rd of appearances, and to mend matters, when he
came to the next, let his petticoats float in the water with a most
unfeminine disregard of his clothes.

Halfway on their road Miss Macdonald rode past them on horseback,
accompanied by Mrs. Macdonald of Kirkibost and the latter's maid. 'Look,
look,' cried that damsel, 'what strides the jade takes! I dare say she's
an Irishwoman or else a man in woman's clothes.' Miss Macdonald thought
it best to quicken her pace and make no reply.

She was already at Kingsburgh when the Prince and his host arrived there
at about eleven o'clock. All the household were in bed. A message was
sent up to Mrs. Macdonald to tell her of the arrival of guests, but she
very naturally refused to get up, and merely sent her compliments to
Miss Macdonald and begged she would help herself to everything she
wanted. When, however, her husband came up to her room and gravely
requested her to come down and attend to his guest, she felt that
something was wrong. Nor did it allay her fears when her little daughter
ran up crying that 'the most odd, muckle, ill-shaken-up wife' she had
seen in all her life was walking up and down in the hall. Mrs. Macdonald
entered the main room with some misgiving, and in the uncertain
firelight saw a tall, ungainly woman striding up and down. The figure
approached her and, according to the manners of the time, saluted her.
The rough touch of the unshaven lip left no doubt on the lady's mind;
her husband's guest was certainly a man in disguise, probably a
proscribed Jacobite. She hurried out of the room and met Kingsburgh in
the hall. It did not occur to this good woman to upbraid her husband for
bringing danger on his family; her first question was, 'Do you think the
stranger will know anything about the Prince?'

'My dear,' said Kingsburgh very gravely, taking her hands in his, '_this
is the Prince himself_!'

'The Prince!' cried Mrs. Macdonald, rather overwhelmed, 'then we shall
all be hanged!'

'We can die but once,' said her husband, 'could we ever die in a better
cause?'

Then, returning to the homely necessities of the hour, he begged her to
bring bread and cheese and eggs.

Bread and cheese and eggs to set before Royalty! This disgrace to her
housewifery affected Mrs. Macdonald almost as feelingly as the danger
they were in. The idea, too, of sitting down at supper with her lawful
sovereign caused the simple lady the greatest embarrassment. However,
she was p