"Ardoch, Nov. 13th, 1715."
"I thought you would be anxious to know the fate of this day. We attacked the enemy on the end of the Sherriff Muir, at twelve of the clock this day, on our right and centre; carried the day entirely; pursued them down to a little hill on the south of Dumblane; and there I got most of our horse and a pretty good number of our foot, and brought them again into some order. We knew not then what was become of our left, so we returned to the field of battle. We discerned a body of the enemy on the north of us, consisting mostly of the Grey Dragoons, and some of the Black. We also discovered a body of their foot farther north upon the field where we were in the morning; and east of that, a body as we thought of our own foot, and I still believe it was so. I formed the horse and foot with me in a line on the north side of the hill, where we had engaged and kept our front towards the enemy to the north of us, who seem'd at first as if they intended to march towards us; but upon our forming and marching towards them, they halted and marched back to Dumblane. Our baggage and train-horses had all run away in the beginning of the action. But we got some horses and brought off most of the train to this place where we quarter to-night about Ardock, whither we march'd in very good order: and had our left and second line behaved as our right and the rest of the first line did, our victory had been compleat: but another day is coming for that, and I hope ere long too.
"I send you a list of the officers' names who are prisoners here, besides those who are dangerously wounded and could not come along, whose words of honour were taken. Two of these are the Earl of Forfar, who I'm afraid will die, and Captain Urquhart, of Burn's Yard, who is very ill wounded. We have also a good number of private men prisoners; but the number I do not exactly know.
"We have lost, to our regret, the Earl of Strathmore and the Captain of Clan Ranald. Some are missing, but the fate we are not sure of.
"The Earl of Panmure, Drummond of Logie, and Lieutenant Colonel Maclean are wounded.
"This is all that I have to say now, but that I am,
"Yours, &c. Mar."
"P.S. We have taken a great many of the enemy's arms."
Lord Mar, on this occasion, showed a degree of personal bravery worthy of the great name which he bore. He had placed himself on the right, and, as he was giving orders to the Macdonalds to charge that battalion of the enemy opposite to them, he encountered a very close fire. "The horse on which my Lord was," writes an eye-witness on the Jacobite side, "was wounded, for he fell down with him upon the fire, and got away, and my Lord immediately mounted another horse: he exposed his person but too much, and showed a great deal of bravery, as did the other lords about him."[110]
The army of the Duke of Argyle lay on their arms all night, expecting that the next day the battle would be resumed; but, on Monday the fourteenth of November, the Duke went out with the piquet guard to the field to view the enemy, but found them gone: and leaving the piquet guard on the place, he returned to Dumblane, and thence to Stirling, carrying off with him fourteen of the enemy's colours and standards, and among them the royal standard called the Restoration, besides several pieces of artillery, and many prisoners, some of them men of rank and influence.
Both sides claimed the victory of Sherriff Muir as their own; but, however it may be argued, it is certain that with only three thousand effective troops, Argyle had contrived "to break the heart of the rebellion," and to subdue an army such as could never again be reassembled. Between six and eight hundred of the Jacobites are stated to have fallen on the field,[111] and several, among whom was the brave Earl of Panmure and Colonel Maclean, were among the wounded. Lord Mar, nevertheless, celebrated the engagement as if it had been a victory.
Thanksgiving-sermons were ordered to be preached at Perth, and a Te Deum sung in the church; and ringing of bells, and other demonstrations deceived the hearts of those who knew little of the real injury done to the cause, or amused others whose nearest interests had not suffered in the Sherriff Muir. A paper was also circulated containing a report of the battle, of course highly favourable to the Earl of Mar's part in what he called his victory. The following is the statement which he sent to the Chevalier.
"Nov. 24, 1715.
"Sir,
"It was but yesterday that I had accounts of your being at sea, and I thought myself obliged to do all in my power to let you know the state of affairs in this island before you land in it, so that you may not be disapointed upon your comeing.
"I had the certain account yesterday of those who had appear'd in arms besouth Forth, and in the north of England, all being made prisoners at Preston in Lancashire, which I'm affraid will putt a stop to any more riseings in that country at this time.
"Your Majesty's army, which I have the honour to command, fought the enime on the Shirreff-Muir, near Dumblain, the thirteenth of this moneth. Our left behav'd scandalously and ran away, but our right routed the enimies left and most of their body.
"Their right follow'd and pursued our left, which made me not adventure to prosecute and push our advantage on our right so far as otherwayes wee might have done, however wee keept the field of battle, and the enimie retir'd to Dumblain.
"The armie had lyen without cover the night before, and wee had no provisions there, which oblidg'd me to march the armie back two milles that night, which was the nearest place where I could get any quarters. Next day I found the armie reduced to a small number, more by the Highlanders going home than by any loss wee sustained, which was but very small. So that and want of provisions oblidg'd me yet to retire, first to Auchterarder, and then here to Perth. I have been doing all I can ever since to get the armie together again, and I hope considerable numbers may come in a little time; but now that our friends in England are defeated, there will be troops sent down from thence to reinforce the Duke of Argyle, which will make him so strong, that wee shall not be able to face him, and I am affraid wee shall have much difficultie in makeing a stand any where, save in the Highlands, where wee shall not be able to subsist.
"This Sir, is a melancholy account, but what in duty I was oblidg'd to let you know, if possibly I can, before you land; and for that end I have endeavour'd to send boats out about those places where I judg'd it most probable you would come.
"Ther's another copie of this upon the West Coast, and I wish to God one or other of them may find you if your Majesty be upon the coast.
"By the strength you have with you, your Majesty will be best able to judge if you will be in a condition, when join'd with us, to make a stand against the enimie. I cannot say what our numbers will be against that time, or where wee shall be, for that will depend on the enimie, and the motions they make; but unless your Majesty have troops with you, which I'm affraid you have not, I see not how wee can oppose them even for this winter, when they have got the Dutch troops to England, and will power in more troops from thence upon us every day.
"Your Majestie's coming would certainly give new life to your friends, and make them do all in their power for your service; but how far they would be able to resist such a formed body of regular troops as will be against them, I must leave your Majestie to judge.
"I have sent accounts from time to time to Lord Bolingbroke, but I have not heard once from any of your Majestie's servants since Mr. Ogilvie of Boin came to Scotland, nor none of the five messengers I sent to France are return'd, which has been an infinite loss to us. I sent another, which is the sixt, to France, some days ago, with the account of our victory, who I suppose is sail'd ere now.
"May all happiness attend your Majestie, and grant you may be safe, whatever come of us. If it do not please God to bless your kingdoms at this time with your being settled on your throne, I make no doubt of its doing at another time; and I hope there will never be wanting of your own subjects to assert your cause, and may they have better fortune than wee are like to have. I ask but of Heaven that I may have the happiness to see your Majestie before I die, provided your person be safe; and I shall not repine at all that fortune has or can do to me.
"Your Majestie may find many more capable, but never a more faithful servant than him who is with all duty and esteem, Sir, your Majestie's most dutiful, most faithfull and most obedient subject and servant,
"Mar."
"From the Camp of Perth, Nov. 24, 1715."
A fortnight previously the Earl of Mar had addressed the following curious letter to Captain Henry Straiton,[113] at Edinburgh, to whom many of Lord Mar's epistles are written. The allusion to Margaret Miller refers to Lady Nairn, the sister-in-law of the Marquis of Tullibardine, and wife of Lord Nairn, who, in compliance with a Scottish custom, took his wife's title, she being Lady Nairn in her own right. The allusion to "a dose" which will require the air of a foreign country to aid it, seems to offer some notion of the Earl's subsequent flight.
"Novemb. 8th, 1715.
"Sir,
"I had yours of the fourth this forenoon, which was very wellcome. And I hope we shall soon see the certainty of what the accounts makes us expect of these folks' arivall. I sent of a pacquet yesterday with an answer to Margaret Miller's of the second, and in it I sent a copie of my last to Mr. H——n, which was dated the second and third, of which I sent him copies two different wayes, so I hope he'll get one of them at least. They were pressing them to go into England; and now that they are actually gone their, and in so good a way, I am easie as to that. I hope God will direct and assist them.
"I thought to have marcht from this to-day. The foot are mostly gone, and I march with the horse to-morrow morning. Our generall revew is to be at Auchterardor on Thursday morning, and then to march forward immediately. It is of great use to hear often from you, and to have accounts of our friends in the north of England, and what is doing in England beside; so I know you'll write as often as you can find occasions. I fancie I may hear to-day from our friends in the north of England, for I hope they had some days ago a way of sending directly. It seems the Duke of Argyll's absence from London is not like to do his own court of interest there much good. I hope our manifesto's being disperced at London, will have good effect; and I long to see what the prints call the Pretender's declaration, and the declaration of the people of England. The run upon the bank, I hope, will not lessen. The public credit must not be once ruined to make it raise again, and I hope that time may be sooner than we think of. We have rainy weather, but that is an inconveniencie to the enimie as well as to us. My humble service to Margaret Miller: I thank her for the information she gives me, of one about me giving intelligence; but other friends may be easie about it, for I am sure there is nothing in it; and I know what made them belive, which I confess had colour enough. I wish she would get the Doctrix to send a new dose to the patient she knows of, for there was a little too much of one of the ingredients in the last, which toke away the effect of the whole. It is the ingredient that has the postponeing quality in it; and the patient's greatest distemper is the apprehentions he has of a perfect cure being long of comeing, and that it is not to be til he get the air of another country. The dose must be carefully made up, and no appearance of its comeing from any other hand but the Doctrix' own. Ther's some copies herewith sent of a paper printed on this side the water, of which I hear severall are at Stirling. The other two papers I got to-day are given to revise, and are to be printed soon. I send you a copie of a letter was wrote t'other day, and sent to the Cameronians in the west. I wish you could send this one to some of them in the south. This is all I will trouble you with; but I hope both to get from you and give you good news soon, and I ever am, with all sincerity and truth, yrs. &c.
"Perhaps Capt. R——n will not be found to have done so much hurt as was thought he designed; but this is not to bid trust him yet."
By two manuscript letters among the Mar papers, it appears, however, that the account soon afterwards published by Lord Mar was not so full of artifice and untruths as his enemies represented. "He kept the field of battle until it was dark," says one writer, in a letter dated from Perth (November the 19th, 1715); "and nothing but want of provisions prevented us from going forward the next day. We hear the Whigs give various accounts of the battle, to cover the victory; but the numbers of the slain on their part being eleven or twelve hundred, and ours not above fifty or sixty, and our keeping the field when they left it, makes the victory incontestable. Your friends that I know here mind you often, and they and I would be glad to have the opportunity to drink a bottle with you beyond the Forth."
Another eye-witness gives a still more detailed account.[114] "I have yours of the seventeenth, with the paper inclosed, wherein that gentleman has taken the liberty to insert many falsehoods relative to the late action, a true and impartial account of which I here send you, which is but too modest on our side, and many things omitted that will be afterwards made publick, particularly their murdering Strathmoir, after he had asked quarters, and the treatment they gave to Panmuir and several others, who, I hope, will be living witnesses against them. The enclosed is so full that I have little to say, only that we have not lost a hundred men in the action, and none of note, except Strathmoir, and the Captain of Clan Ronald."
The cruel spirit of party destroyed the generous characteristics of the soldier, during the excitement of the combat: but how can we palliate the conduct of one of the King's generals, Lord Isla, after the fierceness of the encounter was over? The letter referred to discloses particulars which were hushed up, or merely glanced at, in the partial annals of the time.
"So soon as they saw us coming down upon them, they marched off in great haste towards Dumblain, and left several of our people they had taken, among which was Lord Panmuir, who offered to give his parole, not knowing what had passed upon the eighth; but he was told by the person he sent to Lord Isla, that he could not take a parole from a rebel, and they were in such haste that they lost him in a little house, with several others near the field, where we found them when we advanced and brought him along with us to Ardoch, two miles furder, where we stayed all night and next day, until that we heard the enemy were marched off to Stirling. He is now pretty well and in no danger. Earl Loudoun passed him as he lay in the field, without taking any notice of him, and he was wounded there by the dragoons after he had surrendered to them; but I hope there will be one other day of reckoning for these things. My Lord Mar sent off two or three people to take care of Lord Forfar when he heard he was wounded, and one of them waited of him to Stirling. He expressed a good dale of consern that he should have been ingadged against his countrymen, and sent a breslet off his arm to Lord Mar, so that we all wish he may live. A good pairt of our baggage and the provisions we had, were distroyed by our own people who went of from our left. We are now getting provisions and every thing ready as soon as possible; and I am hopefull we will be in a condition in a very few days to pass forth without oposition.
"We have got accounts this day of a victorie obtained by our friends in the south, the particulars of which we long for. I have sent you some copies of the printed account of the action to give our friends.
"So adieu."
Notwithstanding the humane attentions shewn by the Earl to Lord Forfar, that brave and generous nobleman died of his wounds. After lingering more than three weeks, he expired at Stirling on the eighth of December. He was wounded in sixteen different places, but a shot which he received in his knee seems to have been the most fatal injury. The conduct of the Earl appears in strong contrast with that of the Earl of Isla; but we must remember that each party had its own chroniclers. It is, nevertheless, a result of observation, more easily stated than explained, that through the whole of the two contests, both in 1715 and 1745, the generous and somewhat chivalric bearing of the Jacobites was acknowledged; whilst a spirit of cruel persecution marked the conduct of some of the chief officers on the opposite side. The Duke of Argyle indeed, in his own person, presented an exception to this remark, which chiefly applies to those secondary to him in command and influence.
The conduct of Lord Mar, in retreating to Perth after the affair of Sherriff Muir, has been severely censured. But, as Sir Walter Scott has observed, he met with that obloquy which generally follows the leader of an unsuccessful enterprise. According to Lord Mar's own account (and it has been corroborated by others), his retiring to Perth was unavoidable. The Highlanders, brave as they were, had a custom of returning home after a battle; and many of them went off when the engagement was ended. The Earl of Mar was not, therefore, in a condition to pursue the advantage which he had gained, but was forced to await at Perth the arrival of the Chevalier, or of the Duke of Berwick; on the notification of which, the Highlanders would have rallied to his standard. No supplies had been sent; the gentlemen of the army, as well as the men, had been long absent from their homes, and were living at their own expense; and therefore were impatient for leave of absence. To add to the general discouraging aspect of affairs, the fatal result of the English insurrection, under the command of Mr. Forster, was communicated at this time.
At first the result of the battle of Preston was represented to the Jacobites at Perth in a very different light to that in which the defeat of the English Jacobites afterwards appeared. The following is an extract of a letter from Lord Mar, dated the twentieth of November. "This day we hear from good hands that they (the English Jacobites) have had a victory, for which we have had rejoicings, and I hope in God they are in a good way by this time. Let me hear from you often, I beg it of you, and I'll long for the particulars of that affair.
"I am doing all I can to get us again in a condition to march from home. It will not be so soon as I wish, which is no small mortification to me, but our friends; you may depend on it, that it shall be as soon as I can, and no time shall be lost. It is wonderfull that neither the King nor the Duke of Ormond comes, nor that I have not accounts from them. Now that there is so considerable a party appearing in England, I hope they will put it off no longer. I hope all your friends in England are well in particular, but pray let me have an account of it.
"Lord Tullibardin and Lord George are well; they are gone again to Atholl to bring back their men, who went off that they might retrieve their honour, as I doubt not but they will. It is a great pity if poor Strathmore and Clanronald, and I'm afraid honest Auchterhouse, is killed, for we can get no account of him.
"I wish our prisoners may be as civilly treated as theirs are with us. They are all sent to Dundee (the officers I mean), where they have the liberty of the town, and wear their swords. My compliments to our sick friend, who I am sorry is still so; but he has had a good second and secretary.
"Pray let us have some good news now, and I am with all truth and esteem,
Yours, &c."
"Perth, November 20, 1715."
"Lord Panmure recovers pritty well. The enimie give out that he gave his parole when he was prisoner, but it was not so, he off'red it them but they wou'd not take it from a rebel as they call'd him, and neither did Strewan; so they were both resqued."
These letters place Lord Mar in a somewhat more estimable light than the usual statements have done. The truth is, that we ought never to judge of a man's actions before we have had an insight into his real motives and circumstances at the time. Few individuals had greater difficulties to contend with than Lord Mar.
Harassed by cabals among the adherents of the Chevalier; unable to account for the continued reserve and absence of that Prince; and weakened greatly both by the secession of the clan of Fraser, who had joined the Insurgents with Mackenzie of Fraserdale, but who now went away, and joined him whom they considered as their real chieftain, the infamous Simon Fraser, of Beaufort, Lord Lovat; the Earl began to listen to those who talked of capitulating with the enemy. He found, indeed, that he was forced to comply with the wishes of the chieftains, some of whom were making private treaties for themselves. It must have been a bitter humiliation to Lord Mar to have sent a message to his former rival in politics, the Duke of Argyle, "to know if he had power to treat with him;" but the measure appears from the following letter to have been unavoidable. It was written after the news of the defeat at Preston had reached Perth. It bespeaks some degree of compassion and consideration for a man whose councils were distracted by dissensions, and who was embarrassed beyond measure by the absence of the Chevalier, to whose arrival he looked anxiously to give some hopes of revival to a sinking cause. The Master of Sinclair, to whom Lord Mar refers as a "devil," and who, since the disaster at Preston was known, "appeared in his own colours," was the eldest son of Henry, eighth Baron Sinclair, a devoted adherent of the House of Stuart, and one of those who had withdrawn from the Convention of 1689 when the resolution to expel James the Second was adopted. John, Master of Sinclair, was afterwards attainted, and never assumed the title of his father, although pardoned in 1726.
"November 27th, 1715.
"Sir,
"I had yours of the twenty-second, the twenty-fifth, and also spoke with the person you mention in it; I suppose he wou'd see you, as he returned. The disaster of our friends in England is very unlucky, both to affairs there and here. Since we knew of it here a devil, who I suspected for some time to be lurking amongst us, has appeared openly in his own colours. I forsaw this a-comeing some days ago. I have endeavoured to keep people from breaking amongst themselves, and was forced to go into the first step of it; but I hope we shall be able to have the manadgement of it, and prevent its doing any hurt, but to confounde in time comeing the designs of those who were the promoters of it. It was by the advise of all your friends what I have done, so let not our folks be alarmed when they hear of it from I——g. It is odd where the K——[115] can be all this time, since, by all appearance and all the accounts we have, he has left France long ago; but that must quickly appear, and I hope to get things staved off til it does. But without his comeing what can be done? Tho' I hope that will not be the case. It is odd that others write of Col. H——y and Doctor Abor—y, both at Parise, and that they do not write themselves, tho' I'm told to-day that there's a letter from them to me at Edinburgh, which I long for. We are told of troops comeing from Englande, both English and Dutch. I doubt if they'll ventur to quitt with both, and I would fain hope that none of them will come soon. God grant that the K—— be safe. If he go to England, as we are told he designed, I doubt not but he knows of support there. I confess there's a great deal lost by his long delay, but that certainly was not in his power to help, else it wou'd not have been so. If he still come here, I hope we will yet be able to make a stand for him this winter, but I thought I was obledged to let him know the true situation before he land, which I have done to the best of my pow'r, and lodged letters for him in the places where I thought it most likely he wou'd come, so that he may not be dissapointed by expecting to find things better than they are. He has been so long by the way that it wou'd seme he is not comeing to England, but that he is comeing round about Ireland to Scotland; and neither he nor D—— O——d[116] be in England. It wou'd seem that they will not stir there, which would make it a very hard task here; but I hope Providence will protect him, and yet settle him on his throne.
"I find it will be sometime before I can stirr from hence, and if the enemy get not reinforcments, I judge they will not stirr either; but as soon as they get them they certainly will, and I'm afraid we shall be oblidged to take the hills, which is a could quarter now. I wish you knew a great many particulars I have to tell you, but it is not safe writing them; there are some people with us who it had been good for the King they had stay'd at home, where they want not a little to be, and will leave us at last, but we must make the best of them, tho' there be but ill stuff to make it of as the saying is. Never had man so plaguie a life as I have had o' late; but I'll do the best I can to go threw it, and not be unworthy of the trust reposed in me. My service to Mr. Hall, and I hope he'll make my compliments to his correspondent at P——se,[117] who he mentions in his to me; but its odd that I have heard from none there myself ever sine B——n came, especially since other letters come through. I must own I have not had many encouragements, but that should be nothing if I had encouragements for others. Should it please God that the King's affairs should not succeed, but that people capitulated, I do not purpose to be a Scots or Englishman if they would let me, and all that I wou'd ask for myself is liberty to go abroad, for in that case I wou'd rather live in Siberia than Britain. If the King does not come soon, I find people will not hold out long; but if he does, there are honest men enough to stand by him and not see him perish. Pray let me hear from you as often as you can, and when you write to Mrs. Miller[118] make my compliments to her. I wish some of our men here had her spirit. I hope you are now perfectly recover'd, but pray take care that you fall not ill again. Adieu.
"Pray cause give the enclosed to my brother as soon as it comes to your handes. I beg you may apprise our friends at London and Parise of what has been done hear to-day; the sending to Argle at Stirling a message about articles of treaty, as appears from other papers, which I tel you I was forced to go into;—that they may not be surprised at it and think we have given all over, which might have very bad consequences in both places. Do this by the first post. All will come right again if the King come soon to Britain."
The answer returned by the Duke of Argyle to Lord Mar's overture was this: that "he had no sufficient powers to treat with the Earl of Mar and his Council as a body, but that he would write to Court about it."
To this reply, which was sent with much courtesy by the Duke, a rejoinder was made, "That when the Duke should let the Earl of Mar and his Council know that he had sufficient power, then they would make their proposition." The proposal was sent up to St. James's, but no further notice was taken of it, nor were the powers of the Duke of Argyle extended to enable him to come to any terms with Lord Mar. But although the negotiation thus died away, the weakness it betrayed among the Jacobite party was highly prejudicial to their cause.
James, during all the recent events, had been engaged in making several attempts to leave St. Maloes. He had gone openly on board ships which were laden with arms and ammunition for his use, but had withdrawn when he found that his embarkation was known. He therefore changed his plans, and crossing to Normandy, resolved to embark at Dunkirk. Having lurked for several days, disguised as a mariner, on the coast of Brittany, he went privately to Dunkirk, where he embarked, attended by the Marquis of Tynemouth, the eldest son of the Duke of Berwick, Lieutenant Cameron, and several other persons, on board a French ship, which, according to some accounts, "was laden with brandy, and furnished with a good pass-port." Thus at length having ventured on the ocean, the Prince set sail towards Norway; but changed his direction, and steered towards Peterhead, in Aberdeenshire. During all this time, the Earl of Mar suffered from the utmost anxiety and perplexity for one who was unworthy of the exertions made for his restoration. This is evident from the following letter, dated November the thirtieth, to Captain Straiton:
"The accounts of that person's[119] way of going on, and the danger he is in, confound me; but I hope Providence has not preserved him all this while to destroy him at last. I am doing all I can to make it safe; and perhaps what we thought our misfortune, (the men going home after Sheriff Muir,) may prove our happiness, they being where that person is to come, and I send troops there immediately."
"I knew before I got yours that the Dutch troops were coming here.[120] Those by sea may come soon, but those by land cannot be here a long time. They will now power in all the troups from England on us; but I hope we may hold it this winter in spite of them, tho' we shall have hard quarters in the Highlands. In case of what Mr. H——ll writes me prove true, and happen, for fear of accidents after it does, were it not fitt that you should write to France to send some ships to cruise up and down the north-west coast to save the person Mr. H——ll writes of, if things should not prove right? and our friends in France can either send them from thence or Spain, round Ireland? I hear of but two little ships of warr on that coast; and the ships I would have sent may pass as marchant ships tradeing and putting in by accident therabouts, which they often do. Pray think of this, and write of it soon to France, as I intend to do to-night by an express I am sending; and were it not fitt you should write of it too to some trusty friend at London? But it must be done with the utmost caution, for fear of disheartning the English. Tho' the safty of that person is of such consequence that all ways is to be taken for it, and all accidents guarded against.
"I wrote to you the twenty-seventh, and in it I gave you account of an affair which happened amongst us, which obliged us to send a message to the Duke of Argyll. I hope this came safe to your hand. His answer was very civil, and our return was in the words following, viz: 'We are obliged to the Duke of Argyll for his civility; that, since he has no powers to treat with us, we can say no more now; but if at any time he shall have them, and let us know it, we shall give our answer.'
"I hope this affair has been so manadgd that all the spirit of division amongst us is crusht; and pray take care to informe our friends at London and Parise about it, that it may not alarme them. I am affraid of its alarmeing the Regent, and keeping him from doing anything for the King; for which reason I send an express to Lord Bolingbroke to-night. I suppose it will be ten or twelve dayes at least before the Duke of Argyll will have a return, and we may know much before that time. If they agree to a treaty, it is still in our own power; and if not, I hope people will stand together for their own sake.
"You speak in your two last as if you were opresst about our divisions. All I shall trouble you further in relation to this,—there are odd people amongst us, and those of whom it should not have been expected; they had instild their spirit so farr into many, that there was no steming the tide but by going into it, or else breaking amongst ourselves, and, like them, make a seperat peace; but now those wise folk are ashamed of themselves, and are disclaimed by those who they said comissioned them. I do all I can to make others forgett this behaveour of those people, and I hope we shall be as unite as ever. If the King come, I am sure we shall; and if God is not pleased to bless us with his presence, whatever we do shall be in consert.
"I beg to hear often from you, and particularly what you can learn of the motion of the enimie and their designs.
"I send a reinforcement to-night to Bruntisland of a hundred men, and there was fifty in it before.
"Lord Seaforth went north some time ago, and severall of Lord Huntly's people; so I hope they togither will be able to keep Lord Sutherland from doing much mischife, and e'er long to reduce him and all the King's enimies there. We are not yet in so much apprehention of them as Mr. H——ll seems to be. I am mightily pleased you are so much recovered, which I know by your hand-writeing; but I can scarce conceave how you get yourself keept free of our enimies,—may you do long so, and
"I am sincearly yours, &c. Adieu."
On the first of December, the Earl having still heard no tidings of the Chevalier, and being ignorant of his real movements, again writes in all the uncertainty, and with the circumspection of one who knows not whether his letter will be received. He seems always to have sent duplicates of his letters.
"I am in the utmost pain about the K——,[121] and I have done all in my power to make him safe, but I hope Providence will protect him. I sent one for France this morning, and I hope he may sail in a day or two, but let that not keep you from writeing there too. I would fain hope that the Regent has altered his measurs, and is comeing into the K——'s intrest, else I do not see how it had been possible for him to get thro' France: if so, I have good hopes, and I wish he may come to us; but if not, and that England do nothing, I wish he were safe again where he formerly was, for we shall never be able alone to do his bussiness, and he will be in the utmost danger after starveing a winter in the Highlands. Lord Huntley is still very much out of humour and nothing can make him yet believe that the K——'s a-comeing. He intends to go north, under the pretext of reduceing Lord Sutherland, and his leaving us at this time I think might have very bad effects, which makes me do all I can to keep him. The Master of Sinclair is a very bad instrument about him, and has been most to blaim of any body for all the differences amongst us. I am plagued out of my life with them, but must do the best I can. I expect now to hear every day of the K——'s landing; but should he be any time of comeing, and the Duke of Argyll get his powers and send us word of it before he come, our old work will begin again, and I am sure I shall be deserted by a great many. Some people seem so farr from being pleased with the news of the K——'s comeing, that they are visiblie sorry for it; and I wish to God these people had never been with us for they will be our undoing! and what a plague brought them out, since they could not hold it out for so short a time? I shall be blamed, I know, over all Europe for what I am entirely innocent of. It will be my own ruin beside, but if that could advance the K——'s affairs I am contented. In time I shall be justified when my parte in all this affair comes to be knowen, and I bless God I have witnesses enough who have seen all; and if accidents do not happen them, my papers will show it to conviction, for I have been pretty exact in keeping copies and a journall.
"Since I have wrote so fully to you, I do not write to Mr. H——ll, for which I hope he'll forgive me.[122]
"I am anxious to know if my brother got my note that was inclosed to you in that of the twenty-seventh, which was to caution him in a thing that I was affraid his over great concern for me might make him do, and which would vex me extreamly if he did.
"I long to hear from you again, as I suppose you will from me; and as soon as I know of what you'll expect to hear of from me, you shall.
Adieu."
In a few days afterwards Lord Mar had gained more precise intelligence of the Prince's movements; on the delay at St. Maloes he puts the favourable construction of the vessel's having been wind-bound, as will be seen by the following letter. The dissensions in his counsels, aided, as he hints, by the influence which the Master of Sinclair exercised over the Marquis of Huntley, were, still, not among the least of his difficulties.
"December 6th, 1715.
"Sir,
"Last night one of the messengers I had sent to France returned, and there came with him to Montrose, Mr. Charles Fleeming and General Eclin; but they are not yet come here, nor some money that came along with them. I have a letter from the King, the fifteenth of November, N. S. from St. Malos; severall from Lord Bolingbroke, the last of which was the twenty-seventh, and he belived the King then to be saild, and he had been wind bound there three weeks; but he did not sail, as I understand from the messenger til the eighteenth inst., he having seen a letter from Col. Hay at St. Maloes, to Mr. Arbuthnot, two dayes after he sailed. God send him safe to us, for which I have done all in my power! It is in the hands of Providence, and I hope God will protect him. It is not to be known where he is to land, and indeed it cannot be known certainly. Even this has not quite cured all the whims amongst us. Lord grant a safe landing, and I hope that will. The Duke of Ormond is gone to England, and I believe he has some troops with him and arms and ammunition.
"I hear from Fife to-day that there landed at Leith on Sunday last four hundred of the Dutch troops. I hope that's all that are comeing by sea. I have the King's Declaration, which is to be reprinted here, and shall be dispers'd in a few days. The less that it be spoke that the King is to land soon, I believe the better, until he actually does, for that but make the Government more alert. Were he but once landed, I have reason to belive that there will be a new face of affairs seen abroad as well as at home in the King's favour, which is all I dare yet adventure to trust of it to paper; but I hope in God were the King once with us all will be well.
"There are more officers comeing to us from abroad different wayes, so it's likely they may be dropping in every day. The Duke of Berwick stays behind for a very good reason, and is to follow. The King has been pleased to confer new honours on me, but I do not think it fitt to take it on me til he comes, and if it pleases not God he come to us safe, I am indifferent what becomes of all I ever had, and this may go with the rest. It is goodness in him, and more than I askt or deserve. I will long to hear from you; and tho' I desire you not to let the news I write you be much talkt of, yet I suppose it will be no secret, for I am obliged to communicate what I get to so many that it cannot possible be keept, and yet I cannot help this. Tho' Lord Huntley said little to me to-day upon my shewing him my letters, yet I know it from good hands he is not a bitt in better humour and that he will now positively go north; which I suppose he'll write of to me to-morrow, for 'tis seldom now he'll either see me or let me see him, tho' I take all the ways I can to please and humour him, but all will not do: however, I hope will not have many followers. Master of Sinclair is gone this day to see his father upon a sharp letter he had from him yesterday about his behaviour. Some others are ashamed of the part they acted, but if the King come not soon all of them will relapse again. The clans stand firm, and I hope will to the last.
"Pray try to get notice of what private letters from London say upon our proposeing terms, and let me know as soon as you can. Adieu."
It is curious to trace the revival of the Earl's hopes, and the increase of his confidence. The following letter contains, among other circumstances, a reference to the supposed attempt of the Earl of Stair, in France, to assassinate James.
"December 10th, 1715.
"Sir,
"Yesterday I had yours of the fourth and fifth, for which I thank you. I wrote to you on the eighth, which I hope you got safe, and in it I told you of one of the messengers I had sent to France being returned, and with him General Eclin and Mr. Charles Fleming, and some money: since that Doctor Abercromby is returned and Lord Edward Drummond is come with him and brought some more money. They come off the same day with the others, and landed the same day at Aberdeen the others did at Montrose. They only brought duplicates of the dispatches I had by the others, and a letter to me from the Q—— with a pacquet from her to the K——, by which you may be sure he is sail'd, and we hourly expect to hear of his landing. Since those people came, those amongst us who had been uneasy, are now comeing to be in good humour again, particularly Lord Huntley; and I have agreed to his going north with some of his horse to get all his people there together to suppress those about Inverness, and also to have them in readiness against the K. comes. Pray God send him safe and soon, and then I do not despair of things going right still. Our whole prisoners almost, I mean the private men, are like to take on since they heard of the K——g's being certainly a-comeing; and since they saw the two enclosed papers, they say that were he once come, there will be news of their armie and all those prisoners. Even those who do not lift with us, pray openly for the K——, and that God may keep him out of the hands of his enimies.
"The two enclosed are sent about to a great many places: it is better to delay dispersing the K——'s declaration til he arrive, since I hope that is near.
"I admear we hear no certain accounts of the Duke of Ormond, for the fifteenth inst. the K—— and Q—— too write to me that he was saild a second time for England.
"Pray God it may be well with him, and if he do not, then I wish he may come here with all my heart.
"We have heard nothing as yet of the Duke of Argyle's return from London, and I imagine we shall hear nothing from him upon it, when he does get it and I hope he shall never be askt for it more by us. The Duke of Atholl will himself send his men against Crafourd.
"I believe I forgot to tell you in my last that Colonel Hay mist very narrowly being murdered in France, takeing him for the K—— (being in one of his cheases), by Lord Stair's gang, and in their pockets Lord Stair's orders were found to go to such a place, and there obey what orders they should receive from Count Douglass[123] (Lightly), let them be never so desperate. This is something so horrid that I want words to express it. I tell it you just as those from France tell me. The fellow was imprisoned by the government there and reclaimed by Lord Stair. Lord Clairmont was actually reclaimed by the Regent before they come away; so his being brought to England after, may work something. I have just now a packet of news sent me by A. M., for which I thank you. Notwithstanding this great new General's being come, I see not how they can do anything at Stirling till the Dutch join them, and that cannot be yet for some time; pray Heavens the K—— come before them! I know by other accounts as well as yours, from abroad, that they are not above four thousand complete and some of these are lost. Our Highlanders have got in their heads a mighty contempt for them, which may do good. This goes by the Hole,[124] from when your packet yesterday was sent me. I have nothing further to add now, but I hope soon to send you agreable news. Pray give my service to I. H. and desire him to make my compliments to his landlady and tel her, I hope she is now right with her son, which I am exceeding glad of. Adieu."
At length, on the twenty-second of December, James landed at Peterhead, after a voyage of seven days. His arrival dispelled many doubts of his personal courage, since, after all his deliberations, he adopted by no means the least hazardous course by traversing the British ocean, which was beset by British men-of-war. He had sailed from Dunkirk in the small vessel in which he had embarked, and which was followed by two other vessels, containing his domestics, and stores for the use of his army. His immediate attendants were disguised as French officers, and his retinue as seamen. It had been the Chevalier's original intention to have landed in the Frith of Tay; but observing a sail which he suspected to be unfriendly, he altered his course, and landed at Peterhead, where the property of the Earl Marischal was situated. The ship in which the Chevalier sailed was, however, near enough to the shore to be able, by signals, to make signs to his friends of his approach. At Perth the intelligence was received with the utmost joy, and produced a most favourable effect, even among the prisoners of war, which Lord Mar describes in the following letter. Up to the twenty-eighth of the month he had not seen the Prince: