EXTRAORDINARY SCENES AT DUNOON.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume IV, Issue 206, 23 December 1864, Page 2 (Supplement)

EXTRAORDINARY SCENES AT DUNOON.

The fine fashionable watering place of Dunoon was last week the scene of a good deal of sensational amusement, arising out of the vagaries of an aristocratic visitor. The gentleman in question is said to be the Hon. William ITeni-y Bruce Ogilvie, of Cowdon, whose name recently figux-ed in the London journals in connection with some singular proceedings there with which he xvas immediately mixed up. He is brother to the Earl of Airlie, and though only twenty-four years of age, is a retired officer of the Army. He arrived at Dunoon on last Monday week, "and took up his quarters in Mr. Lauder’s Royal Hotel. He was not an hour there, nor indeed in the village, till he made it apparent that some unusual amusement was in store for the inhabitants. Having put the whole inmates of the Royal in a state of excitement by his strange restless conduct, he sallied into the village, entered the shop of a confectioner, and cleared the counter of all the- available pastry, confections, cigars, &c., tin-owing the same to a crowd of youngsters outside, who had no objeotions to bo thus treated by the liberal stranger. He opened his hotel in the most hospitable way to all comers, inviting porters and laborer's nightly to entertainments, at which a piper presided. lie would go out dressed, give away articles of his clothing, and x-etux-n to his hotel baxvfoot and almost naked. When restricted in liquor or anything lie ordered, he would get into the wildest passions, and threaten to annihilate evex-yone who stood in the way of gratifying his extravagant desires. The landlord soon wearied of him, as his ex-ratic proceedings engrossed the attention of everybody in the house. Night and day it was all the same, he seemed never to tire of cutting the most singular capers, and all, as he said, in the way of having fim. Ho would run out and in about the hotel with nothing on his person but a short flannel shirt. lie xvas fond of decorating himself with articles to xxxake a show. With a lax-ge bright metal dish-cover for a helmet, a win-dow-blind for a toga, gaudy-colored bell-pulls for sashes, a fish slice, a huge cax-ving- knife, or a poker for a weapon, or a gasalier torn from the ceiling for a sceptre, ho would rush upon and frighten the inmates, or run through the streets as a tlxeatrical warrior, xvilling to do battle with anyone who came in his way. For days and nights he pex-sisted ixx this extravagant conduct, putting the inmates of the hotel in a constant state of terror and alarm. He would retire as if to go to bed, and immediately afterwards would be found throwing dressingglasses, basins, and ewers over the windows into the street. He tore down the gas-fittings through the house, and one night the whole premises were so completely filled with escaped gas from this cause that had the landlord, on discovering it, not taken immediate means to stop the main pipe and clear the apartments of the gas, the roof might have been blown off the house and the inmates killed. On the Thursday he went, accompanied by the landlord, who was anxious to look after the safety of Ins lodgcx-, for a ride in a chaise and pair. On arriving near to the powder works behind Sand-bank, where a gang of labourers were employed in making drains, the honorable gentleman threxv off the most of his clothing, along xvith his shoes and stockings, and bax-efooted, with spado in hand, tackled to work xvith the men, and did work toughly for three hours, till the men had ceased to labour for the day. He then and there made some purchase of cattle. One day he ran doxvn the jxier and xvanted to hire a small boat to pull across the x-iver. The man xvho had the boats in charge, seeing the applicant so excited, and likely to be a dangerous customer, would not let him a boat, on which he ran down to the beach xvheve boats were lying, with his own hands dragged a boat down into the xvatex-, stripped all but naked, pulled out into the x-iver, and having in an hour exhausted himself, pulled back to the shore. He would in the hotel heat a poker or other implement rod hot, and issue to the street xvith it, as he said, to frighten people; but happily he never injured any one but an excursionist from Glasgow on Saturday, xvhom he struck on the face xvith a piece of ix-on he had in his hand, in retaliation for the man asking him' how his nose came to be twisted awry. But such conduct coxdd not be long tolerated. A young brother of the hon. disorderly was communicated xvith. lie came to Dunoon, but all his efforts could not make his brother behave himself. Things were coming to a crisis ; for on Saturday night last the gentleman took umbrage at his host fox- showing a stern opposition to a continuance of conduct that had not only frightened every guest, save the author of it, out of the hotel, but put all the other inmates in bodily feax-. He suddenly ordered his luggage to be collected, saying ho xvas going to leave the house. This xvas a prospect of a happy riddance. Out he went, and xvheu out, to prevent the chance of his return, the doors of the hotel xvere closed against him. lie proceeded to the Eagle Hotel; but his character being there befox-e him, he xvas not admitted, at least as a lodgcx-. lie wandered abroad all night, and about five o’clock on Sunday morning ho made his way through the grounds to Dunoon Castle, xvhich is occupied by Mr. Eglinton and family. He rang the door bell, but not being immediately answered, he opened one of the window's of the dining room, violently forced in the shutters, gained admission, and threw himself into one of tixe couches, making himself quite at home. The inmates of the house became greatly alarmed at this unwonted intrusion. The gardener ventured into the dining room, but the intruder ordered him to be gone, and send to him a gentleman to whom he might address himself. At length a son of the family made his appearance, and the short conference xvhiclx ensued is said to have ended in the intruder making a doxtex-ous leap through a large pane of glass clear out of a xvindoxv. He ran to his old quarters at the Royal, rang the bell furiously, and when denied admission he tried to force open a front window. The landlord, however, arrived in time to prevent him

getting in through the window ; when the mad cap found himself defeated in his object, ho, with one of his fists, deliberately panes of glass in the sash. By this time Mr. Eglinton made his appearance alongjwith tja couple of policemen, who took the honorable gentleman into custody on a charge of feloniously!. entering Mr. Eglinton’s house. lie was kept in theg lockup at Dunoon till the following day, when he was sent in custody via Loehgoilhead to the gaol at Inverary, there to await the consequences of fills folly. It is said that all the pecuniary liabilities he has incurred have been, or will be, honorably liquidated. What will be thejresult of the criminal charge against him remains to be seen. —North Hrilish Mail.