of Percy in the last stanza as dead. It was however written, in all likelihood, as early as the foregoing song, if not earlier; which perhaps may be inferred from the minute circumstances with which the story is related, many of which are recorded in no chronicle, and were probably preserved in the memory of old people. It will be observed, that the authors of these two poems have some lines in common; but which of them was the original proprietor must depend upon their priority; and this the sagacity of the reader must determine.

YT felle abowght the Lamasse tyde,
Whan husbonds wynn ther haye,

The dowghtye Dowglasse bowynd hym to ryde,
In Ynglond to take a praye:

The Yerlle of Fyffe, withowghten stryffe,
He bowynd hym over Sulway:

3

The grete wolde ever together ryde;

That race they may rue for aye.

4

Over 'Ottercap' hyll they came in,

And so dowyn by Rodelyffe cragge,

Upon Grene 'Leyton' they lyghted dowyn,
Styrande many a stagge:

5

And boldely brente Northomberlonde,

And haryed many a towyn;

They dyd owr Ynglyssh men grete wrange,

To battell that were not bowyn.

5

10

15

Ver. 2. wynn their heaye. Harl. MS. This is the Northumberland phrase to this day: by which they always express "getting in their hay." The orig. MS. reads here winn their waye.

2 Robert Stuart, second son of K. Robert II.

3 i. e. "Over Solway frith." This evidently refers to the other division of the Scottish army, which came in by way of Carlisle. Bowynd, or bounde him; i. e. hied him.-Vide Gloss.

They sc. the Earl of Douglas and his party. The several stations here mentioned, are well-known places in Northumberland. Ottercap hill is in the Parish of Kirk-Whelpington, in Tynedaleward. Rodeliff- (or as it is more usually pronounced Rodeley-) Cragge is a noted cliff near Rodeley, a small village in the parish of Hartburn, in Morpethward: it lies south-east of Ottercap. Green Leyton is another small village in the same parish of Hartburn, and is south-east of Rodeley.-Both the orig. MSS. read here corruptly, Hoppertop and Lynton.

5 This line is corrupt in both the MSS. viz. Many a styrande stage.'Stags have been killed within the present century on some of the large wastes in Northumberland.

Than spake a berne upon the bent,

Of comforte that was not colde,

And sayd, "We have brent Northomberlond,
We have all welth in holde.

"Now we have haryed all Bamboroweshyre,

All the welth in the worlde have wee;
I rede we ryde to Newe Castell,
So styll and stalwurthlye."

20

Uppon the morowe, when it was daye,
The standards schone fulle bryght;

25

To the Newe Castelle the toke the waye,
And thether they cam fulle ryght.

Syr Henry Percy laye at the Newe Castelle,
I telle yow withowtten drede;

30

He had byn a marche-man 6 all hys dayes,
And kepte Barwyke upon Twede.

To the Newe Castell when they cam,

The Skottes they cryde on hyght,

"Syr Harye Percy, and thou byste within, Čom to the fylde, and fyght:

35

"Yf thou hast haryed all Bambarowe shyre, Thow hast done me grete envye;

45

For the trespasse thow hast me done,
The tone of us schall dye."

V. 39, syne seems here to mean since.

6 Marche-man, i.e. a scourer of the Marches,

“Where schall I byde the?" sayd the Dowglas,

Yt schall not be long, or I com the tyll,"

"Ther maist thow have thy welth at wyll,

Well looged ther maist be;

Sayd Syr Harry Percye.

60

"Ther schall I byde the," sayd the Dowglas,

"By the fayth of my bodye."

"Thether schall I com," sayd Syr Harry Percy;
"My trowth I plyght to the.'

A

руре of wyne he gave them over the walles,

65

For soth, as I yow saye;

Ther he mayd the Douglas drynke,

And all hys oste that daye.

The Dowglas turnyd hym homewarde agayne,

For soth withowghten naye;

70

He tooke his logeyng at Oterborne

Uppon a Wedyns-day:

And ther he pyght hys standerd dowyn,

Hys gettyng more and lesse,

And syne he warned hys men to goo

To chose ther geldyngs gresse.

A Skottysshe knyght hoved upon the bent,

A wache I dare well saye:

So was he ware on the noble Percy

In the dawnynge of the daye.

75

80

Whitfield, Esq., of Whitfield, is said to have

V. 53. Roe-bucks were to be found upon the wastes not far from Hexham in the reign of George I.: destroyed the last of them. V. 56, hye MSS.

V. 77, upon the best bent. MS.

Otterbourn stands near the old Watling-street road, in the parish of

VOL. I.

с

He prycked to his pavyleon dore,
As faste as he myght ronne ;
"Awaken, Dowglas," cryed the knyght,
"For Hys love, that syttes yn trone.
"Awaken, Dowglas," cryed the knyght,
“For thow maiste waken wyth wynne;
Yender have I spyed the prowde Percy,

And seven standardes wyth hym."

"Nay by my trowth," the Douglas sayed,
"It ys but a fayned taylle;

85

90

He durste not loke on my bred banner,
For all Ynglonde so haylle.

"Was I not yesterdaye at the Newe Castell,

That stonds so fayre on Tyne?

For all the men that Percy hade,

95

He cowde not garre me ones to dyne.'

8

"The Yerle of Mentaye, thow arte my eme,

The fowarde I gyve to the:

The Yerlle of Huntlay, cawte and kene,

He schall wyth the be.

"The Lorde of Bowghan, in armure bryght,

105

"Swynton, fayre fylde upon your pryde!
To batell make yow bowen,

110

Syr Davy Scotte, Syr Walter Stewarde,
Syr Jhon of Agurstone."

A FYTTE.

Elsdon. The Scots were encamped in a grassy plain near the river Read. The place where the Scots and English fought is still called Battle-Riggs. 8 The Earl of Menteith.

9 The Lord Buchan.

THE Perssy came byfore hys oste,
Wych was ever a gentyll knyght,
Upon the Dowglas lowde can he crye,
"I wyll holde that I have hyght:

"For thow haste brente Northumberlonde,
And done me grete envye;

For thys trespasse thou hast me done,
The tone of us schall dye."

5

The Dowglas answerde hym agayne

With grete wurds up on 'hee,'

10

And sayd, "I have twenty agaynst 'thy' one,1
Byholde, and thow maiste see.”

Wyth that the Percye was grevyd sore,
For sothe as I yow saye;

2

"[He lyghted dowyn upon his fote,

And schoote his horsse clene away.

Every man sawe that he dyd soo,

That ryall was ever in rowght;

Every man schoote hys horsse him froo,
And lyght him rowynde abowght.

Thus Syr Hary Percye toke the fylde,
For soth, as I yow saye:

Jesu Cryste in hevyn on hyght
Dyd helpe hym well that daye.

But nyne thowzand, ther was no moo,
The cronykle wyll not layne;
Forty thowsande Skottes and fowre
That day fowght them agayne.

But when the batell byganne to joyne,
In hast ther came a knyght;

'Then ' letters fayre furth hath he tayne
And thus he sayd full ryght:

V. 1, 13, Pearcy, al. MS.

promised. Ver. 10, hye. MSS.

V. 4, I will hold to what I have
Ver. 11, the one. MS.

He probably magnifies his strength, to induce him to surrender. 2 All that follows, included in brackets, wa not in the first edition.