WELCOME TO SCOTLAND
Cousin of York, thus once more we embrace thee;
Welcome to James of Scotland! For thy safety,
Know, such as love thee not shall never wrong thee.
Come, we will taste awhile our court delights,
Dream hence afflictions past, and then proceed
To high attempts of honour.
FORD.
The duke of York arrived off Leith. While the messengers were going to
and fro, and preparation was made to disembark, he and his principal
friends were assembled on the deck of their vessel, regarding; this
strange northern coast with curiosity, wonder, and some contempt.
"I see horses," cried Lord Barry; "by'r Lord's grace, grass grows
hitherward--that is much!"
"I see kye," exclaimed Frion, "so we may hope for buttered sowans at
least, if not beef, at the palace of feasts."
"Ay," cried Sir Edward Brampton, who had come on board, "you may hope
for choice cheer. I promise ye shall live well, ye that are
noble--these unclad rocks and desert moors are the home of many an earl
and belted knight, whose gorgeousness may vie with the cavaliers of
France or Burgundy. In this it differs from England, ye will not find
stout franklins or fat burgesses; there are no men of Ghent, nor London
aldermen: the half-naked kern tills the stony soil. Next to the palace
is the hearthless hovel. Wealth and penury, if not mates, are joint
masters of the land."
"I have heard," said York, "that there is much paternal love and filial
duty between the rich and poor in this country."
"Among the northern mountains thus it is," said Brampton; "a strange and
savage race, which, my good Lord Barry, some name Irish, dwell on the
barren heights, along the impassable defiles, beside their vast stormy
lakes; but the Lowlander looks askance on the Highland clanship. List
ye, gentlemen; all bears a different aspect here from the gentle
southern kingdoms; but they are men, proud, valiant, warlike men, as
such they claim our respect. His majesty and a few others are moreover
right gallant cavaliers."
"Mark these words," said York, earnestly, "and remember, dear friends,
that we, the world's wanderers, seek refuge here of our own will, which
if we find, we must not disdain our hosts. Remember, too, the easy rage
of the fiery Scot; and that we boast gentler customs: suffer no brawling
to mar our concord; let not Richard of York, who of all his wide realm
possesses your hearts only, find his dominions narrowed, or violently
disturbed by your petulance and pride."
The duke's associates listened with respect. Hitherto the spirited boy
had been led by a Barry, a Clifford, a Neville, or a Plantagenet. They
had counselled, spoken for him; his sword only had been as active as
theirs. A new light seemed to have broken in upon his soul; it assumed a
seriousness and power that exalted him in their eyes, while it took
nothing from the candour and single-hearted reliance on their loves,
which was his dearest charm.
On landing, the duke of York was escorted to Edinburgh by the earl of
Errol, Sir Patrick Hamilton, and others. The attire, arms, and horses,
with their caparisons, of these gentlemen, were little inferior to those
displayed at Paris. King James awaited him at the castle of Edinburgh.
The monarch received his guest in state on his throne. The prince was
struck at once by his elegance, his majesty, and sweet animated aspect:
his black bonnet, looped up by a large ruby, sat lightly on his brow,
his glossy black curly hair escaping in ringlets from underneath; his
embroidered shirt-collar, thrown back, displayed his throat, and the
noble expression of his head; his dark grey eyes, his manly sun-burnt
complexion, the look of thought, combined with goodness, mingled with
dignity, gave an air of distinction to his whole person. Various were
the physiognomies, various the guises, of those around him. The swart,
gaunt Highlander, in his singular costume; the blue-eyed, red-haired
sous of the Lowlands were there; and in each and all were remarkable a
martial, sometimes a ferocious, expression.
The prince of England entered, surrounded by his (to the Scotch)
foreign-looking knights.
James descended from his throne to embrace his visitant, and then
re-assumed it, while all eyes were turned upon the royal adventurer,
whose voice and mien won every heart, before his eloquence had time to
move them. "High and mighty king," said Richard, "your grace, and these
your nobles present, be pleased to hear the tragedy of one, who, born a
prince, comes even as a beggar to your court. My lords, sorrow and I
were not twins: I am the elder, and for nine years I beheld not the
ill-visage of that latest birth of my poor but royal mother's fortunes.
It were a long tale to tell, what rumour has made familiar to every ear:
my uncle Gloucester's usurpation; my brother's death; and the sorrows of
our race. I lost my kingdom ere I possessed it; and while yet my young
hands were too feeble to grasp the sceptre of my ancestors, and, with
it, the sword needful to defend the same, capricious fate bestowed it on
Henry of Richmond; a base-born descendant of ill-nurtured Bolingbroke; a
scion of that Red Rose that so long and so rightfully had been uprooted
in the land, which they had bought with its children's dearest blood.
"Good, my lords, I might move you to pity did I relate how, in my tender
years, that usurer king sought my life, buying the blood of the
orphan at the hands of traitors. How, when these cruelties failed him,
he used subtler arts; giving me nicknames; meeting my gallant array of
partizans, not with an army of their peers, but with a base rout of
deceits, treasons, spies, and blood-stained decoyers. It would suit me
better to excite your admirations by speaking of the nobleness and
fidelity of my friends; the generosity of the sovereigns who have shed
invaluable dews upon the fading White Rose, so to refresh and restore
it.
"But not to waste my tediousness on you, let this be the sum. I am here,
the friend of France, the kinsman of Burgundy; the acknowledged lord of
Ireland; pursued by my powerful foe, I am here, king of Scotland, to
claim your friendship and your aid. Here lies the accomplishment of my
destiny! The universal justice to be rendered me, which I dreamed of in
my childhood, the eagle hopes of my youth, my better fortunes, and
future greatness, have fled me. But here they have found a home; here
they are garnered up; render them back to me, my lord; unlock with the
iron key of fatal battle the entrance to those treasures, all mine own,
whose absence renders me so poor. Arm for me Scotland; arm for the
right! Never for a juster cause could you buckle breast-plate, or poize
your lance. Be my captain, and these your peers, my fellow-soldiers.
Fear not, but that we vanquish; that I gain a kingdom; you eternal glory
from your regal gift. Alas! I am as a helmless vessel drifting towards
the murderous rock; but you, as the strong north-wind, may fill the
flapping sails, and carry me on my way with victory and gladness."
A murmur filled the presence-chamber: dark Douglas grasped his sword;
Hamilton's eyes glanced lightnings; not one there but felt his heart
beat with desire to enforce the illustrious exile's right. The tide of
rising enthusiasm paused as James arose; and deep attention held them
all. He descended from his throne. "My royal brother," he said, "were I
a mere errant knight, so good and high I esteem your cause, without more
ado I would don my armour, and betake me to the field. The same power
which enables me to afford you far better succour than the strength of
one arm, obliges me to pause and take council, ere I speak what it is in
my heart to promise. But your highness has made good your interests
among my counsellors; and I read in their gestures the desire of war and
adventure for your sake. Deem yourself an exile no more. Fancy that you
have come from merry England to feast with your brother in the north,
and we will escort you back to your capital in triumphant procession,
showing the gaping world how slighter than silky cobwebs are the
obstacles that oppose the united strength of Plantagenet and Stuart.
Welcome--thrice welcome to the Scottish land--kinsmen, nobles, valiant
gentlemen, bid dear welcome to my brother England!"