Series 2 > Origins of the 'Forty-five

PRINCE CHARLES IN THE HEBRIDES Ixxi
Macdonald, priest of Eriska and Dean of the Isles. We
’ took a copy of the article with us, and traced on the
| spot the wanderings here described. We were much
| gratified ; local tradition as well as topography completely
corroborated the narrative. It could only have been
: written by one thoroughly acquainted with the islands.
There could be no doubt of its genuineness, and it must
have been written by Neil Maceachain.
In the Itinerary there is a short account of Neil, to which
, the reader is referred. Briefly, he was one of the
Macdonald-Maceachains of Howbeg, in South Uist, a sept
’ of the Clanranald. Neil was educated in France for the
| priesthood, but abandoned his intention of taking orders,
and returned to South Uist, where he acted as parish
j schoolmaster and tutor in the family of Clanranald, who
i then resided at Nunton in Benbecula. The old chief
attached Neil to Prince Charles when in hiding in the
! islands, believing that his scholarship, his knowledge of
l languages, and his accomplishments as a musician might
be useful to the Prince.
It must be remembered that the narrative can be
; accepted as trustworthy only for the occasions on which
^ Neil was actually with the Prince. He met him on his
first arrival at Benbecula, but he did not accompany
him on his journey to Harris and Lewis ; he was, how-
\: ever, again with him on his return to Benbecula and
^ South Uist. Neil’s accounts, therefore, of the Prince’s
adventures when away from South Uist are only from
» hearsay and not to be entirely depended on. In the
Itinerary I followed for that part of the Prince’s wander-
i ings the narrative of Donald Macleod of Gualtergil, who
^ was then his companion and guide.
j Not the least interesting portion of the narrative is the
account of the meeting between Flora Macdonald and
t Prince Charles. So much fiction mingles with accounts
| of the incident, in prose, in verse, and in pictures, that