Waverley, Volume I

which had four days before been burned by a predatory band of English Borderers, were now busied in repairing their ruined dwellings. One high tower i

le the cottages around lay in smoking ruins, this pile, deserted and desolate as it seemed to be, had suffered nothing from the violence of the invaders; and the wretched beings

and beautiful, who rode by his side upon a dappled palfrey; his squire, who carried his helmet and lance, and led his battlehorse, a noble steed, richly caparisoned. A pag

ir dread of the English name accelerated their flight, and in a few minutes, excepting the knight and his attendants, the place was deserted by all. He paced through the village to seek a shelter for the night, and, despairing to find one either in the inaccessible tower or the plundered huts of the peasantry, he directed his course to the left hand, where he spied a small decent habitation, apparently

ion, but we are here exposed to too many intrusions to admit of our exercising unlimited and unsuspicious hospitalit

in,' quoth the Knigh

klin; 'and the care of some of her jointure lands wh

your life and property here, when one of your nation cannot obtai

lion's den; and as I settled here in a quiet time, and have never given cause of offen

vide you a bed. My daughter, good Franklin, is ill at ease. We will occupy your house till the

attended by their host and his daughter, whom custom did not permit to eat in their presence, and who afterwards withdrew to an outer chamber, where the squire and page (both young men of noble birth) partook of suppe

est tone. The squire and page of Lord Lacy, after buckling on their arms, were about to sally out to chastise these intruders, when the old host, after looking out at a priv

furred gown and the knightly cap called a MORTIER, irritated at the noise, a

iders is at hand; he is never seen,' added he, faltering with terror, 'so far from the hills bu

leather, on which small plates of iron of a lozenge form were stitched in such a manner as to overlap each other and form a coat of mail, which swayed with every motion of the wearer's body. This defensive armour covered a doublet of coarse grey cloth, and the Borderer had a few half-rusted plates of steel on his shoulders, a two- edged sword, with a dagger hanging beside it, in a buff belt; a helmet, with a few iron bars, to cover the face instead of a visor, and a lance of tremendous an

ns here. Thank the Abbot of Melrose and the good Knight of Coldingnow that have so long

s rage in empty menaces, had not the entrance of the four yeomen with their

soldier; withdraw yourself and your followers. There is peace be

s lance towards the burned village and then almost instantly levelling it against Lord Lacy. T

year; never must that squire wear the spurs whose unbridled impetuosity can draw unbi

eft the cham

orget. Yet, before thou drawest thy brand (for the intruder laid his hand upon the hilt of his sword), thou wilt do w

he shattered spear furiously on the ground) for the King of Fife and Lothian. But Habby of Cessford w

lack eyebrows, he turned on his heel and left the house with his two followers. They m

Lacy to the Franklin, who had stood in the m

ompanions the Black Rider of Cheviot. I fear, I fear, he comes hither for no good;

to the eldest yeoman), keep a strict watch. Adelbert (to the page), attend to arm me.' The page bowed

Hersildoune, called the Rhymer, actually flourished. This personage, the Merlin of Scotland, and to whom some of the adventures which the British bards assigned to Merlin Caledonius, or the Wild, have been transferred by tradition, was, as is well known, a magician, as well as a po

s horses, and began to chaffer with him on the subject. To Canobie Dick, for so shall we call our Border dealer, a chap was a chap, and he would have sold a horse to the devil himself, without minding his cloven hoof, and would have probably cheated Old Nick into the bargain. The stranger paid the price they agreed on, and all that puzzled Dick in the transaction was, that the gold which he received was in unicorns, bonnet-pieces, and other ancient coins, which would have been invaluable to collectors, but were rather troublesome in modern currency. It was gold, however, and therefor

he stranger; 'but if you lose courage at what

most southern and the centre peaks, and called from its resemblance to such an animal in its form the Lucken Hare. At the foot of this eminence, which is almost as famous for witch meetings as the neighbourin

coal-black horse; by every horse lay a knight in coal- black armour, with a drawn sword in his hand; but all were as silent, hoof and limb, as if they had been cut out of marble. A great number of torc

amous Thomas of Hersildoune, 'shall, if his heart fail him not, be king over all broad Britain. So speaks t

eeble note, but loud enough to produce a terrible answer. Thunder rolled in stunning peals through the immense hall; horses and men started to life; the steeds snorted, stamped, grinded their bits, and tossed on high their heads; the warriors sprung to their feet, clashed their armour, and brandis

ward, that eve

the sword before

clear out of the mouth of the cavern, and precipitated him over a steep bank of loose stones, where the shepherds

umberland and Cumberland, which run so far beneath the ocean. It is also to be found in Reginald Scott's book on "Witchcraft," which was written in the sixteenth century. It would be in vain to as

d but an unhappy foundation for a prose story, and must have degenerated into a mere fairy

mer, doom'd by

isit Eildon'

swain, at dawn

barb with wild i

with summons

charmed slee

und through Eild

warrior kindle

alchion grasp w

Arthur's march

f Infanc

s to be an attempt at a tale of a different description from the last, but was almost instantly abandoned. T

D OF EN

JOHN B--, ESQ., OF THAT IL

ladies may spare us a little longer.

honour to the toas

the muddy Vicar, 'will tend to furth

foreign accent; 'but why should you connect those events, unless to hope that the b

or the defence of an ally who was unwilling to defend himself, and for the restoration of a royal family, nobility,

ng spirit of innovation which had gone abroad? Did not the laity tremble for their property, the clergy for their religion, and every loyal heart

und to resist our utmost efforts, I see no great prudence

he late general fast? Did you not encourage us to hope that the Lord of Hosts would go

to chasten even his beloved c

gy of the same kind for the failure of their prophecies at the battle of Dunbar, when their

study had quenched in his features the gaiety peculiar to his age, and impressed upon them a premature cast of thoughtfulness. His eye had, however, retained its fire,

said the Vicar in a low

well, on a visit to Sir

is accent and his man

rs than their countrymen of the south. The interference of other disputants, each of whom urged his opinion with all the

he Baronet, his lady, daughters, and myself. The clergyman had not, it would seem, forgot the observation w

ly skilled in them, indeed, if you can draw any parallel betwixt those and the present evil days -

and ambition have introduced division among us; but we are still free from the guilt of civil bloodshed, and from all the evils which flow from it. Our foes, sir, are not th

among the dusty papers?' said Sir Henry, who se

ed,' said Maxwell; 'and I think they are pretty strongly exemplified by a story

y have been undisturbed for many a day, and I have often wished for some pe

rvellous, and intimately connected with your family; if it is agreeable, I can read to you the anecdotes in the mod

e behind the ghostly horseman of Prague, through all his seven translators, and followed the footsteps of Moor through the forest of Bohemia. Moreover, it was even hinted (but this was a greater mystery than all the rest) that a certain performance called the 'Monk,' in three neat volumes, had been seen by a prying eye in the right hand drawer of the Indian cabinet of Lady Ratcliff's dressing-room. Thus predisposed for wonders and signs, Lady Ratcliff and her nymphs drew their chairs round a large blazing wood-fire and arranged themselves to listen to the tale. To that fire I also approached, moved thereunto partly by the inclemency of the season, and partly that my deafness, which you know, c

of Jan

ember-wind still stormy and adverse-a horrid disaster nearly happened-my dear child washed overboard as the vessel lurched to leeward. Memorandum-to reward the young sailor who saved her out of the first moneys which I can recover from the inheritance of her aunt Lansache. 9th November-calm- P.M. light breezes from N. N. W. I talked with the captain about the inheritance of my sister-in-law, Jane Lansache. He says he knows the principal subject, which will not

al with which I have opened the

f it,' said

nk, Sir Henry's grandchild, 'shall

e fought between the troops of the Prince and of the Government during the years 1745-46, of which he is not able to give an acco

its consequences appear from the following letter, despatched by Garbonete Von Eulen, daughter of our journalist, to a relation in England, f

ed with blood, was loaded with irons, and whom they were forcing over the side of the vessel into a boat. The two principal persons among our enemies appeared to be a man of a tall thin figure, with a high-crowned hat and long neckband, and short-cropped head of hair, accompanied by a bluff, open-looking elderly man in a naval uniform. "Yarel

o is jealous, even to s

RA D

.

STRUTT'S ROMANCE

UTHOR OF