THE CELTIC MONTHLY.
105
unfurled their sails as if they were drying them ;
and then every man went below, and keeping
out of sight, held himself in readiness.
The man of-war came round the island and
into the harbour, and seeing everything quiet
and snug, and no appearance of any living soul
on board the smuggler, they thought they
should have an easy matter to capture their
rich prize. So they went in shore, moored
their ship, "handed" the sails, launched the
boats and manned them with the ship's crew,
well-armed, in order to board the smuggler.
But while they were doing so, the smuggler's
crew crept upon deck, shook out the sails,
hauled up the anchor, and, like lightning, sent
their vessel frothing through the deep. She
made such way that it was in vain for the man-
of-war's boats to give chase, so they returned
to the ship with all speed, got up anchors and
sails, and made after the smuggler in hot haste.
By this time she had got out of the harbour
and past the island. The herring-tishers, who
had watched all these proceedings with the
greatest interest, climbed their masts and
viewed the chase so long as the two vessels
remained in sight. I need hardly say that,
although they drew the king's bounty, their
sympathies went with the chased, and not with
the pursuers.
The night drew on, and by the time that it
was dark the man-of-war had gained so greatly
on the smuggler, that its capture was inentable,
unless those on board of her could devise some
expedient to mislead their pursuers. And, as
they were always ready with their ingenious
tricks, they were not much at a loss for a
device on the present occasion. As the night
drew on, they had fixed a light at the stern of
their vessel ; and as the darkness increased,
this light greatly assisted the man-of-war in
keeping to the right track. But, although
their pursuers thought them very stupid for
showing this light, the smugglers had done so
for a purpose of their own. They had prepared
a tar-barrel and put a flame to it, at the same
moment that they dowsed their light, craftily
substituting the one for the other. They then
quietly lowered the lighted tar-barrel into the
sea, and, cutting the rope adrift, altered their
course, and steered in the dai'kness on another
tack. The man-of-war sailed steadily on after
the light, and, when at last they came up with
it, found it to be nothing more than a blazing
tar-barrel, and that theii- rich prize had slipped
out of their very grasp.
In a few days the smuggler was in another
loch, disposing of her goods to the herring-
fishers, and neither regarding the law, nor
fearing the man-of-war.
I have been made acquainted with several
other stories, iii connection with this subject of
smuggling in Cantire, one of which will
appear in next issue.
(To be continued.)
ALEXANDER MACKAY, ABERDEEN.
sJ^W^R. ALEXANDER
^J^ MACKAY may
.^VEL fairly claim to be
"The Real Mackay," his
wife being a Mackay, and
his father and grandfather
having both married ladies
of the clan. He was born
in the parish of Killearnan,
Black Isle, in 1844, where he received such
education as the local school alYorded, and at
the age of sixteen found his way to the Low-
lands in search of suitable employment. Here
he spent ten years, but in 1870 he decided to
venture further afield in search of fortune.
Landing at Quebec, he turned his hand to
every variety of work that came his way, and
eventually was manager on the home- farm of
the widow of Admiral Gregory of the IT. S.
Navy, at New Haven, Conn. In 1872 he
removed to the north west, the Dakotas being
then unsettled, where he bought some land,
and along with General Campbell, a worthy
scion of the Argyll clan, assisted in laying out
the town site of the now important town of
Scotland. In 1877 he returned to Scotland
and settled in Glasgow, where he married ; and
started business as a contractor. After a brief
visit to America to dispose of his land, he
finally removed ten years ago to Aberdeen,
where he has established a successful business.
During his wanderings in the new world, he
came across many of the old Highland settlers,
whom he found to retain the language and
customs of the Highlands to a greater degree
than is the case among his countrymen at home.
Those who have seen Mr. Mackay arrayed in
the kilt could not help noticing his splendid
physique, for he is really an athlete of celebrity.
He has competed at the leading sports in
Canada, the States and in the West of Scotland,
where he has met the most prominent athletes,
and never failed to be included in the prize
Ust. Mr. iSIackay is an enthusiast in Highland
matters, and when in America was a member
of the New Haven Caledonian Club, which he
represented for several years at the Interna-
tional Conventions. He is a member of the
Clan Mackay Society and supported his Chief,
Lord Reay, at the recent great gathering of
the clan in Glasgow. He is also a member of
the Aberdeen Highland Association.