Douglas
dug'las, a famous family of soldiers and landowners--one of the oldest and most powerful families in Scotland. A countryside proverb still runs:
Of one surname in Scotland never yet were seen.
The name means dark water. There were two branches of the family. The older branch styled themselves the Black Douglases; the younger the Red Douglases. For centuries border mothers hushed their children to sleep with this lullaby:
The Black Douglas shall not get ye.
Of the many Douglases, Sir James the Good fought seventy skirmishes in behalf of Robert Bruce. He was slain by the Saracens while on his way to the Holy Land bearing the heart of Bruce to bury it in the sacred soil of Palestine. In this way the Douglas family added a bloody heart to the family coat-of-arms.
Another notable Douglas was Archibald, Bell-the-Cat, fifth Earl of Angus. His nickname came in an odd way. A number of noblemen were planning measures to get rid of one of the king's favorites whom they all feared and hated. Several methods were proposed, but no one seemed anxious to sacrifice himself to carry out a plan. One of those present said the situation reminded him of the fabled convention of mice. All agreed that a bell should be hung on the cat's neck to give notice of her coming, but no one seemed willing to hang the bell. "I will bell the cat," thundered Archibald, and he did. He slew the wretch in the king's own presence in Stirling Castle. After old Archibald became unfitted for war, his two sons fell in the battle of Flodden and he died broken-hearted.