The Last Laird of MacNab: An Episode in the Settlement of MacNab Township, Upper Canada
History
The Last Laird of MacNab: An Episode in the Settlement of MacNab Township, Upper Canada
MacNab, Archibald, 1778?-1860
whole civil powers of Perth and Stirling to their assistance. Dr.
Hamilton jeered and laughed at them. At length they departed, vowing
vengeance against all parties concerned. Chief MacNab lay closely
concealed in the glen all day. Provisions and clothes were sent to him,
and at night he again stealthily entered Leney House. A spy had been
left in close proximity to the park to watch proceedings, and he saw
what had taken place. He was on his way to inform his employers that the
bird was trapped, but just as he cleared the park gates and entered the
Callender road, the unfortunate spy was seized by four sturdy
Highlanders, gagged and blind-folded, and carried to a lint-mill near
Loch Labuig, and there kept a close prisoner for forty-eight hours. He
was well used and well fed until his period of incarceration had
expired. In the meantime, two faithful servants of Dr. Hamilton had
prepared the coach and horses for a long journey. These two were Peter
MacIntyre, who died in 1868 at the Calabogie Lake; and John Buchan, who
also came to Canada, and for many years resided at Point Fortune, a
respectable and wealthy farmer. At midnight, MacNab being well provided
with funds and necessaries, bade farewell to his cousin of Leney, and
set out for Dundee with Buchanan and MacIntyre. Every precaution was
taken on the road; but it was needless, for the officers of the law
were calmly sleeping at the head inn of Callender, expecting to hear
from their spy, little Johnny Crerar, if anything unusual occurred. The
Chief arrived safely at Dundee, took shipping for London, thence to
Quebec; and the first news Lord Breadalbane and his messengers heard of
him was in the public journals of Montreal, of a great dinner and
ovation given in Montreal by the _upper ten_ to Highland Chieftain
MacNab. The decree of the Court of Session had no power in Canada;
consequently MacNab was free. We may as well state that Watt remained
round Callender for two days, searching for little Johnny; at length the
spy appeared, and informed them of all that had occurred. There were no
telegraphs in those days, and they believed the Chief was still in
Scotland, and they made frequent excursions to Kennell; and they were
only undeceived in their suppositions when the news of MacNab's safe
arrival on the other side of the Atlantic reached them. Watt, the
celebrated King's messenger, was for once outwitted and completely
non-plussed.
CHAPTER II.
THE M'NAB IN CANADA.
From Montreal McNab went to Glengarry, and saw the Highlanders there,
and remained with Bishop McDonnell for a fortnight. It was that
venerable prelate--the emigrant's friend, without any distinction as to
creed--who first spoke to him of the Ottawa. He was really the friend of
distressed humanity, whether of a Catholic's or Protestant's type. He
put into philanthropic exercise Queen Dido's maxim:
"Tros, Tyrinsque mihi nullo discrimine agetur."[1]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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