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"and entered to serve the King's Majesty of England, saving
the laird of Drumlanricke, who never came in nor submitted
himself, and with him continued Alexander Carlell laird of
Bridekirk, and his son the young laird; I thought it good to
practice some way that we might get some hold or castle
where we might lie near the enemy, and to lie within our own
strength in the night, where we might all lie down together
and all rise together. Thus practising, one Sander Armstrong
son to ill Will. Armstrong, came to me and told me he had a
man called John Linton, who was born in the head of
Annerdale, near to Lough-Wood, being the laird Johnston's
chief house, and the said laird and his brother, (being the
Albot of Salside,) were taken prisoners not long before, and
were remaining in England. It was a fair large tower, able
to lodge all our company, with a barnekin, hall, kitchen and
stables, all within the barnekin, and was but kept with two
or three fellows, and as many wenches. He thought it might
be stolen in a morning at the opening of the tower-door,
which I required the said Sanders to practice, and as he
thought good, either myself to go to it, or that he would
take a company and give it a preisse with as much foresight
to make it sure as possible; for if we should make an offer
and not get it, we had lost it for ever. At last it was
agreed that we should go with the whole garrison. We came
there about an hour before day; and the greater part of us
lay close without the barnekin. But about a dozen of men got
over the barnekin wall, and stole close into the house
within the barnekin, took the wenches, and kept them secure
till day-light. And at sun-rising, two men and a woman being
in the tower, one of the men rising in his shirt, and going
to the tower-head, and seeing nothing stir about, he called
on the wench that lay in the tower, and bad her rise and
open the door, and call up them that lay beneath. She so
doing, and opening the iron door, and a wood without it, our
men within the barnekin brake a little too soon to the door,
for the wench perceiving them leaped back into the tower,
and had gotten almost the wood door to, but one got hold of
it so that she could not get it close to; so the skirmish
rose, and we over the barnekin and broke open the wood door,
and she being troubled with the wood door, left the iron
door open; and so we entered and wan the Loughwood, where we
truly found the house well provided for beef salted, malt,
big, havermeal, bread and cheese. I immediately took a short
survey of the house, leaving the same in charge with Sander
Armstrong, and giving strict command no man to imbezzle or
take away any manner of thing until my Lord Wharton's mind
and pleasure should be known. I rid to his Lordship at
Carlisle, who witted me in the King's Majesty's name to keep
that house to his Grace's use, and to ride to Moffet, four
miles off, and make proclamation according to the effect of
the proclamation made before in Dumfries: and whoso did
others wrong, either by theft, oppression, or otherwise,
that I should order it amongst them, and in all weighty
causes to refer to his Lordship and his council; which I
accomplished to the utmost of my power; and so continued
there for some time in the service of the King's Majesty as
Captain of that house, and Stewart of Annerdale under the
Lord Wharton, in which time we rode daily and nightly upon
the King's Majesty's enemies; and, among others, soon after
my coming and remaining there, I called certain of the
best-horsed men of the garrison, declaring to them I had a
purpose offered by a Scotsman that would be our guide, and
that it was to burn Lamington, which we did wholly, took
prisoners and won much goods, both malt and sheep, horse and
insight, and brought them to Moffet in the head of
Annerdale, and there distributed it; giving every man an
oath to bring in all his winnings of that journey, wherein
truly the men offended so much their own conscience, very
many loyning and concealing things, which I afterwards
speired out, that after that time my confidence would never
suffer me to minister an oath for this, but that which could
be speired or known to be brought in, and every man to have
a share accordingly.
"After that, I made a road to the head of Clyde by Crawfurth
Castle, where we seiged a great vas[t]it house of James
Douglas, which they held till the men and castle were all
devoured with sword and fire: and so we returned to the
Loughwood, at which place we remained very quietly, and in a
manner in as civil order, both for
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