"Oh, do, Father," echoed the Twins, planting their stools beside
the other knee. Even Tam was interested. He sat on the hearth in
front of the Shepherd, looking up into his face as if he
understood every word.

The Shepherd gazed thoughtfully into the fire for a moment; then
he said: "I can tell you what my grandsire told me, and he got it
from his grandsire, so it must be true. In the beginning Rob Roy
was as staunch a man as any, and held his own property like other
gentlemen. Craig Royston was the name of his place, and fine and
proud he was of it, too. He was a gey shrewd man in the cattle-
dealing, and his neighbor, the Duke of Montrose, thinking to
benefit his own estate, lent Rob money to set him up in the
trade. There was a pawky rascal named McDonald who was partner to
Rob, and didn't he run away with the money, leaving Rob in debt
to the Duke and nothing to pay him with? The Duke foreclosed on
Rob at once, and took away Craig Royston and added it to his own
estate. You can well believe that Rob was not the man to take
such dealings with patience. If the Duke had not been so hasty,
Rob would more than likely have got hold of McDonald and made him
pay either out of his purse or out of his skin, but he did
neither the one nor the other. Instead he left his home and took
his clan with him into the mountains and became the terror of the
whole country-side."

"Wasn't he a good man?" asked Jean, gazing at her father with
round eyes.

"Well," said the Shepherd, "not just what you'd call pious,
maybe, and it cannot be said that he was aye regular at the kirk.