Page:The Lay of the Last Minstrel - Scott (1805).djvu/22

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13

Bards long shall tell
How Lord Walter fell!
When startled burghers fled afar,
The furies of the Border war;
When the streets of high Dunedin
Saw lances gleam and falchions redden,
And heard the slogan's[1] deadly yell—
Then the Chef of Branksome fell.

VIII.
Can piety the discord heal,
Or staunch the death-feud's enmity?
Can Christian lore, can patriot zeal,
Can love of blessed charity?
No! vainly to each holy shrine,
In mutual pilgrimage they drew;
Implored, in vain, the grace divine
For chiefs, their own red falchions slew.

  1. The war-cry, or gathering word, of a Border clan.