' He resumed his seat, and refused again to
rise.
Evan Maccombich looked at him with great earnestness, and, rising
up, seemed anxious to speak; but the confusion of the court, and the
perplexity arising from thinking in a language different from that in
which he was to express himself, kept him silent. There was a murmur
of compassion among the spectators, from an idea that the poor fellow
intended to plead the influence of his superior as an excuse for his
crime. The Judge commanded silence, and encouraged Evan to proceed.
'I was only ganging to say, my lord,' said Evan, in what he meant to
be in an insinuating manner, 'that if your excellent honour, and the
honourable Court, would let Vich Ian Vohr go free just this once, and
let him gae back to France, and no to trouble King George's government
again, that ony six o' the very best of his clan will be willing to
be justified in his stead; and if you'll just let me gae down to
Glennaquoich, I'll fetch them up to ye mysel, to head or hang, and you
may begin wi' me the very first man.'
Notwithstanding the solemnity of the occasion, a sort of laugh was heard
in the court at the extraordinary nature of the proposal.
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