Murray to Edgar
Sir,[178]—I has the pleasure of writing to you the fifth of last moneth with one inclosed to his Majesty, which makes me give you the trouble of this to acquaint you that upon L[ochie]ls repeated Letters to Lord L[ovat] together with Copys of my Lord T[ra]q[uai]rs from London which I sent him, he is determined not to stir from home this Winter. I should be greatly to blame did I neglect to inform you that his Lordship has been most assiduous this Summer to promote his Majestys Interest in his district so that I have great reason to believe that he is sure of all those he engaged for. He seems to be in great spirits upon account of his success in his Circuit he lately made over the Country when he gained most of the Monroes,[179] a people as little to have been expected as any in the Highlands. He keeps an open table by which means he is become very popular, and I believe, generally speaking, has more to say than any in that Country. L[ochie]l is still here expecting every day Lord T[ra]q[uai]rs arrival etc. His Lordship, to the best of my Remmembrance, came to Scotland sometime in the moneth when L[ochie]l and I immediately mett with him. He acquainted us that Mr. Drummond had left London a great while before him and promised so soon as he gott to Paris that the King of France and his ministers should be acquainted with the favourable accounts he had to give of his Success and that he would forthwith inform Lord T[ra]q[uai]r of every Resolution that was taken. His Lordship likewise told us what had passed during his Stay at London, which I shall not pretend to give a particular detail of, having no authority to intermeddle with, nor ever had, any particular concern in what regarded the English; so shall leave it to his Lordship to give a particular account of his Negotiations in that Country, if he shall think it necessary. I shall only mention here that his Lordship informed us that he had talk’d with the principal people of the Tory party some of which were very timerous, others such as Lord Bar[rymo]re very ready to join in any thing that could conduce to forward the Restoration, and that he had frankly offered, when they proposed a sum of Money to be ready to the Value of £12,000 which was scrupled at by some, to provide it himself. That Lord O[rre]ry[180] I had made two several apointments with him and Mr. Drummond, neither of which he keept, but Stept out of Town without Seeing of them. But I must observe that from all I can Remmember of the Story no particular Concert was formed nor was their any appearance given the french of meeting with provisions, Carriages and horses att their landing, as Mr. Amalet proposed at Versails; for to the contrary when was spoke to who lived in the neighbourhood of where they proposed to land, concerning the providing of these several Necessary he said he had no Idea that any thing had been so suddenly designed for the King, so could make no promises. Mr. Butler, the Gentleman sent over by the King of France to enquire into the Situation of the Country, was introduced by his Lordship to the most of the people. He knew and was sent to the Country to a meeting at Litchfield Races there to meet with Lord B[arrymor]e, Sir W[atkin Williams] W[ynn][181] where he was with about 80 or more gentlemen all of them but one reckoned honest people, which to be sure gave a good aspect to the party in general; but nevertheless I don’t see he went away with such a satisfactory account as Mr. Amalet seemed to require. He assured my Lord he had several Instructions from the King himself, but I wish his principall Errand may not have been to purchase horses with a View to the Kings equipage for the insuing Campaign, he having bought to the value of 3 or 4000£. This reflection may seem harsh but I cannot reconcile their bestowing that sum upon horses for which he said they had no Occasion only by a way of blind and not allowing the prince not above one half of it for a whole years expences, and I don’t think it would be just to argue in opposition to it that they then knew nothing of the Campaign his Majesty intended to make. The french are rather too far sighted not to allow them to design so short a while as some moneths before hand. In short from his Lordships return till the moneth of february we had no Letters from france. In the interim L[ochie]l went to the Highlands when he acquainted Sir J[ames] C[ampbell] and Lord L[ova]t with all yt had passed and that we soon expected the french would come to a final determination one or tother. We spent the time greatly shagerin’d, vex’d to have no Accounts of any kind considering that Mr. Drummond promised at his leaving London in Company with Mr. Butler to write over immediately. Att last we received two letters, one inclosing another Copy, of which I shall insert Copy of Mr. Drummonds Letter to the Earl of T[ra]q[uai]r, dated ...
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After I had made this answer with the Consent and advice of the Duke of P[erth] and was signed by them, the nixt day being Ash Wedensday[182] his Grace resolved to leave the place being apprehensive that as the newspapers were there very full of the french preparations he might be suspected and seized and so not in his power to appear when any thing came to be done. My Lord T[ra]q[uai]r, att whose Lodgings I had the Honour to meet his Grace that mourning, was very much against his leaving the place in such a hurry, and on that day especially. I likewise took the Liberty to remonstrate to him a little against it but all to no purpose and he accordingly sett out about Eleven O Clock and went that night the Length of Dumblain. This was immediately looked upon by the people of the Government with a very jealous Eye and the more so that his Brother Lord J[oh]n had come to Scotland some little time before upon a Scheme of raising a Scots Regiment for the french Service, stayed only ten days or little more at Edinburgh and went from that to the Highlands to solicite the Gentlemen there to be assisting to him in making his Levies. It unluckily hapened for the Duke that upon the back of Lord J[oh]ns going to the Country the Government began to be alarmed with the Accounts of the Princes being come to france and the intended invasion in his Majestys interest which made our little Ministers conjecture that Lord J[oh]n had been sent over with the accounts of it to the Highlands and consequently that the Duke had left the town with an intention to foment an insurrection in the Country. This was made no secret of, being publickly talked of immediately upon the Duke disappearing two days, so after his leaving the town a servant of his was dispatched to London with the Letter I had wrote to Mr. Drummond their being no other means of conveiying one to him but by express, we not having any settled Cannal of Correspondence from hence there. This I think was about the 8th or 10th of february [1744]. My Lord T[ra]q[uai]r stayed some days in town after, designedly to create no suspicion.
In about a week or so after I went on a Sunday Evening to see Mr. H[a]y[183][184] who, when I was talking in a ludicrous way of the paragraph in the papers about the manner in which his Highness had left Italy, he told me in a very serious way that it was no Joke and said that the sooner I went to the Country the better as my living quietly at home would give no suspicion to the Government, but if I stayed any time in town he did not know what might happen, that upon his honour he had not heard me mentioned, which perhaps was owing to my near Relation with him, but that att that same time I was suspected to correspond with Rome. I told him I intended to stay some days longer in Town and would so soon as I had formerly proposed, that I had no cause of fear and so would not run away, and as to their suspecting my corresponding with Rome, that I laughed at but thanked him for his kind concern. I was not at all sorry to find they were so alarmed and afraid, which to me appeared a sure sign of their weakness, and indeed their fear for some days after increased to the most abject pusilanimity. His saying that he had not heard me mentioned was telling plainly that they had been consulting of who were the persons first to be laid hands; and I am apt to believe had the management of affairs been left to Lord Arniston,[185] Sir John Inglis,[186] Commissioner Arthburthnet[187] and the rest of the present Ministry there would have been little lenity shown any Body they had the least reason to suspect. But affairs were afterwards taken out of their hands and putt into these of Justice Clerks,[188] who tho’ as Violent a Whig yet not so hott and Violent a Man. I went next day, being Munday, in the morning to wait of General Guest, who then Commanded in Chief in Scotland[189] with a View to hear what a Notion or Idea he had of matters. He told me that the Repeal of the Habeas Corpus Act was expected that night by the Post, but added that, was it come, upon his honour he did not know a man he suspected enough to lay up, which I was exceedingly well pleased with. Also att the same time I could have marked out a great many and the general seemed not in the least to be affraid and laughed att the hurry and confusion the other folks were. I was taken very ill that day after dinner and gave up thoughts of going to Mr. Hunters of Poolmood’s Burrial[190] which was to be on the Thursday, and I was desired out by the Widow on the tuesday, which evening about six O Clock Mr. Mc[Douga]ll[191] brought me a Letter directed to the Countess of T[ra]q[uai]r. As I was then expecting one every day from Mr. Drummond, as he had promised in his last, I began to suspect a little notwithstanding it had come by the Common Post, a very odd method of Conveyance. In such a critical juncture I opened it when I found a blank Cover and Still directed as before. This confirmed me in my suspicion and under that I found a Letter for my Lord which I immediately opened and tho’ partly in Cypher, could easily understand that things were directly to be putt in execution. This struck me a good deal as I said I would not go to the Country. However, I sent Mr. Mc[Douga]ll with directions immediately to sent the Letter off to Lord T[ra]q[uai]r and to desire D. C[ ]n[192] to come down as of no design and tell me I might go to the Country next day if I pleased, which he accordingly did and hyrred a Chaise, not being able to ride. In the mean while Sir J. S[tewar]t came to see me, who I acquainted of it and att the same time wrote a Letter to Lord K[enmu]re who I had spoke to the Munday before, desiring him to meet me at T[ra]q[uai]r the thursday night as likewise one to Mr. J[oh]n Mc[leo]d[193] telling him I thought it would be fitt to send Sir J[ames] C[ampbe]lls son to the Highlands, who his father designed should serve him therein being assistant to raise the Country. I accordingly sett out next mourning for the Country and the day following Lord T[ra]q[uai]r mett me at Polmood and shewed me the Letter when decyphered which I shall here give a Copy off, and att the same time a Letter he had received the night before by express from Edinburgh telling him that their was a Warrant out to apprehend him which determined his Lordship to go immediately to the D[uke] of P[erth]. Upon which so soon as the Burrial was over we came to my house, where I wrote a Letter to Lord K[enmu]re desiring he would follow us next mourning to Hartrie[194] where we intended to sleep that night and sent it Express to T[ra]q[uai]r with other Letters of my Lords, expecting Lord K[enmo]re would be there that night, but he nevertheless continued the whole time in Edinburgh. We set out next day from Hartrie which was the fryday, that the french fleet was dispersed and the Transports run a Shore,[195] and the night after gott to Drummond Castle, from whence his Grace sent immediately an express with the Copy of the last Letter we received to L[ochie]l. We continued som weeks there always in Expectation to hear of a landing and in the mean time heard that several informations was given in against the Duke of Perth as having numbers of armed men about his house which was absolutely false. At last a party of 150 foot and 30 Horse were sent from Stirling to make him Prisoner, but he had intelligence of it and went out of the way.[196] All this time Lord T[ra]q[uai]r was sculking about the Country having returned from the jaunt he had made over the Highlands.
After staying in that Country till the beginning of Aprile, without receiving any Accounts from abroad and giving up all hopes of a Landing, I left my Lord T[ra]q[uai]r there and came to Stirlingshire where I stayed about three weeks and so came to Edinburgh, and from that went to the Country the 11th of May. In the beginning of June, when Lord T[ra]q[uai]r returned, I went to wait of him, and being very uneasy to think we had received no accounts from Abroad, I said if I could afford the expence I would go over on pretence of seeing the Army in flanders and so see the Prince myself and learn distinctly what situation things were in. This his Lordship was well pleased with but I did not say anything positively, but upon Reflexion by the Road, I thought it was hard that people who had been for so long concerned in the Kings affairs and putt to so great Charge about it with the hazard of their Lives and fortunes should now be left in the dark as to every thing. Wherefore I resolved to do it, and next day wrote a Letter to my Lord telling him that if the Duke of P[erth] would give me a 100£ I would be att the rest of the expence myself and go over and in case his Lordship approved of it, he would be so good as meet me at Peebles on Saturday, which he did, and after talking with him I came home and sett out the same night about O Clock and gott to Drummond [Castle] next afternoon. The Duke immediately agreed to the thing and gave me an order for the money. About this time came a letter from Lord Semple to Lord T[ra]q[uai]r by way of an account of their precedure in the Spring, which I went to T[ra]q[uai]r and assisted his Lordship to decypher, but was so little to our satisfaction that my Lord still thought my going over more necessary than before. About this time I received a letter from St[uar]t of Ard[shie]ll,[197] telling me that he would have come to the Country to wait of me but his dress made him remarkable, being in Highland Cloaths, but as he had comed to Town purposely to meet with me, he hoped I would give him a meeting, and yt he had seen L[ochie]l lately. I went to town in a day or two after and dined with him. His Errand was to know of me if I had gott any Accounts lately, and what hopes I had. I did not think it att all proper to let him know any thing of my having seen such a letter as Lord Semple had wrote, nor indeed that any Accounts had come; for in that case he would have expected something positive. But I put him off by telling him I imagined the french were resolved to renew the Expedition soon and so friends did not care to write least any discovery should ensue, but could easily see that the Answer was not att all satisfactory. I returned that same night to the Country, and during a few days that I stayed, prepared for my journey.
N.B.—This is a fragment of a letter written by Mr. Murray to the Pretender soon after the miscarriage of the French Expedition.
Murray to the Chevalier
It was looked upon by some as certain, and thought necessary by all, that Mr. Watson[198] should come over, as he was the person who had gone through the whole Highlands and gott the engagements of the Several Gentlemen at his first leaving Scotland, and surely had any of them been so little as to flinch from what they engaged to him, he was the natural and indeed the only person that could have upbraided them into their Duty. My Lord says he could trust to no conveyance, and so could not soonner give us any information your Majestys friend is here, upon Mr. D[rummond] not coming, expected immediately after the Embargo was taken of in france that some one or other would have been dispatched to our Coasts with an account of what had passed, and what was to be hoped for, that so we might have regulate our fortunes Conduct accordingly. The neglect of this, Sir, greatly surprises your Majestys friends in generall, and gives the Gentlemen in the concert a good deal of Umbrage, as they thereby think themselves slighted and neglected, whereas, they being the first promoters of the whole scheme, they humbly think entitled them to have the most expidetious information. His Lordship next supposes that we are fully satisfied of the french sincerity, which indeed is entirely otherwise, especially from the Reasons he assigns that it was owing to the commandants neglect or disobedience to his Instructions. We never can bring ourselves to believe that any man (especially a french subject) grown old with an untainted and great Reputation, durst have disobeyed what seems to have been the only Material part of his Instructions to block up Portsmouth, and surely, if not for this one Errand his Voyage to the Chunnel must rather do harm than good, which was evidently seen by the Government being put timeously upon their Guard. As to his next paragraph relating to the frenches cautious delay purposely to see what Influence the powers of the Court would have upon your Majestys friends here, and that the above cautious delay was grating to the Prince; no wonder indeed his Royal Highness had too penetrating an Eye not to see that it would be impossible to recover this Time and opportunity he was losing. But what really quite astonishes us is his Lordships saying that from the light it was represented in, their caution seemed to be well grounded. We cant pretend to take their Reasons to [heart] as they are not told us, but we are affraid they consist more in plausible pretences, dressed up with a little french Rhetorick, than in strong and solid Arguments. We are in this Climate generally accustomed to the plainer sort of speach, and we cannot help thinking ourselves judges of it. Did not the french Court know of Comns.?[199] Did they not know that that Majority would pass all Bills that might seem their Master? Did they not know that the repeal of the Habeas Corpus act would naturally be the first step and that by that Repeal they were enabled to take up every person they suspected? Did they not know that the principal men in England, of your Majestys friends, were in the house and that not one of them durst object to any method that was proposed as their offering. Such would have been an open declaration of their principles, and must consequently have caused their confinement. Did they not know that the English are a fickle sort of people, and that they had a natural abhorence of the french nation, and thay could not be ignorant that this was giving them time to frighten them by the fear of a french Influence that State pretence and thereby to make friends in the City of London. If they were Ignorant of all these they ought surely to have been told, and we must be of opinion that these as such Indisputable Reasons that no Sound Arguments could be adduced to confute them, which, when rightly observed, makes their Schemes of delaying it for a little time appear vain and frivolous pretences and absolutely contradictory to all Right Reason. We are convinced that his Royal Highness, keeping so quiet has effectually deceived the Government, that it is entirely owing to his own matchless address, and indeed upon decyphering the Letter My Lord T[ra]q[uai]r and I thought that we was in the next line to have had orders to keep in readyness to favour a discent to be made, upon the D[uke] of H[amilton] and the Dutch troops going over; but to our unexpressible Surprise he proposes new assurances to be given both from Scotland and England. In the name of Wonder what can all this mean? Where are the Grounds? Where the Reasons, where the necessity leading to such a demand? The assurances from Scotland were thought sufficient by the K[ing], by C[ardinal] F[leury] and by Mr. Amalot. From the first moment the assurances carried over by Mr. Butler last year from England were thought sufficient, otherwise the french would not have carried the Expidition so far. If this is the case (which we have all along been made believe) what is the necessity for any Renewal of them? What a horrid and Gloomy prospect must such a Scheme carry along with it, things have been carried on for some years with great Secrecy and caution, tho’ with danger of Life and fortune to those concerned, and must they now recommence such another tedious and dangerous Negotiation? I am afraid, Sir, if your Majesty should find it necessary it will be next to impossible, at lest my Lord T[ra]q[uai]r never can take a hand doing any thing in England, he is already strongly suspected and it wanted but little he was not taken up some moneths ago. The express he sent to London with a Letter to Watson[200] was seized, which was occasioned by one from him which left us quite in the dark as to what assistance we were to have, and that within 3 weeks of the Expidition, but not till he had delivered his Packet; and had he not luckyly said he believed it Related to a marriage which was then the talk of the town, his Lordship had surely been arested. But if the English are so well satisfied with the procedure of the french, and the open discovery of any plot, why cant they find one amongst themselves to do the Business? I shall be sorry to think they have only a view to gain time till they see whither they are able to carry on the War in spite of Brittain, and then tell us that the Zeal shown for the present Government in the time of the Expidition contradicts all the assurances we advanced to the contrary, which will be the Result of their Cautious and well delay for a little time. This is harsh, but other people have seen, and I have read of france doing the like in other cases. As to the troops to be landed in Scotland, suppose it to be impossible to converse with all the concert on it att any time in two moneths, and all present not to be done at all, yett I can take upon me to affirm that they still continue in the same mind as to every Article. 3000 men landed, one half near Sir J[ames] Cam[pbe]ll to command Argyle Shire, the other half near Inverness, a L[ochie]l may join them to command the north, or if the one half can’t reach near to Sir J[ames] C[ampbell], lett them be all landed together with 4 feild pieces, 15 or 20,000 Stand of Arms, Gones, Pistoles and broad Swords, yett from the inquiry I have made I am satisfied 10,000 Guns or less, 10,000 Broad Swords and as many Pistoles will sufficiently do the Business, as all the Isles are lately Armed with Guns and most of them Swords, Likewise, as for the Inland Country, they want Swords and Pistoles very much. It gives us great uneasiness that my Lord M[arischal] should be so unhappy as to fly in the face of every Scheme, if he himself does not project. Sed quos Deus vult perdere dementit prius, but we cannot help thinking oddnt, when the money was had to pay Sir J[ames] Mr. Watson did not care to remit it. This to be sure required no Conveyance, a Bill was sufficient. He knows the miserable Situation he is in, and tho’ the rest of the Concert are in no such Indigent Situation, yett their Circumstances are not so opulent as to assist him. The Gentlemen in the Highlands were so desirous to know if any accounts were come that Locheal gave a Commission to St[ewart] of A[rdshiel] who came expressly to meet with me and indeed I was so Anxious for the Situation of your Majestys friends, that I resolved upon a journey abroad to inform myself of every thing, upon the pretence of going to see the Army to some who had a title to be a little more Curious upon pretence of making more interest for a Company in the Dutch in case of any new levies, so that it was an accident I either mett with that Gentleman or saw my Lord S[emple] letter. He complained heavily that we had no Accounts from abroad, and indeed I never had more difficulty to excuse our friends. However, I told that our having none looked well as it portended that the expidition had surely suffered some short delay from the bad weather that had happened at the time, and as it was soon to be resumed, they thought it needless to send us any information in case of discoveries, which nevertheless cou’d observe did not entirely Satisfie him. My Lord T[raquair] desired me to assure your Majesty that there is nothing he would not undertake which might further your Majestys interest but that he cannot come from his own house to Edinburgh without being suspected, which renders it impossible for him to negotiate any thing in England, and at the same time desires me to observe that he cannot reconceal that part of my Lord S[emple’s] Letter, where he tells him that nothing will be fixed with relation to the expidition till he hear from him with his proposals of fresh assurances from your Majestys friends here. In short, Sir, I must say that this letter is of such a nature that I do not take it upon me to intimate it to the Gentlemen in the Concert as in the present Situation Your Majestys Wisdom, the inexpressible Character the Prince has acquired as being of so brave and enterprising a Spirit, together with their own Suspence and hopes are what keep up their Spirits, but was I to make it knowen to them I am afraid it would throw them into a fatal Despondency, so till I have your Majestys orders am resolved to keep it private. Never was there a people more anxiously concerned about a princes happiness and welfare than this nation when she heard of Highness imbarkation, nor do I believe Scotland ever made a more unanimous Appearance than they would have done then, provided the Conditions promised them had been performed, but we have been told here, how justly I won’t say, that there was only 3000 Muskets designed for us without any troops, indeed, we are able, at any time, to command our own Country with Arms and officers, especially now when there is only four Regiments of foot and two of Dragoons, and each of these 100 Men draughted to flanders. I am sorry to be obliged to trouble your Majesty with so long a paper, but I am hopefull your Majesty will be of opinion our present Situation required it especially after receiving the inclosed, nor do I fear your Majestys being angry upon that account as I most humbly beg leave to say that an honest and loyal Subject can never explain himself too fully and Clearly to a wise Prince, and since the Receipt of Lord S[emple] letter I am more fully resolved to make my journey abroad as I think there is more Reason for full and pointed explications on every Article, and if I don’t thereby hurt your Majestys affairs of what at present I have no idea I shall be quite indifferent as what may be the consequence with regard to myself, being Void of all other Views but that of promoting your Majestys Interest, which I shall ever endeavour to do att all hazard. I most humbly beg this letter may not be made known to my Lord S[emple] and Mr. W[atson][201] least it unreasonably make differences amongst those concerned in your Majestys affairs, but if sending them a Copy will in your Majestys opinion be of any Service, I can with great Satisfaction sacrifice the private Regard of any man to the trueth and to my King and Country.
This seems to be a Copy of a Letter which Mr. Murray wrote after his return from France and Flanders in the Moneths of September or October, 1744, To the young Pretender, then in France.[202]