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 1/
 
 DONALD EOSS OF HEIIRA 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM BLACK 
 
 IN THREE VOLUMES. 
 VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON: 
 SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON & COMPANY 
 
 LIMIIED. 
 
 Fetter Lane, Fleet Steeet, E.G. 
 
 1891. 
 
 [All rights reserved.]
 
 LONDON : 
 
 FKISTFD BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, 
 STAMFOKD STUEET AND CHARING CROSS.
 
 V. I 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. I. 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. GODIVA ... ... ... ... 1 
 
 II. Young Donald ... ... ... 28 
 
 III. The Cave of the Crowing Cock ... 57 
 
 IV. The Baintighearna ... ... 89 
 
 Y. The Meall-na-Fearn Bog ... ... 120 
 
 VI. Gilleasbuig M6r ... ... ... 1.55 
 
 i" YII. The Pirate's Lair .. ... ... 186 
 
 ' VIII. Face to Face ... ... ... 217 
 
 '^ IX. The Battle of Ru-Minard ... ... 245 
 
 i 

 
 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 -•o»- 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 GODIVA. 
 
 " Well, Mary, it is a pretty plaything to have 
 given you — a Highland estate ! — and no doubt 
 all your fine schemes will come right. But you 
 will have to change three things first." 
 
 "Yes?" 
 
 *' And these are human nature and the soil 
 and climate of Scotland." 
 
 " Avaunt, Mephistopheles ! — and go and give 
 that porter a shilling." 
 
 The two speakers were on the platform of 
 Invershin station, on the Highland line of 
 railway. One of them was a tall young woman 
 of distinguished presence and somewhat im- 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 2 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 perious carriage, as you could gather at a 
 first glance ; but the next second, if she hap- 
 pened to turn her face towards you, you would 
 have perceived that her expression meant 
 nothing but a bland gentleness and a pre- 
 vailing and excellent good-humour. Perhaps 
 it was the dimple in her cheek that did it — 
 a dimple that came there readily whenever she 
 regarded any one, and that seemed to say she 
 was very willing to be pleased and to please : 
 at all events, she found it easy, or had hitherto 
 found it easy, to make friends. For the rest, 
 she was of an erect and elegant figure ; her 
 complexion fair ; her eyes grey-green, and full 
 of light ; her abundant hair of a sunny brown ; 
 her features regular enough and fine enough 
 for all practical purposes. It was of this young 
 woman that her friend and now her travelling 
 companion, Kate Grlendinning, was in the habit 
 of saying — 
 
 " There's one thing I will confess about Mary 
 Stanley : she's not quite honest. She is too 
 happy. She is so happy in herself that she 
 wants every one she meets to share in her con- 
 tent ; and she is apt to say clever and flattering
 
 GODIVA. 3 
 
 little things tliat are not quite true. It is for 
 no selfish purpose ; quite the reverse : still — 
 you mustn't believe all that Mary says to 
 you." 
 
 Thus Kate Griendinning of her dearest friend ; 
 but if any one else had ventured to say similar 
 things in her presence — then, and right swiftly, 
 there would have been pretty tempests and 
 flashes of eye-lightning. 
 
 And now there came up to Miss Stanley a 
 short, stumpy, red-haired and red-bearded man 
 of extraordinary breadth of shoulder and bulk 
 of frame. He had a massive head despite his 
 diminutive height ; his mouth, drawn heavily 
 down at each end, betokened a determined 
 will, not to say a dogged obstinacy ; and his 
 small, clear, blue eyes, besides being sharp and 
 intelligent, had a curious kind of cold aggres- 
 siveness in them — that is to say, when he was 
 not talking to one whom it was his interest 
 to propitiate, for then he could assume a sort 
 of clumsy humility, both in manner and speech. 
 This was Mr. David Purdie, solicitor, of In- 
 verness. An Troich Bheag Dhearg — that is to 
 say, the Little Red Dwarf — the people out at
 
 4 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Lochgarra called him ; but Mr. Purdie did not 
 know that. 
 
 " The carriage is quite ready, Miss Stanley," 
 said he, in his slow, deliberate, south-country 
 accent ; and therewithal the three of them 
 passed round to the back of the station and 
 entered the waggonette, Mr. Purdie modestly 
 taking a seat by the driver. The two young 
 ladies were well wrapped up, for it was in the 
 beginning of April, and they had fifty miles 
 before them, out to the Atlantic coast. Kate 
 Glendinning, in looking after her companion's 
 abundant furs and rugs, rather affected to play 
 the part of maid ; for this shrewd and sensible 
 lass, who was in rather poor circumstances, had 
 consented to accept a salary from her friend 
 who was so much better off; and she performed 
 her various self-imposed duties with a tact and 
 discretion beyond all praise. 
 
 And as they drove away on this clear-shining 
 afternoon, Mary Stanley's face was something 
 to study. She was all eagerness and impa- 
 tience ; the colour mantled in her cheeks ; her 
 brain was so busy that she had scarcely a word 
 for her neighbour. For she had heard a good
 
 GODIYA. 5 
 
 deal and read much more, in Parliamentary 
 debates and elsewhere, of the sufferings of the 
 crofters, of the iniquities that had been practised 
 on them by tyrannical landlords and factors, of 
 the lamentations of the poor homeless ones 
 thrust forth from their native shores ; and now, 
 in this little bit of the world that had so un- 
 expectedly become hers, and in as far as she 
 was able, wrong was to be put right, amends 
 were to be made, and peace and amity, and 
 comfort and prosperity w^ere to be established 
 for ever and ever. Perhaps the transcendental 
 vision of the prophet Isaiah was hunting her : 
 " The wilderness and the solitary place shall be 
 glad . . . and the desert shall rejoice, and 
 blossom as the rose." And if she were to 
 summon back the poor exiles who had been 
 banished — banished to the slums of Glasgow, 
 perchance, or to the far plains of Manitoba ? 
 ..." And the ransomed of the Lord shall 
 return, and come to Zion with songs and ever- 
 lasting joy upon their heads : they shall obtain 
 joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall 
 flee away." To be sure, as they now drove 
 along the wide and fertile valley that is pene-
 
 6 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 trated by the Kyle of Sutherland, she did not 
 meet with much evidence of the destitution she 
 had been led to expect. She had heard of 
 bleak wastes and sterile altitudes, of ruined huts 
 and dismantled steadings ; but here, under the 
 softly-wooded hills, were long and level stretches 
 of arable land, the ploughmen busy at their 
 work ; the occasional crofts were very far in- 
 deed from being hovels ; and the people whom 
 they saw, in the bits of gardens, or tending the 
 cattle, looked well-clothed and well-fed. She 
 ventured to hint something of this to her com- 
 panion ; and Kate, glancing at her, began to 
 giggle. 
 
 " I really believe you are disappointed, Mary! 
 Is there not enough misery for you ? But 
 never fear. If it's misery you're in search of, 
 you have seldom far to go for it, in this world. 
 Only I must tell you this — if you're so eager to 
 relieve distress — that there is more of wretched- 
 ness, and crime, and squalor, and piteous human 
 suffering in a single square mile of the slums 
 of London or New York than you'll find in the 
 whole of the Highlands of Scotland." 
 
 " That may be," said Miss Stanley, in her
 
 GODIVA. 7 
 
 calm and equable fashion. " But you see, Kath- 
 chen, I have no call that way. I do not feel a 
 direct responsibility, as I do in this case — " 
 
 " It is a responsibility you are making for 
 yourself," her friend said. " You know very 
 well it was not for that your uncle left you the 
 property. It was merely to spite your father 
 and your brothers." 
 
 " There was a little more," was the good- 
 natured reply (for she did not seem to resent 
 this reference to her amiable relative). '^ I 
 think it was to spite the people out there as 
 well. My uncle and they never could get on ; 
 and he was not a man who liked to be thwarted. 
 And of course he imagined that I, being a 
 woman, would not interfere ; that I would 
 leave the estate to be managed by Mr. Purdie, 
 and simply receive the rents. Well," she 
 continued, and here she lowered her voice 
 somewhat, and there was a touch of colour in 
 her face that was perhaps the expression of 
 some definite resolve, '' I may allow Mr. Purdie 
 to manage the estate, or I may not. But if 
 he does continues to manage the estate, it will 
 be under my direction."
 
 8 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Kiithclieii looked at her, and laughed a little. 
 
 " I don't think Mr. Purdie knows whom he 
 has got to deal with," said she, under her 
 breath. 
 
 They stopped that night at Oykel Bridge. 
 Miss Stanley invited Mr. Purdie to dine with 
 them ; but he declined on the ground that he 
 had business in the neighbourhood — an odd 
 excuse, for the inn and its dependencies consti- 
 tute the remote little hamlet. The two young- 
 women passed the evening by themselves, and 
 talked : the one with generous ardour entering 
 into all her wonderful schemes, the other (who 
 knew the country, and the people) interposing 
 now and again with a little modifying informa- 
 tion. But really Kathchen was not unsym- 
 pathetic. Her eyes, which were the attractive 
 feature of her face, sometimes expressed a trifle 
 of demure amusement ; but she was not a 
 quarrelsome or argumentative creature ; and 
 besides there is something about all fine humani- 
 tarian projects that one would rather believe 
 in and welcome. 
 
 Next morning they resumed their drive, 
 and very soon entered a much wilder country
 
 GODIVA. 9 
 
 than that of the preceding day. Wilder but 
 nevertheless beautiful — with its range upon 
 range of russet hills, wine-stained here and 
 there with shadow ; its woods of leafless birch 
 of a soft dark rose-lilac ; its long undulations 
 of waste moorland, yellow and brown ; with 
 now and again the sudden blue scythe-sweep 
 of the river. For now they were traversing 
 the lonely district of upper Strath-Oykel. Far 
 ahead of them rose the giant bulk of Ben More, 
 Assynt, its higher shoulders a solid mass of 
 white. The sunlight around them was cheer- 
 ful, no doubt ; and yet there was a strange 
 sense of solitariness, of voicelessness ; and 
 Mary, who was less concerned about the beauty 
 of the landscape than about certain problems 
 haunting her mind, called out to Mr. Purdie, 
 who was again up beside the driver — 
 
 " Mr. Purdie, why are there no people living 
 in this country ? " 
 
 " Because there's nothing for them to live 
 on," was the laconic answer. " It's fit for 
 nothing but grazing sheep — and for grouse." 
 
 " Yes — the hills, perhaps," said she. " But 
 look along the valley — by the side of the river."
 
 10 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " Ay, it's fine land, that," said he, grimly, — 
 "for a wheen pesewepes ! " And indeed the 
 plovers were the only visible living things, 
 jerking about in the air, dipping suddenly to 
 the ground and swiftly rising again, with their 
 curious squeaking call, and the soft velvet 
 fluffing of their wings. 
 
 However, all that was nothing. By and by 
 they had left the Oykel strath, and had entered 
 upon a far higher and bleaker region, the 
 desolation of which appalled her. There was 
 not even the solitary shepherd's cottage they 
 had seen down in the other valley ; here was 
 nothing but a wilderness of brown and ragged 
 moorland, with deep black clefts of peat, and 
 an occasional small tarn, without a bush along 
 its shores, its waters driven a deep blue by the 
 wind. Away in the west they could make out 
 the spectral shapes of the Assynt mountains 
 — Coul Beg, Coul More, and Suilven — remote 
 and visionary through the imiversal haze of 
 the heather-burning ; but here, all around them, 
 were these endless and featureless and melan- 
 choly undulations ; and the silence was now 
 unbroken even by the curious bleating of the
 
 GODIYA. 11 
 
 plovers : once, and once only, they heard the 
 hoarse and distant croak of a raven. 
 
 " Kathchen," said Mary, in a sort of piteous 
 dismay, as she looked abroad over those sombre 
 solitudes, " you have been all along the Ross 
 and Cromarty coast ; is it like that ? " 
 
 " Plenty of it is worse," was the reply. 
 
 *' And — and — my place : is it like that ? " 
 
 " I have never been in to Lochgarra." 
 
 **But — but if it is like that — what am I to 
 do for my people ? " 
 
 " The best you can," said Kathchen, cheer- 
 fully. 
 
 It seemed an interminable drive. And then, 
 in the afternoon, a premature darkness came 
 slowly over ; the mountains in the north gradu- 
 ally receded out of sight ; and heavy, steady 
 rain began to fall. The two girls sat huddled 
 underneath one umbrella, listening to the pat- 
 tering footfalls of the horses and the grinding 
 of the wheels on the road ; and when they 
 ventured to peep forth from their shelter they 
 beheld but the same monotonous features in the 
 landscape : masses of wet rock and dark russet 
 heather, black swamps, low and bare hills, and
 
 12 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 now and again the grey glimmer of a stream or 
 tarn. It was a cheerless outlook ; continually 
 changing, and yet ever the same; and hour 
 after hour the rain came down wearily. There 
 was hardly a word said between those two : 
 whither had fled Mary Stanley's dreams of a 
 shining blue sea, a sunny coastline, and a happy 
 peasantry busy in their fields and gardens, their 
 white cottages radiant in the morning 1 ight ? 
 Kathchen, on the other hand, was inclined to 
 laugh ruefully. 
 
 "Isn't it a good thing, Mary, that duty 
 brought us here ? If it had been pleasure, we 
 should be calling ourselves awful fools." 
 
 But quite of a sudden this hopeless resig- 
 nation vanished, and a wild excitement took 
 its place. 
 
 " Miss Stanley," Mr. Purdie called to her, 
 " we've come to the march." 
 
 "The what?" 
 
 " The march — the boundary of your estate." 
 
 Instantly she had the carriage stopped, and 
 nothing would do but that she must get out and 
 set foot on her own land : moreover, when 
 Kathchen took down the umbrella, they found
 
 GODIYA. 13 
 
 that the rain had ceased, and that the western 
 skies were lightening somewhat. 
 
 *' That is the march," said Mr. Purdie, 
 pointing to a low, irregular, moss-grown wall 
 — obviously a very ancient landmark ; " and it 
 goes right over the hill and down again to the 
 Garra." 
 
 Leaving the highway, she stepped across the 
 ditch, and stood on the moist, soft peat land. 
 
 "And this is mine! " she said to Kathchen, 
 with an odd expression of face. *' This is ab- 
 solutely mine. Nobody can dispute my posses- 
 sion of it. This piece of the solid world actually 
 belongs to me." 
 
 "And I suppose your rights extend as deep 
 as ever you like," said Kathchen. " You 
 might go all the way through, and have a walk 
 in the streets of Melbourne, and get dry, and 
 come back." 
 
 But Mary's quick eye had caught sight of 
 what was to her the most important feature 
 of the surrounding landscape. It was a cottage 
 perched on a knoll above a burn — or, rather, 
 it was the ruins of a cottage, the gables 
 standing roofless, the thatch long ago blown
 
 14 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 away by the winds, the beams and fallen stones 
 lying among the withered nettles, altogether 
 a melancholy sight. 
 
 " Now, isn't it shameful ! " she exclaimed, in 
 hot indignation. " Look at that ! The very 
 first thing I meet with ! Do you wonder that 
 people should talk about the Highland land- 
 lords ? Some poor wretch has been driven 
 away — perhaps at this very moment, in Canada 
 or in Australia, he is thinking of the old home, 
 and forgetting all the rain and discomfort there 
 used to be, Mr. Purdie ! " 
 
 " Yes, ma'am ? " said he, coming a bit 
 nearer ; and Kathchen looked on, wondering 
 if his doom was about to be pronounced. 
 
 " Who lived in that house ? " Miss Stanley 
 demanded. 
 
 " The schoolmaster," was the reply. 
 
 " The schoolmaster ? And where is he now?" 
 
 " He's in his own house," the factor said. 
 " We built him a new one and a better one, to 
 be nearer the school and the village ; and when 
 he moved it was hardly worth while keeping 
 the old one in repair." 
 
 " Oh," said she, a little disconcerted. " Oh,
 
 GODIYA. 15 
 
 really. Then no one was sent away — from 
 that cottage ? " 
 
 " No, no — not at all — not at all," said he ; 
 and he followed her to the waggonette and 
 politely shut the door after her — while Kath- 
 chen's face maintained an admirable gravity. 
 
 As the drove on again, the afternoon seemed 
 inclined to clear ; the skies were banking up ; 
 and there were faint streaks of lemon-yellow 
 among the heavy purple clouds in the west. 
 And very soon the road made a sweep to the 
 left, bringing them in sight of the Connan, a 
 small but turbulent tributary of the Garra. 
 Here, also, they encountered the first signs 
 of the habitations of men — little clumps of 
 buildings clustered together just over a stretch 
 of flat land that had clearly been recovered 
 from the river-bed. Crofts, no doubt : each 
 slated cottage surrounded by its huddled de- 
 pendency of thatched barns and byres. 
 
 As the waggonette drew near to the first of 
 these rude little settlements, the women dis- 
 appeared into the outhouses, and the children 
 hid behind the peat-stack ; but there remained 
 standing at the door of the cottage an elderly
 
 16 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 man, who regarded the strangers with a grave 
 and perhaps rather sullen curiosity. 
 
 "Mr. Purdie," said Mary, in an undertone, 
 " is that one of my tenants ? " 
 
 " Yes, certainly — that is James Macdonald." 
 
 " I wish to make his acquaintance," said she ; 
 and she stopped the carriage, and got out. 
 
 There was no sort of fear, or unnecessary 
 bashfulness, about this young woman. She 
 walked right up the bank to the door of the 
 cottage. The short thick-set man standing 
 there had something of a Russian cast of 
 countenance, with a heavy grey beard, shaggy 
 eyebrows, and small, suspicious eyes. His 
 clothes were weather-worn as to colour and 
 much mended ; but they were not in the least 
 squalid ; and he had a red woollen comforter 
 round his neck. 
 
 '' Good evening ! " said she, with a most 
 winning smile. 
 
 But the propitiating dimple, that had hither- 
 to been all-conquering, was of no avail here. 
 He looked at her. He did not raise his cap. 
 
 " Cha 'n 'eil heurla agam^ said he, with a 
 sort of affected indifference.
 
 GODIVA. 17 
 
 She was taken aback only for a moment. 
 
 '' What does he say ? " she asked of ^Ir, 
 Pnrdie, who had followed her. 
 
 "He says he has no English," the factor 
 answered ; and then he added, vindictively : 
 " But he would have plenty of English if he 
 wanted to tell you of his grievances — oh, ay, 
 plenty ! Start him on that, and he'll find plenty 
 of English ! He's one of the most ill-condee- 
 tioned men in the whole place — and I suppose 
 he has enough English to understand that ! " 
 
 "Tell him who I am," said she, rather dis- 
 appointedly ; for she had set out with the 
 determination to get to know all the circum- 
 stances and wants and wishes of her tenants, 
 especially of the poorer ones, without the 
 intervention of any factor. 
 
 Hereupon Mr. Purdie, in unnecessarily severe 
 tones, as it seemed to her, addressed a few 
 sentences in Gaelic to the stubborn-looking old 
 man, who, in turn — and with no abatement 
 of liis hostile attitude — replied in the same 
 tongue. But to Mary's surprise, he suddenly 
 added — fixing morose eyes upon her — 
 
 '^ She — no my laird ! Ross of Heimra — my 
 
 VOL. r. c
 
 J8 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 laird. Young Donald — he my laird. She no 
 my laird at ahl ! " 
 
 " Oh, but that is absurd, you know," Mary 
 said, eagerly, and with a quick delight that she 
 could enter into direct communication with 
 him. " You forget — you are mistaken — my 
 uncle bought the estate from the late Mr. Boss 
 of Heimra. Surely you understand that? 
 Surely you know that ? The whole place was 
 bought in open market. Mr. Ross sold the 
 land, and all the rights belonging to it — yes, 
 and the obligations, too ; and my uncle bought 
 it. Don't you understand ? " 
 
 The man turned away his eyes, and sulkily 
 muttered something in Gaelic. 
 
 ''What is it?" asked Mary, compelled to 
 appeal once more to the factor. 
 
 " Like the scoundrel's impertinence ! " said 
 the Little Red Dwarf, darting an angry look at 
 the crofter. " He says the Englishman — that 
 is your uncle. Miss Stanley — the Englishman 
 bought the land but not the hearts of the 
 people." 
 
 " And that is quite right ! " Mary exclaimed. 
 " That is quite right and true. Tell him I
 
 GODIYA. 19 
 
 quite agree with him. But tell him this — tell 
 him that if my uncle did not buy the hearts of 
 the people, I mean to win them " 
 
 " Oh, Mary," Kathchen struck in, rather 
 shamefacedly, " don't talk like that ! They 
 won't understand you. Be practical. Ask him 
 what complaint he has to make about his farm 
 — ask him what he wants " 
 
 " I can tell ye that beforehand ! " said Mr. 
 Purdie, in his irascible scorn. '' He wants more 
 arable land, and he wants more pasture ; and 
 both for nothing. And no doubt he would like 
 a steam plough thrown in, and maybe a score 
 or two o' black-faced wethers " 
 
 But Mary interrupted. She had formed for 
 herself some idea, before she came to this 
 country, as to how she meant to proceed. 
 
 " Mr. Purdie," said she, in her clear, firm 
 way, " I wish you to ask this man if he has 
 anything to complain of; and I wish you to 
 tell me precisely what he says." 
 
 The Troich Bheag Dhearg, being thus 
 ordered, obeyed; but he scowled upon the 
 stubborn crofter — and it was apparent there was 
 jao love lost on the other side either. At the
 
 20 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 end of their brief, and unwilling, conversation ^ 
 the factor made his report. 
 
 " Well, there are many things he would like 
 — who could doubt that ? — but in especial he 
 wants the pasture of Meall-na-Cruagan divided 
 amongst the crofters of this district, and the tax 
 for the dyke taken off the rent. But Meall-na- 
 Cruagan never did belong to the crofters at any 
 time ; and it is part of Mr. Watson's sheep-farm 
 — he has it under lease." 
 
 " I will look into that afterwards," said she. 
 " What is the tax you mentioned ? " 
 
 " Well, when the dyke along there — the- 
 embankment," said the factor, " was built ta 
 keep the river from flooding the land, the 
 interest of the money expended was added on 
 to the rents of the crofts, as was natural — and 
 that's what they call a tax ! " 
 
 "How long have they been paying that 
 tax ? " she asked. 
 
 " It is about thirty years since the dyke was 
 built." 
 
 " Thirty years ! " she said. " Thirty 3^ears I 
 These poor people have been paying a tax all 
 this time for an embankment built to improve 
 the property ? Eeally, Mr. Purdie ! "
 
 GODIVA. 21 
 
 "They get the value of it !" he said, as testily 
 as he dared. " The land is no longer flooded " 
 
 " Tell this man," said she, with some colour 
 mounting to her face, "that the tax for the 
 dyke is abolished — here and now ! " 
 
 " Grodiva ! " said Kathchen, in an undertone, 
 with a bit of a titter. 
 
 And the factor would have protested from his 
 own point of view. But this young woman's 
 heart was all aflame. She cared nothing for 
 ridicule, nor for any sort of more practical 
 opposition. Here was some definite wrong that 
 she could put right. She did not want to hear 
 from Mr. Purdie, or from anybody else, what 
 neighbouring landlords might think, or what 
 -encouragement it might give the crofters to 
 make other and more impossible demands. 
 
 " I don't care what other landlords may say!" 
 said she with firm lips : " You tell me that 
 I improve ray property — and then charge these 
 poor people with the cost ! And for thirty 
 years they have been paying ? Well, I wish 
 you to say to this man that the tax no longer 
 exists — from this moment it no longer exists — 
 it is not to be heard of again ! "
 
 22 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 The factor made a brief communication : the 
 taciturn crofter answered not a word — not a 
 word of recognition, much less of thanks. But 
 Mary Stanley was not to be daunted by this 
 incivility : as she descended to the waggonette, 
 her face wore a proud look — right and justice 
 should be done, as far as she was able, in this 
 her small sphere : the rest was with the 
 gods. 
 
 And again they drove on ; but now was 
 there not some subtle softening of the air, some 
 moist odour as of the sea, some indication of the 
 neighbourhood of the Atlantic shores ? Clearly 
 they were getting down to the coast. And un- 
 happily, as they went on, the land around them 
 seemed to be getting worse and worse — if there 
 could be a worse. A wilderness of crags and 
 knolls — of Hebridean gneiss mostly ; patches of 
 swamp, with black gullies of peat ; sterile hills 
 that would have threatened a hoodie crow with 
 starvation : such appeared to be Miss Stanley's 
 newly found property. But a very curious 
 incident now occurred to withdraw her attention 
 from these immediate surroundings — an incident 
 the meaning of which she was to learn sub-
 
 GODIVA. 23 
 
 sequently. They had come in sight of a level 
 space that had evidently at one time been a lake, 
 but was now a waste of stones, with a touch of 
 green slime and a few withered rushes here 
 and there ; and in the middle of this space, on 
 a mound that had apparently been connected 
 with the mainland, was a heap of scattered 
 blocks that looked like the tumbled-down ruins 
 of some ancient fort. 
 
 ''What is that, Mr. Purdie?" she called 
 out, still anxious for all possible informa- 
 tion. 
 
 A malignant grim came over the face of the 
 Little Red Dwarf. 
 
 " That," said he, " was once Castle Heimra ^ 
 and then it was Castle Stanley ; and now it is 
 nothing ! " 
 
 He had scarcely uttered the words when the 
 driver slashed at the neck of one of the horses ; 
 and both animals sprung forward with a jerk— 
 a jerk so sudden and violent that Mr. Purdie 
 was nearly pitched headlong from his seat. He 
 threw a savage glance at the driver ; but he 
 dared not say anything — the two ladies were 
 within hearing. Later on that evening Mary
 
 24 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 recalled this little incident — and seemed to 
 understand. 
 
 Behold, at last, the sea ! — a semi-circular bay 
 sheltered by long black headlands ; beyond that 
 the wide grey plain, white-tipped with flashing 
 and hurrying waves ; and out towards the 
 horizon a small but precipitous island, a heavy 
 surge springing high along its southern crags. 
 But she had time only for the briefest glance, 
 for here was the village — her own village ! — 
 with its smithy, its schoolroom, its inn, its 
 grocery store that was also a post-office, and 
 thereafter a number of not very picturesque 
 cottages scattered about amid bits of poor 
 garden, just above the shore. Nay, at the 
 same moment she caught sight of Lochgarra 
 House — her home that was to be : an odd- 
 looking building that seemed half a jail and 
 half a baronial castle, but was prettily situated 
 among some larch-woods on a promontory on 
 the other side of the bay. Of course they had 
 driven through the little township almost 
 directly ; and now she could turn to the sea 
 again — that looked strangely mournful and 
 distant in the wan twilight.
 
 GODIYA. 25 
 
 "But where's the yacht ? " she exclaimed. 
 
 " What yacht ? " her companion asked, with 
 some surprise. 
 
 " Why, the yacht I saw a minute ago — just 
 before we came to the village : it was out 
 yonder — close to the island " 
 
 " Oh, nonsense, Mary ! " said Kate Glen- 
 dinning. '* You may have seen a fishing- 
 smack, or a lobster-boat — but a yacht at this 
 time of the year ! " 
 
 " I declare to you I saw a yacht — for I 
 noticed how white the sails were, even in the 
 twilight," Mary insisted ; and then she appealed 
 to the factor : " Mr. Purdie, didn't you see a 
 yacht out there a minute or two ago ? " 
 
 " No, I did not," he made answer ; and then 
 he in his turn addressed the driver : *^ Did 
 you, John ? " 
 
 " No," said the driver, looking straight ahead 
 of him, and with a curiously impassive expres- 
 sion of face — an expression of face that con- 
 vinced Mr. Purdie, who was prone to suspicion, 
 that the man had lied. 
 
 It was a kind of bew^ilderment to her, this 
 taking possession : the going up the wide stone
 
 26 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 steps, the gazing round the lofty oak hall, the 
 finding herself waited upon by those shy-eyed 
 soft-spoken Highland maids. But when sh& 
 was in the retirement of her own room, whither 
 she had been accompanied by the faithful 
 Kate, one thing stood out clear to her mind 
 from amid all the long day's doings. 
 
 " Kathchen," said she — and she was pacing 
 up and down the room — or going from window 
 to window without looking out — as was some- 
 times her habit when she was excited — " I 
 mean to have my own way in this. It is not 
 enough that the tax should be abolished — it is 
 not enough. No doubt those poor people were 
 saved from the risk of floods ; but on the other 
 hand the property was permanently improved ; 
 and it is monstrous that they should be expected 
 to go on paying for ever. I tell you they have 
 paid too much already ; and I mean to see 
 things made right. What do I care for Mr. 
 Purdie, or the neighbouring landlords ? If Mr. 
 Purdie has any business to talk of when he 
 comes along this evening — well, my little piece 
 of business must take precedence. I am going 
 to give Mr. Purdie the first of his instructions/'
 
 GODIVA. 27 
 
 She paused for a second — and then she spoke 
 with rather a proud and determined air : 
 " Fifteen years of that tax to be remitted and 
 returned ! " 
 
 " Grodiva ! " said Kathchen, again ; but there 
 was not much sarcasm in her smiling eyes.
 
 28 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 
 
 ^' And if I am not the laird," said Miss Stanley, 
 as the three of them took their places at table 
 — for Mr. Purdie had accepted an invitation, 
 and had come along from the inn to dine with 
 the two young ladies — " if I am not the laird, I 
 want to know who is the laird : I mean, I want 
 to know all about my rival. What was it 
 the stubborn old crofter called him? Young 
 Donald — Young Ross of Heimra — well, tell 
 me all about him, Mr. Purdie ! " 
 
 But to Mary's surprise, the Little Red Dwarf 
 remained sternly mute. Yet there was no one 
 in the room besides themselves except the maid 
 who was waiting at table — a tall and good- 
 looking Highland lass, whose pretty way of 
 speech, and gentle manner, and shy eyes had 
 already made a pleasant impression on her
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 2f) 
 
 young mistress. All the same, the factor re- 
 mained silent until the girl had gone. 
 
 " I would just advise ye, Miss Stanley," said 
 he, rather moderating his voice, which ordi- 
 narily was inclined to be aggressive and 
 raucous, " I would just advise ye to have a 
 care what ye say before these people. They're 
 all in a pact; and they're sly and cunning" 
 just beyond belief ; ay, and ready to do ye a 
 mischief, the thrawn ill- willed creatures ! " 
 
 ^' Oh, Mr. Purdie ! " Mary protested, in her 
 good-humoured way, "you mustn't try to 
 prejudice me like that ! I have already had a 
 little talk with Barbara ; and I could not but 
 think of what Dr. Johnson said — that every 
 Highland girl is a gentlewoman." 
 
 " And not a word they utter is to be believed 
 — no, not with a Bible in their hands," the 
 factor went on, in spite of her remonstrance. 
 " Miss Stanley, did ye hear me ask the driver 
 as we came through the village if he had seen 
 the yacht out by Heimra island — the yacht 
 that ye saw with your own eyes ? He said no 
 ' — he had not seen it — and I knew by his face 
 he was lying to me."
 
 30 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " But, Mr. Purdie," said Mary, again, '' you 
 did not see the yacht either. And I may have 
 been mistaken." 
 
 " Ye were not mistaken," said the factor, 
 with vicious emphasis. " For well I know 
 what that was. That was nothing else than 
 young Ross coming back from one of his 
 smuggling expedeetions — the thieving, poaching 
 scoundrel ! — and little thinking that I would 
 be coming out to Lochgarra this very afternoon. 
 But I'll be even with my gentleman yet ! — for 
 it's all done to thwart me — it's all done to 
 thwart me " 
 
 The factor's small clear eyes sparkled with 
 malice ; but he had perforce to cease speaking, 
 for at this moment Barbara came into the 
 room. When she had gone again, he re- 
 sumed : 
 
 " I will just tell ye how I came to get on his 
 track," Mr. Purdie said, with something of a 
 triumphant air. " And first of all ye must 
 understand. Miss Stanley, I take some little 
 credit to myself for having routed out the illicit 
 stills in this country-side ; ay, I'm thinking 
 they're pretty well cleared out now ; indeed
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 31 
 
 I'll undertake to say there's not a hidden 
 worm-tub or a mash tun within twenty miles 
 around. There was some trouble ; oh, yes ; for 
 they're cunning creatures ; and they stand by 
 one another in lying and concealment ; but I 
 managed to get some information for the Pre- 
 ventive Staff all the same — from time to time, 
 that was — and then I had a good knowledge 
 o' the place — ye see, Miss Stanley, I was factor 
 at Lochgarra before your uncle gave me back 
 my post again ; and so, with keeping the 
 guagers busy, we got at one after another of 
 the black bothies, as they call them, until I 
 doubt whether there's a hothan duhli between 
 here and Strathcarron. Yes, I may admit I 
 take some credit for that. I've heard folk 
 maintain that speerits are a necessary of life 
 in a bad climate like this ; but what I say is, 
 let people pay their rent before comforting 
 themselves wi' drams. My business is with 
 the rent. I'm not a doctor. Temperance, ay, 
 and even total abstinence, is a fine thing for 
 everybody." 
 
 "Won't you help yourself, Mr. Purdie?" 
 said Kate Glen dinning, with grave eyes, and
 
 32 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 she pushed the sherry decanter towards him. 
 Mr. Purdie filled his glass — for the fifth time— 
 and drained it off. Then he proceeded. 
 
 *' However, this is my story. One day I had 
 finished wi' my business here, and had set out' 
 to ride over to Ledmore, when the toothache 
 came into my head just terrible, and I was like 
 to be driven mad. I was passing Cruagan at 
 the time — where ye spoke to James Macdonald, 
 Miss Stanley — indeed, it was at James's house 
 I stopped, and tied up the beast, and went in 
 to see if I could get a drop of whiskey to put 
 in the side of my cheek, for the pain was just 
 fearful. Well, there was nobody in but James's' 
 old mother — an old, old woman — she could 
 hardly move away from the fire — and says I, 
 ' For God's sake, woman, give me some whiskey 
 to drive away this pain.' Of course she de- 
 clared and better declared there was none in 
 the house ; but at last, seeing I was near out 
 o' my senses, she hobbled away and brought 
 me — what do ye think ? — a glass of brandy — 
 and fine brandy, too. ' Hallo ! ' says I to the 
 old cailleach, when the brandy had burned in 
 my mouth for a while, and the pain was not so
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 33 
 
 bad, ' wliere did ye get this fine stuff?* Would 
 ye believe it, she declared and better declared 
 that she found it ! ' Find it, woman ! Where 
 did ye find it ? ' But no ; that was all ; she had 
 found it. And then I began to think. Where 
 was an old woman like that to get brandy ? 
 So says I all of a sudden, ' This is smuggled 
 stuff. Ye need not deny it ; and unless ye tell 
 me instantly where ye got it, and how ye 
 got it, the Supervisor will be here to-morrow 
 morning, and in twenty-four hours ye'U be in 
 Dingwall Jail ! 
 
 " Mr. Purdie," said Kathchen, interrupting 
 — and with rather a cold manner — *' was that 
 your return for the old woman's kindness to 
 you in your trouble ? " 
 
 But he did not heed the taunt. He was 
 exulting in his having trapped his enemy. 
 
 "She was frightened out of her wits, the 
 wretched old creature. ' Donuil Og,' she says 
 — Young Donald — it was from young Eoss that 
 she had got it. And now the case was clear 
 enough ! I had been suspecting something of 
 the kind. And here was a fine come-down for 
 the Rosses of Heimra ; — the Rosses of Heimra, 
 
 VOL. I. D
 
 34 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 that in former days made such a flourish at 
 the English court — dancing at Almacks, and 
 skelping about wi' the Prince Eegent; and 
 now the last of the family come down to selling 
 smuggled brandy to old women and a parcel of 
 crofters and cottars ! A fine way of earning 
 a living! But it's all he's fit for — an idle 
 ne'er-do-weel, that never did a turn of work in 
 his life beyond poaching and thieving and 
 stirring up ill-will behind one's back. But I'll 
 be even with my gentleman ! I'll have the 
 Supervisor of Excise on to him ; his fine little 
 trips to the Channel Islands — I suppose it's the 
 Channel Islands, where you get brandy for 
 next to nothing — we'll soon put a stop to 
 them ; and when he finds himself before the 
 Sheriff at Dingwall, he'll be singing another 
 tune ! " 
 
 A tap at the door — then Barbara entered ; 
 and the factor looked np quickly and sus- 
 piciously. But if the tall Highland lass had 
 been listening her face said nothing. 
 
 " And the young man you speak of," Mary 
 asked, '' does he live all by himself — out on 
 that island ? "
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 35 
 
 '^ It's fit that lie should live by himself," said 
 Mr. Purdie, with his eyes beginning to twinkle 
 fiercely again : for any reference to this young 
 man seemed to completely turn his head. " He's 
 nothing but a savage — brought up as a savage 
 — amongst the rocks and crags — like a wild- 
 goat — from his earliest years. What else could 
 ye expect ? There was his mother — a proud 
 woman — proud and vindictive as ever was born 
 — and she hears how her husband is gallivant- 
 ing from this capital to that — throwing away 
 his money on Italian countesses and riff-raff — 
 indeed there was the one public scandal, but 
 I cannot give ye particulars, Miss Stanley, the 
 story is not for a young lady's ears at all : but 
 the mother, she determines to go away and live 
 in that island, and bring up her only child 
 there ; and there the two o' them live, like two 
 savages, the laddie growing up as a wild goat 
 would, clambering about the rocks and the shore 
 and the hills. What could ye expect but that 
 he should turn out a poaching, thieving, 
 smuggling rascal, especially with every man, 
 woman, and child in the place — on the mainland 
 here, I mean — ready to serve him and screen
 
 36 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 him ? Truly it is a debasing thing to think of 
 — such supersteetion ; but these poor ignorant 
 creatures — a name's enough for them — any 
 Ross of Heimra, because he's a Ross of Heimra, 
 is a little God Almighty to them ; I think they 
 would perjure their immortal souls for that 
 impudent and brazen-faced young scoundrel 
 out there. Brandy ? Oh, ay, brandy ! And 
 I dare say he gets them tobacco, too ; and 
 makes a good profit on't ; for what else can he 
 live on ? Heimra island is the last of all their 
 possessions ; if you go scattering your money 
 among Italian countesses, you've got to cut up 
 the estate, and fling it into the market, bit by 
 bit, until you come to the final solid lump of it 
 - — which your uncle bought. Miss Stanley ; and 
 then the deserted wife, left to herself on that 
 island out there, can live on whelks and mussels 
 if she likes ! Well, a fine lonely place to nurse 
 pride ! Plenty of time to think ! The great 
 estate gone — her husband at length dead and 
 buried without ever having come near her — 
 and this young whelp to look after — a wild 
 goat among the rocks ! No more grandeur 
 now — though at times Lord This or Lord That,
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 37 
 
 or even a Duke or Duchess, would come in 
 their steam-yacht, or send her presents of game 
 in the autumn — " 
 
 " Poor woman ! " said Mary. ^' Is she out 
 there still ? " 
 
 " No, no — her troubles are over," said the 
 factor, with some expression of relief. *' There's 
 one the less for these ignorant, supersteetious 
 creatures hereabouts to fall down and worship, 
 as if they were golden images. She died near 
 a year ago ; and would ye believe it, this son 
 o' hers, instead of having her put into a 
 Christian graveyard, had her buried on the 
 western coast of the island, up on the top of the 
 cliff, and there's a great white marble slab 
 there, that ye might see for miles off. A nice 
 kind of thing, that ! Refusing Christian burial 
 for his own mother ! He's just a Pagan, 
 neither more nor less — a wild savage — fearing 
 neither God nor man — getting drunk every 
 night, I'll be bound, on that smuggled brandy ; 
 and I'm no sure he would scruple to take your 
 life if he found ye in a convenient place. It's 
 a terrible thing to think of, a human being 
 brought up like that, in a country of law and
 
 38 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 order and releegion. But I've no pity for him, 
 not one jot ! He and his have done me 
 sufficient harm ; but I'll be even with him yet 
 — the cheat-the-gallows ! " 
 
 Mary Stanley, though not much of a coward, 
 seemed to shrink back a little in unconscious 
 dismay. She had never seen such venomous 
 rage working in any human creature's face ; 
 and it was rather an appalling kind of thing. 
 But presently Mr. Purdie seemed to recollect 
 himself; this exhibition of overmastering hate 
 was not the best means of propitiating his new 
 mistress ; and so, making a determined effort to 
 control himself (and helping himself to another 
 glass of sherry at the same time) he proceeded 
 to talk of business, with a certain constrained, 
 matter-of-fact air. 
 
 " You said before we came in to dinner. Miss 
 Stanley," he began, in his slow and deliberate 
 way, *'that you wished fifteen years' of the 
 dyke tax to be remitted and returned to the 
 Cruagan crofters. Yery well. Whatever is 
 your pleasure. But have you considered what 
 the result wiJl be ? " 
 
 '' No," said Mary, " I do not wish to consider.
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 39 
 
 I wish to have the thing done, because I think 
 it is right." 
 
 " For one matter," said he, " they will take 
 it, and not thank you." 
 
 " I do not care about that," she made answer. 
 " We will see about the thanks, or no thanks^ 
 later on." 
 
 " But there's more," said the factor, rousing 
 himself from his forced restraint of manner. 
 " They'll just begin to think that the time for 
 the universal getting of everything for nothing 
 has come at last; and where will there be 
 an end to their outrageous demands ? The 
 ignorant creatures ! — they do not know what 
 they want — they're like children crying for the 
 moon ; and they're encouraged by a set of 
 agitators more ignorant than themselves — 
 people in Parliament, and out of it, that never 
 saw a peat-moss, and don't know the difference 
 between a hog and a stirk " 
 
 " But wait a moment, Mr. Purdie," said she, 
 with some touch of calm authority. " I can 
 hardly tell you yet what I intend to do ; I have 
 all kinds of enquiries to make. But every one 
 is well enough aware that, whatever the cause
 
 40 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 or causes may be, there is great distress among 
 the crofters — great poverty — and, naturally, 
 discontent ; and when I hear of them almost 
 starving for want of land — and such immense 
 tracts given over to deer — I know that a 
 great wrong is being done. And that is not 
 going to exist wherever I have a word to 
 say." 
 
 " It cannot exist on this estate, Miss Stanley," 
 the factor said, with confidence. *' For we have 
 not a single acre of forested land." 
 
 " What did I hear my brother say, then, 
 about eleven stags in one season ? '* she 
 demanded. " Why, he asked me to ask him 
 up here this next autumn for the very purpose 
 of going stalking ! " 
 
 " Yes, yes, very likely," said the Little Red 
 Dwarf, with the magnanimity born of superior 
 knowledge. " The fact is that when the deer 
 begin to get restless about the end of September 
 and the beginning of October, a few stags and 
 hinds come wandering on to our ground, be- 
 tween the Meall-na-Fearn and the Corrie- 
 Bhreag mostly. But that is not forest ; that is 
 all under sheep ; that belongs to Mr. Watson's
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 41 
 
 sheep-farm : the stags the gentlemen get in the 
 autumn are mere chance shots ; we have not 
 a bit of forested land. Indeed, Miss Stanley, 
 ye'll rarely hear the crofters, in any part of the 
 country, clamouring to have a deer forest split 
 up amongst them ; they know well enough 
 what wretched and hopeless kind of stuff it is ; 
 they're wiser than the havering folk in Par- 
 liament. No, no ; it's slices off the big arable 
 and pasture farms they want. And I can tell 
 ye this," he went on, in quite a reasonable way 
 (for young Eoss of Heimra was off his mind 
 now), *' there's many a proprietor in the High- 
 lands would be willing and even glad to break 
 up his big sheep-farms into small holdings ; but 
 where is either landlord or tenant to find the 
 money to pay for the housing, and steading, 
 and fencing ; and where is the new tenant to 
 find stock ? To change the crofters into small 
 farmers would be a fine thing, no doubt — an 
 excellent thing, a great reform ; and it would 
 pay the landlords well if it were practicable. 
 But how is it practicable ? Before the scheme 
 would work, the crofter would have to be given 
 land worth at least £20 a year ; and where is
 
 42 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 the capital to come from for stock and 
 steading ? " 
 
 Mary listened, a little nneasily, but not much 
 daunted ; for this was merely the professional 
 view ; this was an advocacy of the existing 
 state of things ; and it was the existing state of 
 things, in this small possession of hers, that she 
 hoped to amend, if it was within her power. 
 Nor could she argue with him, seeing she had 
 no facts at her fingers' ends as yet, or, at least, 
 none that she could rely on ; for it was personal 
 inquiry and observation that this young woman 
 meant to trust. 
 
 " If they can make the small crofts pay " 
 
 said she, vaguely. 
 
 *' But they cannot," said he, with south 
 country bluntness. " The land is too poor ; and 
 there are too many of them wanting to live on 
 it. Over there at Cruagan the crofters manage 
 to earn a little money by serving as gillies in 
 the autumn, and hiring their ponies to the 
 sportsmen ; and along the coast here they eke 
 out a living with the fishing ; but they would 
 fairly starve on the crofts, if that was all. And 
 then, besides the poor soil, I do believe they're
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 43 
 
 the idlest and laziest creatures on God's earth ! 
 I'll undertake to say there has not been a 
 boat put off from shore this last week past, 
 though there must be plenty of stenlock in the 
 bay " 
 
 But here Kathchen struck in, a little indig- 
 nantly. She had Highland blood in her veins ; 
 and she did not like to hear her countrymen 
 and countrywomen traduced by an Albannach. 
 
 *' Stenlock ? You mean big lythe ? " said she. 
 ** But you know very well, Mr. Purdie, there is 
 no market for lythe. They're no use to send 
 away. And even if they were — even if there 
 were a market for them — how could the people 
 get them sent ? How often does the steamer 
 call in here ? " 
 
 *' Oh, well, not very often at this time of the 
 year," he said. 
 
 " But how often ? " she persisted. 
 
 '' Once in three weeks," said the factor. 
 
 And now it was Mary's turn to interpose, 
 which she did eagerly and gladly, for she was 
 ever on the alert for some actual and definite 
 thing to tackle. 
 ^ *' Oh, really, Mr. Purdie, that is too bad !
 
 44 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 How can you expect them to be diligent with 
 the fishing, if the steamer only calls in once in 
 three weeks ? That must be put right, and at 
 once ! " said she, in her generous ardour. *' I 
 will appeal to the Grovernment. I will appeal 
 to the Treasury." 
 
 " You'd better appeal to Mr. MacBrayne," 
 said Kathchen, drily ; and therewithal that 
 subject was laid aside for the moment. 
 
 Unfortunately this reasonable mood on the 
 part of the Little Red Dwarf — if he could 
 properly be called little whose great breadth of 
 frame caused him to look like a compressed 
 giant — did not last very long. His half- 
 smothered hatred of the house of Heimra broke 
 into flame again ; and it is possible that a glass 
 of whiskey which he took at the end of dinner, 
 combined with the previous sherry, may have 
 added fuel to the fire. 
 
 " I've warned ye, Miss Stanley, not to say a 
 word about the Ross family, or what I've told 
 ye, or about any of your plans, before that lass 
 Barbara." 
 
 *' Why all this mystery and suspicion ! " said 
 Mary, with a touch of impatience. " The girl
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 45 
 
 seems a very obliging and good-natured girl 
 indeed." 
 
 " She's a sister o' the head keeper," said the 
 factor, with a watchful glance towards the 
 door ; '' and that scoundrel of a young Eoss 
 is just hand-in-glove with every man-jack o' 
 them. Do ye think they've got any eyes in 
 their head if my young gentleman is after a 
 salmon on the Garra, or lying in wait for a 
 stag in the Corrie Bhreag ? They would swear 
 themselves black in the face that they did not 
 see him if he was standing staring at them 
 within twenty yards ! " 
 
 " Yery well, then ; if you cannot trust the 
 keepers, why not get others in their place ? " 
 she said, promptly. *^ Not that I care much 
 about the game. I propose to give the crofters, 
 big and little, free right to trap, or snare, or 
 shoot all the hares and rabbits they can get 
 hold of; I do not wish their little bits of 
 holdings to be plundered by useless beasts. 
 But grouse do no harm ; and whether my own 
 people come here next autumn, or whether I let 
 the shooting, all the same there will be the 
 employment of gillies' labour, and the hiring of 
 the ponies."
 
 46 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " Yes ! " said the factor. " The only money 
 that ever finds its way into their pocket ; and 
 yet you'll find the idjuts declaring amongst 
 themselves that not a single stranger should be 
 allowed to come into the country ! " 
 
 " That is foolishness," said Mary, calmly. 
 *' That is the idle talk of people who are poor 
 and suffering, and do not know why they are 
 poor and suffering. And I, for one, mean to 
 take no heed of it ; though, to be sure, it would 
 be pleasanter to think I was a little more 
 welcome. However, about those keepers : if 
 they do not attend to their duty, if they allow 
 poaching, why not get others in their place ? " 
 
 " That would be worse," said Mr. Purdie, 
 emphatically. " The strange keepers would be 
 helpless ; they would be outwitted at every 
 turn. If ye knew the folk about here better, 
 their clannishness, their cunning " 
 
 "But are you sure this poaching goes on, 
 Mr. Purdie," she interposed, " or is it only 
 guesswork on your part ? I presume Mr. Ross 
 calls himself a gentleman." 
 
 " A gentleman ! " said the factor, with that 
 malevolent look coming into his eyes again.
 
 TOUNa DONALD. 47 
 
 " A gentleman that earns his living by selling 
 smuggled brandy to a wheen crofters ! A fine 
 gentleman, that ! I suppose when the Duke's 
 yacht sails into the bay out there, my gentle- 
 man makes haste to hide away the bottles, and 
 takes care to say nothing about the five shillings 
 a gallon profit ! Ay, ay, a remarkable change 
 for the great family I — no playactoring about 
 with the Prince Eegent now, but selling 
 contraband speerits to a lot of old women ! 
 And snuff, maybe ? And tobacco ? Penny 
 packets ! — a noble trade ! " He laughed aloud, 
 to conceal the vehemence of his hatred. '' A 
 fine come-down for high birth and ancient 
 gentility — burled alive in an island, not daring 
 to show his head even in Edinburgh, let alone 
 in London, his only companions a wheen 
 thieving gillies and scringe-net fishermen ! 
 But plenty of pride all the same. Oh, yes ; 
 pride and concealment, they go together in the 
 Highland character : would ye believe it, when 
 he denied his mother Christian burial, and 
 made the grave up there on the hill, would he 
 put up a respectable monument in the ordinary 
 way, so that people could see it ? No, no ; it's
 
 48 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 on the sea- ward side of the island. Pride again, 
 ye observe ; a scorn of the common people ; 
 pride and concealment together." 
 
 " I should think it was a great deal more 
 likely," said Kathchen, with some touch of 
 anger, " that the mother chose where her own 
 grave was to be." But Mary, with thoughtful 
 eyes, only said : '* Poor woman ! " 
 
 " Ay, ay, pride enough," continued Mr. 
 Purdie, in a more triumphant strain. " But 
 their pride had a famous fall before your uncle 
 and myself were done with them " 
 
 At this Mary started somewhat. 
 
 " My uncle ? " said she. *' Why, what cause 
 of offence could there have been between him 
 and them? What injury could they possibly 
 have done him ? " 
 
 " Injury ? Plenty of injury : in stirring up 
 ill-will and rebellion among the tenants. It's 
 yourself, Miss Stanley, will find that out ere 
 long ; oh, yes, wait till ye come to have dealings 
 with these people, ye'll find out what they are, 
 I'm thinking ! A stubborn and stiff-necked 
 race ; and cunning as the very mischief; and 
 revengeful and dark. But we broke their
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 49 
 
 obstinacy that time ! " He laughed again : 
 a malignant laugh. 
 
 " I saw ye noticed it, Miss Stanley, as we 
 came along this afternoon — the dried-up place 
 that was once a loch, and the pile of stones " 
 
 She remembered well enough ; and also she 
 recollected the vicious slash the driver had 
 made at his horses when the factor was 
 grinningly answering her question. 
 
 " Yes, but I did not quite understand what 
 it meant," said she. 
 
 " I'll just tell ye." 
 
 Mr. Purdie poured himself out a little drop 
 of whiskey — a very little drop — in an inadver- 
 tent way. There was quite a happy look on 
 his face when he began his tale. 
 
 " Ay ; it's a fine story when people of 
 obstinate nature meet their match ; and your 
 uncle. Miss Stanley, could hold his own — when 
 there was proper counsel behind his back, 
 if I may say so. And what had Mrs. Ross 
 and her son to do with anything on the land ? 
 Heimra island out there had been reserved for 
 them all the way through, as the estate was 
 going bit by bit ; and when Lochgarra went as 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 50 DONALD TtOSS OFHEIMRA. 
 
 well, there was still the island to preserve the 
 narae of the family, as it were. And was not 
 that enough ? What did they want — what 
 could any one want — with Loch Heimra and 
 Castle Heimra, when they had been sold into 
 other hands ? If they wanted the name kept 
 in perpetuity, there was the island — which 
 undoubtedly belonged to the Rosses; but the 
 loch and the castle on the mainland, they were 
 gone ; they had been sold, given up, cut adrift. 
 And so, says your uncle, ' we'll cut adrift the 
 name too. They have their Heimra Island ; 
 that is sufficient : the loch and the castle are 
 mine, and that must be understood by all and 
 sundry.' Natural, quite natural. Would ye 
 have people giving themselves a title from 
 things not belonging to them at all, but to 
 you? And what was the castle but a heap 
 of old stones, with about six or seven hundred 
 years of infamy, and bloodshed, and cruelty 
 attached to it ? Ay ; they could show ye a 
 red patch on the earthen floor of the dungeon 
 that was never dry summer or winter. Many's 
 the queer thing took place in that stronghold 
 in the old days. ' Well, well,' says your
 
 YOUNG DONALD. 51 
 
 uncle, ' if they will call themselves '' of Heimra," 
 let it be of Heimra Island. The loch and the 
 -castle are not theirs, but mine ; and, being 
 mine, I am going to give my own name to 
 them. Loch Stanley — Castle Stanley — that's 
 what they are to be. I'm not going to have 
 strangers calling themselves after my property. 
 Let them keep the island if they like " 
 
 " Why, what did it matter ? " said Mary. 
 ^' They did not claim either the castle or the 
 loch. It was merely the old association — the 
 historical association ; and what harm did that 
 do to any one ? And an interesting place like 
 that, that has been in ]DOSsession of the same 
 family for centuries " 
 
 " But, surely, a man has the right to do 
 what he likes with his own ? " said the Troich 
 Bheag Dhearg, with the corners of his mouth 
 drawn down, and his small eyes looking forth 
 a challenge. '' I can tell ye, Miss Stanley, 
 your uncle was a man not to thwarted " 
 
 '' I dare say ! " said Mary, coldly. 
 
 " Castle Stanley — Loch Stanley — that was 
 now established ; let them take their title from 
 what belonged to them, which was the island. 
 
 U, OF i^ ^^
 
 52 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 Ay ; but do ye think the people about here 
 would follow the change ? " Mr. Purdie went 
 on, with something more of vindictiveness 
 coming into his tone. " Would they ? Not 
 one o' them, the stubborn deevils ! There was 
 not an old bedridden woman, there was not a 
 laddie on his way to school, ye could get to say 
 ' Castle Stanley ' or ' Loch Stanley ' ; it was 
 Loch Heimra and Castle Heimra from every 
 one ; and they held on to it as if it had been 
 the Westminster Confession of Faith — the dour 
 and bigoted animals they are ! Even the very 
 gamekeepers, that ye might think would be 
 afraid o' losing their situation, they were just 
 like the rest, though they had their plausible 
 and cunning excuses. ' You see, Mr. Stanley,' 
 they would say, * if we tell the gillies about 
 Castle Stanley they will think it is Lochgarra 
 House we mean ; and if we send them to Loch 
 Stanley, they will be going down to the sea- 
 shore.' But well I know who was at the back 
 of all their stubbornness," the factor continued,, 
 with a scowling face. " Well I know : it was 
 that idling, mischievous, thrawn-natured, impu- 
 dent ne'er-do-weel, egging them on, and egging
 
 ^*> 
 
 YOUNG DONALD. oJ 
 
 them on, and keeping himself in the back- 
 ground all the time. The dignity of his 
 family ! I suppose that was what he was after 
 — the old castle and the old name ; so that 
 strangers might think that his mother and he 
 had still property on the mainland ! And I 
 warned your uncle about it. I warned him. I 
 told him that as long as that graceless scoundrel 
 was in the neighbourhood there would be 
 nothing but spite and opposition on the part 
 of the tenantry. ' Well, then,' said he, ' for 
 spite there will be spite, if it comes to that ! ' 
 Miss Stanley, your uncle was not a man to be 
 defied." 
 
 " I know," said Mary, with downcast face : 
 she foresaw what was coming — and did not at 
 all share in the savage glee the factor was 
 beginning to betray. 
 
 " ' Grive them time, Mr. Purdie,' says he. " If 
 I buy a dog, or a horse, or a house, I can 
 call it by what name I please ; and so I can 
 with a piece of water and an old ruin. But 
 not too much time, Mr. Purdie — not too much 
 time. If they have a will of their own, so have 
 I. If there's to be neither Loch Stanley nor
 
 54 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Castle Stanley, I'll make pretty well sure there 
 will be neither Loch Heimra nor Castle Heimra. 
 I'll put an end to those Eosses calling them- 
 self after any part of my property. I'll soon 
 wipe out the last trace of them from the main- 
 land, anyway ; and they're welcome to the 
 island out there, for anything I mind. The 
 seven centuries of history can follow them 
 across the water ; I've no room for such things 
 on my estate.' And that's just how it came 
 about. Miss Stanley. Not one creature in the 
 whole of the district but would stick to the old 
 name ; crofter, cottar, shepherd, fisher-laddie^ 
 they were all alike. There was no help for it; 
 Your uncle was a determined man. Anyone 
 that contended with him was bound to get the 
 worst of it ; and here he was dealing with his 
 own. ' Yery well,' said he, ' if there's to be 
 no Castle Stanley, I'll take care there shall be 
 no Castle Heimra. Mr. Purdie, get the loch 
 drained of its last drop of water, and have 
 every stone of the useless old ruin hauled to 
 the ground ! ' And that's precisely what ye 
 saw this afternoon, Miss Stanley ! " 
 
 Her reply somewhat astonished the vain-
 
 YOUNG DOXALD. - 55 
 
 glorious factor, wlio had perhaps been expect- 
 ing appro vaL V ii-i L. . ..V . 
 
 '' It was shamelessly done ! " said she — hut 
 as if she were not addressing him at all. 
 
 And then she rose, and Kate Grlendinning 
 rose also ; so that Mr. Purdie practically found 
 himself dismissed — or rather he dismissed him- 
 self, pleading that it was late. He made some 
 appointment for the next morning, and pre- 
 sently left : no doubt glad enough to get a 
 chance of lighting his pipe and having a com- 
 fortable smoke on his way home to the inn. 
 
 When the two girls went into the drawing- 
 room — which was a large hexagonal room in 
 the tower, with windows looking north, west, 
 and south — they found that the lamps had not 
 yet been brought in, and also perceived, to 
 their surprise, that the night outside had 
 cleared and was now brilliant with its thou- 
 sands of throbbing stars. They went to one 
 of the windows. The heavilv-moanins: sea 
 was hardly visible, but the heavens were 
 extraordinarily lustrous ; they were even aware 
 of a shimmer of light on the grey stone terrace 
 without : perhaps it was from the gleaming
 
 56 DONALD KOSS OF HEIMltA. 
 
 belt of Orion that hung above a dark head- 
 land jutting out towards the west ; while there, 
 also, was the still more fiery Sirius, that burned 
 and palpitated behind the black birch-woods in 
 the south. And then they turned to seek the 
 island of Heimra — out there on the mystic and 
 sombre plain — under that far-trembling and 
 shining canopy. 
 
 " Well," said Kathchen, with some vehemence 
 of indignation (for her Highland blood had 
 mounted to her head) " I know this, Mary : 
 scapegrace or no scapegrace, if I were the 
 young fellow living out there, I know what I 
 should do— I would kill that factor! Isn't it 
 perfectly clear it was he who goaded your 
 uncle into pulling down the old castle and 
 draining the loch ? " 
 
 Mary was silent for a second or two. Then 
 she said, in an absent kind of way — 
 
 '' There are wrongs and injuries done that 
 can never be undone. I can never rebuild 
 Castle Heimra."
 
 ( 57 ) 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWIXa COCK. 
 
 Mary Stanley's eyes had not deceived her ; 
 the boat of which she had caught a momentarv 
 glimpse was a smart little yawl of twenty tons 
 or so, that was making in for Heimra Island ; 
 and there were three men on deck — two redcaps 
 forward, the master at the helm. This last was 
 a young fellow of about six and twenty, a little, 
 not much, over middle height, of somewhat 
 pale complexion, and with singularly dark eyes 
 and hair. The curious thing was this : though 
 you could not say that any of his features were 
 particularly fine (except, perhaps, his coal-black 
 eyes, which were clearly capable of flame, if 
 the occasion demanded) the general effect of 
 them was striking ; they seemed to convey an 
 impression of strength — of a certain lazy auda- 
 city of strength ; while the forehead revealed
 
 58 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 by the peaked cap being pushed carelessly back- 
 ward denoted at once intelligence and resolu- 
 tion. But indeed at this moment the young man's 
 attitude was one of merely quiescent indifference 
 — though there was an occasional quick scrutiny 
 of the neighbouring coast ; all the graver perils 
 of the voyage were over; they were running 
 easily before a steady wind; and they would 
 get safely to their anchorage ere the light had 
 wholly died out of the western skies. 
 
 " Down foresail ! " he called to the men. For 
 now they were passing a headland that formed 
 one of two arms encircling a sheltered little bay 
 — a strangely silent and solitary-looking place 
 it seemed in this mysterious light. Sterile, too; 
 tumbled masses of rock with hardly a scrap of 
 vegetation on them ; a few clumps of birches 
 here and there ; an occasional dark green pino 
 higher up the cliffs. But at all events it was 
 quiet and still ; the water lapped clear and crisp 
 along the shingle ; while the murmur of the 
 outer sea was still everywhere around, and also, 
 on the northern side of the bay, there was a long 
 out-jutting reef where there was a continuous 
 surge of white foam over the saw-toothed edge>
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. 59 
 
 '' Down jib ! " The sound of a human voice 
 was so strange in this solitude — far stranger 
 than the mere rattle of blocks and tackle. 
 
 " Main sheet ! " 
 
 The two men came aft : the steersman jammed 
 down his helm ; the vessel slowly rounded into 
 the wind — the boom being hauled in meanwhile 
 — the mainsail flapping and shivering in the 
 light breeze. 
 
 '* Stand by to let go ! " was the next order ; 
 and the hands went forward again — the vessel 
 gradually losing the way that was on her, until 
 she seemed absolutely motionless. 
 
 " Let go ! " 
 
 There was a sj^lash and a roar that sent a 
 thousand shuddering echoes through the silence. 
 A heron uttered a hoarse croak and rose on 
 heavy and slow-moving wings to make for 
 some distant shelter. A pair of dunlins — 
 unseen in the dusk — added their shrill pipings 
 cry. Then all was still again, save for the 
 continual moaning of the surge on the distant 
 reef. 
 
 " Give a haul at the topping-lift, lads ! " This 
 was the final direction ; and then, with another
 
 CO DONALD llOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 keen look round the little bay, young Ross of 
 Heimra — or Donuil Og Yich Iain Yich Ruari, 
 as some were proud to call him — went down 
 into the cabin to put a few things together 
 before going ashore. 
 
 Of the two sailors now left on the deck one 
 was a powerfully built man of about thirty, 
 with a close-clipped brown beard, bushy brown 
 eyebrows, and eyes of a clear Celtic grey. His 
 name was Kenneth Macleod ; but he was more 
 generally known as Coinneach Breac — that is to 
 say, Kenneth of the small-pox marks. His 
 companion was younger than himself — a lad of 
 twenty or two-and-twenty ; long and loutish of 
 figure ; but with a pleasant expression of face. 
 This was Malcolm, or rather, Calum, as they 
 called him. Probably he had some other name ; 
 but it was never heard of; the long, lumpish, 
 heavily - shouldered lad was simply known 
 throughout this neighbourhood as Calum, or 
 Calum-a-bhata, Calum of the Boat. 
 
 "It is I who will have a sound sleep this 
 night," said he, in Gaelic, as he stretched his 
 hands above his head and yawned. 
 
 " And I, too, when the work is over," said his
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. Q^ 
 
 neighbour, pulling out a short black pipe. '• And 
 now you see what it is to have many friends. 
 Oh, I know you, Calum ; you are a young lad : 
 and you are strong : you think of nothing but 
 fighting, like the other young lads. But let me 
 tell you this, Calum ; it is not a good thing, 
 fighting and quarrelling, and making enemies ; 
 it is easier to make enemies than to make friends ; 
 and many times you will be sorry when it is too 
 late, and when that has been put wrong which 
 you cannot put right. For you know what the 
 wise man of Islav said, Calum : he said — ' He 
 who killed his mother a few moments ago ivould 
 fain have her alive now ! ' " 
 
 "" But who was talking about fighting, Coin- 
 neach — tell me that ? " said the youth, angrily. 
 
 " I was giving you advice, Calum, my son," 
 said Coinneach — lighting his pipe and pulling 
 away, though there appeared to be very little 
 tobacco inside. " I was telling you that it was 
 a good thing to have many friends, as the 
 master has. Oh, he is the one to make friends, 
 and no doubt about that ! For look you at this, 
 Calum; you know what is stowed in the cabin; 
 and here we come into the bay, without waiting
 
 62 DONALD ROSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 for the night at all, and just as if there was 
 nothing on board but a few tins of meat for our 
 own use and a loaf or two. That is the wisdom 
 of having many friends, as I am telling you. 
 Why, if there was any one after us, if there 
 was any one wishing to put trouble upon us, do 
 you know what would have happened this 
 evening ? — there would have been a bonfire on 
 every headland between Ru Gobhar and the 
 Black Bay. And that is what I tell you, Calum, 
 that it is a very good thing to have plenty of 
 friends ashore, who are as your own kinspeople 
 to you, and will come between you and the 
 stranger, and will see that the stranger does not 
 harm you. The master, he is the one to make 
 friends with old and young ; and believe me as 
 far as that goes, Calum. Ay, you are a young 
 lad ; and you do not know what the world is ; 
 and you do not know what it is to go sailing 
 with a hard skipper ; and if you are an appren- 
 tice, a bucket of water in your bunk to wake 
 you in the morning. But the master — oh, well, 
 now, look at this : if there is bad weather, and 
 there is something difficult to be done, and you 
 do it smartly, why, then he calls out to you
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. 63 
 
 "^ Fhir mo daridbe ! ' * and that Is a far more 
 welcome thing to you than cursing and swearing; 
 it is a far more welcome thing, and a good thing 
 to comfort you." He shook the ashes out of his 
 pipe, and put it in his pocket. " Well, now, 
 see to the tackle, Calum, and we'll get the boat 
 hoisted out, for the master will be going 
 ashore." 
 
 The boat — a twelve-footer or thereabouts — 
 had been stowed on deck ; but they soon had 
 her launched over the side, and everything put 
 ship-shape and in readiness. And presently 
 the young man who had gone down into the 
 cabin re-appeared again ; he threw some things 
 into the boat, and took his place in the stern- 
 sheets ; the men shoved off, and presently they 
 were well on their way to the beach, where 
 there was a rudely-formed slip. By this time 
 the streaks of lemon-hued light that had 
 appeared in the west were dying away ; dark- 
 ness was coming over land and sea; already, 
 in the east, one or two stars were visible 
 between the thinning and breaking clouds. 
 Young Eoss landed at the sHjd, and made his 
 
 '■' Fhir mo chridhe ! — Man of my heart !
 
 64 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 way up to a level plateau on which stood a 
 long, rambling, one-storeyed building mostly 
 of timber : a sort of bungalow, with a slated 
 porch, and with some little pretence of a 
 garden round it, though at this time of the 
 year nothing, of course, was visible in it but 
 a few leafless bushes. At the door stood an 
 old woman neatly and smartly dressed, whose 
 eyes were still expressive enough to show how 
 pleased she was.. 
 
 " Grood evening to you, Martha," said he in 
 Graelic, " and I hope you are well." 
 
 " Indeed I am all the better for seeing you 
 back, sir," replied the old woman, with many 
 smiles. " The house is no house at all when 
 you are away." 
 
 She followed him obsequiously into the 
 narrow hall. He only glanced at the news- 
 papers and letters on the table. But there 
 was something else there — a brace of grouse. 
 
 " Will I cook one of the birds for Mr. Ross's 
 dinner ? " she asked, her Highland politeness 
 causing her to address him in the third 
 person. 
 
 A quick frown came over his face.
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CROWlNa COCK. 65 
 
 *' Who brought these here ? " he demanded. 
 
 " Oh, well — they were left," said old Martha, 
 evasively. 
 
 " Yes, yes, left ; but who left them ? " he 
 asked again. 
 
 "Oh, well ; maybe it was the Lochgarra 
 keepers," said she. 
 
 '' The keepers ? Nonsense ! " he said angrily. 
 " Do you tell me the keepers would shoot grouse 
 at this time of the year, when the birds have 
 paired, and soon will be nesting ? It was 
 Gillie Ciotach,* I'll be bound. Now you will 
 tell the Grillie Ciotach, Martha, that if he does 
 not stop his tricks I will have him sent across 
 the land to go before the Sheriff at Dingwall ; 
 and how will he like that ? " 
 
 " Oh, well, indeed, sir," said Martha, in a 
 deprecating way, " the poor young lad meant 
 no harm. He was coming over here anyway, 
 because he lost a dog, and he was wishing to 
 find the dog." 
 
 At this the young master burst out laughing. 
 
 " The Gillie Ciotach is an excellent one for 
 lies, and that is certain ! " said he. '' His dog ? 
 * Gillie Ciotach — tlie left-handed young man. 
 
 VOL. I. F
 
 66 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 And how could his dog swim across from 
 Lochgarra to Eilean Heimra ? Tell Grillie 
 Ciotach from me that when he comes over here 
 he may look after the lobsters, but he will be 
 better not to tell lies about a dog, and also he 
 will do well to leave the Lochgarra grouse 
 alone. And now, Martha, if there is any 
 dinner for me, let me have it at once ; for 
 I am going back to the yacht by-and-bye." 
 
 He went into the simply-furnished dining- 
 room, where there was a lamp on the table and 
 likewise a magnificent peat-fire ablaze in the 
 big iron grate — a welcome change from the 
 little stove in the cabin of the Sirene. He had 
 brought his letters with him in his hand. He 
 drew in a wickerwork lounging-chair towards 
 the fireplace, and idly began to tear the 
 envelopes open : here were tidings, various 
 hushed voices, as it were, from the busy world 
 that seemed so distant to him^, living in these 
 remote solitudes. It is true he had been away 
 for a time from Eilean Heimra ; but during 
 that interval there had not been much of 
 human companionship for him ; nay, there was 
 for the most part a greater loneliness than
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CEO WING COCK. 67 
 
 ■ever, especially when he took his watch on 
 deck at night, sending the two men below for 
 much-needed rest. Indeed these letters and 
 newspapers seemed almost to make a stir 
 and noise ! — so used had he been to silence 
 -and the abstraction of his own thoughts. 
 
 Meanwhile Coinneach and Calum had re- 
 turned to the yacht, had got some supper, and 
 were now up at the bow, contemplatively 
 ■smoking, and chatting to each other in their 
 native tongue. Night had fallen ; but the 
 skies were becoming clearer and more clear; 
 the starlit heavens were gradually revealing 
 themselves. There was not a sound — since the 
 rattle of the anchor had disturbed the quietude 
 of the little bay. 
 
 " The work is not over yet," Coinneach was 
 saying, in somewhat low tones, " and it is the 
 part of the work that I have no liking for. 
 Anything else I shrink not back from, when 
 the master wishes ; he is the one to follow, and 
 I will go with him wherever he desires ; and 
 that in safety, too — for who knows the naviga- 
 tion like himself, yes, and speaking every 
 language that is known upon the earth? I
 
 68 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 will go with him wherever he wishes ; I will 
 do whatever he wishes. But, Calum, I have no 
 liking for the Uamh coilich na glaodhaich." * 
 
 '' Nor I, Coinneach," said his companion. 
 " Especially in the night-time." 
 
 '' Day-time or night-time : what is the differ- 
 ence in the Uamh coilich na glaodhaich, when 
 it is so dark that no man has ever been to the 
 end of it, or knows to what it leads ? Nor is 
 any man likely to try to discover, since the one 
 that went on and on, until he heard a cock 
 crowing. Oh, God, that must have been a 
 terrible thing, to be so near the edge of another 
 world that you could hear a cock crowing- 
 there. And if the people had caught him and 
 kept him — they would have taken him away 
 to the place where the piper went when he 
 played Cha Ml mi tuilich ; f and that is a tale 
 that is told of many caves ; and it may be this, 
 Calum, that all the great caves lead to that 
 other world ; but who can tell about such 
 fearful things ? A cock crowing — that is 
 
 * Vamh coilich na glaodhaicli — Tlie Cave of tlie Crowing 
 Cock. 
 
 t Cha till mi tidlich-r-J. shall never more return.
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CEO\YDsa COCK. 69 
 
 nothmg — when you are in your own home, 
 with the daylight around you ; but to hear the 
 crowing of a cock after you have gone away 
 into the earth, then that tells you of wonderful 
 things, for you know the saying, ' Deejy is the 
 low of a cow upon strange past we,' Well, well, 
 what the master says must be done ; but 
 many's the time I am wishing that when the 
 kegs have to be hidden, it was some other 
 place we had for the hiding of them than 
 the Cave of the Crowing Cock." 
 
 " Coinneach," said the lad, and he also spoke 
 in a hushed kind of way, " how long ago is it 
 since that one heard the cock crowing ? " 
 
 " How long ? Who can answer such ques- 
 tions ? Can you tell me when the Macarthurs 
 came into the world ? For you have heard the 
 saying, Calum : ' Tlie hills and the streams and 
 the Macalpines came together ; but ivho can sag 
 when the Macarthurs came V It is a long time 
 ago ; it is not any use asking. Ay, and there 
 was something before all of these." He paused 
 for a second : then he said darkly — " That was 
 — that was when the Woman was in these 
 islands."
 
 70 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 '* What woman ? " said Calum, with the 
 eager curiosity of youth. 
 
 But Coinneach seemed disinclined to answer. 
 
 " Have you not heard ? " said he. " But it 
 is wise not to speak of such things." 
 
 '* What woman was that, Coinneach ? " his 
 companion persisted, fixing his eyes on Coin- 
 neach's face, that was full of a sombre 
 meditation. 
 
 " Did you never hear of her — the Woman 
 that was here before there were any people in 
 these islands or in the mainland either ? But 
 it is not prudent to speak." 
 
 " Who was she, Coinneach ? " said Calum. 
 '•' Surely she cannot hurt you if she was dead 
 these many thousands of years ? " 
 
 " Do not say that," he responded rather 
 gloomily. " Who can tell ? — for there are 
 strange things. You know I am not a coward, 
 Calum." 
 
 " That is what I know well ! " said Calum, 
 confidently. " How many days is it since you 
 stood up against the French skipper, and he 
 with four of them at his back ? " 
 
 " Ay, but there are things that are more
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CEOWIXG COCK. 71 
 
 terrible than blows ; and it is of these that I am 
 afraid. Or perhaps not quite afraid ; but I 
 think. And that is the difference between one 
 man and another man, Calum. There is always 
 ill-luck happening ; but one man will suffer it 
 and not inquire, while the other man will ask 
 what caused it or who it was that did him the 
 harm. And if it is not always prudent to speak 
 of such affairs, at least the truth is the safest : 
 you know the saying ' Speak the truth as if you 
 were in the presence of kings' And now I will 
 tell you this, Calum, of a strange thiog that 
 happened to me when I was a boy." 
 
 He abated his voice, as if afraid of being 
 overheard. Calum's eyes ' glowered ' in the 
 dusk. 
 
 " I had been over to Eu-Gobhar, where I had 
 a sister married then ; and I was returning 
 home. It was a moonlight night ; the sea very 
 calm ; there was no wind. Well, when I was 
 at the highest point of the road, above the 
 Black Bay, do you know what happened ? But 
 I will tell you what happened. And this is 
 what I saw : the sea began to move, although 
 there was not a breath of wind, and there was
 
 72 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 no noise either ; only it moved and heaved in 
 a terrible way ; and there was a line of white, 
 but it was more like white fire than white foam, 
 all along the land, from Eu-Gobhar in to 
 Minard^ and all round the headlands to where 
 I was. For I was standing looking, and very 
 much afraid to see so strange a thing ; and 
 then this is what happened : I got to know that 
 there was someone behind me ; and then I got 
 to know it was the Woman, and I durst not 
 look round, for I was shaking with terror. 
 May you never have such an experience in 
 your life, Calum, as was mine that night. I 
 knew that she had come across the sea, from 
 the islands, noticing that I was alone and no 
 one to help me ; and now I knew that she was 
 not only behind me, but in front of me, and all 
 around me, though I could not see anything, 
 for I was in such terror. She did not speak to 
 me, nor touch me ; but I felt myself choking at 
 the throat as if she had a grip of me ; and I 
 gave myself up for dead — for I could not run 
 away from her — and I knew it was the Woman 
 who had a grip of my throat. Well, well, I 
 gave myself up for dead ; but all of a sudden it
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. 7 
 
 Q 
 
 entered my mind tliat she would carry me away 
 out to the islands and bury me in one of the 
 caves ; and with that I made a great effort, and 
 cried out ' God on the cross, save me, save me ! ' 
 That was the last I knew of it ; when I came 
 to myself I was lying in the road, cold as 
 a stone ; and the sea was quite smooth again. 
 May -you never have an experience like my 
 experience of that night, Calum ! " 
 
 Calum was silent for a little while. Then he 
 said, slowly — 
 
 '' Coinneach, do you suppose the Woman 
 came from the cave where the cock was heard 
 crowing ? " 
 
 " How can I tell ? " was the answer. 
 *^ Perhaps I have said too much. But what 
 I have said to you, that is the least part of 
 what happened to me that night, for it is not 
 to be spoken of." And then he rose ; and put 
 his pipe in his pocket. " Come, Calum, my 
 son, we must take the boat ashore now, for the 
 master will be coming down to the slip. But 
 do not you speak of such things as I have told 
 you ; for it is not good to speak of them." 
 
 And to this Calum merely replied —
 
 74 DONALD KOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " What the master wishes is enough for you 
 and me, Coinneach ; but I would rather not be 
 going into the Uamh coilich na glaodhaich this- 
 night." 
 
 They rowed the boat in to the shore — they 
 could see their way well enough, for now the 
 heavens were quite clear, and a universe of 
 white worlds was shining down on them ; and 
 there they ran her bow into the soft seaweed 
 by the side of the slip. They had not long to 
 wait. There was a sound of footsteps on the 
 gravel-path ; then from out of the shadow 
 emerged a figure into the open space above the 
 beach ; they knew who this was. Young Ross- 
 of Heimra seemed to be in no great hurry ; his 
 hands were in his pockets; he came down 
 towards the boat with long, lounging, leisurely 
 strides ; and he was whistling a gay air that 
 was unfamiliar to them — for Coinneach and 
 Calum could hardly be expected to recognise 
 ' La Noce de Jeanne,' 
 
 "It is the master who is not afraid of any- 
 thing," said the elder of the two men, under 
 his breath. 
 
 " Indeed you may say that," rejoined Calum,
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CROWING COCK. 75 
 
 as he, too, put liis pipe in liis pocket. " I think 
 he would face old Donas * himself, and not ask 
 for any allowance." 
 
 Young Eoss came down the beach. 
 
 " Lend a hand here, lads," he sung out, "and 
 we'll take the other boat with us. Maybe we'll 
 be able to do it in one trip ; and I'm sure it's 
 a good long sleep both of you will be wanting 
 this night." 
 
 They speedily had the second boat launched 
 and shoved along to the slip ; then they 
 attached the painter to the one in which they 
 had come ashore ; and presently they were 
 pulling both boats quietly out to the Sirene, 
 The gangway was open. Ross and the elder 
 of the two men stepped on board ; and pro- 
 ceeded to remove the skylight of the chief cabin 
 — Calum securing the boats by the side of the 
 yacht. And then began the final business of 
 the expedition — the hoisting up on deck and 
 the transferring to the boats alongside of a 
 considerable number of kegs that were small 
 enough to be handled with comparative ease. 
 Young Ross, who was down in the cabin, 
 
 * Donas — the Devil.
 
 76 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 worked just like the others : slim as his figure 
 seemed, there was plenty of strength about his 
 arms and shoulders. There was no lamp in the 
 cabin, nor yet on deck ; nor was there need of 
 any; the black figures labouring away there 
 did very well with the faint illumination shed 
 by those thousands of tremulous stars. And in 
 course of time the operation was complete ; the 
 casks that had been skilfully stowed in the 
 main cabin of the Sir me were now ranged as 
 tightly as might be in the boats alongside ; 
 then the men stepped in and took to the oars ; 
 while the young master went to the tiller. 
 Calum had been told to put a couple of candles 
 in his pocket ; and he was not likely to forget 
 that — for they were going to the Cave of the 
 Crowing Cock. 
 
 It was a long and laborious pull — the boat 
 astern acting as a heavy drag ; moreover, even 
 with this clear starlight, they dared not go any- 
 where near that saw-toothed reef that guarded 
 the next small bay whither they were bound. 
 They could hear each successive thud of the 
 surge, and the long receding roar; and they 
 could even descry in a kind of way the line of
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CROWmG COCK. 77 
 
 white foam that boiled and churned incessantly 
 along the almost invisible rocks. But once 
 they were round this dangerous point — giving 
 it a significantly wide berth — they found them- 
 selves in smooth water again. Not a word 
 was spoken. The two men toiled away at the 
 oars — most likely thinking of the welcome sleep 
 awaiting them when all was done. The land 
 ahead seemed to grow darker as they ap- 
 proached, even as the black precipitous cliffs 
 appeared to soar higher and higher into the 
 clear starlit skies. Then there was a whisper- 
 ing of water : the beach was near. Young 
 Eoss bade them pull more gently now : he was 
 trying to make out the most suitable landing- 
 place — in amongst those mysterious shadows. 
 
 Eventually the two boats were grounded, 
 and dragged up to be secure from the tide ; 
 while the work of getting the kegs out began. 
 
 " Calum/' said the young master, " take the 
 candles now and get them lighted ; and mind 
 you do not light them until you are well inside 
 the cave." 
 
 Calum appeared to receive this commission 
 very unwillingly; at all events he hesitated.
 
 78 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " It is asking for your pardon I am, sir," 
 said he ; " but — I have brought a pistol with 
 me. 
 
 " A pistol ? And why so ? " said Donald 
 Ross. 
 
 " It is the pistol that I would like to be firing 
 into the cave," said Calum, rather timidly, 
 ^' before any of us went into it." 
 
 " And what is your reason for that, Calum ?" 
 
 Calum rather hung his head ; but he said all 
 the same — 
 
 " If there would be wild beasts in the cave, 
 it will scare them before we go in." 
 
 " Wild beasts ? And what wild beasts are 
 there in Eilean Heimra?" Then the young 
 man laughed. '' Calum, is it a badger, or a 
 wild cat, or an otter that you fear? Or is it 
 not rather the Dark Person you are afraid of, 
 who used to come every night to Lochgarra to 
 ask Mr. Stanley if he was not ready yet ? Did 
 you believe that story, Calum ; and did you not 
 think the Dark Person very foolish to talk 
 Gaelic to Mr. Stanley, when he was not under- 
 standing a word of it ? " 
 
 Calum did not answer : he was shamefacedly
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CEOWING COCK. 79 
 
 awaiting permission to fire into that dreaded 
 place. 
 
 " Well, well, Calum," young Eoss said, good- 
 naturedly, " you are not long from your mother's 
 apron-string : if you are afraid, give me the 
 candles, and keep the pistol in your pocket. 
 Oive me the candles — and lend Coinneach here 
 a hand with the kegs." 
 
 But at this Calum raised his head. 
 
 " Indeed that will I not do," said he, " for it 
 is not Mr. Ross that must go first into the cave, 
 when I am here, or when Coinneach is here. If 
 I am not to fire the pistol, then I will not fire 
 the pistol. But it's myself that am going to 
 light the candles in the cave." 
 
 '' And a lucifer-match, Calum," said the 
 young master, turning away from him, " will 
 frighten wild beasts as well as any pistol — 
 besides making a great deal less noise." 
 
 The Uamh coilich na glaodhaich was only a 
 few yards distant; but the entrance to it was 
 concealed by a huge mass — a perpendicular 
 pinnacle — of rock ; and when Calum had got 
 behind this gigantic natural screen, there were 
 no more cheerful stars to guide him ; he was
 
 80 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 confronted by darkness and unknown terrors. 
 And yet lie scrupulously obeyed his instruc- 
 tions. His trembling fingers, it is true, grasped 
 the pistol, but he kept it in his pocket never- 
 theless ; while with his left hand he groped his 
 way well into the cave — dreading at every 
 moment to see two fiery eyes glaring on him — 
 before he set to work to light the candles. 
 And how feeble and ineffectual were the 
 small red flames in this vast cavern ! Their 
 flickering hardly showed the roof at all ; but 
 it was not the roof that Calum was regarding ; 
 it was the far-reaching and black abyss in front 
 of him, that led — whither ? Perhaps the in- 
 habitants of that other world could see better 
 than himself, and were now regarding him ? — 
 that other world in which the dawn began in 
 the middle of the night, and where there were 
 cocks crowing when all the natural universe 
 was asleep. He had to fasten each lighted 
 candle into the neck of a bottle that had been 
 left there for the purpose ; but all the while he 
 did so he was staring into that vague and awful 
 space that the feeble, dull red glow did not 
 seem to penetrate at all — staring into it as if he
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CEO WING COCK. 81 
 
 expected to find two white eyes and a ghastly 
 countenance suddenly become visible. And 
 then again, when he had placed the bottles on a 
 shelf of rock that ran along one side of the 
 cave, a few feet from the ground, he did not 
 instantly turn and go. He retreated backward 
 — cautiously, for the shelving shingle was loose 
 and slippery — keeping his face towards that 
 hollow darkness, so that he might guard him- 
 self against any strange thing, or be warned by 
 hearing any strange noise. Then a colder 
 stirring of air told him that he was outside ; he 
 made his way past the over-looming rock and 
 into the clear star-light again ; and with a 
 beating heart — but a thankful heart withal — he 
 went quickly along the beach and rejoined his 
 companioDS. 
 
 By this time the kegs had been all got out ; 
 so that in case of any sudden danger, of which 
 they appeared to have but little dread, the three 
 of them could have jumped into one of the 
 boats and made off. There remained, therefore, 
 only the task of carrying along the casks and 
 stowing them in the cave; and this work young 
 Ross left to the two men. He remained on 
 
 VOL. I. G
 
 82 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 watch — if watch were needed — pacing up and 
 down the shingle, looking at the far resplendent 
 heavens and the darker sea, and listening to 
 the continuous murmur of the distant surf. He 
 had lit his pipe, too ; he did not seem to have 
 much apprehension of being interfered with. 
 And indeed all went well ; and in due course of 
 time the two dark figures came along the beach 
 with the intelligence that all the kegs had been 
 safely stowed, and that they were now ready to 
 row the master back to his own home. 
 
 " Coinneach," said Donald Eoss, seated at the 
 helm, when they were some way out on the 
 black and tumbling water, that glanced and 
 quivered here and there with the reflections of 
 the stars, " they were telling me before we left 
 in the yacht that the lady was shortly coming 
 to Lochgarra House." 
 
 " And indeed I heard the same thing myself," 
 said Coinneach, " and they were making ready 
 at the big house for the coming of the English- 
 woman." * 
 
 * Ban-sassunnach was the term he used. But young 
 Ross had referred to her as Baintighearna, or lady-pro- 
 prietor — a much more respectful appellation.
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. 83 
 
 " And I have no doubt," the master continued, 
 " that Purdie will come with her, to show her 
 the property, and introduce her to the people." 
 
 " The Little Red Dwarf," said Coinneach ; 
 and then he muttered to himself: "It is the 
 lowermost floor of hell that I am wishing 
 for him, and for every one of his accursed 
 house ! " 
 
 Young Ross of Heimra took no notice of this 
 pious ejaculation. 
 
 " Now listen," said he. " This is what I wish 
 to say to you, Coinneach. When Purdie comes 
 to Lochgarra with the lady who is the new 
 proprietor, that would be a very good time 
 indeed for widow Mac Yean to ask them to give 
 her a cow in place of the one that she lost in 
 the Meall-na-Fearn bog. Maybe they will give 
 the poor woman a cow ; and she will pay them 
 back bit by bit if they allow her time." 
 
 " It is of no use asking the Little Red Dwarf 
 for anything," said Coinneach, sullenly. " There 
 is no goodwill in his heart towards the people. 
 Nor is there any goodwill in their hearts 
 towards him — God forbid that there should be 
 any such thing. Indeed, now, there is some-
 
 84 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 thing I could say about the Little Red Dwarf — 
 But it does not serve to talk." 
 
 " What were you going to say, Coinneach ? " 
 the young master demanded — knowing Coin- 
 neach's ways. 
 
 " Oh, perhaps Mr. Ross would not like to 
 hear," said Coinneach, evasively. 
 
 " Indeed, but I wish to hear. Now what is it 
 you have to tell me about the Troich Bheag 
 Dhearg ? " 
 
 Coinneach was silent for a second or two. 
 
 " Well," said he, slowly, " it was some of the 
 young lads they were saying that it only 
 wanted a word from Mr. Ross. Yes ; they 
 were saying that. It was just a word from Mr. 
 Ross ; and they would see that the Little Red 
 Devil did not trouble anyone any more, neither 
 in this nor in any other country." 
 
 " Oh, indeed," said the master, placidly. 
 " Then it is a murder the Gillie Ciotach and the 
 rest of them are for planning — is that what you 
 have to tell me ? " 
 
 " I would not give a thing a bad name," said 
 Coinneach, as he laboured at the oar. *' No, no; 
 they were not talking of a murder, or any bad
 
 THE CAYE OF THE CEOWING COCK. 85 
 
 thing like that. But — but there might be an 
 accident ; and a very good thing, too, if an 
 accident happened to the Little Eed Dwarf! " 
 
 " And what kind of an accident ? " 
 
 " Oh well," said Coinneach, looking away out 
 to the horizon as if the suggestion might come 
 from any quarter. " Maybe he would be riding 
 home on a dark night ; and maybe there might 
 be a wire stretched across the road ; and if he 
 was to break his neck, who could help that? 
 And it is I who would laugh to hear that he 
 had broken his neck ; indeed I would lauoch ! " 
 said Coinneach, though there was little laughter 
 in his sombre tones. 
 
 '^ And that is what you call an accident, Coin- 
 neach ? It is an accident that mio-ht end in 
 your finding yourself with a hempen collar 
 round your neck. And what was it set the 
 young men talking like that ? " 
 
 " Oh well, indeed, they were talking about 
 the draining of the loch and the pulling down 
 of Castle Heimra ; and they were saying that 
 nowadays the law was being altered by the 
 people themselves, and that right and justice 
 could be done without waiting for the courts.
 
 86 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 They were saying that. And they were saying 
 that we have come into a new time, which is 
 the truth. They were speaking of the people 
 over there in the Lews ; and the last that was 
 heard was that the people would not wait any 
 longer for more pasture to be given them ; they 
 would not wait for the courts ; they were going 
 to take the deer-forest to themselves, and ham- 
 string every one of the stags — them that they 
 could not eat ; and they had got their tents and 
 baggage ready, to go into the forest and take 
 possession. In former times they would not 
 have dared to do so ; but times are different 
 now ; and people have not to wait for justice ; 
 it is they themselves who must say what is right, 
 whether about the Little Bed Dwarf, or any- 
 thing else. They were telling me that. And 
 who was to put the crofters and cottars out of 
 the deer-forest over there in the Lews ? Not 
 all the policemen in the island : there are not 
 enough. And if they were to send soldiers, the 
 Queen's soldiers dare not fire on the Queen's 
 subjects, or the officer would be hanged. That 
 was what they were telling me." 
 
 " Coinneach," said the young master, " if the
 
 THE CAVE OF THE CROWING COCK. 87 
 
 Gillie Ciotach and his companions are talking 
 like that, they will be getting themselves into 
 trouble one of these days. They'd better let the 
 Little Red Dwarf alone ; for one thing, I dare 
 say he is safe enough ; the devil looks after his 
 own brats. But do not forget what I am telling 
 you now — about Mrs. Mac Yean. Old Martha 
 will be wanting you to go over to the mainland 
 to-morrow ; and when you are there, you can 
 seek out Mrs. Mac Yean, and bid her tell the 
 factor how her cow was lost in the Meall-na- 
 Fearn bog. She can do no harm by asking." 
 
 "It's very little she will get from the Troich 
 Bheag Dhearg," said Coinneach, gloomily, 
 " whether by asking or any other way." 
 
 At last the long pull was over ; and the men, 
 having landed the master at the slip, set out 
 again for the yacht. Young Ross of Heimra 
 went up to the house. But before going in, he 
 paused at the porch, to have a final look at the 
 wonderful glories of that vast firmament — the 
 throbbing Sirius low down in the south, the 
 gleaming belt and sword of Orion, the powdered 
 diamond-dust of the Pleiades, the jewelled head 
 of Medusa, Cassiopeia's silver throne. And
 
 88 • DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 perhaps he was not thinking so much of those 
 distant and shining worlds as of her who had 
 first taught him their various names — of the 
 worse than widowed woman who had shut her- 
 self up here in proud isolation, himself her only 
 care. Well, she was at peace now ; her wrongs 
 and sufferings and bitter memories all come to 
 an end ; surely there was nothing but quiet and 
 sweet slumber around that white grave-stone, 
 far up there on the top of the cliff, overlooking 
 the wide and lonely western seas.
 
 ( 89 ) 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 
 
 Next morning Mary went eagerly and joyously 
 to the window, for here indeed was a welcome 
 change : no more louring heavens and stream- 
 ing roads, but a vast expanse of wind-driven 
 sea, blue as the very heart of a sapphire, and 
 yet with innumerable sudden flashes of white 
 from the crest of its swift-hurrying waves. 
 The sky cloudless ; the fresh breeze blowing 
 straight in from the Atlantic; the world all 
 shining around her ; even those long spurs and 
 headlands, sterile as they were, looked quite 
 cheerful in the prevailing sunlight. And out 
 yonder, too, was the island of Heimra, to which 
 her eyes would go back again and again 
 with a curious interest. She thought of the 
 lone mother, and of the boy brought up like a 
 wild goat among the rocks. And if he had
 
 90 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 turned out a reckless and unscrupulous ne'er- 
 do-well, an Ishmael with his hand against 
 every man, well, that was a deplorable thing, 
 though perhaps not to he wondered at ; more- 
 over it could matter little to her what such an 
 outcast might think of her or of her family ; 
 but, nevertheless, deep down in her heart, there 
 was an odd and ever-recurring feeling of com- 
 punction. She wished to be able to say " I am 
 sorry." Certainly it was not she who had 
 destroyed the last relic and monument of the 
 ancient name — who had drained the loch and 
 levelled the old stronghold with the ground ; 
 and he must know that ; but she wished him to 
 know more; she wished him to know how 
 indignant she had been when she first heard of 
 that monstrous and iniquitous act of vandalism. 
 And then again (as she still stood gazing at the 
 island out there in the wide blue waters, with 
 the white foam springing high in the sunlight 
 along its southern coasts) it seemed to her that 
 she rather feared meeting this man. Eude and 
 lawless and mannerless, might he not laugh at 
 her stumbling apologies ? Or in his Highland 
 pride he might scorn her southern birth, and
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 91 
 
 vouchsafe no word in reply? Well, being 
 sorry was all that remained for her ; what was 
 done could not be undone ; it was not within 
 her power to bring back Castle Heimra from 
 that waste of ruin. 
 
 She had got up very early, but she did not 
 care to waken Kate, who was no doubt tired 
 with the long drive of yesterday ; she thought 
 instead she would quietly slip outside and have 
 some little investigation of her surroundings. 
 So she quickly finished dressing ; went down 
 and through the lofty oak hall ; passed out upon 
 the stone terrace, and from thence descended 
 into the garden, where she found herself quite 
 alone. The air was sweet and soft ; there was 
 a pleasant scent of newly-delved earth ; and 
 everywhere there was abundant evidence that 
 the Spring had already come to this sheltered 
 space — for there were masses of daffodils and 
 primroses and wallflower all aglow in the 
 warm sunlight, and there were bunches of 
 blossom on the cherry-trees trained up the high 
 stone wall. She went away down to the end 
 of the garden, opened a door she found there, 
 and, passing through, entered the wilder soli-
 
 ^2 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 tude of the woods. And ever as she wandered 
 idly and carelessly along, the sense that she was 
 the mistress and owner of all these beautiful 
 things around her seemed to grow on her and 
 produce a certain not unnatural joy and pride. 
 For the moment she had forgotten all the 
 problems in human nature and in economics 
 that lay ahead of her ; here she had all the 
 world to herself — this picturesque world of 
 silver-grey rock, and golden gorse, and taller 
 larch and spruce, all dappled with sun and 
 shadow, while the fresh odours of the Spring 
 were everywhere around, and a stirring of the 
 new life of the year. And then, when she had 
 fought her way through the thick underwood 
 to the summit of one of the westward-looking 
 cliffs — behold ! the dark blue sea, and the 
 sunny headlands, and Eilean Heimra, with its 
 thunder- shocks of foam. Heimra island again ; 
 it seemed to be always confronting her ; but 
 however long she might gaze in that direction, 
 there was no sign of any white-winged yacht 
 coming sailing out into the blue. 
 
 And then she scrambled down from this 
 height to the water's edge ; and here she dis-
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 93 
 
 covered a most sequestered little haven — a 
 small, semicircular bay sheltered from the land- 
 winds by rocks and trees, while the pellucid 
 green sea broke in ripples of silver along the 
 cream- white and lilac pebbles. A most solitary 
 spot — quiet, and sunny, and peaceful : she 
 began to think that whatever might be done 
 with other portions of her property, she would 
 keep this little bit of picturesque seclusion 
 entirely for herself. This, surely, could be of 
 no use to anybody — the pebbly beach, the rocks 
 purple-black with mussels or olive-green with 
 seaweed, the clear water whispering along the 
 shore. Political economy should not follow 
 her hither ; here would be her place of rest — 
 her place of dreaming — when she was done 
 with studying the wants of others, and wished 
 to commune with her own soul. 
 
 But all of a sudden she found she was not 
 alone : an apparition had become visible — a 
 solitary figure that had quietly come round the 
 rocky point, and was now regarding her with 
 dumb apprehension. This was a girl of about 
 five-and-twenty, who had something of an 
 Irish cast of face : fair-complexioned, freckled, a
 
 94 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 tilted nose, grey eyes wide-apart and startled- 
 looking, and curly light-brown hair that was 
 mostly concealed by the scarlet shawl she wore 
 round her head and shoulders. She regarded 
 Miss Stanley with obvious fear, and did not 
 advance ; her eyes, that had the timidity of a 
 wild animal in them, had something more than 
 that ; they seemed to say that the poor creature 
 was but half-witted. Nevertheless the young 
 proprietress instantly concluded that this was 
 one of "her people," and that, therefore, she 
 was bound to make friends. 
 
 " Good morning ! " said Mary, and she 
 brought her wonder-working smile and dimple 
 into play, as well she knew how. 
 
 A quick light, of wonder and pleasure, 
 sprang into the girl's eyes. She came forward 
 a little way, timidly. She smiled, in a plead- 
 ing sort of fashion. And then she ventured 
 to hold out her hand, timidly. Mary went 
 forward at once. 
 
 " I am very glad to make your acquaintance," 
 she said, in her bland tones, " and you must 
 tell me who you are." 
 
 But the girl, taking the hand that was oflfered
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 95 
 
 to her, bent one knee and made a humble and 
 profound curtsy (where she could have learnt 
 this trick it is hard to say), and then she uplifted 
 her smiling and beseeching eyes to the great 
 lady (who was considerably taller than she), 
 and still held her hand, and repeated several 
 times something that sounded like Bentyurna 
 men — Bentyurna men.^ 
 
 " I am very sorry I don't know Gaelic," 
 said Mary, rather disappointedly. " Don't you 
 know a little English ? " 
 
 The girl still held her hand, and patted it ; 
 and looked into her face with pleased and 
 wistful eyes ; and again she was addressed as 
 Bentyurna veen. And then, in this unknown 
 tongue, something more was said, of which 
 Mary could only make out the single word 
 Heimra. 
 
 " Oh, do you come from Heimra island ? " 
 she asked, quickly. 
 
 But of the girl's further and rapid speech 
 she could make nothing at all. So she said — 
 
 " I am really very sorry ; but I don't know 
 any Gaelic. Come with me to the house, and 
 
 * Baintighearna mhin — the gentle lady.
 
 96 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 I will get some one to speak between us. Come 
 with me, to Lochgarra House, do you under- 
 stand ? " 
 
 The girl smiled, as if in assent ; and there- 
 upon the two of them set out, following a 
 winding path through the woods that even- 
 tually brought them to the garden gate. But 
 here a curious incident occurred. Mary opened 
 the gate, and held it for her unknown friend 
 to follow ; but at the same moment the girl 
 caught sight of Mr. Purdie, who had come 
 along for instructions, and was now in the 
 garden awaiting Miss Stanley's return. The 
 instant that this stranger girl beheld the Little 
 Eed Dwarf, she uttered a quick cry of terror, 
 and turned and fled ; in a moment she was out 
 of sight in the thick underwood. Mary stood 
 still, astounded. It was no use her trying to 
 follow. And so, after a second or two of be- 
 wilderment, she turned and went on to the house, 
 saying a few words to Mr. Purdie in passing, 
 but not with reference to this encounter. Some 
 instinct suggested that she ought to seek for 
 information elsewhere. 
 
 When she went into the dining-room she
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 97 
 
 found that Kathchen had come down, and also 
 that Barbara was bringing in breakfast. 
 
 " Barbara," said she, ^' do you know of a girl 
 about here who seems to be not quite in her 
 right mind, poor thing ? A fair-complexioned 
 girl, who wears a red shawl round her head 
 and shoulders " 
 
 " Oh, that was just Anna Chlannach * that^ 
 Miss Stanley would be seeing," said Barbara, 
 in her soft-spoken way. 
 
 " And does she come from Heimra Island ? " 
 was the next question. 
 
 " Oh, no, she is not from Eilean Heimra," 
 said Barbara. '' Maybe she would be speaking 
 to Miss Stanley, and it is about her mother she 
 would be speaking. Her mother died about, 
 two years ago ; but Anna thinks she has been 
 changed into one of the white sea-birds that 
 fly about Eilean Heimra, and that she is 
 coming back, and so she goes along the shore 
 and watches for her. That is what she would 
 be saying to Miss Stanley." 
 
 " Barbara, can you tell me why the girl 
 should be afraid of Mr. Purdie ? " 
 
 '^ Anna Chlannach — Anne of the many curls. 
 
 VOL. I. H
 
 98 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMKA. 
 
 " Oh, well, indeed, ma'am, they were saying 
 that Mr. Purdie was for having her sent away 
 to an asylum ; and it is no doubt Anna would 
 rather be among her own people." 
 
 " To an asylum ? " Mary demanded sharply. 
 " For what reason ? She does no harm ? " 
 
 " There is no harm about Anna Chlannach," 
 said Barbara, simply and seriously, as she 
 busied herself with the table things. " There 
 is no harm at all about Anna Chlannach, poor 
 girl. But when Mr. Purdie wishes a thing to 
 be done, then it has to be done." 
 
 The hot blood mounted to Mary Stanley's 
 face. 
 
 " Oh, do ^on think so ? " said she. " For I 
 do not think so — not at all ! It is not Mr. 
 Purdie who is to be the master here — when I 
 am here. I will let Mr. Purdie understand 
 that he is not to — to interfere with my 
 people " 
 
 " Mary ! " said Kate Grlendinning, in an 
 undertone. 
 
 Mary was silent ; she knew she had been 
 indiscreet. But presently she said — 
 
 " Well, Kathchen, I see I must learn Gaelic."
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 99 
 
 " Graelic," observed Kate, sententiously, " is 
 ■a very intricate key ; and then when you've 
 got it, and put it in the lock, and turned it, 
 you find the cupboard empty." 
 
 ''Perhaps so with regard to literature — I. 
 do not know ; but I want to be able to talk 
 to the people here, without the intervention of 
 an interpreter. Barbara," said she, to the 
 parlour-maid, who had come into the room 
 again, '' do you know what hentyurna veen is ? " 
 
 " Baintigliearna mhin ? " said Barbara, with 
 a smile. '' Oh, that is ' the gentle lady/ And 
 that is what Anna Chlannach would be calling 
 Miss Stanley, I have no doubt of that." 
 
 " Well, now, Barbara," Mary continued, 
 *' you must tell me how to say this in Gaelic — 
 * Am I welcome ? ' What is that in Gaelic ? " 
 
 But here Barbara became very much em- 
 barrassed. 
 
 " I am sure it is not necessary that Miss 
 Stanley should say that — oh no, indeed," she 
 answered with averted eyes. 
 
 " I am not so sure," said Mary, in her direct 
 way. " I hope the time will come when I shall 
 not have to ask such a question in going into
 
 100 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 a 
 
 any one's cottage ; but at present I am 
 stranger, and I must make my way gradually. 
 Now, Barbara, what is the Graelic for ' Am 
 I welcome ? ' " 
 
 But still Barbara hesitated. 
 
 " If you would ask Mr. Purdie, ma'am, he 
 would give you the good Graelic." 
 
 *' No, I will not," said the imperative young 
 mistress. " I dare say your Graelic is quite as 
 good as Mr. Purdie's." 
 
 " And you would be saying ' Am I welcome ? ' 
 in going into a house ? " said Barbara, slowly— 
 for translation is a serious difficulty to the 
 untutored mind. "Oh, I think you would just 
 say ' An e mo hlieatha ? ' ; but why would Miss 
 Stanley be saying such a thing as that ? " 
 
 " ' An e mo hheatha ? ' — is that right ? Very 
 well ! " 
 
 *' And how will you understand their answer, 
 Mamie ? " Kate Glendinning asked. 
 
 "I will read that in their faces," was the 
 reply. 
 
 It was quite clear that the young proprietress 
 had in no wise been disheartened by that first 
 interview with one of her tenants on the
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 101 
 
 previous evening. This fair-skining morning 
 found her as full of ardent enthusiasm, of 
 generous aspirations, as ever ; and here was 
 the carriage awaiting them ; and here was Mr. 
 Purdie, obsequious ; and even Kathchen looked 
 forward with eagerness to getting a general 
 view of the estate. Then their setting forth 
 was entirely cheerful ; the Spring air was sweet 
 around them ; the sunlight lay warm on the 
 iarches and on the tall and thick-stemmed bushes 
 of gorse that were all a blaze of gold. But it 
 was not of landscape that Mary Stanley was 
 thinking ; it was of human beings ; and the 
 first human being she saw was a little old 
 woman who was patiently trudging along with 
 a heavy creel of peats strapped on her back. 
 
 " The poor old woman ! " she exclaimed, with 
 an infinite compassion in her eyes. " Doesn't 
 it seem hard she should have to work at her 
 time of life ? " 
 
 " She's a good deal better off than if she 
 were in Seven Dials or the Bowery," said 
 Kathchen. "But perhaps you would like to 
 give her a seat in the carriage ? " 
 
 " You may laugh if you like," said Mary,
 
 102 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 quite simply, ^'but it seems to me it would be 
 more becoming if that poor old woman were 
 sitting here and I were carrying the creeL 
 However, I suppose we shall have to begin 
 with something more practicable." 
 
 But was it more practicable ? — that was the 
 question she had speedily to put to herself. 
 For no sooner had they left the wooded 
 ' policies ' and surroundings of Lochgarra 
 House than they entered upon a stretch of 
 country the sterility of which might have ap- 
 palled her if only she had fully comprehended 
 it. Land such as the poorest of Gralway 
 peasants would have shunned — an Arabia 
 Petrsea — rocks, stones, and heather — wave upon 
 wave of Hebridean gneiss, the ruddy-grey 
 knolls and dips and heights showing hardly 
 a trace of vegetation or of soil. And yet 
 there were human beings here, busy on their 
 small patches ; and there were hovels, some of 
 them thatched, others covered over with turf 
 tied down by ropes ; while now and again 
 there appeared a smarter cottage, with a slated 
 roof, and lozenge-panes of glass in the window. 
 Moreover, they had now come in sight of the
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 103 
 
 sea again ; yonder was a far-stretcliing bay of 
 silvery sand ; and out at the margin of the 
 water, which was at lowest ebb, there were 
 a number of people, mostly women and young 
 lads and girls, stooping at work ; while an 
 occasional small dark figure, with a hump on 
 its back, was seen to be crossing the expanse 
 of white. 
 
 '' What are they doing, Mr. Purdie ? " Mary 
 asked. 
 
 " TheyVe cutting seaware for manure to put 
 on their crofts," was the answer. 
 
 And at the same moment her attention was 
 drawn to a man not far from the roadside who, 
 in his little bit of rocky ground, was making 
 use of an implement the like of which she had 
 never seen or heard of. 
 
 " What is that, Mr. Purdie ? Is it some kind 
 of spade ? " 
 
 " Oh, just a foot-plough — there's no other kind 
 of plough would be of any use in this district." 
 
 And nothing would do but that she must 
 descend and examine this novel method of 
 tillage. She went boldly up to the man : he 
 was a tall, lean, swarthy person, severe of
 
 104 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 aspect, who kept a pair of hawk-like eyes fixed 
 on the factor all the time he rather unwillingly 
 Answered her questions. For Mary, to her 
 great delight^ discovered that this man could 
 speak English ; and she wanted information at 
 first hand ; and indeed she immediately showed 
 a very definite knowledge of what she was 
 after. The man clearly did not like being 
 cross-examined; again and again he resumed 
 his delving operations with that long-coultered 
 instrument that he worked with foot and arms ; 
 but she would take no heed of his sullen 
 humour. What stock had he ? — two cows, two 
 stirks, eight sheep up on the common pasture, 
 and a pony. What potatoes did he raise? — 
 well, he would plant about two barrels, and 
 maybe get ten or twelve barrels. Did he make 
 any meal ? — hardly any ; the cows and stirks 
 did not let his crops come to the threshing. 
 And so forth, until Mary said — 
 
 " But I don't see where you get any capital 
 to work the croft, or to increase the stock if we 
 could give you more land. You don't seem to 
 be getting any money." 
 
 " No, no money at ahl," said the crofter.
 
 THE BATNTIGHEAENA. 105 
 
 *' Listen to him ! " interposed Mr. Purdie, 
 with an angry frown. " Let me tell you this, 
 Miss Stanley : that man gets twenty-five 
 shillings a week, gillie's wages, when the 
 gentlemen are here for the shooting, and besides 
 that he hires his pony to them at twenty-three 
 shillings a week ; and I suppose he's just the 
 one to cry out that not a sportsman should be 
 allowed to come into the country." 
 
 " Is it true that you get that money ? " said 
 Mary, calmly. 
 
 " Ay, that is true," he admitted, in rather a 
 sulky fashion ; " but it is not from the croft 
 I get the money." 
 
 " Well, I am only making enquiries at 
 present," said Miss Stanley. " I wish to know 
 what improvements are possible — I wish to 
 know what the people want " 
 
 But here, to her surprise, she was interrupted. 
 
 "A railway," said the tall, black-a-vised 
 crofter. 
 
 " A railway ? " she repeated. 
 "Ay — a railway to Bonar." 
 " A railway to Bonar Bridge ? " she said, 
 staring at the man. " Why, what good would
 
 106 DOXALD ROSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 that do you ? Take your own case. You say 
 you have nothing to sell. Even if there were 
 a railway to Bonar Bridge — and there couldn't 
 be, for the cost would be enormous, and there 
 would be no traffic to speak of — but supposing 
 there were a railway, how would that benefit 
 you? 
 
 He made no reply ; he merely worked away 
 with the long and narrow coulter, turning up 
 the poor soil. So she saw it was no use arguing 
 with him ; she bade him a cheerful " Good- 
 morning ! " and came away again. 
 
 And with a right gallant courage did she 
 continue her house-to-house visitation, desper- 
 ately trying to win friends for herself, and 
 wondering more and more that she was so 
 ill received. She was not accustomed to sour 
 looks and sullen manners ; and in casting about 
 for some possible reason for this strange be- 
 haviour she began to ask herself whether she 
 might not get on better with these people if 
 Mr. Purdie were well away back in his office in 
 Inverness. One point struck her as being very 
 peculiar ; not a single man or woman of them 
 asked for a reduction of rent. She thought
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 107 
 
 that wotild have been the first thing for them 
 to demand, and the simplest for her to consider ; 
 but it was never mentioned. They asked for 
 all kinds of other things — when they would 
 speak at all. They wanted herring-nets from 
 the Government ; they wanted more boats from 
 the Government — and the instalments of re- 
 payment to be made smaller ; they wanted the 
 steamer to call in thrice a week, during the ling 
 season ; they wanted their arrears of debt to 
 the curers to be wiped off; they wanted more 
 pasture land ; they wanted more arable land. 
 
 " As for pasture land," said Kathchen, in an 
 undertone, as they were leaving one of these 
 poor steadings, '^ I don't know whether you 
 will be able to persuade Mr. Watson to give up 
 a slice of his sheep-farm ; but as regards arable 
 land, Mary, you should tell those people they 
 have made a mistake about you. You are not 
 the Creator of the Universe : you can't make 
 arable land out of nothing;." 
 
 "Don't be profane," said Mary, severely. 
 '' And mind, I'm not going to have any gig- 
 gling disparagement of my work : I can tell 
 you, it promises to be very serious."
 
 108 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Serious enougli ! When they got back to 
 Lochgarra House in the afternoon, her head 
 was fairly in a whirl with conflicting statements 
 and conflicting demands. She knew not how 
 or where to begin ; the future seemed all in a 
 maze ; while the personal reception accorded 
 her (though she tried to think nothing of that 
 for the moment) had been distinctly repellent. 
 And yet, not satisfied with this long day's 
 work, she would go down to the village in the 
 evening, to see what was expected of her there. 
 
 " I suppose I can interfere ? " she said, to Mr. 
 Purdie, who was having tea with them. 
 
 " Beg pardon ? " 
 
 " I suppose I can interfere ? The village 
 belongs to me, does it not ? " she demanded. 
 
 " In a measure it does," said the factor. " Of 
 course you are the Superior ; but where feus 
 have been granted, they have the land in 
 perpetuity, while you have only the rent • " 
 
 " Oh, I can't interfere, then ? " said she, 
 with some disappointment that her sphere of 
 activity seemed limited in that direction. 
 
 " You can step in to see that the conditions 
 of the leases have been respected "
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 109 
 
 " But I can't do things ? " 
 
 ^' They'll let you do whatever ye like — so 
 long as it means spending money on them," 
 said Mr. Purdie, with grim sarcasm. 
 
 " The inn, for example ? " 
 
 " The inn is different. We built the inn. 
 The landlord is only a yearly tenant." 
 
 '' We will go down and see him at once, if 
 you please, Mr. Purdie," said Mary, with 
 promptitude. " I have a scheme in my head. 
 Kathchen, are you tired ? " 
 
 Kate laughed, and dragged herself from her 
 chair. Indeed, she was dead tired ; but none 
 the less she was determined to see this thing 
 out. So the three of them proceeded along to 
 the village as far as the inn — which was a 
 plain little two-storeyed building, with not 
 even a sign hanging over the door ; and there 
 they went into the stuffy little parlour, and 
 sate down, Mr. Purdie ringing the bell and 
 sending for the landlord. 
 
 " Aren't those things dreadful ? " said Mary, 
 glancing around at the hideous stone and china 
 ornaments on the mantelshelf and elsewhere — 
 pink greyhounds chasing a yellow hare ; bronze
 
 110 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 stags that could only have been designed in 
 wild delirium ; impossible white poodles on a 
 ground of cobalt blue, and ^the like ; while on 
 the walls were two gaudy lithographs — Grerman- 
 looking nymphs with actual spangles in their 
 hair and bits of gold and crimson tinsel round 
 their neck. " I must have all this altered 
 throughout the cottages " 
 
 " Oh, yes, Mamie," said Kathchen ; '' Broussa 
 silks — Lindos plates — a series of etchings " 
 
 But here was the landlord, a rather youngish 
 and shortish man, who seemed depressed and 
 dismal, and also a little apprehensive. 
 
 " Well, Peter," said Mr. Purdie, in his merry 
 way, " what are ye frightened for ? Ye've got 
 a face as if ye'd murdered somebody. We're 
 not going to raise your rent." 
 
 " It would be little use that — for I could not 
 pay it," said the sad-looking young man with 
 the cadaverous grey face and grey eyes. 
 
 " Won't you take a seat ? " said Miss Stanley, 
 interposing. " I have a proposal to make to 
 you." 
 
 Peter Grant did not answer : he remained 
 standing, stolidly and in silence.
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. Ill 
 
 " It seems to me," she went on, " that some- 
 thing should be done to bring visitors here in 
 the spring, as well as the few that come 
 through this way in the autumn. It would be 
 a benefit all round — to the inn, and to the 
 gillies who would be required, I mean for the 
 salmon-fishing in the Garra. Now I don't 
 particularly want the salmon-fishing in the 
 spring months ; and it seems to me if you were 
 enterprising you would rent it from me, and 
 advertise it, and let it to two or three gentle- 
 men, who would come and live in your house, 
 and give you a good profit. Do you see ? " 
 
 He answered not a word ; he kept his eyes 
 mostly fixed on the carpet ; so she continued — 
 
 " Gentlemen will go very far for salmon- 
 fishing now-a-days, so I am told ; and you 
 might give them quiet quarters here, and make 
 them comfortable, and every year they would 
 come back. And I should not be hard upon 
 you in fixing the rent. Indeed, I would rather 
 the proposal came from you. "What do you 
 think you could afford to give me for the 
 spring fishing in the Garra ? " 
 
 '' Oh, as for that," said the young landlord,
 
 112 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 rather uncivilly, ** I do not see that there 
 should be any rent. For the people about here 
 were saying that no one has a right to the 
 salmon more than anyone else." 
 
 " Now you know you're talking nonsense,'* 
 said Mary, with decision. " For if everyone 
 had a right to the salmon, in a fortnight's time 
 there would not be a single fish left in the 
 river. And besides, do you forget that there 
 is the law ? " 
 
 '' Oh, yes, Peter knows there is the law," 
 interposed Mr. Purdie, who seemed to be in a 
 most facetious mood. " Not more than two 
 months ago Peter found that out when the 
 Sheriff at Dingwall fined him ten shillings and 
 ten shillings expenses for having carried and 
 used a gun without a license. There is quite 
 sufficient of law in the land, as Peter has just 
 found out." 
 
 The young man's eyes were filled with a 
 sullen fire ; but he said nothing. 
 
 "However," continued Miss Stanley, not 
 heeding this interruption, " I would not insist 
 much on rent : I might even give you the 
 spring fishing for nothing, if you thought it
 
 THE BAINTIGHEARNA. 113 
 
 would induce the gentlemen to come and occupy 
 the inn. It is an out-of-the-way place ; but 
 perhaps you would not be charging them very 
 much either — not very much — I don't quite 
 know what would be a fair rent to ask — " 
 
 " I would charge them £30 a month," said he. 
 
 She looked up, a trifle indignant. 
 
 ** Oh, I see. The fishing is worth nothing 
 while I have it ; but it's worth £30 a month 
 when you have it : is that how the matter 
 stands ? Do you call that fair dealing ? Well, 
 I haven't given you the fishing yet — not on 
 those terms.'' She rose — rather proudly. 
 '* Come, Kathchen, I think we might go and 
 have a look at this fishing that seems to alter 
 in value so remarkably the moment it changes 
 hands. We need not trouble you, Mr. Purdie. 
 Good evening ! " This last salutation was 
 addressed to the landlord, who seemed to have 
 no word of explanation to offer : then the two 
 girls went out from the inn, and walked off in 
 the direction of the river, which they had seen 
 in passing on the previous evening. 
 
 Mary was no doubt considerably hurt and 
 offended ; and there were still further trials in 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 114 DONALD IIOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 store for lier before the end of this arduous 
 and disappointing day. She had proposed this 
 excursion to the river chiefly in order to get 
 rid of Mr. Purdie ; but when she and Kathchen 
 found themselves by the side of the G-arra, a 
 vague curiosity drew them on, until they had 
 penetrated into solitudes where the stream for 
 the most part lay still and dark under the gloom 
 of the steep overhanging banks. There was 
 something strangely impressive in the silence 
 and in the dusk ; for while a distant range of 
 hill flamed russet in the western light — an un- 
 imaginable glory — the stealthily creeping river 
 was here almost black in shadow, under the thick 
 birchwoods. And then suddenly she caught 
 Kathchen by the arm. Surely there was some 
 one there — a figure out in the stream — a faint 
 grey ghost in the mysterious twilight ? And 
 then a startling thing occurred. The figure 
 moved; and instantly, on the black and oily 
 surface of the water there was a series of vivid 
 blue- white circles widening out and out, and 
 slowly subsiding into the dark again. Each time 
 the grey ghost moved onward (and the two 
 girls stood motionless, watching this strange
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 115 
 
 phenomenon) there was this sudden gleam (the 
 reflection of the clear-shining heavens over- 
 head) that lasted for a moment or two ; then 
 the vague obscurity once more encompassed 
 the unknown person, and he became but an 
 almost imperceptible phantom. And was there 
 not some sound in the all-pervading stillness ? 
 — an occasional silken ' swish ' through the 
 air ? Mary understood what this was well 
 enough. 
 
 " That man is poaching," said she, calmly — 
 and she took no joains to prevent herself being 
 overheard. " And I suppose you and I, 
 Kathchen, have no means of arresting him, 
 and finding out who he is." 
 
 Her voice was clear, and no doubt carried a 
 considerable distance in this perfect silence. 
 Immediately after she had spoken there were 
 two or three further series of those flashing 
 rings — nearing the opposite bank : then dark- 
 ness again, and stillness ; the spectral fisher- 
 man, whoever he was, had vanished into the 
 thick birchwood. 
 
 But Mary Stanley made no doubt as to who 
 this was.
 
 116 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 "Now I understand," she said, bitterly, as 
 she and her companion set out for home again, 
 " why the salmon-fishing isn't worth £30 a 
 month to me — when it does not belong to me !' 
 And now I understand what Mr. Purdie said 
 about the poaching — and the connivance of 
 everybody around. And yet I suppose Mr. 
 Ross of Heimra calls himself a gentleman ? 
 I suppose he would not like to be called a thief? 
 Well, I call him a thief! I call poaching 
 thieving — and nothing but thieving — whatever 
 the people about here may think. And I say 
 it is not the conduct of a gentleman." 
 
 She was very angry and indignant ; and the 
 moment she got back to Lochgarra House she 
 sent for the head-keeper. In a few minutes 
 the tall and bushy-bearded Hector presented 
 himself at the door of the room, cap in hand — 
 a handsome man he was, with a grave and 
 serious face. 
 
 " Is any one allowed to fish in that river 
 who pleases ? '* she demanded. 
 
 " I was not aware of any one fishing, ma'am," 
 said the keeper, very respectfully. 
 
 " But is there no one watching ? " she de-
 
 THE BAINTIGHEABNA. 117 
 
 • 
 
 manded, again. " Can any poacher who chooses 
 have the run of the stream? Does it belong 
 to everybody? Is it common property? Be- 
 cause — because I merely wish to know.'' 
 
 She was somewhat perturbed and excited ; 
 she did not think she was being dealt with 
 justly; and she saw in the grave and reticent 
 manner of the head-keeper only an intention 
 of screening the culprit whom she herself had 
 by accident detected a little while before. 
 
 " The fishing in the Grarra is not very good 
 in the spring," said the weather-browned 
 Hector, "and we were not thinking it was 
 much use to have a water-bailiff whatever." 
 
 "But surely it is your business to see that 
 no poaching goes on, either on the river or 
 anywhere else ? Surely that is your duty ? 
 And if there were no fishing, would anyone 
 fish ? — you may trust a poacher to know ! I'm 
 sure," she went on, with something of a hurt 
 manner, "it is very little I ask. I only want 
 to be treated fairly. I am trying to do my 
 best for every one in the place — I wish to do 
 what is right by every one. But then I want 
 to be treated fairly in return. And poaching
 
 118 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 is not fair ; nor do I think it fair that you, as 
 a keeper, should make excuses for it, or try 
 to screen anyone, whoever he may be." 
 
 The man's face became rather pale — even 
 under the weather tan. 
 
 **If Miss Stanley would be wanting to get 
 another gamekeeper," he said, slowly and 
 respectfully, " I would not be asking to stay." 
 
 "Oh, you would rather leave than interfere 
 
 with Mr. " She did not complete the 
 
 sentence. She turned away and walked to the 
 window. The fact is, it had been a long and 
 harassing day ; her nerves had got unstrung ; 
 and all of a sudden a fit of helplessness and 
 despair came over her ; it seemed impossible . 
 she could ever struggle against this mis- 
 construction and opposition and dislike. 
 
 Kate Glendinning turned to the keeper. 
 
 "You need not wait, Hector," said she, in 
 an undertone. 
 
 Then she went to her friend. Mary had broken 
 down completely — and was sobbing bitterly. 
 
 " Mamie ! " 
 
 " I — I am not used to it," she said, between 
 her sobs. " All^day long, it has been nothing
 
 THE BAINTIGHEAENA. 119 
 
 but hatred — and — and I am not used to being 
 hated. What have I done to deserve it ? I 
 wish to — to do what is right by every one — 
 and — and I tried my — my very hardest to make 
 friends with every one. It is not fair — " 
 
 " No, it is not," said Kathchen, and she took 
 her companion by the hand and led her back 
 into the room. " But you must not be dis- 
 heartened all at once. Give them time. They 
 don't understand you yet. And I will back 
 you to win over people against any one I ever 
 knew : the fact is, Mary, you have always 
 found it so easy, that when you meet with a 
 little trouble you are terribly disappointed. 
 They don't hate you, those people ; they don't 
 know you — that is all." 
 
 And indeed the girl's naturally sunny 
 temperament soon broke through these bitter 
 mortifications. 
 
 " After all, Kathchen," she said, " I have 
 not quite lost a day : I was forgetting that I 
 made one friend." There was an odd smile 
 shining from behind her tears. "It is true she 
 is half-witted ; but all the same I am glad that 
 Anna Chlannach seemed to approve of me."
 
 120 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 CHAPTER y. 
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 
 
 And once again a wild, clear, breezy morning ; 
 the sea a more brilliant blue than ever ; the 
 heavy surge bursting like a bombshell on the 
 rocks of Eilean Heimra, and springing some 
 sixty or seventy feet in the air. Altogether 
 a joyous and gladdening sight — from the 
 several windows of this spacious room in the 
 tower ; but nevertheless Kate, who was far 
 from being a foolish virgin, observed that the 
 wind must have backed during the night to 
 the south, and therefore she began to talk 
 about waterproofs. For Mr. Purdie was 
 leaving to-day ; and the two girls, thrown 
 upon their own resources, had planned an 
 excursion to those portions of the estate they 
 had not yet visited — the higher moorland 
 districts ; and of course that had to be
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 121 
 
 accomplished on foot. They did not propose 
 to take a guide with them ; they would simply 
 go along to the ' march ' beyond the little 
 hamlet of Cruagan, and follow the boundary 
 line across the hills. Sooner or later they 
 would strike either the Corrie Bhreag or Grlen 
 Orme, with the lower parts of which they were 
 acquainted. 
 
 And so, with some snack of luncheon in their 
 pocket and a leather drinking-cup, and with 
 their waterproofs over their arm, they set out 
 — the sunlight pleasant around them, an odour 
 of seaweed in the air. This was to be a little 
 bit of a holiday : for this one day, at least, 
 there were to be no persistent and patient 
 questions met by sullen replies, no timid 
 proffers of friendship answered by obdurate 
 silence. And yet as they neared the village, 
 Mary was reminded of her perplexities, and 
 griefs, and disappointments ; for here was the 
 solitary policeman of the place, standing out- 
 side the small building that served him for 
 both police-office and dwelling-house. John, 
 as he was simply called — or more generally, 
 Iain — was not at all a terrible-looking person ;
 
 122 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 on the contrary he was quite a young man, 
 very sleek and fat and roseate, with rather a 
 merry blue eye, and a general appearance of 
 good-nature : a stout, wholesome-complexioned, 
 good-humoured young man, who was evidently 
 largely acquainted with the virtues of porridge 
 and fresh milk. When Mary saw him, she said, — 
 
 '^Well, Kathchen, if they're all in league 
 against me, even my own gamekeepers, to 
 screen the poaching that is going on, I will 
 appeal to the policeman. He is bound to put 
 down thieving of every kind." 
 
 " You'd better not, Mamie," was the instant 
 rejoinder. " It would be very awkward if a 
 question were asked in the House of Commons 
 — about a Highland proprietor who had the 
 shameless audacity to ask Her Majesty's own 
 representative to watch a salmon-river in place 
 of the ordinary keepers." 
 
 However, this project came to nothing in the 
 present case ; for as they drew near they found 
 that the belted guardian of the peace was him- 
 self in dire trouble. An elderly woman — no 
 doubt his mother— had opened an upper 
 window in the small two-storeyed building ;
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEX BOG. 123 
 
 and she was haranguing and scolding him with 
 an unheard-of volubility. What it was all 
 about, neither Kathchen nor Mary had the 
 least idea, for the old woman was rating him 
 in Gaelic ; but John, seeing the young ladies 
 approach, grew more and more roseate and 
 embarrassed. Of course he pretended not to 
 hear. He gazed out towards Heimra Island. 
 Then with his stick he prodded at the mass of 
 seaweed by the roadside that was waiting there 
 to be carted away. And then he smiled in a 
 tolerant manner, as if all this tempest were 
 rather amusing ; and finally, not being able, in 
 such humiliating circumstances, to face the two 
 ladies, the upholder of the majesty of the law 
 turned and beat a speedy retreat, hiding him- 
 self in the lower floor of the house until they 
 should pass. So that on this occasion Mary 
 had no chance of asking Iain whether he would 
 catch poachers for her. 
 
 ** I am sure," said she, as they were passing 
 through the town, and over the Garra bridge, 
 and up into the country beyond, "I do not care 
 to preserve the game, if it were for myself 
 alone. If I thought it would be really for the
 
 124 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 good of the people here, I would have every 
 head of game on the estate destroyed, and 
 every salmon netted out of the river. But 
 you hear what they say themselves — many of 
 them would never see money at all if it weren't 
 for the gillies' wages, and the hiring of the 
 ponies, and so on, in the autumn. Then the 
 few deer that stray on to the ground, from the 
 Grlen Orme forest, thev don't come near the 
 crofts — they do no harm whatever, except, 
 perhaps, to Mr. Watson's pasture, and he can 
 easily get rid of them, if he likes, by saying a 
 word to his shepherds. So that the shooting 
 and the fishing are nothing but an advantage, 
 and a very great advantage, to the people ; and 
 I tell you this, Kathchen, that I mean to 
 preserve them as well as ever I can. And 
 really it seems shameful that a gentleman in 
 Mr. Ross's position should have so little self- 
 respect as to become a common poacher — " 
 
 " You forget how he has been brought up — 
 according to Mr. Purdie's account," Kathchen 
 put in. 
 
 But Mary did not heed the interruption. 
 She was very indignant on this point.
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEX BOG. 12."> 
 
 *' It is quite excusable," said she, " for the 
 poor, ignorant people about here to believe that 
 the Rosses of Heimra are still the rightful 
 owners of the land. They know nothing 
 about the law courts and agent's offices in 
 London. They only know that as far back as 
 they have heard of, and down to their own 
 day, the land has belonged to the Rosses ; and 
 their Highland loyalty remains staunch and 
 true ; it is not to be bought over by the 
 stranger ; and perhaps it is not even to be 
 acquired by kindness — but we'll see about that 
 in time. However, what I say is this, that I 
 don't complain of these poor people havino^ 
 such mistaken ideas ; but Mr. Ross knows 
 better ; he knows well enough that he has not 
 the least shadow of right to anything belong- 
 ing to the Lochgarra estate ; and that if he 
 takes a grouse, or a hare, or a salmon, he is 
 constituting himself a common thief" 
 
 But now, and for an instant, she was stricken 
 dumb. They had come in sight of the dried- 
 up loch and the waste heap of stones that once 
 was Castle Heimra ; and this sad sped acle seemed 
 to put some strange fancies into her head.
 
 126 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 " Kathchen," said she, " do you think he does 
 it out of revenge ? " 
 
 Now Kate Glen dinning herself was of High- 
 land blood ; and she made answer boldly — 
 
 '' I have told you already, Mary, that if I 
 were young Ross of Heimra, and such an 
 injury had been done to me and mine — well, I 
 should not like to say what I should be inclined 
 to do in return. A sentimental grievance! — 
 yes ; but it is sentimental grievances that go 
 deepest down into the Highland nature, and 
 that are longest remembered. But then on the 
 other hand it seems to me that shooting game 
 or killing salmon is a very paltry form of 
 revenge. That is not how I should try to have 
 it out with Mr. Purdie — for who can doubt 
 that it was Mr. Purdie destroyed the loch and 
 the castle ? — I saw his air of triumph when he 
 told the story. No ; poaching wouldn't be my 
 revenge — " 
 
 " There is more than that, Kathchen," Mary 
 said, absently. " It isn't merely defying the 
 keepers, or being in league with them. There 
 is more than that. I wonder, now, if it is he 
 who has set those people against us, so that
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 127 
 
 they will never regard us but as strangers and 
 enemies ? It is not natural, their sullen refusal 
 of kindness. There is something hidden — 
 something behind — that I don't understand." 
 She was silent for a second or two : then she 
 said — " I wonder if he thinks he can drive me 
 out of the place by stirring up this bitter ill- 
 will." 
 
 *' There is one way to get over the difficulty," 
 said Kathchen, lightly. " Ask him to Loch- 
 garra House. He is a Highlander : if he has 
 once sate down at your table, he cannot be 
 your enemy afterwards." 
 
 A touch of colour rose to Mary's face. 
 " You forget the character he bears," she 
 said, somewhat proudly. 
 
 And here they were at the Cruagan crofts ; 
 and the people were all busy in the wide 
 stretch of land enclosed by a dilapidated fence 
 of posts and wire, James Macdonald, the 
 elderly crofter who had complained of the 
 dyke-tax, was ploughing drills for potatoes ; 
 two or three women and girls were planting ; 
 and a white-haired old man was bringing out 
 the seed-potatoes in a pail. The plough was
 
 128 DONALD EOSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 being drawn by two horses wearing buge black 
 collars — what these were for the two visitors 
 could not imagine. 
 
 " Are you going to speak to him, Mary ? '^ 
 Kate asked in an undertone — as the plough 
 was coming towards the end of the field. 
 
 " Yes, I am," said the young lady. '* I want 
 to see if the remission of the tax has had no 
 effect on him. Perhaps he will have a little 
 more English now." 
 
 There was no time to be lost — the horses 
 were turning. She stepped across from the 
 road. 
 
 " May I interrupt you for a moment ? I 
 want to ask you — " 
 
 Well, the grey-bearded man with the shaggy 
 eyebrows did check the horses — perhaps he had 
 meant to give them a rest at the end of the 
 drill. 
 
 " Oh, thank you," said Mary, in her most 
 gracious and friendly way. " I only wished 
 to ask you whether Mr. Purdie had told you 
 that there was to be no more tax for the dyke, 
 and that there was to be fifteen years' of it 
 given back."
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAKN BOG. 129 
 
 The Russian-looking crofter regarded the 
 shafts of the plough without removing his 
 hands ; and then he said — 
 
 ** Yes — he was saying that." 
 
 Not a word of thanks ; but perhaps — she 
 generously thought — his English did not go 
 so far. 
 
 " It is good dry weather for ploughing, is 
 it not ? " she remarked at a venture. 
 
 There was no reply. 
 
 ^' That very old man," she asked, " who is 
 he — is he your father ? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 " It seems a pity he should be working at 
 his age," she went on, wishing to show sym- 
 pathy. " He ought to be sitting at the cottage 
 door, smoking his pipe." 
 
 '* Every one will have to work," said the 
 elderly crofter, in a morose sort of way ; and 
 then he looked at his horses. 
 
 " Oh well," said Mary, blithely, " I hope to 
 be able to make it a little easier for you all. 
 This land, now, how much do you pay for 
 it ? What is your rent ? " 
 
 " It — thirty shillings an acre." 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 130 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 '' Thirty shillings an acre ? That is too 
 much," said she, without a moment's hesitation. 
 *' Surely thirty shillings an acre is too much 
 for indifferent land like that 1 " 
 
 The small, suspicious eyes glanced at her 
 furtively. 
 
 '* I not saying it too mich," he made answer, 
 slowly. 
 
 " Oh, but I will consult Mr. Purdie about 
 it," said she, in her pleasantest way. " My 
 own impression is that thirty shillings an acre 
 is only asked for good land. But I will 
 inquire ; and see what can be done. Well, 
 good morning ! — I mustn't take up your 
 time." 
 
 She was coming away when he looked after 
 her. 
 
 ** I not saying — it — too mich rent," said he ; 
 and then he turned to his plough ; and his 
 laborious task was resumed. 
 
 " Isn't that odd ? " said Mary, as they were 
 going along the highway again. " None of 
 them seem anxious to have their rents reduced. 
 All day yesterday — not a single complaint ! " 
 
 "Well, Mamie," said Kathchen, "I don't
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 131 
 
 know ; but I can guess at a reason — perhaps 
 they are afraid to complain." 
 
 This set Mary thinking ; and they went on 
 in silence. She wished she knew Graelic. 
 
 When they came within sight of the ancient 
 boundary line, they left the road, struck 
 across a swampy piece of land where there 
 were a few straggling sheep, and then set to 
 work to climb the bare and rocky hill- side. 
 It was an arduous climb ; but both the young 
 women were active and lithe and agile ; and 
 they made very fair progress — stopping now 
 and again to recover their breath. Indeed, it 
 was not the difficulty of the ascent that was 
 present to their mind ; it was the terribly 
 bleak and lonely character of this domain they 
 were entering. Higher and higher as they 
 got, they seemed to be leaving the living world 
 behind them ; and then, when they reached a 
 level plateau, and could look away across this 
 new world, there was nothing but an endless 
 monotony of brown and purple knolls and 
 slopes, covered with heather and withered 
 grass, and then a series of hills along the 
 horizon, with one or two lofty mountain-peaks^
 
 132 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 dark and precipitous, and streaked here and 
 there with snow. There was no sign of life ; 
 nor any sound. As they advanced further and 
 further into this wilderness, a strange sense of 
 intrusion came over them ; it was as if they 
 had come into a land peopled by the dead — 
 who yet might be regarding them ; they looked 
 and listened, as if expecting something, they 
 knew not what. They did not speak the one 
 to the other ; indeed, they were some little way 
 apart — those two small figures in this vast 
 moorland solitude. Then they came to a tarn 
 — the water black as night — not a bush nor 
 the stump of a tree along its melancholy shores. 
 Nor even here was there the call of a curlew, 
 or the sudden whirr of a wild-duck's wings. 
 At this point the girls had come together again. 
 
 " Who can wonder at the superstitions of the 
 Highlanders ? " said Kathchen, half absently. 
 
 Mary's answer was a curious one. She was 
 looking at the black and oozy soil around her, 
 with its scattered knobs of yellow grass. 
 
 " I suppose," she said, meditatively, " they 
 send the sheep up here later on ? But it must 
 be wretched pasture even at its best."
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAKN BOa. 133 
 
 All this time they had been shut out of si^ht 
 of the sea by the higher ranges on their right ; 
 but by and by, when they had surmounted the 
 ridge in front of them, they came in view of at 
 least one new feature in the landscape — the 
 river Garra, lying far below them, in a wide 
 and empty valley. No hanging birch woods 
 here, or deep pools sheltered by lofty banks, as 
 in the neighbourhood where they had surprised 
 the ghostly fisherman ; but a treeless expanse of 
 rather swampy-looking ground, with the river 
 for the most part rushing over stony shallows. 
 
 " Did it occur to you, Kathchen, that we 
 should have to cross that stream ? " Mary asked, 
 as they were descending the hill. 
 
 " Where is the difficulty ? " said Kathchen, 
 coolly. " We shall simply have to do as the 
 country girls do, take off our shoes and stock- 
 ings, wade over, and put them on again on the 
 other side." 
 
 However, this undertaking they postponed 
 for the present ; for it was now mid-day ; and 
 they thought they might as well have luncheon 
 when they got down to the side of the Garra. 
 They chose out a rock wide enough to afford
 
 134 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 them seats ; opened their small packages, and 
 filled the leather drinking-cups at the stream. 
 Up in these altitudes the water was not at all of 
 a peaty-brown ; it was quite clear, with some- 
 thing of a pale greenish hue ; it had come from 
 rocky regions, and from melting snow. 
 
 "It seems very odd to me," said Mary, as 
 they contentedly munched their biscuits and 
 sliced hard-boiled eggs, " that I should find 
 myself in a place like this — a place that looks as 
 if no human being had ever been here before — 
 and yet be the actual owner of it. I suppose 
 there never were any people living here ? " 
 
 " They must have been clever if they did," 
 said Kathchen. " To tell you the truth, Mary, 
 the most part of the Lochgarra estate that I 
 have seen is only fit for one thing, and 
 that is to make heather brooms for sweeping 
 kitchens." 
 
 ** Ah, but wait," said the young proprietress, 
 confidently. '' Wait a little while, and you will 
 see. Wait till you hear of all the improve- 
 ments " 
 
 " A railway to Bonar Bridge ? " said Kate 
 Glendinning, carefully lifting the leather cup.
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAKN BOG. 135 
 
 " Now look here, Mephistopheles," said Mary, 
 seriously. " I could murder you, without the 
 least trouble. I ara stronger than you ; I could 
 kill you, and hide you in a hole in the rocks, 
 and you'd never be heard of again. So you'd 
 better have a little discretion in flouting at my 
 schemes. Ah, if you only knew ! Why, listen 
 to this, now : are you aware that there is a far 
 greater demand for the Harris homespun cloth 
 than the people can supply ? I discovered that 
 at Inverness. I was told that half the home- 
 spun sold in London is imitation, made in Man- 
 chester. "Well, I propose to let them have the 
 real homespun — yes, and plenty of it ! And 
 more than that ; I'm going to have homespun 
 druggets, and homespun plaids; and blankets, 
 and shawls, and patch-work quilts ; and all the 
 carding and spinning and weaving, and all the 
 knitting of the stockings, to be done by my own 
 people. And I'll have a sale-room in London ; 
 and advertise in the papers — that they're the 
 real things, and not sham at all ; and if I have 
 any friends in the South, well, let them show 
 themselves my friends by coming forward and 
 helping us ! No charity — far from it ; they get
 
 136 DONALD BOSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 value, and more than value, for their money ; 
 why, where is there any such stuff as homespun 
 for gentlemen's shooting costumes, or for ladies 
 ulsters ; and where can you get such warmth in 
 winter from any other kind of stockings ? I 
 don't like to see so many women working in the 
 fields — especially the old women — and carrying 
 those heavy creels of seaweed ; I'm going to get 
 them lighter work — that will pay them better ; 
 and when their sons or husbands are away at 
 the East Coast fishing, they will be earning 
 almost as much at home. What do you think of 
 this now ? For a good web of homespun I can 
 get 55. a yard from the clothiers themselves ; 
 and they will do very well when they get Is. or 
 Is. 6d. a yard profit ; but when I sell in my own 
 store at 6s. 6d. a yard, then that is all the more 
 coming back to us here at home. Oh, I tell you, 
 you will soon hear plenty of spinning-wheels 
 going, and shuttles clacking, at Lochgarra ! " 
 
 It was a pretty enthusiasm ; and Kathchen 
 did not like to say anything. Indeed it was 
 Mary herself who paused in this dithyrambic 
 forecast. She had chanced to look at the 
 gathering skies overhead.
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEN BOG. 137 
 
 " Kathchen," said she, " it was a good thing 
 we brought onr waterproofs." 
 
 Kate Glendinning followed the direction 
 of her glance. 
 
 '' Yes," she answered, " and I think we'd 
 better be getting on." 
 
 Then here was the business of getting over 
 the stream. Mary went down to the edge 
 of the river ; pulled off her shoes and stockings 
 covertly (covertly, in this solitude, where there 
 was not even a hawk poised on wing ! ) and 
 then put one foot cautiously into the swift- 
 running water. The consequence was a shrill 
 shriek. 
 
 " No," she said, " I can't do it. It's like ice, 
 Kathchen ! I'm going to put my shoes and 
 stockings on again ; and find some stones or 
 rocks somewhere that I can get across." 
 
 " You'll fall in, then," said the matter-of-fact 
 Kathchen, who was by this time over the 
 ankles, and making good progress — with her 
 teeth clenched. 
 
 But Mary did not fall in. She sought out 
 shallows ; and made zig-zag experiments with 
 the shingle and with bigger stones ; and if she
 
 138 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 did get her feet wet before reaching the other 
 side, it was gradually. Very soon it was not 
 of wet feet they were thinking. 
 
 For when they ascended the opposite hill — 
 entering upon a still wilder region than any 
 they had as yet traversed — they became aware 
 that all the world had grown much darker ; 
 and when at length they beheld the far line 
 of the sea, it was of a curiously livid, or leaden, 
 hue. The wind was blowing hard up on these 
 heights ; now and again there was a sting of 
 moisture in it — the flying precursor of the rain. 
 But the most ominous thing that met their 
 gaze was a series of sickly -looking, formless 
 clouds that seemed rising all along the western 
 horizon ; while the sea underneath was growing 
 unnaturally black. Rising and spreading those 
 clouds were, and swiftly ; with a strange and 
 alarming appearance — as if the earth were 
 about to be overwhelmed : they looked close 
 and near, moreover, though necessarily they 
 must have been miles away. At first the two 
 girls did not mind very much ; all their 
 strength was needed to withstand the buffet- 
 ings of the wind ; indeed, there was a kind of
 
 THE MEALL-XA-FEAEN FOG. 139 
 
 joyance in driving forward against tke ever- 
 increasing gale, though it told on their panting 
 chests. They had to shout to each other, if 
 they wished to be heard. 
 
 " Where is the ' march,' Mary ? " 
 
 ** I haven't seen any trace of it . . . this 
 side of the Garra . . . But of course we're 
 in the right direction . . . We must get into 
 the Corrie Bhreag sooner or later." 
 
 Then came the rain — at first in flying 
 showers, but very soon in thin gauze veils that 
 swept along between them and the distant hills. 
 Waterproofs were donned now ; but they 
 proved to be of little use — they were blown 
 every kind of way, with an immensity of 
 ballooning and flapping and clapping ; while 
 they materially impeded progress. But never- 
 theless the two wanderers struggled on bravely, 
 hurling themselves, as it were, against these 
 rude shocks and gusts, until their wet hair was 
 flying all about their faces, and their eyes were 
 smarting with the rain. Sometimes they 
 paused to take breath — and to laugh, in a 
 rueful way. 
 
 ** There's nothing so horrid as wet wrists ! "
 
 140 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 Mary called to her companion, on one of these 
 occasions, as she shook her arras and hands. 
 
 " It won't be wrists only, very soon," said 
 Kathchen, in reply, as they started on again. 
 
 The gale increased in violence, so that on 
 the higher slopes ahead of them the heather was 
 beaten and driven into long waves of motion ; 
 while even throuo:h those whirling: veils of 
 rain they could see the torn shreds and tatters 
 of lurid cloud that crossed the greyer sky. 
 The moaning of the wind rose and fell in 
 remote and plaintive cadence ; and then again 
 it would mount up into a shrill and long- 
 continued scream, that struck terror to the 
 heart. For there was no more laughter now. 
 All their dogged, half-blind struggle against 
 the storm did not seem to lead them any 
 nearer to any practicable way of getting down 
 to the coast ; and they were afraid to leave the 
 line they had conceived to be the march — the 
 imaginary line which they had hoped would 
 bring them to the Corrie Bhreag, or, at 
 furthest and worst, to some portion of Glen 
 Orme. And if the dusk were to come down 
 and find them in these trackless solitudes ?
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEN BOG. 141 
 
 During one of their pauses to recover breatli, 
 and to get their wet hair out of their eyes and 
 lips, Mary took off her waterproof, and her 
 companion followed her example ; the worse 
 than useless garments were secured by a lump 
 of rock, and left to be searched for by a 
 shepherd on the following day. Then forward 
 again — with the wind moaning and howling 
 across these desert wastes — with the driving 
 rain at once blinding and stifling them — and 
 a dim unspoken fear of the coming darkness 
 gradually taking possession of their mind. 
 
 One odd thing was that though Mary 
 Stanley was the taller and much the more 
 strongly built of the two, she could not hold 
 on as well as her smaller companion, who was 
 in a measure familiar with the work of getting 
 over heather-tufts and across peat-hags. Mary 
 complained that the wind and the rain choked 
 her — she could not breathe. And at last she 
 stopped, panting, breathless, entirely exhausted 
 with the terrible strain. 
 
 " Kathchen," she said, in a despairing sort 
 of way, " I'm done. But don't mind me. I 
 will stay here, until the storm goes over. If
 
 142 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 you think you can push on until you find some 
 valley to take you down to the coast, then you 
 will be able to get home " 
 
 '^ Mamie, what are you talking about ! " said 
 Kathchen, indignantly. " I am going to keep 
 by you, if both of us stay here all night. But 
 we mustn't do that. Come, have courage ! " 
 
 " Oh, I've a fearful amount of courage, but 
 no strength," said Mary, with a very dolorous 
 sort of smile. " Whenever I begin, I get 
 caught by the throat. Well, here goes once 
 
 more ! " 
 
 And again they set forth with a desperate 
 resolution, forcing themselves against the gale, 
 though their own saturated clothes were 
 dragging heavily upon them. But they had 
 not gone on thus for many minutes when it 
 somehow seemed as though this laborious 
 stepping from one heather-tuft to another was 
 becoming easier. Surely the land was trending 
 
 down? 
 
 " Kathchen," Mary called out, brushing 
 away the rain from her eyelashes, " here is a 
 valley, and surely it must lead down to the 
 sea. I don't know which it is "
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 143 
 
 " Oh, never mind ; we must take our 
 chance," said Kate ; " if we can get down to 
 the coast-line anywhere, we shall be all right." 
 
 And so, notwithstanding their dire fatigue, 
 they kept on now with lighter hearts ; their 
 progress becoming more and more easy, being 
 all down hill. Not that this valley was any- 
 thing in the nature of a chasm, but rather a 
 hollow plain gradually sloping down to the 
 west. And then again, the further they got 
 away from the wild heights they had left 
 behind them, the violence of the storm seemed 
 to diminish ; they were better able to breathe ; 
 and if the rain did continue to fall, they were 
 about as wet as they well could be, so that 
 did not matter. 
 
 Suddenly Kate Glendinning uttered a joyful 
 cry. 
 
 " Look ! Look ! " 
 
 Far away down the wide valley, and through 
 the mists of the rain, they could make out a 
 small cottage or hut ; and there were signs of 
 life, too — wavering smoke that the wind blew 
 level as it left the chimney. This welcome 
 sight put new animation into their exhausted
 
 144 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMKA. 
 
 frames ; and they pushed forward right cheer- 
 fully now, little thinking that they were 
 walking into a far more deadly peril than any 
 they had encountered among the hills. 
 
 For when they got further down the valley, 
 they found that there intervened between them 
 and the cottage a circular plain ; and although 
 it certainly looked marshy, it never occurred to 
 them that they ought to go round by the side 
 of it. How could their feet be wetter ? So 
 they made straight across, Kathchen leading 
 the way, and jumping from clump to clump of 
 heather, so as to avoid the little channels 
 where the black ooze and water might be 
 deep. 
 
 But by and by she was forced to go more 
 cautiously ; and had to hesitate before choosing 
 her course. For those oozy channels had 
 grown broader ; and not only that, but the land 
 she had reached was very far from being solid 
 — it trembled in a mysterious way. She still 
 held on, nevertheless, hoping to reach securer 
 foundation ; and now she was not following 
 any straight line whatever, but seeking any- 
 where and everywhere for a safe resting-place
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 145 
 
 for her foot. Matters speedily grew worse and 
 worse. She could not make the slightest 
 movement without seeing the earth vibrate 
 for twenty yards around her — an appalling 
 phenomenon ; and at last she dared hardly stir, 
 for a sickening feeling had come over her that 
 a single step might plunge her into an un- 
 fathomable abyss. 
 
 " Kathchen," said Mary, in a low voice (she 
 was close behind), " don't you think we should 
 try to go back ? " 
 
 But the girl seemed absolutely paralyzed with 
 terror. She turned an inch or two, and looked 
 helplessly around. 
 
 " I — I don't know the way we came," she 
 said — and her eyeballs were contracted as if 
 with pain. " Will you try, Mary ? " 
 
 And then she made a strenuous effort to pull 
 herself together. 
 
 " No, no ! — let me go iSrst ! " she said in a 
 kind of desperation, " I am lighter than you." 
 
 " No," Mary made answer, quite calmly, " I 
 will go first." 
 
 Yes, outwardly she was quite calm ; but dis- 
 may had possession of her too. For the whole 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 146 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 world underneath felt so strangely unstable ; it 
 shivered even as she stood ; and as for going 
 back the way they came — why, it seemed to 
 her that the smallest movement in any one 
 direction must necessarily cause this quaking 
 morass to open like the sea and engulf them for 
 ever. She had undertaken to go first ; but 
 whither was she to go ? When she put out a 
 foot tentatively, the solid earth seemed to slide 
 away from her in billows. Again and again 
 she tried ; and again and again she instinctively 
 drew back — her whole frame trembling like 
 the trembling soil beneath her ; until at last 
 she stood speechless and motionless, turning 
 strange eyes towards Kathchen — eyes that 
 asked a question her white lips could not 
 utter. And the dusk was now coming over 
 the world. 
 
 But help was near. They were suddenly 
 startled by a sound — a distant cry — and at the 
 same moment they caught sight of a man who 
 had come running from the direction of the 
 cottage. As soon as he perceived he was seen, 
 he held up both arms : it was a signal to them 
 not to move — as if movement were possible to
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEARN BOG. 147 
 
 them in this prostration of fear ! He came 
 along with an incredible rapidity, by the out- 
 skirts of the morass, until he was opposite 
 them, and then he ventured in a little distance. 
 But he did not attempt to approach them ; 
 with his hand he directed them which way to 
 go ; and they — their heart in their mouth the 
 while — obeyed him as well as they could. By 
 the time they got near to where he was wait- 
 ing, they found themselves with some firmer 
 consistency under their feet ; and then, 
 without a word, he turned and led the way 
 off the morass, they following. There he 
 paused for a second, to give them a brief 
 direction. 
 
 ** You must keep along the side ; it is very 
 dangerous," he said, in a somewhat cold 
 manner. 
 
 But in an instant Mary had divined who 
 this was. The young man with the pale, clear- 
 cut features and coal-black eyes belonged to no 
 shepherd's hut. 
 
 " I — I want to thank you, sir," she said, 
 breathlessly (he had raised his cap to them 
 slightly, and was going away). " If it had not
 
 148 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMKA. 
 
 been for you, what should we have done ? It 
 is a dreadful place — we were afraid to move — " 
 
 He glanced at her and her companion with 
 some swift scrutiny. 
 
 " You are wet," said he, in the same distant 
 and reserved fashion. " You will find a fire 
 in the widow's cottage." 
 
 " You might show us the way," said Kath- 
 chen, half-piteously. " We are frightened." 
 
 After that he could not well leave them ; 
 though, to be sure, the way to the cottage was 
 plain and easy enough, so long as they kept 
 back from the dangerous Meall-na-Fearn bog. 
 He walked ahead of them, slowly ; he did not 
 attempt to speak to them. His demeanour had 
 not been unfriendly ; on the contrary, it had 
 been courteous ; but it was courtesy of a 
 curiously formal and reticent kind. Perhaps 
 he had not known who these strangers were 
 when he came so quickly to their help. 
 
 And in truth the two girls could hardly 
 follow him ; for now all the enfeeblement of 
 the terror they had suffered had come upon 
 them ; they were no longer strung up by a 
 shuddering apprehension of being entombed
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEN BOG. 149 
 
 in that hideous morass ; and the previous 
 fatigue, physical and nervous, that they had 
 fought against so heroically, was beginning to 
 tell now, especially upon Mary. At length she 
 did stop ; she said *^ Kathchen ! Kathchen ! " 
 in a low voice ; her figure swayed, as if she 
 would fall to the earth ; and then she sank to 
 her knees, and burst into a wild fit of hysterical 
 weeping, covering her face with her hands. 
 Their guide did not happen to notice : he was 
 going on : and it was becoming dark. 
 
 " Stay a moment, sir ! " said Kathchen, in 
 tones of indignant remonstrance. " My friend 
 is tired out." 
 
 He came back at once. 
 
 " I beg your pardon," said he, gravely. 
 " Tell her it is only a little way further. I 
 am going on to get something ready for you." 
 
 And he did go on ; so that it was left for 
 Kathchen to encourage her companion, and 
 subdue this nervous agitation. 
 
 " It is only the cold, Kathchen," said Mary, 
 who was trembling from head to foot. " I 
 suppose you are wet through, too." 
 
 But indeed the cottage was quite close by
 
 150 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 now ; they made their way slowly ; when they 
 reached it, the door was open ; and here was 
 the young man, with his sailor's cap in his hand, 
 giving a few further directions, in Gaelic, to 
 an old woman and a young girl of thirteen or 
 fourteen who appeared to be the sole occupants 
 of the earthen-floored hut. There was a peat- 
 fire burning, and a pannikin slung over it. 
 The old woman went into the other apartment 
 — the " ben " of the cottage — and returned with 
 a black bottle, and some sugar ; and presently 
 she had brewed a most potent liquor which, in 
 two tea-cups, she presented to the young ladies, 
 and insisted on their swallowing. They were 
 seated on a rude bench by the grateful warmth 
 of the peat ; they were made to finish this fiery 
 draught ; and here were oat-cakes and milk 
 besides. Life seemed slowly to come back to 
 them — to stir in their veins. But the young 
 man who had guided them hither ? Well, he 
 had disappeared. 
 
 After some little time Kathchen happened to 
 turn and look round. 
 
 '' Where has the gentleman gone ? " she 
 asked.
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEN BOG. 151 
 
 It was the young girl with the jet-black hair 
 and the wild, timid eyes who made answer. 
 
 " I was told to take the ladies to Lochgarra 
 House," said she, in excellent English, and 
 with a very pretty pronunciation. 
 
 " You ? It is nearly dark ! " Kathchen ex- 
 claimed. " Why did he leave us ? " 
 
 But here Mary interposed in her mild, suave 
 fashion ; and she regarded the girl with kindly 
 eyes. 
 
 " Yes, I am sure you will be able to show us 
 the way very well," said she. " Only you 
 must tell your mother — is she your mother ? " 
 
 " My grandmother, lady," was the answer. 
 
 " Well, tell your grandmother that you must 
 stay the night at Lochgarra House ; you cannot 
 come back here so late. We will send you 
 along in the morning; or I will come with 
 you myself." 
 
 But the old grandmother knew a little 
 English too. 
 
 " Yes, yes, indeed, indeed," said she. "What- 
 ever the ladies will be pleased." 
 
 And by and by they set out ; the sure-footed 
 young mountaineer acting as their guide.
 
 152 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Night had fallen now, and there were no 
 stars ; but after they had gone on some time 
 they could make out the sound of the sea — and 
 it was a welcome sound, for it told them they 
 were nearing the road that here runs all along 
 the coast. And indeed it was not until they 
 were actually in the highway that it occurred 
 to Kate Grlendinning to ask how far they had 
 still to go before they got to Lochgarra. 
 
 " It will be about seex miles, or more than 
 five miles whatever," was the answer. 
 
 " Six miles ! " said Kathchen, faiutly. " I 
 wish we had stayed at your grandmother's 
 cottage. Mamie, shall you ever be able to 
 manage it?" 
 
 " I hope so, Kathchen," Mary said, though 
 not very joyfully. " I am a little warmer now ; 
 and there is less wind blowing." 
 
 And so they went on — the unseen sea 
 thundering beneath them in the dark, along 
 the iron-bound coast — the wind sometimes 
 rising into a mournful moan, but bringing no 
 rain with it now. It was a long and weary 
 tramp ; but they were on a good road ; and 
 their brave little guide, whatever she may have
 
 THE MEALL-NA-FEAEN BOG. 153 
 
 thought of the darkness, went forward unhesi- 
 tatingly. 
 
 Then of a sudden they beheld two points of 
 fire away ahead of them ; and presently there 
 was a sound of wheels. 
 
 "I will give £20 for the loan of that 
 carriage," said Mary, " whosesoever it is ! " 
 
 " Why," said Kathchen joyfully, " in this 
 neighbourhood, whose can it be but your 
 own r 
 
 And indeed it was. And not only that, 
 but here was the gentle-spoken Barbara, pro- 
 fuse of compassion and pretty speeches ; and 
 she had brought with her an abundance of 
 blankets — not shawls and wraps, or any femi- 
 nine knickknackery — but substantial and capa- 
 cious blankets, along with many smaller 
 comforts and cordials. And when they had all 
 four got into the shut landau (for the girls 
 would not allow their young guide to go on 
 the box) Mary said, — 
 
 " But who took the news to Lochgarra 
 House, Barbara? Who told you to bring the 
 carriage ? " 
 
 " Oh, just the young master himself," said
 
 154 DONALD KOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Barbara, with smiling eyes, as she was busy 
 with her ministrations. And then she corrected 
 herself. "It was just young Mr. Ross of 
 Heimra. And did Miss Stanley not know who 
 he was ? " 
 
 But Miss Stanley had known very well. And 
 Kiithchen had guessed.
 
 ( 155 ) 
 
 CHAPTER YI. 
 
 GILLEASBUIG m6r. 
 
 Kathchen was standing at the window, 
 looking out upon the wild and wayward sea, 
 that was all brilliantly dappled with sun and 
 cloud, while Mary was at her dressing-table, 
 preparing to go down to breakfast. It was 
 a blowy and blusterous morning, after the 
 storm ; but the welcome sunlight was abroad 
 again ; and the heavens shone serene and fair. 
 
 " Never no more," Kathchen was solemnly 
 remarking, as she regarded the wide plain 
 of hurrying waves and the white sea-birds that 
 dipped and sailed and circled in the light, 
 " never no more shall I have a word to say 
 against smuggled brandy. By rights, Mary, 
 you and I ought both to be in a raging fever 
 this morning ; and you look as well as ever you 
 did in your life, and I have only a little bit
 
 156 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 of a headache. Nor against poaching : I have 
 nothing to say against poaching — when it 
 suddenly produces somebody to get you out 
 of a hideous and horrible morass, worse than 
 any quicksand that ever I heard of. Do you 
 know, I hardly dared put my foot to the floor 
 this morning : I was afraid that frightful 
 sensation would come back, as if I were 
 standing on nothing, and just about to sink. 
 Wasn't it terrible ? I know I shall dream 
 about it to my dying day." And then she said : 
 " I wonder what took young Ross of Heimra 
 up to that out-of-the-way place ? Not poaching \ 
 for he had neither rod nor gun." 
 
 " More likely selling brandy to that old 
 woman," said Mary ; and then she added, with 
 a touch of scorn : "A pretty occupation for 
 a Highland gentleman ! " 
 
 " Well, Mary," said Kathchen, reflectively. 
 '' I confess that story does not sound to me 
 true. I should like to have some proof before 
 believing it. No doubt it is just possible he 
 may have wanted to make up to these poor 
 people for Mr. Purdie having banished the 
 illicit stills ; and perhaps he could not afford
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOK. 157 
 
 to get them spirits for nothing ; and so he may 
 charge them what he himself has paid. But 
 it is not Hke what a Highland laird would 
 do, however poor he might be — and in a kind 
 of way he still stands in the position of laird 
 towards these people. No, it does not sound 
 probable; but anyhow I mean to find out — 
 if we are going along to-day to thank the old 
 woman for her kindness of last night. And 
 whether it was poaching, or smuggling, or 
 whatever it was, that took young Mr. Ross 
 up to that hut, it was a very lucky thing for us : 
 we should never have seen the morning if we 
 had been left there." 
 
 " That is true enough," Mary admitted ; but 
 then she went on to say, with some asperity : 
 " At the same time, a favour is twice a favour 
 when it is graciously conferred. He seemed 
 to me a most ill-mannered young man. I doubt 
 whether he would have come near us at all 
 if he had known who we were." 
 
 " Oh, I don't agree with you — not in the 
 least ! " said Kathchen, warmly. *' I thought 
 he was most courteous, and — and respectful. 
 Remember, we were entirely strangers to him.
 
 158 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 And just think of his going all the way to 
 Lochgarra to get the^ carriage sent for us — =and 
 very quickly he must have done it, too." 
 
 But Mary had not a word in favour of this 
 young man whom she suspected of far worse 
 offences (in her eyes) than killing salmdn or 
 bringing smuggled brandy into the district : 
 she suspected him, in truth, of stirring up 
 wrath and ill-will, and setting these people 
 against her» 
 
 " I suppose," she said, rather coldly, " we 
 must thank him, if we should see him." 
 
 " I, for one, mean to do so, and very heartily," 
 Kathchen said at once. " I think he was most 
 kind and considerate — if — if a little — a little 
 reserved. And not at all the wild savage 
 I had expected — most distinguished-looking, 
 I should call him " 
 
 " Come away down to breakfast, Kathchen," 
 said Mary, taking her friend by the arm : she 
 would hear no more on that subject. 
 
 In the hall they encountered the little 
 Highland lass who had been their guide on 
 the previous night ; and she, looking up with 
 timid eyes towards this tall and beautiful lady
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 159 
 
 whose smile was so gracious and winning, 
 said — 
 
 " Am I to be going home now ? " 
 
 " Home ? " said Mary. " Have you had your 
 breakfast ? " 
 
 " Oh, yes, indeed." 
 
 " Yery well, you need not go yet ; you may 
 as well wait and come with us in the carriage 
 — for we want to thank your grandmother for 
 her kindness to us. You can amuse your- 
 self in the garden, if you like, until we are 
 ready." 
 
 She was obediently going away, but 
 Kathchen stopped her. 
 
 " I don't think you ever told us your name." 
 
 "Just Isabel," said the little maid, in her 
 pretty fashion. 
 
 " Of course you know Mr. Ross ? " was the 
 next question. 
 
 " Oh, yes." 
 
 " What was he doing up at your cottage last 
 night ? " 
 
 " Kathchen ! " said Mary ; but the little 
 girl did not notice the interruption : she 
 answered quite simply, —
 
 160 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 ^' He came up to ask about the cow." 
 
 " What cow ? " 
 
 But here Isabel did begin to look a little 
 frightened ; and she glanced anxiously at Miss 
 Stanley. 
 
 ^'Perhaps the lady will be angry — " she 
 said, with shrinking eyes. 
 
 " Oh, no, she won't be angry," Kathchen 
 interposed at once. " What about the cow ? 
 Tell me about the cow." 
 
 " It was my mother's cow that got into the 
 bog and was drowned — " 
 
 " The bog we strayed into ? " Kathchen 
 exclaimed. " Do you mean to say that cattle 
 have been swallowed up in that place ? " 
 
 " Ay, many and many a one," said the little 
 girl. 
 
 " I'll have it fenced round at once," said 
 Mary, in her usual prompt and emphatic way, 
 " no matter what it costs ! " 
 
 " And the cow ? " said Kathchen, encourag- 
 ingly, to the little Highland lass. " What did 
 Mr. Ross want to know about the cow ? " 
 
 ** Mr. Ross," continued Isabel, " he was 
 sending a message that my mother would ask
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 161 
 
 Mr. Purdie and the lady for a cow in place 
 of that one, and the money to be paid back 
 bit by bit as we could do it ; yes, and Mr. 
 Pardie was to be asked for the cow ; and Mr. 
 Ross he came up last night to see if we were 
 to get the cow. But we were not hearing 
 about it from any one." 
 
 Mary's face flushed with vexation. 
 
 '« Why was I not told about this ? " she 
 said, turning indignantly to Kathchen. ^* What 
 right had Mr. Purdie to decide — and go away 
 without saying a word ? I suppose he refused ? 
 — and that was to be all of it ! " 
 
 But the little girl, hearing the lady talk in 
 these altered tones, grew frightened ; and tears 
 started to her eyes. 
 
 " Please, I was not asking for the cow," she 
 said, piteously ; for she knew not what terrible 
 mischief she had done. " I was not intending 
 to make the lady angry " 
 
 Mary turned to the girl, and put her hand 
 in a kindly way on the raven-black hair. 
 
 ** Don't you be alarmed, Isabel," she said, 
 with a reassuring smile. " You have done no 
 harm ; yon were quite right to tell me the 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 162 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 story. And you need not be afraid ; your 
 mother shall have the cow ; perhaps even two 
 of them, if the byre is big enough. Now go 
 into the garden and amuse yourself, until you 
 hear the carriage come round." 
 
 However, it may here be said that in this 
 instance Mr. Purdie was in no wise culpable. 
 It appeared that the widow MacYean had two 
 days before gone over to Cruagan, where she 
 had a married daughter, in order to help in 
 the fields ; and her only chance of presenting 
 the petition was by intercepting the factor on 
 his way homeward. Whether she did or did 
 not present the petition was of no immediate 
 consequence : Mary had resolved upon offering 
 up this cow, or perhaps even two cows, as a 
 sort of sacrificial thanksgiving for her deliver- 
 ance from the Meall-na-Fearn bog. 
 
 After breakfast they set out, Isabel seated 
 beside the driver. And once again they came 
 in sight of the MInard township, with its poor 
 little crofts on the rocky soil, and the long 
 sweep of white sand where, the tide being out, 
 the people were busy with their sickles cutting 
 the seaweed from the rocks.
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 163 
 
 " I wonder," said Mary, meditatively, '' if 
 I couldn't revive the kelp-burning ? " 
 
 " Oh, no," said Kathchen (who did not quite 
 understand how indefatigable the young pro- 
 prietress had been in qualifying herself for 
 her new position). " That is all over now. 
 Those were the grand days for the Highlands 
 — for both the landlords and the people ; but 
 modern chemistry has spoiled all that." 
 
 " You don't know, then," said Mary, quietly, 
 " that kelp-burning is carried on in some places 
 at this moment ? It is, though. Over in South 
 Uist the crofters get from £2 10s. to £3 a 
 ton for kelp. But perhaps they need all the 
 seaweed they can get here for their crofts, or 
 perhaps it isn't the right kind of tangle : I 
 must find out about that." 
 
 They drove as far as they could along the 
 road ; and they had to descend from the 
 carriage, to make the rest of their way on foot. 
 And strange it was that the moment the two 
 girls left the highway, and found themselves 
 upon the yielding heather, they betrayed an 
 unmistakeable alarm — looking all around them 
 as if they feared to be betrayed into some
 
 164 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 hidden quagmire. But indeed at this point the 
 land consisted chiefly of rocks and peat and 
 stones ; and gradually they got accustomed to 
 following their sure-footed young guide who 
 was going up the hill-side with the lightest of 
 steps. Long before they had climbed to the 
 cottage, they saw the old woman come out to 
 scatter some remains of porridge to the hens : 
 a pleasant-looking old dame she was, with 
 silvery-grey hair and a rennet complexion ; 
 moreover (whether she had expected them or 
 not) she was very tidily dressed — a clean white 
 *' mutch," a short-skirted blue gown, a white 
 apron, and red stockings. When she saw the 
 strangers, she remained outside ; and when 
 they came toiling up she saluted them with a 
 grave and gentle " good moarning ! " But be- 
 yond returning that salutation, Mary did not 
 enter into further talk just then. Her eyes 
 were drawn with a morbid fascination to the 
 black morass that had so nearly proved fatal 
 to her and her companion. She seemed to feel 
 herself once more standing on that trembling 
 soil, unable to move in any one direction, the 
 darkness coming down. And had the darkness
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 165 
 
 fallen, wliat would the morning have seen ? 
 The morning would have dawned upon that 
 level waste just as it was now — silent, empty, 
 all its secrets sucked down and buried for 
 ever and ever. A hideous and lingering death : 
 the slow torture of the long and sombre hours, 
 before utter exhaustion came, and despair, and 
 a swooning into the unknown. She shivered 
 a little : then she turned to the old grand- 
 mother, who was talking to Kathchen with 
 such English as she could muster. 
 
 '' Yes," she was saying, " my daughter, she 
 over at Cruagan " 
 
 " And so perhaps she did not speak to Mr. 
 Purdie about the cow ? " Mary interposed. 
 " Very well. That's all right. Little Isabel 
 was telling me about the cow that was lost. 
 Well, I will see that you have one in its place." 
 
 The old woman could not speak ; the 
 withered, weather-wrinkled face wore a pained 
 look, as if she were trying not to cry ; and she 
 furtively wiped her hand on her apron and 
 timidly held it out — it was by shaking hands 
 that she could best express her thanks. And 
 here was an extraordinary thing ! — here was
 
 166 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 actual gratitude, the very first symptom of it 
 that Mary Stanley had encountered since she 
 came to the place. But the next moment she 
 was saying to herself bitterly : 
 
 " Why ? Why is this old woman friendly ? 
 Because she saw that Mr. Ross of Heimra con- 
 descended to be civil to me yesterday evening. 
 If he throws a word to me, then I am to be 
 tolerated ! But if I had come here by myself, 
 I might have offered to double the size of her 
 byre, and give her two cows instead of one, 
 and there would have been nothing but sullen 
 looks and silence. Was I not warned the 
 moment I set foot in the place ? It's Donald 
 Koss of Heimra who is their laird. I am a 
 stranger, and an enemy." 
 
 And now it was Kate Glendinning's turn 
 to make a few discreet inquiries : for the 
 allegation that a Highland gentleman would 
 condescend to sale and barter was still rankling 
 in her soul. 
 
 " Well, Mrs. Mac Yean," said she pleasantly, 
 *' that was very excellent brandy you gave us 
 last night, and very welcome, too : I suppose 
 we should have died of the cold and wet if you
 
 GILLEASBUia MOE. 167 
 
 had not given ns the hot drink. But where did 
 you get brandy in an out-of-the-world place 
 like this ? " 
 
 An alarmed expression came into the old 
 woman's face, though she endeavoured to con- 
 ceal it. She looked away down the hill-side, 
 and said vaguely : 
 
 " It was — in the house. Oh, ay — in the 
 house." 
 
 *' Yes ; but where did you get it ? " Kate 
 asked. 
 
 There was a moment of silence — and distress. 
 " The brandy ? — Mr. Boss — he ordering me 
 to give it to you." 
 
 " Oh, yes," said the young lady, in the same 
 off-hand sort of way, '^ and it was very thought- 
 ful of him — and very kind of you. It seemed 
 to bring us back to life again. I don't know 
 what we should have done without it. I was 
 only wondering where you got such good 
 brandy in this part of the Highlands." 
 
 The old woman looked anxiously from the 
 one to the other : were they trying to entrap 
 her ? — even after their generous promise that 
 she should have the cow.
 
 168 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 ^* Oil, ay," she said, still clinging desperately 
 to those evasive phrases, " the brandy — it in 
 the house — and — and Mr. Ross, he ordering me 
 to give it — and any one very pleased, whatever 
 he wishes. And the ladies — very, very wet and 
 cold — and a long weh home to Lochgarra — " 
 
 *' Come, come, Mrs. MacYean," Kathchen said, 
 " you ought to know that we don't want to 
 make any trouble — is it likely, just after Miss 
 Stanley has promised to give you the cow ? I 
 am asking only out of curiosity ; and I can 
 keep a secret as well as any one. And of course 
 we are quite aware that it is Mr. Ross who 
 brings the brandy into the neighbourhood — and 
 very properly, too, for good brandy is better 
 than bad whisky, and you must have some- 
 thing in the house in case of sickness. Very 
 well : tell me what he charges you for it." 
 
 " Charges ? " the old woman repeated, with a 
 puzzled air. 
 
 " Yes," said Kathchen, encouragingly. " I 
 only want to know for — for information ; and I 
 am not likely to tell any one. What do you pay 
 him for it ? " 
 
 Then the old grandmother understood ; and
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 169 
 
 though she did not say much, there was some- 
 thing in her tone that showed how keenly she 
 resented this imputation. 
 
 " Pay — Mr. Eoss of Heimra — for the brandy ? " 
 said she, as if it was herself who had been 
 insulted ; and she was turning angrily away. 
 *' You think — the young master — tekkin money 
 from the like of me ? " 
 
 " Then he gives you the brandy for nothing?" 
 said Kate, — and this question at once arrested 
 the old dame, who made answer somewhat 
 sulkily — 
 
 " I not saying that — I not saying that 
 at ahl." 
 
 " Of course not," said Kathchen, with cheerful 
 good humour. " It is not necessary for you to 
 say anything. But now I understand ; and I 
 am glad of it ; for I have Highland blood in 
 my veins myself, and I did not like to think of 
 a Highland gentleman taking money for little 
 kindnesses of that sort. And indeed I did not 
 believe it ; and I am very pleased indeed that 
 you have made it possible for me to contradict 
 such a ridiculous story." 
 
 Shortly thereafter — the old grandmother
 
 170 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 having been won into something of a more 
 conciliatory mood by reiterated expressions of 
 thanks and a circumstantial promise with regard 
 to the cow — the two young women left ; and as 
 they descended the hill, Kate G-lendinning was 
 most triumphant about this refutation of what 
 she considered a malignant slander. Mary, on 
 the other hand, was inclined to be coldly severe 
 in her judgment wherever young Ross of Heimra 
 was concerned — though neither coldness nor 
 severity formed part of her ordinary tempera- 
 ment. 
 
 " I don't see anything to be proud of, Kath- 
 chen," said she. " He is cheating the revenue, 
 for one thing." 
 
 " Cheating the revenue," said Kathchen, in 
 her matter-of-fact way, " is not likely to trouble 
 a Highlander's conscience much. But I dare 
 say he thinks the Government can get along 
 well enough without taking any more taxation 
 from these poor people ; and I have no doubt 
 he says to himself that if he pays for a bottle of 
 good brandy for some poor woman with ague or 
 rheumatism in her old joints, the Grovernment 
 can afford to let her have it without the duty.
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 171 
 
 In a climate like this you must have spirits 
 of some kind ; and as I was saying to Mrs. 
 MacYean, good brandy is better than bad 
 whisky filled with fusel oil." 
 
 " I know perfectly well what his object is," 
 Mary said, proudly and indignantly. " His 
 object is simply to steal away the hearts of the 
 people — and to stir up ill-will between them and 
 whoever happens to be at Lochgarra House. 
 They are all his friends — and my enemies. He 
 can shoot and fish wherever he pleases ; he has 
 the run of the whole estate ; he is welcome at 
 every fireside ; whilst I, when I want to lower 
 the rents, and better the condition of the people 
 in every way, and be their friend — well, I am 
 kept outside at the door, and if I say ' Am I 
 welcome ? ' there is no answer. For him — every- 
 thing : for me — nothing. And I think it is 
 hardly fair." 
 
 She spoke in a proud and hurt way, and her 
 lips trembled for an instant : it was clear that 
 she considered she had not deserved this ill- 
 usage. 
 
 ** No, no, no, Mary," her friend protested. 
 *' You are unjust, as far as Mr. Ross is con-
 
 172 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 cerned anyway. For one thing it is very 
 likely that the poor people about here were 
 accustomed to look to his mother for little com- 
 forts when they fell ill ; and he may be trying 
 to carry out the same kind of thing, in the only 
 way that would occur to a man." Then a 
 demure smile came into Kathchen's eyes. " But 
 I will be honest with you, Mary. I don't think 
 it is done to spite you at all : although your 
 family have wrought him and his sufficient 
 wrong. But if you were to ask me if it wasn't 
 done with a determination to spite Mr. Purdie 
 — in return for the destruction of the illicit 
 stills — well, you see, people may act from 
 various motives, and I shouldn't be surprised 
 if that had something to do with it. As for 
 stealing the hearts of the people — if you knew 
 the curious loyalty and devotion of the High- 
 landers towards the old families, you would 
 hardly think it necessary that Mr. Ross should 
 have to make use of any bribe " 
 
 " But why should they hate mef Mary ex- 
 claimed — and Kathchen had no answer. 
 
 However, if Miss Stanley had on one or two 
 occasions suspected that the presence of the
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 173 
 
 detested factor might have something to do 
 with the failure of her efforts to cultivate 
 amicable relations with her tenants, here was 
 an opportunity of seeing what she could do by 
 herself; for on their way back they again came 
 to the small township of Minard, where the 
 amphibious population were busy in the crofts 
 and along the shore. She dismissed the car- 
 riage ; and proceeded to make a few friendly 
 little calls — guarding carefully against any 
 appearance of intrusion, and, indeed, almost 
 humbly begging for something of consideration 
 and good-will. And she was resolved to take 
 no heed of any surly manners or uncivil speech ; 
 for she was of a large, bland, magnanimous 
 nature ; and she had a considerable fund of 
 patience, and gentleness, and sweetness, to draw 
 upon. Then she had to remember that her 
 uncle had been unpopular, and had no doubt 
 amply earned his unpopularity. Moreover, a 
 factor who stands between a wilful and domi- 
 neering landlord and a tenantry not in the 
 happiest condition, is most invidiously situated : 
 he is the universal scapegoat, and is bound to 
 be hated as well as feared. But here was she
 
 174 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 willing to make what atonement was possible ; 
 ready to sacrifice her own interests for the 
 general good ; and above all things anxious to 
 make friends. With gifts in both hands, ought 
 she not to have been welcome at every door ? 
 Then she was pleasant to look upon ; her 
 manner was gracious and winning ; her eyes 
 were kind. With the small children she could 
 get on well enough : they knew nothing of any 
 deep-slumbering feud. 
 
 But her charm of manner, her wonder-work- 
 ing smile, her unfailing good-humour, that had 
 made life easy for her elsewhere, seemed to be 
 of no avail here — with the grown-up folk, at all 
 events. Not that they were rude : they were 
 merely obdurate and silent. Of course, when 
 she got this one or that pinned by a direct 
 question, he did not absolutely refuse to reply ; 
 but their answers were so contradictory, and 
 their demands in most cases so impossible, that 
 no practical enlightenment was possible. One 
 man w^anted more boats from the Government ; 
 another said that more boats were of no use 
 unless the Government supplied nets as well ; 
 a third said boats and nets were valueless unless
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 175 
 
 they had a steamer calling daily. There was 
 also a demand that the G-overnment should 
 build more harbours ; and when Mary said, in 
 reply to this, that she understood the harbours 
 they had got — Lochgarra, that is to say, and 
 Camus Bheag — to be about as excellent as any 
 in the West Highlands, she was answered that 
 the harbours were perhaps good enough — if 
 there was a railway. Then there were some 
 who did not seem to have any occupation at all. 
 
 " Don't you have anything to work at ? " she 
 said, to one tall and rather good-looking young 
 fellow, who was standing looking on at the 
 women and girls gathering the sea-tangle. 
 
 " My father has a croft," he made answer, in 
 a listless way. 
 
 *' But wouldn't you," she said, in a very 
 gentle and hesitating manner, so as not to seem 
 impertinent, " wouldn't you rather go away and 
 find some work for yourself?" 
 
 " Aw, well, I was at Glasgow, and I was 
 getting twenty shillings a week there." 
 
 " And you did not stay ? " 
 
 " Well, I could not live there," he said, 
 simply enough. " It is no use getting twenty
 
 176 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 shillings a week if you cannot live in a place ; 
 and in a few years I would be dead, if I was 
 living in Glasgow. I am better to be alive 
 here than dead in Glasgow. " 
 
 " Then perhaps you go to the East Coast 
 fishing ? " she suggested. 
 
 " No, I am not going there now. T was 
 there one or two years, but it did not pay me." 
 
 " And don't you do anything ? " she asked 
 again. 
 
 " Well, in January I am in the Naval 
 Reserve." 
 
 " And the rest of the year you don't do 
 anything ? " 
 
 " Well, my father has a croft " — and that was 
 about all the information she could extract from 
 him. 
 
 As a final attempt she said to him, timidly — 
 
 " If I were to try to get you a boat and nets 
 from the Government, would it be of service 
 to you ? " 
 
 " It would need eight of a crew," said he, 
 with an obvious lack of interest, " and I would 
 not be knowing where to find them." 
 
 However, a great surprise was in store for
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOE. 177 
 
 her : before getting back to Locbgarra on tbis 
 occasion she actually encountered a buman 
 being wbo received her proffered friendliness 
 and good-will with cheerful and unhesitating- 
 gratitude, and responded with a frank comrade- 
 ship that quite won her heart. It is true the 
 man was drunk ; but at first she did not per- 
 ceive that ; and indeed she was ready to make, 
 ample allowances in her eager desire to establish 
 pleasant relations with anybody, after the dis- 
 heartening coldness she had just experienced at 
 Minard. This man whom she and Kathchen 
 overtook on their homeward way was a huge, 
 lumbering, heavy-shouldered giant, with a pro- 
 digious brown beard and thick eyebrows, whose 
 deep-set grey eyes (though a little bemused) 
 looked at once intelligent and amiable. On his 
 shoulder he had hoisted a rough wooden box ; 
 and as he trudged along he smoked a small 
 black clay pipe. 
 
 " Good-day to you ! " said Mary to the giant. 
 
 " Aw, good-deh, good-deh, mem ! " said he, 
 with a broad grin of welcome, and he instantly 
 put the pipe in his pocket. 
 
 ^* That is a heavy box you are carrying," 
 
 VOL. T. N
 
 178 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 said she ; " I wish I were driving, and I would 
 take it along for you." 
 
 " Aw, it's glad I am I hef something to 
 carry," said he, in a strong Argyllshire accent, 
 " and I wass thinking that mebbe Miss Stanley 
 herself would be for tekkin a lobster or two 
 from me, for the house. Aw, I'll not be 
 charging Miss Stanley mich for them — no, nor 
 anything at ahl, if Miss Stanley would be for 
 tekkin a lobster or two from me " 
 
 " Oh, these are lobsters ? " said she, with the 
 most friendly interest. 
 
 " Ay, chist that," said the giant. 
 
 " And you will be sending them away by the 
 mail-cart ? " she asked. 
 
 " Ay, chist that — it's to London I am sending 
 them." 
 
 -^ Oh, really," she said. " All the way to 
 London ? Well, now, I wonder if you would 
 think me inquisitive or impertinent if I asked 
 you how much you get for them ? '^ 
 
 ** How much ? Aw, chist two-and-sixpence 
 the dissen," said he, in a good-natured fashion, 
 as if he hardly expected to get anything. 
 
 But Mary was most indignant.
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOK. 179 
 
 '' What ? " she said. " Two-and-sixpence the 
 dozen ? It's monstrous ! Why, it's downright 
 robbery! I will write to the London papers. 
 Two-and-sixpence a dozen? — and a single 
 lobster selling in London for eighteenpence or 
 two shillings, and that a small one, too. Isn't 
 it too bad, Kathchen ? I will write to the 
 newspapers — I will not allow such robbery." 
 
 "It is a long weh of communigation/' said 
 the big, heavy-shouldered, good-humoured-look- 
 ing man ; " and ]\Ir. Corstorphine he paying 
 uhl the carriage, and sending me the boxes." 
 
 " I will get you twice as much as that for the 
 lobsters," said Mary, with decision, " if I sell 
 them among my own friends. I will guarantee 
 you twice as much as that, and I will pay the 
 carriage, and get you the boxes. What is your 
 name ? " 
 
 " Archie MacNicol, mem," said he ; but the 
 whisky had made him talkative, and he went 
 on : "I am from Tarbert on Loch Fyne ; I am 
 not from among these people here at ahl. 
 These ]3eople, they are not proper fishermen — 
 aw, they are afraid of the sea — they will not go 
 far out — I hef seen the East Coast men cominir
 
 180 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 along here and tekkin the herring from under 
 their very eyes. There is one of the Govern- 
 ment boats that they got ; and it is not paid for 
 yet ; and it is lying half-covered with sand at 
 Achnacross, and no one using it at ahl. Ay^ 
 and the curers willing to give elevenpence a 
 piece for ling. Ay, and I wass into Loch 
 Honrn, and I got fifty crans of herring, and I 
 wass curing them myself — " 
 
 " But wait a moment," said Mary, to whom 
 this information seemed a little confused. " If 
 you are not tired, won't you keep on your way 
 to the village, and we will walk with you ? 
 You see, I am anxious to get all the information 
 I can about this place ; and the people here 
 don't seem to be very communicative — although 
 it is altogether in their own interests that I 
 should like to make inquiries. But they appear 
 to be afraid of me — or there is some quarrel y 
 or ill-will,that I don't understand " 
 
 " A quarrel with Miss Stanley ? " said the 
 lobster-fisherman, deprecatingly — for he was in 
 a mellow and generous mood. " No, no — he 
 would be a foolish man that would be saying 
 that ! "
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOE. 181 
 
 '' Very well," said Mary, as they were all 
 three going on to the village, ^' tell me about 
 your own circumstances. I want to know how 
 I can be of help to the people about here. I 
 have not come to Lochgarra to raise rents, and 
 collect money, and take it away and spend it 
 in London. I want to live here — if the people 
 will let me ; but I don't want to live among 
 continuous enmity and ill-will." 
 
 " Aw, yes, yes, to be sure, to be sure now ! " 
 said Archie, in the most amiable way, and Mary 
 was entirely grateful to him for his sympathy 
 — it was so unexpected. 
 
 "Tell me about your own circumstances," 
 she went on. " Is there anything I can do 
 for you and the other lobster-fishermen ? " 
 
 " Aw, Cosh ! " he cried (but it was the 
 whisky that was responsible :] Archie himself 
 meant to be most polite). " Would Miss 
 Stanley be doing this for us, now — would she be 
 writing a letter for us to the Fishery Board ? " 
 
 " Oh, certainly," she answered with promp- 
 titude, '* if that will be of any service to you. 
 What about ? " 
 
 And here Big Archie (Gilleasbuig Mor, as
 
 182 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 they called him) in his eagerness to tell his 
 tale, stopped short, and deposited the lobster- 
 box in the road. 
 
 " It's this way now — that there will be many 
 a brokken head before long if something is not 
 done. For they are coming from ahl quarters 
 to the lobster-fishing — stranchers that hef no 
 business here at ahl ; and they are building 
 huts; and where there is a hut there will 
 soon be a house ; and it does not require the 
 wise man of Mull to tell any one the truth of 
 that. Yes, and they will be saying they hef 
 the right from the Fishery Board ; but as I 
 am thinking that is nothing but lies ; for how 
 can the Fishery Board give stranchers the right 
 to come here and build huts on the crofts 
 above the shore — ay, and going on, and paying- 
 no rent, either to Miss Stanley, or the crofter, 
 or to any one ? And Gillie Ciotach and me, 
 ay, and two or three of the young lads, we 
 were saying we would tek sticks and stones, 
 and drive them into the sea — ay, though there 
 might be a bluidy nawse here and there ; and 
 others would be saying no, that it was dancher- 
 ous to do anything against the Fishery Board.
 
 GILLEASBUIG MOR. 183 
 
 And would Miss Stanley be for sending a letter 
 to the Board, to ask if it is lies those people 
 are telling us, and whether they can come and 
 build a hut whenever they like ? " 
 
 " Certainly I will," said she. " Only, there 
 is to be no fighting and bloodshed, mind. Of 
 course, the space occupied by a hut is a very 
 trifling matter : I suppose what you really 
 object to is those strangers coming to your 
 lobster-ground ? " 
 
 *' Ay, chist that ! " said Big Archie, eagerly. 
 
 " Yery well. It seems to me quite absurd 
 to think that the Fishery Board should have 
 given any one the right to build huts ; how- 
 ever, I will inquire ; and then, if I get the 
 answer I expect, you must go peaceably and 
 quietly to those people, and tell them they are 
 mistaken, that they have no right from the 
 Fishery Board or from any one else, and that 
 they must leave " 
 
 " Evictions ! " said Kathchen, under her 
 breath : she saw trouble coming. 
 
 " Quite peaceably and quietly, you under- 
 stand," Mary continued ; " there must be no 
 broken heads or anything of that kind ; you
 
 184 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 must tell tlie people what tlie Fishery Board 
 says, and then they will see that they are bound 
 to go." 
 
 " Ay, ay, chist whatever Miss Stanley 
 pleases," said Big Archie ; and therewith he 
 shouldered the heavy lobster-box again, and 
 resumed his patient trudge, while he proceeded 
 to give Miss Stanley some further information 
 about those marauding fishermen and their evil 
 ways. 
 
 But when they were nearing Lochgarra, 
 Mary, who had been rather silent and ab- 
 stracted for some little time back, said to 
 him, — 
 
 " I suppose you have a boat, Mr. Mac- 
 ]^icol ? " 
 
 " Aw, ay, and a fine boat too," said Archie. 
 " And if Miss Stanley herself would be wishing 
 for a sail, I would bring the boat round from 
 Camus Bheag." 
 
 '* That is just what I have been thinking of," 
 Mary said : they were now come in sight of 
 the sea, and she was absently looking out 
 towards the horizon. 
 
 *' Ay, chist any time that Miss Stanley pleases,
 
 GILLEASBUia MOR. 185 
 
 and I will not be charging anything," said the 
 good-natured giant with the friendly (and be- 
 mused) eyes. " Aw, naw, there would be no 
 charge at ahl — but chist a gless of whisky 
 when we come ashore." 
 
 " Oh, I must pay you for your time, of 
 course," said she, briefly. " I suppose you 
 could bring your boat round this evening so 
 that my friend and myself might start pretty 
 early to-morrow morning ? We should be 
 ready by ten." 
 
 Kathchen turned wondering eyes upon her. 
 
 " But where are you going, Mamie ? " 
 
 " I am going out to Heimra Island," she 
 said.
 
 18G DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 CHAPTER YII. 
 
 THE pirate's lair. 
 
 It was a bold undertaking ; and Katliclien 
 hardly concealed her dismay ; but Mary Stanley 
 was resolute. 
 
 "I must see my enemy face to face," she 
 said. " I want to know what he means. Why 
 should he stir up enmity and malignity against 
 me ? If he had any thought for those people 
 who seem to regard him with such devotion, 
 he would be on my side, for I wish to do 
 everything I can for them. He ought to 
 welcome me, instead of trying to drive me out 
 of the place. And if he fishes and shoots 
 over the Lochgarra estate simply to spite me, 
 suppose I refuse to be spited ? Suppose I 
 present him with the shooting and fishing, on 
 condition that he allows me to be kind to these 
 people ? How would that do, Kathchen ?
 
 THE PIEATE'S LAIR. 187* 
 
 Wouldn't that be a fine revenge ? I think 
 that ought to make his face burn, if he has 
 anything of gentle blood left in him ! " 
 
 There was a vibrant chord of indignation 
 in her tone, as there generally was when she 
 spoke of this young man ; for she did not 
 think she was being fairly treated. But 
 Kathchen, ignoring the true sources of her 
 dismay, began to urge objections to this pro- 
 posed visit, on the ground of social observances. 
 
 "I do really think, Mamie, it will look 
 strange for two unmarried girls to go away 
 out and pay such a visit — and — to that lonely 
 island. Now if you would only wait until the 
 Free Church Minister comes home, he might 
 go with us, and then it would be all right. 
 Not that the Free Church Minister is certain 
 of a welcome — if the young man is what he is 
 said to be ; but at all events he would be a 
 chaperon for us." 
 
 But Mary would not hear of waiting ; she 
 would challenge her secret antagonist forth- 
 with. 
 
 ''Very well, then," said Kate Glendinning, 
 more seriously than was her wont, " if we do go,
 
 188 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 we must have some excuse ; and you must tell 
 him you have come to thank him for having 
 got us out of that frightful bog." 
 
 Nor did the uninviting look of the next 
 morning cause Miss Stanley to alter her 
 resolve. It was hardly a day for a pleasure 
 sail. The wind, it is true, had abated during 
 the night ; and there was not much of a sea 
 on ; but the skies were heavy and lowering ; 
 and dark and sombre were those long head- 
 lands running out into the leaden-hued main. 
 But there was the lobster-boat lying at anchor, 
 in charge of a young lad ; and the dinghy was 
 drawn up on the beach ; and a message had 
 just come in that Big Archie was waiting 
 below to carry wraps and rugs. 
 
 " Kathchen," said Mary, sitting hastily down 
 to her writing-desk, '^ I have discovered that 
 the Fishery Board sits at Edinburgh; but I 
 can't find out who are the members. Do you 
 think I should begin * My Lords and Gentle- 
 men ' or only ' Gentlemen ' ? " 
 
 '' I don't know," said Kathchen ; " I should 
 think * Gentlemen ' would be safer." 
 
 So, in happy singleness of purpose, Mary
 
 THE PIKATE'S LAIR. 189 
 
 proceeded to write her letter about the alien 
 lobster-fishermen — little thinking to what that 
 innocent action was to lead ; then she went and 
 quickly got ready ; and by and by the two 
 girls were on their way down to the beach ^ 
 accompanied by the gigantic and massive- 
 shouldered Gilleasbuig Mbr. Big Archie, if 
 the truth must be told, was moodily silent this 
 morning : the fact being that on the jDrevioiis 
 evening he had wound up the day's promis- 
 cuous indulgence by "drinking sore," as they say 
 in those parts ; and now his physical conscience 
 was troubling him. But if his conversation 
 was limited to monosyllables, and if he wore 
 a sad and depressed look, he was, nevertheless, 
 most kind and assiduous in his attentions to 
 the two ladies ; and when he had rowed them 
 out in the dinghy, and got them ensconced in 
 the stern of the bigger boat, he did everything 
 he could for their comfort, considering the 
 rudeness of their surroundings. And presently, 
 when the anchor was got up. Big Archie came 
 aft to the tiller ; the young lad lay prone on 
 the bit of deck forward, to keep a look-out ; 
 and Mary and her companion knew they were
 
 190 DOXALD EOSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 now pledged to the enterprise, whatever might 
 come of it. 
 
 Indeed the two girls were themselves rather 
 inclined to silence. It was a gloomy sort of 
 jnorning ; there was even a threatening of rain 
 brooding over the distant headlands ; and the 
 dark sea lapped mournfully around them, with 
 not a single swift-glancing flash of white. But 
 the light breeze was favourable, and they made 
 steady progress, unfamiliar features of the 
 coast-line becoming visible on right hand and 
 on left as they made further and further out 
 to sea. 
 
 It seemed a long and weary time — given 
 over to dreamings, and doubtings, and some- 
 what anxious forecasts. But all of a sudden 
 Mary was startled by the voice of the skipper. 
 
 "Will Miss Stanley be for going in to 
 Heimra ? " 
 
 And then for the moment her courage failed 
 her. 
 
 " What do you say, Kathchen ? Do you 
 think — we should send a message — before 
 calling ? " 
 
 " Oh, yes, certainly," said Kathchen, with
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIR. 191 
 
 eagerness. " That is certainly what we ought 
 to do." 
 
 " Oh, very well, then," said Mary, turning 
 to the steersman (but there was a flush of self- 
 eonscious shame on her cheeks), " you need not 
 take us to the house — we will merely have a 
 look at the island — and some other day we 
 will come out, when we have told Mr. Eoss 
 beforehand." 
 
 u Yery well, mem," said Big Archie, holding 
 on the same course, which was taking them by 
 the south side of the island. 
 
 It was an angry-looking coast — steep and 
 sheer — a long, low, heavy surge breaking 
 monotonously along the black rocks. But 
 when they got round the westward-trending 
 headland, they gradually came in sight of the 
 sheltered waters of the little bay, and of the 
 sweep of silver beach, and the solitary cottage 
 perched on its small plateau. And of course 
 Kathchen's eyes were full of intensest interest, 
 with something, too, of apprehension ; for this 
 (according to Mr. Purdie) was the pirate's den ; 
 this was the home of the outlaw whose deeds 
 by night and day, by sea and shore, had gained
 
 192 DONALD ROSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 him so dark a renown. But Mary's attention 
 had been attracted elsewhither. She was re- 
 garding a white marble slab, placed high on 
 the top of the cliff, facing the western seas. 
 
 " Look, Kathchen," she said, in rather a low 
 voice. And then she turned to the silent little 
 bay before her. " Poor woman ! " she said. 
 " It was a lonely place to live all those 
 years." 
 
 Presently Mary bethought her of the errand 
 that had brought her so far ; and she repented 
 of her irresolution. 
 
 '' Can you take us into the bay, Mr. Mac- 
 Nicol ? " said she, without staying to consult 
 Kathchen. 
 
 " Aw, yes, mem, zurely." 
 
 " For it is a long way to have come — and — 
 and I am anxious to see Mr. Ross." 
 
 " Aw, very well, mem," said Archie, at once 
 altering his course. 
 
 And then she said, looking all round the bay : 
 
 '' But where is the yacht ? " 
 
 " Is it Mr. Ross's yat, mem ? It wass lying 
 in Camus Bheag when I wass coming aweh 
 last evening."
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIE. 193 
 
 '' And was Mr. Ross on board ? " Kathcben 
 asked, with a quick sense of relief. 
 
 *' Indeed I am not zure of that," said Archie. 
 " For mebbe he wass sending the men over 
 to the mainland, and himself staying on the 
 island." 
 
 " In any case, Kathcben, that need not matter 
 to you," Mary interposed. ''You can remain 
 where you are, and I will go up to the house 
 by myself. Why should you bother about my 
 business affairs ? " 
 
 This was a view of the case that was not 
 likely to commend itself to Kate Grlendinning, 
 who could nerve herself on occasion. When the 
 lobster-boat had come to anchor, and they had 
 gone ashore in the dinghy, she proceeded to 
 walk up to the house along with her friend 
 just as if nothing unusual was happening to 
 her. She kept watch — furtively ; but her out- 
 ward air was one of perfect self-possession. 
 As for Mary, she was too deeply engaged in 
 thinking how her complaints and demands 
 were to be framed to heed anything else at 
 this moment. 
 
 They knocked at the door, and again knocked ; 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 194 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 after a little while the old woman Martha ap- 
 peared — the surprise in her face being obvious 
 testimony to the rarity of visitors to this remote 
 island. 
 
 " Is Mr. Ross at home ? " Mary asked. 
 
 It was a second or so before Martha recovered 
 from her amazement — for she had not seen the 
 lobster-boat appear in the bay, nor yet the 
 strangers come ashore. 
 
 ^' Oh, no — he is over on the mainland," said 
 the trimly-dressed old woman. " What a peety 
 — what a peety ! " 
 
 Mary was rather taken aback ; however, she 
 said : 
 
 " It is not of much consequence, for, if he is 
 on the mainland — or if he is in the neighbour- 
 hood — I daresay I shall be able to see him 
 before he returns to Heimra." 
 
 And then she was about coming away when 
 Martha interposed, with Highland courtesy. 
 
 " But would not the leddies come in and sit 
 down for a little while — and hef some tea, or a 
 little milk, or something of that kind ? Mr. 
 Ross very sorry when he knows — to be sure — 
 and a great peety him not here — "
 
 THE PIKATE'S LAIE. 195 
 
 ■" Oh, thank you," said Kathchen (whose face 
 had lightened considerably when she heard of 
 Donald Ross being absent), "it is very kind of 
 you ; and I am sure I shall be very glad to 
 have a glass of milk, if you will be so kind." 
 
 Kathchen wanted no milk ; but she suddenly 
 saw before her a chance of having her curiosity 
 satisfied without risk : she would be allowed to 
 see what kind of lair this was in which the 
 savage outlaw lived. And so the unsuspecting 
 Martha led the way ; and the two young ladies 
 followed her into the passage, and into the first 
 room leading therefrom, which was a kind of 
 morning-apartment and study combined. They 
 seated themselves, and she left to get them such 
 refreshment as the out-of-the- world cottage could 
 afford. 
 
 The two girls were silent ; but their eyes 
 were busy. The first thing that attracted their 
 notice was a portrait over the mantelpiece — the 
 portrait of a very beautiful woman, pale some- 
 what and dark, with refined and impressive 
 features, and of a simple yet dignified bearing. 
 A sad face, perhaps ; but a face full of character 
 ^nd distinction : the first glance told you this
 
 19G DONALD llOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 was no common person who looked at you so' 
 calmly. Mary said nothing ; Kathchen saicfe 
 nothing ; but they knew who this was — the 
 likeness was too obvious. 
 
 And as for the other contents of the room ? — 
 well, there were neither guns, nor rods, nor 
 splash-nets, nor anything else connected with 
 fishing or shooting, legal or illegal ; but there 
 was an abundance of books in the shelves that 
 lined three walls of the apartment. Moreover, 
 there was one volume lying on the table before 
 them — beside a v/ooden pipe. They regarded 
 this for some little time ; but it was Kathchen 
 who spoke first. 
 
 '' Mary, would it be very impertinent if I 
 looked ? " 
 
 Mary Stanley laughed. 
 
 " I don't know," she said. " Most people do 
 pick up things when they are left in a room. 
 But we are in a peculiar position. We are 
 here without the consent of the owner." 
 
 " Yes, that is so," said Kathchen, resignedly,, 
 and she remained still. 
 
 But she continued looking towards the book 
 in a wistful way.
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIR. 197 
 
 "-' It's only the title I should like to see," she 
 began again. " What harm can there be in 
 that ? If Mr. Eoss were here himself, I would 
 take up the book in a minute — yes, I would ! 
 What do you say, Mary ? " 
 
 " Well," said Mary, frankly, '* 1 really should 
 like to know what kind of literature commends 
 itself to any one living in a strange place such 
 as this. But at the same time we are not his 
 guests — we are intruders — or if we are guests, 
 we are the housekeeper's guests, and it is but 
 fair to her we shouldn't pry into secrets." 
 
 Kathchen had risen and gone across to the 
 table : perhaps it would not be breaking the 
 laws of hospitality if she could get a glimpse 
 of the title of the book without actually laying- 
 hands on it ? But the back of it was away 
 from the light. In these desperate circum- 
 stances, Kathchen yielded to temptation ; she 
 hastily snatched up the volume, glanced at the 
 title, and as quickly returned to her seat again. 
 
 '' Good gracious ! " said she. '' That is fine 
 entertainment for a lonely island — Joshua 
 Williams's ' Real Property ' ! " 
 
 *' A law book ? " said Mary, with her face
 
 198 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 becoming suddenly grave. " I hope there is 
 not going to be — any trouble — a lawsuit is such 
 a dreadful thing " 
 
 *' Oh, no ; I understand what that means," 
 said Kathchen, " I know quite well. That is 
 one of the books my brother had when he was 
 reading up for the bar — I remember it because 
 I spilt some ink over it, and he made me buy 
 him another. I wonder, now, if Mr. Ross is 
 reading up for the bar? Wouldn't that be a 
 blessed dispensation of Providence for you, 
 Mamie — if he were to go away and shut him- 
 self up in the Temple, and leave you Lochgarra 
 entirely in your own hands, shooting, and 
 fishing, and everything? Only," she added, 
 '* I don't quite understand how such a wild 
 savage as Mr. Purdie described to us would 
 be likely to get on with the Judges. I am 
 afraid there would be scenes in court. What 
 do they call dismissing a barrister ? — not 
 cashiering ? — unfrocking ? " 
 
 Kathchen had suddenly to cease ; for here was 
 the elderly Martha, carrying a large tray amply 
 provided with homely and wholesome fare — oat- 
 meal cake, soda scones, marmalade, strawberry
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIII. 199 
 
 jam, fresh butter, and a jug of milk. And 
 Mary did not pause before breaking bread in 
 the house of her enemy ; for she saw that the 
 old housekeeper was anxious that her bounties 
 should be appreciated ; and besides, oat-cake 
 and marmalade and fresh milk ought to recom- 
 mend themselves to any healthily-constituted 
 young woman. By and by, when Martha had 
 left the room. Miss Stanley said — 
 
 " What shall I give her as we are going 
 away, Kathchen ? Half-a-sovereign ? " 
 
 *' Oh, for goodness' sake, Mamie, don't think 
 of such a thing ! " Kathchen exclaimed. " At 
 any other time give her anything you like ; but 
 you must not pay for food in this house ; you 
 cannot imagine how offended she would be. 
 She would take it as an insult offered to her 
 master : she represents Mr. Ross in his absence — • 
 it is Mr. Ross who is entertaining us now " 
 
 " Oh, it is Mr. Ross who is entertaining us ? 
 — yes of course," said Mary, thoughtfully ; and 
 — perhaps without noticing the coincidence — 
 
 she put down the piece of oat-cake she held in 
 her hand, nor did she take it up again. 
 
 And furthermore, as they were going down
 
 200 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 to the boat — having made due acknowledg- 
 ments to Martha for her hospitality — Mary 
 walked as one in a dream ; while Kathchen, re- 
 joiced to have come through this dreaded ordeal 
 with such unexpected ease, was in the gayest 
 of humours. She did not notice her friend's 
 reverie ; she was chattering away about their 
 foolhardiness in entering the savage's lair — 
 about her surprise in finding no skulls and bones 
 lying in corners — about the quiet and studious 
 aspect of the place being a pretty cover for all 
 kinds of dark and lawless deeds. Mary did not 
 reply ; once or twice she looked up to the white 
 grave on the hill — she was thinking of other 
 things. 
 
 But when they had all got into the larger 
 boat again, and set out on their return voyage, 
 Kathchen found a companion more of her own 
 mQod. The truth is that while the young 
 ladies were being entertained in the front part 
 of the house, Big Archie had slipped up to the 
 back, had paid his respects to Martha, and had 
 been presented, as is the custom in the west, 
 with his morning dram. This welcome miti- 
 gation of his Katzenjammer had made a new
 
 THE PIKATE'S LAIPw. 201 
 
 man of him ; and be was now disposed to be 
 as talkative as bitberto be bad been morose ; so 
 tbat, as be sate witb bis arm on tbe tiller, be was 
 cbeerfully telling tbe young lady all about bim- 
 self, and bis doings, and circumstances. And 
 Katbcben, finding bim tbus sociable, and friendly, 
 affected mucb interest, and plied bim witb 
 appropriate questions. 
 
 " Do you keep a cow, Mr. MacNicol ? " said 
 sbe. 
 
 ^'Aw, now," said be, deprecatingly, "tbe 
 young leddy will be mekkin me asbamed. It's 
 cbist Arcbie tbey'll be calling me." 
 
 " Yery well, Arcbie — do you keep a cow ? " 
 
 " I starve one," said Arcbie, witb ironical 
 humour. 
 
 " And a kitchen garden ? " 
 
 " Aw, is it a garden ? And you will not 
 know tbat I wass tekken tbe prize for tbe 
 garden, ay, more as three or four years ? Well, 
 well, now, there is no longer a prize given for 
 the best garden, and it's a peety, too " 
 
 " But tell me," said Katbcben, witb some aston- 
 ishment, " why was tbe prize stopped ? It seems 
 a very reasonable thing, a prize for tbe best
 
 202 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMKA. 
 
 kitchen garden among the crofters and fisher- 
 men — I'm quite sure Miss Stanley would give 
 such a prize. Why was it stopped ? " 
 
 Big Archie hesitated for a second or two ; 
 then he said, with a grin of confession — • 
 
 " Well, now, I will tell you the God's truths 
 mem ; for there's two ways about every story ; 
 and there's my way of it, and there's Mr. 
 Purdie's way of it ; and mebbe the one is true 
 or the other. And this is my way of it : I wass 
 gettin the prize — oh, yes, I will not deny that 
 — year by year, and very proud I wass, too, of 
 the cabbages, and the scarlet beans, and the like 
 of that, and the thirty shullins of the prize a 
 very good thing for me. And then kem the 
 time the Minard crofters they were for sending 
 an appligation to Mr. Stanley for to have the 
 rents revised, and I put my name to the paper 
 too ; but Mr. Stanley he would do nothing at 
 ahl— he said ' Go to Mr. Purdie.' Then Mr. 
 Purdie he sees my name on the paper ; and he 
 says, ' Very well, there will be no more prize 
 for the garden, and you can do without 'your 
 thirty shullins.' It wass a 'punishment for me, 
 that I wass putting my name on the paper.
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIR. 20 
 
 o 
 
 Now, mem, that is my story about the 
 
 prize 
 
 " I think it was very shabby treatment ! '' 
 Kathchen exclaimed. 
 
 " And that is the way I see my side of it," 
 continued Big Archie, honestly ; " but I am not 
 denying there may be another way. Aw naw, 
 mem, I want to tell you fair ; and Mr. Pur die 
 he would hef another version for you, if you 
 were to believe it " 
 
 " Well, then, what is his version ? " said 
 Kathchen — for the time being rather priding 
 herself on playing Mary Stanley's part. 
 
 " Well, I wass speaking to Mr. Pettigrew, the 
 minister, and he wass speaking to Mr. Purdie, 
 about getting the prize back, and Mr. Purdie he 
 says to Mr. Pettigrew * No, I will not give 
 the prize back ; for there was not enough com- 
 petition, and Archie MacNicol he wass always 
 tekkin the prize, and it wass the same as thirty 
 shullins a year off his rent. The prize,' he wass 
 saying, ' wass to encourache ahl the people to 
 attend to their gardens, and not to give Archie 
 MacNicol thirty shullins a year.' And that's 
 the God's truth, mem, and both ways of the
 
 '204: DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 story ; but what I will be thinking to myself is 
 that there wass no talk of stopping the prize 
 till Mr. Purdie found my name on the paper. 
 That's what I would be thinking to myself 
 sometimes." 
 
 Kathchen glanced rather timidly at her friend. 
 But Mary was still in that curiously abstracted 
 reverie — her eyes turned wistfully towards the 
 now receding Eilean Heimra — her thoughts 
 remote. So Kathchen merely said in an under- 
 tone — 
 
 " Very well, Archie, I will put both versions 
 •of the story before Miss Stanley, and I have no 
 doubt she will do what is right. For my own 
 part, I don't see why you should be deprived 
 of the prize simply because you keep a smarter 
 garden than the other people." 
 
 A great event happened this afternoon — 
 nothing less than the arrival from the South of 
 Mr. Watson, the sheep-farmer. Miss Stanley's 
 principal tenant. The two girls had landed 
 from the boat, walked along the shore, and were 
 just about turning off towards Lochgarra House, 
 when they were overtaken by some one riding 
 a stout and serviceable little cob ; and Mary
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIE. 205 
 
 instantly guessed who this must be — for persons 
 on horseback are rare at Lochgarra. The 
 stranger lifted his hat, but did not draw rein. 
 
 " Mr. Watson," said she — looking towards 
 him with a plain intimation that she desired to 
 speak with him. 
 
 Mr. Watson immediately pulled up, dis- 
 mounted, and came towards her, leading the 
 cob by the bridle. He was a middle-aged man 
 with a fresh complexion, grizzled hair, short 
 whiskers, and shrewd blue eyes — looking pros- 
 perous and well-satisfied with himself, and with 
 some little turn for jocosity about his firmly- set 
 lips. 
 
 " I beg your pardon," she said, with a little 
 embarrassment, "but — I wished to speak with 
 you " 
 
 " Miss Stanley ? — I am glad to make your 
 acquaintance," said he, in a marked south-country 
 accent. And he bowed to Miss Stanley's 
 companion. 
 
 " Won't you come into the house for a moment 
 or two ? " said Mary, with a vague notion that 
 she ought to be polite to a tenant who paid her 
 £1400 a year : moreover, she had ulterior ends
 
 206 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 in view. Mr. Watson consented ; Mary went 
 and called a gardener, who took charge of the 
 cob ; and then the two young ladies and the 
 farmer proceeded up the stone steps, and through 
 the hall, and into the wide hexagonal drawing- 
 room in the tower. Then she asked him to be 
 seated, adding some vague suggestion about a 
 glass of wine and a biscuit after his ride. 
 
 " No, I thank ye," said Mr. Watson. " I am a 
 teetotaller — not an ordinary thing in these parts. 
 Ay, and a vegetarian. But I practise — I don't 
 preach," he explained, with a complacent smile ; 
 " so I do no harm to other folk. Both things 
 suit me ; but I let other people alone. That's the 
 fair way in the world." 
 
 " I wanted to ask you, Mr. Watson," said she, 
 with a certain timidity, " whether you would 
 be disposed to give up the pasturage of Meall- 
 na-Cruagan ? " 
 
 In a second the shrewd and humorous blue 
 eyes had become strictly observant and business- 
 like. 
 
 " To give it up ? " he said, slowly. 
 
 " I mean," she interposed, " at a valuation. 
 I know it is yours under the lease ; we cannot
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIE. 207 
 
 disturb you ; nor should I wish to do so, except 
 entirely with your own goodwill." 
 ' " Miss Stanley," said he, " I will ask ye a 
 plain question : what for do ye want me to give 
 up the Meall-na-Cruagan ? " 
 
 " The crofters ■ " 
 
 " Ay, ay, just that," said he, without much 
 ceremony. " They've been at ye, in the absence 
 of Mr. Purdie. Well, let me tell ye this : I am 
 willing on my part to give up the Meall-na- 
 Cruagan, at a fair valuation ; but I warn ye 
 that if ye hand it over to the crofters, they'll 
 be not one penny the better off, and you'll be 
 just so much the Avorse. Where are they to 
 get the stock to put on it ? They've enough 
 grazing for what stock they've got." 
 
 " Yes, but it is not wholly that," said Mary. 
 ** I want to have them satisfied." 
 
 "Ye'll never see them satisfied, though ye 
 gave them the whole Lochgarra estate for 
 nothing," said this very plain-spoken person. 
 *' Surely ye are aware that the agents of the 
 Highland Land League have been here, as 
 they have been in every hole and corner of the 
 Highlands ; and while some of them have been
 
 208 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 making reasonable enough demands, others of 
 them have been showing themselves nothing 
 but irresponsible mischief-makers, firing the 
 brains of these poor creatures with revolu- 
 tionary nonsense, and trying to turn the whole 
 place into another Ireland. Well, well, it's not 
 my business ; it's not for me to speak ; but I 
 warn ye, Miss Stanley, that giving up Meall- 
 na-Cruagan will not satisfy them. What many 
 of them want — especially what the more 
 ignorant among them want — is for the land- 
 lords to quit the country altogether, and leave 
 them the entire stock, lock, and barrel of the 
 estates— the land and all that belongs to 
 
 " I know," said Mary, quietly, " what the 
 Land League have been doing; but if there 
 had not been widespread discontent and distress 
 they could not have done anything at all. 
 And surely there was reason for the discontent ; 
 look at the reductions the Crofters' Commission 
 have made — thirty and forty per cent, in some 
 places. However, I am not concerned with the 
 economic question of the Highlands generally ; 
 ] am concerned merely with Lochgarra ; and I
 
 THE PIF.ATE'S LAIR. 20B 
 
 want to do what is fair by the tenants ; I want 
 to see them satisfied, and as well-to-do and 
 comfortable as the circumstances will allow. 
 But what has been puzzling me since I came 
 here," she continued — for this seemed a frank 
 and well-wishing kind of man, and she was 
 glad to have any sort of help or advice — " is 
 that when I have spoken about lowering the 
 rent, they have had nothing to say in reply. 
 They seem rather to look to the Government 
 for aid. Yet you would imagine that the 
 lowering of the rent would be the first and all- 
 important thing." 
 
 Mr. Watson smiled, in a condescending way. 
 
 " I think ye might understand why they 
 would not complain to you about the rent." 
 
 '' Why ? " she demanded. 
 
 He hesitated — and there was an odd look on 
 his face. 
 
 ''1 do not wish to say anything against 
 friend Purdie," he observed. 
 
 '^ But I want to know the truth," she insisted. 
 " How am I to do anything at all unless I know 
 the exact and literal truth ? " 
 
 "Well, wellj let us put it this way," said 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 210 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMIU. 
 
 Mr. Watson, good-naturedly. ** There's some 
 that would call Mr. Purdie a hard man ; and 
 there's some that would call him an excellent 
 factor, business-like, thoroughgoing, and skilled 
 in his work. It's not a nice position to be in 
 at the best; it's not possible to please every- 
 body. And there's different ways of dealing 
 with people." 
 
 All this sounded very enigmatic. Mary 
 could not in the least understand what he 
 meant. 
 
 " I wish you to speak plainly, Mr. Watson," 
 said she. " You may be sure it will be in 
 absolute confidence." 
 
 He considered for a moment. Then he said : 
 
 "It's of little consequence to me. Friend 
 Purdie and I get on very well, considering ; 
 and besides I have my lease. But I'll just give 
 ye an instance of what has happened on this 
 estate, and you'll judge for yourself whether 
 it's likely the tenants would come to you for 
 a reduction of rent, or ask ye to interfere in 
 any way whatever. It was about four years ago 
 that one of the crofts over at Cruagan fell 
 vacant. Very well. Then Mr. Purdie would
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIR. 211 
 
 kave it that the pasture of that croft should be 
 taken by the other Cruagan crofters, each one 
 paying his share of the rent ; while the arable 
 land of the croft should be added to the Grlen 
 Sanna farm, which was also vacant just then. 
 The Cruagan crofters objected to that arrange- 
 ment ; Mr. Purdie insisted ; and at last the 
 crofters sent a petition to Mr. Stanley, asking 
 to have the arable land of the croft as well, or 
 else to be let alone. I am not saying anything 
 against your uncle, Miss Stanley." 
 
 " But I want to get at the truth of the story, 
 Mr. Watson," said Mary, firmly. '' That is the 
 main point. What happened ? " 
 
 '* I may explain that your uncle never in- 
 terfered with Mr. Purdie," the farmer con- 
 tinued, rather apologetically, " and that's no to 
 be wondered at. Many landlords make it a 
 rule not to interfere with their factor, for of 
 course he's doing the best he can for the estate, 
 and knows about it better than they can know 
 themselves. Then what happened, do ye say ? 
 What happened was this — at the very next term 
 every crofter that had signed the petition was 
 served with a notice to quit ; and that was only
 
 212 DONALD PtOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 withdrawn when they undertook to pay, each 
 man of them, £3 a year additional rent — that 
 is 15s. for their share of the added pasture, and 
 £2 5s. as a fine for having objected to Mr. 
 Purdie's arrangements. That's just what hap- 
 pened, Miss Stanley." 
 
 Mary was silent for a second or so — looking-^ 
 towards Kathchen, her eyes full of indignation. 
 
 " Why, it is one of the most abominable 
 pieces of tyranny I ever heard of ! " she ex- 
 claimed. And then she turned to Mr. Watson. 
 " If people are treated like that, can you wonder 
 if the Land League should find it easy to put 
 revolutionary ideas into their head ? " 
 
 "At all events," said Mr. Watson, with a 
 shrewd and cautious smile, '' ye will understand 
 that they are not likely to apply to you for any 
 lowering of rent. They know the consequences." 
 
 "Ah, do they ?" said she quickly. " Well,. 
 I must show them that they are mistaken. I 
 must convince them thev have nothing to fear. 
 They must learn that they can come to me, 
 without dread of Mr. Purdie or anyone else. 
 But," she added, with a bit of a sigh, " I suppose 
 it will take a long time."
 
 THE PIRATE'S LAIE. 213 
 
 Alter some little further conversation, of no 
 great moment, but marked by much civility on 
 both sides, the farmer rose. 
 
 " Any time ye're passing Craiglarig, Miss 
 Stanley, I should be proud if ye'd look in." 
 
 " Indeed I will," said she, going with him 
 to the door. ^' But I must tell you now how 
 deeply I am indebted to you. And of course 
 what you have said shall be kept in the strictest 
 confidence." 
 
 " I have told ye the truth," said he, " since 
 ye asked for it. But just mind this. Miss 
 Stanley — good factors are no that common ; 
 and friend Purdie understands his business. He 
 •drives a hard bargain ; but it's on your behalf." 
 
 " Yes," said she, " and now I am beginning 
 to see why it is the people hate me." 
 
 That same evening the two girls, who had 
 been out for a long walk, were coming down 
 the Minard road towards Lochgarra. The twi- 
 light was deepening ; the solemn inland hills 
 were growing slowly and slowly darker, and 
 losing their individual features ; the softly lilac 
 skies overhead were waiting for the coming night. 
 Silence had fallen over the woods, where the
 
 214 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 birches showed their spectral arms in the dusk^ 
 and where the russet bracken and withered grey 
 grass were now almost indistinguishable. It was 
 a still and tranquil hour ; sleep stealing upon the 
 tired world ; a little while, and the far, wide, 
 mysteriously-moving sea would be alone with 
 the stars. 
 
 But for Mary Stanley there was no sense of 
 soothing quiet, even amidst this all-prevailing 
 repose. On the contrary, her heart was full of 
 turmoil and perplexity ; insomuch that at times 
 her courage was like to give way ; and she was 
 almost ready to abandon the task she had under- 
 taken, as something beyond her strength. And 
 then again a voice seemed to say to her " Patience 
 — patience — hold on your way — dark as the 
 j^resent hour may be, the day will dawn at last." 
 And inKathchen she had an excellent counsellor; 
 for Kathchen had an admirable habit of making 
 light of troubles — especially those that did not 
 concern herself; and she was practical, and 
 matter-of-fact, neither over-sanguine nor liable 
 to fits of black despondency. On the present 
 occasion this was what she was saying, in her 
 cool and self-possessed way :
 
 THE PIKATE'S LAIR. 215 
 
 " You see, Mamie, I understand the Highland 
 character better than jou do. All that sullen- 
 ness and ill-will doesn't arise merely from high 
 rent and Mr. Purdie's tyranny — though that no 
 doubt has something to do with it. There are 
 sentimental influences at work as well. There is 
 the strong attachment towards the old family — 
 very unreasoning, perhaps, but there it is ; and 
 there is resentment against those who have dis- 
 placed them. Then there may be anger about 
 your uncle having destroyed the ancient land- 
 marks ; and injuries of that kind are not easily 
 forgotten or forgiven. But every hour that I 
 am in this place," continued Kathchen, as they 
 were making home through the strangely-silent 
 dusk, " I am more and more convinced that what 
 Mr. Purdie said was perfectly correct — that 
 young Donald Ross of Heimra is just everybody 
 and everything to those people. He is all- 
 powerful with them. Yery well. I cannot 
 believe that he has stirred up ill-will against 
 you, or even that he wishes it to continue. 
 He may do everything he can to thwart and 
 madden Mr. Purdie— why not ? — I would do 
 that myself, if I were in his place ! — but how
 
 216 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 can he have any wish to injure you ? Then 
 what I say is this : if you really mean to go 
 and see him, put entirely out of your mind what 
 you may have heard about his private character, 
 and his poaching and smuggling, and remember 
 only that his influence over those people could 
 make everything quite pleasant to you. Don't 
 go to him as you did this morning, as an enemy 
 to be challenged and reproached : no, what you 
 have to do is just to lower your pride a little, 
 and tell him that you have come to beg for a 
 favour. In fact, I am convinced that a word 
 from him would entirely change the situation. 
 Mamie, are you going to ask for it ? " 
 
 Mary Stanley did not answer : she walked on 
 in silence.
 
 ( 217 ) 
 
 CHAPTER YIII. 
 
 FACE TO FACE. 
 
 She was out in the solitude of the woods, and 
 she was alone. It was early morning, clear, 
 and calm, and still ; the sun lay warm on the 
 silver-lichened boulders that were dappled with 
 velvet-green moss ; the wandering air that 
 stirred the pendulous branches of the birches 
 brought with it a resinous odour, from the 
 innumerable millions of opening buds. A 
 profound silence prevailed, save for the hushed 
 continuous murmur of an unseen rivulet, and 
 the occasional distant call of a curlew. 
 
 A vague restlessness, and something even 
 akin to despair, had brought her hither. For 
 of course like other young people of the day 
 she had coquetted with the modern doctrine 
 that in times of trouble our great and gentle 
 Mother Nature is the true consoler and com-
 
 218 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 forter ; she had read Wordsworth ; and she had 
 read Matthew Arnold upon Wordsworth : 
 
 " He too upon a wintry clime 
 Had fallen — on this iron time 
 Of doubts, disputes, distractions, fears. 
 He found us when the age had bound 
 Our souls in its benumbing round — 
 He spoke, and loosed our heart in tears. 
 He laid us as we lay at birth 
 On the cool flowery lap of earth ; 
 Smiles broke from us and we had ease. 
 The hills were round us, and the breeze 
 Went o'er the sun-lit fields again ; 
 Our foreheads felt the wind and rain. 
 Our youth return'd ; for there was shed 
 On spirits that had long been dead, 
 Spirits dried up and closely furl'd, 
 The freshness of the early world." 
 
 And now if she wished to forget the untoward- 
 ness of human nature — if she wished to escape 
 from her bitter disappointment on beholding 
 her large and generous schemes met and 
 checked on every hand by a sullen ingratitude 
 - -surely here was a seclusion that should have 
 brought balm to her wounded heart. Moreover 
 the morning light was cheerful ; April as it 
 was, a quiet warmth prevailed ; she tried to 
 please herself by recollecting that this fairy
 
 FACE TO FACE. 219 
 
 paradise actually belonged to her. And if 
 human beings were so hard and unapproach- 
 able, why, then, she could interest herself in 
 these harmless living creatures that were all 
 so busy around her, under the quickening in- 
 fluences of the spring. From the dusty pathway 
 in the opener glades the yellow-hammers were 
 picking up bits of withered grass for their nest- 
 building ; black-caps swung back-downward 
 from the sprays, to wrench the buds off with 
 their bills ; she stopped here and there to watch 
 a beautiful beetle — shining bronze, or opaque 
 green with a touch of scarlet on its legs ; a 
 tiny grey lizard, with its small eye bright as a 
 diamond, lay basking on a shelf of rock, and 
 remained absolutely motionless, hoping to be 
 passed unnoticed. Then she came upon a little 
 tuft of primroses — so shining pale — so full of 
 dim suggestions — and of associations with the 
 poets. Well, she looked at the primroses. 
 They were very pretty. But somehow she 
 could not keep thinking of them, nor of the fine 
 things the poets had said of them. The fact 
 was, in her present straits her heart was craving 
 for human sympathy ; she wanted to be of some
 
 220 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 use in the world ; she wished to see eyes 
 brighten when she appeared at the door, how- 
 ever poor the cottage might be. Primroses 
 were pretty, no doubt — the firstlings of the year 
 awoke pleasant and tender memories — but — but 
 why were those people so obdurate ? No, 
 there was no solace for her; the sweet and 
 soothing influences of nature were intruded 
 upon, were obliterated, by the harsh facts and 
 problems of human life. With those men and 
 women almost openly declared her enemies, 
 and with all her grand schemes gone away, 
 what good could she get from primroses ? And 
 so, humiliating herself with the conviction that 
 she was nothing but another Peter Bell, she 
 passed on through the woods, and eventually 
 got down to the sheltered little bay where she 
 had first met Anna Chlannach. 
 
 And on this occasion also she was destined 
 to make a new acquaintance. She was idly 
 walking up and down the lilac and cream- 
 hued beach — and trying to persuade herself 
 that she had found a refuge from the per- 
 plexities and mortifications that seemed to 
 surround her in the busier world she had left
 
 FACE TO FACE. 221 
 
 — when a sound she had distantly heard from 
 time to time now rose in tone until there could 
 be no doubt about its nature : it was a human 
 voice, proceeding from the neighbouring bay. 
 She went as close as she could to the inter- 
 vening promontory ; then curiosity led her 
 stealthily to climb the heathery slope ; she 
 made her way between rocks and under 
 birches; and at last she paused and listened. 
 It was a man's voice, of an unnaturally high 
 pitch, and curiously plaintive in its monotonous 
 sing-song. In the perfect silence she distinctly 
 heard these words — 
 
 '^ Oh, my brethren, I charge you — I charge 
 you by all that you hold dearest — that you 
 keep the little children from the ruby wine ! " 
 
 What could this mean ? She pushed her 
 way a little further through the thick under- 
 wood, and peered over. There was a small 
 boat drawn up on the shore. Pacing slowly 
 backwards and forwards on the shingle was a 
 man of about twenty-eight or thirty, with a 
 long and lugubrious face, a shaggy brown 
 beard, and deep set eyes. Sometimes his head 
 was bent down, as if in deep thought; and
 
 222 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 then again he would raise it, and extend his 
 arm, as if addressing the opposite side of the 
 bay, or perhaps Eilean Heimra out at sea ; 
 while ever and anon the curious feminine 
 falsetto came back to the admonition — " Oh, 
 my brethren, keep the little children from the 
 ruby wine ! " 
 
 Mary began to guess. Was this the Minister ? 
 Had he returned home ; and had he seized the 
 first opportunity to come away over to this 
 solitary place, to rehearse his sermon for the 
 following Sabbath, with appropriate intonation 
 and gesture ? She listened again : 
 
 *' ' Who hath woe ? who hath sorrow ? who 
 hath contentions ? who hath babbling ? who 
 hath wounds without cause ? who hath redness 
 of eyes ? ' Ah, my friends, now that I have 
 addressed each section of the community, each 
 member of the family circle, now we come to 
 the little babes — those tender flowers — those 
 blossoms along the rough roadway of life — 
 smiling upon us like the rainbows of the morn- 
 ing — and bedewing the earth with their con- 
 secrated tears. When I behold those gems of 
 purest ray serene," continued the Minister, in
 
 FACE TO FACE. 223 
 
 liis elevated chant, " my soul is filled with mis- 
 givings and sad prognostications. I observe in 
 my daily walk the example that is set before 
 them ; the fathers in Israel are a stumbling 
 block to their own children ; nay, even of the 
 wisest it has been said, ' The priest and the 
 prophet have erred through strong drink, they 
 are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the 
 way through strong drink ; they err in vision, 
 they stumble in judgment.' My friends, is it 
 not a terrible thing to think of these blessed 
 babes — these innocent tendrils sprouting up 
 into glorious flowers, even as the Eose of 
 Sharon and the lily of the valley — to think of 
 them babbling with red mouths curses they 
 cannot comprehend ? Hold them back, I say ! 
 Snatch the fatal goblet from them ! Let 
 pleasure wave her ambrosial locks when and 
 where she pleases — let mirth and joy prevail — 
 but when the timbrel sounds and the cymbal 
 is heard in the hall — then, at all events let 
 those innocent ones be restrained from the 
 deadly snare — keep, oh, keep the little children 
 from the ruby wine ! " 
 
 Unluckily this last appeal was addressed to
 
 224 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Mary herself, or at least slie thought so in her 
 fright when she found the Minister's eyes 
 turned towards her : instantly she bobbed her 
 head down in the heather, and remained hidden 
 there until the sermon — or perhaps it was a 
 temperance lecture ? — was ended. It did not 
 last much longer. After the sonorous sentences 
 had ceased, there was a moment's silence ; then 
 a grating on the beach ; then a measured sound 
 of oars : she concluded that the Minister, his 
 flowery harangue rehearsed, was now making 
 for home again ; and she was free to get up 
 from her concealment and return to Lochgarra 
 House. 
 
 " Kathchen," she said, " the Minister has 
 come back. I have seen him — though I — I. 
 didn't speak to him. Now don't you think we 
 ought to go along and make his acquaintance 
 at once ? He might help us : you say yourself 
 the Free Church Ministers have an enormous 
 influence in the Highlands." 
 
 Kate Glendinning did not receive this pro- 
 posal with any great enthusiasm. 
 
 " There is one thing he might do," said she, 
 "as I told you before, Mamie. It would be
 
 FACE TO FACE. 225 
 
 rnucli easier for us to go and see Mr. Eoss, 
 if the Minister would take us under his 
 escort." 
 
 " Mr. Eoss ! " said Mary, impatiently. " It 
 is Mr. Eoss, and Mr. Eoss, with you from 
 morning till night, Kathchen ! You would 
 think he owned the whole place ! " 
 
 " Yes," said Kathchen, demurely, " that is 
 just what he seems to do." 
 
 However, the interview to which both the 
 young ladies had looked forward with so much 
 anxiety came about in the most natural way in 
 the world ; and that without any intervention 
 whatever. Mary and Kathchen, being down 
 in the village, had gone into the post-office to 
 buy some packets of sweets — bribes for the 
 children, no doubt; and they were coming out 
 again from the little general store when, in 
 broad and full daylight, they met young Eoss 
 of Heimra face to face. There was no escape 
 possible on either side ; he was going into the 
 post-office ; they were coming out ; and here 
 they were, confronted. Well, it must be 
 admitted that at this crisis Mary Stanley's 
 presence of mind entirely forsook her. Ten 
 
 VOL. I. Q
 
 226 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 hundred thousand things seemed to go through 
 her brain at once ; she could not speak ; con- 
 fusion burned red in her cheeks and on her 
 forehead. And then he was so pale and calm 
 and collected ; for a second he regarded them 
 both — and with no furtive glance ; he slightly 
 raised his peaked cap, and would have passed 
 them without more ado. It was Kathchen 
 who made bold to detain him. 
 
 '^ Oh, Mr. Ross," said she, breathlessly, " we 
 have never had an opportunity of thanking 
 you — you left the cottage before we knew — 
 and — and it was so kind of you to send the 
 
 carriage 
 
 And here for a moment Kathchen also lost 
 her head, for she had a horrible consciousness 
 that when a man has saved your life it is 
 ridiculous to thank him for sending a carriage. 
 And then those coal-black eyes were so calmly 
 observant ; they were not generously sym- 
 pathetic ; they seemed merely to await what 
 she had to say with a respectful attention. 
 But Kathchen bravely began again : " You — 
 you must not think us ungrateful — you see, 
 you had left the cottage before we knew — and
 
 FACE TO FACE. 227 
 
 when we went out to Heimra, we did not find 
 you at home " 
 
 " I am sorry I was not there," he said. 
 
 " And — and of course we knew quite well 
 what a dreadful position we were in — I mean 
 that night when we wandered into the morass/' 
 continued Kathchen. " But for you we never 
 should have got out again — we dared not move 
 — and in the darkness what could we have 
 done ? " 
 
 " It is a dangerous place," he said. 
 
 " I — I am going to give Mrs. MacYean a 
 cow in place of the one that was lost," Mary 
 now ventured to put in ; and here was she — 
 the bold, the dauntless, the proud-spirited 
 one ! — here was she standing timidly there, 
 her face still suffused, her eyes downcast. 
 And this little speech of hers was like a 
 plea for merciful consideration ! He turned to 
 her. 
 
 " The Mac Yeans have had a bad time of it 
 since the shepherd died," the young man said, 
 in a distant sort of way — but he was regarding 
 her curiously. 
 
 Then all of a sudden it occurred to Mary
 
 228 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 that she ought not to stand there as a suppliant. 
 Some sense of her wrongs and her recent trials 
 came back to her ; and here was the one whom 
 she suspected of being responsible — here was 
 her secret enemy — the antagonist who had 
 hitherto concealed himself in the dark. 
 
 " I hope the widow will condescend to accept 
 it, but who can tell ? " said she, with greater 
 spirit. " Really, they are the most extra- 
 ordinary people ! They seem to resent your 
 trying to do them a kindness. I have been 
 offering them all sorts of things they stand in 
 need of; I am willing to lower their rents; 
 I am going to arrange for more pasture ; I 
 propose to give prizes for the best homespun 
 materials ; and I would pay for getting over 
 some of the Harris people, if instruction were 
 wanted in dyeing or weaving — but they seem 
 to suspect it is all for my own interest. I 
 make them these offers — they will hardly look 
 at them ! " 
 
 " You may teach a dog to love you by 
 feeding it," said young Donald Ross, coldly ; 
 " but the Highlanders are not dogs." 
 
 At this she fired up — and there was no more
 
 FACE TO FACE. 229 
 
 shamefaced girlish blushing in her cheeks. 
 Her eyes were as proud as his own. 
 
 " They are human beings, I suppose," said 
 she, ** and a human being might at least say 
 ' Thank you.' But I do not know that I blame 
 them," she continued — to Kathchen's great 
 anxiety. " It seems to me there must be secret 
 influences at work about here. It is not 
 natural for people to be so ungrateful. Self- 
 interest would make them a little more — a 
 little more — amenable — if it were not for some 
 evil instigation at work among them. And 
 what can any one gain by stirring up ill-will ? 
 What can be the motive ? At anv rate, what- 
 ever the motive, and whoever he is, he might 
 consider this — he might consider the mischief 
 he is doing these poor people in making them 
 blind to their own welfare. It seems a strange 
 thing that in order to gratify envy, or hatred, 
 or revenge, he should sacrifice the interests of 
 a number of poor people who don't know any 
 better." 
 
 Kathchen glanced apprehensively from the 
 one to the other ; but there was no flash of 
 anger in those dark eyes, nor any tinge of
 
 230 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 resentment in the ^ pale, olive-tinted face. The 
 young man maintained a perfectly impassive 
 demeanour — respectful enough, but reserved 
 and distant. 
 
 " I wish them nothing but good," Mary went 
 on, in the same indignant way, " but how can 
 I do anything if they turn away from me ? 
 Why do they not come and tell me what they 
 want ? " 
 
 " Come and tell you what they want ? — when 
 they daren't call their souls their own ! " he 
 said. 
 
 " Of whom are they afraid, then ? " she 
 demanded. 
 
 " Of your agent. Miss Stanley," said he (and 
 here indeed Kathchen did notice something 
 strange in his eyes — a gleam of dark fire in 
 spite of all his studied restraint). " What do 
 they care about philanthropic schemes, or how 
 can you expect them to talk about their wants 
 and wishes, when what they actually know is 
 that Purdie has the face of every one of them 
 at the grindstone ? " He altered his tone. " I 
 beg your pardon. I have no right to interfere 
 — and no wish to interfere. If you should
 
 FACE TO FACE. 231 
 
 think of coming out again to Heimra, Miss 
 Stanley, to have a look over the island, I hope 
 I may be at home. Good-morning ! " 
 
 He again raised his cap — and passed on into 
 the office. Mary stood undecided for a moment ; 
 then moved slowly away, accompanied by Kath- 
 chen. Before them was the wide sweep of the 
 bay, with Lochgarra House at the point, and 
 its background of larches. The sea was calm ; 
 the skies clear ; it was a peaceful-looking 
 morning. 
 
 Of a sudden Mary Stanley stopped — her eyes 
 full of disappointment and vexation. 
 
 " Everything is at sixes and sevens — and 
 worse than before 1 " she exclaimed to her com- 
 panion. " What did I say, Kathchen ? What 
 did he say ? Wasn't he very insolent ? — well, 
 not that, exactly — -not exactly insolent — but — 
 well, I am not used to being treated with dis- 
 dain. Why did he break off like that — with 
 everything unsettled ? Wasn't he very inso- 
 lent ? — or, at least, disdainful ? — what did I say 
 that he should treat me like that ? " 
 
 " I know this," said the frivolous Kathchen, 
 " that he has the most splendid eyes I ever saw
 
 232 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 in a human creature. I call bim just distress- 
 ingly handsome ! " 
 
 " There is nothing so contemptible as a 
 beauty man," said Mary, impatiently. " What 
 has that got to do with it ? I want to know 
 why he treated me like that ! " 
 
 " I thought he behaved with very great 
 courtesy and self-respect," Kathchen made 
 answer, " considering that you plainly inti- 
 mated to him that it was he who stirred up 
 all that ill-feeling against you." 
 
 " Very well : he had nothing to say for him- 
 self! " Mary exclaimed. " He made no defence. 
 And then, you see, I — I wasn't quite prepared 
 — I did not expect to see him — and I forgot 
 about the fishing and shooting, or that might 
 have made him a little ashamed of himself, and 
 a little less arrogant." She turned and looked 
 towards the post-ofSce. '' I wonder whether 
 that was a map that he had rolled up in his 
 hand or a chart ? If he is going on board his 
 yacht again, he must pass this way. I cannot 
 have things left as they are — worse than ever ! " 
 
 *' I don't see how you are to mend them at 
 present," said Kathchen. " If you had kept on
 
 FACE TO FACE. 233 
 
 as you began, in that friendly way, it might 
 have been all very well ; but then you grew 
 indignant, and almost charged him with being 
 the mischief-maker. And I must say I think 
 he behaved with very great consideration and 
 courtesy." 
 
 " Do you really think so ? " said Mary, 
 quickly — with her eyes still fixed on the post- 
 office. And then she hesitated. And then she 
 said : " Come, Kathchen, let us go back. I 
 wish to make an apology to him " 
 
 " Mary ! " her friend protested. " How can 
 you think of such a thing ! " 
 
 '* Oh, but you do not know. It is not about 
 anything that has just happened. It is about 
 the lake and the old castle. I quite forgot. 
 And perhaps it is that that makes him so un- 
 forgiving. I must tell him that I am sorry." 
 
 But Kathchen shrank back. 
 
 " Make an apology for that ? " said she. 
 *' You don't seem to understand, Mary. It is 
 too serious for an apology. If you murder a 
 man's father or mother, you can't go to him 
 and say ' I am very sorry.' " 
 
 " Will you go on to the house, then^ Kath-
 
 234 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 clien ? " said Mary, simply. " I must put my- 
 self right with him — and after that he can be 
 as disdainful as he chooses." 
 
 Of course Kathchen refused to be released ; 
 she went back with her; and just as they 
 reached the little building, young Ross of 
 Heimra came out. He had neither chart nor 
 map in his hand now ; whichever it had been, 
 he had no doubt sent it away by post. 
 
 He seemed a little surprised ; but was just 
 as attentive and respectful as before. 
 
 " There was something I forgot to say," she 
 began, with obvious embarrassment, " and — 
 and it is difficult to say it. It was not till I 
 came here that I knew what my uncle had 
 done — about — about Loch Heimra — and Castle 
 Heimra. Well, there are some injuries, my 
 friend here says, that can never be repaired. 
 I suppose that is so. But at least you will 
 allow me to say that I am sorry — more deeply 
 sorry than you can imagine perhaps " 
 
 " And there are some things that are best 
 not spoken of," he said, calmly. 
 
 " Yes, I daresay that is so," she made answer, 
 with a hopeless feeling at her heart that his
 
 FACE TO FACE. 235 
 
 tone and manner were alike implacable. " No 
 doubt tbat is so. And yet — yet some little 
 consideration might be shown towards any one 
 who wishes to express regret. It was none of 
 my doing ; it never would have been of my 
 doing. And though yon, of course, would 
 rather hear no apology — would rather not have 
 the subject mentioned — still, there is another 
 thing. The people about here — if they have 
 any resentment against me because of the 
 pulling down of Castle Heimra — then that is 
 not fair. And any one having influence with 
 them — well, it would be ill done of him to stir 
 up anger against me on that account. I had 
 nothing to do with it — I am very sorry it ever 
 happened." 
 
 " Miss Stanley," said he — for he plainly did 
 not wish to speak of this thing — " I think you 
 are mistaken in supposing that any one is 
 stirring up ill-will against you ; and even the 
 most ignorant of the people must know that 
 you are not responsible for what happened 
 before you came here. As regards myself, I 
 do not wish for any apology or expression of 
 regret ; I wish for only one thing — -forgetful-
 
 236 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 ness. I think in such a case silence is the 
 only amends." 
 
 So they parted for the second time ; and 
 when the two girls had gone some way towards 
 Lochgarra House, Mary said, — 
 
 " Yes ; but all the same I told him I was 
 sorry." 
 
 And then again she turned and looked. 
 Donald E-oss had passed through the village, 
 and was now going up to the Free Church 
 minister's cottage. 
 
 '' Kathchen," said she, rather absently, " there 
 are a good many of them about here who seem 
 to hate me ; but I know there is not one of 
 them who hates me as he does. And what 
 had I to do with the pulling down of Heimra 
 Castle ? " 
 
 And that afternoon, as she stood at one of 
 the windows in the tower, looking away out 
 to sea, she saw the little white-winged yawl 
 making for Heimra Island. She knew who 
 was at the tiller — the man before whom she 
 had abased herself, craving, and craving in 
 vain, for some word of consideration and 
 sympathy.
 
 FACE TO FACE. 237 
 
 " Proud and implacable/' she said to herself; 
 and her wounded spirit was sore within her, 
 and perhaps a trifle indignant, too ; but she 
 would make no further utterance. He had 
 asked for silence and forgetfulness ; and he 
 had the right to say what was to be. 
 
 Meanwhile the message that Mary had sent 
 to the Fishery Board in Edinburgh had been 
 duly received and considered ; and when, after 
 two or three days' interval, the answer came 
 back to Lochgarra, it was to the effect that the 
 alien lobster fishermen had either been misin- 
 formed or were making wilful mis-statements : 
 the Fishery Board had not given them the right 
 to build huts, and, indeed, had no power to 
 confer anv such rio^ht. At once Marv sent for 
 Hector the head-keeper ; and bade him seek out 
 Archie MacXicol, and convey to him this news. 
 
 " And tell him from me," she said, " that all 
 he has to do is to explain to these men that they 
 have no right to come here and build huts and 
 use the fishing-grounds that naturally belong 
 to the crofters in possession ; and that they 
 must go — and go peaceably." 
 
 " Would Miss Stanley be for having a sheriff's-
 
 238 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 officer over from Dingwall ? " suggested the tall 
 and handsome keeper, in his serious way. 
 
 " No, no, not at all ! " she said. " The men 
 must go, when they learn they have no right to 
 be here. And if they refuse to go, haven't we 
 got our own policeman ? " 
 
 " Yery well, mem," said Hector, and he left. 
 
 It was towards the dusk of evening, and 
 raining heavily ; but all the same Hector found 
 Big Archie at work in his little bit of a garden. 
 When Archie heard the news, he struck his 
 spade in the ground, and stood upright. 
 
 " Aw, that's the fine news ! " he exclaimed, 
 joyfully, in Gaelic. " And we will soon be put- 
 ting an end to the squatters now. Hector ! Was 
 I not saying it myself that they had no right to 
 come here ? — but now there is the message from 
 the Fishery Board ; and we will soon have the 
 devils away from the lobster-ground. And when 
 there is good news coming, you will be for 
 taking a dram with me, Hector ? " 
 
 Well, it is said there was once a Highland 
 keeper who refused a glass of whiskey ; but his 
 name and neighbourhood are not known now. 
 Hector followed Big Archie into the cottage,
 
 FACE TO FACE. 239 
 
 and there a black bottle was produced. There- 
 after, the two men, having lit their pipes, set 
 out through the dark and wet again, for Hector 
 was returning to his own home, and Archie was 
 going a certain distance with him in search of 
 the Gillie Ciotach. 
 
 The stiff glass of whiskey had warmed Big 
 Archie's heart ; and as he strode along, the huge 
 and heavy-shouldered giant grew garrulous. 
 
 " The young lady that has come here," said he, 
 in his native tongue, " you know as well as I do, 
 Hector, she means very well, but it is not the 
 place for her at all. I say it is not the place for 
 her at all. What can a young lady know about 
 the price of sheep and the price of lobsters ? It is 
 a foolish thing ! The place for her, now. Hector, 
 that place is London, at the court of the Queen, 
 among the great ladies, in their fine clothes and 
 jewels. You think I do not know about such 
 things ; but I do know ; for I myself have rela- 
 tions with London ; and it is from London I am 
 hearing every fortnight,'from Corstorphine. And 
 the other day, when she was in my boat, I was 
 saying to myself 'There is a fine and beautiful 
 lady to be sitting in a coarse lobster-boat ; and it
 
 240 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 is at the court of the Queen she ought to be ; and 
 not going' about asking people to put in better 
 chimneys, and the like of that. A woman — a 
 woman has no right to be at the head of an estate ; 
 and I am not sure that the law allows it ; maj^be 
 she is here only through Purdie, and he the 
 master of the estate. Just think of that, Hector 
 — if it is only Purdie that keeps out Young Donald 
 from the estate : would not that be a thing to be 
 considered ? Now you know I am not from this 
 place myself ; I am from much further south ; 
 but I am a Gael ; I have no love for any Alban- 
 nach or Sassunnach coming into this country 
 against the wishes of the people ; and if it is 
 only Purdie, aw, God, it's myself that would 
 willingly give Purdie a crack on the head. And 
 think of young Donald of Heimra coming into 
 the estates, would it not be a grand day that. 
 Hector ? — ay, and many a gun fired off, and the 
 bagpipes, and flags, and taking the horses out of 
 the carriage. Sure I am the Gillie Ciotach 
 would go mad that day." 
 
 The mention of the Gillie Ciotach recalled the 
 keeper to his own immediate affairs. 
 
 " If you see Gillie Ciotach, Archie," said he.
 
 FACE TO FACE. 241 
 
 *' perhaps you will give him a word of caution. 
 The other evening I heard a shot up by the 
 Crom-allt; and I did not look. But the next 
 time I hear a shot, I will look ; and if I catch 
 Gillie Ciotach, I will break his gun over his 
 head, yes, and I will shoot his thief of a dog, 
 too ; for I am not going to get myself into trouble 
 on account of the Gillie Ciotach. This you 
 know, Archie, that when old Mr. Stanley was 
 here, there was not much goodwill ; and perhaps 
 some of us may have shut our eyes a little ; but 
 things are different now ; for here is my sister 
 Barbara telling me again and again that the 
 Baintighearna is the kindest lady she has ever 
 known in the world, and that it is not at all 
 what Purdie wishes to have done that she means 
 to have done. Well, well, that is not my busi- 
 ness ; but my business is to look after myself ; 
 and I am not going to get into trouble on account 
 of Gillie Ciotach." 
 
 At this point the two parted ; and Big 
 Archie went on to the inn. But he did not 
 enter by the front-door ; he passed round by 
 the stable-yard, and made his way to a small 
 
 lighted window that was partly open. He 
 VOL. I. a
 
 242 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 peeped in and listened at the same time — with 
 a grin of satisfaction on his face, for he had 
 found what he sought. 
 
 There were three men in this little sanded 
 parlour, which was a sort of adjunct to the inn. 
 They were seated round a table on which was 
 an oil-lamp ; and in front of each man stood a 
 small pewter measure and also a glass. Two 
 of the men were middle-aged, and of a sailor- 
 like type ; the third was a young fellow of 
 about four-and- twenty, whose bronzed com- 
 plexion, regular features, and short-cropped 
 curly brown hair made him rather good-look- 
 ing, only that in regarding him one did not 
 notice these things so much as the dare-devil 
 expression of both eye and mouth. He also 
 was dressed in something of sailor-like attire ; 
 while his broad Balmoral bonnet, pushed far 
 back on his brown curls, revealed the fact that 
 in his earlier youth he must have received a 
 mighty slash along the side of his forehead. 
 This was the Gillie Ciotach ; and the Gillie 
 Ciotach was singing — in high and nasal tones, 
 while his two companions listened solemnly. 
 Yet this was not really a melancholy song, this
 
 FACE TO FACE. 24 
 
 Q 
 
 Linn an aigh, for it described the happy state 
 of affairs that existed long ago, when the 
 heather yielded abundance of honey, and the 
 pastures abundance of milk, when there was 
 no rent to pay, when any one could fish or 
 shoot wherever he pleased, and when there was 
 neither hatred nor fighting, nor thirst of wealth. 
 Indeed, there was perhaps a touch of sarcasm 
 in the verses ; for the refrain informed whoso- 
 ever might wish to know at what period of the 
 world's history this golden age existed that it 
 was An uair bha Gdilig aig na h-eoin — that is 
 to say, When all the birds in Gaelic sang. How- 
 ever, whether the song was or was not in- 
 tended to be merry, the audience received it in 
 precisely the same fashion : when it ended, the 
 one said ' Ay, ay ' in a sad tone ; the other sighed 
 deeply ; and then each mechanically proceeded to 
 pour out a glass of whiskey. The Gillie Ciotach 
 did likewise ; by all three the whiskey was 
 drank in absolute silence ; there was a pause 
 of internal meditation — and at this point Big 
 Archie thought fit to open the door and enter, 
 for he had been long enough out in the rain. 
 And no sooner had he told his story than the
 
 244 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 dare-devil leapt to his feet, a wild delight in 
 his eyes. 
 
 " Aw, Dyeea^ this is a fine thing ! " he cried, 
 -sniffing the battle from afar. *' I tell you now 
 we will make short work of it — we will drive the 
 squatters into the Minch, and if the devils can 
 swim across the Minch, let them swim across the 
 Minch, and if they cannot swim across the Minch, 
 they can go down to their master below ! Come 
 away, boys, and make the preparation ; for there 
 will be a gay dance to-morrow ! " 
 
 The big giant caught him by both shoulders, 
 and threw him back into the chair. 
 
 " Did you hear me ? " said he (but there was 
 an ominous mirth in his eyes too). " Peace- 
 ably, peaceably ; the Baintighearna says peace- 
 ably — they are to go peaceably." 
 
 " Aw, is it peaceably ? " the Gillie Ciotach 
 cried, with a loud laugh. ** Well, if they will 
 go peaceably, that is very good ; but if they 
 will not go peaceably, then we will make them 
 sing a little song to-morrow — by God, Archie 
 MacNicol, we will make them sing * Farewell 
 to Fiunary,' and maybe it is on the wrong side 
 of their mouth they will be singing the * Fare- 
 well to Fiunary ! 
 
 J j>
 
 ( 245 ) 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINARD. 
 
 All that night there was marching and 
 counter-marching, and whipping up of recruits, 
 and drinking of whiskey, and singing of 
 Gahhaidh sinn an rathad mor.^ Big Archie and 
 his peaceful, or pseudo-peaceful, counsels were 
 no longer heeded ; the movement had been 
 taken up by the younger fellows, headed by the 
 mischievous Gillie Ciotach ; and the belief be- 
 came ereneral that orders had been received from 
 the Fishery Board in Edinburgh to the effect 
 that the Ru-Minard squatters were forthwith to 
 be driven into the sea. And if the aliens should 
 refuse to be so driven — should stand up in 
 defence of their little bits of homesteads — what 
 then ? 
 
 " It is a lesson they will want," said the Gillie 
 Ciotach, gaily, to his comrades (they were 
 * " We will take the highway."
 
 246 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 having a friendly glass together, in a barn lit 
 tip by a solitary candle), " not to come thieving 
 on other people's lobster-ground, and building 
 huts wherever they like, and not a penny of 
 rent to the holder of the croft. It is a lesson 
 they will want ; and it is a lesson they will get — 
 to take back home with them, and keep the 
 others from coming here. Well, now, this is 
 my opinion, that the best thing for giving a 
 man a rap over the head is a tiller. A tiller with 
 a handle to it — aw, that is a fine convenient 
 thing ! " 
 
 " I am going to take an oar over my shoulder," 
 said a brawny young Hercules. 
 
 *' And the more fool you, then," said the 
 Gillie Ciotach, who was a blunt-spoken youth. 
 " For I will tell you this, Feargus : if you strike 
 at a man with an oar, and he steps aside so that 
 you miss him, then he has you at his mercy — 
 it does not need a wise man to show you that. 
 Aw, God, a tiller is a fine thing, when the wood 
 is strong — it is a tiller that will be my orra-an" 
 donais^ to-morrow." He broke into a loud laugh. 
 
 * Orra-an-donais — an amulet for sending one's enemy to 
 perdition. Donas is Satan.
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MINARD. 247 
 
 '' We will teach them to be telling lies about the 
 Fishery Board ! — and it is little they are think- 
 ing now that to-morrow they will be singing 
 Farewell^ farewell to Fiunary ! " 
 
 In the morning it was found that the rain had 
 ceased ; but worse than rain was threatening ; 
 for all along the west the skies were of a heavy 
 and thunderous purple — a louring dark wall, as 
 it were — while torn shreds of grey cloud were 
 being blown along in advance, the precursors of 
 a gale. Mary and Kathchen were both at the 
 window, looking out at the angry heavens and 
 the livid sea beneath, when the maid Barbara 
 came quickly into the room. For the moment 
 Barbara had lost her pretty shyness of manner ; 
 she was breathless and excited ; her eyes were 
 full of apprehension. 
 
 " Oh, mem," she said, " do you know what is 
 happening ? They have gone aweh up the road, 
 a great many of the young lads, and others ; 
 and they have sticks with them ; and they are 
 singing Gabhaidh sinn an rathad mbr. Oh, I 
 am sure there is harm coming of it ! They were 
 saying something of the strange fishermen out 
 at Ru-Minard — and there will be fighting."
 
 248 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 A sudden dismay filled Mary's heart — dismay, 
 and a curious sense of helplessness. To whom 
 could she turn for aid in such a crisis — and with 
 every moment a thing of value ? 
 
 *^ Barbara, " she said quickly, " I must have 
 some one to go with me. Is Hector there ? " 
 
 " No, mem, he went up the hill this morn- 
 ing. 
 
 " Or Hugh ? " 
 
 " No, mem, he was going over to Cruagan, 
 to arrange about the heather-burning, so I was 
 hearing him say." 
 
 Then Mary turned to her friend. 
 
 " Kathchen, who is there ? Shall we ask the 
 Minister ? " 
 
 " Of course, he is the very person to ask — 
 if you really mean to go, Mamie. But do you 
 think you should ? " Kathchen asked, with 
 serious eyes. "It sounds like an open riot." 
 
 " I don't care — I must try what I can do — 
 for I fear I am responsible," Mary said, in a kind 
 of desperation ; and then she turned to the 
 young Highland lass : " Barbara, we shall want 
 the carriage at once — as soon as ever the horses 
 can be put to. Tell Sandy we are going over
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MmAED. 249 
 
 to find Mr. Pettigrew ; he can come along and 
 meet us. Tell him not to lose a second." 
 
 And almost directly afterwards the two girls 
 were out-of-doors, hurrying along to the other 
 side of the village, where was the Minister's cot- 
 tage. Kathchen was unmistakeably frightened ; 
 but all the same she ventured to say — 
 
 " Well, Mamie, your friends in London have 
 almost given up asking when you are going to 
 marry your cousin — you have kept him at arm's 
 length so long. But I think if Mr. Meredyth 
 were here just now, he would have a very good 
 chance." 
 
 " Why ? " said Mary, with a certain coldness. 
 
 " Because you want a man's assistance and 
 advice," said Kathchen. " Isn't it as clear as 
 daylight ? The moment this news comes, you 
 look round for some man to help you. Is 
 the head keeper there ? No. Or the under- 
 keeper ? No. Then you think of the Minister 
 — anybody so long as he is a man. All quite 
 natural, of course. Only I think if Mr. Frank 
 Meredyth were here — and you finding yourself 
 in constant trouble and perplexity — well, I 
 think he would soon take up a very important
 
 250 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 position. He might even persuade you to 
 let him send in to Inverness for a wedding- 
 ring." 
 
 " People don't get married in order to make 
 peace among their tenantry ! " said Mary, a 
 little proudly. 
 
 "Is he coming here in August ? " asked the 
 shrewd Kathchen. 
 
 " Fred wants me to ask him," Mary said, 
 briefly ; indeed, at such a time she was not 
 thinking of any suitor ; she was thinking of 
 what might even now be going forward on the 
 shores of Minard Bay. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Pettigrew received the intelli- 
 gence of the rising with a calm and gentle 
 compassion. 
 
 " Dear me, dear me ! " he said, in his high- 
 pitched, unnatural voice, and he thoughtfully 
 stroked his long and straggling beard. " What 
 a sad thing to think of, when brethren might 
 be living together in peace and ahmity ! The 
 heart of man is full of dangerous possibeelities 
 — it is a sad thing to think of — at this season 
 of the year, when all nature seems to know that 
 the verdant spring is around us — when all
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MINARD. 251 
 
 is harmony and peace — to think that angry 
 passions should arise in the heart of man — " 
 
 " Yes, but won't you come at once, Mr. 
 Pettigrew ? " said Mary, with distress in her 
 eyes. " We may be able to do something to 
 prevent bloodshed. The carriage will meet us 
 — we may be able to overtake them." 
 
 But the Minister paused to consider. 
 
 " No doubt," said he, reflectively, " to prevent 
 the shedding of blood is an admirable thing, 
 a commendable thing, and praiseworthy. But 
 there are times and seasons when even the 
 wisest counsel is of no avail — when the heart 
 of man is as a fiery steed, untameable, not to 
 be bridled ; and in these times and seasons, 
 what is demanded of us is a judeecious 
 sympathy, a constant sympathy, a sympathy 
 that does not take sides, but longs for the 
 return of peace and goodwill. Strange, indeed, 
 that at this time of the year — " 
 
 "But won't you come with us at once, Mr. 
 Pettigrew ! " Mary said, in her despair. "The 
 carriage will meet us. We must try what we 
 can do. You see, I am in a measure responsible. 
 I told them what the Fishery Board had said —
 
 252 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 that the stranger fishermen had no right to 
 build huts — and — and I hoped they would go 
 away quietly — but if there is to be fighting, 
 then surely it is the Minister who should come 
 and try to make peace." 
 
 " Ah, the carriage ? " said Mr. Pettigrew, 
 thoughtfully, as he took down his hat from a 
 peg in the lobby. " That is well considered — 
 well considered. For if in their anger these 
 misguided craytures should take to throwing 
 of stons, the carriage could be closed. Ay, 
 ay, that is very well now ; and if their wrath 
 should be intemperate — for who can gauge the 
 stubbornness of man ? — then the carriage can 
 be driven away at any moment. But what a 
 sad thing to think of — sad thing ! — when all 
 might be dwelling in peace and ahmity — in 
 peace and ahmity." 
 
 However, it was no consideration of personal 
 safety that was uppermost in Mary Stanley's 
 mind at this moment ; indeed, so anxious was 
 she to overtake the rioters that she and her 
 two companions had very nearly got back to 
 Lochgarra House before they met the carriage. 
 Then the horses were turned round ; and on
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINAED. 253 
 
 they drove — past the brawling stream — past 
 the larchwoods — and np to the height com- 
 manding a view of Minard Bay. And here, at 
 the top, they encountered the first human being 
 of whom they could ask the news. It was 
 John the policeman. The plump, roseate, good- 
 natured Iain was calmly seated on a low wall 
 by the roadside ; and he was unconcernedly 
 regarding the wide stretch of white sand across 
 which some small black figures were now seen 
 to be in motion. 
 
 " What are you doing here, John ? " said 
 Mary, indignantly. 
 
 " I was just looking," said Iain, with an 
 amiable smile — and he glanced in the direction 
 of the people crossing the white sands. 
 
 " Yes, but why are you waiting here ? " said 
 she. " Don't you know that there is likely to 
 be fighting ? And it is your duty to prevent 
 that ! " 
 
 '' They will be telling me," said Iain, slowly 
 and comfortably, " that the strange fishermen 
 have no right to be in the place. Very well, 
 then. And if they are to be put out of the 
 place, it's not for me to interfere. If they
 
 254 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 are wrong, let them go aweh ; and if they 
 will not go aweh, they will have to be put 
 aweh." 
 
 This seemed a sound argument — to John. 
 
 " But what did the Lochgarra people say to 
 you as they went by ? " Mary demanded. 
 "■ Didn't you see they were armed with sticks ? 
 Don't you know there will be fighting and 
 bloodshed ? " 
 
 " Aw, there may be a brokken head or two," 
 said John, with a demure smile. 
 
 " Well, it is your duty to prevent that ! 
 These men have no right to take the law into 
 their own hand. If the strangers will not go 
 peaceably, they must be removed by the law — 
 not by beating them with sticks. And you are 
 standing back here — and letting them do what 
 they like ! " 
 
 "And if they tek to fighting," said John, 
 '* it's not me that can stop them." 
 
 This also seemed painfully true. 
 
 " But you can do something," she insisted. 
 *^You can warn them. You can take their 
 names. You can threaten them with a prosecu- 
 tion. . You can tell them that — that — Mr.
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINARD. 255 
 
 Pettigrew, who is it that prosecutes here ? — the 
 Sheriff at Dingwall ? " 
 
 "Nay, but I am considering that there is 
 much of reason in what John says/' observed 
 the Minister, in his lofty sing-song ; " and 
 perhaps we should do well to follow his 
 example, and remain as spectators and witnesses. 
 I perceive that this carriage cannot be closed ; 
 and therefore I do not think it would be pru- 
 dent — rather would it be rashness, and culpable 
 rashness — to go forward amid a storm of angry 
 passions. Surely it would be more prudent for 
 us to remain here, with the constituted repre- 
 sentative of law and order ? " 
 
 " But I am not going to remain here. John," 
 she said, peremptorily, to the young policeman, 
 " get up in front. Sandy, drive on quickly ; 
 we may get between those people yet, before 
 the mischief has begun." 
 
 And so the horses went forward again — 
 rattling away down the stony hill until they 
 reached the soft and sandy road skirting the 
 bay. The little township of Minard was quite 
 deserted, save for the women, who stood in 
 small groups in the fields or at the cottage-
 
 256 . DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 doors, watching what was going forward out 
 there towards the long headland. Not that 
 they could see very much, once the black figures 
 had crossed the white breadth of sand ; for the 
 morning was dull and sombre ; and the rocks 
 of Eu-Minard, along which the crofters and 
 fishermen were now making their way, were 
 dark. But this much was obvious, that at a 
 certain point the crowd stopped ; while two of 
 their number went forward — one of these being 
 of gigantic size. 
 
 " This is Big Archie," said Mary, almost to 
 herself, " and I warned him that he must get 
 them to go away peaceably." 
 
 And no doubt it was as a deputation carry- 
 ing peaceful proposals that Big Archie and his 
 companion were now going forward to certain 
 huts scattered just above the rocks, where also 
 a number of dark figures could be dimly 
 descried. Peaceful or not peaceful, the negotia- 
 tions a't all events involved delay ; and this 
 delay enabled the party in the carriage to drive 
 along the road as far as was practicable ; then 
 the horses were stopped, and Mary got down to 
 follow the rioters on foot. It was in vain that
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MINARD. 257 
 
 the Minister sought to dissuade her with plain- 
 tive remonstrances ; she intimated to him that 
 he could remain in the carriage if he chose. 
 Kathchen, on the other hand, though she was 
 thoroughly frightened, had but the one and 
 sole idea — to remain by Mary Stanley's side, 
 whithersoever she went. As for the easv- 
 going Iain, he was distinctly inclined to hang 
 back. 
 
 " What can I do ? " said he, with occult 
 amusement in his eyes. " If they will brek 
 one another's heads, how can I prevent it ? If 
 it is right that these m^en should go aweh, and 
 if they will not go aweh, they cannot complain 
 if they get their heads brokken for not going 
 aweh." 
 
 But Iain's humorous indifference did not last 
 very long. Mary, hurrying forward, and 
 with eyes anxiously straining, could make out 
 that the two men were now returnino* to their 
 friends ; presently the blustering wind blowing 
 in from the sea brought a sound of confused 
 and prolonged cheering ; and she now perceived 
 that the scattered assemblage was moving on. 
 At the same moment there was the sharp report 
 
 VOL. I. s
 
 258 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 of a gun ; and then it was that the policeman's 
 face grew grave. 
 
 " Is there going to be murder ? " said 
 he. 
 
 She did not answer him ; she was running 
 now — and Kathchen by her side. 
 
 " We must — go right into the middle of it," 
 she said, panting for breath, *' and then — 
 perhaps they will stop." 
 
 At first the Lochgarra and Minard fishermen 
 advanced but slowly and cautiously upon the 
 huts, not knowing where the enemy might 
 mass himself. The fact is the aliens had been 
 taken unawares ; for while they were as deter- 
 mined as men oould be to defend their home- 
 steads, they had no time to seek for arms, 
 supposing they could have obtained any, while 
 up here on the rocky knolls there were no 
 stones. They were running hither and thither 
 about the huts, picking up any bit of wood or 
 any broken oar they could find ; but when they 
 made a sort of group of themselves, to await 
 the onset of their antagonists, it was clear that 
 timber had failed them, and other weapons 
 they seemed to have none. But there they
 
 THE BATTLE OF KU-MINAED. 259 
 
 stood, dauntless, sullen, silent — the sea behind 
 them — their outnumbering foes in front. 
 
 And now the invaders knew what was ex- 
 pected of them. It was a shrill cry from the 
 Gillie Ciotach that led the great hoarse volume 
 of their cheers ; and then, with all kinds of 
 minatory exclamations, they rushed forward 
 on the devoted band. Who could resist this 
 whirling, tempestuous, compacted shock ? For 
 two or three wild seconds there was inex- 
 tricable confusion ; and snap here, snap there, 
 cudgel met cudgel, or descended on solid 
 crown ; but it was all over directly ; and the 
 next phase of the battle was that the aliens, 
 as if by one common impulse, had turned and 
 fled — fled pell-mell down the rocks and towards 
 the shore, their foes pursuing with fierce and 
 joyous cries. And here it was that Mary 
 Stanley made her appearance — breathless, dis- 
 hevelled — trying to throw herself in the way 
 of Big Archie, who was leading the pursuit. 
 
 " Archie ! " she called to him. " How dare 
 you ! Let those men alone ! I command you ! " 
 
 But very little indeed did Big Archie care 
 for her commands ; it was another considera-
 
 260 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 tion altogether that at this moment caused 
 himself and his companions to pause. For the 
 fugitives, as soon as they gained the beach, had 
 taken refuge behind two boats drawn up there; 
 and as the boats, with their spars and sails 
 astern, and their lobster-creels and barrels at 
 the bow, offered excellent shelter, while the 
 beach afforded unlimited ammunition, the battle 
 was not yet over. In truth, the stones that 
 were now flying through the air decidedly 
 checked the ardour of the pursuers ; and it 
 was at this moment that Mary again got up to 
 Gilleasbuig Mor. 
 
 " Archie ! " she said, indignantly. 
 
 An accidental stone struck her on the 
 shoulder. She did not mind. But another 
 and a sharper one struck her on the wrist ; 
 and inadvertently she drew np her hand with 
 a piteous little cry. She had been cut over 
 the bone ; blood was flowing profusely ; ai^d 
 at sight of that, Big Archie— his eyes blazing 
 with wrath — seemed to go mad altogether. 
 
 " Aw, Dyeea ! " he cried ; and he ran forward 
 and leapt into the boat, on to the middle 
 thwart ; he sprang out on the other side ; and
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MESTARD. 261 
 
 began to lay about him with his cudgel as 
 with the hammer of Tlior, smiting and scatter- 
 ing his enemies in all directions. But she was 
 after him in a moment — nimbly getting round 
 the stern of the boat — and before he had 
 wholly wreaked his vengeance, she had him by 
 the arm. And here her interposition did save 
 bloodshed ; for the men, finding her between 
 Big Archie and themselves, refused to throw 
 the stones they had hastily picked up ; quietude 
 was secured at least in this corner of the 
 battlefield. 
 
 But indeed the general interest had already 
 been attracted elsewhere. When Mary turned 
 to see what was going on landwards, she 
 happened to notice certain small wavering 
 shreds of pink. It was a very pale pink ; on 
 a clear day, it would hardly have been visible ; 
 but against the lurid sky it was distinct enough. 
 
 " What is that ? " she said, with a sudden, 
 conscious fear, to Big Archie. 
 
 The huge, heavy-shouldered fisherman (who 
 was keeping an eye on his discomfited foes as 
 he led the way round the stern of the boats) 
 glanced towards the rocky knolls that had
 
 262 DONALD BOSS OF HEIMRA, 
 
 been the scene of the first onslaught, and said 
 rimly, — 
 
 g 
 
 '^ It wass the Gillie Ciotach he wass bringing- 
 a can of petroleum with him this morning, and 
 lobster-creels will be easy to set on fire." 
 
 *' Do you mean to say they are burning down 
 those poor men's huts ? '' she demanded, in a 
 perfect agony of helplessness. " Archie, what 
 is to be done ? Why does not the policeman 
 interfere ? " 
 
 " Aw, it is no use now," said Big Archie, 
 with much composure. " They are ahl on fire 
 already — and a good job, too ! — for we won the 
 fight, and that is a proper end to it." 
 
 '' And this is how you have kept your 
 promise to me ! " Mary said, in accents of 
 bitter reproach. 
 
 '' As sure as death, mem," said the big good- 
 natured giant, '' I wass doing everything Miss 
 Stanley said — peaceably, peaceably. When I 
 Avent to them this morning, I wass saying to 
 them ' You hef no right here.' They said, ' We 
 hef the right here.' I said ' It is no use telling 
 lies ; for Miss Stanley she has written to the 
 Fishery Board ; and they hef given you no
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MIXARD. 263 
 
 right whatever.' And then I says * It is a fine 
 thing for you to come here and tek what piece 
 of land you want, and build your houses on it, 
 and you not paying a penny of rent to the man 
 that has the croft.' Then they said ' The land 
 is not worth anything ; it is only rock.' Then 
 I says * That is not your business, as you know 
 very well ; and other people hef to pay rent for 
 it, whether it is rock or good land ; and it is 
 impudent men you are to come and tek things 
 for nothing. I am from Tarbert on Loch Fyne,' 
 says I, ' and it's stealing they would be calling 
 that down there.' Well, mem, they were not 
 liking that — " 
 
 " I should think not ! " said Mary. " Is that 
 what you call asking them to go away civilly 
 and quietly ? " 
 
 " But they would not go aweh at ahl, mem ! " 
 Archie protested, still looking towards those 
 pink shreds of flame (and alas ! for the poor 
 discomfited aliens — they had emerged from 
 their shelter, and gone a few yards up the 
 beach, and were also regarding, hopelessly 
 enough, the distant crowd and the work of 
 destruction). " They were growing more and
 
 264 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 more impudent, mem ; and they said they 
 would not go aweh ; and I said we would drive 
 them aweh ; and they said we could not do it. 
 And then says I to them ' Do you see the 
 carriage yonder? — for if you can mek out 
 the people, it is the proprietor herself, and the 
 Minister, and the policeman, and they are come 
 down to see that you go aweh from this place 
 ahltogether, and, by God, if you do not go 
 aweh, we will drive you into the sea, and set 
 fire to your houses.' ' You cannot do it,' says 
 they-" 
 
 "But how dared you tell them that we had 
 come down for any such purpose," said Mary, 
 indignantly, *' when we only came to prevent 
 violence ? " 
 
 " And how wass I knowing that, mem ? " 
 said he cunningly. " But I am sure there wass 
 only the one end to it in any case, when they 
 began to pick up the sticks. And we were not 
 going to hef the land stolen, and the lobster- 
 ground tekken up, and be beaten as well ; for a 
 man cannot stand everything, and we had sticks 
 as well as they had sticks — " 
 
 " And so you began to fight in spite of all I
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINARD. 265 
 
 told you ! " she said. " And I do not know 
 what harm has been done or how many have 
 been hurt. You yourself, you would have been 
 murdered if I had not come round by the boats 
 and dragged you away." 
 
 " Is it murdering, mem ? " said Big Archie, 
 with a grin. " Aw, Cosh, there would hef 
 been some murdering going before they 
 murdered me ! " 
 
 And now they came upon Kathchen, who 
 was standing as one paralyzed, gazing upon the 
 excited crowd who were collected round the 
 burning huts, and listening to their shouts and 
 laughter. The moment she turned, she caught 
 sight of Mary's hand, and uttered a quick cry 
 of alarm. 
 
 *' It is nothing, Kathchen," her friend said, 
 *' only I wish you'd tie this handkerchief round 
 my wrist — and pull it tight ; it will hurt less 
 then." 
 
 "What made you go away down there, 
 Mamie ? " said Kathchen, in her distress. ** I 
 — wanted to stay by your side — but — but I 
 could not face the stones. It was madness — " 
 
 **They did not intend to strike me," said
 
 266 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Mary (whose shoulder was aching cruelly, as 
 well as her wrist). "These poor men, they 
 have nothing left now but their boats." And 
 then she demanded: "But where was that 
 booby of a policeman ? — why did he not 
 prevent them setting fire to the huts ? And 
 where is the Minister ? " 
 
 Kathchen did not know ; nor did she care 
 much ; all her interests were engrossed by the 
 strange scene being enacted up there among 
 the rocky knolls. For, despite the petroleum, 
 and the heaping-on of lobster-creels and float- 
 barrels, the huts did not burn well ; the rain 
 of the previous night had soddened the thatch, 
 and perhaps the interiors were none too dry at 
 the best of times ; so that the incendiaries had 
 to keep opening up draught-holes, or flinging 
 on more petroleum, in order to encourage the 
 flames. And then again that proved too slow 
 w^ork for their impatience. They got poles 
 and broken oars to use as battering-rams ; they 
 charged the inefi'ectual doors, and tore down 
 the smouldering roofs ; and when the demo- 
 lition of this or that rude dwelling was com- 
 plete, there were loud and triumphant cheers.
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MINAED. 267 
 
 Mary did not seek to interpose. It was too 
 late now. She looked on sadly, wondering 
 what the poor wretches down by the boats were 
 thinking, and not without some half-terrified 
 consciousness that she was answerable for all 
 this wreck and ruin, 
 
 " It is shameful ! — it is shameful ! " she said 
 — almost to herself. 
 
 " Well, mem," said Big Archie, who still 
 remained with the two young ladies, " I will 
 ask you this — when you will find a wasps' 
 nest in your garden, what will you do ? You 
 will not be for going forward and telling 
 them they were right in tekkin up the place, 
 and that you will not disturb them ; aw, no ! — 
 I think it is a bunch of straw you will be carry- 
 ing to the place, and setting a light to it, and 
 putting the nest on fire. Aw, Cosh, that is 
 the sure weh to get rid of them — " 
 
 *' But these were not wasps — these were men 
 like yourselves," said she, sharply. " They 
 have as much right to live as you — " 
 
 " Ay," said Big Archie, scratching his head 
 in assumed perplexity, " mebbe they hef as 
 much right to live as we hef — but not there.
 
 268 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 For it wass Miss Stanley herself that would 
 be saying- that." 
 
 Mary's face flushed. 
 
 " I told you they were wrong in thinking 
 they had any right to be there ; but I did not 
 tell you to go and break out into lawlessness 
 and set houses on fire with petroleum. Do you 
 think that can be allowed ? Do you think there 
 is no government in this country ? Do you 
 think you can do just as you please ? I tell 
 you, the Sheriff from Dingwall will have to 
 inquire into this matter." 
 
 Gilleasbuig Mor did not like the mention 
 of Dingwall. 
 
 " If it was brekkin the law/' said he, rather 
 gloomily, " it wass not us that wass brekkin 
 it first. It was them fishermen. And now 
 they can go aweh hom ; and if they ever think 
 of coming back here, they will remember the 
 day they sah their houses on fire at Ru-Minard." 
 
 The work of demolition was now complete. 
 Smouldering thatch and blackened rafters 
 strewed the ground ; nothing remained erect 
 but the rude stone walls ; the alien colony had 
 lost its habitation. And then the invaders
 
 THE BATTLE OF EU-MINARD. 269 
 
 formed once more into a sort of irregular pro- 
 cession ; they shouldered their staves and 
 clubs ; three ringing cheers were given — as a 
 signijQcant message to their vanquished oppo- 
 nents, who still remained down by the boats ; 
 and then the victors set out on their homeward 
 march, the Gillie Ciotach's shrill voice leading 
 oif with " Gabhaidh sinn an rathad mbr,^' * while 
 a rough and ready chorus was volunteered by 
 the straggling ranks. Mary Stanley and Kath- 
 chen, accompanied by Big Archie, slowly fol- 
 lowed, some distance intervening. In truth, 
 Mary's heart was as lead : all things seemed 
 to be going so ill — in spite of her most patient 
 and unselfish endeavours. 
 
 And now they came upon Iain the policeman 
 — bland, benign, complacent as usual. Iain 
 
 * The chorus of this gay ditty has been thus Englished : 
 
 " We will take the good old way. 
 We will take the good old way, 
 We will take the good old way, 
 
 The way that lies before us ; 
 Climbing btiif the heathery ben, 
 W inding swiftly down the glen. 
 Should we meet with strangers then, 
 
 Their gear will serve to store us ! "
 
 270 DONALD EOSS OF HEIMEA. 
 
 had remained some little way apart, to let the 
 rioters go by ; his share in the day's proceed- 
 ings had been limited to a discreet and not 
 nnamiable observation. 
 
 " What are you doing here ? " said Mary. 
 *' Why did you not interfere before they had 
 set the huts on fire ? Don't you see the mis- 
 chief that has been done ? " 
 
 There was a whimsical, demure smile in Iain's 
 eyes. 
 
 '*I could not be tekkin up all them men," 
 said he. 
 
 " Then what are you put here for at all ? " 
 she demanded. " Why did they send you to 
 Lochgarra if you have no authority ? What 
 use are you in the place ? " 
 
 Iain was far too smooth-tempered to take any 
 umbrage. He did not even claim to be of any 
 use. 
 
 " Aw, well," said he — and he lifted up a bit 
 of dried seaweed and slowly pulled it to pieces, 
 " the people about Lochgarra, there is not much 
 harm in them." 
 
 " Do you call that no harm — setting fire to 
 houses ? "
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINAPtD. 271 
 
 Iain hesitated — for he wished to be very 
 respectfuL 
 
 *' But if the fishermen had no right to build 
 the houses ? " he ventured to say, with down- 
 cast eyes, and in the most propitiating tones. 
 *' And it was Miss Stanley herself who was 
 telling them that," 
 
 " Did I tell them to set the houses on fire ? 
 Did I tell them to go and fight with sticks and 
 stones ? I told them to go and try to get those 
 people away peaceably; and instead of that, 
 here they break out into open riot, and work 
 all the mischief they can, and you stand by and 
 look on ! " 
 
 " Aw, well," said Iain, pulling away at the 
 seaweed, " there is not much harm done. 
 There is not more than one or two has got a 
 knock." 
 
 The hoarse, triumphant chorus — 
 
 " GahTiaidh sinn an ratliad mbr 
 Gdbhaidh sinn an ratJiad mbr 
 Gahhaidh sinn an rathad mbr 
 Olc adr mhath le each e ! " 
 
 was growing more distant now ; the men were 
 ascending the hill, towards their own homes —
 
 272 DONALD ROSS OP HEIMRA. 
 
 or still more likely they were going on to the 
 village, to have a good, solid dram after this 
 great exploit. And here was the waggonette, 
 and Mr. Pettigrew therein, apparently con- 
 fining his attention to certain slips of paper. 
 When the two young ladies appeared and got 
 into the carriage, the Minister put away his 
 MS. ; and when the horses had started for 
 home, he lifted up his high and feminine voice, 
 and said — 
 
 " It is a sad sight we have seen to-day — a 
 sad sight — angry passions surmounting what 
 should be the calm of the Christian soul — and 
 among those who might well be living in peace 
 and ahmity. And it is well for us who can 
 keep apart, and view these things as a passing 
 vision, and comfort ourselves with pious thoats. 
 ' For they that sleep sleep in the night ; and 
 they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 
 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting 
 on the breastplate of faith and love : and for an 
 helmet, the hope of salvation.' As for those 
 poor men out at Ru-Minard, I fear they will be 
 as the beasts of the field and the birds of the 
 air in the matter of habitation ; but they must
 
 THE BATTLE OF RU-MINAKD. 273 
 
 seek for higher things ; thej must say to them- 
 selves ' For here have we no continuing city, 
 but we seek one to come ! ' " 
 
 " You might have gone and tried to save 
 their houses for them 1 " Mary exclaimed, 
 bitterly. 
 
 But she would say no more. Indeed, she 
 was silent all the way home. A sense of help- 
 lessness, of failure, of despair weighed upon 
 her ; all her fine courage and heroic spirit 
 seemed to have fled. When they got to the top 
 of the hill at Minard, she turned and looked 
 towards the long promontory beyond the bay ; 
 and there was still a little smoke showing here 
 and there amongst the smouldering ruins. In 
 spite of herself tears rose to her eyes. This 
 was the climax of all her splendid schemes. 
 This was what she had been able to do for the 
 neighbourhood that had been entrusted to her. 
 Might it not be said of her — 
 
 ' The children born of thee are sword and fire. 
 Red ruin, and the breaking up of laws ' ? 
 
 How long was it since she had come to Loch- 
 garra ? — and this was the end. 
 
 But as they drove on, they came in sight of 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 274 DONALD ROSS OF HEIMRA. 
 
 Lochgarra Bay ; and out there was Eilean 
 Heimra. And no sooner had Mary Stanley's 
 eyes lit on the distant island than something 
 seemed to stir her heart with a proud indigna- 
 tion ; and if she had spoken, as she dared not 
 speak, she would have said — 
 
 " Ah, it is you, it is you out there who are 
 responsible. It is not I. It is you alone who 
 have control over these people ; and yet you go 
 and shut yourself up in selfish isolation ; and 
 leave me, a woman, to contend, and strive, — 
 and break down ! " 
 
 END OF VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON : PRINTED BY. WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITBD, 
 ' STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CR086.
 
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