Fiction > Serialisations > London, 1893 - David Balfour

DAVID BALFOUR.
397
Would you not love to die so — for your king ? "
she asked.
"Troth," said I, "my affection for my king,
God bless the puggy face of him, is under more
control; and I thought I saw death near to me
this day already, that I am rather taken up with
the notion of living."
"Right," she said, "the right mind of a man!
Only you must learn arms; I would not like to
have a friend that cannot strike. But it will not
have been with the sword that you killed these
two ? "
" Indeed, no," said I, " but with a pair of pistols.
And a fortunate thing it was the men were so near-
hand to me, for I am about as clever with the
pistols as I am with the sword."
So then she drew from me the story of our battle
in the brig, which I had omitted in my first account
of my affairs.
"Yes," said she, "you are brave. And your
friend, I admire and love him."
" Well, and I think any one would ! " said I.
" He has his faults like other folk ; but he is brave
and staunch and kind, God bless him ! That will
be a strange day when I forget Alan." And the
thought of him, and that it was within my choice
to speak with him that night, had almost over-
come me.
" And where will my head be gone that I have
not told my news ! " she cried, and spoke of a
letter from her father, hearing that she might visit
him to-morrow in the castle, whither he was now
transferred, and that his af^iirs were mending.
"You do not like to hear it," said she. "Will you
judge my father and not know him ? "
"I am a thousand miles from judging," I replied.
"And I give you my word I do rejoice to know
your heart is lightened. If my face fell at all, as I
suppose it must, you will allow this is rather an ill
day for compositions, and the people in power
extremely ill persons to be compounding with. I
have Symon Fraser extremely heavy on my stomach
still."
"Ah!" she cried, "you will not be comparing
these two; and you should bear in mind that
Prestongrange and James More, my father, are of
the one family."
" I never heard tell of that," said I.
" It is rather singular how little you are ac-
quainted with," said she. " One part may call
themselves Grant, and one Macgregor, but they
are still of the same clan. They are all the sons
of x-^lpin, from whom, I think, our country has its
name."
" What country is that ? " I asked.
" My country and yours," said she.
"This is my day for discoveries, I think," said
I, " for I always thought the name of it was
Scotland."
"Scotland is the name of what you call Ireland,"
she replied. " But the old ancient true name of
this place that we have our foot-soles on and that
our bones are made of will be Alban. It was
Alban they called it when our forefathers will be
fighting for it against Rome and Alexander; and
it is called so still in your own tongue that you
forget."
"Troth," said I, "and that I never learned!"
For I lacked heart to take her up about the
Macedonian.
" But your father and mother talked it, one
generation with another," said she. " And it was
sung about the cradles before you or me were ever
dreamed of; and your name remembers it still.
Ah, if you could talk that language you would
find me another girl. The heart speaks in that
tongue."
I had a meal with the two ladies, all very good,
served in fine old plate, and the wine excellent, for
it seems that Mrs. Ogilvy was rich. Our talk, too,
was pleasant enough ; but as soon as I saw the
sun decline sharply and the shadows to run out
long, I rose to take my leave. For my mind was
now made up to say farewell to Alan ; and it was
needful I should see the trysting-wood, and recon-
noitre it, by daylight. Catriona came with me as
far as to the garden gate.
" It is long till I see you now ? " she asked.
" It is beyond my judging," I replied. " It will
be long, it may be never."
" It may be so," said she. " And are you
sorry ? "
I bowed my head, looking upon her.
" So am I, at all events," said she. " I have
seen you but a small time, but I put you very
high. You are true, you are brave ; in time I
think you will be more of a man yet. I will be
proud to hear of that. If you should speed worse,
if it will come to fall as we are afraid — O well !
think you have the one friend. Long after you