The Bruce
And enterit in forout debat,
And fand the met all reddy grathit,
With burdis set, and clathis layit. 388
The yhettis than he gert thame spare,
And sat and ete all at lasare.
Syne all the gudis tursit thai,
Thai thoucht that thai mycht haf away; 392
And namly wapnys and armyng,
Silver, tresour, and ek clethyng.
Vittalis, that mycht nocht tursit be,
On this maner distroit he. 396
All the vittale outakin salt,
As quhet, flour, meill and malt,
In the wyne-sellar gert he bryng;
And sammyn on the flure all flyng. 400
And the presoners that he had tane
Richt tharin gert he hed ilkane;
Syne of the tunnys the hedis out-strak:
A foull melle thair can he mak. 404
For meill, malt, blude, and wyne,
Ran all to-gidder in a mellyne
That wes unsemly for to se;
Tharfor the men of that cuntre 408
For sic thingis thar mellit were,
Callit it “the Douglas Lardenere.”
Syne tuk he salt, as I herd tell,
And ded hors, and fordid the well; 412
And syne brynt all, outakyn stane;
And is furth with his menyhe gane
Till his reset; for him thocht weill,
Gif he had haldin the casteill, 416
It suld have beyn assegit rath,
And that him thoucht to mekill vath;
For he na hop had of reskewyng.
And it is to perelous thing 420
In castell till assegit be,
Quhar that ane wantis of thir thre,
Vittale, or men with thair armyng,
Or than gud hop of reskewing. 424
And for he dred thir thingis suld fale,
He chesit forthward to travale,
Quhar he mycht at his larges be,
And sua driff furth his destane. 428
[388: C has _laid_ (S), which is no rhyme.]
On this wis wes the castell tane,
And slane that war tharin ilkane.
The Douglas syne all his menyhe
Gert in seir placis departit be; 432
For men suld les wit quhar thai war,
That yheid departit here and thar.
Thame that war woundit gert he ly
In-till hyddillis all prevely; 436
And gert gud lechis to thame bryng,
Quhill that thai war in-to helyng.
And him-self, with a few menyhe,
Quhile ane, quhill twa, and quhile thre, 440
And umquhile all hym allane,
In hyddillis throu the land is gane.
Sa dred he Inglis mennys mycht,
That he durst nocht weill cum in sicht; 444
For thai that tyme war all weldand
As mast lordis our all the land.
Here Clifford builds the Castle again.
Bot tythandis, that scalis sone,
Of the deid Douglas had done, 448
Com to the Cliffurdis ere in hy,
That for his tynsale wes sary,
And menit his men that he had slayne,
And syne has till his purpos tane 452
To byg the castell up agane,
Tharfor, as man of mekill mane,
He assemblit gret cumpany,
And till Douglas he went in hy. 456
And biggit up the castell swith,
And made it rycht stalward and stith;
And put thar-in vittale and men.
Ane of the Thrill-wallis then 460
He left behynd hym capitane,
And syne till Ingland went agane.
[447: Is from E. C reads _Bot the tithandis war scalit sone_ (S),
which leaves _Com_ (449) without a subject.]
[448: Is from C. E has _Off this deid that Douglas has done_.]
How one Man and his Two Sons undertook to slay King Robert.
[Sidenote: 1307] _Bruce in Carrick_]
In-to Carrik yheit wes the King,
With a full sympill gaderyng; 464
He passit nocht twa hundreth men.
Bot Schir Edward his brothir then
Wes in Galloway, weill neir tharby;
With hym ane othir cumpany. 468
Thai held the strynthis of the land;
For thai durst nocht yheit tak on hand
Till our-ride the land planly.
For of Vallanch Schir Amery 472
Wes in-till Edinburgh lyand,
That wes wardane of the land
Under-neth the Inglis kyng.
And quhen he herd of the cummyng 476
Of King Robert and his menyhe
In-to Carrik; and how that he
Had slane of the Persyis men;
His consell he assemblit then, 480
And, with assent of his consale,
He send till Are, hym till assale,
Schir Ingerame Bell, that wes hardy,
And with hym a gret cumpany. 484
[483: Name a misreading: see note.]
Here the English Knight fees a Traitor.
And quhen Ingerame cumin wes thair,
Him thoucht nocht speidfull for to fair
Till assale hym in-to the hicht.
Tharfor he thoucht to wirk with slycht, 488
And lay still in the castell than,
Till he gat spering at a man
Of Carrik, that wes sle and wicht,
And als a man of mekill mycht, 492
As of the men of that cuntre
And to King Robert wes preve.
As he that wes his sib-man neir,
And quhen he wald, for-out danger, 496
Micht to the Kyngis presens ga.
The-quhethir he and his sonnis twa
War wonand still in the cuntre,
For thai wald nocht persavit be, 500
That thai war speciall to the King;
Thai maid him mony tyme warnyng,
Quhen that thai his tynsale mycht se;
For-thi in thame affyit he. 504
His name I can nocht tell perfay;
Bot I herd syndir men oft say
*Forsuth that his ane e wes out;
*Bot he sa sturdy wes and stout,
That he wes the mast dowtit man
That in-to Carrik liffit than. 508
And quhen Schir Ingerame gat wittering
Forsuth that this wes no gabbing,
Eftir him in hy he sent,
And he com at his commandment. 512
Schir Ingerame, that wes sle and wis,
Tretit with hym than on sic wis,
That he maid sekir undirtaking
In tresone for to slay the King; 516
And he suld have for his service,
Gif he fulfillit thair devis,
Weill fourte pundis worth of land
Till hym and his ayris lestand. 520
[*: In C and H. E omits.]
[507: C has _worthy_ (S) for _dowtit_ in E.]
Here King Robert is in Great Peril.
[Sidenote: 1307] _The King is Warned_]
The tresone thus is undirtane;
And he hame till his hous is gane,
And watit opportunite
For to fulfill his mavite. 524
In gret perell than wes the King,
That of his tresone wist na thing.
For he, that he trowit mast of ane,
His dede falsly had undirtane: 528
And nane may treson do titar than he
That man in trowis leawte.
The King in hym trastit; for-thi
He had fulfillit his felony, 532
Na war the King, throu Goddis grace,
Gat hale wittering of his purchas,
And how, and for how mekill land,
He tuk his slauchtir upon hand. 536
I wat nocht quha the warnyng maid,
Bot in all tym he sic hap had,
That quhen men schupe him to betrais,
He gat witting tharof alwayis: 540
And mony tyme, as I herd say,
Throu women, that he wald with play,
That wald tell all that thai mycht here.
And sua mycht happyn that it fell here. 544
Bot how that evir it fell, perde,
I trow he sall the warrar be.
Nocht-for-thi, this tratour ay
Had in his thocht, bath nycht and day, 548
How he mycht best bring till ending
His tresonabill undirtaking;
Till he umbethocht him at the last,
In till his hert can umbecast, 552
That the King had in custum ay
For to ris airly evirilk day,
And pas weill fer fra his menyhe,
Quhen he wald pas to the preve, 556
And seik a covert him alane,
Or at the mast haf with him ane.
Thair thoucht he, with his sonnys twa,
For to suppris the King, and slay, 560
And syne wend to the wod away:
Bot yheit of purpos falyheit thai.
And nocht-for-thi thai com all thre
In a covert that wes preve, 564
Quhar the King wes oft wount to ga,
His preve nedis for to ma.
Thair hid thai thame till his cummyng.
And the King in the mornyng, 568
Rais quhen that his liking wes,
And richt towart that covert gais,
Quhar liand war the traitouris thre,
For till do thar his prevate. 572
To treson tuk he than no heid:
But he wes wount, quhar-evir he yheid,
His suerd about his hals to bere;
that avalit hym gretly ther. 576
For had nocht God, all thing weldand,
Set help in-till his awne hand,
He had ben ded withouten dreid.
A chalmir page thar with him yheid. 580
And sua, forouten followis ma,
Towart the covert can he ga.
[576: C _thar_ (S).]
[577: C _all-weldand_ (S), which is a syllable short.]
Here the Noble King slays three Traitors, Himself, Alone.
[Sidenote: 1307] _The King Fights with Three_]
Now, bot God help the nobill King,
He is neir hand till his ending! 584
For that covert that he yheid till,
Wes on the tothir syde a hill,
That nane of his men mycht it se.
Thiddirward went his page and he; 588
And quhen he cummin wes in the schaw,
He saw thai thre cum all on raw
Aganis him full sturdely.
Than till his boy he said in hy, 592
“Yhone men will slay us and thai may!
“Quhat wappyn has thou?” ‘A Schir! perfay,
‘I haf a bow bot and a vyre.’
“Gif me thame smertly baith.” ‘A! Syre, 596
‘How-gat will yhe than that I do?’
“Stand on fer and behald us to.
“Gif thow seis me abovin be,
“Thou sall haf wapnys in gret plente: 600
“Ande gif I de, withdraw the soyne.”
With thai wordis, forouten hoyn,
He tit the bow out of his hand,
For the tratouris wes neir cumand. 604
The fader had a suerd but mair,
The tothir bath suerd and hand-ax bair,
The thrid a suerd had and a speir.
The King persavit, be thair effeir, 608
That all wes suth men till hym tald.
“Tratour,” he said, “thou has me sald.
“Cum na forthir, bot hald the thair,
“I will thou cum na forthir mair.” 612
‘A! Schir, umbethinkis yhow,’ said he,
‘How neir to yhow that I suld be;
‘Quha suld cum neir to yhow bot I?’
The King said, “I will sekirly 616
“That thou at this tym cum nocht ner,
“Thou may say quhat thou will on fer.”
Bot he, with fals wordis flechand,
Wes with his sonnys ay cumand. 620
Quhen the King saw he wald nocht let,
Bot ay cum on fenyheand falset,
He tasit the vyre and leit it fle,
And hit the fader in the e, 624
Till it rycht in the harnys ran;
And he backward fell doun rycht than.
The brothir, that the hand-ax bar,
That saw his fader lyand thar, 628
A gyrd rycht to the King can mak,
And with the ax he him ourstrak.
Bot he, that had his suerd on hicht,
Raucht him sic rout in randoun richt. 632
That he the hed to harnis clafe,
And him doun ded to the erd drafe.