[3] “The pony, Highland Laddie ... was bred by us at Coulmore, Ross-shire; being the youngest, I think, of seven foals thrown by the black mare, Polly, to Allan Kingsburgh (Lord Lovat’s stallion) ... and, as far as I know, Polly was never covered by any other horse. Most of her foals, if not all, were shown by us and won prizes at country and the Highland Agricultural Society’s Meetings in the North. Her third foal, Glen, a jet-black stallion, took 2nd prize in his class at the Aberdeen Show in 1880 (I think), and again took the medal for pony stallions at Perth in 1881 or 1882. At the same show Polly’s second foal, Blackie, took second prize in the gelding class, and her fourth foal (the eldest of the bay mares), shown at Inverness by McKenzie of Kintail, would easily have taken a prize in her class but for an accident on the railway or ferry ... which lamed her for the meeting. Your pony has, of course, the same pedigree as those.... The Rum ponies were always supposed to be pure, as the Marquis of Salisbury was known to take a great interest in the breed ... though not sure, I believe a pony stallion of another strain, a dun with black mane and tail (Lord Ronald) was sold by my father to go to Rum.... Allan Kingsburgh and Polly were both bred by my father.... Allan’s dam was a bay mare, Polly’s was a grey named Maria. I know the stock from which both came: it was brought long ago from Glenelg and bred and kept pure by my grandfather and ancestors who lived in Glenelg when that Barony belonged to the MacLeod of MacLeods. I am not sure of the sires of either Allan or Polly, but know they were both pure Highland. One, I think, was Lord Ronald which I formerly mentioned, and the other a pony belonging to a Mr. Stewart in Skye (a known breeder of Highland cattle).” ... It is curious that I should have thus dropped on to exactly the same kind of thing that my father is supposed to have used; he used the same blood years ago in Lord Ronald.