The Sun.
London, England, 1862-12-25 00:00:00

711 E BREADALBANE EARLDOM AND

ESIA7ES.

By the death of the late Marquis of Breadalbane a second
male line of descent from the first earl, of Glencoe notoriety,
has terminated,

The first earl was, in 1681, elevated to the earldom under
a patent which empowered him to appoint the succession to
whichever of his sons by his first wife he saw fit. The power
he exercised in favour of his second son, John, Lord Glen-
orchy, passing over his eldest son Duncan, Lord Ormelie.
The first earl's second son, Lord Glenorchy, and his eldest
son, Lord Glenorchy's son, each succeeded to the earldom,
but his line ended in his great .grandson, Lord Glenorchy,
who died in the lifetime of his father, the third earl. This
last-mentioned Lord Glenorchy was the husband of the
eminently pious and useful Lady Glenorchy, friend of the
Countess of Huntingdon, of Henry Venn, and others, and
whose life was written by the Rev. Dr. Jones, of Edinburgh.
On the death of the third earl, in 1782, the peerage went,
according to the patent, to the descendant of the uncle of
the first Earl, Colin Campbell of Mochaster. This de-
scendant became the fourth earl, and was created the first
marquis by Earl Grey. His only son, the fifth earl and
second marquis, is just dead. The marquisate has expired,
but the earldom and entailed estates must seek another
descendant in the respective limitations of the patent of the
earldom and the deed of entail, which slightly differ, but
nearly agree. It has generally been supposed that both
earldom and estates would now fall by descent to the descen-
dant of the second uncle of the first earl, which uncle lived
little short of 200 years ago. That descendant is Capt. W.
J. Lamb Campbell, late of her Majesty's 79th Highlanders,
and the eldest or only son of amedical practitioner in the
Edgware-road, whose line is distinguished by the title of
Campbell of Glenfalloch. But it is said that, as he claims as
" the nearest legitimate heir" of the first earl, it may now
be questioned whether that description does not more pro-
perly belong to Lieut. Campbell, the heir male of the dis-
inherited Duncan, Lord Ormelie, eldest son of the first Earl
Breadalbane. This Lieut. Campbell is great-great-grandson
of the first Earl of Breadalbane, so famed in connection with
Lord Stair in the lamentable affair of Glencoe. It is, how-
ever, urged against his claims that the Glenfalloch line are
the legal heirs of the Mochaster line which has just termi-
nated, on the old feudal principle that the succession to an
inheritance ought not to ascend but to descend. However,
the application of this principle is not here evident, and the
precedent of 1782 will not avail. In 1782 the first marquis
succeeded to the fourth earldom because he was the male
heir of Colin of Mochaster. Now the succession is to go,
not to in individual or his line, but to "the nearest legiti-
mate heirs whateoever" of the first earl. This may cast
the descent both of the earldom and the estates on the first
earl's existing male descendant, or it may give the earldom
and estates to the sisters of the deceased marquis.
It is stated that Captain Campbell of Glenfalloch has no
issue, so that, even if he succeeds, a third line of earls may
become extinct, and the inheritance revert to the descendant
of Duncan, Lord Ormelie, who in 1722 protested against
his younger brother's succession as second Earl of Breadal-
bane. In any case there is a probability of considerable
litigation, and the questions are so doubtful that the costs
as to the property would probably be borne by the entailed
estates, which are stated to produce a rental of £40,000 a
year, exclusive of about £20,000 a year of unentailed pro-
perty divided amongst the late marquis's two sisters or
their representatives.—Record.