54 
sends liini forth to the skirmish and the siégé ; and 
and brings tbe patriot to the scaffold, a martyr for 
tbe interests and freedom of tbe land which daims 
him as her son! 
Tbere is not in tbe annals of Scotland a period 
tbat rivais in interest tbe time of ber strife witb 
England, during the reigns of our first and second 
Edward. Ail our feelings are roused by the detail, 
and so higbly are tbey excited tbat for tbe moment 
we forget tbat her enemies were our ancestors. Those 
were indeed spirit-stirring days ! from the time that 
tbe fire of patriotism was fanned by tbe dying breath 
of Wallace till the mighty element overcame ail oppo¬ 
sition, and its consuming powers, no longer required 
in action, subsided into a gentle flame, burning brightly 
and steadily, and diffusing a triumpbant glow, from 
the Border to the utmost Highland. 
