“Abbott!” the Bruce replied, “thy charge
It boots not to dispute at large.
This much, howe’er, I bid thee know,
No selfish vengeance dealt the blow,
For Comyn died his country’s foe.
Nor blame I friends whose ill-timed speed
Fulfilled my soon-repented deed,
Nor censure those from whose stern tongue
The dire anathema has rung.
I only blame my own wild ire,