ON MY WAY ROUND THE WORLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XV, Issue 5173, 15 June 1878, Page 6

ON MY WAY ROUND THE WORLD.

I got up to Edinburgh Castle, entered the old gateways, outer and inner, up the steep winding roadway, roughly paved with big boulders, and hemmed-in with enormous stout walls, that rose higher and higher ; then through another great gateway up a little further I reach daylight, and get at last into the castle It brings a strange sensation to pass so suddenly out of the gay world in Princes-street into this old fortress, with all its historical associations, in reality before you. * The highest building on the rock is, perhaps, the oldest edifice in the neighbourhood—the little Chapel of Margaret, the beautiful and pious wife of Malcolm Canmore. This good woman tried in vain to teach her husband to read. It is said that all the progress he made was to kiss the " Missal" and other books of devotion, in token of obedience, and to have all her books richly bound, ami set round outside with diamonds and other precious stones. The chapel is kept in excellent preservation, and visitors are allowed to go inside, but only bare-headed. On the parapet in front of the chapel lies Mons Meg. This curious old cannon is 13 feet long, and 7£ feet in circumference. It has travelled a good deal, bat the history of its adventures is rather doubtful. It was sent to Dunnottar Castle, on the east coast, about 1650, and about 1654 it was in the Tower of London, where it remained until 1829, when it was 83nt north again, and placed on this elevated spot. Going through a low archway, I entered the quadrangle or great square, and on the lefthand side find Queen Mary's apartments and the Crown Room. It has been said of Edinburgh, that before the palace of Holyrood was built by Charles 11., there was at Edinburgh a palace for beggars, and a dungeon for kings. The truth of this statement I soon found on squeezing myself up through a vary nairow staircase and into a gloomy den eight feet square, hung round with a few rags of royalty—Queen Mary's bedroom they call it—its narrow window admitting just a glimmer of light. The cold stone floor and bare stone walls create an uncomfortable feeling, and puts quite a chill upon Scotch pride of nationality. And this was the bedroom of a Queen. Poor Mary, though a little wild and wanton at times, she was with much sinning and suffering 'beautiful as Miss Braddon's or Ouida's heroines, but she was not quite so bad. In this small crib a king was born. He grew up to be about the greatest fool that ever sat upon a throne, and yet without any opposition he was crowned twice—taking his saat quietly without ever requiring to strike a blow. Was ever fool so fortunate? About three months before he was born, his reputed father, Darnlev, had to lay violent hands on a Frenchman whom he found in his mother's bedroom—and about four houre after this young king entered the world. Darnley came into this little den to congratulate the happy mother. " My Lord," said Mary, "God has given us a son. He is your son, aud no other man's. This is the son who, I hope, shall unite the two kingdoms of iScotlaud and England." The child was crowned King of Scotland ' the early age of 13 months, and after a cou ;i soothing syrup, he had a few lessons irotu the celebrated George Buchanan. The little learning was just enough with his natural vauity, simplicity, and stupidity, to make him "the wisest fool in Christendom." He kept his native country in "civil dudgeon"' and constant broils until Elizabeth died, when the Scotch presented him to the English nation as a curiosity. Although he was born in a dungeon, he did not like to live in one, so he refused to reside in the Tower of London, and the Cockneys had to rig out Whitehall Palace for him. Before leaving Scotland Gowrie tried to kill him at Perth, and after he went South the English tried to blow him up with gunpowder, bat " There's such dirit-ity doth heJga a king" that he escaped all these attempts. And feo, i after playing the royal fool fairly out regardless of expense, he died. Macaulay calls him a " drivelling idiot," but his folly paved the way for our present limited Monarchical Government and freedom from royal mountebanks. After leaving the Queen's bedroom, I entered another dark den, about the same size, containing the palladium of Auld Scotland— the grand old regalia, with its glittering jewels set in gold and silver. Ihis was a feast, indeed, worth coming for. I stepped back a little to allow the crowd to move on, and enable me to see what nationality prevailed. They were Scotch, Irish, and American. After getting down into the open air again, I overheard two Irishmen: "I say, Pat," said ene of them, '* the Scotch always get the best of it. Where is the regalia of old Ireland? Tell me that." "Bedad," Baid his friend, " I never thought of that. Where is it?" The regalia of Scotland has had many adventures, and the history of its travels and hairbreadth escapes would be more interesting than a modern novel. Sir Walter Scott, it is said somewhere, meditated such a work, but did not write it. The first Scotch regalia was stolen by the English (Edward I.), and taken to London ; and, if I mistake not, Henrietta Marie, when she skedaddled from London after Charles quarrelled with his Parliament, took the Scotch jewels with her to France (they have never been heard of since that time), where she sold or pledged them to buy tke services of a few Frenchmen to light Cromwell aud the Parliament. Ac all events, she returned to England, and landed near York, a few weeks or days before the battle of Marstoa Moor. The present Scotch regalia consists of the Crown, Sceptre, Sword, and Staff or rod of the Treasurer. There are several other articles in the group, but they have no particular history. There is the Collar presented to James VI., by Elizabeth, when he was made Knight of the Garter; a St. George, a St. Andrew (a pretty onyx, set in a circle of diamonds), and the coronation ring of Charles I. (a sapphire, setin diamonds). " The crown is 9 inches in diameter, 27 inches in circumference, and 6 \ inches in height." This is the veritable crown of Robert the Bruce. Edward I. stole Jacob's Pillow, called the Stone oi Destiny, from Soone. He took the old Scotch crown, and destroyed all the documents connected with Scotch history—his intention was to blot out Scotch history, independence, and nationality, and make it an appanage of England, Edward himself Lord Paramount. It was when Baliol bowed obedience at Dunbar (1291) that the original crown was torn from his head. Robert Bruce was first crowned with a circlet of gold, which was also seized by the English when Bruce was defeated at Methven (1306) —the present crown was made for Bruce in 1314. The sceptre was made for James V., it is of silver, aud 39 inches long (a Scotch ell), it was made in France about the year 153 G. The sword was presented by Pope Julius 11. to James IV., it is five feet long. During Mary's reign the crown was badly used, and Charles I. tried to get the Scotch to send it to London, but they objected, so he had to come down to Edinburgh, and was crowned June IS, Charles 11. was crowned January 1, 1651, and very soon afterwards (in June) the regalia was delivered to the Earl Marischal, who sent it to his castle of D unuottar, on the east coast, near Stonehaven, and it is affirmed by local historians that " the muckle gun Mons Meg and her five sisters" (smaller cannon) were sent from Edinburgh to Dunnottar Castle to protect these insignia of tottering royalty. The large embrasure in which these important pieces of ordnance lay is still pointed out upon one of the battlements of the castle, and a shot from Meg is said to have dismasted an English vessel as she was about to enter the harbour of Stonehaven, at a mile and a half distauce. During the great civil war the castle was besieged by Lambert, the English commander, and in January, 1652, it was closely blockaded. In this emergency female I ingenuity discovered a remedy when masculine valour failed to save the regalia from I getting into the hands of the English. Mrs. Fletcher, the wife of the minister of the adjoining parish of Kinneff, obtained permission from the English general to visit the Governor's lady in the castle. The Lady Marischel was the only one admitted into the secret, aud this was how it was doue. Mrs. Granger, returning from Stonehaven, accompanied by a female servant, carrying a bundle of unspun fiax, or hards 1 as it is called in Scotland, passed down to the Castle. The crown was rolled up in the flax, and Mrs. Fletcher carried it in her lap. The sword and sceptre were also rolled up in Max and some dirty clothes, and put on the servant's back, and thus the two fearless patriots marched out of the besieged fortress, passing the guards and watchmen; for the

Castle was now fairly su. rounded, aa d ji intercourse with the outer world On coming out Mrs. Fletcher was nSEESt attended by the English her on to her horsed then bundle containing the crown, never au 8 P jT u£ J h ° clever trick th *t be blindly assisting in. The minister's w£ passed safely through all the danJer* and arrived at the maasa of Kinneff K ?h after it was da,k, the pavement stonf; front of the pulpit was raised, a"ho"? mJ° m the earth, and the crown, wrapped up was put down into the fade* the pavement replaced, and all made clean.' Then the sword and sceptre was put do™ underground in another part of the church and thus they were safe and sound. This was in the month of March Tn f following month, 1652, Ogil vy surrende Sd the Cast.e under promise of personal f re 7 dom to himself and wife. But the EnelUK were bo exasperated at losing the tS that they broke faith and iU-used Ogilvy and his wife so much that the lady died from the effects of brutal t£ ture administered to make her divulsethJ secret hiding-place of the treasure Th minister's wife was also put to torture bnf the secret was kept sacred. ' From time to time the regalia was taken up and examined, carefully wrapped un h> a fresh covering, and replaced. At the restol ration of Charles IL the secret came out and the regalia was again ordered to be sent up to London ; but although the Scot, h had no objection to sell them a king, or even give them one for nothing, they objected to part with the crown, the sword, aad the sceptre; and so it was sent up to Edinburgh in March, 1707, and deposited iu a chert and secured with three locks, aud thereafter placed in a strong vaulted room, the door of which was also securely locked, aad all the keys lost. On December 22, 1794, the Crown room was opened accidentally, when searching f or some document that had gone astray, auu the old oak chest was discovered, but no docu ment. On February 4, 1818, the lid of the chest was forced open by order of the King and to the great joy of the nation the regalia was found in perfect preservation, and here it is in the same room open free for inspection to all the world. Q T C