There are many legends about one 17th century clansman, James Macpherson. To some he was known as a musician; to others as a freebooter, who, if he robbed the rich, also gave to the poor.

      The tales concerning his death are even stranger. He was imprisoned on various charges by the local judiciary, and condemned "to be hanged by the neck betwixt the hours of two and three." On the day of his execution, he mounted the scaffold at Banff and played on his fiddle a tune he had composed the night before in prison. When he was finished he offered the fiddle to the crowd, which had gathered. No one dared to accept. He then smashed his fiddle and dropped it at his feet. A kinsman later brought the pieces to Badenoch.

      Meanwhile, a pardon had been granted. But when Macpherson's enemies learned of this, they persuaded the authorities in Banff to set the hands of the clock a quarter hour fast. And so it was that James Macpherson died before the reprieve arrived.

      The tune he is said to have composed is widely known as "Macpherson's Rant" or "Macpherson's Lament". There are many versions of the words that accompany the tune and tell the tale. The words were 'improved' on by Robert Burns and he renamed the song "Macpherson's Farewell."