Loch. Take it, if ye will; if not, ye
can do your worst."

"Ay," said Hoseason. "And if I give ye over to the soldiers?"

"Ye would make a fool's bargain," said the other. "My chief, let me tell
you, sir, is forfeited, like every honest man in Scotland. His estate is
in the hands of the man they call King George; and it is his officers
that collect the rents, or try to collect them. But for the honour of
Scotland, the poor tenant bodies take a thought upon their chief lying
in exile; and this money is a part of that very rent for which King
George is looking. Now, sir, ye seem to me to be a man that understands
things: bring this money within the reach of Government, and how much of
it'll come to you?"

"Little enough, to be sure," said Hoseason; and then, "if they knew,"
he added drily. "But I think, if I was to try, that I could hold my
tongue about it."

"Ah, but I'll begowk[12] ye there!" cried the gentleman. "Play me false,
and I'll play you cunning. If a hand's laid upon me, they shall ken what
money it is."

"Well," returned the captain, "what must be must. Sixty guineas and
done. Here's my hand upon it."

"And here's mine," said the other.

And thereupon the captain went out (rather hurriedly, I thought), and
left me alone in the round-house with the stranger.

At that period (so soon after the forty-five) there were many exiled
gentlemen coming back at the peril of their lives, either to see their
friends or to collect a little money; and, as for the Highland chiefs
that had been forfeited, it was a common matter of talk how their
tenants would stint themselves to send them money, and their clansmen
outface the soldiery to get it in, and run the gauntlet of our great
navy to carry it across. All this I had, of course, heard tell of; and
now I had a man under my eyes whose life was forfeit on all these
counts, and upon one more, for he was not only a rebel and a smuggler of
rents, but had taken service with King Louis of France. And as if all
this were not enough, he had a belt full of golden guineas round his
loins. Whatever my opinions, I could not look on such a man without a
lively interest.

"And so you're a Jacobite?" said I, as I set meat before him.

"Ay," said he, beginning to eat. "And you, by your long face, should be
a Whig?"[13]

"Betwixt and between," said I, not to annoy him; for indeed I was as
good a Whig as Mr. Campbell could make me.

"And that's naething," said he. "But I'm s