Mr Robert Macfarlane who resided at 4 Mansion House lane Greenock was found dead in bed on Sunday morning.

Deceased had been complaining of illness for sometime past but on Sat he was at his duties as usual, and retired to rest at about eleven o’clock, and his daughter going to wake him on Sunday morning, she found that he was dead.  Dr Macdougall was called in stated that death had been due to syncope.  Mr Macfarlane who was about 55yr of age, had been porter to the Greenock Branch of the “National Bank of Scotland” for over Thirty years, by the Manager and officials of which he was highly respected.

He was born in “Oban Seil” and was most enthusiastic Highlander.  He was for many years a member of the Local Highland Rifle Volunteers, was vice president of Greenock Ossian Club and the Greenock Highland Society and for a time was the leading member of the Lodge “Tir Nam Beann” of good Templers.

Mr Macfarlane was a keen angler and passed his annual holidays in the Highlands fishing and sketching.  He was more than an ordinary artist in watercolours and in many of his friend’s houses hang attractive pictures of Highland scenery from his brush.  His eldest daughter is wife of a Greenock in Australia and the youngest daughter resides with her mother.  Much sympathy for Mrs Macfarlane and family has been expressed in town in their sudden bereavement.  The funeral took place on Tuesday and was attended by the leading officials of the Bank and by many prominent citizens.  The Chief mourners at the funeral was his nephews, Mr Lewis Macfarlane of Bellshill and our townsman Mr John Macfarlane, Slater.

The deceased was the great grandson of Dugald Macfarlane the last Chief of the Macfarlanes who were lairds of Kilmun Estate.  His father Captain Alexander Macfarlane was laird of “Auchincrossan” in the parish of Kilfinnan Argyllshire.  In the churchyard of which they have an enclosed burying ground and round the walls there are marble slabs bearing the names of many Macfarlanes who fell in battle.  Captain Macfarlane was an old Peninsular officer having held a commission on the field of Waterloo in his 57^th then the Southdowns.  He accompanied Sir De Lacy Evans with the British Legion, which took part in Spain in the Don Carlos war 1834.  He also raised a Highland regiment to assist in the same campaign Mortgaging his estate to equip and pay the men the Carlist authorities promised to indemnify him at the end of the war, but which promise they of course failed to implement.  The uncle of the deceased George Macfarlane was also present with the 57^th at Waterloo and afterwards rose to the rank of Captain in that regiment.

The portraits of both brothers are in the celebrated painting of Waterloo Banquet¹ at which the great “Duke of Wellington” presided.  Captain George Macfarlane is still kept green in the West Highlands through the popular Gaelic song “The Captain of Auchincrossan”.

The deceased Mr Robert Macfarlane was a full cousin of the late Lord Ormidale and Lord Barcaple judges of the Court of Session.