haue made him and his people easy, had that good harmony continued to the end with which they so wisely began; but the unruly temper of some and the misguided judgment of others would not suffer the Nation to be long sencible of those blessings of peace, plenty, and security, without taxes, opression, or any real grieuance, till they had led the people away by spacious dilusions of words, precious in their due signification, but abused to the worst of things, and by perswading them their Religion, Laws, and liues were in danger, beguil'd them at last into a real slavery, by those very methods which were pretended to be the only means of avoiding it. As the Scots had led the way to the English Parliament in their dutifull comportment to the King, so now they take example from the English generositie, and settled two hundred sixty thousand pound a year upon his Majesty, and that for his life too; nor did Argile's landing in the middle of these transactions (thō Some were startled at it) put any check upon their zeal, or hinder a happy conclusion of that Sessions to the common Satisfaction both of King and people. TOM. III. 1685. The Scotch Parliament settle a great revenue. That Lord had the Covenant so rooted in his heart, that he Argile lands the 14. May. had never been throroughly reconcil'd to the established government, and if he comported himself peacefully during the late King's reign, it was because he had taken the Covenant at his first comeing into Scotland; which fanatical disposition being embitter'd by the hardsheps he conceiu'd had been put upon him in his late tryal and condemnation for equivocateing about the Test, together with his present uneasy circomstances of exile and outlawry, made him think any hazard preferrable to the condition he was in, especially since the King's Religion gaue him so much hopes he should find great numbers no less dissatisfyd than himself. Haveing therefore concerted matters with the Duke of TOM. III. 1685. Monmouth, he set sail from Vlye in Holland upon the 2a of May, and apear'd before Orkney the 5th, where sending his Secretary and Chirurgeon on shore, they were both seized by the inhabitants of the Island and sent up to the priuy Council of Edinburgh; which disincouraging his landing there, he made for the West of Scotland and went a shore at Dunstafnage in Lorn, an old ruinous Castle, where he placed a garison and then went further into the Country, publishing a Declaration in the name of the Protestant Noblemen, Gentlemen, Burgesses, &c, of the Kingdom of Scotland, with the concurrance of the true faithfull pastors, and of Severall gentlemen of the English Nation join'd with them in the same cause: This Declaration sett forth the happy success of the war against King Charles the 1st, the goodness of that cause, and the loyalty of the Covenanters, it blamed the Parliament for abolishing the laws made during the war, and turning out the Nonconformist Ministers, it accused the Government for executing men against law, annoying the Churches, changing God's ordinances into those of men, conniveing at Papists, and keeping up standing forces; it renounced the King's supremicy, declared against the warrs with Holland, and the forfeiters of the Lord Argile, the torture of Spence and Castares (the discoverers of the late Conspiracy) against the inquirys made into the insurrection at Bothwell bridg, it declared also against the King's enthronement as incapacetated by the Bill of Exclusion, and so call'd him only James Duke of York, as also against the Parliament of England as illegally elected; and lastely declared, that they threw of all bonds of Subjection and tooke up armes against the Same James Duke of York and all his accomplices, their unnatural and wicked enemys, with intent to restore the Protestant Religion and extirpate Popery, to satify those of their partie; renouncing to all treaty or agreement with the said James Duke of York, promising indemnity to all such, as would join with them against a persecuting Tyrant TOM. and an Apostate partie. Besides this general Declaration, Argile put out an other in his own name, as their leader; affirming he had no private ends for himself, but only those in the general Declaration, that he clam'd nothing but his own particular rights, and promissed upon the recovery of his estate to pay his own and father's debts, that he had undergon three years and a halfs banishment for an unjust Sentence in the late King's reign, to whom he was always loyal, but that the Duke of York haueing invaded the Religion and liberties of the Kingdom, he thought it not only just but his duty to repress his Tyrany and Vsurpation. It was no small advantage to the King that he had to doe with such fiery patriots, and plain spoken enemys, who slighting those colourable pretences of abuses, grievances, and palliateing contrivances, to draw men insencibly into the wickedest attempts, declare at first blow, against the very foundations of the government both in Church and State; which was an argument to unite the Kingdom as readily against them, and made the Parliament in Scotland denounce him forthwith a Traitor, declareing they would mentain and assert the Royal prerogatiue, and order'd all the Subjects of the Kingdom to take the Oath of Allegiance again. By this time he was got as far into the Country as a place called Completown, from whence he sent a general summons for all to come in to him within the division of Cowel, and particular letters to Severall gentlemen, threatening some with military executition if they apear'd not, others he engaged by promisses, and when he had got together about Six hundred foot and a hundred hors, he marched from Completown and Kintire; at Tarbal he met three hundred Ilia men, being attended all this while with three Shipps, one of thirty, an other III. 1685. TOM. 1685. of twelve, and the therd of Six gunns, with some twenty small boats; upon which embarKing his men he came to the Town of Rothsay in the Island of Bute, from thence he sail'd to Cowel one of the divisions of Argileshire, and would haue brought his Shipps into Loughfine, but being informed that the KING'S FISHER, and the FALCON two of his Majestys Frigats, were comeing up to Locke-rowan, he drew his Shipps under a small fort adjoining to the Castle of Elingrel, which he fortifyd in the best manner he could, leaveing there his gunns, armes, and amunition, with a hundred and fifty men for its defence; but upon the first apearance of the Frigats the garison fled, abandoning their Shipps, boats, amunition, and armes, amounting at least to fiue thousand, togather with fiue hundred barrils of powder, with ball and other stores proportionable. The King's forces were in motion some time before this; and the Marques of Athol at the head of three hundred of his Majestys foot, meeting with a partie of Argile's men which had been sent out to make inroads into the Country, thō they were 400 foot and 80 horse, yet he charg'd and defeated them, which put a stop to their progress for some time, and gaue the Earle of Dunbarton who was Commander in Chief, leasure to advance towards the Rebells, who now were grown to the number of near three thousand men, and haueing pass'd the riuer Levil obliged the Earle of Dunbarton to march towards Sterling to meet them, who accordingly came up with them in the parish of Killern, but finding them too well posted, and the night comeing on, he thought it not advisable to attack them till break of day next morning; but Argile foreseeing the danger, marched off silently in the night, and swiming the river Clide with his hors, he found boats to transport his foot, and arriued at Kenfrew with the greatest part of his forces, thō a pannick fear had already seized them, and caused a great desertion during the night. III. 1685. This put My Lord Dunbarton upon a necessity of marching TOM. to Glasgow, from whence he follow'd the enemy with all the expedition immaginable, at the head of his horse and dragoons, leaveing the foot to follow as fast as they could: Argile upon notice of this, thought to haue shunn'd him by a shorter cut, and so haue got to Glasgow himself, but by the mistake of his guide was lead into a boggy ground, where being forced to abandon his horse and bagage, the foot devided into several parties, which the Earle of Dunbarton haveing notice of, devided his forces too, in order to pursue them; My Lord Ross at the head of some horse and dragoons came up with a partie of the Rebells commanded by S' John Cockram, who posting himself in a strong inclosure made some resistance, where the Captain of the Dragoons was kill'd, My Lord Ross wounded, S Adam Blair shot in the neck, and S William Wallace of Cregie in the side; but the Dragoons alighting off their horses, forced them at last, and thō S' John Cockram and his Son broke their way thorough, they were taken soon after, and sent prisoners to Edinburg togather with Rumbald, one who had been a furious stickler in the Rye house Conspiracy, and had now joined himself with the Scotch invaders. Argile himself upon the first seperation of his troops, had Argile Taken. fled back towards Clide, and being met by two servants of Grenock an officer in the King's Army, they not knowing him call'd to him to surrender, but he standing upon his defence, receiud a hurt; upon which he abandon'd his hors and run into the water up to the neck, the nois of this bussle brought out a Country fellow, who run into the water after him; Argile would haue fired his pistol at him, but it misserueing, the man gaue him a blow on the head which stunn'd him so, that he fell down in the water, and at the same time cryd out, Unfortunate Argile; upon which been seized (June 17) he was brought prisoner to Edinburg; where |