15–21 September 1873

The mist hung about the hills, but the sun struggled through. It was very mild and became beautiful. YVe decided to go up Glenfinnan and to lunch out. Painted and finished two other sketches looking up Loch Eil and towards Bana- vie, and then wrote, after which at a quarter to twelve took a short turn in the grounds with Beatrice. At twenty minutes to one started with Beatrice and Jane Churchill in the sociable (Brown going each day of course with us on the box), the two gentlemen following (with Francie Clark and Charlie Thomson), and drove past Banavie through Corpach and up Loch Eil. When we had come to the head of the loch, the road turned towards the right, winding along through verdant valleys, with that noble range of Moidart before you, rather to the left. In one valley, which be- came very narrow after passing a large meadow in which they were making hay, we turned into a narrow sort of defile, with the stream of the Finnan flowing on as slowly as an English river, with trees and fir trees on the rocks, and unlike anything I had seen in Scotland, and then you come at once on Loch Shiel (a freshwater loch), with fine very high rugged hills on either side. It runs down twenty miles. At the head of the loch stands a very ugly monument to Prince Charles Edward, looking like a sort of lighthouse surmounted by his statue, and surrounded by a wall. Here it was that he landed when he was brought by Macdonald of Borradale — whose descendant, now Macdonald of Glenaladctle, has a house here (the only habitation to be seen) — to wait for the gathering of the clans. When Prince Charlie arrived at the spot where the monument stands, which is close to the loch and opposite to GUnfinnan (the road we came going past it and on up a hill to Arisaig, twenty-five miles farther on), he found only a dozen peasants, and thought he had been betrayed, and he sat down with his head in his hands. Suddenly the sound of the pipes aroused him, and he saw the clans coming down Glenfinnan. Soon after the Macdonalds appeared, and in the midst of a cheer- ing host the Marquis of Tullibardine (Duke of Athole but for his attainder) unfurled the banner of King James. This was in August 1745. In 1746 poor Prince Charles was a fugitive hiding in the mountains on the sides of Loch Arkaig and Loch Shiel. As we suddenly came upon Loch Shiel from the narrow glen, lit up by bright sun- shine, with the fine long loch and the rugged mountains, which are about three thousand feet high, rising all around, no habitation or building to be seen except the house of Glcnaladale, which used to be an inn, and a large picturesque Catholic church, reminding one, from its elevated position to the right and above the house, of churches and convents abroad, 1 thought I never saw a lovelier or more romantic spot, or one which told its history so well. What a scene it must have been in 1745 ! And here was /, the descendant of the Stuarts and of the very king whom Prince Charles sought to overthrow, sitting and walking about quite privately and peaceably. We got out and scrambled up a high hillock off the road, where I lunched with Beatrice and Jane Churchill and then sketched, but did not attempt to colour. We walked about a little, and then came down to the road to speak to Mr. Macdonald of Glcnaladale, whom General Pon- sonby had been to speak to, and who had never seen me. He is a stout, robust-looking High- lander of about thirty and a widower. He is a Catholic, as are all the people in this district. The priest is his uncle, and lives with him. He showed me some curious relics of Charles Edward. An old-fashioned, strange silver snuff " mull " which had been given by him to Macdonald's ancestor, with the dates 1745 and 1746 engraved on it, for at Borradale Prince Charlie slept for the last time in Scotland; a watch which had belonged to him, and a rine into which some of his fair hair had been put, were also shown. This is the district called Moidart, and from the highest hills the Isle of Sky e is seen distinctly. Lord Morton's property comes up close to Loch Shiel, and to the right are Lochicl, etc., and Mac- donald of Glenaladalc s in front, at the head of the loch. The family used to live at Borradale near Arisaig, but acquired Glenaladalc from the former Macdonalds of Glenaladalc who emigrated to Prince Edward's Island after the Forty- five. Beatrice, Jane Churchill, and Brown went up with Mr. Macdonald to the top of the monument, but said the ascent was very awkward and diffi- cult. General Ponsonby had been into the church, and said it was very expensively and handsomely decorated, but we have since heard there are only about fifty people in the neighbourhood. We leit this beautiful spot about half-past four, having spent two hours there. The evening was not so bright as on Friday and Saturday, and there was no after-glow on the hills, Ben Nevis having its top covered with mist, as it often has. The horses were tired, and went rather slowly. I observed a flower here, which I have not seen with us at Balmoral, viz., instead of the large white daisies ■ — " Marguerites," as the French call them, and of which such numbers are seen in the fields in England — there is a large yellow one,f just the same in form, only the petals are bright yellow. The heather, as I before observed, is of a very full and rich kind, and, as we drove along, we saw it on the old walls, growing in the loveliest tufts. We met those dreadful reporters, including the man who behaved so ill on Saturday, as we were coming back. We got home at twenty minutes past six. Had some tea. Wrote and put every- thing in order. All had been settled about money to be given, etc. Our last nice little dinner, which I regretted. Came up directly after and wrote.

Had to get up by seven, and Beatrice and I breakfasted at a quarter to eight. The morning was fine. The real name of the place used to be Torlwidy, which is the name of the " lochie," or " tarn," below the house, in the middle of which there is a little island on which there are ducks. The property, which is very large, sixty-four miles in extent, was purchased from the late Duke of Gordon by the late Lord Abinger, who began a house, but it was burnt down ; the present Lord built this one, in fact, only ten years ago, and added to it since. He has called it Inverlocky Castle, after the old fortress, which is supposed to have belonged to the Pictish kings, but the present ruin is thought to date from the time of Edward I. The Marquis of Montrose defeated the Marquis of Argyle there in 1645, an incident described in Sir Walter Scott's " Legend of Montrose." At a quarter-past eight we left Inverlochy Castle, where we had spent very pleasant days. The crentlemen had ^one on before. We drove to Banavie, where a good many people were assembled, and stepped on board the steamer which was on the Caledonian Canal. Here were Lord and Lady Abinger, whom I thanked very much for their kindness. I left an illustrated copy of my book and prints of Albert's and my portraits at Inverlochy for Lord Abinger. She is an American lady from the Southern States, a Miss Macgruder, and they have five children, of whom one only is a boy. They left the steamer, and we began moving. The steamer is called the " Gondolier." It is built on the same principle as the one we had on Loch Lomond, with a fine large cabin with many windows, almost a deck cabin (though it is down one flight of steps), which extends through the ship with seats below, open at the sides far forward. In this large cabin sixty-two people can dine. We remained chiefly on deck. We steamed gently along under the road by which we had driven from Gairlochy and Achnacarry, Lochiel's to the left or west, and Lord Abinger's to the right. Ben Nevis, unfortu- nately, was hid in the mist, and the top invisible, which we hear is very generally the case. We came to one lock, and then shortly afterwards to Gairlochy, after which you enter Loch Lochy. The Caledonian Canal is a very wonderful piece of engineering, but travelling by it is very tedious. At each lock people crowded up close to the side of the steamer. As the river rises from Banavie to Loch Oich (which succeeds Loch Lochy), the canal has to raise the vessels up to that point, and again to lower them from Loch Oich to Inverness. The vessel, on entering the lock from the higher level, is enclosed by the shutting of the gates. The sluices of the lower gates are raised by small wind- lasses (it was amusing to see the people, including the crew of the steamer, who went on shore to ex- pedite the operation, which is not generally done, run round and round to move these windlasses), and holes are thus opened at the bottom of the lower gates, through which the water flows till the water in the lock sinks to the lowest level. The lower gates are then opened, as the water is on the lowest level, while the upper gates keep back the water above. The same process raises the ships in the lock which ascend. About five or six- feet can be raised or depressed in this manner at each lock. (I have copied this from an account General Ponsonby wrote for me.) As we entered Loch Locky, which looked beauti- ful, we saw where Loch Arkaig lay, though it was hid from us by high ground. The hills which rise from Loch Lochy are excellent pasture for sheep, but the lower parts are much wooded. After eieht miles' sail on Loch Lochy we came to Loch Oich, which is entered by another lozk at Lazzan. Here Mr. and Mrs. Ellice (who is a first cousin of the Greys) were waiting, and came on board. They had wished me to get out and drive round their line place, Iuvergarry, to rejoin the steamer at the next lock, but I declined, preferring to remain quietly on board, though the process of going through the locks is slow and necessarily tedious. It is nervous work to steer, for there is hardly a foot to spare on either side. Mrs. Ellice went on shore again, having given us some fine grapes, but Mr. Ellice remained on board till the next lock, Cullochy. A road much shaded runs along the side of the loch, and here we passed the small monument by its side, put over the well into which a number of heads of some of the Mac- Donalds, who had murdered two of their kinsmen of Kcppoch, were thrown after they had been killed in revenge for this act, by order of MacDonald of the Isles. It was erected in 1812. We next came to the old ruined castle of Invergarry, embosomed in trees, close to which, but not in sight, is Mr. Ell ice's new house. He has an immense deal of property here on both sides. The hills rise high, and one conically shaped one called Ben Tigh towers above the rest. At Culloehy Mr. Ellice left the steamer. Mr. Brewster, formerly Lord Chancellor of Ireland and nearly eighty years old, was standing- on the shore here. Francie and one of the policemen got out with good Noble, and walked to meet us again at Fort Augustus. While we were stopping to go through one of the locks, a poor woman came and brought us a jug of milk and oat-cake, which with their usual hospitality the country people constantly offer. After this, and at about ten minutes past twelve, Beatrice, Jane Churchill, and I went below and had some hot luncheon. The people from the locks looked down upon us, but it was un- avoidable. We had now reached Fort Augitsttis, where there was again some delay and a great many people, and where there was a triumphal arch. Here on this very day thirty-six years ago my beloved Albert passed, and he saw poor Macdonald the Jager here, and took a liking to him from his appearance, and, being in want of a Jager, inquired after him and engaged him. He was keeper to Lord Digby and Colonel Porter then, and brought some game for dearest Albert from them, and Albert was greatly struck by his good looks. He was very handsome, especially in the kilt,, which he habitually wore. There had been a heavy shower, but it was over when we came up on deck again. We en- tered Loch Ness here. It is twenty-four miles long, and broad, the banks wooded, with many pretty places on them. We passed Invermorris- ton in Glen Morriston, the seat of Sir G. Brooke Middleton, formerly Grant property. (So many of the finest, largest estates in the Highlands have passed into English hands, chiefly by purchase, but also often by inheritance.) Foyers, the celebrated falls, which are much visited, could just be seen, but not the falls themselves. Everywhere, where there were a few houses or any place of note, people were assembled and cheered. Next, to the left comes the very fine old ruin of Castle Urqithart, close upon the Lochan Rocks, where there were again a great many people. The Castle has stood several sieges, and one in par- ticular in the fourteenth century in the reign of Edward I. It belongs to Lord Seafield (head of the Grants), who has a very large property here, and whose own shooting-place, Balmacaan, is up in the glen just beyond. The fine mountain of M calf our vonie rises above it. It is two thousand seven hundred feet high, but the peak alone is seen from here. I tried to sketch a little, but in vain, the wind in my face was so troublesome. At about twenty minutes to four (or half-past three) we passed Dochfour House, Mr. Baillie's, which I think stands rather low, and in which Albert passed this night twenty-six years ago. A few minutes more brought us to Dochgarroch, quite a quiet place, but where a good many people had assembled. We waited to see every one and all our luggage landed and packed in and off before we stepped on shore. It was an amusing sight. There must have been two or three carriages besides ours. The last to drive off was the one in which Morgan, Maxted, and Lizzie Stewart* got, with Francie Clark and Noble on the box. Mr. Baillie and Lady Georgiana, whom I had not seen for long, were at the end of the landing platform, as well as Mr. Evan Baillie and Mrs. Colville, their son and daughter. Two little girls put down bunches of flax for me to walk upon, which it seems is an old Highland custom. There is a small village where we landed. Lady Georgiana Baillie is quite an old lady, aunt of the Duke of Manchester, and grand-daughter of the celebrated Duchess of Gordon. Beatrice, Jane, and I got into a hired (not very beautiful) open landau (on the rumble of which Brown sat, as in crowds it is much safer to have a person close behind you) with a pair of post- horses and a postilion. In the second carriage went General Ponsonby, Emilie Dittweiler (sitting next to him), Dr. Fox, and Annie, every available place being necessary. We were escorted by the 7th Dragoon Guards, which was thought better on account of the great crowds in Inverness, where no Sovereign had been seen since my poor ancestress Queen Mar)'. The mixture of half state and humble travelling (we being in our common travelling dresses) was rather amusing. The evening was beautiful, and Inverness looked extremely well on the blue Moray Frith. We passed a magnificent building, which is the county Lunatic Asylum. We had to drive six miles to the town, through a small portion of which only we passed, and had to drive quickly, as it was late. The. streets were full of decorations and arches, and lined with volunteers. Great order pre- vailed, and the people were most enthusiastic. The fine-looking old Provost was there, and the Master of Lovat, who walked up along the station with us. A great squeeze, which Brown, having a great heap of cloaks etc. to carry, had some difficulty in getting through. But every one, including the dog, got safe in, and we travelled by train as before. We went the same way as last year, but never stopped till we got to Keith, where last time our door got wrong. After this, about six, we had some warm tea and cold meat, which was very refreshing. A fine evening. We reached Ballater at five minutes to nine, and started at once in the open landau and four, preceded by the outrider with the lamp. There were a few drops of rain, but very slight. At twenty minutes to ten we reached Balmoral safely, very thankful that all had gone off so well.