John Baliol

“ He married Devorguila, one of the daughters of Alan of Galloway, constable of Scotland, by Margaret, eldest daughter of David, earl of Huntington, brother of William the Lion. In his own right and that of his wife, coheiress of two great inheritances, Baliol was one of the wealthiest barons of his time, possessing, it is said, as many as thirty knights' fees in England, besides one-half of the lands of Galloway ”

“ At Berwick Edward received Balliol's formal defiance. "Has the fool done this folly?" the king cried in haughty scorn; "if he will not come to us, we will come to him." The terrible slaughter however had done its work, and his march northward was a triumphal progress. Edinburgh, Stirling, and Perth opened their gates, Bruce joined the English army, and Balliol himself surrendered and passed without a blow from his throne to an English prison. No further punishment however was exacted from the prostrate realm. ”

“ The party of Balliol and of Comyn was by no means extinct, and the disinherited lords gathered round Edward Balliol, the son of John, who thus became the head of a formidable body of men, whose interests were strongly opposed to the government of the Bruces. They suddenly determined on an expedition to restore if possible Balliol to the throne. ”

“ An incident in the life of Bathurst may excite a smile. No college in Oxford suffered more severely in the Civil Wars than Balliol. After the Restoration, Trinity, which had been more fortunate, soon recovered itself, but the blackened walls of Balliol remained for years a picture of desolation, and a sad memento of the fury of factious animosity. ”

“ The revival of the Baliol party after Robert Bruce's death in 1329 opened out better prospects to him. Edward de Baliol [q. v.] was his first cousin, and before 1310 had been his ward (Fœdera, ii. 116) . Warenne naturally profited by his kinsman's elevation to the throne of Scotland. Before 27 Feb. 1333 Baliol granted him the palatine earldom of Strathern (Cal. Patent Rolls, 1330–4, p. 555) , then actually held by Earl Malise [see under Strathearn, Malise, Earl of] . In June 1333 he joined in an expedition despatched to Baliol's assistance. ”

“ When he reached the other side, a damsel came to him crying, 'O Knight Balin, why have you left your own shield behind you? Alas! you have put yourself in great danger, for by your shield you should have been known. I grieve over your doom, for there is no man living that can rival you for courage and bold deeds.'
'I repent,' answered Balin, 'ever having come into this country, but for very shame I must go on. Whatever befalls me, either for life or death, I am ready to take it.' Then he examined his armour, and saw that it was whole, and mounted his horse. ”

“ Chapter VIII When he got at work with the opulent youth, who was to be taken in hand for Balliol, he found himself unable to say if this aspirant had really such poor parts or if the appearance were only begotten of his own long association with an intensely living little mind. ”

“ Baliol, in response to the arguments urged by her kinsman in support of the authenticity of tradition, "I profess to you that I am very willing to be converted to your faith. We talk of a credulous vulgar, without always recollecting that there is a vulgar incredulity, which, in historical matters, as well as in those of religion, finds it easier to doubt than to examine, and endeavours to assume the credit of an esprit fort by denying whatever happens to be a little beyond the very limited comprehension of the sceptic." ”

“ But Balin was bruised sore with the fall of his horse, for he was weary of travel. And Balan was the first that rose on foot and drew his sword, and went toward Balin, and he arose and went against him, but Balan smote Balin first, and he put up his shield, and smote him through the shield and cleft his helm. Then Balin smote him again with that unhappy sword, and well nigh had felled his brother Balan, and so they fought there together till their breaths failed. Then Balin looked up to the castle, and saw the towers stand full of ladies. ”

“ Bally," said I: "a dry Scot's humour, and something of the driest." And, indeed, I never had the least pretension to be thought a wit.
From that hour he was never rude with me, but all passed between us in a manner of pleasantry. One of our chief times of daffing (9) was when he required a horse, another bottle, or some money. He would approach me then after the manner of a schoolboy, and I would carry it on by way of being his father: on both sides, with an infinity of mirth. I could not but perceive that he thought more of me, which tickled that poor part of mankind, the vanity. ”

“ John Balliol: 1. Whom had he been afraid of, and why? Unknown. 2. What had brought him to suicide? Not poverty, certainly. 3. What had he done with my checks? When they were cashed I would know. 4. Why had he needed the money by a certain night—the night he was to meet M. J. B., the night he killed himself? Unknown.
M. J. B., the Fair Unknown: 1. What was her connection with Balliol? Mystery. 2. Did his suicide hinge on his meeting with her? Problematical. 3. She had said: "They killed him!" Were "they" microbes or gunmen? Unknowable. 4. ”

“ Turning, smiling, Master Bernard saw Alais bring her father and mother out to the glad light again. She laughed through tears, and they tried to speak and failed, and tried still. “Up drawbridge!” she cried. “Portcullis down! Invicta, ay, invicta still!”
Master Bernard cocked his ear to the creak of the chains. He pruned himself. “Surely this world hath nothing pleasanter than power,” said he—then his eyes fell on the girl, every line of her rippling with delicious life as she clung to her mother and father, and they held her close—“if a man could believe it.”
Craddock was at his elbow. ”

“ Baillie was taken ill, probably from over-fatigue, and was prematurely brought to bed of twin-daughters, one of whom died in the birth, and the other, named Joanna—after her maternal uncle, the celebrated John Hunter—lived for eighty-nine years, and became the most celebrated of her race, and one of the most celebrated women of her time. ”

“ Sir John Ballinger is the best gentleman jock in the north country. I could hold him on the flat at my best, but over jumps he's my master. Well, it's an open secret that when he's out of trainin' he drinks hard—strikin' an average, he calls it. He got delirium on Toosday, and has been ragin' like a devil ever since. ”

“ While he stood gazing up at the rigging, attempting to pierce the thick darkness, he felt his sleeve plucked, and, looking down, observed Ailie at his side.
“My child,” he cried, grasping her by the arm convulsively, “you here! How came you to leave your cabin, dear? Go down, go down; you don’t know the danger you run. Stay—I will help you. If one of those seas comes on board it would carry you overboard like a fleck of foam.”
“I didn’t know there was much danger, papa. Glynn told me there wasn’t,” she replied, as her father sprang with her to the companion-ladder. ”

“ Folly though it undoubtedly was, I had indulged a secret conviction that M. J. B. was Balliol's sweetheart; now she proved to be his sister, but although this fact afforded great relief, it none the less gave me new anxiety I have always noticed that girls, especially very charming and attractive girls like Martha Balliol, are all too seldom free and heart-whole. Somebody else always seems to get acquainted with them first. ”

“ Mother Martha began to protest. The girl was worn out with a long journey. She needed rest and food. In the morning—in the morning—and Elsa at last hung limp on the Spaniard's arms, fainting.
Don Julian shrugged his shoulders.
"There is too little blood in her," said he, then turned to the soldiers. "Clear the next tent, you, and bear her in. Comfort her, Mother Martha. By the Virgin, you should do it well."
Two of them lifted the girl, and as they turned Don Julian thought again of Raoul. "Now, rascal, what are you?"
"A poor gentleman, Excellency, who needs fifty ducats." ”

“ Bailly's diffidence required the same distinction. When people praised him to his face on the diversity of his knowledge, our colleague did not immediately repel the compliment; but soon after, he would stop his panegyrist, and whisper in his ear with an air of mystery: "I will confide a secret to you, pray do not take advantage of it: I am only a very little less ignorant than another man."
Never did a man act more in harmony with his principles. Bailly was led to reprimand severely a man belonging to the humblest and poorest class of society. ”

“ At length Balin entered a rich and marvellously adorned chamber, within which was a bed covered with cloth of gold of the noblest texture, and in this bed a person lay. Near by was a table with a top of solid gold and four curiously-shaped pillars of silver for its legs, while upon it stood a mighty spear, whose handle was strangely wrought, as though it had been made for a mighty king.
But of all this marvel and magnificence Balin saw only the spear, which he seized at once with a strong grip, and turned with it to face his adversary. ”

“ The man dropped off him and Raoul reined swiftly away. He remembered the bill hook. "If you will not be so stupid you shall save her."
"You are a liar and a rogue. And the Spaniards have taken her."
"I am what I am. And you shall take her again."
"It is now no use," the Dutchman groaned; "they have had her in their camp. Ach, Gott! Why did you not let me kill her?"
"It is always worth while to live, corbleu. Also you can kill her yet. That is her affair. I suppose you have not had the sense to catch a horse."
"I do not want a horse," said the Dutchman, dully. ”

“ But Raoul had galloped round the camp and he sprang down and tethered his horse to a poplar and ran in on foot. And the Dutchman went with him still. No one heeded them. All men were running wildly in that hour. Only Raoul was quite sure of his purpose. He held the Dutchman's arm as he ran and: "Kill her or save her, there she is," he muttered and jerked him round at the tent where Elsa lay. Then Raoul himself ran. He sought things more profitable.
Raoul peeped into Don Julian's tent. It was empty of men, and he sprang in—then through a bustling minute feared it was empty of money, too. ”

“ Bailey from the eye of Heaven traveled at a thoughtful pace along the path to the farmhouse, cocked at a confident angle upon a head in which faith in the world was re-established. Boy Bailey had no doubt that the money would be forthcoming. What he had heard of the conversation between Margaret and Kamis had assured him of the Kafir's resources and he felt himself already as solvent as if the minted money were heavy in his pockets. A pleasant sense of security possessed his versatile spirit, the sense that to-morrow may be counted upon. For such as Mr. Bailey, every day has its price. ”

“ Then Sir Balin cried out:
"Alas, alas! that I should live to see this day!" and he fell backward in a swoon.
Sir Balan was dying, but he crawled on his hands and knees to where Sir Balin lay, and took off his helmet only to discover the face of his brother. Then he wept bitterly till Sir Balin recovered from his swoon.
"Alas!" said Sir Balan, "if we had but worn our own armor we should have known each other. And now we must die; we have killed each other."
[129]
"They fought till their breath failed"
Sir Balin was too full of remorse to weep. ”

“ Ballinger's way of arranging her books would instantly have detected the marks of recent perturbation. Mrs. Ballinger's province, as a member of the Lunch Club, was the Book of the Day. On that, whatever it was, from a novel to a treatise on experimental psychology, she was confidently, authoritatively "up." What became of last year's books, or last week's even; what she did with the "subjects" she had previously professed with equal authority; no one had ever yet discovered. ”

“ Our colleague was accustomed to say: "We must entertain a bad opinion of those who, in their dying moments, have not a look to cast behind them." Bailly's last look was towards his wife. A gendarme of the escort feelingly listened to his last words, and faithfully repeated them to his widow. The procession reached the entrance to the Champ de Mars, on the side towards the river, at a quarter past one o'clock. This was the place where, according to the words of the sentence, the scaffold had been raised. ”

“ We have not succeeded in getting a cook, being in the meantime obliged to content ourselves with a temporary loan of the green-grocer’s wife, and of Miss Pritty’s small domestic; therefore I want to engage your wife, who is at present, I believe, open to an engagement. We are also unprovided with a man to tend our garden, look after our pony, and help me in the missionary work, in which I hope immediately to be engaged in this town. Do you accept that situation?”
Aileen said this with such an earnest irresistible air, that Joe Baldwin struck his colours on the spot, and said, “I do!” ”

“ The tale of Balin's deeds is too long for recital here, but it may be read in the book of King Arthur's knights. At last, after many days of wandering and many exciting combats, Balin saw by the roadside a cross upon which in letters of gold was written, "No man must ride to this castle alone."
Then, too, an old man came toward him and said, "Balin le Savage, turn now before it is too late. You have already passed the bounds of prudence." With these words the old man vanished, and Balin heard the blast of a horn, like that blown when a huntsman kills an animal. ”