"Hast thou not heard, nowe, Henrye Hunt, As thou hast sayled by daye and by night, Of a Scottish robber on the seas; Men call him Sir Andrew Barton, knight?" Then ever he sighed, and sayd "Alas!" 85 With a grieved mind, and well-away, "But over-well I knowe that wight; I was his prisoner yesterday.
"As I was sayling uppon the sea, A Burdeaux voyage for to fare, 90 To his hach-borde he clasped me,[L91] And robd me of all my merchant ware. And mickle debts, God wot, I owe, And every man will have his owne, And I am nowe to London bounde, 95 Of our gracious king to beg a boone."
"That shall not need," Lord Howard sais; "Lett me but once that robber see, For every penny tane thee froe It shall be doubled shillings three." 100 "Nowe Gode forefend," the merchant said, "That you shold seek soe far amisse! God keepe you out of that traitors hands! Full litle ye wott what a man hee is.
"Hee is brasse within, and steele without, 105 With beames on his topcastle stronge; And eighteen pieces of ordinance He carries on each side along. And he hath a pinnace deerlye dight, St. Andrewes crosse, that is his guide; 110 His pinnace beareth ninescore men, And fifteen canons on each side.
"Were ye twentye shippes, and he but one, I sweare by kirke, and bower, and hall, He wold overcome them everye one,[L115] 115 If once his beames they doe downe fall." "This is cold comfort," sais my lord, "To wellcome a stranger thus to the sea: Yet Ile bring him and his shipp to shore, Or to Scotland hee shall carrye mee." 120
"Then a noble gunner you must have, And he must aim well with his ee, And sinke his pinnace into the sea, Or else hee never orecome will bee. And if you chance his shipp to borde, 125 This counsel I must give withall, Let no man to his topcastle goe To strive to let his beams downe fall.
"And seven pieces of ordinance, I pray your honour lend to mee, 130 On each side of my shipp along, And I will lead you on the sea. A glasse Ile sett, that may be seene, Whether you sayle by day or night; And to-morrowe, I sweare, by nine of the clocke, You shall meet with Sir Andrewe Barton, knight." 135
91. The MS. has here archborde, but in Part II. v. 5, hachebord.
115. It should seem from hence, that before our marine artillery was brought to its present perfection, some naval commanders had recourse to instruments or machines, similar in use, though perhaps unlike in construction, to the heavy Dolphins made of lead or iron used by the ancient Greeks; which they suspended from beams or yards fastened to the mast, and which they precipitately let fall on the enemies' ships, in order to sink them, by beating holes through the bottoms of their undecked triremes, or otherwise damaging them.--PERCY.