Preston Fight; or, The Insurrection of 1715Ainsworth, William Harrison
General
Preston Fight; or, The Insurrection of 1715
Ainsworth, William Harrison
Jacobite Rebellion, 1715 -- Fiction
Entirely composed of gentlemen of good family, almost all of them young,
very well dressed, and extremely well mounted, and of course not having
at all the air of common soldiers, the Earl of Derwentwater's regiment
caused great excitement.
Flattered by their reception, these young gentlemen bowed to the ladies,
and in some instances persuaded themselves that their salutations were
returned. Perhaps it might have been so, since it is certain the ladies
were not displeased.
General Forster was not so much admired, and the ladies declared he
was not fit to have the command of such an army; but they praised Lord
Widdrington's regiment, and wondered how so many fine young men could
have been got together. The Scottish nobles and the Lowland corps
delighted them, but they were quite astounded by the Highlanders, with
whose picturesque garb they were not familiar.
They could not help contrasting these fierce-looking savages, as they
styled them, with the handsome Englishmen, and Brigadier Mackintosh,
with his tall, stalwart figure and grim countenance filled them with
terror.
After crossing the bridge without any other interruption, except
the very agreeable one described, the insurgent army marched to the
market-place, followed by an immense concourse. Here the Highlanders
formed themselves in a body round the cross, and the whole of the
cavalry, having their swords bared, drew up around them. General Forster
with the English and Scottish nobles were stationed in the centre of the
throng.
King James the Third was then proclaimed amid the hearty cheers of
the multitude. This done, the troops moved away, and were billeted and
quartered in every part of the town. While the proclamation was being
made, Captain Gordon had remarked a person at the open window of a
stationer's shop, kept by a certain Christopher Hopkins, evidently
engaged in counting the numbers of the insurgents, and entering the
particulars with great care in a small memorandum book. Suspecting that
the man's design was to afford information to the Government, Captain
Gordon went to the shop as soon as the crowd began to disperse, and
then found that the individual he had seen preparing the report was
Christopher Hopkins himself. Interrogated by Captain Gordon, Hopkins
admitted that he had taken down the numbers of the insurgent army, and,
moreover, had given the report to his friend Ralph Fairbrother, who was
about to take it to General Carpenter at Newcastle.
As Hopkins refused to give any further information, Captain Gordon
ordered his immediate arrest, and directed that he should be kept in
strict custody till Ralph Fairbrother was found. Fairbrother's residence
was discovered, but he had already set out on his errand. A reward of
thirty pounds was offered for his capture, but proved ineffectual.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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