having the Laird of Cluny (Gordon), upon his right hand, and Abergeldie upon the left hand; and, as he began to march forward, he encouraged his men, shewing them that there was no remedy, but either to obtain the victory, or to die with their weapons in their hands, in defence of whatsoever they held dearest in this world. Argyll, his army being all footmen, and assailed, had the advantage of the ground; for they were arrayed in battle upon the top of a steep, rough, and craggy mountain, at the descent whereof the ground was foggy, mossy, and full of peatpots, exceeding dangerous for horse. Huntly's forces consisted all in horsemen, and were constrained to ride first through the mossy ground at the foot of the hill, and then to ride up against that heathy, rough mountain, to pursue the enemy, who did there attend them. Before that Errol and Achindown gave the first charge, Huntly caused Captain Andrew Grey (now Colonel of the English and Scottish in Bohemia) to shoot three field-pieces of ordnance at the enemy, which bred a confused tumult among them, by the slaughter of MacNeill of Barra, an Islander, and one of the most valiant men of that party. Huntly's vanguard, seeing the enemy disordered, presently gave the charge; the Earl of Errol, with the most part of the vanguard, turned their sides towards the enemy, and so went a little about, directly towards Argyll, leaving Maclean and the vanguard upon their left hand, being forced thereto by the steepness of the hill, and the thick shot of the enemy; but Achindown, with the rest of his company, did gallop up against the hill towards Maclean; so that Achindown himself was the first man that invaded the enemy, and the first that was slain by them, having lost himself by his too much forwardness. The fight was cruel and furious for a while. Achindown's servants and followers, perceiving their master fall, raged among their enemies, as if they had resolved to revenge his death, and to accompany him in dying. Maclean, again playing the part of a good commander, compassed Huntly's vanguard, and enclosed them betwixt him and Argyll, having engaged themselves so far that now there was no hope of retreat; so that they were in danger to be all cut to pieces, if Huntly had not come speedily to their support, where he was in great danger of his life, his horse being slain under him; but being presently horsed again

Thus the

by Invermarkie, he rushed in among the enemies. battle was again renewed with great fury, and continued two hours. In end, Argyll with his main battle began to decline, and then to flee apace, leaving Maclean still fighting in the field; who, seeing himself thus destitute of succours, and his men either fled or slain, retired in good order with the small company he had about him, and saved himself by flight; having behaved himself in the battle, not only like a good commander, but also like a valiant soldier. Huntly and his horsemen followed the chase beyond the brook of Aldchonlihan, killing the enemies, till the steepness of the next mountains did stay them, being inaccessible for horsemen. Argyll's ensign was found in the place of battle, and brought back with them to Strathbogie. The Earl of Argyll lost in this battle his two cousins, Archibald Campbell of Lochnell, and his brother, James Campbell, with divers of Achinbreck's friends, MacNeill of Barra, and 700 common soldiers. Neither was the victory very pleasing to the Earl of Huntly, for, besides that the Earl of Errol, the Laird of Gight, and the most part of all his company were hurt and wounded, Sir Patrick Gordon of Achindown, his uncle, a wise, valiant, and resolute knight, with 14 others, were there slain. All their hurt men were carried that night to Achindown, where most part of them stayed until they were recovered. This battle was fought on Thursday, the 3rd day of October, 1594.

The Lord Forbes, the lairds of Buchan and Drum, assembled all their friends and followers, with intention to join with Argyll; but, hearing of his overthrow, they conclude to join with the Dunbars, and the rest of the forces coming from the provinces of Moray and Ross, and so to invade the Gordons when they came from the battle, thinking it now an easy matter to overthrow them, and to revenge old quarrels. To this effect the whole surname of Forbes, with most part of the Leslies and the Irvines, met at Druminour (the Lord Forbes's dwelling) and so went on, thinking to overtake Argyll, and to cause him return and renew the battle against the Gordons and their partakers; but, as they marched forward, a gentleman called Irvine was killed with the shot of a pistol, in the dark of the night, hard by the Lord Forbes, the author of which shot was never yet known until this day; for

presently all their pistols were searched and found to be full. This unexpected accident bred such a confusion and amazement in the minds of the Forbeses and their followers, being now all afraid of one another, that they dissolved their companies, and returned home. The rest of the clans in the North, such as the Dunbars, the Frasers, the Munroes, and the Clan Kenzie, being convened at Forres in Moray, were stayed by the policy of Dunbar of Moyness, who was then tutor to the Sheriff of Moray, and favoured the Earl of Huntly, Sir Patrick Gordon of Achindown having married his mother.

Whilst the Earl of Argyll was thus employed against Huntly, the King came to Dundee, where he expected the issue of that battle; which, when he had heard, His Majesty took journey north toward Strathbogie. In this voyage His Majesty, by the instigation of Huntly and Errol's greatest enemies, permitted (though unwillingly) divers houses to be thrown down, such as the house of Strathbogie, which appertained to Huntly, the house of Slaines, in Buchan, appertaining to the Earl of Errol, the house of Culsamond, in Garioch, appertaining to the Laird of Newton Gordon, the house of Bagays, in Angus, appertaining to Sir Walter Lindsay, and the house of Craig, in Angus, appertaining to Sir John Ogilvy, son to the Lord Ogilvy. In this meantime that the King was at Strathbogie, the Earl of Huntly, with divers of his friends, went into Sutherland and Caithness; and, when His Majesty returned into Edinburgh, Huntly left the Kingdom, and travelled through Germany, France, and Flanders; having stayed abroad one year and five months, he was recalled again by the King; and, at his return, both he, Angus, and Errol were again restored to their former honours and dignities, at a Parliament held in Edinburgh in November, 1597; and further, His Majesty honoured the Earl of Huntly with the honour of Marquis, the year 1599. All quarrels betwixt him and the Earls of Argyll and Moray were taken away by the marriage of Argyll's eldest daughter, to George, Lord Gordon, Huntly's eldest son, and by the marriage of Lady Anne Gordon, Huntly's daughter, to James, Earl of Moray, son to him that was slain at Dunibristle.

(To be continued.)

ST. KILDA.

III.

THE moral character of the St. Kildeans has always been high. In 1758, when Mr. MacAulay visited the Island, he found the people simple, hospitable, polite, and untainted with vice. He saw no cases of drunkenness during his stay, but he noticed that the men were excessively fond of tobacco, for which they would barter away their cows, sheep, grain, and feathers. Swearing and theft were unknown when Martin visited St. Kilda. The children were baptised by the steward or his deputy. The first illegitimate birth in the Island occurred in 1862, and since then only two other cases have been recorded. Towards the end of the 17th century, one of the natives, named Roderick, practised an impious but well-executed imposition upon his fellow-islanders. This man, who pretended to have been sent by John the Baptist to rule over St. Kilda, kept up the deception for some years, but was at length exposed, disgraced, and banished, after committing many shameful crimes under the cloak of religion, by the steward, Mr. Martin, and the Rev. John Campbell, minister of Harris.

From the time of the Rev. Mr. Buchan's instalment as minister of St. Kilda in 1705, there has been almost a continuous succession of ministers until now. The present incumbent, the Rev. John Mackay, has held his lonely post since October, 1865. Since the year after the Disruption, the Free Church have taken charge of St. Kilda, and it is said that the Sustentation Fund is augmented by £10 every year from this little Island congregation.

An incidental reference to the building called the Staller's House was made last month. This curious erection is of very doubtful origin, some alleging it to have been the work of a devout hermit; others that of a bold man who headed an insurrection against the steward of St. Kilda, and, possessing himself of the Island of Boreray, built upon it this habitation for himself

and his accomplices. The building is about eighteen feet high, and so contrived as to be almost invisible from most points of view, its top being nearly level with the surface of the earth around it. The base is circular, each successive tier of stones being smaller than the one below it, until the orifice at the top admits of being covered with a single stone. In the middle of the building was a large hearth, and round the inside wall there was formed a paved seat, capable of holding sixteen people. There were also four stone beds in the thickness of the wall, to each of which there was a separate entry from the outside. The roof of the house fell in many years ago, and has never been replaced.

Some of the older writers upon St. Kilda refer to an old fort which stood upon the Island which forms the southern side of the Bay of St. Kilda. This building was called Dun-Fhir-Bholg. It consisted of large, nearly square, stones, neatly put together with a knowledge of masonry not found among the St. Kildeans at the time of Mr. MacAulay's visit. In 1758 there were three chapels in St. Kilda, one dedicated to Christ, one to St. Columba, and the other to St. Brendan. They were all built of stone, and, at the time of Mr. MacAulay's visit, were in fairly good preservation. Not a vestige of them now remains.

The St. Kildeans observed six holidays annually. These were the feasts of Sts. Columba and Brendan, Christmas, New Year's day, Easter, and Michaelmas. On the two first-mentioned days, according to Mr. MacAulay, all the milk in the island was delivered up to the steward or his deputy, who thereupon divided it equally and impartially between every man, woman, and child in the Island. On Christmas and New Year's day, the St. Kildeans ate the best food they could afford, drank liberally, and danced with great vigour. Easter was observed in a solemn and quiet manner, while Michaelmas was a sort of Derby-day. that day a procession was formed on the shore, all the people who had horses being mounted, without saddle or bridle, except a wisp of straw to guide the horse's head. The procession went as far as the houses, when the horses returned to the shore for those people who had been left behind, and this went on until everyone in the Island had taken part in the proceedings. It was also the

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