Earls of Hume and Roxburgh; and yet had received no message from them, nor heard that they were making the smallest preparation to join him. This moved him not a little; and he therefore resolved to march into their country, and force them to join his army. But this they had foreseen, and cunningly prevented his design. General Leslie, with whom they held a private correspondence, and of all whose motions they were informed, was by this time come the length of Berwick with his whole cavalry, besides a considerable reinforcement from England: immediately on his arrival, they themselves invited him to apprehend and make them prisoners; which was executed by a party of horse the very day before Montrose came to their houses. That cunning old fox Roxburgh practised this artifice as a consummate piece of policy: he expected to curry favour with the covenanters, by having thus voluntarily delivered himself into their protection; and at the same time was in no danger of losing that of the king, as he pretended that he fell into their hands much against his will. Besides, he had influence enough with the Earl of Hume to bring him into the same measures. This was Leslie's first exploit; after which he crossed the Tweed, and marched into the east parts of Lothian.

Montrose was by this time fully sensible of the treachery of these noblemen; and, as he had now lost all hopes of the assistance the king was to have

sent him from England, he saw himself in danger of being ruined by the enemy's obstructing his passage to the north-country and the Highlands; and therefore resolved, with the small army he had, to fall down into Nithsdale, Annandale, and the shire of Ayr, there to raise what forces he could: for although he had no certain information of the enemy's strength, yet he conjectured that it consisted chiefly in horse.

CHAP. XVI.

Montrose marches to Selkirk.-Where, by the negligence of his scouts, he is surprised by General Lesley.-Is overpowered and surrounded.-But cuts his way through the enemy with a few of his friends,-and retires into Athole to levy men.

FROM Kelso Montrose marched to Jedburgh, and thence to Selkirk. * He quartered his horse within the town, but his foot he stationed in a neighbouring wood, resolving to occupy all the advantages of the ground, lest he should be obliged to engage with an enemy, of whose strength he had yet got no certain information. He gave strict charge to the officers of his cavalry to send out several expert and trusty spies, and to place frequent guards in every convenient place; and above all, to be extremely careful to have their centinels regularly disposed. It was his custom to see all these things done himself, but that night he could not, being obliged to write letters to the king by a faithful messenger he had fallen upon, whom he was to dispatch before day. He, therefore, ear

September 12, 1645.

nestly begged of them to take care that the enemy, whose strength in horse he was afraid of, did not attack them at unawares; and the officers all promising the utmost diligence and attention, he trusted to their vigilance, and spent the whole night in making out his dispatches. Several uncertain reports were brought him through the night of the approach of the enemy, all which he transmitted to his officers. They were all men of very great military experience, and had acquired no small renown in that capacity, both at home and abroad; but, whether it was owing to the indolence of their spies, or that they deceived them. selves by an unaccountable fatality, they confidently and positively affirmed, that there was not an enemy near them. At day-break, some of the best and most expeditious of the cavalry were again sent out to reconnoitre; upon their return they averred, that they had scoured the country for ten miles round, and had carefully investigated all the bye-roads and passes, and swore that there was not an enemy in arms within ten miles of them. But it was afterwards found, when too late, that the enemy's army was not above four miles from Selkirk, and had passed that whole night under their

arms.

Upon the same day that Montrose marched from Jedburgh, General Leslie mustered his forces upon Gladsmoor, a large plain in the east part of Lothian; where, in a council of war held with the

chiefs of the covenanters, it was determined, that he should march by Edinburgh towards the Forth to oppose Montrose's retreat to the north country, and oblige him to fight before he was again joined by the Highlanders. This was no sooner concerted, than he changed the intended plan, and ordered his whole army to turn to the left, and march southward with the greatest expedition, by the way of Strath-gala.

All these who were unacquainted with the secret, were surprised what motives he could have for altering his first design, and taking the present route; but it was afterwards known from the enemy's own account what these were; he had some letters sent him, giving him an accurate account of Montrose's strength, which consisted only of five hundred Irish foot, and a few weak horse, and these, too, entirely undisciplined, so that he would be very easily defeated, were the present opportunity laid hold on of attacking him near the Tweed, where he then was. Lesly immediately prosecuted this advice, and, as we observed, had come within four miles of Selkirk that night. It was commonly reported, that Traquair was the person who sent this information to Lesly, but I cannot affirm it for truth; one thing, however, cannot be denied, that he sent his commands that very night to his son, Lord Linton, to withdraw from the king's army as fast as he could, which he immediately did, apparently to both their satisfactions, an in