Page:A biographical dictionary of eminent Scotsmen, vol 5.djvu/162

222 Scotland, she arrived in the latter kingdom in June, 1538. Mary landed at Balcomie in Fife, where she was received by the king-, surrounded by a great number of his nobles. From thence the royal party proceeded to Dundee, St Andrews, then to Stirling; from that to Linlithgow ; and lastly to Edinburgh. In all of these places the royal pair were received with every demonstration of popular joy, and were sumptuously entertained by the magistrates and other authorities of the different towns. James, by a long and steady perseverance in the administration of justice, without regard to the wealth or rank of the culprits, and by the wholesome restraint under which he held the turbulent nobles, had now secured a degree of peace and prosperity to the country which it had not enjoyed for many years before. His power was acknowledged and felt in the most remote parts of the Lowlands of Scotland, and even a great part of the Highlands. But the western isles, and the most northern extremity of the kingdom, places then difficult of access, and comparatively but little known, were still made the scenes of the most lawless and atrocious deeds by the fierce and restless chieftains, and their clans, by whom they were inhabited. James, however, resolved to carry and establish .his authority even there. He resolved to "beard the lion in his den;" to bring these desperadoes to Justice in the midst of their barbarous hordes; and this bold design he determined to execute in person. He ordered twelve ships, well provided with artillery, to be ready against the fourteenth day of May. The personal preparations of the king, and those made for his accommodation in the ship in which he was himself to embark on this expedition, were extensive and multifarious. His cabin was hung with green cloth, and his bed with black damask. Large quantities of silver plate, and culinary utensils, with stores for cooking, were put on board; and also a vast number of tents and pavilions, for the accommodation of his suite, when they should land in the isles. The monarch himself was equipped in a suit of red velvet, ornamented with gold embroidery, and the ship in which be sailed was adorned with splendid flags, and numerous streamers of red and yellow serge.

The expedition, which had been delayed for fourteen days beyond the time appointed, by the advanced state of the queen's pregnancy, finally set sail for its various destinations in the beginning of June.

The royal squadron, on reaching the western shores, proceeded deliberately from island to island, and from point to point of the mainland, the king landing on each, and summoning the various chieftains to his presence. Some of these he executed on the spot, others he carried away with him as hostages for the future peaceful conduct of their kinsmen and followers; and thus, after making the terror of his name and the sternness of his justice felt in every glen in the Highlands, he bent his way again homewards. James himself landed at Dumbarton, but the greater part of his ships, including those on board of which were the captured chieftains, were sent round to Leith.

Having now reduced the whole country to such a state of tranquillity, and so effectually accomplished the security of private property every where, that it is boasted, that, at this period of his reign, flocks of sheep were as safe in Ettrick forest as in the province of Fife, he betook himself to the improvement of his kingdom by peaceful pursuits. He imported superior breeds of horses to improve the native race of that animal. He promoted the fisheries, and invited artisans and mechanics of all descriptions to settle in the country, encouraging them by the offer of liberal wages, and, in many cases, by bestowing small annual pensions. With every promise of a long and happy reign, and in the midst of exertions which entitled him to expect the latter, the cup was suddenly dashed from his lips. Misfortune on misfortune crowded on the ill-starred