He acted, for example, with great and suspicious lenity
to those freebooters who made restitution on his summons, and
offered personal submission to himself, while he rigorously pursued,
apprehended, and sacrificed to justice, all such interlopers as dared to
despise his admonitions or commands. On the other hand, if any officers
of justice, military parties, or others, presumed to pursue thieves or
marauders through his territories, and without applying for his consent
and concurrence, nothing was more certain than that they would meet with
some notable foil or defeat; upon which occasions Fergus Mac-Ivor
was the first to condole with them, and, after gently blaming their
rashness, never failed deeply to lament the lawless state of the
country. These lamentations did not exclude suspicion, and matters were
so represented to Government, that our Chieftain was deprived of his
military command. [15]
Whatever Fergus Mac-Ivor felt on this occasion, he had the art of
entirely suppressing every appearance of discontent; but in a short time
the neighbouring country began to feel bad effects from his disgrace.
Donald Bean Lean, and others of his class, whose depredations had
hitherto been confined to other districts, appeared from thenceforward
to have made a settlement on this devoted border; and their ravages were
carried on with little opposition, as the Lowland gentry were chiefly
Jacobites, and disarmed.
Pages:
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221