22 June.
[fol. 525.] Her stepfather, coming next day, being Sunday, she told him what she was about, upon which he granted a passport for herself, a man-servant (Neil MacKechan), and another woman Bettie Burk, a good spinster, and whom he recommended as such in a letter to his wife at Armadale in Sky, as she had much lint to spin.[239] If her stepfather (Hugh MacDonald of Armadale) had not granted Miss a passport, she could not have undertook her journey and voyage. Armadale set his stepdaughter at liberty, who immediately made the best of her way to Clanranald's house and acquainted the Lady Clanranald with the scheme, who supplied the Prince with apparel sufficient for his disguise, viz. a flower'd linen gown, a white apron, etc., and sent some provisions along with him.[240]
During Miss MacDonald's stay at Clanranald's house, which was till the Friday, June 27th, O'Neil went several times betwixt [fol. 526.] the Prince and Miss, in which interval another scheme was proposed, that the Prince should go under the care of a gentleman to the northward,[241] but that failing them, they behoved to have recourse to that agreed upon before; and accordingly Lady Clanranald, one Mrs. MacDonald, O'Neil, Miss Flora MacDonald, and her servant, Neil MacKechan, went to the place where the Prince was, being about eight Scotch miles.[242] He was then in a very little house or hut, assisting in the roasting of his dinner, which consisted of the heart, liver, kidneys, etc., of a bullock or sheep, upon a wooden spit. O'Neil introduced his young preserver and the company, and she sat on the Prince's right hand and Lady Clanranald on his left. Here they all dined very heartily.
28 June.
Next morning, June 28th, they heard of General Campbell's arrival at Benbecula, and soon after a man came in a great hurry to Lady Clanranald and acquainted her that Captain Ferguson with an advanced party of Campbell's men was at her [fol. 527.] house, and that Ferguson had lain in her bed the night before. This obliged her to go home immediately, which accordingly she did, after taking leave of the Prince. She was strictly examined by Ferguson where she had been? She replied she had been visiting a child which had been sick, but was now better again.[243] Both the General and Ferguson asked many other questions, such as where the child lived, how far it was from thence? etc., but they could make nothing out of the lady fit for their purpose.
O'Neil would gladly have staid with the Prince and shared in his distresses and dangers, but Miss could by no means be prevailed upon to agree to that proposal.[244]
When all were gone who were not to accompany the Prince in his voyage to the Isle of Sky, Miss MacDonald desired him to dress himself in his new attire, which was soon done, and at a proper time they removed their quarters and went near the water with their boat afloat, nigh at hand for readiness to embark [fol. 528.] in case of an alarm from the shore. Here they arrived, very wet and wearied, and made a fire upon a rock to keep them somewhat warm till night.[245] They were soon greatly alarmed by seeing four wherries full of armed men making towards shore, which made them extinguish their fire quickly, and to conceal themselves amongst the heath.
About two or three days after O'Neil parted from the Prince, a French cutter, having 120 men on board, appeared and sailed towards the Isle of South Uist, intending to carry off the Prince.[246] O'Sullivan went immediately on board, while O'Neil made haste to find out the Prince before he might have left the island. But finding that the Prince had left the island about two days before, immediately he returned to the place where he had left the cutter. But unhappy for him, he found that the timorous Sullivan, having a fair wind, and not having [fol. 529.] courage to stay till O'Neil's return, being resolved to take care of Number One, obliged the captain to set sail directly, lest he should be taken and should lose his precious life. O'Neil returned in the compass of three hours after Sullivan had set sail, and was taken prisoner soon after and brought into England, after having been prisoner for some time in the Castle of Edinburgh[247], to which place he had been brought from a ship of war; for he had been in a state of confinement at sea for some time. An English officer, having intelligence of the above cutter, immediately dispatched two wherries after her with thirty men in each, but neither of them could come up with her.
At eight o'clock, June 28th, Saturday, 1746, the Prince, Miss Flora MacDonald, Neil MacKechan, etc., set sail in a very clear evening from Benbecula to the Isle of Sky.[248] It is worth [fol. 530.] observing here that Benbecula is commonly reckoned a part of South Uist, they being divided from one another by the sea only at high water, which then makes a short ferry betwixt the two; but at low water people walk over upon the sand from the one to the other.
They had not rowed from the shore above a league till the sea became rough, and at last tempestuous, and to entertain the company the Prince sung several songs and seemed to be in good spirits.