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"Yelde the, Perse," sayde the Doglas, "and i feth I shalle the brynge Wher thowe shalte have a yerls wagis of Jamy our Skottish kynge.

"Thou shalte have thy ransom fre, I hight25 the hear this thinge;

For the manfullyste man yet art thowe

that ever I conqueryd in filde fighttynge."

"Nay," sayd the lord Perse,

"I tolde it the beforne, That I wolde never yeldyde be

to no man of a woman born."

With that ther cam an arrowe hastely,
forthe off a myghtte wane:26
Hit hathe strekene the yerle Duglas
in at the brest-bane.

Thorowe lyvar and longes bathe

the sharpe arrowe ys gane, That never after in all his lyffe-days

he spayke mo wordes but ane:

That was, "Fyghte ye, my myrry men, whyllys ve

may,

for my lyff-days ben gan.'

The Perse leanyde on his brande,

and sawe the Duglas de;

He tooke the dede mane by the hande,

and sayd, "Wo ys me for the!

"To have savyde thy lyffe, I wolde have partyde

with

my landes for years thre,

For a better man, of hart nare of hande,

was nat in all the north contre."

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33

POPULAR BALLADS

Off all that se a Skottishe knyght,

was callyd Ser Hewe the Monggombyrry; He sawe the Duglas to the deth was dyght, he spendyd27 a spear, a trusti tre.

He rod uppone a corsiare

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throughe a hondrith archery:
He never stynttyde, nar never blane,"
tylle he cam to the good lord Persë.

He set uppone the lorde Persë

a dynte that was full soare;

With a suar spear of a myghtte tre

clean thorow the body he the Persë ber,

A the tothar syde that a man myght se
a large cloth-yard and mare:

Towe bettar captayns wear nat in Cristiante
then that day slan wear ther.

An archar off Northomberlonde
say29 slean was the lord Persë;
He bar a bende bowe in his hand,
was made off trusti tre.

An arow, that a cloth-yarde was lang,

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to the harde stele halyde he;

A dynt that was both sad and soar

he sat on Ser Hewe the Monggombyrry.

The dynt yt was both sad and sar,
that he of Monggomberry sete;
The swane-fethars that his arrowe bar
with his hart-blood the wear wete.

Ther was never a freake wone foot wolde fle,

but still in stour dyd stand,

Heawyng on yche othar, whylle the myghte dre,32

with many a balfull brande.

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This battell begane in Chyviat

an owar before the none, And when even-songe bell was rang, the battell was nat half done.

The tocke . . . 33 on ethar hande be the lyght off the mone;

Many hade no strenght for to stande, in Chyviat the hillys abon.

Of fifteen hondrith archars of Ynglonde went away but seventi and thre;

Of twenti hondrith spear-men of Skotlonde, but even five and fifti.

But all wear slayne Cheviat within;

the hade no strengthe to stand on hy; The chylde may rue that ys unborne, it was the mor pitte.

Thear was slayne, withe the lord Persë,
Sir Johan of Agerstone,

Ser Rogar, the hinde34 Hartly,

Ser Wyllyam, the bolde Hearone.

Ser Jorg, the worthe Loumle,

a knyghte of great renowen,

Ser Raff, the ryche Rugbe,

with dyntes wear beaten dowene.

For Wetharryngton my harte was wo, that ever he slayne should be;

For when both his leggis wear hewyne in to, yet he knyled and fought on hys kny.

Ther was slayne, with the dougheti Duglas, Ser Hewe the Monggombyrry,

Ser Dany Lwdale, that worthe was,

his sistars son was he.

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34 courteous.

Ser Charls a Murre in that place, that never a foot wolde fle;

Ser Hewe Maxwelle, a lorde he was, with the Doglas dyd he dey.

So on the morrowe the mayde them by ears off birch and hasell so grey;

Many wedous, with wepying tears,

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Tivydale may carpe off care,

Northombarlond may mayk great mon,

For towe such captayns as slayne wear thear, on the March-parti shall never be non.

Word ys commen to Eddenburrowe, to Jamy the Skottische kynge,

That dougheti Duglas, lyff-tenant of the Marches he lay slean Chyviot within.

His handdes dyd he weal and wryng,
he sayd, “Alas, and woe ys me!
Such an othar captayn Skotland within,"
he sayd, "ye-feth shuld never be."

Worde ys commyn to lovly Londone,
till the fourth Harry our kynge,
That lord Perse, leyff-tenante of the Marchis,
he lay slayne Chyviat within.

"God have merci on his solle," sayde Kyng Harry, "good Lord, yf thy will it be!

I have a hondrith captayns in Ynglonde," he sayd, "as good as ever was he:

But, Persë, and I brook my lyffe,

thy deth well quyte shall be."

35 mates.

As our noble kynge mayd his avowe,
lyke a noble prince of renowen,
For the deth of the lord Persë

he dyde the battell of Hombyll-down;

Wher syx

and thritte Skottishe knyghtes

on a day wear beaten down:

Glendale glytteryde on ther armor bryght,

over castille, towar, and town.

This was the hontynge off the Cheviat,

36

that tears began this spurn;

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Old men that knowen the grownde well yenoughe

call it the battell of Otterburn.

At Otterburn begane this spurne

uppone a Monnynday;

Ther was the doughte Doglas slean,

the Perse never went away.

Ther was never a tym on the Marche-partes
sen the Doglas and the Persë met,

But yt ys mervele and the rede blude ronne not,
as the reane doys in the stret.

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and to the blys us brynge!

Thus was the hountynge of the Chivyat:

God sent us alle good endyng!

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36 e'er.

"O WHERE have you been, my long, long love,
This long seven years and mair?"

"O I'm come to seek my former vows

Ye granted me before."

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