98 Strathspey Fencibles at Dumfries in 1795. 



Edinburgh on June 5th. The regiment mustered nearly 700 

 officers and men. The Colonel was Sir James Grant, but 

 the real command of the regiment was in the 'hands of the 

 Lieutenant-Colonel, Alexander Penrose Cumming (who after- 

 wards took the additional name of Gordon), Laird of Altyre, 

 and Sir James' brother-in-law. Whatever was the specific 

 reason, the Laird of Altyre does not appear to have been a 

 success as a commander, for the history of the Regiment was 

 marred by two abortive mutinies, the second of which took 

 place at Dumfries. The Regiment was at Linlithgow in 

 1794 when the first trouble occurred. An endeavour was 

 made to pursuade the men to abandon their original agree- 

 ment and volunteer for service outwith Scotland. The dis- 

 content does not appear to have come to a head but resulted 

 in a loss of confidence that Sir James had to hasten to 

 re-establish. 3a 



The mutiny at Dumfries occurred on the nth of June, 

 1795, two days after an incident that we shall first detail but 

 which appears to have had no connection with the revolt. 

 On the 9th the Magistrates of Dumfries applied to the com- 

 manding officer of the Fencibles for a party to aid in appre- 

 hending an Irish tinker, John O'Neil, and his two sons, 

 " who were deemed very proper objects for the compre- 

 hending act," and who dwelt at the Stoop. 



The " comprehending act," which had just been passed, 

 authorised Magistrates " to take up Vagrants and Idle 

 Persons " for service in the Navy. The demands of the 

 Navy for men were met at this period by a series of Acts 

 imposing responsibility, first, on the Ports, and, afterwards, 

 on the Burghs and Counties, for a proportion of men accord- 

 ing to their trade and valuation. The owners and masters 

 of ships in Scotland had to furnish a total of 2601 men, and 

 in our district the quotas were — Dumfries, 17; Kirkcud- 

 bright, 19; Portpatrick, 9; Stranraer, 25; and Wigtown, 



3a For these facts and others throughout this article I am in- 

 debted to Mr J. M. Bulloch, who has favoured me with proof sheets- 

 of his "Territorial Soldiering in the North-East of Scotland. 

 1769-1814," to be pubhshed by the New Spalding Club. 



