The Bruce

by John Barbour

How the Fox played with the Fisher.

‘How did the fox?’ the Erll can say.
He said; “A fischar quhilome lay 650
“Besyde a ryver for till get
“His nettis that he had thar set.
“A litill luge thar had he maid;
“And thar-within a bed he had,
“And ek a litill fyre alsua; 655
“A dure ther wes, withouten ma.
“[A nycht], his nettis for till se
“He rais, and thair weill lang duelt he.
“And quhen that he has done his ded,
“Toward his luge agane he yhed, 660
“And with licht of the litill fyre,
“That in the luge was byrnand schyre,
“In-till his luge a fox he saw,
“That fast can on a salmond gnaw.
“Than till the dure he went in hy, 665
“And drew ane swerd deliverly
“And said, ‘Reiffar, [thou mon heir out].’[†]
“The fox, that wes in full gret dout,
“Lukit about sum hoill to se;
“Bot nane ysche thar couth he se, 670
“Bot quhar the man stude sturdely.
“A lawchtane mantill than hym by,
“Lyand apon the bed, he saw;
“And with his teyth he can it draw
“Atour the fyre; and, quhen the man 675
“Saw his mantill ly byrnand than,
“Till red it ran he hastely.
“The fox gat out than in gret hy,
“And held his way his warand till.
“The man leit hym begilit ill, 680
“That he his salmond swa had tynt,
“And alsua had his mantill brynt,
“And the fox scathles gat his way.
“This ensampill I may weill say
“By yhon folk and us that ar heir; 685
“We ar the fox, and thai the fischer,
“That stekis forouth us the way.
“Thai weyne we may nocht get away,
“Bot richt quhar that thai ly; perde,
“All as thai think it sall nocht be. 690
“For I haf gert spy us a gat,
“Suppos that it be sum-deill wat,
“A page of ouris we sall nocht tyne.
“Our fayis, for this small tranontyne,
“Wenys we sall weill pryd us swa, 695
“That we planly on hand sall ta
“To gif thame oppynly battale;
“Bot at this tyme thair thoucht sall fale.
“For we to-morne heir, all the day,
“Sall mak als mery as we may, 700
“And mak us boune agane the nycht;
“And than ger mak our fyres bricht,
“And blaw our hornys, and mak fair
“As all the warld our awne it war,
“Quhill that the nycht weill fallyn be. 705
“And than, with all our harnas, we
“Sall tak our way hamward in hy.
“And we sall gyit be richt graithly
“Quhill we be out of thair danger,
“That lyis now enclosit her. 710
“Than sall we all be at our will,
“And [thai sall let thame trumpit ill],
“Fra thai wit weill we be away.”
To this haly assentit thai;
And maid thame gud cher all that nycht 715
Quhill on the morn that day was licht.

AUG., 1327 The Scots prepare to depart

Apon the morne, all prevaly,
Thai turst harnas and maid reddy;
Swa that, or evyn, all boun war thai.
Thair fayis, that agane thame lay, 720
Gert haf thair men that thar wes ded
In cartis till ane haly sted.
All that day caryand thai war
With cartis, men that slayne war thar.
That thai war feill men mycht weill se, 725
That in carying so lang sud be.
The hostis bath all that day wer
In pes; and quhen the nycht wes ner,
The Scottis folk, that lyand war
In-till the park, maid fest and far; 730
And [blew hornys and fyres maid],
And gert thame bryn bath bricht and braid,
Swa that thair fyres that nycht war mair
Than ony tyme befor thai war.
And quhen [the nycht wes fallyn] wele, 735
With all thair harnas ilke deill
All prevaly thai raid thair way.
Soyn in a mos enterit ar thai,
That had weill a lang myle on breid;[†]
Out-our that moss on fut thai yheid, 740
And in thair hand thair hors led thai.
It wes richt ane noyus way;[†]
And nocht-for-thi all that thar wer
Com weill outour it, haill and fer,
And tynt bot litill of thar ger, 745
Bot gif it war ony [summer]
That in the mos wes left liand.
Quhen all, as I haf born on hand,
Out-our the mos, that wes so braid,
War cummyn, a gret gladschip thai had, 750
And raid furth hamwarde on thar way.
And on the morn, quhen it wes day,
The Inglis men saw the herbery,
Quhar Scottis men war wount to ly,
All voyd; thai wonderit gretly then, 755
And send furth syndry of thar men
To spy quhar thai war gane away,
Quhill at the last thair tras fand thai,
That till the mekill mos thame had,
That wes so hidwis for till waid, 760
That aventur thame thar-to durst nane;
Bot till thar host agane ar gane,
And tald how that thai passit war,
Quhar nevir man wes passit ar.
Quhen Inglis men hard it wes swa, 765
In hy [till consale] can thai ta,
That thai wald follow thaim no mar.
Thair host richt than thai scalit thar,
And ilk man till his awn he raid.

AUG., 1327 King Robert sends a Relief

So fell it that, on [the sammyn day]
That the mos, as yhe herd me say,
Wes passit, the discurrouris that thar
Rydand befor the hostis war,
Of athir host has gottin sicht. 785
And thai, that worthy war and wicht,
At tha metyng justit of wer.
Ensenyheis hye thai cryit ther;
And be thair cry persavit thai,
That thai war frendis, and at a fay. 790
Than mycht men se thame glad and blith;
And tald it to thair lordis swith.
The hostis bath met sammyn syne;
Thar wes richt hamly welcummyne
Maid emang gret lordis thar; 795
Of thair metyng joyfull thai war.
The Erll Patrik and his menyhe
[Had vittale with thame] gret plente,
And thar-with weill relevit thai
Thar frendis; for, the suth to say, 800
Quhill thai in Wardall liand war,
Thai had defalt of met, bot thar
Thai war relevit with gret plente.
Toward Scotland, with gammyn and gle,
Thai went, and hame weill cummyn ar thai; 805
And scalit syne ilk man thar way.
The lordis ar went on-to the King,
That maid thame richt fair welcummyng.
For of thar come richt glad wes he;
And that thai sic perplexite. 810
For-out tynsale eschapit had.
Thai war blith all and mery made.