ed to the woods in terror. She lifted her eye to the
buttress, and saw suspended there the dead body of her husband. At the
window of her apartment were her children, looking on the dreadful
spectacle. The two elder had cried till their throats were dried and
paralysed; and the youngest, who understood nothing of these
proceedings, laughed when it saw its mother, and clapped its little
hands for joy.

A knife, that lay alongside the place of execution, was seized by the
unhappy wife; and, through a loophole that was opposite to the rope, she
stretched her hand, and severed the fatal cord. The body fell with a
crash upon the ground. Life was extinct; but who would convince the
frantic wife that her beloved Parys was gone for ever? She hung upon the
dead body till, as the day advanced, the terrified domestics came in,
and took her away from the harrowing spectacle. Force had to be applied
to effect the humane purpose; and, for many a night, the screams that
came from the west wing of Henderland spoke eloquently the misery of
this child of misfortune. Cockburn was buried in the chapel ground near
the Tower. Some time afterwards, when her grief could bear the recital,
she wished to know what took place between her husband and the two
messengers on that dreadful night--and she was gratified by the
intelligence. Scott of Tushielaw had got intelligence of Cockburn's
intentions, and was upon the watch to defend his property. A severe
conflict ensued, in which several men on both sides were severely
wounded. In the very midst of the fray, Ralph rode up to Cockburn, and
delivered his message; but the proud chief replied, that he would face
King James if he were the Prince of Evil himself; but that he could not
pay his respects to his king till he first humbled the proud Tushielaw.
A like effort was made by Thomas, and with a similar result. In fact, it
appeared that Cockburn entertained no fear of danger from the visit of
the king, and treated the story of the gallows' rope as a mere vision of
some terrified mind; at least, if he had any doubts on that subject--and
reports of the fiery temper of the king might have roused his
suspicions--he conceived that a bold bearing would do him more good than
a pusillanimous demeanour; and, as for flight, he despised it, as well
as disapproved of it, on grounds of fancied prudence, seeing that he
would thereby admit his guilt, and prove his pusillanimity, while it
might ultimately turn out t