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'was strange to me to hear this language. He then said to
me, "Do you see that boy that rideth so fast? He will be in
Scotland within this half-hour, and he is gone to let them
know that you are here, and to what end you are come, and
the small number you have with you; and that if they make
haste, on a sudden they may surprise us, and do with us what
they please." Hereupon we took advice what was best to be
done; we sent notice presently to all parts to raise the
country, and to come to us with all the speed they could;
and withal we sent to Carlisle to raise the townsmen, for
without foot we could do no good against the tower. There we
stayed some hours expecting more company; and within short
time after the country came in on all sides, so that we
quickly between three or four hundred horse, and after some
little longer stay, the foot of Carlisle came to us, to the
number of three or four hundred men; whom we set presently
at work to get up to the top of the tower, and to uncover
the roof, and then about twenty of them fell down together,
and by that means to win the tower. The Scots, seeing their
present danger, offered to pareley, and yielded themselves
to my mercy. They had no sooner opened the iron gate, and
yielded themselves my prisoners, but we might see 400 horse
within a quarter of a mile coming to their rescue, and to
surprise me and my small company; but of a sudden they
stayed and stood at gaze. Then I had more to do than ever;
for all our borderers came crying with full mouths, "Sir,
give us leave to set upon them; for these are they that have
killed our fathers, our brothers, our uncles, and our
cousins; and they are come thinking to surprise you, upon
weak grass nags, such as they could get on a sudden; and God
hath put them in your hands, that we may take revenge of
them for much blood that they have spilt of ours." I desired
they would be patient a while, and bethought myself, If I
should give them their wills, there would be few or none of
the Scots that would escape unkilled (there were so many
deadly feuds amongst them,) and therefore I resolved with
myself, to give them a fair answer, but not to give them
their desire. So I told them, that if I were not present
myself, they might do what pleased themselves; but being
present, If I should give them leave, the blood that should
be spilt that day would lie very heavy on my conscience
*, and therefore I desired them, for my sake, to
forbear; and if the Scots did not presently make away with
all the speed they could upon my sending to them, they
should then have their wills to do what they pleased. They
were ill satisfied with my answer, but durst not disobey. I
sent with speed to the Scots, and bade them pack away with
all the speed they could; for if they stayed the messenger's
return, they should few of them return to their own home.
They made no stay, but they were turned homewards before the
messenger had made an end of his message. Thus, by God's
mercy, I escaped a great danger, and by my means there were
a great many men's lives saved that day.'
This Sir Robert Cary was afterwards made deputy-warden of
the East Marches (as he tells us) under his father the Lord
Hunsdon, and his memoirs farther tells, 'I wrote (says he)
to Sir Robert Ker, who was my opposite Warden, 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 quieting the borders
till my return from London, which journey I was shortly of
necessity to take. He stayed my man all night, and wrote me
back, that he was glad to have the happiness to be
acquainted with me, and did not doubt but the country would
be better governed by our agreements. I wrote to him on
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 about half a score with him got to horse, and came
into England to a little village; where he broke up an
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 quietly 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
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 stayed 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 come. The winter being begun, there were inroads
made out of Scotland into the East March, and goods were
taken three or four times a week. I had no others means left
to quiet, but still sent out 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
had been seldom used;) but I had no way to keep the country
quiet but to do so; for when the Scotch thieves found what a
sharp course I took with those that were found with the
bloody hand, I had in a short time the country more quiet.
All this time we were but in jest as it were, but now began
the great quarrel between us.'
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