Part 16

To the sick and wounded Lord George invariably paid the utmost attention; and, under his guidance, the Highlanders, heretofore so fierce towards each other in their contests, were remarkable for a degree of humanity which was disgracefully contrasted with the barbarity of their conquerors. Such were his general attributes in his military station. Whatever doubts may have existed in the mind of Charles Edward as to the fidelity of his General, are silenced by the long and hopeless exile of Lord George Murray, and by the continued friendship of the Chevalier St. George. No overtures, as in the case of the Earl of Mar, to the British Government, nor efforts on the part of his prosperous and favoured brother, the Duke of Atholl, have transpired to show that in saving Blair, there was a secret understanding that there should be a future reward, nor that any surmise of treachery had opened a door to reconciliation. Charles, be it remembered, was under that daily, hourly influence, which weakens the judgment, and exasperates the passions. His opinion of Lord George Murray must not be accepted as any evidence against one who had redeemed the inconsistencies of his youth by the great exertions of his manhood.

Some vital defects there were, nevertheless, in this General, of powerful intellect, and of earnest and honourable intentions. His character partook too largely of that quality which has raised his country as a nation in all other countries, prudence. For his peculiar situation he was far too cautious. Persevering and inflexible, he was destitute of hope. If it be true, that he entered into the undertaking with a conviction that the cause could never prosper, he was the last man that should have been the general of an army whose ardour, when not engaged in action, he invariably restrained. All contending opinions seem to hesitate and to falter when they relate to the retreat from Derby, the grand error of the enterprise; the fatal step, when the tide served, and the wind was propitious, and an opportunity never to be regained, was for ever lost.

In private society, Lord George Murray is reported to have been overbearing and hasty; his fine person, and handsome countenance were lessened in their agreeableness by a haughty deportment. He was simple, temperate, and self-denying in his habits. In his relations of life, he appears to have been respectable. His letters show him to have enjoyed, at least, the usual means of education offered to a soldier, who entered upon active service at sixteen, or to have improved his own acquirements. They are clear and explicit, and bear the impress of sincerity and good sense.

Distrusted as he was by Charles Edward, and misrepresented by others, we may accord to Lord George Murray the indulgence which he claims from posterity in these, the last words of his vindication:--

"Upon the whole, I shall conclude with saying, if I did not all the good I would, I am sure I did all I could."

FOOTNOTES:

Nisbet's Heraldry, part iii. p. 205.

In the Life of the Marquis of Tullibardine, vol. i.

See Nisbet's Heraldry.

Nisbet's Heraldry, part iii. p. 206.

See a MS. Account of the Highlands of Scotland, British Museum, King's Library.

"Case of the Forfeited Estates, in a letter to a certain noble Lord. London, 1718."

Wodrow's Analecta, vol. iii. p. 232.

See Appendix, No. 1. for a curious original letter from Mr. Spence; for this document I am indebted to my brother-in-law, Samuel Coltman, Esq. It was in the possession of his mother.

"Genuine Memoirs of John Murray, Esq. London, 1746."

"Maxwell of Kirkconnel's Narrative," p. 4.

Life of James Murray, Esq.

See Atholl Correspondence. Printed for the Abbotsford Club.

Home, p. 31.

Narrative, p. 1.

Life of John Murray, Esq., p. 22.

See Stuart Papers, in Dr. Brown's History of the Highlands.

Life of J. Murray, Esq., p. 11.

This disposition, observes a modern Historian, was inherited both by Charles Edward and his brother from their mother, the Princess Clementina, who devoted herself, during the years of their infancy, to their welfare with unceasing care.--Histoire de Charles Edouard, par Amedee Pichot; tome premiere, p. 265.

Life of Sir Robert Walpole, vol. ii. p. 490.

Ibid. p. 492.

Life of Sir Robert Walpole, vol. ii. p. 550.

The Prince took off at the same time the interdict which had passed against any of Lord Orford's family appearing at his Court.