieur Dunbartong. -Passez, Monsieur officier; un gentilhomme est toujours un -gentilhomme, et les braves officiers Eccossais sonts l'admiration de -la France!" - -Walter bowed at this compliment, the gate was opened by the porters, -and, with a heart full of thoughts too deep for words, he found -himself within the gloomy quadrangle of the palace of St. -Germain-en-laye. - -Left for some minutes to himself, he stood, bundle in hand, -irresolutely surveying, with a dejected and crest-fallen air, the -great and silent court. A gentleman in very plain attire, with a -short wig, a well-worn beaver, and steel-hilted sword, who was slowly -promenading under the arcade, suddenly turned, and the wanderer was -greeted by his old friend Finland. - -"Welcome to the poor cheer of St. Germain-en-laye!" cried this merry -soldier (whom no fall of fortune could daunt), grasping Walter's -hand. "My bon camarade, welcome to France. By all the devils, I was -often grieved for thee, poor lad, and deemed thou wert doing penance -in some rascally Tolbooth for our brave camisade in the north." - -Walter was so much oppressed in spirit, and so weak in mind and body, -that the tears rushed into his eyes, and he could only press his hand -in silence. - -"What the devil----my poor lad, thou seemest very faint and -exhausted!" - -"I have travelled on foot from Boulogne-sur-mer. I spent my last -franc at St. Juste, my last sou an hour ago for a glass of vin -ordinaire, and for three days no food has passed my lips." - -"My God!" exclaimed Finland, striking his flushed forehead, "and my -last tester went for dinner today! how shall I assist you? -Travelling for three days without food! Surely the fortunes of the -cavaliers are now at the lowest ebb." - -"Then the tide must flow again." - -"I now begin to fear it will flow no more for us. What says the -player? - - 'There is a tide in the affairs of men, - Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune.' - -Once at least in life, every man's fortune will be at the flood, and -if he misses the tide his bark is stranded on the shore for ever. -But thee, poor lad! how shall I get thee food?--we are all as poor as -kirk rats here. There are not less than two hundred officers of -Dundee's army, and other loyal gentlemen of the Life Guards and -Scottish Brigade, subsisting here on the small bounty of our gracious -king, (whom Heaven in its mercy bless!) until some turn of fortune -again draws forth their swords. We have each but fourpence a day, -and are in great misery from lack of the most common necessaries of -life. Yet we never forget that we are Scottish gentlemen, and daily -attend the king's levée, with as gallant an air as if we trod the -long gallery of Holyrood in our feathers and lace as of old. His -grace of Gordon, my Lords of Maitland, Dunbarton, Abercorn, and -others dine daily at a poor Restaurateur's, on plain stew and cabbage -broth, while I have to content myself with bread and onions, and a -keen appetite for sauce; while it affords me no consolation to -reflect that my old ancestral tower of Finland--the gift of the Black -Douglas to his favourite son--and all the fertile lands that spread -around it, are now possessed by some vile, canting, crop-ear. The -Earl of Dunbarton----" - -"Whilom our gallant colonel--how I long for an interview!" - -"He is gone to Versailles to visit le Mareschal Noailles, anent the -unfortunate gentlemen who are starving here around us. He will be -back tomorrow. Oh, Walter, when I see how might can triumph over -right, and wickedness over more than Spartan virtue, I am almost -tempted to believe there is no governing power in this wretched -world; that all is the effect of chance or fate." - -"Chance and fate are the reverse of each other, and this sentiment -agrees not with your previous idea of 'the tide in the affairs of -men.'" - -"Tush! I am in a dozen minds in an hour. Let us leave these topics -to such men as Mr. Ichabod Bummel. You remember that apostle of the -covenant? ha, ha! A word in your ear. You saw our fair ones ere -you left Scotland, I doubt not?" - -"Alas, no." - -"The deuce! how came that to pass? But you must dine, and where? for -I have not a brass bodle, as we say at home in poor old Scotland, -(God bless her, with all her errors!) I have it! the officer of the -guard will lend me--or give--'tis all one; they are fine fellows, -these French, and share their poor pay with us, in a spirit of -charity that the apostles could not have surpassed. The gentleman -and the soldier seldom seek a boon from each other in vain." - -Finland calculated rightly; the French chevalier commanding the -guard, on learning the cause of his present necessity, at once -divided the contents of his purse, and enabled the happy borrower to -lead his wearied friend to a tavern, where dinner was ordered and -discussed with wonderful celerity. - -"Now, Walter, I shall be glad to hear thy adventures," said Finland, -when the waiting girl had cleared the dinner board and laid a -decanter of wine, from which he filled their glasses. "Frontiniac -dashed with brandy--you remember how often we have drank a bottle of -it at Hughie Blair's, and the White Horse Hostel. How the times are -changed since then! I was not at the Haughs o' Cromdale, being en -route for Ireland to crave succour from James----" - -"After the dispersion consequent to that ill-managed affair, I -wandered from place to place, enduring such miseries as few can -conceive, and was a thousand times in danger of being captured by -Mackay's dragoons, who were riding down the country in every -direction. Assisted by the kind and beautiful Countess of Dunbarton -(who is yet intriguing in England), I procured some money, and, -disguised as a Norlan drover, reached the western borders, for escape -by sea from Scotland was impossible, the whole coast being watched by -the English and Dutch fleet. In England my money was soon spent, and -I despaired of ever reaching the port of Colchester, where I heard -there lay a ship that in secret frequently transported our persecuted -people to France. My bonnet and grey plaid, though they ensured my -safety in the Lowlands, caused me to be viewed with hatred, jealousy, -and mistrust, as soon as the Cheviot hills were left behind me, and I -had not money wherewith to procure a change of costume. I travelled -principally by night, and slept in ditches or thickets by day, for -the villagers assailed me with stones and abuse whenever they saw me, -using every bitter epithet that national animosity could inspire, -while every country boor that had a couple of beagles at hand, -uncoupled them to track and hunt me." - -"Would to heaven I had been with thee, lad! Well." - -"I remember with what bitterness I changed my last penny for a poor -roll at Rippon, and eat it by the side of a ditch, near the princely -castle of one who had gained a coronet by his political apostacy. I -had still many miles before me, but trusting to Providence, continued -my journey. Travelling by night and lying _perdu_ by day, I found -myself in a waste moorland near Cawood, in the West Riding of -Yorkshire. The moon was rising; but I found that hunger, fatigue, -and humiliation, had done their worst upon me, and that I could -achieve no more. Despair entered my heart, and I threw myself down -in that bleak spot to die, cursing the rebellion of our countrymen, -the inhospitality of the English, and my own bad fortune. From a -stupor that for some time weighed down every sense, I was roused by -the trampling of a horse, and a deep bass voice crying, - -"'Hollo Gaffer, art dead, or dead drunk only! Get up with a murrain, -for my nag will neither stand or pass; steady--so-so--gently, zounds! -gently!" - -"I started, and instinctively grasped my staff, on perceiving a tall -stout fellow muffled in a dark rocquelaure, with his face masked, and -a hat flapped over his eyes. He rode a strong, fleet, and active -horse, and carried long holsters. - -"'Crush me, if it isn't a Scotch Jockey--a pedlar, I warrant!' said -he, drawing a pistol from his saddlebow; 'they never travel without -the ready; so hand over the bright Jacobuses or William's guilders, -or else I may pop this bullet through your brain.' - -"I was desperate, and replied, 'Fire! and rid me of an existence that -is worthless. I have nothing to give but my life, and it is no -longer of value to me.' - -"'A gentleman, by this light!' replied the other, withdrawing his -pistol, 'some cavalier in disguise, I warrant.' - -"'You have guessed rightly; so now lead me to the nearest justice of -the peace for a reward, if you will.' - -"'For what do you take me?' said he, angrily. 'God bless King James, -and may the great devil choak his son-in-law! Ah, had the good -Dundee (a Scot though he was) survived that brave day's work, in your -infernal pass of what d'ye call it? 'twould have been another case -with us both today, perhaps. So thou art a Scottish cavalier?' - -"'Once I was so--to-night I am a beggar, perishing by want, and -without a roof to shelter me.' - -"'Hast thou no money, lad?' - -"'Not a penny, and have two hundred miles to travel.' - -"'Hast thou no friends among the English here?' - -"'Have I not said that I am poor?' - -"'Right! I have learned in my time that the poor have no friends.' - -"'Save God and their own hands.' - -"'Right again, say I; though a highwayman, I love thee lad, for we -have suffered in common from this accursed usurper, who sits in the -throne of of our king. Here are thirty guineas; 'tis the half of all -I have in the world, but to-morrow night may bring me better luck; -take them with welcome, and spend them without scruple; but two hours -ago, they were in the purse of that rascally whig, Marmaduke -Langstone, of Langstone Hall. Keep to the right, and an hour's brisk -walking will bring you to a hedge alehouse. Whisper my name to the -wench at the bar (kiss her for me), and she will put thee on the -right road for Colchester; the girl is true as steel to the good old -cause.' - -"'Whom shall I thank--whom remember?' - -"'They call me "Highflying Tom" now, eastward of Temple Bar,' said he -in a tone of bitterness; 'but when King James sat in his own chair, I -was Thomas Butler, _Esquire_, of a long pedigree and an empty -purse--devil else--but a gentleman every inch, sir; one that has shot -his man, played at Cavagnole with King Charles, and Ombre with the -Queen; drank many a bout with Rochester, ruffled it with Buckingham, -and handed the fair Castlemaine and fairer Cleveland through a -crowded cotillon. But it's all over now; and, d--n me! I am plain -Bully Butler the highwayman.--So, sir, your servant;' and dashing -spurs into his horse, he galloped away over the heath." - -"Thomas Butler, of the princely house of Ormond--and 'twas he!" said -Finland; "a braver spark old Ireland never sent forth to glory or -disgrace. His father was a stout old Royalist, and shed his blood -for King James on the banks of the Boyne. And so he hath taken to -the road, the madcap! That is riding at the gallows full tilt with a -vengeance!" - -"But for that rencontre, I must have expired. The meeting gave me -renewed energy; and (to be brief) I reached--not Colchester, but the -sea-port of Saltfleet, where, in the disguise of a poor Scottish -mariner, I embarked on board a smuggling craft, which landed me at -Boulogne; and so--I am here." - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -THE CAVALIERS OF DUNDEE. - - In the cause of right engaged, - Wrongs injurious to redress; - Honour's war we strongly waged, - But the heavens denied success. - Ruin's wheel has driven o'er us, - Not a hope that dare attend; - The world wide is all before us, - But a world--without a friend. - STRATHALLAN'S LAMENT. - - -The magnanimity of those unfortunate officers of the Scottish army -who remained loyal to James VII., and had shared his misfortunes and -exile, was equally worthy of ancient Caledonia and of the most -glorious ages of Athens and of Sparta. They were about one hundred -and fifty in number, all men of noble spirit, unblemished honour, and -high birth; for they were the representatives of some of the first -families in Scotland. Enthusiastically attached to the King, they -gloried in the sufferings their principles had brought upon them. - -On their first arrival in France, small pensions were assigned them -by Louis XIV.; but these were shortly afterwards withdrawn, on the -paltry pretext of public expedience; and the whole of those -unfortunate gentlemen, who by their incorruptible loyalty and -indomitable patriotism had forfeited their commissions, when they -might have purchased new honours in the ranks of the invader, and -many of whom had lost titles and estates by their expatriation, were -thus thrown destitute in a foreign land. - -It is related that, with a noble spirit of generosity, they shared -their little funds for the benefit of those who were in greater -destitution; and those who had raised money by the sale of their gilt -corslets, jewels, laced uniforms, rings, &c., readily shared it with -others who were penniless. But these occasional funds soon became -exhausted; the King soon found it impossible, from the pittance -allowed him, to maintain the numerous exiles and ruined dependants -who made his court of St. Germain their rallying point. The poor -Scottish officers finding the horrors of starvation before them, -petitioned James for leave to form themselves into a company of -private soldiers for the service of the French king, asking no other -favour than permission to choose their own leaders: their former -general, Dunbarton, to be their captain; their Serjeants to be -lieutenant-colonels; and so forth. The King reluctantly consented. - -Those high-spirited cavaliers were immediately furnished with the -clothing and arms of French soldiers; and previously to their -incorporation with the army of Mareschal Noailles, repaired to St. -Germain, to be reviewed by the King, and to take a long--to many a -last--adieu of him. - -It was the day after Walter's arrival; and the summer morning rose -beautifully on the Gothic towers of St. Germain, the crystal windings -of the Seine, and on the dense dark woodlands that, interspersed with -blooming vineyards and waving fields, imparted such charms to the -landscape. - -James VII. had become passionately fond of the chase since the loss -of his kingdom; for his brave and restless spirit always sought -excitement when not absorbed in the austere duties of religion, in -the course of which he often subjected himself to the most severe -penances. Kind, affable, and easy to all around him, religion -improved the virtues of his heart, subdued the fire of his spirit, -and by imparting a monk-like gentleness to his demeanour, endeared -him to his enthusiastic followers. The butcheries of Kirke and -Claverhouse, and the tyrannies of Jefferies and Rosehaugh, were -forgotten. Though his uncompromising bigotry remained, all his -arbitrary spirit had vanished; and when he laid aside his visions of -worldly grandeur and kingly power, nothing could be more blameless -and amiable than the life he led. - -He frequently visited the poor monks of La Trappe, whom he surprised -by the piety and humility of his deportment; but there were times -when the sparkling eye, the flushed cheek, the forward stride, and -the clanked sword, shewed how regal a spirit and bold a heart -misfortune had crushed and fanaticism clouded. He was an enthusiast -in the pleasures of the chase, which he enjoyed after the good old -English fashion; and on the morning in question, the baying of dogs, -the neighing of horses, and the merry ringing of the clear -bugle-horn, awoke the echoes of the woods, the gloomy arcades, and -quadrangle of St. Germain. - -On each side of the archway were drawn up a guard of honour of les -Gardes Françaises, in their white hoquetons laced with gold, powdered -wigs, little hats looped on three sides and surmounted with plumes of -feathers, and having the white banner of Bourbon displayed. The -porters unclosed the heavy folding-doors, and a merry troop of -huntsmen in green galloped forth, with their dogs barking and -straining in the leashes, as the blasts of the shrill horns were -poured to the morning wind, and roused their English blood. The -heavy drawbridge clanked into its place across the grass-grown -moat--the planks resounded to iron hoofs--the French guard presented -arms--the oriflamme of St. Denis was lowered--the drums beat a -march--and James VII., raising his plumed hat, sallied forth at the -head of his train, and advanced along the spacious and magnificent -terrace. The Earl of Dunbarton rode by his side; and as they -caracoled along the level terrace, by the margin of the beautiful -Seine, a body of soldiers in French uniform was seen in front, drawn -up in steady array, with their fixed bayonets shining in the morning -sun. They presented arms as the King approached, upon which he -immediately reined up, and raised his hat. - -"My Lord Dunbarton," said he, "what troops are these?" - -"They are your Majesty's most faithful subjects and devoted -followers," replied Dunbarton in a faltering voice. "Yesterday they -were Scottish gentlemen of coat-armour and bearers of your Majesty's -commission--to-day they are but poor privates in the army of Louis of -France." - -"My God!" said the King; "and, in the levity of the chase, am I so -oblivious of the misfortunes of those unhappy gentlemen?" - -Instantly leaping from his horse with a heart that swelled by its -emotions, he approached them and raised his hat. - -Every heart was full in that silent line before him, and every eye -glistened. Walter Fenton, who now for the first time beheld that -King for whom he had suffered so much, felt his bosom glow with the -most intense loyalty and ardour,--a gush of sentiment that would have -enabled him to hail with joy the terrors of a scaffold or the dangers -of a battle-field. - -"Gentlemen," said the King, "bitter though my own misfortunes be, -yours lie nearer my heart, which is grieved, beyond what language can -express, to behold so many men of valour and worth, from being the -officers of my Scottish army, reduced by their loyalty to the station -of private soldiers. Nothing but this more than Spartan devotion on -the part of the few, but gallant and leal, makes my life worth -preserving. Deeply, deeply indeed is my heart impressed with the -sense of all you have undergone for my sake; and if it should ever -please the blessed God"--(removing his hat)--"to restore me to the -throne of my fathers, your sufferings, your services, and your -devotion shall not be forgotten--never, oh, never! The prince my -son, he shares your northern blood. Oh, may he likewise inherit your -spirit of bravery and truth! - -"At your own desire, gentlemen, you are now going on a long and -perilous march, far distant from me, to encounter privation, danger, -and death. To the utmost of my small means, I have provided you with -money, shoes, and stockings. Heaven knoweth how great are my own -necessities. I can no more..... - -"Fear God--love one another, and you will ever find me your parent, -if I cannot be your King." - -The eyes of James VII. were full of tears, and a long pause ensued. - -"There is a gentleman here who arrived only yesterday," said Lord -Dunbarton, who had also dismounted. "He is the bearer of two relics -to your Majesty: the first is the despatch of the expiring Dundee; -the second will bear witness of his own zeal and courage in your -cause at the victory of Killycrankie." - -"Let him approach," said the king, covering his face to hide his -emotion. - -"Mr. Fenton," said the Earl, "His Majesty would speak with you," and -Walter, whose heart trembled from the depth of his emotions, grounded -his musquet, and, kneeling before James, placed in his hands the -long-treasured despatch of Dundee, and the Dutch standard of Mackay's -regiment. - -"My brave Dundee!" exclaimed James, in a low voice, as he kissed and -perused the brief letter which had been hurriedly penned amid the -agonies of death; "'tis stained with his loyal and noble blood! Oh! -never had a king a subject more devoted, more loyal, or more true! -Accept my thanks, young gentleman, for the services you have -performed, the valour you have displayed, and the fidelity you -evince; accept my thanks, for misfortune has left me nothing else -wherewith to reward the faithful and the brave, who have followed me -to exile and obscurity. This standard I will retain; one day, -perhaps, in Holyrood or Windsor, I may replace it in your hands with -such rewards as a king alone can give." - -Walter strove to speak, but his voice failed him, on which Lord -Dunbarton said,-- - -"Like his brothers in misfortune, my young friend seeks no other -reward than the honour of serving your Majesty, and the satisfaction -of doing that which is right." - -The King drew his sword. - -"What is your name, Sir!" he asked. - -"Fenton--Walter Fenton, of Dunbarton's Foot." - -"No kinsman, I hope, of Fenton of that ilk, who is so active in his -treason against us?" - -"Alas, no!" replied Walter, colouring in painful humility; "may it -please your Majesty I am but a poor protegée of the noble Dunbarton. -I know not my family, my name, or my origin." - -"It matters not--I shall render honour to all who deserve it; arise -_Sir_ Walter Fenton, Knight Banneret--of this power, at least, my son -William cannot deprive me." - -Startled by the suddenness of the action, Walter, whose heart leaped -within him at the words of the King, could only kiss his hand and -resume his place in the ranks of his cavalier comrades, who with -difficulty repressed a shout of applause. Walter felt giddy and -confused; the King still seemed to be addressing him. - -The temporary excitement which had led James through this painful -interview, now passed away, and his features became overclouded with -a sad and bitter expression, as he went slowly along the line asking -each officer his name, inserting it in his note book, and returning -him personal thanks. Meanwhile the troop of huntsmen, equerries, and -whippers-in, with their packs of panting-hounds, were grouped about -the terrace, and quite forgotten in the excitement of this sorrowful -review. - -"Your name, Sir--yesterday you were at my levée in a garb more -suitable to your rank," said James, to a tall and very handsome man, -whose fashionably curled wig consorted ill with the coarse looped hat -and plain blue coat of a French musqueteer; "your name, Sir, if you -please?" - -"John Ogilvie, of the house of Airly--late a captain in your -Majesty's Life Guard." - -"Sir, I thank you--the day may come when you shall command that Life -Guard," replied James, writing down his name; "and yours, Sir?" he -asked of the next. - -"Grant of Dunlugais--a captain of Mar's Fusiliers." - -"Then you have lost an estate in my service?" - -"I have lost nothing that I can regret in such a cause." - -"May I live to requite it! 'Tis an ancient house, and one of -unblemished honour. Are you Catholic?" - -"No, I am a Presbyterian." - -"Then the greater honour is due to you for disinterested loyalty. -And yours, Sir?" - -"Douglas of Finland--a lieutenant under the Lord Dunbarton." - -"Another forfeiture!" exclaimed James, striking his breast; "and -yours, Sir?" - -"Drumquhasel--first major to the same noble earl," replied the tali -cavalier, on whose breast sparkled the cross of St. Louis. - -"Another, and another! Oh, gentlemen, your sufferings and your -losses, your loyalty and your truth--God may requite them adequately, -but I never can!" exclaimed James, in a troubled voice, and when he -had inserted the names of the whole hundred and fifty in his note -book, he moved again to the front, and taking off his hat, bowed -profoundly with an air in which thankfulness and respect were -exquisitely blended with dignity and majesty. He then retired -pensively towards the palace; but painfully aware of the misery of -those who suffered for him, and still unwilling to leave them, with -sensations too deep for utterance, the unhappy King returned once -more, and bowing to them again and again, covered his face with his -handkerchief, and burst into tears. Animated by one sympathetic -impulse, the whole line sank at once upon their knees and bowed their -heads; the spirit of many a brave man was subdued; several wept, and -there was not an unmoistened eye among them. The King, in -particular, was deeply affected; his sobs were audible; and again -removing his hat, he raised his eyes to heaven, and exclaimed, in the -words of the last chapter of Lamentations,-- - -"Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us! Consider and behold our -reproach! _Our inheritance is returned to strangers--our houses to -aliens!_" - -He repeatedly smote himself upon the breast in an energetic fashion -he had acquired among the Jesuits, who had been too much about him -for his own fortune; and a long pause succeeded, until Lord Dunbarton -gave for the last time the word of command. The Scottish officers -resumed their aspect of steadiness and order, and marched past the -King, whom nearly all of them were fated to behold no more; for death -on the field, disease in the camp, poverty and despair, did their -work surely and rapidly, and few of that brave but forlorn band ever -returned from the frontiers of Spain. - -From Versailles this company of unfortunate cavaliers received an -order to join the army of Mareschal Noailles; and, next day, they set -out from St. Germain, on their long and weary march of nine hundred -miles, which they performed on foot, heavily accoutred, bearing their -own camp-kettles and equipages, and accompanied by miseries and -mortifications that baffle all description; but which, by the -indomitable spirit and ardour that animated them, they seldom failed -to surmount. - -Louis of France was now plunged in a war, into which his mistaken -policy had hurried him. In a long persecution of the unhappy -Protestants, he had weakened his kingdom by the expatriation of -thousands of his best and most industrious subjects, who wandered as -refugees throughout other countries, and justly inflamed all Europe -against him. To crush him, there had been formed at Augsburg a -powerful league, to which the whole empire of Germany, Spain, -Holland, Savoy, Sweden, and Denmark were parties; but, in no way -daunted, he anticipated this great confederation by invading the -empire and laying siege to Philipsburg. The recent revolution in -England had given a new turn to this religious war, and Ireland -became the theatre of a contest which ended on the banks of the -Boyne, where William triumphed over his unfortunate father-in-law. - -It may be that the great expenses of the war in which he was now -involved prevented Louis XIV. from remunerating adequately to their -merit the officers of Dundee's army; but when they joined the -standard of Noailles on the Spanish frontier, they were in a state of -lamentable destitution and misery. The coarse uniform in which they -had marched from St. Germain was worn to rags; they were shoeless, -shirtless, and emaciated by hardships, privations, and want of the -most common necessaries of life; for by the selfishness and duplicity -of individuals to whom their little commissariat was entrusted, they -were cheated of their poor supplies, the few presents the generous -had sent them, and even of a small pittance (a few pence daily) which -James, amid all his own necessities, endeavoured to pay them; yet -they were never known to utter a complaint, for the misfortunes of -their sovereign pressed heavier on their hearts than their own. - -Wherever they marched they were beheld with pity and remembered with -sorrow. The kind ladies of Perpignan presented them with a purse -containing 200 pistoles, and bought all their rings as relics of _les -officiers Ecossais_. "Wherever they passed they were received with -tears by the women and admiration by the men. They were the foremost -in the battle, and the last in retreat, and of all the troops in the -service of France they were most obedient to orders." - -There is nothing in the history of ancient or modern times to equal -their admirable bearing, heroic ardour, and devoted loyalty. They -endured the most severe humiliation and privations without uttering a -murmur, and performed actions of heroism outdoing the deeds of -romance; for to their inborn daring was united a spirit of -desperation, and a longing to be honorably rid of a life that was -without a charm and without a ray of hope. - -The French were touched by their misfortunes and sufferings; a -universal shout rent the camp of Noailles on their marching into it, -and with that generosity which is so characteristic of soldiers, the -chevaliers and officers immediately subscribed for them, each -furnishing shirts, clothing, and money, and none was more liberal -with his purse than the noble Mareschal himself; but even of these -presents the unhappy Scots officers were cheated by the villany of -one to whom they were entrusted, and thus the kind efforts to -alleviate their miseries failed. - -On the route to Catalonia, near Montpelier, when fording a mountain -torrent swollen by the recent rains, Walter Fenton and three other -cavaliers were swept away. Catching hold of some alders that -overhung the bank, they kept themselves above the current, and called -on the peasantry to save them. It is related, that though hundreds -were there looking on, they never offered the least assistance, but -mocked and jibed them in barbarous Catalonian French, while waiting -coolly until they were drowned, that they might possess their money, -clothes, and arms. But after great toil and danger they were rescued -by their comrades. - -They were never seen on the field but with their faces to the enemy. -On every desperate duty and forlorn hope they led the way, and often -too where others dared not _follow_. Death and disease rapidly -thinned their ranks, but their ardour never failed, and had the -invisible spirit of the fierce Dundee led them as of old, they could -not have surpassed the deeds they achieved and the glory they -acquired. On Rosas surrendering, - -"_Senor Mariscal_," said the Spanish governor, "what soldiers were -those who assailed the breach so valiantly?" - -"_Ces sont mes enfans_," replied Noailles, smiling; "they are my -children--the King of Britain's Scottish officers, who share his -obscurity and exile, and do me the honor to serve under my command." - -"By St. James! _they alone_ have compelled me to surrender," replied -the noble Spaniard. - -They marched from Rosas to Piscador, and, of an army of 26,000 men, -16,000 perished by the way-side of privation. Twice only the -Scottish officers were known to disobey orders. The first occasion -was at the siege of Rosas, an ancient and well fortified city, -situated upon a gulf about twelve miles from Girona. The air was -intensely hot, and the water muddy and unwholesome; the only rations -of the Scots officers were horse-beans, garlic, and sardinas; they -were utterly penniless, and could procure no better food, -consequently deadly fevers and fluxes rapidly thinned their ranks, -upon which Mareschal Noailles ordered them to leave the camp for the -purpose of cantoning in a more healthy locality; but they delayed to -obey, and sent Sir Walter Fenton to acquaint him that they -"considered his order as an affront put upon them as soldiers of -fortune and gentlemen of honour." - -The second instance was when a strong body of German troops had made -a lodgement on an island in the Rhine, from which it was necessary to -force them; the Marquis de Selle ordered a number of boats to be -prepared, under an impression that the river was too deep and rapid -to be fordable, and the Scottish officers were to lead the way, but -were not to move until orders were given to embark. Finding it -impossible to restrain their ardour till the arrival of the boats, -they slung their musquets and prepared to cross. - -"Come on, Walter!" exclaimed the brave Douglas as he led the way, -"and we will shew these gay chevaliers of France that we, who have -forded the rapid Spey and rocky Forth, need not shrink on the margin -of the Rhine. Join hands, gentlemen Scots; forward! and I will lead -you to the dance. Hurrah!" - -Hand in hand, in the Highland fashion, with their musquets slung, -they threw themselves into the rapid and impetuous stream, where -between jagged rocks it urged its foamy way over a slippery and stony -bed; and thus breaking its force they stemmed the current, and, -though under a fierce cannonade and storm of musquet balls poured on -them from the rocks of the islet, they forced the dangerous passage -in the view of both armies; the Laird of Drumquhasel and Captain -Ogilvie* were shot dead; but, led on by Finland, the Scottish -officers scaled the rocks, and assailing ten times their number of -Germans with screwed bayonets and clubbed musquets, drove them from -their intrenchments into the Rhine on the other side of the island, -and reared the French standard on its summit. - - -* Captain Ogilvie was author of a song, which is preserved in Hogg's -Jacobite reliques,--"_Adieu for evermore._" - - -"By St. Denis!" exclaimed the Marquis de Selle, "His the bravest -action soldiers ever performed!" - -"_Vive les officiers Ecossais!_" cried the French soldiers. "_Le -gentilhomme est toujours gentilhomme_;" and to this day, in memory of -the Scottish valour, the place is named - - L'ISLE D'ECOSSE. - - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -THE 20TH OF SEPTEMBER, 1692. - - But the far mind was absent in pursuit - Of him, her love, in fields where foes contested - The bloody harvest, and a crown the fruit, - Dread fruit, with cares and dangerous joys invested! - Her mind was absent in the distant war. - PEDRO OF CASTILE. - - -"Whither awa', Clermistonlee, ye mad buckie?" exclaimed Lord -Mersington, as his friend jostled past him under the great pillars or -arcade near the cross, one forenoon, when all the city were abroad -_enjoying_ the sunshine; "whatna way is that to gliff folk? is a dun -or the deil after ye?" - -"I crave pardon, my Lord, but did not observe you; for what is all -this crowd collected?" - -"The heralds have been proclaiming the ratification of the new -Protestant league against Louis of France." - -"A league," added Clermistonlee scornfully, "which our pious and -glorious William hath tinkered up, that the treasure and blood of his -two British kingdoms may be wasted in defence of the rascally -Hollanders and thick-pated Flemings. By all the devils, my Lord, we -have brought our political pigs to a pretty market!" and he began to -whistle a cavalier air. - -"Wheesht!" said Mersington, glancing furtively around him; "this is -clean contrary to the Act of Council; and mind ye, my braw billy, if -ye aye strut with that long feather and cocked beaver, your pinkit -mantle, and lace o'erlay, like a ruffling buck o' King Charles' time, -instead o' wearing the sad-coloured garb and sober demeanour of these -our present days, when naething but psalm-singing, swearing in low -Dutch, and mortifying the spirit, are in vogue, you'll sune hae the -eyes o' the Council upon ye, as a Jacobite in disguise, a hatcher o' -plots, conspiracies, and the deil kens what mair--he, he!" - -"Crush me, if I will lessen one curl of my peruke, or one slash in my -doublet, to please any Dutch king or clown that ever wore breeches!" - -"You seem in a braw mood this morning. I warrant you'll hae pouched -a round sum at shovel-board last night in the Covenant Close." - -"A messenger from the court of St. Germain has just been arrested by -Muclutchy, the macer of Council," replied Clermistonlee, watching -keenly the sharp visage of the senator; "by Jove, you change colour, -my gossip!--any correspondence in that quarter, hah?" - -"I trow not," said the other, resuming his immovable aspect; "d'ye -tak' me for a gomeral? What is that we see above the Tolbooth-gable?" - -"The arm of the gibbet." - -"Weel," rejoined the judge, drily, "and what news brought the -messenger?" - -"Nought but letters from the exiled lords and gentlemen; some of -them, I tell thee, Mersington, are deeply touching, and would harrow -up even that impenetrable heart of thine. They tell of blighted -loves and blasted hopes, of sorrow and of suffering, humiliation and -despair; but of a loyalty and unblemished honour that shed a glory -around the cause for which they suffer--a glory that makes us -intensely despicable by comparison. There are passages in some of -those letters from the brave cavaliers of Dundee that have made many -of the Council almost weep with compassion. By the Heaven that is -above us, I feel that I would be a thousand times more happy as one -of those illustrious exiles, than struggling here to maintain, by -gambling, exactions, and roguery, a hollow rank, a gilded title, and -a career of extravagance on which I have run too far to return!" - -"The only sensible clause in your process," said Mersington, testily. -"But you'll hae yoursel laid by the heels yet, and then you may -whistle on your thumb for the braw mains and revenues of Bruntisfield -and the Wrytes, for whilk you've graned and girned these twa years -and mair." - -"Right! 'twas but the feeling of a moment for the misfortunes of our -former friends, whose hearts, to their honour (unlike ours) were -better than their heads." - -"Puir chields--puir chields--I doubt the Act of eighty-nine presses -unco hard on some of them." - -"Among other letters, is one from that wild spark, Douglas of -Finland, once a lieutenant in the regiment of Dunbarton, addressed to -his false leman, Mistress Annie Laurie. Poor credulous fool, to -trust in a woman's faith! He knows not that she hath become Lady -Craigdarroch, and so hath forgot him in the arms of his friend. I -like love-letters, having written some bushels of them in my time; -but his--by the devil's beard!--it equals anything in the _Banished -Virgin_, or _Cassandra_. I have taken the liberty to confiscate it -to my own use; and here it is." - -"Hold! a thought strikes me; the hand is easy of imitation, and for -what may ye no add a postscriptum, whilk may be of service in your -love affair, by wedding young Fenton----" - -"The devil confound him!" - -"To some airy damoiselle; or knocking him on the head during his -French campaign?" - -"'Tis all one. Excellent! Juden will deliver it. Annie will fly to -her gossip, with every string in her boddice straining with the -greatness of her intelligence; and as we never knew a damsel prefer a -dead lover to a living one, we may imagine or hope the issue. 'Tis -sublime!" - -"I wad rather hae a dead gudewife, I ken--he, he!" said Mersington, -as he adjusted his wig and took his friend's arm, striking his -gold-headed cane on the pavement with the air of a man who has said -something smart; "but let us hae nae mair o' your plaguy qualms o' -conscience, for they dinna dovetail weel wi' the general tenour o' -your way. Weel, anent this postscriptum--he, he!--let us adjourn -to----" - -"Hugh Blair's, you would say. Poor Hugh! his locale hath changed -with the times, and there is nothing now but gloom and obscurity, -cobwebs and dust, where all was once courtly merriment and joyous -revelry. Who could have imagined that a time would come when this -famous coffee-house would be voted 'a den of cavalier iniquity'--that -the buirdly hosteller with whom the noble Perth, the gallant -Dunbarton, and the courtly Dundee wiled away the hours at picquet and -tric-trac, and pushed the wine from hand to hand, would be accused of -those honours as a crime, and thrown into the iron-room of the -Tolbooth, there to languish in poverty and misery, while the luscious -contents of his well-stored cellars were confiscated to the public -use?" - -"It ill beseems ye to condemn the last clause in your interlocutor, -my noble gossip, when the maist of the precious contents of Hughie's -runlets ran owre your ain craig. My certie! you had a braw rug at -the forfeitures, baith gentle and semple!" - -"Ha, ha! enough of this--the present business is to procure the use -of an inkhorn. I am restricted in wine to drink medicated Hippocras. -What art grinning at now?" - -"Your occasional scruples o' conscience--he, he! Do ye mind the -whilly-whaw ye were in anent the spectre of an armed man in the hall -of Clermiston?" - -"Why the devil remind me of it?" exclaimed the other, angrily; "if it -really was a spirit----" - -"_If!_ we have in profane as weel as sacred writing owre mony -evidences of their reality, and their appearance for various purposes -whilk we cannot comprehend; and we have also as mony solid proofs -that the devil can mak' deid bodies move; but anent this, see -Gabrieile Nandæus in his _Apology_, and Delrio in his _Disquisitiones -Magica_." - -"D--n Delrio! Ever pestering me with thy musty learning!--but here -is a change-house, where it may be that we can get this notable -postscriptum concocted." - -* * * * * - -The summer had passed away, and now brown autumn was once more -reddening the heather of the Pentlands, and spreading her dun tints -over the woods of Bruntisfield; the sombre eve was closing fast, but -the bright fire burned merrily as ever in the chamber-of-dais at the -old castellated Place, and ruddily its warm light shone through the -barred windows into the recesses of the old woodlands, which every -passing breeze robbed of some of their crisped foliage, and strewed -it over the muirlands to the south. The old manor-house had -recovered from the rages of that terrible night in 1688, and was now -repaired, and stronger than ever; the windows were more thickly -grated, and numerous loopholes and two additional turrets defended -the barbican gate. - -Lilian and her friend Annie were seated side by side as of old, and -opposite sat Lady Grisel--but a change had come over them all. -Though the hale old lady recovered from the shock of Lilian's -abduction, it had seriously affected her health, and now she was a -picture of the helplessness of extreme old age, in her dotage, pale -and querulous, but ever gentle and childlike. She occupied the same -old fringed chair, with its bobs of parti-coloured silk, in which she -had sat every evening for fifty years; her ivory wheel, though now -unused, stood on one side of it, and her tall metal-headed cane on -the other. Lilian was paler and thinner, and had lost much of her -girlish beauty; she had many cares gnawing at her heart, but she was -still as adorable and interesting as ever. Annie was, if possible, -more so than formerly; the bloom of her beauty had expanded to the -utmost; her cheek had a higher colour, and her eye a brighter -sparkle; her tall and beautiful figure was more inclined to -_embonpoint_. But alas for poor Finland, the fickle Laurie was now -the wife of Craigdarroch, who had risen to the rank of Colonel of -Horse in the new Scottish army of William III. Her dress was more -matronly and magnificent than formerly, and her rich flower tabby -suit, with its brocade stomacher and silver fringes, contrasted with -Lilian's plain blue suit of Florence silk with its falls of point -d'Espagne. - -Ashamed that she had broken her own solemn engagements to her exiled -lover, with the natural fickleness of her sex, Annie was labouring to -undermine the truth of Lilian, and, Heaven knows why, tormented the -poor girl hourly, by urging the suit of Lord Clermistonlee, and left -no arguments untried to carry her point, and remove the scruples of -her more gentle but less facile friend. - -"And poor Walter!" urged Lilian, with a look of great tenderness in -her mild and moistened eyes, replying to some observation of Annie. - -"Marry come up with your Walter!--tush! bethink you, dear Lilian, -this gallant never loved you truly, or else, dost think he would have -preferred following King James?" - -Lilian's eyes sparkled; a terrible retort trembled on her tongue, but -her gentleness repressed it, and she could only exclaim with tears-- - -"Oh, horror! this insinuation is the most unkind of all. The -unmerited shame and contumely, the dark and dishonourable suspicions -that the malice of Clermistonlee has brought upon me I can bear, for -I despise though I mourn them deeply--but a doubt of Walter's -faith--oh, Annie, Annie, it sinks like a dagger in my heart. 'Tis -the hope of his return, animated by the same spirit of love and truth -in which he left me, that makes me rise superior to them all. Oh, -yes!" she exclaimed, with girlish ecstasy, "my dear, dear Walter, the -hour will yet come, when, with a kiss of affection, I will tell thee -that this old manor and all these lands around it are thine, for ever -thine!" - -"And your heart?" laughed Annie. - -"Dearest, that he has already. You see you cannot make me angry." - -"And Clermistonlee?" - -"Oh, name him not." - -"He loves thee truly and fondly," said Annie. - -"Dost think he loves me as Walter doth? dost think he knows what love -means? Oh, no; he never conceived it. His passion is a turbulent -phantasy, inflamed by rivalry, difficulty, and opposition, sharpened -it may be by wounded pride and exasperated revenge. Oh, how can you -forget the horrid mystery that involves the fate of his wife--the -unhappy Alison Gilford?" - -"Pho! she died in France." - -"Of a broken heart." - -"Gossip, quotha!" laughed Annie, "hearts are never broken except in -the pages of De Scuderi. But with all his averred evil propensities, -I think there is something very noble about Lord Clermistonlee." - -"Noble?" - -"Do not his wit, his elegance, and courage excite our admiration?" - -"Yes--but do they make us forget that the villain lurks under that -prepossessing exterior?" rejoined Lilian, scornfully. - -"Dear Lilian, I have but one more argument to urge, and 'tis the old -one; remember that your fair fame which his addresses have injured, -requires----" - -"What?" - -"Marriage," added Annie, quietly. Lilian turned pale; her spirit of -dissent was too strong for words; she shook her head with a mournful -but decided air, and, after a pause, said, "never, oh, never!" but -Annie only laughed, and a long and unpleasant pause in the -conversation ensued. At length Lilian said, shuddering, - -"Oh, what a grue came over me just now! What can it portend?" - -"That an evil spirit is near us," replied Annie, turning pale with -the superstition of the time. - -"Nay, felt ye a grue, my bairn?" said Lady Grisel, rousing -momentarily from her waking dose; "then some one is treading on the -ground that shall be your grave." Again Lilian shuddered, and -throwing her arms around her grand-aunt, kissed her, exclaiming, - -"'Tis the first sentence I have heard you utter for a month--and oh, -what a terrible one it is!" - -At that moment there was a loud jingle at the great risp on the -barbican gate, and Elsie Elshender hobbled in to say that an "auld -broken soldier, who had limpit up the gate was speiring for my Lady -Craigdarroch, but wadna enter." - -"'Tis a letter from the Laird; his troop are in the north, watching -the wild gillies of Braemar. Tush! what can his message be now?" -said Annie, as she flew to the foot of the staircase, where a man in -a tattered red coat, a great scratch wig, with a broad hat flapped -over it, one patch on his right eye, and another on his nose, limped -forward on a crutch, and presented a letter. "From whence comes it, -poor man?" asked Annie. - -"From the frontiers of Alsatia; blessings on your sweet face, my -noble lady," replied the veteran, gruffly. Annie grew pale as death. - -"From whom?" she faltered. - -"The brave laird of Finland, Lady Annie; on mony a lang day's march I -have trailed my pike by his side, owre the fields o' France and the -howmes o' Holland, deil tak them baith, for there's neither brose nor -brochon, nor sowans nor sourocks to be gotten there for love, lear, -or money; but I've far to gang this nicht, and maun een march on, so -God bless your noble ladyship--mind a puir auld soldier that's faced -fire and water baith." - -Trembling violently, Annie untied the ribbons of her purse and gave -him a carolus, which he received with abundance of thanks, and he was -limping away when Elsie hobbled forward and presented him with a -bicker of ale. - -"Drink, puir body," said she, "though the times are sair changit, -nane pass this threshold without tasting o' the kindness o' langsyne. -We dinna send awa' the naked and the hungry wi' a scrap o' gospel and -a screed o' a psalm, like auld Drumdryan or the Laird o' Lickspittal -owre bye yonder; drink deep, puir body! I once had a son a -soldier-lad, (my puir Hab that was killed in the fearfu' times,) and, -for his sake, my heart warms to your auld red coat." - -"Here's to ye, my bonny lady, and to you Cummer Elsie, and never may -ye be tarbarrelled for a' you're sae runkled and auld; hech, how!" -and, drinking the ale to the last drop, this rough and uncourteous -old fellow tossed the bicker to Elsie and limped away with great -agility. - -"Ha, ha!" he laughed, when the barbican gate was angrily banged -behind him; "how the gay goshawk pounced at the lure; wha would hae -thought I would ever hae hobbit and nobbit wi' Lucky Elshender after -puir Meg's mischanter among her kale? This carolus comes in gude -time, for my pouch is gey empty now. Deil tak' the patches and -scratches, the rags and bags," he continued tearing off his disguise; -"again I am Juden Stenton, - - "And wha daur meddle wi' me? - Wha daur meddle wi' me? - My name it's Juden Stenton, - And wha daur meddle wi' me?" - -And, light hearted by the success of his Lord's scheme, he sang and -laughed as he trudged back to the city. - -On rejoining Lilian, Annie was in a flutter of extreme agitation; -and, after great reluctance, in which shame and curiosity struggled -with some remnant of her former love, and after bursting into tears -and then laughing hysterically, she broke the seal and read in a -quavering voice as follows:-- - -"Trenches before Mons, penult June, 1692. - -"Mine own sweet Annie, - -"God knoweth whether the words I am now inditing will ever be seen by -your own dear blue eyes. Nevertheless I write (on a drumhead for a -desk), and in great haste, for the bearer of this starts for -Versailles in an hour. A trench where the dead and dying lie among -the blood-stained earth, piled, yea, chin-deep, and where the -cannon-balls are rebounding every instant from the ramparts of Mons, -is a very unpleasant place to compose love-speeches; but, believe me, -that the heart of poor Dick Douglas in suffering and danger, poverty -and exile, is still unchanged, my beloved Annie, and as much thine as -ever. Here are we, a company of gallant Scottish gentlemen, in such -a plight as you never could conceive; and the very appearance of our -ragged attire, our emaciated forms and our exceeding misery, would -melt your gentle heart with the softest compassion. My ancient -signet ring, the last relic of the house of Finland, I bartered -yesterday for a loaf of bread, and now I have nothing left save the -lock of thy hair, which shall go with me to the grave. But more -glorious by far are our Jacobite rags than the gay bravery we might -have worn under that accursed usurper against whom we have sworn to -fight to the last gasp. - -"The mischances of war are fast reducing the faithful cavaliers of -Dundee. Starvation or the bullet daily send some brave heart to its -long repose, and the survivors are in such a plight that not even the -Westland Whigs could wish them lower. From the frontiers of Spain we -have travelled to Alsatia, and from thence to Mons. It was a march -of horrors! We were utterly without the necessaries of life, and in -the depth of a severe winter, marched nine hundred miles over a -country covered with snow. Many of us were barefooted. For many -weeks our food was nuts in the woods, roots in the fields, horsebeans -and garlic, and thus it is that Louis XIV. rewards our loyalty, our -patience, our fatigues and achievements. - -"Our old friend Walter Fenton is well. Through all the campaigns -under Monsieur le Mareschal Noailles and the noble Luxembourg, he -hath shewed himself worthy of the knighthood King James' sword -bestowed. Yesterday he volunteered, with sixty of our unhappy -cavaliers, to plant the banner of King Louis on the Bastion de Sainte -Wandree, and nobly did he redeem his word. Commend me to all our -leal and right honourable friends, and to those who may think kindly -of the poor cavaliers for the happy days that have passed away for -ever. A time may come--adieu, dearest Annie--the call to arms is -sounding along the lines, and we are about to march for Steinkirke, a -duty from which few will return. On my mind there weighs a heavy -presentiment of what I cannot name to thee. Farewell, my gentle -Annie, and may God bless thee! for I fear we shall see the bonnie -braes of Maxwelton together no more. - -FINLAND, - -"Late Lieut, in the Royall Scotts Ffoot." - - -There was a tone of sorrowful resignation to a hard and hopeless fate -pervading this letter that struck a pang of deep remorse through the -heart of Annie--but a pang for one moment only; the volatility of her -sex aided her, and smiling through her tears, she said, - -"My poor dear lighthearted Dick, would to Heaven I could lessen the -miseries you endure!" - -"Oh, Annie," said Lilian reproachfully, clasping her hands and -weeping, "poor Walter and poor Finland!" - -"Tush!" said Annie pettishly, her dark-blue eyes sparkling between -shame and sorrow. "Gossip, tease me not." - -"Stay, there is something more--oh, read it." - -"A postscriptum"-- - -"It will grieve you much to hear that Walter Fenton hath broken his -plighted troth to your fair friend Napier, and married a French -woman, a mere camp follower, of evil repute. Right heavy tidings -this will be for the heiress of Bruntisfield, but I ever deemed her -spark a fool; again I kiss your hand--adieu." - -The wicked expression of triumph that flashed in Annie's eyes quickly -gave way to one of compassion and regret, on beholding the aspect of -Lilian. Pale as death, with her eyes starting from their sockets, -her silken curls seeming to twist like knots about her throbbing -temples; her nether lip turned from crimson to blue, and quivering -convulsively; her bosom heaving with the terrible and sickening -sensations that oppressed it. Her little hands were firmly clenched, -and her dry hot eyes were full of fire. - -"Again, again, read it once more, Annie," she said, in a voice of -strange but exquisite cadence. - -"Not for worlds!" exclaimed Annie; "Oh, thou wicked letter, thus to -mar our peace and hurl us into sorrow. Oh, if Craigdarroch should -hear I have had a billet from my former lover, he will kindle up into -such a fit of jealousy and rage as the world never saw; to the flames -with it!" and she tossed into the fire the letter which poor Finland -had so fondly and sorrowfully indited. It was consumed in a moment; -and thus all after examination of the postscript was precluded, -otherwise the forgery might have been discovered before its effects -became too fatal. - -"A _camp follower of evil repute_! It is false--impossible--Finland -hath lied! Yet--yet--a cup of water, for Heaven's sake--my throat is -parched and scorching!" Lilian sank into a chair and covered her -face with her hands, but neither wept nor swooned, for her sense of -injury was too acute for tears. - -How bitter was the palsying sickness of heart--the agony she endured! - -Not a tear fell, for the fire that burned in her breast seemed to -have absorbed them. - -"This is the _third_ 20th of September since he first left me. Oh, -Walter, Walter, God may forgive thee this great ingratitude and -cruelty, but I never can!" - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -THE EFFECT OF THE POSTSCRIPTUM. - -"Women have died and the worms have eaten them, but not for love." - - -Long, long did poor Lilian grieve and weep, and mourn in the solitude -of her gloomy home. - -She endured all the complicated agony of endeavouring to rend from -her heart its dearest and most wonted thoughts--the hopes and -affection she had fostered and cherished for years. No woman ever -died for love but the heroine of a romance; so Lilian of course -survived it; a month or two beheld her again tranquil and calm, -though very sorrowful and subdued in spirit, for time cures every -grief. - -The bitter sentiment of insulted pride and mortified self esteem -which often come so powerfully to the aid of the deserted, and enable -them to triumph over the more tender and acute reflections, were -kindled and fanned and fostered by the artful sophistry of Annie, -who, with her real condolences, threw in such nice little soothing -and flattering inuendoes, mingled with condemnations of Walter, and -pretended rumours of his marriage, the beauty and gallantries of his -French wife, whom some called a countess and others a courtesan, that -Lilian first learned to hear her patiently and then with indignation. - -With these were mingled occasional praises of Clermistonlee, managed -with great tact, for Annie was cunning as a lynx, and never failed to -flank all her arguments with the powerful one, how necessary it was -for the restoration of her own honour, that she should receive the -roué lord as her husband. - -Poor Lilian, though these advices stung her to the soul, learned at -last to hear and to think of them with calmness, and (shall we -acknowledge it?) to say at last, "that it might be." - -With something of that fierce sentiment of desperation and revenge -which, like a gage thrown down to fate, makes the ruined gamester -place his last stake on the turn of a card, she began deliberately to -school herself into thinking of Clermistonlee as her future husband; -and though in reality poverty was the real cause of it, Lady -Craigdarroch failed not to impress upon Lilian how much he was -reformed, how penitent he was, and for three years past had never -been engaged in any piece of frolic or wickedness, and wound up by -asserting that a reformed rake made the best husband. - -What love and perseverance could never accomplish, revenge achieved -at last. - - "Alas! the love of women, it is known, - To be a lovely and a fearful thing; - For all of theirs upon the die is thrown - And if 'tis lost, life hath no more to bring." - - -Long and assiduous were the exertions, the arguments and artifices of -Annie, and long and fearful was the struggle that tortured the heart -of Lilian, ere she would consent to receive Clermistonlee as her -suitor. - -At last the fatal words were said. - -Annie flew to communicate the joyous tidings, and when next day he -rode up the avenue to pay his devoirs, the miserable girl nearly -swooned. The ring, the little embossed ring of antique gold, the -last and only gift of Walter, and which he said contained _the -secret_ of his life, she had now laid aside, carefully locked up in a -cabinet, because it brought too vividly before her the memories she -had resolved to banish from her heart for ever. - -Gladly will we hurry over this chapter of pain and humiliation. - -Clermistonlee had increased his great personal advantages by all the -aid of dress, and in defiance of the sad coloured fashions of the -time, wore a voluminous Monmouth whig, the long curls of which were -puffed with aromatic powder, a suit of rose-coloured velvet, laced so -thick with gold that the ground of the cloth was scarcely visible, a -sword and belt sparkling with jewels. A medal of gold, bearing his -coat of arms, was suspended by a chain of the same metal round his -neck; it was his last venture in quest of fortune, and his lordship -had resolved to spend all he possessed upon the stake. - -By the artful Annie he was led forward to the trembling and sinking -Lilian, to whom he pleaded his cause, his constancy, and -perseverance, his raptures and agonies, his hopes and despair, with -an ardour that confused, and perhaps flattered, if it did nothing -more. These his lordship brought out all at a breath, as he had got -the whole by rote, having said the same things to a hundred different -women before; but now his natural ardour and spirit of gallantry were -greatly increased by the touching character which sorrow, vexation, -and disappointment had imparted to the soft beauty of Lilian--and -also by the aspect of the comfortable old manor house and the acres -of fine arable land that lay around it; while she (shall we confess -it?), as bitter thoughts of Walter and his French wife rose up within -her, stole glances from time to time at her noble and courtly -suitor--glances which he soon perceived, and fired with new -animation, threw such an air of devotion into his addresses that -he--triumphed. - -Annie placed the hand of Lilian within that of Clermistonlee; he -pressed her to his heart, and she did not withdraw it; but burst into -a passion of tears. He then threw his splendid chain, with its -medal, around her bending neck, and pressed her to his breast, and so -sudden was the revulsion of feeling that Lilian fainted. - -An hour afterwards Clermistonlee, with all his embroidery glittering -in the sun, was seen galloping back to the city like a madman; he -dashed through the Portsburgh, and reined up near the Bowfoot, where, -at the summit of a ten-storied edifice, dwelt Mr. Ichabod Bummel, -minister of the Gospel. - -"The father of confusion take your long stair! Why, Mr. Bummel, 'tis -like a rascally old steeple," said the lord, breaking breathlessly in -upon the lank-haired and long-visaged pastor, who was intent upon -"The Hind let loose" of Alexander Sheills. - -"Yea, a tower of Babel--but what hath procured me the honour of your -lordship's visit?" - -"By all the devils, don't think I am come to drub thee for that -lecture on the cutty stool--ha, ha! I am about to be married, -man--and want you to proclaim the banns and so forth--but my Lord -Mersington will see after them for me." - -"As my _Bombshell_ saith, marriage is an honourable and godly -estate----" - -"But a deuced poor one, sometimes, Mr. Ichabod. I am about to be -married to Lilian, of Bruntisfield, and thou shalt espouse us, -because the citizens hold thee to be their first preacher, and it -will increase my influence among them." - -"But, my Lord," began Mr. Ichabod, bowing. - -"_But_ me nothing--'tis my non-attendance at kirk and my old tricks -you aim at--pho! I am a thorough Reformado--but, Mr. Ichabod, hast -never a drop of wine about thee?--'tis a hot forenoon." - -"My dwelling contains nothing but water, and it is a plack the runlet -in these dear years; but, my Lord," continued the divine, after -sundry gasps and contortions of visage, "if I lend all my influence -to render popular this intended espousal, whilk I perceive to be the -main object of your visit, may I crave your Lordship's favour in -another particular?" - -"Command me in all things save my purse, for 'tis a mere vacuum, if -thy philosophy will admit of such a thing. Say forth, my Apostle!" - -"I love the maiden called Meinie Elshender--yea, I love her -powerfully with the carnal love of this world, and the maiden is not -altogether indisposed to view me favourably." - -"Zounds!" said Clermistonlee, while the minister looked complacently -down on his long spindle shanks; "in the name of mischief, who is -Meinie Elshender?" - -"Handmaiden to the young Madam Lilian, who views me as an -abomination----" - -"By all the devils, thou shalt have her, _bongré, malgré_, and after -I am fairly wedded, the best kirk in the Lothians to boot--even -should I make Juden shoot the present incumbent." - -"Heaven reward these generous promises," replied Ichabod, with a -smile of incredulity. "Well it is that the maiden hath escaped the -snares of her first lover, who was a soldier of Antichrist--a -musqueteer of the bluidy Dunbarton." - -"Say rather the most princely earl of the noble house of Douglas! -Ha, ha--by my faith! we whigs are winning the false lemans of the -cavaliers in glorious style." - -"And now, my lord, I have one other boon to crave," said Ichabod, -producing a tattered and dog-eared MS. from a bunker. "This is a -book of which doubtless your Lordship hath heard; my _Bombshell aimet -at the taile of the Great Beast_." - -"Oh, the devil take thy bombshell--" - -"Shame, my lord. It proveth that Jonah--" - -"Swallowed the whale; eh, Master Ichabod?" said the gay lord, -pirouetting about and laughing boisterously. - -"Oh, my Lord, for a centiloquy--" - -"Ha, ha! a what?" - -"A hundredfold discourse, to convince thee of the crime of this -irreverence and irreligion." - -"I crave pardon, but what do you want, eh?" - -"Your Lordship's subscription; 'tis to be published in the imprinting -press in the Parliament Close, whenever new irons are brought over -from Holland." - -"Oh, by all the devils, certainly; send me a dozen of copies. Faith! -I must be quite pious henceforth. And now, bravo! see the Kirk -Session about my little affairs, while I ride down the Lawnmarket to -old Gideon Grasper, the Clerk to the Signet, for there will be a -mountain of papers to sign and seal, and so forth; but the banns, the -banns, next Sunday, remember;" and chaunting, "With a hey lillelu and -a how lo lan," his lordship danced away out, tripping down the long -stair by three steps at a time, and mounting, galloped into the upper -part of the city. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -THE BATTLE OF STEINKIRKE. - - As torrents roll increased by numerous rills, - With rage impetuous down their echoing hills; - Rush to the vales and pour'd along the plain, - Roar through a thousand channels to the main; - The distant shepherd trembling hears the sound: - So mix both hosts, and so their cries rebound. - ILIAD, BOOK IV. - - -It was the night before the famous battle of Steinkirke, when the -confederates under William III. encountered the gallant and brilliant -army of the great François Henri Duc de Luxembourg. - -In happy ignorance of what was being acted at home by those whose -memory lay so near their hearts, Walter Fenton and Douglas of Finland -were carousing with their brothers in war and misfortune around a -blazing fire, composed of rafters borrowed for the purpose from the -roof of a neighbouring Flemish house. - -Intent on crushing the alarming confederation of the Protestant -powers against him, Louis XIV. had taken the field in person at the -head of 120,000 men. This sensual, selfish, and weak-minded monarch -was accompanied by all the effeminate pomp and tinsel splendour of an -eastern emperor; his women and paramours, numerous enough for a -seraglio; his dancers, players, musicians; his kitchen, opera, -household, and all the ministers of his luxury, his pleasures, and -his tyranny, in themselves a host, crowded and encumbered the great -camp of his splendid army, which, however, soon captured Namur, a -strong city on the Meuse, though strengthened by all the skill of the -great Coehorn, and defended by the valour of the Prince de Brabazon -and 9,000 chosen soldiers. - -King William, whose duty it was to have raised the siege of this -important fortress, lay with 100,000 men within gunshot of Louis, -but, embued with all the stolid and phlegmatic stupidity of a -Hollander, permitted the place to be captured, by which his military -reputation was as much injured as that of Louis was increased. The -victor of Namur immediately returned to Versailles, surrounded by -triumph and adulation, worshipped undeservedly as a hero, and -extolled as a conqueror, while William, whose inertness had at last -given way to necessary activity, excited by shame and exasperation, -having reviewed on the plain of Genappe a fresh quota of ten -battalions of Scottish infantry, pushed forward against Mareschal -Luxembourg, intent on retrieving his honour. - -After basely employing a spy named Millevoix, under pain of torture -and death, to mislead the French commander by false intelligence of -the confederates' movements, William advanced with his 100,000 -bayonets to prevent him from taking up a position between the then -obscure villages of Steinkirke and Enghien, a royal barony of the -house of Bourbon. With his usual bad generalship William completely -failed, for Luxembourg outflanked him, gained the position, and -trusting to the communications of the perfidious (or unfortunate) -Millevoix, not anticipating any attack, confined himself to his tent, -as he laboured under severe indisposition. - -Not expecting an _alerte_, the whole of his numerous and brilliant -army lay intrenched among the fertile fields and pastures of the -Flemings, whose thick hedges, solid walls, and comfortable houses, -were cut down, torn up and overthrown without ceremony to render the -position more secure. - -The post occupied by the Scottish officers was near the Senne, a slow -and sluggish river. The sun had set, and far over the long -perspective of the level landscape, that in some parts withdrew to -the extreme horizon, shone the red departing flush of the last -evening many would behold on earth. In some places the river was -reddened by the gleam of the distant fires, whose flickering chain -marked out the camp of Luxembourg; the higher eminences were covered -by woods and orchards, from which the evening wind came laden with -the rich perfume of the summer blossom. Save the hum of the extended -camp all was still round Steinkirke, and where the exiled cavaliers -were bivouacked there was little more heard than the monotonous -ripple of the Senne, as it flowed past its willow shaded banks on its -way to the northern sea. - -The Scottish exiles were always more merry than usual on the eve of a -battle, for it freed many from a life of humiliation and hardship, to -which they deemed an honourable death a thousand times preferable. -At times an expression of stern joy, of ghastly merriment, at others -of deep abstraction pervaded the little group, as they clustered -round the fire that blazed in a little alcove formed by an orchard on -the river side. There their arms were piled, and they rolled from -hand to hand a keg of Hollands, to which they had helped themselves -at the devastation of the Flandrian château de Senne. Afar off, -above the village spire of Steinkirke, the silver moon rose broadly -and resplendently to light the wide and fertile landscape with its -glory. The Senne and Tender brightened like two floods of flowing -crystal, and the willows that drooped over them seemed the work of -magic, as their dewy leaves glittered in the rays of the summer moon. - -The stern hearts of that melancholy band were soothed by the beauty -of the scenery, the seclusion of their tentless bivouac, the softness -of the Flemish moonlight, and a song that Finland sang completed the -effect of the place and time. He reclined upon his knapsack, and his -fine features, which long privation and toil had sharpened and -attenuated, flushed and reddened as he sang of his love that was far -away, and felt his brave heart expand with the dear and long -cherished hopes and memories her image stirred within it. - - "Maxweltoun Braes are bonnie, - Where early fa's the dew; - And blue-eyed Annie Laurie - Gave me her promise true. - Gave me her promise true, - That never forgot shall be; - And for my bonnie Annie Laurie, - I would lay me down and dee. - - "Her locks are like the sunshine, - Her breast is like the swan; - Her hand is like the snawdrift, - And mine her waist micht span. - But oh! that promise true! - Will ne'er be forgot by me, - And for my blue-eyed Annie Laurie, - I would lay me down and dee!" - - -This famous song, which, with its beautiful air, is so chaste and -pleasing, and still so much admired in Scotland, poor Finland in his -chivalric spirit had composed, to lighten the toil of many a long and -arduous march, and now, inspired by the love and the fond -recollections that trembled in his heart, he slowly sang the last -verse with great tenderness and pathos. - - "Like dew on the gowan lying, - Is the fa' of her fairy feet; - And like wind in summer sighing, - Her voice is low and sweet. - But O that promise true! - Makes her all the world to me; - And for my bonnie Annie Laurie, - I'd lay me down and dee." - - -Every word seemed to come from his overcharged heart, and as he sang -the beautiful melody silence and sadness stole over the listening -group. Softened by the dialect and the music of their fatherland, -every heart was melted and every eye grew moist; the red camp fires -and the shining waters of the Senne, the white tents of Luxembourg, -the woodlands and orchards of Steinkirke passed away, and Scotland's -hoary hills and pathless vallies rose before them, for their eyes and -hearts were in the land from which they were expatriated for ever. - -It was the morning of the 24th of July, and in unclouded splendour -the sun shone from the far horizon upon the tented camp of -Luxembourg, on the standards waving and arms glittering within the -rudely and hastily constructed entrenchments of the great and veteran -engineer the Chevalier Antoine de Ville. Like bright snowy clouds -the morning vapour curled upwards from the sedges of the Senne, and -the dewy foliage of the woods, and rolling lazily along the plain, -shrouded everything in a thick and gause-like veil of white -obscurity, which the rays of the sun edged with the hue of gold. -Under cover of this, although the French knew it not, the entire -force of the allied nations, led by William of England, were coming -rapidly on in two dense columns, intent on avenging the disgraces -they had endured at Namur. Luxembourg lay within his bannered -pavilion on a bed of sickness, and neither he nor his soldiers were -aware of the foe's approach until the Prince of Wirtemburg, at the -head of ten battalions of English, Dutch, and Danes, drove back his -outposts on the right, making a furious attack on the camp, which -instantly became a scene of greater confusion than King Agramont's. - -The patter of the musquetry, the roll of the advancing drums, and the -bullets whistling through his tent, roused the brave Mareschal, who, -leaping from his camp-bed, forgot his illness in the ardour and -tumult of the moment. Hastily his pages attired and armed him, and -throwing his magnificent surcoat above his gilded corslet, he seized -his sword and baton, and rushed forth to repair what the artifices of -William, the treachery of Millevoix, and the bravery of Wirtemburg -had already achieved. To muster, to rally his immense force and -repel the Prince of Wirtemburg, were but the work of a few seconds, -and the great leader, who five minutes before had lain inert on a -couch of illness, was now spurring his caparisoned horse from column -to column, with his plumes waving, his accoutrements glittering, and -his baton brandished aloft; his features filled with animation, his -soul with energy. - -The Dukes of Bourbon and Vendome, the Princes of Turenne and Conté, -the Duc de Chartres, a youth of fifteen, whose almost girlish beauty -made him the sport and the idol of the army, the Marquis de -Bellefonde, and several thousand chevaliers of noble birth and -matchless spirit, by their presence, their ardour, and example, -restored perfect order, and in admirable battle array they stood -prepared to encounter the host of the Protestant confederation. - -As the sun rose higher the mist which shrouded the whole plain around -the village of Steinkirke was gradually exhaled upwards, and as it -rolled away the entire army of William III., a hundred thousand -strong, were seen in order of battle, advancing as rapidly as the -numerous thorn hedges, ditches, and dykes, which intersected the -yellow cornfields, would permit. - -In defence of a place which it was expected William's brilliant -cavalry would assail, the Scottish officers were posted in an abbatis -of apple-trees that had been cut down by the pioneers, and made an -intricate breastwork all round; and within it, with their arms -loaded, they stood in close order, watching with lowering brows and -kindling eyes the scarlet ranks of their countrymen, to whom they -now--for the first time since their exile--found themselves opposed -in battle. - -The golden bloom of the ripe and waving corn-fields, through which -the lines were advancing in triple ranks, with their serried arms and -embroidered standards glittering, threw forward the bright scarlet -costume in strong relief, and the hearts of the little band of exiles -beat with increased excitement as the moment of a general encounter -drew nigh. - -"Behold yonder fellows in our uniform!" exclaimed one, as the -Scottish infantry debouched in heavy column on the French left, with -their twenty standards displayed, and their drums loading the air -with the old march of the Covenanters. - -"God knoweth the sorrow, the bitterness, the hatred, and the fierce -exultation that swell my heart by turns in this auspicious hour!" -said Finland, striking his breast. - -"You speak my very thoughts," responded Walter, with a deep sigh; -"yonder are the old Royals, but now another than Dunbarton wields his -baton over them; yonder are the standards we have carried--but others -bear them now. How hard to forget that these are our countrymen! Do -not ourselves seem to be marching against us?" - -"Enough of this, gentlemen," said the veteran Laird of Dunlugais. -"In them I behold only the rebels of our king, and the sycophants of -an usurper. This day let us remember only that we are fighting under -the standard of the first captain of the age, and about to win fresh -glories for the most magnificent prince that ever occupied the throne -of France!" - -The battle was begun by Hugh Mackay, of Scoury. - -Led by that brave and veteran general, a dense column of British -cavalry, accoutred in voluminous red coats, great Dutch hats, looped -up, and vast boots of black leather, with slung musquets and -brandished swords, rushed at full gallop to the charge on one flank, -while the Prince of Wirtemburg assailed the other. - -The abbatis lay full in front of Mackay, who held aloft his long gilt -baton, as he led on this heavy mass of troopers. On they came, horse -to horse, and boot to boot like a moving mountain; but the deadly and -deliberate volley poured upon them by the Scottish cavaliers threw -them into immediate confusion; the front squadrons by becoming -entangled among their falling horses and riders, recoiled suddenly on -the rear, who were still spurring forward; the furious shock produced -an immediate and irredeemable confusion, and the whole gave way ere -another volley of that leaden rain was poured upon their dense array. - -The roar of forty thousand musquets now burst like thunder on the -ear, as the Prince de Conté and the brave De Chartres, the -boy-soldier, at the head of the superb household infantry, assailed -the British, and volleying in platoons, continued to press upon them -with increasing ardour until within pike's length of each other, when -Conté led the whole to the charge. The shock was irresistible! -Count Solmes failed to support the English and Scots, who immediately -gave way, and a tremendous slaughter was made, especially among the -latter. - -"Les Ecossais, retreat!" exclaimed Conté. "'Tis a miracle. Tête -Dieu! 'tis surely a bad cause, when the hand of Heaven is against -them!" - -The Scottish regiments of Coutts, Mackay, Angus, Grahame, and Leven, -were cut to pieces, and the English Guards nearly shared the same -fate. James Earl of Angus, a brave youth in his twenty-first year, -was shot dead at the head of his Cameronians, William Stuart Viscount -of Montjoy, Sir Robert Douglas, Lieutenant-General James Douglas, Sir -John Lanier, Colonel Lauder, and many other brave Scottish gentlemen -were slain, while the Prince de Conté bore all before him. - -With the gallant Prince of Wirtemburg it fared otherwise. Pressing -onward at the head of his English, he carried off some of the French -artillery, and after immense slaughter, stormed the intrenchment -which covered their position, but finding himself in danger of being -overpowered, he twice sent his aide-de-camp to crave succour from the -phlegmatic William and from Count Solmes, a noble of the House of -Nassau. Twice over a field that was strewn with thousands of dead -and dying, and swept by the fire of so many thousand musquets, -cannon, and coehorns, the brave aide spurred his horse to beg succour -for the prince his master; but William neglected, and the Dutch noble -derided his request. - -"Vivat Wirtemburg!" cried Solmes, laughing; "let us see what sport -his English bulldogs will make." - -At length William shook off the inertness that seemed to possess his -faculties amid the storm of war that raged around him, and in person -ordered Solmes to sustain the advance of the left wing which -Wirtemburg had led on so successfully. Thus urged, the unwilling -Lord of Brunsveldt, made an unavailing movement with his cavalry, but -left a few English and Danes to sustain the whole brunt of the battle. - -Amid the dense smoke that rolled in white clouds and concealed the -adverse lines, their carnage and its horrors, again and again the -brave old Laird of Scoury led his squadrons to the charge, resolved -to force the passage to turn the flank of Luxembourg or die, and -again they were repulsed from the abbatis by the courage of the -desperate Cavaliers. As yet, not one trooper had penetrated among -them, though hundreds and their horses lay groaning and rolling in -the agonies of death, entangled among the apple-laden branches of the -prostrate trees, grasping and rending them with their teeth in the -tortures of dissolution. As yet not one of the Scottish exiles had -fallen; but now Mackay ordered a body of his dragoons to dismount, to -unsling their short fusees, and from behind the piles of dead and -dying men and chargers, to fire upon the abbatis which could afford -no protection against bullets. - -A furious fusilade now ensued, and Fenton soon missed Finland from -his side; he turned, and his hot blood cooled for a moment to behold -him lying on the bloody turf in the last agonies of death. A ball -had pierced his breast; his eyes were glazing, and he was beating the -earth with his heels, as he blew from his quivering lips the bells of -blood and foam. - -Unfortunate Douglas! - -Something was clenched in his hand and pressed to his lips; but as -his dying energies relaxed, and his brave spirit fled to heaven, the -relic fell on the turf;--it was Annie Laurie's braid of bright brown -hair. - -"Farewell, dear Finland," exclaimed Walter, kissing the dead man's -hand. "Here end thy love and misfortunes together!" Sorrow, rage, -and ardour roused the fury of Fenton to the utmost, and with his -clubbed weapon he sprang over the trees of the abbatis, exclaiming, -"to the charge, gentlemen Scots!--to the charge! Never let it be -said that the Cavaliers of Dundee played at long bowles with those -false English churls. Victory and revenge!" - -Fired by his example, and animated by national and political hatred -against those who had deserted James VII., and wrought so many -miseries to his few adherents, the little band sprang from the -abbatis and threw themselves with incredible fury and determination -on the dismounted troopers. Onward they pressed over piles of dead -and wounded, while every instant the balls that flew thick as -drifting rain, thinned their narrow ranks, and added many another -item to the vast amount of that day's carnage. - -None can be so brave as those for whom life has lost every charm; and -none so reckless as those who have a thousand real or imaginary -wrongs to avenge. Thus, heedless alike of the number of their -antagonists, who were again pressing up to the attack, the Scottish -Cavaliers came on pell mell, and a desperate conflict ensued with -firelocks and fusils clubbed. - -As Walter, forgetful of everything else but to glut a fierce spirit -of revenge, pressed onward, he encountered a tall and powerful -officer. The nobility of his aspect and the richness of his attire -(for his scarlet coat was so richly interlaced with bars of gold as -to be almost sword-proof) not less than the vigour with which he kept -his soldiers to their duty, made him a marked man; but Walter struck -him from his horse and flourished the butt of his musket over him. - -"Take these, you tattered villain," said the officer, offering a -splendid watch and ring; "take these and spare my life." - -"Insult me not, Sir," exclaimed Walter Fenton with undisguised scorn. -"I am one of the officers of Viscount Dundee--of Dundee the brave and -loyal." - -"The vilest minion of hell and tyranny that ever disgraced his -country--then doubly are you traitor!" said the other starting from -the ground and flashing a pistol in Walter's face. Blinded by fury -and the smoke of the discharge, he drove his bayonet through the -breast of the officer and fairly pinned him to the turf. - -"Curse on the hour that I die by the hand of a base and renegade -clown like thee!" exclaimed the dying man, half choked in his welling -blood. - -"Traitor!" cried his destroyer furiously; "you die by the hand of Sir -Walter Fenton, Knight Banneret of Scotland!" - -"So falls Hugh Mackay, of Scoury!" moaned the other as he sank -backward and expired. - -"Scoury!" reiterated Walter; "hah! then this hour avenges Dundee the -slaughter of Killycrankie and of Cromdale." - -At that moment he was hurled to the earth by a wounded charger as it -rushed madly from the conflict. He fell against a tree and lay -stunned and insensible to all that passed around him. - -The sun was setting, and still the doubtful battle continued to be -waged with undiminished ardour, until Mareschal Boufflers, at the -head of a powerful body of cavalry, the French and Scottish -gendarmerie, and the royal regiment, De Rousillon, swept like a -torrent over the corpse-strewn plains with the oriflamme, displayed -and decided the fortune of the war just as the sun's broad disc -dipped behind the far horizon. William, instead of restoring his -tarnished honour, was compelled to retreat in renewed disgrace, -leaving many officers of valour and distinction and 3,000 soldiers -slain; while the French, though they had to regret the fall of an -equal number, with the Prince de Turenne, the Marquis de Bellefonde, -Tilladete, Fernaçon, and many other chevaliers of noble blood, -remained masters of the field, over which they suspended from a lofty -gibbet King William's luckless confidant, the spy and intriguer -Millevoix. - -Paris resounded with joy and acclamation on tidings of this great -victory arriving; the princes and soldiers who had served there were -idolized as superior beings by the ladies and women of every rank, -whose transports amounted to a species of frenzy, and from that hour -for many a year every ornament and piece of dress was known by the -name of _Steinkirke_. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -A DISCLOSURE. - - _'Tis night_;--and glittering o'er the trampled heath, - Pale gleams the moonlight on the field of death; - Lights up each well-known spot, where late in blood, - The vanquished yielded, and the victor stood; - When red in clouds the sun of battle rode, - And poured on Britain's front its favoring flood. - LORD GRENVILLE. - - -Again the summer moon rose brightly over the secluded village of -Steinkirke, and poured its cold and steady lustre on cornfields -drenched in blood, and trod to gory mire by the charge of the spurred -squadrons, the closer movements of the compact squares of infantry, -or the artillery's track; on the pale and upturned faces of the -dying, the distorted and ghastlier lineaments of the dead,--on a wide -battle-field strewn with all the trophies of war and -destruction,--misery and agony. - -Save where illumined by the gleams of moonlight, by the red flashes -of a few distant fire-arms, and the redder glare from a convent -burned by the retreating British, the ruddy conflagration of which -mingled with the last faint glow of the departed sun, the field -seemed gloomy and dark. A narrow lurid streak at the distant horizon -shewed where the sun had set. The roar of that great battle had now -died away, but it had sent forth an echo over France and Britain -denoting joy to one and sorrow to the other. Where, then, was -William of Orange, and where his mighty host? - -The contest was now over, and, save the distant popping of a few -skirmishers or plunderers, every sound of strife had ceased; but the -cool night wind was laden with a sad and wailing murmur, a sound -which it is seldom the lot of man to hear--the mingled moans of many -thousands of men enduring all the complicated torture of sabre and -gunshot wounds and the most excruciating thirst. Many a solemn -prayer and pious ejaculation of deep contrition, uttered in many a -varied tongue, were then ascending from that moonlit battlefield to -the throne of God, while others in their ravings called only on Death -to ease them of their torments; and long ere sunrise the stern king -of terrors attended the summons of many. - -A great cannon royal, drawn by eight horses and escorted by the -artillerists of the Brigade de Dauphine, passed near the -corpse-heaped abbatis where Walter Fenton lay, and he implored them -to remove him from the field. They were passing him unheeded, when -one exclaimed, - -"_Il est un officier Ecossais!_" upon which the drivers reined up: -the soldiers sprang from the tumbril, and placing him beside them, -galloped across the field of battle towards the redoubts on the left -of Luxembourg's position. The jolting occasioned Walter exquisite -agony, and he could not repress a shudder when the cannon wheels -passed over the crackling body of some dead or wounded soldier who -lay prostrate in their path. - -After riding a mile or two he fell from his seat with violence, and -once more became insensible. - -"_Il est morte_" said the Frenchmen, as they whipped up their horses -and thought no more about him. - -After lying long in a dreamy state, tormented by a burning thirst and -feeling prickly and shooting pains over his whole body as the blood -flowed back into its old channels, Walter made an attempt to rise, -but the motion occasioned him exquisite pain, and the whole landscape -swam around him. He thought he was mortally wounded; a cold -perspiration burst over his temples; a stupor again stole upon his -senses, and, believing he was dying, he piously recommended himself -to God, closed his eyes, and lay down resigned to his fate. - -But the mind was active though the frame remained inert, and he -thought of Lilian, of Finland and Annie, and how the hand of Death -had thrown a cold blight over all their fondest hopes and prospects, -and so weak had he become that audible sobs burst from him. - -The heavy dew was falling fast, and its moisture refreshed him; he -raised his head, and near him saw the figure of a female in a sombre -and peculiar garb: she was completely attired in black; a thick veil -of the same colour with a little hood of white linen were drawn -closely round her face, which seemed pale and colourless as that of -death in the uncertain rays of a cruise which she carried; but though -aged, she was marked by a serenity and air of repose singularly -winning and prepossessing. She bent tenderly over him with a face -expressive of the deepest commiseration. - -"'Tis a vision!" was Walter's first thought; "'tis an Ursuline nun," -was his second. - -"Poor youth--unhappy youth!" said the stranger tenderly, and burst -into tears. - -"Heaven's blessing on you, gentle lady," said Walter, as he -endeavoured to rise; "no tears can be more precious in the sight of -Heaven than those shed by compassion. God save great Luxembourg! We -have this day gained a glorious victory; but at what a price to me!" -he continued in his own language. "Alake! my brave and noble -friends, the best blood of Scotland has mingled yonder with the -waters of the Senne." - -"Scotland!" replied the venerable Ursuline, and her mild eyes became -filled with animation and sadness. "I acknowledge with sorrow and -pride that your country is also mine; but, alas! I can only remember -it with horror and humiliation. Your voice takes me back to the -pleasant days of other and happier years, and stirs an echo in the -deepest recesses of my heart. Oh, my God! what is this that I feel -within me? Intercede for me blessed Ursula, and save me from my own -thoughts! Oh, let not the contentment in which I have dwelt these -many years be disturbed by worldly regrets and old unhappiness!" - -There was a deep pathos in her voice, an air of subdued sorrow, -mildness, and melancholy in her features, and a soft expression in -her eye that was very winning, and Walter kissed her hand with a -sentiment of affection and respect, and, strange to say, she did not -withdraw it. - -"I belonged to the convent of Ursulines at Steinkirke. At -vesper-time the Count Solmes sacked it with his troopers; (God -forgive him and them the sacrilege!) they expelled us with savage -violence, and I found shelter in a cottage close by. Your groans -drew me forth. Permit me to lead you, my poor son, for indeed you -seem very weak. There is one poor fugitive there already, a -countrywoman of our own, to whom I hope you will bring pleasant -tidings; let us go." - -They entered the humble Flemish cottage, the wide kitchen of which -was brilliantly illuminated by a blazing fire of turf, that lit the -furthest recesses of the great but rude apartment, that strongly -resembled those represented by Rembrandt and Teniers, where every -imaginable implement and article, garden and household utensil, hang -from the beams of the open roof, load the walls, or encumber every -available nook and corner; a heavy Flemish boor, in voluminous brown -breeches, arose and doffed his fur cap, and with his wife made way -for the sister of St. Ursula, who led Walter to a seat. - -Thankfully he drained to the last drop a pewter flaggon of water that -the housewife gave him, and was about to speak, when his attention -was arrested by the sudden appearance of a young lady. She was very -beautiful, and had an exquisitely fair complexion, the natural -paleness of which grief and fear had very much increased; her blue -eyes sparkled with animation, and her half dishevelled hair was of -the brightest and glossiest but palest flaxen. Running to Walter -Fenton she took both his hands in hers, and said, with a touching -earnestness of manner, - -"Ah, Sir! come you from the field of battle?" - -"This moment, madam." - -"Oh, you are Scottish by your voice, but alas! you wear the garb of -Louis." - -"My dear madam, it is the garb of loyalty and exile; of great -suffering, and of much endurance." - -"Unhappy Sir, you are----" - -"One of the cavaliers of Dundee." - -"Oh, tell me if you know aught of the fate of General Mackay in this -day's carnage; Mackay, the Laird of Scoury?" she added a little -proudly. - -"Lady," faltered Walter, quite overcome by the question and the -aspect of the speaker, "the brave champion of Presbyterianism is no -more. I--I saw him slain." - -"My father! oh, my father!" cried Margaret Mackay, in a voice that -pierced the conscience-stricken Fenton to the heart; "I shall never -see thee more--never behold thy kind old face and silver hair. Oh, -my God! I am quite alone in the world, and what will become of me -now? Oh, Lady Clermistonlee!" she exclaimed, and pressing against -her heart the hand of the nun, sank into a chair and swooned. - -"_Clermistonlee!_" reiterated Walter, starting; but the helpless -condition of his young countrywoman demanded immediate attention, and -he was compelled to smother his curiosity for a time, until she had -partially recovered, and then the good Ursuline, after attending her -with the most motherly care, left her engaged in prayer in another -apartment, and turned all her attention to the wound on Walter's head. - -With an adroit neatness of hand, a soft insinuating manner which drew -the heart of Walter towards her as to a mother, the compassionate -nun, assisted by the silent Flemish housewife, bathed the wound, cut -away the long clotted locks, and bound it up, while the round visaged -boor, whose mind was wholly absorbed by the loss of a field of corn, -which had been cut down by Boufflers' foraging dragoons, sat with his -eyes intently fixed on the smoke that curled from his pipe. - -Walter had been so little accustomed to kindness, that all the strong -feelings of his warm heart now gushed forth. - -"A thousand thanks, dear madam!" he exclaimed. "I know not whether -it is your kindness, the mere ardour of my heart, or some mysterious -influence that Heaven alone can see, which calls forth all my fondest -and most reverential sentiments towards you." - -The Ursuline smiled sadly, and retired a pace. - -"Oh, what is this new feeling that stirs within me?" continued -Walter, in a half musing voice. "It seems as if your face bore the -long remembered features of some kind friend or dear relative. Like -a gleam of sunshine through a mist, they come back to me from the -obscurity of the past like those of one whom--but, ah! whither is my -enthusiasm carrying me? Dear madam, once more a thousand thanks, for -now I must leave, and shall never see you more, but your kindness -will ever be remembered by Walter Fenton with gratitude and love." - -"Fenton!" said the Ursuline, putting back his hair, and tenderly -surveying his emaciated features, "I once had a dear though humble -friend of that name, and my heart yearns to thee for her sake. But -wherefore this hurry to depart? Your wound?--" - -"I know not where I am, lady, and should any of the Statholder's -people come this way I should assuredly be shot." - -"Then, in the name of all that is blessed, away! The fires of the -French camp are still visible, and you may gain it ere daybreak." - -This passed in French, but the boor understood it; his eyes twinkled, -and knocking the ashes from his pipe he slowly stuck it in his -leathern cap and stole out unperceived. - -"And what will be the fate of this poor daughter of the brave Mackay, -for everywhere the French are swarming around us?" - -"Through a lady of the house of Nassau, who belongs to our now, alas! -ruined convent, I will see her consigned to the care of her father's -best friend, William of Orange." - -"'Tis fortunate. It reminds me of what I scarcely dare to ask. She -called you by the name of my bitterest enemy--Clermistonlee," said -Walter, biting his lip; "Clermistonlee, who has been my rival and the -bane of my existence. Oh, madam, what terrible mystery is concealed -under this Ursuline habit!" - -As Walter spoke the blood came and went in the faded face of the -trembling recluse. One moment, when fired by animation, her features -seemed almost beautiful, and the next they were withered, rigid, and -aged. - -"Mr. Fenton," faltered the nun--"Mr. Fenton, for so I presume you are -named?" - -"I am Sir Walter Fenton, lady, by the King's grace." - -The nun bowed slightly. - -"My heart warms, Sir Walter, to that dear native land which I shall -never behold again, and in a moment of such weakness I revealed -myself to that poor fugitive girl, whom fate so happily threw under -my protection, when the confederates were defeated and dispersed----. -You know him then, this wicked man, to whom fate in an evil hour gave -me as a wife. Oh, Randal! Randal! --------. Let me not recall in -bitterness the burning thoughts of years long passed and -gone--thoughts which I have long since learned to suppress, or endure -with calmness and resignation." - -"Enough, dear madam, I am animated by no vulgar curiosity, and time -presses. Oh, learn rather to forget your earlier griefs than to -remember them. Too well do I know the Lord Clermistonlee, and can -easily conceive a long and painful history of domestic woe and -suffering. You are the unfortunate Alison Gilford?" - -"Of the house of Gilford of that ilk in Lothian," continued the -recluse with tearless composure. "In his earlier days, when young, -gallant, and winsome, with an honoured name and spotless scutcheon, -Randal Clermont became my lover and my husband. Oh, how happy I was -for a time; how loving and beloved! But a change came over the -unstable heart of my husband. His political intrigues and private -excesses soon ruined our fortune, deprived me of his love and him of -my esteem. We were driven into exile, and retired to Paris. There -he plunged madly into a vortex of the lowest dissipation, and spent -the last of my dowry, my jewels, and everything. He became a -drunkard, a bully, and a gamester, if not worse. Long, long I -endured without a murmur or reproach his pitiless cruelty and cutting -contempt, until he eloped with one who in better days had been my -companion and attendant, an artful wretch named Beatrix Gilruth. He -joined the army of Mareschal Crecquy as a volunteer, and I saw him no -more. Hearing afterwards that he was in Scotland fighting under the -standard of the Covenant, and being driven to despair by the miseries -into which he had plunged me, by leaving me a prey to destitution in -a foreign land, I resolved to quit the world for ever; I have come of -an old Catholic family, and a convent was my first thought. - -"Our child, for we had one, our child was alternately a source of -torment and delight," continued the poor nun, weeping bitterly--"my -torment from the resemblance it bore to its perfidious father, and my -delight as the only tie that bound me to earth; I resolved to see it -no more, and sent the poor infant to Scotland in charge of a faithful -female servitor, to whom I gave a letter for my husband, purporting -to be written on my deathbed, and a ring he had given me in happier -days. In an agony of grief I saw the woman depart, and gave her all -I possessed, a few louis-d'ors I had acquired at Paris, where I had -supported myself as a fleuriste, and was patronized by the Scottish -Archers, who were ever very kind to me. I considered myself as dead -to the world from that hour, and immediately commenced my noviciate -in the licensed convent of St. Ursula in French Flanders. - -"Here again all the wounds of my heart were torn open by tidings that -the ship in which my loved little boy and his nurse embarked had -perished at sea; whether they perished too God alone knoweth, for I -heard of them no more. And now the fierce stings of remorse -increased the sadness of my sorrow, and I upbraided myself with -cruelty, with lack of fortitude and such resignation as became a -Christian. I accused myself of infanticide, and in my thoughts by -day and my dreams by night I had ever before me the sunny eyes and -golden hair of my little child, and its lisping accents in my -dreaming ear awoke me to tears and unavailing sorrow." - -Here the poor nun again paused and wept bitterly. - -"Time never fails to soften the memory of the most acute sorrow, and -in the convent to which I had fled for refuge from my own thoughts, -the soothing consolations of the sisterhood, the calm, the pious and -blameless tenor of their way, charmed me as much as their holy -meekness of spirit subdued my bitter regrets. After a time I tasted -the sweets of the most perfect contentment, if not of happiness. In -the duties of religion, of industry and charity, I soon learned to -forget Clermistonlee, or to remember him only in my prayers--to -forget that I had been a wife, to forget that I had been--oh, no! not -a mother--never could I forget that." - -"Villain that he is! and with the consciousness of your Ladyship's -existence, he has, since he was ennobled, wooed many another to be -his bride; but Heaven's hand or his own vices have always foiled him." - -The eyes of the recluse sparkled beneath her veil; but folding her -white hands meekly on her bosom, she said with exceeding gentleness-- - -"What have I to do with it now?--besides, youth, I am sure he -believes me dead, for some of the Scottish Archers told him so--and -dead I am to him and to the world." - -"It is a very sad history, madam," - -"But God has comforted me." Her tears fell fast nevertheless, and a -long pause ensued. Walter felt himself moved to tears, and he often -sighed deeply, yet knew not why. - -The sound of a trumpet roused him; it seemed close bye, and came in -varying cadence on the passing wind. - -"'Tis the trumpet of a Dutch patrole. I must begone, lady, or remain -only to die. Farewell; a thousand blessings on you and a thousand -more--for we shall never meet again;" and half kneeling he kissed her -hand, and, slipping from the cottage, favoured by the darkened moon, -hurried away towards the fires of Luxembourg's camp, just as a party -of Dutch Ruyters led by the boor halted at the cottage door. - -* * * * * - -With fifty thousand men the Mareschal Duke of Luxembourg was posted -at Courtray on the Lys; while William, with twice that number, lay at -Grammont, inactive, phlegmatic, and afraid to attack him; an -inertness which increased the growing ill-humour of Britain against -him. Without a dinner and without a sou, abandoned to solitude and -dejection, Walter Fenton one evening paced slowly to and fro on the -ramparts of Courtray, watching the bright sunset as it lingered long -on the level scenery. A page approached, who acquainted him that -Monseigneur le Mareschal required his presence in the citadel, -whither he immediately repaired, and found the great Henri of -Luxembourg, the youthful Dukes of Chartres and Vendome, with other -chevaliers of distinction, carousing after a sumptuous repast. - -As he entered, De Chartres was singing the merry old ditty of _Jean -de Nivelle_, while the rest chorused. - - "Jean de Nivelle has three flails; - Three palfrays with long manes and tails; - Three blades of a terrible brand, - Which he never takes into his hand. - _Ah! ouivraiment! - Jean de Nivelle est bon enfant!_" - -The magnificence of their attire, the happy nonchalance and graceful -ease of their manner, contrasted with his own tattered and humble -uniform, fallen fortune, and jaded spirit, made Walter's heart sick -as he entered; but, assuming somewhat of the old air of a cavalier -officer, he bowed to the noble company, and awaited in silence the -commands of the Mareschal. - -"Approach, Monsieur," said the handsome young Duc de Chartres. "Tête -Dieu! but you look very pale! You were wounded I believe?" - -"It is nearly healed Monseigneur," - -"Ah, it is deuced unpleasant work this fighting and beleaguering." - -"De Chartres would rather be at Chantilly," said the Duc de Vendome, -laughing. - -"Or at Versailles," said a Chevalier of St. Louis. "He is thinking -of little Mariette Gondalaurier." - -"Or St. Denis and adorable Isabeau Lagrange." - -"Say Paris at once, Messieurs," said the boyish roué, smiling. "I -have beauties everywhere." - -"The Scottish officer will drink with us--here, boy, assist our -friend to wine," said Luxembourg to his page. "'Tis only Frontiniac, -Monsieur; but an hour ago it was Dutch William's, and we drink it out -of pure spite." - -Walter drank the fragrant wine from a massively embossed cup, and his -head swam as he imbibed it, and waited to hear for what desperate -duty these noble peers designed him. - -"Chevalier," said Luxembourg with his most bland smile, "it is -pleasant to reward the brave. Aware that the repulse of the -confederate cavalry on my right flank, and consequently the whole -success of that glorious day at Steinkirke was mainly owing to the -valour of the Scottish cavaliers animated by your example, King Louis -sends you this." And taking from his own neck the sparkling cross of -the recently created order of St. Louis, the Duke placed it around -the neck of Walter Fenton, who bowed his thanks in silence. - -"Go, Chevalier--you are a gallant soldier! The Scots were ever -brave, and the friends of France. Wear that cross with honour to the -Most Christian King, to your native country--" - -"And to the most sublime Madame Maintenon," said the young Duke, and -his gay companions laughed. - -"Monseigneur!" said Luxembourg warningly. - -"Tête Dieu, Mareschal! dost think I fear her? Faith Madame, 'tis -known, never gives a favour without a most usurious per centage. She -is quite a Jewess in the intrigues of love and politics, ha! ha!" - -"Attached to this cross, Chevalier, is a pension of four hundred -livres yearly, which I doubt not will be acceptable in your present -reduced circumstances." - -"Oh, believe me, Monseigneur le Mareschal, and you most noble Dukes, -it is indeed most acceptable; for with it I may in some sort -alleviate the miseries of those gallant gentlemen, my comrades, who -share your fortunes in the field." - -"By St. Denis, you are a gallant fellow!" cried Luxembourg with -kindling eyes, "Your generosity equals your courage. But this must -not be. Messieurs your comrades must take the will for the deed. -This night you must depart for the Court of St. Germain-en-laye, -where King James requires your immediate attendance. My Secretary -will supply you with money, and my Master of the Horse with a -charger--adieu, Sir, and God be with you!" - -Walter retired. - -That night he bade a sad adieu to his comrades, and, mounted on one -of the Mareschal's horses, departed from Courtray. - -His brave companions in glory and exile he saw no more. After all -their services and their sufferings, their achievements and their -chivalry, the few survivors of the war, sixteen in number, were, by a -striking example of French ingratitude, disbanded at the peace of -Ryswick, on the upper part of the Rhine, far from their native -land--without money or any provision to save them from starvation and -death. Of these sixteen only _four_ survived to return to Scotland -in extreme old age, when all fears of the Jacobites had passed away -for ever. - -Again the unclouded moon was shining over Steinkirke when Walter -passed it, and vividly on his mind came back the fierce memories of -that impetuous hour. The great plain was deserted, the full eared -corn was waving heavily, and not a sound disturbed the silence of the -moonlit scenery save the deep bay of a household dog or the croak of -a passing stork. - -Thickly on every hand lay the graves of the faithful dead. In some -instances he saw great burial mounds; in others there was but one -solitary grave secluded among the long grass and reeds, and his horse -started instinctively as he passed them. - -Fragments of clothing, accoutrements, and other relics, lay among the -rank weeds by the side of the fields, under the green hedge-rows, in -the wet ditches; and even fleshless bones, bare scalps, fingers and -toes, protruded from the soil, imparting an aspect of horror to the -moonlighted plain where the battle had been fought. - -The abbatis still lay there, but the foliage of the trees that formed -it had long since faded and decayed. A great tumulus, on which the -young grass was sprouting, lay within it. - -"Poor Finland!" muttered Walter, and with a moistened eye and heavy -heart he plunged his horse into the Senne and swam to the opposite -bank. The cottage where he had found shelter had now disappeared; -its foundations, scorched and blackened by fire, alone marked the -place where it stood. He thought of the poor Ursuline and her story, -and sighed that he could learn nothing more of her fate; he sighed, -too, at the memory of the beautiful Margaret Mackay, and felt the -keenest remorse for having slain her father. - -Of the recluse he never heard more; but the daughter of Mackay -reached the camp of William in safety, and in after years became the -wife of her kinsman and chief, George, third Lord Reay of Farre. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -WALTER FENTON AND THE KING. - - To daunton me, and me sae young, - And guid King James's auldest son! - Oh, that's the thing that never can be, - For the man is unborn that'll daunton me! - O set me once upon Scottish land, - With my guid braid-sword into my hand, - My bannet blue aboon my bree, - Then shew me the man that'll daunton me! - JACOBITE RELIQUES. - - -His confessor had just withdrawn, and King James was sitting in his -closet involved in gloomy and distracting reverie--immersed in -thoughts which even the mild exhortations of the priest had failed to -soothe, and with his eyes intently fixed on the morning sun as it -rose red and unclouded in the east, he gave way to the sadness that -oppressed him. - -Alternately he was a prey to a storm of revengeful and bitter -political reflections, or to a gloomy fanaticism, which impaired the -courage and lessened the magnanimity for which he had once been -distinguished. On discovering that he was constantly conferring with -the Jesuits upon abstruse theology, the ribald Louis spoke of him in -terms of pity mingled with contempt. The French ridiculed, the -Romans lampooned him, and, while the Sovereign Pontiff supplied him -liberally with indulgences, the Archbishop of Rheims said -ironically--"There is a pious man who hath sacrificed three crowns -for a mass!" - -And this was all the unfortunate and mistaken James had gained, by -his steady and devoted adherence to a falling faith. - -Bestowing a glance of undisguised hostility, not unmingled with -contempt, at the follower of St. Ignatius Loyola as he withdrew, the -Earl of Dunbarton, clad in his old uniform as a Scottish general, -entered the apartment of the King. The green ribbon of St. Andrew -was worn over his left shoulder, the star with its four silver points -sparkled on his left breast, and around his neck hung the red ribbon -of the Bath, and the magnificent collar of the Garter. - -"Good morning, my Lord Dunbarton; you look as if you had something to -communicate. Any news from Flanders? Is my dutiful son-in-law still -playing at long bowles with Luxembourg? Has Sir Walter Fenton -arrived?" - -"He awaits your Majesty's pleasure in the ante-chamber." - -"Let him be introduced at once! Why all this etiquette?" - -"Because, please your Majesty, it is all that is left to remind me of -other days." - -"True," said the King thoughtfully. - -"Welcome, my brave and faithful soldier!" he exclaimed, as Walter was -introduced by the gentlemen in waiting, and kneeled to kiss his hand. -"Welcome from Flanders, that land of fighting and fertility. My poor -Sir Walter, you look very pale and emaciated." - -"I was wounded at Steinkirke, please your Majesty; and with those -unfortunate gentlemen, my comrades, have undergone such hardships and -humiliations as no imagination can conceive." - -Walter's eyes suffused with tears; his voice and his heart trembled. -He felt a gush of loyalty and ardour swelling within his breast, that -would have enabled him cheerfully to lay his life at the feet of the -King. The remark of a celebrated modern writer is indeed a true one. -"Unfortunate and unwise as were the Stuart family, there must have -been some charm about them, for they had instances of attachment and -fidelity shewn them of which _no other line of Kings could boast_." - -"You have indeed undergone sufferings which God only can reward," -said the King, laying a hand kindly on his shoulder; "and your ill -requited valour is a striking example of the falsehood and flattery -of the Court of Versailles." - -"When I consider our achievements," replied Walter, "my soul fires -with pride and ardour; but when I think of the friends that have -fallen, my heart dies away within me. To the last of my blood and -breath I will serve your majesty; but, notwithstanding this gift of -the Cross of St. Louis, I will follow the banner of the donor no -more." - -"Louis is a noble prince," said the Earl of Dunbarton, "and one who -hath raised his realm to the greatest pitch of human grandeur." - -"Oh, say not so, my Lord! When I remember the cruel persecution of -his subjects after the Treaty of Nimguen, his repealing the edict of -Nantes, his tyranny over the noblesse and the parliament, his unjust -wars and usurpations, in which he pours forth so prodigally the blood -and the treasures of his people; his blasphemous titles and lewd -life; I can only remember with shame that I have served in his army, -and from this hour renounce his service for ever. And were it not -that this cross hung once on the breast of the gallant Luxembourg, I -would hurl it into the Seine." - -"The remembrance of your sufferings doubtless animates this unwise -train of thought, Sir Walter," said the King, slightly piqued. "But -permit me to remark, that to indulge your opinions thus in France, is -to run your head into the lion's mouth. How goes the war in -Flanders?" - -"Still doubtfully, please your Majesty; but the recent arrival of the -Duke of Leinster at Ostend, with fresh troops for William, may turn -the fortune of the war against Henri of Luxembourg, and consequently -please the people of England, who are not very favourably disposed -towards this expensive and unnecessary war for the Dutch interests of -the usurper." - -"The best proof of this new sentiment, is the discontent of the -Cameronians in the western districts of Scotland. What dost think, -Sir Walter? They have engaged to muster 5000 horse and 20,000 -infantry for my complete restoration, provided Louis will give them -only one month's subsidy, beside other supplies, and these he hath -solemnly promised me." - -"From my soul I thank Heaven that again it is turning the hearts of -your subjects towards you. If such is the spirit of the Cameronians, -oh, what will be the energy and the ardour of the Cavaliers! But -trust not in Louis; he has ruined every prince with whom he has been -allied, in war or in politics, and assuredly he will shipwreck the -interests of your Majesty, as he has done those of others." - -"Still judging hardly of his most Christian Majesty," said James, -smiling. "But I have the pledged words of better men. From the -noble Drummonds', the gallant Keiths', the Hays', from the Lord -Stormont and the Murrays', the gay Gordons and Grahames, I have -received the most solemn promises of adherence and loyalty; and I -know that the glorious clans of the northern shires will all rush to -my standard the moment it is unfurled upon the Highland hills. Oh, -yes!" continued the King, while his dark eyes flashed with joyous -enthusiasm; "once again as in my father's days the war-cry of the -Gael will ring from Lochness to Lochaber." - -"But where is now Montrose, and where Dundee?" said Lord Dunbarton in -a low voice. - -"God will raise up other champions for those who have suffered so -much in his service as the Princes of the House of Stuart," replied -the King with Catholic fervour and confidence. "Meantime, Sir -Walter, I would have you to set out for Scotland forthwith, to -negotiate with those distinguished cavaliers, while the minds of my -people are still inflamed by the memory of that fiend-like massacre -at Glencoe, the defeat of Steinkirke, the slaughter of their -soldiers, and all the disgusts incident to the Flemish campaign -abroad and William's administration at home. My Lord Dunbarton avers -that he will pledge his honour for the loyalty of his old regiment -and the Scottish Guards, both horse and foot, for his Countess has -questioned every man of them. You will not fail to visit Drummond of -Hawthorndon; he comes of a leal and true race, and his house, with -its deep caverns and secret outlets, is a noble place of rendezvous -and security. You will be liberally supplied with money and letters -of credit and compliment. You may promise, in my name, everything -that seems requisite--titles, honours, pensions,--I will trust to -your discretion, from what the Lord Dunbarton has told me of you. -Flatter the vain, conciliate the stubborn, secure the wavering, and -fire the loyal. Leave nothing undone, and remember that, perhaps on -the success of your mission depend the fortune of the prince, my son, -the ancient liberties of Scotland, the honour of her people, and the -fate of her regal line." - -The King ceased, and Walter was so overwhelmed by the magnitude of -the diplomacy entrusted to him, and the joy at returning to Scotland, -that he remained silent for some moments. - -"Oh, with what a mission does your Majesty honour me!" he exclaimed, -glowing with ambition, gratitude and joy. "How can I express my -thanks for this great confidence reposed in one so poor, so -friendless?" - -"These are good qualities, Sir Walter, for a Jacobite agent; you may -(being friendless and unknown) make your way through Scotland in -safety, when a coroneted baron, or the chief of a powerful sept, -would soon be discovered and committed to the Castle of Edinburgh or -the Tower of London. Go, Sir Walter; Lord Dunbarton and my secretary -will arrange the matters you require, and in addition to my holograph -letters to the Lowland lords and Highland chiefs, will give you -others to Mr. Brown, my English agent, and Father Innes, President of -the Scots' College at Paris, who acts for me in Scotland. Go, Sir -Walter, and prosper! If ever we meet again, let us hope it will be -under very different circumstances. May God and his thrice-blessed -mother keep their hands over you, and inspire you for the sake of my -dear little son and the people over whom he is to rule! Farewell--I -have in some sort rewarded your courage in the field, but if your -talent in diplomacy equals it, I swear by the sceptre that my sires -have borne for ages, you shall be Earl of Dalrulion in the north, and -cock your beaver with the best peer in all broad Scotland. Farewell! -may we meet again at the head of a loyal and faithful army, or part -to meet no more!" - -Again Walter Fenton kneeled, and after kissing the hand of James, was -hurried away by the Earl of Dunbarton. - -Furnished with a great number of letters addressed to the principal -nobles and chiefs in Scotland, Walter artfully sewed them into the -lining of his hat and the stiff buckram skirts of his coat, after -which, without an hour's delay, he departed on his arduous and -dangerous mission--to overturn the established governments of two -kingdoms--to hurl down one dynasty and restore another. - -Already he had gained a title which formerly he had possessed only in -his day-dreams of success and glory; but now decorated by Louis with -his new and famous military order, promised a peerage by his King, -fired by loyalty, ardour, and love, he seemed to occupy a giddy -eminence, from which he viewed distinctly a long and happy future. - -It was a far-stretching and glorious vista of triumph and success; -the restoration of the king by his means, and oh, far above all,--the -exultation of placing a Countess's coronet on the bright tresses of -Lilian Napier. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -THE RETURNED EXILE. - - Then, Mary, turn awa' - That bonnie face o' thine; - Oh, dinna shew the breast - That never can be mine. - - Wi' love's severest pangs - My heart is laden sair; - And owre my breast the grass maun grow, - Ere I am free from care. - - -In the gloaming of an evening in the autumn of 1693 a man left the -western gate of Edinburgh, and, skirting the suburb of the Highriggs, -struck into the roadway between the fields. - -The sickly rays of a yellow sun shining faintly through the mist -after throwing the shadows of the gigantic castle far to the -eastward, had died away, and a deeper gloom succeeding, denoted the -close of the day as the fall of the fluttering leaves did that of the -dreary year. - -The stranger was Walter Fenton; but how changed in aspect and attire! -His form was thin and emaciated, his cheek pale, his eyes sunken from -the pain of his wound and the toil of campaigning; but his step was -as free, and his bearing erect as ever. His attire was of the -plainest grey freize, with great horn buttons; a brown scratch wig -and a plain beaver hat concealed the dark locks that curled beneath -them; he carried a walking staff in lieu of a sword, and appeared to -lean on it a little at times. He was now in the character of a Low -Country merchant, and, favoured by a passport from the conservator of -Scottish privileges at Campvere, had an hour before landed from the -good ship Fame of Queensferry, at the ancient wooden pier of Leith. - -Often he made brief pauses to view the desolate scene around him; for -in that year a heavy curse seemed to have fallen upon the desolate -kingdom of Scotland. - -On an evening in the preceding summer, when everything was blooming -and smiling--when the land was rich with verdure and the woods were -heavy with foliage, a cold wind came from the eastward, and, -accompanied by a dense and sulphureous mist, swept over the face of -the country, blighting whatsoever was touched by its pestilential -breath. - -The fields seemed to whiten under its baleful influence; the ripening -corn withered, and the land was struck with a barrenness. Dense, -opaque, and palpable, like a chain of hills, this strange and horrid -vapour lay floating in the valleys for many successive months, and -there its effects were more disastrous. The heat of the sun seemed -to diminish, the insects disappeared from the air and the birds from -the withered woods, which, long ere the last month of summer, became -divested of their faded foliage. The cattle became dwarfish and -meagre, and the flocks perished by scores on the decaying heather of -the blasted mountains. The people became sickly, ghastly, and -prostrated in spirit; for a curse seemed to have fallen upon the land -and all that was in it. - -This terrible visitation continued until the year 1701, and the _dear -years_ were long remembered with horror in Scotland. - -In some places, January and February became the months of harvest, -and, amid ice and snow, and the sleet that drizzled through that -everlasting and sulphureous mist, the half famished people reaped in -grief and misery a small part of their scanty produce, while the -other was left to rot in the ground. Famine, the lord of all, -stalked grimly over the land, and strong men and wailing women, yea, -and feeble children, fought like wild beasts for a handful of meal in -the desolate market places. - -"There was many a blank and pale face in Scotland," says Walker, the -famous Presbyterian pedlar, "and as the famine waxed sore, wives -thought not of their husbands, nor husbands of their wives," and the -gloomy superstition and fanatical intolerance of the time added fresh -horrors to this ghastly scourge. - -The famine was not yet at its height; but there was a desolation in -the aspect of the land that deeply impressed the mind of the returned -exile, and he sighed in unison with the dreary wind as it swept over -the blasted muir, shaking down the crisped leaves and acorns of -stately old oaks of Drumsheugh. Save the solitary heron, wading as -of old in the lake, not a bird was to be seen, not an insect buzzing -about the leafless hedges. The air was dense and cold, and all was -very still. - -The country seemed to be wasting like a beautiful woman decaying in -consumption. Walter felt that the manners of the people were -changed; intense gravity and moroseness, real or affected, were -visible in every face, while sad coloured garments, Geneva cloaks, -and Dutch fashions were all the rage. Every trace of the smart -mustache had disappeared, and with it the slashed doublets, the -waving feathers and dashing airs of the gallant cavaliers. - -Even the sentinels at the palace gates and the portes of the city, -might have passed for those before the Town House or _Rasp Haus_ at -Amsterdam. The smart steel cap of the old Scottish infantry had now -given place to a vast overshadowing beaver looped up on three sides, -and the scarlet doublet slashed with blue, and the jacket of spotless -buff, to square tailed and voluminous coats of brick-red, with yellow -breeches and belts worn saltier-wise. - -Bitterly the reflection came home to the heart of the poor Cavalier, -that - - "The times were changed, old manners gone, - And a _stranger_ filled the Stuarts' throne!" - - -Though confident of succeeding in his diplomacy with the loyal lords -and chieftains of the Jacobite faction, he was well aware how arduous -and difficult was the task to overthrow two Governments so well -arranged, ably constituted and supported, as those of England and -Scotland. It had long been the policy of William III. to conciliate -domestic enemies, and, in pursuance of it, he had bestowed several -lucrative offices on the leaders of the discontented and kirk-party. -The Scottish Parliament, which had recently met, received from him an -able and cunning letter, replete with flattering and cajoling -expressions, which put all the Presbyterian Lords in such excellent -humour, that they returned a most dutiful and affectionate -address--granted him a supply of six new battalions of infantry, a -body of seamen, and one hundred and fifty thousand pounds, to enable -him to carry on his useless wars with new vigour; but though the -Parliament was thus obsequious, the people were far from being -pleased; and the Jacobites, numerous, enthusiastic, and determined, -every where fanned the flames of discord and dissension. - -The institution of fines and oaths of assurance upon absentees from -Parliament, which had direct reference to certain Cavalier Lords and -lesser Barons, exasperated them as much as the horrible massacre of -Glencoe did the commonalty, who raised throughout the land a cry for -vengeance on William and his Government. - -Walter Fenton reflected on these things as he walked onward, and knew -that he had come at a critical time. Other thoughts soon succeeded, -and, grasping his staff as he had often done his sword, he pushed -forward with a sparkling eye and reddening cheek. - -Without impairing his nobler sentiments, suffering and misfortune had -powerfully strengthened his loyalty and virtue, as much as -campaigning had improved his bearing and lent a firmness and manly -determination to his aspect; but often his brow saddened and the fire -of his eye died away, when he thought of Finland and those he had -been permitted to survive and to mourn. - -Glowing with sensations of rapture, and eagerly anticipating the -flush of joy that awaited him, he passed the rhinns of the beautiful -loch, the curious gable-ended old house where once the Regent Murray -dwelt, and approached the gate of Bruntisfield. - -His heart beat painfully; he was deeply agitated. Five weary years -had elapsed since he had stood on that spot, and it seemed only as -yesterday. Through all the hurry of events that had swept over him, -his memory went back to that memorable eve of September (of which -this was now the anniversary) and to the glorious ardour that -animated his heart on the day he marched for England, when the long -line of the Scottish host wound over yonder hill before him. Oh, for -one hour more of those fierce longings and brave impulses! But alas! -the spirit seemed to have passed away for ever. - -He approached the avenue. The old gate with its massive arch, its -mossy carvings and loopholed wall, had given place to a handsome new -erection of more modern architecture, surmounted by a rich coat of -arms; and Walter felt every pulse grow still, and every fibre tremble -as he surveyed the sculptured blazon. - -It bore the saltire of Napier, engrailed between four roses, but -quartered, collared, and coroneted with other bearings. - -His heart became sick and palsied. Oh, it was a horrible sensation -that came over him; he stood long irresolute and apprehensive. - -"Of what am I afraid!" he suddenly exclaimed with the enthusiasm of a -true and impassioned lover. "There is some mistake here; the house -has been sold or gifted away like many another noble patrimony to the -slaves of the Statholder. Lilian! Dear Lilian, when shall I hold -thee in my arms?" - -He was about to rush forward, when a horseman, the glittering lace on -whose bright coloured suit of triple velvet, and waving ostrich -feathers that fluttered in his diamond hat-band, formed a strong -contrast to the sombre fashions of the time, dashed down the -leaf-strewn avenue on a beautiful charger, with the perfumed ringlets -of his white peruke dancing in the wind--for white perukes, from a -spirit of opposition, were all the rage then, as _black_ had been -under the three last princes of the old hereditary line. It was Lord -Clermistonlee. - -"Hollo, fellow!" he cried imperiously, "keep out of my horse's -way--dost want thy bones broken!" and giving a keen but casual glance -at the dejected wanderer, he spurred onward to the city. - -Suddenly he reined up so sharply as almost to pull his pawing steed -back upon its strained and bending haunches. - -"'Tis he!" exclaimed the proud lord, as he thought aloud. "By the -great father of confusion 'tis he! How could I mistake, though -truly, poor devil, these last five years have sadly changed him. But -on what fool's errand comes he here? By all the furies, I knew his -lachrymose visage in a moment, though the despatches of Dalrymple of -Stair, to our Lords of Council, had in some sort prepared me for his -return, and for what?--to organize a plot for James's restoration. -Poor fool! Infatuated in love as in politics. He believes in the -faith of women and the word of Kings; let us see how they will avail -him tonight." - -He smiled scornfully, and twisted the heavy dark mustachios which he -still cherished with more than Mahommedan veneration. Alternately -sad and bitter thoughts swelled within him as he remembered the -joyous revelry of King Charles's days, and the tyranny he could then -exercise over all nonconformists, and the hunting and -hosting-dragooning and drinking of the Covenanting wars; then came -feelings of jealousy and revenge that, as they blazed up in his proud -breast, bore all before them. - -"How dares he now to prowl before my own gates? Gadso! if my Lady -Lilian sees him once, there will be a pretty disturbance. A shipload -of devils will be nothing to it. The girl will die, and my own house -will become too hot to hold me. D----nation! too well have I seen -the secret passion that has preyed upon her gentle and affectionate -heart--the grief--the deep consuming grief that all my magnificent -presents and gentle blandishments have failed to soothe. A thousand -curses on this upstart beggar, and a thousand more on the mother of -mischief, who has raised him up again to cross my path! By what -power hath he escaped war and woe, and storm and every danger again -to thwart and come in the way of Clermistonlee, whose purposes were -never yet foiled by man, or woman either? 'S death! the time has -come when the cord of the doomster, or the axe of the maiden, must -rid me for ever of this old source of dark forebodings and secret -inquietude. Ho, for a guard and a warrant of Council, and then Sir -Walter Fenton, Knight Banneret, the Jacobite spy, Chevalier of St. -Louis, ex-private soldier, and soi-disant ensign to the Lord -Dunbarton, may look to himself! Ha, ha!" and dashing spurs into his -horse he galloped madly into the city. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -THE BUBBLE BURST. - - To linger when the sun of life, - The beam that gilt its path is gone-- - To feel the aching bosom's strife, - When _Hope_ is dead, but _Love_ lives on. - ANONYMOUS. - - -Meanwhile, without recognising Clermistonlee, and not aware that he -had been recognized by him, poor Walter, who was of that temperament -which is easily raised and depressed, turned away from the gate, -crushed beneath the load of a thousand fears at the sight of so gay a -cavalier caracoling down the avenue of Bruntisfield. - -His heart was overcharged with melancholy reflections. "I have been -away for five years--in all that time we have never heard of each -other. Oh, what if she should have deemed me dead!" - -Drawing his last shilling from his pocket, the unfortunate cavalier -entered a poor change-house by the wayside, where a great signboard -creaking on an iron rod and representing a portrait in a red coat and -white wig, and having a tremendously hooked nose, imported that it -was the 'King William's head,' kept by Lucky Elshender, who promised -good entertainment for "man and beast." - -The small clay-floored apartment, with its well-scrubbed bunkers, and -rack of shining plates and tin trenchers, kirn-babies on the -mantelpiece, and blazing ingle, where turf and wood burned cheerfully -in a clumsy iron basket, supported by four massive legs, looked very -snug and comfortable. - -A personage evidently a divine, long visaged and dark featured, with -his lanky sable hair falling on his Geneva bands and coat of rusty -black, sat warming his spindle legs at the warm hearth, and smoking a -long pipe, on the bowl of which he fixed his great lack lustre eyes -with an expression of the deepest abstraction. It was the Reverend -Mr. Ichabod Bummel, who came every evening as regularly as six -o'clock struck, to smoke a pipe, and hear the passing news at the -change-house kept by his aunt-in-law old Elsie, and to bore every -traveller who was disposed to hear the abstruse theology and -ponderous arguments advanced in his _Bombshell_, for that immortal -work had been printed at last, in thick quarto, and a copy of it now -lay under his elbow all ready for action against the first -good-natured listener or fool-hardy disputant. - -In person this redoubtable champion of toleration was as lean as -ever, though the goods and chattels of this world had flowed amply -upon him of late, notwithstanding the oppression and famine of the -time. He had cautiously purchased various tofts and pendicles on the -banks of the Powburn, and to these he gave hard and unusual -scriptural names, which they bear unto this day, and which the -curious may find by consulting the City Directory. One he named the -Land of Canaan, another the Land of Goshen, the Land of Egypt, -Hebron, and so forth, while the little runnel that traverses them was -exalted into the waters of Jordan. Meinie, whom he had espoused, had -"proved," as he said, "ane fruitful vine," for she had brought him -four sons, all long-visaged, hollow-eyed, and sepulchral counterparts -of himself, and he named them Shem, Ham, Japhet, and Ichabod. - -On the opposite side of the ingle, and far back in a corner, a -miserable-looking woman crouched on the stone bench for warmth. A -tartan plaid was muffled about her shoulders, and half concealed her -hollow cheeks and ghastly visage. She seemed a personification of -the famine and misery that reigned so triumphantly in Scotland. Her -eyes were full of unnatural lustre; they flashed like diamonds in the -light of the fire, but had a scrutinizing and stern expression in -them that startled Walter, and he felt uneasy in her vicinity. - -"It's only puir Beatrix Gilruth, my winsome gentleman," said Elsie in -a low voice; "she is a gomeral--a natural body that bides about the -doors, Sir; just a puir, harmless, daft creature. She'll no harm -you, Sir." - -In the tumult of his mind Walter did not at first recognise either -Elsie or Ichabod, but assuming an air of as much unconcern as he -could muster, he called for a bicker of French wine, and took -possession of a cutty stool which the slipshod Elsie placed for him -hurriedly and officiously opposite the divine, who regarded him with -a keen scrutinizing glance, to ascertain his probable station in -life, his errand, and objects in coming hither. He saw that he was a -traveller, and being on foot must be a poor one. - -"Good e'en to your reverence, for I presume I have the honour of -addressing a clergyman," said Walter, politely. - -"Hum--humph!" answered Ichabod, with a short cough, nodding his head, -and never once moving his eyes from Walter's face. Every man was -then doubtful and suspicious of strangers (the Scots are so to the -present hour), and consequently Ichabod was singularly dry and -reserved. But Elsie drew near Walter, and looked at him attentively. -The grief that preyed upon his heart had imparted a singularly -prepossessing mildness to his features, and a winning cadence to the -tone of his voice, but the stark preacher neither saw one nor felt -the influence of the other. - -"A cold night, your reverence." - -"Yea," gasped Ichabod, and there was another pause. - -"My service to you, Sir. Wilt taste my wine? 'tis right Gascony, and -I should be a judge." - -"Yea, having been in those parts where it was produced, probably," -observed Ichabod, becoming more curious and communicative as he -imbibed the lion's share of Walter's wine pot, and waited for an -answer, but there was none given. - -"Verily, Sir," began Mr. Bummel, "these are times to chill the souls -and bodies of the afflicted. Thou seest how sore the famine waxeth -in the land, especially in these our once fertile Lothians, which -whilome were wont to be overflowing with milk and honey." - -"Ay," chimed in Elsie, "but I've seen them in mair fearfu' times, -when they were overflowing wi' blude and soldiers." - -"'Tis for that red harvest, woman, that we are visited by this -lamentable scourge; plagued even as Egypt was of old. In these three -fertile shires of Lothian I have seen a woeful change since the last -harvest, and my heart grows heavy when I think upon it; but I am -about to arise and go forth from them for ever." - -"Indeed, Sir," said Walter. - -"I have gotten a pleasant call from the Lord to another kirk----" - -"Wi' a _better_ stipend, Sir," added the gleeful Elsie. - -"Indubitably," said Mr. Bummel. - -"Twa hunder pound Scots, a braw glebe, four bolls o' beir," replied -Elsie, counting on her crooked and wrinkled fingers, "aucht -chalders--" - -"Peace, woman Elsie, for this enumeration of thine savours of a love -for the things of this life." - -"And a braw pulpit. O, but it's grand you'll be, Ichabod, when in -full birr under your sounding board. But alake, Sir," she added, -turning to Walter, "arena' these fearfu' times?' - -"Sad indeed, gudewife." - -"I was in the mealmarket this morning, and oh, Sirs, it was a sight -to rend the heart of a nether millstane to see the hungry bairns and -wailing mothers worrying about the half-filled pokes. God help them! -the puir folk are deeing fast the west country we hear." - -"'Tis a scourge on the land for its former sins," said the preacher -in his most sepulchral tone; "but let us hope that the faith of its -people will save it!" - -"You'll hae come from some far awa' country I'm thinking, Sir?" said -Elsie, inquisitively, for the extreme sadness of Walter interested -her extremely. - -"True I have, good woman." - -"France, I fancy? that land o' priests and persecution." - -"From Holland last. I am a merchant, and deal in broadcloths and -cart saddles. From Holland last," he repeated, for their -inquisitiveness made him uneasy. - -"A blessed land, good youth," said Mr. Bummel. "I sojourned there -long when there was a flaming sword over the children of -righteousness." - -"Reverend sir, canst tell me what are the news among you here?" asked -Walter, who was in an agony of mind to lead the conversation to what -lay nearest his heart. - -"Verily, Sir, nought but the famine--the famine. The west winds hath -detained the Flanders mail these two months, and we have heard -nothing from London these many weeks, save anent plots of the -Jacobites and Papists, of whilk we have ever enough and to spare." - -"What have you heard of them of late?" - -"'Tis said that one Walter Fenton, formerly an officer in the -regiment of Dunbarton (that bloody oppressor of Israel) is now -tarrying among us, plotting in James's cause, or on some such errand -of hell." - -"The rascal," said Walter, drinking to conceal the confusion that -overspread his face. - -"Yea," continued Ichabod, puffing vigorously, and luckily involving -himself in a cloud of smoke. "This morning the heralds, in their -vain-glorious trumpery, were proclaiming at the Cross the reward of a -thousand merks to any that will bring his head to the Privy Council; -and the Lord Clermistonlee, from the good will and affection he bears -his Majesty, offers five hundred more?" - -"Do you think he will be found?" - -"Indubitably. The ports are closed, the guards on the alert; the -messengers-at-arms, macers, and halberdiers are all in full chase. -He must perish, and so may all who would restore the abominations of -idolatry! Here in my _Bombshell_ (a work whilk I have lately -imprinted with mickle care and toil), if I do not prove, from the -epistles to the Thessalonians, that the great master of popery, the -Bishop of Rome, is the grand Antichrist therein referred to, I will -be well content to kiss the bloody maiden that stands under the -shadow of the Tolbooth gable." - -"Hear till him!" cried the delighted Elsie. "Hear till him! O wow, -but my Meinie's man is a grand minister--he rides on the rigging of -the kirk!" - -"I am a stranger here," said Walter, no longer able to repress the -torture of his mind; "I know nothing of the vile plot you speak of, -having been long in the industrious Low Countries--and--and--cans't -tell me, your Reverence, whose mansion is approached by yonder -stately avenue of oaks and sycamores?" - -"The House of Bruntisfield--called of old the Wrytes." - -"Aich ay," added Elsie, shaking her head mournfully; "but a house o' -wrongs now." - -"Wherefore, gudewife?" - -"It is a lang story, honoured Sir," replied Elsie, drawing her stool -nearer Walter, and knitting very fast to hide her emotion. "The auld -line o' the Napiers ended in a lassie, as bonnie a doo as the Lowdens -three could boast o', and mony came frae baith far and near to the -wooing and winning o' her; but nane cam speed save a -neer-do-weel-loon o' a cavalier officer, to whom she plighted heart -and troth--and the plighting pledge was a deid woman's ring. As -might be expected, the hellicate cavalier gaed awa' to the wars and -plundering in the Lowlands of Holland, and sair my young lady -sorrowed for him; I ken that weel, for I was her nurse, and mony a -lang hour she grat in my arms for her love that was far awa'. At -last word came frae Low Germanie that the fause villain had married -some unco' papistical woman, and, in a mad fit o' black despair, my -lady accepted the most determined, if no the best o' her suitors----" - -"Who?" asked Walter in an unearthly voice, and feeling for the sword -he wore no longer. "Who?" - -"Randal Lord Clermistonlee, and ehow! but sair hath been the change -in our gude auld barony since then. Her braw lands and -farmsteadings, her auld patrimony, baith haugh and holme, loch and -lea, brae and burn, are a' melting and fleeing awa' by the wasterfu' -extravagance o' the wildest loon in a' braid Scotland. Hawks and -hounds, revellers and roisterers, and ill-women, thrang the great ha' -house frae een to morn and morn till eenin'; and sae, between the -freaks and follies, the pride and caprice o' her lord, my puir doo -Lilian leads the life o' a blessed martyr. When mad wi' wine and ill -luck at the dice tables, he rampages ower her like a Bull o' Bashan; -while, at other times, he just doats on her as a faither would on a -favourite bairn. But, alake! doating can never remove the misery -that has closed over her for the short time she'll likely be amang -us--for her heart is breaking fast--it is--it is!" - -Here Elsie wept bitterly, and then resumed. - -"Her marriage day was ane o' the darkest dool to a' the barony, for -on that miserable day our auld lady died; and a' the leal servitors -were soon after expelled to mak' room for the broken horse-coupers, -ill-women and vagabonds, that were ever and aye in the train o' the -new lord." - -While Elsie ran on thus, Walter heard her not. His mind was a -perfect chaos of distraction. - -Oh, what a shock were these tidings to one whose head was so full of -romance and enthusiasm, and whose heart was brimming with sensibility -and love! - -He felt an utter prostration of every faculty, and a deadly coldness -seemed to pass over the pulses of his heart. He arose, and laying on -the table the last coin he possessed in the world, hurried forth -without waiting for change, and, bent on some desperate deed, blind -and reckless, with anger, agony and despair in his soul, he entered -the dark shadowy avenue, and approached the old castellated -mansion--the place of so many tender memories. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -LOVE AND MARRIAGE ARE TWO. - - Oh, these were only marks of joy, forsooth, - For his return in safety! Were they so? - And so ye may believe, and so my words - May fall unheeded! Be it so; what comes - Will nevertheless come. - AGAMEMNON OF ÆSCHYLUS. - - -The shadows of the gloomy evening had deepened as he approached the -ancient Place of Bruntisfield, and its dark façade, its heavy -projecting turrets and barred casements, impressed him with -additional sadness. - -The wind sighed down the lonely avenue, and whirled the fallen leaves -as it passed. Many a raven flapped its wings and screamed -discordantly above his head, and all such sounds had a powerful -effect on him at the time. - -Confused, despairing, and feeling a sentiment of profound contempt -and anger, struggling for mastery with his old and passionate love, -his heart seemed about to rend with its conflicting emotions. - -One sensation was ever present--it was one of desolation and -loneliness--that he had nothing more to live for; that the world was -all a blank. The light that had long led him on through so many -miseries and dangers had vanished from his view: his idol was -shattered for ever. - -He felt that it was impossible to think with calmness; to tear from -his breast the dear image and the cherished hopes he had fostered -there so long--to exchange admiration for contempt--love for -indifference. Oh, no! it could never be. Ages seemed to have -elapsed since the sun had set that evening; while his parting with -Lilian, the triumph of Killycrankie, the carnage of Steinkirke, and -his mission from the King, seemed all the events of yesterday. - -He felt sick and palsied at heart. - -Irresistibly impelled to see her, heedless alike of the dangerous -charm of her presence and the risk he ran if discovered, his whole -soul was bent upon an interview, that he might upbraid her with her -perfidy--hurl upon her a mountain of reprobation and bitterness, of -obloquy and scorn, and then leave her presence for ever. - -"I am alone in the world," thought he. "This is my native land--the -land where I had garnered up my heart, my hopes, and my wishes, -though not one foot of it is mine save the sod that must cover me. -Of all the tens of thousands that tread its soil, there is not one -now with whom I can claim kindred, who would welcome me in coming, or -bless me in departing--not one to shed a tear on the grave where I -shall lie. Oh! it is very sad to feel one's self so desolate. Where -now are all those brave companions with whom I was once so daring, so -joyous, and so gay? Alas! on a hundred fields their bones lie -scattered, and I alone survive to mourn the glory of the days that -are gone for ever! Oh, never more shall the drum beat or trumpet -sound for me! Oh, never more shall love or glory fire my heart -again! Oh, never more, for the hour is passed and never can -return"--and he almost wept, so intensely bitter were his thoughts of -sorrow and regret. - -The barbican gate stood ajar, and the old and well remembered doorway -at the foot of the tower was also open; they seemed to invite his -entrance, and, careless of the consequences, he went mechanically -forward. - -The old portrait on horseback, the trophy of arms, and the wooden -Flemish clock with its monotonous _tick-tack_, still occupied the -vaulted lobby. Every thing seemed as he had seen them last. He -turned to the left and entered the chamber-of-dais, breathless and -trembling, for he seemed instinctively to know that _she_ was there. - -He entered softly, and, overpowered by the violence of his -conflicting emotions, stood rooted to the spot. The old chamber, -with its massive pannelling and rich decorations of the Scoto-French -school was partially lighted by the ruddy glow from the great -fire-place, and by the last deep red flush of the departed sun that -streamed through its grated windows. - -The dark furniture, the grotesque cabinets with their twisted -columns, the stark chairs with their knobby backs and worsted bobs, -the grim full-length of Sir Archibald Napier, cap-a-pie à la -cuirassier, the dormant beam with its load of lances, swords, and -daggers, were all as Walter had last seen them; but the old lady's -well-cushioned chair, her long walking-cane and ivory virreled -spinning-wheel had long since disappeared; and hawk's-hoods, hunting -horns, spurs, whips, and stray tobacco pipes lay in various places, -while in lieu of Lady Grisel's sleek and pampered tom cat, a great -wiry, red-eyed, sleuth hound slept on the warm hearth-rug. On all -this Walter bestowed not a glance, for his eyes and his soul became -immediately rivetted on the figure of Lilian. - -With her head leaning on her hand she sat within the deep recess of a -western window, and the faint light of the setting sun lit up her -features and edged her ringlets with gold. She was absorbed in deep -thought. - -Lilian, who for days, and months, and years, in health and in -sickness, in danger and in safety, in sorrow and in joy, had never -for a moment been absent from his thoughts, was now before him, and -yet he had not one word of greeting to bestow. He seemed to be in a -trance--to be oppressed by some horrible dream. - -He observed her anxiously and narrowly. Nothing could be more tender -than the love that was expressed in his eyes, and nothing more acute -than the agony expressed by his contracted features. - -Lapse of years, change of circumstances and of thought had -considerably altered the appearance of Lilian. The light-hearted, -slender, and joyous girl had expanded into a stately, grave, and -melancholy matron. Oh, what a change those five sad years had -wrought! Her dress was magnificent, as became the wife of a Scottish -noble; her figure, though still slight, was fuller and rounder than -of old; her face, though still dignified and beautiful, was -paler--even sickly. Her blue eyes seemed to have lost much of their -former brilliancy, and to have gained only in softness of expression. -Her dark lashes were cast down, and her aspect was sad and touching. -The bloom of her lip and her cheek had faded away together, for -heavily on her affectionate heart had the hand of suffering weighed. - -She wept, and the heart of Walter was melted within him. Had all the -universe been his he would have given it to have embraced her. He -sighed bitterly, but dared not to approach. - -"He is gone," said Lilian,--"gone to spend another night in riot and -debauchery, while I am left ever alone. Perhaps 'tis well, for often -his presence is intolerable. Woe is me! Oh, how different was the -future I once pictured to my imagination!" - -The sound of that dear voice, which had so often come to him through -his dreams in many a far and foreign camp and city, made Walter -tremble. He was deeply moved. The fire in the arched chimney, which -had been smouldering, now suddenly shot up into a broad and ruddy -blaze that lighted the whole chamber. Lilian turned her head, and -instantly grew pale as death, for full on the image of him who -occupied her thoughts--of Walter Fenton, hollow eyed, emaciated, and -supported on a walking-staff--fell the bright stream of that fitful -light. He looked so unearthly, so motionless and spectral, that -Lilian's blood ran cold. - -She would have screamed, but the cry died away upon her lips. After -a moment or two her spirit rallied; her respiration, though hurried, -became more free; her face blushed scarlet up to the very temples, -and then became ashy pale, as before, and her glazed eyes resumed -their wild and inquiring expression. She arose, but neither advanced -nor spoke. All power seemed to have left her. - -"Oh, Lilian! Lilian!" said the poor wanderer in a voice of great -pathos; "after the lapse of five long years of exile and suffering, -what a meeting is this for us! Under what a course of perils have -the hope of my return and your truth not sustained me? My God! that -I should find you thus. Is this the welcome I expected?" - -Summoning all her courage and that self-possession which women have -in so great a degree, Lilian (though her eyes were full of tears) -averted her face, and recalled the fatal letter of Finland, on which -had turned the whole of her future fate. - -"Look at me, adorable Lilian!" said Walter, kneeling and stretching -his arms towards her. - -Lilian dared not to look; but she trembled violently and sobbed -heavily. - -"Look at me, beloved one," said Walter wildly and passionately. -"Changed though I am, and though another holds your heart, you cannot -have forgotten me, or learned to view me with aversion and contempt. -If this Lord has won your affection--" - -"Oh, say not that, Walter," sobbed Lilian "do not say my affection." - -"Oh, horror! what misery can equal such an avowal? My fatal absence -has undone us both." - -"Say, rather, your fatal inconstancy." - -"Mine?" reiterated Walter. - -"Oh, yes, yes; upbraid me not," said Lilian in a piercing voice. "I -was faithful and true until you forsook me for another. To God I -appeal," she cried, raising her clasped hands and weeping eyes to -Heaven, "kneeling I appeal if ever in word, or thought, or hope I -swerved in truth from thee, dear Walter, until tidings of your -marriage reached me; when, stung by jealousy, by pride, by -disappointment and despair, and urged by the unmerited contumely that -had fallen upon me, I yielded to the exhortations of my friends, and -in an evil hour----." She covered her face with her hands, and could -say no more. - -"Heaven preserve my senses!" ejaculated Walter Fenton, "for here the -wiles of Hell have been at work. We have been deceived, cruelly -deceived, dear Lilian, by some deep-laid plot of villany which this -right hand shall yet unravel and revenge. And you are the wife of -Clermistonlee? Hear me, unfortunate! You are less than--ah, how -shall I say it? You are not and cannot be his wife!" - -"You rave, poor Walter. Our doom is irrevocably sealed. Our paths -in life must be for ever separate. Oh, for the love of gentle mercy -begone, and let us meet no more, for at this moment I feel my brain -whirling, and I am trembling on the very verge of madness." - -"Lilian, this is the 20th of September," said Walter. - -"Cruel, cruel; do not speak of it," said she, wringing her hands. -"For Heaven's sake leave me, and take back the pledge--the ring, for -to retain it longer were a sin, and too long have I sinned in -treasuring it as I have done." - -Unlocking a cabinet, she drew from a secret drawer a ring to which a -ribbon was attached, and offered it to Walter; but he never -approached. - -"We have been cruelly duped, dear Lilian; but oh, how could you doubt -me, for never did I mistrust you? But hear me, though my words -should crush your heart as mine just now is crushed. Alison Gifford, -the first wife of Lord Clermistonlee yet lives, though (as she told -me) dead to him and to the world for ever!" - -"What new horror is this?" said Lilian, pressing her hands upon her -temples. - -In a few words her unhappy lover explained how he had become -acquainted with the existence of Lady Clermistonlee. - -"Oh, this is indeed to bruise the bruised--to heap brands upon a -burning heart," said Lilian, as she sank into a chair and covered her -face with her hands. A long pause ensued, till Walter said in a low -and trembling voice, - -"Lilian, do you really love this man--this Clermistonlee?" - -"He is my husband." - -"It is impossible you can love him!" - -"Love him!--oh, no! custom has in part overcome the aversion with -which I once regarded him, and by his able flattery he has succeeded -in soothing me into a temper of kind indifference and quiet -resignation--but oh, this interview----" - -Walter, who had never dared to diminish the distance between them, -gazed wistfully and tenderly upon her; but at that moment an infant -that was sleeping in its cradle awoke, and cried aloud. Its voice -seemed to sting him to the heart, and he turned abruptly to withdraw. - -"Farewell, Lilian," said he; "I will go, and my presence shall -disturb your serenity no more. May you be happy, and may God bless -and forgive you for the agony I now endure! Clermistonlee, like the -matchless villain he has been through life, has wronged us both; but -let him tremble in the midst of his success and his treason, for the -hour is coming when our King shall enjoy his own again, and remember -that in that hour the same hand which rends the baron's coronet from -the brow of your betrayer, bestows on me the Earldom of Dalrulion! -Farewell," said he through his clenched teeth; "to me the paths of -ambition and revenge are open still, though those of happiness and -love are closed, alas, for ever!" He gave her one long glance of -agony, and turned to depart; but at that moment strong hands were -laid upon him violently--the room was filled with soldiers and the -beagles of justice; he was dragged down and bound with cords, ere he -could make the slightest effort in his own defence. - -"An out-and-out Jacobite, Papist, and a' the rest o' it--I ken by the -look o' him!" cried Maclutchy, the macer, flourishing his badge of -office. "Here will be some grand plots brought to light that will -bring half the country under doom o' forfeiture and fine. Kittle -times, lads, kittle times!' - -"Away with him!" cried Clermistonlee, spurning the manacled -unfortunate with his foot; "away with him! The Lords of the Privy -Council meet in an hour. Lose no time, for by all the devils, the -corbies of the Burghmuir shall pick his bones ere the morrow's sun be -set." - -As Walter was roughly dragged away, Lilian threw her hands above her -head, uttered one wild shriek, and fell forward on her face, -motionless as if dead. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -THE RING AND THE SECRET. - - See the cypress wreath of saddest hue, - The twining destiny threading through; - And the serpent coil is twisting there-- - While regardless of the victim's prayer, - The fiend laughs out o'er the mischief done, - And the canker-worm makes the heart his throne. - THE PROPHECY. - - -Twelve o'clock tolled heavily and sadly from the steeple of St. Giles. - -It was a bleak and cold night. The Lords of the Privy Council, -muffled up in their well-furred rocquelaures, with their hats flapped -over their periwigs, ascended from the subterranean vaults under the -Parliament House where they held their dreaded conclaves, and hurried -away to their residences in the various deep and steep wynds of the -ancient city. Mersington, who, overcome by sleep and wine, had -remained at the table until roused by Macer Maclutchy, was the last -to come forth, and he stood rubbing his eyes in the Parliament -Square, and watching the black gigantic statue of King Charles with -steady gravity, for he could have sworn at that moment that it seemed -to be trotting hard towards him. His rallying faculties were -scattered again by a stranger violently jostling him. - -"Haud ye dyvour loon!" exclaimed the incensed Senator; "I am the Lord -Mersington." - -"And what art doing here, pumpkinhead?" asked Clermistonlee, who was -quite breathless by having rushed up the Back Stairs, as those -flights of steps which ascended from the Cowgate to the Parliament -Square were named. "Are the proceedings over? Hath the villain -confessed? Is he to die?" - -"They are over, and he shall die conform to the Act." - -"And how went the proceedings?" - -"Deil kens; I sleepit the haill time." - -"Driveller!" cried Clermistonlee in a towering passion; "'tis like -thee; your head is as empty as my purse----" - -"Hee, hee, ye seem a bonnie temper to-night. But what detained you -frae the board, when ye knew you were principal witness?" - -"The sudden indisposition of Lady Clermistonlee made it impossible -for me to leave Bruntisfield--but I have this moment galloped in from -The Place." - -"You are a kind and considerate gudeman," said Mersington drily. - -"And what did this fellow confess?" - -"His abhorrence of you----" - -"Ha! ha!" - -"His hatred of the present government, and his weariness o' this -life. He spoke unco dreich and sadly, puir callant,--and sae I fell -fast asleep and dozed like a top." - -"And did not that goosecap, the King's Advocate, give him a twinge or -two of the torture?" - -"We brought some braw things to light without the help o' rack or -screw. The tails o' his coat were as fu' o' treason as an egg's fu' -o' meat. There were five and twenty autograph letters frae the -bluidy and papistical Duke James----" - -"Stuff! But lately he was styled His most Sacred Majesty, by the -grace of God, and so forth." - -"I speak as we wrote it in the council minutes. Five and twenty -letters to the cut-throat Hieland chiefs, to the Murrays of Stormont, -the Drummonds and others, some slee tod lowries we have long had our -een on. But maist of a' was a notable plot of that d----ned jaud -Madame Maintenon to assassinate King William." - -"Hah!" - -"From a paper found, it appears that a certain Monsieur Dumont is now -disguised as a soldier in our confederate army in Flanders, watching -an opportunity to shoot the King and escape." - -"By St. George, I hope the aforesaid Monsieur Dumont is a good -shot--a regular candle-snuffer!" - -"Our culprit, Fenton, knew not of Maintenon's plot, or of her papers -being among those on his person. He looked black dumbfoundered when -Maclutchy drew them frae a neuk in his coat tail." - -"And to whom were they directed?" - -"To one _Widow Douglas_, whilk the King's advocate avers to be no -other than the Lady Dunbarton. Fenton grew red with anger on their -being read, and smote his forehead, saying, '_Dupe that I have been! -the noble Duc de Chartres warned me to beware of De Maintenon; but -let it pass:_' and here, as I said, I fell fast asleep, until a -minute ago. But come, let us have a pint of sack; I am clean -brainbraised wi' drouth, and I warrant Lucky Dreep, in the -Kirk-o'-field Wynd, keeps open door yet." - -"And he dies?" said Clermistonlee, who could think of nothing but -glutting his revenge. - -"Early to-morrow morning, by the bullet." - -"I would rather it had been by the cord. How came our considerate -councillors to shoot instead of hang him?" - -"Soldiers, ye ken, are often soft-hearted when other men are in stern -mood; so auld General Livingstone, after pleading hard for Fenton's -life, and failing, procured what he called an honourable commutation -of the sentence, for which the puir gomeral cavalier thanked him as -if it had been a reprieve." - -"Cord or bullet it matters not. So perish all who would cross the -purposes of Randal of Clermistonlee." - -His Lordship for once resisted the importunities of his friend, and -instead of adjourning to a tavern, rode slowly and reluctantly back -to his own house. He felt a strange and unaccountable presentiment -of impending evil, for which he could not account, but endeavoured to -throw it from him. The effort was vain. - -He felt himself a villain. A load of long accumulated wickedness -oppressed his proud heart; it was not without its better traits, and -writhed as he reflected on some events in his past life. - -"Alison! Alison!" he exclaimed, turning his dark eyes upwards to the -star-studded firmament, "now thy curse is coming heavily upon me." - -His principal dread was the death of Lilian, for he had learned to -love her with tolerable sincerity, but he knew not the secret which -Walter had revealed to her, and the consequent intensity of her -horror, aversion, shame, and anger. He knew not the tempest it had -raised in her sensitive breast against him. - -When he entered the chamber-of-dais she was seated near a tall silver -lamp. The glare of the untrimmed light fell full upon her face, and -its ghastly and altered expression struck a mortal chillness on the -heart of her husband. He said not a word, but walking straight to a -beauffet filled a large silver cup several times with wine, and -always drained it to the bottom. The liquor mounted rapidly to his -brain; he threw himself into a chair opposite Lilian, and heedless of -the perfect scorn that quivered in her beautiful nostrils, and -sparkled in her brilliant eyes, began leisurely to unbutton his -riding gambadoes of red stamped maroquin, whistling a merry hunting -tune while he did so. - -It was easier for him to requite scorn with scorn than give -tenderness for love. - -"Confusion on the buttons!" he exclaimed. "Juden! Juden! Tush, I -forgot; poor Juden hath been with the devil these three years. There -is none now of all my rascally household who will share with me the -morrow's glut of vengeance as thou wouldst have done, my faithful -Juden." - -Lilian wrung her attenuated hands; Clermistonlee regarded her -sternly, and then bursting into a loud laugh, as he threw away his -boots and spurs, chanted a verse from the old black-letter ballad of -Gilderoy:-- - - "Beneath the left ear so fit for a cord, - A rope so charming a zone is; - Thy youth in his cart hath air of a Lord, - And we cry--there dies an Adonis!" - -"Ha! ha! I shall see his head on the Bow Port to-morrow, madam." - -"Infamous and wicked!" exclaimed Lilian, feeling all her old love -revived with double ardour, and no longer able to restrain her -sentiments of grief and indignation. "Walter, dear and beloved -Walter, how cruelly have I been deceived!" and drawing from her bosom -the ring--his mother's ring, the pledge of his betrothal, she pressed -it to her lips with fervour. - -The brow of the proud Clermistonlee grew black as thunder, and he -grasped her slender arm with the tenacity of a falcon. - -"Surrender this bauble, that I may commit it to the flames. -Surrender it, madam, lest I dash thee to the earth, for at this -moment I feel, by all the devils, my brain spinning like a jenny." - -"Give him the ring, Lady Lilian; give it, for the sight of it will -arrest his vision even as the letters of fire arrested the eyes of -Belshazzar and smote him with dismay. Sweet lady, let him look upon -it," said the voice of a woman. - -They turned, and beheld the pale, emaciated, and haggard visage of -Beatrix Gilruth, half shaded by a tattered tartan plaid. Taking -advantage of Lilian's momentary surprise, her husband snatched the -ring from her, and was about to hurl it into the fire, when, incited -by the woman's words, and impelled by some mysterious and -irresistible curiosity, he looked upon it, and the effect of his -single glance acted like magic upon him. He quitted his clutch of -Lilian's arm, trembled, grew pale, and turning the ring again and -again, surveyed it with intense curiosity. - -"How came _he_ to have this ring?" he muttered; "what strange mystery -is here? If it should be so---- O, impossible!" - -He pressed a spring that must have been known only to himself, for -Lilian had never discovered it in all the myriad times she had -surveyed it, and Walter himself was ignorant of the secret when he -bestowed the trinket upon her. The lapse of years had stiffened the -spring; but after a moment's pressure from the finger of -Clermistonlee, a little shield of gold unclosed, revealing a minute -and beautiful little miniature of himself, which in earlier days had -been one of the happiest efforts of the young Medina's pencil. - -"'Twas my bridal gift to Alison," he exclaimed in a voice of -confusion and remorse. "Oh, Alison, Alison! many have I loved but -never one like thee. Never again did my heart feel the same ardour -that fired it when I placed this ring on your adorable hand. -Unfortunate Alison!" - -"This ring was tied by a ribbon around the neck of Walter Fenton, -when a little child he was found by the side of his dead mother in -the Greyfriars churchyard," said Lilian in a breathless voice. - -"Confusion and misery! 'tis impossible this can be true; there is -some diabolical mistake here. Woman, say forth." - -Beatrix gave Clermistonlee a bitter and malicious smile, and -addressed Lilian. - -"Walter's mother, sweet lady, gave that ring to Elspat Fenton, who, -next to myself, was the most trusted of her attendants, and bade her -travel from Paris to Scotland, and deliver the child and the bridal -gift together to her husband--to Randal of Clermistonlee." - -Lilian covered her face, and the fiery lord, whose first emotions -were generally those of anger, surveyed Beatrix as if she had been a -coiled up snake. She spoke slowly, and made long pauses, for aware -that her words were as daggers, she dealt them sparingly. - -"After long suffering and great peril by sea and land, this poor -woman reached Edinburgh, but failed to meet the father of the infant -committed to her care; for then he was in arms with the men of the -Covenant, hoping by any civil broil or commotion to repair the -splendid patrimony his excesses had dissipated. Elspat, being unable -to give a very coherent account of herself, was declared a -nonconformist by the authorities, and thrown with thousands of others -into the Greyfriars kirkyard, where in that inclement season she -perished; but the child was found and protected by the soldiers of -Dunbarton. That child is Walter Fenton; he is your son, Lord -Clermistonlee! the child of your once loved Alison Gilford. I call -upon Heaven to witness the truth of my assertion! His own name was -Walter, (ah! can you have forgotten that?) his nurse's Fenton. _I -saw her die_, and I alone knew the secret, and have treasured it till -this hour--this hour of vengeance upon thee, thou false and wicked -lord! In my wicked spirit of revenge too long have I kept the -secret; but now this blameless and noble youth is doomed to death, -and fain would I save him, for he is innocent, and good, and -generous; in all things, oh, how much the reverse of thee!" - -"Maniac, thou liest!" exclaimed Clermistonlee, whose heart beat -wildly. "I cannot believe this tale of a tub, which is told to -affright me. And yet, how dare I reject it?--the ring--Walter--my -God!" - -"Ha! has Beatrix the wronged, the scorned, the despised, the -neglected Beatrix, wrung your heart at last? Fool! fool! Did'st -thou never suspect the volcano that slumbered here?" she exclaimed, -laying her hand upon her heart. "Did'st thou never perceive the -flame that smouldered in my breast--the yearnings, the throbbings, -the fierce longing to be adequately revenged on thee who had brought -me to ruin and madness, and had abandoned me to penury and privation? -Wretch! 'tis twenty-five years since ye betrayed me. Time has rolled -on--time, that soothes all sorrows and softens every affliction, and -teaches us to forget the wrongs of the living--yea, and the virtues -of the dead; and perhaps to wonder why we hated one and loved the -other,--time, I say, has rolled on to many miserable years, until I -have become the hideous thing I am, but it never lessened one tithe -of my longing for vengeance for the thousand taunts and contumelies -that succeeded my first sacrifice for thee. You say I am -mad--perhaps I am--but mark me--_a woman's sorrow passes like a -summer cloudy but her vengeance endureth for ever!_" - -Clermistonlee smote his forehead, and Beatrix laughed like a hyæna. - -"My God--unhappy Walter!" said Lilian in a voice that pierced the -heart of him she abhorred to deem her husband. "Then she who saved -and nursed thee on the field of Steinkirke was thy mother--_thy -mother_, and she knew it not? Oh, this was the secret sentiment, the -heaven-born thought that spoke within her and made her heart so -mysteriously yearn towards thee. Unfortunate Walter! how deeply have -we been wronged--how bitterly must we suffer!" - -"And till now, thou accursed fiend, this terrible secret has been -concealed from me!" said Clermistonlee furiously, as he half drew his -sword. - -Beatrix laughed and tossed her arms wildly. - -"Oh, horror upon horror! woe upon woe!" said Lilian in a voice of the -deepest anguish as she rung her hands, and, taking up her little -infant from the cradle, kissed it tenderly on the forehead, and -retired slowly from the room. - -"Lilian--Lilian," cried her husband, "whither go ye, lady?" - -"To solitude--to solitude," she murmured. "Any where to save me from -my own terrible thoughts--anywhere to hide me from the deep disgrace -you have brought upon me; to any place where never again the light of -day shall find me." - -Clermistonlee heard her light steps on the staircase, and they fell -like a knell on his heart: impelled by some secret and mysterious -impulse, he followed her to her own apartment, the door of which he -had heard close behind her. There was no sound within it. - -He entered softly; but she was not there; and from that moment she -was never beheld again! Every ultimate search proved fruitless and -unavailing. A veil of impenetrable mystery hung over her fate....... - -A sudden thought flashed on the mind of Clermistonlee. The day dawn -was breaking as he descended the staircase, after fruitlessly calling -on Lilian through various apartments. - -"I may, I must save him yet--unfortunate youth, a father's arms shall -yet embrace him. Oh, my hapless and deeply wronged Alison! fortune -may yet enable me in some sort to repair the atrocities of which I -have been guilty. My horse! my horse!" and, rushing to the stable, -he saddled and bridled a fleet steed, and in five minutes was -galloping furiously back to the city, the walls and towers of which -arose before him, red and sombre in the rays of the morning sun. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -THE IRON ROOM--THE DEATH SHOT. - - Ay, I had planned full many a sanguine scheme - Of earthly happiness--romantic schemes, - And fraught with loveliness:--and it is hard - To feel the hand of death arrest one's steps, - Throw a chill blight o'er all one's budding prospects, - And hurl one's soul untimely to the shades, - Lost in the gaping gulph of blank oblivion. - HENRY KIRKE WHITE. - - -The Iron Room of the ancient Tolbooth of Edinburgh was a dreary vault -of massive stone-work, and was named so in consequence of its -strength and security. A low heavy arch roofed it, and the walls -from which it sprung were composed of great blocks of roughly hewn -stone elaborately built. Here and there a chain hung from them. The -floor was paved, and the door was a complicated mass of iron bars, -locks, bolts, and hinges. A single aperture, high up in the wall, -admitted the cold midnight wind through its deep recess. - -An iron cruise burned on a clumsy wooden table, near which sat Walter -Fenton the condemned, with his face covered by his hands and his mind -buried in sad and melancholy thoughts. - -One bright and solitary star shone down upon him through the grated -window, flashing, dilating, and shrinking; often he gazed upon it -wistfully--for it was his only companion--the partner or the witness -of his solitude and his sorrow. Once he turned to look upon it--but -it had passed away. - -He reflected that never again would he behold a star shining in the -firmament. - -Sad, bitter, and solitary reflection--for a few hours was all that -was left him now: and, though the sands of life were ebbing fast, one -absorbing thought occupied his mind--that Lilian was false and his -rival triumphant; that all his long cherished schemes and dreams of -love and happiness, glory and ambition, were frustrated and blasted -irredeemably and for ever. - -He was to die! - -The infliction of punishment immediately after trial was anciently -practised in all criminal cases, and the victim was usually led from -the presence of the judge to the scaffold. - -Walter had been doomed to death as a traitor, a raiser of sedition, -and a deserter from the Scottish forces: the last accusation, in -support of which his signed _oath of fealty_ to the Estates of -Scotland, had been produced in council by General Sir Thomas -Livingstone, commander-in-chief of the army, saved him the dishonour -of dying on the gibbet. - -The door of the Iron Room was opened stealthily, and the heavy bolts -and swinging chains were again rattling into their places, when -Walter slowly raised his head. His eye had become haggard, and his -face was overspread with a deathly pallor. The tall spare form of -the Reverend Mr. Ichabod Bummel stood before him, clad in his ample -black coat with its enormous cuffs and pocket-flaps, his deep -waistcoat, and voluminous grey breeches. He removed his broad hat, -and smoothed down the long lank hair which was parted in a seam over -the top of his cranium, and fell straight upon each shoulder. He did -not advance, but continued to press his hat upon his breast with both -hands, to turn up his eyes and groan mournfully. - -"Poor youth!" he began, after two or three hems; "poor youth! now -truly thou lookest like an owl in the desert, yea, verily, even as -one overtaken in the Slough of Despond. Now thou seest how atrocious -is the crime of rebellion, and how bitter its meed. Now thou seest -how wicked is the attempt to overturn our pure and blessed Kirk as by -law established, and to substitute anarchy and confusion for peace -and brotherly love, and to involve the innocent with the guilty in -one common destruction. Ewhow! O guilty madness--O miserable -infatuation, that for the phanton of kingly and hereditary right, -would ruthlessly hurl back the land into the dark abyss of Popery, -restore the abomination of the mass, and substitute the vile and -tyrannical James for that beloved prince of our own persuasion, now -seated on Britain's triple throne, if not by that imaginary -hereditary right, at least by the laws of the land, and the voice of -those that are above it--yea, mark me, youth, above it--the ministers -of the Gospel. The pious and glorious William hath been our Saviour -from the devilish practices of Popery, and the machinations of all -those spurious children of Luther and of Calvin, the Seekers, the -Libertines and Independents, Brownists, Separatists and Familists, -Antitrinitarians, Arians, Socinians, Anti-Scripturists, Anabaptists, -Antinomians, Arminians, and a myriad other teachers of heresy and -preachers of schism--whilk, my brethren--my brother, I mean--may -Beelzebub confound! Oh, youth, how wicked and ungracious it is in -thee to reject the stately Fig-tree with its sweetness and good -fruit, and raise up the ancient thorn and prickly bramble to reign -over us!" - -"My good sir," replied Walter, "it is but a poor specimen of -Presbyterian charity this, to come hither to a dismal vault, to heap -contumely on the head of the fallen, to humble one who is already -humbled--to bruise the bruised. Good sir, is it kind or charitable -to rail at and exult over me in this my great distress?" - -At this unexpected accusation, tears started into the eyes of Ichabod -Bummel, who was really a good man at heart, though his virtues were -sadly obscured by the fanaticism of the times. - -"Do not misunderstand me, good youth," he replied hurriedly; "and do -me not this great injustice. I come in the most humble and Christian -spirit, to cheer thy last hour in this gloomy hypogeum, and for that -godly purpose have brought with me a copy of my _Bombshell_, a most -sweet and savoury comforter to the afflicted mind." - -He drew that celebrated quarto from his voluminous pocket, laid it on -the table, and opening it at certain places, turned down the corners -of the leaves. He then produced a thick little black-letter -psalm-book, the board of which bore the very decided impression of a -Bothwell-brig bullet; he adjusted a great pair of round horn -spectacles on his long-hooked nose, and in a shrill voice began his -favourite chant: - - "I like ane owle in desert am," &c. - - -So much did he resemble the feathered type of wisdom, that Walter -could scarcely repress a smile. - -"Young man, wherefore dost thou not join with me?" asked the divine, -raising his black eyebrows and looking at Walter alternately under, -over, and through his barnacles. - -"Reverend sir, I never sung a Psalm in my life, and really cannot do -so now." - -"I warrant thou canst sing _Claver'se and his Cavaliers_, _King -James's March_, _Rub-a-Dub_, and other profane ditties and camp-songs -of thy wicked faction and ungodly profession," said Ichabod -reproachfully. - -At that moment the deep-mouthed bell of St. Giles, which seemed to -swing immediately above their heads, gave one long and sonorous toll. - -"It is the first hour of the last morning I shall ever spend on -earth!" exclaimed Walter, starting up and striking his fetters -together in the bitterness of his soul. "Oh, Lilian, Lilian, how -little could we have foreseen of all this!" - -He wept. - -"'Tis well--no tears can be more precious than these," said Mr. -Bummel, who thought his exhortations had begun to prove effectual. -"Soon, good youth, shalt thou reach the end of this vale of tears! -Lo! thy bride already waiteth thee, and these tears----" - -"You deem those of contrition and remorse. They are _not_. I have -done nothing to repent of, or for which I ought to feel contrite. I -never wronged man nor woman, though many have wronged me in more than -a lifetime can repay. These tears spring only from bitterness and -unavailing regret. Have I no hope of pardon? I care not for life, -but my king and the son of my king require my services, and could my -blood restore them I would die happy. Where is old Sir Thomas -Dalyell?" - -"Gone to a warmer climate than Scotland," said Ichabod spitefully. - -"Sir George of Rosehaugh?" - -"He is gone where he cannot assist thee." - -"Where is old Colin of Balcarris?" - -"Fled no one knows whither." - -"Where, then, is old Sir Robert of Glenae?" - -"Gone to his last account with other persecutors." - -"All then are dead or in exile, and none is left to be a friend to -the poor cavalier." - -"Save one," said Ichabod, pointing upward. - -"True, true," replied Walter, and covering his face with his hands he -stooped over the table and prayed intently. - -Two o'clock struck, three and four followed, but still he remained, -as Ichabod thought, absorbed in earnest prayer, and kneeling by his -side, the worthy minister joined with true and pious fervour, till -his patience became quite exhausted. He stirred him, and Walter, who -had fallen asleep, started up. - -"Is it time?" he asked. - -"Thou hast slept well," said the divine, pettishly; "out of seven -hours that were allotted three have already fled." - -"My dear and worthy sir, you see how calm my conscience is. Perhaps -it is hard to die so young; but for me life has now lost every charm. -Death never has terrors to the brave. He opens the gates to a fame -and a life that are eternal, and when the coffin lid is closed, -sorrow and jealousy, envy and woe are excluded for ever. _In four -hours more mine will have closed over me_. ------ Kingdoms and -cities, the trees of the forest, the lakes, the rocks, and the hills -themselves, have all their allotted periods of existence, and man has -his; for every thing must perish--all must die and all must pass -away. Oh, why then this foolish and unavailing regret about a few -years more or less? ------ Front to front and foot to foot I have -often met death on the field of battle, and if without flinching I -have faced the volley of a whole brigade, that hurled a thousand -brave spirits into eternity at once, shall I shrink from the levelled -musquets of twelve base hirelings of the Stadtholder? ------ Will -Lilian ever look on the grave where this heart moulders that loved -her so long and so well? Oh no, for now she is the wife of -another--oh, my God, another! In all wide Scotland there is not one -to regret me, to shed one tear for me. I disappear from the earth -like a bubble on a tide of events, leaving not one being behind me to -recal my memory in fondness or regret." - -* * * * * - -The great clock of St. Giles struck the hour of seven. - -Musquets rattled on the pavement of the echoing street; the door of -the Iron Room opened, and the gudeman of the Tolbooth presented his -stern and sinister visage. - -"It is time," he announced briefly. - -"I am ready," replied Walter cheerfully, and, with a soldier on each -side of him and followed by the clergyman, he descended the narrow -circular staircase of the prison, and, issuing from an arched doorway -at the foot, found himself at the end of the edifice. Here he paused -and gazed calmly around him. - -An early hour was chosen for his execution, that few might witness -it, for there existed in Scotland a strong feeling against William's -policy; the massacre of Glencoe, the successive defeats and heavy -expenses of the Dutch wars rankled bitterly in the minds of the -people. - -The lofty streets were silent and shadowy; scarcely a footfall was -heard in them, and the dun sunlight of the September morning had not -sufficient heat to exhale the haze of the autumnal night. - -A company of Argyle's regiment--the perpetrators of the Glencoe -atrocity--clad in coarse brick-coloured uniform of the Dutch fashion, -were drawn up in double ranks facing inwards on each side of the -doorway. They stood with their arms reversed, and each stooped his -head on his hands, which rested on the butt of his musket. At the -head of this lane were four drummers with their drums muffled and -craped, and a plain deal coffin carried upon the shoulders of four -soldiers. Walter, as he gazed steadily along these hostile ranks, -saw only the sourest fanaticism visible in every face, and in none -more so than that of their commander, a hard-featured and -square-shouldered personage, with a black corslet under his ample red -coat, and wearing a red feather in his broad hat. He introduced -himself as-- - -"Major Duncannon, of the godly regiment of my noble lord Argyle." -Walter bowed. - -"Duncannon!" he replied; "your name is familiar to me as being the -man who issued the orders for the massacre of Glencoe." - -Duncannon gave Walter a steady frown in reply to his glance of -undisguised hostility and contempt, and said-- - -"I obeyed the royal orders of King William III., to whom I say be -long life--and, like thee, may all his enemies perish from Dan to -Beersheba!" - -"I do not acknowledge him; he hath never been crowned among us, nor -sworn the oath a Scottish king should swear. Shame on you, sir, to -rank this false-hearted Dutchman with our brave King William the -Lion. Shame be on you, sir, and all your faction," cried Walter, -holding up his fettered hands, while his cheek flushed and his eyes -kindled with energy. "Let our people recollect that the last man -whose limbs were crushed to a jelly by the accursed steel boots and -grinding thumbscrews, was subjected to their agonizing torture by the -"merciful" William of Orange--by the same wise prince by whose -express orders the bravest of the northern tribes was massacred in -their sleep and in cold blood! Let our brave soldiers, when the lash -that drips with their blood is flaying them alive, remember that, -like scourging round the fleet and keelhauling the hapless mariner, -it is an introduction of the same pious and magnanimous monarch who -planned, signed, and countersigned the mandate for the ruthless -atrocity of Glencoe! Oh, Scotland, Scotland! disloyal and untrue to -the line of your ancient kings, how long will you waste your treasure -and pour forth your gallant sons to the Dutch and German wars of a -brutal tyrant, who at once fears and hates and dreads, though he dare -not despise you! But the hour is coming," and he shook his clenched -hand and clanked his fetters like a fierce prophet--"when war, -oppression, exaction, and devastation, will be the meed of the -actions of to-day!" - -"Silence, traitor!" exclaimed Duncannon, striking him with the hilt -of his sword so severely that blood flowed from his mouth. - -"Major Duncannon, thou art a coward!" said Walter, turning his eyes -of fire upon him. "The brave are ever compassionate and gentle--but -thou! away, man--for on thy brow is written the dark curse which the -unavenged blood of Glencoe called down from the blessed God!" - -Duncannon turned pale. - -"Away with him!" he cried. "Drummers, flam off--musqueteers, march!" -and the procession began. - -The dull rolling of the muffled drums, the regulated tap of the -burial march, and the wailing of the fifes, now shrill and high, and -anon sweet and low, found a deep echo in Walter's melancholy breast. -Sorrowful and solemn was the measure of the Psalm, and he felt his -beating heart soothed and saddened; but he could only mentally -accompany the clergyman who walked bare-headed by his side, and -chaunted aloud while the soldiers marched. - -Walter's cheek reddened, for his fearless heart beat high, and he -stepped firmly behind his coffin, the most stately in all that sad -procession, though marching to that dread strain which a soldier -seldom hears, _his_ own death-march. The vast recesses of the great -cathedral and the distant echoes of the central street of the city -with all its diverging wynds, replied mournfully to the roll of the -funeral drums. - -He whose knell they rung seemed the proudest there among two hundred -soldiers. Life now had nearly lost every charm, while religion, -courage, and resignation had fully robbed death of all its terrors. -Roused by the unusual sound, many a nightcapped citizen peered -fearfully forth from his lofty dwelling; but their looks of wonder or -of pity were unheeded or unseen by Walter Fenton. He saw only his -own coffin borne before him and the weapons and the hands by which he -was to die; but his bold spirit never quailed, and he resolved, with -true Jacobite enthusiasm, to fall with honour to the cause for which -he suffered. - -"Halt!" cried Duncannon, and the coffin rang hollowly as it was -placed beside the square stone pedestal of King Charles's statue, and -Walter immediately kneeled down within it, confronting the stern -Presbyterians of Argyle's regiment with an aspect of coolness and -bravery that did not fail to excite their admiration and pity. - -A sergeant approached to bind up his eyes. - -"Nay, nay, my good fellow," said Walter, waving him away; "I have -faced death too often to flinch now. Major Duncannon, draw up your -musqueteers, and I will show you how fearlessly a cavalier of honour -can die." - -While twelve soldiers were drawn up before him and loaded their -muskets, Walter turned his eyes for the last time to the glorious -autumnal sun, whose red morning rays were shot aslant between two -lofty piles of building into the shadowy and gloomy quadrangle formed -by the ancient Parliament House, the Goldsmiths' Hall, the grotesque -piazzas, and the grand cathedral. He gave one rapid glance of adieu -around him, and then turned towards his destroyers. - -"Farewell, good youth," said Mr. Bummel, as the tears of true and -heartfelt sorrow trickled over his long hooked nose. "Farewell. -When He from whose hand light went forth over the land, even as the -rays of yonder sun--when He, I say, returns in His glory we will meet -again. Till _then_, farewell." Covering his face with his -handkerchief, he withdrew a few paces and prayed with kind and -sincere devotion. - -At that moment the hoofs of a galloping horse spurred madly down the -adjacent street rang through the vaults and aisles of the great -church. Walter's colour changed. - -A reprieve! - -Alas! it was only Lord Clermistonlee who, pale, panting, and -breathless, dashed into the square to stay the execution; but the cry -he would have uttered died away on his parched lips. - -"He comes to exult over me," said Walter bitterly. "Behold, ignoble -Lord," he exclaimed, "how a true cavalier can die! Musqueteers," he -added, in his old voice of authority, "ready, blow your matches, -present, God save King James the Seventh! give fire!" - -The death volley rang like thunder in the still quadrangle. Four -bullets flattened against the statue, eight were mortal, and with the -last convulsive energy of death Walter Fenton threw his hat into the -air and fell forward prostrate into his coffin a bleeding corpse. - ------------- - -Here ends our tale. - -From that hour Clermistonlee was a changed man. Though given up to -dark, corroding care and moody thoughts, he lived to a great old age, -and was one of those who sold his country at the union. Soon after -that event he died, unregretted and unrespected, and a defaced -monument in the east wall of the Greyfriars Churchyard still marks -the place where he lies. - -His gossip, Mersington, would no doubt have obtained a comfortable -share of "the compensations" in 1707 had he not (as appears from a -passage in Carstairs' State Papers) unluckily been found dead one -night in the severe winter of 1700, with a half-drained mug of burnt -sack clutched in his tenacious grasp. - -A few words more of Lilian, and then we part. - -From the moment in which, with her child in her arms, she ascended -the great staircase of Bruntisfield, she was never again seen. - -Every place within the mansion and without, the woods, the lake, the -fields, the muir were searched, but the lady and her child were seen -no more. - -An impenetrable mystery cast a veil of horror over their fate; but -Mr. Ichabod Bummel, and the most learned divines of a kirk that was -then in the zenith of its wisdom and power, gave it as their decided -opinion that they had been spirited away by the fairies; an idea that -was unanimously adopted by the people; nevertheless, a pale spectre, -wailing and pressing a ghastly babe to its attenuated breast, was -often visible on moonlight nights, among the old oak trees, the rocky -heron shaws of the Burghmuir, or the reedy rhinns of its beautiful -loch, and this terrible fact was solemnly averred and duly sworn to -by various decent and sponsible men, such as elders and deacons of -the kirk, who chanced to journey that way after nightfall. - -In latter years it was to the long gloomy avenue or immediate -precincts of the ancient house, that this terrible tenant confined -her midnight promenades. - -Many sceptical persons, notwithstanding the assertions of the -aforesaid elders and deacons, declared the story of the apparition to -be downright nonsense. Many more may be disposed to do so at the -present day; but we would beg them to withold their decision until -they have consulted as carefully as we have done, the MSS. Session -Records of Mr. Bummel's kirk, entered in his own hand, and attested -by the said elders and deacons at full length. - -In the year 1800, when the stately and venerable mansion of -Bruntisfield was demolished, to make way for the Hospital of -Gillespie, within a deep alcove, or labyrinth of stone, in the heart -of its massive walls, the skeletons of a female and child were -discovered; some fragments of velvet, brocade, and a gold ring were -found with them. - -On touching them, they crumbled into undistinguishable dust. - - - -THE END. - - - - LONDON: - PRINTED BY HARRISON AND SON, - ST. 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If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The Scottish Cavalier, Volume 3 (of 3)</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:0;'>An Historical Romance</p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: James Grant</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: August 23, 2021 [eBook #66122]</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Al Haines</div> - -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER, VOLUME 3 (OF 3) ***</div> - -<h1> -<br /><br /> - THE<br /> -<br /> - SCOTTISH CAVALIER.<br /> -</h1> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="t3b"> - An Historical Romance.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3b"> - BY JAMES GRANT, ESQ.,<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t4"> - AUTHOR OF<br /> - "THE ROMANCE OF WAR, OR THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS,"<br /> - "MEMOIRS OF KIRKALDY OF GRANGE," &C.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="poem" style="margin-left: 20%; font-size: 90%"> - Dost thou admit his right,<br /> - Thus to transfer our ancient Scottish crown?<br /> - Ay, Scotland was a kingdom once,<br /> - And, by the might of God, a kingdom still shall be!<br /> - ROBERT THE BRUCE, ACT II.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - IN THREE VOLUMES.<br /> -<br /> - VOL. III.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - LONDON:<br /> - HENRY COLBURN, PUBLISHER,<br /> - GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET.<br /> -<br /><br /> - 1850.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="noindent"> - Contents<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - I. <a href="#chap01">Lilian</a><br /> - II. <a href="#chap02">How Clermistonlee Pressed His Suit</a><br /> - III. <a href="#chap03">Claverhouse to the Rescue</a><br /> - IV. <a href="#chap04">The Secret Stair</a><br /> - V. <a href="#chap05">The Attempt</a><br /> - VI. <a href="#chap06">Edinburgh—The Night of the Revolution</a><br /> - VII. <a href="#chap07">Sack of Holyrood</a><br /> - VIII. <a href="#chap08">The Veiled Picture</a><br /> - IX. <a href="#chap09">Love and Principle</a><br /> - X. <a href="#chap10">The Pass of Killycrankie</a><br /> - XI. <a href="#chap11">The Last Hour of Dundee</a><br /> - XII. <a href="#chap12">St. Germains</a><br /> - XIII. <a href="#chap13">The Cavaliers of Dundee</a><br /> - XIV. <a href="#chap14">The 20th of September, 1692</a><br /> - XV. <a href="#chap15">The Effect of the Postscriptum</a><br /> - XVI. <a href="#chap16">The Battle of Steinkirke</a><br /> - XVII. <a href="#chap17">A Disclosure</a><br /> - XVIII. <a href="#chap18">Walter Fenton and the King</a><br /> - XIX. <a href="#chap19">The Returned Exile</a><br /> - XX. <a href="#chap20">The Bubble Burst</a><br /> - XXI. <a href="#chap21">Love and Marriage are Two</a><br /> - XXII. <a href="#chap22">The Ring and the Secret</a><br /> - XXIII. <a href="#chap23">The Iron Room—The Death Shot</a><br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap01"></a></p> - -<p class="t2"> -WALTER FENTON; -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -OR -</p> - -<p class="t3b"> -THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER I. -<br /><br /> -LILIAN. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - I love thee, gentle Knight! but 'tis,<br /> - Such love as sisters bear;<br /> - O, ask my heart no more than this,<br /> - For more it may not spare.<br /> - KNIGHT TOGGENBURG.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The image of Clermistonlee and his threats -came painfully upon Lilian's memory. She -shrieked for aid, but her cries were lost in the -vacuity of the old-fashioned coach in which she -was being carried off. She strove to open the -windows, but they were immoveable as those of -a castle, and she resigned herself to tears and -despair. The vehicle was rumbling and jolting -over a waste of frozen snow; here and there, a -farm-house or a congealed rivulet were passed, -but everything appeared so strange and new, when -viewed in their snowy guise by the twilight of the -mirky winter night, that Lilian had not the most -remote idea in what direction she was taken; and, -shuddering with cold and apprehension, the poor -girl crouched down in a corner of the coach, and -abandoned herself to grief and wretchedness. -</p> - -<p> -The excessive chill of the night, and prostration -of spirit under which she laboured, produced a -sort of stupor, and when the coach stopped, she -was unable to move; but a tall dark man, muffled -and masked like an intriguing gallant of the day, -lifted her out. As one in a dream, who would in -vain elude some hideous vision, she attempted to -shriek; but the unuttered cry died away on her -lips, and she closed her eyes. A strong embrace -encircled her; a hot breath—(was it not a -kiss?)—came upon her cold cheek, and she felt herself -borne along; doors closed behind her, and by the -warmth of the altered temperature she was aware -of being within a house. -</p> - -<p> -She was seated gently in a chair; and now she -looked around her. A large fire of roots was -blazing on the rough stone-hearth; its ruddy glow -rendered yet more red the bare walls and strongly -arched roof of a hall (built of red sandstone) such -as may be seen in the old fortlets of the lesser -barons of Scotland. The windows on each side -were deeply embayed by the thickness of the wall, -and a deep-browed arch spanned each; they had -stone seats covered with crimson cushions, and -foot-mats of plaited rushes. -</p> - -<p> -The hurrying clouds and occasional stars were -seen through the strong basket-gratings that -externally defended these prison-like apertures. The -hall was paved, and its rude massive furniture -consisted only of a great oblong table of oak, several -forms or settles, a few high-backed chairs, and one -upon a raised part of the floor, at the upper end, -had a canopy of crimson cloth over it, announcing -that it was the state-chair of the Lord of the Manor. -Swords, pikes, harquebuses, hunting and hawking -appurtenances, with a few veiled pictures, were -among its ornaments. -</p> - -<p> -A great almery, or cupboard (so called from the -old hospitable custom of setting aside food as <i>alms</i> -for the poor), occupied one end of the apartment, -and an ancient casque surmounted it. Various -bunkers of carved oak, bound with iron, occupied -the other. On the right hand of the doorway, a -stone lavatory, covered with magnificent sculpture -projected from the wall. This old-fashioned bason -was furnished with a hole to carry off water, and -was an indispensable convenience to every ancient -dining-hall. -</p> - -<p> -With one rapid glance of terror Lilian surveyed -the whole place, and started from her chair to be -confronted by one whose aspect made her instinctively -shrink back. The keen and hawk-like eyes -of Beatrix Gilruth were fixed upon her with an -expression at once menacing, searching, and -scornful. There was something in the wild visage -of this inexplicable woman that excited curiosity, -while her air terrified, and her withered person -repelled approach. -</p> - -<p> -"Who are you, woman?" asked Lilian firmly, -as, stepping back a pace, she surveyed her from -head to foot; "and what are you?" -</p> - -<p> -"<i>What</i> am I?" reiterated the other, with a voice -that thrilled, while her grey eyes gleamed with a -blue light, and she ground her teeth. "I am -what thou shalt be, my pretty minx, ere ye leave -these walls, perhaps." -</p> - -<p> -Lilian, terrified by her aspect and her answer, -sank into a chair, saying, as she clasped her -hands, and looked up imploringly from her bright -dishevelled hair— -</p> - -<p> -"Woman, for the love of God, say where am I?" -</p> - -<p> -"In the tower of Clermistonlee." -</p> - -<p> -"So my soul foreboded; but can <i>he</i> have dared -thus far?" -</p> - -<p> -"What will he not dare that man can do?" -</p> - -<p> -"O Heaven, protect me!" -</p> - -<p> -"Neither the Heaven that is above us, nor the -Hell that is beneath, will protect you, pretty one; -but you will be made what many as fair have been,—the -toy, the plaything of an hour, to be cast aside -when some new fancy has seized the wayward -mind of your lord and betrayer. Look at that -veiled portrait——" -</p> - -<p> -At that moment three distinct knocks were -heard against the almery. Lilian started and -turned pale. -</p> - -<p> -"Yes, yes," said Beatrix scornfully, addressing -the knocker; "you are impatient. There was a -time—but it matters not—I bide mine; and my -long delayed vengeance will wither thee up, false -lord, even as if the lightning of God had scorched -thy perjured soul." -</p> - -<p> -Low as this was uttered, it reached the ears of -Lilian; she became doubly terrified, and a -momentary feeling of utter abandonment made her -cover her face with her hands and weep bitterly. -But, suddenly starting up, she said with energy— -</p> - -<p> -"I will go hence, madam; and whatever be the -danger, I will risk it. But the snow, the -darkness, and the distance—oh, horror!—Aunt -Grisel—gossip Annie—what will they think of -this?—what will become of me?" -</p> - -<p> -"Stand," said Beatrix, interposing. "Are you -mad, to think of leaving this roof in the middle of -a winter night? Remember the dreary lea of -Clermiston, the rocks and the frozen marshes of -Corstorphine, you are fey, maiden, to think it." -</p> - -<p> -"Begone, thou ill woman," replied Lilian -contemptuously; "I will go, and I dare thee to stay -me." -</p> - -<p> -"Then," rejoined Beatrix spitefully, "remember -the barred windows, the bolted gates, and the -good stone walls. Pooh, maiden, take tent and -bide where ye are; for I swear ye can never go -from hence, but at the pleasure of my lord." -</p> - -<p> -"Insolent! Know ye who I am?" asked Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -"The young lady of Bruntisfield," answered -Beatrix coldly; "a wayward lass with a braw -tocher, it seemeth,—one who prefers a younger -cap and feather than my lord. Ha! hath he not -sworn—(and mark me, maiden, he never swears in -vain!)—that he will compel thee yet to beg his -love at his hand as a boon, even as humbly as he -now sues thine." -</p> - -<p> -"In sooth!" retorted Lilian, with angry surprise. -"He will surely have the aid of some such -witch as thee to work so modern a miracle." -</p> - -<p> -"Witch, quotha!" replied Beatrix, whose -withered cheek began to redden with passion. -"Lilian Napier, there was a time when these grey -grizzled locks were once as bright and as glossy as -thine; when this brow was as smooth, this faded -form as round, yea, and as beautiful; this step as -light, and this poor face as fair, as thine now are. -So beware thee of taunts, maiden; for the time is -coming (if thou art spared) when thou mayest be -loathsome as I now am, and loathing as I now do. -That hour is coming; for Clermistonlee hath an -evil eye, beneath whose baleful influence all that -is good and beautiful in woman will wither and -die. Oh! Lilian Napier, what a tale of love and -weakness, shame and misery, sin and horror, would -the history of my life reveal! But my hour of -revenge is coming. Yes——" -</p> - -<p> -Again three knocks louder than before rang on -the almery; and Beatrix, trembling, ceased to -talk, and busied herself in laying a supper on the -hall-table. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, Walter! Walter!" murmured Lilian, "if -you knew of this—if you were here to protect -me!" Her tears flowed freely. -</p> - -<p> -"Walter!" reiterated Beatrix musing; "can it -really be the same? No, it is impossible; and -yet, why not?—He is your lover, then, this -Walter?" she asked in a low voice, while laying -some cold grilled meat, confections, and wine from -a buffet. "I know he is—that blush tells me -(when did my cheek blush last?) He is young and -handsome, I warrant?" -</p> - -<p> -Lilian nodded an affirmative. -</p> - -<p> -"And men say he is brave?" -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, yes! brave as a hero of romance," said -Lilian in the same low tone; for there is nothing -so pleasing to love as to hear the object of it -praised. "And so noble—so generous! If true -worth gave a title, my dear Walter would be a -belted Earl." -</p> - -<p> -"Instead of being a poor standard-bearer in the -ranks of Dunbarton." -</p> - -<p> -"You have seen him then?" said Lilian, her -blue eyes beaming, as she almost forgot her -present predicament in the thought of her lover. -"Is he not handsome, good woman?" -</p> - -<p> -"It is the same!" exclaimed Beatrix, in her -shrillest tone. "Walter, the powder-boy—the -soldier's brat—hah!"—she ground her teeth, and -clenched her shrivelled hands like knots of -serpents—"I bide my time. Oh, I will be fearfully -avenged!" -</p> - -<p> -A third time there was a knocking on the -almery, and Beatrix muttered— -</p> - -<p> -"I am dumb—I will speak no more." -</p> - -<p> -She pointed to the supper-table, and, throwing -herself into a chair, fixed her sunken eyes upon -the red glowing fire, and, lost in her own wild -thoughts, continued to jabber with the rapidity -and restlessness of insanity. It was evident that -she was partly deranged,—a discovery which, -while it raised the pity of the gentle Lilian, -increased the dread and the horror of her situation. -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee, with his faithful rascal Juden, -were both within earshot. The former had sufficient -tact and experience to know that it would be -better to defer any interview with Lilian until -next morning, by which time he hoped she would -be a little more familiarised with her situation; -and leaving Juden, who was ensconced in the -recesses of the almery, to be a check upon the -troublesome garrulity of his only female domestic, he -retired to a snug apartment, where, enveloped in -his shag dressing-gown, and comforted by a great -tankard of his favourite mulled sack, and several -books of "ungodly jests," he practised all his -philosophy to enable him to endure this temporary -separation from Lilian, consoled by the idea that -she was completely in his clutches, within his -strong tower, which he was entitled to defend -against all men living; and well aware that, in the -political storm which in another week would -convulse all Scotland from the Cheviots to Cape -Wrath, the abduction of a girl—more especially -the daughter of a "persecuting cavalier"—would -be less regarded than the wind blowing over the -muir. -</p> - -<p> -As the still, quiet night wore on, and the fumes -of the wine mounted into his head, very strange -ideas floated through the brain of the roué. Again -and again the thought of Lilian being so utterly -in his power intruded itself upon his heated -imagination; he felt his blood begin to glow; his -mind became confused; he endeavoured to combat -his constitutional wickedness, and, by aid of his -repeated potations, and a highly seasoned grillade, -dozed away the night very comfortably in a -well-cushioned chair; while his leal henchman was -in the same happy state of oblivion, through the -medium of various stoups of ale which he imbibed -in the spence or buttery. -</p> - -<p> -Not so did poor Lilian pass the slow and heavy -hours. -</p> - -<p> -The repast prepared for her was left untouched, -she resisted every invitation to repose, and -resolved on passing the night by the hall-fire; -until, reflecting that she would be quite as safe in -one part of the tower as in another, and wishing -to be alone, that she might weep unseen, she was -ushered by Beatrix up a narrow stair into a little -sleeping apartment, the greater part of which was -occupied by a great hearse-looking tester, or -canopy bed. The only light in the chamber came -from the fire-place, where a heap of logs and coals -were blazing, and diffusing a warm glow on the -dark wainscotted walls, the oaken floor, and rude -ceiling, which was crossed by a massive dormant-tree -of oak, covered with grotesque and hideous -carving. -</p> - -<p> -There was something very gloomy and catafalcque-like -in the aspect of the gigantic bed in -which Lilian was to repose; its massive posts of -dark oak and darker ebony were covered embossage, -and the deep crimson curtains, with heavy -fringes, fell in shadowy festoons, while four great -plumes of feathers surmounted the corners in -sepulchral grandeur. It stood upon a raised dais -of three steps, and on the back, amid a wilderness -of bassi-relievi, flowers, angels, satyrs, and ivy, -appeared the coronet and gorgeous blazon of -Clermistonlee. -</p> - -<p> -"I cannot sleep here, good woman," said Lilian -shuddering; but the noise of the closing door, and -the bolt jarring outside, was her only reply. She -found herself alone. Her first impulse was to -fasten her door within securely; her second to -examine the chamber, by the light of the fire. In -the deep little window stood a beautiful cabinet, -on the upper part of which were a mirror and all -the usual appurtenances for a lady's toilet, but of -the most costly and elegant description, with all -the perfumes, oils, essences and lotions then most -in vogue. She turned from them with disgust to -survey the walls, for the fear of secret entrances -was impressed powerfully upon her mind by her -knowledge of the number that existed in her own -home; but, upon examination, she found nothing -to increase her dread, save the cabinet, the doors -of which were locked, and returned an unusually -hollow sound when she touched them. -</p> - -<p> -Alternately a prey to fear and indignation, she -walked about the little apartment, or sat by the -fire weeping and praying, until sleep began to -oppress her; and, unable longer to resist its effects, -with an audible supplication to Heaven that the -morrow might bring about her release, she threw -herself (without undressing) on the bed, and -almost immediately fell fast asleep. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap02"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER II. -<br /><br /> -HOW CLERMISTONLEE PRESSED HIS SUIT. -</h3> - -<p class="intro"> -A strong dose of love is worse than one of ratafia; when once it -gets into our heads it trips up our heels, and then good night to -discretion. THE LYING VALET. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -From an uneasy slumber that had been disturbed -by many a painful dream, Lilian started, -awoke, and leaped from the bed. The embers of -the night fire still smouldered on the hearth stone, -and the rays of the red sun rising above a gorge -in the Corstorphine hills, radiated through her -grated window as through a focus. Pressing her -hands upon her temples, she endeavoured to -collect the scattered images that had haunted her -sleep. She had dreamt of Walter. He seemed -to be present in that very chamber, to stand by -her gloomy bed, and smiled kindly and fondly as -of old. He bent over to kiss her, but lo! his -features turned to those of Lord Clermistonlee; -the great tester bed with its plumage and canopy -became a hearse; she screamed and awoke to find -it was day. -</p> - -<p> -Now all her former fear and indignation revived -in full force, and she wept passionately. -Reflecting how completely she was at the mercy -of Clermistonlee, whose character for reckless -ferocity, and steady obstinacy of purpose, she -knew too well; she resolved to endure with -patience, and await with caution an opportunity -for release or escape. How little she knew of -what was acting in Edinburgh! And her beloved -kinswoman, so revered, so tender, and affectionate, -but so aged and infirm. -</p> - -<p> -"O horror!" exclaimed Lilian, wringing her -hands, "this must have destroyed her." -</p> - -<p> -"Open Madam Lilian," said the voice of Beatrix -Gilruth, as she knocked at the door; "open, -my lord awaits you at breakfast in the hall." -</p> - -<p> -Lilian hesitated; but aware that resistance -would not better her fortune, with her usual -frankness ran to the door, opened it, and despite -the repulsive sternness of Gilruth's aspect, -impelled by a sense of loneliness, and a wish to -gain her friendship, she bade her good morning, -and lightly touched her hand. Her air of -innocence and candour impressed the misanthropic -heart of Beatrix, and she smiled kindly. While -leading her before the mirror to assist in arraying -her for breakfast, the bosom of the unfortunate -castaway could not repress a sigh, and a scanty -tear trembled in either eye, as she writhed her -withered fingers in the soft masses of Lilian's -hair. -</p> - -<p> -"I will shew thee my bairn what a braw -busker I am," said Beatrix, "though 'tis long -since these poor fingers have had aught to do -with top-knots and fantanges." -</p> - -<p> -Resigned and careless of what was done with -her, Lilian remained with a pale face of placid -composure and grief, gazing unconsciously upon -her own beautiful image as reflected in the -polished mirror; and though she marked it not, -there was a vivid and terrible contrast between -her statue-like features, and those of her -tire-woman—keen, attenuated, and graven with the -lines of sorrow, rage, bitterness, and misanthropy; -the true index of that storm of evil passions and -resentful thoughts that smouldered in her heart. -</p> - -<p> -At length the captive was arrayed so far as the -skill of Beatrix would go; her dress (that in which -she had left home) was long, flowing, and heavily -flounced in the French fashion, derived from -Albert Durer, who represented an angel in -flounced petticoats expelling Adam and Eve from -Paradise—hence flounces were all the rage. She -wore long and heavy ruffles of the richest lace, a -string of pearls and amber was twisted among the -bright braids of her beautiful hair; a diamond -drop depended from each of her delicate ears, -and a rich necklace like a collar, with a pendant, -encircled her neck, the whiteness and purity of -which never appeared in greater splendour, than -when contrasted with the faded skin of poor -Beatrix. Passive under her hands, Lilian allowed -her great natural beauty to be thus dangerously -enhanced, and when she stood up, her rather -diminutive stature being increased by her high -heeled maroquin shoes, and the grace with which -she wore her commode and floating flounces, -caused the poor woman, whom so many fair ones -had successively supplanted, to utter an -exclamation of delight. -</p> - -<p> -"Come," said she, "my lord awaits you; how -pleased he will be." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh my God!" exclaimed Lilian, in deep -anguish; "and was it to please him you have thus -arrayed and attired me. Fie upon thee, ill -woman!" -</p> - -<p> -"Here at least his bidding must be obeyed -implicitly, as when a hundred of his men stabled -their horses in the barbican stalls. He is a -dangerous man, hinny, and never tholed thwarting, -though the hour is coming when he shall thole -bitter vengeance, and dree the deepest remorse. -But I bide my time—I bide my time." -</p> - -<p> -As she led Lilian into the hall, Clermistonlee -advanced to receive her, with an imperturbable -air of assurance, gallantry, and devotion. Through -one of the deeply recessed windows, the light -of the morning sun fell full upon his noble -face and figure, which the richness of his -dress displayed to the utmost advantage. He -wore an embroidered suit of light blue satin -slashed with white; he had round his neck the -gold collar of the thistle, and had over his left -breast the green ribbon and oval badge of the -order; a diamond hilted rapier sparkled in a -baldrick that was stiff with gold embroidery; his -flowing peruke was redolent of perfume; his -ruffles were miracles of needlework, and his -brilliant sleeve buttons flashed whenever his hands -moved. -</p> - -<p> -Hateful as he was at all times to Lilian, now -he was more so than ever; surprise, indignation, -fear, and contempt, agitated her by turns, and she -gazed on him in painful suspense, awaiting his -address. He had evidently made his toilet with -more than usual care, and resolving to give -Lilian no time for reproaches, he led her at once -to a seat, saying, -</p> - -<p> -"My dear girl will no doubt be in a prodigious -passion with me, but ladies are kindly disposed to -forgive every little mistake that has love for its -excuse. 'Tis but a dismal old peelhouse this, -dear Lilian, but I hope you slept well. The -wind sings in the corridors, the corbies scream on -the roof, and all that, but with a clear conscience -you know, oh yes, one may dose like a top, or a -lord of session. -</p> - -<p> -"A clear sharp morning this; I rode as far as -Craigroyston before sunrise. There is nothing so -improves one's complexion as a gallop in the -morning air. Apropos! what do you think of -this embroidered suit? 'Tis the last fashion from -Paris; that old villain Saunders Snip, in the -Craimes, brought it direct from thence last -month. On a good figure it is quite calculated -to make an impression. Look'ee, fair Lilian; -these ruffles cost me twenty guineas a pair, not a -tester less I assure you; and the sleeve buttons -are the first of their kind, and were made by -Monsieur Bütong, the eminent Parisian jeweller, -for that glorious fop, the Comte d'Artois, who -presented them to a friend of mine in the Scots -Archers. -</p> - -<p> -"But this tie of my overlay, ha! that is a -contrivance of my own; graceful, is it not? -exactly—I knew you would think so. Droll, is -it not, that our tastes should be the same? You -see, my dear girl, at what trouble I have been to -please you. Smile again, dear Lilian," continued -his lordship, whose overnight potations, the -morning ride had failed quite to dispel; "by Heaven, -you look divine: where shall I find words to -compliment the beauty of your appearance this -morning!" -</p> - -<p> -"You really seem to require all your verbosity -for praising yourself, my lord," said Lilian, -coldly. -</p> - -<p> -"Now—now, do not be so angry," said Clermistonlee, -taking her hand in spite of all her -efforts to prevent him. -</p> - -<p> -"I am justly so, my lord," replied Lilian -making a strong effort to restrain her tears under -an aspect of firmness and determination. "By -what right have you dared to bring me here and -detain me prisoner?" -</p> - -<p> -"Hoity, toity—right dear Lilian? the right of -a most devoted lover." -</p> - -<p> -"My lord, you will be severely punished for -this. The law——" -</p> - -<p> -"Ha, ha! Lilian, there is no law now, no -order, morality, nor any thing else. The world -is turned upside down, (at least Britain -is)—revolutionized, bewildered, and the old days of battle -and broil, reiving and rugging, have come back in -all their glory. In this desperate game, my girl," -he added, through his clenched teeth, "Clermistonlee -must repair his fortune or be lost for ever; -but enough of this; let us to breakfast, and then -we will talk over matters that lie nearer our hearts. -Nay, nay, no refusal—breakfast you must have." -</p> - -<p> -He led her towards the long hall table, where, -thanks to Juden's catering and ingenuity, a noble -repast was laid, in the profuse "style of ancient -gourmandizing; and the unscrupulous factotum -who stood near with a napkin under his arm, and -a long corkscrew in his hand, surveyed Lilian -with something between a smirk and a leer, which -was sufficient to increase the fear that oppressed, -and the anger that swelled within her breast. -She withdrew, saying, with a voice that trembled -between indignation and apprehension, -</p> - -<p> -"Spare me this continued humiliation. Oh -my Lord Clermistonlee, if there remain within -your breast, one spark of that bright spirit which -ought ever to be the guiding star of the noble and -the gentleman, you will restore me to my home, -to the only relative (save one) whom death has -left me in this wide world. Be generous, my -lord," continued Lilian, touching his hand, with -charming frankness; "Oh be generous, as I know -you are brave and reckless. Restore me to my -home, and I pledge my word you will never be -questioned concerning my abduction. I will pass -it over as a foolish but daring frolic. Hear me, -my lord, in pity hear me." -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee trembled beneath her gentle -touch; but answered with his usual air of raillery,— -</p> - -<p> -"Hoity, toity, little one! art going to read me -curtain lectures already? My dear Lilian, it is -too bad really! The abduction? Oh the ardour -of my love will be a sufficient excuse for that; -and as to being questioned—I don't think any -person will permit himself to question me, if he -remembers that I am the best hand at pistol, -rapier, and dagger, in broad Scotland. -</p> - -<p> -"Beside, dear Lilian, (why dost always shrink? dost -think child I am going to eat thee like a -rascally ogre) if thou wouldst save thine honour," -here his voice sank involuntarily into an -impressive whisper, "become mine. Thou shouldst -be well aware that after living in the power of -one who is so tremendous a roué by habit and -repute, no woman could go forth into the world -without lying under suspicions of a very unpleasant -nature. The roisters at Blair's coffee house -have got hold of the story, for it hath made a -devil of a noise in the city, and in the mouths of -the Bowhead gossips, and Bess Wynd scandal-mongers, -our little affair will be quite a romance." -</p> - -<p> -This cruel speech, which was uttered with the -utmost coolness and deliberation by Clermistonlee, -who played the while with his gold sword-knot, -came like ice upon the heart of the unhappy -Lilian, who could not but secretly acknowledge -that it was too true. She grew pale as death, and, -unable to reply, gazed upon her tormentor with a -look of such intense aversion, that he could not -repress a haughty smile of astonishment. -</p> - -<p> -"Ha, ha! for what do you take me?" -</p> - -<p> -"For a monster!" murmured Lilian, in a voice -almost inarticulate. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh—oh! you regard me as a poor sparrow -doth a gerfalcon." -</p> - -<p> -"Alas!" said Lilian, weeping as she sank into -a seat, "the simile is but too true." -</p> - -<p> -"You are very unpolite, Madam Lilian; a -gerfalcon is between the vulture and the hawk." -</p> - -<p> -Lilian answered only by her tears, and his -lordship began to get a little provoked. -</p> - -<p> -"A devil of a breakfast this, my pretty -moppet," he continued, with an air of composure; -"when these vapours have passed away, peradventure -you will condescend to hear my addresses—meantime -consider yourself quite at home, and -for Heaven's sake (or rather your own), do take a -share of such humble cheer as this my poor house -of Clermiston affords." And without troubling -her farther, he threw back the curls of his peruke, -and attacked the devilled duck, the cold sirloin, -and wassail-bowl of spiced ale, the smoking coffee -and hot bannocks forthwith. -</p> - -<p> -Within the recess of a window, reclined upon -the cushion of one of those stone side-seats so -common in old Scottish towers, Lilian sat with -her face covered with her hands, and shaded by -the masses of her fine hair which fell forward over -her drooping head. The glory of the red morning -sun streamed full upon her tresses and turned -them to wreaths of gold. She seemed something -etherially beautiful, and the sensual lord felt his -heart beat with increased ardour as he gazed on -her from time to time; but aware, from old experience, -that it was useless to press her to partake -of his luxurious breakfast, he resolved to trouble -her no more until the first paroxism of her -indignation had evaporated. -</p> - -<p> -Juden and Beatrix having finished their luggies -of porridge and ale at the lower and uncovered -part of the table, were now engaged, the former -in making lures of feathers and raw meat to train -two young hawks that sat near him on a perch, -with their long lunes or leashes coiled round it; -and the latter, while affecting to occupy herself -with some household matter, from the bay of an -opposite window, watched with a keen, restless, -and often malicious expression, the nonchalant -lord and the unhappy Lilian, for whom, at times, -she felt something akin to pity, and fain would -have set her at liberty; but the keys of the tower -gates were buckled to Juden's girdle, and every -window was closed by a grating like a strong iron -harrow. -</p> - -<p> -In the faint hope of some rescue approaching, -Lilian gazed earnestly from the window she -occupied. It faced the south, and overlooked the -then dreary waste of Clermiston Lee, which, with -all the undulating country extending to the base -of the Pentlands, and that gigantic range, -towering peak above peak, as they diminished in the -western shire of Linlithgow, were covered with -one universal mantle of dazzling snow. Afar off -above the hills of Braid the level sun poured its -red rays through a hazy sky across the desolate -landscape; the thickets, bare and leafless, stood -like cypress groves in the waste; the dim winter -smoke from many farm-house and cottage lum of -clay, ascended in murky columns into the frosty -air, but around the lonely tower on the Lee, there -was an aspect of stillness and desolation that -struck a chill upon Lilian's heart. -</p> - -<p> -Far off, on the Glasgow road, that passed the -picturesque old church, the thatched hamlet and -Foresters' Castle of Corstorphine, a strong square -fortress flanked by round towers, a solitary -traveller, muffled in his furred rocquelaure and -leathern gambadoes, or grey maud and worsted -galligaskins (according to his rank), spurred his -horse towards the city; but such occasional passers -were all beyond the reach of Lilian. The bridle-road -to the town was hidden, and not a foot-print -stained the spotless mantle of the level Lee. At -times a hare or fox shot across it, from the woods -or rocks of Corstorphine, but no other living thing -approached, and the heart of poor Lilian grew -more and more sad as the dreary day wore on, and -night once more approached. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap03"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER III. -<br /><br /> -CLAVERHOUSE TO THE RESCUE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - The winter cold is past and gone,<br /> - And now comes on the spring;<br /> - And I am one of the Scots Life Guards,<br /> - And I must fight for the King.<br /> - My dear!<br /> - And I must fight for him!<br /> - OLD SONG.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -By orders from William of Orange, who had -taken possession of James's palace, and issued -from thence his sounding declarations and -imperial mandates, Goderdt de Ginckel, with the -utmost expedition, marched the captured Scots -towards London, where the Statholder (though he -had not yet been crowned) was intent on revenging, -by the lash and bullet, this signal instance of -resistance to his authority. In consequence of this -event; he had the first "Mutiny Act" framed, but -being an edict of the English Parliament it could -in no way apply to Scottish troops. -</p> - -<p> -Aware of the esprit du corps and indomitable -valour of the old musqueteers, and fearful of revolt -or rescue, de Ginckel sent Lieutenant Gavin -twenty other officers and five hundred privates, in -charge of Sir Marmaduke Langstone, direct to -London, towards which place he marched the -remainder by another route; keeping near his -person and under sure escort, Lord Dunbarton, -Walter Fenton, Finland, and other officers, whose -hostility of spirit was more undisguised than their -comrades, de Ginckel advanced some miles in -rear of the main body of his Black Horsemen. -The Earl was destined for the Tower of London; -Walter and his brothers in misfortune for the cells -of Newgate. -</p> - -<p> -In every town and village through which they -were marched, dense mobs of "the rascal multitude" -attended and loaded them with every insult -and opprobrium, such as the vulgar, the cruel, -and the wicked are ever ready to hurl upon the -fallen or the unfortunate. Marrowbones and -cleavers were clattered around them; effigies of -King James, and a figure meant to represent a -Scotchman, were carried or kicked along the -streets before them, and amid yells and hootings, -warming-pans were everywhere displayed from the -windows at their approach; at that time a famous -mode of insulting the Jacobites, being a palpable -hit against the legitimacy of the young Prince of -Wales. -</p> - -<p> -"Fie upon the Scots! Out upon thee, Mon! -No warming-pan King! William for ever, and -down to hell with all Scots, Papists, and -Mass-mongers! hurrah!" yelled the rabble on every -hand, while vollies of mud, stones, dead cats, -&c., were showered on them from every hand. -Meanwhile their Dutch escort rode on each side -with the most phlegmatic indifference, every man -seeming as if fast asleep in his voluminous breeches -and wide jack-boots. -</p> - -<p> -"Down with the race of Gog—the soldiers of -the priests of Baal!" cried an old puritan; "down -with Scots Jemmy and his cursed Jesuits!" -</p> - -<p> -Weak and exhausted by constant marching, -lack of food and sleep; dispirited by misfortune, -and disfigured by mud and their torn and soiled -attire; in the captives no one could have -recognized the dashing cavaliers who passed northward -a day or two before. They had all been deprived -of their horses and arms, and been robbed of -everything of value—their cuirasses, purses, rings, -&c.—by their guard. De Ginckel was as brutal -and merciless as a Carrib Indian, and repeatedly -struck the unfortunate cavaliers with his -speaking-trumpet. -</p> - -<p> -"Ach Gott!" he often cried to his Ruyters; -"if von ob de brisoners escape, ye shall answer -for him, body for body, by cast ob dice on de -kettle-trum-head!" -</p> - -<p> -"My good comrades, and gallant gentlemen," -said the Earl of Dunbarton to the little group that -marched around him, "were it not that I feel in -my heart assured that an hour of vengeance and -retribution will come, I would die of sheer spleen -and mortification, for the insults we are compelled -to put up with." -</p> - -<p> -"I pity these bluff-headed Saxon boors, because -they know no better," replied Walter, staggering, -as a stone struck him on the temple; "but De -Ginckel——" -</p> - -<p> -"My dear fellow," said Finland, bitterly, "'tis -a sample of the good old southern hospitality and -kindness of which we hear so much in romance, -and so little in history." -</p> - -<p> -"But," continued Walter, "I despise these -poppy-headed Dutch poltroons in their black iron -doublets, and would risk my share of Heaven to -have De Ginckel under my hands on Scottish -ground, with none to interfere, and no weapons -but our rapiers and a case of good pistols." -</p> - -<p> -"You speak my thoughts," said the Earl, -through his clenched teeth. "My malediction on -Langstone and his Red Dragoons. Had they and -such as they been good men and true, we had not -been reduced to this misfortune; and our -misguided King, instead of being a houseless fugitive, -had dwelt in Windsor still, where now the -usurping Stadtholder keeps Court and Council. Sirs, -of a verity we live in strange times!" -</p> - -<p> -As they had now crossed the Nen, had left -behind old Peterborough (with the hoary fane -where St. Oswald's bony arm worked miracles of -old), and were marching through the open country, -being free from the yells and missiles of the mob, -they could converse with tolerable freedom, though -at times De Ginckel thundered silence through -his trumpet, or a Swart Ruyter, more waggish or -wickedly inclined than his soporific comrades, -pushed his horse sidelong to tumble one of the -captives among the half-frozen mud that -encumbered the roadways. Their mortification and -dejection increased at every step of their -retrograde march, and even the lively sallies of -Dr. Joram failed to enliven them. -</p> - -<p> -The sombre evening was closing, when De -Ginckel, with his Ruyters and their captives, -after traversing the fenny district between -Cambridge and Lincoln, came in sight of Huntingdon, -where, as Dr. Joram remarked, "the devil's god-son, -that prime rascal, old Noll, first drew breath." The -dying light of the winter sun tipped the spires -of the ancient town-hall and the church of All -Saints, and glimmered on the sluggish windings -of the Ouse. The prisoners were pursuing a -lonely road; on one side lay a thick copsewood, -and on the other one of those wide and desolate -fens then subject to the inundations of the Ouse, -whose waters in many places formed deep and -solitary meres or tarns. Within the recesses of -the wood, the quick eye of Walter had soon -detected the glitter of arms, to which he drew the -attention of the Earl. -</p> - -<p> -"It matters not," replied the dejected noble, -"no arms now glitter under James's standard; -we are lost men, my dear lad. It will be black -tidings for my little Lætitia, when the accursed -Tower of London holds the last Lord of Dunbarton." -</p> - -<p> -"And what thinkest thou, Walter, our dear -lassies will say when they hear we are in -Newgate?" asked Finland. -</p> - -<p> -"'Twill be rare news for the Lord Clermistonlee," -replied Walter, in a fierce whisper. "But -look, gentlemen!—behold! In Heaven's name, -are these friends or foes?" -</p> - -<p> -As he spoke, a troop of horse, clad in brilliant -armour, with their white plumes waving in the -evening wind, and their long uplifted rapiers -flashing in the setting sun, and all gallantly -mounted on matchless black horses, filed forth -from the coppice, and drew up like magic on the -roadway, about a hundred yards in advance of the -Swart Ruyters, who instantly reined-up. One -cavalier, splendidly accoutred, rode to the front, -wheeled round his snorting horse that pawed the -air, and issued his orders with stern rapidity— -</p> - -<p> -"Gentlemen of the Scottish Guard, prepare to -charge! Uncase the standards! Sound trumpets!" -</p> - -<p> -The banneroles were unfurled, the trumpets -sounded, the kettle-drums ruffled, and each brave -cavalier pressed forward in the saddle, as if -impatient for the order to rush to the charge. -</p> - -<p> -"Ach tuyfel!" shouted De Ginckel through his -trumpet; "Scots' Horse—der tuyfel! Sabre de -brisoners—cut dem into de towsand becies! Fall -on, you Schelms!" But there was no time. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis Claverhouse, and the remains of his -regiment. I would know his black steed among -a thousand horse!" exclaimed the Earl. "Now -God be with thee, thou gallant Grahame, for at -last our hour of vengeance is come! Oh for a -sword! How gallantly they formed line! Now, -now! forward, my Scottish hearts!" -</p> - -<p> -The dark eyes of the proud Douglas gleamed -with fire, as the deep and distinct order, -"Cavaliers of the Life Guard—forward! <i>charge!</i>" burst -from the lips of Dundee; and with the force of -a whirlwind, the sixty Scottish Guardsmen, bridle -to bridle and boot to boot, rushed with their -uplifted swords to the onset. -</p> - -<p> -"Unsling carbines—blow matches—fire!—tousand -tuyfels!—no!—traw sworts!" bellowed De -Ginckel through his trumpet, as the front rank -of his Ruyters recoiled in confusion on the rear. -</p> - -<p> -"Gentlemen, prepare to save yourselves!" -exclaimed the Earl of Dunbarton, as the Dutch -troopers cast off the cords that bound the -prisoners to their waist-belts. -</p> - -<p> -"Heaven save us!" ejaculated Dr. Joram; "'tis -a perilous case this, truly!" -</p> - -<p> -"To the rescue, Claverhouse! A Grahame! -A Grahame! God for Scotland and James VII.! -To the devil with the Stadtholder! hurrah!" cried -the Life Guards. -</p> - -<p> -It was a critical moment for the dismounted -prisoners, who were hemmed in among the hostile -horsemen, and each felt his heart beat like -lightning, and his breath come thick and fast, for -death or deliverance were at hand. -</p> - -<p> -Between the close files of the Swart Ruyters, -Walter Fenton saw the full rush of the advancing -troop, in their shining harness, and chief of all, -the lordly Viscount of Dundee, a lance-length in -front, with his sword brandished aloft, and his -white ostrich-feathers streaming behind him, his -cheek glowing, and his wild dark eyes flashing -with that supernatural brightness which was the -true index of his fierce and heroic spirit. Though -the Dutch were as four to one, the Scottish -cavaliers were fearless. -</p> - -<p> -There was a tremendous shock—a flashing of -swords, as their keen edges rang on the tempered -helmets and corslets of proof—a furious spurring -of horses—and Walter felt himself beaten to the -earth, as if by the force of a thunderbolt; the -light left his eyes, and he heard the voice of -Claverhouse exclaiming enthusiastically— -</p> - -<p> -"Well done, my Scots' Life Guard! Well -done, my berry-brown blades!" -</p> - -<p> -"Come on, De Ginckel!" cried Holsterlee. -</p> - -<p> -"Hand to hand, old gorbelly. Come on! for -here are the hand and sword that shall punch a -hole in thine Earl's patent!" -</p> - -<p> -A heavy hoof struck the head of Walter, as a -horse plunged over him, and the Dutch recoiled -in utter confusion. -</p> - -<p> -He remembered no more. -</p> - -<p> -Hewn down by the long swords of the Ruyters, -poor old Wemyss and Halbert Elshender lay dead -beside him. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap04"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IV. -<br /><br /> -THE SECRET STAIR. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Chloris! since first our calm of peace<br /> - Was frighted hence, this good we find,<br /> - Your favours with your fears increase,<br /> - And growing mischiefs make you kind.<br /> - EDMUND WALLER.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Heavily and slowly passed the cloudy winter -day at Clermiston, and evening found Lilian -seated, full of tears and misery, by the great fire -that rumbled in the arched chimney, and threw a -ruddy glow on the rough architecture of the -ancient hall. According to old etiquette, there -were but two chairs, one for the lord of the manor -and the other for his lady; the additional seats -were mere stools. Lilian occupied one of these -chairs, and her suitor the other. On one of the -stone benches within the ingle sat Juden Stenton -still trimming hawks' lures; opposite was Beatrix, -spinning with all the assiduity of Arachnè. These -from time to time regarded her with furtive -glances, which roused her anger not less than the -presence and odious attentions of their lord did her -apprehension. She felt a load accumulating on -her breast, as the night wore on; anxiety was -impairing her strength and weakening her -fortitude, and whenever Clermistonlee addressed her, -she answered only by tears. Touched at last by -her sorrow, a sentiment of generosity at times -would prompt him to return her to her home; -but other thoughts came with greater power, and -the momentary weakness was immediately dismissed. -</p> - -<p> -"Psha!" thought he; "'tis only a woman." -</p> - -<p> -Sitting close by her, he spoke from time to -time in a low voice; and the scorn, malice, and -jealousy which lighted up the keen grey eyes and -pinched features of the fallen and forgotten -Beatrix on these occasions, filled the gentle Lilian -with a horror and pity which she could not -conceal. The presence of this unfortunate woman, -who, with the indefatigable Juden, formed now -his entire household, was a curb for the present -on the vivacity of his lordship's passion, and -seemed to restrain it within the decorous bounds -of gentle whispering. He soon tired of that, and -ordering supper to be laid, took advantage of the -domestic's absence to draw his chair still nearer -Lilian, and take her hands within his own. She -was so humbled, so gentle and broken in spirit, -that she permitted them to remain, and the -passiveness of the action made the heart of -Clermistonlee glow with additional ardour. -</p> - -<p> -"She loves me in secret," thought he; "but -how charming is her coyness—how enchanting -her modesty! My dear Lilian—" -</p> - -<p> -"My Lord, oh cease to persecute me thus. -What wrong have I done you? In what have I -offended, that you should make me so utterly -miserable?" -</p> - -<p> -"What a soft, low, charming voice! Does it -offend you, to hear the sighs of the most -honourable love that ever warmed a human heart?" -</p> - -<p> -"This is the mere cant of love-making—flirtation—the -phrases you have addressed to hundreds. -My Lord, I know their full value, and despise -them. 'Tis enough! I can have no love for -you." -</p> - -<p> -"Indeed!" -</p> - -<p> -"None—so for heaven sake spare me more of -this humiliation, and let me begone to the house -of Bruntisfield." -</p> - -<p> -"Now what strange infatuation is this? No -love for me?" mused the egotist. "Why, -damsel, when I was in London with Charles, all the -women were mad about me—I was quite the rage. -Rochester and I led the way in everything. But -that was before Bothwell Brig." He glanced at -a veiled picture that often attracted his eye, and -disturbed the current of his thoughts. "No love -for me," he resumed, after a pause. "My pretty -one, does my zeal offend you?" -</p> - -<p> -"Like your flattery, it does; and my captivity -here—a captivity which, I fear, will ever -be a stain upon my honour, makes me abhor -you." -</p> - -<p> -"Abhor? Oh! 'tis a word never said to me -before. Provoking Lilian! But," he added, -maliciously, "you are right—your honour is lost, -and there is only one way to redeem it." -</p> - -<p> -She gave him a momentary glance of inquiry and -disdain. Clermistonlee drew a ring from his -finger. Lilian started back. -</p> - -<p> -"Never—never! death were better." -</p> - -<p> -"Hah—then you are still thinking of him—this -beggarly boy—this nameless soldier—this -so-named Fenton. 'Tis a cursed infatuation, Madam; -for doubtless, soldierlike he will forget you, while -the flower of your youth is wasted in fruitless -reliance on his constancy and advancement to -honour and fortune." -</p> - -<p> -"Forget me?" reiterated Lilian, raising her -bright blue eyes to the speaker. "Oh no, he never -will forget me! Dear, dear Walter," she added, -weeping bitterly; "I know thy worth and truth -too well to lose my own." -</p> - -<p> -"He will forget thee," said Clermistonlee, -angrily. -</p> - -<p> -"Never!" replied Lilian, energetically clasping -her hands. "In the busy city and on the lonely -hills, in the hour of battle and storm by sea and -land, he will ever think of me—ever, ever!" -</p> - -<p> -"But he may be slain?" said the lord maliciously. -</p> - -<p> -"Cruel—cruel!" -</p> - -<p> -"What then—hah?" -</p> - -<p> -"No second choice would ever make me violate -the solemn vow I pledged to him—that plight -which I called on heaven to witness and angels to -register." -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee made no reply, but her fervour -and her words stung him to the soul; her eyes -sparkled and her usually pale cheek glowed; but -he knew that it was for the love and by the -recollection of another; his first thoughts were those -of wrath; his second spleen and sorrow. He -arose and stepped aside a little. -</p> - -<p> -"Unfortunate that I am!" said he, with something -of sadness and real love in his tone and -manner. "By what witchcraft am I so hateful -to her; but I must quit her presence for a time at -least, or lose all hope of her favour for ever." -</p> - -<p> -He walked to and fro, while Lilian, resigned -again to tears, covered her face with her -handkerchief. -</p> - -<p> -"Beatrix," said Clermistonlee, in a fierce whisper -to the shrinking woman, as she laid supper on -the long dark oaken board, over which six tall -waxen candles flared from a great iron -candelabrum. "Beatrix Gilruth—hear me, old -shrivel-skin! Hast never a love philtre about thee? -Ere now I have known thee to my own cost use -such things." -</p> - -<p> -She gave a keen and fierce glance with her -sunken eyes, and drawing him into one of the -deeply bayed windows, pointed to where the -square keep and round towers of the castle of -Corstorphine threw a long dark shadow across the -frozen lake that, like a mirror before its gates, lay -shining in the cold light of the winter moon. -</p> - -<p> -"You see yonder castle?" she said. -</p> - -<p> -"Yes." -</p> - -<p> -"And the aged sycamore beside the dovecot-tower?" -</p> - -<p> -"Yes—yes." -</p> - -<p> -"Then remember how, nine years ago, the lord -of that fair mansion perished under its shadow; -and how his own good rapier, urged by the hand -of the woman he had wronged, was driven—yea, -to the very hilt—in his false and fickle heart. -Often at mirk midnight have I seen the dead-light -glimmering on his tomb in St. John's kirk, -and illuminating the west window of the -Forresters' aisle." -</p> - -<p> -She gave him a glance so expressive of hatred, -fear, contempt, and reproach that he almost -quailed beneath it; and as she pointed to the -veiled portrait, he turned abruptly away. Her -words and allusion had evidently a deep effect on -Clermistonlee. He was about to retire, but paused -irresolutely, turned, and paused again. Then -kissing Lilian's hand, he said in a gentle tone— -</p> - -<p> -"Forgive me if I have offended, but love for -you makes me perhaps act unwisely. Adieu, dear -Lilian: if my presence is obnoxious, I hasten to -relieve you of it. Till to morrow, adieu; and -pleasant dreams to you." -</p> - -<p> -He bowed profoundly, and retired to his own -apartment followed by Juden, who kept close to -his heels as a spaniel would have done. -</p> - -<p> -"Will you not sup, Madam Lilian?" asked -Beatrix in a kinder tone than usual. -</p> - -<p> -"Sup—oh, no!" -</p> - -<p> -"Bethink you, lady; the whole day hath passed, -and you have tasted nothing but a posset of milk -with a little sack. Still weeping! 'Twas so with -me once; but I shall never weep again, until I -have wrung tears of blood from my betrayer." -</p> - -<p> -"Now you are going to frighten me again. A -light, if it please you, good woman; I will retire. -Another night under his roof! My poor aunt -Grisel.... how bad, how wicked is this!" -</p> - -<p> -"My lord desired me to ask if you wished to -read a little: it may compose your mind." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, yes!—a thousand thanks, kind Beatrix. -Bring me a Bible, if you have one." -</p> - -<p> -Beatrix laughed. -</p> - -<p> -"A Bible! when was one last seen in the tower -of Clermiston? Not since the days of auld Mess -John, I warrant; and his was torn up by the -troopers for cartridges. There is nothing here -but a rowth of evil play and jest books, and some -anent hawking, hunting, and farriery, and others, -my bairn, that suit only—women like me." -</p> - -<p> -"Poor Beatrix!" said Lilian kindly, touching -her hand, for the exceeding humility of her manner -raised all her pity. Beatrix surveyed her for a -moment, with a troubled and dubious expression. -Seldom was it that a word of compassion or -commiseration fell upon her ear. Her heart was -touched; a moisture suffused her eyes; but, fearing -to betray her feelings through the outward aspect -of moroseness and misanthropy she had assumed, -she set a light upon the cabinet of the bedchamber, -and hurried away. -</p> - -<p> -Again, as on the preceding night, Lilian fastened -the door; and though the number and complication -of its ancient iron locks somewhat reassured -her, her heart sank when she surveyed the great -gloomy tester-bed, with its dais, its solemn -plumage and festooned canopy—the sombre -wainscotting, and well-barred window, past which the -changing clouds were hurrying in scudding masses, -alternately obscuring and revealing stars. Kneeling -at a chair near the fire, she prayed long and -fervently, and, with innocent confidence, arose -more assured and courageous, though aware that, -by anxiety, want of food and rest, her natural -strength and spirit were greatly impaired. A folio -volume lay upon the cabinet; it was covered with -purple velvet, on which a coat of arms and these -words were exquisitely embroidered:—"Alison, -Lady Clermistonlee, on her marriage day, ye -penult Maij, 1668." -</p> - -<p> -The hand of her tormentor's unhappy wife had -probably worked these words; all the dark and -mysterious stories concerning her misfortunes and -her fate came crowding upon the mind of Lilian, -and filled her with melancholy forebodings. -Perhaps, thought she, this was her chamber, and that -her bed, where often she had wept away the dreary -night in unseen and unregarded sorrow. Full of -mournful interest, she unclasped and opened the -volume. It was the "Bentivolio and Urania" of -Nathaniel Ingelo, one of the prosy and -metaphorical romances of the seventeenth century. -The first words arrested her, and she read on. -</p> - -<p> -"He was no sooner entered within the borders -of the forlorn kingdom of Ate, than the -unhealthfulness of the air had almost choked his vital -spirits; and being removed from the gladsome sun -by a chain of hills, that lifted up their heads so -high that they intercepted the least glance of his -comfortable beams: it was dark and rueful. He -chanced to light upon a path that led to Ate's -house, which was encompassed with the pitchy -shade of cypresse and ebon trees, so that it looked -like the region of death. As he walked, he -perceived the hollow pavement made with the skulls -of murdered wretches. At the further end of this -dismal walk he espied a court, whose gates stand -open day and night; in the midst whereof was -placed the image of cruelty, with a cup of poyson -in one hand, and a dagger wet with reeking -bloode in the other. Her hairs crawled up and -down her neck, and sometimes wreathed about her -head in knots of snakes; fire all the while sparkling -from her mouth and eyes......" -</p> - -<p> -This dismal passage in no way tended to alleviate -the perturbation of her spirits; and, hastily -closing the volume, she prepared to retire. Aware -that proper repose was absolutely necessary to -enable her to sustain all she might have to -encounter or endure from Clermistonlee, remembering -the apparent security of her apartment, and -somewhat reassured by the cheerful blaze thrown -by the fire upon the dark brown panelling and -high old-fashioned bed, she slowly and reluctantly -began to undress, often pausing to re-examine her -room; but, perceiving nothing more to alarm her, -gathering up the bright tresses of her hair into a -caul, she unrobed and sprang into bed. The sleep -and the heaviness that preyed upon her now -completely evaporated; and, more awake than ever, -she felt only the keenest sensations of fear, and -her prevailing horror was Clermistonlee. By the -light of the wood fire, that poured its broad blaze -up the massive stone chimney, she surveyed the -room with watchful eyes, that ached from the -very intensity of their gaze, and the shadows of -the carved posts seemed like those of giants thrown -against the panelled wall. -</p> - -<p> -Weariness overcame her, and she was about to -drop asleep, when a sound was heard, and one of -the doors of the cabinet rattled and opened; a cold -wind blew upon her face; and by her recumbent -position, she beheld a steep staircase winding away -down into darkness she knew not where, between -the masonry of the massive wall. She would have -screamed, but terror chained her tongue; and -almost fainting, and afraid to move or breathe, -she continued to regard it with the most painful -anguish and intense alarm. But up that dark and -mysterious outlet, so suddenly disclosed, no sound -came but the night wind, which moved the oak -door of the cabinet mournfully to and fro. -</p> - -<p> -Lilian's strength seemed utterly to have left -her; and, though painfully anxious to learn the -secrets of this staircase, which communicated so -immediately with her bedchamber, she lacked -equally strength to rise, and presence of mind to -examine it. -</p> - -<p> -But the current of air that swayed the door to -and fro, closed it; the sound rumbled away in the -far echoes of the tower, and all became still. Now -more alarmed by the reflection that she was -sleeping in this remote room alone, with a secret -entrance, she bitterly regretted her imprudence in -undressing, but had not the courage to rise and -repair what a certain prophetic apprehension -made her fear had been very unwise. -</p> - -<p> -Excessive lassitude at last completely overcame -her, and she slumbered. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap05"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER V. -<br /><br /> -THE ATTEMPT. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Once in a lone and secret hour of night,<br /> - When every eye was closed, and the pale moon<br /> - And stars alone shone conscious of the theft,<br /> - Hot with the Tuscan grape, and high in blood,<br /> - Haply I stole unheeded to her chamber.<br /> - FAIR PENITENT.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -When Clermistonlee retired from the hall to -the study or parlour, which was the only comfortably -furnished apartment in the dreary old tower, -he resigned himself to reflection, and sipping his -mulled sack, a great tankard of which Juden placed -unbidden, and quite as a matter of course, at his -elbow. His thoughts at first ran in the usual -channel,—a determination to possess Lilian, from -the double incentives of passion and pecuniary -necessity. He was on the brink of ruin; and her -property, or expectations of it, were ample and -noble. She was very unprotected; the land was -convulsed and trembling on the verge of a great -civil war, though as yet no tidings had reached -Edinburgh of what was passing in England; and -so, as the sack diminished in the tankard, his -lordship's thoughts became in proportion more strange, -more amorous, and confused. His brain wandered. -He was restless and uneasy; his flowing dressing-gown -seemed to fit him like a horse-hair shirt; -and his disturbed manner was not unobserved by -his faithful and subservient factotum. -</p> - -<p> -The latter attempted some consolation, after his -fashion; but it was not palatable. -</p> - -<p> -"Begone to the bartizan!" exclaimed his master, -angrily, "and bring me instant tidings if -anything seems astir in the country about us. -I expect news from the city hourly. Leave me." -</p> - -<p> -Juden vanished. -</p> - -<p> -"The deevil tak' lovers and lords!" he muttered, -as he drew his broad worsted bonnet over -his cross visage, and ascended to the bartizan of -the tower, and setting his teeth hard, as he faced -the keen north wind, took a survey of the dreary -and snow-covered landscape. On the passing -wind ten o'clock came sullenly from the spire of -St. John of Corstorphine; then all was deathly -still save the sough of the winter breeze as it -swept over the dreary Lee, and whistled through -the open corbells of the projecting tower. -</p> - -<p> -Juden had no particular fancy for enacting the -part of warder in so cold a night, and after taking -a rapid survey of the extensive waste, he was -about to descend again, when an unusual redness -in the sky to the eastward arrested him. It rose -in the direction of the city, and resembled the -lurid and wavering glow of a great conflagration. -The red blaze was rapidly spreading and crimsoning -the edges of the dusky clouds above, and -throwing forward in strong relief the southern -edge of the Corstorphine Kills, and the dark pines -that shaded them. Astonished, perplexed, and -alarmed, Juden continued to gaze in the direction -of the light, until a loud hollo startled him, and -he perceived a man on horseback close to the foot -of the tower. -</p> - -<p> -"Ho!" cried Juden through his hand, for the -wind blew keen and high. "What want ye, -friend?" -</p> - -<p> -"No a night's lodging, or I wadna come here," -answered the other testily. "Closed gates and -dark windows betoken cauld cheer and a caulder -ingle." -</p> - -<p> -"Beware o' your tongue, friend," replied the -butler from aloft. "Langer lugs than yours hae -been nailed to the tower yett. You have come -frae Edinburgh I warrant?" -</p> - -<p> -"Troth have I, on the spur, man, so open the -yett, Juden Stenton." -</p> - -<p> -"What's a' the steer there this night?" -</p> - -<p> -"Gif you had been there ye wad ken," -responded the other with sulky importance. "I -bear a letter for my Lord Clermistonlee on the -king's service, which king Gude kens and the -Deil cares." -</p> - -<p> -"Thir are kittle times, friend," replied the -butler, warily; "so if King James himsel' came -to the peel o' Clermiston this mirk night, not a -bolt would be drawn, or a lock undone. Tie the -letter to this twine, gossip, and sae gang your way -in peace." -</p> - -<p> -Rendered cautious by the nature of the times, -and by being constantly on the alert against force -and treachery, the wary old servitor lowered over -the wall a string, to which after sundry curses -the horseman tied a letter, and Juden towed it up, -"hand over hand." -</p> - -<p> -"Ill folk are aye feared," said the stranger; -"and I doubt there are but few clear consciences -in Clermistonlee. My horse is sair forfoughton -wi' my ride frae the West Port; he fell at the -Foulbrigs, and was nigh swept awa' when fording -the Leith doon by there; but I maun een ride on -to his honor the Laird o' Niddry without a stirrup -cup or a 'God save ye.' Out upon Clermiston -and its ill-mannered loons!" and dashing spurs -into his horse, the servant galloped at a hunting -pace away to the westward, and disappeared -among the hollows at the verge of the Lee. -</p> - -<p> -Anxious to learn the contents of a letter in -which he doubted not he had as much interest as -his Lord, Juden hurried down the corkscrew -stair from the bartizan, and repairing to the little -study where his half-muddled master was gazing -dreamily into the fire, and imbibing his sixth cup -of sack, he placed the little square billet before -him. Clermistonlee tore it open, and read -hurriedly, -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"Dear Gossip, -</p> - -<p> -"A glorious revolution hath been accomplished, -(and I am just drinking to its success in -sugared brandy,) but Satan seems to have broken -loose in the city, whilk the rascal sort hath fired -in six different places. The acts of Estate and -Council are mere nullities. Your presence is -required by the Council anent ane address to the -new king. We are to have a grand onslaught -to-morrow against Baal's prophets, the Host of -Pharaoh, and a' that, ye ken. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - "Yrs. at service,<br /> - "MERSINGTON."<br /> -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Postscriptum</i>.—Keep the bonnie bird in the -cage close; her kinsman Napier hath been slain -by young Fenton, and ye know how the entail -stands. Vale! King William the Second of -Scotland for ever!" -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee's first impulse was to start up -and buckle on his sword, exclaiming, -</p> - -<p> -"My gambadoes, Juden; the red leather ones—saddle -Meg, and, peril of thy life, look well to—but -no—no! I will not. Thou mayest go to the -devil, Mersington, with thy drunken scrawl, the -address, and the Council to boot. I leave not -Clermiston to-night. Napier slain—and by -Fenton! By George, how the plot is thickening! -'Tis glorious. Juden, don your shabble, and ride -to the city; tell my gossip Mersington in the -<i>matter</i> pending, mark me, knave! in the matter -pending to use my name as he shall deem -fitting." -</p> - -<p> -Juden replied by a leer of deep cunning (for he -too was something of a politician), and, animated -by an intense curiosity to know what was acting -in the city, hurried away, and in ten minutes had -left far behind him the dreary tower and frozen -muir, above which its dark outline reared like that -of a spectre. -</p> - -<p> -As the fumes of the wine mounted upward, the -heated imagination and inflamed passions of -Clermistonlee got completely the better of his senses. -Thoughts of Lilian's beauty and helplessness came -vividly before him; but such reflections instead -of kindling his pity, roused all his passion for her -to an ungovernable height. Draining a cup of -brandy to make him yet more reckless of -consequences, and snatching a candle, he staggered -from the room, and descended the narrow stone -stair that led from his apartment. -</p> - -<p> -He knew that he was alone, for Beatrix was -under lock and key; yet he stepped with singular -caution. Every stone in the rough walls seemed -a grotesque face, regarding him with mockery and -wrath; he saw a figure in every shadow, heard a -step in every whistle of the midnight wind. He -dared not look at portraits as he passed, lest their -eyes might seem to move; and thus, though the -entire consciousness of his dark intent came -broadly and appallingly home to his heart, such -was the influence of his ungoverned passions that -a spirit of the merest obstinacy urged him to -finish what he in part commenced, and the high -pulsations of his heart increased at every step -which brought him nearer to the chamber of his -victim. -</p> - -<p> -He entered the hall. The feeble rays of his -upheld candle seemed only to reveal the size and -darkness of the place, and the grey winter twilight -that struggled through its thickly grated and -deeply-arched windows. The embers of the fire -still smouldered on the hearth, and, reddening -when the hollow wind rumbled down the wide -chimney, threw the shadows of the great oaken -table, the dark grotesque cabinets and highbacked -chairs in long and frightful figures on the paved floor. -</p> - -<p> -Entering the almonry, he opened a door, within -it, which revealed a narrow passage in the wall -that communicated with the secret outlets of the -place, and led directly to the cabinet in Lilian's -room. -</p> - -<p> -He stood within it, and the warmth of its -atmosphere increased the ferment of his blood. -Unconscious of the proximity of so dangerous a -visitor, the innocent girl slept soundly, but lightly. -</p> - -<p> -Shading the light with his hand, he gazed -impatiently upon the slumbering beauty. -</p> - -<p> -Her hair, which overnight she had put up with -the carelessness so natural to grief, had now -escaped from the caul, and rolled over the pillow -in masses that glittered like gold in the rays of -the uncertain light. She was very pale, but a -slight glow began to redden her cheek, and it was -graced with a smile of inexpressible sweetness. -</p> - -<p> -Twice he approached, and twice drew back -irresolute. -</p> - -<p> -An unseen hand seemed to restrain him; the -air of perfect innocence pervading the presence of -the sleeping girl protected her for a time; and -scarcely daring to breathe, the intruder continued -to gaze upon her. She slept softly. At last, -tears fell over her cheeks, and she tenderly -murmured— -</p> - -<p> -"Dear Walter, have I not said that I love you?" -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee, on whose bent-down cheek her -soft breath came, started at these words as if a -serpent had stung him. One of those fierce, -malicious, and scornful smiles, which so often -imparted to his handsome features a fiendish -expression, contracted them but for a moment; -another of intense sadness and languor replaced -it. At that instant, unable longer to restrain -himself, he clasped her in his arms. -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian!" he exclaimed, "dear Lilian, be not -alarmed—it is I." -</p> - -<p> -A piercing shriek, that startled the furthest -recesses of the old and desolate tower, burst from -the lips of Lilian; it was one of those deep and -wailing cries of pain and horror which, when once -heard, are never forgot. -</p> - -<p> -"Villain, unhand me! Oh! spare me, my -Lord—spare me for the love of God!" -</p> - -<p> -"Be calm, Lilian—why should you fear me? -Do I not adore you? Yes; I prize your love -beyond the possession of life. Dear girl, look -not on me thus. I am the most devoted of lovers, -and by this kiss, dearest——d—nation!" -</p> - -<p> -He attempted to kiss her; but, endued with -new strength by rage and fear, her little hands -clutched fiercely his thick mustachios, and twisted -his head aside, as she had done once before so -effectually. -</p> - -<p> -"Hear me!" he continued, "hear me, sweet -Lilian; I came but to say that I loved thee——." -</p> - -<p> -"Love me! oh! horror!—leave me, or I shall -expire—leave me!" -</p> - -<p> -At that moment a loud explosion, followed by -the fanfare of trumpets and the ruffling of -kettle-drums beneath the walls of the tower arrested all -the faculties of Clermistonlee, and by throwing -his thoughts into another channel, covered him -with shame; and he started back, the image of -astonishment and irresolution. -</p> - -<p> -Not so Lilian; her presence of mind was -instantly restored. Springing to a window, and -fearlessly dashing her hands through the panes of -glass, she cried in agonized accents— -</p> - -<p> -"Help! help! for the love of the blessed God! -Help me, or I perish!" -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian! Lilian!" cried a voice that filled her -with transport. It was that of Walter Fenton. -</p> - -<p> -A glance sufficed to show her a gallant troop of -horse halted beneath the tower in the grey -morning twilight. Again she would have spoken, but -the strong hand of Clermistonlee dragged her -furiously back into the apartment. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap06"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VI. -<br /><br /> -EDINBURGH—THE NIGHT OF THE REVOLUTION. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Meanwhile, regardless of the royal cause,<br /> - His sword for James no brother sov'raign draws.<br /> - The Pope himself, surrounded with alarms,<br /> - To France his bulls, to Corfu sends his arms;<br /> - And though he hears his darling son's complaint,<br /> - Can hardly spare one tutelary saint.<br /> - TICKELL, Edit. 1749.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -From the hour in which Lilian had been torn -from her, the ased Lady Grisel had never raised -her head. Affection and horror, wrath and -insulted pride, had all aggravated to the utmost the -weakness and debility consequent to exceeding -old age; and by her weeping domestics the -venerable dame was borne to her great chair in the -Chamber-of-Dais, where she remained long -insensible to all that passed around her. -</p> - -<p> -The storm and hurry of political events -employed otherwise Sir Thomas Dalyel and those -friends who might have served her in this -dilemma; and now she found herself quite -deserted. -</p> - -<p> -Syme the baillie, and the whole male population -of the barony had fruitlessly searched the -Burghmuir for the remainder of the night and -morning; but, for reasons which will shortly be -apparent, any application to the Privy Council or -magistrates of Edinburgh would have been utterly -futile, as their attention was amply occupied by -more important matters than the abduction of a -girl. -</p> - -<p> -Long fits of stupor, succeeded by querulous -bursts of passion, left the poor old lady so weak, -that, as Elsie related to Sir Thomas of Binns, -"between the night and morning, she cried on -Sir Archibald <i>to save</i> her doo Lilian; and then -she just soughed awa like a blink o' the sunshine, -and lay back under her canopy in the Chaumer-o'-Deese, -a comely corpse to see as ever was streekit." -</p> - -<p> -The old lady did not die, however, but recovered -her senses by having a pistol fired at her -ear by the rough old Muscovite trooper, "a cure -for the vapours, whilk," he said, "he had often -seen practised on Samoieda." -</p> - -<p> -As before related, in consequence of the -vigilance of Sir James Montgomerie, the Privy -Council and people of Scotland had been kept for -several weeks in a state of painful uncertainty as -to the fate of James's affairs in England: but a -letter from Lord Dundee reached the Scottish -ministry, expressive of apprehensions for the issue -of a conflict between the troops of the King and -those of his invader. -</p> - -<p> -To ascertain the true aspect of affairs, they -despatched into England a man named Brand, -a baillie of Edinburgh, who basely betrayed his -trust by carrying his despatches straight to -the Prince of Orange, to whom he was introduced -by Dr. Burnet. -</p> - -<p> -On Craigdarroch's arrival at the Scottish capital, -and others with similar tidings of the desertion -and dissolution of the army, the flight of James, -and success of William, the long-threatening storm -burst forth in all its fury. Scotland at that time -swarmed with brave and hardy soldiers, skilful -officers, ruined barons, and desperate vassals—the -veterans of the Covenant, and the endless wars of -Sweden, France, and Flanders; thus, ingloriously -as the campaign had passed over in the south, a -cloud was gathering on the Highland hills, that -threatened to descend, as of yore, in wrath and -blood on the fertile Lowlands. -</p> - -<p> -Infuriated by the severities of what was called -the "twenty-eight years' persecution," the Lowland -population were ripe for armed revolt, and -the capital, to which they flocked in overwhelming -masses, became the grand centre of their -operations, and the scene of newer atrocities. The -greatest outrages were committed upon the -persons and property of those unhappy Catholics, -Episcopalians, and cavaliers, who fell into the -hands of this wild mob. -</p> - -<p> -Perth, the Lord Chancellor fled; the Privy -Council, which had been severe to the nation, in -proportion as it was servile to James, dispatched -an immediate address to William, and none were -more cordial in their offers of dutiful service than -Provost Prince, and the worthy council of Edinburgh: -those very men who had so lately declared -to the unfortunate Stuart, that they "would stand -by his sacred person on all occasions." Now -they were equally prompt in offers to his -dethroner, to whom they complained bitterly "of -the hellish attempts of Romish incendiaries, and -of the just grievances of all men relating to -conscience, liberty, and property." -</p> - -<p> -For three days the capital was in the power of -a mad and lawless rabble, who, rendered furious -by bigotry and intoxication, committed the most -dreadful atrocities. -</p> - -<p> -The houses of all who were obnoxious to them -were plundered and given to the flames, and all -effects of value were scattered in the streets. -There were episodes of horror ensued such as -Edinburgh had never witnessed before. The -streets were filled with the smoke of burning -houses; the air was sheeted with flame; the -shrieks of the perishing inmates, the howls of -their destroyers, and the crash of falling masonry, -rang night and day. The college of the Jesuits -was levelled to the dust; crosses, and reliques, -statues, pictures, and vestments were borne aloft -through the streets, and consigned to the flames -amid yells of derision. -</p> - -<p> -The ale and wine found in the cellars of the -cavaliers, inflamed the inborn savagism of the -multitude, who were urged by their ministers to -commit a thousand nameless atrocities. For three -days they continued in a state of perfect -intoxication (says Lord Balcarris in his <i>Memoirs</i>), and -in open daylight, in the crowded streets of the -city, committed upon the persons of many Catholic -ladies such outrages as cannot be written, and -"without any attempt being made by the authorities -to restrain such brutality." (pp. 22, 27.) -</p> - -<p> -Of all the members of the old government none -was more obnoxious to the people than Sir George -Mackenzie, of Rosehaugh, the celebrated lawyer -and essayist, who had rendered himself an object -of intense hatred, by the severity with which he -had stretched the criminal laws to answer the -views of the Government; and who, in his office -of Public Prosecutor, had obtained the unenviable -soubriquet of "the persecutor of God's saints," -"the blood-thirsty advocate," "bluidy Mackenzie;" -and to this hour his vaulted mausoleum at -Edinburgh is regarded with hatred and loathing -by the old Cameronians and "true blue" Presbyterians. -</p> - -<p> -His mansion in Rosehaugh Close was soon -made the object of attack. The night of the -third day had closed over the city, and still the -scene of tumult and frenzy, the din and the flames -of destruction, loaded the air with sounds of horror -and outrage. -</p> - -<p> -In great anxiety for his personal safety, the -unhappy statesman heard with no ordinary -perturbation the increasing roar of sounds, like the -chafing of a distant sea; the mingling of a myriad -human voices, and the rush of feet, which -betokened the approach of a vast mob. -</p> - -<p> -With drums beating before them, and armed -with various weapons, the thousand bright points -of which gleamed in the lurid blaze of the uplifted -torches, a dense mass of ragged, squalid, and -insane-looking men, poured like a human flood -into the deep and narrow alley at the foot of -which still stands the house of Rosehaugh. -Begrimed with smoke and filth, maddened by -intoxication and excess, their yells as they -resounded between the solid walls of the narrow -street, rang like those of fiends from some deep -abyss, and the heart of Mackenzie died away -within him. To appeal to their pity would be -like craving mercy from the waves of an angry -ocean? there was no escape, no remedy, no bribe, -no hope; for among that terrible mob were the -fathers, the sons, the brothers—yea, and the -mothers of those who at his instance had perished -in thousands, by the sword, by the torture, and -the gibbet, or were lingering out a miserable -existence as slaves and bondsmen in the distant -Indies. -</p> - -<p> -"My God! my God! for what am I reserved?" -he exclaimed, as from a lofty upper window he -surveyed the dense mass of madmen, who, wedged -in the alley below, impeded each other's motions. -Conspicuous above all, raised on the shoulders of -two strong men, whose arms and faces were smeared -with blood and blackness, there was upborne a -man, whose sad-coloured garments and white -bands announced him a preacher; his gaunt -visage and long hair of raven hue waving around -a face ghastly, though flashed with passion, his -large hazel eyes glowing like those of a tiger, -his upraised hands clenching one a bible, and the -other a broadsword, declared him a wild -enthusiast (another "Habakuk Mucklewrath"). -</p> - -<p> -It was Ichabod Bummel, who had escaped from -the damp vaults of the wave-beaten Bass, and had -now come to take vengeance on Mackenzie for his -exile, his captivity, his crushed bones, and long -persecution. -</p> - -<p> -"Come forth, Achan, thou troubler of Israel!" -he shrieked; "come forth, thou destroyer of the -good and just, thou persecutor of the saints of -God! come forth, thou thing that art accursed, or -we will burn thee in the ruins of thy dwelling, -and salt them with salt. Courage, my brethren! -Oh, is not this a brave hour and a glorious one? -For lo, the time is come when the host of -Pharaoh shall be discomfited and stricken as of old. -Achan, thou persecutor of the covenanted kirk, -behold me towering amid Baal's prophets, four -hundred and fifty men, as the book saith!" -</p> - -<p> -This rhapsody was responded to with yells of -ardour, and the din of hammers rang like thunder -against the strong oaken door of the mansion, -while many bullets were discharged at the -windows, which were securely grated. A door of -massive oak closed the entrance of the turnpike -stair, and though the whole house resounded -under the energy of the blows, the barrier refused -to yield, though gradually it was falling in splinters, -a process too slow to suit the fierce impatience of -the increasing mob. -</p> - -<p> -"Let fire be brought," cried Ichabod, "let the -mansion be consumed, that its flames may be as -a light to the house of Judah. Know, O thou -persecutor of God's covenanted saints, that a -sword is this night upon the inhabitants of -Babylon, and upon her princes, and her mighty -men; for it is the load of graven images, and they -are mad upon their idols." -</p> - -<p> -Urged by this blasphemous application of -Scripture, burning brands were heaped by the -people against the door, and soon the increased -yells of satisfaction announced to the miserable -advocate that the barrier was rapidly giving way, -and that in another moment the reeking hands of -the destroyers would be upon him. He threw -round a glance of agony, the barred windows -denied all hope of escape, and now his stern soul -sank at the prospect of a cruel and immediate -death, when lo! one tremendous yell of another -import brought him once more to the shattered -windows. "It is a dream!" he exclaimed. -</p> - -<p> -A troop of the Royal Life Guards, with their -bright arms flashing in the light of the waving -torches, were hewing and treading down the mob -like a field of rye; and chief above all shone one -cavalier—it was Dundee—the gallant, the terrible -Claver'se, that man-fiend, whom all deemed six -hundred miles away. There was no mistaking -the splendour of his armour, the nobility of his -air, the ferocity of his purpose. -</p> - -<p> -"Close up—fall on, gentlemen; no quarter to -the knaves!" he exclaimed, while, standing erect -in his stirrups, he showered his blows on every -side, his white plumes rising and falling in unison -with his trenchant rapier. -</p> - -<p> -"Hey for King James! Ho for the cavaliers! -Down with the rebels—down with the whigamores!" -cried Holsterlee and others, as they -pressed forward, and the rabble grovelled in the -dust beneath the tremendous rush of the heavy -horses, and their riders in steel and buff. In a -minute the narrow alley was cleared of the living, -and piled knee-deep with dead and dying. The -shrill voice of Ichabod, as he was borne off by his -disciples, was heard dying away in the distance, -like that of an evil spirit carried away by a stormy -wind. -</p> - -<p> -By something like a miracle, Lord Dundee had -traversed the whole of hostile England, and -though menaced on every hand by great bodies of -troops, had reached his native capital in safety; -bringing with him not only the sixty cavalier -troopers (who of all his cavalry alone remained -staunch to him), but with them Walter Fenton, -Lord Dunbarton, Finland, and other officers -retaken from De Ginckel. They now rode under -his orders as gentlemen-troopers, mounted on -heavy black chargers that had whilome belonged -to the Swart Ruyters; and the whole, with -standards displayed, had entered the city about -an hour before the assault on Rosehaugh's house. -</p> - -<p> -The Rev. Dr. Joram, late chaplain to the Royal -Scots, also bestrode a horse which he had taken -as his spoil in battle; and had donned a trooper's -corslet, with which his clerical bob-periwig -consorted as oddly as with the fierce and tipsy -expression of his flushed and florid face, and with -the stern cock of the Monmouth beaver that -surmounted it. The gallant divine had recently -imbibed so much wine that he could scarcely keep -his saddle. -</p> - -<p> -Of the fate of their captured comrades they as -yet knew nothing; but Gavin of that Ilk, with -twenty other officers and five hundred men, were -then at London, close prisoners; the rest had -returned to their colours; and after a time, the -whole, seeing the futility of resistance, ultimately -embarked peaceably under the orders of their new -commander, the veteran Duke de Schomberg. -None were punished, "as the new government -had not yet been fully recognized in Scotland." -</p> - -<p> -Rosehaugh had been saved from a terrible -immolation; but the services of the night were not -yet over. Claverhouse, with his cavaliers, retired -to a quiet part of the city, under protection of the -castle batteries, where a brave garrison of Catholic -soldiers, led by the Duke of Gordon, remained -yet staunch to James. -</p> - -<p> -"My lord Earl," said Dundee to Dunbarton, -"we must be somewhat economical of our persons -and horses, when encountering these mad burghers -and drunken saints, and not forget that we are -the last hope of the King in this hotbed of -Presbytery and rebellion." -</p> - -<p> -"True," replied the Earl, "and I rejoice that -we have but few to regret, and few to mourn for -us if we perish in the struggle on which we are -about to plunge." -</p> - -<p> -The eyes of the Viscount filled with dusky -fire. -</p> - -<p> -"Dunbarton," said he, "I am alone in the -world. Our grateful King has given me honours -to which none can succeed, for I have cast the die -by which they are lost for ever; and nowhere can -my coronet be more gloriously surrendered than -on the battle-field." -</p> - -<p> -"I thank Heaven that the Countess, my dear -little Lætitia, is in England," said the Earl, -pointing to the lurid flames that from the blazing -houses of the Abbey-hill flashed along the -shadowy vista of the Canongate, glowing redly under -the arch of the Nether Bow, and throwing forward -in bold relief a thousand fantastic projections of -the old Flemish mansions that reared up their -giant fronts on either hand. "I thank Heaven -that she is in a safer place than this poor city of -wild fanatics." -</p> - -<p> -"Would that I could say the same of Lilian!" -thought Walter, with a deep sigh. "Can she be -safe amid all this dreadful uproar?" -</p> - -<p> -At that moment a dense rabble approached, -with drums beating, torches blazing, and weapons -glinting. -</p> - -<p> -"To the Palace! to the Abbey!" cried a -thousand hoarse voices. "Let us pull doon the -temple of the Idolater, and gie his fause gods to -the flames!" and they swept forward, greeting -the troop of Guards with yells of hatred and -menace. -</p> - -<p> -They were led—by whom? Lord Mersington, -with his wig awry, his clothes soiled with dust, -and his face flushed with exertion! The Earl of -Balcarris relates "that this fanatical judge, with -a halbert in his hand, and drunk as ale and brandy -could make him," led on the rabble to the assault -of time-hallowed Holyrood; but before reaching -the eastern extremity of the city, his followers -were joined by the trained bands in their buff -coats and bandoleers, the magistrates, and other -authorities, who vested this lawless mob with an -air of order and official importance. -</p> - -<p> -"Will those villains really dare to molest the -palace of our kings?" said Dundee, his eyes -kindling, as he looked after the revolters, and -reined-up his impatient horse. -</p> - -<p> -"What will they not dare?" rejoined Dunbarton; -"but I doubt not they will experience a -warm reception. Wallace, who commands the -guard, is a brave cavalier as ever drew sword, and -the traitors will make nothing of it." -</p> - -<p> -"Under favour, my Lords," said Fenton, -"they are in great numbers, and I have -misgivings as to the issue." -</p> - -<p> -"Wallace—he is an old friend of mine," said -Finland. "'Sdeath! we've seen some sharp -work together on the frontiers of Flanders; and -with your permission, my Lords, I will take a -turn of service with him to-night." -</p> - -<p> -"As you please," replied the Viscount; -"Dunbarton commands here, though he rides in my -troop. Go—ha, ha! two heads are better than -one." -</p> - -<p> -"I go then; and yonder fanatical senator may -beware how he comes within reach of my hand." -</p> - -<p> -"Thy riding-whip, say rather." -</p> - -<p> -"I volunteer also," said Walter, who was under -great anxiety to have an opportunity of visiting -Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -"And I too," added the Reverend Jonadab -Joram. "I long to encounter with bible and -bilbo, yonder preacher of sedition, that urges on -this unhanged rout of traitors. For know ye, -gentlemen, (hiccup) that one preacher is better in -Scotland than twenty drummers to find recruits -for the devil's service; so, in his own phraseology, -I will gird up my loins, and go forth to battle -against them. Come on, gallants! Ho, for King -James, and down with the whigamores! Rub-a-dub, -rub-a-dub——" -</p> - -<p> -"Beware, sirs, for the good cause has not many -such spirits to spare," said Claver'se, as they -dashed spurs into their horses, and making a -detour down one narrow wynd and up another, -reached without interruption the deep groined -archway of the Palace Porch, an ancient gothic -edifice, heavily turreted and battlemented. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap07"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VII. -<br /><br /> -SACK OF HOLYROOD. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Twas a dream of the ages of darkness and blood,<br /> - When the ministers' home was the mountain and wood;<br /> - The musquets were flashing, the blue swords were gleaming,<br /> - The helmets were cleft, and the red blood was streaming;<br /> - The heavens grew dark, and the thunder was rolling,<br /> - When on Welwood's dark muirland the mighty were falling.<br /> - ANONYMOUS.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"Welcome, gentlemen," exclaimed Wallace; -"I never stood in such need of advice and -comradeship." -</p> - -<p> -He was a handsome man, above six feet in -height; his gold-coloured cuirass and buff coat, -laced with silver, announced him a captain; the -slouch of his broad Spanish hat, with its drooping -plumes, and the tie of his voluminous white silk -scarf, gave him inimitable grace. -</p> - -<p> -"Welcome, Finland, to share the poor cheer -and hard fighting of Holyrood. By Mahoun! but -times are changed with the King's soldiers. I have -endured a three days' siege here, and matters are -not likely to mend." -</p> - -<p> -"No; a rabble, many thousands strong, by all -the devils! the very riddlings of St. Ninian's and -the Beggars' Row, are at this moment approaching, -and if one of your guard are left alive by daylight -it will be a miracle." -</p> - -<p> -"Dost think so?" rejoined Wallace, as he led -them to a table in the outer court of the palace, -where a lantern placed on a table revealed a few -drinking horns, a keg of eau de vie, and some -objects of a more unpleasant nature, the dead -bodies of several soldiers, shot by the rioters -during the day. "You hold out a dark future to -us, Finland, and, nevertheless, like the true -soldier I have ever known thee, come to take a turn -of service with us." -</p> - -<p> -"As you see," replied Finland, laughing, as he -filled a horn from the keg unbidden. -</p> - -<p> -"Drink with me, gentlemen," said Wallace. -</p> - -<p> -"With all my soul!" hiccupped Dr. Joram. -</p> - -<p> -"This keg of brandy was lately in the cellars of -the Jesuits, and some friendly rogue trundled it -our way. God bless the good old cause! my -service to ye, sirs. Hark, comrades—drums!" he -added, as he drained and threw down the cup. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the march of the trained bands," said -Walter. -</p> - -<p> -"Indeed!" rejoined Wallace, sternly. "Let -all the whigamore scum of Scotland come, they -are welcome. I am one of the good old race of -Elderslie, and I thank heaven that in an hour like -this, it hath been the hap of one of my name to -have entrusted to his care the defence of the -palace of our princes, and yonder holy fane, the -sepulchre of their bones—one of the fairest piles -that ancient piety ever founded, or modern -fanaticism destroyed." His swart countenance lighted -up, and signing the cross (for this noble cavalier -was a true catholic), he drew his sword. -</p> - -<p> -"Hark, a chamade!" said Walter Fenton; -"now let us hear what these rascals have the -impudence to say;" and the three cavaliers repaired -to the porch, leaving the divine to continue his -devoirs to the brandy keg. They beheld a very -extraordinary scene. -</p> - -<p> -Wallace's company was an Independent one. -It was something less than a hundred strong, and -had the great porch of the palace and the two -lesser gates of the boundary wall to defend. In -the former there were sixty musqueteers drawn -up, as it was the point of the greatest danger; the -remainder were posted at the small gates, which -were well secured by internal barricades. The -great façade of the magnificent palace, with its -deep quadrangle and six round towers, loomed -through the starless gloom of the winter night; -lights flickered in the gallery of the Kings of -Scotland, and through the lofty casements of its -long corridors and echoing chambers, for there -many proscribed catholic and cavalier families, -terrified women, and helpless children, hud fled -for refuge. And from the great western windows -of the chapel royal shone "the dim religious light" -of the distant altar, where many a devout -worshipper, in the ancient faith of our fathers, sent -up, with catholic fervour, the most solemn prayers -to God for conquest and for succour. -</p> - -<p> -How different was the scene without those -sacred walls, with their shadowy aisles, their -glimmering shrines and marble tombs—their dark, -deep, solemn arches, and mysterious echoes. -</p> - -<p> -Through the strong gate of vertical iron bars -that closed the dark round archway of the porch, -the cavaliers beheld the long vista of the -Canon-gate, extending to the westward. Its long -perspective of ancient and picturesque edifices, -turrets, outshots, and gables, was vividly lit up by -the crimson glare of the blazing houses on the -Abbey-hill, to the northward of the palace. -</p> - -<p> -A dense mob that had gathered in the Cow-gate, -provided with weapons and torches, mingled with -Trained Bandsmen, and having drums beating, and -the Earl of Perth's effigy, borne aloft before them, -after traversing the West Bow and High-street, -maltreating all they met, were now descending -the Canon-gate; and the light of their brandished -flambeaux streamed through the groined portal of -the palace, glittering on the helmets and arms of -the soldiers drawn up within it in close array, -and beyond on the tall outline of the tower of -James V. -</p> - -<p> -As the drums of the Trained Bands continued to -beat the point of war, the rabble poured forth -from all the diverging wynds and alleys, until, -like a river swollen by a hundred tributary streams, -the dense mass that debouched upon the open -space around the ancient Girth-cross of the once -holy sanctuary, covered the whole arena. The -united roar of ten thousand angry voices swelled -along the lofty street, and the red torchlight -revealed many an uncouth visage, distorted by -drunkenness, fanaticism, and ferocity. Several -musquets and pistols were incessantly discharged, -while stones, sticks, fragments of furniture, dead -cats, and every available and imaginable missile -were hurled in showers over the battlements of -the porch, and strewed the pavement of the court -within. -</p> - -<p> -In front were Grahame and Macgill, two captains -in the trained band, armed with their buff -coats, steel caps, and half pikes; several baillies, -in their scarlet gowns and gold chains; Lord -Mersington, reeling about and brandishing a -partisan, his senatorial wig and robes in a woeful -plight; the Rev. Ichabod Bummel, bare-headed -and spurring like a madman a short, plump, and -active Galloway cob of which he had possessed -himself, and over the flanks of which, his long -spindle shanks and scabbard trailed upon the -ground. On each side were the Marchmont and -Islay heralds, the Unicorn and Ormond pursuivants, -in their tabards blazing with embroidery, -and their tall plumed bonnets; behind was a -confused forest of uplifted hands, and weapons, -swords, pikes, staves, and halberts which flashed -incessantly in the wavering glare of the brandished -torches, and chief above all were the effigy of the -Chancellor, and a great orange and blue standard; -the first the colour of the Revolutionists, the -second of the Covenanters. -</p> - -<p> -The houses of the Earl of Perth, the Lairds of -Niddry, Blairdrummond, and others, were blazing -close by, and the sky was sheeted with fire. The -contents of their cellars were rolled into the streets -and staved, and the rich and luscious wines of -France, the nut-brown ale, and crystal usquebaugh -streamed along the swollen gutters, where -hundreds of rioters were wallowing like pigs in the -kennel, and were trod to death beneath the feet of -the mighty host that swept over them. After a -flourish of trumpets, the senior herald cried with a -loud voice,— -</p> - -<p> -"In the name of the Lords of His Majesty's -Privy Council, I, the Islay Herald-at-Arms, -summon, warn, and charge you, Captain William -Wallace, under pain and penalty of loss of life and -escheat of goods——" -</p> - -<p> -"Yea, and the loss of salvation," screamed -Ichabod, with a voice of a Stentor, as he -brandished his bible and bloody sword. "Woe unto -ye who march against God with banners displayed! -Woe unto ye who would build up the walls of -Jericho, which the Lord hath casten down! Take -heed, ye vipers and soldiers of Jeroboam, lest the -curse that fell on Kiel, the Bethelite, fall upon ye -also! Woe unto ye, worshippers of the Babylonian -harlot, the mother of sin, for the hour is -come when it is written that ye shall perish!" -</p> - -<p> -"——And escheat of goods and gear," continued -the herald, "forfeiture of name and fame." -</p> - -<p> -"Surrender, ye d—d loons!" cried Mersington, -"or hee hee, we'll gie ye cauld kail through the -reek, conform to the Acts of Estate." -</p> - -<p> -"Sound trumpets for silence!" exclaimed the -herald indignantly; but now the voice of -Mr. Bummel was again heard. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh for one moment of the hand that smote -the foes of Zion!" he exclaimed, raising to heaven -his sunken eyes that in the torchlight seemed -to fill with a yellow glare. "Oh for God's -malediction on the brats of Babel! Lo! I see a sign -in the lift—they are delivered unto us, that we -may dash them against the stones. On, on, and -spare not! smite and slay! death to the false -prophets! death to the soldiers of the idolatrous -James!" -</p> - -<p> -"I, the Islay Herald-at-Arms——" -</p> - -<p> -"Haud your d—d yammering!" cried Captain -Graham, of the trained bands, interrupting in -turn; "close up, my trained men! come on, my -buirdly Baxters, and couthie craftsmen—advance -pikes—musqueteers, blow matches—give fire!" -</p> - -<p> -"Give fire!" re-echoed the deep voice of Wallace -within the groined portal. A loud discharge -of musquetry took place, and the bullets of the -mob rattled like a hailstorm against the walls, or -whistled through the archway of the porch. -</p> - -<p> -Three soldiers fell dead, but nearly forty of the -rabble were shot, for every bullet fired by the -"Brats of Babel" killed at second hand. Still -they pressed forward with undiminished courage, -and assailed the three gates of the palace at once, -and pressing close to the bars of the portal, fired -their musquets and pistols through with deadly -precision on the little band within. Here Wallace -commanded in person, with a bravery worthy of -his immortal name, and encouraged by his animated -exhortations, his gallant few, though falling -fast on every hand, stood firm, with a resolution -to die, but never surrender. -</p> - -<p> -Walter Fenton and Finland commanded each -about twenty musqueteers at the lesser gates, -which the insurrectionists assailed pell-mell with -hammers and pickaxes, and as nothing but a cruel -death could be expected if this mob of infuriated -madmen obtained entrance, the poor soldiers -fought as much for their lives as for honour and -protection of the palace and chapel royal. From -a platform of planks and furniture, overlooking -the south back of the Canon-gate, Walter's party -poured a fire upon the mob with deadly effect; -the palace wall was high, the gate strong and well -secured, so they hurled ponderous stones and -swung hammers against its solid front in vain. -</p> - -<p> -So it fared with Finland, who defended the -northern doorway of the royal gardens near a -little turretted edifice called Queen Mary's Bath. -This experienced soldier had speedily made four -loop-holes through the strong wall, and the rioters, -as they approached the gate, were shot down in -such rapid succession that an appalling pile of dead -and dying lay before it, forming a barrier so -hideous, that their companions began to recoil in -dismay, and poured a storm of bullets and abuse -from a distance. -</p> - -<p> -The blaze from the Abbey hill illuminated the -whole garden, and the dark buttresses, the square -tower, the deep-ribbed doorway, and tall lancet -windows of the beautiful church of the Sancta -Crucis were all bathed in a blood-red hue by the -flaring sheets of flame that ascended from the -burning houses. -</p> - -<p> -"St. Bride speed you, my gallant Douglas!" -cried Wallace, who, anxious for the maintenance -of his post, made a hurried round of the walls. -"Art keeping the knaves in check?" -</p> - -<p> -"Let the deed show," replied Finland. "By -my faith! their dead are lying chin deep without -the barrier. 'Twas a brave stroke in tactics this -enfilade of the approach; and the flames of yonder -great mansion enable my bold hearts to aim with -notable precision." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the noble lodging of the Great Chancellor," -rejoined Wallace, turning his flushed face -towards the ruddy glow; "and I grieve deeply -that many noble dames of the first quality are -likely perishing amid yonder flames; however, -death is preferable to dishonour at the hands of -fanatical clowns. This day they dragged my sister -through the streets ..... and in open day—my -God!" He ground his teeth and smote his -breast. -</p> - -<p> -"Malediction!" exclaimed Finland; "can we -not succour them?" -</p> - -<p> -"Impossible," replied the other, resuming his -military nonchalance. "I cannot spare a man. -Bonnie blackeyed Maud, of Madertie, and Merry -Annie, of Maxwelton, are both yonder; this -morning they fled to the house of Perth. God sain -them both—now I must see how fares young -Fenton." He hurried away, leaving Finland -transfixed by what he had revealed. -</p> - -<p> -"Follow me, some of ye," he exclaimed; "let -six maintain the post. Come on, gallants—we will -save these noble dames or die." -</p> - -<p> -His party had now been reduced to twelve, but -forgetful of everything save the probable danger of -Annie, he rushed through the garden followed by -six soldiers armed with pikes, and leaving the -precincts of the palace by a secret doorway near -the old royal vault, hurried through the narrow -suburb of Croft-an-Righ, and felt his heart leap -as the hot glow of the burning houses was blown -upon his cheek, and the sparks fell like red hail -around him. The roar of voices and of musquetry -still continued around the palace with unabated -vigour; but here the mob lay generally wallowing -in the liquor that flowed along the street, or were -busy in revelling around piles of wine flasks, -runlets of wine, and barrels of ale, or hurrying -away with whatever plunder they had saved from -the fast-spreading conflagration. -</p> - -<p> -The house of the chancellor, a lofty edifice, -with turrets at the angles, steep roofs, and great -stacks of chimneys, stood a little way back from -the street, with a row of tall Dutch poplars before -it; but these were now blackened and scorched -by the forky flames that rolled in volumes from -the windows, and clambered over the sinking -roofs. The smoke ascended into the clear air in -one vast shadowy pillar, and showers of sparks -were thrown as from the crater of a volcano. -Not one of the inmates was visible, for every -window was full of flame, and Finland felt -distraction in his mind as he gazed upon the blazing -house; but suddenly several females appeared -upon the stone gutters and upper bartizan, -waving their handkerchiefs and crying in piteous -accents for mercy and for succour; but they were -unheeded by the mob, or, if heard, only treated -with derision. -</p> - -<p> -"A ladder, a ladder!" exclaimed Finland, whose -arms and attire were so much disfigured by smoke -and dust, that he seemed in no way different from -the other armed citizens that thronged the streets. -"Death and confusion! a hundred bonnet pieces -for a ladder; my brave friends, my good comrades, -your pikes—truss them into a ladder. Ere now -I've led an escalade of such a turnpike. Bravo, -my bold hearts!" and with the silent precision of -practised campaigners, the soldiers with their -scarfs trussed or tied their six pikes into the -form of a scaling ladder. In a moment it was -placed against the wall. "Guard the passage," -cried Finland, as he disappeared through one of -the upper windows. -</p> - -<p> -The heat and smoke were so great that he could -scarcely breathe; for the old mansion being all -wainscotted, burned like a ship, and ancient -paintings, costly hangings, carpets, furniture, books, -and all the magnificent household of the great -chancellor was crumbling to ashes beneath the -relentless flame. -</p> - -<p> -The hot conflagration often drove Finland back, -and made his very brains whirl; but he found -other passages, across the yielding floors, and -ascending from story to story, at last felt gratefully -the cooler air upon his flushed and scorched face -as he stepped upon the flame-lighted bartizan, and -Annie, with a wild hysterical laugh, threw herself -into his arms and immediately swooned. -</p> - -<p> -"Your hand, Lady Madertie—away, away!" -cried he; "we have not a moment to lose;" -and bearing his burden like a child, he attempted -to descend the staircase; but lo! the forked flames -shot up the spiral descent and drove him back -upon the platform, which was thirty feet in height. -</p> - -<p> -All retreat was cut off. -</p> - -<p> -Annie was insensible, and Finland, as he leant -against the parapet and pressed her to his breast -and felt the masses of her soft hair blown against -his face, became giddy with despair. At a little -distance Matilda of Madertie, a beautiful blonde, -was kneeling before her crucifix, and praying -with all the happy fervour of a true Catholic; her -long dark hair was streaming over her shoulders. -Near her were several female servants, crouching -against the parapet, and who, exhausted by the -energy of their shrieks, and the near approach of -death, lay in a kind of stupor, without motion, -and seeming scarcely to breathe. Finland thought -only of Annie; but a glance sufficed to show that -their fate was sealed. -</p> - -<p> -The whole of the lofty house beneath the turret -where they stood was an abyss of flames, and -the glare, as they flashed upward and around him, -compelled him to close his eyes; and thus a -prey to grief and horror, he moved to and fro -upon the toppling wall until the slate roofs sank -crashing into the flaming pit with a roar, and now -one vast sheet of broad red fire ascended into the -air, making the calcined walls that confined it rend -and tremble; a shout came up from the street -below; the whole city, the hills and the sky seemed -to be on fire. The flames came closer to Finland; -he felt their scorching heat; the next seemed -to sweep his cheek, and Annie's waving locks and -his own, that mingled with them, were burned -away together. -</p> - -<p> -"Laird of Finland," cried a soldier from below, -"the tree—-the tree!" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis death at all events," replied the Cavalier, -and quick as light, with his long scarf, he bound -the slender waist of Annie to his own, and stretching -from the wall, got into the lofty and strong -poplar tree, and began to descend slowly and -laboriously. A shout burst from the soldiers in -the garden below. -</p> - -<p> -"God receive us!" cried Maud of Madertie, -holding up her crucifix to heaven. At that -moment the wall gave way beneath her, and she -disappeared for ever..... -</p> - -<p> -Finland's desertion of his post proved ultimately -fatal to the defence of Holyrood, which by the -efforts of Wallace, Walter Fenton, and the -church-militant, Dr. Joram, was protracted until eleven -at night. Then the soldiers of Finland, having -been all shot down, a party of the Trained Bands, -led by Captain Grahame, broke down the gate -with sledge-hammers, and then the armed mob, -roused to an indescribable pitch of frenzy and -ferocity by the liquors they had imbibed, the -resistance and slaughter, and the exhortations of -the religious maniacs who led them, crowded like -a hell disgorged into the outer court and inner -quadrangle of the palace. -</p> - -<p> -Taken thus in flank, the soldiers of Wallace -were almost immediately destroyed. That brave -cavalier was hewn down, his body was hacked to -pieces, his entrails torn out and cast into the air. -Many of his soldiers who surrendered were shot -in cold blood, and all the wounded perished. -Walter Fenton, gathering a few of the survivors -upon his platform, still continued to fire upon the -sea of madmen that swarmed around them. -</p> - -<p> -Conspicuous among his followers, upon his -prancing Galloway cob, towered the tall and -ghastly figure of Mr. Ichabod Bummel; and, -urging the work of death, he sent his powerful -voice before him wherever he went. -</p> - -<p> -"No quarter to the birds of Belial!—smite them -both hip and thigh. On, ye chosen of Israel, who -now, in the good fight of faith, shall extirpate the -heathen, sent forth even as the Jews were of old." -</p> - -<p> -"Pick me down yonder villain!" cried Fenton -to his soldiers; and bullet after bullet whistled past -the head of the preacher, but he seemed to bear a -charmed life, and escaped them all. -</p> - -<p> -"On, on to the good work, and prosper!" he -cried. "Smite and slay! smite and slay! lest the -curses that befel Saul for sparing the Amalekites -fall upon ye." -</p> - -<p> -Thus urged, the people hewed the soldiers limb -from limb, and the bodies of the dead shared the -same fate. Seeing all lost, Walter and Dr. Joram -had torn the cavalier plumes from their hats, and -leaped upon their horses, hoping to cut their way -through the press, or escape unknown. But, alas! -Joram was recognised by the terrible Ichabod, who, -urging his Galloway towards him, brandished his -sword, and exclaimed with stentorian lungs— -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a priest of Baal, and this night will I send -him howling to his false gods! Come on, Jonadab -Joram, thou wolf in sheep's clothing." -</p> - -<p> -"Approach, thou d—ned, round-headed, prick-eared, -covenanting, and rebellious rapscallion!" -cried the Doctor in great wrath, urging his horse -towards his clerical antagonist; but the crowd was -great between them, and they were enabled to glare -at and menace and bespatter each other with -scriptural abuse and very hard names for some time -before they came within sword's point; for they -were both intoxicated, the one with brandy, and -the other with an enthusiasm that bordered on -insanity. "Come on, thou villanous whigamore," -cried Joram, flourishing his long rapier; "thy -glory and thee shall depart to the devil together!" -</p> - -<p> -"Out upon thee, and the bloody papistical -Duke whom thou servest, and hast blasphemously -prayed for; but the curse that fell upon Jeroboam -hath already fallen upon him—he shall die without -a son, and be the last of his persecuting race, -despite the brat in the warming pan." -</p> - -<p> -"On thy carcase, foul kite, will I avenge this -treason against the Lord's anointed!" replied -Joram, spurring his horse. -</p> - -<p> -"Thou fool!" shrieked Ichabod, with a hollow -laugh; "was that accursed tyrant who fiddled -while Rome blazed beneath him the anointed of -the Lord?" -</p> - -<p> -"Have at thee, trumpeter of treason!" -</p> - -<p> -"Caitiff and firebrand of hell, at last I have -thee!" and their swords flashed as they fell upon -each other like two mad bulls. The superior -strength and skill of the cavalier chaplain quite -failed him before the ferocious enthusiasm of the -Presbyterian, whose long broadsword, swayed by -both hands, was twice driven through his body at -the first onset. -</p> - -<p> -"King and High Kirk for ever!" cried poor -Joram, as he fell forward with the blood gushing -from his mouth; but, still unsatisfied, Ichabod -seized him as he sank down, writhing one hand in -his hair, and throwing the body across his saddle-bow, -he slashed off the head, and held it aloft, a -grinning and dripping trophy. -</p> - -<p> -"Behold," he exclaimed in an unearthly voice, -"behold the head of Holofernes!" -</p> - -<p> -All was over now. Walter gave a hurried glance -around him. The palace was being sacked by the -rabble, who carried off all they could lay their -hands upon; but it was upon the beautiful chapel, -that venerable monument of ancient art and David's -pious zeal, that the whole tide of popular fury was -poured. In five minutes it was completely devastated. -The tall windows, with their rich tracery -and stained glass, were destroyed; the magnificent -tombs of marble and brass, the grand organ, the -altar with its burning candles and great silver -crucifix, the rich oak stalls of the Thistle, with the -swords, helmets, and banners of the twelve -knights,—were all torn down, and the beautifully -variegated pavement was stripped from the floor. -</p> - -<p> -All the wood and ornamental work, the pictures, -reliques, furniture, vestments, &c., were piled in -front of the palace, and committed to the flames -amid the yells of the populace, whose cries seemed -to rend the very welkin. Dashing spurs into his -horse, Walter gave him the reins, and sweeping -his sword around him, right, left, front and rear, -he broke through the crowd, and, followed by a -score of bullets, galloped up the Canongate and -escaped,—the sole survivor of that night's slaughter -at Holyrood. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap08"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VIII. -<br /><br /> -THE VEILED PICTURE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - To the Lords of Convention 'twas Claver's that spoke,<br /> - Ere the King's crown shall fall there are crowns to be broke;<br /> - So let each Cavalier who loves honour and me,<br /> - Come follow the bonnet of bonnie Dundee.<br /> - SCOTT.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Skirting the city, Walter soon left the roar of -the angry multitude far behind him; he was -galloping among fallow fields, hedge-rows, and -solitary lanes, and the silence of the country was a -relief to his excited spirit after the fierce tumult -of the last six hours. The snow had melted; -Dairy-burn, and other little rills that traversed -the dark fields, gleamed like silver threads in the -starlight. -</p> - -<p> -Walter passed the loch, and reached the old -Place of Drumdryan; the house was ruined and -desolate, roofless and windowless, and the roadway -was strewn with fragments of furniture. His -anxiety increased, and, goring his horse onward, -he dashed up the dark dewy avenue of Bruntisfield, -and reined up at the Barbican-gate. The perfect -silence, unbroken even by the barking of a dog, -and the strong odour of burned wood, had in some -sort prepared him for the sight he witnessed. -There, too, had been the hand of the destroyer, -and a great part of the once noble mansion was a -bare, blackened, and open ruin. Its corbie-stoned -gables and round turrets stood bleakly in bold -relief against the starry sky; and from the depths -of its vaulted chambers, the remains of the -smouldering conflagration sent forth at times a column -of smoke into the calm winter atmosphere. The -court and garden were strewn with broken furniture, -torn hangings, books, and household utensils. -</p> - -<p> -The sudden snorting of his horse drew Walter's -attention to two corpses that lay near the outer -door. They were those of John Leekie the -gardener, and Drouthy the aged butler, who, like -true vassals, had both "with harness on their -backs" perished at their lady's threshold. Both -had on corslets and steel caps, and one yet grasped -a broken partisan. -</p> - -<p> -Full of dire thoughts of vengeance, Walter -galloped back to the city, every corner of which was -now overflown with the tide of confusion and -uproar that had been so long concentrated around -Holyrood. He naturally sought the Castle-hill, -where Dundee and Dunbarton, with their sixty -followers, who of all the Lowlands seemed now -alone to remain true to their fugitive king, were -drawn up under the cannon of the Half-moon. -</p> - -<p> -"So the villains have sacked Holyrood," said -Dundee, smiling grimly. -</p> - -<p> -"To their contentment," replied Walter. "Poor -Finland, our jolly chaplain, Wallace, and a -hundred brave soldiers, have gone to render a last -account of their faithful service; and I alone -survive, my lords." -</p> - -<p> -"To avenge them, add, sir. 'Tis the hope of -repaying with most usurious interest this heavy -account of blood that alone makes me bear up," -replied Dundee with enthusiasm; "and God give -me inspiration, for I feel I am the last hope of the -old house of Stuart." -</p> - -<p> -At that time certain persons who styled themselves -a Convention of the Estates were assembled -in conclave, and thither went the brave Dundee, -though conscious that, personally or politically, he -was the bitterest foe of every man present. -</p> - -<p> -"My lords and gentlemen," said he, observing -the chill that fell on the assemblage when he -appeared—-"I have come here as a peer of the realm, -to serve his Majesty James VII. and the Parliament -of Scotland; and I demand that, if the latter -has no occasion for my service, it will at least -protect my friends and self from the insults of the -base-born rabble." -</p> - -<p> -With one voice this hastily collected and -illegally constituted assembly exclaimed—"We -cannot and will not!" -</p> - -<p> -"Then farewell, sirs," replied the Viscount, -with a smile of pride and scorn. "When again -I appear before you, it will not be to entreat, but -to command—it will not be to plead, but to -punish; and now, let my trumpets sound To horse! -In the country of the clans, the hills are as steep, -the woods are as pathless, the glens as deep, and -the rivers as rapid, as in the days of the Romans; -and again from the wild north shall the whole tide -of Celtic war roll on the traitor Lowlands, as in -the days of the great Montrose. When again you -hear the voice of Dundee, my Lords of -Convention,—<i>tremble</i>!" -</p> - -<p> -He clasped on his headpiece and retired. As -the jangle of his sword and spurs descending the -stone turnpike died away, a deep silence pervaded -the dusky hall; for the threats of this chivalric -soldier, when united to their foreknowledge of his -dauntless courage, his unflinching loyalty, his -loftiness of mind, and intense ferocity, threw a -chill upon the more cold-blooded and calculating -revolutionists. But soon the gallant blare of the -trumpet, the stirring brattle of the brass kettle-drums, -the clang of iron hoofs, and jingle of steel -scabbards and chain bridles, awaking all the echoes -of the great cathedral, and the hollow arcades of -the dark Parliament Square, announced the march -of the Life Guards—those sixty brave gentlemen -who, of all his once numerous and fondly cherished -army, now alone remained staunch to the hapless -James. -</p> - -<p> -Dark looks were exchanged, and as the music -grew faint, all seemed to breathe more freely. -Then the querulous voice of Lord Mersington was -heard, and in the half-lighted hall, his dwarfish -figure, clad in his senatorial robes, was dimly seen -on the rostrum, and, as he addressed the convention, -from the effect of his recent potations and -over exertion, he swayed on his heels like a statue -on a pivot. His speech was somewhat to the -following purpose. -</p> - -<p> -"That for sae mickle as the vile and bloody -papistical James, Duke of Albany and York, -having assumed the regal sceptre without the -oath required for due maintenance of religion, -and having altered the ancient constitution of the -kingdom by ane exertion of tyrannous and arbitrary -power, had forfeited all richt to the crown -of Scotland, now and for ever; that it be forthwith -settled on the Statholder William, and Mary his -spouse; that there be made a list of grievances -to be redressed, and a new act framit, anent -witchcraft, papacy, prelacy, and ither -abominations." -</p> - -<p> -The last echoes of the trumpets of Dundee had -died away under the arch of the Netherbow Port, -and the motions of Mersington were carried with -universal approbation. "Thus," says the author -of <i>Caledonia</i> "the revolution in England was -conducted constitutionally by the parliament; but in -Scotland, unconstitutionally by the convention. -The English <i>found</i> a vacancy of the throne, the -Scots <i>made</i> one; the one grave and regarding law, -the other vehement and disregarding it." -</p> - -<p> -With a heaviness of heart, a deep and morbid -sadness against which he struggled in vain, Walter -rode down the steep Leith Wynd. He was now -a private trooper under Dundee, and leaving -Lilian far behind him; for he was going, he -foresaw, to perish under the fallen banner of a -desperate cause and ruined king; but soon the clash -of the cymbals, the fanfare of the trumpets, the -tramp of the stately horses, the high bearing of -their gallant riders, and that innate loftiness of -soul, which made Dunbarton and Dundee rise -superior to their fortune, and seem to set fate at -defiance, communicated a new ardour to his heart, -and it soon beat responsive to the martial music, -as the troop of cavaliers traversed the city's -northern ridge, and riding by the Long Gate saw -the morning sun rising afar off above the snow -clad Lammermuir, gilding Preston Bay, the far -hills of Fife, and the shining waters of the dark -blue Forth. -</p> - -<p> -Dundee rode near Fenton, who, finding more -than once, the dark and pensive eyes of this -singularly handsome soldier fixed upon him with -something of that foredoomed expression, indicative -of his future fate and fame, he ventured to -ask, "Whither go you, my lord?" -</p> - -<p> -"Wherever the shade of Montrose shall direct -me," was the thoughtful and poetical reply. -"Believe me, Mr. Fenton," he continued, after a -pause, "under whatever circumstances, or however -oppressed by fate, I will acquit myself before -God, the world, and my own conscience. Yes!" -he exclaimed, with flashing eyes, and striking his -gloved hand upon his corsletted breast, "I will -hazard life and limb, estate and title, name and -fame, yes, I would peril even my salvation, were -it possible, in the cause of my honour and -allegiance; and if I cannot save the throne of King -James, at least I will not survive its fall—so the -will of God be done!" -</p> - -<p> -There was something sublime in his aspect as -he spoke; his dark and lustrous eyes were full of -fire; his face, the manly beauty of which few -have equalled and none surpassed, was suffused -with a warm glow, and the proud curl of his -mustachioed lip, showed the high spirit of -achievement that burned within him. The soul of the -great Montrose seemed indeed to inspire him, -and in such a moment all the darker and weaker -points were forgotten. His ardour was communicated -to Walter, whose heart beat fast as he -exclaimed, -</p> - -<p> -"Noble Dundee, to victory or the grave, to -the field or the scaffold, I will follow thee, and in -that hour when I fail in my duty or allegiance, -may woe betide me and dishonour blot my name!" -</p> - -<p> -Dundee pressed his hand and replied, -</p> - -<p> -"In the wilds of the pathless north, ten thousand -claymores will flash from their scabbards at -the call of Dundee. The loyal and gallant clans -have not forgotten the glories of Alford, -Inverlochy, and Auldearn, when the standard of James -Grahame, of Montrose, was never unfurled but to -victory. Again, like him, will I lead them against -this Dutch usurper, whom in an evil hour I saved -from death upon the battle-field of Seneff. Yes, -after he had fallen beneath the hoofs of Vaudemont's -Reitres, I saved his life at the risk of my -own, and horsed him on my own good charger, -when, could his future ingratitude to me, and the -usurpation of this hour have been foreseen, my -petronel had blown his brains to the wind." -</p> - -<p> -"Ha! what wants his grace of Gordon?" said -Dunbarton as the flash of a cannon broke from -the dark castle wall, and a puff of white smoke -curled away on the clear morning air, while the -echoes of the report reverberated like thunder -among the black basaltic cliffs of the great fortress -past which they were riding. A little arched -postern to the westward opened, and a soldier -appeared waving a white flag from the brow of -the steep rock, which the turretted bastion -overhung. The troop halted, and their kettle-drums -gave three ruffles in honour of the duke. -</p> - -<p> -"Tarry for me, gentlemen comrades," said -Claverhouse, "while I confer with 'the cock of -the north,'" and galloping to the base of the -castle rock, he dismounted, and notwithstanding -his steel harness, buff coat, and jack boots, -clambered with great agility to the postern, where -he held a conference with the Duke of Gordon. -</p> - -<p> -What passed was never known; but each is -said to have needlessly exhorted the other to -loyalty and truth. -</p> - -<p> -The multitude, who from a distance had watched -the departure of the hated Dundee, fled back to -the city, and reported to the Lords of the -Convention, that "there was a coalition and general -insurrection of the adherents of the bluidy -Claver'se," and thereupon a dreadful panic ensued. -The city drums beat the point of war; -the Duke of Hamilton and other revolutionists, -who had for weeks past been secretly bringing -great bands of their vassals into Edinburgh, where -they were concealed in cellars and garrets, now -rushed to arms, and the members of Convention, -confined in their hall, were terrified and put to -their wit's end by the uproar. Lord Mersington, -it is related, exchanging his senatorial robe and -wig, "for ane auld wife's mutch and plaid," fled -to his lodging, and appeared no more that day; -but their fears were causeless, for Dundee, and -the devoted cavaliers who accompanied him in his -chivalric but hopeless enterprise, were then -passing the woods and morasses of Corstorphine, on -their route to the land of the Gael. -</p> - -<p> -At a hand gallop they soon flanked the grey -rocks and pine covered summits of those beautiful -hills, and the sequestered village lay before -them, with the morning smoke curling from its -moss-roofed cottages, its broad lake swollen by -the melting snows, but calm as a mirror, save -where the swan and dusky waterouzel squattered -its shining surface; the ancient kirk peeped above -a grove of venerable sycamores, and to the south -stood the castle of the old hereditary Foresters -of Corstorphine. -</p> - -<p> -"What castles are these on the right and left?" -asked Dundee. "I warrant Mr. Holster can tell; -he knows everything and everybody." -</p> - -<p> -"Yonder hold with the loch flowing almost to -its gates, is the house of the Lord Forester," -replied the cavalier trooper, "a leal man and -true." -</p> - -<p> -"And that tall peel on the muirland to the -north?" -</p> - -<p> -"The tower of Clermiston, my lord." -</p> - -<p> -"What! the house of Randal Clermont—um—a -converted covenanter, and worshipper of the -rising sun, eh?" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis said his name is at the address sent by -the turncoat council to the Statholder," said -Dunbarton. -</p> - -<p> -"Assure me of that," exclaimed Dundee, -sharply reining up his horse, "and by all the -devils, I will hang him from his own bartizan, lord -and baron though he be! Halt, gentlemen, we -will pay these lords a visit; they, or their stewards, -must pay us riding money, for the king's service. -My lord, Earl, and thirty of you gentlemen, will -detour across to Clermiston, while I will ride -down to make my devoir to the Forester of these -hills—forward, trot." -</p> - -<p> -The troop separated, and Walter somewhat -unwillingly accompanied Lord Dunbarton, whose -party galloped in single files along the muddy and -rough bridle-road that led over the lea to the gate -of the solitary tower. They encircled the barbican -wall, which was built partly on fragments of low -rock, without being able to find entrance, the -great gate being securely fastened, and the stillness -of the place seemed to imply that it was -uninhabited. A shriek, echoing through the vaulted -recesses of the tower, rang out upon the clear -morning air; a window was dashed open, and a -female hand, white and bleeding, appeared, while -a voice calling for aid made the blood of Walter -Fenton rush back upon his heart. -</p> - -<p> -"On, on, good sirs!" he exclaimed, leaping -from his horse; "some work of hell is being -enacted here!" and he rushed against the tower -gate, making fruitless efforts to burst it open; but -they were as those of a child against the solid -planks of the barrier. -</p> - -<p> -"By Mahoud's horns, Clermistonlee is at his -old tricks again!" cried Jack Holster, leaping -from his saddle, and unslinging his carbine. "He -hath a lass in his meshes; alight gallants all, or -the fair fortress will be won by storm, while we -dally in the trenches." -</p> - -<p> -"Would to God I had a petard!" exclaimed -Walter; "this gate is like a wall." -</p> - -<p> -"Unsling your carbines, gentlemen," said the -Earl of Dunbarton. "A volley at the lock—give -fire!" -</p> - -<p> -Thirty carbines poured their concentrated volley -upon the gate; it was torn to fragments, and an -aperture formed which admitted the troopers; to -creep through, and rush on with his drawn rapier, -were to Walter a moment's work. By pulling -the leathern latch of a long oak pin which secured -the door of the tower, they procured ingress, and -rushed up the turnpike stair to the hall, at the -very moment that Lilian was just sinking -backwards, with her hands clasped in despair, while -Lord Clermistonlee, enraged by her outcries, and -the new and pressing danger, was endeavouring -with ferocious violence to drag her into some -place of concealment. -</p> - -<p> -"False villain!" exclaimed Walter, springing -upon him with his rapier. "I have a thousand -insults to avenge; but this, and this, and this, -repay them all!" and he made three furious -lunges at his rival, who escaped two by the -intervention of Dunbarton, who vigorously interposed; -but he received one severe wound in the left -shoulder. Infuriated by the sight of his own -blood, and being a man of great strength and -agility, he grappled fiercely with Walter, -breathlessly exclaiming, in accents of rage— -</p> - -<p> -"Woe betide thee, thou unhanged rascal! A -sword! a sword! lend me a sword, some one! -Juden! Traitors, I am a Lord of Parliament, -and dare ye slaughter me under the rooftree of -my own fortified house? This is hership and -hamesucken with a vengeance! Death and -confusion, villains; recollect I am unarmed!" -</p> - -<p> -"Lend him a sword, some of you," said Walter. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh no, no; spare him," moaned Lilian, who -was supported by the Earl of Dunbarton. -</p> - -<p> -"Base-born runnion, and son of a dunghill!" -exclaimed Clermistonlee, with that intense -ferocity and scorn which he could so easily assume at -all times; "an hour will come when this insult -shall be fearfully repaid——" here the clenched -hand of Walter struck him down. Staggering -backward, making a futile attempt to recover -himself, his clutching hands tore away the veil -that concealed the portrait already mentioned. -The face it revealed instantly arrested the forward -stride and menacing sword of Walter Fenton, -who stood irresolute, trembled, and the sinking -sword half fell from his relaxed hand, as he -muttered— -</p> - -<p> -"What is this coming over my spirit now? -That face seems like a vision from the grave to -me!" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the Lady Alison, my Lord's late wife," -said the shrill but sullen voice of Beatrix. -</p> - -<p> -"Pshaw!" rejoined Walter; "then my weakness -is over. Give him a sword, gentlemen. In -fair stand-up fight, I will meet him here, with -case of pistols, sword, and dagger, or anything he -pleases." -</p> - -<p> -"O part them, for the sake of mercy!" implored -Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -Juden came in at that moment, clad in his steel -bonnet and buff jack, and swaying an enormous -partisan, was rushing upon Walter Fenton like a -wild boar, when Holsterlee laid him flat with his -clubbed carbine. The swooning of Lord -Clermistonlee closed the brawl for the time; loss of -blood, over-drinking, and over-excitement, had -quite prostrated all his energies. Walter -immediately sheathed his sword, and, kneeling down, -was the first to tender assistance; for "compassion -ever marks the brave." -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee was borne away to his own -apartment by the growling Juden, whose thick -pate was little the worse of Holsterlee's stroke; -and Lilian was now Walter's next and -immediate care. -</p> - -<p> -The disorder and scantiness of her attire, the -pallor and horror of her aspect, and her presence -in such a place, had previously informed him of -all, and no sooner were they in a more retired -apartment, than, throwing herself into his arms, -she wept bitterly. Meanwhile, the unscrupulous -cavaliers were ranging over the entire household, -breaking open every press, cabinet, and girnel, -with the butts and balls of their carbines, in -search of wine, vivres, or anything else that suited -their fancies. Juden kept always a full larder, -and its contents furnished a sumptuous breakfast. -Several whole cheeses, a cask of ale, and a -thirty-gallon runlet or two of canary, were trundled into -the hall; and a hearty repast, with the usual -military accompaniments of mirth and laughter, was -enjoyed by the hungry troopers, whose appetites -a night spent in their saddles, and a ride in the -keen air of a winter morning, had sufficiently -whetted. -</p> - -<p> -In a few minutes, Lilian, with faltering accents, -had informed Walter of her abduction, of the -hours of suffering she had endured, and her anxiety -to return to Lady Grisel; but, alas! poor Lilian -knew not that perhaps her only relative had -perished in the conflagration of her old ancestral -home. -</p> - -<p> -Aware that Dundee meant to halt for an hour -or so, to await despatches from the Earl of -Balcarris and the ex-Lord-Advocate, Walter resolved -without delay to accompany Lilian to Edinburgh, -and there convey her to some place of safety, ere -he cast himself upon the world for ever; for from -that hour he was like a reed tossed upon the -waves of misfortune. By the assistance of Jack -Holster, he had Clermistonlee's favourite mare -prepared for Lilian; and, after refreshing her -with a milk-posset made by the cynical Beatrix, -they departed for the city at a quick trot: the -plain buff coat, steel cap, and accoutrements of -Walter, enabling him to pass for a Royalist or -Revolutionist, as occasion required. -</p> - -<p> -As soon as they began to converse, the pace of -their horses was checked, and they proceeded -slowly: forgetful of Claverhouse and of his pledged -word, Walter remembered only the presence of -Lilian; and their minds were so much absorbed -in their mutual explanations and plans for the -future, that they marked not the tardiness of their -progression towards Edinburgh. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap09"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IX. -<br /><br /> -LOVE AND PRINCIPLE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - My promised husband and my dearest friend;<br /> - Since heaven appoints this favoured race to reign,<br /> - And blood has drenched the Scottish fields in vain,<br /> - May I be wretched and thy flight partake?<br /> - Or wilt not thou for thy loved Chloe's sake,<br /> - Tired out at length submit to fate's decree.<br /> - TICKELL.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"And this is the fate to which you have -dedicated yourself?" said Lilian, weeping; "to -become a follower of that fierce Dundee in the -desperate course on which he is about to fling -himself. Oh, Walter Fenton, this is the very -folly of enthusiasm. Too surely can we see that -the hand of Fate is against the House of Stuart." -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian," replied her lover, with mournful -surprise, "the daughter of an old Cavalier house -should have other thoughts than these. Remember, -dear Lilian, there is not in Europe a royal -race for which so many of the good and the -gallant, the brave and the loyal, have from the -foughten field and the reeking scaffold given up -their souls to God. Let no man judge harshly of -those whose splendour is dimmed for a time; for -the hour <i>shall</i> come when in the full zenith of -their pride and power, the old line of our -Scottish kings——" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis all a dream, Walter. The entire nations -are against them. I feel a presentiment that they -and their followers are doomed to wither and -perish like brands in the burning." -</p> - -<p> -"My faith! art turning preacher, lassie?" -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, what a prospect for thee, Walter!" -</p> - -<p> -"The world is all before me; and I can always -preserve my honour, my heart, and my sword. -But thou, Lilian——" -</p> - -<p> -"Am beside thee, dear Walter," said she, with -touching artlessness; "and is not happiness -better than honour?" -</p> - -<p> -"True, true," replied the young man, while he -kissed her hand, and his eyes filled with tenderness. -"Ah, Lilian, it is the thought that I am -leaving you, perhaps for ever, that alone unnerves -me for the deadly venture in which we are about -to engage. Hopeless though the cause of James -may be, we have sworn not to survive it; and, -come weal or woe, we will unfurl his standard on -the northern hills, and if it waves not over us in -victory, it shall never do so in defeat or dishonour; -for to the last man we will perish on the sod -beneath it. Your memory alone will make me -sad—but am I singular? How many of these -my brave companions have gentle ones to leave, -mothers who bless, and sisters who love them, -while I am alone. Save thee, there is nothing -that binds me to this world. What of it is mine? -The six feet that shall make my grave!" -</p> - -<p> -"O! most ungrateful Walter," said Lilian, in a -low voice of confusion and tenderness; "is not -all that I have yours, manor and lands? are not -these possessions ample? Greedy Gled," she added, -smiling; "what better tocher would you have?" -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian," sighed Walter, in a thick voice, as he -pressed her hand to his heart, "it may not be, -dearest—yet awhile, at least." -</p> - -<p> -The blushing girl gave him a timid and startled -glance of inquiry. -</p> - -<p> -"I am solemnly pledged to Dundee." -</p> - -<p> -"Cruel Claverhouse! has he more charms for -you than I have?" -</p> - -<p> -"You know that my heart is full of you, Lilian; -but there is also room for ambition in it. I -cannot live ignobly and obscure; as such I would be -unworthy to possess you. I would feel myself a -nameless intruder under the rooftree of your -crested ancestors, whose armorial blazons on every -panel and window-pane, would shame my meaner -birth, and put me to the blush." -</p> - -<p> -"Ungrateful! after all I have urged and said. -'Tis a dream, Walter, a mere dream, but one that -will make the world dark—oh! very dark to me." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis very true; I am choosing the path of -proscription, danger, and death; but the fortune -of war may better the prospects of my faction." -</p> - -<p> -"After years of separation, perhaps." -</p> - -<p> -"With happiness in prospect, they would soon -pass, dear Lilian." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, this wicked Claverhouse! he hath quite -cast a glamour over you. How can you talk so -calmly of years of separation? What may not be -lost in that time?" -</p> - -<p> -"My life on the field, or scaffold, perhaps." -</p> - -<p> -"Your life is mine, Walter; it was pledged to -me. Have you forgot the 20th of September, and -the hour by the fountain?" -</p> - -<p> -"Dearest girl, how could I ever forget it? 'Tis -true, Lilian, that we are in the very flower of our -days; the bloom of our youth and existence is at -its full; love, tenderness, beauty, and -susceptibility, all glow within our hearts." -</p> - -<p> -"And will not the roll of years make them dull, -diminish their force, and cool their fervour? Oh, -heavens! I am quite making love to you," said -Lilian, blushing crimson; "but danger and the -risk of losing you have endued me with great -boldness." -</p> - -<p> -"But time will never diminish the love I bear -thee, Lilian; and the memory of this hour's bitter -struggle—this conflict between a love that is -irresistible and the strong ties of honour, that bind -me to the banner of Dundee, will haunt me to my -grave!" Tears started into his eyes. -</p> - -<p> -A silence ensued. Poor Lilian had nothing -more to urge; and despite of all her gentleness, -felt both intensely grieved and mortified, if not -quite piqued, at Walter, whose heart was wrung -by an agony too acute for words. As they rode -past the thick woodlands that shelter the venerable -church of St. Cuthbert, they heard a shrill but -cracked voice chanting slowly— -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "I like ane owl in désart am, &c."<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"By Jove! 'tis the villain who slew poor -Joram," exclaimed Walter, drawing a pistol from -his holsters; but the voices of two other persons -finishing the verse, arrested him. "Astonishment! 'tis -the voice of Finland!" said Walter, as -he spurred his horse close to a fauld dyke, on the -other side of which he saw, what? Annie Laurie, -and his old friend and brother Cavalier, Finland, -on their knees, beside Mr. Ichabod Bummel, -chanting a psalm in most dolorous accents. -</p> - -<p> -"By all the devils!" said Walter, almost bursting -with laughter; "'tis the age of miracles this! -What, ho! Dick Douglas and Mistress Anne -Laurie, singing hymns among the heather like -two true laverocks of the persecuted kirk." -</p> - -<p> -"Woe unto thee, thou troubler of the just in -spirit!" cried Mr. Ichabod, unsheathing his -broadsword. "I have plucked the youth and the -maiden like brands from the fire which is fated to -consume all such unrepentant persecutors of Israel -as thee." -</p> - -<p> -"I have seen a new light," said Finland, giving -Walter a sly wink of deep meaning. -</p> - -<p> -"And so have <i>I</i>," added Mistress Laurie, -demurely; "and command thee, Walter Fenton, -thou man of sin, to treat this holy expounder of -the Gospel with becoming reverence." -</p> - -<p> -"Annie—oh, Annie!" cried Lilian, as she -boldly leaped the mare over the fauld dyke, and -threw herself into the arms of her friend. -</p> - -<p> -"My service to you, Mr. Ichabod," said Walter, -bowing to the rawboned preacher; but quite -unable to unriddle the mystery of this rencounter, -he whispered to Finland (while the slayer of -Joram was engaged with Lilian), "What the devil -does all this mean, Dick?" -</p> - -<p> -"Learn in a few words," replied Finland, who -was in as miserable a plight as dust, smoke, and a -hundred bruises could make him. "Annie and I -had a most miraculous escape amid the horrors of -last night. I will tell you of it anon—'twas quite a -devil of a business. As for me, I am well used to -such camisadoes, having been blown up at Namur, -and twice nearly drowned in the Zuiderzluys; but -how my adorable Annie escaped, Heaven, who -saved her, can only know. We were in the hands -of the most villanous mob the world ever saw; -they were about to hang me from the arm of the -Girth-cross; and Annie—oh! my blood bubbles -like boiling water when I think of what they -intended for her; when this leathern-jawed apostle, -who, with all his psalm-singing and whiggery, hath -some good points of honesty about him, brought -us off, sword in hand; we bundled out of the city -without blast of trumpet; and here we are. As a -gentleman of cavalier principles," said Finland, -colouring, "you may marvel that I would -condescend to chant a psalm like a mere clown or -canting herdsman; but as we are utterly at the -mercy of this Ichabod Mummel or Bummel, I -had no choice. He needs must——tush! you -know the musty old saw." -</p> - -<p> -"It is enough, maiden," said the preacher, -replying to something Lilian had said, and taking, -with an air of real kindness, the little hand of the -shrinking girl within his own great bony paw, "I -know thee to be the kinswoman of that godly -matron, Grisel Napier, who, though wedded to as -cruel a persecutor as ever bestrode a war-horse—yea, -and though leavened in their wickedness -withal, sheltered me in the days of my exceeding -tribulation, when there was a flaming sword over -Israel, and when, as a humble instrument in the -cause of that great Saviour of the Kirk (whose -coming I foretold in my <i>Bombshell</i>, whilk hath -not yet the luck to be printed), I came from -Holland to this land of anarchy, and had no where to -lay my head. She clothed and sheltered me, for -the sake of that loved kinsman who is now no -more, slain by some accursed persecutor, whom I -would smite—yea, maiden, both hip and thigh, if -I had him within reach of this good old whinger, -that so oft hath avenged the fall of our martyrs!" -</p> - -<p> -Walter instinctively grasped his sword, startled -by the stern energy of the preacher, who continued— -</p> - -<p> -"It is enough maiden,—with me ye are safe, -and to a place of peace I will conduct you and your -friend; but for these two sons of the scarlet -woman—these slaves of Jezebel, who have been -nursled in the blood of our saints and martyrs, -and in whom it grieves me to think ye have -garnered up your hearts, I may not, and cannot, with -a safe conscience, protect them. Let them depart -from me in peace; let them follow him who, ere -long, will be called to a severe account for all his -dark misdeeds—John Grahame of Claverhouse." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis sound advice, Mr. Bummel," said Walter, -tightening his reins, and drawing off his glove. -"By Heaven! I had quite forgotten; he will have -crossed the Forth by this time, and it will require -some exertion of horseflesh to rescue my honour. -Finland, we must go. Mount Lilian's horse. -Lilian," he added, in a low and tremulous voice, -"farewell now; commend me to Lady Grisel, and -bid her bless me; farewell, Lilian—we must part -at last;" and stooping from his horse, he gently -pressed her to his steel-cased breast, and kissed -her. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh! Walter, remain—remain," murmured Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -"It cannot be—it is impossible now; I am -pledged to Grahame of Claverhouse." And afraid -to trust himself longer within hearing of her soft -entreaties, lest love might overcome the stern -principles of loyalty in which he had schooled -himself, he leaped his horse over the fauld dyke; -and while he felt as if his very heart was torn by -the agony of that separation, he dashed along the -road to the west, leaving Finland to follow as he -chose. -</p> - -<p> -With a mind overcharged by sad and bitter -thoughts, Walter galloped madly on, retracing -the way he had come with Lilian; his mind -seemed a very whirlpool, and the events of the -last twenty-four hours a dream. A steep old -bridge, which the roadway crossed near the ancient -manor of Sauchtoun was ringing beneath his -horse's heels, when a distant shout made him -rein up. -</p> - -<p> -"Hollo!" cried Finland, as he came after him -breathlessly on the panting mare; "what the -devil—art gone mad, Walter? Oh this -tormenting love—ha! ha!" -</p> - -<p> -"I envy this happy flow of spirits, Finland!" -</p> - -<p> -"Then you envy me the possession of all that -fate hath left me in this bad world. This devilish -commotion hath confiscated my free barony of -Finland, and torn my arms at the cross; still I -am more gay than thee who hath nothing to lose." -</p> - -<p> -"And after parting with one you love," continued -Walter, almost piqued by his friend's lightness -of heart; "parting perhaps for ever——" -</p> - -<p> -"Tush, man—I am used to such partings. I -have had many a love that was true while it -lasted; but none like the passion I bear my dear -Annie. My first flame was a blue-eyed damoisella -of the Low Countries (her mother was a fleuriste -in Ghent). I thought I loved her very much; -but somehow at Bruges, Mons, and Bergen-op-Zoom, -'twas ever the same; I always left some -one with a heavy heart; and cursed the générale, -when in the cold foggy mornings it rang through -the dark muddy streets, waking the storks on the -high roofs above, and the drowsy boors in their -beds below. I know that the wheels of fate and -fortune are ever turning; some points may, and -others must come round, to their first starting -place, so I always live in hope. I was very sad in -Ghent when our drums beat along the street of -St. Michael, and I bade adieu to my fair one, coming -away I remember by the window instead of the -door." -</p> - -<p> -"How—why?" -</p> - -<p> -"I don't know, man," laughed Douglas; "but -so we often left our billets in French Flanders. -But I assure thee, lad, that under all this gaiety -my heart is as heavy as thine; for I vow to thee, -that the recollection of Annie with her beseeching -blue eyes, her dark clustering hair and pallid -cheek, the touching cadence of her voice, and the -words she said to me are imprinted on my heart -as if the hand of Heaven had written them there. -By the bye I have composed a famous song about her." -</p> - -<p> -"A song!" -</p> - -<p> -"Music and all. I wrote it on the night we -were about to sack the old house of Bruntisfield -in search of yonder spindle-shanked apostle. Ah, -if in my absence Craigdarroch should dare—but -ho! yonder are some of our friends halted under a -tree upon that grassy knowe." -</p> - -<p> -"There is something odd being acted there. -Does not yonder white feather wave in the steel -bonnet of Dundee?" -</p> - -<p> -"He is permitting some false Whig to sing his -last psalm under <i>the</i> convenient branch where he -is doomed to feed the corbies. Dundee is very -kind in that way sometimes." -</p> - -<p> -Recrossing the stream called the Leith, they -rode towards a knoll that rose amid the marshy -ground near the castle loch of Corstorphine. -There a dozen of the cavalier troopers were -dismounted, and leaning on their swords or carbines, -were holding their bridles in a cluster round -Dundee, who was still on horseback, and in the -act of addressing a disarmed prisoner, in whom -with surprise and sorrow they recognized the -young Laird of Holsterlee. -</p> - -<p> -Cool and collected, with folded arms he firmly -encountered the large dark eyes of Dundee, which -were fixed with stern scrutiny upon him. The -group of his comrades surveyed him with glances -of mingled scorn and pity. -</p> - -<p> -"Holsterlee!" said the Viscount, who held in -one hand a long Scots pistol, in the other a letter; -"how little could I once have suspected that you, -the best cavalier of the king's life guard, and one -in whose loyalty and high spirit I trusted so -much, would stoop to this dishonour! The attempt -simply of deserting to take service with this vile -usurper, though bad enough in itself, is as nothing -compared to the treachery which this stray letter -has revealed. Fool and villain! thou knowest -that I am the last hope of the king's cause in -Scotland, and that if I fall it will be buried in my -grave; and yet thou art in league with this -accursed Convention to destroy me! A thousand -English guineas for my head, thou villanous -scape-the-gallows and companion of grooms and -horseboys, who hast squandered away a fair repute -and noble patrimony among rakehelly gamesters -and women of pleasure, dost thou value the head -of a Scottish peer at a sum so trifling? hah!" He -uttered a bitter laugh. "What," he resumed, -"hast thou to urge, that I should not hang thee -from the branch of this beech tree?" -</p> - -<p> -"That I am a gentleman," replied Holsterlee -boldly; "a lesser baron of blood and coat-armour -by twelve descents, and should not die the death -of a peasant churl or faulty hound." -</p> - -<p> -"Right!" exclaimed Dundee, whose dark and -terrible eyes began to fill with their dusky fire. -"A gentleman should die by the hand of another, -for every punishment is disgraceful. DEATH is -the only relief from the consciousness of crime. -Thou shalt have the honour of perishing by the -hand of the first cavalier in Scotland. <i>Thus</i> shalt -thou die—now God receive thy soul!" and pointing -upward with his bridle hand, he levelled the -pistol and fired. The ball passed through the -brain of Holsterlee, and flattened against the -plastered wail of a neighbouring cottage. The -body sank prostrate on the turf, quivered for a -moment, and then lay still and stiffening, with -upturned eyes and relaxed jaws. -</p> - -<p> -This act, which was the most terrible episode -in the life of the stern Dundee, threw a chill on -the hearts of his comrades; but he did not permit -them to remain gazing on the lifeless remains -of one who had ridden so long in their ranks, and -who was the gayest fellow that ever cracked a -jest, shuffled a card, or handed a coquette through -the stately cotillion or joyous couranto. -</p> - -<p> -"Our nags are somewhat breathed after the -hot chase he gave us, gentlemen," said Dundee, -deliberately reloading his pistol, and endeavouring -under an aspect of external composure to -conceal the immediate sorrow, remorse, and anger -that too surely preyed upon his heart. "To -horse! sling carbines—forward—trot!" and away -they rode in silence leaving the cold remains of -the dead man lying on the grassy sward, with his -blood-dabbled locks waving in the morning wind, -while the gleds and ravens wheeled and croaked -around him with impatience. -</p> - -<p> -But he felt not the one, and heard not the other. -</p> - -<p> -He was stripped by the cottagers, and as his -dress was remarkably rich, to prevent further -inquiry they interred him where he lay between -the bare beech tree and the old cottage wall*. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="footnote"> -* On removing the walls of an old cottage near Tynecastle, a -mile westward of Edinburgh, in 1843, the remains of a skeleton -were found buried close by; the skull had been pierced by a -bullet. In the plastered wall of the edifice a ball was found -flattened against the stone.—<i>Edin. Advert.</i>, April 18, 1843. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap10"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER X. -<br /><br /> -THE PASS OF KILLYCRANKIE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Heard ye not! heard ye not! how that whirlwind the Gael,<br /> - Through Lochaber swept down from Lochness to Locheil—<br /> - And the Campbells to meet them in battle array,<br /> - Came on like the billow, and broke like its spray!<br /> - Long, long shall our war-song exult in that day!<br /> - IAN LOM, OF KEPPOCH.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The <i>Revolution</i> might be said to be now fully -achieved; save Dundee, Balcarris, and a few of -their followers, all had submitted to the new -sovereign whom these two nobles would rather -have slain than acknowledged. Dundee had been -required by a trumpet to return to the -Convention; he treated the summons with scorn, and -after cutting his way through a party sent to -intercept him, reached the Highlands a proscribed -fugitive, branded as an outlaw and traitor, and -stigmatized with every epithet that Presbyterian -rancour, heightened by the remembrance of his -former military excesses, could heap upon him. -</p> - -<p> -Colin, Earl of Balcarris, the High Treasurer, -was captured and thrown into a dungeon. The -weak and servile Melville, the crafty and fanatical -Stair (the Scottish Tallyrand), and the not less -crafty Duke of Hamilton, were now at the head -of the Government, and these, though all staunch -Presbyterians were by the king united in council -with a few of the high church nobles, an -intermixture which inflamed the animosities of both -parties, and sowed the seeds of hatred, discord, -and confusion. -</p> - -<p> -With his troop of faithful cavaliers Dundee -continued to wander from place to place in the -Highlands until the beginning of May, 1689, -when he appeared at the head of about two -thousand clansmen led by Sir Donald Macdonald, -the chiefs of Glengarry, Maclean, Locheil, and -Clanronald—all names which shall ever be -associated with the purest ideas of chivalry, -generosity, and valour. He had only about 120 -horse, but they were composed entirely of -gentlemen, and were commanded by a Sir William -Wallace, a brave cavalier; Walter Fenton was his -cornet, and carried the standard. -</p> - -<p> -Lieutenant-General Hugh Mackay, of Scoury, -now commander-in-chief of the Scottish forces, -Colonel-Commandant of the Scottish Brigade, and -Privy Councillor of Scotland, marched against -him at the head of nearly five thousand foot, and -with two regiments of cavalry. Neither the fall -of Edinburgh Castle (which Sir John Lanier -demolished), nor the disappointment of assistance -from Ireland which James had promised him, -could damp the ardour of the brave Dundee. -Deficiency of provisions had compelled him to -shift his quarters frequently, and his devoted -followers had endured the most severe privations; -but under these they disdained to complain, when -they knew that Dundee shared them all. Like -Montrose, he was eminently calculated for a -Highland leader. In his buff coat and headpiece -he marched on foot, now by the side of one clan, -and anon by the ranks of another, addressing the -soldiers in their native Gaelic, flattering their long -genealogies, and animating the fierce rivalry of -clanship by reciting the deeds of their forefathers, -and the sonorous verses of their ancient bards. -</p> - -<p> -"It has ever been my maxim, Mr. Fenton," -said he to our friend on one occasion, "that no -general should command an irregular army in the -field without becoming acquainted with every man -under his baton." -</p> - -<p> -On the 17th June, 1689, he marched to the -Pass of Killycrankie, where one of the most decisive -battles in Scottish history was bravely fought and -fruitlessly won. Dawn was brightening on the -hills of Athole; and Walter, who, quite exhausted -by a long series of hardships, cold, starvation, and -a pistol-shot wound, was sleeping under his horse's -legs, was aroused by the sonorous and guttural cry -of a sentinel, who screamed out in Gaelic— -</p> - -<p> -"Hoigh, Mhic Alastair Mhor! Hark to the -war-drum of the Saxon!" -</p> - -<p> -It was the morning of a battle! Walter's first -thought was of Lilian; his second of the prospects -of victory. The dear image of Lilian made him -rise superior to his fortune. Since they had so -abruptly separated, he had never heard from her; -and it was now many months. How long the -time seemed! Amid his dreamy musings, the -gentle expression of her face often came powerfully -to his recollection, with, all the vigour of a -deeply impressed vision; and recollection -summoned the tones of her sweet voice to his heart -like the memory of some old familiar air, and all -the gushing tenderness of his soul was awakened. -But with these remembrances too often came -bitterness and despair, and he kissed with all a lover's -fervour the scarf her hands had wrought him. -Gleams of memory, and vivid visions of happiness, -which he foresaw too surely could never be -realized, made his heart swell alternately with tender -recollections and joyous anticipations, that died -away to leave him hopeless and despairing. Now -they were on the brink of a battle which Walter -welcomed with anxious joy, for it would be not less -decisive as to the issue of his love, than for the -fortune of James and the fate of the British -people. -</p> - -<p> -It was a glorious morning in June; the purple -summer heather, the long yellow broom, the wild -briar and honeysuckle, that clambered among the -basaltic cliffs, loaded the air with a rich perfume; -while, through the savage and stupendous gorge -of Killycrankie, the rising sun poured a flood of -golden lustre, bringing forward in strong light the -wooded acclivities of those sublime hills, that -heave up to heaven their scaured and wooded sides, -involving in dark shadow the deep rocky chasms, -through which the foaming Garry rushes to mingle -its waters with the rapid Tummel—chasms so -profound, and hidden by the overhanging foliage, that -the roar only of the unseen water was heard, -awakening the echoes of the dewy woods and -shining rocks. -</p> - -<p> -Nothing in nature can surpass the wild grandeur -and imposing sublimity of this mountain gorge, -the frowning terrors of which, in after years, so -impressed a brigade of Hessians in the last of our -Scottish wars, that they refused to penetrate what -appeared to them to be the end of the habitable -world. Save the mountain torrent foaming down -from the lofty hills, appearing one moment to -hurl its spray against the shining rocks, and urge -masses of earth and stones along with it, and -disappearing the next, as it plunged into the bosky -woodlands,—all was still as death in that Highland -solitude, when, in steadiness and order, Dundee -drew up his little host at its northern verge, -admirably posted on well-chosen ground, two miles -from the mouth of the pass; the only road to his -position being the ancient pathway that wound -along the face of the precipitous cliffs, where the -least false step threatened instant destruction even -to the most wary passenger. -</p> - -<p> -Dundee's band—for it was indeed no more, -though named an army—was only two thousand -strong, and composed of various little parties, -which were the nucleus of the corps he expected -yet to form. On the right was the soi-disant -regiment of Sir John Macdonald; a small body of -the clans, under the illustrious chiefs of Locheil, -Glengarry, and Clanronald, the Atholemen under -Ballechin, Wallace's troop of horse, and a corps -of three hundred half-clad and miserably accoutred -Irishmen, composed the mainbody. Dundee's old -troop, in which rode the Earl of Dunbarton, his -officers, and several Highland gentlemen, formed -the reserve of cavalry. The Highlanders, arrayed -each in the picturesque tartan of their native tribes, -were formed in close ranks, with their filleadhbegs -belted about them; their brass-studded targets, -long claymores, ponderous poleaxes, and long-barrelled -Spanish rifles, shining in the rays of the -meridian sun. -</p> - -<p> -The brandishing of weapons and clan-standards, -and the fierce notes of war and defiance, as the -various pibrochs rang among the echoing hills, -announced that the troops of Mackay were in sight. -And now the brave and anxious Dundee, clad in -his rich scarlet uniform, with the tall plumes -waving on his polished headpiece, his fine features -full of animation, and his black eyes alternately -clouded by anxiety, or flashing with valour and -energy,—galloped from clan to clan, inspiring them -by every exertion of graceful gesture and military -eloquence to add that day to the fame of their -forefathers. -</p> - -<p> -The murmuring hum which, from afar off, -announced the drums of Mackay, grew more and -more palpable, and increased until the hoarse and -sharp reverberations of the martial music rang -between the steep impending rocks of the long -mountain pass through which the foe was -penetrating. Anon the Scottish standards, the red -lion with the silver cross, and one with that of -St. George (borne by Hastings' regiment), and the -yellow banners of the Scots brigade, appeared at -intervals of time, and weapons were seen flashing -through the openings of the chasmed rocks and -sable woods of drooping pine. -</p> - -<p> -The day had passed slowly in anxious expectation: -it was evening now, and the sun had verged -to the northwest, but from between gathered -masses of saffron clouds streams of dazzling light -were radiating; and the setting rays, as they -poured aslant on the mountain sides, made the -deep pass seem darker as it receded beyond them. -The rattle of the drums, and the blare of trumpet -and bugle, the clank of bandoliers and tread of -feet, rang with a thousand reverberations between -the brows of that tremendous gorge, as the army -of Mackay debouched from its windings, and -formed successive battalions on the little level -plain or hollow, above which the fierce and -impatient Highlanders, "like greyhounds in the slips -straining upon the start," were formed in array of -battle. Undauntedly they surveyed the measured -steadiness and precision of the Lowland soldiers, -whose silken standards fluttered gaily above their -moving masses of polished steel caps, their screwed -bayonets, and long pikes, that were ever flashing -in the setting sun. -</p> - -<p> -Sir James Hastings' English regiment, and -those of Leven and Mackay belonging to Scotland, -were arrayed in that bright scarlet which -was to become so famous in future wars; but the -battalions of Balfour, Ramsay, and Kenmore wore -the black iron caps, the scarlet hose, and yellow -coats of the Scotch-Dutch brigade. The cavalry -corps of the Marquis of Annandale and the Lord -Belhaven wore coats of spotless buff and caps of -polished steel. Their numbers, discipline, and -order would have stricken with dismay any other -volunteers than the Highlanders, whose hearts -had never known fear, and who had long been -accustomed to rout both horse and foot with equal -speed and success. As the practised eye of Mackay -reconnoitred the position of Dundee, he pointed -to the clan, and said to young Cameron of Locheil, -who rode near him— -</p> - -<p> -"Behold your father and his wild savages: how -would you like to be with him?" -</p> - -<p> -"It matters little," replied the young man -haughtily; "but I recommend you to be prepared, -or my father and his 'wild savages' before night -may be nearer you than you would wish." -</p> - -<p> -The reports of a slight skirmish between the -right wing of the Highlanders and Mackay's left, -made the hearts of all beat quicker; and in the -interval, Dundee exchanged his scarlet coat for -one of buff, richly laced with silver; and over it -he tied a scarf of <i>green</i>, which the Highlanders -considered ominous of evil. Leaping on horseback, -he galloped to the front, and a shout of -impatience burst from the Highland ranks. -</p> - -<p> -It was now eight o'clock, and the sun was -dipping behind the hills, when a simultaneous -volley ran from flank to flank along Mackay's -line; and while the roar of the musketry rang -from peak to peak, and rebellowed along the sky -and among the hills like thunder, with a thousand -echoes, Dundee gave the order to charge; and in -deep silence, and like a cloud of battle, the race of -old Selma came down! -</p> - -<p> -Reserving their fire until within a pike's length -of King William's troops, the Highlanders poured -upon them a deadly volley; and throwing down -their muskets, drew their claymores, and, under -cover of the smoke, charged with the fury of an -avalanche, striking up the levelled bayonets with -their studded targets, and hewing down with -sword and axe, routed the Lowland soldiery in a -moment. -</p> - -<p> -The brave Maclean cut the left wing to pieces; -while Hastings' Englishmen, on the right, had -equal fortune from the Camerons and Macdonalds. -Dunbarton, at the head of sixteen mounted cavaliers, -actually routed the whole artillery, and seized -the cannon; while, led by Finland, the remainder -of the troop broke among the dense and recoiling -mass of Mackay's regiment, riding through it as -easily as through a field of rye. King William's -Dutch standard was captured by Walter Fenton, -who, after a short conflict, drove his sword through -the corslet of the bearer, and, spurning him with -his foot and stirrup, bore off the trophy. -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile Finland encountered a mounted -cavalier, and had exchanged blows before he -recognised Craigdarroch, his rival, in the leader of -Annandale's Horse, whom his brave little band -had now assailed, and with whom they were -maintaining a desperate and unequal combat of one to -five. -</p> - -<p> -"Surrender, Finland!" said Fergusson haughtily. -</p> - -<p> -"Have at thee, rebel!" cried his adversary, and -by one blow struck his rapier to pieces. His -sword was raised to cut down the now defenceless -trooper, and end their rivalry for ever, but, -animated by chivalric generosity, he spared him, -and pressed further on the broken ranks of the -enemy. -</p> - -<p> -Carrying aloft the Dutch banner, Walter Fenton -rode towards Dundee, who was applauding Sir -Evan Cameron of Locheil, and urging his clan yet -further to advance. Dundee (whose panting horse -was in the act of stooping to drink of a mountain -runnel), with his eyes of fire turned to the -disordered masses of Mackay, was brandishing his -sword towards them, when a random bullet pierced -his buff coat above the corslet, and buried itself in -his shoulder under the left arm. -</p> - -<p> -The sword dropped from his hand; a deadly -pallor overspread his beautiful features; he reeled -in his saddle, and would have fallen, but Walter -supported him, and held before his eyes the yellow -standard of the Statholder. -</p> - -<p> -"Now God be thanked, they fly!" said he, in a -voice which showed how intense were the torments -he endured; "you are a brave lad, Fenton—the -dying hour of Claver'se is at hand, but he -will not forget you. Meet me at the house of -Urrard in an hour, if all goes well and I survive -till then. Make my dutiful service to the noble -Lord Dunbarton, and desire him to assume the -command. Adieu;" and placing his hand on the -orifice to staunch the blood, he rode over the field -at a rapid trot. -</p> - -<p> -In a mass of disorder, horse and foot, musqueteers, -pikemen, and cavalry, the soldiers of Mackay -were driven like a flock of frightened sheep down -the narrow pass, while the fierce clansmen, -swaying with both hands axe and claymore, "cut -down," says an old author, many of Mackay's -officers and soldiers, "through skull and neck to -the very breast; others had their skulls cut off -above their ears like nightcaps; some had their -bodies and crossbelts cut through at one blow; -pikes and swords were cut like willows, and -whoever doubts this may consult the witnesses of the -tragedy." Thanks to the skill of Dundee and the -valour of the Highlanders, never was a more -decisive victory won. Mackay lost his tents, baggage, -artillery, provisions, and his standards; he had -two thousand men slain and five hundred taken -prisoners. Such was the battle of Killycrankie, -or <i>Rinn Ruaradh</i>, as it is still named by the -peasantry, who attribute the ultimately fatal effects -of the victory to the circumstance of Dundee -wearing <i>green</i>, a colour still esteemed ominous to -his sirname. A rude obelisk of rough stone still -marks the place where the death-shot struck him, -and is pointed out by the mountaineers with -respect and regret as the <i>Tombh Claverse</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The grief and consternation that spread through -the Highland ranks on the fall of their beloved -leader becoming known, prevented the pursuit -being followed with sufficient vigour, otherwise -few would ever have reached the southern mouth -of that terrible pass. -</p> - -<p> -"Dundee hath assuredly been slain," said -General Mackay, as he breathed his sinking -charger at the other extremity of Killycrankie, -two miles from the field. "I am convinced of -it; otherwise we would not have been permitted -to retreat thus far unmolested." -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap11"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XI. -<br /><br /> -THE LAST HOUR OF DUNDEE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Oh last and best of Scots! who did'st maintain<br /> - Thy country's freedom from a foreign reign;<br /> - New people fill the land, now thou art gone,<br /> - New gods the temples, and new kings the throne!<br /> - ARCHIBALD PITCAIRN.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Now the battle was over, and the fury of the -conflict with the fierce energies it excited had -passed away together. In that narrow gorge lay -more than two thousand slain, and the broad -round moon, as its shining circle rose above the -dark ridge of the far-off mountains, poured its cold -lustre on the distorted visages of the writhing -wounded, and more ghastly linaments of the pallid -dead. While the Highlanders were plundering -the baggage and carousing on the provisions of -Mackay (who was then retreating to Stirling), -Walter Fenton rode to the house of Urrard, and -repaired to the presence of his leader. -</p> - -<p> -Within a little wainscotted apartment, lighted -by four long candles, that flared in a brazen branch, -stretched upon a low canopied bed lay the great -and terrible Dundee. On his proud heart of fierce -impulses and high aspirations, the hand of the grim -monarch was now laid surely and heavily. His -fine features were sharpened, pale and ghastly, by -agony and approaching death. He breathed -slowly. His Monmouth wig was laid aside, and -his own raven hair, which formed a strong contrast -with the whiteness of his skin, flowed over -the pillow like the tresses of a woman. -</p> - -<p> -"Can this be Claverhouse?" thought Walter. -</p> - -<p> -His bloodstained buff coat, his sword and -helmet, lay near him on a chair, and around the -couch were Dunbarton, Finland, the great Sir -Evan of Locheil, Glengarry, Clanronald, Grant of -Glenmorriston, and other leaders, who leaned on -their swords, conversed in low whispers, and -watched with unfeigned sorrow the ebbing life of -the only man who could lead them like Montrose. -</p> - -<p> -The whole of his dying energies were now -directed to one object, a despatch to his exiled -king, containing an account of the glories he had -gained in his cause, and the long career of service -he had sealed with his own gallant blood. Though -every muscle of his face was contracted at times -with the agony he endured, when stretching from -bed to write at the low table beside it, supported -by his brother David Grahame, who was sheathed -in steel, <i>à la Cuirassier</i>, he finished this -memorable and disputed letter with singular coolness, -appended his name, and instantly falling back, -closed his eyes and lay motionless, as if in death. -</p> - -<p> -"He is gone," whispered the agitated Earl of -Dunbarton to the stern Locheil. "There lies the -strongest pillar of the good old cause." -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Hereditary right will face the rocks!</i>" replied -the chieftain in Gaelic, as he grasped his dirk; -"cursed be the green scarf that wrought this evil -work to Scotland and to us!" -</p> - -<p> -Their voices seemed to call back the fleeting -spirit; and, controlling the painful trembling of -his limbs, Dundee opened his bloodshot eyes, and -looked slowly round him. -</p> - -<p> -"Do not persist," said he to the surgeon, who -approached. "I know that all is over—let me -die in peace. Approach, Mr. Fenton—unfurl that -standard;" and his wild dark eyes flashed with -their old energy at the sight of the Stadtholder's -banner. "You will, at all risks, bear this -despatch and that trophy to the hands of King -James, and say they are the last—the best—the -dying bequest of Dundee." -</p> - -<p> -Walter's heart was full; he could only lay his -hand upon his breast, and bow a grateful assent. -</p> - -<p> -"To Colonel Cannon I bequeath my baton and -authority; let him use them well in the King's -service, if he would wish to die in peace when he -comes to lie <i>here</i>." -</p> - -<p> -"Colonel Cannon!" muttered the Highland -chiefs, as they drew themselves up, exchanged -glances of hauteur, and twisted their mustachios. -</p> - -<p> -"Be merciful to our prisoners," continued the -sufferer in a voice more weak and quavering, and -stopping often to take breath; "be merciful to -them, for they are our countrymen. Release and -bid them return to their homes in peace; say that -such was the last wish of Dundee. Many have -styled me merciless in my time, sirs, and bitterly -will they speak of my spirit when it is far beyond -the reach of mortal malevolence. I have done -fierce and stern things, but I have been hurried to -do them by an irrevocable destiny, and a tide of -circumstances incident to these our troubled times. -Every iota of what I have done was fore-ordained—hah! do -not your Presbyterians tell us so? -But grateful—deeply grateful is the conviction to -my passing spirit, that my friends will ever -remember my name with honour, and my foes with fear. -I feel more bitterness in dying after a victory than -I could have endured by a defeat; for <i>it</i> would -have made life worthless, and death welcome. -Oh, may this day's great achievement be an omen -of future success, and a second Restoration! Go, -my comrades; continue in that path of earthly -glory which I must quit for ever; and let ye who -survive to behold our beloved King fail not to -tell him—that—that John Grahame of Claverhouse—with -his last breath blessed him—and—died." -</p> - -<p> -Falling back, he immediately expired, just as -daylight (which at that season scarcely passed -away) brightened in the east. -</p> - -<p> -All started and bent over him; but the fierce -spirit of that remorseless cavalier had fled for ever, -and his magnificent features, as the rigidity and -pallor of death overspread them, assumed the -aspect of a beautiful marble statue. A groan that -burst from the lips of his brother, as he knelt -down and closed his eyes; the heavy sobs of a few -aged Highlanders; and the low wail of a lament, -as the pipers of Glengarry poured it to the -mountain-wind and echoing woods of Urrard, were the -only sounds heard within that gloomy chamber, -where the terror of the Presbyterians—the idol of -the cavaliers, and the last hope of James, lay -prostrate, to rise no more. Though by one faction -styled the <i>last and best of Scots</i>—by the other, a -murderer and outlaw; yet, by the cause for which -he died, and the manner of his death, he closed in -glory a life of singular ferocity and turbulence. -</p> - -<p> -His remains were hurriedly interred in the rural -kirk of Blair Athol; and the cause of King James -was buried with him. His brother assumed his -title; but died in great obscurity in France in -1700. The buff coat of Dundee, bearing the mark -of the fatal ball, and stained with his blood, -together with his helmet and other relics, are still -preserved in the ducal castle of Blair. -</p> - -<p> -Remembering the dying desire of their leader -on the day after the battle, the Highland chiefs -liberated all the prisoners on parole of honour not -to serve against the King, Colonel Fergusson of -Craigdarroch (notwithstanding all the exertions -of his generous rival Finland) "being excepted," -says Captain Crichton, in his Memoirs, "on -account of his more than ordinary zeal for the -new establishment." -</p> - -<p> -In those days the uncertain means of communication -between towns, and the great deficiency -of certain information of public events, caused -many strange and varying rumours of the Highland -war to be circulated in the Lowlands, where -the only newspaper was the <i>Caledonius Mercurius</i>, -which had been published occasionally since the -Restoration. But the astounding intelligence of -the victory at Killycrankie, and the fall of -Dundee, spread like wildfire through the low country, -to which he had so long been a terror and scourge. -The defeat of Cannon at the Haughs of Cromdale, -and the utter prostration of James's banner in the -north, was soon followed by his disaster at the -Boyne, in Ireland, where the loss of a decisive -battle compelled him again to seek refuge in -France. -</p> - -<p> -Poor Lilian, at home in the then secluded capital -of Scotland, heard of those stirring events at -long intervals; and to her they were a source of -deep interest, and of many a sigh and hour of -tears; but of Walter she heard no tidings. Whether -he lay mouldering in the Pass of Killycrankie, -among the haughs of Cromdale, or was wandering -among the wildest fastnesses of the north, with -the doom of proscription and treason hanging -over him, she knew not; and time in no way -soothed or alleviated the agonies of her suspense. -On the return of Colonel Fergusson, whose apostacy -had opened an easy path to preferment under -the new order of affairs, she learned some faint -rumours of his departure to France with the other -officers of Dundee—for that horizon where the sun -of the exiled Jacobites was setting—the lonely -palace of St. Germain. Though the tidings fell -like ice on the heart of the poor girl, any certainty -was preferable to suspense; and with her good Aunt -Grisel, she could only weep for the poor youth they -loved so well, and pray and hope for happier times. -To lighten the solitude his absence caused, she -could not even hope for a letter; all intercourse -with the court of the exiled King being proscribed -under pain of banishment and death; and thus -slowly the melancholy summer of 1690 passed on. -</p> - -<p> -With the accession of William, and total subversion -of the old high church party, all the sourness -and severity of Presbyterian discipline (which -at times compelled the proudest peers to endure a -rebuke on the ignominious repentance-stool, or at -least before a congregation) was resumed by the -overbearing clergy in full sway. From the innate -cavalier sentiments of her family, and the wavering -politics of Aunt Grisel, Lilian had never been -a very rigid Presbyterian; and now, looking upon -the triumph of "the Kirk" as having driven her -lover into exile, she felt her heart further than -ever removed from Presbytery. She had still to -endure the persecution of Clermistonlee, who, -having in a few months spent all the Revolution -had enabled him to extort by fines from his old -cavalier friends, was now more reduced and desperate -than ever; and, as a last shift, was compelled -to dispose of his tower of Clermiston for a -trifling sum to his more cautious gossip Mersington; -and though the gaming-table replenished his -exchequer at times, gaunt starvation stared him -hourly in the face. -</p> - -<p> -Though the native kindness and exceeding -gentleness of Lilian's manner had always given this -indefatigable suitor some hope of ultimate success, -he soon found that, besieging her whenever she -went abroad, and keeping spies upon her when at -home—pestering her with presents, and letters -the most flattering and submissive his ingenuity -and skill could indite, did not bring him nearer -the summit of his wishes. As his funds waxed -lower, his perseverance increased; and he brought -a new ally into the field, in the person of our old -friend Mr. Ichabod Bummel, whose zeal for the -Revolution had procured him an incumbency in -the city, where, every Sunday, he had the felicity -of preaching in a pulpit of his own, quoting that -immortal work the <i>Bombshell</i>, railing at the exiled -King, and all other "bloody-minded massmongers," -and "dinging" many successive bibles to "blads" -in the true Knox-like energy of his discourse. -This meddling preacher, after the abduction of -Lilian, and the scandalous reports the kirk party -had so industriously circulated concerning it, had -long deemed it, in his own phraseology, "a -shameful and malapert fact, unseemly to men, and -abominable in the sight of Heaven, that these -twain should remain unwedded;" and by his -influence, Clermistonlee was duly cited before the -kirk session. Resistance was in vain, for now -the clergy had succeeded to the Council's iron -rod; and temporal proscription and spiritual -excommunication invariably followed delay. -</p> - -<p> -Clad in a sack of coarse white canvass, and on -his knees before a staring congregation of stern -Presbyterians, he "confessit his manifold sins -and enormities," as the records of the kirk show, -"and was rebukit by the godlie Mr. Bummel for -the space of ane hour, being comparit to ane owle -in ye desart;" and it appears that the minister, in -his ire, made such direct reference to the abduction -of Lilian, in language so pointed, so coarse, -and unseemly, that, overwhelmed with shame and -horror, the poor girl, unable to bear the scornful -scrutiny and malevolent glances of her own sex, -sank down in the gloomiest recesses of the old -family pew, and swooned. -</p> - -<p> -This event, together with the cruel inuendos -industriously circulated by the gallants and -gossips of the city, was her crowning misfortune; -from that hour her peace was blighted, and her -fair fame blotted for ever. Her friends pitied -and acquaintance shunned her. She endured the -most intense grief and bitterness of soul that a -sensitive and delicate woman could feel; for even -the very children of the Whig faction pelted her -sedan when it entered the city, and called her -"My Lord's leman," "Clermistonlee's minion," -and the "Deil's dearie." -</p> - -<p> -The united effects of grief, shame, mortification, -and insulted pride, were soon visible on her health; -her cheek grew blanched and thin, her eyes dim; -and though she did not weep, her sorrows lay -deeper, and the canker-worm preyed upon her -suffering heart. And not the least offensive to -her feelings were those offerings of friendship -which were mingled with condolence, when Lady -Drumsturdy and others advised her to think -seriously of the long and assiduous attentions of -Clermistonlee; in short, "<i>after all that had taken -place</i>," to receive him as her husband; that being -in their opinion the only way to restore her -forfeited honour. -</p> - -<p> -The inuendo concealed under this odious advice -provoked the anger of Lilian, whose concern was -increased by perceiving that Lady Grisel and her -own bosom friend and gossip Annie, were beginning -to be of the same opinion. Their countenance, -and the hope of Walter's return, had alone -sustained her so long; but now a sense of utter -desolation sank upon her soul, and her brain -reeled with the terrible thoughts that oppressed it. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap12"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XII. -<br /><br /> -ST. GERMAINS. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - And it was a' for our richtfu' king,<br /> - We ere left Scotia's strand, my dear;<br /> - And it was a' for our richtfu' king,<br /> - We saw another land, my dear.<br /> - OLD SONG.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Agitated by feelings such as few have -experienced, on an evening in the summer of 1690, -Walter Fenton found himself pursuing the dusty -highway from Paris to St. Germains, the place -where the hopes and the fears, the loyalty and -the sorrows of the Jacobites were centred. He -wore a plain suit of unlaced grey cloth, very much -worn, a hat without a feather, and a plain -walking-sword. He carried under his arm a small -bundle, with particular care, for it contained a -few necessaries and all he possessed in the -world—his commission, the long-treasured letter of -Dundee, and the Dutch standard he had taken at -Killycrankie. These were now his whole fortune. -</p> - -<p> -That day he had walked from Senlis without -tasting food, and was quite exhausted. After -spending his last sou on a glass of sour vin -ordinaire at a small cottage near the Wood of Treason -(where Ganelon in 780 formed his plot which -betrayed the house of Ardennes, the peers of -Charlemagne, and occasioned the defeat at -Roncesvalles), he grasped his bundle, and pushed on -with renewed energy. His handsome features -were impressed by an air of sadness and deep -abstraction, for the acute achings of present -sorrow struggled with the gentler whisperings of -hope, and though his feet traversed the hard flinty -roadway from Paris, his thoughts were far away -in the land of his childhood, and his wandering -fancy luxuriated on the memory of many a much-loved -scene he might be fated to behold no more, -and many an episode of tenderness and love that -would never be re-acted again. -</p> - -<p> -How vividly he recalled every glance and graceful -action of Lilian, as he had last beheld her. -Nearest and dearest to his heart, she rendered -the memory of his native land still more beloved, -for she yet trod its soil and breathed its air, and -he knew that daily she could gaze on those blue -hills which are the first landmarks of the child in -youth, and the last of the man in age, and to the -recollection of which the emigrant and the exile -cling with the tenacity of life. -</p> - -<p> -The current of his thoughts was interrupted, -and his cheek flushed. The great and striking -brick façade of the old castle of St. Germains, -with its turrets shining in the setting sun, arose -before him. There dwelt he on whom the hopes -of half a nation rested, and Walter drew breath -more freely as he progressed; his eye sparkled, -and his cheek flushed with animation, for now -other and less painful thoughts were occurring to -his fancy. With the buoyancy natural to youth, -sorrow gave way as hope spread its rainbow before -him: and bright visions of the King's triumphant -return and restoration by the swords of the -Cavaliers or Jacobites, mingled with his own dreams -of love and honour. Fired with ardour, he often -grasped his sword, and springing forward, longed -to throw himself at the foot of James VII., and -pour forth in transport that singularly deep and -burning passion of loyalty which animated every -member of his faction. -</p> - -<p> -"And this is the palace of our King!" he -exclaimed, with enthusiasm. "Heaven grant I -may yet greet him in his old ancestral dome of -Holyrood!" But the fever of his naturally excitable -spirits subsided when approaching the edifice, -for the air of silence and gloom that pervaded it -struck a chill on his anxious heart. -</p> - -<p> -"Ah," thought he, "if James should be dead!" -</p> - -<p> -At the distance of twelve miles from Paris, this -ancient brick chateau or palace is beautifully -situated on the slope of a verdant hill, at the base -of which flows the Seine, and opposite lies an -immense forest. From the earliest ages, -St. Germain-en-laye had been a hunting-seat of the French -kings; but in compliment to his mistress, whose -name was Diana, Francis I. (a monarch unequalled -in gallantry, generosity, and magnificence) built -the present palace in form of the letter D, with -five towers, the vanes of which were gleaming like -gold in the setting sun as Walter approached. A -dry fosse crossed by drawbridges surrounded this -noble chateau, which had on one side a range of -beautiful arcades built by Henry IV. and Louis -XIII., and a magnificent terrace 2,700 yards long -and 50 broad, extending by the side of the dark-green -forest, and from which, as our exile traversed -it, he had a full view of the Seine winding through -a beautiful country, bordered on each side by -waving meadows, vineyards of the deepest green, -and cornfields of the brightest yellow, villages of -white cottages thatched with light-coloured straw, -that clustered round the turreted chateaux or the -ramparted châtelets of a noblesse that were then -the most aristocratic in Europe. -</p> - -<p> -But Walter saw only the home of the exiled -Stuarts. On the ruddy brick-walls, the latticed -casements, and gothic towers, the setting sun was -pouring a flood of light as it set at the cloudless -horizon. From the summit of the edifice, the -royal standard of Britain hung down listlessly and -still, and the same absence of life seemed to -pervade all beneath it. The ditch was overgrown -with luxuriant weeds, and long tufts of pendant -grass waved in the joints of the masonry; great -branches of vine and ivy had clambered up the -walls of the palace, and flourished in masses on its -terraced roofs and balconies. There was no one -visible at any of the windows; the gateway, which -was surmounted by a stone salamandre (the -cognizance of Francis I.), was shut, and save two -sentinels of the French guards, who stood motionless -as statues on each side, and an old Jacobite -gentleman or two, in full-bottomed wigs and laced -coats, promenading slowly and thoughtfully on -the terrace, the old chateau seemed lifeless and -uninhabited. -</p> - -<p> -As Walter crossed the bridge, and approached -the gate with a beating heart, one of the sentinels, -after giving a haughty glance at his faded and -travel-stained attire, his weary aspect, and bundle, -ported his musquet across, and said politely, but -firmly— -</p> - -<p> -"Pardonnez, monsieur." -</p> - -<p> -Walter's heart swelled: had he travelled thus -far, and reached the palace of his King, only to be -repulsed from its gates? His colour came and -went, as, with a painful mixture of pride and -humility, he replied— -</p> - -<p> -"Mon camarade, I am a poor Scots officer, -exiled from his native country, and who has come -here to take service in France." The face of the -Frenchman flushed, and his eye glistened, as he -drew himself up, and presented arms. -</p> - -<p> -"Behold my commission," continued Walter; -"I would speak with my noble Lord and Colonel -the Earl of Dunbarton." -</p> - -<p> -"Aha," replied the sentinel, "il est bon -soldat, Monsieur Dunbartong. Passez, Monsieur -officier; un gentilhomme est toujours un -gentilhomme, et les braves officiers Eccossais sonts -l'admiration de la France!" -</p> - -<p> -Walter bowed at this compliment, the gate was -opened by the porters, and, with a heart full of -thoughts too deep for words, he found himself -within the gloomy quadrangle of the palace of -St. Germain-en-laye. -</p> - -<p> -Left for some minutes to himself, he stood, -bundle in hand, irresolutely surveying, with a -dejected and crest-fallen air, the great and silent -court. A gentleman in very plain attire, with a -short wig, a well-worn beaver, and steel-hilted -sword, who was slowly promenading under the -arcade, suddenly turned, and the wanderer was -greeted by his old friend Finland. -</p> - -<p> -"Welcome to the poor cheer of St. Germain-en-laye!" -cried this merry soldier (whom no fall -of fortune could daunt), grasping Walter's hand. -"My bon camarade, welcome to France. By all -the devils, I was often grieved for thee, poor lad, -and deemed thou wert doing penance in some -rascally Tolbooth for our brave camisade in the -north." -</p> - -<p> -Walter was so much oppressed in spirit, and -so weak in mind and body, that the tears rushed -into his eyes, and he could only press his hand in -silence. -</p> - -<p> -"What the devil——my poor lad, thou seemest -very faint and exhausted!" -</p> - -<p> -"I have travelled on foot from Boulogne-sur-mer. -I spent my last franc at St. Juste, my last -sou an hour ago for a glass of vin ordinaire, and -for three days no food has passed my lips." -</p> - -<p> -"My God!" exclaimed Finland, striking his -flushed forehead, "and my last tester went for -dinner today! how shall I assist you? Travelling -for three days without food! Surely the fortunes -of the cavaliers are now at the lowest ebb." -</p> - -<p> -"Then the tide must flow again." -</p> - -<p> -"I now begin to fear it will flow no more for -us. What says the player? -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'There is a tide in the affairs of men,<br /> - Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune.'<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -Once at least in life, every man's fortune will be -at the flood, and if he misses the tide his bark is -stranded on the shore for ever. But thee, poor -lad! how shall I get thee food?—we are all as poor -as kirk rats here. There are not less than two -hundred officers of Dundee's army, and other -loyal gentlemen of the Life Guards and Scottish -Brigade, subsisting here on the small bounty of -our gracious king, (whom Heaven in its mercy -bless!) until some turn of fortune again draws -forth their swords. We have each but fourpence -a day, and are in great misery from lack of the -most common necessaries of life. Yet we never -forget that we are Scottish gentlemen, and daily -attend the king's levée, with as gallant an air as -if we trod the long gallery of Holyrood in our -feathers and lace as of old. His grace of Gordon, -my Lords of Maitland, Dunbarton, Abercorn, -and others dine daily at a poor Restaurateur's, on -plain stew and cabbage broth, while I have to -content myself with bread and onions, and a keen -appetite for sauce; while it affords me no -consolation to reflect that my old ancestral tower of -Finland—the gift of the Black Douglas to his -favourite son—and all the fertile lands that spread -around it, are now possessed by some vile, canting, -crop-ear. The Earl of Dunbarton——" -</p> - -<p> -"Whilom our gallant colonel—how I long for -an interview!" -</p> - -<p> -"He is gone to Versailles to visit le Mareschal -Noailles, anent the unfortunate gentlemen who -are starving here around us. He will be back -tomorrow. Oh, Walter, when I see how might can -triumph over right, and wickedness over more -than Spartan virtue, I am almost tempted to -believe there is no governing power in this -wretched world; that all is the effect of chance or -fate." -</p> - -<p> -"Chance and fate are the reverse of each other, -and this sentiment agrees not with your previous -idea of 'the tide in the affairs of men.'" -</p> - -<p> -"Tush! I am in a dozen minds in an hour. Let -us leave these topics to such men as Mr. Ichabod -Bummel. You remember that apostle of the -covenant? ha, ha! A word in your ear. You -saw our fair ones ere you left Scotland, I doubt -not?" -</p> - -<p> -"Alas, no." -</p> - -<p> -"The deuce! how came that to pass? But you -must dine, and where? for I have not a brass -bodle, as we say at home in poor old Scotland, -(God bless her, with all her errors!) I have it! -the officer of the guard will lend me—or give—'tis -all one; they are fine fellows, these French, and -share their poor pay with us, in a spirit of charity -that the apostles could not have surpassed. The -gentleman and the soldier seldom seek a boon -from each other in vain." -</p> - -<p> -Finland calculated rightly; the French chevalier -commanding the guard, on learning the cause of -his present necessity, at once divided the contents -of his purse, and enabled the happy borrower to -lead his wearied friend to a tavern, where dinner -was ordered and discussed with wonderful celerity. -</p> - -<p> -"Now, Walter, I shall be glad to hear thy -adventures," said Finland, when the waiting girl -had cleared the dinner board and laid a decanter -of wine, from which he filled their glasses. -"Frontiniac dashed with brandy—you remember -how often we have drank a bottle of it at Hughie -Blair's, and the White Horse Hostel. How the -times are changed since then! I was not at the -Haughs o' Cromdale, being en route for Ireland to -crave succour from James——" -</p> - -<p> -"After the dispersion consequent to that -ill-managed affair, I wandered from place to place, -enduring such miseries as few can conceive, and -was a thousand times in danger of being captured -by Mackay's dragoons, who were riding down the -country in every direction. Assisted by the kind -and beautiful Countess of Dunbarton (who is yet -intriguing in England), I procured some money, -and, disguised as a Norlan drover, reached the -western borders, for escape by sea from Scotland -was impossible, the whole coast being watched by -the English and Dutch fleet. In England my -money was soon spent, and I despaired of ever -reaching the port of Colchester, where I heard -there lay a ship that in secret frequently -transported our persecuted people to France. My -bonnet and grey plaid, though they ensured my -safety in the Lowlands, caused me to be viewed -with hatred, jealousy, and mistrust, as soon as the -Cheviot hills were left behind me, and I had not -money wherewith to procure a change of costume. -I travelled principally by night, and slept in -ditches or thickets by day, for the villagers -assailed me with stones and abuse whenever they -saw me, using every bitter epithet that national -animosity could inspire, while every country boor -that had a couple of beagles at hand, uncoupled -them to track and hunt me." -</p> - -<p> -"Would to heaven I had been with thee, lad! -Well." -</p> - -<p> -"I remember with what bitterness I changed -my last penny for a poor roll at Rippon, and eat -it by the side of a ditch, near the princely castle -of one who had gained a coronet by his political -apostacy. I had still many miles before me, but -trusting to Providence, continued my journey. -Travelling by night and lying <i>perdu</i> by day, I -found myself in a waste moorland near Cawood, -in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The moon was -rising; but I found that hunger, fatigue, and -humiliation, had done their worst upon me, and -that I could achieve no more. Despair entered -my heart, and I threw myself down in that bleak -spot to die, cursing the rebellion of our countrymen, -the inhospitality of the English, and my own -bad fortune. From a stupor that for some time -weighed down every sense, I was roused by the -trampling of a horse, and a deep bass voice crying, -</p> - -<p> -"'Hollo Gaffer, art dead, or dead drunk only! -Get up with a murrain, for my nag will neither -stand or pass; steady—so-so—gently, zounds! gently!" -</p> - -<p> -"I started, and instinctively grasped my staff, -on perceiving a tall stout fellow muffled in a dark -rocquelaure, with his face masked, and a hat -flapped over his eyes. He rode a strong, fleet, -and active horse, and carried long holsters. -</p> - -<p> -"'Crush me, if it isn't a Scotch Jockey—a -pedlar, I warrant!' said he, drawing a pistol from -his saddlebow; 'they never travel without the -ready; so hand over the bright Jacobuses or -William's guilders, or else I may pop this bullet -through your brain.' -</p> - -<p> -"I was desperate, and replied, 'Fire! and rid -me of an existence that is worthless. I have -nothing to give but my life, and it is no longer -of value to me.' -</p> - -<p> -"'A gentleman, by this light!' replied the -other, withdrawing his pistol, 'some cavalier in -disguise, I warrant.' -</p> - -<p> -"'You have guessed rightly; so now lead me to -the nearest justice of the peace for a reward, if you -will.' -</p> - -<p> -"'For what do you take me?' said he, angrily. -'God bless King James, and may the great devil -choak his son-in-law! Ah, had the good Dundee -(a Scot though he was) survived that brave day's -work, in your infernal pass of what d'ye call it? -'twould have been another case with us both -today, perhaps. So thou art a Scottish cavalier?' -</p> - -<p> -"'Once I was so—to-night I am a beggar, -perishing by want, and without a roof to shelter -me.' -</p> - -<p> -"'Hast thou no money, lad?' -</p> - -<p> -"'Not a penny, and have two hundred miles to -travel.' -</p> - -<p> -"'Hast thou no friends among the English here?' -</p> - -<p> -"'Have I not said that I am poor?' -</p> - -<p> -"'Right! I have learned in my time that the -poor have no friends.' -</p> - -<p> -"'Save God and their own hands.' -</p> - -<p> -"'Right again, say I; though a highwayman, I -love thee lad, for we have suffered in common from -this accursed usurper, who sits in the throne of -of our king. Here are thirty guineas; 'tis the half -of all I have in the world, but to-morrow night -may bring me better luck; take them with -welcome, and spend them without scruple; but two -hours ago, they were in the purse of that rascally -whig, Marmaduke Langstone, of Langstone Hall. -Keep to the right, and an hour's brisk walking -will bring you to a hedge alehouse. Whisper my -name to the wench at the bar (kiss her for me), -and she will put thee on the right road for -Colchester; the girl is true as steel to the good old -cause.' -</p> - -<p> -"'Whom shall I thank—whom remember?' -</p> - -<p> -"'They call me "Highflying Tom" now, eastward -of Temple Bar,' said he in a tone of bitterness; -'but when King James sat in his own chair, I was -Thomas Butler, <i>Esquire</i>, of a long pedigree and an -empty purse—devil else—but a gentleman every -inch, sir; one that has shot his man, played at -Cavagnole with King Charles, and Ombre with -the Queen; drank many a bout with Rochester, -ruffled it with Buckingham, and handed the fair -Castlemaine and fairer Cleveland through a crowded -cotillon. But it's all over now; and, d—n me! -I am plain Bully Butler the highwayman.—So, -sir, your servant;' and dashing spurs into his -horse, he galloped away over the heath." -</p> - -<p> -"Thomas Butler, of the princely house of -Ormond—and 'twas he!" said Finland; "a braver -spark old Ireland never sent forth to glory or -disgrace. His father was a stout old Royalist, and -shed his blood for King James on the banks of the -Boyne. And so he hath taken to the road, the -madcap! That is riding at the gallows full tilt -with a vengeance!" -</p> - -<p> -"But for that rencontre, I must have expired. -The meeting gave me renewed energy; and (to be -brief) I reached—not Colchester, but the sea-port -of Saltfleet, where, in the disguise of a poor -Scottish mariner, I embarked on board a smuggling -craft, which landed me at Boulogne; and so—I -am here." -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap13"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIII. -<br /><br /> -THE CAVALIERS OF DUNDEE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - In the cause of right engaged,<br /> - Wrongs injurious to redress;<br /> - Honour's war we strongly waged,<br /> - But the heavens denied success.<br /> - Ruin's wheel has driven o'er us,<br /> - Not a hope that dare attend;<br /> - The world wide is all before us,<br /> - But a world—without a friend.<br /> - STRATHALLAN'S LAMENT.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The magnanimity of those unfortunate officers -of the Scottish army who remained loyal to James -VII., and had shared his misfortunes and exile, -was equally worthy of ancient Caledonia and of -the most glorious ages of Athens and of Sparta. -They were about one hundred and fifty in number, -all men of noble spirit, unblemished honour, -and high birth; for they were the representatives -of some of the first families in Scotland. -Enthusiastically attached to the King, they gloried in -the sufferings their principles had brought upon -them. -</p> - -<p> -On their first arrival in France, small pensions -were assigned them by Louis XIV.; but these -were shortly afterwards withdrawn, on the paltry -pretext of public expedience; and the whole of -those unfortunate gentlemen, who by their -incorruptible loyalty and indomitable patriotism had -forfeited their commissions, when they might -have purchased new honours in the ranks of the -invader, and many of whom had lost titles and -estates by their expatriation, were thus thrown -destitute in a foreign land. -</p> - -<p> -It is related that, with a noble spirit of generosity, -they shared their little funds for the benefit -of those who were in greater destitution; and -those who had raised money by the sale of their -gilt corslets, jewels, laced uniforms, rings, &c., -readily shared it with others who were penniless. -But these occasional funds soon became exhausted; -the King soon found it impossible, from the -pittance allowed him, to maintain the numerous -exiles and ruined dependants who made his court -of St. Germain their rallying point. The poor -Scottish officers finding the horrors of starvation -before them, petitioned James for leave to form -themselves into a company of private soldiers for -the service of the French king, asking no other -favour than permission to choose their own leaders: -their former general, Dunbarton, to be their captain; -their Serjeants to be lieutenant-colonels; and -so forth. The King reluctantly consented. -</p> - -<p> -Those high-spirited cavaliers were immediately -furnished with the clothing and arms of French -soldiers; and previously to their incorporation -with the army of Mareschal Noailles, repaired to -St. Germain, to be reviewed by the King, and to -take a long—to many a last—adieu of him. -</p> - -<p> -It was the day after Walter's arrival; and the -summer morning rose beautifully on the Gothic -towers of St. Germain, the crystal windings of -the Seine, and on the dense dark woodlands that, -interspersed with blooming vineyards and waving -fields, imparted such charms to the landscape. -</p> - -<p> -James VII. had become passionately fond of -the chase since the loss of his kingdom; for his -brave and restless spirit always sought excitement -when not absorbed in the austere duties of religion, -in the course of which he often subjected himself -to the most severe penances. Kind, affable, and -easy to all around him, religion improved the -virtues of his heart, subdued the fire of his spirit, -and by imparting a monk-like gentleness to his -demeanour, endeared him to his enthusiastic -followers. The butcheries of Kirke and Claverhouse, -and the tyrannies of Jefferies and Rosehaugh, were -forgotten. Though his uncompromising bigotry -remained, all his arbitrary spirit had vanished; -and when he laid aside his visions of worldly -grandeur and kingly power, nothing could be more -blameless and amiable than the life he led. -</p> - -<p> -He frequently visited the poor monks of La -Trappe, whom he surprised by the piety and -humility of his deportment; but there were times -when the sparkling eye, the flushed cheek, the -forward stride, and the clanked sword, shewed -how regal a spirit and bold a heart misfortune had -crushed and fanaticism clouded. He was an -enthusiast in the pleasures of the chase, which he -enjoyed after the good old English fashion; and -on the morning in question, the baying of dogs, -the neighing of horses, and the merry ringing of -the clear bugle-horn, awoke the echoes of the -woods, the gloomy arcades, and quadrangle of -St. Germain. -</p> - -<p> -On each side of the archway were drawn up a -guard of honour of les Gardes Françaises, in their -white hoquetons laced with gold, powdered wigs, -little hats looped on three sides and surmounted -with plumes of feathers, and having the white -banner of Bourbon displayed. The porters -unclosed the heavy folding-doors, and a merry troop -of huntsmen in green galloped forth, with their -dogs barking and straining in the leashes, as the -blasts of the shrill horns were poured to the -morning wind, and roused their English blood. The -heavy drawbridge clanked into its place across the -grass-grown moat—the planks resounded to iron -hoofs—the French guard presented arms—the -oriflamme of St. Denis was lowered—the drums -beat a march—and James VII., raising his plumed -hat, sallied forth at the head of his train, and -advanced along the spacious and magnificent terrace. -The Earl of Dunbarton rode by his side; and as -they caracoled along the level terrace, by the -margin of the beautiful Seine, a body of soldiers -in French uniform was seen in front, drawn up -in steady array, with their fixed bayonets shining -in the morning sun. They presented arms as the -King approached, upon which he immediately -reined up, and raised his hat. -</p> - -<p> -"My Lord Dunbarton," said he, "what troops -are these?" -</p> - -<p> -"They are your Majesty's most faithful subjects -and devoted followers," replied Dunbarton in a -faltering voice. "Yesterday they were Scottish -gentlemen of coat-armour and bearers of your -Majesty's commission—to-day they are but poor -privates in the army of Louis of France." -</p> - -<p> -"My God!" said the King; "and, in the levity -of the chase, am I so oblivious of the misfortunes -of those unhappy gentlemen?" -</p> - -<p> -Instantly leaping from his horse with a heart -that swelled by its emotions, he approached them -and raised his hat. -</p> - -<p> -Every heart was full in that silent line before -him, and every eye glistened. Walter Fenton, -who now for the first time beheld that King for -whom he had suffered so much, felt his bosom -glow with the most intense loyalty and ardour,—a -gush of sentiment that would have enabled him -to hail with joy the terrors of a scaffold or the -dangers of a battle-field. -</p> - -<p> -"Gentlemen," said the King, "bitter though -my own misfortunes be, yours lie nearer my heart, -which is grieved, beyond what language can express, -to behold so many men of valour and worth, from -being the officers of my Scottish army, reduced -by their loyalty to the station of private soldiers. -Nothing but this more than Spartan devotion on -the part of the few, but gallant and leal, makes my -life worth preserving. Deeply, deeply indeed is -my heart impressed with the sense of all you have -undergone for my sake; and if it should ever please -the blessed God"—(removing his hat)—"to restore -me to the throne of my fathers, your sufferings, -your services, and your devotion shall not be -forgotten—never, oh, never! The prince my -son, he shares your northern blood. Oh, may -he likewise inherit your spirit of bravery and -truth! -</p> - -<p> -"At your own desire, gentlemen, you are now -going on a long and perilous march, far distant -from me, to encounter privation, danger, and -death. To the utmost of my small means, I have -provided you with money, shoes, and stockings. -Heaven knoweth how great are my own necessities. -I can no more..... -</p> - -<p> -"Fear God—love one another, and you will -ever find me your parent, if I cannot be your -King." -</p> - -<p> -The eyes of James VII. were full of tears, and -a long pause ensued. -</p> - -<p> -"There is a gentleman here who arrived only -yesterday," said Lord Dunbarton, who had also -dismounted. "He is the bearer of two relics to -your Majesty: the first is the despatch of the -expiring Dundee; the second will bear witness of -his own zeal and courage in your cause at the -victory of Killycrankie." -</p> - -<p> -"Let him approach," said the king, covering -his face to hide his emotion. -</p> - -<p> -"Mr. Fenton," said the Earl, "His Majesty -would speak with you," and Walter, whose heart -trembled from the depth of his emotions, grounded -his musquet, and, kneeling before James, placed -in his hands the long-treasured despatch of -Dundee, and the Dutch standard of Mackay's regiment. -</p> - -<p> -"My brave Dundee!" exclaimed James, in a -low voice, as he kissed and perused the brief -letter which had been hurriedly penned amid the -agonies of death; "'tis stained with his loyal and -noble blood! Oh! never had a king a subject -more devoted, more loyal, or more true! Accept -my thanks, young gentleman, for the services you -have performed, the valour you have displayed, -and the fidelity you evince; accept my thanks, -for misfortune has left me nothing else wherewith -to reward the faithful and the brave, who have -followed me to exile and obscurity. This standard -I will retain; one day, perhaps, in Holyrood -or Windsor, I may replace it in your hands with -such rewards as a king alone can give." -</p> - -<p> -Walter strove to speak, but his voice failed him, -on which Lord Dunbarton said,— -</p> - -<p> -"Like his brothers in misfortune, my young -friend seeks no other reward than the honour of -serving your Majesty, and the satisfaction of doing -that which is right." -</p> - -<p> -The King drew his sword. -</p> - -<p> -"What is your name, Sir!" he asked. -</p> - -<p> -"Fenton—Walter Fenton, of Dunbarton's Foot." -</p> - -<p> -"No kinsman, I hope, of Fenton of that ilk, -who is so active in his treason against us?" -</p> - -<p> -"Alas, no!" replied Walter, colouring in -painful humility; "may it please your Majesty I am -but a poor protegée of the noble Dunbarton. I -know not my family, my name, or my origin." -</p> - -<p> -"It matters not—I shall render honour to all -who deserve it; arise <i>Sir</i> Walter Fenton, Knight -Banneret—of this power, at least, my son William -cannot deprive me." -</p> - -<p> -Startled by the suddenness of the action, -Walter, whose heart leaped within him at the words -of the King, could only kiss his hand and resume -his place in the ranks of his cavalier comrades, -who with difficulty repressed a shout of applause. -Walter felt giddy and confused; the King still -seemed to be addressing him. -</p> - -<p> -The temporary excitement which had led James -through this painful interview, now passed away, -and his features became overclouded with a sad -and bitter expression, as he went slowly along the -line asking each officer his name, inserting it in -his note book, and returning him personal thanks. -Meanwhile the troop of huntsmen, equerries, and -whippers-in, with their packs of panting-hounds, -were grouped about the terrace, and quite forgotten -in the excitement of this sorrowful review. -</p> - -<p> -"Your name, Sir—yesterday you were at my -levée in a garb more suitable to your rank," said -James, to a tall and very handsome man, whose -fashionably curled wig consorted ill with the coarse -looped hat and plain blue coat of a French -musqueteer; "your name, Sir, if you please?" -</p> - -<p> -"John Ogilvie, of the house of Airly—late a -captain in your Majesty's Life Guard." -</p> - -<p> -"Sir, I thank you—the day may come when -you shall command that Life Guard," replied -James, writing down his name; "and yours, Sir?" -he asked of the next. -</p> - -<p> -"Grant of Dunlugais—a captain of Mar's Fusiliers." -</p> - -<p> -"Then you have lost an estate in my service?" -</p> - -<p> -"I have lost nothing that I can regret in such -a cause." -</p> - -<p> -"May I live to requite it! 'Tis an ancient -house, and one of unblemished honour. Are you -Catholic?" -</p> - -<p> -"No, I am a Presbyterian." -</p> - -<p> -"Then the greater honour is due to you for -disinterested loyalty. And yours, Sir?" -</p> - -<p> -"Douglas of Finland—a lieutenant under the -Lord Dunbarton." -</p> - -<p> -"Another forfeiture!" exclaimed James, striking -his breast; "and yours, Sir?" -</p> - -<p> -"Drumquhasel—first major to the same noble -earl," replied the tali cavalier, on whose breast -sparkled the cross of St. Louis. -</p> - -<p> -"Another, and another! Oh, gentlemen, your -sufferings and your losses, your loyalty and your -truth—God may requite them adequately, but I -never can!" exclaimed James, in a troubled voice, -and when he had inserted the names of the whole -hundred and fifty in his note book, he moved -again to the front, and taking off his hat, bowed -profoundly with an air in which thankfulness and -respect were exquisitely blended with dignity and -majesty. He then retired pensively towards the -palace; but painfully aware of the misery of those -who suffered for him, and still unwilling to leave -them, with sensations too deep for utterance, the -unhappy King returned once more, and bowing -to them again and again, covered his face with -his handkerchief, and burst into tears. Animated -by one sympathetic impulse, the whole line sank -at once upon their knees and bowed their heads; -the spirit of many a brave man was subdued; -several wept, and there was not an unmoistened -eye among them. The King, in particular, was -deeply affected; his sobs were audible; and again -removing his hat, he raised his eyes to heaven, -and exclaimed, in the words of the last chapter of -Lamentations,— -</p> - -<p> -"Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us! -Consider and behold our reproach! <i>Our inheritance -is returned to strangers—our houses to -aliens!</i>" -</p> - -<p> -He repeatedly smote himself upon the breast in -an energetic fashion he had acquired among the -Jesuits, who had been too much about him for his -own fortune; and a long pause succeeded, until Lord -Dunbarton gave for the last time the word of -command. The Scottish officers resumed their aspect -of steadiness and order, and marched past the -King, whom nearly all of them were fated to -behold no more; for death on the field, disease in -the camp, poverty and despair, did their work -surely and rapidly, and few of that brave but -forlorn band ever returned from the frontiers of -Spain. -</p> - -<p> -From Versailles this company of unfortunate -cavaliers received an order to join the army of -Mareschal Noailles; and, next day, they set out -from St. Germain, on their long and weary march -of nine hundred miles, which they performed -on foot, heavily accoutred, bearing their own -camp-kettles and equipages, and accompanied by -miseries and mortifications that baffle all -description; but which, by the indomitable spirit and -ardour that animated them, they seldom failed to -surmount. -</p> - -<p> -Louis of France was now plunged in a war, into -which his mistaken policy had hurried him. In -a long persecution of the unhappy Protestants, -he had weakened his kingdom by the expatriation -of thousands of his best and most industrious -subjects, who wandered as refugees throughout -other countries, and justly inflamed all Europe -against him. To crush him, there had been -formed at Augsburg a powerful league, to which -the whole empire of Germany, Spain, Holland, -Savoy, Sweden, and Denmark were parties; but, -in no way daunted, he anticipated this great -confederation by invading the empire and laying siege -to Philipsburg. The recent revolution in England -had given a new turn to this religious war, and -Ireland became the theatre of a contest which -ended on the banks of the Boyne, where William -triumphed over his unfortunate father-in-law. -</p> - -<p> -It may be that the great expenses of the war in -which he was now involved prevented Louis XIV. from -remunerating adequately to their merit the -officers of Dundee's army; but when they joined -the standard of Noailles on the Spanish frontier, -they were in a state of lamentable destitution and -misery. The coarse uniform in which they had -marched from St. Germain was worn to rags; -they were shoeless, shirtless, and emaciated by -hardships, privations, and want of the most common -necessaries of life; for by the selfishness and -duplicity of individuals to whom their little -commissariat was entrusted, they were cheated of their -poor supplies, the few presents the generous had -sent them, and even of a small pittance (a few -pence daily) which James, amid all his own -necessities, endeavoured to pay them; yet they were -never known to utter a complaint, for the -misfortunes of their sovereign pressed heavier on -their hearts than their own. -</p> - -<p> -Wherever they marched they were beheld with -pity and remembered with sorrow. The kind -ladies of Perpignan presented them with a purse -containing 200 pistoles, and bought all their rings -as relics of <i>les officiers Ecossais</i>. "Wherever -they passed they were received with tears by the -women and admiration by the men. They were -the foremost in the battle, and the last in retreat, -and of all the troops in the service of France they -were most obedient to orders." -</p> - -<p> -There is nothing in the history of ancient or -modern times to equal their admirable bearing, -heroic ardour, and devoted loyalty. They endured -the most severe humiliation and privations without -uttering a murmur, and performed actions of -heroism outdoing the deeds of romance; for to -their inborn daring was united a spirit of desperation, -and a longing to be honorably rid of a life -that was without a charm and without a ray of -hope. -</p> - -<p> -The French were touched by their misfortunes -and sufferings; a universal shout rent the camp -of Noailles on their marching into it, and with -that generosity which is so characteristic of -soldiers, the chevaliers and officers immediately -subscribed for them, each furnishing shirts, clothing, -and money, and none was more liberal with his -purse than the noble Mareschal himself; but even -of these presents the unhappy Scots officers were -cheated by the villany of one to whom they were -entrusted, and thus the kind efforts to alleviate -their miseries failed. -</p> - -<p> -On the route to Catalonia, near Montpelier, -when fording a mountain torrent swollen by the -recent rains, Walter Fenton and three other -cavaliers were swept away. Catching hold of some -alders that overhung the bank, they kept -themselves above the current, and called on the -peasantry to save them. It is related, that though -hundreds were there looking on, they never offered -the least assistance, but mocked and jibed them in -barbarous Catalonian French, while waiting coolly -until they were drowned, that they might possess -their money, clothes, and arms. But after great -toil and danger they were rescued by their -comrades. -</p> - -<p> -They were never seen on the field but with -their faces to the enemy. On every desperate -duty and forlorn hope they led the way, and often -too where others dared not <i>follow</i>. Death and -disease rapidly thinned their ranks, but their -ardour never failed, and had the invisible spirit of -the fierce Dundee led them as of old, they could -not have surpassed the deeds they achieved and -the glory they acquired. On Rosas surrendering, -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Senor Mariscal</i>," said the Spanish governor, -"what soldiers were those who assailed the breach -so valiantly?" -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Ces sont mes enfans</i>," replied Noailles, smiling; -"they are my children—the King of Britain's -Scottish officers, who share his obscurity and exile, -and do me the honor to serve under my command." -</p> - -<p> -"By St. James! <i>they alone</i> have compelled me -to surrender," replied the noble Spaniard. -</p> - -<p> -They marched from Rosas to Piscador, and, of -an army of 26,000 men, 16,000 perished by the -way-side of privation. Twice only the Scottish -officers were known to disobey orders. The first -occasion was at the siege of Rosas, an ancient and -well fortified city, situated upon a gulf about -twelve miles from Girona. The air was intensely -hot, and the water muddy and unwholesome; the -only rations of the Scots officers were horse-beans, -garlic, and sardinas; they were utterly penniless, -and could procure no better food, consequently -deadly fevers and fluxes rapidly thinned their ranks, -upon which Mareschal Noailles ordered them to -leave the camp for the purpose of cantoning in a -more healthy locality; but they delayed to obey, and -sent Sir Walter Fenton to acquaint him that they -"considered his order as an affront put upon them -as soldiers of fortune and gentlemen of honour." -</p> - -<p> -The second instance was when a strong body of -German troops had made a lodgement on an island -in the Rhine, from which it was necessary to force -them; the Marquis de Selle ordered a number of -boats to be prepared, under an impression that the -river was too deep and rapid to be fordable, and -the Scottish officers were to lead the way, but -were not to move until orders were given to -embark. Finding it impossible to restrain their -ardour till the arrival of the boats, they slung their -musquets and prepared to cross. -</p> - -<p> -"Come on, Walter!" exclaimed the brave -Douglas as he led the way, "and we will shew -these gay chevaliers of France that we, who have -forded the rapid Spey and rocky Forth, need not -shrink on the margin of the Rhine. Join hands, -gentlemen Scots; forward! and I will lead you to -the dance. Hurrah!" -</p> - -<p> -Hand in hand, in the Highland fashion, with -their musquets slung, they threw themselves into -the rapid and impetuous stream, where between -jagged rocks it urged its foamy way over a slippery -and stony bed; and thus breaking its force they -stemmed the current, and, though under a fierce -cannonade and storm of musquet balls poured on -them from the rocks of the islet, they forced the -dangerous passage in the view of both armies; the -Laird of Drumquhasel and Captain Ogilvie* were -shot dead; but, led on by Finland, the Scottish -officers scaled the rocks, and assailing ten times -their number of Germans with screwed bayonets -and clubbed musquets, drove them from their -intrenchments into the Rhine on the other side of -the island, and reared the French standard on its -summit. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p class="footnote"> -* Captain Ogilvie was author of a song, which is preserved in -Hogg's Jacobite reliques,—"<i>Adieu for evermore.</i>" -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"By St. Denis!" exclaimed the Marquis de -Selle, "His the bravest action soldiers ever -performed!" -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Vive les officiers Ecossais!</i>" cried the French -soldiers. "<i>Le gentilhomme est toujours -gentilhomme</i>;" and to this day, in memory of the -Scottish valour, the place is named -</p> - -<p class="t3"> - L'ISLE D'ECOSSE.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap14"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIV. -<br /><br /> -THE 20TH OF SEPTEMBER, 1692. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - But the far mind was absent in pursuit<br /> - Of him, her love, in fields where foes contested<br /> - The bloody harvest, and a crown the fruit,<br /> - Dread fruit, with cares and dangerous joys invested!<br /> - Her mind was absent in the distant war.<br /> - PEDRO OF CASTILE.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -"Whither awa', Clermistonlee, ye mad -buckie?" exclaimed Lord Mersington, as his friend -jostled past him under the great pillars or arcade -near the cross, one forenoon, when all the city -were abroad <i>enjoying</i> the sunshine; "whatna way -is that to gliff folk? is a dun or the deil after ye?" -</p> - -<p> -"I crave pardon, my Lord, but did not observe -you; for what is all this crowd collected?" -</p> - -<p> -"The heralds have been proclaiming the ratification -of the new Protestant league against Louis -of France." -</p> - -<p> -"A league," added Clermistonlee scornfully, -"which our pious and glorious William hath -tinkered up, that the treasure and blood of his two -British kingdoms may be wasted in defence of the -rascally Hollanders and thick-pated Flemings. -By all the devils, my Lord, we have brought our -political pigs to a pretty market!" and he began -to whistle a cavalier air. -</p> - -<p> -"Wheesht!" said Mersington, glancing furtively -around him; "this is clean contrary to the Act of -Council; and mind ye, my braw billy, if ye aye -strut with that long feather and cocked beaver, -your pinkit mantle, and lace o'erlay, like a ruffling -buck o' King Charles' time, instead o' wearing the -sad-coloured garb and sober demeanour of these -our present days, when naething but psalm-singing, -swearing in low Dutch, and mortifying the spirit, -are in vogue, you'll sune hae the eyes o' the -Council upon ye, as a Jacobite in disguise, a -hatcher o' plots, conspiracies, and the deil kens -what mair—he, he!" -</p> - -<p> -"Crush me, if I will lessen one curl of my -peruke, or one slash in my doublet, to please any -Dutch king or clown that ever wore breeches!" -</p> - -<p> -"You seem in a braw mood this morning. I -warrant you'll hae pouched a round sum at -shovel-board last night in the Covenant Close." -</p> - -<p> -"A messenger from the court of St. Germain -has just been arrested by Muclutchy, the macer -of Council," replied Clermistonlee, watching -keenly the sharp visage of the senator; "by Jove, -you change colour, my gossip!—any correspondence -in that quarter, hah?" -</p> - -<p> -"I trow not," said the other, resuming his -immovable aspect; "d'ye tak' me for a gomeral? -What is that we see above the Tolbooth-gable?" -</p> - -<p> -"The arm of the gibbet." -</p> - -<p> -"Weel," rejoined the judge, drily, "and what -news brought the messenger?" -</p> - -<p> -"Nought but letters from the exiled lords and -gentlemen; some of them, I tell thee, Mersington, -are deeply touching, and would harrow up even -that impenetrable heart of thine. They tell of -blighted loves and blasted hopes, of sorrow and of -suffering, humiliation and despair; but of a loyalty -and unblemished honour that shed a glory around -the cause for which they suffer—a glory that -makes us intensely despicable by comparison. -There are passages in some of those letters from -the brave cavaliers of Dundee that have made -many of the Council almost weep with compassion. -By the Heaven that is above us, I feel that -I would be a thousand times more happy as -one of those illustrious exiles, than struggling -here to maintain, by gambling, exactions, and -roguery, a hollow rank, a gilded title, and a career -of extravagance on which I have run too far to -return!" -</p> - -<p> -"The only sensible clause in your process," -said Mersington, testily. "But you'll hae yoursel -laid by the heels yet, and then you may whistle -on your thumb for the braw mains and revenues -of Bruntisfield and the Wrytes, for whilk you've -graned and girned these twa years and mair." -</p> - -<p> -"Right! 'twas but the feeling of a moment for -the misfortunes of our former friends, whose -hearts, to their honour (unlike ours) were better -than their heads." -</p> - -<p> -"Puir chields—puir chields—I doubt the Act -of eighty-nine presses unco hard on some of -them." -</p> - -<p> -"Among other letters, is one from that wild -spark, Douglas of Finland, once a lieutenant in -the regiment of Dunbarton, addressed to his false -leman, Mistress Annie Laurie. Poor credulous -fool, to trust in a woman's faith! He knows not -that she hath become Lady Craigdarroch, and so -hath forgot him in the arms of his friend. I like -love-letters, having written some bushels of them -in my time; but his—by the devil's beard!—it -equals anything in the <i>Banished Virgin</i>, or -<i>Cassandra</i>. I have taken the liberty to confiscate it -to my own use; and here it is." -</p> - -<p> -"Hold! a thought strikes me; the hand is -easy of imitation, and for what may ye no add a -postscriptum, whilk may be of service in your -love affair, by wedding young Fenton——" -</p> - -<p> -"The devil confound him!" -</p> - -<p> -"To some airy damoiselle; or knocking him -on the head during his French campaign?" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis all one. Excellent! Juden will deliver -it. Annie will fly to her gossip, with every string -in her boddice straining with the greatness of her -intelligence; and as we never knew a damsel -prefer a dead lover to a living one, we may imagine -or hope the issue. 'Tis sublime!" -</p> - -<p> -"I wad rather hae a dead gudewife, I ken—he, -he!" said Mersington, as he adjusted his wig and -took his friend's arm, striking his gold-headed -cane on the pavement with the air of a man who -has said something smart; "but let us hae nae -mair o' your plaguy qualms o' conscience, for -they dinna dovetail weel wi' the general tenour o' -your way. Weel, anent this postscriptum—he, -he!—let us adjourn to——" -</p> - -<p> -"Hugh Blair's, you would say. Poor Hugh! his -locale hath changed with the times, and there -is nothing now but gloom and obscurity, cobwebs -and dust, where all was once courtly merriment -and joyous revelry. Who could have imagined -that a time would come when this famous coffee-house -would be voted 'a den of cavalier iniquity'—that -the buirdly hosteller with whom the noble -Perth, the gallant Dunbarton, and the courtly -Dundee wiled away the hours at picquet and -tric-trac, and pushed the wine from hand to hand, -would be accused of those honours as a crime, -and thrown into the iron-room of the Tolbooth, -there to languish in poverty and misery, while the -luscious contents of his well-stored cellars were -confiscated to the public use?" -</p> - -<p> -"It ill beseems ye to condemn the last clause -in your interlocutor, my noble gossip, when the -maist of the precious contents of Hughie's runlets -ran owre your ain craig. My certie! you had a -braw rug at the forfeitures, baith gentle and -semple!" -</p> - -<p> -"Ha, ha! enough of this—the present business -is to procure the use of an inkhorn. I am -restricted in wine to drink medicated Hippocras. -What art grinning at now?" -</p> - -<p> -"Your occasional scruples o' conscience—he, -he! Do ye mind the whilly-whaw ye were in -anent the spectre of an armed man in the hall of -Clermiston?" -</p> - -<p> -"Why the devil remind me of it?" exclaimed -the other, angrily; "if it really was a spirit——" -</p> - -<p> -"<i>If!</i> we have in profane as weel as sacred -writing owre mony evidences of their reality, and -their appearance for various purposes whilk we -cannot comprehend; and we have also as mony -solid proofs that the devil can mak' deid bodies -move; but anent this, see Gabrieile Nandæus in -his <i>Apology</i>, and Delrio in his <i>Disquisitiones -Magica</i>." -</p> - -<p> -"D—n Delrio! Ever pestering me with thy -musty learning!—but here is a change-house, -where it may be that we can get this notable -postscriptum concocted." -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -* * * * * -</p> - -<p> -The summer had passed away, and now brown -autumn was once more reddening the heather of -the Pentlands, and spreading her dun tints over -the woods of Bruntisfield; the sombre eve was -closing fast, but the bright fire burned merrily as -ever in the chamber-of-dais at the old castellated -Place, and ruddily its warm light shone through -the barred windows into the recesses of the old -woodlands, which every passing breeze robbed of -some of their crisped foliage, and strewed it over -the muirlands to the south. The old manor-house -had recovered from the rages of that terrible -night in 1688, and was now repaired, and stronger -than ever; the windows were more thickly grated, -and numerous loopholes and two additional turrets -defended the barbican gate. -</p> - -<p> -Lilian and her friend Annie were seated side -by side as of old, and opposite sat Lady Grisel—but -a change had come over them all. Though -the hale old lady recovered from the shock of -Lilian's abduction, it had seriously affected her -health, and now she was a picture of the helplessness -of extreme old age, in her dotage, pale and -querulous, but ever gentle and childlike. She -occupied the same old fringed chair, with its bobs -of parti-coloured silk, in which she had sat every -evening for fifty years; her ivory wheel, though -now unused, stood on one side of it, and her tall -metal-headed cane on the other. Lilian was paler -and thinner, and had lost much of her girlish -beauty; she had many cares gnawing at her heart, -but she was still as adorable and interesting as -ever. Annie was, if possible, more so than -formerly; the bloom of her beauty had expanded to -the utmost; her cheek had a higher colour, and -her eye a brighter sparkle; her tall and beautiful -figure was more inclined to <i>embonpoint</i>. But alas -for poor Finland, the fickle Laurie was now the -wife of Craigdarroch, who had risen to the rank of -Colonel of Horse in the new Scottish army of -William III. Her dress was more matronly and -magnificent than formerly, and her rich flower -tabby suit, with its brocade stomacher and silver -fringes, contrasted with Lilian's plain blue suit of -Florence silk with its falls of point d'Espagne. -</p> - -<p> -Ashamed that she had broken her own solemn -engagements to her exiled lover, with the natural -fickleness of her sex, Annie was labouring to -undermine the truth of Lilian, and, Heaven knows -why, tormented the poor girl hourly, by urging -the suit of Lord Clermistonlee, and left no -arguments untried to carry her point, and remove the -scruples of her more gentle but less facile friend. -</p> - -<p> -"And poor Walter!" urged Lilian, with a look -of great tenderness in her mild and moistened -eyes, replying to some observation of Annie. -</p> - -<p> -"Marry come up with your Walter!—tush! bethink -you, dear Lilian, this gallant never loved -you truly, or else, dost think he would have -preferred following King James?" -</p> - -<p> -Lilian's eyes sparkled; a terrible retort trembled -on her tongue, but her gentleness repressed it, -and she could only exclaim with tears— -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, horror! this insinuation is the most -unkind of all. The unmerited shame and contumely, -the dark and dishonourable suspicions that the -malice of Clermistonlee has brought upon me I -can bear, for I despise though I mourn them -deeply—but a doubt of Walter's faith—oh, Annie, -Annie, it sinks like a dagger in my heart. 'Tis -the hope of his return, animated by the same -spirit of love and truth in which he left me, that -makes me rise superior to them all. Oh, yes!" -she exclaimed, with girlish ecstasy, "my dear, -dear Walter, the hour will yet come, when, with -a kiss of affection, I will tell thee that this old -manor and all these lands around it are thine, for -ever thine!" -</p> - -<p> -"And your heart?" laughed Annie. -</p> - -<p> -"Dearest, that he has already. You see you -cannot make me angry." -</p> - -<p> -"And Clermistonlee?" -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, name him not." -</p> - -<p> -"He loves thee truly and fondly," said Annie. -</p> - -<p> -"Dost think he loves me as Walter doth? dost -think he knows what love means? Oh, no; he -never conceived it. His passion is a turbulent -phantasy, inflamed by rivalry, difficulty, and -opposition, sharpened it may be by wounded pride -and exasperated revenge. Oh, how can you -forget the horrid mystery that involves the fate -of his wife—the unhappy Alison Gilford?" -</p> - -<p> -"Pho! she died in France." -</p> - -<p> -"Of a broken heart." -</p> - -<p> -"Gossip, quotha!" laughed Annie, "hearts -are never broken except in the pages of De Scuderi. -But with all his averred evil propensities, I think -there is something very noble about Lord -Clermistonlee." -</p> - -<p> -"Noble?" -</p> - -<p> -"Do not his wit, his elegance, and courage -excite our admiration?" -</p> - -<p> -"Yes—but do they make us forget that the -villain lurks under that prepossessing exterior?" -rejoined Lilian, scornfully. -</p> - -<p> -"Dear Lilian, I have but one more argument -to urge, and 'tis the old one; remember that -your fair fame which his addresses have injured, -requires——" -</p> - -<p> -"What?" -</p> - -<p> -"Marriage," added Annie, quietly. Lilian -turned pale; her spirit of dissent was too strong -for words; she shook her head with a mournful -but decided air, and, after a pause, said, "never, -oh, never!" but Annie only laughed, and a long -and unpleasant pause in the conversation ensued. -At length Lilian said, shuddering, -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, what a grue came over me just now! -What can it portend?" -</p> - -<p> -"That an evil spirit is near us," replied Annie, -turning pale with the superstition of the time. -</p> - -<p> -"Nay, felt ye a grue, my bairn?" said Lady -Grisel, rousing momentarily from her waking -dose; "then some one is treading on the ground -that shall be your grave." Again Lilian -shuddered, and throwing her arms around her -grand-aunt, kissed her, exclaiming, -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the first sentence I have heard you utter -for a month—and oh, what a terrible one it is!" -</p> - -<p> -At that moment there was a loud jingle at the -great risp on the barbican gate, and Elsie Elshender -hobbled in to say that an "auld broken soldier, -who had limpit up the gate was speiring for my -Lady Craigdarroch, but wadna enter." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a letter from the Laird; his troop are in -the north, watching the wild gillies of Braemar. -Tush! what can his message be now?" said Annie, -as she flew to the foot of the staircase, where a -man in a tattered red coat, a great scratch wig, -with a broad hat flapped over it, one patch on his -right eye, and another on his nose, limped forward -on a crutch, and presented a letter. "From -whence comes it, poor man?" asked Annie. -</p> - -<p> -"From the frontiers of Alsatia; blessings on -your sweet face, my noble lady," replied the -veteran, gruffly. Annie grew pale as death. -</p> - -<p> -"From whom?" she faltered. -</p> - -<p> -"The brave laird of Finland, Lady Annie; on -mony a lang day's march I have trailed my pike -by his side, owre the fields o' France and the -howmes o' Holland, deil tak them baith, for there's -neither brose nor brochon, nor sowans nor sourocks -to be gotten there for love, lear, or money; -but I've far to gang this nicht, and maun een -march on, so God bless your noble ladyship—mind -a puir auld soldier that's faced fire and water -baith." -</p> - -<p> -Trembling violently, Annie untied the ribbons -of her purse and gave him a carolus, which he -received with abundance of thanks, and he was -limping away when Elsie hobbled forward and -presented him with a bicker of ale. -</p> - -<p> -"Drink, puir body," said she, "though the -times are sair changit, nane pass this threshold -without tasting o' the kindness o' langsyne. We -dinna send awa' the naked and the hungry wi' a -scrap o' gospel and a screed o' a psalm, like auld -Drumdryan or the Laird o' Lickspittal owre bye -yonder; drink deep, puir body! I once had a -son a soldier-lad, (my puir Hab that was killed in -the fearfu' times,) and, for his sake, my heart -warms to your auld red coat." -</p> - -<p> -"Here's to ye, my bonny lady, and to you -Cummer Elsie, and never may ye be tarbarrelled -for a' you're sae runkled and auld; hech, how!" -and, drinking the ale to the last drop, this rough -and uncourteous old fellow tossed the bicker to -Elsie and limped away with great agility. -</p> - -<p> -"Ha, ha!" he laughed, when the barbican -gate was angrily banged behind him; "how the -gay goshawk pounced at the lure; wha would -hae thought I would ever hae hobbit and nobbit -wi' Lucky Elshender after puir Meg's mischanter -among her kale? This carolus comes in gude -time, for my pouch is gey empty now. Deil tak' -the patches and scratches, the rags and bags," he -continued tearing off his disguise; "again I am -Juden Stenton, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "And wha daur meddle wi' me?<br /> - Wha daur meddle wi' me?<br /> - My name it's Juden Stenton,<br /> - And wha daur meddle wi' me?"<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -And, light hearted by the success of his Lord's -scheme, he sang and laughed as he trudged back -to the city. -</p> - -<p> -On rejoining Lilian, Annie was in a flutter of -extreme agitation; and, after great reluctance, in -which shame and curiosity struggled with some -remnant of her former love, and after bursting -into tears and then laughing hysterically, she -broke the seal and read in a quavering voice as -follows:— -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"Trenches before Mons, penult June, 1692. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"Mine own sweet Annie, -</p> - -<p> -"God knoweth whether the words I am -now inditing will ever be seen by your own dear -blue eyes. Nevertheless I write (on a drumhead -for a desk), and in great haste, for the bearer of -this starts for Versailles in an hour. A trench -where the dead and dying lie among the blood-stained -earth, piled, yea, chin-deep, and where the -cannon-balls are rebounding every instant from -the ramparts of Mons, is a very unpleasant place -to compose love-speeches; but, believe me, that -the heart of poor Dick Douglas in suffering and -danger, poverty and exile, is still unchanged, my -beloved Annie, and as much thine as ever. Here -are we, a company of gallant Scottish gentlemen, in -such a plight as you never could conceive; and the -very appearance of our ragged attire, our emaciated -forms and our exceeding misery, would melt -your gentle heart with the softest compassion. -My ancient signet ring, the last relic of the house -of Finland, I bartered yesterday for a loaf of -bread, and now I have nothing left save the lock -of thy hair, which shall go with me to the grave. -But more glorious by far are our Jacobite rags -than the gay bravery we might have worn under -that accursed usurper against whom we have -sworn to fight to the last gasp. -</p> - -<p> -"The mischances of war are fast reducing the -faithful cavaliers of Dundee. Starvation or the -bullet daily send some brave heart to its long -repose, and the survivors are in such a plight that -not even the Westland Whigs could wish them -lower. From the frontiers of Spain we have -travelled to Alsatia, and from thence to Mons. It -was a march of horrors! We were utterly without -the necessaries of life, and in the depth of a -severe winter, marched nine hundred miles over a -country covered with snow. Many of us were -barefooted. For many weeks our food was nuts -in the woods, roots in the fields, horsebeans and -garlic, and thus it is that Louis XIV. rewards our -loyalty, our patience, our fatigues and achievements. -</p> - -<p> -"Our old friend Walter Fenton is well. Through -all the campaigns under Monsieur le Mareschal -Noailles and the noble Luxembourg, he hath -shewed himself worthy of the knighthood King -James' sword bestowed. Yesterday he volunteered, -with sixty of our unhappy cavaliers, to -plant the banner of King Louis on the Bastion de -Sainte Wandree, and nobly did he redeem his -word. Commend me to all our leal and right -honourable friends, and to those who may think -kindly of the poor cavaliers for the happy days -that have passed away for ever. A time may -come—adieu, dearest Annie—the call to arms is -sounding along the lines, and we are about to -march for Steinkirke, a duty from which few will -return. On my mind there weighs a heavy -presentiment of what I cannot name to thee. -Farewell, my gentle Annie, and may God bless thee! -for I fear we shall see the bonnie braes of -Maxwelton together no more. -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -FINLAND, -<br /> -"Late Lieut, in the Royall Scotts Ffoot." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -There was a tone of sorrowful resignation to a -hard and hopeless fate pervading this letter that -struck a pang of deep remorse through the heart -of Annie—but a pang for one moment only; the -volatility of her sex aided her, and smiling through -her tears, she said, -</p> - -<p> -"My poor dear lighthearted Dick, would to -Heaven I could lessen the miseries you endure!" -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, Annie," said Lilian reproachfully, -clasping her hands and weeping, "poor Walter and -poor Finland!" -</p> - -<p> -"Tush!" said Annie pettishly, her dark-blue -eyes sparkling between shame and sorrow. -"Gossip, tease me not." -</p> - -<p> -"Stay, there is something more—oh, read it." -</p> - -<p> -"A postscriptum"— -</p> - -<p> -"It will grieve you much to hear that Walter -Fenton hath broken his plighted troth to your -fair friend Napier, and married a French woman, -a mere camp follower, of evil repute. Right -heavy tidings this will be for the heiress of -Bruntisfield, but I ever deemed her spark a fool; again -I kiss your hand—adieu." -</p> - -<p> -The wicked expression of triumph that flashed -in Annie's eyes quickly gave way to one of -compassion and regret, on beholding the aspect of -Lilian. Pale as death, with her eyes starting from -their sockets, her silken curls seeming to twist -like knots about her throbbing temples; her nether -lip turned from crimson to blue, and quivering -convulsively; her bosom heaving with the -terrible and sickening sensations that oppressed it. -Her little hands were firmly clenched, and her -dry hot eyes were full of fire. -</p> - -<p> -"Again, again, read it once more, Annie," she -said, in a voice of strange but exquisite cadence. -</p> - -<p> -"Not for worlds!" exclaimed Annie; "Oh, -thou wicked letter, thus to mar our peace and -hurl us into sorrow. Oh, if Craigdarroch should -hear I have had a billet from my former lover, -he will kindle up into such a fit of jealousy and -rage as the world never saw; to the flames with -it!" and she tossed into the fire the letter which -poor Finland had so fondly and sorrowfully -indited. It was consumed in a moment; and thus -all after examination of the postscript was -precluded, otherwise the forgery might have been -discovered before its effects became too fatal. -</p> - -<p> -"A <i>camp follower of evil repute</i>! It is -false—impossible—Finland hath lied! Yet—yet—a cup -of water, for Heaven's sake—my throat is parched -and scorching!" Lilian sank into a chair and -covered her face with her hands, but neither wept -nor swooned, for her sense of injury was too acute -for tears. -</p> - -<p> -How bitter was the palsying sickness of -heart—the agony she endured! -</p> - -<p> -Not a tear fell, for the fire that burned in her -breast seemed to have absorbed them. -</p> - -<p> -"This is the <i>third</i> 20th of September since he -first left me. Oh, Walter, Walter, God may forgive -thee this great ingratitude and cruelty, but I never can!" -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap15"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XV. -<br /><br /> -THE EFFECT OF THE POSTSCRIPTUM. -</h3> - -<p class="intro"> -"Women have died and the worms have eaten them, but not -for love." -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Long, long did poor Lilian grieve and weep, -and mourn in the solitude of her gloomy home. -</p> - -<p> -She endured all the complicated agony of -endeavouring to rend from her heart its dearest and -most wonted thoughts—the hopes and affection -she had fostered and cherished for years. No -woman ever died for love but the heroine of a -romance; so Lilian of course survived it; a month -or two beheld her again tranquil and calm, though -very sorrowful and subdued in spirit, for time cures -every grief. -</p> - -<p> -The bitter sentiment of insulted pride and -mortified self esteem which often come so -powerfully to the aid of the deserted, and enable them -to triumph over the more tender and acute -reflections, were kindled and fanned and fostered by -the artful sophistry of Annie, who, with her real -condolences, threw in such nice little soothing -and flattering inuendoes, mingled with condemnations -of Walter, and pretended rumours of his -marriage, the beauty and gallantries of his French -wife, whom some called a countess and others a -courtesan, that Lilian first learned to hear her -patiently and then with indignation. -</p> - -<p> -With these were mingled occasional praises of -Clermistonlee, managed with great tact, for Annie -was cunning as a lynx, and never failed to flank all -her arguments with the powerful one, how necessary -it was for the restoration of her own honour, -that she should receive the roué lord as her -husband. -</p> - -<p> -Poor Lilian, though these advices stung her to -the soul, learned at last to hear and to think of -them with calmness, and (shall we acknowledge -it?) to say at last, "that it might be." -</p> - -<p> -With something of that fierce sentiment of -desperation and revenge which, like a gage thrown -down to fate, makes the ruined gamester place his -last stake on the turn of a card, she began deliberately -to school herself into thinking of Clermistonlee -as her future husband; and though in reality -poverty was the real cause of it, Lady Craigdarroch -failed not to impress upon Lilian how much he -was reformed, how penitent he was, and for three -years past had never been engaged in any piece of -frolic or wickedness, and wound up by asserting -that a reformed rake made the best husband. -</p> - -<p> -What love and perseverance could never -accomplish, revenge achieved at last. -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Alas! the love of women, it is known,<br /> - To be a lovely and a fearful thing;<br /> - For all of theirs upon the die is thrown<br /> - And if 'tis lost, life hath no more to bring."<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Long and assiduous were the exertions, the -arguments and artifices of Annie, and long and fearful -was the struggle that tortured the heart of Lilian, -ere she would consent to receive Clermistonlee as -her suitor. -</p> - -<p> -At last the fatal words were said. -</p> - -<p> -Annie flew to communicate the joyous tidings, -and when next day he rode up the avenue to pay -his devoirs, the miserable girl nearly swooned. -The ring, the little embossed ring of antique gold, -the last and only gift of Walter, and which he -said contained <i>the secret</i> of his life, she had now -laid aside, carefully locked up in a cabinet, because -it brought too vividly before her the memories she -had resolved to banish from her heart for ever. -</p> - -<p> -Gladly will we hurry over this chapter of pain -and humiliation. -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee had increased his great personal -advantages by all the aid of dress, and in defiance -of the sad coloured fashions of the time, wore a -voluminous Monmouth whig, the long curls of -which were puffed with aromatic powder, a suit of -rose-coloured velvet, laced so thick with gold that -the ground of the cloth was scarcely visible, a -sword and belt sparkling with jewels. A medal -of gold, bearing his coat of arms, was suspended -by a chain of the same metal round his neck; it -was his last venture in quest of fortune, and his -lordship had resolved to spend all he possessed -upon the stake. -</p> - -<p> -By the artful Annie he was led forward to the -trembling and sinking Lilian, to whom he pleaded -his cause, his constancy, and perseverance, his -raptures and agonies, his hopes and despair, with -an ardour that confused, and perhaps flattered, if -it did nothing more. These his lordship brought -out all at a breath, as he had got the whole by -rote, having said the same things to a hundred -different women before; but now his natural -ardour and spirit of gallantry were greatly increased -by the touching character which sorrow, vexation, -and disappointment had imparted to the soft -beauty of Lilian—and also by the aspect of the -comfortable old manor house and the acres of fine -arable land that lay around it; while she (shall -we confess it?), as bitter thoughts of Walter and -his French wife rose up within her, stole glances -from time to time at her noble and courtly -suitor—glances which he soon perceived, and fired with -new animation, threw such an air of devotion into -his addresses that he—triumphed. -</p> - -<p> -Annie placed the hand of Lilian within that of -Clermistonlee; he pressed her to his heart, and -she did not withdraw it; but burst into a passion -of tears. He then threw his splendid chain, with -its medal, around her bending neck, and pressed -her to his breast, and so sudden was the revulsion -of feeling that Lilian fainted. -</p> - -<p> -An hour afterwards Clermistonlee, with all his -embroidery glittering in the sun, was seen -galloping back to the city like a madman; he dashed -through the Portsburgh, and reined up near the -Bowfoot, where, at the summit of a ten-storied -edifice, dwelt Mr. Ichabod Bummel, minister of -the Gospel. -</p> - -<p> -"The father of confusion take your long stair! -Why, Mr. Bummel, 'tis like a rascally old steeple," -said the lord, breaking breathlessly in upon the -lank-haired and long-visaged pastor, who was -intent upon "The Hind let loose" of Alexander -Sheills. -</p> - -<p> -"Yea, a tower of Babel—but what hath procured -me the honour of your lordship's visit?" -</p> - -<p> -"By all the devils, don't think I am come to -drub thee for that lecture on the cutty stool—ha, -ha! I am about to be married, man—and want -you to proclaim the banns and so forth—but my -Lord Mersington will see after them for me." -</p> - -<p> -"As my <i>Bombshell</i> saith, marriage is an -honourable and godly estate——" -</p> - -<p> -"But a deuced poor one, sometimes, Mr. Ichabod. -I am about to be married to Lilian, of Bruntisfield, -and thou shalt espouse us, because the -citizens hold thee to be their first preacher, and -it will increase my influence among them." -</p> - -<p> -"But, my Lord," began Mr. Ichabod, bowing. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>But</i> me nothing—'tis my non-attendance at -kirk and my old tricks you aim at—pho! I am a -thorough Reformado—but, Mr. Ichabod, hast -never a drop of wine about thee?—'tis a hot -forenoon." -</p> - -<p> -"My dwelling contains nothing but water, and -it is a plack the runlet in these dear years; but, -my Lord," continued the divine, after sundry gasps -and contortions of visage, "if I lend all my -influence to render popular this intended espousal, -whilk I perceive to be the main object of your -visit, may I crave your Lordship's favour in -another particular?" -</p> - -<p> -"Command me in all things save my purse, -for 'tis a mere vacuum, if thy philosophy will -admit of such a thing. Say forth, my Apostle!" -</p> - -<p> -"I love the maiden called Meinie Elshender—yea, -I love her powerfully with the carnal love of -this world, and the maiden is not altogether -indisposed to view me favourably." -</p> - -<p> -"Zounds!" said Clermistonlee, while the minister -looked complacently down on his long spindle -shanks; "in the name of mischief, who is Meinie -Elshender?" -</p> - -<p> -"Handmaiden to the young Madam Lilian, -who views me as an abomination——" -</p> - -<p> -"By all the devils, thou shalt have her, <i>bongré, -malgré</i>, and after I am fairly wedded, the best -kirk in the Lothians to boot—even should I make -Juden shoot the present incumbent." -</p> - -<p> -"Heaven reward these generous promises," -replied Ichabod, with a smile of incredulity. -"Well it is that the maiden hath escaped the -snares of her first lover, who was a soldier of -Antichrist—a musqueteer of the bluidy Dunbarton." -</p> - -<p> -"Say rather the most princely earl of the noble -house of Douglas! Ha, ha—by my faith! we -whigs are winning the false lemans of the -cavaliers in glorious style." -</p> - -<p> -"And now, my lord, I have one other boon to -crave," said Ichabod, producing a tattered and -dog-eared MS. from a bunker. "This is a book -of which doubtless your Lordship hath heard; my -<i>Bombshell aimet at the taile of the Great Beast</i>." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, the devil take thy bombshell—" -</p> - -<p> -"Shame, my lord. It proveth that Jonah—" -</p> - -<p> -"Swallowed the whale; eh, Master Ichabod?" -said the gay lord, pirouetting about and laughing -boisterously. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, my Lord, for a centiloquy—" -</p> - -<p> -"Ha, ha! a what?" -</p> - -<p> -"A hundredfold discourse, to convince thee of -the crime of this irreverence and irreligion." -</p> - -<p> -"I crave pardon, but what do you want, eh?" -</p> - -<p> -"Your Lordship's subscription; 'tis to be -published in the imprinting press in the Parliament -Close, whenever new irons are brought over from -Holland." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, by all the devils, certainly; send me a -dozen of copies. Faith! I must be quite pious -henceforth. And now, bravo! see the Kirk Session -about my little affairs, while I ride down the -Lawnmarket to old Gideon Grasper, the Clerk to -the Signet, for there will be a mountain of papers -to sign and seal, and so forth; but the banns, the -banns, next Sunday, remember;" and chaunting, -"With a hey lillelu and a how lo lan," his -lordship danced away out, tripping down the long stair -by three steps at a time, and mounting, galloped -into the upper part of the city. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap16"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVI. -<br /><br /> -THE BATTLE OF STEINKIRKE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - As torrents roll increased by numerous rills,<br /> - With rage impetuous down their echoing hills;<br /> - Rush to the vales and pour'd along the plain,<br /> - Roar through a thousand channels to the main;<br /> - The distant shepherd trembling hears the sound:<br /> - So mix both hosts, and so their cries rebound.<br /> - ILIAD, BOOK IV.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -It was the night before the famous battle of -Steinkirke, when the confederates under -William III. encountered the gallant and brilliant -army of the great François Henri Duc de Luxembourg. -</p> - -<p> -In happy ignorance of what was being acted at -home by those whose memory lay so near their -hearts, Walter Fenton and Douglas of Finland -were carousing with their brothers in war and -misfortune around a blazing fire, composed of -rafters borrowed for the purpose from the roof of -a neighbouring Flemish house. -</p> - -<p> -Intent on crushing the alarming confederation -of the Protestant powers against him, Louis XIV. had -taken the field in person at the head of 120,000 -men. This sensual, selfish, and weak-minded -monarch was accompanied by all the effeminate -pomp and tinsel splendour of an eastern emperor; -his women and paramours, numerous enough for -a seraglio; his dancers, players, musicians; his -kitchen, opera, household, and all the ministers of -his luxury, his pleasures, and his tyranny, in -themselves a host, crowded and encumbered the -great camp of his splendid army, which, however, -soon captured Namur, a strong city on the Meuse, -though strengthened by all the skill of the great -Coehorn, and defended by the valour of the Prince -de Brabazon and 9,000 chosen soldiers. -</p> - -<p> -King William, whose duty it was to have raised -the siege of this important fortress, lay with -100,000 men within gunshot of Louis, but, embued -with all the stolid and phlegmatic stupidity of a -Hollander, permitted the place to be captured, by -which his military reputation was as much injured -as that of Louis was increased. The victor of -Namur immediately returned to Versailles, -surrounded by triumph and adulation, worshipped -undeservedly as a hero, and extolled as a -conqueror, while William, whose inertness had at last -given way to necessary activity, excited by shame -and exasperation, having reviewed on the plain of -Genappe a fresh quota of ten battalions of -Scottish infantry, pushed forward against Mareschal -Luxembourg, intent on retrieving his honour. -</p> - -<p> -After basely employing a spy named Millevoix, -under pain of torture and death, to mislead the -French commander by false intelligence of the -confederates' movements, William advanced with -his 100,000 bayonets to prevent him from taking -up a position between the then obscure villages of -Steinkirke and Enghien, a royal barony of the -house of Bourbon. With his usual bad generalship -William completely failed, for Luxembourg -outflanked him, gained the position, and trusting -to the communications of the perfidious (or -unfortunate) Millevoix, not anticipating any attack, -confined himself to his tent, as he laboured under -severe indisposition. -</p> - -<p> -Not expecting an <i>alerte</i>, the whole of his -numerous and brilliant army lay intrenched among -the fertile fields and pastures of the Flemings, whose -thick hedges, solid walls, and comfortable houses, -were cut down, torn up and overthrown without -ceremony to render the position more secure. -</p> - -<p> -The post occupied by the Scottish officers was -near the Senne, a slow and sluggish river. The -sun had set, and far over the long perspective of -the level landscape, that in some parts withdrew -to the extreme horizon, shone the red departing -flush of the last evening many would behold on -earth. In some places the river was reddened by -the gleam of the distant fires, whose flickering -chain marked out the camp of Luxembourg; the -higher eminences were covered by woods and -orchards, from which the evening wind came laden -with the rich perfume of the summer blossom. -Save the hum of the extended camp all was still -round Steinkirke, and where the exiled cavaliers -were bivouacked there was little more heard than -the monotonous ripple of the Senne, as it flowed -past its willow shaded banks on its way to the -northern sea. -</p> - -<p> -The Scottish exiles were always more merry -than usual on the eve of a battle, for it freed many -from a life of humiliation and hardship, to which -they deemed an honourable death a thousand times -preferable. At times an expression of stern joy, -of ghastly merriment, at others of deep abstraction -pervaded the little group, as they clustered round -the fire that blazed in a little alcove formed by an -orchard on the river side. There their arms were -piled, and they rolled from hand to hand a keg of -Hollands, to which they had helped themselves at -the devastation of the Flandrian château de Senne. -Afar off, above the village spire of Steinkirke, the -silver moon rose broadly and resplendently to -light the wide and fertile landscape with its glory. -The Senne and Tender brightened like two floods -of flowing crystal, and the willows that drooped -over them seemed the work of magic, as their -dewy leaves glittered in the rays of the summer -moon. -</p> - -<p> -The stern hearts of that melancholy band were -soothed by the beauty of the scenery, the seclusion -of their tentless bivouac, the softness of the -Flemish moonlight, and a song that Finland sang -completed the effect of the place and time. He -reclined upon his knapsack, and his fine features, -which long privation and toil had sharpened and -attenuated, flushed and reddened as he sang of his -love that was far away, and felt his brave heart -expand with the dear and long cherished hopes -and memories her image stirred within it. -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Maxweltoun Braes are bonnie,<br /> - Where early fa's the dew;<br /> - And blue-eyed Annie Laurie<br /> - Gave me her promise true.<br /> - Gave me her promise true,<br /> - That never forgot shall be;<br /> - And for my bonnie Annie Laurie,<br /> - I would lay me down and dee.<br /> -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Her locks are like the sunshine,<br /> - Her breast is like the swan;<br /> - Her hand is like the snawdrift,<br /> - And mine her waist micht span.<br /> - But oh! that promise true!<br /> - Will ne'er be forgot by me,<br /> - And for my blue-eyed Annie Laurie,<br /> - I would lay me down and dee!"<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -This famous song, which, with its beautiful air, -is so chaste and pleasing, and still so much -admired in Scotland, poor Finland in his chivalric -spirit had composed, to lighten the toil of many a -long and arduous march, and now, inspired by the -love and the fond recollections that trembled in -his heart, he slowly sang the last verse with great -tenderness and pathos. -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Like dew on the gowan lying,<br /> - Is the fa' of her fairy feet;<br /> - And like wind in summer sighing,<br /> - Her voice is low and sweet.<br /> - But O that promise true!<br /> - Makes her all the world to me;<br /> - And for my bonnie Annie Laurie,<br /> - I'd lay me down and dee."<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Every word seemed to come from his overcharged -heart, and as he sang the beautiful melody -silence and sadness stole over the listening group. -Softened by the dialect and the music of their -fatherland, every heart was melted and every eye -grew moist; the red camp fires and the shining -waters of the Senne, the white tents of Luxembourg, -the woodlands and orchards of Steinkirke -passed away, and Scotland's hoary hills and pathless -vallies rose before them, for their eyes and -hearts were in the land from which they were -expatriated for ever. -</p> - -<p> -It was the morning of the 24th of July, and in -unclouded splendour the sun shone from the far -horizon upon the tented camp of Luxembourg, on -the standards waving and arms glittering within -the rudely and hastily constructed entrenchments -of the great and veteran engineer the Chevalier -Antoine de Ville. Like bright snowy clouds the -morning vapour curled upwards from the sedges -of the Senne, and the dewy foliage of the woods, -and rolling lazily along the plain, shrouded -everything in a thick and gause-like veil of white -obscurity, which the rays of the sun edged with -the hue of gold. Under cover of this, although -the French knew it not, the entire force of the -allied nations, led by William of England, were -coming rapidly on in two dense columns, intent -on avenging the disgraces they had endured at -Namur. Luxembourg lay within his bannered -pavilion on a bed of sickness, and neither he nor -his soldiers were aware of the foe's approach until -the Prince of Wirtemburg, at the head of ten -battalions of English, Dutch, and Danes, drove -back his outposts on the right, making a furious -attack on the camp, which instantly became a -scene of greater confusion than King Agramont's. -</p> - -<p> -The patter of the musquetry, the roll of the -advancing drums, and the bullets whistling through -his tent, roused the brave Mareschal, who, leaping -from his camp-bed, forgot his illness in the ardour -and tumult of the moment. Hastily his pages -attired and armed him, and throwing his magnificent -surcoat above his gilded corslet, he seized -his sword and baton, and rushed forth to repair what -the artifices of William, the treachery of Millevoix, -and the bravery of Wirtemburg had already -achieved. To muster, to rally his immense force -and repel the Prince of Wirtemburg, were but -the work of a few seconds, and the great leader, -who five minutes before had lain inert on a couch -of illness, was now spurring his caparisoned horse -from column to column, with his plumes waving, -his accoutrements glittering, and his baton -brandished aloft; his features filled with animation, -his soul with energy. -</p> - -<p> -The Dukes of Bourbon and Vendome, the -Princes of Turenne and Conté, the Duc de Chartres, -a youth of fifteen, whose almost girlish beauty -made him the sport and the idol of the army, the -Marquis de Bellefonde, and several thousand -chevaliers of noble birth and matchless spirit, by their -presence, their ardour, and example, restored -perfect order, and in admirable battle array they -stood prepared to encounter the host of the -Protestant confederation. -</p> - -<p> -As the sun rose higher the mist which shrouded -the whole plain around the village of Steinkirke -was gradually exhaled upwards, and as it rolled -away the entire army of William III., a hundred -thousand strong, were seen in order of battle, -advancing as rapidly as the numerous thorn -hedges, ditches, and dykes, which intersected the -yellow cornfields, would permit. -</p> - -<p> -In defence of a place which it was expected -William's brilliant cavalry would assail, the -Scottish officers were posted in an abbatis of -apple-trees that had been cut down by the pioneers, -and made an intricate breastwork all round; and -within it, with their arms loaded, they stood in -close order, watching with lowering brows and -kindling eyes the scarlet ranks of their countrymen, -to whom they now—for the first time since -their exile—found themselves opposed in battle. -</p> - -<p> -The golden bloom of the ripe and waving -corn-fields, through which the lines were advancing -in triple ranks, with their serried arms and -embroidered standards glittering, threw forward the -bright scarlet costume in strong relief, and the -hearts of the little band of exiles beat with -increased excitement as the moment of a general -encounter drew nigh. -</p> - -<p> -"Behold yonder fellows in our uniform!" -exclaimed one, as the Scottish infantry debouched -in heavy column on the French left, with their -twenty standards displayed, and their drums -loading the air with the old march of the -Covenanters. -</p> - -<p> -"God knoweth the sorrow, the bitterness, the -hatred, and the fierce exultation that swell my -heart by turns in this auspicious hour!" said -Finland, striking his breast. -</p> - -<p> -"You speak my very thoughts," responded -Walter, with a deep sigh; "yonder are the old -Royals, but now another than Dunbarton wields -his baton over them; yonder are the standards -we have carried—but others bear them now. -How hard to forget that these are our countrymen! -Do not ourselves seem to be marching -against us?" -</p> - -<p> -"Enough of this, gentlemen," said the veteran -Laird of Dunlugais. "In them I behold only the -rebels of our king, and the sycophants of an -usurper. This day let us remember only that we are -fighting under the standard of the first captain of -the age, and about to win fresh glories for the -most magnificent prince that ever occupied the -throne of France!" -</p> - -<p> -The battle was begun by Hugh Mackay, of Scoury. -</p> - -<p> -Led by that brave and veteran general, a dense -column of British cavalry, accoutred in -voluminous red coats, great Dutch hats, looped up, -and vast boots of black leather, with slung -musquets and brandished swords, rushed at full gallop -to the charge on one flank, while the Prince of -Wirtemburg assailed the other. -</p> - -<p> -The abbatis lay full in front of Mackay, who -held aloft his long gilt baton, as he led on this -heavy mass of troopers. On they came, horse to -horse, and boot to boot like a moving mountain; -but the deadly and deliberate volley poured upon -them by the Scottish cavaliers threw them into -immediate confusion; the front squadrons by -becoming entangled among their falling horses and -riders, recoiled suddenly on the rear, who were -still spurring forward; the furious shock produced -an immediate and irredeemable confusion, and -the whole gave way ere another volley of that -leaden rain was poured upon their dense array. -</p> - -<p> -The roar of forty thousand musquets now -burst like thunder on the ear, as the Prince de -Conté and the brave De Chartres, the boy-soldier, -at the head of the superb household infantry, -assailed the British, and volleying in platoons, -continued to press upon them with increasing -ardour until within pike's length of each other, -when Conté led the whole to the charge. The -shock was irresistible! Count Solmes failed to -support the English and Scots, who immediately -gave way, and a tremendous slaughter was made, -especially among the latter. -</p> - -<p> -"Les Ecossais, retreat!" exclaimed Conté. -"'Tis a miracle. Tête Dieu! 'tis surely a bad -cause, when the hand of Heaven is against them!" -</p> - -<p> -The Scottish regiments of Coutts, Mackay, -Angus, Grahame, and Leven, were cut to pieces, -and the English Guards nearly shared the same -fate. James Earl of Angus, a brave youth in his -twenty-first year, was shot dead at the head of -his Cameronians, William Stuart Viscount of -Montjoy, Sir Robert Douglas, Lieutenant-General -James Douglas, Sir John Lanier, Colonel Lauder, -and many other brave Scottish gentlemen were -slain, while the Prince de Conté bore all before -him. -</p> - -<p> -With the gallant Prince of Wirtemburg it fared -otherwise. Pressing onward at the head of his -English, he carried off some of the French -artillery, and after immense slaughter, stormed the -intrenchment which covered their position, but -finding himself in danger of being overpowered, -he twice sent his aide-de-camp to crave succour -from the phlegmatic William and from Count -Solmes, a noble of the House of Nassau. Twice -over a field that was strewn with thousands of -dead and dying, and swept by the fire of so many -thousand musquets, cannon, and coehorns, the -brave aide spurred his horse to beg succour for -the prince his master; but William neglected, -and the Dutch noble derided his request. -</p> - -<p> -"Vivat Wirtemburg!" cried Solmes, laughing; -"let us see what sport his English bulldogs will -make." -</p> - -<p> -At length William shook off the inertness that -seemed to possess his faculties amid the storm of -war that raged around him, and in person ordered -Solmes to sustain the advance of the left wing -which Wirtemburg had led on so successfully. -Thus urged, the unwilling Lord of Brunsveldt, -made an unavailing movement with his cavalry, -but left a few English and Danes to sustain the -whole brunt of the battle. -</p> - -<p> -Amid the dense smoke that rolled in white -clouds and concealed the adverse lines, their -carnage and its horrors, again and again the brave -old Laird of Scoury led his squadrons to the -charge, resolved to force the passage to turn the -flank of Luxembourg or die, and again they were -repulsed from the abbatis by the courage of the -desperate Cavaliers. As yet, not one trooper had -penetrated among them, though hundreds and -their horses lay groaning and rolling in the -agonies of death, entangled among the apple-laden -branches of the prostrate trees, grasping and -rending them with their teeth in the tortures of -dissolution. As yet not one of the Scottish exiles -had fallen; but now Mackay ordered a body of -his dragoons to dismount, to unsling their short -fusees, and from behind the piles of dead and -dying men and chargers, to fire upon the abbatis -which could afford no protection against bullets. -</p> - -<p> -A furious fusilade now ensued, and Fenton -soon missed Finland from his side; he turned, -and his hot blood cooled for a moment to behold -him lying on the bloody turf in the last agonies -of death. A ball had pierced his breast; his -eyes were glazing, and he was beating the earth -with his heels, as he blew from his quivering lips -the bells of blood and foam. -</p> - -<p> -Unfortunate Douglas! -</p> - -<p> -Something was clenched in his hand and -pressed to his lips; but as his dying energies -relaxed, and his brave spirit fled to heaven, the -relic fell on the turf;—it was Annie Laurie's -braid of bright brown hair. -</p> - -<p> -"Farewell, dear Finland," exclaimed Walter, -kissing the dead man's hand. "Here end thy -love and misfortunes together!" Sorrow, rage, -and ardour roused the fury of Fenton to the -utmost, and with his clubbed weapon he sprang -over the trees of the abbatis, exclaiming, "to the -charge, gentlemen Scots!—to the charge! Never -let it be said that the Cavaliers of Dundee played -at long bowles with those false English churls. -Victory and revenge!" -</p> - -<p> -Fired by his example, and animated by national -and political hatred against those who had -deserted James VII., and wrought so many miseries -to his few adherents, the little band sprang from -the abbatis and threw themselves with incredible -fury and determination on the dismounted -troopers. Onward they pressed over piles of -dead and wounded, while every instant the balls -that flew thick as drifting rain, thinned their -narrow ranks, and added many another item -to the vast amount of that day's carnage. -</p> - -<p> -None can be so brave as those for whom life -has lost every charm; and none so reckless as -those who have a thousand real or imaginary -wrongs to avenge. Thus, heedless alike of the -number of their antagonists, who were again -pressing up to the attack, the Scottish Cavaliers -came on pell mell, and a desperate conflict ensued -with firelocks and fusils clubbed. -</p> - -<p> -As Walter, forgetful of everything else but to -glut a fierce spirit of revenge, pressed onward, he -encountered a tall and powerful officer. The -nobility of his aspect and the richness of his -attire (for his scarlet coat was so richly interlaced -with bars of gold as to be almost sword-proof) not -less than the vigour with which he kept his soldiers -to their duty, made him a marked man; but Walter -struck him from his horse and flourished the butt -of his musket over him. -</p> - -<p> -"Take these, you tattered villain," said the -officer, offering a splendid watch and ring; "take -these and spare my life." -</p> - -<p> -"Insult me not, Sir," exclaimed Walter Fenton -with undisguised scorn. "I am one of the officers -of Viscount Dundee—of Dundee the brave and -loyal." -</p> - -<p> -"The vilest minion of hell and tyranny that -ever disgraced his country—then doubly are you -traitor!" said the other starting from the ground -and flashing a pistol in Walter's face. Blinded by -fury and the smoke of the discharge, he drove -his bayonet through the breast of the officer and -fairly pinned him to the turf. -</p> - -<p> -"Curse on the hour that I die by the hand of a -base and renegade clown like thee!" exclaimed -the dying man, half choked in his welling blood. -</p> - -<p> -"Traitor!" cried his destroyer furiously; "you -die by the hand of Sir Walter Fenton, Knight -Banneret of Scotland!" -</p> - -<p> -"So falls Hugh Mackay, of Scoury!" moaned -the other as he sank backward and expired. -</p> - -<p> -"Scoury!" reiterated Walter; "hah! then this -hour avenges Dundee the slaughter of -Killycrankie and of Cromdale." -</p> - -<p> -At that moment he was hurled to the earth by -a wounded charger as it rushed madly from the -conflict. He fell against a tree and lay stunned -and insensible to all that passed around him. -</p> - -<p> -The sun was setting, and still the doubtful -battle continued to be waged with undiminished -ardour, until Mareschal Boufflers, at the head of a -powerful body of cavalry, the French and Scottish -gendarmerie, and the royal regiment, De Rousillon, -swept like a torrent over the corpse-strewn plains -with the oriflamme, displayed and decided the -fortune of the war just as the sun's broad disc -dipped behind the far horizon. William, instead -of restoring his tarnished honour, was compelled -to retreat in renewed disgrace, leaving many -officers of valour and distinction and 3,000 soldiers -slain; while the French, though they had to regret -the fall of an equal number, with the Prince de -Turenne, the Marquis de Bellefonde, Tilladete, -Fernaçon, and many other chevaliers of noble -blood, remained masters of the field, over which -they suspended from a lofty gibbet King William's -luckless confidant, the spy and intriguer Millevoix. -</p> - -<p> -Paris resounded with joy and acclamation on -tidings of this great victory arriving; the princes -and soldiers who had served there were idolized -as superior beings by the ladies and women of -every rank, whose transports amounted to a species -of frenzy, and from that hour for many a year -every ornament and piece of dress was known by -the name of <i>Steinkirke</i>. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap17"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVII. -<br /><br /> -A DISCLOSURE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - <i>'Tis night</i>;—and glittering o'er the trampled heath,<br /> - Pale gleams the moonlight on the field of death;<br /> - Lights up each well-known spot, where late in blood,<br /> - The vanquished yielded, and the victor stood;<br /> - When red in clouds the sun of battle rode,<br /> - And poured on Britain's front its favoring flood.<br /> - LORD GRENVILLE.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Again the summer moon rose brightly over -the secluded village of Steinkirke, and poured its -cold and steady lustre on cornfields drenched in -blood, and trod to gory mire by the charge of the -spurred squadrons, the closer movements of the -compact squares of infantry, or the artillery's -track; on the pale and upturned faces of the -dying, the distorted and ghastlier lineaments of -the dead,—on a wide battle-field strewn with all -the trophies of war and destruction,—misery and -agony. -</p> - -<p> -Save where illumined by the gleams of moonlight, -by the red flashes of a few distant fire-arms, -and the redder glare from a convent burned by -the retreating British, the ruddy conflagration of -which mingled with the last faint glow of the -departed sun, the field seemed gloomy and dark. -A narrow lurid streak at the distant horizon -shewed where the sun had set. The roar of that -great battle had now died away, but it had sent -forth an echo over France and Britain denoting -joy to one and sorrow to the other. Where, -then, was William of Orange, and where his -mighty host? -</p> - -<p> -The contest was now over, and, save the distant -popping of a few skirmishers or plunderers, every -sound of strife had ceased; but the cool night -wind was laden with a sad and wailing murmur, a -sound which it is seldom the lot of man to -hear—the mingled moans of many thousands of men -enduring all the complicated torture of sabre and -gunshot wounds and the most excruciating thirst. -Many a solemn prayer and pious ejaculation of -deep contrition, uttered in many a varied tongue, -were then ascending from that moonlit battlefield -to the throne of God, while others in -their ravings called only on Death to ease -them of their torments; and long ere sunrise -the stern king of terrors attended the summons -of many. -</p> - -<p> -A great cannon royal, drawn by eight horses -and escorted by the artillerists of the Brigade de -Dauphine, passed near the corpse-heaped abbatis -where Walter Fenton lay, and he implored them -to remove him from the field. They were passing -him unheeded, when one exclaimed, -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Il est un officier Ecossais!</i>" upon which the -drivers reined up: the soldiers sprang from the -tumbril, and placing him beside them, galloped -across the field of battle towards the redoubts on -the left of Luxembourg's position. The jolting -occasioned Walter exquisite agony, and he could -not repress a shudder when the cannon wheels -passed over the crackling body of some dead or -wounded soldier who lay prostrate in their path. -</p> - -<p> -After riding a mile or two he fell from his seat -with violence, and once more became insensible. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Il est morte</i>" said the Frenchmen, as they -whipped up their horses and thought no more -about him. -</p> - -<p> -After lying long in a dreamy state, tormented -by a burning thirst and feeling prickly and -shooting pains over his whole body as the blood -flowed back into its old channels, Walter made an -attempt to rise, but the motion occasioned him -exquisite pain, and the whole landscape swam around -him. He thought he was mortally wounded; a -cold perspiration burst over his temples; a stupor -again stole upon his senses, and, believing he was -dying, he piously recommended himself to God, -closed his eyes, and lay down resigned to his -fate. -</p> - -<p> -But the mind was active though the frame -remained inert, and he thought of Lilian, of -Finland and Annie, and how the hand of Death -had thrown a cold blight over all their fondest -hopes and prospects, and so weak had he become -that audible sobs burst from him. -</p> - -<p> -The heavy dew was falling fast, and its moisture -refreshed him; he raised his head, and near him -saw the figure of a female in a sombre and -peculiar garb: she was completely attired in -black; a thick veil of the same colour with a -little hood of white linen were drawn closely -round her face, which seemed pale and colourless -as that of death in the uncertain rays of a -cruise which she carried; but though aged, she -was marked by a serenity and air of repose -singularly winning and prepossessing. She bent -tenderly over him with a face expressive of the -deepest commiseration. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a vision!" was Walter's first thought; -"'tis an Ursuline nun," was his second. -</p> - -<p> -"Poor youth—unhappy youth!" said the -stranger tenderly, and burst into tears. -</p> - -<p> -"Heaven's blessing on you, gentle lady," -said Walter, as he endeavoured to rise; "no tears -can be more precious in the sight of Heaven than -those shed by compassion. God save great -Luxembourg! We have this day gained a -glorious victory; but at what a price to me!" he -continued in his own language. "Alake! my -brave and noble friends, the best blood of -Scotland has mingled yonder with the waters of -the Senne." -</p> - -<p> -"Scotland!" replied the venerable Ursuline, -and her mild eyes became filled with animation -and sadness. "I acknowledge with sorrow and -pride that your country is also mine; but, -alas! I can only remember it with horror and -humiliation. Your voice takes me back to the pleasant -days of other and happier years, and stirs an echo -in the deepest recesses of my heart. Oh, my -God! what is this that I feel within me? Intercede for -me blessed Ursula, and save me from my own -thoughts! Oh, let not the contentment in which -I have dwelt these many years be disturbed by -worldly regrets and old unhappiness!" -</p> - -<p> -There was a deep pathos in her voice, an air of -subdued sorrow, mildness, and melancholy in her -features, and a soft expression in her eye that was -very winning, and Walter kissed her hand with -a sentiment of affection and respect, and, strange -to say, she did not withdraw it. -</p> - -<p> -"I belonged to the convent of Ursulines at -Steinkirke. At vesper-time the Count Solmes -sacked it with his troopers; (God forgive him and -them the sacrilege!) they expelled us with savage -violence, and I found shelter in a cottage close by. -Your groans drew me forth. Permit me to lead -you, my poor son, for indeed you seem very weak. -There is one poor fugitive there already, a -countrywoman of our own, to whom I hope you will -bring pleasant tidings; let us go." -</p> - -<p> -They entered the humble Flemish cottage, the -wide kitchen of which was brilliantly illuminated -by a blazing fire of turf, that lit the furthest -recesses of the great but rude apartment, that -strongly resembled those represented by -Rembrandt and Teniers, where every imaginable -implement and article, garden and household utensil, -hang from the beams of the open roof, load the -walls, or encumber every available nook and -corner; a heavy Flemish boor, in voluminous -brown breeches, arose and doffed his fur cap, and -with his wife made way for the sister of St. Ursula, -who led Walter to a seat. -</p> - -<p> -Thankfully he drained to the last drop a pewter -flaggon of water that the housewife gave him, and -was about to speak, when his attention was -arrested by the sudden appearance of a young lady. -She was very beautiful, and had an exquisitely fair -complexion, the natural paleness of which grief -and fear had very much increased; her blue eyes -sparkled with animation, and her half dishevelled -hair was of the brightest and glossiest but palest -flaxen. Running to Walter Fenton she took both -his hands in hers, and said, with a touching -earnestness of manner, -</p> - -<p> -"Ah, Sir! come you from the field of battle?" -</p> - -<p> -"This moment, madam." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, you are Scottish by your voice, but alas! you -wear the garb of Louis." -</p> - -<p> -"My dear madam, it is the garb of loyalty and -exile; of great suffering, and of much endurance." -</p> - -<p> -"Unhappy Sir, you are——" -</p> - -<p> -"One of the cavaliers of Dundee." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, tell me if you know aught of the fate of -General Mackay in this day's carnage; Mackay, -the Laird of Scoury?" she added a little proudly. -</p> - -<p> -"Lady," faltered Walter, quite overcome by -the question and the aspect of the speaker, "the -brave champion of Presbyterianism is no more. -I—I saw him slain." -</p> - -<p> -"My father! oh, my father!" cried Margaret -Mackay, in a voice that pierced the conscience-stricken -Fenton to the heart; "I shall never see -thee more—never behold thy kind old face and -silver hair. Oh, my God! I am quite alone in -the world, and what will become of me now? Oh, -Lady Clermistonlee!" she exclaimed, and pressing -against her heart the hand of the nun, sank into a -chair and swooned. -</p> - -<p> -"<i>Clermistonlee!</i>" reiterated Walter, starting; -but the helpless condition of his young -countrywoman demanded immediate attention, and he -was compelled to smother his curiosity for a time, -until she had partially recovered, and then the -good Ursuline, after attending her with the most -motherly care, left her engaged in prayer in another -apartment, and turned all her attention to the -wound on Walter's head. -</p> - -<p> -With an adroit neatness of hand, a soft -insinuating manner which drew the heart of Walter -towards her as to a mother, the compassionate nun, -assisted by the silent Flemish housewife, bathed -the wound, cut away the long clotted locks, and -bound it up, while the round visaged boor, whose -mind was wholly absorbed by the loss of a field of -corn, which had been cut down by Boufflers' -foraging dragoons, sat with his eyes intently fixed -on the smoke that curled from his pipe. -</p> - -<p> -Walter had been so little accustomed to -kindness, that all the strong feelings of his warm -heart now gushed forth. -</p> - -<p> -"A thousand thanks, dear madam!" he -exclaimed. "I know not whether it is your -kindness, the mere ardour of my heart, or some -mysterious influence that Heaven alone can see, -which calls forth all my fondest and most -reverential sentiments towards you." -</p> - -<p> -The Ursuline smiled sadly, and retired a pace. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, what is this new feeling that stirs within -me?" continued Walter, in a half musing voice. -"It seems as if your face bore the long remembered -features of some kind friend or dear relative. -Like a gleam of sunshine through a mist, they -come back to me from the obscurity of the past -like those of one whom—but, ah! whither is my -enthusiasm carrying me? Dear madam, once -more a thousand thanks, for now I must leave, -and shall never see you more, but your kindness -will ever be remembered by Walter Fenton with -gratitude and love." -</p> - -<p> -"Fenton!" said the Ursuline, putting back his -hair, and tenderly surveying his emaciated -features, "I once had a dear though humble friend -of that name, and my heart yearns to thee for her -sake. But wherefore this hurry to depart? Your -wound?—" -</p> - -<p> -"I know not where I am, lady, and should any -of the Statholder's people come this way I should -assuredly be shot." -</p> - -<p> -"Then, in the name of all that is blessed, away! -The fires of the French camp are still visible, and -you may gain it ere daybreak." -</p> - -<p> -This passed in French, but the boor understood -it; his eyes twinkled, and knocking the ashes from -his pipe he slowly stuck it in his leathern cap and -stole out unperceived. -</p> - -<p> -"And what will be the fate of this poor daughter -of the brave Mackay, for everywhere the French -are swarming around us?" -</p> - -<p> -"Through a lady of the house of Nassau, who -belongs to our now, alas! ruined convent, I will -see her consigned to the care of her father's best -friend, William of Orange." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis fortunate. It reminds me of what I -scarcely dare to ask. She called you by the name -of my bitterest enemy—Clermistonlee," said -Walter, biting his lip; "Clermistonlee, who has been -my rival and the bane of my existence. Oh, -madam, what terrible mystery is concealed under -this Ursuline habit!" -</p> - -<p> -As Walter spoke the blood came and went in -the faded face of the trembling recluse. One -moment, when fired by animation, her features -seemed almost beautiful, and the next they were -withered, rigid, and aged. -</p> - -<p> -"Mr. Fenton," faltered the nun—"Mr. Fenton, -for so I presume you are named?" -</p> - -<p> -"I am Sir Walter Fenton, lady, by the King's -grace." -</p> - -<p> -The nun bowed slightly. -</p> - -<p> -"My heart warms, Sir Walter, to that dear -native land which I shall never behold again, and -in a moment of such weakness I revealed myself -to that poor fugitive girl, whom fate so happily -threw under my protection, when the confederates -were defeated and dispersed——. You know him -then, this wicked man, to whom fate in an evil -hour gave me as a wife. Oh, Randal! Randal! -————. Let me not recall in bitterness the -burning thoughts of years long passed and -gone—thoughts which I have long since learned to -suppress, or endure with calmness and resignation." -</p> - -<p> -"Enough, dear madam, I am animated by no -vulgar curiosity, and time presses. Oh, learn -rather to forget your earlier griefs than to -remember them. Too well do I know the Lord -Clermistonlee, and can easily conceive a long and -painful history of domestic woe and suffering. -You are the unfortunate Alison Gilford?" -</p> - -<p> -"Of the house of Gilford of that ilk in Lothian," -continued the recluse with tearless composure. -"In his earlier days, when young, gallant, and -winsome, with an honoured name and spotless -scutcheon, Randal Clermont became my lover and -my husband. Oh, how happy I was for a time; -how loving and beloved! But a change came over -the unstable heart of my husband. His political -intrigues and private excesses soon ruined our -fortune, deprived me of his love and him of my -esteem. We were driven into exile, and retired -to Paris. There he plunged madly into a vortex -of the lowest dissipation, and spent the last of my -dowry, my jewels, and everything. He became a -drunkard, a bully, and a gamester, if not worse. -Long, long I endured without a murmur or -reproach his pitiless cruelty and cutting contempt, -until he eloped with one who in better days had -been my companion and attendant, an artful wretch -named Beatrix Gilruth. He joined the army of -Mareschal Crecquy as a volunteer, and I saw him -no more. Hearing afterwards that he was in -Scotland fighting under the standard of the -Covenant, and being driven to despair by the miseries -into which he had plunged me, by leaving me a -prey to destitution in a foreign land, I resolved to -quit the world for ever; I have come of an old -Catholic family, and a convent was my first thought. -</p> - -<p> -"Our child, for we had one, our child was -alternately a source of torment and delight," -continued the poor nun, weeping bitterly—"my -torment from the resemblance it bore to its -perfidious father, and my delight as the only tie that -bound me to earth; I resolved to see it no more, -and sent the poor infant to Scotland in charge -of a faithful female servitor, to whom I gave a -letter for my husband, purporting to be written on -my deathbed, and a ring he had given me in -happier days. In an agony of grief I saw the woman -depart, and gave her all I possessed, a few -louis-d'ors I had acquired at Paris, where I had -supported myself as a fleuriste, and was patronized by -the Scottish Archers, who were ever very kind to -me. I considered myself as dead to the world -from that hour, and immediately commenced my -noviciate in the licensed convent of St. Ursula in -French Flanders. -</p> - -<p> -"Here again all the wounds of my heart were -torn open by tidings that the ship in which my -loved little boy and his nurse embarked had -perished at sea; whether they perished too God -alone knoweth, for I heard of them no more. And -now the fierce stings of remorse increased the -sadness of my sorrow, and I upbraided myself -with cruelty, with lack of fortitude and such -resignation as became a Christian. I accused myself -of infanticide, and in my thoughts by day and my -dreams by night I had ever before me the sunny -eyes and golden hair of my little child, and its -lisping accents in my dreaming ear awoke me to -tears and unavailing sorrow." -</p> - -<p> -Here the poor nun again paused and wept bitterly. -</p> - -<p> -"Time never fails to soften the memory of the -most acute sorrow, and in the convent to which I -had fled for refuge from my own thoughts, the -soothing consolations of the sisterhood, the calm, -the pious and blameless tenor of their way, charmed -me as much as their holy meekness of spirit -subdued my bitter regrets. After a time I tasted the -sweets of the most perfect contentment, if not of -happiness. In the duties of religion, of industry -and charity, I soon learned to forget Clermistonlee, -or to remember him only in my prayers—to -forget that I had been a wife, to forget that I had -been—oh, no! not a mother—never could I forget -that." -</p> - -<p> -"Villain that he is! and with the consciousness -of your Ladyship's existence, he has, since he was -ennobled, wooed many another to be his bride; -but Heaven's hand or his own vices have always -foiled him." -</p> - -<p> -The eyes of the recluse sparkled beneath her -veil; but folding her white hands meekly on her -bosom, she said with exceeding gentleness— -</p> - -<p> -"What have I to do with it now?—besides, -youth, I am sure he believes me dead, for some of -the Scottish Archers told him so—and dead I am -to him and to the world." -</p> - -<p> -"It is a very sad history, madam," -</p> - -<p> -"But God has comforted me." Her tears fell -fast nevertheless, and a long pause ensued. Walter -felt himself moved to tears, and he often sighed -deeply, yet knew not why. -</p> - -<p> -The sound of a trumpet roused him; it seemed -close bye, and came in varying cadence on the -passing wind. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis the trumpet of a Dutch patrole. I must -begone, lady, or remain only to die. Farewell; a -thousand blessings on you and a thousand more—for -we shall never meet again;" and half kneeling -he kissed her hand, and, slipping from the -cottage, favoured by the darkened moon, hurried -away towards the fires of Luxembourg's camp, -just as a party of Dutch Ruyters led by the boor -halted at the cottage door. -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -* * * * * -</p> - -<p> -With fifty thousand men the Mareschal Duke of -Luxembourg was posted at Courtray on the Lys; -while William, with twice that number, lay at -Grammont, inactive, phlegmatic, and afraid to -attack him; an inertness which increased the -growing ill-humour of Britain against him. -Without a dinner and without a sou, abandoned to -solitude and dejection, Walter Fenton one -evening paced slowly to and fro on the ramparts of -Courtray, watching the bright sunset as it -lingered long on the level scenery. A page -approached, who acquainted him that Monseigneur -le Mareschal required his presence in the citadel, -whither he immediately repaired, and found the -great Henri of Luxembourg, the youthful Dukes -of Chartres and Vendome, with other chevaliers of -distinction, carousing after a sumptuous repast. -</p> - -<p> -As he entered, De Chartres was singing the -merry old ditty of <i>Jean de Nivelle</i>, while the rest -chorused. -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Jean de Nivelle has three flails;<br /> - Three palfrays with long manes and tails;<br /> - Three blades of a terrible brand,<br /> - Which he never takes into his hand.<br /> - <i>Ah! ouivraiment!<br /> - Jean de Nivelle est bon enfant!</i>"<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -The magnificence of their attire, the happy -nonchalance and graceful ease of their manner, -contrasted with his own tattered and humble -uniform, fallen fortune, and jaded spirit, made -Walter's heart sick as he entered; but, assuming -somewhat of the old air of a cavalier officer, he -bowed to the noble company, and awaited in -silence the commands of the Mareschal. -</p> - -<p> -"Approach, Monsieur," said the handsome -young Duc de Chartres. "Tête Dieu! but you -look very pale! You were wounded I believe?" -</p> - -<p> -"It is nearly healed Monseigneur," -</p> - -<p> -"Ah, it is deuced unpleasant work this fighting -and beleaguering." -</p> - -<p> -"De Chartres would rather be at Chantilly," -said the Duc de Vendome, laughing. -</p> - -<p> -"Or at Versailles," said a Chevalier of -St. Louis. "He is thinking of little Mariette -Gondalaurier." -</p> - -<p> -"Or St. Denis and adorable Isabeau Lagrange." -</p> - -<p> -"Say Paris at once, Messieurs," said the boyish -roué, smiling. "I have beauties everywhere." -</p> - -<p> -"The Scottish officer will drink with us—here, -boy, assist our friend to wine," said Luxembourg -to his page. "'Tis only Frontiniac, Monsieur; -but an hour ago it was Dutch William's, and we -drink it out of pure spite." -</p> - -<p> -Walter drank the fragrant wine from a -massively embossed cup, and his head swam as he -imbibed it, and waited to hear for what desperate -duty these noble peers designed him. -</p> - -<p> -"Chevalier," said Luxembourg with his most -bland smile, "it is pleasant to reward the brave. -Aware that the repulse of the confederate cavalry -on my right flank, and consequently the whole -success of that glorious day at Steinkirke was -mainly owing to the valour of the Scottish -cavaliers animated by your example, King Louis sends -you this." And taking from his own neck the -sparkling cross of the recently created order of -St. Louis, the Duke placed it around the neck of -Walter Fenton, who bowed his thanks in silence. -</p> - -<p> -"Go, Chevalier—you are a gallant soldier! -The Scots were ever brave, and the friends of -France. Wear that cross with honour to the -Most Christian King, to your native country—" -</p> - -<p> -"And to the most sublime Madame Maintenon," -said the young Duke, and his gay companions -laughed. -</p> - -<p> -"Monseigneur!" said Luxembourg warningly. -</p> - -<p> -"Tête Dieu, Mareschal! dost think I fear her? -Faith Madame, 'tis known, never gives a favour -without a most usurious per centage. She is -quite a Jewess in the intrigues of love and politics, -ha! ha!" -</p> - -<p> -"Attached to this cross, Chevalier, is a pension -of four hundred livres yearly, which I doubt not -will be acceptable in your present reduced -circumstances." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, believe me, Monseigneur le Mareschal, -and you most noble Dukes, it is indeed most -acceptable; for with it I may in some sort alleviate -the miseries of those gallant gentlemen, my -comrades, who share your fortunes in the field." -</p> - -<p> -"By St. Denis, you are a gallant fellow!" cried -Luxembourg with kindling eyes, "Your generosity -equals your courage. But this must not -be. Messieurs your comrades must take the will -for the deed. This night you must depart for the -Court of St. Germain-en-laye, where King James -requires your immediate attendance. My -Secretary will supply you with money, and my Master -of the Horse with a charger—adieu, Sir, and God -be with you!" -</p> - -<p> -Walter retired. -</p> - -<p> -That night he bade a sad adieu to his comrades, -and, mounted on one of the Mareschal's horses, -departed from Courtray. -</p> - -<p> -His brave companions in glory and exile he -saw no more. After all their services and their -sufferings, their achievements and their chivalry, -the few survivors of the war, sixteen in number, -were, by a striking example of French ingratitude, -disbanded at the peace of Ryswick, on the upper -part of the Rhine, far from their native -land—without money or any provision to save them -from starvation and death. Of these sixteen -only <i>four</i> survived to return to Scotland in -extreme old age, when all fears of the Jacobites had -passed away for ever. -</p> - -<p> -Again the unclouded moon was shining over -Steinkirke when Walter passed it, and vividly on -his mind came back the fierce memories of that -impetuous hour. The great plain was deserted, -the full eared corn was waving heavily, and not a -sound disturbed the silence of the moonlit scenery -save the deep bay of a household dog or the croak -of a passing stork. -</p> - -<p> -Thickly on every hand lay the graves of the -faithful dead. In some instances he saw great -burial mounds; in others there was but one -solitary grave secluded among the long grass and -reeds, and his horse started instinctively as he -passed them. -</p> - -<p> -Fragments of clothing, accoutrements, and -other relics, lay among the rank weeds by the -side of the fields, under the green hedge-rows, in -the wet ditches; and even fleshless bones, bare -scalps, fingers and toes, protruded from the soil, -imparting an aspect of horror to the moonlighted -plain where the battle had been fought. -</p> - -<p> -The abbatis still lay there, but the foliage of -the trees that formed it had long since faded and -decayed. A great tumulus, on which the young -grass was sprouting, lay within it. -</p> - -<p> -"Poor Finland!" muttered Walter, and with a -moistened eye and heavy heart he plunged his -horse into the Senne and swam to the opposite -bank. The cottage where he had found shelter -had now disappeared; its foundations, scorched -and blackened by fire, alone marked the place -where it stood. He thought of the poor Ursuline -and her story, and sighed that he could learn -nothing more of her fate; he sighed, too, at the -memory of the beautiful Margaret Mackay, and -felt the keenest remorse for having slain her -father. -</p> - -<p> -Of the recluse he never heard more; but the -daughter of Mackay reached the camp of William -in safety, and in after years became the wife of -her kinsman and chief, George, third Lord Reay -of Farre. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap18"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVIII. -<br /><br /> -WALTER FENTON AND THE KING. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - To daunton me, and me sae young,<br /> - And guid King James's auldest son!<br /> - Oh, that's the thing that never can be,<br /> - For the man is unborn that'll daunton me!<br /> - O set me once upon Scottish land,<br /> - With my guid braid-sword into my hand,<br /> - My bannet blue aboon my bree,<br /> - Then shew me the man that'll daunton me!<br /> - JACOBITE RELIQUES.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -His confessor had just withdrawn, and King -James was sitting in his closet involved in gloomy -and distracting reverie—immersed in thoughts -which even the mild exhortations of the priest -had failed to soothe, and with his eyes intently -fixed on the morning sun as it rose red and -unclouded in the east, he gave way to the sadness -that oppressed him. -</p> - -<p> -Alternately he was a prey to a storm of revengeful -and bitter political reflections, or to a gloomy -fanaticism, which impaired the courage and -lessened the magnanimity for which he had once -been distinguished. On discovering that he was -constantly conferring with the Jesuits upon -abstruse theology, the ribald Louis spoke of him in -terms of pity mingled with contempt. The -French ridiculed, the Romans lampooned him, -and, while the Sovereign Pontiff supplied him -liberally with indulgences, the Archbishop of -Rheims said ironically—"There is a pious man -who hath sacrificed three crowns for a mass!" -</p> - -<p> -And this was all the unfortunate and mistaken -James had gained, by his steady and devoted -adherence to a falling faith. -</p> - -<p> -Bestowing a glance of undisguised hostility, not -unmingled with contempt, at the follower of -St. Ignatius Loyola as he withdrew, the Earl of -Dunbarton, clad in his old uniform as a Scottish -general, entered the apartment of the King. The -green ribbon of St. Andrew was worn over his -left shoulder, the star with its four silver points -sparkled on his left breast, and around his neck -hung the red ribbon of the Bath, and the -magnificent collar of the Garter. -</p> - -<p> -"Good morning, my Lord Dunbarton; you -look as if you had something to communicate. -Any news from Flanders? Is my dutiful son-in-law -still playing at long bowles with Luxembourg? -Has Sir Walter Fenton arrived?" -</p> - -<p> -"He awaits your Majesty's pleasure in the -ante-chamber." -</p> - -<p> -"Let him be introduced at once! Why all this -etiquette?" -</p> - -<p> -"Because, please your Majesty, it is all that is -left to remind me of other days." -</p> - -<p> -"True," said the King thoughtfully. -</p> - -<p> -"Welcome, my brave and faithful soldier!" he -exclaimed, as Walter was introduced by the -gentlemen in waiting, and kneeled to kiss his -hand. "Welcome from Flanders, that land of -fighting and fertility. My poor Sir Walter, you -look very pale and emaciated." -</p> - -<p> -"I was wounded at Steinkirke, please your -Majesty; and with those unfortunate gentlemen, -my comrades, have undergone such hardships and -humiliations as no imagination can conceive." -</p> - -<p> -Walter's eyes suffused with tears; his voice and -his heart trembled. He felt a gush of loyalty and -ardour swelling within his breast, that would have -enabled him cheerfully to lay his life at the feet of -the King. The remark of a celebrated modern -writer is indeed a true one. "Unfortunate and -unwise as were the Stuart family, there must -have been some charm about them, for they had -instances of attachment and fidelity shewn them -of which <i>no other line of Kings could boast</i>." -</p> - -<p> -"You have indeed undergone sufferings which -God only can reward," said the King, laying a -hand kindly on his shoulder; "and your ill -requited valour is a striking example of the -falsehood and flattery of the Court of Versailles." -</p> - -<p> -"When I consider our achievements," replied -Walter, "my soul fires with pride and ardour; -but when I think of the friends that have fallen, -my heart dies away within me. To the last of my -blood and breath I will serve your majesty; but, -notwithstanding this gift of the Cross of -St. Louis, I will follow the banner of the donor no -more." -</p> - -<p> -"Louis is a noble prince," said the Earl of -Dunbarton, "and one who hath raised his realm -to the greatest pitch of human grandeur." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, say not so, my Lord! When I remember -the cruel persecution of his subjects after -the Treaty of Nimguen, his repealing the edict of -Nantes, his tyranny over the noblesse and the -parliament, his unjust wars and usurpations, in -which he pours forth so prodigally the blood and -the treasures of his people; his blasphemous -titles and lewd life; I can only remember with -shame that I have served in his army, and from -this hour renounce his service for ever. And -were it not that this cross hung once on the -breast of the gallant Luxembourg, I would hurl it -into the Seine." -</p> - -<p> -"The remembrance of your sufferings doubtless -animates this unwise train of thought, Sir Walter," -said the King, slightly piqued. "But permit me -to remark, that to indulge your opinions thus in -France, is to run your head into the lion's mouth. -How goes the war in Flanders?" -</p> - -<p> -"Still doubtfully, please your Majesty; but the -recent arrival of the Duke of Leinster at Ostend, -with fresh troops for William, may turn the -fortune of the war against Henri of Luxembourg, -and consequently please the people of England, -who are not very favourably disposed towards -this expensive and unnecessary war for the Dutch -interests of the usurper." -</p> - -<p> -"The best proof of this new sentiment, is the -discontent of the Cameronians in the western -districts of Scotland. What dost think, Sir -Walter? They have engaged to muster 5000 -horse and 20,000 infantry for my complete -restoration, provided Louis will give them only one -month's subsidy, beside other supplies, and these -he hath solemnly promised me." -</p> - -<p> -"From my soul I thank Heaven that again it is -turning the hearts of your subjects towards you. -If such is the spirit of the Cameronians, oh, what -will be the energy and the ardour of the Cavaliers! -But trust not in Louis; he has ruined every -prince with whom he has been allied, in war or in -politics, and assuredly he will shipwreck the -interests of your Majesty, as he has done those of -others." -</p> - -<p> -"Still judging hardly of his most Christian -Majesty," said James, smiling. "But I have the -pledged words of better men. From the noble -Drummonds', the gallant Keiths', the Hays', from -the Lord Stormont and the Murrays', the gay -Gordons and Grahames, I have received the most -solemn promises of adherence and loyalty; and I -know that the glorious clans of the northern -shires will all rush to my standard the moment it -is unfurled upon the Highland hills. Oh, yes!" -continued the King, while his dark eyes flashed -with joyous enthusiasm; "once again as in my -father's days the war-cry of the Gael will ring -from Lochness to Lochaber." -</p> - -<p> -"But where is now Montrose, and where -Dundee?" said Lord Dunbarton in a low voice. -</p> - -<p> -"God will raise up other champions for those -who have suffered so much in his service as the -Princes of the House of Stuart," replied the King -with Catholic fervour and confidence. "Meantime, -Sir Walter, I would have you to set out for -Scotland forthwith, to negotiate with those -distinguished cavaliers, while the minds of my people -are still inflamed by the memory of that fiend-like -massacre at Glencoe, the defeat of Steinkirke, -the slaughter of their soldiers, and all the disgusts -incident to the Flemish campaign abroad and -William's administration at home. My Lord -Dunbarton avers that he will pledge his honour -for the loyalty of his old regiment and the Scottish -Guards, both horse and foot, for his Countess has -questioned every man of them. You will not fail -to visit Drummond of Hawthorndon; he comes -of a leal and true race, and his house, with its -deep caverns and secret outlets, is a noble place -of rendezvous and security. You will be liberally -supplied with money and letters of credit and -compliment. You may promise, in my name, -everything that seems requisite—titles, honours, -pensions,—I will trust to your discretion, from -what the Lord Dunbarton has told me of you. -Flatter the vain, conciliate the stubborn, secure -the wavering, and fire the loyal. Leave nothing -undone, and remember that, perhaps on the -success of your mission depend the fortune of the -prince, my son, the ancient liberties of Scotland, -the honour of her people, and the fate of her -regal line." -</p> - -<p> -The King ceased, and Walter was so -overwhelmed by the magnitude of the diplomacy -entrusted to him, and the joy at returning to -Scotland, that he remained silent for some moments. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, with what a mission does your Majesty -honour me!" he exclaimed, glowing with ambition, -gratitude and joy. "How can I express my -thanks for this great confidence reposed in one so -poor, so friendless?" -</p> - -<p> -"These are good qualities, Sir Walter, for a -Jacobite agent; you may (being friendless and -unknown) make your way through Scotland in -safety, when a coroneted baron, or the chief of a -powerful sept, would soon be discovered and -committed to the Castle of Edinburgh or the Tower -of London. Go, Sir Walter; Lord Dunbarton -and my secretary will arrange the matters you -require, and in addition to my holograph letters -to the Lowland lords and Highland chiefs, will -give you others to Mr. Brown, my English agent, -and Father Innes, President of the Scots' College -at Paris, who acts for me in Scotland. Go, Sir -Walter, and prosper! If ever we meet again, let -us hope it will be under very different -circumstances. May God and his thrice-blessed mother -keep their hands over you, and inspire you for the -sake of my dear little son and the people over -whom he is to rule! Farewell—I have in some -sort rewarded your courage in the field, but if -your talent in diplomacy equals it, I swear by the -sceptre that my sires have borne for ages, you -shall be Earl of Dalrulion in the north, and cock -your beaver with the best peer in all broad -Scotland. Farewell! may we meet again at the -head of a loyal and faithful army, or part to meet -no more!" -</p> - -<p> -Again Walter Fenton kneeled, and after kissing -the hand of James, was hurried away by the Earl -of Dunbarton. -</p> - -<p> -Furnished with a great number of letters -addressed to the principal nobles and chiefs in -Scotland, Walter artfully sewed them into the -lining of his hat and the stiff buckram skirts of -his coat, after which, without an hour's delay, he -departed on his arduous and dangerous mission—to -overturn the established governments of two -kingdoms—to hurl down one dynasty and restore -another. -</p> - -<p> -Already he had gained a title which formerly he -had possessed only in his day-dreams of success -and glory; but now decorated by Louis with his -new and famous military order, promised a -peerage by his King, fired by loyalty, ardour, and -love, he seemed to occupy a giddy eminence, from -which he viewed distinctly a long and happy -future. -</p> - -<p> -It was a far-stretching and glorious vista of -triumph and success; the restoration of the king -by his means, and oh, far above all,—the exultation -of placing a Countess's coronet on the bright -tresses of Lilian Napier. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap19"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIX. -<br /><br /> -THE RETURNED EXILE. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Then, Mary, turn awa'<br /> - That bonnie face o' thine;<br /> - Oh, dinna shew the breast<br /> - That never can be mine.<br /> -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - Wi' love's severest pangs<br /> - My heart is laden sair;<br /> - And owre my breast the grass maun grow,<br /> - Ere I am free from care.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -In the gloaming of an evening in the autumn -of 1693 a man left the western gate of Edinburgh, -and, skirting the suburb of the Highriggs, struck -into the roadway between the fields. -</p> - -<p> -The sickly rays of a yellow sun shining faintly -through the mist after throwing the shadows of -the gigantic castle far to the eastward, had died -away, and a deeper gloom succeeding, denoted the -close of the day as the fall of the fluttering leaves -did that of the dreary year. -</p> - -<p> -The stranger was Walter Fenton; but how -changed in aspect and attire! His form was thin -and emaciated, his cheek pale, his eyes sunken -from the pain of his wound and the toil of -campaigning; but his step was as free, and his bearing -erect as ever. His attire was of the plainest grey -freize, with great horn buttons; a brown scratch -wig and a plain beaver hat concealed the dark -locks that curled beneath them; he carried a -walking staff in lieu of a sword, and appeared to -lean on it a little at times. He was now in the -character of a Low Country merchant, and, -favoured by a passport from the conservator of -Scottish privileges at Campvere, had an hour -before landed from the good ship Fame of -Queensferry, at the ancient wooden pier of Leith. -</p> - -<p> -Often he made brief pauses to view the desolate -scene around him; for in that year a heavy -curse seemed to have fallen upon the desolate -kingdom of Scotland. -</p> - -<p> -On an evening in the preceding summer, when -everything was blooming and smiling—when the -land was rich with verdure and the woods were -heavy with foliage, a cold wind came from the -eastward, and, accompanied by a dense and -sulphureous mist, swept over the face of the country, -blighting whatsoever was touched by its pestilential -breath. -</p> - -<p> -The fields seemed to whiten under its baleful -influence; the ripening corn withered, and the -land was struck with a barrenness. Dense, -opaque, and palpable, like a chain of hills, this -strange and horrid vapour lay floating in the -valleys for many successive months, and there its -effects were more disastrous. The heat of the -sun seemed to diminish, the insects disappeared -from the air and the birds from the withered -woods, which, long ere the last month of summer, -became divested of their faded foliage. The cattle -became dwarfish and meagre, and the flocks -perished by scores on the decaying heather of the -blasted mountains. The people became sickly, -ghastly, and prostrated in spirit; for a curse -seemed to have fallen upon the land and all that -was in it. -</p> - -<p> -This terrible visitation continued until the year -1701, and the <i>dear years</i> were long remembered -with horror in Scotland. -</p> - -<p> -In some places, January and February became -the months of harvest, and, amid ice and snow, -and the sleet that drizzled through that everlasting -and sulphureous mist, the half famished people -reaped in grief and misery a small part of their -scanty produce, while the other was left to rot in -the ground. Famine, the lord of all, stalked -grimly over the land, and strong men and wailing -women, yea, and feeble children, fought like wild -beasts for a handful of meal in the desolate market -places. -</p> - -<p> -"There was many a blank and pale face in -Scotland," says Walker, the famous Presbyterian -pedlar, "and as the famine waxed sore, wives -thought not of their husbands, nor husbands of -their wives," and the gloomy superstition and -fanatical intolerance of the time added fresh horrors -to this ghastly scourge. -</p> - -<p> -The famine was not yet at its height; but there -was a desolation in the aspect of the land that -deeply impressed the mind of the returned exile, -and he sighed in unison with the dreary wind as it -swept over the blasted muir, shaking down the -crisped leaves and acorns of stately old oaks of -Drumsheugh. Save the solitary heron, wading as -of old in the lake, not a bird was to be seen, not -an insect buzzing about the leafless hedges. The -air was dense and cold, and all was very still. -</p> - -<p> -The country seemed to be wasting like a -beautiful woman decaying in consumption. Walter -felt that the manners of the people were changed; -intense gravity and moroseness, real or affected, -were visible in every face, while sad coloured -garments, Geneva cloaks, and Dutch fashions -were all the rage. Every trace of the smart -mustache had disappeared, and with it the slashed -doublets, the waving feathers and dashing airs of -the gallant cavaliers. -</p> - -<p> -Even the sentinels at the palace gates and the -portes of the city, might have passed for those -before the Town House or <i>Rasp Haus</i> at Amsterdam. -The smart steel cap of the old Scottish -infantry had now given place to a vast overshadowing -beaver looped up on three sides, and the -scarlet doublet slashed with blue, and the jacket -of spotless buff, to square tailed and voluminous -coats of brick-red, with yellow breeches and belts -worn saltier-wise. -</p> - -<p> -Bitterly the reflection came home to the heart -of the poor Cavalier, that -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "The times were changed, old manners gone,<br /> - And a <i>stranger</i> filled the Stuarts' throne!"<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Though confident of succeeding in his diplomacy -with the loyal lords and chieftains of the -Jacobite faction, he was well aware how arduous -and difficult was the task to overthrow two -Governments so well arranged, ably constituted and -supported, as those of England and Scotland. It -had long been the policy of William III. to -conciliate domestic enemies, and, in pursuance of it, -he had bestowed several lucrative offices on the -leaders of the discontented and kirk-party. The -Scottish Parliament, which had recently met, -received from him an able and cunning letter, -replete with flattering and cajoling expressions, -which put all the Presbyterian Lords in such -excellent humour, that they returned a most -dutiful and affectionate address—granted him a supply -of six new battalions of infantry, a body of -seamen, and one hundred and fifty thousand pounds, -to enable him to carry on his useless wars with -new vigour; but though the Parliament was thus -obsequious, the people were far from being -pleased; and the Jacobites, numerous, enthusiastic, -and determined, every where fanned the -flames of discord and dissension. -</p> - -<p> -The institution of fines and oaths of assurance -upon absentees from Parliament, which had direct -reference to certain Cavalier Lords and lesser -Barons, exasperated them as much as the horrible -massacre of Glencoe did the commonalty, who -raised throughout the land a cry for vengeance on -William and his Government. -</p> - -<p> -Walter Fenton reflected on these things as he -walked onward, and knew that he had come at a -critical time. Other thoughts soon succeeded, -and, grasping his staff as he had often done his -sword, he pushed forward with a sparkling eye -and reddening cheek. -</p> - -<p> -Without impairing his nobler sentiments, suffering -and misfortune had powerfully strengthened -his loyalty and virtue, as much as campaigning -had improved his bearing and lent a firmness and -manly determination to his aspect; but often his -brow saddened and the fire of his eye died away, -when he thought of Finland and those he had -been permitted to survive and to mourn. -</p> - -<p> -Glowing with sensations of rapture, and eagerly -anticipating the flush of joy that awaited him, he -passed the rhinns of the beautiful loch, the curious -gable-ended old house where once the Regent -Murray dwelt, and approached the gate of Bruntisfield. -</p> - -<p> -His heart beat painfully; he was deeply -agitated. Five weary years had elapsed since he -had stood on that spot, and it seemed only as -yesterday. Through all the hurry of events that -had swept over him, his memory went back to -that memorable eve of September (of which this -was now the anniversary) and to the glorious -ardour that animated his heart on the day he -marched for England, when the long line of the -Scottish host wound over yonder hill before him. -Oh, for one hour more of those fierce longings -and brave impulses! But alas! the spirit seemed -to have passed away for ever. -</p> - -<p> -He approached the avenue. The old gate with -its massive arch, its mossy carvings and -loopholed wall, had given place to a handsome new -erection of more modern architecture, surmounted -by a rich coat of arms; and Walter felt every -pulse grow still, and every fibre tremble as he -surveyed the sculptured blazon. -</p> - -<p> -It bore the saltire of Napier, engrailed between -four roses, but quartered, collared, and coroneted -with other bearings. -</p> - -<p> -His heart became sick and palsied. Oh, it was -a horrible sensation that came over him; he stood -long irresolute and apprehensive. -</p> - -<p> -"Of what am I afraid!" he suddenly exclaimed -with the enthusiasm of a true and impassioned -lover. "There is some mistake here; the house -has been sold or gifted away like many another -noble patrimony to the slaves of the Statholder. -Lilian! Dear Lilian, when shall I hold thee in -my arms?" -</p> - -<p> -He was about to rush forward, when a horseman, -the glittering lace on whose bright coloured suit -of triple velvet, and waving ostrich feathers that -fluttered in his diamond hat-band, formed a strong -contrast to the sombre fashions of the time, dashed -down the leaf-strewn avenue on a beautiful charger, -with the perfumed ringlets of his white peruke -dancing in the wind—for white perukes, from a -spirit of opposition, were all the rage then, as -<i>black</i> had been under the three last princes of the -old hereditary line. It was Lord Clermistonlee. -</p> - -<p> -"Hollo, fellow!" he cried imperiously, "keep -out of my horse's way—dost want thy bones -broken!" and giving a keen but casual glance at -the dejected wanderer, he spurred onward to the -city. -</p> - -<p> -Suddenly he reined up so sharply as almost to -pull his pawing steed back upon its strained and -bending haunches. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis he!" exclaimed the proud lord, as he -thought aloud. "By the great father of -confusion 'tis he! How could I mistake, though -truly, poor devil, these last five years have sadly -changed him. But on what fool's errand comes -he here? By all the furies, I knew his -lachrymose visage in a moment, though the despatches -of Dalrymple of Stair, to our Lords of Council, -had in some sort prepared me for his return, and -for what?—to organize a plot for James's restoration. -Poor fool! Infatuated in love as in politics. -He believes in the faith of women and the word -of Kings; let us see how they will avail him tonight." -</p> - -<p> -He smiled scornfully, and twisted the heavy -dark mustachios which he still cherished with -more than Mahommedan veneration. Alternately -sad and bitter thoughts swelled within him as he -remembered the joyous revelry of King Charles's -days, and the tyranny he could then exercise -over all nonconformists, and the hunting and -hosting-dragooning and drinking of the Covenanting -wars; then came feelings of jealousy and revenge -that, as they blazed up in his proud breast, bore -all before them. -</p> - -<p> -"How dares he now to prowl before my own -gates? Gadso! if my Lady Lilian sees him once, -there will be a pretty disturbance. A shipload of -devils will be nothing to it. The girl will die, -and my own house will become too hot to hold -me. D——nation! too well have I seen the -secret passion that has preyed upon her gentle -and affectionate heart—the grief—the deep -consuming grief that all my magnificent presents and -gentle blandishments have failed to soothe. A -thousand curses on this upstart beggar, and a -thousand more on the mother of mischief, who -has raised him up again to cross my path! By -what power hath he escaped war and woe, and -storm and every danger again to thwart and come -in the way of Clermistonlee, whose purposes were -never yet foiled by man, or woman either? -'S death! the time has come when the cord of the -doomster, or the axe of the maiden, must rid me -for ever of this old source of dark forebodings and -secret inquietude. Ho, for a guard and a warrant -of Council, and then Sir Walter Fenton, Knight -Banneret, the Jacobite spy, Chevalier of St. Louis, -ex-private soldier, and soi-disant ensign to the -Lord Dunbarton, may look to himself! Ha, ha!" -and dashing spurs into his horse he galloped -madly into the city. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap20"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XX. -<br /><br /> -THE BUBBLE BURST. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - To linger when the sun of life,<br /> - The beam that gilt its path is gone—<br /> - To feel the aching bosom's strife,<br /> - When <i>Hope</i> is dead, but <i>Love</i> lives on.<br /> - ANONYMOUS.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Meanwhile, without recognising Clermistonlee, -and not aware that he had been recognized -by him, poor Walter, who was of that temperament -which is easily raised and depressed, turned -away from the gate, crushed beneath the load of a -thousand fears at the sight of so gay a cavalier -caracoling down the avenue of Bruntisfield. -</p> - -<p> -His heart was overcharged with melancholy -reflections. "I have been away for five years—in -all that time we have never heard of each other. -Oh, what if she should have deemed me dead!" -</p> - -<p> -Drawing his last shilling from his pocket, the -unfortunate cavalier entered a poor change-house -by the wayside, where a great signboard creaking -on an iron rod and representing a portrait in a red -coat and white wig, and having a tremendously -hooked nose, imported that it was the 'King -William's head,' kept by Lucky Elshender, who -promised good entertainment for "man and -beast." -</p> - -<p> -The small clay-floored apartment, with its -well-scrubbed bunkers, and rack of shining plates and -tin trenchers, kirn-babies on the mantelpiece, and -blazing ingle, where turf and wood burned cheerfully -in a clumsy iron basket, supported by four -massive legs, looked very snug and comfortable. -</p> - -<p> -A personage evidently a divine, long visaged -and dark featured, with his lanky sable hair falling -on his Geneva bands and coat of rusty black, sat -warming his spindle legs at the warm hearth, and -smoking a long pipe, on the bowl of which he -fixed his great lack lustre eyes with an -expression of the deepest abstraction. It was the -Reverend Mr. Ichabod Bummel, who came every -evening as regularly as six o'clock struck, to -smoke a pipe, and hear the passing news at the -change-house kept by his aunt-in-law old Elsie, -and to bore every traveller who was disposed to -hear the abstruse theology and ponderous -arguments advanced in his <i>Bombshell</i>, for that -immortal work had been printed at last, in thick -quarto, and a copy of it now lay under his elbow -all ready for action against the first good-natured -listener or fool-hardy disputant. -</p> - -<p> -In person this redoubtable champion of toleration -was as lean as ever, though the goods and -chattels of this world had flowed amply upon him -of late, notwithstanding the oppression and famine -of the time. He had cautiously purchased various -tofts and pendicles on the banks of the Powburn, -and to these he gave hard and unusual scriptural -names, which they bear unto this day, and -which the curious may find by consulting the -City Directory. One he named the Land of -Canaan, another the Land of Goshen, the Land of -Egypt, Hebron, and so forth, while the little -runnel that traverses them was exalted into the -waters of Jordan. Meinie, whom he had espoused, -had "proved," as he said, "ane fruitful vine," for -she had brought him four sons, all long-visaged, -hollow-eyed, and sepulchral counterparts of -himself, and he named them Shem, Ham, Japhet, and -Ichabod. -</p> - -<p> -On the opposite side of the ingle, and far back -in a corner, a miserable-looking woman crouched -on the stone bench for warmth. A tartan plaid -was muffled about her shoulders, and half concealed -her hollow cheeks and ghastly visage. She seemed -a personification of the famine and misery that -reigned so triumphantly in Scotland. Her eyes -were full of unnatural lustre; they flashed like -diamonds in the light of the fire, but had a -scrutinizing and stern expression in them that startled -Walter, and he felt uneasy in her vicinity. -</p> - -<p> -"It's only puir Beatrix Gilruth, my winsome -gentleman," said Elsie in a low voice; "she is a -gomeral—a natural body that bides about the doors, -Sir; just a puir, harmless, daft creature. She'll -no harm you, Sir." -</p> - -<p> -In the tumult of his mind Walter did not at first -recognise either Elsie or Ichabod, but assuming -an air of as much unconcern as he could muster, -he called for a bicker of French wine, and took -possession of a cutty stool which the slipshod -Elsie placed for him hurriedly and officiously -opposite the divine, who regarded him with a keen -scrutinizing glance, to ascertain his probable -station in life, his errand, and objects in coming -hither. He saw that he was a traveller, and being -on foot must be a poor one. -</p> - -<p> -"Good e'en to your reverence, for I presume I -have the honour of addressing a clergyman," said -Walter, politely. -</p> - -<p> -"Hum—humph!" answered Ichabod, with a -short cough, nodding his head, and never once -moving his eyes from Walter's face. Every man -was then doubtful and suspicious of strangers (the -Scots are so to the present hour), and consequently -Ichabod was singularly dry and reserved. But -Elsie drew near Walter, and looked at him -attentively. The grief that preyed upon his heart had -imparted a singularly prepossessing mildness to -his features, and a winning cadence to the tone of -his voice, but the stark preacher neither saw one -nor felt the influence of the other. -</p> - -<p> -"A cold night, your reverence." -</p> - -<p> -"Yea," gasped Ichabod, and there was another -pause. -</p> - -<p> -"My service to you, Sir. Wilt taste my wine? 'tis -right Gascony, and I should be a judge." -</p> - -<p> -"Yea, having been in those parts where it was -produced, probably," observed Ichabod, becoming -more curious and communicative as he imbibed -the lion's share of Walter's wine pot, and waited -for an answer, but there was none given. -</p> - -<p> -"Verily, Sir," began Mr. Bummel, "these are -times to chill the souls and bodies of the afflicted. -Thou seest how sore the famine waxeth in the -land, especially in these our once fertile Lothians, -which whilome were wont to be overflowing with -milk and honey." -</p> - -<p> -"Ay," chimed in Elsie, "but I've seen them -in mair fearfu' times, when they were overflowing -wi' blude and soldiers." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis for that red harvest, woman, that we are -visited by this lamentable scourge; plagued even -as Egypt was of old. In these three fertile shires -of Lothian I have seen a woeful change since the -last harvest, and my heart grows heavy when I -think upon it; but I am about to arise and go -forth from them for ever." -</p> - -<p> -"Indeed, Sir," said Walter. -</p> - -<p> -"I have gotten a pleasant call from the Lord -to another kirk——" -</p> - -<p> -"Wi' a <i>better</i> stipend, Sir," added the gleeful -Elsie. -</p> - -<p> -"Indubitably," said Mr. Bummel. -</p> - -<p> -"Twa hunder pound Scots, a braw glebe, four -bolls o' beir," replied Elsie, counting on her -crooked and wrinkled fingers, "aucht chalders—" -</p> - -<p> -"Peace, woman Elsie, for this enumeration of -thine savours of a love for the things of this life." -</p> - -<p> -"And a braw pulpit. O, but it's grand you'll -be, Ichabod, when in full birr under your sounding -board. But alake, Sir," she added, turning to -Walter, "arena' these fearfu' times?' -</p> - -<p> -"Sad indeed, gudewife." -</p> - -<p> -"I was in the mealmarket this morning, and -oh, Sirs, it was a sight to rend the heart of a nether -millstane to see the hungry bairns and wailing -mothers worrying about the half-filled pokes. -God help them! the puir folk are deeing fast the -west country we hear." -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis a scourge on the land for its former sins," -said the preacher in his most sepulchral tone; -"but let us hope that the faith of its people will -save it!" -</p> - -<p> -"You'll hae come from some far awa' country -I'm thinking, Sir?" said Elsie, inquisitively, for -the extreme sadness of Walter interested her -extremely. -</p> - -<p> -"True I have, good woman." -</p> - -<p> -"France, I fancy? that land o' priests and persecution." -</p> - -<p> -"From Holland last. I am a merchant, and -deal in broadcloths and cart saddles. From Holland -last," he repeated, for their inquisitiveness -made him uneasy. -</p> - -<p> -"A blessed land, good youth," said Mr. Bummel. -"I sojourned there long when there was a -flaming sword over the children of righteousness." -</p> - -<p> -"Reverend sir, canst tell me what are the news -among you here?" asked Walter, who was in an -agony of mind to lead the conversation to what -lay nearest his heart. -</p> - -<p> -"Verily, Sir, nought but the famine—the famine. -The west winds hath detained the Flanders -mail these two months, and we have heard nothing -from London these many weeks, save anent plots -of the Jacobites and Papists, of whilk we have ever -enough and to spare." -</p> - -<p> -"What have you heard of them of late?" -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis said that one Walter Fenton, formerly an -officer in the regiment of Dunbarton (that bloody -oppressor of Israel) is now tarrying among us, -plotting in James's cause, or on some such errand -of hell." -</p> - -<p> -"The rascal," said Walter, drinking to conceal -the confusion that overspread his face. -</p> - -<p> -"Yea," continued Ichabod, puffing vigorously, -and luckily involving himself in a cloud of smoke. -"This morning the heralds, in their vain-glorious -trumpery, were proclaiming at the Cross the -reward of a thousand merks to any that will bring -his head to the Privy Council; and the Lord -Clermistonlee, from the good will and affection he -bears his Majesty, offers five hundred more?" -</p> - -<p> -"Do you think he will be found?" -</p> - -<p> -"Indubitably. The ports are closed, the guards -on the alert; the messengers-at-arms, macers, and -halberdiers are all in full chase. He must perish, -and so may all who would restore the abominations -of idolatry! Here in my <i>Bombshell</i> (a work whilk I -have lately imprinted with mickle care and toil), if -I do not prove, from the epistles to the -Thessalonians, that the great master of popery, the -Bishop of Rome, is the grand Antichrist therein -referred to, I will be well content to kiss the -bloody maiden that stands under the shadow of -the Tolbooth gable." -</p> - -<p> -"Hear till him!" cried the delighted Elsie. -"Hear till him! O wow, but my Meinie's man -is a grand minister—he rides on the rigging of the -kirk!" -</p> - -<p> -"I am a stranger here," said Walter, no longer -able to repress the torture of his mind; "I know -nothing of the vile plot you speak of, having been -long in the industrious Low Countries—and—and—cans't -tell me, your Reverence, whose mansion -is approached by yonder stately avenue of oaks -and sycamores?" -</p> - -<p> -"The House of Bruntisfield—called of old the -Wrytes." -</p> - -<p> -"Aich ay," added Elsie, shaking her head -mournfully; "but a house o' wrongs now." -</p> - -<p> -"Wherefore, gudewife?" -</p> - -<p> -"It is a lang story, honoured Sir," replied Elsie, -drawing her stool nearer Walter, and knitting -very fast to hide her emotion. "The auld line o' -the Napiers ended in a lassie, as bonnie a doo as -the Lowdens three could boast o', and mony came -frae baith far and near to the wooing and winning -o' her; but nane cam speed save a neer-do-weel-loon -o' a cavalier officer, to whom she plighted -heart and troth—and the plighting pledge was a -deid woman's ring. As might be expected, the -hellicate cavalier gaed awa' to the wars and -plundering in the Lowlands of Holland, and sair my -young lady sorrowed for him; I ken that weel, -for I was her nurse, and mony a lang hour she -grat in my arms for her love that was far awa'. -At last word came frae Low Germanie that the -fause villain had married some unco' papistical -woman, and, in a mad fit o' black despair, my -lady accepted the most determined, if no the best -o' her suitors——" -</p> - -<p> -"Who?" asked Walter in an unearthly voice, and -feeling for the sword he wore no longer. "Who?" -</p> - -<p> -"Randal Lord Clermistonlee, and ehow! but -sair hath been the change in our gude auld barony -since then. Her braw lands and farmsteadings, -her auld patrimony, baith haugh and holme, loch -and lea, brae and burn, are a' melting and fleeing -awa' by the wasterfu' extravagance o' the wildest -loon in a' braid Scotland. Hawks and hounds, -revellers and roisterers, and ill-women, thrang the -great ha' house frae een to morn and morn till -eenin'; and sae, between the freaks and follies, -the pride and caprice o' her lord, my puir doo -Lilian leads the life o' a blessed martyr. When -mad wi' wine and ill luck at the dice tables, he -rampages ower her like a Bull o' Bashan; while, -at other times, he just doats on her as a faither -would on a favourite bairn. But, alake! doating -can never remove the misery that has closed over -her for the short time she'll likely be amang -us—for her heart is breaking fast—it is—it is!" -</p> - -<p> -Here Elsie wept bitterly, and then resumed. -</p> - -<p> -"Her marriage day was ane o' the darkest -dool to a' the barony, for on that miserable day -our auld lady died; and a' the leal servitors were -soon after expelled to mak' room for the broken -horse-coupers, ill-women and vagabonds, that -were ever and aye in the train o' the new lord." -</p> - -<p> -While Elsie ran on thus, Walter heard her not. -His mind was a perfect chaos of distraction. -</p> - -<p> -Oh, what a shock were these tidings to one -whose head was so full of romance and enthusiasm, -and whose heart was brimming with sensibility and -love! -</p> - -<p> -He felt an utter prostration of every faculty, -and a deadly coldness seemed to pass over the -pulses of his heart. He arose, and laying on the -table the last coin he possessed in the world, -hurried forth without waiting for change, and, -bent on some desperate deed, blind and reckless, -with anger, agony and despair in his soul, he -entered the dark shadowy avenue, and approached -the old castellated mansion—the place of so many -tender memories. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap21"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXI. -<br /><br /> -LOVE AND MARRIAGE ARE TWO. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Oh, these were only marks of joy, forsooth,<br /> - For his return in safety! Were they so?<br /> - And so ye may believe, and so my words<br /> - May fall unheeded! Be it so; what comes<br /> - Will nevertheless come.<br /> - AGAMEMNON OF ÆSCHYLUS.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The shadows of the gloomy evening had -deepened as he approached the ancient Place of -Bruntisfield, and its dark façade, its heavy -projecting turrets and barred casements, impressed -him with additional sadness. -</p> - -<p> -The wind sighed down the lonely avenue, and -whirled the fallen leaves as it passed. Many a -raven flapped its wings and screamed discordantly -above his head, and all such sounds had a -powerful effect on him at the time. -</p> - -<p> -Confused, despairing, and feeling a sentiment -of profound contempt and anger, struggling for -mastery with his old and passionate love, his -heart seemed about to rend with its conflicting -emotions. -</p> - -<p> -One sensation was ever present—it was one of -desolation and loneliness—that he had nothing -more to live for; that the world was all a blank. -The light that had long led him on through so -many miseries and dangers had vanished from his -view: his idol was shattered for ever. -</p> - -<p> -He felt that it was impossible to think with -calmness; to tear from his breast the dear image -and the cherished hopes he had fostered there so -long—to exchange admiration for contempt—love -for indifference. Oh, no! it could never be. -Ages seemed to have elapsed since the sun had -set that evening; while his parting with Lilian, -the triumph of Killycrankie, the carnage of -Steinkirke, and his mission from the King, seemed all -the events of yesterday. -</p> - -<p> -He felt sick and palsied at heart. -</p> - -<p> -Irresistibly impelled to see her, heedless alike -of the dangerous charm of her presence and the -risk he ran if discovered, his whole soul was bent -upon an interview, that he might upbraid her with -her perfidy—hurl upon her a mountain of reprobation -and bitterness, of obloquy and scorn, and -then leave her presence for ever. -</p> - -<p> -"I am alone in the world," thought he. "This -is my native land—the land where I had garnered -up my heart, my hopes, and my wishes, though -not one foot of it is mine save the sod that must -cover me. Of all the tens of thousands that tread -its soil, there is not one now with whom I can -claim kindred, who would welcome me in coming, -or bless me in departing—not one to shed a tear -on the grave where I shall lie. Oh! it is very sad -to feel one's self so desolate. Where now are all -those brave companions with whom I was once so -daring, so joyous, and so gay? Alas! on a -hundred fields their bones lie scattered, and I -alone survive to mourn the glory of the days that -are gone for ever! Oh, never more shall the -drum beat or trumpet sound for me! Oh, never -more shall love or glory fire my heart again! Oh, -never more, for the hour is passed and never -can return"—and he almost wept, so intensely -bitter were his thoughts of sorrow and regret. -</p> - -<p> -The barbican gate stood ajar, and the old and -well remembered doorway at the foot of the tower -was also open; they seemed to invite his entrance, -and, careless of the consequences, he went -mechanically forward. -</p> - -<p> -The old portrait on horseback, the trophy of -arms, and the wooden Flemish clock with its -monotonous <i>tick-tack</i>, still occupied the vaulted -lobby. Every thing seemed as he had seen them -last. He turned to the left and entered the -chamber-of-dais, breathless and trembling, for he -seemed instinctively to know that <i>she</i> was there. -</p> - -<p> -He entered softly, and, overpowered by the -violence of his conflicting emotions, stood rooted to -the spot. The old chamber, with its massive -pannelling and rich decorations of the Scoto-French -school was partially lighted by the ruddy -glow from the great fire-place, and by the last -deep red flush of the departed sun that streamed -through its grated windows. -</p> - -<p> -The dark furniture, the grotesque cabinets with -their twisted columns, the stark chairs with their -knobby backs and worsted bobs, the grim -full-length of Sir Archibald Napier, cap-a-pie à la -cuirassier, the dormant beam with its load of -lances, swords, and daggers, were all as Walter -had last seen them; but the old lady's -well-cushioned chair, her long walking-cane and ivory -virreled spinning-wheel had long since disappeared; -and hawk's-hoods, hunting horns, spurs, -whips, and stray tobacco pipes lay in various -places, while in lieu of Lady Grisel's sleek and -pampered tom cat, a great wiry, red-eyed, sleuth -hound slept on the warm hearth-rug. On all this -Walter bestowed not a glance, for his eyes and -his soul became immediately rivetted on the -figure of Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -With her head leaning on her hand she sat -within the deep recess of a western window, -and the faint light of the setting sun lit up her -features and edged her ringlets with gold. She -was absorbed in deep thought. -</p> - -<p> -Lilian, who for days, and months, and years, in -health and in sickness, in danger and in safety, in -sorrow and in joy, had never for a moment been -absent from his thoughts, was now before him, -and yet he had not one word of greeting to -bestow. He seemed to be in a trance—to be -oppressed by some horrible dream. -</p> - -<p> -He observed her anxiously and narrowly. -Nothing could be more tender than the love that -was expressed in his eyes, and nothing more -acute than the agony expressed by his contracted -features. -</p> - -<p> -Lapse of years, change of circumstances and of -thought had considerably altered the appearance -of Lilian. The light-hearted, slender, and joyous -girl had expanded into a stately, grave, and -melancholy matron. Oh, what a change those five -sad years had wrought! Her dress was magnificent, -as became the wife of a Scottish noble; -her figure, though still slight, was fuller and -rounder than of old; her face, though still -dignified and beautiful, was paler—even sickly. Her -blue eyes seemed to have lost much of their former -brilliancy, and to have gained only in softness of -expression. Her dark lashes were cast down, -and her aspect was sad and touching. The -bloom of her lip and her cheek had faded away -together, for heavily on her affectionate heart had -the hand of suffering weighed. -</p> - -<p> -She wept, and the heart of Walter was melted -within him. Had all the universe been his he -would have given it to have embraced her. He -sighed bitterly, but dared not to approach. -</p> - -<p> -"He is gone," said Lilian,—"gone to spend -another night in riot and debauchery, while I am -left ever alone. Perhaps 'tis well, for often his -presence is intolerable. Woe is me! Oh, how -different was the future I once pictured to my -imagination!" -</p> - -<p> -The sound of that dear voice, which had so -often come to him through his dreams in many a -far and foreign camp and city, made Walter -tremble. He was deeply moved. The fire in -the arched chimney, which had been smouldering, -now suddenly shot up into a broad and ruddy -blaze that lighted the whole chamber. Lilian -turned her head, and instantly grew pale as -death, for full on the image of him who occupied -her thoughts—of Walter Fenton, hollow eyed, -emaciated, and supported on a walking-staff—fell -the bright stream of that fitful light. He -looked so unearthly, so motionless and spectral, -that Lilian's blood ran cold. -</p> - -<p> -She would have screamed, but the cry died -away upon her lips. After a moment or two her -spirit rallied; her respiration, though hurried, -became more free; her face blushed scarlet up to -the very temples, and then became ashy pale, as -before, and her glazed eyes resumed their wild -and inquiring expression. She arose, but neither -advanced nor spoke. All power seemed to have -left her. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, Lilian! Lilian!" said the poor wanderer -in a voice of great pathos; "after the lapse of five -long years of exile and suffering, what a meeting -is this for us! Under what a course of perils -have the hope of my return and your truth not -sustained me? My God! that I should find you -thus. Is this the welcome I expected?" -</p> - -<p> -Summoning all her courage and that self-possession -which women have in so great a degree, -Lilian (though her eyes were full of tears) averted -her face, and recalled the fatal letter of Finland, -on which had turned the whole of her future fate. -</p> - -<p> -"Look at me, adorable Lilian!" said Walter, -kneeling and stretching his arms towards her. -</p> - -<p> -Lilian dared not to look; but she trembled -violently and sobbed heavily. -</p> - -<p> -"Look at me, beloved one," said Walter -wildly and passionately. "Changed though I -am, and though another holds your heart, you -cannot have forgotten me, or learned to view me -with aversion and contempt. If this Lord has -won your affection—" -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, say not that, Walter," sobbed Lilian -"do not say my affection." -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, horror! what misery can equal such an -avowal? My fatal absence has undone us both." -</p> - -<p> -"Say, rather, your fatal inconstancy." -</p> - -<p> -"Mine?" reiterated Walter. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, yes, yes; upbraid me not," said Lilian in -a piercing voice. "I was faithful and true until -you forsook me for another. To God I appeal," -she cried, raising her clasped hands and weeping -eyes to Heaven, "kneeling I appeal if ever in -word, or thought, or hope I swerved in truth from -thee, dear Walter, until tidings of your marriage -reached me; when, stung by jealousy, by pride, -by disappointment and despair, and urged by the -unmerited contumely that had fallen upon me, I -yielded to the exhortations of my friends, and -in an evil hour——." She covered her face -with her hands, and could say no more. -</p> - -<p> -"Heaven preserve my senses!" ejaculated -Walter Fenton, "for here the wiles of Hell have -been at work. We have been deceived, cruelly -deceived, dear Lilian, by some deep-laid plot of -villany which this right hand shall yet unravel and -revenge. And you are the wife of Clermistonlee? -Hear me, unfortunate! You are less than—ah, -how shall I say it? You are not and cannot be -his wife!" -</p> - -<p> -"You rave, poor Walter. Our doom is irrevocably -sealed. Our paths in life must be for -ever separate. Oh, for the love of gentle mercy -begone, and let us meet no more, for at this -moment I feel my brain whirling, and I am -trembling on the very verge of madness." -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian, this is the 20th of September," said -Walter. -</p> - -<p> -"Cruel, cruel; do not speak of it," said she, -wringing her hands. "For Heaven's sake leave -me, and take back the pledge—the ring, for to -retain it longer were a sin, and too long have I -sinned in treasuring it as I have done." -</p> - -<p> -Unlocking a cabinet, she drew from a secret -drawer a ring to which a ribbon was attached, and -offered it to Walter; but he never approached. -</p> - -<p> -"We have been cruelly duped, dear Lilian; -but oh, how could you doubt me, for never did I -mistrust you? But hear me, though my words -should crush your heart as mine just now is -crushed. Alison Gifford, the first wife of Lord -Clermistonlee yet lives, though (as she told me) -dead to him and to the world for ever!" -</p> - -<p> -"What new horror is this?" said Lilian, pressing -her hands upon her temples. -</p> - -<p> -In a few words her unhappy lover explained -how he had become acquainted with the existence -of Lady Clermistonlee. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, this is indeed to bruise the bruised—to -heap brands upon a burning heart," said Lilian, -as she sank into a chair and covered her face with -her hands. A long pause ensued, till Walter said -in a low and trembling voice, -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian, do you really love this man—this -Clermistonlee?" -</p> - -<p> -"He is my husband." -</p> - -<p> -"It is impossible you can love him!" -</p> - -<p> -"Love him!—oh, no! custom has in part overcome -the aversion with which I once regarded -him, and by his able flattery he has succeeded in -soothing me into a temper of kind indifference -and quiet resignation—but oh, this interview——" -</p> - -<p> -Walter, who had never dared to diminish the -distance between them, gazed wistfully and -tenderly upon her; but at that moment an infant -that was sleeping in its cradle awoke, and cried -aloud. Its voice seemed to sting him to the -heart, and he turned abruptly to withdraw. -</p> - -<p> -"Farewell, Lilian," said he; "I will go, and -my presence shall disturb your serenity no more. -May you be happy, and may God bless and -forgive you for the agony I now endure! -Clermistonlee, like the matchless villain he has been -through life, has wronged us both; but let him -tremble in the midst of his success and his -treason, for the hour is coming when our King -shall enjoy his own again, and remember that in -that hour the same hand which rends the baron's -coronet from the brow of your betrayer, bestows -on me the Earldom of Dalrulion! Farewell," -said he through his clenched teeth; "to me the -paths of ambition and revenge are open still, -though those of happiness and love are closed, -alas, for ever!" He gave her one long glance of -agony, and turned to depart; but at that moment -strong hands were laid upon him violently—the -room was filled with soldiers and the beagles of -justice; he was dragged down and bound with -cords, ere he could make the slightest effort in his -own defence. -</p> - -<p> -"An out-and-out Jacobite, Papist, and a' the -rest o' it—I ken by the look o' him!" cried -Maclutchy, the macer, flourishing his badge of -office. "Here will be some grand plots brought -to light that will bring half the country under -doom o' forfeiture and fine. Kittle times, lads, -kittle times!' -</p> - -<p> -"Away with him!" cried Clermistonlee, spurning -the manacled unfortunate with his foot; -"away with him! The Lords of the Privy Council -meet in an hour. Lose no time, for by all the -devils, the corbies of the Burghmuir shall pick -his bones ere the morrow's sun be set." -</p> - -<p> -As Walter was roughly dragged away, Lilian -threw her hands above her head, uttered one wild -shriek, and fell forward on her face, motionless as -if dead. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap22"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXII. -<br /><br /> -THE RING AND THE SECRET. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - See the cypress wreath of saddest hue,<br /> - The twining destiny threading through;<br /> - And the serpent coil is twisting there—<br /> - While regardless of the victim's prayer,<br /> - The fiend laughs out o'er the mischief done,<br /> - And the canker-worm makes the heart his throne.<br /> - THE PROPHECY.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Twelve o'clock tolled heavily and sadly from -the steeple of St. Giles. -</p> - -<p> -It was a bleak and cold night. The Lords of -the Privy Council, muffled up in their well-furred -rocquelaures, with their hats flapped over -their periwigs, ascended from the subterranean -vaults under the Parliament House where they -held their dreaded conclaves, and hurried away to -their residences in the various deep and steep -wynds of the ancient city. Mersington, who, -overcome by sleep and wine, had remained at the -table until roused by Macer Maclutchy, was the -last to come forth, and he stood rubbing his eyes -in the Parliament Square, and watching the black -gigantic statue of King Charles with steady -gravity, for he could have sworn at that moment -that it seemed to be trotting hard towards him. -His rallying faculties were scattered again by a -stranger violently jostling him. -</p> - -<p> -"Haud ye dyvour loon!" exclaimed the incensed -Senator; "I am the Lord Mersington." -</p> - -<p> -"And what art doing here, pumpkinhead?" -asked Clermistonlee, who was quite breathless by -having rushed up the Back Stairs, as those flights -of steps which ascended from the Cowgate to the -Parliament Square were named. "Are the proceedings -over? Hath the villain confessed? Is -he to die?" -</p> - -<p> -"They are over, and he shall die conform to -the Act." -</p> - -<p> -"And how went the proceedings?" -</p> - -<p> -"Deil kens; I sleepit the haill time." -</p> - -<p> -"Driveller!" cried Clermistonlee in a towering -passion; "'tis like thee; your head is as -empty as my purse——" -</p> - -<p> -"Hee, hee, ye seem a bonnie temper to-night. -But what detained you frae the board, when ye -knew you were principal witness?" -</p> - -<p> -"The sudden indisposition of Lady Clermistonlee -made it impossible for me to leave Bruntisfield—but -I have this moment galloped in from -The Place." -</p> - -<p> -"You are a kind and considerate gudeman," -said Mersington drily. -</p> - -<p> -"And what did this fellow confess?" -</p> - -<p> -"His abhorrence of you——" -</p> - -<p> -"Ha! ha!" -</p> - -<p> -"His hatred of the present government, and -his weariness o' this life. He spoke unco dreich -and sadly, puir callant,—and sae I fell fast asleep -and dozed like a top." -</p> - -<p> -"And did not that goosecap, the King's -Advocate, give him a twinge or two of the -torture?" -</p> - -<p> -"We brought some braw things to light without -the help o' rack or screw. The tails o' his -coat were as fu' o' treason as an egg's fu' o' meat. -There were five and twenty autograph letters -frae the bluidy and papistical Duke James——" -</p> - -<p> -"Stuff! But lately he was styled His most -Sacred Majesty, by the grace of God, and so -forth." -</p> - -<p> -"I speak as we wrote it in the council minutes. -Five and twenty letters to the cut-throat Hieland -chiefs, to the Murrays of Stormont, the Drummonds -and others, some slee tod lowries we have -long had our een on. But maist of a' was a -notable plot of that d——ned jaud Madame -Maintenon to assassinate King William." -</p> - -<p> -"Hah!" -</p> - -<p> -"From a paper found, it appears that a certain -Monsieur Dumont is now disguised as a soldier -in our confederate army in Flanders, watching an -opportunity to shoot the King and escape." -</p> - -<p> -"By St. George, I hope the aforesaid Monsieur -Dumont is a good shot—a regular candle-snuffer!" -</p> - -<p> -"Our culprit, Fenton, knew not of Maintenon's -plot, or of her papers being among those on his -person. He looked black dumbfoundered when -Maclutchy drew them frae a neuk in his coat tail." -</p> - -<p> -"And to whom were they directed?" -</p> - -<p> -"To one <i>Widow Douglas</i>, whilk the King's -advocate avers to be no other than the Lady -Dunbarton. Fenton grew red with anger on their -being read, and smote his forehead, saying, '<i>Dupe -that I have been! the noble Duc de Chartres -warned me to beware of De Maintenon; but let it -pass:</i>' and here, as I said, I fell fast asleep, until -a minute ago. But come, let us have a pint of -sack; I am clean brainbraised wi' drouth, and I -warrant Lucky Dreep, in the Kirk-o'-field Wynd, -keeps open door yet." -</p> - -<p> -"And he dies?" said Clermistonlee, who could -think of nothing but glutting his revenge. -</p> - -<p> -"Early to-morrow morning, by the bullet." -</p> - -<p> -"I would rather it had been by the cord. How -came our considerate councillors to shoot instead -of hang him?" -</p> - -<p> -"Soldiers, ye ken, are often soft-hearted when -other men are in stern mood; so auld General -Livingstone, after pleading hard for Fenton's life, -and failing, procured what he called an honourable -commutation of the sentence, for which the puir -gomeral cavalier thanked him as if it had been a -reprieve." -</p> - -<p> -"Cord or bullet it matters not. So perish all -who would cross the purposes of Randal of -Clermistonlee." -</p> - -<p> -His Lordship for once resisted the importunities -of his friend, and instead of adjourning to a -tavern, rode slowly and reluctantly back to his own -house. He felt a strange and unaccountable -presentiment of impending evil, for which he could -not account, but endeavoured to throw it from -him. The effort was vain. -</p> - -<p> -He felt himself a villain. A load of long -accumulated wickedness oppressed his proud heart; it -was not without its better traits, and writhed as -he reflected on some events in his past life. -</p> - -<p> -"Alison! Alison!" he exclaimed, turning his -dark eyes upwards to the star-studded firmament, -"now thy curse is coming heavily upon me." -</p> - -<p> -His principal dread was the death of Lilian, for -he had learned to love her with tolerable -sincerity, but he knew not the secret which Walter -had revealed to her, and the consequent intensity -of her horror, aversion, shame, and anger. He -knew not the tempest it had raised in her sensitive -breast against him. -</p> - -<p> -When he entered the chamber-of-dais she was -seated near a tall silver lamp. The glare of the -untrimmed light fell full upon her face, and its -ghastly and altered expression struck a mortal -chillness on the heart of her husband. He said -not a word, but walking straight to a beauffet filled -a large silver cup several times with wine, and -always drained it to the bottom. The liquor -mounted rapidly to his brain; he threw himself -into a chair opposite Lilian, and heedless of the -perfect scorn that quivered in her beautiful -nostrils, and sparkled in her brilliant eyes, began -leisurely to unbutton his riding gambadoes of red -stamped maroquin, whistling a merry hunting tune -while he did so. -</p> - -<p> -It was easier for him to requite scorn with scorn -than give tenderness for love. -</p> - -<p> -"Confusion on the buttons!" he exclaimed. -"Juden! Juden! Tush, I forgot; poor Juden -hath been with the devil these three years. There -is none now of all my rascally household who will -share with me the morrow's glut of vengeance as -thou wouldst have done, my faithful Juden." -</p> - -<p> -Lilian wrung her attenuated hands; -Clermistonlee regarded her sternly, and then bursting -into a loud laugh, as he threw away his boots and -spurs, chanted a verse from the old black-letter -ballad of Gilderoy:— -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Beneath the left ear so fit for a cord,<br /> - A rope so charming a zone is;<br /> - Thy youth in his cart hath air of a Lord,<br /> - And we cry—there dies an Adonis!"<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -"Ha! ha! I shall see his head on the Bow -Port to-morrow, madam." -</p> - -<p> -"Infamous and wicked!" exclaimed Lilian, -feeling all her old love revived with double ardour, -and no longer able to restrain her sentiments of -grief and indignation. "Walter, dear and beloved -Walter, how cruelly have I been deceived!" and -drawing from her bosom the ring—his mother's -ring, the pledge of his betrothal, she pressed it to -her lips with fervour. -</p> - -<p> -The brow of the proud Clermistonlee grew -black as thunder, and he grasped her slender arm -with the tenacity of a falcon. -</p> - -<p> -"Surrender this bauble, that I may commit it -to the flames. Surrender it, madam, lest I dash -thee to the earth, for at this moment I feel, by all -the devils, my brain spinning like a jenny." -</p> - -<p> -"Give him the ring, Lady Lilian; give it, for -the sight of it will arrest his vision even as the -letters of fire arrested the eyes of Belshazzar and -smote him with dismay. Sweet lady, let him look -upon it," said the voice of a woman. -</p> - -<p> -They turned, and beheld the pale, emaciated, -and haggard visage of Beatrix Gilruth, half shaded -by a tattered tartan plaid. Taking advantage of -Lilian's momentary surprise, her husband snatched -the ring from her, and was about to hurl it into -the fire, when, incited by the woman's words, and -impelled by some mysterious and irresistible -curiosity, he looked upon it, and the effect of his -single glance acted like magic upon him. He -quitted his clutch of Lilian's arm, trembled, grew -pale, and turning the ring again and again, -surveyed it with intense curiosity. -</p> - -<p> -"How came <i>he</i> to have this ring?" he muttered; -"what strange mystery is here? If it -should be so—— O, impossible!" -</p> - -<p> -He pressed a spring that must have been known -only to himself, for Lilian had never discovered it -in all the myriad times she had surveyed it, and -Walter himself was ignorant of the secret when he -bestowed the trinket upon her. The lapse of -years had stiffened the spring; but after a -moment's pressure from the finger of Clermistonlee, -a little shield of gold unclosed, revealing a minute -and beautiful little miniature of himself, which in -earlier days had been one of the happiest efforts of -the young Medina's pencil. -</p> - -<p> -"'Twas my bridal gift to Alison," he exclaimed -in a voice of confusion and remorse. "Oh, Alison, -Alison! many have I loved but never one like -thee. Never again did my heart feel the same -ardour that fired it when I placed this ring on -your adorable hand. Unfortunate Alison!" -</p> - -<p> -"This ring was tied by a ribbon around the -neck of Walter Fenton, when a little child he was -found by the side of his dead mother in the -Greyfriars churchyard," said Lilian in a breathless -voice. -</p> - -<p> -"Confusion and misery! 'tis impossible this -can be true; there is some diabolical mistake here. -Woman, say forth." -</p> - -<p> -Beatrix gave Clermistonlee a bitter and malicious -smile, and addressed Lilian. -</p> - -<p> -"Walter's mother, sweet lady, gave that ring to -Elspat Fenton, who, next to myself, was the most -trusted of her attendants, and bade her travel -from Paris to Scotland, and deliver the child and -the bridal gift together to her husband—to Randal -of Clermistonlee." -</p> - -<p> -Lilian covered her face, and the fiery lord, -whose first emotions were generally those of anger, -surveyed Beatrix as if she had been a coiled up -snake. She spoke slowly, and made long pauses, -for aware that her words were as daggers, she dealt -them sparingly. -</p> - -<p> -"After long suffering and great peril by sea and -land, this poor woman reached Edinburgh, but -failed to meet the father of the infant committed -to her care; for then he was in arms with the men -of the Covenant, hoping by any civil broil or -commotion to repair the splendid patrimony his -excesses had dissipated. Elspat, being unable to -give a very coherent account of herself, was -declared a nonconformist by the authorities, and -thrown with thousands of others into the Greyfriars -kirkyard, where in that inclement season she -perished; but the child was found and protected -by the soldiers of Dunbarton. That child is -Walter Fenton; he is your son, Lord Clermistonlee! the -child of your once loved Alison Gilford. I -call upon Heaven to witness the truth of my -assertion! His own name was Walter, (ah! can -you have forgotten that?) his nurse's Fenton. <i>I -saw her die</i>, and I alone knew the secret, and have -treasured it till this hour—this hour of vengeance -upon thee, thou false and wicked lord! In my -wicked spirit of revenge too long have I kept the -secret; but now this blameless and noble youth is -doomed to death, and fain would I save him, for -he is innocent, and good, and generous; in all -things, oh, how much the reverse of thee!" -</p> - -<p> -"Maniac, thou liest!" exclaimed Clermistonlee, -whose heart beat wildly. "I cannot believe this -tale of a tub, which is told to affright me. And -yet, how dare I reject it?—the ring—Walter—my -God!" -</p> - -<p> -"Ha! has Beatrix the wronged, the scorned, -the despised, the neglected Beatrix, wrung your -heart at last? Fool! fool! Did'st thou never -suspect the volcano that slumbered here?" she -exclaimed, laying her hand upon her heart. -"Did'st thou never perceive the flame that -smouldered in my breast—the yearnings, the -throbbings, the fierce longing to be adequately -revenged on thee who had brought me to ruin -and madness, and had abandoned me to penury and -privation? Wretch! 'tis twenty-five years since -ye betrayed me. Time has rolled on—time, that -soothes all sorrows and softens every affliction, -and teaches us to forget the wrongs of the -living—yea, and the virtues of the dead; and perhaps -to wonder why we hated one and loved the -other,—time, I say, has rolled on to many miserable -years, until I have become the hideous thing I am, -but it never lessened one tithe of my longing for -vengeance for the thousand taunts and contumelies -that succeeded my first sacrifice for thee. -You say I am mad—perhaps I am—but mark me—<i>a -woman's sorrow passes like a summer cloudy -but her vengeance endureth for ever!</i>" -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee smote his forehead, and Beatrix -laughed like a hyæna. -</p> - -<p> -"My God—unhappy Walter!" said Lilian in -a voice that pierced the heart of him she abhorred -to deem her husband. "Then she who saved and -nursed thee on the field of Steinkirke was thy -mother—<i>thy mother</i>, and she knew it not? Oh, -this was the secret sentiment, the heaven-born -thought that spoke within her and made her heart -so mysteriously yearn towards thee. Unfortunate -Walter! how deeply have we been wronged—how -bitterly must we suffer!" -</p> - -<p> -"And till now, thou accursed fiend, this -terrible secret has been concealed from me!" said -Clermistonlee furiously, as he half drew his -sword. -</p> - -<p> -Beatrix laughed and tossed her arms wildly. -</p> - -<p> -"Oh, horror upon horror! woe upon woe!" -said Lilian in a voice of the deepest anguish as -she rung her hands, and, taking up her little -infant from the cradle, kissed it tenderly on the -forehead, and retired slowly from the room. -</p> - -<p> -"Lilian—Lilian," cried her husband, "whither -go ye, lady?" -</p> - -<p> -"To solitude—to solitude," she murmured. -"Any where to save me from my own terrible -thoughts—anywhere to hide me from the deep -disgrace you have brought upon me; to any place -where never again the light of day shall find me." -</p> - -<p> -Clermistonlee heard her light steps on the -staircase, and they fell like a knell on his heart: -impelled by some secret and mysterious impulse, he -followed her to her own apartment, the door of -which he had heard close behind her. There was -no sound within it. -</p> - -<p> -He entered softly; but she was not there; and -from that moment she was never beheld again! -Every ultimate search proved fruitless and -unavailing. A veil of impenetrable mystery hung -over her fate....... -</p> - -<p> -A sudden thought flashed on the mind of -Clermistonlee. The day dawn was breaking as he -descended the staircase, after fruitlessly calling on -Lilian through various apartments. -</p> - -<p> -"I may, I must save him yet—unfortunate -youth, a father's arms shall yet embrace him. Oh, -my hapless and deeply wronged Alison! fortune -may yet enable me in some sort to repair the -atrocities of which I have been guilty. My horse! my -horse!" and, rushing to the stable, he saddled -and bridled a fleet steed, and in five minutes was -galloping furiously back to the city, the walls and -towers of which arose before him, red and sombre -in the rays of the morning sun. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap23"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XXIII. -<br /><br /> -THE IRON ROOM—THE DEATH SHOT. -</h3> - -<p class="poem"> - Ay, I had planned full many a sanguine scheme<br /> - Of earthly happiness—romantic schemes,<br /> - And fraught with loveliness:—and it is hard<br /> - To feel the hand of death arrest one's steps,<br /> - Throw a chill blight o'er all one's budding prospects,<br /> - And hurl one's soul untimely to the shades,<br /> - Lost in the gaping gulph of blank oblivion.<br /> - HENRY KIRKE WHITE.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The Iron Room of the ancient Tolbooth of -Edinburgh was a dreary vault of massive stone-work, -and was named so in consequence of its -strength and security. A low heavy arch roofed -it, and the walls from which it sprung were -composed of great blocks of roughly hewn stone -elaborately built. Here and there a chain hung -from them. The floor was paved, and the door -was a complicated mass of iron bars, locks, bolts, -and hinges. A single aperture, high up in the -wall, admitted the cold midnight wind through its -deep recess. -</p> - -<p> -An iron cruise burned on a clumsy wooden -table, near which sat Walter Fenton the -condemned, with his face covered by his hands and -his mind buried in sad and melancholy thoughts. -</p> - -<p> -One bright and solitary star shone down upon -him through the grated window, flashing, dilating, -and shrinking; often he gazed upon it -wistfully—for it was his only companion—the partner -or the witness of his solitude and his sorrow. -Once he turned to look upon it—but it had -passed away. -</p> - -<p> -He reflected that never again would he behold -a star shining in the firmament. -</p> - -<p> -Sad, bitter, and solitary reflection—for a few -hours was all that was left him now: and, though -the sands of life were ebbing fast, one absorbing -thought occupied his mind—that Lilian was false -and his rival triumphant; that all his long -cherished schemes and dreams of love and happiness, -glory and ambition, were frustrated and blasted -irredeemably and for ever. -</p> - -<p> -He was to die! -</p> - -<p> -The infliction of punishment immediately after -trial was anciently practised in all criminal cases, -and the victim was usually led from the presence -of the judge to the scaffold. -</p> - -<p> -Walter had been doomed to death as a traitor, -a raiser of sedition, and a deserter from the -Scottish forces: the last accusation, in support of -which his signed <i>oath of fealty</i> to the Estates of -Scotland, had been produced in council by -General Sir Thomas Livingstone, commander-in-chief -of the army, saved him the dishonour of dying on -the gibbet. -</p> - -<p> -The door of the Iron Room was opened stealthily, -and the heavy bolts and swinging chains were -again rattling into their places, when Walter -slowly raised his head. His eye had become -haggard, and his face was overspread with a -deathly pallor. The tall spare form of the -Reverend Mr. Ichabod Bummel stood before him, -clad in his ample black coat with its enormous -cuffs and pocket-flaps, his deep waistcoat, and -voluminous grey breeches. He removed his broad -hat, and smoothed down the long lank hair which -was parted in a seam over the top of his cranium, -and fell straight upon each shoulder. He did not -advance, but continued to press his hat upon his -breast with both hands, to turn up his eyes and -groan mournfully. -</p> - -<p> -"Poor youth!" he began, after two or three -hems; "poor youth! now truly thou lookest like -an owl in the desert, yea, verily, even as one -overtaken in the Slough of Despond. Now thou -seest how atrocious is the crime of rebellion, and -how bitter its meed. Now thou seest how wicked -is the attempt to overturn our pure and blessed -Kirk as by law established, and to substitute -anarchy and confusion for peace and brotherly -love, and to involve the innocent with the guilty -in one common destruction. Ewhow! O guilty -madness—O miserable infatuation, that for the -phanton of kingly and hereditary right, would -ruthlessly hurl back the land into the dark abyss -of Popery, restore the abomination of the mass, -and substitute the vile and tyrannical James for -that beloved prince of our own persuasion, now -seated on Britain's triple throne, if not by that -imaginary hereditary right, at least by the laws of -the land, and the voice of those that are above -it—yea, mark me, youth, above it—the ministers -of the Gospel. The pious and glorious William -hath been our Saviour from the devilish practices -of Popery, and the machinations of all those -spurious children of Luther and of Calvin, the -Seekers, the Libertines and Independents, Brownists, -Separatists and Familists, Antitrinitarians, -Arians, Socinians, Anti-Scripturists, Anabaptists, -Antinomians, Arminians, and a myriad other -teachers of heresy and preachers of schism—whilk, -my brethren—my brother, I mean—may Beelzebub -confound! Oh, youth, how wicked and ungracious -it is in thee to reject the stately Fig-tree with its -sweetness and good fruit, and raise up the ancient -thorn and prickly bramble to reign over us!" -</p> - -<p> -"My good sir," replied Walter, "it is but a -poor specimen of Presbyterian charity this, to -come hither to a dismal vault, to heap contumely -on the head of the fallen, to humble one who is -already humbled—to bruise the bruised. Good -sir, is it kind or charitable to rail at and exult -over me in this my great distress?" -</p> - -<p> -At this unexpected accusation, tears started into -the eyes of Ichabod Bummel, who was really a -good man at heart, though his virtues were sadly -obscured by the fanaticism of the times. -</p> - -<p> -"Do not misunderstand me, good youth," he -replied hurriedly; "and do me not this great -injustice. I come in the most humble and Christian -spirit, to cheer thy last hour in this gloomy -hypogeum, and for that godly purpose have -brought with me a copy of my <i>Bombshell</i>, a most -sweet and savoury comforter to the afflicted -mind." -</p> - -<p> -He drew that celebrated quarto from his -voluminous pocket, laid it on the table, and opening -it at certain places, turned down the corners of -the leaves. He then produced a thick little -black-letter psalm-book, the board of which bore the -very decided impression of a Bothwell-brig bullet; -he adjusted a great pair of round horn spectacles -on his long-hooked nose, and in a shrill voice -began his favourite chant: -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "I like ane owle in desert am," &c.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -So much did he resemble the feathered type of -wisdom, that Walter could scarcely repress a -smile. -</p> - -<p> -"Young man, wherefore dost thou not join -with me?" asked the divine, raising his black -eyebrows and looking at Walter alternately under, -over, and through his barnacles. -</p> - -<p> -"Reverend sir, I never sung a Psalm in my -life, and really cannot do so now." -</p> - -<p> -"I warrant thou canst sing <i>Claver'se and his -Cavaliers</i>, <i>King James's March</i>, <i>Rub-a-Dub</i>, and -other profane ditties and camp-songs of thy -wicked faction and ungodly profession," said -Ichabod reproachfully. -</p> - -<p> -At that moment the deep-mouthed bell of St. Giles, -which seemed to swing immediately above -their heads, gave one long and sonorous toll. -</p> - -<p> -"It is the first hour of the last morning I shall -ever spend on earth!" exclaimed Walter, starting -up and striking his fetters together in the bitterness -of his soul. "Oh, Lilian, Lilian, how little -could we have foreseen of all this!" -</p> - -<p> -He wept. -</p> - -<p> -"'Tis well—no tears can be more precious than -these," said Mr. Bummel, who thought his -exhortations had begun to prove effectual. "Soon, -good youth, shalt thou reach the end of this vale -of tears! Lo! thy bride already waiteth thee, -and these tears——" -</p> - -<p> -"You deem those of contrition and remorse. -They are <i>not</i>. I have done nothing to repent of, -or for which I ought to feel contrite. I never -wronged man nor woman, though many have -wronged me in more than a lifetime can repay. -These tears spring only from bitterness and -unavailing regret. Have I no hope of pardon? I -care not for life, but my king and the son of my -king require my services, and could my blood -restore them I would die happy. Where is old Sir -Thomas Dalyell?" -</p> - -<p> -"Gone to a warmer climate than Scotland," -said Ichabod spitefully. -</p> - -<p> -"Sir George of Rosehaugh?" -</p> - -<p> -"He is gone where he cannot assist thee." -</p> - -<p> -"Where is old Colin of Balcarris?" -</p> - -<p> -"Fled no one knows whither." -</p> - -<p> -"Where, then, is old Sir Robert of Glenae?" -</p> - -<p> -"Gone to his last account with other persecutors." -</p> - -<p> -"All then are dead or in exile, and none is left -to be a friend to the poor cavalier." -</p> - -<p> -"Save one," said Ichabod, pointing upward. -</p> - -<p> -"True, true," replied Walter, and covering his -face with his hands he stooped over the table and -prayed intently. -</p> - -<p> -Two o'clock struck, three and four followed, but -still he remained, as Ichabod thought, absorbed in -earnest prayer, and kneeling by his side, the worthy -minister joined with true and pious fervour, till -his patience became quite exhausted. He stirred -him, and Walter, who had fallen asleep, started up. -</p> - -<p> -"Is it time?" he asked. -</p> - -<p> -"Thou hast slept well," said the divine, -pettishly; "out of seven hours that were allotted -three have already fled." -</p> - -<p> -"My dear and worthy sir, you see how calm -my conscience is. Perhaps it is hard to die so -young; but for me life has now lost every charm. -Death never has terrors to the brave. He opens -the gates to a fame and a life that are eternal, and -when the coffin lid is closed, sorrow and jealousy, -envy and woe are excluded for ever. <i>In four -hours more mine will have closed over me</i>. ——— -Kingdoms and cities, the trees of the forest, the -lakes, the rocks, and the hills themselves, have all -their allotted periods of existence, and man has -his; for every thing must perish—all must die and -all must pass away. Oh, why then this foolish -and unavailing regret about a few years more or -less? ——— Front to front and foot to foot I -have often met death on the field of battle, and if -without flinching I have faced the volley of a whole -brigade, that hurled a thousand brave spirits into -eternity at once, shall I shrink from the levelled -musquets of twelve base hirelings of the -Stadtholder? ——— Will Lilian ever look on the -grave where this heart moulders that loved her so -long and so well? Oh no, for now she is the wife -of another—oh, my God, another! In all wide -Scotland there is not one to regret me, to shed one -tear for me. I disappear from the earth like a -bubble on a tide of events, leaving not one being behind -me to recal my memory in fondness or regret." -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -* * * * * -</p> - -<p> -The great clock of St. Giles struck the hour of -seven. -</p> - -<p> -Musquets rattled on the pavement of the -echoing street; the door of the Iron Room opened, -and the gudeman of the Tolbooth presented his -stern and sinister visage. -</p> - -<p> -"It is time," he announced briefly. -</p> - -<p> -"I am ready," replied Walter cheerfully, and, -with a soldier on each side of him and followed by -the clergyman, he descended the narrow circular -staircase of the prison, and, issuing from an -arched doorway at the foot, found himself at the -end of the edifice. Here he paused and gazed -calmly around him. -</p> - -<p> -An early hour was chosen for his execution, -that few might witness it, for there existed in -Scotland a strong feeling against William's -policy; the massacre of Glencoe, the successive -defeats and heavy expenses of the Dutch wars -rankled bitterly in the minds of the people. -</p> - -<p> -The lofty streets were silent and shadowy; -scarcely a footfall was heard in them, and the dun -sunlight of the September morning had not -sufficient heat to exhale the haze of the autumnal -night. -</p> - -<p> -A company of Argyle's regiment—the perpetrators -of the Glencoe atrocity—clad in coarse -brick-coloured uniform of the Dutch fashion, -were drawn up in double ranks facing inwards on -each side of the doorway. They stood with their -arms reversed, and each stooped his head on his -hands, which rested on the butt of his musket. -At the head of this lane were four drummers with -their drums muffled and craped, and a plain deal -coffin carried upon the shoulders of four soldiers. -Walter, as he gazed steadily along these hostile -ranks, saw only the sourest fanaticism visible in -every face, and in none more so than that of their -commander, a hard-featured and square-shouldered -personage, with a black corslet under his ample -red coat, and wearing a red feather in his broad -hat. He introduced himself as— -</p> - -<p> -"Major Duncannon, of the godly regiment of -my noble lord Argyle." Walter bowed. -</p> - -<p> -"Duncannon!" he replied; "your name is -familiar to me as being the man who issued the -orders for the massacre of Glencoe." -</p> - -<p> -Duncannon gave Walter a steady frown in -reply to his glance of undisguised hostility and -contempt, and said— -</p> - -<p> -"I obeyed the royal orders of King William III., -to whom I say be long life—and, like thee, may -all his enemies perish from Dan to Beersheba!" -</p> - -<p> -"I do not acknowledge him; he hath never -been crowned among us, nor sworn the oath a -Scottish king should swear. Shame on you, sir, -to rank this false-hearted Dutchman with our brave -King William the Lion. Shame be on you, sir, -and all your faction," cried Walter, holding up his -fettered hands, while his cheek flushed and his -eyes kindled with energy. "Let our people -recollect that the last man whose limbs were crushed -to a jelly by the accursed steel boots and grinding -thumbscrews, was subjected to their agonizing -torture by the "merciful" William of Orange—by -the same wise prince by whose express orders -the bravest of the northern tribes was massacred -in their sleep and in cold blood! Let our brave -soldiers, when the lash that drips with their blood -is flaying them alive, remember that, like scourging -round the fleet and keelhauling the hapless -mariner, it is an introduction of the same pious -and magnanimous monarch who planned, signed, -and countersigned the mandate for the ruthless -atrocity of Glencoe! Oh, Scotland, Scotland! disloyal -and untrue to the line of your ancient kings, -how long will you waste your treasure and pour -forth your gallant sons to the Dutch and German -wars of a brutal tyrant, who at once fears and hates -and dreads, though he dare not despise you! But -the hour is coming," and he shook his clenched -hand and clanked his fetters like a fierce -prophet—"when war, oppression, exaction, and devastation, -will be the meed of the actions of to-day!" -</p> - -<p> -"Silence, traitor!" exclaimed Duncannon, -striking him with the hilt of his sword so severely -that blood flowed from his mouth. -</p> - -<p> -"Major Duncannon, thou art a coward!" said -Walter, turning his eyes of fire upon him. "The -brave are ever compassionate and gentle—but -thou! away, man—for on thy brow is written the -dark curse which the unavenged blood of Glencoe -called down from the blessed God!" -</p> - -<p> -Duncannon turned pale. -</p> - -<p> -"Away with him!" he cried. "Drummers, -flam off—musqueteers, march!" and the procession -began. -</p> - -<p> -The dull rolling of the muffled drums, the -regulated tap of the burial march, and the wailing of -the fifes, now shrill and high, and anon sweet and -low, found a deep echo in Walter's melancholy -breast. Sorrowful and solemn was the measure -of the Psalm, and he felt his beating heart -soothed and saddened; but he could only -mentally accompany the clergyman who walked -bare-headed by his side, and chaunted aloud while the -soldiers marched. -</p> - -<p> -Walter's cheek reddened, for his fearless heart -beat high, and he stepped firmly behind his -coffin, the most stately in all that sad procession, -though marching to that dread strain which a -soldier seldom hears, <i>his</i> own death-march. The -vast recesses of the great cathedral and the distant -echoes of the central street of the city with all its -diverging wynds, replied mournfully to the roll of -the funeral drums. -</p> - -<p> -He whose knell they rung seemed the proudest -there among two hundred soldiers. Life now had -nearly lost every charm, while religion, courage, -and resignation had fully robbed death of all its -terrors. Roused by the unusual sound, many a -nightcapped citizen peered fearfully forth from his -lofty dwelling; but their looks of wonder or of -pity were unheeded or unseen by Walter Fenton. -He saw only his own coffin borne before him and -the weapons and the hands by which he was to -die; but his bold spirit never quailed, and he -resolved, with true Jacobite enthusiasm, to fall -with honour to the cause for which he suffered. -</p> - -<p> -"Halt!" cried Duncannon, and the coffin rang -hollowly as it was placed beside the square stone -pedestal of King Charles's statue, and Walter -immediately kneeled down within it, confronting -the stern Presbyterians of Argyle's regiment with -an aspect of coolness and bravery that did not fail -to excite their admiration and pity. -</p> - -<p> -A sergeant approached to bind up his eyes. -</p> - -<p> -"Nay, nay, my good fellow," said Walter, -waving him away; "I have faced death too often -to flinch now. Major Duncannon, draw up your -musqueteers, and I will show you how fearlessly -a cavalier of honour can die." -</p> - -<p> -While twelve soldiers were drawn up before -him and loaded their muskets, Walter turned his -eyes for the last time to the glorious autumnal -sun, whose red morning rays were shot aslant -between two lofty piles of building into the -shadowy and gloomy quadrangle formed by the -ancient Parliament House, the Goldsmiths' Hall, -the grotesque piazzas, and the grand cathedral. He -gave one rapid glance of adieu around him, and -then turned towards his destroyers. -</p> - -<p> -"Farewell, good youth," said Mr. Bummel, as -the tears of true and heartfelt sorrow trickled -over his long hooked nose. "Farewell. When -He from whose hand light went forth over the -land, even as the rays of yonder sun—when He, I -say, returns in His glory we will meet again. Till -<i>then</i>, farewell." Covering his face with his -handkerchief, he withdrew a few paces and prayed with -kind and sincere devotion. -</p> - -<p> -At that moment the hoofs of a galloping horse -spurred madly down the adjacent street rang -through the vaults and aisles of the great church. -Walter's colour changed. -</p> - -<p> -A reprieve! -</p> - -<p> -Alas! it was only Lord Clermistonlee who, -pale, panting, and breathless, dashed into the -square to stay the execution; but the cry he -would have uttered died away on his parched -lips. -</p> - -<p> -"He comes to exult over me," said Walter -bitterly. "Behold, ignoble Lord," he exclaimed, -"how a true cavalier can die! Musqueteers," he -added, in his old voice of authority, "ready, blow -your matches, present, God save King James the -Seventh! give fire!" -</p> - -<p> -The death volley rang like thunder in the still -quadrangle. Four bullets flattened against the -statue, eight were mortal, and with the last -convulsive energy of death Walter Fenton threw his -hat into the air and fell forward prostrate into his -coffin a bleeding corpse. -</p> - -<p class="t3"> -—————— -</p> - -<p> -Here ends our tale. -</p> - -<p> -From that hour Clermistonlee was a changed -man. Though given up to dark, corroding care -and moody thoughts, he lived to a great old age, -and was one of those who sold his country at the -union. Soon after that event he died, unregretted -and unrespected, and a defaced monument in the -east wall of the Greyfriars Churchyard still marks -the place where he lies. -</p> - -<p> -His gossip, Mersington, would no doubt have -obtained a comfortable share of "the compensations" -in 1707 had he not (as appears from a -passage in Carstairs' State Papers) unluckily been -found dead one night in the severe winter of 1700, -with a half-drained mug of burnt sack clutched in -his tenacious grasp. -</p> - -<p> -A few words more of Lilian, and then we part. -</p> - -<p> -From the moment in which, with her child in -her arms, she ascended the great staircase of -Bruntisfield, she was never again seen. -</p> - -<p> -Every place within the mansion and without, -the woods, the lake, the fields, the muir were -searched, but the lady and her child were seen no -more. -</p> - -<p> -An impenetrable mystery cast a veil of horror -over their fate; but Mr. Ichabod Bummel, and the -most learned divines of a kirk that was then in -the zenith of its wisdom and power, gave it as -their decided opinion that they had been spirited -away by the fairies; an idea that was unanimously -adopted by the people; nevertheless, a pale spectre, -wailing and pressing a ghastly babe to its attenuated -breast, was often visible on moonlight nights, -among the old oak trees, the rocky heron shaws of -the Burghmuir, or the reedy rhinns of its beautiful -loch, and this terrible fact was solemnly averred -and duly sworn to by various decent and sponsible -men, such as elders and deacons of the kirk, who -chanced to journey that way after nightfall. -</p> - -<p> -In latter years it was to the long gloomy avenue -or immediate precincts of the ancient house, that -this terrible tenant confined her midnight promenades. -</p> - -<p> -Many sceptical persons, notwithstanding the -assertions of the aforesaid elders and deacons, -declared the story of the apparition to be -downright nonsense. Many more may be disposed to -do so at the present day; but we would beg them -to withold their decision until they have consulted -as carefully as we have done, the MSS. Session -Records of Mr. Bummel's kirk, entered in his own -hand, and attested by the said elders and deacons -at full length. -</p> - -<p> -In the year 1800, when the stately and venerable -mansion of Bruntisfield was demolished, to make -way for the Hospital of Gillespie, within a deep -alcove, or labyrinth of stone, in the heart of its -massive walls, the skeletons of a female and child -were discovered; some fragments of velvet, -brocade, and a gold ring were found with them. -</p> - -<p> -On touching them, they crumbled into -undistinguishable dust. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -THE END. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> - LONDON:<br /> - PRINTED BY HARRISON AND SON,<br /> - ST. MARTIN'S LANE.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER, VOLUME 3 (OF 3) ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. 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