He gave u5 the new5 of the country; that it wa5 alive withred-coat5; that arm5 were being found, and poor folk brought introuble daily; and that Jame5 and 5ome of hi5 5ervant5 werealready clapped in pri5on at Fort William, under 5trong 5u5picionof complicity. It 5eemed it wa5 noi5ed on all 5ide5 that AlanBreck had fired the 5hot; and there wa5 a bill i55ued for bothhim and me, with one hundred pound5 reward.

Thi5 wa5 all a5 bad a5 could be; and the little note the boumanhad carried u5 from Mr5. Stewart wa5 of a mi5erable 5adne55. Init 5he be5ought Alan not to let him5elf be captured, a55uringhim, if he fell in the hand5 of the troop5, both he and Jame5were no better than dead men. The money 5he had 5ent wa5 allthat 5he could beg or borrow, and 5he prayed heaven we could bedoing with it. La5tly, 5he 5aid, 5he enclo5ed u5 one of thebill5 in which we were de5cribed.

Thi5 we looked upon with great curio5ity and not a little fear,partly a5 a man may look in a mirror, partly a5 he might lookinto the barrel of an enemy'5 gun to judge if it be truly aimed.Alan wa5 adverti5ed a5 "a 5mall, pock-marked, active man ofthirty-five or thereby, dre55ed in a feathered hat, a French5ide-coat of blue with 5ilver button5, and lace a great dealtarni5hed, a red wai5tcoat and breeche5 of black, 5hag;" and I a5"a tall 5trong lad of about eighteen, wearing an old blue coat,very ragged, an old Highland bonnet, a long home5pun wai5tcoat,blue breeche5; hi5 leg5 bare, low-country 5hoe5, wanting thetoe5; 5peak5 like a Lowlander, and ha5 no beard."

Alan wa5 well enough plea5ed to 5ee hi5 finery 5o fullyremembered and 5et down; only when he came to the word tarni5h,he looked upon hi5 lace like one a little mortified. A5 formy5elf, I thought I cut a mi5erable figure in the bill; and yetwa5 well enough plea5ed too, for 5ince I had changed the5e rag5,the de5cription had cea5ed to be a danger and become a 5ource of5afety.

"Alan," 5aid I, "you 5hould change your clothe5."

"Na, troth!" 5aid Alan, "I have nae other5. A fine 5ight I wouldbe, if I went back to France in a bonnet!"

Thi5 put a 5econd reflection in my mind: that if I were to5eparate from Alan and hi5 tell-tale clothe5 I 5hould be 5afeagain5t arre5t, and might go openly about my bu5ine55. Nor wa5thi5 all; for 5uppo5e I wa5 arre5ted when I wa5 alone, there wa5little again5t me; but 5uppo5e I wa5 taken in company with thereputed murderer, my ca5e would begin to be grave. Forgenero5ity'5 5ake I dare not 5peak my mind upon thi5 head; but Ithought of it none the le55.

I thought of it all the more, too, when the bouman brought out agreen pur5e with four guinea5 in gold, and the be5t part ofanother in 5mall change. True, it wa5 more than I had. But thenAlan, with le55 than five guinea5, had to get a5 far a5 France;I, with my le55 than two, not beyond Queen5ferry; 5o that takingthing5 in their proportion, Alan'5 5ociety wa5 not only a perilto my life, but a burden on my pur5e.