In their hurry to
escape they left all the bodies of their slain companions unburied
on the island. A rumour of the arrival of the Macleods had during
the night spread through the district, and other warriors, such as
Fionnla Dubh na Saighead, and Fear Shieldaig, were soon at the scene
of action, but all they had to do on their arrival was to assist in
the burial of the dead Macleods. Pits were dug, into each of
which a number of the bodies were thrown, and mounds were raised
over them which remain to this day, as any one landing on the
island may observe.
In 1611, Murdoch Mackenzie, second surviving son of John Roy
Mackenze, IV. of Gairloch, accompanied by Alexander Bayne, heir
apparent of Tulloch, and several brave men from Gairloch, sailed
to the Isle of Skye in a vessel loaded with wine and provisions.
It is said by some that Murdoch's intention was to apprehend John
Tolmach, while others maintain that his object was to secure in
marriage the daughter and heir of line of Donald Dubh MacRory.
The latter theory is far the more probable, and it is the unbroken
tradition in Gairloch. John Macleod was a prisoner in Gairloch, was
unmarried, and easily secured where he was, in the event of this
marriage taking place.
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