Part 11 (1/2)

For long they watched and waited, and none that was present forgot the dead silence that reigned in thatthan the sound of guns At length a shi+p ca their heads, the crowd parted, and the bones of the Constant Prince were borne to Batalha

THE MARQUIS OF MONTROSE

Fighting was in the blood of the Grahareat marquis of Montrose,' was a little boy he loved to hear tales of the deeds of his ancestors, who had struck hard blows for the liberty of Scotland in days of old One, sir John Graham, a friend of sir William Wallace's, had been killed at Falkirk more than three hundred years before; another had died on Flodden field, and a third had fallen at Pinkie, besides many who had taken part in less famous battles Ja to theuess that it was _his_ nah the centuries to come

But the Grahams were not only brave soldiers; they were for thethehest offices of the state under king Ja was far away in Westreat nobles and servants of his dead cousin queen Elizabeth Montrose's own father, however, had no love either for war or statesmanshi+p, and after he lost his wife in 1618 stayed quietly at ho care of his fa and playing golf with his friends and neighbours

James, his only son, was six years old when his es, ere always ready to play with the boy To be sure, the two eldest, Lilias and Margaret, married early, and before two years had passed by one was lady Colquhoun and the other lady Napier of Merchiston Still Dorothy and Katherine were left, and Beatrix, as only three years younger than her brother, and the one he liked best of all

When the great business of hters was safely over, lord Montrose took his little boy with hi tour of visits to his estates in Forfar, Perthshi+re, Dunbarton, and the Lothians, stopping in the houses of his many friends on the way Jas' were constantly co archery at the butts, and would make up matches with the boys who lived in the different houses where he and his father went to stay; on wet days they would get out their foils and fence in the hall, or even dance sole ladies Of course, he did some lessons too, when he was at home, probably with his sisters, but while his father only puts down in his accounts the ites for a 'pig [or stone bottle] of ink,' we read of nine shi+llings for bowstrings and three pounds for '12 goiff balls' As for tobacco, the elder Montrose smoked the whole day, a new accomplishment in those times, and an expensive one when tobacco was sos and fourpence an ounce; but this habit was hated by James, who never could bear the s

After his son's twelfth birthday lord Montrose decided that his son e and position The news filled the little girls with awe; it seemed to make their brother a man at once, and they were sure he would never, never want to play bowls or hide and seek with thereed with them, was too kind to say so, and he cos he would bring thereat city, and the stories he would have to tell of its strange ways And, if they wished, they ht even now come and see the 'stands' (or suits) of clothes that had been prepared for hierly accepted his offer The lish clothes were passed by in scorn, but the bright tri ladies, though they would have liked Jaes and kinsfolk, willy and Mungo Grahaht he made a brave show as he rode away from the door on his white pony, with his tutor,Bringing up the rear were soe-horses, bearing the plate, linen and furniture for the large house lord Montrose had taken for his son in Glasgow

Gay indeed that house reen and yellow curtains and cushi+ons and counterpanes As for food, it seee by the bills sent in by the tutor for bags of oatlad to find, soh's 'History of the World,' only recently published, a Latin translation of Xenophon, and Seneca's Philosophy These last two Jaed to, but he would sit half the h, of whose own life and adventures master Forrett could tell him much

For a short time his little sister Katherine lived with him Probably she had been ill, and the soft air of the as thought good for her; for Glasgoas only quite a sht and clear, instead of being dark with smoke, as it often is now But in two years' ti to the death of his father, and, distressed and bewildered at the duties of his new position, he rode swiftly away one Novee the burial of a great noble were of vast importance in the seventeenth century The , if he had one, was expected to spend weeks, or evenwith black, in a bed with black curtains and coverings, no ray of sunlight being suffered to creep through the cracks of the shutters The young earl of Montrose had, as we are aware, no ht, while he prepared the list of invitations, to be despatched by men on horseback, to the friends and relations of the dead earl For seven weeks they stayed at Kincardine, every guest bringing with hih the castle larders already held an immense amount of food Poor Ja and dismal, and doubtless escaped, as often as he could, to take counsel with his brother-in-law, sir Archibald Napier, who reth the old custoone, and in January 1627 Montrose, not yet fifteen, set out for the University of St Andrews Here he found olf or tennis, or, what he loved still more, practised archery at the butts Bows instead of pictures hung on his walls, and in the second year of his residence the place of honour was given to the bohich he gained the silver e On wet days he spent his free hours in chess and cards, or incavaliers, but he studied Caesar and other Latin authors under his tutor ht read Plutarch's 'Lives' in the original tongue Everybody liked hienerous and free with his h never a bookworhtful and his speech ready His vacations he either passed with the Napiers, or in visiting the houses of his friends in Forfar or Fife, hunting, hawking, playing billiards or attending races; but he never failed to go to the kirk on Sundays or days of preachings in his best clothes with a nosegay in his coat, for he was very fond of flowers, and always had thee life caie, whose father was later created earl of Southesk We do not know very much about his wife, andcouple reie's house of Kinnaird for some years, till in 1633 Montrose, noenty-one, set out on his journey to Ro lady Montrose and two little boys behind him In his travels 'he made it his work to pick up the best of the qualities' of the foreigners whom he met, and learned 'as much of the reat study was to read ners in their turn thought of the young ht was noand spare, we do not know They a; but his h he was always kind to his servants and those dependent on hirave events took place in Scotland Charles I, who had already excited the angry suspicion of his Scotch subjects by what they considered the 'popish'

cere the down the national Church and supporting bishops throughout the country The king, in spite of ood qualities, could never be trusted, and was very obstinate Also, orse both for hins of the tiatherings held in various parts of Scotland to express discontent with the king's proceedings did, indeed, alare scenes that took place in 1637 taught him how serious the matter really was The Scottish Church then used no prayer-book, but, by the royal co certain new prayers in the church of St Giles'

on Sunday, July 23, when 'the serving-an such a tumult as was never heard of since the Refor, but 'the result of a consultation in the Cowgate of Edinburgh, when several gentleive their first affront to the [prayer] book, assuring them that the men should afterwards take the business out of their hands'

We are not told why 'the in with, but the -maids seemed to have enjoyed themselves so much on this occasion that they were quite ready for a second effort a ust 28 Mr Willia the Litany, and when the neas spread about what the subject of his sermon was to be there arose, says the chronicler, in the town and areat din

[Illustration: About thirty or forty of our honestest wo on Mr Willia of the church, about thirty or forty of our honestest woistrates did fall a railing, cursing, and scolding, with clamours on Mr William Annan Some two of the meanest were taken to the Tolbooth,' or city prison, where Montrose in after years was hiot safely to his own house, but being troubled over these events in his , 'at nine on a ht,' he set out in co, but no sooner had the little party stepped into the street than they were surrounded by 'hundreds of enraged women with fists and staves and peats, but no stones They beat him sore; his cloak, ruff, hat were rent He escaped all bloody wounds, yet he was in great danger even of killing'

This was the beginning of the struggle which was to rend Scotland for so many years A bond or covenant was drawn up, part of which was copied fro against the establish against the appoint priests of any sort power over the laws of the country This docuned with the rest, and consented to act if necessary as one of the defenders of the religion and liberty of Scotland

Charles of course declined to give way on the smallest point, and issued a procla all who opposed him to be traitors In answer the malcontents raised a scaffold beside the cross, and on it stood Warriston, with a reply written by the nobles representing the people, which was received with shouts of applause Montrose sat at Warriston's side, his legs dangling from a cask