The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 2 (of 5)
General
The English and Scottish popular ballads, volume 2 (of 5)
Ballads, English -- England -- Texts; Ballads, Scots -- Scotland -- Texts
10
Then up it raise him Sir Colvin,
And dressd in armour keen,
And he is on to Elrick's hill,
Without light of the meen.
11
At midnight mark the meen upstarts;
The knight walkd up and down,
While loudest cracks o thunder roard
Out ower the bent sae brown.
12
Then by the twinkling of an ee
He spied an armed knight,
A fair lady bearing his brand,
Wi torches burning bright.
13
Then he cried high, as he came nigh,
'Coward thief, I bid you flee!
There is not ane comes to this hill,
But must engage wi me.
14
'Ye'll best take road before I come,
And best take foot and flee;
Here is a sword, baith sharp and broad
Will quarter you in three.'
15
Sir Colvin said, I'm not afraid
Of any here I see;
You hae not taen your God before;
Less dread hae I o thee.
16
Sir Colvin then he drew his sword,
His foe he drew his brand,
And they fought there on Elrick's hill
Till they were bluidy men.
17
The first an stroke the knight he strake,
Gae Colvin a slight wound;
The next an stroke Lord Colvin strake,
Brought's foe unto the ground.
18
'I yield, I yield,' the knight he said,
'I fairly yield to thee;
Nae ane came eer to Elrick-hill
Eer gaind such victorie.
19
'I and my forbears here did haunt
Three hundred years and more;
I'm safe to swear a solemn oath
We were never beat before.'
20
'An asking,' said the lady gay,
'An asking ye'll grant me;'
'Ask on, ask on,' said Sir Colvin,
'What may your asking be?'
21
'Ye'll gie me hame my wounded knight,
Let me fare on my way;
And I'se neer be seen on Elrick's hill,
By night, nor yet by day;
And to this place we'll come nae mair,
Coud we win safe away.
22
'To trouble any Christian one,
Lives in the righteous law,
We'll come nae mair unto this place,
Coud we win safe awa.'
23
'O yese get hame your wounded knight,
Ye shall not gang alane;
But I maun hae a wad o him,
Before that we twa twine.'
24
Sir Colvin being a book-learnd man,
Sae gude in fencing tee,
He's drawn a stroke behind his hand,
And followed in speedilie.
25
Sae fierce a stroke Sir Colvin's drawn,
And followed in speedilie,
The knight's brand and sword hand
In the air he gard them flee.
26
It flew sae high into the sky,
And lighted on the ground;
The rings that were on these fingers
Were worth five hundred pound.
27
Up he has taen that bluidy hand,
Set it before the king,
And the morn it was Wednesday,
When he married his daughter Jean.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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