:

obeyed therefore desired me to rise and hear their petition with them. Up I got with diligence, and assembling the honest men of the town, came to the Tolbooth; and after consultation taken to hear them, and what answer to make, there presents us a very reverend man of big stature, and grave and stout countenance, grey haired, and very humble like, who, after mickle, and very low courtesy, bowing down with his face near the ground, began his harangue in the Spanish tongue, whereof I understood the substance, and being about to answer in Latin, he having only a young man with him to be his interpreter, began and told over again to us in good English. The sum was, that King Philip, his master, had rigged out a navy and army to land in England, and him with a certain of captains, being the general of twenty hulks, upon an isle of Scotland, called the Fair Isle, where they made shipwreck, and where so many as had escaped the merciless seas and rock, had more than six or seven weeks suffered great hunger and cold, till conducing that bark out of Orkney, they were come hither as to their special friends and confederates, to kiss the King's Majesty's hands of Scotland, (and therewith bekkit even to the yeard) and to find relief and comfort thereby to himself, these gentlemen captains and the poor soldiers whose condition was for the present most miserable and pitiful.

I answered this mickle in sum: that howbeit neither our friendship, which could not be great, seeing their King and they were friends to the greatest enemy of Christ, the Pope of Rome, and our King and we defied him: nor yet their cause against our neighbours and special friends of England could procure any benefit at our hands for their relief and comfort; nevertheless, they should know by experience, that we were men, and so moved by human compassion, and Christians of better religion nor they, which should kythe (show) in the fruits and effect plain contrary to theirs. For whereas our people resorting amongst them in peaceable and lawful affairs of merchandize, were violently taken and cast in prison, their goods and gear confiscate, and their bodies

committed to the cruel flaming fire for the cause of religion, they should find nothing amongst us but Christian pity and works of mercy and alms, leaving to God to work in their hearts concerning religion as it pleased him. This being truly reported again to him by his trunshman, with great reverence he gave thanks, and said he could not make answer for their Kirk and the laws and order thereof, only for himself, that there were divers Scotsmen who knew him, and to whom he had shewn courtesy and favour at Calais, and as he supposed, some of this same town of Anstruther. So shew him that the bailies granted him licence with the captains to go to their lodging for their refreshment, but to none of their men to land, till the over lord of the town were advertised, and understand the King's Majesty's mind anent them. Thus, with great courtesy he departed.

That night, the Lord being advertised, came, and on the morn, accompanied with a good number of the gentlemen of the country round about, gave the said general and the captains presence, and after the same speeches in effect as before, received them in his house, and entertained them humanely, and suffered the soldiers to come a-land, and tie all together, to the number of thirteen score, for the most part young beardless men, silly, trauchled and hungered, to the which, a day or two, kale, pottage and fish was given; for my advice was conforme to the Prophet Elizeus his to the King of Israel in Samaria, "Give them bread and water, etc." The names of the commanders were Jon Gomez de Medina, General of twenty hulks, Capitan Patricio, Capitan de Legoretto, Capitan de Luffera, Capitan Mauritio and Seignour Serrano.

But verily all the while my heart melted within me for desire of thankfulness to God, when I remembered the prideful and cruel natural of they people, and how they would have used us in case they had landed with their forces among us. And sall the wonderful work of God's mercy and justice in making us see them, the chief commanders of them, to make such dewgard and courtesy to poor seamen,

and their soldiers so abjectly to beg alms at our doors and in our streets.

In the meantime, they knew not of the wrack of the rest, but supposed that the rest of the army was safely returned, till a day I got in St Andrews in print the wreck of the galiats in particular, with the names of the principal men, and how they were used in Ireland and our Highlands, in Wales and other parts of England; the which, when I recorded to Jan Gomez, by particular and special names, O then he cried out for grief, bursted and grat. This Jan Gomez, shew great kindness to a ship of our town, which hẹ found arrested at Calais at his home-coming, red to court for her, and made great rus of Scotland to his King, took the honest men to his house, and inquired for the Laird of Anstruther, for the minister and his host, and sent them many commendations. But we thanked God with our hearts, that we had seen them among us in that form.

THE DEATH OF HIS SON

For conclusion of this marvellous year I cannot forget my particular, seeing that is my special purpose to recount the gracious working of my God with me. He corrected me sweetly in taking from me at the beginning thereof my little son Andrew. But recompensed the same again most bountifully in giving me another Andrew, born that same year in the month of August: so the Lord takes, the Lord gives, blessed be the name of the Lord forever. The bairn was fallon beautiful, loving and merry, and seemed to be of a fine sanguine constitution till a quarter after he was speaned; but soon, whether by worms or a hectic consumption, I know not, both his flesh and colour failed, and by the space of a quarter of a year consumed and dwined away, keeping always the sweetest and pleasantest eye that could be in any's head. I was accustomed to set him at the end of the table in time of dinner and supper, as the Egyptians did the picture of death, to acquaint me therewith;

and yet when he died, I marvelled at my own heart that was so vrened and moved with it, so that yet when I wrote this, I was not free of the bowdnings of the bowels of that natural affection. And if we, that are earthly worms, can be so affected to our children, what a love bears that heavenly father to his! He was my first propine and hansell to heaven. I cannot forget a strange thing at his death. I had a pair of fine milk white doves, which I fed in the house: the one whereof, that day of his death, could not be holden off his cradle, but stopped from flitting above it, crept in, and sat in under it, and died with him the other at my home-coming on the morn as I was washing my hands, came, lighted at my foot, and pitifully crying, "Pipe, Pipe, Pipe," ran a little away from me. Then I called for pease and beans to give it; but they shew me it would not eat. I took it up, and put pickles in the mouth of it, but it shook them out of the throat; and parting from me with a pitiful piping, within two or three hours died also.

This page, if thou be a pater that reads it, thou wilt a-pardon me. If not, suspend thy censure till thou be a father, as said the grave Lacedemonian Agesilaus.

SIR ROBERT CARY

THE WARDENS OF THE MARCHES

HAVING thus ended with my brother, I then began to

think of the charge I had taken upon me, which was the government of the East March in my father's absence. I wrote to Sir Robert Car, who was my opposite warden (i.e. on the Scotch side), a brave, active young man, and desired him that he would appoint a day when he and myself might privately meet in some part of the Border, to take some good order for the quieting of the Borders, till my return from London, which journey I was shortly of necessity to take. He staid my man all night, and wrote to me back, that he was glad to have the happiness to be acquainted with me,

and did not doubt but the country would be the better governed by our good agreements. I wrote to him on the Monday, and the Thursday after he appointed the place and hour of meeting.

After he had filled my man with drink, and put him to bed, he and some half a score with him got to horse, and came into England to a little village. There he broke up a house, and took out a poor fellow, who, he pretended, had done him some wrong, and before the door cruelly murdered him, and so came quietly home, and went to bed. The next morning

he delivered my man a letter in answer to mine, and returned him to me. It pleased me well at the reading of his kind letter; but when I heard what a brave he had put upon me, I quickly resolved what to do, which was, never to have to do with him till I was righted for the great wrong he had done me.

Upon this resolution, the day I should have met with him, I took post, and with all the haste I could, rode to London, leaving him to attend my coming to him as was appointed. There he staid from one till five, but heard no news of me. Finding by this that I had neglected him, he returned home to his house; and so things rested (with great dislike the one of the other) till I came back, which was with all the speed I could, my business being ended. The first thing I did after my return, was to ask justice for the wrong he had done me, but I could get none. The Borderers seeing our disagreement, they thought the time wished for of them was to come. The winter being begun, there was roads made out of Scotland into the East March, and goods were taken three or four times a week. I had no other means left to quiet them, but still sent, out of the garrison, horsemen of Berwick to watch in the fittest places for them; and it was their good hap many times to light upon them with the stolen goods driving before them. They were no sooner brought before me, but a jury went upon them, and, being found guilty, they were presently hanged. A course which hath been seldom used, but I had no way to keep the country quiet but to do so; for when the Scots thieves found what a sharp course I took with them that were