Arthurian romances; Lady of the Lake (Legendary character) -- Romances
634. By fate of Border chivalry. Scott says: "James was, in fact,
equally attentive to restrain rapine and feudal oppression in every part
of his dominions. 'The King past to the isles, and there held justice
courts, and punished both thief and traitor according to their demerit.
And also he caused great men to show their holdings, wherethrough he
found many of the said lands in non-entry; the which he confiscate and
brought home to his own use, and afterwards annexed them to the crown,
as ye shall hear. Syne brought many of the great men of the isles
captive with him, such as Mudyart, M'Connel, M'Loyd of the Lewes,
M'Neil, M'Lane, M'Intosh, John Mudyart, M'Kay, M'Kenzie, with many other
that I cannot rehearse at this time. Some of them he put in ward and
some in court, and some he took pledges for good rule in time coming.
So he brought the isles, both north and south, in good rule and peace;
wherefore he had great profit, service, and obedience of people a
long time hereafter; and as long as he had the heads of the country
in subjection, they lived in great peace and rest, and there was great
riches and policy by the King's justice' (Pitscottie, p. 152)."
638. Your counsel. That is, give me your counsel. Streight = strait.
659. The Bleeding Heart. See on 200 above.
662. Quarry. See on i. 127 above.
672. To wife. For wife. Cf. Shakespeare, Temp. ii. 1. 75: "such a
paragon to their queen;" Rich. II. iv. 1. 306: "I have a king here to my
flatterer," etc. See also Matt. iii. 9, Luke, iii. 8, etc.
674. Enow. The old plural of enough; as in Shakespeare, Hen. V. iv. 1.
240: "we have French quarrels enow," etc.
678. The Links of Forth. The windings of the Forth between Stirling and
Alloa.
679. Stirling's porch. The gate of Stirling Castle.
683. Blench. Start, shrink.
685. Heat. Misprinted "heart" in many eds.
690. From pathless glen. The MS. has "from hill and glen."
692. There are who have. For the ellipsis, cf. Shakespeare, Temp. ii. 1.
262: "There be that can rule Naples," etc. See also iii. 10 below.
694. That beetled o'er. Cf. Hamlet, i. 4. 71:
"the dreadful summit of the cliff That beetles o'er his
base into the sea."
696. Their dangerous dream. The MS. has "their desperate dream."
702. Battled. Battlemented; as in vi. 7 below.
703. It waved. That it waved; an ellipsis very common in Elizabethan and
earlier English. Cf. 789 below.
708. Astound. Astounded. This contraction of the participle (here used
for the sake of the rhyme) was formerly not uncommon in verbs ending in
d and t. Thus in Shakespeare we find the participles bloat (Ham. iii. 4.
182), enshield (M. for M. ii. 4. 80), taint (1 Hen. VI. v. 3. 183), etc.
710. Crossing. Conflicting.
716. Ere. The 1st ed. misprints "e'er."
731. Level. Aim; formerly a technical term. Cf. 2 Hen. IV. iii. 2. 286:
"The foeman may with as great aim level at the edge of a penknife," etc.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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