SCOTS CASTLES

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 32, 7 August 1923, Page 5

SCOTS CASTLES

THAT HAVE BEEN CURSED THE DRUMMER OF CORTACHY ■AJST) THE FALLEN STONES OF FYVIE.

The castle of the Ogilvies was prepared for war. Sentries were posted on its battlemented towers, and the arms of its defenders flashed in the sunshine, ■writes a special contributor of the "People's Journal." Towards it, across the fresh green turf of the fertile glen, came striding a mere boy, with a drum strapped to his shoulder. He wore the tartan of a clan hated by the Ogilivies, hut his proud bearing and.flashing eye showed that he approached their stronghold without fear.

"I bear a message to my Lord Ogilvy." was his answer to the sentry's challenge." "Tell it, then, and I shall carry it to him."

"Nay; my orders are that I must see him alone," said the ivouth. "My 'message is of importance, and is not for other ears."

What happened.in my Lord's chamber has never been known, but that the messenger bore a challenge that was insulting, or news that gave offence, .is beyond doubt. Suddenly the door was flung open, and, in response to Ogilvy's angry shouts, men-at-arms and servants hastened along the etone-flagged passages. . . ■

"Death to the knave!" cried my Lord, his visage purple with fury as he pointed to, the shrinking drummer. "Over the battlements with, him! Let him and his. drum be flung from, the topmost tower! Away with him, I say!" Merciless was the decree, and instantly it was carried out. But as the menials -dragged-'the lad away his clear young voice rang out: "I do not fear to die, cruel Ogilvy," he cried. "But listen—my body you may kill, hut my spirit shall be Your •conqueror and tyrant. When my drum shall sound in your ears, know that your, doom is at "hand, and so shall be sounded the doom of all.the Ogilvies!" It was thus that there came to the Castle of Cortachy the strange curse that has rested for centuries on the family, and which is one of the most remarkable cases of the supernatural "warning" in the annals of Scottish history. In du9 time tho cruel chief heard the ghostly roll of the drum, and paled as he recalled it 3 dreadful significance—and through many generations since its weird note has heralded the approaching death of a. member of the family. ° THE GUEST'S MISTAKE. One of the drummer's visits has become outstanding because of the care ivith which it was put on record. The time .was Christmas, and the castle contained many guests, including a Miss Dalrymple. who had never heard of the family legend. She was destined to Je?, r" of i(l in a most dramatic way. While dressing for dinner on the very first evening of her arrival she heard strange noises close under her window and in a little they formed themselves into the clear rolling of a drum. She looked out, but could ccc nothing though the sound was apparently just below. A few minutes later a ma"id entered her room, and Miss Dalrymple asked what the drumming was for. The girl paled, stammered a few words, and quietly w?thdrewr*~Sr *" X- T £? ~~* Still curious, the lady interrupted the conversation at dinner with a question to Lord Ogilvy: "My Lord," she asked, who is your .drummer?" "'"-■'. The introduction of the classic skeleton at the feast could not have caused so much consternation as that seemingly innocent query. A silence of the-deep-est embarrassment fell on the company and Lord and Lady Airlie both grew white as death. I'erceiving the effect of her remark, the unhappy guest took an early opportunity to leave the room, and afterwards taking one of the other visitors aside, she begged for an explanation. Have you never heard of the drummer boy of Airlie?" she was asked, and on admitting her ignorance the legend was related to her. ' " Then," sh e said, white faced and trembling, "1 certainly heard the drummer last night.." That evening the same sound under her window filled her with terror, and <>nt"®, following day she left the castle. ■ The incident was soon generally known among the friends of the Airlics, who waited with apprehension to see if the fattal sequel foretold in the legend would follow. It did, for soon afterwards the Countess of Airlie .died at Brighton—and a melancholy fact was that among the papers found in her desk was on e in which she. had written, at the time the drummers ghostly call was heard, that the summons was undoubtedly meant for her. Only four years later the fateful sound was again heard under strange circum- I stances. It was on the evening of 19th August, and Lord Ogilvy, the heir to the Earldom of Airlie, had invited a number of guests to shoot over his estate. One of them, a young Englishman was.on his way, along with a ghillie as guide, to a shooting-box known as the lulchan, which stood in the heart of a wilderness of moors. His surprise must therefore have been great when, through the brooding silence, he heard what seemed, to be the faint strains of music and, sounding clearly above them, the beating of a drum. . " Dear me, Donald," he said, peering through,the gloom, "where can that band bo which 1 heard?"

" That what, sir?" asked the startled ghillie.

" I think I can hear music, and I certainly do hear a drum," insisted the visitor.

" No, sir," said the Highlander, shaking his head. " Save the Lodge o' Tulchan, there's nae biggin' within many miles, and nae drummer who could beat his drum on thae moors. But . that sound's no' canny," he added uneasily. At that moment the lights of the shooting lodge came into view, and the Englishman quickly found that the sounds he heard could not have' proceeded from that source. But his story cast a deep gloom'over the whole party and it became deeper when, the host famng to appear, It was learned' that a telegram had summoned him that very day to London, where his father lay dangerously ill. Next day the Ear] of -Airlie-died, and it was clear that once again the prophetic rolling of the martyred boy s drum had "been the foreTunnerof tragedy and grief

; THE CURSE OF FYVIE. Almost equally famous and certainly well known in the North of Scotland is tile legendary curse that sat heavily for three centuries on the occupants of Fyvie Castle. The curse was attributed to lhomas the Rhymer, and may be paraphrased as follows:—

Hapless Fyyie's dames shall be Till in its walls are builders three .That once have iain in sacred land, And thence been ta'en by spoiler's hand. . One stone shall be in Preston's Tower, Another in my lady's bower The third the water-gate must grace, But never shall ye fill its place.

The suggestion of sacrilege contained IP tb c prophecy is borne out by history,

whioh tells us that the existing " Preston Tower" was built by Henry de Preston in 1390 with stones which he obtained by demolishing a neighbouring religious house. Three of these stones, which presumably had something noteworthy about them, fell into the River Ythan and were lost. The prophecy of Thomas the Rhymer is that till all three are recovered (which, according to the last'line, will never be) the family owning the castle will die out in the second generation.

Though it might b 6 difficult to prove that this prediction has been literally fulfilled, there is no doubt that more than, sufficient evidence is available for thpse who would wish to establish the existence and the potency of the curse. It began with Sir Henry Preston himself, who died, leaving an only daughter. She married a Meldrum, thus conveying the property into another family. After being for some time in the possession of the Meldrums it was purchased by Alexander Seton, subsequently created Lord Fyvie and Earl of Dunfermline. He added Seton Tower to Fyvie Castle, and when he died he had the satisfaction of knowing that a son was left to carry or. the line.

But the curse began again its sinister operations—at least the superstitous might have thought so. for this son of Seton's became a partisan of King Charles the First in the troublous days of the Stuart succession, and wns exiled to France, where he died childless andVin abject poverty. History repeated itself when Fyvie was bought by the Earl of Aberdeen in 1726. He bequeathed the castle to his son, and within 40 years every one of th o younger earl's descendants had died out.