Chiefs of Grant > Correspondence

366 IV. — LETTERS FROM SIMON LORD LOVAT. [1738.
I beg leave to offer you and worthy Lady Margaret, that angel that heaven hes given
you for your happiness, and to the lovly infanta, to Miss Pene, my dear Captain, and all other
friends at Castle Grant, my most affectionat humble duty, and that of all this family ; and
be so just as to belive that I am while I breath, with the uttmost attachment and respect, my
dear Laird of Grant,
Your most affectionat uncle, most fathfull and most constant slave,
LOVAT.
My boys are at Eosehaugh these three days past, to take leave of their aunt, where I
design to go to-morow. If I can, I 'le bring Custerdfield with me to Castle Grant.
455. To The Same — Separation from Lady Lovat.
Beaufort, 20th of Aprile 1738.
My dear Laird of Grant, — You will certainly be very much surpris'd that you have
neither seen me nor heard from me, having been positive in my letter that I was to take
journey last week. But (uxor quam mihi dedisti, est causa afflictionis mei et omnium
malorum meorum), my Lady Lovat, whose head was never right, turn'd entirely wrong since
I had the honour to see you. Her behaviour lookt rather like a mad woman, full of folly
and malice, than like a woman of common sense and religion. She positively declar'd to
severall gentlemen and women that the moment I went away she would go off for Edinburgh
with her child ; and when she understood that I would not allow the child to go along with
her, she said she would go without him, and that she knew where to get both money and
horses and servants, tho' I would give her none. I had the good luck to have three honest
men in the house, that discours'd with her upon the subject, Mr. Thomas Chisolm, minister,
Mr. Donald Fraser, preacher of the gospell, and Mr. Evan Baillie of Abriachane ; and when
they us'd all their endeavours to disswade her from going south, and ask'd her motives for
such an unreasonable resolution at this time, she said that she wanted to see her mother.
But the true motive was that she wanted a sum of money from me before I went south. I
then told her that I would order as much money for her from time to time as she would call
for from my chamberlain, providing that she would give an accompt that she made use of it
for the good and service of the family. She refus'd that absolutly, but told that I must
give her a sum of money that she was to make no accompt of, but to buy her cloaths, druggs,
and any other little necessarys that she thought fit ; and that she must have an obligation
upon stampt paper that I would continue her the sum of £50 per year during her married
life, to be dispos'd of by her for the said purposes, without being obliged to give any account
of it. I told the gentlemen that that was a pretty hard case, that she should bully me to
give such a sum for life, or otherwayes that I must bear and suffer the bad consequences of