banks of the Lochy for the meeting on the following
day at the grey hour of the morning. His difficulty now was how to get
possession of one of these implements of war without exciting suspicion
or inquiries. They numbered more than one in the armory of every
Highland household, and in the case of those in his father's house they
were preserved with a care due to articles which had been often used
with effect in the past. Among them was one which had been _out_ in the
campaigns of 1689 (Dundee's), 1715 (Mar's), and in 1745-6. It was of
Spanish manufacture, and remarkable for the length and symmetry of its
blade, in consequence of which it received the sobriquet of _Rangaire
Riabhach_.[B] In his failure to find the keys of the arms depository, he
bethought him to make a confident and enlist the sympathies of an
elderly lady, who had been a member of the family since the days of his
childhood. The aged Amazon not only promised her aid, but highly
approved, and even encouraged, the spirit of her youthful relative.
Having access to the keys of the armory, the _Rangaire_ was soon in
Alan's hands, and with it he repaired to the place appointed, "to
vindicate his own honour and give _satisfaction_ to his antagonist."

The time of year when this event took place was in the early days of
autumn. Daylight and the combatants arrived on the scene together. Vague
particulars of the preliminaries between them have been variously
retailed, but they are not necessary to the narrative, and therefore not
referred to. The fact that the elder Cameron was reputed to be a skilled
swordsman, also that it was not the first time he had met his foes in
the field, may have had some effect on the nerves of his younger
opponent, but there was no outward indication of it. The home-taught
countryman, however, must have felt that he was standing face to face
with no ordinary opponent. Alan, like the generality of young men, had
such practice in the use of the weapon as to make him acquainted with
the _cuts_ and _guards_. The superiority of Mr Cameron was at first
apparent and proved, inasmuch as he not only kept himself for some time
uninjured, but inflicted a severe cut on Alan's left arm. This blow may
be said to have brought the conflict to its sudden and fatal
termination. The pain, together with the humiliation, roused Alan's
wrath to desperation. It became manifest to the only two friends
present, that the life of one, if not of the two combatan