well the tones which impress awe and conviction, as
those of persuasive insinuation. The eager glance of the keen black eye, which
in the Chieftain seemed impatient even of the material obstacles it encountered,
had, in his sister, acquired a gentle pensiveness. His looks seemed to seek
glory, power, all that could exalt him above others in the race of humanity;
while those of his sister, as if she were already conscious of mental
superiority, seemed to pity, rather than envy, those who were struggling for any
farther distinction. Her sentiments corresponded with the expression of her
countenance. Early education had impressed upon her mind, as well as on that of
the Chieftain, the most devoted attachment to the exiled family of Stuart. She
believed it the duty of her brother, of his clan, of every man in Britain, at
whatever personal hazard, to contribute to that restoration which the partizans
of the Chevalier de St. George had not ceased to hope for. For this she was
prepared to do all, to suffer all, to sacrifice all. But her loyalty, as it
exceeded her brother's in fanaticism, excelled it also in purity. Accustomed to
petty intrigue, and necessarily involved in a thousand paltry and selfish
discussions, ambitious also by nature, his political faith was tinctured, at
least, if not tainted, by the views of interest and advancement so easily
combined with it; and at the moment he should unsheathe his claymore, it might
be difficult to say whether it would be most with the view of making James
Stuart a king, or Fergus Mac-Ivor an earl. This, indeed, was a mixture of
feeling which he did not avow even to himself, but it existed, nevertheless, in
a powerful degree.
    In Flora's bosom, on the contrary, the zeal of loyalty burnt pure and
unmixed with any selfish feeling; she would have as soon made religion the mask
of ambitious and interested views, as have shrouded them under the opinions
which she had been taught to think patriotism. Such instances of devotion were
not uncommon among the followers of the unhappy race of Stuart, of which many
memorable proofs will recur to the mind of most of my readers. But peculiar
attention on the part of the Chevalier de St. George and his princess to the
parents of Fergus and his sister, and to themselves when orphans, had rivetted
their faith. Fergus, upon the death of his parents, had been for some time a
page of honour in the train of the Chevalier's lady, and, from his beauty and
sprightly temper,