But what endeared him the most to his Favour, and was indeed the Masterpiece of his Service, was his adventuring into Scotland; a desperate Attempt, and performed not without the manifest hazarding of his Life; where he so cunningly demeaned himself, and insinuated himself so far into their Favour, as he got a sight of their Records and Original Letters; a Copy of which he brought with him to England, and presented the same to King Edward the Fourth:  Out of these he collected a History of the several Submissions, and sacred Oaths of Fealty openly taken from the time of King Athelstane, by the Kings of Scotland; to the Kings of England, for the Crown of Scotland; a Work which was afterwards made much use of by the English; although the Scotch Historians stickle with might and main, that such Homage was performed only for the County of Cumberland, and some parcel of Land their Kings had in England South of Tweed.

Now as his Prose was very useful, so was his Poetry as much delightful; writing a Chronicle of our English Kings from Brute to King Edward the Fourth, and that in English Verse; for which he was accounted one cf the chiefest Poets of his time; being so exactly done, that by it Dr. Fuller adjudges him to have drunk as deep a draught of Helicon as any in his Age:  And another saying, that by the fame he deservedly claimed a Seat amongst the chiefest of the Poetical Writers.

But to give you the better view of his Poetical Abilities, I shall present you with some of his Chronicle-Verse, concerning the sumptuous Houshold kept by King Richard the Second, cap. 193.

  Truly I herd Robert Ireleffe say,
  Clarke of the Green-cloth, and that to the houshold
  Came every daye, forth most part alway
  Ten thousand folke, by his Messes told,
  That followed the hous aye as thei wold. 
  And in the Kechin, three hundred Seruitours,
  And in eche Office many Occupiours.

  And Ladies faire, with their Gentleweomen
  Chamberers also and Lauenders,
  Three hundred of theim were occupied then;
  There was great pride emong the Officers,
  And of all men far passing their compeers;
  Of rich arraye, and much more costeus,
  Then was before, or sith, and more precious, &c.

This our Poet Harding was living Anno 1461. being then very aged; and is judged to have survived not long after.

* * * * *

ROBERT FABIAN.