A fragment of rare beauty, believed to be based on the same incident (unlikely however) was one of Scott's special favourites. Rather does it shrine a similar tragedy, one of many such which must have been common enough in those troubled and lawless times. How melting is the pathos of the following verses, for instance! "Willie's rare and Willie's fair, And Willie's wondrous bonny, And Willie's hecht to marry me, Gin e'er he married ony. "Yestreen I made my bed fu' braid, This night I'll make it narrow, For a' the livelong winter night, I'll lie twin'd of my marrow. She sought him east, she sought him west, She sought him braid and narrow; Syne, in the cleaving of a craig She found him drown'd in Yarrow. Somewhat akin is the "Lament of the Border Widow," located at Henderland, in Meggetdale, not far from St. Mary's Loch. In the preface to this ballad in the "Minstrelsy," Scott states that it was "obtained from recitation in the Forest of Ettrick, and is said to relate to the execution of Cockburn of Henderland, a Border freebooter, hanged over the gate of his own tower by James V. in the course of that memorable expedition in 1529 which was fatal to Johnie Armstrong, Adam Scott of Tushielaw, and many other marauders." The grave of "Perys of Cockburne and hys wyfe Marjory" on a wooded knoll at Henderland, is still pointed out. But the historicity of the ballad has been questioned from the statement (which seems to be correct) that Cockburn was actually executed at Edinburgh, instead of at his own home. There is no evidence, however, to assume that the ballad commemorates this particular occurrence or that it has any connection with the grave referred to. For genuine balladic merit it will be difficult to match: My love he built me a bonny bower, And clad it a' wi' lilye flower, A brawer bower ye ne'er did see Than my true love he built for me. There came a man, by middle day He spied his sport, and went away, And brought the King that very night, Who brake my bower and slew my knight. He slew my knight, to me sae dear; He slew my knight, and poin'd his gear; My servants all for life did flee, And left me in extremitie. I sewed his sheet, making my mane; I watched the corpse myself alane; I watch'd his body night and day; No living creature came that way. I took his body on my back, And whiles I gaed, and whiles I sat; I digg'd a grave, and laid him in, And happ'd him with the sod sae green. But think na ye my heart was sair, When I laid the moul' on his yellow hair; O think na ye my heart was wae, When I turned about away to gae? Nae living man I'll love again, Since that my lovely knight is slain, Wi ae lock of his yellow hair, I'll chain my heart for evermair. PLATE 22 "HE PASS'D WHERE NEWARK'S STATELY TOWER LOOKS OUT FROM YARROW'S BIRCHEN BOWER"