MacPherson's Rant

This #SlowAirSunday is a sad tale of a man who was a well known Outlaw (Pirate) who reigned terror in Elgin, Banff and Forres markets. He was caught many times but always seemed to outrun the law.
Who is the famed MacPherson in the tune "MacPherson's Rant (Lament)?
I was surprised to find that the story in the tune "MacPherson's Rant was not only a Real figure in Scottish History, but that he himself was said to have written the tune the night before he was hung from a tree.
Tune History:
James Macpherson (1675-1700) was a Scottish outlaw, famed for his Lament or Rant, a version of which was rewritten by the Scottish poet, Robert Burns. The original version of the lament is alleged to have been written by Macpherson himself.
His Outlaw Career:
Though his prowess was debased as the exploits of a freebooter (pirate), it is certain, says one writer, that no act of cruelty, or robbery of the widow, the fatherless, or the distressed was ever perpetrated under his command. Macpherson's career of robbery had culminated in a "reign of terror" in the markets of Banff, Elgin and Forres. Apparently under protection of the Laird of Grant, he and his band of followers would come marching in with a piper at their head. (Well done! That's how you walk into a place with style! )
MacPherson's Capture:
At the Saint Rufus Fair in Keith Macpherson was attacked by Braco's men, and was captured after a fierce fight in which one of Jamie's crew was killed. According to the traditional account penned by Jamie himself, a woman dropped a blanket over him from a window, and he was disarmed before he could get free of it. Duff and a very strong escort then took him to Banff prison.
It is universally believed in the North-East of Scotland that a reprieve was on its way to Banff at the time of the execution. The legend has it that Duff of Braco saw a lone rider coming from Turriff and correctly assumed that he carried a pardon for Jamie from the Lord of Grant. As the story goes, he then set about turning the village clock 15 minutes ahead and so hanging Macpherson before the pardon arrived. The magistrates allegedly were punished for this and the town clock was kept 15 minutes before the correct time for many years. Even to this day the town of Macduff has its west-facing town clock covered so the people of Banff can't see the correct time!
MacPherson's last moments:
Sir Walter Scott says that Macpherson played it under the gallows, and, after playing the tune, he then offered his fiddle to anyone in his clan who would play it at his wake. When no one came forward to take the fiddle, he broke it - either across his knee or over the executioner's head - and then threw it into the crowd with the remark, "No one else shall play Jamie Macpherson's fiddle".
The broken fiddle now lies in the Macpherson Clan museum near Newtonmore, Inverness-shire. He then was hanged or, according to some accounts, threw himself from the ladder, to hang by his own will. This was allegedly the last capital sentence executed in Scotland under Heritable Jurisdiction, taking place on 16 November 1700.
Here are my thoughts..(Or Rant!! I am so upset!) ..."Why didn't someone step up and take this mans fiddle? He offered it... no one stepped up. Why? If anyone has a thought please comment below! Please.... This broke my heart! As a Musician you die two deaths. One is the physical and the other is when your instrument isn't being played. I hope that someone will step up to play my pipes and keep them singing when I am gone.... ok ok, my personal Rant is done. I hope you enjoyed my version of this sad tune.
Lyrics:
Sae rantingly, sae wantonly,
Sae dauntingly gaed he;
He play'd a tune, and danc'd it roon'
Below the gallows-tree.
Farewell, yon dungeons dark and strong,
The wretch's destinie!
Macpherson's time will not be long
On yonder gallows-tree.
It was by a woman's treacherous hand
That I was condemned tae dee
Aboon a ledge at a windae she stood
And a blanket she threw o'er me
Untie these bands frae aff o' my hands
And gie tae me my sword
There's no a man in a' Scotland
But I'll brave him at his word
There's some come here tae see me hang
And some tae buy my fiddle
But afore that I dae part wi' her
I'd brak' her through the middle
He took his fiddle into both of his hands
And he brak' it o'er a stone
Said, Nae ither hands shall play on thee
When I am deid and gane
Now farewell light, thou sunshine bright, "
And all beneath the sky!
May coward shame distain his name,
The wretch that dares not die!
A reprieve was coming o'er the brig o' Banff
Tae set Macpherson free,
But they pit the clock a quarter afore
And they hanged him from a tree.
Sae rantingly, sae wantonly,
Sae dauntingly gaed he;
He play'd a tune, and danc'd it roon'
And they hanged him from a tree.
Filmed at Hillside Cemetery in Redlands California
Under an Old Tree
Dark Isle Productions
www.darkislepiper.com