This is one of the earliest “modern” dances published by the Society
(1963 in <<ddpub:Book 22>>).

There are a few curious anecdotes about the origin of the title of
this dance. George Emmerson's *Scotland Through Her Country Dances*
used to claim that Flora MacDonald, well known from the mythology
surrounding Bonnie Prince Charlie, was the daughter of a laird of
Milton (on the west coast of South Uist) and that the dance was named
after her. In the second edition of the book there is a reference to
the dance in the index, but the page in question has been replaced by
a facsimile of the old description of a completely different dance!
Apparently the second edition thus corrected one of the bigger bloopers
made in the first, in a somewhat ham-fisted manner, without also
fixing the index.

The correct story goes as follows: According to *Book 22*, the dance was
“Devised by Lord Craigmyle while in India”. The Laird of Milton in
question is known to be the late Chief of Clan Arthur, James
E. MacArthur-Moir (1914-2004), who apparently worked in India for a
while. The dance was invented on the occasion of the birth of his
daughter – according to *Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th
edition*, she is called Mary MacArthur (now Wood) and was born on 10
October 1950.
