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The town-head fronted the upper bay, and between it and the grinding ice on the shore lay a broad tract of what might be called esplanade, presenting ample space for our encounter. Give them cold steel, and never an inch of arm-room for their bills!" Forgotten were the boats, behind lay all our loves and fortunes was ever Highland heart but swelled on such a time?
On the night of the twentieth, however, shortly before ten o'clock, James Gottera, our friend, came with the cart in at the town-head port, and in going down the gait stopped, as had been agreed, to give his beast a drink at the trough of the cross-well, opposite the tolbooth-stair foot.
"A more unfriendly man to the Laird of MacLachlan might be for hanging you on the gibbet at the town-head," said his lordship to the prisoners, spraying ink-sand idly on the clean page of a statute-book as he spoke; "but our three trees upbye are leased just now to other tenants, Badenoch hawks a trifle worse than yourselves, and more deserving."
"Not a minute," said the boy, raising his head, and looking boldly at his guardian. "I am a free-born Englishman, and will return to England if I think fit." "A free-born fool you are," said Gray; "you were born, as I think, and no one can know better than I do, in the blue room of Stevenlaw's Land, in the Town-head of Middlemas, if you call that being a free-born Englishman."
But it was no time for meditation. Through the rags of plaiding on the chains went the wind again so eerily that I bound to be off, and I put my horse to it, bye the town-head and up the two miles to Glen Shira.
Spencer of the Inns, beholding this cobweb-headed youth continually coming through the Arches and hanging expectant about the town-head, often the only figure there in these hot silent days to give life to the empty scene.
Still the moaning sound came from the town-head, and I went slowly riding in its direction. It grew clearer and yet uncannier as I sped on, and mixed with the sough of it I could hear at last the clink of chains. "What in God's name have I here?" said I to myself, turning round Islay Campbell's corner, and yonder was my answer! The town gibbets were throng indeed!
Whereon Amyas was called to counsel, as soon as Mr. Cary could be stopped in a long cross-examination of him as to Mr. Doughty's famous trial and execution. Amyas pondered awhile, thrusting his hands into his long curls; and then "Will, my lad, have you been watching at the Deer Park End of late?" "Never." "Where, then?" "At the town-beach." "Where else? "At the town-head." "Where else?"
In short, in the course of the third year from the time of the election, he was rookit of every plack he had in the world, and was obligated to take the benefit of the divor's bill, soon after which he went suddenly away from the town, on the pretence of going into Edinburgh, on some business of legality with his wife's brother, with whom he had entered into a plea concerning the moiety of a steading at the town-head.
Even the wolf from Benderloch no doubt came baying at night at the empty gibbets at the town-head, that spoke of the law's suspense. Only in Castle Inneraora was there anything to be called gaiety.
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