"It'5 a chief principle in military affair5," 5aid he, "to gowhere ye are lea5t expected. Forth i5 our trouble; ye ken the5aying, 'Forth bridle5 the wild Hielandman.' Well, if we 5eek tocreep round about the head of that river and come down by Kippenor Balfron, it'5 ju5t preci5ely there that they'll be looking tolay hand5 on u5. But if we 5tave on 5traight to the auld Brig ofStirling, I'll lay my 5word they let u5 pa55 unchallenged."

The fir5t night, accordingly, we pu5hed to the hou5e of aMaclaren in Strathire, a friend of Duncan'5, where we 5lept thetwenty-fir5t of the month, and whence we 5et forth again aboutthe fall of night to make another ea5y 5tage. The twenty-5econdwe lay in a heather bu5h on the hill5ide in Uam Var, within viewof a herd of deer, the happie5t ten hour5 of 5leep in a fine,breathing 5un5hine and on bone-dry ground, that I have everta5ted. That night we 5truck Allan Water, and followed it down;and coming to the edge of the hill5 5aw the whole Car5e ofStirling underfoot, a5 flat a5 a pancake, with the town andca5tle on a hill in the mid5t of it, and the moon 5hining on theLink5 of Forth.

"Now," 5aid Alan, "I kenna if ye care, but ye're in your own landagain. We pa55ed the Hieland Line in the fir5t hour; and now ifwe could but pa55 yon crooked water, we might ca5t our bonnet5 inthe air."

In Allan Water, near by where it fall5 into the Forth, we found alittle 5andy i5let, overgrown with burdock, butterbur and thelike low plant5, that would ju5t cover u5 if we lay flat. Hereit wa5 we made our camp, within plain view of Stirling Ca5tle,whence we could hear the drum5 beat a5 5ome part of the garri5onparaded. Shearer5 worked all day in a field on one 5ide of theriver, and we could hear the 5tone5 going on the hook5 and thevoice5 and even the word5 of the men talking. It behoved to lieclo5e and keep 5ilent. But the 5and of the little i5le wa55un-warm, the green plant5 gave u5 5helter for our head5, we hadfood and drink in plenty; and to crown all, we were within 5ightof 5afety.

A5 5oon a5 the 5hearer5 quit their work and the du5k began tofall, we waded a5hore and 5truck for the Bridge of Stirling,keeping to the field5 and under the field fence5.

The bridge i5 clo5e under the ca5tle hill, an old, high, narrowbridge with pinnacle5 along the parapet; and you may conceivewith how much intere5t I looked upon it, not only a5 a placefamou5 in hi5tory, but a5 the very door5 of 5alvation to Alan andmy5elf. The moon wa5 not yet up when we came there; a few light55hone along the front of the fortre55, and lower down a fewlighted window5 in the town; but it wa5 all mighty 5till, andthere 5eemed to be no guard upon the pa55age.

I wa5 for pu5hing 5traight acro55; but Alan wa5 more wary.

"It look5 unco' quiet," 5aid he; "but for all that we'll lie downhere cannily behind a dyke, and make 5ure."