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20 coast of the continent to the extreme south-east, extended itself westward and northward, till by the end of the same century it occupied something like its present area. Totally unconnected, and even antagonistic in their origin, the encroaching monarchy and the encroaching language met each other on the battle-furrowed banks of the Forth, when the kings of Scotland commenced their attempts upon Lothian. The struggle which ensued ended in a compromise. The Angles of Lothian and Tweeddale accepted the Scottish king and the Scottish name—Scotland and the king of Scots accepted the Angle tongue, and the Anglo-Saxon character. The sovereign ruled as the hereditary descendant of Fergus the son of Ere and the fabulous Gathelus—he reigned because he represented the feelings and sympathies, and was identified with the interests and national spirit, of his Anglo-Saxon subjects.

§ 8. Of the dialect of the North Angles before the tenth century, the remains are scanty. The inscription upon the Euthwell Cross, the most certain specimen afforded by that part of the Northan-hymbra-land now included in Scotland, forms no inconsiderable portion of the whole. The following transcription of that fragment, chiefly after its latest and most eareful editor, Professor Stephens (by whom it is attributed to Cædmon), along with the West Saxon version or paraphrase of the poem from the Codex Vercellensis, shews that already in the seventh century the Northern dialect was distinguished from the Southern by some of the chief characteristics which afterwards defined them.