The Petition of The Gray Horse, Auld Dunbar  The Petition Of The Gray Horse, Auld Dunbar is an appeal by the Scots poet William Dunbar to his patron King James IV of Scotland in which he requests a new gown to mark Christmas. In the poem Dunbar presents himself as an old, worn-out horse in need of a horsecloth to keep him warm during Yule. The equine metaphor is sustained throughout the poem. By comparing human affairs with those of horses, Dunbar depicts his career as being one of longstanding, loyal but poorly rewarded service to the King. A royal gift of clothes, known as livery, was seen as a sign of special favour. It would have been valued for the prestige gained as well as for the garments themselves. The petition may well have been successful. On two occasions Dunbar was recorded as receiving Christmas gifts of clothing from the King. The poem is found in the Reidpeth Manuscript and as a fragment in the Maitland Folio Manuscript. The poet opens with an appeal to the King which will occur as a refrain throughout the work,  A "yald" was a worn-out horse or jade and the phrase "yowllis yald" was apparently a disparaging term for someone dressed shabbily at Yule. He claims that, even if he were old, jaded cart-horse, put out to pasture in distant Strathnaver, he would still be given a horsecloth ("hous") and stall at Christmas. He then claims to be a dutiful old horse who has been driven away from the stalls by "great court horses" to subsist on moss in the open. The white-maned Dunbar complains that while other horses were fed with bran he had to make do with grass. The poet is clearly alluding to a career at court which he believes has not been properly rewarded. The metaphor continues throughout the poem,  The "stable" might represent the Church office which Dunbar often pleaded for. He insists that, although court life has worn him down and made him "an over-burdened mule", he would be "spurred-on in every joint" if he could wear "trappings" at Yule. Dunbar concludes by recording that, although he may not be treated like "chargers in silk trappings" he would be content with a new "horsecloth" to protect him against the Christmas cold. Dunbar's petition is accompanied by a postscript entitled "Respontio Regis" or "The King's Response".