John Gunn robber; Inverness early 1700s
John Gunn robber, Inverness early 1700s
There is perhaps a touch of the early Victorian romantic stories in the below -
Towards the beginning of the last century, the county of Inverness was infested with a band of Catkerans, or robbers, commanded by one John Gunn, who levied contributions in every quarter, and came under the walls of the city, to bid defiance to an English garrison which defended the castle. An officer who went to Inverness, bearing the pay of the troop, and escorted by a feeble detachment, was obliged to pass the night at an inn, thirty miles from the city. In the evening he saw a man of a good figure enter, wearing the Scottish costume, and as there was only one room in the inn, the Englishman invited the stranger to partake of his supper, which the latter reluctantly accepted. The officer judging by his conversation that the stranger was perfectly acquainted with the defiles and bye-paths throughout the country, begged him to accompany him the next morning, made him acquainted with the purport of his journey, and his fears of falling, together with the depot which was confided to him, into the hands of the celebrated John Gunn. The Highlander, after a little hesitation, promised to be his guide ; they, in fact, departed on the following day, and in crossing a solitary and barren glen, the conversation again turned on the robberies of John Gunn. "Would " you like to see him ?" said the guide, and immediately gave a whistle, which was re-echoed by the rocks ; in a few moments the officer and his detachment were surrounded by a body of Highlanders, armed from head to foot, and sufficiently numerous to render every effort of resistance fruitless. " Stranger," said the guide, " I am that same John Gunn whom you are afraid of, and not without reason, for I came yesterday evening into your inn to discover the route you meant to take, in order to carry away your military chest ; but I am incapable of betraying the confidence which you have put in me, and having now proved to you, that you are in my power, I shall send you on your way without loss or damage." After giving him the necessary directions for the journey, John Gunn disappeared with his troop as suddenly as they had arrived.
Pp. 86-87 L.A. Necker De Saussure A Voyage to the Hebrides or Western isles of Scotland with Observations on the Manners and Customs of the Highlander, London, 1822 Sir Richard Phillips and Co.
Towards the beginning of the last century, the county of Inverness was infested with a band of Catkerans, or robbers, commanded by one John Gunn, who levied contributions in every quarter, and came under the walls of the city, to bid defiance to an English garrison which defended the castle. An officer who went to Inverness, bearing the pay of the troop, and escorted by a feeble detachment, was obliged to pass the night at an inn, thirty miles from the city. In the evening he saw a man of a good figure enter, wearing the Scottish costume, and as there was only one room in the inn, the Englishman invited the stranger to partake of his supper, which the latter reluctantly accepted. The officer judging by his conversation that the stranger was perfectly acquainted with the defiles and bye-paths throughout the country, begged him to accompany him the next morning, made him acquainted with the purport of his journey, and his fears of falling, together with the depot which was confided to him, into the hands of the celebrated John Gunn. The Highlander, after a little hesitation, promised to be his guide ; they, in fact, departed on the following day, and in crossing a solitary and barren glen, the conversation again turned on the robberies of John Gunn. "Would " you like to see him ?" said the guide, and immediately gave a whistle, which was re-echoed by the rocks ; in a few moments the officer and his detachment were surrounded by a body of Highlanders, armed from head to foot, and sufficiently numerous to render every effort of resistance fruitless. " Stranger," said the guide, " I am that same John Gunn whom you are afraid of, and not without reason, for I came yesterday evening into your inn to discover the route you meant to take, in order to carry away your military chest ; but I am incapable of betraying the confidence which you have put in me, and having now proved to you, that you are in my power, I shall send you on your way without loss or damage." After giving him the necessary directions for the journey, John Gunn disappeared with his troop as suddenly as they had arrived.
Pp. 86-87 L.A. Necker De Saussure A Voyage to the Hebrides or Western isles of Scotland with Observations on the Manners and Customs of the Highlander, London, 1822 Sir Richard Phillips and Co.