"Although we all in armour be,25
It's not against his majesty;
Nor yet to spill our neighbour's bluid,
But wi' the country we'll conclude."
"Lay down your arms, in the King's name,
And ye shall a' gae safely hame;"30
But they a' cried out wi' ae consent,
"We'll fight for a broken Covenant."
"O well," says he, "since it is so,
A wilfu' man never wanted woe:"
He then gave a sign unto his lads,35
And they drew up in their brigades.
The trumpets blew, and the colours flew,
And every man to his armour drew;
The Whigs were never so much aghast,
As to see their saddles toom sae fast.40
The cleverest men stood in the van,
The Whigs they took their heels and ran;
But such a raking was never seen,
As the raking o' the Rullien Green.
THE READING SKIRMISH.
Several companies, principally Irish, belonging to the army of King James, and stationed at Reading, had quitted the town in consequence of a report that the Prince of Orange was advancing in that direction with the main body of his forces. On the departure of the garrison, the people of Reading at once invited the Prince to take possession of the place, and secure them against the Irish. But the King's troops, having learned that it was only a small detachment of William's soldiers, and not the main army, by whom they were threatened, returned and reoccupied their post. Here they were attacked by two hundred and fifty of the Dutch, and though numbering six hundred, were soon put to flight, with the loss of their colors and of fifty men, the assailants losing but five. This skirmish occurred on Sunday, the 9th of December, 1688.
This piece is extracted from Croker's Historical Songs of Ireland, p. 14, Percy Society, vol. i., and was there given from a collection of printed ballads in the British Museum. The burden seems to be derived from the following stanza of Lilli burlero: