The Washington times., 1913-01-04
CHAPTER l.
The Coming of Don John.


~ mine is a poor hand for the
writing 1t is not SO long ago
that I could speak English. for the
learning of the Sassenach tongue was
the more difficult after the dialect OF
the Firth of Clyde. which is native to
me. II my grammar should stumble
whiles and my letters be doubtfully
placed, ] can'only beg that those who
come after me with greater learning
will bear in mind how much easier
the Gaelic would have been TO the
! writer and how much harder to the
reader.
"Forbye,' as Mr.. Macmurtrie says,
yell not waste words. having mickie
Scotland. and II behooves q man to
finish his work the quicker.
Yet, to my mind there is a peace
come upon the land. Murray Is killed
and Mary passed by the block; so,Sie me
but the lady of my story; Queen Bess
has gone to her rest and first Scots
Jamie sits an English throne; the
Bible is half translated by the bish-
ops, and life is pleasant In ktiellan
Castle.
Not that England's wars and wren-
glings ever disturbed US much III. Kill
elan, fer after the Earl Of Argyll
foreswore the Roman CATHOLIC queen
Lsngside. there was never a call to
arms that was not in our own little
affairs. Whites we quarreled with
the Macdonalds over the strait OF
chased the caterans; but even Argyfs
matters touched us little In our part
of the country, which was called
Cowal, for IL was nigh impre2nable,
save from the Lowlands on the other
side of the Firth. and 1t was to the
advantage of these to keep peace
with us Campbells of Argyll:
Cowal was the frontier Of the High
lands, and Kilellan Castle and all the
laird's lands covered the, broad penin-
sula between Loeb Striven and the
Holy Loeb. Back Of that was Argylfs
mountainous playground, while 'front.'
ing Kilellan Castle was the broading
Firth of Clyde, with the Iowland coast
Of Kyle and Carrick on the other side.
of Butte filled up most Of the wide bay
formed by the meeting OF Striven and
the Firth Indeed. Butte would have
been no island but for the strip Of sea
on the farther side of 1t, called the
Kyles. where the Macdonalds were
On the point of laird's peninsula was
the clachan of Kilellan. Here every
man was a Campbell, and II was sore
task to keep in mind the exact rela-
tionship Of each to his neishbor; II
each man had a name forbye his sur
name The laird went by the name of
Black, although he was grand.
nephew of the earl himself. In all
the country he was called Black Jamie.
and / think he must have earned the
name. Anyhow, his son and grandson
deserved it long after the old laird
was dead.
Until Don John, the Spaniard, came
to Kilellan. my father was the one
stranger who ever saved his neck in
Black JAMES country. And that was
because he was related to the laird.
having Margaret Campbell, his sister.
For the same reason, my father, angus
Maclean, was master Of the laird's
fight in his young days and too de-
crepit In his old to mind about such
matters.
We lived in the big farmhouse about
a mile to the west of the castle, anq
close by the Loeb striven shore; irom
by a burn and a strip OF hr. From the
ciechan at the point. the shorsSswept
past our house to the burn by tne
woods in the shape OF e crescent
Up to the year 1888. when / was
eight years old. I remember little OF
my life; but that year Is vivfdly noted
as the beginning of the strange things
was our custom in winter to lock up
the cows in the byre, safe from the
cold, but in the soft. sum mer night
we let them lie out among the daisies.
The only duty I had at my eorly age
was to drive the cows from the hed
to byre and back again. and In the
morning and evening to carry milk
20 Kilellan Castle.
How well I remember the dawn Of
many u winter morning on the road
to the laird's when the eyelids Of the
stars seemed too frozen to shut out
daylight, when the hoar-painted grass
crinkled underfoot. while the hoops
Of the milk pals sank into my colo
palms and nv toes seemed dead in my
shoon. But I was a sturdy lad for my
years and. although the chilblains
glowed rosy on my 1nBers. 1t was a
healthy breath that formed icycles on
my woolen scarf.
But il was late summer when Don
John came to Kilellan. ! mind well
that evening when I had barred the
cows in the wee pasture. and was
coming home thrSuga ra & tne ,,IS WOOD TO
under tie brambles and the trout
leaping into tie linn; the midges
were tickling NV bare legs and the
had av like the long summer nights,
but that one Is in my mind for an
other reason.
I took my milk-pails and started for
KiIellan Castle, which was set back in
the woods on the hill. Not even from
IL, the timber grew up so tall and so
close to IT, but at different points the
trees had been hewn away on the
southern side 50 that a spy could see
the kyles and Butte, the Isles Of Cum
brae ard Arran and the Lowland shore,
and on clear days that gray sca-tower
We call Ailsa Craig. At one OF the spy
holes in the wood | happened to look
through that evening, and what | saw
was the real first memory Of my life
and the beginning of my adventures.
The sea was calm. The Firth's is
lands were nigh hidden In a warm haze
that blended into the sunset of amber
and crimson over Butte, but close into
Kilellan Bay and as clear as my own
nand before my face. was the queerest
ship | have ever seen.
Ii had three decks, and about the
stern IL looked like a floating castle, for
il was full OF little windows. Its sails
familiar with in the Clyde, being shaped
Ike half-mOons and painted with
crosses and big golden letters. From
the sides of this ship. which were
striped with GOLD. dozens OF long oars
stuck out and moved stupidity, striking
one another as II the rowers were
learning the art / remember thinking
that the men in that ship must be queer
sailors.
knew I'm moment what the ship
was: I'm fact, like a boy OF Imagination
had never passed one of the wood
spyholes without stopping TO see II the
Spanish Armada was In sight. / had
heard and knew all about Il. My elders
had talked of nothing else for year. 1t
had been expected for months. Where
hn nf thaDnS The lair