of the virtues and courage of Muir must not blind us to the
fact that his conduct had been most provocative. His visit to Paris, on
the scarcely credible pretext that he went thither to save the King's
life, his connection with the United Irishmen, and his stay in Belfast,
told against him. Robert Dundas, in informing his uncle, Henry Dundas,
of his arrest, added: "I have little doubt that, tho' he avows his
intention of coming home to have been a view to stand trial, [that] he
is an emissary from France or the disaffected in Ireland."[294] The Scot
who first advocated common action with the Irish malcontents should have
paid good heed to his steps. Muir did not do so. Accordingly, though the
direct evidence at the trial told in his favour, the circumstantial
evidence weighed heavily against him.[295] At such a time men's actions
count for more than their words. It was the visit to Paris and the
dealings with the United Irishmen, far more than biassed witnesses and
the bullying of Braxfield, which led to the condemnation of this
talented youth. For his arrest occurred at the time when terror was the
order of the day at Paris, and when the issue of an inflammatory address
at Dundee spread panic in official circles.

Before adverting to this matter, we may note that Muir settled down by
no means unhappily at Sydney, and bought a farm which he named
Huntershill, after his birthplace. It is now a suburb of Sydney. A
letter from the infant settlement, published in the "Gentleman's
Magazine" of March 1797, describes him and the other Scottish
"martyrs"--Skirving, Margarot, and Gerrald--as treated indulgently by
the authorities, who allotted to them convicts to till their lands.
Shortly afterwards Muir escaped, and, after exciting experiences, in
which he was wounded, made his way to France. In Paris, early in 1798,
he published some articles on the United Irishmen, which Wolfe Tone and
other Irish patriots deemed most harmful to their cause. They therefore
remonstrated with him, but received the reply that he knew Ireland as
well as they did, and had the confidence of the United Irishmen as much
as they had. Wolfe Tone says of him: "Of all the vain obstinate
blockheads that ever I met I never saw his equal."[296] Fortunately for
his associates, Muir retired into the provinces and died in the year
1799.

Dundee played a leading part in the democratic agitation. Its
population, consisting largely of poor weavers, suffered sev