Back in Scotland
Captain Brown and Robert Stewart returned to Scotland in 1872 having secured the promise of 50,000 acres in Victoria County, New Brunswick, as well as an agreement with the provincial government that offered settlers more favourable terms than those set out in the Free Grants Act of 1872. During the autumn and winter, the promoters organized public meetings in the northeastern Scottish counties of Kincardine, Aberdeen, and Banff and published a revised prospectus in the newspaper in hopes of attracting a large number of recruits.
With public interest rising, Brown began assigning lots to prospective colonists in order of application, reserving steamship tickets, and collecting money for stoves, groceries, and supplies that would be waiting for the settlers when they reached New Kincardineshire. He was assisted by Thomas Potts, special emigration agent for Canada, who arrived in Scotland to help implement the scheme. The promoters' efforts were rewarded. On 25 April 1873 more than 500 men, women, and children stood on the wharf at Mavis Bank eager to board the Castalia and begin a new life across the sea in New Brunswick.