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052 - A Friendly Offer · Whats Mines Mine

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  Speaker 1: Volume three, chapter eighteen of What's Mine's Mind by George
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  Speaker 1: mac donald. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
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  Speaker 1: A friendly offer, it was agreed between mother and son
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  Speaker 1: to submit the matter to Ian, and, if he should
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  Speaker 1: be of the same mind at once, to negotiate the
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  Speaker 1: sale of the land in order to carry the clan
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  Speaker 1: to Canada. They wrote therefore to Ian and composed themselves
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  Speaker 1: to await his answer. It was a sorrowful thing to
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  Speaker 1: Allister to seem, for a moment to follow the example
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  Speaker 1: of the recreant chiefs, whose defection to feudalism was the
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  Speaker 1: prelude to their treachery toward their people, and whose faithlessness
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  Speaker 1: had ruined the highlands. But unlike Glengaree or esau Ree,
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  Speaker 1: he desired to sell his lands that he might keep
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  Speaker 1: his people, care for them, and share with them his
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  Speaker 1: people safe what mattered the acres. Reflecting on the thing,
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  Speaker 1: he saw in the case of Ian's approval of the sale,
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  Speaker 1: no reason why he should not show friendliness where none
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  Speaker 1: was expected, and give mister Pegrin Palmer the first chance
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  Speaker 1: of purchase. He thought, also, with his usual hopefulness, that
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  Speaker 1: the time might come when the clan laying its savings together,
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  Speaker 1: would be able to redeem its ancient homesteads, and then
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  Speaker 1: it might be an advantage that they were all in
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  Speaker 1: the possession of one man. Such things had been and
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  Speaker 1: might be again. The Lord could bring again the captivity
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  Speaker 1: of Clanrude, as well as that of Zion. Two months passed,
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  Speaker 1: and they had Ian's answer. When it was well on
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  Speaker 1: into the spring, and whether good for sea voyage was
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  Speaker 1: upon its way. Because of the loss of their uncle's
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  Speaker 1: money and the good prospect of comfort in return for
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  Speaker 1: labor hard but not killing, Ian entirely approved of the proposal.
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  Speaker 1: From that moment, the thing was no longer discussed, but
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  Speaker 1: how best to carry it out? The chief assembled the
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  Speaker 1: clan and the barn, read his brother's letter, and in
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  Speaker 1: a simple speech acquainted them with the situation. He told
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  Speaker 1: them of the loss of the money to which he
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  Speaker 1: had looked for the power to aid them, reminded them
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  Speaker 1: that there was neither employment nor subsistence enough on the land,
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  Speaker 1: not even if his mother and he were to live
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  Speaker 1: like the rest of them, which if necessary, they were
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  Speaker 1: quite prepared to do, and stated his resolve to part
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  Speaker 1: with the remnant of it in order to provide the
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  Speaker 1: means of their migrating in a body to Canada, where
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  Speaker 1: not a few old friends were eager to welcome them. There.
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  Speaker 1: They would buy land, he said, of which every man
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  Speaker 1: that would cultivate it should have a portion enough to
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  Speaker 1: live upon, while those with trades should have every facility
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  Speaker 1: for following them. All he believed, would farewell in return
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  Speaker 1: for hard work, and they would be in the power
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  Speaker 1: of no man. There was even a possibility, he hoped,
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  Speaker 1: that if they lived and labored well, they might one
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  Speaker 1: day buy back the home they had left, or if not,
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  Speaker 1: they their sons and daughters might return from their captivity
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  Speaker 1: and restore the house of their fathers. If anyone would
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  Speaker 1: not go, he would do for him what seemed fair.
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  Speaker 1: Donald Schumacher rose, unpuckered his face, slackened the purse strings
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  Speaker 1: of his mouth, and said, where my chief goes, I
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  Speaker 1: will go, Where my chief lives, I will live, and
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  Speaker 1: where my chief is buried, God grant I may be
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  Speaker 1: buried also with all my family. He sat down, covered
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  Speaker 1: his face with his hands, and wept and sobbed. One
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  Speaker 1: voice rose from all present, We'll go, macrud, We'll go.
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  Speaker 1: Our chief is our home. The Chief's heart swelled with
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  Speaker 1: mingled gladness and grief, but he answered quietly, then you
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  Speaker 1: must at once begin your preparations. We ought not to
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  Speaker 1: be in a hurry. At the last, an immediate stir
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  Speaker 1: movement bustle followed. There was much talking and many sunny faces,
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  Speaker 1: over which kept sweeping the clouds of sorrow. Next morning,
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  Speaker 1: the Chief went to the new house and desired to
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  Speaker 1: see mister Palmer. He was shown into what the new
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  Speaker 1: laird called his study. Mister Palmer's first thought was that
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  Speaker 1: he had come to call him to account for firing
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  Speaker 1: at him. He neither spoke nor advanced a step to
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  Speaker 1: meet him. The Chief stood still some yards from him,
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  Speaker 1: and said, as pleasantly as he could, you are surprised
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  Speaker 1: to see me, mister Palmer. I am I come to
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  Speaker 1: ask if you would like to buy my land. Already,
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  Speaker 1: said mister Palmer, cast on his enemy a glare of victory,
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  Speaker 1: and so stood regarding him. The Chief did not reply. Well,
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  Speaker 1: said mister Palmer, I wait your answer, returned the Chief.
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  Speaker 1: Did it never strike you that insolence might be carried
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  Speaker 1: too far? I came for your sake more than my own,
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  Speaker 1: rejoined the chief without even a shadow of anger. I
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  Speaker 1: have no particular desire that you should take the land,
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  Speaker 1: but thought it reasonable you should have the first offer.
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  Speaker 1: What a dull ox the fellow must take me for,
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  Speaker 1: remarked the new Laird to himself. It's all a dodge
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  Speaker 1: to get into the house, as if he would sell
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  Speaker 1: me his land, or could think I would hold any
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  Speaker 1: communication with him by his land. It's some trick. I'll
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  Speaker 1: lay my soul the infernal scoundrel. Such a mean spirited
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  Speaker 1: wretch too, takes an ounce of shot in the stomach,
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  Speaker 1: never says, what the devil do you mean by it?
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  Speaker 1: I don't believe the savage ever felt it. Something like
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  Speaker 1: this passed with thought's own swiftness through the mind of
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  Speaker 1: mister Palmer, as he stood looking the chief from head
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  Speaker 1: to foot, yet in his inmost person, feeling small before him.
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  Speaker 1: If you cannot at once make up your mind, said Alister,
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  Speaker 1: I will give you till to morrow to think it over.
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  Speaker 1: When you have learned to behave like a gentleman, answered
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  Speaker 1: the new Laird, let me know, and I will refer
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  Speaker 1: you to my factor. He turned and rang the bell.
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  Speaker 1: Allister bowed and did not wait for the servant it
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  Speaker 1: must be said for mister Palmer, however, that that morning
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  Speaker 1: Christina had positively refused to listen to a word more
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  Speaker 1: from mister Circum. In the afternoon, Alistair set out for London.
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  Speaker 1: End of Volume three, Chapter eighteen. Recording by Hannah Mary