PART III

IDEALS AND HEROES OF FREEDOM

_“When a deed is done for Freedom, through the broad earth’s aching

breast_

_Runs a thrill of joy prophetic, trembling on from east to west.”_

—James Russell Lowell.

[Illustration: Copyright by M. G. Abbey (from a Copley Print, copyright

by Curtis & Cameron, Boston)

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE]

IDEALS AND HEROES OF FREEDOM

INTRODUCTION

We must be free or die, who speak the tongue

That Shakespeare spake; the faith and morals hold

Which Milton held. In everything we are sprung

Of Earth’s first blood, have titles manifold.

—Wordsworth.

These lines remind us of the great inheritance, not alone of Englishmen

but of all who speak the English tongue, whether they live in the United

States or England, in Canada or in Australia. This inheritance is due to

the fact that English-speaking peoples govern themselves, that they were

the first to invent the means by which free government became possible.

It sometimes seems a simple thing, very much a matter of course, that in

America the rulers are all the people, who adopt the laws they desire;

who submit to rules of life because they themselves think these rules to

be wise, not because they are compelled to submit through the will of an

emperor. But in reality this free government, this democracy, has grown

very slowly, through centuries. It is an inheritance of freedom.

The story of this inheritance is filled with deeds of heroes. These

heroes lived and died, not to win glory for themselves, but to win

freedom for their fellows. Sometimes they were English barons, daring to

defy a wicked king, and forcing him to sign a Great Charter that gave

them a share in the government. Sometimes they were the peasants seeking

the right to live more comfortably. Sometimes they were statesmen who

secured for Parliament the right to levy taxes and to be consulted about

the way England was to be ruled, and the right to drive a selfish tyrant

from the throne. And sometimes they were the farmers and village men

forming in battle line at Lexington and Concord. It is a long story that

you will read, in many places, not all of it at one time; but little by

little you will come to see what meaning lies in the simple words “our

inheritance of freedom,” and then you will be ready to give your time,

and if need be, your life, to keep this inheritance and to hand it on to

those who will speak the English tongue when you are dead.

Only a few bits of the story can be given here. You will read something

about Scotland’s struggle for the right to be governed by her own people,

not by the tyrannical kings who then ruled England and who looked upon

Scotland as a mere province fit only to supply money for their selfish

desires. Next you will read several selections which show that the

tyranny against which Wallace and Bruce fought, like the tyranny against

which Warren and Washington and Patrick Henry fought, did not spring from

the English spirit, but from kings who tried to keep even Englishmen

in slavery. It is all one story—at one time the action takes place in

Scotland, at another in England, at still another time in America; but

the story is the story of our inheritance of freedom.

“We must be free or die”—these words express the spirit of all who speak

the English tongue. The stories of Wallace and Bruce tell it. The story

of the last fight of the _Revenge_ tells it—a story written by the man

who first began to plant English colonies in America, and who helped

defend England against the tyranny which King Philip of Spain tried to

establish. The stories of the Gray Champion, and of Warren at Bunker

Hill, and of Patrick Henry of Virginia, and of Washington and Marion, are

also a part of the great story of our inheritance of freedom.

You should keep this always in mind: the heroes who made good the

Declaration of Independence and set up a new and freer government in

America were men whose ideals of freedom came to them from England.

They did not fight against the English _people_. Their spirit was also

the fundamental English spirit. Many of the greatest Englishmen of

that period used every effort to win fair treatment for the colonies,

sympathized with their struggle for independence and rejoiced when at

last George III and his ministers were told that America would no longer

submit to oppression.

One of the greatest of these Englishmen was Edmund Burke, who lived

in the time of George III and took the part of the colonies in their

struggle against the King’s tyranny. He worked for the repeal of the

taxation laws that so offended the Americans. He made many speeches in

Parliament and elsewhere pleading with Englishmen not to drive their

fellow Englishmen into civil war. And when at last war came, Burke still

sought to bring about reconciliation. He wrote the King a letter in which

he said that the British government was not representing the British

spirit of freedom in its dealings with the colonies. He wrote a letter

to the colonies in which he begged them not to believe that they were at

war with England. “Do not think,” he said, “that the whole or even the

majority of Englishmen in the island are enemies to their own blood on

the American continent.” And a little later he said, “But still a large,

and we trust the largest and soundest part of this kingdom perseveres in

the most perfect unity of sentiments, principles, and affections with

you. _It spreads out a large and liberal platform of common liberty upon

which we may all unite forever._” The whole matter he sums up by saying

that the spirit of England loves not conquest or vast empire for the sake

of wealth, but “this is the peculiar glory of England: those who have

and who hold to that foundation of common liberty, whether on this or

on your side of the ocean, we consider as the true, and the only true,

Englishmen.”

All Americans need to remember these words written by a great friend

of the colonies during the Revolutionary War, a man who also explained

more clearly and more eloquently than any other Englishman in any time

the principles on which our inheritance of freedom rests. His interest

in the American cause was not merely the interest of a sympathetic

friend; over and over again he pointed out that the colonies, and not the

King’s ministry, represented the true English spirit. To him the mode of

self-government set up in Massachusetts and Virginia represented the very

ideal for which patriotic Englishmen had struggled for centuries. The

British parliament, in Burke’s time, was not made up of representatives

from all the population; only a small part of the population could vote,

and many districts had no representation at all. Complete control of the

government by the people was what Burke and thousands of other Englishmen

had been trying to win. In America such a form of popular government

had developed freely, because the British King paid little attention to

the colonies until they became wealthy enough to be a source of riches.

It was this fact that made the American revolution not merely a war

for the establishment of a new nation, but quite as much a war for the

development of free government in England itself. Burke realized this

fact, and expressed it by saying, “We view the establishment of the

English colonies on principles of liberty as that which is to render this

kingdom venerable to future ages.”

The prophecy has been fulfilled. Britain still has a king, but he is

king in name only; the real power rests in the people. The struggle

in which the American colonists bore a part has resulted not only in

a free America, but also in a free England and in freedom for the

great dominions—Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—which have much the

same form of government. The inheritance of freedom belongs to all

English-speaking peoples, and the spread of these ideals means freedom

for the world.

These ideals center around the brotherhood of man. In our Revolutionary

period Robert Burns sang of the coming of a time when these ideals should

be acknowledged:

“It’s coming yet, for a’ that,

That man to man, the world o’er,

Shall brothers be, for a’ that.”

Long before the time of Burns, John Milton, a great poet, who worked

throughout his life for freedom, and who held the same ideals as those

held by the founders of Plymouth Colony, wrote of the same thing: “Who

knows not that there is a mutual bond of brotherhood between man and man

over all the world?”

The recent war has brought England and America together once more, as

defenders of the right of all people to self-government. For English

ideals, planted on American soil, victorious over the tyranny of George

III and his ministry, have not only found their most complete development

in our America, but have given the vision of liberty to all men. Thus we

are able to understand what President Wilson meant when he said, “And the

heart of America shall interpret the heart of the world.”

SCOTLAND’S STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE

[Illustration]

TALES OF A GRANDFATHER

SIR WALTER SCOTT

THE STORY OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE (1296-1305)

William Wallace was none of the high nobles of Scotland, but the son

of a private gentleman, called Wallace of Ellerslie, in Renfrewshire,

near Paisley. He was very tall and handsome, and one of the strongest

and bravest men that ever lived. He had a very fine countenance, with a

quantity of fair hair, and was particularly dexterous in the use of all

weapons which were then employed in battle. Wallace, like all Scotsmen

of high spirit, had looked with great indignation upon the usurpation of

the crown by Edward, and upon the insolences which the English soldiers

committed on his countrymen. It is said, that when he was very young, he

went a-fishing for sport in the river of Irvine, near Ayr. He had caught

a good many trout, which were carried by a boy, who attended him with a

fishing-basket, as is usual with anglers. Two or three English soldiers,

who belonged to the garrison of Ayr, came up to Wallace, and insisted,

with their usual insolence, on taking the fish from the boy. Wallace was

contented to allow them a part of the trout, but he refused to part with

the whole basketful. The soldiers insisted, and from words came to blows.

Wallace had no better weapon than the butt-end of his fishing rod; but

he struck the foremost of the Englishmen so hard under the ear with it

that he killed him on the spot; and getting possession of the slain man’s

sword, he fought with so much fury that he put the others to flight,

and brought home his fish safe and sound. The English governor of Ayr

sought for him, to punish him with death for this action; but Wallace lay

concealed among the hills and great woods till the matter was forgotten.

But the action which occasioned his finally rising in arms is believed

to have happened in the town of Lanark. Wallace was at this time married

to a lady of that place, and residing there with his wife. It chanced,

as he walked in the market-place, dressed in a green garment, with a

rich dagger by his side, that an Englishman came up and insulted him

on account of his finery, saying a Scotsman had no business to wear so

gay a dress, or carry so handsome a weapon. It soon came to a quarrel,

and Wallace, having killed the Englishman, fled to his own house which

was speedily assaulted by all the English soldiers. While they were

endeavoring to force their way in at the front of the house, Wallace

escaped by a back door, and got in safety to a rugged and rocky glen,

near Lanark, called the Cartland Crags, all covered with bushes and

trees, and full of high precipices, where he knew he should be safe from

the pursuit of the English soldiers. In the meantime the governor of

Lanark, whose name was Hazelrigg, burned Wallace’s house and put his wife

and servants to death; and by committing this cruelty, increased to the

highest pitch, as you may well believe, the hatred which the champion

had always borne against the English usurper. Hazelrigg also proclaimed

Wallace an outlaw, and offered a reward to any one who should bring him

to an English garrison, alive or dead.

On the other hand, Wallace soon collected a body of men, outlawed like

himself, or willing to become so, rather than any longer endure the

oppression of the English. One of his earliest expeditions was directed

against Hazelrigg, whom he killed, and thus avenged the death of his

wife. He fought skirmishes with the soldiers who were sent against

him, and often defeated them; and in time became so well known and so

formidable, that multitudes began to resort to his standard, until at

length he was at the head of a considerable army, with which he proposed

to restore his country to independence.

Thus Wallace’s party grew daily stronger and stronger, and many of the

Scottish nobles joined with him. Among these was Sir William Douglas,

the Lord of Douglasdale, and the head of a great family often mentioned

in Scottish history. There was also Sir John the Grahame, who became

Wallace’s bosom friend and greatest confidant. Many of these great

noblemen, however, deserted the cause of the country on the approach

of John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, the English governor, at the head

of a numerous and well-appointed army. They thought that Wallace would

be unable to withstand the attack of so many disciplined soldiers and

hastened to submit themselves to the English, for fear of losing their

estates. Wallace, however, remained undismayed, and at the head of a

considerable army. He had taken up his camp upon the northern side of the

river Forth, near the town of Stirling. The river was there crossed by a

long wooden bridge, about a mile above the spot where the present bridge

is situated.

The English general approached the banks of the river on the southern

side. He sent two clergymen to offer a pardon to Wallace and his

followers, on condition that they should lay down their arms. But such

was not the purpose of the high-minded champion of Scotland.

“Go back to Warenne,” said Wallace, “and tell him we value not the pardon

of the King of England. We are not here for the purpose of treating for

peace, but of abiding battle, and restoring freedom to our country. Let

the English come on; we defy them to their very beards!”

The English, upon hearing this haughty answer, called loudly to be led to

the attack. The Earl of Surrey hesitated, for he was a skillful soldier,

and he saw that to approach the Scottish army, his troops must pass

over the long, narrow, wooden bridge; so that those who should get over

first might be attacked by Wallace with all his forces, before those who

remained behind could possibly come to their assistance. He therefore

inclined to delay the battle. But Cressingham the Treasurer, who was

ignorant and presumptuous, insisted that it was their duty to fight

and put an end to the war at once; and Surrey gave way to his opinion,

although Cressingham, being a churchman, could not be so good a judge of

what was fitting as he himself, an experienced officer.

The English army began to cross the bridge, Cressingham leading the van,

or foremost division of the army; for, in those military days, even

clergymen wore armor and fought in battle. That took place which Surrey

had foreseen. Wallace suffered a considerable part of the English army to

pass the bridge, without offering any opposition; but when about one-half

were over, and the bridge was crowded with those who were following,

he charged those who had crossed, with his whole strength, slew a very

great number, and drove the rest into the river Forth, where the greater

part were drowned. The remainder of the English army, who were left on

the southern bank of the river, fled in great confusion, having first

set fire to the wooden bridge, that the Scots might not pursue them.

Cressingham was killed in the very beginning of the battle.

The remains of Surrey’s great army fled out of Scotland after this

defeat, and the Scots, taking arms on all sides, attacked the castles

in which the English soldiers continued to shelter themselves, and took

most of them by force or stratagem. Many wonderful stories are told of

Wallace’s exploits on these occasions, some of which are no doubt true,

while others are either invented or very much exaggerated. It seems

certain, however, that he defeated the English in several combats, chased

them almost entirely out of Scotland, regained the towns and castles

of which they had possessed themselves, and recovered for a time the

complete freedom of the country.

Edward I was in Flanders when all these events took place. You may

suppose he was very angry when he learned that Scotland, which he thought

completely subdued, had risen into a great insurrection against him,

defeated his armies, killed his Treasurer, chased his soldiers out of

their country, and invaded England with a great force. He came back from

Flanders in a mighty rage, and determined not to leave that rebellious

country until it was finally conquered, for which purpose he assembled a

very fine army and marched into Scotland.

In the meantime the Scots prepared to defend themselves, and chose

Wallace to be Governor, or Protector, of the kingdom, because they had

no king at the time. He was now titled Sir William Wallace, Protector,

or Governor, of the Scottish nation. But although Wallace, as we have

seen, was the best soldier and bravest man in Scotland, and therefore

the most fit to be placed in command at this critical period, when the

King of England was coming against them with such great forces, yet the

nobles of Scotland envied him this important situation, because he was

not a man born in high rank, or enjoying a large estate. So great was

their jealousy of Sir William Wallace, that many of these great barons

did not seem very willing to bring forward their forces, or fight against

the English, because they would not have a man of inferior condition to

be general. Yet, notwithstanding this unwillingness of the great nobility

to support him, Wallace assembled a large army; for the middling, but

especially the lower classes, were very much attached to him. He marched

boldly against the King of England, and met him near the town of Falkirk.

Most of the Scottish army were on foot, because, as I already told you,

in those days only the nobility and great men of Scotland fought on

horseback. The English King, on the contrary, had a very large body of

the finest cavalry in the world, Normans and English, all clothed in

complete armor. He had also the celebrated archers of England, each of

whom was said to carry twelve Scotsmen’s lives under his girdle; because

every archer had twelve arrows stuck in his belt, and was expected to

kill a man with every arrow.

The Scots had some good archers from the Forest of Ettrick, who fought

under command of Sir John Stewart of Bonkill; but they were not nearly

equal in number to the English. The greater part of the Scottish army

were on foot, armed with long spears; they were placed thick and close

together, and laid all their spears so close, point over point, that it

seemed as difficult to break through them, as through the wall of a

strong castle.

The English made the attack. King Edward, though he saw the close ranks,

and undaunted appearance, of the Scottish infantry, resolved nevertheless

to try whether he could not ride them down with his fine cavalry. He

therefore gave his horsemen orders to advance. They charged accordingly

at full gallop.

The first line of cavalry was commanded by the Earl Marshal of England,

whose progress was checked by a morass. The second line of English horse

was commanded by Antony Beck, the Bishop of Durham, who nevertheless

wore armor and fought like a lay baron. He wheeled round the morass; but

when he saw the deep and firm order of the Scots, his heart failed, and

he proposed to Sir Ralph Basset of Drayton, who commanded under him,

to halt till Edward himself brought up the reserve. “Go say your mass,

Bishop,” answered Basset contemptuously, and advanced at full gallop with

the second line. However, the Scots stood their ground with their long

spears; many of the foremost of the English horses were thrown down,

and the riders were killed as they lay rolling, unable to rise, owing

to the weight of their heavy armor. The English cavalry attempted again

and again to disperse the deep and solid ranks in which Wallace had

stationed his foot soldiers. But they were repeatedly beaten off with

loss, nor could they make their way through that wood of spears, as it

is called by one of the English historians. King Edward then commanded

his archers to advance; and these approaching within arrow-shot of the

Scottish ranks, poured on them such close and dreadful volleys of arrows,

that it was impossible to sustain the discharge. It happened at the same

time, that Sir John Stewart was killed by a fall from his horse; and the

archers of Ettrick Forest, whom he was bringing forward to oppose those

of King Edward, were slain in great numbers around him. Their bodies

were afterward distinguished among the slain, as being the tallest and

handsomest men of the army.

The Scottish spearmen being thus thrown into some degree of confusion, by

the loss of those who were slain by the arrows of the English, the heavy

cavalry of Edward again charged with more success than formerly, and

broke through the ranks, which were already disordered. Sir John Grahame,

Wallace’s great friend and companion, was slain, with many other brave

soldiers; and the Scots, having lost a very great number of men, were at

length obliged to take to flight.

The King of England possessed so much wealth, and so many means of

raising soldiers, that he sent army after army into the poor oppressed

country of Scotland, and obliged all its nobles and great men, one

after another, to submit themselves once more to his yoke. Sir William

Wallace, alone, or with a very small band of followers, refused either to

acknowledge the usurper Edward, or to lay down his arms. He continued to

maintain himself among the woods and mountains of his native country for

no less than seven years after his defeat at Falkirk, and for more than

one year after all the other defenders of Scottish liberty had laid down

their arms. Many proclamations were sent out against him by the English,

and a great reward was set upon his head; for Edward did not think he

could have any secure possession of his usurped kingdom of Scotland while

Wallace lived. At length he was taken prisoner; and, shame it to say, a

Scotsman called Sir John Monteith was the person by whom he was seized

and delivered to the English.

Edward, having thus obtained possession of the person whom he considered

as the greatest obstacle to his complete conquest of Scotland, resolved

to make Wallace an example to all Scottish patriots who should in future

venture to oppose his ambitious projects. He caused this gallant defender

of his country to be brought to trial in Westminster Hall, before the

English judges, and produced him there, crowned in mockery, with a green

garland, because they said he had been king of outlaws and robbers among

the Scottish woods. Wallace was accused of having been a traitor to the

English crown; to which he answered, “I could not be a traitor to Edward,

for I was never his subject.” He was then charged with having taken and

burned towns and castles, with having killed many men and done much

violence. He replied, with the same calm resolution, that it was true he

had killed many Englishmen, but it was because they had come to subdue

and oppress his native country of Scotland; and far from repenting what

he had done, he declared he was only sorry that he had not put to death

many more of them.

Notwithstanding that Wallace’s defense was a good one, both in law and

in common sense (for surely every one has not only a right to fight

in defense of his native country, but is bound in duty to do so), the

English judges condemned him to be executed.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Biography.= Walter Scott (1771-1832) was born in Edinburgh,

Scotland. Even in his childhood he loved nothing better than to

wander through Scotland, looking up castles and ruins and listening

to the stories connected with them as told by the old people of the

villages. He became familiar with all the ballads and legends of his

locality, and these, with Bishop Percy’s collection of ballads which

he read later, exerted a strong influence on his life. He loved the

history and romance of Scotland and made them known to all the world

through his poems and novels.

In 1827 he published the _Tales of a Grandfather_, because, as he

writes in his diary, the good thought came to him to write stories

from the history of Scotland for his grandson, John Hugh Lockhart,

whom he calls Hugh Littlejohn. “Children hate books which are written

down to their capacity, and love those that are composed more for

their elders. I will,” he says, “make, if possible, a book that a

child shall understand, yet a man will feel some temptation to peruse

should he chance to take it up.”

=Discussion.= 1. This story relates five episodes in the life of

William Wallace: The Basket of Fish; The Green Garment; The Wooden

Bridge at Stirling Town; A Wood of Spears; The Trial in Westminster

Hall. Relate the episode that seems most vivid to you. 2. Read three

speeches that show clearly the character of William Wallace. 3. Would

you have joined Wallace if you had been a Scottish nobleman? 4.

Why did many of the nobles refuse to join Wallace? 5. Describe the

Scottish infantry and archers, and the English cavalry and archers

at Falkirk. 6. What is your opinion of Sir John Monteith? 7. Locate

on your map: Ayr; Lanark; Clyde River; Stirling; Falkirk; Edinburgh;

Northumberland; London. 8. Pronounce the following: usurpation;

formidable; stratagem; exploits; undaunted; morass.

=Phrases=

particularly dexterous, 293, 6

usurpation of the crown, 293, 8

usual insolence, 293, 16

resort to his standard, 295, 2

high-minded champion, 295, 25

undaunted appearance, 298, 4

volleys of arrows, 298, 28

ambitious projects, 299, 26

ROBERT THE BRUCE (1305-1313)

Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, and John Comyn, usually called the Red

Comyn, two great and powerful barons, had taken part with Sir William

Wallace in the wars against England; but, after the defeat of Falkirk,

being fearful of losing their great estates, and considering the freedom

of Scotland as beyond the possibility of being recovered, both Bruce

and Comyn had not only submitted themselves to Edward, and acknowledged

his title as King of Scotland, but even borne arms, along with the

English, against such of their countrymen as still continued to resist

the usurper. But the feelings of Bruce concerning the baseness of

this conduct are said, by the old tradition of Scotland, to have been

awakened by the following incident. In one of the numerous battles, or

skirmishes, which took place at the time between the English and their

adherents on the one side, and the insurgent, or patriotic, Scots upon

the other, Robert the Bruce was present, and assisted the English to gain

the victory. After the battle was over, he sat down to dinner among his

southern friends and allies, without washing his hands, on which there

still remained spots of the blood which he had shed during the action.

The English lords, observing this, whispered to each other in mockery,

“Look at that Scotsman, who is eating his own blood!” Bruce heard what

they said, and began to reflect that the blood upon his hands might be

indeed called his own, since it was that of his brave countrymen who were

fighting for the independence of Scotland, whilst he was assisting its

oppressors, who only laughed at and mocked him for his unnatural conduct.

He was so much shocked and disgusted, that he arose from table, and,

going into a neighboring chapel, shed many tears, and asking pardon of

God for the great crime he had been guilty of, made a solemn vow that he

would atone for it, by doing all in his power to deliver Scotland from

the foreign yoke. Accordingly, he left, it is said, the English army, and

never joined it again, but remained watching an opportunity for restoring

the freedom of his country.

Now, this Robert the Bruce was a remarkably brave and strong man; there

was no man in Scotland that was thought a match for him except Sir

William Wallace; and now that Wallace was dead, Bruce was held the best

warrior in Scotland. He was very wise and prudent, and an excellent

general. He was generous, too, and courteous by nature; but he had some

faults, which perhaps belonged as much to the fierce period in which he

lived as to his own character. He was rash and passionate, and in his

passion, he was sometimes relentless and cruel.

Robert the Bruce had fixed his purpose, as I told you, to attempt once

again to drive the English out of Scotland, and he desired to prevail

upon Sir John the Red Comyn, who was his rival in his pretensions to the

throne, to join with him in expelling the foreign enemy by their common

efforts. With this purpose, Bruce posted down from London to Dumfries, on

the borders of Scotland, and requested an interview with John Comyn. They

met in the church of the Minorites in that town, before the high altar.

What passed betwixt them is not known with certainty; but they quarreled,

either concerning their mutual pretensions to the crown, or because

Comyn refused to join Bruce in the proposed insurrection against the

English; or, as many writers say, because Bruce charged Comyn with having

betrayed to the English his purpose of rising up against King Edward.

It is, however, certain, that these two haughty barons came to high

and abusive words, until at length Bruce, who I told you was extremely

passionate, forgot the sacred character of the place in which they stood,

and struck Comyn a blow with his dagger. Having done this rash deed, he

instantly ran out of the church and called for his horse. Two gentlemen

of the country, Lindesay and Kirkpatrick, friends of Bruce, were then in

attendance on him. Seeing him pale, and in much agitation, they eagerly

inquired what was the matter.

“I doubt,” said Bruce, “that I have slain the Red Comyn.”

“Do you leave such a matter in doubt?” said Kirkpatrick. “I will make

sicker!”—that is, I will make certain.

Accordingly, he and his companion Lindesay rushed into the church, and

made the matter certain with a vengeance, by dispatching the wounded

Comyn with their daggers. This slaughter of Comyn was a most rash

and cruel action; and the historian of Bruce observes, that it was

followed by the displeasure of Heaven; for no man ever went through more

misfortunes than Robert Bruce, although he at length rose to great honor.

The commencement of Bruce’s undertaking was most disastrous. He was

crowned on the twenty-ninth of March, 1306. On the nineteenth of June,

the new King was completely defeated near Methven by the English Earl of

Pembroke. Robert’s horse was killed under him in the action, and he was

for a moment a prisoner. But he had fallen into the power of a Scottish

knight, who, though he served in the English army, did not choose to be

the instrument of putting Bruce into their hands, and allowed him to

escape.

Driven from one place in the Highlands to another, starved out of some

districts, and forced from others by the opposition of the inhabitants,

Bruce attempted to force his way into Lorn; but he found enemies

everywhere.

At last dangers increased so much around the brave King Robert, that he

was obliged to separate himself from his Queen and her ladies; for the

winter was coming on, and it would be impossible for the women to endure

this wandering sort of life when the frost and snow should set in. So

Bruce left his Queen, with the Countess of Buchan and others, in the

only castle which remained to him, which was called Kildrummie, and is

situated near the head of the river Don in Aberdeenshire. The King also

left his youngest brother, Nigel Bruce, to defend the castle against the

English; and he himself, with his second brother Edward, who was a very

brave man, but still more rash and passionate than Robert himself, went

over to an island called Rachrin, on the coast of Ireland, where Bruce

and the few men who followed his fortunes passed the winter of 1306.

The news of the taking of Kildrummie, the captivity of his wife, and

the execution of his brother, reached Bruce while he was residing in a

miserable dwelling at Rachrin, and reduced him to the point of despair.

It was about this time that an incident took place, which, although it

rests only on tradition in families of the name of Bruce, is rendered

probable by the manners of the times. After receiving the last unpleasing

intelligence from Scotland, Bruce was lying one morning on his wretched

bed, and deliberating with himself whether he had not better resign all

thoughts of again attempting to make good his right to the Scottish

crown, and, dismissing his followers, transport himself and his brothers

to the Holy Land, and spend the rest of his life in fighting against the

Saracens; by which he thought, perhaps, he might deserve the forgiveness

of Heaven for the great sin of stabbing Comyn in the church at Dumfries.

But then, on the other hand, he thought it would be both criminal and

cowardly to give up his attempts to restore freedom to Scotland while

there yet remained the least chance of his being successful in an

undertaking, which, rightly considered, was much more his duty than to

drive the infidels out of Palestine.

While he was divided betwixt these reflections, and doubtful of what he

should do, Bruce was looking upward to the roof of the cabin in which he

lay; and his eye was attracted by a spider, which, hanging at the end of

a long thread of its own spinning, was endeavoring, as is the fashion

of that creature, to swing itself from one beam in the roof to another,

for the purpose of fixing the line on which it meant to stretch its web.

The insect made the attempt again and again without success; at length

Bruce counted that it had tried to carry its point six times, and been as

often unable to do so. It came into his head that he had himself fought

just six battles against the English and their allies, and that the poor

persevering spider was exactly in the same situation with himself, having

made as many trials and been as often disappointed in what it aimed at.

“Now,” thought Bruce, “as I have no means of knowing what is best to be

done, I will be guided by the luck which shall attend this spider. If

the insect shall make another effort to fix its thread, and shall be

successful, I will venture a seventh time to try my fortune in Scotland;

but if the spider shall fail, I will go to the wars in Palestine, and

never return to my native country more.”

While Bruce was forming this resolution the spider made another exertion

with all the force it could muster, and fairly succeeded in fastening

its thread to the beam which it had so often in vain attempted to reach.

Bruce, seeing the success of the spider, resolved to try his own fortune;

and as he had never before gained a victory, so he never afterwards

sustained any considerable or decisive check or defeat. I have often met

with people of the name of Bruce, so completely persuaded of the truth of

this story, that they would not on any account kill a spider, because it

was that insect which had shown the example of perseverance, and given a

signal of good luck to their great namesake.

Having determined to renew his efforts to obtain possession of Scotland,

notwithstanding the smallness of the means which he had for accomplishing

so great a purpose, the Bruce removed himself and his followers from

Rachrin to the island of Arran, which lies in the mouth of the Clyde. The

King landed and inquired of the first woman he met what armed men were

in the island. She returned for answer that there had arrived there very

lately a body of armed strangers, who had defeated an English officer,

the governor of the castle of Brathwick, had killed him and most of his

men, and were now amusing themselves with hunting about the island.

The King, having caused himself to be guided to the woods which these

strangers most frequented, there blew his horn repeatedly. Now, the chief

of the strangers who had taken the castle was James Douglas, one of the

best of Bruce’s friends, and he was accompanied by some of the bravest of

that patriotic band. When he heard Robert Bruce’s horn, he knew the sound

well, and cried out that yonder was the King; he knew by his manner of

blowing. So he and his companions hastened to meet King Robert, and there

was great joy on both sides; whilst at the same time they could not help

weeping when they considered their own forlorn condition, and the great

loss that had taken place among their friends since they had last parted.

But they were stout-hearted men, and looked forward to freeing their

country in spite of all that had yet happened.

When King Edward the First heard that Scotland was again in arms against

him, he marched down to the borders with many threats of what he would

do to avenge himself on Bruce and his party, whom he called rebels.

Other great lords besides Douglas were now exerting themselves to attack

and destroy the English. Amongst those was Sir Thomas Randolph, whose

mother was a sister of King Robert. He had joined with the Bruce when he

first took up arms. Afterwards being made prisoner by the English, when

the King was defeated at Methven, Sir Thomas Randolph was obliged to join

the English to save his life. He remained so constant to them, that he

was in company with Aymer de Valence and John of Lorn, when they forced

the Bruce to disperse his little band; and he followed the pursuit so

close, that he made his uncle’s standard-bearer prisoner and took his

banner. Afterwards, however, he was himself made prisoner, at a solitary

house on Lyne-water, by the good Lord James Douglas, who brought him

captive to the King. Robert reproached his nephew for having deserted his

cause; and Randolph, who was very hot-tempered, answered insolently, and

was sent by King Robert to prison. Shortly after, the uncle and nephew

were reconciled, and Sir Thomas Randolph, created Earl of Murray by the

King, was ever afterwards one of Bruce’s best supporters. There was a

sort of rivalry between Douglas and him, which should do the boldest and

most hazardous actions. I will just mention one or two circumstances,

which will show you what awful dangers were to be encountered by these

brave men, in order to free Scotland from its enemies and invaders.

While Robert Bruce was gradually getting possession of the country, and

driving out the English, Edinburgh, the principal town of Scotland,

remained, with its strong castle, in possession of the invaders. Sir

Thomas Randolph was extremely desirous to gain this important place; but,

as you well know, the castle is situated on a very steep and lofty rock,

so that it is difficult or almost impossible even to get up to the foot

of the walls, much more to climb over them.

So while Randolph was considering what was to be done, there came to him

a Scottish gentleman named Francis, who had joined Bruce’s standard, and

asked to speak with him in private. He then told Randolph, that in his

youth he had lived in the Castle of Edinburgh, and that his father had

then been keeper of the fortress. It happened at that time that Francis

was much in love with a lady, who lived in a part of the town beneath the

castle, which is called the Grassmarket. Now, as he could not get out

of the castle by day to see her, he had practiced a way of clambering

by night down the castle rock on the south side, and returning at his

pleasure; when he came to the foot of the wall, he made use of a ladder

to get over it, as it was not very high at that point, those who built it

having trusted to the steepness of the crag; and, for the same reason, no

watch was placed there. Francis had gone and come so frequently in this

dangerous manner, that, though it was now long ago, he told Randolph he

knew the road so well that he would undertake to guide a small party of

men by night to the bottom of the wall; and as they might bring ladders

with them, there would be no difficulty in scaling it. The great risk

was that of their being discovered by the watchmen while in the act of

ascending the cliff, in which case every man of them must have perished.

Nevertheless, Randolph did not hesitate to attempt the adventure. He took

with him only thirty men (you may be sure they were chosen for activity

and courage), and came one dark night to the foot of the rock, which they

began to ascend under the guidance of Francis, who went before them, upon

his hands and feet, up one cliff, down another, and round another, where

there was scarce room to support themselves. All the while these thirty

men were obliged to follow in a line, one after the other, by a path

that was fitter for a cat than a man. The noise of a stone falling, or a

word spoken from one to another, would have alarmed the watchmen. They

were obliged, therefore, to move with the greatest precaution. When they

were far up the crag, and near the foundation of the wall, they heard

the guards going their rounds, to see that all was safe in and about the

castle. Randolph and his party had nothing for it but to lie close and

quiet, each man under the crag, as he happened to be placed, and trust

that the guards would pass by without noticing them. And while they

were waiting in breathless alarm they got a new cause of fright. One of

the soldiers of the castle, willing to startle his comrades, suddenly

threw a stone from the wall, and cried out, “Aha, I see you well!” The

stone came thundering down over the heads of Randolph and his men, who

naturally thought themselves discovered. If they had stirred, or made

the slightest noise, they would have been entirely destroyed; for the

soldiers above might have killed every man of them merely by rolling down

stones. But being courageous and chosen men, they remained quiet, and

the English soldiers, who thought their comrade was merely playing them

a trick (as, indeed, he had no other meaning in what he did and said),

passed on without further examination.

Then Randolph and his men got up and came in haste to the foot of the

wall, which was not above twice a man’s height in that place. They

planted the ladders they had brought, and Francis mounted first to show

them the way; Sir Andrew Grey, a brave knight, followed him, and Randolph

himself was the third man who got over. Then the rest followed. When

once they were within the walls, there was not so much to do, for the

garrison were asleep and unarmed, excepting the watch, who were speedily

destroyed. Thus was Edinburgh Castle taken in March, 1312-13.

It was not, however, only by the exertions of great and powerful barons,

like Randolph and Douglas, that the freedom of Scotland was to be

accomplished. The stout yeomanry and the bold peasantry of the land, who

were as desirous to enjoy their cottages in honorable independence as

the nobles were to reclaim their castles and estates from the English,

contributed their full share in the efforts which were made to deliver

the country from the invaders. I will give you one instance among many.

There was a strong castle near Linlithgow, or Lithgow, as the word is

more generally pronounced, where an English governor, with a powerful

garrison, lay in readiness to support the English cause, and used to

exercise much severity upon the Scots in the neighborhood. There lived

at no great distance from this stronghold, a farmer, a bold and stout

man, whose name was Binnock, or, as it is now pronounced, Binning. This

man saw with great joy the progress which the Scots were making in

recovering their country from the English, and resolved to do something

to help his countrymen, by getting possession, if it were possible,

of the Castle of Lithgow. But the place was very strong, situated by

the side of a lake, defended not only by gates, which were usually kept

shut against strangers, but also by a portcullis. A portcullis is a sort

of door formed of cross-bars of iron, like a grate. It has not hinges

like a door, but is drawn up by pulleys, and let down when any danger

approaches. It may be let go in a moment, and then falls down into the

doorway; and as it has great iron spikes at the bottom, it crushes all

that it lights upon; thus in case of a sudden alarm, a portcullis may be

let suddenly fall to defend the entrance, when it is not possible to shut

the gates. Binnock knew this very well, but he resolved to be provided

against this risk also when he attempted to surprise the castle. So he

spoke with some bold, courageous countrymen, and engaged them in his

enterprise, which he accomplished thus:

Binnock had been accustomed to supply the garrison of Linlithgow

with hay, and he had been ordered by the English governor to furnish

some cart-loads, of which they were in want. He promised to bring it

accordingly; but the night before he drove the hay to the castle, he

stationed a party of his friends, as well armed as possible, near the

entrance, where they could not be seen by the garrison, and gave them

directions that they should come to his assistance as soon as they should

hear him cry a signal, which was to be, “Call all, call all!” Then he

loaded a great wagon with hay. But in the wagon he placed eight strong

men, well armed, lying flat on their breasts, and covered over with hay,

so that they could not be seen. He himself walked carelessly beside the

wagon; and he chose the stoutest and bravest of his servants to be the

driver, who carried at his belt a strong ax or hatchet. In this way

Binnock approached the castle early in the morning; and the watchman, who

only saw two men, Binnock being one of them, with a cart of hay, which

they expected, opened the gates and raised up the portcullis, to permit

them to enter the castle. But as soon as the cart had gotten under the

gateway, Binnock made a sign to his servant, who with his ax suddenly

cut asunder the _soam_, that is, the yoke which fastens the horses to

the cart, and the horses finding themselves free, naturally started

forward, the cart remaining behind. At the same moment, Binnock cried,

as loud as he could, “Call all, call all!” and drawing the sword, which

he had under his country habit, he killed the porter. The armed men then

jumped up from under the hay where they lay concealed, and rushed on the

English guard. The Englishmen tried to shut the gates, but they could

not, because the cart of hay remained in the gateway, and prevented the

folding-doors from being closed. The portcullis was also let fall, but

the grating was caught on the cart, and so could not drop to the ground.

The men who were in ambush near the gate, hearing the cry, “Call all,

call all,” ran to assist those who had leaped out from amongst the hay;

the castle was taken, and all the Englishmen killed or made prisoners.

King Robert rewarded Binnock by bestowing on him an estate, which his

posterity long afterwards enjoyed.

The English now possessed scarcely any place of importance in Scotland,

excepting Stirling, which was besieged, or rather blockaded, by Edward

Bruce, the King’s brother. To blockade a town or castle is to quarter an

army around it, so as to prevent those within from getting provisions.

This was done by the Scots before Stirling, till Sir Philip Mowbray, who

commanded the castle, finding that he was like to be reduced to extremity

for want of provisions, made an agreement with Edward Bruce that he would

surrender the place, provided he were not relieved by the King of England

before midsummer. Sir Edward agreed to these terms, and allowed Mowbray

to go to London, to tell King Edward of the conditions he had made. But

when King Robert heard what his brother had done, he thought it was too

great a risk, since it obliged him to venture a battle with the full

strength of Edward the Second, who had under him England, Ireland, Wales,

and great part of France, and could within the time allowed assemble a

much more powerful army than the Scots could, even if all Scotland were

fully under the King’s authority. Sir Edward answered his brother with

his naturally audacious spirit, “Let Edward bring every man he has, we

will fight them, were they more.” The King admired his courage, though

it was mingled with rashness. “Since it is so, brother,” he said, “we

will manfully abide battle, and assemble all who love us, and value the

freedom of Scotland, to come with all the men they have, and help us to

oppose King Edward, should he come with his army, to rescue Stirling.”

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Discussion.= 1. What incident made Robert Bruce leave the English

army? 2. What qualities for leadership did he possess? 3. What

happened when Comyn and Bruce met at the church in Dumfries? 4.

How was Bruce punished for this deed? 5. Mention some of Bruce’s

misfortunes. 6. Which did you wish Bruce to do, fight the Saracens,

or fight for Scotland? 7. Why? 8. What did the spider show Bruce? 9.

How did Bruce and James Douglas meet? 10. What do you know about Sir

Thomas Randolph? 11. Describe the taking of Edinburgh Castle. 12. By

what stratagem was the Castle of Lithgow taken? 13. Read lines that

show the character of the King’s brother, Sir Edward. 14. Pronounce

the following: patriotic; yeomanry; severity; audacious.

=Phrases=

resist the usurper, 301, 9

baseness of this conduct, 301, 10

foreign yoke, 301, 31

down from London, 302, 15

church of Minorites, 302, 17

mutual pretensions, 302, 19

unpleasing intelligence, 304, 4

stout-hearted men, 305, 34

stout yeomanry, 308, 23

bold peasantry, 308, 23

THE BATTLE OF BANNOCKBURN (1314)

When Sir Philip Mowbray, the governor of Stirling, came to London, to

tell the King that Stirling, the last Scottish town of importance which

remained in possession of the English, was to be surrendered if it were

not relieved by force of arms before midsummer, then all the English

nobles called out, it would be a sin and shame to permit the fair

conquest which Edward the First had made, to be forfeited to the Scots

for want of fighting.

King Edward the Second, therefore, assembled one of the greatest armies

which a King of England ever commanded. There were troops brought from

all his dominions. Many brave soldiers from the French provinces which

the King of England possessed in France—many Irish, many Welsh—and

all the great English nobles and barons, with their followers, were

assembled in one great army. The number was not less than one hundred

thousand men.

King Robert the Bruce summoned all his nobles and barons to join him,

when he heard of the great preparations which the King of England was

making. They were not so numerous as the English by many thousand men.

In fact, his whole army did not very much exceed thirty thousand, and

they were much worse armed than the wealthy Englishmen; but then,

Robert, who was at their head, was one of the most expert generals of

the time; and the officers he had under him were his brother Edward, his

nephew Randolph, his faithful follower the Douglas, and other brave and

experienced leaders, who commanded the same men that had been accustomed

to fight and gain victories under every disadvantage of situation and

numbers.

The King, on his part, studied how he might supply, by address and

stratagem, what he wanted in numbers and strength. He knew the

superiority of the English, both in their heavy-armed cavalry, which

were much better mounted and armed than that of the Scots, and in their

archers, who were better trained than any others in the world. Both these

advantages he resolved to provide against. With this purpose, he led his

army down into a plain near Stirling, called the Park, near which, and

beneath it, the English army must needs pass through a boggy country,

broken with water-courses, while the Scots occupied hard dry ground. He

then caused all the ground upon the front of his line of battle, where

cavalry were likely to act, to be dug full of holes, about as deep as a

man’s knee. They were filled with light brushwood, and the turf was laid

on the top, so that it appeared a plain field, while in reality it was

all full of these pits as a honeycomb is of holes. He also, it is said,

caused steel spikes, called calthrops, to be scattered up and down in the

plain, where the English cavalry were most likely to advance, trusting in

that manner to lame and destroy their horses.

When the Scottish army was drawn up, the line stretched north and

south. On the south, it was terminated by the banks of the brook,

called Bannockburn, which are so rocky, that no troops could attack

them there. On the left, the Scottish line extended near to the town

of Stirling. Bruce reviewed his troops very carefully; all the useless

servants, drivers of carts, and such like, of whom there were very many,

he ordered to go behind a height, afterwards, in memory of the event,

called the Gillies’ hill, that is, the Servants’ hill. He then spoke to

the soldiers, and expressed his determination to gain the victory, or to

lose his life on the field of battle. He desired that all those who did

not propose to fight to the last should leave the field before the battle

began, and that none should remain except those who were determined to

take the issue of victory or death, as God should send it.

When the main body of his army was thus placed in order, the King posted

Randolph, with a body of horse, near to the Church of St. Ninian’s,

commanding him to use the utmost diligence to prevent any succors from

being thrown into Stirling Castle. He then dispatched James of Douglas,

and Sir Robert Keith, the Mareschal of the Scottish army, in order that

they might survey as nearly as they could, the English force, which was

now approaching from Falkirk. They returned with information, that the

approach of that vast host was one of the most beautiful and terrible

sights which could be seen—that the whole country seemed covered with

men-at-arms on horse and foot—that the number of standards, banners, and

pennons made so gallant a show, that the bravest and most numerous host

in Christendom might be alarmed to see King Edward moving against them.

It was upon the twenty-third of June (1314) the King of Scotland heard

the news, that the English army were approaching Stirling. He drew out

his army, therefore, in the order which he had before resolved on. After

a short time, Bruce, who was looking out anxiously for the enemy, saw a

body of English cavalry trying to get into Stirling from the eastward.

This was the Lord Clifford, who, with a chosen body of eight hundred

horse, had been detached to relieve the castle.

“See, Randolph,” said the King to his nephew, “there is a rose fallen

from your chaplet.” By this he meant that Randolph had lost some honor,

by suffering the enemy to pass where he had been stationed to hinder

them. Randolph made no reply but rushed against Clifford with little

more than half his number. The Scots were on foot. The English turned

to charge them with their lances, and Randolph drew up his men in close

order to receive the onset. He seemed to be in so much danger, that

Douglas asked leave of the King to go and assist him. The King refused

him permission.

“Let Randolph,” he said, “redeem his own fault; I cannot break the order

of battle for his sake.” Still the danger appeared greater, and the

English horse seemed entirely to encompass the small handful of Scottish

infantry. “So please you,” said Douglas to the king, “my heart will

not suffer me to stand idle and see Randolph perish—I must go to his

assistance.” He rode off accordingly; but long before they had reached

the place of combat, they saw the English horses galloping off, many with

empty saddles.

“Halt!” said Douglas to his men, “Randolph has gained the day; since we

were not soon enough to help him in the battle, do not let us lessen his

glory by approaching the field.” Now, that was nobly done; especially as

Douglas and Randolph were always contending which should rise highest in

the good opinion of the King of the nation.

The van of the English army now came in sight, and a number of their

bravest knights drew near to see what the Scots were doing. They saw King

Robert dressed in his armor and distinguished by a gold crown, which he

wore over his helmet. He was not mounted on his great war-horse, because

he did not expect to fight that evening. But he rode on a little pony up

and down the ranks of his army, putting his men in order, and carried in

his hand a sort of battle-ax made of steel.

The next morning, being the twenty-fourth of June, at break of day, the

battle began in terrible earnest. The English as they advanced saw the

Scots getting into line. The Abbot of Inchaffray walked through their

ranks bare-footed, and exhorted them to fight for their freedom. They

kneeled down as he passed, and prayed to Heaven for victory. King Edward,

who saw this, called out, “They kneel down—they are asking forgiveness.”

“Yes,” said a celebrated English baron, called Ingelram de Umphraville,

“but they ask it from God, not from us—these men will conquer, or die

upon the field.”

The English King ordered his men to begin the battle. The archers then

bent their bows, and began to shoot so closely together, that the arrows

fell like flakes of snow on a Christmas day. They killed many of the

Scots, and might, as at Falkirk, and other places, have decided the

victory; but Bruce, as I told you before, was prepared for them. He had

in readiness a body of men-at-arms, well mounted, who rode at full gallop

among the archers, and as they had no weapons save their bows and arrows,

which they could not use when they were attacked hand to hand, they were

cut down in great numbers by the Scottish horsemen, and thrown into total

confusion.

The fine English cavalry then advanced to support their archers, and to

attack the Scottish line. But coming over the ground which was dug full

of pits, the horses fell into these holes, and the riders lay tumbling

about, without any means of defense, and unable to rise, from the weight

of their armor. The Englishmen began to fall into general disorder; and

the Scottish King, bringing up more of his forces, attacked and pressed

them still more closely.

On a sudden, while the battle was obstinately maintained on both sides,

an event happened which decided the victory. The servants and attendants

on the Scottish camp had, as I told you, been sent behind the army to a

place afterwards called the Gillies’ hill. But when they saw that their

masters were likely to gain the day, they rushed from their place of

concealment with such weapons as they could get, that they might have

their share in the victory and in the spoil. The English, seeing them

come suddenly over the hill, mistook this disorderly rabble for a new

army coming up to sustain the Scots, and, losing all heart, began to

shift every man for himself. Edward himself left the field as fast as he

could ride. A valiant knight, Sir Giles de Argentine, much renowned in

the wars of Palestine, attended the King till he got him out of the press

of the combat. But he would retreat no farther. “It is not my custom,”

he said, “to fly.” With that he took leave of the King, set spurs to his

horse, and calling out his war-cry of Argentine! Argentine! he rushed

into the thickest of the Scottish ranks, and was killed.

Edward first fled to Stirling Castle, and entreated admittance; but Sir

Philip Mowbray, the governor, reminded the fugitive sovereign that he

was obliged to surrender the castle next day, so Edward was fain to fly

through the Torwood, closely pursued by Douglas with a body of cavalry.

Douglas and Abernethy continued the chase, not giving King Edward time

to alight from horseback even for an instant, and followed him as far as

Dunbar, where the English had still a friend, in the governor, Patrick,

Earl of March. The Earl received Edward in his forlorn condition, and

furnished him with a fishing skiff, or small ship, in which he escaped to

England, having entirely lost his fine army, and a great number of his

bravest nobles.

The English never before or afterwards, whether in France or Scotland,

lost so dreadful a battle as that of Bannockburn, nor did the Scots

ever gain one of the same importance. Many of the best and bravest of

the English nobility and gentry, as I have said, lay dead on the field;

a great many more were made prisoners; and the whole of King Edward’s

immense army was dispersed or destroyed.

The English, after this great defeat, were no longer in a condition to

support their pretensions to be masters of Scotland, or to continue, as

they had done for nearly twenty years, to send armies into that country

to overcome it. On the contrary, they became for a time scarce able to

defend their own frontiers against King Robert and his soldiers.

Thus did Robert Bruce arise from the condition of an exile, hunted with

bloodhounds like a stag or beast of prey, to the rank of an independent

sovereign, universally acknowledged to be one of the wisest and bravest

kings who then lived. The nation of Scotland was also raised once more

from the situation of a distressed and conquered province to that of a

free and independent state, governed by its own laws, and subject to

its own princes; and although the country was, after the Bruce’s death,

often subjected to great loss and distress, both by the hostility of the

English, and by the unhappy civil wars among the Scots themselves, yet

they never afterwards lost the freedom for which Wallace had laid down

his life, and which King Robert had recovered, not less by his wisdom

than by his weapons. And therefore most just it is, that while the

country of Scotland retains any recollection of its history, the memory

of those brave warriors and faithful patriots should be remembered with

honor and gratitude.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Discussion.= 1. Describe the two armies, the English and the

Scottish. 2. What stratagem did the King use? 3. Draw a diagram

of the Scottish line showing the relative positions of the Park,

Bannockburn, Stirling, Gillies’ hill, the church of St. Ninian’s, and

Falkirk. 4. What did the King mean when he said to Randolph, “There

is a rose fallen from your chaplet”? 5. Read passages that show two

fine sides of Douglas’s nature. 6. Describe the Scottish king as

he rode up and down the ranks of his army. 7. Describe the battle.

8. What decided the victory? 9. Read the passages that seem to you

the most thrilling. 10. Why was this such an important battle? 11.

Read Bruce’s address to his soldiers as given by Robert Burns in his

poem “Bannockburn.” 12. Pronounce the following: boggy; exhorted;

fugitive; frontiers.

=Phrases=

fair conquest, 311, 8

disadvantage of situation, 312, 15

was obstinately maintained, 315, 22

disorderly rabble, 315, 30

valiant knight, 315, 33

entreated admittance, 316, 3

fugitive sovereign, 316, 4

civil wars, 316, 37

THE EXPLOITS OF DOUGLAS AND RANDOLPH (1315-1330)

Robert Bruce continued to reign gloriously for several years, and was so

constantly victorious over the English, that the Scots seemed during his

government to have acquired a complete superiority over their neighbors.

But then we must remember that Edward the Second, who then reigned in

England, was a foolish prince, and listened to bad counsels; so that it

is no wonder that he was beaten by so wise and experienced a general

as Robert Bruce, who had fought his way to the crown through so many

disasters, and acquired in consequence so much renown, that, as I have

often said, he was generally accounted one of the best soldiers and

wisest sovereigns of his time.

In the last year of Robert the Bruce’s reign, he became extremely sickly

and infirm, chiefly owing to a disorder called the leprosy, which he had

caught during the hardships and misfortunes of his youth, when he was so

frequently obliged to hide himself in woods and morasses, without a roof

to shelter him. While Bruce was in this feeble state, Edward the Second,

King of England, died, and was succeeded by his son Edward the Third.

He turned out afterwards to be one of the wisest and bravest kings whom

England ever had; but when he first mounted the throne he was very young,

and under the entire management of his mother.

The war between the English and the Scots still lasting at the time,

Bruce sent his two great commanders, the good Lord James Douglas,

and Thomas Randolph, Earl of Murray, to lay waste the counties of

Northumberland and Durham, and distress the English as much as they could.

Their soldiers were about twenty thousand in number, all lightly armed,

and mounted on horses that were quite small in height, but excessively

active. The men themselves carried no provision, except a bag of oatmeal;

and each had at his saddle a small plate of iron called a girdle, on

which, when they pleased, they could bake the oatmeal into cakes. They

killed the cattle of the English, as they traveled through the country,

roasted the flesh on wooden spits, or boiled it in the skins of the

animals themselves, putting in a little water with the beef, to prevent

the fire from burning the hide to pieces. This was rough cookery. They

made their shoes, or rather sandals, in as coarse a way; cutting them

out of the raw hides of the cattle, and fitting them to their ankles,

like what are now called short gaiters. As this sort of buskin had the

hairy side of the hide outermost, the English called those who wore

them _rough-footed_ Scots, and sometimes, from the color of the hide,

_red-shanks_.

As such forces needed to carry nothing with them, either for provisions

or ammunition, the Scots moved with amazing speed, from mountain to

mountain, and from glen to glen, pillaging and destroying the country

wheresoever they came. In the meanwhile, the King of England pursued

them with a much larger army; but, as it was encumbered by the necessity

of carrying provisions in great quantities, and by the slow motions of

men in heavy armor, they could not come up with the Scots, although

they saw every day the smoke of the houses and villages which they were

burning. The King of England was extremely angry; for, though only a boy

sixteen years old, he longed to fight the Scots and to chastise them for

the mischief they were doing to his country; and at length he grew so

impatient that he offered a large reward to any one who would show him

where the Scottish army were.

At length, after the English host had suffered severe hardships, from

want of provisions, and fatiguing journeys through fords, and swamps,

and morasses, a gentleman named Rokeby came into the camp and claimed

the reward which the King had offered. He told the King that he had been

made prisoner by the Scots, and that they said they should be as glad to

meet the English King as he to see them. Accordingly, Rokeby guided the

English army to the place where the Scots lay encamped.

But the English King was no nearer to the battle which he desired; for

Douglas and Randolph, knowing the force and numbers of the English army,

had taken up their camp on a steep hill, at the bottom of which ran a

deep river called the Wear, having a channel filled with large stones, so

that there was no possibility for the English to attack the Scots without

crossing the water, and then climbing up the steep hill in the very face

of their enemy; a risk which was too great to be attempted.

Then the King sent a message of defiance to the Scottish generals,

inviting them either to draw back their forces, and allow him freedom

to cross the river and time to place his army in order of battle on the

other side, that they might fight fairly, or offering, if they liked it

better, to permit them to cross over to his side without opposition, that

they might join battle on a fair field. Randolph and Douglas did nothing

but laugh at this message. They said that when they fought, it should be

at their own pleasure, and not because the King of England chose to ask

for a battle. They reminded him, insultingly, how they had been in his

country for many days, burning, taking spoil, and doing what they thought

fit. If the King was displeased with this, they said he must find his way

across the river to fight them, the best way he could.

The English King, determined not to quit sight of the Scots, encamped

on the opposite side of the river to watch their motions, thinking that

want of provisions would oblige them to quit their strong position on

the mountains. But the Scots once more showed Edward their dexterity

in marching, by leaving their encampment, and taking up another post,

even stronger and more difficult to approach than the first which they

had occupied. King Edward followed, and again encamped opposite to his

dexterous and troublesome enemies, desirous to bring them to a battle,

when he might hope to gain an easy victory, having more than double the

number of the Scottish army, all troops of the very best quality.

While the armies lay thus opposed to each other, Douglas resolved to give

the young King of England a lesson in the art of war. At the dead of

night, he left the Scottish camp with a small body of chosen horse, not

above two hundred, well armed. He crossed the river in deep silence and

came to the English camp, which was but carelessly guarded. Seeing this,

Douglas rode past the English sentinels as if he had been an officer of

the English army, saying—“Ha, Saint George! you keep bad watch here.” In

those days, you must know, the English used to swear by Saint George, as

the Scots did by Saint Andrew. Presently after, Douglas heard an English

soldier, who lay stretched by the fire, say to his comrade, “I cannot

tell what is to happen to us in this place; but, for my part, I have a

great fear of the Black Douglas playing us some trick.”

“You shall have cause to say so,” said Douglas to himself.

When he had thus got into the midst of the English camp without being

discovered, he drew his sword, and cut asunder the ropes of a tent,

calling out his usual war-cry, “Douglas, Douglas! English thieves, you

are all dead men.” His followers immediately began to cut down and

overturn the tents, cutting and stabbing the English soldiers as they

endeavored to get to arms.

Douglas forced his way to the pavilion of the King himself, and very

nearly carried the young prince prisoner out of the middle of his great

army. Edward’s chaplain, however, and many of his household, stood to

arms bravely in his defense, while the young King escaped by creeping

away beneath the canvas of his tent. The chaplain and several of the

King’s officers were slain; but the whole camp was now alarmed and in

arms, so that Douglas was obliged to retreat, which he did by bursting

through the English at the side of the camp opposite to that by which he

had entered. Being separated from his men in the confusion, he was in

great danger of being slain by an Englishman who encountered him with a

huge club. This man he killed, but with considerable difficulty; and then

blowing his horn to collect his soldiers, who soon gathered around him,

he returned to the Scottish camp, having sustained very little loss.

Edward, much mortified at the insult which he had received, became still

more desirous of chastising those audacious adversaries; and one of them

at least was not unwilling to afford him an opportunity of revenge. This

was Thomas Randolph, Earl of Murray. He asked Douglas, when he returned

to the Scottish camp, what he had done. “We have drawn some blood.”—“Ah,”

said the Earl, “had we gone all together to the night attack, we should

have discomfited them.”—“It might well have been so,” said Douglas,

“but the risk would have been too great.”—“Then will we fight them in

open battle,” said Randolph, “for if we remain here, we shall in time

be famished for want of provisions.”—“Not so,” replied Douglas; “we

will deal with this great army of the English as the fox did with the

fisherman in the fable.”—“And how was that?” said the Earl of Murray.

Hereupon the Douglas told him this story:

“A fisherman,” he said, “had made a hut by a river side, that he might

follow his occupation of fishing. Now, one night he had gone out to look

after his nets, leaving a small fire in his hut; and when he came back,

behold there was a fox in the cabin, taking the liberty to eat one of the

finest salmon he had taken. ‘Ho, Mr. Robber!’ said the fisherman, drawing

his sword, and standing in the doorway to prevent the fox’s escape, ‘you

shall presently die the death.’ The poor fox looked for some hole to get

out at, but saw none; whereupon he pulled down with his teeth a mantle,

which was lying on the bed, and dragged it across the fire. The fisherman

ran to snatch his mantle from the fire—the fox flew out at the door with

the salmon; and so,” said Douglas, “shall we escape the great English

army by subtlety, and without risking battle with so large a force.”

Randolph agreed to act by Douglas’s counsel, and the Scottish army

kindled great fires through their encampment, and made a noise and

shouting, and blowing of horns, as if they meant to remain all night

there, as before. But in the meantime, Douglas had caused a road to

be made through two miles of a great morass which lay in their rear.

This was done by cutting down to the bottom of the bog, and filling the

trench with faggots of wood. Without this contrivance it would have

been impossible that the army could have crossed; and through this

passage, which the English never suspected, Douglas and Randolph, and

all their men, moved at the dead of night. They did not leave so much as

an errand-boy behind, and so bent their march toward Scotland, leaving

the English disappointed and affronted. Great was their wonder in the

morning, when they saw the Scottish camp empty, and found no living man

in it, but two or three English prisoners tied to trees, whom they had

left with an insulting message to the King of England, saying that if

he were displeased with what they had done, he might come and revenge

himself in Scotland.

After this a peace was concluded with Robert Bruce, on terms highly

honorable to Scotland; for the English King renounced all pretensions

to the sovereignty of the country, and, moreover, gave his sister, a

princess called Joanna, to be wife to Robert Bruce’s son, called David.

This treaty was very advantageous to the Scots. It was called the treaty

of Northampton, because it was concluded at that town, in the year 1328.

Good King Robert did not long survive this joyful event. He was not

aged more than four-and-fifty years, but, as I said before, his bad

health was caused by the hardships which he sustained during his youth,

and at length he became very ill. Finding that he could not recover,

he assembled around his bedside the nobles and counselors in whom he

most trusted. He told them that now, being on his death-bed, he sorely

repented all his misdeeds, and particularly, that he had, in his passion,

killed Comyn with his own hand, in the church and before the altar. He

said that if he had lived, he had intended to go to Jerusalem, to make

war upon the Saracens who held the Holy Land, as some expiation for the

evil deeds he had done. The King soon afterwards expired and his body was

laid in the sepulcher in the midst of the church of Dunfermline, under a

marble stone. But the church becoming afterwards ruinous, and the roof

falling down with age, the monument was broken to pieces, and nobody

could tell where it stood. But six or seven years ago, when they were

repairing the church at Dunfermline, and removing the rubbish, lo! they

found fragments of the marble tomb of Robert Bruce. Then they began to

dig farther, thinking to discover the body of this celebrated monarch;

and at length they came to the skeleton of a tall man, and they knew it

must be that of King Robert, as he was known to have been buried in a

winding sheet of cloth of gold, of which many fragments were found about

this skeleton. So orders were sent from the King’s Court of Exchequer

to guard the bones carefully, until a new tomb should be prepared, into

which they were laid with profound respect. A great many gentlemen and

ladies attended, and almost all the common people in the neighborhood;

and as the church could not hold half the numbers, the people were

allowed to pass through it, one after another, that each one, the

poorest as well as the richest, might see all that remained of the great

King, Robert Bruce, who restored the Scottish monarchy.

It is more than five hundred years since the body of Bruce was first

laid into the tomb; and how many, many millions of men have died since

that time. It was a great thing to see that the wisdom, courage, and

patriotism of a King could preserve him for such a long time in the

memory of the people over whom he once reigned. But then, my dear

child, you must remember that it is only desirable to be remembered for

praiseworthy and patriotic actions, such as those of Robert Bruce. It

would be better for a prince to be forgotten like the meanest peasant

than to be recollected for actions of tyranny or oppression.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Discussion.= 1. What was the condition of King Robert at the

opening of the story? 2. What is said about King Edward III? 3. Who

were the “red-shanks”? 4. Why could these forces move so easily and

quickly? 5. Describe the Scottish camp on the Wear. 6. What was King

Edward’s proposition? 7. What was the lesson Douglas gave the young

King? 8. What do you think of this exploit? 9. What is the story

of the fisherman and the fox? 10. What is the significance of this

story? 11. What was Douglas’s plan of escape? 12. What qualities

does Douglas show in these exploits? 13. What part did the Scottish

peasantry take in the struggle for independence? 14. What were the

terms of the treaty of Northampton? 15. What was King Robert’s

great regret? 16. Describe the finding of Robert Bruce’s remains in

Dunfermline. 17. Pronounce the following: dexterous; adversaries;

subtlety; affronted; advantageous; tyranny.

If you have enjoyed these stories, inquire at the library for a

copy of _Tales of a Grandfather_, and read other stories, such as

“Macbeth,” “Tournaments,” “King David,” and “James I.”

=Phrases=

acquired in consequence, 318, 9

lay waste, 318, 25

wooden spits, 319, 1

dexterity in marching, 320, 20

Saint George, 320, 34

Saint Andrew, 320, 36

pavilion of the King, 321, 12

audacious adversaries, 321, 28

renounced all pretensions, 323, 2

King’s Court of Exchequer, 323, 32

THE PARTING OF MARMION AND DOUGLAS

SIR WALTER SCOTT

Not far advanced was morning day,

When Marmion did his troop array,

To Surrey’s camp to ride;

He had safe conduct for his band,

Beneath the royal seal and hand,

And Douglas gave a guide.

The train from out the castle drew,

But Marmion stopped to bid adieu:

“Though something I might ’plain,” he said,

“Of cold respect to stranger guest,

Sent hither by your King’s behest,

While in Tantallon’s towers I stayed,

Part we in friendship from your land,

And, noble Earl, receive my hand.”

But Douglas round him drew his cloak,

Folded his arms, and thus he spoke:

“My manors, halls, and bowers shall still

Be open, at my Sovereign’s will,

To each one whom he lists, howe’er

Unmeet to be the owner’s peer.

My castles are my King’s alone,

From turret to foundation stone;

The hand of Douglas is his own,

And never shall, in friendly grasp,

The hand of such as Marmion clasp.”

Burned Marmion’s swarthy cheek like fire,

And shook his very frame for ire;

And “This to me,” he said,

“An’ ’twere not for thy hoary beard,

Such hand as Marmion’s had not spared

To cleave the Douglas’ head!

And, first, I tell thee, haughty peer,

He, who does England’s message here,

Although the meanest in her state,

May well, proud Angus, be thy mate:

And, Douglas, more, I tell thee here,

Even in thy pitch of pride—

Here, in thy hold, thy vassals near,

I tell thee, thou’rt defied!

And if thou said’st I am not peer

To any lord in Scotland here,

Lowland or Highland, far or near,

Lord Angus, thou hast lied!”

On the Earl’s cheek, the flush of rage

O’ercame the ashen hue of age;

Fierce he broke forth: “And dar’st thou then

To beard the lion in his den,

The Douglas in his hall?

And hop’st thou hence unscathed to go?

No, by Saint Bride of Bothwell, no!

Up drawbridge, grooms—what, warder, ho!

Let the portcullis fall.”

Lord Marmion turned—well was his need,

And dashed the rowels in his steed;

Like arrow through the archway sprung;

The ponderous grate behind him rung—

To pass there was such scanty room,

The bars, descending, razed his plume.

The steed along the drawbridge flies,

Just as it trembled on the rise;

Nor lighter does the swallow skim

Along the smooth lake’s level brim;

And when Lord Marmion reached his band

He halts, and turns with clinchéd hand

And shout of loud defiance pours,

And shook his gauntlet at the towers,

“Horse! horse!” the Douglas cried, “and chase!”

But soon he reined his fury’s pace:

“A royal messenger he came,

Though most unworthy of the name.

Saint Mary mend my fiery mood!

Old age ne’er cools the Douglas’ blood;

I thought to slay him where he stood.

’Tis pity of him, too,” he cried;

“Bold he can speak, and fairly ride—

I warrant him a warrior tried.”

With this his mandate he recalls,

And slowly seeks his castle halls.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Note.= Marmion, an English nobleman, has been sent as an envoy by

Henry the Eighth, King of England, to James the Fourth, King of

Scotland. The two countries are on the eve of war with each other.

Arriving in Edinburgh, Marmion is entrusted by King James to the care

and hospitality of Douglas, Earl of Angus, who, taking him to his

castle at Tantallon, treats him with the respect due his position as

representative of the King, but at the same time dislikes him. The

war approaching, Marmion leaves to join the English camp. This sketch

describes the leave-taking.

=Discussion.= 1. In what part of the castle does this conversation

take place? 2. Why did Douglas refuse to receive the hand of Marmion?

3. Read the lines that give a vivid picture of the defiant Douglas.

4. What distinction does Douglas make between the ownership of his

“castle” and that of his “hand”? 5. How does Marmion answer the

implied insult in “howe’er unmeet to be the owner’s peer”? 6. What

claim does Marmion make for one “who does England’s message”? 7. What

do we call one “who does England’s message” at Washington? 8. What

does Douglas mean by “to beard the lion in his den”? 9. What lines

show Marmion’s narrow escape? 10. Why do you think Douglas changed

his mind? 11. Would you have admired him more if he had given chase

to Marmion? 12. Which man appears to better advantage in this scene?

=Phrases=

troop array, 325, 2

safe conduct, 325, 4

something I might ’plain, 325, 9

pitch of pride, 326, 8

in thy hold, 326, 9

dashed the rowels, 326, 25

BANNOCKBURN

ROBERT BURNS

Scots, wha hae wi’[24] Wallace bled,

Scots, wham[25] Bruce has aften led;

Welcome to your gory bed,

Or to victory!

Now’s the day, and now’s the hour;

See the front o’ battle lour;

See approach proud Edward’s power—

Chains and slavery!

Wha will be a traitor knave?

Wha can fill a coward’s grave?

Wha sae[26] base as be a slave?

Let him turn and flee!

Wha for Scotland’s king and law

Freedom’s sword will strongly draw,

Freeman stand, or Freeman fa’,[27]

Let him follow me!

By oppression’s woes and pains!

By your sons in servile chains!

We will drain our dearest veins,

But they shall be free!

Lay the proud usurpers low!

Tyrants fall in every foe!

Liberty’s in every blow!—

Let us do or die!

[24] _wha hae wi’_, who have with

[25] _wham_, whom

[26] _sae_, so

[27] _fa’_, fall

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

For Biography, see page 63.

=Historical Note.= Burns wrote this ode to fit an old air, said in

Scottish tradition to have been Robert Bruce’s march at the battle

of Bannockburn. “This thought,” he says, “in my solitary wanderings,

has warmed me to a pitch of enthusiasm on the theme of liberty and

independence.” The story is told that Burns wrote this poem while

riding on horseback over a wild moor in Scotland in company with a

Mr. Syme, who, observing the expression on the poet’s face, refrained

from speaking to him. Doubtless this vigorous hymn was singing itself

through the soul of Burns as he wrote it. The poem is considered the

most stirring war ode ever written.

=Discussion.= 1. Who is supposed to speak the words? 2. To whom are

they supposed to be addressed? 3. For what did Bruce contend? 4. What

patriot before him had fought against great odds in the same cause?

5. In these lines, what choice does Bruce offer his army? 6. To

what deep feeling does he appeal? 7. Does this poem represent truly

Bruce’s own feeling for his country, as history acquaints us with it?

8. Which are the most stirring lines? 9. What was Burns’s purpose in

writing it? 10. What influence does such a poem have?

=Phrases=

traitor knave, 328, 9

servile chains, 328, 18

dearest veins, 328, 19

proud usurpers, 328, 21

ENGLAND AND FREEDOM

[Illustration]

THE LAST FIGHT OF THE REVENGE

SIR WALTER RALEIGH

The Lord Thomas Howard, with six of her Majesty’s ships, six victuallers

of London, the bark _Raleigh_, and two or three pinnaces, riding at

anchor near unto Flores, one of the westerly islands of the Azores,

the last of August in the afternoon, had intelligence by one Captain

Middleton of the approach of the Spanish Armada.

He had no sooner delivered the news but the fleet was in sight. Many of

our ships’ companies were on shore in the island, some providing ballast

for their ships, others filling of water and refreshing themselves from

the land with such things as they could either for money or by force

recover. By reason whereof our ships being all pestered and every thing

out of order, very light for want of ballast, and that which was most to

our disadvantage, the one half of the men of every ship sick and utterly

unserviceable. For in the _Revenge_ there were ninety diseased; in the

_Bonaventure_, not so many in health as could handle her mainsail; the

rest, for the most part, were in little better state.

The names of her Majesty’s ships were these, as followeth: the

_Defiance_, which was Admiral, the _Revenge_, Vice Admiral, the

_Bonaventure_, commanded by Captain Crosse, the _Lion_, by George Fenner,

the _Foresight_, by Thomas Vavisour, and the _Crane_, by Duffield; the

_Foresight_ and the _Crane_ being but small ships only—the others were of

middle size. The rest, besides the bark _Raleigh_, commanded by Captain

Thin, were victuallers, and of small force or none.

The Spanish fleet, having shrouded their approach by reason of the

island, were now so soon at hand as our ships had scarce time to weigh

their anchors, but some of them were driven to let slip their cables and

set sail. Sir Richard Grenville was the last weighed, to recover the

men that were upon the island, which otherwise had been lost. The Lord

Thomas with the rest very hardly recovered the wind, which Sir Richard

Grenville not being able to do, was persuaded by the master and others to

cut his mainsail and cast about, and to trust to the sailing of his ship.

But Sir Richard utterly refused to turn from the enemy, alleging that he

would rather choose to die than to dishonor himself, his country, and her

Majesty’s ship, persuading his company that he would pass through the two

squadrons in despite of them and enforce those of Seville to give him

way. Which he performed upon divers of the foremost, who, as the mariners

term it, fell under the lee of the _Revenge_.

In the meanwhile, as he attended those which were nearest him, the great

_San Philip_, being in the wind of him, and coming toward him, becalmed

his sails—so huge was the Spanish ship, being of a thousand and five

hundred tons; who afterlaid the _Revenge_ aboard. When he was thus bereft

of his sails, the ships that were under his lee also laid him aboard;

of which the next was the admiral of the Biscayans, a very mighty and

puissant ship commanded by Brittan Dona. The said _Philip_ carried three

tier of ordnance on a side and eleven pieces in every tier.

After the _Revenge_ was entangled with this _Philip_, four others boarded

her, two on her larboard and two on her starboard. The fight thus

beginning at three of the clock in the afternoon continued very terrible

all that evening. But the great _San Philip_, having received the lower

tier of the _Revenge_, shifted herself with all diligence from her

sides, utterly misliking her first entertainment. Some say that the ship

foundered, but we cannot report it for truth unless we were assured.

The Spanish ships were filled with companies of soldiers, in some two

hundred besides the mariners, in some five, in others eight hundred. In

ours there were none at all besides the mariners but the servants of the

commanders and some few voluntary gentlemen only.

After many interchanged volleys of great ordnance and small shot, the

Spaniards deliberated to enter the _Revenge_, and made divers attempts,

hoping to force her by the multitudes of their armed soldiers and

musketeers, but were still repulsed again and again, and at all times

beaten back into their own ships or into the seas. In the beginning

of the fight, the _George Noble_ of London, having received some shot

through her by the armados, asked Sir Richard what he would command him,

being but one of the victuallers and of small force. Sir Richard bade him

save himself, and leave him to his fortune.

After the fight had thus without intermission continued while the day

lasted and some hours of the night, many of our men were slain and hurt,

and one of the great galleons of the Armada and the admiral of the Hulks

both sunk, and in many other of the Spanish ships great slaughter was

made. Some write that Sir Richard was very dangerously hurt almost in the

beginning of the fight and lay speechless for a time ere he recovered.

But two of the _Revenge’s_ own company affirmed that he was never so

wounded as that he forsook the upper deck till an hour before midnight;

and then being shot into the body with a musket, as he was a-dressing was

again shot into the head, and withal his chirurgeon wounded to death.

But to return to the fight, the Spanish ships which attempted to board

the _Revenge_, as they were wounded and beaten off, so always others came

in their places, she having never less than two mighty galleons by her

sides and aboard her. So that ere the morning from three of the clock the

day before, there had fifteen several armados assailed her; and all so

ill approved their entertainment, as they were by the break of day far

more willing to hearken to a composition than hastily to make any more

assaults or entries. But as the day increased so our men decreased; and

as the light grew more and more, by so much more grew our discomforts.

For none appeared in sight but enemies, saving one small ship called the

_Pilgrim_, commanded by Jacob Whiddon, who hovered all night to see the

success; but in the morning was hunted like a hare among many ravenous

hounds, but escaped.

All the powder of the _Revenge_ to the last barrel was now spent, all

her pikes broken, forty of her best men slain, and the most part of the

rest hurt. In the beginning of the fight she had but one hundred free

from sickness, and fourscore and ten sick. A small troop to man such a

ship, and a weak garrison to resist so mighty an army! By those hundred

all was sustained, the volleys, boardings, and enterings of fifteen ships

of war. On the contrary the Spanish were always supplied with soldiers

brought from every squadron, all manner of arms and powder at will. Unto

ours there remained no comfort at all, no hope, no supply either of

ships, men, or weapons; the masts all beaten overboard, all her tackle

cut asunder, her upper work altogether razed; and, in effect, even she

was with the water, but the very foundation or bottom of a ship, nothing

being left overhead either for flight or defense.

Sir Richard finding himself in this distress, and unable any longer to

make resistance, having endured in this fifteen hours’ fight the assault

of fifteen several armados, all by turns aboard him, and by estimation

eight hundred shot of great artillery, besides many assaults and entries,

and that himself and the ship must needs be possessed by the enemy, who

were now cast in a ring round about him, the _Revenge_ not able to move

one way or other but as she was moved by the waves and billows of the

sea—commanded the master gunner, whom he knew to be a most resolute man,

to split and sink the ship, that thereby nothing might remain of glory

or victory to the Spaniards, seeing in so many hours’ fight and with so

great a navy, they were not able to take her, having had fifteen hours’

time, fifteen thousand men, and fifty and three sail of men-of-war to

perform it withal; and persuaded the company, or as many as he could

induce, to yield themselves unto God, and to the mercy of none else, but,

as they had, like valiant resolute men, repulsed so many enemies, they

should not now shorten the honor of their nation by prolonging their own

lives for a few hours or a few days.

The master gunner readily condescended, and divers others. But the

Captain and the Master were of another opinion and besought Sir Richard

to have care of them, alleging that the Spaniard would be as ready to

entertain a composition as they were willing to offer the same, and that

there being divers sufficient and valiant men yet living, and whose

wounds were not mortal, they might do their country and prince acceptable

service hereafter.

And as the matter was thus in dispute, and Sir Richard refusing to

hearken to any of those reasons, the Master of the _Revenge_ (while the

Captain won unto him the greater party) was convoyed aboard the _General

Don Alfonso Bassan_. Who, finding none over hasty to enter the _Revenge_

again, doubting lest Sir Richard would have blown them up and himself,

and perceiving by the report of the Master of the _Revenge_ his dangerous

disposition, yielded that all their lives should be saved. To this he

so much the rather condescended, as well, as I have said, for fear of

further loss and mischief to themselves, as also for the desire he had

to recover Sir Richard Grenville; whom for his notable valor he seemed

greatly to honor and admire.

When this answer was returned, and that safety of life was promised,

the common sort being now at the end of their peril, the most drew back

from Sir Richard and the gunner, it being no hard matter to dissuade men

from death to life. The master gunner finding himself and Sir Richard

thus prevented and mastered by the greater number, would have slain

himself with a sword had he not been by force withheld and locked into

his cabin. Then the _General_ sent many boats aboard the _Revenge_, and

divers of our men, fearing Sir Richard’s disposition, stole away aboard

the _General_ and other ships. Sir Richard, thus overmatched, was sent

unto by Alfonso Bassan to remove out of the _Revenge_, the ship being

marvelous unsavory, filled with blood and bodies of dead and wounded men

like a slaughter-house. Sir Richard answered that he might do with his

body what he list, for he esteemed it not; and as he was carried out of

the ship he swooned, and reviving again desired the company to pray for

him. The General used Sir Richard with all humanity, and left nothing

unattempted that tended to his recovery, highly commending his valor and

worthiness and greatly bewailed the danger wherein he was, being unto

them a rare spectacle, to see one ship turn toward so many enemies, to

endure the charge and boarding of so many huge armados, and to resist and

repel the assaults and entries of so many soldiers.

Sir Richard died, as it is said, the second or third day aboard the

_General_, and was by them greatly bewailed. What became of his body,

whether it was buried in the sea or on the land we know not; the comfort

that remaineth to his friends is that he hath ended his life honorably

in respect of the reputation won to his nation and country, and of the

same to his posterity, and that, being dead, he hath not outlived his own

honor.

—_Abridged._

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Biographical and Historical Note.= In the autumn of 1591 a small

fleet of English vessels lay at the Azores to intercept the Spanish

treasure ships from the Indies. On the appearance of the Spanish

war-vessels sent to convoy the treasure ships, the much smaller

English fleet took flight with the exception of the _Revenge_,

commanded by Sir Richard Grenville. Lord Bacon described the fight as

“a defeat exceeding victory.”

This story of the fight of the _Revenge_ was written by Sir Walter

Raleigh (1552-1618), a cousin of Grenville’s. He was an English

explorer, colonizer, and historian. He planted the first English

colony in America, on Roanoke Island, off the coast of North

Carolina. Later, he was interested in an attempt to form a colony

in Guiana, and his account of his experiences is one of the most

thrilling adventure stories in the world. His daring exploits made

him a favorite at the court of Queen Elizabeth, but after her death

he gained the ill-will of James I and was executed on a false charge

of piracy and treason.

=Discussion.= 1. Describe the English fleet as it lay anchored near

Flores. 2. What was the condition of the men on the _Revenge_ and

the _Bonaventure_? 3. What two things could Sir Richard do? 4. Which

did he choose? Why? 5. How were the Spanish ships manned as compared

with the English? 6. What quality of character did Sir Richard show

in his treatment of the _George Noble_? 7. Describe the condition

of the _Revenge_ on the second day of the fighting. 8. What was Sir

Richard’s order to the master gunner? 9. What was the opinion of the

captain and the Master? 10. What do you think about the reasons

they gave? 11. What was the Spaniard’s offer? 12. Would you have

been on the side of the captain and the Master of the _Revenge_, or

on the side of Sir Richard and the master gunner? 13. Pronounce the

following: Armada; Azores; becalmed; tiers; bade; hovered; ravenous;

dissuade.

=Phrases=

providing ballast, 330, 9

shrouded their approach, 331, 5

weigh their anchors, 331, 8

puissant ship, 331, 27

hearken to a composition, 332, 35

tackle cut asunder, 333, 17

divers sufficient, 334, 7

he esteemed it not, 334, 36

YE MARINERS OF ENGLAND

THOMAS CAMPBELL

Ye Mariners of England,

That guard our native seas,

Whose flag has braved, a thousand years,

The battle and the breeze!

Your glorious standard launch again

To match another foe,

And sweep through the deep,

While the stormy winds do blow;

While the battle rages loud and long,

And the stormy winds do blow.

The spirits of your fathers

Shall start from every wave!—

For the deck it was their field of fame,

And Ocean was their grave.

Where Blake and mighty Nelson fell,

Your manly hearts shall glow,

As ye sweep through the deep,

While the stormy winds do blow;

While the battle rages loud and long

And the stormy winds do blow.

Britannia needs no bulwarks,

No towers along the steep;

Her march is o’er the mountain-waves,

Her home is on the deep.

With thunders from her native oak

She quells the floods below,

As they roar on the shore,

When the stormy winds do blow;

When the battle rages loud and long

And the stormy winds do blow.

The meteor flag of England

Shall yet terrific burn;

Till danger’s troubled night depart,

And the star of peace return.

Then, then, ye ocean-warriors!

Our song and feast shall flow

To the fame of your name,

When the storm has ceased to blow;

When the fiery fight is heard no more,

And the storm has ceased to blow.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

For Biography, see page 180.

=Discussion.= 1. Which stanza refers to the present; which one to the

past; and which one to the future? 2. Why does the poet take this

view into the past and the future? 3. Notice the interesting rime in

the seventh line of every stanza. 4. Compare the eighth, ninth, and

tenth lines of the fourth stanza with the corresponding lines in the

other stanzas. 5. Notice the pleasing effect which the poet produces

by using, in one line, several words beginning with the same letter:

“battle,” “breeze,” “loud and long.” 6. Find other examples. 7. Show

that this poem, written long after Sir Richard Grenville’s death,

expresses the spirit in which he fought.

=Phrases=

glorious standard, 336, 5

field of fame, 336, 13

meteor flag, 337, 11

danger’s troubled night, 337, 13

star of peace, 337, 14

ocean-warriors, 337, 15

ENGLAND AND AMERICA NATURAL ALLIES

JOHN RICHARD GREEN

Whatever might be the importance of American independence in the history

of England, it was of unequaled moment in the history of the world. If it

crippled for a while the supremacy of the English nation, it founded the

supremacy of the English race. From the hour of American Independence the

life of the English people has flowed not in one current, but in two; and

while the older has shown little signs of lessening, the younger has fast

risen to a greatness which has changed the face of the world. In 1783

America was a nation of three millions of inhabitants, scattered thinly

along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. It is now [1877] a nation of forty

millions, stretching over the whole continent from the Atlantic to the

Pacific. In wealth and material energy, as in numbers, it far surpasses

the mother-country from which it sprang. It is already the main branch of

the English people; and in the days that are at hand the main current of

that people’s history must run along the channel not of the Thames or the

Mersey, but of the Hudson and the Mississippi.

But distinct as these currents are, every year proves more clearly that

in spirit the English people are one. The distance that parted England

from America lessens every day. The ties that unite them grow every day

stronger. The social and political differences that threatened a hundred

years ago to form an impassable barrier between them grow every day less.

Against this silent and inevitable drift of things the spirit of narrow

isolation on either side the Atlantic struggles in vain. It is possible

that the two branches of the English people will remain forever separate

political existences. It is likely enough that the older of them may

again break in twain, and that the English people in the Pacific may

assert as distinct a national life as the two English peoples on either

side the Atlantic. But the spirit, the influence, of all these branches

will remain one.

And in thus remaining one, before half a century is over it will change

the face of the world. As two hundred millions of Englishmen fill the

valley of the Mississippi, as fifty millions of Englishmen assert

their lordship over Australasia, this vast power will tell through

Britain on the old world of Europe, whose nations will have shrunk into

insignificance before it. What the issues of such a world-wide change may

be, not even the wildest dreamer would dare to dream. But one issue is

inevitable. In the centuries that lie before us, the primacy of the world

will lie with the English people. English institutions, English speech,

English thought, will become the main features of the political, the

social, and the intellectual life of mankind.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Biography.= John Richard Green (1837-1883) was born at Oxford,

England. In his early life he entered the ministry and became

not only an eloquent preacher, but an effective worker among his

parishioners. Ill health caused him to resign and devote his time

entirely to writing. He was a noted English historian, the author of

_A History of the English People_ and _The Making of England_. His

vivid imagination enabled him to picture the life of the people and

to make history interesting and popular.

=Discussion.= 1. What do you think of the reasoning in the first

paragraph? 2. What victory was there in the political defeat of

the British government? 3. How is the distance between England and

America lessened today? 4. How are the ties between the two countries

being strengthened? 5. What does the author hint at in the last part

of the second paragraph? 6. What do you think of the prophecy in the

first sentence of the last paragraph? 7. Is his dream any nearer

reality today than when the author wrote these lines? 8. Pronounce

the following: Thames; isolation; inevitable; primacy.

=Phrases=

unequaled moment, 338, 2

material energy, 338, 12

impassable barrier, 338, 23

inevitable drift, 338, 24

narrow isolation, 338, 24

political existences, 338, 27

assert their lordship, 339, 3

one issue is inevitable, 339, 7

primacy of the world, 339, 8

English institutions, 339, 9

ENGLAND AND AMERICA IN 1782

ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON

O Thou, that sendest out the man

To rule by land and sea,

Strong mother of a Lion-line,

Be proud of those strong sons of thine

Who wrench’d their rights from thee!

What wonder, if in noble heat

Those men thine arms withstood,

Re-taught the lesson thou hadst taught,

And in thy spirit with thee fought—

Who sprang from English blood!

But Thou rejoice with liberal joy,

Lift up thy rocky face,

And shatter, when the storms are black,

In many a streaming torrent back,

The seas that shock thy base!

Whatever harmonies of law

The growing world assume,

Thy work is thine—the single note

From that deep chord which Hampden smote

Will vibrate to the doom.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

For Biography, see page 49.

=Historical Note.= John Hampden (1594-1643) was a celebrated English

statesman and patriot. When Charles I attempted to impose a tax upon

his subjects without the authority of Parliament, Hampden refused to

pay. The King’s government brought suit against him, and although the

case was decided against Hampden, later the House of Lords ordered

the judgment of the court to be canceled.

=Discussion.= 1. Why does the poet think England should be proud of

America? 2. Name some of the rights won by those of “English blood”

before this. 3. Read the lines that tell, in figurative language,

what England and Englishmen will do when their rights are attacked.

4. Notice in the last stanza how the words _harmonies_, _note_,

_chord_, _smote_, and _vibrate_ all help to carry out the thought,

expressed in figurative language. 5. What was the “chord which

Hampden smote”? 6. Is it still “vibrating”? 7. Did the poet use the

same riming scheme in each of the stanzas?

=Phrases=

strong mother of a Lion-line, 340, 3

wrench’d their rights, 340, 5

in noble heat, 340, 6

thine arms withstood, 340, 7

re-taught the lesson thou hadst taught, 340, 8

thy rocky face, 340, 12

harmonies of law, 340, 16

ENGLAND TO FREE MEN

JOHN GALSWORTHY

Men of my blood, you English men!

From misty hill and misty fen,

From cot, and town, and plow, and moor.

Come in—before I shut the door!

Into my courtyard paved with stones

That keep the names, that keep the bones,

Of none but English men who came

Free of their lives, to guard my fame.

I am your native land who bred

No driven heart, no driven head;

I fly a flag in every sea

Round the old Earth, of Liberty!

I am the Land that boasts a crown;

The sun comes up, the sun goes down—

And never men may say of me,

Mine is a breed that is not free.

I have a wreath! My forehead wears

A hundred leaves—a hundred years

I never knew the words: “You must!”

And shall my wreath return to dust?

Freemen! The door is yet ajar;

From northern star to southern star,

O ye who count and ye who delve,

Come in—before my clock strikes twelve!

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Biography.= John Galsworthy (1867-⸺) was born in Coombe, Surrey,

England, and has led the life of the typical English gentleman. After

spending five years at Harrow he went to Oxford University. In 1890

he was admitted to the bar, but he disliked the profession of law and

never practiced it. He spent several years, after leaving college, in

foreign travel, and did not begin to write until he was thirty years

old. He has written a number of dramas dealing with social questions,

such as “Justice” and “Strife.” He is also well-known for his short

stories and novels. During the recent World War, Mr. Galsworthy

served several months in an English hospital for French soldiers.

The poem “England to Free Men” was written when England was for the

first time about to adopt conscription as a method of recruiting an

army to oppose German aggression in Belgium and France.

=Discussion.= 1. Who is supposed to be speaking in this poem? 2. Whom

does the speaker address? 3. Of what “courtyard” does the poet speak?

4. What is the meaning of the first two lines of the second stanza?

5. What kind of flag does the poet say England “flies in every sea”?

6. Explain the “wreath” mentioned in the last stanza. 7. What does

the poet mean by “before my clock strikes twelve”? 8. What has been

America’s attitude toward conscription? 9. What impression of the

author do you gain from this poem? 10. Tell what you know of him.

=Phrases=

men of my blood, 341, 1

free of their lives, 341, 7

who bred no driven heart, 341, 9

that boasts a crown, 341, 13

the door is yet ajar, 342, 7

ye who delve, 342, 9

“MEN WHO MARCH AWAY”

(Song of the Soldiers)

THOMAS HARDY

What of the faith and fire within us

Men who march away

Ere the barn-cocks say

Night is growing gray,

Leaving all that here could win us;

What of the faith and fire within us

Men who march away?

Is it a purblind prank, O think you,

Friend with the musing eye,

Who watch us stepping by

With doubt and dolorous sigh?

Can much pondering so hoodwink you!

Is it a purblind prank, O think you,

Friend with the musing eye?

Nay. We well see what we are doing,

Though some may not see,

Dalliers as they be;

England’s need are we;

Her distress would leave us rueing:

Nay. We well see what we are doing,

Though some may not see!

In our heart of hearts believing

Victory crowns the just,

And that braggarts must

Surely bite the dust,

Press we to the field ungrieving,

In our heart of hearts believing

Victory crowns the just.

Hence the faith and fire within us

Men who march away

Ere the barn-cocks say

Night is growing gray,

Leaving all that here could win us;

Hence the faith and fire within us

Men who march away.

NOTES AND QUESTIONS

=Biography.= Thomas Hardy (1840-⸺) was born in Dorsetshire, England.

He was educated at local schools and by private tutors. At the early

age of sixteen he was apprenticed to an architect of Worcester, in

which line of work he made sufficient success to win a prize for

design from the Architectural Association. At the same time he was

writing some verse and an occasional short story, and was at a loss

to know which kind of work to follow for a profession. However, after

1870 he spent most of his time in writing. He excels as a short story

writer, his “The Three Strangers” appearing in a number of lists of

the one hundred best short stories. Among his other works, _Laughing

Stock and Other Verses_, _Under the Greenwood Tree_, and _A Pair

of Blue Eyes_ are widely known. Mr. Hardy was given the Order of

Merit in 1910. The Poem “Men Who March Away,” from _Selected Poems

of Thomas Hardy_, was written at the time the English soldiers were

entering the World War.

=Discussion.= 1. What “faith and fire” must the soldier have who

freely enlists in the service of his country in war? 2. Whom does

the poet address in the second stanza? 3. Use other words instead

of “purblind prank.” 4. Explain the meaning of the fourth and fifth

lines of the third stanza. 5. Why does the poet say the soldiers

march away to war ungrieving? 6. What reason is given for the “faith

and fire” of the soldiers? 7. In the fourth stanza, with what belief

does the author accredit us? 8. What effect does the poet create by

repeating the first stanza in closing the poem?

=Phrases=

the faith and fire within us, 343, 1

purblind prank, 343, 8

friend with the musing eye, 343, 9

dalliers as they be, 343, 17

bite the dust, 343, 25

to the field ungrieving, 343, 26

EARLY AMERICAN SPIRIT OF FREEDOM

[Illustration]

GRANDFATHER’S CHAIR

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE

HOW NEW ENGLAND WAS GOVERNED

The children had now learned to look upon the chair with an interest

which was almost the same as if it were a conscious being and could

remember the many famous people whom it had held within its arms.

Even Charley, lawless as he was, seemed to feel that this venerable chair

must not be clambered upon or overturned, although he had no scruple in

taking such liberties with every other chair in the house. Clara treated

it with still greater reverence, often taking occasion to smooth its

cushion and to brush the dust from the carved flowers and grotesque

figures of its oaken back and arms. Laurence would sometimes sit a whole

hour, especially at twilight, gazing at the chair and by the spell of his

imagination summoning up its ancient occupants to appear in it again.

Little Alice evidently employed herself in a similar way, for once, when

Grandfather had gone abroad, the child was heard talking with the gentle

Lady Arbella as if she were still sitting in the chair. So sweet a child

as little Alice may fitly talk with angels such as Lady Arbella had long

since become.

Grandfather was soon importuned for more stories about the chair. He had

no difficulty in relating them, for it really seemed as if every person

noted in our early history had on some occasion or other found repose

within its comfortable arms. If Grandfather took pride in anything, it

was in being the possessor of such an honorable and historic elbow-chair.