| There is nothing so remarkable in the
political history of any country as the succession of the Highland chiefs, and the long
and uninterrupted sway which they held over their followers. The authority which a chief
exercised among his clan was truly paternal, and he might, with great justice, have been
called the father of his people. We cannot account for that warm attachment and the
incorruptible and unshaken fidelity which the clans uniformly displayed towards their
chiefs, on any other ground, than the kind and conciliatory system which they must have
adopted towards their people; for, much as the feelings of the latter might have been
awakened, by the songs and traditions of the bards, to a respect for the successors of the
heroes whose praises they heard celebrated, a sense of wrongs committed, or of oppression
exercised, would have obliterated every feeling of attachment in the minds of the
sufferers and caused them to attempt to get rid of a tyrant who had rendered himself
obnoxious by his tyranny. The division of the people
into small tribes, and the establishment of patriarchal government, were attended with
many important consequences affecting the character of the Highlanders. This creation of
an imperium in imperio was an anomaly, but it was, nevertheless, rendered necessary from
the state of society in the Highlands shortly after the transference of the seat of
government from the mountains. The authority of the king, though weak and inefficient,
continued, however, to be recognised, nominally at least, except indeed when he interfered
in the disputes between the clans. On such occasions his authority was utterly
disregarded, "His mandates could neither stop the depredations of one clan against
another nor allay their mutual hostilities. Delinquents could not, with impunity, be
pursued into the bosom of a clan which protected them, nor could his judges administer the
laws in opposition to their interests or their will. Sometimes he strengthened his arm by
fomenting animosities among them, and by entering occasionally into the interest of one,
in order to weaken another. Many instances of this species of policy occur in Scottish
history, which, for a long period, was unhappily a mere record of internal violence.
The general laws being thus superseded by the internal
feuds of the clans, and the authority of the sovereign being insufficient to repress these
disorders, a perpetual system of warfare, aggression, depredation, and contention existed
among them, which, during the continuance of clanship, banished peace from the Highlands.
The little sovereignties of the clans "touched at so many points, yet were so
independent of one another; they approached so nearly, in many respects, yet were, in
others, so distant; there were so many opportunities of encroachment, on the one hand, and
so little of a disposition to submit to it, on the other; and the quarrel of one
individual of the tribe so naturally involved the rest, that there was scarcely ever a
profound peace, or perfect cordiality between them. Among their chiefs the most deadly
feuds frequently arose from opposing interests, or from wounded pride. These feuds were
warmly espoused by the whole clan, and were often transmitted, with aggravated animosity,
from generation to generation."
The disputes between opposing clans were frequently made
matters of negotiation, and their differences were often adjusted by treaties. Opposing
clans, as a means of strengthening themselves against the attack of their rivals, or of
maintaining the balance of power, also entered coalitions with friendly neighbours. These
bands of amity or manrent, as they were called, were of the nature of treaties of
offensive and defensive alliance, by which the contracting parties bound themselves to
assist each other; and it is remarkable that the duty of allegiance to the king was always
acknowledged in these treaties,- "always excepting my duty to our lord and king, and
to our kindred and friends," was a clause which was uniformly inserted in them. In
the same manner, when men who were not chiefs of clans, but of subordinate tribes, thus
bound themselves, their fidelity to their chiefs was always excepted. The smaller clans
who were unable to defend themselves, and such clans or families who had lost their
chiefs, were included in these friendly treaties. Under these treaties the smaller clans
identified themselves with the greater clans; they engaged in the quarrels, followed the
fortunes, and fought under the greater chiefs; but their ranks, as General Stewart
observes, were separately marshalled, and led by their own subordinate chieftains and
lairds, who owned submission only when necessary, for the success of combined operations.
Several instances of this union will be found in the history of the clans.
As the system of clanship, by ignoring the authority of the
sovereign and of the laws, prevented the clans from ever coming to any general terms of
accommodation for settling their differences, their feuds were interminable, and the
Highlands were, therefore, for ages, the theatre of a constant petty warfare destructive
of the social virtues. "The spirit of opposition and rivalry between the clans
perpetuated a system of hostility, encouraged the cultivation of the military at the
expense of the social virtues, and perverted their ideas of both law and morality. Revenge
was accounted a duty, the destruction of a neighbour a meritorious exploit, and rapine an
honourable occupation. Their love of distinction, and their conscious reliance on their
courage, when under the direction of these perverted notions, only tended to make their
feuds more implacable, their condition more agitated, and their depredations more
rapacious and desolating. Superstition added its influence in exasperating animosities, by
teaching the clansmen that, to revenge the death of a relation or friend, was a sacrifice
agreeable to their shades; thus engaging on the side of the most implacable hatred, and
the darkest vengeance, the most amiable and domestic of all our feelings - reverence for
the memory of the dead, and affection for the virtues of the living."
As the causes out of which feuds originated were
innumerable, so many of them were trivial and unimportant, but as submission to the most
trifling insult was considered disgraceful, and might, if overlooked, lead to fresh
aggression, the clan was immediately summoned, and the cry for revenge met with a ready
response in every breast. The most glaring insult that could be offered to a clan, was to
speak disrespectfully of its chief, an offence which was considered as a personal affront
by all his followers, and was resented accordingly.
It often happened that the insulted clan was unable to take
the field to repel aggression or to vindicate its honour; but the injury was never
forgotten, and the memory of it was treasured up till a fitting opportunity for taking
revenge should arrive. The want of strength was sometimes supplied by cunning, and the
blackest and deadliest intentions of hatred and revenge were sought to be perpetrated
under the mask of conciliation and friendship. This was the natural result of the
inefficiency of the laws which could afford no redress for wrongs, and which, therefore,
left every individual to vindicate his rights with his own hand. The feeling of revenge,
when directed against rival tribes, was cherished and honoured, and to such an extent was
it carried, that there are well authenticated instances where one of the adverse parties
has ben exterminated in the bloody and ferocious conflicts which the feuds occasioned.
As the wealth of the Highlanders consisted chiefly in
flocks and herds, "the usual mode of commencing attacks, or of making reprisals, was
by an incursion to carry off the cattle of the hostile clan. A predatory expedition was
the general declaration of enmity, and a command given by the chief to clear the pastures
of the enemy, constituted the usual letters of marque. These Creachs, as such depredations
were termed, were carried on with systematic order, and were considered as perfectly
justifiable. If lives were lost in these forays, revenge full and ample was taken, but in
general personal hostilities were avoided in these incursions either against the
Lowlanders or rival tribes. These predatory expeditions were more frequently directed
against the Lowlanders, whom the Highlanders considered as aliens, and whose cattle they,
therefore, considered as fair spoil at all times. The forays were generally executed with
great secrecy, and the cattle were often lifted and secured for a considerable time before
they were missed. To trace the cattle which had been thus carried off, the owners
endeavoured to discover their foot-marks in the grass, or by the yielding of the heath
over which they had passed; and so acute had the habit rendered their sight, that they
frequently succeeded, in this manner, in discovering their property. The man on whose
property the tract of the cattle was lost was held liable if he did not succeed in
following out the trace or discovering the cattle; and if he did not make restitution, or
offer to compensate the loss, an immediate quarrel was the consequence. A reward, called
Tasgal money, was sometimes offered for the recovery of stolen cattle; but as this was
considered in the light of a bribe, it was generally discouraged. The Camerons and some of
the other clans, it is said, bound themselves by oath never to accept such a reward, and
put to death all who should receive it. |
