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

62 THE LIFE OF
with heaps of dead." But the hero naa no sooner
won one victory than he bent his way to some more
glorious field, reserved for the plains of Biggar.
THE BATTLE OF BIGGAR.
Wallace had no sooner avenged the blood of deal
Marion on the head of Hesilrig and his guilty crew
in unhappy Lanerk, the death place of the fair and
beautiful Marion Braidfoot, heiress of Lammington,
than he quickly leads his victorious bands to the plains
of Biggar. There he saw, while his men lay encam ped on a rising ground, his numerous enemies stretched out in wide array along the plain, and his heart
biggened with the glorious sight, as if some scene of
victory had presented to his view.
In the morning watch, every soldier roused with
the sound of the clarion eagerly seized his ready
shield, drew his broad claymore, and strode along
the field in a dense column, to meet their assailants.
From right to left, the wings extended, condensed,
and closed to the thickening combat.
As the soldiers thus were gathered into martial
clouds, with hearts beating high, waiting the least
command, and death stood lingering in their lifted
hands; Wallace viewed with a skilful eye the weak
ness of his enemies, saw with joy the impassioned aspect of his men, and thus addresed them:
"To day, my friends, let us fight the battle of our
country; let us hazard unequal fight, in the cause ot
our wives and our children; let our claymores be
deeply drenched in the blood of the enemies and op