“Sum part off tham was in to Irland borne, That Makfadyan had exilde furth beforne: King Eduuardis man he was suorn of Ingland, Off rycht law byrth, supposs he tuk on hand.” _Buke Feyrd_, 180. Having talents and ambition he allied himself to the enemies of his country, and, like other mushrooms, throve amid the rankness of that corruption with which he had surrounded himself. A wretch that had risen by oppressing and assisting to bind the necks of his free-born countrymen to the yoke of slavery, was a very fit instrument to employ in forwarding the views of Edward in the subjugation of Scotland. He had not, however, proceeded far before the _Crann-tàir_, or fiery cross, was seen hurrying on, by hill and glen, to gather the children of the Gaël to repel their savage assailants. Duncan of Lorn, the uncle, or, according to some, the younger brother of the chief, unable to withstand the superior force of the enemy, had retreated towards Loch-Awe, to obtain the protection of Sir Niel Campbell. This brave man, along with his brother _Donnchadh dubh nan Caisteal_, (Black Duncan of the Castles), had collected a body of three hundred _Gall-oglaich_ (well armed warriors) part of whom were the vassals of Malcolm MacGregor of Glenurchy.[101] With this force he continued to embarrass the enemy, by attacking their foraging parties and cutting off their supplies. This determined MacFadyan to follow him through the fastnesses of the country, and endeavour to overwhelm him by his superior numbers. Sir Niel managed his retreat with great dexterity. After leading his unwary adversary round by the head of Bradher Pass, he hurried down that dangerous and difficult defile, and, crossing the narrow and ill constructed fabric which served for a bridge, he broke it down; and thus being secure from immediate pursuit, found himself in one of the strongest positions imaginable. His front was defended by a castle, which commanded the only approach by which he could be assailed; while his rear was protected by the Awe, a deep and rapid river, running out of a loch of the same name. The almost perpendicular barrier of rocks which lined the side of the Awe--down which, as has already been mentioned, Sir Niel and his party had to make their way, before they could place the river between them and their pursuers--was of such a nature, that a man could not get on without the assistance of his hands, to prevent him from slipping down into the deep and eddying abyss below; and even with this assistance, at the present day, it is a passage of considerable danger, from the enormous masses of loose stones with which the sloping face of the rocks is covered, from the brink of the water to their summits, which are of great elevation. The least accidental derangement of the stones at the bottom, never fails to put those above in motion, when an immense rush takes place, attended often with serious consequences to the parties underneath.