Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1896-10-05

bare word of this forfeited and hunted
outlaw. When he was angered, which
was often enough, he gave his commands
and breathed threats of punishment like
any king; and his gillies trembled and
crouched away from him like children
before a haSty father. With each of
them. as he entered, he tremendously
shook hands. both parties touching their
bonnets at the same time in a military
manner. Altogether, | had fair chance
to see some of the inner workings of
Highland clan; and this with a pro-
scribed, fugitive chief; his country con-
quered; the troops riding upon all sides
in quest of him, sometimes within a
mile of where he lay; and when the
least of the ragged fellows whom he rat
ed and threatened could have made a
fortune by betraying him.
On that first day, as soon as the col
lops were ready, Cluny gave them with
his own hand squeeze of lemon for
he was well supplied with luXuries) and
babe us draw III to our meal.
They" said he, meaning the collops,
''are such as / gave his royal highness
in this very house: batting the lemon
juice. for at that time we were glad
kitchen. Indeed, there were mair
dragons than lemons in my country in
the year 49,
do not know if the collops were
truly very good, but my heart rose
against the very sight of them. and I
could eat but little: All the while Cluny
entertained us with stories of Prince
Charles stay i'll the Cage, giving us
the very words of the speakers and ris-
ing from his place to show us where
they stood. BY these. gathered the
prince was a gracious, spirited boy, like
the son of a race of polite kings, but
not SO wise as Solomon. / gathered,
FOR hat 1, u ~
was often drunk; SO the fault that has
since, by all accounts, made such a
wreck of him, had even then begun to
show itself
We were no sooner done eating than
Cluny brought out an old, thumbed
greasy pack of cards. such as you may
find in a mean inn; and his eyes bright
ened in his face as he proposed that we
should fall to playing.
Now, this was one of the things | had
been brought up to eschew like disgrace;
it being held by my father neither the
part of a Christian nor yet of gentle
man, to set his own livelihood and fish
for that of others, on the cast of painted
pasteboard. TO be sure. | might have
pleaded my fatigue. which was excuse
enough: but | thought it behooved that
| should bear a testimony. | must have
got very red il the face. but [ spoke
steadily, and told them | had no call to
be a judge of others. but for my own
part, it was a matter in which | had no
clearress.
CIuny stopped mingling the cards
''What in deil's name is thiST' says he
''What kind of Whiggish. canting talk
is this, for the house of Cluny Macpher
SOM"
Il will put my hand in the fire for Mr.
Balfour," says Alan. Gle is an honest
and mettle gentleman, and | would
have We bear in mind who says it. l
bear a kings name." says he, cooking his
are company for the best But the gen
tleman is tired, and should sleep: if he
has no mind to the cartes, it will never
! hinder you and me. And I'm fit and
willing. sir. to play ye any game that We
can name"
'Sir," says Cluny, Gin this poor house
of mine, / would have ye to ken that any
gentleman may follow his pleasure. If
your friend would like to stand ON his
head. he is welcome. And if either he
or you, or any other man, is not preceese-
~ satisfied, | will be proud to step out
side with him."
I had no will that these two friends
should cut their threats for my sake.
"Sir.' said /, 81 am very Wearied, as
Alan says: and what's more, as you are
a man that likely has sons of your own,
| may tell you it was a promise to my
father
''Say nae mair. say nae mair,' said
Cluny and pointed me to bed of heath
Ell in a corner of the Cage. For all that,
he was displeased enough. looked at me
askance. and grumbled when he looked.
And indeed it must be owned that both
my scruples and the words in which l
declared them smacked somewhat of the
Covenanter, and were little in their place
among wild Highland Jacobites.
What with the brandy and the venison,
a strange heaviness had come over me;
and | had scarce lain down upon the
bed before fell into kind of trance in
which [ continued almost the whole time
of our stay in the Cage. Sometimes |
was broad awake and understood what
passed.; sometimes [ only heard voices
or men snoring like the voice of a silly
river; and the plaids upon the wall dwin-
died down and swelled out again, like
freight shadows on the roof. l must
sometimes have spoken or cried out, for
/ remember [ was now and then amazed
at being answered; yet | was conscious
of no particular nightmare, only OF
general, black, abiding horror-a horror
of the place l was in, and the bed | lay
in, and the plaids on the wall, and the
voices, and the fire, and myself.
The barber-gillie, who was a doctor,
too. was called in to prescribe for me;
but as he spoke in the Gaelic, | under
stood not word of his opinion, and was
too sick even to ask for a translation.
knew well enough l was i'll, and that
was all l cared about.
I paid little heed while l lay in this
poor pass But Alan and Cluny were
most of the time at the cards, and | am
clear that Alan must have begun by win
ming: for | remember sitting up, and
seeing them hard at it, and great gilt
tering pile of as much as sixty or hun
dred guineas on the table: 1t looked
strange enough, to see all this wealth in
nest upon a cliffside, waited about
growing trees. And even then. | thought
it seemed deep water for Alan to be rid
ing. who had no better battlehorse than
green purse and matter of five
pounds.
The luck. it seems, changed on the sec
ond day. About noon [ was awakened
as usual for dinner and as usual refused
to eat, and was given dram with some
bitter infusion which the barber had pre-
scribed. The sun was shining in at the
open door of the Cage, and this daZzled
and offended me. Cluny sat at the table,
biting the pack of cards. Alan had