[471] Lady Kildin should be spelt Kildun. This lady was the wife of Colin Mackenzie of Kildun, a grandson of the 2nd Earl of Seaforth. Mackenzie’s sister was the second wife of Donald, 16th Clanranald, the mother of Macdonald of Boisdale, and stepmother of old Clanranald of the ’45. From private letters belonging to Frances, Lady Muir Mackenzie, I find that Colin Mackenzie was then in London.
[472] Neil MacEachain is all wrong here in the sequence of events and in his dates. He was writing from hearsay only. The true sequence will be found with authorities for the same in the Itinerary, pp. 48-50.
[473] A quarter of a peck of oatmeal not threshed, but burnt out of the ear.
[474] This was strictly in accordance with Hebridean honesty, continued to this day. The Prince desired to leave money on the rocks to pay for the fish, but O’Sullivan and O’Neille (not the islanders) dissuaded him. Cf. L. in M., i. 172.
[475] Prince Charles landed in Benbecula, Clanranald’s island, on 11th May, and from this time onward Neil writes from knowledge, not hearsay.
[476] South Uist.
[477] Ranald was afterwards taken prisoner and sent to London.
[478] Corradale is a picturesque valley situated in the mountainous part of South Uist, which occupies the middle of the east side of the island, whose northern, western, and southern confines are wonderfully flat. Corradale lies about the middle of this district, running north-west from the sea, between the mountains Hekla and Benmore, each about 2000 feet high. If approached by sea it was easy for a fugitive to get away to inaccessible hiding-places in the mountains, while if attacked from the land he could escape by sea. Prince Charles’s lodging was a forester’s house not far from the shore. On the north side of the glen, close to the sea, there is a fairly commodious cave, traditionally but erroneously the dwelling-place of the Prince. This cave was probably the rock under which Neil left the Prince while he looked for strangers. Considering the weather to be expected in this island, there can be little doubt that the Prince often sat there for shelter while he looked out for passing ships, as the cave commands an excellent view of the offing to the south-east.
[479] The actual stay at Corradale was from 14th May to 5th June, although the Prince was in South Uist until 24th June. For details, see the Itinerary.
[480] See ante, p. 213, and Introduction.