James Stewart James Finney Aulay M^c Aulay Malcomb M^c Pherson Robert Gordon John Mitchell Ewen M^c Linnan George Gordon _Staff._ _Chaplain_, Wm. Mackenzie _Surgeon_, ---- Walters _Adjutant_, James Finney _Quar.-Mr._ George Gunn The establishment was to consist of fifty serjeants, two pipers, twenty drummers and fifers, and a thousand and ten rank and file. The men were principally raised from the clan of “_Caber Fey_,” as the Mackenzies were called from the stag’s horns on the armorial bearings of Seaforth. Five hundred men were from the EARL OF SEAFORTH’S own estates, and about four hundred from the estates of the Mackenzies of Scatwell, Kilcoy, Applecross, and Redcastle, all of whom had sons or brothers holding commissions in the regiment: the officers from the Lowlands brought upwards of two hundred, of whom seventy-four were English and Irish. The clan Macrae had long been faithful followers of the Seaforth family, and on this occasion the name was so general in the regiment, that it was frequently designated the regiment of “the _Macraes_.” On the 15th of May the EARL OF SEAFORTH’S regiment assembled at Elgin, in Moray, amounting to one thousand and forty-one rank and file; it was inspected by Major-General Robert Skene, adjutant-general in North Britain, and the men were found so remarkably effective and fit for His Majesty’s service, that nearly every one was accepted: the corps was placed on the establishment of the regular army under the designation of “SEAFORTH’S HIGHLANDERS;” the supernumerary men were formed into a recruiting company, and the regiment received orders to march southward, for the purpose of embarking for the East Indies. It soon afterwards obtained the numerical title of the “SEVENTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT.” Towards the end of July, the regiment was ordered to Edinburgh Castle; and on its arrival there, the men began to show symptoms of dissatisfaction; the result of investigation proved that some of them had not received their bounty, and that others had contrived to obtain it twice, which was the more easily accomplished in consequence of so many men being of the same name. Full attention being paid to their claims, they embarked at Leith shortly afterwards, with much cheerfulness, being highly gratified in consequence of their commander, the EARL OF SEAFORTH, being about to accompany them on service. The departure of the regiment was however delayed. The king of France had taken part with the revolted British provinces in North America, and had commenced hostilities against Great Britain; when the French settlements in Bengal were seized by detachments of troops from Calcutta, and Pondicherry was besieged and captured with so little loss, that it did not appear necessary to send additional troops to India at that time. The regiment was ordered to Jersey and Guernsey, where it arrived towards the end of November, five companies being stationed at each island. [Sidenote: 1779]