, though another version avers
that he belonged to the house of Percy.

Wansbeck's fellow stream, the Coquet, has its birth amongst some of the
wildest scenery of the Cheviot Hills, where the heights of Deel's Hill
and Woodbist Law look down on the now silent Watling Street and the
deserted Ad Fines Camp. In its windings along the bases of the hills it
is joined by the Usway Burn, said to be named after King Oswy, between
which and the little river Alwine lies the famous Lordship of Kidland,
once desolate on account of the thieving and raiding of its neighbours
of Bedesdale and Scotland.

Hodgson, in his "Northumberland," says of this region, "All the said
Kydlande is full of lytle hilles or mountaynes, and between the saide
hilles be dyvers valyes in which discende litle Ryvvelles or brokes of
water, spryngynge out of the said hilles and all fallynge into a lytle
Rever or broke callede Kidlande water, w'ch fallethe into the rever of
cockette nere to the towne of alwynntonn, w'tin a myll of the castell of
harbottell." The reasons for the desolation of Kidland are graphically
set forth:--"In somer seasons when good peace ys betwene England and
Scotland, th'inhabitantes of dyv'se townes thereaboutes repayres up with
theyr cattall in som'ynge (summering) as ys aforesaid, and so have used
to do of longe tyme. And for the pasture of theyr cattall, so long as
they would tarye there they payed for a knoweledge two pens for a
household, or a grote at the most, though they had nev' so many
cattalles. And yet the poore men thoughte their fermes dere enoughe.
There was but fewe yeres that they escaped w'thout a greatter losse of
their goodes and cattalles, by spoyle or thefte of the Scottes or
Ryddesdale men, then would have paide for the pasture of theyr cattail
in a much better grounde. And ov' (over, besides) that, the saide valyes
or hopes of Kidlande lyeth so distant and devyded by mounteynes one from
an other, that such as Inhabyte in one of these hoopes, valeys, or
graynes, can not heare the Fraye outcrye, or exclamac'on of such as
dwell in an other hoope or valley upon the other side of the said
mountayne, nor come or assemble to theyr assystance in tyme of
necessytie. Wherefore we can not fynde anye of the neyghbours
thereabouts wyllinge cotynnally to Inhabyte or plenyshe w'thin the saide
grounde of Kydland, and especially in wynter tyme."

These reasons were given by the people of "Cockdale" in the neighbouring
valley