sumed from the time of Good Lord James, to whose care Robert Bruce committed his heart, to be carried to the Holy Land. --The Seven Spears of Wedderburne. -St. Iv, p. 18. Sir David Home of Wedderburne, who was slain in the fatal battle of Flodden, left seven sons by his wife, Isabel, daughter of Hoppringle of Galashiels (now Pringle of Whitebank). They were called the Seven Spears of Wedderburne. And Swinton placed the lance in rest, Of Clarence's Plantagenet.-Št. IV, p. 18. Beneath the crest of old Dunbar, And Hepburn's mingled banners come, The Earls of Home, as descendants of the Dunbars, ancient Earls of March, carried a lion rampant, argent; but, as a difference, changed the colour of the shield from gules to vert, in allusion to Greenlaw, their ancient possession. The slogan, or war-cry, of this powerful family was, "A Home! a Home!" It was anciently placed in an escrol above the crest. The helimet is armed with a lion's head erased gules, with a cap of state gules, turned up ermine. The Hepburns, a powerful family in East Lothian, were usually in close alliance with the Homes. The chief of this clan was Hepburn, Lord of Hailes; a family which terminated in the too famous Earl of Bothwell. Pursued the foot-ball play.-St. vi, p. 18. The foot-ball was anciently a very favourite sport all through Scotland, but especially upon the Borders. Sir John Carmichael of Carmichael, warden of the middle marches, was killed in 1600 by a band of the Armstrongs, returning from a foot-ball match. Sir Robert Carey, in his Memoirs, mentions a great meeting appointed by the Scottish riders to be held at Kelso, for the purpose of playing at foot-ball, but which terminated in an incursion upon England. At present, the foot-ball is often played by the inhabitants of adjacent parishes, or of the opposite banks of a stream. The victory is contested with the utmost fury, and very serious accidents have sometimes taken place in the struggle. Cheer the dark bloodhound on his way, The pursuit of Border marauders was followed by the injured party and his friends with bloodhounds and bugle horn, and was called the hottrod. He was entitled, if his dog could trace the scent, to follow the invaders into the opposite kingdom; a privilege which often occasioned bloodshed. In addition to what has been said of the bloodhound, I may add, that the breed was kept up by the Buccleuch family on their Border estates till within the 18th century. A person was alive in the memory of man, who remembered a bloodhound being kept at Eldinhope, in Ettricke Forest, for whose maintenance the tenant had an allowance of meal. At that time the sheep were always watched at night. Upon one occasion, when the duty had fallen on the narrator, then a lad, he became exhausted with fatigue, and fell asleep upon a bank near sunrising. Suddenly he was awakened by the tread of horses, and saw five men, well mounted and armed, ride briskly over the edge of the hill. They stopped and looked at the flock; but the day was too far broken to admit the chance of their carrying any of them off. One of them, in spite, leaped from his horse, and, coming to the shepherd, seized him by the belt he wore round his waist; and, setting his foot upon his body, pulled it till it broke, and carried it away with him. They rode off at the gallop; and, the shepherd giving the alarm, the bloodhound was turned loose, and the people in the neighbourhood alarmed. The marauders, however, escaped, notwithstanding a sharp pursuit. This circumstance serves to show how very long the license of the Borderers continued in some degree to manifest itself. CANTO VI. She wrought not by forbidden spell. -St. v, p. 23. Popular belief, though contrary to the doctrines of the Church, made a favourable distinction betwixt magicians and necromancers, or wizards: the former were supposed to command the evil spirits, and the latter to serve, or at least to be in league and compact with, those enemies of mankind. A merlin sat upon her wrist.-St. v, p. 23. A merlin, or sparrow-hawk, was usually carried by ladies of rank, as a falcon was, in knight or baron. Godscroft relates, that when time of peace, the constant attendant of a Mary of Lorraine was regent, she pressed the Earl of Angus to admit a royal garrison into his Castle of Tantallon. To this he returned no direct answer; but, as if apostrophising a gosshawk which sat on his wrist, and which he was feeding during the Queen's speech, he exclaimed, "The devil's in this greedy glade, she will never be full." Barclay complains of the common and indecent practice of bringing hawks and hounds into churches. And princely peacock's gilded train.-St. vi, p. 23. 'Twixt truce and war, such sudden change Was not unfrequent, nor held strange, In the old Border day.-St, VII, p. 19. Notwithstanding the constant wars upon the Borders, and the occasional cruelties which marked the mutual inroads, the inhabitants on either side do not appear to have regarded each other with that violent and personal animosity The peacock, it is well known, was considered, which might have been expected. On the con- during the times of chivalry, not merely as an trary, like the outposts of hostile armies, they exquisite delicacy, but as a dish of peculiar often carried on something resembling friendly solemnity. After being roasted, it was again deintercourse, even in the middle of hostilities; corated with its plumage, and a sponge, dipped and it is evident, from various ordinances in lighted spirits of wine, was placed in its bill. against trade and intermarriages between En- When it was introduced on days of grand festiglish and Scottish Borderers, that the govern-val, it was the signal for the adventurous knights ments of both countries were jealous of their to take upon them vows to do some deed of cherishing too intimate a connexion. chivalry," before the peacock and the ladies." To bite the thumb, or the glove, seems not to have been considered, upon the Border, as a gesture of contempt, though so used by Shakspere, but as a pledge of mortal revenge. It is yet remembered, that a young gentleman of Teviotdale, on the morning after a hard drinking-bout, observed, that he had bitten his glove. He instantly demanded of his companion, with whom he had quarrelled? And learning that he had had words with one of the party, insisted on instant satisfaction; asserting, that though he remembered nothing of the dispute, yet he never would have bit his glove unless he had received some unpardonable insult. He fell in the duel, which was fought near Selkirk, in 1721. ---Arthur Fire-the-braes.-St. VIII, p. 23. The person bearing this redoubtable nomme de guerre was an Elliot, and resided at Thorleshope, in Liddisdale. He occurs in the list of Bord er riders, in 1597. Since old Buckleuch the name did gain, -St. vIII, p. 23. A tradition, preserved by Scott of Satchells, gives the following romantic origin of that name. Two brethren, natives of Galloway, having been banished from that country for a riot, or insurrection, came to Rankelburn, in Ettricke Forest, where the keeper, whose name was Brydone, received them foyfully, on account of their skill in winding the horn, and in the other mysteries of the chase. Kenneth Mac-Alpin, then King of Scotland, came soon after to hunt in the royal forest, and pursued a buck from Ettricke-heuch to the glen now called Buckleuch, about two miles above the junction of Rankelburn with the river Ettricke. Here the stag stood at bay; and the King and his attendants, who followed on horseback, were thrown out by the steepness of the hill and the morass. John, one of the brethren from Galloway, had followed the chase on foot; and now coming in, seized the buck by the horns, and, being a man of great strength and activity, threw him on his back, and ran with his burden about a mile up the steep hill, to a place called Cracra-Cross, where Kenneth had halted, and laid the buck at the sovereign's feet. impunity; for as both warders accounted them the proper subjects of their own prince, neither inclined to demand reparation for their excesses from the opposite officers, which would have been an acknowledgment of his jurisdiction over them. The Debateable Land was finally divided betwixt England and Scotland by commissioners appointed by both nations. The sun shines fair on Carlisle wall.-St. XI, p. 23. Who has not heard of Surrey's fame? The gallant and unfortunate Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, was unquestionably the most accomplished cavalier of his time; and his sonnets display beauties which would do honour to a more polished age. He was beheaded on Tower Hill, in 1546-a victim to the mean jealousy of Henry VIII, who could not bear so brilliant a character near his throne. The song of the supposed bard is founded on an incident said to have happened to the Earl in his travels. Cornelius Agrippa, the celebrated alchemist, showed him in a looking-glass the lovely Geraldine, to whose service he had devoted his pen and his sword. The vision represented her as indisposed, and reclined upon a couch, reading her lover's verses by the light of a waxen taper. -The storm swept Orcades; The St. Clairs are of Norman extraction, being descended from William de St. Clair, second son of Walderne Compte de St. Clair, and Margaret, daughter to Richard Duke of Normandy. He was called, for his fair deportment, the Seemly St. Clair, and settling in Scotland during the reign of Malcolm Ceanmore, obtained large grants of land in Mid-Lothian. These domains were increased by the liberality of succeeding monarchs to the descendants of the family, and comprehended the baronies of Rosline, Pentland, Cowsland, Cardaine, and several others. It is said a large addition was obtained from Robert Bruce, on the following occasion. The king, in following the chase upon Pentland hills, had often started a "white faunch deer," which had always escaped from his hounds; and he asked the nobles, who were assembled around him, whether any of them had dogs, which they thought might be more successful. No courtier would affirm that his hounds were fleeter than those of the king, until Sir William St. Clair of Rosline unceremoniously said, he would wager his head that his two favourite dogs," Help and Hold," would kill the deer before she could cross the March-burn. The king instantly caught at his unwary offer, and betted the forest of Pentland-moor against the life of Sir William St. Clair. All the hounds were tied up, except a few ratches, or slow-hounds, to put up the deer; while Sir William St. Clair, posting himself in the best situation for slipping his dogs, prayed devoutly to Christ, the blessed Virgin, and St. Katherine. The deer was shortly after roused, and the hounds slipped; Sir William following on a gallant steed, to cheer his dogs. The hind, however, reached the middle of the brook, upon which the hunter threw himself from his horse in despair. At this critical moment, however, Hold stopped her in the brook; and Help coming up, turned her back, and killed her on Sir William's side. The king descended from the hill, embraced Sir William, and bestowed on him the lands of Kirkton, Logan House, Earncraig, &c., in free forestrie. Sir William, in acknowledgment of Saint Katherine's intercession, built the chapel of St. Katherine in the Hopes, the churchyard of which is still to be seen. The hill from which Robert Bruce beheld this memorable chase is still called the King's Hill, and the place where Sir William hunted is called the Knight's Field. Still nods their palace to its fall, Thy pride and sorrow, fait Kirkwall! The Castle of Kirkwall was built by the St. Clairs while Earls of Orkney. It was dismantled by the Earl of Caithness, about 1615, having been garrisoned against the government by Robert Stewart, natural son to the Earl of Orkney. Kings of the main, their leaders brave, Their barks the dragons of the wave. -St. XXII, p. 24. The chiefs of the Vikingr, or Scandinavian pirates, assumed the title of Sakonungr, or Sea King's Ships; in the inflated language of the Scalds, are often termed the serpents of the ocean. Of that Sea Snake, tremendous curled, Whose monstrous circle girds the world. -St. XXIII, p. 24. The jormungandr, or Snake of the Ocean, whose folds surround the earth, is one of the wildest fictions of the Edda. It was very nearly caught by the god Thor, who went to fish for it with a hook baited with a bull's head. In the battle betwixt the evil dæmons and the divinities of Odin, which is to precede the Ragnarockr, or Twilight of the Gods, this Snake is to act a conspicuous part. Of those dread Maids, whose hideous yell Maddens the battle's bloody swell. -St. XXIII, p. 24. These were the Valkyriur, or Selectors of the Slain, despatched by Odin from Valhalla, to choose those who were to die, and to distribute the contest. They are well known to the English reader, as Gray's Fatal Sisters. Ransacked the graves of warrior's old, Their faulchions wrenched from corpses' hold. -St. XXIII, p. 25. The northern warriors were usually entombed with their arms, and their other treasures. Thus, Angantyr, before commencing the duel in which he was slain, stipulated that, if he fell, his sword Tyrfing should be buried' with him. His daughter, Hervor, afterwards took it from his tomb. The dialogue which passed betwixt her and Angantyr's spirit on this occasion has been often translated. Indeed, the ghosts of the northern warriors were not wont tamely to suffer their tombs to be plundered; and hence the mortal heroes had an additional temptation to attempt such adventures; for they held nothing more worthy of their valour than to encounter supernatural beings. Rosabelle.-St. XXIV, p. 25. This was a family name in the house of St. Clair. Henry St. Clair, the second of the line, married Rosabelle, fourth daughter of the Earl of Stratherne. --Castle Ravensheuch.-St. XXIV, p. 25. A large and strong castle, now ruinous, situated betwixt Kirkaldy and Dysart, on a steep crag, washed by the Frith of Forth. It was conferred on Sir William St. Clair, as a slight compensation for the Earldom of Orkney, by a charter of King James III, dated in 1471, and is now the property of Sir James St. Clair Erskine (now Earl of Rosslyn), representative of the family. It was long a principal residence of the Barons of Roslin. Seemed all on fire that chapel proud, The beautiful chapel of Roslin is still in tolerable preservation. It was founded in 1446 by William St. Clair, Prince of Orkney, Duke of Oldenbourgh, Earl of Caithness and Stratherne, Lord Saint Clair, Lord Niddesdale, Lord Admiral of the Scottish Seas, Lord Chief Justice of Scotland, Lord Warden of the Three Marches, Baron of Roslin, Pentland, Pentland-moor, &c., Knight of the Cockle and of the Garter (as is affirmed), High Chancellor, Chamberlain, and Lieutenant of Scotland. This lofty person, whose titles, says Godscroft, might weary a Spaniard, built the Castle of Roslin, where he resided in princely splendour, and founded the chapel, which is in the most rich and florid style of Gothic architecture. Among the profuse carvings on the pillars and buttresses, the rose is frequently introduced, in allusion to the name, with which, however, the flower has no connexion; the etymology being Ross-linnhe, the promontory of the linn, or waterfall. The chapel is said to appear on fire previous to the death of any of his descendants. This superstition, noticed by Slezer in his Theatrum Scotia, and alluded to in the text, is probably of Norwegian derivation, and may have been imported by the carls of Orkney into their Lothian domains. The tomb-fires of the north are mentioned in most of the Sagas. The barons of Roslin were buried in a vault beneath the chapel floor, in their armour only, and without coffins 66 Gylbin come!"-St. XXVII, p. 25. See the story of Gilpin Horner, p. 32. For he was speechless, ghastly wan, Like him of whom the story ran, Who spoke the spectre-hound in Man. -St. XXVII, p. 25. The ancient castle of Peel-town, in the Isle of Man, is surrounded by four churches, now ruinous. Through one of these chapels there was formerly a passage from the guard-room of the garrison. This was closed, it is said, upon the following occasion: "They say that an apparition, called, in the Mankish language, the Mauthe Doog, in the shape of a large black spaniel, with curled shaggy hair, was used to haunt Peel-castle; and has been frequently seen in every room, but particularly in the guard-chamber, where, as soon as candles were lighted, it came and lay down before the fire, in presence of all the soldiers, who, at length, by being so much accustomed to the sight of it, lost great part of the terror they were seized with at its first appearance. They still, however, retained a certain awe, as believing it was an evil spirit, which only waited permission to do them hurt; and, for that reason, forbore swearing, and all profane discourse, while in its company. But though they endured the shock of such a guest when all together in a body, none cared to be left alone with it. It being the custom, therefore, for one of the soldiers to lock the gates of the castle at a certain hour, and carry the keys to the captain, to whose apartment, as I said before, the way led through the church, they agreed among themselves, that whoever was to succeed the ensuing night his fellow in this errand, should accompany him that went first, and by this means no man would be exposed singly to the danger: for I forgot to mention, that the Mauthe Doog was always seen to come out from that passage at the close of day, and return to it again as soon as the morning | dawned; which made them look on this place as its peculiar residence. "One night, a fellow being drunk, and by the strength of his liquor rendered more daring than ordinarily, laughed at the simplicity of his companions; and though it was not his turn to go with the keys, would needs take that office upon him, to testify his courage. All the soldiers endeavoured to dissuade him; but the more they said, the more resolute he seemed, and swore that he desired nothing more than that the Mauthe Doog would follow him, as it had done the others; for he would try if it were dog or devil. After having talked in a very reprobate manner for some time, he snatched up the keys, and went out of the guard-room; in some tiine after his departure, a great noise was heard, but nobody had the boldness to see what occasioned it, till, the adventurer returning, they demanded the knowledge of him; but as loud and noisy as he had been at leaving them, he was now become sober and silent enough, for he was never heard to speak more: and though all the time he lived, which was three days, he was entreated by all who came near him, either to speak, or, if he could not do that, to make some signs, by which they might understand what had happened to him, yet nothing intelligible could be got from him, only that, by the distor tion of his limbs and features, it might be guessed that he died in agonies more than is common in a natural death. "The Mauthe Doog was, however, never after seen in the castle, nor would any one attempt to go through that passage; for which reason it was closed up, and another way made. This accident happened about threescore years since; and I heard it attested by several, but especially by an old soldier, who assured me he had seen it oftener than he had then hairs on his head." And he a solemn sacred plight The This was a favourite saint of the house of Douglas, and of the Earl of Angus in particular, as we learn from the following passage. Queen-Regent had proposed to raise a rival noble to the ducal dignity; and discoursing of her purpose with Angus, he answered, "Why not, madam? We are happy that have such a princess, that can know and will acknowledge men's service, and is willing to recompense it. But, by the might of God (this was his oath when he was serious and in anger; at other times, it was by Saint Bride of Douglas), if he be a Duke, I will be a Drake!"-So she desisted from prosecuting of that purpose. A TALE OF FLODDEN FIELD. Alas! that Scottish maid should sing The combat where her lover fell! That Scottish bard should wake the string, ADVERTISEMENT. IT is hardly to be expected that an Author, whom the public have honoured with some degree of applause, should not be again a trespasser on their kindness. Yet the Author of MARMION must be supposed to feel some anxiety concerning its success, since he is sensible that he hazards, by this second intrusion, any reputation which his first Poem may have procured him. The present story turns upon the private adventures of a fictitious character; but is called a Tale of Flodden Field, because the hero's fate is connected with that memorable defeat, and the causes which led to it. The design of the Author was, if possible, to apprise his readers, at the outset, of the date of his story, and to prepare them for the manners of the age in which it is laid. Any historical narrative, far more an attempt at Epic composition, exceeded his plan of a Romantic Tale; yet he may be permitted to hope, from the popularity of THE LAY OF THE LAST MINSTREL, that an attempt to paint the manners of the feudal times, upon a broader scale, and in the course of a more interesting story, will not be unacceptable to the public. The Poem opens about the commencement of August, and concludes with the defeat of Flodden, 9th September, 1513. |