button to main menu  Clarke's Survey of the Lakes, 1787

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Page 13:-
"and entered to serve the King's Majesty of England, saving the laird of Drumlanricke, who never came in nor submitted himself, and with him continued Alexander Carlell laird of Bridekirk, and his son the young laird; I thought it good to practice some way that we might get some hold or castle where we might lie near the enemy, and to lie within our own strength in the night, where we might all lie down together and all rise together. Thus practising, one Sander Armstrong son to ill Will. Armstrong, came to me and told me he had a man called John Linton, who was born in the head of Annerdale, near to Lough-Wood, being the laird Johnston's chief house, and the said laird and his brother, (being the Albot of Salside,) were taken prisoners not long before, and were remaining in England. It was a fair large tower, able to lodge all our company, with a barnekin, hall, kitchen and stables, all within the barnekin, and was but kept with two or three fellows, and as many wenches. He thought it might be stolen in a morning at the opening of the tower-door, which I required the said Sanders to practice, and as he thought good, either myself to go to it, or that he would take a company and give it a preisse with as much foresight to make it sure as possible; for if we should make an offer and not get it, we had lost it for ever. At last it was agreed that we should go with the whole garrison. We came there about an hour before day; and the greater part of us lay close without the barnekin. But about a dozen of men got over the barnekin wall, and stole close into the house within the barnekin, took the wenches, and kept them secure till day-light. And at sun-rising, two men and a woman being in the tower, one of the men rising in his shirt, and going to the tower-head, and seeing nothing stir about, he called on the wench that lay in the tower, and bad her rise and open the door, and call up them that lay beneath. She so doing, and opening the iron door, and a wood without it, our men within the barnekin brake a little too soon to the door, for the wench perceiving them leaped back into the tower, and had gotten almost the wood door to, but one got hold of it so that she could not get it close to; so the skirmish rose, and we over the barnekin and broke open the wood door, and she being troubled with the wood door, left the iron door open; and so we entered and wan the Loughwood, where we truly found the house well provided for beef salted, malt, big, havermeal, bread and cheese. I immediately took a short survey of the house, leaving the same in charge with Sander Armstrong, and giving strict command no man to imbezzle or take away any manner of thing until my Lord Wharton's mind and pleasure should be known. I rid to his Lordship at Carlisle, who witted me in the King's Majesty's name to keep that house to his Grace's use, and to ride to Moffet, four miles off, and make proclamation according to the effect of the proclamation made before in Dumfries: and whoso did others wrong, either by theft, oppression, or otherwise, that I should order it amongst them, and in all weighty causes to refer to his Lordship and his council; which I accomplished to the utmost of my power; and so continued there for some time in the service of the King's Majesty as Captain of that house, and Stewart of Annerdale under the Lord Wharton, in which time we rode daily and nightly upon the King's Majesty's enemies; and, among others, soon after my coming and remaining there, I called certain of the best-horsed men of the garrison, declaring to them I had a purpose offered by a Scotsman that would be our guide, and that it was to burn Lamington, which we did wholly, took prisoners and won much goods, both malt and sheep, horse and insight, and brought them to Moffet in the head of Annerdale, and there distributed it; giving every man an oath to bring in all his winnings of that journey, wherein truly the men offended so much their own conscience, very many loyning and concealing things, which I afterwards speired out, that after that time my confidence would never suffer me to minister an oath for this, but that which could be speired or known to be brought in, and every man to have a share accordingly.
"After that, I made a road to the head of Clyde by Crawfurth Castle, where we seiged a great vas[t]it house of James Douglas, which they held till the men and castle were all devoured with sword and fire: and so we returned to the Loughwood, at which place we remained very quietly, and in a manner in as civil order, both for
"hunting
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