ows him (with a smile) wood and water.'

'No great boon, I should think, Evan, when both seem to be very plenty.'

'Ah! but ye dinna see through it. When I say wood and water, I mean the
loch and the land; and I fancy Donald would be put till't if the laird
were to look for him wi' threescore men in the wood of Kailychat yonder;
and if our boats, with a score or twa mair, were to come down the loch
to Uaimh an Ri, headed by mysell, or ony other pretty man.'

'But suppose a strong party came against him from the Low Country, would
not your Chief defend him?'

'Na, he would not ware the spark of a flint for him--if they came with
the law.'

'And what must Donald do, then?'

'He behoved to rid this country of himsell, and fall back, it may be,
over the mount upon Letter Scriven.'

'And if he were pursued to that place?'

'I'se warrant he would go to his cousin's at Rannoch.'

'Well, but if they followed him to Rannoch?'

'That,' quoth Evan, 'is beyond all belief; and, indeed, to tell you the
truth, there durst not a Lowlander in all Scotland follow the fray a
gun-shot beyond Bally-Brough, unless he had the help of the SIDIER DHU.'

'Whom do you call so?'

'The SIDIER DHU? the black soldier; that is what they call the
independent companies that were raised to keep peace and law in the
Highlands. Vich Ian Vohr commanded one of them for five years, and I was
sergeant myself, I shall warrant ye. They call them SIDIER DHU, because
they wear the tartans,--as they call your men, King George's men, SIDIER
ROY, or red soldiers.'

'Well, but when you were in King George's pay, Evan, you were surely
King George's soldiers?'

'Troth, and you must ask Vich Ian Vohr about that; for we are for his
king, and care not much which o' them it is. At any rate, nobody can
say we are King George's men now, when we have not seen his pay this
twelvemonth.'

This last argument admitted of no reply, nor did Edward attempt any;
he rather chose to bring back the discourse to Donald Bean Lean. 'Does
Donald confine himself to cattle, or does he LIFT, as you call it,
anything else that comes in his way?'

'Troth, he's nae nice body, and he'll just tak ony thing, but most
readily cattle, horse, or live Christians; for sheep are slow of travel,
and inside plenishing is cumbrous to carry, and not easy to put away for
siller in this country.'

'But does he carry off men and women?'

'Out, aye. Did not ye hear him speak o' the Perth bai