The life of Sir William Wallace, the governor general of Scotland, and hero of the Scottish chiefs. By Peter Donaldson.

8 AADDRESS.
The history of such a Hero will doubtless be hailed by al
true-hearted Scots with joy. It will contain a circumstantial
narrative of the most famous war, that ever occupied the sons
and fields of Britain, carried on between the realms of England
and Scotland for the space of forty years; the one unjustly in-ading, the other nobly defending the rights and liberties of de-,oted Caledonia. A war which produced amazing alterations
both in the general government, and in the rising and falling of
many families of distinction in the nation; the one betraying, the
other maintaining her liberties and her laws. And to render the
whole of the history of this renowned warrior complete and consistent, we shall here enumerate the causes, occasions, necessities, &c. of that war, in which our hero so nobly signalized himself as the just governor, the wise legislator, the benevolent protector of his country. When Alexander the III., king of Scotland, who terminated a succession of Princes that swayed the
Scottish sceptre for the space of eight hundred years, was killed
by a fall from his horse over the west craigs of Kinghorn, he left
no issue of his body to succeed him on the throne. and his grand
daughter Margaret of Norway, commonly called the Maid of
Norway, became the nearest heiress to the crown. She being an
infant at the time of the king's death, a Convention of the Estates of Parliament was held at Scone, and the immediate government of the kingdom was committed to the administration of
Six Regents, William Frazer, Bishop of St. Andrews, Duncan
Macduff, Earl of Fife, Alexander Cummin, Earl of Buchan, Robert Wiseheart, Bishop of Glasgow, John Cummin, Lord of Badenoch, and James Stewart, the Grand Steward of Scotland,
who governed the realm for the space of seven years. During
this period, Edward the I. King of England, knowing that his
sister's grand daughter, child of the King of Norway, was the only surviving person of all the posterity of Alexander, as lawful
heiress to the kingdom of Scotland, was ambitious, and sent Ambassadors to the Estates to desire Margaret of Norway in marriage for his eldest son, Edward, with a design to annex Scotland,o the dominions of his crown.
Ambassadors from Edward of England, and Eric of Norway
met at Bryham, near Shelson, on the 18th of July, 1290, with full
powers to negotiate and settle the conditions of the marriage.The Parliament agreed to the marriage, as being advantageous
to the Kingdom; but they took good care in settling tne conditions, that all provisions were made to secure the independence
of the kingdom in case of death, and to guard against every danger that might arise from so near an alliance with so powerful
and ambitious a monarch. In the matrimonial treaty it was
stipulated that the Scots should enjoy their ancient laws, liberties and customs; that in case Edward and Margaret should be