The Project Gutenberg EBook of Macleod of Dare, by William Black

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net

Title: Macleod of Dare

Author: William Black

Release Date: April 8, 2005 [EBook #15587]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MACLEOD OF DARE ***

Produced by Robert Cicconetti, Patricia A Benoy and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net.

MACLEOD OF DARE.

BY

WILLIAM BLACK,

AUTHOR OF

"A PRINCESS OF THULE," "THE STRANGE ADVENTURES OF A PHAETON,"
"A DAUGHTER OF HETH," ETC., ETC.

* * * * *

NEW YORK:

JOHN B. ALDEN, PUBLISHER,

1883.

* * * * *

MACLEOD OF DARE.

* * * * *

CHAPTER I.

THE SIX BOYS OF DARE.

The sun had sunk behind the lonely western seas; Ulva, and Lunga, and
the Dutchman's Cap had grown dark on the darkening waters; and the
smooth Atlantic swell was booming along the sombre caves; but up here in
Castle Dare, on the high and rocky coast of Mull, the great hall was lit
with such a blaze of candles as Castle Dare had but rarely seen. And yet
there did not seem to be any grand festivities going forward; for there
were only three people seated at one end of the long and narrow table;
and the banquet that the faithful Hamish had provided for them was of
the most frugal kind. At the head of the table sat an old lady with
silvery-white hair and proud and fine features. It would have been a
keen and haughty face but for the unutterable sadness of the
eyes--blue-gray eyes under black eyelashes that must have been beautiful
enough in her youth, but were now dimmed and worn, as if the weight of
the world's sorrows had been too much for the proud, high spirit. On the
right of Lady Macleod sat the last of her six sons, Keith by name, a
tall, sparely built, sinewy young fellow, with a sun-tanned cheek and
crisp and curling hair, and with a happy and careless look in his clear
eyes and about his mouth that rather blinded one to the