"In the earlier part of the service of the 42d regiment, and when the ancient habits of the people remained unchanged, the soldiers retained much of these habits in their camps and quarters. They had their bards for reciting ancient poems and tales, and composing laments, elegies, and panegyrics on departed friends. These, as they were generally appropriate, so they were highly useful, when none were present to hear them but Highlanders, who under. stood them, and whom they could warm and inspire. Another cause has contributed to change the character of the Highland soldier. This is the reserved manners and distant etiquette of military discipline. When many of the officers were natives of the mountains, they spoke in their own language to the men, who, in their turn, addressed the officers with that easy but respectful familiarity and confidence which subsisted between the Highland people and their superiors. Another privilege of a Highlander of the old school was that of remonstrating and counselling where the case seemed to him to require it. It frequently happened, also, that they would become sureties, on their own responsibility, for the good conduct of one another; and, as responsibility implies regularity of conduct and respectability of character, these suretyships had the most beneficial influence on the men. But things are now managed differently. The Highland soldier is brave, and will always prove so, if properly commanded; but the chivalry of the character has almost disappeared, and officers now may entertain less dread that their men will disobey orders, and persevere in a disastrous and hopeless conflict. But their character must be acted upon by some powerful cause indeed, unless they continue to be, what they have always been, and what they proved themselves to be at Ticonderoga, first in the attack, and last in the retreat,-which, after all, was made deliberately, and in good order." In short, a Highland regiment was nothing more than a large Highland family,—the officers being obeyed, trusted, and honoured by the men, in the same manner in which elder brothers and natural feudal superiors would have been had they remained at home in their glens. Were we to "In the year 1795, a serious disturbance broke out in Glasgow, among the Breadalbane Fencibles. Several men having been confined and threatened with corporal punishment, considerable discontent and irritation were excited among their comrades, which increased to such violence, that, when some men were confined in the guard-house, a great proportion of the regiment rushed out and forcibly released the prisoners. This violation of the military discipline was not to be passed over, and accordingly measures were immediately taken to secure the ringleaders, and bring them to punishment. But so many were equally concerned, that it was difficult to fix on the proper subjects for punishment. And here was shewn a trait of character worthy of a better cause, and which originated from a feeling alive to the disgrace of a degrading punishment. The soldiers being made sensible of the nature of their misconduct, and the consequent punishment, four men voluntarily offered themselves to stand trial, and suffer the sentence of the law, as an atonement for the whole. These men were accordingly marched to Edinburgh Castle, tried, and condemned to be shot. Three of them were afterwards reprieved, and the fourth was shot on Musselburgh sands. "On the march to Edinburgh, a circumstance occurred, the more worthy of notice, as it shews a strong principle of honour and fidelity to his word and to his of ficer in a common Highland soldier. "One of the men stated to the officer commanding the party, that he knew what his fate would be, but that he had left business of the utmost importance to a friend in fore his death; that, as to himself, he was Glasgow, which he wished to transact befully prepared to meet his fate; but with regard to his friend, he could not die in peace unless the business was settled, and that, if the officer would suffer him to return to Glasgow, a few hours there would In my time, much of that which I have described had disappeared. The men had acquired new habits from their being in camps and barracks. However, many old soldiers still retained their original manners, exhibiting much freedom and ease in their communications with the officers. I joined the regiment in 1789, a very young soldier. Colonel Graham, the commanding officer, gave me a steady old soldier, named William Fraser, as my servant,-perhaps as my adviser and director. I know not that he had received any instructions on that point, but Colonel Graham himself could not have been more frequent and attentive in his remonstrances, and cautious with regard to my conduct and duty, than my old soldier was, when he thought he had cause to disapprove. These admonitions he always gave me in Gaelic, calling me by my Christian name, with an allusion to the colour of my hair, which was fair, or bane, never prefixing Mr or Ensign, except when he spoke in English. However contrary to the common rules, and however it might surprise those unaccustomed to the manners of the people, to hear a soldier or a servant calling his master simply by his name, my honest old monitor was one of the most respectful, as he was one of the most faithful, of servants. 394 Colonel David Stewart's Sketches of the Highland Regiments. [April, be sufficient, and he would join him before he reached Edinburgh, and march as a prisoner with the party. The soldier added, "You have known me since I was a child; you know my country and kindred, and you may believe I shall never bring you to any blame by a breach of the promise I now make, to be with you in full time to be delivered up in the Castle.' This was a startling proposal to the officer, who was a judicious humane man, and knew perfectly his risk and responsibility in yield ing to such an extraordinary application, However, his confidence was such, that he complied with the request of the prisoner, who returned to Glasgow at night, settled his business, and left the town before daylight, to redeem his pledge. He took a long circuit to avoid being seen, apprehended as a deserter, and sent back to Glasgow, as probably his account of his officer's indulgence would not have been credited. In consequence of this caution, and the lengthened march through woods and over hills by an unfrequented route, there was no appearance of him at the hour appointed. The perplexity of the officer when he reached the neighbourhood of Edinburgh may be easily imagined. He moved forward slowly indeed, but no soldier appeared; and unable to delay any longer, he marched up to the Castle, and as he was delivering over the prisoners, but before any report was given in, Macmartin, the absent soldier, rushed in among his fellow prisoners, all pale with anxiety and fatigue, and breathless with apprehension of the consequences in which his delay might have involved his benefactor. "In whatever light the conduct of the officer (my respectable friend Major Colin Campbell) may be considered, either by military men or others, in this memorable exemplification of the characteristic principle of his countrymen, fidelity to their word, it cannot but be wished that the soldier's magnanimous self-devotion had been taken as an atonement for his own misconduct and that of the whole. It was not from any additional guilt that the man who suffered was shot. It was determined that only one should suffer, and the four were ordered to draw lots. The fatal chance fell upon William Sutherland, who was executed accordingly." The following, we strongly suspect, relates to the worthy author himself. "As one of the objects I have in view is to point out such characteristic traits of disposition, principle and habits, as may be in any way interesting, I shall notice the following circumstance, which occurred while this regiment (the 78th) lay at Hythe. In the month of June orders were issued for one field officer and four subalterns to join the 1st battalion in India. The day before the field officer fixed on for this pur pose left the regiment, the soldiers held conferences with each other in the barracks, and, in the evening, several deputations most earnest manner, to make application were sent to him, entreating him in the or obtain permission for them to accom. either to be allowed to remain with them, pany him. He returned his acknowledg spirited offer; but, as duty required his ments for their attachment, and for their presence in India, while their services were at present confined to this country, they must, therefore, separate for some time. The next evening, when he went from the barracks to the town of Hythe, to take his seat in the coach for London, two-thirds of the soldiers, and officers in the same proportion, accompanied him, all of them complaining of being left behind. They so crowded round the coach as to impede its progress for a considerable length of time, till at last the guard was obliged to desire the coachman to force his way through them. Upon this the soldiers, who hung by the wheels, horses, harness, and coachdoors, gave way, and allowed a passage. There was not a dry eye amongst the younger part of them. Such a scene as this, happened to more than 600 men, and in the streets of a town, could not pass unnoticed, and was quickly reported to General Moore, whose mind was always alive to the advantages of mutual confidence and esteem between officers and soldiers. The circumstance was quite suited to his chivalrous mind. He laid the case before the Commander-in-chief; and his Royal Highness, with that high feeling which he has perly represented, ordered that at present always shewn when a case has been prothere should be no separation, and that the field officer should return to the battalion in which he had so many friends ready to follow him to the cannon's mouth, and when brought in front of an enemy, either to compel them to fly, or perish in the field." happened a hundred times in the case No doubt such things as these have of other regiments in which there were no peculiarly Highland principles of attachment and affection: but who members have known each other from can doubt that a regiment, where the each are known and respected, and boyhood, and where the families of ed as natural friends and protectors where the officers, above all, are regardby their soldiers, must be more likely than any other to furnish examples behaviour?-In truth, the great prinboth of kindly feelings and of chivalrous ciple in the mind of every man who has been born and bred among those glens, seems to be a dread of dishocouring his blood-and this feeling seems to go as far as the dread of disgracing her family does with a lady. If a man is tried in the Highlands for an alleged crime, and if from some deficiency of evidence, or from any other cause, he escapes from the Court uncondemned he is no gainer by this immunity. His father bars his door against him the congregation in the parish church retire from his approach, as the Roman Senators did from that of Cataline: he is banished from his glen-from his district-he is ruined for ever. In like manner in a Highland regiment, the private who had acted unworthily, was as effectually proscribed by the scorn of his fellowsoldiers, as at this day the officer who, after beating a man, refuses to give him satisfaction, is sure to be by the scorn of his fellow-officers. Colonel Stewart details one or two instances, in which the Highland private who had incurred disgrace, delivered himself from the intolerable anguish of his situation by suicide. In some respects the composition of these regiments is no longer quite such as it was; and in particular, Colonel Stewart severely reprobates the admission of recruits from other districts of the empire, as tending to undo the powerful charm of that ancient Highfand union, of which his volumes give so many beautiful exemplifications. The Colonel is the last man to be an uncharitable judge, and nobody venerates the character of the English soldier more deeply than he; but it is easy to imagine that different elements, each in itself excellent, may be deterio rated by intermixture. But the preservation of the high moral feeling of the men themselves, most important as the point is, is far from being the only reason for keeping the Highlanders apart in their own regiments. Another consideration, which we cannot help esteeming a very serious one, is, that but for the Highland regiments, the military name of Scotland would have long ago ceased to exist in the same splendid manner in which it now does. Who ever hears of Scotland, when a brave Scotsman falls in the ranks of an English or Irish regiment? When Buonaparte saw the Scots Greys charge at Waterloo, he exclaimed "Ah! ces beaux chevaux gris comme ils sont terribles!" but even with him Scotland had not the honour. When the 42d VOL. XI. rushed on, there was no mistaking the kilt, and Buonaparte on that occasion exclaimed," Ces braves Ecossais!" We are strongly of opinion that Scotsmen, Irishmen, and Englishmen, ought at least for the most part, to be in national regiments, and we wish it were possible to have them all distinguished from each other, in the field, as effectually as the kilt and bonnet distinguish the heroes of the 42d. The noble rivalry of three equally brave races would not injure their noble union. In these volumes the reader will find the services of the different Highland corps detailed at great lengthmore particularly, as might be supposed, those of the 42d and 78th, in which the author himself has served. We have no room to make extracts, nor do we conceive ourselves well qualified to pronounce any very decided opinion as to military matters; but we have no hesitation in saying, that for ourselves we have read the whole book with a degree of interest which is very rarely excited in the experienced by the most skilful of romances. We suspect that Colonel Stewart writes about battles much better than almost any one else that has meddled with them in our day —at least it seems to us that his narratives of such affairs have a very uncommon degree of clearness, intelligibility, and vividness. The little traits of individual heroism introduced in lavish profusion, give a wonderful richness to the broad canvass on which they are raised. Some readers may be so constituted as to smile when, in the midst of the battle of Maida, they come slap upon a long note, shewing how Donald Macrae's bayonet came out of one of the charges "twisted like a cork-screw ;" and such readers will find plenty of similar matters to make merry upon. But such passages, we frankly confess it, are among the things which we should be most sorry to see struck out of the Colonel's work. They give a truth and reality to the general descriptions, of which such descriptions are for the most part altogether destitute. Plutarch did not scorn to insert such things, and he who wishes to have the character either of a wise, or of an amusing writer, need never hesitate to follow the example of that good Boeotian. Altogether, this book is one of the 3 D few we see coming out now-a-days that is sure to last. It must form a part of every library: the future historian must resort to it for materials: the heroes of a future age will look to it for bright examples. As to the composition of it, we cannot see that any style could have been better adapted to the subject matter. There is a great deal of plain unpretending good sense visible throughout, and here and there occur expressions of extraordinary felicity, nay, whole passages of very great power. Every body must lay down the book with feelings of the highest respect for the author's talents, and of what might perhaps deserve a warmer title than respect for the author himself. We trust, now that Colonel Stewart has found he can manage the pen as well as the claymore, he will not allow his talent to sleep in his possession. We could mention two or three works very much wanted, which nobody now living could write half so well as himself and which if this generation passes over, have no chance ever to be written at all;-inter alia, What would he think of trying a good history of the 1715 and 1745? SKETCHES OF SCOTTISH CHARACTER. No X. "ZACHARY MELDRUM." I knew a Parson once, but death has laid His temper was so easy, pliant, kind, A child might turn him, as it had a mind; Around the garden walk I've seen him stray, At social board, his honest heart was light, Nor scorn'd he then, amidst the random fun, With every dull reality at war, The mind-created image to pursue, And drag new combinations into view. And as the glass went round, I've heard it told • The fact here alluded to, is mentioned by Mr Edgeworth, in a letter to his friend Mr Day. A soldier had been caught by a bear, from whose paws he was afterwards rescued; his lips appeared to move whilst he imagined himself shouting for aid, but no sound was emitted. His school-boy tricks, his college revelment Though skill'd in ancient lore, and modern too, With clouds and thunders o'er it; stayless fear, Once he conversed with Lady Maiden, old He quickly adds-" She is not quite so plain!!" He flounders still from blunder on to blunder- Glib Gaffer Time, and sacred Writ have shewn So Grizzy thought-and what could Zachary do? And ask'd her out,-her mind was not made up. |
