"You hear the Ettrick's sullen roar, "The iron gate is bolted hard, At which I knock in vain ; You never may the shelter want, THE MAID OF NEIDPATH. There is a tradition in Tweeddale, that, when Neidpath Castle, near Peebles, was inhabited by the Earls of March, a mutual passion subsisted between a daughter of that noble family, and a son of the Laird of Tushielaw, in Ettrick Forest. As the alliance was thought unsuitable by her parents, the young man went abroad. During his absence the lady fell into a consumption; and at length, as the only means of saving her life, her father consented that her lover should be recalled. On the day when he was expected to pass through Peebles, on the road to Tushielaw, the young lady, though much exhausted, caused herself to be carried to the balcony of a house in Peebles, belonging to the family, that she might see him as he rode past. Her anxiety and eagerness gave such force to her organs, that she is said to have distinguished his horse's footsteps at an incredible distance. But Tushielaw, unprepared for the change in her appearance, and not expecting to see her in that place, rode on without recognising her, or even slackening his pace. The lady was unable to support the shock, and, after a short struggle, died in the arms of her attendants. There is an incident similar to this traditional tale in Count Hamilton's "Fleur d'Epine." O LOVERS' eyes are sharp to see, Can lend an hour of cheering. All sunk and dim her eyes so bright, Across her cheek were flying; Her maidens thought her dying. Yet keenest powers to see and hear, As on the wing to meet him. He came he pass'd-an heedless gaze, Returns each whisper spoken, WANDERING WILLIE. [1806.] ALL joy was bereft me the day that you left me, And climb'd the tall vessel to sail yon wide sea; weary betide it! I wander'd beside it, And bann'd it for parting my Willie and me. Far o'er the wave hast thou follow'd thy fortune, Now I hae gotten my Willie again. When the sky it was mirk, and the winds they were wailing, And thought o' the bark where my Willie was sailing, Now that thy gallant ship rides at her mooring, Music to me were the wildest winds' roaring, d That e'er o'er Inch-Keith drove the dark ocean faem. When the lights they did blaze, and the guns they did rattle, And blithe was each heart for the great victory, In secret I wept for the dangers of battle, And thy glory itself was scarce comfort to me. But now shalt thou tell, while I eagerly listen, And oh, how we doubt when there's distance 'tween lovers, And the love of the faithfullest ebbs like the sea. Till, at times—could I help it ?—I pined and I ponder'd Welcome, from sweeping o'er sea and through channel, Furnishing story for glory's bright annal, Welcome, my wanderer, to Jeanie and hame! Enough now thy story in annals of glory Has humbled the pride of France, Holland, and Spain; No more shalt thou grieve me, no more shalt thou leave me, I never will part with my Willie again. HUNTING SONG. WAKEN, lords and ladies gay, Waken, lords and ladies gay, 66 'Waken, lords and ladies gay." Waken, lords and ladies gay, Louder, louder chant the lay, SONG. Oн, say not, my love, with that mortified air, Though April his temples may wreathe with the vine, 'Tis the ardour of August matures us the wine, Though thy form, that was fashion'd as light as a fay's, And thy glance, that was bright as a falcon's at gaze, Enough, after absence to meet me again, Enough, that those dear sober glances retain For me the kind language of love. ON THE MASSACRE OF GLENCOE. [1814.] “In the beginning of the year 1692, an action of unexampled barbarity disgraced the government of King William III. in Scotland. In the August preceding, a proclamation had been issued, offering an indemnity to such insurgents as should take the oaths to the King and Queen, on or before the last day of December; and the chiefs of such tribes as had been in arms for James, soon after took advantage of the proclamation. But Macdonald of Glencoe was prevented by accident, rather than design, from tendering his submission within the limited time. In the end of December he went to Colonel Hill, who commanded the garrison in Fort-William, to take the oaths of allegiance to the Government; and the latter having furnished him with a letter to Sir Colin Campbell, sheriff of the county of Argyll, directed him to repair immediately to Inverary, to make his submission in a legal manner before that magistrate. But the way to Inverary lay through almost impassable mountains, the season was extremely rigorous, and the whole country was covered with a deep snow. So eager, however, was Macdonald to take the oaths before the limited time should expire, that, though the road lay within half a mile of his own house, he stopped not to visit his family, and, after various obstructions, arrived at Inverary. The time had elapsed, and the sheriff hesitated to receive his submission; but Macdonald prevailed by his importunities, and even tears, in inducing that functionary to administer to him the oath of allegiance, and to certify the cause of his delay. At this time Sir John Dalrymple, afterwards Earl of Stair, being in attendance upon William as Secretary of State for Scotland, took advantage of Macdonald's neglecting to take the oath within the time prescribed, and procured from the king a warrant of military execution against that chief and his whole clan. This was done at the instigation of the Earl of Breadalbane, whose lands the Glencoe men had plundered, and whose treachery to Government in negotiating with the Highland clans, Macdonald himself had exposed. The King was accordingly persuaded that Glencoe was the main obstacle to the pacification of the Highlands; and the fact of the unfortunate chief's submission having been concealed, the sanguinary orders for proceeding to military execution against his clan were in consequence obtained. The warrant was both signed and countersigned by the King's own hand, and the Secretary urged the officers who commanded in the Highlands to execute their orders with the utmost rigour. Campbell of Glenlyon, a captain in Argyle's regiment, and two subalterns, were ordered to repair to Glencoe on the 1st of February with a hundred and twenty men. Campbell, being uncle to young Macdonald's wife, was received by the father with all manner of friendship and hospitality. The men were lodged at free quarters in the houses of his tenants, and received the kindest entertainment. Till the 13th of the month the troops lived in the utmost harmony and familiarity with the people; and on the very night of the massacre, the officers passed the evening at cards in Macdonald's house. In the night, Lieutenant Lindsay, with a party of soldiers, called in a friendly manner at his door, and was instantly admitted. Macdonald, while in the act of rising to receive his guest, was shot dead through the back with two bullets. His wife had already dressed; but she was stripped naked by the soldiers, who tore the rings off her fingers with their teeth. The slaughter now became general, and neither age nor infirmity was spared. Some women. in defending their children, were killed; boys imploring mercy, were shot dead by officers on whose knees they hung. In one place nine persons, as they sat enjoying themselves at table, were butchered by the soldiers. In Inverriggon, Campbell's own quarters, nine men were first bound by the soldiers, and then shot at intervals, one by one. Nearly forty persons were massacred by the troops; and several who fled to the mountains perished by famine and the inclemency of the season. Those who escaped owed their lives to a tempestuous night. Lieutenant-Colonel Hamilton, who had received the charge of the execution from Dalrymple, was on his march with four hundred men, to guard all the passes from the valley of Glencoe ; but he was obliged to stop by the severity of the weather, which proved the safety of the unfortunate clan. Next day he entered the valley, laid the houses in ashes, and carried away the cattle and spoil, which were divided among the officers and soldiers."-Article "BRITAIN;"Encyc. Britannica-New Edition. "O TELL me, Harper, wherefore flow Thy wayward notes of wail and woe Far down the desert of Glencoe, Where none may list their melody? Say, harp'st thou to the mists that fly, Or to the dun-deer glancing by, Or to the eagle that from high Screams chorus to thy minstrelsy?"— "No, not to these, for they have rest,The mist-wreath has the mountain-crest, The stag his lair, the erne her nest, Abode of lone security. But those for whom I pour the lay, "Their flag was furl'd, and mute their drum, The very household dogs were dumb, In guise of hospitality. To tend her kindly housewifery. "The hand that mingled in the meal, The friendly hearth which warm'd that hand, At midnight arm'd it with the brand, That bade destruction's flames expand Their red and fearful blazonry. "Then woman's shriek was heard in vain, Far more than Southern clemency. "Long have my harp's best notes been gone, Few are its strings, and faint their tone, They can but sound in desert lone Their grey-hair'd master's misery. Were each grey hair a minstrel string, Each chord should imprecations fling, Till startled Scotland loud should ring, 'Revenge for blood and treachery!"" LINES, ADDRESSED TO RANALD MACDONALD, ESQ. OF STAFFA. [1814.] STAFFA, sprung from high Macdonald, LETTER IN VERSE, ON THE VOYAGE WITH THE COMMISSIONERS OF NORTHERN LIGHTS. "Of the letters which Scott wrote to his friends during those happy six weeks, I have recovered only one, and it is, thanks to the leisure of the yacht, in verse. The strong and easy heroics of the first section prove, I think, that Mr. Canning did not err when he told him that if he chose he might emulate even Dryden's command of that noble measure; and the dancing anapæsts of the second, show that he could with equal facility have rivalled the gay graces of Cotton, Anstey, or Moore."-LOCKHART, Life, vol. iv. p. 372. |