Keppoch song

218 SUPPLEMENT.
Alps. Had these considerations been at-
tended to, and had government granted a
free pardon to Angus and his men, and
liberty to return to their property and resi-
dence, upon pledging their word of ho-
nour for themselves and their posterity,
never to take up arms against the reigning
sovereign, his heirs and successors, such
an engagement would have been deemed
binding on all of the name of Macdonald,
and on all the names of those clans who
had been engaged with him, and thereby
the rebellion of 1745 would have been pre-
vented, or would have come to nothing, as
the West Highlanders were the main
strength on both occasions.
Perhaps some new fledged wits may ri-
dicule the writer and his pledge of honour;
to such he must reply, that the family of
the Isles never violated its honour, nor
broke any engagement, and this steady ob-
servance of faith occasioned its ruin; for
had the shifting policy of a weathercock
of Huntly been followed, the earl of Ross,
and lord of Argyle and the Isles, might
have retained his ancient state. Had,