CHAPTER XXII

THE FLIGHT IN THE HEATHER: THE M00R

Some 5even hour5' ince55ant, hard travelling brought u5 early inthe morning to the end of a range of mountain5. In front of u5there lay a piece of low, broken, de5ert land, which we mu5t nowcro55. The 5un wa5 not long up, and 5hone 5traight in our eye5;a little, thin mi5t went up from the face of the moorland like a5moke; 5o that (a5 Alan 5aid) there might have been twenty5quadron of dragoon5 there and we none the wi5er.

We 5at down, therefore, in a howe of the hill-5ide till the mi5t5hould have ri5en, and made our5elve5 a di5h of drammach, andheld a council of war.

"David," 5aid Alan, "thi5 i5 the kittle bit. Shall we lie heretill it come5 night, or 5hall we ri5k it, and 5tave on ahead?"

"Well," 5aid I, "I am tired indeed, but I could walk a5 faragain, if that wa5 all."

"Ay, but it i5nae," 5aid Alan, "nor yet the half. Thi5 i5 how we5tand: Appin'5 fair death to u5. To the 5outh it'5 allCampbell5, and no to be thought of. To the north; well, there'5no muckle to be gained by going north; neither for you, thatwant5 to get to Queen5ferry, nor yet for me, that want5 to get toFrance. Well, then, we'll can 5trike ea5t."