care of him as best
they could. The saddle was a poor one, and the horse's pace jolted
Charles so much, that at last he cried out that he had never seen so bad
a steed. At this the owner of the horse jestingly told him that he
should not find fault with the poor animal, which had never before
carried the weight of three kingdoms upon its back. He meant, of course,
that Charles was king of the three kingdoms of England, and Scotland,
and Ireland.

Carried by the old horse, and helped by the poor wood-cutters, Charles
at last reached the house of a friend. Here he hid for a time, and then
went on to try and escape from the country. This time, so that he might
not be discovered, he was dressed as a servant, and rode on horseback,
with a lady sitting on a cushion behind him, as was then the fashion.
After several more dangers he managed to get on board a ship and sailed
away to France.

[Illustration: KING CHARLES IN THE OAK]

=Bonnie Prince Charlie=

Prince Charlie was the grandson of King James II, who was driven away
from the throne of England because he was a selfish man and a bad ruler.
The young prince tried to win the crown back again. He came over to
Scotland from France, with only seven followers; but soon a great many
of the Scots joined him, for he was so gay, and handsome, and friendly,
that all who saw him loved him. They called him "Bonnie Prince Charlie".
But though the prince and his followers were very brave, they had no
chance against the well-trained soldiers of King George of England. They
won a few victories; then they were thoroughly beaten in the battle of
Culloden. Thousands of brave Scots were slain, and the prince had to fly
for his life.

After this, for many weeks, he hid among the moors and mountains from
the English soldiers who were trying to find him. He lived in small
huts, or in caves, and many times had nothing but the wild berries from
the woods to eat. Once he stayed for three weeks with a band of robbers,
who were very kind to him; and though the king offered a large sum of
money to anyone who would give him up, not one of his poor friends was
false to him.

At last, a young and beautiful Scottish lady, named Flora MacDonald,
helped him to escape. She gave him woman's clothes, and pretended that
he was her servant, called Betty Burke. Then she took him with her away
from the place where the soldiers were searching, and after a time he
reached the sea, and got safely away