thousand men,' When sir Henry heard that, he was joyful and said:
'Sirs, let us leap on our horses, for by the faith I owe to God and to
my lord my father I will go seek for my pennon and dislodge them this
same night.' Knights and squires that heard him agreed thereto and
were joyous, and every man made him ready.

The same evening the bishop of Durham came thither with a good
company, for he heard at Durham how the Scots were before Newcastle
and how that the lord Percy's sons with other lords and knights should
fight with the Scots: therefore the bishop of Durham to come to the
rescue had assembled up all the country and so was coming to
Newcastle. But sir Henry Percy would not abide his coming, for he had
with him six hundred spears, knights and squires, and an eight
thousand footmen. They thought that sufficient number to fight with
the Scots, if they were not but three hundred spears and three
thousand of other. Thus they departed from Newcastle after dinner and
set forth in good order, and took the same way as the Scots had gone
and rode to Otterburn, a seven little leagues from thence and fair
way, but they could not ride fast because of their foot-men. And when
the Scots had supped and some laid down to their rest, and were weary
of travailing and assaulting of the castle all that day, and thought
to rise early in the morning in cool of the day to give a new assault,
therewith suddenly the Englishmen came on them and entered into the
lodgings, weening it had been the masters' lodgings, and therein were
but varlets and servants. Then the Englishmen cried, 'Percy, Percy!'
and entered into the lodgings, and ye know well where such affray is
noise is soon raised: and it fortuned well for the Scots, for when
they saw the Englishmen came to wake them, then the lord sent a
certain of their servants of foot-men to scrimmish with the Englishmen
at the entry of the lodgings, and in the mean time they armed and