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took an affectionate leave of the Seven Men of Glenmoriston, who accompanied him some distance on his way to a wood at the foot of Loch Arkaig. It was only with the greatest difficulty that these faithful and affectionate men would permit their beloved Prince to leave them. Stay with us," they said; "the mountains of gold which the Government have set upon your head may induce some gentleman to betray you, for he can go to a distant country, and live on the price of his dishonour; but to us there exists no such temptation. We can speak no language but our own; we can live no where but in this country, where, were we to injure a hair of your head, the very mountains would fall down to crush us to death." Patrick Grant alone remained with the Prince a few days longer; and on taking his departure was presented by Charles with twenty-four guineas, to be divided between himself and his companions.*

* For an interesting account of the Seven Men of Glenmoriston, see a note to Mr. Chambers's valuable History of the Rebellion of 1745, p. 119.

CHAPTER VIII.

Charles joined by the fugitives Macdonald of Lochgarry and Cameron of Clunes-Secreted in the Wood of Auchnacarry -Meeting between Charles and Lochiel-Termination of his wanderings-Embarks on board L'Heureux for FranceArrival and reception by the King and Queen-Ordered to quit Paris-His refusal and arrest-Transported to Avignon, where he is set at liberty-Takes up his residence at Liége as Baron de Montgomerie-Visits London in 1750-Supposed to have been an eye-witness at the coronation of George III. Abjures the Catholic Religion and becomes a Protestant.

CHARLES had recently been joined by Macdonald of Lochgarry, and Cameron of Clunes, who were fugitives like himself, and with these gentlemen he took up his abode in a small hut which had been constructed for him in a wood between Auchnasual and the end of Loch Arkaig. From this place he sent a messenger to his be loved Lochiel, expressing a strong wish that, if circumstances permitted, he would join him as soon as possible in his retreat. In the mean time, however, having learned that the Prince had effected his escape from Skye to the mainland, Lochiel had despatched his two brothers, Dr. Archibald Cameron and the Rev. John Cameron, in different directions, in order to obtain intelligence respecting him. After wandering about for some time, the two brothers again fell in with each other at Auchnacarry, the ancient seat of their family, which had recently been laid in ruins by the soldiery. From hence, they proceeded along Loch Arkaig in a boat, and in the course of their voyage, had the good fortune to encounter some of Clunes's

retainers, and subsequently the chieftain himself, who forthwith conducted them to the presence of Charles.

At the moment when they were approaching the hut, Charles was fast asleep, and his consternation may easily be imagined when he was suddenly roused by Patrick Grant with the startling information that a body of men, apparently militia, were close upon him. He was advised to fly instantly to the mountains; but he rejected the proposition, adding, that it were far better to take the enemy by surprise, and after taking a steady aim at them from their ambuscade, to trust to Providence for the rest. Accordingly Charles and Patrick Grant, with a son of Clunes, who was in the hut at the time, rested their guns along the stones, and were on the point of firing, when, to their great joy, they suddenly recognised Clunes at the head of the advancing party. The delight of Charles was greatly increased, when the two brothers of Lochiel were presented to him, and he learned from them that the chief was in good health and rapidly recovering from his wounds. He expressed "uncommon joy," we are told, at the circumstance, and "thrice returned God thanks," for the safety of his friend. In the words of John Cameron, -"The Prince was at this time barefooted, had an old black kilt coat on, philtbeg and waistcoat, a dirty shirt, and a long red beard, a gun in his hand, and a pistol and dirk by his side. He was very cheerful and in good health, and, in my opinion, fatter than when he was at Inverness. They had killed a cow the day before, and the servants were roasting some of it with spits. The Prince knew their names, spoke in a familiar way to them, and some Erse. He ate very heartily of the roasted beef and some bread we had from Fort Augustus, and no man could sleep sounder in the night than he."

On the following day, the 26th of August, Charles rèmoved to a wood near Lochiel's ruined seat of Auchnacarry. He had remained in this wood about four days,— residing sometimes in one hut, and sometimes in another, -when one morning, about eight o'clock, John Cameron, who had been absent in search of intelligence, suddenly returned, and awoke the Prince with the information that a large body of soldiers were advancing in their immediate neighbourhood. As they had hitherto received no intelligence of any military detachment having marched from Fort Augustus, Charles as well as his companions seems to have been fully impressed with the conviction that treachery was at work, and that they were surrounded on all sides. The Prince, however, notwithstanding his imminent peril, betrayed neither perturbation nor alarm. "I awoke him," says John Cameron, "and desired him not to be surprised, for that a body of the enemy was in sight. He, with the utmost composure, got up, called for his gun, sent for Captain Macraw, and Sandy, Clunes's son, who, with a servant, were doing duty as sentries about the wood." There still remained the hope of escape, but in the event of finding their retreat cut off, the whole party, which now consisted of eight persons, expressed their de termination to die like men of honour, and to sell their lives as dearly as possible. Charles carefully examined all their guns, adding cheerfully," I have been bred a good shooter, can charge quick, and can make pretty sure of my aim."

Fortunately, under the cover of the wood, they were enabled to reach the top of a neighbouring hill without being perceived, and from thence commenced a toilsome march to the summit of another hill, called Mullantagart. Here Charles received a message from Clunes, that at 13

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night he would meet him with provisions, at a particular spot which he named in the mountains. The ground which they had to traverse was perhaps as craggy and rugged as any in the Highlands, and, as they toiled in the dark up one difficult mountain-path after another, their flesh, as well as their clothes, were constantly torn by the stumps of trees and jutting rocks with which they came in contact. The Prince, on this particular occasion, was the first to give way from exhaustion. They had found it impossible to procure a mouthful of food during the whole day, and they had still some distance to proceed, when Charles expressed his inability to advance any further. By the assistance, however, of the Highlanders, who supported him by his arms on each side, he was able to totter through the rest of the journey, and he was at length cheered by the sight of Clunes and his son, who had succeeded in killing a cow, and were engaged in cooking a part of it for supper. Here Charles took up his quarters for a day or two, till the removal of some of the troops from the passes enabled him to advance nearer to Lochiel.

The Prince's next move was to a hiding-place in the wood of Auchnacarry, where, to his great delight, he received a message from Lochiel, stating that he and his kinsman, Macpherson of Cluny, were safely concealed in Badenoch, and recommending that Charles should join them there without delay. Nothing could be more grateful to him than this proposition. Without waiting for the arrival of Macpherson of Cluny, who was on his way to conduct him to Badenoch, he set out immediately, and at night found himself at a place called Corineuir, at the foot of the great mountain Benalder. The next day he arrived at Mellaneuir, also situated on Benalder, where