It was not, indeed, a "rising of the countryside," such as took place when the English were reported to be over the border, when the beacon fires were thrown west from Criffel to Screel, from Screel to Cairnharrow, and then tossed northward by the three Cairnsmuirs and topmost Merrick far over the uplands of Kyle, till from the sullen brow of Brown Carrick the bale fire set the town drum of Ayr beating its alarming note.

Still this muster was a day on which every Douglas vassal must ride in mail with all his spears behind him--or bide at home and take the consequences.
All the night from distant parishes and outlying valleys horsemen had been riding, clothed in complete panoply of mail.

These were the knights, barons, freeholders, who owned allegiance to the house of Douglas.

Each lord was followed by his appointed tail of esquires and men-at-arms; behind these dense clusters of heavily armed spearmen marched steadily along the easiest paths by the waterside and over the lower hill passes.

Light running footmen slung their swords over their backs by leathern bandoliers and pricked it briskly southwards over the bent so brown.