nzies under Lord Cromarty, the
second battalion of the Frasers under the Master of Lovat, the Macphersons
under Cluny, the Macgregors under Glengyle, Mackinnon's followers, and the
Glengary Macdonald's under Barisdale were all on the march to join us and
would arrive in the course of a day or two. That with these
reinforcements, and in the hill country, so eminently suited to our method
of warfare, we might make sure of a complete victory, was urged by him and
others. But O'Sullivan and his friends had again obtained the ear of the
Prince and urged him to immediate battle. This advice jumped with his own
high spirit, for he could not brook to fall back in the face of the enemy
awaiting the conflict. The order went forth to gather the clans for the
fight.

To make full the tale of his misdeeds came O'Sullivan's fatal slight to
the pride of the Macdonalds. Since the days of Robert the Bruce and
Bannockburn it had been their clan privilege to hold the post of honour on
the right. The blundering Irishman assigned this position to the Athole
men in forming the line of battle, and stubbornly refused to reform his
line. The Duke of Perth, who commanded on the left wing, endeavoured to
placate the clan by vowing that they would that day make a right of the
left and promising to change his name to Macdonald after the victory.
Riding to the Duke with a message from the Prince I chanced on a man lying
face down among the whin bushes. For the moment I supposed him dead, till
he lifted himself to an elbow. The man turned to me a gash face the colour
of whey, and I saw that it was Donald Roy.

"Ohon! Ohon! The evil day hass fallen on us, Kenneth. Five hundred years
the Macdonalds have held the post of honour. They will never fight on the
left," he told me in bitter despair and grief. "Wae's me! The red death
grips us. Old MacEuan who hass the second sight saw a vision in the night
of Cumberland's ridens driving over a field lost to the North. Death on
the field and on the scaffold."

I have never known a man of saner common sense than Donald Roy, but when
it comes to their superstitions all Highlanders are alike. As well I might
have reasoned with a wooden post. MacEuan of the seeing eyes had predicted
disaster, and calamity was to be our portion.

He joined me and walked beside my horse toward his command. The firing was
by this time very heavy, our cannon being quite ineffective and the
artillery of the English well served and d