Blair Collection > Celtic magazine > Volume 5

224 The CELTIC MAGAZINE. |
" Follow me, my gallants," exclaimed the youth, " and you shal' i
share the glory and the guerdon." t
As he uttered these words a band of about sixty men sprung from thi'
" Yield rebels, or die," shouted the leader. i
" Not to the followers of a heretic," said Dermond. " So Heaven aiwi ■;
the right." j |
The resistance offered, however, was useless, as in the space of a feiiii !
moments the followers of the young chieftain were either slain or comi';
peUed to surrender. Dermond, who placed his back against a rock, re! ,
mained on his defence, and kept the whole party at bay until he wail \
stricken down by a blow from a jackman's axe, which severed his helmeii
and rendered him insensible. When he recovered consciousness h I '
found himself suffering severely from the loss of blood, and shackled t,!
the faithful Olave. Both were mounted on horseback with their fee',
secured under the animal's belly, and were following in the rear oil
Bruce's little army under a strong guard. • !
Chapter VIIL |
I've liv'd a lifs of sturt and strife ; 1 1
I die by treacherie. j
Macphcrson's Farewell — Burns. I ,
On the day after the battle of Daliy Lorn had not recovered froi;'
his irritable humour. He kept his chamber and meditated on the diil
asters that had overtaken him. Bruce had been driven from the battL f
field, but the victory was equivalent to, if not worse than defeat. Monj 1
over, the men of the Isles had returned discontented ; and Macnab, i j (
concord with several of the inland chieftains, had broken his oath (jl
allegiance, and was no longer an obedient vassal to the House of Maiji
dougall. j
The morning had dawned fair and pleasant, with the rays of the risiD ;,
sun dancing brilliantly over the broad expanse of blue waters, and ligh 1 1
ing up the dark recesses of the mountains. All, however, was dull anj .'
disagreeable to the baffled chieftain. Even the splendours of the advan^
ing day had no visible effect upon his spirits. He sat blankly starin
out of the window, with his arm resting on the rudely carved oaken tahl
which formed one of the principal parts of ornamental furniture in h
sulking room. His big hand crossed his brow, or played at interva
with his curling front locks. His features were naturally dark an;
gloomy, but now they seemed more sombre and oppressed wilh disappoin ' .]
ment and melancholy. ■ j
Strict orders had been issued against the admittance of visitors, an |
he had resolved to see no one for that day, but the arrival of a mysterioij i
messenger in a strange disguise, imperiously demanding an interview, ha
awakened Macdougall's curiosity, and the request for a private audien(
was granted.
" Who can this be, or what, in Heaven's name, can he want I" m
the internal exclamation of his Lordship, as a singular-looking individua
enveloped in a Spanish cloak, was ushered into his presence. The kee