lled
retreat, and scornfully told Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus, that he
might go home if he were afraid. The old man sorrowfully left the field,
but his two sons remained with their rash but gallant king, and were
both slain.

On the day before the battle took place, Surrey, that "auld crooked
carle," as James called him, marched his men northward across the Till
and encamped for the night near Barmoor Wood. To the Scots this looked
as though they had gone off towards Berwick, to repeat James' own
manoeuvre, and invade the country in the absence of its king; and they
must have thought that there would be little chance of the battle for
which James had punctiliously waited taking place on the morrow. But
Surrey's purpose proved to be quite otherwise. On the following morning
he sent the vanguard of his army, with the artillery, to make a detour
of several miles round by Twizell bridge, where they re-crossed to the
south bank of the Till; and coming south-eastward towards Flodden, they
were joined by the rest of the army, which had plunged through the
stream, swollen by continuous rains, at two points near Crookham. The
two divisions met at Branxton, after having waded through a marsh which
extended from Branxton nearly to the Till, and which the Scots had
thought impassable.

Seeing that the English were about to occupy Branxton Hill, which would
entirely cut him off from communication with Scotland, James was forced
to abandon his advantageous position; he gave orders for the camp-refuse
to be fired, and under cover of the dense clouds of smoke marched down
to forestall Surrey and occupy Branxton ridge. The two armies suddenly
found themselves within a few spears' length of each other, and the
battle was begun by the artillery on both sides.

Sudden, as he spoke,
From the sharp ridges of the hill,
All downward to the banks of Till
Was wreathed in sable smoke.
Volumed, and vast, and rolling far,
The cloud enveloped Scotland's war
As down the hill they broke;
Nor martial shout, nor minstrel tone
Announced their march; their tread alone,
At times one warning trumpet blown,
At times a stifled hum.
Told England, from his mountain throne
King James did rushing come.
Scarce could they hear or see their foes
Until at weapon-point they close.

Many of the raw levies on the English side fled at the first sound of
the Scottish cannon; but the master of the ordnance,