And thair airis be lyne succeeded richt
To Lammintoun and vther landis gude.
Of this mater the richt quha vnderstude,
Heirof as now I will na mair proceid;
Of my sentence schortlie to conclude,
Of vther thing my purpois is to reid.
I hesitate very much as to the authenticity of this stanza. It would not of itself be a sufficient proof that it is wanting in MS., because we meet with similar deficiences; but it does not tally well with the stanza preceding, which speaks only of a child, that is, most probably, one to the exclusion of others. As little does it agree with the stanza immediately following in the copies which have adopted it; for it begins with these words;—
Rycht gudly men come of this lady ying, &c.
For this supposes either that there was but one young lady referred to, or that she, who is previously mentioned as having been married to Squire Shaw, had no family.
It has been said, that Wallace “left no legitimate issue; but had a natural daughter, who married Sir William Baillie of Hoprig, the progenitor of the Baillies of Lammington.” Caledonia, I. 579. From the reference here made in a foot-note to Crawfurd’s Hist. Renfrew, 61, and Ruddiman’s Index Dipl. Scotiæ, 121, one might have supposed that these writers had brought some proof of the illegitimacy of this daughter. But it does not appear that the idea of illegitimacy had once entered into the mind of Crawfurd. He merely says of Wallace: “He left issue only one daughter, who was married to Sir William Baillie of Hoprig,” &c.; adding, “the lands of Elderslee returned to the family of Craigie.” Ruddiman merely says; “Reliquisse unam filiam Willelmus dicitur, quam uxorem duxit D. Willelmus Baillie de Hoprig,” &c.