And five and five, like a mason gang,
That carried the ladders lang and hie;
And five and five, like broken men;

And so they reached the Woodhouselee.

And as we cross'd the Bateable Land,
When to the English side we held,
The first o' men that we met wi',

Whae sould it be but fause Sakelde?

'Where be ye gaun, ye hunters keen?' Quo' fause Sakelde; 'come tell to me!' 'We go to hunt an English stag,

Has trespassed on the Scots countrie.'

'Where be ye gaun, ye marshal men?'

Quo' fause Sakelde; 'come tell me true!' 'We go to catch a rank reiver,

Has broken faith wi' the bauld Buccleuch.'

'Where are ye gaun, ye mason lads, Wi' a' your ladders, lang and hie?' 'We gang to herry a corbie's nest,

That wons not far frae Woodhouselce.'

'Where be ye gaun, ye broken men?'
Quo' fause Sakelde; ‘come tell to me!'
Now Dickie of Dryhope led that band,
And the never a word o' lear had he.

'Why trespass ye on the English side? Row-footed outlaws, stand!' quo' he;

The never a word had Dickie to say,

Sae he thrust the lance through his fause bodie

Then on we held for Carlisle toun,

And at Staneshaw-bank the Eden we cross'd;

The water was great and meikle of spait,
But the nevir a horse nor man we lost.

And when we reached the Staneshaw-bank, The wind was rising loud and hie;

And there the laird garr'd leave our steeds, For fear that they should stamp and nie.

And when we left the Staneshaw-bank,
The wind began full loud to blaw,

But 'twas wind and weet, and fire and sleet,
When we came beneath the castle wa'.

We crept on knees, and held our breath,
Till we placed the ladders against the wa';
And sae ready was Buccleuch himsell

To mount the first, before us a’.

He has ta'en the watchman by the throat, He flung him down upon the lead'Had there not been peace between our land 'Upon the other side thou hadst gaed!—

'Now sound out, trumpets!' quo' Buccleuch ; 'Let's waken Lord Scroop, right merrilie!' Then loud the warden's trumpet blew'O wha dare meddle wi' me?'

Then speedilie to work we gaed,

And raised the slogan ane and a', And cut a hole thro' a sheet of lead, And so we wan to the castle ha'.

They thought King James and a' his men
Had won the house wi' bow and spear ;

It was but twenty Scots and ten,
That put a thousand in sic a stear!

Wi' coulters, and wi' fore-hammers,
We garr'd the bars bang merrilie,
Untill we cam to the inner prison,

Where Willie o' Kinmont he did lie.

And when we cam to the lower prison,
Where Willie o' Kinmont he did lie-
'O sleep ye, wake ye, Kinmont Willie,
Upon the morn that thou's to die?'
'O I sleep saft, and I wake aft;

Its lang since sleeping was fleyed frae me! Gie my service back to my wife and bairns, And a' gude fellows that spier for me.'

Then Red Rowan has hente him up,

The starkest man in Teviotdale'Abide, abide now, Red Rowan,

Till of my Lord Scroope I take farewell.

'Farewell, farewell, my gude Lord Scroope! My gude Lord Scroope, farewell!' he cried'I'll pay you for my lodging maill',

When first we meet on the border side.

Then shoulder high, with shout and cry,
We bore him down the ladder lang;
At every stride Red Rowan made,

I wot the Kinmont's airns played clang!

'O mony a time,' quo' Kinmont Willie,

I have ridden horse baith wild and wood But a rougher beast than Red Rowan,

I ween my legs have ne'er bestrode.

'O mony a time,' quo' Kinmont Willie,
'I've pricked a horse out oure the furs;
But since the day I backed a steed,
I never wore sic cumbrous spurs !'

We scarce had won the Staneshaw-bank,
When a' the Carlisle bells were rung,
And a thousand men, in horse and foot,
Cam wi' the keen Lord Scroope along

Buccleuch has turned to Eden water,

Even where it flowed frae bank to brim, And he has plunged in wi' a' his band, And safely swam them thro' the stream.

He turned him on the other side,

And at Lord Scroope his glove flung he→ 'If ye like na my visit in merry England, In fair Scotland come visit me!'

All sore astonished stood Lord Scroope,
He stood as still as rock of stane;
He scarcely dared to trew his eyes,
When thro' the water they had gane.

'He is either himself a devil frae hell,
Or else his mother a witch maun be;
I wad na ha ridden that wan water,
For a' the gowd in Christentie.'

ROBIN HOOD BALLADS.

ROBIN HOOD RESCUING THE WIDOW'S THREE SONS.

There are twelve months in all the year,

As I hear many say,

But the merriest month in all the year

Is the merry month of May.

Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,

With a link a down, and a day,

And there he met a silly old woman,

Was weeping on the way.

'What news? what news? thou silly old woman,

What news hast thou for me?'

Said she, 'There's my three sons in Nottingham town To-day condemned to die.'

'O, have they parishes burnt?' he said,
'Or have they ministers slain?
Or have they robbed any virgin?

Or other men's wives have ta’en ?

'They have no parishes burnt, good sir, Nor yet have ministers slain,

Nor have they robbed any virgin,

Nor other men's wives have ta'en.'

'O, what have they done?' said Robin Hood, 'I pray thee tell to me.'

'It's for slaying of the king's fallow deer, Bearing their long bows with thee.'

'Dost thou not mind, old woman,' he said, 'How thou madest me sup and dine? By the truth of my body,' quoth bold Robin Hood, 'You could not tell it in better time.'

Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,
With a link a down, and a day,
And there he met with a silly old palmer,
Was walking along the highway.

'What news? what news? thou silly old man, What news, I do thee pray?'

Said he, ‘Three squires in Nottingham town
Are condemn'd to die this day.'

'Come change thy apparel with me, old man
Come change thy apparel for mine;
Here is ten shillings in good silver,
Go drink it in beer or wine.'

'O, thine apparel is good,' he said
'And mine is ragged and torn ;
Wherever you go, wherever you ride,
Laugh not an old man to scorn.'