The Jacobite Rebellions (1689-1746) Part 13

[107] Should be Benbecula.

M. FLORA MACDONALD (JUNE, 1746).

+Source.+--_The Lyon in Mourning: or, a Collection of Speeches, Letters, Journals, etc., relative to the Affairs of Prince Charles Edward Stuart_, vol. i., p, 296, by the Rev. Robert Forbes, A.M., Bishop of Ross and Caithness, 1746-1775. Edited from his ma.n.u.script, with a preface by Henry Paton, M.A. (Edinburgh: Scottish Historical Society, 1895.)

_Journal taken from the mouth of MISS FLORA MACDONALD by DR. BURTON of York, when in Edinburgh._

Miss MacDonald had gone from Sky to Milton in South Uist in order to visit her brother-german, who had about that time taken up house. She had not been long there till Captain O'Neil (by some lucky accident or other) had become acquainted with her. When the Prince was surrounded with difficulties on all hands, and knew not well what to do for his future safety, Captain O'Neil brought Miss MacDonald to the place where the Prince was, and there they concerted the plan. At that time Miss returned to Milton. After Miss MacDonald had (with some difficulty) agreed to undertake the dangerous enterprize, she set out for Clanra.n.a.ld's house, Sat.u.r.day, June 21st, and at one of the fords was taken prisoner by a party of militia, she not having a pa.s.sport. She demanded to whom they belonged? And finding by the answer that her step-father was then commander, she refused to give any answers till she should see their captain. So she and her servant, Neil MacKechan, were prisoners all that night.

Her stepfather, coming next day, being Sunday, she told him what she was about, upon which he granted a pa.s.sport for herself, a manservant (Neil MacKechan), and another woman, Bettie Burk, a good spinster, and whom he recommended as such in a letter to his wife at Armadale in Sky, as she had much lint to spin. If her stepfather (Hugh MacDonald of Armadale) had not granted Miss a pa.s.sport, she could not have undertaken her journey and voyage. Armadale set his stepdaughter at liberty, who immediately made the best of her way to Clanra.n.a.ld's house and acquainted the Lady Clanra.n.a.ld with the scheme, who supplied the Prince with apparel sufficient for his disguise, viz. a flower'd linen gown, a white ap.r.o.n, etc., and sent some provisions along with him.

During Miss MacDonald's stay at Clanra.n.a.ld's house, which was till the Friday, June 27th, O'Neil went several times betwixt the Prince and Miss, in which interval another scheme was proposed, that the Prince should go under the care of a gentleman to the north ward, but that failing them, they behoved to have recourse to that agreed upon before; and accordingly Lady Clanra.n.a.ld, one Mrs. MacDonald, O'Neil, Miss Flora MacDonald, and her servant, Neil MacKechan, went to the place where the Prince was, being about eight Scotch miles. He was then in a very little house or hut, a.s.sisting in the roasting of his dinner, which consisted of the heart, liver, kidneys, etc., of a bullock or sheep, upon a wooden spit. O'Neil introduced his young preserver and the company, and she sat on the Prince's right hand and Lady Clanra.n.a.ld on his left. Here all dined very heartily....

When all were gone who were not to accompany the Prince in his voyage to the Isle of Sky, Miss MacDonald desired him to dress himself in his new attire, which was soon done, and at a proper time they removed their quarters and went near the water with their boat afloat, nigh at hand for readiness to embark in case of an alarm from the sh.o.r.e. Here they arrived, very wet and wearied, and made a fire upon a rock to keep them somewhat warm till night. They were soon greatly alarmed by seeing four wherries full of armed men making towards sh.o.r.e, which made them extinguish their fire quickly, and to conceal themselves among the heath....

At eight o'clock, June 28th, Sat.u.r.day, 1746, the Prince, Miss Flora MacDonald, Neil MacKechan, etc., set sail in a very clear evening from Benbecula to the Isle of Sky. It is worth observing here that Benbecula is commonly reckoned a part of South Uist, they being divided from one another by the sea only at high water, which then makes a short ferry betwixt the two; but at low water people walk over upon the sand from the one to the other.

They had not rowed from the sh.o.r.e above a league till the sea became rough, and at last tempestuous, and to entertain the company the Prince sung several songs and seemed to be in good spirits.

In the pa.s.sage Miss MacDonald fell asleep, and then the Prince carefully guarded her, lest in the darkness any of the men should chance to step upon her. She awaked in a surprise with some little bustle in the boat, and wondered what was the matter, etc....

From hence they rowed on and landed at Kilbride, in Troternish, in the Isle of Sky, about twelve miles north from the above-mentioned point.

There were also several parties of militia in the neighbourhood of Kilbride. Miss left the Prince in the boat and went with her servant, Neil MacKechan, to Mougstot, Sir Alexander MacDonald's house, and desired one of the servants to let Lady Margaret MacDonald know she was come to see her ladyship in her way to her mother's house. Lady Margaret knew her errand well enough by one Mrs. MacDonald, who had gone a little before to apprize her of it.

As Mr. Alexander MacDonald of Kingsburgh was accidentally there, Lady Margaret desired him to conduct the Prince to his house; for it is to be remarked that Lady Margaret did not see the Prince in any shape.

Kingsburgh sent a boy down to the boat with instructions whither to conduct the Prince about a mile, and he (Kingsburgh) would be there ready to conduct him. Then Kingsburgh took some wine, etc., to refresh the Prince with, and set forwards for the place of rendezvous, leaving Miss MacDonald with Lady Margaret at Mougstot, where the commanding officer of the parties in search of the Prince was, and who asked Miss whence she came, whither she was going, what news? etc., all which Miss answered as she thought most proper, and so as to prevent any discovery of what she had been engaged in.

Lady MacDonald pressed Miss very much in presence of the officer to stay, telling her that she had promised to make some stay the first time she should happen to come there. But Miss desired to be excused at that time, because she wanted to see her mother, and to be at home in these troublesome times. Lady Margaret at last let her go, and she and Mrs.

MacDonald above mentioned set forwards with Neil MacKechan and said Mrs.

MacDonald's maid and her man-servant. They overtook the Prince and Kingsburgh. Mrs. MacDonald was very desirous to see the Prince's countenance; but as he went along he always turned away his face from Mrs. MacDonald to the opposite side whenever he perceived her endeavouring to stare him in the countenance. But yet she got several opportunities of seeing his face, though in disguise, which the maid could not help taking notice of, and said she had never seen such an impudent-looked woman, and durst say she was either an Irish woman or else a man in a woman's dress. Miss MacDonald replied she was an Irish woman, for she had seen her before. The maid also took notice of the Prince's awkward way of managing the petticoats, and what long strides he took in walking along, etc., which obliged Miss MacDonald to desire Mrs. MacDonald (they being both on horseback), to step a little faster and leave those on foot, because, as there were many parties of militia in the great roads, it was necessary for the Prince to cross the country, and it was not proper to let Mrs. MacDonald's man or maid servant see it. So on they went, and the Prince and Kingsburgh went over the hills and travelled south-south-east till they arrived at Kingsburgh's house, which was about twelve o'clock at night, and they were very wet....

The day was far advanced before he[108] set out, and when he arrived at a wood side (as the affair had been concerted), not far from Kingsburgh, he changed his apparel once more and put on the Highland dress Kingsburgh had furnished him with. Then Kingsburgh sent a guide with him to Portree, thro' all byways, while Miss MacDonald went thither on horseback by another road, thereby the better to gain intelligence and at the same time to prevent a discovery. They were very wet, it having rained very much. Here he only dried his clothes, took some little refreshment, and staid about two hours.

Hither Kingsburgh had sent to prepare a boat, and to have it ready to convey the Prince to the place where he wanted to be at, not allowing the people about Portree in the meantime to know anything about the person's being the Prince whom they were to receive and to take care of.

Young MacLeod of Raaza came with Malcolm MacLeod to conduct the Prince over to the Island of Raaza. The Prince was very uneasy he had not a MacDonald to conduct him still. He left Portree on Tuesday, the 1st of July, and landed that very same day at a place called Glam in Raaza.

Miss MacDonald took leave of the Prince at Portree, and from thence went to her mother, after a fatiguing journey cross the country. She never told her mother, or indeed anybody else, what she had done.

FOOTNOTES:

[108] The Prince.

N. CHARLES AT CLUNY'S "CAGE" (SEPTEMBER, 1746).

+Source.+--_The History of the Rebellion in the year 1745_, Appendix No. xlvi., p. 377, by John Home, Esq. (London: 1802.)

_Cluny's account of Locheil and himself after the Battle of Culloden: of their meeting with Charles; and the extraordinary habitation called the Cage, where Charles lived with them, till he received notice that two French frigates were arrived at Lochnanuagh._

After the fatal catastrophe of the Highland army at Culloden, upon the 16th of April, 1746, they meant to make head again about Cluchnicarry, till, upon Lord Loudon's approach with an army, the few that had got together were made to disperse. Locheil being then bad of his wounds, was obliged to shift from his own country to the Braes of Rannoch, near which, about the 20th of June, in a hill called Benouchk, Cluny Macpherson met him, and Sir Stuart Threipland, physician, who attended him for the cure of his wounds. Cluny brought them from thence to Benalder, a hill of great circ.u.mference in that part of Badenoch next to Rannoch, and his own ordinary gra.s.sings;[109] where they remained together, without ever getting any certain notice of what had become of the Prince for near three months, when they received the agreeable news of his being safe at Locharkaik....

The Prince lay the first night at Corineuir, after his coming to Badenoch, from which he was conducted next day to Mellanauir, a shealing of very narrow compa.s.s, where Locheil, with Macpherson of Breakachie, Allan Cameron, his princ.i.p.al servant, and two servants of Cluny were at the time. It cannot but be remarked, that, when Locheil saw five men approaching under arms, being the Prince, Lochgary, Dr. Cameron, and two servants, taking the five men to be of the army or militia, which lay encamped not above four or five miles from them, and were probably in search of them; as it was in vain to think of flying, Locheil at the time being quite lame, and not in any condition to travel, much less to run away; it was resolved that the enemy, as they judged them to be, should be received with a general discharge of all the arms; in number twelve firelocks and some pistols.... But the auspicious hand of Almighty G.o.d ... prevented those within from firing at the Prince with his four attendants; for they came at last so near that they were known by those within.... Locheil then ushered him into his habitation, which was indeed but a very poor one. The Prince was gay, and in better spirits than it was possible to think he could have been, considering the many disasters, disappointments, fatigues and difficulties, he had undergone. His Royal Highness, with his retinue, went into the hut; and there was more meat and drink provided for him than he expected. There was plenty of mutton, an anker of whisky, containing twenty Scots pints, some good beef sausages made the year before, with plenty of b.u.t.ter and cheese, besides a large well cured bacon ham. Upon his entry, the Prince took a hearty dram, which he sometimes called for thereafter, to drink the healths of his friends. When some minced collops were dressed with b.u.t.ter, in a large sauce-pan, which Locheil and Cluny always carried about with them, being the only fire vessel they had, His Royal Highness eat heartily, and said with a very cheerful countenance: "Now, gentlemen, I live like a Prince:" though at the same time he was no otherwise entertained than eating his collops out of the pan, with a silver spoon....

The day after Clunie arrived, he thought it time to remove from Mellanauir, and took the Prince about two miles further into Benalder, to a little sheil called Uiskchibra, where the hut or bothie was superlatively bad and smoky; yet His Royal Highness put up with everything. Here he remained for two or three nights; and then removed to a very romantic habitation, made for him by Clunie, two miles further into Benalder, called the Cage; which was a great curiosity, and can scarcely be described to perfection. It was situated in the face of a very rough, high and rocky mountain, called Letternilichk, still a part of Benalder, full of great stones and crevices, and some scattered wood interspersed. The habitation called the Cage, in the face of that mountain, was within a small thick bush of wood. There were first some rows of trees laid down, in order to level a floor for the habitation; and as the place was steep, this raised the lower side to an equal height with the other; and these trees, in the way of joists or planks, were levelled with earth and gravel. There were betwixt the trees, growing naturally on their own roots, some stakes fixed in the earth, which, with the trees, were interwoven with ropes, made of heath and birch twigs, up to the top of the Cage, it being of a round or rather oval shape; and the whole thatched and covered over with fog.[110] This whole fabric hung, as it were, by a large tree, which reclined from the one end, all along the roof to the other, and which gave it the name of the Cage, and by chance there happened to be two stones at a small distance from one another, in the side next the precipice, resembling the pillars of a chimney where the fire was placed. The smoke had its vent out here, all along the face of the rock, which was so much of the same colour, that one could discover no difference in the clearest day.

The Cage was no larger than to contain six or seven persons; four of whom were frequently employed playing at cards, one idle looking on, one baking, and another firing bread and cooking. Here His Royal Highness remained till the 13th of September, when he was informed that the vessels for receiving and carrying him to France were arrived at Lochnanuagh. The Prince set out immediately; and travelling only by night, arrived at Borodale, near Lochnanuagh, on the 19th of September, and embarked there on the 20th.

FOOTNOTES:

[109] Grazings.

[110] Moss.