CHAPTER X.

Clutha Leader, Volume IV, Issue 195, 5 April 1878, Page 3

CHAPTER K.

We will now tuvn our attention from poor unfortunate John Carnegie to our lively friend, Tarn Glen, and narrate the way i.i which he went to 6b. Vigeans to try and recover his master's dirk. Having seen Malcolm Ogilvie take his departure from the " Three Angels" for the Abbey, Tarn began to consider tbe propriety of getting his breakfast Proceeding to the kitchen he found that the landlord had not forgot him, ancl tbat it was ready for him. Tarn first commenced operations on an immense wooden bowl of oatmeal porridge and milk, large enough ro have taxed ' the energies of three Forfar weavers. Haviug made a happy despatch of this, he drew towards him a large piece of boiled salt beef which stood on the table, flanked on the one side by a huge pile of oat cakes and on the other by a large bicker of doublestrong ale. He finished the beef and ale simultaneously ; then advancing to the little sanctum where the landlord dispensed the fluids that cheer and still inebriate, he culled for and swallowed a measure of French brandy that bore a most suspicious iesemblance to a modern half-mutchkin. ' Then remarking that 'he thocht he wad dae noo for awhile;' he got the

landlord to put him on the direct road to St. Vigeans, then buckled on his broadsword and departed — up the High Street till he came to the Tower Nook, down Guthrie Port till he came to the port or gateway, at which was stationed a guard of the Abbot's retainers, then out the Forfar road till he came to the Brothoek. Now, Tarn had been expressly told by Tarn Anderson that he was to turn up the burn and follow it till he came to St. Vigeans. But there were other things in store. By the roadside beside the burn there was a change-bouse built veiy much after the model of the 'Three Angels,' only smaller; in fact, it contained only one apartment on the ground floor, and the garrets above. As Tarn was passing' thi-:: spacious hostelry, mirth and laughter, and a Babel of voices, rendered it out of bis power to pass by. Then he thought he heard a voice that he knew, and then he went in. Ifc was a long, low-roofed apartment, with a hazy cloud of smoke floating lazily and dreamily about. There was a crowd of people standing, sitting, or leaning in all conceivable postures — here a group of Abbey men, there a group of servants and retainers of the Lords and gentlemen at the Abbey ; while in yon corner by | themselves, were eight or ten Highlanders, talking earnestly in Gaelic. The mistress of the house and two girls were busy serving refreshments, principally* whislq r , to the thirsty customers, and the fun was going* fast and furious. Whim Tarn appeared in the doorway, he naturally interferpd with the scanty light that was admitted in ' that lowroofed dingy room, and this caused several of those nearest the door to look round. Among others was a tall, stalwart, broad-shouldered young man with a heavy sword grasped in his left hand, who the moment, he espied Tarn started forward and exclaimed — 'Gudesake, Tarn, wha wad hae thocht o' meetin' you here !' ' Lord, Archy, man, is this you ? W baur did you come frae? I thocht ye had slithered awa' hapie tae Kiliiemnir again !' ' Na, na, Tarn. Hie, gudewife, bring a tappit hen. We wis oot at a ploy nt a place they ca' Oairnie wi' some o' the Abbey chields, sac in the mornin / we juist daundert in here, an' here we are.' ' Man, Archy, 1 wondert, whaur you wis last nicht when we had sic a row The young Laird an' a gude frien' o' his, the young Laird o' Northesk, an' a heap o' lads, had a suir fecht wi' a gang o' pirates, an' we warn* near a' burned tae death. I got intae a tuzzle wi' an Irishman, an' we fell doon a hole, an' I near got ma neck broken. Puir, fallow, he'll never claw a -sair heid again.' Here Tarn took a dram and shook bis head solemnly. ' LoM, Tarn, there wis a fellow in here a while, syne that was saying something aboot it, biit we paid nae attention.' ' Noo,' said Tarn, eying the Highlanders in the corner, and evidently meaning mischief, f Archy, I canna .weel forgi'e ye. Had ye been a wheen half-nakit Heelandmen without a breek on yer hurdies, I wad hae thocht naething- o' yer nnnin' awa'. But a decent Lawlant lad wi' claes on yer back, an' met t in your waffle, an' a gude sword by yer side, no tae be at ban', whin ye waur wan tit disna look weel.' ' Tid you'll say tat a Heelan' shentlemans rins awa' in a fecht V said one of the Highlanders who had overheard Tarn, ancl who now stood up with a shea- hed broads wot d under his arm. ' Noo, frien',' said Tarn, looking as if with an air of astonishment, 'ye ken there wis naebody speakin 1 to you. Sic doon an' tak' yer dram, an dinna meddle wi' folk that's no mtddlin' wi' you.' ' Tid you'll say that a Heelan' shentlemans rins awa' in a fecht? roard the Highlander, giving his broadsword an ominous shake. ' Weel, Men', ye ken I didna speak tae ye or meddle wi' ye, but gin ye will hae an answer, I can tell ye that I hae seen Heelanmen rin awa' mony time, an' glad tae get.' ' it's a tarn lee you tell ; no Heelan' shentlemans rins awa' in a fecht,' said the Highlander wrathl'ullv, while a smart fire of Gaelic passed backwards and forwards among his companions. f Weel, weel, then sit down, an' mak' nae din ; only you ken, Archy,' said Tarn, turning round, and laying his hand on his friend's shoulder, ' that we hae chased them through Glenprosen mony time.' ' 00, ay, I keo, Tarn,' said Archy, 'and sac dis Sandy an' Jock, that's sittin' there, bit there's nae use in makin' a row about it.' Jf ' I dinna want tae mak' a row,' said Tarn, 'only it's a bad sign tae see thae Heelan' buddies sac leered for being thocht cowarrs.' ' Hersel' is no cowart,' cried the Highlander, now unsheathing his broadsword, and giving it a swing- that seriously menaced the heads of his own friends ; ' she'll fecht ye the noo, an' if ye wanna fecht, she'll fecht every tarn Sassenach, in ta hoose.' . ' Ha, ha ! lads o' the Abbey, there's a chance for ye. Ye binna muekle skill in threshing Heelanmen, an' here's yer chance. Noo, Clan Ogilvie his tae gie some o' tbem a lickin' about ance a month for stealing kye ; sac it's naething new to us. An' did ye no hear '? he's willin' tae fecht ye a' at ance/ ; The men of the Abbey looked rather askance at, this».liberal .qffer, and .after

talking together, one of their number, a decently-dressed middle-aged man, passed Over to where Tarn and his friends were seated, and touching him on the shoulder, said — ■ ' Noo, frien', I dinna suppose that ye mean muekle. wrang*, but dinna ye think that this has gane far eneuch ? Ye ken hoo het thae Heelanmen are, an' hoo easily they are angert, an' T suppose ye ken hoo strick the orders o' the Lord Abbot an' the ither chiefs are against their followers quarlin'; sac I wad advise ye no tae get yoursel' an' ither folk into trouble. Keep a calm sough, an' this 'ill blaw by.' ' I dinna want tae quarrel,' said Tarn, purposely speaking loud, ' but wha carbe bathered wi' a gouk like this V ( Gouk yersel' !' roared the Highlander, while his friends rose to tlieir feot and laid their hands upon their swords. ■* Will ye fecht, or are ye covvart V Some of Tarn's friends, entering* into the spirit ofthe thing, commenced putting the tables and seats to one side, and making a great appearance of.preparation, whernas in reality they intended to do everything they could to put a stop to the whole proceeding. At last the Highlanders, now with bayed weapons, advanced to the middle of the floor, when the landlady (who, probably from habit, did not seem very much alarmed), eried — ' 0, sirs, gin ye maun fecht, ye shud gae oot tae th« green at the side o' the hoose, whai* yell get plenty o' room an' fair play, and no brak' a' ma bits o' plenishin'.' 'The very thing,' cried Tarn. Come, awa' tne the side o' the hoose, whar we'll get room,' and he led the way outside. The green by the side of the house was a level piece of velvety grass, and was within a i'ew feet of'the Brothoek, the bank of which at this particular place was rather high. Hither they all came, though it is doubtful if they thought, anything would come of itTarn whispered to one of the Ogilvie men ' tae tin awa' owre tae the Port an' bring a' the lads ye can get, an' I'll lat ye see a strange ploy whan ye come back.' ' Lo'd, Tarn. bit ye're in great spirits tha dav. I hope this' ll end in nae mischief.'" ' ' Nae fear. I only want tae tak' some o' the pride oot o' thae Heehuime.n. They're as foo o't as an' egg's 100 o' meat.' Sandy ran off to bring all the lads he could fiad, and Tarn turned to see how things were looking. The Highlanders were all drawn up in a line, with their right Hank to the burn, evidently impatient to begin the combat. But this did not suit the terrible Tarn, so he eried — ' Stop, stop, that's no fair play ; we hae nae room that wsy,' although he had the whole country side before him to choose from ; ' this is a better way.' So saying, with the help ofhis friends, who seemed to suspect what he would be after, he ranged the Highlanders with their backs to the burn, and not more than two feet from it. Had the Highlanders been sober, they woulcl never have submitted to be placed in that position. But they were half drunk with whisky, and more than drunk with wounded pride and passion, ancl so anxious were tbey to fight that they did not care how they were placed. There was no love lost between tbe Highlanders and Low-landers of that period, and it was genenilly a word and a blow when they met. Hence the strict orders given by the chiefs to their men during* the Queen's visit to Aberbrothock ; ancl Tarn, reckless as he was, had more sense than wilfully break them, so, instead of fighting, he thought thafc he woulcl play a trick upon them. Tarn whispered to one or two; the whisper went round with loud guffaws ot' laughter ; then Tarn cried, . ' Stop, yn'ie no richt placed yet ;' then to his own men, 'Noo, lads' Then there was a rush of some twenty men, and in two minutes the Highlanders were tumbled over the bank into three feet of clean cold water. When Tarn saw his kilted antagonists floundering in the waters of the Brothock, his uproariousness knew no bounds. ' Come, lads,' lie cried, ' come and see the tartan mermaids risin' frae theii watery beds. Hurrah ! There' nae difference atween a Heelanraan an' a thief Harrah, lads! Ten Heelanmen, an' no ac pair o' breeks arming tbe clan I" Ariel he wildly danced a war-dance that would have done honour to an American Indian. When the Highlanders tumbled into the 'water the Lowlanders laughed ; when they rose up to their feet, with the water dripping from them, the laugh went round again ; but when they drew their wet bonnets down over their brows, and charged up the bank, claymore and dirk ia hand, there was no laughing then. Very unwillingly the Lowland swords were drawn, and veryunwillingly they met the impetuous onset of the outraged and maddened Highlanders. The one' who had acted as spokesman made a fierce attack on Tarn Glen, which Tarn with some difficulty parried Again another heavy blow with tin broadsword, and again another difficuli parry, and then Tarn dashed in anc struck him a severe blow in the fac< with his clenched *,> fist, .that agah knocked the Highlander ovier the banl

down into his old quarters in the Brothoek. " : ■"*• ' Clan Ogilvie for ever ! Doon wi' the Heelanmen, doon wi' the thieves ! cried Tarn, now fairly irritated and ready to fight nil and sundry. Not far from where he stood was a strong, red-haired Highlander who was keeping three Lowlauders at bay. Tarn ran in behind him, and. before he could turn, caught him by the long red hair and pulled him over on his back. Kneeling on his knee trying to disarm him, Tarn felt a sharp stinging pain in his left shoulder. Looking up he saw bis late antagonist fresh from the burn, with bis bloody sword eager to repeat the blow, and in struggling to rise to his feet he slipped, and fell prostrate on the sward. Now he thought all was over, and he braced himself to receive the fatal blow, for he felt that he had no mercy to expect from his infuriated enemy. After a moment he heard the clash of swords, and on looking* up he saw his friend • Archy astride his body, waging a furious battle with the maddened Highlander. Tarn drew up his legs, intending to rise, thereby nearly capsizing his friend Archy, when loud shouts and cries in the distance attracted the attention of all the combatants. ' Haud yonf, ye stupid gomevil,' cried Tarn, 'div ye think I'm gain' to lie here, at the mercy o' thae Heelan' trash.' ' Gin I hadna seen ye, Tarn, ye wad hae been lyin' quiet eneuch ere this time,' said Archy. ' Deed that's Irtie, Archy; an' l'm raal obliged tae ye, an' I'll dae as muekle for ye anither time,' said Tarn, trying ro get up. ' Od, mau, gie me a hand, I'm no able ro rise; there's surely something* wrang wi' me.' Archy seized him unknowingly by the wounded arm, and, with a strong pull that made him shriek with pain, dragged him to his feet. On looking round lie saw that all the Highlanders were disarmed and guarded, and that his messenger, Sandy, was at hand with a great crowd of Lowlauders at his heels. The decent, middle-aged man who had given him a cauiion in the house now came forward ami sf>id — 'Duma I tell ye that yo wad mak' mischief, au' noo here ye are blnidiu' like a sheep, forbye twa or three mac lads, an' ye micht hae been killed, an' a' for a wheen nonsense. Thae Heelanmen are no for prankin' wi' an' what 'Jl the Lord Abbot say whin he hears o' this ? Bit tak' aff yer coat, an' we'll see if we can stop the bluid.' ' Hoots, there's nae use o' makin' a noise about a scarr,,' said Tarn, taking offhis coat ; *-* there's no muekle ill dune if naebody's wo.ur nor me.' ' My name's Davie Munro, the miller o' St. Vigeans, an' I hae sons an' dochterso' my ain,' said Tarn's new friend, ' an' I wadna like tae see a decent-like chreld like you hurt.'. Archy brought some water and washed the wound, and then the miller wrapped a handkerchief round it. and Tarn with some shrinking and grimace got on his coat again, and then he declared that ' gin he had a dram noo he wad be a' richt.' Sandy here came up and asked, ' Fat tbey wir gain' tae dae wi' thae Heelanmen V 1 Gie them their soords an' pack them aff,' said Tarn. ' Ifc was a' their am blame.' j ' Od, Tarn, I doot yell no try tae prank wi' Heelanmen in a hurry again,' suid Sandy, laughing, as he wen*: to set them Iree. When the Highlanders buckled on their swords and prepared to depart, Tarn's antagonist shook his clenched hand at him, and declared, 'By tarn, tat ta chief wad bang tat tarn Sassenach in a widdy.' A shout of laughter followed this threat, ancl tlie Highlanders departed with many invectives and cuivos in Gaelic. The mosfc of the Lowlauders, now that peace was restored, made their way back to Guthrie Port ; but Tarn ancl his friends — some of whom had been slightly wounded -—• re-entered the change-house in search of a dram that Tarn thought he would be the better of. Jn a short time, Davie Munro, the miller, said 'that he wad need tae be gain, noo, as it was a gude bit tae St. Vigeans/ Od, I am gain' tne St. Vigeans tae,' said Tarn. 'My maister lost his dirk there savin' a leddy's life ; an' he killed a horse, tae, savin' her ; an 1 I'am gain' tae see if I can -fiud it. But I doot it's like seekin 1 needles atnang* strae.' 'No a bit o't,' said the miller; ' I skinned the horse this mornin,' an' tbe dirk's in my hoose the noo. Tbe lassie telfc us about the gentles comin' whan we cam' ha me frae the toon, an' I thocht it a pity to lose the skin ; it 'ill mak' shoon for us a hale winter.' Tarn now cautioned his friends to say little about their quarrel with the Highlanders, and to be sure and blame them for all thafc had happened, and, after promising to see them all again soon, took his departure with Davie Munro. They proceeded up the side of the burn, and Davie tried to lighten the length of the road by trying to show Tarn, how superior were the doctrins.of the Reformed Kirk over those of the older but impurer faith. But Tarn did not trouble .himself with such things ; he said his maister's religion was gude* eneuch for himy and that if. he got plenty^o^meat an'jclaeSj

j with an occasional fecht, he was quite consent. Davie saw that it was no use lecturing, so he gave it up, and as they came in sight of St. Vigeans he saw Tarn totter as he walked. Looking up into his face he saw that he was white and colourless, aud laying his hand lightly on his shoulder 'he felt it wet, and he knew that the bandage had come unloosed. Cheering him with a few kind words he got him the length of his own door, and then Tarn dropped down senseless. Throwing open ihe door quickly and noiselessly, Davie cried, ' Hie,- gudewife; Sandy, Annie, haste ye come here.' There was a hurried patter of hasty feet, and then a decent, middle-aged woman, and a tall, active-looking }-oung man, followed by a brown-haired, handsome girl of about eighteen, made their appearance. 'Ah, gudeman,' cried the miller's wife, ' is. tbat a dead man ye hae gotten at the door V 'Oh, father, what is't?' said the girl in startled accents. 'Is he deid ? an' sic a weel-fauved lad, tae.' ' Gae awa' wi' yer havers. The chield's gotten a scart on the arm, an' the clout's come aften't, an' it's been bluidin'. Gie me a lift, Sandy, an' we'll put him on your bed.' They Jilted him on to the bed, and stripped him, pnd re-bound his arm, bathed his brow with cold water till he recovered his senses, then administered a glass of whisky, and left him to rest; and when the shades of evening fell on the clachnn of St. ;. Vigeans, Tarn Glen was fighting for life with tho fever demon, caused by loss of blood, drink, and excitement. (To be continued.)