e broke off to hum:--

"'Now Johnnie, troth, ye werena blate, to come wi' the news o' your ain,
And leave your men in sic a strait, so early in the morning.'

"And did you bring my kinswoman back safe with you? I'se wad ye found the
journey no' ower lang;" and he cocked a merry eye at me.

I flushed, and introduced him to Major Macleod, who took occasion to thank
him for his services to his sister. They fell into a liking for each other
at once. When the major was called aside by one of his gillies a moment
later, Macdonald expressed his trust of the other in the old Scotch
saying,

"Yon's a man to ride the water wi', Kenneth."

A curious sight illustrative of the Highland way of "lifting" what took
their fancy occurred as we were all three walking toward the house of
Macleod's aunt. Three shag-headed gillies in the tattered Cameron tartan
dragged an innkeeper from his taproom and set him down squat on the
causeway. Without even a by-your-leave they took from his feet a pair of
new shoes with silver buckles. He protested that he was a loyal Jacobite.

"Sae muckle ta better. She'll no' grumble to shange a progue for the
Prince's guid," one of the caterans answered cheerfully by way of
comfort.

To my surprise the two Highland gentlemen watched this high-handed
proceeding with much amusement, enjoying not a little the ridiculous
figure cut by the frightened, sputtering host. I asked them if they were
not going to interfere.

"What for would we do that at all events?" asked the Macdonald. "Man,
Montagu, but you whiles have unco queer notions for so wise a lad. It's as
natural for a Hielander to despoil a Southron as for a goose to gang
barefit. What would Lochiel think gin we fashed wi' his clansmen at their
ploy? Na, na! I wad be sweir to be sae upsitten (impertinent). It wadna be
tellin' a Macdonald, I'm thinkin'."

Aileen was so prettily glad to see her brother and so friendly with Donald
Roy, so full of gay chatter and eager reminiscence, that I felt myself
quite dashed by the note of reserve which crept into her voice and her
manner whenever she found it incumbent to speak to me. Her laugh would be
ringing clear as the echo of steel in frost, and when Donald lugged me
into the talk she would fall mim as a schoolgirl under the eye of her
governess. Faith, you would have thought me her dearest enemy, instead of
the man that had risked life for her more than once. Here is a pretty
gratitude, I would say to myse