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On
the 22nd of August King Charles, joined by his nephews the Princes
Rupert and Maurice of the Rhine, sons of his sister Elizabeth, Queen
of Bohemia, set up his standard at Nottingham, the Earl of
Essex moving against him, on behalf of parliament. There were a
number of small, indecisive engagements, and then, on the 23rd of
October, was fought the Battle of Edgehill, in Warwickshire. It was
more of a drawn fight than a great victory; but the circumstances
turned the result much to the advantage of the King. The
parliamentarians went into retreat, and sent urgent appeals to
Scotland for help.

Suddenly
all was changed. It was come time for acting, not scheming,
manoeuvre and diplomacy. And Archibald Campbell was less expert at
this.

Late
in that year of trembling balance, Alexander Henderson arrived,
alone, at Kincardine Castle, for a second visit exactly six years
after his first, looking tired, drawn and much more than those six
years older. But still strong, stern, upright. He came, he told
the younger man, at the behest of the Committee of the Estates, to
seek the aid of the Earl of Montrose, and to offer him the
Lieutenant-Generalship of the Scots forces about to proceed on
active service.

James
Graham stared at his visitor. 'Can it be true? Can you be serious,
man?' he cried. 'After all that is past, you can come here to me
again!
In
heaven's bright name - why? Why, I say?'

'For
the same reason that I came before, my lord,' the other said evenly.
'Because I, and others, believe that this realm needs you, in this
pass. And conceive you to love your country, despite all.'

"Despite
all! Aye, well may you say it. And you? You conceive yourself, you
and your like, to represent that country?'

Henderson
raised dark, bushy brows. 'If not we - who? The duly elected
representatives of parliament and the Assembly. If not we - who then
? However unworthy.'

'And
the Campbell? Your master?'

'I
have only one Master, sir. But . . . my lord Marquis assents.'

'He
assents!' Montrose took grip of himself, so that his knuckles
gleamed white. 'Master Henderson - for you I retain some respect.
Although. I mislike much of the company you keep! Argyll has
taken and soiled a noble cause. And few therein have sought to
counter him. I have not seen yourself prominent in this! You who
brought Argyll into it.'

'As
I brought you, my lord. With the Earl of Rothes.' 'As you brought
me, to my cost! And now the Campbell rules Scotland, and stains its
honour. And you come to me?' 'I come to you, yes.'

Helplessly
the Graham shook his head. 'I cannot understand you, sir. That
you should conceive it possible that I should once again put my neck
into the noose. Or take up a cause which I believe to have gone far
wrong.'

The
cause is not wholly wrong yet - and can be righted. Must be righted.
And
I
never
conceived you to be so fearful for your neck, my lord!
'

The
cause, the Covenant, is dead. Murdered by Archibald Campbell. You
have sold your king, and mine - gained all that you wished from him,
and then sold him! With such cause I will have no truck.'

'You
judge too harshly. The King only gave us what we sought, and what
Scotland required, because we forced him to it. Though weak, he is
the most stubborn of men. Think you that he will let us keep what we
have gained, our liberty to worship as we will, if we do not still
press him? He is a man consumed with the knowledge that he is right,
that all others are wrong. If he wins this battle with his English
parliament, then we in Scotland will feel the weight of his hand.
And where will our won freedom be then?'

‘
You
call this freedom? I'd mind you, sir, that
I
tasted
five months of it, in Edinburgh Castle!'

"That
was ill done, yes. I, and others, sought to undo that wrong. But
your enemies were too strong for us . . .'

'Argyll
and Hamilton, you mean. Can you not say their names, man ? Though
indeed, Hamilton is but a jackal in the coils of a snake! He could
do nothing, without the Campbell. I have no enemy in this realm
that I need cast a glance at, save
MacCailean
Mor.
.
He
whom you have raised on high.'

'A
national cause, my lord, cannot be over-nice in the props it uses to
support it. My lord Marquis is a great noble, as are you. Entitled
to take a hand in the affairs of this realm - as are you. You may
not love each other, but you are nevertheless both powerful peers of
Scotland whom the realm must look to in its needs. Do you blame the
realm, or me, for your quality?'

'By
God, sir - now you speak plain! And I will do likewise. Since
Argyll is so much to your liking, appoint
him
Lieutenant-General!
Let him lead the army into England. I gladly defer the command!'

Henderson
changed neither his grave expression nor his even, calm speech. 'Not
so, my lord. In this,
you
can
serve Scotland the better. The King has won certain victories, and
the tide of war seems set in his favour meantime. The English
parliament demands the aid our parliament promised them in their
fight against the bishops. Such aid we must send.

But
clearly-such army must be most carefully led. Not to fight against
the King. Not to fight at all, if it is possible. The position is
delicate. It could find itself in dire straits. If the parliament
cause were to go down swiftly, and the King thought to tum on it. It
must therefore be led by more than
a
mere
soldier. You understand? The Earl of Leven is
a
good
soldier. But...'

'To
be sure, sir - I understand very well. You and your friends are
concerned lest you support the wrong side, the
losing
side!
You are not concerned with right and wrong, you are concerned with
expediency. The Scots army is to smite its own monarch, if he is
losing; but not if he is winning ! That would be inexpedient.
And you cannot trust old Leslie with the delicate business. Too
blunt a man.'

'You
judge too harshly, my lord. We - that is, the Scots parliament and
the General Assembly - are committed to aid our English brethren in
their
struggle
for freedom of worship and the reform of government - as we have
gained for ourselves. As is only right and proper. But we are not in
rebellion against the King. Our true function is to mediate, to use
our army for that good purpose. Not to fight battles and shed blood.
Leslie is a soldier, and nothing more. But you - you have shown
yourself to have both a gift for strategy, for soldiering, and also
for statecraft. Moreover, the King is disposed in your favour...'

'And
there you have it! The King is disposed in my favour. If the King's
cause prospers, you may want that favour - so you turn to me. But if
it fails, where would Montrose be then? Like as not Argyll's
prisoner once again, with Leslie resuming fullest command! Think you
I am
a
child,
Master Henderson ? Not to see it?'

'I
think that you see it amiss. The position is delicate, as all must
admit. It must be delicately handled, for Scotland's sake. This you
cannot deny, my lord. And we conceive that
you
can
handle it delicately.'

'Amiss
or none, what I see is that you would have me play turncoat and
trimmer, prepared to sail with the most convenient wind. That,
I promise you, I will not do. Go back to our King's new marquis,
better qualified than am I to so sail, and tell him to go south with
Leslie. The Commander-in-Chief will heed
his
voice,
never fear I The King chose to honour Argyll - not Montrose. Will he
not be disposed further to favour him?'

'My
lord Marquis conceives it is his duty to remain in Scotland...'

'Do
you tell me so? Then, what of that other royal favourite, Hamilton ?
Would he not serve very well, for this delicate mission ? And him so
close to the Campbell.'

'My
lord of Hamilton is scarce suited to it. . .'

'And,
on my soul, nor am I, sir! I am a loyal subject of King Charles, one
of those whom he should be able to trust. He is our liege lord,
however many his mistakes. I say that he has been shamefully used by
those who rule in Scotland today. I will by no means aid them in it,
further.'

'So,
my lord - you choose the King, in the end ? Not the Covenant.'

'I
chose the Covenant while still I could be loyal to the King in it.
But now that Covenant is dead, trampled by self-seekers and by
fanatic preachers. Aye -
I
choose
the King!'

There
was a long pause. Then Alexander Henderson sighed. ‘I am
sorry, my lord of Montrose. Truly sorry.' And stiffly he bowed
himself out.

Slowly,
heavily, Montrose climbed the narrow turnpike stair to his private
chamber at the tower-head. Unlocking a drawer there, he took from it
a letter, much scuffed and battered. It was headed from Nottingham,
and dated the 22nd of August, the day that the King raised the royal
standard there - although it had only reached Montrose
recently, and by devious means, having certainly been opened, read
and considered by his enemies on route, Will Murray being Will
Murray. It went:

My
good lord and truist Cousin,

I
send Will Murray to Scotland to inform my friends of the state of my
affairs and to require both their advice and assistance. You are one
whom I have found most faithful, and in whom I repose greatest
trust. Therefore I address him chiefly to you. You may credit him in
what he shall say, both in relation to my business and to your own;
and you must be content with words until I be able to act. I will
say no more but that I am your loving friend,

CHARLES
R.