COMPLETE ANGLER. 279 



" fitit seeing we must go before the king, Then they fought on like champions bold, 

 Lord, we will go most gallantly ; For their hearts were sturdy, stout, and 



1 every one have a velvet coat, free, 



Laid down with golden laces three : Till they had kill'd all the king's good guard, 



" And you shall every one have a scarlet There was none left alive but two or lhree - 



La C iddown with silver laces five ; B " t , then rose up all Edinburgh, 



With your golden belts about your necks, A ^ hev r .. se "P bv thousands three, 

 With hats and feathers all alike." A cowardly Scot came John behind, 



And run him through the fair body. 

 B'.it when John he went from Giltnock Hall, . 



The wind it blew hard, and full fast it did Said John, ' Fight on, my merry men all, 

 rain : I am a little wounded, but am not slain ; 



"Now fare thee well, thou Giltnock Hall, I will lay ( me down for to bleed a while, 

 I fear I shall never see thee again." Then I'll rise and fight with you again." 



Now John is to Edinburgh gone, Then they fought on like madmen all, 



With his eight-score men so gallantly, Till many a man lay dead upon the plain, 



And every one of them on a milk-white For they were resolved, before they would 



steed, yield, 



With their bucklers and swords hanging That every man would there be slain, 

 to their k:iee. 



But when John came the king before, Till most of them Jav dead there and 



With his eight-score men so gallant to see, slain 

 The king In- moved his bonnet to him, g,, t 



He thought he had been a king as well as 

 he. 



" ( ) pardon, pardon, my sovereign liege, B ^. wl ! e " he ' a Tv- tO Giltnock Hall 



I '.u don for my eight-score men and me ; rhe lady spied him presently ; 

 For my name it is John Armstrong, What news what new s thou little foot- 



And a subject of yours, my liege," said he. tl J? a l e> e 



What news from thy master, and his 

 " Away with thee. thou false traitor, company?" 



No pardon will I grant to thee. 

 P.ut, to-morrow 'morn' by eight of the " My news is bad, lady," he said, 



clock, " Which 1 do bring, as you may see ; 



I will hang up thy eight-score men and My master Johnny Armstrong is slain, 

 thee." And all his gallant company." 



Then John look'd over his left shoulder, y e t thou art welcome home, my bonny 



And to his merry men thus said he. Grissel, 



" I have ask'd grace of a graceless face, f u \\ oft hast thou been fed with corn and 



No pardon there is for you or me. hay, 



Then John pull'd out his nut-brown sword, But now thou shall be fed with bread and 



And it was made of metal so free, wine. 



Had not the king mov'd his foot as he did, And thy sides shall be spurr d no more, 



John had taken his head from his fair body. * sav - 



" Come, follow me, my merry men all, O then bespake his little son, 



\Vc will scorn one foot for to fly, As he sat on his nurse's knee, 



It -hall ne'er be said we were hung like dogs, " If ever I live to be a man, 



We will fight it out most manfully." My father's death revenged shall be." 



TROY TOWN. 



(From Ritson's Ancient Songs and Ballads, ed. 1829, vol. ii. p. 101, 

 where it is entitled "the Wandering Prince of Troy." Ritson observes 

 that "the old printed copies, being palpably corrupt, have been judiciously 

 corrected by the ingenious Dr Percy, whose emendations are here adopted, 

 though not without proper marks of distinction.") 



WHEN Troy town had, for ten years Waste lie those walls that were so good, 



' past,' And corn now grows where Troy town 



Withstood the Greeks in manful wise, stood". 



./"Eneas, wandering Prince of Troy, 

 When he for land long time had sought, 



