ppointed by
themselves, and under no others. Kings, whether Highland Stuarts or
German Guelphs, they would not obey--no, not though military parties
made examples of them at every dyke back. The iron of the Killing Time
was branded deep into the folk of Galloway. They would not go
soldiering, and they would smuggle. In the last resort, if matters got
too hot, the young men would silently betake themselves to Canada, where
they rose to be factors and chief traders under the Hudson Bay Company,
or, like Paul Jones, took service under another flag, and fought with
the lust of battle ever in their heart, against all that was English or
smelt of the service of King George.

[Footnote 1: _The Galloway War Committee of 1638_ (Nicholson,
Kirkcudbright).]

"Are we to stay here for ever?" demanded Stair Garland, lying on the
sand of the upper cavern and looking out at the blue curtain of sky,
which was all he could see. Outside was a kind of balcony on which they
stretched their legs at night, but, as there were preventive officers on
the cliffs with telescopes under their arms, it was forbidden to go out
there in daylight.

"We must stay here till the ships of war have gone out of the channel.
You can see the top-sails of the _Britomart_ at this moment, hanging
about the Mull, and a sloop-of-war lies off Logan House, waiting for
Captain Laurence's orders."

It was a Stewartry man who spoke, keen of eye and crisply black-haired,
his voice soft and easy, not hectoring and overbearing like that of most
of his fellows--his name, Godfrey McCulloch, the younger son of a
younger son, but of the best and oldest blood in Scotland, which is to
say of the Ardwalls.

Godfrey and Stair were in a manner rivals for leadership. The Stewartry
man was the elder by many years, and among his own enjoyed an unrivalled
reputation, but three-fourths of the Isle Ryan refugees were Wigtonshire
men and faithful to Stair Garland.

But Stair Garland was often reckless and headstrong, so brave himself
that he hardly thought of danger to those whom he led. Godfrey
McCulloch, on the other hand, was cautious and long-sighted. He argued
out every possibility, and arranged what was to be done if things fell
out so and so. Sometimes he even hesitated too long, balancing between
two wise courses, while Stair, leading his men with a rush, would thresh
his way through to victory. On the whole, Godfrey was the safer, Stair
far the more popular leader.

"We