"
"He desyres you'l cum to Edinburgh,
And hauld of him this Foreste frie;
And, gif ye refuse to do this,
He'll conquess baith thy landis and thee.
He hath vow'd to cast thy castell down,
And mak a widowe o' thy gaye ladye;
"He'll hang thy merryemen, payr by payr,
In ony frith where he may them finde."
"Aye, by my troth!" the Outlaw said,
"Than wald I think me far behinde.
"E'er the king my feir countrie get,
This land that's nativest to me!
Mony o' his nobilis sall be cauld,
Their ladyes sall be right wearie."
Then spak his ladye, feir of face,
She seyd, "Without consent of me,
That an Outlaw suld cum befor a King;
I am right rad[108] of treasonrie.
Bid him be gude to his lordis at hame,
For Edinburgh my lord sall nevir see."
James Boyd tuik his leave o' the Outlaw kene,
To Edinburgh boun is he;
When James he cam befor the king,
He knelit lowlie on his kne.
"Wellcum, James Boyd!" seyd our nobil king;
"What Foreste is Ettricke Foreste frie?"
"Ettricke Foreste is the feirest foreste
That evir man saw wi' his e'e.
"There's the dae, the rae, the hart, the hynde,
And of a' wild beastis grete plentie;
There's a pretty castell of lyme and stane;
O gif it stands not pleasauntlie!
"There's in the forefront o' that castell,
Twa unicorns, sae bra' to see;
There's the picture of a knight, and a ladye bright,
Wi' the grene hollin abune their brie.
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